HCI GATE Programme

Our GATE Programme

GATE is an initiative that is started in 2013 to provide a holistic education for our gifted and talented students.

Extended and Accelerated Advanced-level curriculum

The core of the GATE programme builds on the foundation of a Science-based A-level curriculum. As GATE students, you will have further opportunities to extend you passions and talents in subject areas through enriched lessons in their day to day class.

Students in GATE will also be grouped together based on their passions and will have seminar-style lessons for one of their subjects. The seminar style lesson will give students opportunities to share and spar ideas with peers and tutors and in the process hone their ability and skills in critical thinking, problem solving.

Classroom based learning will therefore allow students to have more hands-on and inquiry based learning opportunities. Tutors will have also opportunities to allow students to have greater autonomy to learn at their own pace and in the process inculcate habits required for life-long learning.

Useful Links

Advanced-Level Syllabus

Stanford International Youth Program

National Association for Gifted Children

Passion-driven Electives and Enrichment

Every GATE student will be required to participate in elective activities, courses, workshops and enrichment beyond the core curriculum to allow them to deepen their passion in their areas of choice as well as explore new interests.

These electives and enrichment will be conducted by experts from the fields like professors from universities, established professionals and our own specially-trained in-housed teachers. There will also be opportunities for students to initiate, organise and/or conduct activities or courses, honing their leadership and organisational skills.

Some examples of some electives and enrichment workshops that were conducted for previous cohorts of GATE students include:

Creative Problem Solving in Math and Science (NUS, Prof. Leong HW)
Basic Mathematical Modelling of the Physical World using Differential Equations (NTU, Dr Ho SY)
Food Chemistry (HCI, Ms. Jolene Tan)
Fundamental Concepts in Photonics (HCI, Dr Erkan)
Introduction to Law and Singapore Constitution (Templars Law LLC, Mr Steven Lam)
Financial Literacy (Citi-SMU)
Introduction to Multiplatform Game Programming (Dr John Preston Doran, DigiPen Institute of Technology)
iPhone Programming (HCI, Mr Loh TW)
A short course on Theory of Knowledge (HCI, Dr Melvyn Lim)
Chemistry and Art (HCI, Mrs Cheng ML)
Women in Technology and Design Workshop (Singapore University of Technoogy and Design)

Beyond these electives and enrichment, students are strongly encouraged to partake in the wide variety of activities and programmes that the college has to offer including research under the CenTad programme and H3 electives offered by both external universities and in school.

Overseas Summer and Cultural Exchange Programmes

Students can choose to partake in overseas summer and cultural exchange programmes to extend their learning beyond the classroom. These summer programmes will also give students opportunities to interact with other talented students from around the world as well as explore further educational opportunities abroad.

Example of summer programmes our GATE students have participated in so far are:

Stanford International Youth Programme (California, USA)
REACH Cambridge Summer Programme (Cambridge, UK)
Yale Young Global Scholars (Connecticut, USA)
Exchange programme with Dali High School (Taiwan)

Through these customised talent development programmes, individuals are empowered to take ownership of their own learning, broaden their passion, and deepen their mastery.

The GATE programme only admits students within the the top 20% of each cohort. It is provides extension, enrichment and acceleration beyond the A-level syllabus through its unique curriculum.

Key features and focus of the programme include:

Extended and Accelerated Advanced-level curriculum
Passion-driven electives and enrichment
Overseas Summer Programmes
Character Development Programmes

Character Development Programmes

A unique feature of our programme is that it not only focuses on the academics but on the development of the child as a whole. With the aim of developing talents and leaders for our nation, GATE students must possess the right values, morals and hearts of compassion, as well as play their role of a global citizen.

All GATE students will be strongly encouraged and provided with the opportunities to partake and initiate local and global community outreach projects, and service-learning initiatives.

Some examples of such programmes and initiatives that the past cohorts of GATE students partook include:

Green Fingers Project (in collaboration with Singapore Botantical Gardens)
- This project was offered as a Biology elective. Through the active role of tree planting and caring and understanding the different plant needs for the plants in the Botantical Gardens, students get to play their part for environment conservation.

Laser Tag
- This activity not only gave a chance for students of GATE to bond together but also let them learn the values of collaboration and teamwork.

Leadership Opportunities
- Students will have opportunities to further their leadership skills by taking up posts in class committees, GATE student committee, and initiation of electives and special projects.
Dialogue in the Dark
- This activity allowed students a first-hand experience of some of the challenges the visually handicapped experience in their daily lives, hence enabling them to better empathise with the visually handicapped.

Reach Cambridge Summer Programme

Yale Young Global Scholar