One of the best thing about teaching in an international school is the opportunity to interact with staff and students of over 40 nationalities. I taught IGCSE Sociology and Economics and was also the Upper School Head of Pastoral Care during my nine-year stint there before I moved on to lecture in the American University Transfer Program, Pre-University Program, Business Department and finally in the Mass Communication Department in a local college. Having 'retired' and now living a free and easy life as a homemaker and blogger :-), I look back on those years with fondest memories.
It has been 14 years since I left that school and I cherish the times I spent with the students and staff. Initially, it was tough because I had never worked with expatriate students before. By the second year of my stint, I was expecting my first child and it was pretty challenging. Unbelievably, I am still in touch with most of these students, even those I taught way back in 1988!! I can actually write about every single year group that I taught but for tonight, I am going down memory lane with my 1993 Year 11 bunch. Yup, the short-haired lady is yours truly and I am seriously contemplating reverting to a short and sassy hairstyle after looking at this pic.
As form tutor and the Upper School Pastoral Head then, I took pride in my classroom which had lovely posters, borders, a carpeted reading area (thanks to Patricia) and a mini-library plus magazine collection including (FORTUNE, Times, New Economist, Newsweek, National Geographic etc all donated by the students complete with coffee corner for snacks and drinks :-) only during break-time. As the Economics teacher, my kids carried out all kinds of bizarre projects to raise funds for the old folks' home and orphanages in Penang including setting up a pseudo photo studio made of bedsheets that were painted with different scenery to serve as backdrops for the photo shoots during Valentine's Day disco, selling roses for Valentine's Day, selling chips, burgers and buns and lots of other stuff. That was so much fun and the kids had hands on experience in doing a small business :-) apart from enjoying the lively interaction.
Each week, the kids would contribute to a class fund and by the end of the year, we had a substantial amount and opted to go for a bungalow stay. Roopi had managed to get permission for us to stay one night at her mom's friend's bungalow. In the mean time, the other Year 11 group were more tame and opted for an overnight stay at Shirley's apartment at Mount Pleasure. All year long, both classes were vying as to who could be better :-). We put in loads of planning for the menu, duty roster, marketing, program and security measures. The other teachers were invited but none came. They all thought I was mad to be responsible for the whole bunch but I had taught many of them for five years and being pretty close to them having seen them grow into older teens, I had full confidence that they would not let me down.
On that fateful day, we all gathered at the Penang Hill Railway Station. All but Samir and Tejas who were delayed as they had to come from Sungei Patani. So, when we were about to buy tickets, I asked Roopi where we should get off and she said Middle Station. Great. Happily or should I say noisily, we made our way into the train and got off at Middle Station.
Then I asked Roopi which way we should go and she said she had no idea!!!!
*Faint*
What's the name of the bungalow? She was not sure as she had forgotten to bring the letter. *Faint again* Perhaps Fernhill?
Dead silence.
Bear in mind in those days, mobile phones were the big bulky types used by only ah pek businessmen.
May Day. We had a serious situation. Of course I panicked but kept my composure. We left Tina at the Middle Station and walked along the jungle path not knowing where to go, each of us with tons of food to carry (What do you expect? Teens eat a lot!!! And they wanted loads of junk food as well!!!).
So we walked and walked along that creepy, lonely path to goodness knows where. And then we reached a fork that diverged into three paths. I sent three pairs of boys to check it out and looking back, it was quite hilarious.
Wai Loong, who is now a gynaecologist in Singapore and just got married to his gynaecologist wife, was the first to return panting all the way in a state of fright and shouted that he had seen a voodoo house that had strange looking jars at the entrance. Toyol! Toyol! He insisted the house was spooked. Fine. Our hearts sank. What if that was the bungalow that we were meant to be in? Silence. We waited for the other two pairs.
I can't remember who was the other one who came back but he claimed it was a dead end. Great. Then it had to be the other path.
We waited and it seemed so long before Bob returned. By then Tina and Jeff found Samir and Tejas and we were reunited so to speak. Teens are teens and I don't have to tell you the bizarre possibilities that they came up with to explain the delay in Bob's return.
Finally, Bob returned and he brought tidings of joy so to speak. We all made our way along that fated and rocky path. As usual, the kids were very noisy and with lots of pranks here and there and I wondered why on earth I took on this responsibility. What if one of them rolled down the hill?
At that moment, I heard an ear-piercing scream from behind me. My heart stopped. Had my fears been real? I turned around and saw Patricia pointing at the slope. My legs felt like jelly and I shouted. "Who rolled down the hill?"
Jeff replied, "You mean WHAT rolled down the hill, Miss..." and the whole gang guffawed while I was just so stunned. Patricia had dropped the watermelons which rolled down the hill and another girl who was carrying the bag of hot dog buns tried to catch the water melon and in her haste, also dropped the plastic bag which rolled down the slope!
Great! No fruits. No buns. But the kids were great and did not admonish Patricia. We went on our merry way and finally reached the bungalow.
