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Life in Nobel booklet.pdf - Google Drive (Click here for book version)
Life in Nobel booklet.pdf - Google Drive
Table of Contents
2008 - Year 1
2009 - Year 2
2010 - Year 3
2011 - Year 4
2012 - Year 6
2013 - Year 7
2014 - Year 8
2015 - Year 9
2016 - Year 10
2017 - Year 11
The Post Nobel Snippets
Facts and Figures about Nobel (end of the book)
2008 – Year 1
Since when I was young, my mum had debated the choice of which school should I intend to go to following kindergarten. There was a multitude of choices.
My late father intended for me to head to a Chinese school (SJKC) for my primary education and then to the secondary school which is adjacent to my house, for my secondary education. At the time, the international school concept was non-existent to the eyes of my parents. Nevertheless, when I entered kindergarten, my parents were already debating the choice of the government school which I would enter for my primary education.
Vernacular Chinese schools are seen by parents as the essential characteristic of a child's education, particularly towards the Chinese community per se. A Chinese parent would want their child to experience being in a Chinese school for their primary education before going to a government secondary school, which is mainly conducted in Malay. Parents who are ethnically Chinese believe that by sending their children to a Chinese school, their mother tongue, particularly the communication of the Chinese language, would be properly mastered and integrated as part of the Chinese culture.
When my parents were debating the choice of my primary school, both my dad and mum settled on the choice of SJKC Yak Chee, which is about a 20-minute drive from my house in Puchong and the only Chinese school in Puchong back then. Any folk who lives in Puchong and intends to enroll their child into a Chinese school today would be blessed with the choice of five different Chinese schools, namely SJKC Shin Cheng (Harcroft), SJKC Yak Chee, SJKC Kheng Chee, SJKC Han Ming and SJKC Sin Ming. My house is a stone's throw from SJKC Shin Cheng (Harcroft), but the school was not built back then. SJKC Kheng Chee was relocated from Bentong to Puchong in 2013. SJKC Han Ming and SJKC Sin Ming were out of the way for my parents to consider, and hence, decided for SJKC Yak Chee, which is more convenient.
To the dismay of my parents, the school rejected my application, and my parents intended to send me to SJKC Sungai Way, which is near my mum's workplace at the Sungai Way Free Trade Zone. However, my mum was quite rejective of my dad's proposal as it was a far distance from my house in Puchong. Additionally, my mum was also worried that I would not be able to fit into a rough, discipline and conservative-minded Chinese school environment.
On one fine day in 2007, my mum showed me a brochure of Sekolah Sri Nobel, which was the old name of Nobel International School. She asked me if I wished to Sri Nobel, and seeing a positive feeling in me, I nodded yes. Mum took me on a tour of the school before my enrolment. The decision to go to Nobel shaped the personality I am today. For the benefit of the doubt, and to avoid confusion, I will address Nobel International School or Sekolah Sri Nobel as ‘Nobel’ for easy reference, since the names are the same. Had it not for SJKC Yak Chee rejecting my application to join the school, I would have had become an ordinary Chinese person and not an individual with the special touch that I have today from my time in Nobel.
Old timers and old boys or girls who came into Nobel between 2005 and 2011 would remember that the school's name used to be Sekolah Sri Nobel. It was a different Nobel back then. It was completely unrecognizable, and it was a far cry from the dual-purpose school of the 2020s. Late 2000s Nobel was no different from government schools, except that it had a touch of noble values and character transformation. It used the same syllabus as government schools. It had the same culture as government schools, except that it was a culture cultivated by character education.
When I visited the fun fair at Nobel with my mum in November 2007, I was amazed by rows and rows of flags, carnival-like culture, as well as the school environment. In fact, as I counted down to the first day of my schooling life in Nobel, I look forward to going to school because it was a real school with a real staffroom, canteen and more modern school facilities as opposed to my kindergarten which was in a residential dwelling house like a normal individual. Ahead of the first day of school at Nobel, my mum gave me my school uniform to wear at kindergarten and practice buttoning my uniform, which I had trouble doing back then and to give me a heads-up preparation for primary school. We call it primary school, not elementary school, but the meaning was the same. Above all, I look forward to my first day in Nobel as I wore my uniform in my kindergarten.
The school uniform for Nobel back then was the same as today if you are referring to the elementary school's uniform. Yes. The light green shirt for boys and their dark green pants, as well as the girls’ pinafore. The only difference was the school logo, but the name tag colors were the same.
Nobel was based in Kelana Jaya back in those days during my time in the school. It was in a quiet, serene and friendly neighborhood. And it was a school that cared, but with strict discipline back then. The building was different. The atmosphere was different. What remained the same, was the enduing vision of the school in shaping noble hearts and minds. The outlook changed, but the mission, vision and goal remains the same, in terms of good character and the values enriched by the school.
3rd January 2008 was my first day as a Nobel student, entering Year 1. It would mark the start of a ten-year unforgettable adventure. This adventure is always reflected in my heart, along with the friends cherished and the time spent here. I was a timid, shy boy in 2008 as opposed to the confident, outgoing and attention-seeking personality I have today. In fact, I was too timid, but fortunately, I had good character as a seven-year-old.
On the first day of school, I got into my mum's car and was driven to Nobel for the first day. We were not required to wear our school uniform on the first week of school, so everything was alright. I cheekily looked out of the window of my mum's car, eagerly excited for the big day.
When I arrived at Nobel, a huge crowd of parents and students streamed into the school building. There were a lot of parents accompanying their children in, eager to see what was in store for them. Clutching my mum's hand, my mum accompanied me into the school building, where we were ushered by a teacher to the school hall. When we got there, there were so many people; parents, teachers as well as students. Withstanding the exception of us Year 1 students, all other students were decked in the familiar uniform that I saw.
“Wei Yiang, you see the teacher over there on the left hand side of the stage? That is Ms Michelle, the school principal. Principal means the head of the school. On the right is Auntie Clarine,” said my mum, pointing at the stage, where Ms Michelle Loh, the principal of Nobel, was standing. Auntie Clarine was walking across the stage and talking to teachers.
I was a bit clueless about the people around me. My mum then stood aside, took my water bottle, filled it with water, and gave me food to eat on my first day. “Later, you go to the canteen to eat. The canteen is at the back,” she said.
All the teachers in Nobel were on full smiles. They were very kind but also caring as well. They were dedicated but also excited to meet us and be our guiding light throughout our Year 1 in Nobel. The parents stood at the side of the hall as announcements were made for our assembly to begin. A teacher then came on the stage to ask parents to move aside so that the assembly can officially start. Then, Auntie Clarine greeted everyone on stage, followed by warm greetings by Ms Michelle. Instantly, most things to me were quite alien; but over the years, Nobel would become my home away from home, and the unfamiliar faces on the first day of school would become my good friends and companions from Year 1 to Year 11.
Ms Clarine Chun, also known and conveniently addressed as Auntie Clarine, is the founder of Nobel and also a very kind-hearted and cheerful lady. She is also the head of Fungates Superflow Foundation, which is a foundation dedicated to helping the poor as well as an organization running dialysis centres, kindergartens and old folks homes. She would always greet each one of us Nobelians with a smile on her face, and had a cheerful attitude to inspire the youth.
Ms Michelle Loh was the first principal of Nobel as well as the elementary school's first principal. We used to call it primary school, but I am going to use the terms interchangeably in this book, since most parents in Malaysia like to refer the elementary school as the primary school. Anyhow, Ms Michelle was a very nice principal. She was serious, but also youthful at heart, as well as compassionate and caring to all students. She was an amazing principal who served the school well, and an inspirational leader for all of us. She did not have a very emotional attitude, but a relaxed, straightforward gesture to teachers and students. In Nobel, we have many amazing and wonderful teachers, students and staff that will make you feel at home, and I really feel that they made my days, weeks, months and years in Nobel a very wholesome one. So, when Ms Michelle greeted us that morning, she was cheerful and also welcomed all the Year 1 students to Nobel.
We were then introduced to a wonderful male teacher named Mr Chuang, who started the assembly with an orientation on how the school life was supposed to work. Mr Chuang is a very important teacher in Nobel at the time. He was the head of Character Building, which Character Transformation was previously addressed then, as well as a very important discipline master. Being the head of Character Building meant that he was also on the lookout for the disciplinary conduct of students, and he was very strict, but also funny as well.
Mr Chuang then begun introducing how we should conduct ourselves in Nobel as a guide to us newly-enrolled Year 1 students. He said that everyone needed to line up in pairs of two when arriving at school and moving from one venue of the school to another. “Line up two-by-two, not one-by-one,” said Mr Chuang. The latter was a form of lining up policy when I was in kindergarten, but now, we had to line up in pairs and walk to our class. This would become the norm throughout most of my life in Nobel. “When you arrive at your class, go inside, stand next to your seat and place your bags against the bar,” said Mr Chuang. The tables in Nobel had a bar at the bottom of the desk connecting two legs in the front of the table. Mr Chuang also said that we had to stand up and greet our teachers as they entered and exited the classroom. He also made us ensure that our chairs are pushed under the tables neatly when going for break, lunch, going home after school or when leaving the classroom for any outdoor activity, and got six students to demonstrate them on the stage in the school hall.
Mr Chuang also initiated two “lining up rules” for us to follow when moving in pairs of two. There were two principles in question:
Lining Up Rule No. 1: I shall look in front.
Lining Up Rule No. 2: I shall keep quiet.
Mr Chuang was quite strict, and he expected that all of us should follow the rules during our time in Nobel. Then, he said that it is important for every student to have a disciplined mindset and adopt good attitude towards their time in Nobel.
There were a few speeches as well by Ms Michelle, the then principal, as well as Auntie Clarine, to welcome us to Nobel. Ms Michelle told the Year 1 students that it would not be compulsory to wear the school uniform until about a week after settling in, and Auntie Clarine wished all of us a very happy time and great year ahead, hoping that us Year 1 students would make use of our time in school.
Afterwards, we were ushered to our classes. We were then told to stand up, and Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang stood outside and guided us to our class. Fortunately, my class was on the ground floor, and it was easy to go. We had to walk along a corridor near a large courtyard that the school had. It was quite a big school to me at the time, and I really enjoyed every inch of it as opposed to my tiny kindergarten.
The old campus of Nobel consisted of a courtyard in the middle with the school hall next to it. The canteen was located behind the school hall, and the staffroom was then located on the first floor in 2008. The school office was quite small then. We had a music room on the first floor behind the school hall’s walls and a domestic science room, innovation centre and the secondary school’s science lab in a row behind the area where the music room was. There were two multimedia rooms next to the music room. Newbies to Nobel from the year 2023 would not understand my explanation, as they would be in a different building than the one I entered in. Nobel used to be at Kelana Jaya before moving to Damansara Jaya, and in my opinion, I like the old campus although it was smaller.
The old campus had three stories to it plus two basement levels. On the ground floor was the main office, the school courtyard, the school hall, canteen, foyer, sick bay and driveway area. The first floor contained a Domestic Science cooking room, an Innovation Centre for fun and games, a music room, two multimedia rooms and the Primary School's Staffroom for all the teachers. The second floor housed the School Library, the Secondary School's Staffroom as well as their classrooms; the Basement 1 housed more classrooms while Basement 2, the lowest level of the old campus, was home to Tadika Sri Nobel (now renamed as Nobel Early Years). There were also more classrooms meant for the Primary School on the same level as Tadika Sri Nobel.
The walk took quite a short time before I reached my class at the second last room from the toilets. The sign on the class read ‘1 Virtue’ and I was ushered in by Cikgu Zoraidah. To this day, she remains the very first teacher I met in Nobel.
Cikgu Zoraidah was a very nice teacher, who ushered us in and told us to sit down. She had a gentle but bold voice. I sat down at the seat near the teacher's desk. Then, she greeted us and did a short explanation. “Okay, so I want to tell you about the school. Later, we are going for break, so I want you to line up two by two. We will go after this. Bags against the bar. Leave your bags here, take your food container, and then go to the canteen.”
Outside the classroom, a lot of parents peered in through the tiny window that was affixed on the door. My mum also took a picture of Cikgu Zoraidah briefing us. The classroom was quite spacious, fully air-conditioned, and comfortable. The desks were useful as well, but there was a catch.
The Nobel as I knew it in 2008 did not consist of the high tech Smartboards and electronic equipment installed today, but just a whiteboard with two shelves next to it. There was a computer next to the whiteboard, and at the time, if teachers want to display presentations in the class from the computer, they had to book a portable projector to connect to the computer and power plug manually. The projectors had to be booked from the Innovation Centre. It was quite backward back then as opposed to the modernized environment that is present in the new campus at Damansara Jaya.
Once Cikgu Zoraidah was done giving us a briefing, it was time for break, and we headed to the canteen. Cikgu Zoraidah lined us up outside 1 Virtue, and took us to the canteen. She told everyone to follow her, before we saw other classes doing the same. I just stood in line as Cikgu Zoraidah led us to the canteen. It was a short walk from 1 Virtue's classroom to the canteen. There were rows upon rows of large canteen tables with accompanying benches stacked from the front to the back. We then sat at the table that is closest to the front of the canteen, which was just behind the school hall. The canteen was bustling with excitement. My mum gave me my food container, which was nicely packed in my bag. “Eat your bread, ya,” she said. Inside my food container were six neatly-packed potato buns, which I ate. Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle were standing inside the canteen, as Mr Chuang himself shouted orders as to what was expected among the students, armed with a black microphone, instructing students what needs to be done.
“Line up two by two! After you are done [eating], go to the hall and sit down!” he cried. Mr Chuang would soon play a very important role in Nobel as per the upcoming descriptions. I just snacked on my potato bun, watching over where my mum was, and where Cikgu Zoraidah was, since Cikgu Zoraidah was the teacher that I met, and I didn't want to feel lost on my first day of school.
After I was done with my meal, I headed to the school hall, where a bunch of students were already seated. They crossed their legs while sitting, and they were seating attentively, waiting for their teachers. We were told to wait for our teachers to come and take us to our classrooms once the break time assembly was done. Mr Chuang was already in the school hall. He stood smartly, folding his fingers while grabbing the microphone tightly in his hand. He was a rather thin fellow, dressed with a tie and a formal collared dress. He stared at the school hall, waiting for everyone to come in.
When the break time ended, all the students entered the hall and sat down while Mr Chuang told us to practice lining up in pairs of two. Cikgu Zoraidah soon arrived and took us back to 1 Virtue, crossing the foyer in front of the school before turning right along the corridors to head to our classroom. There, she resumed her briefing while at the same time giving us some activities to do.
Cikgu Zoraidah then talked to us about the teachers whom we should know. She said that the most important teachers that we should remember are Ms Michelle, our principal, Auntie Clarine, the school founder, Puan Chan, the Head of Discipline, and last but not least, Mr Chuang.
“Mr Chuang will be your Character Building teacher,” said Cikgu Zoraidah. “You must listen to him as he is very strict. He will get angry if you don't have good behavior,” she said. Each one of us was then given a tag which we had to clip on our shirt for us to be identified.
Lunch time soon came and Cikgu Zoraidah once again took us to the canteen. In those days, lunch time was from 12pm to 12:30pm while the break time was from 8:50am to 9:10am. Before heading to the canteen, she gave us meal coupons while we were lined up in our class lines. It was the norm in Nobel for students to be given meal coupons, as these can be exchanged for our food. A meal coupon is a slip of paper given to students to purchase food in the canteen, and the canteen operators would then redeem the meal coupons given by us to the management for cash. The meal coupon was green in color and had the words ‘Sekolah Sri Nobel Kelana Jaya’ (the old name of Nobel International School), and ‘Meal Coupon’. “Do not lose your meal coupon or else you will be hungry for the rest of the day. You cannot buy your food,” warned Cikgu Zoraidah. Then, she led us to the canteen before we plopped down at the table. Mr Chuang was standing there while all the teachers in the canteen watched us. Then, Mr Chuang gave us the command to buy our food, and then we lined up to purchase them. He said that we do not have to line up in pairs while buying our food.
I was puzzled as to which stall to purchase from. I was clueless as to what food to choose. Fortunately, my mum helped me purchase my food while I sat down at the table. Then, she brought me some good food which contained vegetables, chicken and rice while I ate them. Then, we headed to the school hall as Mr Chuang waited for everyone. He then praised us for being orderly and finishing our food, although some improvements were to be made. “I just want all of you to not talk while being in your class line, when asked to keep quiet. Understand?” he belted. Then, we were told to return to our class.
Back in class, Cikgu Zoraidah played some games with us and gave us more briefings on what to expect for the next day. “Come to school, line up and do the same like today,” she said. At the same time, Cikgu Zoraidah also took the opportunity to get us to introduce ourselves and which kindergarten we came from. Soon enough, it was 3:00pm, and Cikgu Zoraidah told us to pack our bags. “Push your chair in,” she said, and we greeted her. “Thank you Cikgu Zoraidah,” we said. Then, Cikgu Zoraidah led us to the school foyer while being in pairs of two.
As we lined up at the front of the foyer, I can see my mum and aunt were waiting for me. My mum was taking pictures of the dismissal. Mr Chuang, as usual, was holding his microphone. As Year 1 students, we were lined up in the very front of the foyer while the older levels lined up behind the foyer. We were in stark contrast to the other levels as we did not wear our school uniform while the rest did. My mum waved at me and so did my aunt. Then, Mr Chuang asked everyone to keep quiet.
“I want you to go out when your name is called. Do you understand?” he cried. Then, the name-calling started. When my name was called, I stood still before walking to my mum and aunt. “How was school today?” asked my mum, while my aunt praised me as I was brave, before taking me home in the car.
Lo and behold, and we were at the second day of school. The second day, 4th January 2008, was a Friday, and my mum told me that school would end early. It is a norm and still a cool tradition for Nobel to end early on Fridays. While the dismissal time was 3:00pm on Mondays to Thursdays, it was 12:00pm on Fridays. So, we were gathered in the school hall that morning, and Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang talked about the importance of having good character.
“If teachers tell you something, you must listen. You must behave well. And you must not disobey teachers. This is good character,” said Mr Chuang. Ms Michelle, on the other hand, extended warm greetings to us Year 1 students and told us that we would need to wear our school uniforms the coming week. “Your teachers will be giving you the necessary stationery on Monday (7th January),” she said, as she told us that we need to have a Homework Pouch and Message Book given by our teachers.
Then, Mr Chuang had a smile on his face. “Today, I have some good news to announce to you, especially the Year 1 students. We are going home early today!” he cried. The entire hall screamed loudly in excitement, cheering as if a football goal was scored.
Once everything was done, Cikgu Zoraidah took us to 1 Virtue where she explained further about what Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang had said. She also told us that our books would also be coming. “Please ask your parents to buy the books so that you can have the books for next week,” said Cikgu Zoraidah. Then, it was time for break, and the same drill happened as usual. I hadn't made some friends yet so far, but however, I just continued as usual. Once break time was over, Mr Chuang then told us to practice lining up in pairs. “All of you must line up two by two when lining up. Remember the lining up rules! Rule number one: I shall look in front. Rule number two! I shall keep quiet!” Then, as our teachers took us back to our classes, Mr Chuang then stood at the first door of the hall where everyone was leaving. “Good, good! Yes, that's correct! Good job!” he cried to his satisfaction of our discipline. Then, Cikgu Zoraidah explained to us about our early dismissal at 12:00pm on Fridays. “Today, school is until 12:00pm, so like what Mr Chuang said just now, we end early today,” she said. The entire class cheered as school hours lasted only half a day. “Eh we can go home early!” cried the entire class. Cikgu Zoraidah also said that this will happen every Friday, so we should be in luck. “12:00pm. Make sure you tell your parents to pick you up early,” she said.
We were all excited of school ending early. After all, everyone's tired after a long school day, and we wish to head home. The prospect of school ending early really made us happy. As quickly as time passed, it was dismissal, and Cikgu Zoraidah lined us up outside 1 Virtue. She then told a boy in the class line to keep quiet and behave himself. “No talking,” she said. I saw his name tag and it read, “Christopher”. His name reminded me of Christopher Robin from the Winnie the Pooh series. In reality, his name was Christopher Chew. At the time, he was not of fame, but soon, he would become a professional photographer and parkour player.
When I asked Cikgu Zoraidah about our classes before returning home, she told us that we would know everything about our class, class teacher, class timetable and so on by the following week. Then, we went to the foyer, lining up excitedly for the early dismissal. “Students, please ask your parents to put your name and class on a piece of paper as we want to call your name for dismissal,” said Mr Chuang. “Can you do it by next week?” he asked, and the crowd responded yes, before dismissal begun and I went to my aunt and mum who were waiting for me at the drop off area. My aunt and mum asked if I liked an early dismissal and of course, being young at the time, I said yes! Who wants to go home late?
The day is Monday, 7th January 2008. The first Monday of the school year. We all wore our school uniform, excited for the first full week of school. And we were told which class we would be in. We gathered in the school hall for our Monday Assembly, where we had to sing the Negaraku and were taught the lyrics to the school song. Some people did not wear their uniform, but it was understandable that they were taking time.
The school song was a tune of beautiful voices and meaningful words. Everyone had to sing the school song, and until today, the school song had stood still in time with the same lyrics, although some words were changed to reflect Nobel's transition from a private school to the international school. The first lyric of the school song, “Deep in my heart, I dream of having a right school to go to,” reflects the calling of one student's mission to find the perfect environment where he or she would not only get educated, but also thrive, grow and enjoy. The song is filled with the uniqueness of Nobel, demonstrating its difference from other schools. The pledge, unfortunately, was very different from what we see today.
We, the students of Sri Nobel, pledge to be:
Courteous, kind and caring
Considerate and helpful
Physically fit and healthy
Disciplined and well-mannered
Cooperative and share what we can
Respectful and obedient
Loyal to our School.
I attempted to follow Cikgu Zoraidah back to her class with 1 Virtue. “No, Wei Yiang, you are not in my class,” she said. I was clueless as I had followed Cikgu Zoraidah on my first and second day of school. “You are in 1 Sincerity,” she said. She then accompanied me to 1 Sincerity's classroom, and I knocked the door, to which an Indian teacher opened it for me and ushered me to the front seat. This Indian teacher was thin, wore spectacles, and had long hair. She would be my class teacher for the year, and her name was Ms Thana.
Ms Thana is a young Indian teacher who had newly joined Nobel. Apparently, I was placed in 1 Virtue with Cikgu Zoraidah to be briefed on, because Ms Thana had not joined Nobel on the first day of school, and joined late. Ms Thana would be my class teacher for 1 Sincerity, guiding me every inch and step of the way.
Ms Thana gave each and everyone of us a green homework pouch. The homework pouch contained the words, “Sekolah Sri Nobel Kelana Jaya” and the words “Homework Pouch” on them. Then, she also gave us our Message Book, which was green in color. “I will give you a message normally written by Ms Michelle. Please paste the message in this message book,” she said. Aside from being my class teacher, Ms Thana was also my Science, Malay and Pendidikan Moral teacher. My assistant class teacher was Ms Julia, who is a teacher that wore high heels, and also teaches me Mathematics. Ms Julia was a very somewhat bold-voiced teacher, but also one with a soft and caring attitude. On top of that, I would remember Ms Thana and Ms Julia as one of the caring class teachers in my early days in Nobel.
The Homework Pouch is an A3-sized mini cloth-linen bag which is wider than it is long. It is big enough to fit a couple amount of worksheets given by our teachers. All homework given for the day would need to be deposited into this pouch and brought home to be completed. Parents would be informed about the homework given by teachers on the Parents Portal so that we can complete them. In my first year in Nobel, more or less of my life was placed towards the completion of homework and academic work. I was a timid, short and shy boy then and more of nobody; and homework completion was an issue in my first year in Nobel.
The Message Book, however, was a different story. It was a blank book that consisted of 100 pages, and had the school's logo and the word ‘Message Book’ at the front. This book is important as messages that come from the school will be passed to us by our class teachers, Ms Thana and Ms Julia, and we would need to be instructed to paste them in the Message Book. Each student would then be commanded to present the Message Book to their parents for reading and scheming, and each parent would need to initiate in the column meant to signal that the message was acknowledged, and hand them back to their class teacher for approval.
Aside from the Message Book and Homework Pouch, we were each given a Student Handbook which detailed the rules and regulations of the school. Ms Thana instructed us to place the Message Book and Student Handbook into the Homework Pouch at all times.
The next step was to purchase the books that are required for our studies. So, Ms Thana presented a book list to us and asked us to paste them in the Message Book. She then went around the class to ensure that everyone had pasted them. Aside from messages given by the school, any message given by teachers can be pasted in the Message Book as well. Parents can write any message in the Message Book for students to hand them over to their class teacher to read them. However, there were two underlying things aside from the messages from teachers and the school that must be pasted in the Message Book, which is the class timetable and the school calendar. Ms Thana then gave us these two documents to be pasted into the Message Book.
The classroom assigned for 1 Sincerity was located next to the school foyer, where the entrance of the school was. It was the closest classroom to the school foyer, which made it the most accessible and convenient class. It was also on the ground floor, and thus, we were able to access many places with ease, such as the canteen, courtyard and school hall. The washroom was located at the end of the hallways, making it easier for us to use the toilet when needed. All classes were fitted with traditional translucent blinds, which was of old-school type that you see in government-run schools.
The average classroom in Nobel in 2008 was fitted with two shelves that are located at the side of the classroom. A plastic, transparent teacher's desk was placed at the front of the classroom, with the desks with baskets in them. Mr Chuang, less I forget, had asked everyone to place their books in their baskets located under their desk neatly and in an organized manner, with our bags laid against the crossbar that bisected the two legs at the end of our table. And of course, everyone had to be seated properly when lessons were ongoing.
In 1 Sincerity, there were a bunch of interesting faces. Koh Ying Wen was my seat-mate. Then, we have a bunch of awesome people in our class who would become prominent in the years ahead. For instance, we have Janelle Arnelia, who would become the school's official singer. As a young singer who participated in many competitions, Janelle would soon play a role in many plays and shows. She even appeared on one of the RTM Malaysia shows as well. Today, Janelle Arnelia is an important singer as well as some form of actor as well.
Aside from Janelle, we also have a girl named Chia Yan Ying. Back in 2008, she wore glasses to school, and was quite short then. 1 Sincerity was also the class that I met my friend Glen Kay, and another buddy who wore glasses that day, Nickolas Nashpal. Today Nickolas has his own house, works with Tesla and is also an ultra-rich and muscular guy. We also have Ryan Marc Devaraj, who lives nearby the school; Andrew Ariffin, who is a very rather hyperactive guy back then; Berlinda Tan, who is a rather nice girl; Daryl Yeo, who was also another hyperactive but slow guy back then, but now studies and works overseas in the United Kingdom as of this time of writing, and last but not least, Dylan S. Gill, a computer nerd and a business graduate from Monash University Malaysia.
Now, I only mentioned half of the students from 1 Sincerity as these people made it all the way from Year 1 to Year 11. There were other people who left midway, like Koh Ying Wen, who is a rather quiet and timid girl in the class, James Chitty, a playful boy in the class, Aiman, a rather smartly-dressed and normal boy, and also Chong Jinn Lik, who ended up in the Foundation in Arts programme in Sunway College, just like me. Jinn Lik was quite different from the rest, in particular because he already got his name tag sewed on his uniform while the rest of us did not get our name tags yet. Ms Thana then got some stuff done and our teachers introduced themselves and what should be done for their lessons. Oh wait, I forgot one Malay girl named Camelia, who would always come to school crying then. Camelia's mother, Ms Hajar, would always chat with my mum before school starts, and Ms Thana would always comfort Camelia if she was in tears.
As a Year 1 student new to Nobel, my curiosity expanded when I saw such a large school. It was larger than my kindergarten, and had more world-class facilities. The school hall and courtyard amazed me. This is a real school and not a half-school half-daycare. And there are many teachers, a real principal, and more authentic than my kindergarten. I mean, come on. Real teachers. Real school. Real assembly and real subjects! I feel excited coming to Nobel as it gives me the impression of a real school with real people than a half-baked mocked up version of it in kindergarten.
I got to know more teachers over the coming weeks. 7th January was my first ever lesson with Ms Prema, who taught me English in Year 1 and would be my class teacher for subsequent years. She is a very interesting yet serious teacher, focusing on organization and the quality of the work. Ms Prema was also then the class teacher of 1 Obedience, the class next door to 1 Sincerity. There were five classes in total: 1 Sincerity, 1 Obedience, 1 Virtue, 1 Integrity and 1 Destiny. I'd say that some of the most famous people in our year then came from 1 Integrity and Destiny. Many of them were unfamiliar then, but eventually, I would get to know them over the ten years in Nobel. Ms Prema would be personally to me, a mentor and a teacher who kept an eye on me for the entirety of my primary school life. Ms Prema's first class with us was quite normal; she introduced herself and how much fun we were going to have in her English class, and told us to tell our parents to purchase the books if we hadn't done so. We had three books for English; English 1, 2 and 3, with the first two being used for our classes. The third book, English 3, would be used for something interesting which I feel is worth describing later. Ms Prema then did our first exercise which was on our body and self, on 9th January 2008, on our third class after spending two days introducing and teaching.
For Mandarin, we had to break out into two set teaching classes, which are groups each student should stay or remain in for the Mandarin classes. There were two set teaching levels then; Level 1, which was taught by Ms Tin, and Level 2, which was conducted by Ms Hee. I was in Level 2 Set Teaching, and my Mandarin class was held in 1 Sincerity for my convenience. Ms Hee is a very nice teacher and was professional in conducting her Mandarin lesson. The Music lessons were conducted by Mr Kwan, and he was also quite professional and amazing. Aside from that, we had a subject called Character Building, which was taught by Mr Chuang, the enthusiastic teacher who described the school protocol. This is very important, as every time he walked around the school and met us, he described to us about good behavior and being obedient. Our Art lessons were conducted by Cikgu Asilah, a young and cheerful teacher, and our Computer lessons were conducted by Ms Kavitha, who is also very kind and helpful. I would prefer to refer to the Computer lessons throughout the book as ICT (Information and Communication Technology) lessons for convenience. What made my life in Nobel more exciting is the presence of Physical Education (PE) lessons, which was a weekly exercise lesson conducted on Tuesdays. Ms Thana was also designated our PE teacher then.
Back in 2008, a typical school day at Nobel begun just like any other day. Break time was from 9:00am to 9:30am, and lunch from 12:00pm to 12:30pm. At the end of every schooling day from Mondays to Thursdays, we would be given a Homework Time to ensure that we complete homework given for the day. Teachers would give us work to do that we need to hand in, or else we would be punished for not doing our homework. Every Monday, we would have a morning assembly in which we would gather in the school hall, sing the school song and recite the Rukun Negara and School Pledge. School hours were from 7:45am to 3:00pm from Mondays to Thursdays back in 2008; it was subsequently extended to 3:30pm in 2011, reversed to 2:10pm in 2012, and then extended again to 2:30pm beginning from 2013. The Secondary School, which the current Junior and Senior School was known back then, ended their classes at 4:00pm in 2008.
On Fridays, everyone was over the moon as school ended early; school hours lasted till 12:00pm on Fridays back then before being extended to 12:30pm from then on.
Being a Primary 1 student in the first week of school was very interesting and exciting. With Ms Thana and Ms Julia guiding us, my mum and Ms Thana had very good rapport; Ms Thana gave me a kiss in my first week of school to show the affection of care back then.
For Mathematics, Ms Julia was an amazing teacher. I mean, when you talk about all the Mathematics topics based on the years I had in Nobel, the Year 1 Mathematics, I would say, is the easiest of them all. No need to study so much; closing one's eyes would guarantee good grades. Ms Julia told us that we would have a Mathematics textbook that we would use, that was published by the Ministry of Education, and a Singaporean workbook named ‘Discover Maths’. Oh, Maths was so fun. Counting all the numbers was so easy, and Ms Julia did that on our first lesson. I could also still remember my iScience textbook and workbook, and how easy it was. The good old days.
Most of the first week was used for introduction and to give us time to purchase the relevant books for the subjects. It was more or less easy going for us as I adjusted myself. I was dying to get out of kindergarten and embrace an authentic school atmosphere in Nobel. Our teachers told us to have the books and immediately started our exercise. Fortunately, I had purchased all the required books, and my mum and aunt did so for me.
Every one of us had to greet our teachers when they entered the class. When we were headed to our classroom, a teacher would guide us there, and we had to greet the teacher before the start of lessons by standing up behind our chairs and greeting them. This was repeated at the end of our lessons to thank our teachers. A teacher would be standing outside the class when a lesson is ending, in preparation for the next lesson, and that teacher would enter once the current teacher who is teaching departs the class.
On Friday, 11th January 2008, Mr Chuang then decided to take us on a tour of the school to get us to know the school premises. He gathered us outside the classroom and asked us to line up. Ms Thana was behind us, as she watched. The purpose of the school tour was to get us to know our school well.
Mr Chuang then told us to line up properly and then asked us to recite out the lining up rules.
“Lining up rule number one!” “I shall look in front!”
“Lining up rule number two!” “I shall keep quiet!”
After a few minutes of instruction-blaring and information dissemination, Mr Chuang told us to follow him. He led us down the corridor to the end of the canteen. Then, he told us to turn right, and he led us towards the canteen. He then told us about what we are expected to do in the canteen. We then made a tour around the school courtyard before Mr Chuang led us up the stairs.
“We are going up the stairs now,” he said.
Mr Chuang then took us up to the first floor. We walked up the stairs, while Ms Thana followed us behind.
“This is the staffroom,” said Mr Chuang. “Your teachers’ place is here.” He then took us past the computer lab (now called the ICT lab), which was on the first floor back in 2008. In 2022, before students left for Damansara Jaya, it was home to the Year 10 classrooms.
Mr Chuang then led us along a walkway running by the side of the school hall. He then took us down a hallway with wooden patterning that is similar to the school hall's walls. The walls were nailed with vertical wood patterns that ran from the ceiling to the floor. They were three centimeters in width, and had three centimeters of spacing between them.
“This is the Music Room,” he said. We then saw musical instruments in the music room. He then led us past two Multimedia Rooms, which were located next to the Music Room. We then made a turn, and we walked past two classrooms on the left and the Domestic Science room on the right. The Domestic Science Room is where we would do our cooking activities in Nobel. We would definitely be cooking something soon. He then showed us the Innovation Centre, which was located next to a lift stationed between that Innovation Centre and the Domestic Science Room. The Innovation Centre is a place filled with fun and games as well as discussion tables.
Then, Mr Chuang took us past the secondary school's Science lab and told us that the Primary School would have their own Science Lab. We were awed by the facilities, as Ms Thana told us to follow Mr Chuang.
We then headed to the second floor. As we passed a row of classrooms on the way to the stairwell, Mr Chuang told us that the Year 2 students’ classes were nearby. Then, he brought us up the stairs.
The school library was located next to the stairs. Two glass doors at either end manifested the professionalism of the library. Mr Chuang told us that Ms Thana would be giving us library sessions in which we will tour the library with her. Then, he took us into the library, and we toured it. Mr Chuang then took us to the corridor, past a row of classes, and then we saw the Secondary School students having classes. “This is the Secondary School Classroom,” said Mr Chuang, before leading us down the stairs back to the canteen. He then took us to the school garden to have a look, before returning to 1 Sincerity.
“Thank you Mr Chuang,” we greeted him, thanking him for our trip, before heading for break time. I then entered the classroom, grabbed my food container, and headed for the canteen to have my snack full of potato buns.
Each class in Nobel was assigned a class canteen table which we had to sit at to enjoy our food. The boys sat at the first two tables while the girls sat at the third. There were three canteen tables assigned for each class. While I enjoyed my food, I just sat down while looking at the canteen atmosphere. Everyone was going around, buying food and hanging out. Mr Chuang then took his microphone. He switched on the speakers in the canteen. “Later, we are going to gather at the foyer,” he said. I did not know what ‘foyer’ meant then; I only found out later that it would be the area near the entrance of the school.
Once break time was done, we then gathered at the school courtyard, where Mr Chuang told us to line up. “I can see some lines crooked. Why is it not straight?” he cried. Then, we went back to 1 Sincerity for our Malay lesson with Ms Thana.
Ms Thana then asked if we enjoyed the school tour with Mr Chuang, and we all expressed our enjoyment. She then taught us Malay, and we learned Kata Nama Am and Kata Nama Khas. Then, it was Art with Cikgu Asilah, who introduced herself cheerfully. She then asked us to introduce ourselves, before telling us that each student is required to have a yellow crayon box and art block paper for our art lessons. It was then the final lesson of the day. Ms Hee gave us worksheets and exercises in our workbook. And we were all told to come out quickly when our names were called for dismissal.
During the dismissal period, every student is required to come out quickly. Mr Chuang told us to keep quiet during the dismissal time so that we can hear our names being called and not get distracted by the conversations we had with our friends. In fact, I could not come out twice because of the noise level as well as me attending to my friends’ conversations.
Soon, it was the third week of school. Unfortunately, I ended up late at school due to the traffic jam on 14th January 2008. While many people view me as a punctual and disciplined person through my later years in Nobel, it was in Year 1 in 2008 and Year 2 in 2009 that I faltered quite a lot. Fortunately, thanks to these setbacks, I have become one of the most organized and most punctual people in my year level. And also, I only had like around ten times of lateness in my entire life in Nobel.
The time taken to drive from my house in Puchong to Nobel was around 30 minutes with a bad traffic jam along the Damansara-Puchong Expressway, known popularly as the LDP Highway. Anyone who failed to leave home early would be stuck in the menace of automobiles and motor vehicles. Traffic congestion is the top reason students in Nobel give when reaching school late. Oh well. I wish there was a flying car back then so that I can avoid the jam.
7:45am is the time given for the start of school. Anyone arriving after 7:45am would be asked to get to the late line, and anyone arriving after 8:00am had to go to the office to get a late slip before entering the classroom, as classes were starting. While arriving at 8:00am is still a just-in-time-for-class relief, it is considered a heavy offence here at Nobel. Everyone, then and even today, is asked to arrive by 7:45am so that nothing is missed out during the morning assembly.
The assembly, conducted every Monday, is normally held in the school hall or courtyard, depending on the location the teachers see fit. Before every assembly period, students who arrive early would be told where to gather, and the location would rotate each day or so. On certain occasions, when multimedia facilities were needed, the hall would be used, and on other circumstances, we would use the school courtyard, which is that large open space in the middle of the school back in Kelana Jaya in 2008. Students would need to gather at their class line, lining up in pairs. The Year 1 students would be at the front of the hall, while the older students line up behind.
The assembly would normally feature a recitation of the school song, school pledge and the singing of the National Anthem of Malaysia, the Negaraku. Management team members, such as Puan Halimah (the then head of student welfare), Ms Ingel, Ms Melinda, Mr Chuang and of course, Ms Michelle (the then principal) would make announcements. Prior to the start of assembly, students would greet teachers around the assembly venue, and following the singing of the National Anthem, School Song and recitation of the School Pledge, Ms Michelle would then have announcements with us and other programs, if necessary, will be conducted by the teachers. Once all the housekeeping was done, Mr Chuang would lead a closing prayer with everyone before the late-line's students are released to their classes, with the subject teachers making their way, leading everyone in pairs back to their classes.
In 2008, late-comers would be stopped by a lady named Puan Chan, who, with an instructional attitude, would guide the students to the late line. Their names would be taken down by the prefects on duty. Puan Chan is a strict but kind lady, and she would have a single word of order to everyone. She is more or less part of the management team as well, but one focused on discipline. Puan Chan would monitor the students’ behavior on the school grounds before assembly starts, break time, lunch time and during dismissal. Puan Chan had a bold but also calming voice as well, and she had a rather whitish face with bright, red lipstick. She wore a green collared shirt every day.
We then had our English lesson with Ms Prema, and she told us to have our English 1, English 2 and English 3 exercise books along with our Multitest Question Bank 1000 Grammar Book, in which she call the ‘Grammar Book’, as well as our My Pals English book, which we had started doing. She wanted the books to be ready and she did a check in the class. However, I forgot to bring my Grammar Book, and she reprimanded me. “Why did you not bring your Grammar Book? You forgot? Please bring it tomorrow,” she boomed. Then, she did with us exercises and gave us worksheets. The English 1 was used for our own things, the English 2 for Spelling and Dictation, and the English 3, the third book, would be reserved for an interesting surprise later.
Ms Prema is a nice teacher, and she did with us the first chapter for English. We then went through the first chapter, which talked about our body and our body parts. She started the lesson by asking someone in the class to read the text out for us before she continued explaining. And then, she gave us our first homework, which was to answer a series of questions in the workbook. We had started using our workbook on 9th January 2008. Primary school topics were quite easy but also fun, so not much explanation was needed. Ms Prema told us to do the exercises and then she will discuss the answers. I cheekily waited and rested till the answers were discussed without attempting the workbook questions, since the answers would be discussed anyway. And before lunch, our subject teacher who is teaching the subject just before lunchtime would give us Meal Coupons to bring to the canteen to purchase our food.
On our first Music lesson with Mr Kwan on 18th January 2008, he told us how to sing songs. Oh wow, how easy it was! The first thing he did was give us some worksheets to do, and tell us to sing.
The music room was quite cool. It had a piano, drums and a music scoreboard which reminded me of my time back in Yamaha Music School learning music. It had cinema-style seating as well, which made it interesting to listen to Mr Kwan's teaching. Most of the time, we sang Disney songs, which added a nice feel to the atmosphere. Mr Kwan played the piano to the tune of the songs each lesson. It felt so cool listening to him play the piano. He then told us the songs and tunes from do to so.
What is also worth mentioning is the presence of a subject named Character Building (currently known as Character Transformation). Mr Chuang conducted the subject back then, and he would always use the school hall for our Character Building classes. Each character was based on the characteristic of an animal. The topics covered for 2008 were Obedience, Attentiveness, Creativity, Thoughtfulness, Loyalty, Virtue, Courageous and Integrity.
Each character is covered with an animal that corresponds to the character trait, as well as five ‘I Wills’ which re-emphasize the character trait.
A Character Building session is held by Mr Chuang to the entire year level with all classes in attendance. This means that aside from PE (to a certain extent), Character Building is the only time where you can get to meet everyone from the entire cohort.
Mr Chuang's slideshows were amazing with all sorts of interesting and funny animations. He normally gave examples of character traits, and most of the time, he relates them to what we do in school. On our first Character Building lesson with Mr Chuang, he said that the character trait of obedience is to be practiced frequently, and he made Obedience as the first character trait of the year because he wants to teach everyone how and why obedience is important.
“If teacher asks you to do your homework, you must do it. You must pass it up and you must follow all the school rules. Otherwise, you are being disobedient,” he said.
We also had our first Physical Education (PE) lesson, and Ms Thana was also supervising the PE lesson. PE is quite exciting. There was a lot of running, hopping and games. Most importantly, PE gives us a bunch of exercise, which results in my mum initially thinking that the initials ‘PE’ stand for ‘Physical Exercise’. To cope with this, Nobel had a PE attire which had a collar and was white in color with green PE pants back then.
Ms Thana then did some warm up exercises with us. We did some jumping jacks. Then we turned our elbows. Then we ran around and did hula hoop races and relay races. It was so cool.
On our first Computer lesson, Ms Kavitha did some exciting things with us. We learned about Microsoft Paint, which was my favourite topic at the time. Then, Ms Kavitha told us to draw a landscape painting, and I drew a landscape painting consisting of trees, flowers and mountains. In our Art lesson, Cikgu Asilah told us to do a crayon drawing of anything we liked. I drew a picture of a house and sunshine. And Ms Hee, our Mandarin teacher, taught us how to write Mandarin words.
Each classroom was equipped with various posters on the wall. There was a Birthday Chart, a ‘Student of the Week’ poster in which one student will be named by the class teacher as the Student of the Week. They had to write personal details on the poster, such as their birthday, hobby, favorite food, favorite movie and their family background to get everyone to know him or her better. And, of course, there were many posters, from Science posters to Solar System posters to posters of our school environment and so on. And there was a ‘Most Stickers’ poster, where each student's name was written and the teacher awarding stickers to the student. Students with the most stickers will receive a prize. We were also told that there was a ‘Star Students’ award. Each student was given a Star Card for each month and told to keep it. There is a column for each subject, and the student with the most stars, according to Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang, who told us during the Friday assembly on 11th January 2008, would be brought along with a McDonalds’ treat with Auntie Clarine. I didn't look forward to it as I hate eating McDonalds.
In the third week of school, I forgot to bring my Grammar Book again. Ms Prema scolded me again, since I was quite forgetful. “Wei Yiang! Why didn't you bring your Grammar Book! Where's your English 1? Also forgot,” she boomed. I also forgot to bring my exercise books for Malay, for Science and many other subjects, and my teachers weren't happy with me. I was so forgetful. To solve this problem, my mum told me to pack my bags every night before heading to school the next day. It was clumsy when I always told my teachers I forgot to bring my books.
Then, I had another problem; handwriting. I always write very fast. I always hurriedly completed my work because Ms Prema, Ms Julia and Ms Thana said I was slow. So, Ms Thana, my class teacher, asked me to buy an exercise book where she wrote words for me to trace on.
In the third week, I arrived at school early. However, most of the time, I reached at 7:30am. And every time I went to school, I faced traffic jams. But on another catch, I managed to meet many friends who would be my companion throughout my life in Nobel, starting with 1 Sincerity. Christiana Chin, one of the people in our class, was transferred to 1 Virtue and was told by Ms Thana to head to Cikgu Zoraidah's class. I also met Glen Kay, who was my good friend since Year 1. He is quite a tall guy. At the time, he was the tallest boy in our class. There were two other tall boys as well; Nickolas Nashpal and Dylan S. Gill. There were also cuddly and hyperactive boys like James Chitty and Daryl Yeo. We also had a Malay boy named Aiman, who was in our class. And there were good and talented girls as well, such as my friend Janelle Arnelia, who became a popular singer.
There was another girl named Chia Yan Ying who would always have serious talks with me. She would always pinch me when I did not do things that were supposed to do in the class, such as forgetting my books. Yan Ying was in charge of most of the class affairs. Ms Thana would ask her to write the names of those who were talking in the classroom when she was out. In fact, almost every teacher asked her to do it. Yan Ying would soon become a dancer and a singer during her time in Nobel, as well as a netball player too. We also have many wonderful girls in our class as well. No worries; Yan Ying would pinch me in anger if I didn't follow certain instructions. We were childish then.
On our third week, our teachers started giving us worksheets. A worksheet is basically a piece of paper printed with the information and exercises that we need to do. Our first worksheet was given by Ms Julia which involved counting the numbers. Ms Julia had started doing number bonds with us which involved adding up the numbers. I always kept on interjecting Ms Julia and counting the numbers with her excitedly. Then, in Character Building, Mr Chuang then divided all of us into two groups based on class; Magnificent and Marvellous. Mr Chuang was also very enthusiastic to teach us as well, but he was also quite stern, especially on our character.
In Nobel back in those days, it was forbidden to run around the school grounds. Most people will just run and play around for fun because they want to spend time playing with their friends. When Mr Chuang spotted a student running, he would scold the student and get angry. At the beginning of the week, Mr Chuang spotted an Indian boy, presumably from Year 3, running in the canteen during break time on 21st January 2008. I was at 1 Sincerity's class table observing it. He shouted at him, took him aside, and, tenaciously asked the student to show his palm. Mr Chuang then raised his palm and slapped the student's hand with a loud crack. The whole canteen watched.
“I told you just now, no running. Why are you running?” he asked that student. After a series of conversations, he warned him not to run again and asked him to say sorry. Then, Mr Chuang went around, observing the daily conduct of students, searching for trouble. That was how Nobel was strict then.
Yan Ying and all the girls at the girls’ table were all discussing Mr Chuang's actions and how strict he was. Then, we went in the hall to gather. Mr Chuang was holding his microphone. He then asked everyone to line up in our class line. Mr Chuang was mainly conducting our break time and lunch time assembly then. He had a stern, crossly look on his face, glaring down at the crowd.
“Lower primary students. P1, P2, P3. I caned a boy just now. He was running,” he boomed.
“I still see students running in the hall. In the corridor as well,” said Mr Chuang.
“I already said many times, no running. Is it difficult to follow instructions? I will cane you next if I catch you running,” Mr Chuang warned the crowd of students. “Do you understand?” he asked, and all the students responded yes. Mr Chuang meant business. He went on to say that we are being disobedient if we behave in such a manner and not follow the school rules.
Back in those days, there was pure emphasis on discipline, good behaviour and good character. It was no psychological haven, but a mindset etched in the philosophy of efficient clockwork. As long as one has discipline, he or she should be fine. In fact, the word ‘discipline’ back then had a rather rough meaning, of canes, punishments and penalties.
At the same time, Mr Chuang's insistence and enthusiasm on school rules meant that he wants everyone to follow proper protocol – from break time's class table arrangements to how we should line up, come for assembly and go home. He was coordinating everything as if he was a conductor in a band.
After break time, we then went back for English classes with Ms Prema, where we did our Grammar Book once again. Fortunately, this time, I brought my Grammar Book. My seven-year-old self was always vulnerable to forgetfulness and slumpiness back then, and my mum would always have to remind me to bring the books. In fact, the Grammar Book was the one that I forgot the most. Adding insult to injury was the fact that the English subject had three exercise books, one workbook, one Grammar Book and one textbook, making it a long list of books. For Maths, there were two exercise books, one textbook and one workbook. And because each subject had so many books, for a seven-year-old, it is taxing as my mind was still developing.
A common rhetoric emitted by Mr Chuang in the heyday was that a student would be taken to the office if they misbehaved. The question, “Do you want to go to the office?” may seem like one of normal conversation, or something one would say as a day-to-day conversation. However, a closer look from the perspective of a primary school student then reveals the terror and horror behind it; individuals who went to the office got yelled, scolded or shouted at. It is a punishment of all sorts for students who were slapped with a trip to the office. The term “office” is a scary definition for all students; no one wants to go to the office, fearing disciplinary action on them.
Once the entire debacle was over, and Mr Chuang released us to our classes, Ms Prema then came and took us back to 1 Sincerity. When we returned, Ms Prema told us to take our our Grammar Book where we did exercises. The next day, we were taken to the Domestic Science room for our first Enrichment session of the year with Ms Thana.
Enrichment classes in Nobel were filled with a lot of things, with four sessions a year; one for each quarter. For the first quarter, we had Domestic Science, which is basically cooking classes.
Each student was given a Domestic Science kit the week before, consisting of a hat and apron packed in transparent plastic bags. We wore our apron and hat and went with Ms Thana to the Domestic Science room for the first cooking activity. We had a briefing on the recipes and we were to bake a dish with potato and spinach. I still have the apron to this day.
Ms Julia then did number bonds with us before we went for lunch. We also learnt how two numbers were to add up to make the total number. It was so easy; far from the stress and headache of what was offered in Year 11. Then, Ms Julia told us to hand in the workbooks to her in the same manner like what Mr Chuang told us, passing the books from the back to the front. As I was in front, I counted the books of what my friends handed in before Ms Julia collected them and gave us our meal coupons.
The next day, Wednesday, 23rd January 2008, was our first trip to the school library. During Malay lessons, we had a Library Time in which Ms Thana would take us to the library to read some books. So, every Wednesday or so, Ms Thana would bring us to the library.
We lined up outside our class at 1 Sincerity following break, and Ms Thana lined us up before she ld us up the stairs to the library. Upon reaching the front of the library, Ms Thana told us to be silent before entering the library, which was then located on the second floor.
The library was manned by a kind Malay teacher named Cikgu Afza, who had big eyes and a serious look, but always smiled. There were wooden tables and chairs placed in the front of the library, and a whole bunch of bookshelves behind the library. Ms Thana told us to take any book we wanted and read for 1 hour. I went along with Ms Thana, took a children's book from the shelf, and sat down at the table while Ms Thana read a novel. The library also contained a display case that displayed the trophy of the Class of the Month, the Sports Day Champion House, and various other awards. The display case was placed in the wall near the class door of the library. The shelf also contained Program Ulat Buku awards for winners of Nobel's Program Ulat Buku.
The Program Ulat Buku, or Book Reading Program in English, is a program designed for students to read more books and encourage reading as a habit. Individuals who read more books would be rewarded with awards, namely Nobel Bintang (10-20 books), Nobel Bestari (21-30 books), Nobel Cemerlang (31-39 books) and the Bibilioholist award (40 books and above). Each student was provided with an orange booklet which they can record their book choices. Ms Thana supervised us on our Program Ulat Buku reading exercises. We had to write the name, the publisher, the book type, the language of publication as well as draw a picture of the scene from the story.
As we enter the fourth week of school and the last week of January, our teachers gave us worksheets. All of them emphasized the importance of the Homework Pouch to keep and store our worksheets. Sadly, I forgot to wear my PE attire for PE, as the previous Wednesday, 23rd January 2008, was a public holiday for Thaipusam. Even my teachers asked me why I was in school uniform back then. Oh, how forgetful I was then. And I also forgot to do some homework as well.
We then enter the second week of school. The teachers begun to decorate the school with lanterns and firecrackers for Chinese New Year. The celebrations in those days were much muted, with Nobel still being in its infancy, and Ms Hee gave us origami to make as a part of the Mandarin lessons which focused on Chinese New Year. We also learned about the Chinese New Year traditions to get us started. And of course, to kickstart the Chinese New Year holidays, Ms Prema decided to introduce us about the third exercise book for English, English 3. To recap, English 1 was used for normal lessons; English 2 for Spelling and Dictation, and Ms Prema had told us to keep it aside until she told us what we are going to use English 3 for.
Ms Prema explained that English 3 will be designated as something which we call a ‘Journal Book’. She explained that we would write our first journal and hand the Journal Book to her following the Chinese New Year holidays. On another note, Ms Julia took us to the Innovation Center which was located on the first floor next to the lift and the Domestic Science Room. It was quite cool and Ms Julia assigned us to different tables where she gave us the chance to play board games and quizzes with another teacher, Ms Tee, who was manning the center. Ms Tee always praised me when I got the Maths quizzes correct.
During Chinese New Year, we had so much of homework to do. A lot of worksheets. Oh well, but I just completed them. And we had a lot of visiting and fun with firecrackers.
After our Chinese New Year holidays, Ms Prema then told us to write about ourself and to introduce ourself in the journal. “It is up to you how you want to write,” she said. “But I want you to write about yourself.” I didn't know what to write, so I just procrastinated. As usual. I was just a timid, forgetful kid, then. And I forgot my Grammar Book again. Oh dear. Poor me.
Journal writing in Nobel was a practiced form of writing those days. It required everyone to write a topic every week as part of a daily writing exercise. And not only that, we had to write them diligently without fail. Ms Prema would mark our Journal Book and she wanted us to finish them for marking. Ms Prema would set the journal topics.
Mr Chuang then veered into the second character trait of the year which was Attentiveness. He taught us the difference between Attentiveness and Obedience, and he told us that Attentiveness is about listening to what our teachers said, whereas Obedience is about following the instructions. He said that we need to be attentive and obedient because they complement each other. For instance, being attentive is about being focused on what the teacher is talking and to not get distracted by the instructions, while being obedient is about following them immediately and without delay. Affirmatively, obedience also results in attentiveness as well, because when we obey, we are more likely to become focused. He then handed out the Character First cards for Obedience and Attentiveness, which was a small card containing the Five I Wills as well as the definition of the character trait and the accompanying animal corresponding to the trait. For Obedience, it was the Indian Elephant, and for Attentiveness, the White-Tailed Deer.
Speaking of Mr Chuang, I frequently saw Mr Chuang holding his son's hands each time I arrived at school. “Wei Yiang, look, Mr Chuang has a son,” said my mum, upon giving me breakfast and talking to me at our car upon parking at the main road in front of Nobel. I would soon get to know that Caleb Chuang is his son's name. I didn't know him much, but in reality, his name was Chuang Caleb in official order. For convenience, I am going to pronounce him as ‘Caleb Chuang'.
Our school-wide level Chinese New Year celebration was not as grand, but rather, it was a presentation of basic Chinese New Year traditions, and teachers asking what did we do during Chinese New Year. And each time an assembly ended, Mr Chuang recited a prayer by asking everyone to pray, and ending the prayer with, “So help us, God.”
Meanwhile for Art, Cikgu Asilah changed drawings every week. Each one of us purchased a yellow crayon box and we kept them in the class shelf on the right corner of the whiteboard. We did random drawings, from animals to pictures and so on. Our shelves were filled with mini whiteboards on the lowest shelf, and our crayon boxes were on the highest shelf. We then did some Chocolate Chip Cookies for Domestic Science, as well as some relay runs for our PE lesson. However, we did something really cool.
For our Science Project, we had to create a model of a neighborhood, and mine and a couple of other people's projects were displayed in the class. My mum and I did the Science Project together and we made a model using streetlamps, roads and buildings. And as we approached the end of the month, the teachers had planned a speech competition for the students.
For the Speech Competition, Ms Thana had chosen me and a few other people from 1 Sincerity as the contestance. I had to do a speech presentation titled ‘Anak Burung Pemalas’, or ‘Lazy Bird’ during the morning assembly, based on a story book that I read of the same name. I had to memorize the speech and present it without looking at the text. To aid my memory, my aunt played the speech during the car ride home from school everyday, getting me to remember it. Additionally, Ms Thana also held several sessions with me to memorize the text.
Malay was quite hard for me as a Year 1 student, particularly because of the fluency of speaking in English at home. It involved having to translate texts. So, for the Anak Burung Pemalas speech, I had to just memorize them and understand the meaning, with Ms Thana guiding me. Ms Thana also told me to buy an exercise book and thus she wrote words which I had to practice following the lines and writing them to improve my handwriting.
Ms Julia then gave back our worksheets and told us to do corrections. She said that some people had gotten the numbers wrong and needed to improve the next time. Mr Kwan continued to play the piano and sing songs, while Ms Prema told us to improve our English comprehension and focus on corrections. In fact, Ms Prema had the lead and standard of correction reminders; when a correction was needed, we would write the correct answer in blue color pencils. If a correction was needed in the exercise books, we would start a new page with corrections. Ms Prema would put a sticky tape on the front of the book, and would always be angry and disappointed when corrections were needed, especially when the same people were making the same mistakes. This was then followed by other teachers, and when the sticky tape ran out, then Ms Prema would fold the pages to make a “dog ear” or let the pages stick out so that we can see the corrections. If one ran out of luck, with so many corrections, it becomes additional homework.
In regards to my friends, in the beginning of February, a new girl, Grace Tee, joined our class. Grace is a very nice and soft-hearted girl. She has a sweet voice and a sociable character. Of course, like Camelia and a few other girls, they would sometimes cry, and Ms Thana, being our class teacher, would comfort us like a hero. Ms Thana is one of the best class teachers, and I can always remember my time with her. She, being our class teacher, as well as a teacher of multiple subjects for us, would always be prominent in 1 Sincerity.
Soon, we entered the month of March, and it was our First Mid Term Assessment. The First Mid Term Assessment was held from 3rd March to 5th March 2008. As my very first assessment in Nobel, this allowed me to experience what an examination in Nobel looked like.
On 28th February 2008, we had to arrange our tables during our Homework Time with Ms Thana. There is a Homework Time every Tuesday and Thursday for us to do our homework. So, at that very afternoon, Ms Thana told us to arrange the tables in the examination format.
Every single table in the class would need to be spaced out from each other so that people do not copy from each other. The tables would need to be 1.5 metres apart. Aside from that, everyone had to put our bags outside the classroom, and only bring our pencil cases into the classroom.
Back in those days, anyone can bring their pencil cases or their water bottles into the classroom for their assessments and examinations. And for the exams, each one of us can sit anywhere as we please. We then had our Malay exam, with two papers for the day. On the whiteboard, our teachers wrote the name of the subject, the paper number, and the duration, as well as the day and date.
The first paper for the day was the Pemahaman Paper. It was a sunny morning as we had our exam. The questions were more or less just comprehensive questions. I just did the paper to the best of my ability. Back in those days, Malay was a thorn in a flesh as I tried to answer the questions in a language which I could not understand then. Then, after break, we had the Penulisan Paper, which comprises writing sentences. We had the Spelling Test for Malay that afternoon.
Our teachers who came into our class would just invigilate the class. When the next subject arrived, the other teacher would continue his or her invigilation. When the exam ended, we had to pass up our exam papers for the assessment of our work.
The next day, we had the English paper. Ms Prema told us that the exam date, 4th March 2007, was to be changed to 4th March 2008 and asked us to change ourselves. The exam paper begun with a story and we had to answer the questions according to the story, circling A, B or C. Then, for the next paper, it was the same like Malay, with sentence construction.
For the Maths paper, we had to count the numbers like what Ms Julia told us. I got 90 marks for my Maths because it was so easy. It was more or less what we had in our workbook. The rest of the subjects went quite well. Our Music exam was held on 28th February, before the official exam begun on 3rd March, and Mr Kwan told us to sing the ‘Mickey Mouse Alma Mater’ song as part of the assessment. Oh! Quite basic. He called each person, one by one, and gave us 2 minutes to sing the song. Some people tried to sing but could not do so, while some sang awfully. Fortunately, I did fine and got 94 marks.
Once our exams finished, our teachers gave us back our exam papers and we were involved in discussing the papers. Ms Thana told us that some of us needed improvement in our Malay but we did fine. A discussion would involve the teacher explaining the questions and how the answers came about. For English, Ms Prema also said the same, although we were better. Ms Julia also emphasized on us learning to count the numbers because it would help us when we were older. We had to do corrections using blue color pencils and then the exam papers would be compiled by the school. Then, the following week, Ms Thana, on Tuesday, 11th March 2008, Ms Thana and Ms Julia taught us how to compile the exam papers during our Homework time.
Each student was given a metal bind that is designed to file the papers that had two holes punched into them. We had to arrange the exam papers in order, starting from the last paper, Mandarin, followed by Music, Pendidikan Moral, Science, Maths, English and Malay. This was concluded by the cover of the booklet, which had the words “First Mid Term Assessment 2008”, accompanied by the corresponding title in Malay, “Penilaian Pertengahan Penggal Pertama”. Ms Thana then gave us a form to attach to the booklet.
“Please tell your dad or mum to sign and then bring it back to school latest by Thursday (13th March),” said Ms Thana. Our parents had to sign it. Unfortunately, I forgot to give my parents to sign them. Daryl Yeo and Andrew Ariffin left their forms at home, so Ms Thana was disappointed.
I had started putting my Grammar Book in my bag first thing at night before school begins the next day in order to prevent myself from forgetting it, since Ms Prema was disappointed with me forgetting to bring the Grammar Book many times. Then, I suddenly forgot homework and so on. When Ms Thana found out me and Ying Wen did not bring our homework, she told us to stand up and got angry at us. And Ying Wen and I had a guilty look and were moaning. Ying Wen would always be in tears. I was not disciplined in bringing my books or doing homework then, but this resulted in me being a better person in terms of homework submission and books through my later years in Nobel. Hence, there is a saying that the best individuals had the worst experiences which made them the best. This is why Japan has the best earthquake management system (thanks to the 1995 Kobe Earthquake) as an example from their taste of bad disasters.
For PE, we had Ms Evelyn come over to conduct our PE for us. Because I did not follow the PE rules, I had to apologize to Ms Evelyn thrice during the PE lesson on 26th February 2008. There was a relay race that we had to do and I didn't follow the procedures.
Our first field trip occurred on Tuesday, 18th March 2008, after our March holidays. For our Field Trip, the Year 1 teachers brought us to the Malaysia International Space and Aeronautics Exhibition, also known as MISA, which was held at Putrajaya. MISA is a space exhibition that aims to showcase worldwide space explorations as well as Malaysia's very own space exhibitions as part of the climax of the tourism campaign of Visit Malaysia Year 2007. The exhibition contained spacesuits, rockets, planets and even space simulators. This field trip was fun as I never got to experience such a thing when I was in kindergarten, with the exception of the trip to the TUDM back in kindergarten, only once.
MISA was the very first field trip I had with Nobel. Before the field trip, the teachers held a briefing for us in which we were told by our teachers what to bring. It was the first time that I had experienced such a field trip. We were briefed about the field trip after break time when we had to gather in the hall. Ms Thana briefed us on the field trip and said we had to bring a small backpack, a cap, some food, and that our attire would be our school uniform. Each class had to be escorted onto three buses to bring us to Precinct 14 in Putrajaya which is near the Seri Saujana Bridge opposite the core island of the Putrajaya Lake, in an open field where a large, white canopy housing the exhibition was held.
I brought along a red backpack which my mum gave me. It was small in size and was bright red. Everyone had small backpacks of their own size. Inside my bag, I packed potato bread that was given by my mum. Inside the bag was an umbrella, some cash, and my pencil case. We had to take down some notes at the MISA Exhibition for our Science lesson.
Back in those days, everyone had their own separate dates for their field trip. The Year 1s went on one day and the Year 2s headed for their excursion a week later. It was more disorganized than a current single date for field trips. Everyone in Year 1 was very excited, and we all lined up in our class lines. A lot of people were asking about their attire, their bags, caps and accessories that they brought for the field trip. I was alone then. I just sat down in the class line at the courtyard.
Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle briefed us on the field trip and told us to listen to our teachers’ instructions. Ms Thana also walked past our class line, smiling at us while I peered around the courtyard. Ms Prema was with her class, 1 Obedience, talking to them happily and being enthusiastic. After a few minutes, Mr Chuang escorted us to our buses, smiled at us, and told us to enjoy the field trip. I sat at the front seat of the bus with Ms Thana, who came in after a while.
During the bus ride, I ate the potato bread that was packed by my mum, as I peered out of the bus to enjoy the view while the bus brought us to MISA.
On the way to Putrajaya, it was interesting to peer out of the window. The bus passed by my house in Puchong, all the way via the LDP Highway in the direction of Putrajaya. I sat with Ms Thana and I enjoyed the view from the bus. At the back of the bus, Berlinda Tan, Yan Ying, Lydia Lee and all the girls in our class were chit chatting. Daryl Yeo and Andrew Ariffin were playing some games as Ms Thana sat in front, enjoying the view and getting some rest. Soon, the bus approached the exhibition site, where a large canopy enclosed the exhibition. All the students in the bus were cheering and talking loudly in excitement as a series of large, colored balloons and tour buses came into view, alongside the beautiful scenery of Putrajaya. The large bridges were also stunning, which ignited the excitement.
The buses dropped us at a large parking lot outside the exhibition centre. Our teachers led us down from the bus and we were escorted to the entrance of the exhibition. We lined up in our class lines, two by two, and Ms Thana led us to the foyer of the exhibition venue. Upon arriving, each class took a group photo in front of a gallery of space suits and model rockets before we commenced our tour of the exhibition. Ms Thana briefed us further and told us to follow her before we commenced the tour.
At the entrance of the MISA Exhibition, there were a series of space exhibitions consisting of space suits, space equipment, space prototypes, models of satellites and so on. There was a model of the Saturn V rocket on store as well. There were around four zones in the space exhibition, consisting of the space equipment, a space rocket simulator, gift shop, as well as an exhibition of the Milky Way and Solar System.
Each class was to go to the rocket simulator first, then followed by the Solar System exhibition and then before leaving, we would be given the chance to purchase gifts from the gift shop.
The rocket exhibition was the scariest of them all. Our class, 1 Sincerity was the first to go in. Upon entering, there was a video being played. Then, the rocket started blasting and shaking for around three minutes. It was like an earthquake; a nightmare for a young kid. I was frightened and held on to dear life and was holding Ms Thana’s skirt at the time as the rocket machine shook to simulate a blast off. Ms Thana's skirt started flying around, and everyone screamed. Afterwards, we were led out and toured the other exhibitions from planets to space exploration. I just sat down by the side and watch the rocket machine shake as other classes got to experience the blast-off. My heart was beating and my nerves were weak, recalling the scary experience. Then, I followed Ms Thana and Ms Prema as they went to buy things at the gift shop.
After everyone was done with the tour, we then headed back to school, had lunch, and got on with our classes as usual. And then, we were treated with our first event of the year, the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, or Malay Week.
Malay, then classified by the school as Bahasa Malaysia, was then a core subject at Nobel. Being a private national school then, following the national syllabus, Bahasa Malaysia was one of the requirements for Nobel to operate as a school. It is not common to see publications from Nobel or curriculum books, like our Program Ulat Buku booklet or even our Progress Reports, having both words in Malay and English. The Malaysian Ministry of Education requires that the national syllabus have teaching and learning in Malay, and besides that, Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was designed to promote the interest and love for learning Malay Language.
Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was one of four subject weeks designed by the school then; the others being English Week, Maths and Science Week , and last but not least, Mandarin Week, which was held the week after the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia ended.
Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was held from 24th March 2008 to 4th April 2008, following the conclusion of the Field Trip to MISA. The theme of Minggu Bahasa Malaysia 2008 was ‘Cintailah Bahasa Malaysia’, which encourages people to appreciate and enjoy learning Malay. The opening ceremony was lavish, with Puan Halimah first introducing about Minggu Bahasa Malaysia and the activities to be held. Puan Halimah was formerly the head of subject for Malay then, and is currently the assistant principal for the Elementary School. This was then followed by Ms Michelle launching the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia and a performance of the song ‘Bahasa Jiwa Bangsa’ by Mr Kwan and his students from Year 6. This song is a song composed by Malaysia's Ministry of Education to promote Malay as the national language of Malaysia. Then, on 26th March 2008, during our Wednesday assembly, Puan Halimah taught us Malay vocabulary to teach us how to improve our profeciency in Malay.
Ms Thana, being our Malay teacher, gave us some games to play in the class as well, from guessing Malay words to promoting books and films in the Malay language for us to watch and read. On that same day, 26th March 2008, she gave us a Malay poem named ‘Fikirkan Boleh’. She even brought us to the library during our Wednesday Malay lessons to read such books in the library. One magazine that she gave us during class was the ‘Kuntum’ magazine, which was a Malay language magazine complete with its own mascots, Si Pintar and Si Comel.
When she gave us the Kuntum magazine during our class on 27th March 2008, Daryl Yeo and Andrew Ariffin were the first to grab the magazines. There were a lot of activities in the magazine, and most of Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was used to talk about Malaysia as a whole as well. Ms Thana told us to bring the magazine to school for Malay so that we can do some activities in the book during class.
For Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, on 28th March, there was a performance staged by some of the Year 6 students and Malay teachers on the series of traditional Malay games. Ms Thana was also involved in a game of congkak, while the teachers taught Ms Michelle how to play the Batu Seremban. The next week, during our break and lunch time, we were treated to a series of traditional Malay art, such as batik, a traditional Malay kite from the Malaysian state of Kelantan named the ‘wau’, and wayang kulit, which was a shadow puppet show. We were also entertained by Mr Zolkleflee, a PE teacher,
On the last day of Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, teachers wore traditional attire, along with some students who performed on stage. Ms Michelle, who was dressed in baju kurung, a traditional Malay dress for women, said that she enjoyed the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia activities, and thanked Puan Halimah, Mr Praba and Mr Kwan for making the morning assemblies entertaining. She also told us to cherish and learn what we have gotten from Minggu Bahasa Malaysia for the upcoming Mid Year Examination in May so that we can improve ourselves.
Once Minggu Bahasa Malaysia ended, we then had Mandarin Week was held 7th to 11th April 2008. This time, Ms Hee, our Mandarin teacher, was in charge of entertaining us.
The opening ceremony of Mandarin Week was quite interesting, with Ms Tee Bee Hoon, the head of Mandarin, launching the Mandarin Week. When we entered the school hall for assembly, there were Chinese words pasted to the stage which read ‘Mandarin Week’ when translated from Mandarin. Ms Michelle and another teacher from the management team, Ms Bee Yong, were then invited to launch the ceremony. Many of the Mandarin teachers were involved in launching the ceremony, which begun with performances by students from Level 1 Mandarin classes singing famous Chinese songs. This was then followed by a Powerpoint presentation showing traditional Chinese culture, such as the Chinese zodiac and the Chinese calendar, along with traditional Chinese celebrations such as Chinese New Year, the Mid Autumn Festival, Qingming Festival and so on. In the class, Ms Hee gave us a series of games to guess the Chinese culture and tradition, and also what was the meaning of the words. There was also a competition during the Mandarin Week during assembly where individuals had to pronounce a Chinese character correctly. There were also Chinese performances presented by the Mandarin teachers.
As April dawned, our classmate, Chia Yan Ying, decided to celebrate her birthday with all of us. Her birthday falls on 9th April, and everyone celebrated her birthday with a cake cutting ceremony. In fact, I have celebrated many of our friends’ birthdays before; and Ms Thana had put up a birthday chart containing all our birthdays. I was the only one in 1 Sincerity that was born in May.
Yan Ying decided to celebrate her birthday during our break time on Wednesday, 9th April. It was tradition for every person in our class to celebrate their birthday during break time. Ms Michelle said that we need to liaise with our class teacher, Ms Thana, in order to arrange for the birthday celebration. Yan Ying also gave each and every one of us a birthday goodie pack for us to take home.
Mr Chuang then approached everyone during break time. He chided everyone for running arojund in the hall. “I do not know whether you pay attention during Character Building or not. I said no running, but I still see people running. If you run again, I am going to send you to the office,” he said.
After break time ended, we then went back to our class for Malay lessons with Ms Thana. She then brought us to the library to read. When some people in the library were making a lot of noise, Ms Thana said that if we made noise, she will ask us to line up and return back to 1 Sincerity.
Then, it was Mathematics, and Ms Julia brought us to the Innovation Center, where I played a game of Snakes and Ladders. Afterwards, we had English with Ms Prema.
The next week, on Monday, 14th April 2008, we had a briefing on a fire drill. A fire drill is an exercise conducted to simulate actions that should be taken during a fire. Mr Chuang was instrumental on briefing us on what to do during a fire.
When I heard the word “fire drill”, I felt a bit scared because the first impression I was thinking is that the word ‘drill’ would mean the fire drilling a hole in the wall. In reality, a drill is a practice that is being conducted to prepare for an event. Mind my inaccurate thinking.
No one wants to be caught up in a fire. Mr Chuang enthusiastically briefed us, but he was serious. He said that a bell will be sounded when the fire alarm rang. Back in those days, the bell in Nobel was a traditional bell. It wasn't like the music or so on we have today. So as such, it was a traditional bell which was not like the bell seen in a church or hung on a Christmas tree, but a bell that repeatedly hit a round, metal surface, connected by electricity. We were told by Mr Chuang on how to conduct the fire drill, as he flicked slides showing the fire drill during the Monday assembly.
“When the bell rings, obey the instructions. Remember the first character; OBEDIENCE! NOW! IMMEDIATELY! WITHOUT DELAY! And also, be attentive! Listen to instructions and follow them!” cried Mr Chuang to the crowd. He said that a fire drill was no joke, and no one wants to die in a fire. Mr Chuang said that we need to evacuate the building when a fire alarm was sounded. All of us would need to line up outside our class, leave our things as they were inside, and follow the evacuation route designated from our classroom to the road in front of the school.
Each class was given an evacuation route. Since 1 Sincerity's classroom was just seconds away from the school foyer, all that was needed for us to do was to proceed and head for the entrance. It was very easy. Other students need to go down the stairs or so on as their classes were at different locations. However, if an area was crowded, the people who were evacuating from higher floors were given priority over those from the ground floor. Mr Chuang told everyone that we should be quiet when evacuating so as to have a calm atmosphere and also to listen for sounds of danger, such as things falling down or explosions or the sound of fire.
After the assembly ended, we then proceeded back to our class. Then, on the 16th April 2008, a Wednesday, while Ms Prema was telling us to do the My Pals Workbook and Grammar Book questions and was waiting to discuss the answers during English, the dreaded sound came. The bell rang; it was like a normal bell, but then, a screeching alarm rang. It was like an ambulance.
“Ok class! It's the fire drill. Everyone, push in your chairs, line up two by two outside the classroom. Quick, quick, quick! Fire drill!” cried Ms Prema. Everyone went out, except for Daryl Yeo, who was trying to get things down. Ms Prema yelled at him to get out quickly.
We then lined up in pairs outside 1 Sincerity. Then, Ms Prema led us to the foyer. At the foyer, Mr Chuang, Ms Michelle, Mr Daniel Tan, Mr Kwan and Mr Praba were fitted with megaphones and hard hats. Mr Chuang was wearing a red hard hat to coordinate the evacuation. “Move faster! Keep quiet!” cried Mr Chuang. Every class was being told to be silent by their teachers.
We walked down the passageway in front of the school beside the driveways to the school gate. Some people were excited that it felt like an adventure. As kids, it was normal, because we rarely get to go out from the school gate. Upon exiting the gates, we were then grouped into our classes and told to line up and be silent. Every teacher who was in their class at the time of the drill took their class’ Control Book, which was a book designed for attendance marking, recording toilet trips and also classroom activity. It is a requirement for students to sign the control book before heading to the washroom back then. The control book system has been abolished since 2020.
Anyhow, we then lined up outside the school. Mr Chuang then came out and told the students to move away from the school gates to allow more people to exit the school. Soon came the students from Tadika Sri Nobel (now Nobel Early Years), as well as the Secondary School (now the Junior and Senior School).
The bell kept on ringing, echoing towards the main road. Ms Prema then did a roll call with us. “Andrew! Yan Ying! Grace!” We had to raise our hand and say, “here” to signify our presence. Each teacher would then record the number of students present and report to the teacher in charge designated for the fire drill; in this case, it was Mr Kwan, who was busy monitoring the students outside of the school building.
I was busy looking around when Ms Prema had to call me three times and shouted at me. “Wei Yiang! When I say your name, please respond and pay attention!” she cried. Then, everyone was talking when Ms Prema told us to keep quiet.
Mr Kwan then came to every class teacher, who submitted their records. This was then followed by Mr Kwan, Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang, along with some staff of the school, going into the building to check every floor for students in them. When everyone was evacuated, Mr Kwan and Mr Chuang gave the OK signal. The bell stopped ringing and the alarm was muted. Everyone was told to proceed to the school hall where Mr Chuang briefed us on the fire drill. Ms Prema then told us to line up and proceed to the hall. When we got there, Mr Chuang was in front and told us to be seated. He then said that a lot of students were not following the instructions and that we were too slow. “All of you are busy talking. Fire drill is not funny,” said Mr Chuang. “I see some students taking their water bottle along. You are supposed to LEAVE IT in your classroom,” he said. “Some people even bring their school bags! This is what happens when you are not attentive and obedient. Not listening or following instructions!”
Mr Chuang also said that the lining-up rules were poorly practiced. “I shall look in front! I shall keep quiet! How come I still see students talking to one another while walking out!” he cried.
Then, we went back to 1 Sincerity. Ms Prema told us to continue with our work. Then, she peered at my Grammar Book.
“Wei Yiang! I told you to do it first and then I will discuss the question! Why did you not do it yet?” cried Ms Prema. Normally, Ms Prema will give us the work and discuss the answers. Because Ms Prema gave the answers immediately, I would normally just wait till the answers were discussed before filling them in my book.
The next day, 17th April 2008, was another fire drill. This time, it happened while Ms Thana was teaching Malay. The bell then rang again. This time, we knew what to do. We got up, pushed in our chairs, lined up outside the classroom and then headed to the evacuation zone and lined up in front of the road in front of Nobel. Then, Ms Thana did the roll call. Yan Ying and a few girls in our class were talking. Then, Ms Thana called our names. We answered. And then Mr Kwan checked on us. The process was smoother. By right, it should only take 3 minutes to evacuate the school building from the start of the fire alarm being sounded.
After returning to class, Ms Thana then finished our lesson before we made our way to the Music Room with Mr Kwan, who showed us a series of musical instruments and how they sounded. He taught us on percussion, tempo and rhythm. He then asked us about our favorite music instrument. I said I liked playing the piano. When Ms Julia came in for Maths, we did some worksheets, and Ms Julia went around checking on us to see if we had the correct answer. We had to circle a set of ten and count the numbers quickly based on how we circle the number of animals.
Then, it was Ms Thana's Science class, and I tried to ‘correct’ the spelling of Joon Tzen's name. Joon Tzen was one of our classmates in class, and because his name had a letter T which was not pronounced in his name due to it being a silent T, I thought of his name as ‘Joon Zen’ instead of ‘Joon Tzen’. Joon Tzen is a very nice boy and a humble guy, but is also quite active as well. Many of my friends told me not to correct his name like that. This is the main characteristic of Chinese names.
On 18th April, it was Grace Tee's birthday. Grace's mother then came to school and we celebrated her birthday in the canteen. She bought us some goodies for us, and her cake was quite cold. Cikgu Asilah then did drawings with us and brought us to see the art room. The next Monday, I was absent because I had come down with fever from the weekend. Hence, my teachers prepared me homework and worksheet, and a letter was sent to my mum informing her of the homework. I was given a week to complete the homework.
On another note, Sports Day was also approaching. Nobel's 2008 Sports Day was scheduled for 26th April 2008, and the teachers are very excited to get us on board. At the beginning of April, during our Mandarin Week, Ms Thana told us about which houses we were placed in; either Red, Blue, Green or Yellow. Back then, the houses were not given names, but merely called by colors. After the transition of Nobel from a private school to an international school, the houses were named Bullseye, Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk.
While most people in Nobel today consider me as a member of Bullseye, back in 2008, I was allocated to Green House. During our PE lesson, Ms Thana told us that we would be assigned to the houses based on the name list she spoke on. So, we gathered according to our houses, and the teachers told us that we will be having practices for Sports Day. Ms Michelle also released a message which we pasted in our Message Book which stated the Sports Day for 26th April 2008 at the Panasonic Stadium (then called Matsushita Stadium) in Shah Alam. For Nobel, it was the first time that they are using the stadium for the Sports Day; previously, they were using SK Kelana Jaya's school field for the Sports Day.
The teachers begun doing relay races and telematch races with us in the school hall. This is so that we can practice for Sports Day, where the events would be held on the day.
For the telematch, each student has the choice to participate in the telematch games. Our teachers encouraged us to participate. I participated in two games. The first was a relay run involving us throwing bean bags. The second run was a hula hoop game titled ‘Weave Me Through’ in order for us to jiggle our body while holding hands to let the hula hoop pass through.
The date was 22nd April 2008,and Mr Chuang was in charge of organizing the telematch games practice. I can tell you that he is quite a guy. He was very enthusiastic in teaching us the telematch techniques. He had a cheerful tone, despite being a serious guy emphasizing on discipline.
"YEAH, YEAH! YEAH YEAH YEAH! SRI NOBEL!” cried Mr Chuang, as he rallied the crowd of students. Ms Michelle then came on and told everyone about the telematch. “Please invite your parents to come to Sports Day to cheer you on!” she cried. In the Sports Day message given to us by Ms Michelle that was pasted in the Message Book, there was a map charting the directions for parents to drive to Panasonic Stadium for Sports Day.
Although the telematch events would be held on Sports Day, the teachers would need to practice the telematch games with us. Mr Chuang had a serious briefing before we got started.
Mr Chuang said that everyone would need to be gathered in the games they were assigned to and line up according to their telematch game. He said that the telematch events would be conducted at the field at Panasonic Stadium, which was accompanied by a running track. After a series of instructions, he then started with the Year 1's bean bag games.
The telematch setup consisted of four colors of equipment in the colors of the respective houses. For Green House, the teacher in charge of the telematch events for the students was Cikgu Zoraidah. Each house had an assigned Year 1 teacher. Ms Prema was the teacher coordinating the Blue House members, Ms Thana took care of the Red House members, and so on. The teachers supervised the telematch games and instructed us what to do.
Mr Chuang himself is a teacher from Red House. There were a lot of male teachers assigned for the telematch. Mr Kwan, our Music teacher, was also assisting Mr Chuang in conducting the telematch games. Ms Michelle was also involved in cheering everyone.
The telematch games were inclusive regardless of gender. Each one of us had a house. Janelle Arnelia, Grace Tee and Glen Kay were in Blue House, while Yan Ying was then in Yellow House. The teachers told us to line up in front of the start line for the telematch games in the hall. Mr Chuang said that it was a practice of what to be done by us on Sports Day. The telematch practices involved every level from Year 1 to Year 6.
Anyhow, Cikgu Zoraidah gathered us in front of the hall. Mr Chuang said that the entrance to the telematch zone during our practice session was in front of the hall, so Cikgu Zoraidah went around to call us as Mr Chuang told us to get ready.
When the telematch game started, the teachers were cheering and everyone was cheering. We had to pass bean bags around. I ran to the end, very quickly, passed it to someone else who ran back. Then, once we were done, we were seated to show we had finished. “Go, go, go!” cried Mr Chuang. I felt quite excited when we were cheering and playing with the bean bags.
Then, we were tasked with the second game, the hula hoop game. I stumbled and almost tripped while jiggling the hula hoop as we held hands to pass the hula hoop around from the front to the back. After the game was over, we went back to our seats to watch the other games. Ms Thana went around to check on us while Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle enthusiastically cheered. The teachers helped to set up the telematch layout for each game. We also enjoyed the cool air conditioning breeze in the hall. Once we were done, we went for lunch, and then, this was followed by Enrichment, where we cooked salad this time.
The next day, we returned for a second round of telematch activity. Mr Chuang did the same as usual. Immediately after assembly, we then broke out into our telematch groups and sat at the side of the hall, not to mention that the Sports Attire was given during assembly. Ms Thana handed out our Sports Attires to us. The sports attires were green in color and had the word ‘Winner’ on them, written in capital letters, alongside the school's name behind the shirt.
Once we sat at the side of the hall, Ms Michelle then got to the center of the hall and motivated us. “Who is going to win this year?” she cried, to cheers of the students from around the hall. Then, Ms Michelle said that this would be our last practice before Sports Day. She then briefed us on how Sports Day is going to work. She said that we should arrive at around 7:30am and the Sports Day would begin at 8:00am. Then, Mr Chuang told us about how we should conduct ourselves on Sports Day and to line up when called. He said further details would be announced on Sports Day and that we would be told what to do.
We then had a few telematch events. Cikgu Zoraidah led us as usual. Then, we got ready for oth games. Our teachers told us to listen for instructions before the games begun. Then, we enjoyed the rest of the day before we headed for break time. Then, we had a second round of practices before lunch. We then had Science with Ms Thana. She taught us in class before telling us what to do for Sports Day. I missed out the school days on 24th and 25th April because I fell sick again. Ms Hee, my Mandarin teacher, gave five worksheets and prepared them for me to do.
Sports Day 2008 was held on 26th April 2008, which was a Saturday. It is only one of two Sports Days to be held on a Saturday during my time in Nobel. Starting from 2010, the teachers held Sports Day during school hours in order to minimize the chances of inconveniencing students and additional workload. Prior to me joining Nobel, the Sports Days were held during school hours beginning with the 2006 Sports Day. It was held on a Saturday for the first time to encourage parents to cheer for their child.
Panasonic Stadium was a huge stadium, located at the Section 21 area of Shah Alam which housed many factories. The stadium consisted of one building with stands that faced the field. It was called Matsushita Stadium in those days, but for convenience's sake and for better clarity, I would address the stadium as Panasonic Stadium
At 7:30am, I arrived at Panasonic Stadium. The car park was filled with so many cars. My mum and I found a parking spot, and we got out and walked up a flight of stairs to the top. All of us were then told to go to our houses. Ms Thana was there. She smiled at me and ushered me to my house, Green House. I then sat on the seats while enjoying some bread given by my mum.
Scanning my eyes around the stadium, I saw a large bunch of balloons in red, blue, green, yellow and white being inflated by helium, floating around the center of the stadium. A string tethered the large bunch of balloons to the ground, securing the contraption to a stake plopped on the earth.
On the track were Ms Michelle, who was dressed in a white shirt and wore a white hat, and Mr Chuang, who was dressed with Red House’s Sports Attire. Ms Prema was chatting with some people from the Blue House, with blue pom-poms. Ms Thana was in Red House while Ms Julia was in Green House with us. I also forgot to mention that the Sports Attire then came with a hat. I had a green hat, with the word ‘Winner’ written on it.
At 8:00am, Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle told all the parents to take a seat at the parent's area. What made the Sports Day even more interesting was that both schools- the primary school and the secondary school, were holding their Sports Day events at the same time. While the kids were restricted to telematch games, the secondary school had a whole bunch of events. Mr Chuang and Mr Daniel Tan, who was Ms Michelle's husband and also the teacher in charge for the Secondary School, were emceeing. The Secondary School's principal back then, Mr Chan Lik Hoong, was also present. He was a nice teacher, and also wore spectacles. He had a cheerful but humble attitude. A lot of teachers from the Secondary School were present, including Ms Evelyn, who had joined us for PE for a while, as well as the top management of the school.
The Sports Day 2008 begun with Mr Chuang and Mr Daniel Tan introducing the marchpast. Oh yes, those marchers were great! The marchers performed moves. Blue house was the first to begin marching as each and every one of us cheered our house cheer. The Malaysian flag, of course, was the first to proceed, before being tailed by the banner containing Nobel's old logo then. Each house had a banner, and they were also drawn very well.
Canopies were set up in the center of the field to serve as counters for the various events. The music was brass and of steady rhythm, as each march squad marched to the center of the field. Then, we stood up to sing the Negaraku, the School Song and the School Pledge. Then, each house was told to do their house cheer, before starting the events. Ms Michelle, Mr Daniel Tan, Mr Chuang, Auntie Clarine and Mr Chan then cut the string holding the balloons to the stake. It was indeed a short string. A scroll rolled out, with the words ‘Sekolah Sri Nobel Sports Day 2008’ being adorned onto the scroll. Music was played to launch the event as the marchers marched out. My mum took a few photos and also a photo of me at Green House's stand.
As the events begun, Mr Chuang said that all students who were participating in the events had to get up, go up the stands, and descent down a flight of stairs to a hallway underneath the stadium. The teachers would then group us into our telematch groups before bringing us to the field for the telematch games. Soon, it was time to get up. Cikgu Zoraidah called us to line up at the top of the stands, and took us down to the basement hallway. There, she grouped us into our telematch games’ groups.
I was then sitting down as I tried to recognize most of my friends. Then, Cikgu Zoraidah told us to line up and keep quiet, before bringing us to the field. All houses of different colors were there, and the hallway was colorful with different colors.
Once we reached the center of the field, Mr Chuang was waiting for us. He then propped us into our lines and briefed us with instructions. Then, he blew the whistle, and the game started. We ran around in the relay race and passed the bean bags. When it was time for me to run, the teachers cheered for me to run faster. Then, Blue House won the first game, and Ms Prema shook herself and screamed!
Afterwards, it was time for the second game ‘Weave Me Through’. We then stood in a line and passed the hula hoop quickly. This time, Green House won, and we jumped happily. Cikgu Zoraidah then brought us in a line as Mr Chuang told us to line up and return to the stands.
A scoreboard, bearing the scores of the houses, was installed on the field as Cikgu Zoraidah told us to scream and shout. We then cheered the house cheer many times. And then, we enjoyed ourselves. My mum brought me water. Then, it was 10:00am, and the Secondary School's running events got started as I watched the events. I watched a couple more events before leaving for home. It was electrifying, and I had a good time at my very first Sports Day in Nobel.
Sports Day then came to a close with Red House winning the Sports Day. The month of April soon turned into the month of May. And Ms Michelle announced that we will be celebrating the birthday of the founder of Nobel, Auntie Clarine.
Auntie Clarine's birthday is officially on the 6th of May. It is tradition for Nobel to hold a birthday celebration for Auntie Clarine in order to cherish and celebrate the character values she promulgated in Sekolah Sri Nobel and subsequently, Nobel International School. This celebration continues yearly, with many stories of love and compassion to celebrate Auntie Clarine's contributions to Nobel herself.
Birthday celebrations for Auntie Clarine involve the whole school, from the primary school to the secondary school. And it is usually accompanied with pomp and circumstance, cheers and happiness as well as a memorable and entertaining experience.
For the year 2008, Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration took place on Thursday, 8th May 2008. The birthday celebration was held in the school hall, and it was held after our break time.
May was not of something interesting. It was like a back-to-normal scenario as I tried to finish the incomplete homework. And then, we had lessons as usual. But however, the celebration of Auntie Clarine's birthday revealed the true culture of us Nobelians.
The celebration was filled with joy as the teachers presented to her, a big card containing greetings from all the teachers of both the primary and the secondary school, complete with the school's logo. In typical Copperplate Bold font, the words ‘Happy Birthday Auntie Clarine’ was accompanied with messages by some of the students, aside from the teachers. The Secondary School students also made speeches to Auntie Clarine and there were traditional renditions of Malay songs onstage. Auntie Clarine gave out sweets to everyone for her birthday.
After Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration, it was my turn to shine, celebrating my birthday on 15th May 2008. Ms Thana helped me to facilitate the birthday celebration, which was made easier with my mum's contact. Every individual who celebrates their birthday in Nobel would be given a birthday sticker, and they would have a birthday celebration during break time.
After our lesson with Ms Julia, we then went to the canteen to celebrate my birthday. My mum was there and brought Tiramisu cake from Berry's Cake House. The entire class gathered around and then we sung the birthday song together. Ms Thana and my mum chatted with each other as we slurped on the cake. When I said everyone in the class was my friend, Yan Ying didn't look quite pleased with that and gave me a pinch.
As the Mid Year Examination approached, our teachers then released the Exam Scope. During our Homework Time that day (15th May), Ms Thana gave us the exam scope for the Mid Year Examination and also provided us with a Worksheet File for us to file our worksheets according to our subjects. Ms Thana told us that the worksheet file was important as it allowed us to put our worksheets together. Aeden Yap and Daryl Yeo were playing and not following instructions, and Ms Thana had to quieten them down.
In our class, Daryl Yeo, Aiden Yap and James Chitty had caused quite a bit of issues for the teachers. In particular, James and Aiden were very tardy in completing homework, and Ms Prema had to deal with them during English lessons. Even so, Mr Kwan had a hard time dealing with them as well, alongside Ms Kavitha as well.
The Mid Year Examination was held from 20th to 23rd May 2008. Ms Prema drew a wooden signboard in every class which read “GOOD LUCK!” in capital letters, accompanied by the names of everyone in each class. The entire class was shocked after returning from break time and seeing Ms Prema's design. It was a much heavier exam in contrast to the First Mid Term Assessment. I really feel how different it was for that exam that day. The layout was the same as what we did for the First Mid Term Assessment, but on a different scale. It was involving all chapters taught for the first half of the year.
Malay exam back then, was quite a tough toll on me. I wasn't fluent in Malay then. It looked like a dizzy thing trying to understand what was being written on the exam paper. The multiple choice questions calmed my nerves down a bit, as I was able to make out the answer easily, unless there was a blank line. We had to put our bags outside the classroom, and Ms Thana adjusted the blinds to let light in when we had our exams. Oh, and Ms Thana used my name as one of the characters in one of the questions for my Science paper. I was surprised and shocked. Ms Prema also asked us if we liked her design while she was invigilating. Many people were puzzled. In reality, it was nice, although I was shy of seeing my own name. Soon, it was time for our Mid Year Break. It was a two-week long break, and it was quite long, from 24th May to 8th June 2008.
When we returned from our holidays, Ms Thana then discussed the exam papers for Malay. If we got more answers to the questions wrong, more corrections were needed. Haiyah. What heavy workload. Then, when it came to the Science lesson, Ms Thana was grinning.
“Wei Yiang, you see? I put your name there! Do you like it?” she asked. I had a sly and puzzled look, uncertain of what to answer.
Each teacher discussed our exam papers. The most corrections I had were in Malay. However, during English, when we were discussing the papers, Ms Prema chided Aeden Yap for misbehaving himself. Even Mr Chuang scolded him when he was misbehaving when we were returning to our class from our break time.
Once all the discussions were done, we handed back our exam papers for the teachers to mark them. At the end of the week, we did our filing of our exam papers. Ms Julia and Ms Thana did them with us on 12th June. We also celebrated Ms Prema's birthday in class as well. However, for Ms Thana's case, she gave us an important message to paste in our Message Book. It was regrding something called the PTM, or Parent-Teacher Meeting.
PTM is an important channel used by Nobel to disseminate information regarding the progress of students in school to parents. Each teacher would set up his or her desk in either the school hall or the classroom. In the past, students were not allowed to attend PTM; this rule has since been relaxed since 2012.
My mum told me that Ms Thana had said that I am a good student, although I need to improve on my handwriting. The same was said with Ms Julia; she said I was fine although I get a little bit hyperactive in class. Above all, many of my other teachers were okay with me. Ms Hee said that my mastery of Mandarin is somewhat good as well, although I need to practice my spelling test and learn to write the proper words.
As we got into the month of June, it came to dawn on me that I was in Nobel for already half a year. Nobel is a good school, with great and caring teachers. Most of the time, I still arrived at 7:30am at the latest. Things were quite okay. Mr Kwan was teaching us how to write the music notes. And all was well with our teachers. More fun was yet to come.
On 30th June, we were then treated to the opening ceremony of the English Week. This was one interesting week, and one of the most magical.
The English Week kicked off by a magical setup in the hall. A landscape consisting of trees, books and a couple of shelves were placed on the stage to create an atmosphere the likes of tales and tails. It was a child's paradise. There were a lot of story books in store.
The English Week kicked off by Ms Cherlyn Kok, the head of English Language, beginning the presentation of the opening ceremony. “Students, are you ready for English Week?” she asked. The crowd roared, and spotlights shone from the ceiling. Oh yes, the school had recently installed new spotlights lately, bringing a colorful touch to the opening ceremony of English Week. Then, Ms Cherlyn introduced the teachers in charge for English Week, namely Ms Sugunes, Ms Prema, Ms Doris, Ms Gouri and Ms Moh Lee.
Ms Cherlyn then told us about the events available for English Week as music from Beethoven and other artists sounded from the hall's loudspeakers. The Year 1 students were treated to a wordsearch puzzle. The Year 2s were given a riddle to solve. Year 3 and 4 students were involved in a Spelling Bee competition while a story-telling competition was given for Year 5 and 6 students. Ms Michelle was then invited to launch the English Week by shooting confetti from a confetti cannon. I like to call the confetti as “party poppers” and liked the plastic streamers as they can fly around like a flag.
English Week was quite amazing, as Ms Prema gave us a wordsearch puzzle for the English Week. Additionally, Ms Cherlyn also told us that there will be bonus points awarded to the Program Ulat Buku for reading English books throughout English Week. There would also be additional points awarded for those that borrowed books from the school library which were written in English.
During our English lesson on Tuesday, 1st July, Ms Prema gave us the wordsearch puzzle and told us to complete them within the English lesson. Then, she told us to be silent while she went to get our books. She tasked Yan Ying and Leong Shaun to write the names of those who were talking on the whiteboard. At the end of the day, Aeden, Dylan, Nickolas, Daryl, Andrew Ariffin, James Chitty and Aiman's names were written on the board. Ms Prema was not happy.
“I asked all of you to do the wordsearch and you are still talking,” she said. “Why! Do you want to go to the office?”
Writing names on the board for misbehaving or other issues was a common practice in Nobel back then. The idea was to shame students who did not follow instructions. Ms Prema then told the seven boys that she will not hestitate to keep them on the whiteboard so that Ms Thana, Ms Julia, Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle can see them.
The next day, we were treated to a Spelling Bee involving the Year 3 and 4 students during assembly. Each student was given a chance to spell a word. Ms Cherlyn was involved in the spelling bee, and some people tried to spell the words. Then, on Thursday, we had the story telling competition. Once again, Ms Cherlyn was the emcee. When I was young, I like being an emcee at my maternal family's wedding dinners in Johor. There are over a hundred family members on the maternal side of my family.
Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang were entertained by the wonderful speeches. Some people used their story book as basis for their speech. Some people wrote the speech themselves. Others just came out with a speech out of the blue.
A week later, there was a book promotion by the teachers. A series of story books from Geronimo Stilton to Enid Blyton were promoted. And English Week ended with a bow by Ms Cherlyn herself. “See you next year!” she cried.
Ms Julia had started to teach us about time and how to count time. We then did an exercise together on 29th July, and she used a stamp which had the clock face imprinted on it to chop the clocks. Daryl and Aeden were laughing, and Ms Julia had to tell them to stop talking before we did the time exercises. The clocks look quite cool.
Year 1 students were then treated to a Mad Science workshop at the Science labs on Friday, 1st August 2008. Originally, it was scheduled for 30th July 2008, but it was pushed back. Mad Science was quite interesting! Ms Thana encouraged us to sign up as it was quite cool. Normally, on Fridays, we can go home early, but we had to stay until 2:00pm due to the Mad Science workshop.
The Mad Science Team came to Nobel to conduct the workshop, and we had to gather in the Secondary School's Science Lab. Ms Thana took us to the Science lab. We were then introduced to a man who looked quite handsome, wore glasses, and who addressed himself as ‘Professor Pao Pao’. He looked quite muscular and enthusiastic. He greeted us and asked a few questions to the students. Then, he geared up momentum.
Professor Pao Pao then spent one hour teaching us and talking to us about dry ice. He said that dry ice is not the same as normal ice. He then opened a metal box and a huge cloud of smoke came out of it. Donning gloves, he picked up the ice, placed them on the table and then told us that this particular ice contains carbon dioxide, and he gave us paper to draw them. Then, he talked about laser lighting, and he showed us a bunch of colorful lights.
Aeden Yap then decided to play with the dry ice but Ms Thana stopped him. Professor Pao Pao said that the ice was quite cold and we should not touch it or else we would get frostbite instantly. We were also given worksheets and also other experiments conducted by him. I really enjoyed the Mad Science Workshop, although Yan Ying and Ying Wen were not able to join the workshop that day. Some people in the class meshed Yan Ying and Ying Wen's name to create ‘Yan Ying Wen’, and everyone laughed.
The next week, we had our Second Mid Term Assessment. Just like the First Mid Term Assessment, it was quite short. On the first day of the exam, I got two words wrong in my Malay spelling. Particularly in fault because either I didn't hear clearly or Ms Thana pronounced in another tone. All in all, the rest of the day went well. Unfortunately, I wore the wrong attire to school. As we were engrossed with the exam, I had worn my PE attire on Thursday, 7th August instead of my school uniform, as Ms Michelle told us that we should not wear our PE attire as there would be no PE lesson due to the Second Mid Term Assessment.
I felt quite sad and teared up as my friends teased me that I would be scolded as I wore the wrong attire. At noon, my mum came to bring my school uniform along. Ms Prema then accompanied me to the washroom and helped me to change into my school uniform during her English lesson before dismissal to quell my sadness. Oh, and speaking of PE, we had a new PE teacher named Mr Stephen to teach us. He had a serious look on his face, wore glasses, and when he invigilated, it was raining outside as he tried opening and closing the window blinds, as well as changing the speed of the fan.
Behind the scenes, the Beijing Olympics were underway. The opening ceremony was on 8th August 2008, the last day of the Second Mid Term Assessment. The date itself was chosen as it would read 08/08/08 in numerals. The number eight (8) is considered a lucky number in Chinese culture as it is similar to the Chinese pinyin pronunciation for prosperity.
The next day, 9th August, newspaper articles showing the pictures of the opening ceremony were beamed on the front pages. Directed by Zhang Yimou, a Chinese filmmaker, this opening ceremony is considered the best Olympic opening ceremony to date. The scenes of the opening ceremony are etched in my mind till this day. I watched a replay of the Beijing 2008 Olympics Opening Ceremony on the night of 9th August, where I could recall the famous design of the Bird's Nest Stadium, the Chinese scroll, the drummers as well as the final scene of Chinese gymnast Li Ning flying around the stadium to light the Olympic cauldron which sat on top of the rim of the stadium. Zhang Yimou had made this ceremony extraordinary, and it was outstanding to watch it as a kid. My mum helped compile a flip page file containing the pictures from the newspaper of the opening ceremony, accompanied by my drawings of the same.
Excited by the opening ceremony, many people were talking about it in school. Ms Prema told us that we should watch the opening ceremony and how nice it was when she came in for English class. The opening ceremony had made its mark known on the general public, and they loved it. When Ms Prema asked me if I plan to watch any sports, I said no as I like the opening ceremony much better than the sports events. Our new Mandarin teacher, Ms Jocelyn, our new Mandarin teacher, also told us about the opening ceremony during our Mandarin class when she was teaching us. She was quite a good teacher, and our first class with her was following the Second Mid Term Assessment. She has a nice, sweet and gentle character, which is explained by the look on her face.
During our Pendidikan Moral lesson, Ms Thana then started teaching about Malaysia's history as August is also the month of Malaysia's National Day. We call it ‘Merdeka Day’ in order to differentiate it from Malaysia Day. While Merdeka Day commemorates the independence of the Federation of Malaya from the United Kingdom on 31st August 1957, Malaysia Day recognizes the formation of Malaysia by Sarawak, Sabah (then known as North Borneo), Singapore and the Federation of Malaya as one new country on 16th September 1963, although Singapore left two years later. Malaysia Day would only become a public holiday from the year 2010.
Ms Thana then decided to do a decoration of the classroom with Malaysian flags. We then begun decorating the class on 15th August 2008 when we had finished with our Science work. Ms Thana got started while she gave us work to do. We also decorated the class with other pictures and drawings about Malaysia. Ms Thana told Yan Ying, Berlinda and Janelle to help out with the decorations. Lydia then joined in as well.
The theme for the 2008 Merdeka Day Celebration was Perpaduan Teras Kejayaan, which means ‘Unity is key to success’. The Merdeka Day Celebration at Nobel was mainly conducted by the Malay teachers, with some non-Malay teachers involved as well. Cikgu Zoraidah was in charge of planning and preparing the celebration with Puan Wati and Puan Halimah. Nobel's Merdeka Day Celebration for 2008 was held a week later, on 25th August, after the school break.
After everyone settled in, we sat down on the floor of the school hall. The logo for the 2008 national-level Merdeka Day Celebration was projected onto the wall from a projector. The logo consisted of red, yellow and blue shapes that resembled strokes which appeared to look like the fingers of stick men. There were three shapes to represent the three main races of Malaysia. The logo was a circle with the words, ‘Selamat Ulang Tahun Kemerdekaan ke-51: Perpaduan Teras Kejayaan'. Mr Kwan, Puan Halimah and a few Year 6 students were invited on stage to sing the Perpaduan Teras Kejayaan song. This was then followed by Puan Halimah explaining both in Malay and English on the importance of celebrating Malaysia's independence and patriotism. Mr Chuang then also gave a talk on how the character traits we learned in Character Building have shaped our country and why is it important for us to practice them as Malaysians. The teachers were dressed in traditional attire, and palm props usually seen at Malay weddings were carried before we sang patriotic songs. Janelle Arnelia was also invited to sing patriotic songs as well. Her father, Uncle Julian, was carrying with him a large camera to record Janelle's performances. Uncle Julian would always bring his camera around, and it was a Sony camera. Back in those days, those large cameras were the norm. Today, people would normally record with their smartphone.
The next day, we had our second field trip of the year, which was destined forHigh 5 Bread Town. It was a museum on the making of High 5-branded bread. The museum, which was located in Shah Alam, was within a stone's throw of Panasonic Stadium. It was not large, but quite interactive. I got excited when Ms Thana gave us a message from Ms Michelle to paste in our Message Book that mentioned the field trip to High 5 Bread Town. Everyone in the class was excited and were talking about it, but I was just nervous of something scary like the experience at MISA back in March 2008.
Before the field trip to High 5 Bread Town, every class in Year 1 was given a shirt which consisted of their class name and the portraits of everyone in the class, including the class teacher. Each shirt consisted of a green background to represent Nobel's theme color at the time, and the photos of each student was accompanied by their name on the shirt. The shirt designs of all classes were the same. Prior to the field trip, Ms Thana had taken a picture of all of us in the school corridor outside our class. And of course, Ms Michelle said that we can bring snacks to eat in the bus while on the way to High 5 Bread Town. So, for me, it looked weird eating bread and buns on the way to a bread museum. The field trip to High 5 Bread Town was my second field trip in Nobel.
26th August 2008 was the date of the field trip to High 5 Bread Town. We sat the bus to go to High 5 Bread Town, and our bus was mixed with people from 1 Sincerity and 1 Obedience. While in the bus, I sat with Yan Ying. Many people asked why I was eating bread when going to the bread museum. I just hastily replied that potato buns were my favorite food back then. Yan Ying, Berlinda and the rest of the girls chat in the class while Ms Thana had to keep Aeden, James and Andrew in check. The bus then sped along the roadway, and there were a lot of factories. We then passed by a factory which had a nice, ancient facade. On the front of the building were those words written in yellow and in capital letters; “HIGH 5 BREAD TOWN”.
Ms Thana then told us to get off the bus, and we lined up in our class lines. Ms Prema then told us to line up on the left, starting with 1 Sincerity, 1 Obedience, 1 Virtue, 1 Integrity and 1 Destiny. Then, we were greeted by a Chinese guy who would be our tour guide for the day. He introduced himself, and then he asked us to shout some words with him. He said the command, and we shouted. Mysteriously, the door opened, just like the cave door in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.
The entrance was like an Egyptian design, and it slowly creaked open. Yellow lights adjourned the hallway as we made our way through. There were lots of cooking equipment and information about the history of bread. I held Ms Thana's hand just in case something scary like the incident at MISA happened. Our guide then showed us bread-making tools, the process of making bread as well as information from the past on how the evolution of bread making changed over time. Then, we watched a video detailing how bread is made, before trying out some of the exhibits. All that was needed to do was to press a button or a switch, and something interesting would happen, in terms of bread making.
Our guide then walked down a hallway, and soon enough, we were walking over a bridge. Below it was a hive of activity of workers making bread. I glanced at what was happening as I saw bread being made at every turn. Ms Thana then told us to follow her and not get lost. After the tour, Ms Thana then gave us time to purchase bread from the store of the museum. I bought my bread and then sat down to wait for Ms Thana to finish. Many of the boys were busy admiring their bread loaf, including me, while we waited for everyone to finish, before being ushered back to the bus. Upon arriving back at school, Ms Prema told us to write about High 5 Bread Town in our journal.
Ms Thana had just gotten this one thing from her friend. I can't remember what name was used to describe it, but for memory's sake, I am choosing to describe it as a mini cauldron. It looked like a bunsen burner, and it emits fire, a large yellow flame and was quite cool. It needed some oil to make it work and the mini fire-emitting thing sits on a pedestal that looks like a flower. Ms Thana said it looked more of a giant candle, and she was planning to buy additional burners for Deepavali.
It was during our Homework time that Ms Thana showed us the contraption. Yan Ying, Berlinda and Lydia were admired by Ms Thana's nicknacks. On another note, Ms Thana also gave us an eraser. I got an eraser that looked like a smiley face from her. Ms Thana said that the gifts can also be purchased from the library if we had Bonanza Bahasa points that we score from the Bonanza Bahasa Programme which tested on spelling and Malay vocabulary.
The month of Ramadan had just started, and we got to know that Andrew Ariffin and Aiman were fasting. Ms Thana joked with us that the two of them were lucky as they did not get to eat for the day, hence lessening their “workload” since they had more free time during break and lunch. Mr Kwan had just started teaching us about this song called ‘Gerak Binatang', and he taught us how to sing the song. Some of the boys in the class were talking, and this made Mr Kwan very angry. He threatened to take away their worksheets that he gave them and told them to behave. Then, he played some music and told us to draw what was stated in the music he played. I drew a house.
Ms Julia, for the Maths lesson, decided to use a projector in the class. At the beginning of this story, I had mentioned that there was no Smartboard or permanently fixated projector in the class back in 2008. So, every teacher had to borrow a portable projector from the Innovation Center. The only places where a permanent projector was installed was the school hall, the ICT labs and the Multimedia Room.
Ms Julia told us to take our Maths books out. As I had forgotten to finish one of the worksheets, I just finished quickly while Ms Julia was out. Then, she came back with the projector. Ms Julia told Yan Ying and Jinn Lik to assist her in connecting the projector.
Ms Julia pulled out a long extension connector, plugged it into the fuse box next to the teacher's desk, and took the black electrical cord and clicked it into the extension connector. Yan Ying then switched on the power and Ms Julia pressed the power button of the projector to switch it on.
The projector took two minutes to warm up. Ms Julia then told us to take out our Maths textbook as she was going to present some multimedia information from the teacher's book onto the projector. While there wasn't a projector in the classroom, there was a computer which teachers can connect the projector to. So, because there were a lot of wires, Ms Julia told us to use another way to reach the front of the class. Then, Dylan S. Gill was coming out to the front, and he nearly tripped over the wires. “Please be careful! Use the other way!” warned Ms Julia.
When Ms Julia switched on the projector after 20 minutes (yes, it took that long), she then taught us about shapes and grouping, as well as how to count money. She also showed us the Malaysian ringgit and said that we are using ringgit and not dollars. Then, when it was time to shut down the projector, it was much easy to do so. All that was needed was to switch off the projector, disconnect the switches, and keep the items. So, Ms Julia told Yan Ying to assist in dismantling the projector. It took 10 minutes, which was quick. Then, Ms Thana came in and wanted to also switch on a projector to show things on the Internet to us. “Aiyoh. The teacher shouldn't have taken away the projector. Now I have to get it,” she said. So, she told Yan Ying to write the names of the people in the class who were talking while she went to get the projector.
In the class, Aeden, Daryl and Andrew were playing, so Yan Ying wrote their names down. The three of them pleaded to Yan Ying to rub them off, but she remained defiant. When Ms Thana returned, she wasn't happy with them.
“Do you want me to send you to the office?” she asked. Then, she asked Yan Ying to install the projector.
“How did Ms Julia install it just now? Just plug it here, right?” she asked. Then, the same incident of plugging the projector begun again. Ms Thana then told everyone to do their exercises. I looked at my book, then at the connecting activity of the projector. Then, Ms Thana roped in Dylan to help check if the entire thing is in order. Jinn Lik then joined in, checked the projector and Ms Thana connected the extension cord once again to the fuse box, then to the projector, and then, it took some time before it was installed. However, we only got to enjoy the projector display for a few minutes before it was dismissal time. And as soon as we know it, Maths and Science Week had finally arrived.
We had Minggu Bahasa Malaysia. We had Mandarin Week. And we had English Week. All of the weeks were interesting and fun, as well as Nobel's 2008 Merdeka Celebration. Of all the weeks, Maths and Science Week was the most fun and interesting of all the weeks. And oh, wait, I have seen someone that looks like Professor Pao Pao recently. Even during Maths and Science Week and before that. This time, he was not wearing his Mad Science shirt. He was wearing the staff name tag of Nobel. He had officially joined Nobel! It was cool to have Professor Pao Pao join Nobel. Mr Chuang introduced him as Mr Paul Lau when we greeted him as Mr Chuang led the greeting. We students address him as Mr Paul.
Anyhow, the Maths and Science Week's opening ceremony on 17th September 2008 begun with a large slideshow presentation on the wall from the projector. It read, ‘’Maths and Science Week 2008''. The lights of the school hall dimmed and it left only the words from the projector. Two students from Year 5 were involved in emceeing. They did a countdown from 10 to 1 before confetti streamed all over the stage. As the confetti fell, I took the opportunity to collect some of them and put them in my bag to take home. The students then introduced the Maths and Science Week 2008's theme as “Maths and Science – Language of the Universe”. Ms Michelle was then invited to launch the Maths and Science Week by signing a plaque with her very beautiful signature before more confetti and music played.
Ms Jeeva then came on stage and begun the introduction of Maths and Science Week. Then, she outlined more activities that were planned for us. Among the activities planned were a Young Scientist Competition, a written quiz and a multimedia quiz. Ms Michelle also added that the teachers would have the opportunity to join in the fun with a Blokus Competition before Mr Chuang led the students in a prayer for the week. When we returned to class for Maths, Ms Julia then continued with the description of money. She then asked us what did we use money for. Then, she did a question with us. One person got a wrong answer, and it was one million ringgit. Ms Julia said that we can become a millionaire if we had so much of money. Then, after returning to class, Ms Julia then gave us a worksheet to do to count money, and she kept on emphasizing on us using the standard written method to do the answer. She said that counting money is important as we have to use money to spend on necessities, although for the time being, the meal coupon was used. Ms Prema had asked me to finish a few journals as I was lagging behind on journal submission. I then wrote about my swimming experience with my sister, a trip my family and I made to my uncle's house in Johor, as well as the Beijing Olympics.
Mr Kwan then told us during our Thursday music lesson that we are learning ‘The Bare Necessities’ from The Jungle Book, which is one of the Disney cartoons. The song was quite borne of ups and downs. Mr Kwan then played the piano for us to hear the tune as he signaled for us to be silent so that we can hear the song. Then, he led us to sing the song one by one. When everyone was not singing, he told us to sing again and sing louder.
On 19th September, for Maths and Science week, we had Ms Jeeva and the students from year 3 presenting about the Solar System. When I was young, my dad would teach me about the Solar System before he passed away. He even drew a picture of the planets’ arrangements for me to stimulate my interest in the Solar System. Anyhow, the students talked about the planets in the Solar System with Ms Jeeva asking the crowd to guess the name of the planets. There were awards given for the various competitions on the last day, 22nd September. Although our class failed to have a winner, we were thrilled by the winners from the other levels. We were also treated to a series of Science experiments and Maths riddles from the teachers during the closing ceremony, alongside other performances.
Jinn Lik has always been nicknamed ‘Ben 10’ by the people in our class. Ms Thana even addressed Jin Lik as Ben 10 because of the Ben 10 watch and water bottle that he always possess when he comes to school everyday. Soon, it was his birthday, and Jinn Lik gave all of us Ben 10 merchandise, alongside the Ben 10 cake that he gave us to eat. It was then the Hari Raya Holidays, and I went back to Penang to visit my grandparents. My second aunt had a gift for me; a recording of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony for me to play on a DVD rom at home. She told me to take it home to watch. Then, once we returned back from our holidays, we had lessons as usual. Ms Prema taught us about birthdays, while Ms Julia started teaching us about shapes. And we were excited as well; the teachers had a Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration for everybody.
Once again, Cikgu Zoraidah, Puan Wati and Puan Halimah were involved in preparing the celebration. As everyone streamed into the school on 8th October 2008, Cikgu Zoraidah was testing the computer and played the Selamat Hari Raya song by Saloma, a local singer from Malaysia.
The Selamat Hari Raya song by Saloma is one of the most captivating songs in Malaysian culture. It was refreshing and entertaining, even to non-Malays and non-Muslims. Then, Cikgu Zoraidah talked to us about the significance of Hari Raya Aidilfitri and how it is an important festival on the Islamic calendar. She said that Muslims had to fast before Hari Raya Aidilfitri and that Hari Raya was one of the celebrations to end the fasting month. Then, Puan Halimah gave a poem on Hari Raya Aidilfitri and recounted her Hari Raya Aidilfitri experience. Among the things that she said was that she and her family would always eat rendang for Hari Raya each year. Cikgu Zoraidah also agreed with her and that she also said that rendang would always be one of the must-eat Hari Raya dishes, aside from kelompok.
The school was also decorated with ketupat, especially in the foyer and the school hall. Mr Chuang then also added during the assembly that he liked ketupat as well as it is one of the classic Hari Raya decorations. Ms Michelle also got the chance to explain to us about how she had recounted a Hari Raya celebration with Malay people in Sarawak as well. Then, Mr Chuang closed the assembly in prayer before we headed back to our classroom.
Just like Ms Thana, Ms Prema also showed us the same lamp that she also got, and Yan Ying and Berlinda were captivated by that flowery lamp pattern that emitted fire. It was an advanced Deepavali present, and this was also coincided by the fact that Deepavali is also held in October, just like Hari Raya. When Ms Thana came in, Yan Ying took the opportunity to tell Ms Thana about Ms Prema having the same lamp. Apparently, Ms Thana had given a second lamp to Ms Prema as a Deepavali gift. Ms Michelle was also getting one as well for Deepavali, too. Ms Thana also told us that we would be having a trip to Golden Screen Cinemas at Cineleisure Mall at Mutiara Damansara, which was later renamed e@Curve Mall. The mall, which is located next to The Curve, has since closed to make way for a multi-storey apartment development. Ms Thana said we will be watching High School Musical as a class treat after the Final Year Examination. When Cikgu Asilah told us to draw a picture of a party that week, I drew a lot of decorations, streamers and so on till Cikgu Asilah chided me for having a messy work.
The Final Year Examination was the last exam of the year. From 2009 onwards, there will be only two exams in a year; the Mid Year and Final Year Examination only. This is because Nobel was trying to slowly do away with a wholly-exam format. The next time I will have four exams in a year would be in Year 7 and those years after, with a series of four exams; the Assessment 1, Mid Year Examination, Assessment 2 and Final Year Examination.
Our teachers have repeatedly said that our Final Year Examination for 2008 would be the hardest exam ever, because aside from bringing us to Year 2, it also tests us on our topics beginning from January. The Final Year Examination went quite smoothly throughout the final months and was held from 13th to 15th October 2008.
After the Final Year Examination was over, most of our teachers just let us be free. It was just movie-watching or just other fun activities in school. Ms Thana then gave us back our Final Year Examination papers on the 22nd of October. Our second Parent-Teacher Meeting was held on 25th October 2008. Then, we had a small Deepavali celebration which involved a dance by the teachers. Ms Michelle had an orange Indian sari dress which she dressed and even had Indian-style makeup. It was so cool! And then, we were entertained to a few movies. Ms Prema then took us to the Multimedia Room to watch Mary Poppins as well as Upin and Ipin. Mr Kwan also showed us Mary Poppins while Ms Julia decided to complete the Maths Workbook with us.
Our trip to Golden Screen Cinemas to watch High School Musical was held on Thursday, 6th November. Ms Thana brought us to watch High School Musical in the morning, and we had a bus to bring us there. Once again, we were dressed in our 1 Sincerity t-shirt. Upon reaching Cineleisure, which I now plan to call as e@Curve for relevency's sake, we descended from the bus at the large plaza between e@Curve and The Curve. Ms Thana took us to the lobby of the mall and we ascended up a flight of escalators. Aeden was quite of like looking at the surroundings. Ms Thana instructed him to follow the line as she did not want him getting lost. Then, we bought some popcorn while I sat with some people in the class to watch the movie. Ms Thana sat next to me and accompanied me while we watched.
The next week, our last week of school, was our Class Party. It was a new concept to me, but it involved a day of celebrating and also partying. Everyone was allowed to dress in whatever they wanted that day. It was like a birthday party, but it involved the whole school. Ms Thana and Ms Julia brought some snacks and fast food for us to eat, but I only just ate french fries and some orange juice. Daryl and Aeden spent the entire day playing and having fun while the girls snacked on food. It was a close to my first year in Nobel as I just sat at the side of the classroom. As the party ended, we then arranged the tables and bit adieu to our first year in Nobel.
2009 – Year 2
On the first day of school, everyone gathered in the school hall, and there, I was just reeling from a long school holiday. I miss the old glory days of being a Year 1 student, as I am no longer the youngest anymore. Oh, how I wish I could rewind the days of being asked to do the orientation ways as a Year 1 student in Nobel. I only just watched as parents of new Year 1 students joined the crowd, bringing their kids to their first day of school in their home wear.
What first attracted my attention when I entered the school was the extension of the front office. The office was doubled by the installation of glass panels and a new office counter for parents to meet the office staff. The school logo was emblazoned on the front desk as smells of fresh perfume enlightened visitors the moment the door was opened. The extended office was quite cool.
As returning students to our second year in Nobel, we were unsure what to do, only to to gather in our original Year 1 classes. Then, Ms Thana arrived, and greeted us. “1 Sincerity! Again!” she cried. We all laughed thereafter.
Ms Thana sorted us into our classes one by one, since we were all gathered in the same class line of 1 Sincerity. I was told that my class for 2009 would be 2 Sincerity. She just took me and then moved me physically to the class line. This physical movement by Ms Thana; holding us by our shoulders and bringing us to the proper class, decided our fate for 2009.
There were a lot of new faces in 2 Sincerity, making my life different than that of 1 Sincerity. Hence, I felt a bit loss, but in the years to come, I will accept the tweaks and changes of different people in the class over the years as the teachers want us to mix around with everyone else.
In 2 Sincerity, the only people from 1 Sincerity that were in this class other than me were Joon Tzen, Grace Tee, Glen Kay, Dylan S. Gill, Andrew Ariffin, Koh Ying Wen, Yan Ying, Nickolas Nashpal and James Chitty. Also joining 2 Sincerity was Nicole Kau, Lee Zhi Wen, Tan Pui Mun, Jordan Cheam, Heng Zi Quan, Rosemund Chong, Adriana Yip, Julian Chong, Louis Soon, Nigel Chew, Aaron Lee Lap Bong, Evan Hiew, Joseph Yong and Cassandra Danial Morgan.
Aaron Lee, to start with brief, is a rather handsome and cool guy in our class. He is a very sociable guy and to a certain extent, the class clown. He has quite a nice hairstyle as well. There were a lot of new faces, which made me feel a bit lost as opposed to the familiar faces of 1 Sincerity. And because I was in Year 2, it wasn't like so honeymoon anymore, and I wished I could have a longer time to prepare myself to adjust to being in Year 2. It felt so different, but anyhow, as I looked at the Year 1s, I had a feeling of forgetting something, but however, Mr Chuang quashed the situation to quell our shaky nerves.
As usual, Mr Chuang did a normal demonstration of the daily process in Nobel during assembly. He then asked everyone to line up in pairs. Ms Michelle was also standing in front. “I hope all of you have not forgotten what to do,” he said. He called a few students to come up onto the stage and demonstrate the classroom etiquette, the tables’ arrangement and how we should greet our teachers. Before long, the assembly had ended after we had been introduced to the school song, school pledge as well as our teachers. The only thing that made me feel so much at home was the location of our class, which was in the same room as 1 Sincerity the previous year in 2008.
Ms Thana, being Ms Thana herself, asked us to settle down as usual, and the first thing that was to be done was to begin our lessons. Immediately. Oh dear. However, compared to 2008, Ms Thana was a bit more stricter than usual, and really, she was quite stern. She gave out our Message Books, timetables and told us to paste the school calendar and timetable into the Message Book. It was a stark contrast to the kind and humble Ms Thana that I know of. We were soon introduced to our teachers, namely Ms Carol (Maths), Ms Jeeva (Science), Mr Kwan (Music), Ms Kavitha (ICT), Ms Sugunes (English), Ms Prema (Pendidikan Moral) and Ms Thana herself would teach us Malay for the second consecutive year. For Mandarin, I would be taught by Ms Tin, who is teaching the Level 1 Mandarin lessons. Our assistant class teacher was Ms Prema, who was assigned to assist Ms Thana then.
On my first day of school for 2009, I forgot to bring my Malay books. In fact, I forgot most of my books because we did not know the timetable. Ms Thana was not very happy. “Why you forgot your books? Don't you know that today is the first day of school?” she boomed. In fact, some people also forgot their books. Rosemund and Ying Wen told Ms Thana that the timetable was not released yet, and as such, no one knew when the subjects were to take place on the assigned days. However, Ms Thana said that we were in Year 2, and as it was the first day of school, she said that we need to be ready with all our books, even if it means bringing a book for a subject which was not taking place on the day. “Mr Chuang said just now that you must be ready for lessons. If you forgot to bring your books, it means you are not obedient and not discipline and not obeying the school rules,” cried Ms Thana.
We then headed for our break time. We had to sit a bit backwards as our class table for 2 Sincerity was located a bit inside from the front of the canteen. I saw a few of our 1 Sincerity friends in other classes. Berlinda Tan, for example, was in 2 Virtue and Jinn Lik was in 2 Obedience. I was quite young then as to the reshuffling of our friends. I would soon get to accept the fact that reshuffling would take place every year as the purpose was to get us used to new faces. I kind of just sat at the canteen quietly as Mr Chuang continued barking orders as to how we should conduct ourselves. “Once you finish your food, go to the hall and sit down!” cried Mr Chuang. It was like as if we were in the beginning of 2008. It was quite tough to re-adjust after the school holidays were over.
Upon returning to class, we had our first English lesson with Ms Sugunes. She was not as enthusiastic as Ms Prema. Instead, she was tough with us, a little bit tough but not so tough. Ms Sugunes was very firm as well. “You all are now in P2, so there is no excuse not to bring your books to school,” she said. I did not have my exercise books with me as my mum was buying it. The bookshop was slowly restocking the books, so it took quite some time for me to have them. Ms Sugunes then told all of us to have our English textbooks and workbooks as well as our English 1 and 2 exercise books. Then, she told us that we should also buy another personalized book, and it does not necessarily have to be the exercise book given by Nobel. “This will be your Journal Book”, said Ms Sugunes. Each one of our teachers soon came into the class to introduce themselves to us and get our books ready. Ms Carol was a lovely and kind Maths teacher. Ms Thana then returned at the end of the day to tell us to have our books ready by the second week of school. It turned out that the school had given us one week to ensure everything was in order and ready for the following week. A book list was given and pasted in the Message Book to aid with our book purchase.
I also miss some of my friends due to the reshuffling, but I am at least glad to have Ms Thana leading 2 Sincerity alongside Ms Prema. At least, with some familiar faces, I can at least have some sense of belonging in this class.
Ms Sugunes outlined her expectations for our English class, as to how things should go. She then praised some people who were already ready with their My Pals English textbook. Pui Mun, Rosemund and Zhi Wen had their books ready. “I hope to see everyone with their textbooks tomorrow,” said Ms Sugunes.
Then, it was Maths, and we had Ms Carol come in to teach us. She was an Indian teacher who would also teach me the Gardening component of Enrichment in Year 4. Ms Carol then taught us about place values and told us to count from 100 to 900. As there were more numbers now, it was, at the time, taking a toll on my brain. Afterwards, we had Science and were introduced to Ms Jeeva, who was a very enthusiastic Science teacher. Ms Jeeva then asked us to introduce ourselves. She would be my Science teacher for two years. Before long, it was lunchtime, and with a few more classes in Pendidikan Moral and Malay, the day ended. The Year 1s were not having their school attire yet. I can see their cheeky faces as Mr Chuang stood at the foyer and told us to line up for dismissal.
The second day of school, 7th January 2009, arrived. It was clockwork as I woke up to another day of school. Arriving at school as usual, I was almost late, but I settled down in my class line in the courtyard after a short chat with my mum. It was the second day, and the sun was already rising as I tried to make out the new faces of 2 Sincerity.
I just sat in my class line before my good friend Glen Kay arrived. I didn't talk to him quite much when I was in Year 1. However, he came to me and provided some form of comfort. He then told me that sooner or later, I would get to know the faces of my new friends. In fact, I would have a jolly good time with most of them.
Nigel Chew was one of the most hyperactive and outspoken people of 2 Sincerity. He had a loud voice, and was good friends with Aaron Lee. Jordan Cheam was also his good friend as well. In the years to come, Jordan Cheam would be a very wonderful basketball player. However, a young boy with big-sized teeth, Evan Hiew, would be a playful bunch with Joseph Yong, another quiet but small boy at the time in our class.
Anyhow, Glen and I talked, for a short while, notwithstanding my mum walking me to the school doors. Parents and outsiders were forbidden on school precincts, as if the floors were sacred. Then, it was 7:30am. All the teachers came down. Ms Thana came to our class line, and I could also catch a glimpse of Ms Michelle, Mr Chuang, Puan Halimah and Ms Melinda arriving. We then stood up, greeted all of them like robots, said the school pledge, and stood attentively, listening to what Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang had to say to us.
Mr Chuang was the most outspoken of all the teachers. He told us that he was seeing crooked lines on the first day and told us to improve. “I asked all of you to line up two by two. Some of you are lining up one by one. Some classes have three lines! Line up two by two, not like that!” he cried. Then, after a brief talk by Ms Michelle and a prayer by Mr Chuang, we then headed back to our classes. As 2 Sincerity was on the ground floor, Ms Thana told us to turn around as she led us back. She then switched on the lights, stood outside, and patted us as we strolled into the class before beginning our Malay lesson. Armed with a stack of exercise books, I took it out and used it as my Pemahaman book. Then, Ms Thana did with us a series of comprehensions on Tahun 2 Cerdik from our textbook. We scribbled down what she wrote on the whiteboard as I comprehended what was the new norms of change. Ms Thana went around the class, and soon, she fixed her eyes on my book, watching my handwriting.
Then, it was break time. We were led by Ms Thana to the canteen as some people in our class talked. I just stood a blank stare, staring at the courtyard. Then, Yan Ying told me to move as I wasn't looking in front. Oh. The lining up rules. So we walked. We walked to the canteen, sat down at our 2 Sincerity canteen table, and in front of us, Mr Chuang, who was smartly dressed in a tie and long pants, barked out the same orders as yesterday as I snacked on potato bread. Once I finished I then proceeded to the school hall, where Mr Chuang called out the students who ran along the corridor and told them to stop running. Then, after break time was over, Ms Sugunes was here, and we begun our English lesson. After that, we had Enrichment, where we were briefed on the same cooking thing and the fact that we had to bring our apron so that we can head to the Domestic Science room the following week, 13th January. The rest of the day was just textbook lessons by the rest of the other subject teachers. We were armed with our textbooks for the day.
The third day was a treat by Mr Chuang himself as we were entertained to Character Building lessons by him after break time. He told us that we need to practice the first two characters of Obedience and Attentiveness and that the same Character Building syllabus was going to repeat itself again from 2008, starting fundamentally with the characters of Obedience and Attentiveness. “I still see students running around the corridor. It shows you are not obedient. What is the definition? Somebody tell me,” he said. Then, someone told him the correct definition: Carrying carrying out the directions and wishes of those who are responsible for me. He then praised that student and said that she is attentive, paying full attention to his Character Building lessons. He then told all of us to recite the definition of Obedience. Then, another person said the character definition for Attentiveness: Showing the worth of a person by giving full concentration to his or her words. Mr Chuang was gleefully smiling and covering his face in excitement, praising all those who can recite the definition. "Both of you, stand up and come here,” said Mr Chuang. He then said that he will nominate the two of them for a one-on-one McDonalds treat with Auntie Clarine.
The week went fast, and soon, it was Friday, 9th January 2009. Ms Sugunes gave us some exercises to do. She told us to take out our English 1. I took out a blank exercise book, wrote ‘English 1’ on it, the initials ‘E1’, and flip to the first page. Then, she started writing things on the board about personal details and self introduction, and we were asked to copy it. I wrote the words quite slowly, as Ms Sugunes said that she will be keeping her watchful eyes on our handwriting. Then, she approached me.
"Wei Yiang! Handwriting!” cried Ms Sugunes, not before asking me to erase and rewrite the words slowly. When I was young then, I would write fast for convenience and timeliness, but unfortunately it resulted in messy handwriting. Then, Ms Sugunes told everyone that they would be asked to start from scratch if their work was messy. I tried to keep myself in good spirits by looking at the border lines in my exercise book, and tried to make out the window frame of the glass panels that bordered the newly-extended front office.
As fast as time flew, we entered the second week of school, and things went quite fast. Monday, 12th January 2009, was our first formal assembly of the year. While assemblies were held daily then, it was the Monday assembly that took paramount importance over the rest. That morning, I took the opportunity to look at the extended portion of the front office. There was a black carpet laid around the entirety of the office, just like the existing one. The smell was of good perfume. The office staff was friendly. However, Puan Chan told me as well as other students to return to the hall and wait for assembly to begin, since we were admiring the office or waiting for our friends. The newly-extended office was spectacular.
In her morning assembly address, Ms Michelle outlined our expectations for the year. She told the latecomers at the late line not to be late, and that we should be punctual. Mr Chuang urged us to have some improvement from the first week of school, before sending us off after a prayer.
We entered 2 Sincerity and got ready for our Mandarin lesson with Ms Tin. She was a nice teacher, but majority of the people in her Mandarin class were from 2 Obedience. I was in the Level 1 Mandarin class with her, and it felt relaxing to see some of my friends from 1 Sincerity back in the same class with me. Ms Tin then told us to do some work in our exercise books on chambers and counting in Mandarin. Then, it was break time, and we gathered with our classmates together. Gln and I then had a short chat in the canteen, while some people also talked to me. This was before we had our assembly, and Ms Sugunes took us back to class. There, she continued to check on our handwriting as she went through the textbook and workbook.
In the class, although it was my second week of school, I struggled to get to know the people around me. Rosemund was the first one whom I know as she was the one called by teachers in the class most of the time. Pui Mun was the second. The third was Zi Quan, then followed by Aaron Lee and Nigel. Ms Sugunes then told us that we should not look at the back of the class and stare in front. She had called Rosemund to read a passage of text from the textbook, followed by Pui Mun.
Afterwards, it was Ms Carol's lesson, where she told us to continue counting and teaching place values. We copied the information on the whiteboard into our exercise book. She gave us a worksheet to count how many hundreds were there while she guided us. She taught us using our Maths textbook before giving us the worksheet.
Most of the teachers in our class had to deal with Louis, who is considered by many at the time as a slow learner. He had difficulty communicating with everyone else and would always throw tantrums. Ms Carol then told him to do his work and guided him while the rest did their work.
For Malay, Ms Thana had given us four printed manuals for us to do, which we call a Buku Lembaran. They were the Tatabahasa, Pemahaman, Penulisan and Ejaan/Rencana (Spelling and Dictation). The books were binded with black tape on the outside. There were so many manuals till on certain occasions I forgot to bring them as they look confusing. Ms Sugunes had also given us a similar manual for Spelling and Dictation the previous week for English.
The next day, we were off to the Domestic Science room on the first floor once again, armed with our aprons! I almost forgot to bring mine. Oh dear. Our Enrichment teacher for the day, who was Ms Prema, told us that we will be doing Batek Cake. Everyone was assigned to sit at a table of around five people, and I sat with Evan, Andrew, Dylan and Joseph Yong.
Batek cake is a cake that taste like ice cream from my perspective as a young boy. Ms Prema then taught us how to mow the cake properly. It was a normal Domestic Science lesson like we had in Year 1. I did not get to eat the cake as it tasted too creamy, since it was placed in the refrigerator. The week went by, and soon, we were at the end of the second week. I believe that nothing interesting was done except for Ms Sugunes asking me to improve on my handwriting, and Mr Kwan teaching us new songs in Music. In fact, he held us outside the Music Room for 10 minutes as the class was noisy in line.
On Friday, 16th January 2009, during the morning assembly, the teachers announced the first journal writing topic of the year. The title was plastered on the projected screen of the school hall: “How I spent my holidays”. Ms Michelle told us to write about the school holidays in December and how we spent them. I wrote about my school holidays being spent visiting Port Dickson.
This time, for my journal, I had a personalized book with a nice purple cover. From 2009, Nobel had made journal writing a norm for the entire school to focus on one topic instead of the individualized topics that were given by our teachers. The topics were drafted by the English and Malay teachers. Yes, we had to also write in Malay as well. The topics alternated each week from English to Malay and back.
At the time, I fret about writing journals because I felt it was additional hassle to me, on top of my homework and classwork and so on. Homework are really taxing when you consider the fact that you have to complete them quickly, especially when you have to hand them in the next day. However, over the years, I picked up journal writing individually as a habit and wrote them on my own accord. And this passion for writing also inspired me to write this testamony about my life in Nobel.
When we returned on Monday, 19th January, Ms Sugunes told us to hand in our journals. I forgot to bring mine, sadly. Ms Sugunes was not happy with me and a few other who forgot to bring them. Anyhow, for the rest of the other students who handed in their journal books, their journals, which were quite personalized, made up a large decorative figure in front of the front desk where Ms Sugunes collected them and grouped them together. Then, she did with us the Dictation exercise in our Dictation manual while checking on our handwriting, and told me to redo my work once again. The next day, during PE, we did exercises like jumping jacks and relay runs. Many people in our class at the time will shun individuals who did not bring their books, required items to class, or wear the correct attire for the day. I managed to successfully pass up my journal book to Ms Sugunes.
As Chinese New Year was approaching, the school had started to put up lanterns, firecrackers and other Chinese New Year decorations in the front of the school compound as well as around the school premises, particularly in the foyer. This was the last week of school before the one-week Chinese New Year celebration, which begun on 26th January 2009. The Chinese New Year celebrations in Nobel at the time were low-key; just a matter of talking about the celebrations would be simple enough to please one's mood on the day. We just went about our days as usual as I struggled to please my teachers with my handwriting.
During the Chinese New Year celebrations, I went to visit my third uncle in Cheras on the maternal side of my family. A television commercial on Astro booted out “Happy NIU Year!” in which the word “niu” in Mandarin for the animal of the Ox, which is the Chinese zodiac for the year 2009, rhymes with the word “new” in ‘New Year’. Then, throughout the weekend, I went back to Penang to visit my grandparents for the Chinese New Year on my paternal side.
Following the return from Penang after the Chinese New Year holidays ended, Ms Thana was much more strict with us. She would be particular on almost anything in her class, from books, to homework completion, handwriting and so on. And yes, she had a green cane in the class to ensure everyone was well-complied.
When I was in kindergarten, the cane was a norm for young kids. And Ms Thana's use of the cane was the only time in Nobel where I saw a teacher brandish the dreaded cane to inflict pain on kids. I don't understand why Ms Thana had to inflict a siege of terror on us. The only person other than Ms Thana whom I know was authorised to use the rattan stick as punishment was Ms Michelle, as to what the handbook says. The principal at the time was given an exclusive power to brandish the cane on students with heavy offences and disciplinary issues.
Anyhow, Ms Tin taught us in Mandarin about the history of Chinese New Year and did some Chinese New Year origami decorations with us. There was no significant celebration in 2009, aside from a series of greetings and wishes throughout the week. Ms Prema also introduced us and talked about Chinese culture during our Pendidikan Moral lesson and also asked us about the history of Chinese New Year.
It is only February, and we are just trying to adjust to the prospect of a new academic year. On 4th February 2009, Ms Sugunes had given us spelling. Each time she came into the class, she would always have her eyes on my book to watch over my handwriting. Then, we did some worksheets, and she called on different people in the class to give the answer. When Andrew had not brought his book, Ms Sugunes was not happy with him.
But however, I would dread Ms Thana coming in to our class for Malay because of the terrifying cane she brought. While I tried my best to finish the work, Ms Thana would smack her cane on the board, and scold people for not answering her question. It wasn't the Ms Thana I know as a teacher; the kind teacher in Year 1.
I had started befriending Zi Quan as a friend in 2 Sincerity. Zi Quan had cool glasses and had a very round face. He looked quite handsome as well. He would always arrive early. And my mum had also given me this nice blue watch to keep track of the time. Every morning, my mum and I would arrive early and would occasionally sit with me in the canteen to have breakfast together. At the time, she used a BlackBerry phone, and it was one of the coolest things at the time. And she would meet most of my friends. She was the one that helped connect me with Glen Kay and Cassandra. Zi Quan is a
The next week saw a series of preparations for Sports Day. According to the school calendar then, Sports Day was scheduled for 28th March 2009. The teachers had started preparing for Sports Day with us, and they have given us a house cheer. During our PE lesson on 11th February, Ms Prema, who was also involved with the PE lesson, decided to sort us out into our houses. We then did a practice of relay runs during PE, and I enjoyed it quite a lot.
Once our PE lesson was over, we went for lunch, and I had a thumping heart given that Ms Thana would be coming that afternoon. I only hope that I survive Ms Thana's Malay classes unscathed and unharmed. Every day, when I was on the car ride to school, braving the traffic jam along the LDP Highway, I could only pray that Ms Thana would not get angry in class and wield the cane at people. James, Dylan and Andrew were already harmed to a certain extent.
We had some fun when Ms Prema brought us to the Multimedia Room to watch some movies and do some class activities in Pendidikan Moral. And Mr Chuang had also started talking about new characters; some of which I did not learn in Year 1. One of the characters he taught was Thoroughness, which aims for us to do things thoroughly and in detail in order not to miss things.
We also did some good cooking in Enrichment as well. We created a French Toast Sandwich, which I ate but spitted in the sink as it was yucky. My friends shunned my action and I had to clean the spit with tissue. It tasted yucky because of the presence of honey then. I was told to spit in tissue instead. I had trouble eating the sandwich, and some of my friends ate my part which I didn't eat. But however, when we made lemonade the following week, it felt so cold but nice as well; I ate it slowly.
I don't like quite recall most events as well that happened in February 2009. It was all about academics and daily life running along as usual. The same thing. And if a day went by without Ms Thana caning people in the class, things were well.
As the month of March approached, all our teachers were doing sports day practices in anticipation of the Sports Day which was scheduled for 28th March. I love Sports Day as a kid, especially when we get to have so much fun. I had so much fun cheering and also watching and playing with the telematch games. But this was not before two major event happened in one day, on 3rd March 2009.
3rd March 2009 was a day beset with good and evil. On the evil side, a fire drill was held. Ahead of the fire drill the previous week, we were informed and told about the fire drill procedure. The drill occurred as Ms Thana was having our Malay lesson in class. At the time of the lesson, she was teaching us how to answer questions in our exercise book.
As the bell rang, Ms Thana told us to assemble outside the class. She then took the control book and got everyone together, not before using the cane to hurry everyone out. Then, she told us to move quickly, following her, threatening to bring the stick upon us if we decided otherwise.
When we arrived outside the school building, there were sirens and alarms screeching along the hallways, which racheted outside the building and echoed in the distance. Ms Thana then told us to gather in our class lines as she took our attendance. On the right, we could see other teachers taking attendance as well, including Ms Carol, who was then the class teacher of 2 Virtue. She herself was entertaining the class. And at the same time, 2 Obedience was also in the process of being entertained. Ms Thana shouted orders and told all of us to keep quiet, just like a platoon sergeant commanding his squad.
Back in the school building, Mr Chuang, Mr Kwan and the management team were coordinating the fire drill. Then, some teachers were walking in and out of the building, checking on the situation. Each teacher then reported to Mr Kwan, who was coordinating the fire drill, about the number of students. Within a few minutes, the alarm stopped. Mr Chuang then called out on a microphone and asked everyone to head to the school hall. "Students, please go to the hall,” he commanded.
Ms Thana then told us to follow her. “Move quickly!” she cried. We then diligently and patiently headed to the school hall and sat down. Mr Kwan then told us to sit according to our classes as they were during assembly. It took around 15 minutes to get everyone into the school hall. Teachers were going around and asking everyone to remain muted as Mr Kwan gave a serious stare, folded his arms, and counted down.
“Who is still talking?” he cried.
“Students, I notice that all of you are taking so long to come out. This is a fire drill. This is not a fun fair,” said Mr Kwan. He said that a lot of individuals were busy talking and chit chatting and not paying attention to the instructions given by the teachers. “The fire drill is an emergency situation. You must know what to do in a fire. We don't want anybody to die in a fire,” said Mr Kwan sternly. He said that normally, the school building would need to be evacuated in five minutes but it took seven minutes to ensure that all occupants were off the school grounds. Then, he said that in future fire drills, he hoped to see some improvement from all of us.
“Teachers, you may send your students back to their classes,” she said. Then, Ms Thana took us back to 2 Sincerity, where she sternly lectured everyone on their tardiness in following the fire regulations. She gave quite a long lecture, and told Louis that he was holding the entire class back in the drill. Then, she called out a few people in the class who were talking, pointing at Evan Hiew, Julian Chong and Aaron Lee for making so much noise during the evacuation process. “Don't do this again in the next fire drill,” she cried.
We continued with our Malay lesson, and then, after lunch, we were then told to head to the school foyer. The school had recently purchased a school van, with a vehicular plate number of WSH 3309. It was a white van designed to carry students and teachers around. There was no livery on the body of the vehicle and it was purely basic in those days.
Ms Michelle had also told us during the fire drill briefing with Mr Kwan that this school van, which was a surprise, would be held after lunch. So, with so many students in the school foyer, it was quite difficult to get a glimpse of what was happening in front of the foyer, but fortunately, we were told that we would be given a chance to see the school van.
Mr Paul was in charge of driving the school van into the driveway. As we were lined up next to 2 Obedience, I talked to Jinn Lik, and he said he couldn't catch a glimpse of what was happening. So, to pass the time, Evan and Julian talked to each other and played around while the girls in our class played the rocks, scissors and paper game. Then, there were cheers, and Auntie Clarine was invited to cut the ribbon of the van to officially launch the school van. All the teachers were standing in front of the school foyer, and their heads and bodies continued to block the view as we craned up to see the van. As the ceremony drew to a close, the management team members were taken on a drive in the van to cheers from the students. Ms Michelle, Auntie Clarine, Mr Chuang, Mr Sures and Puan Halimah were driven on a ride around the neighborhood by Mr Paul before some of the Year 6 students chanted for Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang to commandeer the steering wheel. Then, Mr Chuang volunteered to drive and then he and Mr Paul were sitting in the front of the van, making funny faces as it sped around the yard. I only hoped that it lasted longer so that Science with Ms Jeeva would be shorter. Before we headed back for lessons, each student was given the opportunity to walk around the school driveway and get a glimpse of the van. Mr Chuang was grinning as he showed off and honked the horns. We then had Science with Ms Jeeva and then the Homework Time, which Ms Thana used to complete her Malay lesson, before heading home.
The next day, 4th March, we had a practice for the telematch. I was very excited because Cikgu Azua and Cikgu Zoraidah were the ones that were involved in the practices. They were cool teachers and also funny teachers as well. We had the telematch practice in the school hall, and I was happy as half of Ms Thana's Malay lesson would be affected, thus rendering her difficult to spot for trouble in the class.
Just like the previous year's Sports Day, the entire action was held in the school hall as Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle emceed the event. Mr Chuang was trying to act very cool and enthusiastic all the time. He was accompanied by Mr Paul, who had joined Nobel back in August 2008. Mr Paul and Mr Chuang make good company, emceeing the entire telematch practice.
The teachers first asked everyone to gather in the four sports houses. Each house was accompanied by a teacher. Ms Prema was coordinating Blue House's students, Cikgu Nurul for the Green House, Ms Kalai for Red House and Mr Kwan for Yellow House. Then, we were told to sit at the side of the hall and watch the games. The telematch games for Year 2 involved a relay race, in which we had to carry a baton and run as fast as we can! Aside from that, Year 2 students also had to do the Fill Me Up game, which was no different from what we did last year.
Mr Chuang then called for the Year 1 students to start the race. Then, we watched as they played with hula hoops. When it came to our turn, we were led onto the center of the hall where Mr Chuang buzzed instructions to us. Then, when we ran, we ran quickly and our teachers told us to sit down when we were done. Mr Chuang was screaming and cheering loudly. “Go! Go! Go!” he cried. The Year 4, 5 and 6 students were involved in preparing the telematch setup for the younger levels.
Then, Mr Chuang and Mr Paul asked everyone to do the Sri Nobel cheer, which we have been practicing since Year 1. “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH YEAH YEAH! SRI NOBEL!” they cried, and everyone screamed. There was music being played as the teachers told us to scream and shout our house cheers. Before long, it was the Year 2s’ turn, and I was involved in Fill Me Up, which we did last year, but I was looking forward to the relay run. Before long, it was the Year 3 telematch games, and the Year 3 students were making their own cheer. “One by one or two by two!” they cried, as their game involved a three-legged race, which required pairs, just like the lining-up procedure. The rest of the week went quite smoothly, before we went on our week-long holiday.
On 23rd March 2009, we were introduced to Earth Hour during the morning assembly. It was a curious thing to know about Earth Hour, as my aunt had first pointed out to me during the holidays about an event in which the whole world would switch off all their lights, leaving a sea of darkness in its wake. Ms Cherlyn, one of the Upper Primary teachers, showed us a promotional video of Earth Hour for 2009, which was taken from the official website of Earth Hour.
Earth Hour, which was started in 2007, originated from Australia as part of a global initiative to raise awareness of climate change and global warming. It was then said that an easy way to raise awareness would be to switch off non-essential lights for 60 minutes, thus reducing carbon emissions generated from electricity production and light pollution, further reducing the average night temperature.
As the video was played, we saw famous landmarks like the Great Wall of China and the Eiffel Tower switching off their lights, and Ms Cherlyn said that a campaign in school would be given to each class to learn and explore more about Earth Hour.
Ms Michelle then announced to us via the written message, which we pasted in the Message Book, that Sports Day 2009 was to be postponed to 18th April 2009 because the school was unable to secure a booking of the Panasonic Stadium for the slot of 28th March, and given that various activites were underway in April, the Sports Day was rescheduled for 18th April as the school was only able to secure proper booking of the stadium at the time. She also made an announcement during assembly to notify us of the change. “Students, please don't come this Saturday, ya!” cried Ms Michelle amusingly. “There will be no one there!” She was afraid of the fact that some students will turn up and cry seeing no one at the stadium.
Then, after we went back to class, Ms Thana told us that each of us would need to have our own Malay dictionary, known as the Kamus Dewan. We were allowed to have our own Kamus, but Ms Thana promoted the Kamus Dewan, which is a very popular Malay dictionary at the time. It had Malay words which can be converted to English definitions for us to see. Ms Thana said that we needed to have our own Kamus because it would be used for Malay lessons as well as for our exercise and homework that she would give us. She told us to bring the dictionaries next week. Then, during Mandarin, Ms Tin then decided to play some nursery rhymes in Mandarin with us. The nursery rhymes were so funny.
My mum searched for a Kamus Dewan for me and I brought the one published by Oxford Fajar, which Ms Thana had recommended. So, in the next class, I brought it to school, with praises from Ms Thana. Then, Ms Thana told everyone to look in the Kamus Dewan and search for words in order to write their meanings in the exercise book. Then, she went to the staffroom and gave us new Tatabahasa exercise manuals for us to do as the first one was completed.
At the same time, preparations for Sports Day were in full swing. Each sports house had to create a banner and a notice board. The notice boards were to be installed in the school hall while the banners stretched over the Year 2 classrooms on the ground floor that are located on the ground floor corridor which overlooks the school hall. All the four notice boards had cool themes. The Green House notice board featured a picture of Pinocchio, a Disney character, dressed up in Green House's sports attire. Blue House had a trophy on their board. Red House had the hat of a king on their board while Yellow House had a yellow sports car on theirs.
For our Sports Day, we had to write a journal about our Sports House Banner. We had to write in the Malay language on the journal topic titled, “Kain Rentang Rumah Sukan Saya”, or “My Sports House Banner”. The banner of Green House had two drawings of a cartoon character named Shrek, nd the words “Green will rule! Green is cool!” on them. Each student was handed a copy of their Sports House Banner, printed on a piece of paper. We had to cut the picture of the banner and paste it in the Journal Book. Subsequently, the banners were installed on the windows above the Year 2 classes on the ground floor.
The house banners were drawn by the Primary School students. It was the first and the only time in Nobel's history that the Primary School students got to design a house banner. Normally, it would be the Junior and Senior School in today's Nobel that got the chance to hone their ideas and visions.
We then received our first newsletter for 2009. It had a new name for the newsletter, then named “Insight”. The design was so cool and it read ‘The Cool School’ on the sides. The words were so interesting to look at. In the newsletter, we had a class picture of 2 Sincerity in it as we were the class of the month for February 2009. I was a bit shy then seeing myself.
With classes still ongoing, efforts were being made to push towards Sports Day 2009. There were a lot of practices that were being done, and because some practices ended early or ended later, I had a mismatch in bringing books because we were miscommunicated over which lessons did we have for the day and which ones were interrupted because of our telematch preparations. The teachers were very excited and the sports atmosphere was in the air.
Sports Day 2009 was held on 18th April 2009. This was the last ever Sports Day to be held on a Saturday until the 2024 Sports Day which is scheduled for 29th June 2024 at this time of writing. Originally scheduled for 28th March 2009, it is only the second Sports Day in Nobel International School's history to be postponed, after the 2023 Sports Day, which was originally scheduled for 23rd June 2023, before being postponed to 20th November 2023.
The Sports Day 2009 was a fantastic atmosphere. At the center of the stadium, multi-colored helium balloons drifted from a series of strings that tied the balloons to a stake in the ground. The theme of the 2009 Sports Day was emblazoned on our t-shirts, namely Victors R Us. After arriving at the stadium, I proceeded to Green House's stand, where Cikgu Zoraidah was serving us, alongside the Green House teachers. She was sitting at the front of the stadium stands and chatting with some students and teachers.
Out on the field, a few teachers, namely Mr Paul, Mr Chuang and Mr Daniel Tan were checking on the stadium field. Mr Daniel Tan, being a teacher from the Secondary School, was very hyped up and enthusiastic. He walked around, chatting and laughing with Mr Chuang and Mr Paul as they inspected the track and the canopies installed in the center on the field. On the left side of the stadium, where the start line was, Mr Mani and Encik Hadie, one of the teachers who taught students PE, were doing measurements, armed with measuring tapes to measure the distances on the track. Encik Hadie was also one of our PE coordinators for Year 2 as well for some PE lessons, and he had a very calm and cheerful character.
As the sun begin to rise, the weather started getting hot and parents and students begun arriving at the stadium. Then, Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang asked for everyone to be seated so that the ceremony would begin. Some of my friends that I saw from 2 Sincerity were walking up and down, and Jinn Lik was also sitting down in the seat, having his meal packed by his mother. The music then begun playing as Mr Chuang and Mr Daniel Tan emceed the opening ceremony.
The marchpast then begun, which was done by the Secondary School students, as Mr Daniel Tan enthusiastically introduced each house's squadron. Then, when Green House’s squad passed by, Cikgu Zoraidah cheered with us our Green House Cheer.
The Negaraku then begun playing, followed by the School Song. Isaac Lee, the house captain of Red House for the primary school, was then asked to make the sports pledge. Each house was asked to send one person to cut the balloons. Auntie Clarine stood in the center as the students, along with their teachers, snipped the strings that held the balloons together. Then, a large bunch of balloons were released like a flock of doves which flew skyward, and within minutes, the balloons were a speck of dots floating around like stars. Before long, there were popping sounds as the balloons exploded due to the air pressure placed on them.
As the Year 1s begun their telematch game, we then cheered. They played a game which involved a three-legged race as Mr Chuang boomed instructions. I just watched the game. Then, it was our turn.
We then headed back up the stands and went down to the basement tunnel of the stadium, where we were lined up to head to the field. Then, our teachers brought us to the field, where a series of batons lined the green grass. Mr Chuang was waiting for us.
Being excited, I kept vibrating my legs as if I was in a car. “Why are you shaking? Stop shaking and stand straight,” said Mr Chuang. Then, he begun giving us instructions.
Out on the field, some parents were watching the telematch games and taking photos. My mum was there as well. When it was my turn, I ran quite quickly and passed the baton to the next person who ran back while I set in my class line. This was then followed by the Weave Me Through game, as well as the Fill Me Up game, just like the previous year.
When we were done, we returned back to the stands as the Year 3s begun their track events, followed by the Year 4, 5 and 6 students. They ran like mad as we watched. This was then followed by the Secondary School's track events, which brought even more excitement. Then, the teachers had a race, and Mr Chuang, Mr Praba, Cikgu Afza, Cikgu Zoraidah, Mr Mani, Ms Chithra, Ms Prema, Ms Sugunes, Mr Paul and a few other teachers took turns to have a teacher's relay. Everyone was so excited as we saw our teachers running on the track. Then, it was announced that Green House was the winner, and we cheered! I then met my mum, who talked to a few people before we headed home. She said that Ms Thana told her that I needed to make some improvements in my Malay class.
Speaking of Malay class, Minggu Bahasa Malaysia happened ten days later, and it was much more amazing than the previous year. The entire stage was decorated with Malay and Islamic ornaments, with words written on the marquee of the stage in bold letters, “MINGGU BAHASA MALAYSIA 2009”. We were so excited to see the decorations when we entered the school hall. Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was held from 27th April to 30th April 2009.
Farahida did a puppet show with Puan Halimah to launch the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia. The puppet, which is a baby crocodile named Munah, was quite cute! Everyone was laughing and reacting hastily when Puan Halimah talked to Munah about how he was excited to come from a village bearing Malay tradition and how interesting it was to promote Malay culture and the Malay language during Minggu Bahasa Malaysia. This was then followed by Munah calling Ms Michelle in a cheeky tune to launch Minggu Bahasa Malaysia. When Ms Michelle came on stage, she fed Munah some biscuits to launch the Minggu Bahasa Malaysia as confetti flew over the school hall. Although we did not do much during Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, majority of the time of Minggu Bahasa Malaysia was done in the school hall where presentations and performances were made. One Year 5 student, Nicholas, recited a poem, followed by a series of singers dressed in baju kurung singing a Malay song.
During Mandarin, Ms Tin gave us more song lyrics to paste in our exercise book and sing. There was a Mandarin version of ‘Old Macdonald Had A Farm’. When everyone was handed the lyrics, we all laughed. It was so funny. We also did our spelling test as well. It was okay. And we also had some story telling about an alien invasion by the neighboring school, Sekolah Kanak-Kanak Pekak Selangor.
At the end of the week, on Friday, 2nd May, the entire school bade farewell to Puan Chan, who was leaving the school after four years of service to head to another school. The entire assembly session was dedicated to her as to commemorate her contribution to Nobel. Puan Chan was handed a bouquet of roses by Ms Michelle, Mr Daniel Tan, Mr Sures, Mr Chuang and Puan Halimah to wish her all the best. Several Year 6 pupils also gave her cards and hugs to thank her for what she has done in preparing them for the now-abolished UPSR exams.
It wasn't even a week before English Week arrived. Ms June, a teacher who teaches the Year 5 and 6 English, was in charge of the English Week. She was also the teacher in charge for the school library as well. And once again, just like Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, the words ‘ENGLISH LANGUAGE WEEK 2009’ were stuck to the stage.
To launch the English Week, the lights of the school hall were dimmed before few students, dressed with black jackets, did a newscaster broadcast on the stage, talking about how English is so important in the world today. This was then followed by they themselves saying that the best time to learn English is to dedicate a week towards it, and as such, English Week was launched. Ms Michelle was subsequently invited to launch English Week.
Aashad, who was dressed as a yellow man, accompanied Ms Michelle to launch English Week. He played around, acting like a clown and performing on stage. He ran up, down and around the hall enthusiastically. Ms Sugunes would do a crossword puzzle and word riddle with us in the class for English Week.
In the middle of the week, we had a birthday celebration for Auntie Clarine on 6th May 2009, which is her actual birth date, although in recent years, her birthday was celebrated on other dates because of time constraints.
For the year 2009, ahead of the birthday celebration, Ms Michelle had written to us in the middle of April 2009, requesting us to present to Auntie Clarine a bag of white rice. The rice would be sent to Fungates Superflow Foundation's Love On Wheels program.
Love On Wheels is a feed-the poor program in which underprivileged households in Jinjang, a Chinese new village in Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, were given a kit filled with food for them to reduce the burden on their daily necessities. This was to complement Fungates Superflow Foundation's Soup Kitchen program, which started in 2007. The year 2009 was the very first year of Love on Wheels. In the years to come, we would also play a first-hand experience on helping the community via the Love on Wheels program. Since Auntie Clarine was the founder of Fungates Superflow Foundation and initiator of the Love on Wheels program, aside from her having a hand in starting Nobel as well.
I passed my bag of rice on Friday, 2nd May, to Ms Thana, who collected it. Ahead of the birthday celebration, the teachers arranged a large pile of rice bags in the school hall, sealing it with red cloth. Auntie Clarine was not informed about the packets of rice as it was meant to be a surprise. In the years to come, a series of funny items were given to people via the Love on Wheels program, from quaker oats to Jacobs biscuits and even Milo packets! Some people, like Jinn Lik's father, bought TWO packets of white rice!
The birthday celebration for Auntie Clarine was held just after lunch ended, at 12:50pm. We were told to enter the hall once lunch was over. Everyone had an early lunch break and the canteen was so crowded. The Secondary School and Upper Primary students were all in the canteen. Each class only had around 20 minutes for lunch break, and we had to go for lunch early in order to accommodate the extra people, since the birthday celebration of Auntie Clarine was a school-wide celebration.
The hall was decorated with a lot of balloons, despite the English Week words still present on the stage. The primary students were seated in front, while the secondary school students sat behind. The music was romantic and the air conditioning on full blast.
When everyone was seated and the teachers settled in, Ms Michelle and Ms Cherlyn said that everyone should cheer “Happy Birthday Auntie Clarine” when Auntie Clarine entered the hall. In the meantime, we kept quiet as the teachers turned off the lights of the school hall. It was close to 1:00pm, as everyone patiently waited.
The door then opened, and everyone watched in anticipation. Oh, no. It was a normal teacher entering. “Relax. Just wait,” said Ms Cherlyn, signaling everyone to be silent.
The door then opened, and Auntie Clarine entered. The crowd cheered, “Happy birthday, Auntie Clarine!” She was accompanied by Mr Chan Lik Hoong, the then principal of the Secondary School, Mr Chuang and members of the management team. She waved at everyone as she stood in front and smiled. Ms Michelle and Mr Chan then escorted her to a large sofa to be seated and entertained.
Two girls from the secondary school, accompanied by Ms Evelyn, performed a skit titled, ‘Clarine's Angels’. They talked about how Auntie Clarine had inspired them and acted like as if they were office girls of Auntie Clarine. Janelle Arnelia then performed a song from the ‘Little Mermaid’ along with Samantha Goh and Samantha Cheong, who danced in ballet form. Once the performances were done, Ms Cherlyn then announced that a large birthday cake would be pushed out from the office. A large cake, creamed in over two hundred litres of cream and over one hundred kilograms of flour, dough and powder, were wheeled in on a trolley. The office staff wheeled it quickly to prevent the fine dish from melting away from heated temperatures in the courtyard.
Auntie Clarine then called all the students who were born in the month of May to come to the front of the stage to sing the birthday song in a joint birthday celebration. My birthday falls on 15th May. Some of my friends asked me to go in front which I did not do so as I was quite shy.
The so-called May babies then got to the front as the whole hall sang the birthday song before blowing the candles of the cake. Auntie Clarine got one girl who had the same birthday as her to join the cake cutting ceremony and cut the large cake. This was then followed by two students, one from Year 3 and another from Year 6 presenting a joint book containing poems from every class to her for her birthday. Then, two librarians from the secondary school presented a bouquet made by the librarians, along with a video being presented on how the bouquet was made. The video was nicely edited and was amazing to watch. This was then followed by teachers and students wishing Auntie Clarine a happy birthday. Seventeen students wished her and gave her a hug. The climax to the show was a long line of Form 5 students queuing up to hug her, before Auntie Clarine gave everybody muffins and ice cream. I preferred to take the muffin as I did not like ice cream while Louis had melted his ice cream and Ms Thana had to clean it up for him.
English Week soon came to an end with the last two events. The first was a Spelling Bee competition on Thursday, 8th May 2009. And yes, Ms June was the organizer of the Spelling Bee competition. It was very exhilarating to see people spell the words. Ms June was a very amazing teacher and she would become my Year 7 class teacher and English teacher. There was a singing competition, followed by a performance of the song ‘I Can't Smile’ by Barry Manilow, which was sung by Janelle Arnelia from our Year 2 batch. Janelle and I were in 1 Sincerity the previous year, and we would once again be in the same class in Year 7. The ceremony ended with a prize giving ceremony.
The next week posed a more exciting week ahead for us. On 11th May 2009, during the assembly, Ms Michelle announced the names for the Most Stickers for April 2009. I was once again shy and had butterflies in my stomach. All winners for the most stars and stickers were asked to line up in front of the courtyard. While I received the most stickers from 2 Sincerity, it was Nickolas Nashpal who had the most stars. I had a blue jacket my mum bought for me, which I took a picture in. The next day, 12th May 2009, we went on our first field trip of the year and the only one I could remember thus far, to the Monsters and Dinosaurs Exhibition, located at Mid Valley Megamall in Kuala Lumpur.
Ms Jeeva and the Science teachers arranged this field trip as part of an excursion tour for our Science lesson. When I read the message of the Monsters and Dinosaurs Exhibition which I pasted in the message book by Ms Michelle, I shivered with fright as I thought that there would be scary scenes when visiting the exhibition at Mid Valley. The exhibition, especially when you hear the phrase ‘Monsters’ as well as ‘Dinosaurs’, was a fear recipe for an eight-year-old like me then. These are not words which kids like to hear when visiting an exhibition on a school trip.
As we gathered in school for the field trip, I looked at Pui Mun and Rosemund chat while holding light backpacks, along with the other wonderful people of 2 Sincerity. Ms Prema was mainly in charge of leading the field trip with us as Ms Thana had things to do back in school. The atmosphere was very exciting, but for me, it was quite tense as Evan and Julian chat behind. Glen tried to make roaring sounds of a dinosaur or a monster but it did not help. My heart was beating.
Mr Chuang was in the front addressing the assembly and wished us well on our field trip. I was thumping over what was about to happen. My face was pale, but Glen comforted me. “No worries,” he said, “I will protect you from the monsters.” Ms Prema also told me not to worry when she asked about my pale face.
We then walked out of the school compound to board the bus, which was waiting outside Nobel. There were around three buses to take us. Glen asked me to sit with him. Behind him were Evan Hiew and Julian Chong. Zi Quan was to the right side of us. Most people were just having snacks as I looked out of the windows to see the scenery. We were on the Federal Highway, which is the busiest urban expressway in Malaysia, on our way to Kuala Lumpur.
Mid Valley Megamall is located in Bangsar, just between the border of the capital city with Petaling Jaya. On the way, I could make out the neighborhood where my church was. I told Ms Prema and Glen where my church was. Before long, we were approaching Mid Valley Megamall.
My parents like to bring me to Mid Valley when I was young. Ironically, it was the place where my father suffered a heart attack in the carpark while approaching his car in January 2007. I wouldn't even know this until more than fifteen years later. The bus approached the basement lobby of Mid Valley alongside Lingkaran Syed Putra. We got out, and Ms Prema escorted us. We saw shoppers and a lot of people going about their daily activities around Mid Valley Megamall.
The Monsters and Dinosaurs Exhibition was located at the Mid Valley Exhibition Centre, which occupies the highest level of Mid Valley Megamall. “No worries. No need to be scared!” cried Ms Prema as she held my hand. There was an escalator which led to the exhibition centre, and fortunately, the dinosaurs were fake. It was an exhibition showing the various types of extinct dinosaurs. The dinosaurs were equipped with electronic components which allowed them to move. I had brought along a camera to take pictures of the exhibition.
Ms Prema then gave us a paper in which we have to follow the instructions and answer the questions in the paper based on the exhibition. Each class took their turn to get around the exhibition, and I walked in front with Glen behind me. We went to the dinosaur exhibits which showed a large T-Rex on display, which I took a picture of. Glen calmed my nerves, saying that the dinosaurs were fake and there were no real monsters. Before long, we passed the Insects section and managed to take some pictures as well. Once we were done, we then waited outside the exhibition hall for the rest to be done before heading back to school for lunch.
The next day was a more exciting affair; a Mother's Day celebration. This was a celebration for all the Year 2 students where we invited our parents, especially our mothers, for the celebration at Nobel.
Ahead of the event, Ms Michelle had also sent us a message asking us to invite our parents to Nobel for the Mother's Day celebration, as Mother's Day in 2009 fell on 10th May. The entire morning of 13th May was dedicated to celebrating and appreciating our mothers. Ms Thana had told us to ask all of our mothers to come for Nobel's Mother's Day celebrations.
So, anyhow, on 13th May 2009, we came to school as usual and had lessons in the morning. Then, we went for break before heading to the school hall. Some of the parents had arrived for the Mother's Day celebration.
I first saw Janelle Arnelia's mother, Auntie Angela, who was accompanied by Uncle Julian. Uncle Julian stood tall and confidently, holding a video camera. Janelle had invited me and my sister to her house for her birthday party in February, and Uncle Julian had taken a video of the party on his camera. He had a high-tech video camera to take videos of Janelle's performances. In fact, Auntie Angela and Uncle Julian told me that Janelle was going to perform a song later on.
Soon, my mum arrived and we had a chat before I went to my class line at 2 Sincerity. Many people in our class were asking if they had brought their dad or mum to the celebration. In fact, Ms Thana had asked us if we had done so as well by asking our parents to come.
When everyone had gathered in the hall, Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang asked all our parents to sit at the side of the hall while we sat in our class lines. Ms Michelle asked everyone to wish a very good morning to the parents before we started. The first act of the event was a video compiled of photos of the students with their parents. There were also scenes of parents and their children embracing each other. This was then followed by Aiman speaking to the crowd with a poem he wrote, along with a choir of the song ‘Ibu’ by Ms Nora and some of the students. The students gave flying kisses while there were chants of ‘Encore’ by Ms Michelle and some of the parents as the song was very touching. Mr Chuang then led a question and answer session comprising various facts and general knowledge, before we were led on a game where we tried to fold a newspaper to the smallest possible size and balance ourselves on it. Me and my mum tried to balance on the newspaper, and some parents even carried their kids on it. Mr Chuang then said everyone won as we managed to occupy the newspaper perfectly. To end the celebration, Janelle performed a song titled ’Because You Loved Me’ and we gave our parents cards while being treated with chocolate cookies.
At the end of the week, it was my birthday as well, and the entire class wished me a happy birthday. It was also a Friday, which meant a shorter day at school. It was also the only birthday celebration which the cake was not ready in time for the celebration. Nevertheless, the class just sang me a birthday song during break time, as well as during Ms Sugunes’ class too, which we had our spelling.
The following week, we got our exam scope for the Mid Year Examination, which was scheduled to be held from 26th to 28th May 2009. However, in that particular week, we had the Music exam which Mr Kwan conducted for us.
Mr Kwan asked us to sing the ‘Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf’ song during our Music lesson. Some people sang in a funny tune to laughter from the entire class. “2 Sincerity! Quiet! Your friends are having exams!” cried Mr Kwan sternly. On top of that, the teachers had been telling us to take home our books one by one as to ensure that we do not get the books away at the last minute which would be chaotic. On top of that, Ms Prema and Ms Thana hoped that our results would look good.
On the first day of the examination, we entered our class for the Malay exam and there was a ‘Good Luck’ sign on the whiteboard which Ms Prema had drawn of. Scribbled on the board were the names of everyone in 2 Sincerity. Ms Prema would continue to do this every year for the Mid Year Examination and Final Year Examination. The exams went well, although Ms Thana walked around with the cane again to deter troublemakers.
Once the exam was over, I returned to Bukit Mertajam where I wrote a couple of journal entries as to what Ms Thana requested to some people to do as our journals were lagging behind ans also to improve our handwriting. Other than me, Evan and Julian were also asked to improve their handwriting too.
When we returned from the holidays, many of our teachers had a policy in which we were not allowed to go to the toilet, even if we wanted to do so. This is because some people took advantage of the teacher's permission to use the washroom. Whenever one needed to use the loo, he or she would need to raise their hands like the Statue of Liberty, request for permission to head for the loo, and the teacher would make the final decision. This would at first seem normal, but however, a lot of people had misused the grace luxury given by the teachers. As a result, Ms Thana and Ms Prema had forbade people to use the toilet during their lessons. Especially the former. Then, Ms Sugunes also caught on the trend as well. To a teacher, no one wants to be rudely interrupted by individuals heading to the loo, causing the lesson's progress to be slowed to a crawl.
When Ms Thana was having her lesson on the first week after we returned from our holidays, she had forbade anyone from using the washroom. As a result, I could not hold it in and thus peed on my pants. All of my friends gasped, and Ms Thana was not happy with me. Oops. Talk about restricting people from answering nature's call.
“Go to the toilet now! Why didn't you ask me?” cried Ms Thana, as she stared angrily at me. I then took the pass tag and went to the toilet. Then, once school was over, I had to clean up my mess. After that incident, people were scared to mingle with me for the wrong reasons. We were kids then.
A few days later, Ms Prema did not allow us to use the washroom as well. But this time, I had another problem; I would not use the school's washroom for defecation as I feel more comfortable defecating at home. Normally, as a kid, if I wanted to defecate, I would hold it in till the end of the school day. But however, this time, I wasn't in good luck and I soiled my pants a little. Then, a stink smell filled the entire class. Ms Prema was teaching then.
Well, after some crazy pandemonium, Ms Prema stopped her Pendidikan Moral lesson, took me to the toilet and told me to do my business. “I am not leaving and will wait for you until you finish,” said Ms Prema. It took me around 20 minutes to get things done. Ms Prema got back to the class to do her things first, but then I followed her back.
“Have you pooed already?” I said no. She asked me to go back.
Once I was done, Ms Prema told me to make sure I was honest. Then, she checked if things were okay and then only brought me back to class. The entire class was not amused. To prevent future incidents, my mum always reminded me to use the washroom when it was time to do so. Oh, and Ms Prema told everyone her birthday as well, which falls on 14th June. So we wished her happy birthday as well.
On 23rd June, we were interrupted by a fire drill as well. This time, Ms Carol was in the class and told us to get out of the class and follow the fire drill procedure. The entire school was quite fast, and Mr Chuang and Mr Kwan told us to clap as we had improved. The students from Tadika Sri Nobel were also present as well, but then, we were treated to a surprise as well.
As we were evacuating the school and waiting in our class lines, a fire engine screeched like a crazy kid as it approached the school. Julian Chong and Glen Kay then thought that there was a real fire, and many people thought that the school would explode. Mr Chuang, upon leading us into the school's driveway, introduced us to Encik Wabil from the Petaling Jaya Fire and Rescue Department, who briefed us and explained to us the proper way to put out a fire.
Encik Wabil told us that the best way for one to prevent themselves from a fire was to crawl during an evacuation exercise to prevent death from smoke inhalation, and to also follow the path of oxygen. He also said it was very important for us to know the evacuation routes in the building when evacuating, so that it will allow us to plan our escape routes in advance. After lecturing us on the importance of preventing a fire, he then did something spectacular.
Encik Wabil and his team then brought out a large metal trough and placed it at the centre of the driveway. Then, one of his firemen sprayed some powder into the thing. Then, suddenly, a loud burst of fire came out with a loud report. BOOM! We were all scared as I covered my ears. Encik Wabil then decided that he teach us how to properly put out a fire using the fire extinguisher.
Mr Mani brought along one of the red fire extinguishers that were located along the school's hallways, and gave it to one of the secondary school's students. Then, he took out another fire extinguisher and gave it to another student. Encik Wabil then demonstrated the proper way to put out the fire. There were two types of fire extinguishers in Nobel; one filled with powder foam and one filled with water. With a loud splash, the fire transformed into a cloud of smoke which flew all around the place. Some people, including me, coughed when the smoke blew towards us. Encik Wabil said that the fire extinguishers have instructions which we must read, as water is normally not the best way to extinguish a fire, especially one that burns on electricity or fuel. The ones in Nobel have instructions on them, and I took the time to look at the instructions during break and lunch.
Everyone knows how the COVID-19 pandemic has upended and torn apart society, and people said that no one was prepared for the pandemic. However, this is not the first time Nobel has experienced and dealt with a pandemic, as the previous pandemic before that was the Influenza A pandemic in 2009 and 2010, also known as the H1N1 virus. H1N1 was the first time I got to sense how a face mask and hand sanitizer looked like.
Back in 2009, the origin of the H1N1 virus was from the United States as opposed to COVID-19's source in Wuhan, China. It was mainly a flu virus. While the effects in adults were more or less mild to moderate, it can be severe for children.
Messages posting about the H1N1 outbreak were given to students to paste in the Message Book, and at the same time, Ms Michelle had been reminding us to wash our hands. We had a new timetable as well, and guess what? Mr Chuang was our PE teacher! Everyone in 2 Sincerity got talking about Mr Chuang teaching us PE and how his lessons would look like.
Our first PE lesson with Mr Chuang was held on 30th June 2009. And at the time, it was the only time in my life in Nobel that a PE lesson was held close to the dismissal of school as well as in the afternoon. Mr Chuang told us to do some warm ups with us, and then he did some elbow moves, stretching and so on. Then, he told us to do a series of relay runs in the courtyard and at the same time, run around the courtyard and bounce on one foot as well. It was great having PE with Mr Chuang, and everyone liked his lesson.
The next week was serious business. At the beginning of the week, the school had asked us to wear face masks and use hand sanitizers. Signs telling us on how to wash our hands were also installed next to the sinks in the toilets, canteens and any place we could visit. There was also an automated hand sanitizer which was installed at the main entrance then, just like the one in 2020 for COVID-19. H1N1, along with the COVID-19 pandemic, will be one of two viral outbreaks Nobel would experience in the history of the school.
My mum had also given me a surgical face mask to put on. Nigel Chew and I took pictures wearing face masks as my mum held a camera to take our picture. And during assembly, Ms Thana and Ms Prema would come around with a Septi Gel hand sanitizer. It was white and had a red label with the ‘Septi Gel’ words on them. We had to sanitize our hands before and after every lesson. This practice would go on for a few weeks.
On Thursday, 9th July 2009, we had a surprise guest to come and talk to us about H1N1. Dr Prema, a member of staff of the Ministry of Health, was invited to brief us about the virus. This caused laughter among the people in our class, and many people called out Ms Prema's name. No, not Dr. Prema, but our assistant class teacher, Ms Prema. Yan Ying, Cassandra and Rosemund shouted Ms Prema's name and she reacted in a shy manner before signalling them to keep quiet and listen to Dr. Prema's lecture.
Dr Prema then talked about many things, including the history of H1N1, which was an existing strain of the virus, and how to prevent the viral infection. She also told us how to wash hands, as well as many steps that we use today to prevent the COVID-19 virus in 2020. This was then followed by a quiz which was done and for students to ask and answer questions.
During break time, Mr Chuang told us to wash our hands. “I see some students not washing their hands. Are you not paying attention to Dr Prema?” he asked. He then stared and watched everyone washing hands. There was a long queue for people to dip their hands in soap. Mr Chuang said everyone must follow the steps to rinse our hands with water.
Maths and Science Week was held from 13th to 20th July 2009, and the main anchor of the event were Ms Cherlyn and Ms Carol, who had been appointed as the emcees and coordinators for Maths and Science Week.
To kick the event off, there was a projection of the words ‘Sekolah Sri Nobel Maths and Science Week 2009’ on the screen. The opening ceremony was very exciting, and many Year 2 students were involved in the presentations. Rosemund and Yan Ying were performing the Multiplication Dance, and Ms Carol recommended them to do so as they can recite the multiplication tables well in our class. There was a dry ice experiment which they did as well which was my favorite experiment since the Mad Science Workshop the previous year. They laughed a lot, which also made everyone in the hall laugh as well.
For Maths and Science Week, not much was done for us except for presentations and events during assembly. There was a coke and mentos experiment, a class comedy by Year 5 students, and then Mr Paul did an experiment on the stage by getting an egg out of a tube using pressure. The pressure was too hard and the egg smashed onto Mr Paul's face.
“Eww! Disgusting!” he cried, as the entire hall laughed.
The closing ceremony involved a recap of Maths and Science Week as videos of the event were shown before Ms Carol and Ms Cherlyn bowed out by saying, “See you next year!”
The week of 20th July was also the week the prefects received their new uniforms. This uniform for the primary school remains to this day, borne with a green vest and tie. It was quite cool seeing the prefects with new uniforms. And back in April, there was a large group of prefects that were sworn in, with Ms Michelle handing them their prefect's badge and prefect's handbook during the morning assembly on 9th April 2009. On top of that, Ms Tin also did with us a nice drawing of a school which I drew in my book and we had to come out with our own creativity. It looked so cool.
July soon turned into August, and it was the fasting month of Ramadan. Cassandra and Andrew were fasting for Ramadan, which is a Muslim ritual precluding the approach of Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Many of the people in 2 Sincerity said that they wished to be like them. Evan and Julian were told off by Ms Prema for skipping lunch and asked to ensure that they had a meal. Puan Halimah entertained the Muslim students by giving them games, presentations, and showing them movies while they skipped break and lunch.
I saw another Indian teacher, Ms Vanitha, who was teaching Malay to the other Year 2 classes, being quite interesting and gentle. She looked cool, and I personally felt that she would be a better teacher than Ms Thana, who was sometimes acting too strict. Of course, I like Ms Thana, but sometimes, the cane looked too intimidating. Ms Thana had to get us new Tatabahasa manuals as we had finished using them quickly.
August 2009 was more or less a ‘business as usual’ month. I can't find anything more interesting to put in here other than Ms Thana writing the names of those who did not finish their homework, brought their book or so on onto the whiteboard, or Yan Ying being tasked to write the names of those who talked in class while the teacher was out of the room. Ms Thana would refer to me indirectly as Lau only instead of Wei Yiang for the rest of 2009. It seemed quite weird.
From 17th to 21st August 2009, we had our Patriotic Week which was to celebrate the upcoming Merdeka Day celebrations on 31st August. The theme for the 2009 Merdeka Day celebrations was '1Malaysia’, and Nobel subsequently adopted the theme for the Patriotic Day celebrations. 1Malaysia is a concept outlined by Malaysia's ninth prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to foster national unity as one people. Hence, 1Malaysia is pronounced as One Malaysia to foster a single Malaysian identity. 19th August 2009 will be forever remembered as the last ever day in Nobel that I have been an absent student, as for the next eight years, I would report to school every day without fail.
Patriotic Week was more or less a large dance party comprising a dance competition. Ms Prema and the Year 3 students were involved with a dance competition. Ms Lim did some fan dances with some Year 2 students, while Mr Kwan led the Year 5 and 6 students in a choir of the 1Malaysia Song. During the closing ceremony, Ms Michelle presented trophies to the winners of the dance competition and a video promoting the 1Malaysia concept was shown before the end of the ceremony.
After returning from our school holidays, we found out that there were a pair of cables installed in our class to allow teachers to display our drawings from Art classes. It looked cool having artwork or so on displayed in the class.
In September 2009, preparations for Hari Raya Aidilfitri were in full swing, as Hari Raya Aidilfitri would fall close to the end of the month, on 20th and 21st September 2009. Puan Halimah was involved in decorating the school's foyer with a lot of decorations, especially ketupat, which is a traditional snack eaten during Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Ms Prema also did a model of a ketupat using green paper. Each of us did one, and mine looked quite nice.
Louis had trouble making his ketupat, so Ms Prema did it for him. Then, Ms Prema installed our ketupat on the cables in the classroom that were fixed during the holidays.
The teachers, alongside from decorating the school for Hari Raya Aidilfitri, also planned a contest for the Mid Autumn Festival. The contest was to have students design a lantern, and the lanterns would be installed on a string tethered to the pillars of the building that surround the school courtyard. The school custodians begun tying strings to the pillars that surround the school courtyard, and our Mandarin teachers told us that anyone can submit a design for the lantern competition.
Mid Autumn Festival celebrations in Malaysia are commonly addressed as the Mooncake Festival or Lantern Festival; the latter of which results in large lanterns being displayed around Malaysia. Commemorated by the Chinese society in Malaysia as well as Chinese communities worldwide, the Mid Autumn Festival commemorates the legend of Hou Yi and Chang Er, the wife of Hou Yi who was transported to the moon upon eating an elixir pill. Thus, for the Mid Autumn Festival celebration, I decided to make a lantern and hang it up by passing it to Ms Tin. The lantern competition was cool, and Ms Michelle was also encouraging everyone to participate as well.
After the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays have ended, Ms Thana left Nobel as she wanted to move to another school to teach. As a result, we had a new Malay teacher as well as a new class teacher. Ms Vanitha, the other Malay teacher who was teaching the other classes, replaced Ms Thana after the Hari Raya Holidays. I felt my heart and shoulders become less tense after the entire debacle for the first half of the year.
Ms Vanitha is a very understanding Malay teacher. Like Ms Thana, she's of Indian ethnicity as well. She had a very wonderful time teaching us Malay. Also, Ms Prema took over from Ms Thana as our class teacher and was promoted. In her place was Ms Punitha, who would be assisting Ms Prema in the Pendidikan Moral lesson as well. Ms Punitha would also assist Ms Jeeva in her Science lesson too. Our first activity that Ms Prema and Ms Punitha did together was to do the Mid Autumn Festival decorations during Pendidikan Moral and Homework Time on Tuesday, 29th September. And Ms Vanitha was very helpful correcting my mistakes in my books.
At the beginning of the week, on 28th September 2009, there was a promotional skit by the Year 6 students regarding Canteen Week, which was a bake sale to raise funds. There were lots of cooking on sale, and Ms Cherlyn was coordinating the Canteen Week. On the stage were students who were dressed in funny mascots, especially the one with an Ice Pop robot. Ms Cherlyn was enthusiastically asking everyone to come for Canteen Week. In total, eight teams, namely Chocolate Heaven, Sweethearts Corner, Quench Hut, Ice Pop and Pudding, Nobel Snack Shop, Snack Town, T.G.I Monday-Friday as well as Golden Sweet Corn. Canteen Week was held from 1st to 5th October 2009. However, a spoiler was about to come; the Mid Autumn Festival Celebration.
The school-wide Mid Autumn Festival begun with a fantastic celebration during the morning assembly on Thursday, 1st October 2009, which was held in the school courtyard. Our class was seated in front. There were a lot of teachers and students pumped up with excitement. And the courtyard was filled with lanterns installed by all students. To top it off, one student even made a lantern in the shape of the 1Malaysia logo! Aside from that, there were lanterns of all sizes and shapes made from recycled materials.
Inside the school canteen, the Mandarin teachers, along with some of the Year 6 students, were busy preparing a large Kongming lantern, also known as a Sky Lantern, for the celebrations. Until today, as far as I know, as of this time of writing, it was the only time that Nobel had a Kongming lantern for a Mid Autumn Festival. At 7:30am, the teachers begun coming down to the courtyard for the celebration. Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang were in the canteen to observe the lantern being lit up.
As the assembly started, Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang asked everyone to greet all the teachers. Then, the large Kongming lantern was brought out. I saw the lantern float up, tethered with a string to keep it from flying away. Some teachers went up the stairs to ensure that the lantern was released in a controlled manner and would not burn up as it floated up. The crowd then saw the lantern float up. Words were written on the lantern as the teachers talked about them. Then, Ms Tee talked about the significance of Mid Autumn Festival as the lantern was gradually brought down. The lantern then appeared to tilt to one side, and some people screamed. Eventually, there were no issues.
At the end of the week, there was a dance session by the teachers with a combination of traditional Chinese and Malay attire in conjunction with Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Puan Halimah and some of the teachers danced on the stage, and there was a Rasa Sayang performance as well. There was a funny skit of Kakak Aini on stage as well as a prize giving ceremony for the lantern competition.
Canteen Week was bustling with excitement as I went to purchase an orange juice from Quench Hut. Fortunately I could remember it because I remember bringing home a container with Quench Hut's logo on it. Other than that, I did not buy anything, and Ms Prema asked me to buy some more drinks or goodies and try out the food on sale.
On the second week of October, Ms Tin was absent, and Ms Ingel came to replace us on 10th October during our Friday Mandarin lesson. She tried to teach the class and speak in Mandarin. While most of us laughed, we also cheered her on. We had to use 2 Integrity's classroom because 2 Sincerity was used by the Level 2 students and 2 Obedience was in use by another class. Then, on the third week, many people were absent, and Ms Tin was still absent. So, Ms Lim came in to teach us some Mandarin phrases and do some exercises as well.
The Final Year Examination was held from 20th to 22nd October 2009. It was all quite smooth as the exam passed. After our exams, we discussed the questions, got things done, and did some basic lessons on Gardening during Enrichment class. Oh well! The management had something interesting planned for us. A Kite Day!
Kite Day was a day planned by the teachers to allow us to fly kites. Yes, kites. We were allowed to bring our own kites, and as of this time of writing, no such event ever happened. Ahead of Kite Day, the teachers told us about those specifics of Kite Day. We were going to fly kites at a field nearby the school.
So, on Tuesday, 10th November 2009, we had that Kite Day. I brought along a nice bright yellow kite. Many people were gathered in the courtyard for the Kite Day, and Ms Michelle herself was excited as well.
The teachers told us to line up and follow Mr Chuang, who led the entire group of students. We had to find a large field in order to fly kites. Each class teacher had to lead their class. Glen and I were also talking about the Kite Day. Everyone had kites of all shapes and colors, as we left the school via the foyer.
There was a long walk to the field as some people groaned about how long it took to go to the field. I chatted with Ms Prema as I walked. “Wei Yiang, do you know how to fly a kite?” asked Ms Prema. I told her that I did know how to fly a kite with some guidance from my late father.
Most people who study at Nobel's old campus at Kelana Jaya before 2023 would remember that there are two fields adjacent to the school premises. However, a third field, musked away in the distance at SS5C, was used as it was larger and much bigger. The field unfortunately had trees, which would pose danger for kites.
Upon reaching the field, Mr Chuang told us to go and fly our kites freely. I tried to get mine to take off, but without success. Mr Chuang then held my kite and asked me to run. I tried running fast enough, but could not get the kite to take off. Oh well. I just watched everyone fly their kites for two hours.
Dotted along the field, teachers and students mingled as kites were flown. Louis Soon then cried as his kite was stuck on a tree and he can't take it home. I feel sorry for him. He normally cries a lot in our class. I would get to know him quite well over the next eight years. Then, I talked to some of my teachers who asked me about my experience and why I wasn't flying my kites like the rest.
The academic year of 2009 topped up with Class Party 2009, which was held on 19th November 2009. It was a lively celebration as I brought some cookies that my aunt made. There were also chocolate chip cookies in our class.
Ahead of the Class Party, Ms Prema decided to do some paper chains with Ms Punitha to decorate the class. She taught each and every one of us how to make paper chains. Ms Prema brought some colored papers to start making them. Then, she told Rosemund and Yan Ying to hang it. Then, Pui Mun joined in to hang the paper chains as well and decorate the class.
Anyhow, the class party was decorated quite nicely, as strings of paper chains adjourned the front of 2 Sincerity. Ms Sugunes and Ms Michelle were among the lucky guests, and Ms Prema decided to play a game of musical chairs with us. She and Ms Punitha also joined in as Yan Ying controlled the music. Mr Chuang also came to savour some food too. And the last day was more or less some sweeping, cleaning and getting ready for the next year.
On our last day of school, Ms Prema gave us a photo collage of everyone in our class from 2 Sincerity. The collage showed Ms Prema's photo on the bottom right amidst a rainbow background. The last day of school was quite normal as we headed for our holidays with excitement and happiness after a long school year filled with joy and pride.
2010 – Year 3
On the first day of school in 2010, 4th January 2010, I arrived at school early to place my bags at my class line. As we did not know where to place our bags, Mr Chuang, who was there early, placed placards on the floor to mark the location of our classes, where we placed our bags. I was assigned to 3 Sincerity, the last of three “sincerities” for my primary school era. My aunt and my mum always kept on asking me, “Why are you always in Sincerity?” I did not know how to answer as it was the school's decision. 3 Sincerity's class line was located towards the right of the hall, where I sat down. The hall soon begun filling up with students, who entered the school and took their seats, excited for what the year 2010 had to offer.
At the beginning of the day, everyone was arriving, and were gathered in the school hall for the assembly. A huge crowd of parents, mostly of students from Year 1 and new students who entered the other levels, were in the school hall with their camera, excited for the big day. All the teachers were greeting us, and Auntie Clarine, Ms Michelle, Mr Chuang, Puan Halimah and all the teachers were in smiles as everyone entered the hall, ready for the first day of school. The teachers then arrived in the school hall soon after, and Ms Michelle begun greeting everyone with a bright smile.
“To all new students, welcome to Sekolah Sri Nobel! We hope all of you will have a good time here, and I hope that all of you are excited for the first day of school!” cried Ms Michelle. This was then followed by Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle both introducing the protocols for the students, such as what to expect and what to do in school. Mr Chuang then kept on talking about the school protocol, from entering the classroom to greeting teachers, handing up homework, going for break time, lunch as well as dismissal. At the same time, we also did the Rukun Negara, Negaraku, School Song and School Pledge.
Soon, every class teacher came, and I was surprised to see this Malay teacher. Her name is Cikgu Nurul, and she greeted everyone as she plopped in front of our class line, taking our attendance. She smiled and waved her hand and I could see a lot of other Year 3 teachers coming in and taking attendance for their classes. These were teachers I saw when I was in Year 1 and 2, who were now charged of taking care of us for the rest of the year. Mr Chuang did tens of thousands of explanations, as did Mr Sures, Puan Halimah, Ms Ingel and Puan Chan. Mr Chuang then closed the assembly with a word of prayer before we returned to class. He would do this for every assembly, and we had to repeat after him on what he said.
My Year 3 class, 3 Sincerity, was on the highest floor. I dreaded being on the high floors at the time as I had to carry my bag upstairs. However, one person that caught my attention was this new boy who is in our class, wearing a checkered t-shirt as he had not gotten his school uniform then. He was quite timid, unsure of what to do, but he was attentive and patient as he walked and listened when teachers talked. He sat down and was quite well behaved as he was puzzled over what to do. His mum frequently came and gave him water and tips over what to expect.
For the first time, my classroom was upstairs. I had the same exact classroom location for my Year 1 and Year 2, but the first day of school had quite a valuable trek up the stairs. Once the assembly was over, our assistant class teacher, Cikgu Nurul, led us to the stairwell near the foyer and took us up. What made it more surprising was that it was on the highest floor when I thought the stairs would lead to the first floor, the most plausible location for my class, since the secondary students occupied the highest floor as I presumed them to be older.
We went up two flights of stairs to reach the area where the library was back then, before making a right turn all the way to the end of the hallway, where a door bearing the sign “3 SINCERITY” was posted. Cikgu Nurul pushed the door open as we entered the class. I then took my seat in front of the class as Cikgu Nurul welcomed everyone in. Among the people who were in my class were Joseph Yong, Glen Kay, Grace Tee, Louis Soon, Alex Chia, Leong Shaun, Adrianna Yip, Jordan Cheam and Ashley Er. The classroom contained two cables that stretched from the back to the front, as well as a projector and computer which were installed during the school holidays, thus minimizing the inconvenience of borrowing projectors from the Innovation Centre. Previously, there was no class projector and computer, and all the teachers had to bring a portable computer and a portable projector to set up interactive lessons. The cables, on the other hand, were used to hang things on it, such as works of students.
Cikgu Nurul then told everyone to settle down before introducing herself. “Okay, class, please listen. My name is Cikgu Nurul and I am your assistant class teacher. Your class teacher is Ms Prema, but she is not here today. So, today, we are going to watch a movie,” said Cikgu Nurul, as she played a movie for us by switching on the computer and projector. We then watched the movie played by Cikgu Nurul as she accompanied us in the class. I just sat down and just looked at the screen while observing the classroom.
Soon, it was break time, and all of us went to our class table, which was located at the back of the canteen, which faces the school balcony. We then sat down at the table while we waited for instructions. As usual, Mr Chuang was waiting for everyone with a black microphone, standing at the corridor area. He then told everyone to seat, as he blared into the loudspeakers over what to do. The new boy who was placed in our class sat next to him while his mum came. I greeted him and saw his name on a clipped name tag. He hadn't had his uniform, but was a bit timid. I then had a chat with him, introduced myself, and guided him around the school while his mum brought his white buns over. His name was Yatisan Yap, and he would soon became a good friend of mine.
“Please wait at your class table. Don't buy your food yet,” instructed Mr Chuang. Ms Michelle and the management team were watching everyone, and then Mr Chuang gave us a few instructions on what to do.
“Don't play with your food. Just eat. When buying, go and buy and pay with your money. Please queue up when buying,” he called.
The 3 Sincerity class canteen table had a five-star view of the outside roads, and one can peer to Mutiara Damansara as well as the TM Tower which is located in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur. The sunlight streamed in as the teachers pulled down plastic curtains to protect us from the glare of the sun. Once we were done, I then took Yatisan on a walk around the school and sat with him and chat in the hall. Mr Chuang then directed us to sit down while he sat in front with a serious look on his face, watching the hall for errant trouble.
Break time soon came to an end and the bell begun ringing, with everyone lining up in the hall. Mr Chuang then came on the announcement and asked everyone to stop talking and line up in pairs. Our class teachers then came and asked us to follow them. Cikgu Nurul soon came, and we followed her.
“Shhh!!! Stop talking! Quiet!” cried the teachers as some of the students started to chatter in excitement. We then head back towards the courtyard, passing the stairwell and the library, and then finally, we arrived back at 3 Sincerity.
Cikgu Nurul then introduced herself as our Malay teacher and talked about a bit of herself. She then said that she hopes to look forward for the year as our Malay teacher in addition to being our class teacher. She then talked further about what we can expect for the year, and how things were going to go. Then, she showed us another movie before going for lunch. Before lunch, she presented us with meal coupons which we took before heading to buy food from the canteen. I purchased chicken rice and sat down with Yatisan to eat, as we all talked. The school was filled with tens of thousands of parents catching a glimpse of the action, as Yatisan's mother gave him money just in case he wishes to refill his stomach. We then continued talking, and Yatisan went to purchase some ice cream and ate. Following that, I went to the hall, and he followed me.
After lunch, Cikgu Nurul gave us more briefings for the year, and she decided to play games with us in class. We did some riddles, a wordsearch puzzle and a fill-in-the-blank worksheet before we headed down to the foyer.
I pulled out my trolley bag and brought it along the hallway. As our class faced the western wing of the building, we could see a covered zinc roof with the playground's roof sticking out of an opening in the roof, which was meant for Sekolah Kanak-Kanak Pekak Selangor at the time.
Bringing my bag down was quite easier than bringing it up, as dragging it down the stairs was of much help with the force of gravity. Cikgu Nurul then led us down, till we accompanied a queue in the school foyer. She then told us to line up behind as Mr Chuang readied the school for dismissal. It was 3:00pm, and the parents were standing on the right, at the school passageway, anxiously waiting for the day to end. Mr Chuang then told us to walk out quickly when our name was called. “Do not run!” he cried. “No talking, eyes in front, keep quiet.”
“Thank you teachers, bye-bye teachers, see you tomorrow,” Ms Michelle said, leading everyone to bid farewell to their teachers. Yatisan was next to me and I bade farewell to him as I walked out. He smiled patiently as everyone else waited for their turn to leave the foyer. It was blazing hot, and everyone wanted to go home quickly and have some rest from a long, tiring day at school.
The next day, 5th January 2010, was the first official day of lessons. We had a very exciting time when our class teachers came. Minus the protocol; it was the same protocol as Mr Chuang continued to coordinate the day.
Ms Prema was here today, and she told us that she would address the class during our Tuesday Homework time. And of course, we were introduced to our teachers. I had Ms Moh Lee teaching me English, Ms Josephine Thong as my Maths teacher, Ms Carmen as my Mandarin teacher, Ms Jeeva as my Science teacher, Cikgu Nurul as my Malay teacher, Ms Sarah teaching Enrichment, Mr Kwan teaching Music, Mr Mervin teaching ICT, and Ms Tin being my Art teacher.
Our first official lesson of the day was with Ms Moh Lee for English. She was quite a nice but soft teacher as she spoke. Ms Josephine then introduced us to four-digit place numbers during Maths, and Cikgu Nurul got started on our Malay comprehension topics. She came in with a lot of tape-binded books. She then gave us our Pemahaman, Penulisan and Tatabahasa books prepared by the school which are manuals that contained all the exercises. We had our first Enrichment lesson with Ms Sarah, and we were all so excited as we are going to learn about plants and flowers for our gardening project. Ms Sarah's initiative was to ask us to plant some kangkung and learn about gardening. There were four sessions for Enrichment in 2010; one for each quarter of the year, namely Gardening, Domestic Science, Speech and Drama and lastly, Music. Ms Sarah then told us about the types of flowers and informed us of our visit to the school garden on 12th January 2010 for our gardening lesson. Ms Josephine, on the other hand, was quite serious during her Maths class as she talked to us about our expectations. “Make sure that you have your Maths 1, Maths 2, Discover Maths Workbook and textbook,” she said. Mathematics would soon play a significant role, and Ms Josephine would be quite serious and dramatic with us in the days, weeks and months to come. Ms Jeeva then came in for Science to teach us about living and non-living things.
Ms Prema then came for our homework time, and she had a smile on her face. “Hi my dear class, I will be your class teacher for this year,” she said with a smile, joining Cikgu Nurul. Ms Prema wanted all of us to be well and good, and she outlined the housekeeping matters before giving us our Message Book and first messages to paste in them. “You know the style and what to do. You are in Primary 3 and not in Primary 1, so please make sure your parents sign the message in the message book. Whoever who did not paste or have their parents sign it, you are in trouble,” warned Ms Prema.
Ms Prema also gave us our worksheet file for us to get started, as well as the necessary materials. She did not mention much as the day went about as usual.
The days and weeks continued, with Ms Jeeva continuing from the previous day. She gave us worksheets to paste in our Science Notebook, and Ms Josephine continued our lesson as usual. As Yatisan tried his best to adapt to the new school lifestyle. His mother accompanied him for a week, while he tried on his school uniform. We were then told to write a journal in Malay about our best friend, and I wrote about him quite well. Mr Calvin then commented in my journal by encouraging me to write more about him. Yatisan would soon be a good friend of mine for three years. On top of that, Ms Carmen asked us to bring RM 50 to purchase the Mandarin textbook, “Chinese Made Easy For Kids”, and also told us to write the lyrics of “Ke Ren Lai Kan Ba Ba”, which is a song that teaches us about love to our parents. Ms Sarah also took us to the school garden on 12th January to tour the garden and how things went. The garden was quite large back then, right behind the school hall and at the site of the lower canteen that was eventually built the following year. Ms Sarah also told us to plant kangkung and draw the growth of the plants. Armed with gloves, caps and a towel, we went to investigate the garden. Some brought plants to sprice up the garden, and Ms Sarah told us that we would be doing kangkung planting on 28th January.
On Monday 18th January 2010, we had our Library Week. At the time, Nobel did not have a Library Week, so as such, the incentive of Library Week was to promote reading as a healthy habit in school. Cikgu Afza and the Library teachers headed the Library Week, along with the school librarians.
The Library Week opened electrically, as Ms Michelle launched the library week by opening a book titled ‘Book of Knowledge Kingdom’, which was presented by Cikgu Zara, one of the upper primary teachers. Inside the book, which was essentially a mock book, was a castle which popped up when she flipped opened the book, with the fonts titled 'Library Week 2010’ on the book. This was then followed by skits and performances of tales in various story books, before Mr Chuang ended the opening ceremony with a promotion of the ‘Ulat Buku’, which is a continuation of the Program Ulat Buku which keeps track of how many books we read.
The next day, 19th January 2010, saw students being treated to a series of book promotions in the Malay language, followed by the English language the following day. Cikgu Afza and Puan Halimah told us that the books would be available at the librarian's desk during the Library Week.
On Thursday, 21st January, we had an MPH Bookstore sale in the school hall that sold books. The staff set up tables behind the school hall to sell the books, and I just went and strolled around most of the time and did not buy books until the very end, when I bought a nursery rhyme book. However, the next day, on Friday, 22nd January 2010, we were treated to what is called a Reading Marathon, which aims to allow us to read a book for one hour. It might not be seen as much, but for children aged 12 and below, it was a harrowing experience. We had to practice the ‘DEAR’ philosophy (Drop Everything And Read), and all of us were instructed to bring a book and read. Yes, we had to read, for one hour. I brought a book which was titled ‘Old Man River’.
I finished reading the book within five minutes, while the rest of my friends had long, thick books. Within the first 15 minutes, I was struggling, since my book reading had finished, so I read again. Occasionally, I peered at the surroundings as the teachers walked around the hall. Mr Chuang himself held the microphone while Ms Michelle held a book to read. All the English teachers were armed with books, while at the same time, peering up and scanning the hall, searching for odd behavior. Fortunately, no one was making funny moves, with the exception of the late-line students hassling to settle down while their names were inched by the prefects on call, who took the names down like a city council officer smacking a parking ticket on the windscreen for parking touts, and the frustrated hushs of disgruntled teachers chiding students for not reading or were whispering during the Reading Marathon. There was utter silence like the great lockdowns of COVID-19, as the sounds of pages flipping were heard in the school hall.
I tried peering on my book, but I kept on finishing and praying that the long ordeal would end, which it did. Ms Michelle then called on everyone to stop before making an announcement. “Students! You did it! You completed the Reading Marathon! Give yourself a pat on the back!” she cried. She then continued to explain about the importance of reading and how it can benefit us. Then, Mr Chuang closed the day by congratulating us for demonstrating the character values during the Reading Marathon. He then closed the day with a prayer calling for God to ask us to seek wisdom in reading before dismissing us for our classes.
In terms of my subjects, Year 3 started out quite smoothly. In fact, there are a lot of cool guys in my class, especially Alex Chia, Julian Ong and Edward Lam. Ms Moh Lee did some comprehensions with us, while Cikgu Nurul also did comprehensions. She taught us about Kata Nama Am and Kata Nama Khas, as well as urging us to have an exercise book for Malay glossary. We had three books for Malay; spelling, comprehension (tatabahasa) and the glossary book.
On top of that, our first ICT lesson with Ms Kavitha was quite cool! We had the MSW Logo Screen software with a large arrow called the “turtle”, in which we had to input a series of commands for us to move the turtle to create a shape. It was quite fun, and Ms Kavitha taught us how to input the thing. However, some of the boys in our class, specifically, Edward Lam, was playing with games, and this made Ms Kavitha quite angry. She then scolded all of them and asked them to close the other programs they opened before sternly lecturing them.
Edward Lam, who is a friend of mine, was quite a playful student back in 2010. He would always use additional exercise books he had, as well as some paper, to draw comics in class. His comics ranged from battle fields to people fighting and funny characters. Julian Chong was also quite rowdy then, as well. However, we had a lot of cool boys too, like Alex Chia, who would soon become a great basketballer, and Rick Tan, who would always have a series of stern talks with me.
Rick Tan is a dear friend of mine and one who always has a serious talk with me. In fact, he was quite a mature guy and would talk things to me as if the advice was to come from my mum. He would talk sense into me when I tried to go out of tune, and at the same time, prepare me for life. Honestly speaking, I did not take most of his advice seriously and today, as I write this, looking back on what he spoke to me, I have a guilty feeling on times where I just ignored what he said, as he was really thinking of my wellbeing.
As the month of January drew to a close, Ms Sarah brought us to the library to plant the kangkung seeds, and we had to draw them in our Enrichment book. We would spend most of our time going around the garden and planting seeds. However, Ms Prema told us on 25th January that we had to move our classroom location to the first floor location next to the Secondary School's Science Lab. After Ms Jeeva's Science lesson, we went up, and Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul assisted us in taking our books and stuff to the new location of our classroom during our homework time.
I myself had to carry so many books in my bag down, and Ms Prema was quite frustrated as I had so many books. “Wei Yiang, come on, faster, faster,” she said. Cikgu Nurul was less strict and more gentle as she assisted me to carry my books. Ms Prema is quite strict on many housekeeping matters, especially our Message Book and Worksheet File. She gave us a lot of messages that we had to paste in our message book and bring it to our parents to sign. “Whoever who did not sign it, you will get it from me,” she warned.
Mr Chuang had also been having fun Character Building lessons with us. The same rhyming of Character Building continued as he told us to recap on the character trait of Obedience, which is obeying authority and conducting the tasks immediately, cheerfully and effectively without complaining but also trying to go the extra mile. His slides were quite interactive as he talked about what is real and fake, one that is lasting versus being temporary, and another which is being good versus evil. He told us that Character Building seeks to distinguish the truth from the fake in all three cases as the choice we make in those three scenarios would determine our character. “It is important to have good character because when you see a diamond, the feeling that you have towards the diamond is what determines your character,” said Mr Chuang. He then continued to explain about the relationship between the diamond and how it relates to good character.
Soon, it was Music Week, and we were treated to an opening ceremony on 1st February where 4 Integrity and 4 Destiny sang the Rasa Sayang song during assembly to open Music Week, along with a Basketball Rap by 5 Integrity. Janelle Arnelia, one of the students from our year level, also had a beautiful voice like Celine Dion and sung in good tune during the opening ceremony.
Mr Ang played music games with us in class where we had to guess the name of a song that he played on the computer in the music room. There were different songs played, but most of them were nursery rhymes. Mr Ang also gave us a worksheet to fill in as part of the Music Quiz. On top of that, Mr Kwan, the head of subject for Music, was quite enthusiastic as he smiled and grinned with his glasses to open Music Week. During break and lunch time, there was relaxing music being played in the canteen as I ate with Yatisan. Each time following our meal, he would dance to the tunes of the music. The Music Week was quite an enjoyful week as we were introduced to different songs, instruments and artists during the week. Winners of Music Week were presented with trophies and ice cream, and were allowed to eat them on stage on 12th February during the closing ceremony.
Soon, we had our Chinese New Year holidays, and we were asked to write about the holidays and our favorite song in conjunction with Chinese New Year and Music Week. I decided to write about the “Gong Xi Gong Xi” song, and during the holidays, I received a lot of angpows, went to Hutan Lipur Bukit Mertajam, watched and played with firecrackers while staying with my grandparents at their home in Bukit Mertajam, Penang.
When we returned from our holidays, we had a new English teacher named Ms Nandha, who had replaced Ms Moh Lee as she was relocating overseas. Ms Nandha was quite an interesting but serious teacher as well, but also still quite fun. I could still remember the fun Ms Moh Lee had with us, although her voice was quite soft. Ms Nandha had a bold and rough voice while she focused on the work she had with us.
Ms Josephine, on the other hand, was quite serious with our Mathematics work as she gave us worksheet after worksheet to do and also emphasized on standard written methods and workings for our answers. She told us to do our working on the left hand side of our exercise book, and demarcate a line for corrections on the other side. She kept on reminding us to make sure our book is neat.
“Edward Lam! Where is your working? Show your working! Your book must be neat, you know!” cried Ms Josephine. Edward just grinned and smiled and acted in a relaxed tone. There are a few ‘weak students’ in Ms Josephine's class, and the people whom she looked out for were Grace Tee, Louis, Glen, Yatisan, Joseph Yong and me. “Grace! Not like this!” Ms Josephine shouted impatiently as she walked around the classroom and checked our books during our Thursday lesson on 25th February. The next day, Ms Tin told us about what to expect for our Art lesson and gave us a piece of paper showing the materials required, which we had to paste in our message book.
As Sports Day was approaching fast, February was about to turn into March, and a lot of things were about to happen.
The first incident was our fire drill on Tuesday, 2nd March. After our PE lesson with Ms Crystlyn, we got back into our class for Malay with Cikgu Nurul. Cikgu Nurul then told us to take out our exercise books when the fire alarm started ringing. Christopher Chew then stood up and kept pretending to shout and panic. “Fire! Fire! Let's jump down the building!” he cried. Cikgu Nurul then called everyone to line up outside the classroom. “Put your bags and books inside. Leave your things behind. Line up. I want all of you to keep quiet,” she cried, before leading us down the hallways via the exit route assigned to us.
Mr Chuang, Ms Michelle and Mr Daniel Tan were standing in the foyer, ushering us. In fact, Mr Praba was there as well, and all of them were quite active, wearing foreman hats. They ushered us out and blew whistles for us to get out quickly. Cikgu Nurul then led us to the area in front of the Rehda building where we lined up in our Year 3 class zones. Different teachers were calling everyone to settle down and remain silent, while teachers did their roll calls. Ms Prema then passed by and asked if all of us were well, and told us to remain silent as Cikgu Nurul counted us and called our names to ensure we were present. Some people did not respond, so Cikgu Nurul had to yell louder. In fact, the whole school was outside, while Mr Chuang and Mr Kwan asked everyone to keep quiet in order to hear the roll call. Soon, the fire alarm died down after a routine check by the teachers, and we were told to re-enter the school building. We then gathered in the school hall, as Mr Kwan asked everyone to proceed to the school hall.
On our way to the school hall, Evan Hiew, Edward Lam, Alex Chia and Julian Ong were talking with Christopher Chew, and Cikgu Nurul asked them to hasten up. The crowd was filled with chatter as we entered the hall and took our seats. Soon, Mr Kwan and Mr Chuang were in front, and they took a ton of a time to get everyone to settle down.
“Fire drill is something to be taken seriously,” said Mr Kwan. “I see so many people taking their own sweet time to come down. You should be coming down quickly and not taking time. This is a situation where there is fire,” he said. In fact, he said that we took six minutes to evacuate the building, which is a disaster as a rapid fire spread could claim lives. He told us that the Tadika Sri Nobel (now Nobel Early Years) kindergarteners were able to evacuate much faster than us.
Mr Chuang then told us that the fire drill was a serious matter, and that “most people were taking their own sweet time to come down” which he repeated and quoted Mr Kwan, before telling us to be more disciplined and come down quickly in the future. He also said that he did not see people following the lining-up rules when going down. “Please remember to line up properly! Two by two! Look in front, and keep quiet!” he cried.
We also had our Worksheet file checking, and Ms Prema had told us to bring our worksheet file for checking during Pendidikan Moral, since she was teaching that subject. She was quite strict when we had to present the worksheet file on 3rd March, and when any individual failed to present their worksheet file, she would write their names on the whiteboard. Quite a large number of people failed to bring the worksheet file, but fortunately, I brought mine. Ms Prema then wrote the names on the top right corner of the whiteboard before getting angry at them in the class. The names that were written were Edward Lam, Andrew Ariffin, Christopher Chew, Joon Tzen, Glen Kay, Yatisan, Alex Chia, Evan Hiew, Grace Tee, Vanesse Leong and Ashley Teoh. Ms Prema told them to bring their worksheet files the next day before calling their parents.
Anyhow, during our PE lessons, the teachers did some rehearsal of the Sports Day programs with us. For the year 2010, the Sports Day was the only specialty in Nobel at the time as it was the only Sports Day to be held in the school compound, and the teachers were also dividing the Sports Day into two parts; one for the lower primary and another for the upper primary students. Year 1, 2 and 3 students were treated to a Telematch Day on 5th March as the teachers said it would increase our participation and that everyone would need to take part.
On 5th March 2010, everyone had to dress up in their sports attire, and Yatisan was in Yellow House. We arrived at school as usual, in the morning, and we had to line up in our class lines before being assigned to our houses. Mr Chuang then called for all of us to settle down and briefed us on what we were going to do, after giving some time for us to leave our bags in our class while our teachers led us down.
“When you are called for the telematch, line up in the front of the hall,” said Mr Chuang as Ms Michelle looked on. Then, it was time for the games to begin.
The teachers, along with some secondary school students, begun to arrange the props used for the telematch as well as some canteen benches and tables in the school hall in order to prepare for the telematch to start. Each year level was given three games to participate in; the Year 1s had the games of Fill Me Up, Chicken Bomb, Ping Pong Ball and Spoon; the Year 2s were given Weave Me Through, Sort Me Up and the three legged race. Us Year 3 students had to contend with the games of Plastic Men, Pass Me Up and Sarung Race.
The Year 1 students’ Chicken Bomb game was quite funny, as they had to do a chicken pose while squatting on the floor. While the Fill Me Up game, which involved filling up a plastic bottle with water collected from a sponge, was quite normal to watch, the entire school was cheering and ecstatic. Ms Michelle was also joyful, while Mr Chuang went around instructing everyone what to do. The three-legged race by the Year 2s was also quite amusing to watch, as people had to run in pairs with their legs tied, but it was worth it.
The hall was then played with a lot of songs, especially the song, “Summer Holiday”. Our Plastic Men game involved students placing a lot of Revive drink bottles on people who were standing up in the centre of the hall, and I was one of the ‘Plastic Men’ on the game. The rule was to have the most bottles on one person and not let them fall off, and they should put the bottles wherever possible; from the legs to the armpits. Many of my friends from Green House, like Pei Chi and Evan Hiew, were putting their bottles on me as I tried to balance them. On the second round, it was Pei Chi's turn, and we had to put bottles on her, while Mr Chuang counted and cheered.
Soon, it was the teachers’ game, and Ms Prema, who was in Blue House, was also competing in the match. The funniest game of all was the One-Legged Pillow Fight, which saw all the teachers trying to balance on canteen benches while smacking each other with pillows. It was quite funny to see Ms Prema bashing Cikgu Nurul, Mr Paul and Mr Praba while they tried to hold balance. Our class, 3 Sincerity, cheered Ms Prema, and Pei Chi was screaming so loudly, “Ms Prema! Ms Prema!” Even Ms Michelle, Mr Chuang, Ms Ingel and Mr Sures took turns bashing each other with pillows, to a loud roar by the crowd. Then, it was Ms Josephine, Ms Thava, Ms Kalai and Puan Halimah battling each other. The teachers from Green House who bashed the opponents were Cikgu Nurul, Ms Josephine, Ms Carol, Cikgu Zoraidah, Cikgu Asilah, Ms Kavitha and Ms Jeeva. The telematch was supposed to end by 10:00am, but because of some matches being so long, as well as the presence of the teachers’ game, it ended close to 11:30am and it was soon time to pack our stuff to go home. All students who completed the telematch received a badge of participation. On top of that, the theme for Nobel for the academic year 2010 was ‘1Nobel’, which was reflected on our Sports Day t-shirt. The following week, the Sports Day for the other upper primary students from Year 4 to 6 was held at Panasonic Stadium with the track events.
World Maths Day was held at Nobel for the first time in March 2010. The goal of World Maths Day was to promote mathematics to all the students. All the maths teachers were involved in the preparation for World Maths Day. Each student had to be in the computer lab during their Maths class, accompanied by their Maths teachers or class teachers in order to guide the students during the competition. Each student had to answer a maths question, such as “1+1=_” and key the answer on the screen. A series of questions will come out and everyone is given one minute to answer. The students need to play until the last level and then they can win. Ms Josephine, our Maths teacher, encouraged us to play the World Maths Day game at home if we are free in order to score more points.
During the morning assembly on 8th March, the teachers also briefed us about the competition and said that a prize would be given to the student who scores the most points during the World Maths Day competition between 1st March and 31st March 2010, in the form of a certificate. Ms Kavitha let us play the game on 12th March 2010 during our ICT lesson, and we were given a password by Ms Josephine to paste in our Message Book. Playing World Maths Day was quite a marvel in itself because it allowed us to compete with other students from different schools worldwide. I didn't play quite much then, but it was quite interesting to play during our ICT lesson.
During the March school holidays from 13th to 21st March, I went on a trip to Melaka and stayed at Holiday Inn Hotel which is a large luxurious hotel located by the seaside. There was a floating mosque, a jetty, and a card which gave access to our room when tapped, and we had to write them in our journal. Upon returning from the school holidays, we had a big surprise for us by Ms Josephine; the multiplication table.
Memorizing the multiplication table will be one of the most memorable things that I will remember during my time in Nobel as Ms Josephine called it the “times tables” because of the 'X’ symbol being read as ‘times’. So, on the first day of school following the holidays, Ms Josephine came into our class with our exercise books, and she placed so many sticky notes on the exercise books to indicate how many corrections that we had to do, and Edward Lam's had the most.
“Class, I want to tell you that I am very disappointed. A lot of you need to do corrections,” she boomed. “Some of you did not complete your work. Some of you don't know how to plus or minus. Please do corrections and pass the book up to me,” she warned. I was only praying that my book would not have corrections until Ms Josephine announced the people whose books were correction-free: Leong Shaun, Adrianna Yip and Pui Mun. This meant everyone else had to do corrections.
Ms Josephine then gave us the book back and told us that we had until the next day, 23rd March, to finish all the corrections. Most of the corrections that we had to do were based on our standard written method workings. Back then, it was forbidden for primary school students to use a calculator, and many of us had to do workings to prove the correct answer. It was a pain using my little head to add, subtract, multiply and divide without the convenience of a calculator.
Then, Ms Josephine started teaching the multiplication table, and we had to do exercises in our workbook. The following day, we did divisions and had to pass up our homework and the corrections Ms Josephine gave us. Those who failed to finish the corrections and homework were punished by Ms Josephine. Edward Lam was one of those being punished, along with Evan Hiew and Christopher Chew. Then, the following week, there were more people that had to do corrections in the workbook and exercise book, and Ms Josephine was very angry when she had to return them. “How many times do I have to tell you, that you must do your corrections? Some of you never learn. Now, you look at your book. So many stickers!” she cried, returning the books to us before beginning the topic on division.
Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul soon got wind of Edward's behavior in class, and then came in during Homework Time to give him a piece of his mind. Ms Prema then took him out of the class and scolded him while he grinned happily as if he was on holiday. She was shouting and scolding him for his behavior in class and had repeatedly told him that all the teachers had got wind of his attitude and had problems with him.
Each time Ms Josephine did the standard written methods with us, the entire whiteboard would be filled with workings. My head got so dizzy because at the same time, every time following dinner, my mum would also drill me on the Mathematics questions. In fact, for my entire life in Nobel, Maths would be a part and parcel of daily life for me. It seemed like Mathematics was so hard, but Ms Josephine also encouraged us to put in our best effort and most importantly, have the right attitude for learning. However, the only problem Ms Josephine had with me was me not grasping the Mathematics concepts, especially when my working was not right. “Wei Yiang! Handwriting! Your work is so messy; make it neat! Otherwise your answers will be wrong!” she cried, as if we had to report to a big boss who is temperamental. Then, she took aim at Grace Tee, who also made a bit of mistakes. Ms Josephine was quite emotional and impatient, aiming and emphasizing for our perfectness. “No! Not like this! Times! What is fourteen times eleven? Follow the steps!”
Mr Chuang divided everyone in our year into two groups, which he named, “Facebook” and “Twitter” (the latter of which is now known as X), for our Character Building, and begun talking about the character value of Attentiveness. “Are you listening to your teachers?” he asked. He said that we should be attentive as not being attentive would result in less things learnt for the day. He then told us to say the character value and definition out loud; “Showing the worth of a person by giving full concentration to his or her words.”
The Maths and Science week soon came, and on 29th March 2010, the opening ceremony was launched by Ms Michelle and the Maths teachers, who popped confetti on the stage. Each student was given sudoku to do during our Maths class with Ms Josephine, who decided to take a break from screaming and shouting at us. We were also amazed by the presence of Mad Science staff who came to do experiments during assembly time, while Ms Jeeva also gave us games to do which involved Peppy the Pirate. There was an interesting close during the closing ceremony, where a large dome was built to symbolize a sci-fi world. Other than that, we didn't do much.
After the Maths and Science Week ended, Ms Prema then told us to bring our worksheet file and even went to the extent of giving us stickers to paste in our message book to remind us. We had to bring them on 5th April 2010, and Ms Prema had to write a long list of names on the right hand corner of the whiteboard as well as on the top in tandem with those that failed to bring, and I can remember she wrote all of them in small letters, such as “edward”, “glen”, “lydia”. There were at least 14 names that Ms Prema had to write, which included Rick, Pei Chi, Evan, Vanesse, Pui Mun, Joseph Yong, Yatisan, Andrew Ariffin, Julian Chong and Adrianna Yip
“I am so disappointed. Half the class failed to bring their worksheet file. Why did you forget? You didn't know you have to bring today, is it?” she boomed. All the teachers were quite surprised that a long list of names took up a huge section of the whiteboard, and Cikgu Nurul, Ms Nandha, Ms Josephine and Ms Jeeva complained they had no more space to write on the whiteboard. What made things worse was the names obscuring the view of the projected screen beamed by the classroom projector. So, Ms Prema told them it was temporary and would be settled in three days.
Leong Shaun was soon made a trainee prefect, and was presented with a trainee prefect tag. This was the second time I know of someone being made a trainee prefect, with Zi Quan the previous year. Ms Prema got even more angry when she learned of Edward Lam, Andrew Ariffin, Christopher Chew, Julian Chong and Evan Hiew playing in class, and she told them off. She scolded Edward for wasting his exercise books by using all of them to draw comics, as he had apparently complained of running out of exercise books to use in class. Additionally, Ms Tin, our art teacher, did some eggshell faces with us in art lessons on 9th April, and they look quite cool. Christopher Chew's eggshell resembled somewhat of a monster, while Andrew Ariffin's represented a mini western puppet. Julian Chong quite somewhat broke off his eggshell by accident.
Ms Josephine, frustrated at the large amount of people needing to do corrections, decided to give some students a remedial class. So, on 14th April, she decided to make the grim announcement to us.
“Some of you need remedial,” she said. When Christopher Chew, Yan Ying and Edward Lam asked what a remedial was, Ms Josephine said it was additional classes that would be conducted after school, and that our parents would be informed about that. “You will be one of the people that I will choose for remedial class,” Ms Josephine said sternly, taking aim at Edward.
Then, she called out other names, namely Yatisan, Grace, Louis, Andrew Ariffin, Evan Hiew, Yan Ying, Lydia, Joseph Diong and Glen, and asked them to stay back every Wednesday from 3:20pm to 4:30pm so that she can conduct the remedial class. “The remedial class will be at the end of this month onwards until your Mid Year Examination,” she said.
Back in those days, going for remedial class was seen as a punishment for one who had performed incredibly worse in academics, and remedial classes were limited to the weak students. Rick had told me that I should improve in my Maths or risk joining the remedial class as well.
Ahead of the Mid Year Examination, Ms Josephine gave each and everyone of us colored pieces of paper containing the multiplication tables from 1 to 12, and we had to memorize the multiplication tables from 1 to 5 first. “I will ask you the time tables and you must answer. If you don't know, it means you are lazy to read the time tables,” she said.
Then, Ms Josephine told us to read the multiplication tables one by one, reciting it out loud in front of her. “One, one, one. Two, one, two,” we muttered, as she told us to remember them. We pasted the colored papers together while she stapled them for us. Then, we had to read each and every one of them at home. “Remember! Tomorrow, I will ask you the time tables,” she said during our lesson on 14th April. The multiples of five were the easiest to remember, as it followed the hands of the clock. Ms Josephine said that if we cannot remember the multiples of five, there is something wrong as there are 60 minutes on the clock face and each of the numbers represent a multiple of five. For example, the number 12 on the clock corresponds to 60 minutes while the number 6 on the clock represents 30 minutes.
Every time, my mum would also ask me on the multiplication tables, and I will need to answer. Multiplication memorization would become a way of life for the rest of 2010.
It was also Minggu Bahasa Malaysia, or Malay Week. Cikgu Nurul gave us a Malay poem (pantun teka-teki) to recite and read during class, while Puan Wati, the head of Malay subject, opened the Malay Week with the style of a Malay kenduri and of Malay culture. Ms Michelle was wearing baju kurung as she opened the Malay Week in pomp and fashion with Puan Halimah looking on. There were mini palms that guided Ms Michelle, Puan Wati and Puan Halimah to launch the ceremony on 12th April. The stage was set up like a traditional Malay kampung house for the occasion, and during the closing ceremony, a series of Malay songs like Rasa Sayang and more traditional Malay classics from Malay folklore were presented. We all had lots of fun with games and activities presented by the Malay teachers, especially Puan Wati and Cikgu Zoraidah.
Rick Tan kept on asking if I had memorized Ms Josephine's multiplication tables. In fact, Ms Josephine had asked us to memorize, and threatened to get angry at us if we failed to do so. The strain on my brain was quite serious as I had to memorize all the times tables quickly and efficiently.
“What is five times two?” asked Rick. I responded, “ten”.
Then, Rick Tan asked me another question and I failed to answer correctly. “Wrong! Oh, oh, ti tai yoh! Pilly pilly potato!” he cried. Rick told me that I should be ready for Ms Josephine's class as she was about to ask the multiplication tables. In fact, Ms Josephine would randomly do spot checks on us at any time and ask us to belt out the answer to the multiplication question.
After lunch time on Monday, 19th April, Ms Josephine started questioning us on the multiplication tables. Then, she started with Joseph Yong, who was in front of the line, after leading us back from the school hall. When Joseph could not answer the question, Ms Josephine told him to stand outside the class. Then, after a few moments, it was my turn. I forgot the answer, and Ms Josephine told me to stand aside. When the entire class was ushered inside, at least 10 people were outside, mainly boys, alongside Grace Tee who was the only girl in the group. Other than me, Grace and Joseph, Edward, Andrew Ariffin, Evan Hiew, Louis Soon, Julian Chong, Glen Kay and Yatisan were very unlucky that day.
“Why didn't you memorize? Why did you forget?” cried Ms Josephine as she acted like a perfectionist. “Go back home, memorize, and I don't want to see you here again,” she cried, before asking us to enter the classroom before a lesson on meters, centimeters and milimetres.
Adriana Yip's father, who was working in Dragon-I, a prominent restaurant chain, asked Adriana herself to give invitations to promote the restaurant, and Adriana gave them to us that afternoon during Homework Time. Many people asked Adriana about the restaurant, and she introduced her dad to us. Cikgu Nurul and Ms Prema told Adriana that they will try to experience and dine at the restaurant when all is well, and Ms Prema also encouraged us to dine at the restaurnt. Ms Prema also told us that homework time is not a time where we can play around and do whatever we wished; either we had homework to be done, or we do our revision or read a book.
Then, the next week, on 26th April, Ms Josephine went around the class to ask about the multiplication tables again. Those that answered correctly were allowed to go for their lunch time, while those that failed to answer correctly were held back by Ms Josephine for a serious lecture. Then, she started from the first table close to the door where Ashley Er, Yan Ying and Pei Chi were. Leong Shaun had to be excused because he had prefect duty, and had to eat early. Ms Josephine threatened to ask again on the coming Wednesday, but it turned out that the school was closed due to H1N1.
Anyhow, the teachers had started telling us that the H1N1 season was back and that we had to take care of ourselves, while posters had been placed in the canteen that reminded us on the importance of hand washing and how to properly wash our hands. As some students had contracted the H1N1 disease, Ms Michelle told us to prioritize importance on our health and stay healthy. Sadly, the school had to close from 28th April to 5th May as a result of more H1N1 cases in school. But for the multiplication tables, I was lucky and was able to go for my lunch. We lined up outside the classroom while Ms Josephine handled those that failed the questions, and then took us to the canteen.
H1N1 was serious business, and I had to write about H1N1 in our journal essay. “We have to protect our healthiness. If you don't protect our health, we will die; you can die or rush to the hospital. If it is too late at the hospital, you will die,” I wrote in my journal with incorrect grammar.
We then returned to school on 5th May as Ms Prema took a thermometer gun to scan our heads for abnormal temperature. In fact, Edward Lam decided to act cool and together with Christopher Chew, Julian Chong and Evan Hiew, they made paper guns. Ms Prema confiscated the guns during Homework Time and told them off for playing in class. “Why you use all your book for cartoons?” cried Ms Prema. “No wonder the teachers are very fed up with you,” she cried. She then told Edward that the Mid Year Examination was coming up and cartoons weren't part of the examination. It was also Louis’ birthday, and we all sang the birthday song for him. Ms Prema then gave out the messages by Ms Michelle for us to paste in our message book. As Nobel was not an international school then, it is required by the Ministry of Education to replace the cancelled school days due to H1N1, and sadly, 15th May, my birthday, was a replacement Saturday school day, along with 22nd May and 23rd August, which was an occasional school holiday due to the upcoming concert, which I will talk about later. I had planned for a birthday party that day, and the preparation was affected by the replacement school day. The Mid Year Examination was also postponed to start on 27th May instead of 25th May thanks to H1N1.
Rick Tan continued to quiz me on the multiplication tables, and Rick told me to continue to memorize them. Ms Josephine then started getting fed up when many people cannot answer the questions in class. “When you arrive at school, read the time tables. When you are finished with your homework, read the time tables. When it is break time and you are waiting for assembly, read the time tables. When you are eating, read your time tables. When you go to toilet to pass urine, read the time tables. When you are POO-POOING (defecating), read the time tables! And before sleeping on your bed, lie down, open the time tables and READ!” she yelled.
Edward Lam soon begun making more comics, and he, Julian and Evan went to tease Louis, who got really angry and started screaming and shouting, and Ms Prema had to calm him down and tell them to stop. Then, during ICT, he was playing games during Ms Kavitha's lesson on Friday, 7th May which resulted in Ms Kavitha shouting at him and telling him to stand in front. When Ms Kavitha found out that he had downloaded games from the Internet on the computer, she was so furious. “I'm bringing you down to see Ms Michelle! Who asked you to download all these games?!” she cried. Ms Michelle then met Andrew and Edward in her office, along with Ms Kavitha, and she had a stern talk with them.
Auntie Clarine's birthday soon dawned upon us, and each one of us would need to buy Milo packets for her birthday in order to give them to the Fungates Superflow Foundation charity drive. On Monday, 10th May 2010, I brought my share of Milo and Ms Prema collected them while asking us to write our name and class on a sticker which would be placed for greetings to Auntie Clarine and the recipient of the Milo packet. Cikgu Nurul also assisted to collect them, while Ms Prema scolded Edward for his act in the computer lab. “Who asked you to download the games? Ms Michelle and Ms Kavitha are not happy with what you did, and I am very angry,” she said.
The next day, 11th May 2010, was Auntie Clarine's birthday. We all went to the hall to celebrate her birthday, as she entered the hall with Ms Michelle before revealing the packets of Milo which were colored in green on the stage. She was then treated to a choir of teachers who sang, “You Raise Me Up”. Then, on 14th May, it was Teacher's Day, and while there was no celebration then, I gave each of my teachers a handmade flower my mum bought for me. Cikgu Nurul, Ms Tin, Mr Chuang, Ms Kavitha and Ms Prema received the flowers while I went to give the rest to the other teachers in the days afterward. My mum asked me to make a list to give the flowers to them.
On 15th May 2010, we had a replacement school day due to the H1N1 closure, and we had to come back for one whole day as if it was a normal school day from Mondays to Thursdays. The replacement school day came as a surprise, as I had planned for my birthday party that evening at my house. My mum and I were concerned that most of my friends could not make it for the party because they would only have three hours to prepare before coming to my house, since the party begins at 6:30pm. Fortunately, the guests said it was doable and attainable, and the party would go on as planned.
15th May 2010 begun as normal like any other usual day as we gathered in the school courtyard for the morning assembly. Rick Tan, of course, wished me a happy birthday and got to work drilling on the multiplication tables, but then I asked for a short break since it was birthday and he agreed. Then, it was time for the morning assembly and we went back to class for our Malay lesson with Cikgu Nurul. Many of my friends felt pity on me since the birthday celebration is wrecked by a school replacement day. So, Cikgu Nurul told me it was good that my birthday be a replacement school day as she told me to see the bigger picture that everyone in our class would be here to celebrate it.
Glen and Yatisan talked to me when Cikgu Nurul's class ended as we headed down for break time, excited about this evening's birthday party. In fact, Cikgu Nurul had also asked who was going to my birthday party that very evening. This was then followed by our English lesson thereafter, where we had a new English teacher named Ms Saleeni that came to take over from us. Ms Saleeni had been conducting our classes since 12th May 2010 and we were wondering what had happened to Ms Nandha. Yan Ying and Pei Chi describe Ms Saleeni as a much more relaxed teacher than Ms Nandha, who was quite particular on certain matters. Then, it was Ms Josephine's class, and luckily, she did not do the multiplication drills with us. However, she returned back with a pile of books containing sticky notes on them. Wow! What a treat for my birthday, I guess. Corrections as a birthday gift.
Ms Josephine then called each and every one of us to take our books from her desk, and for those that had a sticky note, Ms Josephine spoke on the quality of our work, and what should be done to improve. Then, she took aim at me and said that I should stay back for her remedial class on the coming Wednesday. “Please let your mum know,” she said. Ms Josephine told us to do our textbook exercises in our Maths 1 Exercise Book while she marked the Maths 2 book.
Ms Jeeva, our Science teacher, had a funny revision technique for the Mid Year Examination. She decided to practice the exam questions with us during the lesson as the revision week was about to start. So, as a result, Ms Jeeva decided to put some random questions on Powerpoint slides and show them to us while we wrote the answers in our books.
We had extra meal coupons given for the day, and we had to buy lunch. Throughout most of the day, I wanted to defecate, but because I don't prefer to use the washroom to defecate in school, I went home to do so then. I was a kid then.
The next week came quite quick, and on Monday, 17th May, Ms Josephine asked me if I had informed my mum about the remedial. I nodded and told her I will be attending. That means it would be the first time in Nobel that I would stay close to the evening hours. Then, she did a multiplication drill on us, and went from seat to seat to ask us. She begun with Edward, who stood up immediately when called. “Remain standing,” said Ms Josephine when Edward did not know the answer. Then, I was out of luck as I did not know the answer and Ms Josephine told me to stand up. After scouting from seat to seat, Ms Josephine was disappointed.
“I sometimes still see the same people standing up. Why is it so difficult for you to memorise the times tables? Exam is coming, and you all are still like this,” she frowned. Ms Prema also gave us an announcement on Ms Saleeni taking over our class and a message to give to our parents. She also told those who were heading for the Remedial Class with Ms Josephine to be reminded of their presence for the remedial lesson.
On Tuesday, 18th May, Ms Jeeva brought us to the Science Lab for an experiment on one of our topics, and at the end of the experiment, she asked us to do the same questions she showed on 15th May to us. “Remember! You must get the questions correctly. These questions are the same exact questions that will come out for your Mid Year Examination,” she warned. Ms Jeeva wanted us to answer them correctly in order to do well in the exam. Then, we went back to our class where Ms Prema was waiting for us for Homework Time.
The next day, we had our Mathematics Remedial on 20th May 2010. Ms Josephine led us up from the school hall after lunch, and then stopped us outside the classroom, when she begun to drill the time tables on us again. Those who failed to answer were asked to stand at the side. Then, it was my turn.
“7 X 6?” asked Ms Josephine. “42”, I replied. Ms Josephine ushered me into the classroom. Then, those that failed to answer correctly were asked to line up in front of Ms Josephine and then she gave another set of questions, and Edward was the last one to enter after multiple failed attempts, with Ms Josephine being frustrated that he was taking his own time. Then, Ms Jeeva came in again and did the same questions shown on the Powerpoint slides again, and we performed better. “Make sure you answer well! These questions will be in your exam paper!” she cried. Homework time soon came, and Ms Josephine entered the class after the Homework time for our Remedial class.
“I want all of you who is in Remedial Class today to prepare an exercise book. No! Not the school's Sekolah Sri Nobel green exercise book. I want you to have an exercise book bought from a bookstore or stationery shop outside of school, and write your name, class and the word, “Maths Remedial”. This will be your Remedial Book,” she said. Then, she proceeded to give us a worksheet and tell us to use the standard written method to add, subtract, multiply and divide. She walked around the class to guide us strictly.
“Grace! No! Not like this!” she cried, and then proceeded to dictate the correct method. Then, she passed me. “Handwriting! Messy!” she shouted. Once everyone was done with their worksheets, Ms Josephine then told us the correct method, drawing up the Standard Written Method for us to copy and follow. “Do you understand?” she asked. Then, she did a revision for us on the addition and subtraction of four-digit numbers before dismissing us. My mum was waiting at the school foyer to pick me, and it was quite eerie since most teachers and students had left.
Then, the next week was our Mid Year Examination, and we had to re-arrange the tables in our class to meet the examination format. My mum repeatedly drilled me on the Maths questions, and for Science, we struck gold during the examination when we found out that the exam questions from the Science slideshows Ms Jeeva showed us came out in the examination. Above all, the rest of the subjects were okay, with Malay being a struggle to me.
Following the examination, Ms Jeeva returned our exam papers to us on 2nd June and congratulated us on our good performance. “Since all of you got 100 marks, we do not have to discuss the paper, as all of you got 100 and no questions wrong,” she said. So, we just did our own things in the lesson. I felt so excited when I got 100 marks in the exam. It was the first out of three subjects to achieve 100 marks; the other being Mandarin in 2011 during the Final Year Examination when I was in Year 4, and the Year 9 Geography Modular Test on 8th October 2015. Then, on 3rd June, we got our Maths revision exercise books ready for the remedial class that Ms Josephine requested, and she continued doing revisions with us.
After the holidays ended, the class decided to throw a birthday celebration for Ms Prema on 23rd June during lunch time as a result of her birthday being occupied by the school holidays (her birthday is on 14th June). Yan Ying and Pei Chi were keeping the surprise shut, and asked me to tell Ms Prema to bring her down. When I told Ms Prema about what was going to happen while Yan Ying and Pei Chi accompanied me, they scolded me for letting the cat out of the bag.
During Homework Time, Ms Prema told us to take out the PTM message that she gave us on 4th June before the holidays started, and asked everyone to present to her. Edward Lam somehow forged his mum's signature to prevent Ms Prema from scolding him, but Ms Prema caught him red handed when she found out that the signature was not like his mum's. In fact, a lot of them forged it based on how their parents signed it, since there were similar signatures and messages in the message book. “Hey! Edward! Why did you sign on your own? If Ms Michelle catches you doing this, you are going to be in trouble and I am sending you to Ms Michelle's room,” she said. Then, she warned everyone not to do this and gave a stern lecture in the class. “You had two weeks to show your parents during holidays. How come you go and do this?” she yelled.
Ms Josephine then exempted me from the remedial class for Maths, which meant I was free from remedial classes. However, my mum, determined to prevent my Maths results from slumping, decided to invest in home tuition classes with a teacher named Ms Ng, who came every Wednesday to tutor me from 7:30pm to 9:00pm; although I requested an earlier start time of 7:00pm which was granted. Ms Josephine also gave her contact number to my mum to be in close contact regarding my Maths performance during the PTM 2 on 26th June. It was also the school day then as the third replacement holiday on 23rd August was brought forward so that concert logistics can be settled on the day.
On 2nd July 2010, Ms Prema told us that she will be collaborating with Ms Tin with Art in order to display posters in our class. For our Art lesson, Ms Tin and Ms Prema told us to draw a poster of the 2010 FIFA World Cup which was taking place in South Africa. Most of us drew the logo during the Pendidikan Moral and Art lesson. The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the very first FIFA World Cup that I watched and was introduced to it. The logo for 2010 consisted of a football player in black on a orange background kicking a ball, with a blue border on the right containing the words “FIFA World Cup”. We were also told to make our own signature during Pendidikan Moral and Art as well, and I made a squiggly signature which I still use today which mimics my full name. It looks like spaghetti actually. What I like about Nobel was that global events were introduced to us to stimulate our interest in the events and outside affairs.
We were also told to write a journal on the FIFA World Cup as the teachers promoted the football craze to us; one to describe the World Cup in Malay, and another in English to write about who will win the FIFA World Cup Final. I was rooting for the Netherlands to win, but ultimately, Spain emerged as the champion of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The World Cup caught the craze as well as Mr Chuang also taught us about how the character trait of availability helped the Spanish team win the World Cup. He then talked to us about how he and his family lived and he even gave information about Caleb Chuang's schedule with the family.
We then had our first field trip of the year to Floria Putrajaya, which is an international horicultural festival showcasing various flowers in Putrajaya. The 2010 edition ran from 10th to 18th July 2010, but however, Nobel was sending us Year 3 students on a field trip on 12th July 2010. The following years got to go on the 13th July (Year 1 and 2), and 14th July (Year 4 and 5). Floria Putrajaya had been advertised in the newspapers, and we were quite excited to see the exhibition.
On 13th July 2010, we went on our field trip to Floria Putrajaya. Everyone was gathered in the courtyard that day, and Ms Prema told us to choose a partner for the trip. I sat next to Joseph Yong while Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul took our attendance. Behind us were Glen and Yatisan, who were chit-chatting with each other. Lydia Lee had a nice hat while speaking to Ashley Er, Cassandra, Yan Ying and Pei Chi. Ms Prema told us to keep quiet while Ms Sugunes made announcements to us. “Edward! Julian! Christopher! Please keep quiet!” shouted Ms Prema as Ms Sugunes begun to speak.
Ms Sugunes told us that we would be assigned to our buses, and us students from 3 Sincerity would be in bus 4. “Please follow your teachers at all times; we don't want anyone to be lost.”
A minute later, we hopped on the bus and Joseph Yong and I sat in the front. The bus then begun moving as I ate some potato buns with Joseph, who had a snack as well. Ms Prema then sat in the front of the bus with Cikgu Nurul as we begun our journey to Floria Putrajaya.
As the bus passed Bandar Sunway, Ms Prema then told everyone that her house is located near the highway. Then, I told Ms Prema and Joseph where my house was as it passed Puchong, before it entered the large roads bordering Putrajaya.
Floria Putrajaya is located at Precinct 4, which overlooked the Putrajaya Lake between the Seri Wawasan and Seri Saujana Bridges. The large swathes of flowers greeted us as we stepped off the bus, before Ms Sugunes led us to a gathering area. Cikgu Nurul and Ms Prema assembled all of us in front of the entrance. Following a briefing and a toilet break for some, we continued our tour through the exhibition. Joseph Yong and I followed Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul as we were toured by a guide, who gave us descriptions of various flowers and plants at Floria Putrajaya as we explored. Ms Prema took care of me and Joseph most of the time.
There was a groove of flowers shaped in the form of the 1Malaysia logo, a series of cartoon characters like Spongebob Squarepants, as well as a series of flowers forming the flags of the various states of Malaysia. In store for us was a mist tunnel, a bonsai garden, as well as a gallery of flowers inside an erected canopy. We then headed to the Twilight Garden and Outdoor Garden. A series of white, illuminated cylinders brought joy and fun to the park. Ms Prema then took me and Joseph around, touring a flower exhibition in a tent as well as watching a video on species of flowers. Then, we met Yatisan and Glen. Yatisan had brought a large, black camera and was taking pictures. Glen was beside him, admiring his camera which was of the Nikon brand.
Once everyone was done touring, we were free to explore the exhibition on our own, and I walked around while keeping guard for our teachers. I then went to the 1Malaysia sign and had a look, but however, Ms Prema saw me and told me not to go too far, since we were heading back to school soon. Yan Ying, Pei Chi and Lydia bought a souvenir from a gift shop at Floria Putrajaya before we headed back to our buses. There were different classes, and I spotted Pei Chi and Yan Ying in order to follow them back so that I won't get lost.
While in the bus, Joseph Yong, Glen Kay and Yatisan took out Ms Josephine's multiplication table booklet to memorize, and my mum had given me a card containing the multiplication tables to memorize them, thus leaving my booklet at home to ensure it does not get lost. Everyone in the bus from 3 Sincerity was looking at the multiplication tables, as we were returning back to school by lunch, and following that, Ms Josephine would meet us for Maths, so we were worried that a surprise test would come up, since Ms Josephine had promised us a multiplication test.
Once we returned to school, we then met Ms Josephine, who took us back to 3 Sincerity following lunch. On our desks were pieces of worksheets containing the multiplication tables from 1 to 5. Fortunately, I was able to do the multiplication tables from 1 to 5, and got most of them correct. Ms Josephine then discussed the answers, calling out each individual one by one to say the answers they wrote as part of the discussion process. She started with Edward first, then followed by Lydia, Yan Ying and so on, and each person had to say the answer in the multiplication tables as what they wrote when Ms Josephine called them. The multiples of 1 were quite easy, as Ms Josephine said she will mark that on her own. “If you get the one times table wrong, there is something wrong with your brain,” she said. “You need to have remedial on Saturday. I will speak with Ms Michelle to book the time, or I will come to your house to purposely teach you.”
Then, it was the multiples of 2, and Ms Josephine asked us to mark it on our own. Those who got the answer wrong when called to answer by Ms Josephine had to stand up, and were only allowed to sit once they got the answers right. Edward Lam, Julian Chong, Alex Chia and Christopher Chew stood up the most, and Ms Josephine only allowed them to sit after testing the harder multiples. Ms Josephine then said she would try to do mutiples of 11 and 12 for us to answer in the next course of our lesson. Ms Prema then came in after Ms Josephine's class, and she said that she was planning a flag project for Merdeka Day in which each of us had to draw state flags. Then, she also talked to us about the upcoming concert which had been mentioned for some time.
In 2010, there were actually two charity concerts planned by the school, namely the Retro Concert 2010, which was held in April 2010 and organized by the Secondary School, and the upcoming concert that would be held on 21st August 2010.
The Primary School's Charity Concert was known as the Alice in Wonderland Concert, and the script was written by Ms Cherlyn and Mr Kwan, the heads of Speech and Drama as well as Music. Alice in Wonderland Concert 2010 was written based on a novel of the same name, “Alice in Wonderland”. There were up to 15 performances showcasing different skits and cultures which would be incorporated into the tale of Alice in Wonderland.
During our Character Building, Pendidikan Moral and Enrichment lessons, which were based on Speech and Drama at the time, each individual was assigned to their skits, and I was assigned to the Kung Fu Panda scene. However, I dropped out of the concert and wasn't involved in the concert, since I was a bit shy in front of the camera. Ms Prema then told those who had dropped out that we should have had participated in the concert and our reason wasn't great enough. If I had the chance, I would participate in the concert, although I was given a second chance four years later with the 10th Anniversary Concert and various skits.
The following week, from 19th to 23rd July 2010, was the English Week, and Ms June was in charge of leading English Week. She was a very good teacher from my judgement of her enthusiasm at the time. Little did I know that she would be my English teacher and class teacher in Year 7 in 2013.
We had the Spelling Bee, which was led by Ms June and Mr Rohan, a new English teacher who recently entered Nobel at the time. There were three contestants on stage, and each of the contestants were asked to spell out the word said by Ms June and Mr Rohan, and if they failed, they have to leave the stage and return to their class line. The first contestant would be given priority, and the buck would be passed to subsequent contestants. Evan Hiew participated in the Spelling Bee, and he got like around one of the words wrong, but most correct.
Speaking of English, we had a new English teacher, named Ms Esther, who had been teaching us for a month since the end of the Mid Year Break. Ms Esther is a very nice teacher, and she had acted as relief teacher for Ms Sugunes’ English class the previous year in 2009 and was also our Enrichment teacher that year as well. Ms Esther does not get angry, and I can only recall one time where she got angry in 2010, but fortunately, she had not gotten angry with me before.
Ms Esther likes to call me ‘Yee Yang’ instead of ‘Wei Yiang’, because she had also taught another student, Soon Yee Yang, and in her mind, she felt like that the names were quite similar because of the ‘yang’ word in them. She even told me that she confuses me and Yee Yang due to the similarity of the names, and that Yee Yang was addressed in the opposite fashion, given that she had taught Yee Yang for many years and was still teaching him in 2010.
Anyhow, Ms Esther was quite gentle as we did the English exercises. The entire class was quite quiet as she taught, and despite Edward having behavioral issues then, Ms Esther was as cool as a cucumber to get him to pay attention, which he did quite obediently.
Mr Rohan, on the other hand, was a nice teacher with glasses but he had a mediocre tone with good intonation. We had some Speech and Drama as well as English classes with him and Ms Esther as well, and he was quite good in giving out exercises and essays, but he mostly talked in the class while the other teachers handled the work. In fact, Mr Rohan was quite bold in tone as well, but also serious while at the same time quite amazing. I can vividly recall Mr Rohan teaching in class while cracking jokes.
The teachers had in the following week, keep on reminding us to finish our food in the school canteen. Every single bit of it. Ms Ingel would always do the announcements during assembly, reminding us to finish our food till the last brittle and no crumb or squirt should be on our plate. In fact, a teacher in charge would always be waiting at the food and tray disposal area to check our plates. A kind and lenient teacher would let one's plate slip, while an affirmative one would order the individual to nibble every single grain of rice till it was as clean as a vacuumed floor, even if one was to vomit. While this was optional during break, since everyone had their own food, it was compulsory for lunch when individuals are required to purchase the lunch using their meal coupon given by the teachers. Not purchasing lunch can result in one being scolded.
On my first attempt to purchase lunch, I was served with spicy food and mee hoon; a double-whammy un-harbingering treat, since all the rest were sold out. Frustrated at the spicy meal, I flumped the food into the bean, where Rick Tan reprimanded me for wasting food.
“Wei Yiang, Ms Ingel said not to waste food. Why did you throw everything?” he warned. This happened for two days, the first, on 25th July 2010 and the second on 27th July 2010. Each time I sprawled my unfinished food, even just a bit, Rick would scold me.
What made the situation even worse was that we had to arrive early, and the teacher in charge who was conducting the after-lunch assembly would make a countdown to tell us that we had to arrive, and anyone arriving after the countdown would be filtered to a late line, with their names taken down by the prefects on duty just like those who arrived late for school. Leong Shaun had became a prefect, and on 7th July 2010, as I had arrived just a few seconds after the countdown ended and reached the class line of 3 Sincerity, I was considered one of the late comers. Ms Ingel asked for those who came late to return to the late line, with Rick telling me to go there. Ivyna Ong and Leong Shaun called me, and I went back to have my name taken down. Zi Quan was also watching nearby. So, as such, we had two criteria to fulfill; finish every single grain of food we had during lunch while at the same time, arriving early. It was tough luck to manage both. If you want to be punctual, you've got to sacrifice your food, and vice versa. It was conflicting to manage both because, unless the food was quite tasty, you would have a hard time finishing the food, which can result in you being late. Break one of these rules, and you would be scolded by the teachers either way.
What made the matter worse was that the canteen table assigned to 3 Sincerity was bordering a wall, and no clocks were there, so my mum would give me a blue watch to see the time. The biggest clock on the wall was on Uncle KC's stall near the canteen stairs, and Rick would always check for me. We only had 30 minutes to finish our food, and for a 9-year-old, it was taxing. This is why when teachers ask me to see them for academic work,
Now, I have to tell you, Rick Tan would force me to sit with him, or he would find me and sit next to me. Each time when I saw Rick sitting at another table, I would hide away from him so he wouldn't notice the food. But when Rick saw me, or he finished his food, he would monitor me till I finished all the food. Rick Tan told me that he would only let me go once he saw me finishing at least three quarters of the food. There was one time where Ms Ingel called 1 minute before assembly, and I rushed, pushed Rick aside, ran to the disposal station and rushed to the class line of 3 Sincerity when Rick was monitoring me on my food progress. Fortunately, I arrived early, but Rick scolded me for not finishing the entire plate. I would prefer to be scolded on the food issue and not the lateness issue, because Ms Ingel had threatened to send the latecomers for caning by Ms Michelle. “I have done that with the upper primary students last week, so don't make me do it again,” she warned us as I quoted her. In fact, when the countdown to the end of lunch started, I would push Rick aside, race to the food disposal station, and dart to the hall to avoid being late.
On Thursday, 5th August 2010, I ran out of luck when I tried to eat a bowl full of sour salad. Mr Rohan was on canteen duty that afternoon, and he was checking the plates of the students to see if they had completed the food. Mr Rohan was not happy with mine as the clocked approached 12:20pm. I was planning to dispose my food for fear of not being able to complete on time, resulting in me being late. Mr Rohan was not happy, and told me to return to my table to finish my food.
“Students, your lunch time ends in 1 minute,” said Ms Ingel on the announcement. I got up, raced to the food disposal area. “No, Wei Yiang. I am not letting you go until you finish your food,” said Mr Rohan.
“But lunch time is over!” I groaned. Mr Rohan meant business, and he accompanied me to the table while instructing other students to dispose their plates. He then watched me eat from the food bin, and once everyone was done disposing their plates, he walked to my table, sat on the opposite side of the table, and observed me while I ate. Ms Ingel then made announcements to the students, as I heard her mention that some students were still talking.
“Finish it. You must learn to finish your food,” said Mr Rohan, as he watched me sternly like a professor conducting his research. “You cannot waste food. That is the rule,” he said. Then, once I was done eating till my plate was close to being clear, he checked the time. He then told me to dispose my food, take my water bottle and proceed to the hall. He accompanied me, and a swarm of prefects guarded the entrance to the hall.
“He did not finish his food. I had to ask him to finish it. He wanted to throw his food in the bin,” said Mr Rohan. “Wei Yiang, you must finish your food.”
Mr Rohan then ushered me to the late line and then left after a short explanation. The prefects took my name down before bringing the late line students to see Ms Ingel, as per the usual routine. Then, Ms Ingel asked why everyone was late, and I started tearing up, because in this case, I was forced back and held back by Mr Rohan, which resulted in me being late by accident. Ms Ingel just let most of the students leave after reminding them to be early. In tears, I walked up the canteen steps and down the hallways to 3 Sincerity. Ms Josephine was inside conducting the class, and had given everyone a worksheet to do.
I knocked the door. “Come in,” cried Ms Josephine.
Then, I was in tears. The entire class looked at me.
Ms Josephine then asked me to proceed to my seat while asking the class to do their work, and then, she came to me, and I explained what had happened to her regarding Mr Rohan, the food issue, and the lateness to the lunch time assembly. “Don't cry. It's okay. Just solve the tally chart,” said Ms Josephine, explaining to me how to do the tally chart. She gave me a pat on the back before I continued. In fact, Data Handling was one of the most easiest topics in Maths and I really like the tally chart, which Ms Josephine handled with us in one of the lessons before. I continued on my worksheet, filled in the tally chart while tears dripped onto my exercise book and worksheet.
After Ms Josephine's class ended, we then waited for Ms Jeeva to come. I sobbed aside while Rick Tan spoke to me.
“Wei Yiang, why were you crying? You were late? Within minutes, Glen, Yatisan, Pei Chi and Yan Ying were talking to me.
“I was eating my food and the assembly was about to start. I want to be early. Mr Rohan did not allow me to throw my food and asked me to stay back, and this made me late,” I cried. Rick Tan told me that I should not be crying and that I should be confident in myself. “Wei Yiang! You are not in kindergarten anymore. You must act like a grown up. Act,” boomed Rick. “Your mum had told you that you should not take so much.”
In fact, mind you, I tried taking little food many times so that I can finish quickly and be on time for the assembly. Each time Ms Prema saw me take less food, she would order the cooks to give me more food. I would usually order food from Uncle Tan's stall.
Cikgu Nurul had also been calling for remedials just like Ms Josephine, based on the progress of the academic work. As such, she had selected around 10 students for the remedial class. Cikgu Nurul told us that the remedial classes would be decided on a later date by her, but she said that me, Yatisan, Edward Lam, Joon Tzen, Evan Hiew, Christopher Chew, Julian Chong, Lydia Lee, Ashley Er and Vanesse Leong for the remedial class. On a side note, Ms Prema likes to call Vanesse Leong as ‘Vanessa’ as it sounds fun.
For the remedial class, Cikgu Nurul told us to stay back after her class ended and said that based on the homework she had received from us, we were quite poor in our comprehension and had to attend the remedial class. When Cikgu Nurul asked who was not able to attend the remedial class, me and Yatisan raised up our hands. This prompted Cikgu Nurul to talk to Ms Prema about the issue.
So, on Thursday, 12th August 2010, Cikgu Nurul called me and Yatisan to talk in 4 Sincerity's classroom which was near the stairs which led to the library. Yatisan and I sat down in the class and Cikgu Nurul spoke to us. She had a chat with us while the rest of the class did the worksheets she gave.
Cikgu Nurul wanted to ask me and Yatisan why we did not want to attend her remedial class. However, we could not answer her. In fact, I did not want to answer her then because as a timid boy, any answer would result in punishment, and I did not want to be punished. Punishment was very common back then, and being punished would be psychologically damaging because it was the fear and the trauma placed on us due to our teachers’ loud voices.
The main reason why I did not want to go for a remedial class is because I was reminded of how strict Ms Josephine was back in those days. To the young, timid brain of mine back then, being asked to head for a remedial class is a form of psychological shaming because the poor academic performance would result in teachers not being pleased with us, and because Ms Josephine was seen as being strict and a bit impatient to a certain extent. Hence, when our performance is not good, it results in us being given additional work, which we are required to complete or risk punishment. Additionally, more time with teachers and longer hours of hitting the books are given, with less time for our own activities as opposed to the other students. In fact, aside from my Maths tuition with Ms Ng, my mum had been asking me to study Maths time after time again.
Anyhow, because of the heavy baggage and consequences associated with poor performance, it creates a vicious cycle; a person is scared to fail or make mistakes because of this consequence, which results in more benefits being taken away from us. The presence of remedial psychologically isolates the class into poor and weak students, who were discriminated. In fact, Rick Tan also asked me about the Mathematics progress throughout 2010, and remedials were the last thing on my mind. No one wants to stay till 4:30pm for remedial class with Ms Josephine after a long day in school. Especially when you are a 9-year-old.
The next week, on Monday, 16th August 2010, Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul had a word with me and Yatisan during Homework Time. “I was told that there are two people in this class who did not want to go to Cikgu Nurul's remedial. Wei Yiang and Yatisan, please stand up,” ordered Ms Prema.
Ms Prema said that it was very shameful that we did not want to go for remedial class when our grades were not doing well. “There's no First Mid Term and Second Mid Term Assessment this year. We are worried about your results. I am very disappointed with the two of you,” she boomed.
“If you continue to be like this, we are going to speak to your parents,” said Ms Prema, while asking us to sit down. Ms Prema said that it is compulsory for one to attend remedial class when asked to do so. She even asked us why we did not do so, but we did not give the answer and that I did not have confidence to do so. Ms Prema told us to continue our homework while she and Cikgu Nurul walked around the classroom. Then, before dismissal, Cikgu Nurul, Ms Prema, me and Yatisan had a serious talk about the matter.
The practices for the Alice in Wonderland concert were in full swing. Sarah Low, Pei Chi, Yan Ying, Leong Shaun, Lydia, Rick Tan, Adriana Yip, Cassandra, Andrew Ariffin and Edward Lam were involved in the practices. Ms Prema had to stop her Pendidikan Moral class to direct the practices, and the same was said with Mr Ang, Ms Esther, and countless number of other teachers. Some teachers, such as Cikgu Nurul, who were bored of the class being devoid of most students, stopped their lessons and played movies for us. We went to the Multimedia Room during Cikgu Nurul's class to watch the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie, which was quite cool. Ms Josephine also showed us The Smurfs during our Maths lesson, and we enjoyed it. On another note, Ms Cherlyn and Mr Kwan were directing each of the performances, and we got to see a partial run through the show.
For the Alice in Wonderland Concert, Janelle Arnelia was placed as the main character of the concert, representing Alice. As Janelle had been performing solo and had a good voice while singing, she was chosen as the main character for the concert by Ms Cherlyn and Mr Kwan. The Alice in Wonderland Concert took place at HGH Convention Centre, from 10am to 12pm. A series of dances, from Kung Fu dances to lantern performances, as well as ballet and classical moves. Mr Paul himself wore a rabbit head and was decorated in rabbit makeup to act as the White Rabbit. Following the concert, there was a DVD Rom showing the entire concert, which I purchased. The concert was attended by Ms Michelle, Mr Chan, Auntie Clarine and Mr Tan. Proceeds from the concert went to the Department of Social Work of Universiti Malaya Medical Centre, Sekolah Kanak-Kanak Pekak Selangor, Chesire Home KL, Pertubuhan Rumah Amal Cahaya Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (RACTAR), as well as Fungates Superflow Foundation, to upgrade the Supertouch Special School's therapy room.
Anyhow, following the concert, on 23rd August 2010, we had a film screening of the movie ‘Up’ during our Character Building time, and had to write about that in my journal. Mr Chuang gathered all of us in the hall. “Today, we are going to watch a movie!” he cried, and everyone screamed. Mr Chuang then told us to keep quiet while the movie was played or else he would stop it and ask us to return to class. I like seeing the view of Paradise Falls with Carl Fredricksen's house on top of the gorge housing the waterfall. I drew a picture of Paradise Falls on my journal book. Then, when we returned for Malay, Christopher Chew called Cikgu Nurul as ‘Mr Nurul’ which made Cikgu Nurul very angry. She then told Christopher Chew that it is quite rude and that he should apologize, which he eventually did. Cikgu Nurul then told the class to be on their best behavior since she was fasting due to the inevitable holy month of Ramadan.
Ms Prema decided to do the Malaysian State Flags project with us for Merdeka Day during Pendidikan Moral, since Merdeka Day is coming up. Each individual had to do one flag of their choice out of the 13 states in Malaysia. Ms Prema set a condition that for any flag which we chose which only consisted of basic designs, such as the flags of Perlis, Pahang and Perak, we had to do a second flag, and it cannot be a basic design. The exception to the rule was that if a complex flag design was chosen, such as the flag of Terengganu, Kedah, Kelantan or Melaka, since it was tricky to draw the moon and stars. I decided to choose the flag of Penang as it is where my grandparents live.
Each one of us had to use either crayons or color pencils to color the flag. Ms Prema went around and checked all of our flags while we drew them. Then, she scolded Edward for drawing incorrectly while at the same time, saying that my Penang flag was quite nice but needs improvement to a certain extent. The girls, overall, had a better drawing quality than the boys.
At the same time, we were also told to design a logo that is based on the theme, “1Nobel”. Each person had to come up with their own personalized logo design based on 1Nobel, which is a replicated spinoff from 1Malaysia which aims to promote unity and diversity among teachers and students. I designed a logo of 1Nobel based on the 1Malaysia logo, while some drew circles and pictures of the school's logo on it. Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul subsequently pasted the logo in the class, while I inscribed my handwriting on it.
I can also remember bring my plush toy, Dolphin, which I always cuddle every night, to school for the Show and Tell. Ms Esther was doing a Show and Tell session for us. Apart from that, everyone brought things for Show and Tell. My then-best friend, Yatisan brought a football for Show and Tell.
30th August 2010 was Sekolah Sri Nobel's Merdeka Day Celebration. We gathered in the school hall that morning for the program, which was conducted by Cikgu Nurul, Puan Wati and most of the Malay teachers.
The morning then begun with a poem in Malay regarding the history of Malaysia by one of the students, as well as the showcase of traditional attire by some of the students, who did some Indian dances and Malay dances. Then, it was Cikgu Nurul's turn to introduce the history of Merdeka Day before Mr Chuang, Puan Halimah and Ms Michelle ended the assembly with speeches on Merdeka Day. We had to write a journal about it, and I had to watch the National Day Parade to get inspiration to write my journal.
Towards the end of August to early September, the school day begun with a routine of temperature checks. This is because the school wanted to prevent H1N1 infections, and class teachers were armed with temperature guns during morning assembly.
On Friday, 3rd September 2010, I was down with fever, and my mum asked me to stay home. Determined to clock in 100% attendance of every school day in 2010, I decided to go to school against my mum's wishes. “You want to go? Then what if teacher stops you?” she asked. I just decided to see how things go. My temperature was 39 degrees celsius, and I was hoping things will go well on the day.
Everyone assembled in the hall, and Rick Tan talked to me about the danger of coming to school with a high temperature. “Why did you come to school? Later you will be sent home!” he warned. The hall begun filling up with people, and soon, Ms Prema came to our class to take our attendance. Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang begun leading the assembly, and there was a talk by Mr Sures that day. Then, as soon as we knew it, the thermometer guns begun arming and snipping our temperature. Ms Prema operated the thermometer, and went from person to person. She took Andrew's temperature, then Glen's, then the entire front of our class. Then, she came to me.
Ms Prema put the thermometer to the forehead, and a loud alarm beeped, ringing across the hall. “38 degrees! Why did you come to school?” she cried. Then, she informed Cikgu Nurul, and Cikgu Nurul took the entire class back while Ms Prema accompanied me to the front office. Ms Prema kept on asking why my mum did not stop me even if I wished to come to school, and kept on talking to me. “Wei Yiang, next time, if you have fever, don't come to school. Understand?”
Ms Michelle was at the office steps, and Ms Prema talked to her as she was entering her study.
“Ms Michelle! Wei Yiang has fever and came to school!” she exclaimed. Ms Michelle then took a serious look at me. “If you have fever, by right you are not supposed to come to school. You should stay at home and take your medicine. You should also ask your parents not to send you to school.”
Ms Prema brought me to the front office, where the receptionist, Ms Pat Yong, telephoned my mum and asked her to come and pick me up. There were phone calls and office noise ringing in the background, before Mr Chuang came out and accompanied me. My mum soon arrived, and he took my bag as I got into the car, with Ms Prema accompanying me. Ms Prema then told my mum not to send me to school if I was sick, and that I was asked to go home.
“If you are having fever, stay at home! Do not come to school!” cried Mr Chuang, as he slammed the door of my mum's car. Then, my mum told me, “See? They don't allow,” she groaned, and had to send me home. Within minutes, my mum was on the LDP Highway driving on the flyover bridge in front of her office, and took me to my room upstairs to rest. Back at school, the entire class celebrated my best friend Yatisan's birthday, since his birthday falls on 4th September and there was no school for the day.
I managed to recover during the 2nd Mid Term Break and the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays. Fortunately, it was a two-week holiday, and things went well. Feeling fresh from recovery, I went back to school on 20th September 2010. Apparently, the holiday was only supposed to be a week long, but fortunately, it was extended.
Rick Tan got really angry with me once I returned to school. “That's not funny, Wei Yiang. You have to stay at home, and you got your mum to fetch you home. Your mum is disturbed from work, you know,” he said.
“How would your mum feel if she had to come and send you home after being called by the school?”
I just ignored him, since I was focused on getting 100% Attendance.
The school had begun putting up strings around the school courtyard to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival, and I made a paper lantern out of the origami form Ms Prema and Ms Punitha did with us the previous year in 2009 to hang on the string. The custodians hung the string as Ms Michelle and the management team supervised them, and I saw the installation while going for break and lunch. Fortunately, the paper lantern managed to survive intermittent rain over the next few days. Ms Carmen then taught us about the Mid Autumn Festival and the legend that accompanies the festival, which is based on the story of Hou Yi and Chang Er, during Mandarin.
Ahead of the Final Year Examination, much revision was being done, but we were also treated to a field trip to Titi Eco Farm Resort in Negeri Sembilan, which is one and a half hours away from Kuala Lumpur.
Titi Eco Farm is a resort that contains a lot of fruit and vegetable plantations that lay smack in the rural areas of Negeri Sembilan. Laced with greenery, it is a fruit paradise which reminded me of my uncle's plantation in Johor. To access this farm, we would need to take a long drive along highways, and I sat with Yatisan in the bus when we departed Nobel on 23rd September 2010, the date of our field trip. Everyone was told to bring a towel, hat and umbrella, which my mum packed into my bag.
When we entered the bus, Ms Prema was in the seat in front of me and Yatisan, and she told us about her house as the bus passed Bandar Sunway again. Then, it passed the back lane exit of my neighborhood on the Bukit Jalil Expressway before heading towards Cheras and turning on the Cheras-Kajang Highway.
To get to Titi Eco Farm faster, we had to use the Kajang-Seremban Expressway, which was a new highway at the time. I could make out the newly-installed structure of the expressway and the signs ‘LEKAS’ which stood out of the toll plazas of the expressway as I peered out of the window. Yatisan and Ms Prema were asleep as I watched the view. After we exited the highway, we then drove up a wide, but long, winding road. I then had a bit of stomachache from the winding trip. The bus then arrived at Titi Eco Farm, drove into a large ranchway, and parked in a spacious area overlooking some huts.
Ms Prema told us to disembark from the bus and gather at the cafeteria at the longhouse nearby Then, we took a walk along a dirt valley right across a sea of vegetable plantations while our guide explained about the vegetables on sale. Rick Tan had a serious look on his face while Edward Lam and Andrew Ariffin played with each other, resulting in Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul having to monitor them to ensure they did not get into other classes’ lines. There were vegetables of all types, and I was hoping to catch a glimpse of fruit trees.
We then headed to a rope bridge, which our guide encouraged us to walk over. As I was afraid that the rope bridge would fall, I did not pass over it. Yatisan, Glen and I followed the line as we walked around the farm while I told them about my uncle's orchard in Johor which followed a similar layout.
Once that was done, we then headed to climb a hill located at the back of the farm. On the hill were freshly-planted fruit trees and vegetables, and it was so amazing to climb it. We were quite tired of climbing while Cikgu Nurul led us, accompanied by our guide. This was then followed by lunch at the cafeteria. It was very airy when we entered the cafeteria and sat down. Then, Rick peered at me. “Wei Yiang, remember to finish your food,” he said. Fortunately, I can eat in peace as there was no punishment or consequence.
After lunch, I took a look at the view with Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul while the rest went to purchase souvenirs from the souvenir shop. The sky soon got cloudy, and Rick arrived at our class line first. Then, Rick praised me for finishing my food. “Why didn't you do so during school time?” he asked. I then told him that we were given one hour to finish our food at the farm while in school, we had only 30 minutes to snack up. It then begun raining, but fortunately, we were able to make it towards the bus before heading back to school.
On Monday, 27th September 2010, we were asked to hand in our worksheet files, and Ms Prema went and write the names of those who failed to bring them, and Edward and Andrew forgot again. “Haiyah. Every time it is always you two who forgot to bring the worksheet file. Why? Do you want me to minus marks?” asked Ms Prema.
The next day, 28th September 2010, during our Enrichment lesson, we went down to the school hall for an icebreaking activity introduced by a motivational talk group which came to introduce the film ‘Legend of the Guardians’ to us, which is a film about dragons, monsters and of course, owls. We played three games, namely ‘Simon Says', a hand shaking game, and finding the individuals with the same characteristics. The same group then came back the following week to introduce Sammy's Adventures, which is another movie involving Sammy, the turtle, who is born in the Pacific Ocean and swam across the oceans of the world, from South America to Antarctica and back to North America.
Ms Prema also told us that we would be having a scrapbook project on 11th October 2010, where we had to bring some pictures, scissors and stationery to paste them in our Pendidikan Moral Scrapbook. The pictures were to be based on the traditional Malaysian games like gasing, congkak and batu seremban. Some of the people in the class asked why is the game of batu seremban named after the city of Seremban, Malaysia. In fact, it is Seremban that is named after the game itself, which is also named after natural elements.
We then cut the pictures and pasted them in our scrapbook. Then, Edward and I had a dispute in which we accused each other of making the floor dirty, and Ms Prema had to get the janitor to solve the matter. “Wei Yiang, be honest. Did you dirty the floor?” I said no.
The Final Year Examination was on its way, and Ms Josephine taught us about shapes. Everyone was quite easy in mastering the topic, as this was something that did not require a lot of calculation. In fact, learning about fractions and shapes was really fun back then. Ms Jeeva also tried to use the same technique during the Mid Year Examination, but she told us she had increased the difficulty. Fortunately, I managed to get 96 marks for Science. When Ms Josephine announced our Maths results, she then gave our Maths results, after calling us. Then, she turned to her table.
“I want to announce the person in 3 Sincerity who got high marks in the exam. There are three,” she said. When Ms Josephine announced Andrew Ariffin as the student with the highest marks, Andrew was shocked. He stood up and grinned while walking to Ms Josephine, and Ms Josephine smiled with a serious look and clapped her hands. Ms Josephine said that the next one was the individual with the best improvement. “The second highest one. Edward.”
Edward stood up, with his untucked shirt. In fact, Ms Prema had asked him many times to tuck in his shirt. Nobel's code of conduct requires boys to wear belts on their pants and tuck in their shirt. Ms Josephine told him to tuck his shirt in, and then gave him the paper. Edward then walked like a clumsy comedian to laughter from the whole class. His shirt was visibly dirty because of him eating curry mee and fried chicken during lunch, and Ms Prema and Ms Michelle had taken notice of his dirty uniform many times.
On 8th November 2010, the school organized a Deepavali celebration for the entire school. We went down to the school hall after our Maths class, to be treated to a hall filled with tables, benches and lots of food!
The stage was beautifully decorated by the Indian teachers with Hindu ethnicity. Ms Michelle was also dressed nicely and was quite pretty. Ms Prema also had a nice Indian dress as well. Four boys were called on stage to answer quiz questions on Deepavali. We then sat at the tables to watch the show as Melissa Hong and the Year 4 students amazed the crowd with a performance. There was a mock Indian wedding in the school hall, complete with Indian kolam and candles. Ms Lata was the bride, along with another gentleman whom I did not take his name down.
We then went back to class with Ms Crystlyn, where I decided to jot down additional journals thn what was required back then and went the extra mile writing about this Deepavali celebration. Cikgu Nurul then came in to give our Glossari books but however, we had to return to the hall to have a snack.
First, we went to the bride and bridegroom's area, wishing everyone a Happy Deepavali, especially to Ms Prema, Ms Kavitha and Ms Jeeva who were the Indian teachers teaching us. We were served with a cup of orange juice, and we had many drinks and food in store. I grabbed a cookie to much it, but Rick Tan told me to try different flavors of food. We were given a plate and a cleaver to grab food from the plate into our mouth. Roger, who was from 3 Virtue, told me that I should be using my hands to eat as it is a hand-held food, and was attended to the matter by Mr Ang. Eventually, I didn't like the food and drink, and gave them to Cikgu Nurul. The orange juice was quite cold, making my ears freeze.
We then had a Bake Fair on the 10th of November in the school canteen where different food were on stock, and Rick told me to savor different choices. The next day, we decorated the class and re-arranged the tables during Homework Time with Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul to prepare for the year-end Class Party. Vanesse, Pei Chi, Lydia, Yan Ying and Cassandra were in charge of decorating the classroom with Cikgu Nurul. We all helped out, while I decorated the outside of the classroom along with Cikgu Nurul and Pei Chi.
On 12th November 2010, we had our Class Party. Starting from the year 2010, I had been excited about class parties in Nobel because of the fun and joy we would spend for the entire day. In fact, I was so excited till I got up at 3:30am even though my aunt asked me to have a longer rest. Soon, it was 5:00am, and I happily got ready, brushed my teeth, and my mum took me to school early. Reaching school at 5:45am was quite surreal, as I was the only one in the school compound, and my mum held me back until the lights of the school building switched on. Entering the school compound, there were tonnes of decorations in the building, and each class was decorated with beautifully-curated paper chains. I felt that 3 Sincerity's class was the most beautiful, and I went to decorated my own homemade paper chains.
During the morning assembly, a series of videos flashed back the events of 2010, from the Alice in Wonderland Concert to the ‘School Attack!’ expo which was held at Nobel in the past. Then, Ms Michelle begun awarding gift vouchers and awards for individuals who had received 100% attendance and not missed a single day of school. I was one of those lucky ones, and would continue to attend every single day of school all the way till Year 11 in 2017. In fact, I almost scraped the record dirty, as the temperature check incident due to my illness almost caused me to miss one day of school in 2010. Fortunately, thanks to the temperature check being taken after my attendance, it was quite a tight slither. The gift voucher would entitle me to free exercise books for 2011, and it was an honor being called onto stage to receive the gift voucher from Ms Michelle.
We then played a game called “Chicken Kitchen” where the two words rhyme, and anyone caught saying, “Chicken Chicken” or “Kitchen Kitchen” would be out of the game, since the words look quite similar. Mr Chuang led us, and it was quite funny playing it. Following the game, we then returned to our classroom at 3 Sincerity to start the class party. I snibbled on white bread and pandan cake while my friends also drunk the mineral water I brought (I'm not a fast food fan). We then watched a movie titled “2012” which depicts the end of the world. I could remember the entire city of Los Angeles being swallowed into a big hole in the movie. Following the conclusion of the movie, we then played a pinata game which was brought by Vanesse Leong. The pinata was a giant orange ball. Each one of us took turn to whack and smack the pinata, and Cikgu Nurul, Mr Calvin and all the teachers attempted to have a go at it. Ms Prema then had her chance, and she whacked the pinata with one big blow, causing the paper chains hung on the cables in 3 Sincerity to collapse as if a bomb blew the building off. Mr Paul, who was the head of Science at the time, came in and held up the pinata by tugging and pushing the cables up with his hands so that no damage be done to the walls and cables. The sounds of banging echoed the hallways of the school as sweets fell down from the pinata. Before we went home, Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul gave us our report cards and had photographs with us.
The school held a Book Shopping Fair on 18th November 2010 in 1 Destiny and 1 Integrity's classroom, and I bought a book titled Geronimo and the Gold Medal Mystery. MPH was the one manning the bookstore and was a loyal patron of Nobel in its events back then. Time flew by while we were having fun, and it was the last day of school. Thus, this marked the conclusion of my time in the lower primary level.
2011 – Year 4
Year 4 begun like any other year as I arrived in the school hall to place my bags on Monday, 4th January 2011. It was the same thing every year, as the routine on the first day of school took its course. However, upon arrival at the school hall, a bunch of students were waiting there, clueless on where to sit.
Mr Chuang then came out and apologized, assuring everyone that he would take placards which demarcated our class line. He then returned with a bunch of stickers, and placed them on the floor, asking us to sit down at our class line.
The names of the classes for each year had changed; there were five names, namely Diligent, Steadfast, Loyal, Generous and Attentive. I placed my bag at my assigned class, 4 Diligent, and wholeheartedly took my food container with potato bread and trudged to the canteen to have my breakfast.
I arrived at the canteen, shocked to see that the school had renovated the store of Uncle KC, who is one of the store operators, enlarging his stall which resulted in Uncle Tan's stall being downsized. Apparently, the school had also renovated the front office, bisecting the office and changing the location of the entrance to accommodate a bookshop, which the Uniform Shop was known then.
Within minutes, the school was filled with students, and we begun the morning assembly with the Negaraku, School Pledge and School Song. The school pledge was quite different then, both in form and in pronunciation.
Mr Chuang then called a few students on stage to demonstrate the daily affairs of conduct in the classroom. As each student was to enter the class and place their bags against the crossbar which is located at the bottom of their desk, and produce their homework pouch on their desk, Mr Chuang instructed them to do in perfect unison. There were desks and chairs on the stage which simulated the conditions of a normal classroom.
“Some of you have homework pouch with stickers all over it. We don't paste stickers on it because it is like your uniform,” said Ms Michelle as she interrupted Mr Chuang. It is common for people to paste stickers on their homework pouches then, and Ms Michelle wanted people to have proper discipline and conduct in terms of their belongings.
Mr Chuang then asked the students on stage to demonstrate how to hand in their books by passing it to the front. The students passed the books from the person behind the desk all the way to the front. The student who is in the front seat will count the number of books, hand them to the class or subject teacher, and inform the teacher if anyone forgot to bring his or her books to class. He also demonstrated the return of exercise books and workbooks from the teacher, and asked the students to pass the books back in the return order, to pleasure from Mr Chuang. He then took a student's message book, praised him for its cleanliness and neatness.
“I see that this message book is clean. It is like your uniform!” he boomed, reminding students in the hall to treat their property with respect and care. He demonstrated the dismissal process as to how students leave the classroom, as the students duly took their bags, pushed in their chairs and left the stage as Mr Chuang acted like the school bell in a high-pitched tone.
“If you waste your time, you waste other people's time!” he warned, noting that time wastage would affect the queue of students in the school premises as well as parents who waited outside the school for their children.
Ms Michelle then revealed a set of class rules to be observed. There were eight points that we had to follow, namely to place our bags against the bottom crossbar, ensure our homework pouch is kept in the basket of our desk, rise and greet teachers, refrain from walking in class without permission, raise hands for permission to speak, discuss what is relevant to the lesson, one student allowed to leave for the washroom at any time, and ensure all tables are cleared before leaving the classroom. The eight points help to maintain the classroom as orderly as possible and for the daily affairs of business to be conducted.
When we got back to class, I was delighted to have Ms Prema as my class teacher for the third consecutive year. “Sit wherever you want,” said Ms Prema, as I took my seat in front of the whiteboard. “Faster, please sit!” Ms Prema cried, as she counted to ten.
What made our classroom cool was a window which overlooked the new computer lab, which was previously located at the former location of the Multimedia Room. The old computer lab was cleared for more classrooms, with the new lab being placed at the multimedia room, which was deemed useless, since all classrooms were retrofitted with projectors. The hustle and hassle of teachers using portable projectors had finally come to an end, as the convenience of a computer and a projector in the classroom made things quite easier, and this resulted in the redundance of using the Multimedia Room. As the school wanted to expand classrooms, the Multimedia Rooms were turned into the new Computer Labs in order to enhance productivity of the spaces in school.
Ms Prema then took the opportunity to show us a Student Organizer, but unfortunately, it was break time, and we had to go to the canteen for break time. Like the classroom, the canteen had a systematic procedure in which we had to follow strictly. All of our water bottles and food containers were placed on the table, in which we had to do so while we sat at our class table and waited for Ms Michelle's instructions. Each class was assigned a class table then, and all affairs then involved us being confined to our own class. This is also another reason why I was not so famous in my primary years, as being restricted to our own class reduced interaction from other classes. We then ate breakfast, assembled in the hall, and were dismissed by Ms Sugunes to head back to our class.
Previously, when Nobel International School was known as Sekolah Sri Nobel, Year 4, 5 and 6 students were placed into the “Upper Primary” category and had a later break time. This made me groan at the prospect of a later break, lunch and dismissal time. The dismissal time for lower primary students was at 3:00pm, upper primary at 3:30pm, and the secondary students at 4:00pm back in those days. Of course, at the time, I shunned the prospect of heading home late, not knowing it would be an exciting thing in later years.
Okay, so when we returned to class, Ms Prema then handed each one of us a Student Organizer as she talked about it. “First, you must write the subject, task, due date and get a teacher to sign,” she said. She continued to talk about the Organizer and the Message Book, outlining the fact that all messages had to be pasted in our message book and sent to our parents for a signature from them, or else, we would be punished. Ms Prema would usually scan the message books for signatures before calling out and scolding those who failed to show the message to our parents.
The Student Organizer, back in those days, was a unique feature only available to Upper Primary and Secondary School students. It is a book which I saw when I passed by the Lost and Found shelf back in Year 3 when I used the washroom on the ground floor. Lower primary students would have their homework emailed to their parents via the Parents’ Portal which consisted of the work given to the class for the day. To train us in taking ownership, each Upper Primary student was given a Student Organizer to copy down the subject, task and due date to ensure no homework is missed, and of course, not to be scolded as well. Additionally, Year 4, 5 and 6 students then had to paste the class timetable in the Student Organizer as opposed to being pasted in the Message Book.
Lunch time came, and Ms Michelle once again asked us to sit at our class tables before giving us the green light to go and buy food. I would normally purchase food from Uncle Tan's stall, which was located near the Primary School's Science Lab located in the canteen. Prior to that, the lab was known as the Kemahiran Hidup (KH) room.
I then purchased food from Uncle Tan, and was given chicken rice by his attendants. However, I could not finish the food quickly, so I dumped them and assembled in the hall before heading back to class, where Ms Prema played wordsearch games with us. Before dismissal begun, we headed to the hall to watch a video by Mr Chuang on how to line up for dismissal.
The dismissal at Nobel International School was quite different in those days; primary school students had to line up in the foyer while secondary students could just walk out. On top of that, the Year 1s had to line up in front while the upper levels queued behind. Students left a gap between class lines to allow departing students to exit the foyer. Car points located outside the school are attended with a teacher to guide the traffic, and Mr Chuang would always assist traffic flow outside the school.
Within minutes, my name was called, and I exited the school, feeling joyful about a wonderful first day of school.
The next day then came a great avalanche of lessons. As upper primary students, which was what the Key Stage 2 (KS2) in today's Nobel was called then, it was more of serious business as opposed to the lower primary counterparts. There were more subjects added to the timetable, and these subjects were mainly conducted in Malay. The three subjects that were newly-added for us, were Kemahiran Hidup (Living Skills), Kajian Tempatan (Local Studies) and Pendidikan Sivik (Civic Education).
Kemahiran Hidup was taught by an interesting Indian teacher named Mr Mani. He is quite a funny teacher, but he is quite serious at times. He's quite straight in physical size and thin, and has a mustache on his face. This subject consisted of basic practical skills like carpentry, electrical circuit connection, making a campfire as well as bolting screws and nuts.
Kajian Tempatan is a subject that talks about physical surroundings in Malaysia. It is the primary school equivalent of Geography, and Ms Puvan, who taught us, was quite a nice and friendly teacher. Pendidikan Sivik is taught by Cikgu Nik, who is also as equally friendly and the subject focuses on how we can be civic-minded towards others. As all the subjects were written in Malay, the subject was conducted in English for quite a good and fluent lesson. The books used then were tied to the curriculum used by the Malaysian Ministry of Education, and it was quite cool then, as Nobel, then known as Sri Nobel, was not an international school then.
Aside from Ms Prema, who was our class teacher, Ms Kalai, who taught us Maths that year, would also be assisting Ms Prema in class teacher duties. Ms Prema, as usual, would teach us Pendidikan Moral and that is the only subject which did not have a textbook. We also had good subject teachers; Ms Chin taught us English and has quite a caring tone; Ms Tat taught us Science, Mr Ang for Music, Cikgu Nurul for Malay, Ms Kavitha for PE, Mr Mervin for ICT, which we call “Computer Lesson”, Mr Calvin for Art classes and for Mandarin, I was being taught by Ms Wong.
I was in the same class once again as Yatisan and Glen, and we had different people mixed together, such as Andrew Ariffin, Edward Lam, Ryan Tan, Ayumi Ng, Lydia Lee, Yan Ying, Cassandra, Berlinda, Zhi En, Melvyn Gnai, Joseph Yong, Christopher Chew, Brendan Ooi, Brendan Cheah, Nicholas Lee and Louis Soon, who would be joining us for the year.
Every morning, I would arrive then, between 6:15am and 6:30am, and one of the first people to greet me was Ryan Tan. Bryson Chin, his other friend, was also there early in the morning to meet us. Ryan would cheekily talk and chit-chat with me in the morning as we walked to the canteen together for breakfast, and normally we would talk on the daily news and of course, life.
On our first Science lesson, Ms Tat, our Science teacher, asked us to purchase two Science Notebooks for our lesson; namely one for our normal Science lesson and one that is designated for School Based Assessments (SBA), which we had to label on the book. The Science Notebook is one of two A4-sized notebooks being sold in Nobel then; the other was the Buku Karangan (Essay Book) which was used for Malay lessons. Aside from that, we also had to purchase a thick Science textbook called the “Effective Text” book by Ilmu Bakti, which was used for Year 4, 5 and 6 subjects. There was also a Mathematics-Science dictionary which we had to purchase as well for the subject, which contained terms in Science and Mathematics that we had to understand. The list differed for each subject; we had two exercise books, namely English 1 and English 2 for English, and a total of two A6-sized Buku Latihan (exercise book in Malay) for Malay, three A4-sized Buku Karangan, and a lot of workbooks. The list goes on and on for the subjects, as piles of books were needed to be purchased. Fortunately, since I had earned my 100% Attendance Award for 2010, I could purchase the exercise books without burning my wallet.
There were two other subjects that required an exercise book, namely Character Building as well as Enrichment, which we needed to purchase a Science Notebook for that. The Enrichment classes were divided into four programs, one for each quarter of the year, namely Gardening (Quarter 1), Domestic Science (Quarter 2), Speech and Drama (Quarter 3) and Science (Quarter 4). Each one of us were confused if the Science enrichment programme would be a continuation of the Science lessons, but we kept our fingers crossed to find out the answer. Mr Chuang was prudent on the first Character Building lesson on Thursday, 7th January 2011, and he expected us to have our exercise books for the Character Building lesson with him in the school hall, as he wants us to copy down the slides he put up on the screen in the school hall. Back then, no LED screen was installed, and the only possible screen available then, were two roll-on projector screens, and a projector projecting the computer screen to the wall behind the stage. In fact, for Character Building, there were two sessions; one on Tuesdays and another on Thursdays, which involve combining the Year 4, 5 and 6 students into one session which he and his wife, Ms Mee Ping would sometimes conduct the session together. The topics for the year 2011 which were covered were Attentiveness, Obedience, Truthfulness, Gratefulness, Orderliness, Forgiveness and Sincerity; two of them, namely Obedience and Attentiveness, had been covered when I was Year 1, with Obedience being the first character. Each character trait was accompanied by an animal to represent it, and I could still recall the Character Cards which Mr Chuang gave every Character Building lesson.
Co-Curricular Activities (CCA) was introduced for us Year 4 students in 2011, and at that time, there was no such thing as an after-school CCA and that CCA was only reserved for Upper Primary students. Year 4, 5 and 6 students would normally have a combined CCA session every Friday prior to dismissal. This is very different from today, where CCA involves the whole school. CCA is an activity that is non-academic and involves a series of activities in the forms of clubs and societies. We had three choices of CCA to choose from, and different choices were offered every four months, namely Uniformed Units, Clubs/Societies as well as Sports/Games. CCA sessions which do not involve any club or society had a fourth, unnamed column in our Student Organizer, and they must be signed by the teacher-in-charge.
Speaking of Art lessons, Sekolah Sri Nobel, which Nobel International School was known then, had just renovated its Art studio into two separate Art rooms and one Kemahiran Hidup (KH) room. There was no covered walkway to the Art Studio or KH Room then, and this would cause a lot of problems which would arise later. The Art Studio also had a mural that consisted of a large painting of a crack in the wall which revealed a large modern art gallery with a student entering it, and a series of words written in cursive, titled “Sri Nobel Art Gallery”, which was painted by Ms Feeda along with students from the Secondary School.
For English, Mathematics and Science, the assessment method that was given at the time was based on a theory called “School-Based Assessment (SBA)”. SBA is a mode of assessing students based on their homework and classwork based on the Ministry of Education's teaching methods. Ms Tat, Ms Thava and Ms Chin discussed on the examination format for the UPSR exam, which is a now-defunct examination taken by Year 6 students at the end of their primary education. UPSR has since been abolished, but at the time, Nobel was offering UPSR as the premier examination at the end of primary school, as well as PMR (later renamed PT3 and subsequently abolished) and SPM then, as a private school built on the national curriculum. The UPSR tests on Malay, English, Mathematics and Science subjects, and it was a dreaded monster one would fear in order to progress. UPSR and PMR/PT3 were abolished in 2020 by the Malaysian government to kill the examination anxiety in Malaysian schools. As such, the examination format was given to us, and pasted into our Science Notebook and the exercise books for Maths and English.
There is also another examination method named “Progress Evaluation”, also known as PEV, which is to guide us on how much we fared in each test or examination. We had four PEVs each year for English, Malay, Maths and Science, since back in those days, Malay was a core subject as important as English, Maths and Science. The PEVs are mini-tests done in class by our subject teachers to gauge our academic stance.
Anyhow, the school year had begun, and it was a norm for me, Glen Kay, Yatisan and Bryson Chin to talk to each other before school starts. Ms Tat was quite a nice teacher, and I like her lesson. In fact, being captivated by Ms Jeeva's 100-mark score given to me in the 2010 Mid Year Examination, I had an adore for Science back then, and I was excited to find out what Ms Tat had to offer. On the other hand, Ms Chin also had a great English lesson for us, and so as the other teachers. In fact, I also like looking forward to Kajian Tempatan, as it also talked about the traditions and culture of Malaysia.
“Your teachers are going to be very strict this year,” said Ms Prema, when she came in for Homework time. In fact, there used to be a Homework time where our class teachers would enter and do some housekeeping matters, such as passing us messages to paste in the message book, and also giving us important briefings for what things were coming up next. Tuesdays and Thursdays were designated as “homework times” from 2:30pm to 3:30pm. The fact that when she said that meant that I was afraid that my teachers would scold me if I made one wrong move, especially on my side, when I did not complete my homework or forget to bring things to school. I was afraid of being scolded, and I did my best to complete as much homework as possible.
Year 4 was also the year I learnt how to play the flute. The teachers call it a “recorder”. Each student was given a white Soprano flute which came with its own pocket. Mr Ang was quite friendly when we first saw him, and the first song he asked us to play was “Mary Had A Little Lamb”.
So, on our first lesson, on Tuesday, 5th January 2011, Mr Ang met us in the music room located next to the computer lab, and he begun teaching us the lyrics and notes to play for Mary Had A Little Lamb. This song was chosen because there were recurring tunes and a symmetrical rise and fall in the song's tempo.
Mr Ang then begun by telling us where the holes on the flute were, what holes were there and how to press it. The flute contained a single hole below the flute and eight holes on top. Three of the four holes, located towards the front of the flute, had two small holes in order to ensure the tune was properly played. He then trained us to play, and when we begun blasting the flutes, some people blasted and made funny noises till Mr Ang had to call them to stop. On top of that, we enjoyed playing the flute in class and Mr Ang would teach us different songs each week and how to play the notes. Back in Year 1, 2 and 3, it was more on singing tunes, but the upper primary students would need to handle the recorder this time.
Ms Kalai begun teaching us on how to multiply a number by a multiple of two digits. It was quite challenging knowing how to do so, as that was my first time doing so. Within weeks, more homework was coming in, and worksheets being given. Fortunately, the Student Organizer helped me to ease my homework records. To keep things in greater check, Ms Prema would come and check our Student Organizer every homework time to ensure our teachers had signed the initial box on our homework being given. My 10-year-old self struggled to keep up with the workload in order to please my teachers. Ms Prema went a step further, using permanent marker to draw a table on the whiteboard which contained sections which teachers had to fill in on the subject name, task description and the due date of the homework. She even drew a column on the whiteboard which demarcated the location of the date and day on the whiteboard. In those days, there was no Smartboard installed, so everything was using the traditional old school method to do our affairs.
I mainly liked Ms Tat's lesson as she explained on the basic needs of living things. It was quite cool, and Science, at the time, was of my interest. Ms Tat would normally say that I am a good student and love the subject quite a lot. Learning Science in primary school is quite more fun than learning Science in secondary school.
Mr Mani was a good Kemahiran Hidup (KH) teacher. He was very jovial when we went to the KH room with him on our first KH lesson on Thursday, 6th January. He said that KH would be quite a fun subject and we only had to bring our book as he would do some materials with us in class.
The week soon went by and we were on our second week of school. Ms Tat continued teaching about the basic needs of living things and gave us a worksheet to do, and what was quite exciting was our Enrichment class. Ms Carol, who was our Enrichment teacher from January to March, also told us to purchase another Science Notebook to be used for enrichment activities. Ms Carol briefed us on our first enrichment programme for the year, namely Gardening. As I like to do gardening as my hobby, this was of interest for me.
“Students, you see, we are going to build a new school garden next to the extended canteen. As you all know, the canteen is already extended during the school holidays, so as a result, the school garden had to be shortened. We want you, students, to draw up a design for the school garden and it will be very nice if you can have the Science Notebook next week so that we can start,” she said. The school garden was formerly located next to the futsal court in the old school campus before its relocation to Damansara Jaya. I was quite excited and discussed the gardening project with Glen and Yatisan during break time, and Ryan as well as Bryson joined in the discussion.
On 11th January, we had a new teacher that came to our school, and his name was Mr Gordon. Mr Gordon had quite an ancient look on his face; he was an Indian teacher with bold eyebrows and had a bold tone as he spoke. He was due to conduct a workshop with us, and he had something in store for us that day.
I got up that morning, had a cup of milk that morning and went to school quite early. Upon arriving, I placed my bag at my class line and did my daily routine of canteen breakfast. I had a Character Champion badge on my jacket that morning. Ms Michelle then gleefully announced to the Year 4 students on our workshop that morning, and I was quite excited. We then headed back to our classes where Ms Prema briefed us on the workshop. “I need you to bring your pencil case. I don't want to hear anyone talking,” she said. We then headed for break time and then went to the hall.
The hall was filled with cool air as if it was a cold climatic temperate house. I wore my jacket to prevent myself from getting frozen. Mr Gordon sat down on the floor in a professional approach, waiting for us. I greeted him and then everyone soon made their way to the hall, joined by our teachers. He had a smile but quite a stern and serious look, but however, he was cheerful too.
Ms Kalai then introduced us to him, and then Mr Gordon greeted us. “Give me a drum roll,” he commanded. We then patted our hands on our thighs furiously and cried “Whoosh!” as he flicked the slideshow presentation on the screen. Mr Gordon would be having a day-long workshop till 3:00pm for all of us.
The first thing he taught us was the phrase of YOGOWYPI, which stands for “You Only Get Out What You Put In”. Mr Gordon said that if one were to put a pillow into a plastic bag, he or she can only retrieve a pillow from it. The same is also said with a wallet; money can only be retrieved if placed in it. YOGOWYPI aims for us to understand the value in ourselves; we can only reflect on ourselves on what we have done and we cannot learn new things from what we have retained, and must reach out from beyond our comfort zones to do so. YOGOWYPI symbolizes one's weaknesses; to dwell on the same things and not learn new things, but it also teaches and summarizes us about the value we want to bring to ourselves.
Mr Gordon then asked everyone to line up, and then say a number from one to four in the order of individuals. This meant that the first four people had to say the corresponding number based on what was given. For example, the person in front said one, the second said two, the third said three and fourth said his corresponding number, and the number repeated. This placed us into our groups, and I was in group four. There were five groups in total, and each group was grouped together based on numbers and asked to come up with a name.
I tried to come up with a name but Ms Karen, who was supervising our group, rejected it. Aaron Liew then named our group “Mixies Club”, to which Ms Karen agreed.
“How about here?” Mr Gordon asked, as he came to our group. We then presented the name “Mixies Club” to his appreciation. The other groups were named Teletubbies, Dynamite, Champions and Champions 2, although Champions was asked to rename themselves as Champions 1 to avoid confusion.
“Now, we are going to have some fun,” said Mr Gordon. He then handed out stacks of paper to everyone. “I want you guys to make a paper airplane,” he said.
I tried to make a paper airplane but failed, so Ms Karen assisted me to make the paper plane. Once everyone was done, Mr Gordon asked everyone to stand at the side of one end of the hall and get ready for his instruction. “Now, we are going to do the ‘Aircraft Challenge’,” he said in enthusiasm. “I want you to throw your plane as far as you can, but don't pick it up,” he said. He then gave the signal, and then we threw our paper planes with all our might. We wrote down our names for good measure, and threw them. Some people tried to pick the planes up. “Don't pick it up! Leave it; leave it,” said Mr Gordon. The teachers called everyone to be silent as Mr Gordon gave his instruction. He
Mr Gordon then said that some peoples’ planes were thrown far and some near. He said that the reason why this was the case is to demonstrate that no one was perfect and we were indifferent to ourselves. He also said that each person has his own strengths and weaknesses, and we had to respect each other.
“I want you to crumple your plane into a ball,” said Mr Gordon. He asked everyone to crumple the plane into a ball and throw it. Within minutes, balls of paper were shooting around the hall further. Mr Gordon then said that the lesson we learnt from this “Aircraft Challenge” was that we had to improvise our strategies when we know that one had failed. He then asked us to return to our seats for the next activity.
Mr Gordon then took out a piece of paper with a black dot on it. “What do you see?” he asked, to which many people replied, “A black dot.” It was a large black circle on a piece of paper.
Mr Gordon said that most people would normally think pragmatically and view the thing as a black dot. “I want you to use your imagination to think what you really can see on the paper,” he said. Soon, people were giving answers such as a planet, an eclipse, a person or even a bomb! He then proceeded to do the next activity, which asked us to gather in a group and jiggle as a team. We had to make waves in synchronization, and for our group, we tried a few times to do so but with no success. This taught us the importance of teamwork and why every single individual is equally important. I was in the same group as Glen, Louis, Aaron Liew, Joseph Yong, Nicholas Lee and Christopher Chew.
The next activity Mr Gordon gave was for us to do an upside down drawing of an animal which he showed on the screen, and we had to imagine the animal as Mr Gordon flicked the screen off. He gave us around five minutes to recognize the animal and draw it. We were given a deer, and I tried my best to draw the deer. It was tough luck, but most of us were able to recall how it looked like when drawing upside down. Mr Gordon said that the most important things that we learnt from this activity were concentration and determination, and to be able to persevere when confronted with obstacles. Before long, it was break time, and we gathered in our class lines, lined up in pairs, and walked to the canteen.
Glen Kay, Yatisan and I decided to have a chat on Mr Gordon's workshop thus far at our class table, and we sat down at the table in the canteen, eating our lunch. “Wei Yiang, do you like the Aircraft Challenge?” asked Glen. I told Glen that I liked it, and he asked me what I thought about Mr Gordon's workshop, to which I told him and described more about the Aircraft Challenge.
We returned from our break time feeling refreshed, and Mr Gordon invited us to do another activity, which was to pass a rubber ball, masking tape and whiteboard marker. We then gathered in our class lines, where Mr Gordon briefed the activity for us.
“I want all of you to put on blindfolds and pass the rubber ball, tape and marker,” he said. We tried passing around the ball, tape and marker blindfolded, and the last person would need to return the items to Mr Gordon. Our group wasn't the first to finish, but however, we had a great fun with the activities.
Mr Gordon continued the day with more talking, brainstorming and writing. He told us about how we should set goals, listen to our teachers and be determined to complete every activity in order to be successful. He then ended the session where a few people recapped the day and recalledwhat we had learnt, to thunderous applause from our teachers and praise from Mr Gordon. We were instructed to write in our journal, a total of ten things that we learnt from Mr Gordon's workshop as part of our journal writing exercise. I honestly learnt a lot from Mr Gordon's workshop, and while things were theoretical then, it really applied into my daily life on how things were to go regarding my post-schooling life.
Many teachers were strict, and the next day was no exception. In particular, there was this on dreaded teacher that I feared every Wednesday afternoon, and that was Ms Wong, my Mandarin teacher. Mandarin classes are divided into set teaching, and we had two teachers, namely Ms Lai and Ms Wong, to guide us. I was hoping that I would be placed in Ms Lai's Level 2 Mandarin class, which was held in 4 Diligent's classroom, but however, I was placed in Level 1 with Ms Wong, and we had to go to 4 Loyal's class which was located at the old location of the computer lab back then.
I can particularly describe Ms Wong as a fierce teacher. She has a big sized body then, and she is one of the prominent Mandarin teachers back then in [Sri] Nobel who taught Mandarin for the then-addressed Upper Primary students. Everyone would dread her in her Mandarin classes, and she would scold you badly if you did not finish your homework.
Anyhow, Ms Wong outlined her expectations in her first class with us. She hated it when anyone forgot to bring their exercise book from their classroom or did not do their homework. She then told us to by the exercise books which had large squares for our exercises, and gave us an extension for our Mandarin homework due to the workshop by Mr Gordon, which took up her class. We had to complete them the next day, and those that didn't were asked to stand up and listen to Ms Wong rant around in the class.
Ms Prema had also asked us to do a scrapbook design for Pendidikan Moral, and issued a letter to our parents to be pasted in the message book. The scrapbook should also have a cover design which contained the words “Sekolah Sri Nobel Kelana Jaya”, “Pendidikan Moral” and “Buku Skrap 2011”, along with the name, year and the teacher's name. “Please, please, please, send this to your parents,” pleaded Ms Prema. “I am very serious. I will scold you if you did not bring the scrapbook by Week 4,” she warned. Year 4 was serious business and not a joke. We were also informed via two messages Ms Prema gave to us, that there will be a visit to a Special School in Cheras which was operated by Fungates. As part of our Character Building program, we were supposed to assist the students in basic motor skills.
During English class, Ms Chin then started talking about punctuations, and each time the class was noisy, she had to scream and shout to keep the class under control. “Why is the class so noisy?! Brendan! Sit down!” she cried, especially when Brendan Cheah was busy horsing around the classroom. On the other hand, our first two CCA sessions were quite of a briefing by Mr Paul, who was in charge of the CCA programs then. He just gave us a brief on what we would be doing for the first few sessions for the year. Mr Paul would soon play a role for the rest of 2011, and of course, the audience reading this would be excited to see what he had in store for 4 Diligent.
The next Monday, 17th January 2011, we came back to school, armed with a design for our school garden. As usual, we gathered in the hall for assembly and did our business as usual. I had a chat with Ryan Tan and Yatisan about my planned garden design before school begun.
As I did not have enough money to buy the Science Notebook for Enrichment, and my mum was not free then to buy it for me, I just took the Science Notebook for Science which was designated for SBA as what Ms Tat designated it for, and changed the title of the book to “Enrichment”, hereby crossing out SBA in the process. When the time came to do the garden design, Ms Carol then asked us to use either our Science Notebook for Enrichment or a piece of paper if we hadn't had one, to draw the design for the garden. We were given half an hour to design the garden, and when everyone was done, Ms Carol was not amused.
“Most of you give irrelevant designs. Some draw superheroes....are you thinking this is your dreamland? Look at what Wei Yiang has done,” she said, holding up my design. She then told me that my design, out of all the classes’ designs, was chosen and would be used for the basis for the School Garden's design. Unfortunately, when Ms Tat came in, I had to stand up because I made a silly act of changing the name of the SBA book to the Enrichment book just for the sake of getting the garden design in my Enrichment book to score approval ratings. Ms Tat then lectured all those who did not bring the SBA book to class.
I hadn't spoken much about Cikgu Nurul or Mr Calvin, my Art teacher. Especially the latter.
Cikgu Nurul continued teaching us Malay for that year. Of course, back then, the official name for Malay is ‘Bahasa Melayu’ or ‘Bahasa Malaysia’, but however, she had more activities for us in Year 4 than Year 3. She would normally teach us some basic Malay comprehension and techniques. On the other hand, Mr Calvin is quite an interactive but really serious teacher, although, not as strict. He would just do some drawing techniques in the art studio with us. For English, normally Ms Chin would do Spelling and Dictation with us in a special book, with Dictation on Mondays and Spelling on Fridays. I would do most of them without issues, and corrections would be given if things weren't in order. On top of that, English, Malay and Maths had more than one book that we had to use, and to avoid confusion, I had to write labels on top of them and the date and day of the lessons which I had to bring them.
The fourth week rolled in, and I had rectified with a second SBA book for Science, which was much appreciated by Ms Tat. For Enrichment, we were asked to bring plants for the gardening project, and I brought morning glory flowers for the class. Ms Carol then ushered us to put our plants in the school garden, which was being prepped for the project. We were also excited for our field trip to Tropicana City Mall (now known as 3 Damansara) for the screening of the movie, titled “Great Day”. The accompanying theme song of this movie, “Tian Tian Hao Tian” (天天好天), is also a Chinese New Year song which I remember fondly as we had been singing it during assembly which Ms Wong led us. I can still sing the tune perfectly and remember it fondly from my primary school days. 3 Damansara, which previously used to be called as Tropicana City Mall is located a stone's throw away from Nobel's new campus at Damansara Jaya. I still address the name of the mall by its old name as it reminds me of this field trip to watch “Great Day”.
On 24th January 2011, the day before the field trip to Tropicana City Mall, Ms Wong and Ms Michelle introduced Tian Tian Hao Tian to all of us during assembly and asked us to sing. Ms Prema, who was standing in our class line in front of all of us, convinced us and motivated us to sing louder. The song had a gentle tune, and it was quite a touching song. Ms Michelle, who was also in front, was also vouching to see which class had the loudest voice in singing the song.
The next day, 25th January 2011, was the field trip to Tropicana City Mall. Ten buses were chartered to ferry us to the mall, as we sat in the bus, eager to watch the movie.
The bus exited the Kelana Jaya residential area and sped along the highway to Tropicana City Mall. We were dropped at the service entrance of the mall, and were led by our teachers up escalators and through the hallways of the mall to Golden Screen Cinemas. All of us in 4 Diligent followed Ms Prema as she led us and told us to wait as we impatiently awaited the movie being screened. Popcorn was later served in the cinema as we entered and took our seats for the movie. Our teachers sat with us and watched the movie together. Ms Prema made sure I sat well before the movie started.
Great Day is a movie that revolves around an elderly man named Uncle Lim, whom he and his old folks counterparts reside in an old folks home in Arau, Perlis, dumped by their children who were busy working in Kuala Lumpur. They were not required to leave the home and must reside there at all times. One morning, another uncle, Mr Hock, and his young boy were headed for Kuala Lumpur, and Uncle Lim decided to follow them. His friend, who tried to follow him, failed to do so as Uncle Lim successfully sneaked out of the home at night to avoid being caught by the caretaker of the home.
When Mr Hock and his young boy found out about Uncle Lim, they then took him to see his sister who lives in Sungai Long, Selangor. His daughter was quite busy and his granddaughter, Joey, was very hesitant to play with him. Through a series of mingling sessions and walkabouts around the city, from confronting a school principal to a visit to a hairstyle commercial at Sunway Pyramid, Uncle Lim, Mr Hock and his son were able to mingle with people, especially his ignorant eldest son who worked as an actor, and Joey soon rekindled with Uncle Lim. As Uncle Lim, Mr Hock and his son were about to leave for Arau, Perlis, Joey was quite emotional and wished to follow Uncle Lim, which she did a few days later. All characters soon reunite in Arau where they sing the Tian Tian Hao Tian song under a big tree in the yard, celebrating the Chinese New Year together.
We had to write ten things that we had learnt from the movie in our journal book, and I learned many things, namely to respect and care for my parents, study hard, take care of my mental health, appreciate my family members, as well as be motivated daily, based on the scenes and themes covered in the movie. As Malay was a core subject then, journal writing was also done in Malay to enhance our proficiency in the language.
Ms Kalai decided to take charge in some of our poor mistakes in our exercises, and one of the things she did was to do a remedial class every Monday afternoon beginning from the first week of February. The remedial classes were held from 3:30pm to 5:00pm, and I dreaded heading for the remedial class given my experience with Ms Josephine the previous year. Hence, I struggled to improve to please Ms Kalai and opt out of remedials.
The Chinese New Year celebration came as quick as possible, and we had to write about our Chinese New Year holidays. It is tradition for my family to play firecrackers, and there were a lot of firecrackers and fireworks being played for Chinese New Year. I documented my journey back to Bukit Mertajam, Penang, to visit my grandparents and usher in the festival. The Tian Tian Hao Tian tunes played in the background whenever my grandparents watch Astro. I also listened to the song on loop on my mum's car while on the highway journeying back to Penang at 5:00am as the road got congested with people heading back to their hometown.
Following the Chinese New Year holidays, [Sekolah Sri] Nobel threw a Chinese New Year celebration upon our return to school. In the days leading up to Chinese New Year, the school foyer was decorated with lanterns and a wall filled with red couplets that contained the Chinese character for good luck (福). The couplets decorated the entire wall in a show of prosperity and happiness for the new year.
Sekolah Sri Nobel's Chinese New Year celebration was held on Monday, 14th February 2011. On the first day of school following the Chinese New Year holiday, we were told to sing the Tian Tian Hao Tian song again. All the prefects then went on stage to lead us and were given mandarin oranges by Ms Michelle, and the teachers were invited to toss yee sang in front of the entire school. There were Chinese New Year songs being sung in front of the crowd, and everyone enjoyed dancing and singing to the tune of Tian Tian Hao Tian, which was the most famous one which we have learnt, although “Chai Shen Dao!” was quite amusing as well.
As our class, 4 Diligent, was awarded “Class of the Month” for the month of January 2011, Ms Michelle and the management team presented angpows to us. A week before, on Wednesday, 9th February, we were announced as Class of the Month, and Mr Chuang quipped in his announcement, “The class of the month for upper primary goes to......the class with the ‘two Brandons’.” Our class had two “Brandon” in it, namely Brandon Ooi and Brendan Cheah. Although the spelling was different, the pronunciation was the same. We took a class photo after assembly, and Christopher Chew, Hua Iong and Yatisan lifted the trophy while I tried my best to smile. Ms Prema was happy for us as a class that we got the class of the month. Back then, we had a trophy for the Class of the Month, modeled in the shape of today's Champion House trophy.
During Mandarin lessons, Ms Wong taught us the history of Chinese New Year as well as the corresponding season, Spring, for the topic on Seasons, and we had to name them all in Mandarin. We had to do homework, and fortunately, I turned the homework on time to avoid an avalanche of roars from Ms Wong. However, I would not always be successful, as I am always a human being. Ms Wong then roared like a tiger when everyone was talking and had to get angry so many times till it made me shiver with fear despite being a good student. Ms Prema also told us to do a Chinese New Year section in our scrapbook for Pendidikan Moral.
As the month of February begun, the first PEV was on the horizon, and Cikgu Nurul, Ms Tat, Ms Kalai and Ms Chin were preparing us for our PEV. We were given a graph that tabulated our homework and our classwork and we were told to draw a line to where we thought reflects our progress in learning, based on marks. We were also told to move class by Ms Prema to the one in front, and thus switched places with 4 Attentive. So, we had to take down our class posters and so on, and move to the next class.
Ms Tat was also teaching us about the life processes of humans, animals and plants. “When you talk about people going to poo-poo, don't talk about poo or pee. In scientific enquiry, poo means defecate and pee means excrete, so we should refer our poo and pee as excretion and defecation,” she said, to laughter from the class.
Ms Kalai taught us fractions, and the most challenging thing was how to multiply, add or subtract the fractions which had different denominators. It was different from lower primary fractions, as adding and subtracting fractions made it a pain in the head for me as my 10-year-old brain struggled to cope. My mum would normally revise Mathematics for me everyday when I returned home from school. This was burdened with the multiplication of two-digit multiples in standard written method working format.
The World Maths Day was also on the horizon, and 2011 was the second year Nobel was doing the World Maths Day competition. Ms Kalai gave us the password which we had to use to log into the game so that we can play the game and earn points. During ICT lessons, Mr Mervin spared us time to play the game so that we can earn more points in the competition. I sat down at my desk and logged into my World Maths Day while Mr Mervin asked the class to keep quiet and concentrate on the game.
The game consisted of many players, and all that we need to do was answer basic Maths questions to a series of sums where we need to add, subtract, multiply and divide. In fact, Year 4 was the very first time that I learned a very special rule from Ms Thava; the BODMAS rule.
BODMAS is an acronym for the term “bracket of division, multiplication, addition, subtraction. It means that in order to answer a Maths question, one will need to solve numerical terms in a bracket, which will essentially eliminate the bracket. This is then followed by the basic steps of multiplication, addition and subtraction.
Anyhow, World Maths Day was in full swing, and Mr Mervin was going around the class, checking on us. Each individual had to complete a series of levels, and there were unlimited levels to complete. The winners would receive awards corresponding to how many questions were completed and how many of them were correct. Each student received a certificate of participation, and we were given time to practice the World Maths Day game before the official competition from 28th February to 7th March 2011.
The gardening project was in full swing, and Ms Carol was getting us to do some planting. Each class had a plot in the school garden based on the design I made, and the school garden underwent a roof refurbishment in order to provide a skylight over the garden. I spent time planting some fruits and vegetables and learning how to water the plants when Ms Carol brought us to the school garden for weeks.
Mr Calvin, on the other hand, was furious with us for coming to class every lesson and talking in our class line. You see, as primary school students then, each one of us had to follow the two lining up rules, namely looking in front and being on silent mode. Mr Calvin actively enforced this rule, and each time we moved around school, we had to be in our class line as Mr Calvin led us to and from the art studio. As Mr Calvin was not happy with us being as such, he purposely did not allow us into the art studio and also, because everyone had to be in our class line, we stood for a long time as he delayed our entry into the art studio or even refused to allow us to leave for our next lesson.
One fine day, Mr Calvin was furious with everyone talking in their line, and he said, “If you want to talk some more, you waste more time, that's your problem.” Yan Ying and the girls who were not happy to be delayed urged everyone to keep quiet, and this situation came on and off every week Mr Calvin told us to do so.
Mr Mani, our KH teacher, had threatened us that he would not have a meal for the entire day if we misbehaved or failed to bring some materials for our class. That same month, within February, I accidentally forgot to bring some plastic bottle, and tools for the class, and Mr Mani had pledged not to eat for the day. Yan Ying told us that Mr Mani had requested us to purchase food for him.
As the month of February came to a close, Ms Prema handed us our worksheet files. Each student was given a worksheet file to file all the worksheets given by our subject teachers. Ms Prema was very strict on us filing our worksheets in the worksheet file, and she would normally go and check on the files for our own good. So, on 17th February, Ms Prema was checking the worksheet file of mine, and she pointed out certain missing pages. In fact, Ms Prema also reprimanded Hua Iong and Christopher Chew for having untidy worksheet files. Ms Prema then briefed us about the PTM on 26th February 2011 and that each one of our parents were given a time slot for the PTM. My mum was given a time slot of 11:40am. PTM went quite well, and I had to write what my parents said about the PTM as part of my journal topic.
One good news that came out from the PTM was that Ms Kalai told my mum I do not need remedial classes. Phew! At least I finally escaped the noose as opposed to the previous year under Ms Josephine. However, Ms Kalai told my mum that I took a lot of time to finish my classwork, which was an issue. My mum subsequently told me that she would be retaining my tuition teacher which came every Wednesday evening for Maths tuition in order to ensure my grades did not skydive. On the other hand, Ms Prema told my mum that my handwriting got quite messy, enlarging itself like a balloon and squiggling all over the place. She told my mum that my handwriting should look neat by writing on the lines. Ms Chin gave good remarks that I am quite organized in class, scoring an A for my PEV, while Ms Tat said that I like to ask questions in class, with the only exception that I need to improve on my scientific application. Mr Mervin said my voice is too soft to the point that everyone would need to stop talking in order to hear me and I should ask if I did not understand. Overall, my teachers said that all is well, and that there is not much to worry about that much, and hence, I wrote all that my teachers told my mum in my journal. I felt happy with the feedback given, and reflecting on this, whatever feedback was given shaped who I am today.
During our PE lessons, we were divided into our sports houses and were tasked with doing the sports day relay runs and over the weeks, each house was given a house cheer to practice on. Mine was:
Win or lose, laugh or cry, come on green, break the tie; GO GREEN!
Mr Mani led the PE lesson and we had to practice relay runs and the games. He was a great teacher and looked cool tweeting his whistle.
X
Science became more interesting as the calendar ticked into the month of March 2011. Ms Tat was replaced by Mr Paul, who was the head of subject for Science. He was quite an interesting teacher, and I could still remember the first day he came into our class. It was thanks to Mr Paul who captivated my interest in Science, and his contribution to my studies is greatly appreciated because of him taking over Ms Tat. I thought that Ms Tat was better, but ultimately, Mr Paul is credited for giving me the underlying love for Science and passion for that subject in primary school.
Anyhow, Mr Paul's first class with us was on Monday, 28th February 2011. It was 2:30pm, and Ms Puvan had just finished talking about the land geography and the culture of Malaysia in our Kajian Tempatan class. She had just left the class, and we were all waiting for Ms Tat to enter. Everyone was talking in the class and doing their own things, waiting for Ms Tat. Eventually, I wondered what was taking Ms Tat so long, and suddenly, Mr Paul walked along the corridor, entered the class, plopped his things down on the teacher's desk in front of the computer. He then rolled up his sleeves, and then begun addressing the class.
“Class....” he begun. He then called a few times and asked everyone to have his attention.
“Ms Tat is on leave today, and she had just gone for maternity leave. So I am here to take over her lessons for the time being,” said Mr Paul. He then asked us to take out our Effective Text Science textbook and flip to the life processes of plants, where he begun talking.
“Class, you know, the life processes of plants is very simple. Plants need sunlight and water to survive, right? But there are other two more life processes, namely touch and gravity to support the plants and let the roots grow down.”
Mr Paul then drew a picture of a tree with small leaves on the class whiteboard. The drawing looked very cute, and he continued to explain. I was quite excited and asked questions, to which Mr Paul stopped me. “Wei Yiang, can you please let me explain first? I am talking. Please listen,” he said. We then copied down the life processes of plants in the book and handed the book in to Mr Paul. This was the beginning of fun and excitement of things to come. Mr Paul then allowed me to ask questions once he finished talking.
Over on, we were busy preparing for Sports Day, and Mr Paul and Mr Chuang had utilized our CCA lessons in the past week to practice for Sports Day. There were telematch games for the upper primary students, so we were busy playing around with the telematch games. The Sports Day 2011 was originally supposed to take place on 4th March 2011; it was subsequently postponed to 11th March 2011. This was the first time Sekolah Sri Nobel was holding the Sports Day in the afternoon, and this would continue for years to come. The Sports Day would begin at 5:00pm and last until 7:00pm at Panasonic Stadium, Shah Alam, which was then known as the Matshushita Stadium.
Anyhow, Mr Ang was involving us in singing the tunes to the songs and writing the notes in our Music lesson. He then proceeded to teach us to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on the recorder, and it was also quite easy. Mr Ang told us that the recorder playing will be used for our Mid Year Examination and he gave us worksheets containing the tunes of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
Mr Mani then asked us to bring glue for our Kemahiran Hidup lesson in order to do some work, and somehow, I needed to bring a new glue as my old glue had finished. Because many people in the class did not have a glue, Mr Mani also said that he would not eat the hold day, as Yan Ying and Berlinda comforted him. Mr Paul then taught us about plants’ reproduction, and he had an exciting tone when he talked about them. Whenever Mr Paul explained the processes, he had, to a certain extent, a serious tone when he did that. He made sure all our Effective Text Science textbooks were on the table as he begun teaching. Mr Paul introduced six reproduction methods, and he said that seed reproduction is the most common reproduction method among plants. Given that I like to do gardening as my hobby, and that we had Gardening sessions for Enrichment, as well as the learning of plants in Science, I really liked the subject back then and would read about it at home.
Mr Paul was also very helpful in understanding the scientific enquiry and scientific application which Ms Tat said I was weak at. On Monday, 7th March 2011, he then asked us to write in our exercise book about a scientific experiment which involved the watering of plants. Just like Ms Tat, he used the acronyms WIC (what is changed), WIS (what is significant) and WIO (what is observed), along with the aim of the experiment and the conclusion. He told us that these acronyms and key points were needed in order for us to comprehend the scientific enquiry about the experiment, and thanks to him, I improved quite a lot on the experiment.
Ms Kalai also taught us how to add and subtract decimals, and it was quite easy. I felt happy of not having to attend remedial lessons, which Ms Kalai conducted in our class every Tuesday after school. All those who had to stay back for remedial remained in the class after our homework time ended.
Writing a journal in Malay was a norm at the time, since Malay was a core subject, and we were asked to write the topic “Sayangi Bumi Kita”, or Care for the Earth in the English translation, for our upcoming Recycle Day 1 which seeks to promote environmental protection through recycling.
As Sports Day soon dawned, Ms Prema handed our sports attire during our Tuesday homework time, along with Ms Kalai. The 2011 sports attire had the school song in the front with the words “Catch the Spirit”, and at the back the old Sri Nobel logo was posted, along with the phrase “Noble hearts and noble minds”.
The day before Sports Day, on 10th March 2011, was our Recycle Day 1. Our class brought a lot of newspapers, and the teachers had a competition to gauge the most newspaper, plastic and aluminium. Our class, 4 Diligent, won the prize for the most plastic even though I brought only a handful of newspapers. There were lots of clanging in the school hall as each class arranged their recycle items in front of their class line, stomping on aluminium cans and plastic bottles. The other winners were 1 Diligent and 5 Diligent for the most newspapers, 3 Steadfast, which had most plastic and aluminium for the lower primary level, and 5 Steadfast, which had most aluminium for the upper primary level. Mr Chuang gleefully announced the results during morning assembly, and Ms Prema cheered along with Ms Kalai when our class was announced as the winner for having the most plastic collected.
Sports Day 2011 was held on Friday, 11th March 2011. For the first time in Nobel's history, a Sports Day was held in the afternoon to late evening, as sports days prior to that were held in the morning. A morning sports day would not recur until the year 2023, when a Sports Day was held on 20th November 2023.
Back in those days, Nobel would normally have a Sports Day which involved the primary and secondary schools. Two champion houses would be brought upon for each of those schools, and that day, everyone went to the Panasonic Stadium for the event. There were a lot of cars at the stadium when I arrived, and each student was ushered to their stands where we sat down at our houses. Being in green house then was a stark contrast to the present where most people would associate me with Bullseye, for reasons to be explained later. All of us waved at Ms Michelle as she walked on the street and the track, greeting everyone with a bright smile. She was quite a cheerful principal in those days, and everyone, along with the teachers, greeted us. I spotted Ms Prema manning the Blue House seats, and Mr Mervin being in red house. Mr Paul was in the Yellow House, and many of my teachers were quite excited to begin.
At 5:00pm, the Sports Day begun with the opening ceremony, which started with the Secondary School's marchpast teams as they took to the track, belting out “Kiri, Kanan, Kiri!” which Nobel used to command marching drills when it was a private school. The Negaraku, School Song and School Pledge soon followed, and we were amazed by what was to happen next.
For the first time in Nobel's history, the 2011 Sports Day was the first time a cauldron was used to grace the Sports Day. A young girl named Samantha Cheong was invited to relay a torch and run around the stadium before igniting the torch in the cauldron to mark the opening of Sports Day. Mr Paul and Ms Michelle were emceeing the event, and within minutes, the first game of the Sports Day begun.
Each year level had a telematch game; Year 1's games was ‘Pass Me Up’, as they lined up and passed a beach ball in the fastest time possible. The Year 2 students had ‘Weave Me Through’, which was to hold hand and weave oneself through a hula hoop. The Year 1s then had another game named 'Fill Me Up', which was to fill up a bottle using scoops from a container, with the winner being Yellow House. The Year 2s then built a pyramid for their second telematch game, with Yellow House winning again. Yellow house caught up quickly as the scores were unveiled on the scoreboard.
While the lower primary students were involved in the telematch games, the Year 4, 5 and 6s were treated to track-and-field events with the 100m races. The Yellow House runners were quite fast as our cheers were drowned out. I then went to see Yatisan, who was in Yellow House, and he took his camera and filmed the scenes while I talked to my mum and his mum. It was also the first time that Nobel had a teachers’ game, and Mr Paul was one of the sprinters. The people from our class cheered for him as he sprinted at supersonic speed as Mr Paul himself earlier told us that he wants a victory for Yellow House. Mr Chuang, who was representing the Red House, was also speeding on the track. A few more Upper Primary teachers were involved as well. Yellow House eventually emerged as the Primary School's champion house, while Red House was awarded the trophy for the secondary school. The Sports Day glared into the night sky, as both these houses ran their champion house runs as I took a few pictures to commemorate the event. It was very surreal and exciting having a nighttime Sports Day; the first of its kind in Nobel then. The school then had its First Mid Term Break as I went back to Bukit Mertajam to visit my grandparents for my holiday. Unfortunately, Ms Wong, Cikgu Nurul and Ms Kalai had loaded us with tonnes of homework for the holidays, and I went back to Penang to complete them all. Unfortunately, I forgot my Mandarin worksheets, but fortunately, I completed them after returning from Penang, fearing that Ms Wong would yell in my face at my tardiness.
The date of Sports Day, on second reflection, was also the date of the 2011 Japanese Earthquake, which destroyed the eastern coast of Japan with a tsunami. My aunt first showed me the news during a Saturday night chat we had at home, and there were pictures printed in the newspaper of the tsunami crashing into the houses and coastal bays. Videos of the incident were beamed on the news when I flicked on the television to watched the news. The ensuing tsunami went violent, crippling the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant, resulting in the largest radioactive disaster surpassing Chernobyl. I had been interested in the earthquake and tsunami as I had read about a tsunami on my “Kokko and May” comic books.
Following our return from the holidays, the school then begun showing us the videos for Earth Hour during assembly on the first day, 21st March 2011. Earth Hour fell on 26th March in 2011, and Ms Prema had decided to decorate the class with a lot of Earth Hour stickers containing the Earth Hour logo. During our Homework time on the 22nd, Ms Prema also gave us some stickers and papers to write about our thoughts for Earth Hour in order to decorate the class with them. I was involved in pasting some of the stickers on the wall for Earth Hour.
The landmark activity for Earth Hour was a symbolic switch-off of all non-essential lights, such as decorative and ornamental lights in order to reduce pollution in cities for one hour; hence the name “Earth Hour”. Ms Prema and Ms Kalai decorated the class while each one of us drew the posters and pictures to promote Earth Hour. All teachers praised our effort and said that our class was very enthusiastic in promoting Earth Hour.
21st March 2011 also begun like any other day, as Cikgu Nurul did some exercises with us on comprehension questions in our exercise book which corresponded to ‘Utamakan Keselamatan’ or “safety first”. My relations with Cikgu Nurul improved as I did well in my Malay as well. Ms Puvan then taught us about the characteristics of a house, and told us that we would need to bring some stationery and materials to make a model house, consisting of a garden, swimming pool, toilet, kitchen and a reading room, amongst others. We had to bring scissors, glue and colored paper to make the house during the next lesson.
Mr Paul then had a funny class when he came in for Science. He then drew a funny creature with all the body parts of different animals, consisting of a head with a horn on the nose, fangs, claws, a long sting at its back, as well as spines. The leg muscles were long and fat, with sharp claw on its legs. He then named the animal “Trippy” and told us about the animal in relation to how animals protect themselves as mentioned in our Effective Text textbook. Hua Iong was making a lot of noise, talking to Sze Kai, and Mr Paul had to scold him. “Hua Iong! Sze Kai! The next time I hear you talking again, I want you to get out of my class. Do you understand?!” he cried. I also laughed along with the class on the animal, which was quite funny, as Mr Paul urged us for silence.
Then, he proceeded to draw some faeces and inked a face on it with his marker pen. In fact, he drew three faeces, and it made all of us laugh. “Hey! Please don't talk while I am talking,” warned Mr Paul. Mr Paul then explained the purpose of the faeces and how smelly it was, and he referred it to animals like skunks and cockroaches which emit bad smell to keep away predators or distract them if it was caught, so that it can quickly escape. Mr Paul then labeled examples of animals with the features seen in Trippy and Poopie, and asked us to copy the entire diagram in our Science Notebook. In fact, the entire Science class was filled with fun and humor from Mr Paul that I still enjoy reading my Science Notebook from 4 Diligent. I feel very fortunate to have Mr Paul as my science teacher as he imparted humor which not only allowed me to enjoy his lesson and get high grades, but also leave a lasting legacy of my time in Nobel.
The next day, Ms Kalai did more Maths topics on decimals with us while also giving us a worksheet to do on that, and Cikgu Nurul told us that she was planning to show a movie called ‘Bujang Lapok’ which is a 1950s Malay drama skit if we were well behaved in class. Brendan Cheah then misbehaved during Ms Chin's class, and Ms Chin had to calm him down and deal with him while Louis, being slow, was also guided by Ms Chin. In fact, Louis was quite a slow learner, so many teachers had to aid him specially. Ms Chin then gave a worksheet, which was quite easy to do. In those days, English was quite enjoyable and easy.
Mr Paul then came into the class, and taught us about the ways plants reproduce. He then mentioned six main processes of plant reproduction, namely seeds, leaves, stem cuttings, suckers, underground stem and spores. He then gave us a worksheet and asked us to do some exercises on plant reproduction while at the same time copying the diagram he drew on the whiteboard.
The next day, Mr Calvin brought us to the Art Studio to do our work. He then did more not-so-interesting drawing techniques with us, and as the Art lesson was about to end, it started raining heavily. This then presented us with the problem which I talked about at the beginning of this chapter.
Nobel's old campus, back in the heyday, had an Art Studio which was separated from the main building and could only be accessed by the carpark in the front of the school. There was no covered walkway connecting the main building with the Art Studio and KH room then, which made it a problem especially when one were to access that part of the school when it rained cats and dogs.
Mr Calvin then lined us up outside the Art Studio and then told us not to worry. “It is raining,” said Yan Ying, as the rain got heavier and heavier. Soon, Mr Calvin ran in the rain. “One, two, three, run!” he cried. I stood back as my friends called me to follow, and Mr Calvin and the entire class left me behind. I then sat down with an unhappy face and went to the KH room, where Mr Mani was having class with 4 Steadfast. He then greeted me and told me to wait with him in the class. Mr Mani then faced the same problem as the rain started turning into an avalanche of water. The entire class was worried, and I could see the faces of horror in Chong Vicky and Joseph Diong, who peered into the rain along with their classmates. However, Mr Mani, being a KH teacher, looked calm.
“Don't worry, class. Wait for me,” he said, before entering the KH room, searching among the items stored in his room. Joseph Diong then enthusiastically called everyone to move aside as Mr Mani came. “Make way for Mr Mani!” cried Joseph Diong. Mr Mani then came out of the room holding a large cardboard over his head. “Teacher, what is that cardboard for?” called out Natasha Singam. Mr Mani then smiled and asked five people to stand in the cardboard. Then he led them out, holding the cardboard in the rain while sheltering everyone in it. The class then cheered as Mr Mani successfully led them to the covered passageway, safe and dry. “I love you, Mr Mani!” cried Nieshaal Thambipillay.
Mr Mani then returned with the cardboard as he got a bit wet. “Mr Mani, are you okay?” Krisha asked, to which Mr Mani responded not to worry about him. He then led everyone, and Joseph Diong then told me to go last, where Mr Mani would ferry me. Mr Mani also told me not to worry and go last. So when everyone was done, he gave me a tight hug, and led me under shelter to the school foyer with my clothes being soak-free.
I then went back to my class, 4 Diligent, where Ms Kalai was seen lecturing the whole class and scolding them for their wet uniforms. I then pushed open the door, to Ms Kalai's astonishment.
“Wei Yiang, why are you late?” Ms Kalai asked. When I told her about the entire story, everyone looked at me being dry. I told Ms Kalai that Mr Mani was the one who ferried me to the school foyer, and Ms Kalai blamed the entire class for not following the technique I used. “But we don't want you to punish us for being late,” said Edward. Ms Kalai then shouted back. “If Wei Yiang can give a good reason for being late, then I don't understand why you all choose to run in the rain,” said Ms Kalai. We were due to go to the Innovation Centre that day, but however, Ms Kalai decided, that most of the time, we would have Maths class with her in 4 Diligent. “If you are late and you tell me what happened, I can understand,” said Ms Kalai sternly as some people then went to change their clothes. Ms Kalai then gave them ten minutes to change before beginning the class.
After lunch, Ms Prema then had a stern talk about the incident of running in the rain during Pendidikan Moral, and praised my prudency in making critical decisions. “Wei Yiang, good job. That is the right thing to do,” she said. She then blamed the entire class for not stopping Mr Calvin for doing such an act, and then told me that I had made a good decision to wait for Mr Mani. “I will speak to Ms Kalai about this,” she groaned.
During Mandarin, Ms Wong was very angry at quite a number of people for not finishing their work, and told them to stand up for the entire lesson while she gave us writing exercises. Ms Wong told everyone that work would need to be completed before her class begun, or else, punishment would be given. “You are not in kindergarten anymore. I want to see some improvement,” she said.
The next day, during KH, I thanked Mr Mani for his help and urged him to station more cardboards to be used in case of rain. “You must bring your own umbrella,” he said. “The school cannot provide all the time; someone will use the cardboard,” he said. The whole class was asking Mr Mani, curious to find out about what he did to save me from the rain. “Teacher, it's not fair,” said Yan Ying. “We were scolded yesterday by Ms Kalai.” Glen and I continued to discuss with Yatisan about the miraculous trick done by Mr Mani. “We must bring umbrellas,” said Yatisan.
Mr Paul then had a trick up his sleeve during Science, as he gave us a mneumonic to remember. This mneumonic would be so funny until I can recite it for many years. It is this mneumonic that made me appreciate Mr Paul as a Science teacher, and he left a memory for me to enjoy to this day.
“Class, today, I want to make it easy for you to remember the reproduction method of plants. There's this one person named Sucker Bob, who loves seeing sports under the stairs. So, I am going to write down the first line,” he said. He wrote down the phrase “Sucker Bob Loves Seeing Sports Under The Stairs” in a top-down orientation, with dashes to represent each of the six tales he will tell to us.
After he wrote the first line, he then became enthusiastic. “Sucker Bob Loves Seeing Sports Under The Stairs, is a story which I want you to remember. It is a story that you must remember for your Mid Year Exam. I want everyone to remember this story. Am I clear?” he said.
Mr Paul then explained that Sucker Bob has a lot of suckers who like to eat “big, pink yummy bats”. He then explained that the “big pink yummy bats” correspond to four plants which he wants us to remember, namely banana, pineapple, yam and bamboo, which required the shoot, along with its roots of the infant plant to be cut from the parent plant in order to be reproduced, since the sucker reproduction method involves a small baby plant clinging onto the parent for nutrient reproduction. This produces the first line of the Sucker Bob story.
“Leaves are all brothers, because they are leaves. So, I am going to put, “all be brothers,” said Mr Paul, as he explained the second line. Decoding the second phrase of the story would reveal three plants, namely aloe vera, begonia and byrophyllum. “The key to understanding Sucker Bob's story is to change the phrases next to the main terms into the types of plants,” said Mr Paul, as he wrote the second line down. “The third one, ‘seeing’, is very easy. Change that to seeds. All fruits have seeds, right? So, write down fruits,” he said, as all it meant was one was to see a fruit to see the seeds.
“The fourth one is the most exciting. How many of you watch sports?” asked Mr Paul. Edward Lam, Brendan Cheah, Brandon Ooi, Christopher Chew, Yatisan and all the boys cheered when Mr Paul talked about sports. He then explained about the Manchester United team being the most favourite team in the world when many people in our class said that they like Manchester United.
“Manchester United had the most fans, so I want to remember two plants that have the most spores; moss and ferns, because they not only have many spores, but their leaves have many irregular shapes,” said Mr Paul. This resulted in the fourth line of spore reproduction as outlined in the Sucker Bob story, as more spores and irregular patterns mean a breed for more football players.
Mr Paul then proceeded to talk about the fifth line, “Under the”. He then continued his football story, talking about Manchester United being the most favourite football team, and another group of players, namely Portugese players, who emerged successfully as they were the underdogs with hidden secrets and confidential training strategies.
“When looking at ‘under’, you must remember underground stem, and that only Portugese players train underground,” said Mr Paul, where Portugese players do not expose their football strategies to the public. “So, ‘Por-Tu-Gis' Only,” he said. Uncovering the code, the four plants of potato, tumeric, ginger and onion, which reproduce via underground stem, were revealed.
The last one was the most funny, as Mr Paul tried to uncover the last phrase. “Stairs is similar to stem, and stem cutting is a reproduction method. If you have watched Superman before, you must understand that he is always killed so many times. People beat him, cut him and kill him but he still survive,” he grinned, saying that Superman is a hero because of that. This produced the phrase 'Hi-Ro Superman', which revealed the last few plants, namely Hibiscus, Rose and Sugar Cane, which reproduce via stem cutting as the aforementioned “heroes”. Mr Paul then recapped the entire thing and told us to copy down, as the class got excited about the topic he presented.
Sucker Bob – Suckers – Big Pink Yummy Bats
(Banana, Pineapple, Yam, Bamboo)
Loves – All Be Brothers
(Aloe vera, Begonia, Bryophyllum)
Seeing – Seeds - Fruits
Sports – Spores – M. U. - Most Fans
(Mushroom, Moss, Fern)
Under the – Underground Stem – Por-Tu-Gis-Only
(Potato, Tumeric, Ginger, Onion)
Stairs – Stem Cutting – Hi-Ro Superman
(Hibiscus, Rose, Sugar Cane)
After copying everything down, and when we went for lunch, Character Building and during Homework time, I laughed and got excited when looking at Mr Paul's story. Upon returning home, I showed the story to my mum who replied in excitement. This story of Sucker Bob captivated my interest in Science and reminds me of Mr Paul and his amazing Science classes.
Mr Paul then recapped Sucker Bob's story the next day on Friday, 1st April. I can remember myself playing a lot of April Fool's jokes with Ryan, Bryson and everyone in our class, and Mr Paul himself played a joke with us.
“Class, where's your homework? I gave you an exercise. Do textbook page 25 until 100. Where is it?” he scolded. “Whoever didn't do your homework, stand up now. Get out of my class,” he said. When everyone was scared, he then relaxed and laughed thereafter. “Hahaha! April fools!” He then told us to do some matching of the plants on the board with their reproduction methods in our exercise book using the Sucker Bob story he taught us. We used color pencils to do matching, and I really enjoyed the session he had with us.
There were two Science teachers teaching Year 4 students. Other than Mr Paul, who was teaching 4 Diligent and 4 Steadfast, the remaining three classes were taught by Ms Tat, who came back from maternity leave. When I asked Mr Paul why he was still teaching us even though Ms Tat was back, he said that he is permanently taking over from Ms Tat's lesson.
We were also beginning the Language Week, and our English and Malay teachers had activities planned in store for us for the week, since the theme then was to focus on English and Malay languages. During assembly, we were treated to a series of skit performances on stage. Ms Chin gave us a spelling bee in English during our English lesson, and Cikgu Nurul gave us a Malay word riddle. During our spelling bee, Brendan Cheah and Hua Iong were fooling around in the class, and that made Ms Chin very annoyed. “Brendan! Hua Iong! Christopher! Sit down!” she cried, calling names around the class to get us to settle down. Fortunately, I was already seated, listening to Ms Chin blare names. Cikgu Nurul gave us a word riddle to answer in a worksheet in class.
The Language Week, also known as Minggu Bahasa, was held on 28th March 2011. Nobel, back then, had two languages as the medium of instruction, namely Malay and English, as a private national school. Hence, it is uncommon for us to have Malay being used back then, although most business was conducted in English. To hype up the atmosphere, the school called a mascot from Kuntum's magazine to come to Nobel to bring cheer to the students. Year 1 students were involved in a drawing and wordsearch competition; the Year 2s sang the “Do Re Mi” song during assembly on 31st March. Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 students were treated to a Spelling Bee and quiz, which we played in class.
Back in those days, Nobel had quite a really good partnership with MPH, and for the Language Week, an MPH bookstore was set up in the school hall for us to purchase story books on sale. I bought some books in the hall, which was set up during break and lunch time for students to savor books on sale. Glen and Yatisan as well as Yan Ying and Berlinda purchased some story books from the MPH bookstore in the hall. Ms Michelle was also walking around, and she greeted me while encouraging me to purchase some books to read.
Anyhow, I had brought the materials for the model of my dream home which Ms Puvan had asked to bring. Glen, Yatisan, Brendan Cheah and few people did not bring, and Ms Puvan had to tell them to stand up and scolded them while the rest that brought materials got started on the project. Ms Puvan then guided us the format, and then did the houses with us. She then praised me for having a nice house and we continued doing our project in the next Kajian Tempatan class, while the rest that forgot their things managed to bring their items the following lesson the upcoming week.
Mr Paul brought us to the Science lab for a couple of experiments, and he had trouble controlling the class when asking us to line up and follow him to the lab, threatening to us that we will stay in class if we did not follow the lining up rules. Sze Kai was quite playful, and Mr Paul had to call him out, threatening him that he will be left in the class to do work assigned to him.
Our first experiment with Mr Paul was to investigate the growth of sunlight on plants and seedlings, and Mr Paul asked the boys to sit behind and the girls in front. He then carried out the experiment, asking us to name the hypothesis, what is changed, observed, kept the same and other characteristics of the experiment. Mr Paul was quite enthusiastic, and he went around checking on us to see that we did the experiment correctly.
Soon, we then had our first Field Trip for the year, which was a trip to the Royal Selangor Pewter Museum and Tenmoku Pottery Factory. We wore our sports attire for the trip, and Ryan Tan was my partner. Both factories are in the Gombak area, and we travelled there by bus. We sat down and chit-chatted about the scenery on the road, and I did not have my meal in the bus till we reached the factory.
The entrance of Royal Selangor Pewter was a large boulevard which surrounded a large pewter sculpture of a pewter cup which bore the initials “ROYAL SELANGOR” in capital letters. Ms Prema and Ms Carol briefed us when we arrived at the main entrance of the Royal Selangor Pewter Museum. Ms Prema then told Hua Iong to stop talking to Sze Kai and listen to the briefing for instructions.
We were then given brochures and a guide took us around the museum. There were pictures depicting the history of pewter making in Malaysia and the copper industry. We were also amazed by ‘crocodile money’ on the display as well as a 'money tree’. We were also excited to see a model of the Petronas Twin Towers stacked with tonnes of pewter cups.
Attached to the museum was a pewter factory, which was one of the highlights of our trip. Loud commotion rocked the premises, as bangs and clangs the likes of which resembled gladiatic battles echoed the hallways. We were forbidden to touch the pewter which was being made as the metal scorched and burned at 150 degrees celsius as it was removed from the furnace and blowtorched. I purchased a pendulum which was the money seen on the money tree earlier. Feeling relieved and excited after the trip, we got onto the bus after taking a group picture.
Tenmoku Pottery is a Japanese company specializing in pottery products, and their factory was quite small. Ryan then had a good piece of information to tell me on the way inside.
“We are going to watch a movie,” he said. I was baffled. “A movie? Why are we going to watch a movie?” I questioned him, thinking that it was useless to watch a movie when we were coming for a field trip.
We then entered a room with a big television screen in it, and a movie was shown depicting the history of Tenmoku Pottery and their retail outlets in Mid Valley Megamall, Pavillion KL, Sunway Pyramid and many more. The video also depicted the process of making pottery cups.
Pottery cups are made by making a mold out of clay and then painting the mold before going for firing in the furnace for two hours to make the nice cluttery surface seen on mugs. The cups are then delivered to customers who need them. We were treated to a workshop where we painted our own mugs. I didn't do quite a nice painting, and mine was quite short. We then left our mugs on the table before heading home, as we were told that mud would be applied during the furnacing of the cups in order to make them sturdy. Subsequently, a week later, Tenmoku Pottery mailed the cups to the school, and we received them during our homework time.
Cikgu Nurul then begun to show us the movie “Bujang Lapok” when we finished our lesson early. Although it was an old movie, this was quite interesting because the movie had a lot of hillarious skits on it. We spent around two to three lessons watching Bujang Lapok as Cikgu Nurul showed us.
On 11th April, I was announced as one of the Star Students for the month of March 2011. Ms Michelle was doing the announcement of the Star Students; one for each class. “I will call out your name, and students, if your name is called out, please come out to the front. I was quite surprised when my name was called; I felt more shy and timid than happy because as a kid those days, I was a bit shy of being introduced in front of crowds. Ms Prema was happy with me that I got the Star Students’ award, and of course, that meant that my face was going to be on the Star Students’ board in the school foyer, along with pictures of students which got the most stickers.
After the Star Students were called on stage, we were given a Star Student tag and Ms Michelle congratulated all of us. Aside from that, 1 Diligent, was awarded the Class of the Month for March 2011. We were then ushered to the foyer to take individual photos of ourselves as well as the group photo of us as Star Students to be pasted on the Star Students’ board. Being a Star Student myself meant that I would be headed for a McDonalds’ trip with Auntie Clarine as a reward for the Star Students. Unfortunately, McDonalds’ was not my cup of tea, and I really did not like fast food.
Auntie Clarine brought us to McDonalds’ Kelana Parkview, along with Ms Michelle and Mr Chuang, who joined us for the trip during lunch time on 20th April 2011. We sat two school vans to the McDonalds’ restaurant located at Kelana Parkview. The teachers meant for it to be a reward for students who got the most stars, but unfortunately, I was the only one who did not like the food but to try to please Auntie Clarine, I took a small bit of French fries. We sat at the restaurant which had large glass windows, as I tried to talk to some of the students who sat there. Ultimately, I sat with Auntie Clarine to have a chat. While having my meal and trying to enjoy the trip, I could make out a group of employees from Freescale (now NXP), where my mum worked. They were out for a company lunch buffet at the restaurant.
For our CCA on Fridays, we were initially wearing our PE outfit for these days, but soon, we were asked to wear our sports attire for the CCAs. I was involved in the football group with Mr Mani initially, and we were given the chance to go to a field near the school in order to play the game. This phenomenon would soon be adopted for all our PE lessons where we used the public football field near the old Nobel back then for our PE lessons as it was quite huge.
Mr Calvin had a quick fix for the PE and CCA lessons we had. On Tuesday, 19th April, during our PE lesson, Mr Calvin was involved in the PE lessons with us, and Mr Mani was the one leading the classes. We went to the basketball court near to the football field, and Mr Mani did push ups, sit ups and so on during our PE lesson. While we were having a break, Mr Calvin was talking to a group of boys casually outside the basketball court, and he found a coconut tree with a dead coconut leaf dangling from the tree. He then gave a tug, pulling the leaf with all his might. The leaf did not give way, and he called some boys over to give a bit of power. They pulled the leaf, and with a loud crack, the large coconut leaf fell down. Mr Calvin then propped the leaf against the fence surrounding the court, and sat down on a large tree root protruding out of the ground.
“This is my office,” he said. Mr Calvin then called everyone to see his “office” that he had made with the coconut leaf. When Mr Mani called us back, he told us that Mr Calvin will be at his “office” waiting for us if we needed assistance, and everyone smiled in humor.
Mr Paul, this time, had quite a two-sided personality in class. He was teaching about how animals adapted to extreme weather and the life processes of humans. When everyone was talking, he exited the front door of our class, walked along the hallway to the back door, and appeared to act in an angry and deafening tone. Talk about Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, but in the version of a school-friendly environment.
Ms Wong was teaching in class a few days later, and I forgot to take my exercise book, and Ms Wong asked all those who did not bring their book to stand up, including those like me who left it in 4 Diligent and did not bring them to 4 Loyal for her class. She then scolded those who stood up, and said that we should be responsible for ourselves and complete our homework on time. “For those that left it in 4 Diligent, you all know that today is Mandarin time. Next time, bring it along. I don't want to see anyone standing again,” she boomed. Ms Wong would not allow us to go and bring our Mandarin books from 4 Diligent to 4 Loyal as it will disturb Ms Lai's class.
