by Bryan Chua 14A01A

Two days ago, we published part 1 of our farewell interview with Mr Geoffrey Purvis, Humanities Tutor of 23 years who will be retiring back to the UK at the end of the year. Today, we conclude the interview with Mr Purvis’s views on the future, for himself and for Singapore, and what he values in his life and his work.

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Have you ever encountered situations where students especially or parents have had trouble understanding your accent?

Oh Yes. I do get that a lot. Many see me as a ‘Geordie’, but I’m really a Durham boy. ‘Geordies’ live north of the River Tyne; I was born on the south side in the county of Durham.

I had one moment – in England, actually – when I went into a bank one day and the cashier said to me, ‘You seem to be in the bank quite a lot in the afternoons?” so I said by way of explanation, “Well I’m a teacher so I school finishes about 3.30 or so and sometimes I can get away early to catch the bank before it closes.’

“What do you teach?” she asked.

“Literature.” I replied.

She said, “Really? Talking like that?”

Over the years when people have asked me, which they have on a regular basis, ‘Do your students understand you”, I’ve developed the perfect one word answer for that: “Pardon?’

People do have difficulty and I appreciate that. But the thing I’ve found most rewarding in recent years is the number of people who tell me how lovely my voice sounds – how they like the musical quality of it. They should come to Wales and the North East, they all talk like me there!!

And that means a lot to me – because when I was at university I was very young, sensitive, and naïve, and I was quite hurt by the number of times people would say to me: “Where are you from then? Are you Scottish? Are you Irish? Are you Welsh? What, English?!!” Suffice to say, I shut up a lot of the time I was there.

Here people ask me if I’m an Australian! Which is completely mad – I don’t sound anything like an Australian!

I used to teach students to speak in Geordie. I taught a class once to say, “I’m going home” in Geordie – ‘Ah’m gan hyem’ – it was really funny listening to them having a go and making a mess of it.

Tell us about the most memorable moments you’ve had while teaching.

There is one memorable moment when I was teaching in England. It was in the afternoon and I was feeling a bit fed up with it all. I said to the class, “Well, that’s enough for today. I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow, if I don’t get run over by a bus on my way home.” The class cheered at the thought of my demise so I turned to a girl sitting in the front row, a really nice girl, with pigtails and freckles and I said to her, ‘Carol, you’d be sorry if anything happened to me and I couldn’t teach you anymore, wouldn’t you?’ She thought for a moment and then said, “Tell me who we’d get instead.”

Funny moments here… I’ve had quite a few; especially when I worked with my colleague Mr. Clements. He told me he was walking along the corridor one day behind two girls and heard one say to the other, ‘Wasn’t that lecture boring?’ The friend replied, ‘I don’t know. I wasn’t listening.’

What will you miss most about Raffles Institution?

My colleagues – I think Raffles has some great teachers, and I’ve been really touched by the number of staff who’ve come up to me and said: “We’re gonna miss you around here”. That’s nice. There’s a great atmosphere in the staffroom.

Mr Purvis with Mr Jamie Reeves, both colleague and friend throughout his time in Raffles and Singapore.

So what do you think of the school and the changes its been going through, with the Singapore educational climate and all?

I’ve got a lot of admiration for the staff here at Raffles. I think there’s a culture in Raffles of not having too many meetings – not sitting and talking endlessly about theory. Staff just get on with things. I don’t think I’d have stayed as long in Singapore as I have done if I had not been at Raffles. In some schools, principals think nothing of holding court in staff meetings for three/four hours non-stop. I’d hate to have to put up with that.

I don’t think much of the Raffles Diploma, to be honest. It’s a lot of fuss and bother over nothing and takes us back to the dark ages of having everything quantified by a numerical score – which is manifest nonsense. Project Work is useful for the developing of oral presentation skills, but that’s all. The amount of man – hours spent assessing written reports and who’s done what and where and when seems ludicrous to me when everyone ends up getting more or less the same score. Or, what’s worse, when you get what I have got in some of my classes– only one B in a class of otherwise straight As. Come on, that’s bizarre!!

Do you have any regrets upon leaving RI?

No I don’t, and that’s amazing because I am known by my friends as someone who has a lot of regrets, regrets about what happened to my family, regrets about the religion, regrets about my upbringing, regrets that I didn’t do English on its own at University … but I’ve never for one minute regretted coming to Singapore. Not for one second have I said, “Why did I do this?”

“Not for one second have I said, ‘Why did I do this?’”

What do you plan to do after retiring?

Well, we have a house in Hay-On-Wye (in Wales), which is known as ‘the town of books’ – and I expect to see a lot of students coming through, checking out the bookshops. The house needs refurbishing and repainting, so I’ll be doing a lot of that. I hope to do a lot of reading and travelling! Going and seeing bits of England I haven’t seen, seeing my old friends.

My wife is a keen animal lover, (I tell my students that’s why she married me!) She wants not one but two dogs; we already have two cats, one called Holly and the other Lulu. One of them in fact looks like my late mother-in-law. It’s true! She lies on the floor, looks at me and says unsmilingly “ I didn’t think you weren’t funny when I was alive and I don’t think you’re funny now.”  I’m not really an animal person. I was brought up without any animals – no dogs, no cats – and I’m actually really uncomfortable around them. I find it fascinating that I’ve been teaching the novel Disgrace with the previous year’s Year 6s – and that’s about a teacher who loses his job, goes to stay with his estranged daughter and ends up working with animals, and re-establishing the connection between himself and the animal world. Art imitating life?

My wife thinks I would’ve been a different person if I’d had animals in my life when I was younger, and it’s not too late to reconnect. So I see myself walking the hills of Wales with my two dogs and my wife. I’m looking forward to it.

Would you ever consider coming back to Singapore to visit?

I don’t think I’ll be able to afford it! I think sometimes it’s a danger to come back. I will come back some time and have a look but not for a while because I’ve had my time here and it’s time for other people to take over from me. I think things are changing, generally, and I’m a little bit concerned about the attitude that seems to be developing in Singapore towards foreigners and the expatriate teachers are kind of becoming involved in that. There is resentment of the fact that they’re here and teach Humanities students when Singaporeans could be teaching them!

That concerns me because if Singapore becomes too parochial, then it’ll suffer for it – we need fresh talent, we need to have immigration, we need to have people coming in to keep things fresh, keep things vibrant – or else we’ll end up like Japan, completely insular – if you’re not Japanese you don’t count, and I’ve never wanted to live in that kind of world. One of the things I’ve always loved about Singapore is the multi-racialism here.

What are some of the values you believe in?

I value Integrity, honesty. I don’t like people who pose. If Literature teaches us anything it is to dislike pretense, pretending to be what you’re not.

I’ve got a sign on my desk that says, “Be nice or leave” and I think we underestimate kindness – the value of kind acts and kind deeds.  Feeling and showing compassion are two other ‘literary’ values. I do my best to try and care for people, care about people. I started life in the church, as all my students know, and those values never left me. I got rid of the dogma but I’ve hopefully kept the best of the values.

I like being able to think freely. I don’t like thought control of any kind – whether religious or political. I think we should be free to think as we wish, and not worry, as George Eliot said, what damage it might be doing to our eternal soul.

These are some important values for me – integrity, compassion, concern for others.

Some students would be surprised at which of my students are the ones I value the most. There’s a girl I called Chanel Number 5, lovely girl; a girl called Kelly Chan – lovely, caring individuals, warm-hearted people – and I think any teacher would tell you, that being clever’ is not what it’s all about. What it’s about is being the kind of person other people want to be with.

Mr Purvis at Lit Night 2013

In the world today, what do you think society values the most?

I’m very concerned about the way the world is going – I think we seem to feel that capitalism has won, and I don’t think capitalism is anything like the perfect system. The crass materialism of the world concerns me too – you see, the old religious values never leave you!

I think there’s something wrong with this obsessive preoccupation with money. It’s a common assertion in all Literature texts that money does not bring happiness. It can help you be happier, but in itself it’s not as important as other things. Literature teaches us that other things are far more important such as relationships.

I think that’s one of my core values as well – people are far more important than principles. If I had to sacrifice people or principles, it would be principles. Because when I was in the church my family put their principles before me, and so it created a great division and I think that was a huge mistake. And I tell students about it often, because I know it happens in Singapore. Children become Christians and their parents still have their Chinese idols on display and it causes the family to fracture. I think that’s rather sad, because the family shouldn’t be allowed to fracture, it should be kept in its place, because relationships are much more important than beliefs.

What is the most important piece of advice you could give to any student, past, present or future?

I think it my wife would say: don’t believe a word I say!

I think it’s a sense of perspective – as I am fond of saying in class: grades are grades but talent is talent. This school is all about people trying to get good grades – but I think people have to realize there’s more to life than that and that’s what I mean about perspective.

Especially in Singapore – I think we need to keep an international perspective rather than becoming totally preoccupied with the red dot as if that’s all there is.

What’s the most important thing that you think people should know?

That it’s very important to develop a sense of humour. Someone sent me a birthday card once – I think it might have been Mr Clements – it said “Don’t take life too seriously, after all, it’s not permanent.”

My strong sense of humour has saved me so many times from (a) complete depression or (b) complete self-absorption as a teacher. I’ve learnt to laugh at myself and to say with Puck: ‘Lord, what fools these mortals be.’ The ability to laugh at life is priceless.

“The ability to laugh at life is priceless.”

People criticise Rafflesians about being arrogant and elitist – what do you make of that? Do you think it exists? Do you think it’s a problem?

I think in some students it is, yes, but it’s not their fault- they’ve been brought up that way. I think some of the RI mothers are to blame for the way their boys behave like little Caesars.

That’s what I was worried about when I first came to Raffles. I was quite apprehensive because at Anderson I’d heard all about Raffles and seen Raffles students on television debating and thought, “Wow, these kids are good” – and I was expecting all the students to be like that when I arrived. However, I found the number of really outstanding people was very small. Most of the people I’ve worked with have been only too conscious of trying to live up to this image of being a clever Rafflesian – when they know they’re not, and the image intimidates them as much as it intimidated me.

I don’t like this repeated emphasis in the school on leadership. My friend Mr Bachelor who used to work with me was my idea of the perfect leader – he didn’t want to do it; he kept having it thrust upon him as Shakespeare put it. I know I would follow leaders like Mr Bachelor any day because he was a man of integrity, and he never asked me to do work he wouldn’t do himself. I don’t like seminars on leadership, I don’t like people telling me what makes a good leader, a bad leader, all that – I mean what makes a good leader? I don’t know. And those who say they do have never led anybody anywhere except to buy their latest book.

I think all of the symbols and insignia of the school re leadership are aggressive – I think if we mean what we say about serving then we should talk about serving and drop the leading by serving completely. I’m back to my bible again: ‘To whom much is given…”

Because education gave me everything – it freed me from the shackles of the church, it gave me the opportunity to come to Singapore, it gave me the opportunity to travel the world, it gave me the chance to open my mind up, to feed it with all sorts of wonderful books, and that’s why I became a teacher – because I wanted to pass on what I saw as the benefits of a lifetime of education.

I’m on a nonstop process of learning – I often joke that what they’ll put on my tombstone are the words “None the bloody wiser”; it’s not strictly speaking true – I do know more than I did when I was younger, but I’ll never know all I want to know. Never.

Finally, if, when you went back, someone asked you for one experience that stands out for you in your entire time in Singapore, what would it be?