The bungalow. Deserted, broken down bungalow. Mind you, most of these kids were expats and came from well-heeled families. Our jaws dropped. The caretaker was not there so we looked around and the whole place was in shambles. We dropped our stuff at the porch and had a meeting.
Of course I suggested that we left immediately. :-) Wai Loong offered to let us crash at his granny's huge bungalow but the group said NO with a few exceptions. We took a vote and majority decided to stay. By then, the caretaker had come back and confirmed that we were at the correct place. When he opened the door for us, we all had the shock of our lives.
*Someone just borrowed my scanner/printer - otherwise I could have scanned the pics for this post.
The whole bungalow was covered with dust, cobwebs, dog poo, pigeon poo etc. Yuks!!!! A number of the girls screamed while the guys kept quiet. Again, I suggested that we took up Wai Loong's offer and Jeff said "NO!!!" and the group agreed that we had to stay lest we lose face to the other class!!!!
What followed is something most unexpected. Jeff - the one who used to scream and to complain the most, spearheaded the clean-up operation. Mind you - these kids were used to a comfortable lifestyle with maids that cleaned up after them. I was totally spellbound and in a state of shock when I saw how they cooperated albeit not too quietly (you can imagine the racket they created) and they cleaned up the whole bungalow, including wiping everything. Amazing! My heart swelled with pride and I told myself that those kids will make it someday and I am not wrong!
To cut the long story short, we had many hilarious moments namely:
* the boys took 2 hours to start a fire to fry the chicken that I had seasoned and by the time it was ready, they were covered with soot as they were not used to working with firewood!!!
* by night time, it was time for spooky tales and yours truly is very good at that...the boarders too had a field day sharing tales from the haunted chapel etc and by midnight, everyone was huddled in groups of twos or threes.
* the only one who dared to keep watch at the door with me was Nicole as the others were too freaked out. I had to cope with many complains of toilets flushing on their own, sounds of footsteps etc...most of them were really freaked out (so was I!!!!) but I had to put on a brave front and did not sleep a wink that night just to make sure nothing happened to the kids. The boys were in one room and the girls in another...
* one of the girls who was assigned to make scrambled eggs for breakfast, broke twenty eggs into the kuali and did not tell us she was having problems
We had so many memorable moments and still keep in touch even after all these years. At the end of this year, both classes will be having a grand reunion and most will be coming back with their spouses and kids!!! The ties and friendship developed within the classroom remained as strong or for some, even stronger through the years and I will never forget these kids oops adults, some of whom have one or two kids of their own.
I guess perhaps that is why I used to be quite an open and friendly person until the November to January happenings transformed me into what I am today. For the greater part of my life, my interaction had been with these former students who mostly related to me with much love, respect and sincerity. Believe me, it has been very difficult for me to adjust to 'real society' but I cherish the lessons learnt from my pitfalls and am truly glad for all I have gone through.
Blessed be the tie that binds. Thanks for the memories! See you all in December!!
I miss lecturing. I really do BUT I love my free and easy lifestyle too much to ever return. Besides, if I do go back, I will lament the deplorable standard of education and thinking skills of many students today - which is why I left in the first place. I decided in 2005 that I would retire, live a simple lifestyle and remember the wonderful students that I taught than to lament the deterioration in the standards.
This morning, I missed marking assignments so much that I dug out my collection of best essays and assignments which I collected over the years. Frankly, I have been very lucky in my teaching career and taught thousands of brilliant minds, most of whom have at least a masters degree and a significant number with PhDs from ivy league universities. Many have become famous in their choice of vocation and quite a few have started at least one company. A few went on to become famous writers including Natasha Rudra who initially had a tough time adjusting to college education after being home schooled for many years- but I never doubted her writing abilities. She now writes for the Canberra Times, Inside Story. I still remember how I used to remind her to construct shorter sentences. :-) Natasha, if you are reading this - know that I think of you fondly and always believed in my heart that you would make it one day and am really proud of you - that you reached out to become what you always wanted to be, in your dad's footsteps!
Another student whom I will never forget is Melissa Kua. Needless to say, not only did she score A for my General Paper and the other A-level subjects she took in May 2001, she went on to win the Cambridge Special Award(cash award plus certificate) for displaying the highest standard of English in the A level examination amongst all the international candidates.
I always believe that the greatest reward I can obtain in teaching is the knowledge that my students have gone on to make a mark in this world and that they can write better than me. I always tell all my kids not to use me or their cohort as a benchmark but that they had to be better than all of us combined and the only way they could do that was to compete against the unknown. Indeed, I look back and am glad I had a chance to teach my former students and still miss all of them, even the cheeky ones!
This afternoon, it is my pleasure to feature Melissa's review of American Beauty which she submitted as a weekly assignment for my A-level General Paper class in 2001. She went on to an ivy league university and I have since lost touch with her. She is definitely a fantastic writer and poet.
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MOVIE REVIEW OF 'AMERICAN BEAUTY" written by Melissa Kua
"My name ...is Lester Burnham. In less than a year, I'll be dead," the protagonist of this film declares matter-of-factly. A picture-perfect American suburb appears, and from here, we are treated to Lester Burnham's self-narration of his last life in flashback. Moments later, we see Lester getting out of bed as we hear him say, as if as an afterthought, "In a way, I'm already dead."