Soon, we had a second shock of our lives as the rain pelted down while we were in the Art Studio, and thus Mr Calvin still pushed us to run in the rain to the class. Mr Calvin was impatient that I was not moving, and he left quickly. Sadly, this time, Mr Mani did not have a cardboard to shelter us from the rain, and as such, he called the main office to get a large beam of wood from Sekolah Kanak-Kanak Pekak Selangor to get us to the foyer. Ms Kalai eventually scolded the class for being wet again for her Maths lesson, and as such, the same incident as it was in the past repeated. There was also a third incident where it rained heavily, and even worse, Mr Mani was not in the KH room. Fortunately, I saw the cardboard Mr Mani took that leaned against the wall, and I carried it to shelter myself all the way to the school foyer.
Mr Paul then continued to amaze us in class, but each time, Sze Kai and Hua Iong were playing in class. “Hua Iong! Sze Kai! Get out of my class,” he boomed, and they waited outside the class. The entire class looked at them standing outside, and Mr Paul had to intervene and scold them when they continued talking, disrupting his as well as other teachers’ classes, and soon enough, Ms Kalai, who was teaching in 4 Steadfast, was disturbed and then came out to confront the duo and Mr Paul, who asked them to leave his class. He then stepped out, talked to Ms Kalai, who urged another method to resolve the problem, and returned with the duo into the class. “I need to see you after class,” he boomed.
Mr Paul's problem with me, in particular, was of my work. He said that mine was quite messy and needed improvement, but he also praised me for my due diligence in listening to his lesson. On the other hand, Mr Chuang and Ms Mee Ping were combining a Character Building session for all of us Year 4, 5 and 6 upper primary students every Thursday and were playing games with us based on the character traits covered in Character Building. They then divided us into groups based on boys and girls, and the most common song that is played for the games is Katy Perry's Fireworks song. In fact, Mr Chuang and Ms Mee Ping were covering the character of “Truthfulness”, and Mr Chuang had made sure that for every Character Building lesson, we were armed with a dedicated exercise book for the lesson with him, and he was doing a skit with the students on how one can be betrayed by not being truthful.
Ryan Tan and Bryson Chin, as well as Glen and Yatisan, were discussing about the Royal Wedding which was about to take place in London. The wedding was the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and all of us were excited to talk about it. At the same time, we also received our school newsletters, and what was quite interesting was that it was in color! Previous newsletters were printed in boring black and white fonts. But what was interesting was about what was to come; something big which would alter the landscape of Nobel as a whole.
For the last two months, Janelle Arnelia's mother, Auntie Angela, as well as my mum, were chatting about the possibility of an international school being set up. Normally, Uncle Julian and Auntie Angela would drive Janelle to school while Janelle slept, so that she would be ready for school upon waking up in the morning.
From what I was told by my mum, Auntie Angela discussed with my mum and told my mum that Nobel should become an international school, which, since the name of the school then was ‘Sekolah Sri Nobel', the corresponding name proposed by some parents was ‘Sri Nobel International School’. She said that she had discussed with Auntie Clarine that Nobel should become an international school for the betterment of education and a more suitable educational method for the youth. Word soon got around about that when I talked to Glen and Yatisan; some of my friends brushed off the suggestion of the international school project.
On Friday, 29th April 2011, we were handed a message by Ms Prema during our CCA session which was written as usual, by Ms Michelle. It was titled, “Briefing on the proposed Nobel International School,” in which all parents of Sekolah Sri Nobel were invited to be briefed on why Nobel decided to transition to the international school standard. This suggestions confirmed the discussion my mum and Auntie Angela; a big change was about to happen very soon.
Concerns arose over some parents as to how things would be affected by the proposed international school. Some raised concerns over a possible fee hike, fearing that their wallets would be scorched. Others were worried over whether a possible transition to a new system would benefit the students, but what we knew for sure then was to find out from our teachers on what was about to happen. Ms Prema told us to wait for further announcements and paste the message in our message book. On another note, we were told to bring Jacobs’ biscuits as well as a personalized card for Auntie Clarine's birthday.
Mr Paul had an interesting topic ahead for us. He then drew a diagram for plants on 21st April which is similar to the cartoon of Trippy and Poopie he drew exactly a month earlier on 21st March, but however, the plant had a lot of leaf types on it, produced poison, and had a lot of thorns. The topic on life cycles of animals, plants and humans was quite interesting, and Mr Paul was on his way to teaching us about the characteristics plants have to protect themselves. The leaves consisted of a leaf which folded, a leaf with fine hair, and also produced latex aside from poison. Mr Paul then gave the examples of plants with the characteristics listed in the diagram, just like how he did with Trippy and Poopie. While the Trippy and Poopy diagram presented entertaining humor, the plants’ protection diagram had a graceful design and it looked quite nice as I colored it. Amazed by that, I subsequently drew a copy of that and pasted it in the wall of my room. Ms Kalai did timetables with us in Maths, and Sze Kai and Hua Iong were making a lot of noise in the class and Ms Kalai had to get angry with them. “Mr Paul already told me about your behavior; can you please behave yourselves?” she scolded. In fact, Ms Prema had taken notice about their behavior and had spoken to them about their problems faced by teachers. I can recall Ms Wong scolding Sze Kai for not finishing his homework and misbehaving in class and sending him out of the room during Mandarin. I can even recall Ms Chin calling his name as well as the names of those who were fooling around in class many times. Ms Prema told Sze Kai that the teachers had problems with him, including Mr Mervin, whom Sze Kai looked up to for ICT classes.
Anyhow, the month of May rolled around, and preparations for Auntie Clarine's birthday are in full swing. Mr Paul had told us to find pictures of non-standard tools to paste in our Science Notebook. I hadn't spoken about Ms Sarah, who taught us Domestic Science in our second quarter for Enrichment.
Ms Sarah was a great teacher, and on our first Enrichment class with her, we were told to bake a series of yeasts and chocolate chips. We also baked some cookies with her, and more or less, our Domestic Science lesson was filled with information on recipes. We even baked a Blackforest Cake, as well as other healthy diets which we pasted in our Science Notebook for Enrichment.
In Year 4, there was a significant difference between non-core subjects and core subjects. While the core subjects were Malay, English, Maths and Science, the non-core subjects, such as Music, Mandarin, Art, Kajian Tempatan and Pendidikan Sivik would have separated exams from the main Mid Year Examination. According to our Mid Year Examination timetable, the exam would span 16th, 17th and 18th May during our school hours. I was quite excited for the Science exam, hoping that I can score a good grade for my Science subject and to relive the 100 percent grade Ms Jeeva gave me for the Mid Year Examination 2010.
The first week of May begun just like any other week; the start of May was rocked by the start of the non-core subjects test. Our first non-core subject to be tested was Kajian Tempatan. Back in those days, most of our exam questions were objective questions, and all one had to do was to circle the questions on our examination paper. The Kajian Tempatan subject taught us about human civilization for the first half of the year, and it was quite easy for us to do. The model of the house was quite sufficient to allow me to answer the questions.
The next subject to be tested was Music. Mr Ang, our music teacher, had been teaching us music for quite some time, and he wasn't that happy with Sze Kai and Hua Iong misbehaving in his class. “I hope that both of you can pass the exam,” he said. The exam was in the music room, and Mr Ang called us one by one to play simple notes using our flute, as well as sing a song based on the tunes in the exam paper. Fortunately, I was able to attempt this without any issue.
For ICT, Mr Mervin told us to create a spreadsheet for the examination, and the rest of the other non-core subjects went without issue. As the days of the exam passed, I could spot the teachers setting up a large pile of Jacobs’ tins on the stage of the school hall before encasing them with a cloth. I had given my Jacobs’ tin to Ms Prema, and each tin was labeled with a sticker containing the name of the sender.
On Thursday, 5th May 2011, we celebrated Auntie Clarine's birthday. This was quite an interesting celebration because Auntie Clarine was interested to see what was in store for her. Each of us prepared a message to be given to Auntie Clarine, and I kept the message in my homework pouch for the birthday celebration.
That morning, Ms Wong gave us some exercises to do while she monitored Sze Kai and Hua Iong, who were in her class. This was then followed by a group activity which Mr Mani did with us, before we went for our break time.
We had the birthday celebration after break time. The stage was decorated with a lot of red hearts, and the whole hall, from the primary to the secondary school, were gathered for the celebration. This was the third item that I had to give for Auntie Clarine for her birthday; first with bags of rice in Year 2, then followed by Milo packets in Year 3 and now, with Jacob's Biscuits.
Everyone was seated in the hall, while Ryan Tan and I had a chat, waiting for the entire hall to be filled up. Ms Michelle then called all of us to stay silent and turned off the lights of the school hall while waiting for Auntie Clarine to enter. Then, there were sounds of the door opening, but each time, we looked in anticipation for Auntie Clarine's arrival, but each time, it was a teacher or staff entering the school hall. Then, another crack came, and this time, Auntie Clarine entered the school hall to instrumental tunes of the birthday song played by the students on stage. A cake, which was baked by the prefects, awaited her on stage, as Ms Michelle, Mr Chan and the management team escorted Auntie Clarine to cut her cake, as everyone sang the birthday song and wished Auntie Clarine a happy birthday.
Samantha Cheong, the head prefect of the primary school, was then accompanied with the Secondary School's head prefect to present a fruit basket to Auntie Clarine. Auntie Clarine was then delighted, and took the basket before giving the duo a hug. This was then followed by a long line of teachers eagerly holding a rose to be presented as a token of love to her. This was then followed by San Ying, Sonia Singam, Aiman and Samantha Cheong herself presenting a speech to Auntie Clarine, who was bewildered by excitement. She was further entertained by the teachers, who sang, Just the Way You Are, which is a song written by Bruno Mars. The secondary school then presented a skit consisting of a CNN telecast on Nobel Prize, with three students attributing Auntie Clarine for the prize. Janelle Arnelia, Chong Vicky and a few other prefects led the song, “Don't Stop Believing,” to more joy and cheers.
Auntie Clarine then got up, awaiting the unveiling of the Jacobs’ biscuits on the stage. A few Secondary School students then did a dance and unveiled the tins of biscuits. Everyone cheered, as the biscuit tins look like a pile of gold bars.
The next day, 6th May 2011, we went to the hall for our CCA activities, assembling in our class line and wearing our Sports Attire. I was involved in sports that day, and was assigned to the basketball team, led by Mr Calvin. Trudging out of the school hall, we went to the field and arrived at the basketball court near the field.
The ground was scorching like a frying pan placed on high temperature, and I felt the burn upon touching the concrete pavement. Mr Calvin then did a few exercises with us, and placed us into groups. I was in Ayumi's group, which was labeled Group 4.
“Do you know how to play lineball?” he asked us, to which I replied, “No”. He then told us to pass the ball to our opponent, and clear the line in the direction our opponent was about to throw back to us. Lineball is a game which confines the players to passing balls while standing on the lines of the basketball court.
“Wei Yiang! You please come over and play!” shouted Mr Calvin. I then took my position, and Mr Calvin shouted orders as the players played the ball around. Nigel Chew and Aaron Lee were acting funnily and passing the ball around, while some people just stood in patience waiting for the ball together. Soon, he called all groups to join, and I shouted to catch the ball when it was thrown. Mr Calvin then caught the ball and then ran, before shooting the ball in the net.
Then, I played with Mr Ang, who was a lot more gentle as Mr Calvin took a rest. He then smashed the ball into the basketball net. Following our game, we then walked back to school and passed a fruit tree on the way back. Christopher Chew then cheekily plucked a nice pink flower from one of the pots outside one of the houses.
“Christopher! Stop it!” cried Mr Calvin as he gnashed his teeth in anger. Christopher then threw the flower away and told Mr Calvin it was only a single flower, as Mr Calvin warned him not to touch the flowers of fellow residents who planted them. We then entered the Tadika Sri Nobel kindergarten and walked up the stairs while Mr Calvin and Mr Ang took the lift. All in all, there were four sports being played that day; basketball, football, netball and badminton. Mr Mani was in charge of the football players, Ms Kalai and Ms Crystlyn for the netball players, and Mr Paul supervised those who played badminton. There were also other CCAs in Clubs as well as Uniformed Units. The Clubs consisted of the Science Club, run by Ms Tat, the Art Club supervised by Mr Calvin, the computer club being led by Mr Mervin, and the Domestic Science Club led by Ms Prema, Ms Sarah and Ms Esther.
Mr Paul then begun an interesting topic in Science called measurements, which involved bouncing the zeroes and converting decimals to whole numbers. This was my most boring section of Science, as it appeared to look more like a Mathematics lesson than a Science one.
The revision week then begun, and Mr Paul gave us worksheets and told us to do our Effective Practice workbook. He was very enthusiastic when he told us to remember all the funny things and the humor he performed in order to succeed. However, he and the other teachers were still very disappointed with Sze Kai and Hua Iong, who continued to fool around in the class and not take the Mid Year Examination seriously. All our teachers memorized the chapters and topics with us for the Mid Year Examination, and Ms Prema had to meet Sze Kai and Hua Iong for a serious talk outside the class on their behavior.
The Mid Year Examination soon arrived, and we divided our tables. On the first day of the exam, the Malay exam went well, but however, once both these papers were finished, Mr Paul came in for Science and told us to take out our Effective Text Science book. While we wanted to do our revision on the Mathematics exam the following Wednesday, Mr Paul insisted for us to study on Science. “All of you, take out your text book, now. I don't care whether you have Maths exam or not, please take it out. If you don't have your textbook, please get out of my class,” he boomed.
While I had another book which was titled the Power Science book, it had the same text and diagrams as Effective Text Science, but unfortunately, Mr Paul insisted on Effective Text Science. The cover was different but the words were no different from the two books. Nevertheless to say, I thrudged out of his class, as Mr Paul continued asking those who did not bring their books to get out. A lot of people failed to bring, including Yatisan, Glen and most of the boys as well as Zhi En and Lydia. Once everyone was out, Mr Paul got angry with us, scolded us, and locked the door of the classroom, slamming it. The door smashed against its frame with a loud explosion, as the humongous sound bumped around the walls in the hallway.
Kaeshaff was passing 4 Diligent that afternoon on his way back to 4 Steadfast from the washroom. He was quite surprised to see so many people outside the class, and within a few minutes, Ms Kalai was also passing by. She then asked why there were so many people, as Yatisan and I had a chat, discussing Mr Paul's behavior. “We were supposed to study for Maths,” I quipped to him, recalling previous years where we studied other subjects during class hours on the eve of those examinations. Ryan also calmed me down while we waited. Then, Ms Kalai knocked the door, and Mr Paul opened it. “Why are there so many people outside the classroom?” cried Ms Kalai. Mr Paul then told her that he's punishing everyone for not bringing their Effective Text book. Ms Kalai told Mr Paul that he was supposed to give everyone time to do their revision for Maths, but he told Ms Kalai that he wanted to do a last-minute revision for Science. While Mr Paul is a humerous teacher, he was quite strict at times with us. Ms Kalai then left the class, and asked us what Mr Paul talked to us before heading for the lift.
“Class, should we let them in or punish them?” asked Mr Paul. “What should we do with them?” he queried, to which the class requested to let everyone in. Almost half the class did not bring their book, and no one wanted Mr Paul to be furious. He asked those outside to apologize as a consequence. “Say sorry before I let you in,” he boomed.
Mr Paul eventually told Yan Ying to open the door and let everyone in, and said that he was cancelling the Science revision for us. We then headed down for dismissal, and Yatisan, Glen and Ryan told me that Mr Paul had cancelled the revision and focused us on revising for Maths. Soon, I was in tears at the foyer. Then, Ms Prema passed by and asked why I was crying and brought me to the front office. When my name was being called as part of the dismissal process, Ms Prema asked my aunt to come in, and we had a chat. Ms Prema told me that it was alright if I forgot to bring my book, and she said that she would be speaking to Mr Paul afterwards, who was standing near the school's guardhouse and calling the names of the students from the placards displayed on cars that entered the school compound. Ms Prema also told me that she would accompany me to speak with Mr Paul with my aunt once he finished, but however, I refused, fearing that Mr Paul would get even more angrier over the incident. I just left for home with my aunt afterwards.
My mum told me that I should have had told Mr Paul that the Power Science book had the same wordings from every sentence to punctuation and that he would have had given me a second chance and allowed me to use that book, since the diagrams and words were no different from each other with the exception of the title of the book. However, I took too much time to digest what Mr Paul did.
We did our exams smoothly, and most of our examinations involved multiple choice questions, which I find quite easy. On Wednesday, 18th May, Mr Paul apologized to us if he was too strict on the 16th, and he begged for forgiveness from us. “Can we close this issue?” he asked, and we all said yes. He was also glad that we had our Effective Text Science books as we had the Science exam the next day, and he went through the revision. Apparently, Yan Ying had told Mr Paul that everyone wanted to do the Maths revision, and this led to him cancelling his Science revision. The Science exam was quite easy as Mr Paul took some questions from the Effective Practice workbook and placed them in the examination. The scientific enquiry tips he gave proved to be helpful in determining a scientific investigation during the exam. In fact, following the exam, Mr Paul was pleased with us in achieving good grades for Science.
Teacher's Day also arrived as well, on 23rd May 2011. Originally, it was scheduled for 20th May 2011, but it was postponed by Ms Michelle due to the Mid Year Examination. On top of that, we were told to bring cooking oil to Soup Kitchen as it faced a shortage of that, and we brought our Cooking Oil that very day as well.
Teacher's Day begun in the afternoon of the 23rd, and for the day, I brought a bookmark to be given to my teachers for teachers’ day. Each bookmark had a theme based on the subjects they taught. For instance, Ms Chin's bookmark was designed with a lot of books and English words, while Ms Wong's had a lot of Chinese characters and temples. Ms Kalai's was laced with a lot of mathematical symbols while Mr Paul's was the grandest, consisting of plants, animals, Trippy, Poopie and all the funny things he taught in class. I also brought a large present for Cikgu Nurul and Ms Prema to give to them.
Anyhow, the Teacher's Day celebration begun with a book promotion session by the Librarian Board, and Chiew Sue Jin, the Head Librarian, presented a Bookworm programme the librarians had been promoting thus far. They introduced many books, such as a few books by Geronimo Stilton and Dr Seuss. In particular, the book by Dr Seuss that the librarians presented was quite interesting, such as The Cat In The Hat and My Dog Ate My Homework. The teachers played a lot of games to kick off the celebration, and there were many songs played, such as “Summer Holidays”. Ms Prema and Cikgu Zoraidah played the four-legged race together, and soon, there was a game where the teachers carried themselves around the hall. Some teachers were asking where their classes were as we were assigned to our sports houses to make our teachers become more curious.
We then awaited the presentation of awards to the teachers, and there were two awards to be nominated for each class, namely the Most Interesting Teacher and the Most Caring Teacher. Each class used their Homework time to nominate their teachers by writing their choice on a piece of paper. During our Homework time on Thursday, 19th May, we were given the papers by Ms Prema to do the voting. Ms Prema then said that she will not look at the papers for the results.
“Teacher, can we choose you as the most caring teacher?” asked Yan Ying. Soon, the entire class was excited and laughed, as Berlinda, Brendan and Zhi En told Ms Prema to not look at the papers since her name is going to be there, and she laughed. “Why not choose me?” asked Ms Kalai, to which everyone laughed. On my paper, I chose Ms Tat as the most caring teacher, Mr Mervin as the most interesting teacher, and Mr Paul as the Star Teacher.
Each class was then announced their choice, and for our class, 4 Diligent, Ms Prema was the Most Caring Teacher since she had good affection for our class, while Mr Paul was chosen as the Most Interesting Teacher and Star Teacher. Mr Paul was given these awards because of the humor, excitement and interesting lessons he imparted with us, and we all liked him. The Star Teacher with the most votes was Mr Chuang, as he is instrumental in teaching Character Building to all the students of Nobel.
Following the celebration, we were allowed to mingle in the hall and give gifts to our teachers, and I managed to give my bookmarks and gifts to my teachers. Mr Paul really liked my bookmark when I talked to him about it, while Ms Prema had emotion when I gave my gift to her.
Soon, I had this habit of cleaning the canteen tables. You see, cleaning the canteen tables in those days, was both an act that was requested by Ms Michelle and the management team once we finish our meal, as well as a punishment for students who misbehaved. I decided to clean the table because of my curiosity of how the “punishment” looked like. Fortunately, I felt it looked relaxing, and I continued to do so.
I would normally have my meal for break and lunch first, and I will begin by cleaning the class table assigned to 4 Diligent, armed with a tissue paper I collected from the washroom. Then, I would wipe off the food and then throw them in the bin. After completing 4 Diligent's table, I would go and scrub the other tables in the canteen till it was clean. However, the most serious punishment came on 25th May 2011 by Cikgu Adzua.
Cikgu Adzua was watching me clean the table and praised me. Little did I know that she would make announcements during break time assembly. “For lunchtime, do not redeem your meal coupon for a Revive bottle,” she said, as the consumption of drinks in exchange for meal coupons was a waste of money and a wrong choice to go for as it made students giddy and weak.
Cikgu Nurul was taking some time to come down and take us up; it was the norm for us to wait for our teachers to bring us to our classroom, and Cikgu Adzua was mad at people talking during the assembly time, standing and talking to the students who stood in rows of pairs beside her. Apparently, she had summoned a few people who were talking to line up in a row in front of the hall.
“Why do you talk? You all talking, talking, talking, talking! Run around the hall 110 times!” she cried. Three people from Year 4 were told to run; a couple of individuals from Year 5 and 6 were asked to do laps around the school hall. Daryl Yeo, who was from 4 Steadfast, was told to do his rounds, and Aaron Liew and Nicholas Chai were told to do their rounds from our class. When Daryl stopped, Cikgu Adzua called him to continue running.
Cikgu Nurul then arrived and apologized to us before taking us back later. The act which Nicholas and Aaron did reminded us to toe the line and follow the lining-up rules.
The next day, 26th May, was our second Recycle Day of the year. Apparently, I accidentally overslept, and upon seeing the sun rise, I quickly changed into my clothes and brought my recycle items to school. Ryan Tan was waiting for me happily, and I sorted my recycle items according to the grouping assigned by our teachers. My mum took a photo of me and Ryan as I arranged the items like a tower.
Then, I went for breakfast, and my recycle items crashed to the ground. Hua Iong rearranged the items, and Ryan and I rebuilt the tower. There was more trouble at 7:30am as the recycle items crashed, and we restacked them. Ms Chin and Cikgu Nurul saw that everything was good, as we got through our business as usual for assembly. I was excited along with everyone in 4 Diligent, as we were awarded the most newspapers, and the third highest in terms of plastic and aluminium for the upper primary category. We had a somewhat clean sweep of the categories, and it seemed like we had a lot of things. Congratulations to 4 Diligent! We went back to our class after assembly while the prefects carried all the trash to the school courtyard for collection by the recycling company.
We then begun Mandarin with Ms Wong, who asked us to open our Chinese Made Easy for Kids textbook for the lesson, and she just taught us some topics and gave worksheets. But Mr Paul had another trick on his sleeve, and this is when quite an interesting topic was about to come; Properties of Materials.
Mr Paul took us to the Science lab for our first experiment, which was to investigate the ability of an item to float and sink. He then used his hands to mimick the floating and sinking concept while saying, “Ability to float and sink” in a funny tone which captivated us. He then told us about the properties of materials and what types of materials could be found in the world. Then, he told us to begin our experiment. Oh, and we were allowed to sit with anyone we like. I sat with Glen, Yatisan, Ryan, Bryson and Grace Tee. Each group was given a bowl and a clay to begin our experiment. Glen, Yatisan, Grace and I were in one team to participate in the experiment.
Yatisan then begun filling up the container with water from the sink in the Science Lab. We got a clay that was big, and I was thinking how could such a large clay float inside a small bowl.
When Grace found out that the water was not enough, she told Yatisan about the water. “Yatisan, the water is too less. We must fill it to the top,” she said. Yatisan then filled the water as Grace told him the correct amount. “Higher, higher.....stop,” commanded Grace, as Yatisan brought back the container. We then took the clay and plopped it into the water, which spilled, and tried multiple times without success to make it float.
“We need to flatten it and make it into a boat shape,” I said, and to make the clay have a chance of floating, I reduced its size. We then plopped it into the water after making it look like a boat, and cheered as the tiny boat floated on the water's surface. Mr Paul was walking around the room and checked on the experiments of other groups before coming to us.
“Why is the clay so small?” he asked, before reaching into the plastic bag placed on the teacher's table, and giving us another clay. We then made a larger boat, dumped it into the water, and cheered as it floated. Mr Paul was pleased, and called the class for attention.
“We need to make the clay into the shape of a boat as there is less drag and more mass and stability to keep the boat floating,” he said. Then, Mr Paul got ready for our second experiment, and what he did next was quite strange.
He pulled out.....a diaper!
What is Mr Paul going to do with the diaper? He then distributed a diaper to each group as everyone laughed. Yatisan took the bowl back from the sink as he had been washing it. “Yatisan, you lost the clay!” cried Grace. Mr Paul heard the commotion and called for attention once again. “Anyone having a discussion, go outside, talk about something, and come back in,” he said. We then cut the diaper into the bowl while I took a paper cup from the front. We then poured water from the paper cup into bowl and touched the diaper cheekily, ending our experiment.
The next day, 27th May 2011, was our final day before our school holidays. Mr Paul then told us to cut some pictures from magazines and bring them to class for the next activity after our holidays. We had to present 24 pictures based on what was stated in our Effective Text Science textbook. Ms Chin and Ms Kalai dumped a series of worksheets for us to do for our holidays, and luckily, Cikgu Nurul did not add to the burden.
CCA begun as usual, as we lined up and got our Student Organizer signed. I was still in Basketball Club, and Mr Calvin signed my organizer. Then, I proceeded to put my Student Organizer in my homework pouch for easy access, but then, I was surprised as the basketballers were gone all of a sudden without waiting for me. This was our last day for sports and games CCA clubs.
I then asked Mr Mani, who was commandeering the footballers, if I could join him and be accompanied to the field. Another teacher told me that the basketballers already reached the court. I then followed Mr Mani as Joseph Diong, Nieshaal, Shaun Ting and all the footballers calmed me down and told me not to worry. I was afraid Mr Calvin got angry with me.
When we arrived at the field, the basketball court was in view, with all the basketballers. I then proceeded to the court, and Mr Ang asked me a few questions as to why I went with the footballers, and I told him that they left without me.
“Wei Yiang, why did you come so late?” Mr Calvin asked, as if he was about to explode. Grace stood up for me and told him, “You must have left Wei Yiang behind,”
Mr Calvin separated us into groups, and I was happy to be in the same group as Yatisan. We then begun playing, but however, since Yatisan had a leg injury, he did not play while I refereed the game.
We then had our holidays, and one of the highlights was me heading to Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam's four seasons temperate house with Glen, Yatisan, Ryan and Bryson.
When we came back from our school holidays on 13th June, I brought the cutout pictures of the Properties of Materials that Mr Paul requested. Mr Paul then punished those who failed to bring their pictures. He then told us to paste the pictures based on four columns; namely the Conductors of Electricity and Heat. We also had to find pictures based on their ability to float and sink, as well as their ability to absorb water. Mr Paul also talked to us and told us how their properties made it useful for humans to use them. Apart from that, we were also asked to do a booklet titled “Kenali Budaya Malaysia” for Pendidikan Sivik, which required us to do research about the Malay, Chinese, Indian and Kadazandusun cultures and input the food, clothing and traditional games in the booklet.
Cikgu Nurul was quite happy with us that week for being well-behaved, and thus showed us a few videos of Upin and Ipin as a treat. In fact, she was teaching us about oil palm trees, and I was quite excited as my uncle who lives in Batu Pahat, Johor, had bunches of trees in his plantation. However, Ms Wong had started being strict on our work, and regularly checked our books. Sze Kai was the one that was frequently targeted by Ms Wong on that, and he was scolded time after time by her. Ms Wong is very strict, and what it indirectly meant was that whoever who even forgot to do a single homework despite being hardworking, would also be punished.
Then, on 14th June, we threw a birthday surprise for Ms Prema during lunch. Pei Chi and Yan Ying urged me not to spill the beans, and then this time, I kept my mouth shut. Ms Prema immediately knew something was happening, before she was treated to a birthday cake funded by the class. Mr Paul also joined in the celebrations with Ms Prema.
Thursday, 16th June came, and I was attempting to do my Malay homework during Homework Time which consisted of an exercise in the worksheets she gave us, and Ms Kavitha came in to announce our clubs and societies for each individual in 4 Diligent. When I was informed that I was in the Drama Club, I was baffled because I wanted to be in Science Club with Ms Tat.
“Who wants to be in Science club?” Ms Kalai asked, and I raised my hand. However, I took the Drama Club which was fine with me. We also celebrated Ms Prema's birthday during break time, and Yan Ying and Berlinda told me to call Ms Prema down. Ms Prema was in her office, and then she followed me down when called. Some teachers then told her that it must have been her birthday, and then she went down. The entire class cheered when Ms Prema arrived, before cutting the cake in the canteen for her. Yan Ying and Berlinda gave her presents to savor for her birthday. Mr Paul also joined in the party and talked to our class while Ms Prema also had a chat.
The next day, during our CCA, Ms Cherlyn came in, and she was also telling us that the Speech and Drama CCA would be different from our Enrichment class which Speech and Drama was a part of. In fact, during our Speech and Drama Enrichment classes, there were many skits that we played with, such as Romeo and Juliet.
Speech and Drama CCA was held in the school hall, and Ms Cherlyn talked to us as we went up on the stage. She mentioned to us about the importance of not having stage fright, which is the main purpose of her bringing us on stage to condition us. We then played a game named “Zip, Zap, Boink” in which we had say zip, zap or boink to anyone around us and each one had to say either one of the words and tag another person to follow the order. Unfortunately, I was out within a few moments as I did not follow the order or remembered what the other individual said before it was my turn.
Ms Cherlyn told us a series of stage positions, such as upstage, downstage and center stage, and the subpositions of left, center and right. When placed together, one would call a stage position as upstage right, downstage left, and so on. We were then given a graph to fill them and paste in our Enrichment Science Note Book, before playing another game based on out or in the points before heading home.
The next week, on 21st June, we had a Library Day and Book Shopping, where MPH Bookstore was once again invited to Nobel to set up a bookstore in the school hall. I then purchased a few Geronimo Stilton books from the MPH bookstore with my wallet. Library Day was also introduced, where Cikgu Afza, the teacher in charge for the library activities, introduced a series of reading competitions as well as the significance of our Program Ulat Buku. Cikgu Nik then asked us to pass up our Kenali Budaya Malaysia coursework, which I did. Cikgu Nik was quite impressed with what I placed in the booklet.
Mr Paul then took us to the Science lab that Thursday, 23rd June for our next experiment, which was to investigate a series of objects based on their ability to be a conductor or an insulator of heat. He then presented a series of cups; one metal, one plastic and one pottery mug. The cups were filled with hot water in order to investigate the ability to conduct heat.
“I want you to walk around the room and touch the cups and tell me how you feel,” he said. So, we all went around the room and touched the cups. I did not touch the metal cup because I knew how it felt; everyone screamed and shouted upon touching the metal cup and running their fingers through cold water to soothe it, as the cup was a good conductor of heat. Mr Paul then told us to draw a diagram he drew on the board regarding conductors and insulators of heat, and asked us to copy them in our exercise book. He then gave us a paper to paste in our Science Note Book based on the types of materials the items in the paper were made of, and label their characteristics based on Properties of Materials. He then continued to amaze us based on those properties.
The PTM soon arrived on 24th June 2011, and we had school that day as each teacher went to see our parents to talk about our progress. My mum went to speak to Ms Michelle while I went to buy Geronimo Stilton books from the bookstore set up by MPH for the Library and Book Week. Mr Paul continued to teach about Properties of Materials and reprimanded Sze Kai for playing in class again. Ms Prema commended me for my character and how I was able to help my friends and was brave to ask questions. Ms Prema also spoke about my passion my journal writing outside of the main journal book and topics given by my teachers then, and praised my topic of “Message to Daddy”, to which she read it. Ms Chin also sang that same tune, and said that my English vocabulary was getting stronger and better. Along with Ms Chin, she, too, had read every single journal that I have wrote, including the ones that were self-initiated. Apart from that, Cikgu Nurul said that my comprehension needed improvement and that I did not know the Nilai Murni in Malay; fortunately, she praised me for getting an 88% for my Malay. Ms Kalai told me to practice more questions and pay more attention in class for Maths.
Meanwhile, Ms Prema was getting ready to decorate 4 Diligent. During our homework time on 28th June, Ms Prema printed out all of our names on colored paper, cut them out and then pasted them in the classroom. She also printed out some motivational quotes for us to be stuck in class. Then, we then proceeded to decorate the class with more things printed, such as the classroom rules and the class timetable.
On 30th June, for Kemahiran Hidup, we went to the futsal court to measure some items with Mr Mani. We had to do some measurements of cardboards, and Mr Mani gave us long rulers to measure the cardboards. I was in Grace Tee's group as she led the activity. We then threw our balloons given by Mr Mani into the air once the activity was done. The Year 1 and 2s had gone to Pizza Hut that day, and we had less people in school that day.
Mr Paul then showed us how toothpicks are made, and we did a mindmap in groups on the origin of materials as well as natural materials. Each group had to present the topic and we copied them down into our Science Notebook.
The month of July soon rolled in. Mr Paul continued to teach about the Properties of Materials while Ms Cherlyn taught us how to sing songs during Drama Club. We then came back the next week and presented a map of our residential neighborhoods to Ms Puvan. Ms Chin continued to teach us in class, and Brendan Cheah and Brendan Ooi were making so much of noise once again till she called the names of those who were not paying attention to sit down. Brendan Cheah begged Ms Chin not to get too angry. “I am listening, teacher,” he cheekily said.
As I was awarded the “Student of the Week” by Ms Prema for our class, she wanted me to pass my Star Student mugshot photo. This was then followed by my Mandarin class, and Ms Wong returned my exercise book before we turned to page 43 of our Chinese textbook to learn about international times and times in 24-hour format. She told us that 1:00pm would be written as 13:00, 2pm as 14:00 and so on. She then gave us correction homework and two worksheets to do and to keep counting the times as per her instruction.
Mr Paul then told us to make origami for our next activity, which I find quite interesting. In fact, the Science subject was about to get interesting with the high usage of Maths and Science subjects in the next few weeks.
13th July 2011 marked a very special day for us as it was our field trip to the National Science Centre. In fact, a lot of Science activities were about to take place, and the trip to the National Science Centre was the tip of the iceberg. In fact, we were all excited, and I could not express how excited I was for the trip.
As I was on cloud nine, the day begun with me arriving quite early at school. It was only 6:47am, and there were a lot of buses parked on the curbside outside the school. We wore our sports attire for the trip and brought a small bag. Inside the bag was my water bottle, food container, pencil case, Science Notebook (for me to entertain myself with Mr Paul's lessons while on the way to the Science Centre) and pieces of paper for me to take notes. I had anticipated that a journal article would be given for the trip to the National Science Centre, so I wanted it to be perfect.
At 8:00am, after eating my meal in the canteen and talking to my friends in the hall, we met at the foyer for a headcount and to be sorted into our buses. Ms Prema was busy taking attendance and told all of us to be at our best behavior. Everyone was talking when Ms Ingel decided to give a briefing on what we would do at the National Science Centre.
“You will be going with your teachers to see activities, and you will have your lunch at the restaurant in the National Science Centre,” she said, as she unveiled a sneak peek of our day at the Science Centre. “Students, I have one rule to make that all of you must follow. Do not run in the Science Centre,” she warned.
Within minutes, we were on our way, and the buses left at 8:15am. I sat down in the bus with Yatisan and looked out of the window, peering at the view and pointing at the highways.
The National Science Centre is perched on top of a hill in Bukit Kiara. I used to recall one of my mum's friends living near the Science Centre, so it was quite easy to make out its location. As the bus made its way up the hill to the Science Centre, we were awe-impressed at its majestic geodesic dome that capped the scenery which was backdropped by lush, green hills located around the Science Centre.
Upon hopping off the bus, we gathered at the main entrance for a briefing by Ms Cherlyn before being escorted into the building. A fish aquarium greeted us as we placed our water bottles in a box according to our classes. Upon realizing I did not have my name on the water bottle, Mr Mani helped me write my name on the cover before placing it into the box to be stored. I then placed my bag in another box, before being led into the Freshwater Fish Aquarium, which is a fish tunnel akin to the likes of Aquaria KLCC. I got a bit scared when we took the lift to the second floor, but smiled in excitement upon seeing the large atrium of the Science Centre, with the large geodesic dome beaming in sunlight like a kadedioscope.
We then entered the auditorium of the Science Centre to be entertained by a man, who asked us some questions. He then asked us to fold and roll some paper, before bursting a balloon, which made me shiver. He showed us a giant scope and related it to our sun, describing passionately about it before talking about protons, neutrons and electrons. Some people mentioned “Proton Saga” upon hearing his description, which made us all laugh. Proton Saga is the name of the first national car in Malaysia.
Soon, Justin Yeo was called by the man to stand in front. He walked patiently and stood next to him. “What is your name?” the man asked Justin Yeo, to which he replied, “Justin”. The man then said, “Justin Bieber?” and acted crazily, singing the Baby Baby song, which was a tune of Justin Bieber. We all laughed wholeheartedly at his gesture. We then left the auditorium and went to the gallery, where we were asked questions on a worksheet that we had to answer. Fortunately, the answers were on the banners hung in the Science Centre which helped us. We went back at 11:15am where we watched a movie named “Walking With Dinosaurs. I took notes along the way as the events unfolded.
We were then treated with a series of gadgets and games at the “Pathways to Science” exhibit. I decided to have a go at creating a tornado and a whirlpool. This was then followed by lunch at 12:41pm.
Lunch was held at a restaurant located at the highest point of the Science Centre. There were big, glass windows that overlooked the view, and the Science Centre's geodesic dome made the restaurant look futuristic. We were then asked to purchase our meal from the counter, and I got some good chicken rice snacks as I sat down with Glen and Yatisan to have my meal.
Once our stomachs were filled, we were ushered to the Butterfly Farm to watch the butterflies, with a rule not to kill them. Then, we headed to the Nature Secrets Lab, where two fabulous scientists, Farhan and Hasif, introduced themselves and conducted their lesson with us. We were invited to sit at three tables per class in the lab.
Farhan and Hasif told us to look at a microscope, and everyone had to do it. When I peered through the lens, the view looked disgusting like a piece of biscuit, with two tiny holes. Farhan explained that the holes resemble the stomata of a leaf, which opens during the day and closes at night.
Farhan then invited us to fold a piece of paper according to the printed lines before dropping them into the water. The paper mysteriously unfolded itself, to my surprise. “That is how flowers bloom,” said Farhan. To end the session, he showed us a container, to which it was foggy. When it became clear that a centipede, it was shocking and I ran away quickly. This is because a centipede can poison and kill us if we touched it.
Later, we went to play in the garden, and I tried to find a stick insect without success. Cikgu Hasliza spotted it first, and I told her, along with Cikgu Nik and Cikgu Nurul that it was camouflaging itself to protect itself from its enemies, which I learned from Mr Paul during Science. We then returned to school at 2:19pm after collecting our stuff from the main entrance.
Sure enough, the Science Centre trip was featured in the journal topic announced the following day during assembly. Being excited, I proceeded to write down the journal based on the points and notes I took during the trip, and it thus became my first journal article to be published in the school newsletter.
The following week was the Maths and Science Week. On 18th July 2011, we had the opening ceremony. Ms Tat and I were so happy as the opening ceremony started. It begun with the hall being dark and two people talking about how excited they were for Maths and Science Week. Then, there were lights, sounds and music, as a teacher appeared and told them that the Maths and Science Week was beginning that day, to which Mr Paul appeared to launch the Maths and Science Week. Two other students came and introduced the activities and what to expect for Maths and Science Week, and confetti was popped over the stage.
Ms Kalai begun the next day, 19th July, by teaching us how to convert litres to mililitres and kilograms to grams. The next lesson saw Cikgu Nurul coming in and everyone wanting to use the washroom. She told us that the rule during her class was not to use the washroom as she wanted us to pay attention. Cikgu Nurul then gave us a project, which was to write a topic on the computer using Microsoft Powerpoint. Fortunately, I had my pendrive with me and knew how to use Microsoft Powerpoint
During Character Building, we had been given a task by Mr Chuang to do a poster on Generosity and Gratefulness, two character traits he had thought us. I had a genius idea to put the poster in our classroom so that we can look at it. Mr Chuang gave each class two manila cards; one for each character trait, and a series of printed words on paper, and told us to cut and paste the words printed on pieces of paper on the manila card. I just shaded the last I-Will, but Ms Prema told me the correct way as I did not listen to the instruction. She told me to make an outline at the side using crayon and push the colors in using my finger to make some color toning.
After lunch, Ms Prema showed us a mindmap and we brought newspapers for the lesson that day to paste in our scrapbook. Cikgu Nik told us to do a poster on Resipi Thosai, and Ms Wong gave us time to finish the Mandarin project which is due the next day, in class.
The Maths and Science Week was in full swing, and each class was invited to participate in a game. There was a Speed Game prepared for the Year 4 students, and we also had Rubics Cube and Math Magic Challenges. Hua Iong got second, and Sze Kai got third place for the competitions. Lydia Lee also participated in the Speed Game, and many of the activities were conducted in the courtyard and the futsal court. Mr Mervin gave us time to play games on Coolmaths, a Maths game website.
Maths and Science Week 2011 came to a close on 22nd July 2011, having bested the previous 2010 edition. Four students participated in a skit to recall how much fun they had on stage during Maths and Science Week, and a slideshow was prepared to relive the activities. The Maths and Science teachers came on stage and were introduced as I cheered for Ms Tat and Mr Paul before the ceremony came to a close.
The next week, on Monday, 25th July, felt to me, like an extension of the Maths and Science Week. In fact, this lesson that Mr Paul, yes, Mr Paul, is going to teach us, was really the peak of Maths and Science Week. In fact, I like this lesson so much till I had so many fond memories of it, more than Sucker Bob, Trippy, Poopie and all the other funny lessons Mr Paul had. This lesson was the star of the show.
The morning of 25th July started as usual, as each lesson went by day after day. It all begun as usual, and things went well till Mr Paul entered the class. He came in as normal, with a confident look on his face, and placed his things on the teacher's desk. Then, he stood in front of the class.
“Class, are you ready?” he asked. “I am here to take you on your mission. I am Captain Paul here, and I am going to invite you onto my spaceship. If you are not interested, please get out of my class,” he said.
“Today, I am going to bring you to outer space. I am going to bring you to explore the planets. Are you ready, boys and girls?” he cried. We all shouted, “Yes!” as he smiled at us.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please fasten your seatbelts by putting your hand together. Is everyone ready? Let us do the countdown. Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven! Six! Five! Four! Three! Two! One!”
Mr Paul then switched off the lights of the classroom and asked us to vibrate to pretend that we are in a rocket blasting off to space. He then took us to the first planet, Mercury, and then switched off the lights before beginning his explanation on the computer.
“Mercury is the closest planet to the sun. It is so hot until the temperature is close to three thousand degrees celsius,” said Mr Paul. He then went on to explain the profiles of Mercury and asked us to pay attention. “Sze Kai, if you are not listening, I will leave you on Mercury and let you boil there,” said Mr Paul, warning Sze Kai to behave.
“Now, boys and girls, we are going to depart Mercury. Say bye bye to Mercury, as we are going to move to the next planet. Five, four, three, two, one!” said Mr Paul, as he switched off the lights. “Vrrrrrrrr!!!!” he cried, asking us to vibrate ourselves. “Vibrate! Faster!” We were so excited and I was really excited as a young boy then. The rocket verved to the next planet, where Mr Paul stopped. He gasped in awe, and turned around to give us some bad news.
“Oh, no! I can feel the heat. It's so hot....urgh!” he cried. “Did you know that Venus is the hottest planet even though it is the second planet from the Sun? That's because Venus’ atmosphere is thick and has a lot of carbon dioxide and poisonous gas,” he said. “No one can live there, and Sze Kai, I would put you here if you can't behave.” Mr Paul said that it is possible for one to still live on Mercury as the planet cools very quickly due to the lack of atmosphere.
Mr Paul then asked us if we are ready to move on to the next planet, and we verved again to the next planet. Vrrrrr!!!! “Oh, look! This planet sounds familiar! It's our home, sweet home, Earth. It is the only planet suitable to support life in the Solar System,” he said. Mr Paul then explained why Earth is home to life and why is it suitable to support life. He then took time to tell us to appreciate our planet and treasure its existence. “Earth is the first planet to have a satellite; the moon.”
Moving on to Mars, Mr Paul then talked about the importance of Mars as the planet which is the same size as Earth, and how it is called the red planet. He then introduced two of Mars’ moons, Phobos and Deimos, for us to see. “Mars used to have water, but I am sorry to say that it is all gone,” said Mr Paul. He then told us to buckle up as we braved our way to the next planet.
As the 'spaceship’ was navigating the stretch between Mars and Jupiter, Mr Paul had trouble trying to steer the spaceship, dodging one asteroid after another. “Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are called the ‘inner planets’ as what divides them and the other planets is this Asteroid Belt,” Mr Paul quipped. He then told us that the Asteroid Belt is a system of asteroids made up of particles of rock and matter that failed to form planets. Mr Paul cranked left and right as he tried to avoid a collision.
Soon, we arrived at Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System. “Jupiter has this big red dot which is a storm,” said Mr Paul, and explained that Jupiter had 79 moons. He said that the subsequent planets, would be gas giants. He then talked to us about how beautiful Saturn's rings are, and quipped that we would be very old when Uranus took one orbit around the Sun, as it takes 84 years to complete its orbit. “Uranus is the only planet that leans on its side, and it is mainly pure gas,” Mr Paul explained in an enthusiastic tune. When approaching Pluto from Neptune, Mr Paul then told us about a scientific fact of Pluto that is not in the textbook.
“Until 2006, Pluto was considered of the planets of the Solar System. In 2006, Pluto was designated as a 'dwarf planet’ as it is too small to be classified as a planet, and that its orbit is irregular in shape,” said Mr Paul. “However, for my lesson, we will consider that there are nine planets in the Solar System.”
Mr Paul then prepared for us to buckle our seatbelts and prepare to return to Earth. He blasted the rocket and made a lot of funny noises, before touching down his rocket. “Fsssssssshhhhhh!!!!!” he cried. “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, we have reached the end of our journey, and I hope all of you had a great time,” he said. Mr Paul then wrote a diagram to summarize the lesson, and ended our first class on the Solar System by asking us to copy it down. When it was time to go home, I told my aunt, who came to fetch me, about Mr Paul's exciting lesson that day.
The next day, Mr Paul continued to talk about the Solar System and this time, he focused on satellites. “I hope you all enjoyed the 'trip’ yesterday, and today, I am going to talk about satellites,” he said.
Mr Paul then talked to us about natural satellites and artificial satellites, and he gave the example of the Moon being a natural satellite. “I know that when you hear the word 'satellite’, what you may think of are antennas and those that broadcast our television and radio,” he said. He then told us the story of MEASAT, the name of Malaysia's satellite orbiting Earth. He also told us that it took 28 days for the moon to orbit around the Earth, and that he also explained how a meteoroid turns into a meteorite. With the aid of a diagram on the board, he drew it and asked us to copy that into our Science Notebook. In the days ahead, Mr Paul did some exercises with us on the Solar System in our Effective Text Science Textbook, and our Effective Practice workbook. In fact, Mr Paul said that I have a big brain and praised me in front of the class for managing to remember so many things from his Science class.
On 28th July, we celebrated Ms Michelle's birthday with an assembly in the hall for her (her birthday is 26th July). There was a choir performance by Year 1 students, a violin performance by the Year 3s and a series of cards and gifts prepared by students and teachers. We then went back for Mandarin, and Ms Wong decided to use the projector and speaker in 4 Diligent as it was working, and finally I got to have the convenience of Mandarin class in my very own classroom. She then taught us the Moon Song, which is a traditional Mid Autumn Festival song. We spent half an hour learning the song and singing it. Once we were finished, Ms Wong brought the 4 Loyal students back to their class and we went to the KH Room where Mr Mani was doing electrical circuits with us. I got the idea to use the coin as a conductor of electricity. Ms Prema meanwhile, geared us up for Hari Raya to make a model in conjunction with the event. I partnered with Glen and Yatisan and we decided to make the model of a mosque. Ms Prema told us to bring the materials on Wednesday, 3rd August 2011.
The International School proposal was in full swing as many people struggled to understand how things would work. Ms Michelle had told us during assembly that the concept of an international school would be a change in curriculum, as the school sought to improve itself. The issue regarding the change in curriculum had resulted in some parents expressing concern over the logistics regarding the Sekolah Sri Nobel private national school, which was already existing at the time. Ms Michelle thus clarified in one of the messages on 6th July 2011 that the private school, Sekolah Sri Nobel, would run alongside the international school and carry on with the national curriculum. Eventually, Sekolah Sri Nobel would carry on until the year 2013 before it was shut down for good.
When Ms Prema gave us the form for the international school enrolment on 7th July 2011, a few people opted out of the form in order to stay in the private school. For those heading to the international school, two forms were provided; a withdrawal form for Sekolah Sri Nobel, and a new enrolment form for Nobel International School, to be completed and handed in on 11th July 2011. The form for the withdrawal was green in color, while the international school's form was in white.
The school originally planned for us to have a headstart in September 2011, and we used our CCA and Character Building lessons for the briefing by Ms Michelle herself. According to Ms Michelle, the headstart meant that there were plans to start an international school curriculum in September, with that month being the first month of the school year. It would have had looked very similar to a school in Western countries, but however, this did not work out and school would instead begin in January 2012, since Nobel had been following the official calendar set by the Ministry of Education for easy access. Starting in September would look horrible in the eyes of the Malaysian public, and this had since been discontinued.
Many people were concerned about how Nobel was prepared for an international school, and some parents, like my friends, Ryan Tan and Bryson Chin, have decided to change them to an established international school so that they would be easily prepared for the new curriculum. Others, who decided to stay with Sekolah Sri Nobel, eventually went to other local national-type schools to stay in the national-type curriculum. Bryson and Ryan had told me, Glen and Yatisan of their course of actions, as they would be relocating to Kingsley International School (now known as Maple Leaf-Kingsley International School) at Putra Heights, and Kingsley begins its school year in September each year. I felt sad to leave my friends, but still wished them all the best.
Anyhow, the month of August came, and Mr Chuang and Ms Mee Ping had been involving us in a lot of games in Character Building lately. Mr Chuang once acted like a clown and got people to cheer for him, and Ms Mee Ping was acting alongside him. They kept on playing so many songs and involving us in so many games. This time, he was talking about Orderliness, which is one of the character traits taught in Character Building, and he asked every one of us to show our Student Organizer and Homework Pouch. “It is like your uniform. Keep it clean, not messy!” he cried. He reiterated his stance from January to always treat our personal belongings with respect and keep our things orderly.
We were also having our fourth Progress Evaluation (PEV), and my marks were doing quite pretty okay so far. However, one of the worst in terms of performance was Mathematics, and Ms Kalai was not happy with most of our grades.
The teachers had been preparing for August, the National Month as it marks Malaysia's Independence Day (Merdeka Day) on 31st August. At the same time, the Mandarin teachers had their own activity. The Facilities Staff, along with the Mandarin teachers were lacing mafia strings onto the pillars which stretched around the school courtyard, as they were getting ready to hang some lanterns for the Mandarin Day and the Mid Autumn Festival. They used a ladder, which creaked and cracked as they held it. Ms Wong was carrying a large green string with Ms Lai, while the custodians hauled the thing up. The string stretched around and connect the courtyard's pillars so that lanterns can be strung. Although the Mid Autumn Festival falls in September, the teachers decided to bring the lantern competition ahead to coincide with Mandarin Day, which falls on 16th August. Additionally, September 2011 was then designated as the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration, so there was nothing they could do about it.
The practice of holding a Lantern Competition had been in effect since 2009, when I was in Year 2. Each student was invited to design on their own accord, a lantern which will be strung to the strings in the school courtyard. The lanterns will be judged by Ms Michelle, Mr Sures and the Mandarin teachers, namely Ms Lai, Ms Wong, Ms Hee and Ms Jocelyn, who taught me in Year 1. Hence, Icould recall patriotic songs ringing in my head while looking at the lanterns. Anyone who entered the Lantern Competition would be given a sticker and would need to pass the lanterns to their class teacher or Mandarin teacher to be displayed. I myself submitted around five lanterns.
The first lantern design I made was a combination of Merdeka Day, Hari Raya Aidilfitri and the Mid Autumn Festival because August is also designated as the month for Hari Raya Aidilfitri. I just took a plastic bottle with a Hari Raya label, pasted the Malaysian flag as well as a bunch of flowers on them. I also used a plastic wrapper to make another lantern, followed by another two traditional lantern designs, and another lantern design made out of bottles. All in all, Heman Lee had the biggest lantern which reused umbrellas, and Shane's lantern was made of an Angry Birds design.
The school installed the lanterns beginning from the foyer stretching along to the ground floor washroom. Each day, either a teacher or one of the school workers would install the lanterns using a ladder and hoist them up. The process continued, circling through the canteen and back to the foyer. Should there not be space due to additional lanterns, those lanterns will be kept in the school's front office and judged there. The lanterns would normally be brought to the school's office by some students who can't find their class teacher or Mandarin teacher, and they would be strung while we had our classes.
Mr Paul then continued to talk about the planets and the ratio size of the Sun, the Earth and the Moon. He told us that the ratio size of the Sun, Earth and Moon are 400:4:1 respectively on Tuesday, 2nd August 2011 in order to ask us to compare the size of the Sun, Earth and Moon. But what he did on the 4th of August impressed me, as Mr Paul had something in store for us.
Mr Paul told each and every one of us to draw a diagram on Earth 2.0. “I want all of you to imagine what Earth 2.0 should look like, and label it , “Earth 2.0: [Your Name]'s Spectacular World”.” Soon, we were drawing the Earth 2.0 landscape, and I was in part just drawing the world as it was right now. Mr Paul said that although there is no such thing as an Earth 2.0, he wanted us to appreciate how important Planet Earth is in supporting our lifestyle.
During our Science Lab session with Mr Paul, he gave each group a torchlight and told us to mimick the orbit of the Sun and the planets. He showed us a few videos to guide us in the study of the Solar System. On the other hand, the school had been promoting the 1Malaysia concept introduced by Datuk Seri Najib Razak, our then prime minister, and told us to write about the 1Malaysia concept in our journal, since Merdeka Day was fast approaching.
Regarding my table cleaning, Yatisan then decided to join me in cleaning the canteen tables during break and lunch, since he had nothing to do and wanted to hang out with me. So, we cleaned the table every break and lunch. So, one fine day, on 11th August 2011, we were cleaning the tables in the canteen during lunch, and at that very moment, Ms Michelle, Puan Halimah, Mr Sures, Mr Praba and Mr Chuang were having lunch at the canteen tables that were closest to Uncle KC's stall. We were cleaning a stretch of tables from the front of the canteen to the back.
As we got closer to Ms Michelle's table, I greeted Ms Michelle and had a chat with her. “Wow! You are cleaning the table! Good job!” Puan Halimah and Mr Chuang also praised me, and Mr Chuang suggested that I be chosen for the Star Student award once again as a direct bonus. I laughed and told Mr Chuang that I did not get enough stars to qualify again, but he just shrugged it off and told me he would give me a special offer to go for another McDonalds’ meal with Auntie Clarine. I then told Mr Chuang that I don't quite like fast food, to which all the management members laughed.
Puan Halimah praised me and Yatisan, and I told Puan Halimah about how the cleaning of the tables was once seen as a punishment. In fact, Ms Ingel was disciplining a few students and told me and Yatisan not to clean the tables weeks back, so that we could take a rest and let those students who were disciplined feel the punishment. Puan Halimah told me not to worry, and she said that this act was encouraged by the management from the beginning.
Puan Halimah subsequently came on the lunchtime assembly a few weeks later and gave an announcement to the students, commending me and Yatisan for our work. “I would like to mention two students from 4 Diligent who have done such a good act. I can see them every break and lunch cleaning the tables. Their names are Lau Wei Yiang and Yatisan Yap,” she announced, and told me and Yatisan to come out, where she praised and patted us. Puan Halimah subsequently led us to the office where she gave us a sticker before returning us to class. Ms Prema also subsequently praised our efforts as well.
On Tuesday, 16th August 2011, Nobel had a celebration of Mandarin Day in the afternoon. In fact, Chong Vicky had panned down in her journal that it should instead be called as 'Mandarin Hour’ instead of Mandarin Day, since the celebration was held in the afternoon, during our Homework Time, from 2:30pm to 3:30pm.
The celebration started with the Mandarin teachers and students carrying some of the lanterns which were displayed in the courtyard, which were dismantled from the string for the event. There were all sorts of shapes for each lantern, from pigs to antique shapes. The winners were presented with a prize, and this was followed by the Jie Long Tempo Competition. A game was played where some of the students were asked to say a Mandarin word, and the following individual had to spell out the next word that precedes the first Chinese character of the first word to make a sentence. We were also taught the Moon Song, the song used for the Mid Autumn Festival, and sang it for the closing ceremony. On top of that, on 18th August, Mr Paul taught us how our five senses have limitations. He wanted to bring us for an experiment in the courtyard to measure them, but because the class was so noisy, and Sze Kai was misbehaving again, Mr Paul cancelled our activity. He then proceeded to 4 Steadfast, which was the next class after us, while Cikgu Nurul came to teach us about Kata Penguat. In fact, Kata Penguat is my favorite chapter in Malay at the time. Soon, Mr Paul was taking 4 Steadfast for their activity, and everyone in 4 Diligent groaned. Some people were laughing that we were being punished for the acts of some by Mr Paul, depriving us of our activity.
Ms Prema then did a book checking exercise with us, and then she scolded those whose books were messy, or were missing, during our Homeroom time. In fact she wanted to ensure our orderliness, and prior to that, she had given us a check list to be signed by our parents, consisting of our Homework Pouch, Student Handbook, Message Book, Student Organizer, Class Timetable, Academic Calendar and Star Card. The Student Handbook, Message Book and Student Organizer had to be placed in our Homework Pouch at all times, while the Class Timetable and Academic Calendar had to be pasted in our Student Organizer. The Star Card had to be pasted in our Message Book, and that was the exception.
Ms Prema told us in class that she had got word from the teachers that our class, 4 Diligent, was one of the most rowdy classes in Year 4, and she placed the blame on Sze Kai and Hua Iong. “I have been getting reports from many teachers that the both of you are playing in class,” she scolded Hua Iong and Sze Kai. She also emphasized that the purpose of Homework Time is for us to do our homework, and if no homework was given or all the homework was done, she wanted to see us either reading a book or doing some revision for the Final Year Examination. “I have also heard that some of your PEV results were not so good, so please buck up,” she said.
Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul also told us that for the Merdeka Day celebration, we will be singing the 1 Malaysia Song during the assembly which is held on 19th September 2011. Our class was informed about this in detail during our last Enrichment time before the Hari Raya Holidays, when Ms Cherlyn came to brief us. She then gave us the 1 Malaysia Song lyrics, and Cikgu Nurul also agreed to help us in the rehearsal during Malay class. The 1 Malaysia Song was the theme song of the 2011 National Day Celebrations, and it was quite touching, so Ms Prema and Ms Cherlyn told us that this song was chosen for us. On top of that, we also had our Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration on 26th August 2011, where a lot of traditional songs were played, such as Saloma's Selamat Hari Raya song. The teachers then carried two artificially-shaped palms the likes of what was used at a Malay kenduri (wedding) to symbolize the Islamic tradition and traditional Malay culture. On top of that, there was a choir performed by 4 Steadfast on one of the Hari Raya songs, and a series Year 1 and 2 students sang Hari Raya songs as well. There were kompang performances and a traditional Malay dance performed by Year 5 and 6 students. Ms Prema had also decorated our class for Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Merdeka Day, and she gave us ketupat origami to do as well as to color the Jalur Gemilang in class.
After returning from our Hari Raya Holidays, the Year 6 students begun their UPSR examination, and all of us had to keep quiet. There was no Character Building session with Mr Chuang so as not to disturb the Year 6 students with the music and sounds from the hall. Instead, we used the time to do our homework in class. Ryan Tan and Bryson Chin had left for Kingsley International School and we were left with quite less people.
Another teacher, a Mr Ong, came to supervise us alongside Ms Prema and Ms Kalai. Three teachers felt better instead of one, and the trio enjoyed mingling with us while we did our things in class. Mr Ong is quite a teacher with good intonation. Although most people refer to him as Mr Thomas Ong, I would prefer to call him Mr Ong as that was how I viewed him since primary school. We also used part of the Character Building and Homework time to practice for our 1Malaysia Song.
On our first session of practice, Cikgu Nurul invited us to practice. We first went to the backstage area behind the school hall to sing the song. Ms Prema accompanied Cikgu Nurul in order to teach us to sing the song, and Ms Cherlyn also got involved. We had to stand in a line of two and sing the song. During Malay, Cikgu Nurul also subsequently taught us the song in class, and played the music while teaching us the actions we were supposed to do in order to express emotion to the crowd. Ms Cherlyn and Ms Prema were the ones that came out with the most suggestions for us.
Ms Prema also told us to wear traditional costumes that depicted each and every culture of Malaysia during the performance. She gave us sticky notes that reminded us to wear our traditional costume for the event. I decided to choose my Chinese traditional dress as the costume to wear.
We rehearsed a couple of times, and Cikgu Nurul and Ms Prema had to keep Sze Kai and Hua Iong from playing. On another note, I drew a layout of the proposed mosque model design in my Message Book and we did the model during our Pendidikan Moral time. Ms Prema gave us two days to finish it during our Wednesday and Thursday Pendidikan Moral session. We also did a scrapbook page on the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations for Moral as well.
Soon, the days and weeks passed, and on 15th September 2011, we had our last 1 Malaysia practice. Following our Character Building session, we placed our water bottles at the side of the hall, facing the Character Building posters in the hall. Ms Cherlyn, who taught me Speech and Drama as well as Drama Club CCA, came out from the back of the stage, holding a microphone. She had been rehearsing us many times and teaching us about our pitch and vocals, and was in charge of directing the Merdeka Day Celebration on 19th September.
Ms Cherlyn unveiled a Patriotic Day program which showed five agendas for the day. There would be a video on the history of Merdeka Day, a cartoon show by Upin and Ipin relating to Merdeka Day, followed by our 1 Malaysia performance. This would then be succeeded by a Rasa Sayang video, and lastly, a Malaysia Transformasi song performance by 1 Steadfast before we would be dismissed to our classes. Ms Prema and Cikgu Nurul, along with Ms Kalai and Mr Ong, were in the school hall as we sat at the back while we were briefed by Ms Cherlyn. Ms Prema told us to sing loudly and confidently in order to let the audience hear our voices.
The Merdeka Day history show was played first as the rehearsal begun. The history video, which was produced by Jabatan Penerangan Malaysia, showed the clock tower of the Sultan Abdul Samad building chiming at 12:00am on 31st August 1957, in which the Union Jack was lowered, followed by the raising of the Malayan flag and the declaration of the independence of the Federation of Malaya (in which Malaysia was known then) at the Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur. The clip also showed Tunku Abdul Rahman raising his fist and chanting “Merdeka!” seven times to signify the independence of Malaya.
The Upin and Ipin show centred on Upin and Ipin, two characters in the film, wishing for Merdeka with their friends and were joined by their kampung friends and school teachers in drawing the Malaysian flag and handing the flags to passersby who joined them in embracing the patriotic spirit.
When it was time for us to perform, Ms Prema ushered us on stage, and we walked up. Ms Cherlyn told us that we should walk up from both sides, with our hands behind our back. There were two rows in our choir formation, and microphones were placed in the front of the stage to attract our voices. There was a bench on the stage so that the second row could go on top of it. Ms Cherlyn and Ms Prema arranged us according to height, and we walked up before singing the 1 Malaysia song. The Rasa Sayang video then played showing a choir of Malaysians and cartoon characters singing Rasa Sayang before 1 Steadfast sung their Malaysia Transformasi song. The rehearsal was quite musical, and things were quite good for us. We also did a second round of rehearsal during the CCA time.
The Patriotic Day came on 19th September, which was also Traditional Costume Day. Each student was asked to wear a traditional costume of their choice to school for the celebration. I decided to wear my Chinese costume consisting of a red traditional dress complete with long, red pants. Christopher Chew and Andrew Ariffin then cheekily told me that I was wearing pyjamas. I tried to tell them it was not, to which they turned deaf ears. A lot of costumes, such as Chinese Cheongsam, Sari, the Baju Melayu, Baju Kurung and Punjabi dress were worn on the day. Ms Michelle herself had a nice, red Cheongsam which amazed the crowd. Parents were also invited to watch that day, and my mum took photos of the event, along with a picture of me and Yatisan.
Yatisan, just like me, also wore a traditional Chinese costume, but his costume completely came with a large traditional hat on top of his head. The hat had a long tail, to which everyone in 4 Diligent tugged and pulled at it. Yatisan tried to get it back, but each one of our classmates tried it, attempting to look cool. Yan Ying then told them to give Yatisan back his hat, and Glen also joined in. Then, all the classmates in our class pressed the hat on my head. I took it off and returned it to Yatisan, holding his hand to protect his hat from being damaged. Apart from that, Ms Prema was also wearing a nice brown sari, and Ms Jeeva was also wearing a brown sari too. All our teachers were adorned with traditional costumes, and Mr Chuang's one was quite good, consisting of a songkok with a Baju Melayu dress. Mr Sures was also wearing Baju Melayu as well, as he held Malaysian flags and cheered the crowd on. Ms Wong had a nice pink Cheongsam, along with Ms Lai and all the Mandarin teachers. In fact, a lot of students were attracted to Ms Wong, who showed off her nice dress.
Two student emcees from Year 6 then begun the introduction of the Merdeka Day as well as its history with Ms Cherlyn. The historical video of Merdeka Day was played with the clock tower chiming, which rang through the hall like church bells. Ms Prema then told us to line up at the side of the hall to be on standby for our presentation. The crowd was also amazed by the Upin and Ipin video, and Ms Michelle was visibly happy.
When it came for our turn to perform the 1 Malaysia Song, we walked onto the stage as Ms Cherlyn announced 4 Diligent's entrance to perform the song. The song reached the climax at its end, where the entire crowd cheered, and Puan Halimah commended our nice attire. We were then shown the Rasa Sayang song and 1 Steadfast came out to present Rasa Sayang instead of Malaysia Transformasi, since Cikgu Zoraidah changed the song for them.
Ms Michelle then came out to talk about the significance of Merdeka Day and praised our class in particular. “I like the 1 Malaysia performance by 4 Diligent. It was so touching and all of you performed well,” she said. Ms Prema, Mr Ong, Ms Kalai and Cikgu Nurul praised our performance of 1 Malaysia during the Patriotic Day when we met for homework time the next day, and Ms Prema also said that a lot of teachers had praised us when they had a chat in the staffroom as well.
Mr Paul then continued to teach us about the evolution of human technology, and how humans had evolved their way of doing things over time, from using a raft to a sampan, a motor boat and finally a large ship. He even used funny actions, acting like a bull and pulling a plough with it. He made funny noises and we all laughed.
Mr Paul then proceeded to give us two papers; one white and yellow. Both the papers had the same drawing, namely a road connecting a paddy field to a crowd of people. He told us to draw two split scenarios; transportation and agriculture in ancient and modern times on the two separate papers, with white being the ancient time and yellow being the modern time. He told us to present our findings, and he first invited Melvyn Ngai to present the findings. I wanted to be the first to present, but he cut me off.
A week and a half later, on 29th September, I was involved in the Special School Visit. Ms Prema had booked us into separate groups, and I was placed in Ms Sarah's group which was scheduled to depart that day. In the group were Yatisan Yap, Lydia Lee, Yan Ying, Berlinda, Zhi En, Melvyn Ngai and Sze Kai. We were to visit SuperTouch, which is a school for autistic and down-syndrome children. The school is also operated by Fungates Superflow Foundation, and as part of our Character Building programme, we were told to visit the school as part of an educational trip.
We left the school at 1:30pm, just after our stomachs were filled, as it would take some time to reach the school, which was located in Cheras. We had to travel all the way from Petaling Jaya to Cheras, which took at least an hour if the roads were kind and no crawls occurred. We used the school van, which was quite fast as it speeded along the highway. On top of that, we passed by Puchong on the Bukit Jalil Highway, and I can make out my neighborhood in the distance from the van.
The school was located in a terrace house near one of my uncle's apartments, which was perched on a condominium and located near the Grand Saga Expressway which connected Cheras to Kajang. The school is located on a portion of Cheras which is within Selangor; it is very close to the other half of Cheras which is in Kuala Lumpur, bisected by the boundary of the Federal Territory. Another uncle of mine lives in the Kuala Lumpur section of Cheras, and he was a respectable government servant who worked in the civil service for forty years. He even held one of the positions of a government-linked company, and was looked up by his colleagues.
At 2:16pm, we arrived at SuperTouch, and we were briefed by Ms Patricia, the instructor of the special school. Our group was tasked to take care of two children aged five, namely Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen. They were quite a bit stubborn at times, but most of the time, they were cooperative.
Berlinda and Yan Ying greeted Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen in a happy tone, and Lydia patted them. She was smiling as the duo happily patted her back and gave Yan Ying and Berlinda high-fives. The rest of the boys stood behind the girls, while I took time to interact with them.
Soon, all the children got ready to wash their hands, and assembled in the main hall. They sang many songs, from Baa Baa Black Sheep to the ABC song and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. We then sang along with them, and Sze Kai attempted to act cool and sing the loudest, to which Ms Sarah stopped him. We then sat at a large table and played a puzzle game in which we had to join a 3D model made out of balls. As I was unclear about how to play the puzzle, Ms Patricia showed us the correct way to join the ball. There were three teachers at the SuperTouch school; Ms Patricia, Ms Irene and Ms Cindy. Ms Cindy and Ms Irene showed us the proper way to fix the puzzle.
Yan Ying and Berlinda assisted Jiu Jin while I helped Jue Shuen. “Come on Jiu Jin, just fix it, like this,” said Yan Ying, attempting to help him with the puzzle. I guided Jue Shuen, who was quite cooperative while Ms Sarah and the others helped the other kids.
Soon, it was time to play with the swing outside the school, and Ms Cindy, Ms Irene and Ms Patricia led them out of the building to play in the playground located in the school compound. Some of them played the slides, but most wanted to go on the swing. I then accompanied Jiu Jin and sat on the swing with him, side by side. Ms Patricia was saying, “swing, swing, swing,” as she pushed the swing of one of the kids.
The teachers then brought them back into the hall where they rolled around in laughter on the floor. We got ready to leave the room once we were done, and went to another room where Ms Sarah, Zhi En, Sze Kai and Melvyn Ngai were waiting. We then played music by hitting a tambourine, and Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen were excited on it. At 3:28pm, we kept the tambourines and went downstairs while letting Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen do their business in the toilet. This was then followed by snack time, where bread was served. I took one loaf of bread and crunched it happily. I would say that Yan Ying and Berlinda were the best at taking care of Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen.
We then gathered in a group at 3:58pm where Ms Patricia played ‘Notebook Wizard’ with us. This was then followed by a trip to the backyard at 4:02pm for the children to retrieve their handkerchief which dried under the hot, baking sun. The backyard was just like any other back alleyway, and I could make out some banana trees planted by some residents in the area, which reminded me of the one planted at home.
The kids then folded their handkerchief, and I took time to help Jiu Jin with his’ while Yan Ying and Lydia helped Jue Shuen. We got ready to return to school at 4:09pm as all the kids sang the goodbye song as their school was also dismissed. Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen gave Yan Ying, Berlinda and me a hug before we left.
On the way back, we saw a large jam occurring on the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) and took the Kesas Highway back to school. This road is notoriously congested as it is an arterial road and the only link road between Cheras and Shah Alam. Ms Sarah thanked us for doing a good job and praised me, Yan Ying, Berlinda and those that gave their affectionate touch to Jiu Jin and Jue Shuen. We reached school at 4:55pm and were ushered to our parents who took us home.
During this point of time, an Enrolment Week was taking place at Nobel from 26th to 30th September 2011, and details of the Enrolment Week were published in The Star newspaper, to which I cut out a section of it and pasted it in my journal. The purpose of the enrolment week was to promote Sri Nobel to the public as well as introduce the proposed new international school.
The Final Year Examination was also about to start, and all the teachers were giving us revision practices. However, Mr Paul, I would say, gave the most inspiring one. Each teacher gave worksheets, but it was Mr Paul who inspired us. He gave us two pieces of paper and told us to draw what was our favorite topic and paste them in the Science Notebook. Mine was the Solar System (obviously, thanks to Mr Paul's rocket moves) and the diagram of the tree which Mr Paul drew, showing the characteristics of plants. Mr Paul gave me a new paper when he saw mine was messy. On top of that, Ms Wong gave us homework and told us to pass the homework on 1st October, to astonishment from the whole class.
“Ms Wong, 1st October have no Mandarin; we finish school at 12:30pm,” said Brendan Cheah. Ms Wong then told us that the homework would be due on the following Wednesday before the Mandarin examination, as 1st October was a replacement day due to the school taking off days for the Quantum Learning programme organized for the teachers to train them for the new international school syllabus.
Ms Prema did another round of worksheet file checking with us before the Final Year Examination begun. All topics throughout the year were tested, and my mum drilled me a lot on Mathematics every day to ensure I do not go for remedial class. The Final Year Examination went smoothly, and all was well. The Science concepts were good, and Mr Paul's advice helped me score 90 marks for my Science Exam.
On 17th October 2011, I accidentally forgot to set my alarm clock and the sky was bright, but however, I quickly got ready and made it to school on time. I then took my Science book out and looked at the interesting things Mr Paul taught.
Following assembly, we went to the classroom, but unfortunately, the door was locked, and it took ten minutes to call the security guard to open the door for us. The tables were already arranged, and we were told to sit in the classroom according to our name list. Ms Chin and Ms Kalai swapped their classes for the day, and it was Maths first thing in the morning.
Ms Kalai gave us the opportunity to choose any topic and do it in pairs on a paper because we were going to teach the topic to our classmates as part of the Final Year Examination revision. I was paired with Edward Lam as we taught the class “Shapes and Space” as it was the easiest topic. Soon, it was our PE lesson, and we went downstairs and were divided into the boys and girls’ lines.
“We will not go until you stop talking,” said Mr Mani. He then led us to the field, where the sun was baking the ground once again, and touching the pavement made one feel like a baking pot. We had a football game, and Glen asked me to kick the ball.
On the way back, I told Mr Mani about a dream that I had about the Nobel International School campus during the weekend. During my sleep that weekend, I dreamed about the school, and what I saw was a nice swimming pool and nice hallways which connected to the existing building then, by a footbridge.
I then had potato buns for breakfast, and we assembled at the courtyard while the secondary students had their break time. During Malay, in anticipation for our first paper, Cikgu Nurul gave us a lot of revision, as well as some tips. First, she said that the Paper 1, which is the Pemahaman paper, was quite easy, as she revealed some details about the exam, and then, she also said that we need to just refer to our books for how the exam would look like. Soon, it was English, and Ms Chin switched on the projector to do our revision.
For lunch, I ordered a nice meal from Uncle Tan's stall, but it turned out that there were spicy food and curry in my meal. I immediately hosed down my entire water bottle down my throat as my tongue and throat burned like a wildfire.
We resumed Maths after lunch, since there was no Kajian Tempatan class. Ms Kalai then told Christopher Chew and Joseph Yong to present about the whole numbers and data handling, and they presented well. “Come on, Josephine,” cried Christopher Chew, mocking his name, to which Joseph said, “Don't call me Josephine!” Christopher Chew mocked his name in reference to Ms Josephine, who taught us Maths in 2010.
Brendan Cheah and Brandon Ooi then decided to teach Data Handling as well, and he wrote on a piece of paper, held by Brandon Ooi, “Yo, we are going to teach you Data Handling”. Brandon Ooi had a good go at teaching us fractions, and we enjoyed it. Then, it was Brendan Cheah's turn to teach fractions. He smiled, grinned, and wrote “Cheah & Ooi” as a tagline while Ms Kalai stood behind, smugged at what was going on. Brendan Cheah was clueless on how to teach, and we were surprised. When it came to Science, Mr Paul told me to copy what we have learnt on a piece of paper.
The exams went well, and most of our question papers were quite mediocre, with the exception of Maths, which was gruelling. The Science paper felt like a piece of cake, as the rhymes of Sucker Bob, Trippy, Poopie and Mr Paul's outer space expedition chimed in my head, allowing me to answer most of the questions correctly.
After the Final Year Examination ended, I felt so happy, but also nervous about how the new Nobel International School concept would look like. Nevertheless, Mr Paul then decided to do a bit of revision with us for Year 5 topics in our Effective Text Science book. He then started talking about the story of microorganisms and how we need to use a microscope to see them. “I don't care whether you are going to international school or not, let's just continue with the lesson,” he said. For the rest of our subjects, we mostly watched movies; Cikgu Nurul showed us a lot of Upin and Ipin movies, while Mr Paul showed us one Universal Studios movie during one lesson with him. He wouldn't budge as he continued teaching in the rest of the lessons.
The death of Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple and inventor of the iPad and iPhone, soon shocked the world. Steve Jobs passed away on 5th October 2011, and having used the iPad multiple times before, he had changed the world for the forseeable decade. All smart innovations were of courtesy to him, as he had introduced touch technology. Mr Chuang then introduced Steve Jobs in further detail to us, and how his death brought shock to society.
He switched on the slideshow, which showed Steve Jobs and the following text:
Steve Jobs
1955 - 2011
“Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.”
Mr Chuang then told us about the character traits that Steve Jobs had possessed and how those traits are relevant to us. “He was attentive to listen to others, and obeyed his superiors in his world of work. He was truthful to his word as he told the truth; grateful as to which he had people to help him build the company; generous to share ideas and talent with the world; orderly in the specifics of making the products and services, and is able to forgive and be sincere, which made him a good leader,” said Mr Chuang.
Mr Chuang then taught us the importance of possessing these character traits, and told us to take out our Character Building exercise books to look through Steve Jobs’ character. He was attentive as to which he listened and considered the views of those in his company when making the iPad. At the same time, he is also flexible in his views, which represent the character of orderliness. Mr Chuang also told us to be grateful to leaders like Steve Jobs as they are responsible for the good livelihood we have today.
Soon, it was Monday, 31st October 2011, and it was Party Carnival Day, which is a day of fun and games for all students and teachers. The theme of the day was ‘Superheroes’ and we were encouraged to dress up as superheroes. I only just cheekily wore an Air Asia shirt with part of the traditional pants I wore for my 1 Malaysia performance during Patriotic Day.
We watched some performances before the carnival started, and Berlinda, Zhi En, Cassandra and Yan Ying were one of the singers. There were also solo singers, dances and skits being played. We were also entertained by Amanda Ngai, who played a violin.
Then, Ms Michelle announced, “Let the carnival begin!” and everyone started moving around. I went to the Coupon Counter to purchase some coupons before going around. Additionally, we were also given two meal coupons, and Ms Michelle told us that the coupons are meant to buy fried chicken and spaghetti.
I then went to the canteen and used my coupon to purchase my fried chicken, which was quite delicious, and played my first game, which was Ring Toss. I tried playing the game, tossing things around, without success. On my final try, I landed the ring successfully on a stilt with a yellow square, and was rewarded with an Angry Birds sticker by Cikgu Nurul, who manned the booth.
Walking down the foyer, I saw a sand art booth to my left, as well as a sticker tattoo, face painting and hairspray counter. In front of the glass door of the foyer, in the car park, were two, large inflatable bouncing castles. Along with the bouncy castles, there was a pony ride which anyone was invited to sit a real pony and ride it around the school grounds.
I then bought spaghetti and tried to have a meal at it, but it was not my cup of tea, and the canteen was closed for the day. Then, I went to Mr Paul's booth, where we had to knock down a series of blocks with a ball. In the hall, a ‘Nobel's Got Talent’ show was being performed by the Secondary School, and I went to watch drums and electric guitars being played. I then played Bean Toss at a booth manned by Ms Carol, and only had to use three bean bags for the game, which cost me RM 1 on my coupon. I missed the holes each time I aimed the bean bags at them.
Tired of playing games, I went back to the Ring Toss counter and watched Cikgu Nurul hand in prizes to the winners, and slumped to the bouncy castles. Then, I went to the canteen, sat on a bench, and tried a game where we had to smash peanuts that came down a pipe, competing with Wai Shaun, to which we lost. The last activity for me for the day was to paint an Angry Birds picture using sand art, which I kept the picture to this day.
At 2:00pm, we gathered in the school hall while the game stations and bouncing castles were dismantled. We then watched a movie before being dismissed.
On Thursday, 3rd November 2011, Mr Paul did with us a very funny experiment in the Science Lab. Prior to the lab session, he had told us to bring a piece of bread and encase it in a transparent zip lock or plastic bag. Mr Paul wanted us to study the growth of microorganisms on bread.
“I am giving you ten minutes, and I want all of you to go to the toilet and do whatever you want to the bread, but DON'T EAT IT! Okay?” he cried. Soon, everyone went to the toilet, and I sprinkled water on my bread and returned while the other boys headed to the toilet. Brendan Cheah then returned and he told everyone, including Mr Paul, that he urinated on his bread. Everyone kept their bread in their plastic bags, and returned to the classroom.
“Brendan! You urinated on your bread! What are you thinking? Why did you pee on your bread!” he cried. Mr Paul then said he looked forward to seeing his bread condition after a week, and he was interested in what might transpire.
Mr Paul then instructed us to put the plastic bag containing the bread near the window while he continued to teach us about microorganisms. “I will tell the lab assistant not to touch it,” said Mr Paul, as he then taught us about how to keep germs away, while also describing the basic illnesses, H1N1 and HFMD (Hand Foot Mouth Disease), along with a series of diseases. He then provided us with a worksheet and gave us colored pens to fill the blanks in. A week later, we then saw greenish mold and white microbes on the bread, while Brendan's urinated bread produced the worst result, with a lot of pink purple and yellowish mold!
Mr Paul also had another in-class activity which we had to design a poster to promote health activities and what to do to prevent microorganisms. We were placed in groups to do so, and I was with Glen and Yatisan. While we did a basic poster, Brendan Cheah, Brandon Ooi, Edward Lam, Andrew Ariffin and Hua Iong were in one group, and Brendan Cheah cheekily wrote a random phone number on the poster, which invites the viewer of the poster to call for more information.
“Why do you put the number there?” Mr Paul asked. Brendan Cheah then told him it was the number of someone he knew, and he encouraged Mr Paul to call for more information.
“So, do you want me to call?” asked Mr Paul, to which Brendan Cheah replied, “Yes”. Then, he took out his phone, dialed the number and put the receiver to his ears.
“Hello, good afternoon. I would like to call you for more information on microorganisms. I heard you are a health company. I want to ask if there are hand sanitizers for sale,” he said. The person on the other end was not in a good mood, and scolded Mr Paul. “Okay, sorry, wrong number, bye,” said Mr Paul, ending the call.
“Brendan!” shouted Mr Paul. Brendan was laughing and everyone in the class was laughing. “One more time I catch you doing this, you will see me in my office,” he sneered.
We then had our last CCA session of the year, which was Uniformed Units. On 4th November 2011, we had a briefing on the uniformed units, and we were joined by Cikgu Zoraidah, Mr Mani and Mr Praba. There were two uniformed units, namely Scouts and Brownies, which in Malay at the time were called the Parti Pengakap and Pandu Puteri Malaysia.
Mr Paul was in the hall, and assigned us to our clubs. Mr Praba then met us and then asked us to form a line for marching. It was similar to the Boys’ Brigade that Ryan Tan and Bryson Chin did at the Gospel Evangelical Church in Petaling Jaya, and we had to do a series of marching drills.
Mr Praba then said a few commands in Malay, from beginning the marchpast to ending it. Louis Soon had trouble doing the marching drills, so Mr Mani came to assist him. The most memorable part was saying, “Kiri, kanan, kiri” in Malay, which meant “left, right, left”.
The next day, 12th November 2011, was the briefing for parents on the new Nobel International School. I went with my mum for the briefing, and we were given a brochure on the details pertaining to the proposed Nobel International School. The briefing was conducted by Ms Michelle, Mr Sures, Ms Kalai and Mr Chuang, which lasted about an hour and a half. We were reserved two chairs for us for the briefing.
Ms Michelle then introduced herself and flicked a slideshow presentation pertaining to the details of the international school. Ms Michelle then introduced the presentation and greeted everyone with her usual smile. The one crucial thing about the proposal for the international school was the placement of everyone in their respective levels.
International schools, in particular, are very different than national schools, such as Chinese schools (SJKC), national-type primary schools (SK), Tamil schools (SJKT) and national-type secondary schools (SMK), because the age bandwidth for the particular level is one year younger than those schools. In national schools, the age qualification for Year 1 is seven years old as opposed to six years old for the international school standard. Hence, Ms Michelle said that in order to transition to the international school, every student who wishes to do so would need to fill up a form which constitutes the transfer for administrative purposes. This meant me skipping one year, which is Year 5, and going all the way to Year 6 from Year 4. Similarly, Year 1 students for Sri Nobel in 2011 will automatically hop to Year 3 in the new Nobel International School. Ms Michelle said that several parents had suggested the international school model, which led them to consider it and discuss it in detail, as international schools have better education standards.
Mr Sures then came on the briefing to introduce the Cambridge International Primary Programme, or CIPP, which follows the Cambridge assessment system. He said that CIPP would involve testing pupils in quantum-based learning, which is also another reason why our teachers were sent to be trained on the Quantum Programme. Mr Sures also told us that the books would be more expensive as the books would need to be imported from other countries. Mr Chuang then came on to explain in detail on how the transition would take place from national to international curriculum, and he said that the teachers would adopt an interactive learning experience for the international school. He said that originally, there was a plan to have the headstart in September 2011, but because there was no time, it was best to do everything in January 2012, where it would become evident of teething challenges and items that we could adjust. Ms Kalai then continued speaking on more academic aspects of things, and Mr Paul also came to answer any queries that the parents had on the entire briefing.
Following the briefing, a booth was set up behind the school hall, which contained books that are tied to the new international school curriculum. While most books were adjorned with the Cambridge logo, the Mandarin textbooks were imported from China and use the Beijing Standard in the curriculum. I then met Janelle and her parents, and we went to McDonald's (again) for brunch and to chat about the two of us receiving awards for Awards Day.
We then entered our last week of school, where tens of thousands of movies were shown by our subject teachers as the business for the year ended. Mr Paul and Ms Kalai wanted to play some games, but instead, the entire class wanted to watch movies.
On Tuesday, 15th November, we had Awards Day, and I arrived early at school to have my usual breakfast. My mum was invited for Awards Day, and after putting my bag in class early in the morning, I went to the hall, where refreshments and facilities were readied for the event.
All award winners gathered in the school foyer for a briefing by Ms Ingel, who checked that we were in the correct row. I was given an award for Awards Day for being one of the top academic scorers. There were three places for the Top in Academics for each class; I was second place. Berlinda Tan was the highest, followed by me and then Ayumi Ng.
We were then led to the hall, and assigned to our seats in front of the hall. Ms Lai, Mr Praba and Ms Shiza were the announcers, and Mr Praba was the first to start announcing the start of Awards Day. This was the only time throughout my life in Nobel that I have received an award on the Academic Awards Day. Ms Michelle then presented the awards, starting with the Year 5, followed by Year 4, 3, 2 and 1. I received a book as part of the awards ceremony, which was decked in green ribbon. The next awards to be presented were the Best Conduct, Best Helper and Best Improvement. There was an award for Student of the Year, which was presented to two students; one from the Lower Primary and one from the Upper Primary. The show ended with a group of students singing, strangely, the 1 Malaysia Song!
On Friday, 18th November 2011, we had our Class Party to cap off the last day of school. The school newsletter was presented with our class photos, and I brought it to school that day for people to sign on it, since there was an empty section behind.
I woke up at 5:00am, got dressed, and got my things ready for school. Each student was allowed to bring something to eat, so I brought Hazelnut Biscotti which my aunt baked, to the class party. Hazelnut Biscotti, along with Peanut Butter Biscotti, is a biscuit with an Italian name and both of these were offered at Pacific Coffee, which is a restaurant that has many outlets in Asia then. I like to go to the Pacific Coffee outlet near my house as it had wonderful books, a computer area as well as nice food. The aroma smelled quite nice when I go to the restaurant on certain weeknights, including for special events, such as Earth Hour. This restaurant has outlets in Hong Kong, Singapore, mainland China and Malaysia.
Anyhow, I wanted to bring some to the Class Party to share with my teachers and friends. I went up to the classroom once I arrived, as the school gate opened, and decorated the class with homemade paper chains. There were two signs I made for Class Party; a welcome sign to 4 Diligent with the school logo, and a Hazelnut Biscotti and Pacific Coffee sign to promote the restaurant and the food.
Soon, Hua Iong arrived, and brought some tasty snacks. Yatisan arrived soon thereafter, and Sze Kai, Aaron Liew and the rest of the class followed. I had also brought a pinata to play in the class, and Sze Kai helped me hoist the pinata onto a cable that was hung in the classroom.
We then went to the hall for a special presentation by the management team and some students, who did a dance. We were then shown videos of the past year of 2011, which amazed us. There was also a science experiment on stage which amazed us. Afterwards, Mr Chuang came out to tell everyone about the last day of being under a normal private school before the implementation of the international school.
After assembly, we headed back to class, and many people were excited to see the pinata and begun hitting it. Ayumi warned everyone to not smack it, as it will spoil the fun at the end of the day. Some people still whacked it, but it accidentally left a hole in the pinata. On top of that, the pinata was decorated with an image of the Solar System which depicted the Sun, the nine planets and their orbits. I decorated the Solar System on the pinata due to excitement from Mr Paul and the spaceship adventure in class. The party started as I munched one of my biscuits, before heading to 4 Steadfast to do a dance with Mr Paul. He was doing a cowboy dance and the chicken dance, and everyone laughed as he danced to the music. Mr Paul held my hands and we danced in a hillarious manner as everyone looked at us. The class had decorated the fans with paper chains, and they made a funny pattern when the fan turned. I then went to 4 Attentive to see Ms Tat, and in their class, there was a class photo decked in the room. Taking my newsletter with the blank pages, I went to get signatures from students and teachers. I had collected signatures from the previous day before, and over two days, I got a lot of them. I received signatures from Ms Kalai, Ms Carol, Ms Prema, Ms Chin, Ms Cherlyn, Ms Tat, Mr Chuang, Ms Michelle, Cikgu Nurul, Mr Calvin, Ms Crystlyn, Mr Mani and Ms Wong, who were my teachers. I got signatures from Berlinda, Yan Ying, Ashley and Glen Kay. I went up and down, high and low and to every corner of the school to get them. We then played musical chairs to enjoy the rest of the day.
The day soon passed, and Mr Paul started visiting our class as well. He walked in, tasted the delicious food, and were also joined by people from other classes as well as other teachers. Mr Paul shook our hands and gave us high-fives. I took the opportunity to introduce the Solar System shape on my pinata, which Mr Paul praised me for my efforts. As class party soon drew to a close, the entire class got ready to smash the pinata and collect sweets. Brendan Cheah was the first to smash, and he held the stick up in the same position as a baseball player, swung a stick, which I brought, and missed. He then took a second round, and flung the stick at the pinata. Bang!
Then, it was Ms Prema's turn to have a go. She took the stick and whacked the pinata so hard, till the paper chains collapsed like how a ceiling collapsed from earthquakes. It was like a Chinese New Year celebration as sounds similar to firecrackers and fireworks ebbed across the room.
Then, it was Aaron Liew's turn. He took the stick and patted the pinata instead. Each individual had three chances. Then it was Yan Ying's turn. Then my turn. And everyone had a chance to smack it.
Bang! Boom! Crash! Wham! The holes got bigger, and Brandon Ooi had his turn. He was the luckiest, as he was the first to knock the sweets down from the pinata. Everyone rushed to collect the sweets as if they were valuable coins.
The class party soon ended, and we went to the hall. The girls and I were in tears as the year had come to an end. Seven weeks of holiday is too long to separate everyone from two different school years. Ms Michelle wished everyone a farewell and more performances were given. Gifts were given out by our teachers to us, with chants of “Happy Holidays!” ringing the hall. A new era awaited us as we were curious for the next year to find out what the international school has to offer.
2012 – Year 6
In just a short period of time, the school experienced drastic change; a split from the national syllabus, as well as the transition to an international school. Ahead of the first day of school, my mum showed a class list that distinctively included the new logo of the international school.
The school had revamped everything, from the brand to the logo and everything else to give a new, fresh look for the international school. As 2012 was my final year in the primary school, I also wish to have a final year in primary school before heading to the secondary school the following year.
Not withstanding holding back my goodbyes from the previous year due to the holidays, I was excited to be back in school. 4th January 2012, the first day of school, marked Nobel's first day as an international school. The pilot project, which had been a dream by the management for more than nine months now, has begun to take shape.
On the first day of school, we gathered in the school hall, wearing our school uniform. Everyone sat down in the school hall facing the stage, which had been blocked by a large wall and turned into the staffroom for the elementary school. My mum walked me in to accompany me on my first day, and aside from meeting my existing friends, there were a bunch of new faces. Among those new faces was Yen Choo, who was a familiar face to me despite being new in Nobel.
Unbeknownst to many people in Nobel at the time, Yen Choo used to be my classmate in the same music class when we were just kids. I used to go to Yamaha Music School to learn piano but gave up on the habit after barely four months. I would be a bit playful during music class and be a bit restless running around the classroom, due to my hyperactivity as a kid, but didn't do so as I got older. Hence, my mum and Yen Choo's mum greeted each other, and she also took the time to spend a light moment talking to Yen Choo. “So you can ask Wei Yiang anything if you need help,” she said, before leaving for work. I then introduced Yen Choo to how the school works as well as the rules and regulations of the school. In fact, I shouldn't have explained quite a lengthy thing despite being enthusiastic at that, because she was quite serious and puzzled on the first day.
At 7:25am, Yatisan Yap, my then best friend, came into the school hall and greeted me. He had been my classmate and best friend, having entered in 2010 in Year 3. While he wasn't my classmate, we remained best friends at the time. Being my fifth year in Nobel, it ought to be an utterly normal year, but there's a catch to it. For a start, each one of us jumped a year to transition from the normal government school format to the international school format.
Previously, Nobel used to follow the government school format, where some subjects such as Pendidikan Sivik or Kajian Tempatan which we learned in 2011 were taught in Malay. Most of the subjects in Nobel, since its formation, were taught in English, such as Mathematics and Science. The biggest change of all is the age group of people in international schools.
In government schools, a Year 1 student is aged seven years old at the commencement of their primary education, but Nobel as well as other international schools now begin the commencement of primary education at age six. At the time, there were only two Year 1 classes in 2012 due to the infancy of the international school curriculum at the time, so it was understandable. I quite kept on contemplating me being seven years old at Year 1 as opposed to the incoming Year 1 batches that year in 2012. The byproduct consequence of most of us in Nobel then was skipping a level; I skipped Year 5 because of that, along with everyone in my batch, to transition to the international school age formatting. Everything changed from “Sri Nobel” to just "Nobel” to improve the professionalism of the status of the international school, which was evident in the school song. The biggest overhaul was the school pledge, where a new pledge, consisting of five core values still practiced to this day.
I was placed in 6 Steadfast, and we got ready for a briefing by Ms Michelle and our teachers, greeting each and every one of them in the school hall. When we got back to our classes, I was given a spot near the window by my class teacher, Ms Tat, and I was in for an exciting treat. Aside from the beautiful scenery of the neighborhood, I could also see the view of Genting Highlands from the window, and could recognize the large Genting logo on top of the Maxims Hotel (now called Genting Grand Hotel). As I enjoy going to Genting Highlands when I was young then, I felt happy upon seeing the view of Genting Highlands. Back in those days, no one knew that they could see Genting from the Klang Valley, and I was one of the lucky ones who can spot the trick.
During the holidays in December, Nobel had installed Smartboards in the classrooms as these were a hallmark of other international schools in Malaysia. My mum told me that the school had planned to install something called a “touchscreen” in the classrooms, and she said that it was like a large iPad. So, I was very excited that the Smartboard was in place. The location of 6 Steadfast was just next to the location of 4 Diligent the previous year; to sum it up, it was where the Domestic Science room was, before it was renovated into a classroom.
Each Smartboard uses a software called Smart Notebook in order for teachers to write during the lesson. In fact, it made the lesson more interactive, as the Smart Notebook application comprises a whole host of software, from word recognition to magic pens which have a spotlight animation; it looked so cool. The Smartboard also comes with its own markers and rubber duster, but these were only meant to be used for the Smartboard to trigger the application. On another note, it saves ink and is environmentally friendly at the same time. There were four colors provided for the installation of the Smartboard; red, blue, green and black. I wished I had the application on my computer in my house as I can play with it at home then, as the keys were no man's land for anyone except the teachers and support staff.
I was very happy to have Ms Tat as my class teacher and I was amazed on what the Smartboard had to offer. In fact, anyone can press the Smartboard and it looked cool, just like a large iPad. Back in those days, it was rare for a classroom to have such cool technologies, and it was also rare back in 2012 for an individual to possess smart technology. Smartphones or similar gadgets like these weren't invented then, and this was the first generation of Smartboard that was used in Nobel International School. I was excited at what Year 6 had to offer for us, as this was just the beginning of a lot more cool things. In fact, there was a time where the Smartboard had become off-aligned and the touchpoint of the Smartboard did not match the location where we touched. So, in order to resolve the situation, we had to press what the teachers call the “re-calibrate button”, which results in the screen consequently displaying a total of nine dots, with a diamond containing a plus sign on it. The diamond would need to be pressed consequently by each of our teachers as it moved from dot to dot, starting with the first three dots on the left from top to bottom, and subsequently the other two rows. Normally, it would restore the normal function of the Smartboard after some time, but if it failed, we would re-calibrate until it functioned normally. Sometimes, we would make funny noises in the class as the pings came on time after time when the diamond was pressed. We then wholeheartedly elected the class monitor, his assistant and the individual in charge of handling the Smartboard markers.
Afterwards, we then went down for recess. One of the first things seen was the dress code; unlike government schools, international schools are required to have black shoes as their dress code. Back in those days, students in nationally-run schools had to wear white shoes and white socks, but for students heading to the international school, it was black shoes with white socks. We were also told that we had to unsew our school uniforms that contained the old badge of Sri Nobel and replace it with the one of Nobel International School, but however, there were delays in those certainties. We had a yellow PE attire replacing our white Sri Nobel PE attire, among other things.
In fact, we also did not have our exercise books, so our teachers were using papers that contained the necessary lines or boxes, or relied on worksheets or work in the workbook for us. All our workbooks and textbooks were not like the ones that were given during our previous years, as these workbooks were printed in the United Kingdom and not printed by Malaysia's Ministry of Education. My Maths textbook was a Nelson International Mathematics book, while my Science textbook was the Collins Science book. There were two books that were given for English; one for Fiction and another for Non-Fiction. It was a massive change, a transformation of one kind. In fact, Character Building was also changed to Character Transformation to reflect the extra mile one could go beyond demonstration of good character.
I sat down with Glen Kay and Yatisan, discussing the the various changes and classes that have gotten into us. I was in 6 Steadfast while Glen and Yatisan were in 6 Generous. I ate some potato bread I had brought from home; in fact, that was my favourite food then. Yatisan and I cleaned the canteen tables in the main canteen area like we did the previous year.
The rest of the day in our class was spent playing icebreaker games and watching movies. Ms Tat, our class teacher, played a game that tagged us according to our characteristics, such as our letters in our name. We were also told about what the international school standard was like and how things would revolve. One of the things was the use of music instead of the traditional bell for assembly, and we would be played music before each and every school day to warm us up to the lesson.
Following our lunch, we then went to the school hall for the dismissal briefing by Mr Chuang.
Mr Chuang, as you know, is not only an active teacher in terms of Character Building, but also in terms of all the housekeeping procedures, such as the lining up rules, as well as how we should conduct ourselves. As everyone from Year 1 to Year 6 lined up in the hall, we then saw Mr Chuang setting up his tiny PC in the middle of the hall, and adjusting the lights and the projector using a remote control which he aimed as if he was trying to shoot down a bird in the sky. The projector buzzed to life, and he connected cables to ensure everything was alright before beginning his tale on how we should conduct the dismissal process. He seemed enthusiastic but also wanting to get the center of attention as opposed to the other teachers, including Ms Michelle, the then principal of the elementary school. He was enthusiastic as Ms Ingel, Ms Michelle, Puan Halimah and everyone else accompanied her. All of our class teachers were gathered in the school hall, with Ms Tat on the left hand side of the hall. Everyone was seated, and all the Year 6 students assembled behind the hall.
Mr Chuang then flicked on the slides with an enthusiastic but serious look. He told us that the dismissal for the elementary school students would be at 2:10pm from Mondays to Thursdays and at 12:30pm on Fridays. Back then, it was quite early for such a dismissal as opposed to today. He then proceeded to tell us that the dismissal would be at the foyer and courtyard, with the students from Year 1 and 2 lining up in the foyer while the remainder of us would line up in the courtyard. If the weather wasn't kind and it was raining cats and dogs, all of the students from Year 3 to 6 would have their lines confined to the school's corridors.
Mr Chuang said that we would have to line up in pairs, leaving the classroom to the dismissal area, and he had one surprise for us; the television in the school foyer would continue to display the CCTV recording of the roads outside the school so that we could see our parents’ cars driving into the school and get ready at our car points outside the school. In those days, the school foyer was equipped with a small television, and for dismissal purposes, the CCTV cameras in front of the school captured the main road, so that we would know where our vehicles were. This is because we students had a hard time and were called too many times to come out of the school, thus resulting in traffic jams and a long car queue, which irked the surrounding neighborhood. So to solve the problems, the teachers installed CCTV in a bid to improve the situation.
The dismissal briefing went on for two hours, as Mr Chuang briefed insights into what we should and should not do during the dismissal process. This was then followed by a few technical announcements by Ms Ingel as well as Ms Michelle, who told us about our assembly process, which used the tune, It's a Beautiful Life, for the assembly process. In fact, our classrooms’ computers had a file called Anchor Songs for Primary for the purpose of getting us motivated for the class or relaxed during our lessons. We then headed home happily following our dismissal briefing.
The next day begun like any other day. Ms Tat then gave us our worksheet file, which would be used for keeping worksheets for our subjects. We were also given our timetable which detailed our daily activities while we were also briefed on the CCA registration, which would begin the following week. We were also introduced to our subject teachers as the lesson got underway.
Alongside Ms Tat who taught us Science, was Ms Thava, who was our Mathematics teacher. Ms Thava was one teacher who was quite sociable, and she is quite of a lenient teacher in class. However, on certain occasions, she was quite strict as well for our own learning process. Ms Tat and Ms Thava were our class teachers, and for the sake of transitioning to an international school format, they were our Homeroom teachers as well. We also had one teacher named Ms Doris who taught us English, and she was quite a very strict teacher. When I was in my lower primary years in Nobel, we were always described about the personality of Ms Doris and how strict she was to the Year 6 students then. Ms Doris would sometimes shrug between a smile and a shrug on her face, and she would boom in a loud tone when one person tried to mess around with the class or she had dug up trouble, and she would always blame that individual for playing the fool. On top of that, I got several existing teachers too, such as Mr Mervin who was our ICT teacher for the previous year, as well as Mr Calvin, who taught us music as well.
We were also introduced to something called the “Homeroom lesson” in which our class teachers would come in and we would do any housekeeping affairs like the giving of the messages to be pasted in the message book, as well as completing our homework or reading in our class. In fact, over the coming days, Ms Michelle, our then-principal, had also told us during assembly many times in which we had to bring a book to school to read, and our teachers mandated that it should be a story book. The teachers then emphasized a lot on reading; we need to bring a story book to school to read as well as continue to read during our free time in school as well as at home. In fact, in our Student Organizer, we had to write down what books did we read and our teachers had to check them.
At the end of the week, we had our first CCA registration where Mr Paul gave us a briefing on the CCA registration during the morning assembly. At the time, CCA was not compulsory, but Mr Paul had a tech trick on his sleeve.
For the first time back then, Nobel International School uses online registration for CCA as the first step of digitization in which signups were done manually in the past. While it is the norm today, back then, all of us were excited when Mr Paul mentioned the CCA registration process for us, especially when it involved the usage of the computer. All that was needed to do was for our parents to log into the school's Parents Portal via the school website and enter our names and select our CCAs before doing an online payment via iPay88. Immediately after returning home from school, I signed up for my CCAs with my mum on the online portal and selected four CCAs, namely Gardening Club (Monday), School Journalism (Tuesday), Earth Club (Wednesday) and Book Club (Thursday). We were allowed to select our CCAs for all days, but we were only allowed to choose one CCA per day, and if the CCA is filled up, we will need to select another CCA. I decided to select these CCAs due to the fact that gardening and environmentalism are my passion and hobbies, as well as my interest in reading books and writing journals; hence my choice of Book Club and School Journalism. In fact, I wanted to have a hand at writing on the school newsletter, and School Journalism offered that.
On 10th January 2012, we begun the day with a book reading session before the assembly as Kiss the Rain was played. I took out a Geronimo Stilton book which I had brought from home to read on it. Most people had a book in their hands, with teachers who were led by Ms Ingel checking on those who did not have a book. The reading period went on for 15 minutes before the music was played, and everyone jumped up, including me, and we danced as Ms Michelle and the elementary school teachers joined us. This would go on for most of the time in the year whenever we had an assembly. The Year 1s would be the most excited to dance to the tune. Of course, my friends who were in Year 6 would be quite annoyed as to why I would dance like a kid. Reading would be the heartbeat of my final year in elementary school, as the teachers require us to read in order to stimulate our brain in story books.
I soon found myself in Ms Wong's Mandarin class again as I diligently begun work for the day. Ms Wong then got into the class, and Yatisan was behind me. He greeted me as Ms Wong then briefed us on the lesson, and she was quite stern as she expects us to be ready for class before she enters, with all the homework completed and all the stationery on our table. We used 6 Loyal for the class, and she kept on setting high expectations for us in our studies. We would use the Easy Steps to Chinese textbook, and I was afraid of making one innocent mistake that would throw Ms Wong into a rage. Hence, I tried to concentrate and to be on my best for the class. Ms Thava had begun using our Nelson International Mathematics workbook, and she was also the one that had to re-calibrate the Smartboard many times. Each time our teachers re-calibrated the Smartboard, I looked at the dots moving in anticipation, curious to find out what it was as the chimes kept on coming after tapping the diamond. Everything went well, but Ms Doris, being a teacher who ruled with an iron fist, rapped me for looking at 6 Loyal during her English class as Mr Sures was teaching that class Mathematics. I only just looked for a short while as the class dragged on, making me restless.
“Why are you looking outside the window? I don't want anyone in my class to be like him. What is so interesting about that class? Do you want me to put you in that class?” she growled. On the other hand, my Local Studies teacher, Mr Praba, was quite a cool guy. He first introduced his class and taught us about the various ethnic groups in Malaysia and how we should recognize the various ethnic groups. He said that Local Studies is more about studying the context of Malaysia and any other things that are not related to what was taught in school.
All my CCAs begun, with the exception of School Journalism. I was the only one in Year 6 who had joined the Gardening Club, and Cikgu Zoraidah was my teacher. We then gathered in one of the classrooms reserved for Sekolah Sri Nobel's private school students to discuss our gardening plan, as all of the students curiously looked at me as one of the odd ones out. At the time, the school building had separate classrooms for the national school, which we addressed Sri Nobel, and the international school students, so unlike the latter, the former did not have Smartboards and carried on with their plain old whiteboards.
Cikgu Zoraidah, on our first CCA session, briefed us on what we had to bring and she said that we would be doing our kangkung plantation on the first day. She then discussed and briefed everyone on preparing the garden for the next session's activities and how we were going to do it. Ms Esther, who was my Book Club teacher, told us that we would bring some books to discuss and talk about it during the book club lesson.
During the Gardening Club, Mr Paul chipped in and suggested us on what we can plant, as Cikgu Zoraidah was asking everyone to give suggestions. “You can plant anything. You can even plant a durian tree as well,” said Mr Paul. The entire club laughed at him.
The weeks went by, as we dragged on into our third week of school. We were introduced to the song “Kai Xin Guo Nian” which was published by Astro in order to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Ms Wong and the Mandarin teachers, namely Ms Lai, Ms Heng, Ms Teo and some other Mandarin teachers, were on stage to introduce the song and teach us to dance according to the song during our assembly on Monday, 16th January 2012. The song was played via music video and it was much more fun and joyful as we sung along. This was the second theme song for Chinese New Year that we were taught to sing; the other being “Tian Tian Hao Tian” back in the previous year. The whole school was in the hall as Ms Michelle, Mr Chuang, and all the teachers led us to sing the song that morning. The song was a cheerful beat as we sung to the tune of the rhythm.
As Ms Wong was about to drag in into our spelling test on the next day, 17th January as I struggled to write the words down, Ms Wong told me to stay back after the lesson during break time. She took me to 6 Steadfast where my class was, and met Ms Heng, who was another Mandarin teacher. “Wei Yiang, you go and join Ms Heng's class. She would be a better teacher for you,” she said. Ms Heng totally agreed and of course, in my heart, I breathed a sigh of relief as I won't be enduring the worries of Ms Wong yelling and getting angry across the class. Ms Heng was a much more relaxed teacher and I could take the relaxed tone of her lessons.
Once everything was done and break time was over, we went for English class with Ms Doris, where she begun the first topic of the English Fiction textbook we brought. We were then told to read the fictional texts in the textbook and learn more about it.
Following English, we then went for PE lesson with Ms Thava, who taught us how to play netball. Ms Thava, despite teaching us Maths, also taught us PE lessons. Netball is normally seen as a girls’ only game, and Ms Thava explained to us the rules, telling all the boys that netball for the day is open to everyone. We learnt basic netball skills and stood in a circle as Ms Thava passed the balls around. We then had a treat during Art as Ms Puvan, our art teacher, taught us blind contour drawing in which we had to draw a drawing without looking at it. It was quite ugly, as Ms Puvan reassured us. “No matter how ugly it is, it will be beautiful,” she said.
During lunch, I saw a plate of mee and chicken that was spilled on the floor of the canteen as I sat down and had my lunch. I then proceeded to the school hall and sat down while waiting for the lunch session to end, watching people run around the hall. Ms Ingel was not in a good mood during the post-lunch assembly and warned of consequences.
“Prefects, please send those who are running to the front,” she said, as she warned everyone not to run for safety reasons, with two marks being deducted from each student for running and horsing around. On another note, Ms Tat finally gave us our exercise books after a fortnight's delay during Homeroom, as I glanced excitedly at the design of the exercise books, which were quite beautiful in blue patterns. The design of the books have remained the same to this day.
I had School Journalism on that very Tuesday afternoon on 17th January as Ms I-Lynn supervised us for the CCA. I can remember myself being excited to be a writer as I gathered at one of the Year 2 classes on the ground floor, as there was no School Journalism CCA in the first week of school. I was too excited till I brought all the past journals that I have written since Year 3, when I had my own personalized book cover. Plopping down on my seat, I eagerly waited for the start of the CCA.
Ms I-Lynn just came in for a short while, gave us a task to do an essay, and let us off within 15 minutes. I had been expecting some interesting insights on how to do newspaper reporting, but the short CCA session made me feel dejected as I waited till 3:30pm for my aunt to pick me up. At that time, all elementary school students finish their CCA at 3:30pm when the Junior and Senior School had been dismissed.
The next day, 18th January 2012, we went about our lessons as usual. Ms Thava taught us about the topics that we have covered so far, and recapped what we had learnt. Ms Thava had a serious tone as she wanted us to make sure we are able to digest what we have learnt. Ms Doris also had an equally stern tone, as she made sure that we had the same mindset for her English lesson. Equivocally, we also continued with our other lessons without any issue, with Ms Tat doing the Science Note Book exercises with us in an A4-sized exercise book she had planned for the lesson, and us learning Kata Majmuk during Cikgu Hasliza's Malay class. We even learned about Virtue which is a character trait that is taught in the Character Transformation class that day, explaining the importance of having virtue and what it means to our character.
Ms Ingel had, during break time that day, urged us to work together. “I don't want to see anyone talking when the prefects call you to settle down. Do you understand?” she boomed. And during lunch, unruly behavior continued when prefect caught students who are running in the blink of eye as fast as a speed trap camera, and sent them to the front while I sat down in the hall to read a story book published by Geronimo Stilton. Four people from 6 Steadfast, namely Ng Sze Kai, Nigel Chew, Shane and Aaron Lee Lap Bong were caught scattering around and were ushered to the front like an iron fist. When the music played and everyone came for assembly, Ms Michelle entered the hall and observed the individuals who were sent to the front, displaying themselves guiltily as if they were in a hall of shame.
“There are so many people in the front here caught for running. When you run, it is unruly behavior in addition to being dangerous. Some of you are not following the school rules. When you finish your lunch, come to the hall and sit down and follow the lining up rules. I don't understand why is it so difficult to do that,” Ms Michelle groaned, as she went on talking about the school rules.
“Students, every day is a test. There are no exams; Mid Year and Final Year Exam. If you are running, you will get a slip,” she warned, referring to the disciplinary slip which is a red slip handed out by the prefects for violation of school rules. Ms Michelle then stood in front of the students who stood in the front of the hall with a stern look on her face and lectured them for breaking the school rules as we were led back to class by the prefects.
Earth Club was fun that afternoon as we sang the Earth song while Ms Puvan, who taught me Art as well as Kajian Tempatan the previous year, led the briefing of Earth Club to begin our CCA.
Following our Chinese New Year holidays, Ms Michelle asked us to go on a tour ourselves before school begins, in order to observe the behavior of the Junior and Senior School students on how they behave everyday. “The secondary students always sit in circles and talk,” said Ms Michelle, as she compared our rowdy behavior of the elementary school with the Junior and Senior counterparts. She spoke on everyone having good behavior during that morning assembly on 1st February 2012. Ms Michelle and the teachers then showed us a green slip which would be awarded to students who demonstrated exemplary behavior. A phrase “Great Job! I know you did it!” was scattered on the slip and would be awarded for cleaning tables, picking up rubbish and arranging the benches in the canteen. I knew that it would be moments before I would receive such a slip, as I had a norm of doing these activities at the time. Ms Michelle told us that if we were awarded the green slip, we would need to present them to our homeroom teachers for them to put our behavior on record. So, during break time, I went about my usual round of table cleaning, and then, I proceeded to watch Astro in the foyer. Mr Praba had set up the Astro channel on the television in the foyer for students to watch, and it was quite interesting as we had no chance to watch television when we were in school. I enjoyed watching the Astro channel on the television at the school's foyer.
Ms Tat had also prepared some homework for us, and we had to do some cut and paste in our exercise book. Ms Tat's lessons were quite interesting and I enjoyed a lot of her lessons, given that Science was my favorite subject and Ms Tat was my favorite teacher. Mr Praba continued his lessons on the various ethnic groups in Malaysia. He spoke with a bold tone as he asked us to sit down in groups to discuss and do some classwork, after asking us to push our tables to the side of the class. He fumbled around with the Smartboard and played some music in the class to make us feel relaxed. In contrast, I like the way how Mr Sures conducted his class for 6 Loyal as he played cheerful musics from the “Anchor Songs for Primary” playlist.
The next day, I arrived quite early at school, at around 6:00am. Back in February 2012, it was a norm for students to arrive earlier than 6:45am. I plopped down at the school hall and took out my bread before heading for the canteen to eat my breakfast. Normally, at the time, arriving at around 6:15am, 6:30am or even earlier than 6:00am was quite normal back in those days, and we were even allowed to enter the school compound and sit down and enjoy ourselves. However, there was one event which would change everything, which I shall explain later.
Ms Michelle then announced the names of the star students for January 2012. Ong Pei Chi, Brittany Lim, Hans Kuberan, Areeya Amali and Chia Zheng were among the reciepients. Following which, we returned to our class to start our lessons.
We had Maths every Thursday and Friday morning, and Ms Thava was in a serious mood that day. “Okay class, I want you to take out the three books and the correction worksheets now,” she said. Ms Thava had given us some correction worksheets to do, and the three books that we had to take out to show her were two exercise books and the workbook which she had given us. I thought that there were no corrections that had to be done except for one note that Ms Thava posted in the workbook to ask me to improve my handwriting. I assumed that there were no corrections, and Ms Thava was telling anyone who did not complete the corrections and homework to stand up. I had completed the homework, but I did not know whether the note Ms Thava pasted in the book was a correction or a reminder. I had assumed it was a reminder.
Grace looked at my worksheet and was puzzled. “Wei Yiang, please stand up,” she pleaded for me to be honest. I was reluctant to do so as I was afraid as to what would Ms Thava react. Grace pleaded to me thrice without success, and then she called Ms Thava over. “Ms Thava, Ms Thava, Wei YIang didn't do his work,” she said.
Ms Thava asked me to stand up, and she was puzzled. “Why didn't you stand up earlier?” she asked. This had happened three times, and as a timid twelve-year-old, I was a bit traumatized to answer. It would be a lesson that I have learnt in order to improve myself. In fact, I thought that no corrections were to be done and it was partially my fault as there were no correction stickers pasted which stuck out of the book just like what was done with the rest. The entire class looked at me as I was too traumatized to give a reason.
We were also given a journal writing task to write about our Chinese New Year holidays. It was the norm for us to write a journal about it, and this journal writing task got me to go the extra mile to write about other things, such as my days in school. Every week, a journal topic is to be given and we had to write about it. I enjoyed a lot of time during my Chinese New Year holidays, and it was a meaningful occasion to jot down in my first journal topic of the year. I would eagerly look forward to the topic as I waited every Thursday for the topic to be announced in the school hall during assembly.
During our class time, Dylan S. Gill would always try to play some songs on the computer, and the teachers would not be happy with him for using the computer without permission. Sometimes, he would also play some songs if the teacher approves of it. As our class had a bunch of boys, many would want to hear songs by Eminem as well as One Direction. Brendan Cheah, Jordan Cheam, Lim Wences and Alex Chia would sing “One Thing” by the band. They would occasionally sing the song as well as other songs by One Direction.
Over the next few weeks, I struggled to keep my homework in order, recording the data on my Student Organizer. It was my second year using the Student Organizer and I liked the method of how to organize my homework. The day would normally begin with me arriving in school and then when the reading music was played, all of us would be required to sit down and read a book; if there was unfinished homework, I would quickly finish them in the canteen before the reading time started. The music would play and anyone who was doing homework would be asked to stop. Fearful of getting scolded by my teachers, I would record each and every homework down and complete them to the best of my ability.
We also had to finish our food in record time, and because of the so-called “punishment” for not being punctual for lunch assembly, I decided to dump most of my food after lunch on Thursday, 9th February 2012. Mr Kwan, who had taught me Music in Year 1 and 2, was watching with a stern look, and he asked everyone who was keeping the plates at the tray disposal area to stop what they were doing and he questioned to the identity of the individual who dumped the entire batch of food away.
“Who is the one that threw away most of their food?” he asked, to the curiosity of the people around him. Upon finding out it was me who did it after questioning whose plate it was, he then sternly lectured me in front of the crowd. “To the rest, I don't want to see you throwing your food away like that. Finish all the food. Don't waste food,” he yelled.
Psychologically, different people may have different appetite for their meal, and when one is required to finish all his or her meal, it may take a long time since we were just twelve-year-olds. And given that our lunch time is 30 minutes, it will take some time, or I should say, at least 15 minutes for one to finish his or her lunch. We would also be required to reach the school hall or courtyard before the assembly music plays, or else, we would be punished for being late by any teacher who was conducting the assembly. All latecomers would be ushered to a late line and have their names recorded by the prefects. They would then be brought to whichever teacher who is standing in front and be quizzed. Hence, for fear of one punishment, it would be best for me to finish my food quickly, and avoid the punishment for being late, but unfortunately, Mr Kwan grilled me for not finishing my food.
“Why did you dump all your food away?” Mr Kwan asked. I was too timid to explain, and I just stayed silent. Mr Kwan told me about the importance of finishing my food, and had I gotten the guts, I would explain to him on my situation. But I was just twelve then, and was a bit timid to explain. I wanted to avoid the incident when I was in Year 4 the previous year where Mr Gordon told me off and forced me to stay behind for not finishing my food, resulting in me being late for the assembly.
At the beginning of that day, we had a speaker from MAKNA come to talk to us about cancer and were wowed and awed by the reports from the MAKNA staff. MAKNA is the acronym of the National Cancer Council of Malaysia and the staff talked about the theme color, pink, as the main color for cancer.
The following week, we had Valentine's Day, and everyone was given paper hearts to write messages to our friends. I wrote to Yatisan about how much he was a good friend to me, and how I had appreciated him. The morning started when Ms Michelle praised everyone for wearing red for Valentine's Day, and we were also informed to make a call to someone whom we do not meet daily and express in class why we appreciated that particular person. I spoke to my grandparents, and because I normally speak in Mandarin with them, I had to translate the call into English so it would be easier for everyone to understand.
Over the weeks, the school had started releasing the new school uniforms to the Junior and Senior School students consisting of a maroon t-shirt with brown khaki pants. The school gave us our new school badges as well as a yellow PE t-shirt that is still in use today. At the time, the track bottom for PE lessons were green, and we used those existing ones with the exception of the PE shirt. We were told to sew out the old Sri Nobel badge and replace them with the new Nobel International School logo. I could remember my aunt sewing and replacing the badges, and anyone who refused to do so would be given an earful.
Wei Zhong was hurriedly purchasing the school uniform for use since his dad wanted him to do so; only the new students like Yen Choo and Wee Shiang wore casual clothes while the rest of us wore our uniform with the old Sri Nobel logo. So, Wei Zhong had to be in the same boat as us and replaced the logo. On the other hand, the students who chose to remain under the private school wing were given a different batch of clothes to wear.
For our gardening club, Cikgu Zoraidah had been busy planting our kangkung with us, and we had to do a series of digging of the ground and the soil around it. The school garden was located next to the lower canteen and all that was needed to do a series of mounds. So, over the weeks, we had been doing three vegetable planter areas on the left perimeter and I had suggested an idea to put bricks around the mounds to prevent soil erosion. As the oldest in the club, every student looked and interacted with me, given that I am from Year 6 while the majority were Year 4 and below. We also planted some flowers in the garden and did some soil digging.
Ms Esther discussed with us a book which I brought to the Book Club CCA, which was titled “The Haunted Castle”. We would do book promotions, discuss and analyse books from different people in the club. On top of that, I had by then found out that the School Journalism CCA would only be held once a month, and this would mean that I would look forward to that CCA every month. For the assignment that Ms I-Lynn gave us on the first session of School Journalism CCA, I handed it to her once it was done. Ms I-Lynn told me that it was only one session a month because it had to correspond with when the school newsletter was published. There were four newsletters in a year, and it meant that we only had those once a month. In this case, we only had one newsletter every quarter.
We then had an Australian speaker named Dr Sandra Zicus to come over and speak on 22nd February 2012 and share with us about why it is important to take care of the environment. Dr Sandra spoke in a bold tone as her presence marked the assimilation of Nobel to the international school culture. In fact, within the first two months of the year, everyone was excited about the international school concept, and inviting foreigners to the school was one of the first steps of metamorphosis for Nobel.
The next day, 23rd February, was our first Recycling Day of the year. I brought a stack of newspapers from home while some of my friends bought plastic bottles, cupboards and the like. We gathered in the school courtyard, and our teachers helped us to arrange the items. Ms Tat was there, and every class’ homeroom teachers were there to assist, with Ms Michelle joining us thereafter. The whole courtyard was as noisy as a factory as we stacked and arranged recycle items for the teachers to judge and announce the winners. And we were in for a treat as an Asian Week was launched on Monday, 27th February 2012.
The purpose of Asian Week was to get to know all the countries of Asia aside from Malaysia. There are 48 countries in Asia, and each of the teachers introduced themselves with a placard of a country's flag, population and capital city in addition to a series of information. Mr Kwan was holding the placard of Lebanon, and Ms Michelle herself unveiled a banner with the school logo and a map of the continent of Asia, with the words “Asian Week” sprewed on the banner. The placards were pasted on the wall in front of the school hall, and since there was no stage, the teachers just stood in front of the wall dividing the staffroom and the rest of the hall, with the former occupying the stage as seen when I visited the staffroom on certain occasions.
We then continued our lessons as usual, and to clear the backlog of homework, I decided to spend some time during break and lunch to finish my homework. Ms Thava apparently had told us to complete all the corrections in the workbook as well as the exercise books and worksheets given. She had also given a task to do in the workbook, and I was determined to avoid a repeat of the incident on 2nd February. Each time after I finished my meal, I proceeded to plop down in the school hall to do my homework, sitting at my class line to attempt the task given while waiting for the lunch period to end.
While I was doing my homework, I was interrupted by Ms Teo, who had recently swapped places with Ms Heng's Mandarin class and she was teaching me. Ms Teo then gave me a Daily Behavior Slip which read “Good Job! I noticed you did good!” and told me that my action of doing homework was one of the best things that I did during lunch time. “You are good. You see the rest of them; so naughty, running around,” she said.
Some of my friends who noticed the slip were curious and were jealous, but I just kept my cool and continued with my homework. Glen Kay, who was passing by, commended me for my work. “Good job, Wei Yiang,” he said, as he and Yatisan approached me.
Ms Tat then taught us about yeast and mold and begun talking about the importance of yeast as we indulged into the topic of microorganisms. “There are not only bad viruses, but also good ones,” she said, emphasizing how good microorganisms are used for everyone's benefit. She then told us to do some research on yeast and its role in bread production and alcohol making and bring it to the class to present them.
Wednesday, 29th February 2012, arrived as it was a leap day to keep the calendar well-behaved to avoid problems for the rest of humanity. We were given a journal topic to write as to what we would do if we were born on 29th February. I just jotted down in my journal that I would feel sad not celebrating my birthday every year, and piles of presents would be delivered over the last 1461 days to me on one big sweep. I feel lucky to have 15th May as my birthday as it was the right time of the year to have it.
As soon as things came, we had our first field trip of the year, and the teachers brought us to Zoo Negara. I came to school at my usual time as we wore our PE attire for the trip. Our trip begun after the morning assembly when Mr Praba called all of us Year 6 students to the courtyard, sorting us into groups. I was assigned to Ms Thava's group, and in her group, aside from me, was Nigel, Sze Kai, Wences and Louis, who would be my partner for the trip.
The bus ride to the zoo took some time as I indulged in the scenery outside the school. Upon reaching the zoo, Mr Praba asked us to gather at the zoo's entrance while he went to purchase tickets for our entry. Each one of us were given a wristband by the zoo staff, who helped attach them to our wrists.
Upon entering the zoo, Mr Praba brought us to see the giraffes, as I peered at five giraffes indulging in their meal. I wished I stayed longer, since the giraffe was my favorite animal. Each of our teachers looked at us with eagle eyes to ensure no funny business occurred while at the zoo. We then moved around, observing and peering at the exhibits. I walked around with Louis as we watched the animals, while Ms Thava urged us to move forward. We were given a quiz by the teachers which we had to answer. Finally, after visiting the amphitheater to watch seals jump and act like clowns, we headed back to school, and soon thereafter, we had our school holidays, which we had to write in our journal. My family and I went to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to visit my relatives who were living in Vietnam then, and got to tour around the many attractions and places in the city, along with the Cu Chi Tunnel north of the city. Ms Doris liked my journal article, praising me once we returned to school. In fact, I arrived back in Malaysia just a day before school started, and I pasted all the flight tickets, baggage information, immigration procedures and passport information in the book, which captivated her.
“Class, you know, Wei Yiang has the best journal. He pasted everything, including the flight tickets and baggage slip on it!” she cried.
Aside from that, we also had a new PE teacher named Mr Victor, who was a guy who wore glasses and had somewhat an ancient look on his face. Our first PE lesson came on Tuesday, 20th March 2012, once the holidays had ended. He stood in the front as we stood in our class lines as Mr Praba asked us to greet him. “Good morning, Mr Victor,” the crowd of students groaned.
Mr Victor's presence reminds me of an American high school PE teacher. In fact, if you have watched Diary of a Wimpy Kid before, you could even see how those PE teachers looked like. Mr Victor's towering figure reminded me of that one teacher who wanted us to push to the limit, and in fact, he did. Little did I know that he would become the dominant teacher in sports and recreation in Nobel.
Mr Victor asked us to do a series of hand movements as he counted the movements. He was quite strict but he was also a friendly, jovial teacher. Everyone groaned as the leg stretching and arm moving kicked in as most of us felt the pain and strain of doing exercises. He blew a whistle and tweeted many times to get us to start, stop and change movements. Then, we did jumping jacks, push ups and sit ups as he got us moving in our first PE lesson with him. Mr Praba, meanwhile, checked the crowd, with Ms I-Lynn following him around, to see who was doing some nonsensical things. A few moments later, Ms I-Lynn was at the back and scolded a few students who were not following.
“What is the point of coming for PE lesson if you all have this type of attitude?” she boomed as the whole hall turned to the back to see the mayhem.
Two days later, on 22nd March 2012, Mr Victor was back and then asked us to do some running in the hall, before outlining our expectations for PE. Mr Praba subsequently told us that Mr Victor would be leading us for the rest of the year, and called on us to give him some respect.
The next day, 23rd March 2012, was the PTM day. My mum and I went for the PTM, and it was my first time tagging her along for the PTM.
Upon entering the school foyer, I saw a whiteboard detailing the teachers’ seating positions in the school hall as well as the school logo and so on. Parents would give information about their visit and time slot to Puan Wati, who was manning the entrance, and what made her the center of the spotlight was the whiteboard with the notices. Puan Wati assisted parents to the respective locations for the PTM. I must have had a feeling that some people were there, and soon enough, I saw Yatisan there as well. My mum also talked to Auntie Angela, who was Janelle Arnelia's mum, while waiting. Everyone was enthusiastic and excited to find out how the international school system had an impact on everyone.
The first teacher my mum met was Ms Thava. She spoke calmly as I waited outside, since we students were not allowed into the school hall. There were no issues as my mum spoke to her and they talked. Apparently, Ms Thava had told us to measure our house and that we had to join a group. She told my mum that I was supposed to be in a group, and when my mum asked why I did not do so, I pointed out that Louis Soon was also doing it individually as well. “Wei Yiang chose himself as the group leader,” she said.
On the other hand, Ms Tat was also not on good terms as she told my mum that my presentation wasn't very good and I had to improve on the slides. I had done a presentation on yeast and mold when Ms Tat gave us the task to do the research and present it in a PowerPoint presentation. Aside from that, all the other teachers had no problem with me. While my mum did the talking, I chatted with a few of my friends and walked around the school courtyard to take in the view.
The PTM came and went, and soon, Games Gala was on the horizon. We had our first Games Gala practice session, which was on 26th March 2012.
The morning of 26th March 2012 saw Ms Doris giving us back our journals to do our writing on what we had to expect for the PTM. Ms Doris told us to write them and hand them in by the end of the week. Soon thereafter, I went for break, and met Glen Kay and Yatisan at the canteen while we had our chat. I told them that we should keep our voices low, and we discussed what Ms Michelle said about the noise pollution the previous week.
Apparently, Ms Michelle had briefed us following lunchtime assembly the previous week before that on how we were too noisy during the break and lunch, which resulted in a lot of noise and subsequently, noise pollution. She told us that there was noise pollution especially during break time, particularly attributed to the fact that we do not necessarily have to eat breakfast. Hence, I told Yatisan and Glen to be role models for everyone.
We had an interesting lesson after break time with Mr Praba on our Local Studies class. Mr Praba came into the class as usual with a sense of humor, and he decided to teach us about Malaysia's prime ministers. Mr Praba then begun introducing the history of the prime ministers then, starting with Tunku Abdul Rahman, followed by Abdul Razak Hussein, Hussein Onn, Mahathir Mohammad, Abdullah Badawi and culminating with the prime minister at that time, Najib Razak. Of course, the number of prime ministers had skyrocketed in recent years, but at the time, there were only six leaders of the government. Mr Praba then guided us and intellectually stimulated our interest into the top leadership of the country.
“Why do you think the prime minister is important?” he asked. I was the first to respond and gave some good answers while he pondered our thoughts on the importance of this office.
He then led us to do a discussion in groups on Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first Prime Minister of Malaysia. There were four groups, and I was in a group named “Malaysia Boleh”. The other three groups were 1Malaysia, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur.
Apparently, the previous week, Mr Praba had asked us to do a research on finding at least five important roles of a prime minister in Malaysia, and Sarah Low and I then talked to him about this importance, to which he praised us for doing our research. “Only two of you did it; the others did not,” he smirked.
Suddenly, the life of the gigantic Smartboard in 6 Steadfast was cut off by the tripping of the electricity network in the school. All the screens went dark like a blackout, as Mr Praba, stunned by the disruption of the power, kneeled down and put his hands together, praying as if one was praying to a religious deity.
“Please, please, come on,” he begged, as the whole class laughed. Mr Praba is one hilarious teacher, and this action spoke for itself. Eventually, power was restored after the second round when he prayed, as he tried to reload the Smartboard with a bit of frustration. If the power was just disconnected to the Smartboard just like that, all unfinished work and opened work will be deleted all at once, and he had to redo everything again.
Games Gala Practice was once again on, and we had to wear our PE outfit. Mr Praba was once again the spotlight of the show. He then came and briefed us on our house placements, and Mr Paul was also there to guide us. Apparently, Mr Paul himself then did the division to assign us into our new house names. In fact, this was the very first time I have heard about them and this would dominate Nobel International School for the years to come.
“Your class teachers will be calling out your names, so please assemble in the correct house below. Homerun on the left, followed by Touchdown, Slamdunk and Bullseye,” he said.
Ms Tat, who was also coordinating the Games Gala session, started dividing us up into our respective houses, along with Ms Thava. I was told by Ms Thava and Mr Praba, who came, that I would be allocated to a house named Bullseye.
Prior to 2012, under the old private school branding of Sekolah Sri Nobel, I was originally from Green House, and the school called the house names by colors. Throughout the year, the school had randomized the allocation of the students to different houses, and everyone was allocated a new house from scratch, unlike that of Sekolah Sri Nobel. The colors of the houses were not known then, but we would know the names. In fact, it was Mr Paul who came out with the names of the houses to make the school a world class environment to the mark of an international school, and not just a school which looked under-standard; of one that names the house by colors.
A lot of people had new house names. Chia Yan Ying, who was from Yellow House, was made part of Bullseye. Many people in Nobel today may not know this, but it was this transition to the international school that revamped the entire house system aside from the core values we had.
Upon being placed in Bullseye, I then found out that there were a lot of boys in Bullseye, from Dylan S. Gill to Edward Lam. Mr Paul and Mr Praba then briefed us on what to expect in Games Gala and how our houses will work. We were then dismissed as we proceeded for the day's CCA sessions, or went home. I went for my Gardening Club, and Cikgu Zoraidah was there to continue the gardening lesson by planting herbs. We then walked around and did some arrangement of pots and plants in the school garden that day.
The next day, Mr Praba continued the Games Gala practice, assigning us back to our houses to train on badminton matches. At the time, I like watching and playing badminton, particularly because of Lee Chong Wei's feats. Of course, I do not try to score, but I just enjoyed the fun of it.
The Games Gala practice then ran into the third day, 28th March 2012. I had brought a badminton racquet for the day, in order to participate in the practices. Apparently, for Games Gala, the teachers would select a few people and I was wanting to be one of the very lucky ones to participate in Games Gala.
During Maths, Ms Thava was very mad at the class for downloading so many songs on the school's computer in our classroom, so as such, she deleted all the songs.
“Who asked you to download all the songs?” she asked Dylan S. Gill. “This is school's property, and you are not supposed to download so many songs. In fact, you are not allowed to do so at all. If Ms Michelle or any other teacher catches you doing so, you will be in trouble,” she said sternly.
Dylan tried to chip in, persuading Ms Thava that she had given permission to do so. In fact, he had downloaded the songs and placed them in one folder that he had set up on the school's computer, but unfortunately, he and Ms Thava got into quite an argument as the whole class watched on.
Ms Thava in the past, had allowed us to listen to songs during her Maths class while doing work in the exercise book, and Brendan, Wences, Alex Chia and Dylan would normally sing the songs. There were many songs downloaded to the folder, which Brendan Cheah and Dylan cheekily named “Songs for Life”. She got angry and told us that no more song requests would be entertained, except from the list of songs in the folder named “Anchor Songs for Primary” which consisted of the assembly song, the list of songs to start and end the class, as well as the dismissal song.
Things got bad with the noise level in the canteen, to Ms Ingel's horror, and during break assembly, she gave us a lecture on the noise.
“I have gotten a lot of remarks from the teachers that there is still noise pollution from the KS2 students. Some of you are still talking,” she boomed.
Ms Ingel then turned towards us Year 6 students. “Year 6 at the back. Who is still talking?” she asked sternly as the entire cohort of students in front turned towards us to look at us.
“I don't want to hear any more noise during lunch time. Is that clear?” she asked, and in return, positive response.
I was excited when Ms Tat asked me if I could volunteer during her Science lesson and I said yes. We then begun talking about Microorganisms and then towards the changing states of matter, namely solid, liquid and gas. The Smartboard was quite interactive and I pressed the circles on the interactive screen. It was cool playing around with the Smartboard due to its features.
Over the weeks, we had rounds of Mental Mathematics drilling with Ms Thava. Mental Maths is a series of listening tests where we had to listen to the questions and work out the answers in our head without any proof of working or calculating by fingers. There was one occasion where I was counting using my fingers and Ms Thava wasn't pleased.
Meanwhile, the teachers had been actively preparing for the Games Gala, and we were actively practicing our house cheers. For several weeks, the teachers have been practicing our house cheer for Bullseye, along with the rest of the other houses, which did the same. We practiced them during our Homeroom time as well as before assembly in order to get everyone to cheer the house cheer on Games Gala Day.
Our cheer involved stomping as well as to make the cheer more interesting in order to improve the hype ahead of Games Gala and Sports Day, which was then planned for 29th June 2012. It was the first time a Sports Day in Nobel was planned in June, and I prefer to have the Sports Day later in the year than being quite early. It would increase excitement ahead of the event due to a longer lead time.
Our house cheer was:
Get your arrows
Get your bows
Aim it straight
And get it right
Shoot it and win it......
For Bulls’ eye! (clap hands and stomp feet)
For Bulls’ eye!
For Bulls’ eye!
Now, while we were in the midst of having the preparations for Games Gala, I have, and am sorry to say, that back then, I had terrible smell when I passed gas. It is normal for people to pass gas, but when I was quite young then, I was a bit clumsy and did not know the etiquette I should do when passing gas. In fact, people were childish then, and because of this, they called it the “Wei Yiang Touch” and got paranoid when they touched my things, mimicking the “Cheese Touch” portrayed in “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”. My classmates attempted to disinfect themselves when mingling with me, as if they had attempted to protect themselves from a deadly disease, especially when carrying my projects, books and stationery. Of course, the teachers knew the childish acts and so on, while Glen and Yatisan defended me as good friends. The whole year was abuzz with the fact as to people reacting to a deadly, contagious pathogen.
On Wednesday, 4th April 2012, I was passing by Ms Michelle's study during break time and saw a lot of boys inside with her as she held up the Student Handbook like a preacher preaching with a Bible. She was lecturing some of them for misbehaving, and I felt somewhat guilty as I was one of the boys, or should I say, the only boy to a certain extent who had good behavior. I met Glen Kay, who escorted me to the library to read.
The whole class was acting paranoid over me, and Ms Thava placed me in front in her class. Apparently, I ended up at the back as the class seats were re-arranged by Ms Tat. So, Ms Thava was teaching, and I got scolded by her again as I did not color the boxes on my workbook. She was teaching and then I was flipping through one of the pages when she noticed and asked me to stand up.
“Who else did not color the boxes, please stand. Now,” she boomed.
After looking and talking to those that did not finish the box coloring, Ms Thava turned on me, questioning why I did not do my exercise, and I responded to her timidly.
“Well, if you don't know, you don't do it,” I mumbled. I tried to recall what Ms Thava said as to the fact that if we did not know the answer, we should not do it. In fact, what Ms Thava actually said was that we should not do the exercises or topics that have not been taught in class yet. I had misinterpreted carelessly, the work given by Ms Thava.
Ms Thava didn't appreciate our colorings and asked us to redo everything again. She took my book and explained to us the correct steps and what I did wrong. The whole class looked at me as Ms Thava took charge of my unfinished work.
I was a clumsy, disorganized guy back then and most of my areas where teachers shunned me was me forgetting to do homework or bring some books or class materials. Forgetting to do homework is different as opposed to not wanting to do homework. Had I noted the presence of the homework or corrections, I would have had done it straight away. I was afraid Ms Thava would call my mum on this issue.
I wrote this entire thing in my journal, recalling the incident which happened on 2nd February 2012 with Ms Thava. I honestly wished to please Ms Thava, and am doing my best then to complete my work or so on. Back in February on the first incident with Ms Thava, I didn't want to cry in front of the class, and I was in tears during break time where Ms Prema told me that I should be confident to do my work and not cry.
“Even if teachers scold you, you must be brave to face it,” she said to me. “You are already Year 6 now. You are a big boy and I believe if you can face it, you will be a brave boy. Be honest. Admit your mistakes and I don't want to see you cry again,” she quipped. Ms Prema also told me that if I made a mistake, especially if it was the first time, it would be best to ensure that the mistake does not recur.
Yatisan and Glen took me to the library to do some homework. Yatisan screened the assembly area, namely the school hall, to see if anyone was there before we headed up to the library. I was afraid of being late, but Yatisan, who was eagerly scanning the premises, reassured me that he would check time after time while I did my work. I planned for myself to be down early to avoid penalties.
Ms Ingel was not happy with everyone and complained of noise pollution. “We will gather at 12:50 instead of at 12:55” she said with a stern tone. We then gathered to do a Literacy Circle session which made a book club to discuss the questioner, connector, illustrator and Literary Luminary.
On top of that, we were captivated on 10th April 2012. It was raining that morning, and the ground was filled with puddles of water. I had an ICAS exam that morning in the school library, and it was the first time the school library was used for an exam. The Masmo Competition will begin after the ICAS had concluded. It was not compulsory to register for the ICAS Computer exam, but I did so for good interest.
All the students taking the ICAS exam had to proceed to an ICAS queue that was located near the late line. I sat near one of the doors of the school hall and saw Yatisan arriving. In fact, he and Glen were late as the rain caused a really bad traffic jam. I wasn't late because I get up early and arrive early, just like my other best friend at the time, Heng Zi Quan. He's a prefect, and he happened to be guarding the late line that morning. Whenever someone violates the school rules, Zi Quan would immediately record their names like a robotic sensor on his record book and hand the record to the disciplinary teacher, who would then pass the records to Ms Michelle. The disciplinary teacher of the day can vary day after day, and a final warning would be issued to the offending students.
Anyhow, Ms Carol, who taught me the Gardening module for Enrichment subject the previous year in 2011, spoke about how we can continue to stay young and not age. Videos were shown about keeping young as well as a child singing their own language. However, the ICAS students were quickly ushered to the library to begin the exam. Ms June had apparently teleported there, and we begun shading in our particulars following letters on the Details page as she gave out the examination booklets. An hour later, the Masmo competition begun, and we were escorted out of the library once we had concluded. Apparently, there was no ICT lesson that day due to the assembly that morning.
After break, I went to purchase a blue A4-sized notebook from the bookshop at a price of RM 2.50 in order to separate the class’ journal writing activities and my own personal journaling of the school days, since Ms Doris had requested for that to prevent messiness. As break time ended, Mr Paul threw a fit.
“You guys are the worst in lining up, especially the Year 6. The worse ones ever,” he boomed, pointing to us Year 6 students as the entire hall peered at us. In fact, the teachers had been strict with upper primary students, especially Year 6 students. We were peer-pressured by our teachers to be a good example to the students.
We then had PE, and used half of the netball court as the other half was being used by the Games Gala practices. We tried to dodge clear of the large puddle of water in the courtyard that morning to avoid being splashed. Ms Doris had to come down to fetch us to avoid repeating the fit of being late, as she had gotten angry about our lateness following PE.
Everyone arrived early as Ms Doris begun the lesson. The class was then interrupted by a knock on the door, followed by Nigel Chew, Dylan, Wences and Alex walking into the class with pools of sweat, led by Sze Kai. They then took off their shoes and socks, plumped down on their seats, and left them outside the class so that they can enjoy the refreshing air conditioning breeze howling at them. Their clothes were filled with sweat as we begun our task on a passage about the Sahara Desert in our textbook. Ms Michelle meanwhile, was patrolling the hallways, and saw the shoes and socks outside the classroom. She stared at them and was baffled.
I went to purchase another notebook from the bookshop after lunch for my journal. Some people may be confused how many journals I have, and I have two categorized journals; one for journal writing tasks given by the school, and another to jot down the day's activities. I then followed Glen to the library as he escorted me, since I would be too afraid to answer the prefects if I was spotted going up the stairs. Upon arriving at the library, I plopped down and read one of the old school newsletters published before I came to Nobel. Cikgu Hasliza had quite a fit during Malay as she screamed and shouted to quell the noisy class.
My mum and I would normally have breakfast occasionally at WQ Park, located a stone's throw away from Nobel International School then. Some customers recognized my Nobel shirt and talked about the school. We would then talk about the day's activities before the school day started.
I was afraid Ms Thava would sternly lecture me again, as I was quite innocent in terms of homework submission. Sometimes, I would forget to do my homework, but normally, I would have a good homework submission record without any issue. Ms Thava, fortunately, wasn't quite angry, and gave our books back before teaching the Lower Common Multiples (LCM). There was a cupcake and chocolate sale in the school hall during break, and the Junior and Senior School students were selling them for a fundraiser. I then plopped down and begun writing my journal on the new notebook, and Ms Ingel stopped by to have a chat when seeing me doing journal writing, as she held a microphone in her hands, getting ready for the assembly. I then showed her the journal and then had a chat about my plans.
“Good, good, you must keep writing,” she said, as she emphasized on the English proficiency initiatives Nobel was doing to upgrade properly to the international school standard. Before long, the music played before she could even finish talking. We then went back to our class for Mandarin, where Ms Teo had a spelling test with us and Ms Doris taught us about two words, namely “hyperbole” and “furious”. We then had lunch, Malay and went home as usual.
As Friday, 13th April dawned, I kept thinking about the message given by our homeroom teachers in terms of the Cambridge ICT exam while having breakfast at WQ Park with my mum. The school was unable to play the reading music due to technical problems until shortly before the assembly started. Ms Tat then collected our Student Handbooks for photocopying, and Cikgu Hasliza taught us about Kata Penguat, with a funny song for us to remember them.
During break time, Shane and the other people in my class talked about me constantly passing gas in class, as the teachers won't allow us to leave the class without permission. Apparently, as a courtesy gesture, it is good to pass gas outside the class, but the only reasons allowed for leaving the classroom was to use the washroom or see a teacher. Ms Thava then brought mathematical beads to teach us about decimals.
The Games Gala practice still continued, as students were separated between those who were involved in Games Gala and those that had normal PE lessons as usual. The Games Gala practices were held during PE to minimize class disruptions, and for those who were not involved in the practices, we were escorted to the neighboring field by Mr Victor to continue our exercises. A boy in our class named Benjamin Koh who was so playful and prankful, tripped me while I was running and I hit my right elbow while trying to break my fall. The hand swelled externally, but luckily I did not break my bones.
Ms Doris planned to do a Literacy Circle session with us, and introduced us to a would-be visitor to Nobel named Ms Celine, who was planned to come to Nobel to teach us about phonics. I glanced at an information booklet Ms Doris left on the table, and found out that Ms Celine is from the United States, and would be We were divided into groups and I was assigned as the story connector, along with Sarah Low.
The Games Gala begun without incident on Monday, 16th April 2012. Usually, at the time, my team, Bullseye, will win permanently. On the morning of Games Gala, before assembly started, a group of badminton players practiced their moves behind the hall. We wholeheartedly begun the day with another English lesson by Ms Doris. At 10:30am, the players from Bullseye left the class during our Local Studies lesson for the futsal court, while the rest of us, including me, stayed in the class for our lessons.
During our Music lesson, we made way for an external provider from the BlueBricks CCA Club to do a performance and dance in class, teaching us the moves. His name was Mr Tony, and the boys in our class really liked him because of the songs and pop culture he brought to them, especially Dylan himself.
One of the songs he taught us was the Jellyfish Jive, which is a pop song where we had to shake ourselves many times. He first asked us to push our tables to the side of the classroom and to which, Ms Tat watched us. He then played the Jellyfish Jive song on the computer as he enthusiastically asked us to dance along with him. Ms Tat told us that we would be doing the song for Teacher's Day and potentially Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration. We did the dances for one hour to his pleasure.
After Mr Tony left, Yatisan then entered his class while a series of technical contractors came to fix the Smartboard and make adjustments to it. Mr Tony then passed by our class once again, and Zi Quan came in to the class. “Bullseye won!” he cried, to my excitement. Apparently, Bullseye had won 27 points over Touchdown during one of the competitions, which I jotted down in my journal. “No other business than Bullseye had won the game,” I jotted.
A few of my classmates came in and talked about their sports. They must have had been discussing about their sports. I asked Zi Quan, who was involved in one of the matches, on how Bullseye won. “Bullseye won because they kicked the ball into the goal,” he said.
The Smartboard contractors who went to 6 Generous’ class to check on their Smartboard then came into our class to check on ours. There were around two Malay guys and two Chinese men that came. They removed the pen and eraser rack on the Smartboard, drilled on one of the screws, removed the covers concealing the wire and started connecting and inserting wires before replacing the cover back onto its original position and closing the wire box. They then tested the Smartboard pens, placed their tools back into their toolbox and left before checking on 6 Generous’ class again.
Nigel blushed and lay down, relaxing in the class. Jordan Cheam then pulled him across the floor. Ms Puvan then came in for Art and stopped them. Before long, Nigel and Sze Kai were lying down on the floor, acting dramatically like newborns.
“Stop it! Go back to your seats!” cried Ms Puvan, as she started the lesson.
Ms Tat had a serious look once we returned from lunch. She told us that we need to keep our voices low during dismissal or else everyone had to return to the class and walk back to the hall for dismissal. “KS1 will start packing at 1:55pm and KS2 at 1:50pm, so please be good,”
Ms Tat then gave Louis Soon, who frequently took his own sweet time, to start packing early so that he can be on the same par as us. “If you are caught talking, your parents will be informed that you are having disciplinary problems,” she said with a stern voice. Mr Chuang then passed by our class, heard Ms Tat's voice, and gave the thumbs up to her. We were then given a picture of a deer to cut and paste. When the time came, we packed, and Ms Tat gave me the thumbs up when I told her I will pack immediately.
The students in the hall were divided into two groups; one for CCA activities, which had to be lined up in front of the hall, and another for normal dismissal time, to gather behind. The hall was silent to the point where you could hear the sounds of the rushing winds outside. It was about to rain, as dark clouds were accompanied with the patter of water droplets. It got even heavier when we were doing Gardening Club CCA in the school garden as we planted aloe vera and pandan plants.
The rain continued into the nick of night to the next day, 17th April with tonnes of puddles in the school courtyard. Mr Chuang and Ms Michelle praised us for our dismissal the previous day during assembly as we sang the school song, the Negaraku, and recited the school pledge. Mr Mervin took us to the ICT lab, and did the pie chart function with us on Microsoft Excel, and he spared time with me to do my missed lesson due to the ICAS exam. We then returned to class and waited for Ms Doris to my impatience. Pei Chi said Ms Doris went overseas, Jordan Cheam said she was in the staffroom while me and Zhi En went to find Ms Doris, who arrived in class to do a test for complex and compound sentences. We then had a speaking test during Mandarin, which I performed well, and soon enough, following Mandarin, we were brought down to the hall to watch the badminton tournament for Games Gala. A few players, including Yen Choo, were playing the badminton match. Midway into the game, the power cut off and everyone groaned at the power cut, but this did not deter the spirit and enthusiasm of Games Gala. The teachers continued to solve the problem by opening the doors at the side of the school hall to let light in. Everyone was seated at the sides so that the game could continue in the middle. The power cut for a few seconds, before coming on and then subsequently, the power went on and off. Ms Doris then came out of the teacher's room as Louis and I followed her to avoid being late. Pei Chi and Amanda Teoh arrived, and Ms Doris set up a sentence game on BBC Bitesize before closing it. Ms Doris then saw the rest of the class coming late, and scolded them. I could still remember the first time where Ms Doris scolded everyone for being late after PE, and I would follow Ms Doris when she left the elementary school's staffroom in the hall to avoid being late every Tuesday.
The Smartboard then blinked on and off, and the screen had technical problems. It was apparent that something was wrong, and the contractors who repaired the Smartboard accidentally corrupted it. Yatisan and I went to the school library, and then following lunch, we did some exercises in Malay while we begun packing at 1:55pm as per Ms Tat's suggestion. Apparently, it was Ms Tat who suggested the packing time to ensure a smooth and efficient school dismissal. The same silence that dawned the hall the previous day continued, as I lined up for my School Journalism CCA, where were assigned into groups, wrote stories and presented them during the CCA. My group would present my topic on the next CCA session, 15th May which is my birthday, due to lack of time.
The next day, 18th April 2012, was a big success during the Games Gala. Ms Thava begun the day by showing us videos of Mr Bean. The title, “Sexy And I Know It”, was so funny till I laughed wholeheartedly. Minutes later, everyone outside the class who were dismissed for break peered at me acting in a crazy manner.
Mr Paul gave an announcement during break time to make pre-game practices for the four sports houses. All the students gathered in the hall to play the games; apparently on Monday, 16th April, the futsal players went to another venue outside of school to play. “Slamdunk and Touchdown, please gather at 10:10am. Bullseye and Homerun are to assemble at 10:25am,” he boomed with his usual, bold voice. We then sat at the back of the hall as the badminton, basketball and netball competitions begun.
Soon enough, Bullseye's players threw the ball into Slamdunk's goal during the basketball competition, and won the match. I screamed and cheered as Bullseye's teachers hugged, congratulated and gave high-fives to the players before putting their hands together and raising them in triumph.
During lunchtime assembly, following my return from the library, Ms Ingel announced that all the houses will participate in the finals. After Earth Club CCA, I then passed by the school hall, where signs were installed to ask people to use the last door as the hall was prepped for the finals.
19th April 2012 was the finals of the basketball and netball competition, and Ms Michelle re-iterated this during the morning assembly. The Games Gala finals stretched for two days, namely 19th and 20th April. Prior to the beginning of the match, I had encouraged all the other Bullseye players in the basketball tournament to keep shooting into the goal, including Zi Quan. “Make sure shoot properly, ah!” I cried. They begun playing the match with Touchdown in the male category for the final, while Homerun and Touchdown also battled for the championship of the netball category. There was a flurry of excitement when the Year 1 and 2 students came out into the courtyard to watch the netball match between Touchdown and Homerun. I was cheering loudly for Bullseye in one of the matches, but sadly, we did not win the competition, as the strong force of Touchdown overcame us, increasing their score. The Year 4, 5 and 6 students sat down in the hall to watch an electrifying basketball tournament under the breeze from air conditioning units in the hall, protected from the glare of the sun. Ms Doris then met us for English (again, why are there English classes after sports tournaments) and then scolded people who did not do their work. Following lunch, Cikgu Hasliza asked us to hand in a project and present it on the following Monday, as some people left for the special school visit to Supertouch in Cheras. Consistently, for the fourth day, the silence and clockwork of the dismissal continued to pleasure from Mr Chuang. I gathered at my book club queue, and Ms Esther continued our session with a story discussion of “Sand and Stone”. I was partnered with Gin Yang as we read the story. We then had a play which I acted to fell down as my partner, Gin Yang, acted as if he pushed me, and the reverse as if I saved him from drowning in a pool.
The final day of Games Gala arrived on 20th April 2012. Bullseye and Homerun took part in another basketball match as Ms Tat taught us bout the water cycle. I told Yatisan during break time about how Bullseye and Homerun can hit a challenge in the basketball match, since Yatisan is from Homerun and I'm in Bullseye. After break, Ms Thava then decided to bring us for the basketball finals after we sat down and listened to her in class. She had threatened to keep us in class if the class was noisy. When we got down to the hall, I wrote a message on a piece of paper which read “Go Bullseye!" which I held and cheered, to an unsuccessful bid as Homerun won the basketball match. After the game ended, Ms Thava gave us a choice in which we can choose to stay in class or watch the badminton match. I chose the former and wrote my journal. “Okay, you win,” I said to Wei Zhong, congratulating him and his house in the basketball match.
The boys in our class became noisy as Ms Thava typed out her lesson plans. It grew unbearable till Ms Thava got mad. “6 Steadfast, 6 Steadfast, 6 Steadfast.......HEY!” she cried after calling us to keep our voices down too many times to ignorance. “You have been talking for 15 minutes! Now, I want you to keep quiet for 15 minutes and Ms Doris will come in,” she boomed. I then pulled out the message from Ms Michelle that I pasted in my message book and read it. When Ms Doris came in, Dylan played around, to Ms Doris’ annoyance. “Mr Busybody, can you please sit down?” Ms Doris boomed.
The following week, the Games Gala atmosphere had subsided, and Ms Doris begun our English lesson for the week by asking us to write about our trip to Genting Highlands. “Please remember to begin your essay by writing about how you depart for Genting Highlands,” she instructed. That day, there was a view of Genting Highlands from our class as the sky was clear, and Ms Doris was happy for me to pinpoint the highland resort on the hill from our class. Ms Doris said that in her introduction that she were to wrote, Genting Highlands is on top of a mountain named Gunung Ulu Kali. 6 Generous was talking in their class line when heading for break, and Ms Ingel asked them to enter the class and exit again when she passed by. “Same to this class,” she pinpointed at us 6 Steadfast students.
During Local Studies, Mr Praba asked us to come up with a group name after dividing us into groups. “If you don't come up with a name for one second, you are disqualified,” he joked. I quickly named our group “Creativity”, a character trait Mr Chuang taught us in Year 1 during Character Building.
Mr Tony then came in for Music and then congratulated us for finishing the dance moves of the entire Jellyfish Jive song. We then taught the Games Gala players the dance moves and Mr Tony told us that he will see us again in two weeks’ time, praising us for dancing well as opposed to the othr classes he taught. I did the tasks Ms Puvan gave while she was absent and on MC, as Ms Teo took over. The fried chicken rice attracted my attention as I sipped one for lunch.
Ms Tat taught us Character Transformation and we had to learn the character of Obedience, which was the first character I learnt in Nobel when I was in Year 1. We were then presented with newsletters from the first quarter of the year, and the name of the newsletter was “The Excalibur” in contrast to the “Insight” brand used for Sekolah Sri Nobel.
We then had Gardening Club as I read the newsletter. Cikgu Nik then told us that we would plant long beans and make a mound for the planting of the long beans. Fearful that it will disintegrate during the rainfall, I asked the second teacher, Cikgu Azreen, for permission to encase the mound with bricks to protect the seeds, and we did so.
The ICAS Science exam proceeded the next day in our class as it was compulsory, and Ms Doris begun talking about the Mystery of the Mary Celeste, which is a ship that was docked in the middle of the sea with all occupants mysteriously missing. However, we were treated to a surprise when there were no sports during PE, and Mr Paul was standing in the centre of the hall waiting for us. As PE also includes Health Education, it is quite important for us to take care of our health, and the teachers had planned some activities for us.
“Good morning Year 6, please gather and settle down. I need you to get a friend from every class and form a group. Everyone did, and Mr Paul was happy. “Your group has gotten five thousand points!” he cried.
Mr Paul then asked us about how important it is to take care of our health, and he begun opening a slideshow presentation on his computer specializing in the amount of exercise to be received daily as well as the fruit and vegetables and other foods that are healthy when edible.
Zi Quan was then told a few days later to write the names on the board of students who made noise in the class, by Ms Tat. The most interesting thing about that was that the Smart Notebook function can turn handwriting into text, and he tried to do so on 26th April 2012. “Be quiet or else I will write your names,” he said, as he walked around the class and told the boys at the back of the room to behave.
The weeks then passed on as we entered the month of May. In our English textbook, we had a passage that we read on Robinson Crusoe, and I decided to buy a copy of Robinson Crusoe to read on it. The story of Robinson Crusoe fascinated me as it involved a man whom the book bore his name, encountering a journey of survival on an island. Mr Praba continued discussing on sea fishing in our Local Studies class. He spoke to us on how fishermen at sea catch certain fish and how long it took. Gleefully, I imagined about how hard and unique it was to go on a fishing trip, as my uncle who is from Batu Pahat, Johor, lives near a fishing jetty where such scenes were the norm. The previous year, I had gone to Kuala Selangor and Pulau Ketam where I viewed fishing boats docked at the jetty, and the sea fishing topic that Mr Praba talked about captivated my memories. He continued to speak this topic into the following week, and as such, asked us to do research on the fishing method, the boats, nets and equipment used as well as the three main states in Malaysia where such activity is prominent.
Around this time, I had started to fill in my Student Organizer with a lot of homework and as such, my homework submission rate improved. In fact, this became a habit that I had grown up with over time, and many teachers, including Ms Thava, praised me for my improvement.
Ahead of Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration on 7th May 2012, we were informed to bring a packet of Quaker Oats for her as a token of appreciation for charitable activities of Fungates Superflow Foundation. Previously, from the time I entered Nobel in 2008, we had given Auntie Clarine a series of gifts to commemorate her birthday, namely rice packets (2009), Milo (2010) and Jacob's biscuits (2011). Prior to the birthday celebration, the teachers told us to arrange the Quaker Oats on the new stage, which was constructed out of portable modules to replace the old one.
On 7th May 2012, we had our lessons as usual with the beginning of the day with Local Studies. Mr Praba then talked about unity in diversity and the various ethnic groups in Malaysia. His slides continued to wow us, and to curiate us further, he gave us a task to draw the poster depicting the 1Malaysia concept. At 11:00am, everyone came down to the school hall after a morning filled with lessons, and no one expected the treat we were in for. The morning was quite jovial, as everyone sat down in the hall with a red carpet in the middle. The Junior and Senior School students sat at the back, and the hall was crowded with so many people. No one had excuses to miss the celebration, as the private school students from Sekolah Sri Nobel were also present as well. As everyone settled down, we waited for the moment where Auntie Clarine arrived. The door opened with a click, and there she was, entering the hall with a bright smile on her face as everyone cheered and shouted as if a celebrity had arrived. Ms Michelle and Mr Chan accompanied her to sofas placed in the hall for comfort.
The performance begun with a guitar performance by a group of students from the Junior and Senior School as they played “Happy Birthday” to a touching and emotional response from Auntie Clarine. As the joy went on, Auntie Clarine was then invited to cut two cakes, which were placed to symbolize the dishes prepared by two schools, namely Nobel International School and the outlier Sekolah Sri Nobel wing. The whole school sang the birthday song as Auntie Clarine was overjoyed. “Thank you students! Thank you everybody!” she cried.
The cloth covering the Quaker Oats was pulled out to more excitement as Auntie Clarine jokingly said that she couldn't eat everything in one day. A series of more gifts, from a portrait of Auntie Clarine on art paper to even more photos of herself, on a shirt, were given. To thank us students, we were given cupcakes in the shape of different animals; I got one in the shape of Angry Birds.
At the same time, we were also given a briefing on International Week, which was to allow us to explore the various countries of the world. Our class, 6 Steadfast, was assigned the country of Nigeria. Ms Tat then met on Wednesday, 9th May 2012, during the end of our Science lesson with her, to do the discussion on our country, Nigeria. We also had Recycle Day the next day, and everyone in the class, especially Dylan S. Gill and Brendan Cheah, were arranging the recycled items. Some students even asked the canteen operators, especially Uncle KC, to give some cardboards for the purpose of scoring points.
Soon, we reached the week of my birthday, and I had made arrangements with Ms Tat and Ms Thava to have my birthday celebrated in the canteen during break time. We had a lot of spelling tests during the week, and Cikgu Hasniza and Ms Teo were determined to do so for our spelling for Malay on 14th May, as well as Mandarin on 16th May. Fortunately, I managed to do well in those tests, and with my birthday being the highlight of the week, Jinn Lik, Ms Tat and Brendan helped me to set up the celebration.
Mr Paul had dropped a bombshell on the eve of my birthday, on 14th May. He said that the students were making a lot of noise from outside the hall when the Junior and Senior School were having their assembly. As such, during an announcement before the CCA started, he asked everyone to write a “sorry card” to Ms Evelyn, the principal of the Junior and Senior School, as a punishment. It wasn't fair for the students who kept quiet as they were subject to the same collective punishment as him. However, in the end, I wrote the sorry card on my own accord, stating that I was quiet the entire time, and passed it to Mr Paul when I met him at the CCA office.
The next day, 15th May, was my birthday. My mum had bought me a cake from Berry's Cake House and I brought it to the front desk to be kept in the fridge. The contents of the cake were mysterious as my mum said it would be a surprise as to how the cake looked like. I thought of running to Ms Doris, excited to have her savor the celebration of my birthday, but I just sat and let her teach first when she came to class.
When break time arrived, the whole class came as my mum arrived to set things up. Ms Tat, our class teacher, also joined in the celebration for me. I got good wishes from Benjamin Koh, Andrew Ariffin, Dylan S. Gill and a couple of girls in the class. I felt touched when everyone sang the birthday song for me, and the cake, which was revealed, was a giant, red Angry Birds cake. Of course, many teachers were happy with me and wished me a happy birthday, from Ms Heng to any other teacher. Ms Heng told me during Mandarin that she had eaten the cake, as Ms Tat passed my birthday cake's remains to all the other teachers to snack on.
During PE, Mr Victor did some running with us, and Ms Doris taught us about the extinction of the dinosaurs. Apparently, she had been unhappy with our work, but that did not stop her from continuing our lesson. Glen and I toured the school and partied around for my birthday.
After lunch, we had Malay, and, being excited as a kid, I told Cikgu Hasliza that it was my birthday. She was happy and told me she had enjoyed the cake. The mood was spoiled when the class was too noisy till Cikgu Hasniza had to shout and get angry to get everyone to settle down.
During CCA, Ms Juliana, who teaches Year 3 students English, replaced us in School Journalism as Ms I Lynn was not in that day. So, as such, Ms Juliana told us to write on World Theatre Day as well as World Creativity and Innovation Day. Everyone was clueless, so Ms Juliana gave us a piece of paper to get started. Ms June then entered the class and showed us a video that contained many well-known individuals, from Steve Jobs to Bill Gates, reminding us on how we can be inspired. In fact, the video was to commemorate World Creativity and Innovation Day, and there were many events, from World Health Day to World Breast Cancer Day, which were commemorated in Nobel at the time. I went home feeling fruitful, being happy at my last birthday celebration in primary school.
The next day, 16th May, was our Teacher's Day celebration. We used the hall for the celebration as there were performances and games to celebrate Teacher's Day.
We begun the celebration by a greeting from Ms Michelle and at the same time, we were also participating in a series of performances for the celebration. If one would be able to remember how Mr Tony came to do our Jellyfish Jive performance, that was our second performance on the program on Teacher's Day. In fact, he did a lot of rehearsals with Ms Tat as well as all of us in the class, and he always had to call most of the boys in the class to settle down, with me being the exception, and to follow the moves.
Anyhow, the first performance was a dance by the BlueBricks CCA, followed by our Jellyfish Jive. The teachers looked in awe, and the younger students from Year 1 and 2 were captivated. This was then followed by a treat from Mr Praba, who came on the stage and asked us to guess the teacher's name based on their younger selves from the time when they were kids. At first, we all wondered what those old photos were, and then, one by one, the photos were revealed; from Ms Tat's to Ms Sures' photo. In fact, we also took a look at how young Mr Mervin was as well! Each teacher then did the Chicken Dance performance before we capped the day by giving gifts to our teachers. I took the opportunity to deliver cupcakes and cookies to my subject teachers as well as my homeroom teachers.
Mr Praba continued to captivate us during Local Studies with an introduction of the United Kingdom. He talked to us about the constituent countries of the UK and their capital cities.
“Guys, England is not a country by itself. Remember, it forms the UK with the other countries,” he said. Some people like Brendan Cheah then started to joke and say that Wales is reminded as a whale, to which Mr Praba sneered. He then asked us to draw the map of the UK on the paper and then label the countries, cities and capitals according to what we found, on mahjong paper and bring it to class following the Mid Term Holiday.
Back in 2012, there was no formal Mid Year Examination, but a series of separate, quarterly assessments which our teachers did with us. The main focus of the assessments were for English, Maths and Science. In fact, most of our assessment focus was on handing in homework and participating in class. At the beginning of the year, I was quite timid and clueless, and the teachers had some issues with me, more or less academically, but as time passed, I begin to also answer questions in class, which made my teachers more satisfied. In fact, most people in Year 6 worry about the Progression Test that awaits us at the end of 2012.
Cambridge's Progression Test would be a test administered by Cambridge. The teachers had notified us about that, but we didn't really know much about that at the time. However, most of us focused on our work as well as our studies by then, and at the same time, were preparing for International Week.
International Week is seen as an opportunity for everyone in Nobel International School to look forward to exploring countries around the world. Each class was given a country to work on, and we were given Nigeria as our country. Nigeria is a sovereign state in southwestern Africa, and we had to do a research.
Ms Tat and all of us discussed during every Homeroom lesson on what to have and what to do for International Week, while Pei Chi led the discussion in the class. Each time Pei Chi led the discussion, some of the boys in our class, from Lim Wences to Dylan S. Gill, fooled around in the class. To some extent, Ms Tat had to lead the discussion to give Pei Chi a break. We begun the discussions immediately the week after my birthday, on 21st May. We were also given new car stickers, as well as several messages from Ms Tat. It was announced that we would need to stay back for extra classes for students from Year 4 to Year 6 to catch up in the progression towards our English proficiency as well as to gear up in the transition progress. As the extra classes were scheduled to end at 3:30pm from Mondays to Thursdays, it was not an issue for me as I had CCAs on these days which lasted till 3:30pm.
In addition to that, International Week was gaining momentum. We were also told that an International Evening was to be set up on 8th June, in the school hall. Ms Tat briefed us and told us that each class would be designated a booth to set up our country on. Additionally, we also had to decorate our class to promote the country we were in as well.
Dylan S. Gill suggested some songs to be played in the class for International Week. The boys in the class then got excited and started suggesting songs. “Why do you all want to talk about songs? Every day songs only. A lot of teachers have complained to me that you all want to listen to songs every lesson,” she said, as the entire class turned on Dylan. In fact, he was going to suggest Nigerian songs to be played to woo the crowd for International Week.
I proposed hanging a line of flags from Nigeria, and discussed with Ms Tat to print them. In the end, I decided to color the flags, and it was quite easy. Pei Chi then turned to me, urging me to make them. “Bring the flags after holidays, ya,” Pei Chi quipped.
I went back to Bukit Mertajam, Penang, to visit my grandparents during the holidays from late May to early June. In fact, it was the norm for me and my sister to go back to Penang every holiday season as my mum had to work and my aunt was headed back to Penang to visit my grandparents, and no one was at home to take care of us.
Anyhow, what changed the landscape of Nobel International School was the imposition of a new time rule which states that we students can only enter the school premises after 6:45am, taking effect from 4th June 2012. The reason why this was being done was because of a crime involving Nayati, a Dutch student of Mont Kiara International School, on 27th April 2012, who was aged 12 then.
Nayati was kidnapped and shoved into a car while walking on foot to Mont Kiara International School, and was successfully found within a week. While the incident had been resolved promptly by clever cops and courts, the fear and trauma faced by Nayati still remains relevant, and this concern was echoed across communities of parents with school-going children. Nobel International School had such a similar concern, and hence, students would only be allowed to enter the school at 6:45am, and it is a practice continued by Nobel to this day.
Aside from that, we were also given car stickers during our Homeroom lesson with Ms Tat, who handed us the stickers for our parents to put on their cars. My mum asked for two car stickers to be stuck on her and my aunt's car, since my aunt would fetch me home from school while my mum would send me to school. In fact, my aunt would normally pick me up from the school foyer and accompany me to her car outside the school. That would also be abolished by the school for security purposes, and cars with the car sticker would only be allowed into the school premises.
The new security measures halted my early arrival time of 6:30am. Since Year 3 in 2010, I had been coming to school quite early, and arrived at school between 6:15am and 6:30am. For comparison, Ms Prema would normally arrive at 6:00am then, and I would sometimes be the first person to reach school. However, the school did not enforce this and I still entered the school as per normal, before 6:45am. I could not resist the urge to come to school early, and was excited for every school day.
International Week commenced immediately after the school holidays ended, on 4th June 2012. We gathered in the school hall, where Ms Michelle, along with Puan Halimah and Mr Sures, launched the International Week with a video on the screen depicting the countries of the world in a musical presentation. The hall was ecstatic when the video was played, as everyone indicated their country of choice.
Ms Ingel then came on the announcement and then told everyone that an assignment would be given for all of us to do for International Week, and that our class teachers would announce the details. Who is excited for International Week? Ms Ingel cried, to thunderous applause from th crowd.
I brought a total of 20 Nigerian flags to school, and gave them to Ms Tat. The class begun decorating the classroom during Homeroom time on 4th June, and within minutes, the class was full of Nigerian flags. Some of them were kept as spares to promote at the booths during International Evening on 8th June. Dylan, Sze Kai, Wences and everyone in the class placed the flags and decorated the classroom with all the information about Nigeria, while Yen Choo, Wee Shiang, Pei Chi and Vanesse Leong made a signboard containing the information about Nigeria.
Mr Praba then came in to the class for our Local Studies lesson, and gave us an extension for our map of the United Kingdom, since we were busy with International Week. In addition to that, he also had another interesting trick up his sleeve.
“How many of you guys know how many states are there in Malaysia?” he asked. Most of us replied that there were fourteen states in Malaysia, and he gave us a brief introduction on Malaysia. In fact, we learnt that Malaysia has a total of thirteen states and three federal territories.
Mr Praba was patient as he smiled and went about the lesson, asking us to compare and contrast between Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia. He then talked about the history of the two sides, and then we were given a task to do another drawing of the maps of Malaysia on another large mahjong paper and bring it to class within a week.
Ms Tat, on the other hand, gave us a new school calendar for 2012 during our Homeroom lesson. Among the new things that were given were the presence of the Progression Test, tonnes of ICAS (International Curriculum and Assessments for Schools) exams in writing, Maths and English, as well as a Family Marathon Day. The marathon was one of the most interesting things that were given; it captivated my attention immediately. I had seen marathons on television before, but this was one where we had to really race and run the distance ourselves. Hence, I had a wholehearted feeling towards the second half of 2012.
The International Week got off to an interesting start as we used our Character Transformation (CT) session to plan the booths. Each country was assigned a booth in the hall, and the girls in our class started to make the model Nigerian houses, and Pei Chi even brought photos and printed text information to make the billboards. We also used our Homeroom sessions throughout the week to prepare for International Week.
The Nigerian houses were quite cool and were modeled after straw houses built in Nigeria. After all, Nigel even made a large archway which read “Eku Aro to Nigeria” which means “Welcome to Nigeria” in the Nigerian language. A lot of flags were strung in our class as well.
Mr Paul then informed us during lunch on Wednesday, 6th June 2012, that each class would be given a booth in the school hall and we would need to arrive early on International Evening, which was on 8th June 2012. In fact, all of us students do not have to come in the morning, but must arrive by 3:00pm to set up the booths and go for a briefing.
On the lnternational Evening, I arrived at school at 1:30pm, which was quite early than usual. The doors at the side of the school hall were barricaded with benches and signs informing visitors to enter from the back of the hall. Our booth was located on the left side of the hall, and Ms Tat was waiting for us at the side of the hall with a smile on her face.
“You're early today!” cried Ms Tat, as she saw me arriving. I greeted her and placed my bag, while waiting for the other people to arrive. I then strolled around the hall to look at the various countries in store. There were a total of eighteen countries in store from us: Australia, Egypt, Japan, [South] Korea, Mexico, South Africa, Austria, Spain, India, France, Nigeria, the Netherlands, Colombia, the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Germany and Brazil. The other Year 6 classes were doing Egypt (6 Loyal), Brazil (6 Generous) and South Africa (6 Attentive).
My then best friend, Yatisan, was quite into the International Week for Brazil as that country is obsessed with football. Some people from 6 Generous were wearing all the attires of the football players, especially Aaron Lee Lap Bong, who was decked in a Pele outfit. Even Yatisan was dressed as a football player as well. Shaun Ho, who was from 6 Attentive, was quite impressed by the football players’ outfits as he also had a hand in sports while in Nobel.
The hall soon begun trickling with people entering from the back via the canteen, and the song “It's a Small World” then begun ringing the joy and atmosphere in the school hall. While the Year 4, 5 and 6 students were given space in the school hall to decorate their booths, the Year 1, 2 and 3 students were allowed space in their respective classrooms, especially the younger ones as it would be easier for them, since it would free up space in the hall for other people to use. While walking around, I met Xang Yen, who was in Year 3 then, and talked to him. His class, 3 Attentive, was working on the country of [South] Korea, and he was dressed in nice traditional Korean hanbok. I also managed to visit 6 Loyal's Egypt booth, where Joseph Diong and a few people from his class were busy propping up the Egyptian pyramid and were trying to dress up as mummies. Some of them wrapped toilet paper all over a mummy statue to represent the Egyptian mummy.
At 3:00pm, Ms Michelle came into the hall and called everyone for attention. “Good afternoon, students! May I have your attention please!” she cried. “We are going to start at 3:05pm, but before we start, let us greet our teachers first. Good afternoon, Ms Shum! Good afternoon, Puan Halimah! Good afternoon, Mr Sures! Good afternoon, Mr Chuang!”
Ms Michelle then passed the time to Mr Paul, who explained and detailed to us on the instructions for International Week. “All students will need to be with their class teachers at their booths to set up and make their preparation for the event. Doors will open at 4:00pm. So, before parents enter, students.....I wonder who is still talking?!” he cried.
Mr Paul then told us that judges would go around to judge the booths around the school and pick the top three winners, and when the event begins at 4:00pm, we would need to head around the school to jot down information into a booklet that was given to us by our homeroom teachers days before, as part of the assignment required for International Week. Each one of us would need to record all the countries listed in the booklet, and submit it to our teachers the following week.
I went around the hallways, marking down the information as I passed. I first went to Australia and begun to record information which I felt should be placed in the booklet. My uncle lives in Sydney, Australia, and visiting the booth reminded me of his cheerful character whenever describing how life was like in Australia. I then went around to tour more booths, as Joseph Diong handed me an advertisement which promoted home-cooked Egyptian food. The Japanese booth was also quite colorful, and one could feel zen music being played when stepping into the booth. One would be reminded of being in a spa filled with Japanese ambience as it was held in a classroom, separate from the noisy ambience of the day. There were lots of Japanese food on sale as well for those who want to be indulged in a tour away from Malaysia.
I met Low Xang Yen, who entertained me by guiding me around the class, which exhibited Korean culture. His friends did a Korean performance and Korean dance in the class to some traditional Korean tunes. Some booths have really cool ambiences, especially the ones of France, the United States and United Kingdom. After all, at the time, the United Kingdom was about to host the London Olympics and there were a lot of information posted regarding the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Everyone went around, taking information as aside from that, we had to get the flag of our country, which was distributed to those who crossed into that booth, as proof that we had completed our visit to the country. We then pasted the mini flag into our book in order to record them down. I had finished recording up to Brazil, when Glen and Yatisan entertained me with football stunts, showing me around the booth of what they had to offer.
Once I had finished walking around the booths, recording the details, I decided to have a toilet break. Outside the school courtyard, Puan Halimah, Auntie Clarine and several students from Year 3, 2 and 1 were indulged with their teachers in promoting their country to the visitors on site. There was happy chatter as each individual sought to lure Auntie Clarine as well as the judges to their booths. It was fierce, but happy competition to achieve the highest “tourist numbers”. Parents and whole families of the children were there, as each visitor had a smile on their face when touring the school. The warm hospitality of the management of the school failed to dampen spirits on a hot day.
Mr Chan and Ms Evelyn were also touring the scene, looking at all the various exhibits on display. Mr Chan peered with a smile on his face, walking along the corridor and then to the school hall to view the glamour of the contents. He stood his ground, greeting and smiling to everyone as he passed. I was waiting at my class booth when he came, along with a few judges who accompany him. Ms Kalai, Mr Chuang, Mr Paul and Ms Ingel were judging the booths as they walked around. Armed with clipboards and pens, they went around, taking down notes like an inspector solving a crime.
Once all was done, I did my part to do the description of Nigeria, greeting curious and polite gentlemen who were interested to view our booth. Xang Yen then came to view mine as he took his information book to jot down the contents for his assignment.
As soon as it begun, the day was finally over, as Ms Michelle and Ms Ingel announced the winner for International Week, which were awarded to France for the KS3 category and Mexico for the KS2 category. I have to admit that the French ambience was quite entertaining, and one could imagine being in buffet dinner when being at France's booth. We then begun the cleanup, as we took some items back to our class to keep while the rubbish was loaded properly into bins. Cleaners were seen collecting loads of trash, bagging them up while I helped Ms Tat to do the cleaning and to arrange the tables properly.
Following the cleanup, I bade farewell to Ms Tat and met Glen and Yatisan, as well as my mum, who was seen chatting with a few of my friends’ parents. I also got to meet Xang Yen and his mum before heading home. Unbeknownst to me, Xang Yen was my sister's music class mate as well, and hence, I got to know him via my aunt, who informed me about it.
Post-International Week was an atmosphere in the build-up to creative writing. I was excited about that as I was armed with my journals, both required by the school as well as in my pastime. In fact, the school had planned several creative writing activities for all of us.
One person whom was invited to encourage us to write creatively was Ms Shum Swee Ting, who came to Nobel prior to the start of International Week. Ms Shum is a very outgoing and proactive assistant principal for the elementary school, and since she had great experience in managing an international school, Nobel had decided to invite her to coach them to learn the ropes. In fact, everyone in the elementary school were quite motivative of each other, from teachers to students, and this was the beginning of more exciting things. Ms Shum had always talked about writing and how we should instill it as a habit, aside from reading before the school begins, as well as during our free time. I like talking to Ms Shum as she is quite friendly and approachable.
Post-International Week, I met Ms Shum while she was walking during break and lunch a couple of times. Normally, she would wear high heels and carry a black notebook while walking around the school grounds. It would be very impossible to see her in a fit of anger, since she would have a bright smile on her face as she walked. When students see her, the enthusiastic greetings and cheers would make Ms Shum feel touched, as she gave high-fives to everyone in the school.
I would normally meet Ms Shum in her office quite often during break and lunch to discuss what was being said in the assembly as well as on my journal writing. Ms Shum would normally discuss with me what aspects of the school is good, and I would tell her the history of the school as well, from who Auntie Clarine is to how the school was founded, and Puan Halimah would normally be in good hands to allow me to meet Ms Shum for a chat. I would leave when the assembly was about to start, but Ms Shum would normally tell me to stay until everything is done for fear of me running late and ending up on the red list.
Mr Praba, by this time, had moved on with our maps. We completed the map of the United Kingdom and Malaysia, bound for pasting on the wall. I only managed to draw the map of England, to which Mr Praba told me to include the other countries, but he was still motivative. “The Malaysian map is better, but overall, good work,” he said with a bold voice.
One topic which I learned during Maths when I was Year 6 was how to use a protractor to measure angles. Ms Thava had demonstrated with us angle measurements, and what a 90-degree angle was. In fact, this was my favorite topic, particularly because a protractor was something new to me. Holding the semicircular-shaped disk was quite interesting because it looked fun seeing the angles on the protractor fit on the lines. All one needs to do is to measure the angle by putting the protractor on one of the lines, with an arrow next to the angle itself to guide the correct position before measuring. As the Smart Notebook software also came with a protractor, Ms Thava was also excited to use it, as she placed the protractor on the angles shown on screen. It looked cool as I watch Ms Thava move the protractor around.
Life went on as normal. In our class, Jinn Lik would normally have a friendly talk with me in class. He would always ask me a few questions pertaining to advice on academics, and he is quite friendly when conversing with me.
Jinn Lik even told me to move on past my academic failures and work towards my successes. In fact, in my class, whenever I got a bad grade, the boys in the class would laugh and tease at me if I got quite a low grade. Of course, I did not fail, but it was enough for the boys to make fun of my grade.
Anyhow, I spent the rest of June speaking to Ms Shum as she was quite new. Ms Shum was quite cheerful as I entered her office. Normally, I would prefer to talk to her during lunch, and Ms Shum would be in her office, waiting to discuss with me if need be, since lunch sessions were longer than those of break times. I would go to Ms Shum's office and have a chat with her for 15 minutes before going off to the school hall or courtyard for lunch assembly. I don't want to run late, so hence, I would have quite a quick chat with her.
Ms Shum invited me to her office for a chat with her on 11th June 2012 to discuss about things. I spoke to her about my writing plans and introduced my journals that I have written.
“Wei Yiang, do you know that the school is going to have a writing competition?” Ms Shum asked with a smile. She told me that I would probably be interested in this competition, and this captivated my mind. “You should join it if you want to improve your writing. You can be a good writer one day,” she said. In fact, I like writing, and I was interested in it.
Ms Shum and I had more rounds of discussion, particularly on writing and the school activities. In fact, Ms Shum also gave me more insights on how the school is going to plan for the second half of the year. Puan Halimah even came to join, and we talked about more matters.
“Are you planning to go for English Camp, Wei Yiang?” Puan Halimah asked me. As someone who was homesick, I usually don't join camps, particularly because of the fact that aside from missing my parents, I do not want my sleep schedule to be dictated.
The month of June went by quite well, and a whole host of activities were launched to kick off July. Prior to that, we had the Prefects’ Installation, which saw San Ying and Kah Keet taking their responsibilities as head prefects, with Kah Keet leading as Head Boy while San Ying assisted him as Head Girl.
July begun with a new start for the year. A new timetable dawned upon us, and one of the biggest transformations was Mr Mervin replacing Ms Tat as our class teacher. I have not talked about Mr Mervin so far here, but he was a much more interesting teacher, although I preferred Ms Tat as my class teacher much more than Mr Mervin.
Mr Mervin was an outspoken guy. He had taught me ICT in Year 3 and 4, and he was quite an interesting teacher who taught us from Microsoft Excel to Paint and so on, and how to play on the computer. I hadn't explained much on Mr Mervin because ICT is more or less the same every year, while Ms Chin, Mr Kwan and Ms Prema were making a comeback to teach me as well for English, Music and Art. Honestly, I breathed a sigh of relief as Ms Chin replaced Ms Doris for English, as I felt that Ms Doris was quite strict in terms of academics and how the show is run in class.
On the other hand, Ms Prema, who had presided over my academics in the whole of my elementary/primary school life throughout my time in Nobel, would be back to preside my final year in the elementary/primary school with an emphasis on art. Ms Prema had taught me English in Year 1, and was my class and Pendidikan Moral teacher in Year 2, 3 and 4. Sometimes, Ms Prema was quite a bit stern, but had a sweet and soft spot at heart. Mr Kwan was quite stern with me over the plate incident in January, and I was hoping to please him during Music. He did not come for most of the first half of the music lesson, and he was replaced with Mr Tony, Ms Nora and Mr Ang, who continued to each shuffle between each of the music classes.
A series of writing activities were commissioned throughout July. Throughout the year, Ms Michelle emphasized on our English proficiency as well as our intonation. “We are now an international school, and I do not want to hear any “ah”, “lah”, “mah” and all these types of Malaysian slang during school hours. So when you talk to people, please don't say “lah”, okay?” Ms Michelle was quoted as saying during an assembly session in January, as the school attempted to progress further to the new standard. The first six months were quite infant for Nobel in 2012 as the school tried to cope towards the international school standard, and it went quite smooth so far, considering that the Valentine's Day, a series of internationally-recognized days around the world (such as World Environment Day), not to also mention the International Week, had put Nobel International School in a great position so far. Hence, to further enhance the international school standard's competitiveness, the school had been focusing on English proficiency and worked to eliminating the typical Malaysian slangs to avoid becoming just another school on the block.
Writing competitions were the highlight of July, as Gloson Teh, then a nine-year-old short story and poet writer, came to Nobel to give a speech to us on Thursday, 5th July 2012. While being a nine-year-old, his writing captivated the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who cordially invited him to the Prime Minister's Department to perform his speeches in front of him. It was an honor for him to do so, especially when a kid was invited to meet a high-ranking official. He even had the honor of appearing on TV shows and was even awarded a spot in the Malaysia Book of Records for being Malaysia's youngest poet.
Back in Nobel, the newly-built stage was set for him, as he spoke with Ms Michelle, Ms Ingel and Puan Halimah on his visit. He then took the opportunity to recite a few poems, starting with “My Kitty Loves French Fries”. The crowd laughed as he acted like a comedian, belting out one speech after another. Through his attitude, Gloson spoke with confidence, and told us to speak up if needed, aside from asking our teachers or parents for advice, while at the same time, quoting several individuals like Nick Vujicic who still showed their best despite them being disadvantaged. Ms Thava then gave us a shock the next day, writing on the whiteboard the instructions on our homework, namely to complete the Square Numbers worksheet and do every exercise, correction and finish uncompleted work up to page 59 of the workbook, with a due date the following Monday, 9th July. “I will NOT ACCEPT any reason from you!” cried the words on the whiteboard as we came back following break time. Fortunately, I managed to complete the tasks given in record time as my brain felt fatigued.
The Year 6 students were given a writing competition on the theme “Improve the World”. Each one of us would need to come up with an idea on how we can improve the world. I decided to write on how the world can be improved should I pursue my ambition as a teacher. I gave suggestions on how I can improve the lessons and make learning fun for everyone. We did our writing during our English lesson, and handed them up to Ms Chin. She was quite gentle, having taught me before in the previous year, and also very helpful as opposed to Ms Doris, who went with a fast tone exercise. Ms Doris and Mr Ong would take over for our Literacy Circle which involved a lot of reading. Each Literacy Circle requires us to bring a story book and do a discussion on it. In this case, we were required to use any story book for our exercises. On top of that, I also got my Nobel socks and was the first one to wear it to school. Previously, we could wear any socks provided that it is white in color, but the new Nobel socks had the “Nobel” wording printed on it, and it is still used to this day.
Ms Shum had also asked me to enter the Paper Planes Creative Writing Competition, which is a writing competition that is offered to 11 and 12-year-old creative writers. I joined the competition and had to head to Taman Tun Dr Ismail to do the competition at Paper Planes Writing Centre in the evening after school, and I had to write in the competition which ended quite late, at around 7:00pm. There were also plans to invite an outside speaker, and that was what Ms Shum told me in regards to the writing competitions. ICAS Writing as well as ICAS English were held during this time to further boost our English proficiency, and an English Camp was held for the Year 6 students. Those that did not go for the English Camp came to school as usual, since the camp was held from 12th to 14th July 2012, which covered a Thursday and Friday, which were school days. There were quite less people in the class, making it easy for teachers like Ms Thava and Ms Chin to conduct their classes. In fact, in Ms Teo's Mandarin class, I was only one out of two people that only came to the class. The class was quite small, making it easy to finish teaching, and we mostly did our own things in class.
During PE, Mr Praba started to involve us in sports. As there were two PE lessons, there was a switch into which sports we would focus on. The teachers gave us three sports, namely basketball, football and netball. As I was assigned to the netball group which mainly consisted of girls, Ms Thava taught us the steps of playing netball again on Tuesday, 17th July, and on Friday, 20th July, Mr Praba was shocked to see a ton of girls in the football group, since the girls prefered netball and football.
“I have never seen so many girls playing football before,” he smirked and giggled.
Mr Praba then taught us the basic steps in football. “The first thing you must learn is to pass the ball,” he said, as he attempted to use his legs to pass the ball between cones. He then divided us into four groups and with a tweet of his whistle, we begun our moves. The girls started passing the balls and shuffling them with their legs, and Mr Praba then continued to play goalkeeper, teaching us how to shoot the football. The girls felt shy as they were psychologically playing a game meant for guys, giggling and laughing as Mr Praba tried to calm them down.
A week later, on Thursday, 26th July 2012, we then had Ms Michelle's birthday celebration, where we prepared gifts and cards. I had prepared one card for Ms Michelle, and planned to give it to her that day. This was the very last time Nobel International School had an open birthday celebration for a principal, and no principal since 2013 had openly requested a birthday celebration like no other.
The birthday celebration for Ms Michelle was the same fitting to what Auntie Clarine received. For 45 minutes, the crowd were entertained to a touching performance for her birthday, as the lights went out in the school hall, except for a few utility lights on the ceiling. It was pitch-dark as everyone waited for the party to begin.
The same roster of order followed, with Ms Michelle being welcomed like a celebrity to cheers from the crowd to a nice sofa in the middle of the hall as the management staff brought out the cake. When the Year 1 and 2 students came and performed “One Thing” by One Direction, Brendan Cheah, Dylan S. Gill and all the boys in our class were jovially singing and rocking to the tune while teachers tried to keep them at their best behavior. The whole hall even sang the One Direction song as Ms Michelle smiled and was awed by the performances. The last skit was a performance by four sets of dancers from Japan, Mexico, India and Egypt, calling back to the theme of International Week. The management team then ended the celebration by handing Ms Michelle a nice birthday song to cap off the day. I then headed to Ms Michelle's study during break to give her the birthday card, to much delight from her. The fun and enjoyment continued towards the afternoon, where Mr Praba begun to introduce his Athens v. Sparta topic on Ancient Greece. He asked us to present a powerpoint presentation regarding one topic on Ancient Greece, and Athens v. Sparta was my choice of topic. In fact, I like Local Studies being held in the afternoon as it gives the sense of relaxation as the day is being capped off with an interesting subject.
For the second half of the year, I chose Reading as my CCA for Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays because I was not allowed to choose the same CCA as the first half, with the exception of School Journalism, which allowed us to stay till the end of the year, which made me quite satisfied. So as a result, I still stayed in School Journalism while taking Reading, and a bunch of people from Gardening Club, Earth Club and Book Club chose the same, since they had the same thoughts as me. During the Reading Club CCA, we went to the library and did some reading, and on certain days, certain people joined us. For example, on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Sarah Low was in the Reading CCA while Lee Kah Keet was on the Thursday session, and Marissa Yeo was on the Monday session.
Luck ran out for me when the security guards stopped me from entering the school early in the morning when the first week of August dawned. I had to spend some time waiting outside the school, which deprived me of my early morning time. Zi Quan also had to endure the same, since he would always come as early as me. A crowd of students had to wait outside the school, as the management continued to rev the directive to prevent entries before 6:45am. The security guard had to check his watch and the clock for the entry time to the very first second, and when the doors opened, excited students from the younger elementary years rushed in joy to be the first to enter.
The first day of August came as everyone got settled for Reading Time. As I was a bit late due to the jam, I managed to arrive just as the reading music played. At the time, the prefects kept an eye on us and told us to read if we stopped. In fact, music was the core of our lives in Nobel then, from assembly to dismissal, and we were not allowed to go to the school foyer, which was our new assembly point, until the lunch assembly music played. In fact, speaking of music, Mr Kwan by then had taken over our music lesson, and taught us about non-western music for a start, namely Malay, Chinese and other similar tunes and played a few songs from the Internet for us.
The London Olympics were in full swing, and on 7th August, Sze Kai was talking about Lee Chong Wei's badminton match with Lin Dan in the final of the badminton competition in London. I had apparently screamed so loud when cheering for Lee Chong Wei while on holiday at Genting Highlands, and I told Sze Kai the interesting experience I had. “You are so pro,” he said.
The entire class was angry at me for switching off the air conditioning units in our class for some time, because they wish to feel the breeze when entering the class after break and lunch due to the hot weather, but however, for that day, I told everyone that I saw Cikgu Hasliza cutting the air conditioning power as she left the class the last, along with me.
Mr Mervin then took us to the computer lab where we learned about Microsoft Excel and we were tasked to create a medal-ranking table for the London Olympics. To get us started, Mr Mervin opened the London Olympics website and showed us the medal table for us to get us started. China was the one topping the medal tally, making me recall Lin Dan running around the badminton arena when triumphing over Lee Chong Wei. I was halfway done when Mr Mervin told us to line up and continue the following week if we weren't done. “Don't lose it,” he continued.
We went down to the hall for PE and I was placed in the Football group. All the teachers gave us a tag which we had to put on just in case we got lost outside of school. The basketball group members were quite noisy, so the teachers took away the tags from all of us, even though Football's students were quiet. Mr Mervin and Mr Praba entered the hall with some colored pens and pieces of A4 paper, while we sat down. We then saw Mr Paul's mad looks on his face as he sneered at us.
“If I see anyone talking, I am going to give you a piece of paper and you will be asked to write down why you need to stop talking,” he jeered. He then told us to write on two topics, namely why we should keep quiet when lining up and why we should follow the school rules. He then instructed the teachers to take the football and basketball students to the lower canteen.
It is important for one to keep quiet when lining up in those days in order to hear the instructions of the teachers and not disturb other classes. We also had to stop talking when asked to do so in order to allow lessons to continue and not be disrupted.
Anyhow, we sat at the lower canteen, and Mr Praba gave us two pieces of paper to write on the topics. Ustaz, a teacher from the private school wing who assisted the PE lessons, said we need to write at least 100 words or more. We then handed up the pieces of paper, and I asked Ustaz if I could retrieve mine back from Mr Paul so that I can paste it inside my journal. Had he returned, I would have written what I wrote. It was unfair for good and quiet students to be subjected to a collective punishment as the others.
Lunch time arrived, and Xang Yen was caught being late at the late line. The prefects took down his name and that of the late comers. Mr Mervin then returned to class for Character Transformation to play us a game and guess what the picture was. The class became noisy and distracted, to Mr Mervin's fury. “EVERYONE, KEEP QUIET!” he shouted. He then flew into a rage, tearing up all the worksheets assigned for us that lesson and flinging them into the bin.
“You see, guys, Mr Paul had asked you to write down why you need to keep quiet, and I have said so many times, please keep quiet, please keep quiet, please keep quiet but you never listen. I had so much fun with 6 Loyal playing the same game and one student drew Lin Dan's face. It was so exciting, and I was hoping my class would do better as class teacher,” he said.
I wrote all those contents in my journal, and showed Mr Mervin's drawing which I copied from 6 Loyal to Zi Quan and Grace on 13th August. Ms Michelle then gave a strict lecture on bullying during assembly, and the teachers handed out anti-bullying buttons. Ms Thava then told us to take out our homework for Maths, and ordered those who did not do their homework to stand up. A couple of people stood up with ashamed faces.
“I do not know what you are doing at home. It's sad to see the good ones standing!” she cried.
Ms Thava, in my opinion, should have asked them why they did not do their homework and acted more gently. In fact, it may be in the inappropriate tone to focus on results, but on the content of the work and the mistakes made. Ordering people to stand up is more of a shaming type of activity which should be avoided, and Ms Thava should have adopted a more open approach than the strict approach used. She then told us to take out our textbook and exercise book for the lesson, and I was halfway done when the lesson ended. Ms Thava told me to hand in my work at the end of the day. I then enjoyed being a spokesperson for my group on the human body during Science with Ms Tat
As the month of August progressed, Mr Praba did our Local River Study, and asked us to identify the landscape, the stretch of riverbed as well as other geographical characteristics on a river found in Malaysia. He praised a few students, including me by asking us to stand up. “Congratulations! I like your work!” he exclaimed, handing back my pendrive which contained the Athens v. Sparta presentation as well as my report on my Local River Study which I did on the Klang River. We had to answer 16 questions on the river, from the name, the source, the mouth, confluence, nearest town, river usage, topography, geography and wildlife in the river. The Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays soon followed, and I went back to Penang once again. Following the holidays, everyone was greeted with excitement as Ms Celine Ritz, the long awaited American speaker, came to Nobel International School to conduct a writing workshop. I had expected her to have a Caucasian look, but she was quite Asian in her looks actually.
Ms Celine is a wonderful speaker, and since at the time, I like to write a lot of journals, I was looking forward to her workshop as Mr Praba, who was the Year 6 level leader then, told us. She was and is still Nobel International School's English Consultant. Ms Celine hails from California, which is the most populated US state and home to big industries and large cities on the West Coast. It felt interesting to have an American come to speak to us and share with us on her thoughts on English proficiency.
On our first session with her during our Character Transformation (CT) session on 28th August, Ms Celine gracefully introduced herself and got us curious to know about the United States. She then spoke about the importance of why making mistakes is important.
“How many of you hate writing? Please put up your hand. Wow, so many,” she gasped. “Writing is important because it develops your motor skills and prepares you for work in the future,” Ms Celine pleaded, as she tried persuading us to learn some writing skills.
I volunteered to share my writing hobbies when Ms Celine asked those who enjoyed writing to share their experiences. Ms Celine then said she was excited to have a look at my journals that I have written in my free time, aside from the topics given by teachers. She then went on to talk about the importance of writing and the fears, concerns and anxieties we face.
“It is OKAY to make mistakes. Mistakes are part of learning as it helps you to do better by understanding where you went wrong,” she said. “I am going to break y’all into groups of six, which we call the Literacy Circle” she said. The Literacy Circle is a group of six which breaks on tasks, from illustrating, connecting and identifying parts of a story book which we have to read.
We learned five steps of writing, namely planning, sloppy copy, revising, proof reeding and publishing, as well as the CLEEB technique (Clear, Loud, Expression, Eye Contact and Body Movement) when telling a story.
“Caleb!” some of the people in 6 Attentive cried when the CLEEB phrase reminded everyone of Caleb Chuang, the son of Mr Chuang. Along with many other techniques that I learned, Ms Celine also told us to write a story to her and bring it to the next session which identifies with the techniques we learnt. I also took the time during break and lunch when Ms Celine was around, to explain to her and show her my journals with enthusiasm. I had multiple books that I wrote in the past and was eager to show her. “You really love writing!” she cried.
Two days later, all of us were treated to a trip to the Raja Tun Uda Library in Shah Alam, which had been advertised in the news as a newly-opened library. As the day was also the PTM day, the school wanted to kill two birds with one stone by having us go on the trip while the rest of our teachers sorted out matters with our parents. The Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 students went on the trip to the library, eager to find out what was in store for us.
Jinn Lik and I sat in the same bus as we sat and watched the scenery outside, curious about the landscape outside the bus as well as how big the library was. Upon arrival, the bus dropped off at a large entrance outside the library, and we walked in, curious to find out what was in store for us while our teachers settled us down and urged us to be on our best behavior.
Encik Ismail, a representative from the library, briefed us and took us on a tour where we were split. The Year 5 and 6 were taken to a reading area while the rest went to listen to story telling. I saw Xang Yen on his way and bid farewell to him as he left. I then plopped at a mock tree in the center of the library, which detailed the reading corner. I then sat down and read a book with Glen Kay and Yatisan while waiting for our teachers to tell us what to do. We then went back to school upon the conclusion of the trip and had some lessons as usual where Mr Praba and Mr Mervin recalled how our parents were met and settled with, which Mr Praba had another assignment for us; bring some paint and props to school to work on a mountain model with our groupmates in class the following week.
Our next session with Ms Celine then came on Tuesday, 4th September, where she detailed to us a writing exercise and more of the same via narrative and persuasive writing. We learned about persuasive writing through the POW! Line, which consists of shake, show, tell, round 1, round 2, the POW! Moment, knock back, “do this please” and shake techniques in writing a persuasive letter. The previous day, we learned about WOW! Techniques on narrative writing, and it was pretty cool. At the end of the session, we bade farewell to Ms Celine as she would return to the United States on the 7th, and as such, we had to write a thank-you note to her before she jets home. I spent the last few days and weeks talking to Ms Celine and writing my thank you note to her, detailing my passion for writing.
The month of September is the beginning of a month of sports. We were given the official 2012 sports attires on 3rd September during our homeroom time, where Mr Mervin handed them to us. Ms Michelle then showed us the 2012 Sports Attire during assembly the next day. As 2012 was the inaugural year where Bullseye, Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk were formed, it was quite interesting to see our sports attires and their colors. The original color for my house, Bullseye, was blue, Touchdown's was purple, Slamdunk had orange while Homerun maintained their green theme to this day. At the same time, Mr Victor and Mr Praba were gearing us up by inviting certain individuals who wanted to participate in the race for Sports Gala to give their names. However, at the beginning of the week, Ms Thava was testing us on Mental Maths, and she even gave us a link to a website that we can use to practice for Mental Maths, which is part of the upcoming Cambridge Progression Test. At the time, I thought that the exam would be administered by Cambridge, but instead, the school was the one setting the exam.
This time, I did the Mental Mathematics test quite smoothly without counting and attempted to write the numbers immediately. At the same time, Mr Kwan came after some time, and showed us some music sheets that we have to hum, sing and play, from the tune “Mary Had A Little Lamb” to some tunes from movies such as Mary Poppins. He was quite approachable and professional and had no qualms about the food dumping incident which I had.
Friday, 7th September 2012 was the Sports Gala, and we went to Panasonic Stadium for the event. On the morning of Sports Gala, we first went to our classes for attendance, which Mr Mervin took. He was asking us about our attendance and also briefing to us on where we were supposed to go for our bus number.
“Guys, listen up. All of you will go to your bus based on your class. We will in Bus 4, so please follow me and line up according to your bus number,” he said. Mr Mervin then led us out of our class and headed to the courtyard, where we lined up according to our bus lines, before boarding the bus near the bus stop outside the school. Once we did, we then headed to the stadium as I caught my glimpse of the scenery as usual.
Upon arriving at Panasonic Stadium, we were then asked to assemble according to our houses, and I assembled with the people from Bullseye before Mr Praba briefed us on our activities. Brandon Ooi had carried a large placard with a drawing consisting of a dart with words that said “Go Bulls Eye”, with the letters resembling flames. We lined up according to our year level, from Year 3 to 6, and walked to the stands before we were seated.
“We will have a short briefing before we start, and we will have the individual running events first, followed by the relay events,” said Mr Praba.
The weather was quite humid on the day of Sports Gala, as the sun flared up scorching heat. The runners, who were headed to the field to warm up. Mr Praba and Mr Mervin went to brief the runners while Mr Paul outlined our code of conduct while at the stadium. As soon as things went, the runners started running and the teachers led us to cheer for our team. I was hoping that Bullseye would win, so I cheered. Benjamin Koh, who was in Slamdunk, was with his friends talking and cheering.
Soon, the relay races came, and Mr Paul had to call out students who were misbehaving. Mr Praba, who held a whistle, tweeted for attention while shuffling between the runners on the field as well as the crowd of students. There was a group of Year 3 students that cheered on me which consisted of Areeya Amali, Esther Yong and Yap Dawn, who said that I was quite famous.
The races went on till it was time to go back to school, and upon returning to class, Jordan Cheam, Dylan S. Gill and the boys chilled under the air conditioning before we were dismissed. Dylan then went his usual ways and started playing songs.
The next week, I had lost my voice from the cheering at the Sports Gala. It was going to rain tht morning, and we were assembled in the school courtyard. It begun drizzling as we sat and read, while I held my homework pouch over my head to temporarily shelter from the rain. The rain miraculously stopped when Zi Quan asked me to put my homework pouch away.
Mr Paul then made an announcement that Bullseye got 1760 points in the Sports Gala, but was not the winner. In fact, the winner of the Sports Gala was Slamdunk while Bullseye won the telematch games.
“It's not over yet! Everyone will be involved in shot putt, long jump, high jump and many more events, so there is still a chance for you to earn points for your houses,” he said with innocence.
As Boys’ Brigade was on that day, 10th September, Sze Kai and Shane were wearing their Boys’ Brigade uniforms in class. Most people wore that, and Ms I Lynn was the teacher for Boys’ Brigade. Ms Tat did some revision on reversible and irreversible changes, and I had made a note for that. We used our textbooks for the exercise, and each table in the class were split into two teams. Benjamin Koh and I did reversible changes while Nigel and Daniel Ngew did irreversible changes. As two groups only presented that day, we had to continue the following day.
As Ms Chin walked into the class, those people at the back of the room had to deal with Louis Soon, who had thrown a fit, and Ms Chin had to deal with them. She gave us a writing assignment which was titled “Creatures Under The Carpet”. Few people spoke with lengthy stories, wasting our English lesson by 30 minutes. Following lunch, Mr Kwan relieved Cikgu Hasliza for her absence before the day ended.
All microphones were switched off as the private school students from the private school wing in Nobel were having their UPSR exam, and we had to be on silent mode. No music would be played to give a sense of peace to the exam-takers, as the exam ran for three days.
On 14th September, we had Patriotic Day and the private school students, who were accompanied by Puan Halimah, then joined everyone else to celebrate the diversity of Malaysia and thus the commemoration of Merdeka and Malaysia Day on that day itself. The Patriotic Day stretched till break time, with patriotic songs being sung and the history of Malaysia being preached to the crowd. The private school students had decorated their classes with a lot of decorations and some even dressed up to perform in traditional costumes.
Later, for PE, we went down to the hall for our first session of Standard Sports. Mr Praba had briefed us the Tuesday before that and said that Standard Sports would be an opportunity for us to earn points for our houses. So, on the first day of Standard Sports, we were placed in our houses, and I was with my teammates from Bullseye.
“Okay, guys, so for Homerun and Bullseye, you will be doing the high jump. You need to run on a curve, all the way and then jump over the pole,” he said, demonstrating the correct procedure for the high jump. He then walked to a distance away, ran in a curved position, speeding towards the high jump pole, and propped himself over it. His body flexed like a rocket, cleared the horizontal bar of the high jump post, and landed onto a pile of mattresses with a loud thud. The entire audience clapped in awe as Mr Victor performed a spectacular stunt over the poles. “Do you understand?” he cried, before repeating his action again.
Previously, in 2011 when I was in Year 4, I was afraid of jumping over the high jump as it looked scary. “You'll break your bones,” teased Dylan S. Gill when I told him my fear. “Wei Yiang, don't listen to Dylan. Your bones are protected,” he said. I felt more comfortable doing shot putt, long jump or the running events.
I then proceeded to the post where all the Bullseye members were. Mr Paul sat down at the side as he held the bars and the mattresses when they were blown out by the force. “Don't worry! I will catch you if you fall!” he teased. He held a piece of paper in his hands on a clipboard, recording the scores of our performance.
Benjamin Tenji was the first to speed, as he lept like a monkey, touching the post. All eyes were on Brandon Ooi, as many people were teasing how fat he was to see if he could clear the line. Brandon then jumped and many people laughed when he crashed into the bar, screaming in pain as he landed on the mattress with laughter.
Soon, it came to my turn. I did my best, and sped towards the pole and hopped over it, landing with a loud thud next to Mr Paul. “Good job, Wei Yiang,” he said. Glen then told me that the high jump is like what I see at the Olympics. “You can be a high jump person as you can jump very well,” he said. The girls then took turns leaping at the course, and this was then followed by a retry. Mr Paul shouted at me for safety when I stood too close to the high jump post in curiosity of the amusing acts.
The next week, on Tuesday, 18th September, we then had shot putt with Homerun as the order switched, with Slamdunk and Touchdown trying the amazing leap. Mr Praba then called us to the futsal court, which was then mostly a sandy field as we tested shot putt games. “You are all mixed up,” he boomed, as he arranged us according to our name list which he grabbed. I took two tries as I carried a heavy metal ball which felt as heavy as a car, and flung it across a series of lines. On the first try, I got to point 2 and point 3 on the second, which was further, since Mr Praba gave me a second chance. After Bullseye was done, the Homerunners were then given a chance to showcase their best. In fact, I thought that the name of the game was spelt as “short part” in those days.
I then set down on a brick and talked to Janelle Arnelia while waiting for the rest to finish their match and we spoke, before heading for lunch. Mr Chuang then appeared after lunch for Character Transformation as he taught us. It was ages since he taught Character Transformation since his lessons were taken over by random teachers at the start of 2012.
The Standard Sports week came to an end on 21st September, as we were ushered to do the Shot Putt exercise. Slamdunk, Bullseye and Homerun students gathered at the long jump pit which was filled with sand, near the school gates, as Mr Victor briefed to us the guidelines of the game. Then, Mr Victor did something which I felt was hillarious when I looked at him demonstrating the long jump moves. There was a long measuring tape beside the sand pit meant for the jump, and he was demonstrating to us how to land.
“You need to run like this,” he said, as he revved up like an aircraft attempting to take off, leapt into the air and then landed perfectly with his footprint perfectly undisturbed by the sediment around it, which made me laugh.
“That's not funny, Wei Yiang,” said Wei Zhong, as he urged me not to be an annoyance with my laughter, as Mr Mervin and a teacher from the private school wing got ready to mow and measure the length of Mr Victor jumping. They then mowed the sand with a gardening rake as the jumpers got ready to take off from the “runway”.
I cheekily stood on top of a small mound in the school compound and acted like a sports commentator. “Welcome to the Nobel International School standard sports. Today, we have the long jump competition. We have Homerun on the time, and they are getting ready to jump. Oh look, here comes Yatisan! He is running now. He leaps. Bang! He jumped very far! Oh wow! Oh, look, now it's Joyce's turn! She's jumping. She ran as fast as she could, Oh, oh, oh!” I cried. The private school students in the Sri Nobel wing could hear me broadcasting the action, and grinned.
My turn came, and I sprinted, very quickly, this time, aiming to take off. I lept very high and fell on my buttocks as it throbbed in pain. “Ow!” I cried, to which Janelle Arnelia gave me good compliments on the amazing leap. “You shouldn't jump like that,” said Mr Mervin, as he checked if I was okay.
The Cambridge Progression Test then arrived on the horizon, as we geared up our minds to test the subjects of English, Maths and Science. Ms Tat, Ms Thava and Ms Chin had been preparing us, and Ms Chin, unlike Ms Tat and Ms Thava, was quite gentle as she explained the concepts of the English language quite efficiently while Ms Thava and Ms Tat were as serious as investigators, checking our work like archaeologists. This test, held from 2nd to 4th October, was originally intended for the Year 6 students to take as we are approaching the end of our primary/elementary school life. However, the school, on the orders of Ms Michelle, expanded the scope to include all Key Stage 2 (KS2) students so that no one would laze around and escape the noose in a year free of major examinations.
There was no Cambridge Primary Checkpoint administered by Cambridge then, with the school being so infant in the international school landscape, but everyone had improved on English proficiency, which was a positive start to the Cambridge system. My mum, as well as other dads and mums, protested the move by the school to bar the release of examination papers, as fret not, she wouldn't know where I went wrong.
On the first day of the exam, 2nd October 2012, we had the English exam, as we read a series of passages during the exam. The passages were quite entertaining as it provided some form of story telling amid a serious examination. We had our break and lunch as usual, and each exam had two papers; one before break and one before lunch, with lessons carrying on after lunch time as usual. In fact, we had a series of lessons after school prior to the exam in relation to the three progression test subjects, with English on Tuesday, Maths on Wednesday and Science on Thursday, following our Homeroom period.
Anyhow, I did the English papers without any issue but was stuck on how I could write a story properly. The day begun with everyone reading their English textbooks before the exam, and the same was repeated during break. Once the English tests were finished, we then revised for Mathematics while reading our Maths book. We had to sit according to our name list and put our tables apart during the test.
The Maths exam was a mental game, and I had trouble finding the answers after each and every Maths tuition my mum had prepared to gear me for this test. The examination for Science was a lot easier, but overall, most of the examination consisted of, at first, information that at first made me look puzzled. Soon, the exams ended, and the Progression Test was over as soon as we started.
The following week, when school resumed after the exams, Cikgu Hasniza was absent, so Ms June came over to relief her class. When she saw the class being in an unacceptable behavior, she was not pleased.
“Why is the class in such a manner? If you continue with this attitude, I don't know how you are going to survive Year 7,” she said, since we are going to Year 7 the following year, 2013.
“I teach Year 7, you know,” said Ms June, as she gave out the work. She then outlined how we should conduct ourselves when entering Year 7 and urged us to focus on the exercise given by Cikgu Hasniza.
The next day, 9th October 2012, we went to KidZania Kuala Lumpur, which is an occupation-based theme park located at Curve NX Shopping Centre in Mutiara Damansara that allows children to role-play adult-based occupations. The cue was to encourage us to think about our future actions when we enter the working world.
I brought a camera to take pictures, since we were allowed to do so. When we arrived at school, Ms Michelle gave us a briefing in the courtyard on what we were going to do in KidZania as we sat down in our class line, excited for the action.
Eight buses were chartered to bring us to KidZania Kuala Lumpur, thus dividing the four classes into two each, since one bus cannot carry a single class as there were four classes from Year 6. I was placed in the same bus as Glen and Yatisan who were from 6 Generous, and once all the logistics were settled, we departed for Curve NX, where KidZania was located.
KidZania Kuala Lumpur is visible from the LDP Highway via a flag containing the logo of KidZania perched on top of a flagpole installed above Curve NX Shopping Centre. As KidZania is a country of its own, the initials KZ can be seen on the flag. The ride was quite short, as the buses dropped us at the lobby of Curve NX, where a dedicated entrance for KidZania can be seen.
“Okay guys, leave your bags in the bus. Don't bring them down, because it is easy to carry and you don't want anything to be lost,” said Mr Mervin, as he reminded everyone that the teachers would not be responsible for lost items.
I picked my water bottle and camera and exited the bus, as Mr Mervin led all of us to the large foyer resembling an international airport, abruptly named the “KidZania International Airport”. There were mock flight check-in counters at the foyer, with a large flight information display screen as well as the connecting location of all the flights. We then gathered upstairs as the staff put bracelets on us for scanning and entry purposes, as I lined up in my class line. As soon as we knew it, we were inside KidZania and were asked to purchase a currency which was called “Kidzos”. As I did not know how to use the electronic banking system then, Glen Kay assisted me to withdraw the kidzos.
The theme park of KidZania was lined with shops and alleyways resembling a mini country as there were many things and characteristics that we see in KidZania that were tied to a normal city landscape in Malaysia, such as a police station, the presence of Pos Laju, the post company, as well as mock contractors from Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) which is the national electricity company in Malaysia. While everyone went around role-playing, I then proceeded to take photographs and explore the theme park for a couple of hours before being stopped by Rick Tan.
“Wei Yiang, if you don't join one activity, how are you going to enjoy this field trip? Your mum already paid the fees for you,” Rick chided me, as he advised me not to waste my mum's money. So, I reluctantly decided to go on one of the role-play activities afterwards.
As lunchtime dawned, the teachers then asked us to gather at a cafe where lunch would be served. It was quite crowded as everyone tried to squeeze for a place to sit. As the Year 3, 4 and 5 students were also with us, we were quite unable to find a place to sit. We then proceeded to our class teachers, when called to receive our lunch, and Mr Mervin was holding our lunch for us.
“Go to your class teacher,” he said, to which we responded, “You are our class teacher!” to laughter from everyone. Mr Mervin then handed us lunch, and mine consisted of hamburgr, spicy fried chicken and soya sauce. As I was allergic to such food, I gave the teachers my lunch, who snacked on them.
My first role-play activity at KidZania was to be a newspaper vendor at the New Straits Times booth. We were given vests identifying ourselves as pressmen, and we were briefed on the process of being newspeople. I then partnered myself with Desmond Chan to complete an assignment on delivering newspapers to three places, namely the Beauty Salon, a courthouse and the TNB energy control center. I decided choose the news vendor activity as my first task to reflect my interest in writing.
After my first activity was done, I then went to the TNB control centre, where I saw Xang Yen as well in the crowd. A gentleman named Mr Faizal introduced himself and gave us TNB uniforms to put on. We then watched a video on how TNB powers electricity around Malaysia in the real-life world, and then Mr Faizal guided us to check the power supply across KidZania. A red beeping sign emerged, to which Mr Faizal told us to fix the power disruption in the town square.
“Make way for TNB!” we cried, as I found the fuse box and Xang Yen directed traffic. Climbing up a ladder with safety harnesses, I replaced the fuse in the fuse box with a new one, and successfully switched on the lamp. I finally ended my day by role-playing a postman with the Pos Laju booth, which is a role-play of Pos Laju, the mailing company in Malaysia.
Soon, it was time for us to head back to school. “All the Nobel children, please gather at the theatre,” Ms Kavitha announced, and then we gathered. As such, I was unable to take a photo at the photo booth. Mr Praba then made a few announcements directing us to our buses before we headed back to school.
Each individual was paid Kidzos, the KidZanian currency after our activity was done. I counted a total of 82 kidzos as Glen and I went down the stairs to our bus, where we sat and chatted on the way back to school.
The next event that came up following the trip to KidZania was the Family Marathon Day, which was held on 15th October 2012. Originally, the plan was to hold it on Saturday, 13th October 2012, which was a Saturday, and invite parents to join in, but due to the presence of a so-called “Bersih concert” at the neighboring Kelana Jaya Stadium, the school was advised by the authorities to postpone it to the following Monday, during school hours, and parents would instead be spectators for the day
Family Marathon Day was an interesting one, as I had never ran a marathon before. The morning of the marathon started with a normal assembly as usual as my mum came to watch. This was then followed by us putting our bags in our classroom before being ushered down to the courtyard to do our warm up. Mr Paul led us to do a series of exercises, from stationery jogs to stretching and chin-ups, to get us ready for the race while all the parents watched on. Each one of us wore our 2012 sports attire and got ready to begin.
A light drizzle then started pouring, and Ms Michelle then announced that the Year 5 and 6 students would be flagged off first while the remaining years would start their race when the drizzle ended, instead of flagging the younger years off first. It was Nobel International School's first time having such a race, and everyone could not wait for the race to start. We were then ushered by Mr Praba and Mr Paul to the starting line at the school gates, as Mr Victor stood ground, holding a whistle to give the signal to begin.
Mr Praba then did the countdown, and we were off. I merely just thought of running as fast as possible and not stopping till the end. The run was a 2.6km run for everyone else except the Year 1 and 2 students.
The route started in front of the school before making its way to the left, past SK Kelana Jaya. Everyone was seen running quite fast, as I struggled to keep up with the crowd. The route then made an oxbow turn via a detour route before ending up on a parallel route that connects the two ends of the housing area, passing by the field which we normally have PE lessons at.
I puffed and panted, and my younger self then sprinted across the entire course as fast as I can, as several teachers stood by, handing out rubber bands as I passed the checkpoints. There were a total of ten checkpoints that I had to pass. Ms Prema, Ms Thava and Ms Ingel were manning some of the checkpoints, and they cheered me on as I passed among the leading pack.
The route then turned past the mini-sized Giant Hypermarket, one of two Giant Hypermarkets located in the area. I then saw Mr Mani as he gave me my rubber band, and begun running the route back towards Nobel. Upon arriving, many teachers applauded me as I proceeded to mark my finishing status at a counter that Ms Shum and the teachers set up at the school foyer. I was still full of energy as I rested and my mum spoke to me and gave me water. Ms Michelle then made announcements to arriving students on the microphone.
Soon, more students finished the marathon run, and registered their names. Ms Michelle and Mr Paul told all those that were done to assemble in the school hall for announcements, and, following which, we then headed for a late break time before heading for our classes as usual. Shane, Benjamin Koh, Dylan S. Gill and all the boys switched the air conditioning on to full blast as they basked in the cool breeze while Ms Chin taught us English. Dylan had wanted to, as usual, play songs, but Ms Chin refused.
I would eventually be told that I finished third by Mr Praba and Mr Mervin during lunch, whom asked me to gather at the side of the stage for the prize giving ceremony. In fact, I was quite surprised that I got a third for my category. Following lunch, everyone gathered in the school hall for the prize giving ceremony and the awarding of the champion house for 2012. Ms Michelle and Ms Shum congratulated everyone for running and completing the race, although there were some who needed first aid. Mr Praba was then invited along with Ms Michelle to present the medals for the winners of the marathon. The entire team of Bullseye members cheered as I walked on the stage and my name announced for third placing in the race.
The moment of truth then dawned as Ms Shum, Ms Michelle and Mr Paul announced the champion house. “The house with the most points is......Bullseye!” cried Mr Paul. Everyone from Bullseye then joined the teachers from Bullseye for a group photo in the school courtyard to mark the end of the day, as I showed off my bronze medal I earned in the marathon.
Few days later, on 18th October, Ms Michelle, the Year 6 teachers and the management team members of the elementary school brought us 6 Steadfast students for a trip to Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam where we had a picnic together. Two school vans took us to Taman Botani as it was impossible to squeeze everyone like sardines in one van. I was in the second van with Pei Chi, Amanda Teoh, Jinn Lik, Shane, Wei Zhong, Louis and Zi Quan, and Ms Michelle and Ms I-Lynn accompanied us. Interestingly, Ms Michelle was our driver, and she could drive quite well! Mr Mervin, our class teacher, and Ms Kalai, accompanied the other students in the other van, which included Sze Kai and the rest of the class. In total, there were 16 of us that had to be ferried. I had been to Taman Botani with my family as well as Glen and Yatisan before, so it was quite fun to go there, especially when you consider the presence of a Four Seasons’ House which really had snow in the wintry climate.
We then headed to Skytrex Adventure, and I was one of five who were not going, including Zi Quan, Wee Shiang, Yen Choo, Jo Yi and Jinn Lik; I opted out due to my fear of heights. Ms Shum had told us to bring a book or board game if we did not want to attempt the high-flying obstacle course in the air. Zi Quan brought his Chinese chess on the trip and invited Wee Shiang, Yen Choo and Jo Yi for a game with him while Jinn Lik and I talked and took photos of the place while watching the class dangle on tightropes and harnesses in the air. Wei Zhong got tangled in the rope bridge for half an hour, while William Lim was the last to descend from the course.
Ms Michelle and the teachers brought a series of food supplies for us to snack on, as we ate lunch, and half the class played a concentration game with Ms Michelle. She had a few words for us before we ended our trip, with a solemn expression on her face.
“6 Steadfast, as you know that this is your last year in Year 6, in the primary school, I would like to also take the time to brief you on what will happen in Year 7. There will be a lot of homework next year, so I hope that you will be able to cope with it,” she said. Ms Michelle emphasized the purpose of the trip to Taman Botani is to get us to be independent and train on our independence. “Being independent is important as you will be able to manage your own lives,” she said, before we headed back to school. Ms Michelle also thanked us for our time with her and expressed her gratitude to have had been principal since the school was founded. “I want to tell you something that I haven't told others yet,” she said, as Ms I-Lynn asked us to be silent. With emotion in her eyes, she told us her plans to resign as principal and move to Miri, bidding us farewell and wishing us the best of luck in Year 7.
The next day, Ms Prema did with us, during art, a model of a future city, continuing on from weeks prior on our model. We used recycled items to make a model of the city, and I had to bring my watercolor paint to paint the items. Among the people in the same group as me were Vanesse Leong, Pei Chi, Wei Zhong and Dylan. Ms Prema was quite strict on neatness, since my artwork was not up to her standard, causing me to be chided by her quite a number of times. The future city concept was a concept by Art Thematic, who organized a future city design competition for each class.
Word soon got around that Ms Michelle would be leaving Nobel as principal, as she would leave for Miri to be with her family. The following week, on 23rd October 2012, Ms Shum announced Ms Michelle's intention to resign as principal, to much sadness from everyone. Auntie Clarine took the opportunity to have a word of appreciation for Ms Michelle during the assembly to thank her for her services. Many students were seen giving farewell cards in the weeks ahead, as Class Party Day approached. Ms Shum also told us that a farewell ceremony would be organized to bid farewell to Ms Michelle and her husband, Mr Daniel Tan, who was a teacher advisor in the Junior and Senior School. They would be leaving for Sarawak to start a new school.
Benjamin Koh and the boys in the class decided to do a game station in the class for Class Party, as well as play some musical chairs in the class. He then took up a paper, turned it into a sign, and wrote “Open” and “Closed” on them. On each O, he drew eyes and a mouth to represent a smiley face when the game booth was open, and a sad emoji when it was closed. Dylan had planned to play music during the party day, which was unanimously agreed by Mr Mervin and the teachers. The entire class was decorated for class party, and Benjamin Koh and the boys in 6 Steadfast manned the game booths, which consisted of games that involved tossing some items over a certain distance. In fact, the teachers had asked us to come up with creative ways to make our class attractive to passing visitors. Different classes played different things, and I invited Xang Yen over to try, as Shane and Benjamin Koh roughly took me aside from Xang Yen while he played the booth. Every other class had some form of activity; the 6 Attentive students were having a dance floor and decorated the fans with paper chains. Of course, there were decorations which I put in 6 Steadfast as well, but the ones in 6 Attentive were much of disco type. The 6 Attentive students were blasting pop songs from Katy Perry's Fireworks, Gangnam Style, One Direction, Eminem, and all the famous singers. Of course, in 6 Steadfast, songs were blasted as well, but most Year 6 students were gathered in 6 Attentive for the dance floor, as Daniel Ngew, Sze Kai and a group of boys danced their hearts out.
The class party ended that afternoon as Mr Mervin spent time with us cleaning up the classroom, and since we were allowed to eat in class that day, a lot of trash had to be cleaned up. Just before the day ended, I met Ms Michelle in her office to bid her farewell, as she gave me a hug.
“Thank you Wei Yiang, all the best to you in secondary school,” she said as she held me tightly. Puan Halimah, Mr Chuang, Ms Ingel and Ms Shum were in the office talking to Ms Michelle when I went to meet her.
The last day of school came as quickly as the school year dawned and went. Ms Michelle bade farewell during the assembly, as she was in tears about leaving. She gave an emotional speech, to much of a struck cord in everyone's hearts. It was more of Ms Michelle leaving, and the rest of the day was left to us students to prepare for spring cleaning for the new school term in January 2013.
2nd November 2012 dawned as the last day of school for everyone in Year 6 in the primary school. We were just left to our own activities in class, as Mr Mervin handed out all the documents and housekeeping issues. The task for the day was to do some spring cleaning for the next school year, so we had to do a lot of housekeeping matters which Mr Mervin and the teachers asked us to do. “Teacher, can we play songs?” Dylan asked, to which Mr Mervin responded with a resounding “No” as he asked everyone to do their part that day. We stacked tables, piled up chairs, and many of the Year 6 students scribbled signatures on their PE outfits when visiting each others’ classes in a bid to wish each other farewell and all the best from Year 6, since they weren't going to wear their PE t-shirts anymore. Ashley Teoh and Pei Chi were talking in 6 Steadfast, when a loud, angry roar from Mr Ong raged the hallways as he passed the Year 6 classes.
“Who asked you to scribble on your t-shirts? I want to see all those who scribbled on their shirts. Pei Chi and Ashley were shocked, as they did not know of Mr Ong's anger. Luckily, my PE outfit had no scribbles, so all was fine. Mr Ong then rounded up many Year 6 students, from Brendan Cheah to Glen Kay and Yatisan, outside the Year 6 classrooms, where he gave a stern lecture to them before the impending dismissal.
“Who asked all of you to scribble on your shirt? It is so ugly, you know. What type of behavior is this?” he boomed. Everyone looked with an innocent and guilty attitude while I sat down in 6 Steadfast, watching Mr Ong line everyone up against the wall and lecture them. To cap off the day, everyone went down to the school hall, where a prepared entertainment skit by the teachers of the Junior and Senior School awaited us as part of the farewell ceremony for Ms Michelle.
On stage, Ms Evelyn, the principal of the Junior and Senior School, Ms Lim as well as Ms Feeda did a skit on the last day of school on the stage, with Ms Lim pretending to beg to Ms Feeda on stage and do a bit of acting. It was quite a skit, as every teacher said farewell messages on stage to Ms Michelle. I went to bid farewell to all my teachers, who wished me the best in Year 7 as a new world awaits me. Ms Michelle was seen receiving more cards in her office as many people gave her hugs before her impending departure for Miri.
2013 – Year 7
When I arrived at school on the first day of school in 2013, I was wearing home clothes as there was no uniform available for us as Year 7 students. I went to the canteen to have my breakfast as usual. As I saw Ms June walking in the canteen, I greeted her and said I can remember her giving advice for Year 7. She asked me what class am I in for Year 7, and I replied to her that I am in class 7N. She was delighted and said she was the class teacher for 7N.
Puan Halimah greeted everyone with a bright smile on her face as all the students trickled in for the first day of school. The music then started to play as everyone gathered in the school hall for the assembly session. We were then led to our classes after the assembly session as Ms Evelyn, the then Junior and Senior School principal, told us that we had new rubbish bins coming in to separate waste; one for paper, another for plastic and a third for other types of trash. There was also a container placed in the canteen to return our used plates and cutlery.
When I arrived at my class, 7N, Ms June greeted us and said that we were free to sit anywhere we liked. To begin with, Ms June asked us to push our class tables to the back of the class and begun the day with a morning meeting, which would be the norm every Monday for days to come.
“I want to hear what you did during the holidays,” said Ms June, as she begun the icebreaking session for all of us. We all spoke whatever we could, telling our tales of what we did during the holidays. For me, I went to Singapore by road, alongside a trip to Penang. Ms June then played a few games with us and also even asked us to make our own pass tag to show our independence. “You are in middle school,” she said, encouraging personal independence as the days pass. She even told us to design according to our own creativity. Ms June also told us that our test of ownership would be strengthened when we had our meal coupons distributed at the beginning of the day as opposed to before lunch, in order to train us to be responsible for our coupons.
What was very interesting when I was a Year 7 student was that Ms June decided to set up a “mini-government” in our class, consisting of the “prime minister” (class monitor), “deputy prime minister” (assistant class monitor), and the ministers of domestic affairs, science and technology, health, internal security, arts and design, sports and recreation, language and culture, literacy, finance, and last but not least, civil administration. Ms June wanted to create this mini cabinet in order to teach us how to contribute back to the class and ensure that each one of us had a share in adding color and life to our class. I was chosen as the Minister of Domestic Affairs, which is responsible for being in charge of the classroom facilities. Each ministry had two ministers.
There is not much to explain about the role of Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in our class. The other ministries’ roles in the class were very much straightforward;
Science and Technology – Repairing and fixing the classroom equipment, including the Smartboard and the computer
Health – Disease outbreak control
Arts and Design – Advertising, posters and information being pasted in the class, from the timetable to the notice board in the class.
Sports and Recreation – Coordinate class field trips
Language and Culture – Promote diplomatic relations with other classes
Literacy – Promote a habit of reading books
Finance – Managing class funds
Civil Administration – Running of the day-to-day affairs of the class
Mind you, most people would think that in Malaysia, we have a monarch that appoints the Prime Minister and his Cabinet. In this case, that role was played by Ms June.
Ms June gave the 7N Ministry of Art and Design, comprising of Alex Chia and Brendan Cheah, the posters to be pasted in the class, and instructed them to paste the birthday chart and timetable in the class. There were promotional posters created by the 7N Ministry of Health that were also to be displayed.
7th January 2013 was the first day we wore our Junior and Senior School uniforms to school. We got them on the 3rd January 2013, about a week prior, which is also the day we did our election for the national Cabinet of 7N. Our Junior and Senior School uniforms come with a maroon polo t-shirt and brown culottes for girls, while the guys wore brown pants.
Ms June was too excited in creating the Cabinet and turning 7N into a country, so to add more excitement to the start of my life in Junior and Senior School, she then created a few other things to “nationalize” the class into an outright country, such as creating the “Class Constitution” which are a series of rules and regulations to ensure harmony. Aside from that, she also promoted the “Daily Gym”, “Just Face It”, and “I PICK” concepts to get us to read and write. Janelle Arnelia was instrumental in creating the class constitution. There were five main points in the 7N class constitution:
1) Respect others at all times
2) Use the pass tag when leaving the classroom
3) Greet teachers and fellow citizens
4) Only water is allowed in the classroom
5) Keep the classroom clean at all times
We were eventually introduced to our teachers and even got to have a session with Ms Evelyn, the then-principal of the Junior and Senior School. Ms Evelyn did a few icebreaking sessions with us. She was an outspoken and quite an enthusiastic principal. However, Ms June was not happy with us not cooperating, and she gave a lecture to us in the class when she came for English later.
“What on earth is that? You are in middle school, and you should be following the class constitution. Remember?” She told us to improve our behavior for the forseeable future. Ms June then confirmed that 7N was the name of our so-called “country” with all the ministers, a name which all of us had trouble deciding. Of all things, Ms June was a great teacher. She even brought The Star newspaper into the class for all of us to look at the happenings of the world. For our English class, she told us to look at the Classifieds section of the newspaper and bring a copy of the Houses for Sale section to class.
Mr Victor was our PE teacher for the second time, with the first being the previous year. He told us how to run around a field, and we had to do a series of streneous exercises from push-ups to sit-ups. When we returned to our class, Ms Lee Kaesy was having a lesson, and most people were sweating, so Pei Chi cheekily followed Mr Victor to his office which was next to our classroom, in the CCA and Administration Unit. “Bye bye!” he cried, and slammed the door.
Pei Chi and the other boys tried to open the door for the cool air. I tried to calm them down by talking to them and telling stories, but most people knew they were silly. Soon, the door of our classroom opened, and Ms Lee came out.
“7N, I want to ask you a question. If you are working and someone is disturbing you, do you like it?” she asked. Ms Lee then said that she was being disturbed by the banging of the windows of our classroom, in which Brendan Cheah and the other boys did so, as well as the doors of the classroom and the CCA office, in addition to our loud voices.
In the first week, most of our teachers did an introductory class with us. Each day, Ms June would play with us a Japanese game called “Keiro Aro”. To play this game, one person would need to say either “Keiro” or “Aro” randomly, and we had to do an action with our hands if the word “Keiro” is sounded.
Most of the teachers were quite good as well. My teachers were Ms Thila (Maths), Cikgu Azira (Science), Cikgu Baliah (Geography), Ms Chume (History), Cikgu Izyani (ICT), Ms Nadia (Art), Ms Ting (Mandarin Core), Cikgu Zura (Malay) and Mr Chan (Bible Knowledge). Ms June also taught me English, and I'm quite happy to say that every teacher here is quite cheerful.
Ms Thila was a nice teacher who explained the Maths concepts and there was one area called “Class Participation” in which she would award points to us if we answered questions asked by her. Cikgu Azira is also a cheerful teacher who talked Science concepts, but I personally like Cikgu Izyani's class because of her funny character during ICT. Cikgu Baliah is also a very nice teacher; she told us during the introduction for Geography to tell her what we did the previous year in Year 6, and she also did a lot of fun and games with us. She introduced the importance of Geography to us and the types of Geography. This got me hooked on Geography as my favorite subject. Ms Chume's lessons were pretty interesting as we learned about the rise and fall of the Roman Empire and how it grew and fell. History was starting to look very interesting, too.
At the beginning of Year 7, I had my eyes hooked on the school's Editorial Board. As I like to write journals in class, including this long piece of passage which I am writing here, I felt like I would be a good writer for the Editorial Board.
The Editorial Board meeting was held on Monday, 14th January 2013, after lunch. The meeting was held in the library and aspiring individuals would need to pass an interview. To cap things off, I was the only one from Year 7 among the people who went for the meeting.
There was an outsider who was an advisor to the Editorial Board, Ms Tee Jowee. She is a former journalist and had been recruited by the school to promote the passion of writing and reporting news articles for the school newsletter. As I had done such a thing when I was in the School Journalism CCA club in Year 6, I decided to try my chance at getting into the board.
Towards the end of the day, Wei Zhong had a humor to the class. He pulled his nose up and said, “Hi, I am Professor Pig!” during dismissal to play a bit of a fool in front of everyone as a source of humor, as a professor is psychologically seen with glasses, and he pulled his nose seemingly to enlarge it to look like a pig's nose. Everyone laughed.
The next day, 15th January, Cikgu Azira brought us to the science lab for the very first time. We did a water blowing experiment to turn the plain water into cloudy water. Wei Zhong continued ranting about Professor Pig and drew a pig on my journal. Later, Ms Chume had asked us to write short notes on the Romans as well as our topics in order to get on with what we had learnt. When Ms June took over later, I was puzzled as to what recipe she asked to take out, as I had not heard any recipe being mentioned in class. “You went for the Editorial Board meeting and were not in class yesterday, but never mind. I will show you the recipe later,” she said.
Ms June then asked us to write a recipe on Maggi Mee and how to cook it. While we were writing the recipe, she then played some music in the class, and while she opened the YouTube video containing the relaxing music, a Maggi Mee commercial advert then appeared on the screen, drawing laughter from Yew Jan and Nieshaal. Following that, we were given journalling tasks by Ms June, and the topic we had to write was “If our school had no rules”.
When I was in Year 7, aside from the journalling that Ms June gave, I also write journals documenting the day-to-day life in school. All the events that were written here were from my journals that I kept when I was in Year 7. I wrote a total of ten books in Year 7 documenting my day-to-day life. Ms June would occasionally read each book when I was done writing the entire book, and my mum gave me books to write whenever one was finished. I prefer to call the book as a journal rather than a diary, as this was in line with the journals that I have written every year from Year 1 to Year 6. The management team even had a look at it; even Ms Lim, Ms Evelyn and some teachers had seen it. Ms Lim would play a prominent role for the rest of 2013 as well as my entire Junior and Senior School life as it would come to be as I write things down from here.
Back in those days, every break and lunch time period would be succeeded by an assembly, in which all of us students were to gather in the courtyard or the school hall when the music is being played, to signal the start of the assembly. Having an assembly after break and lunch in addition to the morning assembly was the norm then, even though in Nobel today, it is no longer practiced.
All of us students would need to go to the point of assembly where we would stand or sit as the prefects on duty would ask us to keep quiet. Each class was assigned a prefect on duty to ensure everyone followed the rules. The protocol was for everyone to keep quiet and once everyone had settled down, the prefect on duty making the announcement would then instruct everyone to go back to their class, with their assigned prefects leading them back. If everyone was still talking, a teacher who was passing by would get angry at the entire group.
So, on 15th January 2013, we were in the school hall being asked to assemble after break time. One of the prefects was standing in front of everyone and asking everyone to stay silent. Some people from Year 9 cheered when the announcement was made, as the intention was to motivate that particular prefect and were excited that the prefect was their friend speaking. Mr Paul, who was in the hall, then took the microphone from the prefect, and then got onto the stage and gave a stern lecture. He had a serious look on his face, and his usual, wide smile was brushed with a look of anger.
“I want everybody to keep quiet. Your friend is the prefect, and I know that you are so excited to see your friend. The teachers need your help. The prefects also need your help. They can't do it alone, so can you please help them by keeping quiet?” Everyone responded to the pleasure and satisfaction of Mr Paul as he boomed in front of the crowd.
During the lunch assembly, the same incident repeated again. This time, the Year 9s heeded the advice, and that particular prefect then turned to us. “Year 7, please stop playing!” and half of us stopped doing our stuff, including me. However, some people ignored, and soon thereafter, a thunderous voice erupted across the hall.
“I want to see everybody KEEP QUIET!” the voice shouted.
I thought the voice was Ms Evelyn's voice, as it sounded so high-pitched. However, it was Ms Lim that raised her voice. Her face glowed as red as the lava from a volcano, with an angry look that was too fierce till everyone was forced to pay attention.
“I really wanted to release you so that you can go back to class. But you are all to noisy. From tomorrow onwards, I want to see those who are talking after assembly. Do you understand?!” she crowed.
The best we could have done was to keep quiet and follow instructions without opposition so that we could be dismissed quickly.
Ms Nadia, our art teacher, was quite strict then. She would always be particular on bringing our art supplies, and whoever who did not bring them were shamed and lectured by her and being shouted down in front of the class. This was what we found out at the end of the day when we headed for art class with her in the art studio. It was just the tip of the iceberg; no one would want to mess around with people in the art studio, as doing so would earn you a brutal shaming amid the shouts and screams of Ms Nadia then.
The next day, we went to the ICT lab to meet Cikgu Izyani. She greeted us with a smile on her face as we sat down in the lab to the fun of her lessons. Her first lesson with us was quite fun; we had to create a slideshow introducing ourselves and she taught us about the importance of databases and ways of using and doing information.
The computer lab in 2013 was on the first floor behind the school hall. As every computer was at the time programmed to use the same desktop for over 20 screens in the room, it was as if 20 people were using one computer, and whatever file we created appeared on the screens of all computers, including the teacher's computer. Hence, when we created our own personal files that day, which we were instructed to do so, everyone's files were on screen, from Janelle Arnelia's to Benjamin Fong's. Even mine was on the screen of everyone's computer.
Some people tried to play the fool in the class, and a new folder appeared on the computers and the large screen in the ICT lab, which read “Hey, teacher is talking,” as Cikgu Izyani called for attention. Back in those days, the ICT lab used projectors to project on the wall, and there were no electronic screens or Smartboards then in those labs or rooms with the exception of the classroom.
Another file named “TEE HEE” then appeared on the board. So much for 12-year-olds at the time who were playful. This resulted in the whole class laughing like crazy.
“Who put “TEEHEE” up there? Whoever who put “TEEHEE” up there, please delete it,” she said.
The file was then deleted, and Cikgu Izyani taught us how to add or delete files. Each time she spoke, the class was noisy, and she had to hit a xylophone to call for everyone to be silent.
At the time, teachers had found a creative way to make people silent during the lesson. The beating of an object or instrument was the norm to call for order. In every class, there was a musical triangle that the teacher would strike using a stick in order to ask for silence and attention from the class. This would normally work around 50 percent of the time, but it was still usable at first instant.
During Geography, Cikgu Baliah asked us to draw anything related to Geography, and Ms June continued to practice the Daily Gym with us during English which was to sit in a spot, read a book with our eyes on it, and get started instantly.
Bible Knowledge, also known as BK, was quite an interesting lesson. Mr Chan Lik Hoong, whom I had seen and heard from many times, was a friendly teacher, and he played a Bible Raps song which introduced the books of the Bible. Those who did not take Bible Knowledge were asked to go for reading class. My aunt had asked me to give BK a try, and little did I know, I would enjoy it. Quite a number of people took BK to experience what was it like.
Thursday, 17th January 2013 was a surprise packed by the Prefectorial Board for us Year 7 students. At 11:05am, we went down to the school hall for that surprise, and lined up at the canteen behind the hall, before being asked to move to the foyer to gather there. Ms Lim then briefed us that we were to enter the hall for the surprise.
Ms Evelyn and Auntie Clarine were also present to meet us. Auntie Clarine said that we were not lining up in an orderly manner, and asked us to go back to the foyer, line up again, and head back to the canteen to enter the hall from there. Ms Lim then said that she was the level leader for Year 7 and told us that if we were quiet, we would not have had to line up and walk again. “Do you get it, Year 7?” she thundered.
We gave a response that satisfied her, and then we were led to the canteen. A few prefects then asked us if we were interested to know the surprise behind the door. When we responded yes, they banged the door thrice, and the door opened to a dark auditorium.
A signed then read, “Welcome Year 7” to welcome us to the Junior and Senior School. There were palm leaves placed at the sides of the stage and the hall was decorated.
The prefects played a game with us which we had to form a circle and one person in the center would say “Splat” and point to anyone, who had to do the same action, and that person who is pointed to, would need to repeat. If we did not do it fast and say “Splat”, we had to sit down. A demonstration kicked in, followed by the game. This was followed by a game where we had to find sweets in a flour. Flour kept flying all over the place, and I stood aside as to not get drenched in flour. Those who got drenched looked like ghosts.
The grand finale were the prefects playing the Cup Song, as they banged cups to a series of beats. Ms Lim and Auntie Clarine were happy when we settled down quicker than usual.
When we returned to class, I took the opportunity to write my journal and document all the events mentioned earlier. Ms Lim then got into the class as Ms June was absent, to perform her duties as relief teacher. She then warned us not to switch on the air conditioning system during break or lunch, with the consequence being a ban on us using the air conditioning for a week.
“Where's your name tags?” Ms Lim then asked, and she also questioned why I was the only one having my name tag. Apparently, Ms June gave mine first, and Wei Zhong responded that they had not gotten them yet.
Disaster struck on 18th January when Mr Paul led me out for a talk. He said he could hear me talking loudly from his office and asked me to lower my volume. He sternly talked to me about his grievance. “I don't want to hear you talking loudly again. Do I make myself clear?” he said. This abnormally is the result of our classroom being separated by a wooden wall which was placed in a cheap manner to divide one room into two. The wall failed to block or cancel out noise unlike a wall built with mortar, but yet, it even creates more noise if someone were to bang on it. What was worse, was that the bisection of the originally large room had the boundary dividing windows. To prevent the window from being damaged, a gap was left to prevent the fragility, and one could hear the other side when putting their ears close to the gap.
Back in 2013, 7N was located next to two offices. To the back of our class, we were bordered with the Junior and Senior School's management office, and right in front of the Smartboard and the whiteboards in front of the classroom, was the CCA and Administration Unit, where Mr Paul worked. This arrangement would soon cause a lot problems over the year for the office as well as us students of 7N.
The poster that was made by the Ministry of Domestic Affairs and the Ministry of Health of 7N had to be taken down as per Ms June's two week rule, to be replaced by a new one from the Ministry of Civil Administration. Mr Victor, meanwhile, on the other hand, had started training us on push-ups, sit-ups and running. “Why am I doing this? You will be taking fitness test and also preparing for a marathon,” he said.
The fitness test comprised of a series of push ups, sit ups, stretching and most importantly, the multi-stage fitness test, also known as the Beep Test. This test is a test which has a total of 20 levels, and each level comprised between ten and twelve sub-levels. We had to run from one end of the school hall to the other, and we need to arrive before a beep is sounded. If we arrived following the beep, we would be disqualified after we missed the second beep.
I started out energetically, but however, I did not make the cut after five levels. Sean Mark, one of my classmates, performed well. This was then followed by the girls running, and Mr Victor said that we would be doing a similar attempt the following week.
As Chinese New Year was fast-approaching, I proposed that the classroom be decorated for the festival, and Ms June was happy for that. Brendan Cheah and the team from the Ministry of Arts and Design were in charge of decorating the class, and I chipped in as well. The decorations would stay up till the end of the Chap Goh Mei festival which was the last day of Chinese New Year. There were red couplets hung on the door, and the entire class was the talk of the town when one were to see it from the ground floor. Cikgu Izyani had also asked us to design a slideshow to promote the Malaysian state of Sarawak.
On 23rd January 2013, disaster struck us when the two offices complained about the noise. This clever, chip-in, tacky design had brought unfortunate circumstances due to poor planning of the classroom's location next to the offices, separated by wooden walls which fail to cancel noise. While the wooden walls successfully utilized the space in proper ways, they failed to provide the comfort and quiet ambience which kept the noise levels at bay. Teachers who worked in these two offices were disturbed time after time by noise from the classroom in the center. Wooden walls are used in other corporate offices to divide space, but not on a school scale like this. The poor design resulted in cross-grievances from teachers and users of the classroom, and our class was one of the victims of poor interior planning.
During English, Brendan Cheah pasted a name list at the back of the classroom as well as the new words which Janelle had written, on the Word Wall behind the class which is a chart to explain the meaning of new words. Apparently, Ms June had told Janelle and her team from the Ministry of Civil Administration to come up with new words to promote to visitors from the class.
The papers did not stick, so Brendan then banged his fist on the wall to get it to stick. Unfortunately, his pounding resulted in loud bangs being heard from the main office. Mr Sures was not happy, and he came into our class during Cikgu Azira's science lesson to express his grievances, since his office faced the wall. The whole wall would have had shattered if not for him warning us, since our class is bordered by the management's office and the CCA office.
After lunch, Ms Thila was absent, and we decided to continue decorating the class for Chinese New Year. Brendan Cheah continued to decorate the class with the decorations I created, and everyone in the class were talking too loudly till Mr Paul then came and had his piece of mind with us.
“I'm working,” he boomed.
He then returned to his office, but however, the noise level caught up to his annoyance again, resulting in him returning to 7N to warn us.
“You are allowed to do your own things, but don't disturb me. Is that clear?” he spoke to us, as he smirked a stern look on our face. When we answered yes, he then went back to his office to continue his work. Unfortunately, the noises screeched into his ear once more and this resulted in him coming back, this time, full of anger in his fist.
“This is the third time I am coming here. If I come here again, you're gonna get real scolding from me,” he yelled. I could feel his emotions boiling as he came back. He had told us that he would throw us down to the courtyard if he was angry. We all kept silent in the end to not get him disturbed.
On Friday, 25th January 2013, Ms Sim, who was the Head of Academics, then announced that every Friday would be a Motivational Friday which the school would give awards for people who had good character. Teachers would be given a chance to nominate students they think had demonstrated exemplary behavior, and they would explain their reasoning during the assembly. Ms June had given me an award as I had served the class well.
We had Literacy Circles that day, and we were using the book Esperenza Rizing for the literacy circle. Ms June told me that I could get it from the Kinokuniya bookstore at Paradigm Mall, which was quite new then. For our Literacy Circles session, we had a session with Ms Seline Ritz, who is an English Language instructor from the United States. She also gave us a similar session the previous year, and we were familiar with her.
In a literacy circle, there are four parts to it: the Questioner, Connector, Illustrator and the Literary Luminary, which we learnt the previous year, in Year 6.
The Questioner would ask questions, the Connector would try to bridge the questions together and answer them. The Illustrator would piece together the data by the Questioner and Connector, and the Literary Luminary would give out the meaning of the story. Ms Seline said that as we were in secondary schools, we would refer the Literary Luminary as the Summarizer. We did a few activities on story writing, from group discussions to self reading, and Ms Joyce, who was in the room, had to quieten us down if we spoke too loudly, as we were in the library. She seemed sort of being under pressure to do so.
Before we left, Ms Seline then encouraged us to pick up one article to read and practice the elements of the Literacy Circle in it. So, I picked up an article called “School Cancels Graduation For Cheaters” to sniff on.
Back in those days, the school had encouraged people to read more, and we had practiced a theme called “Read to Self” in which we had to spend some time reading as much as possible. Cikgu Azira practiced this with us during Science on 30th January 2013, and most of our teachers took note of what we did, including Ms Lim, and the management members, who were armed with notebooks.
Ms Chume and Ms June were quite entertaining class teachers. Ms Chume had asked us to do short notes and talked about various parts in History. There was one part where we had to play Romulus and Remus in a play, and it was hillarious. Even Ms June had amazing lessons too with us, and her lessons were quite an entertainment for anyone watching her.
Ms June also took some time to read our recipes for Maggi Mee to us in class, and she said that she was in a fit of laughter when reading them in the staffroom. Some of the recipes we wrote were funny and did not make sense, but she said it was okay and continued laughing.
“One packet of Maggi Mee. 45 litres of soup. Ten plates of chicken. How much is ten plates of chicken?” Within minutes, the entire class was in a fit of laughter, and we were struggling wholeheartedly to control ourselves. It may sound like a normal recipe to someone who isn't a cook, but it looks ridiculous if cooking from the view of a chef.
Ms June had a serious side to her in the classroom as well. She always uses the news during class, and I would normally talk to her about the news as well. I instantly froze when she gave us a summary of the New Straits Times newspaper which reported on the news of William Yau Zhen Zhong, a six year old boy who went missing when on a trip with his parents on the evening on 18th January 2013 to purchase food at a restaurant in Putra Heights. His body was found in Port Klang days later, and Ms June highlighted to us the importance of keeping up with the news. At that time, I had been reading the news, but we did not have The Star delivered to my household daily to cut costs.
Ms Thila had not been teaching us for about two weeks, and I was starting to ponder. Her last class with us was on 18th January 2013, and Ms Lim had occasionally came to act as relief teacher for her. A relief teacher, for your information, was a teacher who would temporarily take over another teacher's lesson while the teacher was absent. As Ms Thila was absent for close to two weeks, I was wondering what had happened to her while the school sorted things out.
Ms Nadia, back in those days, was quite strict. If we forgot to bring our art supplies, she would scold us. Seeing others being scolded by her was scary, and this sent a message that we would be next if we forgot our art supplies.
“Did you forget to wear your school uniform? How come you didn't bring your art supplies, huh?” she cried.
Back when I was in Year 7, we only had art lessons once a week, so it was very easy for anyone to forgot to bring their art supplies. Ms Nadia even punished them further by asking those who did not do so to take out their student organizer and write the phrase, “I promise to bring my art materials tomorrow, 30.1.2013”.
Cikgu Izyani had been reading our “All About Me” slides, and Cikgu Baliah had been giving us work on how to read maps in Geography. Ms June had also talked about our travel brochures we had to make in the class for tourists to Malaysia, and she liked mine, particularly because I placed the phrase “Trafficking in illegal drugs carry the death penalty”, as this was a feature in most tourist brochures. This did not come to a surprise to me because I had a collection of brochures from Kuala Lumpur's tourist centres in my house. Ms Sim had also delivered my Ezperanza Rizing book to me and came to 7N to give it to me. “You should have come to me earlier,” she said.
The next day, 31st January 2013, the sun had an orange glow in the sky when I looked from the canteen that morning. Back in those days, Nobel International School had even cooler events, and the school was announcing helpers for Space Week, which, at the time, I did not know when it would be held.
Nieshaal told us that we had to prepare lyrics for Auntie Clarine's birthday, and the plan was for each of us to write a line of the birthday lyrics. Ms Lim had taken over Ms Thila's class for quite a number of times already, and she had bad news for us.
Ms Shum Swee Ting, the then-elementary school principal, had informed her that a Year 1 student who is six years old, was accidentally knocked by some students from the Junior and Senior School, resulting in his head bleeding and had lost his memory. Hence, for the safety of everyone, we were told not to run and the case was serious. This brought back this one incident where Yew Jan, Daniel Ngew and Dylan S. Gill were going to the washroom during History, and when they were on the way back, they were running. Ms Evelyn caught them red-handed, and gave them a long-remembered lesson that they should not be speeding down the hallway. “Go back to where you came from, and walk,” she instructed. Ms Chume had told us from that incident that we need to ask for her permission before leaving to answer nature's call. Anyhow, Ms Lim then took over and continued teaching the lesson instead of plainly relieving us as it was uncertain when Ms Thila would return.
The wooden walls that separated the offices from the classroom were too unbearable for the management to take. During Malay, Cikgu Fatin, who taught French to the Year 7 students under her, was a relief teacher for Cikgu Zura as she was absent. While we were allowed to do our own things, the noise level became too much of a nuisance till Ms Sim had to come into the class to lecture us on how loud we were, and that her office was nearby and that she could hear our noise from her room.
Ms Sim then asked for Cikgu Fatin to have a word with her. Cikgu Fatin then told us that we had gotten her into trouble with Ms Sim. I'd say that the wooden wall and such a configuration was the biggest mistake that the management of the Junior and Senior School had made. In fact, it was us the students who were the victims because no other classroom had such a design, and the noise level was the same as other classrooms. We were unnecessarily blamed for such things, all thanks to this design flaw. When Brendan pounded the wall when putting up the posters and the Word Wall, it was like as if someone was pounding any other door in the classrooms in the school, and the noise became a terrible pain in the head.
On 1st February 2013, the elementary school had a marathon, and I could make out the kids running the race. This was just like the Family Marathon Day the previous year which I ran, where we had to run on the main roads around the neighborhood. Ms Esther, who taught me English when I was in Year 3, had told me in advance that the marathon would take place that day.
For Family Marathon Day 2012 the previous year, in November, I earned points for Bullseye the previous year and got third place in the marathon. As there was a clear view of the race from 7N, I could see the students running on the road. The teachers were chanting “Go! Go! Go! Do your very best! You can do it!”
We were doing a series of graphs and tally charts for Maths, and Ms Lim asked me to display them on the wall. We then had short notes in class for History and thus we went for our PE fitness test which Mr Victor had quipped on conducting. Nieshaal and Amanda Teoh had come up with a class mascot, Conrad, who is a teddy bear which we played with often in class.
As Chinese New Year was fast approaching, the teachers had begun to talk about Chinese New Year. During assembly on the morning of 4th February 2013, we got to know the meaning of the Chinese character “fu” which is one of the symbols put up for Chinese New Year, meaning “prosperity” or “good luck”. Cikgu Baliah had begun immersing us into latitude and longitude for Geography, and had shown us a video of it. “Class participation really counts!” she cried, as she posed us some questions. Ms Chume had also taught us about how Hannibal and his team tried to conquer Italy but failed.
Ms Lim had been relieving a lot of our classes lately, starting with Ms Thila's Maths class, and now, our Mandarin class was also taken over. I had joined Mandarin Core earlier in the year, and was initially taught by Ms Ting before Ms Lee Kaesy, the teacher who got disturbed by us while using our class on 11th January 2013, taught us. She was absent for the day, and Ms Lim came to relief her class.
Ms Lim introduced us to the song “Ulala”, the main Chinese New Year theme song by Astro for the year 2013. This song is quite popular as it is the theme song set by a major television station in Malaysia. She then gave us a paper containing the lyrics of another song, but unfortunately, some people in the class got disruptive to the point Ms Lim burst into a fit of anger.
“How many times do I have to tell you, KEEP QUIET!”
Ms Lim then switched off the song, shut down the computer and collected back all the lyrics. “You can do whatever you want. No need to talk to me. Talk what you want to talk,” she quipped, taking aim at those who talked while she was talking. Fortunately, I had my Geography notes that I took, to keep myself occupied.
Geography would become my favorite subject, and for each subject, I had an exercise book to copy what was written on the board, and the exact things written by the teacher. If, for example, Cikgu Azira did some writing on the board, I copied the exact content in its originality as if one was taking a photograph of it. Even so, I even copied the Powerpoint slides on the Smartboard in their entirety, too. For Geography, the book was very thick as I pasted one exercise book behind another to thicken it, and because Geography was quite interesting, I like to always look at it. So, to pass time during Mandarin, I read the latitudes, longitudes and prime meridian that Cikgu Baliah taught.
“Those who want to learn, come in front. Those of you who are talking can stay behind the class,” she said. I was all the while in front, so there was no need to move, except for some.
“Why go Mandarin Core? French is better because you never appreciate the lesson,” said Ms Lim, oblivious to the situation of ignorant students, and saying that Ms Fatin did not get as angry as her and the students there were better behaved. Ms Lim said that she had organized a lot of events for Year 7 students, starting with a one-day camp. “If you behave, we can have a three day camp; three days, two nights,” she said. She said that we have to be good in order to go to camp.
Ms Lim felt very cross when she always saw us run in school. Taking care of a bunch of twelve-year-olds was not easy, especially childish and playful ones. Fortunately I wasn't one of the playful ones. Ms Lim recapped the boy who lost his memory when being knocked by the Junior and Senior School students, and took pity on him. “Now, the girls are also running,” she said. Ms Lim then continued the lesson by asking evry group to prepare a name, a phrase and a story that is related to Chinese New Year. My group's name was “Ulala”, and I decided to tell the legend of the Chinese monster “nian”, the underlying legend behind Chinese New Year.
On Tuesday, 5th February 2013, we had our morning meeting which I gave a speech on cleanliness in the classroom. In my speech, I concluded that individuals who litter would see action taken against them. Cikgu Baliah divided us into four groups and asked us to study the world map using our atlas. Then, for ICT, we did powerpoint animations to promote the state of Sarawak. On our title page, we typed, “Welcome to Sarawak, Land of the Hornbills”. Cikgu Izyani also told us to do another powerpoint presentation regarding the data of a country or region assigned to us; I was given Hong Kong. She also viewed our “All About Me” slideshows.
For Character Transformation, we had our first session of the year run by Leaderonomics. This organizational is a professional development and training organization. We played a game called “Blow Wind Blow”, where a person would say “Blow Wind Blow”, and then followed by the commands. The person can say anything, such as “blow those who wore black shoes”, and anyone who wore black shoes had to change position. Each student was given a Leaderonomics workbook which had a hot air balloon with red and white stripes, and a phrase that said, “Soaring you to Leadership Greatness”. We did a lot of goal setting when our class was placed in groups, and I was in Ms June's group.
During History, we watched a video on Alexander the Great who was one of the great leaders of the Roman Empire, we did our reading. We had seen a revised timetable and our new Maths teacher was Ms Visa. As Ms Visa was not in yet, many were curious as to how she looked like.
We had selected our co-curricular activities (CCA) for the year, and I have chosen three CCAs, namely Fine Art Club, Editorial Board and Sports Stacking. Mr Paul met me after school to discuss the CCAs that I have selected, and he said that I was the only one choosing Sports Stacking for Wednesday, so hence, because I was the only signup, I would be placed in the Friday session. I was also a bit saddened when he told me that I wasn't given an official contract to join the Editorial Board, as I had placed high hopes of writing for the school newsletter like I did the previous year.
The next day, Wai Shaun brought a dummy sword in order to play the Roman army fighting their opponents in a play that Ms Chume wanted to do. He was filled with confidence when he posed with his sword. Ms Nadia decided to do some drawing pictures with us that day (6th February 2013) and I decided to draw a starfruit for the lesson when Ms Nadia practiced our contour drawing.
Later in the day, we did a play re-enacting the battle between the Roman and Carthagian army, and when Ms Chume showed us a video of the battle, I laughed as the people in the video acted like as if they were dancing instead of fighting each other.
When Cikgu Izyani came in for relief period because Ms Visa was not here yet, she showed the “All About Me” slides we created. Everyone was laughing so loud till Mr Paul got annoyed with the sound, and he came over to, once again, give his piece of mind to all of us. What was even worse, was that Cikgu Izyani was also talking loudly, and sounds from the sound effects on the Smartboard had disturbed him, since the Smartboard is on the same wall bordering his office.
“Since you guys are so happy, please don't talk so loud. My office is just next door,” he said. The CCA and Administration Unit's office was quite a small room that was about the size of a toilet meant for the disabled. What I did not mention earlier, was that the wall bisected the windows on the wall into two. This meant that because the windows cannot be closed, a small gap was left between the two offices and the classroom, and when one was at the gap, we could hear teachers talking on the other side when we looked over from 7N and listened carefully. Back in the day, wooden walls were the convenient and cheapest method to bisect a room into two to create more classrooms and offices. This was an easy fix, but it caused a lot of problems regarding private nuisance.
Anyhow, Ms June came in following that, and Benjamin Fong's handmade pass tag which he made, ended up on the fan. “How did it get up there?” Ms June shrieked in bafflement. Adding to her rage was Dylan S. Gill playing with paper to make bullets. Because the floor was filled with bullets, Ms June felt cross.
“If you did this again, you would need to clean the class, the corridor and the next class,” she said sternly. Yew Jan was asked to pay a fine of RM 1 to the Ministry of Finance, and Amanda Teoh and Sean Mark collected the compound. Ms June then lectured us on how one man was jailed for 20 years for stealing bread, and urged us to take this seriously. She then proceeded to role play with us a news programme.
On 7th February 2013, the prefects had set up a series of booths to do a fundraising program. The profits collected from the fundraiser would be channeled to the Prefectorial Board's Chinese New Year celebration at Soup Kitchen. As the event was to be held during lunch, we had our lessons for the day before the event, as Ms June did our morning meeting for 7N and begun the day by showing a trailer of Jovel John, the man that was jailed for stealing bread.
Chinese New Year music was beamed across the school premises from the loudspeakers in the courtyard, as the elementary school celebrated the Year of the Snake. The rhythm of the music carried on later in the day as the prefects showcased a series of games, food and snacks. There was even a sale of guppy fish and a game called “Fix the Mustache”.
During Mandarin lesson, our new Mandarin teacher, Ms Lee Kaesy, who got angry when we were out 7N while she was using the class, about the history and the telltale of Chinese New Year. Ms Lee is quite a nice teacher; I always greet her when she arrives in school while waiting at the foyer for my friends.
For our BK class, Mr Chan had brought us to Science Lab 2 temporarily as Ms Marien's reading class would use our class in 7N, so we had to make do with the inconvenience. Benjamin Fong and a group of boys went to the toilet without Mr Chan's permission, and this resulted in him getting angry.
At the end of the lesson, he had reiterated that we could not be running around in school, just like what Ms Lim and Ms Evelyn had did weeks prior. “Recently, there was one boy who was running around, and he hit a glass. The glass broke and it pierced his hand. The teachers had to send him to the hospital for treatment,” Mr Chan spoke, as he trained his eyes seriously on everyone on us. I could feel his seriousness as his usual smile was missing from his day. Mr Chan would normally greet people if we approached him.
“I just want to also tell you that the glass can cut a wound deep in your hand. So, please, please, do not run, and be careful,” he said with a calm but bold voice.
7th February was also the day we were introduced to Ms Visa, our new Maths teacher. She then gave an introductory class for us for Maths, and what she said was quite serious. She was not the usual humor of Ms Thila, but of a different story. I had by this time found out that Ms Thila had left the school. This meeting with Ms Visa was the first of a series of so-called memories that Ms Visa and I will make throughout my entire Junior and Senior School life. She had laid a series of expectations in class, from being silent when she is talking, to having Sharpie markers for groupwork. “We will call your parents if you don't pass up homework, and you must stay back and do it on a piece of paper,” she said.
When I asked Ms Visa if I could take notes, she said that I needed to ask her for permission to do so as it took ages to do so.
After Ms Visa's class, we then went down to savor the Chinese New Year fundraiser. I bought some guppy fish for my aquarium and played some chopstick games with little success despite Brendan Cheah showing me the correct way, as my hands kept slipping. I wanted to buy the fish using money as I had brought a wallet along, but Ms Lim told the prefects not to take money as it is junk, and we could take as many fishes as we like.
Friday, 8th February 2013 was the last day before Chinese New Year, and some people had embarked on their voyage back to their hometowns for Chinese New Year. Daniel Ngew and I said “Gong Xi Fa Cai” when Ms Lim wished all of us a happy Chinese New Year during assembly. We did multiple presentations; from microorganisms in Cikgu Azira's Science class, to factors and multiples in Ms Visa's class. However, the lesson took so long, and Mr Victor was not happy as we arrived fifteen minutes late for our PE lesson, at 11:20am.
We did a lot of exercises, from sit ups to push ups, and all sorts of exercises till my whole body ached. He blew the whistle one after another to signal when to start and stop. Just as we finished, he announced that the Sports Day would be held in April and the long-awaited marathon in June. The marathon would be a total of 5.2km, two times longer than the Family Marathon Day. Mr Victor told me to get a gold medal for the upcoming marathon when I told him I received a bronze medal for the previous marathon. “Oh no,” I cried. I wasn't the marathon king I am today, but a timid, young boy then.
My friends were mad at me for killing the air conditioning as per Ms Lim's “no air cond” rule after returning from PE. It would be too cold for one to survive with sweat, aside from being unhealthy.
Ms Evelyn had told us at the beginning of the day that we would have Sports Day practices after the Chinese New Year holidays, and that would also be seconded by the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC). Banners advertising the YEC were put up around the school in the hallways for us to look at.
Ms June then came in amidst the commotion and just like all the things related to the country of 7N, she had planned a grand, “national library” to top off the reading culture in our class. She told us to buy or bring books from home to be placed in the “library” which was a mini bookshelf behind the classroom. The door then burst open and Ms Lim entered. “Sorry to disturb ya, Ms June,” she apologized with a smile. Ms Lim told us to wear casual on Monday, 18th February 2013, upon returning to school so as to partake in the school's Chinese New Year celebrations.
The culture of 7N is as such that we have a morning meeting at the beginning of the day if we had the time, and at every Homeroom session on Fridays, we would close the week with a class gathering and a Homeroom meeting. Ms June set the format as such to make us look like professionals. Honestly, this was just the beginning of many more fun and glamor in my life as a Year 7 student that year.
Being a Year 7 student was just the beginning. In fact, we were consistently told that we are in “middle school” by Ms June, and our thinking and attitude would need to change. But Ms June had a cool side to things, as she was outspoken and enthusiastic in getting us to do things in class.
The teachers, especially Ms Evelyn and Ms Lim, had been talking about a “paradigm shift”, and they want us to remember this phrase because they reflect among the change of the school's surroundings as well as those taking place in the world, hence, it is related to the school's five core values. Ms Lim had outlined the fourth core value, “Courageous to venture beyond comfort zones” as the theme for Year 7's character transformation (CT) sessions for 2013. The student organizer was quoted with the quotes of famous individuals, and to cope with this “paradigm shift”, Ms Evelyn had told us on the first day of school about the importance of setting goals, and those were outlined in the first few pages of our student organizer.
Back in those days, the generation of students for the Junior and Senior School were quite more open-minded, just like as if one was in college. The culture was different then, comprised mainly of students born in the 1990s. If you were in Nobel at the time, you would see the Junior and Senior School students then talking openly and leading from the front most of the time while the teachers mainly played an advisory role in certain aspects. Most people in the Junior and Senior School then were more or less so independent and less childish, with the exception of us Year 7s then to be honest. In fact, I feel that we psychologically changed everything with our habits, from handphones to childish behavior, among the next few generations of students.
I spent my Chinese New Year holidays in Penang thinking about the country of 7N and how lively it was. It was a dull time without Ms June and the rest of my classmates.
When we returned to school, there was an announcement of the theme of the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) which was “Hot Cold”. The poster of the YEC was of a template of torn paper, with fire and ice next to each other to symbolize the theme. The catchphrase of the YEC 2013 was “Plan, Make, Sell”.
Cikgu Baliah continued doing an activity on latitude and longitude by playing a game on the Smartboard, and Ms Chume did some short notes with us on Hadrian's Wall and Hannibal. However, for Mandarin, Ms Lee was on leave and she was replaced by a strict teacher named Ms Koo, who expects us to have all materials in her class and restricts us from uttering a single word during her lesson.
Some people in the class were talking, and Ms Lim, who was casually strolling outside, called those who talked while Ms Koo was teaching and gave them a lecture. It was the same when anyone did that, and I can say that Ms Lim is quite particular when it comes to discipline. She would be very particular on the school rules and would easily pick on one if the line was not toed.
Now, most people were talking and the classroom was so noisy till Ms Koo gave us a dare. “Stop talking or else you stand up until 12:30pm,” she boomed. Ms Koo would also yak at people who used the washroom almost every minute, or even those who could not keep their mouth shut during the lesson. She was filled with a terrible headache after all such incidents like this.
Ms June had given us work to do and had written a list of instructions in the classroom. She had asked us to practice “Read to Self” in which we had to follow the instructions on the Daily Gym. To recap, a student would need to have his or her eyes on the book instantly, in silence. The teacher, on the other hand, would also need to be silent but work with small groups without disturbing those who are capable of doing so. This teaches us on how to be independent learners.
Cikgu Azira then introduced us to a bunsen burner which was a gas burner that looked like a candle. Our task was to grow microbes and we had to place a beaker on top of a tripod stand which would be heated by the bunsen burner. The liquid smelled like stench when it was heated, but however, I was excited for the next activity after school.
Monday, 18th February 2013, was the first day of CCA for the year. I had Fine Art Club on Monday, so I was excited to see what was in store.
Fine Art Club was led by Ms Feeda, who is the head of Art and Design at Nobel International School then. She was a very good teacher, and I had known her by name and seen her since my primary school days in Nobel. I had decided to join Fine Art Club to enhance my talent in Art and Design. Unlike Ms Nadia, Ms Feeda is quite nice, helpful and kind, and she had a strong passion for Art and Design. She is also the teacher in charge for Art and Design IGCSE then.
The Fine Art Club CCA's first meeting consisted of mainly people from Year 8 and above, and on the first day of Fine Art Club CCA, most of the individuals in the club were from Year 10 and 11. Not everyone attended the first day, and I was one out of three Year 7s in the group, with the others being Alicia Tang and Rosemund Chong. We met in the Art Studio for our weekly CCA meeting, and waited for Ms Feeda to arrive. Some of the students were talking, and I asked one senior in the class about Ms Feeda and was told to wait for her arrival.
The minutes passed, and Ms Evelyn instead came into the art studio. Everyone was surprised as to what had happened and why Ms Evelyn was there.
“You're the Fine Art students, right?” Ms Evelyn asked. We nodded our heads.
“Fine Art CCA, I am sorry; I have to apologize to you for waiting for too long. Ms Feeda has been admitted to hospital, so I need all of you to come with me to the office,” she said. We then went to the main office, where Ms Evelyn gathered us in her room. On her table were images of certain designs, accompanied by motivational quotes.
“Ok, students, so I am going to divide you into three groups. You are going to do some drawing on the wall,” she said.
Many of us were baffled and surprised that Ms Evelyn gave us permission to draw on the school walls. Drawing on the walls of the school is a heavy offence, and I was quite surprised when Ms Evelyn gave us permission to do so. Normally, students who drew on the wall would be shunned and cowed, but however, I was thinking of the reaction from my friends or other students on our actions.
“So please choose your groups, and pick one drawing,” said Ms Evelyn with a smile. She was trying to convince us that no action would be taken against us for drawing on the wall, and all the teachers would be informed of the mural project. She then smiled as I stepped forward and then picked one drawing. “Pick one, Wei Yiang, don't worry,” she said with a smile. She kept smiling as most of us were still scared that the teachers would chide us for drawing on the wall. Once everyone was done, Ms Evelyn then showed us the locations as to where we would paint on. The drawing that my group did was in front of 7B's classroom.
Ms Evelyn told us that the task was given by Ms Feeda and she communicated the first activity while Ms Feeda was recovering in hospital. She had been admitted to hospital due to a dengue infection, and Ms Evelyn told us that Ms Feeda would be back in about two weeks.
Now, with this, 2013 had gotten off to a rocky start. Bagged with three teachers going on leave or resigning, and the countless number of times Ms Evelyn or Ms Lim had to come and relief us, I felt a bit sad as to how long this would persist. Yet, I kept my fingers crossed for Ms Feeda's return and to see what she had in store for us.
Most of us did the tracing of the pictures, and we got tables and chairs while Ms Evelyn checked on us. I used a ruler to demarcate the lines, but the hardest was tracing the words in proper font and ensuring the came out as neat as the ones on a billboard.
Sports Day was also on top of the agenda after the Chinese New Year holidays. Everyone was told to join at least one event, and I wanted to do banner painting. Unfortunately, since they were full, I decided to join the marchpast team. Aside from Sports Day, I was also interested in joining the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) after reading the information on Facebook, and picked up a form to sign up for the event. Unfortunately, no one wanted to join my team despite me scouting around for members.
Ms Seline then came back, and I was delighted to meet her. We learnt about five steps of writing, namely planning, sloppy copy, revising, proofreading and publishing. I really enjoyed all the sessions with Ms Seline, having shown her my journals before. In fact, Ms June, Ms Lim and some members of the management team had read them.
I soon got used to having foreign teachers and interacting with them. One of them was Ms Kerry Bell, the head of ICT and an ICT teacher for Year 10 and 11. She was in the class relieving Ms Visa, who was absent. Ms Kerry had a gentle but reasonable tone, and she said that if the class was not behaving, we would have to do work. There were two Year 10 and 11 ICT teachers then in Nobel; aside from Ms Kerry Bell, the other teacher was Mrs Savari, who was a lot stricter. Some of the boys wanted to listen to K-Pop music, but Ms Kerry refused. I had a good conversation with her and impressed her with my mini notebooks for Geography and History as well as Maths. Later on, during Mandarin, we had spelling, and some boys in the class stood up for an hour, to Ms Koo's threat the previous week.
On 21st February 2013, we then had a house cheer practice. We practiced the cheer for Bullseye. Shaun Lam and the Year 11 members decided to convince everyone to cheer but however, no one was enthusiastic. We practiced cheering the Bullseye cheer for 45 minutes. The cheer was,
“Come on Bullseye, come let's go!
Get your arrows, get your bows
We are champions, we are might
Come on red, fight fight fight!
Go Bullseye!”
Every house was given time to practice their cheer as we were going to be judged in a cheer competition. We cheered as much as possible, but each time, the captains and leaders tried to get us to cheer loudly time after time.
Ms Evelyn then said that the houses, which were called by colors for the Junior and Senior School the previous years, would be given the names that were used in the elementary school in order to streamline everything. “Red house will be called Bullseye, blue house Touchdown, green house Homerun and yellow house Slamdunk,” she announced. Previously, in 2012, when Nobel became an international school, the elementary school started using the names Bullseye, Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk, but the Junior and Senior School still stuck with the old-fashioned way of calling the houses by their colors.
When we returned back to class, we were oblivious to the situation, that a series of events would be triggered because of our own negligence.
After returning to class, Ivyna asked us to calm down so as not to disturb Mr Paul and everyone else in the office, but without due success. Janelle Arnelia then accidentally spilled water in the class, and she came to clean the floor, while asking me to return the mop to the washroom when it was done. The ensuing commotion and noise level got Mr Paul in a rage, and this resulted in him coming over and scolding Ivyna in the process. We were waiting for Ms Nadia to come up and get us to come to the art studio, but in reality, Ms Nadia wanted us to come on our own accord. Being impatient, she stormed up and yelled at us.
“7N! Why are you in class and not in the art studio? Do you know you have art lesson today?!” she yelled.
“I want to see all of you in the studio in one minute!” she cried.
Ms Nadia, furious at our lateness to the art studio, snatched away our break time and 10 marks from our grades and said we would fail in our line and drawings assignment. She then yelled at Ivyna, bearing full responsibility as the Deputy Prime Minister.
“Why didn't you bring the class down? Don't you know you have art today? You are supposed to bring everyone down to the studio!” Ms Nadia cried.
“I didn't bring them down because by right the teacher is actually supposed to get us, right?” Ivyna responded.
Ms Nadia then said this only works for the primary school students, and that we are supposed to be independent enough to come down on our own. I felt traumatized by what Mr Paul said to Ivyna, and if I was in her shoes, I would feel depressed, demotivated and abused, and that was what Ivyna felt, to be honest. Ms Nadia did drawings with us during the entire break time period, and stopped people from going for break time to save the wasted lesson time. Following the end of her lesson, we then went up to class and Cikgu Azira was waiting for us to continue the lesson. I told Cikgu Azira what happened that morning, and my group was being asked to present about microbes and diseases. A bit of humor cheered up the day when all the members of my group and the entire class said “Wow!” and “The end!” at the same time, and it looked hillarious.
The class was interrupted by Ms Lim, who entered our class and spoke to us. She said that we would be given additional break time to compensate for the loss due to the incidents that morning, as she was worried about our hunger. “7N, you will be having your break time till 11:05am, since you haven't taken your breakfast and you may be hungry,” she said. This break time would soon produce the third incident of the day. Fortunately, I wasn't as hungry as the rest as I had eaten breakfast upon arriving at school as a routine, and would occasionally pack some potato buns or white wholemeal bread with cheese in it in the morning.
During our additional break time, we were the only ones in the canteen, and I took the time to eat some bread and write my journal, detailing the account of the day's incidents. The rest of the boys then decided to play with the basketball ring, also known as a basketball hoop, by jumping on it and hanging from it. I was in the canteen writing my journal and observing their acrobatic stunts. Daniel Ngew, Sean Mark, Yew Jan, Benjamin Fong, Ye Sean, Brendan Cheah, Alex Chia, Wei Zhong, Dylan S. Gill, Dillon Teh and Nieshaal Thambipillay were at the court playing with the basketball ring in order to pass time and have some relief from the series of scoldings that morning by Mr Paul and Ms Nadia.
Traditionally, for some people who like to play basketball, it is a norm for people to hang from the basketball ring. As someone who does not like to play basketball, it is not of interest for me to know, but basketballers like Michael Jordan, and National Basketball Association (NBA) players in the United States do that as it looks cool, but at the same time, it gives them an easy leap to throw the ball into the net. On that day, the boys did not have their basketball, so alternatively, they took the way out to play with the hoop and act as if they were the top basketballers of the world. The boys stood in a group and tried to hang from one of the low-hanging hoops, and then, Benjamin Fong did his turn. There was a slight jerk, a crack, and the basketball hoop was bent. There was no netting on the hoop, so it was easy for them to hang, and in normal cases, bent hoops are commonly seen across the school. The boys thought it was of no concern, so they did not see it as an issue. They went back to class once they had finished ducking on the hoop.
During lunch, Ms June then came down and decided to have a Chinese New Year party with us. She then told us that she had spoken to Ms Nadia and Mr Paul about the incidents that morning, and that our ten marks will not be deducted. She then told us to come down for Ms Nadia's class in the future, and comforted Ivyna over the matter. Then, we tossed yee sang, and I served my homemade cookies to much good taste. The teachers then joined in the fun, sipping and snacking the delicious flavors on display. The class would soon be in for a rude shock over the next course of the day.
While Cikgu Zura was teaching, Mr Paul came in, this time, with a serious look on his face.
“Ms Zura, can I interrupt for a while? This goes to all the boys in this class. I just now see from my office, the boys were jumping on the basketball ring. It has already been broken. You must go and buy me a new basketball ring. Who are the ones who were jumping? Please raise your hand before I catch you,” he boomed. The culprits admitted, and Mr Paul stared sternly at them.
“Okay, I want to see you all in my office tomorrow.”
I then spoke to Cikgu Zura over the incident and how it happened. In my opinion, I believe that the three incidents that happened that day could have had been averted if the school and the student community did a few things to resolve the matter.
If Ms Nadia was not strict, we would then have an enjoyable experience learning Art and Design and as such, it would simulate our passion. Every single art lesson we go to was an 80-minute torture chamber then when everyone tried to please Ms Nadia. I could honestly say that I was a bit traumatized, but I put on a brave look each time I dealt with strict teachers. However, being too strict and harsh would jeopardize people's mental health, and at the same time, impact physical health as well. Ms Nadia should have had acted in a more softer approach, such as telling us gently that we should be going to the art studio ourselves, instead of scolding us for making such a mistake, as we would be afraid to make mistakes in the future.
On another note, the management team had made a major flaw in placing 7N next to two offices and using a wooden wall which was a cheap fix but a long term headache. This had caused the management office and the CCA office to complain about the noise level, and I ended up as one of the victims when Mr Paul told me in a serious tone to keep my voice low, and this happened to everyone who used that classroom too. Since this incident, the management had, in the following year, turned the classroom where 7N was, into an extension of the two offices, and merged the CCA department into the main office. It was saddening to hear that this incident resulted in the incident with Ms Nadia and subsequently, the basketball hoop incident.
The next day, we took down all the Chinese New Year decorations as it was the last Friday before Chap Goh Mei, the final day of Chinese New Year. Dylan S. Gill took it down too early, and I had urged him to keep them on till the end of the week to amaze visitors following the Chinese New Year holidays, as well as to complement our class’ Chinese New Year celebration the day before. Mr Paul then lectured those who were responsible for bending the hoop, and we tried our best to get our day as usual with Cikgu Izyani cheering us up with the Sarawak powerpoint presentation, and Mr Victor doing exercises with us in the basketball court near the open field we use for PE. The sun was scorching and it was quite hot, while we did push ups, sit ups, jumping jacks and all sorts of exercises on a floor that burned as hot as a frying pan, although Ms I Lynn, reminding us to be at the field in one minute, called back to the previous day's actions by Ms Nadia.
Every Friday afternoon, we would go for a reflection time with Ms June where she and Ms Chume, our class teachers, would join us in having a meeting to close the week, and we would bid adieu to each other by saying, “Have a great weekend”. We would be given our Friday lunch meals to end the week.
That day, I also went for my first session of Sports Stacking CCA. Our trainers were a bit serious with us, and Sports Stacking was a popular norm then. There was one teaching us and another checking on us. The one who was checking on us was having a serious face and I watched cautiously for signs that made him angry.
I was one of three Junior and Senior School students taking part in the CCA, which was mainly dominated by the Elementary School. Oh, how I missed the days where I headed home every Friday while the sun was still in the morning position. I liked the landscape where the sun was still in the morning position every Friday, and I mainly chose the Wednesday Sports Stacking CCA in order to enjoy the Fridays which I would relax at home.
The following Monday, Ms Seline had our final workshop where she talked about fear when writing, and asked us to pay more attention as that day was her final day with us before she returns to the United States on Wednesday, 27th February 2013. She encouraged us to take part in the Commonwealth Essay Competition which, in fact, was compulsory for us. I showed her my journal when she asked who did journalling daily, and everyone pointed to me in excitement. Along with a series of tasks that we did during her workshop, Ms Seline told us to keep in mind the lessons she taught as a guide to prepare us for our exams. That afternoon, for Fine Art Club CCA, we continued with our wall murals as Ms Evelyn told us that Ms Feeda would be returning the following week.
The next day, the Year 8s and 9s left for a field trip, leaving only us Year 7s to feed our break and lunch assemblies. Without prefects in presence, Mr Paul then got on stage to quieten us down, but most people still talked. Everyone then silenced themselves when Mr Paul showed his usual glare, sneering down at the crowd.
“What has changed?” he asked. “Is it the uniform? Is it that wearing maroon makes you change? I want all of you to rate yourselves from ten to one. How do you feel about it?”
He then asked us why we came to school. “Why do you think you come to school? What is the purpose? I am not here to scold you. I am just teaching you how to be good. I believe what you can change is your behavior. During break and lunch, I have observed myself, that out of all the year levels who were talking, you guys are the loudest. I want you to reflect on what happened. I want to see an improvement during lunchtime. Is it okay? Do I make myself clear?”
We then reflected on this, and during lunchtime, we improved from the previous break time assembly, to the pleasure of Mr Paul himself, who commended us.
“Malaysia Boleh!” Nieshaal cried, trying to get Mr Paul's attention while acting as cool as possible.
“Malaysia boleh, kamu boleh!” Mr Paul boomed in response. “If Malaysia can do it, I'm sure you all can.”
Earlier in the day, Ms Visa angrily ripped off a page on my Maths book and threw it into the bin, and I got sneaky looks from my friends. Ms Visa is one tough teacher and if you were in my class at the time in 2013, you should not mess around with her. However, Ms Visa and I grew to understand each other over the years after some time. We managed to have some fun over the weeks, and one of the best things we had was learning the top 10 largest cities of the world. Cikgu Baliah had asked us to guess the cities in order, and I mentioned Beijing as one of the cities before Cikgu Baliah played a video to reveal the names. The largest city was Tokyo, with Shanghai being the second largest.
On Friday, 1st March, we had our New Group Reading Test (NGRT) which is a test designed for our literacy. Most students then had to take this test, and it was done online. We had about 20 to 30 minutes to do it during our ICT lesson with Cikgu Izyani on testingforschools.com.
On Thursday, 7th March 2013, we had the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC). As I did not make it in, I had to watch by the sidelines. YEC is a charity sales program and teams would compete to see who can get the highest profit. The Year 10 and 11 teachers ran the show, as this mainly focuses on commerce. All of us were encouraged to buy things, and once again, I bought a plant and some live fishes, but however, unfortunately, they jumped out of the container I was carrying them in. The fish kept playing the fool and jumped out of the container at any opportunity. The people who sold the fish bought them from the aquarium shop, and these fish were large and playful. Each time when I was in class, the fish kept on jumping out of the container and even Cikgu Zura was puzzled when teaching us. The container spilled before dismissal, and Sean Mark came to the rescue to refill it and put a cover on top and I also used a plastic bag to keep things in check.
Sadly, Ms Nadia had deducted 10 marks from everyone because we were late, but I believe that Ms Nadia should not have had done it that way as most people were unaware of the situation. She was a bit too harsh at the time, and that reminders should be given. At the time, it was Nobel's second year as an international school, and we were the first batch from the elementary school during the international school era to transition to the Junior and Senior School, so we were unfamiliar with the landscape. Honestly speaking, if I was in her position, I would have had just given her a warning and a friendly reminder instead of spoiling the day. It was unfair to some people in the class, as they would follow the majority's decision. Ms Visa entertained us with our Mathematics board games that we had made and submitted, and we took turns playing each other's games. I played Wai Shaun's game which he called Castle Siege.
Cikgu Baliah had some interesting plans for us, and we had to make a pyramid to summarize the order of settlements from a single isolated building to a hamlet, town, city and a conurbation city. I used a test pad to make the pyramid. “Unacceptable,” Cikgu Baliah said. What she actually meant was to make a three-dimensional pyramid in neat manner, and on four sides, we should write the labels on one, the description on another, an example and a picture of the example. I still have that pyramid to this day at the time of writing. The test pad's lines blocked the view of the content and was messy.
Speaking of test pads, Nobel International School back then gave us test pads, in which a bunch of paper containing the school logo and a line for name, class, date and subject were given. Unlike the elementary school students, this was the norm for Junior and Senior School students. This test pad also contained holes that were pre-punched by hole punchers so that we can file them in our files. It was a norm at the time to use it for any activity we had.
We continued our board games the next day, 8th March, and Wai Shaun had leminated his board game. Ms Visa punished those who did not bring their board games with a reflection sheet, but fortunately, I escaped the noose. Ms Visa had also told me to ask my mum to purchase a pen as that was the standard for the Junior and Senior School. “Pencils are for primary school students. You're no longer in primary school, so please buy a pen,” she said. Ms June asked us to write about an experience of being away from home or being lost, and most people wanted to write about the English Camp we had in Year 6, which, of course, I didn't attend. And Cikgu Izyani was quite mad with us as our class had not handed in our personal computer files yet. We then looked at a slide titled “My Pets”, and compared two slides to see which one is better. During PE, Mr Victor took us to the field, and on the way, Louis Soon begun chasing us like mad, and Glen Kay egged me on to run ahead. When we reached the field, Mr Victor told us to run around the field, and he said that our heart rate must be below 20 if we were to run in a relaxed manner. The boys took off first, and thus followed by the girls. I tried to catch up with them, but I burnt out in exhaustion. On top of that, we had to practice running for one hour.
All the teachers were exhausted at reminding us to keep quiet, with some going to an extent to shout at us. Ms I Lynn, who was one of the teachers there, told us to stop talking or else we had to recite the lining up rules like in elementary school. She was glowing mad when she spoke to us. “If there's a gap, I mean it,” she yelled, as if she was trying to babysit us.
The teachers from the Junior and Senior School then had a tough time dealing with us, the first international school batch of Year 6 students to fully transition to Year 7. Previous batches jumped straight to the Junior and Senior School upon the rebranding of the school from Sekolah Sri Nobel to Nobel International School. Back in those days, Nobel did not have a fully-developed system to prepare students on what to expect when transitioning from the elementary school to the Junior and Senior School, and this caused massive headache for the teachers. We Year 7s then were billed as the loudest, most rowdy and one that was too childish and difficult to control, although I was hailed as one of the best by my teachers.
When Nobel did not have a proper support system back then, teachers were a lot more strict then, and we were shouted here and then one after the other like the incidents we had with Mr Paul and Ms Nadia. Even Ms Lim had trouble handling us then, and our behavior across the board then was unprecedented for anyone in the Junior and Senior School. The teachers had compared us Year 7s then with the other batches, and said that of all batches, we were billed as the “troublemaker batch”. In fact, based on the management's statistics then, our batch had the most incident reports and bad taste compared to other levels, who behaved more maturely and adultery in nature.
These incidents had led Nobel to revamp their system, including setting up a bridging ceremony to get students from Year 6 to know the teachers from the Junior and Senior School as well as a briefing on what to expect in Year 7. And regarding the location of 7N, it was eventually converted into an office to bridge the CCA and management office to solve the problems we had from the beginning.
Monday, 11th March 2013 saw several good omens. Ms June went on a trip to Australia, and Ms Visa was absent, so we played our board games. On top of that, the Sports Day preparations were starting to heat up. There was a high jump competition during break time, and following that, the Bullseye leaders wanted to see those involved in marching, high jump and shot putt. Shaun Lam told us that our first march practice would be on Thursday, 14th March, and we had to stay back for our practice.
Mr Cupit was relieving Ms June, and he told us to do our journal writing assignment. “Who is Aaron?” he asked. Yew Jan then said a joke in the class. “The big fat guy over there. I'm the small fat guy,” he said, pointing to Aaron Liew. When I showed my pyramid to Cikgu Baliah, she said it was two small as it looked like the size of a tennis ball. The pyramid needed to be the size of a basketball, so I had to redo it again.
We had a new Mandarin teacher taking over, and Mr Steve was in the class. “I have good news for you; I will be your permanent Mandarin teacher till the end of the year,” he said. Mr Steve is much better than Ms Koo, and little did we know that we would enjoy his Mandarin lesson, as him being a kind teacher not scolding, screaming, shouting or punishing would be good for us. In fact, he did an icebreaker and told us to rate ourselves from 10 to 1. Mr Steve also told us that he would not scold us like how Ms Koo did. I would get to have a lot of fun with him in Mandarin class, and Mr Steve would also be one of the best teachers in Nobel, leaving a lasting legacy to the school as a teacher in Nobel. In fact, Ms Koo had scolded the class a countless number of times till a lot of people, mainly boys, stood up till the end of the lesson. She even divided us into groups, and if one person talked, the entire group stands up, including the group leader, but however, if only the group leader misbehaved, likewise, he or she would only stand up. Ms Koo had scolded and shouted and got angry too many times till it made our lesson an unenjoyable one.
Mr Steve gave us our workbooks, which are published for students in Chinese primary schools in Malaysia. As the books were targeted at Chinese primary schools, it was easy for us to follow, since being at the age of 12 in Malaysia at the time would normally allocate one to a Year 6 primary school student. He promised to also be an entertaining, yet amusing Mandarin teacher. He's quite a young teacher then and assured us that we would enjoy his Mandarin lesson.
On 13th March 2013, the school had a Unicef School In A Box Program where we would have a fundraiser and there were lemonade and cold drinks on sale. But the highlight that day was after school, where I got to learn my first steps as a marcher for Bullseye.
All of us Bullseye marchers gathered in a small grassy area near Tadika Sri Nobel, which was accessible by a flight of stairs from the lower canteen. Chor Lit and Shaun Lam were our marchers, and we were asked to line up in rows of three. The leaders leading us were Year 11 students, and this was something new to me then. Other houses were also gathered for marchpast practice, and for Homerun, Kevan Raj and Shaun Kok were commanding.
Shaun Lam was commanding most of the time, and I was afraid he would get angry at me for not being as competent as the other marchers. There were many steps and I did not know how to do them, and as Shaun belted out command after command, I could not find myself following up with him. So, I, along with Sophia Chang and a few other marchers were taken aside, and we were introduced to Dominic Chow, who was the 2013 Bullseye house captain. Dominic guided us for our practices to follow the steps while the other marchers advanced their practices.
“It's okay to not know the steps beforehand, so I'm going to show you,” he said.
The first step that we did was to do the attention step. For this, we need to stomp our left foot and say, “Stoo!” although this was revised to “Check!” in later years. Dominic practiced with us and checked on us many times till we got it right, and he did not go on hard with us who were rookies to the process. We then learned how to also right-dress, which was to put our left hand in front so that it is the same height as the other person's shoulder and the same goes for our right hand, except that it faces right to the other person's shoulder. There were many marching moves that Dominic taught us, such as to do the quick march, but we only did three initially as he guided us who were slow-learners.
We were entering the assessment week, and many of our teachers were beginning our assessment with us. However, trying to adapt to life as a Year 7 student was easier said than done, and a disaster was about to occur for Art. Ms Nadia had taught us on how to use water colors, and we had to do the color wheel. We had to paint the primary colors (red, blue, yellow) and mix them together, and I was struggling to mix the colors.
All my life, I had used crayon and color pencils for Art, but however, for Year 7, it was tough luck using a box of Buncho Pastel Color ink to smear them on the paper. I tried mixing, but each time I did, it became ugly and I ran out of colors. The 11-plus year old self of me was trying very hard, without success, to mix the colors, and a lot of mess came time after time.
Cikgu Baliah amazed us later with the story of settlements in Geography, and taught us about how settlements grew over a period of time in the Klang Valley. We had to also hand in our settlement pyramids, and place them on my table where Cikgu Baliah would sort them out. There were so many pyramids till it looked like Ancient Egypt.
The YEC winners were soon announced, and Fotographia, a group of students, won the competition with a RM 1000 cash prize. To commemorate the celebration, the prefects were on stage shooting confetti as the YEC team of teachers led by Ms Thana, as well as the management team, led by Mr Chan, were on the stage handing out the awards. However, disaster struck when one of the prefects accidentally discharged the confetti and the pressure force exerted by the confetti shot Mr Chan on his buttocks. The prefect immediately apologized as he had problems trying to find the right switch to discharge the confetti into the air.
Mr Steve continued to amaze us with topics in Mandarin, and this time, he talked about sports. He even gave us a timetable of the London Olympics to be copied in Mandarin on our exercise book. He also did our Mandarin Assessment 1, but he had warned us that if we misbehaved, he would need to lecture us sternly. In fact, Mr Steve had confiscated Benjamin Fong's paper bullets as he played them during class. This is not to mention that our class had a bunch of crazy guys who were playing around and disturbing the peace too many times till I ended up as one of the victims.
Ms Sim had distributed our 2013 sports attires to us, but I decided to wear 2012's sports attires for my marchpast practice, after Wai Shaun said that I could wear them for practices. Chor Lit practiced with us after school, and sometimes we had joint practices with the other squads. Speaking of Kevan Raj, who was Homerun's march captain then, he was a cool guy and one who was stern, but also sociable and cracked jokes along the way. We then learnt how to salute, which was to face our heads right while marching, as we had to salute the management team and judges along our marchpast route.
I had a habit of saying “Welcome to 7N” to any visitors who entered the class, as I was enthusiastic in promoting tourism to 7N, since Ms June came up with the Country of 7N craze. However, Ms June told me to hold my horses and not say it too many times as it can be very distracting and annoying. She said that I can say “Welcome to 7N” to new visitors to the class, but not frequent people who came in all the time.
Chor Lit, Shaun and all the Bullseye committee members then decided to have practices for Sports Day during the holidays. Every year, it is a norm for all the Junior and Senior School students to do practices for Sports Day during the holidays, and we would come back to do our practices.
Our first practice was on 25th March 2013. At the beginning of the day, Jonathan Ong and Lim Wei Ming, who were the Year 9 marchers, decided to train those who were already here with the commands while waiting for Shaun Lam and Chor Lit to arrive. Wei Ming had a loud command, and he would train and call the commands loudly. I trained with Jonathan, Wei Ming and few of the other Year 8s, 9s and 10s who were there. At that time, I was the only Year 7 present and we trained in the courtyard. Soon after, Chor Lit gathered us with a soundtrack of the marching music used on previous Sports Days to train us to the beat of the music. Shaun and Chor Lit then brought a loudspeaker which was portable and carried on wheels, to play the music, which was connected to his phone. We had a series of breaks during the practice where I talked to Chor Lit. Each time I talked to him, he said that my marching moves had improved and praised me for coming for each practice. “You don't have to come till the end, since your marching moves are good, but if you want to come, you can,” he said.
Shaun Lam would normally wear a hat with a series of numbers on it. He would give it to me to wear since I would always respond in the loudest tone out of all the marchers. Sometimes, he would put it on my head in excitement, as he was proud of my own improvements in the marchpast.
Each time we arrived, while waiting for the march practices to start, I would have my snack, since we students were allowed to eat in the hall or courtyard while waiting, and we would practice. Normally, Wei Ming would command us before starting, and we would train till Shaun and Chor Lit took over. Each practice was from 9am to 12pm.
On 28th March 2013, Shaun Lam, Chor Lit and I decided to train the dancers on the moves they would do when accompanying the marchers. The marchers would need to be trailed by dancers on their way into the stadium while marching, and the dancers would need to also learn the marching techniques. However, the dancers would follow different moves while marching as opposed to the marchers.
Chor Lit, Shaun and I led the dancers, who were training in the hall. While Chor Lit and Shaun gave the commands, the dancers practiced the moves when we said “left, right, left”. Unlike the commands in the Boys’ Brigade or the Scouts Club, the marching commands and actions are done in English as opposed to the traditional Malay language being used. I just accompanied them to march around and do the marching commands, from turning, to saluting. The dancers put their hands and fists up while doing the “left-right-left" command. They then crossed their arms and then placed them down and repeated. It was fun doing the commands with them, and I enjoyed each step of the way.
When we returned to school, we went to the Panasonic Sports Complex that very first day following the holidays, on 1st April 2013. The elementary school students were also going to the stadium, and a couple of buses were also there to fetch us. We waited for half an hour in order to get onto our buses.
Following our arrival at Panasonic Stadium, we sat down in the stands before we had a briefing. Ms Evelyn then got on the announcements and said that those who were not involved in the practices were to remain at their seats, while those that were involved in marching and dancing were asked to meet our captains in the basement tunnel below the stands. Athletes were then told to meet Mr Victor at the field.
Chor Lit and Shaun then gathered us as we practiced command after command. We were then told that there will be a Sports Day Rehearsal afterwards, where we had to march on the track around the stadium. When I was in primary school, I would always see the secondary school's march past and athletic events and awed at how wonderful they were, and I was happy that I was in their position.
We did our marchpast practices with Chor Lit and Shaun leading our way, and all of us following behind, accompanied by the marchpast music, before the dancers took on a good show. This was followed by the elementary school's telematch games and a series of running events. This went on, and we repeated the cycle till the rest of the school who were not involved in the practices or events went back while we did a few more practices before being asked to return to school. We watched a series of Brendan Cheah's videos from his YouTube channel during Science class, titled “Running crazy” and “Spinning crazy”, to end the day on a high note.
The next day, 2nd April 2013, we had an inter-house telematch, as well as it was the due date for our History coursework. We had to make Roman army shields, and mine was quite big. In fact, it was bigger than most people's Roman shields. As Sports Day approached, we had practices that continued day after day.
On 3rd April 2013, we were called down for practices for marching, and as we were having Science at the time, Cikgu Azira signed on my permission slips, and then once all that was settled, I then met Chor Lit. We then headed to the school foyer to practice, before going to the school courtyard. It then got cloudy, and Ms June called us up as a guest was coming to our class that day, and she said that we can't miss it. She then introduced us to Ms Amira, who gave us lesson on vocabulary and words.
Ms Amira was a new teacher in Nobel that year and her lesson was quite interesting as she spoke on certain topics in the class related to English. Ms June then let all of the marchers and dancers in our class down to continue the practice once Ms Amira had finished teaching, and I had to explain to Chor Lit and Shaun why Ms June called us up. They said that they did not have enough marchers and it got worse when Ms June called us. We then practiced till 5pm that day, and continued our practice following lunch the next day. Rhonda Tan and Chuan Yew, our head prefect and assistant head prefect, then carried a big banner with holes cut into them, which contained the Nobel International School logo while practicing their walk with it for Sports Day. Ms Evelyn was guiding them as they held the heavy banner over their heads. We first marched in the hall, then foyer and then carpark, but we had trouble changing locations time after time as the foyer was used by the elementary school for dismissal, and Slamdunk was marching there. In the end, we settled for the long jump area before having a final full dress rehearsal in the hall with the official proceedings, before marching until 5pm that day.
What made the day more electric was Ms Nadia's absence, and most boys were happy as they did not have to deal with her strictness. Cikgu Baliah also divided us into groups and asked us to do an explanation on the advantages and disadvantages of the growth of human settlements.
Sports Day 2013 was held at Panasonic Stadium on 5th April 2013, and we had no classes that day. However, as a marcher for Bullseye, we had to arrive early at 2:00pm in order to prepare for the event, and Chor Lit had asked us to march. So, we practiced till 4:00pm, marching on the field as well as in the tunnel under the stadium. Meanwhile, the dancers did their dance practices on the track in front of the stands.
At 4:00pm, Chor Lit told us that we would be marching onto the track and turn right, which we would march in front and salute to the judges. Then, we would make our way to the field, and sing the Negaraku, school song and recite the school pledge. Once this was done, we would do our house cheer before marching back to the tunnel.
When we marched, I gave my best salute as all the dancers paraded behind us. Everyone then took photos, including my family members who were there. This was then followed by the torch lighting and the recitation of the sports pledge, school pledge and the singing of Negaraku and the school song.
We then returned to our seats and were amazed by the dancers and the other events. 2013's Sports Day was not like the sports days I passed in succeeding years, as there was not much of a fanfare that I have promulgated as opposed to the other years. In fact, 2013 was the last Sports Day then to have a combination of the Elementary, Junior and Senior School and the primary school students from Sekolah Sri Nobel who continued with that old syllabus; 2013 was also the final year of the batch of students in Sekolah Sri Nobel before that old national curriculum was shut down for good.
There were high jump, long jump, shot put and the elementary school's telematch events on the day, and I tried my best to scream and shout as loud as possible.
At the end of the day, everyone gathered at the track where the announcements were made, as everyone cheered their house cheer. Touchdown won the 400m that year, while Homerun won the 100m and the marchpast. Bullseye won the dance competition, while the champion house for 2013 was Touchdown. Shaun then addressed all the Bullseye people with enthusiasm. “Ok, guys, we lost, but in your heart, you are winners yourselves!” he cried. Dominic said that Bullseye would hopefully come back stronger, and everyone cheered the house cheer before posing for a photograph. Mr Chuang joined in and posed a photo with Caleb Chuang in the group photo of all the members from Bullseye.
The Sports Day got everyone excited and the fun and joy carried on for some time. We were busy discussing our answers for the Assessment 1 and had our lessons as usual. We did a few paintings for Fine Art Club by Ms Feeda, who guided us, after spending a total of four weeks to do the wall murals. Ms Feeda is quite an interesting and passionate teacher when it came to Fine Art Club; the art studios were adorned by her work and multiple art pieces by the Senior School students from Year 10 and 11, although some of the Year 8s and 9s were talented. I hadn't introduced Ms Feeda yet, so in this case here, I gave part of the introduction.
Ms Feeda, as I said before, was Nobel International School's head of Art and Design. She is passionate for art, and had demonstrated this during our Fine Art Club CCA session. She introduced herself and told us that fine art is all about painting and mixed media, which was similar to what we are doing in our art lessons. She got to explain her role for Art and said that she mainly taught Year 9, 10 and 11 the Art and Design subject.
Ms Feeda introduced us to a series of artists, such as Jackson Pollock, as well as the art history of these artists. She also said that we were also going to do some paintings, and we did some during her session that day. After four weeks of painting the murals, this was the first time I got to meet Ms Feeda and I would enjoy every Fine Art Club CCA lesson with her.
April was filled with two major events aside from Sports Day, namely the George's Marvelous Medicine play, as well as the Survival 101 camp at Eight Acres, Kuala Kubu Baru, Selangor.
Ms June had given me a book, titled George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl. It tells the story about George, a young boy who had to feed his grandmother some medicine, and he mixed a bunch of ridiculous ingredients with the intent to kill his grandmother, and this resulted in his grandmother growing in size. His father got delighted, and asked George to mass produce more jars of his medicinal mixture in order to replicate the same effects on his farm in order to enlarge animals which could sell for a higher price, but George forgot the recipe and his father tried to reconstruct it with him, without success. Ms Lim had invited us to watch a play based on that book.
On the other hand, the Survival 101 camp was being held by the school and involved all the students of the Junior and Senior School, except for a few, including me, who didn't went. So, because of this, a lot of teachers accompanied the students on the trip to Refreshing Spring Resort, and we were given some work to do. Cikgu Baliah, Mr Chan, Ms June, Mr Steve, Mr Paul, Ms Lim, Ms Sim, Ms Praveen and a long list of teachers were involved in the camp. In fact, half the school went for the camp.
Ms Lim gave us a surprise on 10th April 2013 that we would be headed for the George's Marvelous Medicine trip. It was our first field trip that year, and we had lessons that day before the trip. We watched short clips under a series called “Larva” during Science before having our break time. Once we were done having our breakfast, we boarded three buses at 9:15am to take us to Solaris Dutamas in Mont Kiara which is home to a performing arts centre, for the screening.
While the boys in the back of the bus acted crazily and made a lot of noise, I scanned the scenery outside the windows to entertain myself. The bus passed by Istana Negara, which is home to His Majesty, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. I could also make out the Petronas Twin Towers and KL Tower as the scenery of Kuala Lumpur came into view. I could also name Masjid Wilayah Persekutuan in my journal as I passed by, since I had read about it on my Kuala Lumpur tour books.
Upon arrival at Solaris Dutamas, we walked up to the first floor when we came across the performing arts centre, which was creatively named, “Black Box”. We then sat down in a theatre-like environment and enjoyed the play, accompanied by our teachers. Benjamin Fong tried to sip himself to a drink when we were in the theatre, and that caught Ms June's attention.
“Mr Fong! Why are you drinking? No drinks allowed!” Ms June shouted, as she gave him a stern lecture about drinking in the theatre. Food and drinks, including water, were forbidden, and Ms June did not want him breaking the rules.
Following our return to school, Nieshaal Thambipillay then decided to play a game. “Okay guys, so let's play the quiet game. Whoever talks, I will cross your seat out,” he said, as he drew the seating arrangement of the class on the whiteboard and scanned the room for misbehavior. Behind him, Mr Paul was in his office smiling, and praised us for our silence.
“I wonder why is the class suddenly so silent. Good job, 7N,” said Mr Paul, as he gave us a thumbs up and smiled. “I am very proud of you and have seen that you have improved. Keep up th good work.”
During Art class, I had been using water colors, and Ms Nadia had taught us how to do a color scheme. We had to do some color schemes and color tones, and I mixed the colors wrongly. Ms Nadia then helped to mix the colors, while emphasizing the correct method. “Wei Yiang, I am doing it for your own good, so mix them properly,” she said. I felt like I was mixing colors like how George mixed his medicine from the play.
As Ms Nadia took time to guide me, she had a policy that when everyone finished, no one can leave till the last person had finished cleaning. So, because Ms Nadia guided me, I was the last to finish washing everything and Ms Nadia held everyone back. Most of the class groaned as I struggled to get the paint off my brushes and palette.
“Come on, Wei Yiang, faster,” groaned Wei Zhong, as more people chanted the same. Eventually, I finished, and Ms Nadia let everyone back to the class.
I eventually received a grade of 2/3 for my pyramid for Geography, and life went on as usual. Mr Steve mentioned Dylan S. Gill's self-proclaimed nickname, Chow Bao Wou, to laughter from the class. A month back, most of the boys in 7N refer Dylan S. Gill by that name, and he did not like it.
You see, our class, 7N, had a lot of rowdy people, and many of them were boys. This has resulted in many teachers scolding our class, from Mr Paul to Mr Victor himself, who got angry so many times along with his team of teachers, that even to the point where we were jumping rope, Mr Victor also had to lecture everyone sternly just because of a few troublemakers.
Cikgu Azira then improvised a method to sniff out troublemakers, so she asked everyone to stand up, and she observed the class and gave some short quizzes. Those that answered correctly sat down, along with those Cikgu Azira deemed good students, including me. Majority of those who sat were girls, and the majority who remained standing were boys, and Cikgu Azira sternly lectured them on their misbehavior.
Ms Visa had also wanted us to present a song on metric and imperial units for Maths, but however we had work to do. Most of our teachers did cool things in class by then, including Ms Chume showing us the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which destroyed the city of Pompeii, Italy. Ms Lim had also been planning for Teacher's Day, so she asked us to vote for a teacher whom we like, during our Character Transformation (CT) session which was held in the library. The teacher with the most votes would be announced on Teacher's Day.
On Thursday, 18th April 2013, Ms Lim asked for more requests so that three more students can join the camp. The day was ruined when Ms Nadia got angry at me when she saw me putting the wrong color on the paper, in which we had to do some color toning and color schemes again.
“Why are you putting the wrong color? Why are you mixing like that? What is this?” Ms Nadia roared. “Wrong, wrong, wrong! What you are doing is wrong! You cannot mix like that! Very messy!”
All eyes in the classroom were immediately distracted from their work, and were aimed in my direction. Tears poured out of my eyes almost instantly, as if Ms Nadia's stern act had triggered my hormones like an emergency switch or a water sprinkler detecting fire in the room. Ms Nadia then pressed me as to why I had mixed it wrongly. Traumatized by Ms Nadia scolding me, with my heart scathed, I mentally moaned as I had become Ms Nadia's latest casualty of scoldings and punishments.
The entire class looked at me, as if Ms Nadia's strict action was to keep the class in check for troublemakers or anyone who wanted to make some fun in the class. However, the action proved to be too much for Ms Nadia's strict strategy in her classes. While Ms Nadia being strict then kept misbehaving students in check, it also provided another recipe for good students to be indirectly traumatized by the strictness.
I cried with tears, because I was traumatized by the incident. A twelve-year-old boy does not have the guts of a student in Year 11 or in college; they are mentally undeveloped and unadjusted to the challenges around them and need time to become strong and firm. I was viewed as a weak student mentally; vulnerable to scoldings by teachers, and one who was frequently bullied them, all because of this weakness. The other boys, if they were scolded or shouted at, would be more or less able to take the beating as they had been used to that and that the more they are scolded, the more they are able to ignore what was being said. A bully would continue his rampage; a misbehaving student will continue to misbehave, and a student with disciplinary problems would continue to be a thorn in the flesh for anyone teaching in class. We had more girls then boys then in 7N, and psychologically, it was assumed that girls are good, and boys are bad.
Another reason why I cried, was that because if I spoke up, or shouted back in defense, I would be viewed as a disrespectful student to a teacher who teaches and lives to tell the tale. We students were also not allowed to question the authority of our teachers because it would be deemed as behavioral misconduct. Hence, there was nothing that I could do but shed tears.
Ms Nadia kept on asking me why I did not know how to mix the color, and left while checking on the others. She told me to go to the washroom to wash my face and come back with an answer. I could have done that, or continued crying, or even asked someone for help to solve my problem.
I did not give the answer because I was too traumatized to do so, and if I wasn't, I would have given the answer had Ms Nadia been a bit less harsh on me.
This is important to note that this is my first time using water color for Art lessons, as previously, during elementary school, I had used crayons or color pencils, which were easier to handle. Using water colors was quite difficult, and one would need to have patience to mix them. I also had limited colors on stock that day, and it was very troublesome when I had less paint available. In fact, I also felt that I did not deserve the scolding as I had been innocently careless, and was the most scolded out of all the good students. In fact, I rarely forgot to do homework, and pass all the homework and coursework on time, aside from being attentive in class.
So, I just shrugged in and just let my painting be for that time. In fact, reflecting on the situation, I had Fine Art Club on Mondays, and because my brushes were used for the murals, they got dirty, and it hit me that at that very moment, when Ms Nadia scolded me, she told me to buy new brushes as it would be impossible to make them clean, which would affect the quality of the painting if accidentally mixed. Ms Nadia would remember this incident for a long time when thinking of me. I kept thinking of that incident as I left the art studio, and returned to class.
“Wei Yiang, I know you are sad, but Ms Nadia wants to help you. In fact, Ms Nadia is actually helping you to be good, to be on the right path,” Janelle Arnelia said, as she comforted me in class.
The following week, we had a new timetable, and one of the changes was that PE lessons will be held in the first two periods of Friday as it would not be so hot as opposed to the later part of the day. Ms Chume then told us something interesting about the Roman baths, as the Romans were the first to have a certain degree of sanitation and it became the norm worldwide following the collapse of the Roman Empire. Cikgu Azira showed us “The Lorax”, which was a movie based on the book of the same name by Dr. Seuss which sends a message between economic needs and environmental protection.
We also saw Ms Thila in school that very Monday, 22nd April 2013, and many people wanted to have Ms Thila back as our Maths teacher. Ms Nalina had, in the meantime, taken over Ms Visa's class that day as Ms Visa was absent, so it rekindled the motivation to change back our Maths teacher.
Later, we had Fine Art Club where Ms Feeda continued to introduce to us the artists and do some painting work in the Art Studio. Unfortunately, we faced a problem during Fine Art Club when we met later that evening; it was raining and we could not get out of the Art Studio.
Back in those days, Nobel International School's old campus art studio was located on the ground floor next to the carpark where the exit gate was. At the time, no passageway connected the art studio with the main school building's entrance, and if it rained, students who were in the studio were trapped in it. If they ran in the rain, they would get soaked when they reached the main building. To solve the problem, we used a cardboard to shelter ourselves as we went from the art studio to the foyer.
Tuesday, 23rd April 2013, was the first day of the Survival Camp. Almost half the school went, and many were carrying huge trolley bags to the camp. On that day, I saw many people bringing their bags along the corridor to buses waiting outside the school. As most of the teachers went, we did the work we were given in class while they supervised the camp.
The first thing I did that day was to hand in my Commonwealth Essay Competition form, and I was the first one to do so. However, when I was going to have my Bible Knowledge (BK) class, Ms Joyce told us that we had no BK class, so we joined with the people in 7N for their reading time. Ms Amira was there, and she said she was taking over Ms June's classes. This caused a stir among the class who was afraid that Ms June was relinguishing her class to Ms Amira. In the end, Ms June clarified that Ms Amira was only taking over her Reading classes instead of the English class.
While the teachers who taught us were away, some of the teachers who didn't go for the camp gave us work. Ms Visa gave us a “Mathematics Holiday Pack” for us to do, consisting of four worksheets, and many people watched movies in the class. Because our class had a cluster of rowdy guys, it caused the whole room to become noisy each time.
Surprisingly, the next day, Mr Chan was back in school, and he said that he took a total of six hours to head to and from the camp, and he was unbearably tired as he spoke. He had driven on his own and was quite a strong guy despite his age. It must have been hectic for him to drive like a madman to and from the camp.
Mr Chan described the campsite as a place surrounded with lush greenery. There were pockets of trees dotted all over the resort, with three large ponds and a waterfall to give a calming atmosphere. He then announced that Ms Doris’ husband had passed away the previous morning, prompting Pei Chi, Janelle Arnelia and Amanda Teoh to write letters of condolence to Ms Doris.
When we got back to class, Cikgu Niely relieved Cikgu Zura, who went for the camp, and asked us to write essays in Malay which we call the karangan. I then took some time to write my journal once we were done, and as soon as Cikgu Niely left, the entire class turned into a madhouse. The noise level was quite loud, and Ivyna, as the Deputy Prime Minister, tried to calm the class down, but it didn't work.
The boys in the class aimed paper balls into the rubbish bin like a basketball game, and each time the noise level got out of hand, Ivyna shrieked and shouted “Class, please keep quiet!” in fear of the teachers coming to our classroom to lecture us. Janelle Arnelia then suggested a vote on whether Ms June should be retained as our English teacher, to applause from the crowd.
The boys in the class then targeted the Smartboard, typing and playing with the controls, to more paper throwing and noise making. They played and acted like wild animals, as Ivyna tried to calm them down like a House Speaker in the Malaysian parliament. This annoyed most of the girls as well as me, and we left the class for our break time. The madness continued even after we returned, as if there was no end.
I then lifted the curtains in 7N to allow sunlight in so that I could easily look at my journal, but Wai Shaun and Benjamin Fong disagreed, saying that the sunlight would kill people. As soon as time passed, I was happy that the camp was ending and that Ms June would return to continue her lessons. I had succeeded in mixing the colors correctly during art lesson, which drew satisfaction from Ms Nadia. The teachers continued to give us revision packs day after day and I had to do a lot of them, as the Mid Year Examination was approaching.
The next week was quite a busy one. Ms June kickstarted the week by asking us to name the state capitals of Malaysia, and I successfully got all correct except the capital city of Kelantan. Megan Lee and I got a prize each for being the top two in the class; she had gotten three capitals incorrect. I received a Bali keychain while Megan received a souvenir from Sabah.
Ms Feeda was also gearing up for an exciting project that we need to do during Fine Art Club CCA, which was to set up an Art Exhibition on the stage of the school hall for parents to view during the Parent-Teacher Meeting (PTM). The Art Exhibition would display the artworks of our Fine Art Club CCA as well as art pieces from all the year levels. Ms Feeda's main focus was on the artworks created by Year 10 and 11 students. For the Art Exhibition, we also had to display some canvas paintings on stilts, and I drew a skyline of Kuala Lumpur for the exhibition. We were also having preparations for Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration, and we had to do cards for her. I decided to draw an environmental theme from The Lorax for the birthday celebration, and subsequently, Ms Evelyn said that each class must come up with an environmental project, with a green zone in every class. So, I had planned a botanical garden outside 7N, and Ms June subsequently told me to show that to Ms Evelyn, along with a proposed blueprint to be discussed with the class as well as her.
We had our Bible Knowledge Postal Quiz on 30th April, and celebrated Mr Chan's birthday that day, although his birthday fell a day later on 1st May, which we were unable to commemorate due to Labour Day. Mr Chan shouted sternly at the boys who were talking at the back of the science lab, where we had our BK lesson, and he roared at them. It was the first, and until today, the only time which I can recall Mr Chan shouting in front of us. He is a gentle and humble man, and one who greets with a smile when we approached him.
After we returned from our Labour Day public holiday on 1st May, we were in for a rude shock as the school was hit by a power outage which lasted time after time, and many were annoyed at the power subsequently coming on and off. It made our teachers difficult to teach, so Cikgu Baliah resorted to giving us work during Geography, and the entire class sat on the corridor outside 7N to do their work. Ms Shum then passed by, and she was seen in a pair of stretchers due to a sprained leg.
“Welcome to 7N!” I cheered, welcoming Ms Shum. I then had a chat with her on the stretchers issue, as well as the situation in the class.
“You guys have an open class method. It is good to sit outside and be exposed to the fresh air,” she said.
Once Cikgu Baliah called all of us into the class, she begun to speak, and suddenly, the fans started turning. Cikgu Baliah tried to brush off the notion that the electricity was on, in order to prevent the class from anticipating the return of voltage power. “Class, relax, it's just the wind,” she said.
I then walked to the switch and flicked on the lights, and the lights came on, proving the point that the class was right on the power. Yew Jan and all the boys were cheering when the lights were switched on, as if Manchester United had won the football game. Cikgu Baliah continued to urge everyone to relax and not be too excited. We then passed up our Geography books after enduring two and a half hours of blackout.
We then had the Prefectorial Board's installation at the end of the week, which shortened our PE lesson. The Mandarin Foreign students were out of luck as they had no PE due to them being far behind in their lesson plans. Yew Jan then tried to tease Ms Thava who was passing by during our reflection time, which resulted in anger from Ms June. She told him that he would be behind bars if he was an adult.
The Selangor Menteri Besar at the time, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, declared a public holiday for Monday, 6th May 2013 in the state of Selangor in conjunction with Malaysia's 2013 General Election, and I wrote “Happy voting to all” in my journal to wish everyone a safe election day. This meant that we would return on 7th May 2013 due to that holiday. I took the opportunity to observe the election and read the newspapers on the polls. As a young kid then, I was interested in politics and read about the happenings of the election, excited to see the political parties’ flags on display.
When we returned on 7th May, we were shocked by a short, second blackout during English with Ms June during English, as well as Cikgu Azira accidentally revealing her password during Science. Back in those days, to log onto the computer, the username and password function would be present on the computer and projected to the Smartboard's screen. The password function would be blacked out when typed, but not the username function. Cikgu Azira accidentally typed the password on the username function, and since the Smartboard at the time was projecting the computer's screen, it displayed her username to the class.
“Cikgu! You displayed your password to the class!” Ivyna cried. Cikgu Azira froze in silence and looked at the computer screen and Smartboard. “Aargh! I have to change my password!” she cried.
Some boys took hint and whispered that they should trick one of the teachers and see their password so that they could gain access to the computer and use it. It was an offence to use or play with the Smartboard or computer without permission, but some were foolhardy enough to do it. Many teachers had given us revision packs, and Ms Visa had given us a Tutor Marked Assignment, which was the norm back then for most subjects then. However, I was enlightened when Mr Chan gave us small books the size of a credit card containing the Bible books of John, Luke, Matthew and Mark, during BK.
“While the book of Matthew, Mark and Luke tell about the story of Jesus, the book of John is quite different because it tells about the life before Jesus came,” said Mr Chan, as we peered at the books, which quoted portions of the chapters in the Bible. He then discussed the BK Postal Quiz and begun a new chapter in our lesson.
Wednesday, 8th May 2013 was Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration. We gathered in the hall at 9:45am after reading about endangered animals during English.
Auntie Clarine then entered the hall like a celebrity as the whole hall went wild. The cake cutting and performances wowed and entertained her to tears with appreciation. Ms Nadia had also prepared a gift for Auntie Clarine comprising a tree with messages stuck to it. “Thank you Ms Nadia, and thank you to all the students of the secondary school. I want this up in my office!” she cried. Upon returning to class, the entire class was rowdy to the point Ms I-Lynn came from the CCA room next door, in anger at Cikgu Zura and all of us.
“What is this? I can hear a lot of noise. You all are like monkeys in a zoo!” she cried. Even Ms Kavitha had to intervene during Mandarin as the noise level disturbed her.
The noise level and disruption became so bad till Cikgu Zura got angry at us when we were presenting our portfolio in the class, thus taking away 20 minutes of her time. There were good news though, as I also got to draw a nice landscape painting consisting of a mountain and pine trees during Art using color tones, and Ms June was planning on one of our parents coming to present their occupation for Career Week.
On 10th May 2013, aside from our ICT exams being held during PE, there was an announcement during the morning assembly that day that a Student Council was proposed by some students, and students who wished to join the Student Council had to fill in either one of two forms, namely Level Representatives and Council Committee members to register. We were told that two level representatives from each level, and being interested, I picked up a form for Level Representatives, since the Council Committee is only open to students from Year 10 and 11 then.
The Nobel International School Student Council was a student council proposed by Chew Wei Zhuen and some Year 10 members. As I had mentioned before, the generation of students then were quite more open and were the leaders as if it was a college-like environment. The students were leading an initiative that would allow interaction with the management team with ease.
We begun preparing for the Mid Year Examination, as we re-arranged the tables, removed non- important stuff like the world map and the Roman army shields in the class, and turned the tables so that the front of the table faces us, in order to discourage cheating in the exam. We also had to sit in alphabetical order for the test, as we prepared for a strict, exam-based environment.
Putting in my candidature for the Student Council required a few teachers’ support. I needed around five teachers, so I got Ms Chume's support. However, Ms June told me that my answers in my application were inappropriate, so she got a new form and guided me on the application.
“The Student Council is a very important body, and getting into the council would mean that you would need to present a formal plan and commitment to the council. The question is: “Are you committed to your duties if chosen?"" Ms June asked, hence presenting me with a clear picture of my expectations for the Student Council. She also mentioned that getting into the council required due diligence and responsibility if I was chosen.
During the CT session on 14th May 2013, Ms Evelyn then asked if anyone had chosen to volunteer themselves for the Student Council to raise their hand, and a few people, including me, put their hands up. “Wah! So few only!” Ms Evelyn exclaimed, as she proceeded to remind successful applicants who were chosen as candidates to prepare a speech explaining why they should be the choice of the students. “You must do this because you are the voice of the school, and you will be voted by the students, so you need to give a reason why they should choose you,” she said. Aside from that, Ms Evelyn also mentioned that there are many more events, such as Career Week, which were planned for Term 2 when we returned from our Mid Year Break.
The next day, 15th May 2013, was my birthday, and most people wished me a happy birthday when I told them about it. Ms June, Le Anne, Cikgu Azira, Cikgu Zura and everyone wished me, and even Cikgu Baliah gave me a Dairymilk container with a writing on it that said, “Hi, Wei Yiang, happy birthday! May all your dreams come true and God bless you with health and happy life”. However, most of the day was to be wrecked by my friends’ actions.
Chu Xiang brought some Chinese yoyos to play in the class with the boys, as well as during break time. However, one of the yoyos smashed onto the ceiling board, causing it to collapse. Ms June saw the damage and immediately called Ms Marien, Ms Sim and Mr Chan to the rescue. Mr Chan took the collapsed board away, leaving a big hole in the ceiling. I then showed Ms June, who reviewed my application for the Student Council, and thus she signed it. I would then submit my Student Council application form to the main office, gleefully waiting for my status to be processed.
Most of my friends joked about my birthday, with Brendan Cheah gleefully claiming it was his although his real birthday is on 5th February. Mr Steve did the oral test with us in class, and many people were making noise, so he ordered the entire class to stand up, and eventually, Sean Mark and Dylan S. Gill were booted from the room for being troublemakers.
The next day, 16th May 2013, was the first day of the Mid Year Examination. For the first time, Nobel International School banned all pencil cases during exams as opposed to previous years, which meant that we could only bring our stationery for the test, aside from placing our bags outside the classroom.
We had Geography exam, which Ms Nadia had to invigilate and come to our class for the first time. Cikgu Zura then invigilated our Art exam in the classroom, but then she had our exam extended to 12:30pm which was an additional 15 minutes due to the high noise level. She said that she taught Year 10 and 11 and all of them behaved well during the exam silently, as examinations are silent affairs. Cikgu Zura also said that we could be caught by the police if we were making too much noise, and told us to keep this in mind even after we went to college.
Mr Steve then met me after the exam and told me, Janice Low, Krystal Goh and Tham Jo Yi to meet him for an oral test, which me, Krystal and Janice scored full marks while Jo Yi received half of it.
There was a letter with the logo of the University of Cambridge on it, which contained a scholarship certificate to study at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom, and it was signed by the university's chancellor. I later did my BK exam after lunch, and everyone returned to the class once the exam was over.
Ms Chume then led a group of elementary school students past 7N and warned them to be silent as an exam was in progress. As she went to the CCA's office, she pushed open the door of the CCA room, which caused the door of our class, 7N, to open without warning. The boys, led by Brendan, laughed at the incident as they found it hillarious. Chu Xiang then amended the scholarship from Cambridge University to make it seem like he approved it, and everyone laughed in the class.
Ms Sim had to reiterate the examination procedures the next day, telling us not to look around the room, talk, refrain from going for early break, and listen to the teacher's instructions on starting and ending the paper. Mr Paul, on the other hand, was furious and said that the school had to purchase more facilities to replace those that were vandalized. He said that if a prefect caught us messing up with the facilities, we would face the management and pay a fine of RM 100 to replace the damaged facilities.
Ivyna brought a frog pillow to keep herself comfortable during the test, but the boys continued to play and act rowdily to the point I was disturbed. Yew Jan tried to act hillariously, rubbing the whiteboard with his finger, and Cikgu Baliah had to ask Sean Mark, Wei Zhong and Yew Jan to return to their seats. The trio ignored her, and continued to gather in groups. When Cikgu Baliah repeatedly told Nieshaal and Dillon Teh to sit down, Nieshaal took my pencil and threw it to the other boys who played with it by throwing to each other, from Benjamin Fong to Brendan Cheah before I caught it. Yew Jan then fiddled around with Aaron Liew and Nieshaal's table by pushing them, and asked me to find a spring in the class before he found it. Ye Sean pushed my chair while Yew Jan hit Dylan’s pencil case, only to be scolded by Cikgu Baliah.
The next day, we were allocated time during periods where we did not have a test to either read a book or study. I then spoke to Ms June on me joining a writing class every Friday at Helen O Grady, a writing center, where Ms Fiona, our teacher, would give us some jist into how we should do our essays or writing task.
During the exam, Cikgu Izyani then led some elementary school students past our class and urged them to keep quiet so as to not disturb us, while Ms Visa, following the exam, urged us to bring our exercise books for checking by Ms Evelyn, failing which we would be given a zero for our homework. Ms Visa said that we would not get back our exam papers as the school would keep it after we did our corrections, in order to ensure the confidentiality of the test at the time. The papers would then be placed into a question box for future reference.
Things got worse when Benjamin Koh used my pencil case as a football and played with it, while all the boys kicked my school bag. He had done all silly tricks before over the last few months which made me hurt, scared and annoyed, from kicking me to pinching me. When this continued into the following day, Ms Lim and Ms Nalina came into the class due to the commotion and the noise level and lectured us before Ms Chume entered sternly. “Yew Jan! Get out!” she ordered. She then separated the boys and then told us that a Year 10 boy was caught playing with his jacket during the exam, which was thrown out and recycled. They continued their rant over the next few days, from being rowdy to being playful in class.
The Mid Year Examination stretched into its fourth day when Cikgu Izyani displayed an interactive bomb timer which looked cool, during the science exam. I was also told that the Year 8s would head to KidZania Kuala Lumpur the following month in June for their coursework.
Pei Chi then played relaxation music while Cikgu Azira booted him out of the class again for making too much noise. Cikgu Azira asked me on how I felt for the Science exam, and I told her that there was no issue with the exam. Pei Chi then collected RM 4 from me to give it to Nieshaal, who passed it to a group of students from Year 9 for the fundraiser. As I using the free period to do my journal, Pei Chi and Janelle approached me to teach me how to hold the pencil properly and write nicely, as I was rushing my journal.
“Hold the pencil like this. Wei Yiang, you must learn to use a pen,” said Pei Chi. Janelle looked on and tried to guide me by writing pen on my journal. Unlike the elementary or primary school students, Junior and Senior School students are expected to use pen to write, and I had been using pencils for everything, from my homework to my journal. Ms Visa and a couple of teachers had instructed me to use the pen as that was the norm from Year 7 to 11. I then checked my pocket for meal coupons and it had finished.
Benjamin Fong then tried to do a funny move by jumping over a chair, but however, he knocked it and fell down. A loud “KABOOM” was heard, and this attracted Ms I-Lynn, who was working in the CCA office, to march over to our class.
“What are you supposed to be doing? Why are you guys making so much noise? You are supposed to be studying, right? This is exam week, so you should be putting your effort to study, not to make so much noise. How many times do I have to come in just to scold all of you?” Ms I-Lynn boomed.
Ms Thana then came in after lunch to replace Ms Visa, and Janelle and the girls planned on the Show Choir performance. As we had to do a performance for Show Choir, Janelle thought it was a good idea to plan for it while I listened. Pei Chi then played the relaxing music again, and jumped into the discussion for Show Choir. We had no clear idea on which song to choose as we had many suggestions. I suggested “How Bad Can I Be” from The Lorax, while Ivyna was planning to do a Korean song. The girls had suggested the song, “I've Got A Boy” by a dance group called Girls Generation, for the performance. Janelle and Pei Chi strategized some dance moves and demonstrated them in the class.
At the back of the class, the boys begun restarting their nonsense again. This time, they targeted Dylan S. Gill, turning the letter S in his name into a profanity. Yew Jan acted as a comedian, fooling around with Dylan till he got mad. Yew Jan then wrote some profanities relating to Dylan on the Smartboard, and Dylan, furious with Yew Jan, barged towards him and they ran to the toilet, where he took refuge till the class finished. Fortunately, to keep the peace, I headed to Mr Chan's BK class where he enlightened us on the Prophecies of the Messiah. Then, he told us how we can creatively use numbers to make up 10, by adding or subtracting them in a hillarious way.
As the examination progressed to the Mandarin subjects, namely Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Core, Ms Sim told those who did not have exams to head to different classes for Reading. After trying to find a class to enter, where some people in 7B shooed me away, I took refuge in 7L and continued to write my journal. Mr Mervin then passed by the class with elementary school students and told them to be silent. “Shh! Shh! Shh!” he cried, as they headed to the canteen for break time. Ms Sim then passed by and lectured Yew Jan for not doing anything, before returning a few seconds later.
While I went to 7E to take my Mandarin Core exam, Ms Chume had placed the exam timetable outside the CCA and Administration Unit, where she works there with Ms Kavitha, Mr Paul and Ms I-Lynn, who were in charge of the CCA activities. Ms Chume was also involved in marking and producing the exam scripts for the test.
Ms Visa managed the exam strictly and to the fear of everyone in class. “No talking. No turning around,” she said sternly. When the exam finished and we wanted to go back, Puan Rostita entered the class and asked us to return and rest, before allowing us to get our stuff and return in two minutes. So I got my journal and continued jotting down things while everyone else did their other things. When we were allowed to return to 7N, Mr Cupit was there waiting for us and he said we could revise or read a book but no talking was allowed. Hence, I used the time to write my journal.
Mr Cupit then switched on the Smartboard to play Johnny English which was a comedy show while I fixed the broken broom in the class. Ye Sean then snatched my pen from my pencil case as Dylan S. Gill fixed the cables on the computer. To take into account safety, Dylan took his test pad, tore it up and wrote “Do not touch! Wire!” on it. Apparently, the speakers had a wire problem, and Dylan was fixing them, hence the sound did not come on.
After lunch, Mr Paul asked all the boys from Year 7, 8 and 9 to stay back, as he spoke to us about traces of vandalism in the school. The washroom was laced with row after row of toilet paper, the fire extinguisher being discharged of its chemicals on the floor, and the corridor was coated with fingerprints and footprints from the floor to the walls and the ceiling. He told us that the cost to repair the vandalism came from our school fees, and it was a pain in the wallet to fix them.
During Malay class, we then practiced the dance moves for Show Choir as everyone tried to follow Pei Chi, Janelle and Ivyna in doing the dancing. I was the only one not dancing as Janelle had assigned me to do prop-making. Cikgu Zura and I sat next to each other; she was marking the examination scripts while I wrote my journal, detailing the accounts of the previous days and the very moments that passed. We were as busy as accounting clerks, jotting things down time after time.
Dylan then pulled out the world map and took down the speakers, before laying the world map on the floor. Yew Jan, bored of cleaning the whiteboard, jumped onto the map. Dylan and Ye Sean went to find Mr Wong, who gave them a new wire to repair the classroom speakers on the Smartboard as there was no sound.
While I was indulged in writing my journal, my water bottle was leaking, and Wei Zhong alerted me to that. Ye Sean and I then got a mop to clean up the mess before I continued journalling.
Pei Chi had a hard time training the boys as opposed to the girls, who danced gracefully. “Follow me! Five, six, seven, eight, one, two!” cried Pei Chi as she showed them the moves. Nieshaal hit me with his jacket and moments later, we did the Jellyfish Jive, a song that we learned in Year 6. Ivyna tried to get everyone to dance, but Nieshaal did a headstand with a somersault, and the boys followed him as he rolled over. “Out with the biji!” he cried.
Ms Visa, annoyed at the noise, boomed to the class. “7N! I thought those who were not performing were supposed to read. What are you doing?” Ms Visa then took the time to read my journal as I rested. “Wei Yiang, I'd like to have a look at your journal,” she said. I passed her the book as I fiddled with my numb fingers from writing. I then explained about my journal as Ms Visa asked what I wrote in my journal. In fact, there were two separate journals, namely one that was used for the English class, and my own personal journal. I had grown up with the habit of writing journals which was a task since Year 1, and I had, on my own accord, decided to write a journal of my own activities in school and events as well. By then, I had written five books since January 2013, and I had decided to continue with the journalling. Ms Visa looked and smiled as she flipped the pages.
The boys then continued doing somersaults and headstands, as they laughed and talked loudly. The girls continued to dance, but however, they were interrupted by the broken speakers which did not beam the music. Dylan was trying to fix the speakers, but the boys then tucked in their maroon shirts, buttoned up to the top collar, and then continued with their headstands and somersaults. Benjamin Koh, Chu Xiang, Sean Mark, Ye Sean and all the boys continued to act cool and crazily, showing off stunt after stunt.
“Can you please stop it?!” cried Ms Visa, as she growled her stern look to the boys. Dylan had successfully fixed the speakers, and the song and video of the dance Pei Chi and Janelle were trying to project had successfully been beamed without hassle. The girls watched the video of the dancers, discussed the moves among themselves, and, with satisfaction, Ivyna called Brendan and Alex to watch. “Guys, come and watch the video,” Janelle instructed, as she took aim at the boys who were fooling around.
Cikgu Zura then came in and then distributed work while Dylan logged into his Gmail account and checked for the song. Then, Pei Chi typed a mail and saw three songs, namely “I Got A Boy”, Thriller, and Gentlemen. Cikgu Azira took over the following lesson and told Nieshaal to give out the message containing the second term fees for 2013.
The boys then tried to play horse in the classroom. Ye Sean then got on all fours and pretended to be a horse while Chu Xiang, Daniel, Dillon and the rest of the boys watched. Benjamin Koh sat on him and Ye Sean could not bear the weight till he fell to the ground, screaming in pain as everyone laughed. Dillon Teh and Sean Mark then tried to do the same, with similar results. “Owwww!!!!” he cried.
The examination season was about to come to an end. I spent the last day, 23rd May 2013, to revise for Malay Paper 4. Ms Shum, the elementary school's principal and I had a chat and I proposed if I could contribute recycled items to the school even though I was in the Junior and Senior School. She said yes, and told me that she would inform me of the recycling day's date beforehand.
The air conditioning was quite cold, and I rubbed my hands to keep myself warm. Following the exam, Dylan went to his Gmail again, opened it, and begun searching for songs and checked his mail.
During break time, I then had a chat with Catherine Yau and Christina Tung, who were from Year 8 and 9. Catherine was also part of my Fine Art Club CCA, while Christina was her friend, and we regularly chat during break and lunch despite them being older than me. Catherine told me that they did the countdown at the end of their last paper in their class in Year 8.
We continued dancing after returning from break time. Pei Chi then started recording the names of those who did not contribute RM 4, and she said that my RM 4 would be replaced by Nieshaal's contribution and would be repaid.
“Brendan, you look very Asian at the back!” said Yew Jan, referring to how he viewed Brendan from the back of the class. Benjamin Fong tickled Yew Jan in response, as he screamed and laughed loudly. Yew Jan was undeterred, and he said that Cikgu Azira's eyes looked like a mockingham. Cikgu Azira was not happy with him and stared at him sternly.
Janelle then asked me told me to do props again, while Pei Chi asked if anyone wanted to practice, since Show Choir, as per what she found out, would be the following Wednesday, 29th May 2013. Janelle and Pei Chi went to find Ms June to sort out the arrangements, while Cikgu Azira asked us to sit down till Ms June arrived. Pei Chi then gave everyone a permission slip which we had to sign and bring it back when we come back to practice, which was stipulated as 3rd June 2013, although one was dated 23rd May 2013, which was the day at the exact moment we were having our final paper. Pei Chi told me to ignore the error, as we begun our last paper at 11:00am. Once the paper finished, the boys then started tickling Sean Mark till he screamed. It was up to the teachers to begin marking them.
Mr Paul had good news for us after lunch, which was the International Week that would be held from 1st to 5th July 2013. Each class was assigned a country, and there were many competitions, from a tourism video to a Masterchef competition showcasing various foods on sale from different countries, a fashion show run called Project Runway, and an International Exhibition.
Ms Cynthia then announced the names who then got into the Student Council, and unfortunately, I wasn't chosen. We then practiced our dance moves and I had to write down a long list of instructions from the notice board regarding International Week.
Pei Chi then said that our class would dance a song named “Gentlemen” by PSY, the same celebrity that did Gangnam Style. She, Ivyna and Janelle organized everyone but the boys were uncooperative. I was once again told to make props with no indication given.
Upon our return from the Mid Year holidays, the Student Council candidates begun making speeches during our assembly in order to convince people to vote for them, starting with the candidates for the president of the Student Council, followed by the level representatives. As I had injured my leg during the holidays in Penang, I had to use the lift, and Brendan had to accompany me. Consequently, I had to be excused from PE for a month.
We had a discussion of the exam papers. Some teachers, like Ms Visa, asked for handwriting improvements, while others, like Cikgu Azira, just discussed the answers left, right and center. Ms June had a trick up her sleeve; our stories were out of tune, so she even brought her friends over to her house to listen to what she called a funny comedy show, and she laughed so much till her friends read them and laughed themselves. From spelling errors to unacceptable grammar, it was a hilarious show to put on. To top it off, Yew Jan's story riled the crowd with a ghost story and a man running away due to family conflict.
Ms June had also asked us to write some letters as a letter writing exercise, and address it to AEON for a mock interview, and that one lucky person will be taken for a real job interview. Benjamin Koh produced the best letter, while Sean Mark and Ye Sean were the lucky ones selected for the interview. Mr Steve amused the class by playing a game on body parts, and we had to name them in Mandarin, and Daniel Ngew was informed to bring three gifts worth RM 20 as he lost the game, and buy sashimi for the class.
Teacher's Day fell the next day, on 13th June 2013. We had to bring our chairs down to the hall at 11:20am, and we had fun watching the event, with the theme of the Teacher's Day being “Superheroes”. I gave teachers’ day gifts to all my teachers whom I met, but sadly, Ms Nadia would be absent for two months, and as such, Ms Vithyah took over and taught us the watercolor techniques of solid wash, graded wash, wet on wet, drop color on wet, scrumbling and pushing out pigments. Ms Vithyah guided us calmly unlike Ms Nadia, who used to be strict in guiding us. When Ms Vithyah saw my weaknesses, she guided me and anyone who had trouble doing the painting. Of course, the boys tried to play again during Cikgu Baliah's class as Pei Chi, Ivyna and Janelle got the show choir ready, so Cikgu Baliah said that the practices would stop if the boys kept on playing.
As the 2013 Student Council polls were gearing up, some of the candidates had placed posters of themselves and their campaign across the school hallway. Ngei San Ying was running as a candidate herself, along with her sister, Ngei San Wen, who placed her campaign as a “Tile Revolution” across the school grounds. Chew Wei Zhuen had his poster placed up as well; he had taken inspiration from the recently concluded Malaysian general election by putting his initials "WZ” and a cross beside his initials, just like the campaign posters of the general election. In fact, Wei Zhuen had been the initiator of the Student Council, presenting the idea with a few Year 10s for the project. Everything, from the makeup of the council to the election process, was inspired by the Malaysian general election. Each student would need to get their identity checked, and were provided with a green and white paper to vote on. The green paper contains the list of candidates for the Student Council's committee, while the white paper are the ballots for our level representatives. Indelible ink which lasted for days was also provided for us to dip our hands in before we left the voting centre. We were told to be silent, vote quickly and not to peek or show who we voted for.
The Student Council Elections arrived on Monday, 17th June 2013. Our class, 7N, was the first to be polled. The prefects assisted the Student Council Election Committee (SCEC) to carry booths down to the hall to cover the tables which we were to vote at. As the booths were heavy, some of the boys from our class assisted them to carry the booth. We were provided pens to mark, and the stage was set up in a manner that resembled a polling station, just like the ones in the election.
Ms Marien had told the SCEC that the booth and election process should look like the Malaysian elections in order to allow us to have a good taste at democracy. The indelible ink topped the agenda, as I could recall on the Malaysian Election Day on 5th May 2013, the ink could be washed off.
Aaron Liew, Yew Jan and I were the first to cast our ballots. I brought my library card to register and were given two papers to mark. The papers contained the portraits and names of the candidates in the election. I marked an X nervously on each paper, folded the papers twice each, and dropped them in the respective boxes before inking my hand with the ink as proof that we had been polled. Ms Chume lined us up once we had finished electing, but the boys were too eager to wash their hands. When Ms Chume told them they could only wash later, the boys started playing and inking each other with the wet ink. San Ying and Natasha Singam were elected as our Year 7 Student Council representatives, while Chew Wei Zhuen and Ng Kuan Yew were elected as the president and vice president of Nobel International School's Student Council, for a one year term.
Mr Steve had his rage during Mandarin when the boys continued their rowdiness, causing him to pick a stack of books up and slammed them on the table, causing a loud “BOOM!” to take place. It caught the class’ attention. He then told us that he wanted silence till the end of the lesson as he angrily spoke about how bad the marks of the troublemakers were. At least, there were good things, such as us having a solar system project in class, and I was assigned to work on the planet Venus. We had to make a model of the solar system, and I was placed with Yen Choo and Jo Yi to make the model.
During Fine Art Club that very same day, Ms Feeda got us to do our canvas painting and I used blue, black and yellow arcylic paint to paint the skyline of Kuala Lumpur on my canvas. Ms Feeda then went and checked on us, as most people did a painting of their liking. Ms Feeda also told us that she needed some people to stay back after school in order to assist in setting up the art exhibition on the eve of the PTM day. I enjoyed doing the canvas paint as Ms Feeda gave the thumbs up on me. “Beautiful. Good,” she said.
Ivyna's elder sister, Michelle Ong, was invited to give a presentation during the Character Transformation (CT) session we had on 18th June 2013, which was our Career Day. Her sister was a bank accountant and gave a talk on her job, before being presented with a fruit basket by Nieshaal Thambipillay who represented our class. The Year 8s went to Kidzania Kuala Lumpur the following day, while we got started on our International Week project, which Ivyna and Pei Chi begun discussing. Mr Paul had mentioned that all the Year 7s would be given Asian countries, and were were allocated India to work on.
Pei Chi and Ivyna studied the briefing booklet on International Week, which I had copied to my journal, but however, Ms Lim interrupted us and told us that our class was messy and that everyone had to work together to maintain it. Daniel, Brendan Cheah and Chu Xiang were tasked with doing the tourism video for India, while Dylan and a team of boys would lead the Masterchef Competition to prepare Indian food. Dillon Teh and Amanda would feature on the Project Runway by showing off Indian dresses and everyone would help out on that as well as the booth decoration for India. Janelle and a team of girls would lead the dance while we had to prepare information and a series of statues for the booth.
Each student participating in the Masterchef competition had to prepare a three-course meal in school representing the food from their countries within a three-hour period in school, and that the food must be halal. On top of that, marks would be awarded for cleanup and the food type and taste. The Project Runway team would need to prepare an accessory or fashion model to reflect the culture of India based on the theme, the overall effect of the outfit and how India would be represented. The video production team would need to do a tourism video within three minutes, containing the attractions of India, while the dance team led by Janelle would inspire a performance in the performing arts with a five-minute dance. Auditions would be given, followed by a judging event before ten selected finalists will perform during the morning assembly.
For the international exhibition, we would be given a space in the hall to decorate and showcase the country via a booth exhibition which must feature the currency, flag, language, festival and three interesting places in the country, aside from providing three quiz questions for the country. We would be tasked with introducing the culture, language and specialties of India.
The day went on peacefully as Cikgu Azira showed us a video of the Solar System and we made a brochure of our chosen planet. Mr Steve gave us work, but during Malay, the boys started their madness again till Ms I-Lynn had to barge in and give us a lengthy speech on being good.
“This would be the last time I would enter this class,” she warned.
Thursday, 20th June 2013, was Ms June's birthday, but she said she preferred the celebration to be held during the Homeroom period. Ivyna, Vianna, Pei Chi and Amanda Teoh gave her a present, but I was oblivious to the situation of what would become. The boys continued their rampage the next day, and Cikgu Zura got very angry and gave a lecture the likes of Ms I-Lynn and said that there would be daily counselling if the situation got out of hand. “Thank you for listening,” she said, as she ended her Malay lesson. On top of that, Cikgu Baliah had been doing the topic of shopping for Geography, and I was amazed by the topic of out-of-town-shopping centres. Yen Choo had given “Bullring” as one of the out of town shopping centres, but Cikgu Baliah was skeptical on that. We did Internet shopping, and Ye Sean had proposed naming the class’ TV program as “7N News” but then he stylized it to “7News”. We did a debate on the pros and cons of online shopping as opposed to physical shopping.
We celebrated Ms June's birthday the next day, 21st June 2013. Pei Chi and the girls stayed in the class to decorate it for Ms June's arrival. Ms Lim took care of them and watched over them while we went for our PE lesson with Mr Victor.
Mr Victor gave each one of us a basketball and then asked us to bounce and dribble the ball with our right and left hand while walking. “Go, Sing Gill! Go!” cried Sean Mark, as he urged Dylan on. Yew Jan then shouted profanities using Dylan's name, as he riled at them angrily. Mr Victor then asked us to do sit ups while holding the ball, as well as vigorous push-ups.
When we returned to 7N, the girls had put up a party show for Ms June. The girls then decorated the whiteboard with a series of decorations and drawings as Ms June entered the class with a bright smile on her face. The class was filled with balloons that can be seen from outside the room. There was music and games being played, but the noise level got so loud till Mr Paul was immensely disturbed. “7N, sorry to disturb. I want the volume to be toned down. Thank you,” he said, before wishing Ms June a happy birthday.
“7N, there's a meeting next door, so I don't want to see anybody popping balloons,” Ms June pleaded. We then sang her the birthday song, and Yew Jan, unable to resist his urge, set off a loud explosion by popping one of the balloons as the official balloon popper. “Yew Jan!” cried Ms June.
Pei Chi then gave her a big card and asked Ms June to give her autograph on the whiteboard. I gave Ms June a model of 7N as she initiated the nation-state concept with the ministers and the constitution. Ms June was surprised as to how I made the classroom model, thanking me for it and shaking my hand. Cikgu Izyani had a surprise plan in store for us as we learned about Scratch, which was an animation software I had come to love.
