Welcome to my page.
I am Dawn Fung, the author of Homeschooling in Singapore: An Education. I have spoken at international and local events. I homeschool my three children. I am based in Singapore.
My Life’s Work
My dream is to see education reform in Singapore, where every child, parent and educator have full rights and access to great education. I have grown the dream into a full fledged 30-year manifesto :
I am quite sure this is a work that I will carry to the end of life. Join me if the work resonates with you as a parent, an educator, a student or an individual with a heart for children. Do one of these things :
- Download a higher resolution poster and put it in your home as a reminder,
- Share with others the message,
- Read my posts on Facebook to understand more of how I think and engage with like-minded people who care.
- Engage my services below if you need my help.
I would love to hear from you.
My Services
Education reform begins in the family, and great education is centred around people care. Within education are two big areas: learning and teaching. So there is the learner and there is the teacher. Great education is taking into consideration the needs of both the learner and the teacher in every context of education – at home, work or play. In the things I do, learning and teaching are customised to the individual who is an involved collaborator of that process. The process of great education is slow, careful, useful, beautiful. Like a skilled craftsman at work, great education brings forth wisdom, the highest form of lifelong learning. It leaves no person behind. It is ever mindful of a journey that takes patience, courage and love to develop.
These are the ways I advocate and initiate education reform: I teach and I offer consultation. Teaching and consultation are huge umbrellas that overlap. I see these two practices organised around mentoring, coaching, instructing, creating. I work with people of all ages – parents and their children from preschoolers to adults. My desire is to see individuals grow in their potential and in the direction of their gifting. My approaches include building from the ground up communities who take the vision of great education seriously, and creating content – books, events, projects, writings – that reflect my passion.
I founded Homeschool Singapore and I was one of the key leaders in the Singapore homeschooling landscape in the early 2010s-2020s. Under my leadership, homeschooling in Singapore gained visibility in Singapore through the work on our website. We raised the profile of homeschoolers through community projects with partners and media stories. Then Covid-19 hit. Homeschooling became a global phenomenon. Its pedagogical flexibility has gained traction in Singapore for families who want alternative education pathways. For non-homeschooling families, homeschooling can offer good ideas for their education beyond school and into work life. I highly recommend interested members of the public and homeschoolers to get in touch with the current team at Homeschool Singapore to grow its potential and to see how it can contribute more to the educational needs around us.
I run Little U, a microschool consultancy with a strong team of parent-educators, where we focus on personalising care for parenting, teaching and children’s education for all. The outcome is to equip families for success in life. I believe success does have social indicators but these are not grades. Success should be evident in mastery of technical and life skills. Little U is a member of Mastery Consortium Transcript where we award students with a final transcript or learning record in their journey towards mastery of life skills and core competencies in Critical Thinking, Creativity, Collaboration and Communication. I recommend Little U for families who feel stuck with their current situation, and wish to develop their personalised style with some structure and guidance. You may check out the current Little U Prospectus here.
Outside of Little U, I provide consultation to individuals and groups with a unique unschooling/homeschooling approach. You may book me for a personalised consultation.
My fees :
$150/hour for individuals and couples
$250/hour for non-profit groups and organisations
$350/hour for corporate groups
All fees are in SGD. The consultation usually takes place face to face. Zoom will be arranged for those who are based overseas or unable to make the in-person meeting.
My Book
My book Homeschooling in Singapore: An Education (2021) has been well received. It is read by academics, educators, parents, and even homeschooling students. It has been termed “a bible for homeschoolers”. One curriculum specialist and ex-MOE principal said “every page is worth the read”.
My book is endorsed by two professors :
“Singapore’s education system has been critically acclaimed around the world as being ‘world-class.’ Why, then, do a small minority of parents choose, instead, to homeschool their children? Homeschooling in Singapore: An Education introduces us to the little understood phenomenon of homeschooling in Singapore. Dawn Fung provides insight into the diversity that characterises homeschoolers by relating her personal experiences as well as those of other homeschooling parents. This book raises intriguing questions about the fundamental purposes of education that are instructive for parents, teachers, students and policymakers.” – Dr Jason Tan, Associate Professor of Policy, Curriculum & Leadership at NIE
“This is the first book to examine the homeschooling scene in Singapore extensively. It presents a treasure trove of information about homeschooling and homeschoolers, highlighting the adaptive qualities of homeschoolers who function in a coercive environment where suffering together through the education system is a rite of passage to being Singaporean. Dawn Fung has done remarkably well to capture the evolution of homeschooling in our city-state as well as the struggles, negotiations, and aspirations of homeschooling parents for themselves and for the future generations. As much as Homeschooling in Singapore: An Education speaks to the local education system, it is essentially global in outlook as seen in the diverse curriculum and pedagogical approaches embraced. This book is a must read for both specialists and the general public alike who are interested in the education landscape in Singapore and the innovative approaches to learning adopted by its citizenry.” – Kamaludeen Mohamed Nasir, Associate Professor of Sociology at NTU
If you are interested to get a copy, there are some copies left with the publisher from this link. Otherwise, you may borrow from the National Library in Singapore.
