Ong became a physiology lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine of the
National University of Singapore (NUS) from 1975 till 1991. one of the committees that advised the
Government of Singapore on censorship issues. He was also an executive committee member of the now-defunct Singapore Centre for Teaching Thinking, established in 1998 at the
National Institute of Education, as part of the
Thinking Schools Learning Nation initiative launched by Senior Minister
Goh Chok Tong in 1997. Ong is recognised as a Solemniser of Marriages by the Registry of Marriages, Singapore. Ong was appointed Principal of
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) in 1994 when his predecessor, Lawrence Chia, stepped down after six years. in recognition of administrative and educational excellence. Singapore Quality Class (SQC) is the certification for the overall business excellence standard, and the Singapore Quality Award (SQA) is conferred on organisations that demonstrate the highest standards of business excellence. The school received many other awards, such as the School Excellence Award (an award for academic excellence), the School Distinction Award, the Best Practice Awards and many awards at the
Odyssey of the Mind (OM) World Finals. Ong was initially the Vice-Principal for pastoral care in the school. This is currently a core component of the school's curriculum. which had been cited by critics as being too harsh and rigid in its regimen, not to mention its examination-centric approach towards achieving academic excellence. Ong maintained the school's reputation for strict discipline. He has said: "We have
corporal punishment for serious offences. If parents disagree, then they should not have put their child in this school". The Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) publicity material for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme additionally emphasises that IB students guilty of serious violations of
academic dishonesty, if male, may be
caned. In 31 July 2016, Ong was appointed principal of
Singapore International School Of Bangkok (SISB) Sixth Form. Ong resigned as principal of SISB in mid-2024 after serving for eight years.
Incident On 4 October 2010, Ong announced his resignation as Principal of
Anglo-Chinese School. It was implied that he stepped down for health reasons. However, his resignation came shortly after allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards a male teacher had been made about him to the ACS Board of Governors. An inquiry committee was formed, comprising members from both the Anglo-Chinese School Board of Governors and the Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) Board of Management. Tan made statements to
The New Paper stating that he filed the complaint because he "wanted justice to be served" and that there were "possibly a few people" involved in this matter. According to a report in
The Straits Times, "Mr Tan told
The Straits Times that he had e-mail, text messages and recordings to prove his claims of Dr Ong's inappropriate behaviour." The panel convened found that these allegations were reinforced by their findings: "Dr. Ong Teck Chin has conducted himself in an inappropriate manner and that his conduct has fallen short of the standards expected of a principal". The Board did not state the nature of the allegations. In a press statement on 22 November 2010, the ACS Board of Governors and the ACS(I) Board of Management said that Ong deeply regretted his actions and had apologised. His last official day of work at ACS was 30 November 2010. == Accolades ==