Scratch would open with the interface of a cat on the screen, and we had to drag a series of command tabs which we can program to allow it to move. Cikgu Izyani first allowed us to program the cat, or any other object in the program, which was called a Sprite, to catch a mouse by dragging the image of a mouse onto the screen and program it. I laughed wholeheartedly when the cat started chasing the mouse as it reminded me of Tom and Jerry, which was a cartoon program where Tom, a cat, catches Jerry, a mouse. I continued to excite myself by creating a shark and a fish chasing each other, to applause from Cikgu Izyani, who held my example for the class to see.
Nieshaal and all the boys continued to play with balloons, bursting them and putting them on the air conditioning machine while Ivyna and the girls danced and practiced for International Week. The boys screamed as I tried to recuse myself from the mayhem by checking our progress report given to us.
The next week, we were greeted by a surprise haze which blurred the surrounding metropolitan zone. Every year, forest fires from Indonesia raze forests in order to clear land for oil palm plantations, and because the wind huffed and puffed in the direction of Malaysia, it caused hazy skies across the peninsular. Haze in Southeast Asia is quite common, especially when the drier months in the middle of the year hit, giving an advantage for landowners who want to clear forests in a cheap manner. While the burning of forests require little to no effort, since a dose of petrol and oil being ablaze is needed, as opposed to heavy machinery; the burnt wood and foliage becomes the fertile soil, hence reducing fertilization cost for oil palm trees. This process is also an unethical one; the fire also produces smoke which blankets cities if blown in the wrong direction, and on that day, it certainly did.
We did not have school as usual on Monday, 24th June 2013, as it was closed due to the thick haze polluting the Klang Valley. However, when school reopened the next day, Ms Evelyn asked us to go back to our class straight away and wait for our teachers. I put on a face mask to weather the haze, which reminded me of the time we wore masks due to the H1N1 pandemic. Less people came to school since many people were asked by their parents to stay home, including a couple of people in 7N.
We had to switch on the air conditioning and close any window or door which invites haze in, and we had to eat in the class in order to reduce exposure to the haze. While Ms Visa gave us work on quadrants to get us going, the haze did not dampen our spirits to learn, and the presence of such a spirit was demonstrated in the most unfortunate way. Ms I-Lynn, Mr Praba and Ms Kavitha were annoyed by the noise and had to come over to deal with us. This prompted Ms Sim to even check on us during Malay, since the noise also annoyed her as well. But one serious matter that was raised that very day, 25th June 2013, was the introduction of the Merit and Demerit system in Nobel International School.
Rhonda Tan and Sean Ng, the head prefect and assistant head prefect then, came to brief us on the system during CT. The most important factor that was touched on was the demerit points, as you could be given demerit points if you had bad behavior or broke the school rules. Rhonda and Sean touched on examples of how demerit points could be awarded, such as vandalism, bullying and playing truant, and told us to avoid these behavior since the new system begun that day. We were also told to do good acts that could give us merit points, such as attending school, being punctual, or helping our teachers.
A few prefects later came over to 7N and asked us to get our class cleaned during lunch, since we were falling behind par with the other classes, which Ms Lim had reiterated weeks prior. In fact, this was the only time I ate some lunch in class, as we would never get to do so in the past.
Ms June was absent the following day, and the haze was receding, turning up north to Penang. Cikgu Izyani continued on more hillarious things on Scratch, and this time, she taught us how to make the picture of a ghost change color continuously. I kept on laughing when I see the colors change, as I hovered between changing the color of a butterfly and moving a witch around.
Pei Chi then changed our International Week roles, and she wrote a list of tasks on the board. I was told to make a kolam along with Megan, Janelle, Yi Jiun and Jo Yi. The Indian kolam is a significant cultural symbol in India, and we had to use rice to make it. We discussed making two kolams, namely a peacock and the logo of Nobel International School. Ms Feeda then told me that she would install the art exhibition herself for the PTM, since we could not be there to install it during our Monday CCA, and I had asked her what to do regarding the exhibition. The CCA, which was held on Monday, was cancelled due to the haze, so we could not discuss or install. Ms June told us to be “prepared to sing tomorrow” when meeting her for PTM the next day.
The PTM on 28th June 2013 was filled with buzz and excitement, from the art exhibition to a second hand book fair in the canteen. The art exhibition was located on stage, and our art paintings during Fine Art Club were pasted, along with several art pieces from Year 10 and 11, as well as the other paintings from other levels. The prefects even set up a cafe in the canteen to provide refreshments to parents who were waiting. Most of my teachers discussed my exam papers with me and my mum, and most of them gave good remarks. The exam papers would be returned to be kept in the Strong Room following the PTM, which is a storage area for exam papers. This PTM was the first time a PTM was opened to students; previously during my days in primary school, I was not allowed to even meet my teachers with my mum during closed-door meetings. The move by Nobel to allow us students to come for PTM was good as it gave us an insight on how we can raise our concerns with our parents and teachers, rather than having a two-sided dialogue.
Ms June told me to buy a book named A Streetcat Named Bob, which was written by James Bowen. The book was recommended by Ms June for me to improve my writing skills from the perspective of the first person during English.
The boys in the class, who would usually be the last to leave, would normally leave the lights and air conditioning on during break time in order to cool themselves. Normally, they would have a go at basketball during break, which Ms Evelyn had since allowed. They would switch on the air conditioning throughout break time because it would take some time for them to become cold had they switched it on following break, as the air conditioning's cool breeze would take some time to envelope the classroom. By optimizing the break or lunch time to switch on the air conditioning beforehand, it would be quicker to cool the room as there is no human body to disturb the cooling process, since our bodies emit heat.
The girls and I, on the other hand, would usually switch off the air conditioning unit during break or lunch in order to comply with the ruling of the management team that the electrical appliances in the classroom must be switched off when leaving the classroom. This usually caused the boys to get mad at us if we did so, but I would be the one that would be labeled as the scrapegoat if anyone switched off the electrical appliances and bowed down to the request of the management.
Ms June, who was on a trip to KL for a Cambridge workshop for teachers on Monday, 1st July 2013, would soon be in for a rude awakening when returning back to school later in the day. The first obstacle came when Ms Chume decided to do a role play on Julius Caesar, one of the emperors of Rome. The role play got so noisy till Mr Paul, who was disturbed in the CCA office, came over to call for silence. Unlike the beginning of the year, where people like me were singled out for not keeping our voices low, the teachers who conducted the class in 7N were also told off by Mr Paul.
The lights soon took a toll on Ms June, as the last people who left 7N did not kill the power. This was a major problem back in the beginning of 2013, where Ms Lim had told the class to switch off the electrical appliances during break and lunch, to little success.
Ms June, who had returned later that day then told us that the entire class would be punished by not having lights, fan and air conditioning for the entire day. “The blinds must be rolled up so that sunlight can shine into the classroom, and the windows must be opened so that we can feel the breeze. Oh, and it's good as it is very eco-friendly at the same time,” she said, as the boys behind the classroom groaned in horror.
“What? You guys deserve it,” Ms June added, as the boys took turns blaming each other, as well as Yew Jan, who was the last to leave without switching off the power.
Speaking of the cool breeze that Ms June asked for to be led into the classroom, there was a downpour that day, and as the clouds parted, I could see a clear view of Genting Highlands and the various hotels on top of the hill from 7N. The classroom had a clear view of the Petronas Twin Towers as well as the KL Tower.
Ms Feeda told us to take down the art exhibition's paintings during Fine Art Club CCA that day, as we worked as a group to take it down. She was passionately coordinating everything and told us to bring the artwork back to the art studio. On top of that, we did charcoal painting that day, and we had to draw an object. I tried to draw a picture of a plant while some did portraits. My hands smelled like burnt charcoal after I finished.
We continued to have our preparations for International Week as I begun by referring to my journal from Year 6 in order to refer to India from the previous year's International Week. The girls, led by Ivyna, did roll calls and danced, while Janelle proceeded with the two kolam designs of the Nobel logo and a peacock. However, news broke out that Ms Visa was absent, so the boys cheered, discussed among themselves, and started playing. Cikgu Niely and Ms Marien came in to replace Ms Visa for 40 minutes each, and Ms Marien, annoyed at Yew Jan and Dylan, who were playing, confiscated their sticks. I also got to work on my Solar System project with Yen Choo, and Ms Lim enlightened us with a trip to Mount Kinabalu during CT. She, along with Ms Evelyn, Mr Paul, Ms Sim, and Mr Chan, accompanied a group of students consisting of prefects and student leaders, as well as certain ordinary students, to Mount Kinabalu for an expedition. Up till today, it remains one of the greatest feats in the history of Nobel International School.
Ms Lim recalled how they had to spend hours through the night trekking towards Mount Kinabalu's peak, and how some of the students got altitude sickness on their way up. Mr Chan, according to her, had a few sleepless nights when going up the peak. All of them had to bring thick jackets to go up Mount Kinabalu, and the weather was beyond freeing at the peak. She showed us a few photos of their expedition to the top of Malaysia's highest mountain.
Ms Visa came back with a sprained leg, and just like me, she had to use the lift, although mine was getting better. However, on the other hand, Mr Steve punished the entire class by asking us to write 100 words for Mandarin, and those who talked got a few extra lines up to 200 words. This was because some people misbehaved in the class, and Mr Steve decided to be firm with the class. I felt guilty of myself as not being a troublemaker, I also had to write 100 words as an indirect collective punishment by Mr Steve.
On another note, for International Week, I also brought a few bags of rice for the Indian kolam. “Bring lots of rice. Lots of rice, as many as you can,” said Pei Chi.
I took the opportunity to mingle with the primary school students during the Elementary School's International Week on 5th July 2013, and collected a few pieces of paper containing the information of the respective countries on display, and pasted them in my journal to indirectly form my passport, titled “Around the World in 180 Minutes”, which was the title of the passport booklets given to the elementary school, and I made a replica of the cover page in my journal as well.
I managed to visit the booths of South Korea, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Egypt, Cairo, the Philippines, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, China, Nigeria, India, Italy and Thailand. I got to mingle with my friend Xang Yen, who was in Year 4 and that his class was doing Italy. Ms Prema, Ms Thava, Mr Praba, Ms Doris and all my elementary school teachers got to see me once more as I had a light reception with them.
The new week begun with the decoration of most of the classes during the weekend with the exception of ours, which did not have any decoration for International Week. Ms Chum brought some kolam design kits for us to use to design a kolam on 8th July 2013, which was the first day of International Week, and Dylan brought big sticks to be used as well. The International Performance got underway with a dance by the Netherlands and New Zealand. Fortunately, Pei Chi, Janelle, Ivyna and Joe An, who were decorating the class, managed to finish it during break time. A panel of judges came around to judge the booths, and we dismantled the class decorations after 10:00am. When the girls went out to dance in their sari outfits for the International Dance audition, the boys then threw Janelle's clothes at me, causing me to be disturbed. Vianna and Yen Choo kept the clothes upon my request, and then thereafter, Ivyna and the rest of the girls were furiously cross with the boys for playing around with their shirts.
“Why did you throw Janelle's clothes at Wei Yiang, huh? I'm reporting to Ms Lim!” Pei Chi cried. Ivyna and Janelle also scolded them, and Nieshaal laughed with a giggle. The class then went wild as the boys continued to play around, and Ms Kavitha had to come in to remind everyone to respect the rules around us.
Mr Steve then taught us about the countries of the world during Mandarin class. “I am going to skip to chapter 11 because I want to match up the topics with the International Week, since you guys know that we are now in International Week,” he said.
He then taught us the Mandarin names of the countries, starting from China, Korea, Japan and towards the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada and the United States. He then asked us to give the names of those countries in the book based on their flags, but the most difficult challenge was the discussion of the name of New Zealand in Mandarin, which had two names. The first Chinese character of the name of the country of New Zealand in Mandarin, which had three words, was directly translated to the Chinese meaning of new (xin xi lan), based on a Google Translate result, while the second one was pronounced in the same manner as its English counterpart (nu xi lan), since Mr Steve asked us to research the countries beforehand. I asked Mr Steve which name should we use to call New Zealand, and he said that we can call any names, although, he would prefer us to use “nu xi lan” as the Chinese pronounciation for New Zealand, since it is the same character in the Chinese name for New York City (nu yue), for our spelling test.
Just then, Mr Steve got angry at the boys for talking in the class. “I hope that you have done your punishment homework of 800 words, or else, you have to do another 800 more,” he scolded. He then postponed our spelling test to Friday to give us more time to finish our writing comprehension of the words we were tested for the spelling test.
That afternoon, for Fine Art Club CCA, Ms Feeda introduced us to Jackson Pollock, who did some drip painting as part of his subject matter, and we did drip painting on cloth and canvas. Most of our shirts and pants were dirtied by the watercolor which we had to splash around the canvas to create our artwork. Jackson Pollock is one of the artists that go messy, and Ms Feeda said that his art is more of an art for the messy type of artists. From that moment, I decided to use an apron for Art and Design lessons as well as Fine Art Club as I treasure the cleanliness of my uniform.
The next day, 9th July 2013, we went to Paradigm Mall to see the Lone Ranger movie, as part of a treat by Ms Lim. Everyone except Janelle went for the field trip. Ms Visa did her lesson, and when the class ended, the class was a total chaos, with the boys leading the pack once again. We wre ushered into the school van at 8:30am despite a slight drizzle that morning. Nieshaal, Dillon, Sean Mark and Ye Sean had to be separated by Ms Lim as they were noisy, while Yew Jan tried to keep everyone cool and entertained by singing the song “The Wheels on the Bus”, acting in a childish manner till Ms June had to quieten him down. While the van rolled over to Paradigm Mall, we got off and waited. I wrote my journal while the girls played games and the boys chatted with one another. It took five trips to get all five classes to the mall, as one class had to be separated into two vans.
Ms June, Ms Fatin and Ms Visa talked to a few shoppers in the mall who were curious to wonder what in the world was going on, while Ms June also discussed with one of the staff of Golden Screen Cinemas to make arrangements for us. As more people arrived from Nobel, we then made our way to Golden Screen Cinemas. To speed things up, we used the elevator to go up. Dillon and the boys then requested to use the washroom as they were holding their bladder in pain.
“Why didn't you go to the toilet in school? You're supposed to use the washroom at school before coming here,” she said, before letting them use the washroom.
“Okay, Year 7! I just want to let you know that the popcorn is on standby and we will go into the hall shortly,” she said. Me, Alex Chia as well as the girls did not purchase popcorn, and we waited while everyone made a beeline for the counter to collect popcorn. Yew Jan cheekily kicked my knee as I groaned at him in pain. We then went to the hall as we sipped the experience of watching a movie. Ms Joyce and Ms June asked everyone to be silent as the film started. We enjoyed the movie for a good three hours before it ended as quickly as it begun. I spent most of my time peering through the dark, writing my journal as I wasn't a fan of movies. There were too many disturbing gunshots and I tried my best not to see it and concentrate on writing my journal.
Once the film ended, Ms Sim then led us out via a lift to the concourse level and we got into our vans to return to school. While on the way back, I continued to write my journal before the boys snatched the journal away from me while I was jotting down my experiences. Fortunately, Brendan returned it to me to diffuse the tensions. We then continued our solar system project in the science lab, and Cikgu Azira told us to keep them there and only do the solar system project in the lab.
Yen Choo, Jo Yi and Yi Jiun were good company for me as we did the project. Yi Jiun, I would say, is also like me, who cried when teachers scolded us. Fortunately, we were being punished for academic reasons and not behavioral reasons like the boys in our class.
Ms June then told us to do a movie review of the Lone Ranger which we had watched, but Yew Jan spilled water in the class by accident as he giggled and put on his creepy smile.
“Hey! Yew Jan, you better get a mop and clean it up now,” Ms June yelled at him, and innocently, as innocent as an angel, he got up and started scrubbing the floor. “I'm very disappointed with you, Yew Jan,” scolded Ms June. On another note, Ms June walked over to me and then told me to start planning the classroom decorations for Hari Raya Aidilfitri in order to commemorate the largest religious festival in Malaysia to mark the end of Ramadan.
The next day, 10th July 2013, I arrived in school early and took the time to speak to Ms Shum Swee Ting in her office. As some of the elementary school students were showing their International Week passport to Ms Shum, I decided to join the craze and speak to her about the countries I visited and how we were going about with the Junior and Senior School's International Week.
We were entertained with a second part of the International Performance by the countries of Egypt, South Africa and Mexico. During the Egyptian dance, which is based on Egyptian culture, Ms Evelyn and Mr Matthew Koh were invited to dance on stage, but the duo were quite shy when having been asked to dance in front of a crowd of students. Ms Evelyn smiled slyly while Mr Matthew Koh tried to cover his face and run away from the stage. However, the Mexican performance had to be done twice because the PA system was not kind that day. That performance showcased the ”Day of the Dead”, and the PA system was already dead when it started. There was also a Masterchef Competition that day, and Mr Paul told those involved to come down at 10:30am and extended the list of cooking equipment allowed.
Cikgu Izyani then taught us how to save files and gave us a handbook for Scratch, which I kept reading. Disaster struck after break when Nieshaal sprayed water at Yew Jan, which he missed, and unfortunately, I was blasted with the jet of water from his bottle while doing my journal. I told Ivyna about this when I walked out of the classroom. The boys went rogue, locking me and Ivyna outside the room as we pushed the door open. Then, I sat down to continue journalling, but then, Yew Jan fell on my shoulder quite hard. Furiously, I told him that I would report to Ms Lim about this, and the boys dared me to go. Janelle stopped me and told me that it was an accident. “Try to compare what happened on purpose and what's an accident and don't judge for yourself,” she urged me, convincing me to reconsider my decision. I did not buy the idea as Yew Jan had hurt me countless times and I had grown annoyed of his behavior, and I decided to let Ms June know about the matter. More trouble came when Dylan, Wei Zhong and Daniel Ngew played around and spilled the rice meant for the kolam artwork, causing Pei Chi to rage at them, which led to a quarrel. Ivyna tried to calm them down, but to no use. Ms June was outside, seeing the entire incident from the classroom's windows, and told us to settle down before we can start. Unknown to anyone, Ms June was losing her patience internally, and her heart was raging with anger, waiting for the time to explode.
During lunch, I met Ms Shum again, who called me for a talk while walking along the corridor and told me that China, the United States and Spain were the winners of the Elementary School's International Week. I then discussed with her on our activities for the day before continuing on my journey around the school. “Thanks for showing your passport and your journal. It was wonderful to hear your story and thoughts on your life in school,” Ms Shum said, as I left.
Ms Chume was not here, so Ms Amira gave us work to do. Once she left, the madness continued as the girls continued planning for Show Choir, while the boys restarted their rampage around the classroom. This time, they strategized on amending the software on the computer's settings to allow a voice pronouncer to pronounce the letters while anyone was typing on the computer, so that they can secure the password and log into the teacher's account without hassle in order to do sorts of funny things on the computer.
Things got out of hand the next morning, 11th July 2013, when Ms June came in, left her things there, and went off. Yew Jan had tried to hand in his folktales worksheet, but then decided to play behind the scenes. Yew Jan then discussed with the boys to try to alert each other when Ms June came back so that they can get away with it. They did not even enjoy a full 30 seconds when Ms June returned and saw the mayhem with her own eyes.
“BANG!” A loud thud ruptured the room as Ms June slammed her things on the table. Nieshaal and the boys were shocked to see Ms June in the class with an angry look on her face. It was the most angriest look I had ever seen of her, as the group then thrudded back to their seats, alarmed at what happened.
“It's early in the morning, and I am getting this sort of behavior in the class. Why is that so?” she yelled. “You guys were the best in January and I had trusted you to be that way, but now it looked like chaos when I came in. Settle your things down and get your books on the table before the next teacher comes in.” she yelled.
Ms Visa was absent, so Ms June got some Maths and English worksheets for us to do. When news broke of Ms Visa's absence, the class cheered like a New Year's Eve party. The Maths and English worksheets were stolen and lost, and I was afraid that Ms June would be mad if she knew of it. Back then, there was no Google Classroom in Nobel, and everything was done in hard copy. We continued our science project for the solar system, and Cikgu Baliah rewarded me with two sweets when I got all two questions correct. It was no surprise since Geography was my favorite subject, but I had an allergic taste to sweets. Ms Vithyah, who was relieving Ms Nadia for Art, punished those who did not do their typography research and bring it to class. Only four people did them; me, Yen Choo, Vianna and Jo Yi. Megan was excused because she had to do a test, and Ivyna was also excluded as she went home sick the previous Art lesson. Joe Ann was also excuse as she, too was under the weather. Typography is the arrangement of words in such a manner till it forms the shape of another word or letter. Ms Vithyah then guided us to do typography artwork, and I used my multi-colored single ink pen to do the typography art. Ms Vithyah praised me as I did the artwork in a nice manner.
We eventually saw the Maths and English worksheets in Nieshaal's desk basket and I had to inform Ms June about the matter during lunch. Fortunately, she wasn't as mad, and she was relieved everyone got their worksheets.
International Week closed off with a closing ceremony on Friday, 12th July 2013. During the morning assembly. the students were treated to a fashion show run called Project Runway. As 7N was the first class to present, Amanda Teoh showed off the saree dress to cheers from the crowd. The audience was wowed with more entertainment for the International Week, from costumes to videos of the participating countries which were created by each class.
Mr Steve continued talking about countries during Mandarin and highlighted the importance of learning about countries via International Week. We also had a health test during PE, which I can take part as I had recovered from my leg injury. During Maths, when Cikgu Izyani replaced Ms Visa who was absent again due to her sprained leg, I then begun work to repair the musical triangle in the class, as it had lost its string in the beginning of the year, which could be held upon. I brought some metal wire to make a hook for the triangle to be hung on a cable that stretched the length of the whiteboard. Each class had a cable which we could display mahjong paper for our lessons. While I was fixing the triangle, the boys continued their rampage, bullying Dylan by calling him names. This made him cry and he wimpered to Pei Chi about the incident, who scolded them.
“Guys, please don't bully people again or else I will send you to Ms Lim,” she said. She then played a video called “Showdown 2013” to refer to dance moves for Show Choir. Ms Amira came in for relief and then suggested some songs for us to dance, but Pei Chi was adamant as she had plans on what dances should be executed. However, she gave Ms Amira's suggestion a try and called on everyone to look at the dance moves. Dylan refused to join the dance, blaming the boys on calling him using a name filled with profanities.
Soon thereafter, Ms June arrived and I told her how I had partially fixed the triangle. With some help from Ms June, we made a hook and hooked the triangle on the whiteboard's cable. Ms June, who was so excited that I had found a solution to the triangle's problem, got on board the hook idea and we also made more hooks for people to hang stuff on the whiteboard during lessons. After a week of tiredness, International Week is over and everyone can finally get some rest to relieve the exhaustion.
The winners of International Week received prizes; the dance winners received a portable microphone; a bottle of Coca-Cola was given to the best master chef; and a box full of junk which you could use it to build stuff was given to the winners of the Fashion Show Run. All of them received large trophies as they were crowned in front of the crowd during the morning assembly.
Lately, as most classes had started to practice for Show Choir during relief period, Ms Lim banned all such practices, urging us to use our relief period for educational purposes, and this was reiterated by Ms Sim. On top of that, they also visited our class during relief period, with Ms Lim talking about field trips for Year 7 as well as the marathon, which I kept on asking her when would it be held.
On 23rd July 2013, we went for a field trip to Zoo Negara in order to complete our Science coursework. I wore my sports attire to school, and brought along my journal to keep me company and pass time by recording the previous days’ actions. Yew Jan and all the boys continued to shout and sing “The Wheels on the Bus” again, but Ms June urged them to be silent. I wrote my journal and occasionally looked out the window as we passed along the DUKE Highway and Penchala Link, two routes that offered the best views of Kuala Lumpur as the highways were elevated.
Upon arrival at the zoo, we were greeted by a lady who nicknamed herself Ms Turtle, and told us to respect the guides and be on our best behavior as she and her colleagues were fasting for the month of Ramadan, and had to conserve their energy. I was then placed in Encik Salleh's group with Wei Zhong, Benjamin Koh and Aaron Liew as we headed to the washroom, followed by a briefing. We were also given green notebooks to take notes.
We viewed a series of animals, from giraffes to a pair of elephants named Siti and Situ. I also took the opportunity to show Ms Turtle my coursework paper. We then observed birds as we passed around the zoo, as well as other animals along the way. Wei Zhong cheekily joked that I become the flamingos’ food, and soon thereafter, we were walking around the zoo, enjoying the animals.
At the zoo's ampitheatre, an animal show was in progress, and Ms June participated in one of the games where she had to spot an animal in the trees. Some of my friends also donated cash to the Malaysian Zoological Fund which funds the zoo's operations.
We then went for a treasure hunt after having lunch at the cafe. Wei Zhong forced me to lead our group to Children's World for the first clue, and I obliged, as to not disappoint my friends. Then, Benjamin Koh forced me to carry everyone's bags along the way, and I obliged before he took them off afterwards. When heading to Savannah Walk for the next clue, I spotted some construction equipment building the Giant Panda Exhibit, which was planned to showcase giant pandas from China, before finding the next clue and heading back to the entrance. Christopher Chew, Wei Zhong and Benjamin Koh cheekily hid behind to purposely make me panic about their location. Four passersby comforted me while I panicked.
Ms Turtle had planned a surprise for us which was to hitch a ride on the zoo tram, and everyone cheekily boarded it. The boys in our class made so much noise until Ms Chume could not concentrate on making a phone call.
“Boys, please keep quiet. Relax. Just enjoy the ride,” she pleaded, but the boys kept chanting, “Shut up, Wei Yiang!” too many times till Ms Chume and I had a terrible headache. Ms Chume then told the boys that the driver would chase them off the tram if they continued their rampage. I then begun chatting with Ms Chume about the zoo's attractions, but unfortunately, the boys wrecked the peace with more screaming and shouting.
Once we were dropped off at the entrance, Ms Turtle gave us a visitor pack to thank us for visiting Zoo Negara. Ms June had also received a poster about frogs from the zoo's officials and had also given me a souvenir along the way. Everyone gathered before boarding the bus. It then started raining cats and dogs all of a sudden, but it failed to dampen our moods. We quickly got in the bus as I begun looking at the scenery and savoring the pictures I took with my camera along the way. However, Nieshaal and the boys continued to yell and shout loudly till all of us could not get some rest on the way back to school.
After Ms Nadia returned from a long maternity leave, she placed me in a table away from my classmates so that she could give me a one-to-one guidance on painting techniques. She first helped me on the “Save the Whales” poster, which was quite easy to do. She even gave me separate work from the rest to give me some improvement for Art and Design. Ms Chume, on the other hand, had given us a coursework on Roman monuments, in which we can choose to build any Roman structure related to the Roman empire, such as a Roman aqueduct, which carries piped water in Ancient Rome, the Roman baths, the Colosseum or even a model of the city of Pompeii. I decided to do the model of Pompeii as it amazed me and it is easier to do than the rest. I paired up with Alex Chia as we begun to do the monument. In fact, Alex Chia did a report on the model while I built the model on my own, which consisted of a model of Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius, the volcano that destroyed Pompeii.
After the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays, Ms June told us to bring laptops on the first day after the holidays, and it was a surreal experience at first. Back in 2013, Nobel International School had heavily restricted the usage of not only phones, but laptops. In fact, Ms June had to apply for permission for us to use them in school. The school had told all students then to “bring it at your own risk” and I was very afraid of losing mine. Fortunately, Ms June had spoken to the management team to allow us to use laptops for her class. We had to use our laptops to write a short story on it, as well as a synopsis on “The Battle of Tatarus”. We were also told details by Ms June on the National Day Run, which was the marathon the school had planned, as well as Sri Aman's bake sale. Ms Lim also briefed us further, that the run would be on 30th August 2013 in conjunction with National Day on 31st August.
I felt ashamed when Cikgu Azira told me to write a letter of apology by jotting down “sorry teacher” 30 times because I had totally forgotten to bring pictures that had to be printed for the pH scale's experiment. I had a totally good track record of handing in work without issue and also bringing stuff that was required for my lessons, so this was a dampener on me. However, I was still allowed to do the pH scale experiment, which tested how acidic or alkaline a substance was. We had to do a measurement test of the pictures on how much pH they measured, with pH 1 being the most acidic and pH 13 the most alkaline, and because the holidays were quite long, I had somehow forgotten to bring the pictures.
Each teacher discussed Assessment 2's papers and my friends got really jealous when I scored 88% for Geography which was my favorite subject. They would boo me if I got a low grade for the subject, and get angry at me if I scored well, especially the boys, who would tease me as a failure. Brendan, Alex and Dillon had the most marks for Assessment 2 for the Maths subject, and Ms Visa held them up as an example to follow.
Life went on as usual, as we practiced for the Show Choir and ran backwards during PE. I got to do a Malay Oral test during Malay, and Cikgu Zura had briefed us on the oral and that we would get more marks if we asked questions in the Malay language. Pei Chi got all of us to do our Show Choir practices during CT, but each time the boys messed around, she got quite mad when we were lagging behind as a class.
On 28th August 2013, Ms Chume then called us to hand in our Roman monuments coursework. I was the first to come over, along with Alex, which I called him over. Ms Chume initially wanted to call us according to the alphabetical order of our list, but then, because the boys were talking and the class was noisy, Ms Chume asked us to volunteer when we were ready.
I proudly handed over the model of Pompeii and Alex Chia handed over the report, and we did a presentation on our model. “Did you work as a group?” Ms Chume asked. I said yes, and to satisfy her further, I told her that Alex Chia did the report, and Alex Chia confirmed it when she asked further. I got a 96 percent score for my coursework. All other groups did well, despite Benjamin Fong claiming that his maid threw his model away while Wai Shaun's model was rejected as it broke. Some marks were also deducted from some people due to the noise level in the class, but fortunately, I kept silent to avoid losing marks. Ms Chume then asked me, Ye Sean, Sean Mark and Alex to carry everyone's models to the Strong Room to be kept and graded. Ms Chithra also brought 7O's models to the room a few minutes later.
When Pei Chi was placed in charge of the classroom after Ms Chume left to get some things from her staffroom desk, Dylan and Yew Jan asked Pei Chi questions, and Pei Chi wrote their names down on the whiteboard. Yew Jan was horrified as he had been asking Pei Chi if he was allowed to use the washroom. Dylan, too, was flabbergasted. “What? I only asked about show choir,” he groaned. The duo protested Pei Chi's actions to Ms Chume upon her return to 7N.
Apparently, Ms Chume had told Pei Chi to write the names of those who made noise when she was away. “Pei Chi, write down the names of those who are talking. I will minus marks from them,” said Ms Chume, as she left to get her things. “Class, please keep quiet. No talking. If Pei Chi tells me that you are talking, I will deduct marks from you,” she said sternly as she closed the door behind her. By this time, the management team, the teachers and the offices next to 7N had known about the noise menace and the rowdy behavior of the boys, and even Ms June was duly informed of the matter.
The next day, Ms Nadia introduced Vincent Van Gogh, who was a 17th century artist who did a series of paintings on expressionism, such as the Starry Night painting and a bouquet of flowers he created. He was known for cutting off his ear once, and Ms Nadia guided me one-to-one with me on my separate table. She would go between the main class and my table to guide me individually, thus reducing the problems we had back at the beginning of the year.
During English, after we had completed our journal and story halfway, Ms June gave us time to do the Show Choir practices. “There will be a teachers’ meeting here,” warned Ms June, as I recalled a teachers’ meeting in our class when practicing for International Week. We went to 7B to begin our practice, but the boys were having some fun on their sleeves. Ye Sean, Wei Zhong and Sean Mark each played Chinese yoyos and it smacked the fan's blade, causing the yoyo to be catapulted towards the ground like a missile. Once the teachers’ meeting ended, we went back to 7N, and I had trouble learning the dance moves for Show Choir from Joe An and Vianna, who taught me. Brendan then took me aside and told me the correct moves, speaking loudly and showing the key points as he successfully trained me within ten minutes.
Meanwhile, the boys continued playing around, and Ng Sze Kai, Jordan Cheam and Aaron Lee joined in the fraca.
“If you want to play, stay here or else, go to 7O,” said Pei Chi, as they packed up and left to continue dancing. I followed them, and Brendan continued to train me before Yan Ying told us to leave 7O. “Go, go, go, come on, Wei Yiang, go! Faster!” cried Brendan, grabbing me as Yan Ying frantically ushered everyone out of the premises. We returned to 7N, with Brendan holding my hand as he ran. Brendan gave me high-fives once I mastered all the moves. Pei Chi also told us that we had to sing a song as part of the performance, and trained the entire team of dancers on the relevant moves with Brendan.
“Aaron! Sze Kai! Get out!” cried Pei Chi as she attempted to tame their roughness. They left, and she brought the entire year over to see our dance. Cikgu Izyani, who came to relief an absent teacher, enjoyed the performance and praised us. The boys resumed their menace following the performance, when Ms Lim came over with a stern look on her face.
“Stop playing,” she commanded. “Pei Chi, please monitor them, or else, no show choir practice,” Ms Lim said, with her stern eyes facing Pei Chi. As soon as Ms Lim left, it was back to square one, with Pei Chi riling up in anger. Pei Chi then drew our dance positions on the whiteboard as she briefed us on what to expect during the performance.
30th August came without a hitch, and the National Day Run was on its way. I left my house early and we were on our way to the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) which was the location of the National Day Run. I was quite excited, and my excitement grew as we arrived at the Kepong Botanic Gardens, which was within FRIM.
Each student was given a dashboard paper attached to the principal's message, which we had to display upon entry to FRIM. This would grant us free entry into the premises without forking out cash to pay entry fees. There was a map containing the route of the run, as well as directions on how to get to FRIM.
Ms Evelyn was waiting with a group of girls from Year 9 after a few short turns. “Ms Evelyn, I was tossing and turning in bed and I couldn't sleep because of the run,” I said, as I greeted her. Ms Evelyn told me that the girls, likewise, were in the same boat as well, showing up at 6am.
Chu Xiang and a few teachers, including Mr Raja, arrived, to much satisfaction from Ms Evelyn herself. “The venue is further inside, so we need to drive in,” beamed Ms Evelyn, as she got into a large Toyota trailer car she drove. Mr Paul and Mr Praba arrived to install signs that headed to the venue where the run took place. Ms Evelyn drove ahead of me and my mum, who was driving. Mr Raja and the rest of the teachers inched behind us as Ms Evelyn tried to find the location of the site. Eventually, the convoy of cars reached the gathering point, which was a large field before a series of jogging tracks in the park. We then assembled in our year levels before we were briefed by Ms Sim.
Ms Sim told us to pace ourselves and warm up before we run, since there was a guide for us to refer to on running. She told us to enjoy the run and collect three rubber bands should we run the full distance, which took three rounds in circular form around the park. We then had a warm up which Mr Praba led, before the teachers gave the go ahead for the run, which had two categories, namely a team category which consisted of a maximum of three individuals, and an individual category, which I participated in. The team category was challenging as it required all the team members to cross the finish line before receiving an award.
The teachers were flagged off first, followed by the Year 10s and 11s, and finally us. Mr Praba blew a red horn each time we were flagged off.
“ARE YOU READY?” he cried. He then horned with a loud blast. It was soon a pack of runners running like an elephant stampede.
Sean Mark, Dillon Teh and Ye Sean were competing as a team, and they ran after me, with Sean Mark leading the pack like an experienced runner. It was neck and neck as I tried to overtake Sean Mark, who had scored a lot of awards during Sports Day. I had lost to him many times in our PE lessons, and he used to tease me for being too slow.
I seized my chance when the trio took a break at a water station, and I swiftly ran quickly ahead. We Year 7s had to run three laps around the park, along with Year 8s and 9s, which had a circular loop facing a lake. Some people tried to take a shortcut, but we blocked by teachers on guard. The Year 10s and 11s had to do an additional two more laps.
Overtaking everyone, including the senior school students, I finally overpowered Sean Mark and his team, who were pretty exhausted, and ran up a slope before reaching a checkpoint in a foliage area, which handed out rubber bands. I collected a red band and ran my second round, concentrating on the crowd ahead while collecting the blue band. As soon as I entered the third round, I saw my mum exercising with Yatisan's mum, and overtook them. I quenched my thirst at the water station before reaching the checkpoint to collect my third rubber band. All the while, I was observing people's hands on how many bands they had accumulated, and as I got my final band, which was the yellow one, I could see Sean Mark having all his bands, and I raced with him to the finish line. We both arrived in time, and Ms Sim greeted me after finishing with a time of 30 minutes and two seconds.
Ms Sim and I rolled out a mat for everyone to sit on the muddy field, and everyone soon finished. We then lined up in our classes and waited at a shady area flanked by trees for buses to bring us back to school. “Students, if you see any rubbish on the floor, please pick it up, or else you would be fined RM 8000,” warned Ms Evelyn.
Due to the mysterious disappearance of one student from 10L, we had to wait for the teachers to get him. Isaac Lee, who was a prefect, came down to check, and then we begun our journey back to school. We returned to our classes upon arriving at school.
Ms Evelyn congratulated all the runners once we returned to school on Monday, 2nd September, for their participation. “We will let you know the results on Wednesday,” she said. The class also decided the consequence for Daniel Ngew not handing in his story, and we eventually gave him another 24 hours to finish or else he would be punished.
Soh Ke Sin, our Fine Art Club president, told us to plan our club's activities that lasted till June 2014, and we had many ideas, from a trip to an art museum, mural painting, batik painting, trick art museum, a canvas painting, an art competition, plate painting and countless other ideas. Satisfied with the task, Ke Xin submitted the list to Ms Feeda for her approval when she arrived in the art studio to continue our CCA. Ms Feeda did a very interesting mixed media study that day, and she experimented with some painting techniques. We did some painting and Ms Feeda gave me a new painting to do after finishing my existing one.
On Tuesday, 3rd September, Ms Shum Swee Ting told me that the recycling day would be held on Wednesday, 4th September 2013, and I was delighted to bring my recycle items for the recycling day. We also had full dress rehearsals for Show Choir, and we brought a change of clothes and jeans for the performance. Ms June and Mr Matthew Koh gave us tips for improvement while we danced, and one area that Ms June pointed out was our dance choreography.
“7N, your dance moves are important, because it is important for people to see how you dance in order for them to be entertained,” Mr Matthew chipped in, as he proposed some creative ideas, such as projecting our voice.
On Wednesday, 4th September 2013, I was awarded a silver medal for being placed in the top three runners for the Individual Category. Sean Mark and his team got a silver medal too. Other than me, the winners for my category were Tristan Lai, who got first place, and Christopher Chew, who was behind me. That same Wednesday, I also helped Xang Yen bring his recycled items, as well as mine, which consisted of old newspapers, for the Elementary School's Recycling Day. Mr Ong, Ms Thava and Ms Prema were puzzled at my actions. “You're in secondary school, so why are you still bringing it?” Ms Prema quipped.
At the time, Nobel was having a shortage of teachers, and some teachers were teaching both the Elementary School and the Junior and Senior School at the same time, as the school adjusted to the new formatting. This resulted in a series of teachers who taught me, like Cikgu Izyani, Ms Chume and Ms Nadia teaching the Elementary School. Therefore, when a PTM rolls around, these three teachers took some time for the PTM, and as such, Ms Visa replaced Ms Chume while she handled the elementary parents who came for the meeting on 5th September 2013. The elementary students visited our Fine Art Club's art exhibition the next day, and life went on as usual.
Yi Jiun had bought singlets for the girls while the guys had to wear checkered clothes, and Pei Chi announced on 9th September 2013 that the dress rehearsal would be held the next day. The boys kept on disturbing the briefing, the History class and the Geography class till Ms Chume got really mad; Cikgu Baliah stopped teaching and asked everyone to read on their own, and Pei Chi had a really hard time doing things. We also got a brief look at the Show Choir rehearsal for Year 8 students during Mandarin, since Mr Steve went to judge the Year 8 dances. Ms Feeda then did a wire-bending project during Fine Art Club, and we discussed the design, which we voted for musical instruments in which we had to bend wires to match the instruments and bring photos of the instruments the following week.
The next day, Ms Visa had also told me to use a pencil for Mathematics as the continued usage of the correction tape caused my book to become messy. During CT, Ms June invited a policeman named Chris to give a talk on bullying, and he gave us a brochure and facts on it.
Mr Chris spoke about the importance of the police's role in bullying, and he said that bullying can constitute a crime as well. He then questioned who was bullied and who had bullied people; I raised my hand but those that bullied me were hiding, afraid to admit. He was given a fruit basket by Ms Joyce, who thanked him for the visit. Cikgu Izyani would then ask us to write a report on our computer during ICT on bullies based on Mr Chris’ visit. Ms June also gave me a Show Choir invitation card to invite my mum for the performance.
We did a rehearsal for Show Choir, and Mr Matthew singled me, Ivyna, Pei Chi and Janelle for our cute and sharp voices. Then, after lunch, he came in during English and we did our show choir practices. Mr Matthew Koh told us to cancel Paradise, which Pei Chi proposed as a song in a two-part series as the Show Choir is more about singing than dancing. The class was not listening, and Mr Matthew shouted to get our attention. He shouted with a booming voice, targeting the boys who played. Mr Matthew added a song named “Rolling in the Deep”, and he gave ideas on how we can sing quickly like a rock tune, but we chose the normal, relaxing tune he proposed.
The next day, 11th September, we had a full dress rehearsal at 10:30am where Ms Lim emphasized on punctuality, failing which the doors of the school hall would be locked. She was more concerned on the behavior of the Year 7 students when comparing us with Year 8.
“7N, I am sorry to say, but your performance was TERRIBLE,” boomed Ms Lim following our performance. We then gathered in the lower canteen to discuss Ms Lim's feedback.
Ivyna addressed the class with a worrisome speech. “Guys, we are getting worse. Last time, Ms Lim said that we are the best and now we are the worst. How are we going to win Show Choir if you have this kind of attitude?”
Pei Chi was throbbing with disjointed emotions. “Guys, I want you all to sing. You are just keeping quiet. Look at 7O. They are another noisy class, but they are better than us even though they are much more noisier than us! Why can't you guys sing?” cried Pei Chi, as she, disgruntled with anger and sadness at Ms Lim's comments, begun to cry. Ivyna and the girls calmed her down, wiping her tears.
“Jo Yi and Yi Jiun, please sing. Don't keep quiet,” cried Pei Chi, taking focus on the two girls in our class, who were quite silent.
7N and 8B remained after the practice, where Ms Evelyn taught us new dance moves. We chose a new but simpler song, Lean on Me. Only Janelle, Ivyna, Pei Chi and Joe An were tasked with singing Rolling in the Deep. Dylan S. Gill was originally supposed to be the vocalist, but Ms Evelyn chose me over Brendan as I had a sweet voice.
“Wei Yiang, once you are done singing, Janelle will sing the chorus,” Mr Matthew Koh quipped, encouraging me. He smiled at Ms June, who smiled as me as I would be singing solo.
Show Choir 2013 on 12th September 2013 begun with business as usual. We were given a briefing before school begins, and off we went to Science, where Cikgu Azira played the Cell Song which I remember its lyrics to this day. We later had a relief teacher named Ms Angie during our BK lesson, when Mr Chan was not present. She was 7O and 7E's Mathematics teacher, and she was quite strict with them.
When Ms Angie told us to take out books to read, Yew Jan wanted to watch a movie and animations, to which she refused. “But I want to watch animations! I want to watch movie!” he groaned. Fortunately, Ms Angie did not get angry with us, and I took the time to do journalling.
“Who's BM worksheet is this?” Daniel Ngew asked, before Brendan took it from him.
The very split moment Ms Angie left the class, the boys restarted their chaos, throwing pens at a cardboard leaning against the wall and playing football in class. Wei Zhong went with Daniel Ngew to call his parents as he was under the weather, and soon thereafter, all the boys headed to the washroom.
Ivyna then returned to the classroom, where she then begun preparing the practice session for us. “Where are all the boys in this class?” she asked. I tried to explain that they were in the washroom, but Brendan silenced me. “Err....they are in the toilet measuring their chests,” Brendan quipped, as he went on to cheekily explain that they were also seeing how far they could pass water at the urinal.
“Brendan! What are you talking about! Call them back now!” Ivyna yelled, as she raged at him. As everyone returned, Ms Hani, who was the next relief teacher, as well as 7B and 7E's Science teacher, then entertained us by playing Upin and Ipin for us to watch. Cikgu Baliah then came in, dividing us into pairs for our next coursework; I was with Benjamin Fong for the coursework. We had to make a series of t-shirts for a given country and culture, and were given South Africa.
We then spent the rest of the day practicing for Show Choir, and the boys blew balloons that Pei Chi bought, which would be used as props for our performance. Ms June arrived during English to guide us, and then, following her lesson, Pei Chi and Ivyna set up a makeup station. The boys changed into their outfits in the class, since the washroom was full; I went to change my clothes in the washroom, while I savored dinner that my aunt prepared for me from home. Then, I went down after my meal to see the hall being prepared for the Show Choir. Pei Chi placed the balloons into a plastic bag and threw them down to the courtyard, which Brendan caught and gave to us, who took them to the stage to store them there.
Over the week, the Primary 6 students who were studying Sekolah Sri Nobel's national curriculum were having their UPSR exam, and we had to be silent. UPSR was a norm for national-level students in Primary 6, and this exam had since been abolished. As that day was the last day, we heaved a sigh of relief from the cap on noise level.
Ms Evelyn then gathered us and arranged our performers’ seating arrangement in the crowd. As a result of our props, we were second. Following a rehearsal, we begun our show at 7:00pm that evening.
The judges assigned for the concert were alumni who had graduated from Nobel. After the Negaraku, they were introduced before 8B proceeded to dance. This was then followed by us, where Janelle and the girls took the stage. Janelle then started singing to loud cheers from the crowd, as Ivyna took on performing Rolling in the Deep. The boys started throwing balloons to the crowd when I begun singing, to more cheers and positive reception. Ms Shum would eventually praise me for my solo singing. We had to perform after a few dances due to technical problems, and the crowd burst into even more applause. Following the conclusion of all performances, Mr Steve, Ms I-Lynn and Ms Crystlyn then took to the stage, before the night ended. 7O had the best dance; 8N had the best dress, and 7E had perfect choreography while 8O was the outright winner that evening. I then returned to class, enjoyed the night view and changed back into my uniform before heading home. Glen had invited me to hang out at McDonald's, but I declined his offer as I was too tired.
The next day, we all came back, unexhausted from the previous night's performance. Mr Victor begun the day by bringing us to the PE field and asking us to do some running, backward running and both at the same time, while Ms Amira sent the girls to the basketball court. Sean Mark's group was still talking, so Puan Rozairie made them run a lap around the field.
Mr Victor then told us to do wheelbarrow exercises, where one had to have his hands on the floor and his legs be lifted up by another partner behind him. I partnered Wai Shaun, and he assisted me, who was acting as the wheelbarrow. Due to rain a few days back, the ground was muddy, and my hands were covered in mud. To add to the suffering, there were rocks on the ground, which made my hands really painful. Wai Shaun had the same expression when we were told to switch.
Once we were done, we switched with the girls, and we did our usual push ups and sit ups, as Mr Victor himself went around, tweeting his whistle and checking on everyone to make sure they did their exercises correctly. Suddenly, a large helicopter buzzed above the crowd, distracting everybody as the most daring of the boys peered at the flying aircraft.
The elementary school were doing their Telematch upon our return, and Yew Jan was punished with 3000 lines of writing for his noisiness in the class, while Mr Steve entertained the rest of the class with the movie “Ah Boys to Men”, which focuses on Singapore's National Service military training. As the army recruits were bald, and one of our friends, Heng Zi Quan was in the class, Mr Steve started comparing him with the recruits. “How come there are so many Zi Quans?” he said, with laughter from Zi Quan and the rest of the class.
Ms Visa then came into the class when the boys continued to play balloons stored from the previous day's Show Choir. “Hey, stop playing!” Ms Visa cried in annoyance. As that day was also a quiz for Malaysia Day based on the context of Malaysia itself, I got the highest in the class and Ms June told me that I would receive a grand prize during assembly.
All the while, Megan and Nieshaal were away for competitions representing the school in the MSSD; Megan took part in a golf tournament while Nieshaal represented the school through tennis matches. They would occasionally go on and off the school attendance, but their attendances were recorded as they were representing the school, which was why they weren't marked as absent. They have received the Arts and Sports Scholarship, along with Janelle herself.
Cikgu Zura hinted that for Malaysia Day, we would have a film screening in the hall during CT, which focused on the legacy of Tun Abdul Razak. However, her explanation, along with a Malay essay that we had to write on the cause and effect of accidents, was drowned by the boys talking in class till I could not listen. We sang patriotic songs during CT and the film on Tun Abdul Razak, the second Malaysian prime minister, focused on his life and premiership, from childhood to politics, the establishment of diplomatic ties with China and his death in London in 1976.
We then planned our summary for English, to which Ms June said she would interview my group when Janelle returns from absence. Yew Jan cheekily snatched Ivyna's pen away, but I grabbed it from him instantly and gave it back to Ivyna, who thanked me proudly. The chaos continued the next day when I was cleaning the board behind the classroom containing the Show Choir information. The whiteboard duster slipped from my hand and hit the bags on the ground by accident, triggering Benjamin Fong who pretended to cry.
“Wei Yiang, why did you bully Ben Fong? You dropped the duster on his bag!” Brendan acted, as if trying to tell me that I dirtied his bag on purpose, but the duster slipped uncontrollably as I stood on a chair to clean the board.
Ms Visa's frequent absences had made the boys in our class cheer; I did not do the same crazy things as them. The boys partied by throwing paper airplanes in the room, much to the annoyance of everyone who pictured a war scene with military aircraft. Even Cikgu Zura was also annoyed when she entered for Malay later on. “All of you are like monkeys,” she said angrily.
Ms Chume tried to break them up by trading places with me and Nieshaal. “Wei Yiang, you sit at the back. I trust that you can hear my voice from behind. Nieshaal, come here. Sit in front,” she ordered. After some time, I could not see the board as I was quite short, so Ms Chume restored the original position.
The boys continued partying the next day, 19th September, upon learning about Ms Visa's absences. Cikgu Azira told us how to melt ice and expand the bag, but Yew Jan broke it, to Cikgu Azira's annoyance. Crime Week had just begun, and we had to solve a riddle regarding a murder and post it on the Crime Week's Facebook page. Pei Chi re-arranged the tables to everyone's annoyance, with hers not being changed. “It's a slight change,” she said. She would eventually restore the tables after several grievances, including one from Ms Visa. The horror of most behavior among the Year 7s got the teachers mad, and they enhanced their strictness. Ms Nadia had punished Jo Yi, Benjamin Fong and Aaron Liew for not bringing research on Imperialism artists, telling them to write “I promise I will not do it again” for a total of 1000 times. She even wrote messages on the whiteboards of every Year 7 class reminding them to bring their pencil box and meet her in the art studio to continue the “art punishment”. Classes that did not see her for the time were asked to bring their pencil box should they not submit the research, with the same instruction. There was no notice of the punishment given on the other class’ boards. Ms June wanted to confiscate the Chinese yoyo that Brendan Cheah is playing, but upon learning that it was Joe An's, she instructed her to refrain from bringing it to school for the time being.
The Student Council, led by Chew Wei Zhuen, discussed the idea of Nobel Cup, which was a tournament focusing on team sports as well as sports events that are not contested during Sports Day. While the Sports Day focuses on athletics events like the running events, high jump, long jump and shot putt, the Nobel Cup's main aim is to promote team sports like basketball, futsal, badminton and netball. Basketball, Netball and Futsal were the four main sports at the very inaugural Nobel Cup. Ms Evelyn approved it, and the Nobel Cup was held on 20th and 21st September 2013.
The first day of the Nobel Cup went rough, with the boys flinging paper aeroplanes out of the window of 7N following Science class. Benjamin Fong and Dylan S. Gill opened the window, and flung their paper planes out into the gust of wind. While Dylan's plane crashed into the compound of Tadika Sri Nobel, Benjamin Fong's plane smacked a passersby who was walking on the adjoining road. The individual was startled, and looked up to see what had happened, as the duo took cover in the classroom.
Mr Steve had trouble operating the Smartboard in 7O, and as a result, he moved our Mandarin lesson to 7N. “Class, from now on, we will use 7N for our lesson,” he said, to my satisfaction of reduced inconvenience. He then talked about the last chapter which talked about capital cities. I then interrupted Mr Steve as he explained New York City as the capital city of the United States.
I told Mr Steve that New York City is not the capital city of the United States, despite the textbook showing New York as the capital city of the United States. Instead, the capital of the United States is Washington DC, with New York City being the largest city. Mr Steve was quite surprised, and asked the class if they knew the true capital city of America. Most of them agreed with my point that Washington DC was America's capital.
Mr Steve then searched for the Mandarin name of Washington DC, and he had a hard time trying to pronounce it. Everyone looked puzzled as to how to pronounce Washington's Chinese name, as it had a bunch of weird characters.
Because the name was quite lengthy, he told us that for simplicity, we should, for memory reasons, state New York as the capital city since the Chinese pronunciation for Washington DC was quite hard to memorize.
Amanda Teoh had her last day that day, 20th September, as she would be transferring to Tenby International School in Setia Alam. I wished her all the best in transferring, while she gave Ms June and Ms Chume cards to remember her.
The next day, 21st September 2013, we had the second event of Nobel Cup, which comprised Basketball and Netball. As I was participating in the basketball tournament, I came back to school to play in the tournament. I was placed as a reserve, meaning that I would be on call for anyone who was unable to play.
We gathered in the school hall, where Ms Cynthia gave a few announcements based on our code of conduct during the games and what to expect. “You must be at the court when your names are called, or else, you will be disqualified,” she said. She also gave us a few rules that we had to adhere to, and mentioned that school rules were still in force. The vice president of the Student Council, Ng Kuan Yew, then declared the games open and we begun our warm up exercise. Alex Chia and Brandon Ooi were among the few people competing in the basketball tournament.
“Wei Yiang, you will replace the players if they are hurt, since there are five players already,” Wei Ming, who was managing the basketballers, told me. Touchdown beat Bullseye in the first round as cheers erupted across the court. I then entered the court when Daniel Lai, a Year 9 student, got injured, and played the remainder of the game.
One of the student volunteers brought an LED screen which showed the scores of the Nobel Cup, which was assembled by one of Homerun's members. Homerun beat Slamdunk in their match, and when it came for Bullseye to play Homerun, I took on the game when Brandon Ooi got hurt. Bullseye eventually beat Homerun while I tried to pass and throw the ball. This was one of the rare moments where I really played basketball.
Touchdown eventually beat Slamdunk, while out in the courtyard, in the netball match, Bullseye's netball players copied the same result as the futsal players, and led in every match till Bullseye lost to Slamdunk.
The senior category was a big hit among the audience, as most were in the hall watching the basketball match. During the semifinal match, Brian Ong, who was playing for Bullseye against Touchdown, knocked into Brandon Lee, causing both of them to slide across the court and hit the stage with a loud knock. The game with Bullseye and Homerun, which was the final, also resulted in more similar accidents and people knocking and crashing into each other. I watched in horror and in awe as the players banged and smashed each other by accident on the court. Wei Zhuen commented with the players and his team members from Homerun, successfully defeating Bullseye in the final. I managed to get a copy of the schedule for Nobel Cup's basketball game for my journal from the trash bin.
After Nobel Cup, the school begun preparing for the Cambridge Checkpoint examination for the Year 9s as well as the Cambridge IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) examination, which was the inaugural exam for IGCSE students at the time. A banner was installed to commemorate the first batch of IGCSE students, while in the school hall, fluorescent lights were hung on cables in the school hall to provide a conducive lighting environment for the Year 9s and 11s who sat for their exam. Back in those days, no fluorescent lighting was attached to the atrium of the hall, and the lights were dimly lit and came on slowly. It took around 10 minutes to fully turn on the lights in the school hall, so the management decided to fit temporary fluorescent lights for the clear visibility of the examination paper. Doing an international exam in the school hall was a new norm then, and the management had to improvise by fitting such an installation on cables that made one feel as if they were in an open air eatery which Malaysians like eating out at.
Sometimes, reflecting on my time in Year 7, when most of the time our teachers collectively punished the entire class, I felt pity not only for myself but also for those who did not deserve a collective punishment just because one person in the class misbehaved. This was because following a series of examples which I gave here, I and a few other good students would be the ones bearing the brunt of the misbehaving students. The management team knew very well the mischievous attitude of Year 7 students, and I felt sad being labeled as a Year 7 student due to that.
I normally sit with the quiet and attentive boys in the class like Jinn Lik, Jordan Tay and Joseph Diong, who paid attention to the lesson and were good students in their class. The girls were also listening patiently, but the rest of the boys behind were rowdy. Mr Steve signaled for all the boys to stand up. He then turned to our group and looked at us who were sitting. “Including the boys in front,” he said.
Joseph Diong then told him that we were paying attention to his lesson and taking down his notes, and pleaded to Mr Steve to give mercy on us. “I'm sorry, but you all would need to stand up too,” he said, taking pity on me and Joseph, who were busy asking him questions. Joseph had a poor command of Mandarin, and he had lousy pronunciations as he uttered word after word in the wrong Pinyin tones each lesson. I also struggled to make use of the words, but however, my pronunciation was quite better and improved. As such, both of us were participating in the lesson, which Mr Steve was awarding marks for class participation at the time, asking questions and getting over what we could not attempt to do. Mr Steve said he had no choice but to be fair to all the boys in the class.
All of us had to stand in the class for some time, although he did allow some girls who were standing to take their seats. It was quite a bit unfair after focusing on the lesson for quite some time. Fortunately, I had been doing gardening and standing for quite some time, so I was able to endure it without any issue.
Christopher Chew then kept on blabbering, forcing Mr Steve to ask him to stand on the chair, and this was then followed by Nigel Chew, who uttered some noise. The duo kept blabbering and laughing, testing Mr Steve's patience, and this forced him to act in anger. The two of them tried to act cool in the class and felt like they were the heroes of the world, standing on the chair and showing off to everyone like twin towers. Mr Steve did not buy the joke, and was very cross.
“I am going to take a picture of both of you standing on the chair,” he said sternly. The whole class looked dramatic. Mr Steve then took his phone out and threatened to show their parents the photo during PTM.
“No! Please don't take!” they cried, but it was too late, as Mr Steve clicked his phone's camera.
During Geography, we had a misunderstanding over presenting t-shirts for the various countries of the world. Benjamin Fong and I were supposed to present, and I made a little shirt out of paper. I thought Benjamin Fong was supposed to bring another shirt, and each of us thought that we were responsible for the other individual's work. “Sorry, Wei Yiang, you are not getting full marks for your project,” Cikgu Baliah said depressedly, after asking us a few questions. Chu Xiang and Benjamin Koh made fun of my supposed failure.
Ms Lim asked us to do an anti-bullying poster, which caught on with Cikgu Izyani during ICT, and we did a science experiment where we had to push a bathroom scale with our hands to measure force. Alex Chia and Benjamin Fong held the scales, as we tried to push the scales while they held it. Benjamin Fong screamed and shouted when we pushed the scales.
The troublemaking had irked all the teachers, including Ms June, who was determined to put a stop to it. She then had a chat with Ivyna to air her concerns during English. “Ivy, I would need to move some of the boys to sit with the girls and vice versa, because a lot of teachers have told me they were noisy in class. I would have to separate them so that there will be no more trouble.”
“But Ms June, there are more boys than girls in this class,” said Ivyna.
“Then I would need to put them with good boys like Wei Yiang,” she responded. Ivyna then asked her if I would get bullied, and Ms June stopped short for a second, trying to avoid a second disaster. Even Ms Chume had gotten quite angry during History, and moved seats in the class. Luckily, I still remained in front to see the whiteboard, as Ms Chume carefully navigated the situation.
26th September 2013 was an inaugural day for Nobel. It was the first day of the Cambridge IGCSE examination and also the second day of Cambridge Checkpoint Trial examination, so the teachers were quite busy handling the Year 9 and 11 students for the respective tests. Ms Sim made the groundbreaking announcement during the assembly, and told us to be on muted mode when passing by the school library, which was closed and was used as an exam venue. While the Cambridge Checkpoint Trial lasted for three days, from 25th to 27th September, the IGCSE exam would run until 19th November. The Cambridge Checkpoint examination tests on the subjects of English, Mathematics and Science, while Cambridge IGCSE involved a series of 14 subjects, namely English First and Second Language, Maths, Additional Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Combined Science, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Art and Design, English Literature, Accounting, History, Religious Studies and Economics, which were displayed on a banner reading “All the Best to our 1st batch of IGCSE students!” which contained the date of the exam. On another note, Rhonda Tan passed the head prefect duties to Brandon Lee, who would serve as head prefect for a year from then.
That morning, we took our class photo during break time, as the boys struggled to contain their rowdiness. I was as usual, the odd one out of the boys, which made me appeal to the girls as well as teachers, and be shunned by the rest of the boys in class. We also learned interesting things as well, such as a video of flood tunnels in Tokyo, Japan, during Geography, which were built by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to store and use floodwater which prevents floods. Cikgu Baliah is one interesting teacher, and I really like her lesson. It really did rain that afternoon, and all the boys rushed to the art studio in the rain, since there was no passageway to shelter them. All of them were soaked, as Yew Jan changed his shirt during the lesson. “Anyone seen my glasses?” Benjamin Fong quipped, as he couldn't see clearly. I waited in 7N, where Heng Yi Long, his class from Year 8, and Mr Steve were getting ready for Mandarin. He wrote “Get well soon” in a sympathetic manner when I told him why I was waiting at 7N.
October 2013 begun on a dramatic note, as Cikgu Zura played a movie titled “Salam Raya Cucuku” in order to ask us to identify good values in Malay from the movie. Mr Paul added four new CCAs during our CT time, announcing ninjitsu, bowling, archery and rock climbing to cheers and applause from the crowd, especially on the last one. Our lab session with Cikgu Azira on the first day of October was wrecked by cancellation due to a mercury spill in the lab. The new librarians were installed, but however, I had an alarming situation on what Cikgu Azira did in our Science class on the very next day.
The Science lesson went quite smoothly, with the return of our notebooks, till Cikgu Azira asked us to pass up a homework that she had given us. Nobody knew what the homework was, except for Wei Zhong and Megan, who handed them in. The entire class were puzzled, as we heard no announcement from Cikgu Azira on the homework task. Everyone frantically asked Megan and Wei Zhong on the homework's task. I did not recall writing that particular homework task in the Student Organizer; I would have done so if Cikgu Azira had spoken about it during class. Everyone would have had done the homework had Cikgu Azira announced it in the class. Each one of us were discussing and did not recall any announcement from Cikgu Azira.
The task of the homework was to complete a worksheet Cikgu Azira gave us, and once everyone knew about what it was when Cikgu Azira, Megan and Wei Zhong gave hints, everyone, including me, produced the worksheet. However, because the worksheet was given via a relief method, namely being passed to one person and it was distributed informally without a formal announcement, no one knew the due date of the homework and were silent on the announcement.
Multiple teachers were absent during this time, and most teachers gave the relief worksheets via a plastic bag to be unpacked to the class by the class monitor, in our case, which was Nieshaal, the Prime Minister. This was very convenient, and many teachers started doing the same. Apparently, Nieshaal was supposed to pass it to us, but no formal announcement was made by him or Ivyna as Nieshaal, himself, had been busy in his competitions as well as fooling around with the boys in the class. Had either method been properly executed, or even if Megan and Wei Zhong informed the class, everyone would have had done the homework and had handed in the homework to Cikgu Azira.
What was about to happen was one disaster leading to another, resulting in a third disaster. A lot of mistakes would have had been made, which would result in total chaos.
Cikgu Azira told everyone to finish the worksheet in class, but with a catch. “Since you all did not complete my homework, all of you must write to me a letter, apologizing to me and also saying that your parents totally forgot that you have not done your homework and will monitor you from today,” she said in a stern voice, emphasizing on the need for punctuality. “Write me the letter and pass it up with your homework tomorrow, or else, I will be calling your parents,” she warned. She even asked how Megan and Wei Zhong were able to complete the task while the rest of the class could not. “Is it so difficult just to do homework and pass it up in class? How would your parents feel if you did not pass up your homework?” Apparently, Megan and Wei Zhong had problems with the homework, and asked Cikgu Azira on the questions, hence, they got the information on the due date.
Now, it is important to note that giving such a task would augur differently for each individual. While it may seem appropriate for misbehaving students in the class, for good students like me or Yen Choo, it can be seen as a declaration of shame, even though this is the first time we may have forgotten our homework due to external forces. I started crying in front of everyone because I felt quite helpless and ashamed of the task given to me, since I really did not deserve it due to my own carelessness and overlooked the task. In fact, my mum would disagree with me, and would quote the fact that I had a good homework or coursework submission record. I would also bring things if required for class by any teacher.
Seeing me in tears, Benjamin Koh, Benjamin Fong, Yew Jan, Ye Sean, Sean Mark and Nieshaal came to me and comforted me. It seems like as if sudden angels appeared during times of distress. “Aww, Wei Yiang, don't cry, come on, wipe your tears,” said Nieshaal, pretending to act as a mother kissing her daughter, as he made kissing sounds. In fact, I had to previously write “sorry teacher” 30 times for not bringing pictures for the pH experiment, so I got even more depressed with that. Both of these incidents were accident, and I felt punished for a careless mistake.
“Guys, guys, I think we should all cry together for not doing homework so that we can pity Wei Yiang, since Wei Yiang is crying,” Benjamin Fong said with a serious tone, as he proceeded to cry in his craziest tone. The class looked at him in puzzlement, as Nieshaal tried to follow him in acting like a baby. Cikgu Azira got mad and then slapped him on his shoulder before he could continue his rant.
“Stop it! Go back and do your work!” she yelled.
I teared up for one hour, and Ms Visa was even puzzled what happened, to which Benjamin Koh had to explain the whole situation. Soon, I started feeling uncomfortable and cold after crying for so long. During lunch, I sat alone and tried to warm myself up with good chicken rice, before heading to the courtyard and sitting in the centre, under the hot, blazing sun. Glen Kay approached me and attempted to discuss a video the both of us as well as Yatisan, had planned for the Space Week project, but however, he could sense that something was not quite right.
“Wei Yiang, are you okay?” he asked, trying to get a sense of what was going on. I just brushed him aside and told him everything was fine. He stood aside, wishing me well, but he could feel that things were not in good hands. The cold air conditioning dipped my temperature again as Cikgu Niely, who relieved Ms Chume during History, continued to play Salam Raya Cucuku as I concentrated on watching the video. She even moved my table away from the air conditioning, but it was of little use. Eventually, I came down with high fever that evening due to prolonged crying, and vomited at home, resulting in my mum rushing me to see Dr Ting, my childhood doctor, in his clinic. Dr Ting was also puzzled at what happened at school. He prescribed me fever medicine and told my mum to feed me for a week. I had to rest early, thus being unable to finish my Science homework, which my friends had done during Science lesson.
The next day, I came to school early to complete my homework. My mum had told me that if I needed to go home early, I could let Ms June or my friends know and to bring me to the sick bay. My mum had initially told me to not come to school and rest at home, but I was determined to go, pressing ahead to complete my full attendance record that I had held since 2010.
That very morning, we had Science, and my homework and a letter of apology was complete. In my letter, I told Cikgu Azira about the situation I faced after the incident the previous day, and what transpired, assuring her that I had completed my homework all the while. Suddenly, I puked in the classroom, thus resulting in Benjamin Koh, Nieshaal and Daniel Ngew rushing me to the washroom while I puked in the sink in the toilet. We returned when Cikgu Azira arrived in class, and she paid no attention to what had happened, instead, focusing on collecting our apologetic letters. Wai Shaun, Jo Yi and Aaron Liew were told by Cikgu Azira that their parents would be called as they had failed to present their letters despite having completed Cikgu Azira's homework. Coincidentally, Ms Visa was happy I brought a jacket to weather the cold. Normally, I would ditch jackets because of the fact that it was forbidden for us to wear jackets during break and lunch or outside our classroom, and I wanted to minimize inconvenience.
Friday, 4th October 2013 was the closing ceremony of Nobel Cup. Homerun was declared the champion house, and Bullseye had won third place in netball, fourth for futsal and second for basketball. The following Monday, the Year 9s had to bring their desks and chairs to the school hall for a second round of the Checkpoint trial examination. At the time, the school was ill-equipped with additional furniture to handle such a large examination, and the students were seen pushing their tables and chairs down, which made loud sounds and was quite inconvenient, which caught the whole school by surprise.
We also prepared our Final Year Examination, and most of us did presentations in class as a revision process. I volunteered to explain about earthquakes in Geography, which drew satisfaction from Cikgu Baliah. However, Ms Visa had not been happy with my Maths work and told me to do corrections. We even played Bingo during Art; Ms Nadia helped me out with the game but since the boys were quite rowdy, she had asked them to sit in front. The boys won the game, and wanted to punish the girls for losing, but they had trouble coming up with the “punishments”. “Wei Yiang, you will also be part of them,” Nieshaal cheekily quipped, referring to the punishment to be meted out to the girls. Apparently, the girls were not interested, and the boys had a hard time thinking how to make them suffer.
Many people in our class did not take the preparation for the Final Year Examination seriously, and it got worse the following Monday, 14th October 2013. During Mandarin, the class was quite noisy and the boys were not cooperating, which resulted in Mr Steve losing his cool, as he tried to conduct the class.
“Ok, since you all like to talk so much, all of you, take out your writing book and write the words of the capital cities one thousand times,” he said, referring to our spelling practice exercise. Typically, for a spelling test, we had to write the words up till the bottom of the exercise book as part of spelling practice, since writing Chinese characters require patience and memory to learn the strokes. However, Mr Steve decided to kill two birds with one stone by not only punishing the class for being noisy, but also allowing us to learn the words and their respective strokes. His goal was not only to make us feel the pain of the punishment, but also use it as a learning opportunity for the weaker students who were poor in Mandarin to improve on their spelling test.
“Guys, why you all talk so loud? Why you all did not keep quiet?” Brendan quipped, as he tried to point the responsibility to other people in the class even though he did not keep his volume down.
“But it is already too late. Everyone wanted it,” said Mr Steve.
Janelle Arnelia tried to persuade Mr Steve that it would be unfair to those who were listening in the class and were putting in their best to even engage with him in the lesson, pointing out me as one of the examples. However, Mr Steve stood his ground firmly, as he ignored a similar plea from Sean Mark and the other boys behind that were making a lot of noise. “If you want to escape the one thousand words punishment, finish two hundred words by 1:40pm or else you have to do the rest at home,” he warned, as he tried to filter out those who were sincere and those who still tried to be funny with him.
There were eight words that we had to memorize for this particular spelling test, namely Beijing (北京), Tokyo (东京), Taipei (台北), Kuala Lumpur (吉隆坡), Singapore (新加坡), London (伦敦) and New York (纽约). I begun writing the easiest words, and to speed things up, I wrote each stroke individually for two hundred times before doing the rest. Luckily I was fast, and I presented the work within 15 minutes, and he signed my book in satisfaction.
The class groaned as the strokes and load of work took a toll on their energy, straining their hands in the process. “The tiredness of doing this reflects how noisy you are,” Mr Steve said with a serious look on his face as he did not want funny business disrupting his class. It was unfair to those who had been listening to him and participating in his lesson, and Mr Steve could feel that.
“To all those who have been listening to me for the whole lesson, I am sorry if you have to bear this punishment,” he apologized, showing his innocent look to the girls as well as me and the boys in front who asked him questions. Mr Steve said that he had to do this to ensure fairness and to prevent people from fooling around, as it had happened too many times to the annoyance of those that really wanted to study.
Cikgu Baliah then entertained us with a quiz in Geography, and I copied the slides on the whiteboard, word by word, which was used for the quiz. Benjamin Koh then cheekily snatched my journal to read during the lesson, and Cikgu Baliah confiscated it from him, to cheers from the boys in the class that teased me for having my items confiscated.
When Cikgu Baliah asked questions, I immediately know the answers to the questions and immediately put up my hand.
“Wei Yiang, you are pro already, and we need to give others a chance,” Cikgu Baliah smiled as she felt the same person raising up hands continuously. Nieshaal, Wei Zhong and the rest of the people in the class took turns explaining the waterfall diagram to Cikgu Baliah in the quiz. Then, we did the Geography homework Cikgu Baliah gave us in class, and Cikgu Baliah told us that we need to improve our work. “Many people in this class have been giving me rubbish work, you know. I don't want to see this type of work again,” she said, with a stern look on her face. I then handed in my exercise book, collected back my journal, and showed Cikgu Baliah a fictional comic which touched on the survival of earthquakes by a family who were stranded in Japan during an earthquake and managed to survive an earthquake, tsunami and a collapsing building despite not having been evacuated. Cikgu Baliah was delighted as the comic contained earthquake educational information that we learnt in class. "Your presentation last Wednesday was really good,” she said, referring to my earthquake presentation we did for our Final Year Examination on Wednesday, 9th October 2013.
Meanwhile, the Year 9 students were on their Checkpoint exam, on 15th, 16th and 17th October. Along with the Year 11s, they were allowed to return early, which was a relief to them not having to endure a long school day. Ms Visa had been practicing mental Maths, which we had been taught the previous year by Ms Thava. Listening tests from the years 2007 and 2009 were beamed to us by her.
We then begun a week of exams, and eventually, all students in Nobel were in examination mode. The same standard of protocol that was used for the Mid Year Examination had been replicated in the Final Year Examination, so we knew what to do. Most chapters that we were told to study involved the entire book. I had to write answer questions related to dragons throughout the entire English paper on the first day of exams, Friday, 18th October 2013. I looked at the clock during the English exam as it ticked till the official end time of 12:25pm. It felt like it was forever for an exam which I could do. I felt that as if some papers had more pages with a shorter examination duration, and some which had less pages with a lengthy exam time.
While Mr Steve continued showing us Ah Boys To Men during Mandarin earlier in the day, I wrote my journal. It was not all smooth though; Nieshaal and Ye Sean took my pen, but because I raised my voice, they gave my pen back in fear. Following the test, Dillon locked the door, preventing me from carrying Uncle KC's food buns for our Friday lunch meal into the class. As Ms Lim was passing by, she took me to the office to uncover the cause of me being outside, and scolded those who did not allow me to enter.
Returning back to school the following Monday, 21st October 2013, for the next exam, I struggled to quickly finish my Maths paper before Ms June collected them. I then talked to Ms Chume about my Maths paper experience before finding the exam papers for the next exam. Meanwhile, the people in 7N were rowdy, and Ms Lim, who was passing by, got into a rage.
“Why are you all talking and shouting? Please be quiet! All of you need to improve, ya,” she said, furious at the actions of the people in the class. It wasn't even a minute after she left for the next class, 7O, that the noise grew again.
“I want all those who are walking around to stand up. Own up now, who was walking just now?” she groaned in anger.
Sean Mark, Nieshaal, Wei Zhong and Dillon Teh stood up, to Ms Lim's despair.
“7N.........HORRIBLE!” she cried. She then excused Wei Zhong as he was doing something else while standing, and instructed the remainder of them to meet her in her office following Maths Paper 2.
The Paper 3 Mental Maths exam begun, as I struggled to write answers without doing any working or calculation. The Paper 2 exam was quite more straightforward. The boys then cheered and counted down the end to the Maths paper rowdily.
The next day, on 22nd October, Ms Lim told everyone not to go to the washroom as a group in suspicion of something bad happening. Ms Chume pasted the examination rules and regulations on the class notice board, as Ms Visa wrote the examination details for Science Paper 1 in beautiful scribbling and calligraphic form.
Sean Mark had also written a list of subjects in examination order on the board, and crossed them out when the exams were finished. For Science Paper 2, Brendan Cheah changed the timing on Ms Visa's writing, wrote a list of times, namely 11:30, 11:40, 11:50, 12:00, 12:05, 12:10 and 12:15 and told Ms Chume to cross them out.
“Ms Chume, do you see these clock thingies over there?” asked Brendan. Ms Chume then looked at the clocks, puzzled at what it was. “All you have to do is that when the time comes, you must cross it out when the time came. Let's say that when it is 11:30, you cross out at 11:30. Keep crossing out the time until the last one. Then, we will know whether the exam is over or not,” Brendan continued. Ms Chume obliged and Brendan kept reminding her to slash the time off during the exam as Ms Chume urged him to continue his paper.
Prior to the beginning of Science Paper 2, I had brought a series of Cambridge Checkpoint past year papers which my mum had downloaded and printed, to school in order to practice the exam questions. While most questions were not taught in Year 7, I only answered questions that were in the Year 7 topics. I struck gold during the Science Paper 2 examination when one of the questions which tested on rocks from the past year papers automatically replicated itself miraculously on the examination paper. I filled it in excitedly, as Brendan counted down and shouted loudly, “Five, four, three, two, one!”
I told Cikgu Azira of the surprise configuration during Science, when she came in, and showed the Cambridge Checkpoint paper which my mum had downloaded. “Cikgu Azira! This question from this paper came out in the exam! I saw it!” I cried.
Cikgu Azira was puzzled and I explained everything to her, showing her the Checkpoint exam paper and that particular question. “Really? Wow,” she said, recognizing one of the questions. Pei Chi, curious at the mayhem, came over to see the paper that I held, and in seconds, all the boys were at my table to find out the mysterious treasure.
“Aiyoh, Cikgu! It's not fair!” cried Wei Zhong. Sean Mark was baffled. “Wei Yiang cheated!” he shrieked. I then told Cikgu Azira how I saw the question from the Cambridge website and asked my mum to print the paper, and Cikgu Azira tried to reassure the students, saying that it was the Cambridge past-year exam paper, which could be taken from the website.
It is not common for students to download the past year exam papers when studying for Cambridge Checkpoint or Cambridge IGCSE. In fact, four years from then, these people who had blamed me for cheating would be frantically studying past year papers to try their luck during the IGCSE examination, and our teachers would be telling us by then that there is a chance of the questions repeating itself in the exam. Occasionally, Cambridge examiners re-use questions in their exams, and it would be like striking a lottery in the exam. The people in 7N would soon follow what I did for the IGCSE exam.
Anyhow, back to Year 7. The exam went on for the rest of the week without any issue. I told Ms Hani about the Science exam question when in 7E during their Science period as we moved class, and when Ms Feeda took over the relief class for Ms Visa in 7N when she was absent on Friday, 25th October, Ms Feeda and I discussed our Fine Art Club CCA's photo taking session and the Art Exhibition which we would do during PTM. “Later I will announce during Fine Art Club,” she said. Mr Lee, who taught Physics for Year 10 and 11, showed us a video named “Shock and Awe – The Story of Electricity” to amaze us when he came to take over the relief period. During Homeroom, Ms Chume tried to put trust on Nieshaal to keep the class under control in order not to get her into trouble with Ms Lim when she left for 10 minutes because Ms Lim was in the CCA room, he failed in his mission as the noise level skyrocketed.
Space Week, the last event of the year, arrived. I partnered Glen, anticipating the movie making competition, but however, we ultimately did not manage to submit the video.
Space Week opened on 28th October 2013 with a planned rocket launching ceremony during assembly, but sadly, the rocket launch was corrupted and it failed. The next day, there was no assembly due to the rain as Ms Lim angered my friends who were in class by switching on the lights as they wanted it turned off so they can coze around.
Year 7s and 8s were treated to a movie named Startrek, and each Year 7 class was asked to create a fictional animal in a fictional planet named Planet Zema, with the details provided in a booklet. We had to create the animal based on the details in that booklet, from the planet's details, the topography as well as the rules and regulations. Ivyna took charge, leading the project, and we named the animal a "Blobatee”. There was a space riddle competition and I made my answers to the riddle. Yew Jan asked me the answers, and we made a thousand copies of the answers in a thousand slips of paper. We then increased it to three thousand copies and passed the information to Caleb Chen, who headed the space riddle competition.
The last day of October saw me bringing styrofoam and we all made the animal out of it. The Blobatee was a large, fish-like animal with a long stick on top and a large nose that reminded one of a pig's nose. Mr Matthew Koh and Ms Ng Mei Yen then came in to judge our animal, which Wei Zhong presented. They looked in amazement, as Rachel Tan, Charmaine Tan, Sabrina Qistina and other members of the Space Week Organizing Committee came in to view the mysterious creature. We then presented the Blobatee to Mr Paul during Art, who was delighted to hear from us. The closing ceremony was held on 1st November at 11am, but it lasted a pretty, boring, 20 minutes.
Our teachers then drilled us for our Year 8 course curriculum as November approached, starting with Ms Visa and followed by the rest of the teachers. Ms Feeda had also planned for an art exhibition with us during PTM, and we sorted out the arrangement of our Fine Art Club paintings and other associated paintings during the final CCA session we had for 2013.
For class party, we had it on 15th November 2013, the last day of school. I arrived early and Pei Chi put up the decorations, along with a series of drawings from the previous day. Chu Xiang got a megaphone with a voice functions and my friends watch an action movie. In fact, every class wanted to watch movies on the last day of school, but Ms Lim had to ban them and we gathered downstairs in the hall for our class party theme named “Sail Away”. We played a few games and each class had to name a Boatswain and First Mate as captains. The games required all classes to play till a point where the one who got the most gold coins will get a treasure chest. Nieshaal was our Boatswain, Brendan Cheah the First Mate, and we saw 8E get the treasure chest. Out of everyone, Benjamin Tenji had the best costume.
We then returned to class as Ms June and Ms Chume met us and arranged the tables in the center of the classroom, removing all posters from the wall and using some chemicals to clean the whiteboard. Ms June then gathered us for our final meeting for the year where each one of us reflected on what we did for 2013, before we left. I was the last one to bid farewell to Ms June and Ms Chume. As I walked down the hallway, Ms June and Ms Chume left the class and I returned to check my things for a final time, bidding goodbye to the country of 7N. It was a wonderful and eventful time to be with 7N, with my eyes focused on Year 8.
2014 – Year 8
6th January 2014 was the first day of school. The school had extended the front office towards the driveway of the entrance of the school in order to make more space for a new reception counter, front desk and meeting rooms, and the former location of the reception counter, located next to the foyer, was turned into the Uniform Shop and a series of offices. On the first day of school, all elementary school students were asked to gather in the courtyard while the Junior and Senior School students were instructed to assemble in the school hall.
The Year 7 students who were new rookies to the Junior and Senior School were already given their maroon uniforms; an improvement from the previous year in which our maroon uniforms were delayed. I found out that I was assigned to class 8O once a whiteboard with a pasted class list was set up in the school foyer. I also had no idea where to place my bag as I had arrived early and were one of the first to enter the school. Once we were given the location to place our bags, I then went to the canteen to have my breakfast, which is normally bread that I take every morning.
Upon heading to where my class, 8O was, we found out who our class teachers were, namely Ms Lee Kaesy and Ms Samantha. Ms Lee Kaesy briefly taught me Mandarin in Year 7 while the rest of the year was taken up by Mr Steve Lim. Ms Samantha is a new teacher to Nobel at the time and she was placed in our 8O class as assistant class teacher. She would teach us Science for Year 8. I greeted Ms Lee and Ms Samantha before sitting in the front.
The first game we decided to play as a class is the “one, two, jus” game, except that instead of playing with paper, scissors and stone, this was replaced by a gorilla, pretty lady and hunter.
The game went as follows: if the hunter was matched with a gorilla, the hunter won. If the gorilla was matched with a pretty lady, the gorilla would gobble her up, and the pretty lady would attract the hunter if they were matched. Ms Lee then divided us into two groups, one led by her, and another led by Ms Samantha. I was placed in Ms Samantha’s group, and we won over Ms Lee’s group with 7 points over theirs, which scored 6 points.
We then introduced ourselves one by one, and I was the first to introduce myself before the rest. Then, based on the introduction we had, we played a game to guess our friends based on that. Each person will have to gather behind a cloth and squeeze in, before another would guess the name of that individual when that cloth was pulled down. We had to guess the name instantly when the cloth was removed or else we would be eliminated; I was unlucky to be eliminated in the first round when guessing Eu Lynn’s name.
Following the game, we then had to elect the treasurer, class monitor, assistant class monitor and head of cleanliness.
“I propose that we elect the class and assistant monitor by secret ballot,” I suggested. Many people did not know what a ‘secret ballot’ was, but ultimately, it was decoded as something like a normal electoral process in which people cast ballots without informing the choice of the vote, and I related it to the electoral process in Malaysia as well as Nobel's Student Council Election. However, Ms Lee said it was logistically challenging to use that method, and we used the normal method of raising hands instead. The 'secret ballot’ term was coined and borrowed from the 2020 Olympics’ Host City Election on 7th September 2013, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s Director-General, Christophe de Kepper, mentioned it when briefing the IOC members on the host city election process.
The class then put forward Caleb Chuang, whom they nicknamed Jason. Many people kept on calling Caleb Chuang as Jason when putting him forward. Then, a few other names were proposed for the class monitor's post, along with various posts too.
I was chosen as the head of cleanliness, while Eu Lynn became the treasurer, Caleb Chuang the class monitor, with Benjamin Fong assisting him. On top of that, three new students joined Nobel International School via class 8O: Alia Zulklifi, Lim Yin Wei and Ong Ting Yi. Ting Yi was seated beside me on the first day of school. We weren’t given our Student Organizer on the first day, which made it difficult for me to record homework. Ms Lee told me that the school would update us later on regarding that. Ms Lee also told everyone that we would have a Maths teacher who is a man, and she would not reveal his name or his personality until after break time, when we had Maths.
As the school day started, Ting Yi sat beside me, uncertain of what to expect, and he kept on asking me questions. He met many helpful people, other than me, who helped him adjust to his new life in Nobel. The same was said with Yin Wei and Alia, who met many nice people, and as such, were able to get used to life in Nobel. Adjusting to a new school is not easy; most of us had been here since 2008, and had known each other every step of the way.
Following our break time, we had Maths lesson with Mr Daniel. Mr Daniel is a very funny teacher and he’s Indian. He wore spectacles and had cleanly shaved beard. He would normally act funnily and tell life stories in his class, and our first lesson with him was Indices. He was very interesting and everyone paid close attention to him. After Maths, we had Mandarin, and I was once again placed in Mandarin Core, the easiest Mandarin set teaching group. Ms Lee was our Mandarin teacher, and I was very happy to meet her again. During her class, we had to play a game, asking questions in Mandarin.
Ms Lee also told us to buy the stipulated textbook and workbook, with one small exercise book that contained squares. The square book was meant to allow us to easily write Chinese characters which we would be using during the lesson.
Following lunch, we then had Science lesson with Ms Samantha. Ms Samantha then told us to call her “Ms Sam” for short if calling Ms Samantha by her full name was too long. However, I prefer to call her Ms Samantha and regularly addressed her by that name instead of Ms Sam. Ms Samantha then taught us about the leaf cells and then we paid attention. Shaun Ting and Branson Choon would normally be asking questions. We then had English with Ms Joyce, who previously taught the other Year 7 classes the previous year and she spent the lesson telling us which books to bring.
The next day, 7th January 2014, Ms Lee said that there was a class mural contest. Ms Lee was unsure who were we contesting against, but however, she would let us know more on that. Under the class mural contest, each class would need to paint and draw drawings in the classroom and the drawings would be judged.
Mr Daniel then came in and did more on indices with us. As I sat in front of the class, I enjoyed listening to his lesson as his voice was loud, and he failed to even make us bored as he threw out one topic after another. He was very helpful when he guided us on our exercises. During break time, I met my old Malay teacher from Year 3 and 4, Cikgu Nurul. I had a fruitful conversation with her and she was proud of me advancing to Year 8.
Ms Joyce came in during English and then did descriptive writing exercises with us. I gave many good ideas for my descriptive exercises till Ms Joyce was impressed. “Give him a clap!” she said, and the class thundered in applause for me. Following her class, I went to 8N for the Bible Knowledge (BK) lesson with Ms Cynthia. Ms Joyce then came gave me the class control book and I was puzzled.
“Wei Yiang, I am giving you the control book as I heard from Ms June that you are good in managing the control book than the other monitors,” she said. I asked Ms Joyce on what if other teachers questioned me handling the control book as I am not a monitor, and Ms Joyce told me she would let them know. You see, as I have had good control book records in Year 7 despite not being a monitor, the teachers entrusted me for the job.
Previously, in Year 7, my BK teacher was Mr Chan Lik Hoong, but however, Ms Cynthia would teach us for Year 8. But it was Geography, which was later on, that we knew who our teacher was and how interesting it the Geography lesson would become.
Ms Maddy was our Geography teacher and she introduced herself properly, including her birth year of 1977. She was born in Kuching, Sarawak and had moved between places many times. Of course, nationally, she is a British national but she actually prefers Malaysia than the United Kingdom. We also had to introduce ourselves during the introduction session during her lesson.
You see, when Nobel first became an international school, there was an influx of foreign teachers. Up till then, all my teachers were local teachers and I had some taboo then over foreign teachers. So, Ms Maddy is considered the first so-called foreign teacher who taught me. In 2014, there were a few foreign teachers teaching in Nobel; Mr Thomas (English), Mr Mark Wright (English), Mr Kevin Cupit (History), Ms Kerry (ICT), Mrs Savari (ICT) and a few others. I had this chance that a foreign teacher would teach me and there it came. So, after Ms Maddy left and Ms Samantha came in for Science, I also told her about the control book issue by Ms Joyce to me, and she said she was duely informed by her as well. We then continued the story of photosynthesis and leaves during the lesson.
On 8th January 2014, Ms Lee, Ms Samantha and I were taking attendance, and I wrote the indicators for break and lunch time so that it will be easy for me to monitor the timetable written on the control book with the one that was given to us. You see, I had asked the teachers on my own voluntary accord to sign the control book and wrote the timetable in order which previous monitors failed to do. So, because my teachers wanted instant results, they asked me to coordinate the control book response as I am well organized with that.
Just as we were about to do our own things, a new girl named Renee Koh knocked on the dorr. She then came into the class and was then asked to be seated by Ms Lee and Ms Samantha. Renee Koh was originally placed in Year 7 but then she was transferred to our class. She was 13 years old and was eligible for Year 8, so by right, she should be in Year 8. Normally, at age 13, one would begin secondary school, but for international school students, we begin secondary school a year earlier at 12 years old.
Ms Lee and Ms Samantha introduced Renee Koh to all of us after getting the entire class’ attention. She then encouraged us to accompany Renee Koh and talk to her and make her feel well at home. So, I accompanied Renee most of the time and talked to her and got to know her too.
Renee Koh is a very nice girl. She had nice glasses and a very calm look on her face. Still, she is quite friendly and is willing to talk to me. She was quite puzzled as to what to expect, but Ms Lee and Ms Samantha were very kind. Yin Wei also talked to Renee as well to make her feel at home. Renee Koh was originally assigned to 7E but then got upgraded to 8O. Yin Wei would accompany Renee for the rest of the day.
We then had PE class, and Mr Victor was strict on exercises, asking us to do the correct moves. I was told by him that it was compulsory to bring the control book for PE lessons, and I had to change plans for the control book. Originally, I thought that Mr Victor need not sign them, as he is not coming to our classroom, but I had to change plans based on this.
Mr Victor told us to do sit ups and planking. He kept on shouting orders like a robot dog, and I pressed my hands till it vibrated. Rick was looking at me. “No, Wei Yiang, you did it wrongly. Your body must be straight and not touch the floor,” he said. The planking was quite painful as I pressed my hands in a push up position, stood still and held myself. Mr Victor then walked around the school hall, checking on us. “PUSH!” he cried. “COME ON! SOME MORE!”
Mr Victor then asked us to do as many sit ups as possible. I tried to do them, and Rick Tan held my leg. I kept on falling apart when I tried to do my push ups. Mr Victor said that if we did not do our exercises properly, he would take up our break time and we would not have enough time for break.
Following PE, I then went to purchase the Mandarin Core textbook and workbook during break time in order to be used for Mandarin Core. I did not have enough money for the book and needed to use it, so the shopkeeper told me to take more money and pay the full amount the next day, as the total bill for the textbook and workbook costed RM 81.90. As the book was printed and sold in China, this explains the high bill. When Ms Lee had explained about the book design in our first Mandarin class, it looked very nice and contained a lot of interactive infographics in the book.
Cikgu Zura was in our class for Malay, and for those people who were in 7N, 7O and 7L, it was a continuation of her lessons from 2013. On another note, Cikgu Zura and Ms Lee were pregnant and expecting babies. We did not learn on the first day of our Malay class as Cikgu Zura had a “meet and greet” session and introduced us to the Malay class. I congratulated her on the expectant baby, and so did Eu Lynn and Yan Ying. Cikgu Zura was going to have a baby girl in nine months’ time. Cikgu Zura also told us that we need to give her our fullest cooperation as she did not want to suffer micromanaging us.
Ms Evelyn, the then principal of the Junior and Senior School, said that our Student Organizers would be distributed the following week as there was a delay in printing. On top of that, the co-curricular activities (CCA) would only start after the Chinese New Year holidays, and that we were told to pay attention for announcements. Oh dear. I cannot concentrate without having the Student Organizer as I need to take note of homework. I was afraid that I may forgot something and then I cannot pass up my homework properly.
Ms Lim then met us for Character Transformation (CT) and then told us about the Student Code of Conduct. This is important, as the school rules would dictate how we would go about things. You see, back in 2014, possession of an electronic device like a computer or handphone was impossible when you were in Nobel at that time, even if you wanted to use it for lessons. It is not like the tech-savvy thing we have today, but more or less, the rules were so strict that things like what we see today are totally barred. There were no e-learning platforms, nor were there flexibilities like what we have today. The rules were much stricter then than it is today. For a start, the contents in the handbook state, among any things, that we could only wear black shoes with Nobel socks (no other shoes of other brands!), and for one to bring a computer or even a camera or phone to school, a long list of paperwork would need to be filled out. There would be a booklet containing the Student Code of Conduct which would be printed out for us to keep. The rules were much more stricter then, and one would need to ensure that they survive and not be scolded or punished.
After lunch, we had Science with Ms Samantha and we continued the photosynthesis and leaves topic. Ms Samantha said that it was already the third day of school and time flew very fast. Then, Ms Maddy came in for Geography and told us about the topics we would cover for Geography in for the year.
The Geography topics for Year 8 in 2014 consisted of:
1) Population
2) Coasts
3) Weather and climate
4) Ecosystems
5) Global warming
6) Energy sources
7) Geography of crime
8) Brazil
9) London (according to the Geo 2 textbook)
This is the beginning of something fun, as Ms Maddy announced bites of information one after the other. She also announced that, for the first time then, Geography would contain a modular assessment in which tests would be covered one topic a time, and that there would be no official Geography exam for Assessment 1, Mid Year Examination, Assessment 2 and the Final Year Examination. This Year 8 Geography subject with Ms Maddy would be one of the best times that I would enjoy in Nobel and the highlight of Year 8. Aside from the modular assessments, there would be coursework given and that we would be assessed on homework and class participation as well.
A modular assessment is an assessment which constitutes a test on a single topic which is conducted after the conclusion of that topic. This test would be held at least once or twice a month depending on the circumstances. The Geography subject's modular test had been terminated since 2017, returning to a normal assessment format.
Ms Maddy then continued the lesson by asking about the three types of geography and who can give the answer, along with examples. The answer was very easy for me to answer and I had the answers and examples in mind. The types of geography are physical geography, human geography and environment geography, and I planned to give the examples as the physical terrain (such as mountains), people for the second type, and an environment impact for the third example. So, being excited to answer the question, I raised my hand up. However, Branson Choon and Shaun Ting, two other people in our class, also knew the answer to the question, and also put up their hands. Just like me, all of them knew the answer to the question Ms Maddy asked!
Ms Maddy was baffled. She was starstruck over who to choose to answer the question. The three of us were hoping that Ms Maddy could give us a chance to answer. We were calling for Ms Maddy to choose us and made so much noise till the whole class laughed. If Ms Maddy called one of us and then that person answered correctly, the people who were not chosen would feel envious. And Ms Maddy was thinking about that too.
Ms Maddy then had an idea. “How about all three of you name me one of the types of geography and the example,” she said, since there were three types of geography and three people trying to answer the question, making it a win-win-win situation. So, I was asked to name the first type, and said physical geography and gave my example. Then, Shaun Ting was asked to give the second one and he said human geography and so on. When all of us were done, Ms Maddy gave us a round of applause, with bafflement and laughter from the entire class. “Good job!” she cried.
Then, Ms Maddy flicked the slides on the Smartboard to show us a world map containing all the continents of the world. Oh, it was so easy to memorize them. I can easily remember it in my head, which made Rick Tan very jealous. He hates Geography a lot. For our learning, the continent which made up Australia and New Zealand would be referred to as Oceania instead of the more popularized versions of Australia or Australasia. There were seven continents and five oceans that we had to remember. We were given a copy by Ms Maddy and had to paste them in our notebook and color them. This was not before Ms Maddy showed us a video of Yakko's World that introduced the continents of the world.
We had an enjoyable day that day as I gave in the control book and Smartboard pens to Ms Lee in her office on the second floor. Ms Lee received it and thanked me for it. Sadly, one of our classmates, Alicia Tang, one of our classmates, later changed classes to 8L. Oh. Never mind.
Eu Lynn suggested a donation of RM 2 from everyone in the class in order to fund the class murals, as paint was needed and so on. So, we then collected the money and then gave it to her the next day. She would then use the money to buy paint for the mural painting. Ms Nadia then also took the opportunity to begin briefing on our first art lesson on 10th January 2014 on what we need to bring for our art lesson. We were also given a CCA briefing during homeroom time that day.
For Ms Nadia's art lesson, she said that we need to bring our art supplies and purchase an art folder, which would be used to contain all the drawings we would draw during art classes. Ms Nadia is very strict on art materials, you know. The past year, in 2013, was quite horrible. Not bringing the relevant materials to class would get one into the torture chamber or wall of shame.
The rules for CCA were very different then, as multiple CCAs that I eyed were not applicable for people who are from Year 7, 8 and 9 and only for Year 10 and 11. This meant that two CCAs that I eyed, namely Editorial Board and Fine Art Club, cannot be chosen. We had to choose our CCA via the parent's portal and select them provided that the CCA is not full. Instead, I had to settle for the Art and Craft Club as a compromise. I had been in the Fine Art Club in the previous year, in 2013, and I was hoping to have a second shot with Ms Feeda. Leong Yi Zhen and Rosemund Chong, having formed part of the preceding year's Fine Art Club, were given exemptions after they appealed and at the same time, they were recommended by their teachers. If I had the courage then to write an exemption for the Fine Art Club or Editorial Board, I would be chosen. Renee Koh was also recommended for the Editorial Board after passing an interview, which was the norm then when choosing people for the Editorial Board back then.
I had high hopes of joining the Editorial Board because I like to do journalling and am good in writing essays. I had been with the School Journalism CCA club in 2012 when I was Year 6, and I was wanting to have a shot. At the same time, I feel better being with Fine Art Club instead of Art and Crafts Club, as the latter takes things to a new scale with a professional art teacher. Ms Feeda is one of three major art teachers in Nobel in 2014, with the others being Ms Nadia, who is teaching me and one of the art assistants, Ms Fiqah.
Speaking of Art, we had a new art bag. It was red in color and looked like a briefcase, but looked small. The art bag contained Nobel International School's logo lettering on it. I would use the bag for every Art lesson and every Art and Craft Club CCA.
The rest of the month of January went smoothly. We learned about the Tudors during History, Ms Lee taught us how to write some Chinese characters for the Spelling day on Thursday, 16th January 2014 and Mr Daniel continued to do his humorous lessons. He even sang the “Bob the Builder” song when we were dismissing from school as Maths was the last class of the day. Mr Daniel is one very funny teacher, especially when Ms Lee revealed excitedly that a male teacher would be teaching us Mathematics. So, when Mr Daniel sang the Bob the Builder song, everyone laughed. Wei Zhong, Shaun Ting and Branson Choon laughed the loudest. Ha ha ha ha ha! And even Branson sang at the top of his lungs, which Ting Yi followed.
Ms Maddy showed us a world population clock on 15th January 2014 during the Geography lesson which kept on counting the number of people, carbon emissions, pollution and even after I went home and kept looking months later, it still continued to count and count and chant and chant, as if it was not fatigued to the effort around it since that date. She then asked us to research the index number and why were there low birth and death rates in certain countries. Then, that afternoon, after school, we then started painting the classroom as Eu Lynn and Yan Ying then got some paint to get started. Mind you, there were more girls than boys in 8O then. We eventually completed painting the classroom on 24th January 2014 after staying back.
The girls were very excited to paint the classroom as opposed to the boys. Yan Ying and Eu Lynn were quite excited to lead the project. I took out my apron, put it on, and begun painting with them. Each one had to paint an animal of their choice, with their name and birthday written on them. Then, at the back of the class, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying plan to put a collage of our names along with Ms Lee and Ms Samantha's names, which was quite cool.
During homeroom time, Ms Lee and Ms Samantha came in and they gave us time to do the mural paintings. I focused on doing my homework and once I was done, I talked to Rick. Then, I saw Ivyna standing on a chair to paint the wall behind the classroom, but however, she was a bit careless when painting the class, and she fell down and spilled paint on the floor and the shelves behind the classroom. BANG!
The loud bang and splashing of the paint resulted in commotion across the classroom. The floor was smeared in yellow, green and white as if they mixed into one big nasi lemak dish. Yan Ying and Eu Lynn went to help Ivyna. Then, they held her hands and pulled her up. I went to see what was going on but Eu Lynn told me not to worry so much. “Careful,” said Ms Lee as she asked if Ivyna felt okay. Fortunately, the paint was cleaned up in no time, as Yan Ying and Eu Lynn took turns to clean the floor. Ivyna stood up and fortunately she was okay. Phew.
Oh, I forgot one more thing as well. Ms Joyce revealed the title of the 2014 Commonwealth Essay Competition. In Nobel International School, everyone is required to participate in the competition which we had to choose a topic and respond to it. The theme of the 2014 Commonwealth Essay Competition is ‘United We Stand’. Although the competition due date is officially 1st May 2014, essays must be submitted to the English teachers by 21st April 2014. Ms Joyce told us to get cracking and then start planning how to write our topic. I was clueless on how to do so.
The day before, on 23rd January, a new girl who was originally placed in Year 7 then joined our class. She has small eyes and quite a cute face, carrying a pink bag. She knocked the door and then entered the class. Her name is Sara Yow and just like Renee Koh, she would also be 13 years old in 2014. What is even more ironic is her birthday falling on 31st December, and being at the end of the year, she would be the last one to turn 13, so it would be more logical to join the Year 7s. However, because she did well in an entrance test, she came to our class. Renee Koh and Sara Yow would become best friends in class that year. Sara has quite a cute face and is very adorable. In fact, she looked so young then, to the extent one would assume that they are meeting a kid from primary school. She looked even younger than the Year 7 students back in 2014.
Since the first day of school, some people had been giving Caleb Chuang the nickname Jason, and because each individual had to draw his or her own animal, Caleb Chuang drew a chicken and wrote “Jason Prochicken” on it. I drew a picture of a giraffe, and we had to inscribe our name and birth date on them. Apart from that, Eu Lynn also drew a picture of Olaf which is one of the characters from the movie “Frozen”, some fingerprints and a list of everyone's names including Ms Lee and Ms Samantha's.
Ms Joyce, who taught me English that year, was a somewhat serious but to some extent, she was also humerous. She had short hair but also square-shaped glasses. At first look, one can tell that she is a serious teacher and would get scared of her, but she was also a nice teacher as well and if you were well-behaved, there would be no issues.
Ms Joyce said that she would be creating a Literacy Circle group chat on Gmail, and asked everyone to have a Gmail account. She decided to give her email address as a start, and added us into the Literacy Circle. I managed to get that sorted out during the Chinese New Year holidays.
Ms Joyce also gave us a pink file to put our worksheets for English in, and also told us to have a book named “Holes” for the English lesson, as we were planning to use that in the lesson. I didn't bring, so I shared the book till I brought mine. Holes is a novel which talk about a young boy who lives in a village near a saltwater lake and how he went about his lifestyle.
For Chinese New Year, I gave some cookies to my teachers who were celebrating Chinese New Year, especially those who taught me Mandarin or who are ethnic Chinese. The elementary school then celebrated their Chinese New Year celebration the next day, on 28th January 2014, the last day before Chinese New Year which falls on 31st January 2014. Ms Lim told us during dismissal that day that the Junior and Senior School's Chinese New Year celebration would fall on Friday, 7th February 2014, after our Chinese New Year holiday, and we had to wear red to commemorate the occasion. I spent my Chinese New Year holiday visiting my mum's relatives in Batu Pahat for the celebration as I indulged in a traditional Chinese lifestyle in the rural areas.
When we returned on 5th February 2014, following the one-week Chinese New Year holiday, Mr Victor started to train us for the Sports Day. He wanted us to know how to run and do the sports activities so that we can be better prepared for Sports Day. We also started gearing up for the Assessment 1. We had a pop quiz done by Ms Samantha for Science, and Ms Maddy announced that the first Geography modular assessment would begin on the first period the following week, which was Tuesday, 11th February 2014. The modular test would be on population. I mentally tried to gear up for the test.
The Chinese New Year celebration scheduled for Friday, 7th February 2014 had to sadly, be postponed to the end of the day before dismissal because of the selection of our house captain and assistant captain for Sports Day during the morning assembly. When we gathered for assembly, Ms Evelyn and Ms Lim told us to gather in our Sports Houses, and we were immediately grouped with the wonderful members of Bullseye. Caleb Chuang was sitting behind me. All the Bullseye house teachers were standing around us, especially Mr Matthew Koh, who tried to act as cool as possible.
All of us Bullseye members nominated Brian Ong and Emily Liew for house captain and assistant captain. Now, Brian Ong is a very cool guy and had shown his potential for leading the house, and so did Emily, who was a dancer and outspoken person from Bullseye. They were Year 10 Bullseye house captains the previous year that led Nobel Cup 2013 to cover the gap left by Year 11 house captain Dominic Chow who had to sit for the IGCSE exam. Because Brian Ong and Emily Liew make good leadership for Bullseye, the house members, including me, were excited and unanimous in selecting him. He is quite cool, you know.
“Brian and Emily are not here today. Brian is in Korea, while Emily is sick,” said Ms Evelyn, trying to convince the Bullseye members to choose another leader. However, the Bullseye members were so excited and determined to elect Brian Ong and Emily Liew because they know that there will be a Bullseye victory in 2014. Ms Evelyn tried asking why we did not want to choose someone who was present, but the Bullseye members groaned. As such, we then elected them convincingly. Sarah would be the dance captain, Naomi Seah the march captain and Shaun the athletics captain in addition to Brian and Emily being in the committee. All the Bullseye members grinned happily upon hearing Brian and Emily being successfully elected. Yeah!
Brian Ong was the assistant head prefect for 2014. He has a nice hairstyle that one would remind of Bruno Mars. He is also quite a cool and understanding guy as a Bullseye house captain, and the people in Year 11 back in those days were quite outgoing. He is also the president of the Basketball CCA and was active in the CCA activities during his time at Nobel.
Once we were assigned back to our classes, Ms Praveen then came on the announcement and told the teachers to not give the students the new timetable until further notice, as Ms Lee and Ms Samantha had spoke of an impending new timetable before. This was most probably to prevent confusion and confirmation from the teachers. Ms Praveen also asked to meet some students, and Ms Crystlyn said that for the Chinese New Year celebration, we need to arrange, during the homeroom session with our teachers, five representative from each class who would be in charge of arranging the tables and preparing yee sang, which is a traditional Chinese vegetarian salad dish that is being tossed on the Chinese New Year reunion dinner for better luck and prosperity to usher in the new year.
Each class would be assigned a long canteen table, which would be placed in the school hall for the Chinese New Year celebration, where we would need to wear red and toss the yee sang with pride. The aim of the yee sang buffet was to experience celebrating Chinese New Year as a class. The entire school was very excited, thinking about the prospect of tossing yee sang with our friends.
When we returned to class, Ms Samantha then took our attendance before being interrupted by Ms Sim, who said that the whiteboards in front of our class would be moved to the back so that the teachers can focus easily without being distracted by dirt from the whiteboard. “Please do not be alarmed,” she reassured us, who were thinking that the position of the whiteboard would cause us to crane our necks behind. We quickly packed our stuff and took our art supplies in order to head to the art studio for Ms Nadia's art lesson.
We then later went for art lessons with Ms Nadia, as I went to collect the control book. “Guys, the art studio is locked, so I need someone to get the key to the art studio. Who is the class monitor?” she asked. Caleb Chuang, as class monitor, had to find Ms Fiqah to get the art studio's keys and Ms Nadia was received by Ms Fiqah, who was accompanied by Caleb Chuang, who opened the art studio for us.
We then proceeded to view a video on the Elements of Art, and then she paused the video to show a picture, and asked Ting Yi to mention and describe the picture. Ting Yi tried to describe it properly but he stumbled and smiled quite a bit before Ms Nadia explained the correct answer. Ting Yi was going like, “uhh, ehh, aaa” to which Branson, Shaun Ting and Sean Mark laughed.
"Why you cannot answer? Not paying attention!” cried Ms Nadia.
Ms Joyce was over the moon that day during our English lesson as Shaun Ting and Branson Choon posted academic journals from leading universities as articles during the Literacy Circle session. This Literacy Circle group is a group created by Ms Joyce on Gmail to share information and classwork, and Ms Joyce was asking us to find for information online for the lesson. She was delighted, as academic journal research is unprecedented from a middle school kid when in reality, it is being practiced in universities.
“This is what I like,” Ms Joyce exclaimed, to great satisfaction. Ms Joyce praised them for having great dedication to do their task.
Following the English lesson, we then selected five representatives. Ms Joyce asked the five representatives to leave for the school hall to arrange the tables and prepare yee sang without raising their hands. Ivyna, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying and Megan were asked to do the yee sang preparations. I tried to follow them, but Yan Ying told me to get back to class since everything was done.
Ms Joyce then said that we had to give her our emails, and so far, she had only received emails from around five people in class, namely Shaun Ting, Branson Choon, Ting Yi, Yin Wei and Alia. “Please give me your emails so that I can add you to our literacy circle and send work to you,” she said. Then, Yan Ying came up and called us to quickly go down to the school hall just as Ms Lee and Ms Samantha approached our class.
Later, we were treated to a series of performances and dances by the Mandarin teachers. The entire hall was decked in red, and everyone was in either a red attire or traditional Chinese clothing. Teachers attended to their students as the tossing begun, and everyone stood up and went to tables placed in the hall. The Chinese New Year songs were blasted from the loudspeakers, bringing a festive mood to the school community.
Each class was assigned a table together where we tossed yee sang, and I tossed the noodles gently during the Chinese New Year celebration. Everyone peered around the table as we tossed, and Sara Yow and Renee Koh tried to get a toast of the thing as well. “Wei Yiang! Toss higher” teased Rick. I just told him that I wanted good prosperity when I tossed. “Nah,” I said. The rest of the girls in the class were also vying for a chance to toss and taste the yee sang.
“Wei Yiang, you're not eating any?” Ms Lee asked. I told her I don't like the yee sang due to its salad-type taste.
In the front of the hall, the Year 7 students were playing around and got so excited at the prospect of seeing yee sang. Then, Mr Steve came on stage and Ms Lim also tried to sing some Chinese New Year songs as well. When the tune of Gong Xi Gong Xi Ni was sung, everyone laughed and cheered. Ms Evelyn was then invited to do a toast with Mr Chan, and the entire class was to do the toast with our water bottles. “YAM SENG!” they cried.
I then wished Ms Lee and Ms Samantha a very happy Chinese New Year and told Ms Lee what I did during the Chinese New Year holidays. She was excited to hear me celebrate Chinese New Year with the maternal side of my family. Oh, and before we left, Ms Lee gave all of us the new timetable.
The new week on 10th February 2014 begun with a new timetable and the beginning of Ms Joyce's Literacy Circles to share the information from what was discussed on 7th February. I was also awarded the Wow! Award, which was the predecessor to today's Character Strength Recognition Awards for the character trait of Respect. I felt quite shy receiving the award frame from Ms Lee. Each teacher had to nominate a student from their class for the award.
During Art lessons, however, Ting Yi tried to act funnily during our Shapes and Form hatching lesson with Ms Nadia till he made her very angry, and she shouted and pouted till the whole class could hear a pin drop when facing her. We had to try to do some hatching from dark to light on a series of circles, cubes and cones, showing the toning and shadows. Everyone was scared of Ms Nadia, as she was strict in the early days. Ms Nadia checked on mine and helped me do mine.
Sara Yow and Renee Koh soon made good friends, and they talked a lot in class. This is no surprising given that they were originally assigned to Year 7. However, for the rest of the class, we were told by Ms Maddy about the Modular Test the following day. Population was a numbers game, and I was uncertain about how the test would look like as we did worksheets.
We then changed our seating arrangement the next day, and Ms Lee warned us to not lose any Smartboard markers or we have to pay RM 50 to purchase a brand new set of four markers and one duster. Then came the all important Geography modular test, which I did my best in doing. I did well and got a B, or 74 marks for the exam. Ms Maddy had started talking about coasts, the type of waves, namely constructive and destructive waves, as well as the series of coastal defences. She also gave the example of a coastal erosion case study which is the Happisburgh coastal erosion which swallowed a dozen houses in that town. I also placed two plants in class filled with water bottles for decorative purposes which made the whole class curious.
The following day, Mr Victor geared up our preparation for Sports Day by doing a 100m run during PE, and he trained us on running, overall speed practice, and sprinting which we had to sprint as hard as possible, and I lost to Sean Mark a countless number of times and that loss that day added up to a long list of then-failures.
Mr Victor brought us to a field near Nobel, then located at Kelana Jaya. He then assigned us into boys and girls. Then, he told us that the girls would be doing the Shot Putt while the boys did the 100m sprints. Two people were allowed to run at a time.
Before we ran, Mr Victor asked us to run three laps around the field. So I ran and I overtook many people. Then, Rick Tan attempted to chase me playfully while running. He gave me this funny look and tried to race after me. The entire year level saw all of us running like mad around the field. Then, Sean Mark also raced and overtook me.
Once we were settled back into our class lines, the girls were then escorted by Cikgu Zura and Puan Rostita to do the shot putt. Puan Rostita then took a stick and drew a series of lines to measure the ground, before putting some cones on the ground. They then lined up all the girls to go and do shot putt. I then asked Renee if she was okay being our class so far and she said she enjoyed it.
Meanwhile, at the field, Mr Victor was accompanied by Cikgu Hani, our ICT teacher, as well as Mr Steve, to measure the 100m track. Mr Steve and Cikgu Hani walked all the way to the end. Once they measured it perfectly, Mr Victor placed the cones to mark the 100m distance and then he came back to meet us. Then, he blasted his whistle. Tweet tweet tweet!
“Ok, boys! We are going to do 100m today. I want two people from every class to go to the track and start running,” cried Mr Victor. Sean Mark and I were the first. Cikgu Zura then came and Cikgu Hani went to take care of the girls; they replaced each other. Then, Mr Victor went to the other side of the field with his stopwatch. He then told me and Sean Mark to be on standby. Cikgu Zura signaled for us to be ready.
Mr Victor then signaled the start by slashing his hand down. Then, Sean Mark and I ran. I sprinted as quickly as possible, trying to keep up with him. Sean Mark pressed on while I tried to catch up. “PUSH! FASTER!” cried Mr Victor, but I struggled to match pace. Sean Mark is one person whom you don't want to play around with. I reached the finish line a few seconds just behind Sean Mark, which is a terrible position in athletic sprinting.
Then, once we were done, Rick Tan and Ryan Marc were lined up. Sean Mark and I walked back, but Sean Mark stood behind to chat with Mr Victor. Then, Rick Tan and Ryan Marc started sprinting. Then, Jordan Tay and Ting Yi lined up. Ting Yi was telling Jordan that he was scared to run, and screamed and cried like a crybaby while Cikgu Zura told him to hush his mouth. Then, they were flagged off. “AAAAAAAAH!” cried Ting Yi as he sprinted like mad, and Mr Victor recorded their time.
When we got back to class after break, we headed for the ICT lab with Ms Hani, who taught us how to do a Microsoft Word formatting exercise. Ting Yi and Jordan then sat down. Soon, Ting Yi and Ryan were playing games on the computer, and Ms Hani was not happy. Fortunately, they listened to Ms Hani just in time. Then, during Maths class, Mr Daniel interacted with Wei Zhong. He was surprised when Wei Zhong found out his full name, which is Daniel Baboo James Suravathan. “Mr Daniel, can I call you Baboo?” asked Wei Zhong. Mr Daniel laughed. “No, please, no,” said Mr Daniel.
During Homeroom Time, Ms Lee and Ms Samantha gave us some hot buns from Uncle KC's stall, and I took the opportunity to talk to Renee and Sara about how they were doing with us. They said that they enjoyed our class a lot. And also, Ms Lee and Ms Samantha were good class teachers.
Then, I went to speak to Eu Lynn and asked her about the community project. She and Yan Ying told me that there will be updates soon as they received them. And for the hot buns, normally it will be given to us every Friday and we would snack on them in class. However, the menu changes every Friday, and most of the time I would eat lunch at home.
The following week, Ms Lee told us that Caleb Chuang and I were the only merit point achievements in the class, because Caleb Chuang participated in a community project for Fungates and I received the Wow! Award. Ms Lee and Ms Samantha gave me a Wow! Award for the character trait of “Respect”. The purpose of the Wow! Awards are to recognize good character and to promote exemplary behavior in school. Caleb Chuang, meanwhile, was involved with Mr Chuang in the Fungates Superflow Foundation Love on Wheels drive for Chinese New Year.
2014 was the first time a Merit and Demerit system was instilled in school, as this was to promote good behavior and discipline in school. When someone exemplifies good behavior or does something that the school promotes, such as representing the school in competitions, participating in community projects or even attending school, which in my opinion, is the easiest, since I attend everyday; the school would award merit points. Should a student attain a set number of merit points, they would be rewarded at the end of the year. However, if one were to run afoul of the school rules, they would be given demerit points, and a certain accumulation of demerit points would result in a series of bad consequences, including detention and expulsion. Ms Lee mentioned me and Caleb Chuang as we were the only exceptions to the additional merit points received for January 2014, and most people attended school, so it was a normal thing. “Keep up the good work,” said Ms Lee.
Oh, I forgot one thing. Ms Lee said that she was disappointed with our class as our class had the most demerit points as a whole under the class category; the merit points that were given to me and Caleb Chuang were under the individual category. The class with the most merit points would be awarded as Class of the Month. Ms Lee then told us that one way we could increase merit points was to keep the class clean and not be disruptive, amongst other things.
Mr Daniel had always kept on giving homework for us. In fact, Sara Yow always said that she supported homework because her mum wishes for it. This caused many of the boys in our class to groan. “No! No homework!” they cried.
“Should I give?” asked Mr Daniel, before he was drowned in commotion. He then asked us to do exercises on textbook page 75, which made Shaun Ting groan, and told us to complete the next day, 14th February.
“Tomorrow is Valentine's Day,” said Sean Mark. “Mr Daniel, do you have a girlfriend?” he asked. The entire class cheered, and Megan asked Mr Daniel if he could have a date the next day.
The week of 13th February was also the start of our CCA, and my first ever CCA lesson fell on that day. Each student was required to have a CCA card so that we can record our attendance for the CCA. I was in the Art and Crafts Club CCA, and Ms Chume and Ms Faharna were my teachers for this CCA. The CCA consisted of two people from Year 7; Reanie Koh and Tong Xin Yi. Reanie Koh is the sister of Reanne Koh, who was in Year 9 that year. Nicole Kau, Jo Yi, Wee Shiang, Berlinda Tan and Jen Thong were part of the club, and this includes me as well.
Our first task was to elect the president and vice president of Fine Art Club. Nicole Kau was the president and Berlinda the vice president. Jen Thong was the secretary and Ms Chume told me to be the treasurer. As such, I was in charge of buying materials and supplies to use in the club.
Banners advertising the Young Entrepreneur Challenge were pasted on the walls of the school, showing a few trees and the skyline of Kuala Lumpur. The theme for the 2014 Young Entrepreneur Challenge was “Green”. Previous themes for the Young Entrepreneur Challenge were Chinese New Year (2012) and “Plan, Make, Sell” (2013). Anyone who wanted to participate in the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) had to form a team of five or more and come up with a business proposal. Profits from YEC would be donated for Fungates Superflow Foundation's charitable activities, as the cash given will be used to buy coupons to shop at the YEC sales.
The people in charge of the YEC said that the theme of Green should not be taken literally as a color, but one themed on an eco-friendly mindset. This is opposed to the fact that people view Green as a color, so as such, the aim of the YEC for 2014 was also to promote an eco-friendly theme.
The launch of YEC was on 17th February 2014. Ms Marien, Ms Chithra and Ms Thana were involved in the YEC's launch. Anyone can join the YEC, provided that they form a team of up to five members to join. Many of my friends did not want to join, so as a result, things were not up to par for me to join YEC.
17th February was also Megan Lee's birthday, so during Mr Daniel's class, everyone sang the birthday song to Megan. “What do you want for your birthday?” asked Mr Daniel. Megan said she did not know what she wanted for her birthday.
“Do you want a boyfriend?” asked Mr Daniel. The entire class was excited, and went like, “Ooooh!!!!” Megan blushed and said, “no, no, no!”
“Do you want homework?” asked Mr Daniel. And then Megan said yes. “I prefer homework over a boyfriend.” The class laughed.
After Mr Daniel's class ended, we headed to the Art Studio, where Ms Nadia wanted to treat Megan for her birthday. “Thanks, cher, no need,” she smiled as she thanked Ms Nadia. Then, the whole class sang happy birthday to Megan again. This was then followed by lunch, and then Ms Samantha's lesson, before we sang happy birthday once again.
Two days later, on 19th February 2014, during Character Transformation, Ms Lim outlined the Compassion Projects for Year 8 students.
“Ok, Year 8. For your Compassion Project, you are to go to Soup Kitchen and serve the community over there,” she said. Although I have heard about Soup Kitchen since Year 1, I was excited because it would be my first time going to that place – the sacred place which Auntie Clarine would showcase her charitable magic and the pulses of compassion.
Soup Kitchen is a so-called “restaurant for the poor”, where anyone who fell into the B40 category could receive free food for the day, since they do not have enough ringgit to survive; let alone purchase food. The Soup Kitchen was started in 2007 by Auntie Clarine in order to provide some fun, joy and entertainment to the underprivilaged in Jinjang, which is a Chinese new village in Kuala Lumpur's Kepong district. Fungates Superflow Foundation contributed a lot to the startup of this Soup Kitchen.
Over the years since Soup Kitchen was founded, hundreds, if not thousands of patrons have visited Soup Kitchen to receive not just food, but also advice and psychological support from Auntie Clarine and her team of compassionate individuals. A good variety of food was served there, no thanks to the tens of hundreds of volunteers who work tirelessly to serve the community. Stories of Nobelians heading to Soup Kitchen were known in the past to us; but this was the first time we were stepping into the sacred precincts of Auntie Clarine's work of greatness.
Once lunch was done, and Ms Maddy did her magic in Geography, talking about coasts, we had a qualification race for Sports Day after school ended, and I signed up to run the 100m. I was not sure of my capabilities in sports then, and I lost to Sean Mark countless times and was not selected during our Sports Day tryouts organized by the Bullseye captains.
The qualification race was part of the Sports Day tryouts organized by Bullseye's captains to vet the best runners for Sports Day. Shaun and the other Year 11 people were commandeering us. We were told to assemble in the canteen and wait for everyone to arrive.
In our class, Sean Mark, Eu Lynn, Megan, Ivyna, Caleb Chuang, Yan Ying and I, among a few others, had signed up to participate in the 2014 Sports Day events. I chose the 100m because it had a very short distance. While waiting, Brian Ong arrived in the canteen and greeted us. He had also signed up to run the 100m as well. Brian Ong met me and asked me how I was doing for the marchpast, which I had also signed up as well. “Thank you for attending the practices,” he said. I then told him, “We need to select the best people. We want to win Sports Day.” Brian Ong told me not to worry as he would select them very carefully. He also said that the committee had some plans and were discussing them.
Soon, Shaun arrived at the scene, and he told us to follow him. We then walked down a flight of stairs near the courtyard, before reaching Tadika Sri Nobel at the Basement 2 level. The security guards opened the doors, and we exited the school compound, walking to the field. Eu Lynn and Yan Ying were singing the ‘Let It Go’ song from Frozen. Caleb Chuang was talking with Julian Ong and I was just walking, thinking about what was to expect next.
When we reached the field where we did our PE lessons, Shaun told us to put our water bottles aside and do a warm up. He then counted for ten seconds as we did our warm up. Caleb Chuang was smiling all the time to everyone's attention. Then, Shaun told us to do a run of three laps around the field. He told us to run faster.
Sean Mark was patient and serious as he run, while Caleb Chuang smiled as he run. Everyone was talking. Then, Shaun told us to run faster. I ran like mad, thinking about Mr Victor racing with us during PE. Once the three laps were done, we sat down, drank some water, and listened to Shaun brief us before he assigned us into our distances. I was with Sean Mark, the great runner, for the 100m.
I was the first one to start. I tried running as fast as possible as the Year 11 captains recorded my time. Then, it was Ivyna's turn. A few other people were practicing as well from other houses, and mingled with us. Then, we saw Sean Mark having his turn. He stood up. He readied himself. And he was off like a bullet being shot from the gun.
And well, Sean Mark sprinted like mad. He ran so fast like a bullet train. Everyone watched, and he recorded perfect time till everyone clapped. Because he ran like mad, he successfully made the cut into the enlistments for Sports Day.
Brian Ong soon arrived at the field and greeted us. Then, he said that a few more training sessions were needed for us and he told me to come back the following week to do training as well. The sun was blazing hot and everyone was waiting for the practice to be finished. We then returned at 4:30pm and waited in the school canteen. Some people went to buy snacks from Uncle KC as we begun going home.
During Art and Crafts Club the next day, while we were having a break from the CCA's activities, Ms Chume asked me about my class with Ms Visa for History. Ms Chume told me to make short notes, and quizzed us about some of the topics in History. In fact, I have forgotten to mention that during our first History lesson with Ms Visa......oh yes. She taught me Maths the previous year and for 2014, the History subject. During our first History lesson, she talked about one question: ‘What is History?’
Ms Visa said that she would be quite strict with us for History. Ms Chume was quite lenient. Even Yi Jiun was terrified and cried on the first day. Ms Chume said that the most important thing was to make short notes and she kept on emphasizing that. On another note, we had a surprise from Ms Visa after returning from the weekend.
Ms Visa was planning to release a video rubric for the King Henry VIII video in which we had to play the story of Henry VIII and his six wives. The role was to play a scene where King Henry VIII had to find a wife which would deliver a boy, based on our History textbook. Henry VIII would kill the wife using his executing squad if the baby delivered was a girl. We had to use our History textbook for the role. Almost half of the class joined Jordan Tay's group, including me, as he was a capable leader. At the time, I didn't have a great leadership record, and Jordan's seriousness in reminding people on their tasks as well as his rapport made me a good bet for his group. Me joining Jordan's group was to ensure that Ms Visa did not scold me.
Jordan made me play King Henry VIII as the main character, and Sara Yow, Alia, Jo Yi, Yin Wei, Natalie and Yi Jiun played each of the six wives of Henry VIII. Rick Tan was asked to be one of the palace guards, and a few others played the same characters in the story. We spent time after school, and I spent every day after school to do the filming because I was the main character. Jordan Tay had good coordination and was serious in us doing our work. Rick Tan and Jordan Tay used their cameras to film the video. Overall, Ms Visa said my acting as King Henry VIII was good and the best out of all the groups.
One of the most funny things when everyone watched our video was how me and Sara Yow interacted. More on that later. Ironically, Sara Yow is my mum's company colleague's daughter. I only got to know that during a Chinese New Year open house at one of my mum's friends, Mr Hashim, in Setia Eco Park on 15th February 2014. Sara Yow ultimately went home because she was feeling unwell, but then two days later, Sara Yow was still coughing and Ms Visa had to lead her to the sick bay during her lesson. It seemed like there was water in her lungs, and her cough was like as if one had a heart attack. I was worried if Sara Yow was okay, and fortunately everything came out fine.
Because my mum and Sara Yow's mum work in the same company, Rick Tan, Jordan Tay and Sean Mark and all the boys (and girls) in my class assume that me and Sara Yow had a crush on each other. This would form the basis for everyone in the class to poise me and Sara Yow as boyfriend and girlfriend. What added to the complicated situation was that Sara Yow was really cute and friendly, and her smile is enough to make you feel at home.
You see, every now and then, when Rick would talk about Sara Yow, Rick would give a creepy smile which I cannot resist smiling because it was so funny. He would always ask, “Do you like Sara?” at almost every week and every opportunity. If he told it to me, all the people beside him would go like, “Oooooohhh!” because they would be interested if a guy and girl are in love with each other, but this did not happen. Boy-girl relationships are not allowed in Nobel, as Ms Lim dictated. Neither me or Sara Yow had this intention, but Rick Tan and all the other guys in class continue to play up as if something real had happened.
Now, if I sit next to Sara Yow or are in the same group with her, or even had a conversation together, anyone from our class or Year 8 would be very interested in it. They would continue to talk about it and they would always wait for the rare moment if Sara Yow and I talked to one another. Then, the news would spread like wildfire if me and Sara Yow had an interaction, such as if she dropped or lost her things or fell down, because normally I would come to aid for anyone in the class in such a manner, be it Caleb Chuang, Jordan Tay, Eu Lynn or even Renee Koh. A kind act was always welcome by anyone in the class, but it if involved Sara Yow, Rick Tan would make a big deal out of it, and the whole class would be on the madness. If Rick Tan told about this in the opposite manner to Sara Yow, Sara Yow would then say “Shut up!” to Rick Tan or anyone who talked about it to her. Alternatively, she would say “Stop it” or “Go away!” if they talked to her about it.
Sara Yow would normally shun Rick Tan and Jordan Tay if they talk to her about me being her crush and vice versa. In fact, Rick Tan made a big deal about anything involving me and Sara Yow, even if I were to guide her on Geography, my favorite subject.
So, Jordan told me a deal. He asked me to write a letter to Ms Evelyn, telling her that we need to bring a camera to film, and that permission was needed. In fact, Jordan said that I MUST write the letter, because we have no time and he wanted the operations to move like clockwork. Rick Tan begged me to write the letter, as I was reluctant at first because I wonder what Ms Evelyn would say and I do not want to get into trouble. In fact, I did not get into much serious trouble during my time at Nobel.
“Wei Yiang, you must write the letter. It is for our group. We need to film,” said Rick. Jordan agreed with him. Rick asked me why it was so difficult, but then Jordan said he will guide me on how to write the letter.
The next day, I met Ms Lee during her Mandarin class, and told her about the request by Jordan. Ms Lee said that I can write a letter and present it to Ms Evelyn and ask her for permission. Ms Lee understood the situation and said that she will speak to Jordan, who was also in her Mandarin class. When Jordan arrived and Ms Lee spoke to Jordan, she understood his details that it was for the History coursework, and gave the green light to write the letter. “No worries, Wei Yiang. Just write the letter, show it to Ms Evelyn, talk to her and discuss with her,” he said convincingly. So, I got started on writing the letter. Rick helped suggest me what to write when I met him.
Over the coming days, things went as normal. For BK, Ms Cynthia had a so-called “talking cookie jar” during the lesson. The Talking Cookie Jar is a container which Ms Cynthia carries in class and she would ask people to pay a set amount which would be donated to Christian charitable organizations if we talked or misbehaved during her class. Sadly, a few people had to fork out money when they talked while she was talking, hence the name “Talking Cookie Jar.” Ms Nadia continued to be strict with us, and she even made Jo Yi, Jonathan Chong and Natalie Seah write “I will not forget to bring my art materials” on 17th February 2014 when they forgot to bring clay for the art lesson, which we had to make animal models. Ms Nadia was strict then, but she is less strict now. I made a model giraffe which I still have to this day.
We continued to plan for our Soup Kitchen event, and Ms Evelyn gave us time during CT to plan the Soup Kitchen project. Yan Ying, Eu Lynn and Shaun Ting settled the logistics during our CT and Homeroom time. Ms Evelyn said during CT that every Year 8 class would need to do a compassion project by serving the underprivilaged folks at Fungates Superflow Foundation's Jinjang Soup Kitchen. We got started by electing Shaun Ting as the person in charge, with Yan Ying assisting him. Eu Lynn said that she will provide transport services and we had to pay for it, because the school would not be providing transportation services for us, which they eventually decided to do so. The grand plan was to have our own class t-shirt for the event. I chose 3 for my shirt number as it is the same pronunciation as “trees” which kindle me to my gardening hobby.
Ms Lee then asked who is going to send us and how are we going to go there. “Are you going to ask your mum to send all of us?” Then, Wai Shaun and Sean Mark asked if Eu Lynn's mother's car is big enough to fit all of us in it. The whole class laughed.
After Character Transformation ended, Rick Tan asked me if I spoke to Ms Evelyn on the letter, but I hadn't gotten started. So, after lunch, Jordan Tay told me that I should put in the reason, date, time and so on and the purpose of the camera. I wrote the details down during Maths when Mr Daniel came in for class. Rick Tan then approached me. He took a look at my letter and told me to get it done the next day.
The next day, Rick and Jordan took a look at my letter. Rick glanced at it and Jordan peered at it as well. I told him that during break time that I would go and speak to Ms Evelyn on the matter. However, during break time, Ms Evelyn was not there. Then, I went to see Ms Evelyn during lunch and of course, she was in her office. Cameras are not allowed in school, but it can be brought with permission from the management. Jordan wanted me to request permission to film in school as this was because no one had time to go to anyone of the group members’ houses, so this was the perfect time for us. Jordan said that he needed me to ask Ms Evelyn for permission as he was the group leader and wanted to coordinate the entire project. So, when I went to meet Ms Evelyn, I delivered the paperwork and told her that we needed to do the filming as Jordan said that school was the only place where we would confidently meet and film our scenes.
“Ms Evelyn asked who was bringing the camera, and I said that Jordan wanted to do so for our History coursework. Then, I spoke to her about the details about the coursework. “Ok, Wei Yiang, I am giving you all the permission to bring cameras to film in school. But please be responsible of your own camera,” she said. I then spoke to her additional details about the coursework and that I was too scared to write the letter. Ms Evelyn laughed convincingly. “Don't worry, Wei Yiang. You have followed the proper process.”
Then, once things were okay, Ms Evelyn said that we could go ahead and film. When I returned to class, I told Jordan about what Ms Evelyn told me, and he smiled. “YES! TOMORROW!” cried Rick.
Jordan then called all the group members to come over. “Ok, listen up. Who is free tomorrow? All of you can attend? Okay. So, Wei Yiang, I need you to come over. You must come tomorrow. You will be the main character as you are playing King Henry.” Jordan also told the rest of the individuals to come over and prepare for the filming, just before Cikgu Zura called our attention for Malay class.
On 27th February 2014, Jordan Tay decided to film the first scene of the King Henry VIII coursework for History the following day. I decided to join Jordan Tay's group. Ms Visa had said that every group leader must accept the individuals or else she would deduct marks from the coursework and scold the group leader. Most of the class joined Jordan Tay's group, and as I have said earlier, I did so because he was a serious and capable leader because I would fumble things and mess things up if I were on my own. Given that Ms Visa was very strict, I wanted to please her. I don't want Ms Visa to get angry with me.
Jordan Tay then said he will bring his dad's camera to school after I delivered the necessary paperwork to Ms Evelyn. He then told Ms Lee that he will push the tables to the side of the classroom so that space would be given for the filming. Jordan Tay then arranged for us to film on the following Saturday and Sunday, 1st and 2nd March. He told us that we will do that filming at Sarah Low's house on that Saturday and Ryan Marc's house that Sunday. Rick then spoke to Jordan and he told me to act romantically when filming the first scene with Sara Yow. Jordan Tay wanted to film three scenes, namely the marriage of Henry VIII and his first three wives as well as Henry's eventual death.
Mr Daniel then dumped a tonne of homework and he talked about how he spent his life as a young boy. He said that he built a seesaw contraption in his yard, and tried to catapult his small mini motor car he drove as a kid on top of it, and it crashed. The whole class laughed. Then, when Ms Samantha had her Science lesson, she asked us to find three components of cigarettes as our homework and talked about how bad cigarettes were. Ms Samantha warned everyone not to smoke cigarettes unless one wanted to die early. Then, Ting Yi jokingly said he wanted to commit suicide and thus he will smoke. I said, “No, no, Ting Yi, please don't!” Ting Yi then looked at me. Then, he and Rick asked a question.
“If Sara smoked, will you stop her?” they asked. The whole class went into pandemonium.
“SHUT UP, RICK!” cried Sara Yow. “Wei Yiang, please do not listen to Rick,” she said.
The next day, Mr Daniel asked who hadn't done his homework, and he told them that they should complete them as soon as possible. Then, he continued to recap the topics, especially Standard Form and Significant Figures. When Ms Samantha came in, she then asked if anyone had did the research. I then put up my hand. Before I had the chance to speak, Ms Samantha took aim at Ting Yi.
“Ting Yi, please name me the three components of cigarettes,” she said. She asked Ting Yi to stand up so that everyone can hear him.
“Ehh.....eergh.......ahhh.......” Ting Yi struggled to speak. Then, Branson Choon piped in.
“Ting Yi, say tar,” he mentioned. “Ah, tar....” mumbled Ting Yi as he smiled and laughed. Then, Ms Samantha asked me to mention my part.
“Tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide,” I said. “Okay.....” responded Ms Samantha. Then, she took aim at Ting Yi.
“Ting Yi! It's been ten minutes and you only mentioned one thing! Looks like most of you did not do your research,” she said. Then, Sara Yow pulled out a stack of papers containing her research, and passed it to Ms Samantha, who examined it. Then, she asked the class to give an applause to Sara, who grinned and held the papers with pride. Then, Ms Lee came in. I approached Ms Lee, spoke to her about the camera, and she met Jordan, who showed her the camera. Then, Ms Lee had a chat with Jordan about the project.
“Well done, Wei Yiang,” said Rick. “Without you, we will be wasting our time,” he said.
As the music played and most of the class went home, it was only just me, Jordan, Caleb, Sara, Wai Shaun and Yin Wei, who met in 8O to do the filming of the first scene of the King Henry VIII wedding as well as the execution of his first wife. Sara Yow was playing the first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and Rick and Jordan were too excited to film this as they were always reminded in their heads of me and Sara Yow being boyfriend and girlfriend. When they always kept playing up this, sometimes, Sara Yow and I would be too nervous till we smiled back at them.
“Shut up, Rick!” shouted Sara Yow to Rick Tan as he continued to play up the theory. Jordan Tay had asked me to present a bouquet of flowers to Sara Yow in the first opening scene in order to play King Henry VIII proposing and marrying his wife. Wai Shaun was planning to be the priest in the skit.
Jordan then moved the tables behind the class and set up his camera. Rick Tan was peering at how expensive Jordan's camera was. He initially decided to place the camera on a series of books, but then held it in his hand as the tables were too high when he stacked them. Then, Jordan told me and Sara how to move and act around. In fact, Jordan had also brought costumes as well. He brought a white skirt and crown for Sara to put on. Yi Jiun had brought props.
“Rick, I bet the entire class would be excited to see this,” he said. Sara showed the mean face and chased Jordan and Rick around the class. Then, the filming begun. Sean Mark was involved in some athletics practices, and he saw the action. “Ooiyoo!” he cried.
Rick and Jordan could not contain their laughter whenever the scene with me and Sara was retook time after time again and watched. “Good acting,” said Jordan. Aside from that, the other five wives were played by Yin Wei (Anne Boleyn), Alia (Jane Seymor) Sarah Low (Anne of Cleves), Jo Yi (Catherine Howard) and Yi Jiun (Catherine Parr). Those would be filmed the following week.
“Wei Yiang, why not you kiss Sara [in the scene]?” asked Rick. Sara then yelled at him angrily. Rick laughed in amusement.
Then, Wai Shaun and Caleb filmed Henry's death scene with me, where I had to pretend to be dead. It was quite straightforward.
Few days later, we met on 1st March in Sarah Low's house and then on 2nd March in Ryan Marc's house to film the next parts. As main character, I had to attend and play the next parts. Sarah Low's mother was very heartwarming and looked as pretty as the former member of Parliament for Petaling Jaya, Maria Chin. We met at Sarah Low's house after lunch. Jordan arrived in a big car driven by his dad, and he came to start filming. He brought along the large crown and filmed the scene with Sarah Low. My mum and Sarah Low's mum watched and gave tips. Rick had a nice pair of brown trousers and I complemented him. Then, Jordan and I took turns filming and telling us how to act nicely.
The next day, we went to Ryan's house to film the execution scenes. Ryan Marc was the chief executer of the wives. Jordan told Ryan to act in an evil manner when he smashed the prop axe. He said that he will add blood stain effects to the video when he edited them.
Then, the following week, we filmed the last scene and the death of Henry VIII on 4th and 5th March after school. Jordan himself edited the videos thereafter to make the scene dramatic. By this time, I had to buy stuff for Art and Crafts Club CCA and our teacher advisors, Ms Chume and Ms Farhana got the money to get me to buy the items, from crayons to bracelets and bathroom shoes. Luck was on our side when the History project got extended by two weeks from 5th March to 20th March due to Ms Visa’s prolonged absence.
You see, when this news was announced, everyone was so happy for two reasons. First, we were happy because we had more time for our coursework. Secondly, because Ms Visa wasn't here, a lot of people cheered as they won't be traumatized by her scolding.
Jordan Tay then told us that we will need to meet the next day to film the other wives’ scenes and told Jo Yi, Yi Jiun and Alia to be present. However, since Yi Jiun and Alia cannot make it, he then added Wednesday, 5th March as well.
Ms Samantha gave out a worksheet in the class, and it was about sports. The manager of England's football team had some problems and wanted our help to answer the questions in the worksheet using science knowledge. Wei Zhong and Sean Mark started laughing and talking about Manchester United. Then, Shaun Ting and Branson joined in as well. “Why are you all so excited?” Ms Samantha said as she laughed. So much for football fans. Mr Daniel, who also likes football, told us to read about Chapters 1 to 7 for our Assessment 1. “The exam is very easy,” he said. Wei Zhong asked if he was serious. The entire class was surprised, as this was the first time they heard of an easy exam.
“Why? Of course it is easy what. If you have been doing the exercises in your textbook, you should be able to do the assessment,” said Mr Daniel. I was also puzzled by what he said as well. Then, during Art, Ms Nadia begun to introduce a famous painter, Vincent Van Gogh to us. Van Gogh was an 18th century painter who painted two paintings which have become well known worldwide, namely Starry Night, as well as Sunflowers. Ms Nadia then told us to copy Van Gogh's painting techniques on our art blocks and hand them to her. Earlier, she had told us to do some research on Vincent Van Gogh and bring it to the class, which I did.
The next day, during our Geography lesson, Ms Maddy continued to teach about weather, and I was quite engrossed in it. The air conditioning was quite cold, which contrasted and blended with the lesson on cold fronts. Normally, when one thinks of weather, they would take extreme weather as a first thought, especially cold, rainy weather. So, when the cold air blew down on my skin, I took my right palm and pressed it on my left arm, which made a white mark thanks to the cold air. We also learnt about weather devices, which would play a big role for something special later on.
There was a world map on the left hand side of 8O, next to the classroom's front door, which I looked at it when I wasn't doing my work. I peered at the left and then made out one city in China named Wuhan. From my desk, because the words weren't clear, it made me appear seeing ‘Wukon’ instead.
Jordan Tay then peered over and asked Yi Jiun, Jo Yi and Alia to stay back. They were okay, so we continued with the lesson. So, after school, Jordan Tay brought his camera. I was puzzled.
“Jordan, by right we need to ask Ms Evelyn for permission to bring the camera for a second day! You can't just bring it like that! Later, Ms Evelyn will scold us!” I cried.
“Wei Yiang, chill,” said Jordan, asking me to relax. He told me that one permission slip was enough and that he could explain to her that some people were absent and he need to replace their filming for the History coursework.
When Yi Jiun and Jo Yi were playing their parts, Jordan had to ask Yi Jiun to speak louder so that his camera can capture the situation. Then, Rick told him that he could do some editing to the videos just in case their voices weren't loud. In the meantime, Sara Yow just kept going down and up the stairs, between the filming as well as the Homerun marching practices. I told Jordan that I should speak to Ms Evelyn before she went home to ask for an extension to the camera leeway. So, before Ms Evelyn went home, I spoke to her and she agreed, since some people were unable to make it to film their parts for the History video.
The next day, I approached Jordan once again, afraid that we were unable to finish the project in time. He said that he can quickly edit the video, and was already editing some parts. “Relax, Wei Yiang,” said Rick.
Then, it was PE, and Mr Victor then did some relay races with us. He also told us that our Beep Test would be in April, so as a result, we needed to prepare for it. He said that many people needed to improve on their fitness test, which will also be held at the same time as the Beep Test.
During break time, I then walked around, looking at the YEC posters. I went up to Ms Chithra's office and asked for one of the forms, which I kept, just in case. I plan to recruit Glen and a few others for the YEC challenge. When we returned for Maths, Mr Daniel gave us some homework to do, and during CT, when we met, we did a reflection test and icebreaking activity.
Later, during History, when Ms Visa came, she asked us on our progress. I told her that we have done some filming and we were approaching the end of our project work. She then smiled, and asked Yi Jiun if she was okay. Then, she spoke to Jordan as well. After school, we then did filming with Alia, who was quiet but smiled when wearing the nice crown.
7th March 2014 would be a memorable day for me. Ms Hani, our ICT (Information and Communications Technology) teacher said that Ms Kerry Bell, the teacher teaching Year 10 and 11 students the ICT lessons for IGCSE, scolded her for letting us play games when we have finished the lesson. She was in tears when telling that to us. Ting Yi, Branson Choon and Shaun Ting laughed when Ms Samantha gave an experiment on laughter. After school ended, I went for a second round of tryouts for Sports Day, but I continued to perform badly and lose to Sean Mark once again. That evening, at 7:00pm, when attending classes at Helen O Grady Writing and Drama Centre, I was trapped with fellow classmates Yi Anne, Roxane, Marcus, Ms Melissa and Ms Amanda in the drama room because the door got stuck. Ms Fiona had to open the door by calling someone to repair it. For someone at a young age, it was traumatizing to have the door get stuck then.
All these happened on the eve of one of the most mysterious occurrences in world history. Little did I know that five hours later, a Malaysia Airlines flight bound for Beijing would go missing without a trace, creating one of the most uncertain and most shocking incidents of the modern era. Until this time of writing, the aircraft is still missing, with around fifteen colleagues from my mum's company being on that flight to China.
When the news was released, everyone in Nobel was abuzz about the disappearance of Flight MH370. Ms Evelyn and Mr Chan kept on asking us to pray, during assembly, for the passengers and crew of MH370. So far, till today, we still do not know how or why MH370 disappeared, and while more clues were uncovered, we still do not know about the truth as the flight recorder was not found. This flight recorder is a recorder that records conversations on the radio and is designed to survive any blast or damage. I would talk to Tan Zhue Xin from 8E about the clues and mysteries of MH370.
The following week was full of excitement. Mr Daniel sang the song “I am a Parallelogram” when teaching us about parallelograms. When Ms Joyce came into the class, she talked about the MH370 aircraft and asked whose family was affected. Me and Sara Yow told Ms Joyce about how our parents’ company, Freescale Semiconductor, had few people onboard the aircraft. Then, I spoke to Sara about me and her mum being in the same company. Rick then smiled happily, which resulted in Sara going over to him. The whole class was in pandemonium once again.
Ms Joyce then reached into her bag and took out a large stack of exercise books from our class. “I am very disappointed with most of you. A lot of you have made many mistakes, and I want you to do corrections,” she said. Ms Joyce then gave us one week to finish the corrections. She told me that one thing I should improve was my handwriting. Then, it was BK class with Ms Cynthia. Each teacher revealed the Assessment 1 dates for each of the subjects.
When Ms Visa came in, she told everyone to make use of the extended period. Some people asked if she was okay from her sickness. Ms Visa then told us that we need to do well in the History assessment and hopes things were okay. Cikgu Zura also introduced our Malay coursework, which was for us to pair up in three and write about a historical building in Malaysia.
The next day saw the entire Junior and Senior School were headed for various different places on their field trips. The Year 9s headed to Kellie's Castle in Ipoh, while the Year 7s headed for a tour in Kuala Lumpur, skirting the city centre. The Year 10s and 11s were treated to a fun trip to Gua Tempurung for caving. We Year 8s were headed for Outbac Broga which is located in Broga, a town partially divided into the Selangor and Negeri Sembilan sides.
Mr Daniel had given us a coursework for us to note down some things related to Maths as part of attendance and our coursework marks for the field trip. We departed from school at 8am and were whisked past the various places on the way to Outbac Broga.
As the bus whisked on the LDP Highway past Puchong Jaya, I then told everyone where my house was, as Ms Joyce was describing the locations in the bus to us. “And that is Wei Yiang's house!” she cried, adding to the explanation. Everyone laughed as Ms Joyce showed her humor on the trip. The bus travelled on the South Klang Valley Expressway, passed Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) where my cousin studies, and on the Kajang-Seremban Expressway towards Broga.
Broga is a small town that borders Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, to the point that one half of it is in Selangor and the other half in Negeri Sembilan. Some people may confuse which Broga they are in, but generally, the people in Negeri Sembilan think Broga is a Selangor town, and vice versa. Some people even think that Broga itself is in their respective state and not a part of the other.
Upon arrival, we then gathered at a small amphitheatre where we sat down and waited for our instructors to arrive and the teachers made sure everything is settled. While waiting, Ms Sim, who accompanied us, then called on us to recite our house cheers as we would be practicing and cheering our house cheers in the cheer competition on Friday, 14th March 2014.
The house cheer for Bullseye was: “Seize the battle! Fight to the end! Go Bullseye!” It is, and as of this time of writing, remains the shortest ever official house cheer in Bullseye which takes around five seconds to recite.
After our instructors arrived, we were introduced to one of them named Gaston. Gaston then briefed us on the day's activities before we begun our first activity. Gaston led us to the basketball court before we were introduced to the other leaders of the facility. Gahna, one of the leaders, showed us around. The team manning the Outbac Broga resort comprised of some locals while others were from the United Kingdom or the United States. Each class was assigned a leader, and ours was a lady named Joanna.
The first activity was wall climbing. I opted out and told Ms Sam that I was afraid of heights. Everyone who climbed wore helmets and harnesses and climbed a large tower that had some handles on the wall which we could hold. Once the wall climbing was done, each class had to build a foldable raft from large barrels and bamboo sticks. We had to put the entire raft together using ropes provided by the resort. Rick, Jordan, Renee Koh, Sara Yow, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying coordinated the raft's construction. Eu Lynn, Yan Ying and most of the girls in our class sang Let it Go, the theme song of Frozen which was a hit then, when building the large raft. I took some ropes and tied it up. Once everyone was done, the raft was pushed to the water and one of the strings came loose, but was fastened quickly. It took at least ten people to carry the raft to the water and hold the raft properly in position on the water's edge so that everyone can board it.
Everyone except me and Jonathan Chong then got onto the raft and the raft begun floating on the water. Jonathan and I did not want our clothes to be dirtied or wet, so we just waited for them. Gahna jokingly said that if we didn't throw stones to communicate to them the direction to be taken, the both of us shall be thrown into the pond.
Benjamin Fong then enjoyed himself, but then he pushed the raft's barrel by accident and then this caused the raft to break apart and everyone screamed as they fell into the water. Sean Mark was the first to fall, followed by the rest. Once everyone had gotten out and taken a shower, we then headed for lunch at the resort's cafeteria.
I then had a chat with Ms Maddy on the trip, and she talked about an anticyclone occuring on the day itself. Anticyclones are weather conditions that are hot, humid and have no clouds. This means the sky is clear, bright blue, as opposed to the conditions of a cyclone, which is filled with storms, winds and lots of rain and clouds. Ms Maddy had begun teaching us on the Weather and Climate topic, and this topic is quite interesting in which the topic covers on the types of weather.
The last event of the day was a canoe-kayak race. For this, since I did not have someone to partner, Ms Sim invited me to join with her and paddle. “Come, Wei Yiang! Let's join together!” she cried, and we got into a kayak boat in the middle of a lake at the resort. When we started, Ms Sim kept on cheering on me to paddle faster. “Paddle, come on Wei Yiang! Paddle!” she said.
Once things were done, we then did the punctured drum obstacle course game before we boarded the buses to head home. I cheekily joked getting off at IOI Mall as the bus whizzed past Puchong, so that I did not have to go the long way to Nobel and have my mum fetch me back. Of course, Mr Daniel jokingly responded, “No”.
As the weeks went by, the teachers had begun to prepare us for our Assessment 1 that would be held on the last schooling week of March, from 17th to 21st March 2014. Loads of coursework were given by this time, namely a joint coursework by the Science and English teachers which was to do a report on a cereal bar. A booklet was given for the coursework, consisting of a Science and English section in it. The English section required us to write a report while we had to conduct Science experiments at home using the data given in the Science section of the booklet, and fill it into the report. All the coursework information had to be done in the booklet itself.
We spent great time together during our 12th March 2014 CT session. We had to do a paper train, and Yan Ying urged us not to give up even though we were the last. Ms Visa also said that my handwriting had improved since she first saw me in Year 7, while Ms Lee played a game with us during Mandarin. The next day, Eu Lynn gave us our sample shirts, with our names and number printed behind it and the words 8O printed on the sleeves and the bottom of our shirts. Eventually, Eu Lynn collected the shirts back.
The house cheer competition finally arrived on 14th March 2014, during our Friday assembly. Ms Praveen and Mr Paul told us to gather in our sports houses. Upon settling down, Brian Ong and Emily Liew tried to get everyone to cheer and thus we tried our best cheering. This house cheer competition was a bit dull in contrast to the ones in the later years. We just did our best memorizing the house cheer as Brian and Emily taught us.
“Come on, Bullseye! You can do better than this!” they cried.
As time went on and we cheered, I took the opportunity to speak to Brian Ong for a short while on how things were to go for the athletics events. Brian told me that he will let me know if I am in or not (eventually I did not make it)
Then, Ms Evelyn started the assembly by asking everyone to greet the teachers. Mr Paul, Mr Sures, Ms Thana and Puan Halimah were invited to judge the cheer competition.
When each house was given the chance to cheer, we screamed as loudly as possible. Soon, it came to Bullseye's turn, and I urged everyone to cheer. “Louder, guys! Louder!” I cried. Then, we cheered. Once things were done, Ms Evelyn announced Slamdunk as the winner of the cheer competition. Brian Ong and Emily Liew were visibly fatigued.
We also had our ICT exam for Assessment 1, followed by a session of modeling clay with Ms Samantha during Science. The ICT exam was mainly about doing a Word file, but Ms Samantha's lesson was even more interesting.
For Science, Ms Samantha told us to do modelling clay in order to measure the fertilization of sperm and egg cells. Wai Shaun and Wai Chun compared that to poop. Rick gave an eeky face at them. “That's disgusting,” he said. Ting Yi also did the same. Except, he put a smiley face on the clay. All the boys were disgusted and took a look at it, and everyone laughed. “That's so immature!” cried Ms Samantha.
The next day, we had our first Bullseye marching practice. Naomi Seah briefed me during the cheer competition, and I came. As there were no permission slips, all the marchers had to wait outside the school while she spoke with the security personnel. Then, we were off, and we gathered in the courtyard for the drills. Fortunately, I can remember most of the drills.
I then asked Naomi about the house points, and she said she wasn't sure. Since most of us were able to do the basic drills, Naomi advanced us further into much more technical drills. We were ahead of most of the houses.
Eu Lynn wanted to celebrate Mr Daniel's birthday on 17th March after the weekends. After all, the Assessment 1 had started. Eu Lynn had brought a cake to celebrate Mr Daniel's birthday; after all, he was a really interesting and funny teacher so far, and it would be best to have a wonderful celebration for him.
We started the day with a spelling test, which Ms Joyce praised us for. She told us that our spelling test was the strongest as opposed to the other classes. The spelling test was so easy. However, I was saddened when Ms Visa placed a big cross on my work when we were asked to describe the pictures based on source analysis for History. Ms Visa was not happy as I was out of the point on my analysis. Then, we had Mr Daniel's birthday celebration which we enjoyed in the class. Mr Daniel also blew out the candles of his cake and we did our revision afterwards.
I also have to make an honorable mention that Ms Joyce also continued to talk about the MH370 aircraft, which had its search commenced. Ms Joyce said that she had flew on that particular aircraft to Beijing before, on that route. She said that the staff were friendly, and the plane itself had antique chairs and lush, comfortable furniture which smelled like leather. I can still remember what she said about the aircraft to this day.
“Where do you think the plane is? It just vanished over the South China Sea and then some people are now saying it ended at the Indian Ocean,” she said.
Cikgu Zura also assigned us for our Malay coursework, but however, she decided to do a pair up of all groups except one, namely the group consisting of Yin Wei, Alia and Renee Koh; the three new students in our class, which she approved of the composition. Subsequently, I was paired up with Wai Chun and Ivyna for the coursework. Cikgu Zura said that she was not happy with the selection of our groupmates except for Alia, Yin Wei and Renee, which got approval from her. She was worried that with the wrong people in the group, we won't get our work done and would be used to disrupt the class.
Ms Nadia got angry when she told us we were 10 minutes’ late, particularly because Cikgu Zura's Malay class ran overtime. Since she forgot to ask us to bring A2 paper, she asked us to stick two of our A3 papers together and do a painting on it. If she had requested us to bring the A2 paper, and we forgot to bring, she would be very angry with us. One of my friends from elementary school, Xang Yen, was using the neighboring art studio. I waved at him as he passed us in the Art Studio 1 as he headed to Art Studio 2.
In those days, you must never mess with Nobel's art teachers, because they are strict. You must also never mess with Ms Lim because of her strict antics as well. And Ms Visa included. I had a love-hate relationship for art because Ms Nadia had set high expectations for us then and frequently yelled at us as if we were doing things wrong all the time and if you forgot to bring your art materials, you would be scolded, lectured and shamed in front of the whole class. This happened to many people when they had art once a week; they were shamed if they forgot their art supplies.
Ms Lim should not be provoked in those days, because she would normally scan the entire courtyard, corridor and all the school grounds, watching for any abnormal actions made by us. I made sure to greet her whenever she was present. I had a good relationship with the management team, and because I was a good student those days, it was no problem with me with these teachers. However, on certain occasions, Ms Lim would yell and lecture the individuals who arrived late for break and lunch time assembly, especially those sitting at the lower canteen behind the school hall, who misread the time as there was no clock in the lower canteen. Even Ms Praveen and Ms Sim had to quieten us down before we headed back to class.
The next day, on 18th March 2014, Ms Visa then played the videos of our King Henry VIII presentations, and each group had to present. Fortunately, there were no latecomers, and our group was the first.
“I want to see Wei Yiang and Sara,” Sean Mark said, and Rick and everyone in the class were grinning and smiling. “Wei Yiang, are you excited?” Rick asked excitedly. I just brushed it off and just waited for the video to start. Everyone kept mentioning me and Sara Yow's names before the start of the presentation, and everyone was too excited. “Shut up, Rick! Shut up!” cried Sara Yow as she tugged at Rick who was playing the fool. Ms Visa signaled everyone to be quiet as we waited for the presentation to start.
Jordan Tay then plugged his pendrive into the CPU unit of the computer, and then searched for the videos. He then pressed the play button and begun the video. “Okay, this is a presentation of King Henry VIII, and our group consists of Alia, Sarah Low, Rick Tan, Yi Jiun, Ryan, Wai Shaun, Yin Wei, Caleb, Jo Yi, me, Sara Yow and Wei Yiang. Please relax and enjoy the video,” he said before pressing the play button.
I feel quite shy seeing myself play King Henry VIII, and Sara Yow and I were even covering our faces when our scene played. Ms Visa was smiling all the time, and Sean Mark, Rick Tan, Shaun Ting, Ting Yi, and everyone in the class were talking about me and Sara Yow 90 percent of the time during the whole presentation; everyone was glued to the screen when Sara Yow and I had the first act. Jordan satirically added wedding music when I acted by presenting the flowers to Sara Yow while acting, and everyone cheered. The whole class was cheering and shouting when Sara Yow and I acted the first scene. To recap, they assume Sara Yow and I have a crush on each other, and the entire year knew that, because I always talk about her, too. Not to mention Rick Tan always keep asking if Sara Yow was my girlfriend, but I deny it.
Ms Visa told me that my acting was quite funny. “Keep it up. Well done, Wei Yiang. I can believe, that he is the best actor, don't you think so?” Ms Visa asked. The whole class laughed and cheered, and talked about me and Sara Yow. Sean Mark was leading the charge. “Sara, how did you think of it?” he asked. The whole class went wild. “Oooooooh!” they cried. “What's the matter?” Ms Visa yelled, angry at the class being so rowdy. It was a 180-degree turn; the previous day, Ms Visa was angry with my work, and now, she was praising me for good acting skills.
Rick smiled at me as he contemplated me and Sara Yow having crushed on each other. I just shrugged him off as the next video played. “Shut up, Rick!” cried Sara Yow, as she did the same for Jordan Tay as well. Jordan tried to add in with gestures, but then Sara Yow then asked Jordan to keep quiet too.
The next group then played the video, as Benjamin Fong acted as King Henry VIII. Everyone laughed as well, but then, as time passed, several groups had finished playing their videos. There were five groups in total. Benjamin Fong's acting was so funny.
“Which one is the best one?” Ms Visa asked. When everyone cheered me and Sara Yow, Sara Yow then responded with an angry look to Sean Mark and the rest of the boys in the class, from Shaun Ting to Branson Choon.
The next day, Ms Joyce was not happy with one of our friends in the class, Yi Jiun. She had not finished her coursework, and the coursework was based on a newspaper article which we had to research and write about. Most of us had completed the coursework except for her. So, when Ms Joyce finished all the exercises and discussed what we have learnt in the first three months of the year, she then talked to Yi Jiun over why she did not finish her homework. Then, she gave her mum a call.
“Please keep quiet; I am making a call,” she warned the class.
“Hello, is this Catherine Lee? Yes? Are you the mother of Yi Jiun? Yes. I gave her the coursework and I extended the deadline for her and she said nothing when I asked her. Yes, could you speak to her? Now?”
Yi Jiun then took Ms Joyce's phone and held it close to her ear. “Tell her why you never did your coursework,” Ms Joyce told her, as Yi Jiun was speechless over what to say. With tears in her eyes, Yi Jiun cried till her handkerchief was wet. By this round, the entire class looked at her, wondering what was going on. We were sitting in our literacy circle groups.
Sara Yow then comforted Yi Jiun as we went down to the hall for CT. I also felt pity for her too. We then watched a movie titled “The Impossible” which details the account of a family that survived the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.
As we watched the video, Ms Samantha and Ms Lee were attending to Sara and Yi Jiun. What a pity for Yi Jiun to be in such a situation. Then, Ms Lim stopped the video and told everyone that if they were talking, there would be no movie for us and we will need to do our own things in the hall or go back to our classes.
Before we went off for our holidays, Ms Maddy gave us a coursework. This coursework would be the game-changing coursework and that of how I viewed Geography. It would be one of the biggest feats that I would even pull off during my time in Nobel. Today, the memories are still quite strong, and it would be one of the most memorable memories to date. I still hold this coursework memory fondly till this day, being one of the very few whom an academic event changed my life a lot.
Ms Maddy told us to build a weather device and record the weather with it, for one week. The due date would be 15th April 2014, following Sports Day. Jonathan Chong told me that it was for two weeks, but eventually, I knew that I was fooled by him. The coursework guidelines ping back to our Weather and Climate topic, in which we were learning about how the weather and climate is measured.
So, for the coursework, I decided to build the tallest weather device out of everyone, and I set up two devices, namely a rain gauge to measure precipitation, and a wind sock to measure the wind. I left the measuring devices up for two weeks, and little did I knew that the entire contraption would be captured on Google Maps Street View, and that the image would last forever. I used plastic bottles to make the rain gauge and a series of plastic bags to make the wind sock. I kept my plans secret to the hundreds of eyes in our batch, waiting to unleash my surprises on submission day. Each day would be spent updating Ms Maddy about the progress when I met her. She felt so excited. I wanted to purposely make it tall so that I can show off my skills to everyone
During the holidays, I came back for my march practice because I was, just like the previous year in 2013, participating in the marchpast for Sports Day once again, for my second year. As mentioned earlier, Naomi Seah was our marchpast captain, and until today, I consider her the most lenient and kind march captain out of all the march captains I had experienced.
Naomi's practices were a lot like Chor Lit and Shaun's, but hers was a more relaxed kind of practice. For the second time, I stood in front while marching, as I was still considered short to stand in front. Scott Heng would be on my right while marching, as I stood in the centre.
As Sara Yow was also involved in the marchpast practice, as well as Rick Tan, Rick would always laugh when Naomi was doing practices with us for the marchpast, and when we turned and stood face to face with the Homerun squad, where Sara Yow is marching, Rick would always smile and laugh, thinking that Sara Yow and I were crushed. I mean, like, this is what he does everyday; even the entire class also does this whenever they talk about me and Sara Yow.
We would normally have the practices everyday, from 24th to 28th March 2014. Every day, I would come to school, wait in the hall, then continue with the practices with intermittent breaks in between, and it continues till 12:00pm when we all dismiss.
On the first day, 24th March 2014, I came to school at 8:00am, and some of the students were already there. Normally, the dancers would already be there early before the marchers, because of the intense coordination needed. The dancers would occupy the school hall while the marchers would take over the courtyard.
As Tan Zhue Xin, one of the girls from 8E was also interested in talking about the MH370 flight and also got to know me well, we would talk about the flight itself before we begun our practices. As I also read newspapers before school starts, I also discussed with her on the possible theories of the flight. It was a mystery as to what had happened as more details were uncovered one by one, but sadly, as of this time of writing, the plane is still not found. 239 people were on board the flight, and I have saved the newspapers published then, till today. There were few other people from 8O who participated in the practices.
Emily Liew was down on the ground from the very first day of practices. The first day of practices saw us come together. We had not started with the formal march practices, and Naomi got us to start. Naomi was calm; she was not like Chor Lit or Shaun who were a bit more serious than her.
Naomi then decided to do a slight change of our response to the command “Squad, Attention!” In this case, we had been saying “Stoo” for the response the previous year. Naomi said that we will be changing our response to “Check” when the command was recited. She then practiced with us the commands.
Over in the hall, Ivyna and the other dancers were led by Sarah who was the dance captain. They were doing some cool moves, and each house did their own. We marchers would normally watch the dance practices as entertainment when we were having a break from march. This continued throughout the entire week when we returned for practices. We would leave at 12:00pm following the conclusion of our march practices; the dancers continued their practice till 1:00pm or 2:00pm.
On the other hand, for our Malay coursework, Wai Chun, Ivyna and I chose a historical fort in Penang named Fort Cornwallis, which was built by the British to defend Penang from invading troops. When we returned from the holidays, Ivyna asked Cikgu Zura what we should include as she guided us.
After returning from our holidays, the teachers discussed our Assessment 1 papers. Sadly, I did not do so well in Science, English and Maths. But you know what? Renee Koh got the highest marks for every single subject in the class. Whenever the teacher announced the marks, everyone would go and peer at Renee's marks or asked the teacher who had the highest marks, aside from how did everyone do in the Assessment 1. Thus, because of that, Renee Koh is the envy of all the people in 8O.
Ms Joyce then decided to start discussing the novel ‘Holes’ with us and asked us to read the book and find some literary words. She also talked about Rama and Sita and asked us to read that legend. Then, during break and lunch, I sat down and talked to Zhue Xin about the missing plane as she was also interested in it. She was accompanied by her friend Isabella Wong, who had a big smile on her face as I showed them the newspapers containing the disappearance of the aircraft. Both Zhue Xin and Isabella were new students to Nobel that year. Zhue Xin was surprised at my detailed analysis and applauded me for that. I also told her what Ms Joyce said about the missing plane and recounted the experience as to how she sat on that particular flight years back when the plane was flying the route to Beijing.
On 2nd April 2014, we had the telematch in the school hall. The telematch is very important because it contributes points to the Sports Day scores. The teachers gave half a day off until 11:00am for the telematch games.
Caleb Chuang and I have signed up for the telematch. Those who had to go for the telematch had to put their bags in the class and then go down. Other than me and Caleb Chuang, Ivyna, Yan Ying, Eu Lynn and Sean Mark were also participating in the telematch games.
When we got down to the school hall, Ms Cynthia then asked us to sit down and be in our houses based on our year levels. Caleb Chuang and I sat in the front, as we talked about how exciting the telematch was going to be. Then, Mr Paul gave us a briefing on the telematch games and told us to sit at the side. Soon, the rest of the students came down and then sat at the sides as we were grouped up to watch.
Renee and Sara were not involved in the telematch games, so they sat behind and chit-chatted. Then, the Year 11 house captains were busy speaking with Mr Paul, who briefed them about what to expect. The Year 7s begun their telematch first.
I then walked to the front of the hall and gave motivation to the Year 7s, where Brian Ong and his committee members were standing and cheering for Bullseye. Then, I went back to my seat and sat down to watch. Ms Maddy then passed by and I waved at her. The Year 11 volunteers were waving their flags. Touchdown was the winner.
Then, it was our turn. Caleb Chuang and I stood in line, while I stood in front. For the Year 8 games, we had to hold ping pong balls in chopsticks. I tried my best to balance the ball while walking. Then, the rest followed, and Brian Ong cheered for me. Once I sat down, I cheered for the rest till we were done. Soon, the Year 9s had their turn. I then took some time to speak with Jonathan Ong, Ivan Hiew, Cher Khai and Wei Ming about the progress for Bullseye. They gave the thumbs up.
When the Year 11s were getting started with their game, I stood up and shouted loudly at Brian Ong. “Come on, Bullseye!” I cried. Brian smiled. He waved his hands as Emily smiled at me as well. Then, Ms Evelyn asked everyone to cheer loudly to motivate the Year 11 students. The whole hall was screaming like mad as the Year 11s begun battling for the crown. Bullseye won that game.
Mr Victor had started training us for Sports Day upon the holidays being over. However, I failed to make the cut for Bullseye's athletics team. Nevertheless, I still had the marchpast to handle.
After lunch, Sara Yow had changed our tables following History, and Ms Joyce said that the table system made us look like prisoners, as everyone was seated at a series of groups. I tried my best to adjust, as I faced left instead of facing the Smartboard. A lot of people complained like mad as to what had happened.
On Friday, 4th April, we had a Tug of War competition between the four houses, and it was held in the PE field. We had the entire morning till the KS3 break time in order to look at the Tug of War competition. A few strong men and women were recruited from each to house to perform in the competition.
Everyone was asked to put their bags in class and line up in the hall. There, Mr Paul led everyone to the field to watch the Tug of War competition. Most people were dressed in their school uniform, except for the players of Tug of War, which donned their Sports Day attire.
The long, large rope was already placed at the centre of the field. Ms Feeda, Ms Nalina and Ms Thana were coordinating the Tug of War. All the class teachers, the subject teachers.......everyone in the school were watching the Tug of War event at the field. Sean Mark, Ivyna and Eu Lynn were representing Bullseye from our class. Aside from them, Megan, Yin Wei, and a few others also took part in the Tug of War competition.
The hot sun furiously glared our body, which responded by sweating. Everyone was asked to stand aside as Mr Paul and Mr Victor briefed those involved in tug of war. Then, it was time for Bullseye to play the first match with Homerun. Wei Ming was the anchor person, as he is not only big-sized, but also muscular.
The game soon begun, as the players pulled and tugged at the rope as hard as possible. Bullseye lost the first match with Homerun. Then, Ms Cynthia and Ms Feeda asked everyone to move aside as they changed sides. Soon, Wei Ming was placed behind and Aashtad in front. Aashtad, who wore glasses and was from Homerun, was seen exerting and showing his teeth like a tiger as he pressed and pulled the rope. Then, the Homerun people fell to the ground, and Mr Victor tweeted the horn. They got up, and fortunately things were okay.
As Slamdunk battled Touchdown in the tug of war, I soon had a chat with Ms Maddy about the weather devices. Ms Maddy said she was excited to watch my weather device. Then, I talked to her about Ecosystems and what I learned so far, and she started talking about the hot weather that plagued us. “It's an anticyclone, you see. No clouds!” she cried.
Then, it was Bullseye's turn to battle Touchdown. Yin Wei was standing behind, and many of the Year 7s were walking around and admiring the potted plants of the residents who planted them. As it got hotter, I watched some more matches before the teachers told all the KS3 students from Year 7, 8 and 9 to return to school for break time.
Once things were done, we then went for Ms Lee's Mandarin class before heading back for Ms Visa's class. Yi Jiun was crying again for some reason which I don't know why as Ms Visa comforted her. Then, Ms Samantha came in and asked about the new table arrangement before starting our Science class.
For our Science coursework, Ms Samantha guided us on the cereal bar assignment, which is the assignment that she is collaborating with Ms Joyce. I had not figured out the design and type of cereal bar that I want to present as the submission for the Science portion of the coursework was coming up. Ms Samantha gave us some ideas on how to answer the questions in the coursework manual.
We did a series of dress rehearsals for Sports Day on 7th and 8th April 2014 as I tried to keep up with the class work. Mr Daniel then played a joke about the table arrangement and how Sara Yow is the master of the class. And during each dress rehearsal, Naomi Seah had built great rapport with the marchers. We were even given a mock medal promoting Nobel's 10th annual Sports Day. The marching music which rang in my ears as Ms Evelyn presided over the rehearsal was quite familiar from the previous year when I first begun marching.
Meanwhile, the Sports Day banner team for Bullseye had revealed the design of the banners as Mr Paul guided them how to march with the banner. I then spoke to all the house committee members from Bullseye and then spoke to Ivyna on how things are going as I went around observing the progress of Bullseye. Brian Ong then told me all was well and not to worry to much, as the committee had solutions to many of the issues I faced.
Meanwhile, word had gotten around that Emily Liew had wanted the dancers to practice on Sports Day itself as well as the day before, from the start till the end of the day without any break as Emily felt that the dancers were not serious enough. I overheard Ivyna speaking with Yan Ying about Emily not being happy with some of the dancers and planned to reduce the breaks so that they can be in good shape for Sports Day. Emily had taken over duties from Sarah on the dancing as she felt that strong unity and discipline were needed for the dancers. Emily had compared the dancers with the marchers and blamed the dancers for not being as disciplined as the marchers. The marchers had cheered Brian Ong for marching along with them, and I proposed that Brian Ong wear sunglasses for Bullseye's marchpast to show off his cool looks as house captain. Unfortunately, this wasn't possible as Brian Ong will be marching with Brandon Lee as he was in his capacity as assistant head prefect.
Wednesday, 9th April 2014 was the 2014 Sports Day. It was held at Stadium Petaling Jaya and until this time of writing, remains the only Sports Day to be held during a school day filled with classes, and it also remains to this day as the only official Sports Day not to take place at Panasonic Stadium, the venue which we traditionally hold Sports Day every year.
School begun at 10:00am that day. It also remains to this day, at this time of writing, the only school day to begin classes late. Nobel International School's school starting time is normally set for 7:45am, and classes begin at 8:00am. Therefore, for that day, everyone can casually walk in at 8:00am, 8:15am, 9:00am and at any possible time as long as we arrive before 10:00am.
I took the time to walk around the school and talk to some of my friends who arrived. Wai Chun, Jonathan, Rick and a few people that morning arrived in the class and then we went to meet our other friends. I then went to 8N and then 8E before walking around the school. Not everyone came that day because of Sports Day.
Wei Zhong was playing with the Smartboard equipment that morning when Ms Joyce entered the classroom. At the time, the Smartboard was already switched on for he and his friends to listen to music, but however, when Ms Joyce entered, they were drawing on the Smart Notebook software which is the main software used for the whiteboard function on the Smartboard.
Ms Joyce then asked him why he was playing with the Smartboard, and Wei Zhong replied, “I didn't play!”
"You were playing with the Smartboard. You are not supposed to play with it. Why are you playing?” Ms Joyce yelled, confronting him.
“I didn't play! I was just listening to music!” Wei Zhong cried, as he pleaded his innocence that he wasn't playing and tried to poise Sean Mark as the one playing it. He tried to deny it, but it was foolproof. Ms Joyce then said that playing music on the Smartboard was already a violation of the Student Code of Conduct, and then asked him to go to the office to write an incident report to Ms Lim about what happened. Consequently, he had 30 demerit points as a result.
Ms Joyce then showed us a video called “The History of English in 10 Minutes” which had a lot of funny cartoons and I laughed wholeheartedly. It talked about the evolution of English as a language of trade, communication and unity from the Anglo-Saxon Union to the current day. As Sports Day was top of the agenda, we were replaced with Science and English for the entire session. Ms Joyce joked of seeing us again after leaving prior, and said that the timetable should be programmed to have that replacement English session side by side for good measure.
Following lunch, we had Maths with Mr Daniel, and at 2:30pm, those that were involved in the Sports Day rehearsal were then shuttled by buses to Stadium Petaling Jaya. This stadium is located near the Kelana Jaya Park and it is situated just a stone's throw away from Nobel.
As we went down to the hall to assemble, Mr Paul folded his arms and waited for us to come to the school hall. He said that some people were already late. Then, Mr Paul told us to get into our houses and assigned each house to one bus each. I followed the Bullseye people who were involved to the busses outside the school compound. The Elementary School were in the midst of having their dismissal. Ms Lim told us to move quickly as to not disrupt their dismissal.
When we got into the bus, it was quite cloudy. Then, all the dancers were in the back, listening to music as I peered out of the window to enjoy the view. The bus ride to the Stadium Petaling Jaya was very short; it took around 30 minutes to reach there. Once we reached the stadium, we got out and I stood next to Brian Ong, following him and discussing about the day's events, aside from giving him motivation as well. We then placed our bags and I spoke to Emily about the marchers following the dancers onto the field. Emily said that they will follow behind all the marchers once the marchers had assembled.
We then took time to practice our marchpast and dance as we waited for the event to begin. It was cloudy and about to rain as I marched and practiced on the field with Naomi and the other marchers. Naomi said that she was quite lenient with the marchers, as she recalled the fact that Emily Liew had planned to have the dancers practice from dawn till dusk before the event begins, without any breaks.
In the middle of the field, the teachers set up a large bunch of balloons. Mr Praba and Mr Sures were also involved in the set up of the balloons. Then, Charmaine Tan and Brian Ong practiced holding the large Nobel International School logo banner while walking in unison. Naomi called out more commands as we followed her instructions. The sky appeared to darken as we stood on the field. We also heard Mr Paul testing the PA system at the stadium.
As the countdown to the start of Sports Day begun, the crowd started filling up the stands as my mum also arrived. She gave me a bottle of water to carry while she kept my other usual water bottle which I carry to school. Then, I met Brian Ong and spoke to him and the athletes some words of encouragement. The entire school was arriving at the stadium. The atmosphere was building up.
At 5:00pm, we then gathered on the track for the marchpast. Compared to the previous year, we gathered on the track and not in the tunnel in Panasonic Stadium the previous year where everyone would not see us till we came out of the tunnel. Stadium Petaling Jaya did not have tunnels, so we had to assemble on the track. We were the third house to march out after Slamdunk and Homerun, which led us.
Mr Paul then emceed us as the dancers marched behind the marchers. Then, we sang the Negaraku, School Song, and recited the School Pledge, before Caleb Chen led us in the Sports Pledge.
Following that, the VIPs were invited to cut a rope holding a bundle of balloons that fluttered in the center of the field. Auntie Clarine, Puan Halimah and Mr Tan then came to cut the balloons along with the head prefect, Brandon Lee, and Emily Liew, who was also the assistant head prefect, joined them to cut the rope. The balloons rose into the air, carrying a banner containing the logo of Nobel International School, the 10th year anniversary logo, and the words “10th Annual Sports Day”. 2014 was Nobel International School's 10th anniversary year as a school, and the Sports Day was the first of a series of celebrations to mark the 10th anniversary of Nobel International School. Each house then did their house cheers and the dancers performed on the field before the sports events begun. Mr Victor and the sports teachers stood by the side of the field, with a stopwatch to record the timings.
The events went ahead as planned as Slamdunk's house members were given tonnes of vuvuzela horns to blast in the stadium. They blared their horns so loudly till the teachers found it to be a nuisance. I then cheered and screamed loudly for Bullseye to win. A lot of the Year 10 and 11 committee members were proud of me cheering for Bullseye as it was unprecedented for a younger junior to do so.
Sean Mark amazed the crowd with his sprints, and other athletes from Bullseye like Ryan Chan and Ivyna Ong continued to wow the spectators with awesome stunts. A couple of students from the graduating class of 2013 came to cheer us. Among the people who came were Chor Lit, our 2013 Bullseye march captain, Shaun Lam, Kevan Raj, the 2013 Homerun march captain as well as Shaun Kok, who was a prefect and one of the committee members from Homerun in 2013.
As the runners whizzed past, I cheered as loud as possible for the Bullseye members before occasionally drinking some water. Then, I took the chance to speak to Chor Lit and Shaun Lam as well and asked how they were doing, before sharing some updates on Bullseye's performance. Then, I screamed again, and some of the Bullseye members were quite tired, although Ivyna and Eu Lynn followed me in screaming.
As the Sports Day ended, everyone was ushered to the track to sit down as the winners were presented. Each of the four houses then cheered on the field before the winners of the march, dance and banner competitions were announced. I had also spoken to Brian Ong before Sports Day, that the banner should be painted in bright colors so that we can win more points. There were bright colors but however, we did not make the cut.
The moment a winner from Bullseye was announced, I jumped and cheered. I sat in the front with Lim Wei Ming, the Year 11 committee members from Bullseye, and many of the Year 10 people as well. We all cheered and screamed the moment a Bullseye member won the athletics event.
Soon, the winner of the champion house title was announced to be Bullseye, by Mr Paul. I jumped and cheered, and everyone cheered as well. Many of the Year 10s and 11s praised my enthusiasm for Bullseye, as Brian Ong received the trophy from Auntie Clarine, full of joy. Then, he jumped his fist as we crowded around him, and he led us to run the champion house run around the field. My mum then had a chat with Sara Yow while Yan Ying's friends celebrated her birthday in the stadium that day. The Bullseye victory for 2014 was one of the most interesting gifts for Yan Ying, and the first of a series of successes for Bullseye in the years to come.
The Editorial Board even made a documentary for Sports Day, and I purchased the DVD containing the documentary. However, it had error playing on my television at home.
Ms Joyce then gave us some tips on how to do the English portion of our Science-English joint cereal bar coursework. For that task, we were asked to produce a leaflet to promote the cereal bar. Ms Joyce recommended us to go to the 1Malaysia Health Fair in Mid Valley during the weekend, on 10th and 11th April in order to collect sample leaflets. I managed to collect some leaflets and present them to Ms Joyce. “The leaflet is not for you to pass to me. It is to give you an idea on what a leaflet looks like and how you can make a leaflet to promote the cereal bar,” she said. Ms Samantha also told us to finalize our cereal bar assignment before handing them in to her.
On Tuesday, 15th April 2014, we had the submission for the weather devices for Geography. This day would forever remain to this day as one of the game changing histories of my life. I got to show off the usual things I do for my gardening projects, on this type of scale for a school project.
I purposely made this the largest project ever in the history of Nobel International School. I wanted to show off what I could for the sake of fame and fortune, and the Geography project was the first one to start with. I wanted to make it big to catch attention. I could not sleep and was excited as I counted the days down to the project's submission, and then decided to update Ms Maddy week after week on the construction progress and the entire course of doing the coursework assignment.
The two weather devices were big, and I had trouble transporting them around. As it was very big, I then placed my devices in the class as I anticipated trouble bringing them up in a sea of crowd of students. I accidentally knocked my wind sock with the ceiling as I tried to settle and store the device. My mum assisted to carry the device into the classroom.
I then went down to meet my friends and see their devices, which were quite small. Mine was the literal elephant in the room and a big fish in a small pool. In my head, I was laughing like mad. Some people asked me where my device was, and I said it was in the classroom. My mum then communicated with Sara Yow's mum, and because Sara Yow forgot her weather device, she had to return home to get it, causing her to be late. Hers was a wind vane which turned and pointed at the whim and fancy of the wind. Rick Tan was also impressed with my report as I used WordArt from Microsoft Word, and he said I could get full marks. Sara Yow's report, on the other hand, was a black and white report.
When everyone entered the classroom, they were shocked to see a tall wind sock and rain gauge.
“Wei Yiang, what is that?” Sara Yow asked, gasping at the immense size of the wind sock. No one had seen it before and neither anyone had attempted such a thing on such a scale. Most people's devices were small enough to fit in their bags, while mine needed careful effort to transport it. Ms Joyce and any other teachers were taken aback by the size of my weather devices, and she even described mine and the usage of the weather devices I made.
“This is a....what is that?” Ms Joyce asked, curious to know. I then explained about it and why it was made at such size. Following BK, those in Ms Joyce's class who were in 8O asked me and enquired me on the size of my wind sock and rain gauge. At least, I had achieved my aim of catching people's attention. Ms Joyce then spoke about the purpose of the wind sock and rain gauge and tried to act cool describing it. Ms Samantha was shocked at that. “What's the thing for? Whose is this?” cried Ms Samantha in horror. Ivyna and Sara told Ms Samantha about it and she was still unconvinced. “How come it is so big? Why does it have to be so big?” she exclaimed.
We then did the modular test for Geography on the Weather and Climate topic. The topic was a piece of cake and I kept on chanting in my head, “So easy!” to describe the modular test. Ms Maddy was happy with my device and then carried it to the library along with the rest following the conclusion of the test. The library, then was on the second floor and we had to go up, and there was a store room in the library. Cikgu Afza was there and welcomed us. “What's that?” she asked, curious at the large contraption. I had finally achieved my aim of showing off the devices to the crowd, and everyone were wowed by the size and feat of my construction. It remained a memorable occasion to Ms Maddy as well as me, and it continues to remain in strong memory for a long time for me, as someone who poises Geography as his favorite subject.
I decided to build such a tall windsock and rain gauge as I was also inspired by the Malaysia Book of Records and Guiness World Records’ achievements, and I wanted to have the same success on a schoolwide scale. The coursework was part of the weather and climate topic and I wanted to also show my capabilities of building such a large structure to everyone in Nobel. At least, I had achieved my plans.
In the next few days, we went about our class as usual. Ms Maddy continued to teach us about the Ecosystems topic and I was quite interested in learning about the trees’ structure in the forest, from shrub layer to emergeants. We also had the PTM on 17th April, where I got teachers’ feedback. I didn't do well in Maths, but Mr Daniel was very motivating. He told me to scribble and highlight the formulas. Many teachers said a lot of good points about me; Ms Cynthia said I like to speak up a lot, Ms Samantha said that I made notes, and Cikgu Hani said I was attentive in class. Ms Maddy also spoke to my mum about the giant weather devices. “His weather devices are SO BIG!” she cried. “Unbelievable!”
At the beginning of the following week, the teachers started making plans for a concert to commemorate Nobel's 10th anniversary celebration. The theme of the concert was announced as 'Shaping Noble Hearts and Noble Minds' by Ms Evelyn during our 23rd April CT session. Mr Steve also told us that we will be in Scene 4 of the concert. Ms Joyce had also told us that we need to have our electronic devices like iPads or computers for the class so that she can do research with us. I was instantly afraid.
“Ms Joyce, phones are not allowed to be brought to school. We also cannot bring iPads to school,” I said.
“Aargh, Wei Yiang, no need to worry! Don't be scared. Now.....right now, you cannot bring, okay? But during my class, which I will let you know soon. I will ask permission from Ms Evelyn for you to bring your iPad to school,” she reassured me as the entire class laughed.
The next day, during Mandarin, I spoke to Ms Lee and asked if a Chinese song performance was available for the 10th Anniversary concert, since I was interested in singing a Chinese song for the concert. She said that she would speak with Mr Steve since I expressed my interest. Although I speak English daily, I like singing Chinese songs.
During History, Ms Visa started talking about how it was common during medieval times for men and women to apply lipstick. All the boys started making fun of the situation. Then, Rick started talking about me and Sara again, which she reacted with dirty looks at Rick. Ms Visa wasn't amused with people making fun of boys in lipsticks.
“Eh! Why are you all talking like that!” cried Ms Visa in disbelief.
The Young Inventors CCA club were also planning a Paper Planes Flyoff competition which was held on Friday, 25th April 2014. Sara Yow made the announcement on behalf of the club for the Paper Plane's flyoff. The Young Inventors CCA wanted to do this flyoff in order to simulate and promote the club's activities and have a competition to see how far one can fly their paper plane.
When I signed up for the experimental competition, Rick Tan was too obsessed with me and Sara Yow all the time. “Are you signing up because Sara is there?” he asked, grinning with a smile. Jordan also took notice and joined the bandwagon, but Sara Yow went and shushed them up.
The Paper Planes flyoff was held at Science Lab 1 during break time, just on the first floor above the courtyard. Jordan Tay and the other club members had set up a long measuring tape at the courtyard to measure the distance of the planes. I can't even get my plane over by a certain distance as the plane fluttered to the ground. Rick could not even hesitate to keep his mind off even one second when looking at me and Sara Yow interact, and Sara Yow had to shush him up time after time.
Over the weeks, we had to hand in the cereal bar leaflet and coursework documents for English and Science, and I focused on the one and two point perspectives drawing for Art. For the one-point and two-point perspectives, I drew many drawings, from the Sochi 2014 Olympic Park, the Beijing 2008 Olympic Park as well as the Las Vegas Strip. I had managed to please most teachers so far, and all was well. I also had to buy canvas for my Art and Crafts Club, since I was the treasurer.
Sara Yow had asked me to stay back on Tuesday, 29th April 2014 to do an assignment together. Rick tried to make a big deal out of it, but Sara shushed him. We just did some exercises together as I guided her on Geography, but Rick smiled in the background. “Just ignore him,” Sara told me.
However, with my birthday coming up on 15th May 2014, I wanted to have a birthday celebration with my class with Ms Lee, Ms Sam and everyone else. So, I approached Ms Sam on 2nd May 2014 about it and she told me to write in a proposal to the then-principal, Ms Evelyn. I managed to write the letter with the help of my friend Shaun Ting, and sent it to Ms Evelyn by dropping it in a letter box meant for letters to the principal.
Ms Evelyn approved the celebration, but then, she had a few words for me.
“Yes, you can celebrate, but the problem is that on that day itself, the Year 11s would be having their Malay exam for IGCSE in the school hall,” she said. “So, you shall try to work it out, maybe sing quietly or so on.”
I told Ms Sam about this and she said that everyone would come and celebrate on 15th May. The problem with that day is that it was the IGCSE exam season for the May/June 2014 series, and the examination date was set by Cambridge and could not be changed. The examination's location in the hall would be a jeopardy to the celebrations that were planned.
Soon, Mr Victor was doing our Fitness Test with us. He then did our Beep Test on 7th May. Sean Mark eventually succeeded with a time of Level 11.12. The whole hall cheered for him and his achievement.
My mum was worried about my Maths grades given the exam coming up, so she asked me to have a meeting with Mr Daniel after school. I was afraid of meeting him because of the school rules, which prohibit students from loitering around after school. Oh well. It is a matter of me surviving the school rules.
I then met Mr Daniel on 12th May once school ended. He then guided me and taught me step by step. I asked him some questions and he said that the most important thing was to remember the techniques and formulas. Even after meeting him, I was still puzzled, so my mum guided me at home.
The day before my birthday, on 14th May, Ms June was celebrating Rashme's birthday. She was then in Year 7, and Ms June was delighted as my birthday would be the next day. “Tomorrow it's your turn!” she exclaimed. Yi Jiun was also celebrating her birthday that same day (14th May). My mum bought a lot of refreshments for the next day's party as well as a huge cake.
As the Character Transformation (CT) session that day was not held because the hall was used for the exams, we had to remain in our class for CT. So, Ms Samantha then came over and took over the class and let us do our own things quietly. She said that if we were too noisy, the CT lesson would be used for Science lessons by her in order to move the chapters quickly and allow us to have ample time to do Mid Year Examination revisions. When the noise got loud, Sara Yow then wrote on the whiteboard, “Guys, please shut-up!!!” and I added “or else Ms Sam will continue her lesson”. We had to keep quiet as to not result in acoustic sound that will disturb the Year 11 students who were sitting their first paper for Malay in the school hall.
The next day, 15th May 2014, was my birthday celebration. The month of May in Nobel is normally associated with the Mid Year Examination and the perils of tests and academics. This season is normally highly expected by my mum to be a revision season as poor grades are something that should not be achieved in a high-stakes exam. Therefore, countless hours for revision would overshadow the birthday celebrations I would normally hold.
Most people would organize a birthday party via an open house for their birthday then, but my mum decided to hold my open house after the Mid Year Examination is over, as most people would use the time to study for their exam rather than indulge in a lofty celebration which would ruin their grades. So, for that, I had my open house for my birthday on 28th June 2014. This was tradition every year to hold my birthday open house late after the exams, although I would have one in school during break time should my birthday fall on a weekday.
I arrived early and stored the cake in the fridge of the front office, which kept some frozen food and products for staff to snack on. But however, on my birthday, people were wishing Ting Yi a happy birthday instead. Ironically, 15th May is also his birth date as well, and for the first time since I entered Nobel, I had a classmate that shared the same birthday as me. Rick said to me in a saltirical tune; “It's Ting Yi's birthday; it's not your birthday,” and Ivyna said the same too. We then had a party during break time for my birthday and then everyone wished me then. Everyone was eating and drinking the food and beverages that my mum provided. Sara Yow and I went to call Ms Samantha for the celebration while everyone sipped on food.
Mr Chan then came out of the school hall and said that we were making too much noise and the Year 11s could not concentrate on test. He added that my birthday celebration should be moved to the lower canteen so that it does not disturb the people further, but however, I added that it would not work as the lower canteen is still too close to the hall. The celebration then went on without incident.
The following week was the Mid Year Examination, and Ms Lee arranged all our tables. I carried every book in my basket home, and people thought that I was moving house.
The 2014 Mid Year Examination was the first exam in which the details of the exam were presented on Powerpoint instead of traditionally being written on the whiteboard or Smartboard. The exam details which contained the words ‘Mid Year Examination 2014’, the date, the school logo, the time and duration of the exam as well as the name of the subject, were pasted on the Powerpoint slides. Each class was given a Powerpoint file containing the names of all the subjects based on which year level we were in.
All of us were asked to sit according to our name list order. Renee and Sara sat behind, since their names were the newly-added ones to the list.
The 2014 Mid Year Examination was the first examination that mandates that examination scripts, if provided with a continuation paper, be fastened to the main question paper using a thread of string. This move was to bring Nobel in line with Cambridge's standards.
On the first day, we had our English and Bible Knowledge exam. Ms Evelyn wished us all the best for our exams that morning. Then, when we returned to class, we had to put our bags outside of the classroom. The first paper of the day was English Paper 1, from 8:10am to 9:20am. As it was the first day of exams, there were some teething adjustments of some people forgetting to bring their respective stationery.
Ms Samantha came into the class for Science and switched on the Smartboard, and opened the folder containing the information slides for the examination. Each slide had a name of the subject, the date, day and time of the examination. Everyone had to bring a transparent pencil case, a practice which begun last year in 2013.
Then, when everyone entered the class, Ms Samantha had to call us in quickly as the exam was about to start. After everyone got settled, Ms Samantha then told us to write our name on the paper. Then, when the time came, she started the paper.
Outside, Ms Evelyn and Ms Praveen were inspecting the classes to see how the conduct of the exam went. Ms Evelyn was armed with a black notebook, as the both of them peered and discussed on their observations of the examination conduct. I was really blank on how to answer the English Paper 1. Then, Ms Samantha collected the papers, and we went for our break time. Sara and Renee then talked to each other and walked together, while Wai Chun and I chatted.
During break time, there were constant reminders for us to stay silent as the exams for the Year 10 and 11 students were ongoing. Then, Ms Lim got angry in front of the entire assembly following break time, lecturing everyone on how loud the voice level was, reminding us to be softer during lunch time. “I want to see improvement during lunch time. Can or cannot?” she asked.
Later, after break, Ms Joyce asked how was English Paper 1. All of us were uncertain how to answer, especially me. Then, she discussed on how the Paper 1 worked and what to expect for Paper 2 later.
When it was time for Paper 2, Ms Visa entered the class and told us to put our books away. It was 11:00am. The whole class moved like clockwork as Ms Visa was one very strict teacher. The entire class was really cooperative to Ms Visa as to not make her angry, and the exam went on smoothly.
Later in the afternoon, I had to proceed to 8N's classroom for the Bible Knowledge exam, and those who did not take either the Bible Knowledge or Islamiyat exam were told to stay in 8O to revise for the next exam. During that exam, Ms Gerardine was in the class, and when we did our exams for the Bible Knowledge paper, the noise from 8O was so loud each time until reminders were given to the students to settle down during the exam.
On the second day, we came to school normally and plopped down in the class after assembly. I spent the time doing my own things and reading my books while the entire class talked and chit-chatted. Alia and Andrew Ariffin had to sit their Islamiyat Paper 2 that morning, and were not able to be in the class. Ms Fatin then told us to do our own revision. Some people wanted to watch Les Miserables again, but Ms Fatin said that everyone had to do their revision and no movies would be shown. Then, it was break time and then the Mandarin exam. Mr Daniel played jokes when we gathered in 8L for our Mandarin exam. Mr Daniel also told stories before we started. Then, when it was time to get ready, some people were slow, which delayed the start of the Mandarin Core exam from 10:00am to 10:30am. Hence, Mr Daniel said that we will need to finish the exam at 11:30am, along with the Mandarin Second and Mandarin Foreign students. The Mandarin Core exam, unlike the Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Second exam, only lasted an hour. The other two exams took one and a half hours.
After the exam finished, we went back to 8O, where Ms Maddy was conducting the class. Unlike the other subjects, Geography had a modular assessment, and we did some work in the class while the exam was ongoing for other subjects. It was the only subject to have lessons as usual during the Mid Year Examination. Then, we had lunch, and we spent the entire afternoon during Mr Daniel's lesson listening to his stories on his childhood.
Then, it was the third day, and History came. I kept thinking of Ms Visa while doing it. Malay wasn't a problem, since Cikgu Zura was a positive motivator to me.
The Malay exam was really straightforward. During our PE lesson, Mr Victor came to invigilate, which made Sean Mark and Wei Zhong excited. He walked around sternly but sometimes cracking a smile at everyone in the class. When he collected the papers, Mr Victor did somersaults and some exercise moves as he flopped the papers from desk to desk. The whole class was really excited about what he did. Then, during the second paper, Ms Joyce gave out the papers, but the whole class took some time to settle down, which caused her to remind the class many times on how to settle down quickly as the exam was being delayed. During Character Transformation, Ms Samantha came in to be with us, and Jordan and Rick quizzed us on the History topics. In fact, everyone was quizzing each other.
That afternoon, Mr Daniel then gave us our History paper as he spoke like an actor, telling us to keep quiet as the exams begin. The History paper was quite easy.
Each time after the exams ended, Sara and Renee would talk behind the class, while Rick and Jordan would do their revision. The rest would just do their own things. I like the Homeroom period where Ms Lee and Ms Samantha would come in. They make good company with each other.
The fifth day then arrived. Ms Evelyn then asked us about how our exam was going on. “Some of you may have finished half of your papers, so please do focus on the lesser important subjects. Ms Hani was in charge of invigilating the paper. She gave us our Maths paper. I just stared point blank as I did not know how to do many questions. The same was repeated for Paper 2, towards the end of the day. When Rick Tan found out I could not do the paper, he pointed to me on how I got many questions wrong and how I did not adequately prepare for the exam.
In fact, many people weren't as prepared, because we were watching the 2014 Thomas Cup. Malaysia was advancing into the semi finals. A lot of people were talking about the Thomas Cup, and even so, Ms Evelyn told us about the Thomas Cup in motivating us to do well in our exams and be inspired by Lee Chong Wei. In fact, I spent the whole weekend watching Thomas Cup instead of studying for the Science exam on 26th May.
The following Monday, Ms Evelyn then talked about the Thomas Cup and how Malaysia had lost, telling us not to give up hope. Then, during the Science exam, there was a horrible feeling. I did not know many concepts to both my papers. Rick Tan kept on chiding me as to how long I watched the Thomas Cup instead of spending my time to study. Oh well, at least we reached the last day.
27th May 2014 was the final day of the Mid Year Examination and it was also the last day where Ms Sim would be with everyone in Nobel. Ms Sim would be leaving for Hong Kong as her husband had found a new job there, and to accompany him in Hong Kong, hence, she left Nobel. I also passed a card to Ms Sim together with Shaun Ting, Branson Choon and Caleb Chuang, and Ms Sim was delighted, and I gave her a hug too.
“Take care, Wei Yiang, all the best in your studies,” she told me before I saw her the last time. The staff then presented a bouquet of flowers for her along with a card made by the Christian Fellowship club. Ms Sim would then proceed to be in Hong Kong for two years before returning back to Nobel in 2016.
We spent most of the morning talking about the Thomas Cup during Science, where Wei Zhong kept on explaining about how unfortunate it was for Malaysia to lose to Japan. It was bound to be Malaysia's first ever Thomas Cup victory since 1992.
The Art exam begun at 10:00am as everyone had 30 minutes to prepare, such as bringing our art supplies. Some people had forgotten their art supplies. Ms Maddy set a countdown timer in the examination. Sean Mark and Wei Zhong had persuaded Ms Maddy to set the bomb timer function on Online Stopwatch. “Big bomb!” cried Benjamin Fong. The bomb timer was used during Mr Chuang's Character Transformation lessons in 2012.
For the Art exam, I drew an antique lamp for the exam and even practiced for the exam by drawing a similar drawing of it. Ms Nadia had encouraged us to practice before the exam and show her the drawing for improvements before sitting our test with her that day. I focused on toning ad the color on the drawing for that exam. The antique lamp was part of the questions given for the Art exam. I spent a lot of time trying to ensure that the tones were really fine. Then, as the exam came to a close, Benjamin Fong and Sean Mark shouted the countdown, as the bomb timer was placed on the side of the Smartboard. When the timer ended, the bomb on the timer function had an animation of it exploding with the noise, causing Benjamin Fong and Wei Zhong to cheer. We were given half an hour to clean up our tables. Benjamin Fong then spilled water. “Careful! Don't play!” cried Ms Samantha, who was managing our class for Homeroom. Thus concludes the end of the examinations and the start of a two-week long holiday. Wei Zhong, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were also excited to watch the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, which begins on 14th June and ends on 14th July 2014.
Jordan and Rick were trying to get me to join their Google Hangouts group with the two of them that they had created, which also included Renee Koh and Sara Yow. Rick and Jordan had created the group on 16th May, a day after my birthday and before the start of the Mid Year Examination. In fact, Rick had quipped to Renee Koh and Sara Yow that he wanted to add me to the group. He was so tempted to add me because he was obsessed with me and Sara Yow being at love, at least in his own thinking. Jordan told him to add and see if he cared, which he didn't. In fact, Sara Yow had begged Rick and Jordan not to add me, but they ignored. I didn't even know about this till the holidays started.
Ms Maddy had started testing us on the continents of the world by naming each individual country in the continent. For the Ecosystems modular assessment on 14th May 2014 (oh yes, I should have mentioned it earlier, since I had to focus on other subjects), we were asked to name the countries of South America and for the Global Warming modular assessment, likewise, the countries of North America. Each modular assessment would take place in every month and so on, and Ms Maddy, for each modular assessment, had told us to memorize the key terms, the diagrams and the contents. I was a bit hyped up on the continents topic, and I had spent every evening to even make my own modular test questions when I came back from school. I would then practice them and even quiz my friends, but however, Rick Tan was not amused at me talking Geography stuff because he hates the subject. I had even posted the Geography notes on the Hangouts chat with Jordan, Rick, Renee Koh and Sara Yow as well, but however Jordan wasn't too interested.
Ms Maddy had also talked about the Brandt Line which is a line that divides the rich and poor countries of the world. Countries on top of the Brandt Line include the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Japan, South Korea and China. This Brandt Line curves to also include Australia and New Zealand as one of the do-called “rich” countries. The reason the Brandt Line was taught was for the intention of distinguising between the rich and poor countries; the former of which contain the lists of the top ten countries with the biggest polluters.
Our Mid Year Examination results were released following the conclusion of our exam. After all, Renee Koh is the top scorer in our class. She had scored A and also the highest result in every single subject, from Science to Maths to Bible Knowledge. Even so, she was even praised by every teacher. I felt a bit envious but happy when she received so many As in her subject, as no one could achieve such a feat. With one A after another, she had done well in the Assessment 1 and the Mid Year Examination. Not to also mention that for the Geography modular test, she had scored A for every single modular test, namely Population, Coasts, Weather and Climate, as well as Ecosystems. Except that she was just a few points higher than me. Oh, and at our canteen table, I met a new girl named Lyn Wen. She looked very cute and had big eyes and a nice grin and smile on her face.
Normally, during break and lunch, I would sit with San Ying, Sara Yow, Zhue Xin, Sophie and Le Anne at their table for breakfast. So, Lyn Wen introduced us to her. She is one year older than all of us, and she used to study at SMK Seafield in Subang before coming to Nobel. Lyn Wen is currently a singer-songwriter and musician.
Speaking of Geography, I would always have a feeling of attachment to my Geography notes and textbook. I had a thick notebook which I would copy the pictures and words on Ms Maddy's slides to it, and I would also have my Geography textbook and my exercise book to read about it when I had my breakfast, go for break or do it in my free time. Ms Maddy had commended the success on my Geography modular tests, but she also urged me to go and focus on other subjects that are slumping. Hence, this is why I did not mention the modular test earlier.
I did not do well for Maths, Science, English and a couple of subjects, marking a shame after another. Ms Samantha was not happy with our marks and was disappointed at our performance. She said that we as a class rejected an additional revision session during CT on 14th May, and also other opportunities during Homeroom time to do so. Wei Zhong talked about the 2014 FIFA World Cup which was held in Brazil to everyone in the class while Ms Samantha recorded the marks. “So much football fever,” she groaned, as most of the class was interested in football than academics.
Even Mr Daniel was in the football action as he spoke to us. He was asking which team would win the World Cup, and the most common answers were England and Portugal among the people in our class (Germany was eventually the champion for the 2014 FIFA World Cup). Then, Mr Daniel walked over to Yi Jiun, and he asked her a question.
“Do you like football?” he asked. Yi Jiun smiled and said no. “Why?” he asked, and the whole class laughed. Then, he went to Sara and asked her about her favorite team. “Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked. The whole class then started chanting my name. “SHUT UP!” cried Sara, as she scolded the boys for screaming my name.
On another note, Ms Nadia said I had the highest score in Art and my painting of the antique lamp was displayed on the art studio's wall.
“If you think you have the highest mark for Art exam, please raise your hand,” she said. So I raised my hand, as I had done some pretty good toning on my painting.
“You're sure, Wei Yiang?” she asked. Rick Tan looked at me in disbelief. When I told her I believe I have done so, she congratulated me and said I was the highest in the class.
During the holidays, Ms Samantha asked us to produce a Science ad to be presented in the class, and the ad can be on any topic in Science. I presented an ad on the food pyramid, while Renee did some health demonstrations. When she wanted to ask a boy and girl to come up to demonstrate, the entire class grew excited since me and Sara were in their minds. Renee knew what was coming up. “Nope, not what you think. I am going to call someone else,” she said. She eventually called Yi Jiun and Jonathan Chong to come and demonstrate. And also, Jordan made a documentary-style presentation which wowed the class.
On 19th June 2014, during our Character Transformation time, Ms Lim then talked about the 10th Anniversary of Nobel and asked how many people were participating in the 10th Anniversary Concert. There was a large number of people participating in the concert. Only 20 people in the entire batch of Year 8 students were not participating.
“Why are you not joining the concert?” asked Ms Lim. Some people told Ms Lim they weren't interested to join. Ms Lim said that although they didn't join, she also expressed hope that they will watch the concert.
“This year is a very important year, and you should be lucky that you are able to see Nobel celebrate its 10th Anniversary. While you may be here today to celebrate the 10th Anniversary, you will never be here for the 20th Anniversary, because by then, you would already have graduated,” said Ms Lim. Ms Lim said that she also wondered how Nobel would look like by the 20th Anniversary. It was a question mark hanging over our heads. Ms Lim theorized that Nobel may have improved a bit further but she did not give further details. It was hard to predict the future.
Ms Lim told us that the most important thing was to cherish the 10th Anniversary, as many of us who had joined Nobel, especially those who were in Nobel from Year 1, would understand how far Nobel had come as a school since the year 2004. And Ms Lim told us the important milestones of Nobel; from its days as a private school offering the Malaysian syllabus; to an international school still in its early years of development since 2012. She then told us that we were very lucky as not everyone would get to celebrate an anniversary of sorts; especially those who had newly joined Nobel, just like Sara Yow.
The Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) was finally held on 20th June 2014, which is Ms June's birthday. Each class had to go down and purchase some products. I bought a plant from one of the stalls on sale, and the YEC took up the lower canteen, school hall and courtyard. The stores were filled with people and we spent our Maths lesson looking at the stores selling items on sale.
In the lower canteen, where most of the YEC 2014 was centred, Ms Visa and Ms Chithra manned a booth that allowed students to purchase YEC coupons to be sold at the booth. The lower canteen was filled with a lot of students buying and selling products. Groomer's Delight was the eventual winner of YEC 2014.
On top of that, the school library moved from the second floor to the ground floor. The new library on the ground floor was very easy for people to access, as previously, students were not allowed to head above the first floor without permission from the prefects on duty, who would usually be assigned to guard the stairways heading upstairs or to the basement. The library, previously being located upstairs, was a problem for both teachers and students. First, people may trick the prefects to think that they are going to the library when in fact, they are headed to the classroom or any other place. Aside from that, students who are in the library then would not know when would the after-break or lunch assembly starts.
Back in those days, you would need to listen to music which would be played that will signal us to go for assembly, be it before school starts, as well as after break or lunch. Whoever who arrived once the music finished playing would need to line up at the late line, including during lunch, and their name would be noted by the prefects. If you are really unlucky, Ms Lim would chide the people who were late from three places, namely the futsal court, the lower canteen and the library, for not noticing the time or hearing the music play. Moving the library to the ground floor pretty much solves the problem, as well as provides an ease for people to visit the library because it is at a more convenient place.
The library was filled with much more comfortable cozy pillows and a reading corner for elementary school students. A large antique clock hung on the wall then, with some tables in the centre and a series of bookshelves on the left of the library. As more homework was being given, I had started to stay back for half an hour everyday to finish my homework so that I can relax and enjoy myself at night.
The school library first opened on Monday, 23rd June 2014. It was much more spacious and luxurious like a five-star hotel. When everyone entered the library, everyone was talking so loudly in excitement of the new library. This caused Ms Afza to get very angry.
“Secondary School students! Please lower your volume!” she cried.
Then, the noise level increased again. Ms Afza was mad. She told Hsin Ping and Angelee to leave the library. “Both of you. Get out. Next time, if the noise level increase, I will ask all of you secondary students to leave,” she boomed. In response to what Ms Afza said, I got up and walked out of the library. Just. In. Case.
Two days later, I met with some other students in 9O for our first practice of a song which we would sing at Nobel's 10th Anniversary Concert. Many of them were from Mr Steve's Mandarin Foreign class. It was held early in the morning. The song we would sing was a nice, touching Mandarin song named Shou Qian Shou, or Hand in Hand in English. I prefer to call it ‘Shou Qian Shou'.
Two students from Year 10 were appointed by Mr Steve to coordinate and take care of us. Lee Ken Ming and Ming Jun introduced themselves to us. Ken Ming is muscular and has nice glasses. He is quite sociable and talked to us, while Ming Jun played and replayed and replayed the Shou Qian Shou song. This song was written and played in Taiwan, and had that marquee of words that automatically turned blue in karaoke form.
Ms Samantha was now diving into the chemistry of Science, teaching us about acids and bases and so on. The highlight of the lesson was the one and only Periodic Table, which I have seen before in secondary school Science textbooks.
Speaking of Chemistry, the school had also introduced the now-familiar white lab coats which we must wear when entering the Science lab for safety purposes. The lab coat can prevent our uniforms from getting dirty, including one of which of mine had stains before.
On our first trip to the Science lab with our new lab coats, Ms Samantha decided to do an experiment to test for hydrogen. In order to test for hydrogen, one would need to place two elements of the Periodic Table, namely magnesium and hydrochloric acid, in this particular experiment. Of course, there are tens of thousands of ways to test for hydrogen, but however, this particular one is quite interesting because of the way the experiment was conducted. Ms Samantha told each group to take their portions, and I took mine for my group. Each group was given a test tube, two strands of magnesium, around 2 milliliters of hydrochloric acid if I am not mistaken, and last but not least, a cork and test tube holder.
Ms Samantha demonstrated pouring the hydrochloric acid and the magnesium into the test tube, before applying the cork on top. Then, she removed the cork after mixing the magnesium and hydrochloric acid for ten minutes. Then afterwards, she took out a tiny wooden twig which is 1 millimeter in diameter, and lit it with the large lighter placed under the teacher's table.
Carefully, just carefully, she ensured the flame on the twig was small enough, and inched it slowly, just slowly, slowly........
.......BOOM!
A loud report filled the Science Lab, as if a nuclear bomb had exploded in the lab. Fortunately, Ms Samantha had asked for the windows to be opened, or else they would be shattered. Frightened by the explosion, I ran out of the Science Lab frantically, frightened by the loud sound. Previously, Ms Samantha had demonstrated the experiment in class, which also made me catapult in fear.
“Wei Yiang, it's just like fireworks,” said Ryan Marc, asking me to get inside. I was afraid of fireworks. What more something which looked like a bomb in the class.
This experiment to test for hydrogen is called the ‘Burning Wooden Splinter’ experiment. Ms Samantha then gave each and everyone the tips to do the experiment. In my group, Wai Chun, Wai Shaun and Jonathan wanted me to have a go at lighting the splinter and dipping it into the test tube. However, I was scared, and Ms Samantha did it for me.
There is also another experiment to test for oxygen, also known as the Glowing Wooden Splint. This involved inserting another twig just like the earlier experiment, into a tube. Except that the twig would be lit with fire, signifying the presence of oxygen, when coated with some substances. That looked romantic and safe. Science lab equipments are not meant to be tampered with or played with at home.
Ms Maddy returned our weather devices on 2nd July 2014, and I volunteered to go to get them, along with Megan Lee. While the library had moved to the ground floor, our devices were in the storeroom of the old library. “Just to let you know, that some of the weather devices were damaged or broken because of the construction, especially the anemometers,” she said. A couple of devices were broken, and my wind sock and rain gauge were not spared. So, I just repaired them, but the rain gauge was broken completely, but I just took them back.
“Wei Yiang, can you help Sara carry her wind sock?” she asked with a giggle. I just shrugged her request aside and carried mine as it was the biggest.
Everyone's eyes peered as my wind sock fluttered by as I carried it. No one dared take off a second from seeing it. I felt like as if the eyes of the world were on me as I carried it back to 8O and later out of the school following Mandarin. Even Mr Daniel had to let me use the lift because of the devices, which were heavy. Speaking of Mr Daniel, I met him regularly after school for him to coach me on my Maths studies. And Ms Samantha had been doing some chemical reactions with us too, such as the formation of rust and the methods to prevent rust. I myself sought guidance from Renee Koh for both Maths and Science, since she can score very well. Given that Year 9 students at the time had to take the Cambridge Checkpoint examination, with mine due in October 2015, I was particularly worried about the exam.
Ms Maddy had started doing a topic on energy sources, and had given us two nuclear power case studies to refer to, namely the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and the Fukushima nuclear disaster, with the former being the most iconic and most dangerous nuclear disaster ever, if you were to psychologically refer to it because although Chernobyl had been surpassed by Fukushima as the worst nuclear disaster ever, the latter was triggered by a tsunami caused by an earthquake, which is beyond the control of humans. Chernobyl has since been used as a textbook example for nuclear disasters.
As the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays dawned upon us, the teachers had been preparing for the 10th anniversary concert. Nobel International School celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2014, and everyone was pumped up for a spectacular celebration. Back in April, Mr Steve had been scouting for talents to perform in the concert, and I had approached him to perform in a Mandarin song for the concert. Every morning since June, I would head to 9O's class, then located on the second floor facing Wisma Rehda from the school, where we would sit down and practice singing that song called Hand in Hand, or Shou Qian Shou in Mandarin, which I would refer to in order not to confuse with other songs. It is a Chinese song that touches one's heart, and Mr Steve had chosen the song and gave us the lyrics on a sheet of paper to memorize for the concert and sing it along while the song was played on YouTube.
The 10th anniversary concert was directed by Mr Matthew Koh who was then one of the English and Global Perspectives teachers in Nobel International School. Aside from Mr Matthew himself, Mr Steve was also co-directing the concert with a few other teachers, including Mr Paul. Mr Matthew and Mr Steve in particular were the two main directors of the concert as Mr Steve is also the Head of Performing Arts at Nobel, and Mr Matthew had been involved in the job for quite some time. Both men make a good team when coordinating with each other.
The concert was held at HGH Convention Centre in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur. HGH Convention Centre is Nobel's premier venue for concerts in the past, such as the Retro Concert 2010 that was performed by the secondary school, and the Alice in Wonderland Concert that same year. Speaking of Retro Concert 2010, Mr Steve asked two Year 10 students who supervised us during our practices, namely Ken Ming and Jun Yin to guide us on the song and show us the full concert of Retro Concert 2010.
Ken Ming is a very reasonable and sociable guy. He would spend time talking with us and asking questions while Jun Yin cracked a few jokes with us during the practices. Adding on, Ken Ming would always be an explanatory guy. He would explain some answers and answer all our concerns and questions that we have posed to him.
For our performance, people from other classes would join us for the performance. Among them were Faythe Chow, Le Anne, Zhue Xin, Yi Zhen, Kue Wei Wei, Chee Kei, Hao Yinn, and many other people whom I talk to during break and lunch. Quite a number of them are from Mr Steve's Mandarin Second class, and I got into the performance group as I had also told Mr Steve I would like to perform a Chinese song during the concert, as I am more comfortable singing in Mandarin than in English despite talking in the latter language. Mr Matthew Koh and everyone had been briefing us for weeks on how the performance was supposed to go. We had been undergoing multiple rehearsals in the school hall for the past few weeks in June and July to prepare us for the concert. Mr Steve was also involved in singing Shou Qian Shou with us.
As the date of the concert approached, it was the norm for us to practice before and after school, singing the songs one by one.
Originally, the concert was planned to have a total of five themes, but this was then increased to fifteen themes by the end of June. The original main theme, which was planned to be ‘Shaping Noble Hearts and Noble Minds', was changed to ‘Heart and Mind’, which each of the fifteen themes being focused on each of the school's five core values.
Ms Lee by this time, had gone on maternity leave since the start of June because she was expecting a baby boy by this time if I am not mistaken. So, another teacher came to teach us while replacing her. This teacher was quite strict. There was one time Shaun Ting tried to joke around with her but she was not amused with him. For the time being, Ms Samantha had to handle the homeroom affairs while Ms Lee was away.
As the 10th Anniversary Concert approached, we have had some practices since the beginning of July. Mr Matthew had been doing some rehearsals with us and allowed us to watch the other practices. Mr Steve had also used some time to choreograph us and sing the song we were supposed to sing.
When I looked at every practice, all the teachers were filled with enthusiasm, and all students reflected the same desire as their teachers in their attitude and character. Everyone took the time to practice and put in effort for the concert. Mr Matthew would always be dressed nicely, every day, coming to school and coordinating the entire concert. It was a musical, that, according to Carmen Kau, who wrote in the 2014 Yearbook, involved “over half the school”. Some of the performances had teachers and students, some were solo, some involved singing and some had skits. The concert was to raise funds for Fungates Superflow Foundation.
The practices intensified as the weeks went by. On the second week of July, Mr Matthew told all the performers to come down after the KS3 lunch-break. He introduced himself. He was a very outgoing guy; a man who had directed the Show Choir for 7N the previous year. At the same time, he is also the Teacher Advisor for the Nobel Nasi Lemak, Nobel International School's second newsletter team. The Nobel Nasi Lemak was spearheaded by Alicia Samantha and founded by a group of students from the ever-graduated Class of 2016 which included Reanne Koh, Bryan George and Sabrina Qistina.
Our first performance meet was on Monday, 7th July, where Mr Matthew outlined our expectations for the concert. Apparently, some people were still signing up or were quitting. “I want this to stop immediately,” he said, anguished at the ill-discipline of the performers. He then introduced Mr Steve and Mr Paul as his co-directors.
Mr Matthew said that for the rest of the week, time would be given during school hours for us to prepare for the concert and improve on our parts. Each performance group had a teacher advisor to advise them. Mr Steve was our teacher advisor; Ms Visa was the teacher advisor for the Monitor's Council, who were also planning performances.
Out in the distance, Ms Lim was looking sternly at the crowd, instilling fear in anyone who wanted to break out of discipline. Then, Ms Lim came and spoke to everyone and criticized those who were late. In her typical fashion.
The next day, time was allocated throughout the entire school day by Mr Steve, who wanted to practice the Shou Qian Shou song with us. He then gathered us at 8N's classroom to practice. He then told us to focus on our vocals. Everyone sang gracefully without any hiccups. Then, at 10:00am, Mr Matthew Koh called everyone to assemble in the school hall.
Once everyone went to the school hall, Mr Matthew then briefed us on what we would expect.
“Now, guys, tomorrow, we are going to do a dry run of the performance in the hall. I want all of you to be present. Then, on Thursday, we are going to HGH Hall to do another rehearsal there,” he said.
Mr Matthew said that we would do a rehearsal in the hall first in order to get a glimpse of how the concert would look like. The dry run at HGH Convention Centre would allow us to familiarize ourselves with our location of the concert and how to go about the entire concert flow.
Once Mr Matthew had briefed us about what we were about to do, he told us to go back to our class while some people were told to stay back for a meeting with him. When we got back to class, everyone sat down as we went for Bible Knowledge class with Ms Cynthia. There, she announced a surprise for us.
Ms Cynthia had planned to have a get-together dinner for all of us at her house, particularly because the class was well-behaved and also for us to get to know each other better. She had also praised us for not adding to the Talking Cookie Jar (with the exception of a few troublemakers) and the fact that we were participative in class meant that we deserved a treat.
“Please don't tell other people where my house is,” she said. Of course, I can't disclose it to you since the promise was made in 2014.
Ms Cynthia then gave us the address, which we wrote on a piece of paper. Then, she also started teaching about the Book of Matthew. On the other hand, everyone was talking about what the concert was going to look like and what parts they were doing. Jordan was planning to do a sing-along of the song ‘Somebody to Love’, along with Rick and a few other boys in our class. When Jordan and Sean Mark found out that Sara Yow and I were in the same scene, they sneakily grinned.
Then, it was time for lunch, and we went down to the canteen. As the music played, everyone was told to go to the school courtyard, and there were several people caught in the late line because the speaker in the lower canteen wasn't working, and there was no clock. Well, let me explain.
The lower canteen, which is located adjacent to the school hall, is the furthest location of the canteen from the courtyard. Students in this area who are having their lunch would have trouble knowing that the lunchtime (or break time) assembly was about to begin, and everyone had to walk to the location where the assembly was taking place. The music would play to signal the start of the assembly, and it was a race of time to reach the location before the music ended. What made things worse was that only about a quarter of the song was played. The music used for the assembly was ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go Go', and it was played until the second verse of the song following the first chorus. Anyone arriving after the music was silenced would be told to stop and line up at a late line, just like the one before school starts. Their names would be taken down and points be demerited.
On this particular day, Ms Lim was in the courtyard, monitoring the situation. This procedure used to be the norm until 2019, when it was abolished. I honestly wish that it was abolished earlier, as it was a waste of time asking people to quieten down when lining up in their class line, only to have no announcements and then ask people to go back to their class, led by the prefects.
Most of the people who ended up in the late line were Year 9 students who gather at the lower canteen for their meal. And given the fact that Year 9 students are the oldest among the KS3 students, Ms Lim had set high expectations for them. The Year 9 students sat at the lower canteen in order to reserve the upper canteen for the Year 7 and 8 students (although technically, anyone can sit wherever they wanted).
Now, as the music stopped, I sat down in my class line. Then, I looked at my right as the prefects told everyone to settle down. I kept silent, watching the late line pile up with people. Ms Lim was scanning the late line, and she was very angry as Heng Yi Long was asking people to keep quiet.
Ms Lim told Yi Long to pass the microphone to her. She wasn't amused.
“Ok students, please settle down,” said Ms Lim. “Year 8. Year 9.”
Ms Lim then told everyone that they are being noisy and refuse to keep quiet. Then, she told all the late line students to come out.
“All of you, stand there!” she cried.
Ms Lim then asked the students why they were late. Many were Year 9 students. Some gave excuses where they cannot hear the music and some said they did not know the time.
“Wear a watch if there is no clock! If not, ask the prefect what is the time!” she cried. She spent ten minutes to berate everyone and scolded the crowd.
“Don't make me catch you doing this again,” she said, before we were released to our classes.
The next day, 9th July, we had a full day of rehearsals as we took time watching how many performances were there. The performances were exciting, but I will detail it later. Each performance awed one after another. Some people laid down to enjoy the darkness of the hall and the romance of the performance. Then, the following day, we went to HGH Convention Centre to practice there.
Mr Matthew Koh asked us to gather at 9:00am to head to HGH Convention Centre. We then gathered. Everyone was ready, and a lot of teachers were in charge of facilitating us. The rest of the students who did not participate in the concert carried on with their lessons as usual.
On the bus ride to HGH Convention Centre, I was wondering how Nobel's so called ‘sacred precincts of pomp and fun were to look like, given that Retro Concert 2010 and the Alice in Wonderland Concert took place there. Upon arrival, I gasped at the size of the venue.
HGH Convention Centre's full name is ‘Heng Gok Hai Convention Centre', named after a Chinese philantrophist. The venue was large, covered with large glass mirrors on the walls of the auditorium. There were many lamps and concert lights, with a red curtain donning the stage of the hall.
Mr Matthew then told us to sit on the chairs in the hall. The chairs were colored with leather cloth, making the seating quite comfortable. Everyone filed into the hall, taking their time to sit as Mr Matthew counted down, asking everyone to sit quickly.
Once we were seated, Mr Matthew said that the auditorium was filled with a backstage and other facilities. He then explained the facilities of the venue before he broke us out into our practices, as we staged a rehearsal. Before the rehearsal was staged, the glass windows were blinded by curtains to stop the sunlight from interrupting the rehearsal. We didn't talk much, and I just looked at the performances blankly.
When we returned to school, all performers were asked to have their lunch, before we went back to class. Mr Daniel was conducting his Maths class, and I explained to him on what we were doing. Then, Ms Visa gave us work while she told us how tired she was when accompanying the Monitors. The next day followed by the same.
As we made our way down to the hall, Renee Koh and a few other people who were in charge of the PA team were sitting at the left of the hall, as Mr Matthew briefed us on our Saturday, 12th July 2014 practice, where certain techniques would be taught to us by Mr Steve and time be given for us to improve ourselves. This was then followed by Mr Matthew watching the performances and giving everyone remarks on how to improve. There were two rounds of rehearsals that day. I made my arrangement with my mum to come for the Saturday practice.
So on Saturday, 12th July 2014, I came back to school from 8:00am to 11:30am for the practices again. We gathered in the school hall for a tongue twister exercise by Mr Steve, which involved saying “rrrrrrrr” by blurping our tongues, as he said this would improve our voice quality even though it sounded silly. Then, he told us to sing “do-re-mi" in order to practice our pitch. He said that just like sportsmen, dancers and singers had to also warm up before performances. Mr Matthew Koh gathered us for the practice. Ms Lee and Ms Ting were the ones supervising us for our performance, aside from Mr Steve, who was one of the lead singers. Oh yes, Ms Lee was back! She said that her baby was delivered without any issues. She just needed some rest and so on. Mr Steve was very helpful, and he told us how to sing properly and so on. Everyone in our group was cooperative, and Mr Steve said it was easy to organize us as opposed to the other choir and performance groups.
Each dance group was being briefed by Mr Matthew Koh over what to improve and which areas have been the best. He was a good coordinator, having coordinated me and the people in 7N in 2013 for the Show Choir performances. We then did our movements and he coordinated our positions and told us how we should move. Mr Matthew quipped that we would get kicked by his boots if we weren't paying attention and asked him the same questions again and again. He had quipped and joked about how big his boots were during each practice session.
Mr Matthew Koh also said that following the performances, all performers had to sing a grand finale called “True to Your Heart” at the end of the concert. The finale would involve all performers, crew and the people behind the show coming onto the stage to dance and end the show. The most important thing that everyone had to know was the chorus, but we eventually practiced it in one day.
When the time came to gather everyone for the full dress rehearsal for the day, some of the performers were late. To ensure that everyone came quickly, Mr Matthew Koh called us to tell our friends to come or the doors would be locked within 30 seconds. Before we started the full dress rehearsal, Mr Matthew Koh then briefed the importance of the Props Team to us. This team is quite important as they would be providing the necessary assistance on how we should go about the concert. They are the ones who will provide the transition between shows and set up our equipment for us, be it chairs, tables or any other props, for the show. The Props Team would be manning the backstage, and anyone who was going backstage, be it performers, group managers or any support staff, would need backstage passes or else they can't enter the backstage area on the concert day. Group managers, on the other hand, are teachers in charge who are coordinating our respective performance groups. Mr Matthew had done rehearsals with everyone, from performers’ moves to the coordination of the Props Team on how to transition between a show. Normally, the lights will go dark and a 3-minute interval would be used to move things and performers from two different shows. Transition lights would be beamed in order to allow us to enter the stage and not bump into each other.
Mr Matthew also told us some important housekeeping procedures for the concert. “Some of you may have two performances, and it may be a bit of a rush to have two of them,” he said. Mr Matthew then said that those who had two performances on the concert day are required to notify their group managers about the performances, and then once they are done with the first performance, they had to change, if need be, and sit with their second group. For instance, Sara Yow, had two performances, namely the first one singing Shou Qian Shou with us and then followed by an act by the Speech and Drama Club titled “The Unique Self”. So in this case, she would need to change her attire to the next performance and sit at the second group for the next one.
Mr Matthew also specified that two performing groups must be on standby at the backstage when one is performing. For example, if Group 1 is performing, groups 2 and 3 must be at the backstage, queued up to perform, while Group 4 will need to get ready, and move after Group 1 is done performing. This means that everyone would need to move quickly to ensure a smooth performance throughout the night.
One of the best part of the performances was the Monitor's Council singing “Let it Go”, the song from the movie “Frozen”. The entire hall sang the song like a disciplined squad. Mr Matthew worked with each performer as we performed.
For our performance, there were two lead singers, namely Samantha Goh and Mr Steve, who will each sing the verses of Shou Qian Shou. We would then sing in different beats and move left and right, before joining together to sing at the end. Mr Steve, being a Mandarin teacher himself, can sing very well, and he had good vocals.
That same evening, I went to Ms Cynthia's house for a BK-Get-Together. I can't tell you where Ms Cynthia's house is, as she had promised us during our BK lesson that year not to disclose the location of her house.
At around 7:00pm, I arrived at Ms Cynthia's house. Her gate was open and she greeted me as my mum dropped me off. A few other people, like Le Anne, Sophie, Sherwin, San Ying and Natasha were there. Everyone said hi to me.
Ms Cynthia took the opportunity to introduce me to her husband, Mr Steve (no, not the Mandarin teacher in Nobel who is also referred to as Mr Steve). He was a very nice man, having conducted a leadership workshop in Nobel during Character Transformation for Year 10 students at the beginning of the year. Mr Steve greeted me and asked me to have a seat. Then, he served us some buffet dinner. Sophie was really excited about Mr Steve's cooking. This was then followed by some party games and more snacks, as Ms Cynthia served us chocolate. I did not eat the chocolate as it wasn't my cup of tea. Then, we played some games.
Soon, a large moth came fluttering into Ms Cynthia's house as everyone screamed. Natasha and Sophie asked Ms Cynthia to chase it away, and Mr Steve came with a stick to beat it off. The moth flew around the house, scaring everyone as we took cover. “Don't worry! Relax!” cried Ms Cynthia. We then sang some praise and worship songs before we went home.
The next two days, 15th and 16th July, saw us performing at dress rehearsals in school and everything went well as planned. On the 15th, we had to spend one whole day performing three sets of rehearsals. We had to stay back and have a late breakfast as Mr Steve taught us the proper choreography. The next day went without any issue, as Mr Matthew flexed his boots and told us how big his boots were. It was all about practicing and watching the performances.
Mr Matthew then grouped us in order to sort out who is going back home with our parents or going back to school on Thursday (17th July) or Friday (18th July), so that the school can arrange things following the end of the concert, such as transportation services.
The day of the concert finally came, on 17th July 2014. That day would came to be known as the disaster of another Malaysia Airlines flight, MH17, which was shot down over Ukraine when flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, but I wouldn't even know about it till the concert ended. It would complement the MH370 tragedy as one of the worst aviation disasters in Malaysia Airlines’ history as well as events that shook 2014 for Malaysia.
We arrived as usual at school at our normal time, and then Mr Matthew, Ms Lim and all the teachers and staff were coordinating things for the day. The concert would open in eight hours’ time in spectacular style, and all of us were nervous but excited at the same time. Ms Joyce, Ms June, Ms Munirah and Ms Marien were assigned as backstage teachers.
We were then bussed to HGH Convention Centre at 10am where we would then spend most of our day there. As the concert ends at 10:30pm, I would be there for more than 12 hours. We were instructed to pack our books for Thursday, 17th July and Monday, 21st July as we would not be having time to stop back at school thereafter. When we arrived at HGH Convention Centre, we had to walk at the sides as the props team were using the centre aisle in order to carry stuff to the stage.
Following lunch, we then did the rehearsal as Mr Matthew Koh called us all to be disciplined and go to the backstage based on our assigned time. The Shou Qian Shou team and the choir singing “Somebody to Love” were given time to try on our costumes as we hadn't got them in the beginning. We then put on our normal clothes and partook in the rehearsal and enjoyed the rest of the show.
One show lasts around 2 hours, and for each and every rehearsal, we had to spend two hours on it. There were 4 full dress practices and rehearsals per day, and half the school was involved in the production. There were two rehearsals in total; the first from 1:00pm to 3:00pm, and the second from 4:00pm to 6:00pm
After the second rehearsal ended, we then changed into our costumes and had dinner in the restaurant of HGH Convention Centre before returning to the hall. All teachers and students snacked on delicious food before the performances.
The cafeteria was filled with a lot of people. I just plopped down on an empty table and had my snack. Then, I waited in the hall for everyone to finish dinner before we started, and a few guests were arriving for the performance. All performers would need to attend a briefing before the concert begun.
At 7:30pm, Sean Ng gave a briefing when everyone was assembled in the hall. There were a lot of seats, with additional ones reserved for us performers behind the hall. The air conditioning was on full blast, and Mr Daniel and some of the students manned the PA system behind the hall. Sean Ng then told us that there were two microphones that we could use, namely the black microphone and the white microphone. The black one is normally louder than the white one according to him, but both give the same frequency. A third type of microphone that is used is the condenser microphone which picks up the voice of a choir. Mr Matthew Koh then warned us not to stand very close to the edge of the stage, as fire blowers would shoot fire during the performances and that the blowers gave a more artistic impact to the show. Guests were given 30 minutes to be seated before the performance started.
As time passed, the entire hall filled with a large crowd entering the hall, as the first three performance groups took their positions at the backstage. There were ushers guiding people into the hall, and soon enough, Auntie Clarine and Ms Evelyn arrived. We all greeted her and she wished us luck.
The concert begun at 8pm with a background of a tree in winter, dominated on the giant screen behind it. Sherwin, Aashtad, and a few people on stage recited the poem, “Oh Noble One”. Following the poem, a transition occured with a pre-recorded voiceover by Mr Paul to describe a story, one after another, which would last through the entire concert. This voiceover would last around 3 minutes between each performance.
Mr Steve and a group of singers then took to the stage, singing the song “Seasons of Love”. This was then followed by Hans Kuberan and another team of vocalists who belted out “First Years”.
The scene then transitioned to a pair of mirrors being carried onstage by the Props Team, along with boxes, stools and the benches from the school canteen. Ms Bee Yan, who was the Year 8 teacher for Mathematics then, sang a song on the stage to the rhythm of ballet dancers. Two of the three ballet dancers onstage were Seah Xin Yi and Faythe Chow, who were also from Year 8. A band led by Year 10 and 11 students then took the stage with a rock song. Janelle Arnelia then sung a solo song before a series of girls danced onstage.
The scene changed to a blackboard and desks being pushed onstage, with a scene performed by the Choral Speaking CCA. Rick Tan, Wai Chun, Jonathan Chong and Wai Shaun then performed onstage with a series of other Year 9 girls in a classroom skit.
Emily Ong then took the crowd with an acrobatic performance, wowing the crowd, followed by a performance of “Let it Go” by the Monitor's Council. We then headed backstage for our standby performance, and once we were at the back, we queued for the show. Mr Steve then came out of the shower and he said he took a bath between performances to get ready for the next one with us.
Meanwhile, on the stage, an Art Installation performance took center stage, with the three Art and Design teachers, namely Ms Feeda, Ms Nadia and Ms Fiqah, to perform a series of paintings onstage. The performance was led by Ken Calmond, an Art and Design student in Year 11. This was then followed by a performance by some Year 9 students, and as they were done, we wished each other good luck and assembled on the stage for our performance. I managed to have a short chat with Ms Feeda and Ms Nadia behind the stage as I waited my turn.
When we stepped onto the stage, the lights were dark. Then, the first notes of the song started playing.
Samantha Goh then begun the song by singing the first verse as her voice echoed around the hall. We then stepped to the tune of the song as the chorus was sung. The audience really enjoyed our song like Chinese romance; even Sean Mark, Rick Tan and everyone quipped me and Sara Yow being in the same performance. They have been harping on me and Sara Yow the entire year since we met. To counter the allegations, I said Sean Mark and Chong Vicky since they like each other too, and Sara Yow applauded this.
Mr Steve then sung the second verse as the audience were entertained like a Chinese music show. In fact, the song Shou Qian Shou is the only Mandarin song in the entire concert. Then, Samantha Goh and Mr Steve sung together and exploited their vocals. Then, everyone sang the performance as the audience sung the tune of Shou Qian Shou. I feel comfortable singing Chinese songs as I feel motivated.
Next, the following item was performed by a group of Year 8s on the song “Somebody to Love”, as they sang wholeheartedly. It was a group consisting of more than 30 people in Year 8 who sang the song. A Year 7 choir then took the stage to sing the song “Heal the World”. This was then followed by the same Year 10 and 11 band that played a song to the style of the Beatles, then followed by the Speech and Drama team.
The Speech and Drama team presented a comprehensive performance. The first act saw some shadow plays on white cloth. The performers made all sorts of shadow plays before the scene then transitioned to a series of basketballers and footballers who played a match on the stage. This was then followed by debates and a stand-up comedy. Ng Sze Kai then played David versus Goliath before a fencing versus taekwondo match played up hunters fighting people. Then, a few guitarists played in a forest setup before the scene changed to a rhythmic gymnast performance before a series of angels took to the stage, climaxing in a Titanic-like scene at the end of the performance.
Ivyna Ong and some Year 8 girls from the Dance CCA then performed the Book Smart versus Street Smart performance, depicting people who are good in academics and in sports. The concert then ended with a dance by the prefects of the song “Fireworks”, “Don't Stop Believing”, and finally the climax “True to your Heart", where Mr Steve, Mr Paul, Mr Matthew Koh and all the associated teachers and production team and all the performers who sang and danced crazily and made a lot of noise at the finale. All performers from every scene were invited to the front to dance and sing to the song. The concert ended at 10:45pm before we left for home.
On the second day of the concert, Nobel had declared a holiday for everyone that day so that all teachers can participate in the concert, since half the school was involved. I came to school at 1:30pm after having my lunch at home. I then saw Rick Tan and he tried to play cuddle with me and Sara Yow again, but then Sara Yow chided Rick for his attitude as he tried to tell me where she is.
Minutes later, we were seated on our buses headed for HGH Convention Centre. When we arrived, Mr Matthew Koh gave the Monitor's Council, Somebody to Love and the Heal the World teams to work on their performances and improve on their weaknesses.
Unlike the first day of the performance, the second day's performance was a full-house event, as the concert was held on a Friday evening for the benefit of those who worked on that day. Mr Paul said that the ambience goes down on the second day but up on the last day if it were a three-day performance. So, he said that we must perform at our best to entertain the crowd.
That evening, the performance was really grand. My mum was there to watch the performance and I mingled with some of my friends following the event. It was a night to behold, as Auntie Clarine, Ms Evelyn and all the management team and VIPs from Nobel were there to cheer and praise the performance. It was the biggest and grandest performance of a concert in Nobel International School's history, and it has been surpassed ever since by Beauty is the Beast concert in 2018. The same scene rolled out with pomp and fanfare, on a night of joy and fun, celebrating Nobel's 10th Anniversary.
Sadly, a few days after the performance, on Monday, 21st July, Ms Lim then burst into anger during the assembly, saying that a lot of rubbish were strewn on the floor and she also chided the assembly, saying that the operator of HGH Convention Centre had scolded her for the bad image left by us students, and that the operator said that Nobel students would usually clean up after themselves, but not on the concert day. The operator was reported by Ms Lim to not dare to rent the premises to the school again in the future, and Ms Lim felt sad regarding that feedback by the operator.
“I see so much rubbish on the floor. The floor very dirty. The boss of HGH Hall spoke to me yesterday. He said, “I thought all of your students are model students; students with good behavior. I never expect Nobel to be like this and I will never let you use my hall again.” I was crying and I want to tell you this, you know. I feel so angry!”
When Ms Lim blew her temper in front of the entire crowd, personally, I feel that it was sometimes not my fault that she got angry just like that. It is also sometimes unnecessary for her to get angry because the majority do not deserve to listen to her ranting to us. We were just following Mr Matthew's instructions and some people had to leave early; I did not recall seeing any rubbish as I left quickly following the end of the concert.
As the assembly ended, we went back to class. There, we were greeted by a new teacher: Puan Rostita.
Puan Rostita is the second Malay teacher teaching Year 8 students and the class teacher of 8L. A pivoting figure and an expressive figure during PE lessons, Puan Rostita is the strictest teacher in Year 8. Each time during PE lessons, Puan Rostita would scream, shout and scold misbehaving students when everyone gathered. Anyone who had mixed with her or have been taught and disciplined by her would understand her rationale.
Puan Rostita was already in the class as we walked in. Many people were shocked at her presence. But she just smiled.
“Relax, relax,” she said, before introducing herself.
Puan Rostita then told us that she was replacing Cikgu Zura for the time being as she was on maternity leave. Didn't I explain earlier that she is on maternity leave? She then outlined her expectations for her class as she spoke to us. We were afraid that she would go bonkers and throw her tantrum in the class.
"Don't be scared,” said Puan Rostita, as she said that while to a certain extent she is a strict teacher, she is around 30 percent strict and 70 percent nice. Then, she did exercises with us. The whole class was silent.
In Puan Rostita's classes, just like any strict teacher, her classes would be filled with silence, as such teachers get emotionally triggered just by one person doing something funny in the class. Everyone would follow the instructions and be on their best behavior. Talk about Ms Nadia and Ms Visa's class being combined, but in a situation twice as worse. That's the classic attitude of Puan Rostita.
The class soon ended, and as Puan Rostita ended the class, she told Caleb Chuang as class monitor to lead the greeting. Then, everyone went for break time, relieved that we SURVIVED our very first lesson with Puan Rostita.
After Puan Rostita left the class, everyone begun to prepare for break, and Megan was chatting with Eu Lynn about how they managed to pass through Puan Rostita's class without any issue. During break time, I sat down with Zhue Xin and the other girls from the other classes, who were busy talking to the people from 8O about Puan Rostita. Before long, it was Science, and Ms Samantha took us to the Science Lab once again to do an experiment on alloys and metals.
Oh, I forgot to tell you that we had just been given a new timetable; and our English teachers had changed. Beginning from 2014, the English lessons were divided into English First and Second language. And guess what? Ms Chin, who had taught me English in Year 4 and Year 6, was now my English teacher again! How lovely it was to have Ms Chin teach me.
The students from 8N and 8O were divided into the two set teaching lessons. The First Language students were being taught by Ms Gerardine, who was 8B's class teacher and a very nice Indian lady who has a humble voice.
As the students from 8N came into 8O, Brendan Cheah was very excited to see Ms Chin. “Hi, Ms Chin!” he cried. Then, everyone streamed into the class, as Ms Chin called for attention. Glen also waved hi at me as he was placed in the English Second Language class. Ms Chin was very calm and slow while teaching and I was able to follow her lesson.
During History, Ms Visa was quite angry to hear me handling the control book, and she was not happy with the entire class for misbehaving. After scolding me, she took the control book, gave it to Caleb Chuang and Benjamin Fong to delegate the tasks. “Control books are only for monitors. You should not be touching the control book,” she said. I had foresee such a possibility happening since Ms Joyce entrusted me with the control book. So, the next day, during assembly, I told Ms Joyce what had happened. She told me that if Ms Visa did not allow, then I should let the monitors handle the task. Ms Joyce thanked me for managing the control book thus far.
The next day's activities went on as usual, as Ms Samantha continued to teach us in class. She then continued talking about chemical reactions and rust. Then, during break time, we had our breakfast, and I talked to Zhue Xin about the MH17 aircraft. It was the second and last of two aviation disasters of Malaysia Airlines, and one of three aviation disasters involving Malaysian air carriers (the other being the Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501 flying from Surabaya to Singapore, which was owned by Malaysian businessman and entrepreneur, Tony Fernandes). Sean Mark and the people in our class tried to talk about me hanging with Zhue Xin, but she just shushed them away. During the break time assembly, Ms Lim was once again watching us with evil eyes, but fortunately, she praised us for improving a lot.
When Ms Visa came in for History, I told her about what happened the previous day and how I spoke to Ms Joyce, but she was defiant. “You are not supposed to touch the control book regardless,” said Ms Visa. She was firm, but she stopped short of asking Ms Joyce to speak with her. Then, it was our Bible Knowledge class, and Ms Cynthia continued to teach us the various parables in the time of Jesus. Ms Chin came in later on for English, and she was very comforting. We did a lot of fun during English, and then, it was Ms Lee's class.
After school ended, I went to the library and took up a copy of The Star to read on the MH17 news. I then sat down and read the newspaper. The caskets carrying MH17 passengers were headed for the Amsterdam Schiptol Airport, where there would be flown back to their respective countries (except for Dutch passengers).
The next day, it was our PE lesson, and Mr Victor told us to do some exercises. He then did jumping jacks, push-ups, sit ups- the usual regime of Mr Victor himself. At the back of the hall, Puan Rostita was going around and scolding those who were talking and did not do the sit-ups. The whole hall could hear her screaming. Oh dear. Once we returned from PE, I continued my talk on the MH17 with Zhue Xin, and then, we went back for Geography with Ms Maddy.
Sara Yow kept on asking Jordan and Rick when is the modular assessment for the chapter of Energy Sources. “Why don't you ask your boyfriend” and “Ask Wei Yiang” were the responses. Sara Yow got angry at Rick and Jordan, thinking that they were pretending to her and trying to make a joke out of it. Then, she asked me, and I told her that the Geography modular assessment would most likely be after the upcoming Hari Raya holidays. Ms Maddy then taught us a term named NIMBY – Not In My Back Yard – used by protesters of new wind farms being constructed, especially those wind turbines that make screeching noises. Then, it was Character Transformation, and Mr Andy, one of the staff from Fungates Superflow Foundation, came to brief us more about the various services provided by Fungates, such as the Tutorial Services, an Old Folks Home, as well as a kindergarten. There are many other events that Fungates provides, such as the Joy in a Toy Christmas Party which aims to bring the Christmas spirit to orphanage children. Oh well. And Ms Lim interrupted everyone, saying that if they were talking, she would pass the microphone to them.
During lunch, I had my early lunch and then I went to Ms Samantha's staffroom to meet her and discuss on meeting her personally for Science, but she told me to discuss more during Science. So, during Maths, when Mr Daniel came, I informed him about us meeting together after school for him to tutor me. Then, the rest of the day went as usual.
After school, I went to the library after meeting Mr Daniel for him to tutor me. I sat down and completed my Geography homework. Sara Yow, Rick Tan and Jordan Tay were also in the library as well. Rick was grinning as I took out my Geography textbook and scribbled the exercises in it.
A few people were making loud noises in the library, so Sara took one of the librarians’ tags, fixed it on her shirt, and asked people to silence themselves, which had immediate effect as I was doing my homework. I had this new practice to finish all homework before going home. However, as I was about to start my Maths homework, the library was about to close at 4:00pm. So, I did my homework in the foyer.
I would spend time from 3:30pm to 4:00pm to finish as much homework as possible.
The next day, during Art, the two dress holders, along with the dress that was used during the Speech and Drama performance were placed in the Art Studio. Until this time of writing, it is still in the art studio, even in the new campus. They have become a relic to be seen by future generations of students till this day. Ms Nadia also told us to bring some modelling clay and paint for our animal model after the holidays had ended.
After returning from our Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays on 4th August, I noticed a new boy in school uniform walking along the corridor and sitting in the canteen. He looked puzzled. It was very unusual to see a newbie in Nobel at this time of the year.
The new boy sat down in the canteen, watching the students in the courtyard talk to each other. He was still puzzled as to what was happening. Little did we know that he would join our class.
When we returned to class, that boy also followed us, and a teacher assigned him to 8O. Then, he entered our class. Because the hall was being used by the elementary school students, we had to go up early.
Ms Lee took the time to introduce the new boy, Jason Leing, to our class. When he introduced himself as Jason, Branson Choon, Shaun Ting and Jordan Tay laughed. They then took aim at Caleb Chuang. “Eh, eh, last time we called him (Caleb Chuang) Jason. Now, we have a Jason in the class. Hahahahahahahah!” laughed Shaun Ting. Then, Branson Choon and Eu Lynn also joined into the action. Jason Leing was surprised over what was happening. “You had a Jason?”
“No, it was what we nicknamed Caleb as,” said Eu Lynn.
Jason Leing soon made friends with people in our class. He soon befriended Sean Mark, which was cool. The duo would be good friends till Year 11 and make good company. They would also perform well in athletics. And, of course, Jason would be allocated to Bullseye. Oh well. It was Puan Rostita's lesson again. Everything, fortunately, went very smoothly.
During our Science lesson, Ms Samantha then gave Eu Lynn time to discuss about our trip to Soup Kitchen. Eu Lynn gave us our t-shirts and told us to wash them. Then, she told Jason to wear his PE outfit instead for the trip to Soup Kitchen.
On 6th August 2014, we went to Soup Kitchen as a class. We had to wear our class T-shirt for the trip to Soup Kitchen. Except for Jason, who wore his PE attire.
Every class was assigned a Wednesday by Ms Lim in order to participate in the Compassion Projects because Wednesday is our Character Transformation (CT) period. Weeks before, we had Mr Samuel Tan, who is the General Manager of Fungates Superflow Foundation, coming to Nobel to give us a talk on the aspects of Soup Kitchen and the introduction to Fungates Superflow Foundation, aside from Mr Andy introducing much of that before. Fungates is an organization that is charity-based and also provides kindergarten services under the Fungates System. The charity aspects of things range from Soup Kitchen to Love on Wheels, old folks homes, child homes and tuition programmes.
Each class went in the normal order, starting with 8N the previous Wednesday before that followed by us, with 8B, 8E and 8L making up the next dates. We had classes as usual and came in our class t-shirt for the event. Apparently, Yan Ying and Sara Yow had made our t-shirts smaller as somewhat of a revenge request to most people in the class; even my aunt was puzzled why it was shrunk in size. We had been given t-shirts before, only to return them and see them become smaller.
That morning, we had PE, but we wore our class t-shirts so that we do not need to change. Many of the teachers asked about our activity; we told them we were going to Soup Kitchen.
Anyhow, after break, we lined up at the foyer with Ms Lee and Ms Samantha before we got onto the school vans to take us to Jinjang. As that was my first trip to Soup Kitchen, I had previously seen or heard about the Soup Kitchen on pictures and information disseminated in school, but had never got to experience the Soup Kitchen beforehand. Hence, I felt excited for the trip as this would give me a glance of what Soup Kitchen was and where it is.
Jinjang is a suburb in Kepong town, Kuala Lumpur. It is a Chinese new village that was built following the Communist insurrection in Malaya, and this village consists mainly of low-income and underprivilaged people. Fungates Superflow Foundation based its operations here in order to cater to this community and enhance their welfare.
Ms Lim said that the focus for CT for the Junior and Senior School would be Soup Kitchen for Year 8 and 9, and Love on Wheels for Year 10 and 11. So, as a start, we would be focusing on Soup Kitchen for all of us.
Soup Kitchen is a mini-restaurant that offers free food for those who could not afford it. Mr Samuel had told us that this so-called cafe opens from 11am to 1pm daily and this Soup Kitchen would normally be patronized by elderly folks who frequent the Soup Kitchen for their meals and catch-ups with their friends. We would be volunteers at Soup Kitchen.
Ms Lee then led us out of the school foyer, where our vans were prepared. The boys and girls sat in different vans, and I sat next to Wai Chun, Jonathan and Rick. Then, we were off.
On the way to Soup Kitchen, our vans sped along the LDP Highway and the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) to get to Soup Kitchen. I was curious as to how the Soup Kitchen looked like in real life as our vans inched towards Jinjang. Jordan and Rick started talking with Branson Choon about the latest games they played, since Rick Tan had also posted his Lazer Blade games on our Hangouts chat as well. Wai Chun and Jonathan just dozed off. I peered out of the window, thinking about how long the trip would last. Then, some of the boys were talking loudly, so Ms Samantha told everyone to tone down their volume.
When we finally arrived, I saw the Soup Kitchen looking like a coffee house, and it is located in a shophouse in a housing area. The Soup Kitchen was laced with the Fungates logo on the exterior and the words “Soup Kitchen” on the glass doors of the building. A large driveway led to the entrance, which had nice glass panes.
We then got down and explored the premises, as everyone scattered around like tourists visiting a museum. On the walls were newspaper cuttings of the volunteer work by Nobel's students. There were nice steel tables and chairs. Then, we were briefed by the staff on duty on what to expect. Ms Lee then led us as we scoured the premises.
“Ok, 8O, please follow me. Please listen,” said Ms Lee as the staff briefed us what to do. Yan Ying and Eu Lynn told the boys in the class (particularly Shaun Ting, Branson Choon and Sean Mark) to pay attention to the instructions.
Our first activity was to prepare the Soup Kitchen for the operation of the day. So, we were tasked with getting the tables, chairs and floors in order. I swept and mopped the floor of the main dining area of Soup Kitchen in order to make the floor clean and comfortable for people to enjoy. Then, I proceeded to wash the dishes and sort them out for people to use. I washed the dishes near a tap outside the building where the washing area normally was.
The whole class got to work, doing their activities. Each person was cooperative and did their tasks diligently. Everyone had no time to chit-chat. I first went to the storeroom where Rick Tan and most other people were arranging some goodies and helping out with the storeroom cleaning operations. I then proceeded to arrange them with Rick and the other boys who were in the storeroom.
Outside, in the main dining hall, Sara Yow and Renee Koh were arranging the tables with Eu Lynn and Yi Jiun. The girls were busy sweeping the floors. The loud clanging sound of tables, dishes and utensils rang throughout the room. Everyone was busy. No time to even chat.
The Soup Kitchen in Jinjang consists of a main porch in front for people to park their bicycles if they rode to Soup Kitchen. Most of the bicycles parked that day were rickety bikes or old-fashioned bikes that you see in the 70s or 80s. Just inside the porch was the main dining area where people normally sat and ate as we have seen on photos and videos of Fungates Superflow Foundation. There was a kitchen area just inside the dining area, where a series of trays would be placed where we would serve the patrons, and behind that would be the toilet, washing area and cutlery zone.
Following the Soup Kitchen preparation, a few of us, including me, stood at the tray area where we would serve food to the patrons. We were then told to wait as the Soup Kitchen was about to open.
As early as 10:30am, a few people had queued outside the Soup Kitchen, ranging from old to medium-aged folk who form part of the local community in Jinjang. Soon, there was a crowd that formed outside of the Soup Kitchen. People from all walks of life were waiting frantically for food. They could not cook. They could not afford food. But they were waiting to enjoy the fun of hanging out at this awesome place; a place that they call their entertainment venue. Yan Ying and Eu Lynn saw the large crowd, and they were talking among themselves. Jordan and Rick peered through the glass door, looking at the crowd. More people begun arriving, as the Soup Kitchen staff told us to prepare for the start of our community service.
The doors then opened and then everyone entered. There were people from many races; Chinese, Indian, Malays......but most of them were Chinese, since Jinjang is a Chinese new village. Being obedient and attentive, the mostly old folks stood in front of the counter, waiting for the food to be served. Each of them had a plate. We were to work in shifts and then rotate.
I then stood at the tray area and scooped some food into the plates for the uncles and aunties to eat. Most of them were frail and hungry, and while we served, Yan Ying served them drinks while we took turns to rotate.
I spent most of my time washing the dishes and preparing the dishes. We were then divided into groups which we can rotate based on time. As I looked at each and every one of the faces of these people, I came to realization that these were old folks who were poor and did not have a chance to go to school. They were the underprivileged that Auntie Clarine and our teachers in Nobel preached.
Thirty minutes passed, and I went to the back kitchen to wash the dishes. I thought of what we were going to do when we returned home to school. Fifteen minutes later, I returned to the kitchen counter to serve people. Then, I went to talk to few of the patrons. Within an hour and a half, the crowd thinned, and everyone was packing up.
Then, once we were done with everything, we then packed up and left for school. We eventually had lunch with the Year 10s and 11s after returning from Soup Kitchen.
On the ride back to school from Soup Kitchen, Jordan and Rick were quizzing each other on the modular assessment, which was to take place that very afternoon concerning the topic of Energy Sources. I then went to quiz Rick. He shrugged and said, “Wei Yiang, do you want to quiz Sara later?” I just shrugged him off. “Don't worry; let me bring you to her,” he said. Many people were very fed up of me talking about Geography. Some hadn't studied for the modular assessment.
During lunch, Rick asked Sara if she wanted a quiz from me. This time, Sara agreed. “Fine, Rick. Hi, Wei Yiang, can you quiz me on Geo?” she asked. Then, I begun to quiz her all the definitions and all the likes. The whole class was watching as Sara tried to shrug them off.
After lunch, we then had the modular assessment for Energy Sources. It was, just like all previous modular assessments, very easy for me. Oh, so easy. You know what? I had met Ms Maddy (and Cikgu Baliah) countless times in her staffroom during break and lunch to talk more about the Geography topics. I told her that nuclear power is quite horrible because of the radiation.
You see, Malaysia, twice considered nuclear power as an energy source before. The prelude to that was in the 1980s, when the government of Malaysia wanted to open a nuclear waste dumping site in Perak, but it got those folks riled up and the plans were eventually cancelled. Then, during the premiership of Najib Razak, he himself wanted nuclear power for Malaysia to replace the power plants that polluted the air, but it was still shunned by Malaysians. And thereafter in 2020, the government of Malaysia wanted to do some nuclear power plant research, but however, a columnist questioned Malaysia's ability to handle nuclear power as we have a poor maintenance culture.
Cikgu Zura by this time, had been gone for her maternity leave for some time as she was expected to deliver a baby soon. So, as she was away, Puan Rostita, a Malay teacher teaching 8B, 8E and 8L, took over Cikgu Zura's lessons. She continued teaching us.
Most people in these classes dread Puan Rostita as she was a very strict teacher who shouted with a bold voice and had a bit of a temper in her. In this situation, if anyone did not do their homework or did something she did not like, she would bash in anger and rile her lecture across the room, sending shockwaves among the crowd. Therefore, with any strict or fierce teacher, whoever entered her class would stay silent and put on a good face so that she won't barge into anger a number of times in order to keep 80 minutes of peace with her. No one in Nobel wants to come face to face with a teacher that appears to bite and terrorize.
So, many people in our class were quite worried since Puan Rostita would take over. We were consoled on the first day when Puan Rostita entered, and when she explained her expectations, she smiled and said, “Don't be afraid”. She said that if we did her work and paid attention, she would not get angry. But however, this time, Puan Rostita wanted to be a bit serious with us.
Puan Rostita outlined her expectations for the lesson. She then said that when we are in her class, all the Malay books, from the textbook to the exercise books as well as the homework, must be presented for her to see. But her reassurances of asking people not to be afraid did little to console the people around us. When we place our homework on the table for her to see, she would examine each and everyone's homework that was being done, and if one was found to not have the homework placed on the table or is incomplete, she would scold the student, sending ripples across the classroom that anyone who did not do their homework would end up like that particular individual who did not do their homework.
Puan Rostita, however, had a good side in terms of her voice; her concepts were clear to understand because it was a very simplified and easy process, although I like Cikgu Zura because she is good at consoling our grievances. Puan Rostita would normally ask anyone if they had questions before moving to the next one. However, if one exercise was not completed in class, she would ask us to do at home, and this results in homework piling up one after another.
Nobel had dividing us into the English First and English Second classes based on our grades was quite good, as Ms Gerardine would teach English First to those who were advanced, and Ms Chin would deal with English Second. Some people, such as Sara Yow, me, Wai Chun and Jonathan, remained in English Second while the rest moved to English First. As opposed to Ms Joyce, Ms Chin is not as serious but is gentle and always thoroughly guides us in a straightforward way. I would eventually move up to First Language English in Year 10 and 11.
The next day, 7th August, Ms Lee then told us to pass up our homework during Mandarin as she was going to discuss it. I did not remember writing any homework in the Student Organizer in the past few weeks. However, when I checked my Student Organizer, I found out that homework was given. The task was to do the workbook exercises. Ms Lee told those who did not do their homework to stand up. So, I stood up. Along with a few other people behind, including Shaun Ting. Jordan Tay, who had completed his homework, was puzzled that I did not record the homework down.
Then, as Ms Lee went asking everyone one by one why they did not finish their homework, Shaun Ting and the other boys at the back of the class started talking and making fun of each other. Ms Lee was very angry and scolded them. She chided them for playing games at home rather than doing homework. As Ms Lee approached me, I was crying, and Jordan Tay was looking at my tears. I cried because I was afraid Ms Lee would get angry with me.
Jordan had already seen me crying before Ms Lee came, and alerted Ms Lee. Some people also spoke to her. Ms Lee accepted my reasoning and gave me until the next Mandarin lesson to complete my homework. “Don't worry, Wei Yiang, I understand you did not do because you were too busy with the concert. Their (the boys in the back of the class) reason was that they play games. It's different. So, I am giving you until next Tuesday to finish your homework,” she said. The concert was still hanging over my head, and then we had our community service project at Soup Kitchen.
After that was done, I went for break and finished my workbook questions. Then, as I was returning to 8O for Maths, I stopped by Ms Lee's office and handed my workbook to her. “Thank you, Wei Yiang, you are quite fast,” she said. Normally, I would finish my homework quickly and such homework tardiness was not an issue to me. Fortunately, Ms Lee was kind enough to understand and give me time to finish the work, as opposed to Cikgu Azira the previous year, who made us write a sorry letter.
Mr Daniel then briefed us about our Maths assessment, as the Assessment 1 was about to come the following week. He said that we need to remember the equations and that no calculator was allowed. He then gave us time to do our revision. I seeked advice and help from Renee Koh, who taught me the equations until I understood. Then, for Art, Ms Nadia did some paintings with us, before reminding us to do some research on Pablo Picasso, a famous artist who invented the cubism technique of drawing. She then said that she forgot to remind us to bring the clay, and told us she will let us know when the time comes.
The morning of Friday, 8th August 2014, started on a rude note for Jordan. 8th August is his birthday, and Rick Tan wished him a happy birthday. Jordan tried to cover up the date. “Today is not my birthday,” he said, putting his hands on his face. He didn't want some childish gestures in the class.
When we went for ICT, Rick then told Cikgu Hani that 8th August is Jordan Tay's birthday, and when the whole class sang the birthday song for him, he got annoyed. I then asked Jordan if that was his birthday, and he just merely shrugged me off.
Later, Ms Maddy continued teaching about crime, and I took notes. Then, Puan Rostita came in to give us some exercises while Ms Samantha continued to talk about various experiments using chemicals, before having our Homeroom time. As Ms Lee entered the class, the entire class wanted a birthday celebration for Jordan, but he refused, to laughter from Branson, Shaun Ting and Ting Yi.
The next week was our Assessment 2, which was originally scheduled a week prior before being postponed due to the 10th Anniversary Concert and to give people time to prepare for the assessment. During the 11th August Monday assembly, Mr Paul and the CCA department then announced a ‘Carnival do Nobel’ which would take place at the end of the month. It was the immediate predecessor of Nobelfest, a similar event held in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Mr Paul said that each CCA club and society would be participating in the Carnival and it was compulsory for everyone to take part in the Carnival. The Carnival, just like the 10th Anniversary Concert and the YEC which came before it, would reap profits to the Fungates Superflow Foundation's charitable activities. Carnival do Nobel is basically the YEC, but a notch higher. Each club or society would need to present a plan on what they wanted to sell at the Carnival, and they would need to come up with the project by using the club funds. Fortunately, on the previous Thursday before that, we had already discussed that everyone should pay RM 15 to the Art and Craft club funds.
When we got back to class, we had our Malay assessment, which Puan Rostita conducted smoothly. Then, it was Science, where I fiddled about with certain things. English was quite okay, but during Maths, Mr Daniel gave the paper and as the examination passed, he was puzzled with what we are trying to attempt.
Mr Daniel walked around the classroom as I was stuck on one of the equations. He then approached me voluntarily. Then, he appeared to give me clues to answer the assessment. I did not ask him for tips. I just stared blankly at the paper, appearing to digest what Mr Daniel did. I only just looked at the title ‘Mathematics Year 8’ and back at my question.
Then, Mr Daniel did it for another few people. He approached Yi Jiun and he did the same. He told her the answer to the question. Wow.
Mr Daniel then continued to pace around the class, looking at everyone's papers. “Check your answers. I see many wrong answers,” he announced to everyone. Everyone flipped their papers and then, after the lesson was over, he collected the papers. Soon, the whole class was in pandemonium over what Mr Daniel did and then Rick started talking to me about one question which I did not get correct.
The next day, it was Ms Visa's turn to have her assessment as the History assessment was a straightforward paper. The BK assessment was just a fill-in-the-blank. Then, on Thursday, we had our Mandarin assessment, and it was pretty okay.
The following day, on Wednesday, 13th August, Mr Victor brought us to the field to do some exercises. He then told us to do some exercises in the field. Because me and a few other people weren't paying attention, Mr Victor told me to run one lap of the field before we left, as Cikgu Faharna watched us.
When I reached 8O, I found out that Sara Yow had gotten her librarian's tag and was made a librarian, along with Wai Shaun as well. Probably because she liked to go around the library before she went home as her mother would come at around 5:00pm to pick her up.
The next day, we did our animal model, and Ms Nadia punished those who did not bring the clay. We then made our animal model, and I made a giraffe. Some people like Jonathan Chong made fun of the giraffe I made as it was a thin giraffe.
During the Art and Crafts Club CCA , we then met and discussed many things in relation to the Carnival. Ms Chume and Puan Faharna were frustrated as to which many people were not giving ideas except for me. I had suggested selling some cookies for the Carnival. And guess what? Our teachers have started discussing the papers, and Renee Koh got the highest for every single subject again. The whole class cheered and some were envious.
The school, in relation to the MH17 tragedy involving that second Malaysia Airlines flight, decided to hold a moment of silence for the MH17 victims as the caskets were being transported back to Kuala Lumpur for the Malaysian victims. Ms Evelyn said that on 22nd August 2014, everyone had to observe a moment of silence at 10:00am for the plane. This was because according to the news, the government had said that a plane carrying the remains of the victims would arrive at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) from Amsterdam Schiptol Airport with the bodies of the Malaysians aboard Flight MH17.
As we begun our Malay lesson, Puan Rostita did some work with us. We had to do our exercise in our workbook. One by one, I attempted the exercise. Before I was finished with the exercise, Puan Rostita moved to the next activity, and that exercise became homework for the day. Oh dear.
It was then Science, and Ms Samantha did not bring us to the Science lab. She then started teaching the Physics portion of Science, which is very easy as opposed to the first two parts. And also, Mr Daniel begun teaching about the Pythagoras theorems.
After school ended, I proceeded to the library, and tried to complete Puan Rostita's work. However, Cikgu Afza approached me and told me that the library was closing early. Oh dear. I have to complete EVERYTHING at home.
I felt so frustrated. Now, I have to wait for my aunt to pick me home and then continue the work from there.
The next day, Ms Samantha taught us the Speed-Distance-Time formula to remember. Oh, it was SO EASY. Geography the following day was also fun. And I brought my Pablo Picasso research document while she made those who did not bring the research to sing a song in class. Then, Friday the 22nd August 2014, came.
Ms Evelyn then reminded us during the assembly about our cues on when to observe the moment of silence for MH17. Then, Mr Chan recited a word of prayer for the flight's victims as the plane carrying the bodies approached Malaysia. We then went for ICT, where Ms Hani did some lessons with us. She also talked about the flight and how it was very sad to first have MH370, and then the MH17 tragedy. I then told her about Ms Kerry scolding her the day before MH370 disappeared. She laughed.
During break time, I met with Zhue Xin, Yin Wei and all the girls as we discussed the flight MH17. I told Zhue Xin that I was already scared when flying the plane to Vietnam two years back in March 2012, and after this tragedy, I would never fly on the aircraft again. This is as worse as experiencing 9/11. Then, Ms Lim came on the announcement during assembly, asking everyone to remember the moment of silence.
Ms Evelyn and Ms Lim said that the moment of silence would be indicated by an announcement and the school bell to ask us to be silent in respect of the victims and families of MH17 (and also MH370). So, they had told us to pay attention for the announcement.
It was during our Geography lesson that Ms Maddy was teaching us on the Geography of Crime. The cue for the moment of silence was when the bell of the school rang. Last time, we had a workable school bell that worked time after time. The bell then rang, and then everyone stood up and observed that moment of silence for a minute for the plane. Ms Maddy made the announcement, and everyone stood solemnly. Some people tried to make funny moves, and Ms Maddy asked them to be silent.
It was a minute of silence. Sixty seconds were used to remember the plane and its victims. A flight which never reached Malaysian soil. As The Star newspaper put it:
“TWO Boeing 777s. TWO massive disasters which resulted in loss of life. And ONE airline company.”
Ms Maddy then said that there is a possibility that the MH17 tragedy could be a criminal act, since the plane was besieged by a Russian Buk missile. An ode to the topic of the day, ‘Geography of Crime’.
During Malay, Puan Rostita scolded me because I did not follow what she was doing in the class. She moved from one exercise to another and did not give me time to complete one of them and told us to complete at home. As I had a lot of homework to do, I want to finish all the classwork, frustrated by what had happened previously.
Puan Rostita had given us a worksheet to do, and I did it halfway before she told me to complete the work at home. Then, she told us to take out our workbooks for the next activity. Once Puan Rostita was done with the activity, we did our task in the workbook, and since I finished quickly, I proceeded to complete the worksheet so that I can be relieved of homework. Puan Rostita then proceeded to check our work and how we were doing. When Puan Rostita saw me doing the worksheet, she scolded me till I cried, and everyone looked at Puan Rostita booming over my head.
“Oi! Kenapa you buat worksheet ini!” she cried. It meant, “Why are you doing the worksheet now?” Puan Rostita said that a worksheet designated for homework MUST be done as homework and her instruction cannot be questioned.
I looked up at Puan Rostita in shock and despair. The entire class also peered at me. I had become the FIRST casualty in Puan Rostita's class.
“DON'T DO THE WORKSHEET!” she cried. “Do it at home!” Then, she walked off, checking on other people. Then, she continued teaching.
After Puan Rostita left, Sara Yow comforted me, saying that things will get better and I should try to please her during the class and complete them at home. “Remember what Ms Chin said? Scars are the road to the soul,” Sara Yow added. The phrase 'scars are the road to the soul’ is an idiom taught in the class by Ms Chin the previous week. Sara and I are in the same English class.
“Yeah, Wei Yiang, listen to your girlfriend,” Rick quipped and smiled. Sara Yow then gave him a slap. “Shut up!” she cried. Then, she comforted me further. The entire class came to my aid.
Ms Samantha then came in for Science and saw the commotion going on. “Wei Yiang, go to the toilet and wash your face,” she said. I just wiped off the tears with my handkerchief as Ms Samantha asked what had happened. Then, Eu Lynn explained the whole thing. Ms Samantha then did a lesson on sound waves, and Branson Choon tried to joke about Ting Yi's sounds. “Why not we ask Ting Yi to scream into the oscillator,” he said. The whole class laughed as Ting Yi made some funny sounds. He went like, “Aww!” “Aargh” “Eeeoooeeeooohhh!”
“Ting Yi, shut up,” instructed Ms Samantha. Branson Choon then interjected. “Uh oh! Ms Sam just said shut up!” he cried, to more laughter from the class. Then, it was Homeroom time, and Ms Lee came in with messages advertising the next field trip for Year 8, which was to the Radiant Retreats resort in Janda Baik. She gave the messages and permission slip for us to complete, as well as our Friday lunch snack.
Eu Lynn then spoke to me, saying that I should have completed the worksheet at home in order to prevent Puan Rostita from bursting her temper. “Puan Rostita is a strict teacher. Not all teachers are nice,” she said. Then, Rick and Jordan spoke to me on the incident while I asked questions.
At the end of the school day, the Malaysian flag on the school flagpole in the courtyard was lowered to half-mast in order to signify the mark of respect to the victims of MH17. It was a surreal feeling, having been shouted at by Puan Rostita, and also feeling sad not also for myself, but also for the victims of the plane. As we headed for the school foyer, I peered at the flag at half mast. The Malaysian flag was down. I had to lower the flag at my house’s flagpole, too. We need to show strength to the families of the victims of Flight MH17.
Thinking of Puan Rostita, I couldn't understand why I made her so angry. After all, I wish to complete my homework quickly when time is given. The carnival is approaching, and there are other things on my mind. I mean, like, I have finished my work. Puan Rostita only asked to see my work. What is wrong with completing the worksheet when I have completed my work?
When we came back from the weekend, Puan Rostita decided to take a softer approach. She reminded everyone not to do other things in her class and follow her instructions diligently to avoid being the “next target”. Everyone was now really scared. However, I took care to not make Puan Rostita angry. Thus, for any unaccomplished task that Puan Rostita gave, I would finish them during break time later on.
As the carnival approached, everyone was gearing up for it. This carnival is an important charity carnival, just like the Young Entrepreneur Challenge. Like the YEC, profits are given to Fungates Superflow Foundation for charity, and each team would need to present a business plan and sell things for the carnival. This carnival was held on 30th August 2014 and it was done by all 35 CCA boards from Nobel, including the Leadership boards.
I was in the Art and Crafts Club in Nobel then, as my choice of Fine Art Club was not allowed as it was only for Year 9s, 10s and 11s then. However, Ms Feeda who heads Fine Art Club also planned to collaborate with us on the Art Exhibition during PTM as well as other projects, and we did a few things during Arts and Crafts Club, such as making model books, spraypainting cardboard and melting crayon to form art pieces.
So, before the carnival started, we then discussed what should we sell for the carnival, and we decided to sell some cookies and other craft items and foods for the club. At the time, as treasurer of the club, I was involved in buying the materials and art supplies for the club, as well as planning on the revenue for the Carnival do Nobel.
Mr Paul said that for those who had joined two CCAs, they would need to join the CCA that has the least people in order to man the stalls on the day of the carnival. As the Head of CCA, he was involved in directing the affairs of the carnival. Students in Nobel, at the time, were asked to participate in at least one CCA, but however, some people participated in more than one CCA.
On the day of the carnival, we had to arrive early, and I arrived at 7:00am that day in order to set up the carnival booth. Each CCA was assigned a booth on the day and Ms Chume and Cikgu Farhana got ready for us to set the booth up. Reanie Koh, Reanne Koh's sister, who was in our club, then brought a stove in order to cook the dishes, and I was involved in selling Ice Cream Melaka on a tray to people who came to the carnival.
Canopies were rented by the school and installed in the school courtyard in order to ensure that people do not get scorched or soaked by the weather. The canopies were red in color and the electrical equipment that accompanied the canopies were attached to fuse sockets embedded in the school's infrastructure. The canopies were white in color, and there were tables and benches placed to mark our location of our booths. Our booth was close to the school hall.
I went to the canteen to have my breakfast as the sun begun rising. Soon, a lot of people arrived, carrying small backpacks and zip-tie bags for the day. Some were armed with cooking cartons, kitchen stoves and other cooking equipment. Before you knew it, the entire school was bustling with people, setting up their stoves and decorating their booths.
On top of that, there was a large bouncy castle installed in the school's driveway for the fun and enjoyment of the general public. It was a large colorful bouncy castle, designed for all walks of life. The school custodians were out setting up the bouncy castle and trying to inflate it. As more people arrived, a crowd gathered to watch the castle being inflated.
Inside the school hall, there was a large game area set up by the Football Club where people had to play football by rolling inside large hamster balls. There was also a song request area, a photo booth and plenty of game stations. The hall was blasted with cool air to keep people cool, and there were people trying to enjoy the air conditioning. Phones were allowed that day, as Ms Lim had told us that we can bring them. Oh, I don't have a handphone, so there was no issue with me.
So, as everyone arrived, Mr Paul got on the microphone and told us that we will need to prepare for an hour, from 8am to 9am, and that the general public can start entering the school after 9am to do their purchase. Mr Paul also said that we need to have all the club members present at the booth before the event begins. So, Jo Yi, Wee Shiang, Nicole Kau and Jen Thong then set up the stove and everything, while we also arranged the tables and placed them in order. We sold tie dye socks, homemader butterscotch and hershy cookies, lolipops, Ice Cream Melaka, ice cream buns, earrings, homemade book tarts, cheese tarts, bookmarks, necklaces and even offered a face painting counter for face painting. We named our stall “Box of Creativity” and we had spent time during our Art and Craft Club CCA to do a banner containing the name of the stall and the items we sold.
Ms Chume gathered all of us together and briefed us on our tasks. I was tasked with walking around and selling Ice Cream Melaka which is a local flavored ice cream. Reanie and Xin Yi were tasked to do the cooking. The rest of the people were told to walk around as well to sell stuff. The atmosphere begun to build up. Ms Chume called everyone to decorate the booth. Nicole, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Jen Thong and I were mainly assisting in decorating. Then, Ms Chume called Nicole to prepare the stove and so on. She tried to plug the stove, but it failed to operate. After a few tries, it operated successfully.
Then, Mr Paul told everyone to be on standby as the Carnival was about to begin. He then told everyone to listen to his instructions.
“Students in the courtyard, may I have your attention please. It is 7:50am. I want everyone to be ready at their booths. We are going to start the carnival at 8 o’ clock sharp. Please be ready. Teacher advisors, please get your students ready,” he said.
I then told everyone to get ready and Ms Chume and Puan Faharna got ready as well. Then, the doors opened, and a steady stream of customers flooded the courtyard and school premises. Ms Chume was smiling but was also anxious, hoping that a few customers would get to our stall.
To enter the Carnival, each individual who wanted to buy things from the stalls needed to exchange cash with coupons, just like at the YEC. Then, they can shop till they drop. I then started selling Ice Cream Melaka from the booths, and we had started amassing profit. Ms Chume was happy. Then, more people came.
Then, Ms Chume told me to start walking around to sell my Ice Cream Melaka. I then started selling. It took me 30 minutes to sell the first batch. I walked around the courtyard and canteen. Then, I finished selling. “Very good!” exclaimed Ms Chume. Then, I took a 10-minute break before being told to sell again.
I walked into the school hall, where music was being played from the loudspeakers. There was a large football game station behind the hall. Then, I went to see the bouncy castles and sold some to Rick and Jordan, who were outside. Then, within 40 minutes, I finished my second stash of Ice Cream Melaka. Ms Chume then rotated me and Wee Shiang and I stood at the booth to promote stuff.
At 11:00am, Auntie Clarine arrived at the Carnival. The management team, comprising Ms Lim, Ms Evelyn and Mr Chan, proceeded to tour the stalls on sale. Ms Lim soon approached our booth and asked how I was doing. Then, she gave me the thumbs up as I sold two Ice Cream Melaka to her. Ms Lim then chatted with some other students and talked to them.
I also sold some Ice Cream Melaka to Sara Yow, who bought it, and Rick tried to make a big deal of it again. I also took the opportunity to see a sponge and water-splashing contest set up by one of the clubs in the car park near the Art Studio. Then, it was lunch time. My mum bought some chicken rice, which I ate at the canteen. It was 1:00pm, and Ms Chume allowed me to have some lunch while my mum went and shopped at the various stalls available.
At 2:00pm, I then got back and continued my sales. As the hot weather raged like mad, the crowd thinned. Many patrons popularized the morning sales than the afternoon situation.Our products ranged from RM 3 to RM 10, and we managed to sell out most of our things for the day. I had some trouble selling all my Ice Cream Melaka, so Ms Chume gave me cookies to sell. It was much more difficult to sell the Ice Cream Melaka towards the afternoon as I called out for sales. An hour later, many people begun to clean up early as the crowd thinned. Reanie and Xin Yi had to leave early. Ms Chume and Puan Faharna called out for them, but to no avail. I then met Ms Chume and asked what was the matter before she told me. Then, we begun our clean up.
Janitors were called to sweep the rubbish and get things settled. Ms Chume placed the unwrapped packages and some litter on the floor into one big garbage bag. She tied them up and we all assisted. By this time, only around five people were together with Ms Chume and Puan Faharna; me, Jo Yi, Wee Shiang, Jen Thong and Berlinda.
The crowd then thinned out. I offered to stay to help Ms Chume settle things. Then my mum had a chat with Ms Chume. Then, she said I could go home and that she will finish the rest of the affairs herself. As the sky darkened, about to flush a storm, my mum and I met Ms June and we talked. Then, we left as the rain begun to pour. I then picked up the newspaper and read the news. It was a talk about the government buying over Malaysia Airlines as it suffered profit losses from the twin disasters of MH370 and MH17.
The following Monday, Mr Paul was very angry. He said that a lot of people had not cooperated with their teachers following the end of the carnival. “I am very angry. I am disappointed with all of you. There is a lot of rubbish on the floor. Ms Lim saw it. What type of attitude is this?” he boomed.
Speaking in front of the morning assembly, Mr Paul lectured the entire school on what he expected us to do. “Your teachers are waiting for you. Many people left early. There is not enough people to clean up the mess. I personally stayed until 7pm just to clean everything up,” he boomed.
When we returned to class, Puan Rostita begun to disperse us into our groups in order to do a class assignment. She also said that the group we were in would also be the basis for our coursework. Puan Rostita manually sorted us out. I was placed in the same group as Jordan Tay. I was very happy as I breathed a sigh of relief. Puan Rostita begun barking orders on our task. Jordan helped me to complete comprehensions as I worry about Puan Rostita getting angry.
When we went for break time, we had our break as usual as we discussed the Carnival and San Ying as well as Zhue Xin asked me about Puan Rostita's class. Later on, during the break time assembly, Ms Lim came. She was watching for latecomers. Then, she spoke to us on the school rules.
Ms Lim said that she had seen people not wearing proper school attire. She said that those people with faded school uniforms had to change to a new uniform by buying a new one from the uniform shop. She also said that each and every one of us had to wear Nobel socks and wear black shoes. At the time, no shoes of other colors were allowed, and that everyone had to wear the complete school uniform to school. There was no optional uniform or lax regulations back then. It was a strict and controlled environment.
Then, Ms Lim called out people who did not conform to the school rules by scolding them. Then, she also scolded the prefects for not doing much to stop them from breaking the rules. “Break time or lunch time, prefects......anyone who arrive late, STOP THEM!” she cried. She then gave a long lecture as to how our parents were to nag at us and so on.
After returning from break time, Ms Samantha then brought us to the Science Lab to build an electrical circuit. Ting Yi then played around with the switch and giggled at it, and he tried putting his hands around the circuit before putting the light bulb on his head and his nose. Speaking of noses, Sean Mark had a big red pimple on his big nose, which made him look like Rudolph the Reindeer. A lot of his friends laughed at him as he tried to shrug it off. I did not laugh at Sean Mark or tease him despite him teasing me in the past.
Then, it was English, and Ms Chin then did some exercises with us. During lunch, Ms Lim was standing at the courtyard and watching people. She pointed to a few students trying to go to the futsal court to play futsal. “You can only play basketball,” she said. At the time, the management team allowed people to play basketball and not futsal. It was forbidden to play futsal in the futsal court during break or lunch.
During assembly, Ms Lim watched as the prefects stopped those who were late. She then gave those who were late a long lecture. When we returned to class, Mr Daniel begun to teach about the Pythagoras Theorem. It is one of my favorite topics in Maths, and I know the answers to the questions. He even used flagpoles as examples, and I boasted about the flagpole, or I should say, the homemade flagpole consisting of a string and pulley I did at my house.
When Ms Samantha met the next day, she then did a quiz in the class on the formulas. Then, Branson, Ting Yi and Shaun Ting raised up their hands when she asked for the formula for Speed. I raised up too, but was not chosen by Ms Samantha.
Then, she asked on the formula for Time. I then said the answer quickly. “Wait first,” she instructed, before asking Shaun to answer.
Afterwards, she then called me to answer the formula for Density, and this went on till the whole class got annoyed. “What monkeys,” groaned Ms Samantha as Branson, Shaun Ting, Ting Yi and I tried to answer the questions.
Ms Chume was not happy with the club when we met the following Thursday after the Carnival. “You see, most of you left early and there was no people to help clean the things. Only Wei Yiang stayed back to help,” she said angrily, and criticized Reanie and the others for leaving early. Ms Chume also gave a long lecture on what Mr Paul said during the assembly.
To cap off the week, Puan Rostita came in for class and she gave a task on our coursework and briefed us. Then, she led us to do exercises. Sara Yow was uncertain about what to do, so she asked a question to Puan Rostita. When she asked a lot of questions, Puan Rostita shouted at her. Then, the following Monday, she had to meet all group leaders, and Jordan would also have had a hard time being lectured at by Puan Rostita as group leader. I can only count on Jordan Tay to save my own sinking ship, as I joined his group that time for a Malay group activity. Jordan, Wai Chun, Rick and I were put in the same group by Puan Rostita.
It then came to our second field trip of the year. On 9th September 2014, we went to Radiant Retreats which is a resort in Janda Baik. This resort, located in the lush hills of Pahang, captivated my attention when I read the permission slip. The last thing that I hope to enjoy was a nice, refreshing trip out of the classroom.
We arrived at school as per usual and we gathered in the courtyard. Rick and Jordan were sitting next to each other and having a chat. Everyone was allocated to different places, while we were focused on our own.
Wai Chun, Rick, Jonathan and Andrew were talking as they arrived. Everyone, including me, brought a small backpack for the trip to Radiant Retreats. I then went to the canteen and ate my breakfast. Then, I went to look at people arriving and met Xang Yen in his class line, before returning to the hall and watching Rick and the rest of the people in the class talk.
Shaun Ting had a very nice cap and also Branson Choon and Ting Yi. The three of them acted like superheroes. Then, Jordan Tay arrived and joined them. Sara Yow also arrived soon thereafter and talked to Renee. As everyone arrived, Rick quipped of me and Sara Yow having a nice holiday retreat with each other. Then, Caleb Chuang joined the group of people sitting and having a chat.
At 7:45am, everyone gathered in their class lines. Rick and Jordan were talking. Sara Yow had a white cap, and she had a red backpack. She was talking to Renee as Rick continued to ask Sara if she was looking forward to a refreshing trip. He was then met with glares from her. Ms Lee and Ms Samantha took our attendance. Ms Samantha was dressed in our class’ t-shirt for the trip to Radiant Retreats. Over at 8E, Mr Daniel was seen playing jokes with his class as he took a selfie with them. Before long, it was time to leave for Radiant Retreats.
Outside the school compound, we boarded our buses outside the school. The road was quite jammed as the parents of some students who were late tried to make their way to Nobel's entrance. Renee and Sara Yow were enjoying themselves at the back and they were talking to each other. Then, Yan Ying, Megan and Eu Lynn had a chat in front. Ms Lee and Ms Samantha took our attendance as I peered out of the windows to watch the scenery.
The bus then departed. We started off slowly before exiting the neighborhood of Kelana Jaya. As Ms Lim allowed everyone to bring their phones, everyone was taking selfies and pictures of themselves as the bus roared on. Before long, the bus passed by my mum's friend, Auntie Kwan's house, which can be seen from the road, and then we came towards the LDP Highway's exit. Then, the bus turned onto the highway as we passed by the neighborhood of Damansara Jaya and KDU University College, which would become the new Nobel International School campus nine years later. Then, we made our way to the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) as I watched the views of Kuala Lumpur from the bus. Soon, we entered the Karak Highway, turning onto the mountainous expressway. I begun speaking to Ms Samantha and Ms Lee about how I used that road with my family to head to Genting Highlands, explaining about the features of the expressway.
The bus continued speeding on, as it passed through the Genting Highlands mountain tunnel located next to Genting Highlands’ exit before exiting onto a u-turn located at a rest station next to the tunnel. It then stopped at the rest station. Ms Lee then asked for people who wanted to use the restroom to do so while the bus stopped at the Genting Rest Station of the expressway. I then sat down as Ms Samantha took care of me and a few others who chose to remain in the bus while Ms Lee accompanied them to the restroom. Everyone was invited to use the restroom, and a lot of people in all the buses did so.
I then took the opportunity to scan the mountainous view from inside the bus. The familiar, green scenes of Genting Sempah greeted me. Fog and mist covered the mountains in the background, as I tried to make out the location of Genting Highlands and the hotels on top of the hill, but I couldn't find it. Then, Sara Yow and Renee Koh returned, followed by the rest of the class. The bus then sped on as it made its way along a winding road through trees, hills and more cockscrew turns. The road was crooked, reminding me of the narrow road to Fraser's Hill. Then, the people in the bus started singing songs and socializing. We then reached a few junctions before we finally reached Radiant Retreats.
The resort was filled with a lush, natural landscape as we arrived. The bus parked on a zone near a hilly surface. It was quite rocky of a surface when the bus landed into parking mode. We then got off and got into our class lines as Ms Joyce made an announcement for us to follow her to the compound of the resort. We then walked in pairs as we followed our teachers to a dorm room.
We then placed our bags inside a dorm room with big windows that resemble a kampung house, and placed our bags there, and were told to follow our teachers who introduced us to our instructor. Each class was taken to an obstacle course behind the resort to try the obstacle facilities. I climbed a monkey bar, went on a rope plank and even crawled under netting as part of the obstacle course. Those who were done waited for everyone to finish their task.
Wai Chun, Jonathan, Rick and Andrew Ariffin then had a chat and played with each other as we waited, and Jonathan and Rick had a chat with me. Before long, everyone was told to follow our instructors for lunch at the cafeteria.
We then returned to the dorm and took our cash to purchase food. I then took some chicken rice and sat down in the cafeteria to have my snack. Then, Rick came and then sat down next to me, eating his lunch. Soon, Wai Chun and Jonathan came, and everyone was feasting on a meal.
The cafeteria had large retractable roofs that stretched to a large hill nearby, blocking out the glaring sun. The temperature was around 28 degrees celsius. The fans were quite large and on full blast, ensuring a comfortable atmosphere for us. Over at another table, Renee, Sara, Yin Wei and the rest of the class were having their chat. I then went and had a chat with Zhue Xin. Before long, lunch has ended, and we were invited for a trek alongside a river.
Radiant Retreats, being located at Janda Baik, Pahang, is also home to a multitude of rivers. So, everyone was excited for a jungle walk which leads to a river. Our instructor was gentle enough. He led us towards the jungle area. It was very shady as we walked through. The road was windy as Jonathan talked to me. Then, Mr Daniel and his class, 8E, was following behind. Ellie, Ryan Toh and Vicky were very enthusiastic about the trek.
The trek lasted 45 minutes. It was just the beginning as we moved up a series of hills. Then, we came face to face with a large creek. The pathway ran beside the creek and we then headed up the creek where our tour guide then told us to cross the river on a series of rocks. We then crossed it. Everyone was chatting as we made our way through. Ms Samantha was looking upwards. She saw some clouds and also the trees blotting out the sun, making us cool. Then, it came to our time to cross the river.
The river had a large current, being on higher ground. The sound of rushing water made us sip into our current moment, blacking out the endless exams and academic stress we endure. Mr Daniel was laughing and playing jokes with 8E. Everyone waited as 8N was the first to cross. Benjamin Tenji and Timothy Hiew were playing with the water.
Sara Yow was hanging out with Renee Koh most of the time and the two of them were chatting amongst each other. Rick was trying to tease me when I had a conversation with Sara Yow, and Sara Yow, just like the usual rant, was not happy with him.
“Wei Yiang, please hold Sara's hand, help her across,” he said as I was helping my friends cross the river. “Never mind, it's okay, don't help me,” said Sara, as Rick laughed.
Then, we headed up the creek and tredged through the jungle before we then reached a large, open plateau filled with brownish dirt, which we explored. The weather was starting to get hot. We then slowly explored before we turned back and made our way back to the resort. Sara and Renee were the last to come back, and they followed us when Ms Samantha called them. Then, we made our way back across the river as 8E was making their way across the river to the area which we explored therein. Mr Daniel joked with his class as he splashed water around.
Once we returned to the resort, we then had a series of trying the riddle activities and solvingbefore solving the riddle. I was placed in Wai Chun's group, and we had to search for riddles. The riddles quizzed us on the type of trees in the resort, which we can find based on information boards placed next to the trees. Finding the type of trees was my favorite activity as I like to do gardening then.
Rick, Wai Chun, Jonathan and Andrew counted on me to find the answers to the riddles. Soon, everyone who had returned were given riddles to solve. We then walked around the trees near the cafeteria to find answers.
After everyone was done with the riddles, those who needed to change into a new set of clothes did so while we waited in our class lines. Benjamin Tenji soon returned in his school uniform with a towel on his head, as Ms Joyce called for our attention. Soon, it begun to pour as we headed back to our bus, which was heading back to school.
The rain got heavier as everyone boarded the bus in no time. A lot of people slept on the way back as I looked out of the window. It was surreal but relaxing; a cool breeze in the bus under rainy weather in the forest. The bus then sped down the windy roads cautiously before we finally managed to meet the Karak Expressway. The highway was quite congested as the bus pooled onto the crowd of motor vehicles bound for Kuala Lumpur.
At Karak Highway's toll plaza, a police roadblock spanned the road. Rick then teased me and Jordan told me he was showing Datuk Seri Najib Razak's picture on our Google Hangouts chat to the traffic police. The entire class laughed as I said, “No, please, no!” I had told Jordan that we cannot simply post pictures on the Internet then, especially when Najib is the Prime Minister of Malaysia. “I want to get arrested. Let the police catch me!” cried Jordan to more laughter to the whole class as Sara and Ms Samantha told him not to do so. Fortunately, we managed to arrive at school safely when the rain stopped.
The next day, Mr Victor informed us that we were going to start our fitness test, and he told us that the fitness test would be in two weeks. He told us to do a lot of stretching but also running as well, which ached my legs.
Mr Victor, earlier in the day, said that Shaun Ting had to do ten push-ups because he didn't do them properly. To make things more demanding, Mr Victor requested that Shaun Ting demonstrate his push ups in front of the whole year level. “Please remind me just in case I forgot,” said Mr Victor.
When it was time for break time and was about to dismiss everyone, I informed Mr Victor about Shaun Ting's push-ups. “Mr Victor, Shaun Ting needs to do push-ups. You asked us to remind you,” I said.
“Oh, yeah hor!” cried Mr Victor, and requested Shaun Ting to come up and do the push ups. Shaun Ting's face turned red and the whole year cheered for him to come and demonstrate. Then, Mr Victor counted and smiled as he did the ten push-ups on the stage in front of the hall. The whole year level counted the number of push-ups on the instruction of Mr Victor, and then cheered when he was done. Shaun Ting laughed and shouted profanities since I remembered the request by Mr Victor.
Soon, it was Geography, and Ms Maddy told us that our Modular Assessment would also be in two weeks. We then did a few exercises on crime. Afterwards, we had a speaker came to talk to us about persistence and perseverance during Character Transformation. Because the hall was being used, we then went up to the old library, which was being left blank as it was.
Our speaker then used a whiteboard to write some words. However, he struggled to find an eraser to erase his words. Then, he took a Smartboard eraser from a portable Smartboard located in the room, and proceeded to erase the words on the whiteboard.
"No! No! Stop! That's for the Smartboard! You can't use that!” I cried. The whole room was laughing.
“I can't use that?” he asked.
“Yeah!” I cried. “Later the eraser will be spoilt! It will dirty the Smartboard and spoil it!” I cried.
The whole room was in amusement and everyone was chuckling away. Then, Eu Lynn brought a whiteboard eraser, and he proceeded to scrub it “Thank you for the reminder,” he said, as he continued his talk. Ms Joyce and Ms Lim were laughing away. All the teachers were laughing like mad. Then, once the talk was over, Ms Lim also announced that a fair would be set up before the Final Year Examination to promote tertiary education opportunities. Once we came back after lunch, Mr Daniel then begun teaching us as I peered out of the window, looking at Genting Highlands and the mountains of Pahang, which can be seen from 8O's classroom. I thought of the relaxing trip we embarked on the day before.
The following day, Ms Lee then did a rehearsal of Yue Liang Yuan during our Mandarin class in preparation for the Mid Autumn Festival celebration. Mr Daniel was absent because he had come down with a fever and was sick because of the trip. In fact, Mr Daniel accidentally fell into the water while on the trip to Radiant Retreats. The cool weather also played a role in his sickness. So, Ms Thana came to take over Mr Daniel's class. Renee and I did some Maths work together as she tried to explain the concepts to me. Then, Rick offered to quiz me on Maths while I offered to test his Geography skills. He refused.
Afterwards, Ms Nadia then told everyone the questions for the Art and Design Final Year Examination and how things would work out. While leaving the class to do their own things, I spoke to Ms Nadia and offered to practice drawing the painting for the questions for the Art exam.
On Friday, 12th September 2014, Ms Lee and all of us from our Mandarin Core class performed the song “Yue Liang Yuan” for the school's Mid Autumn Festival celebration. Ms Lee had told us during Mandarin class weeks before that our class would be performing the song as this song is the hallmark song for the Mid Autumn Festival celebration. This song is quite important, because “Yue Liang Yuan” in its English name means “the moon is round”. The song talks about the moon because the legend behind the Mid Autumn Festival is that Hou Yi, an archer, was commanded by the Jade Emperor to shoot down nine out of ten suns in order to bring down the temperature. There were initially ten suns because the sons of another god became suns, and Hou Yi was praised for saving the earth from drought. To reward Hou Yi, the Jade Emperor then gave him elixir pills for medical treatment but was told not to drink it. So, Hou Yi kept the pills in his drawer, but when his wife, Chang Er, discovered it, she drank it and a spell was cast on her to fly to the moon, where she met a rabbit. Mid Autumn Festival is thus celebrated in order to remember Chang Er and her flying to the moon, and hence, Yue Liang Yuan pays tribute to Hou Yi and his wife.
So, Ms Lee practiced the song with us in class prior to the assembly performance. When we came out and sang the song, we lit candles because candles are one of the ornaments that people use during the Mid Autumn Festival as well. Ms Evelyn praised our performance in front of the whole school.
After the assembly ended, we went for our ICT lesson where Ms Hani praised my performance and that many of the people in our class did the same. We then did some Microsoft Excel stuff on the computer before break time. Then, Ms Maddy did with us more crime exercises.
During Malay, Cikgu Zura and Puan Rostita came into the class, as everyone stood up. Like clockwork. Eu Lynn and Yan Ying waved hi at Cikgu Zura, who smiled. Then, Puan Rostita had a serious talk with us. Cikgu Zura then arrived, pleading with us to give our full cooperation to Puan Rostita. She said that it was good to come back and teach us, although Puan Rostita would be leading the class for the time being. She then said that her baby was well delivered and healthy, but since she had returned from delivery of her baby, she did not have much energy, and told us to make life easy for her and Puan Rostita. We then had a series of questions asked. The entire class was afraid of Cikgu Zura not teaching us, but Cikgu Zura and Puan Rostita assured us that they would be our teachers. Then, Ms Samantha came in for a short Science lesson and then Homeroom time. Ms Lee then gave us our Final Year Examination timetable.
The following week, we had our Second Mid Term Break. It was a long break, so my mum asked for Mr Nehru to come over to give Maths tuition to me. When school reopened a week later, Puan Rostita begun to revise us for the Final Year Examination. Fortunately, the exercises were easy to handle. I also took time after school to meet Mr Daniel in front of the staffroom in order for him to help tutor me on Mathematics. I had failed all my assessments and exams on Maths and was struggling for it. He tutored me after school as much as I could. My mum had approached me many times and said that I may become a dropout if I continue to perform badly in Mathematics and also most of my subjects, and given that Year 9 would be my Cambridge Checkpoint, I was determined to try and do well for it so that I can get into a good class in Year 10 and hopefully, do well in my IGCSE exams in 2017. Hence, I was thinking that during the holidays in December 2014, I would be able to reset and prepare for Checkpoint. I hope to at least graduate and go to university, because my mum told me about the bad stigma of being a dropout; no work, no higher education, and the shame and brunt of society.
Ms Samantha had meted out a series of very easy formulas for us to remember, such as speed which equals to distance over time, time equals to distance over speed, and distance as speed multiplied by time. Branson Choon, Shaun Ting, Rick Tan, Jordan Tay and I were busy raising our hands to try to answer the questions, especially the Physics portion in Science as this section is quite easier to remmber and not as dry as the Biology or Chemistry sections in Science. So, when Rick was trying to answer and I was chosen by Ms Samantha, he groaned when I answered correctly, and laughed when I answered wrongly as he was given the chance to answer. Eventually, Ms Samantha asked all of us to give others a chance. “I don't want to hear from these five monkeys; I want to hear from the others.”
Then, it was Ms Visa's lesson, and she continued teaching about the last chapter in our textbook while also revising us for the Final Year Examination. Sean Mark and Jason Leing were not behaving well in her class, which led her to scream and shout. It was soon the Bible Knowledge class, and Ms Joyce and Ms Cynthia combined their classes together. Ms Joyce then spoke to us about what was expected for our Year 9 Bible Knowledge class.
Ms Joyce then told us that Ms Renee will be a Bible Knowledge teacher the following year. This led Renee Koh to wave and smile jokingly, since the name is very familiar. Ms Renee was a new teacher in Nobel then, and my first time seeing her was on the stage being greeted by other teachers.
The next day, on 24th September, Mr Victor then begun the fitness tests for the girls; the boys were ushered by Puan Rostita to do our sit ups and push ups. However, some of the boys from the other classes used the time to play basketball, which led Puan Rostita to lecture Benjamin Fong, James Wong and a few others before confiscating the ball. During Geography, we had our modular test for Geography on the topic of the Geography of Crime. Ms Maddy had given the exam papers on our table, waiting for us to start. Yi Jiun had apparently been still studying for the test even after the paper was on the table, and because the exam had not started, she decided to make up the last minute to study.
Ms Maddy was not happy when she saw Yi Jiun's books on the table, and she told Yi Jiun that she had to go out of the classroom and not sit the exam because she had her books on the table. When Yi Jiun heard that, she tried to admit she did not want to cheat, but Ms Maddy insisted for her to get out of the room. Yi Jiun refused, and Ms Maddy dragged her and her table out of the room. Yi Jiun cried as Ms Maddy also dragged her, and she cried loudly till the other classes could hear her voice. Everybody in the classroom was shocked by what Ms Maddy did, and then soon after, we then begun the test. Ms Maddy failed Yi Jiun on the spot for the exam.
Yi Jiun was innocent, because if Ms Maddy started the test, she would put her book away. She just wanted to make a last minute study to ensure she got a good grade. So, when Ms Maddy dragged her out of the room, she was crying while people walked around, looking at her.
Soon, it was our Character Transformation time, and Ms Lim told us that the tertiary education fair would be postponed to after the Final Year Examinations were over. Then, she passed the time to one of the teachers to do an icebreaking activity. When Ms Maddy met Ms Lim behind the hall, she told Ms Lim what actually happened to Yi Jiun when the test was ongoing. I think Ms Lim took pity on Yi Jiun when talking to Ms Maddy, because Ms Lim was speaking to Ms Maddy for some time and talking in favor of Yi Jiun. Anyhow, Yi Jiun was once again comforted by Jo Yi, Alia, Sara Yow and Yin Wei behind the class line.
Then, it was Maths when Mr Daniel did with us some quadratic graphs. He had told us to bring a graph book before opening the Desmos Graphs Software to plot the quadratic graphs. Ms Visa then gave us work to do. During Science, Ting Yi then tried to act funnily when Ms Samantha talked about calculating the speed of a car on a motorway. “What is a motorway? Hahahahahahahaha,” Ting Yi jokingly asked. Motorway is the name used in the United Kingdom, equivalent to how we use highways to describe the roads without traffic lights. Ms Samantha then described to him that the motorway is what the British use to refer to our highways, but he continued to fool around. He then talk about speeding the entire length of the LDP Highway by running the highway itself.
“Once you reach Puchong, I think you would have had fainted,” she said, to laughter from Ting Yi and the class, since the LDP Highway connects Damansara to Puchong, hence the name.
Ting Yi then tried to calculate the speed of the car, but then Ms Samantha moved on to others in the class, and then Renee Koh answered.
Speaking of Renee Koh, Renee is not only the highest top-scoring student in our class, but she also helps me on subjects like Mathematics as well. I was like a sinking ship, and Renee helped me to explain the concepts. Renee Koh would eventually score a lot of As for all subjects.
In fact, in every subject, Renee Koh's name would always be announced as the individual with the highest marks for almost every subject, when our teachers returned our exam papers. There was a clean sweep of the letter A in all four examinations, namely Assessment 1, Assessment 2, the Mid Year Examination and the Final Year Examination.
Me, Jordan, Rick, Renee Koh and Sara Yow then had a Google Hangouts chat with each other which I described a bit earlier. This is where we would talk about all the obnoxious things (including Najib's photo that Jordan posted earlier) and Rick tried to boast about me and Sara Yow having each other as his or her crush. They started the chat in May and Rick Tan added me as we had our Gmail accounts being used for Ms Joyce’s English activities. Jordan has said many times during class and any time where we met that he wants to be a pilot when he grows up and I felt inspired by his dedication.
The next day, I asked Yi Jiun how she was, and she said she was okay. Then, Ms Lee led us to do a few exercises during our Mandarin lesson. When we had Maths with Mr Daniel, he then came up with a cracky phrase: “Shaun Ting Yi Jiun”, referring to three people, namely Shaun Ting, Ting Yi and Yi Jiun. This was then extended to four people, namely Wai Shaun, Ting Yi, Shaun Ting and Yi Jiun. “Wai Shaun Ting Yi Jiun,” he said, to laughter from the class. Then, he cracked some jokes in class with us. We then had another series of paintings with Ms Nadia before we closed the week.
To cap off the week, Ms Maddy played the national anthem of Brazil to introduce us Brazil. It was a rock-style anthem, and Ms Maddy began recapping what we learnt at the beginning of the year as every topic, namely Population, Coasts, Weather and Climate, Ecosystems, Global Warming, Energy Sources as well as Crime, will be put into this topic. Ms Maddy then told us that Brazil is a less economically-developed country, alongside the weather, coastline, the tropical rainforest and the slash and burn culture found in Brazil to destroy rainforests. The Brazillian government, fortunately, is investing into renewable energy, but however, they were also considering nuclear power at one point. Oh dear.
On Monday, 29th September 2014, the new prefects were installed. Megan Lee, Bethany Ng, Zi Quan, Le Anne, Julian Ong, Joshua Chew, Sherwin, Zi Quan and Yi Zhen were installed as prefects after six months of them being trainee prefects. Natasha Singam, Nigel Chew, Yan Ying, Sophie Tan, Seah Xin Yi, Aaron Loke and Lim Wences were made trainee prefects. The Junior and Senior School prefects had gotten their current uniforms back in April, and many people had said that the uniforms look like prefect uniforms from government schools.
Members of the Prefectorial Board executive committee wore black vests and jackets with the school's logo on them, as Ms Marien, the then teacher in charge for the Prefectorial Board, announced the new names. Brandon Lee, the outgoing head prefect, then spoke about a girlfriend. He then kept on mumbling about it in his farewell speech, which Ms Lim reacted with a scown, frowning look on her face, as if she was like wanting to get really angry. Ms Lim had spoken negatively about boy-girl relationships (BGR) countless times, and she felt really uneasy listening to his speech. When Brandon Lee announced that the ‘girlfriend’ he fell in love with was the school, it led to thunderous applause. The new prefect, Aashtad, was quite professional and outspoken. He was very motivating, and he gave a motivational speech.
Ms Samantha also did some interesting experiments in Physics with us. In fact, we used copper powder and sprinkled it on a piece of paper, and when we placed the magnet on the paper around the copper powder, the copper powder would form a shape, being attracted to the two points, namely north and south, of the metal plate. We even had a glass prism that refracted white light into the colors of the rainbow.
After Ms Samantha's lab session and Ms Chin's English lesson, I went down to have a look at the school's flagpoles. I had become obsessed looking at the flags and also had a flagpole in my house too. I started having thoughts that the academic year was about to end when looking at the flagpole. Not much time was left. The previous year in 2013, time flew by quickly from June to November. I wished we have more time. We would be in Year 9 in 2015, Year 10 in 2016 and Year 11 in 2016. Time was running out. Then, I met with Zhue Xin and talked about the usual happenings round Malaysia.
During Maths, Mr Daniel then taught us about the Pythagoras Theorem, which I had grown to love that topic a lot. It was enjoyable learning it. Mr Daniel told us that Pythagoras Theorem was about calculating the hypothenuse, which is the longest section of a right-angled triangle.
The next day, Ms Samantha then presented about light and sound and so on. And guess what? We are about to have a Science Fair following the Final Year Examination. It was so exciting. Each individual had to participate in the Science Fair. We had to choose a Science topic. It can be done individually or in a group. Many chose to do in a group. Renee and Sara had their own team. Jordan and Rick too. I decided to do the billboard individually because I wanted it to be big, just like the weather device back in April.
Ahead towards the end of the year, because of this, I started becoming friends with Caleb Chuang, our then-class monitor. I had a good chat with him when I was proposing to him to do a large billboard just like the weather device, to break records during the Science fair. We were going to have a Science fair on 19th November 2014. In fact, I had spoken to him just like two people planning a top secret project. I had chosen the Distance, Speed and Time topic to present during the Science fair. I needed him to know because he was the class monitor and could arrange the logistics.
Ms Samantha then also told us to do a Powerpoint Presentation on the usage of electromagnets and finish it by Tuesday, 7th October. I felt excited, because I want to make the presentation exciting. Then, it was History before Ms Visa came in to check on our books. Ms Visa then labeled some people, including me, as “heroes” in a negative sense, particularly because we did not fulfill certain criteria in her work. I was chided by Ms Visa for having bad handwriting.
As I sat down with Natalie, San Ying, Le Anne, Sara and Kit Lee at their table, I had the days counted in my mind as I thought of the end of the year coming. No time was to be wasted. Ms Visa then talked to us about Ukrawsaw Groniowsaw, a slave that was transported to the United States. In fact, slaves were individuals who were forced to work without humanity, and badly treated.
During Bible Knowledge, we then watched a video on the Jesus movie which Ms Cynthia showed us. She had promised to show us a movie, which got us excited. The movie was on the book of Matthew which saw Jesus being crucified. It was quite scary seeing Jesus getting crucified. All the blood, sharp knives and violent scenes made us cover our faces.
The next day, it was our Beep Test. Mr Victor told 8N to get ready first while the rest were given time to warm up. I did my Beep Test after 8N finished. Mr Victor then told us to start. Level after level, I kept on trying to hit the line when the beep sounded, but failed at Level 5.4. Sean Mark kept on running till Level 11.10. He managed to soldier on, even getting his water bottle to sip water and run faster as the beep progressed. He collapsed onto the ground once he missed his beep, to a loud applause from the girls who had just finished their fitness test outside, and had came to the hall to witness the boys do their beep test.
Since Sean Mark was also rumored to have relationships with Vicky, many people had talked about it. During lunch, I was talking to Sara Yow, Zhue Xin, Le Anne and San Ying at their table when Sean Mark gave the sneaky glare. When he asked about me and Sara, I asked him, “How about Vicky?” He then ran for dear cover.
Oh well. Nothing else interesting through the rest of the week, except for a spot check the teachers had threatened. Yes, a spot check.
Spot checks are very important in Nobel in order to ensure that the school rules are not to be ignored. And the management had done a very stern talk on this matter. The rules in Nobel were very strict then. No handphone. Hair must be combed. Fingernails cut. Nobel socks must be worn. And the uniform must not be faded. Fail to comply, and you will be demerited under the merit-demerit system. Not to also mention that you will have a “romantic cup of coffee” with Ms Lim.
The first set of sweeping spot checks came on Thursday, 2nd October 2014. During that morning's break time, Ms Lim instructed all the prefects to bring those who had not complied with the school attire out to the front of the school hall. Some were not wearing Nobel socks, like Sean Mark and Jason Leing. They were brought out to the front. Some were wearing white shoes. Ms Lim instantly stared her evil face down at them. “I want to see all of you afterwards,” she boomed. As we were led back to class, Ms Lim shouted and scolded them. “Why did you not buy a new uniform? Why are you not wearing Nobel socks?” she cried. They were instantly demerited. The rules were much more stricter then. Some people told me it was because of Ms Lim. But I don't blame her, though. It was the school rules. The second was a bag search by teachers in the classroom, and individuals who had handphones were confiscated.
The following Tuesday, we had the launch of the Student Council Elections to elect the new Nobel International School Student Council for 2014 in order to replace the outgoing batch of council members comprising Chew Wei Zhuen and his team. Ms Cynthia then said that anyone who was interested was to fill up a form and submit it to her or Mr Kevin by the end of the week.
During Science, I volunteered to present the usage of electromagnets based on what I researched the previous week. I was the first one to do so. Sara Yow also had her research done, and so does Jordan, Shaun Ting, Renee, Yin Wei and Yan Ying.
Before the presentation started, Rick had asked me to present a joint presentation with Sara Yow and get her involved, but I ignored him as Ms Samantha assisted me to load my pendrive into the computer. Then, I presented, while the entire class looked at me attentively. Some were grinning, especially Sean Mark and Rick, who had asked if I would be distracted by Sara Yow smiling at me. I just ignored them. The entire class liked my presentation as Branson and Ting Yi asked questions.
Then, it was Sara Yow's turn, and her presentation was quite colorful. Rick pressed me to raise my hands to get Sara's attention. The entire class cheered for her to choose me as one of the volunteers for her presentation, but she picked Wai Shaun and Rick instead. When Shaun Ting did his presentation, he explained things professionally, and so did Yan Ying, Yin Wei and Renee, who explained things comprehensively.
After the Science lesson ended, Ms Samantha said that she will continue the presentations in the next class, and I went to Ms Cynthia's office to pick up one of the Student Council forms. During break time, Ms Lim was watching people play basketball and had told them off for being too noisy. Then, she also wished the Year 9 students the very best for the Cambridge Checkpoint Examination. That exam would be held from 22nd to 23rd October 2014, just before our Final Year Examination period.
Once we returned for History, Ms Visa checked our books again, and then she told us the important chapters for History for the Final Year Examination after a long lesson. Then, Ms Cynthia continued to show us the Jesus movie. Each day passed and passed. The Year 9s were having Checkpoint Trials in the rest of the week. As teachers let us do our own things during their classes since everything was taught to the end, I took my time to talk to Caleb Chuang about the Science Fair and did wind tunnel tests to make sure the board stayed up. And we had our eyes fixed on another event; the Nobel Cup 2014, which we also discussed.
The next day, Mr Victor let us do our own things during PE. I took the time to sit down and discuss with Caleb Chuang. Ms Visa was also absent, and we were also allowed to do our own things in class. So, I embarked on a lengthy discussion with Caleb Chuang to see how to put the plans for Nobel Cup together.
For Nobel Cup 2014, I had also planned with Caleb Chuang for Bullseye to win the tournament. Both Caleb Chuang and I are from Bullseye, and we had our eyes focused to the Nobel Cup. He really got along very well for my gigantic billboard, and he was quite interested in Nobel Cup. Given that Bullseye had won Sports Day on 9th April 2014, I was thinking that we should go further if we were to win Nobel Cup 2014.
“So, Caleb, we need to discuss a plan, and, we have BIG PLANS for Bullseye, you see. We must propose plans to the house captain. We need to think how to win the Nobel Cup. Because if we do so, that would be great!” I cried.
I told him that my grand strategy was to see if we can watch what the other houses were doing so that we could catch up to them based on their weaknesses. I decided to sign up for basketball for Nobel Cup. Little did I know that I was a lousy player when training for it. It was the first and only time I played basketball. I was also part of Bullseye’s futsal team as well.
“We need to choose a STRONG captain for Bullseye; one who can lead Bullseye very well. Brian Ong is a good captain. Luckily we chose him. Luckily he led Bullseye to victory. The next captain after him must be very SERIOUS; and he must be strict. Then, everyone will listen to him, or else we cannot win the Nobel Cup,” I told Caleb Chuang. He then nodded his head. Then, Jordan Tay arrived. He then spoke to Caleb.
“Jordan, Jordan!” I cried. “You know what? Caleb and I have great plans for Bullseye!”
Jordan Tay was surprised. “What plans? Maybe you can tell me?” he barked. He's from Bullseye as well.
I asked Jordan if he was going to participate in Nobel Cup. He told me he hadn't decided yet. I then kneeled down. “Jordan! Jordan! Please, we need you to participate! If you don't join Nobel Cup, Bullseye will lose!” I cried.
“Umm, okay, let me see first?” said Jordan. “PLEASE consider,” I cried.
Then, I continued talking to Caleb Chuang. I personally feel that Bullseye needed to change. It cannot be just like a normal sports house. Our ideology needed to change. We cannot be normal. Otherwise, it will look BORING and no one will see.
“We need to make Bullseye famous, Caleb Chuang. We need to win; only then we will become famous,” I said. Caleb Chuang was puzzled. He thought for a while, and then he nodded.
Why must Bullseye change in order to look famous? We had a normal cheer. We had a normal house culture that is no different from the likes of Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk. We need to be creative and innovative in our thoughts and actions in order for us to succeed. And that's what I told Caleb Chuang.
“We have FIVE core values in Nobel. Character transformation the anchor in life. Commitment to persevere when faced with challenges. And so on. But the third core value is important. We need to change our ways on how we see Bullseye. We must ask ourselves how do people want to view Bullseye? We need to have something. We need to be famous; only then people will see us. Otherwise, we will forever be unknown to the world. We want to let the world know us,” I said, confident of the future prospects. I know that Bullseye needed to win in order to survive and be known to the world.
Soon, it was break time. I then sat down with Caleb Chuang as we continued our conversation. “We need to change our culture. IF we want to win Nobel Cup, we need to change our mindset. We need to have a different strategy, because the other houses already know Bullseye. We want to see what they are doing, so that we can be ahead of them and win the Nobel Cup. But FIRST, we need to wait for the house captain election next week in order to decide,” I told Caleb Chuang.
During Geography, Ms Maddy gave us work to do and then left us to our own to fill up our time with revision for the Final Year Examination. I took time to think of how to fill the Student Council Application Form. Then, it was Character Transformation. We went down to the hall for our CT session. Then, we had time at the end. I continued discussing the billboard, showing him the plans.
Soon, we had Maths. Mr Daniel was absent, and I spoke to Caleb Chuang about the billboard. Then, Ms Visa came in. She then told everyone to get ready. “What are these papers for?” asked Ms Visa. Then, we begun our lesson. Ms Samantha then gave us worksheets and continued the lesson.
The next day, 9th October 2014, Mr Daniel was still absent. So, I discussed with Caleb Chuang about my billboard, telling him the logistics and asking him to let Ms Samantha know. Then, we agreed to let her know about it together.
I then spoke to Caleb Chuang, discussing what traits the new house captain must have. I proposed Lim Wei Ming as a candidate. Caleb Chuang was impressed. Then, we discussed about the sports that will be played during Nobel Cup 2014.
“Let's wait for announcements,” said Caleb Chuang.
During break time, I then passed my form to Ms Cynthia. She received it. Then, during lunch, I tried to find Jordan Tay, Ting Yi, and all the people from Bullseye from our year level to ask if they were planning to stay back the coming Monday which will be the House Captain Election Day. In fact, it was announced that everyone had to stay back from 3:30pm to 4:30pm on Monday, 13th October 2014, to elect the new house captain. That was the first step.
We must write a chapter of history for Bullseye, you know. We cannot be like a normal house. We must be special. We need to be famous.
After reaching home, I continued watching a documentary on the construction of Burj Khalifa. I then did some research on Dubai. The ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wanted to make Dubai famous. The desert city ran out of oil. So, to attract tourists, he made a lot of known records. The tallest building in the world. The world's only seven-star hotel. The largest man made island on earth. The biggest airport terminal ever built. And also the world's largest shopping mall. By having a lot of records, it will attract people. And Dubai had succeeded. It was unknown; now, it is famous. Then, the next day, armed with this philosophy, I went to continue talking about this to Caleb Chuang.
Before I spoke to Caleb Chuang, I told him my plan. “We need to meet everyone in Year 7 all the way to Year 10. Everybody.
“Mhmm,” said Caleb Chuang.
“So, I go first, alright?” I asked Caleb. He then said okay.
I walked around the hall, meeting all the Bullseye members from Year 7 to 10, asking them to attend. I had told Caleb Chuang that I will do this. So, we need to convince everyone to stay back. This is the first of big plans. We need to execute them carefully and slowly. We need to be very conscious, or else, we will be doomed.
I walked to the front of the hall, and met the people in 7N. Geok Minh and Loo Zane expressed their happiness to me.
Then, I met with some other Year 7 people and I continued to talk to Geok Minh. Some of the other Bullseye members gave the thumbs up when they confirmed attending. I told Geok Minh about the plans. “Wei Yiang, what's your plan?” she asked. I told her I will tell her later as I needed to meet all the Bullseye members.
After meeting with Geok Minh, I then continued to go to every other Year 7 classes, but however, they were not as enthusiastic.
“Please come for the house meet. Please come,” I told them. They said okay.
I then went to the Year 9s and met some of the Year 9s. I met Sabrina Qistina. I told her to tell everyone. But then, I decided to see the Year 10s first. There, I met Ivan Hiew, Koay Cher Khai, Jonathan Ong and Wei Ming, who have marched with me in 2013. I told them to come. Then, I met all the other Bullseye members, such as Deanna Lee. I told them to come. They were enthusiastic.
“Guys, please come for the house meet!” I cried. The Year 10s cheered for me. “Listen to Wei Yiang!” cried one of the students.
Then, I proceeded to the Year 9 class lines to meet the students. I saw Wong Vickie and a few other faces whom I know. Then, I spoke to them. Sabrina reacted enthusiastically. After meeting everyone, I managed to return to Caleb Chuang.
“Caleb, Caleb, I did it! I met everybody! Now, we must make sure we attend,” I sighed with relief, telling Caleb Chuang that I have finished the ambitious task. Then the music played. “Caleb, I will talk to you later. We need to have the billboard, but that's all. But for the house meet, EVERYONE must attend. We need to choose the house captain. I have met everyone. See you later,” I cried. Caleb Chuang smiled, and then gave the peace symbol.
During the morning assembly, Ms Cynthia then told everyone that it was the last day (10th October 2014) to submit Student Council nomination forms. Then, there was an explanation of how the election process will work. Ms Evelyn then reminded us about the house meets the following Monday. Then, we were dismissed to return to our classes.
During our ICT lesson, Ms Hani did with us our ICT exam for the Final Year Examination. All we needed to do was to create a Microsoft Word document using the instructions on the examination paper. It was quite straightforward. Once things were done, I went to meet Geok Minh and Loo Zane.
“Wow, Wei Yiang is meeting with a lot of girls,” teased Sean Mark. I ignored him and continued to brainstorm the Nobel Cup strategy that Caleb Chuang and I had.
“You see, Caleb Chuang and I had a strategy,” I begun. Geok Minh was excited. “What plans are those?” she asked as I begun my explanation.
“Caleb Chuang and I have BIG PLANS for Bullseye. We need to make sure everyone attends the house meet. We need to select the best house captain. He must be a serious captain but also understanding. A strict one, but also caring. Then, Bullseye can win Nobel Cup,” I quipped. I said that we need to make Bullseye famous because we want everyone to know who Bullseye is. Soon, the music played and then we went back to class. It was a fruitful lesson with Ms Maddy, Cikgu Zura and Ms Samantha as the day wore on. I kept my fingers crossed for my Student Council application.
During Homeroom, I continued speaking with Caleb Chuang and asking all the Bullseye members in our class to attend the house meeting. Eu Lynn jokingly said she had tuition but she would try to make it.
The following Monday, Ms Cynthia then announced that five people from Year 8 were selected for the level representatives’ post for the Student Council. The election for Nobel's Student Council will be contested by a few people from Year 10 and five people from Year 8. Daryl Yeo, San Ying, Shaun Ting, Desmond Chan and Benjamin Tenji were contesting to be the Level Representative for Year 8. The Student Council Committee saw Caleb Fong, Lee Ken Ming, Koay Cher Khai and Nicole Chan contesting for the post of President. The vice president's post was being contested by Aidan Tan, Bryan George and Ryan Tan Rui Yong, the brother of Rick Tan. Ms Cynthia said that on 17th and 20th October 2014, there will be a campaign speech by all the candidates, and that we will be allocated time during our Character Transformation (CT) session to vote for the candidates. The result will be announced on 24th October 2014.
Cikgu Zura was the only one in the class. Then, she said that Puan Rostita will be monitoring us as she taught us. Then, Puan Rostita came in and sat down while Cikgu Zura taught us. She then told us to hand in our Malay coursework to her. Then, during break time, I resumed the discussion of Nobel Cup with Loo Zane and Geok Minh.
Geok Minh then told me to voice my views that afternoon when the house meet was in progress. Afterwards, during Science, Ms Samantha brought us to the Science Lab to look at a prism refracting light into rainbow colors. Ting Yi tried to put his nose into the refraction so that his nose appeared to have colors. “Hahahahaha!” cried Branson and Ting Yi. Then, suddenly, the prism fell to the floor and broke.
“Ting Yi! Ting Yi! Uh oh!” cried Branson. Ms Samantha told him to pay at least RM 500 to replace the entire prism. He had one week to fork out his money. "If you don't pay, you are banned from using the Science lab forever,” said Ms Samantha, warning him. Ting Yi was booed and had to pay for the damage. The lab assistant was not amused. “Please be careful when in the Science lab,” she said.
Then, it was English, and Ms Chin had to calm Brendan Cheah down when he got hyperactive in the class. The day went on and Mr Daniel taught us about trigonometry. Soon, the day came to an end.
All of Bullseye's members gathered at the basement hall at Basement 2. I entered, put my bag down, and welcomed everybody. Then, Geok Minh and Loo Zane arrived and I chatted with them about the house captain election. I kept repeating my points. Then, I spoke to everyone. Soon, the teachers arrived, as well as the other students. I was enthusiastic as I called everyone to quickly come to th basement hall.
We then decided on electing the house captain for Bullseye who would lead the Nobel Cup 2014 and Sports Day 2015. The school had decided that starting with the Sports Day 2015 house captain, the roles and responsibilities would include the previous year's Nobel Cup. This is because the Year 11s’ capacity as house captain would be undermined by IGCSE preparations, and the main focus for the Year 11s should be on the IGCSE exams, hence the need for a Year 10 house captain. Since the 2013 Nobel Cup necessitated a separate captain, and since Brian Ong did well for Nobel Cup 2013, despite Bullseye not winning it, we elevated him to the task of organizing Sports Day 2014 by re-electing him to the post earlier in the year unanimously.
For the house captain who would lead the 2014 Nobel Cup and 2015 Sports Day, we then decided to choose a new captain to avoid double elections. Ms Nalina, the teacher in charge for Bullseye, asked us to select a new captain. One person who nominated himself stood out from the crowd, and it was Lim Wei Ming. Lim Wei Ming is quite a familiar face in Nobel since I was in Year 1, and throughout his speech, he had a serious but also determined emotion for Bullseye. He had quite very much spoken in his speech about how determined he was for Bullseye, and I had personally known his personality about how serious he was, taking the initiative on his own to lead the Bullseye marches on the drills before our captain arrived. The other captain candidates, namely Cher Khai, who also decided to run, as well as Ryan Tan Rui Yong, did not present a clear vision, and I voted for Wei Ming based on my own conscience, wishing for a Bullseye victory in Nobel Cup 2014 and Sports Day 2015. He eventually won the election. I then congratulated him shortly before we dismissed and told him that I have good suggestions for Bullseye. He accepted my offer to give him suggestions. “Cool. I am looking forward to it,” said Wei Ming, grinning with pride.
The next day, I met with Caleb Chuang and told him that we have elected the best captain. “Well, we have succeeded. We must make sure that we do well. Now, we need to focus on the game plan,” I grinned. “Focus on the exams first,” said Caleb Chuang. “Then, we will talk later,” he continued.
Ms Samantha chided Ting Yi for breaking the prism. “If Ms Lim finds out about this, you will get demerited. So please pay up. Class, the Science Lab is not a fun place to be in. It's very dangerous. Please follow instructions the next time we go to the lab,” she warned, before starting a recap of the entire chapter for our Final Year Examination. For the rest of the day and week, all our teachers did a recap of all the Final Year Examination topics. Mr Daniel taught us how to use the protractor for trigonometry.
Meanwhile, the hall was closed as the Checkpoint exam kicked off. I could see the tables being arranged in the hall and Caution tapes being put outside the hall to barricade the area from the examination. Some people tried to play basketball, but were stopped by Ms Marien in order not to disturb Checkpoint (and IGCSE) candidates.
At the end of the week, the candidates were invited to give their speeches. Daryl Yeo was mumbling as he gave his. San Ying gave a stern and motivational speech. And the speeches of the other candidates were somewhat okay.
The following Monday, 20th October, was a speech by Aidan, who gave a romantic speech that made Ms Lim quite annoyed, giving him the same reaction like how Brandon Lee received when he gave his parting speech as head prefect. And then, during our CT session two days later, we then headed for the election of the level representative for Year 8. Like the previous election in 2013, each class was given two papers; one to vote for Council Committee and another for Level Representatives. We crossed our choice. San Ying eventually won that election, and that was the choice I marked.
The Checkpoint Exam was eventually postponed to the week of our Final Year Examination. No one witnessed it while we ourselves prepared for the Final Year Examination.
We then had our Final Year Examination the following week, and we were in for a rough ride.
On the first day of the exam, 27th October, Auntie Clarine appeared during the assembly prior to the start of our examination. She had come to announce something important.
“Junior and Senior School students, you will have a new principal. I am announcing that Ms Evelyn will be resigning as principal because she will be furthering her studies in her Master's Degree in Melbourne, Australia,” said Auntie Clarine.
When Auntie Clarine invited Ms Evelyn to come and speak, Ms Evelyn was in tears. She spoke on how it was a wonderful journey being with us and how important it was to continue to do what we do best. She spoke on her plans, and most of the time, she sobbed as she felt sad leaving us. Auntie Clarine stood by her side and gave her a pat, in front of the entire cohort of students. Ryan Marc then mumbled to himself that he was happy seeing Ms Evelyn go, but I felt unhappy about what he said. I just kept quiet among with everyone else.
Then, Ms Evelyn said that she wishes the Year 10s the very best for their IGCSE exams the following year, and also told everybody to give their full support to the next principal. Then, Auntie Clarine invited Ms Bee Yong to come on the stage. Ms Bee Yong is of Singaporean nationality and she got up, smiled and grinned to everybody as Auntie Clarine introduced us to her. Ms Bee Yong was with the school but left in 2009 to head to Singapore for her affairs. I had seen her before during our Character Transformation sessions with us, standing at the sides and watching us. She appeared to be new to me, but was a familiar face in Nobel.
We had our English paper. It was quite okay. But I kept on discussing about the Science Fair with Caleb Chuang just shortly after the exam during the time where we did not have our exams. I was seated at the front of the class, according to our list. The English exam was pretty straightforward, all thanks to the tips by Ms Chin. Puan Rostita came in to invigilate, before Cikgu Zura. She stared down strictly at us before Cikgu Zura took over.
During break time, we were told to keep our voices low as the Checkpoint Examination was going on in the hall. Only Year 7 and 8 students were having their break time. I took the opportunity to inspect the barricaded area from a distance. Ms Lim was watching everyone.
“Keep Quiet! Exams in progress!” read the signs, accompanied by Cambridge's Notice to Candidates as well as crossed out phone signs. A large whiteboard, pasted in front of the hall, described the candidate numbers and location as to where they sat.
Speaking of Checkpoint, my mum also gave me a Cambridge Checkpoint past year papers’ list. As Cambridge Checkpoint tests on English, Maths and Science, my mum bought the Cambridge Checkpoint papers for me to test. I was wary to have them, as for the previous year, the Cambridge Checkpoint questions were replicated on the Science exam paper, which made Wei Zhong quite mad as to which I had an advantage.
Then, when we returned, we then continued with our English exams. When we were done, I took out my Cambridge Checkpoint past year papers and revised for Maths. Fortunately, I had revised some for English. I just did the topics which came out for the exam.
Mr Daniel then came to our class and did some revision with us and gave us a worksheet, before Ms Visa then did revision for History with us.
The next day, we had Mathematics. I arrived at school the next morning, plopped onto the canteen tables, and ate my bread while looking at the Checkpoint papers. It then started to rain, so everyone went back to their classes. After looking and scanning through the Checkpoint papers, munching on my bread, I went up to 8O and continued reading. Then, I went to walk around the school compound. I went to the second floor, then to the first floor and then followed by a walk to other classes before returning back to 8O. Sara Yow and Renee had arrived. Normally, it would be Renee arriving first, followed by Sara.
Ms Samantha and Ms Lee soon arrived at 7:45am to take our attendance, and Yan Ying met Ms Lee to discuss some affairs. Then, it was the start of our Maths paper.
Back in Year 8, we were FORBIDDEN to use the calculator to even calculate a simple equation. Of course, the calculator made life easier, but the teachers wanted us to use our teeny, tiny brains to produce an answer instead. The Maths exam was still quite difficult. I was blank when I tried to answer the questions and could not finish the exam in time, and to ensure everything was done, I would simply fill the answers. After Ms Samantha collected our papers, many people were discussing the questions and what answers did they fill in. Yin Wei was talking to a few people on how they managed to answer the question, while Ting Yi, Jordan and Shaun Ting teased each other when they found out they got certain answers wrong. Rick, upon finding out that he slipped on one of the answers and changed a correct answer to a wrong answer, pressed his hands on his head to make a facepalm, groaning in anguish.
Then, it was Ms Visa's turn, and we had our next paper. She was quite strict on the invigilation. The second paper was as difficult as the first. I groaned mentally as I tried to find answers to the questions. Ms Joyce eventually collected our papers. I feel that one hour was too short of a time to finish the exam paper. Yi Jiun was still doing her paper and hadn't finished, and Ms Joyce had to collect hers. She said that it is wrong to continue doing the paper once the time was up and it is not fair to those who had to follow the rules. “Marks will be deducted if you do not stop writing when instructed,” said Ms Joyce.
After lunch, I sat alone and had my lunch, groaning at my performance during the Maths exam. To comfort myself, I walked around the school compound, admiring the flagpoles and the courtyard. It was soon English, and Ms Chin let us revise for Science the next day. I took out my Checkpoint papers and flipped to the Science papers to do and practice them.
The next day was the Science exam. It was quite easy as my mum wrote out formulas to allow me to memorize them. The topics were easy. During PE, we had Puan Rostita coming in to teach us Malay and prepare for the Malay exam. However, many wanted to revise for the Science exam, but Puan Rostita insisted on revising for Malay exams instead. So, she gave us exercises to do. Then, when a few people took out Science books, Puan Rostita instructed them to keep it.
After break, the Science papers begun. It was easy, and I felt confidence for the first time when doing the Science paper. This was repeated after lunch, when Science Paper 2 was in progress. The entire class just did their own things as the day came to an end. When Ms Samantha came in, she asked us how the Science paper was. Then, she left us to study for the next exam. I peered in front, where the name list of the Merit and Demerit Points were pasted. I observed every single person's names and how many demerit points they got. Looks like Sean Mark had a lot of them. Oh dear.
On Thursday, 30th October, there was a large jam along the LDP Highway on the way from my house in Puchong to Nobel. Normally, it would take around 15 minutes to reach Nobel International School (then located at Kelana Jaya) from my house. However, an accident caused the jam to swell for over 20 kilometres.
Although I left my house at 6:30am, I only reached the halfway point between my house and Nobel at 7:30am. I panicked, because I was afraid of being late. I don't want to have a demerit on my list. Fortunately, the jam eased, and a multi-vehicle pile up was seen. Within 15 minutes, my mum reached Nobel and I dashed in just at 7:43am. Finally. Just in time.
Ms Lee and Ms Samantha were in 8O waiting for everyone. “There was a jam on LDP this morning,” Ms Samantha told Ms Lee. It seems like the school authorities have known about it. Fortunately, I was still considered early.
I sat down, flipped open my Malay books as Ms Lee asked me about the jam. Then, Rick and Jordan enquired the same as well. I stopped halfway, and spoke to Caleb Chuang about the Science fair. After break, we had our Malay paper. It was quite straightforward to do. Then, the History test was conducted, without issue. Ms Visa then came in once the exam was over and told us to have a presentation on Chapter 3.6 of our textbook, to be presented on 3rd November. Soon, it was the last day of exams, with the Mandarin and Bible Knowledge (BK) paper. Upon doing the BK paper, I heard people screaming and cheering when counting down to the end of the exams.
I pretty much did not do so well for the exam. However, Mr Daniel said that despite me still failing Mathematics, I still was able to increase my marks to a point where I was close to passing the subject. Most teachers would shun the students who failed the test, but Mr Daniel was happy with the areas that I improved. And Ms Samantha said that my Science grades have improved as well.
As results were discussed, Ms Visa then told us to do the presentation, but however, most of us weren't done. So, Ms Visa did a discussion on the topic with us instead. However, focus was given towards the Science Fair as well as the Nobel Cup.
The following day, 4th November, Caleb Chuang and I brainstormed the plans for Nobel Cup. I was excited. Most of our teachers were discussing exam papers, so I took the free time to discuss the plans with Caleb Chuang.
The first plan that I told Caleb Chuang was the game plan for each of the games. I told him that we need to have a unified strategy.
“The practices are starting soon. We must observe other houses’ practices and if they are ahead, we must report to Wei Ming. Wei Ming must know this,” I told Caleb Chuang. He smiled and nodded.
Caleb Chuang said that he will sign up for the futsal tournament, and I was happy that we will be in the same games together. “That is very good. We can plan and give suggestions to the team,” I said.
I also reiterated to Caleb Chuang my stance that Bullseye needs to have a coordinated response for the Nobel Cup. “We need to tell this to everybody. Otherwise, we will lose,” I said.
On Wednesday, 5th November, we had a higher education fair where the various colleges and universities came over to showcase their tertiary education programmes, including Sunway University, Taylor's University, INTI International Universities and Colleges, Methodist College Kuala Lumpur, Heriott Watt University and SEGI University, among others. I just walked around and picked up a few brochures.
As the days passed, the prefects announced that those who wanted to sign up for Nobel Cup would need to approach their respective captains to sign up for the tournaments. So, I approached Wei Ming and told him that I wanted to join the futsal team and basketball team for Bullseye. Caleb Chuang joined the futsal team, and the basketball team for Bullseye was comprised of Benjamin Tenji, Sean Mark, Scott Heng, Brandon Ooi and of course, the top basketball athletes. Sean Mark and I were the new additions to the team. Wei Ming primarily coached the futsal people, while Ryan Chan was involved in coaching the basketball players.
I told Caleb Chuang that we need to have everyone eat healthy food, like bananas. Ginger onions were the best because people can pass gas and detoxinate our bodies, allowing us to play better in the games. “The most important thing in the basketball, futsal and netball tournaments is to confuse the opponent. Only then, we will win,” I told Caleb Chuang. I then said that the confusion can happen by trying to kick the ball or throw the ball out of court to ensure that we can start again smoothly; to press the kill switch to prevent disaster for Bullseye. He nodded.
After days of after-school training, Nobel Cup was spread out for two days, on 11th and 13th November 2014. On the 11th, I was involved with the futsal tournament with Caleb Chuang at the Lee Chong Wei Sports Arena at Old Klang Road. Ahead of the Nobel Cup, I brainstormed the plans to all the players involved in the Nobel Cup. I first met Ivyna and Prudence Wong to tell them what I did with Caleb Chuang. Ivyna was quite enthusiastic. In fact, I told many people about this.
Prior to the Nobel Cup, we had a pre-event briefing by Mr Paul during break time assembly. Mr Paul outlined the procedures and what we should do on the day of Nobel Cup. “Whoever who does not follow instructions; the whole house will have their points deducted,” he said.
Mr Paul said that we will be heading to the Lee Chong Wei Sports Arena at Old Klang Road for the tournament and everyone was to be dressed in their sports attire. “Gather at the courtyard at 8:00am,” he said.
After the briefing ended, I went to tell more of my plans to the captains and speak to Wei Ming on the plans Caleb Chuang and I had proposed. He said he will consider some of them, but those were good plans. In fact, I gave words of encouragement to the entire Bullseye team before we headed back to class.
The next day, we had a very happy morning. I arrived early and ate my breakfast. Then, I went around the school to speak to all the Bullseye members. All of them were in good encouragement. 2014 was the second edition of the Nobel Cup; a legacy continued from Chew Wei Zhuen's initiative he planned to introduce as President of the Student Council. On the first day, badminton and basketball will take place at the Lee Chong Wei Sports Arena. The second day would see a Netball tournament being held at the school courtyard while the basketball tournaments would take place at a neighborhood basketball court near Nobel.
At 7:15am, Wei Ming arrived as I was waiting at the foyer. I walked with him, had a short chat, and I wished him all the best. “Best house captain so far,” I said to him. He nodded his head and gave the thumbs up. Then, I went to see Geok Minh and Loo Zane, who wished me all the best for my futsal tournament. Afterwards, Caleb Chuang arrived, and I told him that we must get ready. He smiled and nodded. Then, Mr Paul called for all the players to assemble at the courtyard.
As everyone arrived, I said some motivational words to the Bullseye members. “Guys, please do your best. Don't give up. Confuse the opponent. You can do it!” I cried. The Bullseye members cheered as I told the Bullseye members more on the plan of me and Caleb Chuang. Then, Mr Paul told me to have a seat so that he can have his briefing. “Thanks for motivating your house members, Wei Yiang. I would appreciate if you can sit down. I want to make announcements,” he said. I then sat down and gave a peace symbol to the Bullseye members, who cheered for me. The other houses scuffed at us. Mr Paul then told us to go according to our bus numbers. We then got onto our buses as Cikgu Baliah took our attendance.
Inside the bus, I sat down in front, watching where we were going. The bus drove down the LDP Highway before reaching Puchong. It turned onto Jalan Puchong before heading down the usual route my aunt and I use then to go to our church. The bus reached the junction of Old Klang Road before arriving at the Lee Chong Wei Sports Arena.
When we arrived with everyone on the bus, we were greeted by the immense size of the arena as the bus pulled into the parking lot. I was futsal team along with Aaron Yong, Scott Heng, Jordan Tay as well as Renee Koh. Renee Koh was the only girl in our futsal squad, and it was rare to see one play football among a whole host of guys in the squad. Jordan Tay was Bullseye's official goalkeeper.
After getting down from the bus, we lined up according to our houses as I spoke to the Bullseye members on our strategy. Mr Paul then announced to us to follow him. We were then led up to the highest floor of the arena where the courts were. A basketball court and futsal court faced a balcony with a nice view of the Old Klang Road junction, while there was an enclosed badminton court. Mr Paul then gathered us as he briefed us on the rules of the games and he said that there will be penalties for anyone misbehaving at the games, be it on or off the field of play. “I don't want to see anyone going elsewhere without informing us. Do I make myself clear?” Mr Paul roared. Once we were done being briefed, Mr Paul then got us into our houses and we performed a warm up before the games.
The Bullseye members than gathered for a warm up, led by Wei Ming. He would be playing in the badminton competition later on, having also served as the Badminton CCA Club President. We then gave each other motivation. I was placed as a reserve player along with Renee Koh.
Caleb Chuang then got his football shoes ready and walked onto the futsal court. I told Caleb Chuang to confuse the other opponents while playing the game. So, as I was placed as a reserve for the futsal tournament, I watched him as the game started. It was Bullseye's first game with Touchdown. I screamed, shouted and cheered for Bullseye. I even cheered Caleb Chuang's name as well. “Come on, Caleb Chuang! Let's go!” I cried, telling him to confuse the ball. “Yes, yes, like that, come on, come on.....GOAL!!!!” I screamed. Bullseye had won the first game with Touchdown.
I then went from court to court to cheer on the players. As I was about to use the washroom when Bullseye's game was in a break, and Homerun was playing Slamdunk, Mr Steve pointed out the toilet signs that read “wo-men” with the male and female characters fused together, as apparently the sports arena did not have separated toilets at the time to save cost. The “wo” was on one pink woman character, and the “men” was on a male character, and the two pictures were halved so that it fuses to become a human being when placed side by side. He jokingly said that the words actually correspond to the Chinese pronunciation of “wo men” in Pinyin form, meaning “we” or “us”. Many people who heard from him laughed at his joke. Then, I returned to see Caleb Chuang, and then discussed with him the next moves. "Concentrate on the confusion. Focus. Don't get distracted, Caleb Chuang.”
“Mhmm, okay,” Caleb Chuang said, as he smiled at me again. Then, I gave the same advice to Aaron Yong and Ethan Chan. They were okay.
Then, Bullseye was in the final of the KS3 tournament, and was destined to face Slamdunk in the futsal tournament. “Come on, Caleb Chuang! Come on, Jordan! Let's go! We must win this! We can do this!” I cried.
Caleb Chuang kicked the ball around. Jordan defended it. The Slamdunk players tried to block us, but then Caleb Chuang shot the ball into the goal. “YEAH! GOOD JOB, CALEB CHUANG!” I cried. Then, Ethan Chan shot the next ball in a penalty kick. I shouted like a mad dog. Then, in the final minutes of the game, Aaron Yong passed the ball to Caleb Chuang and then Caleb Chuang ran like mad. I had my nerves on edge. Then, he kicked it into the goal. We won!
Bullseye was declared the winner. I then shook Caleb Chuang's hand frantically. “Well done, Caleb Chuang. You saved us!” I cried. He said it was a big pleasure to play for Bullseye. We had won. A big shoutout to Jordan Tay for saving the ball from Bullseye's goal with a pair of gloves.
At 11:00am, Mr Paul said that the second round of the tournament would begin at 11:15am, and the seniors were asked to begin their game preparations. Aristotle Koh then climbed onto the football goalposts and he sat on top, pretending to look cool as he posed for fun and fame. He made a peace pose, pretended to lay down and got a friend to take his picture.
“Aristotle! Get down!” Mr Paul roared in anger. Aristotle then got down from the goalpost and jumped down as the game was about to start. He apologized to Mr Paul.
“Homerun minus 20 marks. Aristotle, see me now,” Mr Paul boomed.
Mr Paul then met Aristotle Koh. He scolded him properly. “Why were you on the goalpost? It is very dangerous, you know. IF you damaged the facilities, you will have to pay for it. You will be demerited.”
Then, Aristotle was told to sit at the side and reflect on his behavior. The seniors’ game was beginning. I then cheered for the players as Bullseye tried to beat Homerun this time. We then scored a close tie with Homerun. I then went to have a peek at the Badminton game. Then, Í returned to continue cheering. I led the Bullseye members in a cheer for the players. We eventually won the match with Homerun. All thanks to Homerun having replaced Aristotle, which was a strong player, with another reserve player. I screamed when Bullseye won the game. Then, a second match was played with Touchdown and Slamdunk.
I took the opportunity to tell Caleb Chuang my plans for the basketball tournament. He smiled when I told him the same strategy would be applied. “Tell Ivy as well,” said Caleb Chuang, referring to Ivyna. He said it will be valuable for me to tell her my advice.
Soon, Touchdown won the game with Slamdunk, and Bullseye battled with Touchdown. Everyone gathered to cheer, and I was screaming the loudest. Wei Ming gave me the thumbs-up. Their badminton game had finished. Bullseye eventually won the tournament, and we gave each other hugs. Then, Mr Paul told us to gather in our lines. “The house which gathered the fastest will have bonus points,” he said. Five! Four! Three! Two! One!” I quickly called everyone to settle down quickly. Mr Paul did not award any bonus points.
I was cheekily telling Caleb Chuang that Bullseye should be awarded bonus marks that were deducted from Homerun, as we had been getting our house in order quickly before the rest. Mr Paul then told everyone that he had deducted marks from Homerun because of Aristotle, and then he said he would award bonus marks if needed, hence my discussion with Caleb Chuang. He told everyone that he would deduct any house's marks if we were not behaved.
Once the tournament ended, and we had cheered, I had taken stock that Bullseye had won most of the tournaments, especially in the finals of futsal and several badminton matches. Mr Paul then gathered all of us and assembled us in our year levels by house as we were ushered back to our buses to head back to school. While the buses were driving on the New Pantai Expressway back, I talked to Caleb Chuang about the basketball strategy the next day. Caleb Chuang then agreed with my strategies and proposals I placed forth. Many people just wanted to sleep and rest as the bus sped back to Nobel.
After returning to school, we then had a quick lunch as all the Bullseye members gathered in a group to discuss the next strategy in the canteen. Ivyna greeted us, as we were given extra lunch time. I then took the opportunity to motivate the netball players. Then, once things were done, we headed back to class for our English and Mandarin lesson. Mind you, there was an optional French lesson during Mandarin. Caleb Chuang took French. And Cikgu Fatin, the French teacher, showed the students ‘Les Miserables’.
The next day, we had PE lessons with Mr Victor, and he allowed everyone to play any games thy pleased. I then went to meet Ivyna and speak to her on the netball tournaments. Then, I spoke to Eu Lynn and Yan Ying as well. “Thanks for your ideas, Wei Yiang, I want to rest,” said Eu Lynn. Then, as break time came, Prudence Wong, also from Bullseye, came to talk to Ivyna. “Wei Yiang, you should tell Prudence the plans you and Caleb made,” said Ivyna. So I told Prudence, who was quite interested.
Ms Maddy then did the last topic with us, which was about Malaysia and introduced the geography of Malaysia. Then, during CT, we discussed about our Science fair project in class because the hall was used for the IGCSE exams. I then continued brainstorming the Nobel Cup strategies with Caleb Chuang, telling him that we need to win the basketball and netball tournament. Then, I spoke to Ivyna about the match that we played the previous day during the futsal tournament. All went well.
On 13th November 2014, we had the Nobel Cup tournament for basketball. Lim Wei Ming was the one supervising us for the tournament as he was asked by Mr Paul to coordinate refereeing the match. The tournament was held at a neighborhood basketball court that is located next to the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) headquarters. So, we were bussed there by the van following break time. Just like the futsal tournament before that, I tried to motivate the players, but Ryan Chan was not amused as he was getting everyone in order.
"Wei Yiang, please sit down and shut up,” said Ryan Chan as he tried to arrange everyone and take the attendance.
Wei Ming accompanied us, along with Ryan Chan, who is coordinating the basketball training for Bullseye. Then, Mr Paul gathered everyone and we sat the school van to the basketball court located at the SS2 neighborhood. He took a total of four trips to bus everyone there. Two other teachers accompanied us; Mr Raja and Mr Nick.
Once we arrived at the basketball court, and Mr Paul was done ferrying everyone there, we were briefed by him before doing a warm-up. Ryan Chan did the warm up with us while I gave everyone motivation. Then, there was a practice match before starting the game. Ryan Chan then asked everyone to move aside for the game to be played. He gave each and everyone an opportunity to toss the ball into the basketball hoop. And he said that each person in the team will be given an opportunity to play.
Soon, it was the first match between Bullseye and Touchdown. I started cheering, but Ryan told me not to cheer as it would distract the players. He said he would manage the whole thing. Then, I watched the game closely. Touchdown scored the first goal. I then asked Ryan when would be my turn, but he got frustrated and asked me to wait for him.
Wei Ming, sitting in the center of the court, then did the countdown to end the match. Bullseye lost the first round to Touchdown. Fortunately, there was a second round where the teams changed court positions.
I was placed in the next match when Ryan asked me to go on the court. Then, I tried to block the players while playing. Then, Ryan ushered me off the court as he changed players. Eventually, Bullseye was able to level the ground with Touchdown, effectively qualifying for the final of the KS3 matches.
When watching Homerun battle Slamdunk, I just watched the game go by. Then, it was our turn to play with the winner of that match, Homerun, in the final.
During the final tournament, I cheered after Ryan Chan told me to do so, since he wants some motivation. Then, Bullseye tried to play Homerun. Fortunately, we won the tournament for the Junior category. We were done, and Ryan Chan gave high-fives. Wei Ming also congratulated us.
The KS4 students then begun their game as Bullseye battled Homerun in the first gam. Bullseye eventually won that game after I kept screaming and shouting and motivating the players. However, after that game was done, Mr Paul said that the players who had finished their games would be bussed back to school so that we can reach our lunch time. It was 12:00pm. The rest of the seniors played the final. Bullseye was battling Touchdown in the final. No time to cheer as we had to head back to school.
Mr Paul was quite fast when driving the school van back to school, and everyone cheered and praised his driving skills as he smiled while driving. He sped on the road like a madman driving on a Formula 1 circuit. Once things were done, I saw the netball players playing in the courtyard, and went to speak to Ivyna. Ms Crystlyn said that Bullseye won the netball tournament.
After lunch, I went back to 8O, and then met Caleb Chuang. Mr Daniel then asked if the class wanted Year 9 revision for 2015. Many did not want so and we were left to do our own things while Mr Daniel, Sean Mark, Wei Zhong and Shaun Ting played some songs on the computer. I told Caleb Chuang about the good results and he smiled in happiness, high-fiving me.
Ms Visa then had a chat with me over my Nobel Cup game and what I planned to do for Year 9 during History. “Are you ready for Checkpoint? How's your results?” she asked. Ms Visa told me to pay attention the following year in order to do well in Cambridge Checkpoint. Anyhow, the next day saw Mr Paul saying that the results for Nobel Cup would be announced the following week.
The next day, the school had a trip for all the Junior and Senior School students to Sunway Lagoon, and it was quite a bust. A whole load of fifteen buses were chartered to bring everyone in the Junior and Senior School to the theme park. This was one treat that the management team, along with Ms Evelyn, had treated us to. It was also part of a fun farewell to Ms Evelyn. In fact, it was Ms Lim who suggested the schoolwide trip to Sunway Lagoon.
