From Finance to Coding: An Unexpected Journey
Could you share a bit about your personal journey in education and what led you to start this centre?
Adelene’s path to education was far from conventional. “I wasn’t a coder—I was financially trained,” she explains. “When I was in banking, I worked with quite a few business owners, so I was in the private banking side of things… most of my customers are ultra-high net worth customers, so they typically do business. That’s how I got into entrepreneurial thinking.”
What inspired her to start The Lab was a gap she identified in coding education. “I started The Lab because I saw a gap in how children were learning coding—not just teaching them to write code, but nurturing problem-solving skills, logical reasoning, and creative thinking in a way that could truly prepare them for the future.”
Early Challenges: Good Growth and Constant Refinement
What challenges did you face in the early days, and how did you overcome them?
In the beginning, we were just a very lean but passionate team with a big dream: to bring coding to kids in a meaningful way. We never expected things to take off so quickly. Within our first month in 2018, we already had 100 students, which honestly caught us by surprise.
With real students coming through our doors, we found ourselves constantly fine-tuning our curriculum to make sure it met their needs, while at the same time working hard to build our brand from the ground up. Thankfully, we had a strong and dedicated team, and that helped us manage the rapid growth while still maintaining the quality we wanted to deliver.
Looking back, the timing helped as well. Coding was becoming a hot topic in education, and parents were curious to let their kids try. We were ambitious, and we knew that if we could create the right program, we had the potential to grow into one of the largest coding schools in Singapore.
The Data-Driven Difference
What sets The Lab apart is its proprietary system for curriculum development. “We actually are able to collect stats of each and every child, and that’s how we kind of manipulate the curriculum. Most coding schools out there use ready-made platforms.”
This data collection allows for precise curriculum refinement. “We collect this kind of data and adjust it accordingly… if you have a smart kid that also is struggling with that question, that means that question is not right.”
The technical infrastructure is supported by a senior team consisting of a renowned IT mentor from the industry and a former IT consultant for startups, while the curriculum development is led by Dr. Oka, a professor from SUTD, together with other senior team members.
Defining Success Beyond Code
How do you define success for your students—and how do you help them achieve it?
Adelene’s philosophy centers on “learning through play” and “learning without boundaries.” Success isn’t measured solely by coding proficiency but by the development of foundational thinking skills.
She shared the story of Ryan, a student with mild autism who joined at age 9: “Ryan could learn at his own speed, focus on what excited him, and build confidence step by step. He went from creating his first simple game to tackling advanced projects—smiling the whole way. Fast forward to today: Ryan is now in polytechnic, studying Computer Science and chasing his dream career.”
Addressing Common Misconceptions
What are some misconceptions parents often have when choosing enrichment programmes?
One major misconception Adelene encounters is the belief that AI will eliminate the need for coding skills. “That’s the key word, you see, ‘good prompts.’ We need to ask good questions in order to get good answers, because when you have garbage in, you have garbage out.”
She emphasizes that coding education builds the foundation needed to use AI effectively: “If a kid has good prompts, it just means that the kid has good foundation. So, what we are doing here is to build the foundation.”
Regarding DSA (Direct School Admission) programs, Adelene takes a different approach than many competitors. “Technically, in my philosophy, there’s no such thing as a DSA course. DSA is basically portfolio building… it’s not really a course per se, it’s really the journey of the child.”
The Competitive Landscape
The Singapore coding education market has become increasingly saturated. “When I just started out, I think I can count less than 10 coding schools in Singapore. Now, I lost count already… within my vicinity of Kinex, I think we have 10 within a 2-kilometer radius.”
Regional Expansion Strategy
What are your vision or future plans for the centre?
We aspire to be the go-to school for Singaporean parents when they think about coding and robotics for their children. Beyond Singapore, The Lab has also found success overseas. “My franchisee in Indonesia is actually doing better than me now,” Adelene shares with a laugh. “Singapore is a small market after all—there are only so many people here.” Adelene shares with a laugh.
The Jakarta-based operation has grown rapidly, opening six branches with plans for continued expansion—averaging two new branches a year. To keep learning and growing, Adelene travels around the region every quarter to observe other markets and explore different teaching approaches. She is also keeping an eye on opportunities to expand when the timing is right, with the vision of strengthening The Lab’s brand and eventually building it into a recognised regional name.
The Future of Enrichment Education
How do you see enrichment education evolving in the next 5 years?
Adelene sees AI making education more efficient but not replacing human instruction. “AI now makes things more efficient. I think mainly the struggle with the teachers is how to make sure the kids use them properly.”
She identifies a key challenge: students often trust AI over teachers without having the foundation to discern accuracy. “They don’t have the foundation to say, oh, this is wrong, this is right… but then they think that the AI is smarter than the teacher.”
For younger students especially, she believes human interaction remains irreplaceable: “I don’t see a situation whereby AI will replace teaching, because I think humans, no matter what, still need the human touch… specifically for younger kids, I don’t see it, because we had that during COVID, and it was a disaster for us.”
Building for Sustainability
The Lab operates with a lean but stable team model, always focused on maintaining quality. “We never franchise out. I don’t believe in franchising in Singapore because, to maintain quality, everything is run directly by us,” Adelene explains. This philosophy extends to their technological infrastructure, where the team has developed its own student management system. Looking ahead, both the curriculum and business processes are moving towards greater use of AI to drive efficiency and create even more value for customers.
Beyond children’s programs, The Lab also serves adult learners through WSG-funded courses. However, Adelene is clear that this is not the company’s main focus: “That is really not our core revenue stream… it’s more of an added service for our parents, since many of them want to attend courses but prefer not to pay out of pocket.”
Advice for Parents
If you could give one piece of advice to a parent navigating today’s education options, what would it be?
Adelene’s advice is refreshingly simple: “Let kids be kids. I really, in my opinion, really let kids be kids. I feel that nowadays the parents are a bit too jumpy over what they should direct their kids to be. And learning should be fun.”
She attributes some of the pressure to demographic changes: “Last time in my generation, or my mom’s generation, one parent, five kids, right? Now, two parents, one kid, right? So the level of attention is just very different, or drastically different.”
Looking Ahead
As The Lab continues to evolve, Adelene remains focused on the fundamentals that built her success: quality education, data-driven curriculum development, and maintaining the joy in learning. With regional expansion plans and a strong local foundation, The Lab represents a thoughtful approach to scaling educational innovation while staying true to its core mission of making learning fun and meaningful.
The Lab operates four locations across Singapore and has franchise operations in Jakarta, Indonesia. For more information about their programs, visit their website or contact them directly.
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