The problems with my school...
...and those of the entire Singapore education system
Yes, in case no one's noticed, I'm a Singaporean.
I notice that I am often furious with my school, oh, it's for little things; little, little things on paper that translate into big, BIG things in real life. These are problems which just about everyone ignores, the people-in-charge because no one of any importance knows about them, the students because they cannot do anything about it.
My school, Crescent Girls' School, frustrates me for numerous reasons. These are mainly to do with the people and their way of doing things.
The teachers are often sloppy, they do not seem to care about their work or about us, the students. I feel that they do not look at us as people but, rather, as just another task to finish as quickly as possible and then put away. The teachers teach us as much as possible within set periods (between about a half-hour and an hour), toss us some homework, mark and return it after it is handed in and give us tests now and then. It's not a terribly effective style of learning as the teachers just say: You got this wrong and this wrong and this wrong. Correct it. And then we're done. Although they do go through the homework and tests in class, they do it at lightning speed and students have to keep up or fall behind and never get up again. We do not get many opportunities to ask questions in class if we don't understand this or that, this is due to how little time the school system gives us to get things done. AND THEN, when we do ask questions (or myself at least), the teacher doesn't seem to think or listen to what was asked, to them, the answer is THAT way BECAUSE and only because. It is discouraging the way the teacher often tries to brush us off in that way. However, I understand to some extent why this happens as TIME is very TIGHT, and there is nothing we can do about it.
What gets me MORE is this: the teacher's attitude. Many of them do not respect us students as people with the same rights as they themselves. They have absolutely no respect for our time. As one of the Secondary Four students, I know this tendency all too well. You see, we are taking our O' Level examinations this year and as a result of this, the school gives us many mock-tests (two a week really, on Tuesdays and Fridays) and the teachers are making us come back during the long holidays for extra lessons too. (Yes, that just about sums it up--sounds exhausting, no? YES!) Ironically though, the teachers often choose to absent themselves at the last minute, when we have already made the time and cleared out all our other plans and have waited for them. And, more often than not, the teachers choose not to inform us beforehand or even at all so that we are on standby for the whole time before we gather up the nerves to leave. And then, after all our sufferings, they pop up the next time we are scheduled to see them and they inform us that we have not had the lesson, and therefore, we must all make time on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday etc. so that we can finish up the syllabus as we are far, FAR behind all the other classes. My PHYSICS teacher, a middle-aged nobody who acts like SOMEBODY who is anybody, is a classic example. He is a certain LIM MIN CHO--that's his name and I'll say it loud as he deserves every bit of shit that is coming his way. Alright, I've had my rant, now for the story. I have so much to tell that I don't even know where to start. So, I'll tell today's example and whatever else I can remember. Today is Friday, so we had a mock test--physics--no prizes for guessing. I'll close my eyes awhile--deep breaths. Put it simply: he made things difficult for us. Our test started after our curriculum time lessons ended, at 3: 45pm. It was already very late then and I really really wanted to begin and end on time as I had already pushed my tution back so that I could do what I had to at school. So we all sat down in the classroom and waited, the teacher in charge (someone I don't know--good for her) was giving out the papers when LIM MIN CHO suddenly popped in at the classroom door and said that we had to push our desks apart, at least HALF A METRE. This was extremely inconvenient as the desks were arranged in four rows, two by eight desks all huddling close so as to get a better view of the whiteboard. All my classmates groaned and told him that it would be really inconvenient as we would have to move the desks apart and back again and promised him not to peek, but he still refused to budge and we had to shift the tables. Some other classmates were hoping he'd relent and kept requesting him not to request something so absurd of us girls--well, old LIM MIN CHO (yes, remember the name) declared that he'd be back in three minutes and we had better shift the tables, OR ELSE. Of course, he didn't say it THAT way. He didn't have to. He was just rather indulgent, self-indulgent about it all, we would have to do it whether or not it made sense because he was boss. If we didn't do it, he'd keep us back. It was his prerogative as long as we were in the school. Oh lord, I wished to give him the swearing of his life, but I shifted my desk instead and waited for the teacher to be happy. After LIM MIN CHO sauntered off, some girls were still moaning and groaning over the tables and of course the fat lady in charge of us was all too happy to assert her own authority over us. She told us to shift our desks and quick, otherwise she would not let us start and we'd go home late. My friend whispered to me that she had to go see a doctor and let her mother fetch her at 4:30 pm EXACTLY--if we started late like the old C_ _ NT told us we would, she would be late and her plans ruined. And, in the end the old f_cktard didn't come back. What does that tell you? LOADS--about our school and people in general. The teachers are cruel half-arsed loserlifes who most likely don't get a fuck a week and take all their frustration out on the kids. No. Not really. Here it is:
The teachers are insensitive to our needs.