"Look at me, jerking off in the shower. This will be the high point of my day," Lester remarks dully at the beginning of the film. As he narrates the most dismal happenings, he goes through a typical day and we begin to feel a sense of deja vu. Eventually, it strikes us - Lester Burnham is you and me. On film, he is portrayed as a nobody, but to the viewer, he is Everyman. Despite the pathetic state of his life, his lack of enthusiasm for generally everything, the average viewer feels an affinity for him. All of us can identify with some part of Lester Burnham.
Meet the low-profile but very real evil twin of the American Dream - the Ordinary American Nightmare. Lester Burnham(Kevin Spacey) is a dissatisfied husband, distant father, insignificant writer for an insignificant magazine and self-proclaimed loser. Completing his so-called life are Carolyn (Annette Bening), his materialistic, career-driven wife who sells real estate and Jane (Thora Birch), his broody, "I'm-so-alienated-my-parents-will-never-understand-me" adolescent daughter. Together, they embody the dysfunctional American family, a product of the effects of the rat race, facades and self delusion in modern society.
One day, Lester meets his daughter's absolutely luscious best friend, Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari). He starts lusting after her, painfully aware that his infatuation is hopeless. At this point, he decides to rejuvenate his life and makes changes - he quits his job, buys a new car and starts working out to impress Angela. His new way of life infuriates Carolyn and drives her into the arms of a hot-shot real estate king (peter Gallagher) whom Jane couldn't care less.
Things get more interesting when the Fitts family moves in next to the Burnhams. Jane becomes fascinated with Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley), a weirdo who has a penchant for videotaping things, especially Jane. Ricky's dad (Chris Cooper) is a stiff, militaristic man, while his mother (Allison Janney) is an emotionally empty zombie. The interaction between the film's potpourri of deliciously strange characters eventually leads to the film's climax, which is at once harrowing and touching.
American Beauty has many things going for it - an excellent script, a superb cast and tight direction. Screenwriter Alan Ball manages to assimilate drama and comedy without causing the film to appear uneven. The dialogues of the characters are in turn amusing, thought-provoking and downright funny, delighting viewers as they realise, "Hey, I could have said that!"
The sterling performances of the actors add substantial strength to this film. Kevin Spacey fully immerses himself in his role as the loserish ordinary man stuck in a rut, so much so that he is not just able to evoke genuine sympathy from viewers, but empathy as well. Annette Bening is excellent as the miserable wife who tries to cope with the lack of depth in her life by becoming a work maniac and listening to self-help tapes. The role of Jane, the angstful reclusive teenage daughter, is saved from becoming a cliched character due to a heartfelt portrayal by Thora Birch, a relative newcomer.
Sam Mendes' superb direction elevates this film to its near-flawless heights. Infusing elements of fantasia while making us acutely aware of the sombre reality of the characters' lives, he brings across the message that we all need something, anything to dream about and hold onto. His voyeuristic take on the story enhances the beauty of this film - his use of flashbacks and fantasies add depth to the already-interesting script.
The highlights of the film are reason enough to watch it. A particularly beautiful scene to watch out for is the one of the floating plastic bag, shown by Rocky to Jane as he attempts to explain why he thinks it is the most beautiful thing he has ever captured on camera. The sight of the discarded bag buoyed by the autumn wind is plain yet ethereal and leaves a deep impression on the perceptive viewer. The fight at the dinner table between Lester and Carolyn is another noteworthy moment - the unravelling of their frustration and resentment is released in a few forceful moments with maximum impact. In another scene, the expression on Lester's face as he pumps iron in the nude is darkly hilarious.
The brilliance of this film is its ability to touch the man in the street. It showcases the average man's emotions, and in doing so, strikes a resounding chord in the heart of viewers. Disillusionment, self-deprecation, indifference, absurdity, desire, rejuvenation - a myriad of elements interlace gracefully to form a film of substance.
The effect of American Beauty is potent - the display of broken relationships, dreams that will never be and the bittersweet dose of life's realities haunt the viewer long after the film ends. Perhaps the most important thing about this film is this: it leaves each viewer with new insight, and allows one to reflect on the real value of his ideals of the perfect life.
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Lesson One
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing.
A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing?"
The eagle answered: "Sure, why not."
So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit, and ate it.
Management Lesson - To be sitting doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.
Lesson Two
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree," sighed the turkey, "but I haven't got the energy."
"Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull. "They're packed with nutrients."
The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree.
He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.
Management Lesson - Bullshit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.
Lesson Three
A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold; the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field.
While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realise how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out!
He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.
A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.
Management Lesson
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth shut!
This ends your two-minute management course. Have a nice day!
In 2008, the world saw the global consumer phenomenon of social networking. A recent report showed that two-thirds of the world's Internet population visit a social network or blogging site and that this accounts for almost 10% of Internet time.
'Member Communities' now ranks No. 4 after Search, Portals and Software Applications.
Check out the full report at this link.
