My Education
As a Singaporean, I have grown up under a different education regime from the United States. It follows the British educational system closely, and the educational ladder we go up can be found below (with the American equivalent):
Grades K1 - K2: K1 - K2
Grades 1 - 6: Primary School - Final Exam: PSLE
Grades 7 - 10: Secondary School - Final Exam: O'levels
Grades 11 - 12: Junior College - Final Exam: A'levels
Calvary Pandan Kindergarten
No one can expect me to remember much about my kindergarten days. I am actually amazed by those who still can, and are able to relive their kindergarten past accurately.
All I could remember is that I hated the sweet potato soup the teachers gave us, and I got beaten to the swing by a girl who ran diagonally across the grass (whereas I obediently went around the perimeter).
As I was part of the old system, I spent a year here before moving on to my next school. Also, Calvary and Cavlary are two very different words.
Nanyang Primary School
This was to be my school for 7 years, as they take in students from K-2 grade. I think I was one of the last batches for that to happen. Now K-2 students stay in the kindergarten and only move on to Primary School proper after the end of the 2nd year.
As the name might suggest, NYPS (Nanyang Primary School) was a conventional co-ed Chinese school. That meant strict discipline, one can't voice disagreement (which meant disobedience), art had to be great, you had to score good grades (which I didn't) and so on. I may have my gripes about it, but it did play a huge role in shaping who I am today. I had my fun in school with the friends I made, and some memories to cling onto as I grow older.
Activities were not compulsory to have, and I didn't join any organization or group for more than a year. I only joined the 'wei qi' (or Chinese chess) club during my fifth year, and not going to it right after that. Learned a bit of this ancient game, and played a little with friends in the club too.
At the final year at NYPS, I took the PSLE (Primary School Leaving Exam). Even though I studied hard for it, I only managed mediocre results. Interestingly, I scored the exact total score as my brother, but my grades were AAAA+, while my brother had AAAB.
Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road)
There are actually 2 ACS (Anglo-Chinese School) secondary schools in the country. One is called ACS(I) ('I' for Independent, or privately-run), and the other is ACS(Barker Road) which is government funded. ACS(I) had all the name and prestige, and was where students with good grades went. If you have read about my primary school before this, I had normal grades and went to ACS (Br). Both schools were boys only.
People hold a misconception that it is a school of unruly boys, and couldn't make it to a good school. I really enjoyed my years in ACS(Br), and it is common for a lot of graduates to form strong bonds, and still keep in contact after leaving the school. Not to forget, bad chinese was the norm for students or even in fashion!
In ACS(Br), I was in about 2 activities in my 4 years. I joined the Athletic Club for a year, only to leave after a year, and no one followed up on me after that. My other activity was the Scouts. My time in the Scouts was certainly memorable, as I made close friends from there, learned skills not taught in the classroom, got to know passionate Scout adult leaders, earn badges, and even attend a Jamboree (huge collection of Scouts) in my homeland. I held 3 positions during my time which were Patrol Leader, Scribe and Venture. After I left the school for my Junior College, I did return to continue my involvement with the Scouts for a year.
Certainly, I save the best for the last, and that is my class for secondary 3 and 4, or known as 'A2', and everybody actually looked forward to school. After 5 years since graduation, the class still meets up to hang out together and have fun. In the past get togethers we had roudy lunches, sumptous dinners, played in LAN shops (Counterstrike), and even held a laser tag game in a park! It was certainly a great class as we always reminise the crazy stunts (I would not recall them here), and the stupid things we did. I would like to say right here, that was the most united class (and school) I was in.
Anglo-Chinese Junior College
After taking the O'levels, I managed to score respectable marks to qualify for ACJC (Anglo-Chinese Junior College). It was a co-ed school, and kind of embodied the pinnacle of the ACS family, since it was the highest level a student could go up to. Academically and athletically strong, ACJC was a demanding and yet balanced school, and I enjoyed my time there (does seem I keep on enjoying each school I go to).
Initially, I thought the work schedule was crazy and no one could keep up. Everyday (except Wed) school was from 750am - 430pm, and Wed was 750am - 150pm (the free time was for activities). However, we did get used to the long hours afterawhile. I took a triple sciences course consisted of Chemistry, Physics (only to drop it at my second year), Mathematics, Biology, Chinese, and General Paper (a writing intensive course).
The college had a renowned drama club, the ACSian Club. I joined them initially wanting to be a cast (which I did qualify for), but chose to be a crew member since I had friends from secondary school was in the crew too. Participated in quite a few plays, such as 'Rashomon' and 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. I had a great time serving in the drama club, and had the chance to meet really commited and drama-passionate people in my service.
Also, I had fun in class too. Although it would not match the fun I had in ACS(Br), it still proved to be a time where I enjoyed going to school. The workload maybe harder, the subjects maybe more abstract, but we still had our fun in class. Pranks, chatting away, class gatherings and a school fun fair were the events that brought us together and made sure we had a good time together.
At the end of my 2 years, I had to take the A'level exams to graduate. Interstingly, I also took the SATs during my first year, as it was a national policy to do so. However, after a year, the policy was scrapped and we had somewhat redundant SAT scores.
Dickinson College
At first, I did not have a clear idea, or the motivation to look up universities and start applying to them. I started out slow, intending to focus on my army enlistment first, before worrying about where I was to study. It was not a wise move, and something I learned a great deal from.
I wanted to study medicine, and the competition was fierce. The countries I was looking at had the British educational structure, such as the United Kingdom and Australia. That meant I would be studying all about medicine for 5 - 6 years and coming out as a doctor. It was shorter than the American system, and I tried to apply into the schools.
After a few interviews, I was rejected by quite a few. Medicine happened to be a overwhelmingly popular choice, and the ratios of application to slot was short of incredible. 10 to 1 was not an uncommon find.
My family, through Aunt Vera, got to know an alumi from Dickinson College, who is affectionally called Uncle Chris. Uncle Chris highly recommended the school, and after some convincing, I decided to take the liberal arts as my next step of education. This was based on quite a few reasons, such as the proven worth of a liberal arts education (my brother was already in Claremont McKenna), and the extra time to really consider (and find out) what I am suited for. It maybe medicine, and it might not.
If you would like to find out more on what I am doing in Dickinson College, please visit this link