I was wondering why Nobel wanted to organize a field trip for everybody to Sunway Lagoon. After all, there are much more better places for us to head to. Rick Tan and I had a chat most of the morning. I just stared silently as everyone in the school hall gathered in excitement for the trip.
As we were ushered to our buses directly, and the bus drove down the LDP Highway, it exited and headed towards Sunway Lagoon's entrance. There, we got out and were given wristbands and were ushered through the main entrances. Our teachers told us that we could freely explore wherever we wanted. I just walked around the park doing nothing until lunchtime.
Then, in the afternoon, I met Mr Daniel, who encouraged me to go and have some fun. He invited me to follow him to explore the park. Lucas Tan also joined him in, and we walked around. Mr Daniel then took us to a merry-go round and a go-kart alley.
Around Sunway Lagoon, new buildings such as the Sunway Pinnacle, Sunway Clio Hotel and Nadayu Residences were under construction. Sunway University also had a new academic block that was under construction. Little did I know that I would be having classes there five years later.
It was raining when we got back home and joined our friends in boarding the buses outside Sunway Lagoon's entrance. The rain got heavier and there was immense traffic congestion on the way back. Upon reaching Nobel, I wished Ms Evelyn all the best, and jokingly told her that I had to take a long ride from Sunway Lagoon to my house via Nobel. She laughed.
It was finally the last week of school. Ms Maddy also brought the Year 8s to two additional field trips as some of the Year 8s were going to Supercamp from 17th to 18th November. As I was not interested in joining camps throughout my time in Nobel, I decided to join the field trip. Sadly, Caleb Chuang was at the camp. But never mind.
On 17th November, Ms Maddy brought us to tour the Kepong Metropolitan Park which is a large park in Kepong. This park has a large lake in it and we were given a chance to walk around the park.
That morning, Ms Maddy told us to wear our PE attire for the trip. We were taken to Kepong Metropolitan Park by bus. That morning, everyone was excited, and Sara was armed with the same backpack and cap. She was a bit sad that Renee wasn't able to go with her that day. We gathered at the courtyard as Ms Maddy briefed us about the day's activities. When we got into the bus, we just settled in for a ride to the Metropolitan Park. Many people were about like quiet that day, embarking on what is to us an additional, exciting field trip.
The morning was quite breezy and cool. It was quite a scenic morning as the bus arrived at Kepong Metropolitan Park. There, Ms Maddy led us on a walk around the park. We then went to most places within the park, and Ms Maddy gave us the opportunity to freely explore the park.
Ms Maddy and I walked around and had a chat on many of the Geography topics. “You are amazing in Geography. I enjoy your weather devices,” she said. I then spoke about how important parks were. “We need parks to stop global warming,” I exclaimed, to Ms Maddy's agreement.
Meanwhile, around the park, the rest were exploring the amenities of the park. Jane Yap and Ranae Lim were busy taking pictures and admiring the sun. The rest of the 8L class students were also enjoying and sunbathing in the nice weather, trying to get essential vitamins from the sun. Throughout the time, Ms Maddy and I chat and had a talk.
Soon, it was time to continue on our journey. Ms Maddy then brought us to the Royal Selangor Pewter Museum for a tour. The bus sped down towards the museum as I busily caught glimpse of the scenery outside. When we arrived at the museum, everyone was quite attentive, and we moved around the museum without issue. Everyone peered at the coins and pewter items on display. The trip went normally as some people took pictures. Ms Maddy and I had a walk together and Louis then joined in. We then observed the exhibits as I followed Ms Maddy in front as she guided us.
After the tour, we headed back to school. Then, Ms Maddy told us to gather in 8N where she showed a movie for us. It was nothing else much.
The next day, we were taken in buses to the Bank Negara Money Museum.
Bank Negara Money Museum is a museum dedicated to the exhibition of the currency of Malaysia and how the ringgit is a medium of transfer in Malaysia.
We departed from Nobel at around 8:30am that morning. The jam was quite incredible as we made our way to the city. The museum is located at the fringes of Bukit Tunku, and I once again observed the view of the roads when the bus sped. This time, Sara was happy that Renee was following. They were armed with their usual gear, once again, just like the trip to Radiant Retreats.
The bus dropped us off in front of the museum, which had a large public square in front of it. Greenish glass panes lit the building, reflecting the rays of the sun. Mousedeer symbols were present all over the museum's facilities. The mouse deer is the official animal and mascot of Bank Negara Malaysia.
When we entered the museum, the staff gave each one of us a guidebook explaining what money is. Then, we were on our way as everyone peered at the exhibits.
Bank Negara Malaysia is Malaysia's national bank. It is the central institution which is authorized to distribute bank notes and coins for us to use to buy or pay. This institution provides us with our money and what allows us to continue to have daily. Long story short, this is the bank that gives us the money we use everyday.
I took the time to individually explore the museum with Ms Maddy, Renee Koh and Sara Yow. The duo followed me most of the time, as I saw a history of coins explored time after time. Ms Maddy asked everyone to freely explore the museum. We explored over five stories of museum in total. Ms Maddy, Sara, Renee and I looked at some exhibits and we even went to watch an informative documentary about money. Then, Ms Maddy led us to the top floor, and we came down in a glass lift from the highest floor to the lobby. Rick Tan grinned and picked on me and Sara Yow again.
After returning back to Nobel for lunch, Ms Maddy then gathered us in 8N and allowed us to do our own things. The Science fair was on my mind the next day.
Nobel International School's Science Fair was held on 19th November 2014. For the Science fair, each class had to arrange tables and place their boards on it and we visited each other's classes. As planned, I created a large board during the fair which was the largest among everyone there.
Caleb Chuang was back, and he awed at my large billboard as I tried to portray it in the same way as my weather device. It did not work, but it was okay.
All of us were wearing our PE attire that day as Wednesdays were our PE lessons. However, we were given time to set up our booths. I just propped my billboard on the windows and leaned it against the windows. Ms Samantha told us to push our tables to the side of the classroom. Once things were done, I went to 8N's classroom and met Glen Kay, where he showed me his billboard. I then had a chat with him as Ms Bee Yan and Ms Kam were in their class coordinating things. Then, I returned to 8O where Wei Zhong, Shaun Ting and Sean Mark begun to play some music in the class on the class’ speakers after receiving permission from Ms Samantha. Then, everyone in our class danced to the music. Then, the entire class invited me to dance and were entertained. However, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were quite sneaky and tug at my PE pants and it fell. The whole class gasped.
I got quite annoyed at Sean Mark as the class fell into pandemonium. Then, Megan, Yan Ying and Rick told the issue to Ms Samantha when she came in. She was quite angry with what Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong did. She took them out and lectured them and then brought them to the main office.
Meanwhile, the rest of my friends in the class comforted me. Then, during lunch time, Zhue Xin comforted me as well while San Ying criticized their actions. Then, Ms Joyce met me and told me to follow her to the Junior and Senior School's management office. “Wei Yiang, I need you to come with me,” she said. I asked Ms Joyce what was the matter, and she said it was important. She told me that she will wait for me at the lift after I had finished my lunch. “Finish your lunch, quickly. I am waiting at the lift,” she said. Then, when I was done, Ms Joyce took me to the office via the lift. She then led me to a room and in the room were Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong. I was stunned.
“Wei Yiang, please explain what were you doing just now,” said Ms Joyce. So I told her that we were having a dance in the class and Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong tugged on my pants. Ms Joyce then asked how I felt, and I said that I felt embarrassed and scared over what happened. Then, Ms Joyce lectured the duo. “You should not be doing this. You are in Year 8, going to Year 9. You should stop behaving like kids. Apologize to him now.”
Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong apologized to me. “Wei Yiang, Sean and Benjamin would like to say sorry for their actions, and I hope you are feeling better now,” said Ms Joyce, before asking Benjamin Fong and Sean Mark to give me a hug. Sean and Benjamin Fong patted me, and Ms Joyce told me that they were being given 30 demerit points. Then, she accompanied me back to 8O.
“8O, please listen to me. I am very disappointed in what happened just now. Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong pulled Wei Yiang's pants just now, and some of you are laughing! I don't understand what type of behavior is this. This is not the school's values. This behavior is inappropriate. Please stop it,” said Ms Joyce. Then, she told the entire class to reflect on their actions. Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong returned to the class and sat behind, writing a reflective letter in which Ms Joyce had asked them to do so. Wei Zhong, Sara Yow, Megan, Yin Wei, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying, Rick and Jordan then comforted me. Then, Ms Samantha got angry when Sean Mark, Jason and Benjamin Fong were teasing another person in the class, and she had to lead them to the office again.
On the last day of school, we then had class party. The day kicked off with Mr Paul announcing the Nobel Cup results. “For Badminton, the winner is Bullseye,” he said. “For Basketball; Touchdown. For Futsal; Bullseye. For Netball; Bullseye. Who is the overall champion?” asked Mr Paul. The entire hall screamed and cheered, and then he announced Bullseye as the winner of the 2014 Nobel Cup. Wei Ming and Deanna Lee received the trophy from Mr Paul, while I screamed and cheered happily. Overall, I received medals for futsal from Wei Ming.
During the class party, we brought some food. I brought some bread and some cookies to give everyone during the party as Shaun Ting played some songs on the computer. I spent time talking to Rick Tan and Jordan Tay as I reflected on the time that had passed when we were in Year 8, looking forward to Year 9 and I also spoke to Caleb Chuang on how much time we have left in Nobel till we graduate, as well as the success in the Nobel Cup. “We did it! We succeeded! We won!” I cried. Ms Lee and I requested that Chinese songs be played in the class, but most people wanted rock and roll music. Even Ms Samantha wished for Chinese music, but Eu Lynn and Yan Ying said that Chinese music was too boring.
Eu Lynn and Yan Ying then played some K-Pop songs while everyone visited each other's classes. I went to 8E where Mr Daniel and his class watched a movie. Then, they played some songs and danced. Each class was blasting music and we watched the entire year enjoy themselves. Most of the people in 8O soon went to 8E to hang out with Mr Daniel and Ms Joyce, who were acting quite cool. Then, I got some chat done with Zhue Xin and Isabella Wong. On another note, I also visited an education fair that the school set up in the school hall during that day itself. Over 20 universities and colleges, including Sunway University, Taylor's University, Help University and Inti International Universities and Colleges were set up to cater to tertiary education prospects.
The entire 8O class were also wishing goodbye to Renee Koh as she was resigning from Nobel to go and study at a girls’ school in Australia. Renee also told me to do well in my studies, given that Checkpoint was on its way.
While everyone was partying, I wished that our class would not change in the following year. Most importantly, I need Caleb Chuang for the discussion of the 2015 Sports Day. We need to win that, too. And I hope the collaboration would continue. Ms Lee also snacked on the snacks I brought to the Class Party.
As the day came to a close, I was packing my bags. Then, I discovered a large hole in the back of the classroom. I told Ms Samantha and Ms Lee about the large hole as Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong had chiseled a hole with their scissors for fun. Ms Lee and Ms Samantha were mad at them and they eventually had to go to the office where they were counselled and demerited by Ms Lim. On the other hand, the entire class were shocked at what was happening. A large hole had been hacked into the wall. Then, Ms Samantha came and lectured the class over what happened.
“Damaging the wall is damaging school property. I am very outraged over this act,” scolded Ms Samantha.
Before long, it was time to clean up the class. We piled up all the rubbish, took down the decorations and stacked the tables in the center of the classroom to be kept before we were dismissed. Before we left, Ms Lee and Ms Samantha thanked us for being quite an awesome class despite what happened, and Ms Lee wished us the best for the Cambridge Checkpoint the following year. Everyone laughed, but went home, thinking about the future but cherishing the past.
I kept missing my friends upon reaching home. The holidays are quite long; seven weeks is too much for one to take to a certain extent.
2015 – Year 9
2015 would be a very important year for us as we would be sitting for the Cambridge Checkpoint examinations. Checkpoint is the most important word for us due to the utmost importance of the examinations. This exam is an international exam that is organized by Cambridge and was taken by Year 9 students in the past. I was part of that unlucky batch who sat the Cambridge Checkpoint examination. Nobel eventually abolished the Cambridge Checkpoint examination in 2017.
Checkpoint is an exam testing on English, Mathematics and Science subjects and what I dread about this exam is that it was held in the school hall. Traditionally, we would have our exams in the classroom for almost every test, but for Checkpoint and IGCSE exams, they were held in the school hall. For years, I had pondered why the exams were held in the school hall, but most likely, it would be easier to administer the exam and also due to space and noise constraints. Additionally, what made things worse was that the topics for the three subjects would include what were covered in Year 7 and 8, in addition to Year 9 topics.
When my textbooks were bought in December for the new academic year, I immediately started reading, making notes, and scanned through the topics, thus studying early to have a headstart. I studied Science, which was quite an easy subject to handle as opposed to Maths and English.
12th January 2015 was the first day of school for the year. Originally, the first day of school was to be the 5th January 2015, but however, the school decided to postpone the start of school from 5th to 12th January because of the December 2014 floods in Kelantan, based on the government's directive. Nobel would normally base its calendar on the national school calendar because it would be easier to plan things. So, while the start of school was delayed, it is highly emphasized of the importance of Year 9 back in 2015.
Ladies and gentlemen, for those of you reading this, I want to also emphasize that Nobel International School used to have the Cambridge Checkpoint examination for Year 9 students. Back in the heyday, it was quite an important thing and a culture, or I should say, the NORM, for Year 9 students to take the Cambridge Checkpoint examination. This exam tests on the three main core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science, which is considered quite important as it will decide our Year 10 subjects and how we would perform in the IGCSE examination. So, ask any Year 9 student from 2016 and before, and you would get a clear idea how hectic it was to be like their Year 11 counterparts to study for the IGCSE. Checkpoint was the mini version of the IGCSE, but for Year 9 students. And Year 9 teachers back then were quite hectic in ensuring the examinations were readied for us students.
So, on the first day of school, we arrived at the school courtyard, and we gathered in our class lines. Apparently, the students for the previous year’s class remained in the same class, except, some people were switched. At most, many of us remained in the same class. Rick Tan had greeted me, and then asked if I was excited to see Sara Yow. Apparently, Rick Tan had messaged me on Google Hangouts to ask if I was in 9O for 2015. Although I didn’t respond, he was happy that I am in 9O.
Rick had always been interested to see me and asked if I was happy since Sara Yow is in the same class as me. However, I just shrugged it off. The previous year, when Sara Yow joined our class, Rick, Jordan and all the boys in our class kept contemplating that I had a crush on Sara Yow. However, it would no longer become the same story. What I am even more excited is to be with Caleb Chuang in the same class. This means we could build on the success of Nobel Cup 2015 and have big plans for Bullseye for the upcoming 2015 Sports Day.
As the crowd begun to build up in the school courtyard, the words ‘Checkpoint’ echoed around us Year 9s. Wow. Being a Year 9 student at the time means being associated with that dreaded exam back then. The expectations were high, and I didn't want to fail many subjects again. I must get through the Checkpoint exam. The Year 9s in this day do not see the significance; it was the likes of Year 9s back in those days that had tonnes of stress built up, particularly due to this examination.
Everyone was literally talking about the Checkpoint exam. And some people, like Bethany Ng, had a very astonished look on their faces. Just like the previous three batches before us, we will now be subjected to the wrath of the exam.
Soon, everyone arrived, and then we assembled in the courtyard after the music begun playing, signalling the start of school. Despite the prefects telling us to settle down, many people in Year 9 felts scared, worried and horrified about the fact that we would need to sit for this exam. Then, we headed to our classes which were located on the first floor at the front of the school. 9O was located next to the staircase, so I went up and then entered the class.
Because I was at the back of the class, I was a bit too unlucky to not get the front seat. I would usually get the front seat of the class as I can see the teacher. You see, when the class was at the ground floor moments before, our class turned to the back and we walked to the staircase near the library and sick bay. So, when we reached 9O, I ran out of luck as Rick, Jordan, Caleb Chuang, Ze Khai, Derek Yong and Soon Jian Wen were in the front. I had to sit at the back as the seat was taken. Sean Mark and Jason Leing sat in the middle, and then Branson Choon and Ting Yi were behind.
Ms Ng Mei Yen and Ms Sylvia were our class teachers for Year 9O. Ms Ng is a professional Science teacher whom I have heard before, had taught the higher year levels. Ms Sylvia is a new teacher then and had just joined the school. Ms Ng would teach us Science while Ms Sylvia would teach us Health. Health is a generally new subject that was introduced in our timetable, and we would be interested to know what it was.
Ms Ng then begun by briefing what we would expect for Year 9. “As you know, the first thing that comes to mind is…”
Everyone groaned, “Checkpoint.”
“Yes, Checkpoint,” said Ms Ng. Ms Ng then said that Checkpoint would focus on English, Maths and Science and aside from this contrary, but Ms Ng said Checkpoint would also comprise of all the chapters from those topics covering from Chapter 1 of Year 7 all the way till Year 9. This means that every topic that we had studied in the past since Year 7 would come out in Year 9. Ms Ng then comforted us by saying that she will help us recall the previous chapters for Checkpoint, but urged us to study and put in our effort for the exam. Checkpoint exams are held in October every year.
“So, please make sure you don't throw away your Year 7 and Year 8 books,” warned Ms Ng. “I will say that the Checkpoint exam is very easy. It's just that you need to understand the concepts, as well as study,” said Ms Ng.
Ms Ng then gave us our class timetable and briefed us on the class timetable. We were also given our Student Organizers for the year, while Ms Ng then relayed assurances to any questions posed for the Checkpoint exam and what to expect for the Year 9 syllabus. Ms Ng also said that Checkpoint should be taken seriously, but it should not be taken too seriously.
“Class, don’t worry. Checkpoint is not like the “if you fail, you die” exam,” she said, referring to an exam where one becomes a dropout if he or she failed the exam. She said that Checkpoint only gauges where we stand, and we would still continue to Year 10 and 11. She then talked about what Nobel would expect for us in Year 9 and other housekeepings in relation to homeroom and academic things. She said that on the first day of classes, if we did not bring our books according to the timetable, it was okay and the teachers would give us a chance. “Make sure you bring your books starting from tomorrow onwards,” said Ms Ng, asking us to adhere to the timetable. “You should be also happy as I will be your Science teacher as well!”
Jason Leing, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were shocked and shouted profanities as Ms Visa would have History lessons with us following break time. I mean, I, too, was quite surprised that Ms Visa would teach me for the third time. The trio were quite scared of Ms Visa's autocratic style. Ms Ng told them not to yell profanities in class.
Once all was done, Ms Ng then started the election for the class monitor and assistant monitor. Unlike those of yesteryear, Ms Ng then displayed the details and expectations of the monitor’s post.
“Starting from this year, the school has decided to be a bit more strict when choosing the monitor and assistant monitor,” she said. Ms Ng then displayed a series of criteria which class teachers must use to choose the class monitor and his assistant. My heart beat and I thought if I should be monitor. So, as such, I decided to abstain from contesting the election. I had butterflies in my stomach when thinking if I should be monitor, as I could handle the control book. In fact, I have thought about this since the school holidays started.
“Ting Yi [should be] monitor,” Branson Choon said repeatedly, giving Ting Yi a hearty slap. Ting Yi made some funny noises like a monkey. “No, please, no,” Ting Yi said as Branson Choon, Jordan Tay and Rick Tan pressed him for the post. “Ya, Ting Yi, you should be monitor,” said Rick as everyone cheered Ting Yi on. You see, Ting Yi would make some funny and crazy noises when he felt funny and releases his stress, and sometimes, it made Rick, Jordan and the people in the class annoyed. Ting Yi was too shy to volunteer himself as monitor.
Ms Ng then asked Ting Yi if he wanted to be the monitor, and he shunned the offer. His face was already red and embarrassed from the actions of his friends. Then, Ms Ng encouraged the rest of the class to nominate names and volunteer themselves.
Eu Lynn eventually decided to volunteer herself, followed by Jordan Tay, who eventually volunteered when Caleb Chuang and Rick Tan pressed him. Then, Ting Yi asked for Branson Choon to be nominated and then Branson caved in and got up. Ms Ng then asked the four of them to leave the classroom as the class voted for monitor and assistant monitor. I selected Jordan Tay as monitor, and then Eu Lynn received the second highest votes and was subsequently declared the assistant monitor. So, once all the voting was finished. Ms Sylvia then called all of them in, and Jordan was shocked that he was elected. Eu Lynn was also shocked too.
“So much responsibility,” he said, as Rick laughed wholeheartedly as Jordan was given the necessary documents to begin his task. “Ya, Jordy, so much responsibility,” teased Rick, calling Jordan by his nickname. We then went for our break time as I pondered about my back seat, and I wanted to ask Jian Wen if I could move to the front of the class. But I did not make it a priority for now.
During break, I met San Ying and Kit Lee and had a chat with them. Cambridge Checkpoint was on their minds. A lot of people in our batch yelled profanities as they discussed Checkpoint during break time. We were already the oldest people out of all KS3 students. I saw some new faces, especially th incoming Year 7 students. There was one girl who was like the shortest among all Year 7 students. One look may lead to one's assumption that she was in primary school. There were a lot of new Year 7 students with their new uniforms. Soon, it was time for assembly, leading to the end of our break time. I continued to ponder on my seat and most importantly, the Checkpoint exam. I had studied a lot during the holidays. I don't want the Checkpoint exam to be a disaster.
Then, we had Mathematics class and it was separated into set teaching batches. Other than Maths, Malay, English, Mandarin and Literature/Bible Knowledge were also separated into separate batches. I thumped and entered the class. Ms Nalina was in the class. She then showed us a list and told us that the names she called would be asked to stay in 9O, while the rest had to go to 9N for their Maths class. The class panicked and Ms Nalina counted down for everyone to take their books and head to their respective classes. Then, some people from 9N, including Glen Kay, came over. Glen waved hi at me, and Ms Crystlyn was teaching the other batch of Maths students in that class.
Ms Nalina was there for just a short period of time. She taught Mathematics and Additional Mathematics for Year 10, but she was a bit strict when covering us in Year 9. She mentioned things quite fast till I wasn’t able to easily follow up. We had new textbooks for Maths in Year 9. The previous textbooks that I used for Maths in Year 7 and 8 were old, small books called SPR Mathematics. The textbook for the 2015 Year 9 syllabus was a new, larger textbook of the same edition. Then she begun the topic with numbers at the beginning of the textbook. I had to crane my head as high as possible to hear what she was teaching. I tried my best to also ask questions to understand the topics for Maths. I didn't want to fail the Checkpoint exam as well as the other exams, having flung Maths the previous year. Then, it was our BK lesson, and Ms Renee was involved in the BK lesson as Ms Joyce wasn't around that day. She greeted us and introduced herself. Ms Renee told us that she will assign us to our proper BK classes the next week. Following lunch, then had class with Ms Visa. We then returned, and my heart thumped as I waited for Ms Visa to arrive. Ms Visa then smirked as she placed her things on the teacher’s desk and begun the lesson. She was lukewarm as she came face to face with all of us.
“Wow! I have the same class as last year! With the same heroes!” Ms Visa exclaimed. Given that 2015 was my third year with Ms Visa, I only had to pray that Ms Visa and I had a good relationship and that we would have less problems for the year. Ms Visa then said that she hoped that she would have a good year with us and that no problems would occur. “I hope that this class would be a good class this year,” she said. Ms Visa then walked around, talked to each and everyone of the faces as we gave our best look as possible. Then, she begun our lesson with a history of the 1800s history of Britain. We also had Malay lessons with Cikgu Zura involving the same arrange
To end the day, we had Science with Ms Ng. She was very enthusiastic as she taught the first topic for us which is on flowers. I raised my hands and answered most of the questions correctly. My effort of studying during the holidays worked. Eventually, Ms Ng asked me to give a chance to other people and she called Branson Choon to answer the next question. I then stayed back to ask Ms Ng some questions and talked about the Cambridge Checkpoint. Ms Ng told me not to worry and said that since I was making notes during the holidays, it would be helpful during the Checkpoint exam. Branson also came to ask her on notes and to talk about the Checkpoint exam. In fact, most of Ms Ng's lesson was used to talk about the Checkpoint exam. I then had Mandarin, and Ms Belle was my Mandarin teacher. She was also new to Nobel back then.
A lot of folks who used to take French in the past decided to opt for Mandarin, as they believe that they need to do well in Mandarin as only Mandarin would be offered in Year 10 and 11 and that they have to brush up their skills. They thought Mandarin was a compulsory subject in Year 10 and 11 and thus their reasoning to take Mandarin. However, it was not to be the case as Mandarin was an optional subject but still, some people tried.
The next morning, ICT lesson with Mr Narish, who was a new teacher back then in Nobel. Mr Narish is a cool Indian teacher, but he was a bit strict, but still cool, as he taught us ICT. Mr Narish came to our class as the ICT lab was being set up. “We will go to the ICT lab next week,” he said. He then started the class with an icebreaker.
“Who has played FIFA before?” he asked, referring to the football video game based on the FIFA association, the organization responsible for international football. Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang, Benjamin Fong, Jason Leing, Ryan Marc, Wai Shaun and Soon Jian Wen raised up their hands. Mr Narish then talked about the game and soon, the entire class was talking about the most famous footballers that they have had played with. There were chants of Lionel Messi, Christiano Ronaldo and all the big names on the pitch.
Mr Narish then said that he was a new teacher in Nobel teaching ICT, and he also asked us how much do we know about ICT. “Why do you think ICT is important?” he asked. I immediately raised my hand and then said that it is important for the world as it allows us to communicate with one another. Then, he asked other people, and Wai Shaun responded. Jordan Tay also gave his take before Mr Narish continued explaining. We were in for a very interesting lesson with Mr Narish. He then told us about his expectations for us in this subject.
During break time, more people from Year 9 kept discussing about the Checkpoint exam. It was really a big deal, you know. Everyone conversed about the exam. In reality, we were in shock and astonishment, as well as being unable to comprehend the fact that we were in Year 9 and that we had to sit the gruelling exam.
When Malay dawned around, Cikgu Zura begun to teach us comprehension for Malay as Brendan Cheah tried to make a fool in the class and this resulted in Cikgu Zura calming him down. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Nalina then told us that Ms Anusha, a new teacher, would be taking over the remaining classes the following week. Ms Nalina then continued teaching while I paid attention to the lesson. It was no fun and games. Checkpoint was on top of everyone's minds. Everyone was quite well-behaved in the class.
Soon, it was Character Transformation (CT) and we did not have a CT session in the hall. Instead, Ms Lim told us that we would be having CT sessions with our homeroom teachers instead. And Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia did some talk on the Cambridge Checkpoint exam. Everyone was also excited for Ms Sylvia being our Health teacher, too. In fact, there was a Health subject back then in our timetable.
Ms Ng told us not to worry much on Checkpoint. “It's only the second week of school, and all of you are worried on Checkpoint,” she laughed. “There are nine more months until Checkpoint, so you still have a lot of time.” I then told her that we only have two months till the start of Assessment 1, four months till the beginning of the Mid Year Examination, and that the year 2015, just like 2014, will fly by very quickly. Rick Tan then said that even two months is a long time and much can be done to prepare for Assessment 1. He told me, “Wei Yiang, you think too much.”
I thought quite a lot because if I did not do well in the Assessment 1, it would be very difficult for me to do well in the Mid Year Examination, and this will soon carry over to the second half of 2015, making it very difficult to coordinate ahead of the Checkpoint exam. In fact, Checkpoint was a grey area as the examination experience was not known to us then. There were many more questions to ask. How would it be like preparing for an international examination? What would the expectations be for us in Year 9? And what would be the consequences, both positive and negative, as a result of the exam?
At the time, ingrained into the minds of any Year 9 student would be the phrase, “study, study, study”, and this would become a norm for us. In fact, almost every teacher (as well as our parents) have spoken about the Checkpoint exam. It was only the second day of school (13th January 2015) and everyone had been placed on high alert as if the exam was tomorrow. Before long, Ms Ng had to go for her next class, and we were left with Ms Sylvia till the end of the CT session. Then, we packed our bags and headed to the art studio to meet Ms Nadia. And, of course, Benjamin Fong, Sean Mark and Jason Leing dread her as well.
Ms Nadia then told us that for Art, it would be very different from the previous years’ expectations in the fact that our Art lessons would consist mainly of art research. Ms Nadia said that Ms Feeda was the one coordinating the art lessons for that year, and she had high expectations for the entire Year 9s. “Ms Feeda is teaching three classes; 9B, 9E and 9L. So, you need to refer to her blog on what to expect,” she said. Then, Ms Nadia explained that we need to have two new sets of art block paper as well as an art folder to keep our artwork in them, and we need to purchase them and bring them by the next class.
The next morning, we had a formal assembly in the school hall. We had a new principal who took the reins of the Junior and Senior School that year. Her name is Ms Bee Yong and she is a principal who focuses on academics. She was introduced by Auntie Clarine in October 2014 as the principal that will take over from Ms Evelyn. Every morning, or I should say, every moment, for the next few (and many) years, Ms Bee Yong would address everyone and tell us that we should be focused on our studies. Unlike Ms Evelyn, she is one serious (but nice) principal who is academic-centric. The previous principal, Ms Evelyn Tay, had then left for Melbourne, Australia to continue with her Master Degree, leaving Ms Bee Yong to take care of things for the Junior and Senior School. Ms Bee Yong is a Singaporean and she is an open minded, but strict and serious principal that requires everyone to focus on academics. That year, 2015, was no different, as I had an international exam to take from Cambridge. Checkpoint tests the heart and nerves of a student’s brain, and recaps what we have learnt from Year 7 to 9, and Ms Bee Yong's initiatives of asking everyone to study had upended the fact that Checkpoint was on the way. At the same time, we also had a new head prefect named Aashtad Cyprus. He was a jovial guy and had creative ways to keep the students settled down. Aashtad was a very naughty boy last time and ended up getting disciplined and suspended, but however he had turned over a new leaf, as what Ms Lim has said. He would reassure the students and understood that they are interested to pass the time talking, but his persuasion skills and reminders that the teachers are in the hall or that the time is ticking to the next lessons after break or lunch would always get them settled down easily. “I promise to give you time to talk afterwards” was his tagline, and everyone respected him well. He is the most successful prefect to settle everyone down as opposed to the rest, who had taken ages and required Ms Lim to intervene angrily.
That morning, Aashtad arrived and asked everyone to settle down after the assembly music was played. Being as cool as a cucumber, he successfully controlled the noise level in the school hall like an experienced pilot flying a plane. “Guys, I understand, I know you have something to talk. But you need to settle down first,” he said. So, when everyone was completely settled down, he allowed everyone to talk while waiting for the teachers to arrive.
Then, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Lim, Mr Chan and the teachers begun to file into the school hall. Ms Bee Yong was holding a black notebook which she always carries. Then, she, along with Ms Lim, went to the front of the hall as Aashtad told everyone to settle down once again. Successfully controlling the noise level, he then asked everyone to greet the teachers before reciting the school pledge. Then, Ms Bee Yong told everyone to sit down as she introduced herself as the new principal (as well as other bits and teases about herself too). She cracked a few jokes with us before Ms Lim made some announcements. She then asked how was the new school year for us and also told us some changes to some housekeeping affairs for the year 2015. One of these housekeeping changes was the change to the PE attire. Back in 2012, the PE attire for the Junior and Senior School was white in color. In 2013, girls were given grey shirts while boys kept their white t-shirts on. There were green PE pants then, as well. So, for the first housekeeping affair, Ms Lim said that boys and girls can wear any color as they please. Aside from that, Ms Lim also said that for the dismissal of students, we will need to gather in the courtyard for dismissal only after the Elementary School students had cleared some space for us to gather.
It was then PE, and Ms Ng came into the class. She entrusted Jordan Tay with the class control book, before he took the book down to the school hall for our PE lesson. Mr Victor was talking to some girls. He was grinning, before meeting Sean Mark for a chat. Then, Mr Victor told us to do some exercises before running around the hall. Then, he did sit ups, push ups, and the like. I did all the exercises with Caleb Chuang. Then, it was break time.
During the break time assembly, Ms Lim then had a chat with all of us Year 9 students. “I heard from all your teachers that all of you are talking about Checkpoint and are also concerned about the exam. Don't worry, lah! Relax! Checkpoint is nine months away. There is still a lot of time to study. Just forget about it first. There is no point thinking about it when you have got so much time to prepare. If you haven't started studying, you can start now. It is not too late. Relax. Everything will be fine,” she assured us. Then, Chee Kei and some people from 9E spoke to Ms Lim about the matter. Ms Lim just laughed. “Why are you all so scared? I have not seen anyone like this batch; being scared from the beginning of the year. If you are scared, you cannot study.” Oh well. Cambridge Checkpoint. It was a BIG DEAL.
When we got back to class, Ms Visa was waiting for us, and she told us to do exercises. She then spoke about the Industrial Revolution, and we took note of it. Then, she pointed to my book and urged me to focus on the handwriting. Benjamin Fong forgot his exercise book, which made Ms Visa unamused. “It is only the first week of school and I am getting this type of excuse. You are Year 9 already. And you will be sitting for Checkpoint, right?”
Oh dear. I don't know how to react.
Geography was our next subject, and I was very excited to have Ms Maddy for Geography in 2015, except that I did not carry my series of thick notes like last time. For that year, I did not copy Ms Maddy’s slides bit by bit, as it was a hassle to do so. So, I decided to just fill in the notes Ms Maddy gave, which we pasted in the book. Previously, I had my own thick exercise books of my own which I would copy what was written on the board into them for Year 7 and 8, but for Year 9, as the focus was on Cambridge Checkpoint, some habits had to be ditched so that I could survive the exam.
Our first topic was plate tectonics and volcanoes. This is something which I had learnt in Year 7 before, but it was repeated for Year 9. “This is very easy. So easy,” I smirked, when Ms Maddy gave us the notes. Rick groaned, as Geography wasn’t his favorite subject, and it was also the one he performed worst at. For comparison, the subject that I shared the same condition as Rick was Mathematics. I had failed the subject in the previous year (2014) and was planning to improve myself for Cambridge Checkpoint. I had done well for Geography the previous year and had planned to repeat similar feats for the modular assessments that year. Back in those days, for Geography, we had modular tests every month after completing one chapter after another. I would usually score an A or a B for the modular exam, gaining jealousy from most of my classmates.
After lunch, Year 9 prefects were given the chance to coordinate the lunchtime assembly. How fast had time flown. We saw the Year 7s and 8s, who were younger and much more playful than us. Before long, we headed back to class for our Health lesson with Ms Sylvia.
The late Ms Sylvia was a very cheerful teacher. She also coordinated our PE lesson as well with Mr Victor, and would continue to do so till her death in 2020. Being our assistant class teacher in Year 9 was awesome. No doubt, I would reflect, that my time as a Year 9 student, despite being saddled with the enormous taxing effort for Checkpoint, would be the best times ever. The classmates in 9O were the best. The teachers were the best. And Caleb Chuang was the cherry on top of the icing.
Ms Sylvia was also interesting when she taught us Health. It was mainly all about keeping the body well and functioning and learning how to properly take care of our health. She would usually have a cheerful attitude when she came for classes, and she would also have a smile on her face when we greeted her. Health is somewhat scary especially when we were told of consequences. Death and bleeding blood are things that spook me whenever I am in the Health lesson. Also, on another note regarding Ms Sylvia, Ms Sylvia was also an outgoing and motivating teacher, and she was in charge of various PE activities with Mr Victor.
Our first Health lesson was just a short introduction to Health. Ms Sylvia mainly did an icebreaker on what we are going to learn in Health and importance of Health Education. Branson, Benjamin Fong and Ting Yi made fun of the topic, which resulted in Ms Sylvia not being amused. “Health is not something to laugh about,” she said.
Then, it was Maths, followed by English, and I had a lesson with Ms Joyce. Being placed in English Second Language was still quite a bummer, as some people who were in English Second like Sara Yow had moved to First Language. But it was okay. One at a time. I thrudged to 9B for the English Second lesson with Ms Joyce. In the class were people like Brandon Ooi, Cassandra, Glen Kay and Grace, The people of 9B had a new girl named Co Sheen. She was quiet but a bookworm girl and was good in her studies.
I plopped down in the front seat. Ms Joyce then entered the class with her usual serious look and greeted us before putting her bag on the table. Then, she then spoke about the differences between First and Second Language in English.
“Okay guys, so the school has decided to divide you all into first and second language this year. As you guys know, this year (2015) would be your Checkpoint exam. I believe that you guys are aware of this, right?” Ms Joyce asked. We said yes. “You all are Year 9 students, so you should know that this year that you have to sit for Checkpoint. So, what the school decided to do this year, was to divide you into First and Second language,” she said. Ms Joyce then explained that this was based on our academic performance for English in the past year. “As the school had decided that your performance may not have been very good in the Final Year Exam last year, they decided to put you in Second Language. But however, although you guys are taking Second Language, you all will be sitting the same exam as those taking First Language,” she added. She said that being in Second Language should not be taken negatively as it is based on how and where you can stand in English.
To ensure that I had adequate preparation for the Checkpoint exam, I decided to make notes for Mathematics and Science, while the ones for English would wait for how Ms Joyce decides to organize the situation. After all, English should be easy with the strokes of spelling and punctuation.
Lo and behold, we entered the forth day of school, 15th January. Ms Joyce continued from what we did the previous day and officially started the topic. Once her class was done, I went to talk to Caleb Chuang.
As 2015 was also the second year in which Caleb Chuang and I were in the same class, I decided to have some fun with him for that year, since when the month of January starts, it will soon end, and then February would come and go, and by the time we know it, one quarter of the year would have concluded. I wanted 2015 to be one of the best years ever, and I hoped it would come to pass.
Learning from last year, I decided to spend more time with Caleb Chuang as much as possible. After all, 12 months is not a very long time to enjoy, and I wanted to spend my best moments with the people whom I treasure. In fact, half the week had been burned up, and I didn't want the year to end as quickly as it started.
Caleb Chuang and I would always have a chat during break time, and talk to as many people whom we know. At the same time I also wish to spend more time with other people in Year 9, as potentially, in Year 10, we may not be in the same class anymore.
We then returned for Science lessons with Ms Ng. Ms Ng’s lessons were very interesting to watch. For her lessons, she would always give us Powerpoint slides in which we kept. She would always enter the class with a cheerful attitude, and then we would have our class as she passionately talked about the topics that made up Science. The first topic that she taught us was the structure of a flower, consisting of the stigma, anther and the petals, among other things.
Ms Ng then asked Jordan Tay and Caleb Chuang to pass around the Powerpoint slides. I took it from Caleb Chuang and happily thanked him while Ms Ng continued to explain and ask questions. Again, Branson and I answered most of the questions Ms Ng asked.
“Anyone else want to answer? Why is it always Wei Yiang and Branson answering?” asked Ms Ng.
As Cambridge Checkpoint is scheduled for October, I wanted to spend my time taking notes in the class especially for English, Maths and Science in order to better prepare myself for the exam. I had started making notes for my Year 9 chapters since the December holidays, And I want that a head start ahead of the rest of my friends so that I can score well in Assessment 2.
To motivate me to study better, I decided to have a competition with some of my friends in the class. One of the people whom I competed with was Branson Choon. Branson Choon is one of the top scoring students in the class and he has set a benchmark for all subjects, especially Maths and Science. If I competed with the best, I would learn from the best and work with the best so that I can do well in the Checkpoint Exam. Branson Choon normally scores A or B for his subjects, and competition would be a motivation for me to do well in my Checkpoint. I don’t want to fail; I had done poorly for English, Maths and Science in Year 8, and my mum had insisted that I put in effort to ensure that I do not end up as a dropout. Other than the Year 9s who had to sit Cambridge Checkpoint, the Year 11s are focusing on the IGCSE exam, leaving Year 7, 8 and 10 as year levels who did not have any exam. Hence, Branson and I were asking and answering questions from Ms Ng.
Afterwards, a new teacher named Ms Kiran came in for Global Perspectives class with us. Ms Kiran is a nice teacher and had joined the school that year. In fact, Global Perspectives, also known as GP, was first introduced to KS3 students back then.
Back in August 2014, when the PTM was being held, my mum, upon meeting all the teachers, went to meet Ms Praveen to enquire on the subject selection for Year 10 and 11. She briefed me and my mum the relevant information, and one of the questions that I asked was why Geography was not offered as an IGCSE subject. Ms Praveen said that Geography was not relevant at the IGCSE level, and that it would be too complicated to have many subjects for IGCSE. So, Ms Praveen and my mum told me that in Year 10 and 11, Global Perspectives would be a good choice for me as I like to read about world issues. And having GP in Year 9 was quite interesting because it would allow me to know what GP was at the early stage.
Ms Kiran then introduced the subject to us, after a short introduction of all of us. She said that GP was about introducing the world and exploring our surroundings. “I may even ask you to bring some electronic devices to class, but I will let you know about that,” she said. Eu Lynn then asked if she could bring her phones, but Ms Kiran said that it would be limited to iPads and computers.
Then, we went for Mandarin with Ms Belle, who had a hard time quietening down the class and scolding some people for not having their books ready for the Mandarin lesson.
During the Malay lesson, Cikgu Zura once again had to calm down Brendan Cheah, and then during Maths, Ms Nalina gave us some homework. All went well till the end of the day. We were starting to become calm by now.
I was given a full attendance award for the year 2014 on Friday, 16th January 2015 as I had attended every school day in the year without fail. In fact, I hate missing school days because mainly, I would not be able to enjoy the time I had with my friends. As the days counted down to Year 11, and given that I am at this point of time, in the middle of the Junior and Senior School, in Year 9, I want to spend most of my time with my friends before time runs out.
Ms Joyce then helped and assisted some people in the class to do some reading while she did some exercises with us that morning. The rest of the day went well as I tried to focus on Maths, and also pleased Ms Visa during History. She said that I have improved a lot and she hopes to see more improvement from me. During Homeroom time, Ms Ng then told us to do some reading. I then spoke to her about my grievances on the seating arrangement and requested to move to the front. Ms Ng then told me to speak to some people in the front and discuss the matter. Ms Ng also showed us some motivational videos during Homeroom, as Caleb Chuang and Branson Choon were asked to go and get some burgers for our Friday snack.
In fact, Ms Ng said that there was a special pass tag for the canteen which is blue in color, and we can't lose it, because it gives people permission to go to the canteen to collect the Friday snacks from Uncle KC's canteen stall.
Anyhow, Ms Ng continued to inspire us by showing some videos, but it got the class quite bored.
The second week started out pretty well. We had our morning assembly with Ms Bee Yong giving us an important message. She told us once again to be focused on our studies. Then, Ms Lim also made announcements and chided some people for talking while the assembly proceedings were ongoing.
When Ms Ng led us into class, she then asked how all of us were before continuing her class. Then, she continued teaching us about flowers before asking Jordan and Caleb Chuang to distribute her Powerpoint notes. She handed the notes to them as they passed the notes to us. Then, during break, I spoke to San Ying about the Checkpoint exam. And thereafter, it was Maths. As planned, Ms Nalina said that a new teacher would take over from us.
My new Maths teacher was Ms Anusha, but I will refer to her as Ms Usha in this case. She is quite a young Indian teacher and also quite a professional one as well. As she entered the classroom, I was having a conversation with Derek Yong and Jian Wen in the front. We were sorted into Maths classes, and my class with Ms Usha was in 9O. So, I was saying, “Alamak” many times after talking to them because I may have forgotten some stationery. Ms Usha then told me not to say ‘alamak’ many times as it was too annoying.
The Maths class soon started after the people from 9N came over, and Ms Usha laid some ground rules for us:
1. No talking while I am talking.
2. Ensure that you have all your books for the lesson
3. Ask permission before you use the washroom
4. Ask questions if you don't understand
5. Complete your homework and hand them in to me.
Then, Ms Usha asked us to take out our Maths textbook as she begun teaching. As usual, I paid attention. And I asked as many questions as possible. Ms Usha had to ask Wences, who was in our class for the lesson, to stop talking while I asked the question. Following the lesson, I made an appointment to see Ms Usha. She said that it will be best for me to let her know when to meet her.
Cikgu Zura then came in for Malay and then Brendan Cheah, who was in the class, then enthusiastically greeted Cikgu Zura. Some people from 9O returned back to 9N to take their Malay books as Ms Munirah was entering the classroom there for the Malay class. Maths and Malay involve 9N and 9O, while English not only involves the two classes for set teaching, but also 9B as well. Cikgu Zura and I had a chat before we started the lesson, and she told us to do essays. Then, it was Bible Knowledge (BK) class, and I went over to 9E's classroom for the BK lesson with Ms Renee, who sorted us out, and I was assigned to Ms Joyce's BK class. Some people, including Sean Mark, San Ying, Sara Yow and Caleb Chuang were in the same class as me.
Ms Joyce then thrudged into the classroom, carrying her usual black handbag with all the books in them. She then asked us to greet her. San Ying said that she missed Ms Cynthia, who was her favorite teacher and likewise, she was also Ms Cynthia's favorite student, having served as the member of Nobel's Student Council, and that Ms Cynthia was also the teacher in charge of the Student Council. Ms Joyce then told San Ying not to worry. “Don't worry, you can learn to explore new things with me. I am also funny as well,” said Ms Joyce, to laughter from the class.
Ms Joyce then told us to do an ice breaking activity in our BK exercise book, and write what we thought about God, the Egyptians and the Israelites in our book. She then talked about how the Bible was quite interesting.
When lunch ended, Ms Visa met us for History and talked about slavery. She then told us to draw a ship consisting of all the Black African slaves that were crowded on board. Back in those days, it was common for white men to cramp Africans onto ships bound for the United States, where they were heckled as slaves in torturous conditions. Then, it was Ms Belle's class, and she did some exercises with us, along with words that we had to memorize for our Spelling test that coming Thursday.
The next day, 20th January, we went to the ICT lab with Mr Narish. He then taught us about how to use Microsoft Database. However, he had to spend a great deal of time ensuring that people did not misuse the computer to play games.
During break time, a lot of people were late for break time assembly, and Ms Lim was not very pleased. “I don't want to see anyone be late for assembly. Prefects, send those who are late to the late line,” she warned. Then, it was Geography, and Ms Maddy came into the classroom. She rolled up the curtain blinds and then this resulted in Rick Tan groaning. He didn't like Geography as well as the light entering the room. “Aargh!” he cried. A lot of people groaned when Ms Maddy pulled the curtains up and continued her topic on tectonic plates. I didn't want to spend time making a thick book like the previous two years on Geography as I want to focus on the Checkpoint exam, and it was so tiring writing everything down on my mini book as well as in the paste-in-book worksheets Ms Maddy gave so that we can copy them from the board. Branson and I tried to race to answer the questions. When he got the answers correct, I groaned, as he was chosen quickly and got the answers right. If I answered wrongly, he said, “You lost!” and if I answered correctly and quickly, he groaned. We would scream “Yes!” if we got it correctly.
Then, once things were done, Cikgu Zura entered the class for Malay, followed by Ms Usha for Maths. Wow. So many set teaching classes. At least I didn't have to move to another class, with the exception of English and BK. I asked Ms Usha for help on one of the exercises while Brendan Cheah fooled around and this made Ms Usha very angry.
During lunch, I sat down with Caleb Chuang and had a chat with him. I spoke to him about how great we were to be in the same class for another year. “The first week of school is gone, and the second week is half gone. This year is quite fast, and Checkpoint will come,” I told Caleb Chuang. He ate some Western food he savored from Uncle KC's stall. Then, it was time for lunch time assembly, and Ms Lim watched in amusement as everyone arrived early this time.
When it was time for our CT session after lunch, Ms Lim ushered us to the front of the hall, since we were lining up behind the Year 7 and Year 8 students. Ms Bee Yong and the rest of the Year 9 class teachers, namely Ms Ng, Ms Sylvia, Ms Maddy, Ms Crystlyn, Ms Usha, Mr Daniel, as well as a few others, came into the hall. Then, Ms Bee Yong took the microphone and introduced herself. And then, we begun the CT session with an icebreaking activity. I then took a look around and saw some new people in our cohort. One person who was new was in 9N. They had a very new addition to their team; Ethan Wong Tzeng Wye. He had cool glasses and a very nice hairstyle. He acted and looked quite cool as well. Aside from that, 9E had a new boy named Jien Min, who had nice glasses too.
The icebreaking activity was quite fun and it involved us forming a big circle around the hall and dancing in front of everybody. After the activity, Ms Bee Yong then gathered us back in our class lines, and she had one very serious look on her face.
“Year 9. Do you know that this year is very important?” There were chants of “Yes” and “Checkpoint” from the crowd.
“All of you will have to sit Checkpoint at the end of the year," said Ms Bee Yong, to responses of “Noooo” from the crowd. Ms Bee Yong then comforted us, saying that Checkpoint isn't as difficult as we would think. In fact, Ms Bee Yong said that the previous edition saw Nobelians do well in the Checkpoint exam. “I am sure that if you study, you will do well,” she said, adding that the examination was easy. Then, she handed out a piece of paper and told us to return to class to do our reflections on the previous year, 2014, as well as the aims and wishes for 2015. Ms Lim also asked us to have a CT folder for the next CT session. We then returned to our class to do our reflection.
Ms Ng then told us to do our reflection on the previous year, and I also spoke on my reflection and was the first to volunteer. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia were happy at my reflection and then, it was Caleb Chuang's turn to talk.
Ms Ng then introduced us to the SMART Goals (SMART standing for Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound), and urged us to include them in our study plan for Checkpoint. She also emphasized on not stressing and cramming everything in the exam and to utilize the SMART Goals in our study for the exam.
Then, it was time for Art lesson with Ms Nadia. She then told us to put our art blocks and art folders which we brought at the front of the art studio, where she would keep them for storage. Those who failed to bring the art blocks were told to write “I promise that I will bring my art block next Tuesday” a hundred times on a piece of A3 paper, and those who failed to bring the art folders were told to do some pumping in front of Ms Nadia, failing which they will need to write two hundred lines on the front and back of the art paper if they did not bring them the following Tuesday, 27th January. Those who did not do both were told to do both the punishments and Ms Nadia said that they owe her RM 10 if they failed to do both next week. Fortunately, I had brought mine, thus escaping the noose.
Ms Nadia then did the color wheel exercises with us. Jason Leing and Sean Mark were talking behind, and this made Ms Nadia very angry each time. Then, before we left, she told us to download a picture from Ms Feeda's blog, artandfeeda.blogspot.com which consisted of a broccoli and a mug which contained a series of positive words in color. As of today, Ms Feeda had deleted the picture from her blog, but fortunately, I still keep it. Ms Nadia threatened more punishments if we failed to bring the picture. Then, she asked for the Class Control Book, and Jordan apparently forgot. Ting Yi and Branson Choon called Jordan's name in a funny tone and laughed. “So much responsibility,” he said, as Ms Nadia asked him why he didn't present the control book to her.
On Wednesday, 21st January 2015, Mr Paul then appeared in front of the assembly and then briefed to us about the announcements for CCA in 2015. As he begun to speak, he was quite frustrated to hear people talking in the hall, and got really angry at that. Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong folded their arms in anger. Then, Mr Paul begun to speak.
Firstly, he said that the CCA terms would be adjusted so that it would begin in July and end in June the following year, as opposed to a January – November format. This was important, because the management was not quite happy with what happened in 2013 and 2014, as Year 11 students had to contend with major events and their CCA amid their IGCSE exam. Hence, the management had proposed to change the CCA calendar so that the start of CCA would begin in the middle of 2015, and that Year 11 students would end their last day of CCA before the IGCSE exams. Thus, he told us that we would be extending our CCA term from 2014 all the way to June 2015 in order to cope with the change. As such, everyone had to stay in their CCA that they enrolled the previous year till June. This instantly dashed my hopes of wishing to enroll for Fine Art Club, and subsequently, the Editorial Board, as I had to be stuck with the Art and Crafts Club CCA.
Then, Mr Paul told the new students who have recently enrolled into Nobel to participate in the enrolment of their respective CCA. “For new students, you will need to log into the Parents Portal on the school website and register for your CCA online. The enrolment period is from this Friday (23rd January) until next Friday (30th January),” he said. “For the rest of you, do you need to enroll? No. Only for new students,” said Mr Paul. He then reiterated the fact that it was compulsory for everyone to join a CCA. “If I catch you not having a CCA, I will drag you to my office and you will need to register on the spot,” warned Mr Paul. He also told us that the CCAs would begin in February.
When we returned to class, we got ready for our PE lesson. Mr Victor led the PE lesson as we did some exercises with him. He then did some exercises, blowing and tweeting his whistle as we did our push ups and sit ups with him. Mr Victor then said we need to practice the exercises as our fitness test was coming up. Then, he started talking about Sports Day, which made us quite excited.
During break time, I met up with Caleb Chuang and begun talking about our plans for Bullseye. “So, Caleb Chuang, we need to make Bullseye win again,” I told him. I then said that we need to get everyone to rally together and I also told him that I plan to make the Year 7s to present the “big plans for Bullseye”. “You go talk to them,” said Caleb Chuang.
Then, after break, Ms Maddy came and then continued the plate tectonics topic. The first few weeks went well, as I tried to maintain my focus and discipline in studying in advance. It was very hard to do so, and soon, my rate of advance study dropped. There was homework and exercises coming in, and I tried my best to catch up and remember. Ms Visa then told us to do an anti-slavery poster for History. “Use less words. The technology to be used is a computer. Do an A4-sized poster,” she said. The easiest thing which I was able to focus was Science, and Ms Ng wowed and amazed us with her lessons. There were topics and concepts that I were able to understand, as Ms Ng moved from flowers to the process of photosynthesis. Even though I had a very unlucky seat behind the class, I craned my neck upwards and stood up for a better view of the Smartboard.
I did the poster online, but Ms Visa wasn't happy and told me to redo the poster when I presented it to her. Ms Joyce then talked about best friends during English and I recalled the fun I had with Caleb Chuang. Ms Kiran also did something interesting. She told us to do some research about the recent floods in December 2014 that engulfed Kelantan and Terengganu, two states on Malaysia's east coast. She told us to do research and print the research out in the next lesson.
Soon, it was Friday, and Ms Lim and Mr Chan talked about how fast the first week of school had passed before leading us in prayer. We then went for our English lessons, where Ms Joyce asked us to present our pink files for English. However, the whole class was in a treat for a rude shock sfter break.
Ms Nadia had written more instructions on the whiteboard behind the classroom. She had asked us to bring a ringed sketchbook, research about a famous artist, write a biography about the artist, print a painting by that artist and repaint it, along with a series of questions she had asked us to do. We had to do all of that in the ringed sketchbook. I eventually chose Vincent Van Gogh as the artist, as well as his painting, ‘Sunflowers’. I quickly completed the thing at home as I was afraid of Ms Nadia punishing me.
Then, Ms Visa told us to read about the Black Hole of Calcutta and then create a comic strip, speech bubble, conversation or a mindmap on the topic. I eventually did those. I didn't want Ms Visa getting angry with me on my work. In fact, I am Ms Visa's most scolded student which is under the non-misbehaving category. Most teachers, if they got angry about me, would have issues with me on my classwork and academics.
Just before school ended, Ms Ng came into the classroom during homeroom time and she told us that we had to decorate our classroom. We were also given a theme to decorate our class. I planned to make a rope suspension bridge as part of the decorations. Then, I discussed with Rick on the plans and he seemed quite interested. Ms Ng said that we would do the class decorations the following week.
The last week of January soon appeared. I struggled during the weekend to complete all the required tasks. What a hectic month being in Year 9 as the Checkpoint Exam guillotine hangs over my head. You see, with one month gone in just thin air all thanks to a school year cut short by the floods, it was too fast. Just too fast.
As the week begun, a lot of people were busy with their plans for the Chinese New Year celebration. The Chinese New Year is coming up, but in the year 2015, it fell on 19th February. It is quite rare for Chinese New Year to fall quite late in the year, but however, it was quite close to Assessment 1, which falls on 9th March 2015 and lasts for a week, according to the calendar.
Assessment 1 is the first test of my performance ahead of Checkpoint. In fact, this two-syllable word was on our mind for the entire year, even at the beginning, because sitting for an international examination is no joke as opposed to sitting for a test that is set by the school. Thus, I decided to spend the Chinese New Year holidays studying for the assessment, as I want to avoid being distracted by the celebrations.
Why, oh why, does Assessment 1 have to be just after Chinese New Year? If only assessments and examinations were held before Chinese New Year, it would be convenient for me to manage. After all, Chinese New Year is the biggest moment for the Chinese community, and it is very important for me as my family observes this festival. I bet that if I did well for Assessment 1, then I would be on track to performing well for my Mid Year Examination. I hope that I can hold the momentum, as doing well in Checkpoint would pave the way for me to easily progress to the next level. It does not make sense studying AND also doing homework during Chinese New Year.
I spent the entire weekend just to finish the slavery poster for History, as well as completed the cartoon based on the slavery topic. I only hope Ms Visa will be pleased. And I haven't had time to do my Maths homework and the research for my Art lesson. Oh, and the picture of the cup to be printed as well. So, I told my mum to print the picture and showed her the picture from Ms Feeda's website on the car ride to school. I also told her to print the portrait of Vincent Van Gogh as well as his Sunflowers painting. I completed the Maths homework in the canteen just before assembly started. What a wild goose chase.
When the assembly started, Ms Bee Yong addressed the school as usual and told us to be committed to our studies. Unlike Ms Evelyn, Ms Bee Yong took academics quite seriously. Then, when we headed back to class, the classroom was quite stuffy. Ms Ng tried to switch on the air conditioning, the computer as well as the Smartboard. It took half an hour for everybody to settle down. Ms Ng spoke to the class to address the grievances on the class size and the air conditioning, which was broken. It was easy for one to sweat in the class.
“Class, I know that this is a small class, but let's try to cope with it. I will see if we can request for a bigger classroom and also in the short term, we will try to fix the air cond,” she said, before beginning her lesson. Then, when her lesson ended, I spoke to Ms Ng about me sitting in front and she told me that she will make the necessary arrangements with Jian Wen.
During break time, I then spoke to Caleb Chuang about how good things were. Then, I spoke to him about the homework by Ms Visa and the Art research. “Oh ya. I haven't done it yet,” he said. When I met Rick and Jordan, who were with Ting Yi, they yelled the s letter word when I told them about the homework. “Ms Visa's gonna kill us,” Rick exclaimed.
When it then came to our Maths lesson, Ms Usha then continued to teach us. The rest of the day went on as normal, and Ms Joyce spoke to us about the story of Moses in the Bible. In fact, Caleb Chuang had a very nice bible, and Ms Joyce was interested in the design of the Bible. I had an old, red Bible given by my aunt.
During lunch, Caleb Chuang and I sat down and prayed before our meal. Then, I had a chat with Zhue Xin before making my way to the school hall for assembly.
When Ms Visa came into the class, she praised me for my updated poster and the cartoons. Then, she spoke about a slave that was transferred to the United States named Ukawsaw Gronniowsaw. Ms Belle then returned our books that she marked regarding our spelling test. She said many of us did well but there were improvements needed to be made.
The next day, I met with Caleb Chuang in the morning and we had a short chat in the courtyard. After the assembly ended, we then headed back to class and proceeded to the ICT lab, where Mr Narish asked us to continue with our Microsoft Database exercise. He helped me to program the database when I experienced difficulties. Then, he caught Benjamin Fong and scolded him, telling him to meet him afterwards.
After returning to class, I took my Geography textbook and went down to the canteen to read it. San Ying stared at me when I looked at my Geography notes. “You brought your books again,” she said, pointing at the Geography books. I then told her that it was our final year studying Geography and we need to cherish it. “How to cherish Geography when we have to study for so many modular assessments?” asked San Ying, as Kit Lee laughed.
After break, I met Ms Maddy for the Geography lesson, as she pulled open the blinds. Rick Tan groaned again, along with Benjamin Fong. They complained to Ms Maddy about the glaring sunlight, who told them that the sunlight would make the room bright and not dark. This time, she taught us about the shapes of volcanoes. It looked cool and of course easy, because Cikgu Baliah taught us that as well in Year 7. Once Ms Maddy left the class, Rick Tan pulled the blinds down as Ms Usha came in for her lesson. She told us that a Maths extra class was scheduled and anyone could attend. Few people, including me, raised our hands for the extra class which will be held on Friday (30th January). I seized the chance to ensure my Maths grades were okay. I can't afford to fail the Checkpoint exam. Ms Usha gave us a lot of homework. Everyone groaned. “You want some more?” she asked. “Complain some more, get more homework,” she said.
During the Character Transformation (CT) session, Ms Lim was coordinating the session. I have brought my CT file and shared a bit of my 2014 reflections with everyone when volunteered. The entire cohort cheered and clapped for me, being the first to volunteer. I then told everyone about the weather devices, the good results in Geography and the fun the previous year. Then, I was asked to share a piece of advice with everyone, and I said that everyone must cherish their relationships and time in Nobel as it will run out soon. Everyone gave me an applause before I went back to my seat. Then, Ms Lim said she will choose the next person to share and she pointed at Aristotle Koh, who laughed. He was too shy. Ms Lim told him it was best to be prepared, since he said he threw his reflection worksheet away.
Then it was time to head to the Art Studio. When we settled down, Ms Nadia told those who did not bring the art folder and art blocks to present them. Then, she yelled for us to take out our research of our artist as well as the picture containing a mug and broccoli from Ms Feeda's blog. I took them out and presented them to Ms Nadia, who instructed us to put our work in front for collection. Those who failed to do the assigned tasks were given three choices: to dance in front of the class, do pumping, or to write one thousand lines of “I will make sure I do my research and bring my picture and pay attention in class”. Eventually, they were given the freedom to choose their punishment. Ting Yi failed to bring his art block, art folder, print his picture and do his research, and Ms Nadia asked Ting Yi to sing in front of the class.
Ting Yi then asked if he were to do the Chicken Dance, and Ms Nadia agreed, so he tried to act funnily and laughed, which resulted in laughter from the whole class. Ms Nadia was not amused that he was taking up her time, so she asked him to return to his seat as Ms Nadia told us to draw the picture in our A2-sized art block.
The next day, Mr Victor brought us to the field near our school to do some running activities there. He then told us to run around the field and do some exercises. While we were waiting for our turn to do the assigned exercises, Yew Jan and James Wong plucked a banana from a banana tree nearby, and Mr Victor scolded them. He gave them a stern lecture and told all the boys that we will not go to the field anymore if this behavior continued. “People are talking and then you all are talking. What type of attitude is this? If you all behave like that, we will not come here (to the field) anymore,” he warned. He spoke for 15 minutes while the girls were allowed to return to school early.
When I returned to school, I told San Ying and Kit Lee what had happened, to astonishments. Zhue Xin was also not pleased when I told her about Mr Victor's statement. During break time assembly, Ms Lim was very angry when she saw that some people were not wearing black shoes and chided them. She even asked the prefects to do a fingernail check on all of us. Those who were not having their fingernails cut were pulled out and sent to Ms Lim, who wasn't amused.
When we returned to class, Ms Maddy pulled up the blinds again and started to continue talking about the tectonic plates around the world and the types of plates. Then, she told us to do some research on the Pacific Ring of Fire which is a zone comprising 80 percent of the world's volcanoes and tectonic subversion zones. Then, Ms Visa came in and everyone kept quiet, not wanting to trigger her emotions. She gave us our History coursework, which was to write a slave account on the transportation of slaves to Australia. I chose Derek Yong's group to work with for the project.
The day then continued normally. I needed help with Question 19 2B of the textbook which was the only question I couldn't solve. What a load of homework. It took me from the previous evening till lunchtime just to finish the homework. Oh wow.
Thursday then came, and Ms Joyce had a surprise for us. “Class, I want to ask you, that during break and lunch, do you observe how people talk? Your task for today is to target two people and to see how they talk to each other. Do it during break and lunch,” she said. Everyone was surprised. So, during break time, I went to see Geok Minh and Loo Zane talk. I observed a few people talk as well when I sat down at my class line. I wondered what kind of task Ms Joyce gave us. The assignment looked wacky, but I was determined to do it.
During GP, Ms Kiran came in and I presented my findings on the floods by sharing it to the class. Then, Branson Choon also presented his findings, and Ms Kiran told us to write a report on the findings. “Narrow your research down to economic loss,” she said, as she told us that we need to type in Times New Roman font, with a font size of 12 and present the research to her via her email, which she gave. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Usha had to quieten down the class before a long Maths lesson.
During lunch, I met San Ying and complained to her about how fast time flew by and that January was ending. “That's life,” she said. Then, I went to meet Caleb Chuang and talked to him as we walked around the corridors. Jordan and Rick followed us as I accompanied them. They were talking about Branson Choon's latest video game, Speedrunner.
After lunch, Ms Ng then came in and did a surprise pop quiz with us. She gave us a flower diagram and we had to label them. She also introduced to us two mneumonics: Mrs Gren and Brotocox, to allow us to easily remember the characteristics of living things and the respiration process. Mrs Gren was the funniest one of them all, and some of us even confused Ms Ng as Mrs Gren, hereby calling her Mrs Gren by accident. In fact, Ms Ng liked to talk about Mrs Gren a lot.
MRS GREN = Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Growth, Reproduction, Energy, Nutrition
BROTOCOX = Breathe in Oxygen, Take Out Carbon Dioxide
RIPE = Respiration Produces Energy
Then, we had Geography, and Ms Maddy rolled up the blinds, to Rick's outcry again. And during Mandarin, Ms Belle had to scold some boys in the class who were playing at the back; particularly Benjamin Fong and James Wong.
Friday soon came, and it was the last Friday of January. Oh wow. So fast. And Checkpoint is approaching and the year 2015 will end. Then it will be 2016, and then 2017, our final year in Nobel. I wish I could stop time, but it kept on roaming. On another note, there was a gathering of the sports houses before the morning assembly in order to sort us out into what we plan to do for Sports Day 2015.
As we were asked to sit in our houses, Wei Ming, Jonathan and the Year 11 committee members told us to sit in lines according to what we wanted to do for Sports Day. As I settled in, a young boy, Isaac Ng, waved at me. He had a nice smile on his face and was the brother of Ethan Ng, who is in Year 8 then and was a monitor the previous year. He waved and me as we had a chat. Behind the line, Jordan Tay and Sean Mark sat down in the marching line, but later on, they opted out of it. Ting Yi later joined them, but he remained in the marchpast squad. Then, Caleb Chuang joined as well. He had a smile on his face as he sat down.
Jonathan and Ivan were on all smiles taking down our names. Then, they went around and had a chat with everyone. The entire house was excited over what to do. Then, Isaac started talking to me and introducing himself. Isaac would eventually march for many years, and would soon become an assistant marchpast captain himself in 2018, before leading Bullseye as marchpast captain in Year 11 in 2019. Then, once things were done, Jonathan and Ivan announced the dates for marchpast practices and told us what was expected of us.
Ms Bee Yong then told us during assembly that the following week, the first week of February, will be our various sports house programs and that the house captains will be getting ready for Sports Day, which will fall quite soon. This got me pumped up. I then thought of meeting Caleb Chuang to discuss the plans for Bullseye. I had loads of them in my mind, but I wanted to discuss with Caleb Chuang first. But it would be best to do it during break time as we were headed back to class.
When we returned to class, I went for my English lesson, and Ms Joyce was briefing us about the Commonwealth Essay Competition. Ms Joyce was mentioning about the various categories, which involved dates of birth in the 1990s. “You all are born after 1st May 1997. You will be in the Junior Category,” she said. There were four questions. I chose the topic “Imagine what the world will be like when you are an old person”. It was compulsory then for everyone in Nobel to register for the Commonwealth Essay Competition, and of course, it was due on 1st May 2015, although, just like the previous year, we had to submit the essay early. Then, I asked Ms Joyce on how I observed people talk. She told us to take down notes and listen carefully. “Who else also watched people talk? Only Wei Yiang,” said Ms Joyce in disappointment.
During break time, I plopped down and sat down with Caleb Chuang, ready to rock our discussion with the various plans and proposals I had in mind. However, he was talking about the Commonwealth Essay Competition with Joshua Chew and Joseph Diong. In fact, everyone was busy choosing their topics.
When we returned to class, Ms Ng then did some exercises with us, followed by some usual business in Malay and Maths. Ms Usha then told us that the Friday extra class she scheduled for us had been cancelled. And then during Homeroom time, Ms Ng gave us discussions to do our class decoration. Rick and Eu Lynn were in charge of the decorations. I proposed to Eu Lynn the suspension bridge idea, but she kept that in consideration. Then, she asked Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Benjamin Fong and the rest of the boys in the class to contribute ideas. Ting Yi then brought the Friday snacks back from Uncle KC's stall as the project was placed on hold.
During the weekend, I met with my neighbor, Mr Hing, to discuss the gardening projects, and we had a bonding session together. As he works in Kuala Lumpur, his office was observing the Federal Territory Day on 1st February, but as it was a Sunday, the Federal Territory holiday was replaced on the following day, 2nd February. This date commemorates the formation of the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur on that day in 1974. Mr Hing told me that he will not be working and be spending time in the garden that day to do his gardening projects, as well as talk to my neighbors.
The next day, on Monday, 2nd February, Ms Bee Yong then met us in the morning assembly and told us about consistency in our studies. It was a fitting tune to the Checkpoint Exam for us Year 9s. And we went to our class for the Science lesson with Ms Ng.
The morning started on a rough note as the air conditioning broke down again. Benjamin Fong, Sean Mark and Jason Leing whined about the malfunctioned device, and Ms Ng then went to find a technician to get it fixed while she taught us. Then, during break time, Caleb Chuang and I met and started talking about Bullseye.
In my head, I was already thinking about the Sports Day. It would look good if Bullseye can win a second year. Bullseye emerged the overall Elementary School's Champion House in 2012 in the first year since its formation. We tried to win a second year, 2013, and expand our base to the Junior and Senior School, but failed. Fortunately, we won in 2014, but it was held at the Petaling Jaya Stadium instead of the Panasonic Stadium. This time, with Sports Day bound for the Panasonic Stadium again, I thought it would be interesting if Bullseye gets its well-deserved victory at Nobel's traditional venue for Sports Day. We have won the 2014 Sports Day and the 2014 Nobel Cup. It would be great if we can expand the success of the victory to the 2015 Sports Day, I thought.
I then sat down with Caleb Chuang to discuss the plans. I was thinking of where to start, but we were blank on that. Soon, break time ended, and we went back to our class for Malay following an assembly session which saw the prefects having trouble asking everyone to settle down.
When we got into the class for Malay, Cikgu Zura gave us some work to do, but Brendan Cheah kept on disturbing people in the class until Cikgu Zura had to call him to sit down and do his work. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Joyce met up with us in 9E, where she discussed the book of Acts and told us to prepare for the next chapters. She also launched our Bible Knowledge coursework, which involved us drawing a mindmap. Ms Joyce cheekily told us not to make our mindmaps very big in size or use quite a big paper. If anyone makes it big, I will reject your work,” she said, to laughter from the class. The entire class looked at me, thinking about the big weather devices from 2014.
The day went on, and Ms Lim then caught a few people playing futsal in the futsal court without permission who were late during lunch time assembly. Ms Visa then continued her lesson, peacefully, and the day went on as usual during Ms Belle's Mandarin class.
The next day was Thaipusam, and I spent time chatting with Mr Hing in his garden. Thanks to the replacement Federal Territory Holiday, he had a four-day long weekend as opposed to people who work in Selangor. When we returned to school on Wednesday, Mr Victor led us to the field once again to do some exercise. Then, we went around the field running. This was then followed by the usual sit ups and push ups he did with us at the basketball court. Evan, Hua Iong, Derek and Jian Wen then went to explore the surrounding housing area before being recalled by their teachers to return.
During break time, I met with Kit Lee and San Ying for a chat before meeting up with Caleb Chuang. Then, we sat down at the courtyard and discussed the plans for Sports Day. I then told Caleb Chuang that I was thinking of meeting Wei Ming first as the preparations for Sports Day were about to intensify.
When we returned from break, Ms Maddy then moved into our next chapter for Geography, which is on poverty and the 80:20 ratio between the progress of development. We were then divided into groups for History and I went to find Ze Khai, Derek, Jian Wen, Ryan and Wai Shaun to form a group together to discuss about our upcoming History coursework which was based on slavery and the shipping of slaves to America. Ms Visa then taught us about the Industrial Revolution, but she always had her eyes on Benjamin Fong and chided him for forgetting to bring his book. Benjamin Fong would normally make up stories about his grandmother and how his grandmother was involved in his housekeeping issues. Ms Visa also gave us time to discuss our History coursework, and I met Derek Yong, who discussed our pages and our parts based on the coursework. He detailed us the tasks, and I was told to summarize who did what in the coursework.
The day went on, and nothing much was done except for tonnes of questions that Ms Usha requested us to do. And Ms Joyce also told us to prepare some questions on education that we needed to ask and interview from. She also told us to present our findings on what Nobelians like to talk about, and I presented to Ms Joyce that Nobelians at the time like conversing on their favorite movies as well as school affairs.
The next morning, Ms Joyce met us for English, and told us that aside from presenting some interview questions on education, we had to interview one teacher to seek their views. So, I paired up with Gabriel Lim, who was sitting next to me. We then discussed and he had no clue which teacher to choose. So, I suggested Ms Kerry, the then-head of ICT as she can converse in British English quite well, since she is a foreign teacher.
Ms Kiran also had another interesting task for us. She taught us about how to do APA citations and she spent the entire lesson teaching us about the format. She told us that she planned to make APA citations a part of the GP project that we will do. In fact, it was more about words and also something interesting to learn in Year 9 back then. Then, she showed us the process of doing APA citations, the history of APA citations and how important it was to do APA citations. We also did some exercises on APA citations, and Ms Kiran told us to give our emails to her so that she can email us the slides that were displayed on the Smartboard. Ms Usha then gave us more exercises in Maths before we went for lunch.
Many people in the class complained about the large amount of homework and the excessive number of questions and exercises that Ms Usha had prepared for us. Nicole Kau then protested, saying that there were too many exercises. In fact, the whole class got quite up in arms. “Quiet!” cried Ms Usha before saying that she may give less homework if everyone was well-behaved. This wasn't the first time people complained, but it happened almost every Maths lesson. Ms Usha said that the homework can be completed if we spent ample time to do them, but however everyone said that there were already a lot of homework and some people could not even finish the homework. Ms Usha then pointed to us about the Checkpoint exam, which made the whole class groan. I didn't complain about the homework but instead tried my best to finish it. In fact, the Maths homework alone took till the following day and sometimes I would spend my time in the canteen to complete them if I haven't fully completed them. Before long, it was lunch and then Malay, and Cikgu Zura spent some time teaching while also trying to calm those who were noisy in the class down. Ms Joyce then told us to prepare the questions and interview the teachers the next day.
It was finally the end of the week, and we begun the day with an announcement by Mr Kevin Wai during assembly on the Kangaroo Maths Competition. Mr Kevin then told everyone who was interested to participate in the Kangaroo Maths Competition to receive the permission slips from their Maths teachers. After we returned back to class, Ms Ng then encouraged everyone to participate and asked those who were interested to raise their hands. Me, Branson Choon and Caleb Chuang raised our hands. “Only three ah?” asked Ms Ng, who was surprised. Then, Ms Ng told the three of us to get the forms from her during our Homeroom time before we begun our lessons in Science.
The day went smoothly as normal, as Cikgu Zura and Ms Visa conducted their classes. Ms Visa wanted us to do a mindmap on the Industrial Revolution, and I had good ideas on how to do it. I was planning to use Microsoft Paint to do the mindmap, and she told us to include key words as well. Then, Ms Usha came in during Maths and gave us time to finish our homework before starting her lesson. Then, she gave more homework again, and Wences, who was in our class, groaned. “Aw, teacher! Why so much homework!” he cried.
Ms Ng then returned with the forms for the Kangaroo Maths Competition and then passed them to me, Branson and Caleb Chuang before discussing some housekeeping affairs, such as the starting of sports activities the following week. After the Homeroom period ended, we got our Friday snacks and I spoke to Caleb Chuang on the plans. I then told him to sign up as well for the Sports Day tryouts.
As the Chinese New Year approached, the decorations were completely set up in the school compound, and the festive season neared. It was the second week of February 2015.
The morning assembly started with a series of announcements. Ms Bee Yong and Mr Paul then announced that our Sports Day tryouts would begin at the end of the week, which is on Friday, 13th February 2015. This got me cracking about my Sports Day plans. Aside from that, the teachers had planned a Career Week for us.
The Science lesson then begun, and Ms Ng said that the technician would fix the air conditioning later on. She then told everyone to be patient as the repair process was being delayed. Everyone then went through the lesson before heading for break time normally.
I then spoke to Caleb Chuang and told him that I will fix a meeting with Wei Ming either during dismissal or before school begins the next day, since Wei Ming, the house captain of Bullseye, was in Year 10 and had a different break time with us. I told him that I will decide the plans later on as it was too early.
The air conditioning was fixed as we returned after break. Benjamin Fong sighed in relief as the cool breeze enveloped the room. He walked around, lifted his hands up, shook his clothes to let the wind around his body, and laid down at the back of the room. He then rolled up his clothes and lay in the back of the classroom and grinned, to which Ms Usha had a very angry look on her face as she entered the room, unbeknownst to Benjamin Fong. She shouted at Benjamin Fong and told him to behave, as a few people from both 9O and 9N took advantage of the cool breeze as if they were in the North Pole. “Stop it or else I will bring you to see Ms Lim!” she cried.
This time, Ms Usha did not give us any homework. “I will let you finish the homework first. I promise that I won't give you homework during Chinese New Year. I want you to enjoy the celebration,” she said. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Joyce gave a funny tale on Ananias and Sapphira.
When I presented my Industrial Revolution mindmap to Ms Visa, she admired it a lot. “Very nice, Wei Yiang,” she said. Then, she scolded those who did not do their mindmap. The mindmap I made had a lot of graphics that depicted the history of the Industrial Revolution. I made it using Microsoft Paint, and it contained a lot of chimneys and smokestacks that bellowed coal and ash into the air. Ms Visa then continued to teach about the Industrial Revolution, which I admired.
The next morning, I went to the foyer to wait for Wei Ming. The moment he arrived, I immediately asked him about what plans they were having and he said that it was only the tryouts. I conveyed this message to Caleb Chuang, who nodded his head in amusement. Later, we had ICT, and Mr Narish gave a talk about cyberbullying to us. However, he had a hard time trying to get Derek, Jian Wen and Ze Khai in order as they were talking in front of him.
I met Gabriel Lim during break time and then I discussed with him on the assignment given by Ms Joyce. We then decided on interviewing Mr Mark Wright who is a teacher teaching First Language English in Year 10 and 11. Ms Joyce then told us to proceed and interview him without further delay. Then, during Maths, Ms Usha then gave us some homework. The class complained further and there were groans. “Why? I only gave just three exercises! It only takes one hour to do it!” cried Ms Usha, smiling. Everyone had to do exercise 3b, questions 6 to 8, exercise 3c, questions 1, 2, 4 and 6, and exercise 3d, questions 2 and 3 which involve equations.
Soon, it was lunchtime, and Caleb Chuang and I met to discuss the Kangaroo Maths Competition. Then, it was Character Transformation, where Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong briefed us about how the Career Week was to go and the path forward for our studies. After that, we went for Art, and Ms Nadia chided some people for being late. That can't be blamed as the Character Transformation session was quite long. Ms Nadia then showed us another presentation of Claude Monet before we did our artwork.
Wednesday, 11th February 2015, was our Career Week. We had our PE lesson as usual by Mr Victor, who did some strength training with us in the school hall. He asked us to stretch our legs and do some planking till my hand vibrated. Then, following break time, each class was divided into groups and we headed to different classes to experience our Career Week initiatives. The Career Week was spread out across the entire school.
My first session took place in 9O's classroom, where a computer technician, Mr Andy, came to present. Ms Ng supervised everyone in the classroom. Mr Andy was from Intel, a computer company and he came to share his expertise in the industry. He spoke for an hour and 40 minutes to talk about his life and his passion as a computer technician. Then, I went to listen to a presentation by an accountant, Mr Wong, who came to talk about his passion about accounting. Mr Wong reminds me of Mr Hing, my neighbor, who sells accounting products and was an ex-accountant himself. Then, during lunch, I went to find Mr Mark Wright to ask him for an interview the next day for our English assignment. Following lunch, I went to hear a presentation from a musician and a singer-songwriter who also presented much of her expertise too.
After the Career Week ended, I went to meet Mr Matthew Koh, who was discussing the career prospects with a group of students and what they should do to embrace and enhance their careers. At the time, I harbored ambitions to be a Geography teacher. Mr Matthew said that in order to be a successful Geography teacher, he suggested that I visit actual locations of natural sites such as volcanoes or jungles to gain experience and embrace the passion, as having visited the place firsthand would simulate and inspire future students to be passionate for Geography. “My first suggestion: visit Mount Bromo in Indonesia,” he said. Mount Bromo is close to home, but it is an active volcano on Sumatra Island, Indonesia. Mr Matthew said that Mount Bromo is one of the closest volcanoes to Peninsular Malaysia that he suggested me to visit.
The next morning, after English, me and Gabriel Lim went to Staffroom 1 which is near the Junior and Senior School's Management Office, to find Mr Mark Wright to interview him. Mr Mark was a then-teacher in Nobel teaching First Language English, and he was really convenient to talk. He wore glasses and had a big smile on his face. He told us to give him a second before he came out. Mr Mark spoke like a professional university lecturer as he answered our questions. He was very happy to meet me and Gabriel as we asked him in the interview. Once we were done, we returned to class with the notes we took down. During Global Perspectives, Ms Kiran continued the APA citation presentations, followed by Maths, in which Ms Usha gave us more work to do. "Little bit only,” she said. Then, when we had Science with Ms Ng following lunch, the reality started setting in.
Ms Ng blurted a lot of important assignments, such as our lab assessment as well as our Assessment 1, which will take place after Chinese New Year, on 6th and 9th March respectively. This made me feel a bit pressurized as I wanted to ensure that I did well in the Checkpoint Exam. Even so, my aunt and my mum were emphasizing on the importance of Cambridge Checkpoint.
As school ended, I went to find Wei Ming and told him about the fact that I would be coming the next day for the tryouts and that the best athletes should be selected for Bullseye. He agreed, but our conversation was cut short as he had to find some people and my name was called during dismissal. I waved goodbye to him, eager for the next day.
Friday, 13th February started on a high note as the school day begun with a briefing on Sports Day and the expected events. It was quite impressive. And during English, Ms Joyce also taught us to write an autobiography titled, ‘My Early School Days’. This riled me up in excitement as I like to write journals. Then, I met Caleb Chuang and I discussed with him about the Sports Day tryouts. He was quite excited and indicated his attendance.
Ms Maddy gave us our Geography coursework that made my day even more interesting. Of course, one might expect the most boring thing, but the coursework made me even more excited. We were tasked to build a model of the geology of two land formations which we could choose from, namely a volcano and tectonic plates. We needed to state the type of volcano or plate that we chose and do a description. We would have to build the volcano and submit it on 25th March 2015. My mind lit up when I received this coursework, as I had anticipated some fun for the coursework for weeks. I had been planning for this all along for sometime just in case. I had even imagined how it would look like even before the coursework was even announced. I grinned happily as Ms Maddy gave the assignment. I didn't talk to anyone about this. I was thinking of pulling of another sequel of the weather devices coursework from 2014.
Ms Visa once asked me during her class over what are my plans for Chinese New Year, and I said that I would be staying home and studying for the Assessment 1.
“You’re not going home? Why? You should spend some time with your family,” she said. My mum was sad when she had to take care of me as I was adamant on going back to my late father’s family side in Bukit Mertajam in Penang, or to my mum’s family’s relatives in Batu Pahat, Johor.
You see, teachers would give homework to us prior to Chinese New Year, and doing homework during the Chinese New Year would ruin the true meaning of the celebration. Chinese New Year holidays are traditionally meant for celebration, not for homework completion, as the time used to do the homework could be spent for quality time and family. We are also expected to do some revision during Chinese New Year as the Assessment 1 would take place in March. As such, Ms Joyce, Ms Ng, Ms Usha, Ms Maddy and Ms Visa as far as I was concerned, had given homework to complete during the Chinese New Year holidays. I decided to postpone the formal celebration till the exam was over; Chinese New Year fell on 19th February, while the Assessment 1 took place from 9th to 13th March 2015.
During Homeroom time, I passed up the permission slips for the Kangaroo Maths Competition to Ms Ng. Then, I spoke to Caleb Chuang on the Sports Day tryouts for a short while as Branson Choon brought back the Friday snacks. Then, Ms Sylvia had a chat with Caleb Chuang too. This time, I had to eat the lunch as I was staying back for the tryouts.
After school ended, all those people involved in the Sports Day tryouts were asked to gather at the canteen on the ground floor. Caleb Chuang and I walked together with Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Ivyna Ong and Eu Lynn for the tryouts as we chatted. “We have big plans for Bullseye, right Caleb?” I said. All of them cheered, except Caleb Chuang, who smiled slyly.
The Bullseye athletics squad for 2015 was led by Sin Hou Nan, who is Bullseye's Athletics Captain then. Assisting him was Ryan Chan, the guy who got me involved in the Nobel Cup basketball competition for Bullseye in 2014. Hou Nan had a lot of wrinkles and pimples on his face, but he had a nice hairstyle. The both of us had a chat while Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark went to the 7-Eleven shop near the school at PJ Soho to purchase some food and drinks. We placed our bags in the school canteen and waited while I ate my Friday snack and changed into my sports attire.
As the name-calling for the Junior and Senior School's dismissal time echoed the corridors and the hallways of the school compound, I thought of Checkpoint and the hefty decision to not participate in the Chinese New Year celebration. I thought about my activities that I would do during Chinese New Year. And I told myself and my mum that the celebration be postponed to after the end of the examination.
Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark and some people who went to buy food and drinks from 7-Eleven returned. Then, Hou Nan gathered everyone together and we went to the nearby field for our tryouts.
As we went down, Caleb Chuang and I walked together while Sean Mark talked to him. Then, as we walked, I told him about how things would go and that we will focus on our tryouts first. The plan was to have all of us go for the tryouts and see how things do.
Back in the heyday, I tried to participate in the 100m for Sports Day because I felt it was a short and popular racing distance. However, each time, I always lost to Sean Mark when I tried. At least, I got some chance to perform, at the very least.
As we reached the field, Hou Nan then told everyone to gather for a warm up session. Ryan Chan, Ashley Fang and a few of the other Year 11s were busy placing the cones that Mr Victor and Mr Paul had given them from the sports equipment room, and were arranging them to form the 100m course. Soon, Wei Ming arrived and joined in. We then begun our warm up as we stretched our arms, legs and did some jumping jacks in the same manner Mr Victor taught us. Then, Hou Nan and Ashley Fang led us for two laps around the field. I then ran with Caleb Chuang as we talked and laughed, and Sean Mark and I playfully tried to race each other.
Once we gathered following the warm-up run, Hou Nan then told us to be segregated into our categories as each student was given the chance to run in their tryouts. I asked Hou Nan what was coming up next, and he told me that Ryan Chan was involved with those doing the 100m as he was coordinating those who were running longer distances. Ryan Chan told me to wait while he gathered everyone. I just watched patiently as some of the students went to buy drinks while also glancing at some people do their runs.
The hot, sweltering sun did not dampen my mood being outside. The cool breeze blew in my face as Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark went to get some drinks. I spoke to Caleb Chuang for a while on how we should go about our tryouts as the first phase of the plan. He smiled and nodded. Then, he went and spoke to Sean Mark while Ivyna waved at me. "How's your running? Are you starting yet?” she asked. I told her I was waiting, to which she cheered at me and wished me the very best.
Then, it was my turn, and as the Year 7 students who were in the tryouts came back from 7-Eleven, Ryan Chan called me and told me to line up with a few others for my turn to run 100m. So, I was the first. He then told me to stand by. Ashley Fang was on the opposite end of the court. She was lifting her hands up, and Ryan Chan told me to start when Ashley lowered her hands. So, he did the countdown, and as Ashley lowered her hands, I ran as fast as I could. Then, it was Sean Mark's turn, followed by Caleb Chuang's. Before long, Ivyna then had her turn in the 100m and then the 200m tryouts.
After finishing, Ryan Chan told me to stay back for a second round of tryouts. While waiting, Caleb Chuang then went to 7-Eleven again and bought back some fried chicken. He then ate some as I then spoke to him about how I went. Then, Ryan Chan told me that there was no need for a second round that day and the second round of tryouts would most likely fall after Chinese New Year.
Then, Ivyna came by and I discussed to her what I spoke to Caleb Chuang about our Bullseye plans. She smiled, nodded and grinned. Then, Yan Ying approached her and she was quite excited to hear my plans with Caleb Chuang. When all was done, Hou Nan led us back to school as the weather got hot and after half of the Bullseye people were done with their tryouts.
Upon reaching school, I then told Hou Nan that we should select the best athletes for Bullseye based on the plans that I have discussed with Caleb Chuang. He seemed very excited and he told me that I was quite interested and enthusiastic. Then, I bade him farewell as I trudged to the foyer. Benjamin Fong, Brendan Cheah, Brandon Ooi, Jordan Cheam and a few other basketballers were playing basketball in the school hall and there were some girls from Year 7 playing netball by tossing the ball into the netball hoop.
During the weekend, Derek Yong met us to finalize the History coursework report, and we had a meeting till midnight. I even brushed my teeth in front of the video call with him, and he was surprised. He called us to finalize our report for the submission the next day.
It was the last Monday (16th February 2015) before the Chinese New Year holidays. I came to school in the morning and took out my Science books and read them in the canteen. I was determined to ask Ms Ng some questions before the Chinese New Year celebrations. During the morning assembly, Ms Bee Yong said that we should enjoy the celebration while not forgetting our studies. And the latter part got me pumped up given the fast-approaching Checkpoint Exam. When we got back to class, Ms Ng then asked about our Chinese New Year activities before we begun our lesson. I then asked Ms Ng quite a number of questions, and Branson Choon and Ting Yi were also doing the same. Then, I got my Maths book, went to the canteen, sat alone and flipped through the book to study. Xin Yi, Janelle Tan and Isabella Wong then brought in a birthday cake for Pei Chi, who was celebrating her birthday, and this resulted in the whole canteen singing the birthday song for her. It is common for Nobelians to wish each other a happy birthday and sing birthday songs together as a school.
During Maths, I took out a French curve ruler and showed it to Ms Usha. She smiled and gave the thumbs up as she had told us to buy a French curve for our lessons. Then, she also told me that we will be using the French curve mostly after the Chinese New Year holidays. Ms Usha then gave us work, and once I was done, I went to ask her for some aid on some Maths questions. When I told her that I would spend the time studying during the holidays, she said that it was equally important that I cherish the celebration instead. “The Assessment 1 is after Chinese New Year, so that's why I wanted to study during the holidays,” I replied. We then had a fruitful lesson during BK as Ms Joyce cracked some jokes with us.
The week went on normally, and we entered into Tuesday, 17th February. It was raining that morning, so we went up to 9O to wait for the school day to begin. Le Anne and a few girls in the class then brought some presents for Megan Lee, who was celebrating her birthday that day. As Ms Ng arrived to take our attendance, the whole class sang the birthday song for Megan. It was a fruitful last day before the Chinese New Year holidays. Mr Narish then held a mandarin orange in his hand and told us that it was given to the teachers for the Chinese New Year celebration but it would be given to the most well-behaved student in the class. Then, he wished Megan a happy birthday before cracking some jokes with her. He then asked a few questions on ICT, to which I replied correctly and gave me the orange. I then took it and then kept it in my bag.
During break time, the whole canteen sung the birthday song for Megan. And the day went on normally. Everyone wished each other a happy Chinese New Year and our teachers wished us that too. Ms Usha then joked of giving us more work but then she asked us to only do one question, to laughter from the whole class. “I give you only one question, okay?” she joked. Ms Visa told me to go and spend time with my family for the Chinese New Year but I was reluctant. We were the first to pass up our History coursework, while Ms Visa deducted marks and scolded those who failed to finish. As we entered the last lesson, which was Mandarin, Ms Belle then taught us about the Chinese New Year festivals and what we were planning to do during the celebration.
In place of the dismissal song, a series of Chinese New Year songs were played to wish everyone in Nobel a happy Chinese New Year. I only got a little bit of time to enjoy the songs before my name was called and I had to go to my aunt, who was waiting for me.
During the Chinese New Year, I focused on the volcano project. I decided to make a cone-shaped volcano and spent a lot of time using newspapers to mold the volcano. I spent most of my Chinese New Year holidays to complete it. I want to make a large volcano-shaped sculpture to woo my friends, because I want to show off, just like the weather devices which I made in Year 8. I managed to complete most of the volcano, but however aside from not painting the volcano, which I preferred to do later, I did not tell my friends that my volcano would be humongous. It would be the largest volcano and Geography project, and I would amaze Ms Maddy just like how I amazed her with the weather devices. The only thing was, that I decided to keep it even more secretive than in the past and not communicate any tips at all. Fortunately, I managed to complete my homework and did proper revision during Chinese New Year.
On the eve of the Chinese New Year celebrations, my sister and my aunt headed back to Penang for the Chinese New Year. My mum shed tears on the drive home from the bus terminal as she had to take care of me and was unable to celebrate the festival. She felt that it was important to make time for the family and asked why did I make such a weird decision to study during the Chinese New Year. I just ignored her and decided to press on with Cambridge Checkpoint preparations. It looked so difficult and also quite close in terms of scheduling Assessment 1 just a week after the Chinese New Year holidays.
On the first day of Chinese New Year, I took out my Science books and did revision and notes. My next-door neighbor was having his Chinese New Year celebration as his family members came over from Johor Bahru to meet him. The inner heart of me wanted to join in the celebrations while my mind was pushing me to focus on my studies. Why, oh, why, does the Assessment 1 had to be scheduled so close to the Chinese New Year celebration? Anyhow, my neighbor reached out to me as I was doing my gardening in my porch and invited me over for their Chinese New Year dinner. My mum urged me to accepted. I did so reluctantly.
One of my neighbor's family members, Mr Simon, told me that the purpose of Chinese New Year is to spend time with family, which is more important. While studies are important, it is the root of the family that is being treasured and cherished most. I had a short chat before going back to study. I made a tonne of notes during the Chinese New Year holidays.
Following our Chinese New Year holidays, the school announced during the morning assembly on 25th February decided to have a fashion show run for Chinese New Year. Each class was given the opportunity to participate in a fashion show contest to celebrate the Chinese New Year celebrations. So, for the fashion show contest, each class had to select someone to participate in the fashion show as a model.
Each year level was given a theme to participate in the fashion show. For Year 9, our theme was “Angpow” and each class had the creativity to see who was the best. In 9O, everyone had trouble finding out who should wish to do a fashion show run. Many people were shy as to do the fashion show run, and no one wanted to volunteer to show off in front of crowds of people. The fashion show run would take place on Monday, 2nd March 2015, in the school hall, during assembly when we celebrated the Chinese New Year celebration.
During the History lesson, Ms Visa chipped in to see who can participate in the fashion show run. “I have one suggestion on who should participate,” she chimed.
“Who?” everyone asked. “Sean Mark,” replied Ms Visa.
Everyone laughed, as Sean Mark felt embarrassed. “No, please, no,” he said, smiling embarrassedly in front of Ms Visa. “No! You are the best one! You should go, right or not? You should go,” she said.
Ms Visa then relented. “If not Sean Mark, then Jason Leing,” she said. Jason also reacted the same way, and thus Ms Visa did not know who to choose. It was then when I decided to volunteer. Jason and Sean then pointed to me and suggest I go, and the entire class was happy and clapped enthusiastically.
“You’re sure you want to go?” Ms Visa asked me. She felt that I was the unlikely contender. I nodded. As opposed to my primary school days, I am not afraid of standing in front of a crowd and I had some ideas beforehand on how to execute the plan. In the end, the class chose me to participate in the fashion show competition.
Jason then took me aside before lunch time to teach me the dance moves for the fashion show. “You must wiggle your buttocks,” he said. Sean Mark was grinning. “Then, you must move up, down, twirl around and balance yourself. Then we win [the competition]”, Jason added. “Good job. Good job. Luckily you volunteered, otherwise we have no one to represent us.”
Aside from that, the rest of the week was just preparations for our Assessment 1. And Ms Ng also gave us a new timetable which would take effect on 2nd March. Several things were changed, and one of them was the change of our Health teacher from Ms Sylvia to Ms Renee, who was one of the Bible Knowledge teachers. Everyone was surprised, and Jason, Benjamin Fong and Sean Mark asked Ms Sylvia, curious to know why she didn't want to teach us Health Education. Ms Sylvia said that it was a decision by the management. We also had a new Health teacher named Ms Renee. She had joined Nobel at the end of last year, and she is quite a very friendly teacher. She was serious when she talked about the health risks, and some of them made me shiver, because talking about blood and death is quite scary. Ms Sylvia still remained our assistant class teacher.
So, as planned, on Monday, 2nd March 2015, the school had the Chinese New Year fashion show run. The celebration started with a series of performances and emceeing by Mr Steve and the Mandarin teachers, namely Ms Belle, Ms Ting and Ms Lee Kaesy, telling us about the history of Chinese New Year and Chinese culture. Meanwhile, outside the hall, each class was getting their representative ready for the fashion show run. All the fashion show contestants were lining up outside the school hall, near the foyer.
Eu Lynn, Ivyna, Jason and Sean Mark got me dressed up. They wrapped me in a series of angpows which had been woven together to create a linen armor. Then, they dressed me up and plastered angpow over me.
“Very good, very good,” said Jason. “So Wei Yiang, when going onto the stage, do funny moves, okay? Then we win,” Jason continued, and then he grinned at Sean Mark and Eu Lynn.
Chong Vicky from 9N, Pei Chi from 9B, Kelsey Tay from 9E and Jane Yap from 9L were the other people from the Year 9 classes participating in the fashion show contest. A few teachers were involved in judging the competition. When it was time for us to enter the school hall, we lined up on the right hand side of the stage as Jason Leing wished me all the best. Then, the announcers were announcing the names of the individuals one by one as they paraded on the stage. When it came for my turn, all the people from 9O screamed loudly, especially Jason Leing, Ting Yi, Sean Mark, Rick Tan and Le Anne, as they cheered me while I walked and did some funny moves and actions. Following the fashion show, everyone from the Year 9 classes posed on the stage before being escorted away. I removed my Chinese New Year attire and disposed it off once the stage run was done. In the end, 9E was the winner of the fashion show contest.
When we returned to class, Jason Leing and Sean Mark praised my good acting that made everyone laugh. Then, when we had our Science lesson, Ms Ng also said that she liked my fashion show outfit for the Chinese New Year fashion contest. She also reminded us about our Assessment 1 and wished us all the best.
As the Assessment 1 arrived, I planned to put the efforts I made by studying during the Chinese New Year holidays to the test. During the assessment week, I managed things quite well and I was able to do quite okay for my exams.
Ms Ng then told us that for our Science Lab assessment, we were to be placed in the same lab groups for the assessment as our seating arrangement in the Science lab. Fortunately, I sat with Caleb Chuang, so everything was alright.
Most of our teachers postponed the assessments for their subjects so that we can have one more week to study for the exams. Ms Usha told us that she would do the assessment the following week because of that. "I know all of you enjoyed your Chinese New Year holiday, so I am giving you one week to study if you have not studied,” she said. I groaned and told her that I gave up my entire holiday to study for Assessment 1 and not celebrate Chinese New Year for that. Ms Usha took pity on me, but however, she consoled me. “Since you studied, you should be better than the rest, since you had one more week to do so.”
After school ended, I then went for my marchpast practice. Jonathan was doing most of the practices with us, and he had done some of the basic drills before Chinese New Year. The school had begun preparing for Sports Day 2015 early in the year. We had already elected Lim Wei Ming and Deanna Lee as the house captain and assistant captain at the end of 2014, and what I was thinking was whether we could win 2015. The previous year’s Sports Day was held at the Petaling Jaya Stadium next to Paradigm Mall, and the 2015 Sports Day would take place at the Panasonic Stadium in Shah Alam once again. I was thinking how Bullseye could win and if it does, it would be Bullseye’s first Sports Day victory at the Panasonic Stadium.
Winning two years was not a norm at the time; it was a tradition for each house to pass the trophy around. If Bullseye had won the 2014 Sports Day, and Touchdown the 2013 edition, the next edition should, by right, see the trophy being passed to the next house. It had been a different house winning the Sports Day since I came into Nobel in 2008, and the order I had seen in the past was green (2008), blue (2009), yellow (2010), green (2011), Bullseye (2012), Touchdown (2013) and Bullseye (2014).
Wei Ming and I had a good relationship, and I also have good connections too with many of the Year 10s and 11s as well as some of the juniors then, so it was a good thing to start. I needed to tell him what should be done so that the other houses’ plans would be stopped in their tracks, enabling the Bullseye victory.
Back in February, Wei Ming gathered all the Bullseye members for a house meeting just before the Chinese New Year holidays. He addressed everyone during the house meeting of his vision.
“So guys, you see, we have won last year’s (2014) Sports Day. I want to see all of you participating and coming together, because we can win again!” he cried, to applause from the Bullseye members. He was a very jovial and sociable captain, but also a serious guy. Wei Ming had a vision and a clear determination to win from his attitude, and he hopes to prove that in the Sports Day.
On our first meeting last week on the 27th February, as mentioned, we signed up for the competition, and Ivan Hiew, who coached us futsal last year for Nobel Cup, was the marchpast captain. He had a very strict attitude when commanding the marchers, and Jonathan was also as strict, but jovial. He was a very understanding guy towards all marchers, but however, Wei Ming was the best bet to do the commanding.
During the marching training, I met Isaac Ng again. He was very friendly and likes to talk to me. Isaac would normally talk to me about the practices and how things have gone. Jonathan Ong is normally very friendly and he would check on us while we did the practices. Ivan is a bit more stricter and he always tries to threaten us with pushups, even if there was a slight mistake.
Jonathan would normally conduct most of our trainings especially after school. He had a calm voice when he trained us. “Squad, attention!” was his first usual command, and he would ask us to look in front. Then, he would go around checking our movement as we did our practices. He drilled us most of the time, after school.
On our first practice for march on 2nd February, which, unfortunately, I haven't explained earlier, we practiced in one of the Year 11 classrooms on the first floor. Mainly, for our marchpast, we had three marchers; Ting Yi, me and Caleb Chuang. Zi Quan also joined in for one of the practices as well, but then he opted out.
Jonathan always likes to train us to stand at ease for long periods of time. This is because during the Sports Day, we would be standing in the field of Panasonic Stadium for at least 30 minutes. So as such, Jonathan trained us to stand for long periods of time and urged us to resist the urge to scratch ourselves, wipe our sweat, or look around. We had to focus in front, because the team that is the most disciplined will score 1000 points for Sports Day.
“Look in front. Don’t scratch your heads,” he would gently say. He was very calm, and had also commanded us in 2013 before Chor Lit and Shaun Lam arrived to command us. Back in 2013, Wei Ming would also command us as well as he had a loud and stern voice.
Ivan Hiew was also gentle, but he was rather more strict than Jonathan. He had not commanded us for some time despite being march captain, but his strictness would unfold later towards Sports Day as he was believed to have had been suspended at the beginning of 2015. So, when Jonathan was practicing for the dance competition with Jarod Ee, Jeremy Yeap would take over and command us for the time being; but most of the time, Jonathan would be doing the commanding. When Jonathan or Jeremy or even Ivan were not in, we would march with another house and do joint practices together, since most of the commands were the same. Hence, I met many marchpast captains; Rebekah Lee was the Homerun march captain, and Alexander Fulton was the Slamdunk marchpast captain, along with his assistant, Jun Yin.
The third assistant marchpast captain for Slamdunk, Lee Ken Ming, was also the vice president of the Student Council. One good thing that I like about Ken Ming is that whenever things are done he always gives the reason. There was one time he explained every single marchpast move and Coleman and why did we need to do certain actions. His reasoning comforted Slamdunk’s marchers and he's always seen as a gentle and humble guy.
For instance, he always explains the reason why a right dress is needed. Right dress requires the marcher to put his arms forward and to the right if there is a marcher in front or is beside him. “When you right dress, you are basically forming yourself into an organized format so that each person would have the same distance between each other and also have enough space so as not to hit anyone.” In comparison, no other marchpast captain would do so, and neither would Alexander Fulton, who was strict with his marchers.
Apart from that, Lim Wei Ming, our house captain, will do the drillings on behalf of Jonathan, Ivan and Jeremy.
Whenever there was time, namely before school and after school, I will try to meet with the captains, if possible, to propose any plans or initiatives for Bullseye. The plans for Bullseye would be crafted by me and Caleb Chuang, and we would discuss the plans during break, lunch, or any free time during class, and then we would finalize them and I make the proposal to Wei Ming or anyone from Year 11, based on which field they are in, be it athletics, march, dance or banner. Before discussing them, I would consult my friends from Year 9 about the plans, and then present it to the respective individual for consideration.
I have to also let everyone know that for 2015, Bullseye had a very wonderful dance captain named Jarod Ee. Jarod Ee is a member of the Dance CCA in Nobel then, and he always likes Korean K-Pop stars. He would normally have cool moves during the dance events and concerts, and he had been planning something cool for Sports Day. On top of that, we also had many notable and wonderful athletes from Bullseye, like Ryan Chan, Sin Hou Nan, Prudence Wong and of course, the one and only speedrunner, Sean Mark.
Speaking of the word “speedrunner”, Branson Choon likes to play a game with the same name, titled, “Speedrunner”. He likes to talk about this game with Ting Yi, Jordan Tay, Rick Tan as well as Caleb Chuang. They would yak and whine about that game during break time, lunch time, after school and so on. They know about this game; even Jason Leing knew about it. So, Caleb Chuang and I decided to come out with a plan called “Operation Speedrunner”, which was aimed at ensuring that Bullseye wins the 2015 Sports Day. The plans for Bullseye would become more impressive and weird over the years, resulting in many successive Bullseye victories in the years ahead. Even the house captains were excited with the plans. They adopted it, and those who did had a year with a Bullseye win.
“I know, right? We have BIG plans for Bullseye!” I told Caleb Chuang, and he just told me, “what plans?” he asked. I would continue to boast about the big plans and how we can not only make Bullseye win, but also outbeat Branson Choon in my so-called “indirect competition” for the Cambridge Checkpoint.
The operation was divided into four parts. I spent my entire time, every day from January to March, to craft out the plans with Caleb Chuang. I would jot all the plans down into the Student Organizer and propose them to Wei Ming.
Firstly, Caleb Chuang and I would observe what the other houses were doing, in order to inform Wei Ming of the impending impact. This would set the basis for the Plan A. This plan is important because we want to thwart all the other houses’ plan first. When we talk about Plan A, we are talking about how the other houses would attack us, and how we could overcome it. Most of the time, I would do the observations, and I will propose to Caleb Chuang and see if it is true. Normally, he would nod his head most of the time in agreement, particularly because I was right. Plan A is more about analyzing what the other houses are doing, and to warn Wei Ming or anyone in Bullseye of the incoming threat, and how we would take steps to avert the disaster.
Caleb Chuang and I would then proceed to plan B, which would mark the start of the main operation. The operation would see us telling everyone how to respond and in what way we should respond. I once saw Touchdown conducting more trainings for Sports Day, and to counter that, I told Caleb Chuang that we should ask the captains from Bullseye to plan a different training layout.
For the Sports Day, I had planned that we should enlist a few people to run the Sports Day events during Sports Day. I thus also told Sean Mark that he would need to join or else Bullseye would lose. Sean Mark agreed, and so did Jason Leing. Apart from that, I also told the Bullseye committee then that the banner should be filled with glitters and bright colors in order to reflect the light easily and thus capture the judges’ attention. I also told Jarod Ee himself to come up with cool dance moves. In fact, he came up with really cool dance moves, and I asked Ivyna to discuss more with Jarod on that; she unanimously agreed. Even Pei Chi was happy with my suggestion.
Plan C would see us coming up with creative initiatives on how to promote Bullseye. I told Caleb Chuang also that we need to promote Bullseye so that if we are best promoted, we would be able to be more motivated and the Bullseye members would have more motivation to participate and win. I had a lot of cool initiatives to promote Bullseye; one of them was to fly toy helicopter drones which carried the Bullseye flag. However, the project was shot down by both me and Caleb Chuang ourselves immediately after proposing it, because we felt that if we were to go ahead with the plan, the management would oppose it as it would be quite dangerous, and these type of drone items would need permission from the management. Not to also mention that at the time, it is illegal to fly recreational drones that take such pictures.
Plan D was to use Plans A, B and C to be directed to everyone in the house and involve more people in the decision making process for the sake of victory. I regularly discussed this with Caleb Chuang and all the people in our year level, who gave us the thumbs up. There were some people who weren’t interested but showed some excitement when we presented the plans. Ivyna, Yan Ying and even Kit Lee got interested in the plans.
When I proposed the plans to Wei Ming, he really liked our ideas and suggestions and also promised that he would definitely bring it up with the committee. Ultimately, the committee approved and adopted many of our suggestions, and Caleb Chuang was happy when I said that Wei Ming and his team did many of what we proposed. I gratefully thank him for accepting our ideas. In fact, no one had proposed such wacky plans before. The only risk of proposing it, was that the plans would be leaked. The biggest risk of leaking the plans would be Megan Lee and Heng Le Anne spotting the plans and proposals being executed.
Now, Megan Lee and Heng Le Anne are too excited and like to see me and Caleb Chuang be together. Megan and Le Anne caught their attention on me and Caleb Chuang always talking together, and they would be so excited when that happens. They would then cry, “Best friends!” repeatedly, and Rick Tan and Ting Yi would occasionally join in. If this happened in 9O, the entire class would grin at us. If it happened elsewhere, then most of the people from the other classes would peer at us. If it happened during Character Transformation (CT) time, then the whole year level would fix their eyes on us as we had caught everyone’s attention, and this would be the same for PE. Normally, during PE, Caleb Chuang and I would do our push ups, sit ups, and all the funny moves together, and Megan and Le Anne are the first one to notice us and cry out “Best friends!”
Caleb Chuang and I would normally do courseworks, projects and presentations in the same group, and we were about to present, the whole class would purposely listen to us attentively. Not a single one would move or make some noise. I would eat, do some work, team up and do anything in school in Year 9 in 2015, with the one and only Caleb Chuang. And Caleb Chuang and I would answer questions in class attentively, and then Ms Ng will praise us, and when I turned around, Megan and Le Anne would have big smiles at me and Caleb Chuang. I’m sure that with too many descriptions of Caleb Chuang, I think everyone would be tired. Everyone would jump on the bandwagon whenever me and Caleb Chuang spring into action. It’s like the Nobel version of Phineas and Ferb.
Anyhow, back to the practices. Jonathan said that I have always regularly came after school. He praised those who did. Then, Isaac scratched his head. “Don't scratch! Look in front!” cried Jonathan. Wei Ming then came and did more drills with us. Then, Isaac and some others tugged their shirts because the weather was hot and they were sweating. On the other side of the school courtyard, Ken Ming and Jun Yin were doing their marching drills. Rick was part of the squad. When the practices were over, I asked Jonathan where was Ivan Hiew, as he was our march captain and was missing in action for months. “Ivan is suspended. He will not be here for a week,” said Jonathan. Ivan was suspended for something he did wrong; and what made things worse was that he was a prefect.
The next day, 3rd March 2015, was the Geography Modular Test for Plate Tectonics. The test was quite easy. Rick groaned as he tried to do the test following break time. When Ms Maddy released the modular test results for Plate Tectonics, I did a pretty good job for my Geography modular test and got 81% for the Plate Tectonics test. Rick would always moan when Ms Maddy is in the class as he hates Geography. He normally scores a C for Geography and shuns me whenever I dance around with high As. Caleb Chuang also did pretty well, although he scored a few points short of me. I groaned when I saw Branson Choon ahead of me. “You lost!” teased Branson.
As we went for Character Transformation, each class was told to build a pair of twin towers using a series of chopsticks and masking tape. The teachers told us we could come up with any design for the towers. I coordinated to a certain extent, the design and engineering of the twin towers using the knowledge I obtained on the documentaries that I had watched during my free time on construction projects. “Wei Yiang, you tell us how to build it, since you like to talk about construction so much,” said Rick. The goal was to build a twin-towered structure, along with a skybridge slotted between the two. The teachers would then fit a heavy object onto the skybridge to see if the tower could withstand the load of the object.
Jason Leing also ushered me to design the tower. I told him that the tower would need to have a large footprint of chopsticks to support the load and channel the load down to the bottom. While I wanted a small gap between the twin towers so that the load of the object could be borne on the structure via the skybridge, some of the people in the class wanted a tall tower with a large gap. Secretly, behind the scenes, I was already planning the design of my volcano. I wanted to increase the height of the Geography volcano model to rival all the twin-towered designs. Indirectly, it was a race for the sky.
All the teachers were going around and checking on the designs. I quickly took out a test pad and drew a design and showed it to Eu Lynn, who was the main coordinator. However, Eu Lynn rejected the design and they went with their own ideas. I just took a lot of masking tape and buttered the structure to the floor of the school hall.
9O's twin towers consisted of a latticework structure with a thin bridge. 9E had the tallest twin towers with a pyramid on top of it. 9N's design had two crosses on top mimicking church spires. 9B and 9L's towers represented two pine tree-shaped structures.
When the teachers put the object on the towers’ skybridge, many of them collapsed with the exception of 9B which held up perfectly and the class was awarded points. The one for 9O held up a bit thanks to my earthquake-style bracings and thick buttresses, before slowly toppling over and collapsing.
During our Art lesson, Ms Nadia told us to bring the picture of the broccoli with the mug, as well as some A2 paper. Those who didn't bring the A2 paper quickly borrowed some from their friends before the lesson started to escape Ms Nadia's ultimately very harsh punishment. We did some observation studies in the class.
Then, the next day, during PE, Mr Victor said that the school would do a Sports For All event. Sports for All was an initiative at the time to get people to participate in the track and field events. The Sports For All allows people to race among their house members during PE and judged in the same way as Sports Day. The results from Sports For All will be contributed to the official Sports Day tally.
Mr Victor then asked us to gather in our sports houses, and Ms Sylvia assisted us. As all the Bullseye members gathered together, Ivyna was very excited. “Ivyna! Caleb Chuang and I have big plans for Bullseye!” I cried. Ivyna's eyes lit up, and I told her about the latest plans Caleb Chuang and I had. As the Cheer Competition was coming up, Caleb Chuang and I were planning for the competition. The competition was to be held on 13th March 2015, and I was planning to show off with Caleb Chuang on the contest.
“We must shout as loudly as possible. We must win the points, so that Bullseye can be great,” I told Caleb Chuang. I had planned to bring a megaphone to scream, but Caleb Chuang asked me to opt out against bringing it as it would not be a fair game.
“We must lead the team. We must scream first, and then when everyone got inspired by us, they will scream with us,” I told Caleb Chuang, grinning at what was to transpire. “Chill”, he said and asked me to be patient. Cheer Competition contains bonus points, so I wanted us to have a head-start. Ivyna's eyes lit up once again. “Brilliant plans!” she cried. Caleb Chuang then sighed as Mr Victor briefed us on what we will be doing. He said that the boys would go to the field near the school in order to take part in the 100m and the Shot Putt activities. The girls, meanwhile, would remain in the school premises for the High Jump and Long Jump events.
Mr Victor then took us to the field, and I kept explaining to all the Bullseye members my strategy for the Cheer Competition. “Guys, you see, I have calculated that we will lose the Cheer Competition. We need everyone to come and cheer. Then we can win.” All the Bullseye members agreed, and Ting Yi kept asking me why is it always me and Caleb Chuang coming up with the plans. “Are you Caleb's dog?” he asked, referring to a dog tailing its owner and following him wherever he goes.
When we reached the field, Mr Victor, Ms Ting and Cikgu Zura told us to get into our positions. Mr Victor coordinated the 100m races with Ms Ting, while Cikgu Zura was in charge of judging the shot putt events.
I decided to go to the 100m first. Mr Victor then begun with the 9N, 9O and 9B students first while 9E and 9L . While we waited Caleb Chuang and I discussed the plans further which made Ting Yi and Jordan Tay annoyed. “Wei Yiang, why are you always talking to Caleb?” asked Jordan slyly. “Ya, Wei Yiang, why are you talking to Caleb?” Ting Yi chipped in. Soon, the whole line was saying, “Right, Caleb?” a phrase which I always use when answering teacher's questions and explaining things.
Soon, it was our turn, and Derek Yong was the first to race with Jian Wen who was from Touchdown, and Ze Khai who was from Homerun. Mr Victor asked one person from Slamdunk to come over. Rick volunteered. Mr Victor asked them to start. Derek ran quickly. He ran and then fell over and laughed. Jian Wen and Ze Khai were running and Jian Wen was laughing when his stomach flopped and flipped with him being big-sized. Mr Victor chided them for their behavior during the run.
Then, it was my turn, joined by Benjamin Fong, and we ran. Benjamin Fong was puffing and panting while we ran neck and neck. In the end, I overtook Benjamin Fong as Sean Mark and Jason Leing cheered him on. Soon, it was Caleb Chuang's turn and he ran with Aaron Loke. Then, when Ting Yi ran, he screamed and shouted in funny noises till Mr Victor scolded him.
Once we were done with the 100m, we then headed towards Cikgu Zura, who was conducting the Shot Putt. Apparently, some of the boys were playing with the shot putt ball and it made her unhappy, since that ball is a heavy metal ball and could break people's bones in a gentle fall. So, she told them to behave.
When it came to our turn, Jian Wen threw the ball but it dropped close to him. He laughed. Then, it was Ze Khai's turn. He managed to throw it a bit further but he throwed in a lousy manner. When it was my chance to hold the ball, I managed a mediocre distance as it came close to the goal line.
After all the events were finished, we went back to the school compound and then met with everyone in the hall who were doing their high jump. The girls from 9E and 9L were doing a large high jump performance. Zhue Xin was doing hers. She ran and then leaped over the crossbar without even touching it, and landed onto the mattress with a loud boom. The crowd roared. Then, everyone who returned from the field sat down to watch the girls do high jump. Caleb Chuang and I followed Mr Victor to see the long jump for a short while before heading to the school hall to watch Ms Sylvia conduct the high jump events.
Once the PE lessons were over, Benjamin Fong, Christopher Chew and Aristotle then played a game of basketball in the courtyard before heading to the school hall, while I went for my breakfast and had a chat with San Ying on the high jump events. Once things were done, we went back to class for Ms Maddy's lesson, where we did some work and revision for the whole day, as usual. Ms Visa then gave us some exercises on the Industrial Revolution, and the rest of the day was spent doing some Maths and Mandarin work.
The next day, 5th March, was Sean Mark's birthday. Jason Leing and Benjamin Fong were wishing Sean Mark a happy birthday and everyone wished him too. The whole class sang the birthday song for him. Then, when we went for English, Ms Joyce outlined that our Assessment 1 would be the following week, 12th March. We then did some work in class. That day was also our Science Quiz, and it was quite easy to do for me, since I had studied much this time. Ms Renee also outlined our first Health Education curriculum, and she first talked about the structure of bones. She said that we can get the slides from her by emailing her.
The next day, 6th March, was the Science Lab Assessment. The day started when Lim Wei Ming gathered all the Bullseye members to hand out leaflets containing Bullseye's 2015 House Cheer. Jonathan told us to stay back for marchpast practice that afternoon. Then, when we returned to class, Ms Joyce gave us work. When we went for our break time, Ms Lim was walking around and inspecting those who were playing basketball in the courtyard. Then, following our break time, we went back to class and got our lab coats ready to head to the Science Lab for our Lab Assessment.
Ms Ng was waiting for us in the Science Lab and told us that our lab assessment was to do a test for starch in a leaf. Each group was provided with a test tube, a test tube holder, retort stand, ethanol and a pair of tweezers. Everyone was provided with gloves and we had to wear the gloves while handling the experiment as part of our lab assessment. Ms Ng then provided some worksheets as part of our assessment and told us that she will not give us tips. In fact, she told us that she will only assist us in handling the logistics and nothing else.
Jordan Tay and Caleb Chuang then proceeded to receive a piece of leaf from Ms Ng. Then, we filled the leaf with water and placed a bunsen burner under the test tube to heat the water and the leaf up. Once everything was done, I recorded the observations with Caleb Chuang while Ms Ng watched. Ryan Marc's group, consisting of Jian Wen, Derek Yong, Ze Khai, Wai Shaun and Ryan Marc himself were having a lot of trouble trying to do the assessment and they eventually got bad grades. They blamed each other and were unsure and unprepared for the test.
When we headed back to class for Geography, Ms Maddy then continued the 80:20 topic with us. Then, in Maths, Ms Usha wished us all the best for the exam. Ms Ng then came back for our Homeroom period and discussed with me and Jian Wen about the possibility of us swapping places so that I can sit in front. Ms Ng also gave everyone messages regarding the Sports Day 2015, which will take place at the Panasonic Stadium once again for the first time since 2013. After school ended, I went for march practice with Jonathan, who told us to fall in. He then caught Isaac and a few others who came late and asked them to do push ups. Then, he did some drills with us in the courtyard on the marching commands while trying to ask some basketballers not to disturb us. After the practices, Jonathan said that there will be practices the following week after school hours every single day, and urged us to come. Some people groaned that they need to do their assessments and study for it, but Jonathan said that ample time should be given for studies.
The next week was important. It was the hallmark of the assessment. Ms Bee Yong addressed the assembly and Ms Lim also wished everyone the best. Ms Ng then came in for our Science lesson afterwards, and she gave us our lab assessment results. Ryan groaned at his result as it wasn't good. Following break, there was the Maths assessment and the BK assessment. Ms Visa then wished us the best for her subject, hoping to see good results, and Ms Belle told us about our assessment scope for Mandarin, which was on Lesson 7 and 8. After school ended, Jonathan then took us into another series of drills, but since there were less people, we combined with Touchdown to do the marchpast together.
The next day, it was the ICT assessment, where Mr Narish gave us a series of instructions to follow on the computer. And then, it was our Malay assessment with Cikgu Zura. Fortunately, I was able to do them.
When Ms Usha came in for our Maths lesson, Wences asked her how did everyone do. “I haven't marked your papers. I will let you know after the holidays,” she said, referring to the First Mid Term Break the following week. Then, it was lunch time, and Ms Lim said that everyone had to be quiet as to not disturb the Year 10 and 11 students who were having their assessments. Following lunch, we then had CT and we did some icebreaking activities and character traits, before heading to the Art Studio for Ms Nadia's Art lesson to continue our A2 paper drawing. After school ended, we then went for our marchpast practice with Jonathan.
On Wednesday, 11th March, it was time for us to have a chance at the high jump. This time, the girls followed Mr Victor to the field, while the boys stayed back in the school hall to participate in the high jump events.
Ms Sylvia gave a stern briefing before we started on how to jump properly, and where we were supposed to stand. “I don't want to see anyone standing next to the mattress. Is that clear?” she asked when trying to highlight the dangers of being too close to the high jump platform.
The lights in the hall were on except for some in the middle, which were off. Ms Sylvia then gave the green light for 9E and 9L to begin while 9N, 9O and 9B were ushered to the long jump pit near the school's entrance. When we got there, Caleb Chuang and I continued to talk about the long jump events and Bullseye as well, and this resulted in all the boys looking at us to find out what we were talking about. James Wong and Sean Mark assisted in marking out the location of where we landed on the sandy pit, while Mr Steve coordinated those who jumped.
The 9N students begun first. Glen Kay did a funny jump into the pit and joked with Mr Steve. Then, when it was our turn, I jumped and landed in the pit which caused my feet to be filled with sand. Jian Wen then jumped and then he made a large crater which splashed the sand all over the place till Mr Steve had to dodge the flying sand. James Wong, who was sitting next to Mr Steve, got sand blown into his mouth till he had to cough things out. Once things were done, Mr Steve then told us to go to the school hall for the high jump activities with Ms Sylvia.
When we got to the hall later on, Ms Sylvia then demonstrated the proper way to jump. As 9N was not ready, Ms Sylvia then got 9O to do the jumping first and as such, we lined up according to our name list. So, we begun and as such, Aaron Loke was the first to jump. He ran a bend and then leaped upwards, catapulting himself over the bar, but however, he hit it and the bar fell. Fortunately, he landed on the mattress, so he was secure. Ms Sylvia praised him for attempting a good try. Then, it was Benjamin Fong's turn. He then ran towards the bar, but he missed it. He then ran around and aimed for the bar, but he jokingly missed again. And then, he ran again and then jokingly stopped and tried to act like a monkey, climbing onto the bar. James Wong and Sheng Jit laughed from the side. Ms Sylvia was very angry with him. “Benjamin! If you act like this again, I will disqualify you,” she warned. This time, Benjamin Fong agreed to really jump. “Okay, teacher, I am really jumping now,” he cried. He ran towards the bar and did a funny somersault, catapulting himself over the bar to cheers from the crowd, and landing onto the mattress with a loud boom. However, he rolled over and crashed to the ground. “Ow!” he cried. Ms Sylvia then stopped the jump attempts and told everyone to be careful. She said that she will not tolerate such behavior and as such, will cancel the marks if necessary.
Then, it was Caleb Chuang's turn to jump. He made a lightning dash to the mattress, and jumped. He hit the bar and it fell. Ms Sylvia clapped as Caleb Chuang successfully landed on the mattress. Then, it was Wai Shaun’s turn and he jumped. Ms Sylvia held his glasses before he lept. Then, it was my turn, and I also got a shot at leaping over the bar, but I hit it and it fell, and my head was dizzy when I landed on the mattress. I got up and walked aside. Soon, Rick Tan jumped. The most funny part was Jian Wen trying to make his attempted. He jogged towards the mattress and crawled and rolled on it, but Ms Sylvia asked him to redo his attempt. He ran and then leaped, but then the crossbar fell and the two supports hit his buttocks. Everyone laughed as it felt reminiscent of one's buttocks being spanked by teachers.
Then, it came to 9N's turn to jump. Glen Kay then amassed quite a jump as he laughed and cackled before he lept. Before long, other people were jumping. Gabriel Lim also did an unsuccessful attempt, but Ms Sylvia encouraged him to do better as he was scared to do the high jump. Gabriel had told me that he was scared of leaping at such a height in the high jump while he was waiting for his turn. Soon, the girls returned from the field with Mr Victor. Mind you, unlike the boys, Mr Victor was much more sociable to the girls, particularly in the sense that they were well-behaved and not as naughty as the boys.
Megan Lee and Le Anne then caught sight of me and Caleb Chuang walking around and saying hi to one another. “Best friends!” they cried. The rest of the girls watched as people from other house took their turns to leap. I took some time to talk to people like Zhue Xin, who asked about my Bible Knowledge exam.
Once the PE lesson ended, we went for our break time, and following our break time, we then had our Geography lesson with Ms Maddy. She reminded us about another modular test happening the next day. Previously, in the past week, during our modular assessment for tectonic plates on 3rd March, she also reminded us about another modular test happening on Thursday, 12th March. “Unlike this test (tectonic plates), this one is an atlas test, which means that you do not have to study for this test, but instead, you can refer to your atlas during the test,” she reassured us as some people groaned about the need to care for the Geography modular assessments aside from the assessments of the other subjects.
The next day, we then had our English assessment as Ms Joyce invigilated. However, I looked forward to the Geography Atlas Test where it would be a piece of cake for me. When that test came along, I rejoiced and completed the examination in 45 minutes while checking everything to see if things go south, just in case. Then, we had our History assessment with Ms Visa, who kept chiding Benjamin Fong for not being prepared for the assessment. During Art, Ms Nadia completed a drawing with us on shape and form, consisting of a sphere, cube and pyramid with their shadows as if light was shining on them. She drew a lamp on top of the objects to denote the direction of the lamp for us.
After school ended, we went for our march practice, and Jonathan reminded us to practice our house cheers. “If you do not know the house cheer, please start memorizing or getting a copy from me,” he said, handing out a leaflet. Caleb Chuang and I motivated the marchers to cheer the next day, as Jonathan asked everyone to ensure their presence at the cheer competition the next day.
The Cheer Competition is an opportunity for each house to showcase their house cheers, and it was held on Friday, 13th March 2015. That morning, Caleb Chuang and I arrived early. I arrived at 6:45am as usual. Then, I went to eat my breakfast in the canteen, following which, I went to the school foyer to patiently and attentively wait for Caleb Chuang to arrive. While waiting for him, I talked to some of the people from Bullseye who reached school and were walking to the school hall or courtyard for their assembly.
At 7:15am, Caleb Chuang arrived with Mr Chuang, who was carrying a black briefcase. I then told Mr Chuang about the plans we had. “Yes, please, go and cheer. Shout loudly!” he cried. Then, Caleb Chuang and I had a chat as we walked to the school hall. Then, Megan and Le Anne cheered us as we arrived. “Best friends!” they cried again. The whole Year 9 cohort clapped as me and Caleb Chuang approached.
We were asked to gather in our houses at 7:30am, and the house captains took turns practicing the cheers with us. Bullseye’s cheer went like this:
“Hey, we’re back! We’re back to take the throne!
We battle, we fight, like champions on a roll!
Go Bullseye!”
Wei Ming and the committee members were already arriving as I greeted him. He was busy doing certain things, and then, he turned to us to make the announcement.
“Bullseye! I want to hear everyone cheer as loud as you can. Please shout as loud as possible!”
Jarod Ee, Jonathan Ong and all the Year 11s then went around, trying to encourage everyone. When Wei Ming made the first round of cheers, no one bothered to answer. “Come on! Louder!” he cried. The entire house tried their best to cheer, some being shy to cheer. Mr Paul was in the school hall trying his best to encourage us.
“Alright. House captains, you have another five more minutes to practice your cheer with your houses, and then we will start,” said Mr Paul. I groaned and cried out to the crowd, “We must scream louder, right Caleb?” Caleb Chuang just asked me to sit down and practice the house cheer with Wei Ming. Then, Isaac also stood up and tried to motivate everyone, inspired by the acts of me and Caleb Chuang.
“Bullseye, you can do this. This cheer is worth 50 points. We must win,” cried Wei Ming, addressing the Bullseye members. Some of the Bullseye members looked demotivated, as Wei Ming tried to encourage them, with Jonathan helping him.
Caleb Chuang and I stood up and called out to the members. “Come on, come on! Come on Bullseye, come let’s go!” I cried, and Caleb urged them on. Everyone looked at us in disbelief. Wei Ming then egged everyone on and praised us for our commitment. “I can only hear two people screaming! Where are the rest of you?” he cried. Then, Isaac also called out, and Wei Ming told everyone to ramp up their emotions. Sabrina Qistina gave me the thumbs-up for my motivation.
Soon, the time came to cheer, and we were the second one to cheer. When I cheered, I screamed so loudly till Caleb Chuang covered his ears. We had to scream three times in order for clarity from the judges. The order went as follows, starting with Homerun, Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. Mr Sures, Ms Ingel, Puan Halimah and Mr Chuang were involved in the judging. Each time I screamed, the other houses looked at us, and Megan and Le Anne were chattering about me and Caleb Chuang screaming, from their Touchdown side.
“Which house has the loudest cheer?” Mr Paul asked the judges. They then said Homerun was the best according to their judgement as they were interviewed one by one, and Mr Paul awarded the 50 points to Homerun, followed by 30 points to Bullseye, 15 points to Slamdunk and 5 to Touchdown. “Aiyoo!!!” I cried, and put my hands on my face. Wei Ming gasped as he had to contend with a poor standing. He then pumped his fist up in anger and thought to himself of ways to bring Bullseye back up top. Caleb Chuang and I groaned at the disappointment, as Megan and Le Anne snickered at us. “Best friends!” they cried. “Hahaha, you guys were not loud enough!”
I walked back to the class with Caleb Chuang following the assembly. “We need to think of a plan,” I told Caleb Chuang, as I thought how we can get over it. Megan and Le Anne then came over us and told us they saw us screaming, and I told Megan, “Just you wait. We will beat you soon!” Caleb Chuang groaned uncomfortably as Megan and Le Anne kept on asking how much fun he had with me. Then, we went for our English lessons, where Ms Joyce kept on telling us on how we had to improve as she had started marking our English papers.
During break time, Rick Tan then said that the Slamdunkers were much more cooperative and that the so-called “plans” by me and Caleb Chuang failed to work and urged me to give up. “You know what, Rick? I have a plan B. We will come after you next,” I said. Bullseye was last in the overall standings. Then, I met Caleb Chuang to refine the next plans involving the marchpast. Rick Tan watched from the sidelines with Wai Shaun and Desmond Chan. Later on, during Geography, Jonathan came and passed the permission slips to me, Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi to allow us t come back during the school holidays to do our marchpast practice. The lessons then continued as usual, before Ms Ng came in during Homeroom time to show us motivational videos from Ted-X, a public speaking organization. In fact, Ms Ng had told us during the Science lab session on how wrong did we got our experiments into, saying that some of us had to redo the experiments again.
Since 2013, it was tradition for everyone to come back to do errands for Sports Day during the holidays. As the holidays lasted for a week in March, everyone saw that as an opportunity to get everyone together to do practices, as it was impossible to arrange everyone on normal schooling days because of after-school CCA and some people had after-school tuition elsewhere.
On the first day of the holiday practice session, 16th March, only around 10 marchers from Bullseye came back. I would eventually come back during the holiday season to train for the marchpast. Nickolas Liang, Nicholas Tee, Caleb Chuang, Isaac Ng, Wern Shern, Ting Yi, Aaron Yong and two other people came back, excluding the march captains. I arrived early, and then Jonathan arrived. He told us to wait for everyone to arrive. Then, as we had four people, namely me, Nicholas Tee, Nickolas Liang and Isaac Ng, we started the practice. The marchers would practice in the courtyard while the school hall was used by the dancers.
Jarod Ee later then arrived and started practicing the dance, trying to correct everyone’s moves along the way. He had mixed a few compositions of pop songs and rock music, as well as fast music in order to get everyone to dance to the beat easily. Jarod also had more of his dancers coming back than the marchers; I believe it was because of the air conditioning and the more leeway given to dancers than marchers that made everyone come back. Apparently, it was mainly the marchers and dancers that came back to march.
Jonathan would usually train us to march for around half an hour before having a 10-minute break. He would then proceed to dance and interact in the school hall during our marchpast break. When he was busy, he would ask us to join with other houses to march. So, there was one time we joined marchpast with the Slamdunk squad. Alexander Fulton was commanding, and he was very strict. He spoke with a bold, sharp and fierce voice. Other times, we would be commanded by Rebekah Lee with the Homerun marchers. If there were less marchers from Bullseye, we would also join in with other houses’ marching squads in order to train. If the weather was good, we will train in the courtyard; if not, that means we would either train in the hall or in the corridors facing the courtyard.
During the break time from our practices, all of us would proceed to see the dancers dance, and I would also meet Ivyna. I would most of the time greet her and she would also greet me back. She always says I am very nice and kind, and she is grateful to have me as a friend.
Jonathan said that most march captains will punish people with push ups and he said he was too lenient. He will normally punish those who scratched, wiped their sweat or disobeyed his instructions. For comparison, Alexander Fulton punished the entire squad once and forced all of them to do push ups on the ground if they performed badly.
Each day, we would practice from 8:00am to 11:00am or sometimes until 12:00pm. Once our practices were done, Jonathan would continue with all the other dancers for their practices as he is also involved in the Bullseye dance competition as a participants. Every house’s marchers or dancers would come every day during the holidays, Monday to Friday, to train. I would then tell my strategies and proposed them to anyone who was there. Wei Ming would always come to check on all of us during our practices, and he would come everyday to check on us. Most of the time, Wei Ming would do all our marching practices together as he had the loudest voice.
Wei Ming would always check out for us and ask us to do the “stand easy” position to test if we can stand for a long time. For comparison, Alexander Fulton would order everyone for pushups if one scratched or moved an inch.
Every time I did the marchpast with the Bullseye members, the captains could only hear me shouting as I had the loudest voice. “I can only hear one person shouting!” they cried, as they tried to get more people to shout “left, right, left”. Shouting “left, right, left” loudly would get everyone to be synchronized. The only problem when synchronizing became an issue was when we stopped saying “left, right, left”, when the captain shouted, “Squad!” and paused. When we saluted, Jonathan told us that we can humn and mumble softly in the tunes of the “left, right, left” commands because it will help us in determining our direction and our steps. We did many rounds of practices in terms of communication and coordination as well as synchronization. Sometimes when we march, our sweat fell into our eyes, and despite the itchiness on our body, we were told to resist the urge to scratch.
Monday, 16th March 2015, was a sunny Monday morning during the school holidays. As I arrived at the school gates, a couple of people were standing there in their sports attire, which I also wore. Apparently, the guards had not allowed us to enter the school because no proper documents were submitted. Back then, in order to enter Nobel's school premises during a non-schooling day, one would need to submit a letter to the management team, and they will issue permission slips for everyone to complete and show before entering the school. Anyone who was coming back would need to sign on a name list provided to the security personnel before being allowed entry. And, not only that; they had to wear school attire so long as the Nobel logo is present.
Most of the people who were gathered outside were Bullseye dancers, but there were also people from other houses as well. Apparently, some of the captains might not have had submitted the documents, resulting in the guards refusing entry to the school. So, as I got out and stood with the dancers, we talked about our practices. Everyone waited for 30 minutes outside the school. Soon, Jonathan arrived and asked what was happening. A few of the marchers were present, such as Nicholas Liang and Isaac Ng. There was a commotion as Jonathan negotiated with the guards. Before long, Jarod Ee, Ming Xuan and Deanna Lee arrived to complete the forms. Wei Ming arrived and negotiated with the guards. After a teacher arrived and settled the issue, the guards allowed entry into the school. Everyone had to write their name on a piece of paper. The guards said that they will submit the papers to Ms Bee Yong for her notification.
Once everyone was allowed entry, we placed our bags down. Then, Jonathan told us marchers to wait while he went to speak to Jarod Ee. Ivyna and Eu Lynn were there, along with Yan Ying, ready for their practices. Then, Jonathan did the commands with us. “Squad, fall in!” he cried, asking us to assemble. Nicholas Liang and Isaac Ng were late, and Jonathan chided them for being late. “Don't make me do push ups with you,” he said. Then, the commands started following as Jonathan walked around, telling us not to scratch. I stood still. Then, he asked us to do the quick march, and we belted out, “left, left, left right left”. Jonathan could only hear my voice as I was the loudest.
Once we spent around half an hour practicing, we took a 15-minute break. I went to the school hall and said hi to Ivyna. Jarod Ee was showing off the cool moves with his rock, pop and catchy music which he edited. Then, I walked with Jonathan and talked. I kept an eye on him just in case he told us to come back. Then, he called all of us to fall in. Nicholas Liang was late, and Jonathan forced him to do ten push-ups. He tried doing them playfully, and Jonathan scolded him. We then did some drilling around the courtyard. It was getting hot, and some of the Year 7s in our march squad were scratching. Jonathan then called them out to do push ups as he did the ‘stand easy’ pose with us, which was to stand for ten minutes uninterrupted. He said that the marchpast at the time consisted of the most points, and that if one of us scratched, we would be in trouble.
On the other hand, Lee Hua Fong, the brother of our very good friend from our batch, Hua Iong, was busy commanding the Touchdown marchers. Then, Wei Ming came over and commanded us before having a break. I then chat with him while Nicholas Liang, Nicholas Tee and Isaac Ng went to play basketball.
Back in the hall, the dancers were playing games on their phone, and Jarod Ee had bought some Chinese cuisine for his dancers. It was 11:30am, and I would be leaving quite soon. I then spoke to Jarod on how to improve his dances. I told him to include some more cool moves. “I will see how,” said Jarod, grinning at me. Then, I told Ivyna to also discuss with the dancers on how to improve and make it more cool so that we can win more points, and she also agreed. I then went back for one final session of practice before my aunt came to pick me home. Jonathan then dismissed us and I asked him about the arrangement the next day if we were blocked by the guards, and he said that he and Wei Ming will settle it. My aunt and I discussed about how interesting the “commanders” were on the car ride home.
The next day, everyone was blocked again, but Wei Ming arrived in the nick of time, saving us from a long wait. He delivered the forms and papers and had a friendly talk with the school guards. Then, Koay Cher Khai, who always follow me on the car ride home, arrived. Mind you, he's quite friendly, but on that day, he had a disagreement with Wei Ming over the two of them contacting each other. Then, we fell in for our marchpast with Touchdown and Homerun as we had less marchers. Rebekah Lee was commanding that day. Wei Ming and Cher Khai argued most of the time during the practice. Then, Wei Ming threatened Cher Khai to do push ups. Once the practices paused for a break, the two of them exchanged barbs while Jonathan and most of the other captains went to the hall. I followed them, and we watched the dance while I read the newspaper.
Afterwards, we returned, and Wei Ming then took over to do the commanding. We were too fast in our tempo, and he pointed that out to us. Then, Nicholas Liang and Isaac tickled each other during the march practice. Jonathan scolded them and forced them push ups again. Wei Ming then took a few saves from the basketballers. He shouted at them not to disturb the marchers. We then continued, as Jonathan swerved between the dance and march practices.
On the third day, Caleb Chuang came for the practice, but we had less marchers. So, as such, we joined together with Slamdunk, and on that day, Alexander Fulton was commanding. He was very strict that day. Rebekah Lee was also strict, but not as strict as Alexander Fulton. He had a habit of punishing the whole squad just because of the mistake of one. His assistants, Ken Ming and Jun Yin, were much more lenient. Ken Ming kept on explaining about the reasons why the punishments were introduced and why the marching techniques were as such, in a bid to cultivate some understanding among the marchers and get them to cooperate. He used a soft approach, which attracted those who were lost, and his actions were comforting.
Alexander Fulton threatened punishment on everyone as he belted out command after command. He then told us to take a break, and said that the whole squad would do push ups if even one was late after his countdown. On the other hand, there was athletics practice that day. As we were having a break, Megan and Le Anne looked at me and Caleb Chuang while we were marching, and smiled. When we were having a break, they called all the dancers to look at us as we spoke to Jarod Ee and Jonathan.
On Thursday, 19th March 2015, we had surprise guests coming in to the school for our practices; Sean Lam, our 2013 Sports Day assistant marchpast captain. He came to assist the training of everyone for the Sports Day. Sean was wearing his red cap as he came in later in the practices. The marchers had to share the school hall with the dancers because it was raining.
“Squad, right dress!” he cried, and then everyone muttered, “Check, one, two!” Sean was very unhappy with us. “That’s horrible!” he cried. He would use deep English to proceed with the commands. So, Sean would drill us.
“Some of you are scratching, some of you are not shouting loudly, some of you are not disciplined and late! What is the problem with you? If you don’t buck up, all of you will fail! Do you understand?” he cried.
Sean then continued more rounds of drilling and asked all the leaders to check. Jeremy and Wei Ming adjusted my hands if need be, and continued to check to see if anyone unwittingly stepped out of tune.
“Squad, attention!” Sean cried, and everyone stomped with a loud “Check!”
“Much better. Good!” he yelled in applause.
Earlier, Sean was surprised when the stand to attention was a reply of “Check” because for Bullseye’s marchers, it was “Stoo!” Wei Ming and Jonathan then explained to him that they needed to change the marching lineup. Apparently, the teachers requested that Bullseye follow the uniform command of “Check” when the command of “Squad, Attention!” was belted.
In the hall, Sean had good rapport with the committee members. Naomi Seah was also present, and she also had a chat with Jarod Ee, who explained the coordination of the dance. Soon, lunch was served, and I sat down with the Bullseye committee members and all the captains from other houses, and we had a good chat.
On the last day, 20th March 2015, the final Friday of the school holidays, Jonathan, Wei Ming and Jeremy decided to coach the dancers on the moves they should march, as they would follow the marchers behind the marchpast contingent when marching on the field on Sports Day. So, I decided to lead them as well. Jarod Ee and his dancers had stopped practicing and were ready to march. So, when I arrived, Jonathan was speaking to Jarod on the plan for the dancers to follow behind the marchers as it had been done for the 2013 and 2014 Sports Days. However, Jonathan said that they would not do the same marching moves as last time as opposed to what we marchers had to do. Everything went well as we looked forward to the following week, as Jonathan said he expects us to return the coming week as we had to do our march and dance practices at a full rehearsal organized by the school.
Training the dancers to march as the marchers was a norm back then. I really like the dancers marching behind the marchers because it would add some pomp and fanfare to the parade of marchers. At the same time, it would showcase the best of Bullseye.
So, Jonathan and Wei Ming did the commands. Jarod Ee, Jonathan and I stood in front to lead and demonstrate as Wei Ming shouted the commands. It was fun. The whole hall looked at us parading and showing off, and I smiled happily. Then, Caleb Chuang joined as well, and then he marched along. Megan and Le Anne directed the whole hall's attention to the Bullseye squad, especially when me and Caleb Chuang were leading the dancers. To add insult to injury, Sean Mark and Jason Leing were there, grinning along with Megan and Le Anne. We did a total of five rounds of practices as Wei Ming then told the dancers what to do.
The next week, we returned to school, energized for the big day. Apparently, most of the time was used to discuss our Assessment 1 papers. Throughout the weekend, I was engrossed about the news of Lee Kuan Yew being in hospital. He was Singapore's first prime minister and led the development of Singapore. I always think about him when planning my Bullseye plans. The People's Action Party (PAP), which he leads, has won every Singaporean general election since Singapore attained self governance in 1959. And because Singapore uses red as its theme color, I felt the same should be said for Bullseye. Even the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party in Malaysia had also won every election since Malaysia's independence. I felt that Bullseye should somewhat do the same. However, I feel more inclined to the Singapore story when talking about Bullseye, because it is about the initiatives Lee Kuan Yew did to Singapore that made it famous. And I believe that Caleb Chuang and I should build on his legacy and do the same for Bullseye.
On Monday, 23rd March 2015, Ms Ng called me and Jian Wen for a talk, and Jian Wen was convincing to get me to swap with him. Then, Ms Ng said that we can do the swapping at the end of the week as it will be very hectic to do it quite soon. I agreed. Then, we discussed the Science papers. I got a 50% for Science, while Branson Choon got more than 80%. I felt sad over me sacrificing my Chinese New Year holiday to study for the Assessment 1. Later on, we had Maths, and I found out I also got 50%. Although these results were just at the halfway point for Maths and Science, I feel happy as I have improved from the 2014 results, and am ready to face the Checkpoint Exam in principle. However, I felt that so much work had to be done just to get a 50%.
The next day, we had our ICT lesson with Mr Narish where he did some work with us in ICT. Ting Yi and Branson Choon then spoke with him and conversed about the latest tech, video games, as well as football. They were talking about the FIFA video game. Mr Narish also introduced us to the Audacity application and gave us our first coursework, which was to make an Euthanasia podcast using the Audacity application. I then teamed up with Derek, Ryan, Ze Khai and Jian Wen for the coursework. Then, we went for our break time. I was looking at my Science textbook as I sat down at the lower canteen and chat with my friends over what had happened with my grades. After some time, Nigel Chew, who had been made a prefect recently, came and told everyone to leave the canteen. “All late, all late,” he cried. I wondered what was going on. Turns out that we were all late for the break time assembly.
You heard me very well that I sat down at the lower canteen. Folks who know Nobel's old campus very well will know that the lower canteen is located on the left side of the school hall, just to the left if you were sitting in the hall and facing the stage. That area is scary territory. This is because at that time, 90 percent of those who frequent that location would always end up in the late line during break or lunch assembly. The reason for this is because there are no loudspeakers to beam the music for the assembly. What made matters worse is the absence of a clock in the lower canteen back then to tell the time. Had there been a clock or a loudspeaker, there would be no lateness as it clearly was only the accidental capabilities of the students that they do not hear the music or had no means to refer to the time. The excuses of being unable to hear the music or the absence of a clock were normally shouted down by Ms Lim, who would normally ask people to bring a watch to look at the time. She said it was no excuse to be late and we should be responsible for ourselves. At the same time, majority of students in the late line were Year 9 students, because the Year 9s would normally be seated at the lower canteen for their meal. Fortunately, on this occasion, Nigel Chew and the other prefects just let us go back to our classes as normal. Ms Lim wasn't present too, and what a narrow escape it was. I peered at the courtyard, where the assembly was taking place, and saw Derek Yong and the people from 9O looking at us. Then, they were also dismissed to walk back to class.
I then asked Derek if he heard the music being played, and he said he didn't hear any music being played. Then, I sat down in my seat as Ms Maddy set up the class; switching on the Smartboard and preparing her lesson plans. I felt quite down because I was always known for being punctual and quite perfect; no disciplinary issues, no problems and so on, and then this happened. I was thinking if the prefects took notice of who came late, and whether I would be demerited. Fortunately, no demerits would take place on this matter, but I was uncertain and in shock over what had happened.
Then, I felt a pat on my back. It was Ms Maddy. She was smiling at me. Then, she presented me my Geography Atlas Test paper. I scored a 98% for that test. I was quite surprised. Ms Maddy whispered to me not to tell everyone that she had shown me the paper earlier to me. Eventually, Ms Maddy told my mum during the PTM that I was feeling down and she wanted to cheer me up. When Ms Maddy eventually handed us the papers, Ryan Marc was shocked. Eventually, everyone was surprised. After the discussion, I then went to check my results with Branson Choon, who was really hiding his script away. Then, I glanced at it. “Hah! 72%! Too bad, you lost!” I cried. Branson groaned. What a way to really compete.
Wednesday, 25th March 2015 was the telematch day. Aside from that, it also the due date for the Geography volcano coursework. On that day, all the participants had to wear our 2014 Sports Day attire which was the attire for the previous year’s Sports Day. My volcano was the tallest volcano in Year 9 for the coursework. Oh well. I wanted a sequel from that weather device the previous year. So, when I brought it to school, everyone wowed and gasped at the sight of the volcano, as other people compared their size to mine while I boasted about the height of my volcano. Ms Maddy, just like the weather device, was as impressed. Ms Maddy asked us to place our volcanoes and models in 9B where there is a store room for her to keep them so that she can mark our work.
The volcano could be seen from around the school hall. From the entrance, people can see it. As there was a pathway dividing the front and back class lines for the year levels, and that my volcano was next to the pathway, the route the students took from the entrance at the foyer to their class lines in the school hall felt like a drive across the then-new east span crossing of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. It had a self-anchored suspension bridge which looked triangular, just like my volcano. I had been thinking of this coursework for months, waiting to execute it. And just in the nick of time, a lot of good things happened! Caleb Chuang, I tell you, was really shocked at the volcano being erected by me. Oh yes, I managed to do it. Again!
The telematch competition was held at a field near the school. To be exact, it was the field where we did our PE lessons. We first gathered in the school hall before leaving for the field. On another note, Lee Kuan Yew, the former Singaporean prime minister then, had passed away on the 23rd March 2015. The news came in late. I really adore him for his vision and mindset he gave to Singapore. In fact, no offense on this but I really had a feeling he might pass on quite soon. He really did Singapore much good. I took some time to read about him and his passing and how Malaysia had a lost opportunity to keep Singapore within the Federation.
When I placed my volcano in the class, I placed it behind the class as it was spacious. The entire class examined the volcano like police inspectors. Then, Caleb Chuang and I went down. We gathered in our house lines, and Mr Paul was really asking us to settle down quickly, saying that bonus points will be given to the house that settles quickly. Soon, Mr Paul awarded the house points to Bullseye, and I shouted so loudly until everyone looked at us. After a few bouts of briefing, Mr Paul gestured for us to follow the teachers to the field.
As we were led by Lim Wei Ming, I stood in front of him and chatted with him about more plans, as well as what we were going to do next for the telematch. I told Caleb Chuang that we would be participating, and that we must do the actions very fast on the telematch games. He said yes and nodded. Megan and Le Anne then soon caught up to us and smiled. “Wow! Best friends enjoying themselves!” they cried. “Urgh! Why me? Why me?”, Caleb Chuang asked. Caleb Chuang then pretended to cover his face while talking to them.
There were two fields located in the neighborhood where Nobel International School was then, in Kelana Jaya. There’s this one big football field which is located next to PJ Soho which we used for our Physical Education lesson, and there is another field located about five minutes away from that big football field.
The field was set up with all the lines drawn and the equipment readied for the event. There were lines drawn for us to participate in the telematch. I gathered with Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark, Eu Lynn and all the Year 9 Bullseye members as we discussed the strategy for the telematch.
Each year level had two games. For the Year 9s, the first game involved us holding eggs with our hands without breaking them, and the second competition was a three-legged race.
The telematch first started and I joined everyone to cheer for the other levels. Caleb Chuang and I were leading the cheer when Megan and Le Anne caught us in the act again. Caleb Chuang shrugged and hid from Le Anne and Megan while I cheered. Then, I went to see Wei Ming, Jonathan and Jarod Ee, who was talking with Ivyna, to have a chat with them. Once the telematch for the Year 7 and 8s were done, it then came to our turn. So, for the first game, we lined up in a single file and I lined up behind Caleb Chuang. Megan and Le Anne spotted us and smiled again. Caleb Chuang ignored their calls and we focused on the game. We had to balance an egg on a spoon and walk without the egg tipping over and breaking. There were some people who broke their eggs, but it was okay.
On the second game, we had to do a three-legged walk, and we had to tie two legs together with rope, namely two different people’s legs so that they can coordinate the walk. So, everyone paired up with their good friends for the three-legged walk. Sean Mark paired up with Jason Leing, Jordan partnered with Ting Yi, and of course, I teamed up with Caleb Chuang.
“Caleb! Wei Yiang! Best friends!” Megan and Le Anne called us as they formed a pair with each other for the games. Even Sara Yow and Christiana Chin, who partnered up, also called us out. San Ying also called us out, and the whole year started cheering for us. Soon, the whistle blew, and everyone walked one by one. When Caleb Chuang and I started our three-legged walk, all the Year 9s cheered me and Caleb Chuang as we proceeded. After the Year 10s begun their telematch, Mr Paul and Ms Lim then asked those who had finished the telematch to gather as we headed back to school. So we gathered, and I spend the entire time with Caleb Chuang talking about how fun the telematch games were, as Megan and Le Anne approached and asked if me and Caleb Chuang enjoyed ourselves. Caleb Chuang responded with a sly look as we walked along the main road back to school.
Following break, Ms Maddy then collected our volcano and plate tectonics models and Branson Choon assisted her to bring them to the store room. I tagged along, carrying mine. The rest of us did some classwork. Once we were done, we then had a discussion of our History paper with Ms Visa. Eu Lynn put on a brave, smiley face upon seeing Ms Visa being serious.
“Ms Visa, how did we do?” asked Eu Lynn. Ms Visa had a baffled look. Something was not right. Ms Visa then told us that the results were not so good and we had to improve on that.
On 26th March 2015, I totally forgot to take a picture of a plant and print it out for Ms Nadia's art class. Fearful of being punished by Ms Nadia, my mum helped me to take a photo of the plant, and went to her office to print the picture. Fortunately, I brought it in the nick of time.
Me and Caleb Chuang, along with Branson Choon and Ting Yi, were treated to a fun treat. We went to sit the Kangaroo Maths Competition. This competition is administered by an Australian-based institution and is the largest mathematics competition in the world. Ms Usha, my Maths teacher, had given me the forms for the competition before I set off on participating in the contest. Mr Kevin Wai was in charge of running the Kangaroo Maths Competition.
The hall was configured in the seating arrangement for Checkpoint and IGCSE exams taken by the Year 11s every October. Luckily I took this competition as it improves my Maths and at the same time prepares me for the revision for Cambridge Checkpoint. It also conditions myself to the atmosphere which I would sit in for the Checkpoint exam. Being in the school hall while sitting the exam is more a less a psychological scare for me as opposed to being in the class at the time for me, because it is an international examination administered more securitized than Nobel's Mid Year or Final Year Examinations. Assessment 1 and 2 were kinder to me.
After lunch, we went down to the school hall where we sat according to our year level. Caleb Chuang sat in front, followed by Branson, then me and Ting Yi. Justin Yeo and Desmond Chan, both Maths geniuses, were also present, along with Joseph Diong, Krisha Chin and Natasha Singam. A couple of people from Year 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 were present. We were assigned to our desks based on the name list given. Mr Kevin Wai read the instructions to us before we begun the test.
The competition ran for 90 minutes. Each student was given some souvenirs and promotional booklets during the competition before the scripts were collected. I managed to be patient and complete the test to the best of my ability. Following the competition, I went down to the art studio for art lessons with Ms Nadia, and Ms Nadia jokingly asked if the “kangaroo ran away”. I presented the photo of my plant to her, with thumbs up from her. She then did some drawings based on some Inspirationalism styles with us and then told us to do some research on Vincent Van Gogh and then bring his research to class, consisting of a portrait of Van Gogh, a painting by him that looks like the drawing that we did that day, as well as a biography about him. Sometimes, I have a love-hate relationship with Art and Design. On one hand, I like to do the drawings, but on the other hand, Ms Nadia (and to a certain extent, Ms Feeda) is very strict for Art. Especially Ms Nadia, because she would get angry at us if we did not do some research or bring the required art materials to the class.
In the days to come, the teachers had started to do multiple full dress rehearsals for Sports Day. The plan was to do the full dress rehearsals in that same week as the telematch events. So, we had to stay back, on many occasions, after school as well as during the school hours itself to practice for our marchpast. Ivan Hiew had just been released from suspension, I suppose, so he came back to train us.
27th March 2015 was our first practice with Ivan Hiew, our march captain. That morning, I saw him returning back to school. He didn't dulge or diverge much into his suspension. When he asked me how did I know about his suspension, I then told him that Wei Ming and Jonathan informed me on it. He then said it was not quite a suspension, but a leave. I was happy to see him back, but the worst was yet to come.
All folks who were participating in the Sports Day Opening Ceremony were required to participate in a Sports Day Rehearsal that day, and we left our bags in our classes before coming down. Ivan was involved that day. He was very strict and he threatened push ups if one person made the wrong move. We met in the courtyard for our own practices.
“Squad, attention!” he cried, and responded. When one person scratched his head, Ivan ordered everyone to do push ups on the spot. “All of you! Twenty push ups. Now!” he cried. Initially, everyone thought he was joking. When he got angry, Kie Yip, who was from Year 10, shouted at us to do it in front of him.
Then, when everyone was done, we assembled in our lines again. Ivan then got strict again, and everyone tried their best not to be funny with him. “If one person does wrong, all of you will be punished with ten push ups! You must learn to work as a team. If one fails, all of you fail!” he cried.
Soon, one person made him angry again, and then Ivan forced everyone to do a second round of 10 push ups. Wei Ming, who was inside the hall watching the dance and the other rehearsals, was coming out to the courtyard where we were drilling for the marchpast. He immediately approached Ivan and Kie Yip and asked them to stop.
“Let me do the commanding,” he said. Wei Ming asked Ivan to not be too strict on us, and he took over from Ivan as he stood by the side and checked. He knew that being too strict would add pressure to the marchers.
“Squad, attention!” Wei Ming cried, and everyone was disciplined. I also relaxed, as Wei Ming would not simply threaten push ups like that. Wei Ming then asked all of us not to move and look in front. He then did the commanding before giving us a break and then he spoke to Ivan, trying to understand why Ivan would resort to getting everyone to do push ups just because of one person’s careless mistakes.
Mr Paul then gathered us for the official rehearsal later on. He then said that the rehearsal would see all the dancers marching behind the marchers, following us. Everyone would march to the center of the stadium, and Wei Ming would call for everyone to halt, and they would halt on whatever feet they landed on. Wei Ming was chosen to call to halt because of his loud voice.
The order to march into the stadium would be Homerun, Touchdown, Bullseye and Slamdunk. So, we then did the rehearsal, and all of Bullseye’s dancers then cheered me and Caleb Chuang as we stood in the front, waiting to march. Then, we did the rehearsal as Aashtad Cyprus, the head prefect, led the parade. Mr Paul did the emceeing as all the members of the management team as well as the dancers watched us. Some of the elementary school students then peered into the hall for a glimpse of the action before Mr Praba escorted them back. Once everyone was done, we then had our own practices. Ivan then did some commands again, and this time, he improvised. He did a countdown, and then called all the late comers to do push ups. When one person in Nicholas Tee's row scratched, that row of three had to do push ups. Then, we had a second rehearsal as Megan and Le Anne then watched us again. This time, it was the KS3 break time, and many of the Year 9s peered at us marching, including Sean Mark and Jason Leing. All the people from 9O watched us and cheered for me and Caleb Chuang, as well as Ting Yi, when we marched.
Once the second dress rehearsal was over, Wei Ming and all the house captains gathered us for a joint practice in the courtyard, with him leading.
“Squad! Attention!” he cried. The entire squadron yelled in response, and everyone, who were having classes above us, were startled to hear the noise and what was going on. They came out and watched us having the joint rehearsal in the courtyard. We screamed “left, right, left!” as we practiced the moved.
Megan and Le Anne looked at me and Caleb Chuang, peering from a balcony near the Science Lab on the first floor as we participated in the rehearsal. They smiled as we kept on marching. I ignored her, focusing on the captains, but I kept thinking about how proud me and Caleb Chuang were in representing Bullseye. With the attention we got, Bullseye would succeed, I thought. We did multiple rehearsals with Mr Paul in the coming days to smoothen our drills. The sky soon got cloudy, and some people then told Wei Ming of the impending rain, but he refused to listen as everyone was on stand easy mode. The rain then started pouring as all the marchers ran for cover. I ran like mad as everyone else.
Mr Paul then asked everyone to take a break. The rain stopped thereafter.Then, Ivan continued drilling us throughout the day, and some people played basketball, which he shouted and scolded them as it disturbed the marchers. “Do not disturb my marchers!” cried Ivan as he hurled profanities. We then gathered for one final rehearsal. This time, it was close to dismissal, and all the people from 9O passed by, watching me and Caleb Chuang march. Megan and Le Anne then talked to Caleb Chuang, smiling at him while he told them not to disturb us from marching. The final rehearsal was done well, and everyone got to look at us march as we performed our best.
On 30th March 2015, we had the tug-of-war competition at the PE field, and everyone had to go and watch. There were two categories, namely the KS3 category (Year 7, 8 and 9) and the KS4 category (Year 10 and 11).
Caleb Chuang and I then discussed what to motivate to the people pulling the rope, while walking to the PE field. “Just tell them to do their best,” Caleb Chuang said, as he told me that the most important thing was to do the best we can.
So, everyone gathered at the PE field and then watched the people involved pull. Wei Ming was settling the logistics with Mr Paul and Ms Praveen. Alex Chia, Brandon Ooi, Edward Lam, Yan Ying, Eu Lynn, Ivyna, Prudence Wong and Ashley Fang were involved in the match. Sara Yow's cousin, Adino Hee, was also involved.
Wei Ming stood by the side. When the Bullseye members pulled, he would scream, shout and give encouragement. On the first round, Bullseye won the match against Homerun, and we cheered. Bullseye continued to win most of the tug of war games, as Lim Wei Ming himself, pulled the rope with all his might. I was by that time sweating from the hot sun. We watched tonnes of tug-of-war matches. It was good to see people coming together in sportsmanship and working together.
While watching the match, I then spoke to Yan Ying and Eu Lynn and talked to them. I told them about the strategies of playing the match and so on and how to do well in the Tug of War. After giving them encouragement, they cheered and I continued giving advice while also watching the Tug of War matches. Everyone was cheering. Even Ethan Wong from Slamdunk, who was from 9N, was quite enthusiastic and funny, making faces and gestures like a clown to motivate Slamdunk's athletes. Mr Paul made sure that the spectators stood back before each game. As the senior school begun their matches, where Year 10 and 11 students took part in their game, Year 7, 8 and 9 students were told to return for their break time.
I then sat down in the canteen and ate my breakfast. Then, we got back for our Malay lesson before we were told to go back down to the hall for another rehearsal. Ivan then did some rehearsals with us and tried his best not to be too strict. Things went well, before Mr Paul called for a full dress rehearsal. Once the rehearsal was about to start, we lined up outside the hall as Ivan and Jonathan told everyone to be quiet and listen to the right commander, which we have done during our practices. Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong gave Aashtad, Bing Tong and Samantha Goh the clues on how to hold the banner containing Nobel's logo as we marched in. Then, once we ended our rehearsal, Ivan gave a very long lecture on asking us what to do and how to behave. “I can still see people scratching! I can still see people not doing their march properly! If I catch you scratching, and your arms are not firm, 50 push ups for you! Understand!” he cried. Then, Wei Ming did another rehearsal in the afternoon following lunch, and coincidentally, it got cloudy again as all four houses practiced their marchpast and stand easy poses at the same time. Then, Megan and Le Anne came and watched us and then smiled, putting their hands in a heart shape and trying to distract us.
The next day, 1st April, we then continued with our rehearsals as the management rehearsed one last time. Kie Yip then shouted at everyone to pump harder when Ivan gave everyone 20 push ups each. Wei Ming then put a stop to that and he continued the commanding each time Ivan and Kie Yip got too strict. Each time we rehearsed, all our friends from our class got to see the action. It was all practices.
In the school hall, Mr Paul and the management team viewed each house's dance performances. Then, during break time, I met with Eu Lynn and Yan Ying, and told them that we should not help the other houses by lending them our expertise as I predict a loss for Bullseye if we were doing so, since many of the Bullseye people were assisting the other houses’ athletes in training them for Sports Day and telling them how to run. I was worried that our secret plans would be leaked to the athletes from other houses and subsequently, result in them doing better and performing better than us who are in Bullseye. This drew a flak from Eu Lynn, who criticized the proposal. She said that the intention of keeping our strategy to ourselves would not be good sportsmanship. “Well, they can just ask Mr Victor for advice,” I said, trying to convince her that Mr Victor was the one that taught us the skills. Eu Lynn then said that they were teaching the BASIC skills to anyone who wanted to take part in the track and field events and not LEAKING the plans out. “Okay, okay, no worries, then if this is the case, everything is settled,” I giggled. I was worried that if we continue to assist Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk, we will be telling them our game strategy, and I tried to convince Eu Lynn about that, but she said that the Sports Day's intent was about participating and not about winning. Apart from that, it was practice after practice. Just before we were dismissed, Ivan and Jonathan told us to arrive at 1:30pm even though marchers and dancers arrive at 2:00pm and Sports Day begins at 4:00pm so that we can have enough time to practice.
Sports Day 2015 soon arrived. It was held at the Panasonic Stadium in Shah Alam. I arrived at 1:30pm where I met Ivan Hiew. He had threatened push ups for the late comers, and he had made sure everyone was there before 2:00pm. Before leaving I had a homemade megaphone prepared for the day as discussed with Caleb Chuang. The megaphone was yellow in color.
Caleb Chuang and I decided to put a megaphone in order to ensure that the runners at the middle of the field can hear us while running. I told Caleb Chuang that the runners would be boosted by us if we had the megaphone. He also agreed, and I also told Caleb Chuang that I would tell Wei Ming and all the runners to fill themselves up with healthy food and ginger onions to make them blow gas during the races which will propel them like a rocket. Caleb Chuang giggled and he just kept neutral on that. Some of the Bullseye members liked the plans.
I thought I was running late, and I placed my bags at the stands. At the field, Ivan Hiew was waiting and he said we will be waiting for more people to come. Then, as more people arrived, Ivan then counted down to ask everyone to gather. “If one person is late, all of you do 10 push ups! Five, four, three, two, one!” Fortunately, everyone gathered, and we then begun the drills by Ivan.
“Squad, attention!” he cried, and we responded with “Check!” “Squad, attention!” “Check!”
“Squad, right dress!” “Check, one, two!”
Ivan commanded as fast as possible and we responded sharply as he continued to be strict with us. Soon, one of the columns on the left of our squadron saw someone move slowly and scratch himself, and all of those people in that column from back to front were ordered to do push-ups. This then continued for several more rounds where Ivan singled out the individuals who moved slowly and got more people in the various rows to do push ups because of one person. Then, while marching, Ting Yi came in and just joined the fold.
After 30 minutes of training, Ivan gave us a break for 10 minutes to go and get some drinks, while Wei Ming intervened and told him that he would command the next stretch of training. When all was done, we returned, and Ivan was not happy. He asked us to do some push ups, and threatened the entire team push ups again if a few people were late.
“All of you, 20 push ups! Now!” he cried. “There are five of you coming in late.” So all of us got down and push up our muscles on the ground as Ivan scolded the squad for being late.
“You should have called your friends! You must work as a team!” he cried. Wei Ming then patted him and told him to step back while he did the commanding.
The training and drilling was then continued by Wei Ming as he urged Ivan not to be so harsh on the marchers, but Ivan insisted his harshness, saying that it will instill discipline. Wei Ming then did the commanding as Ivan marched us around the field, along with Jonathan. Soon, Mr Paul came onto the loudspeaker, and asked all marchers to gather in the basement tunnel of the stadium, and stand by for the start of the rehearsal. Ivan then told us to disperse, and then, I returned to the Bullseye stand with Caleb Chuang. Many people cheered us as we took a sip of water. The crowd was building up as Mr Daniel and Mr Paul set up the PA system.
At 2:30pm, we then got ready for a final rehearsal of the Sports Day. All the dancers then gathered behind the marchers in the hall for the marchpast. We then waited as the marchpast was about to begin. Then, we started marching.
When we saluted to the right, Megan, Christiana, Le Anne and Sara Yow were gathered at the stands to cheer me and Caleb Chuang in the marchpast. Sean Mark and Jason Leing were also in the stands looking at us. The entire crowd of Year 9 students were more excited about looking at me and Caleb Chuang march, than enjoy the marchpast. Once all the marchers were on the field, Lim Wei Ming then called for all the marchers to halt. “Squad, halt!” he cried with a loud echo that richeted the walls of the stadium. We stopped marching and then stood to attention for the Negaraku, the national anthem of Malaysia.
As the Negaraku begun playing, Ms Lim then checked on people who did not stand up for the anthem, and was having a stern look on her face as she scanned the stands. We then recited the school pledge and then waited for the sports pledge to be made. Once that was done, a combined dance took place on the track in front of the marchers and the crowd. The Sports Day programme called for a combined dance in the middle of the field before the marchers returned to their stands, along with the sports pledge. This resulted in a standing time of around 30 minutes in the center of the field.
During the rehearsal, when the combined dance was in position, a strong gust of wind blew the large Nobel International School banner which were being held by Bing Tong and Samantha Goh, the two assistant head prefects on the field, as they struggled to keep control of the banner. The wind caught the banner like a sail on a yacht, dragging it left, right, up, down and center. It was a crosswind; a violent one. Bing Tong and Samantha Goh were thrown off guard, as they tried to steer the poles of the banner like a pilot trying to regain control of an uncontrollable plane in the sky when crashing.
The two assistant head prefects cried to Ms Lim for help, and Ms Lim, seeing with her already very annoyed face at the conduct of the spectators, saw the two of them trying to keep their balance. She rushed to the field and stood with them as she tried to keep control of the large banner, stretching her legs out to steady the banner from the wind. She stood next to Samantha Goh and asked if everything was okay as they steadied the banner. Then, once all was done, each house cheered its house cheer, and then we marched back into the tunnels under the stadium. I shouted loudly as the cheer was being made, and made a gesture of excitement to the Bullseye members, asking them to cheer again, alongside some words of encouragement.
“We must salute quickly and efficiently as everyone was watching us,” I told Caleb Chuang. He then asked me to relax. “Ivyna, when we march, march with confidence!” I told Ivyna and she responded enthusiastically. All the dancers gave positive responses when I motivated them.
I then met Jarod Ee and then spoke to him about the dance, and urged him to show his enthusiasm during the dance. He then nodded and agreed. He was very jovial and excited as well to show his skills as a dancer. Then, I met Ivan and asked if he was okay, but he wasn't in a really good mood. I went back upstairs, watched the view, and saw the teachers installing the scoreboard. Bullseye was in second place, leading ahead. “Oh, come on!” I cried. We started in last place, and had improved really tremendously. I kept asking people to scream and cheer, but Eu Lynn said that everyone was tired.
At 3:30pm, we then gathered as we got ready for the official beginning of the Sports Day opening ceremony. Jonathan and Ivan gave us some paint for makeup on our faces, and we all got into position. The dancers also got into position and got their makeups done; Ivyna, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying, Pei Chi and all the dancers lined up with Jarod Ee behind us.
“Guys, no scratching!” Jonathan called, as he was afraid we would scratch. “Remember, stay focused! Listen to me, Wei Ming or Ivan! Okay!” he cried.
Soon, we begun, and we started marching onto the field. As usual, all eyes were on the track from the stands, waiting for me and Caleb Chuang to march past. The crowd was filled to the brim as all the Bullseye members then started cheering for us. There was pandemonium. Megan, Le Anne, and all the people from our batch were waiting for us. They were not interested in the event, but were interested in seeing me and Caleb Chuang march. Then, the marchpast music begun as Aashtad made his way onto the field.
Back in the basement tunnel, Wei Ming and Ivan shouted at us to pay attention. Then, it was time to march out. We then begun marching as Ivan gave the command. Then, we marched as my heart beat strongly in strong rhythm.
As the Bullseye contingent made its way out onto the field, the crowd screamed upon seeing Bullseye come out. The entire crowd felt excited. They stood up as the defending champion made its way, step by step onto the field. The management team in particular were so excited to see the Bullseye members demonstrate the cool moves planned by me and Caleb Chuang, who were indirectly deemed the poster boys of the Bullseye campaign. And not just me and Caleb Chuang, but many Bullseye people from our class, such as Ivyna, Yan Ying, Pei Chi and Eu Lynn, along with other great people like Janelle Arnelia, were marching in the dance group behind the marchers.
Megan Lee, Heng Le Anne, Natalie Seah and Sara Yow were waiting in excitement for me and Caleb Chuang to come out. They cheered me and Caleb Chuang's names as me and Caleb Chuang and all the marchers marched past. Then, we made our way to the center of the field for the opening ceremony as Mr Paul and Ms Bee Yong emceed the event.
Once we entered the center of the field, I could see everyone, especially those from the Year 9s, cheering me and Caleb Chuang as the proceedings of the opening ceremony were conducted. They were screaming and shouting at me and Caleb Chuang like mad. Wei Ming called everyone to halt, and he did most of the commanding as he had a loud voice, from the hands-up to any other command.
"SQUAD, ATTENTION!” cried Wei Ming, as he had been exclusively given permission to call the marchers to halt. Then, the National Anthem and School Song begun to play. Everyone stood solemnly. Then, once the anthem was done, the Bullseye people, as well as the Year 9s, continued to cheer, scream and shout, especially when me and Caleb Chuang were marching. This was then followed by the Sports Pledge, which were led by one person from each house, namely Ryan Chan (Bullseye), Lim Wences (Touchdown), Joshua Wong (Homerun) and Nitteshvaran (Slamdunk).
Then, when it was time to do the house cheers, Wei Ming gave the command to cheer, and we all cheered as loud as possible. Caleb Chuang and I screamed our lungs out, and majority of the Year 9s clapped for us. Then, Wei Ming gave the signal to quick-march, and then we made our way back to the stands as I gazed in front, thinking it would be until another new year before I marched again.
During the marchpast and the opening ceremony, Lee Hua Fong, the captain of Touchdown, scratched his head and wiped his sweat. While I only knew of this following the end of the marchpast and only the next year, this caused Touchdown to be deducted a lot of points.
Slamdunk then started their dance first, followed by Bullseye, Touchdown and Homerun. Mr Paul was very enthusiastic as he and Ms Bee Yong emceed. As the Bullseye dancers came out onto the field, I shouted with my megaphone and cried out loudly as the dancers twirled to a series of crazy, exothermic music. As each dance had to do the house cheer, Bullseye also did as well, and I cheered along with them. I shouted so loudly till everyone looked at me. Caleb Chuang then relaxed through the other dancers, as I enjoyed along with him. He then went to take a drink as I sat down to watch the other performances. While enjoying the performance, I then thought of my next cheering moves during the Sports Day. We need to execute them quickly, and Caleb Chuang needs to get involved, too. We need to plan and execute. We must. Otherwise, we will lose.
Once the dance performances ended, each house was then given the opportunity to cheer their house cheer before the athletics events begun. When it came to our turn to scream, I shouted and pouted with my megaphone before we continued to the athletics events. During each athletic event, Caleb Chuang and I took turns screaming and shouting at the Bullseye members who ran the race. I howled with my megaphone, and subsequently, Mr Chuang then took a picture of me screaming with it.
I then told Caleb Chuang that Bullseye is the Democratic Action Party (DAP), Touchdown is Barisan Nasional, Homerun is the PAS party, which is the Islamic party in Malaysia, and Slamdunk represents the Bersih movement which staged the large protest rallies in 2007, 2011 and 2012. Loo Shang overheard us conversing and then came and said, “We come in peace”, referring to the Bersih rally where there was violence in past rallies. Samantha Goh asked why my megaphone is yellow and that I stole their color, and I answered, “Oh, there are no more red color ones”, trying to please Samantha Goh herself.
The Bullseye athletes did their best in the race, winning so many events. Ryan Chan, Sabrina Qistina, Tristan Lai, Soon Yee Yang, Ashley Fang and of course, the one and only Sean Mark, are the very important figures who made Bullseye proud that day. As the events started, I screamed loudly. Bullseye won the first one. Each event saw bouts of Bullseye victory. I continued screaming and shouting till I lost my voice, while Ivan Hiew and Kie Yip asked me not to scream so loud and lose my voice. But I continued to scream for the sake of Bullseye and the glory of me and Caleb Chuang.
In my head, as I had been competing with Branson Choon, I wanted to best his house and his team and everyone else as well. Branson is from Homerun, just in case I hadn't mentioned already. We need to beat him too, not just in academics, but in this game of sports.
Caleb Chuang then went to get some 100 Plus and some energy drinks. I just sipped my water till I ran out of it. Then, I continued screaming with my lungs dry. I had to make a small sacrifice for the Bullseye victory. I then cheered with him, and Megan and Le Anne took aim at me and Caleb Chuang again. I told Caleb Chuang to ignore them as they will disturb us. Then, Sean Mark chipped in, “Yeah, Caleb.” Isaac and I also coordinated the cheering as well. Before long, Brandon Ooi, Jason Leing, Jien Min, Zi Quan, Chia Zheng, Ethan Lee, Ting Yi, Isaac Ng and Caleb Chuang held out placards cut in the shape of thumbs-ups which formed the words, “GO BULLSEYE”, which made me so excited.
Soon, there were many Bullseye members who appeared at the medal ceremonies, and Bullseye came out on top. We screamed, shouted and cheered as each Bullseye member went on the podium. I asked Wei Ming to cheer, and he led us. Then, I asked Jarod Ee to do the same but he was tired. It was 5:00pm. I congratulated Ryan Chan and Sean Mark for their speedy attempts on the field of play.
After the events were done, we then went to the tracks and sat down while we waited for the winners to be announced. We then cheered our house cheers and were given a Bullseye flag to hold in our hands. I sat in the front with Caleb Chuang and Pei Chi as we cheered.
When we were asked to sit in our houses according to our year levels, I led the cheer to annoyance from Ivan Hiew, who asked me to stop. Then, we waited anxiously for the results. I was hoping we will win the marchpast. I believe we had done our best. The sky darkened as the stadium floodlights switched on. There were cries and shouts and all the house leaders were in front to guide us.
The Bullseye members cheered when everyone saw a Bullseye member win a trophy. Soon, there was a heart-stopping moment when Mr Paul announced all the winners of the march, dance and banner competitions. To make the winners’ announcement even more exciting, he referred to the phrases written on each house’s banners.
“The winner for march is, “Release the beast!”” Mr Paul exclaimed as he mentioned the phrase on Homerun’s banner.
“The winner for dance is, “Fuel the power, ignite the fire!”” Mr Paul said, referring to Bullseye. Jarod Ee then received a trophy for the dance championship as the Bullseye dance music then played on the stadium’s loudspeakers.
“Okay, now we have been waiting for this moment,” said Mr Paul. He asked Ms Nalina who was manning the scoreboard to change the number.
The last digit numbers were placed in order. As the numbers were revealed one by one, Mr Paul then announced the first digit numbers, and Slamdunk got the last place. “Good job, Slamdunk,” Mr Paul praised the Slamdunk members. Then, Homerun and Touchdown’s first numbers were 4 each. If Bullseye had the number 5, we would be champion, and all of us Bullseye members started screaming the number 5. “Five, five, five, five!” we cried.
And thus, it was announced that Bullseye’s score was 5554, Touchdown had 4809, Homerun had 4796 points and Slamdunk had 3905 points.
All the Bullseye members screamed loudly, and then Lim Wei Ming then received the trophy. I jumped, shouted and screamed and acted crazily. I then ran ahead, and then I almost crashed into one of the cameras on the field before leading everyone for the champion house run.
We made one lap around the field as we returned back to the front of the stadium. Caleb Chuang and I gave each other hugs and high fives as I screamed happily over the victory of Bullseye. Then, we were invited to take a photo as I lay down in a cool manner in front of the group and posed in a freestyle manner.
“Yeah!!! Yeah!!!! I am so happy, Caleb Chuang! We have won! See? I told you! We have won! Our plans succeeded!!!!” I cried.
“I tell you, I tell you, Caleb Chuang, it is all thanks to the both of us, that we won. I want to thank you, Caleb Chuang. Thank you, Caleb Chuang. We did it! We did it!” I added, describing to him that it was not possible without the plans and proposals we discussed and proposed to Wei Ming, who accepted them.
I went to Wei Ming and congratulated him, and he pumped his fist up in the air in a show of victory. “Thank you. You cheered loudly. Proud of you,” he said. Wei Ming and I took photos when someone asked for a photograph.
I was so excited as I continued to cheer loudly and punched my fist in the air, exclaiming victory over Branson Choon. “We beat Branson Choon, Caleb Chuang! We won over him!” I cried. “Chill, Wei Yiang. Chill,” Caleb Chuang responded. I shouted and screamed and acted like mad. “YES!!!! YEAH!!!!” I cried.
I was so happy and was too excited till I couldn’t sleep when I reached home, only to find myself watching a VSauce YouTube channel documentary about the tallest buildings of the world. That was the second of many more successes for Bullseye. I breathed a sigh of relief as I came to terms with my sore throat. We had succeeded in two Sports Day and one Nobel Cup victory. It was amazing. Hip hip hurrah to me and Caleb Chuang. What a memorable occasion not to forget.
The next day, with the Sports Day fever put to rest, I headed to Ryan Marc’s house to do an Euthanasia advertisement on Audacity. Mr Narish had earlier given us coursework to do for ICT.
Audacity is this recording software that we can use to record our voices and convert this recording to MP3. It can also be merged with a video in order to provide better quality.
Derek, Ryan, me and Jian Wen were at his house to do a recording. All we had to do was to create a radio advertisement to raise awareness against the disadvantages of euthanasia. So, we spent time to record and to do research on what euthanasia is. At first, we thought that euthanasia is a region in Asia as it contained the phrase “asia” in it. However, euthanasia is when people or animals are being deliberately killed on purpose in the medical field for a specific purpose. I brought along headphones to connect, and Derek and Ryan kept on discussing on how to conduct the radio advertisement. Then, once I reached home and had my lunch, the city council cut down my late dad's tree which was too tall and that the secondary school nearby had complained of it.
When we returned to school, everything was in full gear as we came to terms with another normal school day. Ms Bee Yong congratulated everyone on their outstanding character during Sports Day. Then, Ms Chithra and Ms Thana were invited to do the introduction for the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC). The YEC forms would be placed at the staffroom near the library stairs, and that anyone who wanted to register had until 10th April 2015 to sign up. I had interest in participating in the YEC, and planned to get a form. Unlike the previous three years of the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC), the YEC 2015 had no theme. The YEC would be held on 27th April 2015.
The horrible Goods and Services Tax (GST) was on a lot of people's minds when it was implemented on 1st April 2015, a day before the 2015 Sports Day. In fact, it has been reported in the news about the implementation of GST. Ms Kiran then told us to do some research about the GST and introduced the GST concept to us. She also told us about how the GST was supposed to work during our GP lesson.
During break time, I tried thinking about what should I offer for the YEC, and I planned to get three people to sign up, since the YEC format requires a minimum of three people to join. I eventually settled down on one of my good friends, Joshua Chew, who was in 9E at the time. Joshua has an outspoken character and a really enthusiastic tone. He was available to join the team and I also tried asking Glen Kay to join, which he also agreed.
Later on, we then had Maths with Ms Usha, who then taught us about graphs and equations. However, when Ms Joyce came in for English, she told us about how we could progress from English Second to English First in Year 10 if we made the right choices.
“In order to go to First Language, the school will choose who will go based on how you do well in the Mid Year Examination, Assessment 2, Final Year Examination and Checkpoint. This means that if you do well, you can have the chance to go to English First,” she said. I then asked Ms Joyce on how I can go to English First, and she said that I should buy revision books and practice for the tests in order to improve. “Only then you can have a chance of going to First Language”, said Ms Joyce.
Then, Ms Joyce made her assessments on everyone in the class and said that Co Sheen is the only one so far that was able to go for First Language. Ms Joyce also said that I also stand a chance of going to First Language as well, provided that minor areas were improved on, since my English results were at 72% in the Assessment 1. Then, Ms Joyce told us to write an essay as part of our homework over an exploration journey.
After English ended, I went to have lunch with Glen Kay to discuss the areas on what we can do for the YEC. Joshua then chipped in and discussed and then we talked about what we can do for the YEC. In the end, we proposed a fun fair game of tossing balls. I then told them that I would get the form from Ms Chithra the next day and would get them to sign on the form before handing it back to Ms Chithra.
That afternoon, Cikgu Zura came in for Malay and gave us work. Brendan Cheah was once again quite disruptive in class till Cikgu Zura had to calm him down. Then, during Mandarin, many people asked Ms Belle if she could show us a movie. Ms Belle, on the other hand, refused and gave us some comprehension exercises. Enisha kept on pleading with her to show some movies. In fact, Enisha was quite vocal in asking for movies during Ms Belle's class.
The next day, Mr Narish asked us during ICT on our progress of Audacity before giving us some work to do in the class on how to edit an Audacity video. Once that was done, we then went for our break time. I picked up a form from Staffroom 2, where Ms Chithra's study was located, and completed the form. I then went to find Glen, who initiated the form.
We did our lab assessment the following day, on Wednesday, 8th April 2015, and what we had to do a dissection of the starch from the leaves. We had been given a test tube, a leaf which is plucked from a plant, and a series of lab equipment for the dissection.
Every lab session, I sat in the front table next to the teacher’s table in the science lab, and Jordan Tay, Rick Tan, Branson Choon, Ting Yi and Caleb Chuang sat on the same table as me. I would sit with Caleb Chuang and face the front where Ms Ng is sitting. Branson Choon and I would normally take turns answering the questions in Ms Ng’s class while the entire class listened to Ms Ng talk. This was the same case during our normal lessons; Ms Ng will talk, and Branson Choon and I would “compete” to try and answer Ms Ng’s questions correctly. I believe that competition can be a good motivation for us to study for the Checkpoint exam, and I don’t want to fail the exam as it can jeopardize my future as a dropout.
So, as mentioned, I sat in the front with Caleb Chuang, and Ms Ng wanted us to dissect properly. So, she handed each one of us a worksheet in which we had to record the dissection. I received the worksheets on behalf of our group. Then, we begun dissecting. The aim of the experiment was to test for the presence of starch in leaves, which is important for the process of photosynthesis. So, because the test was aimed at determining the presence of starch, ethanol was given so that we could apply that particular substance on the leaf.
Caleb Chuang and Jordan Tay begun to arrange the items on the table to begin the dissection of the leaves. The first thing that had to be done was to place a Bunsen burner underneath a tripod stand in order to supply heat to boiling water. The reason for this was that we need to heat up the water so that we can place the leaf inside of it. Ms Ng then went around the lab to check to see if everyone was following the procedure. Jian Wen’s group was unable to do the dissection properly, and Ms Ng corrected them.
The boiling water would need to be heated up for around 10 to 15 minutes in order for it to be hot enough for the water’s temperature to denature the leaf cells. This is very important, because the plant cells inside the leaf are surrounded by a cell wall which is impenetrable under normal conditions. So, by adding hot water onto the leaf and boiling it in the hot water, the temperature would be hot enough to denature the cell and break down the cell wall; only then could we apply ethanol onto the leaf and then determine the test of starch.
Rick Tan and Jordan peered into the beaker as the temperature rose and water begun boiling. Ms Ng had given each one of us a timer to be set for 15 minutes from the start of the burning of the Bunsen burner. So when the thing was hot enough, I called Ms Ng and asked her to come and check the beaker, and Ms Ng saw it being hot enough and instructed us to remove it.
We then had to wait for around five minutes for the leaf to cool down, but in order to do so, we used a pair of tweezers to poke the leaf and take it out from the boiling water safely. Once we finished waiting, Caleb Chuang then applied the ethanol on the leaf. The leaf then turned purple in color, which means that starch is present. We were the first group to complete all the lab procedures, followed by Megan’s group.
Earlier in the day, Mr Victor had spoken to us about our beep test and also our fitness test. He said that there would be a fitness test for all of us in two weeks’ time so as to allow us to be tested during PE. He then did a series of planking with us, and I really felt my hands vibrate as the pain shot through my hands while straining it in planking position.
At the end of the week, I handed in the YEC form to Ms Chithra at her office. I finally also managed to trade places with Soon Jian Wen and thus got a front seat for the first time. Ms Joyce also told us to interview our parents on their job profile, and also announced that from Friday, 10th April, we will use 9O's classroom as the students in Ms Gerardine's English First class had complained about the cramped classroom and that we had less people in our English Second class. This also subsequently reduced the hassle of moving classes; hence, I will only need to move to another class for Bible Knowledge and Mandarin only.
The week of 13th to 17th April 2015 was a busy week for us. It was quite a short week of lessons, as the 16th April 2015 was our Field Trip to Skytrex Adventure, and the 17th being our PTM. On another note, many of our teachers had started to prepare us for our Mid Year Examination which will be held in the second half of May 2015, from 13th to 29th May.
The morning of 13th April was marked by excitement as Ms Chithra announced more details on the YEC. By the end of the week, the teachers will finalize the teams and will let the team members know if they are chosen to participate in the YEC competition. Ms Kiran told us to do some GP work in our class on how to bake food in a restaurant and told us to role play them. Ms Ng had also finished teaching the Biology part of our textbook and was venturing into the Chemistry part. She had told us to memorize the first twenty elements of the Periodic Table which is a table containing so many elements. In fact, she gave us notes to memorize. Ms Belle also had a hard time trying to get the class to settle down as I completed the work while some people asked her to show movies, but she said no. Enisha even begged Ms Belle to show if we were well-behaved.
The next day, 14th April, was a psychological test which was administered online; it is compulsory for all Year 9 students to take the examination. This exam is very important as it is the first component that decides our Year 10 subject selection process. Ms Praveen said that this exam does not need prior revision as it is a logic and mental test. She was accompanying Mr Narish in the ICT lab that day.
So, when I looked at what was being administered, the exam was like a series of matching pictures, solving puzzles and answering some logic riddles. It was something that could be done in kids, and we had to do it during our ICT time in the elementary school's computer lab. We were able to go for our break time once the CAT4 exam was completed; each one took their own duration to complete it. When the exam finished, everyone was discussing about what the test was like.
After the break time ended, there were a lot of Year 9s who came in late. Ms Lim was watching in despair, with her hands folded and a stern look on her face. Megan, Sara Yow, Derek Yong, Ze Khai, Jian Wen, Jane Yap, Ranae Lim and San Ying were among those who arrived late. Upon returning to class, we had our Science lesson with Ms Ng, who started to teach us about solids, liquids and gases. Then, when we had our Maths lesson, we got wind of information that Ms Usha was leaving Nobel at the end of the week. Wences was surprised at the information. “What? Teacher! Why are you leaving?” he cried. Ms Usha said that she was going to another school to teach, which was as such. Ms Usha said that the next teacher who would be teaching us would be quite strict, and we needed to be well-behaved. “I hope she does not give so much homework,” joked Wences, to laughter from the class.
Then, on Wednesday, 15th April, Ms Chithra announced the teams that managed to get into the YEC and told those who were informed of their success to prepare the necessary equipment for the YEC on 27th April. Following which, Mr Victor did more strength training with us. Ms Sylvia then went around and checked each one of us to ensure we did the correct moves, and some people at the back who were not doing their exercises were chided by Ms Sylvia. After Mr Victor finished his strength training, Ms Sylvia then came out and gave a stern lecture to everyone and highlighted the importance of PE and that most people were not doing their exercises. “Your Beep Test is next week for the boys and two weeks later for the girls. I don't want to see this type of attitude again,” said Ms Sylvia. Ms Sylvia also emphasized that some people were hiding in the class during their PE lesson, which is not allowed and considered as absenteeism for PE.
Once we returned to our class and got ready for break time, Caleb Chuang was talking to Jordan and told him about he himself being selected as a Trainee Prefect for the Prefectorial Board. Ting Yi was also conversing with Caleb Chuang, too. He said that Caleb Chuang was selected because primarily, the school wanted different people with different roles to be appointed as prefects, particularly from different talents and fields. “Wences is good in basketball, and they wanted me because I am in the football CCA,” said Caleb Chuang. Ting Yi also gave an example of how Leong Yi Zhen was selected because she was good in Art and Design, and also how Isabella Wong was selected because she was good in dance. Apart from that, Zhue Xin was also chosen as a trainee prefect as well. Ting Yi and Aaron Loke, just like Caleb Chuang, were also chosen as a prefect in our class, and Ting Yi was primarily chosen because of his good character. Aaron Loke was chosen as he had good grades.
Caleb Chuang was promoted to become a trainee prefect as indirectly, he was Mr Chuang’s son, and also the fact that the school wanted someone who was good in sports. Caleb Chuang was also telling Ting Yi that Lim Wences was also chosen as a prefect as he’s good in basketball. “They want some people who are good at sports,” he told Ting Yi, who was already a prefect himself. The selection process for the Prefectorial Board was quite strict then, as it would be teachers who would choose the prefects, and they would need to learn the ropes. Once all was done, they were made prefects and could start playing their roles and duties in the Prefectorial Board.
When we returned from our break time, Ms Ng then taught us about electrons which make up an element of the Periodic Table. The number of electrons were allocated based on the characteristic of the element concerned. Branson Choon joked about the structure of the first twenty elements of the Periodic Table and jokingly said, “Solar System!” when looking at the electron diagram, which appears to resemble electrons orbiting around the element, just like how the planets orbit the sun in the Solar System. The entire class laughed at his joke, and Ting Yi and I laughed the loudest. Ms Ng then asked Ting Yi and I to control our laughter.
On 16th April 2015, we went to Skytrex Adventure for our field trip. Skytrex is located at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, which is a botanical garden located within Shah Alam, the capital city of Selangor.
On the morning of the field trip, I arrived at school normally and ate my breakfast before putting my bags down in the courtyard. I then had a walk around the school compound, greeting teachers along the way. Then, I waited patiently at the front door for Caleb Chuang to come. Once he arrived, :I then had a chat with him. Coincidentally, Megan arrived, and smiled at Caleb Chuang. “Wow! Enjoying time with your best friend?” she asked. Caleb Chuang just had a short talk as we walked to our class line. Then, he spent some time talking to Jordan Tay, Branson Choon and Ting Yi, who were already having their phones ready and playing games.
Soon, Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia arrived to take our attendance, and then we had a briefing by Ms Lim and Ms Renee, who told us about what to expect along the way. Once that was done, we were ushered into our buses for this field trip. I sat down with Caleb Chuang and had a chat with him along the way. Megan and Le Anne were excited and they also talked to Caleb Chuang. They were seated quite behind of us, but they were able to look in front where we were seated.
“Wei Yiang, Caleb! How’s life?” they cheekily asked. They then talked to us as we were in front. Rick and Jordan were busy minding their own business as the bus drove on towards Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam.
Branson Choon and Ting Yi were playing their Speedrunner video games. They were cheering and glued to Ting Yi's phone's screen, and he played the game lousily before Branson hurled profanities at him. Meanwhile, Sara Yow and Natalie were sharing some pictures with Le Anne from their phones. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia then had a short chat. Caleb Chuang and I then had a chat about the botanical garden, which I went when I was a kid. He then slept thereafter for a short while before walking to Jordan and Rick to have a chat.
Once we reached the botanical garden, the bus drove inside the botanical garden and on towards the location where Skytrex was. We then got down and assembled at Skytrex Adventure in our class lines. The place was marred with a series of high-wire obstacle courses, along with safety information. Then, we were briefed by an instructor on the safety aspects of the obstacle courses. There were many courses on ropes hanging in the air, and from the looks of it, you could tell that there were a series of ropes we had to hold on in the air.
I was hesitant to go up because I had a fear of heights. Everyone then took turns going up and down the suspension bridges and the awe-inspiring flying fox. The flying fox was the most scary thing one would ever have to cross, because in this case, you would need to deal with something flying up and down. Rick Tan then pressed me and said I should conquer my fears. “You are just wasting your mum’s money and time as this is already paid in the school fees. Just do one course. A low one.”
So, I tried one obstacle course which consisted of a bridge and a low, short distance flying fox. I then put on my safety harness and then got up a ladder to the top of a platform, and then walked the suspension bridge. There were two bridges to cross, and the last one I had to go on was the flying fox. So I held my breath, latched the handlebars, and got ready to launch myself.
“Hey guys, come and see! Wei Yiang is doing flying fox!” Rick cried. So, I launched myself and shouted in fear as I whizzed. Everyone cheered as I screeched along the guide wire. Then, I got stuck in the middle.
“Help! I’m stuck!” I cried, as I used my hand to push myself along the connecting wire of the flying fox. Eventually, I reached the end, and I unfastened myself and came down the pole. Rick praised me for being brave enough to attain a course.
There was a small café close to the flying fox where we had lunch. I sat by myself, had my lunch alone, then walked to meet Caleb Chuang and chit-chatted with him. Megan and Le Anne then came over and asked us on our food and how much we were relaxing, just like at a resort. Once everyone was done eating lunch, we were then escorted opposite the road to a small open hall for our next activity.
We then played a game called “Spiderweb”, where the goal was to lift a ping pong ball using a series of ropes and we had to coordinate ourselves. Our instructor then asked us to put our ropes on the ball and lift it up. Most of the time, I was being shouted at as I was a bit clumsy pulling the ropes. However, I steadied myself and then held it taut as we successfully lifted the ball up from the platform. Branson then teased Ting Yi for being too clumsy when he held the ball. When the ball fell, we had to repeat the same steps. Eventually, we managed to lay the ball down at the exact target before we begun heading home.
As I sat in the bus with Caleb Chuang, Megan then spoke to me about how many times I talked to Caleb Chuang. Then, most people slept while Megan also told me about a group chat on WhatsApp that they named, “Right, Caleb?” which is a phrase that I said when answering people's questions and attempting to double check with Caleb Chuang. In fact, I said that phrase so many times till Benjamin Fong was not amused. For example, there was an instance in class where I answered Ms Ng's question and said, “Right, Caleb?” and this made the entire class say the phrase along with me. Well, everyone was exhausted and went to sleep.
Our bus driver, who is a Chinese guy, then exited the park and headed along the Federal Highway to return to school. The road was free-flowing and the highway was less of congestion, with the exception of the Batu Tiga toll plaza, which has since been demolished. A load of lorries slowed down our bus journey as the bus had to pass through the heavy vehicles lane. Then, once we cleared the toll plaza, we sped towards the Sungai Way Free Trade Zone flyover, which led to Jalan Majlis and all the way to SS5, where the old Nobel was. As our bus was taking an exit from the Federal Highway via that flyover to reach the main road which leads to Nobel, an angry lorry driver then skirted in front of him and horned. The lorry driver, who is an Indian guy, pulled over, came out and started having a shouting match with our bus driver. As he spoke in Malay and confronted him as to why he had allegedly cut into his lane, everyone who was sitting behind peered over and stood up to see what was going on. Ms Ng asked everyone to sit down and remain quiet. The two drivers continued to argue, as their shouting match woke many people up from their sleep. Fortunately, the driver then got into his lorry and sped away, while we headed back to school.
Upon arriving at school, I went to the school hall for a walk, and saw Ms Feeda installing the art pieces from our art lessons for the Art Exhibition in conjunction with the following day's Parent-Teacher Meeting (PTM). I then had a chat with Ms Feeda and spoke to her about my interest in joining the Fine Art Club for the next CCA session which begins in July.
Ms Feeda installing the art exhibition in Nobel's school hall on 16th April 2015 at the old Kelana Jaya campus, during our field trip day. (Credits from Ms Feeda's Instagram page, @artandfeeda).
Back in 2014, the Fine Art Club was limited to the Year 9, 10 and 11 students, and as such, excluded the Year 7 and 8 students, of which Year 7 and 8s were allowed to be part of Ms Feeda's signature team in 2016. I expressed my interest with Ms Feeda on rejoining Fine Art Club, as that restriction on year levels limited me to choosing Art and Crafts Club instead. The Art and Crafts Club was originally planned to hold a joint art exhibition with Ms Feeda for the PTM, but however, the deal fell through as Ms Chume was unable to secure a collaboration. Ms Feeda was the one that proposed to Ms Chume on the possible collaboration between the two clubs, and I was excited and supported the initiative. The Fine Art Club and the Art and Crafts Club even met on 5th March 2015 during our CCA session and discussed with Ms Feeda on possible plans to have the art exhibition being put together. The deal fell as most of the art merchandise did not conform to Ms Feeda's standards, and that was what Ms Feeda told me about our Art and Crafts Club work not being included for the art exhibits. On another note, Reanne Koh was in Ms Feeda's art class in Year 10 as well as the Fine Art Club in 2014 and 2015, and her sister, Reanie Koh, was with us in the Art and Crafts Club for the first half of 2015 as a Year 7 student. Ms Feeda told me to wait for the announcements on CCA registration by Mr Paul. “I think that the management is going to lift the restriction on Year 7 and 8 joining Fine Art Club, so in the next session I think you will be lucky,” she said.
The next day, 17th April, was the PTM 1 and I followed my mum to school in the afternoon to meet with my teachers. As I arrived at school, I went to meet Ms Ng, who said that I was a good student and participated in the class discussions. Then, I went to meet Ms Joyce, who told me about how I got the questions wrong when I interviewed my mum about her job scope and had to present it in class on Tuesday, 14th April, and that I did not answer all the points stated. Then, while having a break and talking to Caleb Chuang, I peered at the screen in the school hall, and a photo of me with the megaphone during Sports Day was shown on the screen. Well, it was two photos of me using my megaphone. Mr Chuang then approached me. “You are so handsome! I took those photos!” he exclaimed. Once the PTM was done, Mr Matthew Koh and Ms June had a chat with my mum on the way out, and Ms June invited me and my mum for coffee. Well, we had to say another time. On another note, I waved goodbye to Ms Usha and gave her a hug, as she told me to do well.
The art exhibition posted by Ms Feeda was very awesome, consisting of prep works by Year 10 and 11 students and various drawings by KS3 students. Most of the works are of fine art quality, which was the expectation of the art exhibition. I then continued to have a chat with Ms Feeda and praised her on the set up of the art exhibition. Ms Feeda then told me once again that there is a likelihood of the Fine Art Club being opened to all year levels as the management had also said that there is less talent in the Fine Art Club as a result. As such, some Year 9s were allowed to join more than one clubs upon written request. I also discussed and shared with her Ms Nadia's lessons and what we did during the Art and Crafts Club.
Well, by this time it was the last full week of April, that is to say. Ms Kiran then taught us again and told us to do more research. She then told us about a plan to allow us to bring our iPads and computers to school. I had an iPad 2 then and it looked cool. However, the plan to bring iPads and computers raised ire on me.
“Ms Kiran, the school rules said that we cannot bring our iPads to school,” I exclaimed.
Ms Kiran was baffled, but laughed. “Yes, Wei Yiang, I know,” she said, as I showed her the Student Handbook which was printed inside the Student Organizer. “Don't worry. I will speak to Ms Lim and then I will let you know when you can bring your iPads,” she said. I was worried that bringing an iPad may contravene the school rules, especially when it is not allowed in other teachers’ classes. Then, she continued to talk about how we should do our research.
During break time, I spoke to Caleb Chuang about my latest plan. Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration was scheduled for 5th May, and I wanted to have a plan to make the world's largest birthday card. I proposed to Caleb Chuang and told him that once that we make a large birthday card so big, to the point that it entered the Malaysia Book of Records for the largest birthday card in Malaysia, it would look cool and even it would enter the Guinness World Records. Caleb Chuang rejected the proposal, and I abandoned it as the management would not be keen to have it. I like record breaking feats then, especially with my nice weather devices and the volcano, which were humongous.
Later on, we returned to class, and we had Maths before going for English, where Ms Joyce chided Gabriel for being too slow and having incomplete work. Then, once we returned for Science, Branson Choon then joked about the electron diagram resembling the Solar System diagram again, and Ms Ng told us to draw electrons.
I have also forgotten to inform you about our new Maths teacher. Her name was Ms Seline. She was quite beautiful and professional in teaching, but also really strict. Her hair was curly but short, and she had quite a white face that gleamed like a diamond.
Ms Seline outlined her expectations with us and introduced herself before doing the attendance where we had to introduce ourselves too. Her first lesson with us was on Inequalities. The entire class was quiet as the lesson progressed.
The next day, we had ICT, and Mr Narish then continued to give us work to do on Audacity. On another note, the groups that are participating in the YEC were starting to put up their promotional banners in the hallways around the school compound. Shaun Ting's group was also participating in the YEC, and Wei Zhong also had his team competing in it, along with Justin Yeo's as well.
Wednesday, 22nd April, was our Beep Test. The boys had the beep test first, and Ms Sylvia was in charge of dealing with the boys while Mr Victor went to do strength training with the girls. Mind you, he likes girls more than boys because they are more cooperative and also sweet to him, as opposed to the boys who were rowdy and disrupted him while he taught us. Ms Sylvia then told everyone to warm up and get ready. Then, 10N's students were the first to do the beep test. Ms Sylvia then went to the PA system, and Chu Xiang and Jearn Xiu assisted her with the PA controls. Jearn Xiu is normally the PA system guy from our year level and is always at the controls during break and lunch assembly as well as Character Transformation as well. In fact, during the assembly, he will be on standby with Daphne Wong, Sin Jia Yi and Yi Zhen to coordinate the controls. That morning, Jearn Xiu tried to press the right button, but he first pressed the wrong key to the wrong song, and then, the loudspeaker went like, “blarp blarp” to humor from some people who found it as funny as one releasing gas. Then, the correct track was selected.
“The multi-stage fitness test starts in four seconds. Three.”
The beep test started, and everyone had to run along a 50-meter distance in the school hall and reach the line before the beep. One by one, some people fell out. Glen Kay was a bit too slow and backed out thereafter. Towards the end of the beep test, Ethan Wong was the last standing and Ms Sylvia gave a thumbs up as he collapsed on the ground.
Then, it was our turn. At level 3, Rick Tan dropped out. I managed to survive until level 7. Ting Yi and Branson tried to run jokingly but it made Ms Sylvia unamused. Sean Mark and Jason Leing were the last two standing, before Sean Mark was the last one to survive.
Once the other classes did their beep test, some people went to play basketball but were scolded by Mr Victor and the other teachers who were spotting them play in the courtyard. Then, we went for break and I talked to the girls at the table about the beep test.
During Geography, Ms Maddy took the opportunity to introduce to us about the Millenium Development Goals, which are a series of eight goals set in the year 2000 on a 15-year project in order to aim to improve the world by 2015. However, most of the goals were not fulfilled promptly, and as such, these were replaced by the Sustainable Development Goals on 7th October 2015. But during History, we were asked to design a monument to represent liberty by Ms Visa.
Mr Kevin Cupit, being the head of History, had come up with this coursework to get people to think about how important liberty is to the human mind and soul. The rise in slavery in the United States had resulted in the Statue of Liberty being designed, and basing the coursework on such a topic in our History lessons, Mr Cupit got us cracking on how we can design a monument based on the theme of liberty. Everyone was given until 7th May 2015 to come up with a monument on that. Ms Visa has also said that Mr Cupit had a strict criteria to follow, and that we were not encouraged to design statues as figures in our monument as it would be difficult to draw and it would come out ugly.
On another note, at the beginning of the week, Eu Lynn and Jordan, being our monitors, had announced to us that there would be an interclass basketball competition among the Year 9 students which will be held after school from 1:00pm to 3:00pm on Friday, 24th April. Hence, I signed up for the competition, being interested in it. Apart from that, I was thinking about how to plan my History coursework. It looked challenging.
The next day, Ms Joyce had an interesting thing for us to do. It was to write about our autobiography. I like to talk about such a topic because it reminds me of my journal. Ms Ng then continued teaching us about the electrons and also told us how to construct them. The day went on as normal, until Ms Nadia had a new thing for us to do – preparatory work, also known as prep works.
Prep works are pieces of work containing a series of pictures and drawings, accompanied with annotation that describe the work. Through out my frequent visits to the art studio, as well as during PTM and also during my time with Ms Feeda during Fine Art Club CCA lessons, I have seen prep works being displayed at prominent locations in the school compound. The walls of the school corridors were displayed with pictures painted by Year 10 and 11 students. But it is the prep works that are vital – and will be displayed in the Art Studio for our reference. Ms Nadia wanted us to bring some A2-sized drawing paper for the next lesson.
But, wait, wait, hold on a second. BEFORE.....before discussing about prep works, Ms Nadia wanted to do an Art Folder Spot Check. Yes. A spot check.
Each student, when completing their art pieces, would need to file their artwork into their art folder. Ms Nadia was really serious about this. And we had to follow a specified order Ms Nadia wrote on the board to get started....
Ms Nadia went around the class, instructing us to put the art folder on the table. She was yelling and pouting as we frantically tried to arrange all the art pieces accordingly. First, we had to arrange a line texture which we draw that represented a house. We also then had to arrange a one-point perspective drawing of our rooms at home, followed by a painting that we drew on shape and form, consisting of three objects, namely a pyramid, cube and sphere and was shaded with the shadows and appropriate toning. This was then followed by a painting of hatching that we drew of a plant that we took a picture of, a color wheel diagram, a painting applying the color value on a cup, jar and ball, a texture painting, a painting of an apple using texture painting techniques, and as such, the latest painting, which was a picture of Ms Feeda's broccoli and cup painting from her blog.
Ms Nadia walked around with her ultra-serious face. Then, she screamed at Ting Yi to put his folder on the table. “If you did not bring your folder, punishment! A thousand lines! I will not forget to bring my folder again! Write that down on your A3 paper!” she said, instructing of the punishment for those who did not toe the line.
Benjamin Fong, who had a messy folder, was scolded by Ms Nadia. He giggled as I watched in horror. Then, Ms Nadia went to Sean Mark and Jason Leing and asked them to present theirs. Then, she walked around, flipping through everyone's art folders. Once everyone was done, and once each person's folders were assessed, they breathed a sigh of relief. Ms Nadia then went to Benjamin Fong and Ting Yi and asked the class what punishment would be given to them. Most people wanted them to do the Chicken Dance, and that was the case. Benjamin Fong and Ting Yi danced and laughed, and the whole class laughed as well. Then, Ms Nadia told us to make sure we brought our A2 paper the following week for the Prep Work.
During lunch, I passed by a poster located on one of the notice boards on the ground floor, which was on environment protection. A phrase, ‘The less plastic bags we use, the more of the Earth we save” was written on the poster. I had used plastic bags to make strings for my gardening projects then, and the latest was to do a suspension bridge in my backyard garden. Curious enough, I copied the words onto my Student Organizer.
Friday, 24th April arrived. The English lesson ran as usual, and Ms Joyce spent the entire morning presenting about our autobiographies. During break time, Ms Lim was as usual watching the conduct of every student to ensure that no one stepped out of the perfect line of following the rules. In Nobel back then, it is all about avoiding punishments. Don't be in the classroom during break time. Don't be out and about during lessons. Ensure that you follow the school dress code, get your hair and fingernails (or to a certain extent, toenails) trimmed, and make sure you are punctual for break and lunch assembly without any excuse, and you will be fine. It is about trying to survive and not get punished.
When we returned, the information for the Poverty Modular Assessment for Geography were written by Ms Maddy on the whiteboard, along with a requirement to memorize the European countries as part of a continuation of practice of memorizing continents from the previous year's modular assessments. That assessment will take place on 29th April. Ms Ng then talked to us about the history of each element and why water is a compound and not an element. This is because water, which was initially called an element, was placed in a container for an experiment which involved injecting electricity into water to study how water behaved. This resulted in water being transformed via a chemical reaction into two elements; oxygen and hydrogen.
Anyhow, during Homeroom time, I ate the afternoon bun as Eu Lynn told all the basketball match participants to stay back as the match would be played in the school hall. Then, once things were done, I changed into my sports attire as everyone went to the hall for the match.
The name-calling of students during dismissal rang in the background as the basketball match was being set up. Benjamin Tenji, Jordan Cheam and Brendan Cheah then set up the court and pushed the basketball hoops. I was selected as a reserve player by Sean Mark, particularly because of me not being as good in basketball. I would say that Benjamin Fong is the best basketball player from 9O so far.
Jordan Tay and Branson Choon were very interested to see Ting Yi play basketball. In fact, Ting Yi had played basketball, I suppose, during his school days because he's quite tall. In fact, just before the basketball match, Branson and Jordan, along with Rick, had teased Ting Yi to play the match, and even Ms Ng was excited when they chat about it during Homeroom time. So, as a result, Ting Yi was also placed as one of the reserve players, with Benjamin Fong being the lead basketballer.
The game started with a match between 9N and 9O. In the 9N squad were Ethan Wong, Brendan Cheah, Benjamin Tenji, Justin Yeo and Joseph Diong playing with a few others in the team. 9O's players, unfortunately, weren't as experienced in the basketball competition as opposed to those from 9N. Among the folks who were chosen to play were Sean Mark, Jordan Tay, Benjamin Fong, Branson Choon, Ze Khai and Jason Leing. And yes, Caleb Chuang and I were there to cheer, just in case, to promote good publicity for 9O.
I want to tell you that during my time in Nobel, Caleb Chuang would always go back really late, say around 4:00pm or 4:30pm, even on Fridays, because Mr Chuang, his father, would need to work his heart out for eight and a half hours a day while the school hours are only seven hours and 45 minutes. The office time in Nobel begins for all staff at half past seven while students would need to report to school at 7:45am sharp. The dismissal time varies for the students; the elementary school dismisses at 2:30pm back in 2015 while the Junior and Senior School end their classes at 3:30pm. So, Caleb Chuang would need to wait for him. And normally, he will always study. I would normally bolt the school premises when dismissal time arrives, as my aunt would be there waiting for me.
Anyhow, 9N and 9O played in the basketball game. The game was intensive, as Caleb Chuang and I cheered. “Pass, pass, pass!” we cried, motivating our people in 9O. Megan Lee and Le Anne smiled at us, and I encouraged them to cheer with us. “Why are you looking at me and Caleb? You must cheer with us!” I cried. “Yeah, Megan!” chided Le Anne, smiling and patting Megan.
The game was tied with 9O and 9N having five points each in the basketball game. However, towards the end of the first match, Benjamin Fong scored the winning goal and this resulted in all the 9O people screaming as loud as possible. Mr Chuang was passing by, and I approached him and told him of the results, to which he gave a thumbs-up. “I really had fun with Caleb Chuang!” I cried.
Eu Lynn and Yan Ying came into the centre of the court to advise the basketball players. Then, in the second half, 9N's squad managed to level off the points and secure a score of 6-6. Then, Benjamin Fong did a cool move and scored two additional points, to which I cheered and screamed loudly. Oh wow. Classic high school basketball games.
The next game was played by 9B and 9E, and the following game was thereafter played by 9L and 9N. Throughout the match, Caleb Chuang, Ting Yi and I led the cheers for 9O. However, sadly, we did not advance to the finals as the other classes had better basketball talent than us. It then rained that afternoon, which made the atmosphere cool.
Monday, 27th April 2015, was the date of the 2015 Young Entrepreneur Challenge, or YEC 2015. Derek Yong had bought a large cooker to school as he was participating in the YEC. Apart from that, around four teams from Year 9 were shortlisted to participate in the YEC. The event was marred with a lot of excitement, as the main hub for the YEC was set for the school canteen, although some events took place in the school courtyard.
During Global Perspectives, I presented my points on the research Ms Kiran gave us. To make it more interesting, I presented them in Powerpoint slides about the various issues and topics. Derek Yong and I were the main presenters, and it made the class really excited over the entire presentation. Ms Kiran even praised my intonation and presentation skills as I made the class interested in the presentations, and because I kept on saying, “Right, Derek?” all the time, Megan was interested as to when I would say “Right, Caleb?” instead. Then, as the GP lesson ended, we went down for the Young Entrepreneur Challenge, where Derek had to set up his share. In fact, we were the first to present, so Derek thereafter went down early to prepare for the YEC.
There were many stalls set up by the students in the canteen for the YEC. Most sold food or souvenirs, with Mr Raja, Ms Chithra, Mr Gan and Ms Sharon going around to judge the YEC booths. The event was bustling with excitement despite not having a theme. I did not buy anything and instead went to sit down in the school hall. Ms Lim got very angry when a large number of students, mainly half the school, were late because the music was too soft and that they were busy buying things from the bazaar set up in the canteen. To make matters worse, the school hall's doors that led to the lower canteen were sealed off to only allow a single route for entry and exit.
When we returned back to class, Cikgu Zura then gave us our Malay coursework in which we had to do a presentation. That presentation would be held in June, just after the conclusion of our school holidays and the Mid Year Examination. I got excited and teamed up with Caleb Chuang for the presentation. The week then continued normally. We were treated to a speech by Ms Bee Yong on how to manage our studies during the Character Transformation session. At the same time, Ms Seline also taught us on how to draw graphs. She used the Desmos Graphing Website which was quite interesting when projected on the Smartboard. Enisha continued to rant during Ms Belle's class on watching movies. And in fact, Ms Belle was happy enough to treat us to movies, but educational videos. We did our strength test during PE and Ms Sylvia coordinated us while Mr Victor handled the girls’ beep tests. During PE, a lot of boys peered at the school hall and cheered the girls as they did their beep test.
On Thursday, 30th April, Ms Joyce did with us an essay and she asked us to work in pairs to do the essay. I helped Gabriel Lim on his part. And Ms Ng even showed us the Periodic Table Song by ASAP Science, which was quite cool. I still remember the song till this day.
Ms Visa then reminded us about our History coursework, which was to be passed up the following week to her. It was on the basis of liberty, and we need to create that monument which Mr Cupit had asked everyone to do. He's the then head of History and, I would say, was a great teacher that taught everyone except 9O the History subject. I felt puzzled on what monument should I create for History. I was stuck.
Leading up to the art lesson, Ms Nadia had asked everyone to bring a set of A2 paper to class. However, many of the people in the class failed to bring the A2 paper. Eu Lynn then joked in the class when apologizing in smiles to Ms Nadia, “Oh, sorry, guys, guys, let's get punishment together,” and did squats while laughing and putting her hands on her ears. However, as she led at least ten people to do squats with her, Ms Nadia was very angry and shouted at them. She then asked Benjamin Fong to go to the Art Studio 2, bring some spare A3 paper and gave it to the people in the class who failed to bring the A2 paper, and Ms Nadia ordered everyone who did not bring the A2 paper to write “I promise to bring my A2 paper and pay attention in class” on the A2 paper until the entire paper was covered with the sentences, both front and back of the paper. Then, for the rest of us, Ms Nadia then told those who brought their A2 paper on how the prep works are supposed to work. She then explained the format and told us to bring some pictures on our subject matter. “Those who don't know what to do can use the broccoli picture that you have brought,” she said, referring to the broccoli picture we brought for our research that we took from Ms Feeda's art blog. Ms Nadia said that she was quite lenient as opposed to Ms Feeda, who had a stricter (but more gentle) tone to her lessons.
Meanwhile, during the lesson, Benjamin Fong and Sean Mark were cracking jokes, and this resulted in Ms Nadia threatening to give another A3 paper for them to write, “I will not talk in class without permission”. Then, Ms Nadia came and guided us on how to do the prep work accordingly. I may not have told you this, but the previous year, 2014, in Year 8, the entire class forgot to bring their art materials and Ms Nadia forced them to write 1000 lines of punishment. The only person who was spared from the punishment was me, as I had brought my art supplies. The scene of Ms Nadia guiding me on the lesson while the whole class was standing and putting their A3 paper on the wall while writing lines as punishment still reflected in my head just over a decade later.
After finishing Art lessons, I then went to Art Studio 2 for my final Art and Crafts CCA with Ms Chume and Puan Farhana. It was a norm after every art lesson for me to carry my art supplies to the Art and Crafts CCA next door while wearing my apron. It was very convenient for me for all my art activities to be held on the same day. This was the second time the timetable was changed; prior to March 2015, the timetable saw Art lessons being on Tuesday.
Ms Chume and Puan Farhana were presenting cupcakes to us to enjoy and savor our Art and Crafts Club CCA. I personally feel that nothing much or interesting of Art and Crafts Club was interesting. I should have joined Fine Art Club and appealed, just like Rosemund, Alicia or Yi Zhen, but I just didn't want to challenge the system. The Year 9 students in Art and Crafts Club were the oldest in the CCA. And Ms Chume had a reflection for all of us and she also thanked me for being a very responsible treasurer. We gave hugs before we left the art studio, as I looked on towards the Fine Art Club CCA. Since I had entered Year 9, I was excited on heading towards that approach.
May soon arrived and it was my birth month. To start off the month, we had a four-day long weekend because the first day of May was the Labour Day Public Holiday, followed by a Saturday and a Sunday which I spent with my neighbor. In fact, I spent four days of fun with him, because Monday, 4th May 2015, was also a holiday-in-lieu of Wesak Day because the Wesak Day Public Holiday fell on Sunday, 3rd May 2015 and had to be replaced.
The month of May also coincided with Auntie Clarine’s birthday celebration, as well as the Mid Year Examination. For Auntie Clarine’s birthday celebration, we gave her a packet of Milo, and everyone bought one each ahead of the birthday celebration. Before that, the last time we gave her a packet of Milo was in 2010, when I was in Year 3.
To start off the week, Tuesday, 5th May 2015, was the annual birthday celebration of Auntie Clarine. It is tradition for Nobelians to hail the glory and compassion of Ms Clarine Chun towards the needy by celebrating her birthday. Everyone was asked to come down after break time to celebrate Auntie Clarine’s birthday. As always, we would give the so called food or so on to her, and this would be given to the families who need them during the Love on Wheels donation drive. Love on Wheels is a programme that ensures a free complimentary packet of food and drinks for every family from the underprivileged community who need them.
I took the opportunity to meet Ms Lim just before school begun that day as I, too, wanted a birthday celebration with my friends as well on Friday, 15th May. Ms Lim then gave me her email and told my mum to write in to her. The day started with Ms Joyce giving us revision for our Mid Year Examination. She told us about what to expect for the exam, and Brandon Ooi kept on asking a lot of questions. And then, we went for our break time, looking forward to Auntie Clarine's birthday celebration. I spoke to San Ying about the proposed record-breaking birthday card planned by me and Caleb Chuang, and San Ying and Sophie Tan were shocked. “What in the world would you want to make such a big birthday card?” asked Sophie and San Ying.
The celebration begun just after break time. I sat with Caleb Chuang as we talked about how good and bad making the birthday card would be. Then, Ms Lim signalled for everyone to be silent while waiting for Auntie Clarine to come as to give her a surprise. “Okay, students, I want you all to keep quiet. Shh! Let's surprise Auntie Clarine,” she quipped.
Then, Auntie Clarine was welcomed into the hall, with a burst of fanfare. “Happy birthday Auntie Clarine!” cried the crowd, as Auntie Clarine walked in with smiles. She was accompanied by Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and Mr Chan Lik Hoong as she walked along a pathway designated for her. Placed in the center of the hall were a glass table and three sofas for the VIPs to sit down on.
Ivyna, Xin Yi and Janelle Tan did a jazz dance for Auntie Clarine, and there was also a performance by Caleb Fong and Aashtad, the head prefect, who sang a song by Bruno Mars. There were also recitals by the various Year 10s and 11s. The Elementary School students were also present and they were excited by Auntie Clarine's presence. Janelle Arnelia also sang a song for Auntie Clarine as well.
Soon, Ms Bee Yong, Mr Chan and the management team revealed the bags of Milo to her amazement. Auntie Clarine then addressed us, saying that we never fail to amaze her every single year with bags after bags of goodies for the needy. It was a high time as the prefects also presented a gift to her for her enjoyment. The leadership boards created a goodie bag and a card for her.
Once the celebration was done, we then went for our Maths and subsequently, our Mandarin lesson where we did work in class. During the class again, Enisha then begged Ms Belle to show some educational videos. “Okay, I will show; but only two videos once you have finished your work,” she said, handing out some paper for us to paste in our exercise book to do.
We had our PE lesson in which Mr Victor then did some ball games with us involving bouncing basketballs , but however, some of the boys weren't behaving properly and Ms Sylvia threatened to cancel the games and instead work on our normal PE lesson as well as strength training. “Some of you did not do well in your fitness test, you know,” she said.
Then, Mr Victor taught us how to dribble the ball, and I did a series of dribbles. Most of the boys were interested to throw basketballs into the basketball hoops, and Ms Sylvia had to intervene many times to get them to stop. Once we were finished with PE, some of the boys then played basketball in the courtyard, but however, the balls hit a Year 2 student who was walking nearby. The student cried, and her friend informed their class, which led to a teacher scolding them and resulting in Ms Joyce, who was walking nearby, going up to them and confiscating the ball before bringing them to Ms Lim's office. Following which, we went back for Geography where Ms Maddy gave us worksheets that compared the United States and Mexico in what is the difference between a less-economically-developed country and a more-economically-developed country. Apart from that, I don't think there is much to say here. Ms Visa then continud to talk about liberty and the chapters that will come out for the History exam. Ms Lim had approved my birthday celebration on the 15th, and Ms Nadia continued our prep works; guiding with us on drawing the broccoli and mug for the prep work. In fact, Ms Nadia said one thing to us: “If you are not planning to take Art in Year 10, then this year is your final year for Art and please enjoy every bit of it,” she said. In fact, many people do not enjoy art because of the strict approaches used by Ms Nadia for her lesson.
On Thursday, 7th May, I came armed with my History coursework. The coursework of mine involved a bridge that consisted of two designs; an arch bridge and a cable-stayed bridge. Watching documentaries made me remember of what one of the engineers said when proposing an arch bridge for Denmark's Oresund Link on the MegaStructures documentary series; “It will be a monument of some kind.” So, I felt that a bridge would symbolize a monument of liberty.
During the morning assembly, we were informed that Mr Paul would be leaving Nobel at the end of the month. The news was announced by Auntie Clarine.
Auntie Clarine and Ms Bee Yong stood in front. It was an important assembly. Next to them was Mr Paul, who was smiling.
“Students, I would like to inform you that our very dear Head of CCA, Mr Paul, will be leaving Nobel. Mr Paul, thank you for contributing to the school and helping our students. You are the reason why our Nobel students are able to excel in CCAs. We will miss you, Mr Paul,” said Auntie Clarine. She gave Mr Paul a hug. Then, Mr Paul was invited to say a few words to us.
“Now, students, I will be leaving this school at the end of May. Thank you for making my journey in this school wonderful. Take care. I will miss all of you,” said Mr Paul. He picked out a handkerchief, shed tears, and Auntie Clarine patted him. Ms Bee Yong then came up and told us to say thank you to Mr Paul, which we did.
Mr Paul first came to Nobel in 2008 as a Science teacher. He decided to join this school because it was fun, and that he himself saw the potential of Nobel when on a visit to conduct a lesson with the Mad Science team, branding himself as ‘Professor Pao Pao’. Mr Paul was also my Science teacher in 2011 when I was in Year 4. He rose up the ranks, becoming the Head of Science of Sekolah Sri Nobel. When Sri Nobel rebranded into Nobel International School and as a result, started introducing the school-wide CCA system, Mr Paul was appointed as the Head of CCA and he expanded Nobel's list of CCAs, first from a pool of ten clubs and societies as well as five Friday extra-curricular activities, to a total of more than 20 clubs and societies from badminton to swashbuckling and even Musical Theatre. Mr Paul was instrumental in promoting the growth and development of CCA in Nobel International School.
I had mixed feelings when Mr Paul left. On the one hand, sometimes he might have had been too strict with us, and he normally scolded people in a serious manner. But on the other hand, Mr Paul had changed my life in particular. He was my Science teacher. He stimulated my interest in the study of Science. No teacher since Mr Paul who taught me had the capability and the determination to inspire students, both academically as well as non-academically. His Science lessons were awesome and he really inspired me to be at my very best.
When we returned to class, we had our English lesson, and Ms Joyce gave us work to prepare for the Mid Year Examination. Then, we had Geography, where Ms Maddy also gave us work. The day went quite smoothly under Ms Ng's Science lesson until it was time to present our History coursework on the monuments to Ms Visa.
For our History class that day, the air conditioning was failing, and we had to make our way to 7B's class which was next to the lift on the second floor. Jordan and Eu Lynn were told by Ms Visa to settle everyone in the class before she came. The class was not in use as they were in the Art Studio at the time.
Once Ms Visa came into the class, she then called everyone, one by one, to present to her their monuments. Alia was the first to present, followed by Benjamin Fong and Yan Ying. Ms Visa was okay with them, but for Benjamin Fong, she was disappointed. “You did not bring? Very good. Zero marks for you,” she said with a stern smile. Benjamin Fong then acted on a sly look and gave the peace symbol before being told to return to his seat.
Then, Derek Yong presented his work, and Ms Visa praised him but also gave comments for improvement. This was then followed by Ivyna presenting hers, and then lo and behold, I was asked to present my coursework along with an explanation of the monument. I stepped up to Ms Visa, and presented to her the design of the bridge as a monument testamonial to liberty.
“Wei Yiang, what is this? What is this?” cried Ms Visa. Soon, her dismay turned into a rage. “What type of design is this?” she asked as she read the description that I wrote about my monument. I then explained to Ms Visa about the designs of the bridge. The arch design was meant to symbolize openness, while the cable-stayed spans were meant to symbolize unity in diversity. “Do you think that this is a monument? You say that this is a monument?” roared Ms Visa. I tried to defend myself, citing how engineers chose arch bridges as monuments. Ms Visa, unfortunately, did not see the bridge as a testament to liberty.
“I don't understand your design. You are supposed to design a monument. I see three brooms and a design which I don't think represents liberty. I don't see a monument. I only see brooms. You are not supposed to design brooms. I think it represents nonsense. Class, do you think this is a monument?” Many of the people in the class were baffled.
Some people were baffled. A lot of people peered mysteriously at my design, curious about the design that I made. Even Sara Yow's eyes were bulging. “What is that?” asked Eu Lynn and Le Anne, looking at the design that I had. Benjamin Fong then chipped in. “It looks like a piece of dung!” he cried. “Wei Yiang, this looks like crap,” said Rick Tan. “It is not a monument.”
Ms Visa then scolded me in front of the class. “Wei Yiang, this is very disappointing. I am disappointed. Why are you giving me nonsense?” she asked. Then, she lectured me about my design as to why I did not fulfil certain objectives. “If Mr Cupit were to see this; if I were to mark this, I would give you a FAIL,” she roared. Ms Visa ordered me to see her after the end of the class.
Then, Jason Leing was called to the front of the class to present his monument, but he forgot to do it. “Teacher, I forgot to do,” said Jason. Ms Visa smiled with a smirk. “Oh, really? Very good, hero,” she said, adding that Jason will be given zero marks for his assignment, just like Benjamin Fong.
Ze Khai then presented his assignment with a smile. Ms Visa asked him to explain, and he confidently explained his design with a relaxed body as Ms Visa talked about how his design was a bit off. Once all the coursework were submitted, Ms Visa then wanted to continue the lesson, but it was lunchtime. Ms Visa then told me to stay back as everyone returned to 9O to get their meal coupons. “Thank you Ms Visa,” they greeted her.
Ms Visa then met me and ORDERED me to redo the assignment. “Take this home, and I want you to redo the coursework. Redo. I want this done by Monday. Understand?” asked Ms Visa. I then asked her as to why she did not feel happy with my work despite me putting in my effort. “What type of work is this? Does this answer the question of the symbolism of liberty? In my opinion, it does not symbolize liberty. Mr Cupit is very strict on this,” she boomed. Then, Ms Visa gave me more lectures before I went to 9O, took my meal coupon, and headed to the canteen to buy my food. I just walked alone. I wanted to be with myself. And I felt that Mr Cupit wasn't as strict as I thought from his first impressions. He appeared to be a kind and gentle teacher and not an emotional one like Ms Visa. In reality, I felt that Ms Visa was even more strict than Mr Cupit himself.
When I first came to Nobel, our teachers gave us the meal coupon just before lunch. Meal coupons are basically coupons we can use to purchase our food, hereby making cash unnecessary. Then, our teachers gave us the meal coupon at the beginning of the day beginning in 2014, and we kept it till lunchtime. On days where I lost the meal coupon, I borrowed some from my friends if necessary if they had extra. Otherwise, I would eat some bread or starve for the day. Luckily I was strong and not as weak.
I sat down on the table alone, thinking about what Ms Visa said to me. I mean, I gave my best. I like coming up with bridge designs in my free time, and I thought it was cool to do a bridge design for my History coursework. I mean like, I cried, you know. With tears. I did not understand why Ms Visa had to scold me for such a minor mistake. Some people comforted me when they saw me. Thursday, 7th May 2015, would be known as ‘Black Thursday’ because of how Ms Visa got angry at me over a simple mistake, and the emotional trauma I suffered. Nevertheless, I pledged to Ms Visa, promising to redo the coursework.
After lunch, we then did some exercises in Maths. Then, during Art, we had our Art Exam.
Ms Nadia had told us to bring some A2 paper as the A2 paper was the basis for our Art Exam. For the exam, I laid down on the floor and worked on my Art Exam, which was to draw a picture of a neighborhood being flooded by floodwaters. Rick then asked why I was on the floor doing my work. Ms Nadia then told everyone in the class not to bother about me, as I laid down on the floor to give myself a larger place to put my art materials and the palette.
When the Art Exam started, Ms Nadia said that everyone had to keep quiet. However, she then played some soft music for us to listen while doing the exam. Then, all of a sudden, I spilled my water container containing the dirty water from the prep work. I managed to complete the work safely after I went to get a mop from the toilet and cleaned the water up. Fortunately, I wore my apron to prevent my clothes from being dirty.
Then, it was Friday, 8th May. The morning started off normally, as Ms Joyce then discussed the prvious day's work on carnivorous plants. Ms Joyce then asked if anyone had planted things in their garden. I told Ms Joyce that I had green fingers and we spent time talking about the passion fruit, banana trees and durian trees that I planted.
During break time, the whole canteen sung the birthday song for San Ying till she got shy. Kit Lee wished her a happy birthday. Then, while we were sitting in the courtyard, many people continued to wish San Ying a happy birthday till she got annoyed.
After break, we then had Geography where Ms Maddy continued to explain about the Millenium Development Goals. Ms Ng then brought us to the Science lab to do the test on starch, followed by more lessons on equations during Maths. Then, during Homeroom time, I spoke with Ms Ng about my plan to have my birthday celebration in school the following Friday, 15th May. Ms Sylvia and Ms Ng were okay with the celebration, but told me to talk to Ms Lim about it.
The Mid Year Examination came on the horizon as well. On the final week before the Mid Year Examination, I would say that all the teachers were drilling us and preparing us for the examination. The teachers kept on reminding us about the Cambridge Checkpoint examination, and words of, “If you have this type of attitude, how are you going to prepare for Checkpoint?” The pressure kept on coming onto us as examination season approached.
On Monday, 11th May, Ms Bee Yong then gave some words of encouragement to the Year 11 students who would be having their IGCSE Malay exam that week. I was wondering as to when the exam would be held, because the previous year saw a really bad clash of the IGCSE Malay Exam on my birthday, and the celebration had to be affected.
That morning, Ms Kiran then got us started on our first coursework and we had to choose a topic to write about. We had to do mindmaps and graphics, and I decided to write about a highway that improves transportation. I also talked about traffic congestion as well.
Then after that, we had Maths, and then English. Ms Joyce then gave us a worksheet that is based on comprehension exercises, and the text that was given was ‘Google’. It looked funny but also interesting as it told the story of Google, the Internet search engine that we use to this day.
Ms Joyce told us on the history of Google, which was founded in 1998 and originally started as a project between two university students. When Google was founded, people felt boring that the only interface on Google's homepage was just the logo, and a column for people to fill in their search result and press the search button. Back in those days, before the advent of Google, people expected an Internet search page to contain information and a lot of graphics on their website to make it interesting for people to look at it, and the homepage design for Google was shunned. Today, people feel comfortable using Google because the so-called ‘dull’ page was very comfortable, especially for people looking for a clean start. Google's designers wanted people to focus on searching.
The name ‘Google’ eventually became a verb used in sentences. This means that people will start saying, “Can you Google this for me” instead of “Can you search this for me”. The worksheet's text says that a company named Xerox which provides printing services and products, also had its name used as a verb in the same manner, but however, the company is already bankrupt. We then had Malay and then Science, where Ms Ng taught us about chemical equations.
We then had Bible Knowledge, where Ms Joyce came in. She then explained and continued about the various parables from the book of Acts. Then, during Mandarin, Ms Belle then taught us about the scopes for our Final Year Examination, but however, she had to tell the class to keep quiet many times and got frustrated.
The next day, 12th May, we then had ICT, and Mr Narish did our ICT exam with us in the class. The exam tested us on how to make and to modify an Audacity track. Afterwards, it was break, and I talked to San Ying about my birthday on the coming Friday, 15th May. Oh, and that day was Sherwin's birthday, and I wished him a happy birthday during break. Afterwards, during Malay and Maths, the whole time was spent doing work and revision. During the two subjects, Ivyna asked many questions. Then, I waved happily at Alia, who waved back at me.
During Character Transformation, we then had an activity on how we are able to cope with relationships. Then, during History, Ms Visa then taught us about Napoleon Bounaparte and how the French Revolution was started before giving us work. The whole class kept quiet as to not make Ms Visa angry.
The next day, 13th May 2015, saw us doing some exercises in the courtyard during PE. Mr Victor told us to do a bit of sit ups and push ups, and I did the exercises with Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi. The whole class looked at us as we tried to do the exercises. Megan and Le Anne, somehow, were watching us all the time.
Then, following break time, I met Ms Lim and told her that I have asked my mum to write a letter to her, and passed her my own handwritten letter, Ms Lim accepted the birthday celebration proposal and told me to store my cake in the front office's fridge. Then, Ms Lim came for assembly and told us to do well in the Mid Year Examination which is in two weeks time. She asked us on how we were doing in our studies and how the preparations. “Year 9, remember! Your exam is important because you are going to sit for Checkpoint,” she said.
Afterwards, we then had a look at the various stages of climate change. Ms Maddy then told us that she hadn't finalized the marks for the volcano coursework and would let us know then. This subject was so easy. Then, during History, Ms Visa then continued to talk about the French Revolution. She gave us some worksheets to paste in our book, but however, Benjamin Fong pasted the worksheets wrongly, which made Ms Visa very angry with him. I also managed to present my monument to Ms Visa, who approved it. “Now, that is a monument, not the design you had earlier,” she said.
Throughout the weekend, I created a new monument with descriptions. This time, I created a prism with various points as well as an inscription.
What made me think of a bridge for a monument was the fact that Mr Cupit asked everyone not to draw a statue as it is very messy and complicated. I believe that Mr Cupit would have come and advised me properly rather than Ms Visa, but nevertheless, I kept my fingers crossed as to how Ms Visa would perceive it.
After lunch, we then had Maths, English, and then Science, where Ms Ng did some exercises with us.
The next day, 14th May, was the eve of my birthday. That morning, during English, Ms Joyce discussed the Google worksheet before giving us another worksheet which focused on Steve Jobs. She wanted to continue from the Google worksheet and also talk to us about how Steve Jobs inspired the world.
During break time, I told Caleb Chuang and Jordan about how my birthday was to be set up, and they gave me advice. Afterwards, we returned to class, where Ms Ng did a recap of the chapters and told us about our exam scope. She taught in the class as we listened attentively. Everyone actually liked Ms Ng's lesson. Then, we had Mandarin, and Ms Belle did some worksheets and exercise with us, telling us to complete the exercise. After lunch, Maths and History, where Ms Visa gave a lecture about how we should do our work, we went for our Art lesson, where Ms Nadia told us to carry on with our prep works. It was fun doing a prep work which was normally done by Year 10 and Year 11 students. That was the first year Art and Design prep works were extended to Year 9, but it involved simple drawing techniques and not the ones done by Year 10 and 11 students. Everything was just simple and straightforward. Ms Nadia then chided Ting Yi when he did not bring additional A2 paper to continue doing his prep works. We had to do four of them, but Ting Yi did one and he failed to bring three additional A2 paper. Instead, he only had one A3-sized paper. Ms Nadia was not amused. Ms Nadia also wished me a happy early birthday before the lesson ended.
I was given a birthday celebration by my friends, Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia during the homeroom period on Friday, 15th May 2015. It was a lukewarm and amazing celebration.
The morning of 15th May started by me getting up early. It was early, and I arrived at school with the birthday cake. As I arrived before 6:45am, I had to wait outside the school compound before being allowed to enter. Some people who were early asked if it was my birthday that day before I said yes. Then, they wished me happy birthday.
After we were allowed into the school compound, I then plopped my bag on the floor in the school hall, and went to the main office to put the birthday cake inside the fridge. The office was still opening and many of the staff had not yet arrived. I was ushered to the fridge by Puan Halimah, who had arrived early that morning, to put the cake inside the fridge.
Once I placed the cake into the fridge, I then went to eat my breakfast in the canteen, bringing a copy of The Star newspaper with me. I sat down at the table and looked at the newspapers while eating my bread. Once I was done, I went back to the school hall and then sat down. Adrinna Yee wished me a happy birthday.
Then, I went to the foyer to wait for people. Those that arrived wished me a happy birthday, including Ms June. Many people can remember my birthday. Then, Daryl Yeo arrived, and his father was seen carrying his bag as well as accompanying his sister, Marissa Yeo as well. And then, Caleb Chuang arrived. “Happy birthday, Wei Yiang,” he said.
As everyone went to the hall, I met Ivyna, who said that it was Ting Yi's birthday and not my birthday. This was my second year celebrating the same birthday with Ting Yi, who had joined Nobel the previous year. I got some well wishes from Sara Yow, Glen Kay, Caleb Chuang, and many of my friends from other classes in our batch.
Soon, it was time for assembly, and we gathered in our class lines before settling down. Aashtad was there that morning. He settled us down, let us talk until the teachers arrived, and then told us to greet all of them and recite the school pledge before sitting down.
Then, Ms Praveen came and gave us a briefing on our Mid Year Examination and told us about the IGCSE Mandarin exams occurring at the Year 11 classes. “I don't want to see anyone crossing the barricades just to go to the washroom. Use the other door,” she said, referring to us that anyone who wishes to use the washroom near the Year 11 classes had to take a long detour.
Afterwards, we then returned to 9O. Before we went for English, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying asked me what I wanted for my birthday. I told them that I wished for a notebook.
When I told Ms Joyce that it was my birthday, the entire class sang the birthday song for me before Ms Joyce discussed the comprehension exercises with us. Ms Joyce would always refer me to as the 'birthday boy' in class for that day. Then, once English was over, it was time for my birthday celebration in the canteen.
I then went down to the main office and told the office staff that I would like to retrieve my birthday cake from the fridge. The office staff then led me to the fridge and I took out the cake.
"Is today your birthday? Happy birthday!" said the staff.
Then, I proceeded to the canteen table, where Caleb Chuang and San Ying set up the cake for me. Then, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying also helped me set up. Then, the whole Year 9 batch came to the table and sang the birthday song. A good atmosphere in the company of my friends.
Time passed, as Eu Lynn and Yan Ying handed out the cakes. "Hope you are enjoying your birthday," said Zhue Xin, smiling at me and my cake. Then, time was ticking. Everyone from different year levels ate the cake as well. I got things ready, and I dumped the litter away just as the music started playing for assembly.
Once the celebration was done, we went back for class and then during Geography, Ms Maddy also wished me a happy birthday. We then did the 'Compare and Contrast' worksheets in class where we compared the United States with Mexico in terms of human development index. During Science, Ms Ng said that the class would have a birthday celebration for me during the Homeroom time. Both Ms Ng and Ms Seline wished me a happy birthday too. We did some exercises in Maths as the people from 9N wished me well as well.
During Homeroom, Ms Ng, Yan Ying and Eu Lynn led the class to sing happy birthday for me, as well as Ting Yi, since both of our birthdays were on the same day. Talk about competition since Ting Yi and I had the same birthday. Then, Eu Lynn stepped forward.
"Wei Yiang, we would like to present you with this card. Hope you enjoy it," said Eu Lynn. The card consisted of a lot of signatures, with the words in capital letters reading 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEI YIANG' and a picture of me carrying my trolley bag. There were a lot of signatures on the card. Jason Leing, Sean Mark, Zhue Xin, Yi Zhen, Faythe Chow, Megan, Le Anne, and so many other people. Not to also mention that Ms Lim was even approached to write a birthday wish for me.
Ms Maddy also wrote, “Happy birthday to the best future tour guide. You are amazing!”
The day ended with a cloudy afternoon, and it rained that evening.
Ms Maddy also wrote, “Happy birthday to the best future tour guide. You are amazing!”
The following week was the last week before the Mid Year Examination. The teachers were gearing up for the exam. To start with, the day started with a rude lecture by Ms Lim on how some people were unable to keep quiet during the assembly. What a bad day to start the week. Then, we went back to class for our GP lesson with Ms Kiran.
Eu Lynn and Yan Ying approached me and presented me with a notebook. I was surprised. The notebook contained a nice message from Eu Lynn and Yan Ying that was written on the back of the wooden cover which I still keep to this day.
The message read,
"Hi Wei Yiang! Happy belated birthday! We just want to let you know that you are a good friend :) Thank you for constantly helping us but sometimes we can also do it ourselves.....HAHA! And we are very sorry if we may be mean at times... I hope you enjoy this birthday present and I hope you will treasure it. Once again, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!
From: Eu Lynn & Yan Ying"
At the bottom of the message was a nice "Happy Birthday" font decorated with Sharpie ink. It looked so cool! The notebook came with pockets and had a world map on it, which reflected my passion for Geography. I feel happy having friends who understand me so well.
And as to what Eu Lynn and Yan Ying said about helping me, sometimes I would help them with their work or carry their things for them or find solutions for them. Ivyna also said that I am very cheerful and helpful too.
Ms Kiran then continued to brief us to guide us and to write the research for our GP project. I told her and explained to her about the transportation infrastructure that I read online and she was quite interested in it.
During break time, I then went to speak with San Ying and Zhue Xin about my GP project and how one of my concept plans I did during my free time was to build an underground expressway called the Kuala Lumpur Underground Expressway, or KLUEX, which was planned to connect the Bukit Puchong area with the KL city centre, and follow existing road footprints as the Puchong - Kuala Lumpur traffic corridor is one of the busiest road transit corridors in Klang Valley at the time. No LRT or MRT system was built yet back in 2015, and only three rail lines, the majority of which terminate just close to the borders of the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. The other lines, run by Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) Berhad, the national rail company of Malaysia, had a not-so-efficient system of travel at the time which benchmark a mass transit system, and the transport infrastructure was faltering then.
I told Zhue Xin about how interesting a highway is because there is demand for road transport and that people found it much of a hassle to take the light rail transit (LRT) system. How young I was then, before knowledge of why adding more lanes to roads won't solve the traffic problems gripped my head.
Then, we returned for our Maths lesson, where Ms Seline did some revision for us for the Mid Year Examination. She gave us some work and mostly taught us about equations. And a lot of homework to do. Ms Seline smiled sneakily when presenting the work to us. Wences groaned. “Exams are next week!” cried Ms Seline, as she continued to remind us about our priorities. Then, Ms Joyce told us to write an autobiography as part of our English coursework. Ms Joyce got us cracking as to what to write in our autobiography, and I took the time to share about how I normally write my journal. Ms Joyce said that writing an autobiography was different than writing a journal as the purpose of an autobiography was to introduce ourselves to people and to share our life experiences as opposed to a journal, which merely records the day's activities. Then, we had Malay and then Science, where Ms Ng taught us about the study of ecosystems in the same manner as Geography – except that this topic was more or less based on living things.
After lunch, Ms Joyce came in for Bible Knowledge. She then introduced us to the 15th Malaysian National Bible Knowledge Quiz. This is not just any other ordinary quiz, but one that is run by the Bible Society of Malaysia in collaboration with various Christian organizations. The quiz, branded as ‘BK15’, is a quiz that aims to not only allow Christians like us to seek solace with God, but also to encourage us Christians to read the Bible. I was thinking of signing up for this quiz, as many were interested. This quiz was a quiz to test us on our knowledge of the Bible and also to promote fellowship with God. I eventually signed up for the quiz, but more on that later.
Then, during Mandarin, Ms Belle told us to do an essay, but however, Gabriel Lim was sleeping and Benjamin Fong, Derek Yong and Daryl Yeo were playing around in the class which made Ms Belle annoyed. She then told us how to write the essay in Mandarin while also guiding us. We eventually did the essay as our homework as the class was slow.
The next day, during ICT, Mr Narish released our ICT results, which I got a B for that subject. He then discussed the questions with us and told us where we went right and wrong. The whole day was spent pretty much doing work. During Character Transformation, we were told to do a worksheet and an activity with our friends. And then, Ms Nadia gave us another painting during Art, but because Sean Mark's work wasn't up to her standard, she wasn't amused with him.
The next day, 20th May 2015, was our last PE lesson before the Mid Year Examination. Mr Victor then did some planking with us, and we had to hold the plank for two minutes, which made my hands vibrate. Following our PE lesson, we then had Geography, where Ms Maddy continued to give us work. Then, during History, Ms Visa then taught us how to do some source analysis during the History exam and also told us about what was to be covered in the test. Ms Seline then told me to collect the books during Maths for marking. Ms Joyce introduced us to idioms during English. One idiom that I regularly adopt during my time in Nobel was ‘hold your horses’. The week then continued normally as we geared up for the Mid Year Examination. The next day, Thursday, 21st May, saw Ms Joyce continuing our lesson on idioms, and I like to give a lot of idioms, such as ‘let the cat out of the bag’, ‘a penny saved is a penny earned’, and so on. There was one sentence that Ms Joyce liked that consisted of two idioms: “Hold your horses - don't let the cat out of the bag!”
During Homeroom time, Ms Ng told us to push the tables aside and start clearing books for the Mid Year Examination, so that the class can be free of books and the tables spaced out in order to allow the examination to run as smoothly as planned. I carried a whole bunch of books away. In fact, my bag was so heavy till Rick and Ms Visa once complained I was like ‘moving house’.
The Mid Year Examination was a test of endurance. It was a major test. Unlike the Assessment 1, which spanned an informal test format and a shorter exam scope, the Mid Year Examination has an examination standard which is close to the standard for Cambridge Checkpoint. It is crucial for me to do well in the Mid Year Examination. If I can maintain my momentum from the Assessment 1, which had good results, and do equally as well in the Mid Year Examination, I would be on course to doing well in Assessment 2 and Checkpoint.
The first day of the Mid Year Examination was a decent one. We had an assembly led by Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan, who gave us a long lecture on how the exams were important, especially for those in Year 9 and Year 11 respectively. “Exams are not a test, but a feedback on how you learn and how you can improve, because exams teach us not just to study, but also to have discipline, character and also teach us to be independent,” said Mr Chan.
English, was as usual, the first paper of the day. The paper was fortunately straightforward, but also challenging at the same time. When we got back to class, Ivyna forgot to bring her pen, and so did Yan Ying. I lent my pens to Ivyna, who thanked me happily as she had asked Ting Yi and Benjamin Fong for pens, but they refused to give her. “Thank you, Wei Yiang! So kind – not like you,” she said as she fumed at Benjamin Fong. Then, I passed my pens to Yan Ying, Vianna and Le Anne.
Outside the class, Ms Lim was telling everyone to quickly hurry up for their examinations. Ms Kiran tried starting the computer, but it took too long to start. Then, we settled down for our English exam first. Ms Kiran then got us settled, and with the help of IT personnel, successfully switched on the computer and displayed the Powerpoint slide containing the exam name, subject name and the date and time. This practice, first done in 2014, successfully eliminated the need for teachers to write the information on the whiteboard, and it thus saves ink and is very convenient. There was a Powerpoint Presentation folder containing such slides displaying the subject name, day, date and time of the exam and the paper number.
The English exam consisted of passage reading and comprehension. We were sitting for Paper 1 that morning. The exam was quite smooth and the sound of the flutter of the fans filled the room. The exam ended smoothly, with Ms Kiran collecting our papers as the English Paper 1 came to a close. I managed to retrieve my pens just before break, and the people who borrowed them requested if they could use it for English Paper 2. I agreed.
After break time, we went for our English Paper 2, and as Ms Seline tried to get everyone to settle down, Benjamin Fong wanted to use the toilet, resulting at Ms Seline being angry at him. She told him that she will lock the door if he was late for the examination. She started giving the papers, and as Benjamin Fong entered the classroom, Ms Seline was not amused with him for being late as the paper begun. The exam ran through, and Ms Joyce came in for English to invigilate the paper. She then asked people who were in her class if they were okay with the paper. The exam was smooth, and Cikgu Zura collected the papers normally. The afternoon was spent for the History paper, as Ms Joan took over the lesson and gave us the paper. The exam ran normally. Benjamin Fong came back just in time before the History paper started. That paper consisted of mainly question-answer questions and a short essay response, which were easy for me to do.
The next morning, we had the Maths Paper 1. Mr Narish was the one invigilating, and Benjamin Fong forgot a pencil. He asked me for one, and I passed it to him. “I don't want to see anyone talking,” he commanded. Then, after asking if everyone was ready, he handed out the papers. I have to tell you that a total of one hour was not enough to finish my Maths paper when you are disarmed with a calculator. I, of course, shed tears, fearing of the teachers getting angry as of to why I did not complete my Maths paper.
Not completing the examination paper is a shameful thing in Asian cultures. To many, it meant that not completing the paper means that the individual did not put in the effort to do the exam. Since entering Nobel, our teachers had made sure that we completed the exam. It was my first time not completing the exam paper, and it was such a shame for me. Being traumatized at first, I soon got to accept that not completing an exam due to time constraints is okay, but not at the expense of not knowing what to answer.
During break time, I walked down and sat at the canteen table, tearing up as I reflected on the horrible experience of not being able to finish the exam. Berlinda Tan then approached me. “Wei Yiang, why are you crying?” she asked. After explaining everything, she urged me to try again and do better in the Assessment 2, Final Year Examination and eventually, the Cambridge Checkpoint. “There will be a second chance. Put in more effort and you will be able to finish it. Don't worry; you still have Assessment 2 and Checkpoint. It's not the last paper,” said Berlinda, comforting me.
When we gathered for the after-break assembly, I was already sitting down in the school hall, waiting for the assembly to start. Ms Lim then asked us how were we doing and told us to focus on the exams before releasing us. Then, it was Maths Paper 2.
After returning from break time, I sat down at my desk. Oh, I forgot to let you know, that Jason was sitting in front of me during the exam. He would sit down in front for every official exam, excluding the assessments. Cikgu Zura then called everyone to keep their books and get ready for the exam to begin. She had to call out Jason and Sean for being too slow to keep their books and the entire class for dilly-dallying. The exam went well, and Ms Seline was very strict in invigilating the exam. As she begun to collect the papers, some people chit-chatted. “Excuse me! This is an exam! I haven't said that you can talk!” she cried.
Oh, I forgot to mention this; what made the situation really difficult was that the Maths exam was a test of all Year 7, 8 and 9 topics covered at that time, which meant that I had to study the whole syllabus. Everyone in the last Maths class before the Maths exam gasped when Ms Seline wanted to test the entire syllabus, as she said that the main reason was to prepare us for the Checkpoint Exam, since the Checkpoint Exam tests on all syllabi for Year 7, 8 and 9. The Maths paper for the Mid Year Examination was the only exam to test the entire syllabus in KS3 then.
During Character Transformation, Ms Ng then gave us the leeway to do our own revision, so Branson Choon and I quizzed each other on Science, with Rick Tan joining in as well. We like to compete as such then, but however, Jordan Tay wasn't interested when I asked him for a quiz. Then, Ms Visa came in for History and allowed us to discuss and study in a group. I then quizzed Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi on the Science topics.
Wednesday, 27th May 2015, begun on a high note as I read my Science notes. The day started with Ms Praveen giving a stern warning on some students having a calculator for exams which they should not possess, as well as students borrowing things from other students as well as chit chatting during the examination. Then, we returned to our class for the Science Paper 1. It started raining and rainwater splashed into the hallways, resulting in some students putting their bags somewhere else.
Ms Sylvia then begun the exam on time, at 8:30am, but she was a bit hasty in starting the paper when some students went to the toilet at the last minute. In fact, most of the boys in the class used the loo to the last moment before the exam started, which caused everyone to wait. Then, Ms Sylvia then went to check on them and reminded them to return for the test, before beginning. The mneumonics given by Ms Ng made it easy for me to do the paper. After break, Ms Ng shared some experiences of how the first paper went, before giving us time to do our revision and Ms Ng also did some last minute revision for some people. Then, it was History. Ms Visa then arrived with a stack of papers for our Science Paper 2.
“Ok class, please keep your books. We are going to start,” commanded Ms Visa. Everyone was really cooperative. Then, Ms Visa gave out the paper and told us not to touch it. Once everything was done, we were told to check our papers before we started. This paper was quite easy. Ms Ng took some questions from the Cambridge Checkpoint past papers and specimen papers. I did not dare tell Ms Ng this because she might think that I had peeked at the ACTUAL papers before the exam, which I did not.
After lunch, I then had my Bible Knowledge exam, which was in 9E's classroom at the other end of the school building. As I arrived at 9E, many people were moving classes as to allow the Bible Knowledge exam to start. Then, Joseph Diong arrived and quizzed Caleb Chuang on the Bible Knowledge topics, before we started the test. It was mainly an easy exam with a lot of fill-in-the-blanks and direct questions.
The next morning, Ms Joyce came into the classroom and we discussed on how the English exam went and the segregation into First and Second Languages, since everyone stayed in their respective classes. She then asked about how was Mr Thomas' lesson to the First Language students, and Ms Joyce then approached me. “Wei Yiang, I have seen your paper. Your handwriting needs to improve,” she told me, as she said that she hadn't marked the entire paper yet. “Another three areas you should improve on are spelling, punctuation and grammar,” said Ms Joyce. As the class got noisy, Ms Joyce told us to study on our own and not discuss with our friends. Then, following break, we had the Malay Paper 2. As that exam was the final exam of the Mid Year Examination, Benjamin Fong entered the class and told Ms Maddy, who was setting up the computer, to write the time on the Smartboard so that we could count down to the end of the exam. She refused on grounds that everyone would get distracted from the exams. Ms Maddy then told us to settle down before handing out the papers. Then, the exam begun, and Ms Visa was the one collecting it. She told everyone not to cheer when Benjamin Fong started getting people to cheer. Once everything was finished, Benjamin Fong then jumped up and showed his muscles, and Jason and Sean cheered with him. Ting Yi and Branson did the same. They ran to the back, and tore down the exam timetable before dumping them in the bin. Then, Ms Nadia came in and announced, one by one, the provisional marks for Art and Design's Mid Year Examination.
Ms Nadia asked who got an A once again. I raised my hand. “Sorry, Wei Yiang. You are not the highest and you don't have an A. So sorry,” she said. It was Branson Choon who got the highest marks for Art and Design back then.
The last day of school, 29th May, started normally as Ms Praveen chided some people for still not following the exam rules. “I know some of you have done your exams, but however, please lower your voices as other people still have exams,” she said, while acknowledging that the conduct of the school was much better. While we spent most of the day watching a movie, it was Ms Joyce and Ms Visa who didn't allow films to be shown during their lessons.
During assembly, Mr Paul then gave a briefing on our CCA Registration for a new CCA term beginning from July 2015 until June 2016. He said that the CCA registration would begin that day, on Friday, 29th May 2015, and we had until Sunday, 31st May 2015, to register for our new CCAs via the Parents Portal. The new CCA registration would be for all students, and Mr Paul told us not to be confused. He was interrupted by chatter after chatter in the school hall, which led Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim to fold their hands and show their angry faces. “Please do not be confused. This CCA is for EVERYBODY,” said Mr Paul. The new CCA term will officially start on Monday, 29th June 2015. He made the announcement one last time before bidding farewell to everybody. Sadly, I didn't get the opportunity to wave farewell to Mr Paul in person, but he was on smiles and sometimes tears, when approaching people on his last day in school.
As the Mid Year Break started, I spent my time at home researching on bridges, and even constructing another suspension bridge of mine using bottles and plastic bags to make the towers and suspension ropes. I had a good time during the Mid Year Break, as my sister and aunt went back to Penang. I stayed with my mum, going on scenic drives and other activities.
When school resumed on 15th June, I had found out that I got a 66% for English, a 62% for Maths and a 63% for Science. The only A that I had on my bucketlist was the Art exam. Ms Nadia gave me an 80% and she said that for a flood painting which I drew during the Art exam, the water isn't crystal clear. I told her it was because of the disaster during the flood, but of course, she still likes the work.
The assembly on 15th June begun solemnly, but the playing of the school song was interrupted when Ms Lim came out. “I don't hear people singing. Please sing louder. Prefects, please play the Negaraku again,” roared Ms Lim in anger. Ms Lim then gave a very long and stern lecture as to why was everyone not singing the Negaraku and the school song. Then, everyone sang louder as the songs were replayed. Normally, people would not sing loudly during assembly because they would psychologically come to school with Monday blues, but fortunately, I don't have them. Additionally, even if one were to sing loudly, they would be embarrassed by the crowd. And that's what I felt when I sang loud on certain occasions. Once we were done, Ms Bee Yong then addressed the crowd. “Ok students, well, it is the second half of the year. Yeah! Wow, we have completed one half of the year, and in the second half, some of you will be having exams. Year 9s, you will be having Checkpoint.”
Just as Ms Bee Yong was speaking, there were groans and boos toward the irony of international examinations due to the amount of pressure students from Year 9 and Year 11 had to put in for their exams. International examinations have a higher standard as opposed to localized, school-based examinations. However, Ms Bee Yong told us not to worry and that the most important thing was to be concentrated on our studies. Oh well, unlike Ms Evelyn, Ms Bee Yong is more academically centric.
When we returned to class, Ms Kiran then came in for our GP lesson and introduced our coursework. We had to create a documentary of our GP project which involved doing something for the community. Ms Kiran then told us to get into groups for our group discussion, and I joined Wee Shiang, Jo Yi and Alia for their group project as each group needed to have four people. Wee Shiang initially planned for us to go to the SPCA which was the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Ms Kiran also gave us the permission slips from Ms Bee Yong that allow us to bring our iPads and computers to school. “You can bring your iPads, computers and anything else, but no handphones,” she said.
Back in those days, one would need to complete a ton of paperwork just to even bring gadgets to school as opposed to Nobel's current diversification into technology. Carrying iPads to school back then would result in one being consequentially demerited and punished or even sent to Ms Lim's office where she will enthusiastically lecture the guilty student on following the school rules. Spot checks help cement the iron fist of the management then, which banned phones, laptops and any electronic device that was distractive to the conduct of the lesson. The strict rules coerced discipline in a very systematic and scary manner. Bringing tablets and laptops for classes were unthinkable and shunned back then.
Afterwards, we then had break time, and everyone was talking about our Mid Year Examination and the results. San Ying, being at the table, was asking her best friend, Sophie Tan if the results were being discussed. Then, when we got back to class, we then had our Maths lesson, and Ms Seline entered the class with a very unhappy look on her face. Eu Lynn saw it and was baffled.
Ms Seline slammed the papers on the desk and switched on the PC and the Smartboard. Eu Lynn approached her, with eyes twinkling like a cute cat.
“Teacher, how did we do?” asked Eu Lynn. Ms Seline had a nasty look on her face. “Horrible,” she mumbled.
When I heard Eu Lynn conversing with Ms Seline, I knew that something was not right. I had not finished my Maths papers. And I think Ms Seline was not going to have a good lesson with us.
Ms Seline then asked Wences to hand out the papers. She then passed some of the papers to me and told me to distribute them. I walked around the class and gave it to everyone. Some people made noise in the class, and this made Ms Seline annoyed. When I saw my marks, I initially briefed a sigh of relief as I had not failed my Maths paper unlike in 2014.
Ms Seline then addressed the class. “Class, I am very disappointed with you. Half the class had gotten a D. Fifteen of you had failed the exam. All of you must buck up in order to do well in Assessment 2. Checkpoint is in four months.”
I feel that despite putting in my best effort for the exam, I did not manage to score well (with the exception of at least getting a C). Then, Ms Seline asked the class to explain their performance.
“Any one of you, please explain. Why did you perform badly in the exam,” boomed Ms Seline.
I put up my hand and Ms Seline gave me the chance to explain. “Ms Seline, I feel that 1 hour is too short to do the exam. I cannot even finish my paper despite doing the exam. Some of the questions are difficult. I have this problem despite practicing the questions and the test with my Maths teacher. I have Maths tuition every Saturday and Sunday,” I started.
Just as I was explaining, Benjamin Fong entered the class with sweat on his face. He had played basketball during break time and went to cool himself down in the washroom. Ms Seline got very angry with him. She cut me off as she scolded him. “Why are you late? I am very unhappy with this class’ results, especially you.”
Ms Seline then thanked me for giving ‘a good reason why we did not perform well’. Then, she asked someone else to explain. Wences then tried to explain and cheer Ms Seline up but Ms Seline did not want to listen to his explanation.
Ms Seline then discussed the questions, and I kept asking Ms Seline on my answers as to how I got them wrong and where the improvements can be made. Then, she asked anyone who felt their marks or the marking of the papers were off the mark to come and get some amendments from her. Before long, we went for BK, and Ms Joyce started on the book of Matthew, introducing to us the teaching and the life of Jesus. Mr Kevin Cupit then came into our class for History and spent some time answering our queries with Ms Visa on our History coursework. He then spent that History lesson teaching us about some topics as well while Ms Visa looked on. It was very interesting and at the same time, funny as Mr Cupit entertained us. He said I was very participative and answered all the questions he asked.
During lunch, I then spoke with Grace about my Maths paper and that I have tried my very best in the exam. My mum had asked Mr Nehru to provide home tutoring services for me for nine months already then, and that Checkpoint was quite a hurdle. Then, I expressed my grievances to Berlinda, whom I talked with about my examination performance. “It's okay. Every teacher is like that. Ms Seline would be okay if you improve. You can try once again in Assessment 2, Checkpoint trial and also Checkpoint,” she said.
The next morning, I went to the canteen after arriving at school, and plopped the Maths books on the table and started revising on Maths after Ms Seline's dismay at our performance in the exam. Then, we went back to class. Derek then surprised me by mimicking my voice, saying ‘Right, Caleb’ and ‘Hi, Caleb’, along with other tones and phrases that I use. Caleb Chuang and Sara Yow then got annoyed with him.
Ms Joyce then arrived in the class, and Derek was taking his own sweet time to finish his packing of books for his English lesson. Ms Joyce then told him to leave quickly before the class started. When Derek was too slow, Ms Joyce counted from ten to one in order to get him to be punctual and not to disrupt her lesson.
There was a new student in our class named Pranavee. She was a Sri Lankan national with big eyelids. She had long hair and her hair was tied up. She also had big lips and always smiled when she went around the class. She was assigned to 9N and was new to Nobel.
Ms Joyce then asked her to introduce herself. When she found out that Pranavee was a Sri Lankan living in Malaysia, Ms Joyce told us about how it is good for us to mix around with other nationalities.
“You see, Pranavee is Sri Lankan, and Nobel is an international school. And being an international school means studying together with different people and different cultures, including foreigners. Pranavee, welcome to Nobel, and I hope that you will have a great time learning with us and being together with us,” said Ms Joyce with a smile. “Thanks Ms Joyce,” said Pranavee in a sweet voice.
Soon, it was break time, and Pranavee made friends with Nicole Kau, Jen Thong and some of the people from 9N. They gathered at the canteen table and walked around the school corridor, talking to each other. During break time, Ms Lim addressed all of us, and she said that we can improve on certain aspects and also told us about special treats for us. Ms Lim said that she was considering having more dedicated areas for people who want to play basketball. And at the same time, Ms Lim was also considering showing movies during break and lunch in the foyer if the television was working.
Once break time was done, we then had Malay where Cikgu Zura taught us and also gave us opportunities to consult her on the coursework. Then, during Maths, everyone was silent as Ms Seline came in. No one wants to make her angry again.
During the afternoon session for Character Transformation, we had a talk on tertiary education pathways and we had people from the United States come over and give us a talk on going to college in the United States. I personally find tertiary education talks quite boring then, as I feel that Character Transformation should have some fun activities. Then, once that was done, we had Mandarin, where Ms Belle taught us some comprehension but kept on getting angry when some people in the class, particularly Benjamin Fong and James Wong, weren't cooperative.
17th June 2015 was a fun time as Mr Victor taught us how to do some relay runs in the school hall. Caleb Chuang and I did a relay in a pair and stunned the crowd. It was then Geography where Ms Maddy gave a discussion on our modular assessment. It was a B for me.
During History, Ms Visa did some book checking on our homework, and Ms Visa gave some comments on my handwriting. Then, when she walked to the back, Benjamin Fong, Sean Mark and Jason Leing had not done their work, and Ms Visa scolded them. Ms Visa then continued the lesson with a topic on World War I and explained to us what war was about. It was quite an interesting topic to learn and explore.
As we had lunch, I kept reading about World War I and also reflecting on what Ms Visa had told me regarding my handwriting. In fact, Ms Visa had been talking about the coursework and I had not had an idea on it, and the coursework was due the following week, 25th June. When we got back for Maths, Ms Seline praised us for being well-behaved. “Looks like my scolding benefited all of you,” she said.
The next morning, 18th June, saw a new teacher to Nobel being appointed as Head of CCA. His name was Mr Eugene, and he was a humble and short man with white glasses. Ms Bee Yong introduced him to us as the head of CCA. Mr Eugene waved hi, and he was passed the microphone to speak to us. “Hello everyone! I am Mr Eugene, and I am your new CCA teacher. I hope that all of you have signed up for your CCA; if you have signed up for more than one, that is good,” he said, with a humble, gentle and soft voice.
Ms Joyce showed us a video on Martin Luther King's speech titled, ‘I have a dream’. She told us to write about it and asked us to give our thoughts on the speech. Brandon Ooi said that Martin Luther King was quite fat and this made Ms Joyce not amused. “Please respect the people in the video as they are also human,” she chided Brandon. Ms Joyce then said that we need to write the speech and present the speech in class the next day.
Later on, we had Science, and Ms Ng then brought us to the Science Lab for an experiment on how magnesium behaves when lit with fire. Watching magnesium being lit is stunning, because the magnesium would light up in a bright glow just as bright as the sun as it burns. Each group was given a strip of magnesium from Ms Ng and we had to attach the magnesium to a clip so that it doesn't fly around. The spark was so bright till Ms Ng cautioned us against looking at the burning magnesium for a long time.
Once we were done, we went for Mandarin, where Ms Belle gave us another piece of paper containing exercises to paste in our exercise book and do it. Gabriel Lim then slept in the class, and this resulted in him being chided by Ms Belle. Apart from that, Pranavee also chose Mandarin and Ms Belle, when scolding the class, said that Pranavee, despite not knowing Mandarin, was eager to learn and pay attention in class while the people at the back were disruptive.
During History, we were taught about the British protest against World War I by Ms Visa and asked to complete some work before we went for Maths. Thereafter, we went for Art, and Jordan failed to bring the control book. “So much responsibility,” he said, before Rick echoed him on. Ms Nadia then taught us about the Principles and Elements of Design.
The Principles/Elements of Design is a series of techniques about design and it is very different from the Elements of Art. While art talks about line, shape and form, design is all about how one were to combine certain forms to be expressed in a certain way.
We have come to the end of the second last week of June 2015. After assembly ended, we went back for English, and Ms Joyce told us to present our Martin Luther King-based speech of “I have a Dream”, based on anything of our choice. So, I was the first to present and spoke about how I wished I had a dream of a peaceful world, doing well in Checkpoint, as well as not having the school year to end quickly, but Ms Joyce said my choice of words looked bombastic. Then, it was Gabriel Lim's turn, and he had a great speech. However, Ms Joyce said that Gabriel needed to have a bit more confidence and could thus do better. Brandon Ooi then had his turn to speak and he spoke of how he wanted to be a rich man. We then had break and then Geography where Ms Maddy taught us about how Mexico was less developed than the US. The day soon passed by quickly, as Ms Ng showed us some motivational videos from ASAP Science during Homeroom time while we had our meal.
I really like the Friday Homeroom time sessions with Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia as it allows us to bond together as a class. It shows the spirit of how we can come together as a class, and I really enjoy every Homeroom session with Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia as they gave good advice and information on how things worked out. Before leaving school, I went to wish Ms June a very happy early birthday as her birthday, 20th June, is a Saturday. She was very happy. “Thanks for remembering my birthday!” she cried, as we had a short talk about how I am doing in Year 9.
The last full week of June coincided with the start of the fasting month, and many, if not all, of our Muslim teachers were fasting for the month of Ramadan, which takes place before Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
At the beginning of the week, we were treated to a relaxed leeway on bringing electronic gadgets for our GP lesson. We had submitted the forms to Ms Kiran, who came in during the Homeroom period to collect our forms. Jordan and Eu Lynn were tasked with collecting the forms.
Everyone was quite excited to see what iPad did I brought to school. At the time, I was using the classic iPad 2 which was still quite popular back then. Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were curious on my iPad, which had a blue cover attached to the screen of the iPad. Even Derek wanted to have a look at it.
Ms Kiran then told all of us to get into our groups and begin researching about our organization. I brought my GP file and iPad and went to meet Wee Shiang, Jo Yi and Alia, who were waiting for me. Wee Shiang then begun our discussion and thus did some research into the SPCA. Jo Yi then did some research on her computer while I looked on, as Wee Shiang gave me and Jo Yi a task to do. We had to gather information about the SPCA. While we were looking at the information on Jo Yi's computer, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying and Le Anne went around and took some selfies of themselves as well as photos of us doing our GP project. Ms Kiran then spoke to me and Wee Shiang about the project, and we considered changing the agency, particularly because I had a fear of dogs and am sensitive to cats. Eu Lynn then gave back the iPad to me once they took their photos. I did not delete the photos and still have them to this day.
Ms Kiran then approved our next project which was to head to the Malaysian Association for the Blind (MAB), which was located at Jalan Tun Sambathan in Kuala Lumpur, just a stone's throw away from Kuen Cheng High School, KL Sentral, and Methodist College, where my cousin was studying back then. At the same time, it was easier and more straightforward to do a documentary on the blind than a group of animals.
Once things were done, Wee Shiang informed me to bring my iPad for the next lesson before going for break, but however, I was skeptical. “But...but Wee Shiang, the permission slip only allowed iPads for today's GP lesson only. We need to do a new permission slip if we wanted to bring our iPad a second time,” I pleaded. Wee Shiang then led out a sigh. “Just bring it, Wei Yiang,” she said.
I then walked to see Ms Kiran, and she said that she will let Ms Lim know about it and if needed, she will issue the permission slip for a second round of iPad and PC usage during our GP lesson the following week. In fact, Ms Kiran was concerned that our GP project will affect our Assessment 2 in August, the Checkpoint Trial Exam in September and the Checkpoint Examination itself in October, as the GP project will span the month of July.
Once we were finished, we then went down to the canteen for our break time. Rick kept chiding me about my reaction to Ms Kiran's leeway to bring iPads and PCs to school.
“Wei Yiang, I want to ask you, why are you so particular and so much like, you know, worried about the school rules?” asked Rick. Benjamin Fong chipped in, saying that he didn't care if the teachers scolded him for violating the school rules and it did not matter if he brought his phone to school as well. For me, I feel it is a big issue, especially if one is demerited. Perhaps Benjamin Fong had been comfortable of being punished and he took it as a way of life.
During break time, I went to see Ms Lim to ask her about bringing iPads and computers to school. In fact, I had a long chat with Ms Lim, since Ms Kiran had wanted us to continue with the project.
“Ms Lim, during GP, Ms Kiran had asked us to bring our iPad to school today,” I started. Ms Lim asked what it was for, and I told her it was for our GP project and that Ms Kiran wanted us to do research. Ms Lim then asked if I had gotten my permission slips and I nodded. Then, I told Ms Lim that Ms Kiran wanted to continue the research and that we may need to bring our iPads again. Ms Lim told me to inform Ms Kiran to speak to her so that a new permission slip could be generated. I was only afraid of tripping over the red lines.
After break time ended, Ms Lim was not happy as many people in their lines were talking. “Ok, I said keep quiet. How many times do I have to tell you? Your prefects are waiting to send you back, and you are still talking,” said Ms Lim, before she pointed at every year level, starting from the Year 7, the Year 8 and Year 9 students. Then, she peered at the late line, firing her rant of law and order at them before passing the microphone back to Aaron Loke, who was in charge of holding it and asking people to settle down.
After returning to class, we then did our Maths work and Ms Seline guided us before teaching us on quadratic equations. Then, Ms Joyce came in for English, and Derek Yong was taking his time to move to 9B for his English lesson. Ms Joyce then scolded him for taking too long as he was playing with Ze Khai and Jian Wen. “Derek! Why are you still here! Quickly go to your class; I want to start my lesson now,” she roared. Then, Ms Joyce spoke to us about proper essay writing and then told us to write a science fiction essay as part of our homework. Before long, Cikgu Zura returned for Malay, and then she gave us a briefing and a question-and-answer session on our Malay coursework. She then told us to discuss about our coursework and I discussed with Caleb Chuang on my part. Ms Ng then came in for Science but however, the PC wasn't working properly, so she asked Caleb Chuang to help set up the computer. She also introduced to us some mneumonics which would be helpful in aiding our memory for Science for the Checkpoint Exam.
During BK, Ms Joyce said that our work was quite disappointing and we had to do corrections before giving us back our BK exercise books before continuing a topic on the book of Matthew. And during Mandarin, the entire class wanted to watch movies and begged Ms Belle to at least show one educational video. For me, I just focused on completing the work. Gabriel slept in class again and Ms Belle had to wake him up and tell him to do his work.
The next day, Ms Joyce collected our science fiction essays before telling us about the proper format of writing an essay. Then, during break time, Ms Lim was watching with evil eyes about how everyone conducted themselves as Wences, this time, was tasked to settle everybody down. The day then went on as normal, with Cikgu Zura continuing to teach us while at the same time asking Brendan Cheah to settle down. And Ms Seline gave us a ton of work to do. We had so many corrections to finish, and we spent the entire Maths lesson doing our corrections. The entire class did not do our work well and we had to finish up corrections to the point where Ms Seline declared it as homework. During the Maths lesson, some people at the back were not doing their work, so Ms Seline got really angry. Originally, we were allowed to discuss with people who had gotten their answers correct but however, because the class was really noisy and people weren't finishing their work, Ms Seline was really cross and gave a long lecture to the class before asking everyone to return to their seats and attempt the work on their own.
After lunch, we had our Character Transformation session, where we did some group work about being responsible and how we can navigate our lives. I also would like to mention that Mr Eugene, the newly-appointed head of CCA, was coordinating the Character Transformation session! He talkd about time management and why is time management important for us. Meanwhile, behind the hall, Ms Lim and Ms Joyce were going around and making sure that everyone was wll-behaved, chiding some people for talking at the back. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa talked about how the World War I soldiers were fighting in trenches to the point they had infections on their legs due to the muddy and dilapidated state of the trenches. She also talked about how World War I started with the murder and assassination of Franz Ferdinand, and then she gave us some worksheets to paste in our book to do. Benjamin Fong was talking in the class, which got Ms Visa really angry and scolded him in a terrifying manner.
The next morning, we had assembly, and Zhue Xin, who was made a trainee prefect recently, was assigned to our class to manage us. Zhue Xin said hi and talked to me for a while before assembly started. “Guys, please keep quiet. Why can't you be like Wei Yiang? He's being still and patient,” she exclaimed. I have forgotten to tell you that few more people were made as trainee prefects. At the beginning of the week, it was announced that a few more people, such as Belle Ngei, Laura Mark, Tee Wei Zhong and Timothy Hiew, were made trainee prefects. Zhue Xin was assigned to manage our class for that morning's assembly, which took quite a while, particularly because Ms Lim spent at least ten minutes to chide people who were talking. Everyone knows Ms Lim's management style, which was fierce, autocratic and judgemental. Ms Lim also told us not to make some of our teachers’ lives difficult as they were fasting for Ramadan.
After the assembly ended, we then went for our PE lesson, where Mr Victor planned to do some football activities with us. We went to the field to play football, and Mr Victor separated the boys and the girls before we started.
Caleb Chuang likes to play football, being in the football CCA himself. He brought along his white football, which he dribbled and rolled on his head while on the way to the field. When we got there, Mr Victor told us to separate ourselves into groups as we kicked and passed the ball. So, I was with Jordan Tay, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew and Sherwin, kicking and passing the ball, before Mr Victor played a friendly match with us. He also wanted to have a football game between the boys and the girls, but however, the girls groaned. Eventually, they agreed to the match, and the boys eventually won the football game.
When we returned from PE, Branson Choon was packing his bags and finding his wallet for break time. I then said hi to him before taking my food container and heading for break time. While at the canteen table, Caleb Chuang and I sat down to talk to the girls, including San Ying, Sara Yow, Kit Lee, Le Anne and Natalie Seah, and most of the conversations were on me and Caleb Chuang enjoying ourselves while playing football. We then returned for our Geography lesson following break. Rick Tan got into the class and plopped down on his seat and talked to Ryan Marc. Then, Ms Maddy came in and, as usual, rolled up the curtains in the class. Rick Tan and Ryan Marc groaned. “Aargh, Ms Maddy! Cancer! Please, lower it down!”
Ms Maddy said it was important to get enough sunlight. For me, I was the opposite of them and wanted natural lighting in the classroom. Then, she begun a topic on Ecosystems and how light is very important for plants and animals. Then, Ms Seline came in for Maths and collected our exercise books containing the corrections that we did. Ms Seline then lectured us on how many mistakes we had gotten wrong and how some people were not taking their work seriously. “Checkpoint is in four months. I want all of you to buck up,” she said sternly before continuing her lesson.
During lunch, Ms Lim chided the entire assembly before singling out Faythe Chow for eating an ice cream during the assembly. Ms Lim had said that it is already June and our attitude was still very much the same. “When the prefect asked you to settle down, please keep quiet. People are still talking. Why? I hope you can improve, and CHANGE,” she said.
After releasing us back to class, Ms Visa taught us more about Franz Ferdinand's assasination and told us to create a front page newspaper advert about it.
Mr Kevin Cupit, the head of History then, was a Year 10 and Year 11 History teacher as well as a History teacher for Year 9 back in 2015 just in case I hadn't introduced him much to you. Ironically, every class, except that of 9O, was taught under him. I wonder why Ms Visa was teaching us instead of Mr Cupit. Ms Visa once told us that she volunteered to teach us. Personally, I think Ms Visa wants to see my own progress growing up and I believe that God had arranged that for me for a reason. In fact, everyone liked Mr Cupit's lessons as opposed to us 9O students, who had to get by the whining and nagging of Ms Visa.
The next day, 25th June, Ms Joyce then gave us some worksheets to do in class before discussing some comprehension exercises. Then, during Science, we had to investigate the reaction of a series of acids and write down the chemical equations for those reactions. One of those was the reaction of copper, iron, magnesium and zinc, which are elements mainly used to do the test for hydrogen. Ms Ng said that due to unforseen circumstances, we did not have a chance to do a test for hydrogen but we will do it if we have time in our next lab session. Ms Visa then continued with her lesson during History.
Then, it was Malay, and I plopped down on my seat and stayed silent, waiting for Cikgu Zura to come in for Malay. Brendan just came in and tried to fool around with Cikgu Zura and they talked in the front. Then, he and Cikgu Zura saw me not feeling well. Cikgu Zura and Brendan asked me to go and wash my face. I just sat down. We just did work. We then went for Art, and Ms Nadia then did another drawing with us. Ms Nadia then reminded us again that it was important for us to cherish our time learning Year 9 Art and Design lessons. “If this is your FINAL year doing Art, make sure you enjoy,” she said. For those who are planning to take Art in Year 10, it will not be the same as Year 9, so you should also enjoy it,” she said. Art is an optional subject in Year 10 and 11 and also an elective subject, which means that people can choose to opt away from the subject. Sean Mark wasn't keen on taking Art and immediately told Ms Nadia he didn't want it. Ultimately, the people from 9O who eventually took Art and Design in Year 10 and 11 were me, Eu Lynn, Sara Yow and Wee Shiang.
Ms Nadia then gathered us in the front of the class and demonstrated to us some drawings. This one in particular was a landscape drawing consisting of a row of pine trees against a mountain. She told us to draw four drawings of the same landscape drawing, but to demonstrate the drawing in warm and cool colors as well as light and dark colors.
While doing the drawings on my own, Ms Nadia watched me and guided me before going around the class to assist people. She then proceeded to check on Sean Mark and Jason Leing, whom she fear were not making up good time in painting.
It was the end of the week, and the last day of the week, 26th June, went normally. Ms Joyce then asked us to write a story of a robot movie, and I wrote about Wall-E as my homework. It was about a plot of a movie of the same name which I watched. We did work for most of the day. Ms Ng also gave us a new timetable which will take effect from the following week.
The new week begun with Mr Eugene announcing that our CCA would begin this week. During Malay, Cikgu Zura then briefed us on our presentation schedule and said we would do the presentation on 10th July. Then, she gave us work and after we were done with our work, I went to discuss with Caleb Chuang about our Malay presentation. Cikgu Zura then asked me to sit down at my seat and then I told Caleb Chuang that we will discuss later. As Hari Raya Aidilfitri was approaching, I was thinking as to how the presentation might look like.
When it was History period, I presented the designs to Ms Visa, including one which I drew on a computer. “Much better, Wei Yiang. Well done,” she exclaimed. Reflecting on this, despite Ms Visa getting angry at me, she could have had FAILED me, but instead, she offered me a second chance to redo the coursework and hand it in, as she believed I could have had done better and gotten better marks. Then, Ms Visa started teaching about the Big Four, which were four influential world leaders who had been at the negotiating table during World War I, namely George Clemenceau, the President of France, Woodrow Wilson, the President of the United States, David Lloyd George, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Vittorio Orlando, the Italian President. Then, we did some shapes and forms as well as some areas, and to calculate the volume of an object, which was very easy to do.
For Bible Knowledge, we had a new teacher named Mr Lim Chiat Sern, who replaced Ms Joyce in the timetable. Mr Lim was a very humble and nice teacher who spoke with a calm voice. He then introduced himself and the chapters of Matthew that we were covering. Each one of us introduced ourself before he went into the chapters. He spoke fluently and talked about why it is important for us to be Christians. During our self-introduction, Mr Lim also asked us to tell him which church did we attend for Sunday service; and I told him that I attended PJ State Chinese Methodist Church. Mr Lim even knew my pastor who served at the church at the time, Reverend Hong Kee Chee. During Mandarin, Ms Belle did some comprehensions with us, and when there was no video to be shown, the class groaned. Hua Iong and a few others were playing in Ms Belle's class, and this made Ms Belle unhappy as they did not finish their work. She asked him and his friends to stand up while she got angry with them.
The next morning, 30th June, was the last day of June. Ms Joyce then talked about how close we were getting to the Checkpoint Exam, and detailed the various revision activities she was going to do with us to prepare us for the Checkpoint Exam.Then, Ms Ng came in for Science and taught us on the Periodic Table and, just like Ms Joyce, counted down to Checkpoint and told us to do our revision.
During Health, Ms Renee then taught us about our lungs and heart, and when she talked about blood, I got chills down my spine and was a bit scared, especially when we hear about health effects. I then spent my entire lunchtime with San Ying having a chat, before going to Caleb Chuang to discuss the presentation for Malay. Then, we had our Character Transformation time where we did an ice breaker and had the chance to do some demonstrations with our friends. We did more icebreaking activities, and one of them was to form a human chain by pasting newspaper to form a long circular strip before standing under it and navigating with it as a class.
Ivyna and Eu Lynn were responsible for coordinating us with the strip while Ms Lim cheered us on. Ms Ng and all the other class teachers assisted us, and 9O was the winner of the competition. I got so happy till I cheered with Caleb Chuang. Once things were done, we went for our Art lesson with Ms Nadia, but however, she wasn't happy that we were ten minutes late as Ms Lim dismissed us late. We then continued our warm and cool colors drawing, painting the landscape based on the picture Ms Nadia gave us.
We then entered the new month of July, where Mr Victor did some strength training with us again. First, he then told us to do some planking, sit ups and push ups with our partner in class, and I did them with Rick Tan, who kept telling me about how lousy my strength tests were. Mr Victor walked around the hall and told us to push as hard as possible and hold it to the maximum. He blew his whistle to start and finish, and there were groans and cries of pain as he forced us to do them. Afterwards, Sheng Jit and James Wong went to play basketball during break time while we went for our breakfast, but Ms Joyce told them not to play in the courtyard once again no thanks to the incident of the ball hitting an Elementary School student a few months back.
I had brought my school uniform, which I had to change after break time because it was the CCA Awards Day. The year 2015 was Nobel's only second year organizing a CCA Awards Day. It is not to be confused with the Academic Awards Day, which was labeled as ‘Awards Day’ at the time. Students who were participating in the CCA Awards Day had to be dressed in their school uniform, and this is because of the prominence of receiving awards in a formal setting. I was receiving an award of recognition as the Treasurer of the Art and Crafts Club. Aside from that, Wee Shiang was receiving an award as well for her role in being the Vice President of the Art and Crafts Club. Berlinda was also receiving an award as the Art and Crafts Club President, while Joseph Diong was being recognized as the president of the Fencing CCA. Leong Yi Zhen was also receiving a recognition of being Fine Art Club's President.
CCA Awards Day is a day designed not just to recognize the achievement of Nobel International School's students in CCA activities, but also to celebrate the various talents learnt outside the classroom. Of course, in Nobel, it is not just about academics that define a person, but also co-curricular activities (CCA) which is also looked into by employers. Years of neglect had fell on street-smart talent, and through this CCA Awards Day, it is meant to showcase the grit and commitment made by Nobelians on non-academic matters.
After break time, my mum was also present to watch me receive my award, and we were asked to sit on the left-hand side of the hall. I sat down with all of Art and Craft Club's committee members as we waited for instructions.
On the screens, signs of “CCA Awards Day 2015” were projected. Wee Shiang and I had a short chat. Apart from that, Jordan Tay was also present to receive his award for being the Young Inventors Club's President. He waved at me as well.
Soon, Auntie Clarine, Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and the management team arrived. The one guest of honor was the Executive Director of Nobel International School, Mr Tan Seng Kee.
The CCA Awards Day begun with Wai Shaun and Sara Yow being the emcees of the event. They spoke quite well, which impressed my mum. Then, a performance by Mr Steve and a band of Year 10 and 11 students was initiated. Mr Steve sang quite well, which entertained the crowd further. A video was then played of individuals from different CCAs introducing their various CCA clubs and societies. From the Art and Crafts Club, Berlinda was in charge of introducing, and she facepalmed herself when her face was shown. Once the video was finished, everyone had to do a conga as part of the award-receiving process. I myself was happy to receive a scroll from Mr Chan as part of the Art and Craft Club CCA. Berlinda, Wee Shiang, me and Jen Thong were receiving the awards as being members of the Art and Craft Club's Committee. Then, a stick was held out by Jearn Xiu and Suet Yi for Gold Award Recipients to crane under for fun before they received their awards, which consist of helium balloons tethered to a scroll. It looked fun and everyone laughed. Then, it was time for the CCA of the Year to be announced.
Wai Shaun and Sara Yow requested for a large boulder to be brought in. From the back of the hall, Lim Wei Ming heaved and hoffed as he carried a rock the size of a piano into the hall. He tried his best to balance the stone. Once he reached the stage, he rammed the stone on the stage before Wai Shaun and Sara Yow cut through it. A trophy was revealed, which was given to Jarod Ee, the president of the Dance CCA Club, for being the CCA of the Year. The audience were then treated to a a performance by the Dance CCA as Jarod Ee showed off his cool moves.
After the CCA Awards Day ended, my mum and I took a picture, mingled with the crowd, and we collected our certificates before going back to class. Everyone had brought some form of iPads or computer and was doing their assignment and discussion. I had to share Jo Yi's computer, and she wasn't so amused. But it was okay; just a short while. Better be safe than sorry.
Then, it was GP, and Ms Kiran continued to teach and brief us in class, asking us on our progress and briefing us on what we should do for our project. “Ok, students, you need to visit the organization and do your project there while also taking videos of what you do. Then, I will play your documentary videos in class,” she said. After the lesson had finished, she asked me to follow her to get new permission slips on bringing iPads to class the following week, and asked me to distribute them to everybody.
After lunch, we then had Maths, where Ms Seline gave us work to do. Then, during ICT, Mr Narish came to our class. Initially, we all wanted to go to the ICT lab, but the lab was in the process of being relocated. Mr Narish then told us that we will be having our ICT lesson in class for the time being. “9O, we will be staying in class today because the ICT lab is under renovation. So, once I confirm with the management that the ICT lab is ready, we will go to the ICT lab next week,” he said. “If I am not mistaken, it should be ready by the end of this week and we can go next week.”
Mr Narish then gave us some worksheets on Internet Security and the uses of the Internet and we discussed in class about cyberbullying. He asked us to present our answers as he stood in the front and talked. I managed to present my answers while Mr Narish discussed them, although he had to chide some people in the class for talking. Then, Ms Ng came back for Science and did some lessons on acids and bases with us, and me, Caleb Chuang and Branson were answering questions most of the time till Ms Ng was baffled. “Class, I only hear Wei Yiang, Caleb and Branson answering aside from the people in front of me (Jordan, Rick and Aaron Loke). Why is the rest so quiet?” Ms Ng giggled.
The next day, during History, Ms Visa did a worksheet with us on the World War I trenches. Ms Joyce then told me to rewrite my movie synopsis as it wasn't good. All in all, the day's events went on smoothly. Ms Belle then gave us work to do in Mandarin, and Ms Ng did some activities on the Periodic Table in Science. All in all, Thursday, 2nd July 2015, was special for one reason; the first day of the new CCA term.
I was successful in enrolling for the Fine Art Club CCA, and was glad to be back in the Fine Art Club after one and a half years. After school ended, I went to Art Studio 3 where I had my first Fine Art Club session with Ms Feeda. I felt very happy to see her in the CCA after just merely saying hi for 18 months in general one offs. “We will wait for everyone to come first,” she said.
The smell of paint in the Art Studio greeted my enthusiasm as a long wait finally paid off. I sat down at the table next to Ms Feeda's desk in front. Then, some Year 10 students entered the Art Studio for the CCA. How I miss this atmosphere after 18 months. Chua Yee Lim, who was from Year 10, plopped down on her seat, followed by her friend, Pearly Tan. Then, Louis Soon arrived as well, along with some people from Year 9 as well, namely Wee Shiang, Jia Yiu, Chee Kei and Yen Thong. Before long, the Art Studio was bustling with people from all walks of life. We had ten people for Fine Art Club CCA. Joining this CCA once again allowed me to collaborate with the two main art teachers in Nobel; Ms Feeda and Ms Nadia, and that made me very excited.
Ms Feeda's first activity for us was to elect the president, vice president, secretary and treasurer. I was planning to have a second shot at a leadership position in the CCA, being motivated by the awards from the CCA Awards Day, and was aiming for either Vice President or Treasurer. However, Ms Feeda did not select me, and I wasn't in the committee, but it is okay. We elected Yee Lim as President and Chee Kei as Vice President. Pearly was asked to be the Secretary and Yen Thong the treasurer.
Once that was done, Ms Feeda wanted to have a clay sculpture session with us, and she told us that we were going to have many wonderful activities for the year. She said that the club initially planned to have an art exhibition with Art and Crafts Club but was not possible. “How many of you are from Art and Crafts Club?” she asked. Me and Wee Shiang put up our hands. “Okay, so in this case, Wei Yiang and Wee Shiang, I want to welcome you to Fine Art Club,” said Ms Feeda gracefully while acknowledging me being in the club for the second time. Then, Ms Feeda asked the Year 9s as to who was under Ms Nadia's class, and me and Wee Shiang, once again, put up our hands. Ms Feeda then said she was interested to know how Ms Nadia conducts her lessons. Ms Feeda then briefed us on various technicalities, and she said that we can brainstorm ideas on what we should do to promote the Fine Art Club and the activities we can do for the year. She also told us to bring a sketchbook and a picture of a local wild flower for the next CCA session.
Well, Friday, 3rd July 2015 was our lab session, and we did some investigation on the reaction of various acids, such as hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide and other chemicals and we had to write down various equations. Towards the end of the lesson, we saw a special treat which made us excited. Ms Ng had promised us that during Science that we do the hydrogen test since everyone was interested. Oh dear. What a scary thing. I was really baffled on that. What a nightmare having to see Ms Samantha do it in class in Year 8. Oh dear. Not again.
Ms Ng said that since the hydrogen test was a risky affair, she would do it on her own before starting our experiment for the day. Ting Yi and Branson cheered. “Yes! Big bomb! Big bomb!” they cried. Rick then teased me to run out of the Science lab “before the school exploded”. The entire class cheered as Ms Ng got some magnesium, hydrochloric acid, a beaker and some water from Ms Mazlina, the lab assistant, and set up the retort stand and a beaker holder for the experiment. She added the magnesium, hydrochloric acid, and mixed them together before she placed a cork onto the beaker. Then, after things were done, Ms Ng called for volunteers to put the burning wooden splinter into the beaker. The entire class called my name. “No, no, please, no,” I pleaded. Then, Ms Ng suggested that Ting Yi do the burning wooden splint since he was calling my name. “Ting Yi, why not you try, since you are really asking Wei Yiang to do it?” she asked, and Ting Yi also pretended to run out of the room. In the end, Branson volunteered.
“Wei Yiang, get ready, the bomb is going to explode,” said Branson Choon with an evil smile. I headed for the door. Ms Ng ordered all the windows to be opened. I pushed the door, went out, and stood aside, watching Ms Ng get the splinter ready. She lit the wooden splint, handed it to Branson, and he stood his position. Branson glanced at me like the evil look of Dr Doofenshmirtz before placing the splint into the beaker.
BANG!
The noise was so loud till the other people from Science Lab 2 heard the sound. Even two Year 7 students who were walking outside the lab were shocked by the explosion. Ting Yi made funny noises as if one was watching Tom and Jerry, and the fact that Tom was screaming after an explosion. What a real-life representation of Tom and Jerry.
After the burning wooden splint experiment was done, Ms Ng cleaned up the thing before we did a test for carbon dioxide. She gave us some calcium carbonate and various chemicals and we had to mix them together after putting the cork on top. Each group was tasked to do it. Ms Ng then helped Derek's group set up their experiment.
Ting Yi then removed the cork after Ms Ng came to our group and instructed us to remove it. We lit a splint and then burnt it out. Caleb Chuang removed the cork before Jordan Tay placed the splint into the gas. The wooden splint ignited immediately.
During break time, Ms Lim scolded a group of boys who went to the futsal court to play futsal, as that was not allowed and the futsal court was out of bounds. The day went on normally as usual without any untoward incidents. When Ms Ng came in for our Homeroom period, she told me not to worry so much when I went out from the Science lab to watch the explosion and she talked about my fears together. Then, Ms Ng presented our report cards to us and asked us to send them to our parents to sign them before returning them on Monday, 6th July. I then compared mine with Branson Choon's and we tased each other on our strengths and weaknesses.
The following Monday, Cikgu Zura came into the class and we begun our presentation for the Malay coursework. We presented about Malay vocabularies. The presentation was a coursework Cikgu Zura gave us before the Mid Year Examination. As we were in the same Malay set teaching class, we decided to form a team of three and invited Ting Yi to our group. I sat down patiently as I watched each group present, and Brendan Cheah kept on playing jokes in class till Cikgu Zura had to keep on calming him down. Then, when it was our turn to present, the whole class started cheering for me and Caleb Chuang. Me, Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi presented, and we entertained the class a lot. Since it was our Malay lesson, I changed my “Right, Caleb?” phrasing to the Malay version of it, “Betul atau tidak, Caleb Chuang?” Alternatively, I said, “Betul ke, Caleb Chuang?”, “Betul ke tidak, Caleb Chuang?” or “Betul kan, Caleb Chuang?” Cikgu Zura ultimately said that our catchy phrases and intonation were the best of all the groups. What touched Cikgu Zura and gave her the thumbs-up was the inclusion of the Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri greeting that I had on the slides. Ahead of the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays, Caleb Chuang and I had a plan to impress our Malay teacher, Cikgu Zura, during the Malay presentation by doing a personalized greeting for her for Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
So, I decided to do the introduction and the conclusion, and by concluding, we would then say “Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Cikgu Zura!” and put the decorations of Hari Raya Aidilfitri like ketupat and pictures of mosques on the concluding slideshow. So, when the entire class was about to see our presentation, they cheered, and Ckigu Zura personally liked the Hari Raya Aidilfitri greeting at the end of the slides. I felt so happy till I went and told everyone during break time about how Caleb Chuang and I amazed everyone with a good representation of the actions, and they all praised me.
Later, we had History, and Ms Visa begun teaching on why Germany lost World War I. She then gave Jordan and Eu Lynn some informative placards on World War I and asked them to paste the information on the left-hand side of our class’ wall. Then, we did work in Maths, while Mr Lim continued to entertain and talk to us about chapters 12, 13 and 14 in the book of Matthew.
During Mandarin, Ms Belle gave us a list of words that we needed to memorize for spelling and we did our practice on writing the words in class. However, Ms Belle was not happy with the boys at the back of the class, who were not doing their work and making a lot of noise. On the other hand, I helped Pranavee to memorize and pronounce the Mandarin words, and Ms Belle also asked us on how we were doing. Then, she told me to go back and do my work while she helped Pranavee memorize and translate the Mandarin words.
The next morning, Ms Joyce asked us to have a paper file for English so that we can put our worksheets in them. “Not the management file, but a paper file that looks like a briefcase,” she said. Then, during Geography, Ms Maddy gave us a coursework which was to build a board game that can be played. The board game was to be done individually and is meant to convey the theme of ecosystems and climate change. There was not much in Science; just business as usual, but we had a surprise coursework task given by Ms Renee during Health, which was about, you guessed it, a presentation!
When Ms Renee announced the coursework, I turned to Caleb Chuang. “Caleb Chuang! We form a group together! I choose you!” I cried, mimicking the phrase used in Pokemon. “Hold your horses, Wei Yiang,” said Rick, shaking his head. He was merely repeating what I normally say, as I use idioms quite often. I would normally tell people to “hold their horses” if they were too fast.
Ms Renee was teaching us about drugs, and she said that the basis of the coursework was to present about performance-enhancing drugs in the sporting world that are normally used by athletes in the line of doping. The purpose of the presentation was to present about the drug and why it should not be taken in order to raise awareness among the general public.
After Ms Renee was done briefing, I then teamed up with Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi to do the presentation. The whole class was excited, especially with me and Caleb Chuang teaming up. Megan Lee and Le Anne smiled. “I demand a better presentation from you all. Make it amusing and entertaining,” she said to me and Caleb Chuang. Then, before went for lunch, she took out her phone and showed me and Caleb Chuang the WhatsApp chat group, “Right, Caleb?” Then, at the lunch table, Caleb Chuang and I discussed the presentation. “This time, I will make the slides,” he said. “What should we give Ting Yi?” I asked Caleb Chuang, and Caleb Chuang said that he will be doing some research with us. The day continued well as we did another round of icebreaking where we had to speak with someone from another class, and I spoke with Sherwin and did a group activity together.
Ms Lim then came in for Character Transformation as we did cards for our teachers to be given during Teacher's Day, which will be held on 4th August 2015. She then told us to do some greetings. I wrote a lot of messages for every single teacher. Ms Lim said that for the Year 9 students, as we were sitting for the Checkpoint Exam, she told us that the Checkpoint Exam is not as hard as we think and it is not something which, if we fail, we were unable to enter Year 10. “All you need to do is just study. Just study, that's it. Then it will be very easy,” she said. Some people also played jokes with Ms Lim until they were talking a lot. “Okay, alright, I don't want to talk anymore. Just do your work. So noisy,” she groaned. This was because some people asked Ms Lim if the rules can be relaxed, such as bringing phones or allowing people to do somersaults. She just watched us as we did our work.
During Art, Ms Nadia then taught us on how to do some cubism drawings, and we watched Ms Nadia show us some slides about Pablo Picasso, a famous artist based on the cubism technique.
The next day, we had PE with Mr Victor and he told us that we will be doing some jumping jacks and relay runs. So, I teamed up with Caleb Chuang to do it. In fact, Mr Victor had asked us to do a warm up session, and Caleb Chuang and I led the entire Year 9 batch to do it. The whole year level screamed and cheered as me and Caleb Chuang took the stage, showing off our warm up skills. He asked two girls and two boys to come up to demonstrate. When I volunteered, Mr Victor asked me to pick another boy to join and I chose Caleb Chuang, which got the entire year level very excited. Chong Vicky and Alexandria Goh were the other two girls chosen.
Then, Ms Sylvia played some music and got us to do some dance in the warm ups while we led the entire year level to do it. Then, we did some warm ups and exercises that Mr Victor showed us. Once the PE lesson was done, the whole Year 9 batch cheered at me and Caleb Chuang while we went for break time.
Later, during English, Ms Joyce chased Derek Yong out of the class and denied him entry when he wanted to take his books. “Why did you not take it earlier? You are disturbing my class. When your break time is over, you are supposed to go back to your class; not loiter around and then say you have no time. You are Year 9 already; you should be responsible of yourself,” she scolded. Derek Yong tried to plead, but Ms Joyce was firm and told him to face the consequences of not bringing his book to his English class and that he must be on time in the future. Then, Ms Joyce taught us about how to do some descriptive writing and told us to describe an imaginary out-of-this-world place which we visit and to describe it in our exercise book. Cikgu Zura continued with our presentations for the other groups in Malay while Ms Kiran told us to go on with our research on our iPads and computers. Wee Shiang met us and told us to fix our dates and told us to go to the Malaysian Association for the Blind (MAB) headquarters. We discussed when we were free and Wee Shiang decided to fix the appointment.
During ICT, Mr Narish then gave us the chance to check out the new ICT lab. Apparently, the ICT labs were located on the first floor of the school before it was relocated to the backstage of the school hall. The relocation took quite some time, and he told us to follow him to the new ICT lab which is near the Elementary School's staffroom behind the school hall. The new ICT lab had a nice perfume smell, a Smartboard as well as hundreds of computers. I sat in front next to Sara Yow and Natalie.
Mr Narish then said that he had decided to use an e-learning software called Edmodo for our lessons. Edmodo was a software used by schools and teachers to conduct lessons. The interface of Edmodo was a rip off of the Facebook interface, as the developers of Edmodo wanted a version of Facebook for kids. Edmodo has been disbanded since September 2022, but it was very interesting to use. He then told us about how Edmodo works. Mr Narish is seen as the pioneer of e-learning in Nobel International School as he had convinced other teachers to use Edmodo for their lessons.
Mr Narish then asked us to create an account for Edmodo. So, during the creation of the new Edmodo account, he also gave us a code to enter to join our ICT Edmodo group. Mr Narish said that he would use the Edmodo account to conduct our ICT lessons. It looked so fun using the Edmodo software and interface.
Mr Narish is very particular on people using the computer during his lesson without permission, and he would have a monitor on his computer in which he can toggle between all the PCs in the ICT lab to see if anyone was doing some funny things or searching for unrelated information, like games, during the ICT lesson. Then, Ms Ng gave us some notes for her Science lesson and did a bit of revision as well.
The next day, I brought my Sketchbook and the picture of a hibiscus for the Fine Art Club CCA session. I was so excited over what was going to happen during Fine Art Club. However, I kept my fingers crossed for later.
Ms Visa then did a book check again and told us to have our exercise books. Then, she checked everyone's books. When she approached Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Benjamin Fong, she asked for their books as they didn't present them.
“Hi, heroes, how are you doing? No books today? Put your books on the table,” she instructed. The trio placed their books on the table, and Ms Visa checked them. She told them about the list of incomplete work. Then, she gave us worksheets and asked them to paste them in the exercise book as we did work. Then, Ms Joyce told us to redo our science fiction story and also read about science fiction to get an idea on how to write our story. Then, we did some work during Maths as Ms Seline taught us more equations and told us to do some work. Ms Maddy came in and then continued talking about ecosystems. The rest of the day went well.
Jordan Tay decided to resign as class monitor during our Science lesson. He had felt that the workload as class monitor was too heavy and this resulted in him deciding to resign. Hence, Ms Ng had to call an urgent meeting with the class before we begun our lesson.
“Class, I want to make an announcement. Our class monitor, Jordan, has resigned as he could not take the workload,” said Ms Ng. “Too much responsibility,” groaned Jordan, to laughter from Rick Tan, who tickled him. Megan giggled at his excuse. “So, as a result, we need to have a new monitor. Class, I propose that Eu Lynn become our new monitor and we choose a new assistant monitor. Do you want Eu Lynn to be the monitor or someone else?” asked Ms Ng. The class wanted Eu Lynn to take over from Jordan and as a result, we had to elect a new assistant monitor.
Jordan had decided to step down as class monitor as he could not bear the workload of a monitor, and thus, Eu Lynn volunteered to take over the post, so that meant that there would be a need for the class to elect an assistant monitor.
I was the first to volunteer for the assistant monitor's post, followed by Rick. Then, Ms Ng told the two of us to stand outside the class while the class voted for the new assistant monitor. I decided to volunteer for the post, and Jason seconded me. Jordan also proposed Rick Tan to be the assistant monitor, and Rick unwittingly caved in to his request. Branson Choon then volunteered for the post, and we got out while the class elected. Ultimately, this was the first time I decided to run for a post in the Monitor’s Council in order to solve plaguing problems with the class control book.
Rick Tan and I just stood outside and walked while we waited. Then, Ting Yi asked us to come in and then it was announced that Rick Tan was the new assistant monitor. Rick Tan covered his head in embarrassment but accepted the challenge to a big applause. Then, Ms Ng continued discussing the questions for Science based on the worksheet we did.
Later, I proceeded to the Art Studio where Ms Feeda was waiting for us for Fine Art Club. Ms Feeda had bought us some white clay and she gave each of us a clay. Before we started, I gave Ms Feeda my CCA card to sign my attendance on it. Then, we decided to make sculptures by modelling the clay. Ms Feeda said she will then harden the clay for us after we had mold it. I decided to make a pot, and Ms Feeda told us to make a pot of any design.
The white clay was called the ‘Plaster of Paris’, and it would normally harden once we had let the clay dry. We would apply water to the clay so that it would be very flexible to mold it into a pot. Once the molding was done, we would let it dry before using sharp tools to carve out some patterns on the clay while the thing dried up.
Yee Lim made an enlarged vase, and Ms Feeda also joined us in making hers. Louis also did his best, making a large vase. Then, Ms Feeda told us to pour some water on it so that everything would stick together, before letting the vases dry overnight. I wished Ms Feeda a Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri in advance before we went home.
It was finally the last day of July as Ms Lim announced the Class of the Month as well as the Wow Award recipients for the month of June. The school was decked in Hari Raya Aidilfitri decorations as the Hari Raya Aidilfitri mood was in full swing. For the KS3 category. 8L was announced as the Cleanest Class, with 7B being announced as the Class of the Month. 10E and 10L were the Cleanest Class and Class of the Month for the KS4 category. On another note, Yan Ying received the Wow Award for June, being nominated by Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia.
We then went to the Science Lab, where Ms Ng then did some distillation experiments with us. The setup for the distillation exercise involved a lot of equipment. Caleb Chuang and I collected the equipment from Ms Ng before we set them up for our group. On another note, I wore some lab goggles during the experiment, which were quite cool. The whole day was marred by Derek Yong mimicking my voice. Initially, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were fed up with me until they found out about Derek's tricks. On another note, Ms Joyce collected our English files and most of the day was either spent doing work or looking at lessons.
It was finally the last Homeroom session before the Hari Raya holiday. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia gave us some food as we spent the entire Homeroom period talking about what we were planning to do following the Hari Raya Holidays – the visit to Soup Kitchen.
Like the previous year in Year 8, we were asked to go to the Soup Kitchen once again, and I looked forward to that adventure. Eu Lynn was once again appointed as the coordinator, just like in 2014, and Ms Ng gave us the permission slips for the trip to Soup Kitchen that we need to sign in and return on Monday, 13th July. We were the first to head to Soup Kitchen. Oh, how fun it was to go on a Soup Kitchen trip with the one and only Caleb Chuang!
Then, after we returned on Monday the 13th, Cikgu Zura gave our feedback on our presentation, and she said that me and Caleb Chuang's presentation was the most entertaining. “YEAH!” I cheered. Caleb Chuang smiled and the whole class clapped for us. I then wished Cikgu Zura a happy Hari Raya celebration. Once we went for break and returned to class, Ms Visa then did the World War I weapons topic with us, and how the technology for the war evolved. Ms Visa and Ms Seline then gave us holiday homework. A lot of them.
During Bible Knowledge, Mr Lim then revealed more plans about the Bible Knowledge Quiz. It will be held at SMK Assunta on Saturday, 1st August 2015, and told us to read Acts chapter 13 to 28, which will be tested in the quiz. He gave us flyers advertising the quiz, which were sponsored by the Malaysian Christian Schools Council, the Bible Society of Malaysia, Methodist College Kuala Lumpur as well as the Methodist Church in Malaysia. Then, he gave out permission slips to those who were interested. Oh yes, and Caleb Chuang and I decided to sign up for the quiz. Joseph Diong was also interested to join as well, and thus received the form.
Ms Belle was planning to do our Spelling Test, and honestly, I didn't study for the test because of other commitments. She gave us time to do some last minute revision before we started. But I took a piece of paper, or I should say, pieces of paper, and practiced them on the paper in the order of the words, writing them down till I could remember all of them, just like how I tested myself on the continents for Geography. Then, when the test came, Ms Belle said the words, and somehow I was able to remember all of them exactly where it was! I got full marks for the spelling test. Then, Ms Belle taught us a new topic and gave us homework. Gabriel slept in class and this made Ms Belle not amused again.
The next day, Ms Joyce then taught us about relative clauses, and Derek forgot to bring his book again for Ms Gerardine's class, which resulted in Ms Joyce barring him from getting his exercise book. Ms Gerardine apparently wanted the book to be handed in, but however, Derek did not bring his book and it was in 9O. So, it was really unfortunate for him to be barred. The day went on as normal. Then, during Geography, Ms Maddy then taught us about global warming and the processes, before we went for our Science lesson with Ms Ng. She taught us about the functions of the microscope and the various components of the microscope. We had to note down all the parts of the microscope. Benjamin Fong then asked a question to Ms Ng, curious to learn about the microscope.
“Teacher, can we use the microscope to see our buttocks?” asked Benjamin Fong. The class laughed. Ms Ng was not impressed and chided Benjamin Fong for asking silly questions.
“Class, please, ya. I don't want to hear this type of thing in class,” lectured Ms Ng as the class thought that Benjamin Fong's question was a joke. He was asking a question as Ms Ng was talking about the zoom functions of the microscope.
During Health, Ms Renee gave us some time to discuss the coursework, and Caleb Chuang said that we will present erythromyxin which is one type of performance-enhancing drug in sports. We then had a discussion on our compassion projects and a briefing by Ms Lim on the Soup Kitchen projects, as Ms Lim briefed us on how we should do it. Some people joked with Ms Lim, which she laughed at, but one joke that went too far was the labeling of the underprivilaged in Jinjang as poor people. Ms Lim scuffed at the idea, saying that we should be lucky to have a good home, good parents and good facilities; not to also mention the ability to go to school, which is a privilage sought by those who were unfortunate enough not to receive it.
During Art, Ms Nadia gave us another painting by Pablo Picasso to do and thus told us to focus on our work. Branson Choon then asked Ms Nadia a question; “Teacher, when are we going to play Bingo?” referring to the game Ms Nadia played in Year 7 and 8 with us and some of her other classes. Ms Nadia rejected the offer, and then, when they were done, Branson and Ting Yi went to watch what Ms Nadia was watching on her phone, and they saw one game Ms Nadia gave her children to play. They all laughed at the game as Ms Nadia wasn't amused but she also still talked to them about the game. As we left for our holidays, I, too, wished Ms Nadia a very enjoyable festive season as well.
On 22nd July 2015, following the Hari Raya Holidays, we went to the Soup Kitchen. It was our second time and my second time too, visiting Soup Kitchen after having visited it the previous year.
Earlier in the day, Mr Victor did some running with us in the field. He told us to run two laps around the field and we were excited to do so. Mr Victor then invited volunteers to lead the run, and me and Caleb Chuang led the crowd, causing the entire Year 9 batch to scream and cheer for us.
Then, we did some relay runs as well, and Mr Victor told us to run with a partner. I chose Caleb Chuang, and we all ran like mad. The whole year level screamed and cheered and Megan and Le Anne grinned. Mr Victor then brought us to the basketball court nearby the field and invited volunteers to do the push ups, sit ups and lead the exercises. Caleb Chuang and I volunteered again, but Mr Victor wanted someone who is not paying attention to do it, and he chose Jien Min. Once we returned from PE, Caleb Chuang and I discussed the activities later for Soup Kitchen as we walked back, and Megan and Le Anne had a friendly chat with us. We then had a quick breakfast before gathering at the foyer. I was the first to arrive, followed by Rick, Jordan and Ting Yi. Then, Caleb Chuang was present. As the break time ended, everyone reached the foyer, and Ms Ng divided us into boys and girls to be seated in different vans.
Two vans were chartered to bring us to Soup Kitchen. I sat with Caleb Chuang on the van as we enjoyed the scenery, and this caused Rick Tan and all the other people in the van to feel jealous of us.
As we boarded the van, Caleb Chuang then picked up his book and started reading, and then Jordan, Rick, Aaron Loke and the rest of the boys boarded the van. Ms Sylvia was sitting in front. Then, Jordan, Aaron, Branson and Ting Yi talked about the latest video game that Ting Yi and Branson played. They spent until 11:00pm playing that games many times till Ting Yi forgot to do his homework. To entertain himself, Jordan also brought some apples. He liked to eat apples during his time in Nobel as his mother had packed the apples for him for his break time. At the same time, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were having their phones and playing some games. Jason Leing was interested to see, but soon they were shouting profanities as they played their games.
“Wei Yiang, why are you always with Caleb? Can't you find someone else?” Rick asked me in a serious tone. I then told Rick that if he were to ask this question, he should have detached from Jordan if he was really asking me to find someone else. “Yeah, Rick,” said Caleb Chuang and Jordan. Soon, the entire class was teasing Rick as he had always asked why Caleb Chuang and I were together.
As our van was traversing the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) on our way to Soup Kitchen, the van I was sitting in overtook the other van. Caleb Chuang and I instantly, automatically, put our hands up and started waving at Ms Ng. Natalie, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying, Megan, Le Anne and all of them who were in the other van as we overtook. We acted like a celebrity. “Hi! Hello!” Caleb Chuang and I grinned as we waved at the other van. Ms Ng was sitting in the front of that van, and Caleb Chuang and I grinned as we passed, and Megan and Le Anne and all the people in the other van then started pointing at the both of us sitting together. Rick told me and Caleb Chuang to stop waving, but we continued happily. Caleb Chuang and I then sung the lyrics of “Let it Go”, the theme song from the movie “Frozen”, but Rick Tan got tired of us singing.
“Caleb, Wei Yiang, please stop. Please stop singing. Please. Stop,” Rick Tan pleaded, but we continued to sing the Let it Go song. Branson Choon and Ting Yi were chatting with Jordan Tay at the back of the van and were playing a game of hamburger, the alternative name in the Malaysian context for papers, scissors and stones.
Soon, we arrived at around 9:00am at Soup Kitchen and got off the van. We then gathered in the Soup Kitchen and then waited for instructions. I stood next to Caleb Chuang, who stood next to the girls in our class, as we listened for instructions. Megan, Le Anne and the girls in the other van then talked about the cool moves me and Caleb Chuang did, which made us feel very shy.
One of the volunteers, Ms Tan, came out and then greeted us. “Good morning, Ms Tan!” Caleb Chuang and I greeted loudly. Not just loud, but also in a synchonized manner. Ms Tan smiled at the both of us. “So polite,” she said, and Rick Tan gave us an unhappy look. “That’s creepy,” he said.
Ms Tan said that our agenda was to clean the tables, wipe the tables and wash the dishes and arrange the chairs and tables that were placed at the side of the Soup Kitchen in order so that the old folks who come to Soup Kitchen would be able to sit on while enjoying their meal. So I decided to clean the tables and chairs in the main eatery area, while Rick Tan and the rest of the guys when to prepare food for the day. Then, once we were done, we then switched roles or were assigned to whatever job that was needed to be done. The eatery at first sounded like a normal restaurant, but it is actually the premium outlet Auntie Clarine set out for the underprivileged.
Ting Yi, Megan and I started wiping the tables in the main dining hall, as Natalie Seah looked on. Then, I decided to sweep the floors. Caleb Chuang, on the other hand, was talking to the volunteers, smiling and grinning at the back of Soup Kitchen. Soon, everyone was cleaning the tables, but I decided to stick with Caleb Chuang for good company. I then told Caleb Chuang that we must promote our class and the Soup Kitchen so that the folks at Soup Kitchen would be very happy with us and support us. “Then, we would get more attention, and we will be famous!” I cried.
“Why do you always have to be with Caleb, Wei Yiang?” Rick Tan asked. “Can you not live without him?” I rebuffed Rick by saying, “Rick, you should not always be with Jordan. He is your best friend, right?” Rick then told me that he always detach from Jordan once in a while, and that I was always obsessed with Caleb Chuang. “Rick, last year (2014), you told me that I am in love with Sara. Why do you always talk such things?” I asked him. “Yeah Rick, go find someone else,” said Jordan, lecturing Rick on how he should reflect on himself before taking on the grit of others. Then, Caleb Chuang and I went to have a chat with Sara Yow, who was wiping the tables. We said hi to her and I waved at her enthusiastically but she gave me a weird look. I then went to the back to do some stacking of some goodies placed in the cupboard in the kitchen area.
Everything needed to be prepared before the arrival of the old folks and local folk at 11:00am. Ms Ng then checked on everyone and started seeing how things were going. She then went around coordinating things. Caleb Chuang and I then moved some large tables to form a table counter for the customers while Derek and Jian Wen cleaned the glass doors leading to the entrance of Soup Kitchen. When all the cleaning and scrubbing were done, we were then sorted into three teams; one that had to scrub the plates and cutlery, another to serve drinks on a tray, and another to provide plates and utensils at the main kitchen counter.
I talked to Caleb Chuang about how interesting it was to serve the old folks, as I like to talk to my neighbors who were those types of age. The entire class was talking as we waited. I also told Caleb of how we can entertain the old folks so that we can promote the best of the best of 9O, our Year 9 batch and also of Nobel International School. “We can plan some moves, some greetings; but most importantly, we must say ‘Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri’ to the Malay folks. Ms Tan told us that Jinjang is mainly a Chinese area, so it is less likely that we would get some Malay patrons.
At 10:45am, a large amount of elderly folks were waiting outside the doors, disciplined in a single line. They had arrived on all forms and modes of transportation, from old-fashion bicycles to large vans which catered them. Ms Tan then told us that we should only take enough for one customer to eat. She then set a tray comprising of different ingredients and dishes in the counter, ranging from fried rice to noodles, vegetables and salad.
“Get ready, Caleb Chuang. They are coming. Guys, guys! When the old folks enter the door, please greet them enthusiastically. All we need to do is say, “Hello! Hi! How are you! Welcome! Selamat Datang, Huan Ying! Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!”” I cried. Caleb Chuang patted me. “Chill, chill,” he said. Ms Tan looked at me and Caleb Chuang enthusiastically and gave us the thumbs up.
The doors opened, and the hungry customers entered the Soup Kitchen, eager to fill their hungry stomachs. The operations begun as we took time to not only serve, but also entertain the guests. Caleb Chuang and I begun taking drinks and served the old uncles and aunties and had a friendly chat with them, and some of the elderly customers wished us all the best in our exams.
One gentleman asked how are our studies, and asked us to introduce Nobel International School to him. Caleb Chuang just introduced the basics, but however I went overboard, explaining about how me and Caleb Chuang had a great adventure together, and how we had many big plans, such as the victory of Bullseye. Rick Tan was not amused at me and Caleb Chuang talking about our school lives; let alone explaining how great Bullseye is.
A space was left outside the Soup Kitchen for some people to park their bicycles if arriving by their bike. Rick Tan, Jordan Tay, Branson Choon and Ting Yi then started to wash dishes behind the kitchen’s back lane. Sara Yow, Natalie Seah, Megan, Le Anne and Eu Lynn took time to serve the food at the kitchen table.
I spent most of my time serving the drinks to the uncles and aunties who took refuge and sipped their meal. I then talked to this one uncle who spoke in Mandarin but I can’t pretty much understand him. There were also few gentlemen who came for a meal, say around five men. I served them to a good response of thumbs-ups. Then, Ting Yi replaced Caleb Chuang, and then I went to clean the dishes and serve the meal at the counter. Everyone took turns doing different chores as the day passed. By the time we knew it, the customers stopped coming into the Soup Kitchen. We then packed up and then cleared the Soup Kitchen up, preparing to head back to school.
Ms Ng then called all of us to gather at the entrance and she said we will have late lunch once we arrive, and that our teachers would be waiting for us for lessons at the end of the day.
When Ms Tan got us gathered, she thanked us for our service. “Ms Tan, me and Caleb Chuang entertained the old folks. They liked our hospitality, and we are one of the best classes ever!” I cried. Ms Tan was excited, and as we were heading to the van, Megan and Le Anne coined a new portmanteau; ‘Weileb’, which is a combination of me and Caleb Chuang's names, so long as the words ‘Wei Yiang’ and ‘Caleb’ were concerned. They then showed me the WhatsApp chat that was named ‘Right, Caleb?’
We left for school at 1:00pm, and Branson Choon and Ting Yi started talking about their video games on the way back. Caleb Chuang and I were anticipating that the other van would overtake us again, and Rick warned us not to wave again. We then spent the time talking about all our funny adventures in the Soup Kitchen as well as all the funny initiatives to gain attention from all of the Year 9s. We had great company, just like Phineas and Ferb. Rick Tan was annoyed and shouted profanities at me and Caleb Chuang.
“Wei Yiang and Caleb, we want to sleep. Please talk softer,” said Rick.
Then, the other van was coming. They came close to us, and I waved at them while Rick remained annoyed at my actions. We then headed for lunch and proceeded for our lessons later on.
As we entered the school compound and headed for lunch, Ms Ng, Ms Sylvia and the girls had lunch together. Me and Caleb Chuang went over to have lunch with them, and we talked about all the activities we did. Ms Ng said that me and Caleb Chuang had very good hospitality gesture. I told Ms Ng about how me and Caleb Chuang talked to one of the old uncles who wished us well in the Checkpoint exam and said we would prosper well in the future. Then, Ms Ng focused our attention towards the Checkpoint Exam. She then told us to be focused as the exam was coming in less than three months.
We then went for Maths. Ms Seline was in the class waiting for us. She was surprised that we went to Soup Kitchen and came back late.
During ICT, we went to the lab to work on our Edmodo activities. However, I forgot my Edmodo password as I had written it on my notebook to remember it, and Mr Narish had to reset my password and account information for the purpose. I left my notebook at home as we were headed to Soup Kitchen that day. Once we were done, Ms Ng then did some revision with us and taught us another topic in Science. She gave us her notes and we had an engaging lesson with her for 40 minutes regarding electrical circuits. It was quite cool to learn about electrical circuits.
The next day, Ms Visa came in and worked with us on a poem about World War I from the perspective of a soldier. Ms Joyce then gave us worksheets and did some descriptive writing with us. She then explained about what was expected for us and told us to improve our work.
During Maths, we did some work on volumes before Ms Seline informed us to bring a protractor, straw, thread and cellophane tape for the next day's lesson. And then, Ms Maddy continued to talk to us about the various classification of greenhouse gases.
Ms Belle was not happy with everyone during the Mandarin lesson, particularly because the class was too noisy and some people were not doing their work. So as a result, Ms Belle swapped many of our positions. Benjamin Fong, Derek Yong and some people from the back were shifted to the front, and because of that, Ms Belle placed me next to Pranavee, which is good because she can ask me for advice easily on Mandarin. Ms Belle said that if everyone was good, we can restore our original sitting positions as they were. Then, during Science, Ms Ng did with us a pop quiz on the electrical circuit. It was quite cool. I got all the answers correct. I mean, the one on the first question containing the circuit diagram labels.
After school ended, I went to the Art Studio for Fine Art Club once again with Ms Feeda. This time, Ms Feeda had gathered some paint and we painted our pots, which had been successfully hardened. It was really cool. Louis decorated his pot with flowers while mine was a mixture of brown and yellow. Ms Feeda then kept our pots as she was planning to display them during the PTM 2 Art Exhibition. She said that the following week would see us do some acrylic painting.
The next morning, Ms Ng brought us to the Science lab, where we had to build an electrical circuit in the lab. Each team had to collect a series of electrical ingredients from the front table. We were given a battery, sets of wire with clips, a switch, and three bulbs. All that was needed to do was to connect the equipment together to make an electrical circuit. We had to make two circuits; a series circuit and a parallel circuit.
Me and Caleb Chuang connected the clips of the battery while the rest connected the battery to the bulbs and so on. The battery came with a battery holder to insert the battery in it so that it will effectively connect to the electrical circuit. We connected one bulb first, and once everything was done, it glowed. Ms Ng then came and checked on us and everything was well. She helped the other groups who had trouble fixing their circuits to settle them. Then, once everything was done, Ms Ng then told us to change the circuit to a parallel circuit, which is to add two additional bulbs and have separate wire for them.
Ting Yi then took the circuit model and put the light on his head and pretended to be like an ambulance, as he switched on and off the switch. “Eee Ohh Eee Ohh!” he cried. The whole class laughed, and Megan Lee saw what was happening. She turned to Ting Yi and looked at him. “Oh my goodness,” she groaned. Ms Ng then told him to put the circuit down and connect the electrical circuit to the parallel circuit with us. We then removed the series circuit and added the other wires to the circuit. Then, Ms Ng checked on us before all other groups were done. Then, we added two bulbs in a series circuit and we did various investigations to identify how the circuit behaves in various configurations.
Ting Yi then asked Ms Ng if we could have the Science Lab's generator so that we can make the bulb in the series circuit brighter. The Science Lab also had a portable generator to connect to the circuit, but Ms Ng said we shouldn't use the generator as it may be very dangerous. “If you want to use the generator, you need to have a teacher's supervision. You cannot just connect it like that,” she warned.
Once our lab session was finished, we went for our break time, and Ms Lim briefed us about our field trips. The Year 7s were headed to Kuala Lumpur for a hop-on-hop-off tour and the Year 8s were destined for Melaka. We Year 9s were headed to Sekinchan, the hub for paddy farming in Selangor. We went back for Malay and Cikgu Zura taught us how to make sentences. Then, we had English, History and Maths before Ms Ng came in during Homeroom time to brief us on our field trip to Sekinchan.
Throughout the week, we kept our fingers crossed for the trip to Sekinchan. I was looking for a wonderful adventure with Caleb Chuang, of course. The eve of the field trip was quite electric. Throughout the entire lessons we had, everyone was excited and couldn't do their work in full concentration. We had our Malay lesson normally on Monday and during History, Ms Visa told us to do our work. She was excited as to where we were going the next day and asked us. During Bible Knowledge, Mr Lim then continued the book of Matthew, and he briefed those who were heading for the Bible Knowledge quiz on what to expect.
“So, the BK quiz is held at SMK Assunta. I am giving you the address. Please ask your parents to send you there. And also, don't forget; wear your school uniform. Come latest by 7am. We will have a praise and worship session and some speeches before sitting the quiz. I will tell you what to do on the day. Joseph Diong then asked a question regarding where to assemble before and after the quiz. “I will be at the gate this coming Saturday (1st August)”, said Mr Lim.
On 28th July 2015, the day of the field trip finally came. We were excited to be on our journey to Sekinchan for our Year 9 field trip. Sekinchan is located on the coast of Selangor, northeast of Kuala Lumpur. It is a rice field full of paddy in the middle of vast swathes of land. This paddy field region provides the majority of food staples for Selangor. Other than Selangor, Kedah is the other major state producing paddy, but visiting Sekinchan is good enough for us to experience paddy farming.
Sekinchan is located close to Kuala Selangor, which I visited when I was 10 years old back in 2011. It is just 15 minutes away from Kuala Selangor, and around an hour’s drive from Kuala Lumpur. We were excited to go to watch the paddy fields and experience what it was like there. The majority of folks there are mainly Chinese, although there are some Bumiputera laborers too.
When I arrived in school, I sat down in the canteen and had breakfast. All of us had to wear our sports attire for the day. Then, once I finished my breakfast, I went to the school hall, where many of our friends were gathered and had a chat. Megan Lee and Le Anne were talking and then Benjamin Fong, Sean Mark, Aristotle Koh and Jason Leing were in another corner having a discussion. I kept telling Rick that I feel excited and cannot wait for Caleb Chuang to arrive.
Then, I went to the foyer. At 7:20am, Caleb Chuang's familiar face appeared on the horizon. “Yes! Caleb Chuang is here!” I cried. Caleb Chuang was accompanied by Mr Chuang, and Mr Chuang was excited to talk to me.
“Hi, good morning, Wei Yiang. Are you excited for your field trip?” he asked. I then told Mr Chuang I was excited for the field trip and finally Caleb Chuang is here. He smiled, clapped his hands, and Caleb Chuang and I walked together while Mr Chuang took out his staff card and clocked into the main office on the ground floor. Then, we went to the hall. Megan and Le Anne smiled at us as we were walking in.
“Caleb! Wei Yiang! Best friends!” they cried, and all the Year 9s clapped their hands for us. The whole hall welcomed us like as if we were celebrities. We sat down next to Jordan Tay and then we talked until the music was being played. After a brief announcement by Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim, we got ready for our field trip. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia soon arrived to take our attendance. Then, we were led to the courtyard and then onto our buses, which were waiting outside the school premises.
We were put into three buses, and what made the field trip cool was that each bus came with a tour guide. Our tour guide was a man named Mr Robert. Mr Robert is a man who looks like someone who had been a director of a movie. To be exact, he looked like Steven Spielberg. He wore glasses and had a broad mouth while also having flat eyes. He is also an amusing man who entertained all of us on the trip. I sat with Caleb Chuang in the front of the bus while we listened to Mr Robert speak. He was as entertaining as a movie star, just like Steven Spielberg.
“Hello, boys and girls, I am your tour guide for today; you can call me Robert. Today, we are going to Sekinchan. As you all know, Sekinchan is a place filled with paddy. It is what gives us rice. There are a lot of paddies at the paddy fields in Sekinchan,” he said. He spoke with a calm and infectious voice as he entertained all of us.
When Caleb Chuang and I greeted Mr Robert, Mr Robert focused on us. “Hi, both of you! You all look so happy today. I told Mr Robert that Caleb Chuang and I were very excited for the trip. “Good! It seems like both of you are best friends, right?” he responded.
“Oooooh!!!!” everyone in the bus responded. Megan and Le Anne were smiling. “They are best friends!” exclaimed Megan and Eu Lynn. Rick Tan and Jordan Tay were smiling as well.
“What information do you know about paddy?” Mr Robert asked. “Rice comes from paddy!” I exclaimed. Logic, right? “Right! You are so clever,” said Mr Robert, smiling at us. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia were also excited. “They are one of the most participative in class,” exclaimed Ms Ng. “I am their class teacher and Science teacher.”
Mr Robert then gave us some insights on the location of Sekinchan. “Sekinchan, as you know, is located on the northern part of Selangor. We are going to have around two hours of driving time, so sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.” Mr Robert then talked about the scientific background and the usage of paddy as the bus sped on. We had to encounter heavy traffic as we exited Kelana Jaya and headed to the expressway.
The bus then pulled onto the North Klang Valley Expressway, as we were greeted by the familiar sights and sounds of traffic as we drove on the expressway. I then begun talking to Mr Robert on the details of the traffic and the highways. “You are very smart, you even know which highway is it!” cried Mr Robert. Mr Robert and I then conversed about our details, such as my hobbies, my studies and asked how am I and Caleb Chuang and I talked to him.
Mr Robert then begun talking about the process of harvesting paddy. “Boys and girls, the process of harvesting paddy is not very easy. Farmers will need to harvest a lot of paddy in order to ensure that there is enough rice to eat. In order to harvest one bag of rice, you need at least five hours to harvest,” he said. Mr Robert then said that in order to get good sales, farmers would need to sell to least 100 bags a day. “That is why paddy fields are very big; you need a lot of rice in order to sell and make money.
“So a brief history of Sekinchan. Sekinchan is a small town that was originally built for fishing. But because paddy was discovered, they then started to build paddy fields to plant paddy,” he said.
I pointed the landmarks to Caleb Chuang as most people used phones and were talking among themselves. Phones were allowed for the day. “This is the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) station under construction,” I told Caleb, pointing to the under-construction Sungai Buloh MRT station. I then told Caleb Chuang that I used the North-South Expressway, also known as Plus Highway, to head back to Bukit Mertajam every year for Chinese New Year to visit my grandparents in Penang. Mr Robert was also interested in listening to my stories I talked to Caleb Chuang.
The bus then exited the North South Highway and then entered the Latar Expressway. This expressway connects Templer Park and Rawang to Kuala Selangor. It is an uncompleted stretch of highway as the highway terminates at Ijok. I then told Mr Robert about the history of the Latar Expressway and how it was built, and Mr Robert was amazed at my explanation. The Latar Expressway, known as the Kuala Lumpur – Kuala Selangor Expressway, connects Templer Park in Selayang to Ijok, a small village just near Kuala Selangor. The reason why the expressway's acronym is called the Latar Expressway is because the expressway was originally named ‘Lebuhraya Assam Jawa – Taman Templer’, which provides the acronym ‘Latar’. That expressway opened in 2011, and it was a hit by the public then to head to Kuala Selangor from Kuala Lumpur. I can still remember my mum, aunt, sister and I cheering happily when we drove on the expressway when it was toll-free.
We then passed a recycling factory located on the left side of the expressway. “You can see on the left side of the highway, that there is a recycling factory. We must recycle more to protect the environment,” Mr Robert added, noting the large amounts of plastic pollution. “In six months, there would be a lot of waste, and you would need to separate all of them,” Mr Robert noted to us of our responsibility of saving the environment and what we could do to help protect the earth. I then talked about how I used recycled items in my gardening projects, which amazed Mr Robert and he had a really wonderful conversation with me. “You really answer and ask a lot of questions. I think you are the best student in the class,” he exclaimed. I think Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia are speechless on what to say. They just smiled while the whole bus laughed. Caleb Chuang could only cover his face in the bus.
As the long bus ride continued, everyone begun to feel a bit exhausted from the bus ride, as Mr Robert had continued talking till he also felt tired. So, we then had a rest, as we enjoyed the scenery. The bus arrived at Kuala Selangor town and we had to continue for another 45 minutes from there before reaching Sekinchan. Mr Robert then talked to us and introduced us to Kuala Selangor town. I also told him about my visit to Kuala Selangor as well. We then sat on the bus and Caleb rested as we headed towards Sekinchan. The moment our bus arrived at Sekinchan, we could make out the large paddy fields that seem to stretch till the end of the horizon, and everyone was pointing out to the paddy fields. I peered out the window and saw the endless stretch of green as I exclaimed to Caleb Chuang, “The field is so big!”
We then got down at a tiny hut which is home to a factory where biscuits are being made. Everyone assembled at the biscuit factory as we saw the usual bakery dough, flour and equipment being used to make biscuits. Mr Robert called us for attention as he proceeded to the factory. “This is a biscuit factory. You can see how the workers make biscuits,” said Mr Robert. “These biscuits are packed and sold all over Malaysia. You can see the flour, the dough, the yeast…..all of them are put together to make the biscuits.” Rick Tan then took out his phone and started taking pictures of the dough. Yin Wei, Natalie and Sara did as well. Everyone crowded around the factory to see how they made the biscuits.
“This biscuits will eventually form your so-called popular biscuits like Jacob’s, Peanut Butter and all types of brands you buy everyday,” Mr Robert added.
Next to the biscuit factory is another factory called Nata de Coco. This factory is home to a series of large machines which make rice pudding. This factory reminds me of my uncle’s snail medicine factory back in Batu Pahat, Johor, where he is the owner. “Rice pudding is this one sticky bit of rice which is soaked in water and mixed with cream to get this creamy substance,” Mr Robert added. He then explained that rice pudding normally takes around 2 hours to make and is a bit tasty if added with some flavor.
“It reminds me of porridge, right Caleb?” I said. Caleb then nodded. It looked like porridge and it can be mixed with fishball to make an ice cream-like substance.
We then got onto the bus as the bus made a drive into the paddy fields, and Mr Robert described the paddy fields to us. The paddy fields are surrounded by waterways in order to keep the paddy cool. Mr Robert explained that the waterways are small irrigation canals dug from a river nearby in order to supply water to the paddy fields. “The paddy is grown in mud because it requires a lot of water supply in order to keep the paddy healthy. If there is too much water, the paddy will die and it will be wasted,” he said. I started telling Caleb Chuang about my plan to build a mini paddy plantation in my garden, and he smirked. “It will be very interesting, Caleb Chuang, if we can get to have a paddy plantation in front of my house! I will be very happy, right Caleb?”
Driving a bus or a large vehicle is not easy, as the roads were very narrow. It was also very difficult for our bus to navigate around, as it had to reverse and inch forward in order to just make a turn. The bus then parked outside a resort named Doraini Homestay.
We then got down from the bus and made our way to Doraini Homestay Resort which is a series of chalets located right next to the paddy field. We then had a short break before heading for lunch. The food that was mainly served was Malay food, so I just took soup and rice in order to ensure that it looked more like the one served at school or home.
I then sat down with Caleb Chuang and we sipped some delicious flavors from the counter. As there were no tables, most people sat down and have their meal. Joshua Chew, Sherwin, San Ying, Joseph Diong, Ting Yi and Rick Tan then joined us and I led everyone in prayer as we prayed for a healthy meal and begun our conversation. After lunch, Ms Bee Yong told me to have a chat with her, and she said that I should not have prayed loudly despite it being tradition among Christians to pray before eating. This is because in that very same location, there are Muslims performing prayers as well and it would be offense to do so in front of another religion. Jonathan Chong then asked me if Ms Bee Yong had scolded me, and I said to him that she didn’t get angry at me but told me that we should take stock of situations before praying as it can be religiously sensitive, and he was relieved.
Once we finished our lunch, we then had a try at doing batik art. Batik art is a piece of oil paint dipped on cloth. We had a try at dipping the Batik paint on the cloth to much success. I then sat next to Caleb Chuang and did my share.
“Why do you always sit next to Caleb? Can’t you just make other friends?” Rick moaned at me. “But you always sit next to Jordan everyday!” I cried. Rick said that even though he sat next to Jordan, he made friends from other classes. “But Sara Yow and Natalie Seah are doing their batik together; Megan and Le Anne are doing their things together, and they made friends from other classes!” I exclaimed. Rick did not know what else to say and then gave me a sly look. Caleb Chuang just smirked. The batik came out good, and we left it to dry before we went for our next activity.
Mr Robert and his fellow tour guides from the other buses then said that we are going to catch a catfish. Everyone was excited, and Jason Leing, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong were humping over the prospect of catching catfish.
“Cut it and sell it for sushi,” exclaimed Jason. “We’ll be rich!”
“I want to see four lines. Line up in four lines,” said Mr Robert. Everyone then lined up in four lines as we assembled. Some people then formed a fifth line, and Mr Robert was surprised.
“Why are there five lines? I said four lines, not five! Those on the other side, please line up behind,” he said. When all was settled, Mr Robert then led us with the staff from Doraini Homestay to the paddy field along a dirt road meant for trucks and tractors. Caleb Chuang and I were in front, leading the crowd as everyone saw us. Megan and Le Anne continued to point out at us. “Wow, Caleb and Wei Yiang leading the way! Best friends!” they cheered. Caleb Chuang just smiled embarrassingly, but he continued and we led everyone. I smiled and told Caleb Chuang to ignore Megan and Le Anne. He was as cool as a cucumber.
Mr Robert then continued to lead us, and Caleb Chuang and I talked to Mr Robert about the paddy field. When I told Mr Robert that I planned to build my own paddy field at home, he said, “That’s cool, but the thing is, how are you going to get the type of soil meant for paddy plants? Normal soil cannot fit paddy plants,” he said. Soon, we arrived at an opening and then we took off our shoes and waded through the mud. I only waded halfway before coming out. The rest then waded into thick mud and some even splashed some mud. Ms Maddy, who also accompanied us on the trip, then asked the workers if they could giver her some paddy. So, they packed the paddy into a plastic bag with some of the soil and water, and Ms Maddy took the paddy back to the homestay’s premises.
“Ms Maddy, seriously, are you going to bring the paddy plants back?” Shaun Ting asked. Ms Maddy said that she was gonna plant the paddy plant in 9B’s classroom, and Brandon Ooi and Han Ming were shocked. Literally all the 9B students were surprised of Ms Maddy’s act.
Once we all finished dipping in the mud, we went back to the homestay and got our legs washed at the washing areas behind the entrance hall. Once we have finished washing up, we then boarded the buses and headed back to school.
On the way back, Caleb Chuang was a bit tired and got some rest. Most people like Brandon Ooi, Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Benjamin Fong were sleeping, tired by the long day as we settled in for a ride back home. Even Mr Robert slept in the front of the bus as he tried to have his nap. His tired face reflected off the front mirror on the driver's windshield inside the bus, and I could see it.
The bus speeded down the expressway as dark clouds loomed over the horizon. It was going to rain soon and we hope to arrive at school before it poured. As I look back on the field trip, I thought of the days that I had with Caleb Chuang, since the end of Year 9 is approaching. I tried to amuse myself with the scenery around the Latar Expressway, since I had fond memories of using this highway to head to Kuala Selangor.
As the bus drove down Latar Expressway, it started to rain, and I can sense Caleb Chuang getting a good rest in the midst of the weather. The bus then met the Guthrie Expressway as the rain poured in for a moment, but then it stopped. I then continued to enjoy sights along the way as the day marked a close. Ms Maddy then went to 9B’s classroom to store the paddy plant in it.
The next morning, we had our PE lesson, and we were still exhausted from our trip to Sekinchan. Ms Bee Yong addressed the assembly and told us that since the field trip is over, we had to be focused on our studies. However, we had to also remember not to stress out as well.
During PE, Mr Victor told us that in the previous fitness test, many of us were not doing good and thus he did some planking and push ups and sit ups with us. I tried to do many of them, but regarding the sit ups and stretching, I did them till my muscles cramped. Once PE was done, we went back to class to get ready for break. Benjamin Fong switched on the air conditioning before we went for PE. He relaxed in the air conditioning once he returned from the courtyard. He then slept a while before we went for break.
After returning from break, Ms Joyce asked why the air conditioning was so cold and still on and when she found out that Benjamin Fong switched on the air conditioning during break time, and that it was left operational before assembly begun, she was quite angry with him.
“Excuse me, Benjamin, why did you switch on the air cond? You are not supposed to switch it on during break time. If you use the air cond during break time, you will be demerited,” warned Ms Joyce, to which he apologized and told her that he was just feeling hot and wanted to on the air conditioning but forgot to switch it off. Ms Joyce did not buy the excuse and told him that the air conditioning must be switched off before leaving the classroom. Then, Ms Joyce gave some worksheets for us to do. We then had Malay, and Benjamin Fong really enjoyed the air conditioning for a short while as Cikgu Zura taught us. Then, Ms Kiran came in. She then continue our GP project discussion and told us to fix dates for our site visit. Wee Shiang told us that we plan to go after Assessment 2 and conveyed this message to Ms Kiran.
When we headed for our Maths lesson later on, where Ms Seline gave us an icebreaking activity to do. She told us to use our knowledge on angles to measure the angle of tables, chairs, whiteboards and the Smartboard. I then came with my thread and measured the various measurements, with Ms Seline helping me. Brendan Cheah then tried to measure Dylan S. Gill's buttocks but then Ms Seline scolded him. Then, once we were done with our measurements, we noted the answers down in a worksheet and submitted them to Ms Seline. Then, we went for ICT and Mr Narish gave us some Microsoft Word exercises to do. Derek, Ze Khai and Jian Wen were playing games on the computer, and Mr Narish froze their computer screens. When that happened, the three of them asked Mr Narish what the big deal was. Mr Narish folded his hands and glared at them.
“I know what you did,” he scolded. “You are supposed to be doing your work, not playing games or watching videos,” he said, before embarking on a long lecture with the trio. Then, when we went back from Science, Ms Ng did a quiz on the various formulas, such as the formula for speed. Distance and time; the formula for density, and various other formulas. Branson Choon and I tried to be the first to answer, and we always shouted out the answers just before Ms Ng even finished asking the questions. Then, once things were done, Ms Ng gave us work to do, and also briefed us about the Maths and Science Fair. Each one of us can participate individually or in group, and also wastasked with coming up with various formulae and other information.
The next day, Ms Visa checked our History books again and started the topic on Nazi Germany. She then gave some posters of Nazi Germany to Jordan and Eu Lynn and asked them to paste them on the wall. Ms Joyce then said she was beginning to do our revision but however Brandon Ooi got too excited and Ms Joyce had to calm him down. Later for Maths, we did some work on trigonometry before Ms Maddy gave us a global warming worksheet to work on. Then, during Mandarin, Ms Belle showed some educational videos and Pranavee asked me the meaning of the words on the video, since she had a hard time understanding Mandarin. And during Science, Ms Ng then briefed us on the Maths and Science week.
Ms Ng said that the Maths and Science Week would take place for one whole day, and we were supposed to display our items in class and also visit other people's classes, and that judges would take our marks randomly. Then, once that was over, I packed my bags and headed to the Art Studio, where Ms Feeda was happily waiting for us.
For this Fine Art Club session on 30th July 2015, we continued our clay modelling thing and I continued painting mine. Ms Feeda went around the room and took pictures of us doing stuff.
On Friday, 31st July 2015, we had our Maths and Science Fair. I hated doing things in groups then because there was a need for some collaboration. To sum it up, of course, I liked groupwork, but however, to a certain extent, I can't make some really interesting projects if there is a need to get others’ consent. So, I did it all alone for the Maths and Science fair. It was easy to handle. I had a very long day today, particularly because the day also involved me going to Sunway College for a tour.
We then had our morning assembly where we had the opening ceremony of the Maths and Science Fair. There were performances as well as presentations from a group of Year 7 students led by Jayden Wong, two Year 8 groups led by Aaron Yong and Marissa Lee, and from Year 9, we had Joseph Diong's team presenting, followed by San Ying's group and a team led by Ye Sean. Then, there were a series of awards presented by Ms Bee Yong, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yan.
Each class was used as an exhibition room for the Maths and Science fair, and everyone’s exhibition pieces had to be placed in it. We were supposed to choose one topic, and I chose the topic of solids, liquids and gases which was the easiest for me, of course. We set up our classes soon after the morning assembly had ended, and Ms Ng supervised us in setting things up. The classes were arranged to make a series of tables in which one would display their boards as if it would be done in a museum.
We had to arrange all tables to form a museum-like format. Ms Ng reminded us as to the fact that we needed to put them back in proper order. Then, we begun our setup of the exhibition. Ms Ng then guided everyone as to how they should display their work.
Following our setup, Caleb Chuang and I then explored the various classes, and we went to 9N’s class first which was located at the end of the hallway, close to the hall. Then, I had a stroll around the school to observe the other classes who had placed their own exhibitions.
To make my board record-breaking, I placed the board on a shelf which jutted out from the wall above the door, and boasted it as the highest Science board in Year 9.
“Why do you always have to break so many records, Wei Yiang?” Rick Tan asked. He said that I always aimed for the highest, longest, biggest and so on. I told him that I was inspired by the megaprojects which I read in Dubai which did the same. Rick Tan then told me that it was ridiculous for one to do such records at a young age.
Afterwards, we went for break, and Caleb Chuang and I discussed about the exhibition. Then, an announcement was made for those who are going to Sunway College to gather at the school hall before we departed. Then, once we finished our break time, we went back to class to begin the exhibition.
During the exhibition, we were judged by Ms Samantha, Ms Kam, Mr Nick and Ms Janice, who were going around and taking notes of the exhibits. Then, once things were done, we went to visit other classes. Those in 9O then played various songs and watched various videos. I went to 9E to watch Zhue Xin's exhibition, and her exhibition based the topic on the topic of density.
As the day drew to a close, Jason, Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong then started playing a video from YouTube called “England Got Talent” on the Smartboard of the class, and a lot of people started getting attracted to it. The video contained scenes of people behaving sexily and doing funny moves. There was laughter and chatter as the video ran on. Then, Ms Visa was passing by and then saw a lot of people crowded outside 9O, and then she walked in to see what was going on.
“Hey! Stop it!” Ms Visa scolded. “Close the video. Close the video!”
Jason Leing, who was in the front of the class, was baffled by Ms Visa’s presence, and thus stopped the video.
“All those who are not in this class, get out! Now! Five, four, three, two, one!” cried Ms Visa. Everyone left the class in a hurry.
“Who asked you to play the video? Why did you play the video?” Ms Visa asked. Ms Visa then begun scolding Ryan Marc, Benjamin Fong and Sean Mark in the class as everyone else left. I walked outside to use the washroom and then saw Mr Daniel passing by and having a look to see what was going on. Mr Daniel just looked, baffled by Ms Visa’s noise, as he continued to the other classes to watch their exhibitions.
That very same afternoon, I went along with a group of students to Sunway College for a tour. Sunway College would soon become my next home where I would do my Foundation in Arts there, as well as my business and master degrees at this time of writing.
A total of four buses were chartered by Sunway Education Group to take us to Sunway College. I sat in one of the buses as the Year 10s as we pulled off to the campus. There were normal school buses, but there was also a bus decorated with Sunway University's logo.
Sunway College was founded in 1987 and was located at Jalan Selangor, Petaling Jaya. Since 1992, it sits on its current campus site in Bandar Sunway. Today, Sunway College and Sunway University offer a whole host of pre-university, diploma, professional programmes as well as degree, doctoral and master's courses.
My first visit to Sunway College was in August 2014 when I accompanied my then 18-year-old cousin to find a college to register. She was from Penang and was considering various colleges to register. At the time, Sunway College was not as high-tech in terms of facilities as it is today. The cafeteria was run down and the whole place was not modernized. Ultimately, my cousin chose Taylor's College which then had a campus at Subang Jaya for her A Levels, before doing her medicinal degree at Monash University Malaysia, just a stone's throw away from Sunway College and Sunway University.
The bus then pulled into the main driveway area of Sunway Campus, and we were dropped off at the then-new University Building. Sunway Campus had recently at the time completed its new university building academic block, which spans a total of 12 stories. It was very different then the last time I visited, as the campus had gotten bigger. There was a newly-built football field with tall nets to prevent balls from flying out of the court.
We were then taken on a tour of the Sunway Campus Library. The library spans the entire basement with a fountain in the middle of the library. After the tour of the library, we were then taken to one of the lecture theatres where we were given a career test where we had to answer a series of questions which landed our choice; I was given the choice of headmaster as my occupation.
