Last Saturday, I met up with Reena (Primary school friend) in the city for a catch up session. After having a good chat with her, we decided that primary school was the best time of our lives. As a Singaporean primary school kids, we are innocent, serious but funny. When I think back into my primary school years, I can remember some of the classic moments. These moments that nothing else in life that take away!
1. The times when guys and girls together are a big deal.
In primary school days, guys and girls are like oil and water - they do not mix! If you put oil and water in a bottle, there is two distinct layers because they are so different. When you shake the bottle and try to make them up, you will find that they will separate again in a few split seconds. Hence, when a particular person has feelings for a particular person in the classroom, us little kids in class will chuck our “Woooooo”s at them! But at the same time, we’re probably secretly in crush with that particular person in class too! Haha. Funny but true.
I remember a time in primary school (I think it was primary 5 or 6), the class will be neatly arranged an order - Guys and girls lining up from the shortest to tallest then next to each other so that the guy and girl are “partners” for the rest of the year. Since guys and girls are not very fond of each other, they cringe to the fact that they are standing next to each other every recesses when they have to walk down to the canteen together. BUT the fear doesn’t end there! Certain teachers encourage us to hold our “partners” hand so it will make the line neater. Little guys and girls holding hands, walking in a straight line, down all the way until the canteen with a strange look on their face - have you ever seen that?! xD
2. The times when cheating is not cheating… it’s technique.
I’m sure most of you have tried to cheat sometime in some stage of your lives, am I right? Don’t tell me you haven’t cause I can see it in your face! For a lazy person like me who doesn’t like to memorise things especially chinese characters, it’s probably hard NOT to cheat. Cheating is an art. If you want to learn it, learn it the right way! If you’re not a Singaporean student, let me tell you something… some Singaporean schools have a habit of canning rebel students in front of the whole school in assembly. I don’t think they do that now.
I remember once every week in Chinese class, we will have something we called 听写 where the teachers will give us a long list of chinese words or phrase to memorise at home and be tested (teacher reads them out loud) on closed book in school on a chosen day of the week. Then they invented something else to go together with 听写 called 默写 where teachers give you a several sentences to memorise and write out without the teacher reading anything out. So once, I helped a friend to cheat… in a middle of a 默写 test, my friend signalled me that she forgot how to write a word. So when teacher wasn’t looking, we swapped book and did each other’s test. When the teacher wasn’t looking, we swapped back and continue with our test. Reena told me that she copied out of the book once and write the words like in the test really softly on the paper so you can see it. So during the test, you can aces it no problem!
3. The times when we hated certain teachers.
In primary school, teachers are monsters, torturers, fierce and we’re scared of them! If you ever forget to bring something that is due that day, you will shaking for the whole day before that class because you don’t know what exactly will happen to you… Anyway, I had a teacher who scolded me until I cried because I didn’t clip my fringe up and she didn’t like it =\
We had one particular teacher that we hated alot - no one really listens to her. She is our Chinese teacher - old about her 50s, very grumpy and has a killing stare. Anyway, I never really listen to her cause she gives us too much homework. Once, I was doing her homework under the desk when she was talking about something… and she found out. So she took my book and put it on her desk and ask me to see her to get it at the end of the lesson and she continued teaching. Well, the class was very messy with her as a teacher so without her noticing, I went back to her desk and took my book back. THEN, I continued with my homework under the desk xD One of our fellow student, who is also the class clown, made up something to make her very angry with our class - “Father use car keys” (read initials). So every time he wants to swear at the teacher, he says that. The whole class will laugh but the poor teacher will just stare blankly, wondering why that four words is so funny.
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Anyway, I think primary school was very very fun days despite the fact that the teacher are torturing us. Miss those days!
Thinking back and seeing where I am now, I am quite glad of the education I received in primary school and I’m definitely very proud of my primary school (: The friends I’ve made there and the things I’ve learnt just made my whole life different and meaningful. Most importantly, with Singapore’s education system, I’ve truly understood the meaning of discipline.