That’s difficult… I’ll pick something that happened recently. A couple of years ago, only one person in my class did not get an A or a B for ‘A’ level Literature and she wouldn’t come and see me because she was too upset.

So I went looking for her, and I found her crying. She had let me down she said. I told her she hadn’t at all. She was still the lovely girl I used to sing to in class. And yet I thought at the same time, this poor girl will have to carry this moment with her for the rest of her life. And how unfair that is. Some who’d got As were no different academically to her. It happens every year: this day of dreams coming true for some becomes for others their worst nightmare.

Recently, a boy in the class sent me a note, because I was leaving, to tell me how the different members of the class were doing  – this one was at Cambridge, this one at Columbia, this one a top scholarship holder at NUS/Yale, this one in the Army and doing really well as an officer. He himself was training to be a fighter pilot. Then at the end of this list of achievements he put this girl’s name, and almost as an after thought he said, “… has a boyfriend.”

I’ve thought a lot about that since and talked about it to my classes. A poem has even been gestating in my mind in which the last line of every verse would be the same:  ‘And (…) has a boyfriend’.

You see, I found myself wondering about how we measure achievement in this school, in many schools. Grades? Scholarships? Universities? Level of degree? I’ve started asking students what they would rather have– a place in Columbia, or someone to love? Getting into Columbia is hard but so is finding someone to love. In fact, Shakespeare tells us that if you are clever it’s even harder to find love. In Much Ado About Nothing, Benedick says to Beatrice, ‘You and I are too wise to woo peaceably.’

I was delighted to find that this girl ‘has a boyfriend’ – it’s no consolation prize; love is the greatest treasure anyone can find.

It’s students like this girl that I remember with affection, the students who don’t do as well as the others do.  That must hurt in a school like this, and I don’t think the school makes it easier for them, beginning the issuing of results by parading and trumpeting the huge successes of the stars.

It means that when the others come to get their results, they’re expecting them to be great and when they’re not, it’s a double whammy! I think the school should think seriously about this annual pantomime of unfairness. I think even those who do well should bear in mind what my old colleague Mr Clements used to say to his students – “if you leave this school with your four grade As and you don’t feel slightly fraudulent about yourself, there’s something wrong with you.”

Grades after all are just grades – we already know, don’t we, who the really talented people are. ‘And (…) has a boyfriend.’

“Grades are grades, but Talent is talent.”

By Allison Choong 14S05B and Tracy Koh of Raffles Runway

Stepping into the lobby of Meritus Mandarin on Thursday, one would’ve wondered what all the buzz was about. Throngs of Rafflesians, dressed to the nines, packed the cramped lobby to the brim. It was a futile attempt weaving through the crowd to spot our best-dressed candidates, considering how practically all the Year Sixes certainly dressed perfectly in accordance with theme this year, “Estrella”, which means “Star” in Spanish.

Considered the classic look, the dashing gentlemen generally stayed close to the suit and tie look. However, the only distinctions we spotted were differences in tie colours or bowties – which we did find rather repetitive after a while. (We did spot a few in vests, all-white suits, as well as one or two who topped off their outfits with hats!) In contrast, there was a much wider variety of dresses matched with strappy heels and jewellery donned by the ladies. From sequinned ballgowns to flirty cocktail dresses, many sported latest trends which certainly did not disappoint. For those of you out there who were unable to attend the glitzy event, we’ve pictured our top picks for you below!

Ye Tong

Dress – Rare Attitude; Shoes – Charles and Keith; Clutch – Aldo

Looking at the array of long gowns donned by many of the Year Sixes, one would have thought immediately that voluminous maxi dresses led the way for 2013’s Grad Night. Ye Tong channeled this very look in a sleek and sweet mint green maxi dress with crystal embellishments framing its v-shaped neckline and soft folds cascading from the back of her daring, bare-back dress. She completed the look with a crystal studded clutch from Aldo, which complemented the crystal detailing on her dress perfectly.

Chanel Ma

Dress – Xeniaboutique; Clutch – Mum; Earrings – Talisman; Shoes – Steve Madden

Chanel oozed grecian goddess charm in this simple yet elegant white maxi dress with glitter cut-outs which played up this season’s peekaboo trend very well. She finished off her look with a sleek updo and a gold clutch given by her mum – how elegant!

Dillon Chee

Suit – Oxford; Shoes – Dr Martens

Dillon sported this season’s tonal outfitting trend in a suit by Oxford which featured varying shades of grey and black. He managed to keep the look simple, yet eye-catching just by picking a very fitting suit, complete with neatly styled hair.

Carrissa Ting

Dress – Mum’s; Everything else – Far East Plaza

Carrissa looked stunning in a floor-length twist-and-wrap toga dress in graduated shades of blue. It’s a fun look which stood out amongst the many other dresses in solid colour. She completed the look with a pair of crystal drop earrings, a navy clutch and an elegant updo, all from Far East Plaza, showing that you can look chic and elegant even on a budget.

Brenda Tan

Dress – Self-Designed; Shoes – New Look; Clutch – Aldo

Brenda easily stole the show in a backless crimson floor-length gown with an intricate velvet baroque pattern – which she designed by herself. Her gold bejewelled Aldo clutch and edgy bangs complemented her elegant look perfectly.

Gareth Ting

Top – Peninsula Shopping Centre; Pants – POA; Shoes – Bugis; Accessories – Fourskin

Gareth ditched the ‘suit and tie’ look and opted for an edgier get-up instead, donning on a black high-funnel neck top in faux leather and pairing it off with burgundy pants. He finished off his look on a fun note with a pair of suede oxfords in mustard, black nail polish and an interesting ring reminiscent of gears and machines.

Symone Oei

Dress – Designed by Dyon Ang; Clutch – Louis Vuitton

Symone was a show-stopper in this lovely red number designed by former Raffles Runway member Dyon Ang. The elaborate floral print on the bodice of the dress and voluminous skirt, complete with a wraparound waist belt and a loose v-back, was reminiscent of a kimono, yet it managed to look modern and elegant.

Sabrina Wong

Dress and Shoes – Far East Plaza; Accessories – Shopubb, Blogshops; Hair Dye – Amazon

Sabrina channelled Grecian goddess chic in this strapless white lace peekaboo dress. If Chanel’s look was reminiscent of Persephone, Sabrina’s look would take after Athena, with her flaming red locks and gold headband.

Daryl Tham

Suit – POA; Shoes – Dr Martens

Daryl sported an off-duty, preppy-chic look in this camel coloured corduroy coat, baby pink dress shirt and coffee brown dress pants with subtle mustard stripes. He finished off the look with a good old pair of Dr Martens.

Jeremy Yew

Suit – H&M; Shoes – Mustafa; Watch – Omega

Jeremy channelled just the right balanced of preppy and chic in this classic suit and bow piece from H&M. We loved the subtle folds on his dress shirt, especially how he opted for a fun twist with his coat unbuttoned.

Sun Xiaoning

Dress – Eurogou; Watch – Bvlgari; Flower – Lovisa; Shoes – Wicked Laundry

Xiaoning looked like Alice just stepped out from Wonderland and into a ball in this adorable faerie-like dress with crystal detailing, a vintage laced-up bodice and a flowy organza skirt. We loved how she completed her look with a pop of colour in a blue flower headpiece from Lovisa and the timeless, nude pumps from Wicked laundry which accentuated her gams.

by Chua Jun Yan

Taken from http://www.straitstimes.com/sites/straitstimes.com/files/20131011/28778347e.jpg

When Raffles Press approached me to write this article, I was wary. After all, Ashlynna – the democratically-elected President of the Student Council – felt that it was impossible to do justice to the sentiments of the one thousand, two hundred and forty of us in her valedictory speech. Who was I – a mere plebeian – to even try? Nonetheless, in a moment of hubris, I agreed, so once more, I find myself sitting at my desk at 2 a.m., like how many of us have spent our nights over the past two, four or six years.

At Farewell Assembly, one line was jarring in the otherwise well-produced slideshow: ‘only pleasant memories’. No, nobody can possibly have had only pleasant memories at RI.  There would have been moments of comedy, tragedy, fairy-tale, horror, fantasy, mystery and farce – and everything in between. We would have encountered individuals who we hope we will be friends with for life, as well as some who we wished we had never met to begin with. To romanticise our time in RI is to do violence to the subtlety and complexity of our Rafflesian education. Every experience – pleasant and unpleasant – has changed us as people, ever so slightly.

Thus, for the nostalgic graduating student, selective amnesia is dangerous. My good friend and prolific blogger, Eugene Lim, recently published a post entitled Zero, in which he argued that it was cathartic to throw stuff away. Inspired by his ruthless regime of spring-cleaning, I tried to do the same, but ended up granting the condemned items a last-minute reprieve.  It’s not that I am likely to need my dusty History notes again; it’s even less likely that I will retrieve them to admire as an artefact of my school days. But for me, at least, the knowledge that they are there – lying in some box in a corner of the storeroom – is comforting. It assures me, as I enter the big scary world, that I am not a blank slate which anybody can deface; that I have a past and a story to call my own. I suspect this is the internal reconciliation which we all have to find in our own way.

Especially for the boys who have been around for six years (a 1977 Rafflesian Times article of a similar nature called them ‘old-timers’), we have witnessed many milestones worthy of mention in the next edition of The Eagle Breeds a Gryphon: the appointment of RI’s first female Principal,  the reunification of RI and RJC, and the transformation of the campus.  Yet for all of us, it will probably be the simple, ordinary, everyday things which stick when we gather for a class reunion in a decade’s time: how we counted the number of times our Math lecturer used her trademark phrase, ‘here in this case’; how we giggled nervously as we played Truth or Dare under the stars during class camp; or how we spent our recesses at the chin-up bar, training for the dreaded NAPFA test.

We graduate from RI in a time when public debate is raging over the politics of inclusion, equity and diversity. For the individual Rafflesian, it is surreal to find that we are – in some ways – at the epicentre of many of these discussions. Yet when strangers ask me what school I am from, I refuse to be an apologist; I look into their eyes and say, ‘RI’. Not because I am a great believer in the mythology of Rafflesian exceptionalism, but because for me, as I am sure for many of us, there is a part of RI which is forever ours, and a part of us which is forever RI’s.

So for the last time (or maybe not), Auspicium Melioris Aevi.

The writer was the former President of Raffles Press.

 By Tan Jun Xiang 14S06C

Turn to any page in your KS Bull and the first thing that may strike you is the vast (and sometimes overwhelming) array of vocabulary on display. As much as our GP teachers often advise us to write simply and clearly, the reality remains that Rafflesians tend to use big words far more frequently than the average student.

To some extent, it’s justifiable. Having a formidable arsenal of words at your disposal can be a useful skill in many ways. For one, it allows you to call upon a wider range of vocabulary. Be it writing out your GP essay with a greater precision of language or (trying to) sound sophisticated during an admission interview to your university of choice, few would disagree that having a large portion of the English dictionary committed to memory can be a serious advantage.

Taken from dreamstime.com

But the problem arises when our over-reliance on complex vocabulary hinders our ability to connect with the very people we are trying to communicate with. As an Ivy League graduate wrote recently, one can easily write over 200 brilliant academic essays and still not know how to hold a simple conversation with someone standing just across the room. It’s not just about knowing many different words, but also knowing how and when to use them.

