Many thoughts ran through my leechie mind as i read through the following article...i attended a neighbourhood primary sch near my home n wanted to enrol into another neighbourhood sec sch near my home...but my pri.6 form teacher had better ideas for a leechie...she psycho-ed a leechie to enrol into the girls' sch tt she previously studied in...saying tt the standard there was much closer to my standards...whatever tt meant -.-" being an obedient student tt i was, i took her advice...
But i had such a culture shock when i got there...i dont wanna name tt sch (u can go google the schools tt jeanette aw attended...we went to the same sec sch, jc n uni) well, i wouldnt say tt all the gals there were bitchy...but i certainly felt the hostility when i topped the class...year after year...(well, my primary school form teacher said somthg abt this school being closer to my standards...oh really eh? ;p) a classmate even confessed to me tt she was really upset tt she couldnt beat me to displace a leechie from being the top kid in the class...i actually bumped into an ex-classmate a couple of years ago...n i was really surprised tt she was still v.keen to compare our lives...anyway, we took v.different paths...so i really dont understand what's the basis for comparisons manz -.-" besides, i hav nvr treated any of those gals as my competitors before...i'm my own biggest competitor...as i wanna constantly outperform myself!!!
Anyway, i still rem our chinese teacher used to tell us tt we were not from a neighbourhood school n so had to perform better than those lousy neighbourhood school students...n our english teacher used to tell us..."even if u dont wanna study n can only think of marrying a rich guy...even the rich guy would expect u to speak good english!" n she would often correct us if she heard us speaking Singlish...well, i guess ms.boomz-to-shingz didnt attend our sch ya? ;p
Hmmm, i would like to think tt i kept a rather low profile during those sec school days...such tt my chemistry teacher, who was the vp then, was rather surprised to learn tt i was the top student ;p i guess i looked a nerdy ah-lian then? lol ;p anyway, one thing tt i was damn pissed abt was the silver award tt i received for my O levels grades...cos i was the top student n expected them to give me a gold award...so my leechie face immediately turned black upon receiving the silver award -.-" i thought then...since u were so stingy to give me only a pathetic silver award, then i would need to think harder if u were to ask me for donations in future -.-" i learnt later tt one would need to chalk up eight distinctions to qualify for a gold award...n i only took eight subjects then n i got only B3 for my English Literature (which was my worst subject) so i actually miz out on the gold award by centimetres -.-"
Then i went to a jc where the students were deemed to be rather "square" juz like our sch badge...well, i dont think my leechie face looks square ya? ;p anyway, getting 4 As at A levels was considered the norm for the better students in our jc...so many of my schmates got scholarships to study overseas or locally...although i had 4As too, i wasnt a scholar...cos i really didnt fancy signing a 6 or 8 yr bond at the age of 18...but i really envied my frenz who had such clear career paths set out for them at the age of 18...well, i learnt later on tt ppl do change...n one might not like what one was really passionate abt at the age of 18 ;p
Hmmmm, i agree with whatever the author said abt how those students from elite schools lose their perspective when they only restrict their social circle to those from similar backgrounds...my leechie mum always tell me to mix around with ppl from different backgrounds =) i hav come into contact with som rather myopic ppl who think tt his higher education makes him superior n a higher mortal as compared to the rest of the population...n he kept talking repeatedly n tirelessly abt his phD days...i guess anyone would get tired of the same old jokes being told repeatedly again n again...let alone his boring recount -.-" (the same goes for those speakers who keep cracking the same old recycled jokes each time...i really dunno how to laugh sincerely at those recycled jokes -.-") well, let's juz let him bring his pretty phD cert into his coffin, a leechie would rather buy a bling bling coffin n decorate it with more bling blings ;p n there was an event participant who kept stressing tt she came from a good background n tt she will only consider marrying a graduate n doesnt even wanna consider non-graduates...anyway, i hav a leechie uncle who doesnt even hav O levels n yet made his first million before age 30 n is a multi-millionaire entrepreneur who owns several biz today...observation: although he doesnt hav tt much education, he is damn street-smart n has damn high EQ n excellent pr skills...well, there r many other such real-life cases =)
