Teachers In Singapore

We learned a lot about math in Singapore and we have a lot to share. Teachers make a bigger difference than books or buildings, and teachers are big part of Singapore's success. The teachers in Singapore are very well trained and prepared to teach. They are expected to complete 100 hours of professional development compared to 40 hours for Texas teachers. All teachers, even for the youngest grades, have many more hours of college credit for math. US education degrees are usually pretty light on the math requirement.
In all of the schools that we visited, the teachers seemed very committed to the students. Most stayed late after school for tutorials or extra-curricular activities. We didn't talk to anyone that felt burned out by teaching like we often notice at home.

All of the teachers, except for 1st or maybe 2nd grade, are departmentalized, so each teacher teaches one subject to several different classes. The students are grouped in classes by ability level, but all teachers will teach to the high and low students. There are no teachers just for GT or regular kids. I believe this builds a stringer sense of unity on the campus, as teachers work to help all of the kids, not just "my class."
The Singaporean teachers move from class to class to teach while the kids stay put. The teachers, therefore, don't have their own classroom. Instead, they have a staff area with office-style cubicles. I think this is a great idea, because it helps teachers work together and collaborate. It's much harder to work with a teacher on the other side of the school, but so much easier if your desk is right next to the other 6th grade math teachers.
The teachers have excellent resources and textbooks to work from, but they create many tests and lessons collaboratively. For example, end-of-term exams are written by the teachers as a team. Those tests get approved by the head math teacher and principal.
There also seems to be more accountability and review of teachers. Teachers get the usual observations by the principal, but they also participate in peer observations every year. The head math teacher and principal will also check the students activity and work books to make sure that everybody is doing the work that they're supposed to be doing. There is also a teacher counselor for teachers that are having trouble with students.
-Morgan