Ministry of Education, Singapore (MOE) has got a slick new look - and proved that government websites and aesthetic usable designs, CAN go hand in hand. MoE’s redesign now reminds me of how a government service should be: “Integrity. Service. Excellence.” (Singapore Government’s slogan). To know how bad (or good) a government website can be, lets compare it with the website of the Ministry of Information, Communication & the Arts (MICA)

Here is how they both look “above the fold”:

Clearly, the use of subtle cues in the MOE’s redesign draws the user to the central changing content about what is the latest news in MOE. Other subtle use of colors enable the user to find links when required.

MOE also uses microformats for the organizational structure which is quite neat. I think MOE website must be the first government website to validate XHTML 1.0 Strict and CSS. Did I mention it is eminently accessible without any spacer.gifs?

A look at the footers of MICA and MOE reveal that due thinking has gone into that as well in the MOE website:

However, there are a few things I would like in the new website:

1. It is not clear which category or type the current page belongs to. Perhaps the menu item can be highlighted if it any of its child links are clicked.
2. Breadcrumbs seem to be text only. It would be great if they are links too.

I think it is best that it is not incorporating the traditional system of a simple “poll” (found in all Singapore government websites) which is not enough to measure the quality of any website.

Overall, I think it is a great step forward for Singapore government websites. Of course, I think some small changes might be needed from the perspective of usability but that is just to make the already enhanced experience even better! Way to go MOE!