SINGAPORE – Pre-school teacher Nor Natasha Samian, 27, not only teaches the children in her classroom their ABCs but also makes sure they feel safe and loved after her own experience with abuse in her early years.
At six, she was sexually abused, but an adult family member she spoke to did not take her seriously. At 12, she developed a skin condition that made her a target of cruel remarks from other children.
She attempted suicide at 15 and was placed in a children’s home. After a second attempt, she was referred to HCSA Dayspring, a residential treatment centre for girls who have survived abuse.
The centre’s staff helped turn her life around, said Natasha, who has been teaching pre-schoolers for the last five years.
She draws on her childhood experiences to better understand children who exhibit challenging behaviour in her classroom.
Natasha is one of 11 recipients of the 2026 President’s Challenge Fellowship, which supports people overcoming adversity, social sector professionals and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) graduates who are doing their part for the community.
All were awarded their fellowships during the President’s Challenge Night, which raised more than $11 million on Oct 25.
In her pre-school class, Natasha tries to understand what troubles the children instead of simply correcting their behaviour, because challenges outside school can affect how children behave in class, she said.
“Instead of focusing on correcting their behaviour, I try to understand what they are feeling and what they’re trying to tell me,” she added.
Now in the first year of a part-time early childhood education degree course at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), Natasha hopes to deepen her knowledge of special needs education and trauma-informed care, supported by the fellowship. She will also receive mentorship to guide her personal and professional development.
Speaking to reporters before the fund-raiser on Oct 25, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam said that while people’s circumstances often shape their opportunities in life, it is important to remove the hurdles they face and give everyone a chance to succeed.
“Everyone, with the right support, and the right people around them, can uplift themselves and, in fact, surprise both themselves and others with how far they can leap, how far they can go in life, and how much they can contribute to those around them,” he said.
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