Centre for Research in Child Development

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Centre for Research in Child Development

Advancing the science of child development to improve care, intervention, school experience, and policies for children from birth through their primary years and beyond

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We conduct multidisciplinary longitudinal studies, intervention studies and research syntheses to advance child development. By disseminating findings and designing evidence-based practices, we enable families, educators and policymakers to create nurturing environments for our children.

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The Centre for Research in Child Development (CRCD) is a major centre for research into children’s development and learning in Singapore. We are uniquely positioned within an ecosystem of research, teacher education and government agencies dedicated to education and child development, which allows us to bridge the gap between research, policy and school practices.

Our work is driven by four key strategies:

1. Conducting large-scale and interdisciplinary research that covers the diversity of child development in Singapore.
2. Collaborating with the ministries, agencies and operators in the early childhood sector and community partners.
3. Integrating findings from local and international studies to inform policies and teacher professional development.
4. Translating findings into actionable insights for families, childcare centres, preschools and communities.

Our Research

Research on child development often fails to replicate across national contexts. In Singapore, where cultural and linguistic diversity is deeply intertwined with socio-economic factors, global findings may not fully explain how our children learn and grow within their distinctive environments. Our research elucidates the mechanisms linking home, school and cultural-linguistic factors to child development through:

Identifying local baseline expectations of child growth across developmental domains such as cognitive and socioemotional development, literacy and numeracy; and the interplay between these domains

Identifying aspects of home and school environments that impact child developmental domains and outcomes such as cognitive & socioemotional functioning, well-being and academic performance

Developing and evaluating experimental interventions and teacher-professional development programmes to provide insights into the mechanisms of child learning and development

Research Foci

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Cognitive Development

Ability to process information, understand and respond, as well as role of caregivers in supporting learning development

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Socioemotional Development

Ability to understand, experience, express and manage emotions and develop meaningful relationships with others

Language Development

Bilingual and biliteracy development, and language and literacy skills development

Mathematical Development

Numerical reasoning and how children build foundations of mathematics learning

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Pedagogy and Teacher Development

Teaching and teacher-training resources for professions in the early childhood sector

Parenting

Child-raising practices across cultures and socio-economic standings

Special Needs & At-Risk Children

Assessment, screening and intervention tools, and support programmes for children with special educational needs (SEN) or at risk of poor outcomes

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Assessment and Psychometrics

Localised measures and assessment tools to better evaluate developmental capacities and processes

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Research Database

Pooling and linking data across multiple studies to maximise use, value and impact of research data

Highlighted Projects

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First large-scale comprehensive longitudinal study on bilingual & biliteracy proficiency

Growth in Bilingual & Biliteracy Proficiency: Environmental, Individual & Experiential Factors (GiBBER)

The GIBBER project tracks children from Kindergarten 1 to Primary 4, examining their developmental trajectories in English and Mother Tongue Language proficiencies, the factors affecting individual differences, and the effectiveness of interventions in biliteracy development.

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Longitudinal study of child outcomes across early and middle childhood years

Singapore Kindergarten Impact Project - Follow Up (SKIP-Up)

SKIP UP explores the predictors of key skills and well-being outcomes for children as they exit middle childhood. It examines academic skills, executive functioning, self-regulation, mindset, resilience, and school engagement; shedding light on the factors that contribute to positive outcomes for children.

Large-scale cross-sequential study on very early child development

Beginning Early: SingaPore’s Ongoing Study starting in Infancy of Twenty-first-century-skills, Individual differences, and Variance in the Environment (BE POSITIVE)

BE POSITIVE examines individual differences in development of 21 CS's (e.g., emotional regulation, communication, perspective taking, planning, and flexibility) from birth to 4 years of age.