In my admittedly non-expert opinion, our educational system tends to encourage a diverse vocabulary without necessarily inculcating the skills needed to use it wisely. When carelessly placed, big words can easily work against you – obfuscating rather than elucidating the meaning of your words (case in point). What results is a piece which – while linguistically stunning – frustrates and even alienates the reader by requiring them to refer to the dictionary every 5 seconds.

For me at least, the line between sounding sophisticated and sounding like a pretentious snob is a fine one to tread, and I’ve often found myself falling face first into the wrong side. When is it wise to use “ameliorated” in place of “relieved”? No one can say. Yet as online discussions and even comments on our website have shown, small decisions like this do have a profound impact on public perception.

At the end of the day though, that’s the crux of the issue: making the right call and placing the right words in the right situations. As our outgoing principal, Mrs Lim Lai Cheng, wrote in her introduction to KS Bull, “focus on the ideas you wish to express rather than the language and vocabulary you wish to flaunt”. A genuine mastery of the English language involves understanding fluency, structure, and a hundred other nuances – of which vocabulary is but a small, small part. You don’t necessarily need to show off your vocabulary to demonstrate a strong command of the language.

Sometimes, it’s the simplest sentences that convey the deepest meaning.

By Lim Shao Min 14S03K

Photos by Lim Shao Min and Matthew Yeo 14S03G

‘At the end of the day, it’s not about how many English words we teach but the number of smiles we gave and the number of hearts we touched.’             

We had been feeling dejected after an extremely trying day of lessons in Laos, but with those words by fellow team member Noel, we were reminded of the unwavering optimism and purpose our team set off with on the very first day. The past couple of days had been anything but easy. From 18 November to 1 December, our 23 member strong ISLE team, together with our 2 mentors, embarked on a service learning trip to Laos. Our main objective for the trip was to construct the walls of a new school located in Pa Bong village near the Laos Capital of Vientiane. We also aimed to teach the village schoolchildren basic conversational English as well as provide Arts, Science, Math, Song and Dance as well as Sports sessions. Everything had gone smoothly during our planning stages before the trip. However, on the first day of lessons, it became glaringly obvious that the language barrier would be a huge obstruction to our teaching. The prior research we did on conversational Lao we compiled were seemingly for naught as our untrained tongues were hopeless at trying to enunciate the subtle nuances of the Lao language.

ISLE team mate Kai Chin: ‘Khoj seu Kai Chin. Ankit (English) Hello, I am Kai Chin. Koluna (repeat after me).’

Children: ‘Hello, I am Kai Chin.’

Kai Chin: ‘Bo, bo! (No, no!)’

This was just one of the many instances that the language barrier made it difficult for us to convey important points to the children. It took some time for us to get across the message to the Primary One children that they were meant to say their own name after ‘Hello I am’, but they caught on after we demonstrated repeatedly with some of their names as examples. The classroom was eventually filled with a happy chorus of children excitedly introducing themselves to each other in English. Even though this problem was finally solved, it showed how difficult it was for us to communicate effectively to the children and have more meaningful interactions apart from saying ‘Sabaidee!’ which meant ‘Hello!’ and ‘Di!’ which meant ‘Good!’. We were often left feeling frustrated with our inability to express ourselves and this affected our morale.  Thus, Noel’s words served as a reminder that giving is also about receiving. The children were all smiles and good cheer even when it got difficult to understand us. It was heart-warming to note that the children appreciated our efforts at reaching out to them by being very attentive and enthusiastic during lessons. Too often, we take for granted the ease at which we communicate with our peers in Singapore. We lose ourselves in the technological language of emoticons and emojis; so much so that we tend to forget how much more it means to receive a smile and a nod to signify understanding from someone.  For example, the euphoria you feel over something seemingly simple- such as when a 6-year-old boy realises what you meant when you’d pointed at your red shirt and repeated ‘Sii daeng. Red!’ for what seemed to be the hundredth time.

Construction was by no means an easy feat either. Wall-building was certainly a test of physical strength and endurance, skills which most of us were unfortunately lacking in. We built a total of 10 brick walls for the school perimeter as well as dug 6 knee-deep holes in the ground to install foundational pillars.  This seemingly straightforward task took a total of 10 days. It might not sound like much work, but the 23 of us can testify that it is in fact harder than it appears to be. We spent day after day digging and stabbing at tough soil, mixing cement, laying and hacking bricks. Our guide in Laos was a young, witty fellow named Joy. He was our main translator and took care of us throughout the entirety of the trip. He also worked at the construction site and helped with the school-building project.  Joy taught us how to mix the cement in the right proportions and how to lay bricks in the most effective way possible. However, even after all the coaching, the 23 of us combined still could not match up to Joy in terms of speed and quality when it came to construction. No amount of textbook-memorising or practising could prepare us for the perseverance it took to soldier on and ensure the correct alignment of our bricks and the proper amount of cement used. It was truly a humbling experience to find out that we could not even do a task like placing a brick straight and in place without failing several times.

All work and no play make 23 restless teenagers! One of the highlights of the trip was definitely cave exploration. On the weekends, we delved deep into the caves of the magnificent mountains we saw every day while talking morning walks. Apart from caving, we also went rice harvesting.  We were lucky, as harvesting was perhaps the best part of the entire rice farming process. We hacked away in futile effort at the rice stalks for the first 10 minutes, struggling with our inexperience. Eventually, we got the hang of it and things went much faster. The team managed to clear 2 plots of land in 3 hours. We finally understood what our parents meant when they said ‘every grain of rice symbolises the sweat and tears of the farmers’.

It was the liveliness and excitement of the kids that spurred us on the most throughout the trip. We had to significantly modify our lessons and water them down to match the comprehension level of the children, which also made us feel increasingly disillusioned- who were we to take up 3 hours of their time every day, teaching them things that could be taught in their native language in half the time by their teacher? Still, the bright smiles of the children never wavered and this enabled us to soldier on. It warmed our hearts, knowing that the children valued our interactions.  It is easy enough to delude ourselves into thinking that we are doing the children a favour but we have to take a step back and think about whom are the ones truly benefiting from these lessons. Was it the children who listened intently as we struggled to communicate our lesson content across or was it us as the supposed teachers, learning the values of patience and sincerity from the ever-enthusiastic children?

Farewell was difficult but inevitable. The kids rode upon our shoulders and clambered onto our backs. We tried our best to explain what was going on with the minimal Lao we could manage. ‘La Khon (Goodbye!) Bai Liao Singapore (Go back Singapore).’ Some of the more alert kids nodded with understanding but for the vast majority, our words did not register. It didn’t matter anyway- none of us were ready to face the reality of the situation and continued to enjoy the company of the children while we still could. If there was one important lesson that living in the village taught us- it would be the significance of living in the present and enjoying every single moment of it. When we don’t spend our days bogged down by the worry of numerous deadlines and commitments awaiting us in the future, we learn to appreciate the things bringing us joy in the current situation that much more.

On the last night in Pa Bong village, the villagers prepared a special parting ceremony for us. They first draped us in traditional, home-woven Laotian cloth. We then sat in a circle as village elders went around tying white strings on our wrists, mumbling blessings which sounded like well wishes for a safe journey home. On our part, we prepared 20kg of meat as well as cooked 4 huge woks of fried rice for the village BBQ party. That night was the last opportunity we had to go on a late night walk under a rich blanket of stars. It made me reflect upon the community spirit in the village that has since been lost back home in Singapore. Our team mate Jedidiah puts it most poignantly- ‘You can tell how safe the village is when kids play about in pitch darkness at night wherever they want. In Singapore, we can brag about how safe we are but in the end, we still have to rely on security guards to protect our condominiums at night whereas in Laos the families help to protect each other.’

I learned that we can’t go for service learning trips with the sole objective to give as much as possible to the host community. Sometimes, we have to learn to take a step back and receive. The Laotians have so much to share- their openness of heart, vibrancy of spirit and warmth of affection.  These are things that may not be so readily available back at home. Perhaps the fullness of our lives may not necessarily be best measured in the amount of high-class delicacies we consume or the frequency of exotic holidays we go on. Who’s to say that buying 20-cent juice boxes with your classmates after school and going farming with your parents on the weekend isn’t an equally fulfilling life?   Teaching them basic conversational English would surely benefit them, yes- the next team that does service learning in the village will also stand to gain from the slight ease in communication and the kids will too find it easier to bond with the volunteers. We can come up with numerous lessons and plans on what to teach the children next, but sometimes none of those things are as important as the gift of friendship and love that we were so fortunately bestowed with. Hopefully, the children and the villagers feel the same way about our exchange.

‘Tomorrow, Hao Mai may wake up without a hulking foreigner to cling to, Sabia won’t have anyone’s bum to slap and Hao Kom will probably remain the same genius as always, look out the classroom and wonder where we went. Maybe it’ll make a difference to them- but then again, another team will eventually come and maybe it won’t. I only know I’m happy to have touched their lives, happy to have made the friends I’ve made, chased the sunset with them, made 75 bags of rice that will taste like Singaporean hands, bathed in that little smoky toilet and played with the children of Pa Bong.

I guess at the end of the day, they’ve touched our lives way more than we’ve touched theirs.’

-Simon Ang, 14S03S

 As we were leaving the village, I tried to recall some dramatic, life-changing experience, but all that came to mind were memories of villagers waving from their porches, children running and playing on the roads with sticky rice in hand as ducks waddled frantically out of their way.  All that came to mind was the view of the sunset bathing everything in its orange magnificence. All that came to mind was the cheeky look on 7-year-old Hao Nat’s face as he hugged my arm while saying goodbye on the last day of class. It will be these fleeting moments that weigh the heaviest in my mind, all coming together to form a meshwork of experiences and lessons that I will carry with me in the days yet to come.

Strength, Accuracy, Consistency. These are the 3 essentials of being an Archer.

Don’t be fooled by Katniss Everdeen or Legolas when you see them pull their bows without effort! While it is true that everyone can pick up Archery, not anyone can shoot well without hard work. In Raffles Archery, our dedicated “Koach Ken” will train and guide you along.

So, first we need to clear up some misconceptions. Pulling a bow is not as easy as you may think. Strength plays a major part of shooting well. That’s why we follow strict training sessions which include gym sessions conducted by a personal gym instructor (Mondays) and 2 shooting sessions (Wednesdays and Fridays), each lasting around 3 hours.

Next, Archery is a precision and mental sport. When you’ve attained strength and accuracy, the hardest part of all is maintaining it. Consistency in strength, posture, mental state of mind and numerous other factors come into play while shooting. Hence consistent practice at trainings is required if you want to do well! To do well competitively, another factor is experience so that you won’t break down in nerves. But not to worry, there are many competitions throughout the year for archers to take part. Raffles Archery mainly focuses on the National Inter-School Archery competition which takes place in May. But there are other opportunities like NUS Open (July), friendlies between schools and an overseas trip to Thailand for you to hone your skills.

We have a dedicated group of Archers who love what we do and strive for the best. As our Archers always say, “Go hard or go home”. Even though Archery is a very individual sport, we train hard and play hard together. During training, everyone helps each other out by pointing out mistakes and doing pushups together to get stronger. We’re also fortunate to have one of our teacher ICs who’s an archer as well and often provides tips and advice on how to shoot better.