My Portfolio
BUSINESSES
Little U (registered 2021)
ParentED International (registered 2021)
SPEAKING
2023 – Panel at Doyobi’s Learn and Play Family Day (April 15)
2023 – Homeschooling the Early Years by Tiny Play Club (April 15)
2023 – The Future of Parenting Summit (April 11-13)
2022 – Homeschool Convention 2022 – Asia Edition
2021 – The C.E. Talk (July 10)
2021 – Quality Learning Conference, Taiwan (June 18-20)
2021 – Homeschool Convention, Singapore (April 9)
2020 – Homeschooling Conference (July 13-19)
2020 – CONNECT Homeschooling and Intentional Parenting Summit (July 3-5)
2020 – Homeschool Global Summit (June 29- July 8)
2019 – Philippine Homeschool Convention
2019 – Homeschool Global Summit
2017 – Homeschool Convention, Singapore
MENTORING
2021 – present – ParentED.sg (Co-Founder)
2021 – 2022 – Homeschool Alumni Start Up Team
2020 – 2022 – The Socially Awkward Podcast
2018 – present – Little U (Founder)
2013 – 2021 – HomeschoolSingapore.sg (Founder, Organiser)
ORGANISING
2022 – Homeschool Convention 2022 – ASIA EDITION (under the Homeschool Alumni SG)
2021, Dec 1 – ParentED.sg Festival 2021
2020 – Homeschool E-Convention, Singapore (with Mark Lim)
2019 – Homeschool Convention, Singapore
2018 – Homeschool Convention, Singapore
2017 – Homeschool Convention, Singapore
TEACHING
2018 – present – Little U (preschool, primary, teens, tertiary, families)
2013 – present – co-ops
WRITING
2022 – 100 Days of Wisdom
2021 – Homeschooling in Singapore: An Education (book published by Word Image)
2020 – Parenting The Heart (campaign creation, direction, editing)
2019 – Irrevocable Gifts (book published by The Group)
INTERVIEWS
2023, Jan 20 – “Moving through Reimagining Education with Dawn Fung” by Andreea Gatman for Kubrio
2021, Jul 20 – “Eschewing mainstream educational environments for homeschooling” by Jia Xin Gan for The Home Ground Asia
2021, Jan 11 – With Nicole, Noreen, Nicole, Zul, Pris, Jaylee for their Year 2 Mass Communication, Ngee Ann Polytechnic
2020, Oct 20 – With Jenni Ho-Huan for The Cathedral Podcast
2020, Sep 9 – With Aaron Ng for Focus on the Family’s ParentED Podcast
2020, Jul 2 – With Jenni Ho-Huan for the Cathedral Podcast (written version)
2020, Apr 23 – With Amelia Teng for The Straits Times (full transcript)
2020, Mar 29 – With Venessa Lee for The Straits Times (full transcript)
2019, Oct 21 – With Samantha Ramos-Zaragoza for Metro.Style (full transcript)
2019, Oct 4 – “Step Inside a Homeschool Home“ by The Homeschool Gazette
2018, Sep 26 – With Claudia Jardin for BBC Brasil (full transcript)
2016, Oct 30 – “When School is Right At Home” by Venessa Lee for ST Life
2014, Sep 7 – “Zoo lessons for kids taught at home” by Amelia Teng for ST
MUSIC/SONGWRITING
2020 – Blood & Iron (live performance only)
2013 – Family Song (Chinese)
2013 – The Last Morning (re-release on cassette)
2013 – In the Evening Sun
2009 – The Last Morning
Featured in
2016, Jul 3 – Creative Christians “Arts and Faith: Dawn Fung”
2016, Jun 10 – Ziknation “Dawn Fung – Strange Fire // Live Session Voyage”
2016, Jan 1 – Mackerel “Dawn Fung: Simple Beginnings”