Kowabunga! Global has signed an agreement on 27 August 2022 with Singapore-based technology firm HelloHolo to develop various Educational Technology applications.
The company will use the applications in areas such as virtual and augmented realities and provide an immersive, hands-on and interactive learning environment for young and adult learners in sustainability.
NTUC Deputy Secretary-General Desmond Tan witnessed the signing of the agreement at Kowabunga! Global’s new office at Woods Square in Woodlands.
The High Commissioner of Malaysia Dato’ Dr Azfar Mohamad Mustafar also graced the event.
Mr Tan said the student care sector is crucial as it allows parents to participate in the labour force.
The Straits Times quoted a Ministry of Social and Family Development spokesperson that some 40,000 children are currently enrolled in registered student care centres across schools and the community, up from about 27,000 in 2016.
According to the latest population census, the growth is in tandem with the increase in dual-income households. But Mr Tan added that more could be done to professionalise the sector to attract and retain workers.
The average salary of a student care centre teacher is between $1,800 and $2,200 a month.
Mr Tan explained that uncertainties over following contract tenders have made centre operators struggle to prioritise the training of employees and raise their salaries.
He said: “NTUC, together with the Education Services Union (ESU), will continue to play a part to work with stakeholders such as Kowabunga! to uplift and professionalise this sector as we work towards better skills frameworks and qualifications to raise the standards in the industry.”
Kowabunga! has been a unionised company under the ESU since 2020.
The company has worked closely with NTUC to improve the livelihoods of educators, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under a Company Training Committee agreement with ESU, the Kowabunga! management and the union pledged to ensure that employees are equipped with the necessary skills for an increasingly demanding employment environment.
The company also embarked on the Operation and Technology Roadmap Programme, comprising workshops facilitated by NTUC’s Industry Training and Transformation Officers.
The roadmap programme facilitated Kowabunga!’s planning of long-term business goals and strategies and allocating of human capital and resources.
The company also works closely with NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) to recruit more teachers. Kowabunga! has since participated in two career fairs this year organised by e2i and is planning a dedicated recruitment drive by the fourth quarter.