There are also a few things to take note before you join. Firstly, our Archers are highly encouraged to purchase personal bows which can cost about $1000- $2000. But don’t worry, as there are financial avenues to tap on should you need them. Secondly, archery may not be considered for the National Colours Award in 2014 as it is currently not recognized by the Singapore Schools Sports Council (SSSC). This is subject to change, but there will nonetheless be an inter-school competition hosted by Archery Association of Singapore (AAS) every year.

So what do you need to be a Raffles Archer? Simply determination and a hardworking spirit are sufficient! No prior skill or knowledge is needed. Interested students will undergo a trial consisting of pull-ups for boys and inclined pull-ups for girls, as well as a shooting component to shoot a few arrows. If you’ve got the interest and drive for this unique sport, you are meant to join us. And so, as Koach Ken always says, come forth and prosper in Raffles Archery!

Have you ever looked at the night sky and wondered how the stars are arranged into constellations? Or, seen a picture like THIS:

and wondered how THAT happened?

If so, RI Astronomy Club is the CCA for you! At RI Astronomy, you not only get the chance to learn more about astronomy and astrophysics, you also get fantastic stargazing opportunities. And the best part: you get to meet like-minded people who share the same fascination with the night sky. Anyone willing to gaze at the treasure-filled night sky and risk a neck ache the next morning is eagerly welcomed as a member of the RI Astronomy family.

Astronomy (not to be confused with astrology) is the branch of science that deals with celestial objects, space, and the physical universe as a whole. It explains things on vastly different scales: from the formations of nebulae spanning light years to the miniscule elementary particle reactions occurring within stars.

At RI Astronomy Club’s weekly Friday sessions, members give lectures to fellow members on an astronomy related topic, such as star formation and the solar system. After the lecture, if the skies are clear, the club goes for a star gazing session at the parade square. We break out the telescopes and point them towards fascinating celestial objects – from the planets in our solar system to distant star clusters and nebulae. The sessions are usually from 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm, but can last longer if there is star gazing.

A star gazing session

While the lectures cover more basic content, accessible to those without basic knowledge of astronomy, we offer intense competition training for those more familiar with astronomy and astrophysics concepts. Competitions RI Astronomy members can participate in are NUS/NTU Astrochallenge, Singapore Astronomy Olympiad and, for those who qualify, the International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics. RI Astronomy has performed consistently well in these events, clinching overall first place for Astrochallenge 2013 and earning several medals in both Olympiads.

Members also get the chance to go on overnight star gazing trips. Every year, RI Astronomy members make a trip to Pulau Semakau with The Astronomical Society of Singapore. Away from the light pollution of the Singapore mainland, members get to see and recognise full constellations, star clusters and nebulae. Another trip was made to Bintan, where members had the opportunity to attend interesting astrophysics lectures by day, and by night, marvel at a night sky virtually untainted by light pollution. Under the stars, members got a chance to chat, share stories and admire the universe. And at dawn, watch the sunrise together.

The Moon from Pulau Semakau
(taken by RI Astronomy member Jing Guozhen)

The Milky Way from Bintan
(taken by Jing Guozhen)

RI Astronomy is made up of members who have varying levels of knowledge of astronomy. But what ultimately unites us as a club is a strong passion for things far greater than ourselves and a desire to understand the universe around us. As long as you have that, you won’t feel out of place here at RI Astronomy Club.

“Sometimes when my friends ask me if I love Astronomy, I will reply yes. But what I really mean is that I love the bonds and the friends that I have met through Astronomy. To me learning all the fun and interesting knowledge, even winning competitions, are all penultimate.” – Benjamin Lim, RI Astronomy Chairperson

Taken during Mrs Lim’s Farewell Assembly with this year’s Year 5 cohort. (Photo: Georges Ip)

By Lee Chin Wee 14A01B and Bryan Chua 14A01A

Perhaps the first thing that caught my eye when we walked into Mrs. Lim’s office was not the presence of certain items or objects, but rather the absence of them. Her hardwood desk lay bare, stripped clean of administrative clutter save for a solitary laptop that was powered down. Shelves that once held stacks of files were now lined with memorabilia and farewell gifts. Gone were the records of school policy and bureaucracy; replaced by handmade thank-you cards and little tokens of appreciation.

“Shelves that once held stacks of files were now lined with memorabilia and farewell gifts… handmade thank-you cards and little tokens of appreciation.”

On paper, Mrs. Lim’s achievements as Principal of Raffles Institution speak for themselves – I would rather not condense the past five years into a trite list of accolades, for fear of reducing her success to a series of numbers and newspaper clippings. Instead, it is the person behind the principal that Raffles Press would like to write about – someone who firmly believes in RI’s social responsibility, whose drive to succeed has never flagged, and whose dedication comes through even in a casual conversation.

As promised, we sat down with Mrs. Lim for a lengthy conversation – about her tenure as Principal of RJC/RI, her aspirations for Rafflesians, and her plans for the future.

What would you consider to be the high point in your tenure as principal?

It would be in 2011, when we went in for the Singapore Quality Award (SQA). I sensed that the school was ready because we’ve done so much over the years and built such a strong foundation. What’s useful is that it served as a rallying call for all of us—students, staff, alumni and stakeholders to come together and be of one mind. And we did very nicely, because all of our staff—from the teaching and administrative staff to our canteen operators—came together and we were all so proud of the school. I think Rafflesians love being put to the test and we do very well when we are tested.

What would the low point be, then? Do you have any significant regrets upon leaving?

I wouldn’t explicitly pinpoint a low point, but I do wish I had more time to spend with students and staff to build relationships. I think if you spend enough time with people, trust is built and everyone can discuss issues like corporatisation more easily—there wouldn’t be any niggling feelings of ‘Why is the school doing this?’, and ‘Why were we not consulted?’. I actually found myself spending a lot of time with the parents—meeting them for town halls, and lunch and breakfast sessions—and I don’t get any difficult questions from them at all. They tended to be very accepting of explanations I provided, without second-guessing me, without being suspicious of the motives. I feel this just goes to show how important relationship-building is.

What was your vision for RI upon entering the school, and do you think you’ve achieved it?

When I came, there was indeed a purpose and a mission: the integration of RI with RJC. Back then, the Ministry actually wanted to see ‘transformative growth’. They saw the potential of the two institutions, and it was up to me to make us more than the sum of our parts. That was an exciting challenge, because anyone who knew both RI and RJC knew there was a lot of potential due to the quality of staff, students, resources, heritage and the alumni.

Mrs Lim, with the Administrative Centre, perhaps one of the most significant structures which represent the RI-RJC merger.

My main purpose was to work closely with staff and let them run with their ideas, rather than impose my ideas upon them. When I was principal of previous schools, most of the teachers would just wait for instructions. They would say, ‘What are your ideas? Let us know,’ and they would do it. But when I came to Raffles, it was a much bigger playing field. If I tried to push my ideas without any support from the staff, they definitely would have fallen through.

But I could work on their ideas, and provide them the support, resources, networks and connections to see their projects through. Honestly, I can’t take any credit for what has happened here—not the Gap Semester, not the E W Barker Institute of Sports, nor the Raffles Leadership Institute. These were ideas offered by the Deans and HODs. We came together a few times to do strategic planning and to formulate a set of common values and ideals for the school. I can’t claim credit for any one initiative in the school.

Some critics, especially old boys, have criticised the alleged corporatisation as alienating the students and staff of the school and a dampener on school spirit. What are your views?

Teachers often lament the fact that they don’t have enough time to know their students well. What we’ve done is to take away as much of their administrative work as possible, so that they can focus on teaching well. With specialised help, the school conducts itself more professionally. I think that has fed into the perception of corporatisation, because we have good staff who want to do things properly. Our Estate staff, for instance, are trained, have dealt with contractors and some have even worked in town councils. I think when you professionalise some corporate services, you will get a completely different feel than if you had largely depended on teachers who are trained to teach and not to do finance, estates, landscaping or signage.

Besides the aesthetic changes, some have also commented on the disappearance of a ‘homely’ school culture. Perhaps that’s because we’ve become such a big school, with all the management staff essentially handling a six-year job scope , and we have had far less time to interact and be personable. In my first meeting with the Students’ Council in 2008, they told me that the school was too cold, so we tried very hard to make the spaces more interactive for students. I think we’ve come a long way in becoming cosier—there are a lot more hubs where students can congregate.

The lack of homeliness may also stem from the fact that Mount Sinai was a small, cosy set-up, and the staff and students saw a lot of each other, and their paths tended to criss-cross getting from one point to another. Now, we’re on a sprawling campus and thus see less of each other. So I think the lack of homeliness could be due to size, and we must overcome that by building closer relationships. I think now that we have done most of the strategic and structural work, the focus should shift towards building emotional connections.

Was the disjoint in culture between Year 1-4 and Year 5-6 an obstacle to integration?

Integration is an evolution, rather than simply an endpoint. It allows us to ride on the advantages of size, or economies of scale, and merge two strong institutions, but I do not want to force it by saying, ‘let’s integrate in six years’ time’. Those of us who have taught in JCs know that the JC population  is very different from the secondary population, and we can’t treat the students in the same way. For those who experienced a six-year RI (before 1982, when RJC was formed), it seemed only natural to have completed one’s education in one school, with a shared school ethos and culture throughout. However, when two institutions have grown apart and have developed independently for 28 years, putting them back together just doesn’t occur overnight. I’ve always reminded the Year 1–4 RI boys that, in the six-year IP, they are the minority—only 450 out of a batch of 1,250. How can they then impose their past on the Year 5–6 cohort?

Year 1-6 School Photo, taken at the National Day celebrations 2013. It was the first time a full Y1-6 school photo has been taken since the merger.

Did you face any difficulties as the first female principal of the school?

I’ve never thought of gender as an issue, especially because half the JC population is female! Clearly, the Board of Governors didn’t think it was an issue either, because they were the ones who agreed to a female principal in the first place.

When I first came, I asked the students in Year 1–4 about this, and they had absolutely no issue. What was most important to them was having a principal who was approachable. I don’t know whether the older alumni have an issue, because the younger alumni don’t seem to have much of a problem. If they do, it’s never really been something that has been surfaced.

In your opinion, what defines Rafflesians?

We are very task-oriented and focused on our goals. Because we’re so ‘indefatigable’, which is a word the Deputy Principals use to describe me, we obsess over winning, no matter whether it’s a debate or a project. The other side of the coin is that we never lose sight of our goals, and we do not let the things around us hinder us from attaining our dreams. Frankly, that defines the way I work. It doesn’t bother me at all if I hear things like ‘this is the first female principal’, because I feel I just need to get the job done.

What are your key wishes for Rafflesians?

The first word that comes to mind is ‘kindness’. We can be so critical of so many things: the government, the school administration, our own peers, ourselves. If Rafflesians were kinder, we would be able to receive more kindness in return. We intellectualise lots of things—myself included, I’m always searching for the critical argument—and we let our minds control our hearts. We get quite a lot of flak from others about being elitist and arrogant, but maybe if we were more empathetic and kind, we might receive less criticism.

In our assemblies, we always talk about giving back and being conscious of the fact that you have the talent and the strengths and must help others along. We have also urged Rafflesians to be grateful and realise that whatever we’ve achieved is not solely by our own merit but facilitated by many others. That rhetoric remains the same, but because of the current landscape, this has been brought a lot more to the fore.

I don’t know if you’ve read the book, The Twilight of the Elites. It talks about how America has lost faith in its elite, in the wake of a series of crises. There is now a lot of focus on making sure that there’s more equity, and that those who are more privileged should have to spend more effort and share their resources with the rest. I think there’s going to be a more conscious effort to let our actions show, not simply through words.

