Prove Me Wrong!!!

I am going to blog about something that I think will create an uproar from my young reader. So before you proceed to read further, please be tolerant and let us learn to accept different views as this is a real world and each of us may see things in a different perspective.

So this is what happens. I was at Suntec and did not drive there. As it was raining cats and dogs, so I decided to take the free shuttle bus from Suntec. As I board the bus, there were not many seats left as it was raining. At the back, there was a row of seats, about 6 seats in a row. And here was a young man, seated in the middle of the row with his legs wide open, thus blocking the way for others to take the inside seat. Not only that, he pretended to be asleep, with his eyes closed and even if you are standing in front of him, he pretend not to see anything, but keep his “golden” eyes shut!!! As though someone is going to gorge out his eye balls, so must protect them with his eyes tightly shut.

I felt so disturbed with this young man attitude. Is this how our youngster is being brought up? He was a decent looking man, not those Ah Beng type. Yet, his behaviour speaks worst than a Ah Beng!!! With more that 10 years of education and yet this is the outcome! Maybe, my young reader will jump up in protest of me singling out the youngster. No, I agreed that there are many older people who are like that, but many of such older generation do not have the privilege of going through more than 10 years of education. So I tend to give them a little leeway in their behaviour. But our youngster? How can they behave like that? I can’t imagine what values they are going to impart to their children. I mean, you will have the courtesy to at least give some space for others to take the inner seat or if you ARE REALLY THAT TIRED, which I doubt so, as when his phone rings, immediately it was answered, then move your ASS and take the inner seat!!!

To me, youngster now adays are too much into themselves. All they care about is as long as their needs are met, then, to hell with the rest of the world!!! I may sound too harsh, but this is what I had been seeing so often with the way our youngster had behaves. Sure, my daughters will always say that I am always stereotyping the youth, but unless the majority shows otherwise, I doubt I am very wrong. I had seen too often how our youth behaves and it really disturbs me, they don’t give me the assurance that things will be better when they take over in the near future. Hey, prove me wrong, and I will be very glad and happy!!!

Persevere, Persevere, Persevere!!!

Last week received a sms from one of my student who had just completed her studies in Mar this year. Would like to share with you all this sms, and it goes “Cher, thx 4 supporting me as a student n showing me the route of becoming a better person. Appreciate it.. Thx”

It touches my heart to read this sms and would like to share with all of you about this student (hey, I am trying to boast but to encourage all to persevere). You may have read about her in my very earlier post, but for the benefits of all who had not read, here it goes.

She is just only about 18 years and already a mother of one and when she was in ITE during her 1st year, she was expecting her second baby and she is a single mother. Life was hard for her as her then husband was in jail and she was trying to cope with the help of her aged mother. When the school fees were for the second semester, she had no money to pay and she was very keen to continue her studies. So I help her to apply for a bursary but she need to make payment earlier, but she approach me to her to pays 1st and says that she will pay me when she gets the bursary. It was Ok with me , so I paid her school fees for her 1st. When she got her bursary, unfortunately she needs the money as the baby was already born. So she told me that she will pay me in installment when she starts working part time. I told her that I could write off the money but she insisted that as she had promised to pay me back, she will. Finally she had repaid me what she loan. Now she is hoping that her result will be good enough to get a place in poly. To her, I wished her all the best.

To all my young readers. I doubt many of you will face a situation like her. A single mother with 2 kids, an aged mother to look after, need to study full time, still need to work after school to make a living and yet able to survive through two years and will be graduating soon!!! I she can survive in such a harsh condition, I see no reason why the rest of you cannot.

If ever you need help, you can rest assured that I will be there for my students, juts as long as you are genuinely in need, whether financially, mentally or emotionally, I will offer you a listening ear, just don’t give up!!!

Not many of us are born with a silver spoon, i.e. born into a rich family, so we have not worries at all. Many of us are born into a family that will need us to work hard to survive. Unfortunately, in Singapore, no one can survive, if you just laze around and hope for things to happen. This is so especially true for my students. Out of the many students graduated in Dec, I heard of many who sighed and was discourage as they cannot progress on to Poly. If you had not put in some hard work during your 2 years of studies in ITE, then how can you expect to progress further in your studies? So, BUCK UP AND STUDY!!!

What Bless My Heart?

Just received a call from one of my former student. He told me that he was accepted into Republic Poly and from his voice; I could sense that he was overjoyed with the acceptance. He keeps telling me that he wants to give me a treat which I doubt I will accept.

This is what keeps me going as a teacher. Every time I hear from a student that he had made progress and he is moving forward, it blessed my heart. It is not the increment that I get for my salary or a promotion that makes me joyful. These are just plus point to me that do not affect me very much. If it ever comes along, then good, if not, then it will still make no difference to me. Let me tell you that this student was from a “Normal Tech” stream, not the express students. I had always says that as long as you are willing to put effort into your study, you can make it to Poly. So to all my “NT” students, never loose heart, never let others says you are hopeless, just put in your best and there will always be an opening for you, either to Poly or to Higher Nitec that provides an opportunity to Poly.