Anyway, i chose my uni course outta elimination of the other courses tt i didnt wanna do then...i still rem tt there was one particular sem in which i scored straight aces n i thot my leechie name would appear on the dean's list...but it turned out tt 5As were the minimum criteria for the dean's list n i only took 4 modules tt sem cos i couldnt get my cross-faculty module via balloting tt sem -.-" crapz...i was damn disappointed n pissed tt i miz the dean's list by abit -.-" nvm, i consoled leechie by telling her tt even if i didn't make it into som dean-dean's list, i'm still on my ah-ma's list n my ah-ma would still love me all the same...well, i'm pretty sure she would love me more if i were to give her more moolah ;p
A cousin once remarked tt a leechie didnt look like a graduate n looked more like an ah-lian...n my reply to her then was..."tt aint impt, what's more impt is i am one n u r not!" -.-" as u can see, leechie developed a rather caustic tongue from a relatively young age ;p nowadays, i always tell ppl tt leechie is a high-class ah-lian ;p my leechie mum said tt if i didnt go to uni, i would b living in regret n envy my peers who did...so a basic degree is a must! but as i grew up, i realized tt education is not everything...but i'm still thankful for the education tt i had received which helped to mould my character to b the vocal n opinionated leechie tt i'm today ;p i guess my leechie mum would hav a much easier time if she were to hav a quiet kid who doesnt make so much noise abt stuff tt she doesnt agree with...my leechie mum is always worried tt a leechie might embarrass her in public -.-"
Life isnt juz abt swimming in a small goldfish bowl ya ;p btw, phD should stand for "Passion, Hunger & Determination"! Saw this interesting quote on my cousin's fb status ---> "We have to dare to be ourselves, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be. Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts. Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." lemme pose my leechie question to u ---> where do u picture urself in 20 yrs' time? what would u be doing? n who would u b with? ;p
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Apr 3, 2010
Scoring high in grades but not in values
Elite school students who never mix with others lose perspective
By Sandra Leong
OVER the past two weeks, the words 'meritocracy' and 'elitism' have stirred feelings of loyalty, indignation and dismay all at once.
Just ask the old boys of St Joseph's Institution (SJI), who have been making a very public case for and against the lowering of the school's entry requirements to enable more students from its feeder schools to make the cut.
Meritocracy must prevail, argues one camp. Easing entry requirements will only cause academic standards to slip. But SJI must not become elitist, counters the rival camp. Boys from the Christian Brothers' schools, based on that affiliation alone, should qualify.
The imbroglio once again puts the focus on the uneasy relationship between meritocracy and elitism. A cynical take is that the race to the top will always leave behind stragglers, and those who cross the line first are bound to look down on their weaker counterparts. Given this attitude, it does not surprise me that some SJI alumni are campaigning fiercely against the 'E' word.
I attended Raffles Girls' School (RGS) and Raffles Junior College (RJC), both elite institutions. I confess that as a young adult, I was conceited and felt unsympathetic to the world around me. These days, when people ask me what is my alma mater, I often say I'm a Rafflesian - but a 'recovering' one.
Before I incur the wrath of Rafflesians past and present, let me say I am grateful for the all-rounded education I received. Way before the term 'holistic learning' became a Ministry of Education catchphrase, my $300-a-month secondary school fees in RGS paid for classes in speech and drama, etiquette and philosophy.
My teachers did not teach us to be snobs. But neither did they teach us not to be snobs. As a Rafflesian, one never spoke in terms of examination pass rates. It was the number of As one got that signified one's mettle.
We felt entitled to big things in a merit-driven society where mental dexterity equated strength of character and virtue. We felt so because we had trumped the system, even if it was the 'system' that had allowed us to get this far in the first place.
Intellectual snobbery can be a scary thing. A running joke when I was sitting for the A-level examinations in RJC was that the National University of Singapore law faculty half consisted of Rafflesians. The other half came from 'students from OJ' - other junior colleges.