The teachers don't respect those below themselves.
The teachers are most probably not doing what they love or do best.
They abuse us, they abuse their authority.
The teachers are uneducated in the worst possible way, do things only at their own convenience and have never given a thought to the students who have no choice but to DO AS THEY SAY or else.
The mock tests are also a waste of time. We should have done all this earlier. We shouldn't be doing this at all as the teachers don't pay attention or place any importance at all to them--so what's the point of doing them? The mock tests are a pain in the arse. the mock tests are most probably the principal's, LEE BEE YAN'S, silly idea as the school staff are too lazy and tired to do their job.
Okay. Got everything that I can recall AT THE MOMENT down. Now here's what I think of the school system.
The Singapore school system has started this new TEACH LESS, LEARN MORE scheme. It's all based on this politically correct, INNOVATIVE and SOPHISTICATED-sounding idea on creative learning. The minister (of education, not church) just said some crap about creative learning blah blah not like robots blah blah initiative...independence...cultivate love of learning. That kind of crap. It sounds all good and fine, it sounds as if the kids are going to have FUN and LOVE learning--but that's absolutely not it.
The government has come up with an impressive-seeming idea, but will it work? NO. The scheme is all flash and no substance beneath the lovely marble veneering. They don't know what they mean, they don't know what we need. They are stuck too far up in their ivory towers and are unwilling to climb down and TAKE A LOOK. We don't need more expensive equipment, we don't need new tablet PCs (certainly you've heard of that! My school made all the girls below our level--their hare-brained scheme was too slow to catch us--buy their own tablet PCs at around $2500), we need an education. Yes, an education. We need guidance, care, attention. We cannot have 38 girls crammed into one room with one teacher who cannot/will not attend to us as individuals. We need to learn how to learn. We need solutions, not distractions. We need respect and understanding from the teachers and school in general, and this we will duly give back. We don't need and don't WANT pompous fools pushing us over the edge and making us grow to dread the labour camp we call a school.
Will they give it to us?
I don't hear an answer.
Yes, in case no one's noticed, I'm a Singaporean.
I notice that I am often furious with my school, oh, it's for little things; little, little things on paper that translate into big, BIG things in real life. These are problems which just about everyone ignores, the people-in-charge because no one of any importance knows about them, the students because they cannot do anything about it.
My school, Crescent Girls' School, frustrates me for numerous reasons. These are mainly to do with the people and their way of doing things.
The teachers are often sloppy, they do not seem to care about their work or about us, the students. I feel that they do not look at us as people but, rather, as just another task to finish as quickly as possible and then put away. The teachers teach us as much as possible within set periods (between about a half-hour and an hour), toss us some homework, mark and return it after it is handed in and give us tests now and then. It's not a terribly effective style of learning as the teachers just say: You got this wrong and this wrong and this wrong. Correct it. And then we're done. Although they do go through the homework and tests in class, they do it at lightning speed and students have to keep up or fall behind and never get up again. We do not get many opportunities to ask questions in class if we don't understand this or that, this is due to how little time the school system gives us to get things done. AND THEN, when we do ask questions (or myself at least), the teacher doesn't seem to think or listen to what was asked, to them, the answer is THAT way BECAUSE and only because. It is discouraging the way the teacher often tries to brush us off in that way. However, I understand to some extent why this happens as TIME is very TIGHT, and there is nothing we can do about it.
