Contents
- Background and Key Insights
- Introduction to Cultivating Values in Youth
- Research Methodology
- Research Findings
- What Does This Mean for Teaching and Learning?
- Related Links
- Further Readings
- Research Team
Research Participants
- A total of 66 religious leaders, early childhood leaders, and teachers
- Preschools
Phase of Education
Preschool
Subjects
Values Education
Download Resources
Poster for Constructing Values
NEL Portal Research Bites Article
Research Led By

Principal Investigator
Learn more at https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/cris/rp/rp02371
Principal Investigator
Click here to learn more!
Click here to learn more!
Topics
Knowledge Resource Bank
Cultivating Values from Young
What does it take to teach our children to be virtuous people, and how can we help them in this process? In this KRB on Cultivating Values from Young, we explore why values are important, share key findings, and suggest an approach to values education.

Key Insights
- Cultivating Values from Young found that the concept of personhood is crucial in cultivating and nurturing values in children.
- The study also found that it was crucial for educators to model values to their students.
- However, teachers first needed to adopt, practice, and believe in these values.
- If educators model these values without truly believing in them, it will come across as inauthentic.
- A values-oriented culture can be fostered in preschool centres by:
- Implementing centre-wide programmes.
- Having classroom projects and community partners.
- Using the centre environment as a medium for values education.
- Professional development for both early childhood leaders and teachers can:
- Enable the sharing of good practices.
- Allow them to acquire strategies and pedagogies for values education.
Introduction to Cultivating Values from Young
Research Methodology
Research Findings
What Does This Mean for Teaching and Learning?
Related Links
- Teachers’ Perspectives in Values Education
- Character and Citizenship Education in Singapore
- Importance of CCE in Early Childhood Education
- Nurturing Early Learners: A Curriculum Framework for Preschool Education in Singapore (NEL Framework)Literacy as Communication
- Break Out A.E7 The What and How of Teaching Values to Preschool Children
Further Readings
For educators interested in the research behind Cultivating Values in Youths, you may refer to:
- Values Education in Singapore’s Early Childhood Context (Alternative link)
- More than good behaviour: developing personhood in early childhood education
- NEL Research Bites
Research Project
Research Team
- To learn more about this research, please contact Dr Sandra Wu at sandra.wu@nie.edu.sg.
Principal Investigator
- Dr Wu Pinhui Sandra, Lecturer, Policy, Curriculum & Leadership, NIE, NTU.
- This study was funded by the Education Research Funding Programme, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (project no. OER 06/22 WPS). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Singapore MOE and NIE.
This knowledge resource was extracted and reconstructed from the published materials from the research team by Ms Shee Yi Xuan, Katherine with input from Dr Sandra Wu and Ms Lorraine Ow and presented on 24 January 2025.