Then, we were shown a view of the recently-opened Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line which ran around Bandar Sunway. “The system had been free for one month; today is the last day [of free service],” our guide told us. The BRT system opened on 1st June 2015, and had a free trial until 31st July 2015.
After touring the library and the various facilities around Sunway College and Sunway University, we were then brought to Lecture Theatre 6 on the first floor, where Ms Jessie Yee, one of the staff at Sunway, gave us a personality test, Ms Jessie Yee spoke on IQ and EQ and talked about the various factors inducing our learning and personal development. Once we were done, we were then taken on another tour of the ground floor facilities before we headed home. Sunway University and Sunway College were truly developed to the greatest extent. It was like a five-star hotel.
The following day, 1st August, I went to SMK Assunta for the Bible Knowledge (BK) quiz, stylized as BK15. A lot of us from our BK class joined the quiz, and this was a gathering of many schools from across Selangor and Kuala Lumpur. To my excitement, Caleb Chuang also joined in the quiz. San Ying, Sherwin and Joseph Diong, three others from our BK class, were also present.
The BK15, also known as the National Bible Knowledge Quiz, is an annual gathering of teams from various schools across the country to participate in the quiz. Organized by the Malaysian Christian Schools Council and supported by the Methodist Church in Malaysia, it is the largest Bible Knowledge quiz in Malaysia.
On the morning of the quiz, I left my house at 6:15am before arriving at 6:40am. A lot of people were present. I managed to make out Joseph Diong and followed him, where we met Mr Lim. He was gathering all the people from Nobel who were participating in the championships.
The crowd consisted of many people from various schools, such as Christian missionary schools, government schools and international schools. The largest contingent of all was a team of 300 students hailing from Sri Sempurna International School.
Nobel International School had a team size of around 15 students from all five year levels. In our team, we had Brian George, Jeremy Yeap and Hong En Eng from Year 10. The Year 9 students consisted of me, Joseph Diong, San Ying, Sherwin, Caleb Chuang, Faythe Chow and Sean Mark. Year 8 students participating in the competition consist of Aaron Yong, Nikhil Thanasan, Gabriel Kong and Colin Saw. No Year 7 students took part in the contest, with the exception of Lau Lu Zheng.
We met at Dataran Assunta, which is an open square at SMK Assunta, for the praise and worship session as well as a speech by Ms Moey Yoke Lai, president of the Malaysian Christian Schools Council and chairwoman of the BK15 quiz. She is also the principal of Methodist College Kuala Lumpur. The praise and worship session was like another session that I had at church, and we sang many songs. Then, we had a speech by Ms Moey Yoke Lai, who emphasized on how everyone was able to get up really early to participate in the quiz. She praised all of us for being dedicated and committed to the word of God. Then, Ms Moey also highlighted the Malaysian Government considering to remove Bible Knowledge as one of the subjects in the SPM examination.
The Ministry of Education had been planning to axe Bible Knowledge as one of the subjects for the SPM examination, which is the Malaysian equivalent of Cambridge IGCSE. This is because there is a low enrolment rate for the subject of Bible Knowledge for the SPM, and it would be a waste of time trying to get people to study the subject. Ms Moey then told us that we should ask our church pastors, fellowship men and most importantly, our schools and teachers to promote Bible Knowledge and get more people to register, as having Bible Knowledge as part of SPM syllabi would encourage people to seek the word of the Lord.
After that, we went for the BK quiz and sat it, with the quiz topic being on the Acts of the Apostles. The quiz was held in one of the classrooms in the main buildings of the school. The test was quite somewhat moderate as I did it. Fellow quiz-takers wished each other all the best, and some prayed before the quiz started. It took an hour to complete the quiz. It was quite tough for me to be honest, if you really ask me, but fortunately, I managed to do it. Phew.
Once that was done, we then left the classroom and Joseph Diong and I had a chat as we proceeded to Dewan Sister Enda which is a hall located near the school field of SMK Assunta. I managed to see some people who have done their quiz. Joseph and I met with Sherwin, San Ying and Sean Mark. Soon, Caleb Chuang joined us. We then waited at Dewan Sister Enda and I took the opportunity to have my breakfast. I sat down with Mr Chuang and people from Year 8 and Year 7 such as Lau Lu Zheng and Aaron Yong while waiting for the results.
Folks at Dewan Sister Enda were entertained by the presence of an oral quiz where questions were asked and people had to answer. Aaron Yong was taking part in the oral quiz aside from the written quiz. Mr Chuang was also present to show his support for the one and only Caleb Chuang, and Mr Chuang and I discussed on the preparations for the Checkpoint Exam.
At 11:00am, the results were posted on a notice board set up near Dewan Sister Enda. Lu Zheng and Aaron were eventually awarded Distinction for the BK quiz while I got a Pass result. Then, my mum arrived and we were dismissed after Mr Lim met us to talk on our results.
On Sunday, 2nd August, I went with my aunt to the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre to watch the International Olympic Committee (IOC) meeting in Kuala Lumpur. As I had read about the IOC, it was the first time the Olympic Movement stepped foot in Malaysia. The first day, 31st July, was used to elect the host city for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games. The winners were Beijing, China, and Lausanne, Switzerland; the latter of which is where the IOC is headquartered. Beijing hosted the 2008 Olympics, and I had fond memories of that. It thus became the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. Lausanne was chosen because the bid plan was really interesting by the IOC. I had hoped for Beijing to be elected for a long time. It will look cool to have a second version and a sequel to the 2008 Olympics. The second and third days were IOC meetings to have the final report being presented for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics as well as the coordination progress report for Rio 2016, Pyeongchang 2018 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games respectively. I got a chance to take a picture with an arch bearing the Olympic logo at the entrance to the convention centre. My aunt took the photo for me.
The next day, we arrived at school and it was the final week before Assessment 2. August was somewhat a lukewarm month. A month of exams, haze and of course, the rush to the Checkpoint Exam, which begins in two months’ time.
The morning of 3rd August was an electric affair as Ms Lim was gearing us up for the Teacher's Day Celebration. Ms Lim then said that everyone was to arrive at the school hall after lunch time and that the Year 10 and 11 students would have an early lunch break. Once the assembly was over, we then went for our Malay lesson, and Cikgu Zura gave us work. I then told Caleb Chuang about our Health presentation as I was worried that we may not have time. Caleb Chuang then told me that he will send the slides to me that night and that he will tell me what to do. Soon, it was break time, and I spent the entire break time discussing with Caleb Chuang about the Health Presentation.
I told him that we should bring our lab coats and dress up like scientists so that would have a nice touch to the presentation. He agreed, and he told me he will send the slides first. Once that was settled, Ms Visa then begun teaching us on Nazi Germany. Then, we had Maths and Ms Seline then did more work in class with us. She then said that she will plan to use SAT papers for our revision for Checkpoint.
SAT, also known as the Standardized Assessment Test, is a test that is equivalent to Checkpoint but it is administered in the United States. It consists of questions and syllabi that are very similar to the ones for Checkpoint, and Ms Seline said it has the same standard as Checkpoint.
When we met for BK later on, Mr Lim congratulated those who took the BK Quiz that Saturday and informed us that we will be tested on the Book of Matthew, from Chapter 1 to 16 for our Assessment 1. Then, during Mandarin, I assisted Pranavee to complete some of the worksheets and translate words for her. When we didn't know the meaning, we called Ms Belle over to assist us.
The next day, Ms Joyce gave us another comprehension worksheet to do for Assessment 2 revisions and she told us about the scope of Assessment 2. On another note, Caleb Chuang had also presented me the slides and I told him I will just speak and explain the main points of the slides independently.
During the Geography lesson, Ms Maddy gave us a crossword puzzle to do, and I had trouble filling in the blanks of one of the countries, which was later revealed to be Azerbaijan. I had watched a documentry by The Daily Conversation, a news portal which had a documentary of Azerbaijan building the Azerbaijan Tower, which was planned to be the world's next tallest building. She then told us to do an A3 poster that shows an infographic of one way an item was reused or recycled. I was too excited leading up to the Health lesson as the presentation got underway.
I teamed up with Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi in order to do the presentation, and I thought that it would be a good idea to make the presentation look like a cartoon-like presentation for amusement. So, Ms Renee then gave us the first to start the presentation. I kept on explaining and using the phrases, “Right, Caleb?” most of the time, and Megan Lee was so excited. The whole class got excited listening to our presentation. Caleb Chuang and I dressed up in our lab coats to act like doctors giving a health talk, and everyone was excited to see what we had in store. The whole class was so attentive when we did the presentation, particularly because they are more attracted to me and Caleb Chuang presenting than talking about erthyprotein itself. Ms Renee said that our presentation was the best once the class ended, and I told the good news in joy to Caleb Chuang.
We then went down for lunch, and I was so excited talking to him as I went to Mr Tans's stall to buy my food. What nice chicken rice with potatoes. Caleb Chuang went to purchase fried chicken from Uncle KC's stall. Then, we talked about Teacher's Day the coming afternoon and how things would go. The entire canteen was full of people as everyone, from Year 7 to 11, were involved in Teacher's Day.
In the school hall, one was treated to a series of buffet dishes behind the halls. The buffet dishes were reserved for teachers and the menu was prepared by the Year 10 chefs. At the front, the hall was decorated in balloons, ready for the celebration.
When we entered, everyone sat down in their class lines while waiting for the celebration to start. This celebration was an initiative planned by Ms Lim, the prefects, librarians as well as the monitors. Sabrina Qistina and Jeremy Yeap were the emcees for the day.
The performances kicked in with a flashlight performance by 7O, before Jeremy and Sabrina acted casually. The performances that followed were a Year 10 boy band, followed by a series of gift-giving by the librarians. This was then followed by people from Year 8 to Year 10 impersonating a teacher. Derek Yong then chat with some people in our class and recalled impersonating my voice. Sabrina and Jeremy continue to entertain the teachers with puns before the teachers were entertained with games, and one of the teachers had to sing some songs in place of playing music for musical chairs. The teachers that sung songs were Ms Nadia, Mr Matthew Koh, Mr Wright, Ms Janice, and also not to mention Ms Lim as well.
Then, a dance group led by Isabella Wong and Janelle Tan then came out and danced. Caleb Chuang and Sara Yow were also performing in the dance group, and I was happy to see Caleb Chuang there. Then, another Year 10 band took the stage before Janelle Arnelia ended the day with a solo song. Each class’ monitor and their assistant then gave handmade carss to their respective class teachers. Eu Lynn and Rick gave a small card to Ms Ng. Everyone was given a cupcake to sip on, and tens of thousands of briefcase-like presents were presented.
Once we returned to class, the class was uncertain if the Art lesson was on. I then went to see Ms Nadia, and she said that the Art lesson is still on. We then got our bags and went to the Art Studio where we waited for Ms Nadia, who came shortly and talked about how nice it was for her to sing on stage. Then, Ting Yi played a joke on her which made her unhappy.
The next day, we had a basketball match by Mr Victor, who gave us some basketballs and told us to dribble and play accordingly. Mr Victor even had a match with the girls and it was so entertaining. Then, Ms Joyce briefed us about what to expect during Assessment 2, and she also spoke about Checkpoint as well.
“The Checkpoint exam is very easy,” said Ms Joyce. “All you have to do is to try to understand the text well, focus on spelling, punctuation and grammar,” she said. “No need to stress and worry too much about the Checkpoint exam, because I believe most of you will do well,” she said, noting that the Assessment 2 would be a good area to see where we went wrong and how we could improve. “So far, I think everyone should be fine. All of you have improved quite a lot. Some may have improved a lot, like Brandon. Some, like Gabriel, may need more improvement.
When Brandon Ooi asked Ms Joyce if she thought anyone would fail, she told us not to think negatively as she had made the judgement based on our coursework, Assessment 1, and the Mid Year Examination. “Like I said, all of you have improved a lot and I think you just need to put in more effort; only then, you can do well.”
Ms Joyce also spoke once again about the possibility of some people from English Second being able to progress to English First in Year 10. She had spoken about this possibility back before the Mid Year Examination and she has re-emphasized it again. “I believe that Co Sheen is ready to progress to First Language next year. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I believe that if you are like Co Sheen, there is a high chance of you getting into First Language.”
During GP, Wee Shiang told us that we will be heading to the Malaysian Association for the Blind (MAB) on 15th August 2015, and told us that she will inform us more details thereafter. And the day continued normally without incident.
The morning of Thursday, 6th August, went without incident as Ms Visa and Ms Joyce did some revision for us. During these two periods, Derek Yong tried to impersonate me, which led to Ms Visa getting angry at me before she realized it was Derek who was pretending to mimic my voice. The whole class soon got angry at Derek and Ms Visa lectured him properly. People thought it was me talking when in fact I was doing my work. Even Ms Joyce told him not to play the fool when she met him. After break, we had Maths, where Ms Seline did some revision with us, followed our Geography Modular Test which Ms Maddy tested us upon on Ecosystems. The same situation occurred again in Mandarin as Ms Belle tried to quieten some people down who were making noise, while I assisted Pranavee to attempt the questions in the exercise book. Then, Ms Ng did our revision once again for Assessment 2, and Branson Choon and I tried answering questions. Ms Ng then asked on the various chemical equations, and the two of us quickly tried answering. Ms Ng first asked the question for a reactant of magnesium and zinc, and I got the answer correct. “Yes!” I cried. Then, Ms Ng asked the second question, and Branson answered quickly. “Too late!” he cried. Then it was all about me and Branson answering everything and Ms Ng was baffled. “Why is it only the two of you answering?” she asked.
During Fine Art Club, Ms Feeda then told us to do some painting of some used canvases that had painting on it so that we can use it for our next canvas project. Ms Feeda then played some songs as we painted over the canvas. She said that we will be reusing the canvas in order to save cost and money of buying another new one, as well as saving the environment as well.
Friday, 7th August 2015, saw Caleb Chuang receiving his Wow Award from Ms Ng. It looked quite interesting. Then, we went to the Science Lab where Ms Ng showed us how to do some copper sulfate reaction. However, I forgot to bring my lab coat because of the intermittent switch between the presence of lab sessions. On certain occasions, Ms Ng brought us to the Science Lab on Fridays, but on other periods, this was not the case.
Students are required to have their lab coat for safety purposes as well as not to stain their uniform or PE attire, but however, because I was confused over the presence of lab sessions, I would sometimes forgot to bring the lab coat when there was a lab session, and brought a lab coat on a Friday but instead, we stayed in the class and did not go to the lab. Ryan Marc and Derek Yong forgot their lab coats too. Those that did not bring the lab coat would need to see the lab assistant, Ms Mazlina, to get a lab coat.
If one forgot to bring the lab coat, a RM 50 fee is needed to be paid to Ms Mazlina in order to use the lab coat. Rick then asked me to get a lab coat for Ms Mazlina, and so did Ms Ng.
When I approached Ms Mazlina, she asked me as to why I did not bring my lab coat, and I said that I merely forgot it. Bringing a lab coat to school was a hassle back then, as I had so many bags to bring to school then. I had my trolley bag and a handbag which I brought along. However, sadly, I did not bring any money to rent a lab coat from the Science Lab. The RM 50 fee was actually meant as a ‘punishment’ to those who did not bring their lab coats. The revenue will be donated to Fungates Superflow Foundation for charitable purposes.
Ms Mazlina took pity on me and instead gave me the lab coat as she saw me waiting and not having money to pay. I told Ms Mazlina that I could pay the money on Monday, but however, she just budged and gave me the lab coat. “I will give you special case; you can use for free. No need to pay. Don't tell anyone, ya?” she told me. And I was off.
In the Science Lab, we then arranged a copper into the sulfuric acid and waited for the experiments. I just handled some of the necessary items Ms Ng gave and observed the reaction, jotting notes down on pieces of paper. Silver nitrate begun building up in thin amounts on the copper. And it was just a normal day thereon. We went through our lessons as we revised for Assessment 2.
Oh yes, I forgot another thing. Rick Tan tried to sing a happy birthday to Jordan, as his birthday falls on 8th August, a Saturday. So during Homeroom time, the entire class sang happy birthday to Jordan, and he embarassingly covered his face. Derek Yong repeatedly said ‘Happy birthday, Jordan!’ during the Homeroom time, which made Ms Ng very annoyed with him. No, it wasn't because he was wishing Jordan a happy birthday, but because he was impersonating my voice! Derek likes to impersonate my voice as he found out that my voice is quite cool and cute.
On 10th August 2015, we had a house captain election to choose the 2016 house captain. As I was gunning my hopes for another win in the 2015 Nobel Cup and 2016 Sports Day, this election was important as we need a captain with the same charisma as Wei Ming to lead us for 2016, to ensure the Bullseye victory.
The Bullseye spirit in me fired up, as the first thought of me and Caleb Chuang's amazing plans came to mind. We need to win the 2015 Nobel Cup to close off the year, since we will be in the same class, 9O, for our final time in Nobel, I thought. Caleb Chuang and I were lucky to be in the same class for two consecutive academic years. As Year 10 is a different situation altogether, we may not be in the same class again as we are bound to take different subjects.
I mean, like, come on. Since Caleb Chuang and I would likely be separated, we need to have one final time together before we close off the year. In fact, there are only 24 months left till we sit our IGCSE then. This means less time to be in Nobel and not enough time for us to spend in Nobel as a whole, since two years is not much left. It was August 2015. Then, it would be September, October, November and December, before turning into the year 2016. Then, we will fly through 2016 quickly just like any other year, before passing into 2017 and then graduating from Nobel.
One way we could end 2015 on a high note before we break off into 2016, and to culminate the end of our very good time together in the same class, was to make a Bullseye victory for Nobel Cup 2015.
So, Caleb Chuang and I then sat down on Friday before assembly, to discuss what should we do and what criteria the house captain should have. I told Caleb Chuang that the house captain must be a serious guy that wants Bullseye to win. We discussed the same plans for 2015, but we decided to rectify and modify them so that we can be able to win again. “The plans must change, Caleb Chuang. We need to make sure that we change it. If we have the same plans, other houses will know what we will do and will lose,” I said.
We then got ready for our Malay exam, and Cikgu Zura gave out the papers. Brendan Cheah tried to make funny noises, and Cikgu Zura threatened to confiscate his paper and fail him. Then, during History, the paper was quite an easy one to do. During Maths, I really struggled as the paper was really tough. The Bible Knowledge paper was a fill-in-the blank, and the Mandarin paper was quite straightforward.
After a long day of Malay, History, Maths, Bible Knowledge and Mandarin papers, we headed for the basement hall located near the then Tadika Sri Nobel. The entire Bullseye team was there. Melvyn Lim then looked at me, smiled, and told me about my passion for Bullseye and gave the thumbs up.
The teachers from Bullseye soon came in. Cikgu Zura, Cikgu Azira, Ms Sangeetha......all the Bullseye teachers came. Then, Wei Ming arrived and all the people came. It was really enthusiastic. This is the first Bullseye house meet before Nobel Cup 2015, so it is really important. Adding to the high-level significance is that it is also the FIRST Bullseye house meet since the 2015 Bullseye Sports Day Victory on 2nd April 2015. Four months is still quite short, but this house meet is important. We must choose the next captain instantly. We need to have a good captain to win the 2015 Nobel Cup.
So, Wei Ming got all of us and then started the agenda. “So guys, now, the time has come for us to elect a new house captain for next year’s Sports Day and also for this year’s Nobel Cup. It has been a pleasure to serve as your house captain, but sadly, I have to leave, and we need to choose a new one,” Wei Ming said to a crowd of laughter. Wei Ming then gave a farewell speech, and I clapped so loudly till Caleb Chuang pat my back. This is serious. The next house captain must be important as the first. If there is someone as determined and as serious as Wei Ming, Bullseye will win. And we need someone so serious and motivating so that Bullseye can be at the best as we can be.
There were two people nominated for the house captain election. The first person to nominate was Sabrina Qistina from 10O. Sabrina is also a prefect and her face is truly recognizable since my first day in Nobel.
Sabrina was called up to give her speech. I clapped and screamed loudly. Caleb Chuang patted my back. “Chill, Wei Yiang, chill,” he said. Sabrina then shared in her speech her passion about the Bullseye successes and how she aimed to keep them going for the year 2016, and this speech was a motivational speech that touched the heart of every Bullseye member, and she thus earned my vote.
“So, the reason why I am volunteering to be house captain is because I believe that every Bullseye member has great potential. I want Bullseye to have a second chance, and if I am elected as house captain, I will involve and work with every Bullseye member to have a victory for Nobel Cup. We must win this battle, and if you elect me, I will promise to make good on this promise,” she said. The whole hall screamed. I was so motivated by what she had said.
The second one was Soon Yee Yang, whom Ms Esther always called me and addressed me wrongly many times, because of the similarities between our names. He just gave a short speech, but the crowd applauded. Ashley Fang and Krissy were the two other nominees who gave quite short speeches, but I had been inspired by Sabrina’s speech and knew who to vote.
Sabrina had a very interesting speech. She was motivated for a Bullseye victory. She had the seriousness, passion and determination to win, and was willing to consult everyone. I voted for her.
So, when the voting was completed, Sabrina was shocked that she was chosen as house captain, and thanked everyone from the bottom of her heart for choosing her. I breathed a sigh of relief now that Bullseye was to be in good hands, at least for now. I screamed and cheered loudly, and Sabrina thanked us for choosing her and said that we begin the battle to Bullseye's second Nobel Cup victory. It would be the third victory in just a year.
I mean, seriously. She was shocked. In an interview given to her, she said that she did not expect to be house captain and felt timid and very nervous that she was chosen. And I feel excited, because we are confident of victory.
I then started speaking to Sabrina after the house meet on how we could improve and work together, and to continue the plans from Wei Ming’s time as house captain. I then congratulated her, and she smiled. “Looking forward to work with you, Sabrina!” I cried, and she was so touched. Like, really, really touched. I wanted to start talking to Sabrina more, but she told me to focus on my Assessment 2 first. I went home, excited about Sabrina being chosen as house captain.
The next day, we had our English Assessment, and Ms Joyce invigilated, sniffing for trouble. Fortunately, there were no untoward incidents. Then, we had our Geography lesson, and Ms Maddy did our Climate Change Modular Assessment. As we entered the Science lesson, the management team knocked on our door and requested a spot check. Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and Ms Sha were present.
I wish I could predict spot check dates so that I can get my friends prepared, but spot checks happen so suddenly that one could not predict the date. Also, it can happen very rarely, till we did not know how frequent it was.
During the spot check, some people had some of their items confiscated by the management. In fact, every class in Year 9 was visited. Sean Mark had a folding pen-knife integrated with his pen, which was swapped by the management. There were other people whose scissors were sealed off by the management team. In fact, Derek Yong also got his laptop confiscated. He had somehow brought a laptop to class, but he forgot that there was no GP class that day. The melee lasted for 30 minutes, which disrupted Ms Ng's lesson. Benjamin Fong had his cartoons and comic books seized by Ms Sha and Ms Praveen. During Health, as we had our assessment, Ms Renee told us not to bring any additional stuff, especially prohibited items, to school. Oh wait, less I forgot, the management were also seen confiscating CORRECTION TAPE, which the school had banned since then. The best friend of yours truly, Caleb Chuang, had also been nabbed of his correction tape. The reason for the school banning correction tape was to train us not to use correction tape during assessments or examinations.
When it was our CT time, Ms Lim then came out and apologized to everyone for disturbing their assessment with the spot check. Ms Lim begun to explain on which items were allowed and disallowed on school grounds. Of course, phones were a no-no. Shoes, socks and dress codes must be in order. But what about scissors? And that was the first thing San Ying raised. There was a huge commotion over scissors as those were used for productive purposes. Ms Lim said that she will request all scissors to be returned because the scissors needed to be used for art and craft activities or class activities where cutting is needed.
After the briefing by Ms Lim, she then handed out some worksheets to us. It was a worksheet that we had to do in which we want to set goals for our Checkpoint Trial and the Checkpoint Exam. Ms Lim said that we should have a proper study routine. We were also asked to benchmark what we had to achieve within a span of a week, one month, and two months.
Then, we went for Art, and Ms Nadia did some drawings with us again. Ms Nadia then reminded people not to bring phones to school or risk punishments. She then did some watercolor techniques with us. I took the opportunity to do my Art paintings on the floor rather than the table since the Mid Year Examination as it was spacious and hassle-free.
The next day, 12th August 2015, was our third day of assessment. Mr Victor then did another round of push ups and sit ups, and told us that our fitness test would begin on 19th August. We had no assessments on the 12th, so we could concentrate on other things.
Mr Victor said that on 19th August, the girls will do their beep test and the boys would do their strength test, and that we would rotate them on the 26th. So, to get started, Mr Victor told us an improvised method of stretching, which was to start and put our legs with our hands touching it in folded form, and then to try to stretch our legs. Many could not do it, and Mr Victor egged people on. Ms Sylvia and the other teachers went to check us. Then, we did planking, and Mr Victor told us to plank for a total of five minutes! It was the longest five minutes of my life back then. We all thought when the exercise would end.
Once the PE lesson was over, Caleb Chuang and I had breakfast with San Ying and the girls and we talked about the spot checks. Then, we had English and Malay. Ms Joyce said that she was still marking our papers, and Cikgu Zura said that some of our papers had been marked. Brendan Cheah tried asking who's was marked, and then Cikgu Zura refused to reveal the names due to privacy concerns and so on. During GP, each group was told to finalize their site visit with Ms Kiran. Ours was scheduled on Saturday, 15th August. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Seline said she hadn't marked our papers yet as well before starting a lesson on loci. Nothing much to say in ICT and Science, except the fact that Derek Yong kept on asking me why I like to say, “Right, Caleb?” and he talked to me. Then Derek continued to mimic my voice, which made Ms Ng fed up of him. Ms Ng initially wanted to come after me for annoying people, but then she got surprised when Derek mimicked my voice.
Well, we entered the fourth day of assessments, but the CCA was still ongoing. So, I looked forward to what Ms Feeda had in store. The day went on smoothly as Ms Visa taught us about Nazi Germany and told us to do some exercises on Nazi Germany. Then, as we were doing our work, Derek tried to call for Ms Visa using my voice, but then he was scolded by her. “Derek, please stop,” groaned Ms Visa. Then, it was Ms Joyce's English lesson, and Derek took his own sweet time as Ms Joyce counted down the time for him to leave the class. Ms Seline then continued giving us work, and she thus begun the revision process for Checkpoint by giving us a stack of SAT papers. The question papers were a series of ten-year examination questions from the years 2003 till 2013. The question papers were very comprehensive and tested on about the same topics as the ones we learnt.
On top of that, Ms Maddy then told us to pass up our poster for Geography containing a promotion of recycling and one item being processed for recycling. I used PET plastic bottles as the basis for my poster. Then, we had our Mandarin lesson, where Ms Belle discussed the answers for our Mandarin Assessment. I got a B for that assessment. And Ms Ng then did our Science assessment. It was quite easy to do.
Ms Feeda had decided to do some flower drawings with us during Fine Art Club, and the topic of wildflowers was changed to any flower of any kind. I decided to choose the hibiscus flower, and we used Ms Feeda's computer to draw the flower of our choice. Meanwhile, Ms Feeda did some additional clay modelling with some people, including Chee Kei, in the class, while we got some work done. Some people then assisted Ms Feeda to paint over some of the canvases so that they could be reused. On another note, Thursday, 13th August marked the final day of Assessment 2 for me. I had no exams the next day.
The next day, 14th August, was actually our trip to the Malaysian Association for the Blind. However, this was comprehended by my Nobel Cup practice for futsal as well at the end of the day.
The day begun with Ms Ng wrapping up the last chapter for the Checkpoint Exam. She warned us not to lose our Year 7 and 8 books. “So, if you throw it away, you will have no books to revise and you need to buy new books from Year 7 and 8 again. If you have them, it is easier because the exam will test on Year 7 and 8 topics as well. This is not just for Science, but also English and Maths,” said Ms Ng. She then begun the final chapter for Science that day, which was about density.
During break, everyone was talking during assembly, which caused Ms Lim to fly in a rage. Ms Lim then ordered the prefects to check everyone's fingernails. Fortunately, I had cut mine but it had grown a bit. Ms Lim scolded those who did not get their fingernails cut. Then, once things were done, we went back to class, and everyone was talking about how traumatized Ms Lim's action was.
Ms Seline then told Brendan and Wences that she had not marked all the exam papers and we had to wait. Then, she gave us a worksheet to do on loci as our homework. And as such, Ms Joyce, during our English lesson, gave us some revision worksheets on conjunctions. Ms Visa was also saying that some of us were okay and some needed improvement on our assessment. No teacher had discussed the Assessment papers yet. Then, Ms Ng came in and talked to us during Homeroom time on how to prepare for the Checkpoint exam and what to expect. Then, once things were done, I went for my Nobel Cup practice.
The end of Assessment 2 is the final exam before the Checkpoint Exam. There is still a Checkpoint Trial, though, in September before the Checkpoint Exam itself in October.
As early as August, we had already started practicing for Nobel Cup. I went and got a change of clothes before making my way to the canteen. Jeremy Yeap was our futsal captain. He had also partially conducted our march practices back in February and March 2015. As part of our Bullseye strategy, Caleb Chuang and I decided to sign up for futsal tryouts, and Jeremy took us to the PE field for us to train. Sean Mark, Ethan Chan, Melvyn Lim and a few other people were there to train for futsal with us.
I told Caleb Chuang that we need to try to confuse the opponent while playing during the 2015 Nobel Cup and to bring all the plans to light. I told Caleb Chuang that all team games with a ball would need confusion, and I also discussed strategy planning with him for the futsal match.
With Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang, Ethan Chan, Melvyn Lim, Ethan Lee and Aaron Yong among the people in our futsal team, Jeremy then taught us how to kick and dribble the ball before having a friendly match with us. It was interesting to play futsal, and I told Jeremy that I wanted to be the defender, and we played a game with Touchdown. Caleb Chuang showed his cool moves but he fell down many times and I helped him up. Brian George was a cool striker and struck the ball with his foot many times, but each time, it hit Caleb Chuang in the head, being the attacker himself. Oh, I forgot that Jordan Tay was our goalkeeper. He also registered for futsal. As the goalie, he was armed with gloves. I hadn't told you how his ball-saving skills were, but his ball-saving skills were so good! His father bought those nice grey gloves for him.
At 3:00pm, I went back to school, changed into my school uniform, and my mum brought me to the Malaysian Association for the Blind (MAB) complex located near Methodist College Kuala Lumpur at Jalan Tun Sambanthan. I reached the MAB complex at 4pm, and Wee Shiang called my mum to let her know if we were arriving and to confirm with us. When I arrived at MAB, we met with the head of the centre, Ms Lakshme, to interview her. Wee Shiang led the interview and soon thereafter, Ms Kiran came to assist the interview as well. We spent a good one and a half hours to talk to Ms Lakshme about the various affairs we wanted to do research on, especially on the challenges faced by the blind.
We first introduced ourselves to Ms Lakshme, who introduced us to the centre and that she was happy to take the questions on her own as the president, vice president and the committee members were unable to make it.
Ms Lakshme said that blind people face a big challenge in navigating society because of the fact that the blind are unable to see. They are literally grounded with the lack of vision which allows for good motion. Without vision, they are hopeless and unable to serve society. Once the interview was done, we then interacted with blind people, guided them and took pictures with them. In fact, I learnt to have sympathy for the blind and also be considerate of their welfare.
The next long week at school was a hectic one, especially with the discussion of our exam papers. During the weekend, my Maths private tuition teacher, Mr Nehru, came for the weekly Saturday and Sunday tuition. He felt under the weather, but spread the sickness to me. I fell sick the next day, and Mr Nehru had to cancel the tuition class. I went to see my doctor, Dr. Ting, who prescribed me with fever and cough medicine.
Despite my sickness, I still insisted on going to school to fulfill my 100% attendance. My mum gave me some medicine before I went in. The morning assembly started solemnly, and Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong gave us a lecture on how to properly behave during assembly. “I can still see students talking during assembly. When the teacher or prefect is talking, STOP talking. When the school song or Negaraku is being played, STOP playing. Stand and sing. Many of you are not singing loudly,” she said.
Then, we returned for Malay, and Cikgu Zura begun to discuss our Malay paper. I got a C while Cikgju Zura told us where we did well and went wrong. Brendan kept on talking, and each time he talked, Cikgu Zura got fed up of him and asked him to keep quiet before giving a stern lecture in the class. Then, it was break time. I then had some breakfast and conversation with Caleb Chuang.
During History, Ms Visa casually discussed the papers. I got a C for the subject. And then, it was Maths, and lo and behold, Ms Seline came in with a HUGE stack of exam papers. She wasn't in a good mood.
My heart begun to pound. Oh, what a really fierce expression she had. “I am going to change your seats,” she declared. She asked the class to be silent.
Ms Seline then moved me to the back seat, and then she moved Derek in front to where I sat. Then, she did some switching of seats for other people. I sat next to Grace Tee. Oh dear, of all days, why the back, taboo seat for me, once again? Oh dear. Now, I had to bear with it until the end of the Final Year Examination, which was what Ms Seline said. And as such, I tried comforting myself. “Two months is a short time,” I mumbled to myself, telling myself not to worry.
Then, Ms Seline instructed Wences and Ashlyne to hand out the exam papers to us. I received mine. It was a D.
Ms Seline then got angry and vented her anger at the class as she gave out our Assessment 2 papers. “Class, I am very disappointed with all of you,” she said sternly, as some people were talking. “All of you have performed very badly, and this is the reason why I changed your seat.” She said this format was done because of our performance in the exams, and she told us to get a good grade if we wanted our seats to be re-configured back to what it was before that. “This seating arrangement will be until the end of the Final Year Examination,” she declared.
It wasn't my fault, but I feel bad about Ms Seline getting very angry with us. We did our best. We tried our luck, and we hoped to have at least an idea on how to improve.
“I have said so many times, no playing in class, no talking, complete your homework, and there are some people who don't take this seriously. Checkpoint is in two months. If you all don't improve, you will fail,” she warned. “I don't know how are you going to do in your Year 10 next year,” she said, before discussing the first question.
Once the discussion was finished, I was staring blank at the floor. I did not even come to terms of what Ms Seline was saying. I was still traumatized over what happened in class.
After our lunch time, Mr Lim then discussed our BK paper. I got a D. Bible Knowledge was for me, the most underlooked subject, alongside Mandarin. And, oh yes, during Mandarin, Ms Belle kept discussing the papers but she was really angry with some people in the class for not cooperating with the lesson. “Some of you are talking during the lesson. And you see your marks? Some of you got D or E,” she said.
The next morning, Ms Joyce came in to discuss our English papers. She said that many of us still continued to make the same mistakes, and she planned to discuss this in the upcoming English lessons. One of my mistakes that I made in the exam were my punctuation and grammar. Ms Joyce then discussed the papers, but then she said that the Checkpoint Trial would be harder than the actual Checkpoint Examination.
We then had Geography, where Ms Maddy told us to do some exercises, and she taught us on the settlements that the indigenous people of Brazil built in the Amazon Rainforest. We also learnt about Brazil's ‘slash and burn’ culture of clearing rainforest for cattle ranching. This Geography book has a similar topic and it was as such despite us learning about Brazil in Year 8 with her. On another note, we also passed up our Geography board games. Ryan Marc's board game was very retro and reminded me of his games, and Branson's resembled his own video games.
Then, during Science, Ms Ng then discussed our Science paper and I compared my marks with Branson Choon and which questions we got right and wrong. Branson Choon and I teased each other on where we slipped on our mistakes. We said, “Hah! You lost!” “Yes, I was right!” and so on. Ms Ng said that we should not compare results or compete with one another and it would make us too stressful to do so. I personally feel that competing will make the study environment for Checkpoint quite fun as we can turn it into a game, rather than just going through the boring process of studying with no motivation at all. Then, Ms Renee came in and discussed our results, and Branson and I compared again. This time, our marks were quite close for Health.
We had our Student Council Election during our Character Transformation session. We had to elect the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and our Level Representative from Year 9. For this election, there was no representative from Year 9 as most of our candidates were vying for the Council Committee that includes the President and Vice President.
I haven't talked about the 2015 Student Council Elections for some time. The candidates for President were Shaun Ting, Alexandria Goh, Ngei San Ying, Soh Jun Ho, Hoo Fang Yi, Bryan George, Alicia Samantha, Marcus Yong, and many more on the list. Each one of us had to walk up to a registration booth manned by Alexander Cornelius and his friend, Nitteshvaran, who represented the Student Council Election Commission (SCEC) which was designed to conduct the elections for the members of the Student Council. Each person had to register their name, apply the indelible ink, get a piece of ballot paper containing the names of the candidates, cross their choice and dump the ballot paper inside the ballot box before returning to their class line. This marked my third time voting in a Student Council Election in Nobel, and it would be the very last Student Council Election that Nobel would ever host. There were candidate speeches in the hall during our assembly the previous day, Monday (17th August). All of them were decent to very inspiring.
I greeted Alexander Cornelius, who kindly ushered me to cross out my name, and Nitteshvaran applied water color ink, which replaced the indelible ink in this case. I then took my ballot paper from Alexander Cornelius, went to the voting booth and cross out my choice for President, Ngei San Ying. Then, I dumped my ballot paper in the black opaque box. I then sat down as I watched people vote class by class. Once we were finished, Ms Kelly then came and had a talk about living a balanced student lifestyle and how we should have a balanced lifestyle ahead of our Checkpoint Exam.
Later on, during Art, Ms Nadia then roared at us to quickly settle down in class before we took our some art paper and begun drawing. For this lesson, Ms Nadia told us to draw some color pigmentation and mix some colors to do a drawing using watercolor effect. Ms Nadia kept on reminding us to enjoy Art if we were not planning to take Art and Design in Year 10.
19th August 2015 was our strength test, and Mr Victor did some tests with us. Mr Steve, Ms Yap and Mr Lim assisted us to do our test and record the number of push ups, sit ups and all sorts of exercises. I really felt quite painful after doing the exercises. The girls, meanwhile, did their beep test in the hall.
During break time, I told Caleb Chuang about our Bullseye plans, and I proposed that we come up with a song, and at the same time, I said that we need to send the best athletes from Bullseye to the Nobel Cup. “Caleb Chuang, we need to make sure that Bullseye wins the Nobel Cup. The other captains from other houses are finding a way to beat Bullseye in the Nobel Cup. We must brainstorm ideas, and fast!” I cried. My mind was blank and I was trying to find the best method to ensure a Bullseye victory at Nobel Cup 2015.
We then returned for English and Malay, where more discussions of our assessment scripts were done. During GP, Ms Kiran then outlined us on how to submit the video. “Once all of you have submitted, I will play all your videos in class so you can watch your friends’ videos,” she said.
I had watched a documentary titled Richard Hammond's Engineering Connections, and I like the way how the host of the documentary, Richard Hammond, talked and described when he talked about how the designs of buildings and structures were influenced by certain activities, events and objects. One episode of Richard Hammond's Engineering Connections that I like watching was the episode featuring the construction of the Hong Kong International Airport. In fact, during the Mid Year Break in June 2015, I watched a lot of documentaries, and Hong Kong International Airport was the best one of them. I told Wee Shiang that we should come up with a very cool and impressive documentary like Richard Hammond's, but however, she was point blank on that.
After lunch, Ms Seline then continued to discuss our Maths paper as we hadn't finished discussing it. When the class ended, I went to Ms Seline and asked if I could sit in front as I could not see the Smartboard clearly, but she said that we need to stick to our current sitting arrangements. Then, during ICT, Mr Narish did some video programming softwares with us and taught us how to use Windows Movie Maker to make some advertisements of a soft food drink. Ms Ng continued to discuss our Science paper during the Science lesson. Then, she also had a nice activity for us.
“Class, as Checkpoint Trial is approaching, I want all of you to get into groups and do a presentation. Each group will choose a topic and present it during class as part of the revision for Checkpoint Trial,” she said.
I was really excited. Another presentation with Caleb Chuang! “Caleb Chuang! Can I join you for the presentation?” I asked him. Caleb Chuang nodded his head. We had to have five people in the group.
The group selection was really chaotic as everyone was so excited to choose their groups. Jordan and Rick initially wanted to choose Caleb Chuang and Branson Choon to have a presentation team to present together. However, Rick forbade me from joining their group if Caleb Chuang were to join. “Nope! Too late!” cried Rick, mimicking my tune. “Choose someone else. Don't always choose Caleb,” he scolded. Then, Caleb Chuang joined with me while Branson Choon and Ting Yi joined with Rick and Jordan. This resulted in them having a team of five, because Aaron Loke also wanted to get involved in Jordan's group.
Rick Tan then told me that if I were to join Jordan's group, I would need to follow his stance, since I had some crazy ideas on how to present the presentation to the class. “No more funny slides. Follow Jordan's style. Even Caleb also got fed up on your ideas for Health,” he said. Jordan agreed with Rick. “You have to follow my ‘boring’ style, Wei Yiang,” he said. Caleb Chuang just stayed silent.
On the other hand, Wai Shaun, Derek, Jian Wen, Ryan and Ze Khai formed a group together. They were discussing their topic on what should they pick. Then, Ms Ng approached them to guide them. Sara, Natalie, Le Anne, Eu Lynn and Megan had formed their group. Wee Shiang, Jo Yi and Alia teamed up with Ivyna and Yan Ying, while Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Benjamin Fong did a group of three.
Meanwhile, the rest of us squabbled over which group we planned to be in. I wanted to team up with Caleb Chuang so we can have at least another funny and cool presentation after the Malay presentation and the Health presentation. The group composition was as follows:
Group 1: Derek Yong, Ze Khai, Jian Wen, Ryan and Wai Shaun
Group 2: Megan Lee, Le Anne, Sara Yow, Natalie Seah, Yeo Eu Lynn
Group 3: Yan Ying, Ivyna, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Alia
Group 4: Sean Mark, Jason, Benjamin Fong
Group 5: Jordan Tay, Rick Tan, Aaron Loke
Undecided and still discussing: Lau Wei Yiang, Caleb Chuang, Branson Choon, Ong Ting Yi, Vianna
Ms Ng then had to intervene on the conflict between the remainder of the people in the class, who were either not having a group yet or were split between me and Jordan's group. I wanted to have a team with me myself, Caleb Chuang, Branson Choon, Ting Yi, and I invited Vianna into the team. Branson wanted to join Jordan Tay's group, but the people in Group 3 were okay with going with any group. Then, Ms Ng found a way to solve the problem. She gave Group 3 a chance to decide. In the end, Ivyna, Wee Shiang and Yan Ying joined Jordan's group, Vianna joined my group, Jo Yi and Alia joined Sean Mark's group. I cheered loudly, excited to have Caleb Chuang on my team, and the whole class got really excited. “Good luck, Branson and Ting Yi,” said Jordan, laughing as the duo facepalmed themselves. “Have fun with Wei Yiang and Caleb.”
Ms Ng then told the groups to choose their topic. Caleb Chuang and I discussed the topic quickly and we chose the Physics equations topic and the discussion on density. Once we were done, I dashed to Ms Ng and then told her of the topic, but however, Rick Tan beat us to it. “Too bad!” he cried. Rick and Jordan had chosen the topic. We settled on the second choice of the characteristics of living things. Derek's group planned to do a topic on flowers, Sara Yow's group proposed the Periodic Table, and Sean Mark's team decided to present on electrons.
The next morning, 20th August, it was raining, and we went up to our classes early as the courtyard was wet. Aaron Loke was treated to a birthday song by Jordan, Rick, Branson and Ting Yi, and he covered his face. When Derek tried to wish Aaron Loke a happy birthday by mimicking my voice, he said, “Happy birthday, Aaron Loke! Happy birthday to you!” and sang the birthday song using my voice. Aaron was really furious with him. “Shut up, shut up!” he cried. Derek Yong laughed and went to Ze Khai and spoke with him about the joke. Ms Visa then came in and when Derek greeted Ms Visa in my voice, she told him not to disturb me. Then, Derek went to say hi to Jason in my tone and I pleaded with him to stop. Then, he said hi to Ms Visa in my voice, and tried to horse around. Ms Visa was very angry with Derek Yong. “Derek! Sit down!” cried Ms Visa, before we begun discussing and doing a worksheet on Nazi Germany. Then, we had English, and Branson and Aaron Loke were talking about their English teacher, Mr Thomas, and his upcoming birthday. I was wondering who Mr Thomas was back then. The only person I know who is named Mr Thomas is Mr Ong, who regularly visited our class, 4 Diligent, four years ago in 2011.
Meanwhile, Ms Joyce had a treat for us. A new teacher had since joined Nobel. Her name is Ms Sarah Wong but I am going to call her Ms Sarah for short. She was invited by Ms Joyce to read a story to us based on the novel ‘The Kite Runner’.
The Kite Runner is a novel telling about the story of a boy in Afghanistan, set in 1979, when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. It gives an account of how that boy came back from school and was gifted a kite, and the story revolves around the kite and the boy. Ms Joyce wanted to use the text for our exercises, and she had invited Ms Sarah to read the text to us so that we can hear the text properly and listen to the text.
Ms Sarah spoke with a kind and calm voice; a voice so sweet that one would feel as if he or she was in kindergarten. She recounted, tale by tale, in a relaxing tone; one which was enjoyable by the masses. We enjoyed her story although it lasted for 40 minutes. Ms Joyce encouraged us to purchase the book and follow the story with Ms Sarah in the next lesson.
It was all dull and gloom during Maths later on when Ms Seline discussed the papers, but Ms Maddy was much kinder to treat us to a discussion on the Amazon Rainforest. Then, during Mandarin, Ms Belle gave us work to do again and showed us an educational video from the textbook once we were done.
During Science, Ms Ng gave us some work and continued with her lesson. Then, she gave each group a chance to do their discussion on the topics to be presented.
I proposed to Caleb Chuang that we should present Ms Ng's two mneumonics of MRS GREN and BROTOCOX in the slideshow, and wear lab coats to act like scientists giving a talk. He was quite amused. Then, Ting Yi said that we should do cool stunts, and Caleb Chuang did a dab. Then, we discussed what to include in the presentation. Eventually, Ting Yi got tired of being in our group and joined Jordan Tay's group. Jian Wen and Derek soon had conflicts and then joined our group, as Ms Ng was not happy with them quarreling with each other.
When I took a short break and glanced around the classroom, I can see Rick Tan grinning and looking at us. “Wei Yiang! I know your plans! I will steal your plans!” he laughed. Then, Jordan went and asked Ms Ng some questions, and I went to hear what Jordan was in store. I told Caleb Chuang that this time, I would make the slides so it will be very interesting for everyone to watch.
Oh, and not to mention that for Fine Art Club, Ms Feeda was busy discussing about our next project for Fine Art Club CCA. We were planning to do some mural painting. Ms Feeda suggested a self-portrait but most importantly, we were discussing what to do for the Art Exhibition which will fall on the PTM day on 4th September 2015. Yee Lim and Pearly suggested that we do some expressionalism art, and Ms Feeda suggested a painting based on the various artists, such as Jackson Pollock, Van Gogh and Pablo Picasso all combined into one.
We then came to 21st August; the last day of the week. We went to the Science lab for our lab session, and I wore my lab goggles most of the time in class. I wanted to test it out as I plan to wear it for the Science presentation. Ms Ng told us that she would be starting our revision in the next Science lesson, and Ms Ng was really serious. “As I said, you must remember to have your Year 7 and 8 books, so that it will be easier for you to study for Checkpoint,” she warned. Ms Ng also said she was considering to revise everything, but she would only do so for Year 9 topics from the start of the year, which was on flowers, to the last chapter, Density.
Then, we were given a series of density experiments to test the volume of water. Ms Ng said I shouldn't get excited and focus on my work as wearing the goggles was unnecessary as no acids or chemicals were being handled.
During the experiments, Jordan and Rick demanded that I tell my plans to them so that they can “learn from me and improve our presentation”. However, I refused to tell them because I don't want them to beat our presentation. Like Sports Day, I plan to keep the plans secret between me and Caleb Chuang, and of course, the group. Meanwhile, Derek's group broke a ruler given by Ms Ng that was used for measurements. Ms Ng then told them to pay the school a total of RM 500 to replace the ruler.
During break, Ms Lim said that we Year 9s are the oldest people in the batch and we need to give our full cooperation and lead by example in showing the Year 7 and 8 students on how best be done. I mean, like, most people who were late were Year 9s, and also we are the oldest and are going to sit for the Checkpoint Exam. Burden was much placed on us. The day went on normally. As usual. Ms Seline took back our exam papers so that she could finalize our marks, and I had to move seats regularly during set teaching classes. Ms Ng then came in during Homeroom and talked to us about our expectation as a Year 9 student for Checkpoint and how we were to cope with it. She gave us a permission slip for an exam named CAT4, or the Cognitive Assessment Test 4. Many of us wondered what it was. Ms Ng said that we would hear announcements on CAT4 very soon.
I was so excited for the rest of that day, because I kept thinking of the awesome science presentation me and Caleb Chuang were planning. We want it to look REALLY COOL. It would look great! And I had many ideas, and told Caleb Chuang how cool it was for the presentation to be one of the best. Caleb Chuang informed me to email him the Science presentation for him to look at it, since I was credited for creating the presentation.
After school ended, I went for my second futsal practice session with Jeremy Yeap. This time, he and a few other Year 10s joined us. One of them was Trishen Raj, who was a famous footballer representing Nobel's school team in football then. He dribbled the ball between his legs and demonstrated his striking skills. We went to the PE field once again to do our futsal training.
Jeremy then told every one of us to practice our striking skills, and Jordan Tay would handle the saving of the ball. We all tried to mimic world class footballers that day. Sean Mark and Jason Leing joined in to kick the ball, and I told Caleb Chuang that we needed to act like as if it was the actual game during our training. Then, I spoke to Jeremy about how we can navigate things, and he seemed to like my ideas. When I asked him on when would we be chosen for Nobel Cup, Jeremy said that it would be the captains that will decide the team format for Nobel Cup and no known selection or criteria was given yet.
News of Bersih 4 begun to spread like wildfire, and everyone was hooked up on the news. The rally would be Bersih's fourth rally after the 2007, 2011 and 2012 rallies. The one in 2012 was the most violent and epic rally to the extent a police vehicle was smashed and the Federal Reserve Unit was called in to restore order. Everyone was wondering if the rally would spiral out of control.
When we returned on Monday, 24th August 2015, the school was decked up in the run up to the 2015 Merdeka Day celebrations. For the year 2015, the theme of the Merdeka and Malaysia Day celebrations was ‘Sehati Sejiwa’, which meant One Heart and One Value in Malay. Unfortunately, Caleb Chuang had gotten sick because I spread my sickness to him, ignoring the fact that I was under the weather.
During the morning assembly, Ms Cynthia announced the winners of the Student Council Elections. Alexandria Goh was elected as the president, and a series of videos were shown to depict the Student Council's roles and responsibilities. Then, Ms Bee Yong talked about the theme of the 2015 Merdeka Day celebration and why was it important for us to maintain unity, and at the same time, the theme of Sehati Sejiwa also reflected the school's core values.
We then returned for our Malay lesson, but Cikgu Zura was not present. So, as a result, Mr Nick, a Chemistry teacher from Year 10 and 11, took over our classes as a relief teacher and gave us exercises that Cikgu Zura gave him to pass to us. Then, we had our daily run of activities as usual. Ms Visa gave us worksheets to do in History, but however, when she saw that Benjamin Fong had not done the worksheet, she was really angry with him and told him to get out of the classroom. Then, Benjamin Fong just sat outside and walked around, peeping into people's classes, which made Ms Visa really annoyed before calling him in. Then, we had Maths, and Ms Seline gave us work to do.
During Bible Knowledge, we then did some more studies on the book of Matthew, while Mr Lim told each and everyone to do a self reflection on how God had helped us and what benefits did the teaching of Jesus help us in our daily life. For me, personally, I do a prayer to God when I am faced with tough challenges and I also pray for God's wisdom to guide me through the Cambridge Checkpoint exam. The entire class clapped and approved of my reasoning. Then, during Mandarin, Ms Belle gave us work to do and told us to do some writing of words for our next Spelling test. However, she kept on asking Benjamin Fong and James Wong to do their work.
Soon, we entered Tuesday, 25th August 2015. Caleb Chuang then returned to school. He was sick but recovering. Ms Joyce then continued teaching via the textbook and focused us through the last chapters. She then told us to do a task concerning the atmosphere in our research by printing out a picture of it and doing a descriptive essay task in the textbook. Ms Maddy then entered the final part of the last topic of Development or Destruction, which was to talk about the consequences of destroying the rainforest. During the class, Jian Wen, Derek and Ze Khai would talk together, and Jian Wen would discuss with them in front of the class as I did my work. In fact, they did their discussion every lesson when work was done. While looking at them talk and Ms Maddy teach, it struck me where things had gone to.
As the English lesson ended and we prepared for break time, Mr Chuang came into the class and I asked if Caleb Chuang was okay. He told me that Caleb Chuang was sick and had came to give him his medicine. I then told him about me being sick as well when I met Caleb Chuang the previous week and he wasn't so amused.
Geography had been a subject I adore for a total of three years. My life in KS3 in Nobel had been focused on this subject. We are coming to the end of the long Geography journey that started in 2013 with Cikgu Baliah, and we are on course to ending it under Ms Maddy's tenure. In fact, I will really miss studying Geography. At the time, Nobel International School, and I believe, until today, has not offered Geography as an IGCSE subject as opposed to other international schools. I really hope to continue studying Geography at the IGCSE level, but this was not possible due to Nobel not offering the subject. In fact, the weather device, the settlement pyramid model with Cikgu Baliah, the volcano, and everything.........would become a part of history. Something would need to end the Geography adventure on a high note. Something.
Soon, it was Science, and Ms Ng then gave us some worksheets to work on the electrical circuit. She then told us that we would do the presentation the next day, Wednesday, 26th August, and Thursday, 27th August, during our lessons. Then, Ms Renee came in and did our Health presentation analysis. Caleb Chuang and I had one of the best presentation....or I should say, the BEST in terms of entertainment as said by Ms Renee. But it was Jordan Tay and his gang that really produced an interactive and also informative presentation. Their slides were better. The slides created by Caleb Chuang were too boring, although I submitted one slide of mine which was the thank-you part. I even did a very beautiful cover slide design for Caleb Chuang, but it wasn't used. Then, Caleb Chuang was given his second medicine, as Mr Chuang came and fed Caleb Chuang the flu medicine, along with some tablets.
During Character Transformation, Ms Bee Yong then gave a talk. She showed us some baby photos of her and told us her life story growing up in Singapore. Then, we did a goal-setting session on what we plan to do and to improve between August and October 2015, when Cambridge Checkpoint dawns. We made some study plans for our Cambridge Checkpoint Exam, and we were given a worksheet to detail the study plans from our previous worksheet that we did. Ms Praveen then came and briefed us on our Checkpoint Trial Examination once Ms Bee Yong had finished.
The 2015 Cambridge Checkpoint Trial Examination would be held on 9th, 10th and 11th September 2015 in the order of English, Mathematics and Science. Each of the subjects will have two papers, just like how we had them in our Mid Year Examination and Final Year Examination. It would be held during school hours, and no lessons will be done for the day. We will need to use our free time to do our studies for the next day's examinations. “Treat this exam as if you were sitting for the actual Checkpoint Exam itself,” said Ms Praveen, before indulging into the dos and don'ts of the exam. Ms Praveen said that all our baskets under our tables had to be cleared and only books for the subjects of English, Maths and Science be brought to school. “There will be no Art and ICT lesson,” said Ms Praveen when I asked if we still had to go for our Art lessons, since the Art lesson for 9O is held before dismissal. “Your teachers will come up to your class,” Ms Praveen added. Feeling satisfied, we then left the hall and went to the Art Studio to do our watercolor painting. Ting Yi was playing with water, and Ms Nadia had to chide him.
Wednesday, 26th August 2015, was my beep test by Mr Victor. He coordinated the boys this time around. Mr Victor then begun the timer. And then we did our test.
9N was the first to go, and a lot of people fell out in the first few levels. I myself fell out at level 7. Sean Mark was the last one remaining and a lot of people cheered till he collapsed on the floor. Jason Leing and I went to help him from the center of the hall, and the crowd cheered. Then, we went for break time and I congratulated Sean Mark. Jason Leing then asked me how in the world was Derek Yong able to act as me by talking in my voice tone. “I don't know how. I am surprised!” I cried. Then, Mr Chuang came to the hall to give Caleb Chuang his medicine once he was done with his beep test.
After break, I asked everyone in our group when we planned to do the presentation, and Caleb Chuang and everyone else, after consultation, suggested the next day, Thursday, 27th August 2015. I was so excited.
Ms Joyce then postponed our descriptive essay task as she wanted us to focus on The Kite Runner. Ms Sarah then spoke in a calm tone, continuing the story. Ms Joyce then continued to remind us to buy the book. Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Zura discussed the relief work that she gave to us. During GP, we were one of the first to submit our GP coursework but it took some time as Wee Shiang compiled the videos.
During Maths, Ms Seline introduced us to our first batch of Checkpoint past year papers and told us to do them. She said she was planning to give us some SAT papers to attempt as well. Then, it was ICT, and Mr Narish guided us on our advertisement video. Ms Ng then discussed the worksheet we did as homework. And then, Ms Ng postponed all presentations to the next day since there was no time to do so.
The next day, Thursday, 27th August 2015, was a lukewarm affair as Ms Visa gave us time to do our revisions for Checkpoint Trial after continuing her lesson on Germany. Then, we had English, where Ms Joyce invited Ms Sarah to continue to speak and tell the story about The Kite Runner. This time, I was armed with a copy of the book for the lesson, and followed the story.
Soon, there were bad news. This time, Ting Yi and Branson Choon had gotten sick, as they mingled with Caleb Chuang as well. This resulted in their absence. Rick Tan scolded me as a result. “Now, because of you, Ting Yi and Branson are sick and absent. Why did you come to school when you are sick?”
It was then Maths, where Ms Seline gave us SAT papers to do. Then, it was Geography and Ms Maddy also gave us more work. Long story short; welcome to the Cambridge Checkpoint exam season.
During Mandarin, Ms Belle gave us a spelling test and I was able to get most of them correct. I literally did the practice on the day itself in the same manner I practiced the Geography continents during the modular test, which is why I was able to do well in the spelling test. And Ms Ng also gave us worksheets as homework. Oh dear. We are really entering the Checkpoint fever.
Before we begun the presentation, Ms Ng told each group to send their Powerpoint presentation to her. I sent mine. Also, Caleb Chuang had received my slides and told each and every one of our group members which slide to focus on. Rick Tan smiled at me. “Looking forward for your stories with Caleb,” he said. Megan Lee also agreed. “Yeah Caleb,” she said. “We want to hear your stories!”
Me and Caleb Chuang were the first group to present. The whole class cheered. Rick Tan, Megan, Sean Mark and Derek Yong were among the most excited. “Very good, very good, Caleb!” said Derek, mimicking my voice again. “Go, Caleb! Right, Caleb!” he cried. Caleb Chuang and I put on our lab coats in particular, and I wore my goggles so that we looked like professional doctors giving a health talk. Then, I plugged my thumbdrive into the computer and displayed the slides. The design, which looked cool, got the whole class fired up!
“Wow,” said Megan. “Best friends. Nice slides,” she mumbled, and Le Anne followed her tune. They were amazed at me and Caleb Chuang in our lab suit. Rick Tan was literally cheering like mad as well. He was surprised. Derek Yong then cheered Caleb Chuang's name. “Caleb Chuang! Caleb Chuang! I like Caleb Chuang!” he cried. Ms Ng then signaled to the whole class to be silent. “Derek, please keep quiet,” she said, as Derek continued to cheer.
I then started speaking in a squeaky tune, and Megan's eyes lit up. How wonderful it was to see Megan Lee having cute eyes. It was like literally the only time Megan smiled in an adorable manner. Le Anne also grinned at us, interested at what was to offer. I explained about the characteristics of living things, and I said the word “Mrs Gren” in a funny tone, and not to also mention that I also drew a picture of a funny old lady on the slides. “So, I want to introduce you to Mrs Gren! Say hi to Mrs Gren! Hello!” I cried. The whole class laughed and Benjamin Fong really acted in a funny manner and said “hi” to Mrs Gren, pretending to kiss her, which caused the whole class to gasp and laugh even further. Then, I passed the time to Caleb Chuang to continue.
Caleb Chuang then explained professionally, and I went to move the slides. Then, Megan continued smiling and grinning, but she couldn't hold her smile for so long till her mouth ached. Ting Yi and Branson gave funny examples, while Vianna explained more about the respiratory system. Then, I did the closure.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it is an honor for us to present to you the Characteristics of Living Things. We hope you will understand why it is important to take care of your health. As it is now the haze season, please drink more water and don't inhale carbon dioxide by practicing BROTOCOX. We would like to thank Ms Ng for giving us the time to present, and also we wish everyone all the best for Checkpoint, and last but not least, Selamat Hari Merdeka in advance! Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!” I then flicked a slide which told that information, along with a picture of Tunku Abdul Rahman screaming Merdeka in 1957 as well as the haze chart.
The entire class felt entertained. No one even bothered to talk and take their eyes off our presentation. When we finished, we bowed. The whole class clapped and screamed loudly. Ms Ng also smiled. Then, she asked us a few questions and told us to clarify all the funny pictures I put in the slideshow. She said that there should be more explanations on Mrs Gren and Brotocox in order to allow us to follow the lesson easily.
Then, it was Jordan Tay's group's turn to present. He presented a somewhat short presentation with Rick, Aaron, Ivyna and Yan Ying. His presentation was much more boring than mine. However, Jordan was professional in presenting. Afterwards, it was Derek Yong's turn to present, and he talked most of the time. Ms Ng sat at the back, listening and asking questions. However, we ran out of time and we had to continue with the other two groups the next day. I thanked Caleb Chuang and the group members for their efforts.
The last Friday of August cheered me up a little. This time, I was the one receiving the Wow Award from Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia, for choosing me as I demonstrated the character of Resilience. Oh wow. Caleb Chuang got his award the previous round for demonstrating the character trait of Harmony, and now it's my turn.
I had to walk to the front of the hall as Ms Lim cheered me on. Ms Ng then presented me with my award as I posed with her for a picture. She gave me the thumbs up. Then, we went back to class for our lesson as Ms Ng praised me and showed me in the class as a role model and urged everyone to emulate my action in the run-up to the Checkpoint Exam and Checkpoint Trial. “We will not have any more lab session after this. We will be focusing on Checkpoint revision from now on,” she said.
Ms Ng then continued the Science presentation by asking Sara Yow and Sean Mark's groups to present. They were interesting, but I like Benjamin Fong giving a funny antic on the electrons. Once Ms Ng was done, she asked us to rate the groups. The entire class gave our group the best presentation. Chants of ‘Right, Caleb?’ echoed the class.
Then, during break time, Faythe Chow, Zhue Xin and the people from 9E celebrated Lyn Wen's birthday and she was so touched. To be exact, Lyn Wen's birthday is on Saturday, 29th August 2015 but they celebrated her birthday a day before.
Then, we had Maths, and we did more SAT papers. During English, Jordan, Aaron, Caleb, Rick, Branson, Ting Yi and many of the students from Mr Thomas’ class celebrated his birthday. Branson and Jordan were really talking about Mr Thomas’ birthday which is that day, 28th August, and how the celebration took up his entire lesson when he was planning to do revision for the Checkpoint Exam. In the meantime, Ms Sarah continued The Kite Runner with us, and I moved my hand along the text to follow along with it. Ms Visa then came in for History to do some exercises with us, and it was just a nice run through the end. Then, Ms Ng came in, gave us our Checkpoint Trial timetable, and got us some burgers for lunch. After school, I then joined Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark and Jordan Tay to head to the field for our futsal practice.
For this day, Sabrina Qistina was there to oversee all the practices. We then had a game of futsal and Jeremy Yeap practiced us move after move. But what was most important was me talking to Sabrina about the plans designed by me and Caleb Chuang.
It was the eve of the two-day Bersih 4 rally. Being inspired by the showcase of human solidarity that gripped Malaysia during protests, I wanted to do a similar roadshow; a roadshow not like of protest, but of cheer and rapport the like of which we want to be inspired by the Bersih rally, but however, modified to suit the context of sports and the glory of Bullseye. I had told Caleb Chuang this plan, and he was in kind of good agreement with me. So, I spoke to Sabrina about this. “This would be great, and we will have the whole house coming together,” I exclaimed to Sabrina. “When we act like the people during the Bersih rally, we can see how united people are, how passionate people are, and how so many people are there to support each other. And we can do that for Bullseye and involve the whole house and it will surely make us win!” I cried.
Sabrina accepted my reasoning. But however, Sabrina was cautious enough to tell me not to stray too much into politics, as Bersih was mainly a politically sensitive thing at the time and the government was cracking down on it ahead of the Bersih 4 rally in Kuala Lumpur at the time.
“Uh, Wei Yiang, you see, I just want you to see that Bersih is quite something too political. Your idea is really creative, but it isn't appropriate for politics to be mixed with sports. Your actions of getting the whole house together and being inspired by Bersih is one thing, but we shouldn't base our actions on politics, because this Bersih thing is very controversial and the government is arresting people for talking about it, so I don't want you to get into trouble and I hope you can understand,” she said.
I tried to chip in to Sabrina that we could base our actions on it but we can remove the political elements. “We're not trying to put politics here in Bullseye. What we want to do is to embody the spirit of determination and perseverance which is part of the school's core values,” I pleaded to Sabrina. In the end, I told Sabrina that we will watch how the Bersih rally goes and we will see which one is appropriate to be placed into the context of Bullseye. The whole team agreed. It was partly cloudy but also sunny, and it was time to go back home. Jeremy praised me too for my enthusiasm with Bullseye, and I told those good news to Caleb Chuang. I did a jig on the way back to school, and laughed wholeheartedly, before waving goodbye to Sabrina and everyone else as I needed to leave for home. My aunt was picking me up at 2:30pm.
See, the generation at the time already knew much on politics when I was in Nobel, but however, the school had banned political conversations as it could get too heated and it was very sensitive. This is in contrast to me calling out all the political connotations and colors in relation to the Malaysian political parties, and Loo Shang acting satirically in reaction to my theory. Caleb Chuang had also told me to stray the course and not talk sensitive politics, as race and religion in terms of Malaysian politics is still a serious thing and can incite tension. So, I kept my word and tried to stray away from these sensitive topics as much as I can.
Bersih 4 started in Kuala Lumpur in the morning. And yeah, I forgot to tell you that Sabrina also told me to drink lots of water, because the haze was just starting. It was only the beginning, but it was enough for people to be choked. A couple of people wore face masks as pressmen snapped photos of the Bersih rally. Haze was visible as the skyline blurred; not to mention being captured on HD cameras of the various news companies.
The Bersih 4 rally was a two day event, on 29th and 30th August 2015. I watched from my mum's phone and my computer the large sea of people in yellow shirts packing the rally, with speeches given by various individuals. It was widely televised in Malaysia, with so many people being involved in the rallies. A large police presence was felt to stand guard towards the sentiments of the Malaysian public. Some people even slept overnight on the floor at the rallies. It was mainly dominated by Chinese community members, who patronized the rally.
The nice, cozy landscape would soon be blurred by the invasion of transboundary haze from Indonesia. You see, Peninsula Malaysia is located next to Sumatra, the largest island in Indonesia. As the island runs parallel to the Malay Peninsula, one could be able to see Melaka if facing from Dumai, Indonesia and vice versa, at the narrowest point of the Straits of Malacca. Sumatra is also facing a series of slash-and-burn crisis, something which Ms Maddy taught us in Geography weeks before that. Foliage and vegetation in Indonesian rainforests are smeared with petrol and oil and set on fire in order to clear as much forest easily without the use of men and machinery. The burnt foliage would provide fertile soil to grow oil palm and agricultural crops in Indonesia, which is why this also adds a plus to this method, as not only the cost of clearing and transporting wood is reduced, but it also makes the soil fertile from the ecological arson, hence saving fertilizer costs. But however, the process also results in a lot of smoke and ash flying over the Malacca Straits and landing into several other countries in Southeast Asia, namely Singapore, Malaysia and even as far as Vietnam. 2015 would result in the worst haze ever since 1997, the last major incidence of transboundary haze, although many such funny incidents have occurred before, in 2005, 2006 and 2013. The haze had started to affect many of our daily chores, such as PE, which had to be cancelled or held in the school hall. Nevertheless, the haze would come to affect us sooner than we thought, as the Checkpoint Trials go underway.
During my church service, Pastor Fang spoke about the importance of unity in diversity in a speech in Mandarin, which was translated by Uncle David Ling. He said that the phrase of ‘Sehati Sejiwa’ speaks about God's vision of having to spread love and joy to all, and that we should pray for everyone across Malaysia, wishing everyone well. As we were speaking, the haze continued to clog the skys and make life miserable for people, but that did not stop more protesters from entering Dataran Merdeka to protest against the government back then.
Monday, 31st August 2015, was a very upbeat National Day celebration. The song ‘Sehati Sejiwa’ was played. Dataran Merdeka had just been fitted with new streetlamps by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall. It looked so stunning, and inspired by the landscape of palm trees at Dataran Merdeka, I planted a row of papaya trees in front of my house to mimic the Dataran Merdeka landscape. And also, there was a call to unity, breaking away from Datuk Seri Najib's past 1 Malaysia traditions.
The two scenes of protest and celebration were really split screens. The Bersih 4 protests lasted until 11:59pm on 30th August; a mere six hours before the start of the 2015 Merdeka Day celebration at Dataran Merdeka. The celebration of patriotism itself literally blinded the protest which appeared to sow scenes of despair. What made it even more surrealing was that the two scenes were occurring on the same days itself – the protest was being held amid rehearsals for the Merdeka Day celebration; a culmination and blendur of pomp and circumstance – of the establishment and the challenger.
Returning to school on Tuesday, 1st September, was a hazy atmosphere. I brought face masks to weather the haze just in case. The haze was just starting. There was no assembly that day for the Junior and Senior School – we had to gather in our classes while the Elementary School used the school hall for their assembly. Ms Ng, Ms Joyce and Ms Seline had begun to revise us for the Checkpoint exams, as September 2015 would be the month we sit for our Checkpoint Trials. Checkpoint Trial is to see our interim results before the Checkpoint exams in October 2015.
Upon reaching 9O, I just placed my things and went down to the canteen to eat my breakfast.
Derek and Jian Wen arrived and had a chat together. Then, Megan also arrived. Eu Lynn too. Then, Megan and Sara Yow went for a walk around the school to meet other people. Then, Yong Xuan came and waved hi at me and had a chat outside the class. “Wei Yiang, button!” she said, gesturing me to button my top button of my shirt, as she did. Normally, we have two buttons on our shirt, and people would only button the first button but not the second and top button. Some people were curious to find out how they looked like if they buttoned the top one.
I then went for a walk around the school, ascending to the first floor, where I greeted Ms Lee, Ms June and some of the teachers. Then, I went back to class and got my books ready. Ms Ng came in to take our attendance and also remind us about the upcoming Checkpoint Trial examination.
Branson Choon and Ting Yi returned to school. I asked if they were okay. Branson smiled. Ting Yi was horrified. He wasn't pleased with me. The duo took their medicines to school and were sipping them. They sent their MC letters to Ms Ng, who was surprised as to how many people got sick.
Rick Tan then told me that it is not fair that I came to school just for the 100% attendance when Caleb Chuang, Branson Choon and Ting Yi got my sickness in the process. He shook his head, disappointed at me.
Ms Joyce gave us some practice questions and begun to discuss about the Checkpoint Trial. She then told us how the format would look like. “The exam will test you on spelling, reading, writing and punctuation,” she said, as she handed out the worksheets to us before discussing on them. Then, Ms Joyce spoke to us about the format of the two papers for English, namely Paper 1 and 2.
“Paper 1 tests you on comprehension. You will be given a text and you will need to read it and answer the questions based on the text. You will have 1 hour and 15 minutes to do the paper. And for Paper 2, you will be asked to do some writing,” said Ms Joyce. Brandon Ooi then asked some questions and also chat with Ms Joyce in class. Then, Ms Joyce gave us some comprehension to do on The Kite Runner.
Then, it was break time. We had a quick break in the canteen, but there was no assembly for break and lunch, and we went back to class. I spoke to Caleb Chuang about how bad the haze was. “I hope that school does not close. We will miss our friends, and how are we going to sit for Checkpoint?” I asked.
Then, it was Geography, and Ms Maddy gave us some worksheets. I then spoke to Ms Maddy about the predicament of Geography not being in Year 10 or 11. “It's good that you had an enjoyable time learning Geography, and keep this spirit and enthusiasm for your Checkpoint and also for next year,” said Ms Maddy, advising me to continue to have the same level of enthusiasm for my Year 10 subjects.
During Science, Ms Ng then briefed us about the scope of the Science paper for Checkpoint, which tests on some diagrams, equations and some scientific enquiry. She told us that all that we need to do is to study the book and read our notes and we should be fine. “Make some notes, memorize and understand the concepts,” said Ms Ng. The entire class spent some time answering and asking every single question to Ms Ng about the exam.
Benjamin Fong then asked on what if we failed the Checkpoint Exam, and Ms Ng said that this was a very common question asked by students in Year 9 sitting the Checkpoint Exam. “I think all of you will want to ask, ‘What if we failed Checkpoint? Will this be the end of the world?’ I would say no. Yes, you will receive your results, but it is not like ‘if you fail Checkpoint, you cannot enter Year 10.’ If you fail Checkpoint, it won't affect you entering Year 10, but I think later Ms Praveen will be having a briefing during your CT session, so you might want to ask her about anything that concerns you regarding Checkpoint. Then, it was Health, and Ms Renee taught us about the various heart diseases and the health risks of smoking, before going for lunch. The haze did not let up.
After lunch, we went to the school hall, and Ms Praveen was inside. Oh, and by the way, normally, we took off our face masks when we entered the hall as the haze was blocked outside by the walls and doors.
Ms Praveen took the opportunity to brief us about goal setting and gave us worksheets to do and to outline our goal setting. She then briefed us about the setup of the Checkpoint Trial.
“Your Checkpoint Trial will take place from next Wednesday until next Friday (9th to 11th September), and it will take place for three days. During this time, there will be no lessons, and you are required to spend your free time studying for your next paper. You must bring your transparent pencil case. For Maths, there will be no calculator allowed. You will be only allowed to use your calculator in Maths Paper 2,” she said. She then had a long briefing, and told us that regardless of whether we pass or failed Checkpoint, everyone will be guaranteed a place in Year 10. “It is just that Checkpoint will affect the subjects you choose in Year 10, so please do not worry,” assured Ms Praveen. Then, she gave us a briefing on our CAT4 Examination, also known as the Cognitive Assessment Test 4 Examination.
“There is no need to study for the CAT4 Exam. For your CAT4 exam, you need to come to school at your designated examination time. The venue for your CAT4 exam will be at the ICT labs behind the school hall. Each class will have a designated time to take the CAT4 exam,” instructed Ms Praveen. The exam will begin in the morning and each class will be given one hour each for the CAT4 exam. The exam will begin with 9B from 8am to 9am, 9E from 9am to 10am, and 9L from 10am to 11am. Then, there will be a two-hour break and it will be 9N's turn to have the exam from 1pm to 2pm, and us 9O students will be the last to do the paper, from 2pm to 3pm. The CAT4 exam takes place on the day of the PTM, Friday, 4th September 2015. Once we were done, we then headed for Art lessons with Ms Nadia, and she told us to file our paintings in our Art File before she did another painting, and she told us to continue our work. “I will not give you any work next week. No need to print out any research. Just study for your Checkpoint Trial. When is your Checkpoint Trial?” asked Ms Nadia. When I told her the dates, she sympathized with us and said that we do our Checkpoint Trial revision and she will come to 9O instead.
The next day, PE was held in the school hall because of the haze. Branson and Ting Yi took their medicines again that morning. Rick Tan said it would do me an honor if I feed them with their medicine as payback, but he was stopped by Jordan. Mr Victor then did some push ups and sit ups again, and it got bad till my legs cramped. Mr Victor likes to push us to the maximum, you know. Once we were done, I then went around, walking around the school and observing how bad the haze was from the canteen. We then went back to class for English, and Ms Joyce kept on talking about how bad the haze was. Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Zura gave us comprehensions before Ms Kiran told everyone to pass up their GP reports and also the video link for the coursework. There was a large queue in the class as every group submitted their work to Ms Kiran. She said that she will play the videos following the end of Checkpoint Trial.
During Maths, Ms Seline gave us more SAT papers to do in class. I filed the papers in my file and did the questions. It was all a long way to go. I did the papers and thought of how to answer them. Ms Seline gave us the 2005 SAT papers which were of easy mode type. During ICT, Mr Narish briefed us on our Checkpoint Trial and did some work with us in class. And Ms Ng then gave us Checkpoint past year papers again. She gave us the preceding exam for October 2014. Then, we did some revision as Ms Ng taught us.
Studying for Checkpoint throughout the month of September is no easy joke. It was not easy to remember everything for Cambridge Checkpoint as you would need to study things from Year 7 up to Year 9 for the examination. Our teachers had told us that it would be very difficult if you have had discarded your notes and exercise books from Year 7 and 8, as these books are needed for the Checkpoint exam.
On 3rd September 2015, we got into class early again, and this time, the haze had gotten a little bit better. I then walked around and looked at the scenery and sunrise from the second floor. Then, I went to see Ms Feeda in the Junior and Senior School's Management Office, and chat with her for a short while. We discussed about our activity for that day since our clay models were finished. “Later, I will call you all to the school hall. Ask Yee Lim and Pearly to tell everyone to come to the hall and arrange the paintings for the Art Exhibition.
Ms Visa gave us some worksheets on Nazi Germany and the rise of Adoft Hitler, before we went for English. No one tried to make Ms Visa angry. However, Ms Visa was not happy that people were doing their studies for Checkpoint and not concentrating on her lesson. Ms Joyce then told us to do some comprehension worksheets as homework, and taught us the proper way to attempt the exam paper. The rest of the day was not spent much. Tens of THOUSANDS of SAT papers and revision.
During break time, some people attempted to go back to class directly because they thought that there was no assembly due to the haze, but however, Ms Lim wanted an assembly and it resulted in Ms Lim calling everyone down and counting down. Those who were late were apprehended by the prefects and placed in the late line. “Hai yoh! Why all of you go up to class? You don't know there is assembly today ah?” she frowned. Fortunately, when I heard the music, I sprinted down the stairs and to the class line in the nick of time.
That afternoon, when school ended, Ms Feeda gave us some masking tape and she led us to install the paintings in the school hall for the Art Exhibition consisting of Year 10, Year 11 as well as some KS3 art pieces. Pearly and Yee Lim brought some easel stands to help display some of the work on easels.
The art exhibiton.
Ms Feeda then brought a wooden stool from the library and stood on the stool. “Careful, teacher,” cried Yee Lim as Ms Feeda tried to balance herself on the stool. Ms Feeda was reaching for the walls and trying to put some paintings and plastered them to the wall. Louis Soon and I were sticking masking tape to the paintings and giving them to Ms Feeda to install them. However, Ms Feeda almost tripped and fell from the stool, and Yee Lim and Pearly, along with me, saved her in time and held her up before she tumbled. “Cikgu, I got you!” cried Yee Lim. We then brought a small desk for her to stand up properly, and Pearly and Yee Lim supported her. Ms Feeda then asked Eugenie and Chee Kei to help her put up more pictures on the wall.
Meanwhile, Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan were standing in a distance and admiring us installing the paintings. I then spoke to Mr Chan about what we were doing for Fine Art Club, and he seemed delighted to hear the tales. Ms Feeda then told me to go and get Ms Nadia to assist her, and I went to find Ms Nadia, but however she had left school. “It's okay, never mind,” said Ms Feeda, before giving me more paintings to put up on the wall.
Ms Sha and a few others arrived, and soon, Yi Zhen also arrived. They then saw Ms Feeda and assisted her. Ms Sha also praised us for the nice designs and drawings we had made. There were Art and Design IGCSE prep works, drawings by Year 7, 8 and 9 students, and Ms Feeda even created a small corner to display works made from the Fine Art Club. I look forward to art exhibitions during PTM every year as the art exhibitions would captivate my interest and it is a really good collaboration between Ms Feeda, Ms Nadia, and all those people interested in Art and Design. It then started to rain as we were finished with our art exhibition setup, and we went home happily.
The next day, Friday, 4th September, was the PTM. I arrived in the afternoon to do my CAT4 exam.
The CAT4 exam need not have any revision, but it was more of like a motor skills test, personality test and mental test all combined into one. We just came for the test, uncertain of what it was intended for.
I arrived at school at 1:00pm, just before the CAT 4 exam begun. CAT 4 reminded me of Ms Ng's mneumonic, “Cat Con Timid Sam” which was based on a formula for calcium carbonate, which was what ‘Cat’ and ‘Con’ meant. I then walked around the school with my mum to meet a few teachers. Ms Ng was the first one, followed by Ms Nadia. My aunt was also present. Then, at 2:00pm, I went to sit the CAT4 exam.
Everyone from 9O was lining up outside the ICT lab. I was the first one in front. Ms Praveen, Ms Sha and Mr Narish were present to guide us. Then, we were assigned to our seats to do the test as Ms Praveen gave us instructions.
The test was a very simple yet mentally challenging test. In fact, it wasn't as mentally challenging, but we were told to match objects, see which object is the largest and so on. The test was conducted on an online software designed for it. It took me 50 minutes to complete the test. Ms Praveen told us that we can leave once the test was done.
I then met Ms Belle for a chat once I returned to the school hall. She asked me why I told my aunt not to speak Mandarin with me and said that the process would improve my Mandarin proficiency. I then told her that I normally speak English at home and it is fluent and easy for me to communicate in English, and she laughed. Then, my mum and I went to meet Ms Nadia, who spent some time talking to me and my mum on how much I should brace for Art and Design since the standards are higher in Year 10 and 11. After meeting all the teachers, we went home wholeheartedly.
Monday, 7th September 2015, was a normal day. Caleb Chuang wasn't present in school because he wasn't feeling well, so I had to make do without his presence. It was the same, boring day as usual.......I guess.
The morning started off pretty well. I kept telling Rick that Caleb Chuang wasn't here and I missed talking to him. “Well, you should have many days off from talking with Caleb since you like to talk to Caleb a lot,” he said. Cikgu Zura came into the class and gave us worksheets to do. She also asked us about our Checkpoint Trials. Then, it was break time, and I went to see San Ying. “You know what? Caleb is not here today. Now I cannot talk to him,” I groaned. San Ying laughed and said it was good because everyone could get some peace from the all happy go lucky adventures of me and Caleb Chuang. When we got back, Ms Visa did some book checking and then pointed out our mistakes in our exercise books and worksheets. Benjamin Fong's file was messy as he tried to find the worksheets Ms Visa asked him for as she was going to mark it. Ms Visa wasn't amused and got angry with him. Then, during Maths, Ms Seline gave us another round of SAT papers and told us that we can discuss with our friends. I did the questions on my own, but when the noise level got really high, Ms Seline ordered everyone to do the questions on their own. Oh, and not to also mention that Ms Seline also gave us tips and wished us the best for our Maths exam in the Checkpoint Trial.
After lunch, I just sat down and had lunch on my own, thinking about why Caleb Chuang is absent. The Checkpoint Trial is coming. He cannot be absent. He MUST attend the Checkpoint Trials.
During Bible Knowledge, Mr Lim continued with the book of Matthew and gave us time to study for Checkpoint. I took the time to discuss with Sara Yow about the Checkpoint Exam. Mr Lim also played a game with us to test us on the aspects of the Bible and showed us the Bible Gateway Internet page which is an online version of the Bible. Mr Chan had shown me that website in 2013 during his Bible Knowledge lesson when I was in Year 7 at the time.
Once we were done, we went for Mandarin, and Ms Belle told us to pass up our exercise books and the homework that we did in it. As one of the homework was given on Thursday, 3rd September, and due to a very long lag period because of PTM, CAT 4 and the Saturday/Sunday weekend, I have done the homework but accidentally forgot to bring my book.
Ms Belle then collected the books and told those who did not bring their exercise books to stand up. I stood up, and soon, the whole class was standing. Ms Belle then gave us a long lecture and said that if we did not had the attitude to learn, she would not bother teaching us anymore. That broke my heart, because I accidentally forgot to bring the book and it was some people in the class who did not do their work and misbehaved, which made Ms Belle really disappointed.
I thought about what Ms Belle said, and decided in a last-ditch attempt, to go back home, get my exercise book and return to Nobel before she left. My aunt was okay with that, and I took the book. She was surprised as to why I did not want to hand the book the next day. I wanted to hand it on the day itself as it was an on-time thing. When I reached Nobel, Ms Belle had gone home. I just passed the book to Ms Ting, who placed it on Ms Belle's desk.
The next morning, 8th September, I waited at the front entrance for Ms Belle, and I greeted her. I then explained to her that I had forgotten the exercise book the previous afternoon for her lesson, and purposely went home to bring it to her but however she wasn't present and I had passed the book to Ms Ting to give it to her. Ms Belle was surprised at my action and she at least praised me for handing the book to her at most.
During English, Ms Joyce spent the entire 1 hour and 20 minutes’ lesson for us to give us tips and tell us what to do for the English paper the next day. She talked to us and told us what was needed and expected of us. Brandon always kept asking Ms Joyce questions. Then, Ms Joyce went to meet Gabriel Lim and asked if he was okay. “Gabriel, please make sure you are ready tomorrow,” said Ms Joyce. Ms Joyce said that while there was a division into the English First and Second classes, everyone would ultimately be taking the same paper. This meant no difference than our English First counterparts.
I took out some of the past year papers and did them during break time, preparing for the Checkpoint Trial. Then, Ms Lim wished us all the best for Checkpoint Trials, and told the Year 7 and 8 students to cheer for us. “Your turn will be next, so please make sure you study well,” she said. Ultimately, the Year 8s back in 2015 would be the last batch of students to sit the Checkpoint Exam. The Year 7s then had a lucky escape. Checkpoint was abolished in 2017.
Then, it was Geography, and Ms Maddy told us about our modular assessment for Geography, which will take place on Thursday, 1st October, following the Checkpoint Trials. She gave us tips also on how to attempt the paper, and also informed us about a Geography Skils test, which would be the final modular test for the year. That's it! The last Geography modular test would be on Thursday, 8th October 2015. It is testing on Geographical Skills. We had a Geographical Skills test on the atlas back in March, and I got 98%. I was thinking of finishing this Geography journey with a 100%, since the basic Geographical Skills test is so easy. This was my second chance, but we had an exam to do first. Then, Ms Ng came in and gave us tips for Science, and Ms Renee also later came in for Health and we had a chat on Checkpoint. She gave us a notification of Test 2 and 3 for our Health subject to be held on 29th September. We had already had a Test 1 at the beginning of the year, but the Test 2 was postponed, as what Ms Renee said. Benjamin Fong and the people at the back groaned. “Ms Renee, we are studying for Checkpoint. Why? We have so many exams. We have the Geography test, Checkpoint Trials as well as this one,” he pleaded. Jason Leing also said the same. Ms Renee said that we can take a break from Checkpoint Trials to study for Test 2 and 3 for Health.
During Character Transformation, everyone had to go back to their class and shift the tables to the examination mode. Ms Ng guided us and told us that we need to have five rows in the class. Ms Sylvia then arranged, and Caleb Chuang and I helped people to push their desks around. Everyone had to pack their books and take them home.
Ms Ng then told Derek Yong and Jian Wen not to play and to help out in moving and re-arranging the tables. Every class had the same. All baskets had to be cleared. I had to pack all my books into my bag and haul them home. Ms Sylvia and Ting Yi then checked the tables with Ms Ng to see if all was in order. Before we left for the Art Studio, Ms Ng wished us all the best for Checkpoint Trial. “Tell your friends who are absent to PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE come tomorrow. Tomorrow is your exam. It is important.” I only wished I had Caleb Chuang's number then, but I hadn't had his.......
Then, we went for Art, and Ms Nadia did some tree paintings with us. She asked us how was our preparation as well for Checkpoint, and Ting Yi said he was really stressed. Ms Nadia then asked if she could play some nursery rhymes for him, and the entire class laughed. Then, Ms Nadia went around and checked on us. Before we left, she wished us all the best. “Hopefully I won't die tomorrow,” said Benjamin Fong. It soon started raining heavily as we dismiss from school.
9th September 2015 marks a significant milestone for us in Nobel. It was first day of Checkpoint Trials, and the English paper was examined. The English paper was quite easy because of the large presence of idioms in them. All one had to do was to try and comprehend and understand and write the questions, and the Checkpoint exam was no issue. Checkpoint Trials is an exam that is designed to look like a mock exam based on the actual Checkpoint Exam. The purpose of this exam was to allow the teachers to gauge where we stand as well as to allow us to know our strengths and weaknesses ahead of the Checkpoint Exam.
There was one exam for each day. The first day was dedicated for English, with the Paper 1 being held from 8:00am to 9:15am, with our break time at 9:20am. Then, the second paper was from 10:00am to 11:15am. We all did our exams in our classes. The English papers were 1 hour 15 minutes long; the Mathematics papers took an hour each and the Science papers were 45 minutes long. At the end of the day, we spent our time revising for the next subject, provided there is an exam the next day.
All of us had to sit according to our name list. Jason Leing was in front of me. Yin Wei was behind me. Jason would normally turn around, look at me, and then he will look at the other people in the class. Then, he will smile and laugh when communicating with Sean Mark.
The morning of Checkpoint Trial started normally. We Year 9s were allowed to head up to our classes. It was a cloudy morning, and it appeared to be about to rain. Soon, a light drizzle ensued, and all Junior and Senior School students had to go to their classes while Elementary School students were gathered in the school hall.
Rick Tan was the second to arrive. I placed my bag outside the class and talked to him, while he took his bag inside for the time being. Then, I took my bag inside while we waited, but then proceeded to put my bag outside and then I took out my English books to read while I talked to him.
“Rick, I hope Caleb Chuang turns up for the exam today. He will not get any marks for the exam if he didn't turn up,” I said to Rick, who told me not to worry too much about Caleb Chuang. “That's gay,” said Rick. “Are you Caleb's dog? Why do you always keep on worrying on Caleb? Just go and study. There will be exams later.”
Soon, everyone arrived, and yes, finally, Caleb Chuang is here! I cheered as he arrived, and Megan smiled. “Your best friend is happy that you are here today!” she cried.
Ms Praveen, Ms Yew and Ms Ng arrived in our class and instructed us to put our bags outside. I just took my books and put them outside. Then, I took out my transparent pencil case which consisted of one ruler, a black and blue pen, a pencil and an eraser. We were left with Ms Sylvia to invigilate us. I also forgot to tell you that everyone was asked to wear their school uniform for the trial exam. On another note, less I forget, we were not allowed to wear our PE attire, although some people wore their PE attire. Guess what? Mr Victor was invigilating 9E's class for Checkpoint Trial.
Ms Sylvia handed out the papers as Ms Praveen and Ms Yew checked class by class. Then, at 8:00am sharp, we begun. Jason Leing then turned around. “Jason, look in front!” cried Ms Sylvia. Then, we were commanded to start.
For English Paper 1, we were asked to read a few texts in the paper. There were also a series of blanks which I had to complete by emphasizing on nouns, verbs and adjectives. Fortunately, I managed to finish the paper at 9:20am before Ms Sylvia collected the papers. We then had break before continuing the second paper. The second paper was as easy as the first; text reading and just answering the questions straightforwardly.
Just before the second paper started, Benjamin Fong's pen had ran out of ink, and he asked a pen from James Wong, who gave it to him. Ms Joyce was not happy with some people who were very slow in getting ready for their examination, especially Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong. I almost did not finish the paper, but fortunately I did, and everything was done. Then, when Ms Joyce started giving out the paper, she told us to write our teacher's name and indicate English First or Second Language on the paper. “By right, you should indicate so that it will be easier for us,” said Ms Joyce, telling us to write our teacher's name. “If you are under Mr Thomas’ class, write Mr Thomas. If your teacher is Ms Gerardine, please write her name. And if you are under me, please write my name.”
The English Paper 2 then started, and I wrote a long essay and answered some questions before the exam was done. Cikgu Zura then collected our English papers. Once that was done, we took our bags into the class. This would become the norm following the last paper for the day.
During Global Perspectives, Ms Kiran then played some of our documentaries we made for GP, including mine, so that we can have a rest from the Checkpoint Trials. We were entertained by the documentaries. The funniest one was Benjamin Fong hugging a puppy as they were visiting a veterinary center. If I am not mistaken, he also pretended to kiss it.
After lunch, I then took some time to do the revision for Maths and complete the SAT papers. There were a lot of SAT questions that I hadn’t managed to finish because of my studies for the English exam, so I decided to continue cracking both Paper 1 and Paper 2 for SAT. I spent most of my time revising and attempting the SAT questions. During Maths, Ms Seline then asked me to pass some SAT papers to people from 9N who were from our class. She helped me a bit on the Maths SAT papers. I did the SAT papers while watching Derek and Jian Wen talk. Then, I went to see Caleb Chuang and reminded him to be present for the exams. “I will,” he said. Mr Narish then came in and then had some chat about the Checkpoint exam with us, followed by Ms Ng, who did the same but also some revision for Science. Many people were hestitant about studying for Science, as we were preparing for our Maths exam the next day, and we also did not bring our Science books, but Ms Ng said that we should share the Science books with those who had them.
The next day, 10th September 2015, was our second day of Checkpoint Trials. We then had the Mathematics exam. That morning, Ms Visa gave us the papers at 8:15am. Everyone was slow, and Ms Visa had to ask people to hurry up. The reason was because a lot of people had to use the washroom. Once everything was settled, Ms Visa gave the papers. “No talking,” she ordered. “You may begin now.”
It was hard, grueling work as one hour was too short for me to complete the questions. There were very challenging questions, each one more difficult than the next. I tried to finish the exam as much as possible, but I could not complete the paper. Each time I tried to finish, I was in for tough luck.
Ms Joyce then came in for English and ordered us to stop. I still continued. “Wei Yiang, when I said stop, you must stop. No more writing. Pens down,” she said, before taking my paper. Not completing the exam paper would cost more marks, and it is a shameful thing to carry. People will assume that we never try. I wished I had more time to finish the Maths paper. Fortunately, I didn't cry as I fated such events as normal.
We then went for break, and I spoke with Jordan as he comforted me for not finishing my Maths paper. Rick then told me that there is still a second chance when we have our Maths Paper 2. Once things were done, we went back to class. Ms Seline was with us, and she was getting ready to start our Maths Paper 2. Benjamin Fong then decided to go to the toilet again, but Ms Seline gave him only one minute to go to use the loo. “If you are late, I will lock the door,” she warned. Benjamin Fong acted frantically and dashed to the loo to do his business. Ms Seline counted down for everyone to settle down. “Five, four, three, two, one.....”, she said, and suddenly Benjamin Fong shot into the room like a rocket. “Yes!” he cried. We did the second paper, but just like the first, I also did not finish it. Ms Seline told the students in her class not to make her angry with our results.
During Mandarin, we then studied for Science, and I went to do a quiz with Caleb Chuang and Branson Choon. We teased each other when we got a question wrong and we competed like mad. Rick Tan said that I should not be competing with others. “This is an exam, not a competition,” he groaned. Then, Ms Ng came in for Science lesson. “Who wants last minute revision?” she asked, and everyone shot up and said, “Me!”
Ms Ng then told us a summary of the chapters and the points to remember, and gave us short quizzes. Branson Choon and I tried to answer Ms Ng's questions. “Wow. Luckily I asked for revision. Good timing!” she cried. There was no Fine Art Club CCA session due to the Checkpoint Trial, so I went home early. I mean, like, yes, there was still CCA. Fine Art Club was on. It was only Pearly and Yee Lim in the studio with Ms Feeda. Year 9 students were not allowed to go for their CCA and were told to return home early to study.
No, seriously! Pearly Tan and Yee Lim were the only ones in the CCA that day. They were the only two. The rest of the people in Fine Art Club were Year 9s. I stopped by to have a short chat with Ms Feeda before going home. She wished me all the best for Checkpoint Trial.
The next day was the THIRD and FINAL day of Checkpoint Trials. We were so excited. The Science exam only lasted for 45 minutes for both Paper 1 and Paper 2.
Before the exam started, I wished Branson Choon all the best. “I will beat you! You will lose!” I cried, and he repeated the same. “You will lose!” What stiff competition.
Ms Ng then entered the classroom and ordered us to put our books and bags away. Benjamin Fong then headed for the loo again. “Why is it that you always like to go to toilet before your exams? Can't you go earlier?” asked Ms Ng. Then, Sean Mark and Jason Leing said that they wanted to go as well. Ms Ng then ordered them to go. Then, the whole class went. “Hurry up! Your exam starts in five minutes!” cried Ms Ng. Well, except me, because I went to the toilet earlier.
Once everyone returned, Ms Ng said that we will have a late dismissal, at 9:25am because we started late. So, Ms Ng gave out the papers. Jason turned around and looked around, and he was asked by Ms Ng, who was chasing for time, to look in front.
The Science paper was the easiest paper, to be honest. I managed to finish it within half an hour. Then, Ms Ng collected the papers, and Branson Choon did a fist pump in the air. Only one more paper. One more.
The entire class left as Sean Mark and Jason Leing cheered. “One more only. Later we do countdown,” said Jason. Then, we went for our break time, and Jordan Tay and I quizzed each other on the Science topics. When we returned, we had Maths, and Ms Seline gave the papers. Everyone arrived on time. We wanted to finish early. The second paper was a bit challenging but it was still okay. Everyone finished early.
The Science Paper 2 was scheduled to end at 10:45am. Ms Joyce entered the room. As the clock ticked down, Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Ting Yi and Benjamin Fong counted down. “Five, four, three, two, one!” they cried, and cheered. The whole class screamed. “Who asked you to talk?! I haven't collected your paper. Your exam still hasn't finished! Please wait till I collect the paper!” scolded Ms Joyce. Then, she proceeded to pick up the scripts. As the scripts were picked up, everyone smiled and said ‘Yes!’ internally. Then, Jason Leing turned at me and smiled. Then, he turned to Sean Mark and Benjamin Fong and gave the thumbs up. Ms Joyce returned to the front of the room, stacked the papers, and arranged them nicely before putting the papers into a large plastic bag. Then, Sean Mark and Jason Leing proceeded to rip off the exam timetable and cheered, but were stopped by Ms Joyce.
“Okay, 9O, you are actually not supposed to be shouting or cheering like that. Your exam has not ended. Okay? School rules still apply. Now, I want all of you to push back the tables now and go for your English class,” instructed Ms Joyce. Benjamin Fong tried to act crazily and show off his muscles, but Ms Joyce wasn't amused. So, we hauled our bags in, and proceeded for our very short English lesson from 11:15am to 11:40am. When 10N and 10B students who are in Ms Joyce's class arrived, Ms Joyce then started telling us about our papers. She had started marking our papers. “Teacher, when will we know our results?” asked Brandon Ooi. Ms Joyce said that she was still marking the papers.
Then, it was History, and Ms Visa came in to give us some work for History. She was infuriated that the whole class didn't bring their History textbook and exercise book for the lesson, as we were busy for the exam. “Ms Visa, we are tired. Please let us rest. We were studying for Checkpoint Trials,” said Benjamin Fong. Ms Visa then just gave us worksheets on Nazi Germany instead. Then, we had Homeroom time, and Ms Ng then asked us to recall our Checkpoint Trial experience. Oh wow. So tiring. Three days of examination had come to an end. We pushed the tables in the class back to their original position as it was before the test. Ms Ng then showed us some videos to allow us to relax ourselves. This time, she allowed us to watch a movie before we went home. Phew! What a relief! Checkpoint Trial is over!
Following the conclusion of the Checkpoint Trial exams, Caleb Chuang and his family went to the United Kingdom for a trip as Caleb Chuang’s sister, Chloe Chuang, was graduating from her degree, and Mr Chuang needed people to accompany him for logistics. So, Caleb Chuang went overseas and as such, I had to live without Caleb Chuang for about a week. Rick kept on asking why I kept on thinking about Caleb Chuang. “I can’t talk to him, that’s why I miss him!” I said.
The first day without Caleb Chuang was horrible. I had to spend time in school alone. At least, we had wonderful people from 9O like Ting Yi, Jordan, Derek and of course, Alia. Yes, Alia, to keep us company. And we had so many people from Year 9 who are cool and awesome too!
The morning of Monday, 14th September, was surrounded by THICK HAZE. The haze had made so much inconveniences, and I was wondering if the Checkpoint Exam would go on as scheduled. I had to bring a face mask and wear it when outdoors. The haze is so unbearable. Why, oh, why, was the situation so bad?
I kept on thinking what would happen if school were to close. You see, we have 178 schooling days for the year 2015, excluding weekends and public holidays. The 178 days in a year are the ONLY TIME where we can see our friends and treasure our time with them. It is not convenient to meet everyone else outside of school, so the time we spend in school is the best bet for us to enjoy. And we are close to the end of 2015, and we will enter 2016, and then 2017. Time is running out, and I want to spend time with my friends before we graduate from Nobel.
During the morning assembly, Ms Bee Yong told us to take care of ourselves amid the haze, and drink more water. Then, Ms Lim said that the after-break and lunch assemblies will be cancelled if they took place in the courtyard.
When we went up to 9O, everyone was so happy after the end of the Checkpoint Trials and Benjamin Fong and Brendan Cheah requested some rest time, but Cikgu Zura gave us work. During break time, I went around and observed the hazy conditions outside the school building. How horrible it was. Something tells me that things weren't good.
In fact, ladies and gentlemen, I forgot to tell you that many people did not come to school as their parents advised them to stay at home due to the worsening air quality situation. The break time assembly was cancelled, and we were told to walk back to class.
Ms Visa then taught us about the Holocaust and then gave us a worksheet and a coursework to do. We had to make a brochure about the Holocaust. Some people in the class groaned. Apart from the Checkpoint Exam, a brochure had to be made.
The teachers had begun giving out more SAT papers. Ms Seline gave out the most SAT examination papers till my files were full. In fact, I had a special file for it, and needed a second one, which overran as well. Ashlyne Yong, another student in our Maths set teaching class, also had such a file arrangement for the Maths SAT papers. Each Maths lesson with Ms Seline was spent doing the SAT papers in class and we were filled with tonnes of homework each day. The day continued, and Mr Lim announced the exam scope for our Bible Knowledge examination, while Ms Belle gave us work to do.
As I was on my way home, the haze got thicker and thicker. I was wondering how bad would this get. I was worried of school being closed. If school closes, not only we will have less time with our friends – not to mention Caleb Chuang's absence due to his trip to the United Kingdom – but also the fact that our Checkpoint Exam would be affected and that my 100% attendance record since 2010 would be affected. I don't want a last-minute school closure. If it were to close, the information would be already, if not immediately, announced. Despite that, I did my homework and packed my books for the next's day lesson.
The following day, 15th September 2015, saw me waking up at 8:00am. Oh no! Did my mum forgot to set the alarm clock? I remembered setting the alarm clock properly. I was wondering if my mum did not call me up. I went down and was in pandemonium. Being an early bird myself, I did not want to be late for school.
My mum told me that the Ministry of Education had announced that schools were closed, and I did not believe her. I was determined to get to school.
I argued a bit with my mum, afraid of being late. My mum told me that it was a government circular, and that this effectively ordered all schools to close. There were brickbats across the hallways of my home. I panicked, as it is Nobel who is supposed to announce the closure, because in 2014, Nobel still closed due to the haze for five days but reopened early because the haze subsided very quickly while government schools still remained closed. That occasion was remembered very well. I tried to put that case forward. “Let me call Ms June,” she said.
So, my mum contacted Ms June who confirmed that Nobel International School had indeed closed due to the haze, to much relief, in order for me to earn back my 100% attendance and also not be late for school. Apparently, the announcement was made at the eleventh hour, with many people being disturbed by the last-minute memo. This grievance was shared by folks all across Malaysia.
I felt so angry. Why is all the information given at 11:00pm at night? Why can't they announce it at 8:00pm or even at 3:30pm when Nobel International School had the dismissal? It will make life easy for us, right? Then the horrible experience I had would not have happened. Nobel only announced the school closure at 10:00am that day with an apology. My mum tried comforting me, saying that my Malaysia Day holiday just got longer. I only felt so uneasy. School closure announcement at 11:00pm, when I had effectively hit the sack. Then, I spent the entire day checking the news on the haze.
The next day, 16th September, was Malaysia Day, and a counter-protest to the Bersih rally occurred in Kuala Lumpur. This rally was known as the ‘Red Shirts’ Rally, led by a leader from the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), Jamal Yunos. We watched the rally unfold on my mum's phone. And not to also mention that the trees in front of my house were marked with red ‘X’ markings, signifying that the trees would be cut down by the city council. I told my mum and aunt to do something about it.
When schools reopened the next day, 17th September and we returned to school, I kept on thinking as to how my mum and aunt will settle the problem. We then had History, where Ms Visa gave us some work to do and continued teaching on the Holocaust. Then, we had some exercises on Black Friday given by Ms Joyce. Oh, and Caleb Chuang is back! I cheered as he had returned. Before you know it, I ws complaining and talking to Caleb Chuang about how bad the haze was and how much we have had been impacted. Apparently, schools must close if the air pollution index is over 200. I kept checking the API daily for information about school closures.
During Maths, Ms Seline then gave us a SAT paper from 2005 to do, and Ms Seline discussed the papers. While discussing the papers and as Ms Seline entered and we greeted her, I was thinking of the city council coming to my house to cut the trees. We greeted Ms Seline seriously. Then, Ms Seline asked us to present the other completed SAT papers, which we did and we discussed them. Then, it was Geography, and I had a casual conversation about the trees outside my house when Ms Maddy saw my worried look. In fact, I told this to Rick and Caleb Chuang as well, and they told me things will be fine when I wondered if my mum would do something about it. “Don't worry, your mum will settle it, okay?” said Ms Maddy.
It was then lunch time and I can't eat my food, thinking about the trees. Cikgu Zura then discussed the exercises we had, and Ms Ng then gave us SAT papers to do; Paper 1 from 2009 and Paper 2 from 2008. In fact, that was the first time she gave the SAT papers to us to do. Ms Ng also found a way for us to self-check our SAT papers to speed up the process of marking our papers.
When my aunt picked me up, she said that there were good news, and she did not want to tell me what it was. I then asked about the trees, and she told me to wait. When I reached the guardhouse of my housing area, I braced myself. Upon arriving, presto! The trees were still there, except that they were trimmed instead of felled. Apparently, my mum had called the city council and my aunt had stopped the city council from cutting the trees down, and as such, they only managed to fell one tree only. And my mum had to keep on calling the city council during the office hours. The city council came at 9:00am to cut them down, and after that one tree was sawed, my aunt bravely stopped them and they agreed.
The next day, I went to school happily to tell Ms Maddy, Caleb Chuang, Jordan Tay and Rick Tan the good news. Ms Maddy was happy that the ‘deforestation exercise had been stopped’.
Ms Ng then discussed the SAT papers as me and Branson Choon kept on saying our answers. Then, Ms Ng pulled me and Branson Choon aside and urged us to give other people a chance to answer and that she may not choose us. The two of us agreed, because we were competing to get the answers right. Then, during Maths, Ms Seline discussed some of our SAT papers, and Brendan Cheah was laughing till Ms Seline was wondering what happened to him. Then, it was English, and Ms Joyce discussed our Black Friday exercise. Ms Visa also continued teaching about the Holocaust before Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia came in for Homeroom to give us tips. I then had a chat with Caleb Chuang about his trip to the United Kingdom. He was planning to go again during the Second Mid Term Break. As school ended, we waved goodbye to everyone in our class. I peered at the school building, eager to see my friends as I left. It was a one-week holiday for us.
During the Second Mid Term Break, the haze got even worse, and the temperature crossed close to an Air Pollution Index of 300. Malaysia had never seen such levels at the time, since 1997. Oh dear. When will this ordeal end? I kept on complaining about the haze. Aargh! I still had unfinished plans with Caleb Chuang that are yet to be executed! This was a second round of haze annoyance since July 2013. Not again. And as such, Caleb Chuang's birthday celebration on 24th September could not be celebrated!
Just a sidekick: Branson Choon shares the same birthdate as Caleb Chuang (24th September), while Ting Yi shares the same birthdate as me (15th May).
Oh well. The city council then came and trimmed some of the branches at 1pm on the 21st of September. The supervisor said that the trimming was not enough. They said more trimming needed to be done. I tried to reason with the supervisor that it is not good to cut trees down, and he asked me to give three reasons. Then, I told him that the trees can't be cut because of the fact that it can cause landslides, floods as well as the fact that the area would become hot without the tree. What a spot on! Three natural disasters of floods, landslides and heatwave occurred in 2021, 2022 and 2023. I just did my gardening projects, trimmed some trees to make them look nice, especially the large green tea plant behind my house, and checked the weather, as well as took time to read Wikipedia articles at home and study for my Geography modular assessment. I also took some time to look at hypothetical projects like the Sky City 1000, Shimizu Mega-City Pyramid, the Changsha Sky City Tower, X-Seed 4000 and the Millenium Tower. I even watched a documentary of the construction of a bridge across the Straits of Gibraltar. But back to the haze. It was so hazy. Fortunately, there were trees near my house to absorb the haze.
School was then closed once again, on 28th and 29th September 2015, thus extending to a long weekend. Consequently, the Second Mid Term Break was extended by two days.
We returned to school on 30th September 2015. We had PE, but it was limited to the school hall. Mr Victor did some exercises with us, and the air conditioning was switched on to full blast. And we were doing just those basic exercises like push ups and sit ups. Then, we did some jumping jacks. Ms Sylvia ended the PE lesson by telling everyone to take care of themselves and stay indoors. On another note, Caleb Chuang was absent that day. He was still in the United Kingdom. I miss seeing him and talking to him.
Then, we went for our break time. This time, everyone was studying for the Geography modular test. I can feel Rick Tan being annoyed at the prospect of studying Geography, which he felt was useless to him as opposed to the Checkpoint Trials. I kept on telling Rick about how Caleb Chuang wasn't around. He said it was peaceful as we did not have our funny antics. And Megan seconded him. They were fortunate this time to get a break from the wonderful adventures of me and Caleb Chuang.
I then met Ms Maddy and asked her if the Geography modular assessment would go ahead as planned; she said that if there is no school closure due to the haze, the test would go on, but if the school had to be closed, a new date would be announced once the situation got better.
Soon, we had English, and Ms Joyce then talked about how bad the haze was and did a recap on the Checkpoint Trials. She said that we will be having our Checkpoint very soon in October and that she would be giving us some worksheets to do some revision on. The day then dragged on with Cikgu Zura giving us work to do. She felt surprised as to the fact that less people were present in school that day due to the severity of the haze. It soon came to Global Perspectives, and we continued to watch our GP project videos. Ms Kiran gave each group their final marks for their GP coursework. This time, Caleb Chuang's video was present. “I miss Caleb Chuang. I feel sad that he is overseas,” I moaned. “Hopefully he won't come back so fast. I feel annoyed,” said Megan.
Then, we had our Maths, and MORE SAT papers were given. Oh dear. We are dead. Mr Narish then brought us to the ICT lab to continue our Edmodo work. Then, Ms Ng ended the day with more SAT papers as well. Oh.
Thursday, 1st October, begun normally. Ms Visa then guided us on how to do the coursework on the Holocaust. Then, Ms Joyce gave us exercises. After some Maths lessons, it was the Geography Modular Assessment. And it was easy. The moment I placed my pen down and Ms Maddy collected the papers, I realized that I had finished my very final Geography chapter in my whole life. I am going to miss this subject. It was awesome. Ms Maddy then came on and cleared things up on the Geography Skills test scheduled for 8th October. “If there is haze and the school has to be closed, we will do the Geo Skills test on the first Geo lesson we will have when classes are on,” she said.
Ms Belle then gave us work in Mandarin while Ms Ng discussed the SAT papers she gave us. I received some of the papers on behalf of Caleb Chuang, but Branson was told to station them for him. “Aww. Dejected,” said Megan, upon learning that I was unable to station some SAT papers for Caleb Chuang.
We then headed into 2nd October, and the day was a normal one, except for the fact that the haze was coming back. A slight deterioration.
The morning of Friday, 2nd October begun with the installation of the new Prefectorial Board. Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi had been made prefects, and the prefects had to wear black for this occasion. Aside from Caleb Chuang and Ting Yi, Isabella Wong, Zhue Xin, Co Sheen, Timothy Hiew and Wei Zhong were made prefects.
This particular Prefectorial Board installation ceremony was done in a special way. All of the prefects were told to wear black so that the installation of the new prefects can be conducted in a hipster and rock-style approach, thus taking a break from the boring and formal approach used for past Prefectorial Board installation ceremonies.
The ceremony begun with a video introducing the functions and roles of the Prefectorial Board before Ms Bee Yan and Ms Bee Yong introduced the new prefects. All the prefects were wearing black which made the retro-like atmosphere look cool. Then, each new prefect was presented with a prefect's tag, and this was then followed by the announcement of the Prefectorial Board Committee members. Sabrina Qistina, the house captain for Bullseye, was also made the Head Prefect. Assisting her was Kimberly Yap, the assistant house captain of Homerun. Wow.
Then, once this was done, Carmenn Kau, Krissy and Sabrina gave motivating speeches to demonstrate and promise their capabilities to everyone. The prefects then performed a rock song, followed by the school song and school pledge.
During break time, Benjamin Fong and the boys couldn't play basketball, so Aristotle and Sheng Jit came to 9O to play some ball in the class with him, but then Ms Joyce found out about it and confiscated the ball. The rest of the day was spent doing SAT papers. Ms Ng then came during Homeroom time and briefed us on the dates for Checkpoint. The Checkpoint Exam will be held on 15th, 16th and 19th October 2015, and we were given the timetable for the Checkpoint Exam. The first day, 15th October, would be dedicated to the English paper, the second day for the Maths paper and the third day for the Science paper. English Paper 1 would be held from 8:00am to 9:15am; English Paper 2 from 10:00am to 11:15am; Maths Paper 1 from 8:15am to 9:15am; Maths Paper 2 from 10:00am to 11:00am; Science Paper 1 from 8:30am to 9:15am, and the last paper, Science Paper 2, from 10:15am to 11:00am.
“Two weeks only!” cried Le Anne, struggling to gasp for air. It was only the 2nd of October, 2015. This meant two weeks to study for the Checkpoint Exam, as if the Checkpoint Trials were already so taxing.
When the haze improved over the past three days of school, and the wind blew south, I breathed a sigh of relief as I thought things would get better. But I was wrong.
The haze soon returned as quickly as it had left, and this resulted in schools closing for two days, on 5th and 6th October. The nonsensical haze is back and schools are closed again! Fortunately, I managed to check the news on Sunday evening before going to sleep. What a relief. At least, I can rest at home for a longer period of time. Two days of additional rest, bringing the long weekend to four days! The government had timely announced during the weekend about the cancellation as the air pollution index (API) was high on Saturday, 3rd October. The haze got so bad that the I groaned in frustration over the amount of cancellations we had to face. Under the directives of the Ministry of Education, all schools had to close for haze, and I was worried about the closures, as this would have an impact on our preparations for Cambridge Checkpoint. To solve the problem, Nobel International School had adopted a system in which the school would take should the Air Pollution Index (API) go naughty. This haze emergency plan had been in effect ever since, having been used for the 2019 haze season.
Nobel’s Haze Emergency Plan
0-50 50-100 100-200 200-300 300+
External exams (IGCSE, Checkpoint) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Internal exams (Mid Year and Final Year Examination) Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Classes Yes Yes Yes No No
External exams, such as Checkpoint and IGCSE, cannot be cancelled because the examinations are tied to a timetable which is already pre-set by Cambridge in order to ensure examination security.
The teachers then started giving us additional homework to do while waiting for the haze to end, and I was informed about that by the school messages. We had to complete the task and hand in to our teachers. That was Nobel's first time using the Internet to send some homework, long before the COVID-19 era and the online learning bug. To prevent everyone from falling behind in their studies, classwork were emailed to our parents to be sent to us, and we had to do them.
Nobel Cup was originally meant to be held in October 2015, but it was also postponed to November in view of the haze and the examinations. It seemed like the practices were a waste as the Nobel Cup got postponed. No practices were held during this time for health and safety purposes.
Just in case I am kidding about the homework and classwork given online, Ms Joyce gave us a worksheet to do figurative language and it had to be handed on 6th October 2015. Ms Visa asked us to read loads of pages and answer questions in our History exercise book. We had to read pages 132, 133, 154 and 155 and answer the questions on those page. There was a worksheet given for Malay, another worksheet for Mandarin, a SAT paper from the year 2000 for Mathematics, and last but not least, Ms Ng had prepared a Revision Worksheet for the Checkpoint Exam as well as a SAT paper from the year 2011, and she said that we will discuss it in class on the 7th October, barring which we had to hand them in online.
All of these homework were to be handed in on 6th, 7th and 8th October 2015 via email. What additional stress. I was thinking of getting a break from loads of Checkpoint revision. Ms Ng gave out a ton of papers, but however, the Science papers were easy to crack through as opposed to Mathematics, which forbid us from using the calculator at all costs. The Science questions were straightforward and were easy to comprehend, all thanks to the simple, straightforward and amazing lessons by Ms Ng. I managed to finish ALL the homework in one day, and then did my Geography modular test revision. I need to score this subject. I must beat Branson Choon. At least once!
The unfortunate truth is that everyone had to go back on the 6th of October.
Now, earlier, I said that Nobel closed on 5th and 6th October, but why did we open on the 6th?
When the government issued the directive for schools to close due to the haze, all government schools had to follow the directive properly. This means that even if the haze condition improve, they were still required to close thereof as to ensure certainty. If the government were to suddenly reopen schools at short notice, it would be a pain in the neck for parents and teachers to restore the lifestyle. As an international school, Nobel is not coerced by government directives and thus could operate normally. This was the difference when Nobel was a private school offering the national syllabus; the school was REQUIRED to replace cancelled school days on Saturdays and had to get them approved from the District Education Office, or Pejabat Pendidikan Daerah in Malay. For instance, in 2012, the private school wing of Nobel had to replace their Chinese New Year holiday while the international school wing did not have to do so. That time was when Nobel had both national and international syllabi. Similarly, Nobel had to replace cancelled school days due to H1N1 outbreaks on school grounds five years before, and that costed me my 15th May 2010 weekend birthday celebration.
While other schools remained closed due to the government’s directive. Nobel could not wait for the haze to completely subside and the government directive to expire, as it would delay things in the school calendar. As the haze was improving on 5th October, Ms Bee Yong sent a message to declare that Nobel International School will operate as usual on Tuesday, 6th October 2015. The last minute change in notice made me make quick plans. For me, I wish for a longer break as the Checkpoint Exam stress was too taxing. Not to also mention repeated school days where Caleb Chuang isn't present.
Tuesday, 6th October 2015 begun normally with a gathering in the class. Caleb Chuang had STILL not returned from the United Kingdom. Oh, when would he be returning? It took quite a while. Megan laughed at me as my fun was disrupted. “Too late! Too bad!” she cried, giving me a taste of my own medicine. “Better luck next time!” I felt so fed up as Caleb Chuang had not returned.
Ms Joyce then begun the lesson. She was surprised to see very less people in the class. Brandon Ooi was not here, which gave Ms Joyce a sigh of relief as he won't play jokes in the class. Then, she discussed our Figurative Language worksheet. I was the only one who did it, which made her surprised.
“All of you did not know that you had homework to do? Oh my goodness,” she said, covering her face. Then, I showed her the Student Organizer where I recorded the homework. “You see, Wei Yiang had six homework and he completed all of them. Well done, Wei Yiang. Give him a clap, Said Ms Joyce. The entire class clapped for me. “Give me a minute, I will get your worksheets for you,” said Ms Joyce. She then had to go to the staffroom and get the worksheets for the entire class to do. While waiting, I explained to Ze Khai that I saw the message and completed all the homework. Then, I showed him the list of homework I recorded in my Student Organizer that was sent by email. He was shocked.
Soon, Ms Joyce returned from the staffroom and gave us our homework. “Now, you see! I cannot discuss it,” she groaned, handing out the worksheets. “I cannot believe it. Don't you guys have Internet? Did your parents check your email? Don't tell me that the haze caused the Internet to malfunction,” she joked. We did the work, and when Ms Joyce was about to discuss, she told me not to put up my hands. “Wei Yiang, since you have done your homework early, I will mark yours first. Please don't say the answers to your friends,” she said, as she marked my paper. Then, Ms Joyce told everyone to be proactive and check their emails in the future. “Last year, I had a Literacy Circle where I sent work directly to your emails. I must do it again next time,” she said. Then, we discussed the answers. Some people answered first. I put up my hand thereafter. “Nope! Reject!” cried Ms Joyce.
During break time, I spoke to San Ying about Caleb Chuang's adventures in the United Kingdom. “This Caleb Chuang is taking so long to come back! When is he returning?” I groaned. San Ying laughed and told me that she had peace after Caleb Chuang was in the UK. “Hopefully he stays there forever,” she laughed. Sophie Tan, who was at the canteen table then agreed, saying that I should let Caleb Chuang be in peace and that everyone would have peace.
Then, it was Geography, and Ms Maddy then did with us a run-through on Malaysia's states and capitals. We had been doing them in Geography weeks prior, and it will be tested in the Geographical Skills assessment. Afterwards, we had Science, and Ms Ng gave us another SAT paper to do. Ms Renee then did the Health Test 2 and 3, which had to be postponed as the original date for the test, 29th September, was not available as the school was closed due to the haze. Following our lunch time, Ms Lee came during our Character Transformation session in the hall to settle some affairs for Checkpoint.
“Okay, Year 9 students, I would like to give out your Statement of Entry,” said Ms Lee. The Statement of Entry is a piece of paper containing our personal information and exam information which we had to bring on the day of our respective examinations for Cambridge Checkpoint. Ms Lee then passed our Statement of Entry around before briefing us on the technical aspects of the Checkpoint Exam. Note that at the time, Ms Lee was not only just teaching Mandarin, but was also involved under the Examination Unit.
Ms Lee said that the exam would be held in the school hall and a barricade would be put up. Everyone had to bring their identity card, a transparent plastic bag or pencil case, as well as our Statement of Entry for the exam. Individuals who had to bring mobile phones were asked to leave them on a tray before entering the school hall for the examination. Everyone had to leave from home immediately after the conclusion of the examination. Leaving for home earlier than the dismissal time is one thing I looked forward since Year 7. I can go home early, relax, and enjoy the outdoors without sitting in a classroom for the whole day.
After Ms Lee handed out the Statement of Entry, a speaker then came to talk to us about our hobbies. I then volunteered to explain about my gardening project, which involved a ‘land reclamation project’ which made the speaker curious. It was basically a fill-in of a slopy area to make it flat. All the teachers, including Ms Lim, were very excited when I instantly volunteered. Then, Ms Lim asked Benjamin Fong to answer as he was talking with Sean Mark and Jason Leing behind our class line.
Then, we had Art, and Ms Nadia played a short game of bingo with us to mark our second last Art lesson before the Checkpoint Exam. Branson Choon and I competed and braced for each other as usual. “Now, you can compete,” said Rick. Even Branson didn't want to compete with me academically on certain occasions.
Ting Yi tried to cheat the game, which made Ms Nadia angry. Branson, Rick and Jordan shouted Ting Yi's name, followed by chants of ‘Uh oh!’ Then, it rained outside, and it brought a good reprieve to the haze. Then, Ms Nadia and I had a short talk on Year 10 Art and Design as she wished me all the best for Checkpoint. I went home, rested for 15 hours at my house, and am back in school on Wednesday, 7th October 2015.
Lo and behold! Caleb Chuang was back! He was all well, and I cheered for him. “Guys, guys! Caleb Chuang is back!” I cried. I went to tell everyone that. Most people said, “Oh no, not again!”
Finally. Yes. Caleb Chuang is back. I feel so happy once again to meet the one and only Caleb Chuang! Now, we are BACK ON TRACK!
The morning started off with a PE lesson. The haze was improving, and we decided to do some push ups and sit ups in the hall. I chose Caleb Chuang to be my partner. Megan and Le Anne watched me and Caleb Chuang curiously. The whole Year 9 batch looked at me and Caleb Chuang do the exercises in perfect form. Mr Victor even told us to demonstrate in front of the whole hall, and the crowd cheered!
During English, Ms Joyce then taught us about words that catch the reader's attention, which is a part of figurative language. Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Zura was happy that I finished the homework which was to do the worksheet which taught us to write a Karangan, or essay consisting of around 120 words. Soon, it was Global Perspectives. Ms Kiran was absent, so Ms Sharon, a Year 10 and 11 Business Studies and Economics teacher, came in for Ms Kiran's relief. She said we could do our own things but we should not be talking so loudly. I decided to pass the time by practicing for the Geographical Skills Test.
Soon, Benjamin Fong and Jason Leing talked loudly and Ms Sharon repeatedly told them to lower their volume. Then, it was Ze Khai and Derek's turn to talk. Jian Wen then came to the front and they talked. Then, Ze Khai asked me some questions about the Geographical Skills test. Suddenly Ms Sharon then called all those who were talking to stand up, and she pointed at Ze Khai, Derek, Sean Mark, Jason and Benjamin Fong. I thought she pointed at me, as Ze Khai wanted to ask me a question. Ms Sharon told them to remain standing but then pointed at me. “No, not you. You can sit,” she said, as I sat down and did my revision. The pin drop silence continued till lunch.
After lunch, Ms Seline then gave us the 2004 Paper 1 and Paper 2 SAT questions for Maths. Then, it was Mr Narish's lesson, and we headed to the ICT lab, where he did with us the Final Year Examination for ICT on the computer. Mr Narish, unfortunately, had to contend with Derek and Ze Khai potentially cheating in the class. They whined till Mr Narish had to warn them to stop and continue with the exam. Ms Ng then ended the day, once again, with a small pop quiz and some Checkpoint revision. She told us to write the reactivity of the elements. I then started writing. Potassium. Sodium. Lithium. Calcium. Magnesium. Aluminium. Carbon, or wait, is it carbon? Ah yes, Carbon. Zinc. Iron. Tin. Lead. Copper. Oh, I forgot the next one.
I groaned as I almost got everything correct except carbon! Aargh! Branson Choon won the ‘competition’! What a quiz! Branson Choon then put his fists in the air and shouted, “Yes! Yes!”
The next day, 8th October 2015, started well as I revised for the very last Geography assessment. Then, I met Caleb Chuang in class and told him of what happened when he was away.I told him about what Ms Ng was doing and what we did as well as the tens of thousands of inconveniences caused by the haze and school closures and how the great fun of 2015 was ruined! Not to mention that all the events in my case were put on pause as he was away in the UK to watch his sister's graduation. Megan Lee was amused to hear what I talked to Caleb Chuang. “He misses you, Caleb. He's been talking about you all the time,” she said. “Ya, Caleb,” said Le Anne, as the whole class told him that.
“WHAT?!” Caleb Chuang shrieked. His eyes opened and he smiled widely. He was in disbelief, shock and curiosity. I even told Caleb Chuang that I kept on going to Ms Ingel's office to ask on Mr Chuang's return to Nobel.
Ms Visa then came in for History. She wasn't in a good mood and then she told us to take out our books and to hand in the History coursework. I passed up mine. Then, Ms Visa told me to do my work and talk less with Caleb Chuang as I was giving him information on what Ms Visa was doing for the coursework as he was away. “Enough!” she cried. Then, she told us to make notes on World War II and the British Empire. Then it was English, and Ms Joyce taught us how to read passages.
During break time, I sat down all alone to revise for the Geography Skills test. I prayed as HARD as I could. I must beat Branson Choon. This is my strength. The easiest test of them all!
During Maths, Brendan Cheah played some jokes in class as I did the SAT questions that Ms Seline handed out. She also discussed the SAT 2004 questions that we did. I tried to concentrate and focus on the Geography test. Rick Tan earlier told me that this test does not need a lot of revision, and he knew I would do well in the test whatnot. He told me not to study, but I want a 100%. I mean, come on, it is Geographical Skills, so what good would it bring if I don't score 100%?
Ms Maddy then came into the class. The moment of truth had arrived. Ms Maddy said that the Geographical Skills test would be easy as the topics covered would be the basic skills learnt in Year 7, and I should thank Cikgu Baliah for the introductory class and the first Geography class. Ms Maddy thus gave us our final modular test for Geography. I wanted to nail a good result, as that was my final modular test and last ever exam for Geography. As Geography would not be taught in Year 10 and 11, I was hoping to sign off on a good note and get some good results for the exam.
The modular test was on the Geographical Skills, and it covered basic geographical skills that we should know, such as giving the four-figure and six-figure grid coordinates for the grid references, shading and labeling countries, and all the basic things a rookie for this subject would need to master before going to the next topics.
Ms Maddy asked us to put our books away. Then, she begun to give out the exam papers. My heart was pounding, and my body was vibrating profusely. The last Geography modular test had arrived. The last one. I would miss this subject. It had been a memorable run. Geography was the subject where all my As would pass through. I wonder what will replace this subject in Year 10 and 11 as Geography wasn't present. I am going to miss studying Geography.
I mean, I looked at my textbook where there is a promotion on GCSE Geography. Sadly, Nobel did not offer it. So sad. Anyhow, no time to waste. The exam was starting.
Before the exam started, Ting Yi and Branson Choon glared at me. Then, Sean Mark and Jason played jokes. Rick grinned at me. I was nervous. Really. My heart pounded so hard till I felt my table shake. Then, we started.
1. Shade in Malaysia on the map of South East Asia below.
Oh, how easy the paper was! Aargh, so easy! But I made sure that the shade was neat. Otherwise, marks would be costed.
2. Label Sabah, Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia on the map above.
Still quite easy. I was so excited as it was SO EASY! But too much excitement will result in inaccuracy and things will go wrong. There was chatter in the class. “Shh!” commanded Ms Maddy. I had to concentrate.
3. Label the three seas surrounding Malaysia.
Easy. The three seas are the South China Sea, Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea.
4. What is Malaysia's longest river?
5. What is the name of Malaysia's highest mountain?
6. What is the tallest mountain that can be found on Peninsular Malaysia?
Oh, what a piece of cake it was! The Rajang River, Mount Kinabalu and Mount Tahan were the answers. I just put Batang Rajang just in case things went wrong.
Then, I had to label the 13 states of Malaysia. I placed numbers on the map and labeled them on a list. I labeled them as slowly as possible. Then, before I went to the next question, I checked and schemed the answers frantically. All was well, and I moved on.
8. What are Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya on Peninsular Malaysia and Labuan on Sabah referred to as?
Federal territories. So easy. Even babies also can do it, I guess.
Then, there was a need to label the lines of latitude, longitude, equator, Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. This was still easy. All correct so far. I was making it. I was getting it good!
The last questions tested on grid references and coordinates. I used a ruler, punched in the correct numbers and answered the questions. This was tricky. The numbers must be right. Then, the exam was ending. I checked everything, showed my serious look, and handed in my paper. Oh please, may I do well!
After the Geography exam, I didn't talk much. I went to have a quick lunch. I was so hungry. The day went normally after that. Ugh. I feel so stressed studying for Geography. But the thing is, it was my last paper. No more Geography fun in Year 10. I feel relieved, but also really sad. The Geography adventures, from Cikgu Baliah's pyramid, to the large weather devices and volcano models, were outstanding. Ms Maddy and Cikgu Baliah were the best teachers of them all.
We then had Mandarin, and Ms Belle discussed the worksheet she gave us. Benjamin Fong and James Wong then took off their clothes to enjoy the air conditioning and laid down on the floor, and Ms Belle was really mad at them. She got angry at them and told them to get out of the class. Then, she continued discussing the work before giving them a stern lecture. Ms Ng then loaded us with SAT papers. No Fine Art Club CCA for this day as well. The Year 10s were having their exam as well, and Ms Feeda was busy with the Art and Design IGCSE exam.
We then came to the end of the week, Friday, 9th October. The day went smoothly as Ms Ng did a recap on the mneumonics she taught us. Then, a lot of past-year papers were given. SAT papers too. My bag and files were crammed with ton of SAT papers. Ms Joyce then gave us one final revision for the day before the exam week. And during Homeroom time, Ms Ng gave us a motivational talk and some updates on the haze.
“Please don't worry about the haze. If the school closes, the school will arrange the exam accordingly and we will let you know. Also, please do your best in the exam and make sure you turn up for your exam and follow the exam rules. All the best!” said Ms Ng.
The week of Cambridge Checkpoint had arrived. It was Monday, 12th October 2015. And a normal morning assembly was held for the first time in weeks since the haze started.
On that morning, I just ate my breakfast and decided to have some ‘me time’. It was surreal. Checkpoint is coming. And I went around my daily routine. Then, I went to meet Xang Yen, who was in Year 6 that year and explained to him about the Checkpoint Exam. He didn't seem to comprehend or know what the exam was at first, but his mother realized what it was when I explained to her. The both of them wished me all the best.
Then, I returned to the hall as Caleb Chuang arrived. Well, everyone returned to school because the haze situation had improved. Just as I sat down with Rick, Jordan and Caleb Chuang to have a chat, the music begun to play, signaling the start of the morning assembly. The assembly proceedings went on as usual. Then, Ms Bee Yong came on stage to make the announcements.
“This week, the school hall will be used for the Checkpoint Exam, so on Thursday and Friday, you can go straight to your classes,” she instructed. “Year 9s, you are sitting your Checkpoint, right?” asked Ms Bee Yong. Ms Lim then asked everyone to wish us Year 9s the very best for Checkpoint.
After the assembly, Ms Praveen instructed us Year 9s to stay back for a briefing for the Checkpoint Exam. We were briefed on the administrative matters of the exam. Ms Praveen said that we need to arrive on time or risk being barred from taking our examinations.
We then headed back to class. Everyone was talking about the exam, anticipating the best and the worst of this horrible beast. We were thinking as to how to approach the Checkpoint Exam. It was so interesting and yet nervous at the same time. Cikgu Zura then came in. The class was still talking about the exam, resulting in Cikgu Zura trying to calm us down and get some work started.
During break time, I talked to San Ying on the aspects of the exam and told her how the experience was like during the Kangaroo Maths Competition, and compared the setup to the Checkpoint Exam. “The Checkpoint Exam is different from the Kangaroo Maths Competition,” she said. Kit Lee, who was sitting next to us, also agreed with her. I explained that the sitting arrangement was the same, to which point they were satisfied.
After returning from our break time, Ms Visa then taught about the history of World War II, but most people want to study and rest for Checkpoint. However, Ms Visa continued to teach about the Japanese Empire and how it affected countries like Malaya during the war. Soon, we approached our final Maths lesson before the Checkpoint Exam. Ms Seline walked into the class, plopped her things down, and smiled. “Class, you may return to your previous sitting arrangement as it was before,” she said. The whole class cheered.
“Teacher, do you have any advice for us for Checkpoint?” asked Wences. Soon, the entire class was asking her for advice.
“When you get the paper, read the questions. Understand the questions. Make sure that on Friday (the day of the Maths exam), bring your Geometry Set. Make sure you have your pencil, protractor and compass,” she said.
Ms Seline then told us that we can bring the stationery in the Geometry Set, which consists of a protractor, ruler, set square and two compasses. The Geometry Set also came with its own pencil and eraser that can be fitted on the compass to mark out arcs for the construction of shapes on the exam paper.
“No drawing angles using pens, ya!” she cried. “When you do your workings, do them using pen. When drawing graphs, angles and shapes, use a PENCIL. Otherwise, marks will be deducted,” she said.
“Teacher, I am scared,” said Natalie Seah, and a lot of people said the same. Ms Seline was flabbergasted. “Hai yoh! Did you all do your revision? I gave so many SAT papers! If you had done them, then that is good. Just don't worry so much on the exam, because if you are worried, you will not be able to do the paper.”
Then, it was the end of the lesson, and Ms Seline walked out of the class. It was lunchtime. I just took my Maths notes, went to the canteen, and read the past year papers while eating my lunch.
During our Bible Knowledge lesson, Mr Lim told us our exam scope for the Final Year Examination for Bible Knowledge. Then, he gave us our certificates of participation for the Bible Knowledge quiz, which was signed by Ms Moey Yoke Lai. He then did a prayer with us for our Checkpoint Exam. Joseph Diong and Sherwin led the prayers for the exam. It was a really momentous occasion. Ms Belle then gave us exercises and briefed us about the Final Year Examination scope for Mandarin.
The next morning, we had our English lesson, and Ms Joyce had a final revision tip for us for the Checkpoint Exam. She had a long question-and-answer session with us. Brandon Ooi kept on asking the most questions. She told us to read the questions properly, and that was that.
Ms Joyce had one last tip for us and she had a talk about what to expect for the English paper.
“Remember! Read the questions properly. Highlight the key points raised by the questions. Then, you will be okay,” she said. She had quite a long talk, addressing each and every question and concern we raised on the exam. The class was quite attentive and serious. No one wanted to make funny moves for the Checkpoint Exam.
“Don't worry about the difficulty level of the exam. I know you may be thinking that you are in Second Language and because of this, you are not as prepared as the ones from First Language. All of you will be taking the same paper. It is the approach to teaching and learning that is different. Since all of you are in Second Language, the school wanted to take a slower approach for you to answer the questions in the exam. The exam is actually quite easy,” she said.
I was flabbergasted. On one hand, we were told that the Checkpoint Exam is very difficult and on the other hand, it is easy. Ms Joyce then explained to us that as far as English is concerned, the exam should be very straightforward for us to do.
Meanwhile, during break time, Caleb Chuang and I sat with San Ying and the girls to discuss the Cambridge Checkpoint and what were the actions for the day. Everyone was excited about the prospect of going back home early following the end of the examination.
Then, we had our Geography lesson. The last one before the Checkpoint Exam. And, surprise, surprise! Ms Maddy had our Geographical Skills Test results! Oh wow! My heart started beating and pumping. What would be my result? Ms Maddy then gave out the papers one by one.
My heart started pounding. I can feel it again. Goodness. My body started shaking. Soon, my paper will arrive. Would this be it? Would IT arrive? Would this be something that I cherish for my whole life?
Then, my test paper landed on my desk. It was a 100%, and Ms Maddy's comment on the paper was, “Wow! Excellent!”
That was it! My first 100% since Year 4!
The result immediately sent me rocketing up from my seat. I put my fists up in the air. “YES! I DID IT! YES!!!!” I cried.
I screamed and cheered loudly and Ms Maddy joined in celebrating me. Coming in second at around 95 marks was Branson Choon himself, whom I had successfully beaten, and in third place at 91 marks, the one and only Caleb Chuang! Hip hip hurrah!
Rick Tan got annoyed with me cheering so loudly. “Wei Yiang, please, stop,” he moaned. Even Branson Choon wasn't amused that not only I beat him, but also achieved 100 marks. Then, Ms Maddy asked me to calm down and called the class for order.
“I must have to tell you, that I really spent some time marking these papers. I only wished that I had brought a ruler and wore proper glasses. I don't know if my eyesight was okay, but I only just had a deficiency. I only hope that I did not make any mistakes because if I was more accurate, some of you would have lower marks,” she said. Then, Ms Maddy said that she should have had placed a clearer picture for the grid references.
We discussed the papers, and I kept on answering the questions, but Ms Maddy told me to give a chance to other people as I got ALL the questions correct. Then, Branson Choon tried answering. We also dared each other again. Many people were annoyed with my excitement as I felt like doing a parade. Honestly speaking, I feel so happy till I cried on the inside with tears of joy. Geography was my favorite subject. It is a very prestigious thing for someone who likes the subject and cares about it to get 100 marks in the subject. I really had fun learning Geography. Then, as the so-called celebration ended, Ms Ng came in and discussed the last SAT papers and Branson Choon and I compared the results again. "Wei Yiang, please, stop competing,” said Ting Yi and Rick. Ms Ng then took me aside and said that I shouldn't compete because others would not like their results to be compared in a competition. Then, Ms Renee came in, and then she discussed our Health Test 2 and 3. Branson then cheekily took a look at my marks. I only achieved 50% while he got a B. “Hah! You lost!” he cried.
I feel so happy, especially with my Geography results. Geography thus became the third (and final) subject to score a 100% after Science in 2010 and Mandarin in 2011. And, as for the competition, I mean, come on. People could just show their marks only, right? What's the big deal? It's just competing marks, I thought.
Then, it was our Character Transformation session. Ms Praveen called all of us Year 9s to the basement hall of the lower canteen for a briefing on our Year 10 subject selection process because the teachers were setting up the hall for the Checkpoint Exam and also that the Elementary School students were having their PE lesson in the hall due to the haze. I was wondering about how the Year 10 Subject Selection Process would be conducted.
Now, subject selection is when I knew that there is a high chance of me and Caleb Chuang parting ways to different classes based on our Year 10 subjects, so I took the opportunity to listen to what Ms Praveen said. In fact, my mum had said that there are two streams that everyone would need to choose from; the Science stream and the Arts stream.
The basement hall was filled with all our Year 9 class teachers. Ms Ng, Ms Sylvia, Mr Narish, Ms Crystlyn, Ms Maddy, Ms Seline and all the other teachers were present, along with Ms Sha, Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Lee, who accompanied Ms Praveen to give the briefing to us.
Ms Praveen then got on the microphone and called us for attention. “I can still hear some people talking,” she said. Then, she begun the briefing.
“Now, you may think that Year 10 would be like Year 7 or Year 8. No exams like Checkpoint or IGCSE. Well, I want to say that Year 10 is not a honeymoon year like Year 7 or 8, and I just want to tell you that I am very sorry to say that,” she said. Ms Praveen then explained that the Year 10 and 11 subjects use one book, and that the subjects from Year 10 will be tested in the IGCSE exam as one syllabus. The Checkpoint Exam is a separate issue as it uses three different syllabi.
To select a subject for Year 10, Ms Praveen gave us a book which detailed how we were to choose the subjects, and how our grades can guide us on which subjects to choose. There were three categories that we had to choose from:
Sciences, namely Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Combined Science
Languages, namely English First, English Second and Malay,
Humanities, which include a series of subject selection of our choice.
We also had to take Mathematics, but there is also an Additional Mathematics being offered as well, and I didn’t want to take Additional Mathematics since my Maths is already a sinking ship of some kind. Hence, at the time, there were two subjects under the Mathematics category; Mathematics and Additional Mathematics.
There were also two other subjects offered after school, namely Mandarin and Bible Knowledge. These were optional subjects.
Ms Praveen said that if we fared badly in Maths or Science, then it is not advisable for us to take Biology, Chemistry and Physics or any one of the three. Since Year 6, I dreaded the Science subject being split into Biology, Chemistry and Physics upon entering secondary school, and I wanted to keep my sciences together, hence, I chose Combined Science. I got to know about Combined Science from a timetable and through peering into one of the Year 10 and 11 classes, and hence, as early as Year 8, I fixed my eyes on Combined Science as a subject to take in Year 10. Even if I were to be recommended to go to the triple science classes of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, I would still prefer Combined Science as it is easy to manage.
Aside from those normal, compulsory subjects, which are the Sciences (Combined Science, Biology, Chemistry and Physics), Malay (which is compulsory for all Malaysian students), Maths and English (First and Second), eight blocks of elective subjects were presented:
Block 1 – History, Economics, Global Perspectives, English Literature
Block 2 – Art and Design, Business Studies, Accounting, ICT
Block 3 – Global Perspectives, Economics, Additional Mathematics
Block 4 – Business Studies, Accounting, ICT
Block 5 (optional after-school subjects) - Mandarin Second, Mandarin Foreign, Bible Knowledge
“You see, there are subjects that have already been blocked out, and these are subjects you must not take if going for that stream,” she said, referring to a list of subjects that had five options we could take, and some subjects are marked with an X to cross it out. The list of blocked-out subjects include Economics and Global Perspectives, along with a list of Science subjects. The Group 1 students, consisting of the students taking Biology, Chemistry and Physics subjects, were not allowed to take Block 3 and 4 elective subjects to focus their time on the Sciences.
Ms Nadia, on the other hand, had been saying over the course of the entire year that if we are not taking Art and Design in Year 10 or 11, then we must cherish the time we have in Art lessons in Year 9 because that would be the final time we have a taste of Art and Design. She had been constantly reminding us to love art and appreciate the time we have for that subject. Of course, no one cared, and no one was interested.
All in all, at the end of the day, I chose the fourth option and then took the list of Combined Science, Global Perspectives, Mathematics and Malay as compulsory subjects, with the elective subjects as History, Art and Design, Economics and Business Studies. I would soon be transferred to the fifth option as the demand for the fourth option is low. I did not take Mandarin because my Mandarin is not so fluent, and also I had been struggling with Mandarin. I took Mandarin Basic and not Mandarin Foreign all the while. I decided to take the after school subject which is Bible Knowledge as I was interested to continue learning Bible Knowledge and carry on with what I started with in Year 7. Speaking of Malay, there was only a Malay Foreign Language offered back then at Nobel, and there was no First Language Malay at the time.
To add insult to injury, we were limited to choose our subjects based on how we performed in the Assessment 1, Assessment 2, Mid Year Examination, Checkpoint Trial and the CAT 4 Examination, with the first three of these grouped into the Internal Examination category. My CAT 4 result was labeled as “average”and my Internal Examination and Checkpoint Trial results were “good” for English and “average” for Maths and Science. This meant that I was also recommended to take the Arts stream which consisted of the Combined Science subjects. However, I didn't care about my results, as even if my results were the top in the class, I will still choose Combined Science. The Biology, Chemistry and Physics subjects would be a headache for me if separated, and that meant studying so many Sciences. I prefer to keep my Sciences together.
Ms Praveen then continued to explain about the subjects. “For English, you have to choose either English First or Second. You cannot choose both. And also, for your elective subjects, please think of what you want to choose, because once you choose it, you have to stick with the subject for Year 10 and Year 11. This is because some students said that they want to drop out of their subjects or change subjects, and it makes life difficult for us. So, once you chose your subjects, please stick to your subjects.” Ms Praveen also said we had to submit our subject selection form after the end of the Cambridge Checkpoint Exam.
Once we were done, we returned to our class and headed to the Art Studio, where Ms Nadia was waiting for us. She was not happy that we were late. Apparently, Ms Praveen had run overtime, and had taken up a bit of the lesson. Ms Nadia then did the Art and Design Final Year Examination with us. When she collected the papers, she told those people who do not intend to do Art in Year 10 that this was their last paper. After returning downstairs, I took one last look at the school hall's setup through the doors before I went home. Ms Lee, Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong were inspecting the hall to ensure that everything is ready.
The next day, Wednesday, 14th October 2015, was the eve of the Checkpoint Exam. It is a rather sunny day before the eve of the exam. The haze had receded. All systems were ready. It was the Awal Muharram public holiday. I spent the day resting, not studying and trying to relax my mind for the Checkpoint Exam. And I spoke to my neighbor, Mr Hing, who wished me the very best.
Cambridge Checkpoint, the dreaded exam, had finally arrived. It took place on 15th, 16th and 19th October 2015, with the 15th being dedicated for English, the 16th for Maths and the 19th for Science. All of the subjects had two papers. After months of preparation, we were ready for the test.
Cambridge Checkpoint receives a total of around 5 million students every year, who enroll for this sitting. As the boundary that separates KS3 with KS4, it is not just a recap of every single thing that we have learnt since Year 7, but also a test of our honesty and endurance to face the upcoming Cambridge IGCSE examination. We were the fourth batch of students to sit for Cambridge Checkpoint.
The morning of 15th October 2015 was a very calm and sunny morning. I got up really early. In fact, I was already up from my bed at 5:00am. It was so surreal. After hearing batch after batch sit the Checkpoint Exam, it was my turn, as well as that of my peers. The moment of truth had arrived. After preparing and anticipating this examination, the day of the very first exam arrived.
I arrived school at my usual time, 6:45am and then headed to the canteen to eat my breakfast. Then, I proceeded to my class, 9O. There, I sat down in the class and waited for everyone to arrive. While waiting, I took the time to look at my identity card (IC) and my Statement of Entry. The Statement of Entry contains a list of our subjects that we are sitting for as well as our candidate details. All the above information, namely my Statement of Entry and my IC were contained in a plastic bag that I carry for convenience's sake. Then, I went for a walk.
The first thing that I saw when peeking from outside the school hall from a distance were rows upon rows of tables placed in the school hall. There were barricades installed, but there were small openings left when exams are not in progress. The linkway between the foyer and the canteen passes by the school hall, so barricading the hall would not be an option when exams are not in progress. Instead, a red-and-white caution tape was tied to the pillars between the courtyard and the corridor, and the two inlets and outlets of the corridor that connected the canteen with the foyer were just left open outside of exam hours so that people can conveniently pass through. This is important, especially for the teachers who had to walk to the lift from the foyer to head to their staffrooms.
I walked up to the second floor to have a view of the sunrise. There, I passed by the Junior and Senior School's Management Office, and I greeted Ms Praveen, who asked if I was ready. I answered in the affirmative.
“Ms Praveen, may I ask what time do we need to gather?” I asked Ms Praveen. She then told me to tell my friends to go down at 8:00am and wait in the canteen. Thereafter, I met Ms Ng, who arrived earlier than usual. She was clocking in to her office as I greeted her while talking to Ms Praveen. Then, Ms Bee Yong arrived and I greeted her too while Ms Praveen and I had a chat.
I then returned to my class. The class was filled with people. It was 7:00am. Rick Tan was sitting next to me as the class begun to fill up with people.
“Wei Yiang, are you ready for Checkpoint?” he asked. I told him I was ready and he nodded. Natalie Seah, Sara Yow and Eu Lynn were busy looking at each other’s ICs. In fact, everyone in the class was looking at each others’ ICs for some time, curious to find out where their home addresses were. Rick Tan even asked for Jordan's home address. He prefers to have his address private. Caleb Chuang said he lives in Serdang, but has a Salak Selatan address on his card.
Restless, I then walked around the hallways to look at the classes as well as other people who were preparing for the exam, to calm myself. I then talked to Glen Kay who was in 9N, about the Checkpoint exam, and then thereafter, met more of my friends whom I conversed with. Then, Ms Ng came in and took our attendance. Ms Ng then told us that we need to gather at the canteen soon.
As we were getting ready to head to the school hall, Jason and Benjamin Fong had forgot to bring their Statement of Entry. Ms Ng was disappointed, and told them to see Ms Praveen in the office for a new slip. Loss of a Statement of Entry would result in a RM 200 penalty just to print the new Statement of Entry.
At 8:00am, everyone was asked to bring their bags down for the exam. The previous day, the school had sealed off the entire hall with construction tape and cordoned off the venue from the students so that no one can play hanky panky and disturb the candidates inside the school hall. The tables were placed in the hall in an examination format, spaced out from one another to deter people from copying answers. It was the same configuration as the Kangaroo Maths Competition, except that it was for a real exam administered by Cambridge and not some hanky panky talent show.
I talked with Jordan, Rick, Branson, Ting Yi, Aaron Loke and Caleb Chuang. Jordan Tay tried to play jokes to keep everyone comfortable. Then, I spoke with Rick on how I sat during the Kangaroo Maths Competition. For some, it was really a panic mode sitting in a large school hall for the exam, so I tried to talk about how I coped with that setup during the Kangaroo Maths Competition.
Soon, we found a spot to sit at the canteen, but I went and waited at the corridor for the teachers to give us the green light to put our bags. Then, the doors of the lift opened. Ms Yew Foong Ching, Ms Sha, Ms Praveen and Ms Lee pushed a large trolley, which contained stacks of examination equipment, from examination papers to attendance lists and even Notices to Candidates. In fact, the trolley was filled with paperwork. They wheeled in tons of examination stationery from the Junior and Senior School Management Office into the school hall.
Most Notices to Candidates had a mobile phone which was crossed out. I was afraid of the examination rules, as one mistake may result in us being unable to take the exam or even worse, failing it. Both are as equally as bad.
Outside the hall, Ms Sha and Ms Yew Foong Ching were supervised by Ms Praveen, who was in charge of the examination affairs at the time. Then, a few other teachers then arrived to assist. They placed signs saying, “Exams in Progress” outside the school hall to warn people that a test was going on. Ms Praveen and Ms Yew Foong Ching then came out and checked if the signs and everything was okay before announcing that we would be allowed to place our bags. I walked to the front of the school hall's door and placed my bag against the wall. The crowd was in pandemonium and the noise level got higher as the anxiety of sitting for an international examination gripped us.
Everyone placed their bags against the wall outside the examination hall just like how any other Year 9 student would do. In my hand, I grasped my Statement of Entry, my IC and a transparent pencil case which is a plastic bag, as per the requirements of the examination. This is nothing new; Nobel International School had already required everyone to bring transparent pencil cases for their exams since 2013, in order to deter would-be cheaters from spoiling the effort made by the rest.
Rick Tan and I talked for a while and wished us all the best. Then, I went to the front to check my candidate number. Each student was given a candidate number for the examination, and mine was 0035. This is the requirement Cambridge asks from us for the exam; there was no qualms disobeying the order.
“Okay, students, you may enter now,” called Ms Praveen. She checked our documents before we entered the hall.
The hall was air-conditioned as I entered. I then looked around and tried to find my spot to sit down. Upon finding my seat, there was a sticker at the side of the table that listed my candidate number, name and class. There were three screens displayed in the hall; the two screens on the left and right displayed a large clock which contained the time for us to see. The third screen in the center of the hall read:
ENGLISH
1111/01
PAPER ONE
DURATION: 1 HOUR 10 MINUTES
1111/01 refers to the subject code and the paper number. Aside from these, a series of signs showing crossed-out mobile phones lay in the hall. The hall was filled with a lot of our Year 9 teachers who came to invigilate us, and Ms Joyce, Mr Thomas, Ms Ng, Ms Bee Yan, Ms Gerardine, Cikgu Zura and Mr Daniel were in the hall for the invigilation. One by one, students streamed into the hall and there were constant reminders to be silent as we entered the school hall. Jason Leing then arrived in front of me with his printed Statement of Entry, just in the nick of time. He pulled his chair and sat down while looking around to see if Benjamin Fong was fine. Yin Wei soon arrived thereafter, sitting in front of Jason.
Everyone was asked to proceed to their seats quickly by Ms Praveen and not make any noise when entering the school hall for the examination. Some people were taking their own sweet time, and were asked to hurry up. Then, the doors slammed shut. The exam was about to begin. We stood at our desks and waited till we were asked to be seated.
“Okay students, please be seated,” said Ms Renee, who made the announcement. “We will open the question papers.”
All the teachers came to the front of the hall, with some patiently monitoring the candidates, searching for violators like how a cat catches a mouse. A large canteen table lay in front of the hall, as stacks of examination papers and stationery were placed on the stage inside the hall. There was a table in front of the hall, which the teachers gathered in front of for any rough work purposes. The halls were decked with examination notices, which were plastered on the back, front, left, right and center of the hall. There was also a whiteboard located at the right hand side of the hall, next to the stage and the table where rough work was being done.
Each candidate's desk was a small, lightweight table that had a grey top with black legs. The grey plastic chairs were very comfortable. The cool air blew in my face as I placed the plastic bag containing my Statement of Entry on the floor. Next to that bag, I placed my transparent pencil case and my water bottle, which was stripped of its cover.
The teachers then gathered at the table at the side of the hall, where Ms Praveen briefed them on what to do. Then, Ms Lee Kaesy then cut a paper bag that was placed on the stage which contained the examination scripts. She used a large scissor to snip open the packaging, and out of the bag, there were over 100 copies of examination scripts. She then placed them on the table in front of the hall, and put the bag aside. The bag was blue in color, with some white stripes as well. The reason why the bag was blue was that it contained the Cambridge International Examinations (now Cambridge Assessment International Education) branding.
“Teachers, please give out the exam papers,” said Ms Lee. Every teacher then proceeded to distribute copies of examination scripts to us.
“Please ensure that your statement of entry and your IC are placed at the side of your desk,” said Ms Renee, as she begun to read the instructions of the examination.
“Do not open the question paper until I instruct you to do so. You are now under exam conditions and must follow the rules detailed on the ‘Notice to Candidates’ posters you can see in the room. You must not communicate with, ask for help from, or give help to any other candidate in the exam room. If you have a question at any time you must raise your hand and wait until an invigilator comes to you. Invigilators cannot answer any questions about the content of the question paper. You are here to take: English Paper 1, subject code 1111, component code 01. You should have a question paper on your desk.”
The examination papers were not copies of paper being stapled together like how Nobel did for the Mid Year Examination or Final Year Examination. Instead, it was printed and binded the same way as to how an exercise book would be done. Or a magazine which you pick up from a bookstore. It was more of like a booklet. We then wrote our candidate number and centre number, which is MY319 for Nobel International School, on the top of the paper.
“Write clearly in blue or black ink using a ballpoint pen,” instructed Ms Renee. “Do not use any kind of correcting fluid or tape. Do any rough work on the question paper provided. Cross through it neatly so it can be seen. You have one hour and fifteen minutes to complete this exam. The start time is 8:20am and the finish time is 9:30am. I will let you know when there are five minutes of the exam left. You may open your question papers and begin.”
Once the paper started, the examination was quite easy for English as all that was needed was to read the text and to answer the questions and comprehensions based on the text. It was very straightforward. There was no hassle or stress, and the examination was quite easy to do. The teachers then walked around the hall, inspecting everyone and checking their Statement of Entry and IC. Those who had to answer nature's call were led by teachers, who gave a VIP escort to ensure no one played the fool during their toilet breaks.
Time passed, and 1 hour 10 minutes evaporated without incident.
“I am sorry to interrupt you, but your exam has finished,” a voice called out. It was Mr Thomas announcing to everyone in the hall that the examination had ceased. He walked around, smiled and looked around the hall. He dressed up smartly, wore a tie, and had a beard on his face. He grinned at everyone, with an intention to comfort.
Ms Renee then came and made an announcement for all of us to stop writing and then wait for our teachers to collect the papers. Everyone then smiled and turned around, focusing their eyes on Mr Thomas, while I looked in front.
“Students, please don’t turn around,” said Ms Renee, addressing the candidates. “The exam has finished, stop writing and put your pens down. You are still under exam conditions so please remain silent and seated at your desks. Please check you have entered all the necessary information on your question paper. Check you have neatly crossed through any rough work, group together any continuation sheets in question number order and attach to your question paper using string or the treasury tag provided. Stay seated and silent until you are told that you can leave the room.”
Each teacher swiftly moved like clockwork, stripping one paper after another off our tables. They then grouped the papers together, reported to the front and then presented themselves at the large table located next to the stage.
Once the papers were collected and placed in the front of the hall, Ms Praveen and Ms Yew Foong Ching then counted the papers and then placed them back into another blue paper bag for the papers to be stored safely. Then, Ms Praveen asked everyone to leave, row by row.
“Okay, now, I want you to leave row by row. When I say row 1, please stand up and you may leave the hall. Row 1. Stand up and leave now. The next row. Next. Next. Next.”
When Ms Praveen gave the command by saying, “Next”, everyone stood up. They pushed their chairs out and pushed it in. The sound made from the dragging of the chairs sounded like a drill being at work at a construction site. I mean, it was like a drill and a Chinese drum being sounded together.
During break, everyone was talking about how easy the paper was and what was in the content of the paper. "So easy. I never expected it!” I cried. I then talked to Rick Tan and Caleb Chuang about the paper, and then had my meal. Then, I went to have a walk and waited for the next exam session to start. While waiting, I saw Ms Lee and Ms Sha push in a second set of examination papers from the office to the hall. They asked if I had taken my breakfast, before they reached the front door of the hall. Ms Lee and Ms Sha had to lift the trolley in order to clear a small step at the front of the hall. Then, as I passed by the front office, I met Puan Halimah, who wished me all the best.
Following the break time, we then returned for the next examination session from 10:00am to 11:10am. The music then played, but the outside of the hall was filled with a lot of people returning for their examinations. The Year 7s and 8s peered at us lining up outside the hall. Then, we got ready for our next exam.
The same order repeated itself. Ms Lee and Ms Sha checked our documents and items before we were allowed entry into the hall. We then stood behind our desks and Ms Renee then once again instructed us to sit. Some people were late, and Ms Praveen told them to hurry before closing the doors. Ms Praveen then brought the next stack of exam papers and then she, along with Ms Yew and Ms Sha, cut open the exam papers. Each homeroom teacher was present for the invigilation of English Paper 2. They gave out our second batch of scripts. We then begun the exam, and I read the front page and then wrote my essay in it.
“You have five minutes left until the end of the exam.” Oh, that was fast.
Once the exams were done, everyone smiled as the first exam of a three-part series ended without any chaos. We were then dismissed and asked to go back home as our names were called in the hall for us to leave. “Okay, students, your names will be called. I don't want you to immediately walk out of the hall. You should leave when you hear your name being called,” said Ms Praveen. Soon, names were blasting around the loudspeakers as the dismissal time for Year 9 students arrived. I then picked up my bag and left. “No talking,” instructed Ms Praveen. Once I got into my aunt's car, which was waiting outside, I then told her about how easy the exam was and how I could easily do it. It was so easy. That easy. I then reached home, called my mum, and told her the news. One out of three days was completed. My tuition teacher, Mr Nehru, then came that afternoon for an extra Maths tuition class.
On the second day, we had Mathematics, and I arrived in school at the usual time, same as the previous day. Except that I arrived a bit later than usual, knowing what was in store.
When I arrived at school, I ate my breakfast and went up to 9O and tried to get some Maths questions done. Eventually, I felt bored doing the SAT papers and ended up conversing with Caleb Chuang, Rick Tan and Jordan Tay, who all boasted about their Mathematics capabilities.
Natalie and Sara then had a look at their ICs again, and many people were armed with their Maths books. The class was in a conversing mood, as Branson, Jordan and Ting Yi tried doing Maths questions. I then went for a short walk before returning for a chat with Ze Khai. Soon, Ms Ng came in and took our attendance and talked to some of us on the Checkpoint Exam and how easy the English paper was. “Make sure you study for my Science paper!” she exclaimed and laughed. We then proceeded to the school hall as usual at 8:00am, and minutes later, we were in front of the school hall to face our Maths Paper 1. Ms Ng also followed us as we went down to the hall.
As usual, Ms Lee and Ms Praveen carried the trolley from the lift and wheeled them into the hall. Ashlyne Yong and Brittany Lim, who were talking, gave way for the trolley. Then, the teachers, including Ms Ng, tried to lift the trolley and I assisted them a bit. Then, I got my stationery ready before we were told to line up for entry. We then trudged down to the school hall. The elementary school were having their break time. I then saw Xang Yen having his breakfast. I then had a short chat with him about the Checkpoint Exam and what it was.
“Why are there so many people outside the hall?” Xang Yen asked, curious about the explanation. “We are having Checkpoint Exam, Xang Yen. Today is the second day,” he said. I then proceeded to explain about how the Checkpoint Exam works. “We have to gather outside the hall as we are going in for our exams,” I said. Then, I told Xang Yen about the fact that we had to study the Year 7, 8 and 9 topics altogether just for this one exam. His eyes bulged. He was also surprised when he saw the large trolley being pushed into the hall.
On the other hand, Justin Yeo was in front with his Year 7 and 8 textbooks. Pranavee, as a new student to Nobel, had to catch up. Fortunately, she had Nicole, Jen Thong and a few people to assist her. Some people, like Jian Wen, also had their Year 7 and 8 Science books as well, to memorize and study Science if they were tired with Maths.
Then, our teachers started calling us to enter quickly. I was talking to Xang Yen behind when the teachers came calling. I waved goodbye to Xang Yen, took my stationery hastily, and bolted to the front of the hall to enter in the nick of time. There were still people outside walking into the hall. Ms Sugunes then told the elementary school students not to go near us as we were entering the school hall for the second leg of our three-subject, six paper series.
I took out my Geometry Set, put all the equipment in my transparent pencil case, and walked to the entrance to be checked. Somehow, the compass poked my finger accidentally. Perhaps I should have a plastic casing instead of a plastic bag. Then, once everything was thoroughly checked, I entered the hall and waited at my seat. Jason Leing was a bit slow as he had to borrow a second set of protractor. He had been searching for someone to borrow from. He wanted to ask me, as I had a spare, but I couldn't talk in the examination hall, which made him annoyed as he needed his stationery.
All our Year 9 class teachers were in the school hall taking care of us. Ms Ng was there, Ms Bee Yan as well, and all the rest. The exam was about to start. Ms Praveen warned all the candidates to keep quiet. Then, Ms Lee distributed the exam papers to the teachers, and everyone soon had Maths Paper 1 on their desks. The examination paper for Maths was written in Times New Roman text, unlike the English paper.
When I opened the Maths paper, I found out how difficult it was. I tried to do some equations, but it was without luck. However, I was still able to do some questions. Then, the five-minute warning appeared and it was over.
I did not manage to finish the Mathematics paper in the nick of time. I tried to write some answers after the command was given to stop, but then I stopped writing. Then, I checked my answers and my script was collected. We were then ushered out of the hall. Before going for break, I told Rick Tan about my grievances of not finishing Maths Paper 1 and how it affected my marks for Checkpoint. Rick Tan told me following the first paper that everything would be okay, and to try to finish the second paper. “Just focus on completing Paper 2,” he said.
It was then time for Maths Paper 2. Just one more paper was needed and I will be free from Maths. We then entered the school hall. Some people were slow as they came back from the toilet at a late time. Then, Ms Ng, who invigilated our class, handed out Maths Paper 2. Although it was harrowing to sit in a hall filled with people doing the examinations in the presence of international standards, I feel comfortable and confident with Ms Ng's presence. She was our Science and also homeroom teacher, and cared for us well and motivated us.
The second paper was much easier, and I tried to do it. I fumbled with the questions a little, but managed to finish the paper in the nick of time. I feel fortunate to have completed the second paper as planned. In comparison, the Maths Paper 1 was difficult. When the papers were collected, I felt relieved of the fact that I am done with Maths. Just one more subject to go.
The teachers collected the papers. Ms Seline smiled at everyone as she brought the papers to the table. Ms Praveen and Ms Lee were counting the papers, and Ms Yew Foong Ching watched to ensure that everything was in order. Once done, we were allowed to leave as our names were called. Ms Praveen, Ms Lee and Ms Yew carefully fit the papers into the bag with care. I then told my aunt on the car ride home about the Maths exam experience. Then, that afternoon, I went to collect bottles for my gardening projects from the park at my house. There were college students playing football every evening and brought tens of thousands of plastic bottles.
During the weekend, I looked at my Science notes, and the haze was back. The monster had just come back to haunt. Oh dear. Then, it was announced that the schools would be closed. I was worried, but under the Haze Emergency Plan, the Checkpoint Exam would need to continue. The API reading was at 100 on the first day of Cambridge Checkpoint. It crossed the 150-point mark on Friday, 1 200-point mark on Saturday, 17th October. A day later, on the 18th, it shot up to 270 points. It was nearing the hazardous level. 2015 was then bound to surpass 1997 as the worst haze Malaysia had experienced on record. The reason why the haze situation improved from the 6th to the 16th was because the winds blew the haze originating from Sumatra towards the Indian Ocean. How horrible things were! Okay, nevermind. Just one more day to go. I switched on the air conditioning and did my studies for Science, thinking about all the fun I had with Ms Ng and bloating out the haze.
The Science paper was held on Monday, 19th October 2015. Like English and Maths, we also had two papers for Science. However, the examination had to proceed under a plan which required the Year 10s and Year 9s to return for the exam due to the haze, and the exams could not be postponed. The Year 10s returned for the Final Year Examination which took so many subjects many days to complete. The Year 9s however, were in their final stage of battling the last paper of Cambridge Checkpoint. The rest of the other year levels were asked to stay home due to the haze, as school closed for the day, based on the Haze Management Plan.
I arrived at school at 7:15am; a bit later than usual. There were already cars outside the school dropping all the Year 9s and Year 10s off. I hate coming to school late, especially when people were arriving. I like coming to school before everyone arrives.
When we arrived in class, I spent most of my time either reading the textbook or my Science notes I made, and talked to Caleb Chuang about the haze. He arrived a short while after I entered the class. The entire class was reading their Science notes given by Ms Ng.
I kept on venting my frustration to Caleb Chuang over how many times school had to close due to haze, and how we cannot spend our time together because we had less school days, which mean less school activities and the faster we would reach the end of the year. “Luckily we have school thanks to Checkpoint. Otherwise, it would be so boring!” I moaned.
Benjamin Fong had flicked the air conditioning to full blast till the class froze like the North Pole. I had to agree with him because it was to protect us from the haze. You see, normally, we are only allowed to wear jackets in our classroom. Nobel had no official jacket then, and we could wear whatever we wished. However, when we are outside our classroom, we are not allowed to put on our jackets.
Then, Rick Tan and I had a chat for a while. We then talked together about how Branson Choon and I competed. One thing to note was that out of the three subjects tested during the Checkpoint Exam, only Science did not have set teaching. Hence, we were able to compete with each other in the same class. “You should not be competing with people, because some people don't want to compete,” said Rick Tan. Then, I plopped back in my seat, read the Science notes Ms Ng gave me, and then, Ms Ng talked to us about the exam. Some people, like Megan, were too stressed as Ms Ng spoke, so she played some jokes in class. Before long, Ms Ng instructed us to head to downstairs to get ready for the Science exam. It was 8:20am.
The Science paper was quite straightforward. It only took us around 45 minutes for the entire duration of the paper. The exam lasted from 8:45am to 9:30am. It had a very late start but an early finish. All that was needed was to fill in the blanks and label diagrams.
On the last day of our exams, we were very excited as the Science exam was not only easy, but short. All we needed to do was memorize before we go for the examination. In short, everyone was excited for this day, as this would mark the end of heavy baggage and worries for the year. After a total of ten months, we were approaching the end. To be honest, I spent most of my time on Paper 1 and 2 smiling and thinking, “this is too easy, I can easily score.”
Everyone was standing in the hall as I went to my seat. Jason was at his seat already. Then, we stood in front before we were told to sit. This time, Ms Lee was in front to announce the rules and regulations to us as Ms Renee cut open the packaging that contained the scripts. Ms Ng, who was invigilating our row, handed the scripts to us. Then, Ms Praveen told us not to talk as the examination was starting. It was clear that this was the last day of exams.
The Science paper was really straightfoward. Really. Some questions from the past year papers or even the SAT papers came out for the test, which made my life easier. Within minutes, the paper was ending. I completed the paper as the five minute mark was announced. Then, Ms Renee then made the announcement to stop and then our papers were collected. Then, Ms Praveen made an announcement as the teachers kept the papers in a plastic bag.
“Ok, students, I want to let you know that some of you are still talking even during the examination and even after you have entered into the hall. This is an exam, and I can understand that the next paper will be your last paper. If you continue to talk, you can be disqualified,” she warned, before calling us to leave row after row.“Please don't make so much noise as the Year 10s are having their exams,” she reminded us.I then went for my break time as the teachers brought the trolley and exam papers to the strong room located on the second floor. They stopped at the lift to wait for the lift to arrive before going up.
Then, I had a chat with Caleb Chuang. “Finally. Our Checkpoint Exam is ending,” I sighed, knowing that we had one more paper to go. “We have not ended yet. Just one more paper,” said Rick. I then took some time to read my Science books, walk around the school corridors and also enjoy the school environment and companion of my friends.
Jordan then took out his apple and snibbed on it, as his mother had brought for him. Then, I followed Jordan, and we had a chat on the next steps ahead. I then told him about how fast the year was ending. We then walked around and then looked at the stalls. The canteen was empty except for everyone who chose to study or eat some breakfast.
Then, at 10:30am, after studying, fiddling around and waiting for an hour, the second paper started. I then took my things and entered the hall. I almost forgot my pen, and went out to take it. The whole hall was in an electric mode as Science Paper 2 started. This last paper was witnessed by the top members of the management team. Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan were here to see off the start of the examination.
Then, Ms Praveen announced that the papers were being given out. All teachers gave the hand signal for silence, knowing that everyone was really excited for the exam. The management was watching as the final paper for Cambridge Checkpoint kicked off.
Our nerves tightened with excitement, as each minute and second counted down the final moments of the examination. Our spirits were high. We have never seen such high spirits since the end of 2014.
The final moments kicked in. Some people tried to cheer as time ran out. “You have five minutes until the end of the exam,” said Ms Renee. There were cheers, but also counter-reactions of “Shh!”
At the end of the examination, as the clock ticked down to 11:00am, the end time of Paper 2, some people started counting down to the end of the examination. The clock struck eleven, and suddenly, the entire hall cheered. “Students, please keep quiet,” warned Ms Renee.
Once the exam papers were collected, our Checkpoint exams are officially over. I could see Rick Tan in the front lifting his hands up. Everyone had a smile on their face as the teachers breathe a sigh of relief following the end of the Checkpoint examination.
The teachers piled up the examination as Ms Bee Yong arrived and picked up the microphone. “Okay, Year 9 students! Your Checkpoint is over!” cried Ms Bee Yong. The whole hall cheered as if a football goal was scored. “So, ya. Give yourself a pat on the back. Tell the person next to you: we did it!” said Ms Bee Yong. There were cheers and excitement, as Ms Bee Yong said that we should go back quickly, and at the same time, focus on our Final Year Examination. “We will let you know when school reopens again,” she said. “In the meantime, please take care of your health and do not go outdoors.” The name calling begun as I went back home. The haze was so bad. Then, I had a rest at home, checked the Internet and laid down on my bed for a short while before having an afternoon drive with my aunt to look at the scenery outside after a long dull of Checkpoint fatigue. The school remained closed until Friday, 23rd October, due to the haze. The Year 10s continued to have their Final Year Examination. While at home, I read Wikipedia and Skyscrapercity to look at engineering projects. How tired it was studying for Checkpoint, not to also mention using my free time to check the Air Pollution Index. The school closures almost lasted ONE WEEK, you know. This is like additional holiday or an additional long break for us. A 'holiday’ to allow us to take a break from Checkpoint.
Friday, 23rd October 2015, was the first day in which we returned to school. The hall was sealed off once again, this time for Cambridge IGCSE. The Year 11s were now having their share of sitting in the school hall for the IGCSE exams.
I arrived at school early and placed my bag in the class. Then, I separated the tables in 9O so that the seating arrangement would be of examination standard. Rick Tan soon arrived and helped me to segregate them. Rick Tan then told me not to separate or move the tables excessively as people would be confused over where to put their things. We just separated them properly. Then, I walked around the school compound to enjoy the view. After walking for around half an hour to explore the school, I returned to 9O and had a chat with Caleb Chuang while Megan and Sara Yow went to meet friends from other classes. They were going to see Christiana Chin from 9B.
I then told Caleb Chuang about how I spent the three days at home when school closed. I felt so relaxed. In fact, I can relax, but however, it is best limited to school holidays, because meeting friends in school as well as school life are more important. We only have a month to go before school closes for the Year End Break. Then, Ms Ng came into the class to take our attendance.
“So, Checkpoint is over, right? After studying so long, you all are so happy and you think that you can relax for a short while. Unfortunately, no. You will have your Final Year Examination next week,” she said.
Ms Ng then warned everyone in the class against complacency, as in the past, most Year 9 students’ performances dropped during the Final Year Examination following the Checkpoint examination.
“Even though Checkpoint is already over, I hope that you can continue to study for the Final Year Examination as while Checkpoint is important, the Final Year Examination is also as equally important as the Checkpoint exam. Some students who performed well in the exam saw their grades drop after Checkpoint, and this is not good for the school because it seems like students do not take the school exams as serious as Checkpoint. So I hope that you can continue to study; Final Year Examination is as important as Checkpoint because why? It is because your Final Year Examination results determine which class you go to in Year 10,” said Ms Ng.
To enter into Year 10, we would need to select subjects, which were done back in September before the Checkpoint exam. To select the subjects, the determinants of which stream we would go into, be it arts stream or science stream, would need to be determined based on four main factors, namely the CAT4 exam, the Mid Year Examination results, the Checkpoint Trial results and the Final Year Examination results. CAT4 is the only exam which is based on our cognitive ability and brain performance, hence CAT4 is an acronym of Cognitive Assessment Test 4 which tests us on how we can picturize and do things like visual and mental behavior to a series of questions. I had submitted my form before the Checkpoint Exam started, but however, Ms Ng said that the teachers will compare the Final Year Examination results with our current results before selecting us to the recommended stream. “They will check your actual Checkpoint results as well,” she said.
Then, Ms Ng gave us some time to ask her questions. Le Anne then said that the Checkpoint is the benchmark result, but Ms Ng then said that the school will base our stream on our overall grades. “When you selected your Year 10 subjects, the selection is only temporary. The school can make changes to your selection if they found out that your Final Year Examination performance is very bad.”
We spent the entire lesson talking about the Checkpoint and Final Year Examination before we went for break. At the canteen table, I then talked to San Ying, Kit Lee and Sophie for a while. Then, once that was done, we went back to class for our Maths lesson. On the walk around the school compound, I then met with Puan Halimah and Ms Ingel, who were walking around, to deliver my updates on Checkpoint. They were pleased with my effort. I then approached Mr Chuang, and apologized to him on making Caleb Chuang sick by accident back in August. He laughed and accepted my reasoning.
Ms Seline then congratulated us on finishing Checkpoint. “The good news is that Checkpoint is over. The bad news is that you still have one more exam to go. The Final Year Examination.” Ms Seline then gave us worksheets, and the whole class groaned. The loudest to groan was Benjamin Fong.
Then, Ms Joyce came in and gave us worksheets. Brandon Ooi asked Ms Joyce if we could rest, but Ms Joyce said that it was not a school holiday and lessons would continue as usual. And it was History, and Ms Visa wanted to check our History notes in our exercise book on the World War II and Japanese and British empires. Many people did not do the work due to Checkpoint, but fortunately, I have done it. Ms Visa then threw a tantrum. “Why did you all not finish! You had three days after Checkpoint to do it!” she cried. Benjamin Fong then said that we needed to rest, but Ms Visa did not buy the excuse. She ordered everyone to complete the notes in class. Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Zura let us rest for the lesson. While the class did their own things, Cikgu Zura, Caleb Chuang and I had a chat. We then talked about the Final Year Examination scope for Malay, as well as the progression to Year 10. The day ended when Ms Ng came back and continued to discuss about many questions we asked regarding Checkpoint, Final Year Examination, and the Science and Art streams in Year 10. Branson Choon and Ting Yi went to collect some buns from Uncle KC's stall. Once that was done, Ms Ng talked to other people while Branson, Ting Yi, Caleb Chuang and Jordan played rocks, scissors and paper games, and we enjoyed ourselves till the day ended. Ms Sylvia came and also snacked on the buns. What a relaxing and wonderful Homeroom time to end a hectic week of Checkpoint, and also to start a new, upcoming week of Final Year Examination.
The Final Year Examination begun on a rough note. On the first day of exams (26th October), I arrived in school for the first examination. It was the English examination. I took my English books as I braced for a second round of examinations.
I plopped down on the canteen table upon arriving at school, ate my bread, and then headed to 9O. There, everyone soon arrived. I then took a walk around the school again, looking at every class. It was good to see everyone back in school after long weeks of haze-related school closures. Then, I proceeded to the foyer, waited for Caleb Chuang, and then he arrived. I then followed him up to 9O, and then Megan and Le Anne saw us coming. They smiled again.
“Best friends! So happy to be together again!” they cried. Then, Caleb Chuang and I talked to Megan and Le Anne. Sara Yow joined the conversation. Then, Ms Ng came in, took our attendance, and told us to get ready for our exams. As we put our bags outside the classroom for the English paper, we had a rude shock.
Ms Sha and Ms Yew came with a mobile whiteboard and placed it outside 9O's classroom, along with a name list and seating arrangement. The teachers attempted to ask each one of us to sit in different venues according to our name list. This meant that everyone had to sit according to the number of tables in the class and who was in the classroom. To make matters worse, the name list was in alphabetical order by our individual names and not by our class listing as what was done for the Cambridge Checkpoint examination in the hall the week before. Everyone was caught off guard as there was a name list and assigned venue for us. In this case, 9O students were asked to go to 9N’s classroom for the exam. The chaos caused the exam to be delayed. When many people complained and other teachers intervened, the system got cancelled as they found it too chaotic. Ms Yew and Ms Sha ripped off the name list and told us to be in our classes and sit according to our own class name list for the exam. Jordan, Rick and Ting Yi were baffled as to the fact that we need to change classes.
Ms Joyce came into the classroom as she was a relief teacher for Cikgu Zura, who wasn't at school that day. She instructed us to sit according to the name list of our class, beginning with Aaron Loke and ending with Eu Lynn. Then, when all was done, Ms Joyce walked with a serious look on her face, distributing the exam papers. “Do not start yet. If you can follow rules during Checkpoint, how can you not follow simple basic exam rules?” she groaned. Then, Ms Joyce gave us the command to start.
The first few minutes in the exam went smoothly. I was able to concentrate. Thirty minutes into the paper, Ms Joyce then left for the washroom. After five minutes, she hadn't returned from the washroom. Jason Leing then started whispering with Sean Mark and then they chit-chatted for a while. I then noticed them talking and signaled to them to keep quiet. Soon, the whole class got puzzled about what they were doing. Seriously. They really attempted to do something like this. Then, Sean Mark smiled as he gestured the answers to Jason Leing.
“EXCUSE ME! STOP IT!” cried Ms Joyce. She was fuming.
“Jason and Sean. What are you doing? I know what you did. Who asked you to talk during your exam?” cried Ms Joyce, who caught them in the nick of time as they were about to leave for the washroom without Ms Joyce knowing. Ms Joyce then told the both of them to stop, as she collected their examination papers. On the papers, she wrote, “Attempting to play truant by cheating and not following rules during an exam”. Then, she told them to remain in their seats as the exam progressed. When the exam finished, she ordered us to stop before collecting our papers.
“9O, I want to let you know that leaving for the washroom during an exam is a school offence. You are not supposed to leave the classroom without permission,” scolded Ms Joyce. “Jason and Sean. I am going to send you to Ms Lim and to explain to her what you did. You better answer to Ms Lim why did you cheat during an exam. This is a heavy offence,” said Ms Joyce. The two of them were asked to follow Ms Joyce and they were led in humility just like a suspect being arrested by police.
The whole class gasped at the nature of what Sean Mark and Jason Leing did. Then, everyone talked about it before we went for our break time. The incident sent shockwaves across the whole year level. Oh dear.
After break, we returned for our English Paper 2, and Ms Visa then told Sean and Jason to not fool around. She then handed us the papers. There was utter silence as the fluttering of the fans provided a calm atmosphere for us to do our exams. Then, that afternoon, we had the opportunity to do our revision. Mr Anthony then told us to do our work. “You can do your own things but no talking,” he said. Then, some people tried to have some discussion, but Mr Anthony got really angry and asked everyone to be seated and not discuss. Then, Ms Sarah came in and then continued. Then, the discussions in groups resumed. Ms Sarah then walked around and made sure everyone had a thing to do.
The next day, was our Mathematics paper. Everyone arrived in the morning, and they were busy reading their Maths notes. Unlike the Checkpoint Examination for English, Maths and Science, The Final Year Examination scope for the same subjects only focuses on Year 9 topics, which made our lives easier.
The first morning of the examination went quite smoothly, as Ms Joyce sternly watched over us. She was trying to ensure no one played fiddle during the examination after the previous day's cheating incident. Then, once the examination was finished, Ms Joyce collected our papers, and the next thing we knew, we were subjected to a spot check by the teachers in terms of confiscated and prohibited items like handphones, aside from basic grooming like hair, fingernails and school attire.
Ms Praveen, Ms Renee and Ms Sha were outside 9O. They were conducting spot checks on every class. They had arrived at 9O after finishing a spot check at 9N.
We were then told to give our full cooperation to the teachers, and what we were supposed to do first was to line up and turn our pockets inside-out, show our fingernails and school attire. In the distance, Ms Lim was watching. She folded her arms as she stared at us like the chief inspector of a police station. Those whom their personal grooming and inspection satisfied the management were told to line up at a separate area and wait. Ms Praveen chided some people for not cutting their finger nails and asked what was inside their pockets. Fortunately, I only had my handkerchief.
Then, once the grooming inspection was done, Ms Praveen ordered everyone to bring their bags out. More teachers soon arrived, including Ms Lee. I was watched over by Ms Lee and Ms Ng, who came shortly thereafter. They asked me to open my bags and to check what was in them. Ms Lee and Ms Ng assisted me when they found out I was having hassle. “Come, Wei Yiang, let me check yours; you just stand aside, okay?” asked Ms Lee. Then, Ms Lee and Ms Ng then searched my bags. Fortunately, after checking my bags, Ms Lee told me that everything was fine. I then kept my things in the bags. I had two bags; a trolley bag and a carry-on bag. Each student had a teacher to open their bags for them and check them for prohibited items. Other than Ms Lee, Ms Ng, Ms Sha, Ms Renee, Ms Praveen and Ms Lim, the other teachers who watched over us were Ms Seline, Mr Chan, Ms Feeda and Ms Crystlyn.
Jason Leing and a few others, sensing the management’s presence in doing spot checks on all classes, tried to hide their handphones in the ceiling board of 9O as the teachers were outside. Some of them even hid the phones behind the PC desk, but the management found their phones when they asked to open the ceiling board and doing a clean sweep of the clssroom. All those who were caught having handphones were demerited on the spot. And yes, this includes Caleb Chuang.
It was another week or so before I could get wind of the thrashing the Final Year Examination gave.
Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Caleb Chuang, Yin Wei, Megan, Natalie, Eu Lynn, Ivyna, Yan Ying and Benjamin Fong had their phones confiscated. At the time, possession of handphones in school is prohibited at all costs, and the only time where phones can be used was following the end of school, provided that students stand in a designated area to use them. And the only usage allowed by Ms Lim back at the time was to call our parents just in case they were running late.
Once the spot check was over, Ms Praveen told those who were done to keep their bags and proceed for their break time. “I want to see those who I have called just now,” she said, referring to individuals who had their phones confiscated or were found to have brought prohibited items to school.
During break time, everyone was shocked at the management's swift spot check decision. Those that had their phones nabbed were lectured by Ms Praveen and had to head to the Junior and Senior School's Management Office to write an incident report, sign their name, and had 20 demerit points. There was a long queue in front of the management office. All in all, at least 60 students were requested to present themselves for the consequences. Meanwhile, while eating in the canteen, Kit Lee also told me that San Ying, Sophie and Krisha were one of the individuals who had to face the music.
Then, we had our Maths Paper 2, and Ms Maddy gave out the examination papers for Mathematics. It was quite much easier to do, but still equally as tough as the Checkpoint exam. Ultimately, I did not finish the paper. Then, when the exam ended, the entire class was talking about what had happened that morning. Following which, Ms Ng then came in for our Science lesson. She did not have a happy mood on her face.
“Class, I see a lot of you being demerited and asked to go to see Ms Praveen and Ms Lim. Why did you all bring your phones to school?” asked Ms Ng. Then, she told us about the fact that although the Checkpoint Examination had finished, it was still important for us to focus on our Final Year Examination and to follow the school rules. “I heard from Ms Joyce that some of you were cheating and playing around during the exam yesterday. You know who you are,” said Ms Ng. “I feel very disappointed with all of you.”
My heart sank as to the anger Ms Ng had. She then kept on saying that many people had hid their phones when asked to present them, resulting in them being demerited double the amount of points. “I feel very angry when I heard that many of you hid your phones in the ceiling,” she said, before telling us to continue our revision for our Malay exam that afternoon. Then, when Ms Renee came in, she then, just like Ms Ng, gave us a long and stern lecture.
“Okay, 9O. I have heard from Ms Joyce, ya. Jason and Sean. I don't understand why do you want to do such a thing when the teacher is out of the classroom. Can't you just wait for the teacher to come back and then ask for permission? And I am also disappointed in the both of you. Communicating and copying each other's answers during an exam."
Ms Renee then told us that it was already a major wrong to copy people's answers or even TURN to look at one another in the exam hall. “During Checkpoint, I can see many students turning around. I don't know whether you all know how to follow the exam rules or not,” said Ms Renee. “You are going to Year 10 next year, ya. Please. I don't want to see this repeating again. Do you understand?” We all said yes and were told to continue our revision. Ms Renee then plopped herself on the chair and logged into the computer.
After lunch, we had our Malay Paper 1 exam. Ms Ng entered the classroom and gave us our Malay papers. She invigilated the exam strictly. Then, that afternoon, Ms Nadia came into the class and informed us of our Art exam results. I got a B for that exam. Then, as Ms Nadia's birthday falls on Saturday, 31st October, we sang the birthday song for her.
As I went down for dismissal, I went to inform Mr Chuang that Caleb Chuang's phone was confiscated. He gave me a serious look, and held out Caleb Chuang's phone. It had a red slip on the phone's cover, which said, ‘Did not follow school rules by bringing phones to school during school hours without permission’. Those who had their phones confiscated but had phone exemption cards were given a pink slip which said, ‘Did not follow exemption rules by using a phone when the student is not supposed to do so’. I then tried to explain to Mr Chuang over what happened. He nodded his head. “I know, I know,” he said. He was waiting for Caleb Chuang. Then, Caleb Chuang came down, and Mr Chuang handed the phone to him. “Why are you bringing your phone to class? Why didn't you leave your phone with me? You should have passed it to me,” he said. Caleb Chuang just smiled. He had nothing to say.
The next morning, we then had our Science Paper 1. The exam was so easy. For PE, Ms Sylvia came to invigilate our class. The mneumonics of MRS GREN, BROCOTOX and all the funny rhymes Ms Ng taught us had been put to good use. That morning, Benjamin Fong went to the toilet late again, which resulted in the whole class waiting for him to return before starting the exam. After break, the next paper begun. Science Paper 2 came and went, as Ms Joyce was strict to invigilate us before Cikgu Zura came. She and Cikgu Zura collected the papers; she told Cikgu Zura to save her energy as she collected the papers.
During GP, Ms Kiran then allowed us to do our own things. I prepared for the next examination, which was the Bible Knowledge Examination. Long story short; it was a fill-in-the-blank paper and we did it in 10E. Once the exam finished, we returned to 9O. Caleb Chuang and I then had a chat on the way back with Sara Yow. Then, we opened the doors. Mr Narish was in our class and were talking to the boys on the FIFA football video game. They were also talking about the English Premier League, and Mr Narish's favorite football team was Manchester United. Ms Ng then came in that afternoon, and then continued to talk about the school rules and phone rules.
The next morning, we had our Mandarin examination, and we had to go to 9B's classroom to do our exam. The exam was quite straightforward. Ms Maddy and Ms Gerardine were invigilating us. Then, once the Mandarin examination was over, we took a break for the day, as Malay Paper 2 and History would be held the next day.
Before the Mandarin exam started, and prior to the start of school, the Year 11s were gathered in school. The hall was being prepared for the Chemistry examination. I saw Jonathan and Ivan and spoke to them. Then, I also met Jarod Ee as well and wished him the very best.
After break, we then went to have our Maths lesson, and Ms Seline and the entire class had a chat together. During Geography, Ms Maddy and I had a chat over the last modular assessment. “Finally, I got 100%!” I told Ms Maddy. Ms Maddy was really impressed with me. “Although there will be no Geography in Year 10 and 11, continue to do well and I hope to see more subjects perform as good as Geo.”
Then, I went to talk to Caleb Chuang about the upcoming plans and practices for Nobel Cup. There was still no news. So, we just decided to focus on the final exam of the week; the History paper.
Then, during Mandarin, Ms Ting was not present, so Ms Ng came to the class and told everyone to do their revision alone. We spent the entire lesson, for two hours from Mandarin to Science, just to study for History and we had to do it alone. Once that was done, we then went home.
The History examination was held after break time the next day. As we came to school, the Year 11s were having their IGCSE examination that morning. It was the Biology paper, and from our class, we could see a large queue outside the school hall. I saw Wei Ming that morning while walking around school. He was studying and I wished him the best. He was friendly and smiled as I checked with him on how he is doing.
Once we returned to class, we then did our revision, and Ms Ng was in the front of the classroom. She was marking all our Science exam papers, one by one. I could see her marking them. Branson Choon and Ting Yi attempted to peer at the papers. Ms Ng laughed and brushed them off. They laughed. Then, we did our revision. I the had a short chat with Caleb Chuang and discussed with him on our post- Final Year Examination plans.
Soon, it was break. I just wandered around the school, looking at the examination setup for IGCSE. I waved at Ms Praveen as I passed by the hall. Then, we returned to class and studied for a short while before Ms Seline handed out the History papers. We had reached the last few moments of the Final Year Examination. What a feat it was to study for the exam.
The class was excited. Benjamin Fong suggested that we do a countdown to end the exams. Oh dear. I think it may be a big issue for him, because Ms Joyce would be the one collecting the papers. The command was given for us to start.
The questions tested on the 20th Century History topics like World War I, World War II and the rise of Nazi Germany. There were source questions based on images and text that we had to answer. And the last minutes of the exam kicked in.
During the examination, Ms Joyce was invigilating. She was really worried some people may pull her trigger. Whenever she passed by Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Benjamin Fong, she had the sternest look on her face. Then, the final minutes of the exam kicked in. Benjamin Fong braced himself. He did a short countdown. They whispered, “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1” and put their fists up in the sky. Benjamin Fong then showed off his muscles.
“Excuse me! This is still an exam. I have not collected your papers yet,” warned Ms Joyce. Benjamin Fong's mouth and tongue was hanging openly like as if he was gasping for air.
“No talking,” said Ms Joyce, collecting the papers for us. Rick Tan's paper was one of the first to be collected. He turned around and grinned. "No turning around!” cried Ms Joyce. Then, she collected the papers. Once the papers were collected, Ms Joyce instructed us to go for our classes. Then, when everyone had settled in their classes, she had given us our Englis papers for discussion.
“Some of you had punctuation and grammatical errors,” said Ms Joyce, as she discussed English Paper 1. I got a score of 74% for my Paper 1. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa asked us on how we performed. During Malay, Cikgu Zura then discussed the Malay exam, and I got 43% for Paper 1.
Ms Ng then came in for Homeroom and then gave us a new timetable which will take effect from the following week. It was all about our Year 10 subjects. Everyone was surprised as to how the timetable looked like. I just spent the entire Homeroom time studying the timetable.
Following the Final Year Examination, the teachers from Year 10 came to do an introductory class for each of their subjects for two weeks. The introductory class was meant for us to get us a glimpse of what we would expect from in Year 10, and the teachers were one of the professional teachers we had seen. Each subject was headed by a different teacher as follows who came to our class:
English First Mr Mark Wright
English Second Ms Charine
Biology Ms Renee
Chemistry Mr Nick Kok Leong
Physics Mr Lee Eng Hoe
Additional Mathematics Ms Janice
Business Studies Ms Chithra
Economics Mr Chris Gan and Ms Levina
Global Perspectives Mr Matthew Koh and Mr Gallagher
History Ms Cynthia
Art and Design Ms Feeda/Ms Nadia
Accounting Mr Raja
Information and Communication Technology Mr Stellio
Mathematics Ms Bee Yan
Combined Science Mr Anthony
Everyone had to attend each subject for a total of two weeks. Moreover, each of the teachers had their own stories to tell. They had a touch to their briefings and how things went. They had personalities attached to their subjects and were dedicated in teaching their respective subjects.
Monday, 2nd November, was our first day following the Final Year Examination. Finally. Our first FREE day. We went up to our classes early in the morning. At the same time, it was announced via email that the Nobel Cup would take place on 9th, 10th and 12th November 2015. I was frantically panicking. I needed to meet Sabrina Qistina and Caleb Chuang to brief the plans.
That morning, I went to 10O to meet Sabrina Qistina. I then spoke to her on the plans for Bullseye, after asking her how she was doing. Then, I told her about the game strategies for each game and the plans I discussed before Cambridge Checkpoint and the Final Year Examination with Caleb Chuang. Not to also mention that I also met Sabrina on 19th October during Checkpoint as she had the Final Year Examination that day. I had waved at her as well.
“So, for the basketball tournament, all we need to ask them to do is to confuse the opponent,” I begun. Then, I told Sabrina about our futsal game and how we could go about it. Then, I also spoke to her on how to motivate the Bullseye members.
“We just need to give them ginger onions, and ask them to eat healthy foods. Then, what we need to do is to cheer for them, scream and shout as loud as possible!” I cried. Sabrina then told me that the ideas were great. For the basketball, futsal and badminton games, I also said that Bullseye must win all the games. Then, as I was continuing to speak, the class teachers of 10O, Ms Chithra and Ms Sharon were coming in. “Oh, Wei Yiang, I think you need to go back to class because our class teachers are here,” she said. Before she sent me off, she told me that I was not chosen for the Nobel Cup this year due to the team size limit imposed for that year's Nobel Cup. “I'm sorry, but you can participate next year,” she said. I waved goodbye to Sabrina and went back to 9O's classroom. There, Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia had entered the class to take our attendance. Ms Ng asked where I went, and I told her that I met Sabrina Qistina to discuss about Nobel Cup.
Once I returned to 9O and clarified with Ms Ng on the matter, I then went to meet Caleb Chuang. “So, Caleb Chuang. I have discussed all the plans with Nur Sabrina. She said it was cool and approved our plans. So, what we need to do is to execute them. We need to do it. We must win this,” I said. Then Caleb Chuang told me about the Nobel Cup and that he just realized about it. Then, he spoke to Ting Yi. Ivyna and Eu Lynn also asked me on what I talked to Sabrina.
During Malay, Cikgu Zura continued to discuss our papers and tally the marks up. I got a 43% for Paper 1, a 84% for Paper 2, and this resulted in me getting a 64% for Malay in the overall marks. Then, we went for our break time. I was wondering on how the Year 10 subjects would look like. This final week was given to us to explore each and every Year 10 subject we had chosen and also not chosen in order to allow us to experience what it was like to study the subject.
After break time, we had Accounting with Mr Raja. He spoke on our first lesson and gave us worksheets. Our first lesson was on assets, liabilities and capital. Mr Raja mainly talked about assets and liabilities. This lesson of his reminded me on what my mum had told me before when she had tried to impart money mastery knowledge to me and my sister, especially on how to save money. Mr Raja then explained on the set up of the subjects and how Accounting was to work. I even answered most of the questions correctly, which made Mr Raja excited. “How did you know all these terms?” he asked.
Afterwards, it was Biology, and Ms Renee came in. She merely just explained on the subject scope for Biology and what it contained. Then, Ms Bee Yan came in. She plopped her things down and explained the subject scope for Maths before doing a series of equations. Biology and Maths were one-period lessons, and as such, we did not have much time to talk about them. Then, we had lunch, and I told San Ying I was taking Combined Science as Biology, Chemistry and Physics are three separated subject in Science, and I prefer the way it is currently; hence I took Combined Science.
When it came to History, Ms Cynthia was teaching us. She had a smile and was really calm when she came in. Then, she asked a question.
“How many of you chose History when selecting your subjects?” she asked. I put up my hand. Apart from me, the other people who chose History were Ze Khai, Natalie, Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Alia and Yan Ying.
When I was asked by Ms Cynthia on why I decided to take History, I merely said that out of the subject selection list, there was nothing else to take. Ms Cynthia said that it was not a good answer to say so. “If you say that you are taking History just because you do not know what to choose, I would advise you against choosing History because you have not shown any seriousness in choosing your subjects. This means that you are very likely to fail because you do not have a goal in mind. So, I would suggest that you reconsider taking History in Year 10 and 11, because all that is covered in Year 10 will be tested for your IGCSE exams. Ms Cynthia then gave us a description on History and what would the exam scope be like.
Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra came into the class. I had seen her teaching Business Studies before, and she was a very popular Business Studies teacher back when she was in Nobel. Ms Chithra introduced us to Business Studies and talked about assets, liabilities and capital again. She then gave us a set of worksheets to do in relation to Business Studies and she said that Business Studies is all about studying about how businesses and companies operate.
After school ended, we were waiting at the foyer to be dismissed, and I had a short chat with Sabrina Qistina. Apparently, due to the haze, the school was unable to have additional practices for Nobel Cup and selected mainly the best players due to time constraints. There was no KS3 and KS4 category for the Nobel Cup; there was only one single category after all, hence limiting the number of players. “You can cheer for your friends during Nobel Cup. There will be a basketball and netball match which will be held at school,” she said. Then, my name was called and I had to go. “Bye, Wei Yiang!” waved Sabrina as I left.
The next morning, the Year 11s braced for the next round of their IGCSE Examination. This time, they were having the Economics paper. The hall was crowded with people as the exam was about to kick off.
I went to meet Sabrina in 10O again and talked about Bullseye's strategy. I spoke to her for 15 minutes, but then, Ms Sharon came in to the class. “Don't worry, you can talk for a short while until 7:45am,” said Sabrina. I then presented the plans to her. Jeremy Yeap then came passing by. He then spoke to me and then told me about why I wasn't chosen. He said that they have benchmarked the players and chosen them accordingly based on the tryouts. Then, I returned to class.
Ms Ng then took our attendance. I then asked Ms Ng about our results. She said that we will not be discussing the Science exam paper as we had to focus on our Year 10 subjects. “The results will be given to you via the report card, which we will hand to you after the marks are finalized. If you need to see your paper, please let me know and follow me to the staffroom so that I can show it to you,” she said. Then, we had Mr Matthew Koh come in to teach us about Global Perspectives. He was accompanied by Mr Gallagher, and talked most of the time.
Mr Matthew Koh then talked to us about a globalized world and how the world is improving with technology. He then asked us to give us about what Global Perspectives meant to us. “If, say one person wants to improve the world; to change the world, then Global Perspectives is a recommended field of study. Then, he talked about how the world had changed over time and the various issues that the world is challenged by. “The study of Global Perspectives is important, because we want the world to know what and how we can improve the world and make things better. Therefore, we want to know about the world and who and where we are,” said Mr Matthew Koh. He spoke for the entire lesson and got us to know about the worldwide trends, such as wars, conflicts, poverty and environmental issues. Mr Gallagher was then invited to say some words and he talked about how Global Perspectives is more or less a subjective assessment. Mr Gallagher had recently joined the school.
After break, we then had Additional Mathematics, and our teacher was Ms Janice, who had quite a lot of experience teaching Additional Mathematics. When we entered the class, Ms Janice presented a weird description of what I call something that was out of my mind, when she said that Additional Mathematics, or Add Maths for short, is very easy. “You can ask your seniors who are taking the Add Maths exam for IGCSE. I spoke to them yesterday (Monday, 2nd November 2015) and they told me that they can do it. I am serious! You can check with them if you don’t believe me. They sat the previous paper the last week (26th October 2015) and they will sit the second paper this coming Friday (6th November 2015).” Ms Janice said that Add Maths is very easy if we practice the paper.
I mean, come on! I really struggled in my Maths results. How am I supposed to attempt the Add Maths paper? It is so tough, and the phrase “Add Maths is easy” really is something like a joke to me.
The whole class gasped. We were told that Add Maths is REALLY HARD. How can it be so easy when it is a torture to me? I even struggled to comprehend the results during my Maths tuition, so how much more difficult could it be?
Ms Janice then told us about the working of Add Maths and the secret to mastering Add Maths. “All you need to do is to just study. Simple. You must love Add Maths. Then, you will score well in the subject. The entire time during the Add Maths lesson was about Ms Janice engaging with us. We were still puzzled. For me, I was wondering as to how can someone like me who is doing poorly in Maths benefit from an Add Maths subject. Before long, it was time for Mr Nick's lesson.
Mr Nick first explained to us on how the Chemistry paper for IGCSE would look like. He told us during his Chemistry session with us that the memorization of chemicals, compounds and molecules would be more complex than what we would have learnt in Year 7, 8 or 9. He gave us a few compounds and mixtures exercises to do during the session. We mainly studied about solids, liquids and gases during this lesson. During lunch, I took a look at Mr Nick's exercises and told Caleb Chuang about how hard it was to comprehend the Add Maths lesson and whatever Ms Janice told us.
That afternoon, we had our Character Transformation session, and we had to do an activity in class in terms of reflecting on the year 2015 and how things went for us, as this would be our last Character Transformation session of the year. We were told to note down and present all that we did for 2015 and noted our experiences. For me, 2015 was a fun year. Out of all the years in Nobel, I will say that 2015 is the best, all thanks to the adventures of me and Caleb Chuang.
When I was told to present my view of 2015, I spoke about all the fun and glamour that we had. I mentioned Caleb Chuang's name so many times till we facepalmed. I told everyone that the most memorable moment of 2015 was the trip to Sekinchan and Soup Kitchen. The second half is normally seen as the most exciting half. And not to also mention the days we spent together. The whole class oohed and aahed as I spoke about the great adventures of me and Caleb Chuang.
Soon, there was a knock on the door. It was Mr Lim. He was requesting the presence of all the Bible Knowledge students. We then proceeded to see Mr Lim and he discussed our Bible Knowledge exam results with us in another classroom. I got 18/30 for my Bible Knowledge exam. Then, we had Biology with Ms Renee, and she started introducing about the study of living things and cells. The Biology topics appeared normal, but it went deep.
The next day was our last PE lesson with Mr Victor as the next Wednesday, 11th November, was Deepavali. To kick off the final PE lesson with us, Mr Victor then decided to treat us to ball games for the whole PE lesson. No assembly was held for the Junior and Senior School for some time as the Elementary School students were using the courtyard for their assembly and that the hall was being used for Cambridge Checkpoint and Cambridge IGCSE exams. So, all we had to do was to wait for the students to head back to their class first.
Pei Chi, Xin Yi, Janelle Tan and Ivyna were having a chat with Mr Victor as we waited for the elementary school students to thrudge back to their classes. Many of them walked slowly as they heaved their heavy bags behind their backs. Then, once the coast was clear, Mr Victor gathered all of us in the courtyard. Everyone was pointing at the hall being barricaded and set up for the examination.
Sheng Jit, Benjamin Fong and some people then played basketball, but however, the ball suddenly went out of line and bounced to the door of the school hall before slamming into it by accident. Then, the entire 9B class then taught Gabriel to play basketball. They cheered him as he scored a goal in the basketball net. Mr Victor also gave some people the option to practice for Nobel Cup, and those that were involved played their ball. I gave Caleb Chuang some advice on how to strengthen the team for Bullseye's Nobel Cup games.
After returning from break time, we then had our briefing for English Second, and Ms Charine was teaching us. She then gave a clear idea on what to expect for the subject. “For English Second, students will be tested on nouns, verbs, adjectives and comprehension,” she said. She basically explained the lesson structure for the subject. Then, we had English Literature, and Ms Sarah was in the class. She then said that we needed to know about poetry and text from novels. We spent the entire lesson reading on a play by William Shakespeare.
I like Mr Lee’s lesson in particular, as he gave us a description on Physics and how the subject goes. “You would need to memorize formulas, but the formulas are very easy,” he said. He was very entertaining and funny. He was also one of the most prominent teachers in Nobel at the time, alongside Mr Kevin Wai and Mr Nick. During ICT, Mr Stellio came in. He spoke with a robotic voice as he taught us about the usage of the computer. Everyone laughed at his robotic voice, which made him laugh as well. Then, Mr Anthony came in for Combined Science and told everyone how easy Combined Science was when explaining the subject. When he asked who was taking Combined Science, only me, Ze Khai, Alia, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Yan Ying and Ivyna put up our hands. Mr Anthony continued the lesson and talked about the basic needs of living things before giving us a worksheet.
After school ended, I spoke to Sabrina once again about the Nobel Cup games as well as how I plan to cheer. I planned to bring my homemade megaphone and a piece of paper to record the scores. She was amused.
The next morning, Mr Mark Wright gave an interactive presentation of the English First subject, since I signed up for it for Year 10. He had a well-versed intonation as he spoke in front of the class. “You will be mainly reading texts,” he said, as he explained thoroughly the expectations for First Language English.
“English First teaches you on how to write and read. You will be mainly writing. If you can write, then that is good,” he said. He then gave us ideas on how words and intonations rhyme when studying First Language English. Then, it was break, and I told Caleb Chuang about me planning to do First Language English. “Mr Mark Wright's voice is awesome,” I said. He spoke like poetrist and an academician combined.
Later on, we had Art, where Ms Nadia gave us an insight of Year 10 and 11's Art and Design syllabus. She was accompanied by Ms Feeda, who briefed us on the aspects of Art and Design IGCSE. Me, Wee Shiang, Eu Lynn and Sara Yow were the only ones taking Art and Design IGCSE. I feel so happy to see Ms Feeda. Then, after the lesson ended, I asked Ms Feeda of our CCA work, and she said that the Fine Art Club CCA will continue in January 2016.
Then, it was English Second. Unlike Mr Mark Wright, Ms Charine, on the other hand, was more direct, and said that English Second would be mainly focusing on the basics of the English language. She gave us a worksheet to follow us with the exercises as she briefed us. We did some comprehensions in the class. Then approached the subject that I had been looking forward to: Economics.
Mr Gan came in for Economics thereafter and then he was accompanied by another teacher named Ms Levina, who sat behind the class. While Ms Levina was a bit quiet, or I should say, quite quiet, Mr Gan was really interesting. “How many of you know what Economics is all about?” My first response, was ‘money’.
When Mr Gan heard about what I said, he said that my answer was good, and asked me to name more words that come to my mind when I thought of Economics. I then said, ‘business’, ‘work’, 'tax’ and 'finance’. He said that had something to do with those. Then, Ivyna answered the questions correctly too.
Mr Gan talked about the concepts of demand and supply and he said that Economics is about understanding how the world and economy works, and he said that Economics is a very interesting subject to take. He was quite jovial during the class, and did not hesitate to answer most of our questions. He talked more about money and why was it important to save money. “If you like to learn more about money, Economics is the subject for you!”
Then, we had Homeroom time. I spent the entire time writing the word ‘Business’ in many pronunciation forms: ‘Bess Ness', ‘Baz Nas’ , ‘Bees Ners', ‘Biss Ners’, and so on, and asking Ryan Marc to pronounce it till he got annoyed. Then, Ms Ng provided the permission slips for Nobel Cup and told us what to do and how should we expect for Nobel Cup.
Soon, it was the last week of school, and the arrival of Nobel Cup. On Monday, 9th November 2015, I then gave a briefing to all the Bullseye members in Year 9 when I met them, and strategized with Caleb Chuang on how to win the 2015 Nobel Cup. “When kicking the ball, confuse the opponent and stay focused,” I told Caleb Chuang. “We must go and shout and cheer at any of the competitions which we can access. Although I won’t be with you tomorrow, please motivate the Bullseye members who are going for badminton and futsal tomorrow. Please do your best, Caleb Chuang.”
Caleb Chuang nodded, and I told him that I will tell the plans to Sabrina Qistina, our newly-elected house captain then, and he agreed. So, when I arrived at school, I tried to find Sabrina and tell her the plans for Bullseye. “Sabrina! Sabrina! I want to talk to you for a while,” I said. So, I then told all the plans that I had with Caleb Chuang and a series of strategies I crafted for him, and Sabrina thanked me for being motivating. “Yeah, I’m sorry if you weren’t chosen for Nobel Cup, but it’s okay! There will be a next round,” she said. I wished her all the best and proceeded to talk to the other Year 10 committee members to wish them the best. I also met all the captains of Bullseye for the various sports. I spoke to Jeremy Yeap, who was our futsal captain, Krissy, our netball captain, Soon Yee Yang, who was coordinating basketball, and Alister Baptist, who coordinated the badminton matches.
The futsal and badminton players were headed out to play at a sports centre at Sunway South Quay. As there was no junior or senior category for Nobel Cup that year (juniors consisting of Year 7s and 8s, and seniors consisting of Year 9s and 10s) but one whole gang, I was not chosen even as a reserve player for Nobel Cup for Bullseye. Nevertheless, we still had to show solidarity. I accept the decision for me not to participate in Nobel Cup, but I need to give some motivation to the Bullseye people who were headed to the futsal venue for the futsal game. The weather was cloudy that morning, as if a rainfall was present.
The team was led by Jeremy Yeap, Bullseye's futsal captain. Trishern Raj was his assistant He is very handsome, you know. He was playing the futsal match as well and was one of Bullseye's strikers cum attackers. In the team headed to the futsal venue were Aaron Yong, Ethan Chan, Sean Mark, Jordan Tay, Ethan Lee, Melvyn Lim and Sean Lee. To this day, the field size for the Bullseye futsal team was the smallest in Nobel International School's history.
Caleb Chuang and the players were gathering at the courtyard, and I wished everyone all the best. To ensure that no other houses heard our strategies, I whispered at ear’s length to Caleb Chuang the secret strategies before they boarded the buses to the sports centre for their match. Along with Caleb Chuang, Jordan Tay was also going on the trip with futsal captain Jeremy Yeap. I didn't want other people to hear the confidential plans. Then, they were off. I can tell you that Jordan Tay and Trishern ate apples and had a jolly good time together.
During Malay, Cikgu Zura allowed us to do our own things. I took the time to speak to the people from Bullseye in the class who were participating in other tournaments. I then met Ivyna, and we said a prayer for the futsal players. Yan Ying also joined in. I spoke to Ivyna and Yan Ying on how to coordinate the plans for Bullseye. Then, Ivyna asked me a question.
“Wei Yiang, who do you think will be the winner for Nobel Cup?” she asked.
“I think that I am not sure. We have to try our best, and we need to do something. Everyone must put in their effort, whether they are a player or not. Then, we can have a good chance of winning,” I responded.
I told Ivyna about the possibility of Bullseye winning a second Nobel Cup, and I also told her that we should also win the next Sports Day if we were successful in our Nobel Cup bid. Her eyes lit up and she told me that Caleb Chuang and I had great, comprehensive plans. “We can talk of winning the next Nobel Cup if we win Sports Day as well,” I giggled. This resulted in Le Anne being jealous, and she came over to ask more questions. I just shrugged off. “We end the discussion for today,” I said.
“Wei Yiang, you are so bad! You didn't tell me your plans! How rude,” she snuffed jokingly.
Later on, we had break time. I went to meet some of the Bullseye members in Year 7 and Year 8 who were playing in the basketball competition. I asked on their details. Then, I met Nicholas Liang and told him the plans, which caused many of the other opponents to get really frustrated. Nicholas Liang told me that apart from him, Isaac Ng, Nicholas Tee and Samuel Lee were the ones competing in the basketball tournament. Then, I told them the strategies. I drew the court and told them how to confuse the players. Afterwards, I went to see Loo Zane and Geok Minh, and told them the strategy for the netball competition. It was more or less the same as confusing the opponents. All the matches had team matches, so it was easy to coordinate. Then, they were very excited and praised me and Caleb Chuang for the impressive plans. “I have discussed them with all my friends, the Year 7s, some of your friends as well as our house captain, Nur Sabrina. They all accepted and agreed with me and Caleb Chuang! They said our plans are awesome! We must execute it!” I cried. Loo Zane and Geok Minh cheered with me.
Afterwards, we returned for Accounting with Mr Raja, who continued to tell us to list down which items were assets and which items were liabilities. After that, we were allowed to do our own things, and I motivated Yan Ying and Ivyna. They all agreed, befor we continued with Biology and Maths, where Ms Renee continued to teach us about cells, and Ms Bee Yan did some basic equations with us.
When Jordan Tay, Sean Mark and Caleb Chuang returned from the matches during lunch, it was drizzling. I spoke to him to update me on which competitions we have won or lost, as well as what we did back in class. Caleb Chuang set that we have won the futsal competition but lost the badminton competition. Jordan Tay also said the same thing. Everyone repeated what they said. As expected. Badminton was a hard thing to win, but at least, we cheered of our victory for the futsal match. “Now, all that we need to do is to win the netball and basketball match tomorrow, and we will win,” I grinned. Sean Mark and Melvyn Lim were showing sparkling teeth in happiness. We then went back to class for History, where Ms Cynthia told us the book that Year 10 students would use for History. And during Business Studies, Ms Chithra continued teaching about the companies and talking about the basic functions of a business. After school ended, I went to meet Sabrina to brief the next plans. "You will get to cheer during tomorrow's match,” said Sabrina. “I believe you will like it!”
After a day's break due to Deepavali, Wednesday, 11th November 2015, was the netball and basketball competition. The netball competition was held in the school courtyard while the basketball competition was held in the school hall. So on the day itself, the teachers gave us one whole morning to enjoy the competition. This was because the PE lesson by Mr Victor occupied the Nobel Cup matches.
At 8:00am, I then met Ivyna Ong and all the netball players and give them some motivation. I whispered some of the strategies to Ivyna, Prudence Wong, Pei Chi and some of the netball players from Bullseye. They nodded and gave us the thumbs up for the competition.
The scores were recorded on large whiteboards that were placed in the courtyard and school hall. A lot of people were there to watch, and I regularly walked between the courtyard and school hall, coordinating Caleb Chuang, Sabrina, Carmen Kau and all the Year 10 committee members on the matches. I cheered so loudly and screamed so loudly till the whole school can hear me, and my noise radiated as far out as the main road in front of the school.
The entire Year 9 batch was there to watch the game. Caleb Chuang and I went to see Ms Sylvia, who was coordinating the match and being the referee for the day. I gave some tips to the Bullseye members, while Ms Bee Yan told me to keep off the courtyard so that the game can begin.
As the match was about to start, I shouted, “Come on Bullseye! Come, let's go!” It was a match between Homerun and Bullseye. Ivyna was able to catch the ball and score the first goal for Bullseye, which resulted in me screaming until everyone got shocked. Then, within an hour, we were leading by 8 points to 3. Bullseye managed to defeat Homerun in the preliminary matches in the netball tournament, scoring a good match.
Meanwhile in the school hall, the basketball match was in full swing. The matches were ongoing as Bullseye battled Touchdown in the opening match, which was refereed by Edmund Hng, the house captain of Homerun. His assistant, Kimberley Yap, was playing with the netball matches just now. I then went and cheered the Bullseye players. They were led by some of the best players from Year 10, such as Soon Yee Yang, who was a very clever guy playing basketball. Bullseye managed to score three goals, which led to me screaming and some people being annoyed. I screamed so loudly as if a lottery was won. The Touchdown basketball squad was led by Lim Wences, who was on the attacking position. Soon, the second round occurred. I screamed and shouted loudly. “Come on! Let's go! Come on, Bullseye! You can do it!” Bullseye eventually won the match against Touchdown.
Outside the school hall, Bullseye was now taking on Homerun. I spoke to Carmenn Kau, who updated me on the matches. Ms Bee Yan and Ms Sylvia cleared the whiteboard to refresh the scores. Slamdunk and Homerun had just finished their match, and were waiting for the next game with Bullseye. All that was needed for Bullseye to do was to battle the next teams. Shaun Ting and Han Ming were armed with Cannon cameras, snapping high-tech photos of the action.
As Bullseye begun the match with Homerun, I screamed and shouted and cheered. Then, meanwhile in the hall, I saw Slamdunk battling with Touchdown. I turned back and continued cheering for Bullseye. "Come on!” I cried, as Homerun and Bullseye faced a tie. Bullseye was able to win their second game with Homerun.
I then returned to the hall. This time, Bullseye was gunning for the basketball title with Slamdunk. I cheered and screamed. Then, Bullseye was also battling Slamdunk in netball as well. We got a strong lead, and we led the match and won both games against Slamdunk.
Soon, it was the final match. Bullseye had managed to get into both finals of basketball and netball. I kept on looking at each of the results as I watched Bullseye’s performance. The whole school got a break that day to watch the matches.
In the Basketball Finals, the match was played between Bullseye and Homerun. For the netball games, it was a battle between Bullseye and Touchdown......again.
The match was intense. Bullseye was battling two teams. It was an epic final the likes of which had never occurred before.
The match started. The first goal for the basketball tournament was scored by Bullseye, as Eric Wong shot the ball into the goal. I screamed so loudly, and Ms Renee, who was nearby, told me to calm down. Then, the second goal was scored by Touchdown, causing the game to be neck and neck. Lim Wences balled the third goal, resulting in a Touchdown lead.
Outside, Bullseye was leading comfortably. They had a five point lead ahead of Homerun. The score was 6-1. Bullseye continued to edge apart from Homerun. A safe bet occurred. Soon, the match was over, resulting in a Bullseye win. The Bullseye netball team cheered, but I dashed to the hall to help the basketballers.
The basketball match was really close. It was a 8-7 lead by Touchdown. Then, Eric Wong dunked the next goal, causing a tie. “Ooiyoh! Ooiyoh! Come on!” I cried. Then, we watched the match as the last five minutes came into view. Soon Yee Yang, battled with energy, fired up with power, shot the ball over Lee Jun Joo's head and it smashed into the canteen, causing chaos. The ball was returned. The kids were shocked of a sudden ball. Then, the last three minutes ticked down. As the final seconds emerged, I saw Soon Yee Yang carry the ball again. He dashed through, passing the ball suddenly. Then, he lept to the goal.
“YEAH!!!!! WE WON!!!!!!
As Bullseye won the basketball tournament, I gave high fives to Caleb Chuang and I cried, “We have won!” Ivyna, Pei Chi and Eu Lynn smiled as I cheered and screamed loudly over the victory, as Bullseye also managed to win the netball tournament as well. I then shook hands with everybody, even Sophia Chang, who was puzzled over what in the world had happened. It was a victory for the people of Bullseye, and something to cherish about.
Then, we had lunch, and then we were left to our own things during ICT, provided if you didn't count Mr Lee quizzing us on the formulas. I took the time to speak with Derek about the chess strategy. He was puzzled but he still kept his cool. I then congratulated Ivyna, Pei Chi, Jordan Tay, Sean Mark, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying. We had brought home the Bullseye victory for the day. I was so excited till I cannot concentrate on the lesson. In fact, I spent the entire afternoon talking to Derek Yong about how to win the chess competition. Branson Choon said that he was going to take part in the competition. “You will lose!” he cried. “Just you wait, Branson!” I responded.
The next day (12th November), we had the Chess tournament, and Derek Yong was in the class. As Derek and Ting Yi were participating in the chess tournament, I whispered some strategies to them so that other people do not hear it. I gave them final motivations as well. All in all, the plans that were formulated by me and Caleb Chuang were at least one by one. Bullseye had won the basketball and netball tournaments and if we win the chess competition, we would undoubtedly win the champion house as many tournaments were won by us. During English lessons, Cassandra told me that Touchdown will get us back sometime in the future, and warned me that the Bullseye victory would be shortlived.
“Nice, nice. You and Caleb Chuang as well as Bullseye won today. Touchdown will get you back in the future. Muahahahhahahaha,” she cried.
The chess competition was held in the Year 11 classes. I just wished them well as we begun our lesson. Mr Lee continued to discuss the formulas for Physics and how to measure density. Then, we were left to do our own things during Science, English First, and Chemistry. During that time, I discussed about the Nobel Cup with everyone in 9O. We sat in a large group to discuss about the tournament. I told Caleb Chuang about the big hauls we had. Our plan was succeeding and working according to plan, and everyone came back with big victories at hand. Our eyes partially looked towards Sports Day, but stopped short of discussing it. We need to wait for the Nobel Cup results first.
I was very anxious and excited about Bullseye’s victory. Eu Lynn responded that she wasn’t as anxious when I asked Caleb Chuang if he was excited about the victory. “Right, Caleb?” I asked.
When Eu Lynn said no, I was shocked till I jumped out of my chair, and the chair vibrated. As me, Jordan, Rick and Caleb were having a conversation in the class about Nobel Cup, I was talking to them. One of the chair’s legs then landed on Caleb Chuang’s toe, and he screamed in pain. His face turned red, and Sara Yow chided me and asked me to sit down at my desk as they comforted Caleb Chuang. Rick Tan was shaking his head in disbelief. “See, now you made Caleb cry.” I then apologized to him for the accident. Natalie and Sara Yow, who were librarians, told us that there was a lost book called the Secrets of Godamn, which was last seen in our class, and asked if we were able to find it. I did not remember seeing a book in 9O at the last round.
Then, Megan was playing with a paper toy and then was playing with Natalie and Le Anne, and then it got caught in the blades of the ceiling fans. The force by the fan tossed the paper toy to Caleb Chuang and it smashed into his arm. He screamed in pain once again. “Owwww!!!!” he cried.
That afternoon, we had lunch, and I checked if Caleb Chuang's toe was okay. “Sorry for hitting your toe,” I told Caleb Chuang, who kept his cool. He was fine. We continued our discussion, and I spent a fruitful time talking to my friends, cherishing the second last day of school.
Meanwhile, in the school hall and courtyard, a human chess competition was played where people play the roles of pawns and bishops on the chessboard. Quite a number of people from Year 9 and 10 were involved.
As dismissal arrived, we were about to go home, and I was excited walking around the class till I bumped my back on the side of Jordan’s desk while packing my bags. I shouted in pain.
On the last day of school, Friday, 13th November 2015, the moment had come. We were waiting for this anticipation of the Nobel Cup results. It was high time this was addressed. The assembly kicked off with a farewell performance, and Ms June announced the winners for Nobel Cup during the morning assembly.
Futsal -> Bullseye
Netball -> Bullseye
Basketball -> Bullseye
Badminton -> Homerun
Chess -> Bullseye
CHAMPION HOUSE -> BULLSEYE
I cheered loudly. “Yes, yes! We won! Yeah!” and what a clean sweep it was! To this day, it remains Bullseye's best-ever Nobel Cup performance. All the tournaments then, except for one, were won by Bullseye. What a landslide! I was very very excited!
So, as such, I thanked everyone in Bullseye from the Year 7s to 10s for their great effort, and as it was Class Party that day, I decided to throw a victory celebration in the class with Caleb Chuang. Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia joined us for the class party.
We then begun the class party with some food and drinks, and Ms Ng partied along with us. I then talked to Caleb Chuang about the landslide haul of Bullseye. “You see, Caleb Chuang! We won, all thanks to the plans. I told you! I told you! You see? We won, because Sabrina accepted the plans! You see! I was right!”
Le Anne and Megan were very unamused. “We will win next year,” declared Megan. The party was about to start, but then we were interrupted by a knock on the door.
Ms Sarah then came into the class and asked that if we had seen a lost book, and because the lost book was last seen in 9O, the blame fell on us for losing the book since the book was last seen in our class and it was from the library. The class would need to pay a fine should the book be lost for good.
Eu Lynn then decided to play a game which involved dance, and Megan and Le Anne then led the game, with Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia joining in. Once the game was finished, we watched a movie while I followed Caleb Chuang around and talked to him about the successes of Nobel Cup. “So, Caleb, we won! We won, Caleb Chuang, we won again!” I cried. I then compared how many competitions we won versus the only competition won by Homerun, and I told him that we have beat Branson Choon again, since Branson is from Homerun. Branson was smirked and he said, “Good for you.”
We then went for our break time, and soon, we were treated to a large bazaar planned courtesy of Ms Lim. In the school’s driveway, the management had called in food trucks for people to savor food. There were different varieties of food ranging from takoyaki to sushi, nasi lemak, fishball and a series of noodles. Initially, the Year 7s and 8s were invited to savor the food, and the Year 9s and 10s carried on with the class party till 10:30am, but then thereafter, everyone went down to have a look at what was in store. So, I followed Caleb Chuang and talked to him about how good he was to be a good friend. “Thank you,” said Caleb Chuang, touched by my gesture. Everyone had good companionship and demonstrated great friendship and cooperation at their best.
I also took the opportunity to bid Zhue Xin a farewell as she would be leaving for the United Kingdom in 2016 for her studies, and told her that it was great talking to her a lot of topics, especially the disappearance of MH370 at the canteen table. I also took the opportunity to spend some time with teachers and friends before heading back to class.
Lyn Wen was with Zhue Xin and Isabella Wong, and they were quite excited to talk to each other. “Don't worry about me being a prefect and being unable to experience most of it. It's okay,” said Zhue Xin, giving me a pat.
On the way back to class, I met Sabrina and told her that our plans and cheering succeeded and I cheered for her. Sabrina was delighted and thanked me for cheering. “We must win next year’s Sports Day!” I cried, and she smiled and was overjoyed. “Thanks for doing your part for Bullseye; you were awesome!” she commended, saying that she liked my screaming spirit as well. I then spent time talking with her about the plans for the 2016 Sports Day.
When I headed back to 9O, I was initially alone, and then Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia came into the class to sort out our report cards. “The year has passed by very fast, Ms Ng,” I moaned. “Yeah, time flies, and today is our last day of school,” said Ms Ng, as she asked me to help sort out the report cards.
Everyone came back by 12:30pm and we waited till 1:30pm to settle things out. Ms Ng told us to hand back our report cards when we return for the new year on 4th January 2016, the first day of school. I then bid farewell to Caleb Chuang and then everyone else, as we headed for our holidays. Everyone else was happy, but I was a bit down over the holidays as I would not be able to have fun with my friends till the new year in January.
The time has come to say goodbye. Oh, how I miss 2015. It was a really wonderful, electric and exciting year, filled with joy, hope, passion and determination. It was a year where we really showed the world how we were Nobelians at our best. I know from the start that I won't be in the same class as Caleb Chuang the following year. All that was to do was to wait for the Checkpoint results. But how many marks would I get? I could only wonder, but a good break was needed.
2016 – Year 10
Year 10 was a different story unlike Year 9 and Year 8, as Caleb Chuang and I were not in the same class. I really treasure my time in Year 8 and 9 with Caleb Chuang in 2014 and 2015 as we got to do many projects with each other, such as coursework, team groups in Character Transformation and of course, the coveted crowning plans for Bullseye.
For a start, we were separated into different classes based on the subjects we took. As such, Caleb Chuang went to 10O and I am placed in 10N. There are two main streams, and most people took the science stream. There was only one arts stream class compared to four science stream classes. Personally, I do not desire for my science subjects to be separated into Biology, Chemistry and Physics. I have been wary of this as during my primary school days, I was told and have heard that my sciences would be separated the moment I leave Year 6 and enter Year 7. But however, even when I have entered Year 7, I dread this possibility as I know the separation of Science takes place in Year 10. Hence, I decided to take the Combined Science stream for my Year 10 and 11.
Class 10O focuses on the three science subjects (Biology, Chemistry, Physics), Additional Mathematics and takes away time from elective subjects as opposed to the other classes. Classes 10B and 10E focus on Biology and Chemistry while class 10L focuses on Chemistry and Physics. As there is no Biology-Physics class, everyone has to take either Chemistry or Combined Science as a core subject. Therefore, for us Combined Science students, we had to focus on another core subject which is Economics in order to complement non-triple science classes which have two core subjects of those science subjects.
To make matters worse, Year 10 is not like Year 7, 8 or 9 as it involves moving around from one class to another. This is because all classes except 10O had to choose a lot of elective subjects, namely four to be precise. There were four blocks that we had to select at the end of 2015, and it ranges from different subjects. The four subjects that I chose as part of my IGCSE subject selection were History, Art and Design, Global Perspectives (GP) and Business Studies. I have to admit that I chose History because I have no other subject to take; Art and Design because I want to keep my art passion from Year 7, 8 and 9; Global Perspectives as my mum said I focus a lot on global issues and read a lot about them; and Business Studies in order to complement Economics.
Choosing Combined Science helps me take time away from all the science subjects as I know it will burden my studies. At the same time, it will allow me easy access and more time to do other activities during my Year 10 and Year 11 years. This allows me to focus on other subjects and things I do best. I don’t usually characterize myself as an academic type of person due to me lagging a bit in my studies. This choice would prove to be a good advantage over the rest of my peers in the science stream classes.
The list of subjects I chose for Year 10 and 11 (including dropped subjects):
Compulsory subjects: Combined Science, Economics, Mathematics, Malay (Foreign Language)
English: First Language English
Block 1: History
Block 2: Art and Design
Block 3: Global Perspectives
Block 4: Business Studies
After school subject: Religious Studies (Bible Knowledge)
In Year 10, we were told by our teachers that it is not a “honeymoon year” as opposed to Year 7 and 8 (we had the Cambridge Checkpoint in Year 9). The term “honeymoon year” is coined to describe year levels which do not face any international exams like the IGCSE (Year 11) and Cambridge Checkpoint (Year 9). This is because the Year 10 focuses on preparing the subjects for the IGCSE exams as all chapters from Year 10 come out in IGCSE. Guess it is better to say that no year is a honeymoon year as Cambridge Checkpoint also involves taking time from our Year 7 and 8 chapters to be revised for the exam in addition to the Year 9 chapters.
I want to announce some good news, ladies and gentlemen. I have gotten a score of 3.9 for English, a 4.4 for Maths, and a 5.3 for Science in the Cambridge Checkpoint Examination! This means that I have gotten a ‘Good’ for English; close to ‘Very Good’. My Maths was in the ‘Very Good’ rank, and my Science results were in the ‘Excellent’ rank. Based on the actual Checkpoint results, I should be able to qualify to take all triple Sciences, namely Biology, Chemistry and Physics, or just either Biology or Physics, including Chemistry. Hence, some people had decided to appeal their subject selection when they found out about the results, which were released in December 2015.
Joining all triple Sciences would result in me once again being in the same class as the one and only Caleb Chuang. If I went to the Biology/Chemistry class, I would be in the same class as Eu Lynn, Natalie Seah, Benjamin Fong, Alexandria Goh or Chong Vicky. If I chose Physics, I would still be with Branson, Jordan and Ting Yi, not to mention Sara Yow as well. However, like I mentioned, I prefer to stick with Combined Science as that would make my life easier, given that my Science is not doing quite good as in my honest opinion. Serious. I don't want to keep on failing the triple Science subjects.
Year 10 is also quite an interesting year. Being in Year 10 also allows me to treasure and cherish my time in Nobel for a longer period. I really miss my friends when lulling on the seven-week Year End Break. In fact, I wish that Nobel can hold a Christmas celebration. I mean, it would look cool. We always celebrate Chinese New Year, Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Deepavali, the Mid Autumn Festival, Merdeka Day and Malaysia Day. However, we, as a school, time after time again, have failed to celebrate Christmas, making the magical year-end festival a great pause in Nobel's endless list of celebrations. We did not have a complete celebration of all the great festivals that symbolize the diversity of Malaysia.
I mean, seriously. Most of us in Nobel practice Christianity as a religion, and it looks so saddening that we cannot get to have a Christmas celebration. If Nobel had a Christmas celebration, I would choose to celebrate the festival with two very important people: Caleb Chuang and Auntie Clarine. I promise. And Caleb Chuang and I can sing Christmas carols to bless the community. It will be a jolly good festival and a celebration atop five horses open sleigh. Anyhow, let's come back to the main story.
It was Monday, 4th January 2016, the first day of school. I feel so weird. I was in Year 10. A year filled with possibilities and a year defined by division. I can't be in the same class as Caleb Chuang as a result of my subject choice.
I came to school as usual, and plopped down on the canteen table. It looks so funny as to how I finally found myself in Year 10. I kept thinking about how fast time flies. It looks so scary, as Year 11 would soon be approaching.
Being in a different class from Caleb Chuang meant that the funny, awesome and glory days were over. It will be very difficult to plan many initiatives, presentations and projects together. It will be quite boring being in different classes, since there will be no drama of the good old days of 2015. I would say that Year 10 and Year 11 would be a dull affair as Caleb Chuang is now in his own class. I mean, just how much fun did we have together. Now, I am alone.
In 10N, the class I got allocated to, there are many people from 1 Sincerity in 2008 whom I reunited with. Janelle Arnelia, for example, was one of them before she changed class. There were a couple more people as well who were in 10N before they moved to another class.
The sky was really cloudy on the first day of school. It was a really dull day. One by one, everyone entered the school compound. The hustle and bustle of life was back after seven weeks of rest.
There was this one large, red digital clock installed at the school foyer which showed the time. It looked so bright. I would soon look at it for the next two years, counting down to 6:45am; the official time when the school gates open.
Xang Yen was in his first year of the Junior and Senior School. I expect him to ask a few questions on how life was like in the Junior and Senior School. He had to settle in. I just waited for him to come. Then, I introduced him to how things work in Year 7. He was a bit blur on what to expect.
After talking to him, I went to meet my friends and had a chat. Soon, Caleb Chuang arrived. I had a short chat with him and wished him the very best for Year 10. It was fun and happy to meet everyone after seven weeks. Then, the music started playing for the assembly. Groans were heard as the daily procedure begun once again. We were told to settle down and were led to our classes.
Aiming to avoid the same mistake as I made in Year 9, I quickly scurried to the classroom where 10N is and took my place in the front seat. Ms Cynthia was waiting for us. She greeted me and said she was my class teacher for Year 10N. Ms Sharon would be our assistant class teacher. The other class teachers were Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick Kok Leong for 10O, Mr Stellio and Ms Janice for 10B, Mr Raja and Ms Sangeetha for 10E, and Mr Lee and Ms Ting for 10L. Mr Lee is a very interesting teacher and I would be talking about him in a minute. Save the best for the end, that's what they say.
Ms Janice teaches Additional Mathematics, or Add Maths for short. She also runs her own home tuition program aside from teaching Add Maths in Nobel. She told us during a preview of the Additional Mathematics course that Add Maths is one of the easiest Maths subjects, but however, I was already struggling with Mathematics. I didn’t buy that idea, but there were a few daring people who took Additional Mathematics. She only teaches 10N, B, E and L the Add Maths subjects, but for 10O, Add Maths is compulsory and is taught by Mr Kevin Wai. Mr Kevin is quite a nice and sociable teacher, and he is also teaching Chemistry as well for 10B. There is also a third Additional Mathematics teacher named Mr Andrew Tan. He is quite a somewhat stern teacher but at the same time, he is also serious in explaining the Additional Mathematics concepts. Oh wow. Maths teachers are quite serious in dealing with the numbers.
Mr Nick is the Chemistry teacher for 10O, B, E and L. Everyone across the batch had either two compulsory science subjects, namely Combined Science and Chemistry. Mr Nick is a teacher who always comes out with the various formulas in the class for Chemistry, and he talks about the most complicated acids and alkali. He has one of the most lab sessions where you would need to memorize all the chemical formulas and the complicated parts of the Periodic Table. But one thing to note is that Mr Nick is a young and handsome teacher who is at least 20 years younger in terms of facial outlook than he originally was. Mr Nick is the assistant class teacher for 10O; Ms Bee Yan is 10O’s class teacher.
Mr Raja is also another cool teacher; he is an ethnic Malay teacher who teaches Accounting. I was told that Accounting is a very difficult subject, but he has a loud, cheerful voice and is also a gentle teacher. He would normally try to always show a lot of Accounting charts and graphs and how to balance the accounting books and statements. I would master the skills during my degree course in Sunway University.
Mr Stellio, on the other hand, teaches Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Most people like Andrew Ariffin took the ICT subject as I felt like they miss the yesteryear where playing computer was a part of the fun. Mr Stellio had been teaching ICT for some time, but most people from 10N who took ICT or Business were taught by Mr Narish, who is strict but also bold and sometimes humerous. Mr Narish is also the head of Student Leadership at Nobel International School at the time, and for 2016 and the years onward, he also coordinates the Sports Day agenda at Nobel International School.
Once everyone arrived in the classroom from the school courtyard, Ms Cynthia greeted all of us and we greeted her back and took our seats. Louis Soon sat next to me. The class consisted of a really diverse team of individuals. Alia, Jo Yi, Wee Shiang, Ze Khai, Ivyna and Yan Ying were the people who were in this class that came from 9O the previous year. Gabriel Lim, whom I sat with in Mandarin and English the previous year, was in the same class as me. He waved at me, smiling. We took time to settle down, as Ms Cynthia folded her arms and asked everyone to quickly get settled.
The first order of business was to elect the class and assistant monitor. I raised my hand to volunteer for the position. This is my second time volunteering to run for class monitor as I had ambition to handle the class control book. The other individuals who volunteered were Kelsey Tay, Cassandra, Koo Sheng Jit, Lyn Wen, Hao Yinn and Enisha. Ms Cynthia ushered us outside the class as the entire class voted. Then, Koo Sheng Jit was announced as our class monitor and Kelsey Tay as the assistant monitor. We also had a new student in our class, Lai Jia Yee who has joined the school for 2016. Jia Yee would go on to study the same degree program as me, the BA (Hons) Entrepreneurship program, and take similar subjects and have similar subject teachers in Sunway University.
Ms Cynthia then told us the importance of Year 10 not being a “honeymoon year”. “Your books are going to get thicker, you will have more responsibilities, your class time would be longer,” she said. This was evidenced by the books that I have brought to school. They were about one to two inches thick. Oh dear. I mean like, come on. The Economics, Business Studies and History books that my mum bought from the school bookstore were an inch thick, with over two hundred pages each!
Ms Cynthia also stressed that the books cover topics in Year 10 and Year 11 and this explains the reason why Year 10 is not a honeymoon year. At the same time, she said that we should not be forgetting our studies as the fact that we slack behind a single bit in Year 10 would cost us dearly for the IGCSE exam if we forgot about it. Long story short, there was change coming to me as a result. Ms Cynthia also told us that our teachers would not be as lenient as those in Year 7, 8 and 9 and that we had to take our studies very seriously. On top of that, Ms Cynthia also said that we would have different expectations. Afterwards, Ms Cynthia then showed us the timetable that we have. Oh dear! The timetable had so many set teaching classes! Set teaching classes is when we have to change classes for other subjects. Take the set teaching subjects for English, Maths, Malay, Mandarin or even Reading/Bible Knowledge that one would have in a week, and add them by ten times! That is what Year 10 and 11 is like. Ms Cynthia then let us to our own discussions before we headed for the next subject which is Economics. Some people then asked to change classes and subjects. In reality, this needs serious consideration, and that changing of subjects midway is not allowed as it will affect our academic progress.
For instance, Janelle Arnelia, who was originally with us in 10N, appealed to transfer to 10B in order to take the Bio/Chem class. A few others, such as Alicia Tang, also transferred to other classes as well after a successful appeal, which was good for them since Ms Cynthia and Ms Praveen told us to stick to the same class and subjects. From the start, despite my grades for Year 9, even if it was good, I’d prefer to take the Combined Science stream because this would allow me to only study one science subject as opposed to my peers, who are studying, Biology or Physics and Chemistry, or even worse, all three.
In Year 10, we had a lot of subject teachers, namely Ms Sangeetha for Combined Science, Ms Levina for Economics, Ms Bee Yan for Mathematics, and Cikgu Niely for Malay. My First Language English teacher was Mr Thomas; Ms Visa for History; for Art it was Ms Feeda; for Global Perspectives it was Mr Gallagher; Ms Chithra for Business Studies, and Ms Cynthia for Malaysian Studies. As I also took Bible Knowledge (BK) as an extra subject, I had to stay back after school for BK class, which was taught by Ms Renee. Some of these teachers are quite interesting, to be honest.
Ms Cynthia then told us to do a discussion on what to take, and I was discussing with Ms Sharon, Grace, Aaron Liew and Jia Yee. While glancing at the window, I could make out the Sunway Pinnacle Tower as well as DK Senza, which is the building near the Sunway toll plaza of the LDP Highway. I could make out my house in Puchong in the distance. Ms Cynthia then put up a name list containing the list of the subjects we selected. All of us rushed to check it. Gabriel had trouble finding his name on the list, and I found it for him. Everyone highlighted or underlined their chosen subject on the class timetable based on the namelist and where we were allocated to.
During break time, everyone was talking about our newly selected subjects and our class teachers. Ngei San Ying was sitting at their table and discussing the subjects they took. I sat with her and chat for a while before going to see Caleb Chuang to talk about his subjects. And everyone was discussing their subjects. Jia Yee was seen discussing and meeting another new student in 10O, Chang Kai Yee. They seem interested to talk to each other.
Then, it was the break-time assembly. Ms Lim scolded Yap Hong Shane from Year 11 for not following the rules on the first day of school. She said that such an issue which arose was a bad start to the new academic year. “See me afterwards!” she yelled at him. He was late for assembly as he was playing basketball when the assembly started.
After break, we had our first subject which was a set teaching subject. I immediately went to 10E for Business Studies with Ms Chithra. Then, I had Art with Ms Feeda, followed by lunch, Maths with Ms Bee Yan and then History with Ms Visa. I mean, like, I initially saw the set teaching block with subjects that I take. For example, there was one block which had Art and Business together, and the other one had History, Economics and Global Perspectives. Ms Cynthia had told us to stick to the block we had chosen.
When I entered 10E, which was the venue for Business Studies, it was in the same classroom location as 9O the previous year. The cramped classroom reminded me of bad memories. What more to the extent that the air conditioning had broke down again. It was a flashback from January 2015.
Ms Chithra told us to settle down. She welcomed us to her Business Studies class and then spoke about four factors of production in Business Studies, namely land, labor, capital and enterprise. She was a very calm teacher and she spoke about the subject. It was all about teaching. A couple of people from 10N, namely Glen Kay, Aaron Liew and Gabriel Lim, were involved in this subject. We spent the whole class listening to her, curious to find out about how the subject looked like.
After Business Studies, Ms Chithra took the next set of Business Studies students who are waiting outside the class before I headed for Art class with Ms Feeda. Ms Feeda is a very experienced Art and Design teacher and she had experience for many years in Nobel. She used to teach the Visual Arts component of SPM when Nobel was still a private national school, and when Nobel transitioned to the Cambridge curriculum, she was put in charge of the Cambridge Art and Design IGCSE syllabus. I feel excited to see how Ms Feeda conducts her Art and Design classes. This marked the start of my 24 month-long Art and Design IGCSE journey, which is dreaded by most people in IGCSE.
Ms Feeda had produced a lot of Top in Malaysia and Top in the World students for Art and Design, and this subject is considered the most successful subject in Nobel International School. She had produced four Art and Design IGCSE Top in Malaysia and Top in the World students, namely Alston Tee, Lim Sher Maine, Alicia Samantha and Reanne Koh. She is the head of Art and Design in Nobel International School and has been instrumental in the development of Art and Design in Nobel. I had first gotten to know her well when we were in the Fine Art Club in Year 7 and 9.
Ms Feeda then gathered us at the dismissal area in order to do a warm-up drawing of her face without looking at our paper, as well as enjoy the fresh air. Apparently, the Art Studio cannot be used at the beginning of 2016 because the school was in the process of constructing a new carpark and futsal court which occurred throughout the school holidays in November and December 2015. Hence, as a result, the Art Studio was cordoned off and we had to do our art lesson at the dismissal area. At the same time, Ms Feeda also wants us to feel the relaxing air, so hence, she killed two birds with one stone.
The warm-up drawing lasted for thirty seconds, which was to train us on our drawing skills based on mental estimation and we had to draw Ms Feeda's face within that short timeframe. The sky was cool and it was raining. Meanwhile, in the distance, a group of builders worked on a large concrete structure, which was to form a new futsal court, basketball court and long jump area. Below the concrete structure was a 20-vehicle parking bay, to optimize space.
The parking garage and sports complex built in 2016, which resulted in the Art Studio being unusable.
I want to let everyone know that originally, Nobel International School did not intend to build such a design in the first place. Most people who have visited the old campus can recall stumps of concrete encased in mattresses if they had been up there; either to play basketball or to go for PE lessons or for any other funny business. This was because the stumps of concrete had reinforcement bars attached to them for another plan which, if it were to see the light of day, would result in a very different outlook for Nobel International School's old campus if it hadn't moved to Damansara Jaya.
The original plans for that site were to build a total of four stories of new classroom and office space as the school at the time was growing and that there were not enough classrooms. In fact, the lack of space was a constant problem prior to Nobel's relocation to Damansara Jaya. There were plans to relocate some of the office space to that new extension, which would be connected to the existing building. There would be office space on the ground floor, an ICT lab on the first floor, and the remaining two floors would be used for classrooms. December was usually seen as a convenient time for the school to build the new facility quickly, and engineers had recommended that the school use a jump-form or prefabricated segment construction method. However, the school wasn't willing to take the risk and as such, due to the lack of time, decided to just have a carpark and futsal facility instead.
The school subsequently built extensions and additions during the school holidays in December 2015, such as extending the canteen space. And not to mention that they also did some upgrades as well in the years leading up to 2022. However, the cost of additions and extensions were too much to bear, and Nobel decided to move to Damansara Jaya because the new campus cost the same as a renovation or an extension of the old campus. As the management and contractors were unable to complete even a single storey of space during the December holidays, the art studio was out of order, and we had to do our activities somewhere else while the construction continued. It was expected that it would take a week or two to finish the construction, which had already broke ground even before the school holidays begun, when the entire area was fenced up before our Checkpoint Exam.
Now, back to the topic. Ms Feeda, unfazed at the lack of readiness, decided to get us to go to the dismissal area for our first activity to kick of Art and Design IGCSE. When I first saw how many people in the Art and Design class, I was surprised as I had seen very few people in Year 10 and 11 Art classes in the past. Ms Feeda hoped that the canteen would be really relaxing for us to do our first activity.
Everyone then got their paper out. “Ok, guys, are you ready?” Ms Feeda asked. Some of us looked quite nervous as we cannot look at the pen and paper while drawing. We also could not erase the drawing if we made a mistake, and we also could not make corrections. “Just look at my face and draw. Don’t look at the paper,” said Ms Feeda.
“Relax, relax”, she said. So, we had to look at her posing as a model and smiling and grinning without even looking at what we were drawing. We had around thirty seconds, as mentioned, to draw what we wanted to draw. “Ok, so ready…..one, two, three, go!” Ms Feeda commanded. She then posed like a model figure going for a fashion show as we tried to look and strain our necks up at Ms Feeda when she was posing for the drawing. We then tried to resist ourselves from looking at the paper, but some tried to look at what they drew.
“Don’t look!”, said Ms Feeda, and this resulted in everyone laughing. “Concentrate!” she said. Once the time was up, Ms Feeda did a countdown and we stopped drawing. Then, everyone laughed at what they drew as the results look so funny, since the heads, necks, face, joints, hands and so on reminded us of funny cartoon characters for some of us. Glen Kay, for example, had drawn the mouth over the eyes while mine looked like a disjointed wizard.
Ms Feeda then took us back to 10O, which was empty, and was used as a replacement class while the Art Studio was still out of bounds, to explain the process of Art and Design and the expectations for Year 10 and 11. “This week, we are not going to do anything, but we just want to have a short introduction session for all of you,” she said, before asking each and every one of us to explain what we wanted to achieve in Art and Design IGCSE. I mean, like, yeah, everyone had to explain!
My aim of joining Art and Design IGCSE was to hone my talent skills as well as passion in Art and Design. I also look forward to working with Ms Feeda and everyone else in our art lesson, and I also told the class about how I got to work with Ms Feeda in the Fine Art Club since 2013. I also explained about how much fun I had with Ms Feeda when I was in Fine Art Club. “Other than Wei Yiang and a few people like [Yi] Zhen, Eugenie, Chee Kei and others whom I have taught last year, I may not know some of you, so if you could like, you know, introduce yourself, it would be good,” said Ms Feeda. “I have known Wei Yiang since Year 7 when he joined Fine Art Club,” she said.
Jien Min made a very cool introduction of himself and showed off his muscles and six packs, which made everyone laugh. Glen made funny looks in his introduction. Louis had a calm and timid look, but everyone cheered him on and clapped for him to encourage him.
Ms Feeda said that our batch is the LARGEST batch in her entire Art and Design teaching history at the time, as previous batches only have up to around 10 students on average. Our batch consisted of over 20 students from different classes. Our Art class consisted of people like Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Cassandra, Enisha, Timothy Hiew, Rosemund Chong, Natasha Singam, Leong Yi Zhen, Chong Yan Chern, Louis Soon, Faythe Chow, Glen Kay, Eugenie Kuu, Chew Chee Kei, Yoon Hao Yinn, Jien Min, Chu Xiang, Kue Wei Wei, Wee Shiang, Lyn Wen, Sophie Tan and Benjamin Tenji. No wonder there were so many people in the class. I have never seen so many people before, to be honest. That was the composition of Art Batch 2016/2017.
Ms Feeda told us that Art and Design IGCSE is not like Year 7, 8 or 9. She said that what constitutes an A in Year 7 may become a D in the IGCSE era as the standard is quite different. She also hinted that she will be using Edmodo for our lessons.
“I have never used this before; this is my first time using Edmodo, and just give me some time; I still need to see how to use it.” She was delighted that everyone knew what Edmodo is. So this means, Mr Narish, Mr Thomas and Ms Feeda had started to use the Edmodo platform.
Ms Feeda said that the art studio will take around two weeks or so till mid January 2016 for it to be ready, and she said that she will let us know when the management gives the go-ahead to use the Art Studio. “I will confirm with Ms Bee Yong and let you know when the Art Studio is ready,” she said. So, for the time being, Ms Feeda said that we will stay in 10O for our Art and Design lessons until the art studio is usable.
You see, back in September 2015, the management had started to fence off the futsal court and the gardening area in order to build a new extension of the school building but because the school did not have time for construction of a total of three stories of school extension, they instead built a basement carpark as well as a series of basketball courts in addition to the futsal courts placed on the extension. The main purpose was to expand the parking space on the bottom of the court. So, because the entire area is under construction, the Art Studio could not be utilized for lessons.
After lunch, we were introduced to our Combined Science teacher, Ms Sangeetha.
Ms Sangeetha then took the opportunity to also introduce her classes for the week. She started off by getting us to introduce one another in the class. Afterwards, she then talked about the very interesting breed about Combined Science, the subject that we are taking which is very different from what the rest are taking. Not to also mention that Ms Sangeetha is also the Biology teacher for 10O, 10B and 10E.
Combined Science is called “Combined Science” because this science subject is a combination of three subjects (Biology, Chemistry and Physics) which we are expected to study separately but chose to study together. Ms Sangeetha also taught Biology for 10O, 10B and 10E, bringing her total to four classes. Mr Nick also taught Chemistry to four classes, 10O, 10B, 10E and 10L, while Mr Lee only teaches Physics to two classes, 10O and 10L. While what is studied in Combined Science is also studied by our other friends from the other four classes, there are some parts in Biology, Chemistry and Physics which are not covered in Combined Science. As such, Ms Sangeetha said that we need to buy the Biology, Chemistry and Physics textbooks as there is no textbook at the time specialized for Combined Science. Ms Sangeetha is a very gentle teacher, but she is more academically focused and not like the teachers which joked; they seem to be serious when conducting their lessons. Ms Bee Yan is also the same in terms of character but more relaxed, and I will talk about her later.
To give an idea of how Combined Science compares to Biology, Chemistry and Physics in terms of syllabus content, it can be emphasized in studying photosynthesis, a chapter of Combined Science. While Combined Science and Biology students are expected to know the process of photosynthesis, the students who study Biology will study the chemical components of starch and the minerals present during photosynthesis; Combined Science students need not study this. Thus, it results in us completing the entire Biology syllabus in six months as opposed to one year for Caleb Chuang and the rest of his merry men who took the same subject. Additionally, for Combined Science, as it is a science subject, we will need to go to the science lab once in a while, but however, because there is only one science subject as opposed to the three sciences taken by Caleb Chuang, we only had one lab session while Caleb Chuang had to spend half of his week going to the science lab, which means more wearing of lab coats.
Afterwards, we then we went for our History class. We had a new teacher in Nobel for History called Mr Aram S. Katz and I thought, that judging by his name, he was an ethnic Malay teacher. I was hoping to be in his class as being a student with Ms Visa, honestly, for three years had been very strict. In fact, Ms Visa scolded me many times based on issues like handwriting and also sloppiness as well as other things involving academics. Luckily she didn’t blow her temper on my attitude as I was not a misbehaving student.
When I forgot my History textbook and went back to 10N to take it, I saw Mr Aram. He was really fat and he spoke in a loud and strict tone. He was bald as well and this made me think that something is quite not right. I hurriedly left the class and went back to my History lesson with Ms Visa, as he suddenly shouted without warning when changing the slide in the class.
I have to admit, that throughout my whole life in Nobel, I dread going to Ms Visa’s classes because of the way she got angry at people. However, to make her less angry, I placed on a brave face and tried to please her as much as possible. I have to admit, I am the most scolded non-misbehaving student on the academic basis, such as handwriting, incomplete work and me forgetting to bring books to the class or even forgetting to do my homework. Ms Visa would scold others for misbehaving or the same circumstances I have faced. So Ms Visa in this time period would continue more on the Treaty of Versailles, the causes and consequences of World War I, and Nazi Germany. Choosing between Mr Aram and Ms Visa, for most History students, was like choosing the lesser of two evils.
Ms Visa said that she is not going to micromanage us like how she did with us in Year 7, 8 and 9. She said that she would let us be a bit more independent. However, she said she would still be a bit strict with us while letting us have more leeway. I felt some kind of relief as too much micromanagement is not so good. We were also told that there would be a coverage of topics from the previous year, but in more in-depth detail, such as the League of Nations, the Treaty of Versailles, as well as Nazi Germany.
Now, you see, to give a head start on Mr Aram; he is the worst no-nonsense teacher that you would even expect. The moment he entered his class and if the students were still talking, he would raise his voice angrily and shout, “Hey!” to which the class would be frightened from their heart and then listen. Mr Aram hails from Arizona in the United States and teaches History all the while. He is a very fat teacher, or I should say, muscular teacher, since saying one is fat is an insult. Anyone who does silly nonsensical things in his class would be punished and shamed in front of the class, but he also has a funny tone which makes people laugh, but most of the time, he is strict, stern and expects everyone to be prepared for History. He would do some serious things such as giving his own textbooks or worksheets that he had provided, aside from the ones that had been provided for the class. Anyone who disturbs him or tries to be funny with him would have a strict lecture with him.
After school ended, I went home thinking of what was expected of me in the year ahead. It looked surreal when thinking about the fact that Year 10 in retrospective was not going to be like the years I had in the past. The class separation was already the tip of the iceberg. Really, it was not a honeymoon year. The first day of school as Year 10 was quite tough.
I compare Caleb and I being separated as a liability over the weeks and months that followed. In fact, the most popular comparison was that I was on the North Korean side and Caleb being on the South Korean side. Caleb and I took very different subjects, very different streams, and are in very different set teaching classes even though a slew of similar subjects we took were taught by the same teacher. And BK is the only class we really had in which we had the same class and same teacher.
But why the analogy of North and South Korea? It is because Caleb Chuang and I have the same traits and the same friendship culture of all the Year 10s, and thus when we were “separated” into different classes, the analogy was a different story because when Caleb is taking the science stream and a whole different list of subjects as opposed to mine, it was like apples and oranges. Similar subjects that we took are common, such as Global Perspectives (GP) and First Language English, but we are in different set teaching groups. I call one such group a “country”. But more on that later.
On Tuesday morning (5th January), Ms Levina walked into the class for Economics. She then placed her things down and then introduced herself and then started talking about what to expect for Economics. Ms Levina would soon become a very interesting and funny teacher for Economics and this would soon be told in the coming pages. Ms Levina then started talking about the basic economic problem to start with things. “Ok guys, so the basic economic problem is “limited resources, unlimited wants”. Limited resources occurs when you have limited things and not enough things to use for what you wish to do. We can make a lot of things and demands but have not enough resources to fulfill the problem. This is what the basic economic problem was about and we had to get our minds cracking on that. Ms Levina then spoke about the four factors of production in economics, namely land, labor, capital and enterprise. We were then let off for English after the two-period session with Ms Levina.
I used to be in the English Second language class with Ms Joyce in Year 9, and Ms Chin in Year 8. This was in par due to my grades for English at the time. I feel a sense of satisfaction after making it to the First Language English class with Mr Thomas. I know him from the Checkpoint Exam when he said, “I am sorry to interrupt you, but you exam has finished.”
Mr Thomas is the best teacher I ever had in Nobel. The class will always begin with him walking into the classroom. Normally, he would have a mix between a serious and a stern look on his face, but if he was greeted by anyone, he would suddenly grin and show his teeth. He would then boom in a loud voice, “How are you?”, and once he got a response, he would start the day with any casual conversation, as he sat down on the teacher’s desk, switched on the computer and the Smartboard, and opened Edmodo for his lessons. Then, he will start talking in the classroom about the topic that he posted on Edmodo, and asked if we had seen his messages. Mr Thomas emphasizes constant checking on the Edmodo platform for the lesson plan as it will help us prepare for the lessons. If everyone had seen his messages, he will proceed with the lesson, but if no one saw it, he will cry foul, ask and then berate the entire class by saying; “You are not doing your part; you are not interested in learning”, but then he will take pity on us and then introduce the lesson.
Mr Thomas will normally ask few questions or phrases to the crowd, and I would normally be the first one to respond, and my response would be like, “Yes, Mr Thomas”, “No problem, Mr Thomas”, “Can, Mr Thomas” and so on, depending on the question which is asked. He would also say some phrases which are not questions which I would respond too. He will normally ask in the class, online on Edmodo, and on other casual occasions. Here are some examples on how the conversation worked:
OPTION 1
Mr Thomas: “Can you give me the work by tomorrow?”
Me: Yes, Mr Thomas!
OPTION 2
Mr Thomas: I believe that if you read this text, you will have a clear understanding of what to do.
Me: Yes, Mr Thomas!
OPTION 3
Mr Thomas: Would I trust that you help me by reading the text to the class, please?
Me: No problem, Mr Thomas!
There have been about more than a million times I had spoken to Mr Thomas, and anyone who followed his classes, even someone who did not join his class, would also be delighted to enjoy his lesson. In fact, since I spent most of the time answering his questions, it was like clockwork; he would ask a question, and I would instantly respond his request. An audience watching something this on television would take this usual drill to be something like a comedy show. Mr Thomas would occasionally praise me for being responsive in his lesson and held me up as a model for others to follow. Sherwin and Aaron Loke sat behind me, as I sat in the front seat of the class. They gave me thumbs ups when I successfully answered a question correctly. In fact, I am normally usually at most times, the first one to answer Mr Thomas’ question.
Mr Thomas will then ask us to complete tasks in the lesson, and then once the tasks were completed, he would discuss in the lesson, to more drills of me and him communicating. Occasionally, he will praise me for being a very responsive person, but also he would highlight some mistakes I made to the class, in a motivating way. This drill would continue for some time till Year 11.
He had posted many texts on Edmodo; the first one was on the Tenerife air disaster which occurred when two planes crashed into each other on the runway on 27th March 1977; the worst disaster at the time in aviation history. Then, he posted on Diudiu, a Nepali girl who lives in the Tibetan plateau. And then, this was then followed by many more phrases to come, from King Tut’s tomb to the Wright brothers. More on that later.
Mr Thomas walked into the class and triumphantly placed his bags and things on the teacher’s chair. He then walked around and talked to the other students in our class. He spoke to Ivyna and then Kelsey before walking from the back of the classroom to me. “How are you?”, he asked. “Good”, I exclaimed. “Are you doing good?” he enquired. I told him I was doing fine.
Mr Thomas then brought himself to the front of the class, gathered pace, and boomed, “The examiner should not recognize the marks, but the effort put in by the student should be”, he said. Mr Thomas said that the exam results did not tell the true story of the student’s effort, as the student, despite putting his best efforts to study for the exam, might not necessarily get an A.
“It is the examination results that normally get overlooked, and the effort put in by the student is completely forgotten,” he said.
Mr Thomas then said that he would be using the Edmodo app, which Mr Narish did for his ICT classes, in order to conduct his classes. As such, he told all of us to register an account with Edmodo in order to allow his classes to be conducted via the app. He said that we should be engaging with a new form of learning called blended learning, which involves using different modes of lesson delivery. Mr Thomas then said that he would post important texts and concepts using the Edmodo application and that we should check our Edmodo app very often for the notifications and updates. Fortunately, everyone had existing Edmodo accounts which we registered in Year 9 with Mr Narish for ICT, so there were no worries to it.
“Now, I want you all to have an exercise book as well as a folder to keep some files,” said Mr Thomas. He then explained to us that we also need a textbook as well. “I hope all of you can have these by next week. Do you understand?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Very good, I like you. He is very responsive, you know,” said Mr Thomas, as he pointed to me.
Then, Mr Thomas told everybody to settle down. “Today, I am going to show you how to use Edmodo,” he said, as he switched on the computer, projector and Smartboard. After switching on all the electronic equipment, he logged into Edmodo and showed us the interface. He gave us a code and told us to jot the code down, which was meant for login purposes.
The first lesson was already up on Edmodo. It was a video and a documentary of the Tenerife air disaster in 1977. A bombing at Gran Canaria Airport on Grand Canaria Island in the Canary Islands caused all planes to be diverted to Tenerife's airport, Los Rodeos Airport. This caused the entire airport to be jammed with planes and all taxiways were unavailable for usage. Because of the congestion, the runway was used for taxiing and taking off. Two planes, a Pan Am jet and a KLM airliner, collided on the runway. “One was landing and one was taking off,” said Mr Thomas, as he explained to us that it was the worst air disaster in history. He then played the video in class, and we spent the entire lesson watching the Tenerife air disaster.
In the class, Sherwin and Aaron Loke sat behind me and usually talked to me when Mr Thomas wasn't teaching. Normally, I would tell my friends not to talk when a teacher is talking. We enjoyed the video as I kept oohing and aahing at the scenes of the plane crash.
Later on, we then went for break, and I sat down with Caleb Chuang to tell him on how Mr Thomas was a really amazing teacher. He nodded, smiled, and said, "Mhmm”.
Year 10 and 11 break and lunch times were really different from that of the Year 7, 8 and 9s. For a start, our break time was from 10:00am to 10:20am at the time, as opposed to the younger years, which were from 9:20am to 9:40am. Our lunch time was from 1:00pm to 1:30pm. The juniors had their lunch time from 12:10pm to 12:40pm. This meant that there was a smaller crowd, which was also less chaotic. At the same time, it was also very easy for me to meet Sabrina Qistina to discuss about our house plans to win the 2016 Sports Day. Yeah!
Since the previous day, I was quite interested on Mr Gallagher, who taught us Global Perspectives (GP) and he is a very cool but to some extent, he ranted about all things and problems in the world and how he wasn’t able to solve them and why humans are too silly to cause such problems. However, he has a very good teaching style, but he still ranted about most problems in the world being caused by the foolishness of individuals who are too selfish. So, on the first class which we had was to discuss about war and conflict. We gathered at 10E, where our class was being held, and Mr Gallagher stood at the back of the class where there was a whiteboard (he opted away from using the Smartboard), and started writing on the board. I had to sit down on the floor, open my notebook given by Eu Lynn and Yan Ying as a birthday gift the previous year, and copy the points.
“What are the causes of war and conflict?” he asked. I gave some points and I was the only one answering most of the time. Mr Gallagher then proceeded to talk more about global warming and the pollution of the environment as well as on aspects of poverty.
GP class would soon become the most dreaded class that I would attend, not because of the people or Mr Gallagher himself, but because of the cramped conditions in the class. The venue where the class was held was the same as the Business Studies lesson, 10E, which, of all days, in frustration in which I am very sorry to say of looping on it, was the most cramped and smallest class ever. The classroom, along with several other classes in the area, was originally the teachers’ staffroom during my first year in Nobel, but about five years back, the large room was bisected into smaller rooms to make more classrooms. Each time I sat at my seat to do my work during GP, the entire class was like a packed train during rush hour and I got some neck cramps just by sitting on the chair, and I also felt exhausted at the same time. That particular classroom was also my classroom in Year 9 for 9O, so it was already tiring being there for some time.
For comparison, my Year 10 classroom, 10N, was much bigger. It had wooden tiles and three large fans with one large air conditioning system. There were more windows and brighter lights on the ceiling, hence the higher natural lighting and electrical connections make it look bright till the point it made me motivated to concentrate. To add insult to injury, there were 32 students in this Global Perspectives class, making the room quite cramped. Mr Gallagher had two batches; one that was conducted during my History lesson in the same set teaching period that had 15 students, and also this batch of 32 students. A side note to know is that the best friend of yours truly, Caleb Chuang, is in the other batch, along with Sherwin, Wei Zhong, as well as Jia Yee, the newest student in our class.
Speaking of this subject, every single individual in 10N took Global Perspectives as an elective subject except for two people: Lyn Wen and Brandon Ooi. This is because Economics, a compulsory subject for all 10N students, was already blocked out in the list of Block 3 subjects, namely Global Perspectives, Economics and Additional Mathematics. This left most of us with two choices, namely either to take Global Perspectives or Additional Mathematics. Most of us prefer the former. And for Jia Yee, she had the honorable mention of having to take all three subjects. She had Economics as our compulsory subject, and selected Global Perspectives for Block 2 and Additional Mathematics for Block 3.
Conversely, every single individual in Caleb Chuang's class, 10O, took Economics as their elective subject in Block 1 set teaching. It was a clean sweep for everyone in 10O, except for Jason Leing, Kit Lee, Faythe Chow, Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark. Jason, Kit and Sean Mark took History while the other two took Global Perspectives. People in 10O only had two elective subjects to choose from. In Block 1, there was only History, Economics, Global Perspectives and English Literature as the choices. Block 2 contends with Art and Design, Business Studies, Accounting and ICT. Well, at the time, that is to say. No one from 10O took English Literature except for Dhevina.
Oh, on a side note, Mr Gallagher told us to call him ‘White Matthew’ as to not confuse him with Mr Matthew Koh, who had ‘Matthew’ in his name. I prefer calling him Mr Gallagher. Mr Gallagher's full name is Mr Matthew Gallagher, hence the mash-up. Mr Gallagher is a very funny teacher and he likes to rant on certain things a lot.
Then, later on, we had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra continued the lesson. It was really tiring being in a cramped classroom from 10:20am to 1:00pm on Tuesdays. Not a comfortable thing if you have a boring teacher, which wasn't so much the case for me.
Daryl Yeo was in my Business Studies class, and he had a type of jokery and prankish attitude on me somehow. He would prank me before the start of the classes. And he was also quite hyperactive too. Ms Chithra just talked on those points. A normal lesson.
During lunch, I then sat down and reflected on the subjects and what Mr Gallagher said. He had told us to bring our iPads and computers for our next Global Perspectives lesson. I was worried about the iPad and the penalties for breaking one of the school rules which prohibit electronic devices. I just decided to bring it. He had not given any permission slip like what Ms Kiran did. Mr Gallagher said that we need our iPads and computers for research purposes.
Then, we had our Science lesson with Ms Sangeetha. She told us which areas to focus on and which ones were not covered in the Combined Science syllabus.
At the time, ladies and gentlemen, there was no official Combined Science textbook. Hence, everyone was asked to buy a Biology, Chemistry and Physics textbook while Ms Sangeetha covered the syllabus. Those textbooks that we used were no different than the ones used by Caleb Chuang and his friends from 10O. Ms Sangeetha also taught Biology for 10O, 10B and 10E, and as such, it was easy for her to coordinate us. Afterwards, it was our first Maths lesson with Ms Bee Yan as she introduced the first topic on equations to us in Maths as we listened to her attentively. Ms Bee Yan, on the other hand, taught Mathematics to 8N and 9N when we were Year 8s and 9s (at the time, Mr Daniel was my Year 8 maths teacher and Ms Usha/Seline my year 9 maths teachers. She is a very gentle teacher and explains the concepts. It was mind-boggling trying to remember so many formulas. However, she is more focused on the Mathematics concepts.
During dismissal, Ms Lim told us that we could stand for dismissal instead of sitting at the new dismissal area, which I will explain more about later. Let's just settle in first.
It was the third day of school, Wednesday, 6th January 2016. It was the middle of the week, and we had our FIRST formal assembly. Ms Bee Yong then greeted us and then told us about how our week was doing. She, of course, reminded us to be focused on our studies. Then, Ms Sarah came in front and announced that starting from Thursday, 7th January 2016, a “Reading Revolution” would be created. This meant introducing a reading time for each class. The reading time would take place every Tuesday and Thursday in our classrooms for half an hour, from 7:30am till 8:00am before the first lesson starts. We were asked to bring a book to read, and to be exact, the teachers mean story books or any other books not related to lessons, excluding comics or entertainment books.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, we would plop down in our seats and read any book we wished, and then Ms Cynthia would come and join us as our class teacher to read a book of her own. She would then watch the room for anyone who didn’t have a book in his or her hand and ask them to read their books. Completion of homework or studying in class was forbidden during the reading time.
We returned to class, and unpacked our bags, getting ready for English. Mr Thomas walked into the class for our English lesson. “Hi! Hello! How are you?” he cried. He plopped his large bag onto the floor, switched on the computer, and asked me to assist him to switch it on. I took a pencil, reached for the projector, and pressed the projector so that it switched on.
Ethan Wong was the first one to arrive from 10B. “Hi, Mr Thomas!” he cried, smiling on his face. Ethan had a nice grin when he wore his glasses. He was accompanied by Jien Min. Then, the entire class from 10B arrived. Louis and Gabriel Lim panicked as they tried to find their English textbook before going to their class.
Gabriel was surprised. “Wei Yiang, you are not going for English?” he asked. I told him I am with Mr Thomas for First Language English. Because I was with Ms Joyce in English Second the previous year, Gabriel had assumed I was still in English Second. I had to explained to him that I had changed to First Language English starting from 2016.
A lot of people, I can tell you this, in the case of 10N, were in English Second. The majority of folks in 10B, the other class where set teaching is concerned for English, came to our class for English First. They crowded the class as Mr Thomas greeted them. “Hi, hi! How are you!” he cried. Then, he approached me and greeted me with a smile on the face.
“Mr Thomas, here is my file, textbook and exercise book,” I told him, producing the items on my table. “Good!” he cried. “Very good!”
Mr Thomas then started the lesson and checked on who had successfully registered into their Edmodo account. “Let's see,” he said, as he peered at the computer screen and the Smartboard.
“Wei Yiang has registered,” he said. Then he turned at me. “Have you watched the video and looked the task online?” he asked. “I have watched the video but I don't understand what the task is for,” I said.
“That's fine, but have you read them?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I said. Mr Thomas was delighted. “Very good!” he cried. Sherwin and Aaron Loke were giving me thumbs-ups. I soon had this surprised look on my face when Mr Thomas said ‘very good’.
Mr Thomas then got up from his seat and trudged to the center of the classroom, in front of my table. He had a disappointed look on his face as he opened the list of students who have joined his Edmodo group, titled ‘2016Year10’. Mr Thomas then saw my name. He asked me if that was my account and I said yes. He nodded, smiled and talked to me on how I was progressing well. “You see, I only have fifteen people registering on the page. We have around twenty-eight students in this class,” he said. “Can you please register?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Have you watched the video at home?” asked Mr Thomas. I had watched it at home, as promised. Mr Thomas’ eyes lit up. Then, he continued to play Part 2 of the Tenerife video. Once the video was done, he gave us homework. “Do task 2, 3 and 4 on Edmodo. Is that okay? Can you give me the work next week Monday?” he asked.
“YES MR THOMAS!” I responded like a soldier answering his commander. Mr Thomas smiled, walked over to me, and patted me on my back. “Our friend here is doing fine. He will be well. He will get good marks!” he cried. I just smiled back at him.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina continued to teach us about our first topic. It was a short lesson. Land, labor, capital and enterprise again! At first, it seems like Business Studies and Economics are related. In reality, they are related. This is because Business Studies and Economics are common sense subjects that focus on commerce and industry. In fact, I prefer Economics to be more fun than business as it focuses on other aspects of things. In general, Business Studies combines both Economics and Accounting concepts.
I was actually wondering where is Mr Gan, the teacher who introduced us to Economics, and that Ms Levina was sitting in the back of the classroom just supervising the introduction class in Year 9. It seems like he had disappeared. Mr Gan is so cool, you know, and it was a pity not to have him.
Ms Levina is a very interesting and funny teacher. I can tell you this because of how she conducts her lessons. She would always talk very fast, which makes the lesson very amusing and for me, a sense of humor. Then, she gave us a worksheet and told us to do it. Gabriel Lim wasn't doing it and Ms Levina approached him. Gabriel and Glen sat behind me. Then, Ms Levina checked my work and told me to finish my exercise before discussing the worksheet and collecting it.
If you ask me which teacher is my favorite teacher, I will say that my most favorite teacher is Ms Levina, followed by Mr Thomas. These two teachers were the BEST teachers ever. The teacher that deserves third place in this case, is hard to say. Luckily, my Economics and English lessons combined in the timetable would cover four days a week, so I had loads of fun coming to school.
During break time, I discussed with San Ying and Kit Lee about the Edmodo group Mr Thomas set up for English. Kit Lee was surprised. “Your teacher is Mr Thomas?” she asked me and San Ying, who responded in the affirmative. And not to also mention that before I went for break, and once Economics had finished, I discussed with Ze Khai on the world's tallest buildings. I told him that Malaysia should be famous if we built the tallest building in the world once again.
After break, I had to bring my art supplies for the Art lesson. I frantically tried finding Ms Feeda, and she told us to gather in 10O. Ms Feeda then briefed us on what to expect for our Art lessons.
“I have just spoken to Ms Bee Yong and the Facilities department. Some of you have been asking on whether and when can we go to the Art Studio. The management has said that the Art Studio still cannot be used because as you know, the construction has not yet finished,” she said.
Ms Feeda then groaned. “Very sorry. We cannot do anything this week as the Art Studio cannot be used, but I think in two weeks, it should be ready,” she said.
“I think why not we tour the Art Studio so that you all can see how it looked like?” asked Ms Feeda. The whole class was excited. So, Ms Feeda brought us to tour the Art Studio before returning to our class. The Art Studio was full of Ms Feeda's work but however the doors were locked and construction tape was placed outside the Art Studio. Then, we went back to our class and got ready for our very first Character Transformation session of the year. Ms Feeda told us to bring A2 paper the following week for our lesson.
For Character Transformation, Ms Lim told us during our first Character Transformation (CT) session for the year that we would be involved in the Love on Wheels Project. Love on Wheels is a charity activity organized by Fungates Superflow Foundation in order to give back to the needy in Jinjang. Every day, volunteers would distribute basic necessities to the people of Jinjang near a block of flats. Families and individuals would queue outside the building to get some food from trucks transporting food from the Soup Kitchen. They would carry home a loaf of bread and some drinks. The CT projects would be carried out every Wednesday after school as Wednesday is our CT session. Each of us would need to sign up for two sessions, once per term, but however, if we wanted to go for more occasions we can sign up our names in those places. A maximum of 10 people were allowed at any one time and we would be transported to Jinjang via the school van. Ms Lim said that she would put up a sign-up list outside the canteen and we can fill in our names on the list at our own convenience. Students involved in the Love on Wheels Project would need to head to Jinjang after school ends, and then gather at the Soup Kitchen to help load bags of bread and food onto vans which will bring them to several collection points at Jinjang. There, we would pass the bags of food to the line of people waiting in queues.
Mind you, the queues would occur at any time at any given circumstances, be it rain or shine. The volunteers from Fungates would distribute the food every day without fail. Ms Lim told us to appreciate the hard work of the volunteers, be grateful for what we are given by our parents, and honor the people who brought us up well, in light of the comparison to the conditions we have and those of the Jinjang folk.
Ms Lim also took the opportunity to introduce a few new faces for Year 10, including Chang Kai Yee and Jia Yee. She asked all the new students to stand up, wave, and introduce themselves. One new boy from 10L stood out from the rest. His name is Eugene Ong and what is very interesting about him is that he was a Malaysian whose family lived in Qatar, and since they moved back to Malaysia, he took the opportunity to study here in Nobel. He had also taken the opportunity to tell us about his life in Qatar.
For my point of interest, as the Middle East is a very interesting place with a lot of construction projects, Qatar also had a lot of the same just like Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Another boy who had came to Year 10 was Kevin Tan. He was a cool basketballer and he introduced himself quite briefly. Kevin Tan is in 10B and he is also one of the most famous people in our year level.
Ms Lim also briefed us on how Year 10 is like and what the situation was that we were in. She said that we had a higher expectation and we should not be lagging behind or complaining on petty manners in order to show a good example to the students in Year 7, 8 and 9. Then, Ms Renee came on and took the time to introduce herself as the official Level Leader for Year 10. She first informed us about what Character Transformation is about before proceeding to detail a special plan for the year.
“This year, for each month, every class will need to decorate their class based on a theme given for the month. All of you will need to work as a class to decorate your classroom and marks as well as merit points will be awarded,” said Ms Renee.
The themes were as follows:
January – Welcome Back To School
February – Chinese New Year
March – Sports Day
April – Earth Day
June - Teacher's Day
July – Hari Raya Aidilfitri
August – Merdeka and Malaysia Day
Each class will be in charge of decorating a theme for the class decorations. The class decortation competition was seen as an initiative to encourage inter-class competition and to also foster comradeship over everyone in Year 10.
Once the Character Transformation session was over, we then went for our lunch time. Then, we had Business Studies, we had to change classes again. Ms Chithra taught us more about businesses and the factors of production, and told everyone to get into groups of four. “Choose a country and research the economic problems of that country, and write a research on it,” said Ms Chithra, while also giving us more details. The research had to be typed.
The natural choice for a group of 4 was me, Glen, Gabriel and Aaron, and I was the group leader. Everyone had a hard time listening when I told them and explained time and time again over what to do.
Hold on a second. I haven't talked about the fact that many people in 10N took Business Studies. I have told you earlier that many people in our class took Global Perspectives and English Second as their main subject and that many in 10O took Economics. Everyone in 10N took Business Studies except for Cassandra, Enisha, Krystal Goh, Jia Yee, Louis, Lyn Wen, Wee Shiang and Jo Yi. Everyone in the class who took Business Studies were taught by Mr Narish, with the exception of me, Glen, Gabriel, Aaron and Hao Yinn.
And this was followed by History, as Ms Visa told us to take our books out. Brandon Ooi giggled and played jokes as I waited for Ms Visa to arrive at 10O's classroom. His humorous attitude made me shiver as I was afraid Ms Visa would get angry at him. Ms Visa spent time teaching us the causes and consequences of World War I on a slide given by Mr Aram.
In our class, apart from me, Alia, Brandon, Cassandra, Yan Ying, Eric Wong, Gabriel Lim, Glen Kay, Kelsey, Sheng Jit, Krystal, Aaron Liew, Louis Soon, Wee Shiang, Ze Khai, Hao Yinn and Jo Yi were the ones taking History. Most of the people in 10N took English Literature, such as Shane, Ryan Chok, Enisha, Ivyna, Nickolas Nashpal and Lyn Wen. Eric Wong, for your information, is one of the cool basketballers in our class, and he was at the time the OLDEST kid in school. He was born on 24th July 1999. He was thus the only student in Nobel in 2016 and 2017 to be born in the late 1990s and in the same century as the teachers. This made him the oldest in our class as well as the entire school. Apart from Eric, Brandon, Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok, Shane, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal like to play basketball
I mean, Ms Cynthia was right when advising students who took History just for fun. Don't choose a subject just because you had nothing to take.
Ms Visa did work with us. We had to copy what she wrote on the whiteboard onto the book. Ms Visa kept on telling me on my handwriting. We learnt the differences between primary and secondary sources when studying History. She was really strict as she checked my book, chiding me for being too slow in copying. Then, I heard pouts of laughter coming from the next class, 10L. It was the group of 10O students that were taking Economics. And I heard Ms Levina's voice as well.
You see, everyone in 10O who took Economics was taught by Ms Levina. Because of the large number of students in 10O that wanted to take Economics, there was a special set teaching group catered to 10O students. In the Block 1 set teaching, there were two Economics set teaching classes; one conducted by Ms Sharon and another conducted by Ms Levina.
Just like all of us in 10N, everyone else in 10O like Ms Levina's lesson. The only difference was that our Economics lesson – yes, all the Economics lessons on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays in the first half of the academic year, were ALL in the morning. I like afternoon Economics lessons. When would that be? Ms Levina is definitely an entertaining teacher for all.
I kept on peering at the birthday chart pasted on the wall in 10O. All the names were there, and I could see Caleb Chuang's name. In fact, I kept on looking at his name on the birthday chart. People who know me would say how creepy it was. Then, I went for the after-school lesson which I took, Bible Knowledge.
Bible Knowledge, unlike all other subjects, is one of three after-school subjects offered by Nobel back in 2016. The other two subjects were Mandarin Second, which was taught by Ms Ting, and Mandarin Foreign, which was taught by Mr Steve. A lot of people in my class were taking Mandarin. Brandon, Shane, Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok were in Mr Steve's class while Eric, Jia Yee, Ze Khai and Hao Yinn took Mandarin Second. I was the only one in 10N who chose the Bible Knowledge subject.
Ms Joyce had said in 2014 that for those taking Bible Knowledge in Year 9, Ms Renee would be teaching us. Well, Ms Renee is a gentle teacher as well and one filled with the love for God. As Ms Renee would be teaching us Bible Knowledge (BK), she would be the one whom I should refer to. To recap, Mr Chan, Ms Cynthia and Ms Joyce taught me BK in Year 7, 8 and 9. And Ms Renee is now continuing the Bible Knowledge legacy in Year 10. Aside from Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee also taught me Health the previous year, and also teaches Biology for the Year 11 students then.
The BK classes for Year 10 was held after school. In our subject selection list, we had to select nine subjects for IGCSE while also selecting an optional 10th. There were three subjects held after school, namely BK, Mandarin Foreign, which is taught by Mr Steve (who taught me Mandarin in Year 7), and Mandarin Second, which is taught by Ms Ting. I did not take Mandarin for Year 10 and 11 because the Mandarin classes are very hard, and I wasn’t that fluent in Mandarin.
As mentioned before, these three after-school subjects were held after school. Out of all the periods in the timetable, this one lasts for two hours, from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. Of course, one may think that the subject is boring, but fortunately, Caleb Chuang is here! YEAH!!!!!!
I was the only lone ranger from 10N. The people from 10O who were in the BK class were Caleb Chuang, Faythe Chow, Desmond Chan, Joseph Diong, Joshua Chew and Sean Mark. Sherwin was another lone ranger; the only one from 10B. 10E was represented by Ashley Teoh, Berlinda Tan and Rosemund Chong. The last class, 10L, was represented only by Sarah Low. Don't worry that much though. 10L, known as the class with the ‘two Sara(h)'s’, had the two Sara(h)s involved in after school subjects; Sara Yow was involved in Mandarin Second. The last time the two Sara(h)s were together was in 2014, when we were in 8O.
Before we head to the next part, please keep in mind that 10L, the class of Mr Lee Eng Hoe, only has TWO GIRLS in the entire class, namely Sara Yow and Sarah Low. Excluding the two ladies and Ms Ting, their assistant class teacher, it was an all-men show. All the boys in the class really like Mr Lee. He is really cool. In fact, out of all the teachers in Nobel, he fails to amaze students with his Physics lesson. Their class is so exciting, especially when he also teaches Physics. In fact, he teaches Physics for 10O and 10L. His class is so competitive, in which you will see later. I can picture Brendan Cheah and the entire class calling out Mr Lee and shouting happily at him as he enters the class. He is a cool teacher. I can assure that. I pity Sara Yow and Sarah Low for being shunned by the boys in the class. What a wild class!
Mr Lee is a cool teacher. He is a very outgoing teacher and is sometimes quite funny. In fact, he is quite funny all the time. Mr Lee is the class teacher of 10L at the time and his class is quite competitive in anything, be it the cleanest class, the class of the month, which is awarded by class merit points, and the inter class competitions and other things. Mr Lee teaches Physics for 10O and 10L. So, just imagine how excited his class got when he enters the class. What a funfair.
Anyhow, I was really happy to see Caleb Chuang. Finally. I mean, come on. Caleb Chuang and I had two similar subjects. We had the same teacher, Mr Thomas, for English. We both had Mr Gallagher for Global Perspectives. Both of us were taught Mathematics by Ms Bee Yan. And we also have similar teachers in different subjects. Caleb Chuang and I were taught by Ms Sangeetha. For Caleb Chuang, she taught him Biology, and for me, Combined Science. However, for almost every single subject, we are not in the same class, except for Bible Knowledge. Although I had to stay until 5:30pm for the Bible Knowledge lesson, it was Caleb Chuang and all my friends there who brightened up our day. In fact, most of us sit at the same table during break and lunch, and the absence of pranksters and class clowns in the Bible Knowledge class made this class a class with little to no scoldings from the teachers.
Ms Renee told us to get some food and we were allowed to eat in the class until 3:45pm so that we won't get so hungry after a long day at school. Caleb Chuang, Joseph Diong and Sean Mark went to the 7-Eleven at PJ Soho to buy some drinks. Desmond Chan, Sherwin and I had a chat as we ate, while Rosemund, Berlinda and Ashley Teoh asked Ms Renee questions as she set up the computer. I had at least two pieces of white bread to eat on for the day. Normally, I would save some food after school ends while on the car ride home. My mum would give me a container full of bread and a plastic bag containing five loaves of bread. My food container itself would have another five. I would eat two during break time and save the rest to be ate in the car on the way home. This time, I ate the remainder during class, since Ms Renee allowed it. Ms Renee told me not to worry, since permission was given and she had spoken with Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong for us to eat after school. I would worry of breaking the school rules, you know. I don't want any trouble with Ms Lim. Ms Renee also had some weightage – she was Year 10's level leader.
Ms Renee then told us that the Year 11 students who had to do their Bible Knowledge lesson had to stay back until 3:30pm on Fridays, which meant that for every single day, they stayed back until 3:30pm. Normally, Nobel at that time would end lessons for the Junior and Senior School at 3:30pm from Mondays to Thursdays, and at 1:30pm on Fridays. The reason why these after-school subjects were held on Wednesdays and Fridays was because Monday afternoons were reserved for leadership board meetings and the Track and Field CCA, Tuesdays for sports CCAs and Thursdays for other clubs and societies. The dates for CCAs were slashed down from five days a week to three days a week. Soon, Caleb Chuang, Joseph Diong and Sean Mark returned from 7-Eleven, and Ms Renee begun the Bible Knowledge lesson. Hold on a moment, but speaking of CCAs, it was only the first week of school. CCAs had not started yet.
Studying Bible Knowledge in Year 10 and 11 was a good experience as a Christian myself, because we experienced fellowship in Christ as well as the social companion of our good friends and teachers. It was also an opportunity for us Christians to devote our time to God as an alternative from our Sunday services in church. And normally, we begun the lesson with a prayer. Ms Renee, for this round, led the prayers to open the lesson. Occasionally, someone else would do it too.
Ms Renee then outlined our 15-minute grace period to snack on food. Then, she told us that we would be using the book of Matthew for our Bible Knowledge lessons. We then had a reading on Matthew chapter 1, which detailed the birth of Jesus Christ. I sat with Desmond Chan in the front of the class and we read the books together. Our Bible Knowledge lesson was held at 11E. The Mandarin Second lesson was in 10N and the Mandarin Foreign lesson in 10L. We had a textbook for our Bible Knowledge lesson focusing on the specific books. That book of Matthew textbook was already with me since Year 8, as well as a textbook on the book of Acts of the Apostles. I really enjoyed every time being together with my friends to seek solace in God. The sun set quickly, but it was fine.
In the class are the most wonderful people I have ever met. I can say that to me, this is a “dream class” as there are no troublemakers and the teacher rarely scolds, plus, all the people in this class are very close friends whom I talk to often, so as such, this BK class is very different from the other classes I have. Aside from that, everyone is a believer in Christ, and that Caleb Chuang is in this class.
Outside, people were playing basketball as I finished my lesson and the offices had closed. My mum was there to pick me up from school. I felt happy on my first after-school Bible Knowledge class.
We made it to the fourth day of the first week of school. And, surprise, surprise! It was our Reading Time.
We were asked to go up to our classes at 7:30am. I hadn't had the time to eat my breakfast or talk to my friends. Then, we entered the class. Ms Cynthia came with a thick book she had prepared. We plopped down in our seats. “Okay, 10N. Please sit down and READ,” she said.
I picked up a book and started reading. I then read the morning newspapers. It would be common practice for me to read newspapers in class instead of in the canteen. Normally, I would buy some newspapers on the way to school and read them in the canteen while having my bread for breakfast. But for the Reading Time, to ensure I had something to read, I would bring my book to the classroom.
Ms Cynthia glared at the class, scanning the class for abnormal behavior. “Brandon, take out a book and read,” said Ms Cynthia, to which Brandon replied, “Yes, teacher.”
Then, Ms Cynthia continued to ask people to read. Ms Sharon then came in with a book and sat down in the teacher's chair and read as well. “Ryan Chok, where's your book? Please read! Sheng Jit, read!” cried Ms Cynthia.
We had to read for 30 minutes. I finished reading my newspaper and read again. I glanced at the time. It was 7:45am. Ms Cynthia then took our attendance and asked Sheng Jit to do so. Once the reading time finished, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher told us what we were doing for the day and continued discussing about war and conflict. It was really unpleasant to sit in a cramped classroom at the start of the day, but it only lasted for 40 minutes. Afterwards, it was our PE time, and we went down for PE with Mr Victor, who did some warm-up exercises with us. Jia Yee was really uncertain as to how Mr Victor conducted his class. The excessive straining made Jia Yee feel tired, and she communicated this with Grace.
Once our PE lesson was finished, we had our break time. Then, it was Economics. Ms Levina came in for the lesson. She told us to take out our worksheets and discussed them . Then, she went around the classroom. Gabriel and Louis forgot to do their worksheets, and Ms Levina discussed the answers revolving around the Basic Economic Problem, Scarcity, and the Factors of Production, before introducing to us how the Basic Economic Problem can be solved by Demand and Supply.
Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan gave us work to do while also teaching us about equations. Ms Bee Yan also told us to bring a green pen by Tuesday, 12th January, so that we can do our own marking in our exercise books and worksheets.
After lunch, we then had Art and Design, and Ms Feeda gathered us in 10O just for a discussion on what to do the following week. Then, it was time for History.
Mr Aram came into the class. Oh, how big-sized he was! He went to the chair and plopped down on the seat next to the teacher's table. Ivyna greeted him, but he just kept quiet. He had a Coca-Cola soda drink in his hands as he sipped a good mouthful of drink before taking out his books and switching on the computer. I proceeded to Ms Visa's class.
Then, Brandon Ooi did some jokes and chit-chatted with Kelsey and Cassandra. Louis sat next to me. He was busy licking his fingers. Then, Ms Visa entered. She did not say much, plopped down on the seat, and asked Brandon to help him with the computer. Once the computer was switched on, she kept on teaching about the Paris Peace Conference and the Big Three. It was similar to what we learnt at the end of 2015, except that it was in detail. We were told to write about the positive and negative effects about the Paris Peace Conference, which led to the Treaty of Versailles.
The last day of school for the week had arrived. What a week!
The morning started off by Mr Eugene's announcement for new students to register for the CCA. “Students who are from last's year's CCA will remain in your CCA until the middle of this year. For new students, you have one week from today (8th January 2016) until next Friday (15th January 2016) to register for your CCA. Then, we went back to class for our Homeroom period. I will let you all know why the Homeroom time is being pushed to the beginning of the day. I personally think that it is the most disastrous thing in history.
First, we started off the day with Ms Cynthia addressing us and asking if everything was fine and whether we wanted to change classes. Then, we had Malay. Cikgu Niely, our Malay teacher, came into the class. You see, Cikgu Niely had taught my neighbor, Yi Ruth, Malay before, and I got to know her in Year 8 as early as 2014. Cikgu Niely is a very friendly teacher and an approachable one, and we just did some Malay comprehensive questions in class most of the time. We also talked about Kata Penguat, Kata Adjektif, Kata Ganti Nama Diri, and so on. Cikgu Niely is also a very friendly teacher as well.
She then explained as to how there were only two periods of Malay in our timetable, which made it very rare for us to come across a long period of Malay lessons unlike in Year 7, 8 and 9. Cikgu Niely then told us to appreciate learning Malay as the amount of time allocated was only 40 minutes per period. We would have Malay lessons on Mondays and Fridays, and she told us to cherish the moment learning Malay as we would not have the chance to learn Malay in the near future due to our studies for other subjects. Cikgu Niely was a very kind teacher and spoke softly. She had relieved certain teachers’ lessons back in Year 7 and knows me thanks to Yi Ruth.
The day continued with a period named Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia came in. Malaysian Studies was a subject initiated in Nobel back then which was specially tailored on the history of Malaysia. It was a one-period, 40 minute lesson. Every Malaysian student was required to take this subject, which was the case for everybody in our batch except for Pranavee.
Ms Cynthia is the odd one out of the rest. She teaches Malaysian Studies for the entire Year 10 (and 11) at the time in 2016. She has a very bold but gentle tone, and she offers good advice. As being the class teacher of 10N, she said that we as 10N students had to be a role model to other classes.
Ms Cynthia said that no one knows about Malaysia when asking the class about what we know about the history of Malaysia. I was the only one that raised my hand on that. She then told us that Malaysian Studies was important as it gave us an insight and it also tells us about the history of Malaysia and for us to know where we come from as a nation as well as who we are. Ms Cynthia then introduced to us the Malaysian Studies textbook. “It is not compulsory to buy it but it will be good if you have one,” said Ms Cynthia.
Honestly, I have seen pictures of the Prime Minister's Cabinet in the Year 10 and Year 11 classes before. Yes. Seriously. People in Nobel then were willing to talk about the government. And that was part of the Malaysian Studies subject, where students did research on the Cabinet of Malaysia.
Afterwards, we went for break and then came back for Science. The break time wasn't as chaotic, just like what I said. Everyone settled down quickly. Sabrina Qistina was telling everyone to do so. It was easier to coordinate two mature levels as opposed to three wild and playful ones. At least, that was what Ms Lim thought.
Anyhow, Ms Sangeetha taught us about cells. We had two lessons covered thus far; the characteristics of living things on Monday, 4th January, and the study of plant and animal cells on 5th January. This day's lesson was a continuation of it.
Then, it was time for Ms Bee Yan to come in for a two-hour-long Maths lesson. This time, she had something interesting for us, and it looks quite cool!
“Ok, guys. Today, I want to introduce something special, and I hope to make it a weekly affair. Every Friday, we are going to have what we call a ‘Genius Time’,” said Ms Bee Yan. Ooh. It was so interesting. I wonder what a Genius Time was.
Ms Bee Yan said that in order to make a fun and pleasant lesson possible, it would be very interesting if thirty minutes were to be dedicated each Friday for the Genius Time, which was to have someone present to the class about anything that they wished to present in order to kick off the lesson. “If the topic is related to Maths, it would be good,” Ms Bee Yan added.
The class got really excited, and there was pandemonium. Brandon Ooi started to talk to Shane and Ryan Chok about what was good to be presented. The whole class started discussing. Ms Bee Yan called for attention. “I know all of you are excited, but I want to ask who wants to volunteer to be the first one to present.”
I raised my hand, and Ms Bee Yan chose me. I had a topic in mind. I wanted to present about Broad Sustainable Building, a Chinese company that specializes in prefabricated buildings and structures. This company, founded by Chinese billionaire Zhang Yue, had built a 30-storey building in a week and a hospital in a week. To make things even more mind-boggling, the company participated in the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, and set up a three-storey building in a day. Not to mention that all the lights, doors, windows and even utilities were installed in a day along with that building! That building was eventually used to promote Broad Group, of which Broad Sustainable Building is part of. It is a win-win situation as it involves Mathematics, which captures Ms Bee Yan's attention.
To start off, Ms Bee Yan presented her portion of Genius Time and told us about mathematical models used by professors and experts. She then spoke on how the models were used in the engineering world, before continuing with our lesson.
Afterwards, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson. I forgot to bring my iPad, so I went back to 10N to get it. I personally feel that Global Perspectives should be held in 10N as the room is spacious for more people.
Inside 10N, there was an Additional Mathematics class being conducted by Mr Andrew, a new Additional Mathematics teacher at the time. He looked serious and stern, but he wasn't angry. But his stern look was really tough enough to make me shiver. All his students were from 10L, and he was also their Mathematics teacher.
Mr Gallagher then told us to do research for the rest of the day. Then, he told Rosemund and Eric to go down to the canteen and get some lunch, before we were dismissed.
Speaking of GP class, the Friday GP lessons were held on the last period of the day. From 2016, the management made it a point to put the homeroom period at the front of the timetable for Friday instead of at the end of the timetable as it was done in previous years. Kelsey and Cassandra told me, when I asked them on why the timetable is placed as such, that the purpose of putting the homeroom period at the front was to accommodate Friday events that were held in the morning assembly so that it does not eat into the lesson time, and that the teachers did not want their lessons to be affected.
Previously, the Homeroom period was located at the end of the Friday lessons, and it was held for 30 minutes, from 1pm to 1:30pm. During this time, our class teachers will have a casual chat with us and have Friday snacks with us in the classroom (normally I will bring my Friday snacks home and have home-cooked lunch). The homeroom period at the end of every Friday school day would be also a time for us to wind down and relax and catch up on housekeeping affairs with our teachers, such as field trips and other school announcements. This is also good because as the weekend approaches, it will be a final farewell for the week’s activities and a chance to bond together as a class before we go off for our weekends. Of course, I used it as an excuse so that I can avoid being in a cramped GP class at the end of the day, but also, I can enjoy the spaciousness of being in 10N’s classroom.
I mean like, you know, putting spaciousness aside, the Homeroom periods on Friday afternoons in the past three years were really appealing. I got to spend time and snack with my teachers. It was a bonding session. No, seriously, it was. On second thought, the bonding session over afternoon Friday lunch was worth it. And another side effect of this misarrangement was that the break time as well as all the other class times were messed up as opposed to the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday schedules. Normally, each period's lesson is 40 minutes, and on a normal schedule, Homeroom period on Fridays would be the same time as lunch time, thus making it easy to plan things, since every period has the same time. But thanks to this misalignment, the second period begun at 8:30am, the second one at 9:10am, and the break time is from 9:50am to 10:10am, provided that we count Homeroom time as a 30-minute period. Conversely, on a normal schedule, the first period begins at 8:00am, resulting in the second period beginning at 8:40am, the third period at 9:20am and break time lasting from 10:00am to 10:20am. Thanks to the misadjusted schedule, I had tens of thousands of headaches when planning my time on Fridays.
This is why, ladies and gentlemen, if I were to pick one year out of all my years in Nobel, I would pick Year 9 as we have a proper schedule, a lower hassle of swapping classes, and of everything, a really good jolly good time with Caleb Chuang. Now, thanks to one week of classes, it is even more boring than previous years.
The first week of Year 10 went by very quickly. Soon, I discovered a co-relationship between Business Studies and Economics. This is because the first chapters of Business Studies and Economics talked about the factors of production. However, there is one underlying difference; Business Studies explains the day-to-day operations of the business while Economics focuses on the demand and supply aspect of an entire economy. However, studying Business Studies is more complex than Economics because the topics are more of being boring as opposed to Economics. Alternatively, the same answers and concepts can be used in each of these subjects’ exams, so common sense prevails.
Well, we started a second week of school. Monday, 11th January 2016. Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim were trying to get everyone to sing the school song loudly. When that failed, Ms Lim threw a tantrum. “It is your first assembly. I want to hear all of you sing,” she boomed. Fortunately, to balance the mood, we had Mr Thomas come in for English. Everyone, or I should say, most people, had to go on with the class-moving exercise for English.
“Have you completed the work?” Mr Thomas asked as he approached me.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I answered. I produced my book, and Mr Thomas took it. He examined it, and was pleased. He put the book down on my table in satisfaction.
Then, everyone came in for the class, and Mr Thomas discussed the answers for the Tenerife exercise. However, he was unhappy that some people had not taken notice of the exercise.
“You see, some of you still ask me where to find the work. Go to Edmodo, open it, and scroll down. The work is there. Mastering Summary Writing Skills – Tenerife,” he instructed.
Then, Mr Thomas scrolled up to the next post. It was on Cape Town. I had seen it while looking on my computer, curious to find out about how the lesson works.
“Mr Thomas, I have seen it!” I cried.
“Which one?” he asked.
“The one on Cape Town,” I answered bravely.
“Very good,” said Mr Thomas. “It means you are ahead. But we are not doing that today.”
Mr Thomas then explained to me that there was another post between Cape Town and Tenerife, called ‘Diudiu’. “Have you noticed this?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I answered. “That's good. Very good. Have you opened it?” he asked.
“Yes Mr Thomas.”
“Very good. We are doing this today,” said Mr Thomas as he smiled at me.
Mr Thomas then showed us the text of Diudiu, an old lady who resides in a mountainous region of Mongolia, and told us to write a summary about the text online. He told us to pick out important points and then summarize them. Then, he told us more about Diudiu as he went into story-telling mode. He then continued to enlighten us on his lessons.
Behind me, Sherwin and Aaron Loke had their books open, facing Mr Thomas. They were attentively listening to the tales of a lifetime and the interesting magic Mr Thomas worked in his lessons. He explained a lot, until English was coming to a close. The rest of the people from 10N who had come from English Second were waiting outside the class. Mr Thomas hurriedly ended the class as he saw the crowd building up outside the room, along with Cikgu Niely.
“Aargh, aargh, we will have to stop here today. Okay? Bye bye,” he said.
“Thank you Mr Thomas,” said Sherwin and Aaron Loke. They went to meet him and talk to him for a while before leaving for 10B. I waved goodbye to them as Cikgu Niely came in for a short but sweet comprehensive lesson.
During the lesson, many people did not have their books and Cikgu Niely wasn't happy. She taught us some comprehension and gave us worksheets to do. Then, we had to do a task in our exercise book. Then, we went for break.
While my friends headed for the stairs to go down to the canteen, I waited outside Caleb Chuang's class for his lesson to end. Inside his class, I could see the whole class listening attentively to Ms Sangeetha, who was conducting the Biology lesson. Caleb Chuang was in front, seated on the right hand side. On his left was Lim Wences, who was furiously looking at his book and jotting down notes. The seating position of me and Caleb Chuang in the class would soon play an important role socially later on in the story.
After Ms Sangeetha ended her class, the class was dismissed. Then, the door of 10O opened. I went inside to greet Caleb Chuang and we walked down to the canteen together. We had a good chat. All of the people of 10O were surprised at what happened. At least, for now, during break time, it was business as usual.
When it was time to gather for our break time assembly, Ms Lim then told us about punctuality during school hours. She then quipped that the clock in front of the school foyer should have its brightness level increased so that we can see the clock's glare and the time shown even with our eyes closed.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra moved through the topics faster, and my mind was a bit blur in trying to understand the concepts. She frequently used Business Studies Online, an interactive webpage that teaches us about the concepts of Business Studies. Ms Chithra is an experienced teacher in the field; I once saw her teaching the Year 10s Business Studies when I was in Year 8, and there were a lot of signs pasted on the wall for people to remember her notes. Now, if Ms Levina’s class had Brandon Ooi act in a funny tone and disrupt the class, then in Ms Chithra’s class, it was Wong Yew Jan that had his own share of problems for Ms Chithra.
While Ms Levina reacted funnily and amusingly, in my opinion, to get Brandon Ooi under control, for Ms Chithra, she just plainly shouted at Yew Jan to get himself settled. “Quiet!” she cried, when Yew Jan played in the class. Yew Jan was in the same class as me in Year 7, and each time he played the fool on me. So, in Year 10, it was unsurprising on how much fool he played on me as well as disrupt the class.
The complicated thing about Business Studies is that Business Studies, unlike Economics, focuses more on the corporation and the business, and you would normally hear corporate terms being discussed in the lesson, such as profits, losses, products, sales, costs and so on, as opposed to Economics terms like demand, supply, market failure, and those likes. But one good thing I learned about in Business Studies is the term “added value”, which means how companies can enhance their products by adding new features to make their products stand out from their competitors. Ms Chithra gave us a worksheet to do at home and recap the lesson.
On the second week of lessons, Ms Feeda announced on Edmodo that the art studio is ready, and that she had gotten the studio ready for the next lesson. Apparently, the management had prepared the art studio for us to use. So, Ms Feeda then gathered us in the art studio to study on painting an image based on a picture she took in the class. She divided us into four groups, and then asked us to arrange a series of objects in the class for a photoshoot, namely a set of cups, a bottle of soap, cloths, a teapot, a potted plant, a clay sculpture and a bottle of spray paint. Ms Feeda then subsequently posted the pictures of the objects on her blog, Art and Feeda, also known as “The artist and I”. There were 35 pictures that she took in total, and we had to print out the images from the blog and bring it for the next art lesson.
Louis, Glen, Yan Chern and I were placed in the same group, and I arranged a stack of cups in a Y-shaped footprint as I wanted to mimick the footprint of Burj Khalifa and Jeddah Tower. Each group had different objects to arrange, and Ms Feeda took turns taking each of our photos.
Ms Feeda then took the opportunity to introduce her blog, Art and Feeda. This blog is a blog dedicated towards the Art and Design landscape in Nobel as well as Ms Feeda’s lessons. I was already aware of Ms Feeda's contribution towards Art and Design in Nobel, as I was in the Fine Art Club in 2013 which was run by her, as well as in Year 9 in 2015. Honestly, I forgot to bring the images, but my mum printed it out for me in no time and saved my day. The rest of the other art lessons for the beginning of the year.
After a whole amount of time in the Art Studio, I went back to class. On the way back, I saw Caleb Chuang coming down from the ICT lab, which was located above the Art Studio. The both of us chit-chatted and walked back to class, where we went to get our meal coupons for lunch. Then, during lunch, I sat with San Ying and had lunch with them. Following lunch, we then had Science, where Ms Sangeetha continued to teach the lesson, pointing out areas that are not in the syllabus, which we had to write down, ‘Not in Syllabus’. Once we had finished, I went for History with Ms Visa. It was a 40-minute lesson.
When I entered the class, my heart beat again. I was afraid Ms Visa would get angry with me. I don't want Ms Visa to get angry with me over petty affairs. Then, Ms Visa came in, asked us to take out our books, and copy the lessons from the slides.
The next day of school, 12th January 2016, was a very normal affair. We came to school and had to read in the reading time again. This time, I didn't bring a book, so I merely read my English textbook instead. Oh wow, what a broken momentum I had. Ms Levina then started to teach us about Demand, which is one of two solutions to the Basic Economic Problem. “If you look at the price elasticity of demand, when the demand is elastic, the demand curve will look like an ‘E’, and when it is inelastic, it will look like an ‘I', she said, as she tried to get us to remember the curves easily. She gave us a worksheet and told us to draw the two graphs in the worksheet as well as our exercise book.
Ms Levina then check Louis’ and Gabriel's works, correcting them. Then, Brandon Ooi wasn't doing his work. “Eh, Brandon, please. Why you haven't completed your work? Complete now,” she said. We were doing a worksheet on Opportunity Cost, which is the best alternative forgone. This means that if one were to play video games, he has to forgo studying and his exam result, and vice versa. Then, we went for our English lesson. Mr Thomas came in.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas,” I smiled as I greeted him.
“Yes, good morning! How are you?” he asked.
“Mr Thomas, for the task with Diudiu, do we do it as homework or we do it in the class?”
“Yes, it is homework, but if you haven't done it, we can do it in the class, because it will be classwork,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then talked to us about the characteristics of Diudiu. He opened the text for us and told us to read about Diudiu. Then, Mr Thomas then started asking questions. I was the first to answer, and he was really happy. We did the summary writing in class. Mr Thomas then asked us why is Diudiu named as such, and I was the first to explain to him that Diudiu sounds like a Chinese name.
“Very good,” he said. I was surprised.
Then, we went for break time. The entire 10N class consisting of English Second students were waiting outside. We were dismissed, and Mr Thomas waved goodbye to me. He then left the class. I took my food container and went to 10O to find Caleb Chuang. He came out, and we had a chat with Kit Lee as we walked towards the canteen steps, before I went with Kit Lee for breakfast.
After break time, Sabrina Qistina told everyone to settle down during the assembly. Ms Lim was watching. The crowd of Year 10 and 11 students settled down quickly, resulting in us being dismissd early and Ms Lim was really happy with our conduct.
We then returned to our class, and took our iPads and computers for Global Perspectives. I managed to grab my notebook, pencil case, student organizer, a file and my iPad for the lesson. On another note, I met Ms Kiran and talked to her about the iPad issue for Global Perspectives and that Mr Gallagher had not issued any permission slips, blatantly telling us to bring for Global Perspectives. Ms Kiran told me that the management had waived the permission slip requirement for Global Perspectives, but it was limited to iPads and laptop computers.
Mr Gallagher told us to do research about the latest wars. At the time, the War on Terror in Afghanistan and the Iraq War were in full swing. He told us to research about the conflict and the various factors. The condition in 10E was quite cramped and uncomfortable, but I did my research. Then, Ms Chithra came in and then started talking about the functions of business organizations.
Ms Chithra then asked, “What do you think businesses are set up for?” I then raised my hand and told her it was to make money. Ms Chithra praised me for having a good try. Then, she continued to spend the entire lesson explaining the functions of business organizations.
In the center of the classroom, I occupied the front seat. I was sitting on the right row's front seat, close to the center. Ms Chithra also told us to get into groups to do research on an economic problem, and our team chose Tanzania. Jonathan Chong then joined our group after Ms Chithra allocated him to us as there was no other group left for him.
After lunch, Ms Sangeetha came in and brought us to the Science lab for our first ever lab session, where we had to look at an onion cell and a leaf cell under the microscope. I sat in the same group as Ivyna, Sheng Jit, Yan Ying and Hao Yinn. Ms Sangeetha told us that an onion cell does not have any chloroplasts as the onion fruit itself does not conduct photosynthesis. We had to view the microscope and label the observation on our worksheet, which we pasted in our exercise book.
Sheng Jit and Ivyna took turns adjusting the focus power of the microscope so that we can look at the cell easily. When I got my chance to peer at the cell, it was really disgusting. Then, Sheng Jit placed his saliva on another transparent film and placed it under the microscope. The film is normally used to display a specimen for viewing on the microscope. “Sheng Jit! Eww!” cried Ivyna, as they saw how gooey the microorganisms on his saliva were. Even Ms Sangeetha was taken aback by Sheng Jit's actions. Then, we returned back to our class for Maths and then all of us discussed Ms Bee Yan's worksheet. Once class was over, I went to find Caleb Chuang and chat with him before we went for dismissal.
Speaking of dismissal, Nobel had changed the dismissal procedure for the Junior and Senior School in 2016. Instead of going out from the foyer, starting from that year onwards, students were re-routed to a separate dismissal area in order to segregate the elementary and the Junior and Senior School students. This caused us to walk a long distance and it was hectic, especially if some people were going back by transporters. Even my aunt complained of that. The purpose of this new system was not to block the view of the Elementary School students.
The next morning, I arrived at school normally, and I arrived at the canteen. It was early in the morning, and I read my newspaper. Then, I went to wait for Caleb Chuang's arrival. I spent half an hour waiting to him. While waiting, I greeted Ms Lee, Mr Steve, Ms June and many other teachers who entered the school. Then, I saw Mr Aram. He had a bottle of coke in his hand, sipping it as he trudged his fat body towards the entrance. Then, I continued to observe him as he walked to the main office, tapped his card, and buldged, walking all the way to the lift.
Afterwards, I saw Daryl and Marissa Yeo arrive, and his dad was putting their bags together. Marissa was crying that day, and Daryl accompanied him. Then, Caleb Chuang arrived, along with Ivyna. We walked to the hall together, talking and chit-chatting. I feel excited to meet him as we would be having our Bible Knowledge lesson that afternoon.
Then, I asked Caleb Chuang if I could join his group for the community projects, and he said I would need to talk to Joshua Chew first for his consent. So, I met Joshua Chew and the group members that Caleb Chuang was going with for Soup Kitchen, since we had Character Transformation today. I then spoke to him and then he said I could join.
The music then played, signalling the start of assembly.
“Students, please settle down,” said Wong Vickie, as she led the assembly and asked us to greet our teachers. Then, we were seated, and Ms Bee Yong told us about the dismissal procedure and that many students were still using the main entrance via the foyer to exit the school instead of via the proper dismissal area, which the old Sekolah Kanak Kanak Pekak Selangor was. Then, she told us to follow the proper dismissal procedures before ending the assembly with a prayer.
When we got back to class, Mr Thomas arrived. He plopped down on his seat, switched on the Edmodo application, and told us to get ready for our lesson.
“You see, there are still some people who have not joined yet,” he groaned.
“Yes, Mr Thomas, but there are more,” I responded.
“True, but we need everyone to join, because I am giving the next work,” he said. “You have read this, right?” he asked, pointing to the article on Cape Town.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I responded.
“Okay, good. Let's wait for everyone to come first.”
The entire 10B batch for English First entered the classroom. Mr Thomas was waiting. Then, he started talking about how blended learning is important and the power of using Edmodo. Then, he told us to do a summary on Cape Town. He explained about how important Cape Town was in South Africa. He then spent the entire time talking about how important Nelson Mandela is for South Africa and why he is a very inspirational role model. Then, we did a short summary on Cape Town as he discussed it with us, following which we went for our next lesson with Ms Levina. In the class, she gave us a worksheet to do on Factors of Production, and Brandon Ooi tried to horse around and he didn't finish the worksheet. However, he eventually finished the worksheet before Ms Levina discussed with us. Then, we went for our break time. Again, as usual, I went to 10O to wait for Caleb Chuang, but the class took so long and some people from 10N asked why did I always have to wait for him there when I can wait for him at the canteen.
After break, I went directly to the Art Studio, where we brought the pictures for our art lesson and then we started tracing the images. Ms Feeda said that she would monitor my drawing in particular because I am considered one of the “weak students” for Art and Design. So she checked on mine, Glen’s and Louis’s.
I sat in the front of Art Studio 3, which is the designated Art Studio for the senior art students of Year 10 and 11. A sign was placed by Ms Feeda to denote this:
The sign placed by Ms Feeda outside the art studio.
The picture that I used to draw on my A2 paper.
Ms Feeda said that this picture was a still life setup and we were practicing still life drawing. While drawing, I talked to some of my friends, who weren't really interested. Ms Feeda said that we should concentrate on our work as talking to our friends would result in time being wasted. Then, Chee Kei, Eugenie, Hao Yinn and Wei Wei played some K-POP songs on the computer, and Ms Feeda was dancing like crazy. “Aiyoyo! This people like K-POP, ah?” said Ms Feeda, as she laughed. The four girls not just like K-POP, but also Korean superstars. They also subscribe to BIGBANG, a Korean musical band.
We then went for our Character Transformation session, where Ms Lim reminded us to sign up on the list. We were given a week to sign up on any of the two days where we were okay with going for our community service project at Love on Wheels. There was a sign-up list pasted on the wall where we can indicate our choice of community service. Everyone had to participate in two days of community service, and we can choose any day we wished.
I ate some nice chicken rice during lunch from Mr Tan's stall. It was really delicious. Then, I thought about my presentation and research work from Ms Chithra. We had to hand them up. I proceeded with Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and Caleb Chuang to list our names on the sign up sheet. I had only thought of one day and not the second day yet.
After lunch, we then went for Business Studies, and we handed up our economic research to Ms Chithra, who then told each group to present about the research. Ours was on Tanzania, and Jonathan and I led the presentation. Yew Jan kept on talking and laughing during the presentation, and this made Ms Chithra not so amused with him.
Then, it was History. Brandon Ooi was really in a humorous mood as he talked and played jokes. Then, he teased Louis, which made him angry. Ms Visa came in and got angry with Brandon, before continuing our lesson on the Treaty of Versailles. It was so creepy when talking about how Germany was punished while thinking how to NOT get punished by Ms Visa. It was a long talk about World War I and the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which sparked the war.
Once we had finished with History, I got excited for Bible Knowledge. We will be meeting our fellow friends once again. Finally. A once-a-week encounter with the one and only Caleb Chuang.
Ms Renee then came in and got her things down on the table. She switched on the computer. “Ok, students, you have 15 minutes to have your snack or buy snacks,” she said. Then, she askd Sherwin to turn on the projector. Sean Mark and Caleb Chuang went to the 7-Eleven nearby to purchase food.
Then, Ms Renee asked those who were in the class as to whether they had joined the previous year's Bible Knowledge Quiz at SMK Assunta. It was held on 1st August 2015. Ms Renee then told us that our BK16 Quiz would be on 6th August 2016. To add more excitement to the fanfare, a postal quiz was to be done. The 17th National Postal BK Quiz will be held from 15th April to 2nd May 2016, and Ms Renee said that she will find a time for us to do our quiz in class.
Ms Renee then gave Joseph Diong the opportunity to open the lesson with a prayer. Then, we begun the lesson by talking about Jesus’ birth and how Jesus’ parents fled Bethlehem when King Herod ordered all babies to be murdered. All of us had some spookish thoughts when the thought of babies being murdered was brought up. We were really spooked for a total of 90 minutes before we did some exercises in our exercise book.
Then, Caleb Chuang and Joseph Diong shared some chips during the lesson. Ashley Teoh, Rosemund and Berlinda had brought some cookies as well to eat before we left for home. I then asked Ms Renee questions about the postal quiz, and she said that we will do the quiz in class on a later date. Ms Renee also invited everyone to tell the new students to encourage them to join Nobel's Christian Fellowship CCA. Everyone in the Bible Knowledge class at the time except for me, was a member of the Christian Fellowship CCA Club.
The next day, Thursday, 14th January 2016, during our reading time, Sheng Jit and Kelsey, two of our monitors, collected RM 50 from us in order to channel the money to a Class Fund account. They had told us that we will be setting up a Class Fund initiative where everyone had to contribute some money to an account in which the funds can be used for any projects or initiatives that the class planned to do, such as community projects or celebrations. Sheng Jit and Kelsey collected the money from me, which I passed to them in an envelope. My mum had told me to give money via envelopes so that it will be more organized.
Once the funds were collected, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher told us to share our research that we did on war and conflict and also another exercise that we had to do. I was the first to volunteer. While speaking, Mr Gallagher scolded Ryan Chok and Shane for talking in class before allowing me to continue. After the Global Perspectives lesson, we went for our PE lesson. Mr Victor took us to the field for the PE lesson.
Jia Yee was really excited as she and Grace talked while walking. Jia Yee was curious as a new student on why we were going to the field outside of the school compound. Normally, in other schools, no such excursion occurred.
As we passed by 7-Eleven at PJ Soho while we walked to the field, some people went to purchase food and drinks, but were stopped by Mr Lim, who was with us for the PE lesson. He instructed them not to purchase food from 7-Eleven.
We reached the field and assembled in our class lines as we got our attendance taken. Then, Mr Victor told us to run two laps around the field. I led everyone as they run. Sean Mark tried to race after me, but I sped ahead of him. On the second lap, I can see Shane, Ryan Chok and Ze Khai talking to each other and laughing. Shane's house was next to the field where we did our PE lesson, and everyone was curious as to whether Shane would invite them.
Then, Mr Victor told us to do some jumping jacks and some still jogging exercises. This time, I had brought a cloth when he told us to do push ups on the floor. Some people thought as to why I had brought a cloth. You see, when we do sit ups on the ground, the back of our PE attire would be dirty. Not only I did not like my clothes to be dirty; my aunt wasn't amused with that as well.
Behind the crowd, some people were playing at the back of the field with some leaves from coconut trees located at the field. Derek, Daryl, Bryan and Hua Iong were playing with some leaves when they were told to return for the lesson. Then, Mr Victor told us that we will do strength training the next week and to practice for our fitness test.
Once we returned to school, some people bought some coke and drinks from 7-Eleven and brought it back to school to consume them. Then, we went up to class and got ready for break time. I reached 10N, took my things, and went to see Caleb Chuang at 10O. The class had switched on their air conditioning to cool down in the class. I met Caleb Chuang, talked to him, and waved hi to Joshua Chew. We then had a short chat before walking down to the canteen.
While sitting and having a chat together, I discussed with Caleb Chuang on his second trip on the community project list, but he hadn't decided on that yet. The sign up dates were looming. We were given two weeks till the end of January to sign up for the community projects.
After returning back to class, Ms Levina was waiting for us, handing out papers for us to do. We had to do an exercise based on the characteristics of Country A, described in a text and we had to answer four questions. When I read the characteristics, the fact that the text begun as ‘Country A is a small island nation in Asia', and the fact that the text said that the town centre is on the south of the island and that big hotel chains have been set up in the country remind me of the fact that this description of Country A corresponds to Singapore, which is a country that has this characteristic. In fact, the entire class kept on talking about Singapore all the while.
Ms Levina told us to do the work, but Brandon, Shane, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal were not doing their work, so Ms Levina had to call their names and tell them to keep quiet and do the work. Brandon was a bit playful. “Faster, Brandon, do your work,” she groaned, pointing at his paper like a mother controlling a stubborn boy. Then, Ms Levina waited until everyone was done. Then, she allowed me to answer the question. However, Brandon Ooi was playing and then she asked him to answer. However, he wasn't able to answer. “Make sure you do your work next time, ya,” said Ms Levina, before continuing the discussion.
Then, it was time for Ms Bee Yan's Maths lesson, where she taught us Standard Form and gave us worksheets to do. Ms Bee Yan reminded me on the Genius Time session the next day, and I informed her of my intention to use the Smartboard. “Yes, you can use the Smartboard or the PC,” said Ms Bee Yan.
Then, it was lunch time, and I improvised by taking my Art bag down so that I can head to the Art Studio directly after assembly ends. During the lunch time assembly, some of the students in Year 11 acted in a cool and funny manner and hugged each other. Jareth Ho and his friends cheered and laughed like brothers and acted brotherly as they sat down.
When lunch time assembly ended, I then went to the Art Studio, and sat down in my seat. Then, I greeted Ms Feeda and prepared my art supplies. Soon, Eugenie came, then Wei Wei and then Sara Yow. When everyone arrived, we continued our paintings while Ms Feeda walked around the room, checking on us. Yan Chern then teased me, and I wasn't so amused with him.
Ms Feeda told us that in the future, we may have to move to a bigger art studio as the current art studio is too small to fit everyone in the class. She then went around and checked my work, and told me on how I can improve on the painting of the cups, as well as the brush strokes. The hot sun towered over the large angsana trees outside Nobel, as I saw the leaves flutter, thinking of Ms Visa's History lesson. Then, it was time for History. I rushed up to 10N, took my books and headed to 10O for Ms Visa's lesson. Mr Aram was in the class, adjusting his slides and drinking 100 Plus. Then, Brandon Ooi then played jokes and talked about his latest game with Kelsey and Ze Khai. Then, Ze Khai and I had a chat before Ms Visa arrived to continue our lesson. She switched on the slides, and we had to continue copying the information from the Smartboard and the slides. So, as Ms Visa taught us, we copied them down. Ms Visa walked around and checked on us. Me, Gabriel, Louis, Aaron and Glen were on Ms Visa’s radar all the time.
Gabriel somehow forgot to bring his History book. “Where's your book? Hero, where's your book?” cried Ms Visa. “I forgot,” said Gabriel. “Very good. No books,” said Ms Visa, shaking her head. Ms Visa then taught us about the events leading to World War I. I feel really dull and compared Ms Visa's lesson, or even Mr Aram's lesson, to Ms Levina's Economics lesson. There were cheers, claps and laughter from the room. I feel so dull. I wished I was having fun with Caleb Chuang in his Global Perspectives class, but I can't.
Ms Visa asked us to copy the information from the Smartboard. Gabriel Lim took a piece of paper and then copied the information. Ms Visa went around the class sternly, and she chided Glen for copying all the information. “Why do you write one whole paragraph? Write the important points only! No wonder all of you are so slow!” she cried. What a day. We were learning each crisis where a country was attacked by Germany or Italy.
Mr Narish launched the Sports Day theme for 2016 on 15th January 2016, during the morning assembly. The theme was called “Rise of the Empires”. It was Mr Narish’s first time directing the Sports Day logistics. He said that all houses would need to meet on Monday (18th January) in order to discuss the plans for Sports Day.
Mr Narish was cool and ecstatic when he flicked the slides. It was interesting to see him as such a teacher coordinating the Sports Day. He was full of energy at every turn as he announced the sports calendar for 2016.
I feel very excited when Mr Narish announced the information for Sports Day. He was really impressive. He was cool and he was really motivative. He spoke with great intonation as the crowd wowed at him.
Mr Narish should be given the credit for making Nobel's Sports Days really exciting. In fact, his planning was so amazing to the point where it appeared to be an election, a sports game, or even a cultural festival combined into one event. In fact, Sports Day looked more like an election to me, no thanks to the great enthusiasm and coordination done by Mr Narish.
This was Nobel's first time getting Mr Narish to handle the Sports Days. The addition of a theme to the Sports Day made the situation look cool, exciting and interesting. The intention to have a theme was to add a creative touch to the Sports Day. I feel very excited that Mr Narish came into the picture.
For the first time in Nobel International School's history, a theme was given for the Sports Day. This will be the first of five Sports Days which had themes. The other themes for Sports Day were Soaring Together (2017), Superheroes – Justice League (2018), Transformers (2019) and Endangered Animals (2020).
After the end of the assembly, my mind was already gunned down into the Sports Day. It was a big deal. We need to make Bullseye win the 2016 Sports Day. However, Caleb Chuang was BADLY needed. The discussion must take place to ensure Bullseye's 2016 Sports Day Victory.
I kept on thinking of this as we went back to class. We need to go for our lessons first. I was planning to talk to Caleb Chuang during break time.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely did some Karangan with us, but Brandon was playing around, and Cikgu Niely had to ask him to do his work. Then, we handed in our homework. After the Malay lesson was done, Ms Cynthia came in and started teaching about the Malacca Sultanate, which is a royal regime that made Malacca really famous in the past.
It was then break time, and I went to meet Caleb Chuang to discuss about the Sports Day, but however, he was really busy doing his Biology and Additional Mathematics homework. Add Maths is a compulsory subject for the people in 10O. He had a lot of homework, and his Additional Mathematics teacher was Mr Kevin Wai.
When we returned for Science, Ms Sangeetha taught us about the reproduction system of plants. Brandon Ooi greeted Ms Sangeetha happily. Then, it was Maths, and subsequently, our Genius Time.
“Okay, may I ask who is doing Genius Time today?” asked Ms Bee Yan. I then raised my hand. “Okay class, Wei Yiang will be presenting for our Genius Time today. Wei Yiang, you can get ready,” said Ms Bee Yan, as she gave me 15 minutes for the presentation.
I went to the computer, searched for the Broad Sustainable Building videos, and begun my explanation to the class.
“Today, I am going to present about Broad Sustainable Building. Now, this company is a company based in China, and the company can build a 50-storey building in one week, a 10-storey building in three days, and they also have planned to build the world's tallest building called Sky City. They plan to take seven months to build the building,” I said. Then, I played the video of the timelapse construction of one of Broad's buildings. The whole class was wowed by the speedy construction of the buildings. “Every component of the building is pre-fabricated, which means you can have your curtains, air cond, windows, water and electricity on the spot!” I exclaimed. Ryan Chok's mouth was visibly opened in shock at the speed of the construction.
Broad Sustainable Building is a company that manufactures pre-fabricated modular components which can result in fast construction time at a low cost. Everything, including the electrical components, are pre-fabricated by Broad Group’s factory and assembled at the building site. This results in less concrete, carbon emissions and high quality buildings. So, I showed videos of buildings being constructed in a quick timeframe to prove my point. Broad Group had assembled the New Ark Hotel on their premises in Changsha by prefabricating it and completing the construction in one week, and a three-storey building at the Shanghai World Expo 2010 in one day.
Ms Bee Yan said that the video I presented was an interesting engineering breakthrough that everyone can look at. She then asked me a few questions on the building construction for me to answer. She said the concept was very interesting as it is impossible for people to build a building this fast. And then, Ryan Chok was the next one to present in the next Genius Time session on 22nd January. Then, we did some exercise discussion in our textbook as Ms Bee Yan showed us working after working. The time then came for our Global Perspectives session with Mr Gallagher.
Although the Global Perspectives lesson on Fridays lasted from 12:10pm to 1:30pm, just like any other two-period lesson, I feel that it is the longest two-period lesson of my life, longer than any other two-period lesson ever. This is because Mr Gallagher told us to do our reading and research for our Global Perspectives lessons, and we are as such, doing the same thing for 80 minutes. Because it also passed 12:30pm or 1:00pm, I feel that the Global Perspectives session on Friday lasted for two hours as opposed to just an hour and 20 minutes.
Mr Gallagher then told us to present our findings for our latest research in the class, and he spent the entire time talking. The large amount of people in a cramped classroom made me feel like getting out of there; it was like, really long. I really don't look forward to Friday GP lessons because of this.
The next Monday, 18th January, we came back to school, refreshed from the weekend.
The morning started with Mr Narish informing everyone about the house meet. “Please ask your parents to make transport arrangements so that you can stay back for the house meet,” he said, informing us that we should attend the house meets.
The house meets present us with a very important opportunity to present our visions and our aims for the future of Bullseye. It was Bullseye's moment to shine, as we were coming out of the year 2015, fresh from a Sports Day and Nobel Cup victory. The years 2014 and 2015 were the last time that Bullseye won both a Sports Day and Nobel Cup victory in two consecutive years, prior to the 2022 and 2023 Sports Day and Nobel Cup victories, which were also won by Bullseye.
At the time, ladies and gentlemen, I had a plan to win 2016. Having won 2014 Sports Day was cool. Then, we also won the 2014 Nobel Cup, which was better. After notching the 2015 Sports Day and the 2015 Nobel Cup, it is like, you know, so cool. Who would win four consecutive sports tournaments in just two years? I thought that if we won the 2016 Sports Day and the 2016 Nobel Cup, and get over with the 2017 Sports Day to end our final year in Nobel, we would make Bullseye the greatest sports house ever. All thanks to the great plans by me and Caleb Chuang. Now, with a strong captain to lead us, I focused my eyes on a potential 2016 Bullseye Sports Day Victory. I was so excited till I cannot wait to have a discussion with Caleb Chuang on the matter.
The English lesson begun that very morning, and Mr Thomas had a very amazing morning. “Today, we are going to read about King Tut's tomb!” he cried. He then talked to us about Egyptian civilization and how the pyramids were built, as well as the tomb of King Tutankhamun, the great emperor of Egypt.
“Have you seen this?” he asked us, showing the latest post on Edmodo.
“Yes, Mr Thomas. I have read it as well,” I replied.
“That’s very good. You will do well. How about the rest?” asked Mr Thomas. There was no reply.
“No one saw this except him?” asked Mr Thomas. Aaargh.........” said Mr Thomas, as he groaned and gave a long talk on why everyone must regularly check the pages on Edmodo. “You must be responsible for your own learning. Never mind. We will open this today,” he said, clicking on the text. He then did some word effect texts with us, and I kept on answering him correctly, which made him so amazed and inspired.
Afterwards, we then had Malay, and Cikgu Niely told us to hand in our Karangan worksheet before she then discussed the answers with us. Grace and Jia Yee then discussed their answers together, while Brandon Ooi kept playing jokes in class and Cikgu Niely had to call for attention many times.
Then, we had break time, and then Business Studies, where Ms Chithra then continued to talk about the various types of business organizations as well as what a public and private sector is. It was very easy and straightforward; a public sector is a series of jobs located under the government, which is for the public. A private sector consists of jobs run by private organizations. Most companies are private organizations, including my mum's company. The public sector also consist of government-linked companies, such as Tenaga Nasional Berhad, the national electricity company of Malaysia. I remember the first time I heard about such a term; it originated from the term ‘privatization’, which appeared in a Wikipedia article about New York City's World Trade Center, which was privatized by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which used to own the World Trade Center. The Port Authority is a government authority under the state governments of New York and New Jersey.
Afterwards, we had our Art lesson with Ms Feeda. This time, we had the Art lesson in Art Studio 1, which is the art studio where we had our Art lessons in Year 7, 8 and 9.
“Okay, guys, so today, I have asked all of you to use this studio because I can understand that you all are one big class, and given that fact that your batch is the largest batch I have seen, we will use this studio from now on, okay? Now, I want all of you to take another A2 paper and then please come back quickly; I am going to show you something on the screen,” said Ms Feeda.
We went to the Art Studio 3 where we took our A2 paper. Some of us kept our art supplies inside the Art Studio. Then, we returned quickly. Ms Feeda then set up the Powerpoint presentation in order to brief us on what we are doing today.
All of us then crowded in front of the whiteboard as Ms Feeda explained to us. She then told us the steps on how to do certain painting techniques. Then, we did some drawings on human figures. Glen then did his drawing. I wondered why he took Art. He appeared to take almost every single similar subject as me, except for English. Glen told me he wanted to do an art business. Ms Feeda then said that on our next lesson, we were going to do a very interesting activity, and we had to wait.
During lunch, I then went and met Caleb Chuang and told him about the plans for Bullseye. He had finished his work. I sat with him at his table and had a chat before Joshua Chew and Julian Ong approached the table and sat down. I didn't want to expose the plans for Bullseye to our other friends from other houses. Doing so would mark the end of Bullseye's long victory run, and we didn't want to break it. I also took some time to purchase the Malaysian Studies textbook during the lunch break and I also read and flipped through the book for a short while.
Then, when we returned to class, we did some work in Science on diffusion, and Ms Sangeetha gave us a worksheet. I can still remember Ms Sangeetha recapping our previous chapters, and she said that our skin is one cell thick which results in anyone getting injured very easily to the point where we bleed from our skin when we even have a light scratch on our body. Afterwards, we then went for our History lesson. Caleb Chuang was packing his things to go for his Global Perspectives lesson with Mr Gallagher. I talked to him for a while on the house meet before he left. Then, Ms Visa continued to teach us about World War I. We learnt about trenches and the horrible conditions faced by soldiers during the war. Then, we returned to class, got our things, and went for the house meeting.
All of us Bullseye members met that very Monday afternoon in class 11E where the pomp and circumstance were glittering in the limelight. There was a large crowd of Bullseye members in the classroom. The Year 7 students were in their PE attire while all other students donned their school uniform. Outside, it was raining as a large thunderstorm approached. The name-calling for the dismissal echoed in the background. All the Year 11 committee members arrived. I waved hi at all of the members. There were a lot of people, excited for the discussion of Bullseye's future.
I then talked to Caleb Chuang and then told him that I will tell Sabrina Qistina, our house captain, our plans for the Sports Day. “If we have the time,” replied Caleb Chuang.
Sabrina declared a historic speech. She was fiery, determined and filled with emotion. She was really enthusiastic about a potential victory of Bullseye in 2016, and I supported her ever since I voted for her in the 2015/2016 House Captain Election.
“Bullseye members, if [last year’s] Nobel Cup was seen as a fight, for this year’s Sports Day, it would be WAR!” she exclaimed. The Sports Day was indeed a big battle in which members of the four houses would compete for the coveted trophy. Personally, I was thinking of making Bullseye win in 2016 because we had 2014 and 2015, and winning 2016 would make Bullseye very famous.
I mean, come on, seriously. If we win every year, it will be free promotion for Bullseye. We want to be promoted and be exposed to the world for us to see. We want the world to see the achievements of Bullseye and also allow Bullseye members to know how to win future Sports Days. I was actually thinking about this really seriously. If we win every year, it will make future committees really excited and enthusiastic to win. By winning, we motivate everyone else to win, which will then psychologically carry the culture to the next committee and then the next one. I was really excited, because we Year 10s would coordinate the 2016 Nobel Cup. I was thinking of who is the best candidate from our batch for the 2016/2017 Bullseye House Captain. And if we win 2017, it will be the greatest achievement of our lives!
The house meet was chaired by Mr Matthew Koh, our teacher advisor, in the presence of the committee and the other teachers. He was really smart; he was Nobel's 10th Anniversary Concert director as well as an English and Global Perspectives teacher. He was also a coordinator for our Show Choir in 2013 for the class of 7N. He came into the class with a dark blue collared shirt and had a really nice hairstyle like a rock star. He then called all of us for attention. “Bullseye members! Please! I need your attention please!” he cried. “Everyone please listen!”
Mr Matthew Koh apologized for being a bit late and thanked us for coming for the house meet. He also said that the committee members consisted of different, talented people and that we should give our support to them. He took the marchpast team as an example; “I believe that our marchpast captains, Jeremy Yeap, Emerson Ngu and Tan Kie Yip, would make a great team in moving forward,” he said, commending the extraordinary leadership, especially by Jeremy and Kie Yip. Jeremy is a more humble type of person as well as a prefect, but Kie Yip is rather strict to all the marchers, even though he was assisting last year when Ivan Hiew and Jonathan Ong were our march captains. Then, he told us to sign up for what we were to do for Sports Day and he encouraged everyone to take part in an event. There were slots for marching, dancing and the banner.
Soon after, everyone started to sign up. As usual, Caleb Chuang and I signed up for the marchpast. We have been marching since Year 7. I also tried to enquire on signing up for the athletics competitions. In the past three years, I chose the shortest distance as I felt it would be easier to run. However, I was thinking that I would want to try a longer distance since it would not be as competitive as the shorter distances usually run by Sean Mark. Sabrina and Ashley Fang, the athletics captain, said that athletics would open shortly but the house meet is to focus on getting members for marchpast and dance.
Caleb Chuang and I regularly meet during break and lunch time to discuss the interesting plans for the Sports Day. I was telling him some of my crazy ideas for the Sports Day, and how to improve from the previous year’s Sports Day. I told him I was thinking of trying to propose some ideas to Sabrina and have those ideas considered in order to increase our chances of securing a Bullseye victory in 2016. However, we only have around 50 minutes a day to discuss.
I met Ian Khor, a Year 7 student who kept on talking to me enthusiastically about how long I was marched since I was in Year 7. He was very excited. Then, I introduced him to Caleb Chuang. “Who's Caleb?” he asked, and Caleb Chuang responded. We had a good chat with each other.
Then, once the signups were over, I then went to speak to Sabrina about the plans. I then told Sabrina about the plan to have a cool marching style or to have additional creative ideas during march. I also told her about how we can build on Jarod Ee's dance styles. “We must make some nice cool moves during the dance. And also, if our marchpast team can have some serious but also strict moves, we will win,” I told Sabrina. She was delighted, but it was getting late and much more cloudy and rainy, and we needed to go home. She then switched off the lights as the two of us left for home.
Out of all the people in 10N, only seven people were from Bullseye: me, Brandon Ooi, Ivyna, Kelsey, Eric Wong, Yan Ying and Jo Yi. Touchdown and Homerun had seven people, while there were only four from our class in Slamdunk, namely Lyn Wen, Wee Shiang, Krystal Goh and Grace Tee.
The next day, Ms Levina taught us about market and mixed economies. It was so cool and interesting to learn about these two economies and how the world works. A market economy is an economy based on the forces of demand and supply while a mixed economy involves demand and supply, but also involves government intervention. Ms Levina then told us about how a market economy was like a student doing homework and a mixed economy was also the same but it involves the teacher intervening in the student's work. Then, she literally did something which gave a funny example. Brandon was playing in class and talking to Shane, Ryan Chok and Sheng Jit. This caused Ms Levina to break them up. “Eh, eh, Brandon Ooi! Eh, eh, please, stop talking, please, please stop....”
Ms Levina walked over to Brandon Ooi's table. “Brandon, Shane, Chok, Eric, please listen, okay. Don't do other things,” she said. I then explained that a market economy is like Brandon Ooi choosing to talk to Shane, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit and Eric Wong, and mixed economy involves Ms Levina getting involved. The whole class laughed, and Ms Levina couldn't control her laughter. Brandon Ooi then had this one unhappy look on my face, glaring at me like an angry bulldog.
It was English, and Mr Thomas came in once again. I greeted him and I told him that I have done my research on Egyptian civilization. “Yes, yes, you can share later,” he said. Then, he talked about the school affairs before we started.
Mr Thomas then told us to get into groups. He then opened Edmodo, showed us the question he posted, and told us to do some groupwork. I then discussed with Sherwin and Aaron Loke on the questions. Mr Thomas told us to spend some time discussing. Then, we went for break time.
Caleb Chuang was in the class. I waited for him. Then, he left early. He had prefect duty that day. I went with him, had a short chat, and had breakfast with him in the canteen. I then told me of my Global Perspectives lesson, and we talked about Mr Gallagher and the fact that I would have class with him and how great he was as a teacher.
After break time was over, we were told to settle down by Sabrina Qistina, who was holding the microphone. She was trying to get everyone to keep quiet, but everyone was still talking. When everyone got settled, she gave a stern lecture.
“I don't understand what does it take for all of you to just simply keep quiet. When an instruction is made, when an advice is given, why didn't you listen and turn a blind ear to what the prefect is saying. Is it worth it? If you are a prefect yourself, and you are asking people to settle down and they don't listen, how will you feel? If you are talking and someone else is talking, how will you feel? How would you feel if you were to talk to someone, and they ignore you?”
There were cheers and cries from the Year 11s as they clapped Sabrina's speech.
“I didn't ask for you to clap. This is not a popularity contest. Please make some improvements on this. I want to see improvements during lunch time. Is that clear?” she asked. The crowd chanted “Yes” before being told to dismiss.
After returning to class, Mr Andrew was in 10N getting ready for the Additional Mathematics lesson. He was switching on the computer and opening up his files that he intend to show. Then, we took our iPads. I made sure that he didn't see my iPad. I was afraid he will get angry with me. Mr Andrew wore glasses and had a serious look on his face.
When we reached 10E, Mr Gallagher told us to research two wars, find the short and long term effects, and also find out the effects of the war, such as how was it caused, how could have the war been resolved and how would the war have had been prevented. We sat down in the class as Mr Gallagher used his phone while asking us to do our work.
Everyone who wanted to log into the WiFi system in Nobel were met with a password interface. We were unsure over what to do. Mr Gallagher then went to the office and returned with a file in his thumbdrive. He plugged his thumbdrive into the computer and opened that file which displayed all our names, class, the username and the password given for Internet access. He displayed the names on the Smartboard and told us to copy them down before he shut down the file. Then, we continued our research before presenting it to him. I did some research on the War on Terror as well as the Iraq War. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra continued to talk to us on added value as well as the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of businesses. In fact, I learnt that instead of saying ‘money’, we replace it with ‘profit’ in business.
Afterwards, we went for lunch, and Sabrina was really watching us during assembly, but was really waiting for everyone to settle down. She wasn't amused. Then, she continued to give a long lecture about character and behavior.
“Okay guys, do you want to hear a story?” she asked. The crowd cheered. She really shook her head. “So, there's this one young boy who met a girl,” she begun. The crowd cheered again.
“This boy met a girl, and he fell in love with the girl. They got along together. Then, one day, the girl requested the boy to help her because she fell down. However, the boy ignored, so what do you think has happened?” she continued.
“Broke up!” cried the crowd.
“So that is a very sad story, right? In fact, if I am asking you to settle down, and you refuse to help me with this request, how can I feel?” asked Sabrina.
Some people asked Sabrina if they could date her, but she wasn't in a mood for jokes. “Prefects are your friends. I am not talking about boy-girl relationships, but this can happen to anyone, including your best friend. So, please, please, please, cooperate with prefects as many of them are your friends too. They are tired and want your cooperation. I hope to see some improvement in the future when I am standing here. Thank you,” she said.
We went back to class and headed to the Science lab where Ms Sangeetha continued her normal lesson. Me and Ivyna asked questions. No, I mean, we had a normal lesson in the Science lab! Ms Sangeetha had to repeatedly call Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok for attention. Fortunately, no one played with the science equipment, except for Ryan Chok jumping to touch the ceiling. Then, we went for History.
Brandon Ooi giggled and played jokes on how fat Mr Aram was, which made Louis really angry as he gnashed his teeth at Brandon. Then, Ms Visa came in. “Oi! Brandon!” she cried.
“Why do you like to make fun of people? Please respect Louis, okay?” she scolded, as she comforted Louis before we begun the short afternoon lesson to watch some videos that Mr Aram had asked Ms Visa to show. It was interesting to watch. She showed at least five funny videos Mr Aram gave about World War I. The old gramophone music made Brandon Ooi laugh and act like the music sound using his voice, and this made Ms Visa really angry with him. In fact, Brandon Ooi's laughter and noise acts made me laugh as well as it was so amusing. However, Louis shouted at him, which led to Ms Visa pausing the video. Brandon Ooi was forced to keep quiet for the rest of the lesson.
It was Wednesday, 20th January 2016. The day begun normally with a very serious lecture by Ms Bee Yong on why was it important to keep to our studies. Then, we went to our class, and Mr Thomas gave us time to work on our group work for the King Tutankhamun project. Then, he entertained us by talking about some local school affairs on how teachers should discipline students.
“What should we do if students misbehave? Should we punish them? Put them in detention? Or let them off with a warning?” he asked. Then, Mr Thomas told us to do our King Tutankhamun groupwork as he walked around the class to assist us. Sherwin, Aaron and I discussed on how to answer the questions as Mr Thomas walked around the class and talked to us. Then, he returned to his seat, plopped down on the chair, sipped a bottle of water and checked the Edmodo feed. Vicky and Ellie then asked Mr Thomas questions. Then, he spoke about the possibility of getting us to present our findings from the King Tutankhamun text.
Afterwards, we had Economics, and Ms Levina taught us about the Production Possibility Curve. Some economists like to call it the Production Possibility FRONTIER, including my lecturers at Sunway University, but I prefer to use the Production Possibility Curve term as it is much easier and convenient to pronounce.
The Production Possibility Curve, a diagram in economics, illustrates the maximum capability of the allocation of resources, such as for example, to cook chicken rice or to cook salad. This means that when someone were to choose to cook more chicken rice, he or she, with whatever limited resources he or she has, must forgo the cooking of salad. This means that if let's say that I only have nine chefs, in order to produce five plates of chicken rice, I can only produce four plates of salad with the amount of resources I have, and if I were to produce one additional plate of salad, I need to forgo one plate of chicken rice; hence as such, five plates of salad and four plates of chicken rice.
The Production Possibility Curve.
During the lesson, Brandon Ooi kept making fun of the Production Possibility Curve as a big fat stomach, and he tried to act like one. This resulted in Ms Levina calling him to pay attention to the lesson.
“The curve looks like Shane's bum!” cried Brandon Ooi, slapping Shane's buttocks. Shane screamed and got angry with Brandon and the two did arm wrestling. Ms Levina told them to settle down and finish their work.
Ms Levina then kept on talking, and then I asked a question in the class. As Ms Levina answered my question, Brandon Ooi started using his phone in the class.
“Eh, Brandon Ooi, please don't play phones, please keep, please keep,” said Ms Levina.
Then, we went for break, and I waited outside Caleb Chuang's class for him. Inside, I saw him doing his work. I waved at him and he waved at me. Mr Kevin Wai was in the class having their Additional Mathematics lesson together. Afterwards, Co Sheen and Yi Zhen left the class. I went to talk to Caleb Chuang. Jason Leing, who was inside packing his things, peered at me.
“Wei Yiang, why do you always like to see Caleb?” he asked. I talked to Caleb Chuang and waited for him. At the teacher's desk, Ashlyne Yong and Bethany Ng were checking some Additional Mathematics questions with Mr Kevin Wai. I greeted him, and Caleb Chuang and I left for the canteen. While walking, I kept on explaining to him about the plans for Bullseye as well as what did Sabrina told me. Then, following break, we had Art. Ms Feeda was waiting for us in the art studio.
Ms Feeda then said that eventually got us to use Art Studio 1 which is the art studio which we used for our art lessons in Year 7, 8 and 9 because as mentioned earlier, we had a large class and that she had written to the management to allow us to have a bigger art studio. The management had approved Ms Feeda's request, so she was over the moon. This resulted in the whole class clapping for her. Each art lesson, Ms Feeda would gather all of us in the front of the studio for us to look at the slides that she placed up and for us to see. She would explain different artists and different art history and drawing techniques.
Ms Feeda would ask us to do our work during the Art lessons. Normally, each of us will feel like socializing, but Ms Feeda said that we needed to get some work done or else we cannot finish the assigned work for the day. Now, as Ms Feeda was also conducting the Fine Art Club as a continuation from 2015’s second term, and at the time, our CCAs were from a July-June term, I met Ms Feeda four times a week and twice on Thursdays, where we had Art lessons after lunch, then followed by History and then finally the Fine Art Club. Sadly, we need to wait for another week as the CCA registration had just finished on 15th January, and the new CCA session would only begin the following Monday, on 25th January. For that day's Art lesson, we continued our still life painting drawing. Ms Feeda then looked at my work and said that my work was not good enough. “If you ask me, I don't think you might even get a C, because you must understand that Art IGCSE is not like Art in Year 7, 8 or 9. In Year 7, 8 or 9, your work will get a B, but this one, the standard is higher. So, I think you need to improve from here,” said Ms Feeda.
Wei Wei and Chee Kei were asking Ms Feeda to play K-POP songs but however, Ms Feeda told them that it was better to listen to other music. The two of them groaned.
After Art, we then went directly to the school hall for our Character Transformation session. For that day's Character Transformation session, we had an icebreaking ceremony where Mr Eugene, our CCA director, played a quiz with us. This quiz was on the personality traits of our friends and which personality did we look identical to. We had a good time guessing personality traits as some of our friends looked at a script where Mr Eugene asked everyone to act on.
We then returned to Business Studies, where Ms Chithra did a worksheet with us on public sector, private sector and mixed economy businesses. Then, we went for History and watched more of Mr Aram's videos. Afterwards, we had Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee then talked about the Bible Knowledge Quiz again. The response was quite popular. Everyone, including me, wanted to join the quiz. So, as such, Ms Renee then told us that she intend to register everyone in the class for the quiz.
Joshua Chew was given the chance to open the lesson with a prayer. He and Joseph Diong suggested that we do some praise and worship in the future to open the lesson, but Ms Renee expressed concerns due to a lack of time. Then, she taught us about the wise men visiting Jesus. Each one of us gave our own testimony as to Jesus’ visits by the old men. Because each one of us spoke like a pastor, we were each called pastor for a day. I was called ‘Pastor Wei Yiang’, and Sean Mark was called ‘Pastor Sean'.
Thursday, 21st January 2016, was a really somewhat normal day. We went up for our Reading Time, and I brought along my newspaper to read during reading time. Ms Sharon and Ms Cynthia both came in with books and read with us. Ms Cynthia was scanning the class and calling out those who haven't had a book on their table.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher asked us to do more research on poverty and he told us to find out causes and effects of poverty. Once that was done, we went for our PE lesson, where we did some runs in the courtyard as well as the basic push-ups, sit-ups, planking, jumping jacks and all the normal exercises. Then, we went for break time and I had breakfast with San Ying, Kit Lee and Sophie.
Following break time, we returned for our Economics lesson. Ms Levina was in the classroom, and the air conditioning was freezing. Apparently, Shane, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi had switched on the air conditioning units in order to cool themselves after a good PE workout as well as a basketball game. They like to play basketball during break time.
Ms Levina then begun to teach us about equilibrium price and demand. It was very cool learning about demand, and how the demand curve is an illustration of the relationship between price on the y axis and quantity on the x axis. For the benefit of those who don't take Economics or understand Economics, price is literally the price of the item or thing that you sell, and the quantity in this case is the number of people buying your things. If more people buy your things, you will normally sell your items at a lower price, and if there are less people buying your things, you will sell them at a higher price. This is normally the case in the working world as the amount of money you receive from selling your items can be used to pay certain things, such as electricity, water or even spend on your daily necessities. This is what we call a ‘demand schedule’, in which price increases when demand decreases. For example, a bakery that sells cakes will increase their price if there is less demand for their cakes, so as to ensure that they receive the same amount of money.
Okay, so, Ms Levina begun teaching about Equilibrium Price, and she showed us pictures of the Demand Curve, based on the demand schedule described earlier. The demand curve is a rightward downward sloping line, meaning to say that it is going down as it goes right. To put it into perspective, it is like one travelling south-east on a compass.
The Demand Curve.
Ivyna then asked questions as Ms Levina told us to draw the demand curve in our book. Then, Ms Levina came and checked each one of our curves. When she got to Brandon Ooi, she wasn't happy with him.
Brandon Ooi was giggling and talking behind the class. “Eh, Brandon Ooi, where's your curve? Please draw, please draw, please draw,” she said. Then, she did the same for Ryan Chok, Shane, Eric and Ze Khai. “Eh, eh, where's your graphs?” she cried. “Why all of you have not done yet?”
Then, Ms Levina continued to explain the demand curve and the relationship of the curves. Soon, we came to the supply curve. Unlike the demand curve, the supply curve runs on a north-east direction in relation to the price on the y axis and quantity supplied on the x axis. This means that the price will increase if there is an increased supply of items.
The Supply Curve.