RI does come under some criticism from some quarters that our socio-economic profile is one that is skewed towards people who are wealthier and that we have significant barriers to entry. What’s your opinion on this and do you think we have a key role to play in promoting equity?

Yes, that’s why we came up with the RI Junior Scholarships where we reach out to primary school boys who may be in need of educational resources that we can help with. We give out over 20 scholarships every year. Through self-help groups such as SINDA, we have also started mentoring programmes for Primary 5 and 6 students, to build confidence and help them improve academically. And we do see them get into good schools, even though it may not be RI.

The fact that more of our students are from better families is a reflection of Singapore society. It has become more affluent, so we can’t go back to the days when we were in school and say that our peers were from poor families. Even for myself and many others, we are now much better off than our parents. There is a new idea for the DSA (Direct School Admissions) now to broaden the criteria for admission. I don’t think any educator would fault these policies aimed at increasing social mobility, I think they’re all good. The difficulty is in the implementation, to make sure that people don’t abuse it.

Many have actually criticised the Raffles Diploma as exacerbating the paper chase. What are your thoughts?

I think it’s a natural thing to say, because anything that requires people to show what they’ve done can be taken in a negative light. It all started because of the Raffles Programme, and the A-Levels just do not do justice to all the things that our students do. So we decided to come up with our own accreditation, something that sets us apart from other schools. The Raffles signature is one that reflects excellence. When you have a Raffles Diploma, it does draw attention to the quality and standards that we’ve set for this programme.

I’ve always told people to do it not for the sake of the Raffles Diploma, and that it doesn’t matter if you don’t get your Distinction or Merit. It’s just an encapsulation of what you’ve done as a student. People outside like it, as far as I’ve heard, because it helps them better understand our programmes, and they are able to pick out the different things that our students do, which sets them apart from the rest of the schools. The institutions outside have also said that they look at a graduate holistically. It doesn’t mean that your RD grade represents the person you are – it’s just one among a few things they look at.

A lot of people say that alumni and parent relations have improved during your term in RI and it’s something you’re very proud of as well. How far do you think these relationships are important, and how much more is there to go in terms of improving it?

It’s never about fundraising; it’s the building of trust. When you have alumni who are well-disposed towards the school, they will come forward to support the school when it receives criticism or if it needs help, like contributing to their former CCAs and school events. It is really about building emotional ties and getting people to contribute back towards any area that interests them. When we do strategic planning, we would invite old boys and girls to come and give us ideas, especially those who’ve been in government or in key private-sector positions. They are readily available. They all want to help shape the future of this institution, and they are a very valuable resource.

For a place like RI, it never really belongs to any one of us, and none of us should presume that it belongs to us. You can’t claim ownership over a school like RI. You can only be a part of it, and help to contribute to its growth, and of course, be inspired and transformed by it whilst you’re here. I think RI has transformed me a lot.  When I talk about giving and the Rafflesian spirit, it’s made me a lot more conscious about my own social responsibility. I have never been more proud of my Rafflesian heritage than I have been in the last six years.

Mrs Lim with RPA at Mega Mugging Madness 2012 (photo: Regina Marie Lee, Raffles Press 2012)

Let’s shift back to the local perspective—with the RGS campus soon moving near RI, do you envision closer cooperation between the two schools, and do you think that would be a good thing?

Our relationship with RGS has been good the last few years. I think it’s been quite strategic that I’m also from RGS, which helped, in a way, when RI and RJC re-integrated. So they’re coming nearer, and it has given us some ideas such as joint CCA practices, joint seminars and even joint modules. But we have to work on these carefully, because scheduling is one issue, and whether we want to get the boys and girls to mix so early is another matter for consideration.

You mentioned that you can’t imagine being a principal of any other school—is that part of the reason you’re going to SMU and not anywhere else?

When the idea for me to join SMU came up, I was quite excited about it.  I liked the idea of a new leadership initiative to be focused on Southeast Asia that would get youth to serve the countries in the region. I will be Senior Advisor to this new initiative and also a Fellow of the School of Social Sciences to teach a course or two.

What do you feel about leaving the school?

I’m happy that I’m leaving it at a high point. I wouldn’t say I was sad or sorry—I know that I can’t stay forever, because the school will not grow if a principal stays on for a long time. I’m just appreciative of the students and staff and the passion I’ve seen amongst them. I am grateful for the experience of having interacted and grown along with them. And I feel I have grown, and just like you guys who will graduate, I have to move on too, and take on new responsibilities and grow new competencies.

If you had one last thing to say to Rafflesians, what would it be?

Don’t be deterred by what other people say. Just do what you believe you need to do, and do it well, and be kind along the way!

Mrs Lim: Up Close and Personal

Q: Least favorite noise? A: Nails against metal.

Q: Favorite soft drink? A: Coke.

Q: Favorite color? A: White.

Q: Favorite outfit? A: Hmm… The Red Dress (of le Chevalier fame)

Q: Favourite meal to buy from the RI canteen? A: Definitely chicken rice from the year 1-4 side. I only eat that.

Q: Year 5-6 side? A: I usually eat the Yong Tau Fu.

Q: Favourite superhero? A: Like I told the Year 1-4 guys in my last assembly that day: Batman!

Q: Your office aside, favourite spot in the school? A: The Y5-6 track and Y1-4 field

Q: What does the fox say? A: Err, what? Your tail is bushier than mine…?

Q: Which house in RI would you want to be in? A: Morrison! Simply because I was from Richardson in RGS.

Q: Favorite movie? A: The most recent movie I’ve watched was Enders Game! I thought that was very interesting. My favourite movie of all time would be Doctor Zhivago.

Q: Real life hero? A: Stamford Raffles. I mean that honestly. I think he’s a misunderstood man. He did things that did not follow what the establishment wanted, because he believed in what he needed to do, and he sacrificed a lot for that.

Q: Favorite musician? A: My favorite singer would be James Blunt.

Q: Ideal place to live? A: I like Barcelona! The colour, the arts, the football and the architecture.

Q: Favorite author? A: Kazuo Ishiguro, who wrote The Remains of the Day.

Q: Favorite motto or quote? A: As I put on my Whatsapp, “life is short, live it.”

As I put on my Whatsapp, “life is short, live it.”

For the complete, unabridged version of this interview (along with the full transcript of our interview with Mr. Chan), do pick up a copy of the Rafflesian Times #2 when it is published.

Ever wondered how to hook/spin a bowling ball? Admire bowlers who have customized bowling balls that fit their fingers perfectly? Or just love looking at the pretty colours of bowling balls? If these thoughts ever crossed your mind, why not consider joining Tenpin Bowling!

Bowling is a special sport as it relies heavily on mental strength as opposed to just being physically fit. Positive thoughts can greatly increase your chances of success, and vice versa. Two equally skilled bowlers could be standing on the lanes, but one has already won the match because of having a trained, better mental strength and being able to overcome any setbacks. The mental toll bowling takes on a person during competition can be rather heavy, given that a game can stretch to an hour during competition but each bowler only bowls 10 frames. Nonetheless, the key to consistency is maintaining a clear and open mind throughout one’s game and believing that the result is never determined till the very last shot is completed.

Simple yet often neglected character traits are built through bowling. As you might already know, bowling balls can be rather heavy. The daily routine where bowlers unpack their equipment to train and pack them up again can be tiring and mundane. However, bowling balls are only one of the many equipment each individual bowler owns.  Herein lies the responsibility of bowlers to take care of their own equipment and ensure they do not leave anything behind after each training and competition. Our dear friend integrity is also very familiar with the bowlers. Whenever we miss a spare during competitions but it is recorded as a spare on the screen, we never hesitate to raise our arm and request for a change in score from the lane marshals.

In the bowling arena, they say that a successful bowler requires 10% luck, 30% skills but most importantly, 60% practice. Yes, luck may seem like a funny thing but it actually plays a significant role in deciding a winner. Skills can refer to the inborn talent some bowlers might already have but ultimately, practice truly leads to perfect. Do not be deceived by ‘innate talent’ because skills can be honed. Some simple bowling lingo include ball swing, release, footwork and follow through! With only 3 (or 4 before competition period) 2 hours trainings per week, every training counts! Our bowling trainings are fun in the sense that we bowl while balancing rubber rings on our head, carrying another bowling ball with our non-bowling arm or doing speed bowling. These drills are simple yet carry a hidden motive behind them. They help to lay a strong foundation for us to build up higher level skills and usually, it’s the foundation of a bowler that determines how far he can go in his bowling career.

As much as bowling seems to prize the individual, the team’s success (or failure) is never the result of only the Top 4 bowlers (whose rankings are added together to determine the Overall Inter-Schools Champion). Clichéd as this sounds, each individual plays a momentous role in keeping morale high throughout the training year and during competitions themselves. What appears to be mere Hi-5s after a good shot, or nonchalant reminders to stay focused during trainings, actually culminate and form the bedrock of our team spirit. Here in Raffles Bowling, we highly value team bonding. Not just for achieving that gold, but the belief that everyone will have a better time working hard with people they love. To foster this, we have an entire host of events for bowlers to kick back and have fun! They include the January Induction Programme, March/June Holiday Chalet, and an Overseas Trip (to Taiwan) that we just went on in Dec 2013!

Remember, love the pins and they’ll fall for you. There’s so much that can be done with two fingers and a thumb. Sounds quirky enough for you? Join us then, for we warmly welcome you (:

As a CCA, we strive to be a professional crew of united members.

Aims & Objectives:

• To be passionate in serving the school by providing audio-visual support for various CCAs.
• To instill a sense of pride and belonging in every member.
• To equip every member with essential skills in operating light and sound systems.

Trainings (on weekly/fortnightly basis):

• Sounds: conducted by sound engineers + Year Sixes
• Lights: conducted by Estate Technicians + Year Sixes
• Films: conducted by School IT Department

Concerts/Events:

• Members will be informed of upcoming concerts and events via SMS, and AV slots will be allocated on a first-come-first-serve basis.
• Free entry to concerts/performances!

Hours:

• A basic 60 AVU hours has to be fulfilled.
• Hours beyond 60 will be clocked as CIP hours (reflected in CCA records).

Others:

• AV Camp will be conducted at the start of the year to welcome the new batch.
• All AV enthusiasts are welcomed.
• Selection interviews will be conducted

By Jedidiah Andrew 14S03K, Dong Yunfan 14S06B, Ong Dingjie 14S03D, Oh Qi Yuan 14S06O

“Of Chess it has been said that life is not long enough for it, but that is the fault of life, not Chess” – William Ewart Napier

Indeed, chess is a lifelong passion, and rightfully so. The pleasure, excitement, and satisfaction gained from winning chess games have intoxicated many, and they altogether promise an experience beyond words. When you join the Chinese Chess Club, we promise you not boring weekly gatherings for a little more than a year but the mere beginning of a pursuit that will last a lifetime.

Because here we believe: Once a Chess Player, always a Chess Player.

We guarantee that if you see the mind-blowing beauty of chess hidden and intertwined with its complexities and intricacies, you will play it for a long time to come.

Here at the Chinese Chess Club, we offer you the chance to taste and experience this for yourself. There is absolutely no prerequisite in terms of skill level, all we are looking for are people who have the interest and a willing heart to learn. We warmly welcome all beginners; we are more than willing to share with you the rules and basics of chess, and of course some of the more advanced tactics later on.

