"How can social cohesion be achieved in a meritocratic and multicultural global city-state? Meritocracy poses a paradox: integrating groups on one hand through frameworks of equal treatment and opportunity regardless of race, language or religion, but also segregating them through academic sorting, unequal rewards for merit, elite identification and bonding then, after a generation, social stratification. Distinctive circles, differentiating social elites from non-elites emerge. The remedy the authors propose is network diversity: the deliberate and organic forming of ties across class and other social boundaries. This social mixing, forged in social infrastructure such as schools, workplaces, and voluntary associations pays off by producing the collective goods of national identity and trust. In particular, they analyse the importance of developing bridging forms of social capital built on social relationships. An insightful read for scholars and practitioners in public policy and social network analysis looking to understand the challenges faced by and the solutions that have emerged form Singapore's unique system

The following sections are included: Introduction: The Global Context; The Singapore Context; References

"The fields of special needs education and disability in Singapore have witnessed significant changes and developments especially during the past two decades in the wake of Singapore's evolution towards its vision as an inclusive society. It is therefore timely for this book to present information, knowledge and research across a wide range of topics and issues that are relevant to the lives of Singaporeans with special needs. The chapters in this book offer a compendium of local knowledge and research on special needs and disability where the content engages with current debates, integrates international literature, and draws on exemplary practice to inform future directions and efforts for the fields of special needs education and disability. This collection of chapters by local authors also seeks to encourage readers to re-imagine and re-envision a more inclusive and positive future for persons with disabilities based upon an enriched contextual understanding of historical and current realities and practices that have affected their lives

The following sections are included: Introduction; Transition to Adulthood for Youth with Disabilities; Stakeholders’ Perspectives on Transition to Adulthood; Transition to Employment in Singapore for Youth with Disabilities; A Methodology for Interviewing; Conclusion; References