Thursday, May 24, 2007
Today is the day whereby teams will be crowned champions, leaving the runners-up contemplating what their future holds. You realize I don't like using the word "loser". There're many reasons for doing so as I've always believed that there are no losers in sports. You play to win all the time, I mean who plays to lose? However, there can only be 1 champion even though both teams can be evenly matched. Haven't managed to find out the result of the A division rugby final between acs(I) and rjc at the new police academy. The newpaper did an article on the acs(I) team few days ago. Even as an old boy, it feels weird to hear your former sec school playing in the A division, let alone a final. We do have 17 to 18 years old in our IB programme but compared to the so-called jc system, these boys are considered "younger".
Whatever the result which I'm gonna ask around tml, these ac boys should be proud of themselves. Of course dr ong would like to add another trophy to the already overcrowded shelf but one more won't hurt right? Come to think of it, there are pros when it comes to playing rjc when you're a team that has played together since sec 1. There is this bond and understanding between the team that no money can buy. This is something rjc doesn't have, they've got more mature and experienced players. Let's not forget 5 former acs(I) ruggers. When interviewed, one of the defectors explained that his coaches weren't exactly that happy with his decision. My favourite coach, Adrian Chong, added that as long as those defectors played to their potential, he will be happy for them as a former coach.
People have reasons for leaving the school they've always loved the most. Be it for studies or for other sporting reasons. The rjc guy left for academic reasons which I can totally understand. There is no security when it comes to the IB programme unlike the A level certificate you get after your 2 years of jc life. If you screw up your IB, you don't even have O levels to fall back on, just your PSLE. I believe every stage in your academic life forces you to grow up whether you like it or not. For the A levels, there is the added pressure from the parents even though mine didn't give me any at all. There is just this urge within you to want to do well, not just for yourself but also for your parents. They're the ones who brought you up and want you to do well in life. Nobody is born stupid, it depends on how hard you wanna work in life to make it.
There's always the disadvantages of addded pressure from parents when it comes to major examinations. You want your kid to do well and get all the scholarships so that they can used to show off like trophies without sparing a thought for them. It can certainly affect their mental state of mind and led to adverse effects. The worst thing, having a mental block during the papers. For me, I do my best always. I'm grateful for the fact that my parents never give me unnecessary pressure and always look after me well so that my body and health is well conditioned for the exams.
Caught the news today that unsw is closing its Singapore branch for so-called money reasons but as Singaporeans, you always believe there are other reasons. It's a big blow to Singapore's image as a education hub and totally unfair to the students who are schooling halfway. It's like you can't just stop like that or at least let the student finish up with whatever they're doing. Can you imagine the amount of damage you're doing to an average student. 2 of my friends are affected by this, hope everything turns out well for them.
Nowadays, it's not just the standard and cost of living that has gone up but also the level of education. Managed to have a few glances at a primary 6 tys and I was shocked to see how tough the standards have become. I mean back in my days, it certainly wasn't that difficult. I fear for my childrens' childhood next time or rather what childhood will they have. No more play time, most of it will be spent doing and revising their homework. The whole education is so bent on producing scholars after scholars that we may end up neglecting the wholesome bringing up on a child. I want my child to do well next time but not at the expense of his happines and health. As long as he tries his best and produce the results that I expect from him or her, it's more than sufficient.
I can't wait for school to start. Time could be better spent learning something rather than lazing around.
