What is so Awesome About Yuying Secondary School | 2026-2027 Edition

Did you know that Yuying Secondary School was founded in 1910 by Singapore’s Hainanese community?

Its early enrolment was just 15 students in 1911.

More than a century later, the school is still doing something very recognisable:

building talent for a changing world.

The current school vision describes every Yuying student as an EAGLE — Enterprising, Adaptable, Gracious, LEaders of the future. Its Applied Learning Programme uses Design Thinking and Critical Design Futures Thinking to solve real-world problems. Its Learning for Life Programme, YUYING C.A.R.E.S., develops Community and Youth Leadership through sustainability, active ageing, inclusivity and advocacy. Yuying was also one of the 28 schools selected to pilot Full Subject-Based Banding from 2020.

So what is so awesome about Yuying Secondary School?

It is the way a 116-year-old school keeps treating adaptation as part of its identity.

Independent eduKateSG profile checked on 4 October 2026. This is not a ranking or school-endorsed publication. Programme details can change; families should use current school and MOE information for cohort-specific decisions.

The Quick Answer: What Makes Yuying Secondary School Stand Out?

A remarkable 1910 heritage. Yuying began as a Chinese-medium school founded by the Hainanese community.
The EAGLE vision is explicitly future-ready. Enterprising, Adaptable, Gracious, LEaders of the future.
The ALP uses Design Thinking and Critical Design Futures Thinking. Students tackle issues such as food waste and food innovation.
YUYING C.A.R.E.S. builds Community Youth Leadership. Students work on sustainability, elderly support, inclusivity and advocacy.
Yuying has deep Full SBB experience. It was one of the 28 pilot schools selected from 2020, with mixed form classes implemented from 2021.
Talent development goes beyond one subject. Scholars and Changemakers programmes develop innovation, leadership and civic-mindedness.

Did You Know? Yuying Began With 15 Students

Yuying Secondary School was founded by the Hainanese community in 1910.

It began at Prinsep Street and later became known as Yock Eng High School.

The school’s detailed Chinese history records just 15 students in 1911.

By the 1930s, enrolment had grown significantly.

In 1941, the school moved to Tanjong Katong Road, only for World War II to disrupt its programme soon after.

Its campus was occupied during the Japanese Occupation.

That history matters.

Yuying has survived war, relocation, language-policy changes and educational reform.

Adaptability is not only a modern slogan here.

What Does “Yuying” Mean?

The Chinese name 育英 carries the idea of nurturing talent.

That is a fitting school name.

Education is not simply sorting ability.

It is developing it.

Every Yuying Student an EAGLE

Yuying’s current vision is:

Every Yuying student an EAGLE – Enterprising, Adaptable, Gracious, LEaders of the future.

The acronym is clever because it combines economic, cognitive, social and leadership qualities.

Enterprising students create value.

Adaptable students change when conditions change.

Gracious students preserve humanity.

Leaders coordinate effort towards a purpose.

Nurturing a Curiosity to Learn and a Heart to Serve

Yuying’s current mission is “Nurturing a Curiosity to Learn and a Heart to Serve.”

This is a strong pairing.

Curiosity keeps the mind open.

Service keeps the learner connected to community.

Knowledge becomes more meaningful when it can improve something for somebody else.

Integrity, Resilience, Respect and Responsibility

The current school values are Integrity, Resilience, Respect and Responsibility.

These four values travel well across school life.

Integrity protects quality.

Resilience supports recovery.

Respect improves collaboration.

Responsibility turns intention into action.

Together, Achieve Personal Excellence

Yuying’s motto is “Together, Achieve Personal Excellence.”

The wording is important.

Together keeps excellence social.

Personal Excellence keeps the standard individual.

The student is not required to become someone else.

She is expected to become a better version of herself.

The ALP: Design Thinking and Futures Thinking

Yuying’s current Applied Learning Programme integrates Design Thinking and Critical Design Futures Thinking.

The goal is creative confidence and critical-thinking competence.

This is more sophisticated than “make a prototype.”

Students are also encouraged to think about future consequences.

What happens if the solution scales?

What new problem might it create?

Who benefits?

Secondary 1 Eco-Innovators With SIT

Yuying works with the Singapore Institute of Technology on a Secondary 1 Eco-Innovators Programme.

Students develop workable solutions to real problems such as food wastage in the canteen.

This is excellent applied learning.

The problem is visible.

The users are real.

The waste is measurable.

The proposed solution has to survive contact with reality.

Secondary 2 Food Innovation With Mr Bean

Yuying’s current Secondary 2 ALP includes a food innovation collaboration with Super Bean International, better known through the Mr Bean brand.

Students explore how soy pulp that might otherwise be discarded can become new food products.

This is a circular-economy lesson in a form teenagers can understand.

