These are our children. They mean the world to us (me and my husband). They are the single, most precious asset that we have, superceeding anything else. They represent our past, our present and our future. Naturally, we want the best for them. The question is.. what is the best?The best is subjective and differs from one set of parents to another. Perhaps we( me and my husband) shall attempt to share what we perceive as the best in our terms and hopefully share with you our perspective about parenting and educating our children.
Firstly, it is our firm belief that a good school can provide a foundation on which our children can develop and grow academically and intellectually. We believe in holistic education which means education should go beyond just academic achievements. As we stress on academic performance, we also stress upon our children be more tolerant of differences, value of integrity, be adaptable to changes and uncertainties, be gentler and kinder to friends and love ones, compassion for the less fortunate, respect elders and authourity, acceptance and the motivation to constantly improve themselves.
This is a tall order and something that a school alone cannot achieve. It can only be achieved with loving and nurturing parental guidance 24/7 and a school that supports holistic education; this the foundation that EPPS is built upon. The world as we know it, is not very tolerant and there are in constant change in this internet age. If we do not prepare them for it, how would they survive in time to come?
We need to gear our children with "survival" skills to survive the 21st century that goes beyond stellar academic performance but will demand your creativity, social skills, drive, embracing the latest technology and adaptability.
Let's look at the big picture. As the world is getting smaller, we are not just competing with fellow Singaporeans but many people from other countries. Fast forward twenty years ahead, our children will face a totally different dynamics of a workplace and globalised organisations made up of people from all over the world. How do we prepare them for such a scenario?
It starts with the will and the heart. If we have the will to succeed, we will. Having said that, we need to empower and prepare our children with such challenge. Yes, we are prepared to personally coach our children to perform and deliver the highest academic performance based on their capability. This is the way to keep them competitive and motivated. In the Singapore education system, this is a yardstick to measure what you have learned in school. This is where EPPS's focus on excellence counts, at the current rate that with EPPS performing above national average, it is achieving that objective. Excellence can only be achieved with constant drive to succeed.
Excellence is also clearly demonstrated in the way that EPPS promote sports and physical education to enhance a sense of competitiveness, social interaction and physical well-being. It also teaches the children lifeskills such as teamwork, resilience and taking turns. Mind and body needs to nourished for an individual to become strong and confident both mentally and physically.
We also teach them that we need to have the heart to care and contribute to our family, our neighbours and our country. Friendships formed with schoolmates and interactions with caring and committed teachers last a lifetime. During their formative years, their primary school has a lasting impression in their minds as this is the first place in their growing up years they learn about friendship, learning process, socialising, adapting , caring and staying ahead. EPPS 's focus on excellence, service to others, love, adapability and integrity as its guiding principles provides the software for developing the "heart".
Lastly, a good school can only be a great school with an astute leadership. We have the highest regard for Mrs Wong and her team's vision and leadership to bring EPPS to the next level. Her steely determination, openness and can do attitude has led to higher level of school-parents collaboration to increase the productivity and performance of our students. Students are encouraged to think out of the box and encourage to develop an inquiring mind which is critical to develop a strong academic foundation and personal development. She and her team will steer EPPS to become an oustanding school in Singapore and along with that our children will benefit from that very journey and evolution of EPPS.
Mrs Yvonne Chin
Parent of Brendon Chin 3H
and Celine Chin ( will be joining EPPS in 2008)
Hi Yvonne
ReplyDeleteThank you for articulating so beautifully your perspective about parenting and educating your children, Branden & Celine. They are indeed blessed to have such enlightened parents. My colleagues and I salute you for your strong belief that education is much more than mere intellectual development and academic performance.
We are grateful for your timely reminder to parents that although the school may have many initiatives and programmes to achieve its vision and mission as well as to inculcate the ELIAS values of Excellence, Love, Integrity, Adaptability and Service in our pupils, we will not be able to fully achieve what we set out to do in the absence of loving and nurturing parental guidance.
As chairperson of the EPPS.PSG, my colleagues and I have the highest regard for your vision, leadership, passion, commitment and energy in mobilising other equally passionate and enthusiastic parents, who are willing to show Eliasians the ELIAS values in action.
Together, let us design the best learning journey for your children and all Eliasians. Thank you for being such a great advocate of all that Elias Park Primary stands for!
Siew Shan
Hi Yvonne
ReplyDeleteThank you for articulating so beautifully your perspective about parenting and educating your children, Branden & Celine. They are indeed blessed to have such enlightened parents. My colleagues and I salute you for your strong belief that education is much more than mere intellectual development and academic performance.
We are grateful for your timely reminder to parents that although the school may have many initiatives and programmes to achieve its vision and mission as well as to inculcate the ELIAS values of Excellence, Love, Integrity, Adaptability and Service in our pupils, we will not be able to fully achieve what we set out to do in the absence of loving and nurturing parental guidance.
As chairperson of the EPPS.PSG, my colleagues and I have the highest regard for your vision, leadership, passion, commitment and energy in mobilising other equally passionate and enthusiastic parents, who are willing to show Eliasians the ELIAS values in action.
Together, let us design the best learning journey for your children and all Eliasians. Thank you for being such a great advocate of all that Elias Park Primary stands for!
Siew Shan