I did not have a single friend from a neighbourhood school. In our world, we did not see a need to venture beyond what we knew.
Many of my friends came from rich families and lived in the Orchard or Bukit Timah areas. I remember a then 15-year-old friend asking me where I lived.
'Siglap,' I said. She asked quizzically: 'That's where all the Malays live right?'
I never learnt that failure was sometimes an unavoidable option. Two years ago, I sank into a *censored* when I did not get a scholarship. A non-Rafflesian friend jolted me to my senses when he asked: 'How many people even get to think about doing a master's?'
Growing up this way, you lose perspective. You forget that you belong to a privileged minority, that in the real world there are those for whom a C grade (and not an S-paper distinction) represents the pinnacle of academic achievement - but who may be wiser in many ways than the academically gifted.
It was only when I left the comforts of my flock that I realised how close-minded I was. Unlike some of my peers, I did not win a scholarship or study overseas. I studied at Nanyang Technological University, where classmates told me they were initially wary of me because I was a 'Raffles girl'.
I learnt that brandishing my elite school background, from the way I spoke 'proper English' to wearing my RJC physical education T-shirt around my hostel, rubbed people the wrong way. I learnt there were other ways to win respect without riding on the coat-tails of a brand-name education.
My work as a journalist also quickly brought me crashing down to earth. Loftiness goes out of the window when you have to talk to everyone from politicians to cancer patients to victims of natural disaster.
I hasten to add that for every misguided smart-aleck I encountered among Rafflesians, there were others who were humble and well-adjusted. Still, an Old Rafflesians' Association president once quoted in this paper defined the Rafflesian character as 'predominantly achievement-oriented and goal-driven' - traits I dare say which tend to create a type of ultra-competitiveness that leaves little room for empathy and humility in the absence of a countervailing value-system.
Many of my schoolmates went on to become civil servants, lawyers, bankers and doctors. They keep to the same small social circle they grew up in, married within it and will probably wish the same life for their offspring as well.
I'm not saying they grew up into mean-spirited, Ayn-Rand spouting adults just because they excelled in what they did. The pursuit of intellectual excellence is a virtue that our educational system quite correctly promotes. But the pursuit of intellectual excellence to the exclusion of character or value excellence breeds an exclusionary attitude to the rest of society. Many of the products of our top schools forget they have to give back to the society that allowed them so many opportunities.
It is especially worrying when the exclusionary attitudes bred in school become accepted life values. You judge success using markers that only you and your like-minded friends agree upon. For example, my unmarried girl friends tell me they will never date a man without a degree, a car or a 'respectable' job - and they are entirely unapologetic about it.
These are people who live for years without having to step outside their comfort zone, leading a bubble-wrapped existence.
The sooner that wrap is removed, the better.
sandral@sph.com.sg
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An interesting article by another elitist in the ST forum =)
http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/OnlineStory/STIStory_511656.html
Diary of a reformed elitist
I AM as Rafflesian/Raffles Girls' School (RGS)/'elite' as they come. My father was a Raffles Institution boy; I went through Raffles Girls' Primary School (RGPS), RGS, then Raffles Junior College, then on to the National University of Singapore, boarding at Raffles Hall. My sisters went through much the same route. My little girls are in RGPS.
I recognise the syndrome Ms Sandra Leong talks about ('Scoring high in grades but not in values', last Saturday). I live it, breathe it. Most of my friends are like me, graduates. Most of us live in landed property, condominiums or minimally, executive condos or five-room flats. None of us talks about making ends meet, or how we must turn down medical treatment for our aged parents because we cannot find the money.
But I will add to her essay: that those traits, that aura is not unique to RGS girls. It resonates within a social group, and its aspirants, the well educated or well endowed. I hang out with so many, I have stories by the barrel.
