The tuition business in Singapore has always been an area of interest, with many parents sending their children for tuition in preparations for the national exams, or to sturdy their foundations in their academic level’s subjects. The industry has seen about 67% of Singapore’s population enrolled in tuition at any point in their education, and tuition centers are a popular place for parents to send their children to for such enrichment classes.
Morning Glory Learning Hub, run by Mrs Theebaletchmi D/O Govindaraje, also known as Mrs Theeba, is one such educational center. Based in Jurong West, this educational center provides childcare and tuition services for toddlers from 18 months, all the way to 12 years old at the end of their Primary School journey.
Starting off her educational and management career with a playschool and enrichment school (Morning Glory Learning Hub) back in 2011, Mrs Theeba added a pre-school (Morning Glory Pre-School) under MOE in 2019, and a childcare center (Morning Glory Childcare) in 2020. Running three schools concurrently, Mrs Theeba is both an educator and a manager, juggling both roles to ensure quality staff management, lesson quality, and accountability to the parents. Morning Glory takes their name from the flower, inspired by their blooming and the center’s aim to ‘bloom’ the children.
Mrs Theeba got her teaching credentials when she was 19, doing relief teaching at childcare centers and tutoring. Taking up a Diploma in Early Childhood, Mrs Theeba continued with her studies and graduated with an Advanced Diploma in Early Childhood Leadership, before becoming a junior teacher at tuition centers.
Fostering a passion for teaching young children at an early age, Mrs Theeba who got married to her husband, Anbalagan.K, at 20, had her first child the following year which serves as a great inspiration for her. Back when she was working at another center, Mrs Theeba was serving as a principal, marketing, and teaching. Knowing that, her husband encouraged her to start her own business, sensing the great potential in her to open a center of her own.
Some early challenges for Morning Glory were competitors back in her early days, where the location was saddled with multiple educational
centers with parents spoilt for choice. However, through hard work and building up a loyal customer base, Morning Glory managed to establish a name for itself and managed to break even in seven months.
Mrs Theeba adopts a hands-on approach at her main school, spending over twelve hours a day as a principal, teacher and also taking care of and playing with the children every day. That way Mrs Theeba places herself as an example for the rest of her staff to follow as a leader and motivator.
To stand out from their competitors, Morning Glory focuses strongly on Phonics. As the center receives a number of foreign children who may not have a strong foundation in English as a first language, this was seen as a challenge and something that makes them unique among other pre-schools in Singapore. Mrs Theeba also holds the center to the highest of accountability when working with the parents on child development, spending time and sitting down with them as a principal and director on a weekly basis and updating them on what their child is studying and going through in the school.
Morning Glory is also keeping with the MOE grants to adopt a management system set up by LittleLives, enhancing transparent and clear communication with parents on how their children are doing, especially during this pandemic. Mrs Theeba shares that Morning Glory’s marketing comes mainly from word-of-mouth, with many of her students coming from parents sharing with one another.
Mrs Theeba creates an impressive environment in Morning Glory with a high priority in safety and hygiene, with educators given a strong emphasis on safety to avoid accidents. By placing themselves in the parents’ shoes, they ensure that each child is properly cared for, with a careful eye over them to assure parents. Holistic education is also a strong focus, with pre-school children well prepared for their Primary School journey, and open conversation is encouraged to nurture confident speakers.
Not believing that paper qualifications are enough, Mrs Theeba expects heartfelt passion from the educators running Morning Glory. Positive reinforcement and one-to-one talks with the children when mistakes were made is also a culture in the center. Being vibrant and energetic is also key to captivating both teachers and children to create an impact in their lessons.
Morning Glory Pre-School and Childcare accepts classes up to 46 children per session, with the former having morning and afternoon sessions and the latter a single session throughout the day. Running at an affordable price for their clients, Morning Glory holds fast to their current pricing and offers subsidies for parents, especially during this pandemic period.
Mrs Theeba takes pride in opening three centers at the young age of 39, with further plans to open more. Also receiving an SME award in 2014, she takes her best achievement as getting all her students without doing any advertisement. She attributes her success to her interactions with parents, placing herself as a parent seeking good service, as well as her never-ending energy and management skills to handle all three centers seamlessly.
Mrs Theeba dreams of opening a centralized school with all her centers in a single location. While understanding that it is a long way to go, she aims to achieve it in five years or so! Also, another dream is for Mrs Theeba to travel to neighbouring countries and support needy kids with education. In Singapore Mrs Theeba also opens her center for enrichment to kids who wants extra lessons, and also helps special needs kids, integrating them into a ‘normal’ educational system.
At the end of the day, with such values close to her heart, Mrs Theeba can say with much assurance – “At least I helped a kid.”