The reason why the price would decrease if supply is decreased is because retailers and businesses will want to clear items that they have not sold. They have already spent time making items or goods and want to sell them. This is for example, a bakery selling cakes that wants to sell all cakes but wants to sell all cakes before the cakes decay. Ms Levina then told us to draw the Supply Curve in our worksheet.
Ms Levina then went and checked our books to ensure that we have drawn the Supply Curve in our book. She then saw mine. “Good,” she said. Then, she saw Louis and Gabriel having trouble doing the curves and guided them properly. Ivyna, Grace and Cassandra asked Ms Levina questions before drawing. Before long, she had arrived at Brandon Ooi's table, and she wasn't happy with him.
“Eh, Brandon, why you still haven't draw yet? Still playing! You see, you haven't drawn your demand curve or your supply curve yet! Faster do it, please!” she cried.
Brandon Ooi laughed like mad. He tried to give excuses. “Teacher, Chok and Shane are also not doing ma! Hahahahaha!” he cried.
“Chok, Shane!” cried Ms Levina! “Faster do. No playing,” she said, teaching them how to draw the curves.
Ms Levina’s lesson is amusing thanks to Brandon Ooi for this amusing show . Now, Brandon Ooi is very much a troublemaker and the class clown during my time in Year 10 and 11, and he has very short hair, big eyes, and you might make of him like a laughing Buddha when you first met him. He is a very funny guy, but in the earlier days of our Year 10, he was a bit frosty with me, only to have warmer relations in Year 11. Brandon was last in the same class as me in 4 Diligent.
A typical Economics lesson would go on like this: Ms Levina would normally enter the class, and Brandon Ooi would say, “hi, cher!” to her. Then, he will start a few funny conversations with her to delay the class. Once he did so, Ms Levina would talk to him and then try to get him to settle down before the class started. She would talk very fast and in a certainly Malaysian-like slang and also with the ahs, lahs, and ehs. Brandon would try to joke around until he stopped, and Ms Levina would continue the lesson. Every few minutes, he would talk to his friends and Ms Levina was not happy that Brandon was disrupting the class, and she would spend another five minutes to keep himself cool and controlled, before she continued.
Even if Brandon Ooi was not disrupting the class, Ms Levina’s lessons were very funny as she also talks in a funny tone on how the Economics concepts worked. She would give some funny concepts that will make one laugh. In fact, Ms Levina appeals more to me despite Mr Thomas being a good teacher as mentioned before, because of Brandon Ooi disrupting and joking in the class and Ms Levina explaining the funny concepts.
Now, Ms Levina decided to combine the two curves; the demand curve and the supply curve. The meeting point of the two curves is the market equilibrium, which shows demand equaling supply.
The Demand and Supply Curve put together.
I gasped and awed “Fuiyoh!” which made Ms Levina excited. Then, she told us to do some diagrams involving the changes in demand and supply and how it affected the market equilibrium. However, Brandon Ooi was not finishing his work, and Ms Levina told him that he will have to answer her question if he did not complete all the diagrams. Then, as I was going to answer one of Ms Levina's questions, she then asked Brandon Ooi to answer as he failed to finish all he diagrams.
“Brandon Ooi! What do you think will happen when the price of cars increase on the demand curve?”
I knew the answer. The answer was that the quantity demanded will decrease. However, Brandon responded like, “Ehh, ahh, err,” and that was that. Then, she gave Shane the chance to answer. Shane also couldn't answer. When I answered correctly, Ms Levina was happy. “Yes, that's right, because when the price of cars increase, the quantity demanded will decrease because people cannot afford cars,” she said. Ms Levina gave us structured questions based on demand and supply to do as homework.
Then, it was time for Maths, and Ms Bee Yan came into the class. “Teacher! Ms Bee Yan! I want to go to toilet!” he cried, and Ms Bee Yan allowed him to use the washroom. Then, Ms Bee Yan taught us about Factorization. It was so hard for me to comprehend as I had poor grades for Maths.
Outside the classroom, as the time approached 12:20pm, there were a lot of Year 7, 8 and 9 students playing basketball in the courtyard and the music begun to play. Then, there was a request to settle down by the prefects. Then, I saw Ms Lim scolding the crowd. Oh dear. This happened while Ms Bee Yan gave work for us to do.
Then, it was Art, and Ms Feeda gathered us in the art studio to continue with our still life painting. I tried to have a chat with some of my friends, since we were in the art studio, but Ms Feeda told me to focus on my work. I didn't understand why was it so serious to focus on my work despite talking for a short while, but I would soon come to terms with the seriousness of Art and Design. Then, we had History, and Brandon Ooi played some jokes on everyone as we waited for Ms Visa. I had really thumping heartbeats as I waited for Ms Visa while Brandon cracked jokes. I mean, you are literally waiting for a teacher who is so strict and sometimes gets angry at us quite often, and we have a guy in the class playing jokes.
When Ms Visa entered the class, the entire room silenced as we took out our books. Then, Ms Visa spent 30 minutes just to switch on the projector. It was 2:30pm.
“Teacher, how are you today?” asked Brandon Ooi.
“Fine, not so good,” said Ms Visa. Then, she begun to talk about the World War I trenches where soldiers ducked in trenches to fight and protect themselves from bombs and artillery.
On a side note, for Art, we will only use Art Studio 1 on Mondays and Wednesdays, and the Art Studio 3 on Thursdays because of the fact that Ms Nadia was conducting classes for Year 8 students at the time. Art Studio 1 is the Junior School's Art Studio for Year 7, 8 and 9 students, while Studio 3 is the designated location for Year 10 and 11.
It was the last day of the week, Friday, 22nd January 2016. During that morning, Mr Eugene announced that the CCAs would start the following Tuesday, 26th January. We decorated the class for a ‘Welcome back to school’ theme by just pasting words that said ‘Welcome Back!’ behind the class during Homeroom time. Then, Ms Cynthia told us to plan for the Chinese New Year decorations. I proposed a plan to have a lantern and a large model firecracker installed in the class for the Chinese New Year celebration.
It was then Malay, and Cikgu Niely then gave us some comprehension work to do, and Brandon Ooi spent the entire time talking to Shane and Ryan Chok. Then, it was Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia returned to our class.
“Okay, class, may I ask who has bought the textbook? The Malaysian Studies textbook,” asked Ms Cynthia.
I raised my hand and produced the book on my desk.
Ms Cynthia took the book, examined it, and asked me when did I purchase the book. “I bought the book last Monday, for RM 30,” I replied.
Then, Ms Cynthia told us how to use the book. Other than me, Ivyna and Jia Yee had bought the textbook. Then, we continued our lesson on the Malacca Sultanate, where Ms Cynthia explained on how important Malacca was as a port city.
Afterwards, we went for break time. I went to Caleb Chuang's class and met him before going for break time. Then, I chatted with San Ying and Kit Lee. Caleb Chuang was busy finishing his Biology and Chemistry homework, and he hadn't completed them. He was also revising his Additional Mathematics books. Once break time was over, we went back for our Science lesson with Ms Sangeetha, and Brandon played jokes in class. Then, we continued our lesson as Ms Sangeetha told us to bear with three books for Combined Science. Then, it was Maths. Ms Bee Yan then told Ryan Chok to present his information for Genius Time. He showed a funny video and some dance music which made Ms Bee Yan had a weird look on her face. Then, we continued Maths as she taught us transformations, in which we have to either reflect, rotate or translate an object using tracing paper.
Then, we went for Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told us to have our names registered with a system that allows us easy access to the Internet during the Global Perspectives lesson, and we were told to do some research on questions. It has been the third Friday afternoon in 10E, and I tried to think positively to make time pass quickly.
Monday, 25th January 2016, was the Thaipusam holiday, and there were no classes that day. So, we returned to school on Tuesday, 26th January 2016.
During the reading time, I brought my newspaper. It was drizzling that morning, and unfortunately, it fell on a Tuesday. If it were to rain on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays, I would feel happy because the rain would soak the courtyard, resulting in the Elementary School students being moved to the school hall for their morning assembly. Then, because of this, we cannot go to the school hall and as such, had to proceed to our classes. This meant that because there was no reading time, I could go to other classes to visit my other close friends who are not in 10N. Majority of them, unlike me, took pure science subjects. So, I miss chatting with them and I am always constantly reminded of the best times we had in 2015.
During Economics, Ms Levina gave us a worksheet and told us to work on Demand and Supply. She said that we had to do the questions and we will discuss them in class. Then, Brandon Ooi didn't do his work and Ms Levina had to approach him many times.
“Brandon Ooi! Please stop talking and do your work,” said Ms Levina, as Brandon giggled about all the jokes he talked with Shane and Ryan Chok. Then, Ms Levina told him to answer the questions. Afterwards, she walked around the room. Some people who were done were talking, and Ms Levina checked their work for them. Once I finished my work, I got my English books ready, and placed them under my Economics books on the right hand side of the table so that it will be automatically ready when I kept my Economics books.
Ms Levina then discussed the questions with us in class before we went for English. Mr Thomas gracefully entered the class with his briefcase. “Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Good morning. How are you.”
“I am doing fine, Mr Thomas! I have seen the Edmodo post on King Tut's death!” I cried.
Mr Thomas smiled and told me that the death of King Tutankhamun was a really impossible and interesting mystery to solve. Then, Sherwin and Aaron Loke arrived. They greeted me and Mr Thomas, and placed their things on the desks. Soon, the class was filled with people. Mr Thomas, who was sitting on the chair, lifted himself up and walked to us.
“You see, I want to tell you that our Edmodo is very good. We are doing blended learning. Last time, it was very difficult to conduct our class, but now, with the help of technology, it is very easy. However, I want to introduce to you about MH370. Has anyone heard about MH370?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas, we all know what MH370 is,” I responded. Mr Thomas then continued to talk about the disappearance of MH370 and how it is a mysterious occurring. “Despite the presence of technology, experts are unable to locate the plane. It is almost two years already, you know, and we still could not resolve this crisis.”
Then, he told us to get into groups and continue to discuss about the mysteries and present them to him the next day during class. I discussed with Aaron Loke and Sherwin on how to do the presentation. We finished our lesson early and we went for break time. I decided to sign up for another Love on Wheels trip on 20th July 2016, as Caleb Chuang's second group was FULL. I indicated my name on the sign up list.
Later on, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher gave us the group code for Edmodo to log in into it. The name of our Global Perspectives Edmodo group was ‘Year 10 (32 Students) Global Perspectives’.
Mr Gallagher told us to do some research on a work that he gave, and we spent the whole class researching. A button to the submission of the work read ‘Turn In’, where we can click to submit the work. Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra taught us about the primary, secondary and tertiary sector characteristics. During the class, Daryl Yeo was too hyperactive and the class was talking, which made Ms Chithra frustrated and had to calm the class down many times. Then, we went to the Science Lab for another lesson without experiments, and then during History, Ms Visa then talked about the Treaty of Versailles.
After school ended, I then went to the school courtyard after changing into my PE attire. Ms Sylvia had arranged for MSSD tryouts. Knowing my strengths in long-distance categories for track-and-field, I decided to take this one opportunity to sign up for MSSD as I was interested.
I soon met with the top athletes from the school team. Of course, Sean Mark was there, but aside from Sean Mark, there were many other athletes like Ivyna Ong, Eu Lynn, Edson Tay, Loo Zane, Laura Mark, Prudence Wong and Aaron Yong there, who were the top brass runners. I then spoke with Ivyna and Edson on how we can strategize to ensure that we as a school were to win all the competitions. I had signed up for the longest distance available that day, the 800m. “Tell that to Edson. He wants to know how we can make Nobel win,” she said. Ivyna was smiling, and she asked Edson Tay to listen, whom he looked on with a sly look.
Soon, Ms Sylvia and Mr Victor arrived. The two of them then led us to the PE field. Ms Sylvia then told us to do a warm up. Then, Mr Victor led us to our categories. He then trained the 100m. Accompanied by him were Ashley Fang and Sabrina Qistina.
Then, Ms Sylvia did some warm ups and running with us. She told us to run our distance categories to get a feel of how we were to expect when running the distance. When I ran the 800m, I ran two rounds without sweat. Then, Ashley encouraged me to sign up for the 800m for Sports Day. She said that Mr Victor will use the Sports Day as the qualifying tryouts for the MSSD, and we would know by April 2016 whether we had qualified or not for the MSSD. This was my closest attempt at getting to the MSSD competition.
On the way back from the PE field, Edson Tay, Aaron Yong, Sean Mark and Jason Leing went to 7-Eleven to buy some drinks while I had a chat with Ashley about the Bullseye plans. She was really acceptive of some plans which I did with Caleb Chuang in 2015 and told me to speak to Sabrina Qistina on the matter. Ashley then automatically put me into the 800m category for Sports Day since I was interested.
The next morning, 27th January 2016, Sabrina Qistina requested all the Bullseye members to stay back following assembly, and we met Kie Yip, Ashley Fang, Jeremy Yeap and Alister Baptist. They told us that starting from Friday, 29th January, we would be having our marchpast practice and athletics practice. Jeremy Yeap and Alister Baptist told me to go for the athletics practices as I had known marching since Year 7 and was experienced. Kie Yip said the same, although he was insistent on new marchers coming.
After returning to the class, Mr Thomas was in the class and told us to discuss about our King Tutankhamun group work and produce a set of slides regarding King Tutankhamun to be presented on Wednesday, 3rd February. Then, he talked about the three mysteries of the Mary Celeste, MH370, and Tutankhamun's mysterious death. Then, during Economics, Ms Levina discussed our homework with us in class and told us to hand in our books, but was disappointed with Brandon Ooi who did not do it. I mean, Gabriel also forgot his work, but it was Brandon that caught the ire of Ms Levina as he was disruptive in class.
After Economics ended, I went to meet Caleb Chuang at 10O and some people, such as Natasha, weren't happy with me being a guest to visit Caleb Chuang, and Jason Leing threatened to lock me out of the class if I visited Caleb Chuang again in the future. Sadly, Caleb Chuang had errands to do, so I told him that we will meet during lunch time.
During break time, Sabrina Qistina told everyone to settle down, but it didn't work.
“Let's play a game. If you can be quiet for one week, I will give you all a prize,” she said. The whole hall agreed.
After break, I headed to the Art Studio while I waved at Caleb Chuang as he headed for the ICT lab. He was having ICT lessons with Mr Stellio. Then, during the Art lesson, Ms Feeda told us to continue with our still life studies, but we had to do them in mixed media form. I got mine out and used some hatching for the cups and some paint for the leaves while plastering newspaper on them. Then, we went for Character Transformation, where Ms Kelly taught us on care and compassion. We got to work with other groups in Character Transformation, and I sat with Caleb Chuang where we were given mahjong paper and we had to present them during Character Transformation, outlining our goals and initiatives for Year 10.
During lunch, I had a really long chat and great lunch with Caleb Chuang. I talked to him about all our subjects as well as the next steps for Bullseye. Then, I told him about the tryouts. He told me he would be involved in the athletics tryouts as well. I was SO excited! The entire Year 10 batched looked at me and Caleb Chuang as we ate. Megan and Le Anne smiled at us from their table with Natalie Seah, Sara Yow, Christiana Chin and Eu Lynn. Sean Mark and Jason Leing sat at another table at the lower canteen. I prefer to sit at the upper canteen for lunch, but, you know, I had to accomodate Caleb Chuang, right? Since he was a prefect then, at least, I know when the lunch time would end.
After lunch, Sabrina Qistina then told everyone to settle down. The whole assembly quietened quickly. Then, we returned to class, where Ms Chithra gave us a worksheet to do on the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of business. I had a hard time trying to do my work as the class was noisy. Then, we went for History. Ms Visa introduced to us the IGCSE History paper format. We had to copy the slides in our exercise book.
Aaron Liew forgot to bring his exercise book, and Ms Visa scolded him. Brandon laughed and teased Aaron and Louis. Then, we did some work on propaganda messaging. One of them involved name-calling, and Brandon Ooi took the opportunity to name-call Aaron Liew again, and Louis got angry with him.
Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and I met Caleb Chuang once again before the entire class went to buy food. It was only me, Ms Renee and Sarah Low in the class. Ms Renee set up the computer again as everyone was busy buying food. Soon, Rosemund returned, and Ms Renee asked me and Rosemund to call everyone back so that the class can start. Ms Renee then invited Caleb Chuang to open the Bible Knowledge class with a prayer, before we talked about the various fellowships of Jesus Christ.
The next day, Thursday, 28th January, was a very long day. I had to stay back until 5:00pm for CCA. Thanks to the July-June CCA schedule instead of a January-November CCA schedule, I had to forgo my plans of entering Editorial Board for six months.
That morning saw heavy rainfall, and we had to go up to our classes. While the rain stopped close to sunrise, the floor in the courtyard was still too wet to be used for the Junior and Senior School's morning assembly, so we had to go up to our class early.
In the class, I told some of my friends as well as Ivyna about the proposed decoration for Chinese New Year, based on the decoration theme for the month of February. I based my decoration plan on a design of the Trylon and Perisphere at the 1939 New York City World's Fair. I have read about that at the end of 2015 and was thinking of doing a tall dynamite as well as a floor-based lantern for Chinese New Year. I showed the drawings to Ivyna, who said that she would talk about it. Ms Cynthia then came in and told us to begin our reading time.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher assessed how many people had done his work on Edmodo. He called out some people in the class for not completing their work and spent the whole lesson talking about how every work we hand in to him was important for our Global Perspective grades. “If you fail GP, it's your problem,” he said.
Afterwards, we then went for PE, and Mr Victor did some push up and sit up exercises with us. I partnered with Gabriel Lim to do the exercises in the hall. Then, it was break time, and I had a chat with Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew regarding the previous day's Bible Knowledge lesson. Sabrina was coordinating the post-break time assembly and saw, successfully, the settling down of the crowd. She praised us for improving day after day as opposed to the Year 7, 8 and 9 students. Then, we went for Economics.
Ms Levina then taught us how to do structured questions in class as well as taught us the shifting of the demand and supply curve. Ms Levina then told us to draw the shifting of the curves in the exercise book and explained to us how a demand and supply curve were to shift based on market changes and market conditions.
Shifting of the Demand and Supply Curves
During the lesson, Brandon Ooi drew the graphs wrongly as he did not pay attention. Ms Levina then proceeded to guide him, as well as Shane, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai, Nickolas Nashpal and Ivyna on how to properly do the curves. Then, she helped Grace, Jia Yee and Louis to do them. Then, once Ms Levina finished, she then explained the shifting of the graphs, but Brandon Ooi was misbehaving and then Ms Levina had to call out Brandon Ooi again. Then, she told us to hand in our exercise books for marking, and gave us a structured questions practice as homework.
During Maths, Ms Bee Yan had asked if anyone wanted to present the Genius Time the next day, but there were no takers. In fact, there was a rule where those who presented could not do another presentation again, so as a result, Ms Bee Yan said that we will be doing algebra for two days. Then, she did some algebra lessons in the class.
After lunch, we then went to the Art Studio, where Ms Feeda compiled all our final paintings before briefing us on the next activity, which she initially said it was a surprise. She said that she plans to take a picture of every one of us. “I will print your self-pictures and give all of you next week. We are going to do a self portrait in the next class after Chinese New Year,” she said. “For now, I want you to complete your still life painting while I take your photos.”
Everyone was called to take their photos in alphabetical order. While we were waiting, Ms Feeda told us to do our touch-ups on our still life matter paintings. Then, she asked if anyone was coming for Fine Art Club CCA later on.
“How many of you are in Fine Art Club?” asked Ms Feeda. A few of us raised our hands. Me, Louis, Wee Shiang, Chee Kei, Yen Tong and Wei Wei were the only ones in our Art batch who took Fine Art Club. She told us to come later. Then, it was time to leave. “I will see you in 40 minutes,” I told Ms Feeda.
During History, while waiting for Ms Visa to arrive, Brandon then played jokes with Ze Khai in class and they laughed and talked about funny things. I had to endure some jokes as a storm was approaching. Ms Visa then came and everyone kept quiet. Then, she told us to take out our History books. We were about to learn the Treaty of Versailles.
Signed in 1919 between the Allied Powers and Germany, the Treaty of Versailles is a formal document which intends to punish Germany for what it did in World War I. Back in 1914, Germany had invaded many lands and many countries, and because of the suffering that many European countries had endured, the Allies, namely the United Kingdom, the United States and France, drafted terms and conditions in the treaty that Germany must adhere to in order to achieve peace in Europe. Among those terms were that Germany was not supposed to have a very large army, and its armed forces must be five times smaller than the European average.
The Germans were angry because the terms imposed on them were unfair, and it made them insuperior to the other countries. They were not allowed any air force and all annexed territories had to be returned. The hope was that the Treaty of Versailles would prevent another war, and this treaty ultimately led to the formation of the League of Nations.
While Ms Visa ran through Mr Aram's slides, she asked us to copy them down. Then, she chided Gabriel for not being prepared for her lesson and everyone had to copy her slides while she walked. Ms Visa waited till we finished before we moved to the next slide. It was 2:30pm. One hour of waiting and we would be done with History.
As Ms Visa explained how Germany was punished via the Treaty of Versailles, I wrote in the book one by one on the points from the slides on the Smartboard. Mr Aram had given her the slides to present to us. I also just thought of another thing.
I previously said that almost everyone in 10N took Global Perspectives, Business Studies and ICT as their subject, and that almost everyone in 10O selected Economics. I also mentioned that everyone in Ms Levina's class was in 10O.
In our History lesson, Mr Aram taught every other class while Ms Visa taught only 10N students enrolled for the subject. No other students from 10O, 10B, 10E and 10L were enrolled in Ms Visa's History class. Likewise, no 10N student was in Mr Aram's class, and no 10O student was in Ms Sharon's class.
While Ms Visa was teaching, I thought of how many times Ms Visa had punished me since Year 7. I reflected on how Germany was punished by the Allies and how strict Ms Visa was on me. She was my Maths teacher in Year 7 and my History teacher since 2014. I don't want her to punish me again just for petty matters, such as not completing my homework or having bad handwriting. I mean, like, I had been a good student during Ms Visa's lesson. Probably Ms Visa was too strict on me back then.
History soon ended, and Ms Visa left the room. I walked out of the class and peered at 10L, where Ms Levina's Economics lesson was taking place. I mean like, why is my Economics lesson held in the morning? Why? I like an afternoon Economics lesson with Ms Levina. Then, I glanced at 10N. All the students exited the class. Some of them were shivering. Even Jien Min was talking about Mr Aram being strict. I saw Mr Aram heading for the lift to head back to his office. I wish I can talk to Mr Aram and share my passion for History.
I returned to 10N. The classroom air conditioning was switched on. I cut power to the air conditioning, took my bags and headed back to the Art Studio. Ms Feeda was waiting for me. I had to carry my bags via the dismissal area.
A couple of new students had joined and registered for Fine Art Club. Claribel, a new student in Year 9, had registered for Fine Art Club, and so as Sheng Khai, also from Year 9. Ms Feeda told us to take our seats. I sat at my usual position in front of the art studio. More people soon came into the Art Studio. Ms Feeda was really excited as there are more signups for Fine Art Club.
Ms Feeda then introduced us to the Fine Art Club. The introduction was specially directed to the new students. Then, she introduced the president, Yee Lim, and the deputy president, Chee Kei. Then, Ms Feeda did a short introduction of herself, showing off all her Top in Malaysia talents, namely Alston Tee, Lim Shermaine and also Reanne Koh, the latest achievement and addition to the Top in Malaysia glory. Ms Feeda really boasted about the capabilities of Year 10 and 11's Art and Design IGCSE to all of us. “Some of you in this class are also sitting for Art and Design IGCSE, so for Year 7, 8 and 9 students, if you plan to further your studies in Art, please do take Art in Year 10 and 11.
Our first activity of the year for Fine Art Club was to paint a canvas painting based on the studies of cubism mixed media, courtesy of Pablo Picasso, one of the famous artists. Ms Feeda welcomed new people who signed up for the Fine Art Club since it was the beginning of the year, and that Year 7s and new students were signing up. So, Ms Feeda gave us a series of musical instruments and we had to paint them.
To make the Fine Art Club CCA more exciting, Ms Nadia also accompanied us for the Fine Art Club CCA, which means that Ms Feeda and Ms Nadia have had taught me before. I feel happy working with all the art teachers for this CCA. Ms Nadia was asked to co-run the Fine Art Club CCA for 2016.
Ms Feeda divided us into groups, and I was in the same group as Louis and Sheng Khai. Ms Nadia then joined Wee Shiang’s group for Fine Art Club as they begun painting a piano, after being asked by Ms Feeda. The whole club laughed. Louis, Sheng Khai and I then chose an ancient drum and started to paint it. Ms Feeda then asked everyone to take a picture of a musical instrument from her desk and refer it to paint on our canvas.
Drawing something using cubism requires a lot of patience, as you would need to draw a series of lines that form a pattern and then color the drawing in different interlocking colors. We chose brown, beige color and dark red to paint the drum. Louis, Sheng Khai and I just did the combinations.
Ms Feeda then said that for the cubism paintings, she will hang them in the school hall when the drawings are done. It took us three sessions of Fine Art Club CCA to finish the art.
The entire Art Studio was bustling with excitement. I feel happy that Ms Nadia was part of our Fine Art Club team. Of course, I had good and bad experiences with Ms Nadia too since Year 7, but I was very lucky and fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work with both art teachers in the Art and Design department.
Ms Feeda went around, checking on us. So far, our team was doing good. Sheng Khai and Louis made good company with me. I mean, come on. We are the only three guys in the Fine Art Club; a series of thorns around the roses.
The entire club spent the whole CCA session just to do basic drawings. Then, me and Louis’ group begun to paint first. We were the fastest group in the entire club. I told Louis and Sheng Khai that we will use red, brown, beige and yellow to do the painting as we had to follow the color texture of the picture Ms Feeda gave us.
Once we were done, we packed up and left the art studio while waiting for some of our paint to dry. Ms Feeda told us that she will put the canvases aside the next day. Before we left, she signed our CCA card as part of our attendance.
Friday, 29th January was another long day. There were a lot of briefings and announcements during the assembly, causing us to only have 15 minutes for Homeroom time. Then, Sheng Jit, Kelsey and Ivyna talked about the Chinese New Year decorations. The entire class agreed with my plan to bring the large firecracker to school to be displayed. I specifically planned this so that everyone will look at our class, 10N, and we could rival all the other classes’ decorations. Ivyna told me to bring the firecracker on Monday.
We begun the day with Cikgu Niely teaching us and giving us another worksheet to do. We had to form sentences and do an exercise in our exercise book. Afterwards, Ms Cynthia taught us about the downfall of Malacca when it was seized by the Portugese.
Before Ms Cynthia started the class, she was about to sign the Class Control Book when she saw the blank pages. “How come the Control Book is empty? Sheng Jit! What happened? Kelsey? Why didn't you ask the teachers to sign the Control Book?” The two monitors didn't know what to answer. Sheng Jit smiled. “I forgot,” he said. Kelsey just had a sly look on her face.
“As a class monitor, you must ensure the Control Book is up to date. All late slips must be filed. All teachers must sign the Control Book. And I don't think that Wei Yiang is the only one going to the toilet,” groaned Ms Cynthia, as she saw my name only placed on the record of students leaving classroom. I would normally follow protocol and write my name in the Control Book when heading to the toilet. Ms Cynthia shook her head in disappointment as she signed the Control Book, while Brandon Ooi blamed Sheng Jit playfully for his actions.
Ladies and gentlemen, back in those days, every class was fitted with a Class Control Book which records the class’ activities in that particular classroom. I knew this incident of Sheng Jit's defaultations on the records would happen with any other monitor, which is why I myself chose to run for the post of class monitor. This was to ensure that the Control Book is up to date. Thanks to the irresponsible defaultations of many monitors, this system got axed in 2019.
Afterwards, I met Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark and Sabrina Qistina to discuss the after-school activities. Ashley Fang told me to follow her first to the PE field for the athletics’ tryouts. Then, I spoke to Caleb Chuang about my plan to run the 800 meters on Sports Day. He looked at me in disbelief.
Then, during Science, Ms Sangeetha taught us about enzymes and how enzymes denature if our body temperature got too hot. And Ms Bee Yan continued to teach us about algebra and gave us work to do. Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher then discussed more about what we had researched and turned in the previous day, as he spoke on how important it was to do our research and answer the questions properly.
“Some of you gave poor answers, and some of you did not answer the question,” he said.
After Global Perspectives, I went to the canteen for a short snack on my Friday buns, and we left our bags in the canteen. Ashley Fang gathered us. Jason Leing and Sean Mark stood next to her. Out in the courtyard, Jeremy Yeap was planning for the marchers to start their practices. Then, we went to the PE field for our practices.
When we got to the field, a lot of juniors from Year 7 were really excited to see me. Areeya Amali, Yap Dawn, Elissa Carmen and Esther Yong were quite happy and called my name. They previously did so when I was in Year 6 four years prior, in 2012.
Ashley Fang told us to do some warm ups before asking us to run three laps around the field. Then, we were segregated into short and long distances and we were individually told to practice. While Sean Mark and Jason Leing conducted the training for the 100m, 200m and 300m runners, Ashley Fang dealt with the 400m, 800m and 1500m runners. Sean and Jason were tasked with the short distances as they were good at it.
I was told to run 800m, which is two laps around the field, while Ashley timed me. Other than me, another person from Year 11 also ran the distance. Caleb Chuang was also involved in the 400m distances.
After running my distance, Ashley told me to rest while she conducted the trainings for the other runners. Then, when Sean Mark and Jason Leing were doing their distances, the Year 7s and 8s were quite excited, and Sean and Jason had to get their attention. Sean Mark flagged off the start line as Jason waited at the finish. I almost collided with one of the 100m runners as I made my lap around the field.
Then, as I was done, and there was nothing left to do, I waited for Caleb Chuang's turn to finish. I didn't want to go back to the marchpast too early as Kie Yip and Jeremy would think that I am playing the fool with them, which I don't intend to. Instead, I waited till the march practices were over before I went home.
As Sean Mark and Jason Leing finished training the 100m, 200m and 300m runners, Ashley then timed them for their races. Once that was done, everyone packed up and returned back to school. Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang, Jason Leing and I chatted with each other.
“Wei Yiang, can I ask you a question? Why do you always come to our class?” asked Jason.
“To see Caleb,” I responded.
“Why are you so attracted to Caleb?” asked Jason.
“Why are you attached to Sean?” I replied.
Caleb Chuang laughed. “Oh! Busted!” he cried.
“Sean Mark is in the same class as me. You and Caleb are in different classes,” said Jason.
“But you and Jien Min are in different classes and still talk to each other!” I cried. Caleb Chuang was laughing away, and Sean Mark did not know what to say. It got cloudy as we were on the way back.
All in all, through the week, we had a lot of fun things that our teachers did with us. I’d say that Mr Thomas’ and Ms Levina’s classes were amazing and amusing. All thanks to Mr Thomas’ intonation and Brandon Ooi's humor, I had fun that week. I look forward to more fun activities in the following weeks. I feel happy to end the month of January 2016 on a high note.
On 1st February, I brought a long firecracker made out of newspapers to school. The firecracker had a green fuse on top of it. Don't worry. It is actually a long model dynamite, replicated on one of the sticks of firecrackers tied up with multiple sticks to form a long roll of firecracker. Fortunately, this was much easier to carry than the weather device or the volcano.
I arrived at school, placed the firecracker in the school hall, and then went to eat my breakfast. News of bauxite mining headlines caught my attention as I snacked on my bread with cheese inserted inside it. Then, as I brought the firecracker along the corridor to put it at 10N early, Ms Lim passed by as Hao Yinn, Xin Yi and Yan Ying arrived.
“Wah! So big ah!” cried Ms Lim. “What is that for?” she asked. I said it was for the class competition's Chinese New Year decorations. Ms Lim jokingly enacted a firecracker explosion as Xin Yi and Hao Yinn asked. “PAO AH! BOOM!” she cried. Then, I took it up early after obtaining Ms Lim's permission, and placed it behind the classroom.
After returning downstairs, I finished my last-minute unfinished homework and then proceeded to meet Caleb Chuang. I waited at the foyer for him. The crowds were building up, the sun was rising and the cars were entering the school compound. Auntie Clarine arrived at 7:15am with a lot of kids. They were riding Ms Bee Yong's car into the school compound. Once the kids and Auntie Clarine had gotten off the car, I waved hi at Auntie Clarine before Ms Bee Yong drove her car to the car park near the Art Studio. Soon, I could make out Caleb Chuang arriving with Mr Chuang on the horizon. Then, we talked about last Friday (29th January)’s activity before we entered the school hall. We then chatted until 7:45am, and we gathered for assembly. The usual routine of greeting all teachers, the singing of the school song and the recital of the Rukunegara and school pledge was done before we were told to be seated.
Mr Narish had a surprise for us. “Good morning, boys and girls!” he cried. He was enthusiastic and had a surprise for us.
Mr Narish announced that a “Founder’s Run” would be taking place on 26th February 2016 at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam. This run would be a charity run the likes of the previous two runs I ran, namely the Family Marathon Day in 2012 when I was in Year 6, and the National Day Run in 2013 during my time as a Year 7 student. The runs would look quite interesting, since I got 3rd place in Year 6 and 2nd in Year 7. I was thinking of trying to do well in order to get the first place. It has been three years since Nobel last held a run, and I was looking forward to show new students such as Sara Yow, Isabella Wong and Lyn Wen my moves at the runs. I had gotten top placings for the runs and hope to do well in the upcoming Founder's Run.
This Founder’s Run would look exciting. It would be the second time in my time in the Junior and Senior School that the run occurs at a botanical garden. The 2013 National Day Run was held at FRIM Kepong. For comparison, 2012’s Family Marathon Day occurred at the neighborhood where Nobel is.
Mr Narish said that two categories would be open for registrations. He said that there would be a 5km and a 10km category for students to register. He said that we would have until Friday, 5th February 2016, to register for the Founder’s Run. Everyone would be required to register as it would be a school day and that our attendance would be taken. I took down the details Mr Narish said onto my student organizer for further discussion with Caleb Chuang.
For Founder’s Run 2016, there will be a total of Top 20 positions up for grabs for both 5km and 10km. The 10km distance carries the highest weightage of points. The first place for 5km only logs 15 points while the winner for 10km carries a grand total of 26 points. I have set my sights to try to get the Top 10 and I was wondering what would it look like for a first place runner to see when running.
For the Founder’s Run, which is part of the Sports Day events that contribute house points, Mr Narish announced further during the assembly, the route for the 5km and 10km run. The run would weave through windy roads in the botanical garden, so it would be interesting to watch how things go. I decided to sign up for the 5km run as it is shorter. The 5km run would also be interesting to watch, since me and Sean Mark signed up for the same category.
The run would begin at the entrance of Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam. The route consisted of one round around the park on three separate routes. The park has two main routes that begin from the entrance, namely the west route and the east route, with a connecting route in between. The 10km runners would need to run on the route leading all the way to a dead end west of the park, past some paddy plantations and fruit farms. They would then turn back at the end, and head back to a T-junction connecting the west route of the park to a bypass route. Then, they would run the bypass route past the amphitheater to the east route, and then run the east route back to the entrance where we will meet the finishing line. The 5km runners only ran the west route till the T-junction with the bypass route, turn onto it and follow the rest past the amphitheater and back on the west route to the finish line. This route had been used for every single Founder's Run held at the botanical garden.
The date of the run, 26th February, is also the date of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in which Ramzi Yousef, a terrorist, parked a truck filled with bombs in the basement parking to destroy the parking lot and collapse the twin towers of the World Trade Center. This is different than 9/11, which two planes successfully crashed into the Twin Towers, leading to their collapse.
My aim for the run was not only to finish it, but to try to win over Sean Mark whom I had rivalled with in many different running events, and he won every time. So I wanted to beat him in the run and at least, compare it to Lee Chong Wei beating Lin Dan.
Mr Narish announced that the champion house of the Founder's Run would get 50 points, and points will be awarded for participation, aside from the Top 20 winners of the Founder's Run. Then, Mr Narish also revealed that on 17th February, after returning from the Chinese New Year holidays, there will be a Cheer Competition. I continued scribbling what he said as my friends looked on at my furious note-taking. I needed the information so that I can discuss the plans with Caleb Chuang and most importantly, Sabrina Qistina. Aside from that, Mr Steve also announced that those interested in performing for the Chinese New Year celebration will need to come for an audition after school hours from 3:30pm to 4:30pm that same day in order to perform in the Chinese New Year celebration, which will be held on 19th February. We were also told that Wednesday, 3rd February 2016, was our Career Day.
When we returned to class, everyone prepared for their lessons. The English lesson was about to begin. I saw that Enisha had buttoned her top button of her uniform. Most people would only button the first button but leave the top one unbuttoned. Some would button if they felt like it. However for many, those who are curious would button the top one out of mere curiosity. On another note, many people were curious about the decoration, but that was just a short burst of curiosity.
Mr Thomas entered the class and plopped his items down on his seat. He greeted me and I waved at him. Then, I just patiently sat down as he switched on the computer. He was silent. We waited for everyone to come.
Sherwin and Aaron then arrived, and soon, many people from 10B had reached the class. Then, Mr Thomas told us that we will be doing our King Tutankhamun presentation today. Ivyna's group was the first to present, followed by Vicky's. Mr Thomas, who sat patiently in his seat next to the computer, proactively told each group on which areas they could work on. Afterwards, Mr Thomas then explained the rationale for the presentation.
“The reason why I asked all of you to present was in order for me to see whether you have picked out the main points of King Tut's death. You must explain why do you think you agree that this was the cause of Tut's death and what evidences in the text can you pick to show that this might be the cause of his death,” he said, expecting a good response from the rest of us the next day. He told Ivyna and Vicky's group to re-present their presentation in a proper manner, with slideshows and plausible arguments.
Ye Sean told me to send the slides to him as I was making it. Then, I told Sherwin that we should present the presentation professionally.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely discussed our homework that we did, while Brandon Ooi joked around and played in the class. When Cikgu Niely was done, I went to talk to Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal about my Chinese New Year decorations plan. They liked the design and said it would make 10N famous.
After finishing Malay, Jia Yee went to talk to Chang Kai Yee and they walked along with Grace to the canteen. I also went to 10O, just like Jia Yee, but it was for the purpose of meeting Caleb Chuang. Nieshaal Thambipillay was not amused and told me not to step foot in their class. Ms Sangeetha was in his class and Faythe Chow and Ashlyne Yong were discussing some Biology notes with Ms Sangeetha. There, I waved at her, and walked with Caleb Chuang to the canteen.
I asked Caleb Chuang on whether he was headed for the marchpast practice that afternoon. He said yes, but I told him that I will be running a bit late because of the Chinese New Year audition. Then, I went to speak to Jeremy, Alister and Kie Yip, who were at their breakfast table, about me running late because I wanted to participate in the audition and I told them I would come for the march practices following the conclusion of the audition. “Make sure you come, ya. We only had three people yesterday afternoon,” said Kie Yip. Jeremy told him not to be too serious and that I should not worry as I was already having good marching skills.
Following break time, Sabrina called on everyone to settle down and it was once again successful. She praised our six-day streak of being well-behaved and told us to keep going till the next day. “Just one more day, guys. One more day,” she said.
Returning to class, Ms Chithra then taught us about enterprise and entrepreneurship and how does entrepreneurship allow us to run a business. During the class, Daryl Yeo went and point at the three pictures of Mark Zuckerberg, Richard Branson and Steve Wozniak and teased them, which made me laugh at his joke. Gabriel was sleeping and this resulted in Ms Chithra waking him up.
“Please pay attention, ya. Chapter 1, 2 and 3 are coming out for your Assessment 1. Class, please stop talking,” said Ms Chithra. I quickly jotted down the chapters in my Student Organizer.
Once the Business Studies lesson was over, Sherwin came in as Ms Chithra got ready for the next batch of students. I went down to the Art Studio to meet Ms Feeda, where she explained about Salvador Dali's surrealism art techniques. Salvador Dali is very well-known for making his paintings look very distorted. Then, Ms Feeda produced our photos. I had one of the craziest poses of everyone else.
Ms Feeda then told us to start drawing our self-portrait as a warm-up and think of how to fuse our portrait with certain other things based on the inspiration taking from Dali's paintings. Then, we went for lunch, and I went to see Ashley Fang to discuss on the athletics tryouts. Ashley told me that she will announce the next date later on.
After lunch, we went back to our class for Science with Ms Sangeetha, where we learnt about microorganisms. She was taken in awe by my firecracker design, which was a special design. The height of the firecracker was about five meters tall and ten centimeters in width.
The concept design of my firecracker.
Ms Sangeetha was awed by the sight of the firecracker. “You should thank Wei Yiang. You guys are the first class to decorate your class for Chinese New Year!” she cried.
After the Science lesson ended, Ms Sangeetha told us that we won't be using the lab the next day. Then, outside the classroom, Mr Aram and a large group of his History students were waiting. Then, Ms Sangeetha left, and we went to 10O for our History lesson. Mr Aram came in and sat down while everyone thrudged in quietly. Once we headed to 10O, Ms Visa then begun teaching about the terms and conditions imposed on Germany and what were the Germans’ reactions to the unfair terms imposed on them by the treaty. She told us to hand in our exercise books. When Glen Kay and Aaron Liew failed to do so, Ms Visa scolded them. “I think I have to send the both of you back to Year 7,” she smirked.
“If you were in Mr Aram's class, he will scold you on the spot and shame you. He is much stricter to his students than I am. I am actually considered very lenient to you all.”
No wonder students from Mr Aram's class talk about how scary he was.
After school ended, I went to find Mr Steve, before catching him at the management office. I spoke to him about the Chinese New Year audition, and he gestured for me to follow him. He then took me to one of the Year 7 classes, where a group of people from all different levels were waiting.
Mr Steve then briefed all of us and told us that we will be performing our songs after the Chinese New Year holidays. “Our school will celebrate Chinese New Year, and will hold a Chinese New Year celebration on 19th February. So, I need you to tell me what song do you want to sing or what performance did you want to do.
There were many students in the performance. I would say around ten students. Mr Steve consulted each and every one of us. I was the last one. I told Mr Steve that I intend to sing ‘Da Di Hui Chun’, which is one of the popular songs during Chinese New Year. He told me to sing in front of him. I sang for a short while. Mr Steve, satisfied with my singing performance, told me to practice the song during Chinese New Year and send the song to him after the Chinese New Year holidays ended.
After finishing the performance with Mr Steve, I went for the march practice with Kie Yip and Jeremy. The entire school had also begun starting our practices for Sports Day. As I was placed in the marchpast, our captains, Jeremy Yeap, Alister Baptist and Tan Kie Yip, were leading. Kie Yip is the most serious of them all as he has a very loud voice and threatens harsh punishments. Jeremy is a more gentle type of captain and during the marchpast, we would wish that Jeremy would be leading as he has a soft side as a march captain.
Kie Yip would normally yell very loudly. “Stop scratching!” “Don’t smile!” and “Look in front!” are one of the harsh commands he would make to all marchers. He would always threaten us with push ups as punishment. His hairstyle and glasses and menacing teeth make him serious to the point where one would not dare to question him, or else, punishments would follow.
Alister Baptist, which I hadn’t mentioned, is the middle ground of Jeremy and Kie Yip. He is also quite friendly as well. He would normally be doing the commands most of the time. I’d prefer Jeremy or Alister doing the commands, as Kie Yip is a menacing figure. He gained prominence as one of the Year 10s the previous year assisting Ivan Hiew and Jonathan Ong for Sports Day 2015, and his voice boomed as loud as possible to make one tremble.
Emerson Ngu has some features of Kie Yip and Alister. He is quite a gentle but also stern guy for our march practices. The three of them did the commands for an hour, with Kie Yip screaming, shouting and acting angrily most of the time.
I had one question at the time, as whether Bullseye would win a third year in power. We had won the 2014 Sports Day at the Kelana Jaya Stadium, and the 2015 Sports Day at the Panasonic Stadium, so I was thinking with Caleb Chuang that if Bullseye wins a third year, it will be good as it will make us famous. Again!
So, Kie Yip, Jeremy Yeap, Alister Baptist and the supposedly fourth march captain, Emerson Ngu, got us into position. They asked us to stand in rows of three facing them in the front.
Our march practices were held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays in order to accommodate me attending BK class on Wednesday and our usual Thursday CCAs. There are only three marchers from Year 10 in 2016 for Bullseye; me, Caleb Chuang and Heng Zi Quan. Hold on. I wonder where Ting Yi was. He would normally march too.
Jeremy and Alister would normally do most of the practice sessions with us. Fortunately, we would have people coming for the practices, but however, in the early weeks, there were less, but it picked up soon thereafter.
I wanted to help assist Jeremy, Alister and Kie Yip to do the commanding, since I had marched since Year 7. However, Sabrina Qistina told me not to do so as to give the Year 11s a chance as it would be the last year of the Year 11s in Nobel, and they wanted to have their last moments before leaving Nobel. Kie Yip had also did some commanding when he was in Year 10, too.
A lot of new Bullseye members were here together for the marchpast. Ian Khor waved at me when he saw me. The weather was hot till I sweat. Along with Ian, Isaac Ng was there. It was his second march training, paving the way for him to become a future march captain in 2019. Nabil Aiman was muscular and had glasses. Nicholas Tee and the other marchers from 2015 were also present.
The next day, Tuesday, 2nd February, was my turn to do the presentation of King Tutankhamun's death. The morning started off with our usual reading session as well as Ms Cynthia handing us the permission slips for the Founder's Run. Once that business was done, Ms Levina came in for our Economics lesson. She told us to take out our structured essay questions on Demand and Supply which we did as homework for discussion. Brandon Ooi forgot to do the homework. Louis and Gabriel also totally forgot, but Brandon Ooi tried to give lame excuses to Ms Levina, who did not buy his judgement. Ms Levina then told him to answer all the questions in the class without referring to the book, as she told him that he should do so as he acted as if he was being so clever.
Ms Levina then gave a whiteboard marker to Brandon Ooi to draw the Demand and Supply Curves and explain according to the question, but however, his mind went blank. When he was told to draw the demand curve to illustrate the market conditions in relation to a reduction in quantity supplied, Brandon scratched his head and went like, “Errgh, eehhh, aahhh,” and Ms Levina folded her arms and looked at him suspiciously. In the distance, I was waving my hands and raising them as I knew the answer to the questions. Eventually, Ms Levina got fed up of him and then passed the whiteboard marker to me. I drew a picture of the demand curve, labeled ‘D’ on the curve, and illustrated correctly the movement of the point on the demand curve upwards, illustrating an increase in price and the reduction of quantity demanded. Ms Levina smiled, praised me, and I handed back the whiteboard marker to her.
Brandon Ooi glared at me as he saw me got the answer correct, gnashing his teeth like a shark. Enisha gave me her most serious stare.
Then, Ms Levina told me to read out my answer, and she pointed out some mistakes in my answer. “Hah! Too bad!” cried Enisha.
“Guys, you are supposed to write a paragraph, not a short answer. You will fail the exam if you give short answers. Your writing must be in Year 10 standard, not primary school,” warned Ms Levina.
Then, Ms Levina asked Enisha to draw the graph illustrating the market changes in supply. She drew it, and explained her answer correctly. Ms Levina praised her, and Enisha glanced evilly at me. A glance as worse as Dr. Doofenshmirtz.
Ms Levina then called on Ryan Chok to draw the next curve, which was the demand and supply curves put together to form a market equilibrium. He just drew a large X on the whiteboard. The entire class laughed. It was so funny. “Jesus! Jesus!” cried Brandon. Lyn Wen was baffled. “What in the world,” she groaned.
Kelsey was already scolding Ryan Chok for what he did. “Oh my goodness, Chok,” she cried, as she told him to label the rest of the graph. He said he didn't know the answer. Ms Levina then asked me to label it and illustrate a shift in the demand curve to show the effects of an increase in supply of train tickets. I illustrated the curve, and Ms Levina pointed out some mistakes which I could improve on. Then, I saw Enisha glaring at me. Oh dear.
Mr Thomas was waiting outside the class. All the people in the class got their English books out. Some got up to proceed to 10B for English Second. Then, Mr Thomas came in, and we were the first to present. He logged into his account and Ye Sean went to the computer to open his Gmail account. Then, he opened the slide and then we were off presenting.
I was the first to introduce the presentation, while Sherwin, Ye Sean and Aaron Loke talked about the plausible causes of King Tutankhamun's death. Then, Vicky and Ivyna's groups presented. Before long, it was break time.
When we went for our break time, Sabrina told us during the break time assembly that we were wonderful keeping quiet for a week. Then, some people asked about the present, and she said there was nothing. This caused the Year 11 students in particular to boo at her, before she led us back. “I mean like, come on, you can do it for a week, right? You should continue this practice!”
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher then told us to do our work and research one question. He wrote the question on the whiteboard:
“Is conflict an inevitable (unavoidable) part of human nature?”
Mr Gallagher then told us to spend the entire lesson looking at our iPads and computers. Then, he saw Shane and Ryan Chok surfing the net on their computers and playing games. Mr Gallagher was not happy. He told them off for doing something that is not related to the lesson. Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra continued teaching from the previous day about entrepreneurs.
After lunch, Ms Sangeetha did some exercises and teaching with us in the class, blocking out syllabus after syllabus. She said that Combined Science did not have any official textbook back then, with the syllabus taking some of the content from the Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan asked for takers for the upcoming Friday, 5th February Genius Time, and Enisha volunteered. Following the end of school, I went for my marchpast practice with Jeremy and Alister, who coordinated us. This time, Alister did not tell us to do push-ups, and neither did Jeremy. However, some people fanned their shirts as it was really hot.
The next morning, Wednesday, 3rd February, was our third day before the Chinese New Year holiday. Mr Thomas watched as the final groups did their presentations. Then, he told us that he was giving us Chinese New Year homework.
“Last week, I mentioned to you on Edmodo that if everyone in the class agreed, then I will give you holiday homework to do during the holidays. So, does everyone agree with this work?” he asked.
There was no answer.
“You see, I want a response. I don't want to trouble you during the holidays. Some of you are celebrating Chinese New Year. So, I don't want to burden you. However, if you don't mind, I want to ask all of you to write a five-paragraph essay during the holidays. If you can do that, that is very good, as we can finish the lesson plans faster. I want to also prepare you for your Assessment 1, which will be after the holidays. So, is that okay? Are you comfortable?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas then asked the rest of the class, and they agreed. He told us to write a five-paragraph essay using points from the presentation, summarizing the plausible causes of Tutankhamun's death.
Then, Ms Levina did some demand and supply curve exercises with us and taught us more about the shifting of the curves. During the class, Brandon was talking, and Ms Levina had to repeatedly tell Brandon not to go out of tune.
“Eh, Brandon! Please! Stop talking!” she cried. Brandon would always laugh and joke and then continue talking. He was so difficult for Ms Levina to control. And the fact that Ms Levina were to frequently go and control him was quite funny to me as it reminded me of cartoon characters doing the same, making the lesson even more humerous.
After leaving the classroom, I went to see Caleb Chuang at 10O. Nieshaal instantly locked the door, but then Julian Ong pushed it open. Then, Caleb Chuang and I talked as we walked for our break time. Then, during Art, Ms Feeda gave each and every one of us our photos, and we begun drawing our self-portrait. It really looked shy for me when I looked at my own photo; what more drawing it. Out of everyone's portrait, I think Yi Zhen's one was the best. Her art was so fine.
Then, it was Character Transformation, and the onus was on everyone to share what they would normally do during the Chinese New Year holidays. Ms Bee Yong told us that the tradition of her family was to have a Chinese New Year reunion dinner on the eve. She said that her parents made it a norm for everyone to come back on the Chinese New Year's Eve for a reunion, and those who did not return for the festival were shamed and shunned. Then, I also shared my experience as to how I celebrated Chinese New Year. Several teachers, including Ms Bee Yan, Mr Lee and Ms Janice also shared their experiences as well. Mr Lee's family in particular had the best Chinese New Year celebration as in his opinion. His family would invite his neighbors’ children over to play games while waiting till midnight to launch firecrackers.
After lunch, we went for Business Studies, where Ms Chithra gave us worksheets as well as Chinese New Year homework. Everyone also wished Ms Chithra a happy Chinese New Year as well. All Ms Chithra could do was smile embarrassingly. In fact, a lot of teachers gave us loads of homework to do during Chinese New Year. Then, we went for history, and Ms Visa continued to talk about the conflict between the three Allied powers, namely Lloyd George, Clemenceau and Wilson, and how each of them had their visions on the best and most appropriate punishment for Germany. Ms Visa then watched us as we copied the text from the slides. She also introduced two terms, namely SCRAP and GARGLE for us to remember the territories that Germany should return, and the terms of the Treaty of Versailles respectively:
SCRAP:
S – Saarland (the territory that should be de-annexed by Germany)
C – Colonies
R - Rhineland (a zone that must be made a demilitarized zone)
A – Alsace Lorraine (a zone that must be returned to France)
P – Polish Corridor (a zone that must be a zone dividing Poland and Germany and allowing Poland free access to its own port)
GARGLE:
G- Guilt
A – Armed Forces
R – Reparations
G – German Territory
LE – League of Nations
Ms Visa said that she don't intend to give us work during Chinese New Year, but she expects us to do some reading during our free time while celebrating the festival. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee told us about Jesus’ teenage activities and also told us to do some questions during the holidays, with reference to our notebook. I was told to open the lesson with a prayer, and many people said my prayer was quite good.
The next morning, Ivyna and Sheng Jit said that most of the decorations would be done after Chinese New Year. They were responding to Ms Cynthia's query on why the class was not adequately decorated. For your information, 10O had decorated their class with a lot of fish and angpows in the class, and they even covered the right hand wall of their class in red angpows forming greetings for the new year. At least for me, I am on par with that of Caleb Chuang. We have at least brought betterment to 10N.
We then went for Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told us to continue on our writeup for the conflict exercise the previous day. Then, he told us to submit them by posting it on Edmodo. Afterwards, it was PE, and Xin Yi and Janelle Tan were asking Mr Victor on his plans for Chinese New Year. He said he wanted to eat. Yes. He wanted to eat.
Mr Victor then continued with our daily exercises in the hall as the teachers continued checking us for our activity during PE. Then, I followed Caleb Chuang to his class as I needed to drop by my class to take my food container for break time. The 10O students returned to their class, only to find.......angpows! Yes! Angpows! Everyone had angpows on their desk!
The angpows were given by Mr Nick, their Chemistry teacher. And they were so excited! Never before had a teacher handed angpows for Chinese New Year before. So, they opened the angpows, curious to find out how much money was it inside. Upon taking out the money, they found out that it was a RM 100 bank note! All of them cheered, and Megan was the most excited of them all!
However, upon turning the bank note over, they realized that it was a fake RM 100 bank note. Behind the bank note were a list of chemical equations that Mr Nick requested them to solve.
“Dear 10O students, this task is for your Chinese New Year holiday. Please solve these chemical equations and hand them in on Monday (15th February 2016). Happy holidays and Happy Chinese New Year! With love, Mr Nick.”
Nieshaal Thambipillay roared profanities upon feeling cheated by the angpows. There were six chemical equations, and all of the equations were really difficult. Then, I told Caleb Chuang that I adore his class’ Chinese New Year decorations.
During Economics, Ms Levina gave everyone their coursework paper. It was on Sawit Berhad, the national palm oil company. The case study required everyone to form a group of four to five persons. I decided to join with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal for the groupwork.
Ms Levina spent one hour trying to brief us on the coursework guidelines. Then, Brandon Ooi always kept on interrupting her class and she kept on asking Brandon Ooi to calm down. All of us had to answer six questions on the coursework paper, with the report to be typed out in Arial font, with a font size of 12 with 1.5 spacing. I didn't know what the spacing was initially, and Ms Levina showed us how to do it. This would become handy for my Foundation, Degree and Master's courseworks. Afterwards, Ms Levina taught us about changes in demand and supply and the shifting of the respective demand and supply curves, and it was funny when Brandon Ooi pranked people one by one and Ms Levina had to call him to keep quiet. He kept acting childishly and in a funny manner throughout the class. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan taught us more equations before giving us task to do in the class. I then observed the lunchtime assembly when I had finished my work. Normally, on every Thursday, the KS3 students assemble in the courtyard as the hall was being used for the Year 11s’ Character Transformation session. Brandon and Eric Wong joked with each other when they were done with the work.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and we went to the Art Studio to continue with our self-portrait. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa gave us worksheets to do. Once History was finished, I went to the Art Studio, and Ms Feeda continued our canvas paintings with us.
Ms Feeda snapped the picture of me, Louis and Sheng Khai painting our canvas.
Me, Louis and Sheng Khai had decided to start painting. I asked for yellow, brown and beige paint from Ms Feeda and we begun painting. We had to paint carefully, and I told Sheng Khai and Louis to follow an interlocking pattern of colours. Ms Nadia also praised the painting I was doing with Louis and Sheng Khai. Then, Ms Feeda snapped everyone else's painting. She said she planned to show to the other teachers on our painting.
Then, we made it to the end of the week! Phew! Friday, 5th February 2016, was our last day before our Chinese New Year, but it was also Brendan Cheah's birthday. The whole Year 10 cheered and screamed for him so loudly till everyone in the hall looked at him and wondered what was going on. All of his friends, especially Wences, Jordan Cheam and Alex Chia screamed and sang the birthday song at him.
During assembly, Ms Bee Yong wished everyone a happy Chinese New Year and told us to enjoy the celebration. Then, Mr Chan came up and gave a speech and told us the importance of Chinese New Year despite our studies. “Like what Ms Bee Yong said, studies are important, but the most important thing is to spend time with your family,” he said, encouraging us to make use of the time to cherish and appreciate what we have.
We returned to our class for Malay. The assembly had lasted a really long time and ate into the Homeroom period. During Malay, Cikgu Niely told us about the format of our Assessment 1 for Malay. There will be a two-part assessment, namely Part 1 and Part 2, which lasts 30 minutes each. So, Cikgu Niely said that it will be held on the Monday and Friday of the Assessment 1, which was on 29th February and 4th March. She said that we need to quickly settle down in this case for the start of the assessment. Cikgu Niely also gave us work to do. Then, during Malaysian Studies, Ms Cynthia taught us about the downfall of Malacca's Sultanate and how the current Johor royal family is actually the Malacca Sultanate in exile. Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok were talking, and Ms Cynthia was not happy.
“Brandon, Ryan. Do you know that the teachers have been complaining to me about your behavior in class?” asked Ms Cynthia, chiding them to be more disciplined in class. Then, she told everyone that the teachers had told her about the various issues that our class had with them.
Afterwards, during break time, I ate with Caleb Chuang and wished him a happy Chinese New Year. Megan and Le Anne smiled. “Enjoying your time with your best friend?” asked Megan. I told Megan that she should enjoy her time with her best friend as well. “Le Anne is not my best friend,” she said.
“Then why did you sit with her every day?” I asked. Caleb Chuang laughed until he almost choked on his food. He coughed profusely.
“Now, see, Wei Yiang, you made your best friend choke. So bad,” teased Megan.
During break time assembly, Ms Lim came to settle us down and she told us that Sabrina had told her about our best behavior. Then, she praised all of us. She singled out some people who joked with her and as such, joked with them. Then, we went back for our Science lesson.
Ms Sangeetha then told all of us that we will be using Edmodo for our lessons, which made her the fourth teacher in Year 10 after Mr Gallagher, Mr Thomas and Ms Feeda to use Edmodo. Then, she uploaded the photosynthesis slides on Edmodo. Once that was done, Ms Bee Yan came in for the Genius Time. Brandon joked with her, and Enisha was asked to present. She just presented a dance video and giggled. Ms Bee Yan just smiled slyly. Then, Ms Bee Yan gave us work to do and then said the next Genius Time presenter will be decided after Chinese New Year. She then wished us a happy Chinese New Year before we headed to our Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher taught us about poverty.
On my way back to 10N after Global Perspectives, I went to look in the classroom for a while and get my bag to go home. Then, Mr Andrew and his 10L students were leaving the class. There were ten students in his Additional Mathematics class; he was teaching only 10L students. I had this habit from then on of leaving my bag in 10N so that I could go back to 10N following the Global Perspectives class to enjoy the spacious room. Global Perspectives felt claustrophobic.
During the Chinese New Year holidays, Mr Thomas sent Chinese New Year greetings, which touched us all. His greeting was,
“WISHING EVERYONE A BLESSED AND PROSPEROUS LUNAR NEW YEAR, AND HAVE A WONDERFUL CELEBRATION.”
Everyone wished Mr Thomas a happy Chinese New Year even though he is not Chinese.
“Happy Chinese New Year, Mr Thomas!” posted Ethan Wong on Mr Thomas’ Edmodo page.
I went back to my hometown in Bukit Mertajam using the Electric Train Service (ETS) provided by KTM Berhad. Gone are the days of using the North South Expressway to head north. I went back for one day, going in the morning and returning in the evening. As the LRT extension project was still under construction then, my mum went to the Kelana Jaya LRT Station and parked her car there. Then, we took the LRT to KL Sentral to board the ETS train to Bukit Mertajam. The LRT service had stopped when we returned, and we hailed a cab to Kelana Jaya LRT Station to get our car back home. I did my homework and completed all the tasks within the first three days of Chinese New Year.
After coming home from our Chinese New Year holidays, we were informed of the house meet during assembly that Monday, 15th February and we needed to stay back for the house meets. Mr Narish had announced that there were four house meets previously on 15th January. The first was took place on 18th January; the second was scheduled for 15th February, the third on 7th March and the fourth on the 21st day of March.
The morning started off with Mr Narish also announcing that for the Cheer Competition on 17th February, we needed to wear our sports attire for the day in a show of solidarity for our sports houses. I got really excited. I needed to talk to Caleb Chuang about this.
When we got back to class and got ready for English, Ivyna and I had a short chat regarding the Cheer Competition. “Ivyna, we need everyone to scream loudly. I told Caleb Chuang that we need to get EVERYONE to come for the Cheer Competition. This is so that we can be as loud as possible and we can earn points!” I cried. Ivyna was really enthusiastic. “Yes! That's the spirit!” she cried.
Mr Thomas then arrived. “Good morning, Mr Thomas. I have finished my King Tut Essay,” I beamed. “That's good,” said Mr Thomas. Did you see the latest post?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“We will not focus that one now. We need to do the King Tut essay first,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then came and briefed us on how to write the essay. Many of the people in the class have not done it except for me, Vicky, Alexandria Goh and Ellie Lim.
“Since all of you have done the presentation, use the points from your presentation to write the essay, and to explain and argue the points relating to King Tut's death,” he said, asking us to submit the work via Edmodo. “Can you give me the work by Friday?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Very good. How about the rest?” asked Mr Thomas. Everyone just nodded their heads. Then, we did an essay and a task about Robinson Crusoe.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely collected our worksheets and discussed the answers. Then, I went to see 10O and 10L's Chinese New Year decorations. 10L's decorations were sponsored courtesy of Mr Lee. I believe all of Mr Lee's students will be happy if I said it. Then, I discussed with Caleb Chuang about the strategy for the Cheer Competition and I spoke to him of bringing in the megaphone I used in the 2015 Sports Day for the Cheer Competition, but Caleb Chuang did not buy the idea. “That's cheating,” he said. Even Ivyna wasn't amused by that.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra discussed our worksheets and collected our exercise books and worksheets. She then talked to us about the format for Assessment 1 and how we as a class needed to really behave in order to do well in our assessment. We continued our lesson on entrepreneurs and Ms Chithra told us what type of questions will come out for the assessment.
Ms Feeda wanted us to draw a portrait of ourselves and use it for two purposes; one for shading ourselves via hatching, and another for surrealism by Salvador Dali, who is an artist that makes the shapes of faces and forms weird, such as turning an eye into a clock. When it came for me to take my picture prior to Chinese New Year, I gave my craziest look and Ms Feeda took it. I initially tried to draw my face but each time, I did not succeed easily. For comparison, Yi Zhen can draw her face entirely perfect, just like the picture Ms Feeda took. Luckily I was wearing my apron; everyone else did not wear their apron and had to draw the school logo as well on the PE attire. I would always don an apron during art lessons. The day then continued normally as I met Sabrina and told her about the plan to use a megaphone. Sabrina's eyes lit up.
“That's a good idea!” she cried. I told her that we will meet later for the house meet. Then, during Science, Ms Sangeetha taught us about how microorganisms are used to make yoghurt. It looked disgusting. I kept on showing my disgusted look. “Ee yer!” I cried. Ms Sangeetha then said that she will put the slides on the Edmodo page. Then, during History, we had a source analysis exercise by Ms Visa on Germany's punishment. The poster was titled ‘The Gaol Bird’, and it showed a fairy being chained to a metal ball, just like the ones used in prisons. A text read, “Madam, you are free!”
Brandon Ooi teased Louis when we did the exercise. Then, he teased Glen and Gabriel as well. Ms Visa told him to control his behavior. I kept on hearing laughter from Ms Levina's class. I miss the Economics fun with Ms Levina. Then, lo and behold, was the house meet.
We had a few house meets throughout the preparation process for Sports Day. The first meet as mentioned earlier was for the signups, and the next few meets were just built for practices. We rarely had a formal house meeting till that day, 15th February in order to formulate the house cheers. All of us met, on that day, in the basement hall in order to listen to what cheer Sabrina and her team planned to come out.
Sabrina then urged everyone to come on the Cheer Competition, which would be held on 17th February 2016, a Wednesday, during the morning assembly in which we had to assemble in our houses to say the cheer. The cheer went like this:
“We’ve got the power, to be
The champions, you see
We came, we saw, we conquer
Veni Vindi Vinci!
Go, Bullseye, Go!
Hoo-Hah!”
We then spent a few rounds practicing the cheers. On the first round, no one had the enthusiasm, and I was too shy to belt it out loud, but I tried so anyway. The entire hall looked at me and smiled.
“Come on, guys, you can do better than this! Cheer louder, okay!” Sabrina cried.
So, everyone took turns practicing and cheering as loud as possible. With each huff and puff, everyone learned the words to the cheer and mastered it. Sabrina asked everyone to practice the cheer and memorize it for Wednesday, 17th February 2016. “Please remember to wear your sports attire!” she cried.
After the short but sweet house meet, we went for athletics training. Ashley Fang was Bullseye’s athletics captain and decided give a series of tryouts for us. So, for the 800m runners, we had to run at the PE field where we had our PE lessons, and we had to run two laps around the field. All the Bullseye members were gathered that very Monday after the house meet to train. Sean Mark, Ethan Chan, and many familiar Bullseye runners were there to opt for tryouts.
Ashley Fang then begun with the 100m runners first, followed by 200m and so on. Jason Leing helped to note down the timings and so on, as they tried to see who was best fitted to represent Bullseye on the tracks. I was told to run two rounds on the field.
So, as I ran, it was about to rain cats and dogs. Ashley and Sabrina asked me to go ahead, but as I completed the round with another person, it started raining, and then thereafter, I was told to go the second round. As I ran, I prayed for dear life that no lightning bolt will aim for me, or else I would be dead. Alas, I completed the second round, and headed back to school quickly as it poured. Luckily my clothes dried, but training was cancelled for the day.
The next day, we had our Reading Time and I brought my newspapers to read in class. Ms Cynthia took attendance and told Louis to read his book. Brandon laughed at Louis, and Ms Cynthia glared at him. Soon, Ms Levina came into the class and continued to talk about changes in supply and illustrated the shifting of the curves, and this time, Brandon Ooi was on his best behavior, which made the class look so boring in my opinion. Then, we had English, and Mr Thomas guided us on how to read and answer the Robinson Crusoe text. He talked about the sufferings of Robinson Crusoe, which I read four years prior when I was in Year 6. I then bolted out of the class when the lesson ended, and met Caleb Chuang and Kit Lee. Then, I talked to them about the plans for the Cheer Competition. Kit Lee was a bit shy when she saw my megaphone plans.
Caleb Chuang's table was just near the old school garden and futsal court, while Kit Lee and San Ying's table during break was five tables away. It was quite near, to be honest, and at the same time, convenient.
Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher was not amused. “I only received work from Wei Yiang only. Where's the rest?” he cried. Then, Mr Gallagher told us to do our work while I waited through the entire lesson before continuing on with Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson. The rest of the day was just normal and business as usual; Ms Sangeetha continued teaching us about our digestive system in class and not in the Science lab, telling us that she will post the slides on Edmodo. And Ms Bee Yan discussed our Chinese New Year holiday homework.
Just before school ended, I produced my thumbdrive to Mr Steve, who saved my Chinese New Year song file. I practiced the Da Di Hui Chun song at home. I felt ready to perform on the day of the Chinese New Year celebration.
On Wednesday, 17th February 2016, we then had our Cheer Competition where we belted out the cheer of Bullseye. Each house came out with their own creative cheers, and we wore our Sports Attire.
Everyone gathered in the school hall in the four houses. Bullseye gathered at the back, close to the area near the lower canteen, while Mr Narish and his team of teachers stood on the stage and smiled as the action was about to begin. Aside from that, Homerun was next to Bullseye, Slamdunk gathered at the left hand side of the stage, and Touchdown on the other side. Each house was given the opportunity to cheer twice for better clarity.
A few teachers from the elementary school were invited to judge the cheers. They included Mr Sures, Ms Ingel, Puan Halimah as well as Mr Chan himself. They held out cardboard files with those clips on top of it where you can hold it in your hand, to record down the points. The judges stood at the center of the hall to hear the cheers. The order was to begin with Homerun, then Bullseye, then Touchdown and finally Slamdunk.
I was standing next to Caleb Chuang, and Kelsey was behind us with a sly face. “Stop!” she cried as we hurled our voices loudly to the tunes of the cheer. She was quite shy when we all cheered. Kit Lee was behind her, and she covered her face.
“Come on Bullseye! Louder! We must win!” I shouted, encouraging the members of Bullseye.
Sean Mark and Jason Leing grinned sneakily as I screamed and shouted. “Wei Yiang, shout louder!” cried Jason. I then produced my megaphone. Caleb Chuang pushed it down. “That's cheating, Wei Yiang,” he said. Sabrina was walking by and I approached her with the megaphone and told her about my plan to use it. “Wei Yiang, I don't think you should use the megaphone because it would be unfair to the other houses. We will get disqualified and I don't want that. I hope you understand,” she pleaded. I nodded my head and retracted my megaphone.
Jason and Sean cheered me on. “Wei Yiang, you lead Bullseye. Stand in front and lead!” they teased. Then, the cheer competition was about to begin. Then, we practiced the cheer. Each house was practicing their cheer, and the teachers look on at us in excitement and amusement. It was then time to cheer.
“Okay, students, we will start with Homerun, then Bullseye, followed by Touchdown and then Slamdunk,” said Mr Narish. Each house was given a chance to perform their cheers. Homerun was the first to start. They were seated at the back, to the right of the school hall. We were seated to the left, facing the lower canteen. Slamdunk and Homerun were facing the entrance, with Bullseye behind Touchdown.
The time was given for Bullseye to cheer. “Come on, Bullseye! Louder!” I cried. Caleb Chuang was also motivating everyone to cheer.
On the first round we were not as loud, but I hurled and shouted till all the students looked at me. I facepalmed myself. “You guys can do better than this!” I cried. Then, Slamdunk and Touchdown did their cheers. Then came our second attempt. I pulled out my megaphone. Kelsey pushed the megaphone down. “Stop! I have headache!” she cried. On the second attempt, I shouted so loudly. Caleb Chuang also screamed at the top of his lungs till Kelsey’s headache worsened. Caleb Chuang and I high-fived each other while Kelsey was groaning.
Once all four houses were done, the judges evaluated their decision and told us that they will announce the results soon. When we returned to class, Mr Thomas then did a summary of the Robinson Crusoe exercise with us. Prior to the start of our lesson, Mr Thomas asked how was the Cheer Competition, and I told him, “I had loads of fun with Caleb Chuang!” I cried. “I was screaming and shouting like mad!”
Mr Thomas then took the opportunity to talk about Mr Aram, who was in Bullseye, since the conversation started with me and Caleb Chuang cheering for Bullseye. He talked about how fat he was and how he conducts History. Jien Min said that he was really strict in his History classes, and Ethan Wong was like saying, “Haram! Haram!” which is a Malay word for ‘forbidden’. They always say those words during their daily conversations with Jason Leing and Sean Mark.
“Mr Haram!” cried Mr Thomas, playing on Mr Aram's namesake. The whole class laughed. “I thought he was a Malaysian!”
“Of course, Mr Thomas!” cried Jien Min. I thought he is a Malay guy, but he is a white man!”
“A big AND FAT man,” said Ethan Wong.
Soon, we had break, and Caleb Chuang and I were asking Kit Lee why she kept quiet when we screamed like mad. She was a bit shy.
We then went for our Art lesson, where Ms Feeda told us to do some research and bring some Salvador Dali images for the next Monday lesson, so that we will be able to proceed to our Salvador Dali portrait task. In the meantime, Ms Feeda took the opportunity to show us some videos on Pink Floyd and Salvador Dali to get us to be inspired and find ideas for our self-portrait, inspired by Salvador Dali. The video she showed us was: Destino & Time : Salvador Dali, Walt Disney and Pink Floyd. While the video was playing, Chee Kei and Eugenie came a bit late. Once we were done, we did our self-portrait and continued with our lesson. Ms Feeda subsequently posted the announcement on Edmodo.
Then, we went to the school hall for our Character Transformation session. Ms Kelly then continued from the previous session and talked about personal relationships with us. Many people related the personal relationship of me and Caleb Chuang as a result.
Then, we had lunch, and Ms Chithra continued our lesson. Ms Visa then taught us on plebiscites and how the terms of the Treaty of Versailles were unfair to Germany. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Sarah Low was invited to open the lesson with a prayer. Ms Renee also said that my cheering for the Cheer Competition was quite good when Caleb Chuang and I talked to her during the class. She also told us the Assessment 1 scope for Bible Knowledge, which was Matthew Chapter 1 – 6.
On Thursday, 18th February 2016, Mr Victor said that we will have Sports For All when we had our PE lesson that day. Sports For All is an event in Nobel where everyone would compete in a series of sports events during PE, namely the 100m, shot putt, long jump and high jump. Ms Sylvia, Mr Lim Chiat Shern and Cikgu Niely handled us aside from Mr Victor. So, on this day, the boys went to the field while the girls stayed in school for high jump and long jump.
Mr Victor then brought us to the field as we went to do the activities. For the 100m, we had four people run the distance and from there, the winners will be awarded points. Once we arrived, Mr Lim Chiat Shern then divided us into our houses and we got started from there. Jien Min and Jason Leing were talking with each other while I spoke with Caleb Chuang on running faster.
We cheered for everyone as they ran as fast as they could. When it came to be my turn, I tried to run as fast as possible, but I was just a few metres shy of the first runner, Sheng Jit. We competed according to our classes based on our houses. Then, once we were finished, we then headed to the shot putt area to do our throws. I couldn’t throw as far as possible as the ball was heavy. The balls used for shot putt is a small metal ball, but it weighs as heavy as a chair from how I lifted it.
After returning back to school, Jason, Sean and Ethan Wong bought some 100 Plus from 7-Eleven and went to the canteen to drink them. On another note, Mr Gallagher, prior to the start of the Global Perspectives lesson, told everyone to finish their essay if they haven't done so, and we spent the entire time waiting for the lesson to end.
During break time, I spoke with Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark and Jason Leing on the running events. I told them I had practiced for 800m. Sean Mark asked me to check with Ashley Fang, which I did later on. Ashley told me that she will fix a new practice date for the athletics events.
Once we returned to class, Ms Levina then taught us about the Changes in Supply. Then, as she opened the slides, she gave us a copy of her slides, and each slide had a fill-in-the-blank. Then, she taught us the similarities of the shift in demand and supply. Most of the time, we drew curves, and Ms Levina recapped the factors of production and what we learnt. Then, Brandon kept on talking and Ms Levina went to him. “Eh, Brandon, please. Why you haven't finished your work yet? Complete your work,” she said. Then, we did a small worksheet on market and mixed economies. While we were doing the worksheet, Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok talked, and Enisha did not do her work. Ms Levina went over and asked them to finish their exercise. Then, we had Maths and Ms Bee Yan continued to introduce more equations to us. Ms Bee Yan then asked who was to present for the Genius Time the following day, and Eric Wong volunteered to present. After lunch, we continued our drawing on the self portraits and Ms Feeda checked mine. She said mine was good but needed improvements. Ms Feeda then told us to bring the research on Salvador Dali the following Monday and also check Edmodo. She also gave us her contact if we needed to check our work for the final piece. Then, it was History, and we had to paste slides given by Ms Visa into our notebook. Gabriel and Louis did not have a glue, so I lent mine to them. We had to cut them and paste them in our notebook. Ms Visa scolded Aaron Liew for pasting the work in a messy manner. Afterwards, we had our Fine Art Club CCA, and me, Sheng Khai and Louis touched up the drum painting by putting some black lines on the outlines of the colored boxes. Ms Feeda said that we were the first group to finish. Then, she told everyone to complete the work latest by the following week. Ms Nadia took a good look at our work. “Wow, very good, Wei Yiang and Louis and Sheng Khai as well,” she said.
Nobel International School had its Chinese New Year celebration on Friday, 19th February 2016. The teachers kicked off the Chinese New Year celebration by singing Chinese New Year songs on the morning of the assembly. The most popular song that was sung was “Gong Xi Gong Xi Ni”. Mr Steve directed the Chinese New Year celebration as he is a Mandarin teacher and taught me Mandarin Core in Year 7. There was also a Chinese New Year quiz on the day of the celebration where everyone was asked on questions regarding Chinese New Year, such as the name of the last day of Chinese New Year, the number of days Chinese New Year is celebrated, and why do people gather for a reunion dinner on the eve of Chinese New Year.
Originally, I had planned to perform on the Chinese New Year celebration for the school and I had proposed to Mr Steve who was in charge of directing the show, to sing the tune “Da Di Hui Chun”. This song writes about the beginning of Spring and how Spring would give us good luck in Chinese culture, and that the Chinese wish for prosperity at the beginning of Spring. I had worn traditional Chinese attire on the day because I thought Mr Steve had given me the go-ahead to perform, but sadly on the day, he told me that he didn’t even receive any formal request for me to perform on the day. Mr Steve comforted me by saying, “Don’t worry, since you have worn it already, it is good because it also indirectly celebrates Chinese New Year.”
I was only afraid that I ran afoul of the strict dress code rules in Nobel then; the only attires that were allowed were either school uniform or the PE attire for PE lessons. I wasn’t even performing so as such I did not have a good reason to explain if confronted. Ms Cynthia asked me during Malaysian Studies on why I wasn’t wearing school uniform and instead wearing a traditional Chinese attire, and I told her of the miscommunication between me and Mr Steve. Cassandra and Kelsey defended me in front of Ms Cynthia. “He thought he was selected to perform for Chinese New Year,” said Cassandra. Kelsey comforted me and said that if Ms Lim asked me, all I needed to do was explain and she will understand, because I was afraid I would get into trouble with Ms Lim. Luckily, the day passed without any incident. Cikgu Niely, Ms Sangeetha and Ms Bee Yan also comforted my fears of breaking the rules as well. Enisha tried to make fun of my situation and wish me bad trouble, but she was shunned down by Cassandra and Kelsey as they saw me tearing up.
The dress code rules were very strict, because anyone not wearing the school uniform can be demerited, especially without a valid reason. I personally felt that Ms Lim might think that my reason wasn't a valid reason, since Mr Steve and I had agreed of my performance during the audition and I had sent him the music track for the performance. Violation of dress code rules can result in demerit points. I have thought that Mr Steve had allowed me to perform on the day. I was quite surprised that Mr Steve told me that he didn't receive my request of my intention of performing at the Chinese New Year celebration, since I had met him during the audition and communicated with him. And speaking about Enisha, she would always sometimes berate me just for nothing.
On another note, Mr Narish announced the house points for the overall standings. He was enthusiastic and flicked the points on the screen:
Overall House Points
Bullseye – 349 points
Touchdown – 295 points
Homerun – 347 points
Slamdunk – 337 points
Cheer Competition
1. Slamdunk – 10
2. Touchdown – 7
3. Bullseye – 4
4. Homerun – 2
Founder's Run 2016 (Registrations)
1. Bullseye – 347
2. Homerun – 345
3. Slamdunk – 327
4. Touchdown – 289
The judges declared Slamdunk the winner of the cheer, followed by Touchdown, Bullseye and Homerun. I sneered in disappointment like someone who has lost the lottery. However, I screamed like mad when Bullseye was announced as the leader of the overall tally and the registrations in the Founder's Run.
Other than Enisha, Brandon Ooi had also blamed me for not being dressed in proper attire. It was a result of the miscommunication with Mr Steve. Initially, when I came to school, I was really excited for the performance, but however, my heart sank when Mr Steve told me that I was not on the performance list. To make it more complicated, this declaration by Mr Steve meant that I did not have a valid reason to not wear school uniform. And I was afraid that Ms Lim will blame me and tell me that I should have confirmed with Mr Steve before performing. I don't want to get into really complicated situations.
During Malay, as mentioned, Cikgu Niely comforted me, and she told me not to be sad. She told me to wash my face in the washroom, but I refused out of fear of Ms Lim seeing me and me getting scolded by her. Cikgu Niely did some exercises with us. I personally felt bad when even Ms Cynthia asked why I was in traditional Chinese attire. I could listen to Kelsey and Cassandra and tell Ms Lim about my reasoning, but I was afraid that she would not accept my reasoning.
I had to explain to everyone during break time about the situation I faced. Most understood. Fortunately, there were no issues. Ms Sangeetha and Ms Bee Yan also felt weird that I wore traditional Chinese attire but was botched of the performance. In fact, me performing on the Chinese New Year celebration would have had been great. Then, Eric Wong was asked to present the video he had for his Genius Time. He presented racing cars, and everyone cheered him on. It was just a normal affair in Global Perspectives, as Mr Gallagher told us to do some research on poverty and write an essay on it. He also gave us a code for the plagiarism checking website Turnitin. It was my first time using Turnitin. I would use Turnitin to submit my assignments when I did my Foundation, Degree and Master's in Sunway.
The next week was a really electric week. The Founder's Run was occurring at the end of the week, on 26th February. Preparations were in full swing. And everyone looked forward to the week of the Founder's Run.
The morning of Monday, 22nd February, begun with Mr Narish talking about the Founder's Run. He told us that we will be receiving our t-shirts for the Founder's Run. Then, Ms Lim was not happy as there were people talking when the assembly was proceeding.
We returned to class, and Mr Thomas then came in. Enisha apologized for her actions to me the previous Friday and said no major issue occurred. Lyn Wen then said that she had asked Ms Cynthia and Ms Lim on the matter which occurred three days prior and said that it was not an issue because Ms Lim would say that it is merely a miscommunication with Mr Steve and that there was already a plan to perform, but I didn't get to perform. So, I was told to meet Ms Lim during break time on the matter. Cassandra and Grace told me the same. Feeling relieved, I lit up, turned around and greeted Mr Thomas.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Yes, good morning. How are you?” he asked. Then, I told him about what I discussed with Lyn Wen, Grace and Cassandra. “Awwww.....don't worry. Your intention was to perform, but somehow, you were not selected. So, as such, there is no violation of the dress code. What song did you intend to perform for the Chinese New Year celebration?”
I then told him about the song and showed the song on the Internet. Mr Thomas was delighted. “That is a very nice song. It is so touching. I don't understand why Mr Steve did not allow it,” he said. Even Sherwin and Aaron Loke, who arrived in the class, comforted me on the matter. “Don't worry. If you came to school with the Chinese dress because you thought you were performing, that is fine. Unless you know that you were not performing, then you will be in trouble,” said Sherwin, patting me on the back. Then, we did Robinson Crusoe exercises and Mr Thomas told us to hand in the King Tutankhamun essay via Edmodo and resend the corrected version if Mr Thomas had asked for the text to be amended.
Cikgu Niely came in for Malay. She asked if I was okay, and I said yes. We then did some exercises and Cikgu Niely told us to hand them on 7th March after the exam had finished.
During break time, Ms Lim called me and spoke to me nicely and told me not to worry on breaking the school rules. She said that she had spoken with Mr Steve and said that I need not worry as he had told me of my intention to perform but was sadly, not chosen. Ms Lim then asked me to explain about the song and she said she also liked it. “But Wei Yiang, next time, you should double-check with Mr Steve if you are performing or not, as it is an audition. I have spoken to Mr Steve to let people know in the future if they are participating. Okay?” Ms Lim patted me and smiled.
After returning to class, Ms Chithra talked about horizontal and vertical integration of businesses and how businesses merge and take over. However, the entire class was noisy and Ms Chithra got very angry and stopped teaching for ten minutes till we behaved. After that, we had Art, and Ms Feeda apologized to us for bringing our Salvador Dali research because she had another activity during Art for us that day. She had called a guest speaker to talk to us about Art and Design. The speaker, whose name I can't really recall, then talked to us about art techniques and art history. Then, Ms Feeda gave us a registration form for The One Academy Young Artist Competition 2016 and encouraged all of us to participate. Once that was done, Ms Sangeetha taught us in class about tooth decay. The whole class said it looked disgusting. Then, we did some work during History and we could hear Mr Aram scolding his class.
After school ended, Ashley Fang and all the athletics people from Bullseye gathered in the canteen. We had a chat together. I chat with Sabrina Qistina, who was also involved in the 300m race. Ashley said that I needed another practice and that this tryout was the last one to confirm my position in the 800m race.
We then headed to the PE field for our practice. Then, we waited for Ashley to finish coordinating the 100m, 200m and 300m runners. Afterwards, it was my turn.
I started running the first lap and then the second. Jason Leing timed me. Then, once we were done, Ashley did some strength training with us.
Ashley Fang would normally do some athletics training with us by training us to run our selected distances. To run an 800m course would require two rounds around the track. So, Ashley Fang trained me accordingly and thus did some running training. Once we were finished, we would do some strength training. This type of training teaches us to push our muscles to the limit. For example, when we stretch our legs, Ashley asked us to stretch to the maximum. We also did the same exercises that Mr Victor conducted during our PE lesson.
The next day, during Economics, Ms Levina collected our Economics coursework from us. She praised those who binded the coursework like a report. Then, she continued teaching us about Price Elasticity of Demand and continued to illustrate the curve looking like an E or I when corresponding whether the curve is elastic or inelastic. Brandon Ooi was having a rubber band in class, coincidentally, and he was playing with it and it hit Ryan Chok, who screamed and Ms Levina had to stop the lesson. Then, she told the two of them to swap places with Ivyna and Sheng Jit, who sat behind. While Ms Levina continued teaching and I was about to ask the next question, Brandon and Ryan were playing again, and then it caused Cassandra to be swapped with Brandon.
Brandon Ooi was annoyed. “Why me?” he cried. Ms Levina clearly had a headache dealing with Brandon. Then, we had English, and Mr Thomas then checked everyone's King Tutankhamun essays on Edmodo. He said that we needed to refine the essay accordingly, and he gave us the next text, which was on information, to organize.
During break time, I spoke with Caleb Chuang on the Founder's Run. He was running the 10km category of the run. I was running the 5km category. I told him about how we plan to run. He just smiled and smirked. I told him about my experience running 800m the previous day. Then, Ashley and Sabrina told me that I was officially admitted into the official athletics team for Bullseye. It was my first time getting involved in the track and field events.
After break time ended, we went for Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher briefed us on poverty. He had a long list of slides which he said he will upload on Edmodo, and then he did, before he started. “Just in case I forget, I am uploading it now,” he said. Then, Mr Gallagher taught us and then he got fed up with Shane and Ryan Chok playing. “Shane! Chok! Please zip your mouths!” he cried. Then, he gave us questions to do and we had to type them in our computers or iPads. Afterwards, Ms Chithra came into the class, and Daryl Yeo called me out for bringing an iPad to class. I told him it was because we were having Global Perspectives in the class. Ms Chithra discussed the answers and opened Business Studies Online to play some games on horizontal and vertical integration of businesses with us.
After lunch, Ms Sangeetha brought us to the science lab, where we experimented on how to use microorganisms to make yoghurt.
Ms Sangeetha gave each and every one of us a cup of milk and a tablespoon of bacteria. All groups were provided with a bunsen burner and we were told to pour the milk into a beaker and heat it up. Ms Sangeetha set up the experiment for us. Then, Sheng Jit quipped to Ivyna in our group that he intend to taste the yoghurt. “No, no, no, it's dangerous!” I cried. Then, he intended to spit his saliva into the beaker to further make the yoghurt faster, and all the people in the group yelled, “Eww!” I was in charge of writing the lab report, and Ms Sangeetha told us to present it during the next lab session on 1st March.
Meanwhile, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi had put their mucusses into the beaker and this made everyone shocked. Then, Ms Sangeetha said that it will affect the outcome of the experiment. And of course, Ms Bee Yan did work with us. She told us to do an equation on completing the square. There was no Genius Time this week as Friday, 26th February, is the date of the Founder's Run.
24th February 2016 was a busy day, as Mr Narish outlined the schedule for the Founder's Run 2016. He said that individuals who were headed to Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam were to drive there with their parents. “For those of you who are taking the bus service, please arrive at school latest by 7:30am. The bus will depart at 7:45am,” he said. The schedule was as follows:
Time Activity
7:30am Arrive Nobel
7:45am Attendance at Nobel
8:30am to 9:00am Arrival of participants at Taman Botani Negara
9:00am to 9:20am Attendance at Taman Botani Negara
9:20am Warm up
9:40am Briefing for 10km runners
9:45am Flag off 10km
9:50am Teachers’ Fun Run
9:55am Briefing for 5km runners
10:00am Flag off 5km
11:45am to 12:00pm Closing Ceremony/Prize Giving
12:30pm Attendance by Homeroom teachers
12:45pm Depart from Taman Botani Negara
1:00pm Dismissal at Nobel
Mr Narish said that aside from those, we will need to have to wear our Founder's Run t-shirt, as well as either black track bottoms, Sports Day pants, PE pants, or knee-length pants. It is encouraged for everyone to wear running shoes and bring a change of clothes. The time taken to complete the run would be between 1 hour and 50 minutes to 2 hours. Ms Sylvia also briefed us on what to do. “Drink lots of water the day before the run. Sleep early; at least seven hours of sleep. Make sure you come for the run after breakfast. Don't come with empty stomachs,” she warned.
We then headed back to class, and Mr Thomas talked about technology. We had a big debate on technology, and Kelsey, Vicky, Alexandria Goh and I answered his questions. Then, he opened the Edmodo application to check on the submission for the King Tutankhamun Essay. “I have not received the essay from four groups. Can you please submit them to me?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas looked at me and smiled. “No, no, I am asking those who haven't submitted, but thank you for your response,” he said. Then he laughed. “This friend of ours, Wei Yiang, is very participative. He answers all the questions,” said Mr Thomas, and he asked the class to clap for me. Ethan Wong was grinning and he smiled. He clapped furiously.
Mr Thomas then showed a video on Parkouring, and he saw me write a comment on his page. He had wrote a question, “What is your opinion on Parkouring?” and I responded, “It is fun, but dangerous!” The whole class laughed.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina wasn't happy with Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok for not finishing their work. She moved the two of them to the front again. “You will remain in this seating arrangement for every Econs lesson,” she warned. The two of them cried and whined like babies, and Ze Khai laughed.
Then, it was Art and Design, and Ms Feeda then talked to us about our next research and got us to continue with our portrait painting. Ms Feeda said that the management had told her that we cannot use the Art Studio 1 as Ms Nadia's students had to use them, and she would need to write in to the management again. Then, we had Character Transformation, where Ms Kelly continued with an icebreaking activity where we had to play a game in the hall. After our Character Transformation session ended, we went for lunch, and I discussed with Caleb Chuang about the Founder's Run. We then went back for Business Studies, where Ms Chithra did some revision and exercises in the class. Then, during History, Brandon Ooi was horsing around with some of the decorations for Chinese New Year in 10O and Ms Visa was really angry with him. “If the class found out that you damaged it, you need to answer to their class teacher. Who's the class teacher?” Ms Visa asked. I then said it was Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick, and Ms Visa said that she will inform Ms Bee Yan on that. We did some source analysis and interpretation and had to paste some pictures in the book, and Ms Visa got angry at Gabriel for pasting the pictures in a messy and incorrect manner. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee talked about the Founder's Run before proceeding to begin the lesson. Desmond Chan volunteered to do the weekly prayer before we started the class.
We then had the second session of Sports For All, on 25th February. Earlier in the day, Ms Cynthia passed to us our Founder's Run t-shirt and bib number with pins. Then, we went for Mr Gallagher's class and we did our poverty writeup as well as a group discussion on the topic. Before long, we had our PE lesson.
The boys then stayed in the school for high jump competitions and long jump matches. The high jump was held in the school hall, and Ms Sylvia briefed us and said that the goal for us is to try to avoid touching the bar. Most of us who are not good jumpers had always touched the bar, so for this Sports For All event, they replaced the bar with a string which is kept loose and not tied to the poles in order to prevent the poles from striking somebody’s head when it crashes if the rope is being pulled by someone’s weight when landing on it.
10N was the first to start. I tried to jump but I touched the string and did not make it. But the most spectacular performance was by Christopher Chew, as he had done parkour before. You see, Christopher Chew has a YouTube page at the time where he published all his parkour moves. He had done a series of headstands, roll-arounds and all the silly stunts with Sheng Jit, James Wong, Benjamin Fong and Aristotle Koh. They would do parkour during break and lunch by utilizing the high jump mattresses for their stunts. Not to also mention that Mr Thomas had also placed an article on Parkouring on the Edmodo page.
For the long jump, Cikgu Baliah was there to do the measurements. When one person jumped, they will measure where their feet touched the sand. The renovation of the school’s parking lot had resulted in the long jump pit being reduced to a small sand box, but luckily it was big enough to land.
So, I ran as fast as possible when it came for my turn, and I landed. Nieshaal, Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong, Jason Leing, Sean Mark, and all the big-name athletes under Mr Victor’s track and field CCA watched the runners jump and land in the pit. Then, Cikgu Baliah will measure with one of the students and mark the area. I did pretty much on average.
Christopher Chew wanted to do his parkour moves during the high jump and the long jump, but Ms Sylvia and Mr Victor said that they will minus his marks and demerit him if he did so.
Then, we went for break, and then soon thereafter, we had Economics. Ms Levina then did exercises with us on Price Elasticity of Demand and Price Elasticity of Supply, but Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok were not sitting at their designated places, so she asked them to switch places before we begun our lesson. Then, Ms Bee Yan did some revision with us for our Assessment 1. The rest of us continued with our self portrait during Art, and then Ms Visa taught us about why George Clemenceau, Woodrow Wilson and David Lloyd George failed to achieve what they wanted as they had many disagreements and conflicts over how Germany should be punished. Clemenceau, the President of France, wanted Germany to be weakened as they share a border with each other, while Lloyd George and Wilson did not want Germany to be punished too harshly as they felt it would be unfair to the other countries in the League of Nations as well as to give a chance for Germany to change their attitude and become peaceful, optimistic of the future of Germany being peaceful.
During the Fine Art Club session, Ms Feeda told me, Sheng Khai and Louis to help the other people finish their painting as we were done, and everyone was talking about the Founder's Run. It was a long day, but Founder's Run got me a break from the Friday Global Perspectives sessions and my Friday routine.
Founder’s Run 2016 took place on 26th February as mentioned. All runners had received their shirt for Founder’s Run the previous day, during reading time. Ms Cynthia handed out the shirts to us and asked us to initiate on a form that we received the shirt. It was a blue t-shirt with a runner crossing the finish line.
The Founder's Run 2016 is Nobel International School's very FIRST Founder's Run. It will be a tradition that will continue for the next succeeding years. A tradition of excellence of raising funds for charity. It will also spark a long-standing practice for me as well, as it is a step to me winning the Twincity Marathon eight years later in 2024. It got me passionate about marathon running and a chance to shine. Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam would be a yearly venue for this annual event.
So, on the day, I got up at 5:00am, and waited for Aunty Joyce, Xang Yen’s mother, to accompany us to the venue of Founder’s Run. We drove early, and had breakfast at a restaurant in Shah Alam close to the botanical garden. I just ate bread for breakfast.
A couple of people were already at the botanical garden. During the briefing, Mr Narish told us to gather at an empty area close to the parking lot, in our sports houses. So, I gathered at the location where Bullseye was assigned to be at, and I met Ivyna and talked to her and waited for the event to start. We all then did warm ups, and then we were escorted to the entrance of Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam by Ms Kam and the other teachers.
Our house captain, Sabrina Qistina, came with a bandaged leg. She was unable to run the Founder's Run because of her leg injury. I then talked to her and she wished me the best, asking me to have fun.
Once we reached the front of the main entrance, we then placed our bags down and waited to begin the run. We then lined up according to our categories (5km or 10km), and had to wear our bip number during the run. Each one of us is given a bib number for the teachers to record who finished the run or passed the checkpoints. The runners wore a green bib for 10km, yellow bib for 5km and a red bib for the teachers’ run.
The 10km runners were the ones that begun first. The runners gathered at the starting line and were flagged off by Auntie Clarine, who held a red horn. The runners then dashed along the route in the front and headed straight. However, the teachers then realized a mistake and asked the runners to run to the left and not straight. That moment was very tense, as most people would not want to be the ones running and being flagged off, as they had to endure pain for hours, running the entire route. I saw a lot of people having a frustrated look on their face as they told the ran the wrong route.
The next run was the teachers’ run as a couple of teachers got ready to start. They were then flagged off by Auntie Clarine, who blew the horn.
When it was time for us to start, Sean Mark, Ze Khai, Yew Jan and Jason Leing were standing near me. I can feel my heart beat and thump as the time came for us to start running.
Ms Bee Yan then came out and then made an announcement. “Don’t push, don’t push. Marathon is a long run. It’s not sprinting.” We then did a countdown as we flagged off. I tried my best running as fast as I could.
The hills were windy and steep as I tried to attempt the course. It was not the normal course of yesteryear. As I saw how steep, windy and curvy the roads were, I only wished I had known how the route looks like. I then passed the first checkpoint and then turned to the right at the intersection to go up the slope. Wow! The slope was the steepest, and little did I know I was running at a snail’s pace.
Edmond Chue, was the first runner to overtake me, and then little did I know, there were more arriving. At the time, I wasn’t an experienced runner for 5km, let alone a full marathon. Soon, more people started overtaking me, and I saw how long the hills were. It was up, down, up, down.
I then came head to head with Jason Leing as the both of us struggled to overtake each other. As we passed by the various landmarks on the map, I tried to remember what was in front of me in order to get my bearings. Minutes later, we met the west route, and turned right to head back to the finish line. I tried to sprint with all my might, and passed by few more water stations. Mr Narish did not reveal the water stations or checkpoints as he wanted us to have a surprise.
Soon, as I saw the finish line, I ran up, finished the run and then went to the counter to register for the top 20 placings for the Founder’s Run. I came in at 13th placing. Then, I laid down on the ground to rest. Ms Lim then asked me to stand up and not lie down. Afterwards, more people came back from finishing the run.
I then met Caleb Chuang and then posed for pictures with him as my mum took pictures of me and him. Then, we went to talk to Co Sheen and Natasha Singam while waiting for everyone to arrive. I had to register as I was one of the Top 20 finishers. Runners who finished the race were given loads of 100 Plus cans to revive themselves, and there was food and snacks available. Light food, that is to say.
Soon, everyone was asked to sit down and then all top 20 runners for each category, both male and female, were called to line up near the podium. Auntie Clarine was there to present the awards.
The winners for Founder’s Run 2016 were Nieshaal Thambipillay (10km male), Hong En Eng (10km female), Edmond Chue (5km male) and Krishanti Devaraj (5km female). Auntie Clarine was then presented with a token of appreciation and she then came and announced to the crowd.
“I want to thank Mr Narish, Ms Bee Yan, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong for organizing this year’s Founder’s Run. I have never celebrated my birthday this early!” she cried. Auntie Clarine’s actual birthday is on 6th May.
After the Founder’s Run ended, all of us then gathered in our classes for a final attendance check before heading home. I met with everyone in 10N to have attendance taken. Grace was with Jia Yee. Those who went home with our parents went home first, and then this was followed by the rest of the students who went back to school by bus. Xang Yen then followed us home as he congratulated me for getting in the top 20.
You see, by this time, at the end of February, we would be preparing for our Assessment 1. As the Assessment 1 is an important part of the academic process, it will be the first test for our Year 10 subjects. Fortunately, I got quite a decent grade for my Assessment 1 in most of my subjects, but luckily I didn’t fail.
One of the subjects, History, had high standards. Remember that I spoke about Mr Aram in the beginning of the Year 10 chapter? Well, he is not as amusing as I thought, but rather, he is a very strict, very, very strict teacher. He is a no-nonsense fellow who coerces all to listen to him and toe the line, with deafening consequences if one goes out of tune. I mean, many people who were taught by him were scared of him being strict. He expected everyone to perform at their best for History.
Assessment 1 was held from 29th February 2016 to 4th March 2016. The assembly begun with Ms Bee Yong wishing everyone the best for Assessment 1. “Be focused on your studies. This is the aim for this week,” she said. Then, Mr Narish revealed the overall scores as of the conclusion of Founder's Run.
Bullseye – 395
Touchdown – 288
Homerun – 345
Slamdunk – 327
Mr Thomas did our assessment with us. He told us the instructions in a gentle manner. “Don't start until I give you permission,” he said, handing each of us the exam scripts. Ethan Wong and Jien Min were grinning at me from the back. I ignored them.
The exam was quite easy to do. I focused on doing it. When Mr Thomas finished the exam, he said, “Ok, so, I would like to inform you that your assessment has finished. Shall we collect the papers?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I replied, softly.
Mr Thomas proceeded to collect everyone's papers. Then, he dismissed us. Cikgu Niely came in to the class. She gave us our exam papers and told us to settle down. Brandon Ooi had to be told multiple times by Cikgu Niely to stop talking before she handed out the papers. Cikgu Niely wanted the exam to be finished quickly in 30 minutes. We did the exam promptly, and Cikgu Niely took our papers.
Then, it was break, and Ashley Fang and Sabrina told me that most, if not all house practices were cancelled for the week because of the Assessment 1. However, I told them about some houses doing marchpast practice and Jeremy's decision to call another practice and was unsure on that. Ashley and Sabrina told me to speak to Jeremy on the matter. When we returned to class, Ms Chithra scheduled our exam for the next day, and taught us on the classification of businesses. Then, it was Art, and we did our normal paintings and drawings as usual, as Ms Feeda continued with us on the self-portraits. She told us that this was the last week to finish our self-portraits before we begun some paintings of our portraits based on Salvador Dali. “Those who have finished their self-portraits can hand them in first and those who have their research can get my contact number if you need it, and email the details for your final piece,” said Ms Feeda.
Then, we went for lunch, and then we had our Science assessment. Ms Sangeetha told everyone to settle down before we begun the exam. When we started, Brandon Ooi appeared to giggle before Ms Sangeetha warned him of being disqualified from the test. Ms Visa did some revision for us as well during History, and reminded us that the History assessment would be on Wednesday, 2nd March.
The next day, 1st March, saw most of us studying for our Economics exam during our Reading Time, and this resulted in Ms Cynthia reminding us that the Reading Time was meant for other story books and not for studying. “We have Econs exam later,” said Brandon. “I don't care,” said Ms Cynthia, and told us to read another book.
Then, Ms Levina came into the class and told Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok to sit in front. “Next time, I will have to separate all of you,” she said to Shane, Eric and Ze Khai. Then, she gave out the papers and invigilated us during the examination. After break, we then had our Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher said that there was no Global Perspectives examination and told us to work on our essay. “There WILL be a GP exam during the Mid Year Examination as well as your IGCSE,” he said. Afterwards, Ms Chithra did our examination. She told Daryl Yeo to settle down and for everyone to keep their books before she started the test. Following lunch, Alister Baptist told me that there will be a marchpast practice. Kie Yip said the same. They called it at the last minute as there are some people who were not disciplined in the marchpast enough.
Then, we went to the Science Lab, and I handed in the Lab Report to Ms Sangeetha. All the groups except Glen's group did not hand in their Lab Report, and Ms Sangeetha was disappointed with them. Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan did another round of revision for us. “I will do the Assessment 1 for all of you on Thursday,” she said.
After school, I went for my marchpast practice, and Kie Yip hurled commands. “Stop scratching! Look in front!” he cried. Alister and Kie Yip did most of the commanding. Jeremy Yeap handed out his contact number for us to keep so that we can be informed of future practices.
Wednesday, 2nd March, was my History and Bible Knowledge paper. The morning begun with Mr Narish announcing that there would be a class system for the athletics and track and field runners, as well as the High Jump, Long Jump and Shot Putt. He showed us a list containing the events. There would be two events, namely the Pre Sports Events, which are events held before Sports Day, as well as Sports Day Events; those are held on Sports Day itself. My 800m race was planned to be held on Monday, 7th March 2016. Mr Narish eventually displayed these information on a board located at the back of the school hall.
During English, Mr Thomas introduced us to a text titled ‘The Big Chill’. “Who has seen the text?” he asked as he opened Edmodo on the Smartboard.
“Mr Thomas, I didn't see it. I was busy preparing for my assessments. I had Business Studies, Economics, Science as well as your paper. And I had marchpast practice yesterday,” he said.
“That's fine,” said Mr Thomas. “We are going to see the text today,” he said. He then told us about the text and he also showed us some videos of extreme sports, such as parkouring, base jumping, and rolling around in an inflated ball. The whole class laughed. I laughed the loudest.
After that, we had Economics. Ms Levina then continued to teach us. She also warned Enisha that she would change her seat next if she continued talking to Cassandra during the lesson.
During Art, we just did our work as normal. And then during Character Transformation, we were informed of the judging results for the Chinese New Year class decoration contest. 10L was the winner. You know what? They won because they turned two of their classroom doors into a dragon's mouth and buttocks! And they plastered the whole wall with angpows. Wow!
10N's classroom had some Chinese New Year decorations, such as fishes and angpows, other than my large firecracker bomb model. The 10O students decorated their class with a lot of fish and monkeys. 10B’s class was decorated with some flowers made out of angpows, while 10E's class had some fish and monkeys hanging on the ceilings. We were told to design the next design, which was based on the theme of Sports Day.
After lunch, we had Business Studies, and I got ready for the History paper.
The History exam paper was set by Mr Aram himself. Mr Aram is from the United States and places high expectations for the subject. Ms Visa had told us in the class prior to this that Mr Aram is the one that sets the exam paper, and he does not want anyone to fail it. Ms Visa quipped that Mr Aram would be very angry if we failed the paper and he would see us to have a good word with those that flunked the test, if needed. In fact, Mr Aram is taboo on failures like someone who expects to be a perfectionist. To make things worse, the slides and powerpoint presentations were also made by Mr Aram himself. Ms Visa had told us that Mr Aram wanted her to use his powerpoint presentations so that we can have uniformity in all the students who took History. Mr Aram, for his classes, gave a book that he himself had made. It was a binded workbook with exercises, questions and texts on World War I, Treaty of Versailles and Nazi Germany.
So, Mr Aram had set the questions on World War I and the Treaty of Versailles, and there was a lot of exam-writing to do. In fact, we had to write lines - page after page of paragraphs and words. Ms Visa has said that Mr Aram had hoped for good results from everyone, and would not tolerate anyone who failed to show a clean bill of performance.
On the day of the exam, as I said, we had to answer the questions on World War I on the first section, which focuses on the core content, and then we had to answer a series of essay questions. All the questions were essay questions, but it is the second section, Section B, that caught Ms Visa’s attention while I did my script.
The second section required us to choose the questions. When I first saw the exam questions, I had to write so many essays for the first section, and the second section consisted of six questions having 30 marks each. I was ill-equipped for how high the bar was made for Year 10 and 11 subjects. Almost every subject had an exam – Economics, Business Studies, First Language English, Global Perspectives, and Bible Knowledge, aside from History. There were tonnes of writing to do – aside from the studying. Due to the workload of effort for the exams and academics in Year 10 and 11, I had not written a journal for so long, and am only managing to do so now with the ability of my brain to remember.
During the History assessment, Ms Visa was invigilating us in 10O. As the exam asked us to answer any two questions, I had apparently answered all three when I decided not to do the first section and proceeded to Section B as I did not know the answers to the first. What made things nervous was that the spacing between the given lines was very small, till my handwriting twitched and spluttered as I wrote the essay.
So, Ms Visa was passing by and then saw my work. Then, she stopped, froze, and looked at the paper with a puzzled look. “Why did you proceed to Section C? Why didn’t you answer the first part? And why are you answering three questions?!” she boomed.
The whole class was disturbed from their work. They turned. Sheng Jit was looking at me. The whole class stared at me as Ms Visa scolded me in front of the class.
“You are only supposed to answer any two questions! Why are you answering all the questions!” she asked. The Section B apparently had four questions, and all of them had parts a), b) and c). I had spent a lot of time writing the exam and had ran out of space, and was about to ask Ms Visa for a continuation paper.
Ms Visa was not pleased with me. “Wei Yiang, you are allowed to CHOOSE the questions! You can choose!” she cried. As I proceeded to cancel some of the hard questions by striking out the words with my pen, Ms Visa got angry at me again.
“Now, you see! You have made the entire paper messy. Do you want to fail your exam?” she asked.
It was very intimidating being scolded for making a mistake. I felt Ms Visa was a bit too harsh. I wished I had taken a different subject. Germany was punished during the war, and now it feels like a punishment for not even following the instructions. The whole class looked at me in shock, for fear that Ms Visa will strike them next.
I then decided to do Section A, and managed to only finish half of it before Ms Visa collected the exam papers back.
Ms Visa then asked to meet me after class ended. So I met her, and then she told me that I should be answering according to the instructions of the question. I told her that I have never seen such a question before.
“Now is not like last time. You are given the option to choose the questions,” she said. “I don’t want to see this happening again.”
I trudged out of the class as I felt as if I was being beaten and punched at. It taught me a lesson that the questions were very different. I mean like, I didn't understand what the instruction meant by ‘answer any two questions’.
There were many more exam questions that involved a lot of writing as well. And that was the Bible Knowledge exam. Sherwin comforted me and Joshua Chew said a prayer to the class before we started. We had to write a lot – tons of parables, miracles and activities done by Jesus. We did a prayer together and hoped for the best.
The next day, 3rd March, was the second last day of assessments, and we only had the Mathematics exam. During our Reading Time, everyone was doing their Maths revision while I read the newspapers. “How come I don't see anyone reading Malaysian Studies? I hope all of you do well for my subject as well, and I hope you guys at least studied for it,” she said with a serious tone.
No one ever bothered to study for Malaysian Studies as they felt that it did not carry any weightage for their exams unlike Economics, Business, History, English or even Mandarin for some of us. This is because Malaysian Studies doesn't come out in our major exams like the IGCSE and the amount of classes for the aforementioned subjects are higher, excluding Mandarin.
The day started with everyone handing in their Global Perspectives research. Mr Gallagher discussed the main points with us, and he had to ask Shane not to talk. Soon, it was PE, and Ms Sylvia said that a few people had to re-do the high jump and long jump. “Christopher Chew, James Wong, Sheng Jit and all those who parkoured while doing high jump, please see me now,” she said. Ms Sylvia took them aside and chided them for their actions. Then, Mr Victor told us about our fitness test and that he was planning to do strength training for us. “The fitness test will be held next month,” he said.
Later on, Ms Levina continued to teach us about a market economy and how trade occurs, but then Ms Levina had to segregate Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit, Ze Khai, Ryan Chok and Enisha, and scattered them around the class to prevent them from talking to one another. Brandon Ooi whined and cried, but Ms Levina did not budge. “Nope, nope, you must stay in this seat until you behave,” she said. Then, we had our Maths exam with Ms Bee Yan. The music and sounds from the loudspeakers, which looked like as if some people were passing gas, blarped throughout the room till Brandon and Shane and eventually the whole class laughed. This disturbed me from the exam and subsequently, I didn't finish the paper. Then, we had Art lessons, and Ms Feeda gave us tips on how to do a design like Salvador Dali's work. Some of us begun drawing the painting based on Dali, but Ms Feeda told me to print the images and bring it to the next class. Afterwards, we had History, and Brandon played pranks on people again and did arm wrestling with Ze Khai, but Ms Visa put a stop to that. Then, we handed in our exercise books to Ms Visa, and then we watched some videos on the League of Nations.
During Fine Art Club, Ms Feeda then briefed us on our next activity which was to plan the Art Exhibition for PTM 1. Then, we did some discussion on what should we exhibit in the Art Exhibition. The PTM 1 is scheduled for Friday, 15th April.
Finally, we have arrived at the LAST DAY of examinations. YEAH!!!!
We begun the day with an announcement by Mr Narish on the sports practices. He announced to everyone about the commencement of pre-sports events the following week. “There will be Pre Sports Events on Monday (7th March) and Telematch and Tug of War next Friday (11th March). Also, there will be a Sports Day practice for all marchers and dancers participating in the opening ceremony,” he said. The Telematch Day (11th March), would also be the day where competitions for High Jump, Long Jump and Shot Putt would be conducted, aside from the telematch and tug of war.
Afterwards, Ms Bee Yong then told us to continue studying although the Assessment 1 is close to over. She said that we need to focus on our studies and that was the ultimate goal.
We returned to class for our Homeroom time, and Ms Cynthia saw everyone with their Malaysian Studies book. “Did you guys have last minute revision for my subject?” asked Ms Cynthia, as she shook her head. Then, Cikgu Niely came in, and Brandon, Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong, Sheng Jit and Ze Khai went to the washroom. Cikgu Niely shook her head in despair. Then, she told us to get ready as she started to prepare the exam papers for us.
Cikgu Niely had finished putting the papers on everyone's desk as the six boys returned from the washroom. Then, she told everyone to keep quiet and then started the paper. This was Malay Part 2. Afterwards, Ms Cynthia came in, and Brandon Ooi greeted her. “Teacher, can we have another five more minutes to revise?” he asked. Ms Cynthia then said that no additional timing would be given and then she handed out our scripts. Brandon Ooi giggled, and Ms Cynthia told him to keep quiet. Then, we begun the paper. It was quite challenging to do the Malaysian Studies paper.
Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal then requested for permission to use the washroom, but Ms Cynthia told them that it was a short period and they need to do their papers. “But my bladder is peeing!” cried Ze Khai. Brandon Ooi laughed, to which he was warned by Ms Cynthia against doing so. After half an hour, Ms Cynthia collected our scripts.
We then went for our break time, relieved of our final paper being done. Brandon Ooi said that he was still required to study as Shane, Ryan Chok and Eric laughed at him. He was taking the Additional Mathematics paper. Ms Janice was not in a really good time for jokes.
Once we had finished, I went to see Caleb Chuang in 10O. Natasha Singam and Kai Yee were busy putting up decorations for the March 2016 decoration theme of Sports Day. There were flags of all four houses strung together by string in triangular form. I told Caleb Chuang it looked cool.
During break time, Kie Yip said that I would need to stay back for marchpast practice. So, I told him, Alister and Jeremy that I would need to check with Ashley Fang if there was athletics practice and I would come if there weren't any practice. Ashley said that there were practices, and Jeremy excused me from my marchpast practices. He and Alister told me not to worry as I was quite advanced in the marching moves. Ashley needed me because my 800m race would be held on Monday, 7th March.
When we returned to class, Ms Sangeetha told us that she had uploaded the latest slides on Edmodo and we had to check them. She then taught us about malnutrition. Then, Ms Bee Yan came in. “Okay, class, today, unfortunately, we have no Genius Time because all of you were busy with your Assessment 1. So, I....”
Enisha chipped in. “Ms Bee Yan, you present!” she cried.
Ms Bee Yan didn't present for Genius Time, but she also said that there would also be no Genius Time the coming Friday because of the Telematch Day, as well as the fact that the week after that would be the First Mid Term Break and then the week thereafter would be Sports Day, and that the Friday on that week is also Good Friday. “So, because of this, there will be no Genius Time for the entire month, so ya. We will most likely do Genius Time in April,” said Ms Bee Yan. “Hopefully, provided that someone volunteers for it. But we are not going to choose someone today, but closer to the date.”
Then, Brandon Ooi asked if Ms Bee Yan was marking some of our papers, but she said she hadn't started yet. “You guys just did it yesterday and now you are asking for answers!” she laughed. Then, we did our lesson, and then Mr Gallagher told us to do our Poverty writeup. I wasn't longing to leave quickly because I had to stay back for athletics practice.
After school ended, I went to change into my sports attire and Ashley Fang was waiting for us. We then headed to the PE field and did our warm ups. Sean Mark had supported me assisting the marchpast team and he kept saying I got no pangkat, which meant group, or followers, in Malay. He intended for me to be with people.
I then met Sabrina and talked to her about all the exciting plans. I mean, this is going to be cool. We are entering into a wonderful week of sports. I had cool plans. And I wrote all my agenda in my Student Organizer. I had to talk to Caleb Chuang, Jeremy Yeap and Sabrina too. And I had great house plans put together. I had jotted down the data that Mr Narish had inputed. And I needed to use them for discussion.
We then headed for the field, and Ashley did some strength training with us. Then, she did some warm-ups and then we did our run. Ashley timed me as I run, and Sean Mark and Jason cheered me on. Once we were done, Ashley then did some sprinting training with us, and I pushed as hard as I could. We did a series of exercises and some sprinting techniques. Ashley wanted to train some strength training for us so that we can do well in our events.
Then, once that was done, I returned to school for the marchpast practice. Kie Yip was the strictest as he shouted in an angry tone. Jeremy was much more kinder. And we spent two hours to practice our marchpast.
Preparation for Sports Day was at its peak. Mr Narish had set up a board to publicize the events for the Sports Day in the school hall. The board was located at the back of the school hall, colored with the points and the scores on it. There were also categories for us to sign up. I decided to sign up for the 800m as well for Sports Day. Aside from that, I also wanted to sign up for the Telematch, and persuaded Caleb Chuang to do so as well.
I had written a few main aims for the week of 7th March to 11th March 2016 in my Student Organizer:
1. Sign up for Telematch and the Tug of War
2. Run as fast as possible for the 800m
3. Propose new ideas for the marchpast and coordinate them if possible
4. Pull strong and hard for Tug of War
5. Have a pair for Telematch in the same event and act fast in the game (the proposed partner was Caleb Chuang)
6. Talk more to Caleb Chuang about the plans and brainstorm them with him
7. Complete Operation Speedrunner with Caleb Chuang
8. Discuss house plans with Caleb Chuang, Sabrina Qistina and Jeremy Yeap
Cordially, I had a good relationship with the Year 11 committee members and took the opportunity to meet Sabrina and talk to her on the plans for Bullseye. I regularly discussed with Caleb Chuang about my plans before meeting with Sabrina.
I spend my free time during the Sports Day preparations period trying to plan a series of plans which I will explain later. I was also due to participate in the 800m races, so I was also planning on how to run. In fact, that was my first time running a track event; I had never run a track event before. But however, I decided to try my best too. We need to execute each plan carefully and precisely to ensure Bullseye's THIRD-ever Sports Day victory.
My first Pre-Sports Event, the 800m, was held on 7th March 2016, a Monday. It was held at Panasonic Stadium Shah Alam, the venue which Nobel regularly uses to hold Sports Day.
I arrived in school that morning in my sports attire, plopped down on the canteen table and read my newspapers. Then, I headed up to 10N to put my bags before coming down with my water bottle. As I reached downstairs, a lot of people were dressed in their sports attire, ready for that day's events. I proceeded to the foyer to wait for Caleb Chuang. As soon as he arrived, I talked to him about what I was planning to do and had given motivation to the other Bullseye members who were going that day. The events planned to be held that day were the 4X200m, 800m and the 1500m.
Mr Narish gathered all the runners at the foyer and he took our attendance. Accompanying us were Mr Victor, Cikgu Baliah, Ms Sha and Ms Kelly. They took our attendance and Mr Narish told us that we will be headed to the stadium immediately, and then once we had arrived, we will get our warm-ups started.
We boarded the buses to the venue for the Pre Sports Events. I sat in the front of the bus as I looked at the surroundings as I thought of my run. Everyone in the house who was headed for the stadium was allocated to one bus each per house. The traffic was quite smooth on the Federal Highway that morning.
Upon arriving at the stadium, we then placed our bags in the stands, and Mr Narish asked us to gather on the field for a briefing. So, everyone did so quickly, as Mr Narish said that the first house to gather quickly will get extra points. I call all the Bullseye members to quickly sit down and gather.
Mr Narish then said that we will begin with a warm up session by our athletics captains, and then the main events will begin. He also mentioned that we will finish at around 11:00am and then head back to school for lunch. The 800m race was the first event of the day, so I had to warm up first.
Ashley Fang then gathered all the Bullseye athletes together as we did warm ups. We did some stretching and movement of arms as we warmed up, sweating under the hot sun. Ashley Fang then motivated us to do our best for the race. When it was my turn, she gave me a thumbs up and a pat on the back.
All the runners had to head to a tent located at the center of the stadium for registration, as each runner had to register beforehand. Mr Narish had placed the relevant information on a retractable whiteboard on wheels at the back of the school hall, near the PA system’s room. For that day, we had the 800m, and the 4X300m for Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3. Athletes are grouped based according to their year level at the time, with Class 1 being the lower levels and Class 3 being the higher levels.
I then got ready at the starting line once done. Bryan George, Chuang Chu Xiang, Julian Ong and Ethan Wong are one of the people who participated in the 800m with me. There’s another Year 11 guy from Bullseye who was entered for the races. Each house had to enter two participants for a total of eight lanes on the track. Mr Victor then came and briefed us. He said that in the first 100 metres, we must stay in our lane and then we can cross lanes after 100 metres, which was following the first curve of the track.
“On your marks,” said Mr Victor. He then blew the horn after getting us ready.
We then started running, and I sprinted as fast as I could. I managed to get round the first round, and while I was in the second lap, Bryan George then overtook me, and soon thereafter, there was another Year 11 Bullseye guy then overtook him and led the crowd. Chu Xiang then overtook me before I reached the finish line. Once the race ended, Ashley gave me some motivation and asked me to take a drink. “Good try, Wei Yiang,” she said. I then had some rest before cheering on the other runners from Bullseye. We won quite a number of first placings that day. The moment we finished, Mr Narish asked everyone to gather at the field before we departed back for school according to our bus number.
After returning from the stadium for lunch, I sat down with Caleb Chuang to brainstorm the Bullseye strategy. I told him about what happened during the Pre Sports Events that morning. Caleb Chuang was planning to run 400m on Sports Day, as well as a 4X100m relay event.
“We have big plans for Bullseye,” I shrugged when I met Caleb Chuang. He then smiled while I grinned. I once told him that I wanted to ask all the runners to eat ginger onions so that they can pass gas like a rocket.
“Mmhmm,” Caleb responded in disbelief over how such a strategy could work. I even told Caleb Chuang more plans.
“We can fly a drone on the Sports Day and then catapult it across the field just like how they do on National Day. I don’t know what to say if we win again,” I quipped.
I had been thinking about this drone plan during the weekend. It looked so cool. This plan had been in the works since 2015, and we hadn't executed it then because of certain technicalities.
This plan in particular is the most ambitious plan of all Bullseye plans. It involved tens of thousands of actions in relation to showing the best of Bullseye. Caleb Chuang and I discussed that we purchase a toy helicopter drone, especially one that is used to take pictures of sceneries and has a camera and remote control. I proposed that a recreational drone with four copter blades be used.
The copter drone would have a Bullseye flag attached to the contraption. The drone would fly over the stadium with the flag and perform a flag flypast over the crowds. I told Caleb Chuang that this would look like a State Flag Flypast which countries do to celebrate their National Day, and even proposed multiple drones with flags. “We must show everyone how great Bullseye is, and we can use this as an example. However, the problem with this is that the management might not allow it because it is illegal to fly drones in Malaysia and there might be safety issues,” I said. Drone-flying in Malaysia required a license at that time from the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia. It was only in 2018 that recreational drones need not apply for a license. Hence, the proposal was immediately shot down after it was proposed.
There were many other ambitious plans proposed for Bullseye over time. One of the plans involved flying a model blimp or airship, with its inflated balloon-like fabric decorated with Bullseye's symbol over the stadium. Another involved asking everyone's cars who were parked at the stadium's parking lot to blare their horns to cheer for the Bullseye athletes, and also blare loudly if Bullseye won. However, I continued to ponder over giving the Bullseye runners healthy foods for Sports Day, especially ginger onions, so that they can shoot like a rocket with propulsion. I thought that idea was fantastic and continued to discuss it in detail with Caleb.
“We need a few runners for Sports Day. All we need to do is give them ginger onions. We must win all the competitions so that we can win the Sports Day. Some of them are too slow. This propulsion formula was taught by Mr Lee. Velocity, right, Caleb?”
Caleb Chuang nodded. He laughed at the idea. It was so cool. I also told Caleb Chuang that for the Sports Day, we need to have a techno-style music for Bullseye to woo the judges.
I told him I would discuss all of them with Sabrina Qistina. He told me to go ahead.
Since the beginning of 2016, Bullseye has led in the standings. We need to make sure we win and not let the other houses catch up to us. By this time, all the houses are very angry with Bullseye. They had not gotten to enjoy two consecutive years of victory since that of Touchdown in 2013. The Touchdowners, Homerunners and Slamdunkers are all angry with Bullseye; what not me and Caleb Chuang, the masterminds of the plans.
When the three other opponents are angry with every single Bullseye victory, they protest like mad. Even Megan and Le Anne were very angry with us. Thanks to Bullseye's victory in 2015 due to our coordinating, Touchdown was robbed of their victory. Not to also mention Branson Choon riling up at the two of us for botching his attempted Homerun win that same year. His house got second place in 2014, and Touchdown held that spot a year later, pushing his to third place.
Proposing this to Sabrina, I also said that the banner also needed to have some glitter in order for us to win first place. Each time I proposed an idea, Sabrina will always smile and jerk in excitement.
“Thank you so much Wei Yiang for showing your dedication to Bullseye,” Sabrina told me when I talked to her the plans. “I’ll keep them in mind!” Sabrina told me that the banner was still ongoing. “I'm looking forward to seeing it!” I cried. I proposed to Sabrina that we can come up with cool moves for the marchpast, as well as make improvements to the dance by inducing techno-style music so that we can make our dance the best. Sabrina said that she will try to see what she can do, but unfortunately, most of the dance logistics were in place. I then met Carmenn Kau, who was coordinating the telematch. She said that I should stay back during the house meets for the registration of telematch participants. She noted my name down and kept that in mind.
Once we returned to class, we then went for our Science lesson, and I met Ivyna and Yan Ying and told them what I spoke to Caleb Chuang and Sabrina. Ms Sangeetha discussed the Assessment 1 papers. She wasn't quite happy with our results. The Combined Science question was even more vague as there are several questions that involve scientific experiments and it was challenging to answer. As Science is a subject that requires one to remember technical stuff, I felt at odds when Ms Sangeetha gave us the exam paper.
Things were made worse when Brandon Ooi was talking in class. Ms Sangeetha got very angry with him and then told us that she will stop discussing the papers. “Whoever wants to ask me questions, come and see me and I will explain if you don't understand,” said Ms Sangeetha. The whole class gave dirty looks at Brandon for his actions. Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa said she was still marking our papers and some of them had been given to Mr Aram to be checked. I told you before that Mr Aram is one no-nonsense teacher. He's from Bullseye, and I was thinking of talking to him too. So, we spent the entire History lesson learning about the League of Nations.
After school, all of us Bullseye members met in the courtyard for our third sports house meet, and Mr Matthew Koh, Bullseye’s house master, announced a few agendas of the meeting. He then listed down the agenda for the telematch competition scheduled for 11th March, which is the coming Friday. So, Kie Yip came and announced the lists of the players for telematch and Tug of War. While he was announcing the names, he pronounced Valerie Pang’s name wrongly, which caused her to feel frustrated.
“Valerie Pang, not Valerie Pheng!” cried Valerie, as she corrected Kie Yip. He just smiled and grinned. I was selected as one of the telematch participants, and I made sure that Caleb Chuang was selected too. Mr Matthew also reminded marchers and dancers to come for practices the next day, 8th March 2016. The practices will last one whole day. He also told us about the activities we would do at Panasonic Stadium.
Then, once all was done, Mr Matthew Koh called for us to break out for our practices.
“Marchers, move!” he cried.
Kie Yip then continued his normal drills with a serious smirk on his face as he watched us. Jeremy then went to check on us, and Kie Yip used his fist to hit our hands till it felt throbbing like as if you were hit by a hammer, to ensure that our hands were firmly straight and not wobbly. Normally, the march captains in the past would give a gentle tap, which was sufficient. In order to know if your hands were firm, if Kie Yip slapped your hands down during right dress, which we had to put our hands out, it would need to come back up because your muscles would push your hands back just like a spring restoring itself to its former condition when stretched or tugged. Kie Yip ordered ten push ups on the spot for those that failed to keep their hands firm. I also went to meet Ms Samantha to officially register for the telematch.
The next day, 8th March, we then headed to the Panasonic Stadium for the Sports Day Rehearsal. During this time, we had to go to the Panasonic Stadium in our 2015 Sports Day attire, the attire for the previous year. Each level was escorted to the stadium by bus; it was compulsory for all of us to participate in the rehearsal.
Mr Narish had briefed us the following actions to take previously:
Activity Event
7:45am Attendance
8:00am Depart Nobel
ETA 8:30am Arrive Panasonic Sports Complex
8:30am – 11:30am Rehearsal and events
11:45am Depart stadium
ETA 12:00pm Arrive Nobel
12:30pm Junior Lunch (Y7-9)
12:45pm Senior Lunch (Y10/11)
1:00pm – 3:30pm Own house practice
3:30pm Dismissal
I arrived at my usual timing and plopped down in the canteen to read the morning news. Then, I went to meet Caleb Chuang to confirm that the plans were to begin. I spoke to Caleb Chuang about the plans and how we can cheer the athletes while they ran. I also went and talked to Ivyna, Sean Mark, Prudence Wong, Loo Zane and all the juniors to motivate them. The Year 7s in particular were supportive of me. There’s this one group from Year 7 in Bullseye consisting of Areeya Amali, Kristen Chew, who is Christopher Chew’s sister, Yap Dawn and Esther Yong, who is Derek Yong’s sister. They even cheered for me when I had the first practice with Ashley Fang for the 800m after school. We then gathered in our class lines and then got our attendance taken, and were ushered into five buses to take us to the stadium. Marchers, dancers, athletes participating in the pre Sports events were the ones being ferried to the stadium that day.
On the bus ride to the stadium, Rick Tan then quipped me to reveal the plans that Caleb Chuang and I had planned for Sports Day. However, I was reluctant to reveal it, for fear of spoiling the fun and a possible Bullseye victory. “I will let you know after Sports Day,” I told him. Caleb Chuang and I sat in the bus together as we talked to the other people from Bullseye who were in the bus about what to expect.
Once we arrived at the stadium, we then gathered in the stands, placed our bags and waited as Mr Narish briefed us on what to do. Accompanying us to the stadium were Ms Lim, Mr Chan, and some teachers who volunteered to be there on the day.
Mr Narish then asked us to sit down in the stands and he briefed us. He said that we will be doing a series of practices with our captains, while the athletes who were participating in Long Jump and the track events would have to follow Mr Victor to the long jump pit located at the opposite end of the stadium. We would then have two dress rehearsals; one at 10:00am and another at 11:30am.
Kie Yip then gathered all of us in the tunnel under the stadium and did the drills with us. He kept ranting when one person did not listen to him. “Five, four, three, two, one!” he called as he warned that those who did not gather had to do push ups. Caleb Chuang and a few others ran late, and Kie Yip allowed them to gather instead of doing push ups, sympathetic for their lateness.
After doing the drills for a short while, Kie Yip then allowed us to have a break as we cheered on the athletes. I saw Jia Yee from our class, 10N, running for the first time, and she had apparently borrowed a sports attire from 2014 from another person prior to running on the track. New students to Nobel in 2016 were allowed to wear their PE outfit for the day, and everyone who ran had to wear sports attire. Kie Yip then called us back 15 minutes later to continue our practices.
After practicing for 45 minutes, we then heard an announcement come over the loudspeaker; “Attention to all students; the rehearsal is about to start. Marchpast captains, please gather your marchers at the field. So, we then went to the field and then gathered there. Mr Narish then called all the march captains for a briefing, and I accompanied Jeremy, Alister and Kie Yip for the briefing to them. “Why are you here?” Kie Yip asked patiently. Alister then gave us a short briefing on the field before we started, and he explained the directions we had to take when marching. I stood next to him when he explained.
Then, Mr Narish called all the marchers to gather back inside the tunnel as the rehearsal was about to begin. Kie Yip then explained the situation we would take. “Okay, marchers, listen up. We will be going to the field first, okay? Not marching out, we will run out first and gather in the field, and then we will be waving flags to welcome Ms Bee Yong. So, when I say, ‘Squad! One, two, three, run!’ you must run. Do you understand?” Suddenly, we were running to the field, and Kie Yip was caught off guard. “Squad, run!” cried Kie Yip and then we laughed. “Shh!!!!” Kie Yip said, urging us to be silent. We then gathered at the field and then the management then called us back into the tunnel. The second time round, we were prepared, and Kie Yip gave the briefing again. Then, we were told to run, and we ran out as fast as we could to the centre of the field.
A row of flags greeted the first row of marchers, and Mr Narish was in the centre of the field. He then asked all the first row marchers to pick a flag each and wave. Then, Ms Bee Yong walked through the middle and grinned. Then, she approached the torch altar while the house captains of the four houses, Kimberly Yap (Homerun), Gavin Goh (Slamdunk), Bryan George (Touchdown) and then finally Sabrina Qistina (Bullseye). Once done, Mr Narish then told everyone to be at the track and we ran towards the track, leaving our flags in the field for the teachers to collect it.
We then proceeded to the edge of the field and started marching. So, we were the second to make our move. Mr Andrew Tan, who was in charge of the marchpast, then watched us and gave us the signal to move forward.
Once we passed by the grandstand, we gave our five-finger salute to the management, before heading to the centre of the field. This was then followed by the Negaraku, school song and finally, Nieshaal Thambipillay was invited for the Sports Pledge, and he recited the pledge. Aside from Nieshaal Thambipillay, Hong En Eng was also reciting it too. We then marched back once the entire event was over.
Mr Narish then called everyone together in order to practice the waving of the flags. “When you wave the flags, make sure you wave it gently in a synchronized motion,” Ms Bee Yong added. She said the format was for a gentle wave left and right, tracing the infinity symbol. Some people waved it in their own manner, and Ms Bee Yong pointed it out.
We then had a break and Alister told us to come back at 11:30am for the next round. He gathered us while we proceeded to brief us on our after-school practices too. After the break, Kie Yip continued our own marching drills before proceeding to line us up for the second round. The second round went smoothly and we then concluded the day with everyone gathering in the center of the field for the prize giving ceremony according to our own houses. Following that, we then boarded the buses to head back to school.
Once we reached school, we then had lunch. I took the opportunity to have lunch with Alister Baptist and then chatted with him. I then talked to him about the Sports Day plans and what we will be doing after lunch. “Gather at 2:15pm in the courtyard for another practice,” he said. I made sure to follow our march captains to avoid being caught and having to do push-ups.
Following our lunch, all the Year 11 captains from all houses started to play volleyball by juggling them with only our hands held together. They tried to bounce the ball, and one of the balls slammed into the doors of the Year 2 classes located on the ground floor next to the courtyard. One of the teachers got angry at Kie Yip, who accidentally slammed the ball into the door, producing a loud bang. “Sorry,” he grinned innocently, when the teacher scolded them. All the Year 11s apologized for the ball banging into the door.
Han Ming and Yi Zhen were at the flagpoles watching the volleyball game, and Caleb was there when I talked to him. I begun humming a tune that was sung in church as all the captains continued to play volleyball. Ms Lim then told everyone to stop playing volleyball as the balls could endanger people passing by. Then, Kie Yip continued our practices while some people played basketball at the courtyard near us. Kie Yip then shooed the basketballers away before we continued marching and calling it a day.
The following day, on 9th March 2016 during the morning assembly, Mr Eugene, the head of CCA, announced that there will be a solar eclipse that morning, and encouraged everyone to see it. He said that this is a rare opportunity for us to see such an eclipse, and it had been over decades since the last one. So, on that morning, a lot of Year 7s, whose classrooms on the second floor overlook the sunrise, came out and were given some specially-made eyeglasses that can see the partial eclipse. The sun’s rays then darkened, as if nightfall had arrived. Mr Thomas was halfway through the morning lesson for English when he noticed something amiss.
“Isn’t the sky dark? Why is it so dark?”
Vicky and I responded, “The solar eclipse!”
Mr Thomas flicked open the Internet browser and then searched for the solar eclipse, and it said that the eclipse would be at its maximum by 8:23am.
“A solar eclipse is when the moon covers the sun, right?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I said.
“It is a rare phenomenon, you know, to have a solar eclipse over Malaysia,” he said. Following the eclipse, we then talked about it as the lessons continued. He then continued to discuss The Big Chill with us. Then, he also informed us about the Commonwealth Essay Competition, which was due at the end of April. Everyone had to write an essay and then submit it to a Y10-Commonwealth Edmodo page. Mr Thomas then showed us all the extreme sports videos that he posted on Edmodo, and he said that he personally thought that rolling in a ball is ridiculous. All the people in the class cheered Christopher Chew's name when they saw the parkour videos. Jien Min and Ethan Wong even opened Christopher Chew's YouTube account to introduce Christopher Chew's parkouring activities to Mr Thomas. He told us to write an essay on extreme sports and present it to him after the holidays.
Once we were done with English, we then had Economics, and Ms Levina handed us our Assessment 1 scripts. I got a poor grade for Economics because I had difficulty answering the exam questions, and Ms Levina discussed it in class. The exam consisted of a few multiple choice questions and four sets of essay questions.
During the exam discussion, Brandon Ooi continued to talk with his friends, which led Ms Levina to segregate him. He cried and whined like a crybaby as Ms Levina showed him the new position of his seat. She then continued to talk about where we got right and where can be improved. Brandon Ooi continued to throw tantrums in the class and Ms Levina had to restrain him.
Later, it was Art, and I had somehow forgot to bring my Salvador Dali research, particularly no thanks to the Pre Sports Events and also the various Sports Day rehearsals. Ms Feeda then told me to bring my research and equipment the next day. Then, we had our Character Transformation session, and Ms Kelly gave us a lesson on effective teamwork, since the Sports Day is approaching. She also invited people to talk about the perspective of their own houses. When I talked about Bullseye, all the Bullseye people in our batch cheered and screamed loudly like mad till all the teachers were surprised. The whole squad of Bullseye members from Year 10 were really enthusiastic like mad.
After Character Transformation ended, we went for lunch, and I sat down, once again, with Caleb Chuang, to brainstorm the next moves. I then told Caleb Chuang that I had a plan to make my own banner for Bullseye in addition to the official banner for Bullseye. He told me that it looked like a good idea.
“The previous plan of having drones is not feasible, so we will do a banner instead,” I told Caleb Chuang. “We need to find other cool ways to promote Bullseye to the world and make us famous. If we put the banner, Bullseye will win because the runners will see it,” I told Caleb Chuang. Then, I also told him of our telematch games, and he said we can wait till we decide on the strategies.
When we returned to our class, Ms Chithra did our Business Studies discussion with us. I peered at my paper with a guilty look. Ms Chithra told me to check with my friends on the answers for some of the questions as I was away on Monday and Tuesday. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa gave me my paper. I had failed the History test in a disappointing manner. Ms Visa then explained all the answers during our discussion. Then, she chided me for not following the exam instructions.
Some of my friends sympathized with me as the words ‘Answer any two questions’ was really difficult for me to understand. Conversely, if the instructions read, “Please answer two questions only,” the instructions would have been effectively communicated. Then, it was the Bible Knowledge assessment discussion and I got an E. Ms Renee told us that the exam format for Bible Knowledge in Year 10 and 11 was much stricter because the test examines us on our personal application of the teachings in the Bible. Sean Mark did a prayer during our Bible Knowledge lesson, which made everyone inspired.
The next day, we had Global Perspectives lesson and then Mr Gallagher told us to continue our Poverty essay. A lot of people were not done except me. So, I waited for the entire 40-minute lesson. Once that was done, we then went to the PE lesson with Mr Victor. He told us that we could re-do the Sports For All tryouts if we needed, but no one wanted to do them. Then, Ms Sylvia called those who were absent to do their tryouts. For the rest of us, Mr Victor then did his briefing and our training for the Fitness Test, which will be held following the conclusion of Sports Day.
After break, I went to see Caleb Chuang and then talked about the Sports Day plans. Then, we brainstormed on our telematch games. I also went to see Jien Min to give him encouragement in the Tug of War. Then, we returned to our class for Economics.
In the class, Ms Levina then continued our exam paper discussion and told us to do corrections. “After the school holidays, I need to move some of your seats,” she said. “Some of you are making noise during my class. Some of you did not do well in your exams, so I will have to move your seats so that you can pay attention during my class,” she said. Then, during Mathematics, Ms Bee Yan then discussed our exam papers. She said she waited till that day to discuss because a lot of people had their Pre Sports Events and Sports Day practices.
I went to meet Carmenn Kau during lunch and spoke to her about the telematch. We had to go for our Telematch immediately after the Tug of War and was afraid there was no time to plan. So, as a result, I asked her, to which she told me that the committee will remind us and that there will be announcements the next day.
When we headed for Art, I produced my Salvador Dali image to Ms Feeda, but she told me it was only the main picture and not the research that I was also supposed to propose as well. So, she told me to use the picture I took from the Internet as the basis for my self-portrait.
I then started drawing the portrait while everyone did their work. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa announced the coursework for Term 1. Each of us was told to paste our coursework instruction leaflet into the exercise book.
The task was to create a World War I Propaganda Poster and we were given 18 days to do it. The scariest part of the whole thing was the phrase at the bottom of the leaflet:
“This project will be due on Monday, March 28th at the beginning of class. You will not be excused during class to print your project, despite begging, pleading and promising that it is done and in your user-share or email. It will be worth 20 points.”
I gulped. I thought it was Ms Visa being really strict. Turns out it was Mr Aram who typed the whole thing.
“Some of you who were in my class since Year 7 will know how strict I was. However, I want to tell you that Mr Aram is stricter,” said Ms Visa. This was because Ms Visa would scold people for not finishing their work or even having untidy work. I can tell you that there are multiple occasions that Ms Visa had scolded me time after time after time again. It was mentally exhausting for me having to meet strict, stern and high expectations set by Ms Visa.
Brandon Ooi then asked a very interesting question. “Teacher, what if let's say if we finish our homework but then suddenly we cannot hand it in to you because the electricity spoilt,” asked Brandon. Ms Visa told him to ensure that his work was printed as soon as it is finished. “You can draw the poster physically. Who asked you to use the computer? The questions say you can ‘draw the poster free hand’.”
“Teacher, what if let's say I am absent on the day of the assignment submission because I am sick?” Brandon asked, trying to be funny with Ms Visa.
Ms Visa was really pumped up by now. “Pass it up on the next day or ask your parents to bring it for you,” she said. “Mr Aram is very strict with this.”
Brandon Ooi then kept on asking Ms Visa so many other nonsensical questions:
1. What if my pen/pencil spoilt?
2. Can I draw a flying car?
3. Can I draw Woodrow Wilson and Clemenceau kissing?
4. Take one of the online posters and modify it
Ms Visa got angry with Brandon for delaying the class and continued with the lesson. "Brandon! Zip your mouth!” she cried. Then, we did some exercises for the rest of the day.
During Fine Art Club, Ms Feeda then told us that she was planning to ask us to do a self portrait just like how we Year 10s did in her class. Then, she also said she planned to do Jackson Pollock's work again for the benefit of the new students. Eventually, we settled on charcoal painting. I had done some charcoal painting before when I was in Year 7, along with that of Jackson Pollock's.
Ms Feeda then took out some charcoal and then told us to draw some wildflowers or landscapes. She gave us a picture each to follow. I used a picture of flowers and trees as I did not like to draw figurines, being the so-called ‘weak student’ I was in Art. Ms Nadia's painting was that of a picture of Celine Dion. It looked so cool.
On 11th March 2016, we had the Tug of War and the Telematch competitions at a field near the PE field. I participated in the telematch competition with Caleb Chuang.
There are two fields in the SS5 area where Nobel was. One is located behind PJ Soho, and another is a five-minute walk from there, which faces a main road nearby. We went to the second field.
Two days prior, Mr Narish had briefed us about the following schedule for the Telematch Day during assembly:
Time Activity
7:45am Assembly
8:00am Go to field
8:10am – 8:15am Set up props for Tug of War
8:15am – 9:00am Tug of War
9:00am – 9:15am Set up props for Telematch
9:15am – 9:30am Telematch Y7 Game 1
9:30am – 9:45am Telematch Y7 Game 2
9:45am – 10:00am Telematch Y8 Game 1
10:00am – 10:15am Telematch Y8 Game 2
10:15am – 10:30am Telematch Y9 Game 1
10:30am – 10:45am Telematch Y9 Game 2
10:45am – 11:00am Telematch Y10 Game 1
11:00am – 11:15am Telematch Y10 Game 2
11:15am – 11:45am Telematch Y11 Game 1
11:45am – 12:00pm Telematch Y11 Game 2
12:00pm Clean up and go back to school
1:30pm Dismissal
I arrived in school that very morning with my sports attire, and went to the canteen to read my newspapers. Then, I went to the foyer to see Caleb Chuang. Before that, as I returned to the hall, Mr Narish reminded us to line up in our sports houses. So, I placed my bag at the Year 10s’ line allocated to Bullseye members from Year 10. Afterwards, I motivated the Bullseye members, had a short chat with Areeya Amali before I went to the foyer to meet Caleb Chuang.
Then, I went to the foyer and waited. I saw everyone coming in. Then, I greeted Auntie Clarine, who was unloading a large group of elementary students from Ms Bee Yong's car. All the kids cheered happily. And just in time, Caleb Chuang arrived!
I then spoke to Caleb Chuang and Auntie Clarine about the big plans for Bullseye.
“Auntie Clarine, Caleb Chuang and I will be participating in the telematch!” I cried.
Auntie Clarine was really excited and wished the two of us all the best in the telematch. “We have big plans for Bullseye, right Caleb?” I snickered. Auntie Clarine smiled, and we waved goodbye to her. Caleb Chuang and I told the elementary school students about the BIG PLANS we had for Bullseye. Two of them were also from Bullseye and smiled at us.
Caleb Chuang and I went to talk to a girl from Homerun named Kayleigh Ann who was in Year 7. Kayleigh was really kind and caring, and the two of us were really excited to talk to her. Kayleigh called the two of us adorable and cute.
After that, we walked back to Bullseye and then we were cheered by all the Bullseye members. Megan and Le Anne screamed loudly like mad at us. We were like a celebrity. We had big plans. And we are going to make Bullseye so famous!
Desmond Chan approached the two of us. “The Bullseye members have corruption! They paid money to the judges to give the champion of the dance to Bullseye!” he cried. The two of us rubbished off his claims. Then, we sat down in our house line and talked to Kelsey about the big plans. Kelsey was also participating in the telematch. We told her, Sean Mark and Jason Leing our plans. They were so excited. All the Bullseye members were really pumped up, ready for action.
Everyone first lined up in our sports houses when arriving at school, and we had to wear our sports attire on that day. The sea of color by all the Bullseye members as well as the other houses, was fantastic. We all lined up according to our levels in our sports houses, and then I went to each level to motivate proper. Geok Minh and Prudence Wong screamed loudly, which led to the whole Bullseye squad screaming. Loo Zane was trying to cover her face. And Kelsey was screaming, not in happiness, but in annoyance.
“Wow, look at Bullseye! They are really excited! What about the other houses? Make some noise!” cried Mr Narish, as he approached. The teachers soon start filing in, and all of them turned their eyes to Bullseye.
All the Bullseye teachers smiled. “YEAHHH!!!” we cried, as I told Caleb Chuang to lead everyone. Sabrina and Jeremy told me to calm down. “You are so excited, Wei Yiang! I like the passion!” cried Sabrina. Then, Mr Matthew Koh arrived. He made sure everyone was in order and soon, Ms Renee came and recorded down our attendance from Year 10 with Ms Sangeetha. Then, we had a briefing by Mr Narish about the dos and dont's before we started the day.
Mr Matthew Koh made sure everyone was in order before we left for the field. Once ready, we all left for the field, and I spent my entire time talking with Caleb Chuang. Jason and Sean asked me to scream louder. “Caleb can be your pangkat,” laughed Jason. Caleb Chuang was surprised. “What?!” he cried. Then, I talked to Sabrina and Carmenn Kau on the way there and told them about my plans. Soon Yee Yang was surprised. “I wonder how he had so much energy to cheer for Bullseye,” he said. Once we reached the field and felt the cool morning breeze, we then got started with the events.
There was a tent located at the end of the field, meant for the telematch. Mr Victor, Mr Narish and the CCA department erected the tents. Mr Narish had a waist pouch and sunglasses as he coordinated the events. We were all told to settle down and had a briefing. Then, all of us who participated in telematch reported to Carmenn Kau first. Caleb Chuang and I winked and grinned at each other before we begun.
The tug of war competitions begun first, and many of our Bullseye people who played in the tug of war games were Year 10s or 11s, or are muscular. Jeremy Yeap, Sabrina Qistina, Eric Wong and all those who had fat muscles were singled in to pull the rope. Now, this rope is not a normal rope, but a thick rope that contains a lot of rough surfaces, which, if pulled too fast, can peel your skin off and make a wound that can be a deep cut. And everyone would need their big effort to pull it.
Each game would last two rounds, and a third round will be played if either team won either round.
So, the first round begun, and the Bullseye players were in a good match with Touchdown. When they tried to pull, they were outbeaten by the Touchdowners. Even though we managed to beat Touchdown in the second round, they still scored the third round. I was screaming and shouting like mad and cheered when we won, and acted pity when we lost. I then told Caleb about how they should go on and how we can encourage them.
“We must cheer louder, Caleb Chuang! We must pull harder. Harder!” I exclaimed.
Caleb Chuang, as always, just gave his gentle smile. He smirked, gave his best smile, and nodded.
This continued for another few more games as I continued to cheer. San Ying, Serena Chia, Ashley Teoh and all the Homerunners were facing Bullseye, but we managed to beat them in two consecutive rounds. I gave a high-five to Sabrina Qistina who pulled the rope for the female category. While we had a break in the tug of war, I went and talked to Ze Khai, Daryl Yeo, Derek Yong and Evan Hiew who were taking shade under a tree near the houses nearby.
Once all was done, it was time for the telematch. I had screamed so loudly. Then, we saw the Year 7s beginning their game. Caleb Chuang and I stood at each end of the court to cheer them. We then quickly jumped around and moved around till Megan Lee was annoyed with the both of us. Then, we talked to Sara Yow and Lyn Wen. Then, Caleb Chuang went to speak with Grace, Han Ming and Yi Zhen while I coordinated the Bullseye members with Sabrina. And Bullseye won the first game for the Year 7 category! Yeah!!!! We screamed so loud till Kelsey had headache. Then, it time for the Year 7s to play their second game. We also did the same. Caleb Chuang was still with his friends. Then, Sabrina told me not to scream so many times. She was also tired. Because of that, Homerun won the second game.
It was the Year 8s’ turn to play their game. I screamed loudly, and Ms Feeda and Ms Praveen assisted the students to play their game. Samuel Lee, Ashwin and Nicholas Liang were playing. Then, we cheered and screamed, but however, Touchdown won. I groaned. “Where is Caleb Chuang!” I cried.
The second game of the Year 8 telematch begun. Caleb Chuang was back! “Come on Bullseye, let's go!” I cried. We screamed and shouted, and this time, Grace had a terrible headache. Then, Sabrina also could not beat me in screaming. “COME ON, GUYS! COME ON!” I cried, as one person from Bullseye was too slow. And we were the first to finish as the other last guy from Touchdown was almost finished! "YEAH!!!!!” I cried. I high-fived Caleb Chuang. Kelsey was looking at us in disbelief. “So much for being best friends,” she moaned.
Then, it was the Year 9 games, and Bullseye was trailing behind. Caleb Chuang wasn't there again. I screamed like mad. He had went to the loo. Then, Touchdown won. I groaned. Geok Minh and Prudence Wong groaned at me.
Ivyna came to the rescue for the second game. All the Year 11s came to cheer. Then, Caleb Chuang came, and guess what? Bullseye won the second game! I screamed and hi-fived with everyone in Bullseye. YES! YES! YES!
Caleb Chuang and I were bound to play in both games. Each year level had their own dedicated game, and I had cheered and howled as loud as I can, guiding the players. Then, it came to us, the Year 10s, where we had to bounce on one feet to a hula hoop, take a piece of newspaper, crumple it and then throw it into the container. I called everyone and motivated us. Then, Mr Narish gave a briefing on the rules of the game. Everyone, including Ivyna, Pei Chi, Eu Lynn, Lucas Tan and Yan Ying, were present. Yes, including Sean Mark and Jason.
Caleb Chuang and I stood in the same line as we watched and did our turn. All my friends cheered as it came to my turn, and Ms Praveen guided me as I tossed the crumpled newspaper ball into the container. The other houses teased me and Caleb Chuang as we ran one after the other.
The second game for us was more interesting than the first; we had to dip a cloth in a bucket filled with water, and then squeeze the water out of the cloth into an empty bucket a distance away. Again, Caleb Chuang and I tried our best and encouraged everyone on. Shi Tian was given permission to participate with us as we were short of one member.
Once everyone was finished with their telematch game, everyone walked back to school while the Year 11s got their games settled themselves. I then talked to Caleb Chuang more about my plans for Bullseye as well as Ivyna on how the dancers should react on the field. They nodded and smiled and laughed in excitement. We all walked back as a team donning our sports attire and kept on chanting and cheering for Bullseye. Some people bought food and drinks from 7-Eleven. Following our return to school, everyone had a rest and then we continued with our lessons for the day.
During the holidays, we also trained for the marchpast from 8:00am till 12:30pm, and normally Alister would be the one commanding. Alister would normally be gentle, but he had a bold and crude voice at the same time.
“Don’t move! No fidgeting! Look in front!” Alister cried.
We mainly practiced march during our holidays, and thank goodness, most of the time, Kie Yip wasn’t present. Even though he was present, I still followed his instructions as he pleased. He had no problems with me marching, but sometimes, his voice, screaming and shouting at the top of his lungs, howled throughout the day like a mad guy.
On our first practice session, 14th March, we arrived at school. Alister and Jeremy gathered us in the courtyard. We had to do the moves of right dress, attention, stand at ease, stand easy, quick march, forward march and the salute. Alister’s focus was all of us to have our hands firm and move our actions sharply, firmly and in unison. He would not tolerate a single margin of error.
When one person was even a few milliseconds slow of sliding his or her hands down when answering to the command of standing easy, Alister would cry, “Again!” as he was disappointed with the actions. While Alister seemed firm when doing our commands, he is a gentle guy at heart. Jeremy is more gentler, but Kie Yip is always as annoyed as if he was annoyed by the Annoying Orange.
“Look in front!” “Stop scratching!” Kie Yip cried when he commanded us.
“On Sports Day, I expect to see each and everyone of you firm and straight, and not doing any funny things,” Kie Yip would tell us in a stern way. These are how typical marching drills are conducted.
During one of our holiday practices, during the break in our practices, on 17th March 2016, a Thursday, Jeremy told each and everyone of us on how we can be committed and work together as a team. He spoke in a gentle tone, and made serious eye contact with each of us to identify our weaknesses and what we can improve in our march.
“Kai Yang, stop scratching when marching. I know, it is difficult to stand for a long time. But please don’t scratch, as it will cause us to lose points. Isaac, look in front. Don’t keep on fidgeting. Wei Yiang, your hands, when saluting must be straight and your shoulders should not be bent.” He would give us these comments on areas which need improvement. Then, Jeremy gave his contact number after his advice for us to contact him for anything we needed.
Break time is always something we marchers look forward to (except me, because I can stand the heat) every practice. It is already a hassle to come for practice, and let alone be left standing under the hot sun with salty sweat trickling down our heads. The last thing we want is to have long practices. The marchers trained in the courtyard while the dancers took the hall and its stage. Marchers like us had to endure the heat because on Sports Day, it will be very hot and humid and no one can resist wiping their sweat off or scratching their itchiness. Fortunately, I had always done gardening outdoors at the time, so it was no issue. Normally, we would have a minimum of 10 minutes’ break and a maximum of 30 minutes’ rest time. On average, we train for around half an hour to 45 minutes before resting.
The dancers, on the other hand, fare better. They blasted air conditioning in the school hall while having the floor to themselves for the dance moves. Even so, all marchers, once finished with their practices, will go to the school hall and our captains will count down for everyone to come. Sometimes, Kie Yip will be ultra-strict and give everyone tonnes of push-ups even if one guy arrived a minute late. Occasionally, he would pity those who arrived early and give the latecomers push ups instead.
There was even one time during the holiday practice where Jeremy, Kie Yip and all their friends tried to play some funny things and dress up and act like crazy, and Kie Yip would punish the individual that smiled or laughed. This incident happened on Friday, 18th March. He would tolerate smiles, but not laughter, and he would force the guy who laughed to do push ups. They would even punish people who followed the wrong commands or commands made by other captains or the wrong people. Each time a fool tried to say the wrong commands, Jeremy and Kie Yip would chase the foolmaker off. Even occasionally, some people thought the push ups were funny when seeing people do it while at attention pose, as one would be reminded of a joker shaking his buttocks. There was an occasion where there were many push ups being done by other houses, and some people in our Bullseye squad were laughing, so Kie Yip got angry and ordered them to pump 20 times from the ground. Eventually, there was one time where Kie Yip got a taste of his own medicine when he did the wrong action, and he himself had to bend down and squat during our marchpast break during the holidays while all the other march captains watched him.
However, one of the marching drills came under scrutiny by the management team and Mr Narish. For 2016, the school allowed each marchpast captain to come up with their own creative commands. So, for our marching commands when we salute the judges, Jeremy said that our salute consists of our hands raised outwards at a 30-degree angle to the right, with our palm facing the judges. Initially, our tips of our fingers were to be lined up with the contour of our hands towards the judges, but Jeremy quickly rectified the problem after he was informed that the hands’ gestures looked like the ones of Hitler’s salute.
Som of Jeremy’s Year 11 friends cried, “Hail Hitler!” and laughed when they saw our salute during an after school practice.
I also had some fun time with my march captains as during one of the practice breaks on Tuesday, 15th March 2016, when all the march captains and committee members from all the four houses decided to do a joint marchpast together. Kie Yip, Jeremy and Alister also joined in while Timothy Low shouted the commands. Then, we marched in the school hall while all the dancers watched us. We also sang the Negaraku, school song and recited the school pledge with thunderous applause from the dancers. Jeremy even allowed every single one of us marchers to command the squad that day.
The practices went on normally, except on 15th March, when it was raining. The marchers used the hall. Our Bullseye dancers used 10N's classroom for the practices.
Following the conclusion of the school holidays, the school then begun active rehearsing for Sports Day. We had our Sports Day rehearsal on 21st March 2016, following our return from the holidays. In fact, we had already started some small-scale rehearsals during school hours before the holidays, on 8th March 2016.
The day begun by Mr Narish briefing us to come out at 1:30pm for the practices. Then, we went back to class, where Mr Thomas continued our discussion on the Big Chill. Then, we had Malay, and Cikgu Niely discussed our exam papers.
During break time, I spoke to Caleb Chuang, Sabrina and Jeremy about the day's events. Then, we went back for Business Studies where Ms Chithra taught us about private and public limited companies. Afterwards, we had our Art lesson, and I continued my Salvador Dali-inspired portrait. It looked creepy.
In the afternoon, we had our main practice. The management had started bringing out the flags for us to use for Sports Day. For our marchpast, Soon Yee Yang would be carrying Bullseye’s flag as Sabrina had to carry the Nobel International School banner as head prefect on the opening ceremony. We spent the whole day rehearsing for Sports Day. Jeremy and Kie Yip would get everyone in order, and I would be marching behind as opposed to being in front, since the marchers march according to height.
For the rehearsal, Mr Narish said that the opening ceremony would see a welcoming of the management staff, namely Ms Bee Yong, Mr Chan and Mr Tan Seng Kee, who is the executive director of Nobel International School, to the cauldron to receive the torch and light it. During this time, each one of us marchers would need to stand at center of the field, facing each other. We will then wave flags to welcome the management team to launch the Sports Day, and each of the four house captains will then proceed to relay the torch around the stadium. Bullseye and Touchdown would stand on the right hand side of the field, and Homerun and Slamdunk would be on the left hand side of the field to create a path for the management. Bullseye and Slamdunk would be standing closer to the inside of the field.
“Once the house captains have finished their relay, marchers, you must move to the track on the left and line up for the marchpast. House captains, you may join them once you have finished the relay,” Ms Cynthia said, briefing all of us in the school hall.
We did a few rounds of practices in the hall. Each time, Kie Yip looked at the back and tried to get everyone to zip their mouths and look in front. “Stand straight! Look in front! Stop scratching!” he cried. Soon Yee Yang would stand in the front, holding the flag, and Jeremy would lead everyone. Then, Kie Yip, Alister and Emerson would stand behind him and lead us. Shi Tian, Zi Quan and I would stand in one of the rows.
When each of us marched past the teachers on the stage, Shaun Ting and Daniel Ngew started taking pictures of the rehearsing contingents. Then, once everyone assembled in the hall for the Negaraku and we started singing, Ms Lim then cut the song halfway. “Ok, stop. Please stop. I did not hear anyone singing. I cannot hear any voice; I can only hear the music,” Ms Lim said in a stern manner. “This is the Negaraku and you can’t even sing. Let’s try again. PA team, please play the song again,” she commanded.
The PA team then started playing the song again and everyone started singing again. “Louder!” Ms Lim cried. Then, everyone sang as loud as possible just like Chinese patriots. “Much better,” said Ms Lim. Then, everyone marched out. We then continued our practices for the rest of the day, as Kie Yip, Jeremy and Alister drilled us.
Kie Yip asked all the marchers to sing the Negaraku, school song and recite the school pledge as part of the marchpast practices. “I don’t care whether you like it or not, just sing.” So, some of the Year 11 leaders walked around, checking the hands of the marchers and so on and listening to them sing. “Louder! Louder! I can’t hear you!” Kie Yip cried.
Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong was walking past by and then ordered the entire squad to stop and then gave everyone a stern lecture on how the National Anthem of Malaysia should be respected, as some people were screeching and making funny tones when singing the songs and reciting the pledge.
The morning of 22nd March was a rainy day, and Caleb Chuang and I went up to class early as the courtyard was wet. The both of us continued to formulate plans for the Sports Day when we met in 10O. However, Nieshaal Thambipillay got really angry with me being in 10O and questioned me why I was there. “You do not belong here; go back to your class,” he said, before walking away after Caleb Chuang told him not to disturb us. Then, as we spoke, we formulated the next plans for the Sports Day practice.
Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick arrived. I greeted them and I told them about me talking to Caleb Chuang. Then, I returned to 10N to read my newspapers. I pulled out the latest news and read about the upcoming Sri Petaling and Kelana Jaya LRT line extension projects, which was published in the news. It would pass by my housing area, and I was one of the beneficiaries. I was planning to take the LRT to Nobel so that I can avoid the jam. I did not do so as it was too long of a distance and duration. Ms Cynthia then gave us our Sports Day attire during the reading time for us to put on Sports Day.
Then, we had our Economics lesson with Ms Levina. We learnt about Market Failure. During the entire class, Brandon Ooi kept on talking and Ms Levina put his seat in front again. “The class is a market failure because I have to keep on asking Brandon Ooi to stop talking and disrupting the class,” she said. Then, I asked Ms Levina a question and then Brandon Ooi kept on talking, to which Ms Levina had to ask him to keep quiet once again and moved Eric and Shane's seats. Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas did some work on the Big Chill with us. We were given a link to the Edmodo page that is meant for our Commonwealth Essay Competition entry submission.
Mr Gallagher then launched the Global Perspectives Research Project with us during our Global Perspectives lesson. He outlined a list of topics that we could choose by displaying them on the whiteboard:
1. War and conflict
2. Poverty
3. Transportation and infrastructure
4. Education
5. Health and safety
6. Science and technology
7. Arts and culture
8. History and human civilization
Mr Gallagher then told us that each of us had to do a research project and then come up with an essay that we had to write on. The essay should contain at least 3000 words and that it had to contain a title that addresses a specific question. Hence, I decided to put my title as ‘How can transport links be improved to prevent congestion?”
Mr Gallagher then informed us that we need to have an introduction, a scenario, a series of arguments to argue certain points to the title we were doing in, as well as a conclusion. The essay, considered an Individual Evaluation (IE) or Individual Report (IR) was part of our Global Perspectives coursework, graded as part of the official IGCSE grades by Cambridge. However, I thought it was just a class assignment and not as such. Then, we went for Business Studies, where Ms Chithra continued to teach the class. Glen, Gabriel and Aaron were sleeping in the class, and Ms Chithra had to call them to wake up.
During lunch, I told Sabrina of my banner plan and I intend to draw it. She agreed and told me to go ahead. “I will show it to you tomorrow,” I said to her.
Then, we had our Science lesson, where Ms Sangeetha taught us about how our body enzymes denature if the temperature got too hot, leading to people falling ill. And Ms Visa took time for us to work on our World War I posters. I presented a sketch to Ms Visa, who approved it.
After returning home, I then got started on my Bullseye banner. I call it a poster then, inspired by all the themes seen in History. I drew the poster, which consisted of a flag and a lightsabre aimed at it. There, I wrote, “Save Bullseye” as well as “Let us rise up for victory” on it. It was raining that afternoon, and I stayed at home to draw the poster, inspired by cartoons seen in my History textbook and slides.
It was the eve of Sports Day, 23rd March 2016. I brought the poster banner to school, happy at my latest creation. Finally. Yes. Now, we have something to rival the other houses. And I was so excited to show it to Caleb Chuang.
When I presented the banner to him as he arrived at school, he said it was so cool and nice. He gave me the go-ahead to present it to Sabrina after viewing it. Ivyna, Yan Ying, and all of Bullseye's Year 10 members were so excited!
Jason Leing and Sean Mark were the most curious. “Did you copy the History posters?” asked Jason. I said yes, and that I have sketched the History poster for my coursework. There were many political cartoons that Mr Aram and Ms Visa showed us, and I based it on that. I wanted to show Sabrina, but she was busy that morning. Well, at least all of Mr Aram's students were so excited. “Do the same one for History!” cried Jason, as he laughed away.
Mr Narish then revealed the Sports Day agenda on the screen of the school hall:
Sports Day Programme
Start Time: 4:30pm
1. Torch Run
2. Marchpast Competition
3. Negaraku and Sports Pledge
4. Dance Competition
5. Cheer
6. 100m
7. 200m
8. 4X100m
9. Prize Giving Ceremony (100m, 200m, 4X100m)
10. 4X400m
11. Prize Giving Ceremony (Rest of events)
At 8:00am, all marchers and dancers were requested to present themselves in the school hall or the courtyard for their practice. Caleb Chuang and I went down and we met in the courtyard, where Jeremy and Kie Yip were waiting for us. We did some commands and marchpast drills till 10:00am, when we had our break time. Then, following the KS4 break time, Mr Narish asked everyone to gather in the hall for an announcement.
Mr Narish said that there will be a dry run of the opening ceremony after break time. “We are going to do a short rehearsal of what to expect during the opening ceremony. So, captains and assistant captains, you and your marchers need to line up over there,” said Mr Narish, pointing to the corridor to mimick the underground basement tunnel of the stadium, and then he indicated the directions on to where we should be marching.
Soon, we gathered outside the hall, and Kie Yip was affirmative. “No scratching, no moving, look in front!” he cried. Alister then repeated what Kie Yip said, while Jeremy gave us some piece of advice. Then, we followed by doing two rounds of rehearsal. Each marcher then marched in and out of the hall while also following the opening ceremony protocol.
On the first round, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong said that we weren't singing loud enough in terms of the Negaraku and the School Song. Then, on the second round, everyone blared the lyrics out loudly like soldiers singing in tune.
When we got out of the hall, Kie Yip then told everyone to follow his commands. Then, he simply said some commands, and he had a taste of his own medicine by doing push ups. We then continued our drills till 12:00pm, and we had a long period of rest from 12:00pm to 2:00pm. First, the Year 7, 8 and 9s went for their lunch time, followed by the Year 10 and 11s. Megan, Le Anne, Sean Mark and Jason saw me and Caleb Chuang marching and then cheered for us. The day continued with another round of the rehearsal, and it was a perfect one. Mr Narish commended us for that outstanding performance.
While most of my plans succeeded and Bullseye was on the way to a victory streak, there was one plan which did not make it to Sports Day. I planned to display a poster of a lightsaber striking Bullseye’s flag as a warning sign to motivate the Bullseye members to do more to safeguard Bullseye’s victory. I had started designing the poster a few days prior and then, I got my courage to find Sabrina. I met with Sabrina during lunchtime to discuss the plans for Sports Day, especially how we were to implement it. I gave my ideas and proposals and she was delighted. I told Sabrina about how the runners should focus and what they should eat, in which she responded greatly. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything,” she said.
Then, I proposed to her my banner design and explained the rationale behind it. I had brought it down during lunch time and showed it to all the people of Bullseye, including the marchers. I tried to convince Sabrina that the banner design and the subsequent display would really make people look at Bullseye, as well as get many of the runners to be motivated.
Sabrina frowned. She had this worried look on her face. Then, as soon as I know it, I was told not to bring it for Sports Day for fear that I may be disqualified from the marching squad because it resembles some kind of propaganda. That might even cause deduction of marks from Bullseye.
“Wei Yiang, first of all, the poster looks quite good but however, I would advise you to leave it at home because I’m afraid that it would be considered as propaganda and you may be disqualified from marching on Sports Day. Just don’t bring it,” she pleaded. I obliged and then conceded to Sabrina in order to put the house above my own interest. “Thanks for not bringing, Wei Yiang. You can hang it at home but don’t bring it, as I don’t want you to get into trouble,” she said. On top of that, I also went around to every year level during the house meets to motivate them for Bullseye, discussing my plans. I then told Caleb Chuang about the change in one of the plans because of Sabrina’s feedback. We then continued practices as usual for the whole day. I felt happy because there is no need to undergo the same annoying change of classes like I always do for set teaching. Kie Yip told us to arrive early at around 2:00pm so that we can have a practice on the field before we headed for a final rehearsal before the Sports Day starts.
Sports Day 2016 arrived without hassle, on 24th March 2016. On the day, I arrived early, at 1:30pm, and Kie Yip was waiting at Bullseye’s stand. Mr Daniel was seen checking the PA system to ensure everything ws in order. Everyone was ready.
I had brought some red Bullseye flags to the Sports Day, as well as one big and large megaphone made out of newspaper. I set them on before I met all my friends from Year 10 and some of the Bullseye people. Then, we gathered at the track for our march practice.
Jeremy, Kie Yip and Alister gathered all of us together, but however, a lot of people were late. I arrived early. He counted down from ten to one.
“All of you, 20 push ups. Now!” cried Kie Yip. Everyone had to do push ups, and it was unfair for those who were early. Then, we gathered and then marched around the track, one lap a time. Kie Yip was strict, and he said that if we lose the marchpast, we would have to do 100 push ups for him.
Soon, Mr Narish then called all of us to gather in the tunnel for a rehearsal. “Attention to all march captains, please gather your marchers in the tunnel. We are going to start the rehearsal now,” he boomed. We all then gathered in the tunnel and then waited for the commands to begin. All the house captains then stationed at the track where they got their flags ready. Kie Yip then told us that we should place our flags, close to the track, when we run back from the field to marchpast position. Before heading to the tunnel, we were then placed makeups and water color on our face as part of the makeup process. Then, we were given some mock, gold armor to put on our hands. Kie Yip, Alister, Jeremy and Emerson were given some swords as part of the marching process. Wong Zhi Wei’s mother then adjusted my makeup properly as well as the armor.
The rehearsal begun. We then ran to the center of the field and did the rehearsal as usual. The management team were welcomed onto the field. Ms Bee Yong kept on smiling and giving us the thumbs up as Mr Chan Lik Hoong and Mr Tan Seng Kee accompanied her. We waved flags to welcome them. Then, we ran to the edge of the field tossed our flags once we reached the track. Everything went very smoothly, until we reached the center of the stadium. One of our marchers, Charlene Tong, collapsed and fainted on the field as the hot sun blazed over her. A few students then helped her back to the stands where she rested as the crowd looked on. Oh, and not to also mention that Megan and Le Anne smiled and were chanting, “best friends” as me and Caleb Chuang saluted to the crowd. Megan and Le Anne consider me and Caleb as best friends since we always talk a lot with each other since Year 8. Sean Mark and Jason Leing also smiled at me and Caleb Chuang as we marched.
There was an issue with the microphone when the Sports Pledge was underway. Mr Narish and Ms Bee Yan adjusted the microphones while Han Ming and Shaun Ting controlled the PA system. Mr Narish demonstrated the proper way to do the pledge. Then, all the marchers marched back.
Kie Yip then asked us to take a break while he, Jeremy and Alister talked among each other. I went back, grabbed some water for a drink, and then returned to the tunnel to officially get ready for the marchpast. Kie Yip told the marchers that the space where Charlene was supposed to stand would be left vacant, and told the marchers not to fill up the space so that uniformity would be ensured. I then stood on the place where I could reach the flag when welcoming Ms Bee Yong and the management team, since I didn’t get the opportunity to wave it during the rehearsal portion. So, I made sure where I stood, as it would be the best place to wave it. I switched locations with Shi Tian.
So, the call came, and then we ran to the center of the field. Then, I picked up a flag as the management members were introduced; Ms Bee Yong, Mr Chan and Mr Tan Seng Kee, the executive director of Nobel International School. The event then kicked off with the torch relay as we waved flags to welcome the management members.
The torch relay was led by Sabrina Qistina, Edmund H’ng, Bryan George and Gavin Goh; the four captains of all the houses. They passed the torch to each other, beginning with Gavin, then Edmund, followed by Bryan and then Sabrina. Bryan George, just a shoutout here, is also the president of Christian Fellowship CCA. Sabrina is Nobel's then head prefect.
Once the welcoming was done, we then proceeded to march on the track. All the Year 10s cheered as me, Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang saluted. All of us saluted, and then the official protocol followed. The whole Bullseye stand was cheering me and Caleb Chuang's name as we marched, and all the Year 10s screamed at me and Caleb Chuang too. Lyn Wen and Faythe Chow were standing next to Ms Feeda, looking at the field. Once all was done, the Negaraku was played, and the Sports Pledge was led by Nieshaal Thambipillay. He was introduced as the 10km winner of the Founder's Run, as well as a tennis player.
Each house then belted out their respective house cheer, and I cheered as loud as possible. We then marched back into the tunnel and watched the dance competition from our seats.
The dance competition was so amazing to watch. I then spent time preparing for the cheering of the athletes who were participating in Sports Day. Each house showed their respective dance. Homerun's dance in particular amazed the crowd with Star Wars music. The one for Bullseye was led by Krissy, the dance captain, as well as our assistant dance captain, Ivyna Ong.
I had used newspapers to make a large megaphone to scream. Sean Mark then amused the crowd with his sprints, and then I cheered and shouted as I took note of the score. I then told Caleb to cheer louder, and then everyone from Year 10 smiled as me and Caleb Chuang led the cheer. The crowd wasn’t there to watch Bullseye cheer, but to see me and Caleb Chuang lead them.
Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Jien Min each took part in the 4X100m relay, and Caleb Chuang also ran the 4X400m.
The 100m was the first to start, with Class 1 boys. One of the Bullseye members won the event. Then, it was Class 1 girls. Areeya Amali won the 100m race, showcasing strength over the rest. I screamed and shouted loudly. Caleb Chuang then went to get some Revive drinks.
“Wei Yiang, shout louder!” cried Jason Leing, as he packed up and headed up the stands to go to the basement. All runners had to use the basement to reach the field so as to reduce inconvenience for spectators.
Then, it was the Class 2 boys. Nicholas Liang was in the event. He ran like mad. I screamed. Everyone cheered. He won! The same was said for Class 2 girls. Alysha Yuen stunned us by participating in a really stunning 100m race. We all screamed like mad. The Class 3 boys were up on the list next, and Jason Leing and Sean Mark were participating. Sean led the crowd as we screamed and shouted. In the Class 3 girls’ list, the girls all ran like mad, and Ivyna and Eu Lynn made a triumphant finished.
“YEAH!!!” I cried. “We won all except one!”
Then, it was the 200m. Areeya Amali was on the line again. She also did well as we screamed. Sabrina Qistina was at the sidelines. She saw me screaming like mad. “You really have loads of energy!” she cried. Afterwards, it was another 200m event, and unfortunately, we lost that.
Caleb Chuang and I continued to lead everyone with the house cheers, as Sean Mark impressed everyone in the 200m race. The same was said with Jason Leing and Soon Yee Yang, too.
The sky soon begun to darken, as the 300m runners begun their race. I spent my time screaming and shouting like mad. Caleb Chuang and I kept on cheering. It was about to rain. I was afraid that it rained. Then, there was a slight drizzle, as Sean Mark was running. The rain soon stopped, and Caleb Chuang was there to run the 4X100m. He, Sean Mark, Jason Leing and Jien Min were participating in that race.
As the Prize Giving Ceremony was instituted, Mr Mark Wright and Ms Cynthia announced the winners. Then, I cheered for Caleb Chuang as well as we ourselves blurting the Bullseye house cheer for each Bullseye member that won.
Then, it was time for the final event of the day. The 4X400m. Jason, Jien Min, Sean and Caleb Chuang were in the running. The race was so impressive. Bullseye led by a large margin and won, causing me to scream and shout.
The events went on, one by one, till the darkness of night fell. At the end of the day, Bullseye slipped the most medals as the medals ceremony was held. Mr Narish then asked everyone to gather at the field and I told everyone to hurry up so that we can gain more house points.
Once everyone was in the center of the field, Caleb Chuang and I sat in front as each house screeched their house cheer, and everyone was given red Bullseye flags to wave. The medals presentation went on till 8:30pm, and Sean Mark and Hong En Eng were awarded the title of sports boy and sports girl respectively. Homerun won marchpast and banner, while Bullseye won the dance competition. Each win by Bullseye made me too excited as I was planning to celebrate with Caleb Chuang should we win. Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Jien Min and Caleb Chuang posed for a picture, and I joined them in.
Soon, the results were announced as the teachers turned the scoreboard. Everyone cranked their necks, trying to know who won. When the last till first numbers were placed one by one, and Bullseye was announced as the champion, all of us screamed. Sabrina Qistina was invited to receive the trophy. The final tally was as follows:
Sports Day 2016 Scores
Bullseye: 5733
Touchdown: 5276
Homerun: 4823
Slamdunk: 4644
All the house captains then placed their flags on the podium as Sabrina walked onto it, in tears. I then ran to the podium to cheer for her and see her lift the trophy. The Slamdunk members blared vuvuzela horns to cheer for Sabrina, and her mother who is a Chinese then took a picture of her. Sabrina is actually a mix of Malay and Chinese; her father is a Malay while her mother is Chinese.
Ms Lim then asked me not to go out of control and calm down and not wave my large megaphone. I was waving it with the Bullseye flag on top of it so that we can have two flags for Bullseye. We then looked at Sabrina, who was smiling and in tears, receiving the trophy, and we started our champion house run for Bullseye. Caleb Chuang and I led the pack and ran like mad.
“Thank you, parents, for making this year’s Sports Day a success,” said Ms Cynthia, who emceed. Along with her emceeing the Sports Day was Mr Mark Wright, the other Year 10 First Language English teacher aside from Mr Thomas. He also thanked everyone for their time, be it teachers or parents, to plan the Sports Day. Mr Mark is a cool teacher and an outgoing person and his English lessons are as interesting as Mr Thomas’s.
“Everyone, drive safely on the way home,” he said, as he ended his speech.
I then shook hands with Caleb Chuang and pretended to cry in tears. He just gave his usual smile. I then cheered, screamed and shouted like as if I had beaten all my friends in the lottery. I then cried and then shook hands with Sabrina. “Thank you so much Wei Yiang, I saw you cheering and shouting,” Sabrina said, in tears. “Bullseye could not have won without you.” Her mother then took a picture of me and her.
We have come to the end of March 2016. Sports Day is over. Now, the real study work begun.
On the first day of school since Sports Day ended, 28th March 2016, Sabrina Qistina and her brother, Hanz Danial, came to school. Sabrina was carrying the large trophy. She had to return it to the school. Then, we did our assembly as usual. Ms Bee Yong then told us that Sports Day is over and now that we had to focus on our studies. “You will have another exam; the Mid Year Examination. Year 11s, you will be having your Malay and Mandarin IGCSE,” she said. There were groans across the school hall. Fun had turned into none.
Mr Thomas begun the lesson with a briefing on our English coursework and he said that there will be a Portrait Composition that will be given, along with a portrait as well as a formal question. We had to write a descriptive essay. Then, he showed us our coursework guidelines on Edmodo. Cikgu Niely then did some work with us in class and Brandon talked to his friends most of the time.
During Business Studies, there were a lot of complaints about the size of the room, and Ms Chithra told us that she will request for permission to change classrooms. Then, she taught us about sole proprietors, partnerships and joint ventures. And during Art, Ms Feeda had an ultimatum for us; the beginning of our Prep Work.
This begins the real core of Art and Design IGCSE and one that really struck the core of Art and Design IGCSE students.
After spending a total of three months on the normal Art techniques and activities, this is the real deal for us.
Ms Feeda told us that everyone had to do something which is called a Prep Work. You might have seen this on a smaller scale back in 2015. I had seen some of the Prep Works during the Art Exhibitions as well as in Art Studio 3.
For the purposes of Art and Design IGCSE, a student would need to produce supporting studies as part of the examination. Those pieces were to be done and to be marked along with the official painting that we would draw, also known as the Final Piece for examination purposes. It is not like what you see in Year 7, 8 and 9, where the official painting is just drawn on the spot. There are a total of four supporting studies at that time that we need to produce, which we address as a preparation work, or “Prep Work” for short. The specified number was required by Cambridge back then. The syllabus might have since changed, and had been made a bit more difficult, with a total of EIGHT prep works. However, at the time, only four were required, and the criteria for each Prep, was different.
Prep 1 was to be used for gathering information. This means researching the artist reference, finding the appropriate pictures according to the relevant questions, and painting all pictures found or taken onto an A2-sized art paper. A mixture of primary sources, which are photos that we have to take on our own, as well as secondary sources, which are information such as artist references and paintings by other artists, must be presented on every Prep, depending on the situation. For Prep 1, a total of four paintings plus the artist reference is required.
Prep 2 is the consolidation of what was found in Prep 1, and more pictures would be taken and painted onto the prep works. During this time, the students can choose to experiment with different mixed media, such as crayon, colored pencils, water colors or a mixture of all methods. The student can also experiment with certain textures, such as pasting newspaper or aluminium foil to give texture to the painting. There can be at least five pictures, including close-ups, in this prep.
Prep 3 requires the student to select three or four pictures from Prep 1 and 2 and paint them in this prep while experimenting with several textures, mixed media or the elements of art. A fourth prep, Prep 4, narrows this down to two paintings in similar fashion of experimentation. One of the paintings shall then be chosen as the Final Piece to be painted during an exam that would last eight hours in total; four a day. This meant that each student needs to produce five art pieces in total.
There are a total of two papers for Art and Design; one focusing on fine art, that is to say, Paper 1, and another focusing on design, Paper 2; which can be of anything, such as a logo or a poster. This is why the subject is called ‘Art and Design’. The prep works for Paper 2 follow the same as Paper 1, which is the example given earlier for each prep, with the exception being given towards lettering or graphic designs. Paper 2 is much easier to do than Paper 1 as there is less emphasis on texture and toning.
Ms Feeda then gave us her phone number to contact her or WhatsApp her information relating to the prep works, and told us to continue on our Salvador Dali portraits. Then, we had lunch, and it was Science, and Ms Sangeetha introduced our coursework, which she had posted on Edmodo, and talked about the heart and lungs as well as the respiratory system. “Please remind me to upload this on Edmodo in case I forget,” she said. The Science coursework required us to create a model of the human respiratory system. I had trouble finding a group.
Then, we went for our History lesson and Ms Visa taught us about Americans’ reactions to the League of Nations. We had to hand in our work. Gabriel and Aaron Liew did not hand in their work on time, and Ms Visa deducted their marks. “I wonder how is Mr Aram doing with his class. I am already considered lenient,” said Ms Visa. I eventually reminded Ms Sangeetha to upload the slides on Edmodo when I reached home.
The next day, 29th March, was another day in school. We went up for Reading Time with Ms Cynthia, who told Gabriel and Aaron about how Ms Visa told her about their History coursework. Then, we had Economics with Ms Levina and she taught us about the allocation of resources. While teaching, Ms Levina then had to change Brandon's seat multiple times as well as that of Ryan Chok, Eric Wong and Shane. She even swapped Enisha's seat as well as she wasn't concentrating on the lesson, causing her to protest. Then, Mr Thomas came into the lesson.
“I saw three of your latest posts!” I cried.
“Ok, no worries. We will be doing those today,” said Mr Thomas. I grinned.
Mr Thomas then taught us about the posts and then continued them with us in the class. He saw my comment on the harmful effects of nuclear energy and me referencing Caleb Chuang as ‘Right, Caleb?’ when recalling what we learnt in Geography. Then, we had break time.
Prior to the beginning of the week, Mr Gallagher had posted an announcement on Edmodo that he would not be around for the week as he had the measles. We spent the entire time during the Global Perspectives lesson doing our Individual Report, and I started writing mine on traffic congestion. No teacher came for his class that day. Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra then continued to teach us about the types of business organizations by giving us exercises. She said that we needed to know that topic as we needed to use it for our coursework, which would be explained later. We then had lunch, Science as well as Maths, where we went about our day as normal.
On 30th March 2016, Mr Thomas continued to teach us about Quest for Savage Mountain. We continued our lessons as usual. Aaron Loke and Sherwin renamed the 2016Year10 Edmodo group to ‘2016 Y10 English First M.K. Thomas’. “This looks cool,” said Aaron. Mr Thomas nodded and Sherwin smiled. “That will fit a better name,” said Sherwin.
“Wow. 2016 Year 10 English First M.K Thomas. So cool,” I gasped.
Ms Feeda told us to present our ideas for the Art lesson so that we can get started on our Prep Works. For my prep work, I had no idea on what to draw, so Ms Feeda gave me a series of fruits and vegetables to draw, as I am considered a “weak student” for Art and Design IGCSE. You see, there are two groups Ms Feeda classified for Art and Design, and as such, there are high-performing students and weak students. Now, Ms Feeda had also emphasized on listening to the art teacher’s advise (in this case, her) when dealing with any question for Art and Design. This is because an art teacher knows which area we can be best at as well as our strengths and weaknesses.
“Art is a subjective subject,” said Ms Feeda. “So, because of this, we do not mark Art the same way we mark science or maths.” Ms Feeda says this way because the awarding of the grades is based on a series of rubrics and what the examiners think of us; not the same way as how an exam for a normal subject is being marked. In other subjects’ exams, the marks are awarded based on the number of points we addressed in the question and whether the question is correct or not. In the meantime, I touched up the painting for my Salvador Dali artwork.
When Ms Feeda asked why I did not take pictures and I said I merely forgot, she said that taking pictures of the subject matter is important as we are going to copy them onto blank A2-sized paper in order to form the Prep Work. The official name is “preparation work”, but I am going to conveniently call it Prep Work. Cambridge uses the term “supporting studies” as the prep works connect the study of the items in our prep to the final piece. The final piece is a picture of the object that we have drawn based on what we experimented in our prep work.
During our Character Transformation (CT) time, Ms Sarah Wong announced a very interesting project for the Year 10s. She said that the Year 10 students are going to collaborate with another school called Dignity Foundation which is a school that is helping refugee children from Myanmar study in Malaysia after being asked to flee their home country. The school is located at Sentul, near HGH Convention Centre which we performed our 10th anniversary concert at. Ms Sarah told us that we would be paired up with another student from Dignity who would be our pen pal.
The task given to us was to write a letter to our pen pal from time to time, introducing ourselves. Ms Sarah said that we would write the letter, pass it to our homeroom teachers and it would be compiled and sent to Dignity Foundation students who would be in charge of writing the reply pen pal message back to us. We would be tasked with writing the letters to our pen pals during CT time and then we would send them back to our pen pals. There were around four to five rounds of pen-pal letters that we had to write, and we were the ones that were given the opportunity to kickstart the messaging process.
On another note, Ms Sarah Wong said that we would have a “picnic” with the Dignity students sometime in July, and that we would be able to chat and mingle with them. To get started, the teachers would pair us up in the next few weeks with our Dignity pen pals. The purpose of this pen pal project is to get us to communicate with someone whom we don’t know and also get us to reach out and venture beyond the comfort zones whom are our friends and teachers in Nobel, as well as to improve bonds between our pen pals from Dignity Foundation. So, to get started, Ms Sarah told us to write our first letter, and our teachers gave us pieces of paper during the CT session to introduce ourselves. Each one of us had been given a pen pal to write to. The pen pal I was assigned to is Naing Ling.
I wrote to Naing Ling that I like to do gardening as my hobby, and that I am from Nobel International School. I also told him that I have a lot of friends, but gardening was the major thing I talked about in my message to him. I can also remember that Ashlyne Yong's pen pal's name was Su Su.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra unveiled the coursework for Business Studies, which was to write a Business Report. The Business Report was to be written based on a company mentioned in the coursework handout in a scenario. Then, we had History, and then we continued the League of Nations exercise with Ms Visa. After school ended, we went for our Compassion Project that day, to Love on Wheels.
Now, Ms Lim had said back in January 2016 that we would be going for two Compassion projects a year. We would be headed to Jinjang for the evening distribution of food packets for Love on Wheels. There were ten of us who headed to Soup Kitchen per trip, around ten or so. For the first trip, I went with Co Sheen, Yi Zhen, Jien Min, Joseph Diong, Caleb Chuang, Ryan Toh, Shaun Ting, Daniel Ngew, Joshua Chew and Natasha Singam.
On this first session which I went for Love on Wheels, we departed at 3:30pm to head to Jinjang. So, we boarded the school van to head to Jinjang. Ms Sha accompanied us on the trip to Jinjang. So, that evening, we drove to the Soup Kitchen via the LDP Highway and the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) as we headed to Jinjang. The reason why we had to go after school is not only to avoid eating our school time, but also to accommodate the people who had to go to receive Love on Wheels food packets. During the ride, Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew talked to each other and studied what they learnt in Chemistry with Mr Nick. Yi Zhen and Co Sheen were busy looking at Instagram.
Our first stop was the Soup Kitchen. We then went to stack up food onto Fungates Superflow Foundation vans which would ply the various routes around Jinjang to a series of collection points. We were told by one of the volunteers from Soup Kitchen, Ms Eliza, that the vans would carry three things inside a paper bag; a bun, Jacobs biscuit and some drinks such as Ribena. A total of over 400 families will need to be fed each day by the volunteers from Soup Kitchen, who would distribute the food to the needy. They said that they would be better equipped if there were volunteers, and thanked us for coming.
We then proceeded to stack the goodie bags onto the vans. There were around four vans located at the Soup Kitchen, with their booths facing the doorway so that we can load them inside. On top of that, we also had to load them fast as most of the families would be waiting at a queue. It was around 4:30pm when we had finished stacking, and we had to move out to our first delivery at 4:45pm.
So, we left at 4:45pm and the school van followed behind the four vans from Soup Kitchen. Our first stop was PPR Sri Aman, Jinjang. Now, what we are seeing here is a block of flats in which these flats were built maybe 30 years in the past as at the time of visiting. The flat is normal government flats, where people had to squeeze in the houses. There were around 20 families that depend on Fungates to send food to them.
As we arrived at the flats, there was a long line of people standing outside, lined up in a queue at the collection point we were assigned to. So we got down from the van, and Ms Sha then told us that we should line up in front of the crowd, and then take around 10 bags from the van and then hand it one by one to the people. Some of the individuals were accompanied by their children who range from three to 11 years old. Some were malnourished or in wheelchairs. So, Yi Zhen and Co Sheen stood in front first, followed by Jien Min, Ryan, Joshua, Joseph, me, Daniel Ngew, Shaun Ting, Caleb Chuang and the rest, and we had to rotate until all the food from the van had been distributed.
Once we were done, we then went to another four more locations. We went to Flat Jinjang Utara, followed by a squatter area, another flat and finally a large field. The same routine was done, as saw people of every color. We had seen such scenes on television, but the feeling was shocking seeing them in real life. Some of their shirts were old and desolate, some had just returned from work, and there was one Indian father and mother with around five of their children including their toddler coming along. But what happened was that when we arrived at our final location, it then started to rain, and we had to still soldier on, handing food in the rain.
Once we were done, some of us were wet, but luckily we were not sold. “Cher, can give us extra allowance ah?" asked Yi Zhen. She felt that as we were unlucky to brace rainfall, we should be paid as there were unbearable circumstances and unlucky moments faced during our session. Jien Min, Ryan Toh and Shaun were grinning, hoping to receive some pay.
“Sorry, no gaji,” said Ms Sha, to a sad look on Yi Zhen’s face. Natasha, Co Sheen and Yi Zhen continued talking while Caleb, Joshua and Shaun felt tired as we whisked back to school. We all started thinking about dinner, and then once we arrived, we saw our parents waiting for us, and Mr Chuang was quite a bit tired but waiting for Caleb to take him home.
The next day, Global Perspectives lesson went on as usual as Ms Samantha came in to relief Mr Gallagher. We just did our work. Then, we had some strength training and push ups during PE. Mr Victor guided us as we proceeded.
During Economics, Brandon returned to his seat, which made Ms Levina not so happy. She warned him that she will change his seat again if he misbehaved. We did some exercises to calculate the Price Elasticity of Demand. Once that was done, we then did some exercises during Maths.
After lunch, I met Ms Feeda and presented her with a picture of a basket of fruits that I took a picture of, but however, Ms Feeda said that it was not considered enough for Art and Design. She suggested that I snap at least eight to ten different images so that we can choose the best one. “Wei Yiang, you really have to hurry up as you will need to draw this in your Mid Year Examination,” she said.
Ms Feeda added that if I did not take more pictures and bring them for the Art classes, then I will have literally NOTHING to paint or draw in the class after filtering out all the paintings, and I would be wasting my time. “The standard for Art and Design IGCSE is not like Year 7 or 8,” she said. A Year 7, 8 or 9’s artwork, even if drawn quickly and messily, would get a C, but Ms Feeda said that it is very difficult for me to get a C if I continued with my attitude then.
Then, I continued with my Salvador Dali artwork. Once that was done, I went up for History, and then returned back to the Art Studio for Fine Art Club, where we continued our charcoal painting. Louis’ hands was really dirty like mad because of the charcoal.
Finally, it was Friday. The day begun normally as Ms Cynthia gave us a permission slip and message for our first field trip of the year, bound for Eagle Ranch Resort in Port Dickson. Cikgu Niely gave us work to do. And Ms Cynthia taught us about foreign occupations in Malaya given by the British and told us to do some research on it. The day continued in normal fashion. Ms Bee Yan gave us work to do. Ms Sangeetha asked us on our coursework progress. And we did our Individual Evaluation during Global Perspectives. Mr Anthony came to relief Mr Gallagher.
Enisha invited me to do a project for Combined Science at her house in Ara Damansara on 2nd April 2016. Ms Sangeetha had came up with the coursework on Monday, 28th March 2016. She told us that we will need to create a model of a part of the human body as part of the Combined Science coursework. I had not found a group because most groups were taken. Ms Sangeetha also said that we have to do the presentation of the model in the class.
Enisha told me on Wednesday, 30th March, that she had earlier tried to form a group with Grace, Jia Yee and Cassandra but all of them broke apart following disagreements, so in this case, me, Enisha and Cassandra were part of this new composition. Grace and Jia Yee then joined with Ivyna, Sheng Jit and Kelsey on their project. So, what Enisha proposed was that I help her to make a model of the human lungs, and that I join her on 2nd April 2016, a Saturday, at her house in Ara Damansara.
So, on Saturday, 2nd April, my mum sent me to Ara Damansara to do the project with Enisha. Enisha’s mum greeted me and gave me a hug, then I went to meet Enisha to officially begin the project. So, Enisha greeted me and got some glue guns ready before we started to begin constructing the model of the lungs.
We need to attach a straw and a pipe to make the windpipe, which is the main airway for oxygen entering into the lungs, and two balloons to mimick the lungs. Enisha tried to use glue guns to stick the windpipe to a cardboard so that it can support the model while it is being displayed. I had bought some clay and pipes to make the windpipes.
I then helped Enisha to arrange the pipes and cut them so that it can be connected. The pipe has to be a y-shaped cross section in order to connect it to the two lungs because obviously, humans have two lungs.
Afterwards, Enisha decided to call GrabFood for lunch and then she got some snacks about 30 minutes later. It was not easy to cut the pipes, so Enisha then told me to get some rest while she did some of the workload. As I had brought an iPad to refer to when constructing the human lungs, I then spent some time reading a thread called SkyscraperCity where confidential documents regarding architectural renderings, mechanical and electrical (M&E) works and other confidential plans and updates are being posted. No one can easily retrieve such documents in a normal setting, so this setting is highly interesting as top engineers and enthusiasts are in the thread. The thread focuses on the construction of the Dubai Metro which is a mass rapid transit (MRT) system in Dubai which opened on 9th September 2009. Aside from the documents, there are also archived news articles and also texts from the users chatting in a social media setting at points of time throughout the five years or so of the thread.
Enisha then called me to come back to work and was a bit impatient because she can’t do things easily. Then, I tried to put things correctly but Enisha was impatient. “No, not like that!” “No, don’t put it this way!” she cried. No worries, there are times where Enisha and I were cold towards each other, but we made up. I then left Enisha’s house at 4:00pm and headed home.
Mind you, the view from Enisha’s house is spectacular, as she lives in a flat. The flat has a nice view of the Subang Airport Road, Ara Damansara LRT Station (which was still under construction at the time) and you can even see the hangars of aircraft at the Subang Airport. The entire compound of the Japanese School of Kuala Lumpur can be seen at the bottom of her apartment.
Mr Gallagher had a rude shock when I told him via Edmodo that I had completed my Individual Evaluation on Transportation and Infrastructure. He texted on Edmodo, “you're on the conclusion already!?”
What I was thinking was like, why was he so surprised as to the fact that I am on the conclusion. At first glance, it may look weird that Mr Gallagher was surprised that I had finished early. Finishing early isn't wrong; teachers encourage their students to complete their work as early as possible. And completing the work early would result in more time to finish other homework. For example, the History coursework, which was to draw a World War I propaganda poster, was finished in a week instead of three. The Business Studies coursework would also be finished in a week. The time taken to do the coursework can be completed in hours instead of weeks, and previous coursework given in such iterations were completed instantly, weeks before their intended deadlines. I finished such work early in the past, and there was no issue with that. So, I really felt weird as to why Mr Gallagher was really reacting in such a manner. I mean, like, the first two essays he asked me to do, namely on War and Conflict as well as Poverty, were finished in a week. Nevertheless, he told me to send the work to him to be checked. I thought that he was assuming that people would do it really slowly. I felt I was proactive and completed the work during his days of absence without issue.
On Monday, 4th April 2016, Mr Thomas then explained on Alison Hargraves. Then, Cikgu Niely did some work. But there was an exciting treat for all the Art students – a visit to The One Academy.
The One Academy is an art school located in Bandar Sunway. It is a premier institution for Art and Design. This art school is favored by a number of Nobel's alumni. Ms Feeda had collaborated with The One Academy on certain aspects, and that day, she was bringing us to the place for a visit. It is tradition for students doing Art and Design in Nobel to visit The One Academy.
Earlier in the month, Ms Feeda had also given us a drawing paper attached to a form for an art competition by The One Academy and asked us to complete the drawings if we wanted to participate. She urged all of us to participate in the competition. The competition asked us to draw a naturalistic theme according the guidelines. I had already snapped up a form back in January but didn’t manage to have time to finish the drawing, and Ms Feeda gave us the form again and told us to finish within two weeks and hand it up latest by 28th April.
The purpose of Ms Feeda bringing us to The One Academy was to indulge us in the world of Art and Design. The One Academy is the premier art school for aspiring art and design students, and this ranges from paintings to graphic art. This college focuses on art enthusiasts and design courses, and is highly recommended for those persuing graphic design.
So, we left Nobel International School at 10:20am, right after break, via the school van, where Ms Feeda then took us to The One Academy. The One Academy was, at the time, located next to Sunway Pyramid and spans a total of eight adjacent shoplots. Once we reached The One Academy, we were taken on a tour inside the building. It was a cloudy day that day
Tatsun Hoi is the principal of The One Academy at the time, and our guide told us that there were no lifts inside The One Academy because Tatsun wanted everyone to exercise. Ms Feeda then greeted a few ex-Nobelians who were in the academy doing their study. The academy is very big and consisted of different rooms and places in it. There was a graphic studio, computer room, painting room and even a performing arts studio located in the campus.
Once we were done, we sat down in a hall filled with a lot of chairs as we were given some workshops on art and design. We were also told how we could enhance ourselves and benefit by joining The One Academy. We then had some drawing exercises and ice breakers where we answered a quiz. I sat with Glen Kay in the front while listening to our instructor. We then had a group photo thereafter before heading back to school, as the instructor reminded us about the competition Ms Feeda said earlier.
After lunch, we then had Science. Brandon Ooi spilled Louis’ water bottle, and this resulted in Louis himself getting angry and chasing Brandon around the class. Ms Sangeetha stopped Louis and scolded Brandon, while asking him to clean up the mess. Then, we had History, and Brandon tried to do the same to Louis again, but Ms Visa came in, which resulted in him putting his actions on pause. We then continued learning about the League of Nations.
The next day, Ms Levina gave us exercises and regularly checked Brandon Ooi's work. He tried to play cuddle with Ms Levina. Then, we had English, and Mr Thomas continued Alison's story with us.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher told me to meet him, and he wasn't in a good mood. “Why did you finish your work so quickly?” he asked. I tried to explain to him that it was encouraged to finish the work early and teachers would be pleased of timely performance. “The other two essays took a week each to complete, so I don't see why this should be of a big issue,” I replied.
Mr Gallagher said that I did not understood the scope of the report. “You only have 1000 words in your report. You are actually supposed to include more details and explanation. Some of the points have not been thoroughly explained. Go back and continue writing,” he said.
What Mr Gallagher was thinking was that the Individual Evaluation Report should take at least TWO MONTHS to finish, and not a mere two weeks. The report would need to contain at least EIGHT to TEN TIMES the amount of words that I should be writing, consist of around twenty paragraphs, and that at least fifty sources must be linked in the essay. When the Individual Evaluation was launched, Mr Gallagher merely outlined the structure of the report and the topic of the report. He did not mention much. Had he mentioned those expectations as to the specifications of the report during the lesson, I would be much more prepared. Instead, he told us to just have a proper structure with sources and simply write it down on our electronic devices.
This would be one of the first of three main missteps that I would make for the Individual Evaluation Report for Global Perspectives. It was a ticking time bomb waiting to happen.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra wrapped up the lesson on sole traders and partnerships, and gave us work to do. She also announced that she will be putting her slides on Edmodo. Hence, she became the sixth teacher after Mr Thomas, Mr Gallagher, Ms Feeda, Mr Narish and Ms Sangeetha, to use Edmodo. She created a group on Edmodo and named it Y10 – Business Studies.
After lunch, we then had Science, and we went to the Science lab to do an investigation of starch using ethanol by applying the ethanol on the surface of the leaf. Sheng Jit always kept touching the leaf with tweezers, which made Ivyna really annoyed. Then, Ms Bee Yan gave us our Maths coursework and told us about the instructions.
Wednesday, 6th April, begun on a high note. Mr Thomas posted a note dated, ‘For your action on 6th March 2016’. I immediately pointed out the mistake and commented it on Edmodo.
“It's April, Mr Thomas! April, not March!” I cried. It looked hillarious and the whole class laughed. The task was to answer some questions on the Alison text. Then, during Economics, Ms Levina told Brandon Ooi to sit next to me, in front of her so that she can monitor him. Brandon came to me and then he sat next to me. He said hi, and he said, “I am going on a date with Wei Yiang and Ms Levina!” he cried. Ms Levina asked Brandon to do his work. He kept teasing me and asking me about life till I got annoyed.
During Art, Ms Feeda called us for a briefing. She told us that some of us, including me, were very slow and needed to hurry up.
You see, Art and Design IGCSE is also all about time management. Ms Feeda also allowed some of us to stay back after school, but I do not take the staybacks seriously and played down the staybacks as “another after school session” in which I can go back home and rest. But Ms Feeda said that the staybacks are important because it can buy us time to complete our preps and “who knows if you stay back more, you can complete faster,” as quoted by her.
The reason why time management is important for Art IGCSE because it is very important for us to complete all the prep works before doing the final piece. Ms Feeda said that if we did not complete the prep works, it will be impossible and difficult for us to plan out the final piece. So, Ms Feeda made sure that we complete all the prep works quickly. As the Mid Year Examination is our very first exam standard for Art and Design IGCSE, she said that she will be a bit lenient and less strict in marking, but when it comes to the Final Year Examination and IGCSE trial, she will give her honest opinions.
For a brief overview of how the preps work, here is a brief summary:
Prep 1 – Students must take some pictures related to the exam question and then paint it out as a subject matter study. They must also present the artist reference as per the question and copy it.
Prep 2 – Students then take more pictures and do some subject matter studies (copy the image) by painting it on the paper.
Prep 3 - Students then choose a few subject matter studies painted in Prep 1 and 2 and repaint it in Prep 3. They can study different mixed media methods, such as hatching, coloring with color pencils or crayon, or so on, and experiment with them.
Prep 4- Students then choose two or three subject matter studies from Prep 3 to paint in this prep, and experiment with more mixed media methods. One of the paintings from Prep 4 will be used for the Final Piece which will be held in an exam that lasts for eight hours in total.
Each prep work would not only need to consist of paintings, but at the same time the prep works also must have a series of “annotations” which are writings and sentences on the paper that we need to write to describe what we painted, why we painted it and how we painted it and what you plan to use this painting for in the future.
During Art, I came back with more pictures of the broccoli, carrots and cauliflower and presented them to her in the class with satisfaction. Thus, I begun my Prep 1 to experiment with fruits and vegetables as supporting studies for the exam.
Ms Feeda says that weak students in Art and Design IGCSE like me would be given either natural landscapes to draw, or fruits and vegetables. This is because from her perspective, a weak student may not be able to have good hand-eye coordination and also a poor state of concentration when drawing, and hence, fruits and vegetables have irregular shapes, thus making it easier to draw. The contour is also thus easy to color as there are different sets of toning, making weak students easy to draw. The other weak students for Art and Design IGCSE are Glen Kay, Louis Soon and Chong Yan Chern, and Ms Feeda grouped us together. Now, occasionally, Yan Chern and I may have some conflicts, but we try to avoid it.
Ms Feeda then went around, checking everyone and entertaining Chee Kei and Eugenie who always wanted to play Korean songs in her class. She also told me to take more pictures in preparation for Prep 2. Then, during Character Transformation, Ms Lim invited Mr Andy from the Fungates Superflow Foundation to introduce the Love on Wheels programme for us as our Compassion Projects were about to start. The first group of students were going to Jinjang that day.
After lunch, we then had Business Studies, History and then Bible Knowledge. During the BK class, Ms Renee then introduced us to the Bible Knowledge Postal Quiz and we were to set a date for the postal quiz. Ms Renee eventually said that we will do the BK Postal Quiz on 20th April.
Ms Chithra had decided that she would change classes for Business Studies as the class was too small. She had gotten the approval from the management. So, instead, she relocated the class to 10L, which was between 10O and 10B. The classes located in the order from left to right on the first floor at the front of the school building, above the foyer and front office where my class was, were 10N, closest to the hall, followed by 10O, 10L, 10B, 10E and 8B.
10L is a much more spacious class and adding to the relief were more air conditioning units in the classroom to keep us cool. For comparison, the classroom where 10E was had only two sets of fans and air conditioning units each.
I was also thinking about getting Mr Gallagher to switch classrooms with the Additional Mathematics people in 10N who were being taught by Mr Andrew, as the classroom size is bigger and can fit 32 of us in our GP class. For comparison, Mr Andrew’s class only had around 10 students from 10L and that was the only class he had taught. In addition to that, there are only three such classes in which set teaching only involves a single group of students from a single class and not other classes combining together; the First Language English session with Mr Thomas which only comprised of 10O students, the Economics lesson for block 2 in which only 10O students attended the lesson with Ms Levina, and the History lesson in block 2 which was only attended by 10N students.
Aside from that, there are four other classes in which a single class made up the majority, namely our block 3 GP lesson with Mr Gallagher, with only around ten students from other classes with the majority being from 10N; the block 4 ICT lesson in which the majority of people in Mr Narish’s class were from 10N, the block 2 Business Studies lesson which Mr Narish also taught, with the majority from 10N, and the English Second session in which 10N students made up the majority. So, given this situation, my History and GP lessons should be in 10N, and thus, it would be easier to plan and move things around, especially for me, as I would spend two of four of my block sessions in 10N and thus enjoy the cool and comfortable classroom.
I also wanted to have another consolation in which the set teaching classes should be moved to the beginning of the day so that the timetable can become more organized, but however, this would require the consultation of the entire year level which would be very difficult to undertake.
Anyhow, for Ms Chithra’s class, Ms Chithra then felt a sigh of relief as we moved to 10L. She said that if 10L wasn’t used, we can move to 10L, but if the classroom is being used, we would stick in 10E till another classroom was found. Since that particular classroom was not being used, we were in luck.
Ms Chithra always likes to use the software “Business Studies Online” to play a series of interactive games for us in class. So, on that first day where she moved class, we played this Business Studies Online game in which we talked about the previous topics as revision for the upcoming Mid Year Examination.
Soon, it came to Thursday, 7th April 2016. Mr Gallagher told me to write more and he won't talk to me until I had finished writing enough. Guess I needed to write more. How long will the Global Perspectives project last?
During PE, Mr Victor then did some running exercises in the hall with us. Then, he told us to do stretching on the legs and hands, which were so painful till we groaned. We then had Economics, where Ms Levina taught us on how to improve our essay writing and question answering by giving us another worksheet, and Brandon Ooi really made so much trouble for Ms Levina. We did some group work, and I did the group work with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal. We had to pick a country with a market economy and present about the country the following week. Nickolas and Ze Khai decided to choose Singapore. Ms Levina did not allow Brandon to work with Shane and Ryan Chok and instead told him to join Grace and Jia Yee's group, to which he protested. Each group was told to choose one person to do the presentation. I told Ze Khai that I will make slides for the presentation.
Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan taught us about Venn Diagrams, and Brandon told Louis that the venn diagram was his backside, resulting in Brandon and Louis arguing and Ms Bee Yan having to settle the both of them separately.
After lunch, we then had a briefing by Ms Feeda on why we should always listen to her instructions during Art on how and why the prep works must be done in such manner as she did with us. She said that everything or anything we did on our prep work must be approved by her in order to conform to the exam standards. Sometimes, Ms Feeda would even choose the exam questions for us. She gave an example in which one student of hers for the 2015 exam did not heed her guidance and insisted his own way by choosing a figurine question when Ms Feeda had advocated for one with a normal poster design in Paper 2. Ms Feeda had placed a forecast grade of B for his exam, but because he did not want to listen to her and instead chose his own question for the exam, he got a D instead. Ms Feeda used that example as a reminder for us to follow her advice and always get approval from her.
At the same time, Ms Feeda was also planning to get some guest speakers to come to our art lesson for some presentations as well as to take us to The One Academy to view the artworks by those students there. “Hopefully we can do this soon. I will let you know the date,” she said, as we were focused on our Prep Works for the Mid Year Examination. We then went back for History, where we learnt about the Great Depression.
The next day, we came to school, fresh as normal as Ms Lim announced the winners for the Class of the Month, Cleanest Class and the Wow! Awards. The Class of the Month for KS4 for the month of March 2016, as well as the Cleanest Class for the same, was won by 10L. Mr Lee and his students screamed loudly when they were awarded the prize. The treat for Class of the Month was an ice-skating trip to Sunway Pyramid.
You see, Mr Lee is really gung-ho on being the Class of the Month. His class literally screamt like mad. They had gotten the Cleanest Class in a row for the THIRD TIME. Honestly, if I were to ask everyone in 10N to keep their class clean, none would cooperate.
Cikgu Niely told us during Malay that we would have an Oral Test from 18th to 29th April, during our Malay lesson. I was wondering what it was. Then, during Malaysian Studies, we presented our research that we did at home which Ms Cynthia requested us to do. The rest of the day was spent normally. Mr Gallagher told me to continue writing. He checked my work and said there was even more writing to do. I felt like fainting.
Monday, 11th April was a really rocky but exciting start to the week. There was no assembly as it was raining, so I went up to class and had a chat with Caleb Chuang. This resulted in Nieshaal Thambipillay dragging me and escorting me out of the class like riot police. Ms Bee Yan was outside, and got really disappointed with him when she saw him did that. She was entering 10O to take their attendance. I asked Ms Bee Yan few questions on the coursework before going back to 10N. Ms Cynthia then talked to us about what to expect for our field trip.
It was then English, and Mr Thomas came in.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Yes, good morning, how are you?” he asked.
I then told Mr Thomas about the errors on Edmodo. Apparently, Shaun Ting had commented, “Oh no, this is very very bad,” on Edmodo in relation to the error where Mr Thomas mentioned 6th March 2016 instead of 6th April 2016. Mr Thomas then spoke about referring to the Edmodo page.
“You must always look at the page, because the lesson materials is up there,” he said.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I responded.
“It is very important for you to look at it. If you don't look at it, you will fall behind,” continued Mr Thomas.
“No problem, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Some of you are sleeping in the class. I wonder if you have even taken the time to read my texts.”
“I did, Mr Thomas! I opened Edmodo yesterday afternoon and even looked at it until yesterday night!” I responded.
“That's very good, Wei Yiang, I know you have read it, but I am asking the class. Can you all please promise to check the text and look at Edmodo?” asked Mr Thomas. The whole class nodded and Jien Min said, “YES, MR THOMAS!”
“Good. Now, I am going to open today's lesson. I have just posted it,” declared Mr Thomas. He opened the Edmodo application and showed us a task. Mr Thomas then briefed us on how to hone our presentation skills. We had to do a presentation on the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, according to the task.
“This award is a prestigious award bestowed by the Duke of Edinburgh to various individuals, especially to those who have outstandingly contributed to society,” he said.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I responded.
“It is very important for us to inspire people to receive the award, and what we are going to do today is to present about it. Can you break out into groups and please discuss on how you plan to present it?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I replied.
Mr Thomas then broke us into groups as I discussed with Sherwin and Aaron Loke who sat behind me, on how to present it. I offered to create the cover slide while the two of them did the rest as we discussed points. Mr Thomas then walked around, talking to us and guided us on how to prepare for the presentation.
I told Sherwin and Aaron Loke that we need to create a funny presentation so that we can ensure that we can please the viewers. “Make sure it is not too long, as we have our parts to cover,” Sherwin said, warning me to watch the clock.
Soon, Mr Thomas approached us and asked how we are doing, and I told him we are doing great and told him to look out for our amazing presentation.
“Good,” he replied, giving the thumbs up.
Sherwin would create the slides, Aaron Loke would write the script while I created the front cover page of the slideshow presentation. Mr Thomas told us to get the presentation ready in a week while he waited for us and we continued reading texts in the class. Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Niely taught us about how to prepare for the Malay orals and briefed us on how we should execute it. Brandon Ooi kept on talking till Cikgu Niely got very fed up with him.
During break time, Ms Lim briefed us on our next day's field trip. She said that we will be allowed to bring handphones as well as our valuables, but it had to be brought at our own risk. Some people played jokes with Ms Lim on bringing phones, which made her unhappy. "You can also wear sports shoes as well,” said Ms Lim.
Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us three worksheets to finish. I decided to partner with Wei Zhong for the Business Studies coursework. Afterwards, I brought all the research materials to the Art Studio and presented them to Ms Feeda. She then gave me the go-ahead to continue with Prep 2. I completed Prep 1 and dipped some colors in the picture to paint a lemon and a pear. Ms Feeda trying to get us serious to do the art and design preps for the Mid Year Examination. We would go on to do four sets of exam series for art; one for Mid Year Examination 2016, one for the Final Year Examination 2016, another for Mid Year Examination 2017 which is also the IGCSE Trial for Art and Design IGCSE, and the actual IGCSE exam.
After lunch, we then had Science with Ms Sangeetha, and Ms Sangeetha taught us about flowers and their reproduction. We had to draw them in our exercise book. This time, Brandon Ooi was well-behaved, and Ms Sangeetha smiled. Then, we had History, and Brandon and Ze Khai looked at Brandon play his game on his phone. Then, Ms Visa arrived, and he kept the phone. We learnt about the Manchurian Crisis and how the Japanese Empire tried to invade China in the lead up to World War II.
Our first field trip for 2016 was headed to Eagle Ranch Resort, Port Dickson, on 12th April 2016. Eagle Ranch Resort is a resort filled with obstacle courses within the resort, and that the entire location is located in a remote area close to the Port Dickson waterfront. The teachers got us ready on the field trip day by gathering us in the courtyard of the school in order to take our attendance and sort us into our buses. All of our bus numbers follow our class arrangements, with some classes being mixed based on the arrangements of our names per class. Our names by class are arranged in alphabetical order, so when the last person’s name on 10N is complete, this is then followed by the first person’s name from 10O. The last person's name from 10N was Hao Yinn and Ashlyne Yong was the first person from 10O.
The morning was really exciting. I arrived at school and ate my food, before going to see Caleb Chuang. I spent time with him, Joseph Diong and Joshua Chew talking about the field trip. Soon, Nieshaal Thambipillay had a growling face when seeing me in his class, but Joseph pushed Nieshaal aside to prevent him from disturbing us.
Mr Lee and Mr Nick wore caps just like adventurers from a movie. In fact, 10O and 10L were boasting about how great the two of them were. They reminded me of Ash Ketchum from Pokemon. I told Caleb Chuang this and he laughed. Even Joshua was amused by that.
Everyone was then ushered to the buses parked outside the school. The buses took up one lane on the main road for us to board the bus. The teachers were seen busy coordinating with the bus drivers in order to ferry us to Eagle Ranch Resort. There was a lady from the bus company talking to Ms Lim outside the school As soon as things are ready, the buses departed from Nobel, passing along the various roads to get to the LDP Highway. I sat with Gabriel Lim and we spent time pointing out the landmarks along the route as the bus drove by. The bus then drove towards the highway, and then passed by my house in Puchong. It then drove all the way towards Putrajaya and bypassed Putrajaya via the South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE) and all the way towards Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) where my cousin studied. From Kajang, the buses then entered the North South Expressway and exited at the Seremban/Port Dickson interchange to head towards Port Dickson on the Seremban – Port Dickson Highway. The bus then exited the highway and drove on a trunk road to meet the western end of the main coastal road of Port Dickson near Teluk Kemang, where one can glimpse a nice view of the beach. I have been to Port Dickson when I was 10 or 11 years old, and stayed at my mum’s friend’s holiday home at PD World Marina Resort.
I then caught glimpse of the Lexis Hibiscus Hotel which is a series of water chalets built in the shape of a hibiscus flower in the middle of the ocean. Gabriel told me that he had stayed at the hotel before when visiting Port Dickson. As soon as we knew it, the bus arrived at Eagle Ranch Resort, Port Dickson.
We arrived at the resort and were ushered to a large field at the tip of the resort and assembled in our class lines. Ms Renee and Shaun Ting then stood on the stage to coordinate everyone’s arrival into the resort. We then sat down on the field as attendance was taken. Joseph Diong, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew and the 10O students then sat down and had a chat, while the people in our class just waited for things. Then, we were introduced to our instructor, who came.
The instructor, a Malay fellow, introduced himself, but there was still noise from the crowd. “Siapa nak cakap,” he raised his voice as he shouted, “sila keluar sini cakap. Saya beri peluang untuk anda.” He then asked once again if anyone dared to speak, and no one reacted. “Good,” said the instructor.
Ms Renee and the other teachers smiled at that gesture, as the instructor had acted in an angry tone to arrange the house in order. For me, I felt that he mistreated us as he had acted in a crude manner in front of all of us, and that instead, it should be Ms Renee or any of the other teachers should get everyone to settle down, as this gave a bad impression of the staff of the resort.
The instructor told us that we would be doing an obstacle course activity. So, each class was broken into two groups and then attempted the course one by one. I was placed in the same group as Gabriel, Louis, Glen, Ze Khai, Sheng Jit, Brandon Ooi, Grace Tee, Jia Yee, Enisha, Nickolas Nashpal, Cassandra, Kelsey and Ivyna. We were the first group to attempt the course.
First, we had to climb over a net, then we had to ascend down a steep hill using ropes. Afterwards came a series of beam balancing, monkey bars and tunnel crawling and more other ridiculous courses. The instructor told us that from the place where the obstacle course was, we could see a clear view of the beach and the Straits of Malacca. The view was spectacular.
During the trip, I had a rocky relationship with some of my friends from my class due to our differences. Brandon Ooi, Enisha, Shane, Ryan Chok and I had a few cold moments where we almost had a short quarrel with each other. I had this cold relations as I felt separated from my friends who were in 10O, B, E and L. Remember that earlier in the year that I mentioned the North Korea-South Korea analogy to describe me and Caleb Chuang in different classes? This was the case here. Brandon and I did not see eye to eye for quite some time.
Once we were finished with the obstacle courses, we then went to the restaurant where lunch was served for us. I then sat down with Caleb and Joshua and the people outside of 10N to have my lunch together. Following lunch, I went to have a walk around the resort to digest my food. There was a small pond nearby, a basketball court and some tents that look like those from the American West.
We then gathered in our groups as some people who were daring attempted the flying fox at the resort. Following that, we then proceeded to solve riddles in the resort. We went all over the resort, searching for clues. Enisha told me to hurry up and follow the group while I was still thinking about Caleb Chuang and the rest having fun together. Brandon did not want me to participate in discussions with him about the riddle questions when we met.
Following the riddle solving, we then gathered at the restaurant where we then posed for a group photo and then headed to board the buses back to school. The bus then drove on a large road that is in front of the traffic light junction near the resort, and headed back to the Seremban – Port Dickson Highway. It then drove to the North South Expressway, the Kesas Highway and finally the LDP Highway before we arrived at school.
The next day, Wednesday, 13th April 2016, Mr Narish came on stage. No, he was not announcing any Sports Day-related information. He was announcing that the Prefectorial Board had opened applications for anyone to join the Prefectorial Board as a school prefect. Mr Narish is also the Head of Student Leadership and also the head teacher of the Prefectorial Board. He said that the application forms will be available at the Junior and Senior School’s Management Office, and all we needed to do was to ask him or Ms Bee Yan, who is also the assistant teacher for the Prefectorial Board, for the forms.
“So, if you want to be a prefect, please don't hestitate to ask me or Ms Bee Yan for the forms,” said Mr Narish. Everyone had a week to fill in the forms and submit them. Mr Narish had said that the Prefectorial Board had decided to do away with the traditional method of choosing prefects and instead decided to allow individuals who were interested to apply themselves. They must pass an interview, which the teachers will shortlist, in order to become a prefect.
We then returned to class, and Mr Thomas then introduced the next text, which was on Whitewater Rafting. “Have you seen this?” he asked. I responded in the affirmative, and he showed a video of whitewater rafting activities in the class. The video was a promotional video of whitewater rafting at Victoria Falls but it looked so funny till I laughed in class. Jien Min then said he would like to see Mr Thomas whitewater-raft. “You should have come with us for the field trip,” he said. Mr Thomas said he had accompanied the Year 11s to the Tadom Base Camp in Sepang. Then, he talked about his experiences during the field trip, and told us to write an essay about it in class. “You must write a letter to your friend persuading him to come for the Whitewater Rafting activity at Victoria Falls,” said Mr Thomas. I chose to write the letter to Caleb Chuang. Then, once everyone was done, Mr Thomas told Aaron Loke and Sherwin to collect the exercise books and carry them to his office.
During Economics, Ms Levina told us to get into groups to finalize our discussion and present them the next day. I opted for a Powerpoint presentation. Brandon Ooi used the time to play his phone. “Eh Brandon, no phones in class. Please keep, keep, keep....” said Ms Levina. Brandon kept his phone. Such a device is banned on school grounds, and even the management is aware that a lot of people bring phones to school. Well, I believe I am one of the few who don't own a handphone, so this issue is off my chest. We then went for break, and I stopped outside Caleb Chuang's class and followed him for break.
Then, it was Art, and Ms Feeda called us for a briefing. She highlighted a common weakness among Art and Design IGCSE students is that students tend to talk and converse with one another during the lesson while doing their prep work. While this appears normal to an ordinary person, for Art and Design IGCSE, the teacher takes it seriously or even prohibits it. This is because when one talks, they get distracted and are not able to complete their prep work, and subsequently, they cannot plan for the final piece. For comparison, one prep can take at least three weeks to complete. So this means over half a month can be spent just for a prep. The prep should also be detailed, since the standard is high and one is expected to be a perfectionist.
Then, Ms Feeda said she will allow us to stay back after school to complete the prep works. She told us that we can only stay back until 5:00pm, and that non-art students should be with us in the art studio to accompany us to do our prep works as it can result in our prep work also going missing if we are careless. So, she made sure that we do not get others to come with us. Fortunately, Caleb Chuang is busy and it is at times very hard to always meet him. You see, as the standard for Art and Design IGCSE is high, Ms Feeda is very strict on our conduct for Art and Design. I got to see many of the prep works while I was in Year 7 doing the Fine Art Club CCA, but however, doing the preps themselves takes me to a whole new level.
“Regarding the guest speaker, he said he is free now, but I told him that we are not free. So, I am trying to schedule this meeting with him after the Mid Year Examination,” she said. Ms Feeda had exciting plans for us. She also told us that the deadline of 30th April 2016 for The One Academy's art competition was about to end, and we had to submit our drawings to them by then. Ms Feeda also told us that we will be visiting The One Academy after the exams ended. “But for now, focus on your prep, okay?” she asked.
We then returned to do our Prep Work. Ms Feeda got me started on Prep 2. She told me that for now, I can draw less drawings but I need to be more serious on the prep works next time. I proceeded to write ‘Prep 2’ on my second A2 paper, and begun tracing a close-up of a broccoli. I tried to talk to Natasha for a while, but she didn't want to talk to me and was really frustrated. Then, Ms Feeda told me to concentrate on my work.
After we were done, Ms Feeda then took our prep works to let it dry. Then, we went for our Character Transformation session where we had a talk by people from the United States on promoting further studies in America. Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra gave us work and also time for us to discuss on our Business Studies coursework. Gabriel then joined our group. Wei Zhong told me to do my part and hand it to him to compile the business report. We then had History, and Brandon and Ze Khai did arm wrestling, before Ms Visa came in. We then spent 80 minutes to learn about the League of Nations’ inaction on Japan for invading Manchuria.
Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee told us to pray for each other before we begun our class. Desmond Chan sat next to me and I prayed for him. We then learnt about Jesus’ miracles as well as his encounter with John the Baptist.
It was the last day of classes, 14th April, as the next day was PTM. That morning, Ms Renee met all the Bible Knowledge students during reading time in order to explain on our coursework, which was to make a testamony video on how God had inspired us.
“I don't think anyone is taking Bible Knowledge in this class,” said Ms Cynthia when Ms Renee entered to call for Bible Knowledge students. Even Brandon also said there was no one and shushed Ms Renee away, but he was chided for being very rude to Ms Renee. Then, I stood up and walked out of the class. “I am taking BK,” I said to Ms Cynthia. Brandon Ooi was shocked. “What?” he cried. “Wei Yiang is taking BK?”
Ms Renee was discussing the coursework, and Sherwin, Joseph and Joshua were asking a lot of questions. In fact, the whole 10N also saw me and Caleb Chuang talk.
Then, it was Mr Gallagher's Global Perspectives lesson and more writing was done. Then, during PE, Mr Victor told us that we will have our beep test next week. “The boys will start first, followed by the girls. Those of you who do not have beep test will do your strength test,” he said. Mr Victor practiced the various moves with us and we planked till our legs and muscles ached.
After that, it was break time. I then told Caleb Chuang how exciting it was for the Economics presentation later on with Ms Levina.
When we returned to class, I was ready to plug in my pendrive to present for Economics. Ms Levina then said that Brandon Ooi would have the honor of starting first since he was really making a lot of noise. Brandon managed to present some points and Ms Levina corrected him. Then, it was my turn. I plugged my pendrive into the computer.
“Wei Yiang, there is no need to use Powerpoint slides,” said Ms Levina. Just a presentation on the paper, but since you want to use Powerpoint, you can do it anyway,” she said. Then, I presented on Singapore and Ms Levina said that Singapore is considered a mixed economy and not a market economy. “But good try,” she said. “Your presentation is quite creative.” The whole class gave me a round of applause for my presentation. Then, Grace presented on behalf of Enisha's group, followed by Ivyna. Ms Levina then told us on areas where we can improve before giving us a textbook exercise. Then, we had Ms Bee Yan's Maths lesson. She said that for the time being, there was no Genius Time and we had to choose the next person to present for Genius Time the following week. “Tomorrow is PTM, so we cannot have the Genius Time. Who wants to volunteer?” asked Ms Bee Yan. So, we chose Ze Khai to present the week thereafter.
After the Maths lesson ended, I asked Ms Bee Yan for the Prefectorial Board Application form. Ms Bee Yan led me to the Management Office. She then told me to enter the office and wait as she shuffled through files for the forms. Then she gave me the form. I thus begun my application to be a prefect. Apart from me, Ivyna, Enisha and Hao Yinn were in the running to become a prefect. Out of the four of us from 10N, Hao Yinn was shortlisted and was invited for an interview, but nothing came out of it. I guess Hao Yinn’s application was not accepted. No additional Year 10s were accepted to the Prefectorial Board.
I wanted to be a prefect, not because Caleb Chuang is there like what most people claim, and that is not my intention, but I wanted to bring forth a change to the school. Most prefects do not feel serious about their duties; at the time, after break time, we had to line up for lunchtime assembly and the prefects had to settle people down but the students do not settle; I kept my mouth shut whenever we were asked to settle down and I told my friends the same.
I also feel that if I became a prefect, I would also use that as an opportunity to help enhance the school as well by contributing and giving suggestions on how we can improve it. I also prefer to be strict but also joyful and be a bridge between the prefectorial board, students and the management team. Given that I have good relations with most people of Nobel, including the management team, being a prefect would also allow me to have personal growth and development in Nobel.
If I was chosen as prefect, I would follow the standard that the 2015 head prefect, Aashtad Cyprus, played when he calmed everyone down. He, despite the presence of Ms Lim, Ms Bee Yong and the teachers, tried to keep his cool and tell people that there is no time to waste but still understanding the students from their perspective. He has a very effective rate in getting people to settle down, and Sabrina Qistina, the 2016 head prefect, was more stricter. Ms Lim had told us that Aashtad was a student with countless amounts of disciplinary issues and even got suspended once, but he turned over a new leaf to someone who is looked up to by many in Nobel.
I used this basis as a tool on how to answer the questions in the application form. The application form presented three main questions:
What is your main aim and what do you want to achieve as a prefect?
How would you like to contribute to the school by becoming a prefect?
A student has had disciplinary issues in school, breaking the school rules and not following the prefects’ instructions. How would you handle this situation?
Then, we had lunch, and I took some time to read the form. I then kept it in my bag as I returned to class. Then, I headed for the Art Studio, and Ms Feeda told us to take our Prep Works to continue them.
“Ok, Year 10 students, if you have finished your prep work and it is dry, please put the prep work into this briefcase. If it is wet, please leave it on your table and I will come and collect it for you,” said Ms Feeda. She showed us a large briefcase with a handle. It was black in color and had a lot of plastic. The plastic was to contain all our preps. Each student was given one plastic wrapper to put the preps into the plastic, which will be slotted into the briefcase. The briefcase was as large as a Samsung Galaxy Smart Television! It was that huge! We continued our prep works. I was in Prep 2 by now, painting everything. Ms Feeda walked around the room, checking on us. Then, we left our prep works on the table. Mine was wet. We then went for History, and then we learnt about the World Disarmament Conference. Then, we returned to the Art Studio for the Fine Art Club. Ms Feeda then told us to assist in bringing all the artwork to the school hall so that it can be set up for the Art Exhibition.
On another note, Ms Feeda also told some people from our Year 10 Art class who were free that afternoon to also assist the setup of the Art Exhibition which was to be placed for the PTM. So, we went and took our canvas paintings, as well as all the other paintings from Ms Nadia and Ms Feeda's classes, for the installation.
Ms Feeda this time improvised from 2015 by using a sturdy ladder so that she won't fall down. All the teachers watched as we installed the exhibition. Then, Ms Nadia climbed on a stool and almost fell down, but I caught her in the nick of time before she overturned and crushed her head. “Thanks for saving me, Wei Yiang,” said Ms Nadia. The whole club said the act was dramatic. Ms Feeda was laughing away. She also installed the canvas paintings on the black partition walls of the hall, located adjacent to the stage.
The next day, 14th April 2016, was the PTM 1. I then met all my teachers with my mum in the afternoon. Ms Levina was the teacher me and my mum looked forward to meeting the most. In fact, she was the first teacher we met. Ms Levina said that I needed to improve my Economics concepts and do more revision and practice. Then, we went to meet Mr Thomas, who told me to improve on my handwriting. He told my mum I was very responsive in class. Afterwards, we went to see Mr Gallagher, who told me to work more on my writing and double check before submitting my work. He told me that I should not rush the process as I had submitted my Individual Evaluation, which was too short, and he told me to continue writing by him simply rejecting the submission. Then, he passed his contact number to my mum to communicate more on my work. Afterwards, we went to see Ms Chithra, Ms Visa, Ms Renee, Ms Feeda, Ms Cynthia, Ms Bee Yan and lastly, Cikgu Niely. All of them said I needed to improve my handwriting. Ms Feeda told my mum that I was very active in Fine Art Club, but however, for the Art and Design IGCSE, I needed to ensure that I put in more effort for my expectations for Art and Design IGCSE due to the high standard. Ms Feeda told me to present more pictures in my prep works in the future. Ms Renee told me to put in more effort to read the parables of the Bible. Ms Bee Yan told me to practice more on Maths. Ms Chithra told me to understand the concepts more. And all of them said I was a good student in class. My mum went to talk to Ms Bee Yong before we left. Then, she met Ms June as the PTM was ending. Ms Nadia and I chat on Art IGCSE and the Art Exhibition. She thanked me for ‘rescuing’ her and said she admired my cubism drawing.
We enter the third week of April 2016 on a really mediocre note. The day begun as Mr Thomas opened his Edmodo page and started scrolling down to the Edmodo posts, looking at them one by one to check if there was in order. Then, he saw a message that Caleb Chuang purportedly sent.
The text read, "wei yiang is ma beeeeeest frieeeend”
Actually, it was already there since the previous Thursday when I checked my Edmodo feed. Mr Thomas read the phrase out loud, and the whole class laughed.
I was too shy looking at that. Even Enisha was laughing at the top of her lungs. This was the first time she laughed at me happily. Jien Min and Ethan Wong and even Eugene Ho were laughing hysterically. It was so hillarious. It was there on the eve of PTM.
“Later I will ask Caleb if and why he put that,” said Mr Thomas. He then told us about the coursework images that he posted on Edmodo. I had asked him about that during the PTM. Then, Mr Thomas briefed us about answering our coursework and also telling us to submit the writeup via Edmodo. Mr Thomas also talked to us about Duke of Edinburgh presentation and told us to get ready. “We will do the presentation on Wednesday. Is that okay?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. I was half-laughing at the message purportedly sent by Caleb Chuang.
Cikgu Niely then talked to us about our Malay oral exercise and gave us work. Then, we went for our break time. I met Caleb Chuang.
“Caleb, may I ask is that you who put “wei yiang is ma beeeeeeeest frieeeend” on Edmodo?” I enquired. Shaun Ting, who was sitting at our table, laughed. “I did it,” he said. “Why, Shaun, why?” cried Caleb Chuang. Apparently, during our Block 2 set teaching lesson the previous Wednesday, I was having Art and Caleb Chuang was having ICT with Mr Stellio. Shaun Ting, who was also taking ICT, went to Caleb Chuang's Edmodo account and typed the phrase to post it on Mr Thomas’ Edmodo page.
Then, I had a walk around the school and met Jordan Tay in the front of the canteen. He had bought a Rubik's cube and was trying to solve it. Ting Yi kept on disturbing Jordan from solving the cube, as Daniel and Jearn Xiu tickled Ting Yi while they talked about how amazing and wonderful Mr Lee is.
“Jordan, do you like Mr Lee?” I asked him. “Yeah, I do,” he said. Then, I told him about how Shaun Ting put “wei yiang is ma beeeeeeeest frieeeend” on Mr Thomas’ Edmodo page. All of them laughed like crazy.
Once we returned to class, Ms Chithra then continued to talk about business and stakeholder objectives as well as market share. She also told us about why businesses plan to set goals and achieve their aims. Then, she gave us exercises to do. I did the entire question quickly. Afterwards, it was Art, and Ms Feeda begun my Prep 3 with me, which was to narrow down three pictures. I selected three easy ones and begun painting them on my prep.
During Science, Ms Sangeetha told us to pluck a flower and bring them for an experiment during our lab session. “We are going to the Science lab tomorrow,” she said, as we learnt about the different types of flowers. “The slides are already up on Edmodo,” she said, before beginning the lesson. Then, during History, Ms Visa gave us a worksheet to do. On another note, we also sang a birthday song for Grace during Science.
The next day, 19th April, was another groupwork session given by Ms Levina. We had to discuss the textbook questions. I was placed in the same group as Glen, Aaron, Gabriel and Louis. I feel weird if I was placed in a group that had low standard. No offense, but, yeah, I’m willing to help them. Glen, Gabriel and I led most of the discussions.
Ms Levina came to us and guided us on how to discuss and answer the questions while also checking on us. “No need to use Powerpoint slides; this one will be handed up tomorrow. No one has time for long presentations, okay?” said Ms Levina. Then, Brandon Ooi wanted to join Ryan Chok's group but she refused to allow him to do so, and forced him to join Ivyna's group.
Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas came in. I greeted him and talked to him about the next day's presentation. He was excited. He opened his Edmodo page and viewed the images of the coursework and briefed us on it.
Afterwards, we had break time, and I met Jordan once again. He was playing his Rubik's cube with Ting Yi and Branson this time. I then had a chat and it was time for assembly. Once we returned for Global Perspectives, it was a long period of reading and writing. Mr Gallagher told me that if I had done the necessary citations and promised to do my report properly for Global Perspectives, he would support me and sign my name on the nomination form. I agreed and he signed his name. I had to get three teachers to support me, excluding the class teachers and level leaders.
Then, during Business Studies, Wei Zhong finalized our business report and Ms Chithra discussed the worksheets. During her class, a lot of people were talking and she had to ask the class to quieten down many times.
After lunch, we went to the Science Lab. I had brought a pink wilted flower to the class. Then, Ms Sangeetha told us to draw a picture of our flower and label the parts of the flower and paste the flower parts containing the anther and stigma in our book. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan reminded Ze Khai for the Friday Genius Time presentation. We learned about functions during Maths.
On 20th April 2016, Mr Thomas then got us ready to present a portion of the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award. So, Sherwin plugged his pendrive into the computer and the slides came out with the design I made for the cover page; I had emailed Sherwin my bit the previous day.
I then begun with the introduction of the Duke of Edinburgh’s award by speaking in an intonative tone. Then, Sherwin spoke about the benefits of the award and Aaron Loke spoke about the testimony of the award, and once we concluded, Mr Thomas then applauded us. “Very good,” he said, and he gave his due feedback. Then, it was Vicky, Alexandria Goh and Ellie Lim’s turn to present. They presented the slides as equally as how we did. Then, the next was followed by Jen Thong’s, San Ying and Sophie, and it went on until everyone had finished delivering their presentations. Mr Thomas concluded the lesson by saying that everyone did equally well. He extended the deadline of our coursework to 24th May.
Afterwards, we had Economics, and Ms Levina told Brandon Ooi to be the first to present once again. Brandon fumbled on his presentations and this resulted in him being told the correct answer by Ms Levina. Then, I presented my part, which Ms Levina told me of the improvements. She then proceeded to Ze Khai's group to ask him to present, but then Brandon Ooi started making noise and Ms Levina had to call him to calm down. Then, Ms Levina told us to do research on government policies during low inflation rates.
Afterwards, we had Art, and I finished my Prep 3, and Ms Feeda told me to select two pictures to head to Prep 4. During the class, Chee Kei and Hao Yinn kept on playing K-POP songs till Ms Feeda was stunned each time. She subsequently labeled Chee Kei, Hao Yinn, Wei Wei and Yen Tong as the ‘K-POP Gang’. Before the lesson ended, I produced my prefect's application form and Ms Feeda signed her name on it.
Then, during Character Transformation, we spent our time receiving our first pen-pal response. All our class teachers handed out the reply letters from our pen-pals. I haven't received mine from Naing Ling because he was busy. Ms Sarah said that individuals who had not received pen pal letters were told that they will come in a bit later. The rest of the year level spent their time to reply to their pen pal letters and the teachers collected them to be sent back to Dignity Foundation.
After Character Transformation, we had lunch and then we submitted our Business Studies coursework containing the Business Report to Ms Chithra, who collected them. Then, we had History, which we did a mindmap of the failure of the League of Nations as well as a worksheet to recap the last few chapters, which we pasted in our exercise book. During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee did the Bible Knowledge Postal Quiz with us. We said a prayer before we did the quiz. Ms Renee also told us that the following week will be our last Bible Knowledge class before the exams.
The next day, we did more writeups as usual. Mr Gallagher had to chide Shane for his actions of surfing the net during Global Perspectives. Vicky and Alexandria Goh then asked Mr Gallagher consistently for advise on their Individual Report. Later on, during PE, we were given the chance to do our Beep Test.
Ms Sylvia coordinated the Beep Test as Mr Victor accompanied the girls for their Strength Test. We 10N students were the first to begin.
“10N, please get ready,” said Ms Sylvia, instructing us to stand by. Then, she started playing the Beep Test soundtrack.
At Level 1, Louis dropped out. He just walked. Then Glen, Gabriel, Shane, Ryan Chok and Brandon. The rest of the boys continued running. Eric was quite strong. Some people tried to jump the beep, but were warned by Ms Sylvia of being disqualified. Towards the end, only me and Sheng Jit remained running. The rest of the boys, including Jason and Sean Mark, cheered me. For the first time, I was in a tit-for-tat similar situation as Sean Mark, being the last few standing till I bonked out at Level 8.3. The whole crowd cheered. Sheng Jit stopped at Level 8.7. The crowd cheered for him.
Then, it was 10O's turn. The race started. Lucas was the first to drop out, but however, 10O was really strong as a class. Then, Fang Yi dropped out. The whole hall cheered. What great endurance! Around 20 minutes later, Sean Mark and Jason were the last two running. Jason eventually finished the beep test at Level 11.6. Sean Mark stopped at Level 10.11. It was a close battle between the two of them.
10B begun running. They started, and it was a duel between Benjamin Tenji and Kevin Tan close to the end. For 10E, it was Aristotle Koh who made it to the end, and for 10L, Brendan Cheah.
Behind the hall, some Year 7 students, including Xang Yen, peered at the hall, curious at what was going on. I waved hi at Xang Yen and told him it was our beep test, but then, a prefect told them to leave the hall and subsequently shut the doors of the hall.
Outside the hall, the students were unable to gather because the girls were using the outside of the hall for their Strength Test, where Mr Victor, Mr Lim, Mr Anthony and Ms Lee were coordinating them and recording their tests. The girls were cooperative, and Mr Victor treated to a game of netball when they were done.
Then, it was break, and we went up to our class to get our food containers to head for the canteen. I told Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark that I was second in 10N based on my performance. “Good for you,” Nieshaal mumured upon hearing my conversation. I met Lyn Wen and Kelsey and told them about my beep test result. They were impressed.
Later, during Economics, Ms Levina told us to do a presentation based on the questions, and I spoke on behalf of our group, who showed a piece of paper. Aaron Liew in particular was too shy to have a Powerpoint presentation. “No Powerpoint presentation!” he cried. Even Louis did not want it. However, each time, Ms Levina had told Brandon Ooi to keep quiet and settle down. Then, he was playing his phone. Ms Levina was gracious enough to tell him to KEEP the phone instead of confiscate it. Ms Levina also had to ask Enisha, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal to pay attention. I then got Ms Levina to sign my prefect application form.
Once that was done, we had Maths, and then I went to finish my History homework. We then had Art lessons with Ms Feeda. She told me to quickly complete my Prep 3, which I did. Then, Ms Feeda told everyone to quickly begin on Paper 2 as it was the end of the month. We then went for History, as Brandon continued to tease and joke with Ms Visa in the class, but this time, she entertained his jokes. I went to the main office and handed in my Prefectorial Board Application form to Mr Narish, who told me that the interviewees will be announced and shortlisted. Then, we went down for Fine Art Club CCA, and Ms Feeda finished our charcoal drawing with us. Ms Feeda also told us that 28th April 2016 will be our last class for the Fine Art Club. I was looking forward to it, because I already had Art lessons with Ms Feeda, and I was looking forward to join Nobel International School's Editorial Board. Ms Feeda said that we will have a party on the last day. I also took the time to finish my Prep 3. Ms Nadia was excited about me going to Prep 4 in Ms Feeda's class. Then, I started a bit of drawing on Prep 4, but Ms Feeda told me to consult her first in the future. I made amends to my Prep 4.
That evening, my mum came to see me. The school had released the timetable for the 2016 Mid Year Examination. I took a look at it. Art and Design was the first paper. More on that later.
It was now Friday, 22nd April. It was Earth Day. Speaking of the class decoration for Earth Day, none of our classes decorated for Earth Day. The only exception was given to 10O, 10E and 10L. 10O had a series of trees outside their class. 10L's classroom had a series of landscape art such as mountains and waterfalls. 10E mainly had some sort of stuff related to Biology. I originally wanted to use the original New York City World Trade Center's tridents from the Twin Towers as inspiration for the design of the exterior of 10N. I had planned to cover 10N's walls in such decorations. Instead, I used newspaper to make a model tree, with strings to mimick the Dubai Creek Tower, which was launched at the time. It was planned to be the tallest observation tower in the world.
Somehow, I had FOUR courseworks to settle. Mr Thomas had subsequently announced the extension of the English Portrait Composition to 24th May. We had to look at pictures to write a composition. The Bible Knowledge testamony video was due on 6th May. Ms Cynthia had also gave us a task to make a Sultanate Kingdom banner, due on 6th May. And then, the fourth one, is this long and annoying Global Perspectives coursework.
Mr Gallagher had started with us going about our GP topics for 2016. You see, each GP student had to bring an iPad or computer to school (I feel comfortable bringing iPad at the time) for GP lessons as we had to work on what we call an “individual evaluation” or IE. In our IE, we had to write about a topic on anything we like. Mr Gallagher then posted five topics on Edmodo and then wrote them on the whiteboard at the back of 10E to get us started. The topics were war and conflict, transportation and infrastructure, poverty, economics and environment, just to name a few. He said we can choose any topic we had, but we need to inform him by next week on what topic we want to do.
I decided to write about transportation and infrastructure because I like to watch MegaStructures, a documentary series, and one episode involved constructing an underground highway and an additional tunnel in Boston, which was called the Big Dig project. As I had liked to have an underground highway from my house in Puchong to Kuala Lumpur in order to relieve highway congestion, I decided to go ahead with the topic of studying if new highways can relieve traffic congestion.
My 15-year old self may be a bit immature than my current brain, as I was ignorant to the fact that more highways would see an increase in new road users, and thus it will become a cyclical problem. I only thought that building a LRT (Light Rail Transit) or MRT (mass rapid transit) line would make people too slow to commute, as one needs to wait for a train and the rail system is not developed. We can instead get out of our houses with our cars conveniently, so why not have an additional highway to solve the traffic problem? But however, my thinking changed in the current landscape, as MRTs and LRTs are the best solution as they can move more people efficiently without any traffic congestion or delay. But at the time, I was still foolhardy and overconfident that a highway is the solution, so I proposed the topic immediately to Mr Gallagher, and he told me to wait till the following week to confirm to him as he was busy. I wanted to let him know about the topic early so I can get this matter off my chest, but he said he may forget and I had to wait and be patient.
Anyhow, that morning begun with a briefing by Ms Bee Yong about the Mid Year Examination. It was all about study talk. I felt really bored on her speech as there was nothing interesting. Then, we went for Malay. Cikgu Niely practiced with us on our oral speech as a rehearsal, but she said many of our Malay pronunciation was not so good. Then, we had Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia introduced to us the Sultanate Banner. Brandon Ooi continued to ask a lot of nonsensical questions to which Ms Cynthia got annoyed with him.
Afterwards, we had break, and I discussed with Caleb and Jordan about the Sultanate banner. Then, we returned for Science, where Ms Sangeetha did some lessons and exercises with us. Afterwards, Ms Bee Yan invited Ze Khai to do the presentation. He showed a video on car racing and that was that. “Isn't that the same as what Ryan Chok presented?” asked Ms Bee Yan. Then, we had Global Perspectives and the day was a long period of waiting in Mr Gallagher's class in 10E. The air conditioning had broken again.
We then came to the last week of April. Mr Thomas talked about presentations and how to present our presentation effectively. He opened his Edmodo application and showed us a video of how people present. Then, Cikgu Niely begun the Malay Oral for some of us.
Later, it was break time, and I went to talk to Jordan once again. Jordan told me that the Rubik's cube was, if I am not mistaken, a gift from his mother. Jordan appeared concentrated to solve the Rubik's cube. Then, he gave it to Rick to solve.
“Wei Yiang, how's Year 10 so far?” asked Rick. Of course, I told him about Caleb Chuang, but Rick Tan said that I should make more friends in my current 10N class. “This is why our teachers put us in different classes. For a reason,” he said. And Jordan and Ting Yi echoed what Rick said.
Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra talked to us about the motivation of workers, and we also talked about how the workers get motivated. Then, Yew Jan was giggling and laughing away in class. Ms Chithra then told him to keep quiet before continuing the lesson.
Afterwards we had Art. Ms Feeda then went around and checked our work. She said that Paper 2 is a lot much easier than Paper 1. Most of us were now doing our Prep 3 for Art. Then, Eugenie and Sara Yow cracked jokes with Ms Feeda in the class. I just focused on Prep 3. Oh dear. So much work in Year 10, from Global Perspectives to Economics, then Art and History. Not a honeymoon year one were to expect.
Then, it was lunch, and then Science. Ms Sangeetha had uploaded some of the slides to Edmodo. Ms Sangeetha was teaching about sexual and asexual reproduction. She had begun teaching us about the female reproductive system in humans the previous Friday.
Throughout the whole lesson, I can tell you, that Shane, Brandon Ooi, Eric Wong, Ryan Chok and Sheng Jit were all talking about sex the whole time. When Ms Sangeetha showed us a video of how the sperm and egg cell fertilized, the five of them, plus Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal laughed so loudly till Ms Sangeetha got really angry. Then, Brandon played a joke by using his hands to simulate the fertilization process, till some people, including me, laughed.
“It's not very funny, ya,” said Ms Sangeetha, looking at me. “Class, this is not a laughing matter.” Brandon and Shane were apparently talking about how some people in the class can become pregnant if they sit in the toilet, which made Ms Sangeetha even more mad.
“Brandon! If you think you are so smart, come and teach the class,” said Ms Sangeetha.
Afterwards, we had History, and Ms Visa continued to give us work in class. Ze Khai and Brandon continued to joke about the sexual reproduction process, and Ms Visa got mad as a result. “What is wrong with the two of you? Heroes!” cried Ms Visa.
The second day arrived, and I brought my newspaper to the class to read. Ms Levina came in for Economics and gave us a worksheet to do some revision. Then, she taught us about the Merits of the Market System, and how the market system gave people the freedom to buy and sell things. Brandon Ooi kept on saying he had the freedom to sit anywhere he wished, but Ms Levina then said that she had to make sure he was not disrupting the class. Then, I gave an example and said to the class that her intervention on him was indirectly a ‘government intervention’ to ensure that the market forces, which is Brandon Ooi's behavior, is properly controlled. The whole class laughed. I laughed the loudest. Even Ms Levina also laughed when she heard my hearty laugh. Ms Levina said that the purpose of government intervention is to prevent market failure, and in this case, the market failure is Brandon's refusal to cooperate in the lesson. Brandon looked at me with an angry look, gnashing his teeth at me.
During English, Mr Thomas told us on how to do a proper presentation and spoke to us. Then, he said that the Whitewater Rafting video was the best example. I laughed again.
“This friend of ours is really interested in the lesson. He will do well, I am confident. He will do well.” And this time, Sherwin was the one saying, “Yes, Mr Thomas!” I laughed again. Even Jien Min laughed wholeheartedly, which made the whole class laugh.
We then went for break, and I met Caleb Chuang. He was having his Biology lesson with Ms Sangeetha. I took care not to laugh again. It wasn't funny.
Caleb Chuang and I discussed what happened in Ms Sangeetha's class. He hadn't come to the sexual reproduction part yet. I mean like, come on, Sheng Jit and Shane's behavior were like so crazy.
Then, we had Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then briefed us on how to use information properly. Then during the class, Aaron Liew typed “hi” in the comments section of the Global Perspectives group. Mr Gallagher thought what it was. Then Shane laughed. Mr Gallagher told Shane to make sure he was doing his work in his class. We then had Business Studies. Wei Zhong asked Ms Chithra if she was marking our Business Report. She had somehow marked some only. We did a worksheet on government economic policies. And we learned the term ‘Corporation Tax’.
Then, we had Science, and we went to the Science Lab. Brandon's group was laughing away and talking about the previous lesson's activities. Ms Sangeetha told them to calm down. Then, she gave us our experiment, which was to investigate enzyme reaction. Throughout the whole time, the entire class got fed up with Brandon Ooi and his group. Then, it was Maths, and we continued with Ms Bee Yan's lesson. We then chose Sheng Jit to do the Genius Time on Friday, 29th April.
The next day, Mr Thomas told us on how to do a proper presentation in the class. He spoke to us about the presentation format and he said that Vicky's group had the best Duke of Edinburgh presentation. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina did some revision on our Mid Year Examination in view of the Art Exam the following week. It was my last class with Ms Levina before the exams. The hall cannot be used for the assembly because the Academic Awards Day was taking place.
During Art, Ms Feeda briefed us about the Art Exam. She said that everyone will need to go to the Art Studio for our exams, which were held on 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th May 2016.
When our Mid Year Examination timetable was released, the Art and Design IGCSE subject took four days to complete and we had two sessions a day; one just after school starts and one after break time. Our exam was held in the art studio and was the first exam out of all the exams. Two days were dedicated per paper. There were two papers, namely paper 1 and 2. I hadn’t talked about Paper 2 yet, but I had to design a poster for the second paper. And also, we did not address terms like Component 1 or Component 2 back then. It was just merely, layman terms of ‘Paper 1’ and ‘Paper 2’.
Then, Ms Feeda came to me and gave me feedback on my Prep 3. She said that my Prep 3 would need to have three to four angles of the pictures, one close-up angle of one of the pictures from Prep 2, along with various mixed media and texture, which I was able to fulfil. Ms Feeda would walk around the class to guide us. When we wanted Ms Feeda's assistance, we will raise our hands to call her and she will come to us. I then started my Paper 1's Prep 4. It was the easiest to do.
Afterwards, it was our Character Transformation time. Ms Renee said that following the Mid Year Examination, on 25th May 2016, there will be a Bake Sale and each class had to organize it. We then returned to class to discuss the details. Sheng Jit and Kelsey coordinated the briefing, and we had proposed to sell red velvet, butter cake, cheesecake, jelly cake, oreo cake, confetti cake, cookies and brownies between RM 2 and RM 4 each. Everyone had to hand their food on 23rd May 2016. I suggested my very own Peanut Butter Biscotti from Pacific Coffee Company. The food outlet had since closed its store at my place. Sheng Jit asked me to make 20 pieces.
Then, we had lunch, and then we had Business Studies. Ms Chithra collected our Business Studies worksheets and continued teaching us. She told us that she had planned to open Edmodo for her classes but was still considering. Wei Zhong and I put up our hands and cheered. “YES! EDMODO!” we cried. “Teacher, please! Edmodo!” cried Wei Zhong, begging Ms Chithra to put the slides. Then, we had History and then finally, Bible Knowledge. We had a praise and worship session at the end of the class, as suggested by Joshua Chew, to close off the last Bible Knowledge class before the Mid Year Examination. After going back home, I logged into Ms Chithra's Edmodo page. Congratulations! Now, Mr Thomas, Mr Narish, Ms Feeda, Mr Gallagher, Ms Sangeetha and Ms Chithra, as of now, were competing. I will say that Mr Thomas has the BEST EDMODO PAGE EVER!!!
Fortunately, some laughter drove me aside from studies, as Mr Steve, Ms Bee Yan and Ms Sarah were walking around in Nobel’s uniforms. Mr Steve’s students were asking Mr Steve to teach in the school uniform while all the students were so excited seeing the three teachers in school attire. The three teachers were doing a skit for Awards Day that morning.
The next day, we had a rainy morning. Caleb Chuang and I met in 10O to discuss, but this time, Nieshaal ignored us. Luckily he didn't act like a gangster you know. Then, we returned to 10N for our Reading Time as well as our discussion on the bake sale. The class who got the highest profits wins the Bake Sale.
We then went for Global Perspectives, where we did work and Mr Gallagher had to continue chiding Ryan Chok for playing games on his computer in class. We then had PE, and we did our Strength Test. I have to tell you, that I pushed and strained till my hands and legs ached.
Meanwhile, Xang Yen was having his break time, and we talked about the Strength Test and Beep Test for a while. Xang Yen said he had lousy performance.
Then, we returned for break, and then our Economics lesson. Ms Levina gave us work to do, and each time, Brandon Ooi was told to keep his phone. “Brandon, eh, Brandon, no phones in class. Keep, keep keep,” pleaded Ms Levina. Then, she helped each one of us on the answering of the questions. Then, Ms Levina said she wanted to do revision for us the following week, but I interjected her. “Ms Levina, some of us have the Art exam,” I cried. Then, Ms Levina asked what the Art Exam was for. Lyn Wen and Enisha explained the exam further. The exam would last from 8am to 12pm in the Art Studio, and it will cross through Ms Levina's three Economics lessons. Ms Levina told us to do the revision on our own before teaching us on the allocation of resources. We then had Mathematics with Ms Bee Yan and we learnt about Upper and Lower Bounds. After lunch, Ms Feeda briefed us more on the Art Exam. “You are only allowed to do your Final Piece in the exam,” said Ms Feeda, as she told us to bring all our art materials for the lesson. We then went for History, where Ms Visa did some revision with us and also talked more about the League of Nations’ failure. Then, during Fine Art Club, Ms Feeda provided us with cookies and some snacks to mark the last Fine Art Club CCA session with us. I took the time to complete my Paper 1 Prep 4, and I was ready for the examination. Sadly, I didn't finish my Paper 2 preps yet.
The last day of the week, Friday, 29th April, was lukewarm. We came up for Malay lessons with Cikgu Niely and it was my turn to be examined for the Malay Oral. Cikgu Niely pointed out that I needed to improve my vocabulary, and then Ms Cynthia explained to us about the Malay Coursework for the benefit of those doing the Art Exam the coming week.
Ms Cynthia introduced this phrase to us during our Malaysian Studies lesson. I can still remember it till today. I immediately copied down the phrase in my Student Organizer. The phrase was:
“In school, you are taught a lesson and given a test. In life, you are given a test which teaches you a lesson.”
Ms Cynthia said that we had to remember this phrase and also she hoped it will help us for our lifelong learning. I treasure this phrase that Ms Cynthia introduced to me to this day.
During Science, Ms Sangeetha continued to talk about sexual reproduction and then Ms Sangeetha scolded Brandon for trying to talk about sexual things in the class. Then, it was Maths, and Sheng Jit was told to present his part. He then presented about parkouring, and it got everyone so excited.
During the Global Perspectives lesson, Mr Gallagher outlined his expectations for our Individual Report. He told us that we were to have at least 1500 to 2000 words for our essay and a list of sources. Mr Gallagher told us to put quotation marks when quoting sources and list the sources down at the appendix part of our essay. Then, we did more writing. Mr Gallagher told me that although I had hit the 2000 word mark, I still needed additional sources and explanation and it wasn't good enough. So, I heeded his advice and wrote them down. That's all for the month of April.
May 2016 is a whole long month of exams, aside from being my birth month. A rude awakening started with the Art Exam. Not to also mention that my birthday, 15th May, is also the day before the date of the Global Perspectives examination.
The Art and Design Examination is the FIRST EXAM of a series of examinations, although ICT students already had their Practical Test earlier.
On the first day of the exam, our teachers were notified of us art students doing the Art and Design examination in the art studio. We eventually told our teachers that we would sit for the Art exam on these dates, and they were notified. Fortunately, the hall was used for the Malay IGCSE Examination's Paper 2, so I got the time to notify all my teachers in advance.
We headed to the Art Studio at 7:50am sharp in order to get ready for our examination. When we arrived, Ms Praveen and Ms Feeda were coordinating the exam process. We did our exam in Art Studio 1 because it is bigger, and we are the largest batch of Art students that Ms Feeda had. I sat at the back of the art studio where the sinks are, as I was assigned to my seat there.
Ms Feeda and Ms Praveen opened the music player on the computer and started loading some of the songs that some people in the class listened too. It may seem weird for normal people, but for Art students, a way of life.
During the art exam, Ms Feeda brought a series of playlists for the exam for us to listen to music while we did our final piece. This is something else very interesting because it is very peculiar for one to listen to music when doing his or her work, let alone an exam. You see, art students would always be given a playlist by Ms Feeda to listen to. They can add any songs to the playlist, and they can even put any song they want on the computer in the art studio. Ms Feeda in the past, for previous batches, had given consent and approval for the songs to be played in the art studio during class and also during exams. The reason given was for students to enjoy and relax.
So, as I mentioned before, each day had two slots. The first slot was from 8:00am to 10:00am, and then the second slot was from 10:20am to 12:00pm. We would have a few teachers who will invigilate us during the examination.
Yen Tong, Eugenie, Jia Yiu and Hao Yinn would normally play K-Pop songs in the class such as Big Bang. There are many English songs that are being played. Each student may have their own song to play during the exam, but I didn’t have one.
On the first day of the examination, Ms Feeda came to invigilate for a short while. The exam ran smoothly as classical music was played from the speakers of the Art Studio. I traced the pear and sketched the painting. Everyone had a copy of their four prep works with them. Some people's paintings were quite fine and beautiful. Some people had really nice artwork. I would say that everyone had nice artwork, but in terms of Ms Feeda's standard, it wasn't nice enough. Enisha glared at me when she saw me. I shivered. I don't know what to say to her. I kept my face awayfrom her.
I had finished sketching and painting a bit of the artwork. Then, it was break time. Ms Sha told us to leave our things on the table and go for break. Then, Ms Renee was sitting with Joshua and Caleb Chuang. I went to eat with Caleb Chuang. Ms Renee told us that we had to come for another Bible Knowledge lesson the coming Wednesday.
Then, we went back for our Art Exam. This time, Ms Visa was invigilating. I filled up my container with water and begun dipping paint using my brush. I had my cloth on standby, and regularly adjusted my apron as it came loose. I had to adjust my apron many times because it was too loose. We painted and painted. I painted the fruits and adjusted the toning with shadows. And soon, we ended our first session of the Art and Design Paper 1. We went back to our class, and Ms Chithra gave me the work that was to be done during Business Studies. Then, Wei Zhong called me, and Ms Chithra and Wei Zhong presented me with the Business Report coursework marks. We got a B for the coursework.
Then, it was lunch, and I had lunch with San Ying and we chatted. Ms Sangeetha took the time to explain the examination format for Combined Science, which had three papers. Paper 2 was a multiple choice question (MCQ), Paper 4 consists of structured questions and Paper 6 is about scientific enquiry, which we had to do some plotting of graphs and some scientific drawings. Out of all the papers, Paper 4 was the most difficult. The weightage of papers 2, 4 and 6 were 30%, 50% and 20% respectively. Afterwards, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan discussed the Upper and Lower Bound questions with us. She said that there will be no Genius Time as we had to prepare for the Mid Year Examination revision that Friday.
The next morning, 4th May I came to school with my art supplies. I was thinking about how to settle the other four preps for Paper 2. We went to the Art Studio before assembly ended. It was our second day of our Art and Design examination.
Ms Feeda then told us to take our drawing papers that we had partially drawn the previous day and told us to station ourselves and get ready for the exam. Then, we begun. I started painting the background of the fruits and toned them accordingly. My toning was not quite as fine as what it is later on, but I tried my best.
The second session of the exam begun on a rocky note as the entire process was quite rushed and chaotic, particularly because of the fact that we had a rather late ending of the morning assembly. Then, the music track was unable to be played in class, and some people can't concentrate. Ms Praveen, who came that morning, told everyone that they should behave as if they were in other subjects’ exams if the music can't be played.
That morning, Mr Narish came to invigilate us and walked around the room, checking on us. Then, Ms Ajeerah, better known as Ms Ajee, came to do the invigilation as Mr Narish headed for his ICT classes. Afterwards, we had break time. I was almost done with the painting.
We then went for our break time as San Ying and Kit Lee asked me and Sophie about the Art Exam. Once we were done, we had the break time assembly, and headed to the Art Studio.
The second half of the examination for the day was invigilated by Ms Paulina, an English teacher who taught the Year 7 and 8 students. She just looked at us as we did our work. Then, Mr Aram came to invigilate us. He looks intimidating and strict as he walked around and sipped coke as he invigilated. Then, he looked at each and every one of our drawings as he continued invigilating, searching for trouble.
He had a gentle tune, though. He just told us to do our work and then checked on us. I was surprised as to him being a kinder teacher than what was described by Ms Visa. Then, as the exam ended, Ms Praveen came in with Ms Feeda and Ms Sha. They told us to stop and we spent at least 15 minutes to wash our cups, containers, palette and brushes. We left our paper to dry. Glen Kay accidentally spilled water on his paper. Everyone used the sinks in and outside the Art Studio to wash our art utensils.
Ms Feeda then told those people who weren't done with their Paper 2 preps, like me, not to worry as we just had to do the questions accordingly. “You will have time after the exam to do your prep work,” said Ms Feeda. She told me to just paint the drawing as it is. Then, we went to the school hall for Character Transformation. I had to miss, among other things, a story telling session during CT in which a writer came to talk about story telling with us. The CT session was ongoing and we just plopped down in time for Ms Renee to brief us. Ms Sarah then announced that there will be a theatrical presentation titled, “The Merchant of Venice” for the Year 10 students and it will be compulsory for everyone to attend. The play will be held on 27th May 2016. Also, Ms Renee also told us about the format of the Bake Sale. Everyone had to sell the items during break and lunch time.
We then returned for Business Studies, where Ms Chithra gave us work to do. She also set up the Edmodo page, which I joined. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa did another revision exercise with us. Brandon and Ze Khai talked while they did their work. Then, we had our Bible Knowledge class. Ms Renee called us for the class.
“Ok, Year 10 BK students, thank you for coming. Originally, I was not going to have a BK class this week, but however, because I wanted to cover the last chapter before your Mid Year Exam, this is why I decided to have the class today. It is good to see all of you here today, so thank you for coming,” said Ms Renee. Then, she talked about the crucification of Jesus on the cross. It was really scary when we were told about how Jesus was nailed to the cross. We can even feel the pain of being tortured. It was scary.
We then entered Paper 2 of the examination. It was Thursday, 5th May 2016, the third day of the examination. We went up for Reading Time, and were told to leave for the Art Studio at 7:45am. I left first, and everyone else followed. As I was leaving 10N, Eugenie, Yi Zhen and Natasha came out of the class and headed for the Art Studio. Soon, every class’ art students were leaving for the Art Studio. We had to miss our PE lesson due to the Art Exam.
We arrived at the Art Studio, where Ms Feeda was waiting for us. Ms Feeda told me not to worry about my other prep works for Paper 2. She said that everyone faced the same problem of not having completed the Paper 2 preps, let alone starting it. Ms Feeda told us to draw as we please according to the questions.
During the exam, I managed to finish painting the entire painting within two hours. It looked weird. I was thinking that something wrong was with my work. Nevertheless, I waited till break time. Then, after break time, I still waited. It looked weird. Everyone was able to do their Paper 2 except for me, Glen and Louis. Ms Samantha invigilated the test. We then returned to the class, and Ms Bee Yan was in the class. I miss Ms Levina's Economics classes.
After lunch, we went for Art lessons, and Ms Feeda told us that there will be a two-week grace period following the Second Mid Term Break to complete all Paper 2 preps if we hadn't started on it, plus the week immediately following the Mid Year Examination. Then, we went for History, where we did another worksheet, and went home.
On 6th May 2016, we had a celebration of Auntie Clarine’s birthday during the morning assembly in the school hall. As luckily we were not having art exams that day, we had the chance to enjoy the celebration. It was a lovestruck date as 6th May is the official birthday of Auntie Clarine.
The celebration kicked off with a welcome for Auntie Clarine as she walked into the hall from the back of the room, accompanied by Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan. After they entered the hall, they were seated on comfortable sofas placed at the front of the hall as the students cheered. Auntie Clarine was waving to all the students as she sat down, waiting for the performances to start.
The performances begun with a Year 10 dance group led by Pei Chi, Ivyna, Isabella Wong and Xin Yi dancing on the stage to a rock beat. Auntie Clarine smiled as the crowd cheered. A Year 11 dance group then took to the stage to also show off their moves. When the performances ended, Auntie Clarine stood up and thanked the crowd for their love and dedication for her. She said it was so wonderful for her to have such wonderful students, and that we have demonstrated the school’s core values. Then, concluding the celebration, Auntie Clarine was then invited on stage to reveal the gift which was given to her by all of us, namely tins of Jacob’s biscuits, to be given to the poor in Jinjang via Love on Wheels. However, sadly, I was unable to see such a scene because of my Art exam.
Before Auntie Clarine even came into the school hall, we had to leave for the Art Studio. It was weird. We had Art Exam on Auntie Clarine's birthday. Then, we did our work. Ms Feeda and Ms Sha checked on us as we did our paper. I had nothing left to paint. I only just listened to the music being played by Ms Feeda in the Art Studio.
As we left for our break time, we could feel the pomp and circumstance from the school hall of what remained of the birthday celebration. Then, we went for our second Art Exam session, and I waited for 90 minutes to the end of our examination. Mr Aram was invigilating. Jien Min froze. It was Mr Aram, the one and only History teacher.
He appeared nice though, as he gently told us to keep our art utensils and tidy everything up in a nice tone. Many people like Jason Leing, Jien Min, Rosemund, Berlinda and others in Mr Aram’s History class had spread word that he had been very strict and scolded people in his class.
As the exam ended, Ms Feeda, Ms Praveen and Ms Sha came to assist us in cleaning up our coloring tools and art equipment. Then, we were told to paste a slip on the paper to indicate the details for the Art exam. The three teachers counted the work and took our attendance as we left. I kept my stuff and went for the Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher was in the class. Rosemund also arrived. We then spent a total of one and a half hours doing our work. It was so tiring.
The Mid Year Examination for Year 10 was held very differently from the rest of the other exams. There are sessions where we did not have examinations, so we had a whole day of rest and no test. I had one day of that. And you see, those who did not have examinations had to go to another class to continue their activities, and these activities were more of a socializing type of thing than serious study. Some of us did our revisions though, so it was a rose among the thorns. The Mid Year Examination, along with the Final Year Examination, would be the only times where I would have a so-called break to the endless list of set teaching classes. I prefer to have my classes all in 10N to be honest, as it is very relaxing in there. I miss the hassle-free experience of being in one class. The countless times where I moved between classes were so tiring to the extent that I had to walk from one class to another, take books and replace books for the next subject, and this disrupted my comfort. So in this case, the exams were a relief to the set teaching classes that suffocated me. At least, I had a month of relaxation in May. But it was mostly revision after revision.
The Mid Year Examination for Year 10 and 11 was longer than the Year 7s, 8s and 9s in terms of duration. While the KS3 students took a week to do their exams, it took three times as long for the KS4 students, no thanks to the long list of subjects for the examinations. While Year 7, 8 and 9 students only had to study English, Maths, Science, Geography, History, ICT, Art, Mandarin, Malay and Bible Knowledge, the Year 10 and 11 students had English First, English Second, Malay Foreign Language, Malay First Language (from 2021), Physical Education (from 2018), Combined Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, History, Economics, Global Perspectives, English Literature, Art, Business Studies, Accounting, ICT, Mandarin Foreign, Mandarin Second, Bible Knowledge and last but not least, Malaysian Studies. Oh dear. What a long list of subjects. And many of them were optional, which is why there is no exam on certain days.
Ms Praveen took note that some people had asked that if they do not have to come to school since there are days where they had no test. They feel that it is a waste of time coming to school as one would need to brave the hassle of getting up, brushing teeth, wearing our school uniform, coming to school by braving the traffic, and trying to survive the entire day surrounded by friends whom they do not wish to talk to, and then doing the reverse when going home. They feel that studying at home would bring them the peace they need and the tranquility of being in their own comfort space. However, Ms Praveen warned the individuals planning to stay home, saying that it is a normal school day and attendance would be taken, and that the consequences of skipping school without a valid reason would be reflected in our disciplinary record. I did not have exams on 19th May, the second last day of exams, so I spent time to revise for Mathematics Paper 4 the next day (20th May).
On the first week of exams, we had a couple of subjects, aside from the Art exam.
Mid Year Examination Timetable (3rd May – 20th May 2016)
Tuesday, 3rd May 2016 8:00am - 10:00am Art and Design Paper 1 2 hours Art Studio 1
BREAK
10:30am - 12:00pm Art and Design Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes Art Studio 1
LUNCH
Wednesday, 4th May 2016 8:00am - 10:00am Art and Design Paper 1 2 hours Art Studio 1
BREAK
10:30am - 12:00pm Art and Design Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes Art Studio 1
LUNCH
Thursday, 5th May 2016 8:00am - 10:00am Art and Design Paper 2 2 hours Art Studio 1
BREAK
10:30am - 12:00pm Art and Design Paper 2 1 hour 30 minutes Art Studio 1
LUNCH
Friday, 6th May 2016 8:00am - 10:00am Art and Design Paper 2 2 hours Art Studio 1
BREAK
10:30am - 12:00pm Art and Design Paper 2 1 hour 30 minutes Art Studio 1
LUNCH
Friday, 6th May 2016 8:00am - 10:00am ICT Practical - 2 hours ICT Lab 2
BREAK
Monday, 9th May 2016 8:00am - 9:30am ICT Theory Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10BEL
BREAK
10:50am - 12:50pm English First Paper 2 2 hours 10OBEL
LUNCH
1:45pm - 3:15pm Mathematics Paper 2 1 hour 30 minutes 10NOBEL
2:00pm - 3:00pm Malay Paper 4 1 hour 10NOBEL
Tuesday, 10th May 2016 8:55am - 9:55am Physics Paper 6 1 hour 10BEL
BREAK
10:50am - 12:20pm Literature Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10E
10:50am - 12:50pm History Paper 1 2 hours 10BL
Wednesday, 11th May 2016 8:00am - 9:30am Bible Knowledge Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10L
8:00am - 9:30am Islamiyat Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10L
8:00am - 10:00am Mandarin Second Paper 1 2 hours 10E
8:00am - 9:15am Mandarin Foreign Paper 4 1 hour 15 mins 10BL
BREAK
10:50am - 12:50pm Additional Mathematics Paper 2 2 hours 10BEL
LUNCH
2:05pm - 3:20pm Chemistry Paper 4 1 hour 15 minutes 10OBEL
2:05pm - 3:20pm Combined Science Paper 3 1 hour 15 minutes 10N
Thursday, 12th May 2016
8:35am - 9:50am Biology Paper 4 1 hour 15 mins 10NOL
BREAK
10:50am - 12:50pm Economics Paper 2 2 hours 10NOBEL
LUNCH
1:45pm - 3:00pm Physics Paper 4 1 hour 15 mins 10BEL
Friday, 13th May 2016
8:20am - 9:50am Business Studies Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10NOL
BREAK
10:50am - 12:50pm English First Paper 3 2 hours 10NOBL
10:50am - 12:50pm English Second Paper 2 2 hours 10E, 8O
LUNCH
Monday, 16th May 2016
8:35am - 9:50am Global Perspectives Paper 1 1 hour 15 mins 10OBE
BREAK
10:50am - 12:50pm Additional Mathematics Paper 2 2 hours 10NOL
LUNCH
2:00pm - 3:00pm Malay Language Paper 2 1 hour 10BEL
Tuesday, 17th May 2016
8:20am - 9:50am Bible Knowledge Paper 2 1 hour 30 minutes 10L
8:20am - 9:50am Islamiyat Paper 1 1 hour 30 minutes 10L
8:20am - 9:35am Mandarin Foreign Paper 2 1 hour 15 minutes 10BL
BREAK
11:10am - 12:25pm Accounting Paper 1 1 hour 15 minutes 10BEL
LUNCH
1:35pm - 2:20pm Chemistry Paper 2 45 minutes 10OBEL
1:35pm - 2:20pm Combined Science Paper 1 45 minutes 10N
2:25pm - 3:25pm Chemistry Paper 6 1 hour 10OBEL
2:25pm - 3:25pm Combined Science Paper 6 1 hour 10N
Wednesday, 18th May 2016
8:20am - 9:50am Business Studies Paper 2 1 hour 10NOL
BREAK
11:10am - 12:55pm Accounting Paper 1 1 hour 15 minutes 10BEL
LUNCH
2:15pm - 3:15pm Malaysian Studies Paper 1 1 hour 10NOBEL
Thursday, 19th May 2016
NA NA NA NA NA
BREAK
NA NA NA NA NA
LUNCH
2:40pm - 3:25pm Physics Paper 2 45 mins 10BEL
Friday, 20th May 2016
8:00am - 8:45am Economics Paper 1 45 mins 10NOBEL
9:00am - 9:45am Biology Paper 1 45 mins 10NOL
BREAK
10:25am - 12:55pm Mathematics Paper 4 2 hours 30 minutes 10NOBEL
While there was a timetable error for Malay, and it appeared to clash, the Malay exam was moved to the next day, Tuesday, 10th May 2016.
On the first day of the examination, 9th May 2016, Ms Praveen, Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim briefed us on the Mid Year Examination. Ms Lim had a strong message for everyone. “Either you be honest and fail, or cheat and be ungraded,” she said, with her most serious, sternest and angriest face. Yes. Ms Lim was really serious. She did not want any nonsense occurring in the exam and said that our success revolves around our own effort. Then, we headed up to class and placed our bags outside the classroom. Then, we re-arranged the tables to the examination format, which was quite chaotic as people were about to head for their ICT Theory exam. Many were late because no one re-arranged the tables, no thanks to the Friday Homeroom time being placed in the front of the day. What a disaster.
We had to remain in 10N and do our revision if we were not going for ICT Theory. This was one of the luxuries of the Mid Year Examination, as the hectic, busy life of changing classes for set teaching was eliminated. We could not go to any class as we wished; we had to be in the class as per the seating or allocation arrangement, as the management pasted a bunch of notices in the hallway outlining our seating position as well as our assigned class for non-exam takers. We placed our bags outside our classroom for the exams. So, what I did during the break was talk to some of my friends. Mr Thomas was in the class that day as per the daily timetable, but since we do not have to change classes, everyone was relieved, as set teaching classes were indirectly eliminated.
“How’s your exam preparation?” asked Mr Thomas, and I said all was well. He spent time talking with the students as well as the English Second students, who grew fond of his gentleness and calm tones as opposed to the high, strict tones of their English Second instructors. Well, the most attracted was Brandon Ooi. He was really attracted to Mr Thomas.
During the lesson, Glen and I then talked about our upcoming English lesson. We then did some revision. For me, there was nothing to revise, so I went and talked to Mr Thomas and a few others, including Sherwin and Aaron Loke. I told Sherwin about the relaxed lull in the changing of classes as all set teaching was abolished during the exam period. What a crazy timetable it was. Mr Thomas then gave us tips for the exam. Then, Cikgu Niely came in, and I discussed with Cikgu Niely about my Malay Oral result, since I was away for the Art Exam the previous week.
Once we were finished, we had break time and the ICT students talked about what transpired during their exam. I heard of computer parts and electronic components being discussed in the examination. Jordan, Daniel Ngew, Jearn Xiu, Branson and Ting Yi were really teasing each other if they got the ICT questions wrong.
For First Language English, I went to 10E to sit the exam, as my seat was assigned in that classroom. All the English Second students went to 10N where they gathered as they did not have any exams. They then continued their revision for Mathematics while some others discussed and chit chatted in the class, as Mr Raja supervised them.
In the exam, however, we were given our exam papers which contained a large variety of lines. There were lines after lines of pages for our First Language English exam and how things would go. Mr Mark Wright and Mr Thomas came into the exam to correct some abnormalies and then gave us some guidance on how to go about the questions. I heard Sara Yow asking Mr Thomas a question as I tried to attempt it. Sheng Jit and Christopher Chew talked before the exams begun.
The lined pages seemed to go on forever as I flipped page after page. I felt like I could not write that long, but I made it eventually to the end.
After lunch, we had Mathematics where I tried my best to answer the questions. I had a Maths home tuition teacher for Maths named Mr Nehru who practiced questions before the exam. It was hard to do the questions. Before the exam started, everyone had to quickly take their seats and get their Geometry Set and calculator into the room. Ivyna did not have a pen and I lent one to her, who thanked me.
Brandon Ooi was horsing around with Shane and Ryan Chok, and Ms Sangeetha told him to be quiet each time. This, while he tried to amuse the class, made Ms Sangeetha not impressed. “Excuse me, Brandon. This is an exam. Guys, please keep quiet, this is an exam. I don’t want to see anyone talking,” said Ms Sangeetha, as she warned everyone to zip their mouths.
Then, she handed us the paper and invigilated the class. I sat behind, which had a great view of the front, which did not necessitate me to turn my head to look at the room, which was prohibited. We could see everything from the back. Ms Sangeetha was dead serious as she invigilated us.
Then, Mr Aram came in and smiled. He replaced Ms Sangeetha. Then, he looked at us.
“Time's up! Put your pens down. I said, PUT YOUR PENS DOWN. Not put your “PANTS” down. Stop writing,” commanded Mr Aram. He then proceeded to collect the papers, flipping all the papers from our desks. He reached to the front, took a grey translucent plastic bag, arranged all the papers, flopped them into neat stacks, and placed them in the bag. Then, he took our papers and left the class. We packed our bags, talked about the papers, and headed for the dismissal area to end our day.
The second day was an even luckier one. I only had two papers for the day; History. I was keen on amusing Ms Visa, so I told myself to be careful for the exam. However, the exam also, again, involved a series of long writings and essays. As opposed to being in the past, this History examination is no joke; the exams and essays exhaust me one round after the other.
The second day, 10th May, begun like any other day. I went to eat my breakfast in the canteen before heading up for Reading Time. During the Reading Time, a lot of people were reading their English Literature, History and Malay textbooks. Ms Cynthia shook her head in disappointment.
The Physics exam then begun as Ms Levina entered the class. She then told us that she had set up an Edmodo page for us to access Economics notes and tips from her ahead of our Economics Paper 2 exam on Thursday, 12th May. All of us stayed in the class as we talked to Ms Levina. Somehow, Ms Levina still had to tell Brandon a few times to stop playing his phone. I then spoke to Ms Levina about what she did in class as I was away for the Art Exam the previous week. Ms Levina said that the class just did worksheets and presentations like what we did previously. Then, I talked to Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal, and they said that Ms Levina did as per what she told me in class while I was away for the Art Exam.
“How's the ICT exam, Ze Khai?” I asked. He said the exam was great. Nickolas gave him a slap. “You can't even concentrate!” he laughed.
Then, it was the History paper, and we went to 10L for the paper. Mr Lim handed out the papers. “Do not write on the question paper until I say you can do so,” he walked around the room, shuffling the papers around and placing them on our desk. Then, he told us to check the exam papers before allowing us to start.
The questions were tough. Like the Assessment 1, Mr Aram also set the Mid Year Examination's History papers. I wrote and wrote. Then, Mr Lim plopped a thread of string on each one of our desks. “Okay, students, you can use your string to tie your blank writing paper to the exam paper,” said Mr Lim, as we continued. When the exam was done, he collected our scripts. Louis was still busy with his exam paper. He finished it, and Mr Lim collected the scripts before dismissing us for lunch. Jien Min, Ethan Wong, Sean Mark and Jason Leing were swearing and shouting profanities upon realizing they got their answers wrong. “Mr Aram will kill us!” cried Jien Min.
Then, that afternoon, we had a one-hour Malay paper. We went for lunch first, and I ate with San Ying, who didn't want to hear about the History paper. Then, afterwards, I walked around the school before we were told to go for our lunch time assembly and head back to class. We then relaxed for an hour during our Science lesson, as Ms Sangeetha told us of the slides being on Edmodo for our revision. “Good luck for your paper tomorrow,” she said. Ryan Chok, Brandon and Shane played some games in class. Then, at 2:15pm, we put our books away for a one-hour Malay exam. It was quite easy to do. Ms Sangeetha told Brandon to settle down before the exam started at 2:30pm. He joked with Shane, Ryan Chok and Eric before we begun. It was very easy to do the Malay paper. Ms Bee Yan collected them before we left for home.
As just like the first and second days, the third day of the examination, Wednesday, 11th May 2016, continued to throw more surprises and perks through the examination. The Bible Knowledge exam tested on the book of Matthew, and I was ill-prepared over what to do, but at least, I tried to remember some of the parables and actions from the Bible.
The morning begun with another assembly as Ms Praveen expressed displeasure about how some people were making noise during the exams, particularly the Year 7 students. “Just a reminder to all of you; tomorrow, the hall will be used for the Malay IGCSE exam. There will be barricades placed in front of the hall. Do not cross the barricades. When you arrive at school tomorrow, please go to your classes. Do I make myself clear?” she reminded.
We then returned to class, and then everyone gathered in the class. Then, Brandon, Ryan Chok and Shane played some laser tag game as everyone gathered in groups to talk.
“Mr Thomas, I need to go for my Bible Knowledge exam,” I said. “What time is it?” asked Mr Thomas. I told him I had to go now. He said okay and I took my transparent pencil case with the pens, pencils and erasers, and thrudged to 10L for the exam.
As I entered 10L, Sherwin, Joseph, Caleb Chuang and Desmond Chan wished us all the best. Mr Lee was in the class. 10L should normally be having their Physics lesson, but Mr Lee had to invigilate the exam in this case.
Mr Lee then requested everyone to be seated. Then, he passed all our exam papers to us. I was seated at the left hand corner of the classroom, in the third seat. Alia and Andrew were in the same room, seating in front of me as they were taking the Islamiyat paper. Mr Lee handed out our exam papers after he gave the Islamiyat papers to Alia and Andrew.
Joseph raised his hands and asked Mr Lee if we could pray. Many people wanted a prayer before starting, but Sherwin reminded everyone of Alia and Andrew being in the class for Islamiyat's paper. Instead, we prayed quietly, and we begun the exam at 8:00am sharp.
The exam begun normally, but the questions were quite confusing to me and I tried my best to put in as many words as possible. Mr Lee placed strings on our table so we can tie the continuation papers to the question paper. Time soon flew past. After Mr Lee left the room, Mr Nick came in for Chemistry. He then collected our papers. “Hallelujah!” cried Joseph, as we were allowed to leave the room.
I went back to 10N and met Ms Levina, who was asking the class to dismiss. Then, she told me that a guide to answering Economics Paper 2 was posted on Edmodo. We then went for break, and afterwards, we returned to 10N to study for our Combined Science paper. Brandon Ooi, Lyn Wen and Jia Yee then proceeded to 10B for the Additional Mathematics paper. Ms Feeda then came into the class to supervise us, and told us that we can study for the next paper.
What a relaxed mood of not having to move classes all the time. I feel so happy. Less hassle, more relaxation! Then, I took out my exercise books and textbooks to revise for Combined Science. I spoke to Ms Feeda on possible time to complete the Paper 2 preps, and she said that she's considering to extend the completion period for Paper 2 to the end of June. “However, I cannot give any more time. I need to mark your work,” said Ms Feeda. “Many of you are still doing your first round of prep for now, so I will be much more lenient. By right, I would have failed you if you don't finish the preps. But since you all are just new to this, I will be kind this time only and will give you extra time to finish, okay?” she said. I accepted her reasoning and did my study for Combined Science. Then, I went to tell Glen that Ms Feeda will give us time to do our Paper 2 preps. He was busy studying.
Soon, Ms Cynthia came into the class and sat down and read a book. She told everyone to keep the noise level down. I then continued reading, and Shane and Ryan Chok played some games. However, the noise level went up, and Ms Cynthia then told us to stop what we were doing and do our revision alone while she checked on us.
At the end of the day, for Combined Science’s exam, I had to come face to face with the dreaded History teacher, Aram.
Now, I haven’t introduced a few teachers in Year 11 who invigilated us during our exams. You see, on normal days, when we had set teaching classes, there are a few people who will take over the class. Mr Raja used our class for Accounting, Mr Aram utilized it for History, Mr Andrew Tan used it for Additional Mathematics, and Ms Ting uses it for Mandarin Second Language. No one used the class when the Block 2 sessions were taking place (Art and Design, in my case).
As Mr Raja hurried us for the examination, I somehow forgot to remove my water bottle’s pocket, which would become a key figure in what would happen next. As my friends and I were hurrying for the exam, it made little sense as there was less time to study, and I only spent a small fraction of time flipping the books for the exam. Brandon tried to play fool again and make some funny looks to tease Louis, who got mad. Louis was angry and Mr Raja urged the both of them to quiet down before he started the examination. The Combined Science questions were mediocre, but I tried my best to answer some weird questions which I hadn’t seen before.
During the Combined Science examination, the examination timeframe passed two subjects in the timetable, and so as a result, I saw Mr Aram enter the class at 2:10pm after Mr Raja had given out the papers. Mr Aram then walked into the class as his fat body tried to navigate the tables. Sadly, he accidentally bumped into a few chairs and tables, but was quick to apologize. He then placed his stuff down on his chair, unpopped a can of coke, and sipped it. Following which, he proceeded to walk around the classroom, patrolling the premises like a prison guard, searching for trouble. As Mr Aram passed by my desk, he took my water bottle’s pocket holder, removed my water bottle from it, placed my bottle aside and took the pocket holder to his desk and placed it on his desk. Then, after a few minutes later, he then took Wee Shiang’s bottle, which was opaque, and placed it on his desk as well. He then scanned the classroom again, walked up to me and said, “I removed your pocket because it’s not allowed.” He smiled, asked me to carry on with my work, and said the same to Wee Shiang. He then continued, searching for trouble and asking if some had finished their work. He then took up Sheng Jit’s exam paper, scanned through it, and placed back on his desk. He then sternly looked at Brandon Ooi as he smiled at him, and then the patrolling continued. He took care not to bump into people’s tables, and apologized if he did so.
The exam was over within a quick jiffy as we knew it. He then collected the papers, ripping them from anyone who was still doing it. Gabriel Lim was one of the victims; he was still writing his details in the paper, and Mr Aram ripped it off. Louis was still halfway through, and Mr Aram angrily ripped his test paper away. “Nope, nope, give me the paper. Exams are over. Give me,” he said. He was calm; he did not shout, but his voice was enough to make people tremble. Then, he quickly took everyone’s exam papers, returned to his desk, counted it just like how any teacher would do, and then placed the scripts into a transparent plastic bag with the seal for the examination.
“Now, before I leave, I would like to give you a few pointers,” said Mr Aram. He reached over to the desk, took up my water bottle pocket, and showed it to the class. “This is not allowed. You’re not supposed to have something like this on your water bottle during the examination.” He then reached out, took Wee Shiang’s steel water bottle and held it high. “This is not allowed. Covered. You can’t see inside of it,” he said, and picked one of the transparent water bottles on other people’s desk to give an example of what is allowed.
“I do not want to see people repeating this mistake again. Do you understand?” he asked the class, as he appeared to peer and focus on me and Wee Shiang. The entire class looked at us.
“Good day,” he said, as he took the stack of scripts, proceeded to leave the classroom, and then he slammed the door shut. Everyone gave a damning look as he acted in a strict manner in front of us. Enisha and Brandon continued to peer at me sternly for being caught by Mr Aram as Louis cried in the class, being unable to complete his script. It wasn’t my fault for bringing my pocket into the exam, as I had no time to prepare. “Just make sure you don’t bring it again,” Ivyna told me and Glen comforted me as we left the classroom for dismissal. I then took my bag, rushed to the dismissal area, and slammed myself as hard as possible in front of the grill that divides students from the outside world, reeling from that incident.
The next day, I had Economics examination. The hall was used for Malay Paper 4 as part of the Year 11s’ IGCSE exam. We went up early and then I saw Caleb Chuang studying. He requested me not to disturb him as he was going to sit for the Biology paper that morning. We had some reading time, and Ms Cynthia shook her head once again upon seeing Economics books. “Why are there so many textbooks? I want to see story books!” she cried.
Then, she left, and Mr Thomas came in. He asked me how the English paper was. I said it was fine.
I socialized a bit with Nickolas Nashpal and Ze Khai before the exam started. We just relaxed in class. Then, Ms Levina came in for Economics and wished us all the best. After break time, the Economics exam begun.
The Economics exam was much of a relief, but I had to be placed in the dreaded classroom of 10E again, which was cramped. Fortunately, the tables were in examination mode, so no issues arise, except for me having to figure out a series of Economics concepts. I think I haven't explained this reasoning why, but the thing is that for Economics, just like Bible Knowledge and History, we had to write on a separate piece of paper for the exam. It was a lined paper with the school logo on it, and we had to use some cotton string to attach it. Staples are forbidden, so we needed to tie the papers up and string was provided on the table during the examination while we were writing. We had to tie them up and attach them to the main exam paper before we handed them up. This was to get us to practice not damaging the paper, but it was unclear why. The same arrangement was also made for the History exam too.
The Economics exam involved tens of tons of writing, and I was a bit clueless. I just did my best. During the exam, Mr Mark Wright invigilated, followed by Mr Nick. Mr Mark Wright was really cool as he walked and patrolled the room. Mr Nick, meanwhile, had a sly stare at us.
Right after the exam, we had lunch and then no exams for the day, but then, Mr Aram was in the class. I also wished to have a chat with him to get to know him better, but he was busy on his phone.
Mr Aram told everyone not to talk so loud as our voices could be heard from a few classes away. He was very calm, and as such, no bad incidents occurred that day, since we didn’t have exams invigilated by him. Therefore, we thought it was all well.
As the gathering involved mostly students who did not take Physics, Sherwin, Jien Min and all those from 10B and E were present with us 10N students. There were a few people from Mr Aram’s class like Adrinna Yee, Rosemund Chong and Berlinda Tan asking Mr Aram for tips for the following week’s History paper. Mr Aram was giving terms of the tips of the Treaty of Versailles and how to answer the long answer questions in the exam.
The noise suddenly grew louder, and Mr Aram then told all the boys, especially Jien Min, Benjamin Tenji, Eugene Ho, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit and Brandon Ooi who were seated behind the class, to tone down. “I don’t want to hear loud voices from you again. Class, let me make myself clear; if the noise level goes up again, all the boys must not talk and I will break all of you guys up. Those at the back,” he said. Ironically, Wee Shiang hadn’t taken her bottle back the previous day from the exam, and it was a contrast between the previous day, when Mr Aram invigilated us, and the current session where Mr Aram supervised us during the last period. Of all, Andrew Ariffin, Daryl Yeo and all of them played some games to entertain themselves, while Sherwin and Jien Min and Eugene Ho talked too.
Then thereafter, the noise level grew louder, and Mr Aram grew impatient. “Excuse me! The noise level is getting louder. Louder and louder!” he said. He then asked everyone to tone down.
Everyone toned down and then Mr Aram then took out a series of files from his bag, as well as the History papers, and started marking them. Jien Min peered from afar and saw Mr Aram examining his batch of students. He whispered a profanity, and said, “He’s marking our papers!”
Jien Min inched closer to Mr Aram, who fixed his eyes on his scripts. He then peered over and saw Mr Aram marking the exam papers, as he shook his head and made a large cross over a student’s work. “My goodness! He’s really marking our class’ papers!” he cried.
His group then whispered among themselves as Mr Aram peered script after script, marking the papers. The noise level grew louder.
“Warning number two! Please be silent! Keep your voices down!” cried Mr Aram, as the class silenced. People in the class started signalling for people to be silent. Each time the voice levels increased, there were calls of “Shh!” around the room. I took a break from sitting, went to the window and stretched my hands as I peered out the window. The elementary school was dismissing below, and I watched as the cars traversed through the school’s driveway. Then, I went back to my seat, sat down and started reading my Business Studies book.
“Warning number three! How many times do I need to tell you? I said, keep your voices down!” Mr Aram said, annoyed. He then instructed all the boys in the classroom to disperse, pick up books and start studying for the next exam. “I want all of you boys to remain silent. Pick up a book and study for your next exam. Girls, you may continue talking.”
Mr Aram then watched over everyone of us till the Physics exams in the other classes were over. Once it was done, Mr Aram then picked up his things and left the room, without a thank you or any other greeting, and everyone packed up and then left the class for the day.
The next morning, I had Business Studies, and I had a feeling something was not well for me for that paper. However, I just tried my best to answer the question and kept talking about companies, customers and sales as much as I pleased. We then had a chit-chat during break time and then we entered for our second English First Examination. As the English Second students also had an exam, everyone was pre-occupied. So, I went to 10B for my English exam.
Being in First Language English had been a luxury for me for so long, as Co Sheen, Hua Iong and I were the ones that made the leap from English Second to English First. A happy tune rang in my head as the exam counted down. It was Friday, and we were about to conclude a week's worth of rest and excitement of not having to move classes all the time. Before the exam, we were given around 30 minutes to revise for the exam by Mr Stellio, who then took over our class. When it was time to begin, the examination signs containing the paper name, subject name, date, day and duration were displayed on the Smartboard, and in fact, we had to display it every exam. The papers were given and then, it was more writing, writing and writing. Ms Janice soon took over, and had a stack of examination writing paper just in case we needed them. I managed to finish my script fast enough, waited till the exam was over and then once things were done, everyone grinned as the papers were collected.
My birthday fell on 15th May, in the middle of the exam like me but for a birthday boy like me, as I am born in the month of May, every birthday celebration was dogged with tonnes and tonnes of examinations, and as a result I could not even hold my birthday party, since Nobel always holds the examinations for the Mid Year Examination in May. Even if the date fell on a weekend, my mum advised to postpone the birthday party open house till the celebration ended. As 15th May 2016 fell on a Sunday, I decided to hold the celebration on Monday 16th May, after the Global Perspectives paper that day. 16th May is coincidentally Teacher’s Day as well, but due to the exams, it was postponed till July, which is the month we always celebrate Teacher’s Day. It was a pity being a May baby since it is always the examination month.
On the morning of 16th May 2016, I brought my birthday cake and kept it in the fridge of the front office, since they have a fridge in it. Three people had birthdays in May in 10N; Louis Soon on 5th May, me on 15th May and Enisha on 19th May. Ong Ting Yi also shares the same birthday as me, and Ivyna always said it was Ting Yi’s birthday instead of my birthday. Before Ting Yi came, I was the only one in my batch that I knew at the time with a standalone birthday, but there are people who clash their birthdays. For instance, Teh Jia Yiu and Joshua Chew are born on 27th June.
So, we arrived in school and Glen Kay, Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang and few others wished me a happy belated birthday. Then, we proceeded for our first exam of the day, Global Perspectives, which was held in 10E. The questions were very straightforward; I managed to complete the exam within half an hour. Mr Gallagher said that there was no need to study for GP. He had talked about the Global Perspectives exam questions on Tuesday, 3rd May 2016. I was pre-occupied with the Art Exam.
Following the exam, I then went down and brought my cake to the lower canteen where everyone sang me a happy birthday. San Ying, Sophie, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and Kit Lee are one of the people who savored my birthday cake; however, Caleb Chuang was quick to eat as he had to revise for Additional Mathematics exam following break. Oh, on another note, Nicole, Jen Thong, Sherwin and Pranavee presented me with a homemade birthday card! How sweet was it of them to give me a gift!
The examination for Add Maths begun shortly after break; we then gathered in 10B for a chat. Most of us did not study for Malay as the exam would be a piece of cake and many felt it is not important.
During the period, Mr Stellio was in 10B taking care of us. He was socializing with Jien Min and the rest, who were watching movies on their phones in class. Mr Stellio did not care about them. I just looked at the scenery from the windows. Then, I went to talk to Ze Khai and Glen, as well as Ivyna. I spoke to Ivyna about the bake sale. She said more details will be discussed after the exam.
After two hours, from 10:50am to 12:50pm, we went for lunch. Many people who sat for the Additional Mathematics paper complained about how hard the paper was. Luckily I did not sit in that torture chamber. How horrible it was.
As usual, before the Malay exam, Brandon Ooi, Shane, Sheng Jit and Ryan Chok tried to joke around with Ms Sangeetha, but she quieted everyone down. We spent about an hour to do the paper, before Ms Sangeetha came to collect the paper. Afterwards, Mr Aram came in. The only thing that I talked to him was to ask if I could use the toilet. Everyone just did their own things and Mr Aram left after 20 minutes.
The next day, we had Bible Knowledge exam. Brandon and Ryan Chok tried to block me from leaving as they were thinking I was going to see Caleb Chuang. Coincidentally, Caleb Chuang and I had the Bible Knowledge paper. The exam questions involved some form of writing and was as tough as the first. Mr Lee invigilated us again. He then provided us with strings and paper to tie up and fasten once we were done. We prayed before the exam and did our best.
After the exam finished, Joshua, Caleb Chuang and I talked about the exam at the canteen table as we had our meal. Then, we went back to class. Mr Andrew came to 10N and told us to do our revision. Then, Mr Raja came in for the Accounting period. I talked to Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal about how relaxing the exam period was as no set teaching was involved. Ze Khai said he felt relaxed too. Then, I helped Gabriel and Louis comprehend the terms in Combined Science.
“Shh!!!!” Lower your voice level,” said Mr Raja.
Following that, we had lunch then headed to the next exam which was Combined Science. We had two papers to take in that single session. Ms Cynthia had to tell Brandon to keep quiet so many times before the exam started. All we needed to do was to do the first paper, Paper 2, which is a multiple choice question test, and followed by Paper 6. The questions were straightforward and I managed to complete most of it but were unable to finish around five questions.
After the end of Paper 2, everyone thought that the exam was over, and Brandon got up to exit the class. Some people started getting up and talking as well. Ms Sangeetha, who was invigilating, was really shocked.
“I didn't say you can leave! Who asked you to leave? Who asked you to talk?” asked Ms Sangeetha.
“Our exam is over, right?” asked Brandon.
“You have a second paper! Paper 6! You are to sit two papers at the same time!” cried Ms Sangeetha.
“Oh! No wonder there are two Combined Science in the timetable,” said Brandon. Kelsey and Ivyna pointed out that the Paper 2 and Paper 6 according to the timetable were next to each other, and we had to immediately start the second paper once the first paper ended.
“Can I go to toilet?” asked Brandon.
“Haiyah, go,” said Ms Sangeetha. “You are late for your second paper!” she cried.
Then, she asked those who wished to use the washroom to go for their toilet break. Ms Sangeetha looked in disbelief as half the class went. She shook her head, and gave the exam papers to us, who were sitting at our desks.
“Don't start yet,” she said.
We were soon told to begin our papers, and Ms Sangeetha handed the invigilating to Mr Aram, who entered. He just sat at his desk, used his phone, and patrolled the class to the end of the exam. I looked at him and shivered as to what he did to me the previous week. His big-sized body and temperamental attitude was enough to scare one into him being like a bully.
The next day, 18th May, we had assembly where Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan motivated us to do more revision and hang in there as there are only two days of exam left to go. Then, I had Business Studies and I still had a hard time trying to answer the questions. However, for Malaysian Studies, many of us took it lightly and just talked during the Additional Mathematics exam period which occurred in another class. Ms Feeda then came in and then we talked about our Art Exam and so on while she told us to study. She had this one large book which contained the prep work details of all the Year 10 and 11 students. She was marking the Year 11s’ final pieces. Enisha peered at the prep works and talked to Ms Feeda. Afterwards, Ms Cynthia came to our class at 11:40am and was disappointed that most people did not study for Malaysian Studies.
“Aren’t you guys having the Malaysian Studies exam later?” she asked. Ms Cynthia then said she was disappointed that most people were not studying for the Malaysian Studies exam and then chided our attitude. “Everyone of you, I would like to see you with your Malaysian Studies books now.” We then took our Malaysian Studies books after spending the time during the previous period talking to each other; I honestly read, but I believed in not studying immediately before the exam to condition my mind for the test.
Following lunch, we then had Malaysian Studies, as Mr Raja then gave out the exam papers. I took care to have my water bottle without the cover before Mr Aram came in. Then, Mr Aram continued his rampage, patrolling the class and peering at everyone’s water bottles. When I finished my Malaysian Studies exam, I pointed to my bottle without the cover when Mr Aram approached, and he accidentally bumped into my chair. “Sorry,” Mr Aram apologized, and I tried to signal to him my bottle without the pocket. Apparently, he had also bumped into my bottle too, but Mr Aram didn’t seem to care. He picked up my bottle, placed it back on the floor and then continued invigilating. He then took more people’s bottles with the pockets or were transparent, combing the entire classroom like mad. Cassandra, Grace, Glen, Sheng Jit and Gabriel were among the ‘victims’. He then took them to the front and placed them on his desk, as if he had hooked them to a wall of shame. Once the exam was over, he then took back our papers, but this time, with a “thank you” in certain instances and completed the examination housekeeping.
“I still see some bottles like these,” he said, holding up the bottles. He then threw the covers and bottles back to the people in the classroom whom he took from, as everyone tried to swerve away from the oncoming objects. “I will honestly not tolerate such behavior in the exam. Do you understand?” he yelled. He then picked up the exam papers and left the classroom as the whole class, shocked at Mr Aram’s behavior, talked about what happened in the class during the examination.
The next day, we had no exams, and some people were purposely absent because only two papers were examined on the day: Physics and Biology. Most people who came spent their time revising for the Maths paper which would be held on Friday, 20th May. I then picked up my Economics and Mathematics books and tried to revise, and occasionally, I would talk to my friends when I rested. A lot of folks from most classes were absent because of this. I would usually talk to Krystal Goh, Gabriel Lim, Ze Khai, Nickolas Nashpal, and other people who came to our class.
I started pondering on a better timetable for the second term of the year. The first timetable, in my opinion, was horrible. In fact, 2016 started on a wacky note, and I only hoped that the timetable would be improved, for a start. I also only wished that I was in the same class of my other friends, as being in 10N was rather dull.
I can't talk to Caleb Chuang as he had his Physics Paper 2 and Biology Paper 6. So, I went to do my revision for Maths, but I tire out of that.
Mr Andrew came that morning, and I talked to Ze Khai and Nickolas. Then, Nickolas showed Ze Khai his YouTube channel, titled ‘Natty Nashpalian’. I then proceeded to do my work, while Brandon Ooi and the boys in the class played. Mr Andrew then confiscated some of their handphones as he caught them playing in the class. Afterwards, Mr Victor came to our class, and he spent a long time talking with Ivyna and Yan Ying.
Afterwards, it was most people's Biology paper following break. Ms Levina came in and then we celebrated Enisha's birthday. We discussed the Assessment 1 questions and talked about the Economics Paper 1 questions. Ms Levina said the questions were very straightforward. Then, Ms Bee Yan came in for Maths. Everyone did their own things. I did some work and then let Ms Bee Yan check for a while. She wanted to see my work.
Mr Aram came to supervise the History period before school ends, and I feel happy as for the first time, I spent my time in my class enjoying the airy conditions in the afternoon, all thanks to the History lessons at the end of the day. I haven’t spent one whole day in class since my Year 9s. Mr Aram then continued his rant, asking everyone to be silent. Most people complied, for fear that Mr Aram would impose consequences with an iron fist. He then continued marking his papers, and by this time, since the other levels would have had started their exams, he was marking Year 9 History papers, since he also taught History for Year 9.
Shane, Ryan Chok, Brandon Ooi, Eric Wong and Sheng Jit were talking behind the class and playing games. The noise got louder, and Mr Aram then trained his eyes on them like a security camera.
“The five of you behind. You are the loudest in the entire class. I said keep your voices down. Do you understand?” he asked. Shane responded to Mr Aram with a thumbs up. Then, Mr Aram, triggered by his response, stomped over to them, dragged Shane by the chair, and shouted at them. “Excuse me! You guys are the loudest. I have told you to keep your voices down. Do you understand? You guys have disrespected me as a teacher and need a lesson to show some respect. I am a teacher here and I call the shots.” Shane then said yes as Mr Aram interrogated the group and asked them to disperse.
“No one’s got to challenge me as a teacher. I’ve had seen in New York before, and what Bernie Sanders got to say is much of a more loftier tone than I have had heard. I’ve got to tell you, that I have spoken to many people like you before, and you guys are the worst. The brokers deserve better,” he said, to laughter and smiles in the class as he smirked, sat down on his chair and then continued marking his scripts.
The last day of exams went well smoothly. Ms Bee Yong then told us it was the last day of exams but also asked us to continue studying during the holidays. Economics was a multiple choice test, so it was quite easy to do. The exam lasted for 45 minutes. Then, Ms Cynthia came in and told us to do revision for Maths.
There were challenges facing my Maths exam as I tried to comprehend the questions. Mr Andrew was invigilating the last class, and he stared strictly at everyone doing the Maths papers. The exam was so tough. Paper 4 was a torture, and I cannot finish at least five questions. Oh dear.
It rained heavily during the Maths exam, and the exam seemed to go on forever while I did my exam. Because I sat at the back during exams which are held in 10N, I did not have to keep on turning around, which was prohibited during the tests. As such, I could see the entire classroom to pass my time. When the exams were over, I felt happy and well as all the exams were finished, only to return home astonished that a tree at my house had fell in the rain. I thought it was normal weather because the noise was soft because of the tightness of the classroom, and also the fact that there are no trees in the courtyard to gauge how strong the wind was.
Following the holidays, we were treated to a few good things in school.
On Monday, 23rd May 2016, we then had our usual English lesson. Mr Thomas then discussed some of our papers. He discussed Paper 2 with us. Then, Cikgu Niely also came in and discussed our papers. The whole day was spent to discuss our papers. The only teachers who didn't discuss the papers were Ms Visa, who had to send the papers to Mr Aram to mark them, as Mr Aram had the gold standard of marking.
Mr Thomas gave us our papers and then pointed out our mistakes in Paper 2. He then showed some examples on the Smartboard. Cikgu Niely then discussed the correct answers, but Brandon Ooi was disruptive to the class.
Then, it was break, and everyone was talking about their exam results. I then felt my heart thumping for the Business Studies paper. When I returned to class, Ms Chithra then discussed the Business Studies Paper 1 and gave us the mark scheme. She had to scold Yew Jan all the time for misbehaving in the class.
Ms Feeda told us during Art that we will be given three weeks, namely the current final week in May, and two weeks in June, to finish all of our preps. “I am still marking your Final Piece, but for those who have not finished the preps for Paper 2, you can start now. So, I begun my Paper 2 prep works, starting with Prep 1 that day. We then returned to class, and Ms Sangeetha handed out our Science Paper 1 for discussion. Ivyna got the highest results. Ms Sangeetha had to tell Brandon to pay attention as the class got noisy.
I want to let all of you know; please do not use pen to shade your answers. Especially Aaron. He used pen; ballpoint pen, to shade his answer. Because he used pen, the machine failed to read his answer. The machine we use detect ink from 2B pencils. Aaron, please don't do this again. Now, I have to mark yours manually,” said Ms Sangeetha as she discussed our Combined Science Paper 1. Seriously, Aaron Liew had no pencils, and he had to use pen. He was smiling and laughing away. Ms Sangeetha was disgusted. The OMR answer paper, which we used to shade our answers, only accepts pencils. It will not accept answers shaded in other ink, as its sensors read ink.
Then, we went for History, where Brandon asked people their exam results and laughed at their results. Ms Visa was not happy with Brandon. She told us that Mr Aram will release the results to her once he had finished marking and checking our scripts.
The next day, 24th May, Ms Levina returned Economics Paper 2 to us. She then spent the entire lesson discussing the papers. I only got 50% for the Paper 2. However, Brandon Ooi was making so much noise, and Ms Levina had to ask him to settle down. Afterwards, Mr Thomas continued to discuss our English Paper 2, and he continued to talk about the common mistakes made by students in the exam. He collected our English coursework as well containing the Portrait Composition.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher discussed our papers and told us about what points did we wrote right or wrong. He kept on telling Shane and Ryan Chok to keep quiet. Ms Chithra then continued our discussion on the exam papers and finalized our coursework marks by displaying them on a screen. Then, Ms Chithra told us to do a research on Greenpeace and also gave us the marking scheme for the Business Studies Mid Year Examination.
After Business Studies ended, we went for lunch. Then, during Science, Ms Sangeetha discussed our Paper 4. She was very disappointed with everyone's performance.
The next day, 25th May, Mr Thomas discussed our Paper 2, and did our Trek in the Andes worksheet with us. Then, Ms Levina discussed our Economics Paper 1. Each time the questions were to be discussed, Brandon and Shane and Ryan Chok would make so much noise and talk till Ms Levina got annoyed. “Okay, I will need to change your seats,” she said. She asked Brandon to sit next to Ivyna. “At least, I have Sheng Jit,” he laughed. Sheng Jit also laughed and Ms Levina groaned. Then, she put Sheng Jit next to Enisha and swapped her. They complained to each other about Ms Levina's actions. It was a slam dunk for Ms Levina. Oh wait! Ms Levina is in Slamdunk, one of Bullseye's big opponents!
Afterwards, Ms Feeda revealed the results for the Art and Design Paper 1. I got a C, a 64% for the exam. I was quite happy with my performance. “Year 10 students, remember! I am only being lenient now! I will be more stricter during your Final Year Examination!” cried Ms Feeda. Yi Zhen had the highest score in the class for Art and Design. We then had a chat on the results in class. Then, we had Character Transformation, and Ms Sarah briefed us on the Merchant of Venice play. She said that there must not be anyone talking when the play is on, as the setup would be a theatrical mode. We were also not allowed to use the washroom unless it was REALLY an emergency, and anyone who made noise will be escorted out of the school hall. Ms Sarah will use the play for her English Literature students. Then, it was Thursday, 26th May. I had completed most of the writeup for the Global Perspectives Individual Report, and was bound to hand them in to Mr Gallagher. I had a really hesitant attitude and wanted the report done as quickly as possible and was really impatient to allow more continuation. This was the second of three slip-ups that will occur during the production of the Individual Report; the first one was on handing the report too early and writing too short. The third one would unleash the biggest controversy. I wasn't taking notice of it, but a silent killer was raging. Then, during PE, Mr Victor then did some exercises with us. He told us that there were improvements in our fitness test, but we need to do more to improve further. Afterwards, it was break time. Christopher Chew and Aristotle Koh then pulled out the mattresses used for high jump from under the stage in the hall, and then they did a lot of somersaults and parkouring. I watched their moves from the side when I sat down in the hall, waiting for the assembly to begin. A prefect told them to keep the mattresses.
When we returned from break time, Ms Levina taught us about money during Economics. I was so excited! After all the boring topics of demand, supply, production possibility curves and the fundamentals of Economics, we are going to learn about money! My eyes lit up. I was so excited. Even Brandon Ooi was really amused.
Ms Levina told us that money was used as a fundamental and important tool of trade as well as legal tender. She told us that the purpose of money was to solve all the very painful problems of the past. Then, she talked about how the history of transactions, starting from barter trade, which people exchanged goods.
“Last time, in the very, very, very, very old, old days, people do not have money. So, what they did was to give and take. People send and receive goods because it was easy as you can compensate the buyer and the seller,” said Ms Levina. Then, she said that a Greek person named Aristotle came up with the idea of money and how it can solve those painful problems. I giggled in the class upon hearing Aristotle being mentioned.
“Wei Yiang, why are you laughing?” asked Ms Levina I told her it was because Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, reminded me of Aristotle Koh, a Year 10 student from 10E. The whole class laughed. “He had a funny smile and likes to do somersaults,” I said. Ms Levina smiled and nodded, flicking the slides. She then said that the reason why money was used as a tool of exchange was because it was durable and portable, in addition to having been homogeneous, limited in supply and that it was generally accepted by the public.
“Can you use poo as money?” asked Ms Levina. The whole class laughed. In fact, I laughed so loud till I coughed and choked water while drinking water from my water bottle. “Poo is not durable or portable because it is so disgusting. It is not homogeneous as it is common among people and animals. Also, there is unlimited supply, and no one can accept poo!” cried Ms Levina. I was really laughing so loudly. “Calm down, Wei Yiang, relax,” said Ms Levina, patting me on the back. Then, she saw Brandon playing on his phone.
“Brandon Ooi! Ryan Chok! Please keep your phones, or else I will take it away,” she said. “Use it as money, because it is portable AND durable,” cried Sheng Jit. I laughed at his joke, and by this time, I was really an annoyance to Enisha. And even Enisha started laughing at my funny laughter and Sheng Jit's joke.
Then, Ms Levina introduced the characteristics and functions of money to us and we did exercises. Throughout the entire time, I had a stack of papers and wrote everything that the teachers verbally said from their mouths, beginning with Ms Levina, as it was really interesting to look at. Unfortunately, the Economics lesson had to come to an end, and I asked Ms Levina some questions regarding money. It reminded me of the money-learning and financial mastery techniques taught by my mum.
Soon, Brandon Ooi was tugging money with Ryan Chok, adding a twist to the entire lesson. “Brandon Ooi! What are you doing?” asked Ms Levina.
“Teacher, he stole my money!” cried Brandon Ooi.
“Brandon! Chok, please give the money back. Brandon, please sit in front,” said Ms Levina, before asking us to attempt the questions in the exercise book.
I was laughing at the commotion because it looked like a humorous thing and coincidentally, everything revolved around money. Then, Brandon cried again. “Teacher! Chok stole my money!” he yelled, and Ms Levina took the wallet and the money from Ryan Chok and placed it on the teacher's desk. Then, Brandon went and disturbed Ivyna, and Ms Levina then moved Brandon Ooi to the center of the class, next to me again and he did his work. “One more word from you and I will put you outside the class,” she said. Ryan Chok was laughing. What a comedy.
Ms Bee Yan came back with our Maths papers and did a discussion of the papers. Then, we had lunch. During Art, Ms Feeda told me to continue the Prep 2 for the Paper 2 and she showed me some design examples to print and paste on the prep work. Then, we went for History and Ms Visa continued to discuss the exam papers.
On 27th May 2016, we were on our last day of school, and Ms Bee Yong wished us a happy holidays. Ms Cynthia shook her head when distributing the Malaysian Studies results, saying that it shows that we do not take good interest on our country. However in my opinion, interest on our own country cannot be shown based on the results; I am interested in Malaysian history and read it online, but most people would focus on important subjects than care about Malaysian Studies, since it will not come out in the IGCSE exams.
Then, we continued with the rest of our lessons that day, and everyone handed in the Individual Report for Global Perspectives. After eating our Friday lunch, we went to the school hall.
We were treated to a play show called “The Merchant of Venice”. “The Merchant of Venice” is a play that was directed by William Shakespeare.
The play was held in the school hall, and invited to the play were some people from Year 9, 8 and 7 who had purchased tickets. It was compulsory for all Year 10s to participate in this play as we would be using this play for our lessons.
On the day of the play, everyone waited outside the school hall for our tickets to be checked. There was bad weather and a storm was impending outside. Fortunately, we were ushered in to the hall before it rained heavily.
The hall was set up in the middle with a curtain, and the entire court was boarded up by canteen benches, to segregate the crowd from the play. All the students were instructed to gather at the sides of the hall behind the benches to watch the play, and were asked to keep silent. Soon, an emcee then introduced everyone to the play and the history of The Merchant of Venice.
Suddenly, a man and woman actor appeared from behind the stage and started doing a series of ballets. The crowd was awed by the moves as the duo then danced and acted to the sounds and scripts of Shakespeare. The entire crowd was glued to the play and no one made any noise for fear of missing the action.
Then, the play ended after some time and then there were questions being asked from the crowd during a question and answer session. A lot of teachers were there, including Mr Steve, Ms Renee and Ms Feeda, who said that the play can be combined with Art and Design for a much more creative view.
I spent my holidays throughout the end of May to early June just relaxing and passing time with my neighbor. I got a decent C grade overall for First Language English. I did terribly for History, Art, Business Studies, Malaysian Studies and Bible Knowledge. I got a C for Combined Science and Mathematics, but my Economics was a bit of a D. I rarely performed at a C for Economics. That is to say, overall. However, I still got good results for Global Perspectives, which was a C, as well as Malay.
After the two-week Mid Year Break, I feel so excited for Term 2. I miss all my friends, teachers and everyone in Nobel. Honestly, at the time, Nobelians wish for longer holidays. I can really tell you how I miss my teachers and friends, including the strict teachers. I mean, I can't stand being at home just doing my gardening projects alone. Of course, yes, Ms Visa and I had some issues, I can attest to that, but I miss her lessons too.
When we returned to school, we were pumped up for Term 2. This term will be even more wild than Term 1 (January – May 2016). So, please get ready for an exciting ride. Stay tuned as the end of the year would look so interesting.
The beginning of school on Monday, 13th June, was a hive of activity. Everyone gathered in the school hall for the morning assembly. The assembly started off normally. No issues, except for Ms Bee Yong asking two boys from Year 7 to meet her in the front. They were talking during the morning assembly.
When we returned to class, Sheng Jit wrote a list of menu items for the Bake Sale, which will take place at the end of the month, on 30th June 2016. Then, Mr Thomas entered into the class and plopped onto his seat. He then greeted me and told us to do a composition, showing some texts on how a composition should be done. He also told us to hand in our coursework the next day. Cikgu Niely then came in and told us a listening test would be done at the end of the week.
As Cikgu Niely was about to continue on our lesson, there was a knock on the door. It was Mr Gallagher.
“Sorry, Ms Niely, is it okay if I see Wei Yiang for a while?” asked Mr Gallagher.
I was surprised. I raised my hand, got up, and walked to him. I was wondering why Mr Gallagher would see me. What I heard from him next was shocking.
“Wei Yiang, I want to ask you a question. Did anyone help you do your report, since you said that you finished your report early?” asked Mr Gallagher.
“No,” I replied.
“Did your mum assist you in this? Did anyone you know helped you check your report?” asked Mr Gallagher. I said no again.
“I see,” said Mr Gallagher. “I have taken a look at your report. I have seen and read it, and, you know, I believe that the choice of words that were used, the type of words, paragraphs and writing style, I don't believe that you typed it. I think that this report is not written by you,” he said. I was stunned. He was referring to the Individual Evaluation Report. The one that I wrote on highways easing congestion, as part of the Transportation and Infrastructure category. I wrote about whether elevated highways or new roads are solutions to the problem of traffic congestion in that report.
“The words, you know, the grammar and so on. It looked like as if someone else wrote it,” Mr Gallagher continued. “I believe that it was written by somebody else and not by you.”
I felt so innocent. The innocent out of the innocent. How could the report not be written by me just like that?
“The fact is, if these words look like it is not written by you, it is plagiarism. And plagiarism is a serious issue. You will fail if you were caught plagiarizing. Do you understand?” asked Mr Gallagher.
From Mr Gallagher's point of view, the first two incidents prior to this really struck his mind. It all begun with me submitting the work really early, and I said that I was on the conclusion. Mr Gallagher was surprised that I had submitted the work early, as he did not expect the work to be submitted THAT early. Secondly, I kept on hesitating and wanting to get the work done and over with it. That struck another note, because Mr Gallagher had always had to entertain me over the multiple queries. The two incidents, from his perspective, had opened a can of worms onto my Global Perspectives report.
On the other hand, I view what Mr Gallagher said to me as a shocking revelation. I had never plagiarized any article. I wrote the entire thing word-by-word. I only knew at the time that plagiarism was just to press ‘select’, ‘copy’ and ‘paste’. That could be done in just one second. How could one plagiarize the entire report when words and phrases were written by me? Multiple sources were quoted. I was the honest self I was. I would never cheat, so being labeled as a plagiarist made me seem really sad.
“Now, I want you to be honest with me. Did you plagiarize any article?” asked Mr Gallagher. I said no. "Because I can feel that this article is not your piece of work. It contains words that appear to look like it was written by somebody else,” said Mr Gallagher.
“You're sure you didn't plagiarize? Are you sure that you did the work by yourself?” asked Mr Gallagher.
“Mr Gallagher, I typed everything all by myself. I did not copy and paste from any other website,” I pleaded.
“If you had written all these by yourself, then there will not be any such words in the report. The presence of such words in the report does not look like it was you who wrote it,” he said.
Plagiarism of course, is a very serious issue. In university, you can be expelled because of it. It can also lead to disciplinary action at a higher level, and it does not respect the individual who created the thing.
I did not feel very happy, because I was being summoned for something which I feel was not my wrong doing, since I was told I plagiarized everything, but however, I tried to tell Mr Gallagher that I did not plagiarize, and attempted to clear up my innocence.
“This essay does not look like it was written by you,” he said. I was baffled, because I had typed every single word by myself. I did not look at another website and copied every single word from that website. So, I believe, that if I did not copy word by word and just typed every thing by myself, I don’t think I have plagiarized anything.
I mean, like, I typed everything all by my own, to be honest. I didn't copy word-by-word from other sources. How could it look like me plagiarizing since I wrote it on my own? It was mysterious.
Mr Gallagher said that he had shown the report to Ms Praveen, and she wasn't amused. He said that I will need to go and see Ms Praveen to clear up the issue the next day. “You explain to Ms Praveen about what you did, okay?” he said, and I told him that I will go and clear the issue up with her.
I felt worried. Like so worried. I wondered how can such a situation end up as such? It was mysterious. Cikgu Niely had finished her class, and Mr Gallagher and I were still talking. He waved goodbye. “See you tomorrow,” he said.
Then, it was break time. I proceeded to meet Caleb Chuang and tell him how boring I felt during the holidays. This time, he was really busy studying. He had Chemistry work to do.
Afterwards, Ms Chithra told us to present our Business Studies research on Greenpeace. I presented to hear a piece of paper containing the history of Greenpeace. Wei Zhong then presented our group discussion that we did before the holidays. She then continued the lesson by teaching us on motivation theories on how to motivate workers at the workplace.
Ms Feeda then had plans for us for the second term. She intends to invite a guest speaker named Mr Jeffery to give a workshop on painting techniques in Art and Design. However, Ms Feeda couldn’t confirm when would Mr Jeffery be free. She told us that he was busy for the time being.
Ms Feeda also said that she had told everyone to stop all Paper 2 prep works for the time being. Some of us were disappointed, but Ms Feeda told us that she will give us a chance to finish them for the Mid Year Examination and told us that we can improve further for the Final Year Examination, but we should know where our weaknesses were for the prep works. No wonder I was trying to continue it but Ms Feeda told us not to proceed when I wanted to find my Paper 2 prep works.
Then, we had Science, where Ms Sangeetha taught us about breast feeding. Brandon tried giggling as he made some jokes about women’s breasts, and Ivyna scolded him properly. Afterwards, Ms Visa said that Mr Aram had told us that our coursework was not very well done for the first term and a second term coursework would be done in poster form for us to improve ourselves.
The next morning, 14th June 2016, I was worried about what to expect with Ms Praveen, I did not know what had happened. I just kept feeling nervous.
Ms Levina came into the class. She plopped up the slides and ensured that the electronic systems were working. She was dressed in her usual black suit with white formal wear. Then, she switched on the slides.
“Good morning, Ms Levina,” I greeted. “Yes, good morning, Wei Yiang,” said Ms Levina as I asked her about the questions regarding money. Then, I settled down, got my books out, and made sure my rough paper was ready. I asked her about some of the previous topics on money as well as why gold is not used as a money even though I saw gold being sold for another item. Somehow, I got an answer wrong on that. Ms Levina said that the gold is not durable and portable because it is too big and heavy and it can rust over time, which may affect the value. “Gold is also unlimited in amount. What you are comparing is gold coins, but however, gold is not lasting. The coins are legal tender as mentioned in the notes because they are issued by banks. You will learn more about gold and banks later today,” said Ms Levina, as she explained that it is incorrect to compare a gold bar to a gold coin.
“Okay, class, please take your seats. Brandon Ooi, I expect some good behavior from you, okay?” asked Ms Levina. “Teacher, I am a good boy ma!” cried Brandon. Ms Levina then told him not to play his phone in class as well as talk to Ryan Chok.
Ladies and gentlemen, this section of Economics is going to be really exciting and also fun. Ms Levina will do some fun and funny things in class, which will make the class pumped up.
Ms Levina then opened the slides. We were learning about BANKS! My eyes lit up with money signs. “Fuiyoh!” I cried. My mum always likes to talk about banks, money and finance at home with me. So, it was indirectly a recap, but also a fun learning experience. Ms Levina distributed the slides printed on paper to us before we begun. I made sure that my rough papers were ready.
“Okay, class, may I ask what is a bank?” Ms Levina asked. I replied, “To store money!”
“Anyone else other than Wei Yiang?” asked Ms Levina. Grace then said that a bank was also meant for people to keep a bank account. Ms Levina said that the purpose and functions of a bank differ as to which type of banks are described. I begun writing as she talked. Then, she turned to Brandon Ooi.
“Brandon, please stop talking,” said Ms Levina.
Ms Levina told us about the roles of the banks in the economy. “A central bank acts as the government’s bank. A commercial bank acts as the banker’s bank!” she said. The central bank is owned by the government and more or less keeps funds for the government, and in Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia is responsible for that. Other banks such as CIMB Bank, Maybank and Public Bank are banks which the general public can access, and members of the public can become “bankers”, hence the reason why the banks act as the “bankers’ bank”.
Ms Levina then showed us a list of commercial banks, such as Public Bank, Maybank and Standard Chartered Bank. She then told us that the reason why the commercial banks are the 'bankers’ bank’ was because the commercial banks allow people to use their services to store money via a current account, which most people use, as well as a timed account which is very rare. A current account allows people to create a bank account to store and keep money as they please, as well as withdraw money from the automated teller machine (ATM). The timed account has the same function, with the only difference being that people had to request permission or give an advanced notice before taking money out of their bank account.
Suddenly, Brandon Ooi was playing his phone. Back in those days, Nobel International School forbids the usage of handphones in school, but many people tried to play fool and sneak it past the eyes of the management team and teachers like Ms Lim. By right, the teachers will confiscate it, but not this round. Some are quite lenient, like Ms Bee Yan, who allows phones provided that they are not misused.
“Okay, Brandon Ooi, keep your phone, please keep. Shane, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit……please keep.” A few people had been using their phones in class. Ms Levina will continue to do this and then tell people not to play around and fool around in the class. Therefore, each time she begun the lesson, Brandon Ooi would be glued to his device, and then Ms Levina will need to ask Brandon Ooi to keep his phone, and he would react in a cute, cuddly and innocent tone, smile and laugh. From an audience’s point of view, this kept occurring more than ten times in the lesson, and this added humor to Ms Levina’s lesson, to be honest.
“Keep, keep, keep, please keep your phones,” she said. She would normally ask Brandon to keep his phone and then time after time, he would react like a crazy guy, and then Ms Levina will ask him to keep again, to a repeated response. Such incidents, especially when Brandon shows his funny side, makes me laugh, especially in Ms Levina’s lesson.
Then, Ms Levina showed us the functions of Bank Negara Malaysia. “Nobody can have a bank account here. This bank is not for people like us to use it. This bank is meant for the government, which is why central banks are called the 'government's bank’,” said Ms Levina. She said that Bank Negara Malaysia is meant to be used for deciding how government funds were allocated, and she introduced to us Tan Sri Zeti Abdul Aziz, the former governor of Bank Negara Malaysia. The governor's signature is normally seen on a banknote. And Ms Levina said that only Bank Negara Malaysia had the money to print banknotes.
Then, we had English, and Mr Thomas did a discussion on the text, ‘A Trek in the Andes’.
We then had break time, and Mr Gallagher told me to meet Ms Praveen in her office during the GP lesson.
“Go and see Ms Praveen,” he said.
“Now?” I asked.
“Now. Go and meet her. Quickly.”
I went to see Ms Praveen after Mr Gallagher instructed me to go when I reached the classroom.
Ms Praveen was there to greet me. “Good morning, Wei Yiang. How’s everything?” she asked. I said I was doing fine and she invited me to have a seat.
“First of all, Wei Yiang, do you know why you are here?” Ms Praveen asked. I told her that Mr Gallagher had asked me to meet her. “What was the reason he asked you to meet me?” she asked.
“Mr Gallagher asked me to meet you as he said that I had plagiarized my report,” I said.
So, Ms Praveen then asked me to explain my report. I told her that I have written about transport and infrastructure and whether or not elevated highways can solve problems on traffic congestion.
“That is quite an interesting report,” she said.
So, I then explained on how traffic congestion is a problem. I also said that most people would build elevated highways to solve traffic congestion since it provides additional space and capacity for vehicles to drive on. I also emphasized my interest in the topic and my decision to choose it.
“Now, Wei Yiang, you see, Mr Gallagher has told me that you have plagiarized. Is that true?” Ms Praveen asked. I said yes and reiterated that he had told me that I have plagiarized. I told her that I did not plagiarize and wrote the words one by one on my own accord.
Ms Praveen was ecstatic. She then said that Mr Gallagher had said so because from her analysis, it seemed like the words were not written in the manner that I should be writing in. The punctuation, grammar and spelling looks more of an article written by a westerner than how we Malaysians would write it.
I teared up and pleaded my innocence. In reality, to be honest, I had written everything without copying and pasting from any other article. If I had plagiarized, the report would have had been finished faster than ever and that this would raise eyebrows. There must be something that detected plagiarism. “Don’t cry, Wei Yiang. Just tell Ms Praveen what you have written, and whether you had plagiarized or not,” she said.
“I did not plagiarize, Ms Praveen. I wrote everything by myself,” I said, wiping my tears with my handkerchief.
“If that’s the case, I will need to meet with your mum as well as Mr Gallagher to discuss this,” she said.
Ms Praveen then asked me to state which articles did I refer to when doing the report, and I showed her a MegaStructures documentary which I had watched about the Boston Big Dig, an underground highway project that took fifteen years to build in Boston in the United States, which was an American civil engineering project that is also really challenging to construct. She then played it on her computer and watched part of the documentary for around 3 minutes. I like to watch it during my free time back then, and used it as an inspiration for the report.
Ms Praveen then asked me to explain about the Boston Big Dig and I explained. While I was explaining, Mr Gallagher then came in and then sat down with me and Ms Praveen. Mr Gallagher than reiterated what he and Ms Praveen said and guided me. He said that even though I were to have written EVERYTHING on my own, this report became a serious issue as the management tried to frantically scramble to investigate whether it was a genuine or fake report.
“If you think that I have plagiarized, I propose that you let me redo the report,” I said.
“You want to redo the report?” Ms Praveen asked.
Mr Gallagher and Ms Praveen said that there may be not much time to do the report again if I were to do so, but I insisted on doing so. He said that I better prove to him which areas that I plagiarized. So I just simply plucked a few websites like The Star, and he jotted them all down. I wanted to end this dillenma quickly and was willing to start all over again.
Ms Praveen then warned me not to repeat this incident again. “So, Wei Yiang, thank you for your time, but I’m warning you not to plagiarize again. Do you understand?”
I said yes, and thanked Mr Gallagher and Ms Praveen for their time and headed for Business Studies class. I had to explain to Ms Chithra, Daryl Yeo, Gabriel Lim and Glen Kay what transpired in the meeting with Ms Praveen and Mr Gallagher. I spent the entire GP lesson speaking to Ms Praveen as Mr Gallagher collected everyone else’s reports.
Later on, we learnt about HIV transmission in Science as well as did a straight line graph in Maths. Enisha kept telling me that I should not always go to 10O as it made people angry. However, I told her I wanted to see Caleb Chuang, but she wasn't amused. Normally, there is an indirect rule, or even direct, to a certain extent, that no person shall enter other students’ territory without permission. It is all but thanks to the really foolish action of choosing our own subjects back in October 2015.
The next day, 15th June, Mr Thomas then taught us how to do a composition writing exercise. This exercise would eventually form the basis for our Paper 3 exercise in the future. “You know, I should be continuing with the work, but however, many of you did not do well for this part in the Mid Year Exam. So, we will do composition today. Are you ready? Are you all ready for the class?” he asked.
"Yes Mr Thomas!” I cried. It looked like a plot from Special Agent Oso, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or Little Einsteins. It looked so funny. He then discussed some compositions. My title was a story named ‘A mysterious air cargo’.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina asked us the function of the World Bank and described to us that the World Bank is an international organization designed to lend money to less-developed countries, but China had its own bank, the Asian Development Bank, to settle its needs and that due to the rise of China, its Asian Development Bank is slowly substituting the World Bank's role. Then, she also told us about loan sharks, which are people who tend to prey on others with similar actions as banks but through violent means. She also gave examples of ‘ah long’ attacks on property throughout Malaysia.
“Never borrow money from illegal moneylenders!” cried Ms Levina. Then, Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok joked about being ‘ah long’ themselves. The whole class laughed, before Ms Levina stopped for the day.
We then went for break, and then Art. Ms Feeda then told us about our expectations for Term 2 once again. She then released our finalized marks for Art and Design Paper 1. Overall, I got a low C for Art. It was Ms Feeda being lenient. Then, she told us that she was in the midst of fixing an appointment with Mr Jeffery. However, she told us that there will be no second visit to The One Academy, since some people asked for it. We then continued with our prep work. I managed to touch up and finish my Paper 2 preps.
During Character Transformation, Ms Sarah then announced more details about the Dignity Foundation Picnic. The Dignity Foundation staff and students had agreed to the picnic but however a date was being set for the picnic. Ms Renee then told us to use the whole Character Transformation session to discuss about our Bake Sale as it was the last Character Transformation session before the Bake Sale. Then, Sheng Jit discussed the setting up of the food and so on. The bake sale was coordinated with Sheng Jit presiding over the entire event, with Ivyna assisting him. Yan Ying, Hao Yinn and Kelsey were in the coordination team. The whole class had to sit in a circle and discuss their proposals. Everyone listened as Ms Cynthia looked at us.
Sheng Jit wanted to have just a simple table and design. Contrary to that, I was looking at the other four classes. Ms Bee Yan was discussing with Sophia Chang and Joseph Diong, who were planning the event. The whole 10O class looked so excited as opposed to our class, which was quite dull and that Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric and Brandon were giving me serious looks. There was laughter and jokes from Mr Lee's class as Mr Lee kept on suggesting some funny ideas. The majority-boy class acted so crazily that even Ms Bee Yong, who had came in for the Character Transformation session, was really interested in their discussion.
The discussion in 10N was quite heated as I tried to give my proposals but had a conflict with Brandon Ooi on the matter. For me, on one hand, I personally wish that our class would be the best class, but other classes, despite having the Science stream of the three main separated Science subjects of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, were able to do well even though their studies were quite difficult. We were overshadowed by those other classes in terms of planning and implementation. We lagged behind, and I hoped we could improve. The conflict got out of hand till Ms Cynthia pulled me aside and had a talk with me. She said that we should be discussing normally and not be so emotional on the manner in a two-minute talk. I just stayed silent through the rest of the meeting.
Afterwards, we then headed for lunch as I talked about my issues with Joshua while having lunch with him and Caleb Chuang. Joshua told me that I shouldn't be competing for the best despite being inspired by Mr Lee and his class, or even other people as every class had their own personality. In fact, for social purposes, I wished I was in 10O. We would make a jolly good class. Sadly, every friend that I socialized, except for a few, were in the other classes. I felt that the grass was greener on the other side.
Of course, I don't mean to abandon my friend Glen, who was in 10N with me, but I feel that good things come with working with much better people.
We then had Business Studies where Ms Chithra continued to teach us about the motivation of workers. Then, it was History, and we were entering the topics that revolved around Adoft Hitler and Nazi Germany.
Ms Visa told us that Mr Aram had recommended that his students buy the book ‘Mein Kampf’, which is a book written by Adoft Hitler outlining his vision for Germany. In fact, Mr Aram did not just recommend – he FORCED his students to buy the book. He wanted everyone to analyze the book as part of his History lessons. Ms Visa said that it was very difficult to get a book in Malaysia because Mein Kampf was not in popular demand in Malaysia. Brandon and Ms Visa then discussed the price of the books. It was bound to cost an arm and a leg. Then, Ms Visa told us to plan our History poster for the coursework, and said that the coursework details cannot be revealed immediately because Mr Aram was still finalizing the details, but he told her to tell us that we have to do a poster that promotes Nazi Germany. So, Ms Visa told us to come up with the poster design during her lesson and form groups for the second coursework. I decided to join a group with Louis and Gabriel for the coursework. There were two coursework: one was to design the Nazi Germany poster. Another would be to build a scale model of a Nazi Concentration Camp. Wow! I decided to base my poster on Hitler's hand painting a picture of Germany's empire.
Ms Visa then checked an online bookstore and there were many copies of Mein Kampf available but none were available in Malaysia. Brandon laughed. “At least we don't have to see it. So, no need to buy lah!” said Brandon.
During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee finished up the last chapter of the book of Matthew with us, and told us to bring the textbook of Acts of the Apostles for the next class. We had a textbook based on Matthew and also on Acts, which we used in Year 8 and 9 respectively. Joseph Diong had brought a ping pong ball to play it in class with Joshua and Sean Mark before the lesson started. They put a table to make it look like a ping pong table, but they eventually used the floor as the court. We were using 11E's classroom for our Bible Knowledge lessons since the beginning of the year, and there was this large space located behind the desks. The three of them used the place as a mini court, and the whole class watched. We watched before and after the class.
The next day, 16th June, during Reading Time, Sheng Jit proposed that everyone donate some cash in order to buy some decorations for the fundraiser booth as well as a kitchen stove to cook the food. He said everyone had to pay RM 70 for the event because the class funds were insufficient to cover the cost.
In protest of the actions of some of my classmates, such as Brandon and Enisha, who were forcing me to go along with what they said, be it not going to see Caleb Chuang, or saying bad things to me like ‘you're gonna fail’, I contemplated not giving money to Sheng Jit for the class funds.
I miss the good old times of 2015, okay? I really miss the time being with Caleb Chuang. The people in his class are generally more kinder than the people of 10N, even Nieshaal Thambipillay, who acted like riot police. I really wish that we could be in the same class like last time. Why must we change classes based on our subject selection list? There had been a horrible 2016 thus far; a crazy, multiple set-teaching timetable, as well as a really dull (and then unsociable) class. Brandon Ooi and Enisha were my two arch-enemies. Enisha topped the list. Guess who was the best person in 10N for me? Ze Khai. The second best was Lyn Wen.
We went for our Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher then called me to come over to him. He took me aside, and spoke with me seriously.
Then, it was the end of Global Perspectives, but Mr Gallagher told me to wait as he talked to me. I was subsequently late for PE and had to explain to Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia that Mr Gallagher spoke to me and held me back. He told me about what I should do in the new Global Perspectives report.
During PE, Mr Victor taught us how to play a game of volleyball. I had to play volleyball and partnered with Gabriel. We had to put our hands together like a badminton racquet and use it to bounce the ball. I accidentally mishit the ball and it landed on Louis’ head, which made him angry with me. Even my ball accidentally hit Shane's buttocks, causing him to rage at me.
As the PE lesson passed, one of the balls accidentally smashed into the wall fan of the school hall, causing it to become damaged. Ms Sylvia inspected the damage but did not get angry with people.
“Uh oh! Ti tai yoh!” some people cried. Mr Victor also went to look at the damage. Some people had accidentally cracked the fan. Then, another ball banged into one of the lightbulbs, causing it to be rendered out of order.
I then decided to play ball tossing with Caleb Chuang. Then, I accidentally smashed the ball into Nieshaal Thambipillay. He raged at me and gave me the middle finger. I then decided to sit aside as my volleyball hitting skills were terrible. In fact, I also got hit by the volleyball as well when I struck my face with it.
Mr Victor then requested for all the balls to be collected as the PE lesson came to an end. The teachers then counted the balls, but one ball was missing.
“Where is one more ball? One more ball missing!” cried Mr Victor. Wei Zhong and Christopher Chew had gotten that last ball. Apparently, some people hit too hard till it landed on the balcony of the school hall's first floor.
After the PE lesson ended, I went to eat breakfast with Caleb Chuang and apologized to Nieshaal. He wasn't amused. “Next time, don't come into our class anymore,” he said. Then, we returned for Economics, and Ms Levina then did some revision on the past chapters as some of us did poorly for the Mid Year Examination. She gave us some tips on how to write essays based on specialization and the topics we previously comprehended. Brandon then played with his phone.
“Oi, Brandon, please keep your phone,” said Ms Levina.
“But I am not using it!” cried Brandon, but Ms Levina did not want to see his phone on his table. He then told Ryan Chok and Ze Khai to keep their phones.
I then asked Ms Levina some questions on the essay and she told me how to write the essay. I was planning to ask every teacher who taught me on areas that I can improve. Then, Brandon took out his phone again.
“Brandon! Keep your phone or else I will confiscate it and send it to Ms Lim,” Ms Levina warned him. Shane then said that if the phone was confiscated, a new one can be bought and it will not solve the problem. Ryan Chok laughed.
“That's wasting money,” I said to Shane, who said that he didn't care about what happened. “What if so many phones ended up in the office?” I groaned. Brandon Ooi then said that it can be sold off and he can claim the money. The whole class laughed.
“Okay, okay, guys, please settle down,” said Ms Levina, flicking the slides. She then explained to us about every single worksheet that we had and she was planning to check them. Then, she talked to us about how some of us failed to hand in some of the work, and then, the spotlight was once again on Brandon. Ms Levina had to quiz him on the topics once again while we watched. I put up my hand to answer when he mumured.
“No, Wei Yiang, let Brandon answer,” said Ms Levina. Brandon had a hard time trying to answer Ms Levina's questions. When that failed, she asked Ryan Chok and Enisha the questions. The fun fair ride had to end as Ms Bee Yan came in for Maths. She taught us about inequalities. Then, we had lunch and then we went to the Art Studio to see Ms Feeda.
Ms Feeda told us that she will be having a short individual meeting with every single one of us in the class regarding our Mid Year Examination results. She told us that she will give us areas on where we can improve and how we can do better. Everyone did their things as Ms Feeda met all of us. Ms Feeda had our prep work in plastic bag as well as our final piece, and she showed us paper after paper, one by one.
Chee Kei and Wei Wei asked if they could play some K-POP while waiting, but Ms Feeda said no as it will disrupt her communication and conversation. They reacted with sad looks.
When it was my turn to meet Ms Feeda, she told me that one area which I am good at was my application of mixed media skills, which conveyed the flow from one prep work to another. There was also a great degree of acceptable drawing when drawing the fruits. At the same time, she also commended my willingness to explore and that my sketching was quite good. However, Ms Feeda told me that one area which I had to work on was on my neatness of the drawing.
“You see, Art IGCSE is not like Art in Year 7, 8 or 9,” repeated Ms Feeda for the umpteenth time. “The standard of Art IGCSE is very high. If last time, you got an A for Art, you will get a D this time,” said Ms Feeda. “By right, you should be getting D or E, but because I am lenient and, like, kind, this time around, I will give you C for Paper 1. But for Paper 2, you will get a D because you did not finish your prep. So, overall, sadly to say, you will get D,” she said, as she added that it is very difficult to get A in Art IGCSE, and that getting a C is even difficult.
Ms Feeda then told me that I should improve myself quickly because the Paper 2 questions, which are based on design, would be released for the Final Year Examination and I should work on my time management. “For Art IGCSE, this year's students; the Year 11, will be given their questions in July. So, from then till October, which is the Actual IGCSE exam, they will only have three months to do their prep. And three months is not a long time, because from one prep to another, you will need to have at least two to three weeks to do it,” she said. "You will need to do four preps.”
“What about Paper 1, because you know, like, there are two papers?” I asked.
“Paper 1 also,” said Ms Feeda. “And also, one thing to let you know is that you have to do both Paper 1 and Paper 2 preps at the same time. So, it will be very, you know, like, difficult and also it will take a lot of time, so your time management is very important. Also another thing. You do not take a lot of pictures. You must take more pictures. Why must you take more pictures? It is so that you can have more things to draw, and you can get more marks, because you are showing the examiner how are you doing your subject matter and also, you are conveying your idea development for your Final Piece,” she said.
“Wei Yiang, I suggest you drop Art in Year 11 if you cannot cope. If you think that it is too difficult, then don't take Art for your actual IGCSE. If I meet your mum, I will tell her that you should drop the subject. To be very frank,” added Ms Feeda. She felt that the prep works were a burden for me after the first outing of an examination question.
I asked Ms Feeda a few questions as to how I could improve the painting techniques and what would be the requirement for a C grade in Art, since Ms Feeda had told me that it will be an uphill struggle for a C, let alone an A.
Ms Feeda then pulled out Louis’ work. “You see, Louis is the best example of a C. You can look at his texture. Although it may not be so neat, but his work is much more better than you. Look at the toning and mixed media,” she said. She also showed me Glen's work as well. “Glen......for him, I think he might be another example of how a C work should get. In fact, he got a B for his exam. But if you want me to show you the benchmark, it is this one. Zhen's,” she said, as she took out Yi Zhen's work. The work was spectacular. “I will advise you to go and see Zhen's work. Okay?”
Ms Feeda then ushered me to see Yi Zhen, who took out her sketchbook, as Ms Feeda pointed to me about what her work was like. “You can refer to Faythe as well. Natasha, Eugenie and Wei Wei as well.” Yi Zhen was at the back of the art studio doing some sketches. Then, Chee Kei and Eugenie talked to Ms Feeda on K-POP songs. “The K-POP gang again. Aiyoh!” cried Ms Feeda. Then, I called Louis to go to see Ms Feeda. He went to see her for his consultations. Soon, it was time for the lesson to end. “For those of you who have not met me today, you can meet me after school if you have class now,” said Ms Feeda, as we left the studio for our History lesson.
Brandon was teasing Mr Aram, as we were waiting. He said that Mr Aram used to work as an actor at Broadway's theatres in New York City. “Look at how fat he is. He acted in the Three Little Pigs. Hahahahahaha. So fat,” said Brandon, as he sung ‘Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?’ Then, Ms Visa came in. “Hi, cher!” cried Brandon. Ms Visa plopped her things down and talked more about the coursework. Then, I finalized my plans for the poster with Ms Visa, but she said that it would be better to start after the coursework rubric was handed out. I was really impatient to start as I don't want a lot of homework clogging my agenda.
The next day, 17th June 2016, Ms Cynthia came in during Homeroom. We were given our new timetable, which was to take effect the following Monday, 20th June. I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the new timetable would be more interesting and relaxing than the first. When I took a look at the timetable, I groaned as most of the time, we will be having set teaching. It looked more complicated and in my opinion, worse than the first.
I looked at the timetable. In fact, I stared at the timetable for ten whole minutes. Goodness. How wrong could I be. Tens of thousands of set teaching lessons were scattered across the landscape. The ones on Friday were worse. Art, then History, then Global Perspectives. All packed together. My head started spinning. I had a terrible headache.
Sheng Jit continued his discussion of the class funds for the Bake Sale. Sheng Jit collected the RM 70 fund from those who paid. Then, only me, Louis, Gabriel and Glen have not paid the cash. I had decided not to fund the bake sale.
My mum and I had discussed on this and I had told my mum of not contributing the cash to Sheng Jit for the bake sale. And I thus learned a new term; a boycott. My mum supported the decision if I were to proceed for it. She said that it was fine if she did not pay the cash. However, Sheng Jit and Enisha begged me to pay, since it was a class event and that everyone was involved in contributing their share for the bake sale. Sheng Jit said that he will withhold my Biscotti sales by cancelling them from the menu if I did not pay by Monday, 20th June. Instead of saying that I did not want to pay, I just merely said I had no money to pay.
“You can ask your mum to give you money to pay. Surely she will support a class project like this,” said Ms Cynthia, shaking her head at me. Enisha threatened to beat me up if I did not pay the cash on Monday. Ms Cynthia chided her for being too violent. “Enisha, please stop it,” warned Ms Cynthia. I told Ms Cynthia that it would be my burden for me and my mum to contribute to the Bake Sale funds.
“How can it be a burden, come on,” cried Sheng Jit. “It's only RM 70! It's not like you are using your whole bank account to pay for it,” he quipped. Enisha also chided me for being irresponsible if I were to not pay, since everyone had to work together as a class. Ms Cynthia then told me that I should speak to my mum on the matter and tell her that the funds concern a very important project. “Please tell your mum that this bake sale is important as marks will be awarded for it,” she said. Then, she told me that RM 70 wasn't a big deal and everyone SHOULD be able to pay for it. “If you can pay the school fees, how can you not pay a silly RM 70?” cried Enisha. Grace then told her to stop her rant as it was making me too uncomfortable. Ms Cynthia then said she will speak to Enisha afterwards. “If your mum doesn't allow you to pay, she can write a letter to me,” said Ms Cynthia. Sheng Jit said that I don't have to pay if it was financially burdensome to me.
Then, Cikgu Niely came in and gave us a Listening Test for our Malay lesson. I tried to concentrate as I thought about what had transpired. Then, Ms Cynthia came in for Malaysian Studies. “Teacher, can we continue to discuss the bake sale?” he asked. Ms Cynthia said no as she was going to teach us about the uniqueness and the symbolism of the Malaysian flag and the Rukun Negara. Brandon Ooi kept on saying that the Rukun Negara was useless, but Ms Cynthia told him it was really disrespectful when saying such a thing, given how important the Rukun Negara is to Malaysia.
During break, I just had a quiet breakfast with Caleb Chuang and had tears in my eyes. Then, Joshua asked me what was wrong. When Joshua heard about what transpired, he patted me on the back. “It's okay,” he said as he comforted me. Then, he pulled out tissue paper and gave it to me. Then, I walked around the school and sat alone in the foyer.
Afterwards, Jordan and Rick pulled up to me. They comforted me as well. Ting Yi tried to mimic me crying but he was scolded by Rick. I told Rick about my predicament and how I missed the previous year’s atmosphere thanks to that. The next thing I knew was that I was in for a serious talk with Rick.
Rick Tan lectured me on how I should learn to work with other people. “Even Jordan and I are not in the same class but yet we can still meet each other and be happy,” he said. He told me to find new opportunities to meet people from other classes. “This is why our teachers changed our class, so that we can mix around with new people and learn new things from them. If your mum sees you like this, how will she feel?” Rick questioned, trying to talk some sense into me. He and Ting Yi gave me a handkerchief. Ting Yi took a handkerchief from the washroom. The music then played, and we went for assembly.
