Project 1: School and Career Aspirations

Navigating and Negotiating Pathways through Secondary School and Beyond

PI: Dr Chee Yeen Melvin Chan

Co-PI(s): Dr Lu-Ming Trivina KANG, Assoc Prof Gregory Arief D LIEM

Project Objectives

• To examine adolescent precursors of significant milestones from secondary schooling and beyond.

• To investigate the diverse pathways students take during secondary education.

Study Focus

In examining the nature and drivers of different pathways, key predictors and outcomes will be examined and monitored over time to identify which constructs:
  • facilitate or hinder progress,
  • have compensatory effects (i.e., where one resource substitutes in the absence of another) and
  • have long-term consequences

Key Constructs of Interest

Cognitive outcomes
  • characteristics of students that affect performance and learning (e.g., academic achievement, social and cooperative skills, complex communication)
Regulatory factors
  • self-awareness attributes such as students’ sense of self-efficacy, motivation, adaptability, curiosity, and openness to diversity
Affective factors
  • Traits related to moods, feelings and attitudes
  • E.g., Emotional competence
Students’ identity, values, and character

Latest Updates

Project 1, Project 3, Project 5

DREAMS on the Global Stage: Presentations Across 4 Continents (2025)

This year, the DREAMS team has been actively sharing our research with international communities across Asia, Europe, Oceania and the United States. This range of presentations reflects the breadth of our work. From exploring adolescent friendships to examining career readiness and socio-emotional growth, our investigators have brought insights from Singapore’s youth to the global stage. Our team values the opportunities to share these insights while engaging in global conversations on adolescent development. Here’s a look...

Lead Project, Project 1, Project 2, Project 3, Project 4, Project 5, Project 6, Project 7

Principals & School Leaders Sharing 2025

On 26 August 2025, we welcomed over 100 attendees from our DREAMS partner schools, along with MOE representatives and the DREAMS research team, for an engaging afternoon of sharing and discussion on the project's latest findings. The session began with Prof Kenneth Poon, Lead Principal Investigator (PI) of DREAMS, who shared broad insights from our study...

Lead Project, Project 1

Inaugural DREAMS Parent Webinar

Prof Kenneth Poon, lead Principal Investigator (PI), opened the webinar by highlighting the DREAMS project and its importance in advancing global research and shaping future practices and policies. Dr. Trivina Kang, co-lead PI, emphasized the value of participating in qualitative interviews as a platform for amplifying the voices of students and parents. Dr. Melvin Chan, co-lead PI, shared his findings on career and education exploration...

Project 1, Project 3

Research and Management Information Division (MOE) Learning Day

On 27 August 2024, two of our Principal Investigators presented key insights from their research at the Ministry of Education's Research and Management Information Division (RMID) Learning Day, contributing to the ongoing conversation on adolescent development and education in Singapore....

Project 1, Project 2

Straits Times: Teacher-parent partnership important in motivating secondary school students

SINGAPORE – When parents and teachers communicate and work together, students feel more supported and motivated in their studies. This is according to the findings of two studies by the National Institute of Education (NIE) released in May about how parents and teachers impact students’ academic motivation. Dr Wong Zi Yang, an NIE research fellow, led one study to understand how support from parents and teachers, which allowed students to make their own choices and...

Project 1

Straits Times: Adolescent boys feel more supported by parents, compared with adolescent girls

SINGAPORE - When Ms Tunitha Reku, 44, talks to her 15-year-old son, he is happy to give his mother just the gist of what happened in his school. However, it is different with her daughters, who are 13 and 14. “Whatever Leshawn discusses with me is usually on the surface; he doesn’t go into details. But my daughters like to have detailed discussions. So there’s definitely more in-depth discussions with them,” said Ms Tunitha....

On This Page