My secondary 1 experience!

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It has really been a long journey ever since i first stepped into this school as a "hwa chong freshman". It has been both enriching and intensive, making many new friends along the way and also pushing myself further. Coming from a primary school which has a chinese background, I have easily gotten acustomed to the school values. I guess the most major things I have experienced was the increase in competitiveness between students. Everyone all has their strong points and achievements in one way or another. Furhter more, the intensiveness in CCA has also increased. Being in the school wushu team, training has really been vigourous and exhausting. My seniors have really inspired me with their "never give up" attitude, pushing themselves to their limits for the school. This has truly encouraged me to be just like them and let this spirit live on.

Along the way, I have also faced many difficulties, coping with my training and studies, having to stay up every night to finish my work, even during the competition period where everybody is trying their best to obtain achievements for the school. I have also been exposed to a variety of projects, such as "Projects day"and learnt many skills such as interacting with fellow peers and effective time management. the compulsory CIP hours the school expects from every student has also improved my sense of social responsibility and my well-being. In a nutshell, the expectations for me as a student has rose significantly ever since I stepped into the school.

I have learnt many things in secondary. Firstly, I have learnt that to succeed, it's not just about obtaining good results in academics, excelling in other areas is also very important, such as sports or art. I have also learnt that in a school where everyone has good results, people look up to you not by your academic results, but by the way you treat others and your personal character. The school has provided us with many opportunities to become a leader, and secondary one is only the first step towards success. This journey will not be easy, but I'm confident that if I strive for the better, I will become a true Hwa Chong gentleman and leader.

Cheers!

Singapore parents

Introduction

I always hear this question "Do your parents have any expectations for you?" Well, of course! Every parent has expectations for their children. In Singapore, living in such a competitive environment where everyone is fighting with one another to achieve the best, I am sure that expectations from parents are a little higher.

What are my parents' expectations for me?

Like all typical Singaporean parents, they want me to do well in my studies and my EP3. I am very lucky to have parents who give me time to work my way up to their expectations, always emphasizing that I should try my best and even if I don't succeed, I should not give up. Of course, their expectations do get higher overtime as I improve and mature, want me to keep improving as I develop. When it comes to expectations in my EP3 and studies, they will not angry even if I do not meet up to expectations on some occasions and just want to work harder and slowly improve, which to them is more important. However, they are very particular with my character development and have high expectations for me when it some to my behaviour and personal well-being. They always tell me that I must grow up to be a gentleman and not only just do well in academics. For example, every time I get back my progress report for the term, they would expect nothing less than an A. Even in primary school when they meet my teachers, they would expect good comments on my behaviour, or else I will be punished. They do not expect that I get the best marks for my studies or EP3, however they do expect me to have the best attitude and behaviour. They always tell me this "When you grow up, people would not remember you for your marks or achievements in your CCA, what they will remember you for is your personality and the way you treated others."

My future expectations for my children

What would my expectations be for my children when I grow up? As a Singaporean, I of course would expect my children to excel in their studies as this is the only way that they will be able to survive in such a competitive world we have now. Just like my parents, my expectations for their studies would get higher and higher as they slowly work their way up, but of course I will consider their feelings as a parent as I know how it feels to have too high expectations. Also, I would want them to do well in their CCA as well as a child should not only be good in their studies, they should be all-rounded in their development. Last but not least, I would expect them to have have a god personality and character as this is the most important aspect in life. I would want to pass down what my parents have thought me on having a good character development to my children. As character development is very important, I would have high expectations for them in this area as I would want them to grow up into gentleman or ladies.

It is important that I teach my children what my parents have thought me and bring up another level.

Would the expectations of two generations of parents differ?

In some aspects like academics and external talents(CCA, EP3), the expectations would be different, but when it comes to character development, expectations would remain the same. "Why?"you may ask. When we look at change in expectations, this is mostly due to changes in society and external influences (such a seeing other parents with children who they consider "better" than their own) . As one generation moves to another, the society also develops and as the society develops, it will ultimately lead to a more competitive world in which it would harder to survive in. This will cause parents to feel worried for their children's future and thus, higher expectations will arise in terms of academics and external talents. Further more, this will also cause parents to be easily jealous by other parents. For example if they see other parents with "smarter" children, they tend to want their child to be just like those children, or maybe even better , and if their children to become as good as that child, other parents would then become jealous again! It is a continuous in this civilised "cut-throat" world. Some may say, '' Spare a thought for the children''. Easy said but not easy to be done, even I cannot confidently say that I will not be influenced in such a society when I become a parent. In turn, expectations in character development will not be easily affected by the change in society as personal well-being is something that depends on the parents themselves to decide

I hope that I will become a good parent and not set too high expectations for my children, knowing how to consider my expectations effectively, just like what my parents are doing now. The society is always changing, whether is it going through modernization or urbanization and so do expectations as parents, but one thing will always remain unchanged, the love a parent has for his/her child.

