MEDIA RELEASE

PUSHING SALES THROUGH PUSHCARTS

Entrepreneurship Education Programme at Republic Polytechnic aimed at aspiring entrepreneurs

Singapore, 7 November 2007 – This year's Youthepreneur National Pushcart Challenge participants will receive more coaching than last year's participants on how to start their own business using pushcarts.  It will be the first nation wide pushcart competition.

To put them in top form for the competition, 105 secondary school students will attend an Entrepreneurship Education Programme (EEP) at Republic Polytechnic (RP) where they will acquire business management basics such as situational analysis, idea generation, marketing, sales, accounting and operations.

Mr Tan Huan Peow, Director, Centre for Innovation and Enterprise said, "The programme trains them to develop a simple business plan to follow through progressively in the most effective and efficient way possible. Lessons will be conducted in an interactive manner and using RP's own unique teaching methodology – Problem Based Learning or PBL.  Students will be given a real life business problem to solve and at the end of the day, they will reflect on what they have learnt for that day."

Ms Angela Chew, a teacher from Hillgrove Secondary School who praised the programme, says, "The EEP gave students the opportunity to learn practical skills in setting up a pushcart business.  It also enabled them to put those skills into practice in an authentic learning environment."

"The EEP has helped raise my students' level of awareness and interest in entrepreneurship,"

added Mr. Koh Beng Chuan,  who teaches at St. Andrew's Secondary School.

The competition organised by the Centre for Innovation and Enterprise, Republic Polytechnic and supported by National Library Board (NLB), will be held this Sunday, 11 November 2007 at National Library Building (NLB) at Victoria Street and the students will be judged based on their creativity, business idea feasibility, visual display and customer relationship performance.  

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For more information, please contact:

Emma Sue (Ms)
Director, QUOTIENT SG
Mobile: 9735 7760  Tel : 6222 8968
Email: emma@ibrand.com.sg

Lisa Koh (Ms)
Administrative Officer
Office of Corporate Communications, Republic Polytechnic
DID: (65) 31001685                                  
Email: lisa_koh@rp.sg

About Republic Polytechnic

The first educational institution in Singapore to adopt the Problem-Based Learning approach for all its diploma programmes, Republic Polytechnic has five schools and two centres offering twenty nine diploma courses in Information & Communications Technology, Engineering, Applied Science, Technology for the Arts, Sports, Health & Leisure, Innovation and Enterprise, and Culture and Communication. Republic Polytechnic is committed to nurturing innovation and entrepreneurial learning in an environment that develops problem-solving process skills and a life-long learning attitude. Its holistic, broad-based curriculum, covering culture, enterprise development and cognitive processes, prepares students for an active and meaningful role in society. Republic Polytechnic strives for excellence by achieving various national and international accreditations, including People Developer Standards, ISO9001, ISO14001, OHSAS 18001, Singapore Quality Class, Singapore Innovation Class, and the Singapore Health Awards (Gold). For more information, visit http://www.rp.sg