Page 9 - KCN 2020

Seventeen years ago, a
With such a high level of
Principal’s views on her Journey woman fresh into her thirties stepped extremely beneficial to her. When mobility, the school had to strictly
we asked about the reasons behind
THE and the brand new teacher. Seventeen years, explained that at that time, the late follow the SOP guidelines handed
into Kuen Cheng Girls’ School as a
her acceptance of her current job, she
down as well. Many students and
several promotions and a doctorate later,
Madam Gooi was already not in her
teachers also had problems with
Pandemic
best state of health and she hoped to
Madam Chua Lee Lee is the Principal of
online classes as some could not
relieve some of the burden resting
Kuen Cheng High School.
on the former principal’s shoulders. afford the expensive data plans or
equipment. Fortunately, with the
She expressed her gratitude for the assistance of many departments,
Following our previous prin- chances offered by her forebear which
cipal’s passing, Madam Chua has taken had allowed her to mature immensely. meetings were held and a PDF regard-
up the task of continuing a grand legacy. ing safety guidelines was drafted.
As the COVID-19 virus continues to “I was very nervous when I
wreak havoc across the world, Madam first heard the news.” It was during She had also complimented
Chua has spearheaded a series of February when the principal started the school’s teachers and board of
changes in the school system, including to worry about the Coronavirus in directors for their cooperation. “We are
the start of the online learning program Wuhan. Putting other events on hold, very lucky to have a supportive board
and changes in daily school life routines. she immediately urged the teachers to of directors who are very diligent
towards education.” The principal
prepare for lockdown. Due to the unex- praised them for their eagerness
We kicked off by asking her pected extension of the MCO, there to make a change for the school.
about her growth in career, how her were already private online lessons con- It was their seamless communica-
teaching job at Kuen Cheng High School ducted by teachers to catch up with the tion and determination to provide
was her first real job after graduating syllabus in March. The school realized the best for the students although
from university. Under the guidance it wasn’t a long-term solution, therefore they were burdened by other roles
of Madam Gooi, she started learning meetings were held to come up with which resulted in a positive envi-
about what it meant to be a teacher, a perfect plan for the MCO period. ronment for the school. She really
and was offered several chances to appreciated the effort and was grate-
grow and surpass herself. Her views on As times progress, independ- ful to have a responsible school body.
education were extremely insightful ent learning has become more and
and wise, including many little details more vital which is why the MCO
we had never heard of. She also stated was a great opportunity for students The dedication of the school
that parents tended to overlook the to break away from dependence on body is indescribable as they strive
“learning” aspect of education and their teachers and to do their best to create the best for the students.
instead focusing on the “results” aspect. at “self-learning”. The ICT depart- They place education as the utmost
ment created a Google Drive as the priority and are able to achieve such
Walking us through her school’s learning management system positive culture and that benefits
growth process, she explained how to post announcements.In the Drive the students, in more ways than we
learning should be natural and not file, there were learning guidelines and know. We hope that with the experi-
forced like many children do now- teaching materials pre-released before ence we have gained with the MCO,
adays. “Every student is a child, so class. They were also obliged to fill in a we may grow to even greater heights.
what kind of child do we want to self-reflective form after class to recall
raise here?” she asked. It’s not just the what they had learned. Once again,
students who are learning every day; she emphasized the importance of
every teacher in school has to learn so “self-discipline” when approaching
that they can teach their students to the autonomous learning. “School is a place
best of their ability and not fall behind. where we all learn, both students to
teachers. The lockdown period is a
She also discussed her perfect opportunity where we encour-
study experiences while pursuing age individualism in each of them.”
her PhD; how she had resigned from
Sophia Ng her position as vice-principal and
focused into her studies which proved
Tan Ginny
5 6
6