Book review: The Arrival By Shawn Tan

I recently read another graphic novel by Shawn Tan called "The Arrival". This book describes of a father who leaves his family and the place he satys to go to another place and work. He ends up in this place so foreign and unfamiliar to him, confused yet intrigued by his surroundings. He meets locals who guide him along the way and each having their own story to tell. Finally in the end, he is reunited with his wife and daughter who gave him a surprise visit at the place where he is working in and they lived happily together.

When i first got hold of this book, the first thing that struck my attention was the appearance of the cover. The cover of the book made it look look like old, worn leather. Throughout the book, Shawn Tan uses beautifully and eloquent images to tell the story of the protagonist's story. The book itself looks like a photoalbum and he maintains this beauty throughout the book. I enjoy the way he shows different perspectives of certain objects by first closing up and slowly zooming out of a certain image to give thr reader a deeper understanding of what is going on. For example in one scene, the protagonist opens his suitcase to find an image of his wife and daughter eating dinner. A moment later, the suitcase’s actual contents replace the image. The protagonist pulls out a family portrait and nails it to the wall with his shoe. He sits back to contemplate it. A sequence of pictures then carries the reader away from him and out the window, showing first his apartment building and finally his adopted city. Another scene first shows the reader in the ship, looking out of the window and another sequence of imgaes slowly zooms out to show the whole ship and the storm in which the ship is sailing in.

Another thing I enjoy about this book is the way he uses only three main colours, brown, black and white in his depictions to make the pictures old and in a way precious. Also, Shawn Tan way of depicting the emotions of the protagonist through his facial expressions and actions is very impressive. For example, in one scene where the protagonist was interviewed by one of the locals when he just arrived at the foreign place, Tan uses a sequence of images showing the protagonist gripping on to his hat, giving gestures to show that he does not understand what the local was trying to say. The flow in which these images show how his feelings of frustration develop is truly an art.

I would strongly encourage all of you to read this book as it fit for all ages and it really brings pictures which what seems like they were drawn by a little kid to life. It is really an interesting book which lights a smile on your face.

The Lesson by Roger McGough (student's POV)

It was quite in the staffroom

as bravely the student ran in

teachers looked at him in shock

he clenched his fists and screamed

"We have got enough of you,

now you all will face your doom.

I'm going to teach you a lesson

one that you'll never forget."

He punched the teacher who grabbed him hand

and slammed her onto the wall

then kicked his ball towards the ceiling

A huge light bulb fell

Books in his hands he flung them around

at every teacher's desk

"take this you teachers" he declared

"no more exams, scoldings or tests"

He grabbed some papers from the table

burning them with a lighter

then drawing out his water gun

shooting water at all the teachers

The first blast soaked Ms Lucy

(who sat right at the front)

she fell off from her arm chair

As if trying to do a stunt

"Please stop you nonsense"

an angry teacher shouted

"Oh, so sorry" said the student

pointed his gun at her face and fired

The monitor popped a head through the door

to see why a din was being made

he laughed and giggled

no more teachers means no more grades

when the student finally stopped

the room all soaking wet

the teachers were all so shocked

Some of older ones kicked the bucket

The student looked around the room

the crying and the dead

he laughed out loud maliciously

"Now let that be a lesson" he said.

Singapore's IR project : Casinos

Casinos, a place where people can take a gamble to solve problems financially, or just for the pleasure and thrill. But will casinos in Singapore do any good? As you all may know, the recent economical crisis has caused a down turn to many countries and fortunately, the economical situation is already becoming better. Singapore's reason for buying a casino company was to attract tourist and which would benefit the country's economy. However, will it benefit the social and work life of our citizens? I believe many of you have watched the anti-gambling advertisement of the father who persuades her young daughter to give him her piggybank which was done by the National council of Problem Gambling (NPCG). The message that it was trying to let out was that when people gamble, they are not only hurting themselves, but they are also hurting the people around them. Here is a quote from an interview on NPR radio from a man named Johny . W, who battled his gambling addictiona nd changed for the better, " I wanted more and started always going back to win, but in the winnings, i starter to lose as well, and the more I loss, the more i wanted to return to reclaim my losses". His quote really very cleary depicts the mentality of many gamblers. Relating back to the casinos, I feel that it will only be contribute to this addiction that is already happening in Singapore. People have already got into gambling without casinos, sometimes even kids! Yes, kids, young boys and girls who are our age. Casinos will only add on to this. Sure it will attract tourists and earn money, but it will attract our own people as well. Tourists come and go, but our people will stay in this country and it wil result in more gambling addicts. Of course, gambling is good to relax and have fun from all the stress at work, but when you gamle, it's not just about a gamble of money, it's also a gamble of life and family. Next point, many people think that casinos will provide jobs for people within the casinos. However, some people who are desperate for a job may turn to illegal deals and work in the casinos with illegal liscences. If this is found out, the casino company will be sued and the casino will not only be shut down, but the casino will also be forced be asked to pay a fine. This ultimately will lead to more losses than gains.

