There are many challenges for Singapore, one of which is to transform Singapore society for the knowledge-based economy. With only human capital and no natural resources, the Singaporean government has, thus, invested heavily in education, particularly in key areas such as curriculum review and development, pedagogy and assessment reform, and teacher training and professional development. Numerous new initiatives and reforms have resulted such as Thinking School Learning Nation (1997), Teach Less Learn More (2004), Curriculum 2015 (2008), Primary Education Review and Implementation (2009), and Secondary Education Review and Implementation (2010). The centrality of teachers as the key agent of change in these educational reforms cannot be disputed. In rethinking beliefs and practices, teachers need to be "empowered, reflective and active learners, rather than passive respondents to external dictates" (Broadfoot, 2001, p. 6).
This paper reports the results of a survey of Singaporean primary school teachers' beliefs, instructional practices and perception of students. The study examined how school-, classroom- and student-level factors contribute to key educational outcomes. Examples of school-level factors are leadership and school culture, cooperation among staff, and opportunities for professional development; examples of classroom-level factors are pedagogical practices, classroom environment, and opportunity to learn; and examples of student-level factors are confidence, curiosity, and self-directed learning. Data were collected through a teacher survey that had 28 scales measuring teachers' instructional practices and beliefs as well as teachers' perceptions of their students. For most items, the teachers responded on a 5-point rating scale. More than 800 teachers in 49 schools participated in the self-reported teacher survey.
Results revealed that, in terms of their instructional practices and beliefs, the differences between lower primary and upper primary teachers were small at the scale levels but there were large differences in specific items that warrant attention. Differences were also found between the lower primary and upper primary teachers' perceptions of their students. The implications of the findings from the survey will be presented with regard to improving the quality of classroom instruction, as well as with relevance and implications for international research on instructional practices and beliefs in primary grades.