R&R after an intense competition

We do have a coach during weekly trainings, and our trainings take place every Tuesday from 4pm-7pm. Trainings comprise a wide variety of activities, including coaching sessions by our coach, followed by chess puzzle solving and sparring games, as well as analysis either by our coach or by fellow players. Occasionally, we would also spar with our coach. Although trainings officially end by 7pm, many of us stay way past that time to play and chat.

As a CCA, we take part in numerous competitions throughout the year. There are individual and team Chinese chess competitions, where the former would comprise competitions such as the annual Char Yong Student Xiangqi Championships. Team competitions are an especially good way to strengthen bonds between our players, as we have to prepare and work together to win each match – every board, and therefore every player, counts. I wish I could capture snippets of moments of euphoria we have experienced during competitions, but unfortunately we have enjoyed these moments too much to capture them.

3rd placing at CJC Cup this year :)

With regard to team competitions, the Chinese Chess Club also organizes the annual Raffles Cup Chinese Chess Competition each year in June. This year, we hosted the 38th Raffles Cup. The competition features a team event as well. Need I say that we organize the inter house Chinese Chess competition too?

Of course, when you join the Chinese Chess Club we promise you more than a CCA. We promise you countless hours of excitement and fun in training sessions and numerous chess competitions throughout the year, late night gatherings, the occasional party, basketball games, long chats on the MRT ride back home, a good bunch of buddies, and most importantly, chess sets and clocks in the cupboard.

Will you join our family?

I know your journey here will definitely be made unforgettable by the three of us: me, you, and the Chinese Chess board.

Auspicium Melioris Aevi.

Floorball is a relatively young CCA in Raffles, founded in 2006. Thanks to the efforts of the alumnus, Raffles Floorball is regarded as the top few in the island, with the guys team coming in top 4 more often than not, and the girls team with a strong showing year after year.

Raffles Floorball trains under the tutelage of Ms Jill Quek, one of the top female players in the world, well known not just in local floorball circles but also around the world, in traditional floorball strongholds such as Finland and Sweden. Our teachers in charge are Mr Chris Selveraj, an active player of the sport as well, and Mr Winston Cheong.

For the 2013-14 season, the boys are led by captain Zhang Zhen Ming, as well as vice-captains Tay Yang and Andrew Joshua Koh.

The girls are led by captain Ang Shi Hui and vice captains Edith Loo and Lea Tan. Raffles Floorball promises to be a fun CCA for all involved, and will not just develop you as a floorballer, but also as a person. As our coach puts it, “If you can do well on the court, I don’t see why you cannot do well for your studies as well.” if you have any queries, feel free to contact the captains at zzm0406@hotmail.com (boys) or angshihui96@yahoo.com (girls).

by Bryan Chua 14A01A

Two days ago, we published part 1 of our farewell interview with Mr Geoffrey Purvis, Humanities Tutor of 23 years who will be retiring back to the UK at the end of the year. Today, we conclude the interview with Mr Purvis’s views on the future, for himself and for Singapore, and what he values in his life and his work.

——

Have you ever encountered situations where students especially or parents have had trouble understanding your accent?

Oh Yes. I do get that a lot. Many see me as a ‘Geordie’, but I’m really a Durham boy. ‘Geordies’ live north of the River Tyne; I was born on the south side in the county of Durham.

I had one moment – in England, actually – when I went into a bank one day and the cashier said to me, ‘You seem to be in the bank quite a lot in the afternoons?” so I said by way of explanation, “Well I’m a teacher so I school finishes about 3.30 or so and sometimes I can get away early to catch the bank before it closes.’

“What do you teach?” she asked.

“Literature.” I replied.

She said, “Really? Talking like that?”

Over the years when people have asked me, which they have on a regular basis, ‘Do your students understand you”, I’ve developed the perfect one word answer for that: “Pardon?’

People do have difficulty and I appreciate that. But the thing I’ve found most rewarding in recent years is the number of people who tell me how lovely my voice sounds – how they like the musical quality of it. They should come to Wales and the North East, they all talk like me there!!

And that means a lot to me – because when I was at university I was very young, sensitive, and naïve, and I was quite hurt by the number of times people would say to me: “Where are you from then? Are you Scottish? Are you Irish? Are you Welsh? What, English?!!” Suffice to say, I shut up a lot of the time I was there.

Here people ask me if I’m an Australian! Which is completely mad – I don’t sound anything like an Australian!

I used to teach students to speak in Geordie. I taught a class once to say, “I’m going home” in Geordie – ‘Ah’m gan hyem’ – it was really funny listening to them having a go and making a mess of it.

Tell us about the most memorable moments you’ve had while teaching.

There is one memorable moment when I was teaching in England. It was in the afternoon and I was feeling a bit fed up with it all. I said to the class, “Well, that’s enough for today. I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow, if I don’t get run over by a bus on my way home.” The class cheered at the thought of my demise so I turned to a girl sitting in the front row, a really nice girl, with pigtails and freckles and I said to her, ‘Carol, you’d be sorry if anything happened to me and I couldn’t teach you anymore, wouldn’t you?’ She thought for a moment and then said, “Tell me who we’d get instead.”

Funny moments here… I’ve had quite a few; especially when I worked with my colleague Mr. Clements. He told me he was walking along the corridor one day behind two girls and heard one say to the other, ‘Wasn’t that lecture boring?’ The friend replied, ‘I don’t know. I wasn’t listening.’

What will you miss most about Raffles Institution?

My colleagues – I think Raffles has some great teachers, and I’ve been really touched by the number of staff who’ve come up to me and said: “We’re gonna miss you around here”. That’s nice. There’s a great atmosphere in the staffroom.

Mr Purvis with Mr Jamie Reeves, both colleague and friend throughout his time in Raffles and Singapore.

So what do you think of the school and the changes its been going through, with the Singapore educational climate and all?

I’ve got a lot of admiration for the staff here at Raffles. I think there’s a culture in Raffles of not having too many meetings – not sitting and talking endlessly about theory. Staff just get on with things. I don’t think I’d have stayed as long in Singapore as I have done if I had not been at Raffles. In some schools, principals think nothing of holding court in staff meetings for three/four hours non-stop. I’d hate to have to put up with that.

I don’t think much of the Raffles Diploma, to be honest. It’s a lot of fuss and bother over nothing and takes us back to the dark ages of having everything quantified by a numerical score – which is manifest nonsense. Project Work is useful for the developing of oral presentation skills, but that’s all. The amount of man – hours spent assessing written reports and who’s done what and where and when seems ludicrous to me when everyone ends up getting more or less the same score. Or, what’s worse, when you get what I have got in some of my classes– only one B in a class of otherwise straight As. Come on, that’s bizarre!!

Do you have any regrets upon leaving RI?

No I don’t, and that’s amazing because I am known by my friends as someone who has a lot of regrets, regrets about what happened to my family, regrets about the religion, regrets about my upbringing, regrets that I didn’t do English on its own at University … but I’ve never for one minute regretted coming to Singapore. Not for one second have I said, “Why did I do this?”

“Not for one second have I said, ‘Why did I do this?’”

What do you plan to do after retiring?

Well, we have a house in Hay-On-Wye (in Wales), which is known as ‘the town of books’ – and I expect to see a lot of students coming through, checking out the bookshops. The house needs refurbishing and repainting, so I’ll be doing a lot of that. I hope to do a lot of reading and travelling! Going and seeing bits of England I haven’t seen, seeing my old friends.

My wife is a keen animal lover, (I tell my students that’s why she married me!) She wants not one but two dogs; we already have two cats, one called Holly and the other Lulu. One of them in fact looks like my late mother-in-law. It’s true! She lies on the floor, looks at me and says unsmilingly “ I didn’t think you weren’t funny when I was alive and I don’t think you’re funny now.”  I’m not really an animal person. I was brought up without any animals – no dogs, no cats – and I’m actually really uncomfortable around them. I find it fascinating that I’ve been teaching the novel Disgrace with the previous year’s Year 6s – and that’s about a teacher who loses his job, goes to stay with his estranged daughter and ends up working with animals, and re-establishing the connection between himself and the animal world. Art imitating life?

My wife thinks I would’ve been a different person if I’d had animals in my life when I was younger, and it’s not too late to reconnect. So I see myself walking the hills of Wales with my two dogs and my wife. I’m looking forward to it.

Would you ever consider coming back to Singapore to visit?

I don’t think I’ll be able to afford it! I think sometimes it’s a danger to come back. I will come back some time and have a look but not for a while because I’ve had my time here and it’s time for other people to take over from me. I think things are changing, generally, and I’m a little bit concerned about the attitude that seems to be developing in Singapore towards foreigners and the expatriate teachers are kind of becoming involved in that. There is resentment of the fact that they’re here and teach Humanities students when Singaporeans could be teaching them!

That concerns me because if Singapore becomes too parochial, then it’ll suffer for it – we need fresh talent, we need to have immigration, we need to have people coming in to keep things fresh, keep things vibrant – or else we’ll end up like Japan, completely insular – if you’re not Japanese you don’t count, and I’ve never wanted to live in that kind of world. One of the things I’ve always loved about Singapore is the multi-racialism here.

What are some of the values you believe in?

I value Integrity, honesty. I don’t like people who pose. If Literature teaches us anything it is to dislike pretense, pretending to be what you’re not.

I’ve got a sign on my desk that says, “Be nice or leave” and I think we underestimate kindness – the value of kind acts and kind deeds.  Feeling and showing compassion are two other ‘literary’ values. I do my best to try and care for people, care about people. I started life in the church, as all my students know, and those values never left me. I got rid of the dogma but I’ve hopefully kept the best of the values.

I like being able to think freely. I don’t like thought control of any kind – whether religious or political. I think we should be free to think as we wish, and not worry, as George Eliot said, what damage it might be doing to our eternal soul.

These are some important values for me – integrity, compassion, concern for others.

Some students would be surprised at which of my students are the ones I value the most. There’s a girl I called Chanel Number 5, lovely girl; a girl called Kelly Chan – lovely, caring individuals, warm-hearted people – and I think any teacher would tell you, that being clever’ is not what it’s all about. What it’s about is being the kind of person other people want to be with.

Mr Purvis at Lit Night 2013

In the world today, what do you think society values the most?

I’m very concerned about the way the world is going – I think we seem to feel that capitalism has won, and I don’t think capitalism is anything like the perfect system. The crass materialism of the world concerns me too – you see, the old religious values never leave you!

I think there’s something wrong with this obsessive preoccupation with money. It’s a common assertion in all Literature texts that money does not bring happiness. It can help you be happier, but in itself it’s not as important as other things. Literature teaches us that other things are far more important such as relationships.

I think that’s one of my core values as well – people are far more important than principles. If I had to sacrifice people or principles, it would be principles. Because when I was in the church my family put their principles before me, and so it created a great division and I think that was a huge mistake. And I tell students about it often, because I know it happens in Singapore. Children become Christians and their parents still have their Chinese idols on display and it causes the family to fracture. I think that’s rather sad, because the family shouldn’t be allowed to fracture, it should be kept in its place, because relationships are much more important than beliefs.

What is the most important piece of advice you could give to any student, past, present or future?

I think it my wife would say: don’t believe a word I say!

