Dyslexia Awareness Week | USW celebrates a decade with prestigious educational partner

The University of South Wales (USW) is celebrating a 10-year partnership with Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) Academy, an international leader in the field of Special Educational Needs (SEN) and Additional Learning Needs (ALN).

DAS Academy is a non-profit organisation and a Private Education Institution (PEI) registered with the Committee for Private Education (CPE), an agency under the SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG). Formerly the training services arm of the Dyslexia Association of Singapore, DAS Academy was officially incorporated in 2010 to provide training services for parents, caregivers, and educators to be well-equipped with skills in supporting learners with dyslexia and other commonly co-occurring Special Educational Needs (SEN).

DAS also delivers an equivalent version of one of USW’s postgraduate education courses, MA ‘SEN/ALN (Additional Learning Needs. The course is for those working with children or young people whose development is affected by difficulties in learning or by behaviour. To date, there have been 136 Postgraduate Certificate, 11 Postgraduate Diploma and 31 Master of Arts graduates from the collaborative programme, each equipped to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those they serve.

The DAS Academy programme, conducted from Singapore, has proven to be a beacon of inclusive educational practices tailored to the Asian context. By merging high-achieving educational environments, bringing together high-quality, evidence-based practices from the East and the West, it has raised the bar for SEN/ALN education in the region and draws students from China, Philippines, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and various other countries.

Over the past decade, this partnership has been marked by innovation, dedication, and a shared commitment to advancing dyslexia awareness and education. Looking ahead, USW and DAS Academy are poised to build on this remarkable foundation, exploring new horizons in SEN/ALN education and continuing to be advocates for dyslexia awareness on the global stage.

Dr June Siew, Head of DAS Academy, said: “We are proud to partner with USW, who are well-established in SEN practices and offer a robust and pedagogically sound SEN framework. When the partnership started, Singapore was a newcomer to inclusion. We needed an authoritative voice in SEN and we found that at USW.”

Dr Matthew Hutt, USW’s Head of Professional Learning in Education, said: “The partnership with DAS is our biggest and most significant educational partnership. Internally, our partnership with DAS is often held up as an example of a successful, long-term partnership.

“Singapore is admired for its innovative educational system, with a great deal of international interest, so linking with this high-level SEN practice is important to us."