So, I shall cut the crap and go to the point. That’s what you want, isn’t it? Teachers? Get to the main point and you will get your marks.

I am writing this, not because I want to get a grade for my current affairs blog entry, not because I want to impress my teachers, but because I want to be heard. You love the way we look at you, while taking pleasure in the awful things you put me through, teachers? I hope not. What is this issue all about? It’s about education. Specifically education in Singapore. Before I start my ranting, let me give some definitions, and you should really remember this well before you read on, cos I will be using a lot of it.

1) Education: The act, process, or art of imparting knowledge and skill

2) Test: A series of questions, problems, or physical responses designed to determine knowledge, intelligence, or ability.

MOE Mission Statement:

The wealth of a nation lies in its people - their commitment to country and community, their willingness to strive and persevere, their ability to think, achieve and excel. Our future depends on our continually renewing and regenerating our leadership and citizenry, building upon the experience of the past, learning from the circumstances of the present, and preparing for the challenges of the future. How we bring up our young at home and teach them in school will shape Singapore in the next generation.

Alright, that’s what I am using. Frankly, I don’t know where to start, but oh well, from Mr Mac’s address. In his address, he said he did not see the Rafflesian spirit in us anymore, he had taken a walk around the school and seen cans, plastics flying all over the place; is that what we call Rafflesians? Yes. But I think otherwise, that’s just the character of people, something that takes time to change, something that cannot be TAUGHT and TESTED with quizzes from Character and Leadership education lessons. Character is cultivated, my dear teachers, not taught. By giving us quizzes and telling us what kind of a person we supposedly should be certainly does not change our character. I am tired of what you want me to be and I am feeling so faithless, like I have no aim in studying no more. Or rather, what you want us to be. Why can’t we just be ourselves? It’s ironic, isn’t it? Now, that’s one point.

Two. Okay, you want to talk about Rafflesian spirit? Sure, no problem. Yes I do agree, and to a very large extent about that. On Thursday, (I think), there’s some crucial softball match held on homegrounds and 0 Rafflesians went down to support, out of the thousand. During support for finals, RI guys sit down and say: “Sian ar, my whole afternoon gone just like that.” Then they pick out their handphones and start playing. Obviously the Rafflesian spirit is not there. The thing is: why? Why didn’t anyone go down to support the softballers? Tell me, teachers, with all the assignments, tests and very, very interesting performance tasks that you give us almost every 2 days at least, how do you think of supporting your friends? Put yourself in a RI guy’s shoe: you have a friend who is playing a really crucial match today, but you have a common class test 2 days later. Would you still go down? Well maybe some will, but I can safely tell you, with 101% assurance, that at least 95% of RI guys will not. All we have on our mind now is how we are gonna study for the tests, finish the assignments and stuff like that; do we still have space for the big thing called Rafflesian spirit, class spirit?

Third. I think that the purpose of education has completely been destroyed. Right from the start. Look at the ancient people, cos it so happens I am studying ancient science for history. They studied the stars. Why? They wanted to serve their religion better and help in organizing the rituals and stuff like that. Look at the guy who studied lightning. Why? He wanted to find out more about lightning because he got so amazed by it. The definition of education is to ‘impart a skill or knowledge’, I quote. He certainly did not do it because he wanted to impress his professor with a new report, or to pass his test. Look at ‘test’, it is supposed to serve as a gauge of your abilities, so that you know where to improve on in the future so that you can face challenges better. However, look at what is happening in schools now? What is happening in classes? You hear teachers saying, “okay you must study this topic/question more than the others because it will come out for the test and if you don’t do well your GPA will go down and your parents will be unhappy blahblahblah.” The test is now seen as a hurdle, a barrier that we have to overcome, which is so not supposed to be the case! You know what? I think Olympiads are a waste of time, and they completely contradict what the purpose of education and tests are. If you can go get me hmm. 20 guys in RI who truly love doing math Olympiads, come to me. Maybe I will treat you to an ice-cream. :D I told this to my brother and he said, look at the Nobel prize winners, look at John Nash in ‘A Beautiful Mind’, they all do maths because they like it! There are people who love doing maths. (and haha I finally can counter him). That’s precisely the point! How many people in RI are like John Nash you tell me? Now I come to sec 3, I look everywhere only to find, it’s not the way I had imagined it to be. It’s just work, work and more work. Specifically pointless work.

Look at what we are getting now: we have assignments almost everyday, math topical assessments almost every other week, CCTs every 2 weeks or so. Yea yea you may say, it has always been like that since what, 1960s or 70s; whatever. I don’t care; because it has been so, doesn’t mean it is correct my friend. Like you have always said, teachers, two wrongs don’t make one right, so 50 years of wrongs don’t make the present correct. Back to the Olympiads, again I can tell you, all the people in maths club and science club, you all want that ‘Science club member’ in your testimonials at the end of secondary 4 don’t you? Then what can you do with it? You can urm, let’s see. Impress your scholarship panel next time, then urm, get a good career, then you what? Okay become a MP, then again, become the next prime minister of Singapore. Yea. Success. You only get one shot, so do not miss your chance to blow, cos opportunity comes only once in a lifetime, isn’t it, Math Olympiad friends?

MOE, is that what you want? Directors of Academic Studies, all the directors, whoever you are, is that what you want of us? If you do, go on, keep spamming us with endless loads of worksheets, assignments. Can’t you see that you’re smothering me? Afraid to lose control huh? It’s quite sad that you fail to see that everyone has a face that they hold inside, a face that always has a motive below. It’s not about learning what you want anymore, not about learning because you are interested in something anymore. You learn because you are told to do so. That right, my friends? Thanks for reading this long post. But frankly, I don’t know what’s worth fighting for, or why I have to scream. It’s just that now I happen to have some clarity, to show you what I mean. :D

I love this post to bits. Really.

10:30 PM