I think it’s a sense of perspective – as I am fond of saying in class: grades are grades but talent is talent. This school is all about people trying to get good grades – but I think people have to realize there’s more to life than that and that’s what I mean about perspective.

Especially in Singapore – I think we need to keep an international perspective rather than becoming totally preoccupied with the red dot as if that’s all there is.

What’s the most important thing that you think people should know?

That it’s very important to develop a sense of humour. Someone sent me a birthday card once – I think it might have been Mr Clements – it said “Don’t take life too seriously, after all, it’s not permanent.”

My strong sense of humour has saved me so many times from (a) complete depression or (b) complete self-absorption as a teacher. I’ve learnt to laugh at myself and to say with Puck: ‘Lord, what fools these mortals be.’ The ability to laugh at life is priceless.

“The ability to laugh at life is priceless.”

People criticise Rafflesians about being arrogant and elitist – what do you make of that? Do you think it exists? Do you think it’s a problem?

I think in some students it is, yes, but it’s not their fault- they’ve been brought up that way. I think some of the RI mothers are to blame for the way their boys behave like little Caesars.

That’s what I was worried about when I first came to Raffles. I was quite apprehensive because at Anderson I’d heard all about Raffles and seen Raffles students on television debating and thought, “Wow, these kids are good” – and I was expecting all the students to be like that when I arrived. However, I found the number of really outstanding people was very small. Most of the people I’ve worked with have been only too conscious of trying to live up to this image of being a clever Rafflesian – when they know they’re not, and the image intimidates them as much as it intimidated me.

I don’t like this repeated emphasis in the school on leadership. My friend Mr Bachelor who used to work with me was my idea of the perfect leader – he didn’t want to do it; he kept having it thrust upon him as Shakespeare put it. I know I would follow leaders like Mr Bachelor any day because he was a man of integrity, and he never asked me to do work he wouldn’t do himself. I don’t like seminars on leadership, I don’t like people telling me what makes a good leader, a bad leader, all that – I mean what makes a good leader? I don’t know. And those who say they do have never led anybody anywhere except to buy their latest book.

I think all of the symbols and insignia of the school re leadership are aggressive – I think if we mean what we say about serving then we should talk about serving and drop the leading by serving completely. I’m back to my bible again: ‘To whom much is given…”

Because education gave me everything – it freed me from the shackles of the church, it gave me the opportunity to come to Singapore, it gave me the opportunity to travel the world, it gave me the chance to open my mind up, to feed it with all sorts of wonderful books, and that’s why I became a teacher – because I wanted to pass on what I saw as the benefits of a lifetime of education.

I’m on a nonstop process of learning – I often joke that what they’ll put on my tombstone are the words “None the bloody wiser”; it’s not strictly speaking true – I do know more than I did when I was younger, but I’ll never know all I want to know. Never.

Finally, if, when you went back, someone asked you for one experience that stands out for you in your entire time in Singapore, what would it be?

That’s difficult… I’ll pick something that happened recently. A couple of years ago, only one person in my class did not get an A or a B for ‘A’ level Literature and she wouldn’t come and see me because she was too upset.

So I went looking for her, and I found her crying. She had let me down she said. I told her she hadn’t at all. She was still the lovely girl I used to sing to in class. And yet I thought at the same time, this poor girl will have to carry this moment with her for the rest of her life. And how unfair that is. Some who’d got As were no different academically to her. It happens every year: this day of dreams coming true for some becomes for others their worst nightmare.

Recently, a boy in the class sent me a note, because I was leaving, to tell me how the different members of the class were doing  – this one was at Cambridge, this one at Columbia, this one a top scholarship holder at NUS/Yale, this one in the Army and doing really well as an officer. He himself was training to be a fighter pilot. Then at the end of this list of achievements he put this girl’s name, and almost as an after thought he said, “… has a boyfriend.”

I’ve thought a lot about that since and talked about it to my classes. A poem has even been gestating in my mind in which the last line of every verse would be the same:  ‘And (…) has a boyfriend’.

You see, I found myself wondering about how we measure achievement in this school, in many schools. Grades? Scholarships? Universities? Level of degree? I’ve started asking students what they would rather have– a place in Columbia, or someone to love? Getting into Columbia is hard but so is finding someone to love. In fact, Shakespeare tells us that if you are clever it’s even harder to find love. In Much Ado About Nothing, Benedick says to Beatrice, ‘You and I are too wise to woo peaceably.’

I was delighted to find that this girl ‘has a boyfriend’ – it’s no consolation prize; love is the greatest treasure anyone can find.

It’s students like this girl that I remember with affection, the students who don’t do as well as the others do.  That must hurt in a school like this, and I don’t think the school makes it easier for them, beginning the issuing of results by parading and trumpeting the huge successes of the stars.

It means that when the others come to get their results, they’re expecting them to be great and when they’re not, it’s a double whammy! I think the school should think seriously about this annual pantomime of unfairness. I think even those who do well should bear in mind what my old colleague Mr Clements used to say to his students – “if you leave this school with your four grade As and you don’t feel slightly fraudulent about yourself, there’s something wrong with you.”

Grades after all are just grades – we already know, don’t we, who the really talented people are. ‘And (…) has a boyfriend.’

“Grades are grades, but Talent is talent.”

By Allison Choong 14S05B and Tracy Koh of Raffles Runway

Stepping into the lobby of Meritus Mandarin on Thursday, one would’ve wondered what all the buzz was about. Throngs of Rafflesians, dressed to the nines, packed the cramped lobby to the brim. It was a futile attempt weaving through the crowd to spot our best-dressed candidates, considering how practically all the Year Sixes certainly dressed perfectly in accordance with theme this year, “Estrella”, which means “Star” in Spanish.

Considered the classic look, the dashing gentlemen generally stayed close to the suit and tie look. However, the only distinctions we spotted were differences in tie colours or bowties – which we did find rather repetitive after a while. (We did spot a few in vests, all-white suits, as well as one or two who topped off their outfits with hats!) In contrast, there was a much wider variety of dresses matched with strappy heels and jewellery donned by the ladies. From sequinned ballgowns to flirty cocktail dresses, many sported latest trends which certainly did not disappoint. For those of you out there who were unable to attend the glitzy event, we’ve pictured our top picks for you below!

Ye Tong

Dress – Rare Attitude; Shoes – Charles and Keith; Clutch – Aldo

Looking at the array of long gowns donned by many of the Year Sixes, one would have thought immediately that voluminous maxi dresses led the way for 2013’s Grad Night. Ye Tong channeled this very look in a sleek and sweet mint green maxi dress with crystal embellishments framing its v-shaped neckline and soft folds cascading from the back of her daring, bare-back dress. She completed the look with a crystal studded clutch from Aldo, which complemented the crystal detailing on her dress perfectly.

Chanel Ma

Dress – Xeniaboutique; Clutch – Mum; Earrings – Talisman; Shoes – Steve Madden

Chanel oozed grecian goddess charm in this simple yet elegant white maxi dress with glitter cut-outs which played up this season’s peekaboo trend very well. She finished off her look with a sleek updo and a gold clutch given by her mum – how elegant!

Dillon Chee

Suit – Oxford; Shoes – Dr Martens

Dillon sported this season’s tonal outfitting trend in a suit by Oxford which featured varying shades of grey and black. He managed to keep the look simple, yet eye-catching just by picking a very fitting suit, complete with neatly styled hair.

Carrissa Ting

Dress – Mum’s; Everything else – Far East Plaza

Carrissa looked stunning in a floor-length twist-and-wrap toga dress in graduated shades of blue. It’s a fun look which stood out amongst the many other dresses in solid colour. She completed the look with a pair of crystal drop earrings, a navy clutch and an elegant updo, all from Far East Plaza, showing that you can look chic and elegant even on a budget.

Brenda Tan

Dress – Self-Designed; Shoes – New Look; Clutch – Aldo

Brenda easily stole the show in a backless crimson floor-length gown with an intricate velvet baroque pattern – which she designed by herself. Her gold bejewelled Aldo clutch and edgy bangs complemented her elegant look perfectly.

Gareth Ting

Top – Peninsula Shopping Centre; Pants – POA; Shoes – Bugis; Accessories – Fourskin

Gareth ditched the ‘suit and tie’ look and opted for an edgier get-up instead, donning on a black high-funnel neck top in faux leather and pairing it off with burgundy pants. He finished off his look on a fun note with a pair of suede oxfords in mustard, black nail polish and an interesting ring reminiscent of gears and machines.

Symone Oei

Dress – Designed by Dyon Ang; Clutch – Louis Vuitton

Symone was a show-stopper in this lovely red number designed by former Raffles Runway member Dyon Ang. The elaborate floral print on the bodice of the dress and voluminous skirt, complete with a wraparound waist belt and a loose v-back, was reminiscent of a kimono, yet it managed to look modern and elegant.

Sabrina Wong

Dress and Shoes – Far East Plaza; Accessories – Shopubb, Blogshops; Hair Dye – Amazon

Sabrina channelled Grecian goddess chic in this strapless white lace peekaboo dress. If Chanel’s look was reminiscent of Persephone, Sabrina’s look would take after Athena, with her flaming red locks and gold headband.

Daryl Tham

Suit – POA; Shoes – Dr Martens

Daryl sported an off-duty, preppy-chic look in this camel coloured corduroy coat, baby pink dress shirt and coffee brown dress pants with subtle mustard stripes. He finished off the look with a good old pair of Dr Martens.

Jeremy Yew

Suit – H&M; Shoes – Mustafa; Watch – Omega

Jeremy channelled just the right balanced of preppy and chic in this classic suit and bow piece from H&M. We loved the subtle folds on his dress shirt, especially how he opted for a fun twist with his coat unbuttoned.

Sun Xiaoning

Dress – Eurogou; Watch – Bvlgari; Flower – Lovisa; Shoes – Wicked Laundry

Xiaoning looked like Alice just stepped out from Wonderland and into a ball in this adorable faerie-like dress with crystal detailing, a vintage laced-up bodice and a flowy organza skirt. We loved how she completed her look with a pop of colour in a blue flower headpiece from Lovisa and the timeless, nude pumps from Wicked laundry which accentuated her gams.

Who are we? Well, we’re just a group of sixteen girls who love to dance, and found the answer to that passion here in Chinese Dance. With its elegance, energy, and mix of traditional, contemporary and folk elements, Chinese Dance is indeed one of a kind as an art form – and one very close to all of our hearts.

Under the guidance of Madam Chen Lili, our team meets twice a week in the multi-purpose studio to dance our hearts out. To us, dance is not a hobby but a passion, not a skill but an integral part of our lives. Our team mates are not just fellow dancers, but family members – and one of our greatest joys is to perform together.

What have we done this year? Our seniors, along with a few of the dancers in our batch trained long and hard and did the school proud by clinching Distinction at the Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) Arts Presentation earlier this year! They presented a beautiful remake of a much-loved old piece choreographed for the SYF Central Judging back in 2007. While the SYF team was preparing for the presentation, the rest of us were hard at work practicing for our first performance as a batch at the Global Alliance of Leading Edge Schools. Our team faced many challenges during this period of time as we come from a diversity of backgrounds – from gymnastics, to ballet, to ethnic dance, to contemporary dance – and this made it difficult to synchronise our styles into a single, cohesive piece. Furthermore, the personality of the dance we had chosen was new to many of us. However, our common love for dance, the tireless perseverance of every member and the patient guidance of our instructress enabled us to put up a performance we could be proud of in the end.