Sad to says, too many of ITE students do not see the importance of putting in their best in their studies. In actual fact, I just received an email from another student who does not qualify for even higher Nitec and was asking me for assistance. Unfortunately, it is too late to do anything now. This student had not been putting much effort during his/her studies in ITE and now hope to find ways and means to be accepted into higher Nitec. Unfortunately, this is REAL LIFE!!! If no effort in put in, then you can never expect to be able to move on in your studies. I had seen this being repeated over and over again. When they are in ITE, they don’t have too much foresight, and when everything is over, then they start looking for ways and means to move on. So if you are reading my blog and are still studying in ITE, then please start putting some effort into your studies as it is never too late to start now!!

I hope to hear from more of my students who have managed to go into Poly to drop me a note, so that at least I know that you are doing fine and are moving on well in life. So all the best to all my former students!!!

Never Be Ashamed!!!

Last week was a week where we read of how well our students had been doing for their “A” level results. There were reports of students achieving fantastic results and my daughter also casually mention that she also wants such result for her “A” level.

Here I want to comment, “are we too result orientated? Can’t we see beyond results?”
Let me share what “strike” me last Friday, I went to Ngee Ann Poly to see how our students were doing in their enrichment course, They were to add audio to some music and clip art for the audio broadcasting. There was one group who had students who are not able to speak very well compared to the rest. But to me, it was one of the best broadcasting, not because they were good or either that their work was fantastic. It was simply because, they group that consist of not very eloquent speaker, had put in their best!!! They were not ashamed that they cannot speak well, they were not afraid of others laughing at them compared to others who had put up an eloquent audio. To me these are students who had done their best and even though they may not be “A”s or excellent in their work, they are the people who DARES TO PUT UP THEIR AUDIO CLIP EVEN IF OTHERS WERE TO LAUGHT AT THEM!!!!

Too often, who are too engrossed with people who had scored “A”s in their exam or who can go up on stage and speak without stage fright or student who are exceptional in certain areas. But we failed to see those that had put in their best effort and still does not shine. So what? To all my readers and students, take heart, as long as you had done your best and not shortchange yourselves, then there is nothing to be ashamed of.

At times, it is up to us to make life much easier and more accommodating. We at times, put too much pressure on ourselves and make ourselves miserable. Come on, take a break, relax a little, go enjoy yourself once in a while. Do not be too tense up or try to keep up with the “Jones”. As the Chinese saying goes, “ there is always a mountain higher than a high mountain” something like that lah! I must be getting “cheena”, been using Chinese saying in so many of my recent blog. Anyway, hopefully this will help my readers to life a life more satisfying and less pressuring.

Don't Burn The Bridges!!!

Had not updated my blog for quite sometime. No excuses, just laziness!!! Hahaha.

Let me take sometime to reflect on the recent festive season. To me it was just another holiday, but it does reveals something that we all must practice.

We as human being have different nature; different characters and at times it will cause unnecessary friction between one another. No one is perfect, no one can claim that he or she is always in the right and all the others are in the wrong. Chinese New Year is a time that we take the opportunity to visit our relatives and to connect with one another.

This is something that we oriental do every year. This is something that I would like to encourage all my young readers to do. Irregardless of whether you like or dislike your relatives, it is an opportunity for us to build bridges with one another. Too often I had seen how when we were young, we always think that there is no need for bridges to be built with our relatives but as we grow older you will find the need of having the support of your closed one. No, I am not advocating that we are trying to make use of one another, but as the saying goes, no man is an island, there is no way that we will ever be able to survive by our own, especially when you grow old. Many of my young readers may not agree to this, but unfortunately this is life and is a reality that will come to everyone of us.

It is so sad to read of how a mother support her son to be a doctor through her “dirty” work as a cleaner, as claimed by her son, and finally being thrown out of the house and had to survive alone. One day, this young man will definitely have his retribution for what he did. And then what happen to this old lady, if only she had other relatives to be with her to give her support, life would be much easier than having to have a packet of Maggie noodles for her meal. It is so sad to see how human can degrade themselves to do such a thing!!!

Whether you like it or not, your friends will not be with you always!!! Friends come and go, and when they have their own family, sooner or later, you will be drifted apart. But your relatives and closed one will always be there, as the Chinese saying goes, blood is thicker than water!!! So do learn to be tolerant of your relatives and DO NOT BURN SUCH BRIDGES DOWN!!!

Hopefully this will spur my young reader to start pondering and prepare themselves to mend whatever broken bridges next year.

So a HAPPY CHINESE NEW TEAR TO ALL MY READERS!!!!