Jointly by:
Thow Myra (Jr3M)
Chang Yu Xuan (Jr3M)
Tan Qing Lin (Sr1B)
On Monday, 1 July 2019 (Monday), Kuen Cheng High School held a special opening ceremony for the 5 Uniformed Groups. Students going into the school hall were very curious about what they would be witnessing.
The ceremony started with singing the national anthem live together with our school’s woodwind orchestra. Soon after, the Uniformed Groups marched into the hall starting with Cadets to Prefects, St. John Ambulance, Girl Guides and lastly the Air Scouts. The atmosphere in the hall was rather tense and yet welcoming; it was filled with much fascination and admiration for the Uniformed Groups, feeling of great surprise on how the Groups could work and coordinate so well together during the march.
Next, the organizing committee and representatives of each group gave their speech to appreciate the sponsors for the marching competition. It was also mentioned that woodwind orchestra will also become part of the uniformed groups in a near future.
Following that, our beloved Principal, Dr Chua Lee Lee delivered her speech on how being students we should learn from the uniformed groups, and to maintain self-discipline is extremely important for us. She also gave her thanks and appreciation to the teachers and organizing committee for conducting such a great event.
Immediately, the organizing committee led the uniformed groups to take an oath, having promised to obeying laws and helping others at all time. And then, everyone sang the school anthem along with the woodwind orchestra.
A video was later shown to everyone in the hall about the history of the 5 uniformed groups in Kuen Cheng High School and relevant interviews on teachers and students for their opinions on the uniformed groups. There was consensus that their service is excellent and the groups are really helpful to everyone and assisting in maintaining discipline of the school. The ceremony ended with the uniformed groups marching out of the hall in thunderous applause.
As Kuen Cheng progresses and thrives to be the best school, our predecessors have laid the solid foundation for a new era. The disciplines that led us towards the goal we have achieved are commonly led by Prefects and Cadets, but there are more to the main clubs than just those two. We owe the Girl Guides, Air Scouts and St. John Ambulance a great deal for the five-star review Kuen Cheng receives unanimously.
For recognizing the glory of the five clubs, the school organized a special competition for them, all of which were to display their teamwork, discipline and self-sacrifice. Each club was to send its best members, having a time limit to perform its march for the Junior 3 Students as the judges decide the victor.
First up were the Cadets, and they had portrayed their club’s discipline and the ideal they stand for in a matter of ten minutes. By performing in perfect harmonization, synchronization and a wordless grace, they had once again confirmed their place in the school as the infamous cadets—the police within the school walls that have a burning passion for maintaining the peace.
Students tend to act out of line during school sessions, so teachers and authorities alike rely on the prefects in maintaining good morals and values. Unlike the Cadet’s firm demeanor, they presented a calm, yet fierce façade, mirroring their common personalities and judgment in the school.
Next up, the Girl Guides were poised as unlikely candidates of stern discipline, but they had proved themselves to be rather organized and firm when they intend to be. Despite the lack of authority and volume, they had compensated for their soft, warm aura and the mellifluous voice of their commander.
Immediately, the Girl Guides’ act was followed by St. John Ambulance’s, who required a tremendous amount of discipline in order to maintain order for the wounded. In spite of their passivity and kindness, their organization was not one to be trifled with.
The final march was brought to us by the Air Scouts, who was admittedly had the most unique and memorable formation of them all. Instead of the usual 3×3 formation, they had made their debut in a singular line, the pattern firm but unbreakable. The audience erupted into raucous cheers as the unfamiliar pattern had taken the stage by storm.
In the time of the judges’ consideration, the members from the broadcasting club had taken it upon themselves to buy time by stirring up the crowd, interviewing the commanders of each participating group. All of them had expressed equal hopes for their clubs, all ending with a remark of, “I wish my club can remain the best even after I left.”
All competitions must come to an end, and the winner must be crowned. The Cadets had expectedly won the championship, the second being St. John Ambulance, and the Prefects following up close behind. Agreeably, the commander of the Girl Guides did not walk away empty-handed, as they had been granted the award of the best commander. However, surprisingly, the Air Scouts had not achieved a name, but their burning passion has not yet to be silenced. We have a strong hunch that they will return, better than ever.