Memories of my school days

I remember my school days when I was in the first year in Raffles Institution (Raffles Junior College) at Grange Road and my form teacher (Mr Edwards) was a middle-aged Australia male educator who spotted a moustache. On Teachers' Day in 1981, some classmates decorated his car with roti prata on the windscreen and tin cans held together with rafia and tied to the bumper of his car. When he saw his car, he showed us that he was a good sport and drove the car around the small little carpark facing the canteen while we burst out with peals of laughter. It wouldn't have been funny if we had then tried it on any local teacher at that time as everyone was so serious and I think none of us would have thought of doing that. One of my best memories for JC1 was when our entire class was invited to his house and his wife grilled chicken wings for us. It was the first time a teacher invited our entire class to his house. It was a rented house for expatriate teachers. Then it came to class photo taking day. Our class was the only class (the Arts class) who had an informal shot because after we had taken the regular serious class photograph, our good-natured form teacher arranged for our class to have an informal shot. I recall all of us went 'Huh?' at first. Back then in 1981, it was unusual to do a zany shot for a school class pic. Looking back, I think we were lucky to have a teacher who was different and we taught us how to live life and be happy. I also remember that he was also very alert and very quick in his reaction when our Economics teacher Ms Tee fainted at the parade square during flag raising one morning. He promptly and unhesitatingly swooped her up in her arms and carried her up. I thought o myself, 'Wow, how strong! If it hadn't been for him, someone would probably have arranged for a stretcher instead.' But fortunately, his reaction was quick and he probably saved my economics teacher from potential embarrassment. I remember my Primary One form teacher Sister Agnes from the Good Shepherd Sisters. She taught us to sing the hymn 'Mary is our Queen' as I was in a convent school (Marymount Convent School). This was 1971. She was a kind and cheerful sister. I don't think I remember a day when she wasn't smiling. I now teach my own children this hymn as it has remained one of my favourite since. I also remember my Secondary Four form teacher Mrs Vasu who taught us Human & Social Biology in 1980. She prepared us very well for our GCE 'O' Levels and when it came to filling up a registration form for national exams, she told us that if we can't fill up the form properly, we aren't ready for the exams. By saying that, she put us all in the right frame of mind to complete the form neatly and with confidence. She was also way ahead of her time. She believed very strongly in visual learning. I am a visual learner and thrived in her classes because she was the only teacher at that time who encouraged us to draw. She would say, "OK, you have a minute to draw the heart." No one complained. We would quick and diligently draw the aorta, pulmonary vein and always make sure that the ventricles were in accordance to their proportions as she had stressed the differences in sizes. When I scored a B3 for my preliminary exams and was upset about it because I wanted a distinction, at least an A2 for fear that I would not be able to get into Raffles Institution with my preliminary results, she said no, she can't change the mark, not even by one and added as a challenge, "If you think you deserve a distinction, then go get it at the 'O' levels. That exam matters more than the prelims." That stung at that time but those words also made me all the more earnest to prove that I could do it and on the day of the results, she was beaming from ear to ear at me as I was just her average student but I had I had exceeded her expectation and achieved an A1. Looking back, I know she was actually motivating me to aim higher. Thank you Mrs Vasu! I remember my CCA (then ECA, short for extra-curricular activities) teacher, the late Mrs Elma Thwaites who perished in the SQ fire some years back. She made a huge difference to many students who were either taught by her academically, or who was a Marymount Convent School swimmer or a member of the LDDS (Literary, Debate and Drama Society). Mrs Thwaites took swimming to a whole new level at our school because we didn't just compete at our own school carnivals but had a chance to compete with state swimmers at the Nationals Swimming Championships. Many of us who are non-state swimmers would not have stood a chance in competing in the same pool as swimmers who represent Singapore at that time in the regional meets. Although we may not clinch the gold medals as these would go to the state swimmers, we stood a chance for the silvers and the bronze. I dare say that for every competition, some times without an underdog, the competitions would be less exciting. I think my secondary school brought the excitement to those swimming meets. Mrs Thwaites was way a head of her time when it came to stage musicals or drama productions. This was before an Arts Festival was even heard of in Singapore. She produced the musical 'The Boyfriend' and girls from my school acted both the male and female roles. It was held at the Drama Centre. I remember her briefing us girls on the social etiquette when watching a stage play and we would all remain absolutely quiet when the curtains were up. That was my first drama that I attended outside of the school. There was no Esplanade then. Mrs Thwaites was also my Secondary One Literature teacher and the book we read was Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice'. I can never forget how she would role play a character from the story and spoke in a different voice, as if mimicking Lydia or Lizzie. I remember her raising her right arm up while seated in the teacher's chair in class as if she was demonstrating how Lydia would have held her hand up to show off her engagement ring. Then she wiggled in the teacher's chair as if to show us that the frivolous character would have done just that to call for attention. We all laughed heartily because it was like we were watching a single actor drama right in-front of our eyes in our otherwise mundane classroom. With her wit, drama/theatre knowledge and enthusiasm, Mrs Thwaites certainly made literature come to life. My teachers in Marymount Convent in the 1970s were truly ahead of their time and inspired us to excel both academically and in sports. I now tell my own students that back in my schooldays, I was already doing project work and worked in groups. Most of my friends and I had 2-3 ECAs (CCAs) and they taught us that time-management was the key to being able to multi-task successfully. That has since stood me in good stead and I believe many of my classmates have also benefitted well from their wisdom.