Online users express anger towards Chan Chun Sing over his remarks of calling people “idiots” and “disgraceful”

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Keechiu praises dancing students and teachers.

Chan Chun Sing​

13 hrs ·
What should you do if you forget your dance steps during a performance?
The teachers at Queenstown Primary School are quick to remind the students from the International Dance CCA of the importance of team effort “Look at your friends’ dance moves or if you see a friend who has forgotten a step, signal to them to help them remember”.
This helped to calm the nerves of some students who were participating in the Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) for the very first time.
Having only about 6 months to prepare for their SYF Arts Presentation, the dance team gamely took on the challenge despite the shorter runway for rehearsals. What came out of their SYF journey was not just putting up a performance but emerging as a stronger team with deeper friendships.
“These performances are small milestones that help the dancers reach a higher level in the future. That’s why we don’t want success to overshadow the whole experience and I’m glad this was an opportunity that affirmed their camaraderie ” shared Mdm Jeanna Goh, Subject Head (Aesthetics).
Indeed, their smiling faces and outstanding performance say it all. Well done girls!
Do catch the live streaming of our students’ performances from now till 25 August at https://www.syf.gov.sg/arts.../about-the-arts-presentation

 

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from straitstimes.com:

Students discuss racism and racial stereotypes to mark Racial Harmony Day​

SINGAPORE - Students are more open to questioning racial stereotypes and racism, and teachers can help create a safe space in school for such discussions to take place.

Mr Benjamin Fwah, 34, a Kranji Secondary School teacher who teaches character and citizenship education (CCE), also said educators must be aware that students are increasingly exposed to social media and the viewpoints of their friends.

He said: “There are many preconceived ideas among such sources. We want students to understand where these ideas come from and if they are baseless, and what are the next steps they have to take?”

Mr Fwah was speaking on the sidelines of a dialogue session held at the school on Thursday (July 21).

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, who visited the school on Thursday, also took part in the dialogue, which was held to mark Racial Harmony Day and involved about 1,000 students and 30 teachers.

It touched on issues such as people judging others based on their skin colour, racial stereotypes and how to deal with such situations.

Alya Marsya Mohamad Effendy, 13, a Secondary 1 student, said: “It is important to talk about stereotypes, as I have faced people assuming that I am Chinese because of how I look.

“I feel racial stereotyping still exists, but everyone must play a part to ensure we live harmoniously together.”

Another student, Chua Zheng An, 16, said he found the scenarios posed in the discussions relevant as he was made fun of for his skin colour.

“It helped us see how we can approach such problems from a different angle and find a way to change perceptions.”

Every year, schools in Singapore mark Racial Harmony Day by holding activities aimed at educating students on race and values like respecting differences.

Students now have more opportunities to hold in-depth discussions on racism and stereotypes during CCE lessons since the syllabus was refreshed in 2021, according to the syllabus found on the MOE website.

The updated syllabus, which includes topics such as bullying, online media, and race and religion, was rolled out to lower secondary students last year and extended to upper secondary students this year.

CCE teacher Ang Peiyi, 36, said she is open to having such conversations because students might want to discuss such issues regularly in school.

However, she added that even with racism and stereotyping being included in the CCE syllabus, the discussions are still dependent on teachers.

“I think different teachers have various levels of comfort with such topics. This depends on them,” she said.

Meanwhile, students at Tampines Meridian Junior College talked about race relations during a CCE class to mark Racial Harmony Day.

Second Minister for Education, Dr Maliki Osman, visited the school and attended the session.

President Halimah Yacob, in a Facebook post on Thursday, said Racial Harmony Day is about celebrating differences and reaffirming the commitment to go beyond them. She added that Singapore must constantly strive to maintain important skills such as being able to reach across cultural boundaries.

She also said racial harmony will always be a work in progress.

She said: “We are in a better place than before because of our commitment to building an inclusive society regardless of race, language, or religion. Singapore benefits when we make room for differences.”

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the effort to maintain racial and religious harmony is constant and never-ending.

“Each generation has a different perspective on racial harmony. Mine was shaped by the 1964 racial riots,” he wrote on Facebook.

“Today’s youth are more concerned about issues like casual racism and microaggressions. There is a gap that we as a society have to bridge and resolve, not through argument but empathy and understanding.”

He added: “Our racial harmony is not perfect, and we are still learning and growing as a nation. As long as we do not take this peace for granted and work together to protect our common space, we will get there.”

 

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Keechiu congratulates the winners of the Public Sector Transformation Awards!

Chan Chun Sing​

28 mins ·
Congratulations to all the winners of the Public Sector Transformation Awards!
At the awards ceremony, I encouraged the Public Service to continue to:

create value for our citizens and businesses;

care for the community and the environment; and

adopt a mindset of continuous learning and exploration.
Our award recipients, in their own ways, are inspiring examples of what it means to serve Singapore and Singaporeans with heart and purpose.
The past few years have not been easy. I am proud of the resilience and commitment of the Public Service, individuals and agencies alike, who have stepped out of their comfort zones to make a difference where it matters.
I encourage all public officers to continue learning as we grow as one Public Service, and always seek to do even better to further benefit Singapore and Singaporeans.
#BeTheNew
PSD Singapore

 

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Keechiu has conversations with students.