To sum it all up, I support the building of the casino but I do think that if proper self-control and

legalism is adhered to, the casino may be a good way to support our economy.

My favourite poet.

Relating life to poems
My favourite poet would be Robert Frost. I find Robert Frost's poem very interesting as they all share the same style. He likes to write about small things that occur in our daily lives and make it interesting. Like for example, in his poem Christmas Tree, he talks about his descision wether or not to sell his christmas trees which he grew to a stranger and how he was not willing to sell them to the stranger at any price and finally came to a descision not to sell them. The way he decribes his poems is as if he is decribing something that happened to him before, maybe an interesting event that happened in his life and in fact, his work is principally associated with the life and landscape of New England when went there in 1912. So, we can actually relate to his life through his poems! Another example would his poem After Apple-picking. He talks about how he was sick of apple-picking and apples, so much so to the extent that he dreams about it has nightmares about it at night after apple-picking. Once again, in this poem we can sense a very "farmhouse" feeling it and indeed, Robert Frost did lived in a farm! This really intrigues me.
Influences in life
Now let's talk about his life which another thing which I like about him. Robert Frost is an American who moved to England after his farm failed. In England, he met and is influenced by such contemporary British poets as Edward Thomas, Rupert Brooke, and Robert Graves. While in England, Frost also established a friendship with the poet Erza Pound, who helped to promote and publish his work. So he not only writes great poems, but he is also influenced by many other great poets, which is why some of his poems are very different from on another.
Nature in poetry
Last but not least, I like Robert Frost because of the way he always talks about nature in his poems. Like for example, we have the famous poem The Road less taken which gives you a feeling of spring and even a very short poem, Nothing Gold Can Stay which relates the idea that nothing good remains to nature and many many more.
To sum it all up, I would say that Robert Frost is indeed an inspiring poet and even after his death, his poems continue to tell his life story.

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Use of figurative
This poem uses many figurative languages to decribe a very strong sense of anger of man who nears death. Firstly, I will be talking about the use of hyperbole. As seen in the words marked out in red, there is a repetition of the words " Rage, rage" and the sentence "Do not gentle into that good night", and also "Old age should burn" This shows a very raw emotion of anger, and emphasises on the strong sense of anger for which people who face death feel. Now let's look at personification. In this poem, the use of personification will be "dying of the light" and "forked no lightning". In the poem, "dying of the light" refers to death and it assumes that light, in this case life" dies like a human being. "forked no lightning" refers to not being able to achieve anything. "lightning" would represent achievements or maybe money. Now let's look at metaphors. The metaphor used in this poem is "Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay". In the sentence, frail deeds is being compared to humans and denced in a green bay would mean be long forgotten. Now simile, the use of simile in this context would be "blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay". This shows again the similarity between the eyes of a man who faces death to that of meteors, full of energy even when they can't see any more. Finally, we look at symbolism. In this poem, "Do not gentle into that good night" symbolises a regretful death, with the so many regrets that man have in life. "Wise men", "Good men" and "Wild men" symbolises the many different types of people and "dying of light" would be the reason for the reason for their anger.

Why i chose this poem
I like this poem because it sends out a message to all of us, reminding us that we must work hard and achieve in life so that we would not regret when we grow old. I like the symbolism in this poem as it not only tells us to work hard in life, it also shows the evitability of death and its strong effect on man. I also like how the writer shows such strong sense of anger and regret with powerful and strong words. His poem though simple, yet has an underlying messago to the readers. His poem is also shows a very different view of death as it is. People normally think of death as peaceful and a time where a man can forget all his troubles, however this poem shows that death would only bring up all the regrets and troubles to a person and make him feel very raged. Finally, i like they way the poem repeats sentences ans words to emphasise on anger, giving the reader a clear image of what it is trying to potray.