What gets me MORE is this: the teacher's attitude. Many of them do not respect us students as people with the same rights as they themselves. They have absolutely no respect for our time. As one of the Secondary Four students, I know this tendency all too well. You see, we are taking our O' Level examinations this year and as a result of this, the school gives us many mock-tests (two a week really, on Tuesdays and Fridays) and the teachers are making us come back during the long holidays for extra lessons too. (Yes, that just about sums it up--sounds exhausting, no? YES!) Ironically though, the teachers often choose to absent themselves at the last minute, when we have already made the time and cleared out all our other plans and have waited for them. And, more often than not, the teachers choose not to inform us beforehand or even at all so that we are on standby for the whole time before we gather up the nerves to leave. And then, after all our sufferings, they pop up the next time we are scheduled to see them and they inform us that we have not had the lesson, and therefore, we must all make time on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday etc. so that we can finish up the syllabus as we are far, FAR behind all the other classes. My PHYSICS teacher, a middle-aged nobody who acts like SOMEBODY who is anybody, is a classic example. He is a certain LIM MIN CHO--that's his name and I'll say it loud as he deserves every bit of shit that is coming his way. Alright, I've had my rant, now for the story. I have so much to tell that I don't even know where to start. So, I'll tell today's example and whatever else I can remember. Today is Friday, so we had a mock test--physics--no prizes for guessing. I'll close my eyes awhile--deep breaths. Put it simply: he made things difficult for us. Our test started after our curriculum time lessons ended, at 3: 45pm. It was already very late then and I really really wanted to begin and end on time as I had already pushed my tution back so that I could do what I had to at school. So we all sat down in the classroom and waited, the teacher in charge (someone I don't know--good for her) was giving out the papers when LIM MIN CHO suddenly popped in at the classroom door and said that we had to push our desks apart, at least HALF A METRE. This was extremely inconvenient as the desks were arranged in four rows, two by eight desks all huddling close so as to get a better view of the whiteboard. All my classmates groaned and told him that it would be really inconvenient as we would have to move the desks apart and back again and promised him not to peek, but he still refused to budge and we had to shift the tables. Some other classmates were hoping he'd relent and kept requesting him not to request something so absurd of us girls--well, old LIM MIN CHO (yes, remember the name) declared that he'd be back in three minutes and we had better shift the tables, OR ELSE. Of course, he didn't say it THAT way. He didn't have to. He was just rather indulgent, self-indulgent about it all, we would have to do it whether or not it made sense because he was boss. If we didn't do it, he'd keep us back. It was his prerogative as long as we were in the school. Oh lord, I wished to give him the swearing of his life, but I shifted my desk instead and waited for the teacher to be happy. After LIM MIN CHO sauntered off, some girls were still moaning and groaning over the tables and of course the fat lady in charge of us was all too happy to assert her own authority over us. She told us to shift our desks and quick, otherwise she would not let us start and we'd go home late. My friend whispered to me that she had to go see a doctor and let her mother fetch her at 4:30 pm EXACTLY--if we started late like the old C_ _ NT told us we would, she would be late and her plans ruined. And, in the end the old f_cktard didn't come back. What does that tell you? LOADS--about our school and people in general. The teachers are cruel half-arsed loserlifes who most likely don't get a fuck a week and take all their frustration out on the kids. No. Not really. Here it is:
The teachers are insensitive to our needs.
The teachers don't respect those below themselves.
The teachers are most probably not doing what they love or do best.
They abuse us, they abuse their authority.
The teachers are uneducated in the worst possible way, do things only at their own convenience and have never given a thought to the students who have no choice but to DO AS THEY SAY or else.
The mock tests are also a waste of time. We should have done all this earlier. We shouldn't be doing this at all as the teachers don't pay attention or place any importance at all to them--so what's the point of doing them? The mock tests are a pain in the arse. the mock tests are most probably the principal's, LEE BEE YAN'S, silly idea as the school staff are too lazy and tired to do their job.
Okay. Got everything that I can recall AT THE MOMENT down. Now here's what I think of the school system.
The Singapore school system has started this new TEACH LESS, LEARN MORE scheme. It's all based on this politically correct, INNOVATIVE and SOPHISTICATED-sounding idea on creative learning. The minister (of education, not church) just said some crap about creative learning blah blah not like robots blah blah initiative...independence...cultivate love of learning. That kind of crap. It sounds all good and fine, it sounds as if the kids are going to have FUN and LOVE learning--but that's absolutely not it.
The government has come up with an impressive-seeming idea, but will it work? NO. The scheme is all flash and no substance beneath the lovely marble veneering. They don't know what they mean, they don't know what we need. They are stuck too far up in their ivory towers and are unwilling to climb down and TAKE A LOOK. We don't need more expensive equipment, we don't need new tablet PCs (certainly you've heard of that! My school made all the girls below our level--their hare-brained scheme was too slow to catch us--buy their own tablet PCs at around $2500), we need an education. Yes, an education. We need guidance, care, attention. We cannot have 38 girls crammed into one room with one teacher who cannot/will not attend to us as individuals. We need to learn how to learn. We need solutions, not distractions. We need respect and understanding from the teachers and school in general, and this we will duly give back. We don't need and don't WANT pompous fools pushing us over the edge and making us grow to dread the labour camp we call a school.
Will they give it to us?
I don't hear an answer.
posted by fairypenguin at 4:44 AM
1 Comments:
yeah! i hv many complains! For my class is worse, my form teacher has been that position for 1 and a half year, yet she does not know half the students in her form class names! i really wonder how is she going to write our testimonials. i hate to see just general comments and just being biased to those class committee ppl only!
Friggin world!
I need a break man!
Post a Comment
<< Home