Waste becomes input.

Food science meets entrepreneurship.

Innovation meets sustainability.

An eduKateSG Example: One Food-Waste Problem, Many Subjects

The following is an eduKateSG illustration, not a documented Yuying lesson.

Imagine students investigate leftover food from a canteen stall.

Mathematics quantifies waste.

Science investigates preservation and materials.

Design Thinking studies user behaviour.

Business thinking asks whether the solution is viable.

English helps students pitch the idea.

One tray of leftovers becomes a complete interdisciplinary problem.

YUYING C.A.R.E.S.: Community and Youth Leadership

Yuying’s current Learning for Life Programme is YUYING C.A.R.E.S.:

Collaborate. Act. Reflect. Empathise. Serve.

The programme develops students into changemakers through community and youth leadership.

The acronym is a useful learning loop.

Work with people.

Do something.

Think about what happened.

Understand people more deeply.

Serve better next time.

Secondary 1: Sustainability and the Environment

Secondary 1 students focus on sustainability and environmental issues.

Current school information highlights food wastage as one authentic issue.

Students learn to see environmental behaviour as something they can influence.

Secondary 2: Active Ageing and the Elderly

Secondary 2 students apply Design Thinking to understand the needs of elderly people.

Current community partners include organisations serving seniors.

This is leadership with a human centre.

Students do not begin with “What do I want to build?”

They begin with “What does this person need?”

Secondary 3 and 4/5: Advocacy for Inclusivity and Social Causes

Upper-secondary students move further into advocacy and active volunteerism.

The scale increases.

Understand a need.

Serve.

Then advocate for wider awareness and action.

The Yuying Scholars Programme

Yuying’s Scholars Programme develops creative innovators, critical thinkers and civic-minded citizens.

The programme has a strong focus on Design Thinking, STEM and Sustainability Education.

Scholars also receive support for projects and further development.

This gives high-potential learners a deeper runway.

The Changemakers Programme

The Changemakers Programme develops confident speakers, collaborators and compassionate leaders.

It is rooted in Design Thinking and community contribution.

This complements the Scholars Programme nicely.

One stretches innovation.

The other deepens leadership and empathy.

STEM Beyond the Textbook

Yuying’s current STEM ecosystem includes hands-on experiences such as coding drones, using virtual reality in Mathematics contexts and investigating hydrogen fuel cells.

This is useful because abstract learning becomes testable.

Code either flies the drone or it does not.

Hydrogen fuel either produces measurable energy or it does not.

Reality creates feedback.

Full Subject-Based Banding: Yuying Has Pilot Experience

Yuying was one of 28 secondary schools selected to pilot aspects of Full Subject-Based Banding from 2020.

Mixed form classes were implemented from 2021.

This gives the school practical experience with a system that is now national.

The deeper idea is important.

Students can have different strengths in different subjects.

One label should not define the entire learner.

Why Full SBB Fits the EAGLE Identity

Adaptability is already part of the school vision.

Full SBB asks the education system to be adaptable too.

Students can move through different subject levels according to readiness and strength.

The system becomes more granular.

Student Management: Discipline as Education

Yuying’s current student-management philosophy describes discipline as an educative process.

The aim is to develop self-management and good character within a caring and enabling environment.

This is important because discipline should eventually become internal.

The adult should not have to be standing there forever.

What Families Can Borrow From Yuying’s Learning Design

Use real industry problems. Food waste and food innovation make design concrete.
Think about future consequences. Futures thinking strengthens Design Thinking.
Build service progressively. Sustainability, elderly needs and advocacy each require different maturity.
Stretch high-potential learners. Talent needs depth, projects and mentorship.
Think subject by subject. Full SBB makes precise diagnosis more useful than broad labels.
Pair curiosity with service. Learning becomes richer when it improves somebody else’s world.

How Yuying Secondary School Connects to the eduKateSG Singapore Graph

Frequently Asked Questions

When was Yuying Secondary School founded?

The school was founded by the Hainanese community in 1910.

What is Yuying’s current ALP?

An Applied Learning Programme integrating Design Thinking and Critical Design Futures Thinking, with current projects including Eco-Innovators and food innovation.

What is YUYING C.A.R.E.S.?

Collaborate. Act. Reflect. Empathise. Serve. It is the school’s Community and Youth Leadership LLP.

Was Yuying a Full SBB pilot school?

Yes. Yuying was one of 28 schools selected to pilot aspects of Full Subject-Based Banding from 2020, with mixed form classes implemented from 2021.

Official References Checked for the 2026–2027 Edition

So, What Is So Awesome About Yuying Secondary School?

It is the adaptability.

Founded in 1910.

Still redesigning learning in 2026.

Think about the future.

Design for real people.

Serve the community.

And keep becoming a better version of yourself.