- My doctor friend, non-RGS and one would even say anti-RGS, was shocked when she found out how many As I got in my A levels, since I opted to do an arts degree. In her words, 'I thought all arts people were dumb, that is why they go to arts'. Her own family boasts only doctors and lawyers - she said they would never contemplate any other profession - and by implication, all other professions are below those two.
- A church-mate who lived in a landed property in District 10 - definitely not an RGS girl, and I venture to guess, not even a graduate - once, in all sincerity and innocence, prayed for all those who had to take public transport and live in HDB flats, for God to give them strength to bear these trials.
- Another friend, also non-RGS and a non-graduate, shudders when she recounts the few months she lived in an HDB flat. And that was a five-room flat. Imagine the culture shock if she had lived in a three-room flat.
I continue to meet people who never visit hawker centres, who wonder why the poor people do not work harder to help themselves, who fret if their children do not get into the Gifted Education Programme (reserved for the top 1 per cent of nine-year-olds).
The pattern repeats itself in the next generation. When my 11-year-old had to go on a 'race' around Singapore, using only public transport, the teacher asked for a show of hands on how many had never taken public transport (bus and MRT) before. In a class of 30, five raised their hands. I think if the teacher had asked for those who had taken public transport fewer than 10 times in their young lives, the number would have more than doubled or tripled.
Many of us live in ivory towers. I know I did. I used to think Singapore was pretty much 'it' all - a fantastic meritocracy that allowed an 'HDB child' from a non-graduate family to make it. I boasted about our efficiency - 'you can emerge from your plane and be out in 10 minutes' - and so on.
It was not that I thought little of the rest of the world or other people; it was that I was so ensconced in my cocoon, I just thought little of anything outside my own zone. 'Snow? Yes, nice.' 'Starvation in Ethiopia? Donate $50.' The wonders of the world we lived in, the sufferings and joys of those who shared this earth were just academic knowledge to me, voraciously devoured for my essays or to hold intelligent conversations at dinner parties.
Then I lived in China for seven years. I looked on in amazement as the skinny tree trunk in front of my yard blossomed and bore pomegranates when spring thawed the ground. And marvelled at the lands that spread east, west, north and south of me as we drove and drove and drove, and never ended. I became friends and fans of colleagues and other Chinese nationals, whom so many Singapore friends had warned me to be wary of.
I realised it was not the world and other people who were limited in their intellect, in their determination, in their resourcefulness; it was me and my world views which were limited. I also know full well that if I had stayed in Singapore, in my cushy job, comfortable in my Bukit Timah home, I would have remained the same - self-sufficient. I had always believed that if I put my mind to it, I could achieve anything. For example, I used to look at sick people and root: 'Fight with all your willpower, and you will recover.' And when they did not, I'd think they had failed themselves. I, like Ms Leong, believed 'mental dexterity equated strength of character and virtue'.
But those years in China taught me terrible lessons on loneliness. I learnt that money (an expatriate pay package) and brains (suitcases of books) did not make me happier than my maid who cycled home to her family every night in minus 20 deg C on icy roads to a dinner of rice and vegetables. The past few years, I have known devastating loss and grief so deep I woke up in the morning and wondered how the sun could still shine and people could go on with their lives.
And so perhaps I have learnt the humility I lacked. Humility about how small I am in the whole schema of things. About how helpless I truly stand, with my intellect in my hands, with my million-dollar roof over my head. To remember, in the darkest valleys of my journey, it was not Ayn Rand or other Booker list authors who lifted me, but the phone calls, the kindness of strangers, that made each day a little less bleak.
And perhaps finally, to really see other people, and understand - not deflect, nor reflect their anger and viewpoints, but see their shyness, pain, struggles, joys. Just because I was 'fortunate enough' to have trawled the bottom levels. And perhaps that is the antidote to the oft unwitting elitism so many of us carry with us.
Sim Soek Tien (Ms)
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Cutie August Man finalist Peter Chang <3 could anyone intro him to a leechie pls? ;p
damn funny...u gotta watch this ;p
Learn to swear like the ah bengs in this clip...beng as they wanna b ;p
Cool ah beng song ;p
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