What’s up next? We definitely aren’t stopping here! Right now, our team is in preparation for a performance at Boon Lay countdown. The piece is a timeless classic choreographed by our instructress to a popular song by Jay Chou, and we certainly hope to live up to its reputation and her expectations! Also look out for us at Take 5 and Dance week later next year, where we will be showcasing a variety of dances ranging from contemporary to folk Chinese dance.

More than performance opportunities, we hope to continue to bond as a team, as a Chinese Dance family, and grow both as dancers and people through our journey together as a batch of dancers. We hope that you will enjoy our heartfelt performances, and continue to support us!

Automatica

Club Automatica is just the place you’d want to be if you enjoy either manipulating Physics theories or playing with technology. We are formed by 2 divisions – Quanta, which deals with Physics, and Robotica, dealing with robotics applications.

Club Vision
“To nurture a group of passionate, skilled students able to push boundaries in robotics and Physics through creativity and innovation”

Quanta

Seeking to acquire the fundamental grasp of our world and how it works and revolves (pun intended), Quanta aims to delve deeper into the vast and electrifying world of Physics. Quanta is a division of Club Automatica.

From the knowledge of something as fundamental as an apple dropping to the ground through gravity to the exploration of the abstract world of quantum mechanics, Quanta explores various concepts through interactive discussions and sharings. For those who share a passion of exploring Physics deeper and learning more about anything and everything related to Physics, Quanta is the place for you. Quanta sessions are usually held once a week, with sharings often occurring by any member who is keen to share his/her thoughts about something which he/she read and found interesting, some of our quirkier sessions include the investigation of the Physics behind the Spiderman scene where he stops a train using 2 thick strands of web, quantum mechanics and the physics of a ball in motion (and not just projectile motion or Stokes’ Law while we’re at it).

Figure 1 Currently, this our electrifying new setup, the tesla coil

Quanta is multidimensional (again pun intended), we also have demonstrations and setups of interesting phenomena, such as soon-to-be-held/recently held JIP workshop on non-Newtonian fluids and our very own Tesla Coil. Currently, we also intend to construct features such as simple ballistic mechanisms. Building these devices is no mean feat, coming up with such devices requires a fair amount of creativity and innovation, and we intend to increase appreciation of Physics’ phenomena through these interactive displays.

Figure 2 Preliminary prototype models for our pneumatic projectiles

We also aim to connect aspiring students with the Singapore Young Physicists’ Tournament (SYPT), a competition where students from across Singapore would duke out their knowledge on Physics problems in debates known as “Physics Fights”. Presentations of past participants and knowledge on the tournament would give prospective students some knowledge as to what to expect in the qualification later towards the end of the year.

So who can join us at Quanta? Anyone and everyone who has an interest in exploring the fundamentals of the world around us are welcome to join. You need not be a Physics students, just a desire to learn will be perfect.

Ultimately, Quanta want to show you that Physics is not an insurmountably daunting subject riddled with nefarious Greek letters, but rather a subject that explores the fundamental principles of the world around us. This exploration we cannot promise will be easy, but it definitely will be fun, enriching and intriguing. We learn fundamental principles governing our world, from the vast expanses of our universe to the smallest of subatomic particles. We learn Physics.

For more information, feel free to contact Kartik (Quanta Chairperson) at kartikbalodi@yahoo.com.sg or 97816553.

Written by: Ho Xiu Lun and Joelle Chong

Picture this. The lines are drawn and the stands are filled. You smell the grass and feel the sun fuel you. “Play ball.” The crowd roars as you step up to bat and this is when the adrenaline kicks in. With a triumphant swing, you send the ball soaring through the sky and clinch the victory by bringing home the winning run. This is softball.

We play for the (g)love of the game, training three times a week under Mr Nelson Lim, our wise and experienced coach. Our coach has been with us for over 20 years, training countless batches of champions. Year after year, Raffles Softball has performed remarkably, with the ‘A’ Division Boys defending their title for the past three years, and the ‘A’ Division Girls bringing home the title the year before and coming in third runners up last year.

You can also expect various exciting overseas training opportunities to countries like Thailand, Australia, Malaysia and beyond. Not only so, annual tournaments such as the SRC-SBSA Softball Carnival and AIA-SBSA Kallang Softball Open provide us with ample opportunity to hone our skills and bring us closer together as a unit.

In Softball, you’ll find in your team mates a second family, one who shares the same passion as you and will always have your back. Our teachers-in-charge are one of the most dedicated around and so is the softball alumni who spares no effort to go the extra mile, sacrificing their time to assist us during training.

If you have any experience playing softball or are interested in picking up the sport, we welcome you to be part of our softball family!

Softball: Where the good steal.

Club Automatica

Club Automatica is just the place you’d want to be if you enjoy either manipulating Physics theories or playing with technology.

We are formed by 2 divisions – Quanta, which deals with Physics, and robotica, dealing with robotics applications.

Club Vision
“To nurture a group of passionate, skilled students able to push boundaries in robotics and Physics through creativity and innovation”

ROBOTICA

In Robotica, we deal with all things electrical and mechanical. We use different platforms to build our own wonderful creations. From simple kits like Lego NXT (yes, the plastic blocks brand, but much much cooler stuff, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0-hmiCIShE) and VEX (for larger, metal robots) to more adventurous ones like the open sourced Arduino as well as propietary systems such as Joinmax! However, the club is not just about what we do, it’s more about how we do it. Innovation and creativity are indispensable in our arsenal of tools. In a sea of indistinguishable mechanical contraptions, we strive for the beautiful solution, poised as the guiding light for the robotics scene worldwide.

Our training sessions are fully student-run. But don’t worry, we have adequate qualification and experience, having been through up to 8 years of robotics competitions nationally and internationally. However, our individual brilliance would count for nothing if we didn’t share. Thankfully, sharing is one of our favourite activities (making robots come first). By teaching one another, as well as our juniors (through RARE, an initiative for Y5-6s to teach our Y1-4 juniors), and sharing with whoever wants to listen through our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Club-Automatica/325436347581930). This way, we can pass on the knowledge and passion that we have for Robotics to our fellow enthusiasts personally!

Of course, we apply these skills in the plethora of competitions we take part in such as Robocup Singapore Open & National Junior Robotics Competition. This way, we are able to pit our skills against others and expose ourselves to a variety of solutions.

1) RoboCupJunior Singapore – Awards:
1st for Dance Challenge – Individual Team Secondary
1st for Dance Challenge – Super Team
1st for Soccer Challenge – Soccer Open League Individual Team (here’s a link to the videos of the finals where we beat ACSI 18-1 first half: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=945JS0hvFzA, second half: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxDzak2tu3g&feature=c4-overview&list=UU7DpTAK4xH0-Mq9bNsVJTEQ)
Best Achievement Award

2) NJRC – Awards:
2nd for Best Research
3rd for Entrepreneurship award
Distinction Award – tertiary category

If you’ve got the interest, then that’s all we need! No prior experience is needed at all. As a close-knit bunch of robotics enthusiasts, we’d gladly guide you from lost soul to at least good enough to build and program a simple robot (personal commitment and enthusiasm is definitely a plus point to have to be good).

If you already have the experience though, why not join like-minded people like us to further your skills and try out new ideas! Who knows, you could be the next Dean Kamen Kenneth Chow (chairman, kenneth_chw@yahoo.com.sg).

In 2013, we had our division sessions every Wednesday, 2.30-4.30. This coming year however, the training day and timing are subject to change, based on our members’ availability. We’re extremely flexible about it as we believe that it would be a waste to lose out on our exciting sessions only due to schedule conflicts.

Fact of the day: All our members have won at least one first placing trophy in a competition this year, definitely an added incentive to join us.

Raffles Modern Dance is a tightly-knit CCA that never fails to inculcate the love for dancing in its members. It has a warm atmosphere with every dancer playing a vital role in the team. In Modern Dance, the dancers are exposed to the unique style of their resident instructor, Low Mei Yoke. Madam Low prepares the dancers for important events such as the biennial Singapore Youth Festival (SYF), as well as, major school events such as Raffles Rhapsody. Weekly trainings and self-improvisation classes constantly improve the technicality of the dancers. Furthermore, the dancers are given a chance to choreograph their own dance pieces during non-SYF performances. This allows them to explore their fullest potential and creativity.

There are numerous opportunities for Modern Dance to perform each year and these platforms serve as a great way for the dancers to improve their stage presence. In 2013, we took part in the Singapore Youth Festival and attained a Distinction for our item titled ‘In or Out’. Other performances include in-house events such as Open House and Take 5.

During term time, Modern Dance meets twice a week, on Mondays (4.00 – 6.00) and Wednesdays (3.00 – 6.00), for a total of about 5 hours. However, nearing the time of performances, trainings may increase to three times a week and trainings may be extended. During the holidays, trainings will be conducted during the earlier half of the holiday.

Modern Dance requires auditions and the selection process consists of two stages. The first stage requires participants to learn a set of choreography and the second stage to improvise according to any music played. However, participants may be asked to prepare a short routine as well. Selection into Modern Dance is based on the participants’ ability to learn quickly and their overall performance.

Apart from gaining performing experiences, the dancers will learn an important element in Modern Dance – chemistry. Modern Dance comprises movements that are interdependent between dancers. It focuses on expression and emotion. To foster inter and intra batch bonding, Modern Dance also has outings throughout the year, for instance to watch dance performances together. We are also planning to have a bonding camp in April.

As Martha Graham once said, “Dance is the hidden language of the soul”, Raffles Modern Dance is truly a CCA that allows its dancers to push beyond their limits and mature into even greater dancers.

Do you enjoy a good hike in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, the sight of migratory birds overhead at Sungei Buloh, or the waves that lap against seagrass lagoons along Changi’s coast? Don’t doubt it – all of us have an instinctive connection with nature. If exploring your love for our environment and conserving such places for our future is your kind of thing, then Raffles One Earth is the CCA for you.

As a designated Service Club, we have two main objectives. Firstly, to create regular environment-related service opportunities for the school population. Secondly, to advocate on pressing environmental issues so as to raise awareness on the significance of environmental conservation. Under this framework, we hope that our contributions towards the cause would go a long way in making our Earth a more sustainable place for future generations to live in.

We meet once a week on Fridays from 3.30-5.30pm, with club sessions usually involving planning for service activities. Such activities include going down to primary schools to carry out environmental outreach, spreading the message to primary school students through interactive activities like terrarium making, handicraft sessions involving recyclables, and clean-ups at the Kranji Marshes. School-wide activities are also among the list of what we do. Highlights for the year ahead include recycling campaigns, photography exhibitions featuring Singapore’s ecology and facilitated workshops that put the spotlight on contentious environmental issues.

Since there are no strict guidelines on the type of projects members can initiate, some may also choose to organize community service opportunities such as coastal cleanups for the school population. This provides firsthand experiences at environmental service, allowing participants to better appreciate the importance of environmental conservation through the service experience. For club members, there will also be the occasional outing to places such as Bukit Brown and guest speaker sessions as well.

Horseshoe crab rescue

Join us and you can look forward to fun activities such as mangrove salvaging and horseshoe crab rescue, taking you to places you’d otherwise never see! Make new friends, and more importantly get to know like-minded people with a passion for nature and the environment.

Do indicate your interest to join us when filling in your CCA options. The selection process is only a short interview and there are no prerequisites. We look forward to seeing you!