Teaching about life

You know you are attending a very atypical class when on the first day of class the teacher tells you that you are here, in school, to be happy.

Children full of life, is an award winning documentary about how a a fourth grade class learns about human compassion and life in general from their homeroom teacher, Toshiro Kanamori. This they do through notebook letters penned and read by three students during each homeroom session. The letters are simple but honest and students are invited to respond to these letters.

I understand it is a challenge for teachers and students alike to do this in Singapore, but something can still be done. Perhaps a start could be changing Pastoral Care periods to sharing of letters like these. In so doing, students can not only learn to speak in front of an audience but also the effective use of english as a medium a tell a story. If there is something lacking in the Singapore Education System , it is the mindless pursuit of ever better paper qualifications for yourself and in the process forget that the world does not spin about you alone. The power of empathy , the ability to think of others before yourself, gets relegated to a place of lesser importance. How then are we able to progress as a society if everyone thinks only of him or herself? When can we call ourselves a truly gracious society?

However, the impetus does not lie with teachers alone. Each every one of us, be it parents, cousins, nephews, brothers, sisters and mentors alike can help by inculcating sound values and ensuring that selfish behaviour is not condoned.

learning and learning

know the principles. ask why. apply.

Setting things right

I had worn out my violin shoulder rest's rubber pads and this caused them to not be able to properly secure the violin. This was noticed by my violin teacher and knowing the poor student that I am, kindly advised me to just get the rubber pads. Apparently, they sold them - one of those little nick knacks of knowledge you carefully tuck away in the undulating folds of the hippocampus. To make full use of my trip I decided to visit the new Synwin branch at Marina Square and pick up a pair of earphones along the way. I got the items and went back to try installing the rubber pads.

The whole experience was mildly therapeutic. The peeling away of the old rubber pads which were on the brink of disintegration and then the wriggling of the almost-too-tight rubber pads to replace them. 4 repetitions later, the shoulder rest looked almost as good as new. It has been serving me since my very first lesson some 2 years ago. The replacement done, I tried them on the violin and they fit perfectly.Goodness knows why I procrastinated in replacing them till today.

And yet, there are just some things that can't be store-bought to make things right again. These are the things, I fear, that really need mending.