A FOREIGNER'S EXPERIENCE
My first visit to Chestnut Drive Secondary School taught me something important about the way things happen in Singapore. I had come to meet Mrs. Feng, whom I was told would be my new principal. We had a long and fruitful discussion about the school, the kind of students I would be teaching and some of the duties I would be given, and also managed to change my ECA, which had been initially put down as soccer. (I am from Melbourne, the home of Australian Rules football. Even the ball is a different shape!) Then right at the end of the interview, just when I felt we had established a good working relationship, Mrs. Feng informed me that she was leaving the school and that there would be a new Principal coming. This was my first lesson: in Singapore, things can change very fast.
This observation has been repeatedly borne out throughout my four years at the school. Just when you think you know where you stand, the rules change. New programmes suddenly appear in the curriculum. Whole sets of computers are condemned and replaced overnight. In one Melbourne school, where I was responsible for the computer programme, I remember I had to fight hard to build up an adequate computer laboratory, one or two computers at a time, until at last, after about two years, we had enough to allow one student per computer. Here I was surprised to find not only one computer per student, even for the largest classes, but even an individual colour printer for each student. A couple of years later they were all condemned and a whole new set of computers appeared overnight.
The next lesson I learnt is that speaking the same language does not ensure communication. My second visit to Chestnut Drive was to attend the first staff meeting before school opened. This was a real eye-opener - or should I say "ear-opener"? I had been assured that English was the language of Singapore, and yet I could not understand half of what was said at this meeting. If I didn¡¦t understand what the teachers were talking about, how was I going to understand my students? For the first few staff meetings I attended I would have to wait for the minutes to appear before I understood what had been discussed. Sure enough, I also had something of a communication problem with my students. I think they had even more difficulty understanding me than I had with their Singlish. But fortunately we soon began to understand each other reasonably well.
As this was a new chapter in my teaching career, it seems appropriate that I took on a new identity. At the first assembly, I was introduced to the school by my first name, which, of course, is the normal way in Singapore. I thought "Mr. Raymond" sounded much nicer than "Mr. Crooke", especially as, in Singapore, everybody addresses each other formally, including our work colleagues. This is very different from Australia, where even the Principal would be addressed simply by his or her given name. In fact, even "Raymond" is a bit formal for Australians, and it was generally shortened to "Ray". Of course some of my students here simply called me "Tcher", which I soon worked out was an abbreviation for "teacher".
Although at first there seemed to be a vast gap between my experience in Australian schools and Chestnut Drive I felt that there was something strangely familiar about the school culture. Some examples of things that gave me this feeling were:
¡P Flag-raising ceremony, with singing of the national anthem and saying the pledge.
¡P Students standing and formally greeting the teacher at the start of each lesson.
¡P A prefect system.
¡P An external examination system beginning well below the final year of study.
¡P An inspection system (known as "appraisal").
¡P A book for teachers to sign on and off duty.
¡P Neat school uniform at all schools.
¡P Concern with students¡¦ hair, etc.
¡P Classes streamed according to ability.
I soon realised that all these things were vaguely familiar to me because they were also characteristic of Australian schools back in the 1950s and early 60s. Most of them had been phased out before I began my teaching career, but I remember, for example, my father had to sign on in the mornings when he was teaching. Of course many Australian schools still have a compulsory uniform, but there are now a number of schools which have chosen not to do so.
Thus, many features of the Singapore system started to make sense when I looked back to the "good old days" of my own schooling. There were other aspects of the system, however that took me a longer time to find out. Nobody told me about them, probably because they are so taken for granted here that no one realised I would not know. For example I was not aware that our schedule of lessons had to be submitted to the principal every week, and I did not know (or understand why) students' work had to be kept and collected for checking. In Australia, once a piece of work is marked and the mark is recorded, it is entirely up to the student what happens to it from that point onward
Though it was nice to be part of an environment where students generally showed respect to teachers, one practice that I had to put a stop to was the way students felt they had to stand up every time they were asked to speak. It really inhibited class discussion, as did the formal arrangement of tables all facing the front of the room, another reminder of my own schooldays in Australia. Fortunately, the reasonable class sizes at Chestnut Drive allowed me to seat students in a circle or in small groups. Although reluctant to speak at first, I found that given enough encouragement, my students here were very much able to express their opinions and showed as much imagination and creativity as their Australian counterparts.
People kept telling me about the discipline problems that schools were facing these days. I found it difficult to detect any discipline problems at first sight. They were obviously well hidden. I remember one student talking to me outside class and saying in a serious manner, "Singapore teenagers are very rebellious". Looking at the polite, generally obedient students in her (Normal Academic) class, I felt the Singapore definition of "rebellion" must be very different from what I was used to.
One of the wonderful advantages that Singapore students have is the variety of delicious food available at the school canteen. Australian students can buy sandwiches or a pie with tomato sauce, but nothing like the hot meals, served on a plate, that are available to students here. Many Australian students and teachers find it more convenient and economical to bring a packed lunch from home. The kind of food we eat every day for lunch here can only be found in expensive restaurants in Australia. Most schools do not even provide a seating area as we have in Singapore, and students tend to eat in the open. On rainy days they are allowed to eat in the classrooms, the only place where they can find shelter.
Another advantage is the number of celebrations that we can enjoy during the school year. This is due partly to the multi-cultural nature of Singapore, with all the different New Year celebrations, but in addition to this, I was surprised to find there was even a day set aside to pay tribute to teachers. On my first Teachers¡¦ Day, I knew there would be a concert by the students after recess, but I came to school expecting to teach my classes for the first half of the day. I soon found the students had other ideas and, when I turned up for lessons, found myself in the middle of parties eating home-made noodles and violently coloured cakes.
In four years I have learnt a lot about the subtle and not-so-subtle differences between Singaporean and Australian schools. Although there are some things that I think need to change, especially the over-emphasis on exam techniques at the expense of more important life skills, I have found teaching in Singapore to be, in many ways, more enjoyable than teaching in Melbourne. Perhaps it is because I was lucky enough to be placed in such a pleasant school as Chestnut Drive, where I have found my students to be respectful and cooperative and my fellow teachers to be friendly and helpful, particularly Mrs. Ang, who has always been very supportive. I have come to feel very much a part of this school, am pleased to be able to participate in the 30th Anniversary celebrations and I look forward to another two years of teaching and learning at Chestnut Drive Secondary School.
Raymond Crooke