During Science, Enisha continued to glare at me angrily. I looked away from her, not after giving her a stern stare. Ms Sangeetha then outlined the syllabus topics in Combined Science. Then, she asked if I was okay. Brandon then pretended to come around towards me and acted like a clown, trying to make me feel happy. “Oh, Wei Yiang, are you okay? Don't cry, don't cry, papa is here,” he teased. Lyn Wen, Ivyna and Ms Sangeetha told him to stop, while Ms Sangeetha comforted me and told me to get my face washed. I eventually used my tissue.
Then, Ms Bee Yan came in and asked if I was okay. Then, Enisha stepped forward and apologized to me. “Sorry if I said that I wanted to hit you and tear your books,” she said. Ms Bee Yan plopped her things on the teacher's desk as Lyn Wen and Ivyna talked some sense to Enisha. Then, we did some equations and then went for Global Perspectives. I added a heading and sent the work to Mr Gallagher.
It was the second week of classes in the month of June. The new timetable took effect as planned that day, 20th June. I waited at the foyer for Ms June's arrival. It was her birthday. When she arrived, I had a chat with her as she wore a red dress. I told Ms June that it was a nice shirt for her birthday. Then, I waited for Caleb Chuang to arrive. When he arrived, the two of us had a chat. Then, we went to see Joshua Chew in the hall. “Are you okay now, Wei Yiang?” he asked. I told him I was fine. “Pray to God,” said Joshua.
During the morning assembly, we were introduced to the new head of CCA, Mr Neoh. He had a cheerful face and regularly smiled. He looked quite young and professional, and he had a nice, hearty smile. He laughed quite often.
Mr Neoh said that the CCA registration period has started, and he hopes to see everyone registered in their new CCAs by the end of the week. I was eyeing the Editorial Board, which I had kept as my dream CCA since 2013. Ms Levina also made an announcement during the assembly to all those who registered as Editorial Board CCA members to meet her for the application form. I gulped. I only could pray it wasn't like 2013 where a strict interview was required.
We then returned to class after assembly, and I passed the RM 70 Bake Sale fee to Sheng Jit. Initially, Sheng Jit told me that Friday, 17th June, that the onus was on me to choose whether to pay the fees. He said it was okay not to pay if it was too burdensome on me or my mum.
I had given the excuse of being a burden for me and my mum because, firstly, only six people, namely Kelsey, Sheng Jit, Ivyna, Yan Ying, Hao Yinn and Lyn Wen were involved in the setup of the booth. As the booth doesn't represent the fame I want 10N to be, and is less likely to look better, because it was really simple as opposed to the other classes, who were planning decorations for their booths, I feel it is too burdensome to spend money on something that is not worth the effort. Honestly, if I was in Caleb Chuang's class, I would contribute the money.
Secondly, there are certain people in 10N, such as Brandon Ooi and Enisha, whom I had rocky relationships with and we could not see eye to eye on certain matters. Hence, I wanted to have a revenge on them financially by staying out of the bake sale activities, as I feel it is inappropriate to work along with people who couldn't get along. And lastly, my mum need not pay extra money so we can tighten the belt. I want to be fair to my mum also. In fact, I had also promised myself not to fund a single sen for 10N's class activities.
Later on, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra said she will skip some chapters as she was not ready on certain other chapters. In fact, we skipped at least 100 pages of chapters. So, Ms Chithra talked about the sources of financing for a business and how businesses are financed. Businesses need money, and we had two ways to get money, namely via internal sources, which are through the people in the company, and external sources, which are from people associated with the business like stakeholders and the general public, who are customers to the company.
Yew Jan took the opportunity to talk about the 1MDB scandal where the then-prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, stole some money by putting them into his personal bank accounts. He said that it was considered “indirect financing” for a business. Ms Chithra said that Yew Jan's answer was utter nonsense. Then, we returned back to 10N, where Ms Sangeetha taught us about Ecosystems, which I learnt back in Year 8 in Geography. It was all on the same theories. Some of them were taught by Ms Maddy, although most are new. Then, once Ms Sangeetha's lesson was finished, I went for break, and then I made sure I was armed with blank papers to take down the lesson plans by Ms Levina.
During break, I spoke to Joshua Chew about how horrible the new timetable was to me. Caleb Chuang was busy studying. I ain't want to disturb him. He told me that he won't entertain me as he had work to do. I told him that he can let me know when he is done. “I won't disturb you, Caleb Chuang till you are free,” I said. Joshua Chew said that nothing can be done about the timetable. “It will be hard to change it, though,” he said.
We then returned for Economics. And we were learning about stock exchanges!
Ms Levina then gave real-life examples of the stock exchanges. The first impression of a stock exchange would the Bursa Malaysia and the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange, with the most famous stock exchange would be the New York Stock Exchange. Seeing stock exchanges made me think of the large screens full of company names and numbers, and it was like a futuristic thing.
“If you are a public limited company, you can invest onto the stock exchange,” she said, as she described that we can buy and sell shares in a stock exchange. This was because public limited companies are generally considered larger than private limited companies due to the high rate of market capitalization. During this time, Ivyna, me, Kelsey, Grace and a few other people in the front of the classroom would raise our hands and ask questions. I would normally raise my hands and write down the words she said on a piece of paper so that I can recall what is said in the class. The people at the back would murmur among themselves, and Ms Levina had to call for order, acting like a clown. “Eh, please stop talking,” she said.
Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok were playing behind the class, and Ms Levina confiscated their phones and placed them on the teacher's desk. Brandon glared at me. Sheng Jit then laughed as he joked that Brandon's phone could be used as legal tender and also be traded on the ‘stock exchange’, thus repeating my funny line. In this case, the 'stock exchange’, according to him, was the management office.
Then, Ms Levina told them that they will only be allowed their phones at the end of the lesson. She also introduced to us a series of companies that were listed on the stock exchange in Malaysia. The most notable companies were Genting Group, the company that owns Genting Highlands, EcoWorld Berhad, a property development company, as well as Malaysia Airports, the owner and operator of all the airports in Malaysia. I told Ms Levina that my mum had bought a share for me on Bursa Malaysia two years prior, and it was EcoWorld's share. Ms Levina also showed us the tracking website of Bursa Malaysia shares, and the tracking was live in real time! She also warned us that selling too many company shares could result in one's company being taken over and the ownership can be transferred to another majority of shareholders, just like in the case of Malaysia being conquered by the Japanese in the past.
Then, Ms Levina asked who was in the Editorial Board from 10N, and only me and Lyn Wen put up our hands. Ms Levina then handed the both of us the Editorial Board Application Form. This application form was like the prefect interview form. We did work in Economics, and Ms Levina collected our worksheets before she left.
Then, we had Maths and we went for lunch, and I told Joshua Chew how funny Ms Levina was and how many times she had to tell Brandon Ooi to keep quiet. Joshua laughed and said that Ms Levina had the same circumstances with his class, and that she had to ask so many people who were talking in her class to calm down.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher told me to redo my Individual Report. I got started on the work, and Mr Gallagher told me to promise him that I do not rush my work and repeat my mistake. I got started immediately, and I wrote and wrote and wrote. Then, we went down to the Art Studio for Art and Design with Ms Feeda.
Ms Feeda had big plans for us for Art and Design. She had posted instructions for us on her blog. We gathered in Art Studio 1, and Ms Feeda told us to sit in front of the class for her briefing. The lights were off until the projector's lamp was the only lamp in the room.
The second term’s focus was on prep works with the theme of lemons. For Paper 1, we had to take pictures of lemons and a series of dishes. She then posted five questions on her blog for Paper 2, which she displayed on the projector, asking us to bring some items for the next class:
Paper 2 questions
1. Cover page of Health Magazine for August 2016 issue
2. Cover page of a novel that features ‘lemon’ as a front cover. You need to come out with the type of novel, title, and description
3. A collection of fashion design inspired by lemons
4. Mural wall design inspired by lemons at a café in your town
5. Furniture design inspired by lemons to be placed in a hotel lobby
Please bring the first-hand studies research materials by Thursday, 23 June
Thank you
Ms Feeda then explained to us all the questions. She opened a Powerpoint presentation which showed us examples of the various designs which corresponded to each question. There was a woman in yellow bikini standing on a lemon, a picture of two people kissing that was photoshopped with lemons, a girl standing inside a lemon, and all sorts of funny and silly photos which made everyone laugh. And I laughed the loudest. Then, we had a discussion of what we wanted to do for our Paper 2. Unlike Paper 1, which tests on fine art, Paper 2 tests us on design.
Ms Feeda suggested that I choose Question 1, which was to do a cover design for the August 2016 issue of the magazine. I agreed. I had cool plans for the prep work.
“Wei Yiang, you must take many photos, so that we can have a choice which one is the best. You need more first hand studies for your preps, you know,” said Ms Feeda, asking me to not only take one picture as it was not enough. According to Ms Feeda, more first hand studies, or I should say, photos are better so that there are more options, and the best ones can be affixed through brush and paint on the prep works. “I won’t be lenient this time around, and I will mark according to the IGCSE standard,” she said.
Speaking of lemons, Lyn Wen had said in the class before, jokingly, “When life gives you lemons, get some therapy.” It was a quote that I always hear from her during my days in Nobel.
When I chose the first question for Paper 2, I decided to name the magazine “Weileb News” to remind me of my friendship with Caleb Chuang. Most of the people in the art class were shocked that I have such a theme name for the magazine.
“You’re obsessed with Caleb, Wei Yiang,” said Cassandra, upon hearing my plans. “Do you miss Caleb?” Enisha asked. The phrase “Weileb” was coined by Megan Lee and Heng Le Anne in 2015 to represent a portmanteau of two names: “Wei Yiang” and “Caleb”, hence the name. Honestly speaking, I was too excited doing my preps, as Caleb Chuang was on my mind this instant.
Now, the second term wasn’t as kind as the first. Ms Feeda was strict on us progressing to the next prep, but fortunately, my preps progress was well. The art studio was like clockwork; when we arrived at the art studio, we went to Art Studio 3 to collect our prep works which were placed in individual plastic wrappings. Then, we took them to Art Studio 1 to paint. Ms Feeda would then watch all of us and walk around the art studio to check on us, and every minute, one person will call for Ms Feeda and Ms Feeda would approach the individual concerned, ready to guide him or her with the prep work and coordinate the progression from Prep 1 to 4. Music would play in the background as we concentrated on our prep.
Ms Feeda would normally keep her prep works in a large black plastic briefcase designed to hold A2-sized papers. She would put them at the front of the art studio. If our painting was wet, we would leave them on the table in Art Studio 1 and Ms Feeda would arrange for us when it dried. Now, she had to have so many briefcases due to the increasing number of prep works from both Year 10 and 11.
Yen Tong, Faythe and some people who were too careful would cry out that their prep work was smeared by the paint, but Ms Feeda told them not to worry as touch-ups can be done.
Once the discussion was finished, we went back home. School was ending, and Ms Feeda said that she will post the slideshow presentation on Edmodo. I then saw Caleb Chuang and talked to him as we were dismissed. “How's ICT with Mr Stellio?” I asked. He smiled slyly.
Sadly, Ms Feeda announced on Edmodo that she cannot put up the slides on Edmodo because she said that the computer said that there was a large file size and that the system might crash, but she will still have the slides in the Art Studio where we can save to our thumbdrives if we needed.
The next day, 21st June, during Reading Time, we were handed our permission slips for our second field trip of the year, which was to Cheringin Hills in Janda Baik, Pahang. I kept on wondering how nice the resort was. Ms Sangeetha then came in taught us on human reproduction. She told me not to post comments on her Edmodo page. Normally, I would do so for every teacher's lesson, especially Mr Thomas's. Brandon Ooi and his friends laughed at the human reproduction process and talked about sexual reproduction once again, which made Ms Sangeetha really angry with them, and told them that they could present and take over the lesson if needed. Once that was done, we then had Malay. Cikgu Niely told us that many of us were not able to comprehend what was said during the Listening Test when answering the questions, and Brandon's answer was the silliest. He laughed so loud until Cikgu Niely was not happy, as we were not taking the Malay subject seriously.
Then, it was break, and I talked about the field trip with San Ying and Kit Lee. I also wished Ashlyne Yong a happy birthday. Afterwards, we had Business Studies, where Ms Chithra introduced the ‘Break-even chart’ to us. Every company wants to make money, but they also pay money as well for certain things like workers, electricity and so on. So, a ‘break-even chart’ was to illustrate the amount of money being earned against the amount of money being used by a company by drawing two lines on a graph. The break even point is the point where the two lines intersect each other. Companies want to earn more money, and prefer to be in the area of profit where more money enters the company than exits it.
Then, it was Economics once again, and Ms Levina was back! I was so excited! Ms Levina then continued to recap the banks, stock exchanges and everything that she taught, and Brandon Ooi always kept using his phone in the class.
“Eh, Brandon, no phones, please,” warned Ms Levina. This trend kept repeating every ten minutes. Then, Ms Levina got fed up with him and told him to move in front. She said he will sit there for the whole lesson.
Then, we had lunch, and I read Ms Levina's notes. Before the Economics lesson ended, I passed the Editorial Board Application Form to Ms Levina, and kept my fingers crossed if I was chosen. Lyn Wen then also asked Ms Levina on how to fill the form. We then had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan proposed that the Genius Time be moved to Mondays as a result of the new timetable being given. This was to allow us to freshly start the week anew.
As it was the last Maths lesson of June, since the following day, 22nd June, was a public holiday due to Nuzul Al Quran, Ms Bee Yan then told us that she will be on leave from 27th June, through the whole of the following week and until 17th July, after the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays and the field trip. Hence, work would be given and there will be discussions in the following relief periods during Maths to check the answers. The reason Ms Bee Yan was on leave was to facilitate her family matters.
Ms Visa came in during History, and we were in for a very interesting ride. We were learning about how Germany was affected by World War I, and the situation which led to the rise of Adoft Hitler. Brandon Ooi then joked with me about the ‘legal tender’ basis during Economics before we begun our History lesson.
We had a break for the Nuzul Quran Holiday on the 22nd, and we returned on the 23rd. I took the opportunity to spend some time with my neighbor to do some gardening. I also took some time to research on the field trip's location, Cheringin Hills. The resort looked wonderful like a five star hotel! I did more research on the location of the place. It looked like a jolly good place to go to.
Speaking about the new timetable, I have overheard during the morning assemblies as well as from Yi Ruth, my neighbour who rides the same car with me to school, that the Year 11s would begin their classes straight away at 7:30am in order to prepare for the IGCSE exams, hence skipping the Tuesday and Thursday Reading Times. I felt jealous because I have always wanted school to start early. I personally felt that we could have had ended our schooling time at 1:00pm or 12:30pm if the break and lunch times were omitted from the timetable. In fact, I prefer to begin classes early, say, at 6:00am and then dismiss at around 12:30pm daily.
I felt that starting lessons early was a luxury because I could get a headstart. I felt that we were not achieving anything with 30-minute reading times, and we could use them for early lessons for the day. I wished I was with the Year 11s so that I can enjoy that luxury. Grace then informed me that I could experience it in Year 11, but it would be too little, too late, to enjoy it.
Then upon returning on the 23rd, we learnt that we had a new teacher that will be our assistant class teacher. Her name was Ms Zoe and she is a very strict teacher. For those in English Second, she was, to a certain extent, their nightmare due to her strictness. Ms Cynthia introduced us to her.
Ms Zoe then asked all the English Second students to follow her to 10B while Mr Thomas came in. “Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Then, he sat down and opened his Edmodo page on the computer. There was a technical glitch that morning, but it was quickly rectified.
“Mr Thomas, you haven't posted anything on Edmodo for a long time,” I said.
“Yes, because some of you, in fact many of you, have not mastered certain skills and I want to do some revision with you. All these texts are not found on Edmodo, which is why we are doing it in the class,” said Mr Thomas. Then, he opened a text on his computer titled ‘The Chaser Analysis’ and begun teaching it to us. He said we need to rush because the public holiday for Nuzul Quran on 22nd June delayed his plans.
As we went down to the school courtyard for PE, I peered at 10O. Ms Cynthia was teaching Malaysian Studies in the class. Then, the 10O people came out and we walked to the courtyard. We took our attendance as Ms Sylvia, Mr Lim and Ms Lee walked around to check on us. Mr Victor was going to take us to the field again.
At 10L's class line, Jordan, Branson, Ting Yi and Daniel were talking to each other. Jordan was fixated on his Rubik's cube, trying to perfectly solve it. He was playing with it. Then, in 10O, Ashlyne and Bethany were discussing in front. Soon, Mr Victor told all of us to follow him to the field.
As we were headed to the field, I walked with Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia and had a chat. When we reached the field, it was quite muddy. Then, I took a sip of water. Mr Victor then told us to put our bottles aside and run three laps around the field.
Once we were done, Benjamin Fong and Aristotle were hanging on the football goalposts, and Mr Lim told them to come and do the PE lesson. Then, we did some running and some warm ups as well as simple, basic exercises.
After returning to school, I then went for my breakfast with San Ying and talked about my History coursework plans and confirmed certain things about Mr Aram's class. In fact, I asked her how was Mr Aram. She said he was okay, but strict. In fact, he is also somewhat as funny as well, but most of the time, he was strict.
When we returned to class, Ms Cynthia told us to present the Malaysian flag symbols. I was the only one who did the research. “Only Wei Yiang? What about the rest?” asked Ms Cynthia, shaking her head in disappointment.
We then proceeded for our Global Perspectives lesson, and I continued to write my essay and showed some of it to Mr Gallagher. He was pleased with the writeup. And then, we went for Art. I brought a total of six pictures of lemons for the beginning of Prep 1. Everyone gathered in the Art Studio, and got pieces of A2 paper to begin their Prep 1.
Ms Feeda asked me to present my photos. I presented the six lemon pictures I took at home. “Not enough,” said Ms Feeda, shaking her head. “You cannot always take pictures of lemons. You must take pictures of different ITEMS that contain lemons, because not only you want to study the texture of lemons, but you also want to get some idea and to look at how people incorporate lemons into the design.”
I then asked Ms Feeda about the fact that we were drawing pictures of lemons, even on the fact that a product or something else contained lemons, such as a book with lemons on a cover. Ms Feeda said that it is vital for me to study incorporating the lemons into the design as it will guide me with the design development for the eventual Final Piece.
Ms Feeda then said that as Paper 2 was a Design-based paper, I need to study existing designs on how to do the prep works and formulate the ideas to the final piece. This meant taking, like for example, a picture of a product that had lemon-based designs, as well as finding a magazine that contained lemons or any other fruit magazine, for example. So, I told Ms Feeda that I plan to draw one of the lemon pictures that I have gotten right now, and then take some of the lemon pictures. However, Ms Feeda said that the pictures that I took, including the other lemon-based designs, MUST be used for Prep 1. So, she gave me a sweet packaging that contained a lemon on it. It was called ‘Salt and Lemon Candy’. Then, I begun to draw both the sweet packaging and the lemon that I had.
After drawing the lemon and the sweet, I presented the drawings to Ms Feeda for her approval. She told me to make the sweet look bigger. So, I rubbed off the sweet and then redrew it again. Ms Feeda then entertained Yen Tong and Chee Kei, playing some K-POP music for them. And not to also mention that the two of them, plus Eu Lynn, Eugenie, Sophie Tan, Natasha Singam, Enisha, Cassandra, Wei Wei, Jien Min, Yi Zhen and Rosemund Chong queued up in front of Ms Feeda's table to get her slides into their pendrives! The file could not be loaded onto Edmodo because the silly computer said that the file was too heavy. They were downloading the slides that contained the lemon table, bikinis and funny fashion magazines Ms Feeda showed on Monday, 20th June, when briefing us on the questions for the Art and Design Paper 2.
Actually, ladies and gentlemen, every Art and Design IGCSE needs to obtain approval from their teachers on what to draw in their prep work and final piece. No one should be drawing their prep work or painting anything without obtaining approval from the art teacher.
Then, we went for lunch, and we had our History lesson. Ms Visa then gave us our History coursework instruction sheet, which we pasted into our exercise book.
Coursework 1 involved creating a poster themed on Nazi Germany. Coursework 2 was the creation of one of the six Nazi concentration camps that they used to kill Jews. Apparently, Coursework 1 did not limit the list to posters, but it also involved a text, story or even a song. The due dates for Coursework 1 and 2 were on 16th August and 25th October 2016 respectively. The timeline criss-crossed the Assessment 2 and the Final Year Examination. It was too hectic to manage. We spent the entire lesson discussing about the coursework. Then, we had Business Studies, and we continued with some worksheets given by Ms Chithra. She also told us that on Thursdays, we will use 10B for our classes as 10L was being used.
We came to the end of the week, as Mr Neoh announced that it was the final week for us to sign up for our CCA. During Homeroom time, Ms Cynthia collected the permission slips for our Field Trip and then left. Ms Zoe then outlined her expectations for the English Second students in our class and gave them a briefing. Then, Mr Thomas was arriving. The English Second students proceeded to 10B and Mr Thomas set up his computer. We continued to discuss and talk about the composition exercise and Mr Thomas gave The Chaser exercise as homework. Fortunately, I had finished it in advance.
During Art, Ms Feeda guided me on which photos to snap for Prep 1 and what to include. Then, she went around to check on everyone. Yi Zhen and Jien Min had a chat and Jien Min leaned on Yi Zhen's shoulder while she did her work. “Why so dramatic!” cried Ms Feeda. We just painted normally. Enisha gave me a glare again.
As we left the Art Studio, Caleb Chuang was on his way out from the ICT lab, and we had a chat as we walked back to class. Then, Ms Visa taught us about Wilson's 14 Points during History. When the History lesson finished, a large group of people from 10O were outside. They were returning for the Additional Mathematics lesson with Mr Kevin Wai. And Mr Gallagher then told us to hand in our Global Perspectives Report. By this time, I had finished a new report in a quicker manner. In fact, when Ms Praveen told me that there was not enough time to do the report again, I accepted the challenge, as it was much better to have a lousier report than a plagiarized one. I used the same points as in my previous version of the report and did the new report properly. This time, Mr Gallagher fully accepted the report.
I really had a terrible headache. The Global Perspectives report was originally supposed to be finished quickly. It took so long and so much time to complete. I had other work which was affected thanks to the report.
Well, we returned for the final week of June. I had written the phrases 天天向上, 好好学习，in my Student Organizer to motivate myself. It is a phrase used in Chinese culture to encourage people to look ahead by learning new things everyday. This phrase was originally coined during the Cultural Revolution by Mao Zedong. In fact, I coined a new term for a daily school day in Nobel at the time, called ‘Education For All Day’, or ‘EFAD Day’, where everyone would come to school to learn something new, and it was both for teachers, staff and students to learn and grow.
I believe in Education for All. And I also believe in everyone learning and growing. It will build good rapport and showcase all the wonderful characteristics by the people of Nobel. We should be lucky to learn, unlearn, relearn and de-learn! Not everyone had access to education, so people in Nobel should be lucky to have great education at their best.
The 27th of June is Joshua Chew's birthday. I had looked at the birthday chart in 10O and wanted to wish him. So, as he arrived in school, I wished him a happy birthday. He was over the moon.
I then met Ms June, who came into the hall. “I have heard from Mr Thomas that you have been responding and answering his questions in class. Keep it up! He'd said that you were really participative in class,” said Ms June, praising me.
We then had our morning assembly, which Ms Lim talked about the conduct of everyone. She said that the school behaviour had gone down and everyone needed to improve. She was all on her really anguished, angry mood. “If anyone wants to talk, please come up here. I will give you the mic. Anyone?” she asked.
Normally, I was thinking that Ms Lim was wanting to ask people to talk. I mean, when we were told to be silent, I kept silent. When we said the pledge, I belted it out. And I had thoughts of talking in front of the whole school, since Ms Lim was giving people an opportunity to talk. I had topics that I wished to discuss.
When we returned to class, I took my things quickly and went for Business Studies. It was worse. Now, we had to quickly move. What a really annoying timetable. Ms Chithra gave us work and Yew Jan teased everyone in class, making Ms Chithra really mad with him. Then, we had Science, and Ms Sangeetha continued teaching us about the syllabus. We learnt about acid rain and how dangerous it was.
Then, we had break, and I went to see Joshua Chew to meet him and wish him happy birthday. I spent cordial time talking to him. And Caleb Chuang wasn't in a mood to talk. He had his books on the table. He had a Chemistry book and was reading it. He was so busy, so I went to talk to Jordan Tay. But he, too, had his Physics book on the table. Mr Lee was going to give his students a Physics Quiz.
Then, we went back for Economics, and Ms Levina continued to teach us about the Choice of Occupation and why people do the work they do. Some people chose such occupations because in particular, the wage rate is higher.
“When people choose jobs, most people will want higher pay, so they are attracted to higher salary. This is why people choose high-paying jobs,” said Ms Levina. We were also told that the minimum wage in Malaysia back then in 2016 was RM 1000. It looked like a lot of money to me then, but it is quite a really small amount as I grow older.
Brandon Ooi said that he will prefer to work in a job that pays RM 2000, and Ms Levina was surprised. He said that RM 1000 is still too less. Ms Levina said that anyone who graduates with a college degree or university certificate can earn a higher salary, as the salary pay increases with academic qualifications. We were also told that aside from wages and pay, most people will choose jobs that they like to do the best. Then, she went on Google and searched for the Top 10 Highest Paying Jobs in Malaysia in the year 2016. We were also told about how much people are paid according to their employers and occupation and what circumstances, like additional pay, would be applicable for most people. Brandon Ooi was fortunately on his best behaviour today. Ms Levina also asked us to research about the best occupation and tell her in the next class.
Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan was absent. Sheng Jit took time to discuss the bake sale which will be held on Thursday, 30th June. He discussed some points, and Enisha told me not to interject Sheng Jit's discussion or oppose it. Sheng Jit told us that the people involved in the bake sale must use their PE lesson to set up the booth. Then, he told all of the people who brought food to bring it and pass it to him during the Reading Time.
After lunch, we then had Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then taught us about Brexit, which is a process of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union. At the time, voters living in the UK had voted to leave the European Union and this made the United Kingdom the FIRST COUNTRY to leave the EU since it was established in the 1990s. Under the original plan, a three-year withdrawal period would take place, with the UK being booted from the EU by 29th March 2019. The UK eventually withdrew on 31st January 2020. Mr Gallagher also told us about our second Individual Evaluation Report. It was to be just like the first one, and he briefed us about the essay formatting this time, along with the word count and the technical details. He took care to explain everything to us following my alleged plagiarism incident to ensure no mistakes were made by anyone.
Then, we had Art, and we continued doing our Prep Work as Ms Feeda outlined how different Paper 2 was from Paper 1. We refer the preps in relation to papers at the time, and not components as what Cambridge is saying today.
The next day, 28th June, we then went for Reading time and Sheng Jit continued to brief us about the Bake Sale. We did some questions in Science. Then, when Ms Sangeetha asked someone to answer one of the questions on greenhouse gases, I put up my hand.
“Yes, Caleb, please answer,” said Ms Sangeetha. Hold on a second. She called me Caleb!
“Caleb?” I asked.
“Oh,” said Ms Sangeetha. “Wei Yiang, not Caleb. So sorry, argh!” she cried. Then, I answered her question. Ms Sangeetha said that the reason why she addressed me as Caleb was because of my position in the class. As the seating arrangement in 10N is the same configuration as 10O, there was no different between the two. Normally, Ms Sangeetha would stand at the left hand corner of the class and teach, and somehow, I was seated at the front left corner of the middle row of the class. There were three rows of tables and chairs, and Ms Sangeetha would stand between the left and center rows to teach. So, as a result, when she was teaching and facing the back of the class, she would see me on the left when teaching. Somehow, in 10O, the seating configuration was the same, and when Ms Sangeetha stood at the same location in 10O to teach Biology, it was Caleb Chuang who was seen on the left and in the same exact position where I was sitting. This resulted in Ms Sangeetha being confused.
When she taught Biology in 10O, the class was also surprised and laughed when Ms Sangeetha likewise addressed Caleb Chuang as ‘Wei Yiang’. This time, it was the opposite effect.
Afterwards, we had Malay, and Cikgu Niely taught us some comprehension. Then, we went for break. I told Joshua Chew and Caleb Chuang about what happened.
We then had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra talked about the various costs a business has, such as production cost, supply cost, material cost, labour cost and so on. These are the bits and inches of what a business has to settle. Ms Chithra then switched on Business Studies Online to talk about the various costs.
Then, we returned for Economics, and I told Ms Levina that based on the previous day's research, I had trouble coming up with the best occupation. Ms Levina then discussed about the research. “The best occupation is the job you like to do best as well as the highest-paying job,” she said. Just as she was going to speak, Brandon was playing with his phone.
“Oi, Brandon Ooi! Keep your phones,” said Ms Levina
“No, wasn't playing! I was putting it inside!”
“Keep, keep, keep. Shane and Ryan Chok, please keep. Keep, keep keep,” she said.
Ms Levina said that job seekers are more likely to find a job that matches both their desired income as well as what they like to do. “That is why people say that if you were to go and find a job, most people will say that you must have higher pay. But sometimes, the highest paying job is not what you like to do,” she said, as she talked about the types of jobs that are best suited for us. “We are going to learn this in the next topic today,” she said.
Then, Ms Levina flicked on the slides, and she taught us about differences in earnings. She said that the amount of pay one receives in the workplace can be based on the gender of the employee, the type of company, and even how skilled the worker is. She said that if a worker is skilled, they are more likely to receive a higher pay in the workplace because they contribute the most to the company. She then gave an example of how a skilled worker who is good in making clothes is paid higher as the company can sell more clothes thanks to the worker itself. When more clothes are produced, the productivity rate increases, causing profit to increase. This is why businesses rewarded more skillful employees.
Ms Levina then saw Brandon Ooi talking. “Okay Brandon, please sit in front,” she ordered. Brandon had to move in front. Then, she warned Shane and Ryan Chok that they would be separated if they do not concentrate on the lesson and keep talking.
“I love Chok! I don't want to leave him. Chok, don't leave me!” cried Shane.
“You should be lucky, Shane,” I said. “At least you are still in the same class. I had been separated from Caleb Chuang for SIX MONTHS!”
The whole class laughed.
Then, Ms Levina said that men are more likely to be paid than women as people generally feel that men are more compatible than women. She also told us about the minimum wage legislation and how the minimum wage at the time was set at RM 1000 so that at least everyone can be able to earn and afford certain things and live a normal life.
“The number one factor that decides the wage rate is DEMAND and SUPPLY,” she said.
As the lesson ended, I asked Ms Levina some questions about the wage rate and that I didn't understand the lesson on why women are discriminated at the workplace. Then, everyone left the class. Shane told me to leave the air conditioning on. Then, Ms Levina switched off the power as we left. And Ms Levina also told me that I was successfully chosen to be part of the Editorial Board. I thanked her and then walked to the canteen, putting my fist in the air. “YEAH! FINALLY!” I cried. “I got into the Editorial Board!” The first Editorial Board meeting would take place on 14th July 2016.
I then met with Joshua Chew and told him about how interesting Ms Levina's earnings lesson was, and we had a good chat over it. Then, we returned for Maths, and Mr Andrew returned for relief. He discussed the Maths exercise Ms Bee Yan gave to us. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa gave us time during the entire lesson to plan our History poster.
Wednesday, 29th June 2016, was the first Wednesday class since the new timetable took effect. Wednesdays would become days which I look forward to, because there is no set teaching on that day, with the exception of English which I can stay in my own class. You see, because we Year 10s had to select so many subjects, it has resulted in a lot of set teaching classes and that we have to move between classes. We then had to change classes so many times to the point that you will need to go back to your own class and change books before going to the next one, which seemed like a hassle. In the past, there were only set teaching classes for English, Mandarin and Literature/French/Bible Knowledge. Now, we had so many uncountable lessons which require changing classes. It made my head hurt thinking about it as my History, Art, GP and Business classes were held in 10O, the art studio and 10E respectively.
The morning started with a discussion of the coursework by Mr Thomas. Then, he also discussed our Chaser Analysis work. He told us to hand the work to him, before discussing on the Composition Writing. Then, Ms Levina returned our worksheets to us in Economics. Brandon Ooi tried to make a fuss again. Ms Levina now had to tell all the boys at the back of the class to calm down. We did some work and exercise.
“Why are you talking, Brandon Ooi? Please do your work, don't play phones,” said Ms Levina. Now, things had gotten worse! They were playing League of Legends in class!
During the Maths lesson, Ms Paulina came into the class and told us that we can do our own things. Sheng Jit then did two briefings. One was on the bake sale. He asked some people to come and help him to set up. I volunteered to set up, and Sheng Jit said he will consider me volunteering. Then, he also told us that he was planning to do shifts where each class rotated. Ivyna supported the idea, but the class opposed it as no one was free.
The next plan was for Teacher’s Day. Ryan Chok said that he wanted people to pay RM 15 for Teacher's Day, and Enisha told me that I should pay up. “You have no excuse not to pay. Don't tell me you cannot pay. It's RM 15. FIFTEEN RINGGIT! NOT FIFTY RINGGIT!” she cried. Sheng Jit quipped. “How can RM 15 damage your wallet? If it affects you, you won't be studying in Nobel,” he said.
Then, Sheng Jit said that the reason why we needed to pay RM 15 for Teacher's Day was because the class had to set up a booth to cook food for the teachers during Teacher's Day. Not to mention that the food had to be purchased too. Sheng Jit then said that we could cook curry mee and mee pudding for our Teacher's Day menu. Nobel's 2016 Teacher's Day falls on 22nd July 2016.
During CT, I eventually received a note from Ivyna. The note was written by Naing Ling, my pen pal from Dignity Foundation. Ivyna passed me and Louis’ pen pal messages. Naing introduced himself, greeting me as well as telling me that he had to delay his letter writing as he had to visit the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office to renew his refugee card. He introduced himself as someone who came from a modest family in Myanmar. I had to write a reply letter and hand it to Ms Cynthia at the end of the week. Ms Sarah then told us that the Dignity Foundation Picnic would be held on 20th July, the same week as Teacher's Day 2016. “So, on the day, your pen pals will be coming over and you will be able to meet them!” she cried.
Ms Lim also had another plan for Year 10 students. It was a continuation of the previous batch's Japan trip. Ms Lim said that Nobel International School and Izumi High School in Japan were having an exchange programme, and Ms Lim said that the previous batch had even a visit to Universal Studios Japan with the exchange students. The acronym was ‘USJ', and some people even confused it for the USJ neighborhood in Subang Jaya. “No! Not that! Not the Subang USJ!” cried Ms Lim. She fixed the visit to Izumi High School in Japan on 27th October 2016.
Ms Lim also mentioned several housekeeping matters. One of which was that she will allow us to wear our sports attire, sports shoes and shorts for our PE lesson, but on the condition that we change them after our PE lesson ended, during break time. “I don't want to see anyone wearing sports attire after break time, because according to the school rules, you must be in your PE attire, with PE pants; the green color one, and black shoes. Can or not, Year 10! So big kokko and chea chea already, no need to remind,” she said.
Last time, the rules were strict, you know. No sports shoes or shoes of any brand were allowed then.
Then, we went for our lunch time, and you know what? Mr Lee was eating lunch with Jordan Tay, Daniel and Branson and their friends at the canteen table! What good friendship and unity.
Afterwards, we then went back for our Malay lesson, where Cikgu Niely did a spelling test with us. Then, we went for our Science lesson with Ms Sangeetha, and we begun the Chemistry topic. Afterwards, Ms Renee met us for Bible Knowledge. We talked about the Dignity Foundation project before we begun our lesson. We started talking about the Acts of the Apostles.
The day of the Bake Sale came, 30th June. I brought my Biscotti as scheduled. I didn't want to cause disunity in the class. During English and PE, Ivyna, Sheng Jit, Yan Ying, Hao Yinn and Kelsey were in charge of putting up the booth for the Bake Sale. I passed it to Sheng Jit before he left the class.
Mr Thomas was surprised. “What bake sale is that?” and I explained it to him. He also enquired on what we were selling, and Vicky also explained to him.
Then, Mr Thomas taught us about the word effects in English and told us to explain the meaning of five words as to what they intend to convey to the reader. He used the text, ‘The Strawberry Pink Villa’ as an example. Then, we had PE, and Mr Victor did some of our usual exercises. However, many classes wanted to do their Bake Sale preparation and coordination. Ms Sylvia got very angry and asked everyone to come back. Then, she gave a long lecture on what to do for PE and that we were allowed dismissal from our PE lesson five minutes early in order to do the bake sale. In fact, she gave a long lecture on the importance of PE. “PE is your class time. If you want to do this type of attitude, you waste my time, Mr Victor's time and your teachers’ time,” she said.
During break time, each class set up a booth along the corridor to do their bake sale. Ivyna, Kelsey, Yan Ying, Hao Yinn and Yan Ying were doing the sales. My aunt had baked 20 Biscotti biscuits and they put them at the booths to sell. Our booth was decorated with red flowers, while the others had much more catchy names. The 10L students called for Mr Lee himself to be their mascot and they crowded around him, and a lot of people were buying things from the booths. I just looked on and didn't do anything during the bake sale. Instead, I talked to Joshua and Caleb and even visited their booths.
Later, during Malaysian Studies, Ms Cynthia then talked about the various cultures of Malaysia and said that the Chinese culture has a serious and coercial attitude, with high respect given to the elderly. Some people said that the Chinese culture is too strict and serious, and Brandon also said that.
But the thing is, there is something eery before the class started. Ms Cynthia said that we should be very lucky that we are living in a peaceful country because we have not had so much conflict. Race and religious conflict is rampant in Malaysia, and we don't want another May 13th Incident to occur again.
Ms Cynthia then told us about the news of a nightclub bombing. That nightclub was named the 'Movida Bar and Club’, and it is located near my house in Puchong. The nightclub was bombed on 28th June, and Ms Cynthia had to quieten Brandon down before the incident begun. I was excited to tell the news, but Ms Cynthia told me to let her speak first.
On 28th June 2016, two men on a motorcycle threw a grenade into the Movida Bar, and it injured some people in the bar. I mean, many were injured. The incident happened at around 11:00pm that night, and I happened to be asleep by then. Ms Cynthia said that she happened to be driving around the area at that time, but wasn't in the club, but in her car. She was passing by the area around 2:00am, following the occurrence of the incident.
Grace then pointed out that the incident might likely be a terrorist attack from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), but Ms Cynthia said that the police need to investigate first before coming to a conclusion. Grace's theory was proven right when investigations reveal the two perpetrators were from ISIS. Both were Malaysians, and one of them was from Puchong. Ms Cynthia then let me speak and I said that my house was just nearby the shop and that the shop was frequented by people from my neighborhood.
Then, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher told us to present some findings on the Brexit process. Vicky then asked if Mr Gallagher was affected as he was from the UK, and Mr Gallagher said he wasn't affected that much. Then, we had our Art lesson, and I brought more pictures to show to Ms Feeda. She was impressed and then told me to continue with my work. I was finishing up my Prep 1. I hope to start Prep 2 soon. We had to complete the Paper 1 Preps by the end of July.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and then History. Ms Visa gave us time to continue our discussion. I then briefed to Louis and Gabriel about our activities. We decided to do the Treblinka concentration camp, which is one of the six Nazi concentration camps mentioned in the textbook. I told Louis and Gabriel that I will plan the layout in detail for them to see and will show them in the next class. Ms Visa then allowed me to use the Smartboard to brief Gabriel and Louis. Brandon Ooi kept on disturbing the three of us but I shooed him away. Then, I showed Ms Visa my rough sketch of the Nazi Germany poster that I drew in my exercise book. She took it and asked me to describe the poster as she labeled the characteristics of the poster. The poster contained a view of two hands drawing a map of Germany's empire and conquered territories, along with a can of paint with the label, ‘Reich Farbe’. A text also read: ‘General: That's the final touch.’ The two hands were meant to represent that of Hitler. Ms Visa smiled. “Keep it up,” she said, as she wrote ‘Well done’ on my work.
After History, we had Business Studies, and we learnt about the various methods of internal and external sources.
Finally. We entered the month of July. The school was decorated for the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration. We had a week of school holidays at the beginning of July due to Hari Raya.
During Homeroom time, Sheng Jit collected the money for the Teacher's Day celebration and we spent time preparing food for the celebration. He promised to return the money if the food was disliked or less food was bought. Before we discussed, Ms Cynthia was told to leave the class by Sheng Jit. “Teacher, we are discussing the surprise for Teacher's Day, so you cannot hear it,” said Sheng Jit. Eventually, Ms Cynthia said that all the teachers knew about the surprise. Then, we had English, where Mr Thomas continued to do the word effect exercises with us. I also managed to finish my Prep 1 for Paper 2 during Art. And also, Mr Gallagher told us to choose our topic for the second Individual Report. We had to do a similar layout like the first report; except that we had to have a different topic for it.
In the beginning of July, Ms Sim returned from Hong Kong and was introduced to everyone on Monday, 11th July 2016. I could recognize Ms Sim’s face and her looks. Ms Bee Yong took the opportunity to introduce Ms Sim to the crowd.
“We have a new teacher here in Nobel. Some of you may remember her as Ms Sim, but we are going to call her Ms Sophia. Ms Sophia is the new head of academics, and if you meet her, be sure to greet her and welcome her,” said Ms Bee Yong. I am going to refer to her as Ms Sim in this writeup because saying Ms Sophia is a bit too long in syllable, and I am used to calling her Ms Sim.
Ms Sim was the head of academics at Nobel International School’s Junior and Senior School from 2012 to 2014. She resigned at the end of 2014 as she was accompanying her husband, who was moving to Hong Kong for work. While she returned to Malaysia, her husband continued to work in Hong Kong thereafter.
Ms Sim is a very good teacher and one of the best one can ask for. Her commitment to academics is so strict and serious, she would always talk about it. On certain days, she has a serious stare, but most of the time, she would have the brightest smile on her face when you give her a nice greeting.
Mr Aram launched Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) on the same day when Ms Sim came back. While he is mainly a serious guy, he had a twist of humor to himself. When he launched himself on the stage to announce the YEC, the crowd cheered him up as he threw his microphone in the air and jumped on the stage and caught it. He then did a few dance moves on stage before he then announced the details of the YEC.
“Year 7s to 10s, you will be forced to join. Year 11, choice is yours!” he cried. I had trouble forming a team and putting the application for YEC, as you would need to submit forms to Ms Chithra, who will be assisting the applications. Ms Levina, Mr Raja and Ms Sharon, who are all teaching commerce subjects such as Accounting, Business Studies and Economics, were also involved in facilitating the competition.
When we returned to class, Ms Chithra taught us about regular and irregular cash flows in the class. Ms Sangeetha has also started moving us into the topic of Chemistry and was talking about protons, neutrons and electrons. She had also posted a file containing the atomic structure on Edmodo. Then, following Ms Sangeetha's lesson, I went to find Caleb Chuang, but he said he was still busy. I went to eat breakfast by myself and not sit at his table. He requested me to not disturb him and I agreed.
During the break time, I saw a large banner hung from the Year 10 classes. It was a banner congratulating Chong Vicky and Alexandria Goh for the release of their new book, ‘The Kid from the Big Apple’. The sign read, ‘Congratulations - Chong Vicky and Alexandria Goh – on the release of your book, ‘The Kid from the Big Apple’. It told a story of a Malaysian girl who had to relocate home to Malaysia to see her ancestral parents while missing the sights of New York City when living with her uncle there.
Then, we went back to class, and Ms Levina greeted me. She informed me that she will send me and Lyn Wen an email regarding the first task for the Editorial Board. “Please remember to come for the first Editorial Board CCA session on Thursday,” said Ms Levina. She was also the teacher advisor for the Editorial Board.
For this particular Economics lesson this day, 12th July 2016, Ms Levina had decided not to continue with the Economics lesson. She had decided to settle some important housekeeping matters in the class.
Ms Levina had started to re-arrange people in our Economics class as to prevent disruptions and allow people to pay attention in the classroom. She was very frustrated with people disrupting her class and not paying attention to the lesson.
“Okay, class, so today we are going to play a game,” she said.
Enisha was delighted. “Cher, cher, Ms Levina, what game is that?” she asked.
“It’s called “Change Your Seat Game””, she said. Enisha was delighted and asked what type of game was that. The title of the game looked so interesting.
I will need to move some of you because I can see some of you being disruptive,” she said. “Not me,” Enisha responded.
The first person she targeted was Brandon Ooi, who had to move and separate from Shane and Ryan Chok. “But teacher, I am a good boy, right?” Brandon asked. “No. Please move,” Ms Levina instructed. So Brandon tried to pester Ms Levina and grin like an innocent boy as he was moved. “Teacher, why me? I have been paying attention, ma!” Brandon cried.
Enisha would be separated from Cassandra. “What, me also?” Enisha asked. Sheng Jit had to sit alone and Nickolas Nashpal and Ze Khai had to be separated. Ze Khai and Nickolas were puzzled why they had to sit so far. Ms Levina just distanced them but still placed them at the back. Gabriel and Louis were placed in the front of the classroom so that Ms Levina can attend to them.
“Now, guys. This will be the seating arrangement for every Economics lesson. When I come into the classroom, I expect all of you to be seated like this,” she said.
Ms Levina then said that the first matter was done. “The second thing is that many of you, in fact most of you, do not know how to write essays in Economics. So, today, we are going to learn how to answer Econs questions in the class,” said Ms Levina, as she begun her lesson on answering Economics Paper 2 questions.
We spent some time answering questions in the class. Ms Levina opened a slideshow that contained some questions, and we took time answering it. Then, Brandon Ooi told Ms Levina that he did not like the seating plan and wished his old seat back. “Teacher, I will not talk again,” he said. Ms Levina did not budge. “You will remain in this seat for now,” said Ms Levina.
Then, Ms Levina told us how to answer Economics Paper 2 and then told us to refer to her guide that she posted on Edmodo. She also showed us our Mid Year Examination results and said that she MIGHT call for a remedial class if some people failed to improve for Economics. Gabriel, Louis, Aaron Liew and Glen were one of the people singled out for the remedial.
I answered most of the questions during the revision session, and Ms Levina also gave us some worksheets to try as well as questions to attempt in our exercise book. In fact, I raised my hand when Brandon was answering the question just in case he couldn't answer, so that Ms Levina can pick me. Before she left she also told us that we will also be doing another revision checklist the next day. I also went to her and expressed concern that the first meeting of the Editorial Board was clashing with the date of our field trip. Actually, the week of 11th to 15th July 2016 was the first week of CCAs, and the Thursday meeting of the Editorial Board clashes with the field trip to Cheringin Hills. “If that's the case, then the meeting will be next week,” said Ms Levina. Sadly, it had to be delayed. I kept my fingers crossed.
We then had Maths, and we did our own things in the class. I just read Ms Levina's notes during the lesson, and then, Ms Cynthia came in for the relief period to brief us on our field trip to Cheringin Hills. Grace and Jia Yee did their Mathematics work that Ms Bee Yan gave, and they talked about how scary Ms Zoe was in their classes. In fact, Grace said she hates Ms Zoe as opposed to Ms Charine's previous lessons with them.
During Global Perspectives later on, Mr Gallagher talked about terrorism and its impact on society, and we viewed many terrorist attacks occurring in Europe, including the one in Malaysia. Since November 2015, Europe had been besieged with terrorist attacks. A shooting at the Bataclan Theatre in Paris, the shooting at Istanbul's Ataturk International Airport, as well as a melee attack in Germany were one of the terrorist incidents described. I personally feel that the terrorist attack in Puchong made me really shy, angry and sad. It looked so embarrassing for one's local area to be covered in the news. I feel even more angry that the government failed to stop such an attack from happening. It made Malaysia's government very incompetent and weak. ISIS is a global threat, and something had to be done.
Mr Gallagher asked us to write about any terrorist attack. I opened my iPad, selected the Medina terrorist attack, and researched about it. I also recorded what he said in the class for good measure to listen to it at home.
Then, during Art, I completed my Prep 1, and Ms Feeda told me to find some magazine templates for use in Prep 2. She told me to come up with a proposed design for the magazine, as well as three to four additional designs. “Come up with a name for your magazine. Any name will do,” said Ms Feeda. I wished her a blessed Hari Raya Aidilfitri before leaving the class.
The next day, 12th July, it was raining, and we went up to class early. We then had our Reading time, and also our Science lesson with Ms Sangeetha. She had posted up some slides onto Edmodo. In fact, I had taken a look at Mr Thomas’ slides too. It was interesting to look. I responded to each and every post he wrote, sometimes even asking ‘where is Caleb?’
I also got used to saying, ‘Yes Boss!’ during lessons.
Ms Sangeetha then told us that we will go to the Science Lab when there were experiments, as we didn't have any. She continued with her lesson. Then, Cikgu Niely gave us work. And Ms Chithra taught us about cash flow. She then gave us a worksheet to do in class.
When we returned for Economics, Ms Levina then continued with our work in class and then she continued to describe and discuss some of the Economics questions. We also did work in our workbook. The people whom Ms Levina asked to switch failed to move, and she had to remind them to move to their designated seating location by her. I also told her that I had finished the first Editorial Board task that she gave me. She gave a thumbs-up.
Ms Levina talked to us about the differences in earnings as per the choice of occupations, and she told us that the way to measure differences in earnings was based on the Demand and Supply curve, except that the labeling of Price on the y-axis is changed to ‘Wage rate’, and the Quantity label on the x-axis is changed to ‘Quantity of Labor’.
Brandon Ooi kept on misbehaving in the class and played his phone, and Ms Levina had to tell him to keep them.
It was very easy to do. And I always quipped to my friends this phrase: “Even baby also can do!”
Then, we went for lunch, and then, we had Maths. Since Ms Bee Yan was still absent, the class decided to have an indirect election for assistant monitor as Kelsey was resigning as assistant monitor. Then, Sheng Jit did the nomination process, and I nominated myself, followed by the class nominating Ryan Chok. We then exit the class, and Ryan Chok peered at the balcony and paced the hallways. When we were allowed to enter the class, Ryan Chok was elected as the new assistant monitor.
During History, I then re-checked the proposed Nazi Germany propaganda poster after Ms Visa raised concerns on the possibility of plagiarism. The same atmosphere that brought me back memories a month prior on the Global Perspectives project haunted me again, as I told Ms Visa that I will double check the design of the poster. “Mr Aram is very serious on plagiarism,” said Ms Visa.
On Wednesday, 13th July 2016, I arrived at school with my newspaper. Just as I was plopping down and opening the newspaper, I saw a content that caught my eye.
I was surprised. My content got published in The Star!
I had decided to write an article titled ‘Put more uniformed men on street patrol’ following the Movida Club bombing as I feel that the government had failed to stop terrorist attacks like these; let alone prevent it. My eyes lit up. I did a nice dance around the canteen in excitement. My mum told me to use my pen name at the time, Mr Sun. It was my first article under the ‘Letters to the Editor’ column. I would go on to write more in the years to come.
I returned to the school hall. Kai Yee and all the 10O students had their Economics books with them. They were studying Economics that morning.
We had a new teacher for English to accompany us in the class, named Ms Yong Wai Yee. Ms Yong used to be from a government school and had joined Nobel for the second term. Mr Thomas then introduced her and she would go on to be one of the best teachers we ever had. Mr Thomas and Ms Yong would normally do interactive things in the class together.
Mr Thomas plopped his chairs down into the class and introduced Ms Yong to us. She had a wonderful smile, great intonation and great speech as she sat down in the class with Mr Thomas. Everyone greeted and waved at her enthusiastically.
“Shall we continue?” asked Mr Thomas as he opened the Edmodo application. He then proceeded to discuss our lessons for the day and I answered one of the questions correctly.
“Very good,” he said. I put my hands up in excitement, and Ms Yong was smiling. Then, he showed us the Bradbury text on Edmodo. And when he was scrolling through all the Edmodo posts, he saw my comments on the page, with many references that involved mentioning Caleb Chuang's name.
“Oh! Look at that!” cried Mr Thomas. What is that!” cried Mr Thomas. Some of the posts had so many laughing and smiling emojis. The whole class laughed. Even Ms Yong was laughing.
The posts mainly read, ‘Yes Mr Thomas’ and then there are over 50 emojis with smiley faces.
“You are very responsive,” said Mr Thomas, pointing to me. “Yes, Mr Thomas, I agree. He's very responsive in the class. Is he a good student?” Ms Yong asked. “Yes, he is,” said Sherwin, smiling at me. “Good job,” he said, patting me. I laughed.
Sherwin then asked me if I was ready for the Bible Knowledge pop quiz later that afternoon. “I'll do my best,” I said to him. Later, it was Economics, and Ms Levina then gave us a checklist to perform on what areas we understood or didn't understand from Unit 1 to 17. She told us that we can access her slides on Edmodo and explained each chapter as we went along. And Brandon Ooi was playing with Ryan Chok during the lesson. Ms Levina had to separate the duo and tell them to do their work while she checked on them. Of course, it is very tiring for a teacher to control the class, but the way Ms Levina talked; the tone of her voice, as well as Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok's responses, helped add some humor to the lesson.
We then went for break as I talked to San Ying about how much fun the field trip was gonna be. “I am looking forward to so much fun with Caleb Chuang!” I cried. Kit Lee then told me that the entire 10O class had been talking about my friendship with Caleb Chuang thanks to my repeated posts on Ms Levina and Mr Thomas’ Edmodo pages. We then returned for Maths, and we did our own things in the class. Then, during the Character Transformation session, we had a briefing on the field trip and Mr Neoh played some games with us. He did an icebreaker where we had to make a short introduction of ourselves. It was also announced that 10L was the winner of the Bake Sale, followed by 10O, 10B, 10E and lastly, 10N. What a horrible result for us. Mr Lee and his students screamed and shouted as if they had won a lottery. I can only watch with a bit of jealousy, anguish and to a certain extent, hope. I know 10N can do better. I also managed to submit my reply letter to Naing Ling to Ms Cynthia.
After lunch, we then had Malay where Cikgu Niely had to get Brandon under control, and also during Science, Ms Sangeetha continued to talk about protons and electrons. Then, it was the Bible Knowledge pop quiz.
Ms Renee came into the class with a stack of worksheets. She placed them on the table as everyone went to buy some food. Joseph Diong jokingly said that he hoped that the quiz was delayed further because it will allow him to study more. I laughed. Sherwin was like, “Oh no! Oh no!” as he saw Ms Renee smiling.
Ms Renee had decided to do the Bible Knowledge pop quiz in order to test our knowledge on the Book of Matthew. It was from Matthew Chapter 1 through 10. Each of us had one hour to do the quiz, and I struggled quite a bit. When the quiz was done, Ms Renee then collected the papers and told us that we will know our results in a week. Then, we begun the Book of Acts and continued on the Acts of the Apostles. And of course, everyone was talking about the field trip during Bible Knowledge, making it difficult for Ms Renee to teach.
Our second field trip was a trip to Cheringin Hills Resort, Janda Baik. Cheringin Hills Resort is a hotel located in Janda Baik which is a rural area located in the highland area of Pahang. The field trip was held on 14th July 2016, a Thursday. I spent the weeks prior searching for the resort on the Internet. The resort is luxurious and comes with rooms and a nice swimming pool.
So, as scheduled, on the day, we gathered in the courtyard for our field trips. While talking, I kept waving at Caleb Chuang, who was in 10O's line. The people from 10N were all talking about Caleb Chuang and getting to know him. The teachers were all standing at the side. Mr Lee was cracking jokes with his class. Mr Raja and Ms Sangeetha were talking to 10E, Mr Stellio and Ms Janice were joking with Jien Min at the back, as well as Eugene Ho and Ethan Wong. The 10O people were just talking normally, just like us 10N students.
Han Ming had brought his Nikon camera and was showing it around to Jordan and Ting Yi. Even Jearn Xiu got a look at the action.
We then lined up according to classes and then proceeded to board the buses parked in front of the school. Gabriel and I then sat together in the bus as we looked at the scenery on the road.
The bus exited the neighborhood via the Taman Bahagia exit of Kelana Jaya. There were a lot of cars on the road exiting to the LDP Highway as we left. Then, the bus passed along the LDP Highway, heading towards the MRR2 and then proceeded to exit to the Karak Highway. It then passed Batu Caves and Kepong, and Gabriel Lim and I took turns peering out of the windows to see the view of the city.
When we entered the Karak Highway, Gabriel and I talked about how me and my family use this road to go to Genting Highlands for a holiday. Then, we passed through the Genting Tunnel and exited at the Genting Sempah exit which will take us on the trunk road heading towards Janda Baik.
Gabriel and I then talked about the various highland resorts in the area. Aside from Genting Highlands, there is also the Bukit Tinggi resort which has a French hotel, Colmar Tropicale. We also talked about the windy roads heading to the resort and how hilly the area is. Throughout the whole journey, I also talked about Caleb Chuang, and Gabriel asked, “Why do you always like to talk about Caleb?”
We arrived at the hotel at around 9:00am. The hotel looked like a five-star hotel despite being a three-star resort. We then got down and assembled at the Bayu Terrace which is a restaurant at the hotel. The restaurant was an open-air area which is roofed. Han Ming, Shaun Ting and Daniel Ngew were armed with their cameras to take pictures of the action.
Suddenly, a muscular man named Mr Adam then popped out and introduced himself. “Attention everyone! Your attention please! Hold your horses! Hold your horses!” he cried. Everyone laughed and made references to me, as I like to always say the phrase “hold your horses”, which means that one must not rush into making a quick decision. Ms Visa had also responded to me in the same way, to laughter from the class during History.
Mr Adam then talked about Mother Earth and why is it very important for us to take care of it. He mentioned good and bad ways in which Mother Earth can affect us. “Mother Earth is very kind and can give us good things, but it can also affect us in many bad ways,” he said. He then invited people to list down the good and bad things which Mother Nature can affect us. “My team and I will be here to assist you if you need anything,” he said, introducing his team of volunteers. Mr Adam then pointed out that we are located in the center of two main directional forks, if looking northwest. Genting Highlands is located on the left, and Bukit Tinggi is on the right. He pointed out the directions for us to comprehend.
Mr Adam then told us that we will be heading down to the river so that we can enjoy dipping ourselves in the water. Thus, we then trekked down the hill of the resort. Mind you, the hotel is located on a high plateau, and the breeze gushed into our faces as we walked down. So, as we walked, I was in the front and I talked to Mr Adam about the cool mountain breeze and how I like the confines of nature. The road led to a small Malay hamlet and a few short turns was needed to reach the river.
The river was filled with a series of stones embedded on the riverbed, both large and small, which dotted the landscape like pimples on a face. As the convoy of students reached the river, they jumped into the river, splashing water around and soaking themselves in the creek. Jason and Jien Min had some fun, and everyone’s different social groups then bonded among the flow of the river. The water was quite cold; it was highland water.
I decided not to get myself soaked, and a few other people, including Louis, Gabriel and Jonathan Chong, say around 20 people, were led by Mr Adam as he entertained those who did not want to have fun splashing in the river. Mr Adam then explained the river formation and how the river and banks are affected by erosion. He then talked about the importance of the forest in terms of our daily lives.
“We need the forest because nowadays, the world is facing climate change,” he said. “In KL city, it is very hot and humid because there is a lot of concrete and buildings in the city.” He then said that having forests present an opportunity for green lungs as well as for us to have good oxygen and not be choked in air pollution. He then made a back turn and we followed him back. I then continued to speak to him on how cold the mountain environment is and how it is a relief from the confines of the city. “We are in the Titiwangsa range,” Mr Adam quipped, describing the central spine of mountains that span the middle of Peninsular Malaysia.
Mr Adam then called everyone and then everyone came out of the river and started to walk back to the resort. Our teachers then followed us and I had a chat with my new assistant class teacher, Ms Zoe, who teaches English Second. She wasn't in a good mood that afternoon. We then headed to the hotel and many people changed into a new set of clothes.
Afterwards, we were then divided into groups of three to do tree planting. Before that, we were quizzed on the ecosystem, ranging from a series of medium or hard topics. Each individual had to answer a quiz before being given a tree. I represented our group to collect a tree from the instructors. Me, Louis and Gabriel formed a group together, and I proceeded to answer the questions. The question that was asked to me was quite easy. It was on photosynthesis. Then, I was invited to select a tree, and I picked a paper pot with a durian tree in it, as I like to plant durian trees when I was 10 years old. The trees ranged from bouganvillae flowers, herb plants and other fruit trees. We planted them on a steep slope on the western side of the hotel. Afterwards, we then watered it with containers filled with water.
Gabriel and Louis then accompanied me as I dug a hole with a hoe and they planted the tree. We were delighted as we were the first to finish planting. Following the tree planting, we headed for lunch. As I finished planting the tree, Louis and Gabriel went for lunch, and I bumped into Rick Tan.
“Wei Yiang, this is what you do, right?” Rick asked, referring to my gardening activities. I nodded and I said, “I do this everyday!”
The resort served a variety of food from Asian cruisine to other Western food. I then took my usual chicken rice and then sat down with Caleb Chuang, Sherwin, Joshua Chew and Joseph Diong for a meal. Caleb and I talked about how the tree planting activity was my favorite, and how cool the highland resort was. I told Caleb that my house has tonnes of trees and I usually experience cool weather as a positive consequence. Sherwin and I then had a chat on other things and how it was like an adventure going for such a field trip.
Once everyone was done with lunch, we then assembled at the resort’s lobby and Mr Adam briefed us on our next activity. The next activity was then called “Survival Cooking”. This activity requires us to build a shelter and cook some food with some ingredients. Moreover, what made things worse was that we need to cook the food with a fire that is started by ourselves – no stoves, no fuel, nothing. We were given some fish, a pair of matches and we were divided into our classes. Each class had two groups, and I was in the same group as Ze Khai, Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit, Shane, Grace Tee, Jia Yee, Alia, Wee Shiang, Gabriel, Louis, Kelsey, Enisha; just to name a few.
So, our teachers gave us the ingredients, and Mr Adam led us to a corner, far off in the bushy area away from the resort. Then, we were left alone to begin the survival cooking. We were told that we will be graded on how we managed to settle everything.
Ze Khai asked Brandon how we should begin, and Sheng Jit told us that we should start building the shelter first. So we then found some twigs, bamboo, coconut leaves and vines to tie everything together. Now, Brandon and I were at odds on how to do things. I told Brandon that we should be building the shelter instead of cooking, since it was the easiest thing to do. Ze Khai and Brandon tried to start a fire with a pile of grass, but instead, they used up all the matches and thus we can’t cook our food. However, we managed to build a nice little shelter consisting of mainly bamboo sticks and coconut leaves. In the end, one of the staff came with a stove and set fire to the food to cook it with proper equipment and we got our job done. I told Brandon that he should not have wasted all the matches and he asked for me to be silent. I feel fed up of him berating me when I gave him suggestions on how to improve things.
We then made our way back to the hotel, and were classified as having failed in our mission. Once we arrived, everyone was given drinks. Some threw water bottles in a big plastic bag, so I collected two bags of water bottles for my gardening projects, and I asked my friends for used water bottles, and everyone across the batch gave me.
Once everyone was asked to gather, we then sat on the floor of the lobby where Mr Adam gave out the prize giving awards. 10L, Mr Lee’s class, was declared the winner of the competition. Following the prize giving, we then had a group photo and then boarded the buses back home to school. Most of us slept during the bus ride home; I peered out of the windows as it begun raining. I only had to imagine how to carry the water bottles back for the projects. Nevertheless, once we reached Kuala Lumpur and bypassed the city, it was very congested and the bus drove slowly.
You see, Mr Lee’s class had won so many competitions in the past. They had gotten the title of Cleanest Class for KS4 since February 2016, and they have won the cleanest class for around four months or so. Mr Lee is a competitive guy and always wants 10L to be the best. He also aims for the title of Class of the Month and his class had also received the title at least once.
The next morning, on 15th July, Yin Wei met me during Homeroom before the class started and told me that I was assigned to work with her to write an article for the school's newsletter about the Cheringin Hills Field Trip. She told me to hand in the work by Monday, 18th July. It was very easy to do. She gave me her email for me to send the work to her. As I am good at writing journals, this task was quite straightforward.
During the Homeroom time, Sheng Jit and Kelsey discussed preparations for the Teacher's Day celebrations and talked about the food that was being prepared. Then, we had English, and Mr Thomas and Ms Yong came in. Mr Thomas placed his things on the teacher's desk and switched on the Edmodo application, searching for his posts. Ms Yong then talked to me as she asked me about my studies.
Mr Thomas then asked us about the field trip to Cheringin Hills and we talked a bit about it. Then, we did more exercises on the Landlady text.
During Art, I then got started on my Prep 2. I didn't bring some pictures except that of fonts. Ms Feeda then inspected the fonts that read ‘Weileb Times’. I had to embarassedly explain how the name relates to me and Caleb Chuang. Then, I begun working on the fonts first. Ms Feeda asked me to present at least ten fonts. I only had three. Ms Visa then started teaching about Nazi Germany and Hitler's rise to power, and Mr Gallagher then got started on our discussion for the terrorism research as well as the second Individual Report, which was on terrorism. This time, I took careful consideration to begin.
Well, the week of 18th to 22nd July 2016 was a hive of activity. We had the Dignity Foundation Picnic that Wednesday, the Editorial Board meeting on Thursday, and the Teacher's Day on Friday. Since Monday, 18th July, and Tuesday, 19th July, were not so happening, at least, we can have Ms Levina's Economics lesson to make up for it. YEAH! Oh, and also, another thing: Ms Bee Yan is back!
The morning of 18th July started off on a rough note, as Ms Lim ranted at the whole school again. Ms Bee Yong also called two girls to come to the front to meet her as they were talking. And during Business Studies, Ms Chithra talked to us about the Income Statement, Balance Sheet, and various forms of annoying calculations and formulas which I hope to remember and not to forget. She gave us a worksheet, which I had to spend so much time and was stuck on how to do it. Then, it was Science, and Ms Sangeetha continued the lesson by introducing the Periodic Table. She said that learning the Periodic Table in Year 10 and 11 is not like what we did in KS3.
I kept my fingers crossed. Ms Levina was coming. The Economics lesson will start after break time. I want to see what I can learn further, and how much humor can the lesson get, with the presence of Brandon Ooi in the class.
During the weekend, Ms Levina posted on the Economics Year 10 Edmodo page that she had created, an announcement on the seats regarding “Change Your Seat Game”. This means that seats will be changed based on the situation in each class. Ms Levina teaches two Economics classes; 10N and 10O.
“Announcement: 10O students- From next week onwards, seats will be allocated based on a free market system.
10N students- Seats will be allocated as per my discretion.”
In Economics, a free market system means that consumers and buyers can do whatever they want and thus determine the demand and supply. So this means that 10O students can seat wherever they want. We had talked about this before when we learned about a market economy. And they would do this every class; a seat will be given based on a free market system, and every week, anyone who comes into the class will immediately sit on the seat available. This meant that whoever who came late had to take whatever seat was available, whether they liked it or not. And it was not just fun, but chaos, because the seating position was changed every lesson, causing a game of sorts. This cannot be done in 10N's classroom, because not only Economics is a compulsory subject, but also the fact that the class is conducted in 10N itself. For 10O students, their class is held in 10L and it made the lesson very interesting, since they had to move classes. And not to mention that some people in 10N misbehaved, so Ms Levina had to find ways to settle the seating position manually, in the case of Brandon Ooi.
Ms Levina then continued to talk about the Economics topics, and we focused on the Banks, Stock Exchanges and occupations by recapping them. I feel interested in the topics as this is something I see in my free time and normally read in the newspapers, but reading about it in detail is more interesting than reading it in the newspaper. This is because talking about it is in the class is more of like exposing us to the commercial world, given that Ms Levina had a commercial background before becoming a teacher at Nobel.
On that day, 18th July 2016, Ms Levina had started the topic of Trade Unions. Based on what we had discussed in the previous topics, Ms Levina taught us about why the factors of pay and occupation come into hand. “Trade unions exist to protect the right of workers,” said Ms Levina. She played a video to introduce the aspects of trade unions to us. Ms Levina then asked what is the number one request trade unions fight for workers, and I put up my hand, knowing the answer. Ms Levina called me to give the answer.
“Money!” I cried.
“Correct!” said Ms Levina. I cheered upon getting the correct answer. “Money is the number one reason trade unions fight for their workers, because it will be fair to the worker if they get the pay they wish. Previously, if you look at chapter 17 and 18, where we talk about choice of occupations and differences in earnings, we learned about the minimum wage. Wei Yiang, can you tell me what is the minimum wage again?”
“One thousand ringgit!” I cried. It was the national minimum wage in Malaysia back in 2016.
“Yes. So, if RM 1000 is the minimum wage, and your boss pays you lower than the minimum wage, you will not feel happy, right? So, when a lot of people feel unhappy, and all of you are workers, you want your employer to pay you more, right?” she asked.
Ms Levina said that one worker is not enough to change anything or to coerce the boss to give a higher pay, and more workers who come in a group by banding up to force the employer would do some good. But however some employers still fail and are ignorant of workers’ rights, and it is not just money.
Ms Levina gave an example of how workers’ rights were neglected when a MRT concrete slab collapsed at the Phileo Damansara MRT Station and killed few workers while the MRT Kajang Line was under construction. It came out in the news lately at the time. “From here, just like money, you can say that the boss had ignored safety issues and the workers will be very angry. So, they go to their trade unions if they want to solve the problem,” said Ms Levina. And it is not just employees of a company, but also their family members, who can go and solve their issues via the trade unions.
While Ms Levina was teaching us about Trade Unions, Brandon Ooi jokingly asked Ms Levina if he could join a trade union to ask the school's management to allow phones in school. “No. You are still underaged,” said Ms Levina. “And also, trade unions are only for employees. You need to be working in a company or at least 21 to join a trade union.”
Ms Levina then talked about wages and the quantity of labor when talking about trade unions, and she explained that workers rights are important in a business. “You see, the workers must have high bargaining power in order to compel their bosses to listen to them. Most workers do not have high bargaining power on their own and that is why they have to join a trade union,” she said. Trade unions are organizations that fight for the workers’ rights and compel bosses to treat them well so that they have the satisfaction of being able to go to work every day.
Brandon and Ryan Chok joked that they had bargaining power by talking in the class because Ms Levina always went and changed their seats. Ms Levina said that it was a lame excuse and reason.
We then had Maths, where Ms Bee Yan returned. “How's your family?" asked Brandon, as Ms Bee Yan entered the class. “It was good,” said Ms Bee Yan. We then learnt about linear programming and did a worksheet on it.
Then, that afternoon, we had Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher told us that we had time to edit our Global Perspectives terrorism essay. Some people were told to cut down their word limit for their Global Perspectives report, including me. Then, we went for Art, and I completed most of the paintings in Prep 2.
The next day, 19th July, during our Reading Time, Ms Cynthia briefed us on the Dignity picnic the next day. In fact, we had already been briefed the previous Wednesday on 13th July by Ms Renee and Ms Sarah. We were also told to prepare a gift for our pen pals. I had a card made for Naing Ling.
We then learned about ionic bonding in Science, where electrons are being transferred from one element to another during a chemical reaction. Then, we had Malay.
During break time, I went to talk to Caleb Chuang about my pen pal plans. He seemed fixated on his Chemistry homework. Then, I went to do some Maths homework too.
Ms Chithra gave us work during class and she had to control Yew Jan as he was disrupting the class. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Levina continued to give exercises for us to do in trade unions. Brandon Ooi did not do the exercises and played his phone. “Oi, Brandon! No phones, keep, keep, please. Do your work. Later I will ask you to answer the questions,” said Ms Levina. I stationed by, just in case Ms Levina opened the answering to the rest of us.
When Brandon Ooi was asked to answer the question, he groaned and mumbled. Then, Ms Levina told me I could only answer one question, and that she would call other people to answer the questions. “Please lah, give others a chance. You take a good rest,” she said. She eventually called, Ryan Chok, Shane, Ze Khai and Nickolas to answer the questions. When she called them to answer, all of them were laughing like mad, to which I also laughed. They could not answer the questions and Ms Levina had to help them with clues.
Then, it was lunch, and then Maths. I told Ms Bee Yan that I am stuck on two questions for linear programming, and she discussed the answers in class. Then, we had History. Ms Visa taught us on how Germany experienced hyperinflation and economic problems as a result of printing money to circumvent the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles.
When I returned to class to take my bags and head home, Mr Aram was seen discussing with Rosemund about the Treaty of Versailles. Rosemund and Mr Aram were standing next to the Smartboard, and Rosemund was holding a large, binded book. It appeared that Mr Aram had printed his own textbooks to be used in the class. The books consisted of exercises, as well as source questions and analysis on all the topics in History for Year 10. The book spanned a total of one and a half inches thick.
“To do this, you need to understand the terms of the Treaty. What were the terms imposed on Germany on the Treaty, and what are the effects of the Treaty,” he said, as I overheard him saying that to Rosemund. I had also wanted a copy of Mr Aram's booklet. Mr Aram and Rosemund then left as they took their things and headed out of the room.
On 20th July 2016, Mr Thomas then gave us some exercise on prompts. When he opened his Edmodo feed, he groaned when he saw my comments on the posts. “Our friend here is very excited. I don't see why you all are not ready,” he said, praising me. He then told us to do some exercises as he spoke. Then, Ms Levina came in, and gave some work with us on the price elasticity of demand for workers while also teaching us more about trade unions. Brandon Ooi played his phone in class and Ms Levina told him to stop while he acted childishly. I spoke to Caleb Chuang about the Dignity picnic during break, and then Ms Bee Yan did graphs with us. She told us to bring a graph book for Maths.
During our Character Transformation session, the Dignity Foundation students came to Nobel International School for the long-awaited “picnic”. The Dignity Foundation students wore white uniforms with ties as opposed to us wearing maroon uniforms. So, everyone was asked to come down to the hall where we lined up on the right hand side of the hall, close to the courtyard. Each one of us had to line up in the name list order of our names on our class list. It was time for a skit called ‘The Moment’.
‘The Moment’ is a skit in which everyone was given the opportunity to be introduced to our pen pals in a surprising but entertaining way. All of us lined up, starting with 10N, 10O, 10B, 10E and 10L. The Dignity students then lined up according to the order in which they were asked to pair up. Each student’s pen pal was the same gender as they themselves, meaning, no two pair of Nobel student and Dignity student was in the opposite gender.
Calm music was played in the hall as the crowd gathered for The Moment. This was a surprise reveal of our pen pals, as this was to be remembered as a big surprise for every one of us.
A few people who had gotten their pen pals paired earlier, including Sara Yow, Vicky, Zi Quan, Ellie Lim and Alexandria, had held a black cloth in front of us, who were seated facing our pen pals. Everyone sat facing each other, and then a countdown was made and the cloth was dropped to reveal the faces of our pen pals. I was very nervous as to who Naing Ling was. So once the cloth was dropped, and everyone’s faces were revealed, we all smiled in joy as we got to meet with them. I met Naing Ling and then he was trilled. “Wei Yiang!” he cried, and then we started chit-chatting with one another. Those who had gotten to know their pen pals were escorted to the front of the hall to mingle. Naing and I then started chit chatting about our hobbies as the next few batches of students then got their faces revealed to their pen pals.
Once everyone was seated, a band performance then started. Sara Yow was emceeing and then the band, consisting of Shaun Ting, Jien Min, Joshua Chew and Daniel Ngew started playing some songs. This was then followed by some icebreaking sessions with hand moves. Naing and I had a jovial day; we did as many moves as possible.
Naing and I are quite polar opposites in class; he was a quiet guy while I am a jovial guy who is the first to volunteer for any activity and answer questions. Compared to him, I am more famous in my year level than him. I then talked to him about all the news and what I like to read online, including places like Dubai and all the construction activities. Naing and I continued to enjoy the day; some people like Louis did not enjoy or talk much with their pen pals, but I hope they did if I am wrong. And I also managed to give my card to Naing.
Once we were finished for the day, we then said goodbye to our pen pals as they left on a bus parked outside Nobel, while we walked back to our classes. Then, we went back to class to have a rest before going for lunch.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely gave us work to do and Ms Sangeetha continued to teach us. Then, I had to skip Bible Knowledge class for my second Compassion Project.
I went for my second Compassion Project without the usual close friends from 10O that I had gone with. For this, it covered both the Love on Wheels and the Tuition Centre. I just conveniently picked this slot because there was no one else to pick from and most of my friends were in full slots, to be honest. Among those whom I went for this trip with were Sheng Jit, Christopher Chew, Aristotle Koh, Chee Kei, Jia Yiu, Benjamin Fong, Eugenie Kuu and Wei Wei.
Fungates has one tuition centre in Jinjang which they run for children who do not have the money to afford tuition services. Therefore, for our Compassion Projects, the Tuition Centre covered the list of the agenda that we had to do on the day.
Originally, e were supposed to stack the items, but since we had little time, we were taken to the tuition centre first by Mr Jeffrey, who accompanied us on the trip. We walked to the tuition centre and were introduced by a staff at the entrance of the centre. So, we then entered and then the staff told us what we should do.
“These children are aged around 6 to 9 years old,” she said. “We normally give them tuition after school. These are underprivileged families.”
So, I was instructed to teach a 6-year old boy Malay, but I struggled on how to teach him despite trying my best. Once we were done, we then headed to the Love on Wheels volunteering drive.
Mr Jeffrey then demonstrated a loudspeaker megaphone for me and encouraged me to try, but he then said he would be the one handling it.
We did the same as it was last time. I then collected the buns and goodie bags and distributed them to the families as they lined up. It was just plain normal and less exciting than the first; I did not talk much with these people on the trip.
The new CCA session started on 21st July 2016, and I finally achieved my dream of being in the Editorial Board. Our Editorial Board meetings took place in the ICT labs, and Ms Levina was once again the teacher advisor for Editorial Board. That meant that my time with Ms Levina is officially extended to four times a week.
The day started with a normal class by Mr Thomas before our PE lesson. During our PE lesson, Mr Victor then gave us some volleyball games to play. Ms Cynthia then begun teaching us about race relations in Malaysia. I also managed to finish the writeup for the Global Perspectives research, as well as the Prep 2 for Art and Design. Ms Chithra also gave us an exercise titled ‘Bob the Farmer’ and we had to calculate Farmer Bob's cash flow statements till my brain hurt. Other than that, I kept my fingers crossed for my first-ever Editorial Board meeting.
I had been longing for the post of Editorial Board since elementary school as I had been doing some journal writing since then and read Geronimo Stilton’s books about him as the main character writing from a first person’s point of view, and I myself had also been reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid then. So, as a result, seeing the school newsletters and so on over the years had got me this writing habit and my interest to join Editorial Board.
On our first meeting, Ms Levina briefed us on our roles and responsibilities in the Editorial Board. Ms Levina’s slides were as amusing as the ones she showed in Economics. So what she did was brief us as well on what to expect in the Editorial Board. The Editorial Board team comprised of me, Yi Zhen, Lyn Wen, Han Ming, Chong Vicky, Alexandria Goh, Sarah Long, Daphne Lam, Shaun Ting, Koo Shi Tian, Natalie Seah, Christiana Chin, Ellie Lim, Chris Chew, Jane Yap (the one from Year 9 at the time) and Daniel Ngew.
We then elected Alexandria Goh and Chong Vicky as the chief editors of the Editorial Board. Yi Zhen was our designer, Shaun, Daniel and Han Ming photographers, and the rest of us writers.
Ms Levina said that being in the Editorial Board requires a lot of time and effort. She then gave us a few articles to edit and to train and hone our writing skills and said this continued on from an email she sent on 8th July 2016 on how us being chosen for Editorial Board can help the school, and that she gave a few articles for us to correct and suggest what went wrong and how it can be improved. Following thereafter, Ms Levina then passed the time to Vicky, who explained what we would be doing in the Editorial Board.
Vicky said that we will need to be in charge of the 2016 Yearbook because this is a very important moment for Year 11s. The Yearbook will be kept with them forever and it is the most important memory that they will see half a century on. As such, the yearbook must be designed and produced as such in order to last a memory with the graduating Year 11s in 2016 and how the memories can live on from there. We will need to be writing about the contents that will be placed in the yearbook, and she gave us a scheme of how the yearbook would look like. I was excited, looking forward to producing the Yearbook together.
On 22nd July 2016, we then had our Teacher’s Day celebration. The teacher’s day celebration was held in the school hall on that Friday morning and each class had to participate in it. Luckily, it was held later in the day, so there was no need for a GP lesson in a crowded room. Other than that, we had a normal homeroom time and a great deal of fun learning about Harrison Bergeron with Mr Thomas.
The celebrations begun after the Junior and Senior School’s break time. Each class had to cook a salad dish to serve our teachers, and different people begun bringing in stuff such as stoves, kitchen cutlery and sauces. Sheng Jit, Cassandra, Kelsey, Lyn Wen and Nickolas Nashpal were involved in cooking the dishes. Aside from that, each class had to give a series of gifts for our class teachers.
On the screens beamed whiteboard fonts and a quote by Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world”. All teachers started filing into the hall soon thereafter as we took our seats.
Soon, the performance started with a rendition of the Beatles band by Sherwin, Joshua Chew, Shaun Ting, Timothy Hiew and Jien Min. This was then followed by dance performances from the different year levels. Afterwards, there was a game for the teachers to guess and tell what they tasted while being blindfolded. The entire hall fixated on Mr Aram as he tried to sloop and guess what was it. An idioms game then went along as well as the teachers tried their best to answer.
At the end of the day, there was a part where all the teachers were invited by the Year 10 dance group comprising Pei Chi, Janelle Tan, Xin Yi, Ivyna and Isabella Wong. Ms Bee Yong, Ms June, Ms Sylvia and Mr Victor led a few teachers to dance for fun, and even some Year 11 students danced to crazy music! There were teachers who had been presented cards that we wrote to teachers during CT on 28th June; I wrote cards destined for Ms Levina, Mr Thomas, Ms Visa, Ms Chithra, Ms Sangeetha, Cikgu Niely……I wrote for all my teachers and requested more colored cards for those.
The next week begun with another really interesting thing. It was the Maths and Science Week, and most of our activities were just business as usual.
During the morning assembly, a few students from Year 7 were invited to do a Science presentation on light and electricity on the stage. Then, some people from Year 8 were also invited to present their part, which was based on a parachute.
Then, during Business Studies, Nicole and Sophie came into the class with some nice words for Ms Chithra. “Ms Chithra! You look gorgeous!” they cried. Even most of the girls like Eu Lynn and Sara Yow would also say that Ms Chithra was also gorgeous. Ms Chithra would feel shy but also annoyed by the remark. Then, we had to calculate another profit and lost statement, which made me tired.
Afterwards, we had Science, and Ms Sangeetha continued with covalent bonding.
During Economics, Ms Levina then decided to do a revision for the Assessment 2 and how to get good marks during the exam. She said that one problem with everyone was how to answer the Paper 2 questions. It was mainly a question and answer session with her. I answered the most questions, and Enisha told me not to keep answering all the time. Then, we did some graph work with Ms Bee Yan in Maths.
During Art, Ms Feeda then checked on the font and pictures of the magazines that I had. She had given her thumbs-up to the font designs. Ms Feeda asked if I had taken more photos, but I said no, because I was planning to use the existing 6 to 10 photos that I have used for the Prep 1 for Prep 2, as I thought it was a elimination of images and narrowing down of the best images to the Final Piece. In fact, I already had an idea of how the Final Piece would look like, which is why I did not spend time finding first hand studies. “No, Wei Yiang, for Prep 2, you need to have more pictures. For each prep, you must take more pictures so that you can compare and also see how to design your final piece. So, instead, I spent some time to touch up my Prep 2. Then, I asked Ms Feeda if I can proceed to Prep 3, but she said that I cannot move to the next prep until I had gotten enough pictures.
I felt so troublesome, as I had taken so many pictures and did a lot of research, but I still could not get to Prep 3. Art students need to take or produce some pictures or photographs as part of first-hand studies reference. They will then copy the pictures or research by painting them on their A2 paper. Without any first hand studies or photographs and so on, they cannot copy them into their prep work, and hence, they cannot produce any preps.
Soon, Enisha passed by and saw my Prep 2. “What is that? Weileb? Oh my goodness,” said Enisha, covering her face. I laughed wholeheartedly. “Oh my God! Wei Yiang is writing Caleb's name on his prep!” cried Enisha, as she went to Cassandra. Soon, at least half of the art batch were looking at my prep work.
“He's not joking! It's for real!” cried Cassandra. “You are really obsessed with Caleb,” said Enisha, threatening to bring Caleb Chuang to see the prep work. “No, no, no! You can't bring Caleb Chuang to see the prep work!” I cried. “Non-art students are not allowed in the Art Studio! Ms Feeda will get angry with me!”
Enisha then said she will take a photo of the prep work and show it to Caleb Chuang. And so did Cassandra. “No, you can't do that! Phones are not allowed in school!” I pleaded. Just then, Ms Feeda approached Enisha. “Enisha! No phones in my class! Please keep it!” she cried. Enisha just smiled slyly and tried to explain to Ms Feeda on why she had a phone in school. I tried to touch up the remaining pictures. Ms Feeda then said I can plan for how to organize my Prep 3 works. I told her that I could use one of the designs from Prep 2 to Prep 3. She told me to proceed, but I should have four magazine designs for my Prep 3.
I was also given a task by Yin Wei to interview Ms Renee and Mr Lee on their take on the Teacher's Day celebration for the Editorial Board. So, the next day, 26th July, I went to meet Mr Lee for the interview. He smiled and cliched as I interviewed him.
The day went by smoothly. As the Reading Time progressed, Brandon Ooi and Nickolas Nashpal were talking about Pokemon Go. It was a new game released in many countries worldwide except Malaysia. It was the craziest thing one would imagine at the time. The game required people to drive around their city, hunting for Pokemon just like in the video game. Brandon Ooi said it looked cool and planned to download the game on his phone.
Ms Sangeetha and Cikgu Niely taught and did some work with us. During the Malay lesson, Brandon Ooi was discussing with Sheng Jit and Ryan Chok. Then, we had break, and I ate my breakfast alone with San Ying. We then went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra taught us about cash flow forecasting, and we did tens of thousands of calculations! And during Economics, Ms Levina did a recap of the topics we learnt, namely on banks, stock exchanges, choice of occupation, changes in earnings, differences in earnings as well as the trade union topics. During the discussion, Ms Levina had to ask Brandon Ooi to answer and explain about all the topics. Instead, he had trouble doing so, and Ms Levina asked for volunteers to help him. Me, Ivyna, Yan Ying, Sheng Jit, Grace and Cassandra took turns to talk about the topics. The three topics that I liked talking about are the banks, stock exchanges and trade unions. After lunch, Ms Bee Yan suggested that someone start to re-present the Genius Time beginning from 1st August. “We have not had Genius Time for so long, so I want somebody else to present,” said Ms Bee Yan. I asked her if anyone who had presented before can re-present again, and she said yes. So, I decided to volunteer for the second Genius Time presentation.
Then, Nickolas Nashpal also wanted to do his presentation, and Ms Bee Yan said that I would do the presentation the following week since Nickolas had not presented before. I agreed with her. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa told us to do our group discussion for the History coursework. “I hope your posters are ready,” said Ms Visa. I told her that my poster was done and I would present the poster to her by Friday, 29th July.
The next day, during assembly, there was a Maths presentation by some Year 8 students on basic equations for everyone to understand. Later, in class, Mr Thomas taught us on poems, and then also we did some work on Harrison Bergeron and Tom Hadfield. Mr Thomas said that I was moving too fast ahead in his posts as he has posted the posts for the benefit of 10O students. During Economics, Ms Levina gave us some work to do on answering Paper 2, but Brandon Ooi kept on disrupting the class again. First, he went to talk to Shane by walking to his seat, which annoyed Ms Levina. Then, he played his handphone in the class, searching for Pokemon Go and then he watched videos of NBA teams playing in the United States. And then, he did not finish his work, which resulted in Ms Levina supervising him in his work and taking his phone and placing it on the desk.
During Maths, we did a few tons of worksheets in the class, and we then went for our Character Transformation session, where we had some word of talk from Ms Lim.
Ms Lim told us, and had repeatedly told us about the fact that we should participate in many activities in Nobel while we are still students, as we would not be allowed to have the same opportunity after leaving Nobel. She said that any ex student attempting to participate in Nobel's activities and perform in Nobel's concerts, for example, would not be allowed to do so. The reason was because that we would need to give a chance to the juniors in Nobel.
Ms Lim cited four examples of students who were rejected from returning to Nobel. The first was a group of 100 students from a previous graduating batch that came back to request for an assembly from the teachers, but it was refused. They had spent countless hours studying for their IGCSE and did not want an assembly, but requested to return for such an assembly, including the greeting of teachers, school pledge recital, and a series of actions to mimic the assembly. They even turned up in school uniform at the school gates, but were rejected. Several ex students were also rejected from performing in Nobel's 10th Anniversary Concert due to the same reason by Ms Lim; to give the juniors a chance. A few people were also rejected from participating in Sports Day as well as the 2014 Carnaval do Nobel with similar stances from the management. So, Ms Lim said that she would be fair to everyone; anyone who had graduated from Nobel will be barred from such events and thus she said that we should take part in Nobel's events before we graduate, as we will be denied the chance to do so upon our graduation. Ms Lim also continued to talk about the Student Code of Conduct with us and the possible issues faced by the management. Among those was the usage of handphones in school. Ms Lim asked everyone who had brought phones without her noticing to raise their hands. There were so many people. “Wah!” cried Ms Lim. “So many!”
Ms Lim encouraged anyone who brought the handphones to seek permission from the management team to do so. They will need to write a letter for the approval process, and if anyone wanted to use handphones at the time, they can only use it in a box drawn at the school foyer that was designated a spot for handphones. Those who were granted approval from the management will be given an exemption card, and they could only use it after school ends. Then, Ms Lim also said that people had issues with their school uniform as most people would continue to wear their shirt even though it was faded, when in fact, it had to be changed. Not to also mention that some people were not wearing their name tag as the reason was that the name tag supply was out of stock and not arriving yet.
We stayed in the class for the rest of the day for Malay and Science, as Cikgu Niely taught us and Ms Sangeetha did some covalent bonding with us. Then, during Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee handed us our pop quiz results. I barely got half of the answers correct. Also, I interviewed Ms Renee for my Editorial Board assignment.
Thursday, 28th July begun on another exciting note, as this date was my second meeting as part of Nobel's Editorial Board. Mr Thomas then did another exercise on Tom Hadfield, and Ms Sylvia then said that we will be learning how to play some field hockey games. She, Mr Victor, Mr Lim, Ms Lee and Ms Yap brought out some toy hockey sticks from the sports store from behind the hall. We did some movements and played around with the sticks. Also, it was Mr Victor's birthday, and the whole hall sang the birthday song for Mr Victor. He told us that the best gift that he prefers was that everyone do well in their fitness test. We all laughed.
During Malaysian Studies, Ms Cynthia said that we would be taking part in the Merdeka Day celebration in Nobel and as such, we need to do a performance. So, she told us on that we need to come up with a performance that reflects the traditional culture of Malaysia. Each class in Year 10 had to come up with their own individual performances and the entire class would coordinate the performance. So, Ms Cynthia gave us the entire Malaysian Studies class that day, to coordinate and plan how we should perform for Merdeka Day. Each class was given the CT time to plan and strategize their dance moves for the Merdeka Day celebration.
Sheng Jit, Yan Ying and Ivyna were in charge of coordinating our dance moves, and said that we had to do an Indian dance for the celebration. We then discussed how to do the dance, before we went for Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher told us about the biodiversity loss during Global Perspectives as a result of human action. Then, during Art, I begun work on my Prep 3, tracing four designs for my lemon magazine and painting them. I also took the time to discuss about the History coursework with Gabriel and Louis. And Gabriel will also come to my house on 31st July 2016 for some discussion on academics as well as the group project, which the two of us will do one-on-one, for History. Ms Chithra then gave us a Microsoft Excel example of a cash flow statement during Business Studies.
As the afternoon wore on, we then had a briefing by Vicky on the Editorial Board's activity. Yin Wei had received two of my interviews.
Vicky said that for Teacher's Day, everyone had to do an interview as well as some of the funny questions we would ask teachers. This was to compile the information into the school yearbook, which was meant to be a testamony for Year 11 students and a memory book for them. She said that the Year 11s want to have memories of Nobel, and with them being the outgoing batch from Nobel, it would be good for us to have a nice yearbook which they can cherish often. One way to add color to the yearbook was to have a nice design, and some cool information like the teachers’ jokes and comedy text. So, Vicky had told us that we needed to do a yearbook of such proportion and the teachers’ interview is the best bet. She then delegated some tasks to us, and I was placed in Group 2, with Shaun Ting, Lyn Wen, Yi Zhen, Daniel Ngew and Han Ming.
We also discussed the layout of the school yearbook for 2016. Vicky said that the 2015 Yearbook was not delivered on time and the entire project spent for the year 2015 was cancelled as a result. In fact, the 2015 Yearbook was 80 percent complete, but was unable to be published as the book was done too little, too late. Ms Levina then reiterated that the 2015 Yearbook was not delivered due to the fact that many of the previous committee members were not as organized. So, she told us that we needed to be timely in delivery for the end of the year, as it will allow the Year 11s to graduate with good memories of their time in Nobel.
Vicky said that the 2016 Yearbook will consist of a Comedy section, Teacher's section, Sports section, Compassion Projects section, camps, an Awards section, and various interviews with students and teachers. The Teacher's Section was originally designed to have each teacher have a profile, with a design tailored to the subject they teach. For example, Mr Nick would have a Chemistry design of beakers, conical flasks and test tubes, and Ms Sangeetha's Biology portfolio would have a design based on plants, cells and organizms.
Working with Chong Vicky was a really good experience. She was one of the most famous people in our batch even since primary school. And she was very professional. It was the first of four experiences working with her. I was excited on what to do next.
The next day, 29th July, we marked the end of July by watching a video of Tom Hadfield in Mr Thomas’ class. At the same time, I also managed to finish my Prep 3 in one swoop. Ms Feeda told me to touch up a bit more before beginning my Prep 4. And Gabriel, Louis and I fixed the following week for the creation of the Treblinka model. I also handed in my Nazi Germany poster to Ms Visa. She said it looked nice and was one of the best. Mr Gallagher also took time to allow us to begin our second Individual Report for Global Perspectives, and I wrote about terrorism. The Maths and Science Week ended with a performance by Year 8 and 9 students during assembly, based on Maths and Science elements. There was also a Chemistry presentation by Mr Nick and a Physics presentation by Jordan, Branson Choon and Ting Yi. I can tell you that the whole 10L class screamed the loudest, including Mr Lee himself. He was so excited.
August was a very busy month, as it was our Assessment 2. We did pretty well as well, and I achieved my highest grade ever for Malaysian Studies because the exam focused on the formation of Malaysia, which was a piece of cake for us to remember. However, I had some division between my friends and myself over things.
I wished that I was in the same class as Joshua, Caleb Chuang and the rest, because all those people there do not have any problems with me as opposed to being in 10N. It was a pity, I felt, that we were confined to the classes in which we selected our subjects for. I had compared me and Caleb to a situation of North and South Korea; the North instituted heavy control from above while the South gave free rein over what can be done. I compare the situation that I have for the North, and that of Caleb Chuang mimicking South Korea.
Sometimes, I feel of boycotting any activity that my class was doing, particularly because my friends like Brandon Ooi and I cannot even work together. We had so many differences and conflicts, and I wished that we could choose our classes as we please like last time while maintaining our different electives; however, this was very impractical and it would be much easier to group everyone according to what they chose, since it is administratively efficient.
For instance, back in June 2016, Eric Wong and I had few outbursts instantly. Eric Wong is the oldest guy not only in our class, but also the whole school despite us being in Year 10. He is born in 1999 and the only 90s kid in the school; the others from Year 11 in 2016 are born in 2000. Eric likes to play basketball with Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit, Shane, Ryan Chok and all the other boys from the other classes. So, there was this one time where Eric and I, on 28th June 2016, had a conflict in the class. I was in the front of the class and I was talking loudly with my friends, and Eric then took my water bottle and threw it at my face. The bottle splashed, and the whole class looked in awe as he scolded me. I was puzzled at what I did to hurt his feelings, as he had a few unnecessary outbursts. Cassandra then put me aside and told me that Eric said he was sorry and did not mean it, but he just could not control his feelings and hoped for me to not talk so loudly till he got annoyed. At the time, Ms Bee Yan was not present for Mathematics, and we had to wait for around 40 minutes for Ms Samantha to come and relief Ms Bee Yan’s time as relief teacher.
I also felt that it was best to not work with them and work my own way too if we can’t cooperate. And you see, there have been a lot of inter-class competitions lately.
We had a few inter-class contests. One of which was to decorate the class. For instance, we had themes to decorate every month:
My friends would normally leave it to me at best to plan the decorating as they were not interested. It was a win-win situation for all of us as they can relax and I have free rein to plan what I wanted, since they did not give any ideas and just left them to myself.
For Chinese New Year in the beginning of the year, I made a model of a dynamite stick to be installed in the class. I decided to put a dynamite stick instead of multiple strings of firecrackers which is what most people would display for Chinese New Year as it gives some sense of being special. My friends also did some decorations for Chinese New Year, but we did not have any decorations for Sports Day. 10O on the other hand made some strings of flags consisting of flags from all four houses, and decorated them in the class. I used some recycled items too to promote Earth Day Besides that, our class did not do much decorations for the rest of the year while the rest did. This, as I said, set the stage on why I wished I was in the other classes with the rest of my other friends there, as mine looks so dull and more of my friends who were not in my favor. The other classes, especially Mr Lee’s, were all well-decorated.
Ms Cynthia was not happy when she found out that I will be doing all the decorations. She then spoke during our Homeroom time on a Friday, 15th April 2016, earlier in the year, that it is the entire class that should do the decorations, and then arranged Ryan Chok and Sheng Jit to be in charge of planning the decorations for the entire class for Earth Day. We continued to perform badly in class decoration competitions for each consecutive time, and the best class is of course, Mr Lee’s 10L class. The entire class, mind you, will always be united because of Mr Lee himself, and Mr Lee is a competitive guy who wants 10L to always be the best, in cleanliness, decorations, sports…….everything. I had plans to make 10N best the performance of Mr Lee and his cranky team. It was my wish to see 10N become as best as 10L, but it was not attainable due to differences among us 10N students on how we should progress. While I wanted open connections with the other classes and my good friends there, the people in 10N were more isolated and more hermit in some way or form. Not as expressive as I was. They don't want to do things on such a grand scale. I just feel so sad.
So, when Ms Cynthia wants us to do a traditional performance, I wonder how I would be able to fit in with my friends for the traditional performance for Merdeka Day.
So, because of me having numerous differences with my friends, Ms Cynthia decided to see me back in May, on 25th May 2016 to speak with me. So, after lunch on that particular day, I went up to the Junior and Senior School Management Office to meet with Ms Cynthia. Ms Cynthia then brought me down the lift to the ground floor’s counselling room where we had a chat, and Ms Cynthia tried to understand where I was coming from.
Ms Cynthia asked me a few questions. One of the questions she asked was about my coping mechanism and how I came into such a state. I told Ms Cynthia that the reason why I was in such a state was because of my friends being separated into different classes. As I had differences with many of my friends from 10N, and that most of the outgoing and outspoken ones are in the other classes, I was unable to cope well. So, Ms Cynthia said that the most important thing that I had to do was to try to work together with the people in 10N. Apart from all things, I explained to her that I was still able to focus on my studies, but the separation into different classes for Year 10 was not of the likes of previous years. Ms Cynthia then told me that I should learn to work with people from different classes and try to accommodate other people whom I do not know, as it is good to get to work with new people. After lunch, I then went for Business Studies class with Ms Chithra, and then History. And History lessons were always the lesser of two evils; either Mr Aram, whom he was a bit strict and fierce like how people from his class spoke of him, or Ms Visa, another strict teacher but not as strict as Mr Aram but still kind enough to understand our views.
I kept on thinking about this as the month of August 2016 drew closer. We have had so much conflicts. Enisha kept on berating me, and sometimes, Brandon Ooi did as well. And at the time, many of my close friends were studying in other classes. There was little to no one as close in 10N.
The morning of 1st August 2016, a Monday, begun on a rough note when the whole school got a stern lecture from Ms Bee Yong as some people were talking as the national anthem was being played. Worse still, it happened in the month of August, which was the National Month for Malaysia, as the National Day, or Merdeka Day, falls on 31st August annually.
As the national anthem was playing, some people were not singing the national anthem. This resulted in Ms Bee Yong getting really unhappy about this. She told everyone that it is very important to respect the national anthem when the song is being played, as well as at the same time, respecting the school song and the Rukunegara as well.
Many students in Nobel do not feel compelled to either sing the Negaraku, School Song, Rukunegara or School Pledge on a Monday morning because of the fact that most people had Monday blues. Also, everyone had to arrive by 7:45am, which was another hurdle as most people's bodies were not fully functional at a twilight hour like that. They would also feel embarassed if they were singing in front of their friends for fear that they may be laughed at. But however, it is a must for everyone to sing and say the various pledges or songs to show some respect to our school and our country.
“I am not a Malaysian; I am a Singaporean,” said Ms Bee Yong as she told us that even as a non-Malaysian, she was compelled to respect the national anthems and pledges of foreign countries. Honestly speaking, I feel surprised when Ms Bee Yong said she was a Singaporean. It was my first time hearing her say that.
Then, Ms Lim came on the announcement. She said that many people were misbehaving and spoke in an angry tone. Her tone was loud and fierce enough to crash the stock market. Ms Lim said that many people were not singing. “Year 10! Some people are still talking! Horrible!” she cried.
Personally, for me, I have to tell you; I sang as loud as possible, but not too loud as my friends would get angry with me. Also, I recited the school pledge with pride. Scolding the whole school would mean unfairness to people who really put in the effort to do the necessary actions.
After returning to class, Ms Chithra gave us another cash flow worksheet. “Ms Chithra, you look GORGEOUS!” cried Nicole and Sophie. Then, Ms Chithra told us to complete the cash flow statement accordingly. I felt dizzy and annoyed because there were too many numbers. In fact, I struggled on this when I did the Accounting subject as part of my business degree at Sunway. While I did not take Accounting courses, the Accounting subject, as well as the Finance module, was a compulsory subject for all. I would go on to struggle in this area at Sunway as well.
Then, after Business Studies ended, we went back for Science, where Ms Sangeetha continued to talk to us about compounds and mixtures. Compounds that do not have oxygen in them are pronounced as ‘ate’, such as calcium carbonate, while those that do have oxygen had the words ‘ide’, such as sodium hydroxide.
Afterwards, we went for break time. Caleb Chuang was busy doing his studies for Assessment 2. So, I went to talk to San Ying. Then, I met Jordan Tay and Ting Yi at the school foyer. Jordan had given Ting Yi a try at his Rubik's cube. As we were talking, Mr Lee greeted the three of us, as Jordan talked about his ambitions to become a pilot when he grew up.
I told Rick Tan about what transpired with my friends during the field trip the previous Thursday, and he told me that we will find new people and so on in life and we will have new environments. As such, we need to adapt to changes.
Then, once things were done, Ms Levina came in for Economics and told us that the Assessment 2 will focus on six chapters, namely money, banks, stock exchanges, trade unions, changes in earnings and differences in earnings. Ms Levina then told Brandon Ooi to take the exam seriously. Then, we did a final recap on changes in earnings and how the act of collective bargaining power can gain an advantage among workers. Then, she gave us some exercises focusing on Paper 1 questions to do.
While doing the exercises, Ms Levina went around to check on us. First, she went to Ivyna to guide her, followed by Hao Yinn. Then, she told Brandon Ooi to do his work while guiding Krystal Goh, Wee Shiang, Grace and Jia Yee. Then, she came to me and she guided me as well.
After finishing my part, she looked at Brandon. “Brandon Ooi! No phones! Keep, keep, keep!” she cried. He was looking at a Pokemon Go tutorial, anxious over the possible launch of Pokemon Go in Malaysia. Ms Levina also told us that we will be doing the Paper 2 questions the next day. I told her that I may have problems doing Paper 2, and she said that we will be doing it together in the class. I also told her to tell me the next day overall on where I could improve in Economics.
Then, Ms Bee Yan came in and taught us conversion graphs. She then reminded Nickolas Nashpal of his Genius Time presentation the next day. We had to draw a series of graphs on graph paper. Ivyna and Cassandra borrowed some graph paper from me, and so did Brandon and Shane.
After lunch, we then had Global Perspectives, where I focused on doing my second Individual Report. It was on terrorism and how terrorist activities can be prevented. I feel so angry as to why ISIS had conducted an attack on Malaysia, but I continued typing. When we went for Art, Ms Feeda approved my Prep 3 and told me to venture into doing Prep 4. She told me to touch up the fonts on my work.
Chee Kei and Eugenie then called Ms Feeda and cried for help as they smeared their prep work by accident. “Don't worry, don't worry, Ms Feeda is here. You can touch it up,” she said, as she gave suggestions on what to do.
The next morning, 2nd August, Ms Cynthia then came in for Reading time, and then Kelsey informed her of her intention to resign as assistant class monitor. Kelsey had been the assistant monitor for 9E previously in 2015. Ms Cynthia told us to wait until Friday, 5th August, to elect a new assistant monitor. I planned for a third run at the job.
Ms Sangeetha came in and told us that we will head to the Science lab the next day for our first Chemistry experiment. Then, she taught us workings on how to calculate chemical equations. Afterwards, it was Malay, and Cikgu Niely briefed us on the exam scope for Malay. Just like the Assessment 1, it was to be divided into two parts, with Part 1 being conducted on Tuesday, 9th August, and Part 2 being held on Wednesday, 10th August.
I had asked Ms Sangeetha and Cikgu Niely where to improve. Ms Sangeetha said that the only area to improve was in my concepts and understanding of the topics, and Cikgu Niely told me to improve in my comprehension in Malay.
After Malay, we went for break, and I spoke to Joshua Chew about what I told Ms Sangeetha and Cikgu Niely. He said that Ms Sangeetha also said that he had the same problems for his Biology subject. Then, Caleb Chuang was studying. Like mad. I didn't want to disturb him.
After break time, Ms Lim had an assembly and then she told us that everyone must line up properly, chiding some people in the Year 11 batch for their shortcomings. She told everyone that she was planning to treat all of us some food. She planned to give us ice cream. Not a good meal for me.
Then, we had Business Studies, and I had to be excused from Ms Chithra's lesson in order to go for my ICAS exam. Unlike Year 7, 8 and 9 students, who are required to sit for the ICAS exam, the Year 10 and 11 students had the option to do so. I had registered for the ICAS Science exam. I had also previously registered for the ICAS exams for English, Maths and the Writing paper.
The ICAS Science exam was held in Tutorial Room 2, which is the location of both the old Multimedia Room and the former location of the ICT Lab. I plopped down. I only see a few people from Year 10 sitting for the ICAS exam. Ms Praveen was coordinating the exam. We were given the opportunity to shade in the details as well as the answers on an answer sheet. It was a really short exam; a total of one and a half hours.
Then, once that was done, I returned for Economics. I told Ms Levina that I have sat for the ICAS exam and was a bit late. She was starting Economics Paper 2 revision. My worksheet was on the table. She was briefing us on how to answer the paper.
The worksheet consisted of multiple choice questions and essay questions. For the multiple choice questions, I circled the correct answer. I used a test pad to continue to write the essay questions.
Ms Levina told us to do the questions first and that she will guide us if we were stuck. Ms Levina had to guide Jia Yee many times so that she can understand the concepts. Then, Brandon Ooi was playing on his phone again.
“Eh, Brandon! Please, move to your seat!” cried Ms Levina, asking Brandon Ooi to move to his assigned seat for Economics. Brandon said he was doing his work, but Ms Levina walked to him and told him to keep his phone and start working on his revision worksheet.
Then, Enisha got up from her seat and walked to the window behind the class. Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal were peering at the back. An extraordinary event was happening.
Outside the school, enforcement officers from the Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya (MBPJ), which is the city council of Petaling Jaya, were issuing compounds to cars for illegal parking. Somehow, a lot of teachers from Nobel had parked their vehicles at Jalan SS5D/6 and the adjacent main road next to Nobel, which was then in Kelana Jaya. The teachers parked their cars under the large angsana trees in front of the school, and the MBPJ officers were issuing compounds for teachers who parked there.
“Ms Ingel!” cried Enisha as Ms Ingel was attending to her vehicle. She then called more teachers’ names, such as Mr Mervin, Puan Halimah, and Mr Chuang. Ryan Chok, Shane, Brandon, Eric, Ze Khai and Nickolas were peering at the whole incident. I also saw the enforcement officers issuing compounds. Ms Levina also took a look, worried if her car was there.
Ms Levina then said she will proceed downstairs to check on the vehicles. Apparently, a lot of teachers had gathered at the school foyer. They were being told to move their vehicles or face fines and enforcement action. There were two police cars, five policemen and at least ten enforcement officers issuing compounds.
One of the officers from MBPJ was telling the teachers to move their vehicles as the area in front of Nobel was not meant for parking purposes and that residents in the neighborhood had complained about traffic congestion and parking issues resulting from the shops and commercial areas there. Apparently, Ms Levina's car was also parked there. Many of the teachers had to move their vehicles.
When Ms Levina came back, I had finished my work. Then, she called the class for attention. I then proceeded to hand in my work. As I was having my lunch, the enforcement officers had long gone.
A lot of people from Year 10 had seen the incident as the Year 10 classes had a view of the main road from their first-floor classroom window. I spoke to Joshua Chew and San Ying about how I dealt with city council staff from my area, but however, it was on tree cutting and gardening issues rather than parking.
We then returned for Maths, and then, Nickolas Nashpal presented his Genius Time, showcasing off his YouTube channel, titled ‘Natty Nashpalian’. He showed off his muscles. He likes to do gym workouts. Ze Khai also liked it as well. The two of them actually became part of a new CCA at the time, which was called ‘Strength and Conditioning’. This CCA is actually a CCA which focuses on exercises. Nickolas also showed off his cars and travels on his YouTube posts. Then, once he was done, Ms Bee Yan said that my turn would be after the Assessment 2. I was given the 16th August slot for my presentation.
Then, once Ms Bee Yan was done, we went for our History lesson. Mr Aram came in and we went to 10O to meet Ms Visa. We then did our group project in the class. I had brought a cardboard to make the model of the Treblinka camp.
Louis brought the materials and we spent the entire two periods’ lesson in History to do the coursework, with me coordinating the activity and updating our progress to Ms Visa. Louis spent his time during History to paint a poster by Nazi Germany to boast themselves during the war, upon finishing our model of the concentration camp.
Louis, Gabriel and I cut and pasted the models and so on and Kelsey handed in her propaganda poster. Ms Visa praised the three of us for using the History lesson well. I felt relieved when the entire work had been completed. The due date for the propaganda poster based on Nazi Germany was 16th August 2016, and the model of the concentration camp was due on 25th October 2016. Both due dates were after Assessment 2 and the Final Year Examination respectively, on the first class following the respective exams.
The next day, we were treated to a nice beginning by Mr Thomas. He was introducing to us the Mercy Ship text. This text would become very paramount because it would bring about joy and excitement for the next six months. The ship is known as the Africa Mercy, but we will call it the Mercy Ship for convenience purposes.
Mr Thomas said that the Mercy Ship is a hospital ship catering to patients in East Africa. There are plans for multiple Mercy Ships to service countries in Africa and to aid people in Africa who had no access to world-class health systems. However, he said that we will do the text next week as the timetable change caused us to lag behind 10O. “Please don't look at the new posts first, because we are far behind,” said Mr Thomas. We did more poems, and then during Economics, Ms Levina discussed our work, and Brandon was playing around and watching videos on his phone during Ms Levina's class.
After break time, Ms Bee Yan had some work with us and then we went for our Character Transformation period. During the Character Transformation time, Mr Neoh conducted an icebreaking exercise where we had to be blindfolded and our friends will try to guide us out of a maze. However, they were only allowed to use sounds from hand clapping to communicate. The first person who exited the maze first was the winner. Five people were represented; one from each class.
The first person from our class to be represented was Jia Yee, who was reacting awkwardly as she was volunteered. Many of us tried to clap our hands, but I clapped loudly. Shane and Brandon told me that they could guide Jia Yee themselves. Jia Yee was the last to leave the maze.
Then, it was Enisha's turn to be blindfolded, and it was the same result. I then volunteered to do the action, after Brandon suggested that I go if I myself was so smart to give directions. So, I volunteered. Originally, Enisha was against me going.
When it was my turn, I ran to the other side of the maze, not knowing where I was going. Because there were so many hands clapping at the same time, some people were confused as to who was clapping. There was confusion. I was also confused, but I tried to run in another direction, accidentally bumping into Jia Qing and Tze Chen, who were angry with me. Then, Sheng Jit and Ivyna tried, but with little success too.
Brandon blamed me for messing up the situation and it made things worse and he said he wouldn't volunteer me for anything except to sweep the floor of 10N. I just ignored him and told him that he wasn't knowing how to communicate. We had a short argument over that.
Then, we had lunch, and I told Joshua my predicament and then went to meet Jordan and told him that as well. He was eating apples. Mr Lee was having lunch with them. We then had Malay, where we did comprehensions and revision worksheets for Assessment 2, and Ms Sangeetha told us that we will stay in class that day because she wanted to revise us for Assessment 2.
During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee briefed us on the upcoming BK16 quiz. We had to wear our school uniform and gather at SMK Assunta before 7:45am and that the quiz will end by 11:50am, where we can go home once the results were announced. Same protocol as 2015. However, Ashley Teoh was in a pestering mode and was a bit late for Ms Renee's class, and because some people were still eating, particularly Rosemund and Berlinda, Ms Renee got really angry and talked in an angry manner. It was the only time that she got angry at the class.
I mean, come on, this was the so-called ‘Dream Class’. All the people whom I know are really close friends with me. And that particular student who disrupts the class is not there. And the class was conducted in a peaceful and friendly and sociable manner, dogged by this form of action we saw that day. A dent to the so-called ‘Dream Class’.
The next day, we had our English lesson and Mr Thomas continued to introduce to us more about poems. This time, Ms Yong Wai Yee wasn't in the class as she had her own classes to teach. Then, we went for PE, and Mr Victor did some relay races in the hall with us, along with some telematch games and some of our exercises. “Today, we are going to play a mini telematch,” said Mr Victor. He asked us to get into our lines at the side of the hall following our attendance-marking at the start of the lesson. He said that the mini-telematch would be based on all the exercises we have learnt during PE. We did some hockey games, volleyball games, basketball games, push ups and sit ups – all we had to do was to run to the end of the hall and do them.
When Mr Victor did our relay races, we had to run across the width instead of the length of the hall. He divided us into boys and girls. This meant running from the courtyard portion of the hall to the lower canteen portion. We had to run to the end of the hall and then run back to our line and do it twice.
I stood at the same queue as Caleb Chuang. This meant that I stood at the exact point of the queue just like where Caleb Chuang stood. The plan was to run the relay race when Caleb Chuang is running, turn around, and return back.
Some people from both classes tried to ensure me and Caleb Chuang were not in the same order of the queue. For instance, Nieshaal was looking at me the whole time and walked back to the end of the line so that Caleb Chuang can move in front. Likewise, Brandon Ooi and Shane would do the same. Eventually, Caleb Chuang and I ran at the same time. The whole year level screamed like mad!
First, we had to just run to and fro. Caleb Chuang and I ran separately. Then, we had to run to the end, do push ups, and run back. Then, we also had to do the same, but with sit-ups. During the sit-up exercise, I put my cloth at the end so that I can grab it and use it before running back. Caleb Chuang and I then did sit ups at the same time, to cheers from the whole class. Then, Nieshaal and Brandon tried to move me and Caleb Chuang so that we won't be at the same point in both class lines. They failed most of the time, and the whole hall cheered me and Caleb Chuang as we ran.
When we returned, Mr Victor called for attention by blowing his whistle, and got ready for the next activity. He asked a few boys to bring out the hockey sticks. We were going to to push the ball.
Then, Mr Victor gave us hockey sticks to push the ball, and Caleb Chuang and I did it at the same time. Then, the third action Mr Victor did was to high-five the individual from the other class. This incident almost failed, but it eventually succeeded. When Caleb Chuang and I ran, the both of us high-fived at the other end, causing all the girls to scream like mad! Then, Mr Victor invited two people to do a demonstration of volleyball. He gave the entire year level the choice to nominate two boys and two girls. Guess who were the people nominated? Me, Caleb Chuang, Co Sheen and Yi Zhen!
Okay, okay, to rephrase it, Mr Victor initially called for volunteers. I volunteered. Then, the entire batch of 10O and 10N students was cheering. They were like, “Caleb, join Wei Yiang!”
Initially, Caleb Chuang was uncertain for going with me. Some people tried to volunteer, like Ethan Wong, but turned back at the last minute. Then, Caleb Chuang relented. He stood up and walked over to me. The whole Year 10 batch screamed so loudly like as if we were superstars, and clapped enthusiastically. They were screaming and shouting like mad! Then, Co Sheen and Yi Zhen joined the two of us.
“Why are all of you cheering and shouting?” asked Mr Victor. “They are best friends ah?” he asked. The whole hall screamed. “Yes, they are!” cried Jane Yap.
“They like each other ah?” asked Mr Victor, to more cheers. Even all the teachers were smiling.
Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia gave us a ball to bounce. Caleb Chuang and I bounced it perfectly. The task was to bounce the volleyball and shoot it to the other person, who had to catch it. By this time, the whole hall was in cheers, screaming, shouting and acting crazily like mad. Then, Caleb Chuang did a demonstration before going back. Now, Nieshaal and Brandon wanted me and Caleb Chuang to be put together in the same line, as opposed to previously not allowing the both of us to start together. We were also suggested to be paired in the SAME CLASS LINE, in either 10N or 10O. Then, we did our games. Oh, and Christiana Chin got excited and started talking to me and Caleb Chuang about how great our demonstration was! Actually, I sat in 10N's line but peer over to 10O's line to talk to Caleb Chuang.
“Caleb, please control your best friend. Please calm down your best friend. He is so excited,” said Shane. Megan also said that. All the 10O people were excited on me and Caleb Chuang. By this time, I was laughing and acting like crazy. “Wei Yiang, you are being crazy. Stop it! Just calm down!” cried Gabriel. Even Louis was also annoyed.
Some people bounced balls and Ethan Wong hit the ball so hard until it smashed into one of the ceiling lights and glass fell. Jien Min, on the other hand, shot the ball till it landed into the balcony on the first floor of the school hall.
Afterwards, Mr Victor called the individuals who demonstrated to return. The whole hall cheered again. Mr Victor then told us to do a wheelbarrow race.
The plan was for one person to hold another person's legs while using hands to move. Then, we switched at the end. When Caleb Chuang and I did the demonstration, the whole hall was screaming like mad. I wheeled Caleb Chuang first, and he wheeled me back. We overtook Co Sheen and Yi Zhen, and the whole hall screamed. So much screaming and shouting occurred till Louis got mad.
Then, Mr Victor said that Co Sheen and Yi Zhen were from the same class and he wanted different girls. He also asked if everyone preferred to keep or change the volunteers. He also wanted different boy volunteers, but the entire hall wanted me and Caleb Chuang to continue demonstrating. Then, Mr Victor did the actual activities with us, and he did so many countless activities.
The List of Games Mr Victor played in the mini-telematch in the hall
1. Run to the end and run back
2. Run to the end, do jumping jacks, and run back
3. Run to the end, do sit ups and run back
4. Run to the end, do push ups, and return
5. Run to the end, do planking, and return
6. Run to the end, swing hands, and return
7. Same as #6, but with elbows
8. Same as #1, but in walking mode and bouncing a basketball
9. Same as #8, but with football
10. Run to the center and shoot a volleyball to someone at the end, who will shoot back and return
11. Same as #9, but with a field hockey stick and hockey ball
12. Same as #1, with the wheelbarrow exercise. Hold another person by their feet and that person whose leg is held will move to the end using his hands, and then switch. The person who is holding the other person's legs will walk behind the person.
13. Same as #1, but in a three-legged race.
*Caleb Chuang and I demonstrated exercises 10, 12 and 13.
Once the games ended, Mr Victor ran out of options. The whole hall was cheering and screaming and clapping at me and Caleb Chuang's awesome demonstrations. When we were called to demonstrate, the whole hall kept cheering, “Best friends”, “Go, Caleb”, “Go Wei Yiang”, “Go Weileb”, “Go best friends”, and all types of wacky remarks. Ting Yi also acted crazily, but Ms Sylvia kept on getting angry at him for his nonsensical and irritating noise.
“What should we do with the two of them?” asked Mr Victor. Some people jokingly asked me to hug and kiss Caleb Chuang, which was gross. Others asked me and Caleb Chuang to dance. In the end, we took a bow, and Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia thanked us for volunteering. The whole hall gave us one more round of applause. They screamed and shouted like mad, as Mr Victor gave us a briefing to end the PE lesson. He reminded us on our fitness test as we were dismissed.
At the canteen table, Caleb Chuang and I sat with all the girls. We were having breakfast with Kit Lee, Yi Zhen, San Ying, Sophie, Faythe Chow, Co Sheen, Eu Lynn, Megan and Sara Yow. They all praised us for our effort. “You guys are related,” said San Ying. “Right, Caleb?”
“We had a jolly good time, San Ying! We are so famous!” I cried. Caleb Chuang just munched on his food and we went to our next lessons following break time assembly.
In class, Ms Cynthia came in for Malaysian Studies. She was disappointed about us not having ideas for the school's Merdeka Day and Malaysia Day joint celebration. “Other classes had come up with ideas and are actively discussing about their dance. I don't see any similar effort from 10N.
I feel sad. I really felt I was in the worst class in my life. More of a mental torture to me. I am put in a different class than all my other ‘really good’ friends, no thanks to the choice of my stream and subjects. I did not really get along with people in 10N. I miss Caleb Chuang. I also want our class to be the best, but this had been pulling us down. All thanks to this, Ms Cynthia felt disappointed with us. Just like the incident where my friends allowed me to decorate for the class decoration contest for Earth Day since they weren't interested, but Ms Cynthia asked for everyone to do it together.
Enough ranting on it, but Ivyna had a plan. She said that we will be doing a Bollywood dance based on Indian culture. And she plans to brief us in detail during our Homeroom time the next day. Ms Cynthia was okay with Ivyna coordinating, but she said that she hopes to see progress being made by the next day's Homeroom time.
Ms Cynthia then taught us about Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia and how Malaysia lagged behind Singapore today. We were learning about why Singapore was expelled as well as the formation of Malaysia. Ms Cynthia also said that Lee Kuan Yew had strict ideals and that Singapore is really different from Malaysia all thanks to Lee Kuan Yew's good leadership. Brandon Ooi spent the entire time in the lesson interacting with Ms Cynthia on how lousy Malaysia was as a country compared to other places. She also said that our exam scope for Assessment 2 in Malaysian Studies will cover the formation of Malaysia.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher gave us work to do. I said hi to Jordan, Ting Yi and Branson before leaving for 10E. During the Global Perspectives lesson, Mr Gallagher chided Gabriel for being late even though he was early for the class. He'd thought Gabriel skipped class. And during Art, I managed to finish drawing one of the designs for Prep 4. I had two designs to do. Enisha then said that she will tell this to Caleb Chuang when he comes out of the ICT lab.
When Caleb Chuang came out of the ICT lab later on, Enisha tried to tell him about what happened but then forgot something that she left in the Art Studio. She then went back to take it, and then caught up with me and Caleb Chuang as we were at our classes. I then met Grace and took my meal coupon from my bag. Caleb Chuang didn't care much as Enisha told him about my prep work. “I told Caleb Chuang already, and he said he didn't like it,” said Enisha, twisting the plot.
Then, we went for History. Mr Aram came into our class and told us that our Assessment 2 for History would be held on Tuesday, 9th August 2016, and Thursday, 11th August 2016, at the Tutorial Room 3. He told us to gather at the tutorial room before 1:55pm on the 9th and 1:15pm on the 11th. We will be doing the History exam with his students at the same time. There will be two papers for the History exam. Ms Visa then gave us worksheets if we had finished our discussion. We continued to put up the model of the Treblinka camp, and I targeted 16th August as me, Louis and Gabriel's due date for the Treblinka camp model.
Ms Visa was very happy with me and Louis for getting involved with our coursework. “The rest of you have nothing to do. Why don’t you guys plan for your coursework?” she asked. She praised me and Louis for utilizing our time well. Then, we went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us a worksheet to calculate the profit and loss statement of the Hogwarts Express. The Harry Porter-themed worksheet failed to make me happy as I struggled to calculate the profits and expenses and I made so many mistakes. I kept on cutting away many of the figures to correct my answers till my worksheet looked messy.
Then, we went for the Editorial Board meeting. Vicky then told us to give her the progress for the teachers’ interview and I presented my part. We then discussed on the layout of the book. Yi Zhen said that she planned to do a catchy design for the book cover but Vicky then told her that it can be decided later. Ms Levina then came into the ICT lab at 4:30pm to take our attendance and update her on the progress of the discussion. Yin Wei also invited me to view the edited Cheringin Hills essay for the publishing of the newsletter. The discussion was a fruitful discussion. We all talked about the format of the yearbook during the meeting. Vicky was energetic as she talked. We had a deadline of 18th August 2016 for the September 2016 issue of the school newsletter.
On the final day before Assessment 2, 5th August 2016, we came to school normally for our assembly, and Ms Bee Yong talked to us about Assessment 2 and wished us all the best. Then, we returned to class, as Mr Thomas finished up our last bit of poems and told us about our Assessment 2.
During the Homeroom period that morning, we elected the new assistant monitor. Me and Cassandra were in the running, and the class subsequently elected Cassandra. Initially, the class chose Ryan Chok to replace Kelsey as assistant monitor, but Ms Cynthia rejected the idea of Ryan Chok being the assistant monitor as he couldn't be trusted. Hence, she called for a new election. Ivyna continued to discuss about the Malaysia Day performance. “Guys, guys! All of you must dance!” she cried. She also said that she will come up with the moves following Assessment 2. Ms Cynthia told us that we will have time to prepare.
The whole school was of a hive of activity because Friday, 5th August 2016, was the date of the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Mr Thomas was talking about it that morning. Everyone was talking about the Olympics. During Art, even Ms Feeda was also talking about how many gold medals would Malaysia receive.
On the other hand, I also told Caleb Chuang during the break time that while Malaysia's athletes head to the Olympic Games for their competitions, we are also indirectly competing against each other in the Assessment 2, which is Nobel's academic version of the Olympic Games. Not a choice for fun, but of serious matter.
I managed to successfully complete my Prep 4 during Art, and Ms Feeda told me to do some touch-ups on the other prep works. Jien Min was boasting about Malaysia's medal capabilities at the Olympics. Even Mr Gallagher was in good spirits when talking about it.
The reason why I said that our Assessment 2 is just like the Olympics is because we had a ranking for everyone in the exam, just like the ranking of all individuals and teams competing at the Olympic Games. And just like athletes training for the Olympics, we ‘trained’ for the Assessment 2 by practicing exercises, doing homework and participating in class discussions. Like the athletes, we students had our ‘coach’ as well, namely our fellow teachers.
On 6th August 2016, all of us from our BK class and a few others from the lower levels participated in the National Bible Knowledge (BK) Quiz which was held at SMK Assunta in Petaling Jaya. This Bible Knowledge Quiz is held by the Malaysian Christian Schools Council, which is chaired by Ms Moey Yoke Lai, the head of the council. Ms Moey is also the principal of Methodist College Kuala Lumpur.
I left my house at 6:15am and reached SMK Assunta at 6:45am. I ate my breakfast, namely white bread, when on the car ride to SMK Assunta.
We arrived at 7:00am where Ms Renee was waiting for us. I saw Berlinda and Rosemund there, and then we registered. The quiz was based on the book of Acts of the Apostles.
Upon registration, a long line of students were gathered at Dataran Assunta which is the main square at the school. So, Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang and Joseph Diong arrived and registered as well. “Wei Yiang, all the best,” they said. All of us were talking about the telematch games Mr Victor played with us two days prior. It was so cool, and now, we had another team event.
We then begun the day by singing praises to God. We sang a few songs, did prayers, and then Ms Moey Yoke Lai then came on stage to speak. Ms Moey had said that the government had wanted to remove Bible Knowledge as an SPM subject. BK had been part of the SPM syllabus for some time now, and because of low demand for the subject, the Ministry of Education had wanted to remove the subject from the SPM syllabus. Ms Moey said that it is very important that schools continue to teach BK as a subject in order for us to continue to spread the word of God and ensure the teaching and learning of BK remains relevant in this time and age. It was a repeat of messaging from the previous year, 2015.
After Ms Moey’s speech, then we headed to the classes in the school to begin the quiz, which started at 8:30am. We then sat down like an exam format and then we were given the paper to begin. The exam, or I should say, quiz, was a mix of fill-in-the-blank and multiple choice questions. It took us one hour to finish the quiz and then once we were finished, we then proceeded to Dewan Sister Enda to wait for the results to be released. The volunteers told us that the results will be out at 11am and would be posted on a notice board at one of the hallways of the school.
A verbal quiz at Dewan Sister Enda was taking place on the stage, where all of us who were done, sat. The quiz also focused on Acts of the Apostles. Aaron Yong who was in Year 9 at the time was part of the quiz. He didn’t make it to the finals but he did pretty well as well. Ms Renee then had a chat with us while we waited. She asked us on how we did in the quiz. Desmond Chan then came and talked to me while we watched the verbal quiz. Many of the winners in the Bible Knowledge verbal quiz were from Sri Sempurna International School.
Mr Chuang soon arrived and greeted me while we watched the quiz take place. He was very energetic and I told him about the loads of fun I had with Caleb Chuang during Mr Victor's PE class. In fact, I kept on talking about Caleb Chuang anywhere, particularly in Ms Levina's class. Likewise, everyone in 10O also talked about me. It was the reverse opposite. And even Caleb Chuang's teachers, like Mr Nick, Mr Kevin Wai, Mr Stellio and Mr Lee – knew me.
Suddenly, an emcee came out and then announced to everybody while the next round was progressing. “I have some good news to tell you. Pokemon Go is now released in Malaysia!” he cried.
The crowd cheered in joy, as Pokemon Go had been released in most countries including the United States, Japan and even Singapore, but Malaysia was not on the list. The announcement brought relief to most people on waiting for Pokemon Go to be announced in Malaysia, and immediately after the announcement, people started downloading the app on their phones to play.
Mr Chuang was trying to download the Pokemon Go application on his phone. He asked me for the WiFi password of the school, which I do not know off. He wanted to download the game. Aaron Yong and Desmond Chan successfully downloaded it, with Lu Zheng following suit as well.
At 11:00am, my mum arrived and the results were posted. I got an average score. We then watched the quiz go on for a short while. Then my mum and I talked to Caleb Chuang before we headed home.
Ms Sim had told us on Monday, 8th August 2016, during the morning assembly that the Assessment 2 is a competition among ourselves, and not against our friends, to see who can do better. “Ya, Wei Yiang,” Enisha said in response. I prefer to compete as it can motivate us to study well. Competition is a key carrot and stick motivation, and I am in favor of that. However, what Ms Sim said is she is trying to emphasize is that how we can improve ourselves, as learning is not a spectator sport. I really don't understand how am I competing with myself when we should be learning from the best. Otherwise, why would the Olympics be held?
We then returned to class for Business Studies. Ms Chithra said we will do the exam the next day. Nicole and Sophie said Ms Chithra was gorgeous again. Ms Chithra shrugged them off. She also said that she had uploaded all her slides on Edmodo for us to read. We also did more income statements and balance sheets in Business Studies. Gosh! There were loads of calculations! Then, we went for Science. Ms Sangeetha told us that we will do the Combined Science exam the next day.
During break time, Kit Lee and San Ying were revising their History paper, and Caleb Chuang was doing piles and LOADS of work on his canteen table. When I returned for Economics, Ms Levina gave us two worksheets to do, on Changes in Earnings and Differences in Earnings. I did my work and it was a piece of cake. “Ms Levina, I'm done!” I cried. “Even baby also can do!”
Ms Levina came to check my work, but however, Brandon Ooi was busy talking in the class. Then, she told me that I got most of my questions correct. “Good, good, good.....yeah, yes, very good. All correct. Well done,” she said. Then, Brandon Ooi was not even done with the first two questions. “Brandon, you haven't even started. Class, Wei Yiang had done his work!” cried Ms Levina.
Enisha was surprised, and she came to take a look at my work and so did Ivyna. Then, I asked Ms Levina if my essay writing was okay. She said it was fine, but I needed to try to explain some points in detail. Then, Ms Levina had to go and guide Ryan Chok, Eric and all the boys behind the class to do their work and stop talking.
After the Economics lesson was over, Ms Bee Yan did some revision with us for the Maths exam. Then, I went to meet Jordan Tay during lunch. He, along with Ting Yi, Daniel, Jearn Xiu and Branson Choon were eating with Mr Lee during lunch. I went down and had lunch with them.
I then spoke to Mr Lee on how his class was so lively. The entire table laughed. “I don't know,” said Mr Lee. Then, I wished Jordan a happy birthday.
“See? I told you, it is your birthday,” teased Ting Yi and Branson.
Mr Gallagher told us during Global Perspectives that no exam would be given for Global Perspectives for Assessment 2. And during Art, Ms Feeda told me to start preparing for the Paper 1 preps. I had completed all four preps for Paper 2 for the first time in history. Now, it was time to do the Paper 1 preps. Other than me, Louis, Yan Chern, Glen, Yen Tong, Chee Kei, Eugenie, Natasha and Yi Zhen were done with all the Paper 2 preps.
Ms Feeda told me to take more pictures for Paper 1's Prep 1. This time, I knew what to do.
“Paper 1 is about subject matter. You must do shape, form, mixed media.....a lot of things. It is not like Paper 2 because the question is different and the expectation is different. You can find the question on my blog, artandfeeda.blogspot.com,” said Ms Feeda. She told me to take and print as many pictures as possible, and bring those pictures by next Monday. “For now, you can choose to touch-up your prep or focus on your other subjects,” said Ms Feeda.
There were no exams on 8th August, but the first one begun on 9th August.
The morning begun with Reading time and Ivyna saying that there will be three themes for the Merdeka Day dance. Before long, Ms Sangeetha came in with a LARGE STACK of papers.
“Okay, keep your books, make sure you have your stationery with you, and no talking,” said Ms Sangeetha. “Brandon, stop talking. Gabriel, keep your book. Ze Khai, no talking.”
Ms Sangeetha then handed out the papers for our 1 hour 15 minutes test. And then, Cikgu Niely came into the class thereafter. Brandon, Ze Khai, Sheng Jit, Shane, Eric, Ryan Chok and Nickolas Nashpal went to the toilet. Cikgu Niely groaned. They then took ten minutes in the toilet before returning. By then, Cikgu Niely had already given out all the papers. “Boleh mula sekarang,” she said, as we begun the paper. Unlike the Science paper, the Malay paper was easy.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra did the exam with us. I struggled to do the exam. And then, I did my Economics exam. Ms Levina gave us the papers but threatened to fail Brandon's test if he continued talking. After lunch, Ms Bee Yan came into the class to brief us on our Maths exam the following day. Just as we were discussing the exam format, we were planning to leave for the Tutorial Room 3 for the History exam. Ms Bee Yan told us to hold on for another five minutes. “But teacher, the exam is at 1:55pm! Mr Aram asked us to go!” he cried.
“Is Mr Aram teaching you, or Ms Visa?” asked Ms Bee Yan. We said that Ms Visa was our teacher. After a short discussion of the Maths homework and worksheets, we then went at 1:45pm for the History exam.
I grabbed my things and went to the Tutorial Room 3. Mr Aram was waiting there. I greeted him. He greeted me and ushered me inside. “TR3 is there,” he said. Upon entering the room, a lot of students from his class were seated in their seats for the History paper.
Mr Aram gave his students the exam paper and then he also handed the papers to us. Ms Visa was there. “How many of you are Visa's students?” he asked. We put our hands up.
For Visa's students, please move to TR2,” he said. We moved to Tutorial Room 2 and sat down. Mr Aram said that the room was too crowded and he wanted us to space out so that there will be no cheating in the exam.
Ms Visa was outside and we followed her. Then, we sat down in Tutorial Room 2. Ms Visa then gave us the papers.
“No talking,” she ordered.
Ze Khai and Brandon giggled. Ms Visa then reminded them of the examination rules. Then, we begun our exam, not long after Daniel Ngew, Jien Min and Eugene Ong, the new student in 10B, came into the room. We spent a total of two hours focusing on our paper. On another note, I had talked to Eugene Ong during Business Studies, as he was in the same class as me for that subject.
The exam contained a core content and depth study on Nazi Germany and we had to answer all the questions. It was tough. Ms Visa said that Mr Aram had set the HARDEST QUESTIONS EVER for a History paper.
It was soon the end of the exams. Ms Visa collected the papers and allowed us to leave. Mr Aram then left soon thereafter.
We then pulled into the third day of the exams as Ms Sim then told us during the morning assembly of how smoothly the Assessment 1 went and told us not to lose focus on the studies. “So, just bear with it, as there are three more days. You guys can do it!” cried Ms Sim.
Mr Thomas then did our assessment with us. He plopped his things down on the chair, and took out a stack of examination papers. Everyone took their seat. “Shall we give out the papers?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
Mr Thomas walked around the room, giving out the papers to us. He then told us to begin. The exam was a piece of cake as I did the composition part. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Levina and Brandon talked about the exam as we recalled what we did in the Economics exam.
Afterwards, we had break time and then our Maths exam. I couldn't finish the paper. Then, we had our Character Transformation session where we had some staff come to talk about some college programmes.
Just as the talk was ongoing, Ms Lim was patrolling the back of the school hall. She was collecting money from Sean Mark, Benjamin Fong, Eugene Ho, Jien Min, Ethan Wong, Jason Leing, Sheng Jit and Christopher Chew, who were seated at the back of the hall. Ms Lim told them to produce their wallets. She collected around RM 10 to RM 50 from them. Then, she walked out of the hall. I was thinking how weird it was for Ms Lim to collect money. I thought that Ms Lim was gonna use the money for some project funds or the class funds or something like that. Maybe they had damaged school property and were told to pay for it, but it looked weird when Ms Lim collected people's money and demanded cash from them.
I peered at the front, listening to the talk. Ten minutes later, Ms Lim returned with a series of pairs of Nobel socks. She then told them to change out of their own black or white unbranded socks and put on the Nobel socks. Now it made sense that they weren't following the dress code.
After we finished our Character Transformation session, we went for lunch and San Ying and Kit Lee discussed the History paper. We soon had our Malay Part 2 examination, and Cikgu Niely came in.
"Teacher, I want to go to the toilet,” said Sheng Jit, Brandon, Shane, Eric and Ryan Chok.
“Hai yoo. Faster go,” she said, frustrated at why they did not use the washroom during lunch time. Then, Cikgu Niely said that we were running late and had to start the exam very soon. The five boys returned from the toilet and we begun our exam. Then, Ms Sangeetha came in and we learned about electrolysis in the class. Following the Science lesson, I had my Bible Knowledge exam. Ms Renee came into the class with our large stack of papers. “Wow! Ms Renee! Wow!” cried Joseph.
“Okay, students, please go and grab your food and eat quickly. We will start our exam at 4:00pm,” said Ms Renee. I ate my bun. Sarah Low was revising for the exam. Then, Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark, Joshua Chew and Joseph Diong returned to the class. Faythe Chow soon returned thereafter, allowing us to begin the challenging and tricky Bible Knowledge exam.
The next day, Thursday, 11th August, was another hive of activity. This time, Mr Thomas was having something interesting for us.
Mr Thomas introduced us to a ship called the Africa Mercy. We will call it the Mercy Ship here in this writeup for easier memory. This ship is a hospital ship based in Africa, catering to patients from all walks of life. It is an ideal solution to improve the healthcare system in Africa. We then looked at how the ship worked. Then, we had our PE lesson, and I asked Mr Victor if a second round of telematch was to be done. He said “I don't know,” and that he was still thinking about it.
Mr Victor then told us that we will be preparing for our fitness test and beep test which will take place the following month in September. Then, we did some push ups and other exercises in the PE lesson. We had no fun and games today, but we did a lot of planking. I pressed as hard as possible till my body ached.
Once we were finished, we went for break time. Joshua Chew and Julian Ong were discussing about the Malaysian Studies paper and how easy it was. They had the Malaysian Studies Assessment 2 that morning. When we returned to class, it was my turn to have Malaysian Studies as the assessment.
Ms Cynthia handed us the papers, “Please keep quiet. No talking,” she said, flipping the papers to us. “Brandon Ooi, why are you still talking? No talking please,” she said. Then, she also reminded those with books to keep their books away.
The Malaysian Studies Assessment 2, for me, is the EASIEST exam of all the Malaysian Studies exams. This topic in particular, the formation of Malaysia, was a quite easy topic. Then, once the exam finished, we went for Global Perspectives and we did our Individual Report 2. And I did some annotation on all the four Paper 2 preps during Art. The people in the Art Studio were talking about the upcoming History exam. Jien Min told Ms Feeda when asked, that he wasn't doing his prep as he was going to sit the History exam. He was ridiculed by Rosemund, Sophie and all other folks taking History.
I left the Art Studio early, had an early lunch, and was met by Ms Lim who asked why I was having an early lunch. I told her that some of us had to sit for the History exam. I was having lunch with San Ying, who requested me to not talk to her as she was concentrating for the exam.
At 1:00pm, I headed to Tutorial Room 3. Mr Aram had arrived. I greeted him. He was talking to Ms Visa.
I sat down in the room while Mr Aram and Ms Visa talked about the exams. Soon, people begun to arrive, and Ms Visa told me to proceed to Tutorial Room 2. She handed me my paper. Then, I told others to take their papers and proceed to Tutorial Room 2 next door for the exams. Ms Visa then arrived, and we begun our paper. The second paper was even harder than the first. I took a break from writing by looking at the whiteboard and the ceiling. There was a malfunctioned clock which made it impossible to tell the time till Ms Visa kept reminding us the time from her watch. During Business Studies, Ms Chithra gave us a reminder of our next coursework, which will be given the coming Monday, 15th August.
Then, I proceeded to the ICT lab for the Editorial Board meeting. Vicky then continued briefing everyone on their teachers’ interview and what to interview. Then, we discussed about the yearbook and the contents as well. Yin Wei then told me that we will be fixing a date with Mr Narish for an interview with him. She told me to create interview questions based on the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award to be asked to Mr Narish. I had a week to present the questions. Fortunately, I had all the questions in mind. I went home and typed ten questions for the interview.
The next day, 12th August 2016, Yin Wei said that she will go through the Duke of Edinburgh interview questions and let me know the status of the questions and a date which we will fix to interview Mr Narish. Ms Sim congratulated most of us for finishing the exams. “Some of you may have finished your exams, and some of you are still having one or two more papers, but keep it up! You did your best, and whatever result you got, don't be disappointed as you can improve from it,” she said.
Looking back, this was the last Assessment 2 of my time in Nobel. We had the final Field Trip as well for Term 2.
At the same time, Mr Narish also announced that we will have a house meet on Monday, 15th August 2016, to elect the next house captains who will lead the coming 2016 Nobel Cup and 2017 Sports Day
We then went back to class and then we had the English lesson. Mr Thomas had said that we will do the Mercy Ship Project today. He had previously said that his aim is for us to train our presentation skills and to do a presentation in class on the Mercy Ship Project.
The plans called for Aaron Loke to be the coordinator. Mr Thomas then told us that Aaron Loke will brief us on the project.
Mr Thomas asked Aaron to present his plans but he had no idea. He had a pale face and smiled slyly. The whole class giggled with him. Then, Mr Thomas suggested the layout for the Mercy Ship Project. He told us to come up with a promotional campaign and have people act as the management team of the ship. There was a plan for a skit and presentation based on the Mercy Ship Project.
Mr Thomas then told us to select the individuals to present on the ship. Under the plans, Sherwin would be the official speaker and narrator, I would present Dr. Gary Parker, the chief doctor on the ship, Alexandria Goh would mimic Dr. Sandra Loko, the chief nurse, and Sheng Jit would act as the maintenance guy of the Mercy Ship. Aside from that, there was to be an artist and an engineer to design the floor plan of the ship as well as a model of the ship.
“Who is taking Art here?” asked Mr Thomas. Me, Enisha, Lyn Wen, Wee Shiang, Sophie, Jia Yiu and Jien Min raised up our hands. Mr Thomas then said that since I was already presenting Dr Gary Parker, someone needs to be the artist. Lyn Wen and Wee Shiang were chosen as the artist, and they also were tasked to design promotional materials for the Mercy Ship Project. On another note, Lyn Wen was learning calligraphy art, and I said that she will be the best designer for the promotional materials, which resulted in her being chosen.
Throughout the whole time, Enisha stared at me. I was really excited. The whole class was really pumped up, ready for the project. Everyone was so active. Mr Thomas told us to look at the comprehension exercises for the Mercy Ship Project on Edmodo.
Once we were done, I went to the canteen and talked to San Ying and Sophie on the Mercy Ship Project. Then, we went for Art, and I presented my Paper 1 ideas to Ms Feeda. I plan to use gardening tools as the inspiration for my Paper 1. Ms Feeda told me to take more pictures with different combinations. She told me to use garden tools and some fruits. I then took time to complete my Paper 2 prep annotations. Then, we did our group work in History and I told Louis and Gabriel that I will work on the report describing the Treblinka camp which will be attached to the coursework.
Monday, 15th August 2016 was a busy day and the start to a busy week. We had many coursework being given as well as the discussion of the exams. The grand centerpiece of that week was the House Captain Election.
The morning started off with Mr Narish telling everyone about where to gather. Bullseye would assemble at the lower canteen, Touchdown at the courtyard, Homerun at the upper canteen and Slamdunk at the dismissal area. I kept my fingers crossed as to who will be the next house captain. In fact, I already knew who the four leading candidates were for Bullseye: Sean Mark, Eu Lynn, Yan Ying and Alex Chia. More on that later.
The day begun with Ms Chithra discussing the Business Studies paper. Daryl teased me for getting 48%, jokingly saying that I needed to pay corporation tax as a result. Ms Sangeetha also discussed the Science paper with us.
During Economics, Ms Levina was marking our papers, and she gave us the coursework for Economics. The coursework was to type a report on three scenarios relating to trade unions and earnings. There were three scenarios, namely a discussion on whether trade unions are to be banned, an analysis of the overnight policy rate adjustments by Bank Negara Malaysia following the exit of the UK from the European Union, as well as a written advise to a university student on whether to join the public or private sector. I formed a group with Grace, Jia Yee and Cassandra. Brandon Ooi kept on asking silly questions and interrupting the class. We do not know what was the meaning of Harvard Citations described on the paper, so Ms Levina just told us to put the Internet link. She also told us to give a hard and soft copy of the report. On another note, no formal citations were needed. Harvard Citation is basically a referencing format done in the Harvard style consisting of the name of the author, title, publication date and phrases, if any, arranged in a specific format which is normally required for university assignments. The most important point Ms Levina wanted to point out was that it was not needed because we weren't experts in citing articles yet. However, credit must be given to the source and the author. Then, Ms Bee Yan also discussed the Maths assessment papers. There was not much to do during Global Perspectives except for the second report which I am writing on terrorism; and I presented a total of four images to Ms Feeda on my setup of a cutter, hoe, mini spade, a banana and a banana peel.
“Only four?” asked Ms Feeda. She then told me to take more pictures in the future. “If there are only four pictures, there are less things to draw. Then, you cannot do your mixed media on different combinations,” she said. “But the setup is quite good,” she said. Then, she showed me pictures of how some people's setup looked like. She brought me to the Art Studio 3 and pulled out one of the Year 11s' work on their Actual IGCSE prep work, showing the steps to be taken for a Paper 1 prep and the expectation for my first hand studies. Then, once the Art lesson was over, I went to the Bullseye house meet in the lower canteen for the 2016/2017 House Captain Election.
The lower canteen was filled with so many Bullseye members, who were passionate and enthusiastic for the future successes of Bullseye. All the Year 7 students cheered at me when I arrived. They greeted me and I chat with them, namely Areeya Amali, Yap Dawn and Esther Yong in particular. Caleb Chuang was also there. I got excited.
With Bullseye's successes in three previous Sports Days and two Nobel Cups, the onus is on the election of the next Bullseye house captain. This is very important for Bullseye, with a house that had so much fun and so many victories. Hence, it is important for the Bullseye members to decide the next person who would be their captain. We want to make sure that Bullseye maintains the crown for 2017. This is going to be so much fun.
I sat down with Caleb Chuang, and Kelsey was talking to us. At the side, Ms Sangeetha arrived and looked on. Then, this was followed by Cikgu Zura, Ms Sharon, Cikgu Azira, and many more Bullseye teachers whom I waved at.
Soon, everyone was filing into the lower canteen, as the atmosphere built up. This decision that day will decide if we won or lost Sports Day and Nobel Cup. In my head, I was hoping for a 2016 Nobel Cup and 2016 Sports Day victory.
We were in charge of electing the new house captain and assistant house captain that will lead Nobel Cup 2016. The selection process will come under scrutiny as this will involve a lot of controversies regarding the 2017 Sports Day and the upcoming 2016 Nobel Cup.
The house captains for 2017 were nominated and pre-screened by the teachers. House captains in previous years were nominated by students, but this is the first time that a house captain was pre-screened. I prefer the old method as we can get to have a say or even volunteer to lead the post. The teachers nominated the house captains based on their capability. We were informed about the names of the house captains two weeks prior, on the first week of August. I heard of the names of all four houses’ candidates during the Editorial Board meeting on 4th August.
Four candidates were shortlisted for the post of house captain; Sean Mark, Chia Yan Ying, Alex Chia and Yeo Eu Lynn. To ensure that no hanky panky would occur in 2017 and jeopardize my victory plans, I decided by interviewing each and everyone of them. I decided to interview them because I wanted to see who is best capable and best guaranteed to lead Bullseye to victory, since I would be voting in the house captain election. The Bullseye members, would definitely want someone who is capable of safeguarding the 2017 win.
So as I mentioned, the first person that I decided to interview was Sean Mark. Sean Mark presented a very credible plan for the house and had a clear vision when I interviewed him. He told me that he would invest in training the house members and lead by example as an athlete who is determined to win. This determination earned him my vote. Yan Ying also presented a clear vision for Bullseye. She said that it is important for Bullseye to also continue the victory to 2017 as it would also demonstrate the capability and effectively. Alex Chia and Eu Lynn responded jovially, hence I did not choose them.
All four candidates were interviewed by me during break and lunch. I wanted to choose someone who won't be foolish enough to sacrifice the fourth Bullseye victory year.
So, Mr Matthew Koh instructed the four of them to present their vision for Bullseye and introduce themselves by persuading the members why they should be voted in. After Sean, Alex, Eu Lynn and Yan Ying presented, I casted my vote for Sean Mark and Yan Ying by putting a blank paper in the box. Eventually, Sean and Yan Ying were elected as house and assistant captain. As Yan Ying was also my classmate, I decided to vote for her too as I can present and discuss Bullseye’s victory plans for her.
Honestly speaking, when the four candidates spoke in front of the crowd, I can tell, from their presentation, who is best capable. And I feel happy with the results.
Sean Mark dismissed the members, and then announced the house committee members and captains for Sports Day and Nobel Cup. I was placed on the shortlist as the third choice for Bullseye’s marchpast captain. Caleb was the march captain, Ivyna and Pei Chi coordinating dance, Benjamin Tenji and Eu Lynn were the banner captains, Dylan S. Gill and Ting Yi the telematch captain, Ja will be the secretary and Janelle Arnelia the treasurer. For Nobel Cup, the captains were Caleb Chuang (futsal), Alex Chia (basketball), Ting Yi (badminton), Bryan Yap (chess), Jordan Tay (table tennis) and Pei Chi(netball). It brought me a positive feeling for the week. I took all the information down on my Student Organizer.
Originally, I wished and was intended to be the marchpast captain as I was with Bullseye's march team since Year 7. Caleb Chuang told me to make sure I get into the marchpast team for the year 2017. He said that it will be good if I can join and help Bullseye's marchpast team. Sean Mark put me as an assistant marchpast captain, alongside Zi Quan. This was because there were three marchpast captains in the 2016 Sports Day, as well as previous other Sports Days.
From the results that day, I feel excited as we were having a great team put forward for 2017. I also had big plans for 2017. It was our year leading Sports Day. Now, with Nobel Cup in the reins, all we need to do was to clinch the third Nobel Cup victory year, and if successful, a fourth Sports Day victory year.
The next day, Ms Sangeetha continued to discuss the exam papers, and she revealed our coursework. This was a very interesting thing to do. Everyone will need to choose a Science topic and present it in class. The intention by Ms Sangeetha was to kill two birds with one stone; to allow us to study for our Final Year Examination by recapping the topics, enhance our scientific enquiry and also train us to present well. I decided to choose the Atomic Structures topic for the presentation. In fact, I had a creative idea on how I wanted to present to the class.
Now, by this time, I had been reading about the North Korea nuclear program, the history of North Korea and how the atomic bombs were tested in the good old days during the Cold War. So, I wanted to do a nuclear bomb animation which would transform into the atomic structure. There were various nuclear animations which would transform into graphs diagrams and so on, and I wanted to impress Ms Sangeetha in the class.
The plan was to have Sheng Jit to launch the presentation by pressing a detonation button on the Smartboard which will kick off the presentation. I wanted Sheng Jit to press the button because he is the class monitor of our class, and that pressing the button will also demonstrate the situation like as if a VIP was pressing the switch for a country’s nuclear program. The Smartboard had a touch sensor screen, and I had programmed my presentation on Microsoft Powerpoint in order to accommodate the bombing.
When the button was pressed, a nuclear explosion would occur and produce a mushroom cloud. The mushroom cloud would then transform into a diagram which mimics the atomic structure. A series of animations would take place using footage of nuclear explosions, which will form the various content. There was also a game which I planned – the Atom-Atom Game, which allows people to focus on answering certain questions.
Every day after returning from school, while the presentation was given, I would spent at least three hours on the presentation, just trying to ensure everything worked well. And finally, I was given a chance to present.
Ms Sangeetha said that she would assign us a date to present, starting from the first chapter all the way to the ones in Chemistry. Originally, the plan was to have the ones doing Biology go first followed by the Chemistry ones, in the order of the topic. However, to make it easy, Ms Sangeetha said we will follow the order based on our namelist. Then, we had Malay, and Cikgu Niely discussed the papers.
I mean, speaking of Sheng Jit pressing the nuclear button – because he was class monitor, I addressed him as ‘The Honourable Koo Sheng Jit’. I mimicked dictators and leaders like Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong and Kim Jong Un on Sheng Jit.
When we went for the break time, I discussed the futsal plans with Caleb Chuang, hoping to refine the project, but he was busy studying. In fact, he will be busy for a while. Then, I went to talk to Ivyna about my plans, and she was interested in it.
Ivyna was happy as I told her that we can refine the plans from Sports Day 2016 as well as previous events for the persuit of Bullseye's possible fourth Sports Day victory and third Nobel Cup victory. “You can talk to me if Caleb is busy,” she said. The next thing I knew, both of us were smiling like mad. And we were grinning at each other with bulging eyes.
Afterwards, Ms Chithra presented our second Business Studies coursework to us. The task was to do a product advertisement and to create a product. There will be a presentation in the class regarding our products, and we had to present the coursework on 22nd September 2016. I originally wanted to join with Wei Zhong to present his product. Instead, I got stuck with Glen, Gabriel and Aaron Liew. The worst nightmare for a coursework grouping, especially when Gabriel and Aaron are weak in presentations. Ms Chithra then talked about product branding and marketing in the class to get us started. We learnt about the marketing mix in the class, which consists of price, place, promotion and product, which we call the 4P's in marketing.
Then, we returned to our class, and Ms Levina started talking about Economics papers and continued the discussion while we did our corrections. Ms Levina guided us on how we can improve. “Some of you, in fact, many of you, still do not know how to answer Paper 2 questions,” she said. Then, Enisha went to the window again. The MBPJ enforcement officers were back, plastering tens of thousands of compound slips on the cars for illegal parking. The whole class was watching the incident as Ms Levina called for attention.
After lunch, it was my turn to present the Genius Time. For the Genius Time, I decided to present an episode of China Uncensored – a show hosted by comedian and newswriter Chris Chappel, which talked about news that are censored in China. For that day's Genius Time, the China Uncensored episode was on one of China's engineering failures.
The whole class laughed at what was going on in the video and it was so funny. However, Ms Bee Yan told me to skip some parts in the video to save time. Then, we did some discussions on the Maths exam paper before heading for History. I handed in the model of the Treblinka concentration camp to Ms Visa. Everyone also handed in their History posters – except for Aaron Liew, who was graded a 0 for his coursework. Brandon Ooi boasted about how funny his poster was. His poster had a monster on it, and the monster was in the shape of Adoft Hitler.
The next day, Mr Thomas continued to do the Mercy Ship Project. He told Lyn Wen and Wee Shiang to be designers and come up with posters to promote the Mercy Ship Project. At the same time, he outlined how we should act and do in the presentation.
“The plan is to have Sherwin introduce first, and then Dr Gary Parker will introduce himself. Dr Gary Parker is Wei Yiang, right? So, you introduce yourself, and then afterwards Alexandria will introduce hers. Alexandria, you speak on behalf of Dr Sandra Loko. Then, Sheng Jit will talk about how he runs the operations of the ship as he is the engineer,” said Mr Thomas. He also told Sherwin to give an icebreaker and a creative tune to introduce the Mercy Ship Project. “Lyn Wen and Wee Shiang can create the designs for the slides as well, and give pamphlets to the audience to promote the Africa Mercy.”
Aside from that, Mr Thomas turned his looks on Ivyna. He was grinning. “Ivyna, since you are good in dancing, can you dance for us?” he asked. The whole class laughed. Mr Thomas said that a dance was needed to entertain the crowd. He also said that Aaron Loke will conduct logistics, and Jen Thong be the treasurer. Vicky will be the assistant head of fundraising.
The plan looked so cool. “We are going on a roadshow to promote Africa Mercy,” he said. He was grinning with excitement at how interesting the project would take. Mr Thomas said that an appropriate time would be set for the roadshow. In the meantime, he opened his Edmodo page and gave us comprehension work on the Africa Mercy. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Levina taught us some answering techniques. Brandon Ooi was playing the phone, and he had downloaded Pokemon Go and then played in the class. This resulted in Shane, Ryan Chok and Eric looking at it. Ms Levina told Brandon to close the game and phone, but he closed it before reopening it when Ms Levina wasn't looking. He had been fixated on Pokemon Go throughout the week.
During break time, the people in 10O were showing off a newly curated class jacket for 10O. The jacket was themed black and grey. I then had a look at the class jacket. The jacket had the words 10O in front of the jacket. At the back of the jacket was a number, along with a name of the owner of the jacket. Kai Yee and Christiana Chin were involved in ordering and curating the jackets, designing them and presenting it to the class. The jackets were black on the main outfit, with grey sleeves and two white stripes at the end of the sleeve.
Each individual in 10O were handed their class jacket that morning by Christiana and Kai Yee. Their purpose was to make the class of 10O look cool and wonderful. Even Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick, the two class teachers, were given their jackets as well.
Afterwards, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan proposed moving the Genius Time to Wednesdays. She said that Tuesdays are too short for a Genius Time to take place. Then, during Character Transformation, we then did a questionnaire on conflict management.
After lunch, we then had Malay, and we did comprehensions. Brandon Ooi instead used his time to play Pokemon Go. Then, Ms Sangeetha did some exercises with us.
During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee gave us a coursework leaflet which outlines the instructions that we had to do on our Bible Knowledge coursework. It was a map containing the journey of Paul, who went across Israel to preach the Good News. We had to complete the map in a month, on 14th September 2016. Then, Ms Renee spoke to Desmond Chan about a ‘trouble’ he faced. When anyone in Nobel mentioned ‘trouble’, it meant the possibility of being scolded. I overheard their conversation. It involved a particular incident that Desmond was involved in. I had a sixth sense that it was serious, but I did not ask him that. c
The next morning, I took the newspapers to the class and read about Liow Tiong Lai commenting on how dangerous it was to play Pokemon Go while driving and that action can be taken on people who played Pokemon Go while on the wheel. Liow Tiong Lai was the Transport Minister under Datuk Seri Najib Razak's prime ministerial cabinet. Mr Thomas continued ranting and talking about the Mercy Ship Project and the whole class was really pumped up. He was full of energy, walking around and chatting with us. Then, it was PE.
Since Mr Victor allowed people to play football in the hall before the PE lesson begun, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew, Wei Zhong, Sean Mark, Sherwin and Ethan Wong decided to play a game of football. They took turns striking the ball at one of the walls near the lower canteen. All the doors were locked before the game begun. Caleb Chuang, Wei Zhong and Ethan Wong brought their balls to play. Wei Zhong would always get angry when I kicked the ball or acted as the defender to block the ball. He wanted to practice striking. Mr Victor then called everyone to line up as the PE lesson begun. We did our push ups and sit ups. He was training us for next month's fitness test.
After the PE lesson ended, Mr Victor took a game of football with Caleb Chuang and Joshua. Julian Ong also joined the fray. Then, I went back to class to prepare for break time. In the meantime, Sheng Jit, James Wong, Aristotle Koh, Benjamin Fong and Christopher Chew pulled out the mattresses and did some parkour. The football match continued. Shane, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai, Nickolas Nashpal and Eric Wong had a basketball game with Brendan Cheah, Lim Wences and Jordan Cheam.
Following break time, all those who had played their matches then went to change their clothes. Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi included. Then, they hung their clothes, shirts and pants on the courtyard balcony railings outside the Year 10 classrooms to dry. They also used the washroom and it took them 20 minutes, which made Ms Cynthia frustrated. She then had a serious lecture on being punctual for class. Then, she gave out our Malaysian Studies assessment, and I got a B. It was the highest mark I scored for Malaysian Studies. Ms Cynthia continued to rant about how some people still could not comprehend Malaysia's history after over six months.
We then had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told some people, including me, to refine our Individual Report 1 while also working on Individual Report 2. Then, I did some touchups of the work for Paper 2, as well as some annotations on the prep works.
After lunch, we had History. Mr Aram and Ms Visa were discussing as we entered. I greeted Mr Aram. He was in our class. I wondered what was he doing in our class.
Mr Aram came into our class to talk some sense into us on the History results. He had a stern look on his face. He and Ms Visa were seated in the class as everyone entered; his students were left to their own reading as he went to our History class with Ms Visa to give us a serious talk. The results were not released; neither were the papers, but Mr Aram was not pleased.
Mr Aram then begun talking to us and said that the majority of the people across the year level did poorly on their Assessment 2. “Some of you have been giving me nonsense answers; some of you did not even know what you guys are writing. It is considered a failure and it is terrible,” he said. He gave an example of how some people were writing about the Treaty of Versailles when the questions in fact asked about life in Nazi Germany. Mr Aram then continued to berate the class and talk negatively about our performance without giving any areas for improvement.
“I don’t understand what you guys are even writing. I have read through all the scripts from Ms Visa’s class, and I can say that you guys are the worst. Ever,” he said.
Mr Aram then said, “If you guys keep up with this performance, you are going to fail and I don’t know how you guys will be performing in your IGCSEs.” He then told us that we needed to buck up and change ourselves if we want to succeed in History.
“I don’t care whether you complain to [Ms] Bee Yong or not, saying that I am stupid; I am the worst teacher, I don’t give a damn. Okay? I don’t give a damn. If you fail it, you only have yourselves to blame. Okay, You guys must learn to buck up and own it up yourselves. Don’t go around telling [Ms] Bee Yong crap; I don’t care,” he said sternly.
After Mr Aram finished, he gave a serious smile to Ms Visa. He said thank you to her before he left the class and slammed the door till it spooked our nerves. Ms Visa then started talking gently, “You see what Mr Aram said, class.” Louis was in tears, frightened by his behavior.
Ms Visa said that Mr Aram meant no nonsense and that she is considered to be someone who is very lenient despite her strict attitude. She instead told us on the areas for improvement. And to add salt to a wound, she even said that Mr Aram had considered a joint class between the two History lessons taught by him and her. I guess that he had felt that Ms Visa was not competent enough in teaching the History IGCSE subject. I think Ms Visa may have taught us because of who was even enrolled in History in the first place.
No one dares to even confront Mr Aram, as instant confrontation would result in us ending up in Ms Bee Yong’s office. He was too strict and had free rein to do whatever he wanted. It was a blessing in disguise – a History teacher that appears to be a fun guy, but in reality, he was strict around 80 percent of the time, although he had a sense of humor once a while.
For comparison, Mr Aram had started using his own workbooks he gave to his class when talking about History, and that he had been using his binded workbook that he distributed 90 percent of the time with the remaining period referring to the textbook. Ms Visa as I mentioned before, had to use his slides. He had slides written in Mandarin next to the English words as he used to teach in mainland China before.
Afterwards, we went for Business Studies, where Ms Chithra then continued with the lesson on marketing and she told us that most businesses would market their product based on the customer at hand. She said that if the product cannot be sold, then it meant that the marketing strategy was not good enough.
We then went for the next Editorial Board meeting, where Vicky finalized the yearbook skeleton for the 2016 Yearbook. We were also told by Alexandria Goh that the management team had decided to cancel and scrap the Nobel International School Student Council as the management said it was a 'waste of time’. Thus, it brought a sad end to indelible ink, ballot papers and student activism in Nobel. Yin Wei also told me to fix an interview with Mr Narish, and I had to meet Mr Narish to talk to him on the matter. Additionally, Vicky subsequently posted about our group tasks and told us to interview our list of teachers for their comments on what was the silliest excuse students failed to complete their homework so it can be placed in the yearbook.
The next day, 19th August, I met Mr Narish during the morning assembly to ask him for an interview on the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award. “What's the interview for?” he asked.
“We need to interview you for the school yearbook. I was told that we needed to get your interview on the Duke of Edinburgh's Award,” I said, telling him that Yin Wei and I were part of the Editorial Board and we had to interview him. He asked me to let Yin Wei speak to him. I did, and when Yin Wei came, Mr Narish asked me and Yin Wei went to fix an appointment with him during our break time.
Mr Thomas did a really interesting jab on the Mercy Ship Project. He was too hyperactive to be controlled. Everyone couldn't stop him as he went out of his mind. “We will discuss the exam papers next week. I am still marking it,” said Mr Thomas. Then, we went for our break time, and me and Yin Wei met Mr Narish in his office. We couldn't fix a time initially. However, Mr Narish told us that he will confirm when was he free. Yin Wei then discussed more details with Mr Narish.
After break, I completed my annotations during Art and let Ms Feeda check on it. She was satisfied, and she told me to bring my Paper 1 photos to begin Prep 1. I already had the final piece in mind on how it will be done. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa begun to teach us about the characteristics of Adoft Hitler's rise to power. During Global Perspectives, we continued to do our Global Perspectives work, bringing an end to the week.
You see, I have also invented a game called Hockminton to play in the class when we were having a free time in our class. Hockminton is a portmanteau of the games of “hockey” and “badminton”. I invented the game to play on a table. Like badminton, the game consists of two players, but one would need to shoot a ball using a stick made out of paper straight to the front edge of the table in order to score a point, and the winner who scores 10 points would win a match, and one would need to win two matches to win a game; if either player won one match each, a third match would be used to determine the winner. If the ball is hit by the sides, no one would score a point in the game.
Krystal Goh would normally watch us play hockminton in the class. I got inspired by Lee Chong Wei playing badminton to be honest, as the game between him and Chen Long was heartbreaking as the latter won Lee Chong Wei over his supposedly final match in his badminton career. At the same time, inspired by the hockey game Mr Victor did with us during PE, I was excited, fresh from volunteering with Caleb Chuang.
Monday, 22nd August 2016, was a shortened week due to the PTM 2 occurring on Friday, 26th August. The morning started during the morning assembly with Mr Chan talking on fire safety and fire evacuation, telling us where to go. Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim kept on telling people to keep quiet and got angry as a result. Ms Chithra continued to teach us in Business Studies about marketing, and Nicole and Sophie continued to wow Ms Chithra with the “You are Gorgeous” remark. It means that Ms Chithra looks very beautiful. Ms Sangeetha then used her lesson to brief us on the coursework format.
As I walked along the corridors during break time, I can see a few men and some members of the management team wearing vests and helmets. Mr Wong, Ms Kelly, and the school custodians were wearing helmets. Some people, such as Mr Chan and Ms Sim, were also armed with blueprint and papers. They were standing in the school foyer and checking the fire alarm.
Ms Sim, Ms Bee Yong and Ms Ingel tested another alarm. It was a siren fitted to a megaphone to direct evacuation. On the way back to our classes, I tried to warn some people about the impending fire drill based on what I saw, but however, many people shooed me and cursed me. There were signs of a fire drill approaching based on my past observation trends of pre-fire drill rituals. A sign during assembly of fire briefing and also fire safety awareness. Even, during Economics, when I told Ms Levina about signs of an impending fire drill, she was puzzled. “I have never heard a fire drill before. Don't worry too much,” she said.
Ms Levina taught us about why people spend, save or borrow. She gave us an example of what would happen if RM 10,000 was given to us and how would we use the money. I told Ms Levina that I would save RM 10,000. “Okay, but you cannot be saving all the time. Are you not going to use the money?” she asked. The whole class laughed. Brandon said he would use it to buy a car. A lot of people wanted to buy cars with RM 10,000.
“What would your parents do with RM 10,000?” asked Ms Levina. All of us gave answers, such as education, groceries, bills and so on. “Yes, that's correct,” said Ms Levina, as she flicked the slides. The whole lesson was more or less a money-saving tips course. “There are also other factors that can influence saving or spending, such as taxes, interest rates and so on,” said Ms Levina, as the people in front of the class listened attentively.
“Corporation tax!” I cried, mimicking Daryl's funny tone.
“Corporation tax is one of the taxes. You will learn it next year,” said Ms Levina.
“We learned about taxes in Business Studies,” I replied. Ms Levina was surprised.
“We learned about it in Accounting also!” cried Brandon.
Ms Levina laughed. “All of you are one step ahead. I think all of you can do well in your IGCSE,” said Ms Levina.
Just as Ms Levina was about to begin her class, a fire alarm rang in the hallway. It was a FIRE DRILL. Loud, blaring sirens ruptured across the hallway, and Brandon and Enisha acted erratically like comedians.
“Fire! Fire! Faster, run! Run for dear life!” cried Enisha. “Liar! Liar! Pants on fire!” cried Brandon, gesturing for people to jump from the building. Ms Levina told everyone to calm down. “Okay guys, please calm down, quiet! We are going to evacuate now. Please follow me,” she said. “Looks like Wei Yiang is right.”
The whole class was asked to leave their belongings behind and line up outside the room. Ms Levina told everyone to be silent. “Quiet, guys! Quiet! Follow me!” she said.
A long queue was present in the stairwells. The students were evacuating. When we reached the foyer, Mr Chuang, Mr Chan, Mr Sures, Ms Ingel, Ms Bee Yong and the school custodians guided us to exit the building.
Upon exiting the school compound, we turned right towards Wisma Rehda and headed in the direction of WQ Park to give more space for individuals evacuating the building. Students from all walks of life did their own things as we filed away from the building. Jason and Jien Min plucked some flowers. Ashlyne Yong fanned herself in the heat. Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew discussed something. And Mr Lee and his students from 10L played some jokes as we spread out as part of the evacuation procedure.
There were cars rumbling outside on the main road, and people stopped to see what was going on. After some time, we were allowed to return to class. The outside atmosphere reminded me of my garden, the time I spent doing gardening as well as being outdoors at the time.
Upon returning to class, Ms Levina then told everyone about what I told her regarding the fire drill. “Wei Yiang, how did you know we have a fire drill?” asked Ms Levina, and I told her about the scene of the management team and custodians wearing hard hats used in a construction site as well as illuminated vests, and that they were testing the fire alarm during break time. Satisfied, the whole class applauded me and we continued with our lesson. Brandon Ooi and Enisha apologized to me for cursing me when I told them of the impending fire drill.
We then had Maths and learned about Circle Theorems. Ms Bee Yan told us parts such as a chord, radius and diameter. It looked like as if I was seeing a tunnel, as a worksheet given by Ms Bee Yan showed the chord as a tunnel floor in one of the questions.
Then, we had lunch, and I had my lunch with San Ying and the girls as we talked about the fire drill. Then, it hit us that the end of the year was coming up and it was our SECOND LAST fire drill in Nobel. “Time flies. We are entering Year 11 soon,” she said. Kit Lee was really surprised that we would be having our IGCSE in a year's time. A sense of somber mood fell over everyone in the canteen. We are soon reaching the end of our lives in Nobel. Most of us had been here since Year 1.
Everyone soon felt sad. I almost teared up. It had almost been a year since our Checkpoint, and in a year's time, the IGCSE exams will begin for us. I dread the arrival of the day where we end our time in Nobel.
San Ying and Sophie comforted me. “It's alright. You can still keep in touch with everyone. Most people have Facebook,” said San Ying.
We then had Global Perspectives. Gabriel got tired and he tried to sleep for a while, but Mr Gallagher caught him as he was about to snooze.
“Gabriel! Why are you sleeping? Are you sleeping or are you seeing through your arms?” he asked. The whole class laughed. Everyone mocked Mr Gallagher's joke, especially Shane and Ryan Chok. “If you want to look at your iPad, sit up straight, unless you can look at the screen through your arms,” he said. Derek then posted on Edmodo, applauding Gabriel's ability to look through his arms. Then, I was about to record Mr Gallagher's teaching of the lesson via audio and told him of that, but however, he wasn't happy.
“Delete it,” he ordered.
I was a bit hestitant. “Delete it now,” said Mr Gallagher. He won't allow me to leave till I deleted the voice recording. Once I deleted it, I asked Mr Gallagher why is it not good to record his voice and teaching as I plan to listen to it in my sleep. He said that he kept on swearing and it would be embarrassing if people complained about him swearing, and also that a lesson is a private affair. Then, I went for Art and presented the photos to Ms Feeda. She told me to draw a close-up of a spade from one of the photos. I did not have any artist references that I researched. “You must have artist references, okay? Bring the artist reference,” said Ms Feeda.
Lyn Wen had picked up modern, western-style calligraphy by searching fonts on the ICT lab's computers during the Editorial Board CCA. She had honed it and had this one big calligraphy book. Even so, for the Art lesson that day, she beautifully wrote the words “Prep 1”, “Prep 2” and so on with the calligraphy on her Paper 1 preps. Each art student had four art blocks; one for each prepfor good measure, and everyone had labeled their art blocks with their prep work number. On top of that, she always laughs like crazy and always acts very cool in the class. Lyn Wen likes to do calligraphy and her writing is superb.
The next day, 23rd August, was a hive of activity, as Ms Sangeetha continued to teach us about endothermic and exothermic reactions. Cikgu Niely gave us comprehension exercises, and during break time, Caleb Chuang was still busy. I asked him about the futsal practices, and he said no known date was given yet.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra then continued to talk about the marketing strategies for businesses and gave tips on how we can market our proposed product for our coursework. And during Economics, Brandon Ooi was playing with his phone and Pokemon Go. “Okay, Brandon Ooi, please keep.....keep, keep, keep your phones,” said Ms Levina.
For that day's Economics lesson, we were doing a game. No, not that ‘Change Your Seat Game’. It was a ‘Budgeting Game’, to teach us how to budget according to our needs. Each one of us had to get into our assignment group for the game. I joined with Grace, Cassandra and Jia Yee for the game. Ms Levina told us to structure a budget of RM 2000 on various needs, such as food, housing and security, over a month's period and we had to match three subcategories of different individuals based on high, medium and low income households, whether the household had two teenage children, two retirees or zero dependents, and whether they value financial security or cultural activities. We got all the categories wrong except for one, which was matched correctly and that matchup corresponds to our group.
Speaking of games, I can certainly imagine something. If only Pokemon Go was included as part of the Economics lesson, it would be great. I wish I could see teachers like Mr Thomas, Ms Joyce or Mr Neoh play basketball or do the things students would normally do. The closest to that is currently Mr Lee, who entertains the students he teach, with priority being given to his own class. Including Pokemon Go or some funny games would reduce students’ distraction from the lesson.
We then went for our lunch after a long question and answer session with Ms Levina. During the lunch hour, Christopher Chew and James Wong were filming each other doing parkour in the hall, and Ms Lim scolded the duo for using phones in school and using school facilities without permission. Then, Yin Wei told me to head to the ICT lab once I was done with my meal. I ate my meal quickly and then headed to the ICT lab. Mr Narish and Yin Wei were having a chat. Yin Wei brought along her phone to record our audio meeting with Mr Narish, and I asked the questions while Yin Wei recorded Mr Narish's speech. She had to type his response word by word. The music for assembly played, and we continued to interview Mr Narish longer till the music ended and we could avoid the late line.
We returned for Maths, and then, during History, Ms Visa taught us about how Hitler came into power via the Munich Putsch and the 1933 German elections.
The third day of the week begun. It was Wednesday, 24th August 2016.
Mr Chan told us that everyone was really slow in evacuation and that the fire drill process had to improve. Then, during English, Mr Thomas spent the entire lesson discussing the exam papers for Assessment 1, and Ms Levina gave us some worksheets to do and tons of exam practice questions. Grace, Cassandra and Jia Yee discussed the project together and we typed our parts based on the three scenarios given.
During break, Caleb Chuang was still doing his work. While I respect him doing his work, he was badly needed in the persuit for Bullseye's greatness. So, I still continued to talk to Ivyna on how to refine the plans. We just went on our day as usual; we did some locus exercise in Maths, and for the Genius Time that day, there were no takers, so Ms Bee Yan continued the class normally.
Ms Renee and Ms Sarah did a closing speech on the Dignity Foundation project. “The students from Dignity really liked your warm welcome and enthusiasm, and we really thank all of you for your support,” said Ms Sarah. After the Character Transformation session, many people talked about the Dignity project and were missing their pen pals. We then continued with our activities that afternoon, from comprehension exercises once again in Malay, to more lessons and exercises during Science. During Bible Knowledge, we then did our Acts Chapter 7 exercises as we did a prayer for our Dignity pen pals.
The next day, Thursday, 25th August 2016, was the day before the PTM. We had a briefing by Mr Thomas, who was by this time, so pumped up for the Mercy Ship Project. Mr Thomas had told us that the Mercy Ship Project presentation preview would be done on 1st September 2016, a week from now. Then, we went for PE. Wei Zhong and Caleb Chuang played a game of football. They were joined by Sherwin, Sean Mark, Ethan Wong, Christopher Chew and Joseph Diong. Mr Victor shot a few shots and I joined them too. The whole year level cheered for me and Caleb Chuang once again. Then, Mr Victor called everyone for attention by blowing his whistle, and we sat down and did exercises with him. The same old usual routine. Push ups, sit ups, jumping jacks and so on.
We then went for break time as the boys played a game of basketball in the hall. The Year 11 students also had a game of volleyball as well.
Following our break time, we returned for Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia was waiting for Sheng Jit, Brandon Ooi, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai and Shane, who were taking time to come back. The four of them came back late and in sweats.
Ms Cynthia then told us about how Chinese culture is really conservative, strict, serious and more of respect. In fact, Chinese culture is more of a dictatorial form of culture. I wrote all that down on a piece of paper as Ms Cynthia was talking. Then, she asked what was I writing and I told her it was the points that she said. “I will do this every lesson,” I replied.
Brandon Ooi kept on complaining about the strictness of the Chinese culture as Ms Cynthia belted out every inch of information. “It's unfair. My mum used to cane me when I was young,” he said. Ah yes. Chinese parents LOVE to use the cane, and with little to no opposition in Chinese culture, it is to a certain extent, a bad thing.
We then went for our Global Perspectives lesson and did some work on Individual Report 2. Then, I went to the Art Studio for Art and continued on my Prep 1. The studio buzzed with activity as Lyn Wen showed off her caligraphy art. Ms Feeda had to remind everyone not to get distracted by other things, including K-POP, and do their work.
After lunch ended, we had History and Ms Visa then continued the lesson. This time, we did not see Mr Aram. Instead, Ms Cynthia was in 10N for the History lesson. Where was Mr Aram? The last he was seen was on Tuesday, 23rd August 2016. Anyhow, Ms Visa continued our topic on Hitler and his ideology. Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra then gave a lesson on Maslow's Heirachy of Needs and the motivation of workers. I went for my Editorial Board meeting thereafter, and Yin Wei was typing all the recordings into the computer for Mr Narish's interview section in the Yearbook. She was seriously concentrating as she typed. Then, Lyn Wen showed us more calligraphy on DaFont and Han Ming and Shaun Ting showed off his new camera. I also updated Ms Levina on the progress of my interview with Mr Narish. Vicky then outlined our next task, telling us to interview a list of teachers. And regarding the house captain elections, Yi Zhen also said that it was Mr Narish, Ms Renee and Ms Sha that asked the teachers to nominate the best names of four individuals from each house for the candidates for the election. And the proposal to do so was made by Ms Bee Yong herself. Well, this would soon play a big role in the 2016 Nobel Cup and 2017 Sports Day.
Friday, 26th August was the PTM day. As a result, we had no classes that day. Instead, I went for the PTM with my mum.
On arrival at school at 2:00pm, we went to see Ms Levina. In fact, she was the first teacher me and my mum wanted to meet, but instead, we went to meet Ms Chithra first. She said that I am doing fine in class but needed to improve on my understanding of the business concepts as my assessment result was only 50%. Then, we went to meet Ms Visa, who told my mum that I have improved quite a lot in History and had done well so far in class.
After meeting Ms Visa, we went to see Cikgu Niely for Malay, who gave good remarks on my Malay comprehension. Then, we went to meet Mr Gallagher. He suggested that I be more careful when writing my Individual Report in order to avoid using similar words or phrases to avoid plagiarism. While meeting Ms Renee afterwards, Ms Renee told me to practice reading the Scriptures more and writing the Bible Knowledge essay in order. Ms Renee also said I was enthusiastic for the Bible Knowledge quiz. Then, it was time to meet Ms Levina, who described me as being overly participative in class and answered almost every question asked. My mum and Ms Levina laughed when I talked about her asking Brandon to keep his phone and behave in class. Then, we met Mr Thomas, and he told my mum of my good actions and attitude in class. Other teachers were also in good spirits. Ms Feeda said that my prep work completion had improved, but I needed more pictures, research and neatness to improve further. Ms Sangeetha said that I only needed to improve my scientific enquiry then. Ms Bee Yan gave me further tips on how to improve my Maths, and that was that. My mum also took the opportunity to speak to Ms Lim as well.
On the stage, Ms Feeda had put up an art exhibition, and I spoke to Caleb Chuang, who was serving food and drinks to parents and teachers during PTM. He was lively and cool as we talked. Prefects were told to entertain parents with refreshments and enquiries.
We have arrived at the Merdeka Day week. It was quite fast.
The Monday morning, 29th August, started off patriotically, as the Elementary School students were celebrating Merdeka Day during assembly. I saw Mr Chuang wearing a Malay dress. He looked smart and handsome. The whole school was decked in Malaysian flags put up the week prior. A patriotic feeling was in the atmosphere.
During our morning assembly, Mr Chan spoke about how the theme ‘Sehati, Sejiwa’, which was reused for 2016, reminded us of the shared unity that we treasure, and Ms Bee Yong also told us about how we should continue to remind ourselves of the school's core values when looking at unity in Malaysia.
When we got back to class, I plopped down in the class as Ms Chithra gave us work to do. “Hi Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” cried Nicole and Sophie. Ms Chithra shrugged. She told us to do some exercises in our exercise book while talking about the Product Life Cycle. Then, we returned to class, and Ms Sangeetha begun the Science Presentation series with the first two presenters, Alia and Brandon. Alia spoke softly while Brandon tried to look as cool as possible but he was a bit serious. I also wished Lyn Wen a happy birthday, and she was so happy on that.
Afterwards, we then went for break time, and then we got back for Economics.
Before I went for my break time, Yin Wei and Yong Xuan were wishing Kai Yee and Christiana the very best. Apparently, they were being summoned by the management team to give an explanation on the class jackets. I overheard Yin Wei saying that Ms Lim is probably going to scold the two of them for curating the class jackets, and that even Ms Bee Yan was called to give an explanation. I was worried that Ms Bee Yan was scolded as well.
Kai Yee and Christiana were having shocked nerves and were being cheered on and given emotional support by the class before they went to see Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong. I felt worried as to what was happening in 10O.
During Economics, Ms Levina then gave us some work to do in the class, and to recap on the topic. This time, Ms Levina allowed us to discuss with our friends on how to attempt the topic.
After completing the work, I went to help my friends answer the questions. Then, I saw Brandon Ooi playing Pokemon Go with Shane. Brandon Ooi tried at least five times to catch a cute Bulbasaur. I tried to imagine how Ms Levina would feel and act if she played Pokemon Go with them. There have already been two vehicular accidents involving the game. Then, Ms Levina told Brandon and Shane to do their work and not play Pokemon Go in the class. “No Pokemon Go in my class! Keep! Keep! Keep!”
Then, it was Mathematics, and Ms Bee Yan gave us work. On top of that, Mr Gallagher told us to do our Individual Report 2, and I continued writing on terrorism. Then, during Art, I presented my artist reference to Ms Feeda which was an artist that drew a basket of fruits. I continued to do my Prep 1 for Paper 1, racing against time to complete it.
When Kai Yee and Christiana returned from the office, it was already lunchtime. They had spent a considerable amount of time explaining to Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong about the class jacket. It appeared that Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong had asked them a lot of questions and were really serious with them. They felt intimidated when being questioned about the class jacket by Ms Lim. Even Mr Nick, according to Yin Wei and Jason Leing, from what I overheard from their conversation, was also questioned as well on the class jacket. I was thinking that the class jackets would not be approved by the management and it had become a serious issue. It appeared to be illegal for classes to create their own class jackets. Megan Lee was seen comforting them and asking what Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong said to them. Psychologically, anyone who was called to the management office was assumed to be scolded. No one wants to be scolded. I felt that to a certain extent, one would need to avoid being scolded or to survive a rough ride.
The next day, 30th August, was the eve of National Day. I wished all my friends Selamat Hari Merdeka. Ms Sangeetha then continued with Cassandra, Yan Ying, Enisha and Eric's presentations.
Afterwards, we had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra was egged with gorgeous remarks once again as we did some work in class while learning about how businesses price their product. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina talked about the types of business organizations, namely public limited companies and private limited companies. Private limited companies in Malaysia are listed with the ‘Sdn Bhd’ label behind their names while public limited companies just have the word ‘Berhad’ and are listed on the stock exchange. Nobel International School Sdn Bhd is one example of private limited company. Public limited companies include Sunway, Genting, SP Setia, and Mah Sing Group. We all named all the companies in the class. Then, Ms Levina showed us a picture of the Tesco store in Puchong which is near my house. “Hey! That's the Tesco store near my house in Puchong!” I cried. Ms Levina was surprised. Sheng Jit also said it was near his house too. We also learned about sole traders, partnerships, multinational companies (MNCs) and public corporations. I also told Ms Levina that my mum's company is a MNC. We also learned about how companies privatize themselves and the advantages and disadvantages of privatization. I gave the example of me and Caleb Chuang starting a partnership as one of the examples of business organizations.
Ms Levina also handed us a news article titled ‘Privatization not the solution for Malaysia Airlines’. Ms Levina said that the government attempted to privatize Malaysia Airlines because of the MH370 and MH17 disasters that caused it to lose profit. Privatizing a company can allow costs to be reduced for Malaysia's government and allow it more economic and administrative freedom, but however, it can result in inefficiency where a business charges high prices and produces poor products or services. Ultimately, we discussed in the class that privatization, to a certain extent, is good for businesses and we also debated the privatization plan for Malaysia Airlines. We concluded that it is good for Malaysia Airlines as well.
“We learnt this in Business Studies. Ms Chithra taught us,” I said. Ms Levina was impressed. “We learnt this at the beginning of the year,” I said.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and I spoke to San Ying about how fast we were entering September. Then, I went to meet Jordan, Rick and Mr Lee, who were having lunch. I also walked around the school and saw Aristotle, Benjamin Fong and Christopher Chew doing their parkouring. They pulled out the high jump mattresses and did backflips. I awed at their actions. Then, we returned for Maths, where we did some exercises on locus before going for History, and Ms Visa taught us about the Enabling Act, where Hitler consolidated power over Germany as it gave him full authority to do as he pleased.
We had a day's break for Merdeka Day. I watched the celebration on television and screamed “MERDEKA! MERDEKA!” like mad with my neighbor.
Thursday, 1st September 2016, was a rainy morning. As a result, we did not have to assemble in the courtyard, so we went to our class.
I put my bags in the class and then went for a walk around the school, pass the staffrooms and to the eastern flank of the building near the canteen stairwells, where I got a good look at Taman Megah as well as the Bangsar skyline from the stairwell windows. After walking around the school and greeting people, I then went to meet Caleb Chuang in his classroom. Nieshaal acted like riot police and locked the door as I followed Caleb Chuang in. However, some people requested to be let in, so Nieshaal looked at me like a security guard guarding a doorway.
We then went back for our Reading Time, as I opened the newspapers and read them. Then, Mr Thomas came in. “Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried, as everyone changed classes for English First and Second.
“Yes, good morning. How are you?” he asked.
“Mr Thomas, we are going to do the rehearsal for the Mercy Ship Presentation today, right?”
“Yes, but I need to give you the coursework first,” he said.
Mr Thomas greeted all the students as they filed into the class. Dressed in his nice tie, he smiled as the lesson was about to begin. He switched on the computer, opened the Edmodo application and scrolled down the comments. “Wei Yiang, you wrote so many comments!” cried Mr Thomas. I laughed. The comments were accompanied by tons of exclamation marks, smiley emojis and phrases like ‘Hahahahahaha!’ After scrolling down for some time, Mr Thomas opened the file containing the coursework instructions. “Ah, here it is,” he said. “The coursework. Your coursework for the second half of the year.”
The class peered at the Smartboard. The task for the coursework was to create a front cover page of a newspaper.
“Don't tell me that you are going to name the newspaper after Caleb,” groaned Enisha.
Mr Thomas said that everyone had to create a newspaper interface. And while he was briefing about it, I already had a topic in mind.
“If you name the newspaper title after Caleb, I will kill you,” said Enisha. “I won't be your friend anymore.”
Then, we had PE, and sadly, we did not have time to do the rehearsal. Mr Thomas said that we will do the rehearsal the next day, Friday, 2nd September. As everyone came down, Caleb Chuang and I acted as defenders in front of imaginary goalposts, which made Wei Zhong really annoyed as he wanted to shoot the ball into the goal and practice his shooting skills. Joshua told me to let Wei Zhong shoot into the goal. Then, Ethan Wong shot the ball like mad until it hit a ‘Keluar’ sign, causing the sign to fall down and the light inside the sign to spoil.
“Oooohhh......” cried the crowd. I also groaned as well.
Joshua Chew and Caleb Chuang fixed the sign and we returned to our class lines for another set of exercises. We did some stretching exercises today, and Mr Victor told us to put our hands to the end of the legs. Then, he also said that we will have our fitness test the following week, 9th September 2016. After the PE lesson ended, I played defending the ball with Caleb Chuang before we went for break time. There, Caleb Chuang took his Additional Mathematics homework and did it. He was afraid that Mr Kevin Wai will be angry with him if he did not finish the Additional Mathematics homework. In fact, many of the people in 10O had not completed Mr Kevin Wai's Additional Mathematics homework.
When we returned to class, Ms Cynthia then talked about race relations once again before giving us time to practice for our performance. Ivyna then told the class the dance moves, and we pushed our tables aside before Ivyna gathered us into groups and we did a dance.
The dance was to be divided into a four part dance. The first part involved Nickolas, Cassandra, Eric and Yan Ying dancing in duet formation before Ivyna, Yan Ying, Hao Yinn and Sheng Jit. Then, the second part involved the girls coming out to dance and then the boys. The third part involved each one of us doing difference dance moves while the fourth one involved a formation of a group pose at the end. Ivyna then briefed us on how to do the dances.
Then, we went for Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told us to continue our Global Perspectives essay. Afterwards, we went for Art, and I finished painting my spade. Then, I painted my artist reference.
“Are you sure you are not going to take any more pictures? You will not have a lot of marks, you know, because you have less subject matter to focus on and study on,” said Ms Feeda.
Then, it was lunch, and we continued our History lesson. Ms Visa taught us about life in the Nazi era. We then had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra talked about product advertising. Afterwards, I went to the ICT lab for that afternoon's Editorial Board meeting. Vicky was now talking about the plans for class photos. She told Shaun Ting, Daniel Ngew and Han Ming to be on standby with their cameras for the photoshoot, which will take place on the last week of September.
It was finally Friday, 2nd September. There was a hive of activity during the morning assembly. And one of the actions that was being done was the presentation of the Wow Awards for August 2016. A few teachers were explaining the reasons they were giving the award and who they were giving it to during the assembly.
The next thing I knew, I saw Mr Thomas next to a long list of teachers. And when he spoke of his intention to give the award to someone who is responsive in class and always asks and answers everything related to the lesson, something caught my eye
“I am giving this award to.....Lau Wei Yiang,” said Mr Thomas.
I had to walk to the front and take the award from Mr Thomas. He gave me a pat on the back. “Thank you, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
After a series of award-presenting to other students, we returned to class. Then, Mr Thomas told me that because I always responded to him – on Edmodo, in the lesson, and always asked a lot of questions and answered many questions, he was giving me the award. He asked me to read the text he wrote on the award frame.
The text read:
To: Lau Wei Yiang
You are awarded this frame as you are one of the most responsive students of the level, reacting to whatever is said to the class. When it is time for you to read, you are at your seat to do so eagerly. When a question is asked, you are almost always the first one to respond. You therefore make me feel proud of being a teacher.
From: M.K Thomas.
I read the message out loud to him. “That's good. Continue doing that!” he cried.
Mr Thomas then took some time to answer questions related to the coursework. He seemed to be in a hurry. After answering the questions, we then did the Mercy Ship Project in the class.
Mr Thomas said that all the presenters would need to present confidently, and bombastically to a certain extent. He also said that Sherwin would need to capture the crowd's attention, and the rest of the people who were role-playing the individuals of the ship, such as Dr Gary Parker, Dr Sandra Loko, a doctor, nurse or the engineer, would need to act and describe what they did best and what made them passionate to run the ship. He spent the entire lesson getting us to rehearse our parts. Then, he asked Jien Min to assist the class by finding the best song to let Ivyna dance. He went onto Google and searched this bombastic and funny song that sounded like one passing gas to the extent we all laughed, and I laughed the loudest.
“Wei Yiang! Quiet!” cried Enisha, being really annoyed.
Then, Mr Thomas told Sherwin to present. He worked on his speech.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. Welcome to this morning's show,” he begun.
“You must speak as if you were a TV presenter. You are the host of the event,” said Mr Thomas.
Sherwin then spoke again in a much more confident tone. “Much better,” said Mr Thomas. Then, he mainly worked on Sherwin's presentation part as well as that of mine. Mr Thomas also said that as this event was a television presentation about the Africa Mercy, we need to act like we are hosts of a television programme and the staff of the Mercy Ship. Soon, it was break time, and we were dismissed.
At the canteen table, I sat with Caleb Chuang and told him about the Mercy Ship Project that we were doing. However, he was more fixated on his Chemistry work. Mr Nick was giving his class a quiz. Then, I went to the upper canteen to meet Jordan Tay and Rick Tan and had a chat about the Africa Mercy and the proposed Mercy Ship Project. Jordan said it was really surprising that Mr Thomas was going to such an extent. “He was also going to do it to our class as well,” said Rick.
Then, I went for Art and Ms Feeda told me to draw more parts for Prep 1 and take more pictures of my spade. I then continued the work, and everyone was fixated on Mr Thomas’ presentation. I concentrated fully on my work, painting the prep with dignity and honesty.
There were cries in the Art Studio from Yen Tong and Eugenie. Yen Tong had spilled water over her prep work. Ms Feeda had to assist her to take the prep work and dry it. Then, once that was done, Ms Feeda then told her to do her Prep 2 for the time being or touch up her Paper 2 prep work. We then returned for History with Ms Visa, and I handed in the Treblinka writeup to her. Mr Aram, however, was still nowhere to be seen.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher was talking about the 2016 United States Presidential Election, and I brought up the topic of me supporting Donald Trump, then a businessman, reality television star, and property developer.
I have read about Donald Trump in the past during my free time, and I had followed the news of him running for President of the United States. I had also watched snippets of ‘The Apprentice’ before and how Trump actually is a very serious guy in business. In fact, he is a serious guy, and prior to 2015, I had read about theories of what if Trump was the President of the United States.
One policy that I like about him was that he expresses self confidence and determination, especially in his actions and his rhetoric. And there were three main policies that I like about his campaign; economics, prevention of terrorism and mending ties with the arch-enemies of the United States, such as Russia and North Korea. In fact, Trump was open to meeting with Kim Jong Un even before he became President of the United States.
My best admiration from Trump came about his plan to rebuild the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, which were destroyed on 11th September 2001. As someone born four months before the 9/11 attacks, I feel that it is wise for one to rebuild the World Trade Center in the same design, because what Donald Trump said was that rebuilding the Twin Towers as they were before 9/11 would symbolize overcoming adversity and also showing the terrorists that their plans have failed. Many 9/11 family members, in fact, support the plan to rebuild the Twin Towers as they were before the attacks, and Trump's rebuilding plan came off with a nice, simple memorial plaza. He had also said that the current World Trade Center design looks like a ‘pile of junk’ and if a building was unfeasible, a “great, beautiful park” should be built instead. Due to his courage, determination and seriousness, I felt that it was best that he would make a great president in the 2016 election and be sworn in as president on 20th January 2017. Being a student studying Economics and Business Studies, I also felt that he was a good role model to look up to.
The following Monday, 5th September 2016, I discussed this with some of my friends, namely Krystal Goh and Adrinna Yee, before assembly starts. The two of them found it weird for me to be supporting Donald Trump. Even so, during Business Studies, Daryl Yeo scuffed at the idea of me supporting Trump. “Trump is racist! He wants to block Mexicans with a big fat wall!” cried Daryl. He continued to scold me for supporting Trump.
“Trump is racist! Trump is fascist! Trump is stupid!” he continued, before Ms Chithra told him to stop ranting.
“Wei Yiang supports Trump?” cried Rosemund.
After Business Studies ended, we went back for Science, and Ms Sangeetha continued with the presentations of the Science topics. Gabriel was invited to present, but he did not have good presentation skills. Shane just mumbled as he spoke, and so did Glen. Ivyna had the best presentation, with good intonation and speaking tone.
Then, we went for break. San Ying and Sophie were talking about Hillary Clinton being a potential first female United States president. I then chipped in about Trump and the discussion on the presidential election. Hillary Clinton was Donald Trump's opponent in the 2016 election.
“Clinton is better,” said Sophie. “You should understand that Trump is a racist. He has threatened to block Mexicans from entering the United States. He has also wanted to do a Muslim ban as well.
San Ying then continued, saying that Malaysia is a Muslim country and we may be as equally affected. “What if he bans us too? Then, we cannot go to the US to study,” San Ying warned me.
During break time, I went to the library to print the Economics coursework. She gave me her pendrive and told me to get the job done.
In Nobel International School, there is a then taboo that the printer in the school library is off-limits for students. A myth went around, which said that students MUST print their work at home, and if they came to school and wished to use the printer, a fee would need to be paid as punishment. It was all about punishment in the early days. Hence, I was afraid to use the printer, out of fear that Cikgu Afza, the teacher in charge for the school library, would get angry with me and ask me why I did not print the coursework at home.
Since primary school, our parents have been bringing items that we forgot to bring to school. And because of this, Ms Michelle told everyone that if we forgot the items, it was our problem. Likewise, our teachers would punish us if we forgot our items. In those days, it was forbidden for us to use the school printers, and I thought that people were punished because of that.
But Cikgu Afza was okay with it. She took the pendrive and printed the work. “How many copies do you want?” she asked. I said that one copy was needed. And Cikgu Afza handed me the text and the printed materials, along with the pendrive.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Yeap, Kie Yip, Emerson Ngu and some Year 11 students played volleyball in the hall. They used their hands to hit the volleyball. The ball then accidentally hit Mr Ong's arm, and he got really angry with them. Mr Ong was coming out from the Elementary School's staffroom and was proceeding to his Year 5 class.
“Excuse me! Stop playing!” cried Mr Ong. “Who asked you to play volleyball? Do you want me to tell Ms Bee Yong about this?” he cried. Jeremy and Emerson went to talk things with Mr Ong as another teacher from the Junior and Senior School passed by.
We then returned for Economics. Ms Levina then collected our work. “That's nice,” she said, flipping through the booklet. Cassandra attached the marking rubric to the booklet. Additionally, Wee Shiang's group binded the report, which was so professional. All groups managed to hand in their report except Aaron Liew's group. I got worried of how they would perform on my business report. Then, Ms Levina taught us about costs of production, which was quite challenging. She gave us exercises on the previous topic. We then did a worksheet in class on the types of business organizations, and Brandon continued to play Pokemon Go in the class. Ms Levina was frustrated and spoke in a serious tone to him. He then did his work. We then handed in the worksheets to Ms Levina once we were done.
Then, Ms Bee Yan gave us coursework to do and a series of worksheets. We did the worksheets in the class as Ms Bee Yan taught us the topic of linear programming. The coursework required us to create a graph on the computer. Afterwards, we had lunch, and then Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher and I talked a bit on Trump's election policies for the 2016 election. He said that there will be a presidential debate that would come before the election. Then, we went for our Art lesson, and Ms Feeda then briefed us on how to annotate our prep work. She said that a lot of people had not done well or have still not known how to do their annotation of their prep work. Annotation is a very important part of Art and Design IGCSE, because it conveys the message of the prep work from the student to the examiner. So, Ms Feeda posted some phrases in the art studio and in her blog on how to annotate.
“You must tell the examiner what you are painting and why you decided to paint it. You need to use words which can convey the message on what you want to achieve when doing the prep work,” she said. Ms Feeda said that we should not write lengthy annotations in order to not waste more time on the annotations and focus more on painting.
“The problem with art students is that they tend to focus on annotation. Some of you write so long. I want to tell you that annotation will only give you very little marks. Most important thing is what you are painting. You need to focus on your painting. Annotation can be done later,” she said.
So for example, if we are drawing a close up of a spinach, we need to state as to why we chose the spinach and how we can go about it from there. For example, the annotation can be like this:
“I decided to do a close-up of this spinach because as a young boy, I like to play with spinaches and that spinach is my favorite food. My aunt would normally serve us spinaches for dinner and this also reminds me of my family, as we bond together every dinner. So, for this spinach, I decided to paste some tissue paper over the spinach in order to give a feel of how spinaches look like, that is to say, lofty. I painted the pasted area above the spinach using water color and then colored the stem of the spinach using crayon to give the area a bit of toning as I would like to experiment with crayon as part of my mixed media studies.”
This annotation is just the tip of the iceberg, as we needed to write annotations for so many paintings that we drew, plus the introduction and we also had to say what we have learned. In fact, Ms Feeda said that on every Prep 1 that we did, be it Paper 1 or Paper 2, we need to have an introduction to explain why we chose the question or are choosing the theme or topic for our prep work and final piece. In fact, for every prep work, I placed an introduction on the prep. She then gave us some words that we could use, such as ‘color’, ‘draw’, ‘paint’, and a whole bunch of other different words that she posted on her blog.
After Ms Feeda then finished explaining on how to annotate our prep work, we continued with our prep works. I completed painting Prep 1, and Ms Feeda told me to move into Prep 2. “Four pictures may be still okay but it is not good enough. You should take more pictures but it is not enough if you want to experiment with more things. Are you sure you want to experiment with this only?” asked Ms Feeda. I said yes.
The next day, Ms Sangeetha continued with the presentation. Kelsey, Sheng Jit, Krystal Goh and Jia Yee presented. Jia Yee spoke quite timidly but confidently. Ms Sangeetha sat on a desk from the back while the presentation was ongoing. At the back of the class, Brandon, Ryan Chok and Shane were playing Pokemon Go while the lesson was ongoing, unbeknownst to Ms Sangeetha. She kept on telling them to stop talking. “Brandon Ooi, stop talking, stop talking, stop talking!” cried Ms Sangeetha, as she lectured them. “Please respect your friends’ presentations. If someone was talking while you presented, how will you feel?” she asked. Then, we did some comprehension exercises once again during Malay. On another note, Ms Sangeetha had told me that I will be the first person to do my presentation the next day, 7th September 2016.
Afterwards, we went for our break time and I continued talking to San Ying about Trump. Sophie Tan got really angry upon hearing the topic. I tried defending Trump's actions and playing down the threats.
“The border wall is not meant to block Mexicans. It is meant to repair security infrastructure,” I said. They were not convinced.
San Ying told me that if the wall was really effective, Trump would not have made the wall quite deep. And if he was serious on repairing security infrastructure, there would already be a wall on the border with Canada.
Afterwards, we then had Business Studies and we did the worksheet on Bangkok Chocolate Company, where we had to prepare financial statements, profit and loss statements, and the balance sheet.
“Corporation tax!” I cried, upon seeing the corporation tax label on the worksheet. Daryl also responded the same. “Corporation! Corporation!” he said in a funny tone.
“Ms Chithra, how are you? You look gorgeous today!” cried Nicole.
“Do your work!” ordered Ms Chithra. “Everyday only saying I am gorgeous,” she said. Nicole, Sophie and Eu Lynn laughed.
“Yeah, Ms Chithra! You look really beautiful and pretty today. That's why we like coming to your class!” cried Eu Lynn.
“Haihh. Do your work,” said Ms Chithra. “I don't look that pretty,” she said.
We then returned for Economics. I was so excited. Ms Levina was playing a game with us. She first taught us about costs of production. Then, told everyone to stand up.
“Cher, why are we standing up? Punishment?” asked Brandon. “I am a good boy ma!”
“We are going to play a game,” said Ms Levina. “Whoever can answer the question correctly can sit down,” she said.
Ms Levina then asked the first question relating to corporation tax. I put up my hand in excitement at the phrase ‘corporation tax’. I got the answer correctly and sat down. Then, Ms Levina then continued to ask and answer questions. I peered at Brandon making funny hand gestures in class. The next question was on business organizations, and Ivyna got it correct and was told to sit down. Ms Levina then continued to ask questions about trade unions, workers rights, banks, stock exchanges and money. The game was very fun. As Brandon Ooi was the last one standing as he didn't answer the questions correctly, not to also mention a few others, Ms Levina then told the individuals to explain on certain points. She asked Brandon Ooi to explain on the functions of stock exchanges but he had a hard time answering. I put up my hand, but Ms Levina said that I couldn't answer as she wanted Brandon to give all the answers as he was talking all the time in class.
Brandon groaned as he continued standing up. Finally, Ms Levina told me to do an explanation to Brandon on the correct answers. He looked at me angrily as I spoke. The game was quite fun.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and I met Caleb Chuang for lunch. He said that there will be futsal practice following the Final Year Examination and that no one had fixed practices yet.
Then, we had Maths, where Ms Bee Yan taught us about trigonometry, and then we learnt about life in Nazi Germany, and how Nazi culture looked like, such as Nazi music, Nazi movies, Nazi art and so on.
The next day, we had Mr Thomas’ English lesson. He briefed us on newspaper reports. “The Mercy Ship Project......that one we are not going to do today. We have to talk about our newspaper reports. Mr Thomas then told us about how a newspaper is written and said we can come up with a fictional news article for our coursework. I decided to use the basis of the Twin Towers 2 project spearheaded by Donald Trump, to write a report on the World Trade Center's twin towers being rebuilt, and the then-President Barack Obama opening the new Twin Towers on 11th September 2011. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Levina gave us worksheets to do again. Brandon Ooi then used the entire time in the class to play Pokemon Go. Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan then did the Genius Time session and Brandon Ooi presented Nickolas Nashpal's YouTube channel again. Then, we had our Character Transformation session and each class was told to do their dance practice. Ivyna then grouped us and we did our dance practice for the Malaysia Day celebration. She told each one of us to move properly according to the moves. During the dance practices, I kept peering at Caleb Chuang and the other classes. 10O was in particular, doing some dance moves based on a traditional Dayak plank dance from Sarawak. They had plastic pipes being subsituted for bamboo sticks.
“Louis! You must move!" cried Ivyna, as Louis wasn't synchronizing. Then, she also told me, Glen and Gabriel to move as well. Everyone was coordinating their dances. Brandon and I got into a few bits of arguments while dancing as he berated me, Louis, Gabriel, Glen and Aaron Liew.
The teachers went around, checking on us. Ms Cynthia had her eyes on 10N as we were to be the postcard class and a role model for the Malaysian Studies subject.
Then, it was lunch, and I kept my eyes crossed for the Science presentation. I told Caleb Chuang and Ze Khai how excited I was as the Science lesson neared. I was hoping to make a good show for my presentation.
The Science lesson arrived. Ms Sangeetha came with her things, and I was the first presenter. “Ok, so who's doing the presentation today?” she asked.
I raised my hand. “Okay, Wei Yiang, please get ready,” said Ms Sangeetha. It was my turn to present. I then placed my pendrive into the school computer and got my slide up. I was grinning, hoping that the planned spectacle would succeed so that Ms Sangeetha would be shocked. I was too excited and can't wait to begin.
The class was excited. “Okay, class, please keep quiet. Stop talking. Brandon, stop talking,” said Ms Sangeetha.
“Shhhh!!!!!” I cried. Then, Ms Sangeetha told me to begin.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I’m Wei Yiang here, and I would like to present the topic of Atomic Structures. Before we begin, I have the honor of inviting our class monitor, the Honourable Koo Sheng Jit, to press the switch before we begin our presentation. Please give him a round of applause!” I said. I always keep calling Sheng Jit by using the title “The Honourable” because he was the class monitor, and it is better to refer him as a VIP for fun.
Soon, the whole class clapped and cheered for Sheng Jit as he stood up, smirked and smiled. Then he walked like a king to the front. Ms Sangeetha was having a sly look on her face as the people at the back of the class were not focused. Then, everyone counted down as Sheng Jit pressed the button. Everyone was so enthusiastic and then suddenly, nothing happened.
“Eh, what happened?” I gasped. Little did I know that the animation had failed.
I tried calibrating the presentation, but nothing happened. All the entire animations had failed. I was so frustrated.
Ms Sangeetha was not happy and asked me use the Smartboard markers to explain. It was an embarrassment. Only did I realize that once the presentation was over, the Microsoft Powerpoint of the school was not like my version as the school failed to update the software. I could have had used videos to present, but Ms Sangeetha prefers for us to talk in the class than show a bunch of videos.
Then, it was Aaron Liew's turn to present. He did not do the work, and so did Louis. Ms Sangeetha did not give them marks. Then, it was Ze Khai's turn to present, and he spoke in a cool manner, followed by Nickolas Nashpal's turn. The class ended with a funny presentation by Ryan Chok, and he taught about sexual reproduction. The whole class kept on laughing at Ryan Chok's presentation as he talked about sex in the presentation. Shane, Brandon Ooi and I laughed the loudest as he made so many funny gestures. Ms Sangeetha was not amused with the whole class for laughing and at Ryan Chok for presenting something so weird. “Class, please keep quiet,” she said. Ryan Chok ran overtime and was told to stop.
Then, we had our Bible Knowledge lesson and Ms Renee told us the exam scope for the Final Year Examination for Bible Knowledge. Paper 1 would be tested on Matthew Chapters 1 to 15, and will be held on Wednesday, 12th October, and Paper 2 would be from Acts 1 to 10, on 18th October. She also told us that Bible Knowledge is not formally part of IGCSE but the Cambridge O Levels. We did the discussion in class. I could see the apartment buildings near my house from 10B's classroom. We had to use 10B that day as the projector in 11E was out of order.
The next day, Thursday, 8th September, we did our Reading Time in class and Ivyna told us to do some dance practices during Reading Time. She tried to coordinate us as that week was the second last week before the week of the performance. The performance will be held on 23rd September 2016, during the morning assembly. We pushed the tables to the back and sides of the class as we did the practice. Ivyna was frustrated with many of the boys for not being cooperative. Then, Mr Thomas and the 10B students arrived at the class, ready for the English lesson.
Mr Thomas and the group filed into the class, as the 10N English Second students left for their English Second lesson. Ms Joyce was in charge of the English Second class now.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried. He greeted me, plopped on his seat, and quickly switched on the computer.
“You must switch on the computer before I come,” said Mr Thomas. “We have no time. Your exams are approaching. I need to give you work. Your class is very late.”
Mr Thomas displayed a timetable for everyone which contained the documents of the coursework assignment, the Mercy Ship Project as well as our learning activities for other texts throughout the month of September. “I am showing you this because I want you to be responsible for your own learning,” said Mr Thomas. He told us to hand in our coursework on 21st September 2016. “You can create any story you want, but it must have a headline and be realistic as possible. It is not right if you go and take some fictional story and put it there. You can create fake stories, but it must appear to look real,” said Mr Thomas. Subsequently, he approved my World Trade Center article.
“Can we make this possible?” he asked the class.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Can you give me the work on time?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!”
“Is it okay if you are responsible for your own learning?”
“No problem, Mr Thomas!”
“Can you promise to check the Edmodo every day during your holidays?”
“Sure, no problem, Mr Thomas!”
“Very good, thank you and have a nice day. Bye bye,” he said, as we went for PE.
I asked Ms Sylvia if footballs were allowed during PE as I was planning to bring one following the school holidays to play with Caleb Chuang. She said it was allowed only during PE lessons and I could bring a football. I was finding a way to avoid conflict with Wei Zhong.
Then, Caleb Chuang, Wei Zhong, Sean Mark, Ethan Wong, Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong, Nieshaal Thambipillay and Christopher Chew kicked footballs again, and I played defender with Caleb Chuang. Mr Victor also got a shot at the ball before PE started. Sean Mark kicked the ball but it banged the Keluar sign again, which was fixed by Joshua and Wei Zhong.
Mr Victor then told us that he had postponed our Fitness Test to after the holidays, as he wanted to give us more time to do our practices. Then, we did our strength tests once again. After our PE lesson ended, we went for break, and I had a chat with Caleb Chuang on the class with Mr Thomas.
I told him I would bring a football to join him in his football game. He seemed excited, and his face lit up.
We then went back for Malaysian Studies, where we did another practice in the class. Ivyna told us to do practices again, but the boys did not listen. I cooperated with Ivyna, to be honest.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher and I talked about Trump. He was highly critical about the Republican candidate. Conversely, I felt that Trump should be given a chance to serve as president as it can allow him to do good business and make America prosper. Mr Gallagher said otherwise, as he did not have the necessary experience from political or military fields that could make him a great president.
I feel so into supporting Donald Trump out of anger over the Movida bombing incident. I feel so angry to be ashamed at what happened in my own backyard, caught on world news. As the United States was a great power in ensuring that the situation of the world was stable, based on the phrase, “When America sneezes, the world catches a cold,” it is the US’ duty, in my opinion, to put a stop to the terrorist threat. I also felt that Trump would also have a chance to do business with the world and also mend ties with world leaders. Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un were top on his list, and I want to see Washington and Moscow close decades of hate and rivalry with each other.
Then, we had Art, and Ms Feeda had, surprise, surprise, brought Mr Jeffery for a workshop with us! Mr Jeffery had an artist's cap, nice, round glasses as well as a nice beard and smile. He talked about design and it was a brief talk. He told us on how to get into the basics and bits of design and why should we passionate for design.
Mr Jeffery had a calm voice as he spoke. He kept on telling us how to use various tools to design as well as find ways to do some expressionalism art. In fact, he also used art and architecture to put and piece things together. He also showed us some cool designs he and his students from The One Academy made. Yi Zhen and Ms Feeda presented a fruit basket given by Ms Praveen to Mr Jeffery. And not to also mention that Mr Jeffery gave Ms Feeda a design book containing all sorts of graphic designs, courtesy of The One Academy.
Then, we had lunch, and I sat down with San Ying to talk about Trump again. Sophie Tan groaned and was annoyed at the discussion. We then had History. I soon found out that Mr Aram had left Nobel, and for his History lessons, Ms Cynthia had permanently taken over from him. Ms Cynthia, undoubtedly, is also a History teacher as well, and of course, she is more lenient than Ms Visa. If I had a choice, Ms Cynthia would be the best bet for History. Ms Cynthia then used a more lenient style, and everyone from Mr Aram’s class heaved a sigh of relief. All his students were happy that they can enjoy History in peace. Afterwards, it was our Editorial Board meeting. Lyn Wen continued to show off her calligraphy, and I proposed that Lyn Wen's calligraphy design be used for the school yearbook. Yin Wei shared some updates with me on Mr Narish's interview and she said that she will send me an email so that I can check the results. Lyn Wen and I then continued to talk about Trump while taking a break from our discussions. Ms Levina then came in to coordinate a briefing, which was a photography session of our class following our return from the school holidays. She told Han Ming and Daniel to have their cameras ready. I also asked Han Ming to send some of the 10N photos to me as Ivyna would like the photos for a portfolio which Ms Cynthia also asked us to create of our dance performance. The dance performance is actually a Malaysian Studies class coursework which we had to work as a class to perform it.
The next morning, we had the Prefects’ Installation Ceremony, where the new prefects were installed as well as the formation of the new Prefectorial Board committee. Joshua Chew was chosen as the Head Prefect, with two head prefects, namely Aaron Loke and Yi Zhen. Other than that, the other committee members were Heng Le Anne (Head of Discipline), Isabella Wong (Head of Internal Operations), Ting Yi (Head of Communications and Multimedia), Yan Ying, Xin Yi (both Heads of Events), Caleb Chuang, Zi Quan (both Heads of Welfare), and Lim Wences (Head of Sports and Recreation), with Natasha Singam being the Prefectorial Board's Secretary. Ms Bee Yan and Ms Lim presented the new prefects with their prefect's tag. Additionally, the committee members were presented with new tags with their committee positions by Mr Narish, who is the teacher in charge of the Prefectorial Board and the Head of Student Leadership. The whole school was asked to sing the school song and do the school pledge with the prefects.
Ivyna then did a rehearsal of our dance in 10N before we went for English. Mr Thomas then said he was officially postponing the Mercy Ship Project till the end of the Final Year Examination. Then, he briefed us on our English newspaper coursework. He told us to have one major news and one informative news inside the newspaper. For my newspaper, the major news was a picture of the newly-completed Twin Towers of the World Trade Center which was opened by President Obama, alongside an informative news article on the rebuilding of the World Trade Center post-9/11.
During break time, Caleb Chuang and I were having a chat. I then told him about how funny Ms Levina's Economics class was. Apparently, when Ms Levina told the 10O students that the free market seat allocation game was cancelled on Edmodo, I had written on the page, saying that I intend to play the ‘Change Your Seat Game’ with Caleb Chuang. The whole class knew it very well.
Caleb Chuang laughed. Ironically, he had known Ms Levina. Joshua and Joseph were soon sitting next to him and eating curry rice. Then, Caleb Chuang choked and coughed on his rice. It was too funny a joke for him to bear.
Joshua asked Caleb Chuang what was the matter. “He's talking about Ms Levina.”
“During PTM (2), I was serving drinks,” said Caleb Chuang, taking another sip of his food.
“I was passing Ms Levina with my tray. I said, “Hi, Ms Levina!”” and then she said, “Hi, hi,” and was in a cheerful mode.”
Joshua then asked what happened next. Caleb Chuang continued his story.
“I gave her a drink. She said thanks. Then she said, “That's so kind of you. What's your name?””
“I then replied, “Caleb.” And Ms Levina was like, “Oh! So, you're THE Caleb.”
Caleb Chuang said that he didn't understand what Ms Levina meant by ‘THE Caleb’. That was because there were many ‘Caleb's’ in Nobel then. So, Ms Levina took out her subject name list, and pointed it at one of the names.
“You might know him,” she said. When Caleb Chuang found out that it was Lau Wei Yiang, he nodded his head.
“The whole class talks about you,” said Ms Levina. “Both in 10O and 10N. All the classes that I teach.”
Caleb Chuang wasn't taking Economics in Nobel at the time. However, he got to experience Economics as an A Level student at Methodist College Kuala Lumpur. And he would soon score 100 marks for the subject, besting me in all my Economics results.
“Ms Levina kept on asking about you, Caleb,” said Joshua. She always kept on asking us how are you and Wei Yiang doing,” he said.
The Year 11s played volleyball and almost smashed the ceiling lights again, in a second such incident. Ms Lim, who saw the act, halted the game for a while. She told them to be careful before continuing the match. “If you play like this again, no more volleyball for you,” she boomed. We then went for our Art lesson and Ms Feeda told us to continue our book and also explain to us about the process of doing the prep works further. I had already by then started Prep 2 of the work. We then had History, which Ms Visa gave our papers to us. We had a late discussion of the exam papers because Mr Aram withheld it. I would always remember Mr Aram snatching my water bottle's pocket during the Mid Year Examination, as well as scenes of him getting into a Grab vehicle to take him home after school ended.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher then advised me on my work and checked it. He told me to add certain points and format the work. Then, we just did the work normally; our fingers crossed for the first presidential debate post-Second Mid Term Break.
Upon returning from the school holidays, we were told to stay back after our assembly that Monday morning, on 19th September 2016. Ms Renee and Ms Cynthia had a briefing for everyone doing the performance.
Ms Cynthia said that the front of the hall will be exclusively given to the performers, and we had to sit in front of the hall. There will be seven classes performing that day for the Malaysia Day celebration. We had to go in the order of class, starting with 8O, who will do a re-enactation of the proclamation of Independence of Malaya, followed by a Jalur Gemilang performance by 7N. This would then be succeeded by 10N, 10O, 10B, 10E and 10L respectively.
We then returned to the class, and I headed to 10L for Ms Chithra's lesson. I greeted her, asked her some questions on the report, and then told Aaron, Glen and Gabriel to do their parts as the entire presentation was lagging behind. Gabriel and Glen told me to do the slides and that they will present with me. I am very sorry to say that Aaron Liew was a bit stubborn and he did not know what to do.
Nicole and Sophie plopped into the class. “Ms Chithra! You look gorgeous!” they cried. Ms Chithra shrugged them off. She then introduced us our exam scope, which was from Chapter 1 until the current topic that she had stopped at, on marketing. Ms Chithra gave us time for our final discussion for the presentation. We then returned for our Science lesson and Ms Sangeetha continued with the presentations.
After that, we went for our break time, and we went for our Economics lesson. Ms Levina gave us some exercises to do on costs. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan gave us some work to do in class. She said that since there was no one doing Genius Time, there would be no Genius Time for the rest of the year. Brandon Ooi said that we can use the Genius Time to watch Nickolas’ YouTube channel, but however, Ms Bee Yan said time was needed for Final Year Examination revision.
Then, we went for lunch, and then Mr Gallagher and I discussed about Trump again. Mr Gallagher continued ranting that Trump was unfit to be president based on a series of criteria. I then debated with him, suggesting that the US economy can be improved under Trump as well as the prevention of terrorism. Mr Gallagher said that it was the US that aided ISIS during their war in Syria as well as in Afghanistan which gave birth to the rise of Al Qaeda as a terrorist group. We then went for Art. Timothy and Eu Lynn continued to argue over who was Ms Feeda's favorite student. I would say that Yi Zhen is her best student. By this time, I had completed Prep 2 and was told by Ms Feeda to move to Prep 3.
On Tuesday, 20th September 2016, Ivyna and Yan Ying did another rehearsal in class. Ms Sangeetha then continued the presentations with the final three people, namely Lyn Wen, Wee Shiang, Grace, Jo Yi and Hao Yinn. When the presentation was done, Ms Sangeetha stood up and walked to the front of the class. “That's all. That's all for our presentation. Guys, stop talking,” she said. Ms Sangeetha said that she will finalize the marks and let us know our grades the next day. We then had Malay, and Cikgu Niely gave us time to do our Malaysia Day performance practice. Brandon Ooi and Enisha had some arguments with me. Shane, to a certain extent, berated me, Gabriel, Glen and Aaron. They like to think of us as low class people to an extent.
Once the practices were done, I went to see Caleb Chuang and went with him for a chat. However, I accompanied Gabriel, Glen and Aaron to discuss about the Business Studies coursework. Glen and Gabriel told me to do the coursework first and write the report for Ms Chithra to see.
We then returned for our Business Studies lesson and I spoke to Ms Chithra on whether we should present our product for the lesson. Ms Chithra told us that for now, a report and presentation would be best. The product is optional, but encouraged. “This is because you want to let your customer know about your product and how it looks like,” she said. My group was planning to make an artificial tree using a series of bottles and pipes, with long grass laid in the bottle on top of the bottle-pipe which can be watered and grown to make the grass look like a house plant.
Then, during Economics, Ms Levina then did some exercises and revision with us for the previous topics. Brandon Ooi played Pokemon Go, and this time, Ms Levina took his phone. For good. She told him to come to her office to collect it back and he won't have it until the lesson ended. The day went on normally, with Ms Bee Yan doing some exercises with us as well as practice questions, and Ms Visa continued to teach us about life in Nazi Germany.
On Wednesday, 21st September 2016, Mr Thomas did with us some paragraph arrangements in class. Ms Levina discussed the answers for the questions and told us about our mistakes and so on.
During the Character Transformation session, every group was once again doing their rehearsal. Ms Cynthia told all the classes to have their own practices. Then, once the practices were done, we would be having a formal dress rehearsal for the celebration. We were handed our Indian dress costumes by Ivyna and Yan Ying, who used our class funds to purchase the costume. I could also remember me having a possible boycott of the Malaysia Day performance. In fact, Enisha had told me before that if I did not pay the class funds for the Bake Sale or Malaysia Day performance, I would not be allowed to dance and would also fail the Malaysian Studies coursework. The thought of failing the coursework made me worry.
During the practice, Ze Khai and I had a chat. We talked about the performance as well as the passage of time. Ivyna kept on calling everyone to cooperate as the class was lagging behind the other classes.
I personally feel like as if I was on a sinking ship. It was very saddening. The class was in chaos as Ivyna and Yan Ying tried to ensure that everyone was cooperating. At the same time, I wish that I could be in the same class as Caleb Chuang. His class was much more cooperative and less chaotic, just like our Bible Knowledge class. How nice would it be to be in a world where we can work together peacefully. Just look at Mr Lee's class. They were laughing away at their funny Chinese dance. Enisha then called me. I was feeling down from thinking of this. I miss the good old days of 2015 to this day. She called me until she got angry with me. Ivyna asked me to come over and told Enisha to stop her rant. Then, Lyn Wen asked if I was okay. We did more dancing moves. Then, Sheng Jit grouped all the boys and he taught us our moves.
Soon, an announcement was made to instruct everyone to prepare for a dress rehearsal. I don't feel good during the dress rehearsal, and we watched everyone do their dancing. Other than that, the rest of the day was just completing our work. I then met Gabriel and Glen to discuss our Business Studies coursework. I felt like I was in the worst, uncooperative group ever, if I could allow me to say that. Ms Sangeetha, Cikgu Niely and Ms Renee gave us a long essay homework of writing according to the Scriptures. In fact, we had to write long essays time after time during Bible Knowledge.
On Thursday, 22nd September 2016, we had a rough morning. Ivyna then did a final rehearsal during Reading Time. We also wanted to do a final rehearsal during PE, but that was cancelled because it was our Fitness Test. So, Ivyna said that we will do the rehearsal during our break time, as she sought Ms Cynthia's permission, who agreed.
The fitness test begun with the boys. Ms Sylvia told us to get ready. 10N was the first to begin. This was my second attempt at a beep test.
“The multi-stage fitness test starts in four seconds. Three,” said the audio announcer.
“Start level 1.1”
We all begun running. It was easy.
“Beep! Level 1.2”
Louis was running too. He didn't walk like the previous time.
“Beep! Level 1.3”
“Beep! Level 1.4”
The beep continued, and a couple of our friends dropped out. Soon, a lot of people dropped out at Level 5, and me and Sheng Jit were the last two running. I finished the beep test with a high score of Level 8.7.
After we were finished with PE, we went up to class and Ivyna tried to get everyone to gather, before playing the music. We all did the dance perfectly after a few tries. During the practice, Brandon and I had a commotion, along with Enisha. Ivyna told us to focus. We practiced at least five tries without success before we got the moves right.
We then went for Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher did work with us. Vicky asked him about how the UK will leave the EU, and whether Mr Gallagher was affected. He said that they will be leaving the EU in three years back then.
Later, we went for Art, and I spoke to Glen Kay about the Business Studies coursework. Internally, I was panicking as the three people in my group were clueless on what to do, leaving me to do the entire work solo to reduce the chances of me getting a 0 for my coursework. I then met Aaron and Gabriel on the work as well. They just told me to present the report first.
During Business Studies, I presented the coursework to Ms Chithra, but however, Ms Chithra did not approve of it and told us to redo the coursework again. She gave me until Monday, 26th September, to present a revised report and Powerpoint presentation.
“Not accepted. You cannot write like this. What type of product is this?” asked Ms Chithra. When I explained the product, she told me that it may not be a suitable product and told me to come up with a new product. Ms Chithra then told all of us in our group that the report was done poorly. She was not very happy with us.
“Class, I don't like this type of work,” said Ms Chithra, showing my work to the whole class. “You cannot do it like this. Please redo,” she continued. Yew Jan laughed at me. What a crazy guy. I then changed the product to an art cup holder.
I thrudged to the Editorial Board meeting, demotivated by what had happened. We presented our findings to Vicky. Yin Wei thanked me for the effort for Mr Narish's interview.
On Friday, 23rd September 2016, we had our Merdeka Day celebration. Originally, it was supposed to be earlier, but however, because we had a busy month of August, we then held the Merdeka Day celebration as the Malaysia Day celebration in September. While Merdeka Day commemorates the independence of Malaya from the United Kingdom on 31st August 1957, Malaysia Day marks the union of Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to form the Federation of Malaysia on 16th September 1963, although Singapore was fired within two years afterwards.
We had spent most of our CT sessions practicing for the performance, and our performance was based on an Indian dance. So, like before, Sheng Jit, Ivyna and Yan Ying coordinated us and even got us to practice during the Malaysian Studies time as well with Ms Cynthia. Ms Cynthia also hopes that as the class teacher of 10N, she hopes that we will do our best for the performance.
So, on the day of the performance, we were dressed in Indian attire. We wore track bottoms and the Indian clothes for the performance. All the students of the Junior and Senior School were there to watch us. They sat behind and a space was left in the middle of the hall for performances. The Year 10s and those who were performing sat in the front of the hall.
The performance kicked off with a rendition by class 8O of Tunku Abdul Rahman declaring the Independence of Malaya from the Merdeka Stadium on 31st August 1957 and the symbolic raising of the Malaysia flag. Afterwards, a performance by 7N was done, with patriotic song called Jalur Gemilang, which means “Stripes of Glory”, the name given to the Malaysian flag by Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammad on 31st August 1990.
Once the first two performances were done, there was a speech by Daphne Wong and a few other Year 9 students, as they recited a poem about Malaysia. They donned Malaysian flags on theri costumes. Then, each of us Year 10s presented our performances, starting with 10N, 10O, 10B, 10E and 10L.
10N’s performance was on an Indian dance to represent the Indian community; 10O’s was a Dayak performance by the natives of Sarawak, 10B’s was based on the Iban, 10E a Malay dance and 10L a Chinese drumming performance to mimick the 24 season drums. Each performance was based on the cultures and the tradition of Malaysia.
So, when we danced, Ivyna, Sheng Jit, Cassandra and Nickolas Nashpal came out and performed their dances first, followed by the rest of us coming out to do some dance moves. The boys and girls were grouped separately as we performed to the beat of the dance. The entire crowd cheered once we completed, while Ms Cynthia smiled.
10O was the next. The performers took PVC pipes to act as bamboo sticks and lifted and dropped the sticks to a tune as the dancers danced on top of it. 10B and E’s performances were merely traditional dances, while the 10L students banged red plastic containers loudly to applause from the crowd.
Following the performances, Ms Sim then came on stage. "Thank you students, your performances was awesome. I really enjoy the various cultural dances by the Year 10 students, and you know, there are lots of cultures and it is important for us as Malaysians to know our culture. So, continue to learn and continue to appreciate the fact that we are in a multi-racial country. I just want to highlight that some of you are wearing the Malaysian flag as part of the costume. I know and I understand you are trying to be creative, but just a reminder to all that it is disrespectful to wear the Malaysian flag as part of your costume, okay? So I hope that you all don't do that again in the future, and please take note and....yeap! That's all from me. Thank you everyone!" she cried.
Ms Bee Yong then talked to us about how grateful we are to be Malaysians and how we should be respecting one another. Even though she is a Singaporean, she said that as a Singaporean herself, she still respects the culture and traditions of Malaysia as if she was a Malaysian, and she said that we should continue to move forward in everything we do as Malaysians, including in our studies. Ms Bee Yong then explained about the cultures of Malaysia and how we should honor where we came from as a country. "As a Singaporean, I like Malaysian food and it is good to experience the many different cultures that we have in Malaysia," she said.
Each one of us Year 10 classes then took a picture of us in our attire and our performance teams. Ms Cynthia then took pictures with us as the director of the Malaysia Day performances. Hong Han Ming took the photograph of all of us.
I was at least happy that the wild ride was over. No more practices.
Mr Thomas then gave us a newspaper exercise to do in class. We had to write a newspaper report from a handout, titled ‘Prison Escape’ which was posted on Edmodo. I had written so many comments till everyone got annoyed of the smiley faces. Sherwin and Aaron Loke worked with me to put the newspaper pieces together. I was in charge of writing the newspaper.
We then had break, and during Art, I had successfully moved to Prep 3 of the Paper 1 prep works. For the first time, I was on course to completing both preps. The day went on normally as we continued our History lesson and Global Perspectives lesson. I managed to meet Caleb Chuang as he had finally finished Mr Kevin Wai's homework. He had at least 20 sets of homework from Mr Kevin Wai to do in the past week for Additional Mathematics.
Lyn Wen always keeps on saying that one day she will become a meme. A meme is basically a text over a picture for something funny. So, based on her laughter and so on, I agreed. I always talk to Lyn Wen most of the time.
Lyn Wen had always been with me in many cases, including in the Editorial Board CCA. I have been performing well, writing article after article. I wrote the Year 10 field trip article and also did the interview with Mr Narish. I attended all CCAs as well. I had a CCA card which we had to place our attendance in, and it contained my 100 percent attendance.
Donald Trump running for the president of the United States would be one of the greatest feats of all time. Personally, after doing research on the Internet, I supported Donald Trump becoming president, but unfortunately, my decision has landed relations with the rest of my friends in hot water. Many of my friends did not support Trump becoming the president of the United States because of certain controversial policies that have been proposed by him. Of course, there are certain policies that I did not agree with, but the main reasons for my support for Trump are mainly on the issues of terrorism and economics. The Movida Bar and Club grenade incident by two Islamic State (IS) terrorists based in Malaysia, a series of terrorist attacks over the past one year by the terrorist group, and the economic competitiveness between the United States and China are another factor. Donald Trump had also stated his intention to rebuild the World Trade Center’s twin towers that were destroyed in the September 11, 2001 attacks, and I told all of them such things. I was banking on Trump to win for the Twin Towers to be rebuilt.
The following Monday, 26th September 2016, I handed in my new report for Business Studies along with a new series of Powerpoint slides. “Much better,” said Ms Chithra, approving my work. I volunteered to be the first to present, but Wei Zhong's group was going first.
Wei Zhong did a serious and splendid presentation. Ms Chithra told us that everyone was given the opportunity to ask questions to the presenters, but she will accept only three questions as other people had to present as well. Then, it was my turn, and I only presented because Aaron, Glen and Gabriel did not know how to present. Ms Chithra then told me to let some of my group members present so that they can get marks. “I want to hear from others also,” she said.
Aaron went like, “Aaaah, I don't know.” Honestly speaking, he kept on giving me a lot of silly responses in the group discussion and was the lousiest member of the entire group. He was given zero marks for his effort. Glen and Gabriel got some marks for the presentation, although they will told to improve their presentation. “But overall, good effort,” said Ms Chithra. The entire class clapped for us except for Yew Jan, who continued acting crazily at us for being a lousy group. Ms Chithra then told Yew Jan to keep quiet. Wei Zhong, Sophie and Rosemund asked us questions on our art cup holder.
Then, the next group consisting of Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Pei Chi, Isabella Wong and Janelle Tan were the next to present. For the presentation, they all decided to button up their top button of their uniform for the presentation so that they look a bit smart, as most of the time, one would not have the top button buttoned but only the bottom button. Sometimes, it would be different seeing one in a fully buttoned-up shirt. They then presented about their product. Afterwards, it was Daryl Yeo's group that presented.
After the Business Studies presentation, we went back to 10N for our Combined Science lesson. Ms Sangeetha revealed our finalized marks for the Science presentation. I got a C all thanks to the nonsensical malfunction of the entire slideshow. It would have had been the best presentation ever. Ms Sangeetha also told us about the exam structure for the Combined Science exam. It was the same as the Mid Year Examination. Paper 1 would consist of a multiple choice question, Paper 3 would be a subjective question which carries most weightage, and Paper 6 would be the Scientific Experiments written paper, also known as the Alternative to Practical.
Then, during Economics, we learned about market structures, namely perfect competition and monopoly. “Not the Monopoly game ya!” cried Ms Levina. “Who has played Monopoly before?” asked Ms Levina. A lot of people played the game, including me.
A perfect competition market setup is a market that has many sellers and buyers. This means that many companies try to compete to have the best profit, such as restaurants. However, a monopoly is a market that is dominated by one company, such as electricity, which is run by Tenaga Nasional Berhad. It is easy for one to set up shop in a perfect competition market setup as there are little to no restrictions compared to a monopoly market setup where strict criteria and circumstances impede entry into the market. Ms Levina also taught us about the goals of perfect competition and monopoly. Then, Brandon Ooi was playing his phone. Again. He kept it quickly. He didn't want Ms Levina to rage. In fact, the last time that Ms Levina took his phone, she was almost close to raging monster mode. Fortunately, disaster was averted.
During Maths, we learned about trigonometry and how things work there. Then, we had lunch before going for Global Perspectives. I managed to complete the Individual Report 2 on terrorism and handed it in to Mr Gallagher. And for the Art lesson, I had finished half of Prep 3. We were getting close to the exam season.
Ms Feeda told us to continue with our remaining preps. I managed to finish Prep 4 of Paper 1 and did my annotation for the prep works. Ms Feeda guided me on that. And during Art, me, Lyn Wen and Sophie debated on the two candidates’ points. It made the atmosphere really tense.
“Wei Yiang, Trump is a racist, okay?” yelled Sophie. “I hate Trump!”
“Trump is trying to prevent terrorism,” I said, telling her of how important terrorism around the world is more important than other petty matters like unity or diversity which Hillary Clinton is promoting, when the whole world is attacked. “We had an ISIS attack in Malaysia, and a lot of European countries suffered terrorist attacks all because of ISIS,” I pleaded. “We are not safe, you know. How can we expect to talk about racism when we are attacked by terrorists? The world is not safe, you know. I am so scared of terrorists.”
Sophie was unhappy with that. “So what? I am scared of being bombed or killed too, but we can't do anything about it. Even Trump can’t do anything about it,” she said.
Enisha then came up to me. “Wei Yiang, Trump will lose,” she said. “Clinton will win.”
“I don't care!” I cried. “You don't understand what Trump means! He does not mean to be racist!”
Ms Feeda told us to calm down. She came to me. “What's the matter?” she asked. I showed her my prep work with the annotations. “You really need to work on your neatness of your painting, okay? You cannot get a C like this,” she said.
Ms Feeda then told us that the same situation for our Art Exam in the Final Year Examination would also be the same setup as the Mid Year Examination. Like its predecessor, the Art and Design Final Year Examination will consist of an eight-hour exam, with four hours a day; two before break and two after break, from 8:00am to 10:00am and 10:20am to 12:20pm. Paper 1 would occur on 4th and 5th October, and Paper 2 on 6th and 7th October. The day before the exam, 3rd October, was the Awal Muharram public holiday. It was similar to the Mid Year Examination for Art and Design from 3rd to 6th May; the 2nd was a replacement holiday for Labour Day.
“Don't worry! Don't need to be scared! Just focus on your Final Piece,” said Ms Feeda. She told us that we will have time after the exam to finish our Prep Works if we were not able to finish. “I will set the dateline for that,” said Ms Feeda.
The next morning, Ms Sangeetha did some Paper 6 questions with us in the class, and Cikgu Niely outlined the format for the Malay examination. Ms Chithra continued with the Business Studies presentation, and Yew Jan was playing all the time in the class till Ms Chithra shouted at him so many times. We also learned about firm size and integration in Economics which we also learned in Business Studies at the start of the year. Ms Levina was happy that we had advanced knowledge. Brandon Ooi then played his Pokemon Game, talked to his friends, and did so many obnoxious things that Ms Levina had to keep on telling him to keep his phone. “Please, ya, I can get very angry. Don't make me drag you to Ms Lim's office,” said Ms Levina in a close-to-angry tone. The whole class quietened and Grace had a shivering mood on Ms Levina's emotion, before Ms Levina gave us exercises. We then had lunch, and then the rest of the day went normally but.
Mr Thomas even showed us clips and videos of CNN, a US-based news agency, on 27th September 2016, during our English lesson in conjunction with the previous day's United States Presidential Debate. He said it is better to listen to CNN as they are the first one to report any news on the presidential election. Mr Thomas also took time to show the US presidential debates to us and evaluate the speakers during the class. I cheered when Trump spoke, and my friends got angry with me. This was because I expressed my support for Donald Trump. I had watched his Republican National Convention speech and I liked it.
The first 2016 US Presidential Election Debate took place on 26th September 2016, and Mr Thomas played the video in class to allow us to gauge the communication between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and their intonations during the debate.
To win the United States presidential election, a candidate must win a total of 270 electoral votes. Each US state is given a certain number of electoral votes based on the number of representatives and senators elected to the US Congress in Washington, D.C. There are two leading contenders for the 2016 presidential election; Donald Trump from the Republican Party, and Hillary Clinton from the Democratic Party, aside from other candidates such as Jill Stein from the Green Party and Gary Johnson from the Libertarian Party. Ultimately, Republicans and Democrats form the bulkbone of American politics.
A lot of debates between me and my friends occurred in class, during break and lunch, and during our free time as well as on Edmodo in the lead-up to the election which was held on 8th November 2016. Mr Thomas, Mr Gallagher and a bunch of friends debated about Trump v. Hillary Clinton, the opposing candidate for Trump. It was a healthy debate, but on some occasions the debates spiraled out of control. The case that I placed for Trump to be president was that I have seen his strictness in doing business, and that such a leader would be good to become president. Personally, I think that Trump is a very firm person and that the progress he did in his business demonstrates his capability to be the US president. Time after time, I have seen snippets of videos saying what if Trump really became president. I was hoping it would become true because it would be something great in my opinion. Having a firm leader would put the United States on progress as I have not seen the same courage personally in previous US presidents.
28th September 2016 was also the LAST Economics lesson that I had with Ms Levina, as I would be headed for the Art Exam the following week. At the end of the lesson, I gave Ms Levina a hug and thanked her for her lessons. I would really miss her lessons. “Take care, Wei Yiang. All the best for your exams,” said Ms Levina. “Good luck in Year 11.”
During break time, Caleb Chuang was furiously studying. He had told me not to disturb him again, and had asked for all Nobel Cup-related information to be delayed until the end of the exams.
Our last Character Transformation lesson before the Final Year Examination was to do a personality test based on the Holland Code. It was quite interesting. Ms Sangeetha and Cikgu Niely had their final lesson with us Art students. And we have reached the last Bible Knowledge lesson ever.
To cap off a long year of Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee allowed Joseph and Joshua to play some praise and worship songs to celebrate the end of the last lesson before the exams. Ms Renee also prayed for us before our test.
We did our strength test the next day, 29th September. It was gruelling work as we did the strength test. Then, I brought my football to play with Wei Zhong. Sean Mark was even surprised I had a ball to play with Caleb Chuang. Surprisingly, Wei Zhong, Joshua and Joseph liked the ball. I would normally keep my football in a plastic bag and bring it only for PE lessons and return it to the class. I managed to finish Paper 1's Prep 3 during the Art lesson, and subsequently started Prep 4 after Ms Feeda checked my work.
30th September was the last day before the Art exam. We took our class photograph that day. Before we took our class photo, we took a photo of the Editorial Board committee members. We smiled happily. I was happy to fulfill my dream of being in the Editorial Board after four years of chasing for the job. It was an honor to write for the school newsletter.
All Year 10 classes were doing photoshoots. We had to do two poses; a formal pose and a crazy pose. I hugged Cassandra on the second, and Enisha made it a big deal by scolding me in the process. Brandon and Enisha wished I was demerited. However, I felt like I was just doing a crazy pose and apologized to Cassandra, who was accepting of my apology. Lyn Wen said it is not good to do such a pose because it is uncomfortable to some people. In fact, Cassandra was uncomfortable which was why I apologized.
Mr Thomas then looked at the presidential debates online once again. He asked me for my thoughts of Trump. I told him that he was a great man and was fit to be president. Mr Thomas scuffed on that prospect. We then handed in our newspaper coursework. Mr Thomas liked my design of the newspaper with the World Trade Center on it.
I managed to complete Prep 4 in the nick of time as well. And my Global Perspectives work was handed in. Finally. As I bid adieu to the last class of the week with Mr Gallagher, all that was on my mind was the Art Exam, the Final Year Examination, the US Presidential Election and the Nobel Cup. We need to make the best of the last days of the Year 10 era, as Year 11 is on its way. The final year in Nobel. I don't want the school to close so soon. I miss all my friends.
After a three-day long weekend courtesy of Awal Muharram, the Art Exam kicks off.
The Art Exam kicked off on Tuesday, 4th October 2016. Ms Feeda had plenty on her plate that morning. Running at the same time as our Art and Design Final Year Examination is also the Art and Design Actual IGCSE Examination. In fact, the previous week, Ms Feeda was really busy and told us not to disturb her, especially those planning to come during break to do the prep works. Ms Feeda had allowed us to do the prep works during break, lunch and after school.
Me and Yi Ruth were involved in both the exams. For Yi Ruth, it was her final paper for Art, Paper 2. My mum, Yi Ruth and I chatted while on the way to school for our exams. Yi Ruth was my neighbor and follows me to school. I invited her to join Nobel International School.
Anyhow, I arrived at school to have breakfast with her in the canteen as we chat on the Art and Design exam. Then, Ms Feeda passed and the both of us waved at her. Ms Feeda wished the both of us the very best. Yi Ruth would do her exam in the Year 11 classrooms on the second floor, while my Art Exam would be held in the Art Studio.
After the assembly ended, I went back to my class for Reading Time and took my art supplies to the Art Studio. I informed Ms Sangeetha that I would head for the Art Exam. She wished me all the best.
I arrived at the Art Studio at 8:00am. Ms Feeda told us to take our prep work, which was wrapped in plastic wrapping; one for each of us. The plastic wrapping contains four of our prep works inside from Prep 1 to Prep 4. We were doing Paper 1 today.
Ms Praveen, Ms Sim, Ms Sha, Ms Yew and Ms Feeda were present in the Art Studio. I greeted Ms Praveen. Then, I plopped down on my seat. Ms Feeda and Ms Praveen were switching on the computer and loading a series of songs some of us in class had requested. I did not request for songs at the time. There were K-POP songs and one very famous song titled ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. There were also classical music and western songs present, which we also loaded before in our Art lessons.
“Okay Year 10 students! Please settle down! Take your prep work!” cried Ms Feeda. I sat at the seat closest to the sink. Then, Ms Praveen opened the music player application on the computer once everyone was done settling down and ready.
“Faster! Faster! You are already late!” cried Ms Praveen, as some people were still dilly-dallying.
Chee Kei and the other girls were frantically trying to get things ready. Ms Sha went out and gestured for everyone to enter the room quickly. Then, we were settled. Ms Feeda walked around, checking on us.
“Okay, Year 10 Art students, please listen carefully. We are going to start a bit late since some of you are late. We will end at 10:20am,” she said. So, you will need to go for your break time at 10:20am.
Then, once we were ready, we were told to start.
I picked up my pencils, referred to my Prep 4, placed it against the pillar of the art studio, and begun to trace a picture of my spades, gardening tools and banana peels that I have painted and set up at home. Ms Praveen then played some vocal music from the music track. It took me 10 minutes to sketch the entire painting. Then afterwards I checked that something wasn't right, so I kept on erasing some parts. The sketches and redrawing them to ensure that they were accurate and inconsistent with the prep work that I have painted.
After 20 minutes of sketching. I then proceeded to fill up my water container and readied my brush and paint. I took care to ensure that the paint was consistent with the toning and the picture that I have drawn in my prep work and to make it look as realistic as possible.
I then begun sketching the primary surface colors of the prep work, regularly checking and ensuring that everything was okay. Ms Feeda then left the Art Studio and wished us the best of luck. “I am going to check on the Year 11 now,” she said, heading to the Year 11 classes. The IGCSE exam had also started. Barricades were placed at the Year 11 classrooms for their exam.
I focused on painting my spade in the picture. Then, I tried to ensure that the silvery surface of my spade's handle was a perfect representation of the light and toning that is being represented. I concentrated as hard as possible. Then, once the surface colors were done, I add shades of black, brown, grey and white to denote a realistic surface of my spade. I spent the first two hours just perfecting the spade. I focused so much on the spade till it looked nice and neat. It looked realistic. Well, in Art and Design, you can't just apply color like that. The painting must look like it had been printed on HD desk printer.
Everyone did their part. Chu Xiang focused on his work. He had a serious look on his face. Yi Zhen also painted her painting. No one could beat her in her work. Rosemund, Chee Kei and Sophie all concentrated. Ms Sha took care of us when Ms Praveen and Ms Sim left.
Soon, it was break time. Ms Praveen told us to stop our painting. Ms Feeda was back to coordinate us. We were told to have 20 minutes of our time. By this time, the Year 10s had finished their break time. I washed my hands, ate my breakfast, and then proceeded as quickly as possible back to the Art Studio. While having breakfast, I sat down with Sophie Tan, Yi Zhen and Lyn Wen to eat my breakfast. We also chatted about Mr Thomas’ presidential debates video. It was a rough chat. Then, I had a short chat with Glen. He told me not to worry on the Business Studies assignment. We then returned to the Art Studio. Ms Praveen and Ms Feeda told us to settle down. For the second half of the exam, we started at 10:45am and ended at 12:45pm.
The second half of the exam was invigilated by Mr Narish, who walked confidently, patrolling the art studio. He had a calm look as he invigilated us. Meanwhile, I focused on my Paper 1 final piece. I painted the rest of the painting. Now, I had to paint the garden cutter and the garden hoe. Just like the spade, I worked my way carefully. I needed to make the painting look realistic. It was difficult to do those, so I focused on touching up the two banana peels first. It was very easy to do as banana was an organic product.
From a non-Art and Design IGCSE student, the prep works look beautiful. Excellent masterpieces of art. However, it is due to the strictness of Art and Design that the most beautiful painting might not even get a C grade in Art and Design IGCSE, no thanks to the highest standards of the exam.
Anyhow, I managed to paint the banana and touch it up. Then, I painted the banana peel in similar fashion. Easy peasy. It was cool. Mr Narish then left for his class and was replaced by Ms Ambiga. Soon, it was already 11:45am. An hour left to go. I then started working on the garden hoe and cutter. It was tough, and I fumbled many times. Then, Ms Feeda came back to the Art Studio after spending time with Year 11 students. We stopped and proceeded back to our classes. “Leave your prep work on the table,” said Ms Feeda. Then, Christopher Chew accidentally took his final piece out to dry. I told him to leave the art stationery in the room, to which he did.
When we returned to Maths, Ms Levina was teaching and I settled down. She had put her notes for me on the table. She then gave me work to do and told me to complete the work in my exercise book. Then, we went for lunch, and San Ying and I debated about Trump. Yi Zhen, Sophie and all our great people from Art and Design IGCSE talked about it.
In Nobel International School, it is considered taboo to talk about politics in school, especially Malaysian politics, due to the race and religious nature of the political situation. The situation in the United States is much more kinder, but it still incites hatred when two people are on different politically opposing views.
For this lunch-time discussion, Yi Zhen and I talked with San Ying on the electoral map composition. New York City and New York State are reliably Democratic Party-leaning. Almost every big city and major state like California, Washington State, Oregon, Massachusetts and New Jersey were Democratic strongholds at the time.
We then returned for our classes. Ms Visa continued to give us revision for our Final Year Examination and we just rested in the class.
The next day, 5th October, was the second day of our Art Exam. We came for our second half of the Paper 1 exam. We gathered in the courtyard as the morning begun. Then, I continued to talk about Trump with Sophie and San Ying.
Sophie was in denial. “Nobody likes Trump,” she said. “You're the only one in this whole school who supports Trump. Even the elementary kids do not support Trump,” she groaned.
We then continued to talk about the whole presidential election episode and also the composition of the electoral map. I had watched CNN at home many times prior, including the previous. The newscasters said that it is difficult for Trump to win.
The morning begun with Ms Lim ranting on people who were talking during assembly. Ms Bee Yong told us to be seated as she talked to us about how we were entering the examination season once again.
“You know what? It is now October, and you will have your exams. Year 10, yours will be next week. For the rest, it will be two weeks later,” she said. “Continue to put effort in your studies but also get ample rest at the same time,” she said. Mr Narish also informed us about the Nobel Cup details. The Nobel Cup 2016 will take place at iM4U Sentral in Puchong, which is next to the Bandar Puteri neighborhood. My house is 5km away from the sports complex. There would be five tournaments contested for Nobel Cup 2016: Basketball, Football, Badminton, Table Tennis and Netball. All tournaments will be at iM4U Sentral except for Badminton and Table Tennis. There would also be three categories, namely KS3 (Year 7 and 8), KS4 (Year 9 and 10) and a mixed, open category. I jotted all the details in my Student Organizer, ready to present them to Caleb Chuang.
We were told to leave for the Art Studio immediately after the assembly ended. Most of us took our bags to the studio. We collected our preps as Ms Feeda switched on the songs for us to listen. It was our second day of exams, and I had to complete the Paper 1 Final Piece by that day.
I begun by painting and drawing the background. It was easy to do. Then, I focused on shadows. I concentrated and focused on making a perfect shadow using my pen, pencil and paint.
Soon, it was break time. We left our art utensils aside and went to the canteen for our break time, which we sat down and talked again. I managed to get the English work from Mr Thomas and jotted the task in my Student Organizer. Then, I continued talking about the presidential election at the canteen table.
San Ying said that New York and other big cities are predominantly Democratic. “Republicans cannot win there,” she said.
“Actually, actually,” said Sophie, groaning, “Why do you support Trump?”
I told Sophie about the World Trade Center and the plan by Trump to rebuild the Twin Towers as it would show a sign to terrorists who destroyed the skyscrapers on 9/11. I also spoke to her about how the US had the biggest role in controlling terrorism worldwide, and told her that Trump's stance is for America to not be coerced by the terrorists. Hence, his notion was to show solidarity against terrorism.
“The two men who bombed the Movida bar were from ISIS,” I begun.
“They're Malaysians, so? That doesn't mean that they were connected to ISIS,” Sophie responded.
“The grenade exploded and injured people. Luckily I wasn't there. I was with my neighbor at his house that evening,” I said. “And for the Twin Towers, Trump planned to rebuild it! I used it as the basis for my coursework for English,” I said.
San Ying then criticized the border wall that Trump was planning to do. “He is purposely building a wall on the border with Mexico. To stop immigrants. Immigrants are people who have no home, no food and so on. They want a better life. Many Malaysians emigrate to the US too,” she said. I told her that even so, the border fencing is already dilapidated and needed to be replaced. “It's just him upgrading the infrastructure. The wall is broken,” I said.
“He might've just build a wall around the United States,” replied San Ying.
We then went back to the Art Studio for our second half of the test. Ms Feeda then went and invigilated the Year 11s once again. Then, she returned to the Art Studio to meet us. I was focusing on touching up the painting. I had put a lot of nice shadows under the objects along with some toning to make it look 3D. Then, once it was done, I just sat down and rested as the time approached for the exam to end.
“Okay, students, please stop. Your exam is over,” said Ms Praveen. Ms Feeda was back. Everyone took their paint utensils and washed up. Ms Feeda then gave us a piece of paper which we had to write down our name, class and painting title as part of examination procedures. All of us were told to put our prep work at a table in the Art Studio. Ms Feeda then brought her large briefcase and put the prep works into it.
“Year 10 students! Don't enter the other studio! I am going to have a surprise for the Year 11s! Please don't touch the food! Later everything will all be spoilt,” said Ms Feeda. “Please don't tell them as well!” Ms Feeda was planning to throw a party for the Year 11s to celebrate the conclusion of their Art and Design IGCSE Examination.
We then went back for our Character Transformation session in the hall. Ms Renee was telling everyone about the next plans for the Dignity project. Ms Sarah was there as well, talking to us. She said that some people had requested to Ms Renee that a second picnic be brought up on the 27th October 2016. This time, we would be the ones visiting Dignity, and the students there would entertain us. Ms Renee said that the picnic was still being planned and they would finalize the arrangements for us following our Final Year Examination. We then went for lunch, and San Ying and I continued to talk about Trump. On another note, I asked her what did Mr Thomas do in class that morning. “He just gave us work. Nothing much," she said. We then returned for Malay, as Cikgu Niely briefed us on our Final Year Examination format. Then, Ms Sangeetha came into the class.
“Class, I want to let you know that I will be leaving Nobel at the end of next month,” she said.
“Huh? Why?” cried Grace and Enisha. “Ms Sangeetha, don't leave!” cried Enisha.
Ms Sangeetha said that it was a very wonderful time teaching us and that we had learnt a lot from her and vice versa.
“Who will be our Combined Science teacher next year?” asked Brandon. Ms Sangeetha said that Mr Lee Eng Hoe would take over from her and will teach us the following year.
Wait a minute. Mr Lee? The Physics teacher? Yes. Him. Brandon Ooi was surprised. It would be Mr Lee, the funny Physics teacher, that would teach us in 2017.
“I thought he teaches Physics only?” asked Brandon.
Ms Sangeetha said that Mr Lee had taught Combined Science in the past and he had taught Combined Science for many years, so she said that Mr Lee is very experienced in teaching Combined Science and expected us to give our full cooperation to him.
“You will all be excited to have Mr Lee as your teacher. You all will definitely have fun in Mr Lee's class. He is a very funny teacher and I hope that all of you will enjoy his lesson,” said Ms Sangeetha.
Everyone was talking about Mr Lee. We all recalled how he actually had fun with his classes, especially 10O, and 10L. And as a result, we were all very excited as to what Mr Lee would present to us.
Ms Sangeetha said that she was leaving Nobel because she wanted to take care of her young baby at the time. She said that being in Nobel consistently for a longer period of time would disrupt her concerns as a mother for her children and that she needed time to take care of her baby. We talked in class about how Mr Lee would conduct his lessons. His lessons were so funny, and were the next tourists.
Then, we had Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee spent the entire lesson discussing about our exams and how we would answer. Then, she gave each one of us an individual consultation. She told me that the problem with me in Bible Knowledge was that I did not write according to the Scriptures found in the book of Matthew and the book of Acts. On another note, I told Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew about Mr Lee taking over our Combined Science lessons.
“Mr Lee is a very nice and funny teacher. You will like his lesson,” said Joshua. Joseph also congratulated me for getting Mr Lee as my teacher. I then told Caleb Chuang about the proposed Bullseye strategy. “Not now, after exams,” he said.
Additionally, I also passed up the Bible Knowledge coursework containing the map of Paul's travels. Joshua, Joseph and Caleb Chuang liked the map, which was leminated.
The next day, Thursday, 6th October 2016, was the third day of the Art Exam. It was also the first day of Paper 2 of the Art and Design Examination.
Paper 2 is a design-based paper. And the morning was spent to gather in the courtyard. Cassandra told Caleb Chuang that I am going to paint his name on Art and Design Paper 2. He just winked. “He is drawing a magazine with your name,” said Cassandra.
Just like the first day, the second paper was similar in procedure, but different in aesthetics. Immediately after we went up for Reading Time, the Art students went down to the Art Studio to begin the all-important Paper 2. Lyn Wen was chanting loudly, “When life gives you lemons, get some therapy!”
It was all about lemons. A design based on lemons.
When we arrived at the art studio, Ms Praveen and Ms Feeda were setting up the art studios. At the right-hand corner of the Art Studio on a white table adjacent to the concrete tables in the middle of the art studio were our Paper 2 preps placed in plastic wrapping. We were each told to take our preps. Some people were fooling around and Ms Praveen told them to hurry up.
“Faster hurry up! Your exam is starting!” cried Ms Praveen.
Miss Feeda then opened the media player on the computer and started playing the songs. We were then given the command to begin the exam. I spent at least 30 minutes to trace out the diagram of the magazine. It was much easier doing Paper 2 than Paper 1 because there is no need for extensive fine art in Paper 2.
Once I had done tracing the magazine out, I went to collect some water from the sink and filled my container with water. Armed with my apron, paint-drying cloth and some brush and paint, I begun to paint the background and graphic of the magazine. During the exam, the K-POP song started playing. “Eh! Don't get excited!” cried Ms Feeda as she took aim at Chee Kei and Eugenie.
Then, we went for break. We had a short meal. And then we returned for our second round of Paper 2. Ms Feeda was getting ready. We did the Paper 2. Quite easy to do for me, particularly the title said “Weileb Times”. All the Art students gave the thumbs up for my design.
During the middle of the second session of the day, Ms Praveen switched off the songs. She said that she will not play any songs since some people were not concentrating on the exam. “There will also be no songs tomorrow,” she said. Some people were sad, but at least, I don't feel disturbed.
Once the exam was over, Ms Praveen then gave everyone in the class a lecture. “This is an exam. You are not supposed to talk in the exam. Some of you were talking. And also some of you are not taking this exam seriously. You must understand that this exam is actually your Final Year Examination and you are supposed to behave as if you are sitting for an exam, just like how you would sit for other subjects. I don't understand how some of you still don't understand simple, basic exam rules,” said Ms Praveen.
There was a sense of seriousness in the room. The teachers were disappointed with the disorderly conduct of the examination. They folded their arms in anguish, staring at us like police investigators. “This is not your normal art lesson. This is an exam,” said Ms Praveen. Ms Feeda was also very disappointed as well. “Next time, no more songs for you if you continue to be like that,” she said. “The Year 11s are much better than you. They were sitting for their IGCSE, you know. We also gave them music, yet they are still able to concentrate,” added Ms Feeda.
Ms Sim then told us to reflect on ourselves. “I want to see improvements for tomorrow. Do I make myself clear?” asked Ms Praveen. We all said yes. Then, Ms Feeda gave some announcements on our next day's arrangements. Then, she made another announcement.
“I see that some of you have not written your names on your Paper 1 final piece. Whose one is this? Whose is this?” asked Ms Feeda, showing the two final pieces from Paper 1. “If you did not come and claim your final piece, you will get 0 for your exam,” she said. Then, Ms Feeda told us that there were also some people's prep works that were not filed. She told those who had not filed their prep work properly to keep them in the plastic wrapper and put the prep work into her briefcase.
“Also another thing. Some of you are not punctual for the exam. When the exam starts, please do not wait. Tell your teachers that you need to do your Art and Design examination,” said Ms Praveen. “We will start at eight o’ clock sharp. Please be punctual. And please follow exam instructions. Some of you are still painting even though you were asked to stop,” said Ms Praveen.
“I hope to see improvements tomorrow ya,” said Ms Praveen. “Thank you.”
It was our Art lesson, and we stayed in the Art Studio and did our own things. Ms Feeda told us to put the Paper 2 Final Piece on the white table on the right-hand corner of the studio for drying purposes. “You can also put them in Studio 3,” she said. Then, we cleared everything up and we proceeded for our lunch thereafter.
When we returned to class, it was History, and Ms Visa then told us to do our own revision and discussed the History exam with us. The topics covered would be that from the beginning of the year. Then, we had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us our presentation marks.
Friday, 7th October was the final day of the Art and Design examination. During the morning assembly, we were told to clear all our baskets and books and everything from our desks and rearrange them to allow the classroom to be reconfigured in examination format. All the Art students quickly went to the Art Studio for the final slot for the Art and Design exam when Ms Praveen announced during assembly on that.
Ms Feeda was waiting for us in the Art Studio, and Ms Sim was there too. “No talking please,” she said sternly. Ms Feeda told us to take our preps. I filled up my water container. “Do not start yet,” warned Ms Sim. “Follow the exam rules.”
Ms Praveen then came in. “There will be no music for the first half of the exam. If you all are good, we will play the music,” she said.
I managed to touch up the painting and waited most of the time. The font was quite good and comprehensive. Then, I traced most of my fonts using black ink. The lemon was the only one with toning. I used a pencil to touch it up.
Then, it was break time, and I had breakfast with Caleb Chuang. Enisha and Sophie came to him. “Wei Yiang really drew your name during the Art exam,” they cried.
“What?” asked Caleb Chuang. “Why? Why did you do it?” he groaned. Then, I told him that it was “Weileb” instead of Caleb.
“But it indirectly refers to Caleb, so yeah, you wrote his name,” Enisha said with an evil grin.
The second half of the exam was good. “We will play the songs now,” said Ms Sim. Some people had smiled. Then, once the exam was over, everyone was happy and grinned. “Okay, Year 10 students, time's up. Stop writing. I mean, stop painting!” cried Ms Praveen. Everyone laughed. We washed our items and Ms Feeda then gave us a slip to write on the Final Piece which indicated our name. Then, we went back to class for our Global Perspectives lesson.
During Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher and I continued to discuss the electoral composition of the United States. I was limited in my electoral knowledge of the US at the time; I was only banking for Trump to win. At the same time, he was telling us the format of the Global Perspectives exam. I went back to my class, packed all my books, and took them home after the end of the exam. The class was reconfigured to the examination format.
The Final Year Examination was a bit more lukewarm than the Mid Year Examination, as there was, of course, the absence of Mr Aram, and also the fact that each of us were more accepting of each other being in different classes. Each time when we had no exams during the examination day, we gathered together and spent time together, enjoying ourselves when we were not studying.
Finally, after five months, the wrecked, annoying timetable was disrupted and we were able to remain in our own class. It was the first day of a long week of exams, and I feel relieved of having the luxury of staying in my own class. Sadly, I had exams every day, so we need to have some form of revision. No lax and chill, unlike the Mid Year Examination, where I had a day of no exams on 19th May 2016.
The morning of the exams on 10th October 2016 was kicked off by Ms Bee Yong's lasting piece of advice to us. “Your exams are just part of the learning process. The purpose of having examinations is not to punish, not to talk about the marks, but to find out where your mistakes are and learn to grow from them. Okay? We all make mistakes, and we are not perfect, but by knowing where you went wrong, you can improve from there,” said Ms Bee Yong, advising us Year 10 students in the hall. “For Year 7, 8 and 9, your exams will begin next week,” she said.
Trudging back to our class, we got ready for the first exam of the day. ICT Theory students were having their first exams and were using 10B and 10E. Those students had to come to 10N while the examinations took place in those classes.
Mr Nehru, my Maths tuition teacher, had given me past year papers for IGCSE to do during Maths tuition classes. So, I picked up my past year papers and tried to answer the questions. Then, I went to see Ze Khai and Nickolas before they got ready for the ICT paper. It was a very good time being refreshed in the class.
The cool air blew in my face as I did some work in Maths. Then, I also took some time when being free to play the Hockminton game with Krystal Goh. Every now and then since August, we would play hockminton in the class. I can still remember clearly very well Caleb Chuang and I volunteering during Mr Victor's PE lesson to demonstrate the moves as well as the hockey game.
Mr Raja, who came into the class for Accounting, sat down in his seat and talked to Ivyna and Sheng Jit before reading a book by Robert Kiyosaki. He also told everyone to keep their voices down as to not disturb people who were studying. After playing a short Hockminton game on the table, I then continued my Maths work.
Then, I peered at the window facing the courtyard. A long queue of Year 9 students was present. They were sitting the Cambridge Checkpoint Examination. They were walking into the hall. It was just twelve months prior that I sat the Checkpoint Exam in the school hall. I would soon sit an exam in the school hall in another twelve months. How fast did time flew by.
Soon, it was break time, and I asked Caleb Chuang how was his ICT exam. “Okay,” he replied.
I plopped down at the canteen table and greeted San Ying. She told me that Trump had said sexist remarks regarding a woman.
“He called her using the p word!” cried Sophie. “He had no respect for women!” she cried, referencing a tape published days prior on 7th October 2016 regarding an Access Hollywood recording shot in Los Angeles. Trump was discussing certain things with a manager and had talked about women in the video. He had said some bad words in the video as well.
“But he had apologized. I had checked the news. He meant it to be private,” I said.
“Even though it is private, he already berated women,” said Lyn Wen, trying to get certain information known to me.
The previous day on 9th October 2016, the second presidential debate was held and I had watched the debate at home on my computer. Most of the debates revolved around Access Hollywood. However, I just shrugged this off, focusing my attention on Trump's economic plans and his action plan against terrorism.
“But terrorism is more important than such a petty issue,” I pleaded. “Our lives and safety are at sake. I could have had been attacked by ISIS.”
“But we also live in Puchong!” cried San Ying. She and Sophie were also from Puchong as well, where the terrorist grenade attack took place. “We are not as scared as you.”
Then, it was the English First examination. The exam took place in 10L. I quickly took my transparent pencil case and proceeded to 10L for the examination. Mr Lee was in the class, waiting for us. He was about to hand out the exam papers for the exam.
“Okay, okay, please keep your books and so on. Pens and pencils on the table,” said Mr Lee. When everyone was done, he handed out the papers to us. “You may start now. All the best,” instructed Mr Lee. We opened our papers and attempted the questions.
One hour into the examination, things seemed pretty well. Things were going smoothly. Then, suddenly, I saw my ink from my pen slowly fading. Something was wrong. Then, the pen ran out of ink.
Oh dear. I am doomed.
I then took another pen and continued writing. Things appeared to move smoothly. Five minutes later, the ink quantity in the pen ran out as well.
Oh no.
Then, I tried the third pen. I took it out and wrote. I was nervous. I could see the ink quantity. I tried my luck. The ink ran out as well. And that was the last pen available. I had taken all my pens for the exam. There was no other pen in the pencil case.
The instructions on the examination paper clearly indicated that answers would only be accepted in blue or black ballpoint pen. Gel pen was prohibited, as it would smear the paper.
I raised my hand and told Mr Lee about the issue. “Can't help you. Sorry,” he said, packing up and leaving the class. Mr Nick was coming in for the Chemistry lesson. He took over from Mr Lee and continued to invigilate us.
I decided to take the boldest risk of them all. I decided to write in pencil. Carrying the guilt of shame, I then wrote in pencil to complete the last question. Then, the exam was done, and Mr Nick collected the papers.
Now, I panicked. What would happen to my English paper? Would I fail the exam because of a malfunctioned pen? And for the Maths exam, I would need to borrow a new pen for the exam.
I returned to class. “Ivyna, is it okay if I borrow your pen? My pen ran out of ink,” I asked.
“Sure, I will give it to you after lunch,” said Ivyna.
We went for lunch, and I spoke with San Ying and Caleb Chuang on the worries of my pen. They said it will be fine, but Kit Lee was surprised. “How come you didn't check the ink before going for your exam?” she asked. I told her I thought I had enough ink to last the day.
When I returned to class, I made sure that I checked my calculator if it was working. If that one broke down, I will be finished. Ivyna then gave me a pen, and Mr Andrew entered into the class. He carried a large stack of examination papers, plopped them down on the table, and told everyone to get ready for the Maths exam, which begins at 1:45pm. I sat down in my assigned seat behind the class, and got my Geometry Set, tracing paper, calculator, pencils and Ivyna's pen ready for the test.
“Don't start yet,” said Mr Andrew, handing us the papers. “You can write your name and class,” he said. Then, once he handed the papers out, he told us to check the number of pages. Some people groaned when they saw the questions. “I said no talking,” warned Mr Andrew. Then, we begun the exam.
The curtains behind the class were pushed open to let the natural light into the classroom. I could feel the sun blazing outside. While doing the Maths exam, I had thought of the TM Internet pole installation and the discussion that I had with my residents association back then on the pole. There was disruption to the greens behind my house no thanks to my garden being in the route of the pole. The TM contractors had put up the pole on 16th August. Originally, it was to be in front of my house, but I had requested it to be moved as the original location would disrupt the plants. The contractors installed it at the rear end of another planting area away from my house. The hot sun reminded me of my time outside doing gardening projects and also watching the TM contractors install the poles elsewhere. They had placed the poles for standby in a park near my house, and used lorries to cart the poles for final installation. They had a drill to erect the poles. And it occurred during the Olympic Games period.
I tried to finish the paper, but some questions were too difficult to tackle. Then, the time was up, and Mr Raja collected the papers. Louis was still doing the paper, which led to Mr Raja asking him to turn in the paper. Time was up. I returned the pen to Ivyna and went home, doing a bit of cycling in my neighborhood for an hour, thinking of my unfinished paper. In fact, I almost forgot to give the pen back to Ivyna. Luckily I gave it to her before I left.
The second day of exams arrived. It was raining that morning, so we arrived at class early. We had our reading time and then the Biology exam was ongoing. We were told to stay in our class till break time.
Ms Sangeetha told us to study for our next paper. I then peered outside. It was the second day of the Checkpoint Exam. The Mathematics paper was ongoing. The Year 9s queued into the hall. Then, Ms Sangeetha asked me to sit down and do my work. I told her I was looking at the students going into the hall. “What is there to look?” she asked.
Brandon Ooi then played AZ Tanks on his computer. Ms Sangeetha asked him to keep the computer. “I am doing my GP report,” he said. Ryan Chok and Shane agreed. They smiled and said they were doing Global Perspectives work.
Ms Sangeetha did not buy the excuse and asked them to put their computers away. I peered at my History textbook, examining it. The History exam would commence with Paper 1 after break time.
Speaking about History, I told San Ying that Trump would be a good fit to mend ties with arch-enemies of the United States like Russia and North Korea, and that there would be lasting world peace as a result. San Ying did not buy the idea of Trump meeting Kim Jong Un, the Supreme Leader of North Korea. She asked why a mentally deranged person who doesn't understand American foreign policy be put in the Oval Office. “This man would start wars. He likes to fight with people, and he will definitely start a war with Russia or North Korea,” said San Ying. Russia is the superimposing rival of the United States, and North Korea maintains a demilitarized zone with South Korea. I had seen a video of North Korea that was animated to show missiles raining into Seoul. The United States had generally opposed these two nations as they present a threat to democracy.
“But if that was the case, why does Trump keep on mentioning that he wanted to meet Kim Jong Un? Won't he want peace as well?” I asked.
“Wei Yiang, you don't understand. Trump always lies. He tells lies to everyone in his rallies. A lot of things he said are fake,” said Sophie. “Trump is just saying fake things. Please don't believe him,” she warned. Trump would meet Kim Jong Un personally in Singapore on 12th June 2018, along with an unofficial visit to the Korean Demilitarized Zone months later.
The History paper soon begun, and I proceeded to 10B for my History paper. In the class, Ms Sangeetha was there for Biology. She carried a large stack of papers. We sat down in the class. This time, I came armed with new pens that had ink. My mum purchased new pens that very evening from Got It Enterprise's stationery shop for the exam. This one was high quality exam standard ink.
Ms Sangeetha handed the papers to us and we begun the paper. The History paper was a medium-level difficulty, but I could recall what Hitler did as well as the chapters on Nazi Germany. The exam ended at 12:45pm. Then, I returned to 10N, where Ms Levina was talking to some people. I asked her what was done in the last class the previous week as I had been at the Art Exam. “Nothing much. Just revision,” she said.
We went for lunch, and I talked to San Ying about History. “Don't tell me about the History exam,” she said. She had a bad time and wanted the paper to be done about it.
“What about Trump?” I asked.
“Don't talk about Trump,” she said. “We need to rest.”
I spent time talking to Krisha and Yi Zhen instead. We just talked about the upcoming activities post-Mid Year Examination. Then, we went for our 1-hour Malay paper. Ms Bee Yan took time to talk to us about the difficulty of the Maths paper. Ms Cynthia came into the class after Ms Bee Yan's lesson. She told everyone to keep their books as the exam would begin at 2:30pm. We were having the Malay exam.
Shane, Ryan Chok, Brandon Ooi, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal requested permission to use the washroom. “Why all of you didn't go just now?” said Ms Cynthia as she groaned. Then, Sheng Jit wanted to use the loo too. Ms Cynthia was frustrated.
“Faster, go!” she cried.
When everyone returned, Ms Cynthia told us to be silent as she handed out the papers. It was an easy-peasy one-hour Malay exam. The room was silent except for the echoes of the Elementary School's dismissal time.
After the exam finished, I had a short chat with Gabriel who asked on the examination format for Combined Science before going home. I was the last to leave the room. The second day of the Final Year Exam was over.
The third day of exams dawned upon us. It was raining that morning, so we went up to class early once again. I took some time to read my Bible Knowledge books. Then, I walked around the school to have a look at the morning weather. The weather was so cool. It was refreshing for a new day, Wednesday, 12th October 2016.
Ms Cynthia took our attendance as I told her I was going for the Bible Knowledge exam. I proceeded to 10L. I was greeted by all the people taking Bible Knowledge. Alia and Andrew were also there, ready to attempt the Islamiyat paper.
Mr Nick was in the class for Chemistry. He told us to stay silent and put our things away and he handed us the papers. Everyone prayed before the exam begun. It was really a devotion to God and what was expected of us.
The paper was very challenging as there were many things to remember from the Bible that we needed to write in the exam. Clearly, I didn't know how to write as per the Scriptures as what Ms Renee said. In fact, Bible Knowledge needed a lot of studying – to know the events in order. Hence, the high difficulty level.
After the Bible Knowledge exam ended, I then went for breakfast with Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew as I watched them study for the Additional Mathematics paper. The Combined Science paper would occur that afternoon, and I took out my book and read it. Caleb Chuang and Joshua also had their Chemistry paper during my Combined Science exam.
After break, we then went to our class in 10N and then the people from 10B came over to chat. Sherwin and I had a chat. We chatted on Trump. He asked me how was the second debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
“I have watched it at home. It was cool,” I replied.
Unlike other friends who rubbish my support for Trump, Sherwin was accommodating and understanding. The Global Perspectives lesson helped us to look at different perspectives, including political perspectives. I felt that the notion of a Trump win seemed cool if it were to happen.
Mr Thomas was more accommodating to a topic on Trump than Mr Gallagher. Both of these teachers talked about it in the class to expand our perspectives on world affairs. However, Mr Gallagher felt that the topic of Trump was too much for him to bear, to a certain extent.
Sherwin then asked why did I support Trump and wanted my take on the view. I told him about the World Trade Center's Twin Towers 2, the economy and the Movida Bar Terrorist attack. “My mum has a book on Trump as well,” I said to Sherwin. He was impressed. There were two Trump books in my house.
“How can we be safe if ISIS is spreading across the world? I also wish to see the World Trade Center's Twin Towers,” I said. Sherwin then told me that 9/11 is a horrible attack and I had commemorated the attack in a post on Mr Thomas’ Edmodo page. In fact, I sent the post to all pages on Edmodo. “We must remember the lives lost on 9/11,” I said to Sherwin. He nodded.
The discussion went on and Ms Cynthia came into the class for the 10N Character Transformation time. “I don't want to hear anyone talking loudly. Shh!” she cried. “There is an exam next door.”
The Additional Mathematics exam was held in 10O, 10L and 10B. The problem is that the class was separated by a wooden wall. Gaps between the windows transmit the voice. This was the reason why I could hear laughter and Ms Levina's voice during History lessons; the gap between the window and the wooden wall was larger in 10O than 10N. Even so, some people passed messages from the gaps too.
Sherwin and I continued discussing about Trump. He said the problem that most people do not like Trump was on his rhetoric. “Sometimes, what he says can be very offensive, just like how he said he wanted to grab womens’ private parts. So that is already harassment and that is why San Ying and Sophie did not like it,” he said. I told him that Trump had already apologized, but it was really hard to make things up after a half-candid apology.
The noise level grew louder. Ms Cynthia would go like, “Shh!!!” each time the noise level rose. Then, Ms Cynthia warned that if the noise level rose again, no one would have to talk for the entire lesson. The noise level rose again. “Shh!” I cried. I told Sherwin that I will go to study my Combined Science books to avoid the noise getting louder. He gave a thumbs-up on that.
Then, the noise got louder again. I kept on saying ‘Shh!’ as the noise level grew up. “Lower your noise level!” cried Ms Cynthia. She was reading a book titled ‘The Fountain of Youth’.
I studied the Combined Science books till the end of the lesson. I communicated to my friends by writing words on paper to minimize the noise level. Jien Min, Ethan Wong and all the 10B people asked why I supported Trump. I had to give them a lot of convincing answers, all of which were ignored. They weren't convinced.
“Wei Yiang, you must understand Trump wants to ban Muslims from entering the US,” said Jien Min, calling the action a racist action. People like him, San Ying, Sophie Tan, Enisha and a few others highlighted that Trump may not be a suitable presidential candidate because of the plans he hopes to do on Muslims. The plans allegedly called for deporting illegal immigrants from the US, as well as terrorists. As Malaysia is a majority Muslim country, he was perceived to be intending to ban Malaysians and people from other countries targeted of terrorism from visiting the United States. Jien Min told me that Trump considers Muslims terrorists and that similar repercussions would occur on Malaysians. “Please think about our future,” he pleaded. We may not be able to head to America to study because of him,” he said.
It was then lunch, and San Ying and I talked about the illegal immigrants ban at the canteen table. “But it is to prevent terrorism!” I cried.
“The terrorists will come to Malaysia, so are you even more scared?” asked San Ying.
“No, because the terrorists will be caught before they even come,” I responded. Kit Lee laughed.
Finally. It was the Combined Science examination. Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok, Shane, Brandon and Eric went to the toilet again. Cikgu Niely came in with the Combined Science Paper 3. She asked everyone who wanted to use the washroom to quickly use the washroom before the start of the test. Once everyone returned, Brandon played some jokes with Shane and Eric, and they buttoned up their top button before the exams started, testing on new fashion. Cikgu Niely then handed us our paper. We then started our paper. It was tough. Louis was unable to finish the paper. And Ms Sangeetha was peering at our answers when she came in to invigilate the test. Creepy.
On the way back home, I saw Yi Zhen in her transporter's van and waved at her. She waved at me. I told my aunt it was my friend Yi Zhen who was on the way home. I have heard that she lives in Puchong, but I was surprised that Yi Zhen's van was in my neighborhood.
We entered the fourth day of examinations, 13th October 2016. I only had one paper for the day, which was Economics.
When Yi Zhen arrived at school, I called her over. “I saw you in your car!” I cried. She laughed and smiled. “I saw him in his car on the way home!” she cried. I told Lyn Wen and Cassandra about what happened.
The morning begun with almost every class having Biology Paper 4. It was so surreal. We remained in our class, and Mr Thomas came into the room. He plopped his things down on his chair and then greeted me.
“Good morning, Mr. Thomas,” I cried.
“Good morning. How are you?” asked Mr Thomas.
“I am doing good,” I replied. “Did you show the second presidential debate yesterday morning? I was having my Bible Knowledge exam and wasn't in your class,” I asked.
“Yes, I did. And I am going to show you again,” he said.
“YES!” I cried.
Mr Thomas switched on the computer. He opened YouTube and then searched for the video of the second U.S. presidential debate.
“Ah, here it is. That is the one,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas clicked on the video and then the second debate was presented on the smart board screens. I cheered. I then smiled and sat down and watched the debate. Each time Donald Trump spoke, I cheered. However, Mr Thomas told me to lower down my voice as 10O was having their Biology examination.
“Shh!!!” he cried.
The second debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump was very tense. They all talked about controversial issues, especially the ones discussed by my friends in class the previous day. I enjoy listening to the debates and kept on smiling.
“Wei Yiang, look at Trump. Look at how pestering he is,” said Kelsey, as Trump kept on putting his points forward. I told Kelsey that he was just being serious, such behavior is actually good because it shows that Trump is very serious to govern America.
“He had just berated Hillary in front of the crowd,” Kelsey continued. “He shouldn't be president. I don't want Trump to be president.”
“What if Trump wins the election? How would you feel, Kelsey?” I asked.
“Somebody please save me!” she cried.
The Biology exam soon finished, and we went for our break time. We studied Economics. I told San Ying about the books Donald Trump wrote and the presence of two of Trump's books in my house.
“Oh my goodness,” she said. “Trump again.”
“Trump is a businessman. He could improve the economy. He can compete with China,” I said, noting the slowdown of the US economy in recent years.
“You see, Sophie is very angry when hearing about Trump,” said San Ying.
“Yeah! I am angry!” cried Sophie.
“Tomorrow is Business Studies. Trump runs a business,” I said, noting the next day's Business Studies paper 1. We then got the topic over it and studied for Economics. Oh, no worries. They weren't that angry. We made up.
“Oh, I saw Yi Zhen on the way home yesterday,” I told Sophie.
“She told me she saw you as well!” cried Sophie.
We then went for our next exam. The exam was on Economics Paper 1. It was easy, and it was held in 10N. I put my books away after returning from break time. The five heroes who went to the toilet before the exams went again. They were playing basketball during break time and were cooling down.
Ms Cynthia came in for Malaysian Studies. She plopped the papers down on the teacher's desk, calling everyone to settle down. The class was cooperative as Ms Cynthia distributed Economics Paper 1, a multiple-choice question. I was thinking of Ms Levina's funny lessons in my head. Then, we begun. My heart sung happy tunes as I did the Economics exam. Then, once we were done, Cassandra, Louis, Glen, Krystal, Gabriel, Sheng Jit, Brandon and I played my Hockminton game in class.
After lunch, the next paper begun, and it was the Physics Paper 1. Everyone stayed in 10N. Ze Khai and I talked with Nickolas Nashpal on his website. Then, we quizzed each other on Business Studies. I also saw Brandon playing AZ Tanks on his computer. He kept his computer at an angle so that Ms Cynthia, who came in for History, couldn't see it.
“Don't you guys have other subjects?” asked Ms Cynthia, coming to Brandon. Ms Cynthia then came to us. “We are studying Business Studies. I am quizzing him,” said Nickolas. Ms Cynthia was satisfied. Then, we talked about the English exam. Everyone will have exams the next day; both English First and Second. I felt comfortable relaxing in 10N. Then, Mr Raja came in and we continued talking till the day ended.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. It was Rosemund.
“Sorry, Mr Raja, but I want to let you know that Ms Feeda wants all art students in the art studio now,” she said.
Mr. Raja Got up from his seat. “Why? What's the matter? Why does she want everyone to go to the art studio? You please tell her that now it is exam season. Tell her that everyone should be in their classes. There should not be any classes during exam season,” said Mr Raja.
“But it's urgent,” Rosemund pleaded. “Ms Feeda wants all art students right now.”
“Now. Do you mean now?”
“Yes,” said Rosemund. She wants all art students to go down now.”
I got up, took my stuff and went down to the art studio. Ms Feeda was waiting for us inside the art studio. “Hi, Wei Yiang. Is everyone here? Faster, sit down,” said Ms Feeda.
Soon everyone from all classes came down to the art studio. All the art students were present.
Ms Feeda first talked about her art history. She said that when she came to Nobel, this art studio was still quite small. It was quite spacious, but it was not air conditioned yet. In fact, it was a Kemahiran Hidup room. Ms Feeda then talked about the history of the art studio. She then told us that this art studio was designed according to her plan. In fact, she was the one that proposed the design for the art studio. The layout, the plan, the electricity connection and everything; all the furniture was proposed and designed by her. Also, she said that she misses the art studio and comes into the art studio every day, longing to be in the art studio for a long time, spending time with us.
Ms Feeda then talked about the memories that she made in the art studio. She said that initially the amount of Art and Design students was quite small, but over time more people picked the subject. However, it is not as popular as other subjects. But she said that it is a very personal touch to her of how people like us are passionate for art.
“I was originally teaching SPM at the time. At the time, as you know, for those who have been in the school since Year 1, we turned into an international school in 2012. And then, we had the IGCSE syllabus. I started with the first batch of IGCSE students. The first, second and now the current batch. All of you. And over the years, we have so many Top in Malaysia awards. Many of. The top in Malaysia students come from art and design. In fact, we produced Top in Malaysia for Art and Design for three years already. 2014, 2015 and 2016,” said Ms Feeda.
Ms Feeda continued to talk about the Top in Malaysia awards. She said that the Top in Malaysia awards mean a lot to her as a teacher teaching Art and Design. Then Ms Feeda also spoke about the Fine Art Club and then she also mentioned about people who were passionate to join the club, such as me, Rosemund, Yi Zhen, Glen and Alicia Tang. “Some of you have known me since Year 7, like Wei Yiang, but most of you had known me since Year 9, and I enjoyed teaching you and also had a wonderful journey with you,” said Ms Feeda.
She also talked about how she intends to to collaborate with other teachers and bring her Art and Design passion to more students in Nobel, through whatever means. One example was to collaborate with Mr Matthew Koh on a role play involving Art. Ms Feeda also said that she also plans to have her own art studio. She said that it was her dream for many years to have an art studio inside her house. But however, because she's living in a flat, she cannot do so. That is when she said that she had bought a house in Kajang, And she had enlisted a contractor to design a house with the art studio in it. This had allowed her to fulfill her dream of having a personalized home art studio.
Then, Ms Feeda started getting emotional.
“So because of this, it is very far for me to drive from Kajang to Nobel every day. And because of this, it is very difficult for me to come here. Due to this constraint, I would like to say that I am so sorry if I cannot be with you for your Year 11 next year as I have already bought that new house in Kajang, which is under construction, and it would be very difficult for me to drive all the way here. I will be teaching in Tanarata International School after moving to Kajang.”
Many people in the class were in tears. As a guy, I felt that it was very difficult for me to tear up given that my hormone is different, but I also tear up somehow. So, as such, many were in tears, especially the girls. Yi Zhen was sad; Ms Feeda had been her art teacher since Year 7 when we had the Fine Art Club, and she and Ms Feeda had a lot of times together.
Ms Feeda, undoubtedly, was also tearing up too. Her face was red; her eyes watered. She also recalled the memories of how much the art studio had belonged to her and how many memories were made over the years of Art and Design in Nobel with this art studio.
“I did not want to announce this to you because it was your exam. You were having your final piece, and I don’t want to distract you. However, I have to announce this, and I am sorry if I announced it late, because I not only don’t want to hurt you if I announced it too late, but also I also don’t want you to think about it if I announced it too early, but yeah, I have to announce. That is why I called all of you down here quickly, so that you won't feel surprised.”
“Cher! Please don’t go!” Yi Zhen cried, wiping her tears.
“I have no choice, my dear. I have moved house, and I can’t afford the trip to Nobel every day,” she responded. Her eyes were red and she had been thinking about it for so long. Many people were crying. It was a sudden knee jerk reaction. A shock to most people in the Art and Design world in Nobel.
I tried to find a solution in which the new MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line would open in 2017 if she was tired driving, and all she needed to do was to sit the MRT from Kajang to Kelana Jaya. This would allow Ms Feeda to stay at her house in Kajang and still appease people because she would be in Nobel and to also continue the work with us. However, many of my friends shunned the idea, saying that it was not possible to take MRT or LRT as well because the distance would not warrant it.
“Wei Yiang, just keep quiet; Ms Feeda is already sad,” Enisha said.
Ms Feeda then said that she will throw a farewell party where she would write to each one of us a note and give us some gifts. “I wish you all the best for next year,” she cried, referring to the Art and Design IGCSE exams which are scheduled to take place at the end of 2017.
“Who will be teaching us next year?” asked Lyn Wen and Enisha. Ms Feeda responded by saying that Ms Nadia will take over. “So, I ask all of you to please give your support to Ms Nadia. Ms Nadia is teaching the Art and Design IGCSE syllabus for the first time; she has already mastered some of the skills I shared to her, so please give your cooperation to her next year,” she pleaded.
Following the class, we all gave Ms Feeda a hug. I also gave her a hug. Glen hugged her too.
“Take care of yourself, Wei Yiang. All the best for next year,” she said. Everyone was in tears.
We then returned to class as the dismissal time begun. I went home, thinking about what had just happened. Many people were so emotional. They felt emotionally attached to Ms Feeda and want to be with her. She was a marvel to most of us. Still, the sadness was seen. I can't feel it so much.
It was the final day of the first full official week of exams, Friday, 14th October 2016. We had Business Studies that morning. Ms Sim addressed the crowd. She said that some of the Year 10s had brought in their calculator covers for their exams and it wasn't allowed. “Please don't bring your calculator cover into the exams next time, ya,” she said.
Then, Ms Praveen also said that some people were crossing the barricades next to the Year 11 classes. “You are not supposed to pass through there or take a shortcut to go to the stairs or toilet or vice versa. “I don't want to see this happening again. Do I make myself clear?” asked Ms Praveen, warning people to not mess with the barricades to ensure exam security for the IGCSE exam. She also reminded people to stay silent if an IGCSE exam was ongoing in those classrooms.
We then returned to class and I went to 10B for the Business Studies paper. Ms Joyce was in the class for English Second. She handed us our papers as some people were late. “Faster! Faster!” cried Ms Joyce as people continued to file in as she was handing out the papers. Then, we begun the paper. It was really a tough challenge for me to do the Business Studies paper. Loads of lines and essay writing made my face pale.
Then, it was break, and I just rested and ate breakfast with Kit Lee for a while as we talked about the English First examination. Then, I spoke to Yi Zhen about where she lived. I was surprised when I found out that her house was nearby mine. Soon thereafter, we went to 10B again for the exam.
The English First exam officially begun at 11:00am. We spent an hour studying and talking in class before the exam begun. Mr Stellio was in the class, and I made happy tunes in my head. Then, it was time to put the books away. Mr Stellio handed us the papers. Everyone had a happy mood as he gave out the papers. We had English Paper 3, and I really wrote a good story for the composition exercise. In fact, we had to write a newspaper article for the Composition, and it was quite cool. Ms Janice collected the papers once we were done, and we went back to our classes to relax before heading home.
We enter into the second week of exams, on Monday, 17th October 2016. It was a busy morning that day. We then had assembly, and Ms Sim wished all the Year 7, 8 and 9 students the best for their examinations. Then, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong scolded people who weren't singing the school song and asked them the reason.
“We have exams later!” belted a response.
“Exam should not be an excuse to not sing, ya. Respect the school song and the Negaraku,” she boomed.
We then returned to our class and I headed to 10E for the Global Perspectives exam. Mr Stellio was in 10E, and he handed out our papers to us. It was really easy. Then, we went for break. I told San Ying about the next debate between Trump and Clinton on 19th October. “I will ask Mr Thomas to play the debate once again during English this Thursday,” I said. The debate can be streamed in class as the US is about 12 to 13 hours behind Malaysia, depending on Daylight Savings Time. I was so excited, causing San Ying to groan. “Good for you,” she said.
Afterwards, there was an English Literature exam happening in 10O, and the class had to go to 10L or 10B to accommodate their large population. I wished it was 10N, so at least, I can talk to the one and only Caleb Chuang. I spent the time talking to Ze Khai about Trump. Then, Gabriel told me that it was weird that I support Trump. “He's a crazy guy!” cried Gabriel.
At the back of the class, Brandon Ooi and Shane played Pokemon Go while Ms Levina talked about Economics with some of us who were asking questions. She let the whole class do their things while Cassandra, Grace and I talked to her about the upcoming US presidential election.
“Whose economic policy is better, Clinton or Trump?” she asked. I said Trump because it was more on competition in a perfectly competitive market. Ms Levina laughed and asked how I would put it if the question was converted to an essay in Paper 2.
“Guys! Please keep quiet. There is an exam next door,” warned Ms Levina. Ms Levina talked to me, Grace and Cassandra about the expectation for Year 11 Economics topics. She said that in Year 11, it will be more on macroeconomics than microeconomics and we will hear the word ‘government’ mentioned in the books and chapters. “This is because macroeconomics considers a whole point of view while microeconomics only focuses on the individual buyer or seller. So for example, if you take microeconomics, it involves you only. To rephrase it, let us put it in this way. If let's say you were to sell things, you are responding to how the market conditions change if you sell things, based on demand and supply, because it is an individual market. In Year 11, you will be learning about how the government's action or how your individual actions affect everybody. In this case, if let's say you raise the price of your product, you can see how raising the price affects consumers, sellers and buyers, because macroeconomics is about looking at the big picture,” said Ms Levina.
“Brandon!” cried Ms Levina. She went over to see him. By this time, Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric and Ze Khai were looking at his game and were playing it.
“Eh, no phones please. Keep, keep, keep!” cried Ms Levina. “By right you should not have phones in school you know,” she said. Then, Ms Levina came to talk to us more on Economics and by this time, Lyn Wen, Kelsey and Ivyna had joined us to listen to Ms Levina's magic.
Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan came into the class and sat down and talked with Ivyna on the Maths paper. We continued to relax in class and do some revision. Then, it was lunch and finally the Malay examination. It was quite easy to do. San Ying and Sophie were studying for the Malay exam, so I didn't disturb them.
The next day, 18th October, was my Bible Knowledge paper. It was an early-morning paper. Ms Sangeetha supervised the rest of 10N while I went for the exam, which Paper 2 is testing on the book of Acts. Upon arriving, Mr Lim, who was in 10O, distributed the papers. He was relieving Mr Nick, who wasn't present that day.
Compared to the book of Matthew, the book of Acts was a bit more tough and challenging. We did the exam and we prayed before we begun the exam. After the exam was done, at least, I had one load completely lifted off. Bible Knowledge was a heavy load for me.
Then, we went for break, and I talked to San Ying about the timing of the debate which we possibly view it live in the class. Yi Zhen, who was sitting with us for breakfast, said it was true that we can watch it live as the US is 12 hours behind Malaysia. The Additional Mathematics exam soon came, and Sherwin came to our class, along with the people from 10B. This was one of my most memorable moments in Year 10, as Jien Min, Sherwin, Aaron Loke and everyone from 10B were present in our class in 10N, and all of us chit-chatted in the final days of the examination. I feel grateful to be in the company of everyone from my batch as the exams were about to finish and the holidays approached.
We must cherish the time we have before it is too late. And I spent time in the great company of my friends. Some of my friends were a bit mean, but it is the joy and companionship that we had which stood out from that. And that's what I told Sherwin throughout the whole free period from 10:20am to 1:00pm.
After lunch, we had our Combined Science Paper 1 and Combined Science Paper 6. We all got ready, and then a lot of people used the washroom. “Why is it that after lunch, you want to go to the washroom? Can't you go before the exam?” cried Ms Cynthia.
Once everyone returned, Ms Cynthia then asked if she could hand out the papers. She did so and then we were told to begin. The multiple choice questions were easy.
After 45 minutes, Ms Cynthia then collected the papers and then stacked them on the desk near her phone before handing us out the second one. Then, as she was collecting Combined Science Paper 1, I could see another stack of papers for us to immediately work on, Paper 6. Her handphone lay on the table. Louis was still doing his paper when Ms Cynthia was collecting the paper. “No, Louis, give me the paper. Give me the paper,” said Ms Cynthia. Louis cried as he couldn't finish Paper 1 in time.
Once Paper 6 was over, Ms Cynthia then collected the papers once again, to similar results. “Louis, the exam is over. Give me the paper,” she said. Louis whined. “I haven't done yet!”
“No, the exam is over. Everyone is done and had handed up the paper,” she said. She snatched Louis’ paper and then Brandon Ooi made funny faces at Louis. He got angry and banged the table to annoyance from the whole class. “Hey! Louis!” cried Grace, Kelsey and Cassandra. “Don't! Please!” they cried. Ms Cynthia then stacked the papers on the table. She then brought both Paper 1 and 6 to the management office. Brandon laughed at Louis and this resulted in him throwing tantrums and chasing Brandon down the hallway.
Ms Visa then stopped Louis just in time. “Hey! What's the matter?” cried Ms Visa. The whole Year 10 batch was looking at him. Ms Visa then told Louis and Brandon to approach her for a talk while the rest of us went home.
19th October 2016 was the busiest day of the whole Mid Year Examination period. There were three exams that day and all of them involved subjects that I took. In the morning, I had History, followed by Economics and then Malaysian Studies. It would be a very exhausting day.
The morning started with Ms Bee Yong reminding us about our priorities on the examination and how we could get about from there. “Well, right. Today is the third day of exams. How is everyone doing? I hope everyone is doing fine. Continue to study and continue to learn. As this exam is not the end, but the beginning of learning and growing. As well as a lifelong journey for all of you,” she said.
We returned to class and I got ready to go to 10L for the History exam. We were having History Paper 4 that day.
Mr Lee was in the class preparing the exam for us. He was there for the Physics lesson. He arrived with a stack of exam papers and he put them on the table. “Ok guys, please settle down,” he said. Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit, Glen and Aaron went to the toilet before the exam began. Mr Lee then unpacked the exam papers from the plastic bag. And place the exam papers on the front table. He checked the number of exam papers to ensure that there were enough exam papers for all of us. How many of you are in this class?” he asked.
Kelsey then counted the number of people from our class who took History. “There are seventeen of us,” she said.
I took the opportunity to ask Mr Lee a question. "Mr Lee, are you teaching us Combined Science next year?” I raised my hand, asking him. “I don't know,” he said.
Mr Lee then told us to settle down. “Alright, guys, please keep quiet. Now I'm going to give out your exam papers,” he said.
Mr Lee handed out our exam papers to us. Once we got the paper, we wrote our name and class on the exam paper. Mr Lee then instructed us. “Ok, please check that you have enough pages and ensure that all the pages are printed,” he said.
Aside from the question paper, Mr. Lee also gave us writing paper so that we can write our answers on them. “For those of you who need extra paper, I have extra in front,” said Mr Lee. He gave us the instruction to start, and we began.
The History exam was quite straightforward. Although it was a little challenging, I managed to answer the paper. The questions were easy to do. I felt that I was able to do the questions without any issue. We had to answer questions on Nazi Germany and the Treaty of Versailles.
Mr Lee then switched on the air conditioning to ensure that we are comfortable. He was a very nice teacher, a teacher that never lost his cool. He had great intonation and joy coming to work every day. And he normally spends company with the students that he loves. It is rare for one to see Mr Lee get angry. Soon, Ms Joyce came into the class. She took over from Mr Lee and continued the invigilation of the paper.
Once the exams were done, we handed the papers in. All of us breathed a sigh of relief. The History exam was over except for one more paper, History Paper 6, which would be held the next morning.
The exams were over. And I proceeded to take my food container and head to the canteen for break time. I had no time to talk to my other friends. I had to do some short but simple revision for the Economics paper. I spent some time talking to Jordan and Rick while we were having break time in the canteen.
After break. I quickly went back to 10N and took my stationary. It was the Economics paper. Fortunately, the Economics paper was held in 10N, so there was no need to transfer to other classes. Coincidentally, Ms Bee Yan was in the class. She had prepared the room and was waiting for us.
“Ok, guys, quickly come in. Your exam is starting,” said Ms Bee Yan.
“Teacher can I go to toilet?” ask Brandon. Ms Bee Yan told him to quickly hurry up and use the washroom. Soon, Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong, Ze Khai all wanted to use the toilet. The exam was about to start at 10:30am. We were doing the Economics Paper 2.
After everyone returned from the washroom. Ms Bee Yan gave out the papers. “Write your name and class but do not start first, OK?” instructed Ms Bee Yan. Everyone returned to their desks. There were three other people from other classes that were in 10N to take the exam.
“You may start now,” said Ms Bee Yan.
I did my best for the paper. I wrote down as much as possible. Tried to comprehend some of the points and illustrated some of the graphs on my exam paper. Then I ran out of writing paper. Ms Bee Yan gave additional writing paper to me so that I can continue.
Soon time passed. It was 11:00am. Then it was 11:15am. At 11:40am, Ms Cynthia came into the class to take over the invigilation from Ms Bee Yan.
I wrote as much as I could. Before long, I had finished the paper. At 1:00pm, Ms Cynthia collected the papers. This time, Louis had finished his paper. He gracefully passed it to Ms Cynthia.
“Very good, Louis. Thanks for handing in your paper,” said Ms Cynthia.
Then it was lunchtime. I took my milk coupon, went down to the canteen, bought my food, and sat with San Ying for lunch. Caleb Chuang was also sitting at the same table as us. Everyone talked about the Malaysian Studies paper. Ironically, no one had bothered to study for it.
When it was time for the Malaysian Studies paper, Cikgu Niely came into the class. My heart beat and thumped as to how the Malaysian Studies paper would look like and how difficult it was. Just like any other person, I hadn't invested enough time to study for Malaysian Studies.
Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong and Ze Khai went to the toilet. Cikgu Niely groaned. After 10 minutes, everyone was back. The Malaysian Studies paper will begin at 2:00pm. Everyone had gotten their stationary and were in the class waiting for the exam to begin. Cikgu Niely handed us the papers. We wrote our name, and then, we were off.
When I opened the paper, my mind froze because there were some questions that I did not know how to answer. Nevertheless, I tried to answer most of the questions and I was able to do so. At the end of the paper, there was one point in which we have to write how grateful are we to be Malaysians and how would you pass down the values to the next generation. I came up with a good idea on how to write that particular answer.
At 3:00 PM, Ms Sangeetha, who had taken over from Cikgu Niely, collected the papers. Everyone handed in the papers to Ms Sangeetha. Brandon turned around and smiled as the papers were collected.
“Brandon, look in front,” warned Ms Sangeetha. “You are not supposed to be turning around.”
Then the exam finished. We then took our bags inside and then I talked to Nicholas and Ze Khai. Everyone talked about how they were or were unable to answer the question. Then it was dismissal time, and then we went home. I spoke with Caleb Chuang and Joshua as we walked to the foyer.
The next day was a rather more simplified day. It was Thursday, 20th October 2016. I had only one paper that morning. History Paper 6.
As History Paper 6 would only occur at 11:00am, I spent time in the class to talk to Mr Thomas. He entered the class with his briefcase, and plopped down on the chair in the front of the room.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Yes. Good morning. How are you?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Mr Thomas, are you going to show the video of the second presidential debate to us?” I asked him.
“Hold on a second, but I hope it is not too loud because they are having exam next door, you see,” said Mr Thomas. There was a Biology exam occurring in every other class, and we took care not to disturb them. The rest of the year was sitting for Biology Paper 1.
Mr Thomas then switched on the computer and logged into his account. Then, he opened Google Chrome and then typed the link for YouTube. He went and searched for the third United States presidential debate and opened the video. Then he adjusted the volume to ensure that it wasn't too loud. “I will play the video if you don't shout loudly, is that OK?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr. Thomas!” I cried.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were debating in the third debate. It was the 3rd and final debate before the US presidential election. I was keeping my fingers crossed for this debate. This is because in the first two debates, I felt that Donald Trump was too weak to stand up to Hillary Clinton. Soon everyone was watching the debate. Lyn Wen saw what was going on. “Oh no, not again,” she cried.
Kelsey groaned as the video of the debate played on the screen. “Why is it always about Trump?” She cried. “Switch off the video! close the video! Not Trump again!”
Fortunately, Mr Thomas was interested to watch the debate. “I would need to teach all of you debating skills. Some people, like you, were having the art exam last week and you did not have the chance to learn how to debate. But we will do it again,” said Mr Thomas.
“Then Mr Thomas opened another video. He showed a broadcast of CNN talking about the election. The familiar Electoral College map beam on the screens as I looked at how many points would Trump gain on his pursuit to 270 electoral votes. The news anchors were pointing paths to a Trump or Clinton win.
Soon after 45 minutes, the Biology exam was over and Mr Thomas turned up the volume. I watched CNN at home in the run up to the election. Now I'm watching it in real time with Mr Thomas. He also switched on CNN live streaming to have a look, but then he closed it thereafter after watching for a while.
“You must use CNN. CNN is the most reliable news source. They are the most accurate and they are the most punctual,” said Mr Thomas.
Soon it was break time and I went to the canteen to study History with San Ying. Then we went to our classes for the History exam. I went to 10L to sit for the History paper. This exam was quite straightforward. Mr Nick then handed us the papers to begin the exam. It took an hour. Then. Mr. Narish collected our papers. However, we were told to remain in 10L until it was lunchtime.
I then went to the canteen and we sat down at the table once again to talk about Trump. San Ying was annoyed. “Why is it that you like to talk about Trump so much? You support him ah?” she asked. Enisha then said I was not an American and could not decide the election.
Yi Zhen then said that it is impossible for Trump to win in places like New York and that many predictions showed a Clinton win. Trump was trailing behind in the electoral vote predictions.
Then, it was the Physics paper, and 10B this time had to be used. So, 10B students were told to come to 10N because the projector in 10L was not working and could not beam the exam information for the Physics students. I then spent a great deal of time with Sherwin, Aaron Loke, Jien Min and Ye Sean.
Jien Min told me about the corruption allegations by Najib and the hidden stories and trends of him, but at the time, I didn’t take his allegation seriously then (but it eventually was proven years later). Back then, it was taboo and forbidden to talk about Najib's corruption cases. I initially thought that Najib was free of corruption. I mean, he appeared a good guy. We also talked about the Mercy Ship Project. And Jien Min, Ethan Wong, Sherwin, Aaron Loke, Vicky and Alexandria Goh played some hand games in class as we did our own things and the day went on.
Finally, it was 21st October 2016, the last day of the Final Year Examination.
The morning started off with Ms Sim congratulating everyone for coming to the end of the Final Year Examination. “I hope you all are excited as today is the last day of your exams,” said Ms Sim. There were cheers and cries from the crowd over the fact that after a long week, the exams are over. However, Miss Sim said that we need to finish the exams first before we could celebrate. “Don't celebrate yet, you still have papers to do!” cried Ms Sim. “Whatever papers that you have done, whatever mistakes that you have made has been made. Now it is the final paper for the day. Just give your all and just do it,” said Ms Sim.
“We then returned to class and I got my stationary and proceeded to 10B for the Business Studies exam. This was the second last paper before Mathematics Paper 4. Ms Joyce gave out the papers She was really strict as to how the exam was conducted.
James Wong wanted to use the washroom as soon as the exam was about to start. He asked for permission to use the loo, but Ms Joyce did not allow it.
“No. You're not supposed to go to the toilet before the exam starts. You should have gone to the toilet before that,” said Ms Joyce.
Ms Joyce handed us the papers. She told us to check the papers before we began and when everything was clear, she told us to start writing on our paper. Business studies involve a lot of writing, there's a lot of essays and fill in the blanks, many of which stretch for page after page after page. There were a total of 10 pages for the Business Studies paper and I had a really tough struggle on how to fill in most of my answers. This was Business Studies Paper 2.
After we were done Ms Joyce collected the papers from us and we went for break. I then talked to Caleb Chuang about the fact that we have finally reached the end of the exam. In fact, everyone was excited to come down to the last paper.
We then went back to class and got ready for the final paper. It was Maths Paper 4. I took out my geometry set, calculator, pens, pencils, rulers and related stationery and placed them into the transparent plastic bag that I normally carry for exams. I walked into the classroom, sat at my seat and waited patiently for the exam to begin.
A lot of people went to use the washroom before the start of the exam. Mr. Raja was waiting for us. He came in with a large stack of exam papers and plopped the exam papers onto the teacher's desk. It took 20 minutes before the exam begun, as our break time ended at 10:10am.
At 10:30am, Mr. Raja started handing out the papers to us. The Maths Paper 4 was a really thick paper. There were so many pages. I literally drowned and almost fainted when I saw how hard the questions were and how much I had to calculate.
Brandon Ooi signaled to the class to do a countdown to the end of the exam but however, Mr. Raja told him to be silent as the exam was starting.
“Mr Raja, can I ask for permission to do a countdown to the end of the exam?” asked Brandon. “After all, it's our last paper.” Mr Raja was defiant. He said no. He did not want funny business in the exam.
I skipped some questions. How tough they were. I flipped through the paper trying to find out how to solve each equation and each Mathematics question. Before long I had managed to complete most of the questions. However, I was lacking a few more.
Outside the school, the sky started to get cloudy. I was afraid that it will rain again and a tree would come crashing down. That happened on 20th May 2016, during the final day of the Mid Year Examination and I could still remember myself coming home and trying to figure out the logistics of the fallen tree with my mum, who had to saw it. It looked scary. Fortunately, it crashed into a drain and not the house. And not to also mention only half the tree toppled. I was hoping that the city council do not cut the tree down after that incident, which is why I asked my mum to saw the tree into pieces, so that it looked as if someone cut the tree down and not look like a storm blowing it down.
It soon started raining. And the rain got a bit more heavier. My heart beat. Mr Andrew then entered the classroom. He had come into the classroom because it was the Additional Mathematics lesson for him. He walked around the room till his footsteps made me nervous when doing the question.
It was 12:40pm. There were only 20 minutes till the exam ended. It got even more cloudy. Then, the seconds ticked down. “Five, four, three, two, one, YEAH!!!”
“Please, no talking. You are still in the exam. Ok?” said Mr Andrew. He told everyone to be silent as he collected our papers. I could hear some cheers and chants marking the end of the exam. Once the exam was over and we were allowed to leave the room, we took our bags in and re-arranged the tables to their original configuration. Everyone was happy that there was a conclusion to the exams. Caleb Chuang then reminded me of the next day's futsal training session as we left school. In fact, a few days prior, Caleb Chuang came to 10N to remind me of the futsal training, which resulted in all the people in 10N cheering and screaming happily, especially Eric Wong, Brandon Ooi, Ryan Chok and Shane.
On another note, after school that day, 10O headed to Sunway Mega Lanes with Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick for their Class of the Month treat, namely a bowling game at Sunway Pyramid.
they were given as the class of the month for September 2016. So, after school, Ms Bee Yan and Mr Nick accompanied them as they went to Sunway Pyramid via the school van.
I decided to go home for a while to rest, and thereafter, I went to Sunway Pyramid to meet them. My aunt fetched me to Sunway Pyramid to meet them. They were playing bowling at Sunway Mega Lanes, which is a bowling alley located in the mall. Mr Nick and Ms Bee Yan were having fun trying to knock down the bottles inside the bowling rink with their bowling balls. I spent the entire time chatting with Caleb Chuang and a few other people at the bowling alley before going home thereafter. Jien Min who was from 10B also went purposely to see Yi Zhen and meet her.
Everyone was having fun. Jason Leing greeted me. “Wei Yiang, how do you come here?” he asked, surprised at my presence. I watched everyone play their bowling ball. The whole 10O was surprised. “Caleb! Your best friend!” cried Yong Xuan. I greeted Ms Bee Yan, who asked how I came along with them. They played the
The next day, I came to the futsal court that is next to the field for my futsal training. Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark were there.
Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark were doing some dribbling. We did some warm-ups. I brought my football to play as well. Aside from me, Sean Lee, Zidez Raja, Ethan Lee, Ethan Chan, Goh Yu Sam, Kai Yang, as well as a couple of Bullseye people were there.
Before we started our practice, Caleb Chuang and I did some passing of the ball. Sean Mark, Ethan Chan and I played in the futsal court there. We had good fun shooting the ball into the goal.
“Pass! Pass! Shoot!” cried Caleb Chuang. Then, we played defender. We used my ball for the training.
Then, we had a short break, and I spoke to Caleb Chuang about my game strategy for Nobel Cup. For football, basketball and netball, all that we needed to do was to confuse the players. We just have to start from the back and pass the ball by the side and then move the ball quickly as the game progresses. We need to move the ball quickly to other players. Other players do not catch up to us and that they will be too slow to catch up to the ball. With this, we will distract them. When we distract the players, our opponents would be too confused and they would not have an edge against Bullseye. Hence, the most important thing is to firstly confuse the players, distract the players of the opponent team and then aim for the goal as much as possible.
After a short break of talking to Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark about the Bullseye strategy. I spoke to Sean Mark about how many games we can win. Sean Mark was saying that Bullseye could have a good edge in the netball competition. I detailed a plan inside my student organizer showing a map of the court as well as how we could do the confusion strategy on the court. I also told Caleb Chuang that if, let's say, we cannot aim for the goal and that our opponents have come across us and caught up to us, all that we needed to do was to press the “emergency switch” by kicking the ball out of the court so that the game can be restarted.
We then did several rounds of practices of defending and attacking. Caleb Chuang taught us on how to do so. His football skills are quite good. Then afterwards as the game ended and the practices ended for the day, Sean Mark bought lunch. He ordered lunch via Grab Food. All the Bullseye people were interested to look at my strategy for the game.
The following Monday, 24th October 2016, I went to speak to Ivyna about my plans for the Nobel Cup. Ivyna was very excited and enthusiastic about the plans. Her eyes lit up and she smiled. “You should tell this to Yan Ying,” she said. “Yan Ying is our assistant house captain and she will be playing in the netball competition in the Nobel Cup.” At the same time, it was also the last day to register for the trip to Dignity Foundation. I gave my name to Ms Renee as the as we will be leaving on Thursday, 27th October.
During Business Studies, Miss Chithra said that she hadn't finished marking the papers yet. “Your Paper 2, was on Friday,” she said. “How do you expect me to mark so fast? I'm so old already, I can't mark very fast,” she said to laughter from the class. Instead, Ms Chithra continued to talk about the next topic and to teach us.
Then, it was Combined Science and Ms Sangeetha gave back our Science papers. The class started comparing their marks. “Ok class, please keep quiet. We are going to discuss the papers now,” said Ms Sangeetha. We discussed Combined Science Paper 1 first. Then, Brandon was talking.
“Brandon Ooi, stop talking. Shane, stop talking. Eric, Chok, stop talking. Please listen,” said Ms Sangeetha.
Soon it was break time, and I proceeded to Ivyna's table to discuss about the Nobel Cup plans. “You should be telling this to Caleb,” said Ivyna. I told her that I had discussed with Caleb Chuang the previous Saturday for the Nobel Cup training.
“Have you guys started training yet?” I asked Ivyna. We MUST win Nobel Cup 2016. We want to have a happy ending. After all, it's our last Nobel Cup,” I said. Ivyna was happy. “YES! WE CAN DO IT!” she cried. The whole canteen looked at us. Then, Ivyna paused. “Oh no, it is our last Nobel Cup,” she said.
Then, I went to talk to San Ying about the trip to Dignity Foundation before we traded barbs on Trump.
“Trump will NEVER win! Okay?” cried San Ying.
“But people will understand him. Look at Hillary Clinton's emails,” I shot back. Apparently, a new investigation by the FBI had netted a few, or I should say, a lot of confidential and hidden emails that Hillary Clinton had sent to various people. “People are not happy with Clinton anymore,” I said.
San Ying and I lashed out on the polar opposites of Trump and Clinton. The presidential election would be held in two weeks, on 8th November 2016. We counted down the days to the election. We talked about a lot of things and there were debates.
Derek Yong criticized the border wall Trump plans to do with Mexico and said it would be akin to targeting Mexicans, but however, I defended the construction of the wall as it helps to upgrade border infrastructure. However, he lashed out at Trump calling people racist and so on. I then questioned him about what if the people whom he called a racist voted for him as president.
The most controversial thing many of my friends, and to the extent, even Mr Gallagher, lashed out on Trump was the sexist remark he made against women. I cited articles saying that Trump had already apologized for his actions, but they continued to lash out against him. San Ying and I lashed out at each other, criticizing each other's candidate during break and lunch, and the entire year level of ours knew about it. The whole canteen looked at us lashing out at the two candidates. Sophie was a bit cross when I talked about Trump. I also talked together with Mr Gallagher about this as the topics discussed in the presidential election were also topics we discussed in GP class. Mr Gallagher eventually did not want to hear about Trump and the nonsense things I talked about.
The next day, during Science, Ms Sangeetha continued to discuss the the exam papers and told us about where we went wrong, and explained the concepts of the questions. The most common mistake among us Combined Science students was in Paper 6. Then, Cikgu Niely said that the following Tuesday, 1st November 2016, would be our IGCSE Malay Oral Trial. All of us would need to practice the Malay Oral IGCSE Trials, and that we will have three parts to the exam.
The first part would consist of a role play card in which we need to answer questions from the instructions given on a piece of paper. Secondly, we would be given the chance to present on any topic in the Malay language, followed by a question and answer session in Malay. Cikgu Niely had to keep on asking people to keep quiet, for fear that many would not take the examination seriously. All our Malay IGCSE Oral Trials would form our Malay IGCSE forecast marks. Cikgu Niely told us that the Malay IGCSE exam would not be held in October 2017, but five months prior, in May 2017, as there was no Malay paper in the month of October.
Then, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra came and discuss the exam papers for Business Studies with us. I felt like I have performed terribly in the paper. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Levina continued to discuss the exam papers. I got a D for the exam. How embarassing, to a certain extent, was it.
During lunch, I then continued to talk to people about the electoral college votes and the information I was getting for the election. Apparently, I was surprised that more populated areas like California and New York were voting Democratic, and that they had a lot of electoral votes. Republican areas do not have much. The exception to the rule is Texas, which, at the time, had 38 electoral votes. I felt that Trump should win more electoral votes to win. I did not know about swing states or opinion polling then, and was new to learning the procedure of the US presidential election.
Ms Bee Yan also told us during Maths that for Year 11, we will be segregated into a Mathematics Core and Mathematics Extended paper. I would be placed in the Mathematics Core paper, as my examination results from all assessments and examinations did not meet the expectation for an Extended paper. Then, during History, Ms Visa also discussed the papers and also collected the Treblinka camp models from the remaining people who hadn't handed them yet, as that was the due date for the coursework. She also returned the Nazi Germany propaganda posters to us. After school ended, I went to meet the Bullseye people for my futsal training. Apparently, there were people also training for netball and basketball, and I went to tell them my plans and proposals for Nobel Cup as well.
The next day, on Wednesday, 26th October, there was no assembly because the hall was used for the IGCSE examination. So, I went up early to class and went to meet Geok Minh and Loo Zane to discuss the Bullseye plans. I went to the Year 9 classes to meet the Year 9 Bullseye people to discjuss the Bullseye plans. I met Melvyn Lim as well to talk to him on that. Primarily, I discussed with Geok Minh, Loo Zane and Prudence Wong.
Mr Thomas discussed the exam papers with us in class. He also returned our coursework containing the newspaper article. Then, we did some discussion on the United States Presidential Election in class. There was rife discussion as some people in class protested me talking about Trump.
Then, during break time, the discussion on Trump continued as San Ying and I traded barbs once again. The election was heating up, and many people in the canteen watched our debate.
San Ying raised her voice at me to get her points across, while I rebutted the points. All the Year 10 people in the lower canteen watched us debate. We were debating on each point on Trump and Clinton. Sophie, Yi Zhen, Kit Lee, Faythe Chow and Krisha were hearing our debates, and they weren't amused.
During Maths, Ms Bee Yan continued to brief us on the Core and Extended papers for Year 11 while also discussing the questions. And then, during the Character Transformation session, Ms Renee briefed us on the visit to Dignity Foundation. We were to have an early break time at 9:20am, which is the same time as the KS3 break. Then, we will leave Nobel at 9:50am to head to Dignity Foundation.
The trip to Dignity Foundation will take an hour. Ms Renee also said that we will reach Dignity Foundation at 10:55am, where we will gather. At 11:00am, there will be a welcome party, followed by an icebreaker, a surprise performance at 11:10am and lunch at 11:45am. We would tour the building before heading back to school for our dismissal at the normal time of 3:30pm. Although we were having our PE lesson that morning, Ms Renee told us to wear our school uniform for our trip to Dignity as we were representing Nobel for the trip. Fortunately, Caleb Chuang was on the trip. Yeah!
The period towards the end of October 2016 was considered a very lukewarm period, as we were about to close the year. All girls in the school donated their hair to form wigs, and got their hairs cut. We were preparing to lead Nobel Cup and undertake many responsibilities as the oldest level in Nobel. And the Dignity Foundation trip, as well as the Sunway Pyramid meetup, was one of the most outstanding ones.
We then went for lunch. San Ying didn't want to talk about Trump. “Wei Yiang, can we have a break from Trump, like, one day?” asked Sophie.
“Make it one week,” said San Ying.
“But what if Mr Thomas talks about it?” I asked, as Mr Thomas would sometimes talk about it.
“I will asked Mr Thomas not to talk about it,” she said. I laughed. “I will close my ears and sleep,” San Ying continued.
Then, Faythe Chow asked me why I supported Trump so much. Rosemund then came over and asked me for an explanation. I had to tell them the whole story about terrorism, the World Trade Center, the economy and all the other things. Then, we had Malay, where Cikgu Niely continued to talk about our Malay Oral. Then, we continued our discussion in Science, and during Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee gave us our papers. I got an E for the BK paper.
The next day, Mr Thomas started talking about the Mercy Ship Project. He wasn't interested to talk about Trump. “We have no time to talk about Trump. We need to focus on our Mercy Ship Project,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then called all the presenters involved to present on the stage. “Who were the presenters? Someone tell me,” he said.
I flipped open the Student Organizer and then told him the names.
“I only want the presenters. Quick! Quick! We only have 40 minutes,” said Mr Thomas.
“The presenters are Sherwin, me and Alexandria Goh,” I replied.
“Good,” said Mr Thomas. “Please come.”
The three of us walked to the front. “Wait, why are some of you in your school uniform today? Are you not having PE today?” asked Mr Thomas.
“We are going to Dignity Foundation,” I replied.
“Oh, I see,” said Mr Thomas.
“Ms Renee told us to wear our school uniform,” I replied.
Mr Thomas then proceeded with the presentation rehearsal. He told Sherwin to speak like a reporter. “You are a news reporter. You must speak like as if you are reporting the news. You must say, ‘Good morning, I am Sherwin, reporting today from Sierra Lionne. Residents of Sierra Lionne had gathered in droves to seek life-saving treatment on a hospital ship docked at the seaside’,” he begun. Then, he turned to me.
“You must say something like this: When we first started this organization in the late 90s, we have 100 people serving patients. Today, we serve 2000 patients a day. Then, you go and explain your roles. Before you start, you must say, ‘I am Dr Gary Parker and I am the chief doctor of the Mercy Ship’,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas did a short rehearsal for us after advising Alexandria Goh. We then did our best to speak as Mr Thomas advised us.
“Mr. Thomas, I'm sorry to interrupt you, but our lesson has ended. There are people outside the class. They are coming back. The other students are coming back to the class.” I said.
“Ohh really?” asked Mr Thomas. “They're coming back? Our lesson has ended? What time is it now?”
“It is now 8:40 AM,” I replied.
Ah, you see, we have no time. I have no time. You know, we only have two more weeks before the school closes. We need to do the presentation as soon as possible,” said Mr Thomas.
“And two more weeks to the election as well!” I cried. San Ying groaned.
“Are we having class tomorrow?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Tomorrow is Deepavali holiday,” I replied.
“Ohh, that means we only have to do it next week. When is our next class?” asked Mr Thomas.
I checked my calendar. We have Nobel Cup on the 3rd of November. I told Mr. Thomas that we only have two days to do the presentation, namely Wednesday 2nd November, and Friday 4th November.
“Then we shall do it next Friday,” said, Mr Thomas.
We then went down for our PE lesson. I told Ms Sylvia that some of us would not be attending the PE lesson for the day because we were headed to Dignity Foundation in Sentul. I had brought my food container as we were about to have break time that morning. We needed to have an early break time as we were headed for Dignity Foundation at 9:50am.
“Oh! No wonder I see why so many people are wearing school uniform,” said Ms Sylvia.
I also informed this to Mr. Victor as well. He was also surprised that I was wearing school uniform and not the PE attire. But he accepted my reasoning. Then, I went to the canteen to have my breakfast first. I wanted to get things sorted early so that we can go quickly. It was 8:50am.
Ms Renee was also going for an early breakfast. In fact, everyone had an early breakfast so as to be as early to Dignity Foundation due to the traffic, and not to mention that we may take up spaces for the KS3 break time.
Me, Ivyna, Sheng Jit, Yan Ying and Lyn Wen were the only people from our class who went on the trip to Dignity. The other classes had more people going on the trip. Yes, Caleb Chuang went; Joshua Chew as well. Yi Zhen, Sara Yow, Faythe Chow, Han Ming, Pranavee, Chong Vicky, Yin Wei, Alexandria Goh, Ellie Lim, Krisha Chin, Joseph Diong and a couple more from the other classes went as well.
After having my breakfast, I had a chat with Xang Yen before Ms Renee told us to assemble at the foyer in our class lines. There was one bus bringing us to Dignity. I talked to Caleb Chuang, Ivyna and all the Bullseye people in our year level about our plans for Nobel Cup. I was gunning on the third Nobel Cup victory for Bullseye. Then, we talked about Trump and many people did not feel amused hearing it.
We then boarded the bus which drove us out of Nobel. Along the way, I sat alone in front; Caleb Chuang set behind with Joshua Chew. Joseph Diong sat on the opposite seat and Ms Renee accompanied us in the bus.
We then took the Sprint Highway and then the Duke Expressway, the latter of which is an elevated highway that passes through Sentul. If one were to drive on this highway, the view of Kuala Lumpur would be spectacular.
Ms Renee had been planning this second trip for a long time and the next visit was announced following the conclusion of our Final Year Examination. This was a return visit – we would be the ones visiting Dignity Foundation and the Dignity students will be the ones planning the show for us.
Dignity Foundation is located close to the Sentul Timur light rail transit (LRT) station. It is so close to the point that you can see the LRT trains from the school. The school is located in two separate shoplots; quite messier than the arrangement we have at Nobel.
We got down from the bus and assembled at Project B. Project B is a café located at a corner shop lot that overlooks the LRT station. In front of Project B, facing the LRT station, lay a herb garden in which Dignity’s students took turns growing and planting during their enrichment lessons.
Project B was a five star cafe at Dignity Foundation. Students from that school would volunteer serving food for people at the cafe. The cafe was an air conditioned restaurant remniscent of Starbucks, San Francisco Coffee, and my lovely, beloved Pacific Coffee Company restaurant. The smell in the cafe was so nice and there was nice aroma in the cafe. I spent some time looking at the herb garden and even went to see it.
We waited at Project B for a while. Lyn Wen started practicing her calligraphy art. Of course, during the Editorial Board CCA sessions, Lyn Wen took turns finding the calligraphy fonts on the computer so that we can experiment on how to place them on the yearbook. I talked to Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew while Ms Renee went to arrange things with the staff from Dignity.
We were then taken on a tour of Dignity Foundation. First, we were introduced to the staff of Project B, and then we had to walk to the other block. There are two blocks forming Dignity; the main block and the Project B café. I walked next to Joseph Diong, and Joshua and Caleb and everyone else followed as we toured the building. Ms Renee had said that we would be doing the tour first.
We were then introduced to the facilities at Dignity. There were various halls, classrooms and facilities mainly comprising of rooms inside the building. There were no other facilities. Then, we reached a hall where the Dignity students were. All of us got to meet our pen pals again. Some of us managed to meet our pen pals, but however, we were told that some of our pen pals had left. I was one of the unlucky ones whose pen pal had left Dignity; Naing Ling had left for Myanmar after getting his passport secured. So, I had to be paired up with a new pen pal named Abdullah.
I introduced myself to Abdullah and then we talked about many things and I introduced to him my hobbies and so on. Soon, we were treated to performances by the students of Dignity Foundation, who performed on a stage in their school hall. The students then performed songs for us and we spent some time listening to the performances. Then, we played an ice breaker before heading for lunch. The ice breaker involved guessing certain traits and general knowledge questions.
All of us, accompanied by Dignity students and our pen pals, went to Project B to have our lunch. It was a very refreshing experience eating lunch with my friends and pen pals. Ms Renee, Mr Nick, Mr Lee and Ms Sarah, who also accompanied us, also had their lunch. I talked to everyone and we had a wonderful lunch session before heading back to school at around 2:00pm. Before we left, the Dignity students bade us farewell as we boarded the buses which took us back to school. While on the ride back, Joseph Diong played a few games with us on the bus ride back to school. I took the time to enjoy the view of the Duke Expressway.
The following Monday, 31st October, Mr Gallagher brought us GP students to visit the Sepang Formula One (F1) Circuit in Sepang. He brought all of us GP students from his two classes on for the trip. As Caleb Chuang is also going along, I spent a lot of time on the school van ride to the circuit talking to him about how cool Mr Gallagher was.
Mr Gallagher wanted us to experience what was it like on the track and how the F1 industry could benefit Malaysia. I feel excited going on this trip with Caleb Chuang. Mr Gallagher did not want to entertain any discussions on Trump during the trip. There were loads of discussion on Trump on Edmodo, and most of them came from me. Derek Yong also sent a message to me on Edmodo, telling me consider the words people say and that whether or not Trump got elected would decide geopolitics in the near future.
The F1 Circuit is located next to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). From there, we could observe planes taking off and landing from KLIA, and even so, there is a spectacular view of the KLIA control tower.
On the morning of the trip, during the van ride, I sat with Caleb Chuang and talked. We discussed about the trip and how cool it was to be at the circuit. When we arrived, Mr Gallagher then got us to gather and we went on a tour of the circuit. First, we went to the grandstands where the spectators got a view of the track. Ryan Chok then started taking photos of the view. Then, I saw KLIA’s control tower in the distance. Our guide then gave us tours of the entire venue as we walked along the track and the grandstands. Shane, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal glanced at the view as well while Glen and Gabriel talked. Caleb Chuang and I walked together most of the time while enjoying the view as our guide and Mr Gallagher led us. I even managed to see a view of a F1 racing car racing along the track.
After the morning tour walking along the track, Mr Gallagher then brought us to a restaurant located inside the F1 circuit. This restaurant is located near the grandstands and was air-conditioned so that patrons can catch a view of the action while having their meal. I sat down with Caleb Chuang and had my lunch. Sherwin and I sat with Caleb Chuang and we talked a bit on Trump as well. Then, the people from 10N were excited on me and Caleb Chuang having a chat.
Then, afterwards, it started raining and it rained for three hours. So, Mr Gallagher took us to the F1 exhibition which contained souvenirs. Caleb Chuang and I inspected the souvenirs and then proceeded to look at some of them. Then, when the rain stopped, Mr Gallagher then took us to look at the repair ward of the circuit. We did a lot of walking and we walked to one of the exit gates before returning to our van to head back to school.
It was late in the evening and the lights of the buildings lit up. I saw the Sunway Pinnacle building light up as we headed back. Caleb Chuang and I were singing the song ‘Let it Go’ so loudly till Krystal Goh got so annoyed.
The next day, Tuesday, 1st November 2016, was our Nobel Cup training.
The morning begun with Ms Sangeetha showing us a movie during Combined Science. Then, Cikgu Niely came in and gave each of us our Malay orals. While the Malay oral was ongoing, people were talking, and Cikgu Niely had to calm people down. Then, we went for break, and I decided to change the plot twist.
“San Ying, can we talk about Clinton?” I asked.
San Ying, unfortunately, was not in the mood of talking about Hillary Clinton. “I don't like both of them,” she said.
Sophie then chimed. “Clinton is good! Not like Trump, who is racist. Racist!” she cried.
Then, we went back to the class for our Business Studies lesson, and Ms Chithra said she will not have any fun in the class and do nothing unlike the other teachers, as the Business Studies topics will be tested in the IGCSE examination. Eu Lynn asked if we can at least have a day of rest, but Ms Chithra said no. She then continued to teach us in the class and said that the current topic, Chapter 6, will come out for Assessment 1 in March 2017. Ms Levina let us do whatever we wished in class while I also talked to her about how funny her lessons were, all thanks to Brandon Ooi.
Ms Levina laughed. “Actually I don't feel good telling Brandon to settle down or keep his phone, but if you really feel amused by it and it made you like my lesson, then I am happy to hear that,” she said. I told Ms Levina that she was a great Economics teacher and made the whole lesson funny. “No lah.....you are the one who made my day because you are in my Econs class. I also enjoy hearing you stories about Caleb,” said Ms Levina.
Then, I asked Ms Levina where Mr Gan was. “He had left Nobel,” said Ms Levina. “He will only be leaving for a while, and I don't plan to be in Nobel for a long time,” said Ms Levina. “I think he will return again in the future,” she added.
My ears drooped and I was soon unhappy. I told Ms Levina about the holidays. It was too long, and I miss every day of my life in Nobel.
“It's okay, Wei Yiang. Life goes on. People come and go. You must remember that every day is a learning process. Continue to learn and to grow also. I hope to see you next year, Aiyah, seven weeks is quite long. School holidays are for you to rest. I also know you miss the school, your teachers and your friends, especially Caleb; but sometimes, you need to have a break, and that's why school holidays are for,” said Ms Levina, who also told me where to improve in Economics. “Although you got a D, keep trying and don't give up. All the best for next year,” she said with a smile and patted me on my back.
Lyn Wen had told me during lunch that she would not want to be my friend if I talked about Trump at the table. San Ying and I had debated on Donald Trump every break and lunch, with me pushing the positive cases for Trump, and she kept on rebutting my points with negative points about Trump. The whole year knew about it and were very annoyed. During Maths, Ms Bee Yan briefed us on the Maths arrangements for Year 11, and Ms Visa showed us movies during History.
After school, I then went for my Nobel Cup practice with Caleb Chuang. We went to the school's futsal court to do our futsal practice. Caleb Chuang then brought everyone to play futsal and I practiced being the defender for the Nobel Cup. I was told by Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark that I will be placed as a reserve player.
The next day, on 2nd November 2016, Mr Thomas then showed more news on the US election as well as Hillary Clinton's emails. I cheered when hearing the news, and this made everyone unamused. Fortunately, Enisha wasn't here to see it. She had been absent since the end of the Final Year Examination. Jien Min and Ethan Wong told me to stop cheering when news about Trump popped out. Mr Thomas laughed. “He is so excited. Really excited.” Then, we went for break and I took a break from talking Trump to brainstorm the strategies for the next day's Nobel Cup. I told him that the venue is near my house in Puchong. He nodded. “Mhmm,” he said. Then, I went to talk to Alex Chia, and outlined the strategies of confusing the opponents to him. He looked puzzled as to what I was talking to him. He smiled slyly, and then he looked at me, nodding his head. Ivyna told Alex to listen to me because what I was telling is very important. "We get it,” said Ivyna. I will tell Alex later.
I needed to tell everybody all the plans. This is because we need to secure the third Nobel Cup victory for Bullseye. After all, it is our final Nobel Cup ever and we want to end the Nobel Cup on a very high note. Hence, I went to speak to every captain as much as possible. I met all the captains. I had met with Yan Ying, Ivyna, Caleb Chuang and Pei Chi. I then went to meet Bryan Yap and Ting Yi to tell their plans, but Ting Yi wasn't listening. Fortunately, Bryan Yap accepted my chess strategy.
Then we return to the class and had Maths. Ms Bee Yan showed us a movie. Then, during our Character Transformation time, Brandon Ooi played with all his friends in the class while I also talked to Yan Ying and Ivyna to discuss the Nobel Cup plans. Ivyna asked me to tell Eric my plans as he was involved in basketball. When I approached Eric, he scolded me for disturbing him. “What!” he cried, and hurled profanities at me. Ivyna was furious with him.
“So bad! Wei Yiang is trying to tell you the plan for Nobel Cup. He had good plans. He wants to help you!” said Ivyna. Eric then listened to my plans and accepted it. Ivyna also told me to let Brandon Ooi know it as we were playing in the Nobel Cup together; he was with Bullseye's basketball team. We continued discussing about Nobel Cup, the end of the school year, Trump and the upcoming prospects for Year 11. The most important thing for me in the last few days of school, was the great companionship I had with my friends.
The next morning, Thursday 3rd November 2016, was the date of the Nobel Cup 2016. It was a very interesting day. It was a sunny day. And we were waiting for this day for so long.
I arrive at school early in the morning as usual with my football. I want my sports attire for the day. I took out my newspaper and read the news in the canteen. Then I went up to class, placed my bags, and went to meet Caleb Chuang to have a final discussion with him and Sean Mark. Afterwards, I returned to 10N to talk to Yan Ying and Ivyna, wishing them the best.
“Who's going to Puchong later?” asked Ms Cynthia as she came in for Reading Time. Ms Cynthia asked those going to Puchong to raise their hands. She asked me to leave for the courtyard. At 8:00am, we went down to the courtyard for a gathering. “Anyone else going to Puchong?” Ms Cynthia asked as she bade me farewell. I would then be in for a rude shock for Nobel Cup.
This Nobel Cup is quite important because the Nobel Cup 2016 is the last Nobel Cup which I would participate in as a student of Nobel International School, and the last one before the IGCSE exams. It would take place at iM4U Sentral which is located in Puchong, close to my house. I was participating in the futsal tournament for the Nobel Cup.
Caleb Chuang was our captain for the futsal tournament for Nobel Cup. He is really a professional football player and had played on the school team for futsal. We had spent one Saturday training for the tournament, and every after school session on Tuesday and Friday as well. We even came back on Saturday, 22nd October, to train for the Nobel Cup at the PE field near the school.
Mr Narish then asked all of us to gather. Mr Neoh and a few other teachers took our attendance before leaving for iM4U Sentral. I sat down at the house line allocated to Bullseye and talked to the Bullseye members. Everyone was there, from Ethan Chan to Melvyn Lim. All of them liked my motivation. Then I told all the Bullseye members the strategy and then I made an announcement to them.
“Bullseye members, you can do it. Show your best, do your best!” I cried. The Bullseye members screamed and shouted very loudly. This caused the other house members from Touchdown Homerun and Slamdunk to get very angry with us.
I mean, like, come on, Bullseye's victory was so powerful to the extent that three years had been occupied by us. The other houses were jealous.
Mr Narish then told us to board our buses. I talked with Caleb Chuang as we walked, confirming that the plans were about to begin. The netballers waved goodbye to us as we headed for our buses.
Mr Neoh announced the tournament format of the Nobel Cup while on the bus ride to iM4U Sentral. He said the team which scores the most points will be the winner of the tournament. Sean Mark and I were chit chatting about the formatting with him when the bus was on the Puchong Jaya Interchange approaching IOI Mall Puchong. All of the players were all well ready to go on the trip to iM4U Sentral. I told Mr Neoh my house location and he said that it is close to iM4U Sentral. I told him that I had to come to school early due to the traffic congestion which we saw on the ride to iM4U Sentral. The congestion lasted for around 3km.
iM4U Sentral is located in Bandar Puteri Puchong, two neighborhoods south of my house in Puchong Jaya. So as such, it took such a short ride to get there. I was placed as a reserve player for futsal as part of the futsal team for Bullseye. In the futsal team were Sean Mark, Ethan Chan, Aaron Yong, Zidez Raja, Sebastian Kon, Isaac Ng and a couple of marchers from our Sports Day marching squad.
When everyone arrived at iM4U Sentral, we were ushered to the futsal courts where we had a briefing by Mr Narish on what to expect. All the players sat according to the four houses. Once everyone settled down, Mr Narish said that we will have a game from 9:00am until 11:00am where we will begin with the KS3 match comprising Year 7 and 8 students, and for the remaining two levels, we will have our second match thereafter. He didn’t mention further details, but I overlooked one scoring format which could prove very different when compared to the original scoring format.
Previous Nobel Cup tournaments use an elimination format but however, for Nobel Cup 2016, we use a round robin format. The former involved grouping houses into groups of two who will play each other, and result in the final. Thus, only two games would need to be played per category (KS3 or KS4). However, for Nobel Cup 2016, the round robin tournament is different as each team will need to play a total of three games per category.
Mr Narish did not mention the name of the formatting; I only found out of the format years later. Hence, Mr Neoh said that the house with the most accumulated points from each match will win the competition. The round robin format pools points despite not having any clear advancement as opposed to the previous tournament format, where a clear winner is determined.
We would then depart iM4U Sentral at 1:00pm and head back to school thereafter following lunch, which will be served at the stadium.
The stadium consists of three main court areas, namely a basketball court, futsal court and a hall with eight badminton courts. Table tennis would be held at a small room located towards the eastern portion of the arena.
As I waited for the match to begin, I scanned the place for a general view of the arena. There was an opening on the right of the court, close to the basketball court that led towards the LDP Highway, where cars can be seen passing under the Puchong Intan flyover. Towards the left, one can see the Puchong Financial Corporate Centre on the left, as well as the Trigon Apartment tower of SetiaWalk. I normally ride my bicycle in the Puchong Jaya area, but sometimes sneaked over to SetiaWalk for a joyride. I begun to think about home, which was in the nearby distance.
The arena could be combined, but a series of nets bisected the arena’s basketball and futsal courts into two. We were also told not to interfere with the netting as the netting is loose and we can crash into the players.
Nobel International School had invited external referees to coordinate and judge the events to prevent bias. For the netball tournament, the refereeing was done by San Ying's mother. People address her as Coach Ngei. On another note, Mr Gallagher refereed the futsal team. He was cool as he showed off his cool moves while wearing Homerun's t-shirt.
As the first match kicked off between Bullseye and Homerun, Ethan Quar from Homerun was chanting, “Waste more time, waste more time,” in order to tire out the Bullseye players. I kept chanting back and told the Bullseye members to waste more time instead. The Bullseye members from Year 7 and 8 had a hard time jiggling the ball as Homerun scored the first two goals.
Soon, I then went around cheering for the basketballers. The school apparently brought in external referees to judge the competition. The referee who judged the basketball tournament was a lady from one of the basketball clubs nearby, I suppose. Kevin Tan was in the midst of playing for Touchdown when the lady went up to him and scolded him for committing a foul against the game rules. She raised her voice till I could hear it. I also went to the badminton court to cheer for the badminton players.
After the first match with Homerun, medics came to attend to a few injuries. Then, I saw the basketball match. Slamdunk was leading Bullseye in the basketball tournament. Brendan Cheah was too powerful to ignore. I screamed and shouted as loud as possible. “Come on, Bullseye! Let's go!” I cried. Eric Wong was already too tired. He shouted for action from the players.
Sean Mark then came over and checked on the Bullseye players. He then asked if all was well and he wasn’t looking pleased at the futsal performance. Those who weren’t playing were playing their basketball and football by dribbling it in the hallway, and the teachers had to remind people many times not to play the ball. I had also brought along my own football, but I kept it so that it won’t get lost. Sean Mark told them not to waste their energy on playing football in the hallway and reserve it for the game. I also warned our teammates of being deducted points if they continued playing in the hallway. Then, Mr Narish made an announcement on that too.
As the game progressed, Bullseye lost the match against Homerun, and we lost a couple of basketball games too, but we managed to secure at least two championships from the basketball side, namely a KS3 match against Slamdunk and a KS4 match against Homerun. The futsal side was also poorly performed, but I was given a chance to play for a short while during Bullseye’s game against Touchdown. I was told to return when Zher Xian was given the chance to play. In fact, Zher Xian and I had talked about the Bullseye strategies as well. He told me his Checkpoint was fine when I asked him about it.
Yi Zhen and Shaun Ting were taking photos of Nobel Cup on behalf of the Editorial Board. Seeing Yi Zhen reminds me of home as we both live in the same area.
I screamed and shouted as loud as possible. I was panicking, because we might lose the Nobel Cup. The futsal and basketball games were doing quite poorly. I was infuriated when our opponents scored the goal against Bullseye, and I facepalmed myself. Mind you, we even had an own goal during the futsal match.
Before the Nobel Cup ended, all players were invited to have a match against each other with no capacity limit, and everyone frantically scurried and kicked their own footballs to many clashes. Everyone had fun kicking balls to each other. Then, we had a lunch break as I talked to Caleb Chuang about my Bullseye strategy. We then headed back to school at around 1:30pm. By that time, the netball match was still ongoing, so we decided to watch it for a while. Bullseye fortunately performed well in the netball games, but I had a feeling that we were not doing well. We then carried on with our lessons after returning back to school.
The next day, during Homeroom time, Ms Cynthia discussed the Malaysian Studies paper with us. She was really disappointed with us.
“I am very very disappointed with all of you. Your marks are horrible,” she said. She then handed out the papers to us as each one of us looked at our marks with guilt and conviction.
“Some of you wrote in your answers, 'Sorry, sorry, sorry’. Some people just took a look at the questions and slept. Some of you were writing stories! I even saw some people talk about their cat and pet and also cartoon characters!” she groaned, shaking her head at us. Brandon Ooi then tried to be funny in the class and joke around, but Ms Cynthia wasn't amused as she discussed the papers. Ms Cynthia had to delay our Malaysian Studies discussion because of the trip to Dignity Foundation. She kept on talking about how silly our answers were as she discussed one question after another.
Mr Thomas was gearing up for a presentation of the Mercy Ship Project . He wanted us to present about the Mercy Ship, which is a non-governmental hospital ship ran by Africa Mercy, a non-governmental organization (NGO) affiliated with the United Nations and is based in Africa providing treatment for free. We had watched videos of the Mercy Ship since July and Mr Thomas was excited to see us present it in class. Mr Thomas said that the workers of the Africa Mercy had worked tirelessly for 24 hours, and a message needs to be spread by getting us to present about the Mercy Ship. Hence, we started the Mercy Ship Project.
So, to get started, we then selected Chang Ye Sean to be the chief doctor, Dr. Gary Parker, and Chong Vicky to be Dr. Sandra Loko, the chief nurse. Mr Thomas then said that we had originally planned to do the presentation in the class back in September, but because everyone was focusing on the Final Year Examination and he himself was not ready, he decided that we should do it on 4th November 2016. He had done a few rehearsals with us too.
Mr Thomas wants the Mercy Ship Project to be like a presentation shown on television, where a presenter would introduce the program and interview the main management members and team running the Mercy Ship. He wants the audience to feel proud and happy that we were running the program. So, he wants a presenter, Dr. Gary Parker, Dr. Sandra Loko, a patient, a nurse, a parent of the patient and the chief engineer of the ship.
Sherwin volunteered to be the presenter. Vicky volunteered to be the nurse, Benjamin Tenji was selected as the patient, Jien Min as chief engineer, and Enisha as the parent of the patient. I, too, wanted to volunteer to present, but Mr Thomas decided it was best that I give others a chance.
“Our friend here is very responsive, I know. I know. He is responsive and always likes to volunteer. But shall we give others a chance?” he asked. I nodded and then Mr Thomas was pumped up in excitement.
“Come, come, let’s start. One, two, three!” cried Mr Thomas. Then, Sherwin begun introducing to the crowd.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this morning’s program. I am Sherwin, and I will be your host for today.” Sherwin then continued to introduce about the Africa Mercy and then he passed the time to Ye Sean, who explained about his role, playing Dr Gary Parker.
“No, no, no! You cannot explain like that,” Mr Thomas said, as he stopped Ye Sean from talking. “You must explain what did you do as a doctor, and what is your role.” Mr Thomas then asked for the presentation to continue, and he continued to point out flaws and areas for improvement from the speakers. The audience cheered and clapped when everyone was done. “Let’s go! One! Two! Three!” cried Mr Thomas as he observed the presentation.
Mr Thomas then asked the audience for feedback once the presentation concluded, and I raised my hand to answer. Mr Thomas smirked, and then he said, “You again.” The class laughed in amusement. I said that the presentation can be improved by having the patients testify how their lives have been improved by Africa Mercy and what was the experience like receiving the medical services. I also told Ye Sean and Alexandria Goh to talk about how they rose up the ranks as chief doctor and chief nurse, and how Jien Min as the engineer had worked tirelessly to keep the ship running round the clock.
Mr Thomas then asked if anyone would be able to chip in ideas and suggestions. None of the people in the class responded, except for Ivyna and Isabella Wong, who commented. Satisfied, Mr Thomas called for the presentation to be restarted.
“One, two, three!” cried Mr Thomas, as he smiled as if he won the lottery, and he plopped down on his chair behind the classroom and peered at the presentation. He stood up once in a while to stretch himself, and stared attentively at the presentation. We did our best, and I presented with great intonation. When the presentation ended, he clapped loudly and I started cheering at their impressive performance.
“Beautiful! Well done!” he cried. Then, he called for a display of the Mercy Ship livery on the Smartboard. So we displayed it and the presentation continued to more thunderous applause. Mr Thomas says that since the presentation went quite well, he would prefer to do the presentation in front of a proper audience in the near future. “All of you did quite well. Good! Good! Very good!” cried Mr Thomas.
We then went for break. It was only four more days till the United States Presidential Election. I then spoke with Sherwin on the election and counted down with him to the start of the polls. Krisha had harbored ambitions on going to the United States and Sophie had told me that all of them would not be able to go if Trump won.
After that, we went for our Art and Design lesson. Ms Feeda handed us the marks. I got a D for Art and Design IGCSE. Ms Feeda then told us where to improve. The whole class was still in a sad mood. For me, I didn't feel anything, but everyone else had a strong attachment with Ms Feeda. Glen, Louis and Yan Chern didn't feel anything too.
Ms Feeda said that she will throw a farewell party on 9th November 2016, a Wednesday, during the Character Transformation time as a token of appreciation to us. The whole class cried and moaned. “Cher! Cher! Don't go!” cried Faythe. Ms Feeda had to go around and pat people and hug people to make them feel comfortable.
Then, we had History and we watched movies again. Mr Gallagher wasn't in a mood to talk about Trump during Global Perspectives. Instead, I talked about what Derek had posted to me on Edmodo.
Derek was not amused and told me that Trump was lying all the while. I really had a good debate with him. On another note, it was our final Global Perspectives lesson that was held on a Friday. I really took time to savor. I told myself that it was the last one and gave myself a pep talk that we will have a better timetable in 2017.
7th November 2016 begun on a tense note. It was the eve of the United States Presidential Election.
I had spent the WHOLE WEEKEND watching CNN's broadcast of the election. I spent countless times gasping, groaning, screaming, shouting and yelling when Trump spoke.
Before school begun, I went to talk to my friends about the presidential election. Then, I met Mr Thomas along the hallways.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I greeted him.
“Yes, good morning. Tomorrow is the election!” cried Mr Thomas, and he smiled at me. “Who do you think will win?” I told him that I thought that Trump would win. We then had a chat as we walked back to the class. Mr. Thomas was going to 10O for the English First lesson.
I went back to class and got ready for Business Studies. Then I proceeded to 10L. Miss Chithra was waiting for us and we continued the next topic. We then went for Science, and Ms Sangeetha introduced us to Mr Lee and his lesson style.
“I can guarantee that all of you will like Mr. Lee's lesson. He is a very funny teacher,” said Ms Sangeetha.
Ms Sangeetha then talked about her baby. She told us that she had to take care of her kids. And it was not easy being a mother. Ivyna and Yan Ying asked her more about her child. She had a long story about it.
“Cher, can I sayang your baby?” asked Brandon. “May I pat it?” he asked.
“No, please. It's my baby,” said Ms Sangeetha, shaking her head.
Then, I met San Ying during break time. She was sitting on the table and having a snack of bread.
“Tomorrow's the day. One more day to go,” I said to her. She nodded.
Sophie then gave a serious stare. “What will happen tomorrow?” she asked.
“The US Election,” said San Ying.
“Please. I don't want Trump to win. I want Clinton,” pleaded Sophie.
During Economics, Ms Levina gave all of us a preview of what to expect in Economics for Year 11. She said that it will be more focused on the government, health and economic indicators, developed and developing countries, exchange rates, balance of payments and balance sheets. It will be more on the government just like our talk a week back during the Final Year Examination. Then, Ms Bee Yan told us about our Maths placement. She confirmed my placement for Mathematics Core. Everyone was tense during lunch, and we talked about the US election. The polls were about to open, but we would need to wait a bit later for the results. Then, we had Global Perspectives, and Derek declined to talk about Hillary Clinton. No one was in the mood to talk about the polls.
During Art, Ms Feeda then told us that we could take our prep works back. She handed each one of us our prep work. Then, Ms Feeda told us to come on Wednesday, 9th November, for the farewell party. Everyone cried again upon hearing that.