Chan Chun Sing​

13 hrs ·

Me: Any suggestions to improve our school?
Student A: Can we improve the cleanliness of the toilets and canteen?
Me: Why are the toilets and canteen not clean?
Student B: Because some people don’t clean the tables after they use it…
Student C: Because some people don’t flush the toilets properly …
(Excited discussions on the reasons why the toilets and canteen are not clean …)
After awhile …
Me: So what should we do? What can we do?
Student E: Have a campaign to remind students …
Student F: Have more cleaners …
Student G: Put up more signs to remind people …
Student H: Have the teachers, class monitors and prefects remind people..
Student J: Punish those who dirtied the place …
(Many more suggestions …)
Me: How about we roster ourselves to clean the toilets and canteen, like some Japanese schools?
Students:

…!
Me: Who cleans our toilets and tables at home?
Student K: My mother …
Student L: My helper …
Student M: I help my mother sometimes …
Me: Who should be responsible for the cleanliness of our environment - toilets, canteen etc?
Students: Us!!

 

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Keechiu is concerned about pedestrians' safety.

Chan Chun Sing​

5 hrs ·
I share our residents’ concerns on pedestrian safety, especially for the elderly, when they cross Holland Drive.
Hence, pleased that the road safety enhancement works on Holland Drive between Block 13 and Buona Vista CC were recently completed.
Land Transport Authority – We Keep Your World Moving narrowed this stretch of Holland Drive by widening the existing centre divider and constructing a two-stage crossing with ramps on the widened centre divider. Motorists will now be deterred from travelling at speed when approaching this narrowed stretch of the road. At the same time, the new crossing allows pedestrians to concentrate on looking out for traffic coming from one direction each time.
Thank you to everyone for enhancing overall safety for My Buona Vista residents.

 

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Keechiu is looking forward to August.

Chan Chun Sing added 8 new photos.​

12 hrs ·
August is almost upon us!
Everywhere we go, it will be hard to miss the flags, banners and other decorations around us as we get ready for our nation’s 57th birthday.
Grateful to all our residents, grassroots leaders and volunteers for putting in much time and effort to decorate My Buona Vista. They fly our

flag high and proud, showing us the meaning of a resilient and united Singapore.
We will emerge stronger. Stronger Together!

 

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Uncle puts up the flag.

 

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Keechiu pleased to see many flags.

 

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Keechiu takes a photo of funny people.

 

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Thumbs up for Keechiu!

 

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Keechiu very happy to attend concert.

Chan Chun Sing added 5 new photos.​

3 hrs ·
It has been a while since we had the opportunity to join My Buona Vista residents at an outdoor concert.
Our thanks to Central Singapore Community Development Council - CDC and Denise Phua Lay Peng for bringing our residents together this evening! We thoroughly enjoyed this special a cappella choir performance from The Harvard Din & Tonics, complete with entertaining choreography and stage antics.
Wonderful way to spend Sunday evening with great company.

 

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Big crowd at the concert.

 

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Performers on stage.

 

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Keechiu poses with performers.

 

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Keechiu signs autographs.

 

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Keechiu is excited about origami.

Chan Chun Sing added 4 new photos.​

15 hrs ·
Origami in the school canteen?
Spotted an interesting activity booth at the canteen when I visited Springdale Primary School. It was “Aesthetic Moment” week and origami was a simple activity for students during recess to encourage creativity and appreciation of the arts.
Activities are frequently organised by the different subject departments in order to bring an exciting learning experience outside of the classroom. Students also got to make straw models at Tinkering Tuesdays and Mother’s Day cards with used bottle caps during Earth Week. For Racial Harmony Day this year, they shared their thoughts on online platforms like Mentimeter and Padlet.
Purposeful play is how the school hopes to help Springdalites find their passion and I was glad to see students’ excitement at the activity booth.
#ourschoolstories

 

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Keechiu asks student why he likes origami.

 

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Keechiu examines student's origami.

 

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Keechiu shared his thoughts.

Chan Chun Sing added 2 new photos.​

Yesterday at 18:27 ·
"Where will Singapore be in the next 50 years?" With our 57th National Day round the corner, it is timely to ask this question.
Will we survive? Will we thrive? If so, how?
At the annual 9th Singapore Economic Review Conference (SERC) 2022 this morning, I shared my thoughts on 6 key moves Singapore will need to make to navigate global economic transitions in the next 50 years.

Remain amidst shifting geopolitical tides, to remain relevant to our friends and partners.

new forms of connectivity in emerging enablers of economic growth - data, finance and flexible talent networks.

Become the platform for collaboration in a fragmenting, uncertain world.

our optionality in the carbon transition.

Be a in building new talent networks for global production.

and refresh our social compact, so that Singaporeans will progress together.
Read my full speech https://go.gov.sg/serc

 

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Keechiu speaks to an attentive audience.