Finally, it was the day of the United States Presidential Election. The moment of truth.
The election was held on 8th November 2016, which is a Tuesday. According to the US constitution, the election of the US president must be held on the Tuesday which follows the first Monday in November in a leap year. So, in 2016, 8th November is the held after the first Monday of the month, 7th November. This was the case for all US elections, be it for a governor, mayor, congressman or woman, and of course, state assemblymen and other elected officials. However, it is the presidential election that is held every four years. Elections to the US House of Representatives are held every two years. For the US Senate, it is once every six years depending on each state's Senate class. House and Senate elections occur at the same time as the presidential election.
I did not get to watch the results as I did not possess any electronic device to comply with the school rules. However, many people, or I should say, some people, brought phones without the notice of school officials and checked the results in secret.
The day begun with a movie during Science and Ms Sangeetha let us do our own things. I talked about the presidential election with Kelsey, who did not want to hear it.
During break time, San Ying told me she was so nervous.
“Today's the day,” I said.
“Yeah,” she replied. “Seriously, it is.”
Everyone did not talk much as we waited with bated breath on the election results. We wanted to see who will win the election.
Later on, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra continued with our lesson, and Ms Levina was excited to talk about the US Election.
“Anyone supporting Trump?” asked Ms Levina. I raised my hand.
“Boo!” cried Brandon.
Initially, Ms Levina thought it was Brandon Ooi who would support Trump, as he had been playing the fool all the while during her class. However, Ms Levina was surprised as to the actual situation.
“Why did you support Trump?” asked Ms Levina. I had to use my Economics knowledge on perfect competition, economies of scale, and all that I had learnt in class to explain to Ms Levina my case on why I support Trump.
“Trump is a businessman and he is very good in Economics. He had run his business for many years. Most presidents are not business-minded. Having someone from the business world would be very good because he can make economic policies based on demand and supply,” I begun. Then, I had to explain the terrorism case and the World Trade Center case. “You really use your Economics knowledge well,” said Ms Levina. Cassandra was grinning.
Then, we had lunch. Everyone was betting on winning.
“Wei Yiang, Trump is gonna lose,” said Krisha. San Ying said she hopes that Trump doesn't win. “I prefer to see the first female president than a businessman,” she said. We then had Maths, where Ms Bee Yan gave us a free period to do what we wanted. I then went to Ms Bee Yan and told her that my mum had asked her for a transition to Mathematics Extended instead of Mathematics Core. Ms Bee Yan said that I should let my mum know about this because the whole placement is done based on our exam results. “Please ask your mum to write a letter,” said Ms Bee Yan. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa let us do our things in class as well. After school ended, I quickly went home and watched the presidential election coverage on CNN.
The next morning, we all gathered for Mr Thomas’ English lesson. All of us awaited the arrival of Mr Thomas. When he reached the class, I greeted him. “Today, we are going to watch the election,” said Mr Thomas. I cheered. The whole class groaned.
“Mr Thomas! I have spent so much time talking with him about Trump!” cried San Ying. “No! Please! No!” she cried. Mr Thomas switched on the computer and flicked to CNN Live. He had asked me which is the best place to watch the election. Before he switched on CNN, he typed in the search column the latest news on the election.
Watching the results of the 2016 United States presidential election was one of the activities we did together. However, Ethan Wong gasped. He peered at the screen and saw the live counting of the results. “Trump is leading,” he said. It may not be good news to him but good news to me, as I support Trump then. A lot of people who checked the news saw Trump leading, and Mr Thomas flickered the results on the Smartboard which showed a Trump lead. He had opened CNN's official website as well as that of The New York Times. Honestly speaking, I was surprised when I was told that Trump was leading. Many people in our year level, in fact, everyone except me, hated Trump then.
You see, the United States is 12 hours behind Malaysia, in which when Malaysia’s time is 9:00am on Wednesday, 9th November, the US time is 9:00pm on Tuesday, 8th November, which is based on the Eastern Standard Time based on the East Coast of the United States containing cities like New York, Boston and Washington, D.C. Hence, because of this, we only can get the results a day later.
Some people stood up to get a good view of the Smartboard. Jien Min yelled profanities as the results showed Trump wins in certain states.
During break time, many people were speaking of a possible Trump win. San Ying did not want to hear any more news. And then, we had Ms Bee Yan's Maths lesson. I gave Ms Bee Yan the letter that my mum passed to me on appealing the change from Maths Core to Maths Extended for Year 11.
After lunch, we went to the Art Studio as Yi Zhen had informed us to go.
The Art Studio bustled with music and a series of pomp and circumstance. Ms Ajee, a Year 7 and 8 Art teacher, had helped Ms Feeda prepare the party. There were food and drinks on standby. Ms Feeda had prepared a series of snacks and a party for us in the art studio to thank us for our effort for Art and Design over the eleven months we have spent with her. She then gave each of us a note on every food and drink packet. Mine read,
“Dearest Wei Yiang, Wishing you all the best in future undertakings. Do take care and God bless you!
Ms Feeda, Nov 2016”
The notes were laminated and each note came with a picture of us that Ms Feeda took. The photos were actually meant for the Salvador Dali surrealism paintings we did back in the beginning of the year. I spent time talking to Ms Feeda about how I got to know her well since Year 7. I actually know her in name as a teacher even when I came to Nobel.
Jien Min then took a paintbrush and cheekily acted like as if he was playing a ukelele with it. He held a ukelele and then wound the brush on the ukelele. Then, Glen Kay did his yoyo practice in the studio. He was told to be careful as the yoyo can smash the art stationery, paintings and the windows, and his act might topple a paint container, spilling paint. Fortunately, he stopped before he could begin.
There were a lot of songs played as Eu Lynn and Sara Yow entertained Ms Feeda. So many things were being presented to Ms Feeda. Chu Xiang gave a metal flower, while Eugenie gave a card. Then, Jien Min presented a modified cheque envelope by the school and a lot of people took selfies with Ms Feeda. Glen and I just talked a bit.
Then, we were invited to pose for a group photo. The Art Studio was too small and we had to open the window and ask someone else to take a picture for us. Then, once that was done, Ms Feeda took down all the paintings in the room. Everyone groaned and acted so sarcastically till I laughed. Then, when Ms Feeda had taken half of the canvas paintings down, a lot of people rushed to put the things back up. Then, after some time, the party ended and everyone went back.
At 2:45pm, Christopher Chew announced the result from his phone. “Oh dear. Trump won,” he groaned. I cheered and asked Christopher Chew who won. “Clinton won,” he sarcastically said, purposely wanting to make me sad. He knows I will scream loudly in happiness if he told me that Donald Trump had won the election.
As we went up for our next lesson, everyone was talking about the election and Trump winning the election. Many of them checked the election results on their phones, which they concealed from their teachers. In fact, many people bring phones to school without getting caught by their teachers.
When I heard from Faythe Chow that Trump won, I cheered loudly. “Wei Yiang, please,” Faythe said, unhappy with the result. Faythe was at the time conversing with Eugenie and Natasha Singam in 10O where my History class was about to take place, and said, “oh no”. Krisha and Sophie Tan also said the same thing. They were flabbergasted and could not accept the Trump win. Subsequently, Ms Renee asked me to lower down my tone as a result.
After school ended, I went home and screamed and shouted loudly after it was confirmed Donald Trump had won the election. At the end of the day, Trump won a total of 306 electoral votes compared to 232 for Hillary Clinton excluding faithless electors, flipping Florida, Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. He also won one additional electoral vote in Maine's second congressional district. I felt excited and looked forward to 20th January 2017, the day of the Trump inauguration. I would paste a note on the wall of my house to mark the all-important day. 20th January is the stipulated date of the inauguration of the president and vice president of the United States following a presidential election win. Then, I spent the entire evening watching Trump's victory speech in New York City to celebrate the results of the election. I screamed and shouted so loudly till my neighbor who lives two houses away heard my screaming.
On 10th November 2016, we Year 10s went to District 21 for a Year 10 treat. District 21 is located at IOI City Mall in Putrajaya and from its name, you can judge it somewhat like a so called fictional forbidden zone which you would normally see in movies. The treat was given by Ms Lim.
So, on that morning, we then boarded the buses in our sports attire to head to District 21. The bus then drove down the LDP Highway, past my house in Puchong and all the way to IOI City Mall via the South Klang Valley Expressway. I joked of having to conveniently come back to my house without going all the way back to school which was time consuming.
IOI City Mall, at the time, was a newly-opened mall in Putrajaya. It is a very large mall with so much retail space, and also the mall is to also contain an ice rink which would become the largest ice skating rink in Malaysia. District 21 is located on the first floor of the mall. We then proceeded to the counter and got our wristbands for us to enter the park. I would spend most of my time in the park jumping on the trampoline and playing basketball.
The District 21 consists of many things and attractions in the park, from flying foxes to obstacle courses, but most of the time, Brendan Cheah and his friends would play basketball at the trampoline area. There are around 12 trampolines in the court and three basketball hoops at either end of the trampoline zone. So I also had fun joining them playing basketball. I’m not a fan or someone who likes to play basketball, but this is something better than climbing or going on dangerous places. So occasionally, Brendan Cheah, Sean Mark, Ryan Chok, Brandon Ooi and a few others who like to play basketball would jump and play at the trampoline area. Min Han praised my basketball jumping skills, all thanks to the trampoline. Even Brendan Cheah occasionally joined in and praised my skills.
I took a break and spoke to Ms Levina and Yi Zhen. Ms Levina had accompanied us on the trip together. So, Yi Zhen and I talked about where both of our houses were. We live in the same place (Puchong Jaya) but in different neighborhoods. I met Yi Zhen on 12th October 2016 on the way home to my neighborhood; we saw each other at the traffic light when her transporter was behind my car.
We then had fun before we went to a restaurant for lunch at 1:00pm. Once we had lunch, I then followed Lyn Wen, Yi Zhen, Cassandra, Faythe Chow, Co Sheen and Natasha to explore the mall while we talked, as Ms Bee Yan said we can explore the mall since we were there. Lyn Wen and Yi Zhen stopped by a store selling accessories to look around, but then I decided to walk back to the place where we gathered. However, somehow, I did not manage to see Lyn Wen and Yi Zhen, but we caught up. I also met Faythe and Natasha and we walked back.
Ms Bee Yan then approached me and asked where did I went, since the teachers had trouble finding me and I told her I was with Yi Zhen and Lyn Wen. So, we gathered everyone together and we went to board our buses which were parked at the road adjacent to IOI City Mall. Sheng Jit had also apparently brought back a paper cup containing coffee; I took it back home as a souvenir once he threw it in the bin back in school. We then just sat in the bus, tired and many people slept while I once again saw the scenery.
Class Party was held at the end of the week, which is 11th November. In the lead up to class party, I spent time well with my friends, as I also miss seeing them during the November/December school holidays. Compared to other holidays, the end of year school holidays last seven weeks in total. It is so boring going about seven weeks of school shutdown, so I try to spend some time with my friends before going on the holiday.
The morning started when Mr Narish announced the winner of the 2016 Nobel Cup. Touchdown won the Nobel Cup, and Wences and Le Anne were asked to receive the trophy from Mr Narish on stage. The points were as follows:
1. Touchdown: 100 points
2. Bullseye: 90 points
3. Slamdunk: 70 points
4. Homerun: 60 points
For the first time since the 2013 Nobel Cup, another house other than Bullseye had won the tournament since its inception. The 2013 Nobel Cup, which was the inaugural Nobel Cup, was won by Homerun.
Cassandra's message from 2015 resonated in my mind. I remembered of her telling me on the previous year's class party that ‘we will get you back’, a threat said to me and Caleb Chuang. Oh, no worries. We can win the Nobel Cup 2017 the coming year, and also what better way to do so than to win Sports Day 2017 as well!
When we got back to class, I told this news to Cassandra. She told me that they will soon try to get Sports Day as well.
“At least Trump won, and I can enjoy it for four years,” I snickered. Cassandra then told me, “I’m telling Enisha that you made Trump win!”
On the last day of school, we had a party bash in our classroom where Brandon Ooi and Shane played earrape song versions of Mr Bean’s theme song, as well as other Western songs. We just mostly had snack and listened to music. Meanwhile, while everyone was in 10N, I went to 10O to hang out with Caleb Chuang. I also walked between classes to talk to different people; I rarely spent most of my time in 10N because I wanted to meet many of my other friends from other classes whom I rarely had a chance to meet because we were always told to keep to our own classes. I talked to Caleb about how things went so far and how much time we had till we graduate from Year 11 the following year, 2017. I also went and greeted Ms Sangeetha, bidding her a fond farewell before she left Nobel. Aside from Ms Feeda, Ms Sangeetha was also leaving Nobel. Her reason was that she wanted to take care of her newborn baby that she would be delivering; she had one son so far. There were also other teachers, such as Ms Maddy, who had quit the school in August 2016.
All the art students were then ushered at 11:00am for a farewell party for Ms Feeda. Sara Yow, Eu Lynn and Lyn Wen had been planning the party for some time. So what they needed was all of us art students to gather in 11L on the second floor to conduct the party. Lyn Wen and Sara had set up a gallery containing brown envelopes bearing our names in calligraphy format which Lyn Wen and Sara had written. Sara had recently been learning calligraphy writing from Lyn Wen as well, and their writing were very good. The only other name that is not from our art batch is Co Sheen’s; she was taught by Ms Feeda in 2015 (Year 9) and did not choose art for Year 10.
At the centre of the table lay a large banquet of food. Eu Lynn then told us to sit down and put our heads down while they called Ms Feeda. Then, Sara, Sophie, Jia Yiu, Timothy Hiew, Lyn Wen and Benjamin Tenji wore masks that resemble Ms Feeda’s portrait which they printed, and then Lyn Wen went to call Ms Feeda. So, Ms Feeda came, and then she was shocked to see the party which we had planned for her. “Thank you so much!” she said, in tears.
“Cher, cher, we want to plan this party for you because this is your last day, right?” said Eu Lynn. “Thanks for teaching us, cher!” Ms Feeda then gave Eu Lynn a hug.
Ms Feeda then met and greeted each one of us as Lyn Wen and Eu Lynn played songs for Ms Feeda. Sara, Sophie and all the people wearing the printed masks then danced to Ms Feeda’s delight. Ms Feeda then thanked each and every one of us before we enjoyed snacks. I then told Ms Feeda that I will do my best for the Art and Design IGCSE for Year 11.
Co Sheen dropped by to bid farewell to Ms Feeda, and Glen then did a performance of his Chinese yoyo for Ms Feeda to see and she was delighted. Yi Zhen also took the opportunity to give Ms Feeda a hug. Once everything was settled, we then had a group photo with Ms Feeda as well as a mannequin challenge before we went home. I went back to 10N to check on a few things before calling it a day. Grace, Ze Khai and Jia Yee had stacked the tables and everything was cleaned up. I then went back home, looking ahead towards Year 11 while still missing my friends. Upon it all, I just said a sad goodbye as my heart sank, preparing for what was to be the last year of my life in Nobel.
2017 – Year 11
It was finally the year 2017. A new year befell me. At the age of 16, I have entered Year 11, ready to face the IGCSE examination.
Being in Year 11 meant being in the oldest batch in the school. Not just that; but our personality towers over that of each and every younger student. There was no one in this school that was older than me. The only exception to this rule would be my teachers.
I managed to meet Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow, Eu Lynn, Megan, Christiana and Natalie Seah during a Christmas event in December 2016 to overcome the holiday blues. Most people would have Monday blues on their return to school, but I was stuck with holiday blues. Fortunately, the holidays have ended.
On 3rd January 2017, I came to school early in the morning. All these thoughts befell me in my head. As I plopped into the canteen, my first thought was not on the IGCSE, but on one very last, unhinged and rare opportunity: to make a final, last-ditch bid to become a monitor.
I did not harbor ambitions to lead the class; being a class monitor or assistant monitor would be gravely just enough as the most important for me was to manage the class control book, which had its own share of problems of tardiness by previous monitors. So, in my head, I was thinking about what and how should I make the case to become a monitor while waiting for the assembly to start. I felt that something had to be done for the class control book.
That early January morning; the first day of school, was a bit different for the year 2017. Like any other year, the elementary school would be using the school hall for their first day in order to accustom the new students to Powerpoint briefings by Mr Chuang and the elementary school teachers.
We, the Junior and Senior School students, then gathered in the courtyard that morning as we talked about the anxiousness which would befall us: the IGCSE exams. We were so nervous as being Year 11 students, we would be expected to have higher expectations from our juniors.
The minutes ticked by as more people started filling up the school compound. The school grounds were becoming more crowded and noisy as the liveliness kicked in. Soon, Cassandra arrived, along with Kelsey. I then spoke to them and talked to them as we watched everyone come into the school grounds. Caleb Chuang soon arrived thereafter. I told Kelsey and Cassandra of my plan to run for the class monitor's post in the class monitor election thereafter.
At 7:45am, we were then asked to assemble when the music played. In the front, Yi Zhen was conducting the assembly and requested everyone to settle down.
“Prefects, if your classes are ready, you may send them back,” she said, and were led to our class.
The Year 11 classes were on the highest floor, right above our previous level's Year 10 classes. It was where all the Year 11 students of the past went to.
I took my front seat and waited for our class teachers to come. I was wondering who would come and what would transpire. Then, I saw Ms Visa come in, and Brandon Ooi was excited. “Hi, cher!” he cried. Mr Kevin Wai was our class teacher, with Ms Visa assisting him. He then came in and took over the class for the day.
“Class, the first thing we are going to do today is to elect the monitor and assistant monitor. Who wants to be monitor?” he asked. Ms Visa said that she will have two rounds of election for the monitor, namely one that is done according to the class’ choice, and another done as per who is the most responsible one that people would think can serve.
Now, Ms Visa, being a former head teacher of the Monitor's Council, have had her share of very tardy class monitors. She did not want the same incident to be repeated with any monitor. The worst thing that could break her heart was a tardy class monitor from her class. And many monitors fail that on the class control book, with incomplete records. I wanted to change the management method of the class control book, because I could personally see areas which we could improve in the class control book that could eliminate and simplify hurdles into that form of management. Hence, that was my decision to run for the monitor's post, as I wanted things to change and improve.
So I raised my hands, and along with me, Sheng Jit, Brandon Ooi, Cassandra, Kelsey and Nickolas Nashpal were also nominated.
“We will have two rounds, okay. Choose the one that you wish to see be monitor, and then choose the one that you think is responsible enough to be monitor,” said Ms Visa. The class was confused, and Ms Visa explained again. All the six of us were ushered out of the room as the entire class took their vote on the next choice of class monitor.
The class wanted Sheng Jit to be the monitor again and to retain the choice from last year which continues the situation. However, Ms Visa wanted somebody responsible for the job. One would first think that there would be two rounds of voting plus a discussion, but this wasn't the case.
Brandon Ooi peeked into the class as I tried looking at the courtyard. The sun's rays lashed against the school's walls as it came to me that my final days in Nobel were looming.
After a tedious balloting process, I was elected as the assistant monitor for 11N. I have wanted to be the monitor since August 2015 as there have been problems plaguing the management of the class control book. The class control book was a record book that had to be held by either the monitor or assistant monitor in order to deal with affairs regarding student and teachers’ issues such as lateness, absentee record, and class activities. The teachers had been blaming monitors for not regulating the control book properly. My 17-month wait was finally over. In fact, I did not expect myself to be chosen as the assistant monitor. I was thinking that my class would go and elect somebody else for the top job.
After being chosen as the assistant monitor, my class teacher, Mr Kevin Wai, handed me the control book and associated documents to get started. I was given a zip pouch which contained a Smartboard eraser as well as a Smartboard pen in it. Mr Kevin gave it to me and I placed the stationery on the Smartboard. The zip pouch also contained four pass tags meant for the washroom, sick bay, canteen and teachers’ staffroom.
When choosing the class monitor and assistant monitor for 11N, Ms Visa urged the class to choose someone whom they thought can be a monitor, and a second round on who they think is suitable for the post. The nominees for the post was me, Sheng Jit (2016’s monitor for 10N), Cassandra (2016’s assistant monitor for 10N), Brandon Ooi, Nickolas Nashpal and Kelsey Tay (2016's original assistant monitor for 10N. The class had a hard time choosing the monitor, as no one raised their hands to vote for me. But it was through intense lobbying, I suppose, by Ms Visa, that she found me suitable for one of the posts, given that Ms Visa and I had issues over the control book before in Year 7 and 8, and thus she was also the head of the Monitor’s Council before. During the class monitor’s election which was happening at the same time for other classes, we could see who was nominated for the posts.
There were actually two rounds. In Ms Visa's mind, what she actually meant was that the monitor and assistant monitor's posts were on equal footing. Hence, there should be a responsible guy to back the popular choice for class monitor just in case the monitor isn't as responsible.
Brandon Ooi peered into the class. “Hahaha, no one voted for Wei Yiang,” he said, teasing me. Kelsey stroked him and told him to pity me for not receiving a single vote. A second round soon followed. Sheng Jit had the most votes, followed by me, Brandon Ooi, Nickolas Nashpal, Cassandra and Kelsey. As I had the second highest votes, I was thus elected as assistant monitor.
As the assistant monitor, I had to attend the Monitor’s Council meetings every Monday from 3:30pm to 5:00pm. The meeting is held at the same time as other leadership board meetings such as the Prefectorial Board and the Librarian Board. As such, I was also involved in Nobel’s leadership board plannings. Mr Kevin Wai wished me all the best and told me what to do in regards to the control book. He also told me I was responsible for keeping the Smartboard pens in the transparent zip pouch bag and returning it to the shelf next to the management office after every school day, and taking it in the morning for class. The responsibility also includes custody of the pass tags needed to leave the classroom for certain reasons.
Following the appointment of me as assistant monitor and Koo Sheng Jit as class monitor, Mr Kevin Wai explained the list of events we had for 2017 on a Powerpoint slide on what we should expect as Year 11 students. March is the Sports Day, followed by Study Camp in April and the Malay IGCSE in May. We had to drop our subjects in June and then afterwards preparations for IGCSE would begin in July, with the IGCSE Trial in August and the actual IGCSE in October and November 2017.
As assistant monitor, being asked to attend the Monitor’s Council meeting after school on every Monday was a silver lining. Firstly, as a new rookie to the game, I was joined by other monitors who had better experiences in the past and served more terms as monitors than me. Secondly, I also got to present my skills and expertise on how to solve problems monitors faced in the past. While class cleanliness is one area that monitors also focus on, the biggest problem was the fact that monitors also do not complete the class control book, which is a book that consists of attendance, students leaving classroom and the subjects and teachers who used the classroom, which must be recorded and completed. Many monitors had failed to do so over the years.
On the first day (and week) of school, many teachers were surprised to see me handling the task of assistant monitor. As most teachers did not sign the control book when entering the classroom, they were stunned to have the inconvenience of me signing the control book.
Teachers who used 11N for lessons:
Mr Lee – Combined Science
Ms Sharon – Economics
Mr Raja – Accounting (Block 2 and 4 set teaching)
Ms Joyce – English Second
Ms Sarah – English Literature (Block 1 set teaching)
Ms Janice – Additional Mathematics (Block 3 set teaching)
Cikgu Niely – Malay
Ms Cynthia – Malaysian Studies
Ms Bee Yan – Mathematics (Extended set teaching)
Initially, they were hesitant to heed the request, but then they soon followed. This was also same for the people who used the washroom; they initially were hesitant, but then they followed and also they gave their co-operation. Brandon Ooi said that instead of asking the people who went to the toilet to write themselves, I can instead write for them as the important thing is the information. I accepted his suggestion, and then from there, Brandon and I had a warmer relationship over the course of our Year 11 period.
Mr Kevin Wai and I would do the attendance register together, and I had to compile late slips, permission slips, doctor’s letters and every other document by stapling it to the left page of the control book. At the same time, for the rest of the lessons, the teachers will be asked to sign to indicate their presence for the lesson. If let’s say that there is a set teaching and I am not in the class, I will get Sheng Jit to cover for me if I am away for another class, and for teachers who forgot to sign the control book, I will usually find them after school in the staffroom, get their signatures and return the control book to the pigeon hole before going home. If a teacher was absent, I will get the relief teacher’s signature and ask my friends who was relieving the class of the absent teacher.
The day in the life of a monitor is as follows; all monitors had to take the control book and a bag containing the smartboard equipment from a shelf which we call the pigeon hole, which is located next to the Junior and Senior School’s Management Office on the second floor. I would then collect the equipment after the assembly or if we entered class early on Tuesdays and Thursdays for reading time, and place the smartboard equipment (which contained a pen and an eraser designed for the smartboard) on the ledge of the smartboard. I would then have to fill in the date and the subjects for the day’s lessons on the page. Each day had two pages. Most monitors would find it a hassle to do it everyday, so to save time, I wrote the lessons and the timetable schedule as early as two or three weeks in advance. The smartboard equipment and the control book will be returned to the pigeon hole at the end of the day’s lessons. Occasionally, I will switch on the computer and Smartboard equipment of the classroom before the teachers came in.
The monitor’s role also includes managing the four pass tags in the classroom. The pass tags would need to be left on the doorknob in the case of our class, so it is easy for people who use when leaving the classroom. There are four pass tags in different colors; washroom (yellow), staffroom/office (orange), sick bay (purple) and canteen (blue). Only one person can leave the classroom for these four purposes; the canteen pass tag is used on Fridays when collecting the Friday snacks from Uncle KC’s stall in the canteen on the ground floor.
Being an assistant monitor was big responsibility, but nevertheless, I was up for the challenge.
When Mr Kevin Wai was showing the slides, I focused my mind on two events: Sports Day 2017 and the Year 11 Graduation, then scheduled for 17th November 2017. It was eventually brought forward by a day. I just fixated my eyes on the calendar as the days, weeks and months started ticking down to that day. And as for the Sports Day 2017, I had an agenda to make Bullseye win again. We must have a grand send-off for all of us on our last Sports Day in Nobel. And what better way to do so than a Bullseye victory. I mean, all of us will be leading Sports Day, so I was excited on what to have for the marchpast. We have lost Nobel Cup 2016, but what I was thinking is that we can win Sports Day 2017 and have our Year 10 comrades win the Nobel Cup 2017. If that happened, this would result in a third occasion where the Sports Day and Nobel Cup in the same calendar year were won by the same sports house. The 2014 and 2015 Sports Days as well as their end-of-year Nobel Cups, were won by Bullseye. How cool would it be to have the year 2017 see off twin victories of Sports Day and Nobel Cup, all won by Bullseye. It would be fabulous!
Also, another thing: I was also thinking since 2015 that we should make Bullseye win every Sports Day and Nobel Cup till we reach Year 11. It would be so cool and impressive if Bullseye were to win every year. We had the 2014 Sports Day, followed by the 2014 Nobel Cup. Then, we won 2015 under Lim Wei Ming, and then Sabrina Qistina took over to win the 2015 Nobel Cup and the 2016 Sports Day. I was hopeful that we can hold the grip on Sports Day and then wrestle Nobel Cup back from Touchdown, so we can show everyone that we are great! And what better way to accomplish it with all the comrades of Bullseye and all of us in Year 11 leading that way. It will be fabulous!
After Mr Kevin Wai briefed us on our expectations for Year 11, he gave us our timetable and our Student Organizer. Finally. We have a nice, perfect timetable. There is no more compression of all the set teaching lessons in one day. It was spaced out, especially on evenings and on Fridays. The Student Organizer was designed by Yi Zhen herself. She was invited by the school to design the new Student Organizer. There was nice calligraphy on the organizer. Then, Mr Kevin Wai told me and Sheng Jit to come up and discuss the class funds. Mr Kevin said that we should have a class fund account and he asked me and Sheng Jit to lead the discussion on our class funds. We talked about how much funds should we have. I wrote the information on the whiteboard while Sheng Jit was the one talking to the class.
Soon, it was break time, and I went down to meet San Ying.
“In 17 days, it will be time,” I said. “17 days to go,”
San Ying was puzzled about why I said 17 days to her. When she found out that it was 17 days to go to Donald Trump's inauguration, she was puzzled.
“I am not looking forward to it,” she said. In fact, I was so excited.
“Good for you,” said Kit Lee.
Instantly overnight, we became the oldest level in the KS4 batch. What a jump. I then took a walk around the school, thinking about that as well as my new responsibilities as assistant monitor. There are some things that must be changed in order for things to work well. One thing that was to be changed was the time when we wrote the timetable.
Back in those days when the class control book was still in effect, most monitors would normally write the timetable as well as the subjects according to the usage of the class. This is normal because everyone had to write this in order and present it to the teachers for their signature. every teacher who used the classroom would need to sign on the control book. Aside from that. Individuals who were using the washroom would also need to indicate on the control book that they were going to the loo. However, most monitors would write the timetable information in the control book on the timetable section in the column at the beginning of the day, which is too frequent. To improvise on this, I would write the timetable information in the class control book a week before the day itself.
In a class control book, there would be two pages dedicated to each day of the week. The left page would consist of a class name list for attendance purposes, a column to fill in the date of the week and a timetable column. The right page would have a column dedicated for a list of individuals who leave the classroom daily, and anyone exiting the classroom would need to indicate their name on the list and the reason they left, be it to use the loo, meet the teachers or head to the school canteen to collect the Friday food. There is an additional column for students who leave the classroom for longer periods; that is to say, longer than two periods of the lesson.
Normally, a lesson would consist of either a one-period lesson or a two-period lesson. A one-period lesson lasts 40 minutes and a two-period lesson lasts for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Individuals who are out of the classroom for more than two periods would need to indicate their name there, along with a signed permission slip. They also needed to sign and initialize on that column. This column is useful for individuals who are going for events, such as Sports Day practices and concert rehearsals.
As mentioned earlier, the first weakness that most monitors would do would be to write all the information inside their control book on the day of the lesson itself. This causes a lot of hassle and it requires monitors to commit to writing the information in the control book. This issue is made even worse when there are set teaching classes involved, especially in Year 10 and Year 11. To reduce the hassle, the next week's information is already written in the control book in advance.
However, I had no time to do so that day. We had a rushed timetable to comprehend with. Mr Gallagher was calling us for the Global Perspectives lesson. But however, there was an improvement in where the Global Perspectives lesson was held. This time, instead of being in a cramped classroom, the venue was at Tutorial Room 3. This room utilized the former multimedia room when I was in Year 1. And not only that, the room was air conditioned and spacious, although there were no windows.
Mr Gallagher was waiting for us. We then sat down as he introduced a new initiative for Year 11. He then gave us a task. The task was to get into groups of four and do a group project together. Mr. Gallagher said that this group project would contribute to our grades. However, he did not specify which grade or report card was it for. I assumed that it was the normal School Report card that Mr Gallagher would give us. In fact, it was for the IGCSE results certificate.
Mr Gallagher spent the entire lesson briefing us about the group project. I soon then join with Glen, Vicky and Ellie Lim for the project. I had worked with Vicky in the Editorial Board the previous year, and felt excited to work with her again.
Then, we returned to class. After I arrived at 11N, I remembered my responsibility again. I checked my timetable. Ms Bee Yan was using the class. I needed to find Ms Janice who was using 11N for Additional Mathematics. Upon arriving at the class, Ms Bee Yan told me to stay in the class for the Mathematics Extended group. Mathematics was officially a set teaching class, just like English and any other subject that involved such arrangement. I then gave Ms Bee Yan the class control book. “Ms Bee Yan, can you sign the control book?” I asked.
“You are monitor now?” asked Ms Bee Yan.
“Assistant monitor,” I said. Ms Bee Yan signed the book and wished me the best as assistant monitor.
Ms Bee Yan said that we will be divided into Core and Extended classes as there are two different papers for IGCSE, namely Core and Extended paper. The Core paper is a much more easier version of the IGCSE exam but the paper’s highest mark is a C. The Extended paper is the real, hard dish of the exam, with students scoring A* in the actual IGCSE exam. The purpose of dividing everyone into Core and Extended is so that the school would like to have a targeted approach to all of us and to help the weak and strong students on a tailored method. For this purpose, the school felt that this will also help us in tackling Maths, since Maths is a numbers subject that requires a lot of attention. While Ms Bee Yan and Mr Chan took care of the Extended students, the core students for Mathematics will go to 11B and be taught by Mr Kevin Wai.
My Maths home tuition teacher, Mr Nehru, preferred me to go for the extended paper despite me bowing down on the teachers’ decision to allocate me to core class. He urged me to ask Ms Bee Yan in Year 10 to reconsider the decision and said that the reason for my poor performance in the Maths exam was the fact that I did not concentrate well during the paper and said if I focus and concentrate, I can do better in Maths. I initially decided to accept the decision to go for Mathematics Core as it would be an easier subject level for me, and I wanted my life to be easier.
Mr Nehru said that one problem for my Mathematics was that I did not concentrate during the exam, but that I knew all the topics and ways to answer the question. He told me that if I spent ample time to concentrate and focus on the question without getting distracted, I would be able to complete the exam and the questions. He opined me not finishing the exam to this lack of concentration, not lack of study, and thus asked me and my mum to reconsider the decision to scale down to Maths Core. So, my mum sent a letter to Ms Bee Yan and met Ms Bee Yan personally, who decided to put me in the Mathematics Extended class. Nickolas Nashpal, whom Mr Nehru also tutored, was also bound for the Maths Core class, and was advised by him to appeal for a placement in Mathematics Extended. Mr Nehru would spend months drilling the both of us for Mathematics.
During our Mathematics class, we had Ms Bee Yan and Mr Chan to guide us. Ms Bee Yan said that Mr Chan also had taught Maths before and he has decided to join our class in order to offer his expertise in the areas of Mathematics at this level. I feel happy seeing Mr Chan in the class. Being a humble man himself, he was able to guide us properly. He wore a formal wear with a tie and was very smart-looking. We then learned about reflections, translations and rotation. Ms Bee Yan told us to buy a tracing paper for the lesson.
Soon, some people left for the toilet, and I passed the control book to them to sign. One of them was Brandon. He looked disgruntled and chose not to do so. I then told him to do so, but he was a bit angry till Ms Bee Yan told him to do so. Mr Chan smiled at me as he said I was so efficient. “Keep it up,” he replied.
It was soon lunchtime, and I sat down with Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew for lunch. There, I told them about how I was chosen as assistant monitor and had successfully joined the leadership club. Joshua told me that all the leadership board meetings, namely the Monitor's Council, Prefectorial Board and Librarian Board, would have their meetings on Mondays. On another note, Mr Kevin Wai had told me that the first Monitor's Council meeting would begin when the CCA starts in February.
Then, after lunch, I went for History, and Ms Visa continued teaching us. Thus, it resulted in fate that I would be taught by Ms Visa for a fifth consecutive year, notwithstanding being my homeroom teacher too. Ms Visa focused on the Cold War, Capitalism, Communism and dictatorships, and this topic would cover as much the whole year for our IGCSE exams. This is much more interesting than the boring scripts of World War I, Hitler and Nazi Germany. Normally, before her class starts, Brandon Ooi would greet her and tease her a little bit. “Cher, how’s life?” he would ask. Students would normally say “cher” as short for “teacher” as it would be too long to pronounce. The Cold War resonates on the aftermath of the Second World War as the United States and the Soviet Union (also known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)) would fight for world domination, dividing Germany (into East and West), Korea and Vietnam (into North and South). They spread their domination of capitalism and democracy versus the communist dictatorship form of governance, while at the same time, developing nuclear bombs to the extent of an arms race but stopped short of fighting with each other to avoid a war which no one would win. Ms Visa gave an introduction on the Cold War to us and the division of Germany into East and West Germany following end of World War II.
Then, it was Art. My heart became nervous, but just as before, I remembered my responsibility once again. I went back to 11N and checked my timetable on the Student Organizer. Ms Sarah was using the class. I gave the control book to her and asked her to sign. She did. Then, I waited till Mr Raja came in. Mr Raja teaches Accounting and will be using the class multiple times in the whole week. So, I gave him the control book to sign and then I was off for my Art lesson with Ms Nadia.
Ms Nadia took over the management of our Art and Design IGCSE exam paperwork following Ms Feeda's departure to Tanarata International School. The first thing Ms Nadia did when meeting me on her first Art and Deign IGCSE class was to promise that she would assist me if needed and expressed my confidence to sit for the Art IGCSE exam in October as opposed to Ms Feeda, who recommended me to drop the subject in Year 11 before leaving Nobel. In fact, Ms Feeda's departure was a game-changer to me. Had Ms Feeda stayed on in Nobel, the first thing she would advise me would be to drop the Art and Design IGCSE subject.
Ms Nadia said we would need to begin our Prep 1, Prep 2, Prep 3 and Prep 4 immediately as the school has released the Mid Year Examination questions for the Mid Year Examination and our final piece would be based on the questions.
“Wei Yiang, I will help you score an A for IGCSE,” Ms Nadia said when I arrived in the art studio. This was the first thing she said to me when I came to the studio for the first time that year. Ms Nadia then begun the lesson by teaching us how to work on our success from the previous year, and to improve so that we can prepare for Art and Design’s actual IGCSE paper. She then introduced herself to those who didn't know her and told everyone about what we were going to do.
Ms Nadia then approached me, patted me on my back, and told me that I will do well in Art and Design IGCSE. “Let's prove to everyone, including Ms Feeda, that Wei Yiang can score A in Art IGCSE,” she said. She was confident, hopeful and positive. “Remember that time when you cry in Year 7? You did not know how to draw and I helped you, right? I will help you for Art IGCSE the same way I helped you in Year 7. You also got A afterwards, so no worries. I will help you,” she said.
I thought of what Ms Nadia told me. As opposed to Ms Feeda, who doubted my capabilities as an art teacher, Ms Nadia was hopeful that with a few twists and turns, I could do well. I shivered. My heart beat, and I thought of it. I was willing to prove Ms Feeda that I can do it. And Ms Nadia would be there every step of the way.
Ms Nadia told me to tell her how Ms Feeda approached me. I told her that Ms Feeda had emphasized on me dropping Art and Design in Year 11, and that how she didn't give enough feedback or consistent feedback on where to improve. Ms Nadia told me she will cover the areas and gaps that Ms Feeda did not approach me on . She told me that Ms Feeda, in particular, did not give some solutions to problems and wasn't always consistent in approaching me as she had doubted my ability to perform in Art and Design IGCSE.
“Can you do it, Wei Yiang?” asked Ms Nadia. “Promise me that you will do well in Art IGCSE. You can do it,” she said. She put her hand forward. “Give me high five,” she approached me. I gave her a high five. “Yeah!” cried Ms Nadia. In fact, she spent at least 10 to 15 minutes to talk to me individually and motivate me.
Then, school ended, and dismissal begun. But I couldn't go home yet. I remembered my responsibility once again. I MUST get the control book, as well as the Smartboard pen and eraser, back to the pigeon hole outside the Junior and Senior School's Management Office. Most monitors would not do this or forget to do this as it was a hassle. But I must do it. I remembered my duty.
My aunt was waiting for me outside the Art Studio. However, I told her to wait for me as I kept the control book, since I was elected as assistant monitor. I rushed up the stairs, opened the classroom door, packed my bag, and took the Smartboard equipment and loaded it into the transparent pouch given to us. Then, I checked the control book. Seeing that everything was done and signed, I made my way to the Management Office via the second-floor corridor. I met Mr Kevin Wai, who praised me. Then, I went home. My aunt congratulated me for being elected as the assistant monitor and said she will wait for me as I kept the control book after class.
The next morning, 4th January 2017, it was our first morning assembly. Ms Bee Yong welcomed everyone back to school and gave a normal assembly to us. All the teachers greeted us that morning.
As we were told to be seated, Mr Kevin Wai told me to come forward and take the class attendance. I had to use my eyes to see if everyone was present. Then, Mr Kevin Wai told me to count the number of people in 11N. I did so. Then, we returned to class.
It was English, and, oh no! Ms Joyce was in the class for English Second. But I had to get the control book and Smartboard pen and eraser that I left at the pigeon hole the previous day. I remember Derek Yong being told to quickly leave the class so that Ms Joyce will start the lesson two years back. So, I quickly took my English books and went to 11B, where the English First lesson by Mr Thomas was taking place. Then, I scurried over to the pigeon hole in front of the management office. I greeted Ms Bee Yong, who was entering the office. “Why aren't you in class yet?” she asked. I told her that I needed to take the control book. “Are you a monitor?” she asked. I replied that I was the assistant.
I wrote down the class timetable and returned to 11N. There, I fixed the Smartboard pen and eraser onto the Smartboard's tray and gave Ms Joyce the Control Book. She told me she will sign later as I left for Mr Thomas’ class. I didn't want Ms Joyce to get angry with me.
Mr Thomas was waiting for us in his class. “Good morning, Mr Thomas!” I cried. “Happy New Year!”
“Yes, good morning. Happy New Year to you too,” said Mr Thomas. “Why are you not so early? Where have you been?” asked Mr Thomas.
“I needed to take the control book. I am the assistant monitor,” I said.
“Oh. That's very good,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas also touched on the Edmodo posts. He said that we should be paying attention more as it would be our IGCSE year (2017). He said that to start it off, we would need to begin a new Edmodo group which he would add us in. He said that the old one was a trash heap in the bin of previous years and we needed to begin a new one to separate Year 10 and Year 11.
“The old group....we leave it as it is,” said Mr Thomas. “That one is Year 10, and Year 11 requires a different level of focus. We must create a new group. We don't want to remember the old history anymore. We want to start anew, because it is a new year and you are in Year 11,” he said.
Then, Mr Thomas asked Aaron Loke and Sherwin to create the new group for him. Mr Thomas opened his Edmodo software, did the group creation process, and Aaron Loke and Sherwin gave the name for the group “2017 Year 11 English First M.K Thomas”.
Goodbye, ‘2016 Year 10 English First M.K Thomas’. We will miss you. In fact, I had posted a New Year's greeting on every Edmodo page.
Mr Thomas said that in Year 11, he will be a bit more serious with us and will not tolerate anyone who did not do his work. He said that he will not mark the work if it was handed in late.
“You see, we are having this thing called blended learning. You are expected to read the posts on Edmodo. If you do not read it, you will not understand what is expected of you for your lessons,” he said. “You must make sure that you check the Edmodo page, complete all work that is expected of you, and attend all classes diligently.
“Some teachers.....they like to scold people for not doing their homework or being late. But if you have unfinished work, that is your problem. I will not mark it,” he said. “So, can you please do your work, complete the tasks given to you, and hand in the work on time?” he asked.
“YES, MR THOMAS!” I cried.
“That's all for today. Thank you very much,” said Mr Thomas.
We then left the class, and I went back to 11N to take my Business Studies book. However, we lined up outside the class as Ms Joyce was still teaching. Then, we entered the class. Ms Joyce had not signed the control book. I approached her to let her sign it. Then, I went to 11E, where Ms Chithra was having her class. I put my books at the front seat to book it before returning to 11N. Mr Raja was coming in. I asked him to sign the book. “Mr Raja, please remind those who go to the washroom to sign the control book,” I said. Then, I returned to 11E for Business Studies.
When Ms Chithra entered the class, a lot of people were horsing around happily. “Ok class, please keep quiet. We are going to start our lesson today,” she said. The whole class was mobbed by chants of “Ms Chithra! You look so gorgeous!” till Ms Chithra had to shrug people off her sight.
Ms Chithra, who was teaching Business Studies for us for the second year, started the year by having the chapter of “Recruitment, Selection and Training [of workers]”. Ms Chithra taught us that bosses who had to employ workers will need to go and select the workers through a series of qualities and traits. The bosses will need to instill requirements on how workers can be selected, and how the workers can be trained, be it by the company or by an external provider.
Before the class started, everyone would be in the class, and most of the time, Ms Chithra would be the one entering when everyone arrived for the set teaching class. If Nicole Kau, Sophie Tan and Alicia Tang were there, they would say, “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” and praise her for her beauty. Ms Chithra in response would try to shrug off the responses and then continue her lesson. Behind the classes, a few people like Eugene Ho would play their phones but Ms Chithra would not notice so much.
Ms Chithra would then give us some work in the exercise book. Gabriel Lim would normally sleep in the class and the fact that he is weak on Business Studies would prompt Ms Chithra to wake him up. Ms Chithra’s other Business Studies class had also seen the other students, such as Sherwin, praising her for being gorgeous. The intention was to make Ms Chithra happy while fooling around to a certain extent.
The topic of Recruitment, Selection and Training was the easiest topic of all of the topics in Business Studies. I mean, it was the easiest topic in my opinion.
After Business Studies ended, I realized that Mr Raja forgot to sign the control book. I went to his staffroom to find him to get it initialized. Then, I went for break and told Kit Lee and San Ying my new role as assistant monitor. “No one would be so hardworking to do that,” she said.
During break time, the Year 10s played basketball in the courtyard as the hall was being used for the elementary school's PE lesson. Our PE lesson, however, will fall on Fridays. And yes, I would need to bring the control book down for the PE lesson. In fact, there are two occasions that I need to carry the control book out of the classroom, namely for Character Transformation and also for PE. There was a third occasion as well: Fire Drill. According to the then fire drill evacuation procedures, the teacher who is using the classroom MUST take the control book along with the class during the evacuation of the school building.
Afterwards, we returned for Global Perspectives, and I had to go to Tutorial Room 3. However, Ms Janice was not arriving yet. I told Lyn Wen to remind Ms Janice to sign it as I left for Tutorial Room 3. Mr Gallagher then told us to do our discussion and choose our topics. Vicky and Ellie did most of the discussion and let me and Glen know about it later on. We spent the whole lesson discussing the topic. Vicky wanted to do a topic on poverty, and even considered a refugee camp as one of the group project missions. Eventually, we settled on Dignity Foundation for the group project.
Mr Gallagher had by now started briefing us on our group projects for 2017. We had to do a project plan, project proposal and all such things to Mr Gallagher, and come up with an initiative to solve social issues. Vicky then said that she will do the project plan and proposal as I grouped with me, Glen, Ellie and Vicky. Then, he got a bit serious.
“I am still waiting for some people who have never submitted your second essay since the end of last year. What have you been doing during your holidays?” asked Mr Gallagher. “You're supposed to finish the work from last year and it was supposed to be submitted last year but unfortunately, you still haven't given it to me yet,” he warned.
Then, we had Maths, and I returned to class. Ms Bee Yan gave us a worksheet to do in class while Mr Chan went around to assist the weak students. I gave Ms Bee Yan the chance to sign the control book once again before I did my work.
Afterwards, we then had lunch, and I had a chat with San Ying on the Trump Inauguration. I had marked the calendar for 20th January 2017. I told her I felt so excited. “No one cares about Trump,” she said. “The election is over.”
Following lunch, we went to the Art Studio for our next lesson with Ms Nadia. She had a surprise.
“Guys! Your Mid Year Exam questions are here! Please take one copy!” she cried.
Everyone gasped. “Whaaat?” cried Jien Min. “So early?” he asked. It was as if we had been done with the Final Year Examination three months prior, and another paper awaits us. Everyone scurried to take the paper. We opened the question papers. “Please take two! Two copies!” cried Ms Nadia. “Eh, you don't want to sit Paper 2, is it?” she cried. “Okay, sorry, sorry, teacher,” said Jien Min.
The Mid Year Examination questions were released almost immediately. These exam questions were based on the May/June 2017 exam series for Art and Design IGCSE. They were as follows:
Paper 1
1. Clothes hanging on the back of a chair
2. Stripes
3. Moonlight shadows
4. A seated figure seen from above
5. Textural contrasts
6. Street seller
7. Garden furniture
8. Pulled apart
9. Hanging or trailing plants
10. A view through a gate
Paper 2
1. From your own studies of glasses, sunglasses, binoculars, lenses or telescopes, design an advertisement for an optometrist called Eye Spy.
2. Based on your observations of cacti, succulents or houseplants, design a logo for Greenhouse, a renewable energy company.
3. Use all or a selection of the following as a stimulus for a design brief of your choice. You may produce your work in any appropriate medium.
Topsy-Turvy Land
The people walk upon their heads,
The sea is made of sand,
The children go to school by night,
In Topsy-Turvy Land.
The front-door step is at the back,
You’re walking when you stand,
You wear your hat upon your feet,
In Topsy-Turvy Land.
H E Wilkinson
4. Based on your studies of ears and mouths, develop a design for a poster or for a set design, fabric or outfit for a drama production called The Listeners.
5. Using your own first-hand studies of furniture or household objects, create a design for a free standing 3D piece exploring the theme of upside-down forms.
6. Use your observations of washing hanging on a line or drying on a rack to develop a design for the Sundry Laundry. Designs may include: a shop sign, advertising, storage, window display or an item of staff clothing.
7. From your own observational studies of knotted rope, cord, wool, string or basketry, develop a design to advertise, promote or include in a craft market called Loopz.
8. Use your studies of piled-up stones, pebbles, rocks, sticks or bark to develop a design for a nature reserve called Rockwood Heights. Designs could include logos or advertising, fashion or textiles, a large-scale mural, an installation or a free-standing sculpture.
9. Looking through gaps or spaces between objects, buildings or people, develop a design for the word Interstices.
10. Based on your first-hand studies looking into a filled box or a full cupboard, develop a design for a food store called The Full Shop
Ms Nadia then explained each of the questions first. She started with Paper 1, and she went onto Google and searched for appropriate pictures that convey the impression of what was expected for us for each question. Ms Nadia then told us to discuss on which question to choose. She said she will discuss on Paper 2 later, but told us to do Paper 1 first.
I chose the question “A view through a gate” for Paper 1, and for Paper 2, I had to design a logo using leaf studies for a renewable energy company called Greenhouse, according to the question.
Ms Nadia suggested for me to choose those two questions as those two questions were suitable for me to draw. Ms Nadia asked me to take multiple photos of my house gate, show it to her, and get her approval for the pictures before beginning the preparation of my four Paper 1 prep works. I was keen to improve from my mistakes for Art and Design IGCSE the previous year and also score a good score in the following IGCSE exam. The Mid Year Examination result for Art and Design will form the IGCSE trial examination for Art and Design IGCSE because of the lengthy preparation period.
Building on the lessons from 2016, I decided to pay more attention and care towards my prep work. It was not easy, but I was determined, because Ms Nadia knows I can and was willing to give me a second chance at finishing my prep work. We spent the whole lesson discussing our prep works, while Jien Min used the time to hug Yi Zhen in class. Oh dear. Then, it was History. I went back to 11N, being reminded of my duty to ensure the control book is in order. I checked the control book. Mr Raja forgot to sign it again. I then quickly took my books, and as Ms Sarah walked into 11N for English Literature, I told her to sign the control book.
“Are you the monitor?” asked Ms Sarah. I told her I was the assistant, and she said that normally, it was the class monitor who had to do the logistics and the assistant monitor would just ‘assist’ him. I told Ms Sarah that I volunteered to do the control book duty. Then, I quickly went for my History lesson in 11L. Ms Visa came into the class as everyone was entering. We sat down in our seats as Ms Visa talked about the differences between capitalism and communism, democracy and dictatorship, as well as freedom versus being controlled. The Cold War lasted from 1945 to 1991 for a period of over 45 years.
“Teacher, Wei Yiang asked me to write my name in the control book when going to the toilet. Please change him,” he moaned.
Ms Visa was adamant and spoke to him sternly. “It is your responsibility to write your name in the control book when using the washroom. Are you all not aware of this? Class, by right anyone who leaves the classroom must write their name in the control book. And when teachers enter the classroom, the monitors are required to give the control book to the teachers to sign,” she said.
Sheng Jit then groaned and said that the control book was a waste of time for him. “This shows that you are not responsible as a monitor, which is why I said you should choose one who you think is suitable and another whom you think is responsible to do the job. Do you want me to put Wei Yiang as monitor?” asked Ms Visa. Sheng Jit giggled and laughed and pleaded to Ms Visa to allow him to keep his job.
After the lesson ended, I went to check the control book. Ms Sarah had not signed the book, and neither did Mr Raja. I then had to make sure they signed the book.
To ensure that I was reminded of my duties, I would normally leave my bag in 11N so that I can return to the class and collect the control book and Smartboard pen and eraser. And this would become daily practice from then on.
Anyhow, I took the eraser and pen from the Smartboard's tray, placed it into the transparent pouch, and packed my bags to head home. Then, I went to the pigeon hole to keep the pouch, and went to the staffrooms to find Mr Raja and Ms Sarah.
Mr Raja sits at the same place as Ms Levina, Ms Sharon and Ms Chithra, so it was easy to manage. I met Mr Raja and told him about the situation.
“Mr Raja, you forgot to sign the control book,” I pleaded.
“Oh, really! I forgot? Okay, okay, give me the book. I will sign,” he said. Then, I went to find Ms Sarah. I searched all the staffrooms before finding her at the English department. I then gave the book to her and she signed it. Then, I brought the book to the pigeon hole and proceeded to the dismissal area to head home.
The next morning, 5th January 2017, was the third day of school. It was a Thursday, and everyone gathered in the courtyard. So far, everything went well.
This time, Aaron Loke was coordinating people to settle down. Then, we greeted all teachers before heading back to our classes. As it was the third day, I was getting started to my new duty. I took the book and returned to 11N. Then, I wrote down the schedule for the day in the timetable column. Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa were arriving for attendance. Mr Kevin Wai sat down at the computer, opened the computer and used the school's portal to take our attendance. We then got our books ready for Economics as Mr Kevin Wai talked to us.
“Today is the third day already. So fast,” he said, before smiling and opening the computer. He then called me to take the attendance with him and counted the number of people in the class. I scanned the class for empty seats before reporting them to him. Afterwards, Mr Kevin and Ms Visa left, and Ms Sharon came in for Economics. We were surprised as to the fact that Ms Levina was not teaching us Economics anymore. I felt a bit sad, but it was okay.
Ms Sharon then came in and introduced herself. She told us to write three things that we like in Economics and three things that we would like to learn in Economics. Then, I remembered something. The class control book. My task had begun.
I gave Ms Sharon the control book. “You're the monitor?” she asked. “Assistant monitor,” I said, before introducing myself and telling her that Sheng Jit was the monitor. She diligently initialed her name on the first column, and I wrote the subjects according to the daily timetable. Enisha looked at me. I guess the whole class was surprised. Some, like Shane, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi, were disgruntled. Nevertheless, we continued our lesson. Ms Sharon then addressed the class.
“I was told that you guys were taught by Ms Levina last year when you were in Year 10, right?” she asked. We all said yes.
“I know all of you are a bit disappointed because Ms Levina was a great teacher and she was a bit funny as well. All of you enjoyed her lesson, right? You were expecting her to teach you this year, right? Well, unfortunately, Ms Levina wasn't asked to teach you this year, but never mind! I will try to make my lesson as interesting as hers, and at least, you get two Econs teachers; Ms Levina and me,” she said.
Some people still felt sad, and Ms Sharon tried to cheer us up. Ms Sharon said that although we are having different teachers, it would be nice for us to get to know each other and have a wonderful time learning and growing through the lesson. “I believe that Ms Levina has taught you before last year and you had a lot of memories in her class, and I’m sorry that you can’t meet her again, but it’s okay! I was also like you once, and I will try my best to make my lessons as interesting as possible.”
Then, Ms Sharon told us to introduce ourselves and we started with Enisha, who was sitting at the front of the class. She was seen for the first time since our Final Year Examination. Everyone took the opportunity to introduce themselves. Then, Ms Sharon then told us to present the three things that we like about Economics and three things that we wanted to learn in Economics. Those three things that I liked about Economics were the study of demand and supply, the study of banks, stock exchanges and money, as well as the study of workers, wages and trade unions. I also wanted to learn about the government, economic growth and taxes. Ms Sharon liked my response. We were told to write what we wish to learn and to gain in Economics on a piece of paper. We had to write three things: what we like, what we do not like, and what we wish to achieve in Economics.
Then, it was Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia came in. “Hi Ms Cynthia!” cried Brandon. “How's life? I miss you,” he cried. “Where's the control book?” asked Ms Cynthia. “I want to see who's the monitor for this class.”
“Sheng Jit is the monitor,” cried Brandon and his friends. When Ms Cynthia found out that I was the assistant monitor and held the control book, she approached me and signed it. Then, she opened the control book, flipped it through, and saw all the teachers’ initials on the timetable column. Every teacher had managed to sign it since the first day of school. And as for the list of students leaving classroom, mine and a few other people's names were there.
“Never in my whole life had I seen a complete control book, filled with all the information in it,” said Ms Cynthia. “Good job, Wei Yiang,” she said, handing the control book back to me. Then, I kept the control book on my table with my books.
Ms Cynthia then taught us about the governmental system of Malaysia, which consist of the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary and the role of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in forming Malaysia's government. The Executive comprise the Prime Minister and his Cabinet; the Legislative body is the Parliament of Malaysia, while the Judiciary is represented by the various courts of law of the land.
We then went for break time. I then spoke to San Ying again on the Cold War and what we learnt in History. “You see, the USA and USSR are rivals, and they have fought for many years. And to prevent another Cold War, we.....”
“I know what you mean. You want Trump to prevent World War III,” she said. I laughed wholeheartedly.
“Why are you so obsessed with Trump, Wei Yiang? You think it is very funny? Trump will destroy the world!” cried Sophie. “Oh, gosh,” she cried.
Then, it was Business Studies, and I managed to inform Mr Raja to sign the control book before I left. I made sure he did that. He was okay and then begun to sign on his own. Ms Chithra then continued about how workers are recruited. She said that in order to join a company, there must be a job advertisement talking about what the job does and what tasks are expected of the person in that job. This definition would be known as ‘job description’. Additionally, we also learned that ‘job specification’ means the qualifications that a person must have to hold the position of the job, such as university qualifications. When a person finds a job and looks at the job description, the person is doing a ‘job analysis’. Ms Chithra then talked about the recruitment process of the workers to the job. It was very interesting to learn about it. We then had History, where Ms Visa asked me about the control book operations before continuing with the Cold War.
Then, we returned for our Malay lesson. Cikgu Niely was in the class. Then, something struck my mind. I had forgotten to ask Ms Janice to sign the control book. Nevertheless, I told Cikgu Niely to sign it first. She did. Then, Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi headed to the washroom before the lesson started.
Cikgu Niely then told us about our expectations for Malay, and she said that we should be very prepared as our Malay IGCSE Oral Exam would be in March 2017. She told us that we needed to practice and improve from the previous year's performance as many people did not do well in their Malay Oral. his is very important as the Malay IGCSE is needed for all Malaysian students. A lot of people had been performing badly for the Malay Oral Trial held the previous year as well as some practice sessions during our classes. Then, we did a bit of comprehensions in class before heading for lunch. Then, once we were done, Ms Bee Yan continued to do some tracing paper activities with us in class while Mr Chan guided those who lagged behind. The people in our class who took Mathematics Core were Cassandra, Yan Ying, Gabriel, Ivyna, Glen, Aaron Liew, Louis Soon, Ze Khai, Wee Shiang, Grace and Hao Yinn.
Learning about reflections, translations and transformations on a tracing paper was very interesting, as all we needed to do was to move the tracing paper accordingly. I gave Ms Bee Yan the control book for her to sign it before I left for English class. On top of that, some people showed me dirty looks when I told them to initiate the control book before leaving for the washroom. In fact, I had to get up many times to remind them of the procedures. Mr Chan was ecstatic, looking at my action. He asked me what was going on and I told him of the issue. He told me that he would remind those leaving the class to initial on the book, and so they did.
Well, I had to leave for English quickly, as now, my First Language English class is now in 11B; the polar opposite of the previous year. I don't want Ms Joyce getting angry with me for being too slow.
Mr Thomas was in his seat. He had opened the Edmodo application and had started to do the text together with us. We did ‘The Laundry Room’ together.
“I hope you all had seen my latest posting on Edmodo. Have you seen this?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Then, he gave pieces of paper with the text of ‘The Laundry Room’.
“Please paste this text in your exercise book,” he said.
“No problem, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
Mr Thomas waited as we all pasted the text in our exercise books. He got up, patrolled the class and made sure everyone pasted the text in their books. He smiled and watched us. I did not have a glue, so I improvised by using staplers. Then, he told us to read the text and he highlighted the word effects used in the text. He then explained about word effects to us.
There was a clear view of the main hallway to the main office which passes by the Year 7 classes adjacent to the stairs. The hallway had been fitted with a lot of plants, making the area green and cooling. While Mr Thomas was teaching, some of the Year 7s were taking their books from the shelves outside the room. After being in Mr Thomas’ class for the entire lesson, we then went back home. I took the time to find Ms Joyce, ask her to sign the control book, and went to find Ms Janice. Unfortunately, she had already gone home.
Everyone who was taught by Ms Levina in Year 10 in 2016 were surprised that Ms Levina did not continue to teach us in Year 11, and everyone asked her why. People from 11O also talked to her and asked her on that, and she posted on Edmodo, saying that the school needed a Global Perspectives teacher for Year 7 and 8, and that she wanted to explore new opportunities and areas to teach. She said that she will still help us as much as she can to explain certain concepts. Ms Levina also said that we can still come to her for advice. Ms Levina is a very interesting and funny Economics teacher and everyone hoped she can teach us in Year 11. She also said that we got the best of both worlds, and to also give the best to the other teachers as we had given to her. She said that she can’t teach us too, as it will undermine another teacher’s responsibility, and wished us best of luck for IGCSE.
“Unfortunately, I can’t give any advice on Paper 2 since the marking scheme is king,” she said. She told us that it will be best to ask Ms Sharon (or for 11O, Ms Vishalini) for advise.
It was the final day of the week, Friday, 6th January 2017.
Mr Neoh, the head of CCA, then said that everyone would need to re-register their CCAs as the CCA calendar was being reverted back to a January – November schedule from the initial July – June schedule that was announced in 2015. This meant that everyone – be it new students or current students, would have their existing CCA since July 2016 cancelled and we would have to sign up again. Mr Neoh then said that the CCA registration would open that day, 6th January, and we would have until the following Friday, 13th January 2017, to register.
Mr Neoh's announcement marked the second time that the CCA schedule was disrupted. The original July – June plan was to accommodate Year 11 students who would finish a full term of CCA in their final year in Nobel as opposed to finishing half a term due to the disruption the IGCSE exam would bring on their school year activities, especially on CCAs, which would need to re-elect new presidents and committee members if a Year 11 student was holding the position. While changing from a January – November schedule to a July – June schedule helped to solve that problem, it gave false realities of a CCA to new students, who mainly join at the beginning of the year, that a CCA term was six months instead of twelve. Hence, it would be much easier for Year 11s to leave their CCAs as the IGCSE approaches, which is why the school decided to revert the schedule back to what it was.
The news caught everyone, including me, by surprise. This was because I had hoped for the CCA that I had registered in, the Editorial Board, to stay a full term. Nevertheless, I was bent on re-registering for the Editorial Board again.
Before the assembly started, Mr Kevin Wai asked me to take the attendance of the class again.
“What if some people are at the late line?” I asked Mr Kevin. He then told me to record those who were absent in the control book instead and let him know the latecomers.
“What if I can't find you?” I asked.
“If that's the case, I can check the system or you can let me know the next day,” he said. I would choose to let him know later on if that was the case. Mr Kevin then also told me that he will check the late line as well as the system if that was the case, but those will be worked out.
The control book operation was running quite smoothly. I put my bags in the class and then got down for PE. Just as I was about to arrive at the hall, I froze. I was reminded of my duty once again.
I walked back up to the class as Mr Victor asked for the control book and presented it to him within five minutes. Then, Mr Victor did our first PE session for the year with his traditional classic exercises. He first told us to swing our arms. Then, we did stationery runs, followed by push-ups, sit ups and basic exercises. Following the conclusion of our PE lesson, Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia signed the control books. I then went back up to class and took the Smartboard pen and eraser's pouch from the pigeon hole, and went to the classroom to place the pen and eraser on the Smartboard tray.
I took the control book downstairs, wrote all the timetable order for the next five days till Friday, 13th January 2017, to save time and hassle. I filled in all the information during break time. Then, during the break time assembly, some of the Year 10s played around as the prefects told the students to settle down.
We then returned to class for Malay. I gave the control book to Cikgu Niely to sign it. Then, we did some comprehension. Just then, Brandon Ooi wanted to use the washroom. I informed him to write his name in the Class Control Book, but he refused. After approaching him the second time, he cooperated and wrote the time out and time in on the book. Then, Shane, Eric, Kelsey, Enisha and Glen used the washroom, and I had to notify them as well.
During Malay, I helped Gabriel understand some key terms in the book that he was unsure of. But I kept my fingers crossed. Mr Lee was going to come in for Combined Science.
Soon, Cikgu Niely left, and we waited patiently for Mr Lee. Some people used the washroom again, and I had to remind them on recording in the control book. Some, like Ryan Chok, ignored me. Anyhow, we waited for Mr Lee to arrive.
Soon, Mr Lee came into the class. He placed his things down on the chair in the front of our class. Then, he stood in front of the class with a surprised look. He frowned, and asked us a few questions.
“You guys are 11N, right? You are all having Combined Science, right? Ms Sangeetha taught you last year, right?” asked Mr Lee. We all nodded to all his questions. “Ok,” he said, and put his things on the table. I stood up and walked to him.
“Mr Lee, here is the control book. Please sign it,” I said.
“Are you the monitor?” he asked. “Sheng Jit is the monitor. I am his assistant,” I said.
“Ok,” said Mr Lee. He took out his black ballpoint pen and then signed the control book.
“Mr Lee, I am also Caleb Chuang's best friend. Do you remember me?” he asked. “Yes, I remember you. You always like to talk about Caleb,” he said. The whole class laughed.
“Even Caleb's class, 11O, told me about you,” said Mr Lee. The class laughed even more. Enisha looked at me with a serious, evil look.
Mr Lee then proceeded to the computer. He opened his bag, placed his pendrive into the computer, and started the lesson. He then took out a stack of papers with notes he usually hand out to his Physics students, and handed us his Physics notes. He would normally give his Physics notes to his class. Mr Lee said that he used his notes for his Physics lessons, and that we needed to make sure we cross out certain portions that are not in the Combined Science syllabus.
“You see, for Combined Science, you guys have no textbook, but for future students, Cambridge has said that they will print a textbook for Combined Science,” he said.
“Oh really? So future students will have a textbook?” asked Kelsey.
“Yes, yes, for future students. Not you, but no worries. I will help you by telling you which areas are not covered in the syllabus,” said Mr Lee. “So, for now, as long as you have a Physics textbook, you can use it or you can ask your friends who are taking Physics to teach you; in this case, the people from your best friend's class,” said Mr Lee, pointing at me and laughing.
“Where did Ms Sangeetha stop until?” said Mr Lee. We all were not so sure. Mr Lee said that if that was the case, we will proceed with his Physics lesson first. “I am sure that Ms Sangeetha only have a few topics left to cover, so but never mind. When you know where she stopped, do let me know so I can continue after finishing the Physics part, okay?” he said.
Then, Brandon Ooi wanted to go to the washroom.
“Please write in the control book,” I reminded him. When Brandon refused, Mr Lee asked him to write it, and he promised to do so after he returned from the toilet.
Mr Lee then started teaching us on Speed, Distance and Time. He then told us the basic formulas. I answered the most times. When Mr Lee asked all the formulas for speed, distance, time, density and force, I answered all of them correctly. “Very good,” said Mr Lee. “Caleb Chuang will be very proud of you. I will tell him that,” he said. The whole class laughed again.
Afterwards, it was Ryan Chok's turn to use the toilet. He went to the toilet without writing his name. I wrote his name on a test pad and placed it inside the control book just in case. Mr Lee then continued to explain the formulas. He then taught us about displacement, and joked that the Year 10 subjects selection displaced me from Caleb Chuang. The whole class laughed again, and I laughed the loudest. Even Enisha's serious looks washed away as she started smiling.
Then, Mr Lee continued to talk about displacement and velocity, and then he said that I had high velocity when I thought about Caleb Chuang. Even Brandon Ooi was laughing by now. Soon, the class ended. “We stop for here today. Ms Joyce is coming,” said Mr Lee. Ms Joyce and her students were outside the class, waiting for the start of English Second. I quickly took my things and headed for the English First lesson with Mr Thomas. I then entered 11B, placed my things and talked to Sherwin. Then, I saw Mr Thomas walking along the hallway from his staffroom. He walked confidently, carrying his briefcase, striding with a serious look on his face.
Mr Lee's first class started with medium fanfare, but his class was so funny. I told that to Sherwin, who seemed excited. Then, Mr Thomas entered into the class.
“Good morning, Mr Thomas!” cried me and Sherwin. I paused. “Oh wait, it's afternoon. Good AFTERNOON, M r Thomas!” I cried. Sherwin then repeated after me.
“Good afternoon. Are you ready for the lesson? Have you read the text on Edmodo?” he asked.
“YES, MR THOMAS!” I cried.
“I will need to make sure you take charge of your own learning. It is very important,” said Mr Thomas.
“Mr Thomas, did you see my post?” I asked.
“Yeah, it was a funny joke,” he said. I laughed so loudly till the whole class looked at me.
When Sherwin asked what the joke was, Mr Thomas opened a post where he wrote a text which said that a number of words written would please him. I said the number 270. That number reflects the amount of electoral votes a United States presidential candidate must receive to be elected as President. The whole class laughed like mad.
Mr Thomas then got up from his seat. He then walked and asked everyone to take out their books. Then he scrolled to the latest Edmodo post.
“Read this,” he said pointing to the text written on his post. I read it out loud. It said, “Please own up your role as a true learner today.”
Then he told me to read the second post. “Please own up your responsibility as a learner today,” I belted it out loud, looking at the Smartboard.
He then scrolled down to the third one. “How about this one?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Own up responsibility for your own learning,” I replied.
“Can somebody tell me what does this mean?” asked Mr Thomas.
“It means that you need to fulfill what is required for the lesson and also to ensure that you yourself are also prepared for the lesson,” I replied.
“Ok,” said Mr Thomas. “How about somebody else?” asked Mr Thomas.
San Ying then raised her hand and said that the phrases mean that one should know what is expected of them and that they should put in the effort to do certain things without guidance from the teacher.
Mr Thomas nodded at San Ying and then got up from his seat.
“Class, you all don't understand what is the meaning of ‘own up responsibility for your own learning’. Responsibility means the things that you should be doing as a learner in this class. When a student comes to the class, they should know what to do and they should not just be doing things without assistance from the teacher, but also they should be committed to their learning as well as to their future,” said Mr Thomas.
“Responsibility does not mean that you should just be doing the work given to you. It also means that you contribute to the class as well by participating and answering the questions in the class, just like our friend here,” he said, pointing to me. “When you ask and answer questions, you are also taking responsibility for your own learning because you know your areas of improvement. And it also helps everyone because they also know what is the right answer or the wrong answer.”
Mr Thomas then said that as students, we should be doing our work and task in the class and not fooling around. “It is very wrong if we teachers come and spoon-feed people, because when we do so, you will never learn. You will never improve, and you will never know your responsibility as learners in this class.”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Last year, some of you have not completed the work I gave to you. In fact, our friend there is sleeping. What will happen if you sleep?” asked Mr Thomas, pointing to Jien Min.
“You will lose out on learning and you will not know what the teacher is telling you,” I replied.
“Ok, and also, it is disruptive to others who want to learn. Can I ask Sophie to call him up please?” asked Mr Thomas.
Sophie reached out to Jien Min and called him up.
Mr Thomas said that it will be our problem if we do not take responsibility for our own learning. He said that we should be checking our English Edmodo page as most of the tasks are placed there. He then took note of my comments online, saying that I have seen the post, but it is useless if we see it and not do it, which could be detrimental to our own learning.
“Can you promise that you will take responsibility for your own learning?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“I only hear one person responding,” said Mr Thomas. “Can you all promise that you will be responsible for your learning?”
“YES, MR THOMAS!” cried the class.
He then told us to read the text as he scrolled the text on his computer, which projected the information on the Smartboard. We all looked at it. Then, Mr Thomas told us to read carefully.
“If you cannot answer, you are not responsible for your learning,” he said.
Mr Thomas then opened the text. It was on responsibility, indeed. He said that the purpose that he placed the text on responsibility was to ensure that we take responsibility for our learning.
Mr Thomas then told us to answer the text. I answered it correctly, but then some other people from behind could not answer. He was frustrated.
“This shows that you are not responsible for your learning,” he said. Some people got the answers wrong, and Mr Thomas then scrolled up and read it again. Then, he begun his lesson. The three texts were on responsibility, as well as two other texts.
After reading and continuing the lesson through the two texts, Mr Thomas said that as Year 11 students, we should be responsible for our own learning because we want to focus on the IGCSE exams in October. He said that being responsible will not only be reflected on the IGCSE results, but also when we go to college and university.
“Can you promise that you will check Edmodo frequently?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas! I cried.
“Can you promise that you will read the text fully and comprehend what is said in the text?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!”
“Okay, thank you, have a nice day, bye bye,” he said, ending the lesson.
Ms Joyce's class had not finished yet, so we had to wait outside to take our bags. Then, I asked Ms Joyce to sign the control book.
“Are you the monitor for this class?” asked Ms Joyce. I nodded. Ms Joyce then said my control book handling skills was quite good. Then, I kept the Smartboard stationery and brought the control book back to the pigeon hole, as well as the Smartboard equipment, before signing off the very first week of school. Before I left, I met Ms Janice in the hallway and got her to sign the control book for the areas she missed the previous day.
The new week begun on a normal note, on 9th January, as we were slowly settling into our second week.
The new day begun with another morning assembly tone. Ms Lim chided people for not singing when the school song and national anthem was being played. “This is our first assembly and all of you are like that,” she said, asking us to sing louder the next time.
As Ms Bee Yong was giving an announcement, Mr Kevin Wai called me up and told me to take the attendance with him. I had to peer at our class line. “Can I see the late line?” I asked Mr Kevin. He told me that he will check the late line for latecomers.
We then returned to class. I quickly went to take the control book from the pigeon hole, as well as the Smartboard stationery pouch. Then, I headed back to 11N and set up everything. Mr Raja was in the class for Accounting, and I let him sign on the control book. “Mr Raja, later, I am going for Art, so when you are having Accounting, please sign later,” I said.
“Don't worry, if that's the case, I will sign now, since I am coming in later” he said.
Then, I went for Ms Chithra's class, and Ms Chithra gave us an exercise in our exercise book.
“Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” cried Sophie and Nicole.
“Do your work!” cried Ms Chithra.
Then, we returned to class for our Economics lesson. I presented the control book to Ms Sharon and she signed it.
Ms Sharon then talked about the government and introduced the government to us. She said that the government plays a pivotal role in the economy because the government's role is also to produce public goods, such as street lamps, walkways and public infrastructure, as well as to provide education via public schools. To ensure that such goods are also produced, the government also has to employ people which contributes to economic growth. Ms Sharon then told us that the government also has economic aims and that we will look at it in the following chapter.
Afterwards, it was break time and we went for break. I took time to talk to San Ying about Mr Thomas reading my joke. “It isn't funny,” she said. “We will be doomed.”
Then, I went to meet Caleb Chuang and told him about how interesting Mr Lee was. He kept on smiling.
“How do you find Mr Lee? Is he cool?” asked Joshua.
“He was very funny. He was talking about Caleb the whole time,” I said.
Joshua laughed. Caleb Chuang was quite stunned.
Then, I went to meet Jordan Tay. He was in the foyer playing with his Rubik's cube. I greeted him and talked to him about Mr Lee. Rick was asking about Mr Lee as well. When he found out that Mr Lee talked about Caleb Chuang, Rick said that even Mr Lee was obsessed with Caleb Chuang.
Then, it was Art. I met Ms Nadia in the Art Studio, where she told me to present the pictures of the gate. I took one picture and showed it to her.
“Only one? Wei Yiang, you must snap more pictures. We want more pictures so we can take the best picture, okay?” she asked. Then, Ms Nadia told me to immediately get started on Prep 1. I took a blank A2-sized paper and begun tracing on it. Then, while I was tracing, Ms Nadia went around and checked the rest of the people in the Art Studio, guiding everyone on what to do. We were beginning our first prep. I then showed Ms Nadia the traced-out painting. “Ask your mum to take more pictures of your house gate, okay? Show them to me tomorrow,” she said, as she motivated me.
After the Art lesson, we returned to 11N, fresh from the discussion. I then checked the control book. Mr Raja had forgotten to sign again. Oh dear. I need to rush after him later on. But anyhow, Mr Lee was coming for our Science lesson once again to continue the Displacement topic.
Then, Mr Lee arrived. Our class just watched him arrive. He wore his nice, gray shirt, black pants and carried a large rectangular handbag that hung by the side of his arm into the room. “Hi Mr Lee!” cried Brandon. Mr Lee arrived into the room, plopped down onto his seat, and then logged into the computer.
“Mr Lee. The control book. Please sign,” I said. “Guys, please write your name in the control book when leaving the classroom,” I reminded the class once again.
Mr Lee signed the book, and I brought the control book to my table. He opened his bag once again, took out his pendrive, and put the pendrive into the CPU unit. Then, he opened his files and continued to talk about displacement. He spoke with good intonation and gave us more worksheets to copy the information from the board as he spoke. Then, he went to check on Louis and guided him in a gentle tone. He was very enthusiastic to teach us.
During the class, Ryan Chok used the washroom and forgot to sign the control book. I took note of the names and then told him to write it in the book. “You write it for me,” he said.
“Are you sure? I thought the individual leaving the room is supposed to do so?” I asked.
“Just write it down,” said Brandon. I told Ryan Chok to write his name the next time.
We then went for lunch, and I took the control book along with me as we were having Character Transformation later on. It would be our first Character Transformation session for the year. As I stopped by the staffroom on the way to the canteen, I met Ms Janice.
“Ms Janice, you forgot to sign the control book for Add Maths,” I said.
“Oh really? I forgot?” she asked. Then, I told her the place to sign on the book, and she lent her signature to the paper.
Then, I went for lunch, and I carried the Control Book along. San Ying saw it and asked if I was the monitor. “I'm the assistant monitor,” I said. San Ying looked amused at that. Then, as I took my lunch, I had to explain to San Ying, Kit Lee, Sophie and Krisha about my new role.
“None of the monitors would ask the teachers to sign the control book,” said San Ying. Sophie and Kit Lee praised my act. “Keep it up! Good job!” they cried.
Then, I went to meet Jordan and Rick again to talk about Mr Lee. Jordan, Rick and Ting Yi were sitting at the foyer once again, and Jordan and Rick were completing homework. They were checking the homework given by Mr Lee.
“Wei Yiang, you are the monitor?” asked Rick.
“I'm the assistant monitor,” I told him.
Rick then said he was elected as assistant monitor as well for 11O. “Weren't you assistant monitor last time in 9O?” I asked. He nodded and said he was elected again and had more experience than me. Then, Rick asked me to pass him my class control book to let him see. I gave it to him, who opened it and inspected all the pages.
“Wow! All the teachers had signed their names!” he cried.
Jordan and Ting Yi, who were caught off guard by Rick's words, peered at the control book. Ting Yi and Jordan were surprised. “Seriously, all the teachers have signed!” cried Jordan. Then, Rick and Ting Yi chided Jordan for his ‘too much responsibility’ remark he made when we were in Year 9. “Jordan, you said that you had too much responsibility. You see? He completed the whole control book!” cried Rick. Jordan had to facepalm himself and he groaned.
Soon, Jearn Xiu arrived and sat down to chat. “Wei Yiang, this is Jearn Xiu. Say hi. He is our monitor,” said Rick. Jearn Xiu and I waved at each other, and Rick Tan then showed the control book to Jearn Xiu.
“Jearn Xiu, you see! Wei Yiang filled in all the teacher's signatures in the control book,” said Rick.
Jearn Xiu peered into the book and yelled obscenities. Rick then asked me what were my roles. I told him I was handling the control book and attendance register while my monitor, Sheng Jit, did the rest of the logistics. Then, we went to the hall for our assembly, and Aaron Loke told everyone to settle down. Then, the Year 10s were released back to their classes while we gathered for our first ever Character Transformation session of the year.
Mr Neoh arrived for the session along with all the homeroom teachers from Year 11, namely Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Visa, Ms Yong Wai Yee, Ms Chua, Ms Renee, Mr Nick, Cikgu Niely and Mr Lee. Most of the sessions were conducted by Mr Neoh, the head of co-curricular activities (CCA) for the year.
Mr Neoh went to the PA station in the hall and took out a microphone. “Okay, I want every class’ monitor and assistant monitor to please bring their class control book and place it on the stage. I want to sign,” said Mr Neoh. I was the first one to present the control book to him. He took it and signed it. Then, the rest of the monitors from the other classes brought their control book along and left it on the stage. Mr Neoh placed his autograph on them. On another note, Mr Neoh congratulated me for getting all teachers to sign the control book.
Mr Neoh then made an announcement. He told us to break into groups which we had to remain for the entire year. Each group had around ten people; two from each class on average. I was placed in the same group as Vicky (again), Jo Yi, Glen Kay, Yan Chern, Evan Hiew, Daryl Yeo, Ellie Lim and Alexandria Goh.
Each group then had to come up with a name and then present the name to the crowd. For instance, the group which Caleb Chuang was in was called “Snabbit”, as many of the individuals in the group were born in 2001, the year of the Snake, while Eric was born in 1999, the year of the Rabbit in the Chinese zodiac. So, their group created a portmanteau of those two words. Lyn Wen’s group was called “Dank Memes, Dank Dreams”, and she liked that name. Other groups came up with other funny names, and mine was along the lines of a knight and a warrior. The purpose of groups was for us to be used for any event in CT, such as competitions, activities and icebreaking games. There were ten groups in total. Mr Neoh also told everyone to come up with a slogan and a group cheer. Vicky presented on behalf of our group.
Then, Mr Neoh asked everyone to do an activity, which was to write down our goals for 2017. He gave us a paper and told us to fill in the information. We each had to present, and I presented my goals. The main goal I was gunning for was that of Sports Day. There was a hidden aim: make Bullseye win the FOURTH year of Sports Day victories.
We then went for Global Perspectives, and once again, before I left, I told Ms Janice to sign the control book. Then, when we met in Tutorial Room 3, Mr Gallagher told us to begin our group discussion on the project plan for the Global Perspectives group project.
Ellie Lim and Vicky discussed the most while me and Glen were just left to fend for ourselves. I looked at Vicky and checked my Edmodo page, while Glen surfed the Internet. Vicky then told us that we were doing a presentation on poverty and she said she will let me and Glen know about the Project Plan when we were done.
After finishing the Global Perspectives lesson, I went up to the classroom to check the control book and keep the Smartboard stationeries. But however, Ms Janice failed to sign it. I packed my bags, rushed to Ms Janice’s staffroom and met her.
“Ms Janice, you forgot to sign the control book,” I told her. “Oh ya, sorry, sorry, I forgot again. Aiyah!” she cried, before handing me back the book to be stored.
The next day, 10th January, we came up to our class early for the Reading Time at 7:30am. I brought the newspaper to read in the class. Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa arrived in the class for our Reading Time, too. Ms Sarah had reiterated the Reading Time announcement in the previous day's morning assembly, and everyone had to cultivate this good reading habit.
Mr Kevin Wai came to the front of the class. “Okay, guys please take out your books and start reading. No talking,” he said, as he logged on to the computer. I presented Mr Kevin Wai with the control book for attendance purposes.
Mr Kevin opened the control book. “Wow, everyone has signed it. All the teachers had signed it. Good,” he said, as he patted me on the back. Mr Kevin then told Ms Visa the news, and Ms Visa was really happy with it.
Louis threw a tantrum that morning in class, and Mr Kevin had to warn him not to do that when Brandon teased him. “You are Year 11 already; you cannot behave like that,” he said. Then, Mr Kevin asked Louis where his book was, and Louis said he hadn't gotten one. Louis took the time to look at his textbooks instead.
Mr Lee came into the class after the Reading Time, and he brought his bag along. The class was still quiet. There were no roars unlike the other classes. Mr Lee then went to the computer and plugged the pendrive into the computer again and opened his slides. Then, he approached me and signed the class control book when I asked him to. He then walked around the class and greeted everyone. “Morning, morning, good morning,” he said. He then continued the lesson. It was a short but sweet lesson as he flicked his slides and taught us while Brandon, Kelsey, Cassandra and Enisha asked questions.
Mr Lee had wonderful slideshows and gave us notes for us to refer as he moved the slides on. He is a very interesting teacher and teaches Combined Science besides teaching Physics for 11O and 11L. His class always gets competitive in inter class competitions and I also look forward to his lessons. Ms Sangeetha told us that we will be taught by Mr Lee for Year 11 when she was leaving in 2016, so we are all excited to see what Mr Lee has in store for us. It wasn't as exciting as it got, but we were getting used to it.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon then taught us about the aims of the government. It was very interesting to learn about the aims. Before we started, she allowed us to use the washroom after the energy-draining lesson with Mr Lee. She signed the control book and I also had to answer nature's call. I told Brandon and Ze Khai to sign the book. Brandon just shrugged while Ze Khai was okay with it. When we returned from the washroom, everyone signed the control book and Ms Sharon begun the lesson.
The aims of a government are full employment, price stability, economic growth, redistribution of income and balance of payments stability. Ms Sharon said that these six aims would benefit the country in the long run and these aims would be covered under an economic category called ‘Macroeconomics’ which is the study of the economic sector as a whole, as opposed to ‘Microeconomics’, which studies the individual decisions of buyers and sellers. We would be learning the six aims in the Economics topics for the year.
Ms Sharon also said that in the demand and supply curve, it will no longer be called ‘demand’ and ‘supply’ from now on, but would be changed to ‘aggregate demand’ and ‘aggregate supply’, with the initials now being known as ‘AD’ and ‘AS’ respectively. She then drew the demand and supply curve on a mobile whiteboard in the class, to represent the AD and AS.
I haven't told you that our class, 11N, had a specialized mobile whiteboard in the room. It also looked so cool. During every Accounting lesson, Mr Raja would put the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements and all other financial statements on that whiteboard, and whenever I returned, I could see those information written there.
Anyhow, Ms Sharon said that ‘full employment’ would mean that majority of the people in the country should have a job, which can stimulate productivity in the country and enhance economic growth, which is when the Production Possibility Curve would shift right.
Ms Sharon then drew the PPC curve on the whiteboard for us to see, which represents economic growth. She then said in the process of economic growth, price stability is important. Price stability means that prices of goods and services are more or less stable and do not fluctuate dramatically. This means that for example, the price of nasi lemak must be at a common price and not become too expensive so suddenly or too cheap, as being too expensive would make things unaffordable and being too cheap would make things worthless. To end the lesson, Ms Sharon then said that from economic growth and price stability, the government can impose taxes to ensure that there is low inflation, which results in the price not increasing too much and to control inflation. This tax could then be given to the poor, just like the Robin Hood story where Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave it to the poor.
Afterwards, we then went for break, as I spoke to San Ying about the Trump Inauguration again. It was so exciting. I kept on getting excited on that. San Ying just accommodated me on that. Sophie then told me she was a bit frustrated. “I can't stand four years of Trump!” she cried, as I explained the aims of the government taught by Ms Sharon.
During break time, some people played at the futsal court, which was previously forbidden. Ms Lim had also told them that they can play but must check the time.
After break, we then had assembly, and Ms Lim announced that to us. Then, she asked us how we were settling down. When she looked at us in Year 11, she was surprise. “Aiyoh! So fast Year 11 already. Already one week of school,” she said.
We then went for Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher continued to tell us to do our work. We will need to write a project proposal for Mr Gallagher to approve, as well as a project report. Every GP lesson, we would come to Tutorial Room 3, our class venue, and sit down in the class as Mr Gallagher watched us write the related documents and plan to carry out the projects. Many had their computers, but for me, I used my iPad to write the necessary documents.
Ellie and Vicky submitted their Individual Reports from the previous year and gave them to Mr Gallagher to correct them. Then, Vicky told me the format of the Project Proposal. I was asking for more details as she said she will finalize them. I was wanting to complete the work quickly. However, we needed to work as a team.
Afterwards, we then returned for Ms Bee Yan's lesson where she continued our topic on the tracing paper. Mr Chan, as usual, walked around the class to guide those who didn't understand and stood behind the class to watch us. Then, I realized Ms Janice forgot to sign the control book again. I made sure Ms Bee Yan signed the book before she left the class.
During lunch, I tried to meet Ms Janice but couldn't find her. Then, I went down to have my lunch while thinking about the upcoming Art lesson and discussing with San Ying about the Cold War. It was then History, and that topic was music to my ears. Learning about communism and capitalism was a continuation from my past time reading about North and South Korea.
Later, it was Art, and I presented the pictures I took to Ms Nadia for the Prep 1. She selected a few gate close-ups and told me to bring some newspaper for texture studies. Then, I drew the pictures and painted some of the grills of the gate. It was very easy to do.
After school ended, I went up to the staffroom to get Ms Janice and Ms Sarah to sign the control book. I caught the both of them in time before I left for home. I needed to make sure all the signatures were collected.
The next morning, on 11th January 2017, during assembly, Mr Steve then announced that an upcoming mini-skit performance titled ‘Living Room Unplugged’ would take place. This performance would be directed by him and Ms Sarah and it would take place at this one mini hall which is near the dismissal area, which had since been converted into classrooms. The hall was large before it was converted, but at the time, well, there was a hall there and this hall was called the ‘CT hall’.
‘Living Room Unplugged’ is a skit-show in which an area of the school would be turned into a mock-up of a living room. There, anyone with interest in performing but were too shy to perform would be given the opportunity to perform in a living room setting as it was not the same as performing on a stage, which causes stage fright. Living Room Unplugged was scheduled for 20th January 2017.
My eyes lit up and my heart beat fast. 20th January was the date of Trump's Inauguration.
Anyhow, Mr Steve said that tickets for Living Room Unplugged will open during break and lunch time and there are only 100 tickets up for grabs, and anyone who had to secure a spot should do so during break and lunch. The sale would be on for a week until 18th January.
When we returned to class, I quickly packed my English books with me and dashed out of the room before Ms Joyce chased the non-members of her class out. There, I arrived at Mr Thomas’ class. He was waiting for us. And he had a plan.
Mr Thomas was gearing up to continue to a second round of the Mercy Ship Presentation from the end of 2016, in which we have planned. As the English Language Week was going to be launched on 16th January 2017, he said that we need to do the Mercy Ship Presentation and prepare it as well. He said that 11O, the other First Language English class he is teaching, refused to co-operate and said he had abandoned role-playing with them and decided to work with 11N and 11B set teaching instead. He was excited, and as he announced we were going to role-play again, I was very excited.
“So, have you remembered the Mercy Ship Presentation from last year?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“I was thinking that we should do the presentation during your Character Transformation time,” he said. “Let us promote the Mercy Ship Project to everyone,” he said.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!”
“We will do a rehearsal this Friday, because I want to give you work to do. I have uploaded the work already on Edmodo,” he boomed.
“I hope that you can give your full cooperation and not be like the other class,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then exclaimed that the role-play would commence after we were done reading the texts and completing the daily agenda for the English lessons.
The first thing Mr Thomas did was to re-open the agenda to present the characters in the coursebook, namely Dr. Gary Parker (the chief doctor), Dr. Sandra Loko (the chief nurse), as well as the testimony of a patient and an engineer on the ship, accompanied by the statements from nurses, junior doctors and other support staff. I volunteered to present as Dr. Gary Parker, Alexandria Goh played Dr. Sandra Loko, while Chong Vicky played the patient and Chang Ye Sean acted as the ship’s engineer, with Sherwin taking care of the emcee’s position.
Mr Thomas then suggested that Aaron Loke be the acting teacher, who will be posted on the ship to teach and also to ask the whole hall to keep quiet and listen. I laughed when he said that. Enisha was looking at me seriously. Then, Mr Thomas suggested the PA team comprise Ellie Lim and Jia Yiu.
“What about the slides that was to be done by Lyn Wen and Wee Shiang, Mr Thomas?” I asked.
“That one, we would not have time. We can just cut and paste a picture of the Mercy Ship from the Internet,” he said. Apart from that, Mr Thomas also suggested that we can do some merchandise for the Mercy Ship Project, such as a baseball cap and a flag of the Africa Mercy, along with props for the event, such as a lab coat for the doctors, hard hats, business suits and so on. He asked Vicky to source for some of the props. I told Mr Thomas I would wear my lab coat for the skit.
Once again, we returned for Economics, and I presented the control book to Ms Sharon. Ms Joyce, unfortunately, had not signed the book again, and I had to find her.
In our Economics lesson, Ms Sharon was explaining on what to expect for Economics in Year 11, especially on how to write the essay questions for the Economics paper. Ms Sharon said a lot of us were lacking behind and said she would spend some time to go through the essay questions. Ms Sharon said that the most important things to write in the questions are the key points, the definitions and key terms as well as to present the concepts asked by the questions. Then, she talked about fiscal and monetary policies by the government. During the class, I had to remind Brandon to sign the control book, as well as a few others, who forgot to do so, to sign it. Cassandra and Ms Sharon then told me to keep an eye on those who did so and collect their signatures after the class ended.
Then, we had break time, and I went to speak to San Ying again, this time, not on Trump, but on how fast the week had passed. We were into our second Wednesday of the year. I then proceeded to meet Jordan Tay to discuss about Mr Lee. I told him that he wasn't so humerous yet. “Just wait and you will see the answer,” said Jordan.
Mr Gallagher begun the class by saying that each group would need to ensure that their particular project achieved a particular purpose and cause. So, I was placed in the same group as Chong Vicky, Ellie Lim and Glen Kay.
For instance, Enisha’s group, led by Derek Yong, focused on Mercy Malaysia, while ours, which was led by Vicky, focused on a poverty-related project involving Dignity Foundation for Myanmarese children. It was so tiring in GP class as there was no teaching, but typing and the class was cramped, but it wasn’t as cramped as in 2016 when we were seated in 10E’s class, the smallest class ever. There were 32 of us taking Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher had two batches; I wished I was in Caleb’s batch of 15 students as there are less people and people like Sherwin were there, hence it was easier to collaborate. In fact, who knows that I would be leading the group with Caleb Chuang.
Mr Gallagher taught everyone on how to write the project plan. He said that every group must include the proposed project objectives, the roles of every group member in the project, a proposed project timeline and what lessons do we aim to learn from the group project.
Soon, it was Maths again, and I quickly left to ensure that Ms Janice signed the control book. I could feel the difficulties and temptations faced by past monitors, and I was determined to succeed in my goal. I had run for assistant monitor with an aim to complete the control book records, and I was determined to achieve that.
After reaching 11N, Ms Bee Yan was, fortunately waiting outside. She saw me panting as I reached the class. I told her about the control book and that we had to get everyone to sign it. “Never had I seen such a monitor actively asking teachers for their signatures,” she said. Then, Ms Bee Yan and I discussed about me entering Maths Extended while waiting for Ms Janice to finish the Additional Mathematics lesson.
“Do you know why you are placed in Maths Extended?” she asked. I then told her that it was my mum and my tuition teacher, Mr Nehru, who asked me to move to the Extended class.
Then, Ms Bee Yan asked me if my mum knows that I had been originally allocated to Mathematics Core, and I said yes. “You must understand that this placement is actually the school's final decision and it can't be changed, but since your mum met me and Ms Bee Yong and requested that you change to the Extended class, that is why we placed you in Extended. By right, the school does not entertain appeals, but your case is a rare case which is why you are put in the Extended class,” she said. I then explained to her about how my Maths teacher, Mr Nehru, pushed for me to go to the Extended paper and he said he wishes for me to appeal to go for the Extended lesson. In fact, Mr Nehru believes that I can do the extended paper because he knows I can do it, and my mistakes were partly due to me not concentrating in the exam. Hence, it was not only me who was advised by Mr Nehru, but Nickolas Nashpal as well.
Then, Ms Janice finished the class and walked out of the class. I then stopped her. “Ms Janice, you need to sign the control book,” and Ms Bee Yan laughed. “Yeah, Ms Janice! You must sign it!” cried Ms Bee Yan.
“Oh, wait....ya! I forgot to sign again!” she laughed. We walked into the class, and I gave Ms Janice the control book, where she lent her signature to the book. Then, it was Ms Bee Yan's turn to sign, and we begun the lesson.
Ms Bee Yan said that she was creating an online portal on a software called ‘MyMaths’ where we had to go onto the software and get our homework. The purpose of the software was to allow us to do our homework online. At the same time, there are answers where we can check to know where we went right and where we got wrong and how to improve. Plus, the MyMaths software also shows a series of workings where we can do them step by step.
Then, it was lunch, and I talked to Yi Zhen at the table on where we all live, surprised by the fact that Yi Zhen was my neighbor a neighborhood away. Then we went for our Art lesson, and I took out my prep work and continued painting. Ms Nadia told me to pay attention to my brush while painting the prep work. She then told me to inform my mum to buy new paintbrushes as the old ones were worn out. Afterwards, it was History, and Ms Visa did some source questions on the beginning of the Cold War with us. However, I had to stay back for Bible Knowledge lessons after school, since there was none on the first week. Fortunately, for us, we had no Bible Knowledge lesson on Fridays, unlike the previous batch of Year 11 students.
I would attend Ms Renee’s Bible Knowledge (BK) classes after school on Wednesdays. While Bible Knowledge is an optional subject, it is not administered as part of Cambridge IGCSE, but Cambridge O Levels. It is a separate exam from our other IGCSE subjects. I was the only one from 11N and the arts stream taking this subject, and it is the only subject where Caleb Chuang and I are in the same class group. While Caleb Chuang and I took some similar subjects (First Language English, GP) and have the same teacher to a certain extent (Mr Lee, Mr Thomas, Mr Kevin Wai, Cikgu Niely, Mr Gallagher, Ms Cynthia), we are in different set teaching groups or classes, and BK is the only subject where we were able to come together.
Before I went for the Bible Knowledge class, I went to find Ms Joyce at the management office. “Oops, sorry, sorry, I forgot to sign,” said Ms Joyce, signing on my book. The whole office saw me get Ms Joyce to sign it. Then, I placed the control book at the pigeon hole and went for my Bible Knowledge lesson.
For 2017, we focused on the book of Acts which is a book of the Bible as opposed to the previous year which focused on the book of Matthew. There are many other books in the Bible, you see, but Acts of the Apostles is one thing. Ms Renee who is teaching Bible Knowledge also taught Biology for the other classes and is our Year 11 Level Leader.
Ms Renee would begin the class at 3:45pm and allow us to have snacks in the class from 3:30pm to 3:45pm. As it is an after school subject, we would get tired and Ms Renee would also have her snack. Then, we will begin the class and end at 5:30pm. Unlike most classes which last 1 hour and 20 minutes, the BK class lasts two hours and we end late when most people had left.
For that day's Bible Knowledge lesson, Ms Renee said that there was no Bible Knowledge lesson on the first week of school as it was too rushed for us to do so, since the new school year begun the previous Thursday. We had our Bible Knowledge lesson in 11E; Mr Steve and his Mandarin Foreign students used 11N for their lessons, while the Mandarin Second students, who were taught by Ms Ting, used 11O. Starting from 2017, the school consolidated all the after-school subjects into one day, hence the Wednesday timing.
Before the lesson started, Ms Renee told us to pray for our seat partner that we had with us. I had Desmond Chan as my seat mate. Ms Renee said that we should pray for whatever the other person requests us to pray for, and I told Desmond to pray for my services as assistant monitor while he asked me to pray for his IGCSE studies.
We are already on Thursday, 12th January 2017. How fast time has flown, and the IGCSE exams were ticking down as fast as possible.
Just like the previous Tuesday, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa came into the class for our Reading Time. Mr Kevin had brought a motivational talk book to read on it. He then asked me to take the attendance as I brought the control book back from the pigeon hole, along with the Smartboard stationery pouch. Then, we looked and checked at the class for attendance. Afterwards, Mr Kevin then signed into the computer and used the portal to key in the attendance.
The first latecomer, Glen, arrived in the class and I had to entertain his case with a lateness slip, which I had to staple onto the control book. I then put the late slip onto the control book, pasting it as Mr Kevin guided me. Then, it was 8:00am, and we had our lesson for the day.
Ms Sharon then came in and then I gave the control book for her to sign. This time, she signed automatically. Soon, all teachers would do the same. We then listened to her teach about the Aggregate Demand (AD) and Aggregate Supply (AS) curves in detail. It was confusing as we had to learn the new terms. Then, we had Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia signed the control book.
“All the teachers signed already this week, Wei Yiang?” she asked. I said yes, as she looked in amazement at the complete list of records once again.
As part of the previous week's homework, Ms Cynthia said that we had to print out the picture of the upcoming Yang di Pertuan Agong, also known as the King of Malaysia. The then-Agong, Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah, was ending his term and Ms Cynthia told us to print a picture of Sultan Muhammad V, the next Yang di Pertuan Agong in waiting at the time. However, I printed the new Agong's picture in black-and-white print to save cost, since my mum told me to print pictures in black and white print as it is cheaper to do so than colored printing ink. Ms Cynthia told me to reprint the image of the new Agong again in order to show proper respect to him. The purpose of Ms Cynthia asking each class to print the Agong's image was to hang it in the class to introduce the Yang di Pertuan Agong to everyone, and I was chosen to print the portrait. Of course, the then-current Agong, Sultan Abdul Halim, can be printed, but as Malaysia was about to change its Yang di Pertuan Agong back then, it was best to print a new portrait of the Agong so that everyone can know who he is.
Brandon Ooi giggled at the new Agong's face, but Ms Cynthia warned everyone not to disrespect the Agong as he is the King of Malaysia. “You could be jailed if you insult or disrespect the Agong,” she said. Then, she talked to us about the past 14 Yang di Pertuan Agongs. Each state in Malaysia that contains a Sultan would be given the opportunity to serve on the throne as Yang di Pertuan Agong for a period of five years, with nine states in Malaysia being given the opportunity to do so, namely Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Selangor, Perlis and Terengganu. There would be an order in which each state would have the opportunity to serve a term as Yang di Pertuan Agong, starting with Negeri Sembilan, followed by Selangor, Perlis, Terengganu, Kedah, Kelantan, Pahang, Johor and Perak. We were also told about the distinction between Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first prime minister of Malaysia, and Tuanku Abdul Rahman, the first Yang di Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.
There would be an election of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, and it can be only participated by the nine Sultans, who would form a group called the Conference of Rulers, to elect the Yang di Pertuan Agong. Normally, they would choose to either accept the Sultan of the next state in the waiting list according to the order as the Agong, or they could choose to reject it. If the individual is rejected as the Agong, the next Sultan in line afterwards would be asked to go through the election process. Only one candidate would be running for election, and it will be a yes/no vote. If that next Sultan is rejected, the order continues till a Yang di Pertuan Agong is officially elected. So far, as per Ms Cynthia's observation, no other class except for 11N had presented the official Yang di Pertuan Agong portrait. Ms Cynthia said that it would be good if the wife of the Yang di Pertuan Agong was printed as well, so that it can be posted next to the Agong's portrait. Hence, she asked me to do some research. The wife of the Yang di Pertuan Agong is known as the Raja Permaisuri Agong. Ms Cynthia also talked about the residence of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, which is at Istana Negara in Kuala Lumpur. There was a previous Istana Negara next to KL Sentral, but the Istana was too small and had to be moved from Jalan Istana to Jalan Duta, the location of the current Istana Negara.
Afterwards, we then had break time, and then I spoke to San Ying about the Agong portrait as well. Then, Yi Zhen came and had breakfast with us. We then talked about where we lived, as I also saw Sophie following Yi Zhen via her transporter as well the previous day. Their transporter passed through my neighborhood before going to Yi Zhen's.
After returning to class, I checked all the details in the control book before heading to Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson. Alicia Tang, Nicole and Sophie cried, “Ms Chithra, you are gorgeous!” once again.
“Why do you always like to call me gorgeous?” asked Ms Chithra. “Do I look pretty? No lah, I don't look so pretty; I don't like it,” she said. She then plopped her things on her chair, and then opened her slides. We then learned about the recruitment process and how people were interviewed for a job.
Then, we went for History, and I talked to Ze Khai about the Cold War and the information I got from reading about North Korea and South Korea the previous year. Ms Visa then taught us about the division of Germany by the Allies and the Soviet Union as to prevent the similar circumstances plaguing peace in Europe. Dividing Germany into two would weaken Germany and prevent it from conquering land in Europe as it did in World Wars I and II. There were four occupation zones in Germany; one by the British, the Americans, French and the Soviets. Berlin, the capital city of Germany, was also divided into four, so that it will be fair to control the capital of Germany, too. However, the plan became a consequence of itself; the Soviets, Americans, French and British failed to agree on what to do with Germany. Plans initially called for a reunification of Germany and the holding of free and fair elections. Instead, the Soviets accused the other three countries, namely the capitalist bloc, from spying on the Soviets, who wanted to spread the communist ideology in Germany. The US opposed this, and thought that the Soviets wanted Germany to be under Soviet control in order to gain a sphere of influence in Germany. This was because the Soviet Union also associated the capitalist ideology with Nazi ideology; hence their decision to take Germany into the Soviet sphere. Thus, the three other countries unified their occupation zones into West Germany, while the Soviet occupation zone became East Germany. Germany would remain divided from 1945 until 1990.
Then, it was Malay, and Cikgu Niely told us to write an essay. While we wrote the essay, Brandon Ooi played on his phone without Cikgu Niely noticing it. Some people also took the time to look at the Agong's portrait. Enisha wanted to have a look at the portrait and see the new Agong's face. Afterwards, we had lunch, and San Ying and I talked about Mr Thomas’ plan for the Mercy Ship Project.
Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan talked about matrix transformations where we had to use a number coded in brackets as to move a shape on a grid. There were four numbers: two for horizontal movement and two for vertical movement. The negative numbers represent the backward and downward movement, and the opposite was likewise for the opposite directions. Afterwards, it was English. I reminded Ms Bee Yan to sign the control book. Then, I went to 11B, placed my things there, and waited for Ms Joyce to arrive.
“Wei Yiang, why are you still here?” asked Ms Joyce. “You're supposed to be in Mr Thomas’ class,” she said. Then, I told her I wanted to remind her to sign the control book. She said okay, and I left to meet Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas was in the class, opening the Edmodo page. He then peered onto the screen and told us to get ready for our lesson. “Please take responsibility for your own learning! Have you completed the five paragraphs’ writeup I asked you to do?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
Mr Thomas said that the first half of our lesson would be used to discuss the answers for the five paragraphs’ writeup homework and the lessons on Edmodo, and the second half would be used to practice the skit for the Mercy Ship Project. He then opened Edmodo and told us to read the essay on Edmodo and answer a few questions.
I answered most of the questions and Mr Thomas was really enthusiastic. Then, he walked around to check on our homework. Mr Thomas then pointed out the mistakes I made. Then, he discussed the answers in the class.
“Some of you still do not know how to write the paragraph. You are supposed to write it like this,” he said, as he explained the writeup to us. Once that was done, it was time to conduct the Mercy Ship Presentation.
Mr Thomas said that we had to come up and present on stage during the CT session of the Year 11s on that Monday. He said that during the presentation, we will need to present the roles of five characters and play the role of those characters, namely the narrator, Dr. Gary Parker (the ship’s head doctor), Dr. Sandra Loko (the head nurse), the engineer of the ship and a patient. I volunteered to present as Dr. Gary Parker, Alexandria Goh will play Dr. Sandra Loko, Ye Sean will act as the engineer, Vicky will present as the patient and Sherwin will narrate the story. Mr Thomas was very enthusiastic and he said that we would be performing better based on his analysis, and it would be “better than the other group, who had shown no interest [in performing]”.
Mr Thomas said that the roles of acting teacher were to be cancelled so that Aaron Loke wouldn't have to be shy acting as well. The acting teacher would be unnecessary to the role and purpose of the Mercy Ship Project. However, he suggested that Vicky present the patient's role as it will be very good for her to showcase her dramatic moves, since she was good.
“Would the presenters come in front, please?” asked Mr Thomas. Me, Sherwin, Alexandria Goh, Ye Sean and Vicky came onto the stage. Then, Mr Thomas asked for the Smartboard to be displayed with a background of the Mercy Ship. Jia Yiu had came up with the design.
Mr Thomas then went behind the class. “When I say start, you can start, okay? One, two, three!” cried Mr Thomas.
Sherwin begun to speak, as he acted confidently. “Good afternoon, or I should say, morning?” he begun. Mr Thomas said that he can say “Good afternoon” for now. In fact, I pointed out that it should be “Good afternoon” since our Character Transformation session was in the afternoon.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I am Sherwin, host of today's programme. Today, on this TV show, I would like to introduce all of you to the Africa Mercy; a ship in Africa helping those who are underprivileged get treatment from the world's best doctors. Founded in the early 1980s, the Mercy Ship has been providing quality treatment at no cost to those who cannot afford it. Today, the Africa Mercy has been one of the most-sought healthcare services in the whole of Africa. I would like to introduce you to five young men and women who are the backbone behind the success of the Africa Mercy, namely Dr Gary Parker, who is the Chief Doctor of the Africa Mercy, presented by Lau Wei Yiang, Dr Sandra Loko, the Head Nurse, presented by Alexandria Goh, an engineer of the ship, who is presented by Chang Ye Sean, and last but not least, the gracious and most valuable tale of an old grandmother who was successfully cured of cancer on the ship, presented by Vicky Chong!” cried Sherwin. “Without further ado, I would like to invite Dr Gary Parker to address the program.”
The whole class cheered and screamed loudly. Then, I was given the chance to speak.
“Wei Yiang, speak loudly!” cried Jien Min. The whole class was smiling. Ethan Wong, Jien Min and Eugene Ho were grinning.
“When we first started this organization in the mid 1980s, we had only around 100 patients coming for treatment in a week. Today, over 200 staff on board this ship treat and manage an average of two thousand patients every day. I am very proud to be here speaking today to share my experience and expertise as the Chief Doctor of this ship. We have hired more staff to manage this ship and also trained more local doctors to run this ship in order to have better knowledge of the local environment here,” I begun. The whole class screamed and cheered. In fact, I was so excited till my cheeks hurt while speaking.
“I am very pleased with our achievements so far, and it is no much better than allowing me to pass the time to our Head Nurse, Dr Sandra Loko, to share her testimony,” I ended.
The entire class was now going wild. Everyone was screaming at the top of their lungs till I could hear 11O's students groan about our noise level. Alexandria Goh then gave an entertaining speech, and so did Ye Sean, who talked about his experience as the ship's engineer to keep the ship functioning. Vicky then acted dramatically, which made the whole class cheer and laugh even more. She acted like an old granny and attempted to act like as if she was frailing. “Thank you, doctors, for curing me. Duh!” she cried.
Each time the performance went through, and Mr Thomas was briefing us, I can imagine voices in my head like a sports stadium or at a Donald Trump rally chanting, “Mis-ter Tho-mas! Mis-ter Tho-mas!” like as if they were cheering for him. We improved round after round. Mr Thomas usually would conduct the rehearsals after we finished our work for the day, and if everything went well, I would clap and smile happily.
Mr Thomas then praised us once we were done. “I think they did quite well, don't you think so?” asked Mr Thomas. The whole class screamed! “Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas then said that we will spend the entire class the next day to do the presentation. He then said that Jia Yiu should improve the slides. The whole class thanked Mr Thomas for his lesson as we were dismissed. I went back to class to wait for Ms Joyce to end her lesson and take the control book back to its designated safekeeping spot.
On Friday, 13th January 2017, the English Language Week was launched by Ms Paulina and Ms Gerardine, two of the English Language teachers, in the school hall. The entire assembly took up our homeroom period with our homeroom teachers. Then, Mr Narish and Ms Sylvia appeared on stage to proudly and excitedly launch Sports 2017, which is a series of events leading up to and includes Sports Day 2017. When Mr Narish and Ms Sylvia launched Sports 2017, the lights were dimmed, and the words ‘Sports 2017’ were projected onto the large screen.
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I would like to present to you Sports 2017! And the theme for this year's Sports Day is ‘SOARING TOGETHER!’” cried Mr Narish and Ms Sylvia.
Mr Narish said that we would be using the 2016 Nobel Cup scores as the basis for the Sports Day scores, and any score that came to us in the year 2017 will be added to the 2016 Nobel Cup scores. He then displayed the information on a Powerpoint slideshow which projected onto a screen in the school hall. Touchdown led with 100 points, Bullseye 90 points, Slamdunk 70 and Homerun 60. He announced a full list of Sports 2017 events, but the first event to take place would be on 16th January 2017. On that day, we will need to stay back for a house meet where all the members of the sports houses will meet in to-be-announced respective places. Mr Narish said that he will announce the locations on Monday, 16th January 2017. The purpose of the house meets was to sign up for the respective events of Sports Day, such as marching, dancing and so on, as well as to come up with the house cheer. He also announced the theme of Sports Day 2017, “Soaring Together (pinions)” and the dates of Founder’s Run and Sports Day, which were 8th February 2017 and 31st March 2017 respectively.
Mr Narish and Ms Sylvia took turns speaking on stage. The Founder's Run 2017 would be held at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, consist of a 10km and 5km category, and also, to make things more difficult, only ten placings were given for winners. I gulped.
“I can't wait for Sports Day,” said Ms Sylvia, emceeing on the stage. “I am excited as well,” said Mr Narish. “See you soon!” the two of them cried.
Also taking place on Monday, 16th January 2017 would be the Mercy Ship presentation. It would be something interesting to watch.
Starting from the year 2017, I had an interesting plan to put for the Sports Day. I REFUSED to call the ‘house meet’ as a ‘house meet. Instead, I wrote in my Student Organizer, the ‘Bullseye National Convention’ to replace the term ‘house meet’.
I REFUSE to call the Bullseye National Convention as a 'house meet’ because that term, to me, is too boring. Come on. We want Bullseye to be at the best as it can be. And things need to change before we get changed. That would be the first plan. Behind the scenes, a SECOND PLAN was taking place. A plan that would not only change Bullseye, but also change my life.
There was a plan for me to win the Founder's Run. In fact, the plans were on the table since December 2016, during the school holidays.
I feel that winning the Founder's Run would give me a sense of pride and conviction. For years, I had always trailed behind Sean Mark. I wished I could beat him. It was a lifelong dream since 2016. And on two occasions I had came close to beating him, namely in the National Day Run 2013 and the Founder's Run 2016. Sean would always best me in everything; from PE lessons to 100m sprints and beep tests.
All the areas which I had came close to beating him fell in the long-distance category. In fact, the 800m race in Sports Day was my first appearance in Sports Day track and field events after three years of failure.
I must find a way to beat him. This was my last chance. I was a Year 11 student.
Winning first place for the Founder's Run would not only allow me to beat Sean Mark and gain a sense of pride, but it will also contribute 15 points to Bullseye's tally. This would allow Bullseye to overtake Touchdown and regain the first-place position in the overall standings from Nobel Cup 2016, provided that many people in Bullseye also win as well.
The points awarded for placings were as follows:
Placing 5km Points Contribution 10km Points Contribution
1st 15 20
2nd 12 17
3rd 10 13
4th 9 11
5th 8 10
6th 7 9
7th 6 8
8th 5 7
9th 4 6
10th 3 5
The two factors influenced my decision to practice for the Founder's Run. And what was needed was a practice to simulate the conditions of the run. This would allow me to be ready for the race and also have an advantage over everyone else. In previous Sports Days, I had looked to the Singapore Armed Forces and Singapore Police Force on how they simulate terrorist attacks and respond to them as part of their training. I had encouraged past Bullseye athletics captains to simulate race-day conditions. To win the Founder's Run, I needed to simulate the conditions of the race. The Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam is a hilly area, and I needed to find hills to get used to them.
The only place in my area with hills was Yi Zhen's neighboring neighborhood. At least, I can call Yi Zhen to help me if I was hurt.
During my days in Nobel, I did not have Mr Victor's guidance and assistance, even though I had asked him many times for his advice. While Mr Victor had the expertise, he did not share them with me one-on-one. I realized that I have to do this on my own. Sean Mark had access to training equipment, tech and expertise from Mr Victor. I was badly disadvantaged, but I needed to try. And I challenged my then-physically unhealthy self to get ready for the race.
All the top athletes in Nobel International School, coached under Mr Victor, were expected to be the winners of the race. They had experience running and were from the school's track and field team. He was their leader and master. A duel between David and Goliath was on the cards. Something needs to be done. I need to do something to overcome them. The only person I had on my side, was God. And a few other notable people who deserve a shoutout too. It would be breaking news if I won the Founder's Run, which was then a pipe dream.
As I walked back to 11N from the school hall, and while headed to retrieve the Class Control Book from the pigeon hole, I was thinking of the next Bullseye strategy. I was thinking as hard as possible till my head hurt. We needed to secure 2017. But I needed to make the first move by training for the Founder's Run to lead the Bullseye members as a good role model. In fact, I was coming up with a large blueprint to conquer Sports Day 2017. And I was thinking of presenting it to Caleb Chuang before executing it. He was my best friend and the best Bullseye buddy to present the plans to.
For 2017, we had a total of ten PE teachers, namely Mr Victor, Ms Sylvia, Mr Lim, Ms Nadia, Ms Lee, Ms Belle, Ms Ting, Ms Yap, Cikgu Niely and Cikgu Zura. I was happy to see Ms Nadia in the PE lesson.
Before the PE lesson begun, I brought my football and had a game of football in the hall with Caleb Chuang, since Ms Sylvia allowed it. In fact, I asked her while presenting the control book to her for signature purposes. I took careful care not to land myself into sticky situations. Mr Victor also had a shot kicking the ball towards a target on the wall facing the lower canteen.
Wei Zhong and I took turns firing the ball with Mr Victor, who pretended to be the defender. Then, he fired a shot and I acted as the defender. Caleb Chuang shouted, “Pass! Pass!” and I tried to pass the ball with him.
At the side of the court, everyone was watching us. Megan and Le Anne cheered for the two of us. Then, everyone who arrived saw me and Caleb Chuang play. My classmates, particularly Brandon Ooi and Shane, cheered for me and Caleb Chuang in action. Aside from me, Caleb Chuang and Wei Zhong, Sean Mark, Ethan Wong and Sherwin also played a game of football before the PE lesson.
Then, Mr Victor called everyone together, and we did our warm ups and basic exercises in the hall once again. Mr Victor told us to do stretching, push ups, planking and sit ups that to an extent we had to ensure we do not touch the ground. A back-breaking exercise. I observed the exercises carefully. I need to use them for my Founder's Run training. None of my friends, not even Caleb Chuang, know about the plans yet. I took care to keep the plans behind closed doors.
After PE ended, I went to retrieve the control book and went to the canteen for breakfast with San Ying while Caleb Chuang continued his football game. While eating my bread, I scribbled the information for the next week's timetable schedule in advance. I was constantly reminding myself of my duty. To ensure that I would not be bugged by hassle, I scribbled the information of all the schooling days and their respective daily timetable till the last page of the Class Control Book.
“One more week to go,” I told San Ying. It was a week till the following Friday's Trump Inauguration.
“SAVE ME!” cried Sophie.
I then told Kelsey about the plan to change the ‘house meet’ to ‘Bullseye National Convention’. In fact, I had a dilemma over whether to call the house meet as the ‘Bull's Eye National Convention’ or the ‘Bullseye National Convention’, since the term ‘Bull's Eye’ is alternatively used instead of ‘Bullseye’ by the management team.
“What is the Bullseye National Convention?” asked Kelsey. I laughed. Kelsey gave me a weird look.
“Someone tell me what is Bullseye National Convention!” she cried. Note that Kelsey is from Bullseye.
It got curious heads scratching. No one would believe it. The name was picking up, but I don't care. I plan to call it ‘Bullseye National Convention’ anyway.
I went to see Loo Zane and Geok Minh and proposed that “Bullseye National Convention” replace the term ‘house meet’. All of them were so excited! Finally. My plan was picking up steam. Then, I went to find Ethan Chan, Melvyn Lim, Aaron Yong and all the Bullseye people from Year 10. All of them gave the thumbs-up. The plan was working. I just need to meet the Year 7, 8 and 9 students to get their consent to adopt the term. Now, it was time for Plan B, which will be executed later: practice for the ‘marathon’. I would need to get it sorted when returning home after school.
In fact, Mr Narish had said that there will be FOUR Bullseye National Conventions: 16th January, 13th February, 6th March and 13th March. I had recorded all of the dates in my Student Organizer.
After returning to class, we then had Malay with Cikgu Niely. She told us how to write a proper ‘karangan’ in the class. Brandon Ooi then kept making so much noise till Cikgu Niely had to call for his attention. During Cikgu Niely's class, I had to tell so many people to write their names in the control book but were ignored. I had to go to them personally and collect their signatures. And also not to mention that Sheng Jit came into the class 20 minutes after the lesson started, all thanks to him playing basketball and parkour with Christopher Chew. Then, it was Combined Science with Mr Lee. This time, I did not even ask Mr Lee to sign the book. Instead, Mr Lee asked me if he had to sign. This showed that all the teachers were getting used to my new control book management format.
“Wei Yiang, should I sign the control book?” asked Mr Lee.
“Yes, Mr Lee, please sign here,” I replied, pointing to the slot he should sign.
“Here, right?” he asked.
“Yes, there,” I said, pointing to the blank slot clearly labeled for Combined Science.
“Correct ah? I sign here ya!”
“Yes, Mr Lee. Please sign there. That's the correct box.”
For the first, and possibly the only time in Nobel International School's history, a monitor finally heeded the years-long deaf-ear requests sent by teachers: complete the information in the class control book. I was succeeding in my objectives. I had managed to get all the teachers to do their part within seven days. However, the toilet information would come a bit longer, as some people were still stubborn. But for the late line slips, I stapled them neatly into the book.
I am very happy to say that at this point of time, Mr Lee was the first one to be diligent and discipline to sign the book. Some teachers were still not signing them yet. Then, it struck me. Cikgu Niely forgot to sign it. I rushed out of the classroom, met her, got her signature, and returned into the class. And I initialized my name on the book for meeting Cikgu Niely just for that.
Mr Lee then went to the computer, placed his bag on the floor, and plugged in his pendrive before reopening the displacement topic.
“Mr Lee, have you told Caleb Chuang that I have answered all the questions correctly?” I asked Mr Lee.
“Yes,” he said, replying to me.
“What did Caleb Chuang say?” I asked.
“I don't know,” replied Mr Lee. The whole class was really laughing.
“Oh no, Wei Yiang. Dejected by Caleb! So sad!” cried Brandon. The whole class laughed.
Mr Lee said he will ask Caleb Chuang to give me a gift if I can answer the questions in the class correctly again. Enisha was delighted. “What gift?” she asked.
“You need to ask Caleb Chuang,” said Mr Lee. The whole class was laughing and Brandon Ooi was acting crazily.
Then, Mr Lee taught us about Displacement once again and told us to draw the distance-time graph and velocity-time graph. He gave us a worksheet the previous week in which we had to compare the graph between our estimation and that of what was generated by the computer via an electronic screen. Then, he taught us about velocity and motion and then gave us another worksheet to calculate speed, distance and time, as well as velocity and displacement. He showed us a series of formulas on the Smartboard and whiteboard, writing them down. Mr Lee also helped and attended to Louis and Gabriel gently. The two of them also asked me for help too.
After that, it was English and I quickly went to Mr Thomas’ class. Ms Joyce told me to not wait as she promised she will sign the control book.
Mr Thomas was pumped up with energy. He said that he will spend the whole lesson to do the rehearsal for the Mercy Ship Project. He had a smile on his face, ready for us to partake in the rehearsal process once again.
“Come, come. We have no time. We must do one last rehearsal before Monday,” he said.
The whole class settled down, and Aaron Loke and Jia Yiu were asked to set the backdrop of the Africa Mercy Powerpoint slide as the background on the Smartboard. Mr Thomas said he liked the theme of the slideshow. It was blue in color, contained words typed in white color in the Calibri font ‘Africa Mercy’. There was a picture of the hospital ship accompanied in the slides. The slideshow had previously been colored green, but it was changed at Mr Thomas’ as well as the class’ request so that it looked like a pamphlet from the Mercy Ship staff. He had told Jia Yiu, who designed the slides, to look at pamphlets, advertisements and leaflets from the Africa Mercy to design the slides. The Calibri font was then replaced with a logo of the Africa Mercy.
The class went wild. I could hear chants of ‘Mis-ter Tho-mas' in my head. It was so exciting and my heart beat quite fast. I feel so excited.
“Come! Come! Let's go! One, two, three! Faster! We have no time!” cried Mr Thomas, as he acted with humor.
The five presenters, namely me, Sherwin, Vicky, Alexandria Goh and Ye Sean, got to the front of the class and we begun our skits again. This time, I came with my lab coat for the presentation.
Sherwin then begun speaking. He spoke with his usual confident tone. The crowd screamed. When it was time for me to speak, the crowd screamed the loudest. I then talked with great intonation and humor. Alexandria Goh, Ye Sean and Vicky spoke modestly, but they were also honored with the same amount of applause.
Mr Thomas then gave us improvements to work on. He said that we needed to speak one by one and also stand behind when not speaking. He also suggested to Sherwin that he dress up nicely as a television presenter on the day, and all that he needed was a black jacket, since he was already dressed in his prefect's uniform and tie as well.
“Come on, one, two, three!” cried Mr Thomas. He smiled, sat in his chair, and adjusted his seat.
Then, we continued our presentation with great intonation as the class looked and cheered at us. In fact, when I spoke, the whole class cheered for me the loudest. Everyone sat in their seat and watched us attentively. Once we were done, Mr Thomas then asked the class who they thought the best presenter was. The entire class screamed my name. I laughed wholeheartedly.
Mr Thomas then told us to do a final round, and Jien Min and Kevin Tan were asked to collect the Friday food from the canteen. Once the rehearsal ended, all the 11O students came to see us with much enthusiasm. I remember seeing Yi Zhen and Ryan Toh being baffled that I was going to present. Mr Thomas said that a final rehearsal would be held in the school hall during lunch time on Monday, 16th January 2017, just before the Character Transformation session. We were then dismissed and I went to store the Smartboard equipment and control book back at the pigeon hole.
Monday, 16th January 2017 arrived without hassle. I then posted on the 2017 Year 11 English First MK Thomas page saying,
Monday, 16th January 2017 would be a day of happenings and the start of an eventful week. What I was mostly looking forward to is the inauguration of Donald Trump on Friday, 20th January as it is the inauguration day for the president of the United States. And because Mr Thomas and Mr Gallagher’s classes talked about Trump very often, that is to say, I became the centre of attention, I was very excited for the end of the week, and it motivated me to do well in that week. Aside from that, we had the Bullseye National Convention, as well as the Mercy Ship Presentation.
On the morning of 16th January, we arrived in school, feeling excited for that afternoon’s Mercy Ship presentation. I told my friends to wear a lab coat to act as “doctors” for the presentation. I then talked to Krystal Goh and everyone behind the hall when I arrived early in the morning. Then, when everyone arrived and the teachers came before the assembly starts, I spoke to Mr Thomas and he asked if I was ready for the skit and I nodded.
Mr Narish announced during the morning assembly that the house meets will take place at the venues as follows:
Bullseye = Lower Canteen
Touchdown = Basement 2 Hall
Homerun = CT Hall near the dismissal area
Slamdunk = Dismissal area
He urged all of us to make the necessary preparations and thus posted information on a notice board in the school hall. The house meet would be held from 3:30pm to 5:00pm. We then went back to class for our usual activities and I kept on counting down the hours to the presentation.
When we returned to class, I went for Business Studies with Ms Chithra, who taught us more about the recruitment process. During the class, Nicole, Sophie and Alicia continued to say that Ms Chithra looked gorgeous. Ms Chithra got really fed up with what they said, although they didn't disrupt her class.
Ms Chithra then woke Gabriel Lim up, who was sleeping. She asked me to call him up. Then, Ms Chithra explained that anyone who had to go to find a job would need to pass an interview process and then she told us about how a job interview worked. Then, it was the end of the lesson.
“We will continue in the next class,” said Ms Chithra.
Then, I went back for Economics, and before the lesson started, I checked the control book again. Sure enough, Mr Raja had signed the control book. Then, Ms Sharon continued talking to us about the aims of the government, and then she told us to do a mindmap as homework. Mine was a cycle:
Full Employment -> Economic Growth -> Price Stability -> Redistribution of income -> Balance of payments stability -> Full Employment (and the cycle continues)
In fact, Ms Sharon said that the aims of the government actually formed a cycle, in which the aims would result in a much more comprehensive knock-on effect on the economy. “We will learn all the aims in detail in the next chapters,” said Ms Sharon.
I then spoke to San Ying during break time about Donald Trump’s inauguration on 20th January which is that coming Friday and she didn’t feel amused, as I was the only one supporting Trump and most people hate him. I also talked about the Mercy Ship Presentation, and everyone was excited. Then, Sherwin came over, and then told me that we need to have an early lunch and gather at 1:15pm in the school hall for a short rehearsal.
As the music played, we then gathered in our class lines as the prefects told everyone to stop talking and the people behind to stop bouncing their basketball. Then we went for Art where Ms Nadia gave us guidance for the Mid Year Examination’s prep works. Ms Nadia said once again that for Art and Design, the Mid Year Examination will be used as the basis for IGCSE Trials for that subject and that we need to work on the prep works by the end of April so that we can get the details settled for Art and Design IGCSE for the trial exam. In this case, Ms Nadia said that we had to do a total of four preparation work (also known as preps or prep work) for two papers, namely Paper 1 and Paper 2, and all these questions would be based on the questions for the 2017 May/June series for the IGCSE exam. There are two sessions in a year for the IGCSE exam, that is to say, the May/June series and the October/November series, the latter of which Nobel is focusing on. The final pieces for the exam will be done in the same fashion just like what was done last year for our Final Year Examination.
The Mid Year Examination results for Art and Design will automatically become the IGCSE trials result for Art and Design, and this is as such due to the lengthy timeframe to prepare for the exam. So, Ms Nadia gave us the questions list and I finalized the two questions I have chosen; for Paper 1, I chose the question titled “A view through a gate”, and the Paper 2 question that requires me to design a logo for a renewable energy company called “Greenhouse” based on the design of leaves. Everyone was told to finalize their questions for the Mid Year Examination. Then, I continued my Prep 1 for Paper 1. Ms Nadia said that we will focus on Paper 1 first and not proceed to Paper 2. However, she told us that anyone who wished to change their topic can do so before we begun Paper 2, but the changing of topics was for Paper 2 only. She told us to think about the topic before double-confirming with her.
After drawing all the grills of the gate, Ms Nadia then told me to paint them. My mum had also given me a rough paper for me to do some ink testing, in which I would dip my brush in the paint, and dab the paint on the rough paper to test the color. If the color came out just fine, then it would be used to paint the rest of the paintings. Ms Nadia then checked my painting once again and looked pleased with my outcome. I was on course to head to Prep 2 soon. I drew a total of seven paintings based on my house gate:
1. A close-up of the grill of the gate, which was shaded with pencil via hatching studies
2. Three sets of close-up grills; one drawn using color pencil, another drawn using green paint and another drawn using charcoal
3. A view of the gate from the outside, with my hand holding the gate
4. Another view of the gate from the inside, where the grills are stuck with newspaper to study texture
5. A side view of the gate, drawn using crayon
6. A picture of my hand, drawn using pen
7. Artist's Reference painting which is copied onto Prep 1.
Ms Nadia then told me that the Artist Reference is what was lacking from the painting, and she said that I should choose an Artist Reference that matches the painting style that I drew. So, I went and took one of Pablo Picasso's paintings as my inspiration. In fact, since the painting styles came from more artists, I had to take another painting from another artist to draw on the paper. Leonardo Da Vinci was one of the artists I considered. Satisfied with my work, Ms Nadia told me to start planning for Prep 2 of the Paper 1 prep series.
Then, we went back for Science with Mr Lee. I then checked the Control Book. Unfortunately, Mr Raja forgot to sign again. I groaned. I had to chase after him later on.
Mr Lee then came into the class. I cheered his name, and he waved at me, carrying his large bag. He was giving us another set of worksheets. This time, it was on Chemistry. I then told him to sign the control book and he did. “Yes, I have to sign. I know,” he said, smiling at me. He huffed his way to the front of the room, signed the control book, and placed his things on the chair. Then, he went to log on to his computer. Afterwards, he handed out the worksheets on Chemistry. “I believe Ms Sangeetha had not covered some Chemistry topics with you, right? So I am going to cover both at the same time,” said Mr Lee. He then asked me and Sheng Jit to hand out the papers as everyone took their seats.
Then, Mr Lee taught us about acids and alkalis and some Chemistry enquiry. We listened attentively. Mr Lee is a great teacher. I am beginning to like his lesson. Mr Lee then interacted with Brandon Ooi, who kept on joking and Mr Lee also joked with him till Ryan Chok, Shane, Eric and Ze Khai all laughed.
We then had lunch and then everyone was in the lower canteen to have their lunch. Before I went for lunch, I then went to see Mr Raja to get him to sign the control book.
“Should I sign once or both times?” asked Mr Raja, as he went to look at the book. I told Mr Raja to sign both times as I was afraid that there may be a possibility if Mr Raja left the school early and couldn't attend his next Accounting lesson due to emergency purposes. Nevertheless, I told Mr Raja to sign both for the time being.
After buying lunch, I talked to San Ying and Sherwin about the Mercy Ship Presentation. I had to eat quickly. Then, once things were done, I talked to Caleb Chuang for a short while on the house meet, or I should say, the Bullseye National Convention. It was so cool. We had three things to do that day, and I made a checklist in my Student Organizer, namely the Mercy Ship Rehearsal, Mercy Ship Presentation and the Bullseye National Convention. Yes. I wrote that name in the Student Organizer.
Mr Thomas was waiting in the hall. He was accompanied by Ms Yong Wai Yee, the Homeroom teacher of 11O as well as the teacher who came to Mr Thomas’ class the previous year. I greeted them. Ms Yong was excited. “Wei Yiang, I heard that you are presenting today as Dr Gary Parker, right? All the best,” she said.
Mr Thomas told the five of us to go up on stage. Jearn Xiu was there early, along with Aaron Loke, to test the PA system and the electronic system of the school hall. Then, Mr Thomas told us to go up on stage. Jearn Xiu and Aaron Loke tested the microphones, and Sherwin came with a black suit. I grinned, giggled and smiled happily. I was so over-excited.
Me, Sherwin, Alexandria Goh, Vicky and Ye Sean were stationed at the side of the hall as a wooden lectern was prepared for the skit. The lectern contained Nobel International School's logo and it made the school look quite professional. I then put on my lab coat and a blue cap which I bought and Ye Sean and Alexandria Goh wore theirs as well.
“Come on!” cried Mr Thomas. “One, two, three!” he cried, clapping his hands.
Sherwin then begun to speak. Soon, a crowd of Year 10s and 11s were gathered to watch us present. Even Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew were there looking at us. All the Year 11s as you name it – Enisha, Grace, Jia Yee, Cassandra, Brandon Ooi, Ashlyne Yong, Rick Tan, Sara Yow, Sheng Jit – all of them saw the action. Initially, the Year 10 basketballers were playing basketball in the hall, but then, the whole school was watching us. We were on top of the world. My heart was beating nervously. Then, when I started speaking, the entire hall was looking at us. Even Ryan Chok's face had a shocking look. Then, Shane was smiling as well. The entire Year 11 had their eyes fixated on us.
When I started speaking, everyone screamed as loud as possible. Megan Lee was like, saying, “Caleb! Your best friend!” and everyone was looking at Caleb Chuang and then they turned to me. Then, it was Alexandria Goh's turn to speak, followed by Ye Sean and then Vicky.
Just as Vicky was winding up her speech, the music begun to play and everyone gathered in the hall for assembly. The crowd kept on screaming loudly as the prefects tried to get them to settle down. Then, Mr Thomas told Aaron Loke, who was telling everyone to settle down, to inform them not to disturb the presentation. When Aaron Loke said that we were doing a presentation, all the Year 11s cheered.
“Students, please settle down,” he said.
“There are no further announcements. Prefects, if your classes are ready, you may send them back. Year 11 students, please stay back for CT.”
Ms Yong Wai Yee then got on the announcement and then greeted the crowd.
“Good afternoon, Year 11 students. No response. Good afternoon, Year 11 students!” she cried. The crowd greeted Ms Yong. Then, she announced that a skit of students will be presenting about Africa Mercy. “So, without further ado, let’s welcome them and see what they have in store,” said Ms Yong.
At the backstage, Sherwin and Mr Thomas were interacting and telling us about our roles. “Make sure you speak with confidence and get the audience's attention,” said Mr Thomas. “You will do well,” he said, turning to me. Then, we went onto the stage.
Sherwin was then given the microphone and then he started to introduce about the history of the Africa Mercy. While he spoke, some people in the crowd cheered his name. “So, without further ado, I would like to introduce everyone to a great doctor, namely Dr. Gary Parker, the chief doctor of the ship, who has taken care of many patients in the ship, and he is played by Lau Wei Yiang.” Then, as he passed the microphone to me and the crowd chanted my name and cheered for me as I begun to speak. Ms Yong then took pictures of me and held her phone to capture a great view.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. How are you doing today? I hope you are doing fine! When we first started this organization in the mid 1980s, we only had around 200 patients. Today, we have over 100 doctors serving 2000 patients,” I begun.
While I spoke, the crowd was fixated on my presentation. I could see Caleb Chuang grinning happily at me. Shane had the widest smile. And Ryan Chok was giving his puzzled and crazy look. All in all, the whole year level looked at me. Once I was done, the whole crowd cheered and screamed the loudest. Ms Yong gave me a thumbs-up. Then, I then passed the microphone to Alexandria Goh for her part, then to Chong Vicky and finally to Ye Sean, who concluded. The microphone was then passed back to Sherwin who thanked everyone for listening to the speech, and we bowed to a loud round of applause. The whole hall screamed my name and cheered my name in particular.
Once this was done, we carried on with our usual Character Transformation things. Mr Neoh broke us into our groups and told us to come up with a group logo and slogan and present it to him. Ours didn't look so nice, but some people, like the Dank Memes Dank Dreams group, had a funny banner, drawn courtesy of Lyn Wen. Following the end of the Character Transformation session, Ms Yong and Mr Thomas met the five of us and gave us a standing oviation.
“All the five of you did well today. Well done, well done. Mr Thomas is very proud of you,” said Ms Yong. Mr Thomas then spoke to us. “Keep it up. You guys were the best. The other group were not cooperative, and I could not do it with them. Thanks for cooperating in the class,” said Mr Thomas.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, and I told Ms Janice to sign the control book before heading to Tutorial Room 3. When I arrived, Mr Gallagher broke us into our groups again, and Vicky told me to research the number of refugees in Malaysia. Mr Gallagher then continued to chide Ryan Chok and Shane for not doing their work in class.
As school ended, I then kept the control book and proceeded to the lower canteen to meet with the Bullseye members as we got ready for the house meet, also called by me as the “Bullseye National Convention”. Honestly speaking, I decided to make the name “Bullseye National Convention” as I was inspired by the name “Republican National Convention” for a similar meeting in the United States which Donald Trump spoke on the eve of the 2016 election. I mean, come on, it looks cool. Even political parties in Malaysia like to use the term ‘National Convention’; not to mention the Democratic Party also used the term ‘Democratic National Convention’. House meets are too much a layman term, and we want Bullseye members to be at their best.
I then walked to Areeya Amali and Yap Dawn, and proposed the Bullseye National Convention name to them. In fact, I asked every single person in Year 8, 9, 10 and 11 for proposal to have the house meet referred to as the Bullseye National Convention. All of them agreed, and I told Caleb Chuang I will address that as that.
Some people asked why was it necessary to call the house meet as the Bullseye National Convention, especially Geok Minh, Ivyna and Prudence Wong. “We must say the house meet as the Bullseye National Convention because it is better and it gives the impression that it is an important meet,” I said.
“Yes! Yes! That's a great idea, Wei Yiang,” said Ivyna. Her eyes lit up like mad. Caleb Chuang then agreed to the plan. Geok Minh and Prudence Wong's eyes lit up too. They praised me for such a catchy name. While waiting, I spoke to Ivyna, Geok Minh, Caleb Chuang, Prudence Wong, Loo Zane and Kelsey about the latest plans. “We must win the Sports Day and overtake Touchdown,” I said. Ivyna then asked me to tell the plans to the other year levels. I spoke to them as they got inspired by the Bullseye initiatives I had created. In fact, my mind was thinking of how to overtake Touchdown. After all, we were 10 points behind our arch-enemies.
After everyone sat down at the lower canteen, Mr Michael, a new Year 8 and 9 Geography teacher, called for attention. Mr Michael was the then house master of Bullseye, which is a role for teachers to advise the house. Mr Michael stood on a flight of stairs which connected the lower canteen to the school hall, flanked by Sean Mark and Yan Ying, who was standing next to him as the house captain and assistant captain. He then called for attention as Sean Mark begun to speak.
Sean then introduced the committee members one by one; Caleb Chuang and Heng Zi Quan (marchpast), Ivyna and Pei Chi (dance), Eu Lynn and Benjamin Tenji (banner), Jordan Tay and Dylan S. Gill (telematch), Jason Leing (athletics), Janelle Arnelia (secretary) and Jen Thong (treasurer). He said that those interested in participating in the events for Sports Day can look for the committee members to register them. Caleb then told me he was putting my name in the marchpast, presumably to be the second assistant march captain after Zi Quan, and also to assist them in the marchpast. Jason Leing and Eu Lynn then called me to devise the cheer and we stood in the school hall to discuss. Then, Sean Mark came and confirmed to us the cheer, which Eu Lynn wrote down, and thus Sean told everyone the cheer:
Bullseye is back, the red falcons attack
We’re soaring high and taking flight
We’ll reign again with pride!
Go Bullseye!
After going home following the house meet (aka National Convention), I then started training for Founder’s Run. Plan B had begun. The plan was to run the full 5km distance in training. Just like in Nobel's athletics training and Mr Victor's method, he would recommend doing the full distance, and I wanted to do that with the 5km race.
While training for the race, two boys came up to me and accused me of stealing their money. I had never seen them before. They beat me up and I tried to defend myself. Fortunately, it happened close to the security post. The security guards came to stop the meelee, and a gentleman, Mr Gipson, said that if the fighting continued, he would call the police.
We went back to the security post and Mr Gipson asked both sides to explain the story. While I explained my side, the two boys pretended not to know me. Then, I requested for aloe vera to cure my injuries and relief them, and Mr Gipson told the two boys to get them for me. He asked me how everyone to have cool heads and prevail. Because I was dragged on the floor as a result of the meelee, I had serious scratches on my leg. I continued my practices after things were okay, and the two guys made up with me.
I was worried as the Founder's Run would happen very soon. Sadly, my shirt was also bloodied thanks to the scratches. It appeared that the plan would be derailed. However, Mr Gipson told me to not think about the injuries. “Think positively and you will recover quickly. If you want to win the run, forget it and move ahead,” he said. And he told me to focus on the race instead. The two boys shook hands with me and Mr Gipson told us that the case is closed. We then dispersed and I ran another 5km on the road, barefooted.
The following day, I had to wear slippers and asked Mr Kevin Wai for a permission slip to be exempted from the school rules during Reading Time. He told me to write a letter to Ms Lim to get an exemption card to wear slippers, since no one is allowed to wear slippers to school as part of the school's dress code. I was afraid that this issue would expose a can of worms over the Founder's Run project. Even some people asked on my injuries. I tried to play things down. Then, Mr Kevin told everyone to settle down and then he asked everyone to read a book. When that was done, Mr Kevin left and then Mr Lee entered the class. I then presented him with the control book again.
“What happened to your leg?” asked Mr Lee. I did not know how to explain it to him. I was worried about the Founder's Run. Time was ticking. He then continued with his lesson and explained all the Chemistry points to us. Then, it was Economics, and then Ms Sharon told us to present the mindmap that we had drawn the previous day. I then presented mine and Ms Sharon then got everyone to present theirs. Then, she continued to talk about the aims of the government.
Soon, it was break time, and many people were puzzled of my leg condition. I immediately went to meet Ms Lim and then presented her a handwritten letter asking for an exemption card. Then, I just sat by myself, dodging my friends’ questions. If I had exposed the fact that the main aim was to train for the Founder's Run and possibly win it, more people would likely do the same.
Afterwards, we then had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told us to continue our discussion. He said that we should give him the project proposal at the earnest after Chinese New Year. I tried to soothe my leg under the cool air conditioning. Then, it was Maths, and then Ms Bee Yan unveiled the coursework that we need to do for the subject. We had to form a group of three and create a board game based on any topic in Maths. I was placed in the same group as Berlinda and Rosemund to do the board game. We came up with a board game design based on “Snakes and Ladders” with addition and subtraction using x and y.
Before the Maths lesson started, Ms Bee Yan asked about my leg condition and I told her that it happened during my training for Founder's Run. Then, she told me to be careful while training. I also got her to sign the control book, as well as that of Ms Janice too. Ms Bee Yan then continued to teach us about matrix transformations and how to use the numbers as a guide to move the shapes on the grid. Mr Chan walked around the class, guiding us. I then spoke to Mr Chan about my leg condition too. He was puzzled at the injury.
Then, it was History, and Ms Visa asked if my leg was okay. Brandon asked about my leg condition too. The whole class was fixated on my leg as Ms Visa talked about the division of Germany and told us to do source questions. In fact, one of the sources involved an iron wall dividing the map of Europe, to mimic the ‘Iron Curtain’ remark made by Winston Churchill. Then, we had Art, and I continued painting my Prep 1. I only told Ms Nadia the real situation of my feet in slippers, and she warned me not to simply approach strangers.
The next day, Wednesday, 18th January, I was given an exemption card by Ms Lim, who approached me with the card. The card had an expiration date of 20th January 2017. The date was a positive motivator for me, because at least I can count down to the inauguration of Trump, which I talked happily about with San Ying and Sophie but they were not pleased with it.
During the morning assembly, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah were calling for calling for people to be part of Living Room Unplugged where they can perform their talents on a small audience. Mr Steve had also came on air to get people to sign up as early as possible as to not miss out on tickets.
20th January 2017 was also the date of “Living Room Unplugged”, which is a mini talent show designed on a living room setting. Mr Steve and Ms Sarah gave everyone the entire week to buy tickets for Living Room Unplugged. A couple of us from Year 11 bought tickets to view Living Room Unplugged on the afternoon of 20th January in the new CT hall on the west wing of the school building. I didn't attend Living Room Unplugged as I was not free that Friday afternoon.
The morning assembly then continued with a Spelling Bee competition involving some people from Year 7, 8 and 9, as well as a fill-in-the blank contest, organized by the KS3 English teachers.
The morning's lesson then begun with Mr Thomas addressing our class. He then praised the effort that we had done in the Mercy Ship Project and only talked about it for a short while before we begun the class, saying that we should have presented it during the morning assembly. Then, he opened the Edmodo page and showed us the latest information.
“So, we shall continue with our lesson,” said Mr Thomas. He opened the text on the Smartboard and told us to read. We were learning how to do a descriptive essay on word effects that morning. Seriousness befell the room as the comedy-like atmosphere of the Mercy Ship Project soon gave way to Mr Thomas’ no-nonsense policy. Then we had Economics, and Ms Sharon gave us a worksheet and we talked about fiscal policy and monetary policy initiatives by the government. We had to draw another mindmap on fiscal and monetary policy. A government's fiscal policy involves imposing taxes while another involves adjusting interest rates. Oops. Ms Joyce forgot to sign the control book and I had to catch after her again. As Ms Joyce teaches Year 8, 9, 10 and 11 students the English Second Language, I decided I would meet her the next day. Then, we had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra explained to us about the importance of academic qualifications in determining job specification.
Meanwhile, during the break time, a booth had been set up to promote the Living Room Unplugged event. A large crowd had gathered at the booth to buy tickets. I just ignored it and continued talking to San Ying about the approaching Trump Inauguration.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, and I made sure Ms Janice signed the control book before I went for Mr Gallagher's lesson. We had to continue with our Group Project. I presented Vicky with the information on refugee statistics in Malaysia that she asked me to show to her. Mr Gallagher then used a Powerpoint presentation to brief us on the Group Project and how to write a project proposal and project plan. He also showed us a sample of how a group project from a previous batch of students looked like. Vicky then said that the Powerpoint was plagiarized, and Mr Gallagher traded barbs with Vicky. Afterwards, it was Maths, and I made sure Ms Bee Yan also signed the control book. In fact, I told Ms Bee Yan to inform Ms Janice on this as Ms Bee Yan was also assisting the Additional Mathematics class with Ms Janice. Then, Mr Chan came in and I showed him my Maths work, as he pointed out the mistakes I made.
After lunch, I then went for my Art lesson and then copied the artist references onto my Prep 1. I slowly begun to touch up the paintings on my Prep 1. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa did some source questions with us. So far, my control book duty was going fine. The situation was smooth and well. During Bible Knowledge, I met Ms Renee in the class. She then greeted me and she said that she had heard from the teachers that I have completed the control book records. “Keep it up!” she cried. And we did loads of essay-writing in Bible Knowledge.
It was finally Thursday, 19th January 2017. The eve of the Trump Inauguration.
During our Reading Time, Mr Kevin Wai invited me and Sheng Jit to continue to lead the class on the Fundraising Project and what food to sell. The class discussed all types of food, including fried chicken, kebab, red velvet cake, froyo and roti canai. We then had Economics, and Ms Sharon continued to talk to us about the fiscal and monetary policies of the government.
Later on, Ms Cynthia came into the class, approached me and signed the control book. When Ms Cynthia asked about the portrait of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, I told her that my mum would print the Agong's portrait and hand it to me. She had at the time returned from Singapore and would pass me the portrait after printing it from the office. “How about the wife?” asked Ms Cynthia. “I have Googled it and it said that this Agong has no wife,” I said, referring to Sultan Muhammad V. He had a divorce with his wife prior to that.
Then, during break time, I told San Ying about the news of the preparation of the inauguration process of the next US president. “How do you feel about the inauguration?” I asked her. San Ying groaned.
After break time, we then went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us a worksheet to do in class. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa then explained about the Iron Curtain and the influence of West Germany versus East Germany and the construction of the Berlin Wall to separate West Berlin from East Berlin, which was divided as well, just like the whole of Germany. I felt engrossed in the subject as Ms Visa told us to take notes.
The lunchtime discussion about the inauguration was nothing much spectacular as well. We continued to talk about the upcoming inauguration as we were fixated on it. In my mind, I was happily counting down to the Trump Inauguration. San Ying said it was a nightmare for a lot of people if Trump was elected as president. What started off as a localized discussion in English and Global Perspectives had become a debate. Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan did some matrix transformation exercises in class. And when Ms Joyce came in later on for English, I passed her the control book to sign the previous and current days to ensure the records were up to date.
At 11B's classroom, everyone was entertaining themselves as we waited for Mr Thomas’ arrival. Then, I could make out a figure of him walking down the corridor. Mr Thomas was walking in his confident tone. He stride well and walked seriously before reaching the class. Then, he plopped his things down onto the chair, logged into his Edmodo account, and called for the class’ attention.
“Hey, hey, hello!” he cried. “Please take out your notebooks. Be responsible for your own learning,” he said.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
Mr Thomas was gearing up for the lesson. He clicked on the Edmodo page to open it and then showed us the latest Edmodo post and text.
“Who has seen this?” asked Mr Thomas. I raised my hand.
“Only one? Haihh!!! It shows that all of you do not take responsibility for your own learning,” boomed Mr Thomas.
“You see, I have posted these on Edmodo. The other class also have not seen it. Worse still, in this class, only one person have seen it. You should check the Edmodo page, read it and come to class, prepared for the lesson. That will make my life and your life easier, because I have to scroll through the whole thing just for you to read it. If you do not read the text before coming to the class, I will not discuss it until you have read it,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then opened the text, scrolled the entire text and waited for everyone to read it. Then, he told us to promise him that we will be responsible for our learning. “Can you do it? Can you be responsible enough to read the text before coming to the class?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Then, Mr Thomas begun the lesson and told us to do a word effect exercise based on the text in our exercise books.
After returning home from school, I begun my practices for the Founder's Run, running a distance of around 5km in my neighborhood. The security guards had measured the distance that approximates to 5km. They told me to run up and down the hill thrice. And so I did. I ran slowly in the first set, sped up on the second, and sprinted on the third.
I was sneakily preparing for an important spectacle. As you see, Nobel has held the Founder’s Run in 2016, and I was planning to see how to win the 2017 Founder's Run, since I had came up short of the top rankings. As I had gotten third place for the 2012 Family Marathon Day and second place for the 2013 National Day Run, I was banking on my luck to get first place. And for me to do it, I told myself to simulate the geographical conditions via a practice. The thing was, I did not know where to start.
As a result, I had to ask some people whom I know to give me the basics of running a marathon, let alone a 5km run, such as Mr Nehru, my maths tuition teacher, and the security guards who helped me up from my injuries. I had to run the 5km in my neighborhood and time myself, aside from Googling the best time for a 5km run. Every day since 16th January 2017, when I came home after school, I would start training for the run every evening. I only had more afternoon time on Tuesdays and Fridays, as I had Monitor’s Council meeting on Monday, Bible Knowledge class on Wednesday and Editorial Board CCA on Thursday.
The details of my training were kept secret, as Mr Narish, who is coordinating Sports Day, had announced the theme of Sports Day (Soaring Together) and the date of Founder’s Run 2017, which is 8th February 2017 during the assembly session on 13th January 2017. I knew that very little time was left as the practice session runs through the Chinese New Year festival. I had to sacrifice the Chinese New Year celebration to have time to train. There was no time in doing so. I spent two hours to do the 5km practices.
The next day, I came to school in my black school shoes. Finally, my injuries had subsided. It was 20th January 2017, the day of the Trump Inauguration. I don't have to wear slippers anymore.
The day started with an announcement by Mr Steve and Ms Sarah on Living Room Unplugged. A total of 200 students had registered for Living Room Unplugged. Mr Steve said that everyone who had registered should line up outside the CT Hall located at the western section of the building near the dismissal area at 2:00pm. He then explained the rules and regulations of Living Room Unplugged and that latecomers would be denied entry. Then, there was a prize giving ceremony for the winners of the English Week. The winners received a hamper pack in conjunction with the Chinese New Year celebrations. It hit me that this would be my last year celebrating Chinese New Year in Nobel.
Vicky and Alexandria Goh went to receive a hamper from Ms Bee Yong as we were honored with the Mercy Ship Presentation during our Character Transformation time. The names of all the Mercy Ship presenters were beamed on the screen, and the whole hall gave us a round of applause.
Then, I returned to class with the Yang di Pertuan Agong's colored portrait and then asked Sheng Jit what to do with it. He told me to ask Ms Cynthia for advice. However, we were having PE and we had to go down to the school hall.
During PE, Caleb Chuang and I played a game of futsal with Sean Mark and Joshua Chew, and Mr Victor joined in, striking the ball as well. The whole Year 11 batch cheered for us again. After we were cheered for, Mr Victor then did some push up and stretching exercises with us. I tried to comprehend the exercises as I plan to use them in my Founder's Run training, which was unbeknownst to many.
Joshua then asked me about my injuries and why was I running past Yi Zhen's house. When he found out that I was training for the 5km category for the Founder's Run, he said that I should beat Sean Mark in the Founder's Run.
“Why not try to beat Sean Mark,” he said, giggling at me. I laughed. “I'll try,” I told him. I did not want to let him discover my plans early. If anyone knew my secret, I would be doomed.
“Why did you go there?” asked Jason Leing. He was curious on what would happen.
After our PE lesson, I showed the colored portrait to Ms Cynthia, who brought some masking tape to me and asked me to paste the Yang di Pertuan Agong's portrait in front of the classroom. She followed me to the class to assist me. I stuck the portrait on a wall next to Enisha's desk as the area had no stickers. Enisha wasn't pleased with seeing the portrait daily. Ms Cynthia said that the Agong's portrait was to be put as high up as possible to honor him as the King. In fact, Brandon jokingly suggested that it be hung close to the floor when deciding on the locations of the portrait, but Ms Cynthia had told him before that it was very disrespectful to do that.
Then, we had break, and I talked to San Ying about the presidential inauguration process, since 20th January 2017 was the inauguration of President Donald J. Trump. No one was interested to know the individual being inaugurated as President, but the process of the presidential inauguration.
The President of the United States is normally sworn in on 20th January as stipulated in the United States Constitution for a term lasting for a period of four years. The Chief Justice of the United States, who is the head judge of the US Supreme Court, swears in the president using the presidential oath:
“I, _________, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. So, help me God.”
There would be a period of the first 100 days which would be used to gauge the performance of the US President. San Ying said that in her opinion, the first 100 days of President Donald Trump would be horrible. I laughed wholeheartedly.
“This is the worst day of our lives! What are you talking!” she cried.
We then had Malay with Cikgu Niely, and everyone was looking at the Yang di Pertuan Agong's portrait, which was installed in the room. Cikgu Niely then told us that following our Chinese New Year holidays, she will discuss the Malay Oral and will do a practice run with us in order to prepare us for the Malay Orals, which will be held from 13th March to 17th March. Our Malay IGCSE Trials will be held on 15th and 16th March 2017. Then, following Malay, we went to the Science Lab for our very first lab session with Mr Lee.
When we arrived at the Science Lab, Mr Lee was waiting for us, and he was planning to do a filtration exercise with us. I gave him the control book and he signed it. He was dressed smartly in a lab coat, donned lab goggles, which made him look quite cool, and was liaising with Ms Mazlina, the lab assistant. Then, he told us to settle down in the lab. I sat with Cassandra, Grace, Jia Yee, Lyn Wen and Kelsey on our table.
Mr Lee gave each of us some salt and some elements which were mixed and told us to prepare salts via neutralization. using the bunsen burner, heating and cooling the whole process. He then gave them to us and we switched on the bunsen burner to segregate salts. Mr Lee walked around and checked on us to ensure that we separated the mixtures properly. Then, it was English, and Ms Joyce then came into the class. I gave her the control book and quickly rushed to Mr Thomas’ class so that Ms Joyce can begin the lesson. I saw Mr Kevin Wai coming out of 11O, and Mr Kevin reminded me of the following Monday's Monitor's Council Meeting, which will start early. The CCA was beginning the coming week.
Mr Thomas then sat on his chair, waiting for us to enter the class. The class kept on talking as he sat down.
“May I begin?” he asked everyone.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. “Come, please take one,” said Mr Thomas. He handed out a leaflet which contained a text of Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook. Mr Thomas then told us to do a mindmap in order to pick out the main points from the text.
Mr Thomas then told us to read and highlight the important points. He then talked about how cool Mark Zuckerberg was and how Facebook was founded. Then, he also talked about how Google was founded as well. The class went well as he gave us the insights of how Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook and he tied it back to the previous year's lesson on whether email is better then physical mail.
After returning home from school, I did three laps of 5km runs at my neighborhood. The two security guards at the security post, Encik Hafiz and Encik Hari, guided me as I ran and told me the tips to run. They told me to use the bad incident on 16th January as a motivation to move forward with the run and not look back. They also motivated me as a message to not give up. They were accompanied by Mr Gipson, who gave me a piece of advice before my run begun. He told me to focus while running and look ahead. During the weekend, Mr Nehru told me during my Maths lessons on how I should move forward in my run. He told me that I could be the Founder's Run champion if I trained well. Fresh with Encik Hafiz, Encik Hari, their third security guard friend Encik Haziq and with the motivation of Mr Nehru himself.
I tried to motivate myself with figures like Donald Trump and Lee Chong Wei. If Donald Trump can win the US election, and Lee Chong Wei can make it to the Olympic finals, surely I can win over Sean Mark as well as the overall Founder's Run championship.
I thought of what Joshua Chew told me. “Beat Sean Mark in Founder's Run” were the words he said. I was determined to succeed. Sean Mark had the luxury of great advice from Mr Victor. While Mr Victor had half-technically given up on me, I wanted to prove that someone without experience would be able to beat an experienced sportsman like Sean Mark. I believe I can do it. I just needed to try and give my every inch of energy. It was now or never.
I believe I can win the Founder's Run. And a Founder's Run victory would save Bullseye from great drought and it would be a memorable moment for me.
It was the final week of January, and the week before the Chinese New Year holidays.
That morning, on 23rd January 2017, the school had been decked in Chinese New Year decorations. There was a large lantern located in the driveway of the school and there was a sea of red seen at the school's entrance. Firecrackers and lanterns greeted one's entry into the school compound. I stood and waited for Caleb Chuang while greeting the teachers for Chinese New Year.
The Elementary School was having a Chinese New Year celebration that morning, and all the little kids were decked in red attire. Auntie Clarine wore a nice cheongsam and I greeted her on that. Even Puan Halimah was dressed in pink, and when Caleb Chuang arrived, he, Mr Chuang and I talked to Auntie Clarine on the way in.
Then, some songs were played to celebrate the Chinese New Year celebration. Among the songs played were ‘Da Tuan Yuan', ‘Wan Shi Ru Yi’ and a whole bunch collection of Astro Broadcasting Television Chinese New Year songs. Caleb Chuang and I danced to the beat of the Lunar New Year as we entered the school hall. We placed our bags in the hall, and then we went to greet and say hi to all the little kids. “Gong Xi Fa Cai! Wan Shi Ru Yi!” we cried. All the little kids cheered happily. Caleb Chuang and I greeted Ms Ingel as well. Then, some of the kids were dancing and we danced too. Caleb Chuang was mainly saying, “Gong Xi! Gong Xi!” to the little kids, who were so excited. Then, we went into the hall to talk to Kaleigh Ann.
Soon, the assembly music in the school hall begun to play, and we returned quickly to gather for assembly. Then, we greeted all our teachers and sang the Negaraku. We were then seated and Mr Steve showed a video on what transpired during the Living Room Unplugged on 20th January. Ms Lim then came on stage and asked if anyone was talking, and that whoever talked would be given the microphone to speak to the assembly. Although I was on my best behavior, I was thinking of saying a Happy Chinese New Year greeting from me and Caleb Chuang.
Anyhow, then Mr Narish came on stage for a briefing on the Founder's Run. He told us that we will be given our t-shirts after returning back to school from the Chinese New Year holidays. Then, he also gave us tips on how to run the run. Ms Sylvia, who accompanied him, also told us to hydrate well before the run, warm up and not come in an empty stomach. She told us to not to forget to register for the run.
We then went for our Business Studies lesson with Ms Chithra as she continued the topic on Recruitment, Selection and Training. She was soon mobbed by a lot of people in the class saying, “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” Wei Zhong had a hard time concentrating behind with all of the remarks given to Ms Chithra.
Then, we had Economics, and Ms Sharon told us to do some essay questions. She told us that having some essay practices was good as it would allow us to train ourselves to answer the exam questions in the Assessment 1, which will be based on that.
Then, during break time, I went to find Mr Raja, who forgot to sign the control book again. When I approached him in the staffroom, all the Commerce teachers were there; Ms Chithra, Ms Sharon, Ms Vishalini; who was the new Economics teacher, and also Ms Levina too. Ms Levina was surprised that I was made an assistant monitor too. “Never have I seen a monitor ask for signatures,” she said, indicating a treasure hunt. In fact, Ms Levina also did some treasure hunt games for her Global Perspectives lesson with Year 7 students.
All the teachers called Mr Raja. He got up from his seat. “Oh yes, I forgot to sign, Wei Yiang. Sorry, sorry,” he said. Then, I went for break time and talked to San Ying about the Chinese New Year celebrations instead. We all sat down and have a good breakfast together; Yi Zhen, Sophie, Faythe, Kit Lee, Krisha and everyone else. I talked about how good it was to have to spend time with everyone as if we were eating a Chinese New Year meal.
“You should spend some time with Caleb. See? He's alone,” said San Ying, pointing to Caleb Chuang. He was eating alone.
“I spent time with Caleb Chuang this morning with the Elementary students for their Chinese New Year celebration. Now, he is busy, you see,” I replied. Caleb Chuang had two Biology textbooks plus a set of past year exam questions on his canteen table.
Then, when Caleb Chuang was done with his meal, I walked around with him and then waved to some of the Elementary School students as they waved at us. The Elementary kids screamed loudly as we passed by; especially the Year 1 and 2 students. Their class was on the ground level.
After meeting the students, I then went to the school hall while Caleb Chuang went for prefect duty. Then, I looked at Christopher Chew and Sheng Jit do a parkour move.
When we got back to class, I informed Mr Raja to sign the control book again before I went for Art. Ms Nadia then told me that I can begin my Prep 2, but more views of the gate were needed. “Don't expect that you are going to use your five pictures for the four preps. You must take more pictures, okay?” she asked. Ms Nadia suggested for me to take horizontal views of the gate's bars. I then started tracing one of the images for Prep 2 in different form, and Ms Nadia also asked me to bring newspaper so that I can cover the hand with texture. While doing the prep, Sara Yow and Eu Lynn discussed about me talking about Trump and the recently concluded presidential inauguration.
“Wei Yiang, are you happy that Trump won?” asked Eu Lynn.
“Yeah, I do,” I replied to Eu Lynn. Then, Eu Lynn told me that most of the people, in fact, everyone in the whole year level and most likely the whole school do not like Donald Trump to be president. She asked me to think about a hypothetical situation if my family was blocked at the US border because of Trump's immigration bans, which he had signed immediately upon taking office. I just shrugged it off and said that we would have proper documentation beforehand to enter the United States.
“But what if you are a family who could not afford proper documents and are migrating to the US because your family back home lived a horrible life? Do you like it if Trump blocked you?” she asked.
Then, we returned to the class for Combined Science, where Mr Lee discussed the previous week's mixture separation experiment in the class with us. He then handed us some notes as he continued talking about the separation of mixtures and the preparation of a neutralization experiment.
We then had lunch, and I brought the control book down for our next Character Transformation session. During our Character Transformation session, Mr Neoh then told us to present about our goal setting for our IGCSE exams and what to expect. He also said that each group will have group points that we have to earn during the session. On another note, before our Character Transformation session, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong introduced the Nobel school jackets which we could purchase from the school's uniform shop. It was compulsory for everyone from Year 7 to 10 to purchase it, but it was optional for Year 11 students as we were about to leave Nobel at the end of 2017. Ms Bee Yong talked about how nice the jackets were. Prior to that year, there were no Nobel school jackets. The jackets consisted of the school logo, gold buttons as well as two stripes at the collar, sleeve and the bottom of the jacket.
Then, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson, where I spent time reading my Edmodo feed while Vicky and Ellie did the project proposal draft. Then, Vicky told me to do a writeup on refugee statistics, which I did. She gave me two days to finish it. The stakes were high as Chinese New Year was approaching. I also took some time to finish my Economics homework during break and lunch. I don't want homework clogging up the school holidays.
Finally, school came to a close. I then went up to 11N, collected the control book and Smartboard stationery, and went to the pigeon hole to keep them. Ms Janice had fortunately signed it and then I kept it. Then, I quickly dashed to 10N, the venue of the Monitor's Council meeting. It was my very first time attending a Monitor's Council meeting as well as a leadership board meeting in Nobel.
Being elected to leadership position in Nobel is no joke. I feel very confident of myself but also having a sense of responsibility which I upheld throughout my time as assistant monitor. I thought about the meeting as my heart thumped on my way to 10N. It was the same venue as my 10N class last year.
I got to know the other monitors from other classes. I saw Rick Tan being assistant monitor for 11O. was surprised to hear I got elected as assistant monitor. Rick Tan and I were vying for the assistant monitor’s post in Year 9, so indirectly it was a climax for the two of us. The monitors and assistant monitors for the other classes in Year 11 were Ashlyne Yong and Rick Tan for 11O, Pranavee and Ye Sean (11B), Berlinda Tan and Aristotle Koh (11E) and lastly, Jearn Xiu and Han Ming (11L). Jearn Xiu’s sister, Lee Sze Xian, was also a monitor, and Jearn Xiu was surprised, but he can’t attend the meetings as he has Track and Field CCA with Mr Victor on Mondays. Other monitors from other year levels include Ooi Zher Xian, Joshua Lim, Ethan Chan, Erica Er, Ashwin Jeyabalan and Ashley Cheah.
The Monitor’s Council was led by Ms Cynthia and Ms Sharon, who is one of my Economics teachers for 2017. Ms Cynthia was also surprised to see me in the monitor’s council; in fact, many of my teachers were surprised. Many of the younger monitors as well as frequent timers were surprised to see me in the Monitor's Council as well. In fact, no one expected this to happen.
We then got to introduce ourselves as monitor and assistant monitor to start off the meeting. So when it was time for me to introduce myself, I said that I became assistant monitor for the purpose of improving the organization of the class control book, and that I also want to make a contribution to the Monitor’s Council and I would do my best in my role. The entire room applauded me, especially Pranavee and Berlinda, who had known me.
Our first agenda for the Monitor’s Council meeting was to elect the president, vice president, secretary and treasurer, to form the committee members. I also nominated myself to be part of the committee members being elected for president and vice president, and I can see my leadership ranks rise. Eventually, Ashlyne and Rick were elected as president and vice president, while Pranavee was the secretary and Berlinda the treasurer.
Ms Cynthia then highlighted to us the role of class and assistant monitor, and then gave us the expectations. She said that many monitors had not did their role in the past and expect us to do better than the previous years.
“Being a monitor is equal to having the same responsibilities as a prefect, except that you do not have a uniform,” she said. She also asked us to lead by example and attend the Monitor’s Council meetings every Monday. In fact, for Year 11, monitors from all classes except 11L were represented, with their other partner being absent. I feel happy representing my class, which did not have proper representation in the past in Year 10 and lagged behind the others. So, I felt like making a change not just for myself, but for my class, the school and the society at large. The experience was worthwhile and it gave a chance for me and my class to shine.
The new committee members were invited to give suggestions and to plan out the organization of the Monitor's Council for the year. Ms Cynthia then handed the time to Ashlyne to outline the agenda for the Monitor's Council. We outlined certain areas which we could improve or do, and many of the younger monitors had plans to organize a leadership competition. Berlinda and Pranavee suggested doing a charity fundraiser during the upcoming Founder's Run, and all the monitors in the room supported it. Some even joked that they will not run and instead man the booths, but Ms Cynthia said that only two people were needed. Aside from that, Ms Cynthia had told all the monitors to come up with initiatives on how to improve the affairs of the Monitor's Council and the conduct of monitors in the next Monitor's Council meeting after Chinese New Year. Ashlyne told us that we needed to pay RM 5 for our club funds so that the Monitor's Council can organize the fundraising event during Founder's Run.
Upon ending the Monitor's Council meeting, I then had a short chat with Ms Sharon about the Economics work and then handed her my homework, which I had finished early before heading home. I feel excited and jovial after my first Monitor's Council meeting. Upon returning home, I did three sets of 5km distance in my neighborhood. Encik Hari told me another new exercise move which involved stretching. He gave me advice, telling me that I should attempt sprinting the entire 5km course for body strengthening. As I passed Yi Zhen's house, she waved at me as she returned home from her Prefectorial Board meeting occurring that same day.
The next day, during Reading Time, Mr Kevin Wai then gave me a new Control Book as the old one was about to have its pages used up. The old one only had around 20 pages, but the new one had a total of 100 pages in the book. I then scribbled down the information for the day's lessons before we started our class.
Mr Kevin Wai then checked the old book, which had a white page, and flipped through it. He had a smile on his face when he saw the completed pages. The Reading Time was soon over, and Mr Kevin Wai left for his class.
Mr Lee then came into the class and then Brandon Ooi gave Mr Lee a high five. Mr Lee then placed his things down, logged on to the computer, and then voluntarily walked up to me and asked for the control book, to which I presented to him and signed it. It showed that my efforts are beginning to bear fruit. Then, Mr Lee talked about the previous experiment and he said that we will have a second experiment in the lab after Chinese New Year. He then continued his lesson on titration. Afterwards, Ms Sharon came into the class and we did some essay questions in the class. We also discussed the previous day's homework, which she gave back to me after marking it. Ms Sharon praised my management of the control book.
Then, it was break time, and then Rick Tan and I had a chat on the previous day's Monitor's Council meeting. Caleb Chuang was busy at his table doing his homework, so I spent time with Rick, who took the time to explain to Jordan on all the activities we did in the Monitor's Council meeting. Then, he turned to Jearn Xiu.
“Jearn Xiu, are you aware that Wei Yiang is a monitor?” asked Rick.
“Ya, I saw him yesterday,” he replied.
Rick then asked how did Jearn Xiu know about me being the assistant monitor even though Jearn Xiu was away for the Track and Field CCA with Mr Victor. Jearn Xiu then told Rick that he was getting some things from his sister, Lee Sze Xian, who was also a monitor for one of the Year 7 classes. In fact, when Jearn Xiu came into the class the previous day, 23rd January, he looked in shock as his sister was also elected, and let out a loud ‘Huh?’
Soon, we had Global Perspectives, and Ms Janice came into 11N for Additional Mathematics. I reminded her to sign as I left for the Global Perspectives lesson. There, upon reaching Tutorial Room 3, I typed out my information on refugees. Vicky then gave Glen some research work to do and he was to research information and send information to me to be included in the essay, which I will have to send to Vicky via email.
Afterwards, we returned for Mathematics, where Ms Bee Yan gave us a lesson on enlargement exercises. Nickolas Nashpal then talked to me about what Ms Bee Yan had told me regarding my transfer to Maths Extended from Maths Core, and he told me that Mr Nehru had told him the exact same thing. Nickolas was originally placed in Maths Core, and like me, he was also instructed by Mr Nehru to appeal for a transfer, and Ms Bee Yan consequently told him the same thing she told me; that the school's decision is final and to be respected but they transferred us pending an appeal. Mr Chan approached us as we were talking. We showed him our completed work and told him about what Mr Nehru, our Maths tuition teacher, told us.
“You were originally in Core, and your tuition teacher asked you to transfer to Extended?” he asked. We both nodded our heads, and Mr Chan said that normally, everyone had to follow the school's decision. “In fact, only the two of you did otherwise,” said Mr Chan, as he smiled and laughed. He continued laughing as I told him that Mr Nehru would compare our marks in a mini game he played on how to do the past year papers for IGCSE.
“In fact, you should be having past year papers for IGCSE,” said Mr Chan. He told us that on rare occasions, the past year questions would appear in the paper.
We then had lunch, and me and Nickolas continued talking about what Mr Nehru advised us during Maths as we headed for the canteen. Then, I had lunch with San Ying again, talking about what we were planning on doing for Chinese New Year.
During History, Ms Visa gave us a lesson on how the Berlin Wall was built. In fact, overnight, soldiers blockaded the border of West and East Berlin and built a wall around West Berlin. Originally, barbed wire was temporarily used to secure the site of the Berlin Wall before concrete was used to build the barrier. Some windows facing West Berlin were bricked in an attempt to prevent people from looking at West Berlin. The Soviets and East Germany's government feared that people will look at West Berlin and cross over to it. Over the years, a large area was cleared which result in the Berlin Wall becoming two walls, separated by what is called a ‘death strip’ containing spikes, tank traps, and 24-hour security guards and soldiers who were ordered to shoot any trespasser crossing the death strip.
Then, we had Art, and I presented three more pictures on the gate to Ms Nadia, who told me to draw one of those pictures. She told me to also present a few pictures involving hands holding onto the gate in different forms.
After the Art lesson was over, I went home and continued my practices for Founder's Run. I ran another four laps of 5km individually and timed myself. Encik Hafiz then told me more advice for the run as the two boys who beat me arrived for their basketball match. Encik Hafiz then told them that I was there to train for the race. The two of them greeted me as they went off for their matches. They wished me all the best for Founder's Run. The elder of the two was the same age as me.
While running, I could feel my leg ache. I thought of what Kelvin Sin had said in a yearbook interview, that the pain is normally a sign of progress. I just kept running, and Yi Zhen cheered me on. Until then, Yi Zhen is the only one who knew personally about my Founder's Run training.
It was Wednesday, 25th January 2017.
Mr Narish arrived during the morning assembly and showed us the number of people who had registered for Founder's Run on the screen. Each person who registered contributes two points to the house for registering. Homerun had the most number of registrants, at 120, followed by Touchdown at 90, Slamdunk at 85 and Bullseye at 40.
“Come on!” I cried. “Come on, Bullseye! Quickly register! Come on Bullseye! Let's go!”
We then returned to class and Mr Thomas showed us the next text, titled ‘The Amish Way of Life’, which I had seen on Edmodo. He was very upset upon learning that the whole class did not read his text.
“I have given you the text,” he said. “I am very disappointed with all of you. You, as Year 11 students, MUST take responsibility for your own learning,” said Mr Thomas. He then opened the text and spoke to us from the board, before giving us an exercise to write down the points seen in the text and to create a mindmap of the text. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra told us that our Assessment 1 would now cover only the Recruitment, Selection and Training topic. At least, it made my life easier.
Then, we had break and thereafter, Global Perspectives, and then I presented the research to Vicky, who accepted it. Just as I was about to sit back, relax and enjoy the Chinese New Year holiday, Vicky then gave me another work to do. She then gave me a long list of points to write in the Project Proposal and I had to hand them to her after Chinese New Year. I groaned. And during Maths, Ms Bee Yan gave us a worksheet that we had to do as holiday homework. It was on a revision of all that was taught since the end of 2016, to prepare us for Assessment 1 and for IGCSE revision. I spent my time during Maths doing all the worksheets.
Then, Ms Bee Yan moved to discuss our Matrix Transformations worksheet. She unveiled the coursework for our Term 1. It was our final Maths coursework ever. We had to form a group of three and create a Geometrical House design based on any topic in Maths. I was placed in the same group as Berlinda and Rosemund to do the board game. We came up with a board game design based on “Snakes and Ladders” with addition and subtraction using x and y.
Ms Bee Yan told us that we could create the house based on any design and the house design should be easy to carry. She also told us to visit the various property galleries and showrooms as they contained models of houses. Then, Ryan Chok said he wanted to build a Barbie doll house. “You are not babies or kids! You are Year 11 students, so please don't come up with a house design meant for primary school students or kindergarteners!” she cried. Ryan Chok laughed the loudest as he was thinking of such a house design. Then, Shane and Eric Wong all laughed behind the class.
Once Maths was over, I then told Ms Bee Yan to inform Ms Janice about the control book signature before her Additional Mathematics lesson ended later on.
After lunch, we then had Art, and Ms Nadia told us that she targets for us to finish Paper 1 prep works by the end of February, and we needed to begin Paper 2 thereafter in order to make it in time for the Mid Year Examination. “Please spend time preparing and planning Paper 2,” she said.
Yi Zhen was the fastest to finish her preps. She was now in her Prep 3 and was approaching touch-up capacity. She would soon be moving to Prep 4. Her doodles were quite cool. For her Paper 1 prep works, she used hanging and trailing plants from her home garden for the basis of the preps. She even used Chinese ink for one of the art pieces which made the painting look like traditional Chinese art displayed during Chinese New Year.
Ms Nadia then came for my Prep 2. I presented to her the additional photographs taken and she approved of it. She told me to draw the close-ups of fingers on the Prep 2 to experiment with finger styles. Then, she wrote a list of pictures which she recommended me to take for my Prep 3 and present it to her after Chinese New Year.
Meanwhile, Sara Yow and Eu Lynn were still talking to me about Trump's actions. “Nothing happened!” I cried. Eu Lynn told me to wait and see on the response by Trump in the next two weeks. “Something WILL happen,” warned Eu Lynn.
Afterwards, we had History, and I spent time talking to Ze Khai about the History topics and related to Trump trying to improve relations between Russia and the United States. I told Ze Khai that it would end the years-long hate, which would result in world peace. Americans are not as favorable towards Russia as most of Russia's actions were against democratic values, but I told Ze Khai that Trump's inauguration presents a step towards world peace, since Trump and Vladimir Putin got along with each other. Then, Ms Visa came into the class. “Hi, cher!” cried Brandon.
Ms Visa then gave us some homework for History based on sources for Chinese New Year, and did some questions on the Berlin Wall. Then, she introduced to us the Marshall Plan, which was to aid West Berlin with economic, logistical and financial aid. However, the plan involved flying into East Germany's airspace, which the Soviets did not like.
After the History lesson ended, I then went to find Ms Sarah as she forgot to sign the control book. “Thanks for being such a good monitor,” said Ms Sarah.
Thursday, 26th January 2017 arrived. It was the last day before our Chinese New Year holidays.
The morning then begun with Mr Kevin Wai proposing to hold a Chinese New Year party and to buy some things for Chinese New Year. However, the class did not buy the idea. Mr Kevin said that we should be doing something as a class and not being so dull as opposed to the other classes. He gave Mr Lee's class as an example. Brandon Ooi then said that the class had fun with Mr Lee as well in the lesson, and Mr Kevin said that the fun was one of the ways, and that we should have fun doing other things aside from our IGCSE studies.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon gave us our coursework. It was to do a presentation on the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which was one of the fiscal policy initiatives mentioned in class by Ms Sharon.
My eyes craned and I grinned. I had a good plan to present the GST. I was planning to say ‘Government Says Thank you!” which is a play on the GST acronym. In this case, the government will say, “THANK YOU for paying your taxes!”
Ms Sharon told us to talk about the aims of GST, advantages and disadvantages of GST, and how the GST can impact Malaysians. There are many taxes collected by the government; the Sales Tax, Service Tax, Sales AND Services Tax (SST), Income Tax and also the tax which Daryl Yeo and I like to smear the pronunciation of its name; the Corporation Tax. A presentation in Economics is a great start to the academic year. I was thinking of all the funny things to put in my presentation.
Ms Sharon told us that we can put any research and style the presentation in any form we like, but it must fit the criteria that she mentioned in the rubric. We can be able to do the presentation individually or in a team. I chose to do it individually. I wanted to make the GST presentation really funny. We were told to present on 13th February, after the end of Founder's Run.
During Malaysian Studies, Ms Cynthia praised our class and said that the portrait of the Agong was the only one installed so far, aside from 10B, who had also installed their portrait, since every class had to do so. However, theirs was the 14th Yang di Pertuan Agong, Sultan Abdul Halim, instead of the 15th Agong, Sultan Muhammad V. She then talked about the functions of government and the roles of the Malaysian government in Malaysia. The government is accountable to Parliament, who has to pass laws introduced by the government. The judiciary body of judges and courts interpret those laws.
Ms Cynthia also talked about the prime minister's role and how the Prime Minister of Malaysia is not elected by the public, but instead appointed by the Agong. The Prime Minister of Malaysia must be an elected member of Parliament, and his Cabinet comprises different members of Parliament.
Then, we went for break, and then I had breakfast with San Ying again. Caleb Chuang was still busy studying. San Ying told me she pitied Caleb Chuang and told me to accompany him. After saying hi to Caleb Chuang for a while, I went to meet Jordan Tay and Daryl Yeo and told them about my plan to present the GST in Ms Sharon's class. Then, during Business Studies, Daryl Yeo laughed at my joke. It was so funny.
“Corporation! Corporation!” he replied, playing on the term ‘Corporation Tax’. “Thank you for paying your taxes!” he cried, laughing evilly. “Corporation! Corporation! Thank you for paying Corporation Tax!” he cried. Wei Zhong grew annoyed and asked Daryl not to act like that.
Goodness. It looks like Dr. Doofenshmirtz is collecting the taxes in an evil tone.
Ms Chithra then asked what the term ‘Corporation’ was and why it was being said in a funny tone. I told Ms Chithra about how the term ‘corporation’ referred to businesses and that Daryl Yeo and I were talking about the Corporation Tax which we learnt in Business Studies. Ms Chithra laughed at the response, and I told her I was planning to present the GST presentation in Economics.
Soon, Nicole and Sophie mobbed Ms Chithra like fans rushing for a superstar. “Ms Chithra! You look GORGEOUS!” they cried. “Eh, eh, go back!” cried Ms Chithra. The two then asked Ms Chithra about their work and what they did not understand, before Ms Chithra gave us worksheets to do on candidate characteristics for the job interview.
Then, we had History, and we spent the entire lesson doing source analysis, before Ms Visa gave us more homework. Afterwards, it was Cikgu Niely's class.
“Ms Sarah, you forgot to sign the control book again,” I said to Ms Sarah, who was leaving the class.
“Oh ya, sorry, sorry, yeah, I forgot to sign,” she said. “Thanks for reminding.”
Cikgu Niely then entered the class and did some comprehensions with us once again before explaining the format of the Malay Oral to us.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and I continued talking to San Ying about how long the holidays were and why it could take up precious school time before talking to her about my GST presentation idea.
“Government says thank you!” cried Sophie, laughing wholeheartedly at me. After lunch, I went to the hall. Benjamin Fong, Aristotle Koh and Sheng Jit had pulled out the high jump mat and then did some moves. Benjamin Fong then did his somersaults until he had to hold his pants tightly to prevent it from flying. Aristotle then came to do his moves too. He did a headstand and Christopher Chew arrived to film the action.
I met Sean Mark and Jason Leing and proposed the term ‘Bullseye National Convention’ to them. The duo were quite acceptive of the plans, but they were more interested in asking why I was running in front of Yi Zhen's house. I did not tell them what it was for.
“Are you practicing for Founder's Run?” asked Jason. I kept silent. Then, it was time for assembly, and we went for our assembly. I don't want Jason to beat me in the race. I don't want to give too much strategy for fear I could be doing something foolhardy.
Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan gave us homework while entertaining us on the questions we had for the Maths coursework. We did some discussion in the class on the Geometrical House coursework. I decided to discuss with Rosemund and Berlinda on the coursework and Berlinda said she will create a group. Ms Bee Yan said that there will be a lesson in which she will allow us to view each group's coursework in class. Ryan Chok kept on harping on the Barbie doll house, which made Ms Bee Yan laugh and it caused Mr Chan to smile a little. He then patted Ryan Chok. And during English, Mr Thomas did some work on the Amish Way of Life. Once all was done, we then went home and begun our one-week Chinese New Year holiday till Tuesday, 31st January 2017. Ms Joyce forgot to sign the control book again and I had to meet her to do so.
When meeting her in the management office, she realized what happened. “Sorry, sorry, Ms Joyce is too old. I need many reminders. Sorry, Wei Yiang. Thanks for bringing the control book to me,” she said. Ms Joyce adjusted her glasses and signed at the correct page. Then, I placed the control book and the Smartboard equipment back in the pigeon hole before heading home. However, upon reaching home, it started raining heavily, but I had to wait until 5:30pm before I could resume my runs. I did some sprints and runs as I informed Encik Hari and Encik Hafiz about the Founder's Run and briefed them on it. Then, Mr Gipson soon arrived and he and the two boys who met me on the 16th January soon walked up the hill for their evening basketball game with him.
I did a total of five sets of 5km runs till my legs hurt. Encik Hari and Encik Hafiz, the security guards, timed me and gave me advice. They even patrolled me running as they watched my body movement. Mr Gipson praised my effort, commending my improvement time after time. The real deal of practices was about to begin.
I went back to Penang for one day and returned in the evening via the KTM electric train service, to accommodate the training for Founder’s Run. The trip took four hours, departing early in the morning and returning at night. During my training for Founder’s Run, I had to practice multiple 5km runs, around three to four times a day. I would also do some sprinting and warm-ups following guidance from Ms Sylvia, to increase my speed on the day.
None of my friends in Nobel know about the training for the Founder’s Run. Keeping it secret prevents people from attempting to train like me, thus losing my chance to win. The only person who knew what was happening was Yi Zhen, as my Founder’s Run route passed by her house in the neighborhood, since both of us live in the same area. Except, that she did not know what it ws for.
It was highly competitive. The only goal I had was to not only try to win, but to beat Sean Mark in the Founder’s Run. As Sean and I had a long standing rivalry since Year 7, I was hoping to overtake him one day. There was one time during our PE lesson, when we were doing sit-ups, that Joshua Chew quipped to me what if I were to overtake Sean Mark during the Founder’s Run, and also win the championship. I was wondering if I could even achieve it in the first place. We were given permission slips for the Founder’s Run on 20th January during our Homeroom session to register for the run. I signed it and completed the slips in record time, submitting them on the 23rd.
After we came back from the Chinese New Year holidays, we carried on with the lessons.
Thursday, 2nd February 2017, was our first day back in school following the week-long Chinese New Year holiday. I was planning to wish everybody a happy Chinese New Year. Mr Kevin Wai told me to start using the new control book, so I wrote down all the information for the day in it. He said that the management wanted to recall the old control books, so I had to give the old book back to him. The old control book had a white cover page with only 20 pages while the new one had around 100 pages as mentioned before. Plus, the new book had a nice laminated transparent wrapping on top of it and had a pink page. It was also binded with black masking tape, with the pages sewn together.
During Economics, Ms Sharon said that she planned to postpone the start of the coursework as the Economics teachers had not finalized the coursework yet. Then, we did some graphs on the aggregate demand and aggregate supply in reaction to the impact of tax. Ms Sharon kept asking on the examples of taxes again to recap the taxes, and I kept on mentioning the Corporation Tax.
“What else?” asked Ms Sharon. “Name me more!” Sheng Jit and I cried out “GST!” I jokingly said ‘Government say thank you’. The whole class laughed.
“What is ‘government say thank you’?” asked Ms Sharon. I then told her that it was a play on the acronym of the GST, and that the government said, “Thank you for paying your taxes!” There was more laughter in the class.
After that, it was Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia came in. “Where is the portrait?” asked Ms Cynthia. The Yang di Pertuan Agong's portrait was missing. Ms Cynthia then told me to go and print another one for the class. I then found it on the floor. Apparently, it had been dropped. I then picked it up and then we stuck it back on the walls. Ms Cynthia then emphasized us on respecting the Agong's portrait and ensuring that it is not trampled on. She shook her head in disgust. Then, she talked about the main functions of Malaysia's government and how elections are used to elect the members of Parliament who would send one of their representatives to form a government comprising members of Parliament. She also emphasized Malaysia's position as a parliamentary democracy with constitutional monarchy as the basis for how the country is run.
Then, we went for break, and I told Caleb Chuang about the rationale behind the Bullseye National Convention branding. Caleb Chuang then said he was okay with the branding but not everyone would support it. Kelsey was looking at us and she was telling everyone about the Bullseye National Convention branding. “He got the idea from Trump!” she cried. I then told Kelsey about the fact that the term ‘National Convention’ was used by many individuals, parties and organizations rather than that of Trump.
The Bullseye National Convention branding was one of various attempts to improve the significance and stature of Bullseye, aside from aiding the Bullseye victory project for 2017. There was a blueprint which I had crafted in order to get Bullseye from second place to first place.
The first plan would be to register for the Founder's Run and win the Founder's Run. This would increase the points tally by at least 100 points if Bullseye were to win a majority of the top places in the run, no thanks to Bullseye runners coming out in the Top 10 as per Mr Narish's scoring system. Then, once that was achieved, we would need to win the Cheer Competition, bag as many medals from the athletics events and Pre Sports Events, and also win the March, Dance and Banner Competition. It would allow Bullseye to overcome Touchdown, bagging a fourth year of Bullseye victory, complimenting the existing Sports Day victories of 2014, 2015 and 2016.
To aid the runners, I proposed to Caleb Chuang that we install our own, homemade banners to cheer them on and bring megaphones. The existing principles laid from the past three victory years would be improved upon, along with some healthy diets for Bullseye runners. The grand centerpiece of the plan was my personal, individual Founder's Run 2017 victory. Caleb Chuang was okay with the plans, but soon, more would be proposed to the victory streak.
During Business Studies later on, Ms Chithra then talked about how individuals who had succeeded in a job interview had to sign an employment contract that outlines the terms and conditions that an individual had to follow when he or she was given a job. However, some of the contracts can be breached, and Ms Chithra told us that we will learn about those consequences the following week. The employment contract outlines the pay and the code of conduct the worker must follow when at work, such as what to do and what not to do, as well as the company rules. Eu Lynn then joked around, asking if there was a ‘contract’ given for students to follow the school rules. Apparently, the consent form was signed by our parents when we were enrolled with the school. In fact, Ms Chithra re-emphasized that in the class.
Then, we had History, and I met Kelsey to talk about the proposed name plan for the Bullseye National Convention.
“You should tell Brandon,” said Kelsey. “Don’t tell me about your stories with Caleb.” I then told Brandon about my plan to change the name of the Bullseye house meet to the Bullseye National Convention. He told me to ask Eric Wong, who was in our class. Then, I met Eric and proposed to him. He just smiled, grinned and looked at me with a sly look.
“What is Bullseye National Convention?” asked Eric. I laughed.
Then, Ms Visa came into the class and we talked about the differences the Soviets and Americans faced when interpreting each other's actions and their fear of their rival spying on them. In fact, it was called a Cold War for a reason. A war which did not happen, thanks to the advancement of nuclear weapons.
Ms Visa also talked about the characteristics of the Warsaw Pact, which were the countries that were under the Soviet bloc. All of them were Eastern European countries. The Warsaw Pact was a group of communist countries, and the head of this pact was the Soviet Union. None of the countries were allowed to leave the pact and all had to report to what the Soviets ordered them to do. I felt immersed when learning about the Cold War. It was my favorite topic in the History IGCSE syllabus.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely then gave us some Malay Oral practice questions and told us to read them. She said that she will do a mock Malay Oral rehearsal the next day. She told anyone who wanted to practice the Oral questions with her can do so in the class if they were ready, as a warm-up for the next day's Mock Oral test.
I sat down and read the Malay Oral questions. Then, I proceeded to Cikgu Niely, who begun practicing them with me. However, I failed to answer the first few questions. Cikgu Niely then told me to return to my seat, read the questions, comprehend them and understand them before coming to her again. She told me to come again 15 minutes later. Then, Jia Yee went for her practice session with Cikgu Niely as I looked at the questions.
Meanwhile, Shane and Aaron Liew were talking to each other. So far, they had a good relationship as opposed to the previous year. Brandon had recently downloaded a game named AZ Tanks and was playing the game on his computer. It involved two players trying to destroy the other player's tank. He played the game with Ryan Chok while Ze Khai looked on. They hid the computer below the seats to prevent Cikgu Niely from seeing it.
The class soon got noisy and then Cikgu Niely then asked everyone why was there a commotion behind the class. Brandon then kept the computer. Cikgu Niely said that she had asked everyone to read the Malay Oral questions and that she was planning to test us the next day. She asked everyone why were they not reading the questions and questioned if they were serious about sitting for the IGCSE Malay Oral. Then, she continued her session with Jia Yee. Once Jia Yee was done, I then went to Cikgu Niely and begun my session with her. The conversation on the Malay Oral role play exercises lasted 15 minutes. Cikgu Niely then guided me on what to say. She told me that my Malay proficiency needed improvement and that she told me to comprehend the questions more and converse in Malay regularly at home.
Afterwards, it was lunch time and then I went down to meet Caleb Chuang. I then talked to him about the Bullseye projects. I then told him about my Founder's Run plan. He joined the 10km category of the race, so I told him about my plans to win the Founder's Run. Then, I went to find Kit Lee and asked if she had signed up. Fortunately, she did. I spent the whole afternoon asking people if they had registered for the run. We want to have many people participate in order to jack up the house points.
I then spoke to Caleb Chuang about the plans for Sports Day and when should the marchpast practices begin. Caleb Chuang told me he intended to begin the march practices after Founder's Run.
Then, I spoke to him about the Bullseye National Convention branding once again as well as the feedback from Sean Mark and Jason Leing. He said most people would like to have the phrase ‘house meet’ as it is convenient to pronounce. I then told him about the reasoning why the Bullseye National Convention should be the official name of the house meet. In fact, come on. The Bullseye National Convention is a very important event. Everyone from all walks of life who are our Bullseye comrades should get a very important chance to decide the future of Bullseye. When we decide Bullseye's future, we are deciding whether Bullseye can or cannot win the next Sports Day or Nobel Cup. So, we should upgrade everything, including the Bullseye house meets, to the Bullseye National Convention, to give all Bullseye members the chance to rock and roll for the greater good of Bullseye. In fact, I expressed my disappointment to Caleb Chuang that some people did not register for the Founder's Run. “If they don't come, we will lose!” I cried.
Also, aside from the Bullseye National Convention, the house committee of Bullseye should be known as the ‘Bullseye National Committee’, mimicking what the Democratic National Committee, Republican National Committee, as well as similar titles given to certain organizations in Malaysia, too. I told Caleb Chuang that it will be very impressive to call it as such.
Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan used the lesson to give us the time to discuss about our coursework. Nickolas spent the entire lesson talking to Mr Chan. They had a long conversation. Berlinda and Rosemund then detailed on the house design. The plan for our house design was to consist of a swimming pool, a nice garden, a mini-cinema and there were even plans to put a fashion studio in it, along with a nice car.
Mr Chan then walked around the class with a smile on his face. He had a gentle touch, advising us on our designs. When he reached our group, he then asked us to present the blueprints for the house and the basis of our house design. So, I was invited to present the basis of the game to Mr Chan.
Mr Chan liked the idea. He told me, Rosemund and Berlinda to ensure that the house designs must not be too complex and should be simple to construct but yet be made attractive. Before we left, Berlinda told me to bring RM 5 to the following week's Monitor's Council meeting so that the Monitor's Council can prepare a charity booth for Founder's Run. There was no decision then on what to sell on the day of the Founder's Run.
Afterwards, it was English, and Mr Thomas was waiting for us in class.
The lesson begun with Mr Thomas discussing the text ‘The Amish Way of Life’ in the class. He then told us to look at the text on the Amish and write them down. He then told us to take some points on the Amish Way of Life. He kept reading the passages to us. Then, behind the class, Jien Min and Eugene were having their heads down on the table. I looked at them and had a weird look on my face.
“You must be responsible for your own learning,” said Mr Thomas. “You should be reading the text during the holidays. I spent so much time posting on Edmodo. I know all of you want to celebrate the festival, but you should also dedicate some time for your own learning,” said Mr Thomas.
Then, Mr Thomas told us about a competition. He showed us his latest announcement on Edmodo. “The school has asked all of you to write an essay for a competition. I believe all of you know what this competition is. You should know by now,” he said.
“The Commonwealth Essay Competition!” I cried.
“Yes, that's right,” said Mr Thomas. He then told us that we had a month to plan, draft and write the essay for the competition. Mr Thomas then told us to give the Commonwealth Essay entries to him
When the lesson was done, I went to find Ms Sarah and asked her to sign the control book as she had forgotten to do so during History. “Thanks for being a great monitor,” she said. Then, I kept the control book and Smartboard stationery in the pigeon hole and went to the school hall. Everyone was told to assemble in their CCA lines. I signed up once again for the Editorial Board.
I was only one of two Year 11s in the board (the other being Co Sheen). Ms Levina greeted us on the first day of CCA; the rest of the club members were juniors who are in the younger levels. I was happy to meet Ms Levina once again.
Ms Levina then got everyone cracking by introducing the Editorial Board agendas, and she requested me to be Senior Writer, since I can write well and that I was the oldest Editorial Board club member and the only one from the previous batch of Editorial Board members. Ms Levina then said that a Year 10 should be elected as the president of the Editorial Board as Year 11 students need to drop out in the middle of the year for their IGCSE preparation. When Ms Levina introduced me as the only Year 11 student in the Editorial Board, the whole club gasped. Koo Shi Tian was elected as the president and Editor in Chief for the Editorial Board.
Our first task was to deduce the errors from the Cheringin Hills field trip for Year 10 students in 2016. Strangely enough, I was the one who wrote the article. Co Sheen soon resigned from Editorial Board, leaving me as the only one in the team from Year 11, and left the moment the CCA even begun.
Then, Ms Levina said that our main agenda and purpose of the Editorial Board was to work on the school yearbook. She then told everyone of their expectations and that everyone was required to have their work submitted on time and also be disciplined in the board or else they would be asked to leave the board. Ms Levina said that no one wants the school to call their parents in order to explain about why they were kicked out of the Editorial Board and that the school had to find a new CCA for those expelled members, so we had to do our job well.
When the class dismissed, Ms Levina then had a chat with me about Ms Sharon's Economics class. “How do you find Ms Sharon's class?” asked Ms Levina. I said that her class was good.
“Who do you think is better, me or Ms Sharon?” I then said that Ms Levina's class was better because of her funny antics and also the humor and tone she talked in the class. Ms Levina then re-emphasized to me about her Edmodo post she posted and that it was that the school had given her a new role as a Global Perspectives teacher for Year 7 and 8 students. She then told me that I could ask her questions if I do not understand the Economics topics.
After returning home, I did some sprinting and Yi Zhen saw me sprint like mad and cheered me as I passed on the practice route in front of her house. I then did three more sets of 5km practice runs. I ran like mad till 7:00pm and had a late dinner. I needed to watch the practices, as the Founder's Run neared. Then, following dinner, my mum and I did some practices on the Malay Oral exercises Cikgu Niely gave.
Friday, 3rd February 2017 was our Chinese New Year celebration. It was a day to behold, as we were approaching the Bai Ti Gong festival, which was the Jade Emperor's Birthday, celebrated on 4th February 2017, which was the next day.
The stage was decorated with a large willow tree on the left hand corner of the stage. It was covered in red cloth and had a lot of cherry blossom flowers hanging from it.
The Chinese New Year celebration was directed by Mr Steve once again, in a combination of him being a Mandarin teacher and the Head of Performing Arts. He was pumped up for the festival. The celebration was done by him playing games for us as well as telling us the story of the fifteen-day celebration of Chinese New Year. Mr Steve said that the eve of the Chinese New Year was used as the Reunion Dinner where family members come together to have a once-in-a-year dinner at the dinner table and stay up until midnight, as there was a belief that one would live longer if they stayed up later at night on the eve of the Chinese New Year celebrations. He also said that Chinese households would normally bake ‘nian gao’ on the eve of the Chinese New Year celebrations in belief that the ‘nian gao’, a pudding cake, would result in the person having good prosperity if eaten.
Just as Mr Steve was speaking, Ms Lim then stopped Mr Steve from speaking and promised to give the microphone to anyone who was not paying attention to his speech. Then, Ms Bee Yong looked on and pointed at some people who were still talking.
Then, Mr Steve continued the celebration, he also played some games with us in which we were to guess the celebrations and traditions in relation to questions posted on the screens of the hall for Chinese New Year. Then, he also asked people to share some experiences of what they did during Chinese New Year.
Ms Bee Yong was dressed in a nice cheongsam and so was Ms Lim. Then, Mr Steve and some of the Mandarin teachers also did some games and actions to showcase Chinese New Year traditions.
Once the celebration had ended, Mr Narish then told us that the following Friday, 10th February, would be our Cheer Competition. I gasped and got excited. I had to discuss the matter with Caleb Chuang.
“Who's going to win this year?” asked Mr Narish to the crowd. I kept on screaming Bullseye's name out loud as Kelsey covered her ears and I shouted like mad. Mr Narish also announced the agenda for the Founder's Run:
Time Activity
8:30am Arrival
8:40am Warm up
8:50am Launching of Founder's Run by Auntie Clarine
9:00am Flag off 10km
9:05am Parents Fun Run
9:10am Flag off 5km
11:30am Prize giving and closing ceremony
12:30pm Dismissal from Taman Botani
1:30pm Dismissal from school
Mr Loong, Cikgu Baliah, Ms Ting, Cikgu Faharna and Ms Malini were announced as the 5km checkpoint judges. Then, Mr Narish told us that we needed to wear our bib so that it could be seen, and that anyone who came with their parents can drive to the venue and leave thereafter. I jotted all the points, from the gathering time, gathering area, race route and all technicalities that were said by him. I planned to discuss them with Caleb Chuang during school hours and Mr Nehru during tuition time.
Mr Narish revealed the registration statistics for Founder's Run during the assembly. Touchdown was leading in the registrations, followed by Slamdunk, Bullseye and then Homerun. He displayed them on a screen posted in the school. I groaned once again. On another note, Mr Narish also revealed the route for the Founder's Run. It was the same as the previous year. I quickly jotted all the information down into my Student Organizer. There was a catch to it; I would use the route to plan the game strategy.
I had been training well since the Chinese New Year school holidays. No one knew the extent of what was happening. Everyone was unaware of it. Encik Hafiz and Encik Hari had given me the motivation that I needed. Mr Nehru had been coaching me behind the scenes not just in tuition for Maths, but also gave me tips to run the race. With each step, as the day of the Founder's Run approached, I felt confident, but nervous. I spent my time doing predictions on the Founder's Run.
I anticipate that Julian Ong would win the 5km, and I would be neck and neck with Sean Mark. In fact, I wrote a list in my Student Organizer as well as on my computer depicting the predicted Top 10 Winners of the 5km. I know that in order to avert that outcome, something would need to change. So, I still kept practicing.
The Predictions for 5km Founder's Run 2017 (as written in the Student Organizer)
1. Julian Ong (Touchdown)
2. Kevin Tan (Touchdown)
3. Lim Wences (Touchdown)
4. Dylan Tan (Slamdunk)
5. Aaron Yong (Bullseye)
6. Sean Mark (Bullseye)
7. Lau Wei Yiang (Bullseye)
8. Ethan Chan (Bullseye)
9. Jason Leing (Bullseye)
10. Andrew Loke (Bullseye)
The school was in tense atmosphere as the Founder's Run approached. No one knew about the Founder's Run plans that I have planned, except for a few. It had to be kept under wraps to prevent the other houses from stealing them.
We went for PE. I didn't bring my football down as the hall was not conducive for football games, and that there were many decorations on the stage. So, I kept it in class as the rest brought them down. Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia told Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew that there will be no football match because of the amount of fragile items in the hall installed as a result of the decorations. Then, Mr Victor did our PE lesson as we focused on squats. The people of 11O were constantly talking about me running in front of Yi Zhen's house. Yi Zhen then told everyone I was practicing for the Founder's Run. After PE ended, I then asked Ms Sylvia about training advice for running. “I heard you were practicing for Founder's Run. Keep it up,” she said, giving me the thumbs-up. Ms Sylvia told me that if I were to increase my speed, I had to sprint, and I was doing all the necessary things. In fact, there was one last thing to do for the training. I was talking marathon training with Ms Sylvia.
As part of the marathon training regimes I found online, which I used as the basis to train for the Founder's Run 5km race, the key to success lies from one hidden secret; a rest period at the end of the race. For the 5km, Mr Nehru and Encik Hafiz suggested that three days of rest be done before the Founder's Run.
I then presented Caleb Chuang with some of the Bullseye National Convention naming plans. However, once again, Caleb Chuang said that most people liked to call the Bullseye National Convention as the ‘house meet’ instead of what I suggested. In fact, Mr Narish was calling it as such. Then, I discussed with him about the Cheer Competition. I told him I would bring the megaphone for the Cheer Competition so that I could scream and shout as loud as possible. He cautioned me against bringing it. I told him that we need to scream loudly, so that Bullseye can win the competition. As we were then in second place against Touchdown, I felt that a Founder's Run win as well as a Cheer Competition win would jack Bullseye's points upwards.
Then afterwards, we then had Malay, and Cikgu Niely called the class for the Malay Oral practice. A lot of people did not do well. Cikgu Niely said that among half of the class tested that day, a lot of people fared terribly and she hoped that the people who had not been tested yet would put in effort during the next week to revise and practice for the Malay Oral.
We then went to the Science Lab for our next lab session with Mr Lee. This time, he was doing an experiment involving density which we had to squeeze a bottle which results in a solid weight being lowered due to pressure which can affect density. It looked cool as we squeezed them. When we stopped squeezing the bottle, the weight rose to the top and floated on the surface. Afterwards, it was English. Ms Joyce was in the class, and I gave her the control book to sign it before heading to Mr Thomas’ class. During his lesson, we continued doing essays describing the Amish way of life.
Meanwhile, during the weekend, I spent my last bit doing some 5km runs. In the weeks leading up to the Founder’s Run, I trained as much as I could. I had started the practices in January, and as January then turned to February, and the countdown to the Founder’s Run begun, I held my breath. I have to admit that I felt a bit nervous over how things would play out. What if I failed to beat Sean Mark? I could only wonder.
Fortunately, Mr Nehru, Encik Hari and Encik Hafiz were there for me. He offered me great pieces of advice as well as the best meals as possible. I chose to eat sweet potato leaves for great performance. Then, I ate some good eggs as well. I banked on their guidance in order to do well. I had to make small sacrifices for something better
Sunday, 5th February 2017, was my last day of Founder's Run practice in order to fulfill the three-day resting requirement. Most marathoners would do it, but for a 5km race, three days was enough of rest. Since the race was on a Wednesday, the last day of practices was scheduled that day.
I practiced in the morning, running two 5km rounds and at least three sets of sprinting. Then, during my tuition time, Mr Nehru wished me all the best. He told me to focus on the race and not think negatively. He also urged me to start slowly. I then asked him some questions, worried about the possibility of people running faster than me. Mr Nehru told me the importance of running slowly and conserving the energy till the very end; a phrase that teachers have frequently repeated. In fact, he brought his tuition time early from the traditional start time of 1:00pm to 10:00am for me to have the whole afternoon to prepare for the Founder's Run.
Once the Maths tuition had finished, Mr Nehru gave me a pat on the back and wished me all the best for the run. Then, I was left to my practices.
I then ran a total of three laps before it started raining. It then rained through to the evening. I can still remember my last practice as I walked home as the rain begun. The sun was just being covered by clouds. I was dreaming a dream that seemed impossible, but would soon be etched into my memory forever. Then, as night fell, the resting time begun. For two full days, I had to sleep early, walk up the stairs slowly and do less heavy work, including training and gardening.
The week of Founder's Run finally arrived. It was Monday, 6th February 2017. I got up early before heading to school, and had two eggs before leaving the house. On arrival at school, I walked quite slowly, trying to conserve my energy. Then, I sat down at the entrance before the doors open at 6:45am.
After entering the school compound, I walked SLOWLY. As slow as possible. Calory conservation is essential. No one wants a flat battery before their race.
I made my way to the school hall, sat down in the hall and took my bread and headed to the canteen for my morning meal. There, while eating, I read the newspaper, thinking of the race ahead of me.
Then, after having my meal, I walked back to my bag in the school hall as slowly as possible. I then sat down and had a chat with Krystal Goh. Before long, I just went to the entrance to watch the traffic enter the school. I then met Caleb Chuang and greeted him. He walked quickly and I couldn't keep up with him. I had to remember the resting rule.
Once we entered the hall, I then sat down while watching Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew talk. They just chit-chatted. Then, it was time for assembly to begin. I walked slowly to my class line and tried to conserve as much energy as possible. We did the usual housekeeping affairs, such as the Negaraku, School Song, Rukunegara and School Pledge.
Mr Narish then got on during assembly to brief us for the week. He focused on briefing on the Cheer Competition. Mr Narish then told everyone to memorize the cheers that had been brought up by their house captains and also remind the house captains to coordinate their members to ensure that they remember their cheer. Mr Narish also reiterated the agenda for Founder's Run 2017. He told us to reach the venue by 8:00am if arriving by car, and to reach Nobel by 7:30am if taking the bus service. “See you on Founder's Run!” both he and Ms Sylvia cried.
When the time came for me to head back to class, I trudged up the stairs slowly. I had to conserve energy. So, I lined up behind everyone as we walked up.
Upon reaching our class, I then placed my bags, went to the pigeon hole, took the Control Book and Smartboard equipment back to class, and while walking, moved at relaxed pace. I didn't want to rush. It was okay if Ms Chithra asked me why I arrived late. The most important thing was to conserve energy for the Founder's Run.
I then arrived back at 11N, wrote all the information in the control book, gave the book to Mr Raja, who signed it, and left for 11E. Ms Chithra was waiting. Fortunately, she hadn't begun the lesson yet. I then went and sat down. “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” cried Nicole and Sophie. Ms Chithra then had a grumpy mood, “Eh, eh, stop it!” she cried. Then, Daryl Yeo shouted at me happily. “Corporation! Corporation!” he cried.
Ms Chithra then gave us a worksheet and taught us about legal controls over employment issues, and there were three issues that were faced, namely unfair dismissal, health and safety, as well as wage protection.
Ms Chithra said that many companies fire people without valid reasons. She told us that when a worker is fired, it needs to be in compliance with the terms of the employment contract. In fact, when a worker is fired, there must be a valid reason, and bosses cannot just simply fire a worker with any just reason. For instance, if the worker arrived late at work because his car broke down on the highway, it cannot be construed as an excuse for the boss to fire the worker. Instead, Ms Chithra said that the worker should be given a verbal reminder by the boss and not take it to the extent of firing the worker. She gave an example of how a worker who was fired by a boss challenged his unfair dismissal in court, which resulted in the court siding with the worker, forcing the boss to re-admit him back to the company.
Ms Chithra also told us that employers are required to ensure proper health and safety procedures at the workplace so that the workers can feel safe coming to work. She then gave an example of a factory neglecting workers’ conditions. I gave the example of construction workers in Dubai who were given unsanitary and cramped living conditions and that they worked long hours with little pay, causing them to have only 3 hours of sleep at night. While Ms Chithra said that the worker housing case was an acceptable reason of not following health or safety protocols, it did not fell under the example category she talked about as long working hours do not mean that safety protocols are not followed, as the workers in Dubai followed safety procedures at work.
Then, Ms Chithra talked about workers being paid less than the original amount. I tried to put the case of the workers forward, and Ms Chithra agreed with my explanation. We then did a worksheet as I asked more questions to Ms Chithra about the workers’ explanation.
We then returned for Economics, as Ms Sharon taught us about the ‘Consumer Price Index’, or CPI, which was a tool to measure inflation. However, the second page of the worksheet was printed upside down, and Ms Sharon apologized for that. We learnt about how a price index was constructed as well. Then, Ms Sharon told us to practice some multiple choice questions at home. I got Ms Sharon to sign the control book before she left. Fortunately, Mr Raja also signed it as well.
I went to the canteen and sat down and talked with Caleb Chuang while finishing up my Economics homework. Then, I brought the control book down and wrote more dates and days on the upcoming pages. Joshua praised my effort for being an assistant monitor. He said that it was his first time seeing a monitor fill the control book to the end. In fact, I wrote every day for the month of February 2017.
During Art, Ms Nadia then checked on my Prep 2. I was doing quite well. Then, I presented to her the pictures that I have snapped of the gate, and she told me to do the drawings. I then drew a picture of my hand holding the gate and experimented using pencil hatching techniques to mark out the toning and shape of my hand. I had to draw my fingernails in detail. Ms Nadia kept on reminding me that my artwork must be fine and it cannot be the same quality as what I did in Year 7, 8 or 9.
“Faster, faster, you must start Prep 3 already,” said Ms Nadia.
Then, during Combined Science, Mr Lee then did some density worksheets with us. He signed the control book voluntarily without being asked to do so. He talked to us about the formula of density. When Mr Lee did some work with us, Kelsey then asked why I was walking so slowly. I didn't answer her. The Founder's Run strategy was in progress. No one knew what the actions were for. And that was the same question Lyn Wen and San Ying asked as well during lunch. I spent the lunch time writing all pages in the control book till 28th February, from the dates to the timetable. I pre-wrote all of them in advance.
Later, we had Character Transformation, and we were told to get into our groups again. Mr Neoh had given an exercise to do on emotional management. While we did our work, Mr Neoh and Ms Renee inspected all five classes’ control books. Some of the class teachers from Year 11 were also inspecting as well. I could see Ms Renee looking at four of the books and comparing it with 11N's. They were looking at it. Then, I could see Mr Kevin Wai smiling happily and talking to Ms Renee on the books. The teachers peered at 11N's book and they met with Mr Kevin Wai and were questioning him on how the 11N Class Control Book was accurately done. I just focused on my work and we had to present them to Mr Neoh.
On the way back to 11N after the end of the Character Transformation session, Gabriel Lim was wondering, along with a few others, why I walked so slowly back to the class. We were at the stairwell when he asked me that. I did not tell him the reason in order to keep my plans a secret.
Then, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson. Vicky then asked me to pass me my research and essay. I handed them to her by showing my iPad to her. She took a good look at it and I just waited and did my Edmodo reading throughout the entire Global Perspectives lesson, as well as thinking of my Founder's Run strategy.
After school ended, I went to find Ms Janice, who did not sign the control book. Upon meeting her, I reminded her to sign the control book whenever she came to the class. Then, I went for the Monitor's Council meeting.
During the Monitor's Council meeting, Ashlyne told all the monitors that the committee had decided to sell lemonade juice during the Founder's Run and that Pranavee and Berlinda were in charge of preparing the lemonade juice to be sold at the Founder's Run. Berlinda then collected RM 5 from us for the lemonade fees as well as the club funds. Apparently, Berlinda and Pranavee had purchased the lemonade and were collecting RM 5 to pay the bill later. The plan was to set up the lemonade stall at the finish line to entertain all the runners with nice lemonade juice. Each cup of lemonade juice would cost RM 3 and Ashlyne then encouraged us to invite our friends from our classes to support it.
Then, Ms Cynthia came into the class. She said that unlike previous years, for the Monitor’s Council, we would not get tags to identify ourselves because there was a lack of supply for the year. However, she had two that she gave out to some Year 7s who wanted them. She went and took two tags from her office to distribute it to the monitors.
Ms Cynthia also took the opportunity to collect the Leadership Camp forms from everyone as the Leadership Camp would be held from 17th to 19th February at Trolak Residence in Sungkai, Perak. She had given out the Leadership Camp forms during our first Monitor's Council meeting. I decided to attend in order to get a taste of how a camp looked like, since I never attended any camp in the past during my time in Nobel. In fact, Ms Lim had also asked if anyone did not attend any camp in Nobel during the CT session on 23rd January, and said that the Year 11 Study Camp would be the first. There were a few, including me, who did not attend any camp. This Study Camp, according to Ms Lim, is important as it prepares us for our IGCSE exams. I didn’t want to be a dropout and fail my IGCSEs, so I made sure to attend that camp, and the only way to do so was to successfully attend this Leadership Camp. It is a camp that is attended by student leaders from the Monitor’s Council, Prefectorial Board, Librarian Board, presidents of the CCA clubs and societies, and the house captains of the four houses.
On another note, Ms Renee had praised me for completing the control book as many monitors had failed to do so. “Keep up the good work,” she told me while I was walking in the hallway the previous day. This issue was brought up during the Monitor’s Council session, and Ms Cynthia got word from the management that I was the only one who completed the control book, namely the list of teachers, the attendance list and the toilet list, and all the necessary documents and slips stapled in order. “I don't see why all of you could not even complete a simple task,” she said.
The whole room was shocked. “Wei Yiang filled in the whole control book?” asked Ethan Chan. Ms Cynthia also told the room that I filled in the next day's control book information and to the extent, the whole month of February, in advance. The monitors in the room were surprised. “How did you do it?” they cried. Ms Sharon was also giving the thumbs-up. “He always reminds me to sign every time I enter the class,” she said. By this time, the whole room was gasping.
Ms Cynthia then said that it was everyone's responsibility to fill in the control book and complete the records. Then, Ms Cynthia asked if I had done the toilet information as well. I told her that it was much harder to keep track of the toilet information since we had so many set teaching lessons. Most of the time, when I am out of 11N, it is very difficult for me to get people to sign the book when leaving the room.
Tuesday, 7th February soon arrived. It was the eve of the Founder's Run.
The morning begun with Mr Kevin Wai asking if everyone was coming for Founder's Run and Mr Lee discussing the Combined Science worksheet he gave us for Density.
During our Reading Time, Mr Kevin Wai told me that he had spoken to Ms Renee the previous day during Character Transformation when Ms Renee, the level leader for Year 11, inspected the five Year 11 class control books. “I was told by Ms Renee that you have filled in all the information in the control book. Well done. Keep it up,” he said. Mr Kevin Wai provided us with our Founder's Run t-shirts.
Mr Lee then came in for Combined Science. He signed the control book. Mr Kevin Wai told him about the discussion we just had. “I know. Even my class is not so efficient at this,” he said. Then, Mr Lee discussed the Density questions with us. After his lesson, Ms Sharon then continued the lesson and discussed the answers of one of the worksheets before telling us how to do some essay questions. Then, we went for break.
“Wei Yiang, you are so slow again. What is wrong with you?” asked Gabriel. “You look weird.”
I was walking slowly down the stairs. It felt so inconvenient.
Caleb Chuang told me that he and Zi Quan are planning to fix that day, 7th February, as the date of the first marchpast practice. He told me that I was needed that afternoon to assist them. Then, I discussed with him on how to assist him and Zi Quan and how to coordinate the marchpast.
After returning for Global Perspectives, Vicky then discussed with me the next course of action and told me to edit my writeup. Then, she gave Glen his. I did the editing and sent it back to Vicky via Gmail. We then returned for Maths, where Ms Bee Yan continued with the lesson and gave us worksheets as homework. Then, during lunch, I went to find Ms Janice to get her to sign the control book. I soon had a second chat with Caleb Chuang on the marchpast practices. Thereafter, we had History. Ms Visa gave us some exercises to do and she talked about the Berlin Blockade. And during Art, I managed to finish my Prep 2. Ms Nadia then told me to get some pictures and take more pictures in preparation for Prep 3, which will start the following week. Then, I went for the first marchpast practice with Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang. We did some of the practices in the futsal court. Caleb Chuang told me to watch the marchers on them doing the correct moves. Then, we went to the courtyard to continue our practices. When Zi Quan told us to do push ups, including me, I just ignored him. “Why aren't you doing?” asked Zi Quan, as he giggled. I wanted to keep my Founder's Run excuse in the bag. It must be confidential.
After reaching home, I made sure to sleep early, ready for the big day. That evening, I met Encik Hafiz, Encik Hari and Mr Gipson, who gave me good remarks. Mr Gipson in particular asked me to get some rest immediately.
“Go home and sleep! Quickly! Quickly!” he cried, as he and the two boys who met me on 16th January thrudged up the hill again for their nighttime basketball match. And I dozed off.
It was finally the day of the Founder's Run. 8th February 2017.
The number 8 is considered a very lucky number in Chinese culture. Technically, the Founder's Run still fell during Chinese New Year. I felt a sense of hope and joy as the day finally arrived. There was some prosperous feeling in the air, and I thought it was something really interesting as it relates to the run.
It rained very heavily in the morning. This was good because the rain provided me with a comfortable environment to run. A cool weather greeted me as I got up at around 5:00am to start preparing for the run. The floor was wet but the weather was refreshing. The conditions were just right for a 5km race.
I told my mum to depart for Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, the Founder’s Run venue early, as I wanted to have a headstart and to settle down quickly for the race. She laughed and told me to just relax. I was a bit tense that morning as I was thinking about what moves to execute during the run. It was a do-or-die moment for me. This was my last Founder's Run as a student in Nobel.
So, I put on my orange 2017 Founder’s Run t-shirt as we departed for the botanical garden. While on the car ride, I was thinking what should I do, what moves should I execute, and how would the weather conditions look like. Winning the Founder’s Run would result in a win for me, as well as a contribution of 15 points to Bullseye. I thought of the game strategy I had planned, and had a copy of the map for me to refer to on the car ride.
I could feel a sense of something. A winning feeling. In fact, Mr Nehru had written a message to me wishing me the best. My mum showed me his WhatsApp message before we departed. I felt that the lucky stars were pointed in my direction. However, I told myself not to be greedy. Despite so, something shows me that time was on my side.
Mr Nehru had written to me the first thing in the morning. He knew when the race was to take place as I had informed that to him during my tuition time with him. He told me not to be nervous and think positively throughout the run. The main advice: run slowly in the beginning and advance in speed to the end. And the most important thing is not to look behind.
As we arrived Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, the botanical garden was crowded with a lot of cars entering the parking area. The air was festive; a rouse of ten years’ worth of Chinese New Year celebrations coupled together, as well as that of many carnivals and charity fairs’ worth of excitement accumulated over time. This was Nobel's second ever Founder's Run.
The grand prize, as watched by all Year 11 members, would be the show-off between Lau Wei Yiang and Sean Mark. After four years of rivalry, the Founder's Run is the final chance to show off who has the best node of preparatory effort. Another classic example of David v. Goliath.
A couple of our friends had arrived. Yi Zhen was there. Chang Kai Yee, Co Sheen and Natasha Singam were also present. The rest of them were coming to the park by bus. We chatted for a while, as my heart beat, anticipating the arrival of my rival, the one and only Sean Mark. I just greeted them while talking a bit with them. The badminton contest between Lee Chong Wei and Chen Long during the 2016 Olympics was playing out in my head. Thumping cheerleading sounds echoed in my head as the sun begun to rise.
My mum saw the worried look on my face and patted me and comforted me. My heart thumped. Then, a group of orange school buses arrived. Their loud, buzzing sounds blasted so loudly as if a space shuttle was landing. The orange buses were packed with student runners, as well as teachers who were as equally excited to see the showdown. No one knew about the showdown between me and Sean Mark, except for the Year 11 students.
Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark and a few other friends were one of the stream of the students and teachers alighting from the bus. They took the bus from school. Then, I saw the large figure of Sean Mark approaching. Sean Mark was talking to Caleb Chuang. He had a somewhat sneaky grin on his face. He trudged confidently. He shook my hand. I shook his as well. The whole crowd of Year 11 students cheered and shouted. They screamed so loudly till everyone looked at us.
After everyone arrived, we gathered at the entrance of the park. The large lava sea of orange filled up the park as the teachers erected a banner to mark the Founder's Run 2017. Everyone was told to get their attendance taken. We had to meet our class teachers for our attendance. Mr Kevin took mine. Then, once we had our attendance recorded, it was time for a warm up session.
The teachers then did a warm up session, led by Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia; the best exercise gurus in Nobel International School. There was a sense of excitement in the air. I did not do the proper warm up session. In fact, Mr Nehru said that it is best to do the warm ups I feel comfortable with. So, while waiting for the warm up session to begin, I did my own warm ups, pushing up, swinging my arms and doing all the necessary things Mr Victor taught me. Then, Mr Victor did the normal warm ups with everyone. I followed him and warmed up again, this time, according to the accurate steps and moves he had asked us to do.
The run was then launched by Auntie Clarine, who wished everyone the very best. She had a large red horn in her fist. Then, Ms Bee Yan announced the start of the run.
The 10km runners flagged off first with the loud blare of the horn. Nieshaal Thambipillay, Caleb Chuang and Lim Wences were part of the 10km corral of runners. The 10km contingent was quite a small bunch as most people opted for the 5km race. No one could bear the load of a distance twice the size of what most people struggle to run. As the 10km runners were told to flag off, Ms Bee Yan, Mr Narish and all the teachers pointed the correct running direction to ensure that everyone turned left instead of heading straight, which was a big mishap the previous year.
Once the 10km runners were allowed to start, this was followed by the Parent’s Fun Run. It was the first time parents participated in the run. There were ten parents, along with a couple of teachers. Most of these ladies and gentlemen were really experienced and had legs that could bear the tremendous amount of pain when doing runs. They were recreational runners; people who have run marathons before. It was really difficult for people in Nobel to bear the 42km distance. These invited parents had no issue tackling a 5km course. Mr Narish welcomed the parents and wished them an enjoyable run before they took off from their positions.
Afterwards, it was our turn to run. The 5km had the largest contingent of all categories, particularly because it was the shortest. As I stood at the starting line, my mind flashed to me all the practice sessions and the hours I spent to run the 5km at home and all the painful efforts over the last month or so. The moment had arrived as all my training and preparation under the guidance of Encik Hafiz, Encik Hari, Mr Nehru and Mr Gipson was put to the ultimate test. Soon, the teachers did the countdown, and everyone flagged off.
I started running slowly, hoping to save my energy for a difficult course later. A few people ran first. They sprinted really quickly and soon a couple of people were ahead of me. I told myself to be calm. Then, I soon gain speed before overtaking them one by one. Soon, the last person I overtook was Aaron Yong. And then, no one was in front of me. I was on the hilliest course of the race. My heart started beating. I was wondering how long would it take. As part of my practices, I also studied the route and planned how to execute the moves on the day. I sprinted uphill, and then downhill. The course got hilly. I told myself to keep pace and think positively while running. I was wondering where the end of the hilliest course would end.
Soon, I came across teachers manning a checkpoint. They took down my bip number, R107. Afterwards, I continued sprinting up and down the hill, where I reach a water station manned in the middle of the course by Ms Nadia. I took one plastic cup, drunk a sip of it, and dumped it into the box. The teachers cheered for me. I continued my ascent, up and down, before I reached a checkpoint where Ms Lee Kaesy was manning. The hilly course had ended. I then turned back and ran the route back to the exit. All signs around me pointed my way to the exits. I just kept running. Oh, and not to mention that another school was having their cross country running event that day. Mr Narish had told us to look for Nobel's signs. Then, I saw a wooden arch sign and the paddy field near the entrance, as well as the entrance gate.
As I approached the entrance gate, the teachers were still talking and the finish line was not set up yet. I tried to call out to them I am arriving and clapped my hands, but no one listened. Suddenly, Ms Yew and Ms Sha turned around and saw me approaching, and then called out to the teachers. They were surprised who it was, reaching at high speed. I sprinted as fast as I could. Everyone turned towards me and then started cheering. I placed my hands in the air as I crossed the finish line. When I came too, all the teachers, from Ms Lim to Cikgu Niely and Ms June, started congratulating me. Then, they asked me to write my name down on the top 10 runners’ registration to indicate my position. Pranavee and Berlinda, who did not run and were setting up a booth selling lemonade drinks for the fundraising campaign by the Monitor’s Council, congratulated me. The first question I asked when I finished was, “What’s the time?” It was 9:31am.
Tharun Raghavan was the second runner to arrive, followed by Benjamin Tenji. All the three of us were from Bullseye. I congratulated them too. Aaron Yong was the fourth.
Soon after, more runners started approaching, and when everyone found out I had won the 5km run, they were shocked. The crowd started building up and more runners reached the finish line. Ms June and I had a chat while we waited for prize giving ceremony. Ms June said that it was really unexpected of me to finish the 5km in a record time of 21 minutes and 45 seconds.
After a few moments, Nieshaal Thambipillay touched down at the finish line just like an airliner hitting the runway. He was soon told about my achievements. When he arrived, he had a serious look on his face. He did not know how to react, and then, he gave me a handshake. The crowd cheered.
Lyn Wen also highlighted the fact that I ran and won 5km with only Bata shoes which I normally wear to school. Everyone was shocked, surprised and baffled, but they congratulated me. They had expected the winner to be one of the athletics runners under the school team. Soon, Sean Mark arrived and then found about the news and congratulated me too. Alexandria Goh, Chong Vicky, Ting Yi and Brendan Cheah praised me too. Christopher Chew then took a picture of my Bata shoes with his phone, and Lyn Wen followed suit.
Sean Mark pulled me aside and told me that he would be placing me as one of the runners for the 1500m Sports Day events. “Wei Yiang, I’m putting you in the 1500m for Sports Day,” he said, satisfied with my Founder’s Run performance. I nodded and accepted. Nieshaal Thambipillay soon arrived and then was also surprised at my efforts. When everyone arrived, I was still drinking my water and then mingling with my friends. Sean Mark gave me a 100 Plus drink to revive myself, but I only sipped a bit as I don’t feel comfortable drinking 100 Plus. As news spread, more people were surprised. It took me 21 minutes and 45 seconds to run the 5km, from 9:10am to 9:31am.
Caleb Chuang and I then stood in front of the Bullseye members as everyone lined up according to their houses, and the two of us then started encouraging the students to cheer and warm up to the beat. Then, the teachers then asked all the top 10 runners to line up at the right hand side of the entrance in order to be present for the prize giving ceremony by Auntie Clarine. The winners of the first place sat behind. The winners were presented with the bronze medals from the third through tenth place. The first place winners sat at the back of the line. The winners of the run, other than me, were Nieshaal Thambipillay (10km male), Heng Le Anne (10km female) and Michelle Ott (5km female). Touchdown was also announced as the champion of the 2017 Founder's Run.
As I received my gold medal, Auntie Clarine praised me and said, “Well done, Wei Yiang! Keep it up! Good job, good job!” The house members of Bullseye then said the Bullseye cheer. After the prize giving ceremony, Auntie Clarine praised all of us for doing well and participating in the run. The teachers then presented a bouquet of flowers to Auntie Clarine for her engagement in helping the community via the Fungates Superflow Foundation. Everyone then lined up in our class lines to take our attendance, and then those who were going home with parents were dismissed first. Then, the rest of the students were led to their buses to return to Nobel. Aunty Joyce, Xang Yen’s mum, congratulated me on the endeavor as we headed home. Before we left, I took pictures with Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang and Lyn Wen.
After heading home, I went on a victory lap on bike around my neighborhood to celebrate the achievement. Encik Hari and Encik Hafiz congratulated me when they saw me with my Founder's run t-shirt and gold medal. That evening, Mr Gipson and the two boys congratulated me on my first-place achievement. This achievement would last me for a lifetime and it was so unforgettable, marking a series of long-distance running successes. The only thing to do now was to practice for the 1500m race.
The next day, 9th February, was Thaipusam and we had a holiday. It was a good rest as I informed my neighbor, Mr Hing, on my achievements to which he congratulated me. Everyone in my neighborhood celebrated my success in the Founder's Run. It was so joyful. Even Ms June sent me a congratulatory message as well. We spent the whole day reliving the previous day's events. Then, on 10th February, we had the Cheer Competition where each house would be judged on their cheer. This brought to light a second round of competitions in which the force of Bullseye would be tested/ Everyone had to wear their sports attire that day, gather in the hall during the morning assembly and participate in the cheer competition by screaming and shouting the house cheer.
There were two attempts for Bullseye to overtake the already-powered Touchdown surge. With Touchdown's victory in the 2016 Nobel Cup and the 2017 Founder's Run, and points for 2017 originating from the Nobel Cup, it was very hard for Bullseye to overcome the battle.
The first attempt in the Founder's Run was for me to win the 5km. That was done, and a majority of the Top 10 winners in the 5km category were won by Bullseye. However, the 10km category was won by a few Touchdown members, as well as the female champions for 5km and 10km. Plus, on the other hand, Touchdown had more runners registering for the race, which resulted in a Touchdown win. While I had won the Founder's Run, the ultimate attempt for Bullseye to prize off Touchdown from the leaderboard was foiled. Plan B had to be activated. To do this, I brought along my large megaphone which I made from paper, for the Cheer Competition, to save the sinking ship.
I mean, come on! Mr Narish had given us a new challenge; including the 2016 Nobel Cup scores from November 2016 into the score tally for Sports Day. I had calculated that Bullseye was still second place, based on the winners of Founder's Run 2017.
As the sun rose, I waited for Caleb Chuang at the entrance of the school. I had created a new booklet to copy all the Bullseye information as the Student Organizer was filled with plans, predictions and announcements from Mr Narish jotted on the pages. Soon, the one and only Caleb Chuang arrived, and just in time, a large load of Elementary School students came out of Ms Bee Yong's car with Auntie Clarine. Caleb Chuang and I talked to Auntie Clarine while also wooing and greeting the Elementary School students. The little kids waved, cheered and talked to us, and motivated us to do well for Bullseye as well as our IGCSE exams.
Then, we went into the hall, and I went around the school hall, motivating each Bullseye member from Year 7 to 11 to scream and shout as loudly as possible. However, most Bullseye members, as well as other people, were more fixated on my Founder's Run win than the attempt to prize off Touchdown. I felt quite annoyed, because Touchdown was still leading. We must win this.
Then, Mr Narish announced that everyone was to gather in their sports houses for the Cheer Competition. Bullseye's location was right in front of the left hand corner of the stage. Everyone gathered. Caleb Chuang, Sean Mark and all the Year 11s lined up according to year level. Kelsey, Brandon Ooi and Eric Wong were cheering for me and Caleb Chuang. Ivyna was the most enthusiastic as she talked to the both of us.
“House captains, please gather all your house members and you may start practicing your cheer, okay? Students, please work with your captains,” said Mr Narish, as he walked around the school hall. “Okay, I do not want to see anyone walking around. Please line up according to your houses. I want to see everyone practicing their cheer.”
Sean Mark called everyone for his attention. “Guys, guys, please listen,” he said. Then, he briefed to us on our cheer and how it will work. He talked to everyone while I stood with Caleb Chuang, looking at the crowd.
Sean Mark said that the teachers would give us three chances to belt out our cheer while we cheered as part of the Cheer Competition. Then, he led us in the cheer, and he asked me for my help in motivating them and also for me to scream louder.
“Okay, students, you have five more minutes to practice for your cheer. The judges will be arriving soon,” said Mr Narish.
I was planning to use my megaphone to shout with it but was stopped by Caleb Chuang and Koo Shi Tian as it can penalize Bullseye. Caleb Chuang and I were planning to woo the entire house, and I was planning to scream my lungs out. I then told Caleb Chuang that red is for Republican, blue is for Democrat, and green is for the Green Party and yellow for the Libertarian Party in American politics. It looked cool. He responded by saying, “Please, no politics”.
The hall erupted into chaos as each house screamed and shouted. Soon, we had a shouting match with Touchdown, showing off each other's notion and feats. We screamed as loud as possible as we practiced our cheer and tried to best the cheer with them. Then, the Touchdown people screamed louder and we increased our volume. The Homerunners and Slamdunkers soon got into the mood and participate in the shouting match. The noise level got so loud till Mr Narish had to ask everyone to calm down.
“Okay, students. Students....” he said. The whole hall was screaming and shouting like mad. All the teachers were surprised and in awe over the constant shouting. Then, Mr Narish raised his hand and called for everyone's attention, asking the house captains to get their members to settle down. Mr Narish then told everyone that each house was given three attempts to cheer, and he encouraged everyone to scream loudly on the last attempt.
Mr Narish oversaw the entire event as the judges, consisting of Mr Sures, Ms Ingel, Ms Tan and Ms Cynthia, took down the scores. Bullseye sat in the front-left section of the hall, with Slamdunk next to it, and Touchdown and Homerun behind the hall. Each house was given three attempts to scream their lungs out. Sean Mark was trying his best to encourage the house to shout as loudly as possible.
Mr Narish introduced the four judges to us. Mr Chan himself was to be the teleprompter judge and he was tasked with identifying the loudest house independently of the four judges and would advise them accordingly. As all the teachers arrived into the school hall, we greeted them first. Then, it was time for Mr Narish to give all houses a chance to cheer as he wished all houses the very best.
Touchdown then begun their scream first, followed by Bullseye, Homerun and Slamdunk. When Touchdown started screaming, I was nervous and started calling out to our house members by whispering, “we must scream louder!” As Bullseye was given its turn to scream, Sean Mark and all the Year 11 members started encouraging everyone to scream loudly. “Just scream loudly, okay?” I cried. “Scream as loud as you can!”
Sean Mark then told everyone to remember the house cheer. He had practiced the house cheer that morning and had given each Bullseye member a paper slip containing the words of the cheer. I went to the front of the house where the teachers were standing, and readied myself to shout as loud as I can. Kelsey was covering her ears. She was too shy as everyone looked at Bullseye.
“Bullseye, are you ready?” asked Mr Narish. We all screamed “yes” really loudly.
Sean Mark then stood by my side and Caleb Chuang was behind the Bullseye members. Sean Mark told me to scream as loud as possible. Then, we did the countdown as he gave the signal.
I shouted and screamed as loud as possible. Each house had to stand up and do the cheer moves, and sit down once it is completed. Once we were done, it was Homerun's turn to do so. Each house had to do the cheer three times, and it was in the order of Touchdown, Bullseye, Homerun and Slamdunk.
The first try did not go well for Bullseye, especially for the Year 7 students. They did not shout as loud as they could. Sean Mark asked them to scream louder. Then, I ran back to Caleb Chuang to give him some tips, but I lost my balance and fell. "Careful, careful,” said Caleb Chuang, pulling me up. Then, Melvyn Lim, Ethan Chan and Aaron Yong asked me to cheer. They were so excited.
“Come on, Bullseye! Come, let's go!” I cried.
“Guys! Cheer louder!” cried Sean Mark.
Then, Mr Narish announced a second round of the competition. We were having a second chance as the judges readied their paperwork. Touchdown was the first to cheer. They were opposite us, facing towards us and the stage from behind.
“Touchdown, let's go! One, two, three!” cried Wences. He and Le Anne, his assistant captain for Touchdown, led the charge. Then, it was our turn. Sean Mark and Vicky stood in front. Vicky asked me to stand at the sides, and we cheered. I belted out as loud as possible, frustrated at the fact that some people weren't giving their all. Homerun and Slamdunk belted out their cheers as they screamed and shouted loudly.
Mr Narish then announced the third round, and that everyone would be asked to scream as loud as possible and do certain house moves. He told us to make it as cool as possible. Sean Mark and Vicky taught the house members the moves. Then, it was time for the third round. The Touchdowners screamed and dared us to shout louder. When Bullseye was given the chance, I shouted so loudly that I led out a loud, annoying squeak at the top of my lungs till Kelsey got annoyed. The Homerunners and Slamdunk also erupted in loud rants. This was just like a Bersih protest in the Malaysian context, but it was three times as loud and five times more peaceful.
The house cheers soon ended, and Mr Narish thanked everyone for their time while also reminding us of our next house meet; aka Bullseye National Convention, from 3:30pm to 5:00pm after school hours. All of us screamed and shouted happily at his announcement.
Upon returning back to our classes, we got ready for PE, and Caleb Chuang and I played a football match with Sean Mark after everyone left the hall. Mr Victor told us to only play after the students had left the hall. I chat with Mr Narish on the technicalities of the points scoring system. He told me that the points for the next events would be pasted up soon on a notice board behind the school hall. I confirmed with him some points while meeting him and chatting for a while.
Caleb Chuang and Wei Zhong practiced their striking skills, and Sean Mark joined in as well. I practiced being the defender. Ms Sylvia also kicked one of the balls. Then, Ethan Wong told me that he had heard from the judges that his team had won. “How do you know?” I asked. The two of us gave each other a dare.
Mr Victor gathered all of us and said that he hoped no one's leg was injured from the Founder's Run two days prior. Joshua congratulated me on my Founder's Run endeavour, before we did our push ups, sit ups and all of Mr Victor's classic activities.
During break time, all the Year 11 captains from all four houses were gathered in the canteen. All of them were not happy. It was consensus emotion. There was a large crowd of Year 11 students gathered with them. The atmosphere in the canteen was full of despair and negativity.
All four house captains – including the last-place ranking team, Homerun, represented by Joseph Diong, were not happy with Mr Narish and the management's decision to start the Sports Day 2017 tally from the existing Nobel Cup 2016 scores the previous year instead of resetting it to 0 for all houses.
All Year 11 committee members and a lot of people from Year 11 were there at the meeting. The meeting occupied two long canteen tables. Joseph Diong and Wences were drafting a letter. They were planning to send it to Ms Bee Yong and Mr Narish – to reconsider starting the score count from the Founder's Run 2017 score instead of the Nobel Cup 2016 score, which the four captains from all four houses, namely Sean Mark (Bullseye), Lim Wences (Touchdown), Joseph Diong (Homerun), Brendan Cheah (Slamdunk), as well as the committee members of all four houses – supporting the action.
Sherwin led the discussion. He told everyone that it is not fair to all houses if the scores begun from Nobel Cup 2016, because it was an uneven score and it would not be fair for our batch, who was leading the Sports Day. The announcement that the Sports Day scores would include the 2016 Nobel Cup was a bit far-fetched and caught everyone by surprise. I sat down and watch them discuss the whole thing.
Joseph Diong was also as equally as vocal. He said that as Year 11s, it wasn't fair because all captains were not informed about the inclusion of the 2016 Nobel Cup scores into the 2017 Sports Day tally. Had all of them been informed, they would be given a chance to prepare and to plan.
I then chipped in to give some suggestions as Joseph encouraged some of us to have suggestions. I told him that it wasn't fair too and I also agreed with his juncture. Sherwin then told me that the problem now is that they needed to draft the letter and write a letter to Mr Narish to urge him to re-adjust the scores from their current formatting by excluding the points tally from the Nobel Cup 2016. He told me to hold on as the serious discussion was in progress. Then, Sherwin, Joseph and Sean Mark drafted the letter. All Year 11 committee members from all houses from there. You name them – Yi Zhen, Brendan Cheah, Caleb Chuang, Ethan Wong, Faythe Chow, Sophie Tan, Natasha Singam – all of them were there. We watched them draft the contents of the letter. Wences urged Joseph Diong to put four signatures of the house captains as well as an appendix containing the committee members who were against Mr Narish's points system.
Joseph Diong then ended the meeting. He said that he will prepare a printed letter by the following Monday and urged all the captains to sign it before he passed the letter to Mr Narish. Then, he concluded the meeting, and the crowd dismissed as the assembly time loomed. Sherwin then spoke to me that I shouldn't interrupt people in the middle of the meeting but he said that all four captains were very stressed as they had their commitments on the Malay IGCSE exams and as such. He understood my points and I explained to him the point difference to him should Nobel Cup 2016 be excluded from the Sports Day tally.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely continued with the rest of the Ujian Lisan exercises, but however, Brandon Ooi, Sheng Jit and Ryan Chok went to get their clothes changed throughout her lesson. Frustrated by them being out for long, I wrote their names in the control book just in case time ran out. Cikgu Niely was very disappointed with the three of them and asked if they were not serious on the Malay IGCSE Oral.
During Combined Science, Mr Lee came in. He told us that we had no lab session that week. He also informed us that he was planning to do a frog dissection experiment in the lab with us but it would be done at the end of the month. So, he told us about Hooke's law in the class. He said that for our next lab session, we would be doing some chemical reaction experiments in the lab. Then, we had English, and I went to 11B for Mr Thomas’ lesson. I met Ms Joyce on the way there and told her to sign 11N's class control book. Then, we waited in 11B while Mr Thomas was on his way.
Sherwin and I discussed on the discussions made by the captains. Long story short, he told me that all the house captains were at the time, in the canteen, very unhappy with what Mr Narish did. The fact that even Lim Wences, the captain of Touchdown, being unhappy despite Touchdown leading in the score tally, shows the unity and fairness among all the four captains. He said that me chipping in ideas that moment in the canteen had made a lot of the captains really unhappy and infuriated, but he stood by to keep the peace and prevent conflict, since the captains were really angry with what Mr Narish did and it made the four leaders disappointed and demotivated. He told me that I could attend the discussions, but it would be best to just observe and not chip in as it would make the situation really emotional. I understood his explanation, nodded and he gave me a pat on the back. I then asked him if some people were offended by what I said, but he told me it wasn't an issue to give suggestions; except that it was not the right time to do so at that particular moment. Sherwin told me that the house captains might ask me not to attend the meeting if they were not really happy.
Then, Mr Thomas came into the class. He then told us to settle down. I greeted him.
“Good afternoon, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Good afternoon,” he said. “Have you seen my latest post?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
He asked us to look at his next Edmodo post. It was on writing an essay titled ‘A day in the life of [ourselves]’. He then spoke about writing essays.
“Eh, eh! Are you listening!” he cried.
“Mr Thomas, everyone is really excited about the Cheer Competition. They need time to settle down,” I pleaded.
“I know, I know. But I need to start the lesson now. Can we start?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Aiihhh!!!! You are not ready! You are not responsible for your learning!” Mr Thomas groaned.
“All of you, please settle down,” boomed Mr Thomas.
The class settled down.
“Can we start now?” he asked.
“YES, MR THOMAS!” I cried enthusiastically.
“I can only see one person responsible for his learning. Only one. The rest of you are not responsible,” said Mr Thomas. “I am here waiting for you. All of you are not ready. I had to call so many times.
“Can we please be ready for the class?” he asked.
“YES, MR THOMAS!” cried the class.
“Good. We shall begin,” said Mr Thomas, clicking onto the Edmodo page. He then talked to us about the importance of the Commonwealth Essay Competition. And Mr Thomas also shared a few of previous students’ works for the Commonwealth Essay too. He told us to hand in the essay to him in typewritten manner via Edmodo.
“Today, we are going to learn about descriptive writing. Have you done descriptive writing before?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas then said that descriptive writing was one of the themes given by the Commonwealth Essay Competition but it is also an important theme for our IGCSE exams. Then, he gave us some tasks from Edmodo and we completed it in the class.
Soon after, the following Monday, 13th February, Mr Narish announced the scores for the houses by putting a Powerpoint presentation on the screen of the school hall. Touchdown still led the tally with 587 points. While Bullseye trailed behind with 547 points, it dropped to third place as Slamdunk stuck between Bullseye and Touchdown, logging 578 points. Homerun was in fourth position with 523 points.
Slamdunk won the Cheer Competition, followed by Touchdown, Homerun and finally Bullseye, backing up in last place. Oh dear. I groaned. The full Founder's Run tally was also revealed by Mr Narish. Touchdown won the Founder's Run, followed by Bullseye, Homerun and Slamdunk. It appears that Bullseye still managed second, all thanks to my efforts of practicing for the Founder's Run, as well as the tens of thousands of Bullseye people who took part and won, too. While Bullseye initially trailed behind in registrations, it had the second highest number of registrants on the eve of the Founder's Run.
The whole hall was stunned at the news. In fact, despite screaming as loud as possible, we are at last place. Oh dear! I copied everything down into my specialized Bullseye booklet. Mr Narish announced that the second house meets, or I should say, Bullseye National Convention, would be held after school and this time, for us Bullseye members, we had to gather in the lower canteen.
Then, Ms Lim came to the front and asked everyone to settle down. “I want to see all of you keep quiet! Who is still talking? Why do you all need to talk?” she boomed. She then told everyone that they were noisy and not paying attention to what Mr Narish was talking. Then, she singled out a few people for talking. They responded it was due to Sports Day and the excitement surrounding Mr Narish's announcement.
“Sports Day! So what? Does this mean all of you can talk while people are talking?” asked Ms Lim. She was furious. “If you all want to talk so much, come up here and tell your story,” said Ms Lim. “Maybe we should cancel Sports Day so all of you no need to talk,” she said. The whole hall groaned.
After returning to our class, I then took the control book, gave it to Mr Raja, and contemplated what Mr Narish said. Then, we went for Business Studies with Ms Chithra. “Okay, class, I am going to give you your coursework,” she said. Ms Chithra then handed out the coursework rubrics. We had to do a market research on our products presented the previous year. This meant that we had to use our previous year's group and products. Oh dear, not again. I would need to ensure that my group members get their feet straight. We had to use the same group members, and mine did not go so well. I didn't want another laughing stock again. It was quite an embarassment.
Ms Chithra told us to do what we call a survey among customers for the product. All we had to do was to introduce the product to them, give them a questionnaire and tell them to do the survey and present the results. Ms Chithra said that we will need to present the findings in class. For our group, Ms Chithra told me to create a new product for the coursework since the previous coursework was poorly presented. Then, we talked about effective communication in a business.
Afterwards, we then returned to our class and Ms Sharon gave us our next coursework. Mr Raja, fortunately, had signed the book and Ms Sharon signed it too, even before I asked her to do so. Now, the operations on the control book can move like clockwork.
The coursework was on the GST presentation. Ms Sharon explained to us and we all kept on laughing about the “Government say thank you” tune. Even Ms Sharon also joked with us a little. “Thank you for paying your taxes!” she cried. We all laughed and even Enisha was giggling.
“Thank you for paying your school fees,” groaned Sheng Jit. The whole class continued laughing like mad.
Ms Sharon said that from then on, the rules were changed and that everyone would need to have five members per team. Enisha expressed interest to join mine. Aaron, Gabriel and Glen joined as well.
As we were headed for break time, the house committee members of all the four houses were gathered as Joseph Diong then passed the proposal letter to rescind Mr Narish's current method and restore the old scoring method around to anyone who wanted to sign it. I signed it too. I had just figured out that Wences was not opposed as his team would still be leading in the standings. I groaned. I just listened to what they were talking.
When the meeting was done, I met Caleb Chuang and had some words with him. “Caleb, you see, we should have used the megaphone. Now, we are FOURTH PLACE!” I cried. He just smiled and shrugged. Zi Quan then told me about the house meet later on. He said it was fine if I could not attend the march practices due to Bible Knowledge classes. Caleb Chuang then told me it was fine if I could not attend, since the three of us Year 11s know the moves, and that I had the longest experience as a marcher since Year 7.
“The Bullseye National Convention sounds better than house meet. I like to call it that Zi Quan,” I smiled, telling Zi Quan that. “I don't care about the national convention; why do you want to call it a NATIONAL CONVENTION?” he groaned in a loud tone.
Then, I went to the Art Studio for the art lesson, and Ms Nadia then chose one of the existing photos I had for my Prep 3. “You need to hurry up, Wei Yiang,” said Ms Nadia. “You must finish Prep 4 by next week,” she said.
Ms Nadia then took one of the gate's grill photos with my hand holding the gate and then told me to sketch it. Then, she picked another three more photos involving the gate and I drew all of them. Once I finished, I had to present the drawings to Ms Nadia before beginning to paint on my Prep 3. In fact, all Art students must present their prep work and seek approval from their teachers before adding or removing anything from the prep work.
“What about the annotation?” I asked Ms Nadia. She told me to finish the annotation after the final piece had finished. “If you have finished all the preps but still got time, you can do your annotation,” she said.
Then, it was our Combined Science lesson. Mr Lee walked into the class and Brandon and Shane cheered for him. He then plopped down on the chair, plugged in his thumbdrive, and walked to ask for the control book. This time, I did not remind Mr Lee. He knew what to do. In fact, I had stopped reminding my teachers. I want to see who can be disciplined enough to sign the control book. Then, Mr Lee talked about energy, and he kept on using me and Sean Mark as the examples till the whole class laughed. Then, Mr Lee also informed us that he was not sure about when the frog dissection would be done, but he will let us know at a later date. Shane and Brandon acted evilly as they were really gross on cutting up frogs.
During the class, Grace and Jia Yee had bought Nobel jackets. They had worn their Nobel jackets as they had chosen to buy them and try them on. Jia Yee had a brother in Nobel then, so he had to buy the jackets. They were talking about how nice the outfits were.
Afterwards, during lunch, I spoke to Caleb Chuang on several proposals on how to REVIVE Bullseye's loss from third place. I was confident that Bullseye can restore itself to a first place win. “All we need to do is win most of the competitions,” I said. Mr Narish had not given any more clues, and I was thinking of ways to ensure Bullseye's Sports Day victory. I felt that the victory could be revived and am confident of myself. He told me to propose the proposals to Sean Mark during the Bullseye National Convention which was scheduled that afternoon.
Later on, we had Character Transformation, and Mr Neoh broke us into our groups once again. “How come I only see one control book?” asked Mr Neoh, pointing at 11N's control book. “Who is the class monitor for 11N? Good job. Very good,” said Mr Neoh. The 11N people cheered my name. Sheng Jit just smiled, as all thanks to my actions, he was being praised.
Mr Neoh talked to us about team management as well as leadership. He said that it was wise for us to have good leadership and he also emphasized the upcoming Leadership Camp during the coming weekend. “How many of you are student leaders here?” he asked. I was one of the people who raised their hands. Mr Neoh then spoke about the qualities of a good leader and showed us pictures of Thomas Edison, Barack Obama, and Malaysia's then-prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak. When Najib's photo was shown, a lot of people laughed at him as he was doing a weird pose on the camera. Mr Neoh told us not to laugh at him unless we wanted the police car at our doorstep.
Then, Mr Neoh asked someone to name all the prime ministers of Malaysia. I named all of them correctly and the whole hall clapped for me. “He should be the Prime Minister, right?” he asked, as the whole hall cheered for me. Some people like Eugene Ho and Jien Min, had repeatedly suggested for me to become prime minister of Malaysia in the future. There were cries in the crowd for me to be the next prime minister, especially from Brandon and Sheng Jit, since they see my control book management being exemplary.
Mr Neoh then told us that being leaders are just one thing, but most importantly is that everyone should have a capabilities of a leader. He said that we need to be leaders of ourselves in order to do well in the IGCSE exams that will arise at the end of 2017.
Soon, it was the end of the Character Transformation session, and we went for our Global Perspectives lesson with Mr Gallagher.
Mr Gallagher then told us to finalize our project proposal with him. Vicky asked for one of my tasks, to which I presented them to her. Then, Mr Gallagher said that he will be seeing each group for their draft project proposal and to check on their project plan for approval. Then, Vicky spent some time with Mr Gallagher talking about their project plan. I stood next to Vicky and Ellie, who was accompanying her, to see what did Mr Gallagher told us. He gave some good comments but told us to refine the report.
Once Global Perspectives ended, I went up to 11N. Ms Janice had told me she had signed the book. I breathe a sigh of relief. I then collected the Smartboard equipment and the control book and returned those materials to the pigeon hole in front of the Management Office before heading down the staircase near the Management Office to head to the lower canteen. Upon reaching there, all the Bullseye members were present. The younger students all cheered my arrival, particularly, Areeya Amali, Yap Dawn, Christen Chew and Esther Yong.
“Wei Yiang, you won Founder's Run! Good job!” cried Areeya. Then, Caleb Chuang arrived. He grinned and smiled. “Hi, Caleb,” said Areeya and Yap Dawn.
“Areeya, you see, we lost the Cheer Competition, all because I did not use the megaphone. You see, Caleb Chuang and I planned to use this one big megaphone for the Cheer Competition, but some people said it was illegal and now you see? We lost!” I cried. Areeya then cheekily jibed at Yap Dawn and Elissa Carmen for not screaming during the Cheer Competition. “Areeya, I screamed as loud as possible!” I cried. Then, Areeya and Elissa then told Caleb Chuang that he should have been screaming during the Cheer Competition.
Soon, more people arrived. Then, I proposed to Areeya the Bullseye National Convention branding to replace the ‘house meet’ term. Areeya liked it. Then, Sean Mark arrived with Vicky and the rest of the Bullseye people from Year 11. Cikgu Baliah soon arrived and asked everyone to settle down. When everyone arrived and had settled down, Sean Mark begun briefing to us a new, developing and important agenda.
Sean Mark said that Chong Vicky would be the new assistant house captain after the previous assistant captain, Chia Yan Ying, left for the United Kingdom to study in a high school there. “Are you guys okay with Vicky being assistant captain?” asked Sean Mark. We all said yes. By the way, Yan Ying had a final farewell on 20th January, just before the Chinese New Year holidays. Her friends, Ivyna and Pei Chi, took pictures with her, as well as Janelle Tan and Isabella Wong in 11N. The whole class on that day also wished farewell to her, although she stayed on till the commencement of the Chinese New Year holidays.
I was actually wondering why Vicky was chosen without the consent of the Bullseye members. Perhaps, Sean Mark may have no time to announce a new house captain election, but I believe he should have asked for volunteers to run for the assistant captain's post instead of the committee asking Vicky to be assistant captain. But we all accepted it. In fact, I accepted it because Vicky had a strong face and serious tenacity. Surely, we could jumpstart the Bullseye loss into a Bullseye win.
Sean Mark also announced that the practices for the Sports Day events would begin soon and that the entire house needs to start participating, as we had dropped to third place as announced by Mr Narish. Vicky then pointed out that they needed more marchers for Sports Day and only five to ten marchers were present every practice session, including the march captains, Caleb and Zi Quan, as well as me. “We also need more people for dance and banner”, Vicky chimed.
The five regular marchers, other than me, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan, were Andria Tan and Yeo Khaining, who were from Year 7 then. These two girls kept on coming for regular practices, and Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan regularly praised them. Other than those two, Lee Kai Yang, Kok Jian Yang, Wern Shern and Benjamin Lew were the regulars.
As you can see, the biggest constraint is also if people are involved in two events, and they might not be able to attend every practice session. I am involved in the marchpast as well as the 1500m tryouts for the Pre Sports Events. Adding to that, I also have Bible Knowledge classes every Wednesday evening in addition to the Monitor’s Council meeting on Monday and the practices are Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. As such, Vicky, along with Caleb and Sean, said that there is literally no time as Sports Day occurs in a month’s time (31st March 2017). Therefore, a lot of effort is needed to raise Bullseye’s standing within a month. I can mentally see the exit from the dark hole and had hopes for a fourth Bullseye victory year. I wanted to give some motivation but Vicky told me to let her speak as she had important things to say.
Each captain was told to begin practices immediately. Vicky then introduced all the captains once again and told everyone to register. Vicky also asked those who had marched the previous year to return for practices. This was in particular for those who had done those activities to return as their memory was still fresh in those activities from the year 2016. So, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan begun to take in more marchers, and Jason Leing approached me thereafter. He said he will begin athletics practice for us Bullseye members the next day. On the other hand, I was planning some great plans to give Bullseye a shot in the arm to head back to the top spot.
Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang also got involved in the dance for Bullseye. As a result, he also hadn’t had time to attend and co-ordinate the march practices. As a result, Caleb and Zi Quan requested for me to join marching to substitute them while they go for other activities. Benjamin Lew was also substituting as well when Caleb Chuang and I headed for Bible Knowledge class, and also when I was doing my athletics training with Jason Leing. And for athletics training, it is always held on Mondays when all the athletes contesting all categories in Sports Day will gather at the canteen before heading down via the staircase and exiting via Tadika Sri Nobel to head to the PE field.
Each house was named a level representative by Vicky and Sean Mark. The Year 8s were represented by Areeya Amali; the Year 9s by Ying She and Chia Zheng, and the Year 10s by Shi Tian. The Year 7 representatives would be chosen by Vicky and Sean Mark via consultations at a later date. There were plans to introduce both male and female representatives for each level.
The next morning, on 14th February, Mr Kevin Wai met us in class and he asked me if I was going to the Leadership Camp. I said yes. He then briefed me on the technicalities of the camp. Then, during Science, Mr Lee continued to brief us on Hooke's Law and gave us some worksheets to do on time, distance and speed measurements. He reiterated from the previous day, comparing me and Sean Mark's running velocity.
After Mr Lee did some worksheets with us, and when Ms Sharon came in, Brandon Ooi wanted to use the washroom, but however, I told him to sign the control book. He refused and groaned. Then, Ryan Chok also followed him.
“Class, please remember to sign the control book when leaving the class, okay? Your monitor is asking you to sign!” cried Ms Sharon. Then, we continued our Economics lesson. “Anyone has questions on the coursework?” asked Ms Sharon. I then asked her a few questions on the coursework. Enisha begged me not to put “Thank you for paying your taxes!” on the slideshow or else she will get angry with me.
Then, Ms Sharon told us to calculate consumer price index (CPI) by looking at the basket of goods which is a component used to calculate CPI. The basket of goods involves the things people buy. We also looked at the various weighted price indexes of goods and services. Then, she taught us about inflation about how high prices can get, and how deflation can affect monetary value, in the case of Japan deflating its currency too much till they had economic problems. Ms Sharon said that Japan was the second largest economy in Asia at the time and was almost overtaking China till the deflation crisis in the 1990s. And she also mentioned that it took more than 20 years for Japan to recover around half of what they originally were at.
Once we finished the lesson, we went for break, and I told Caleb Chuang the latest plans to revive Bullseye. I felt like reviving Bullseye's performance badly. “Captain Cheah and Captain Wong are now ahead of us!” I cried, using the term ‘captain’ in front of Brendan Cheah and Ethan Wong's surnames.
The plan that I proposed to Caleb Chuang was very ambitious. The first thing I did was to flirt with the idea of putting the drones to fly over the Sports Day. “It would look very cool, right, Caleb?” I cried. However, I told him that people needed licenses to fly the drones, and as such, the project was cancelled.
Then, I told him that we should revive the banner project from 2016. “Last time, Sabrina told me not to display the banner as it looked like propaganda. This time, we need to draw it in a way that is not as such,” I said. I also told him that for the athletes, we need to improve their meals. “I will tell Jason later when I meet him for athletics training,” I said.
I also proposed to Caleb Chuang more of my ideas. He spent the entire break time listening to what I told him. I then told him that we should have some additional flags for the Sports Day, and it was too boring having that one nonsensical official flag from the school. It would look great if we have tons of big flags for the Sports Day to complement the existing big red flag given for Sports Day to Bullseye. However, the most important thing that I told Caleb Chuang was that we will need to win the notice board competition. In fact, I had big plans for the notice board contest. By winning the notice board contest, we will be able to best Touchdown's 40 point gap between us, overtaking Slamdunk in the process. All that was needed afterwards was to win many of the Pre Sports Events, which Bullseye can do so no thanks to the best runners and sportspeople, which would allow us to eclipse Touchdown and GET BACK ON TRACK!
“I can see the solution to our problems,” I told Caleb Chuang. “But first, I will come up with the proposals for the banner for my side, the notice board, and then I will suggest to Jason my strategy. We can win. Surely. We can win,” I told Caleb Chuang. We managed to finish the discussion before Julian Ong arrived. He was from Touchdown, and I don’t want to be giving away strategies to other houses. Otherwise, we will lose.
Then, once we were done, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson. I met Vicky in the class and had plans to talk to her about the Bullseye initiatives I had planned. Then, I told her about my plans that I discussed with Caleb Chuang. “Wei Yiang! Don't worry! Everything is UNDER CONTROL! Relax,” she said. I then told her of my suggestions that we do well in the athletics events and the notice board. “I know! I know! Relax. Chill. You really need to chill,” said Vicky. Then, Mr Gallagher told everyone to begin their project writeup and pass it to him by the end of the week. Vicky and Ellie Lim did most of the writeups.
Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan asked for updates on our coursework before she gave us some worksheets to do in class. I managed to call Ms Janice as she forgot to sign the control book before leaving the class. Some people also asked Ms Bee Yan on the coursework.
During lunchtime, I told Caleb Chuang that I had proposed the plans to Vicky. He told me that it was good. Then, I suggested to him that the Bullseye Notice Board be fitted with two big Bullseye flags on flagpoles beside the banner, and that Bullseye's name should be covered in festive lighting so that it would look so cool and attract people to look at Bullseye's Notice Board. I also met Mr Narish and then told him about the guidelines for the notice board competition. He said he will put the guidelines up later. Each house had to create a notice board design based on the theme of Sports Day, which is ‘Soaring Together’.
I haven't talked about the theme of Sports Day. Since the beginning of the year, prior to Trump's inauguration, and from the previous year, all of us were fixated on the US Presidential Election. The theme for Sports Day, ‘Soaring Together’ resembles the motto for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, ‘STRONGER Together’. I also told everyone in our year batch about the gross resemblance between the two themes. They shrugged my reasoning and also laughed on it. The motto for Donald Trump was ‘Make America Great Again’. And of course, I always kept bringing my plans forward to ‘Make Bullseye Great Again’.
Then, we had History, and Ms Visa told us more about the Berlin Blockade and how the Soviets tried to prevent aid from reaching West Berlin in order to allow the West Berliners to suffer. The Americans and British knew that if West Berlin starved because of the lack of transport, communications and food and water supplies, it would be gobbled up by East Germany and result in West Berlin falling to communism. The Americans wanted to prevent West Berlin from being occupied by communist forces, and risked their lives flying over East Germany which led to the Soviets and East Germans spying on the airspace to destroy Western aircraft.
Then, we had Art, and I went to the Art Studio to begin work on the Prep 3. I showed more photos to Ms Nadia, who told me to trace some of the images. I spent the entire lesson tracing. Then, once I was done, Ms Nadia told me to bring some tissue paper and newspaper to apply some texture onto my sketched hand on the art paper. Before long, school had ended, and I rushed up to 11N to get my bags and ensure Ms Sarah signed the control book. Then, I was off to the upper canteen to leave my bags before going to change at the washroom to my sports attire.
Sean Mark and Jason Leing were waiting for us at the lower canteen. We were about to head off to the PE field for our first tryout session. I spoke to Jason and Sean Mark about the plans I discussed with Caleb Chuang. “Very good, very good,” said Jason, amazed at the plans. Then, Jason and Sean asked me to propose the plans to Ivyna, who was also going for tryouts. She also liked the plans me and Caleb Chuang presented and discussed during break and lunch time. All Bullseye members were in agreement with the plans. “The only way to start is to practice today,” I said to everyone. The Bullseye members responded with loud applause.
Soon, everyone was asked to head for the PE field. I then walked and talked to Sean and Jason while also briefing them about the best meals for track and field athletes. Then, I proposed that every Bullseye member eat ginger onions and I also told Jason that my aunt can send the recipe for the ginger onions. Eating ginger onions can cause one to release a lot of gas. I jokingly told Jason that by doing so, it will release toxins, which will allow our body to run at our best; propel the athlete quickly just like a rocket, using propulsion and velocity as taught by Mr Lee, as well as impede the movements of our opponents since they will smell a terrible stench from the process. Jason laughed and told me to send him the recipe.
“You farted a lot of times when you were in Year 7,” said Sean Mark, calling back memories when I passed a lot of gas.
Upon reaching the PE field, we gathered for a warm up. Jason did a warm up exercise with us. This was then followed by three laps of running around the field. I ran as fast as possible as me, Sean Mark and Jason raced each other. We were then directed to train for our respective categories.
Jason said we will be directed for athletics tryouts, but he said mine was not going to be going via the proper channels as he had confirmed I have been registered for the 1500m in the list. However, he said he would still want to record my timing in the 1500m. So I ran, and then I recorded the perfect timing. Jason was satisfied and said he will enlist me as the athletes for Bullseye. Following the training, I also decided that the same training method that I used for the Founder’s Run would also be enlisted for the 1500m. However, the problem was that I did not have access to an athletics track at my house unlike the hills I trained for Founder’s Run. So, I decided to focus on sprinting as much as possible on a short distance route at my neighborhood. After returning back to school, I asked Ms Sylvia on speed improvements and she said I should sprint 10 meters as much as possible and record the timings. Then, I went home, met Encik Hafiz and Encik Hari, who told me to just sprint. So, I did.
I chose the steepest spot to train. Coincidentally, it was in front of Yi Zhen's house. I greeted her when she arrived home.
The next morning, Mr Narish then gave another briefing. This time, it was on the Leadership Camp. He asked all those who were going to stay back after the assembly. So, as I was one of the participants, I had to stay back. Mr Narish said we would gather in the hall on Friday, 17th February and head to our buses which will take us to Trolak Residence for the camp. We had to be at the hall at 1:45pm, and our buses would depart at 2:00pm. He gave us a list which outlined what we should bring for our camp. Then, he outlined logistics, such as accommodation and activities for the day. He told us to at least bring four sets of clothes to change into while at the camp. We were also told to bring our pencil case and stationery.
After Mr Narish's briefing, I went to take my control book and head back to 11N. Ms Joyce was in the class for the English Second class.
“Sorry, Ms Joyce, I was attending a briefing by Mr Narish on Leadership Camp,” I said. Ms Joyce then told me to leave the Smartboard stationery in front. I placed it at the back as I was afraid that she won't allow me to enter the class. Ms Joyce then allowed me to put the Smartboard equipment and Control Book in front of the class. “Go for your class. I will put it myself,” said Ms Joyce. Then, I frantically rushed out and almost fell. The whole class laughed as Ms Joyce was worried for me. Then, I left quickly as Ms Joyce told me I was wasting her class’ time.
Back in Mr Thomas’ class, Aaron Loke and Isabella Wong had arrived from the Leadership Camp as Mr Thomas gave us time to settle down. He had an understanding attitude as he flicked on his Edmodo page. “We are very late already. Please settle down,” he told us. He told us to hand in our books with our essays titled, ‘A day in the life of...’ to him. Aaron Loke and Sherwin collected our books. Then, Mr Thomas said he would mark them and present the books back to us the next day. He then spoke about the Mary Celeste, a mystery ship that saw its occupants disappear mysteriously onboard the vessel.
After Mr Thomas’ lesson, we then headed back to 11N where I got the Smartboard equipment settled. Fortunately, Ms Joyce wasn't using the Smartboard. Then, I placed the Smartboard pen and eraser onto the tray of the board and then got the control book in order. I then reminded my classmates to sign the control book before they left for the loo. Then, I presented the control book to Mr Raja, helped him set up the computer, put my bags in class, as I had taken them to 11B with me since Ms Joyce does not want people intermittently entering and exiting the room, got my books ready, and headed to Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson.
Ms Chithra then taught us about effective communication where information can be easily passed around and understood. We also learned about the ways and methods of how people communicate in the workplace. She then gave us a worksheet, which we spent doing in class. I had to help Gabriel understand his worksheet. Sophie and Nicole used the time to say “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” again. Ms Chithra then had to tell them to do their work each time. “Do your work!” she cried.
During break time, Caleb Chuang and I discussed about the Leadership Camp and my conversations with Vicky, Jason and Sean Mark on the plans. Now that the Bullseye members understood what was expected of them, it was up to the committee to plan the next moves. The first thing to do was to discuss the notice board plans.
I then took out a piece of paper and drew the notice board plans to Caleb Chuang. Then, I went to Jason Leing and told him that I will pass him the ginger onion recipe when my aunt was done writing it. He was okay with that. He was even more impressed when I showed him the plans. With all the core people in agreement with the plans in principle, the road to victory was on full swing – a bit in full swing.
During Global Perspectives, I then presented the notice board plans to Vicky, but however she told me to calm down once again. Then, I told her that Bullseye will lose if she didn't heed the plans. She was busy presenting plans to Mr Gallagher.
When Vicky arrived back and took a look at my sketch of the notice board, she nodded and told me to present it to Janelle Arnelia, who was in charge of designing the board. This was a new development to consider. I had to bring the plans to Janelle. Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan continued her lesson with more matrices.
I decided to approach Janelle during lunch to discuss with her on the plans, but however, she was busy. She said she would be busy for the whole week. So, I just waited and tried to be as cool as possible. My heart was racing to get the Bullseye rankings back on track. Everyone looked forward to a day which Bullseye would overtake Slamdunk and Touchdown. We all wondered when would it be.
After lunch, Ms Nadia gave me the green light to begin painting my Prep 3. However, I told her that I plan to put newspaper on my hands instead of tissue paper and she agreed with that. As I did not bring old newspapers that day, I decided to paint two of the drawings on the prep work. Ms Nadia said that it was important that I find something to do in class which is beneficial to completing my prep for the time being just in case I forgot something.
I initially planned to just cut a newspaper in the shape of my hand and just stick it on the art paper, but Ms Nadia said that it is better to tear the newspaper up and repeatedly stick it to form some paper-mache type of thing. The key that Ms Nadia said was to have texture. “Bring some glue as well,” she said.
I did some painting of the two preps and then managed to finished 50 percent of Prep 3. However, Ms Nadia told me to do some touch ups on some of the paintings. Then, it was History, and I told Eric and Brandon about what was being discussed between me and Caleb Chuang. Brandon and Eric weren't too amused to listen to me.
“But we are Bullseye members!” I cried. “We must do something!” Kelsey then snapped at Brandon. “Yeah, you must do something. Wei Yiang is proposing for your house,” she said.
Then, Ms Visa came into the room. “Hi, Ms Visa!” cried Brandon. Ms Visa then arrived, placed her things down and we continued our lesson on History. There were noticably no slides in the class. Ms Visa told us that Ms Cynthia had slides but it was all on words, and it may be so boring for us to see.
Afterwards, for the first time since January, we had our Bible Knowledge lesson where Ms Renee discussed the Bible Knowledge questions and homework with us. It had been a long time since we met, as time was used for the Founder's Run, the Chinese New Year holidays, and the like.
Ms Renee praised me for my control book management. She had a short chat with me on the management of the control book, stating that I was the only monitor who had completed the control book. Then, she talked to me about the Leadership Camp, where she comforted me as to which I expressed my sadness of being away from home and that it was my first camp ever in Nobel. There would only be two camps I would experience; the Leadership Camp and the Study Camp. We then had a long discussion and prayer on our week ahead during Bible Knowledge.
The next morning, I sat down with Zi Quan in the courtyard when I arrived at school to tell my Bullseye plans to him as well as explain about my Bible Knowledge lessons and that I could not attend the marching practices due to them on Wednesdays. While he did not care about whether I attended the marchpast drills, he wasn't in good tune to listen to the long list of Bullseye plans and proposals.
Ms Sharon came into the class and then we did a recap of the CPI index before venturing into inflation and deflation. Then, she did a 3-2-1 exercise with us, which are namely three things that we learnt so far, two things we wish to know more about, and one question that I have.
The three things that had I learnt so far in Economics were the causes of inflation and deflation, benefits of inflation and deflation and how the government reacts to inflation and deflation. The two things that I wish to know more about is the Japanese deflation and subsequent economic problem as well as how Japan recovered from the economic problem. The one question that I had was as to how a government can prevent complete inflation and deflation, as well as the beginning effects of inflation and deflation without resorting to raising or lowering interest rates and taxes. Ms Sharon said that I had really good answers and she was fascinated by that one last question. Each person was then handed another partner's worksheet to view it. I gave mine to Sheng Jit and he gave me his. Sheng Jit read out my answer to the class and I read his. Some people gave a lot of weird answers. One of them described the three things that he or she learnt in Economics was ‘eat, sleep and repeat’, the two things to learn more are ‘how to improve in Econs’ and ‘how to write essays’, the latter being the fact that a lot of essay questions are required in Year 10 and 11, and the final question as ‘when is my exam’. Ms Sharon said that it was okay for us to admit our mistakes on the worksheet as it would give us a chance to improve and that she told us that she can help us improve in Economics.
There was another worksheet seen with all answers as ‘I don't know’, which made the whole class laugh. Some people asked the final question as ‘why is Ms Sharon teaching me and not Ms Levina’, since some people miss Ms Levina's class. Ms Sharon said that she received word from Ms Levina that some people were horsing around in her class the previous year and gave a stern lecture on that. Some people even some bad things on the worksheet, such as saying that this or that person is ugly, and Ms Sharon wasn’t happy with that. Ms Sharon then talked about the Japanese economic issues since I asked about that. She also said that my question on how the government prevent the early effects of inflation is not accurate because it is very difficult to predict the early effects of inflation and also the fact that raising and lowering interest rates and tax rates is a must for every government to overcome inflation and deflation, and nobody; not even a government, could predict or even escape the inflation process. Hence, she told me that it is very difficult for an economist to foresee inflation because some of the early effects of inflation cannot be construed as inflation and that economists need to observe for a longer period the trend of financial markets before deciding on whether an inflation is occurring and many economists cannot agree on whether to define or declare an inflation or deflation. She also said that governments cannot prevent inflation or deflation, but their only role is to respond to inflation and deflation. “You will learn this later on in the following chapters,” said Ms Sharon.
Then, Ms Cynthia came into the class for Malaysian Studies and talked about race relations in Malaysia. She first asked us how many of us know our neighbors or know someone from another race. Fortunately, I know neighbors or have met people from different races outside of school. Ms Cynthia shook her head in disgust. She said that this showed that racial relations in Malaysia are not as good as in the olden days, where most people were able to know other people of different races and cultures outside of school or work. She first talked about the five main ethnic groups in Malaysia; the most prominent ones were the Malay, Chinese and Indian races while also containing the Iban and Kadazan cultures too, originating from Sarawak and Sabah.
During break time, I spoke to Zi Quan but he was not in a really good mood. He kept on bragging for me not to disturb him. Then, I went to speak with Caleb Chuang instead, to finalize the plans. Being bored of what was happening, I waited in the school hall for assembly to start while Christopher Chew and Sheng Jit did their parkour moves. I also thought about the next day's Leadership Camp. It was my first camp in Nobel. I would be facing such challenges for the first time.
When we returned to the class for Business Studies, Ms Chithra then continued the topic with marketing strategies. Nicole said that Ms Chithra can market herself as a beautiful and gorgeous teacher, to which Ms Chithra said that she wasn't interested in that. Then, we had History, and finally, Malay.
Cikgu Niely has also been busy with us lately as we have to prepare for the Malay IGCSE Oral Examination which is held in March, as well as the Malay IGCSE Trial which is held a few days after the oral exams. Cikgu Niely encouraged me to communicate in Malay with my mum at home so that I can build up fluency in Malay for the IGCSE Orals. Aside from that, some people had to prepare for Mandarin IGCSE as well with Ms Ting (Mandarin Second Language) and Mr Steve (Mandarin Foreign Language). Thus, Cikgu Niely had been conducting exercises with us on how to speak Malay in class as well as answer basic comprehensive questions in Malay. However, the most relaxed teacher in my opinion is Mr Lee Eng Hoe, our Combined Science teacher. Mr Lee has taught Combined Science in the past as what Ms Sangeetha said, and he is also the Physics teacher. His lessons are very exciting and his class, 11L, always goes wild upon seeing him enter the class. Several students and classes which he teach would always cheer and shout as he goes to different classes for the Physics lessons. Mr Lee has had been using the time to teach us and the class wooed as he presented interesting concepts for the lesson. Mr Lee, unlike other teachers, would keep his cool.
Anyhow, Cikgu Niely then told everyone that the performance for the mock Malay Oral was quite horrible across the board and we needed to improve. So, to settle the issue, she gave us tips on how to answer the questions for the Malay Oral. However, many people kept talking and Cikgu Niely got very frustrated with them.
After the class, I asked Cikgu Niely to give some feedback on my performance in the Oral and how to improve. Cikgu Niely reiterated her feedback and was consistent; get my mum to do the oral questions with me on the various past year papers and practice the questions with me while also practicing to speak with me at home in Malay. She also told me to prepare a speech in Malay to be tested in the exam. These were crucial to answer the three parts of the Malay Oral paper; namely a role-play card, which Cikgu Niely did with us in the class; a speech presentation as well as a basic question-and-answer session in the exam hall. Cikgu Niely believed that by speaking well in Malay, I would be able to improve in all aspects of the oral presentation. Then, I gave the control book to Cikgu Niely to sign it.
During lunch, I looked at the past year papers which I had brought to school that contained the role play cards and read them. I thought to myself about what Cikgu Niely said. I needed to speak to my mum regarding the matter. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan gave us another worksheet to do. And Mr Thomas also did more paragraphs with us.
I then trudged down to the ICT lab for my Editorial Board CCA with Ms Levina. Shi Tian, being elected as editor-in-chief, had told us to do some interviews. I was told to do an interview regarding a community project section which Shi Tian planned to include in the 2017 Yearbook. I chose Shaun Ting and San Ying as part of the people to be interviewed.
At the end of the week, we had the Leadership Camp which ran from 17th to 19th February at Trolak Residence, Sungkai, Perak. All the monitors, prefects, librarians, CCA club presidents and vice presidents, as well as the house captain and the assistant house captain are involved. Since joining Nobel, at the time, this was the first out of two camps that I took part in Nobel, the other being the Study Camp which will be explained later.
On 17th February, I came to school thinking about home as I carried my luggage. Then, I met with some of my friends who comforted me. Out of all the Year 11s, I was the only one from the Combined Science class who was attending. We then had Homeroom time and then PE class. Mr Kevin wished me the best and praised me for representing 11N for the Leadership Camp. As I did my push-ups and sit ups with Gabriel Lim, he was comforting me and saying everything would be alright. Afterwards, we then had Malay, followed by Combined Science and then English with Mr Thomas. During Combined Science, Lyn Wen was also saying it’s alright while Mr Lee was testing one of the chemicals at our table in the test tube, and Lyn Wen was a bit scared that Mr Lee poured a corrosive chemical on his hand while testing, as Mr Lee was trying to test the chemicals’ reactivity on our table as we were studying chemicals in the science lab.
Mr Lee had taught us about chemicals, as well as how forensic investigators identify a criminal. And as such, he had given a lot of examples on the assassination of Kim Jong Nam at KLIA2. There was a really bad diplomatic spat between Malaysia and North Korea, and Mr Lee was using the example of Kim Jong Nam's assassination for our experiment.
After English class ended, the people who were going for Leadership Camp went to the hall to gather for departure. We were assigned to our bus number and then ushered on board the bus. As the bus departed, I could spot Enisha and Cassandra playing basketball at the futsal court near the school entrance. We then sped off and were driven to the LDP Highway, past Mutiara Damansara and onto Jalan Sungai Buloh to head to the North South Expressway. I tried to cheer myself up by looking at the then newly-completed Sungai Buloh MRT station next to the highway. The urban scenery soon gave way to a rural countryside. After we exited at the Sungkai exit of the highway, the bus then brought us along a narrow, windy road before we passed a couple of traffic lights and reached Trolak Residence. The bus slowly pulled as Ting Yi tried to catch a glimpse of the entrance.
The bus stopped in front of a large parking lot as we made our way to the Convention Centre which is a medium-sized hall in which we will use for our activities. Mr Narish gathered everyone for a briefing and then we placed our bags down. Mr Narish outlined the activities for the next three days at the resort. Afterwards, we went to our dorm rooms to place our bags before we came back to the Convention Center for an icebreaking activity. Before the icebreaking activity, Mr Narish continued his briefing by outlining the do’s and don’ts while at camp. For instance, we were not allowed to wander off on our own without the teacher’s permission, and if we do need to go somewhere, a teacher would need to accompany us. Afterwards, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong then gave speeches. Ms Lim encouraged us to enjoy our time while we are at the resort, and Ms Bee Yong said that once the camp ends, we should focus on our studies after having some fun.
Mr Narish then divided us into groups. Each group had a name and is named after a tree. Mine was Maple, and there are other groups with names like Hickory, Oak, and so on. He said we would stay in our groups for the duration of the camp. I was in the same group as Chong Vicky, Harini who is Pranavee’s sister as well as Sophia Chang.
Later, we had dinner at the Anjung Restaurant. This restaurant has a great view of the scenery which is covered with lush green forests and oil palm plantations. Occasionally, there would be a loud, sharp, screeching noise of the KTM Electric Train Service coach passing by the resort. I would usually sit the train from KL Sentral to Penang when heading to visit my grandparents for Chinese New Year. The noise would make me think of home. I was stuck in the middle between home in the Klang Valley, and my grandparents’ hometown at Penang.
I sat down with Joshua Chew to discuss the housekeeping for the night. Joshua said I can approach him if I needed anything, and that any concerns that I have would be answered by him. This is because Joshua understands I am at the first time at camp, and he told me during our PE lesson to book a room with him. I slept in the same room with Joshua, Julian Ong (president of Badminton CCA) and Daarshan who is a librarian from Year 7. Before dinner, Ms Lim told me to grow up as I was missing home.
After dinner, we gathered at the convention centre to listen to a talk by Mr Chan. Mr Chan then spoke on servant leadership to us. His voice appeared bold and wise as he told us his life experiences. Mr Chan then said that servant leadership is leading from behind and in a way to help people improve. “Servant leadership is about leading by example, and by helping one another with good character,” he said. Mr Chan also pointed out that servant leadership is not about enriching oneself, but of that of the community. He also gave examples of people such as Nelson Mandela and even Auntie Clarine who lead by servant leadership. After that, we then had a short break before listening to Ms Kay give a speech on building trust as a leader.
The next morning, we had a captain ball match after getting up and having our breakfast. I got up very early, at around 5:00am to have a walk. At around 6:00am, after walking around the ground floor I greeted Ms Bee Yong. “Morning, Wei Yiang. You’re early today.” I told Ms Bee Yong that normally I would wake up at around 6:00am everyday. Soon afterwards, more people started getting up as the hour passed, got some snacks from Anjung Restaurant and headed towards the large carpark outside the convention centre. The teachers then gathered us into our groups to play captain ball with the other teams. Some groups were hesitant who should go first or select in the match. Mr Narish chimed in and said, “Let’s go democratic. Who supports him as team leader?” Eventually, the situation was settled.
Kai Yee’s team was very strong as they managed to battle the other teams. The teachers intended for us to have a refreshing morning and a start to the day. I was also given the chance to use two of my hands to bounce the ball. It was an interesting competition and a warm up for our day.
After the captain ball match ended, everyone went for an additional mid-morning breakfast at the Anjung Restaurant before gathering at the Convention Centre. I was one of the first to arrive at the Convention Centre and greeted Ms Kay when arriving. A few minutes later, everyone arrived and settled in their groups, where we played the next game of the camp. The goal was for everyone to hold a string in our hand and try to balance a ball using the strings. We had to work as a team to do so. In front of me, I saw Pranavee’s team trying to balance their ball as much as possible with a great amount of success. Our team managed to co-ordinate the balance well.
Once this game ended, Ms Cynthia then gave a talk on the leadership boards in Nobel and how is it important for leaders to work as a team to co-ordinate the expertise of the school. Ms Cynthia said that as student leaders, we consist of three leadership bodies in Nobel which are the Monitor’s Council, Librarian Board and the Prefectorial Board and that our scope of task, each areas are different.
The Monitor’s Council handles the classroom affairs, followed by the librarians and then the prefects. The prefectorial board handles the biggest scope of tasks because their tasks cover the entire school and include checking on students who violate the school rules. Ms Cynthia mentioned that everyone in the school would need to work together as we can lend our expertise to help solve problems that affect the school. After Ms Cynthia’s speech, we headed to the Anjung Restaurant for lunch. I got to eat some chicken rice with vegetables while sitting with some of my teachers to have lunch. Following lunch, the next event was an obstacle course activity followed by a boat-rowing event. Everyone had to make their way to the convention centre to gather for a briefing by Mr Narish which he outlined the activities for the afternoon. Mr Narish said that the boat rowing event would occur in the evening after the weather is cooler and that we would need to go to the obstacle course. Everyone lined up and Mr Narish then led us to the obstacle course which is located close to the railway line. The obstacle course consisted of a plank where we had to walk across, monkey bars, a tunnel to crawl under and more crazy things. Each group had to complete every course within the fastest time. We had to do a total of around eight courses. The teachers also tried their luck to do the course as well.
Once all groups were finished, everyone gathered at the lake for the boat racing competition. The aim was to row our boat from one end of the lake to the other and the first team to reach the finish line would be the winner. Mr Chan then took photos of the race as we started putting on our life jackets. The boat race consisted of a canoe that had two containers attached to the side and one large container in the centre where we sat. Each one of us was given a long stick with two paddles to paddle the boat as it glided across the water.
As our team had to race the boat fast, each team was anxiously trying to row their vessel across the lake. We gave each other encouragement to row the boat fast, and because we had to paddle quickly, a lot of water got splashed around us and a lot of us got wet. Sophia Chang was not amused from the fact that I paddled too quickly and splashed water over her by accident.
Once the race ended, we then proceeded for dinner. Yi Zhen, Co Sheen, Natasha Singam and I jokingly tried to race a short distance in a fast period of time from the lake to the Convention Centre after talking about my Founder’s Run achievements. However, she then said, “Don’t run otherwise your body would have appendix”. Appendix is a cancer conditios which affects the liver and it is somewhat a bad disease. Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang, Zi Quan, Julian Ong and all our Year 11 mates then had dinner together. “So, did you enjoy lead camp?”, Joshua asked. I said I enjoyed the camp as well. Joshua then asked if I was missing home and I said yes, and then he chimed in, “Don’t worry, we will be going home tomorrow."
After dinner, everyone returned to the Convention Centre for a talk by Ms Sim. While everyone was returning, I took the chance to catch up with Areeya Amali, Yap Dawn and Christen Chew to talk about the Bullseye plans for Sports Day. I showed them the list of graphs and predictions from the special notebook which I used to write all of my ideas and proposals as well as any Sports Day information and announcements. Ms Sim talked about highlighting the iceberg analogy in which she said that most people only see the 20% of things that make up your personality, but not the 90% of character which is not visible above the water. This is because an iceberg is a large thing; its surface covers only a little bit of the water’s edge as opposed to the majority of the mass which is underwater. Ms Sim then highlighted the Titanic wreck in which the captain of the Titanic, Captain Smith, was unable to judge the true size of the iceberg and that his sailors were only able to see the iceberg up close and that it is too late. She said we should judge one person by his character and not by the image people see.
Following Ms Sim’s speech, Ms Lim then announced that we would be given our Leadership Camp t-shirts. Ms Lim said that we would have to change to our t-shirts as we would have a group photo with our t-shirts on.
The t-shirts have the theme “Building Blocks of Leadership”. Ms Lim then said all of us were an inspiration to her and that she thanked us for owing her our gratitude. She said that seeing all of the student leaders being kind and caring touched her heart very much. Afterwards, Mr Narish then said we would all be allowed to do our own things until midnight and then afterwards, we had to go to sleep. I then met Caleb, Yi Zhen, Xin Yi, Le Anne and Isabella and our Year 11 friends to have a chat before going back to our dorms to sleep. They were having a shower to change for lights out.
The next day I got up close to 7:00am, quite a bit later than usual. I hurriedly brushed my teeth and went down to the Anjung Restaurant to meet my friends who were already having their breakfast there. I said a quick hi to them and then had a quick breakfast on the bread I have before making my way to the Convention Centre where we headed for our next activity.
Mr Narish already said that all the student leaders would go for a flying fox activity on the final day of camp. He said it would look trilling and exciting. Afterwards, he said that we will come back for another game before packing up, going for our lunch and then heading to the Convention Centre for a farewell before heading to the buses to bring us back to school.
Mr Narish then led us after we lined up. We trekked down the road as we talked to everyone along the way. I looked around while walking and tried to enjoy the last bit of scenery while going to the flying fox’s location. While walking, I can hear the train sound screeching very loudly as we walked.
The asphalt road then changed to a dirt track as we headed through a jungle foliage before reaching the location. It took us around 20 to 25 minutes to walk from the Convention Center to the flying fox. I decided not to try the flying fox as I was concerned about my safety due to my fear of heights. Ms Cynthia tried to encourage me to at least try a short course but I was still hesitant for safety reasons. We followed a large dirt road and then turned right through a jungle area to reach the flying fox which was located within the foliage of the trees.
The other students were then briefed by the instructor on how to wear the harness and safety gear before being abseiled onto the course as I walked below and mingled with my friends. Afterwards, Ms Cynthia and I walked back to the Convention Centre with a few other students who have completed the course. After returning to the Convention Centre, we then waited for everyone to return one by one. Mr Narish then led the mass group back to the Convention Centre.
We had a game afterwards in which the aim was to answer a series of questions fast enough by collecting clues from around the resort. Our team first started from the outside of the convention centre, before making our way to the Rajawali Hall, the Anjung Restaurant and the area in front of the large carpark as well as near our dorms. Vicky was counting on us to be quick to find clues. After searching high and low, we finally found all clues in order to answer the riddles on the worksheet. We then submitted our worksheets and then proceeded to our dorms to pack our bags, get our lunch settled and gather at the Convention Centre for the closing of the camp. Joshua and I packed our bags and we helped each other settle the affairs to the rooms. We tidied up our room and then proceeded down to the Convention Center to leave our bags and went to the Anjung Restaurant to have our lunch. We then sat down as a group and had lunch with Mr Narish, Ms Bee Yong and members of the management team. Mr Narish then talked to Ms Bee Yong and the management team and said that we should leave the resort by around 2:30pm. He expressed condition about the traffic on the highway since it was a Sunday. I told Mr Narish that everything would be fine and the traffic would be well. Ms Lim also asked me how was camp and I said it was brilliant. “Good. Grow up, ya,” she said, patting me gently on the back.
Everyone gathered in the Convention Centre at around 1:00pm. Mr Narish then appeared on stage and thanked everyone. “So, guys! We have come to the end of the camp!” He was met with thunderous applause from the crowd. Mr Narish then announced that there would be a prize giving ceremony based on various characteristics observed by teachers throughout the camp, such as responsibility, punctuality, gratitude and so on.
There was a large contention of individuals chanting Heng Le Anne and Heng Le Onne’s name as Le Anne and her brother were in contention to receive the awards. I was awarded a prize for punctuality. Everyone instantly shouted my name as they know I am very punctual. Each student who got an award received a mug with the name of the character they were awarded for. We all cheered as our friends received their awards.
Following the camp’s conclusion, Ms Lim then gave a closing speech. She said that everyone needs to come back to school tomorrow for class. “Don’t forget to come to school tomorrow ya! Don’t be absent ya!” Everyone laughed at her remark. Ms Bee Yong also urged us to focus on our studies after returning to school in anticipation of the Assessment 1 taking place in March as well as the Malay IGCSE Trial and Orals for the Year 11s. Everyone lined up into their bus lines, and walked to the buses which were roaring loudly in the carpark. As I boarded the bus, I anxiously checked my bags to ensure things are okay. Then, we boarded the bus as we headed home. The bus drove on the North South Highway and then followed by the New Klang Valley Expressway. It exited at the Kelana Jaya exit and headed straight to Nobel to drop us off. Our parents were waiting for us and I managed to thank Joshua Chew for his hospitality services as we bid goodbye to each other and Caleb Chuang before heading home.
The last full week of February soon begun. Everyone arrived back in school after a long camp weekend. And Ms Bee Yong conducted the assembly as usual on Monday, 20th February.
When we returned to class for Business Studies, Ms Chithra gave back our work and told us where we went wrong. Then, I discussed with my group members on the new product for the Business Studies coursework. We decided to settle on a product that uses aloe vera sap as ink writing material. Ms Chithra told us to make sure the product is realistic this time and she encouraged us to be creative in our product discussion. Then, during Economics, Ms Sharon then talked to us about employment. We learnt about full time employment, part time employment, flexible employment, high and low quality employment, as well as public and private sector employment.
When I gave Ms Sharon and Mr Raja the control book that morning, it hit me that I was the only person from 11N represented in the Leadership Camp. Ms Sharon also asked me how the Leadership Camp was, since she was also the teacher-in-charge for the Monitor's Council alongside Ms Cynthia, and we conversed on it too. On the Economics side, Ms Sharon said that flexible employment is becoming a very popular choice among people today as it gives them more choices as well as allow people to gain double the income, since they work in two jobs, which makes them more happy.
Caleb Chuang told me during the break time that he had found it difficult to get people to come for the marchpast trainings, but not everyone signed up. There were only five signups for the marchpast; Yeo Khaining, Andria Tan, Sebastian Kon, Benjamin Lew and Lee Kai Yang, aside from the march captains and me. So, he conducted the training at the lower canteen with a small group of marchers. As it was also very difficult for Year 11s to come for the practice, we scheduled the first practice for march in the lower canteen on Friday, 24th February. I then told Caleb Chuang that the banner design must start soon for good measure. I then went to find Janelle and Vicky to ask them on when the notice board would get started. Janelle and Vicky told me that they would start the notice board decoration the next day.
During Art, I then managed to complete half of the paintings in my Prep 3. Ms Nadia checked the painting progress and told me to work on pasting the newspapers on the texture of my drawn hand. She gave me some white glue from the Art Studio so that the newspapers could be stuck easily. She told me that normal glue may not work as good as white glue, which is really easy for the glue to come off. The white glue can be stuck from both sides and it is more effective than normal glue.
Once the glue was stuck, Ms Nadia then gave me some hair dryer to dry my prep work and told me to wait for a day before painting on the newspaper. Then, the both of us planned two pictures to be placed in Prep 4. It was really easy to do. I just chose the two easiest views of the gate to paint. Ms Nadia then told me that the mixed media applied on Prep 4 must be different in order to allow the examiners to judge my work easily.
Then, we returned for Combined Science, and I cleaned up my palette and brushes. Just as Mr Raja was leaving 11N, he greeted me and I greeted him. “Wei Yiang, I've signed the control book already,” said Mr Raja.
“Okay, thank you for signing, Mr Raja,” I replied. I returned to 11N, plopped down on my seat, and then waited till Mr Lee arrived. When he arrived at the class, Brandon, Ryan Chok and Shane cheered him.
“Mr Lee! Mr Lee! I love you!” they cried. Mr Lee smiled, said, “I love you too”, and then plopped down on the seat. He approached me, voluntarily signed the control book, and proceeded to check on Louis’ and Gabriel's progress. He talked to them and asked them on how they were able to cope in the Combined Science subject. He then had a short yet interesting chat with Louis in particular. Then, he continued the lesson and talked about the previous week's Science experiment before continuing to ask us to calculate Hooke's Law on a worksheet that he gave. We had to draw a graph and use the various formulas taught by him to calculate the spring mass.
Then, Mr Lee talked to us about the Frog Dissection. Brandon and Shane got really excited. They acted like hungry monsters in front of the class. Mr Lee laughed as all of them really excited. In fact, the whole class was excited. He suggested that Brandon Ooi catch some frogs so that we can do the frog dissection experiment in the Science lab, since the school had trouble getting dead frogs for us. Mr Lee told us to do a worksheet on labelling the frog parts. Shane and Brandon took jab at the frog's body parts, especially the buttocks.
During lunch time, Ms Yong called us to 11B's classroom. She introduced us as the head coordinator of the Ausmat Pitch Competition and told us that for the Ausmat Pitch Competition, we needed to create a speech that we must present in front of a crowd. The Ausmat Pitch Competition would involve pitching on a topic to a panel of judges and a few finalists would be chosen for the competition. Hence, Ms Yong told us to present a topic on anything we like and she gave us some time to brainstorm the topics. I decided to base mine on environmental protection. Ms Yong said that our speech should not last more than three minutes.
Other than me, Alexandria Goh, Sherwin, Vicky, Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Ellie Lim and Yin Wei were the other people in the room. I discussed with Sherwin on my topic. "Okay, chup chup! Who wants to be the first to present?" asked Ms Yong. I volunteered and I gave a pitch. I did not brainstorm any pointers, but I just said whatever came to mind. It was a brilliant speech, but I ran overtime. Ms Yong said that my speech was good, but it could be properly drafted with a few main points on how pollution is affecting the environment. Then, everyone was tasked to talk about whatever they wished to talk, and Ms Yong judged the speeches carefully.
Vicky had a speech on poverty; Alexandria Goh's was on technology, Sara Yow's was on social relationships, Eu Lynn's was on friendships, Sherwin's was on globalization, Ellie's was on bullying and Yin Wei gave an intellectual speech on human inventions. Ms Yong also told us to refine our speeches and she said that she will call a next meeting if need be.
Later, during our Character Transformation time, Mr Neoh told everyone to do their group cheer. The most interesting cheer was led by Eu Lynn's group, ‘Ok Alright Guys’, followed by the ‘Dank Memes Dank Dreams’ group by Lyn Wen. Mr Neoh then spoke to us about teamwork and how it can be applied to Sports Day later on in the year. We then continued work in Global Perspectives and I took the time to catch up with Ms Janice to ask her to sign the control book. She forgot to do so again.
During our Monitor's Council meeting, Ms Cynthia told us to share on what we had learnt and what we did during our Leadership Camp. I did most of the sharing, telling everyone as to how it was my first camp ever in Nobel and how I learned things. I told everyone that the most important thing as leaders was to put people first as seen in the servant leadership traits talked by Mr Chan. Pranavee then shared about how the iceberg theory reflects the attitude of a leader, because the majority of an iceberg is located underwater. The whole class clapped and when some people were asked to share who had the best sharing, most of them said that mine was the best.
Ms Cynthia then told everyone that as monitors, we should once again be reminded of our responsibilities and reiterated the ‘prefect responsibilities but without uniform’ remark that she had said on the first Monitor Council meet. Then, Ashlyne and Berlinda presented the amount of revenue collected from sales of the lemonade drinks from the Founder’s Run which was held on 8th February. The grand total of sales revenue was around RM 2000 in profit if I am not mistaken. Since the amount of business performance was good, Ashlyne and Berlinda proposed that a second round of fundraising be held for the Monitor's Council. The only issue was when to do the fundraiser, and Pranavee proposed that this issue would be discussed in the following week's Monitor's Council meeting.
Then, Ashlyne said that Mr Narish, as the Head of Student Leadership, had proposed that ideas be given by each of the three leadership boards on how to unite the community of Nobel's student leaders. The Monitor's Council was also asked to give a few proposals. One of them included a leadership run, a team building event, and some were even daring to have motorsports and motorcross events, but it was deemed too extreme.
After the end of the Monitor's Council meeting, I met Ms Sharon and talked to her on some Economics topics and issues with some of the topics, and she addressed them. Some of the questions would be addressed by learning the next chapters.
On Tuesday, 21st February, Ms Visa got angry at me because I wrote some notes on the front cover of the Class Control Book. So, she called me to the front and asked why I wrote at the front. As I was a new rookie to the game and am not familiar with the rules or procedures of the control book, I wrote the notes in front to save paper and to remember it easily as I may not remember them. However, Ms Visa was not happy with me and got angry. Mr Kevin Wai then pulled me aside after the class and said that whatever circumstances happened, I should not be writing in the front and he said I can write the notes on a piece of paper to be placed in the control book for reference, or to write somewhere else. He also told Ms Visa not to be too harsh on me as I am still learning the ropes as assistant monitor. Mr Kevin said that it was important to respect the cover page of the control book as an important document, and hence, he hoped I could understand. Enisha was looking at me in a serious manner, and I could still remember that look when Ms Visa approached me on that matter.
Mr Lee soon came in for Combined Science. “Mr Lee, when are we going to do the frog dissection?” asked Brandon. Mr Lee joked that the class would do the frog dissection experiment on the condition that Brandon Ooi caught some frogs. And Mr Lee also said that we cannot kill the frogs just as we pleased. He said a proper procedure was to be made. “You need to send the frogs to Ms Mazlina,” he said.
“Normally, when we kill frogs, we cannot go and slash and beat them like that. We also must respect them as animals too. So, we will normally make them dizzy and unconscious before we smash them on the floor to kill them,” said Mr Lee. We spent the whole lesson talking on the frog dissection before Mr Lee taught us about force and motion.
Later on, during Economics, Ms Sharon told us to get into groups and each group was given a printed paper with the words ‘Full employment’. We were told to write anything we thought and what we felt when seeing the words ‘full employment’. I was in the same group as Grace, Jia Yee, Gabriel and Louis, and led the discussion. Ms Sharon walked around the class and guided us to write our thoughts. Then, we were told to present. We talked about the ease of employment, the target of full employment and the consequences of full employment.
During break time, I then met up with Joseph Diong on the progress of the letter to Mr Narish asking for the scores to be re-set. He called a meeting with all the house captains. It was a really short one. I listened attentively to what Joseph said.
Joseph Diong said that Mr Narish did not agree with their requests and said that they should be adapting to changes as leaders. He said that Mr Narish wanted to ‘improve’ from the previous year and make the Sports Day more competitive, hence the current score setup. The captains and committee members groaned. I tried to think positive and tell Vicky, Zi Quan, Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark that there was a way out of Bullseye's third-place debacle. Zi Quan got angry with me and told me not to give any suggestions to him. Vicky also said that I should calm down and not talk as everyone wasn't happy. For me, if I was the captain, I would not appeal the decision but work with it as I know the teachers would not approve any change.
Then, it was Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher told us to continue with our work. I just looked at Vicky in anguish. I wanted to tell her the solution to the Sports 2017 problem we were facing. Even though Bullseye was in third place, I still believe that we can notch up the first place win in Sports Day 2017 and win a fourth year as the champion house.
So, I called Vicky, but Vicky wasn't in good spirits. I feel so down after that. I could only just think about how to strategize to a Bullseye victory. There were some areas that I felt had to be fixed. We then returned for Maths. Vicky had told me to talk to her during lunchtime. And Ms Bee Yan collected some people's coursework as they had finished early. She reminded us about the Geometrical House coursework, which was due in March.
That afternoon, during History, I made up with Ms Visa and thanked her for the advice given that morning. She wasn't too angry and frustrated. She was in cheerful spirits. And during Art, I managed to complete some of the prep works’ paintings. I stumbled as I tried to switch between painting and pasting, since my paint was running out. I had to buy new watercolor paint.
The next day, 22nd February, I spoke to Janelle about the notice board during the morning assembly. She told me that they will begin the notice board decoration that afternoon. She had a series of red papers that she had brought as well. All the committee members would be involved in the decoration process.
Jason Leing soon approached me and scheduled me that the next athletics practice would be held on Friday, 24th February. I also had to make do with another practice on the following Monday, 27th February. He had told me that there were practices also on Monday the 20th as well as that same day, Wednesday the 22nd. As I had Monitor's Council meetings and a Bible Knowledge class in the afternoon, I wasn't able to attend the athletics practices. Sean Mark had said that the athletics practices took priority over the marchpast. If there were classes, CCAs or other important meetings, those took priority.
Mr Narish then came and briefed everyone that morning on the Pre Sports Events. There will be three pre-sports events, namely on 6th March, 27th March and 28th March 2017. He said that he will paste all the information on the notice board behind the school hall. He then told everyone that for all the Pre Sports Events and also the Sports Day Events, there will be a division of the athletes’ performances according to three classes, namely Class 1, 2 and 3. The Class 1 would comprise of the fast runners and the Class 3 one of the average performers. For the second time in Nobel’s history, a Sport Day would divide athletes based on class.
Upon returning to class, I quickly placed my things in class, brought my things to 11B, went to the pigeon hole to take the control book and Smartboard equipment and bring it to 11N. This would become a quick ritual as Ms Joyce wouldn't allow people to enter the class when her lesson begins. Fortunately, I made it back in the nick of time and fixated the Smartboard equipment and control book just as Ms Joyce made her way into the class. I greeted her and then left for Mr Thomas’ lesson.
Mr Thomas then told us that he will teach us how to write stories in order to prepare for the IGCSE exams. He was waiting for the lesson to start as he sat on his chair, talking to Aaron Loke, Sherwin, Jen Thong and Nicole.
“Have you completed the work that I have given you?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas was asking for the points to outline the advantages and disadvantages of email and postal mail.
Mr Thomas then discussed the homework with us, but however, some people had not done it. So, Mr Thomas gave time for everyone to finish it. He then talked about his life as a teacher as well as mail technology. He had been teaching in Malaysia since the early 70s. And he had told us about his life story of being a teacher the previous year as well.
Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra then continued talking about marketing. Once again, we were introduced to price, place, product and promotion. While we had covered the topic in detail in Year 10, Ms Chithra knew she was repeating the topic and talked to us more about the marketing mix in detail. She initially taught us the topic for us to prepare for our Term 2 Business Studies coursework the previous year. Then, she did our revision for the Assessment 1, which will take place the following week.
During break time, I had told Caleb Chuang that there should be bright colors and glitter on the notice board. I asked him if he was coming for that evening's Bible Knowledge session. He said he would be coming. Then, I saw Zi Quan and approached him for a chat with him. He wasn't interested.
Later, during Global Perspectives, I asked Vicky on the notice board updates. Vicky told me not to worry on it once again. Mentally, I was panicking, as the notice board judging would be taking place before the school holidays. I proposed my plan once again, but however, Vicky did not listen. We just continued our work during Global Perspectives. Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan continued to teach us about matrices. We had to do three to four sets of matrix calculations.
I tried meeting Janelle during lunch, and when I approached her, she told me not to worry. Then I went to Zi Quan to apologize to him if I was not able to attend due to Monitor's Council meeting on Mondays, Bible Knowledge classes on Wednesdays, the Editorial Board CCA on Thursdays and Jason asking me for athletics practice on the coming Friday, 24th February. He was fine with me and he said that my marchpast was quite good and there was no need for me to even attend at all. He also allowed me to watch the marchers on behalf of him and Caleb Chuang. Then, when I talked to him about the notice board, he was in his angry mood.
“I don't care about what you say about the notice board. The committee is going to do the board, okay? Let the committee do the decorating,” he said sternly and in a loud, groaning voice.
Then, it was Art, and I continued to paste the newspaper to form the hand, but however, Ms Nadia said that the texture was put to a form it looked like paper mache. She asked me to remove some of the newspapers. I had to spend at least half of the lesson adjusting the newspapers and removing some of them. Ms Nadia said that the whole thing would look so ugly if the newspaper that I pasted bulged up like a mound from the A2 paper. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa did a depth study exercise with us as well as more source questions on the Berlin Blockade.
During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee told us that many of us did not do well in our essay writing and that we had to answer the questions based according to the Scriptures. So, we had to spend another two hours during the lesson to write them based on the book of Acts. Ms Renee also checked on us as we did the essay writing. It was quite tough.
The next day, during the Reading Time, Mr Kevin Wai came in and then he did some reading with us. He brought a book titled ‘The Fountain of Youth’ and then read it with Ryan Chok, Nickolas Nashpal and Shane behind the class. When Ms Sharon came in, she told us about unemployment. We talked about how unemployment is bad for the country and also for the individual in the sense that one would not be able to survive financially if they weren't working, and that productivity and economic growth would decrease nationally. This would also involve the rise in crime rates, too.
Brandon Ooi then asked if individuals like us students who are not working are also considered unemployed, but Ms Sharon said that anyone who is studying; even at university level, is excluded from the unemployment rate and the labour force as the unemployment rate involves people only categorized as being in the labour force. Ms Cynthia then came in and then talked to us about our exam scope for Malaysian Studies Assessment 1, which covers two chapters, and also the May 13th Incident in 1969.
In 1969, a racial riot occurred in Kuala Lumpur which caused a lot of deaths and property damage, resulting in an emergency order being proclaimed. This was in par due to fights between Malays and Chinese on the 1969 General Election results. The race riots then resulted in the formation of the Rukun Negara. Ms Cynthia then taught us about the principles of the Rukun Negara as I referred to them in my book.
Due to increasing affirmative action policies in Malaysia, a lot of Chinese had left Malaysia and this had caused the Chinese population to shrink over the years. Ms Cynthia said that when Singapore was in Malaysia, the Chinese population was at around 40 percent of Malaysia's population and in the years since Singapore's separation from Malaysia, the percentage of Chinese people in Malaysia's population had dropped by half.
After Malaysian Studies, we went for break. I took the control book and added all dates in the months of March and April to the blank pages, along with their respective daily timetables. When I reached the school hall, the Bullseye Notice Board had not been fixed. I went to see Janelle, but however, she said not everyone was free the previous day and there was not enough masking tape, but they will begin the decoration of the notice board that afternoon after school ends. I nodded my head in satisfaction.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra did a recap of the Recruitment, Selection and Training topic to prepare us for Assessment 1. She said that she will do the Assessment 1 on Monday, 27th February. Ms Visa then continued with our Assessment 1 briefing and our revision. And Cikgu Niely briefed us about the Malay Assessment 1 as well as our Malay Oral Exam.
This was Cikgu Niely's last free Malay lesson with us before the Assessment 1. The following week; for both Malay lessons on Thursday, 2nd March and Friday, 3rd March, would be used for Part 1 and 2 of the Malay Assessment 1, and then two weeks thereafter would be the Malay Oral week. My heart beat.
Cikgu Niely was busy preparing us for our Malay IGCSE orals which will take place between 13th and 17th March 2017, with the Malay and Mandarin IGCSE trials scheduled to be held on 15th March 2017. Cikgu Niely had previously done a Malay oral practice session with us on 16th and 17th February 2017 and most of us answered the questions terribly, including me. She expressed concern that the Malay Oral practice sessions she did with us did not bear any reputable result and said that everyone would need to improve within the next two weeks in order to be ready for the orals. Most of the time during our Malay lessons, we were doing worksheet exercises given by Cikgu Niely.
The order of who would sit for the Malay orals was to follow the official class listing from A to Z of our names, starting with 11N, followed by 11O, 11B and so on. Cikgu Niely told us in class that as we were the first class on the list to head for the Malay orals, we would need to be at our best on that day.
The orals would be conducted during school hours, between 8:00am and 3:30pm. Each student would be given a total of 30 minutes, namely 15 minutes to pick up the role play card and read the questions on the card which is placed on the table outside the examination room, five minutes to answer the questions on the role play card and act out the actions and words, another five minutes to have a casual conversation in Malay with Cikgu Niely, who will be doing the examination, and the remaining five minutes to present a speech in Malay.
Cikgu Niely explained that there will be three role play cards placed outside the examination room, which will contain the questions and instructions for the role play. The role play questions, based on past examination papers, would include scenarios, such as purchasing a train ticket, enquiring on directions, or a social conversation with a friend. Cikgu Niely said that each student can only pick one role play card, and the one that is being chosen will be the one that the student will use. The student cannot put down the role play card and take another sample or else the student will be given a warning. We have to follow the instructions of the very first card we picked. She also told us to use the time to familiarize the questions of the role play card and comprehensively understand it.
Due to the limited time, there could be only 15 people a day to do the Malay orals. The oral examination time will occur from 8:00am to 10:00am, with a 20-minute break for break time. Then, it will continue for another 2 hours and 40 minutes until 1:00pm where we would have lunch, and the exam would resume at 1:30pm and continue for another 2 hours till school ends. The examination would be held during our lessons, and this means that everyone would need to monitor the order of what they were in our class name list. This means that the first person in our class, 11N, Alia Zulklifi, would need to head to the waiting area in front of the examination hall at 8:00am. Then, when Alia enters the examination room at 8:15am for her 15-minute session to answer questions, this is then followed by the next person on our list, Brandon Ooi heading to the waiting area for his turn to read the questions on the role play card. Then, when Alia exits the examination room and returns to the class, Brandon Ooi would enter the examination room BUT before he enters the examination room, the third person on the list, Cassandra, would need to head to the waiting area to start reading the questions, and when Brandon returns to the class, Enisha would need to leave for the waiting room, and this arrangement continues one by one till the last person has finished his or her oral session with Cikgu Niely.
This means, that we need to remember who is on the name list entering and exiting the room. This may seem easy in a normal class setting where all of us classmates are present in class, but in set teaching, where we would go to different classes for our elective subjects, it is very difficult to tell who is entering or exiting. So, to solve the problem, most people would remember the timing they are expected to enter or exit, and some people would head to the hall too early and are asked to return. Only two people are allowed to be in the examination area – one waiting for his/her turn to be tested, and another who is in the process of doing his/her oral exam. So, even if one person were to exit early, the other individual must wait for his/her turn and not go early. Even if he/she goes early, it is not possible for him/her to pick up the role play card until he is instructed to do so.
In my case, since I am the 14th person (since Yan Ying has already left for the UK at the end of January) on the list, I need to wait for Krystal Goh to return from the examination hall before I would head to the hall for my exam.
11N 2017 Class Name List
1. Alia binti Zulklifi
2. Brandon Ooi Jun Jie
3. Cassandra Danial Morgan
4. Enisha Kaur Ravinder
5. Eric Wong Khai Min
6. Gabriel Lim Boon Jin
7. Hooi Wei Shane
8. Ivyna Ong Suet Li
9. Kay Han Jie, Glen
10. Kelsey Tay Veng Yenn
11. Koo Sheng Jit
12. Krystal Goh Suet Yi
13. Lai Jia Yee
14. Lau Wei Yiang
15. Liew Ji Rong, Aaron
16. Ng Ze Khai
17. Nickolas Nashpal
18. Ryan Chok
19. Tan Lyn Wen
20. Tay Wee Shiang
21. Tee Min Yen
22. Tham Jo Yi
23. Yoon Hao Yinn
For the Malay IGCSE Trials, the examination was held on 15th March. Cikgu Niely said that we will begin with the Paper 4 first and then followed by Paper 2. I’d like to call Paper 4 as the Pemahaman paper and Paper 2 as the Penulisan paper, since we have referred to this formatting in the Malaysian context. On the days of the examination, the exam would be held in the morning from 8:30am to 10:00am for Paper 4 and then from 10:30am to 12:00pm for Paper 2. Following the conclusion of the Malay IGCSE trial examination, we would go back to our classes and continue with the classes as usual. The Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Second IGCSE trial examination would also occur on the same day, but it would be held after school from 3:30pm to 5:00pm during the Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Second lesson periods.
Paper 4, the Pemahaman paper, is the comprehension test for the Malay language paper, consisting of filling in the blanks of sentences and answering certain simple questions based on what is given in a list of pictures in Malay. The Paper 2 examination which is the Penulisan paper, tests us on writing an essay in Malay. The essay length is limited to around 500 words which is quite easy for us to do.
Before I went for lunch, I talked to Cikgu Niely about the Malay Oral. Cikgu Niely told me to fix an appointment with her after school in order to have a personal dry run on doing the Malay Oral and that she would be available to practice with me. Cikgu Niely also told me to come up with a topic that is easy to present for the speech presentation. I decided to chose the topic of occupation as it is easy.
Then, during Maths, I went to ask Berlinda and Rosemund for the Geometrical House coursework status. The English lesson was a really exciting affair as we talked about email versus postal mail as what Mr Thomas showed us on Edmodo. While the lesson was ongoing, some of the Year 7 students outside the class were fooling around a bit as they were going for set teaching lessons.
After school ended, I went for my Editorial Board meeting and Ms Levina was waiting for me. Shi Tian then handed me a list of interviewees for me to interview during break and lunch. Ms Levina also had to stop some people from playing games on the computer during the Editorial Board meeting. She even got angry to a certain extent. It was my first time seeing Ms Levina get angry, to be honest.
Friday, 24th February 2017, was a day full of tenacity. It was the eve of the Assessment 1, which will take place three days later.
When I entered the school hall that morning, Bullseye's notice board was the first notice board to be installed. It had a dart and arrow pointed at it in 3D form. It was quite cool, and there some eyecatching red posters on it. We were making progress ahead of the other houses, and I was happy.
The day begun with an announcement by Mr Kevin Wai on people who were interested to participate in the Kangaroo Maths Competition, followed by a speech by Ms Bee Yong on the Assessment 1.
During PE, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew, Sherwin, Sean Mark, Joseph Diong, Ethan Wong, Wei Zhong and Christopher Chew played futsal before the start of the PE lesson. However, Ethan Wong and Christopher kicked the balls to a certain extent that the balls smashed into the Exit signs right above the door. The sign fell down. Sherwin asked for the game to be stopped as he and Joshua Chew fixed the sign. Then, Ethan Wong fired another ball, but this time, it went into the first-floor balcony of the school hall.
Mr Victor then gathered everybody in the hall and asked us to line up. I presented the Control Book for Ms Sylvia to sign. She kept the books at the side of the hall. Then, Mr Victor took us to the PE field. It was our first trip to the PE field for our PE lesson for the year.
While on the walk to the PE field, Mr Victor then talked to Sean Mark and Wences, who were walking beside him. Ethan Wong soon joined. I spoke with Caleb Chuang as I walked next to Mr Victor. Then, I had a chat with Ms Sylvia on how to improve my speed. Ms Sylvia said that most people will sprint on a 10-meter stretch in order to improve their speed. So, I decided to incorporate the sprinting in my 1500m training.
After we reached the field, Sean Mark and Ethan Wong asked me to run first. Mr Victor told us to run two laps around the field. I sped up and Sean Mark and Jason Leing ran towards me. “Faster, faster! Go, go, go!” they cried, as I caught up to me. The whole Year 11 batch cheered for me as me and Sean Mark sprinted and led the whole batch around the field. All the people screamed and shouted as I ran like mad. Sean Mark and I ran neck and neck and finished at the same time, with Jason Leing trailing us.
Mr Victor said that he will do 100m sprints with us in order to prepare for Sports For All, which will be held after Assessment 1 on the second and third week of March, just before our school holidays begin. So, all of us took time practicing the sprints. Sports For All is an initiative in which people are able to participate in high jump, long jump, shot putt and the 100m events, and it is open to everyone in Nobel to do so during PE.
Mr Victor then told us to line up according to our sports houses. Soon, all the Bullseye people were present. I then acted enthusiastically as all the top brass had arrived, especially Sean Mark, the house captain of Bullseye. We all glorified him like mad.
Then, I cried, “Let's say the Bullseye cheer!” Then we all screamed. The only people who weren't bank on screaming the cheer were Kelsey, Brandon Ooi, Eric Wong, Vicky, Zi Quan and Jordan Tay. All the rest screamed and shouted like mad. The whole year level looked at us.
Ms Nadia was in charge of flagging off the 100m. We all had to line up and run. Sean Mark opted to race with me. When it was time for us to run, I ran like mad, but Sean Mark speeded ahead of me. I finished three seconds behind him.
Then, once we were done, I motivated the other Bullseye people to run faster as well. I cheered and screamed loudly as everyone ran. Then, I spoke with Jason Leing on how to improve the athletics performance for Sports Day. “You haven't sent me the ginger onion recipe,” he said. I told him that my aunt hadn't gave me yet. Jason instead told me to write what I could remember. He said he would buy some if needed.
Bullseye has many great athletes from our year level back then. From 11N, there are four main Bullseye athletes in our class, namely me, Kelsey, Eric Wong and Ivyna. Eric and Ivyna specialize in track and field activities while I made my debut in the Founder's Run by winning the 5km. Kelsey was also making her debut, having qualified for the Pre Sports Events which involve the Long Jump.
Meanwhile, those who were done with their 100m race were asked to do the Shot Putt exercise. I just threw a metal shot putt ball lousily. Not my cup of tea and not that interesting. Louis, in particular, just dropped the ball and it almost smashed into his legs.
On the way back from the PE field, some people stopped to buy some drinks from the 7-Eleven at PJ Soho. Then, during break time, I told Jason Leing that he can search for ginger onions online while I wrote down what my aunt had told me. Then, I told him I would finalize the recipe with my aunt. Afterwards, I continued to fill in the information for the control book.
Following break time, Cikgu Niely then came in for class. She gave us comprehension worksheets to do. When Cikgu Niely said she will have individual practices for Malay Oral with anyone who wished to do so, I decided to take up the opportunity. I told Cikgu Niely to give me comments for improvement. Then, she did the oral practice with me. Afterwards, Cikgu Niely told me that I had improved a bit but all that was needed was to do the role play card practices.
It was then Science, and Mr Lee brought us to the Science lab to do a weight test using a spring and a heavy block on Hooke's Law. Mr Lee gave each group a retort stand, a spring and several blocks which we had to put on the spring to see how far it stretched. Each spring and retort stand came with a weight and stretch measurer to comprehend the weight.
Brandon and Shane did some test with the weights and theorized what would happen if Aaron Liew, who is one of the big-sized people in our class, were to sit on one of the spring weights. Cassandra did the weights with Lyn Wen in our group, and I had to record everything for the experiment.
Then, once Mr Lee's lesson was done, we went for English. Mr Thomas was waiting for us. He told us to do thesis statements as well as outline the scope of our Assessment 1.
After school ended, I went for lunch, before heading with Jason Leing and Sean Mark for a second round of athletics practices. They told me to do two laps of 1500m at the PE Field before they dismissed me early as my timing was good. Then, I went for the marchpast.
Some of the Bullseye people then later came for march, but however, Ms Lim was not happy when they were playing and threatened to deduct 15 points from Bullseye. I told the Bullseye members not to horse around as that number is the entirety of the points received by the winner of the first place of the 5km category for Founder’s Run, which I successfully won. It would be heartbreaking if all the points were gone from Bullseye, as the 15 points were my hard-earned effort for the Founder's Run. Caleb Chuang did some commands and Zi Quan told everyone to stop playing before they told me to watch the marching moves. The loss of 15 points would mean the de-recognition of my Founder's Run efforts.
The month of March 2017 was a busy month. For a start, we had Assessment 1. This would then be followed by the various Pre Sports Events and then the Sports Day Practices before the climax of Sports Day events towards the end of the month, on 31st March. On top of that, we had our Malay Oral and Malay and Mandarin IGCSE Trials.
The Assessment 1 was held from 27th February 2017 to 3rd March 2017. It was a true test of academic endurance; the opposite of Sports Day, which was sporting endurance.
On the morning of 27th February, I took a good look at the notice boards. Homerun and Touchdown had decorated their notice boards the previous Friday, 24th February. They were catching up. Yi Zhen did most of the designs for the Homerun notice board. They had the house cheer, a calendar and a committee list installed. Touchdown had their name installed on the board as well.
During the morning assembly, Ms Bee Yong said that the Assessment 1 would be a test in life and a reflection of what we learnt. She said that Assessment 1 would determine how we use the knowledge that we have learnt by applying it through the exams in our daily life. After a somewhat long lecture and Ms Bee Yong asking who was talking while she was talking, we then went back to our class for the start of the week, and ultimately, our Assessment 1.
Instantly, upon reaching the class, there was a problem. A big problem. One of the pass tags in the classroom, namely the toilet pass tag, went missing. Like the control book and the Smartboard equipment, the Pass Tags were under my purview. Students would need to use a Pass Tag to leave the classroom. There were four pass tags, namely the toilet tag, canteen tag, staffroom tag and sick bay tag. The canteen tag was meant for Friday lunch delivery by representatives from the respective classroom. The toilet pass tag is crucial as without it, people could not use the loo. Then, we would achieve Guinness World Records for holding our bladder for the longest time ever.
Unlike the Control Book and the Smartboard equipment, the Pass Tag is supposed to be kept in the classroom. The location where the pass tags were placed were at the class door's doorknob, located at the back of the classroom. It was unclear why the pass tag went missing. I did not misplace the pass tag, neither did I do anything with it. The pass tag was just missing just like that. It was there on Friday, the 24th February 2017.
People tried to solve the problem by using the pass tags from other places to use the washroom. By right, people so not be using a pass tag that was originally designated for other uses to be used for something which was not designated for. For instance, the pass tag which is meant to be used for the staff room should not be used by people who wanted to answer nature’s call. However, this was to be a temporary fix until the pass tag was found. The missing pass tag was my first big test as assistant monitor. Some people asked where the pass tag was, but I also am not sure what happened to it. However, I had to rush for the Business Studies assessment. Ms Chithra was about to start the test.
During the Business Studies Assessment, the test was very easy. This was because there was only one topic for the exam, which was ‘Recruitment, Selection and Training. During the weekend my mom and I did some revision on that sole topic. Additionally, the topic was also very easy to comprehend so it put me at an advantage for the Business Studies exam.
Once Business Studies was over, Ms Sharon then came into the class. She used the time in the class to do one last revision. By this time, many people were really angry that the pass tag was missing. I was unsure over what to do. Ms Sharon then told us that if there was no pass tag, it means that no one can use the washroom.
Then, it was break time, and I used the time to continue to fill in the details of the control book till the end of April. I kept thinking about the missing pass tag. While I felt innocent as to the loss of the pass tag, I felt lost on what to do.
I just kept thinking about it when I went to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia then told me to start painting on my hand. “You're very slow already, Wei Yiang,” she said. “You need to hurry up,” she said. So, I painted the hand texture on my paper and tried to ensure things were okay. When that did not work, I painted other paintings instead. Ms Nadia told me that the art must look really perfectly fine. Then, during Combined Science, Mr Lee gave us our assessment. Brandon giggled and laughed as the paper was being handed out. “Shhh! No talking,” said Mr Lee. “Write your name and class on the paper,” he said. The paper, fortunately, was straightforward. However, everyone was still not happy about the missing pass tag. The trust that was given to me appeared to be cracking.
After lunch, we then had our Character Transformation session. I finished scribbling all the timetable for the pages till April. Then, Mr Neoh did some icebreakers with us. He told us to practice our group cheer and we had to do some crazy moves. Following the icebreaking activity, he then passed the time to Ms Praveen, who had come to brief us on our Malay Oral Examination.
Ms Praveen then greeted us and apologized for interrupting our Character Transformation session. She then told us about the IGCSE Malay Oral Examination. Our class teachers would be giving out the Statement of Entry soon and we had to bring it for our oral exams which will begin the following week. At the same time, 11L would need to move to Tutorial Room 4 temporarily for their classes as their classroom would be used as a waiting area for the Malay Oral Exam, and that a small room that is accessed from inside 11L's classroom would be the examination venue for the Malay Oral Exam. Ms Praveen also told us that we need to remember our slot for the Malay Oral Exam and that we would fail this exam if we did not head for our slot.
“Please take this exam seriously as this is your actual IGCSE Malay Oral Exam. Is that clear, Year 11s?” she asked. We all said yes to her satisfaction. Then, we continued with our Character Transformation session and then went for Global Perspectives, where we continued our work. Vicky then gave me a new task to edit and write some of the project proposals. Then, she discussed on the implementation of the project with Mr Gallagher.
During the Monitor's Council meeting, Ashlyne, Berlinda and Pranavee conducted the meeting. We played a few icebreaker games, such as spelling bee, during the meeting. Then, Ashlyne told all the monitors to give proposals in relation to the leadership initiatives that Mr Narish had proposed.
Just then, the door opened with a crack. It was Ms Kay. She told everyone to head to the CT hall. We were needed for an important activity, as Mr Narish had requested all student leaders to be present at the CT hall.
When we got to the CT hall, we could see a lot of prefects gathered at the CT hall. The prefects were using that hall, which was located near the dismissal area, as their meeting place for weekly Prefectorial Board meetings. The Librarian Board were also present as well. Everyone gathered there. I waved hi to Yi Zhen, Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang and all the other prefects and librarians present.
At the front of the hall, Ms Sim, Ms Kay and Mr Narish were setting up a Powerpoint presentation. Then, Ms Kay came and made a speech. “Okay, student leaders, thank you for coming. Please settle down.”
“Alright, monitors and librarians, it's good to see all of you. Please settle down. Now, we have one thing which we did not cover during the Leadership Camp that we are planning to cover today,” said Ms Sim, beginning her speech.
Ms Sim continued the iceberg theory but she also spoke about leadership traits which depict our leadership style. She said that while the iceberg theory talks about how a person's character looks like, it is also depicted in the leadership style. So, Ms Sim talked about what type of leader one would be; whether it is an autocratic or democratic leader, and how such leadership traits translate to servant leadership. We then got into groups to discuss and were given mahjong paper to doodle what are our thoughts and present them. I joined a group with Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew, Sherwin, Zi Quan and Yi Zhen for the workshop.
During the leadership gathering, some people expressed surprise that I was part of the Monitor's Council, including Yi Zhen and Sara Yow. They had never expected me to become a student leader, and I had to explain to some of my Year 11 counterparts on the matter as to why I became a monitor.
It was the last day of February, and Mr Kevin Wai came into the class. He asked me about the pass tag and I had to explain the issue to him. He said that it will be a big issue if the pass tag was lost. I told Mr Kevin that the pass tag was seen the previous Friday, 24th February, but it was missing since the previous day, Monday, 27th February.
I was wondering if the janitor had taken it away or misplaced it. None of us in 11N had misplaced the tag. It was strange as to how it got lost. Mr Kevin was a bit disappointed with that. He told us to find the tag in the class before getting a new pass tag. “It must be somewhere,” he said. Mr Kevin added that there is a possibility that we must PAY for the pass tag if we had to replace it.
Then, Mr Lee came into the class. “Mr Lee, have you marked our papers?” asked Brandon, as Mr Lee signed the control book, put his bags down and logged onto the computer. “No, not yet. Why? What's the matter?” he asked. Then, he continued our discussion on the Hooke's Law topic. Ms Sharon also came into the class and did some essay questions with us. She fixed our Economics exam for 2nd March 2017.
During break time, I went around the school compound to try to find the missing pass tag, but however, it could not be found. I was wondering where did the pass tag went. I mean, on the 24th, it was present. It was present in the classroom. And that toilet pass tag was hanging on its usual spot as we left the class. I remembered it very well as I had to collect the control book and the Smartboard equipment and was the last to leave the room at the end of every school day; switching off the lights, computer and electronic equipment before returning the Control Book and the Smartboard pouch to the pigeon hole. I groaned. Something bad must've happened. I wondered what if Ms Visa got angry with me on this. I was thinking of how to explain the situation.
After break, we went for Global Perspectives and then Mr Gallagher told us that he will be meeting each group to discuss and approve their project plan. He then told Shane and Ryan Chok to behave themselves as they had misused their devices in his class by surfing the net and playing games instead of doing their reports. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan gave us our Assessment 1 for Maths.
Following lunch, I went to find the pass tag around school grounds, but as usual, it could not be found. I had a guilty look on my face. It was a weird, guilty look, and I can promise you that.
During History, Ms Visa gave us our Assessment 1. When the class asked Ms Visa about the pass tag issue, I had to explain to Ms Visa that I did not misplace the pass tag, but it was just lost just like that. Ms Visa groaned as I explained the whole situation before we did our Assessment 1. Then, I went for Art, I managed to complete 90 percent of my Prep 3. I was ready to head into Prep 4, but Ms Nadia pointed out areas for me to touch up.
On 1st March, Mr Thomas started the day by telling us to do an essay on Zeinab Badawi. He showed us the text and planned the text with us. Then, it was our Business Studies lesson and Ms Chithra was showing us a series of advertisements on how companies advertise their product. Coca Cola was the one Ms Chithra showed us the most.
During break time, I met up with Mr Kevin Wai to explain to him about the pass tag issue. He shook his head in disappointment. I felt really embarrassed as to how the pass tag got missing. I just did nothing in Global Perspectives as Vicky did not give me any work and she told me to wait for her to give some work to me. I was concerned that Vicky might take the work for herself and Mr Gallagher would ask me why I did not do anything during the Global Perspectives lesson. Then, it was Maths, and Ms Bee Yan did some worksheets with us.
After lunch, we then went for Art, and I managed to complete Prep 3. I showed the Prep 3 to Ms Nadia. She approved all things and told me to paint the final touch-up. “Next week, you will start your Prep 4,” she said. “Choose two pictures and you can draw them.”
I then chose two pictures, painted the paintings, and asked Ms Nadia if I could begin my annotation. She told me not to start until she gave me the approval to do so. Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa asked if I had found the pass tag. I told her I hadn't. And then, I was treated to a Bible Knowledge exam after school. The essay questions were tough, and I wrote the answers based on memory. It was mainly about Paul's teachings in the book of Acts and Paul's missionary journey across Galilee.
The next day, 2nd March, Ms Visa asked me where was the pass tag, and highlighted this to me during reading time. I told Ms Visa that the pass tag was missing and I didn’t know how to solve the problem. Ms Visa, careful not to jump the gun, told me nicely to head to the office, request for a new pass tag and get it placed in the classroom. Mr Kevin Wai also gave me the instructions on what to do, and he told me to look for Ms Tan and Ms Kelly in the management office and ask for a new tag. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon gave us our Assessment 1. I cited real-world examples like Singapore's HDB flats, in the answers. And Ms Cynthia also gave us our Assessment 1, too. I managed to answer at least half of the questions without issue. The other half saw me fumbling on the answers.
During break time, I went to the office and requested a new pass tag from Ms Tan. When Ms Tan found out about the missing pass tag, she said that everyone in the class may need to pay RM 5 in order to get the tag replaced. She then asked me how the pass tag got missing, and I explained to her the whole story which I had repeated time after time again.
Honestly speaking, just because none of us misplaced the pass tag, and just because it disappeared like that, everyone suffers. Since there were 27 of us in the class, I was thinking of paying and footing the entire bill myself, which is estimated at RM 135, just for the tag. I had to let Mr Kevin Wai know about the matter.
Then, we returned for Business Studies with Ms Chithra, and I updated Gabriel, Aaron Liew and Glen on their tasks. When Aaron Liew told me that he didn't understand a thing or anything about the coursework, I was really fed up with him. I stopped short of getting angry with him. I had to brief him again on the coursework outline. Afterwards, it was History, and Ms Visa then talked about the Cuban Missle Crisis. We had earlier talked about the Korean War, which came out for the History exam. Being fixated on North Korea and South Korea since the middle of 2016, it was easy for me and my friends to comprehend the Korean War. Following the History lesson, Cikgu Niely gave us our Malay assessment. We did Part 1 that day. The whole class wasn't cooperative, which delayed the start of the assessment and we only had 20 minutes to do the whole test.
After lunch, Ms Bee Yan then continued our lesson. Then, it was English, and we had our English assessment.
I was tasked with interviewing a few teachers in the beginning of March 2017, as well as few prefects and individuals who had contributed to the Chinese New Year celebration for the Editorial Board. But however, the toll of the IGCSE exam preparations started beating on me as the only Year 11 student by then, as Co Sheen had resigned from the Editorial Board. I was a bit slow in responding to emails due to my focus on the Malay IGCSE trials and oral exam, and had to concentrate as to not affect my grades. However, I did manage to interview two people for the yearbook, and Ms Levina somewhat approved of the interview during the Editorial Board session. Then, Shi Tian interviewed me on my Founder's Run 2017 win. She wanted to publish my statement in the newsletter as a report on the Founder's Run was to be published. I felt happy to be part of the interview.
The next morning, during the morning assembly, Mr Narish then told all the individuals participating in the Pre Sports Events on Monday, 6th March, to go for a briefing with him. He also said that the Notice Board Competition would be judged a week later, on Wednesday, 15th March 2017.
Up until then, the Bullseye Notice Board had not seen any progress! Well, most people were still busy with Assessment 1, and today was the last day. We only had Malay Part 2 afterwards.
During Homeroom time, Ms Tan then came to 11N and brought the new pass tag along just as I was about to speak to Mr Kevin Wai about the tag. “Please don't lose it again,” said Ms Tan. The whole class rejoiced as the issue was put to rest.
Later on, we had PE, and Caleb Chuang and all the football people played football once again. I then played defender with Caleb Chuang and all the people in the school hall cheered for us. Then, Ms Sylvia told us to gather and requested that the high jump mattresses be brought out to the courtyard. We were planning to do some high jump events that day.
Ms Sylvia then told us to jump properly and taught us the high jump moves once again. The high jump events were to be used as training for the Sports For All. Then, we did some jumps.
Benjamin Fong, Christopher Chew and Aristotle Koh then tried to do some funny moves using their parkour moves. Ms Sylvia got very angry and threatened to disqualify them and minus marks from Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk if they did the parkour moves on the high jump mattress. The three of them laughed like mad. Christopher Chew was planning to film a video of the stunt and post it on his YouTube channel. The whole hall was about to cheer Christopher Chew's name when Ms Sylvia stopped the act. Christopher Chew then suggested I do the moves, but Ms Sylvia scolded him.
Then, we were asked to be assigned to our sports houses, and once again, I gathered with the Bullseye people to cheer once again. However, this time, no one was interested to cheer. Ms Sylvia then told us the high jump moves and the Bullseye people were given their first moves to be done. I jumped but my leg hit the high jump poles and it fell and hit me on my shoulder. Ms Sylvia told us to be careful. I stood up and massaged myself. Fortunately, I was okay.
While waiting for the rest, Caleb Chuang and I talked about the Sports Day preparations. Vicky told me and promised me that the committee will begin their work on the notice board that afternoon. I was worried as we were too slow. I then told Caleb Chuang that I will advise all the Bullseye members to eat some ginger onions during the weekend. I then told Jason about the plan and he was okay with it. He was afraid that no one knows what a ginger onion was. I laughed and giggled with him, thinking of the fact that the action would look like as if one was riding a motorcycle.
Ms Sylvia then told everyone who had completed the high jump exercise to head to the long jump area for the long jump exercise, where Mr Victor was waiting. When we reached the long jump pit, Mr Victor showed us the proper moves and told Bullseye's members to begin first. Christopher Chew was planning to parkour onto the long jump pit. “No! No! Please, no! It's dangerous!” I cried. Everyone laughed, and Mr Victor showed him a stern face.
We did the long jump, and Nieshaal, Wences and Sean Mark were asked to do the measurements. Ms Ting and Ms Nadia were also doing the measuring. Then, I jumped. I landed a close shave. Upon landing, sand blasted over the place. Nieshaal groaned as the sand splashed into his face and eyes like a sudden sandstorm. Then, it was Caleb Chuang's turn. He jumped, and the sand also splashed out of the pit.
When everyone jumped, all the sand splashed everywhere as if a riot had happened. The most spectacular jump was obviously performed by Christopher Chew, who did a spectacular jump until all the sand flew into the main road. “Chris Chew! Chris Chew! I love Chris Chew!” cried the crowd.
Once PE was done, I then went for break time with Caleb Chuang to discuss more plans. Then, I went to meet Aaron Yong and a few other Bullseye people from Year 10 who were participating in the Pre-Sports Events to brief them on their expectations the coming Monday.
We then had our Malay Part 2 Assessment, and Cikgu Niely had to wait for a long time as Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi changed their clothes in the toilet and aired out themselves from the fans in the loo. She was very frustrated as it took long for the class to completely settle and get ready for the exam, as her lesson only lasted 40 minutes and the exam was 30 minutes long. This was why she got so frustrated the previous day and we only had 20 minutes to do the exam.
Once the exam finished, Cikgu Niely gave us advice and reminders. She had high expectations as we would be the first class to do the Malay Oral.
“Cikgu hendak beritahu kamu sebab kelas anda adalah kelas yang pertama untuk buat ujian lisan. Saya berharap semua orang telah bersedia untuk ujian lisan yang akan diadakan pada hari Isnin minggu depan,” she said, asking us to be ready and be a role model as the first group of students to do the oral on Monday, 6th March.
Then, it was Science, and Mr Lee came into the class. He had brought a lot of equipment to the class for us to do. He had pipes, masking tape, brown cardboard and black manila cards. Mr Lee then told everyone to get into groups and to design a slide which could carry the ball effectively from the top to the bottom in the fastest possible time and at the fastest velocity. Mr Lee gave each one of us a stopwatch and we had to design a slide system for the ball using those materials he brought.
Louis and I used his table to design the slide system. Each team had to do the slide system. Louis and I fastened a slide to the table and used scissors to cut the cardboard properly as Mr Lee guided us. He had done the same activity for students in his Physics class. We did a straight slide system and Mr Lee told me to time the stopwatch for the ball. In the end, Brandon Ooi's group recorded the fastest velocity. We then went for English, where Mr Thomas did more composition exercises with us. We did a descriptive essay on Zeinab Badawi.
Following the end of school, I went to meet Jason Leing for athletics training, and he did another round of running with me at the PE field and timed me. Then, all of Bullseye's athletes were asked to do strength training on their return to the school grounds. We did some stretching and other exercises as Jason and Sean led us. Before I left for home, I looked at the Bullseye notice board team putting up the information on the board. I felt pleased as I watched them install the equipment. I suggested to Janelle to put some lights on the notice board, but Vicky told me to refrain from disturbing them.
The following week, we were greeted to a new week of sports activities and oral activities. It was a Monday morning filled with fun and enthusiasm.
For the next two weeks, there were no Leadership Board meetings from the Prefectorial Board, the Monitor's Council and the Librarian Board in order to accommodate the Sports Day practices as well as the house meets, which we Bullseye people call the Bullseye National Convention. Throughout the whole week, there was some activity being held each day; be it for the Sports Day or in regards to the Malay IGCSE Oral Exam. The two Bullseye National Conventions would be held on 6th and 13th March respectively.
During the weekend, me and my mum did the revision for the Malay Oral, and I had to practice my speech, do the role play card, as well as converse in Malay in daily conversations like ‘Good morning’, or ‘Have a nice day’. In fact, most of my conversations; even when doing revision for other subjects with my mum, were in Malay. It was a slight inconvenience towards my Malay Oral Exams.
The morning was filled with a lot of fanfare. It was the first day of the Pre Sports Events. I saw a lot of people wearing their sports attire that morning as all those who were headed for the Pre Sports Events that morning were participating in the Long Jump competition which took place at Panasonic Stadium. Meanwhile, the afternoon saw everyone looking forward to the upcoming Bullseye National Convention following school hours. There were also some running events taking place aside from those three.
From 11N alone, Cassandra, Eric Wong, Ivyna, Kelsey, Sheng Jit, Nickolas Nashpal, Grace Tee and Hao Yinn were involved in the Pre Sports Events. A large group had to be accounted for, and I had to record everything into the Control Book.
The morning was also marked with the large parade of notice boards in the school hall, which displayed the greatness of all four houses. However, what made me quite fed up is Bullseye still lagging behind some of the houses. Out of all the four teams, Homerun had a complete notice board while Bullseye still did not have the Bullseye name; except that all the information was complete. Touchdown had some information while Slamdunk had quite some nice designs installed.
After my usual breakfast routine, I went to peer at the boards. I looked in satisfaction of the accomplished work by the house members the previous Friday, but also in vigilance of where we stand. I felt that we were still behind, but we might at least reach second place.
Then, I went to meet all the Year 8s, 9s, 10s and 11s participating in the Pre Sports Events. When the crowd built up at 7:30am, I went to find some people to talk to. Aaron Yong, Ethan Chan, Loo Zane, Areeya Amali and Ivyna were some of the people. I gave them some motivation and encouragement for them to do well. I told them that it is possible for us to win the Sports Day despite us being in third place. While I was talking to Loo Zane, Edson Tay was really annoyed. He said that Touchdown would be the winner of the 2017 Sports Day. If that happened, it would be Touchdown's first win since 2013, which was also the last time another sports house won the Sports Day before the three years of Bullseye victory. However, I wanted to prove him wrong and allow his Touchdown victory to remain a dream. Some of the Touchdown people, including Ryan Chok and Cassandra, told me that I will lose too, but I just ignored them.
Then, as I was talking to Ethan Chan, the great one and only Caleb Chuang arrived. I raced to him and greeted him and proposed to him a list of proposals in a booklet that I have written all my plans in, no thanks to the Student Organizer filling up like mad. Additionally, I drew a Bullseye flag on the front of the front cover and back cover page, so that the book looks like a mini banner when opened up.
Jien Min then told me that as he was headed for the Pre Sports Events, he forgot his 2016 Sports Day attire and asked if I could lend mine to him, since I was planning to wear it for the marchpast practice that afternoon. I agreed and gave it to him. He thanked me. In fact, he would be DISQUALIFIED if he did not wear his sports attire, as all runners participating in the pre sports events must wear their 2016 Sports Day t-shirt. Jien Min was participating in the track events that day.
The morning assembly soon started. Yi Zhen got on the microphone and asked everybody to settle down. Then, we greeted our teachers and went through the formalities of the assembly. Then, Mr Narish came on stage and asked all the individuals participating in the Pre Sports Events to come down by 8:30am. Those that were headed to Panasonic Stadium were departing at 8:15am. He also reminded everyone about the house meets that afternoon. We were in for a wonderful Bullseye National Convention.
When we headed up to class, I then got ready for Business Studies. Before I left for 11E, I asked all those who were headed for the Pre Sports Events to inform me so that I can take down the particulars of those who were headed for the events. There were ten in all, and I could identify them because they donned their sports attire. However, I didn't have time to take down their names as I was heading for Ms Chithra's Business Studies class.
Once everything was done, Mr Raja came into the class and he then begun his Accounting lesson. Then, I went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra discussed our exam papers. I got an A for the Assessment 1. Ms Chithra was happy and praised me. “Keep it up. Wei Yiang. Well done,” said Ms Chithra. “How can you get an A? I am quite surprised.”
Ms Chithra then called for the class to settle down. Alicia, Nicole and Sophie continued to say that Ms Chithra is gorgeous.
“Out of all, I am very proud of Wei Yiang. He has the best improvement,” said Ms Chithra. Then, Wei Zhong took a look at my exam paper and gave me the thumbs up. “Okay, class, quiet,” said Ms Chithra. Everyone went like, “Shh!” to ask the class to settle down. Ms Chithra then said that she looked forward to my presentation. “I hope you can improve from last year,” she said.
Then, after discussing the exam papers, Alicia, Sophie, Sara Yow and Nicole requested their marks to be changed, and Ms Chithra relented after taking a look at some of the answers that she marked wrongly. We then returned to 11N for Economics. I then looked around the room, counted the number of people in class, and marked them down on a sheet of paper before stapling it to the Control Book. Ms Sharon then came into the class. She gave us our Economics papers and discussed them.
During break time, I went to look at all four houses’ notice boards. Vicky, Janelle, Benjamin Tenji and were doing the final touch-ups for the Bullseye notice board. I praised them for making it look beautiful. Then, I saw a few people from Touchdown installing a set of electric lighting to the Touchdown sign.
“Hey! That's our idea!” I cried. I then told Vicky that I had proposed that idea to everyone in Bullseye but the notice board team were too slow to install it. Vicky just shrugged me off.
After break time, we then went for our Art lesson, and Ms Nadia then told me to begin Prep 4, since I had finished Prep 3. However, I just drew the painting and started painting one of the two paintings in Prep 4. Ms Nadia told me to halt. “You need to ask my permission before you paint. You cannot continue just like that, because I want to check your progress to ensure all the details are added in,” she said. Then, she told me to paint one of the grills before asking me to get some aluminium foil to stick on the walls to mimic the texture of the wall.
Then, it was Combined Science, and Mr Lee came in to discuss the papers. Brandon Ooi and Mr Lee played jokes. Brandon said that he had a lot of frogs around the vicinity of his neighborhood. Mr Lee told him to catch one. “The whole class is waiting for your frog!” he cried. Shane proposed that a larger frog be caught and then brought to the science lab for the dissection process, but Mr Lee said the frog cannot be too big as the school would not accept it.
At 12:30pm, Ivyna returned from the Pre Sports Events, and so did Kelsey. She and Kelsey were doing the Long Jump. She said Bullseye's performance was terrible. We then went for lunch, and I had lunch with Ethan Chan and Aaron Yong to discuss Bullseye's next strategy. I told them about the latest plan that I have placed in my specialized Bullseye scoring and information booklet that I had on Sports Day. I showed them a series of graphs which denoted the placing for the four Sports Houses. Then, I said that if Bullseye won a majority of the Pre Sports Events, it will bring us to second place and then allow us to overtake Slamdunk. There were three big plans; namely to create a new salute for the marchpast competition, have a K-Pop move for dance and to add a lot of sparkling colors for the banner so that it looks bright and eye-catching.
There were also plans that I proposed to put glitter on the notice board, along with a picture of a red flag. All athletics training must include some form of simulation of the actual event. I borrowed this cue from Singapore doing simulated terrorist exercises to train armed personnel to deal with emergencies or attacks on Singapore. The telematch games was to be simulated in said manner as well, and the cheering process was to be modeled after street protest atmospheres. I wrote an asterik at the bottom, saying: “If we don't do it (the plans), we will lose!”
Aaron Yong and Ethan Chan liked the plans. They even gave the thumbs-up to my Bullseye National Convention branding. I told them I would present all the plans to the house captains the following afternoon. Then, I ranted and complained about the Bullseye people being too slow to put up the notice board lighting, which Touchdown stole our idea.
Then, I spoke to Eu Lynn. She returned from the Long Jump. “Hey! The Touchdown glitter was my idea! We were too slow and now they stole it!” I cried.
“Chill, Wei Yiang,” said Eu Lynn.
“But....but....there's no time to waste! We need to do something before it is too late!” I cried.
During lunch, Jien Min told me that he will return my 2016 Sports Day outfit and I could wear it for my march practices. He was wearing it while having his meal. I told him not to dirty it, and he told me not to worry. He also told me he did well in the run, thanks to me ‘saving’ him with my sports attire.
That afternoon, during Character Transformation, Ms Praveen, Ms Lee, Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sha handed out our Statement of Entry. She said that a Statement of Entry is needed for all international examinations given by Cambridge; be it our Malay Oral Exam, the Trial Exam or even our actual IGCSE exams. The Statement of Entry contains our personal details, as well as the date, time and name of our subjects, along with the various papers. This particular Statement of Entry was for the May/June 2017 exam sitting. We would eventually have another Statement of Entry for the October/November 2017 series of the IGCSE Examination.
We then went back to class for our discussion with our class teachers to outline various protocol for the Malay IGCSE Examination. Ms Praveen had said that anyone who lost the Statement of Entry would need to go to the Academic Department to get a new one printed. At the same time, we would need to bring our original identity card for verification at any situation or circumstance; including the exam, too.
Then, Mr Kevin Wai outlined some housekeeping affairs. He told those who had gone down for the Pre Sports Events to give the permission slips to me so that I could file them into the Class Control Book. We were then left to outline technical aspects of the Malay Oral Exam and to do our own things. On another note, Ms Praveen had originally told us 11N students, along with 11B students, to clear our classrooms as the two classes were to be used for the Malay Oral Exam before they improvised and moved the exams to 11L instead. The 11N class was to be the exam room while 11B was to be the waiting room.
I then spoke to Mr Kevin Wai and then spoke to him about the pass tag matter. He told me not to worry as the pass tag issue was resolved. I then asked Mr Kevin if I could print a spare pass tag and keep it just in case the pass tag got lost again. He then told me that I cannot simply print a new pass tag if the pass tag got lost as the proper procedure was to get a new one from the management and not print a new one; let alone photocopying it. Some of my friends were okay with that, but Mr Kevin said that the management is the sole designated authority to issue all pass tags to the class. It would be a red flag if the pass tag losses were not reported to the management.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher spent the 40 minutes of our lesson explaining about our group project report. He showed us more samples on how to do the group project and posted them on Edmodo. While we were doing our work, I spoke to Vicky and proposed to her a series of suggestions that I have written in my personal Bullseye booklet. Vicky told me to speak to her during the house meet, also known as the Bullseye National Convention, instead.
For Sports Day, I also overheard from some of my friends that Joshua Chew and a few student leaders would be taking the pledge on Sports Day, with Joshua himself leading the sports pledge and school pledge. Sherwin said that according to Mr Narish, the pledge was to be simultaneously read out by Joshua, who is head prefect, followed by Yi Zhen, Aaron Loke, Sean Mark, Wences, Brendan Cheah and Joseph Diong who are the assistant head prefects and house captains.
I then went back to 11N after the Global Perspectives lesson. I checked the control book again and found out that Ms Janice had not signed the book, so I went to her staffroom to get it settled. This caused me to be a bit late for the Bullseye National Convention.
On the way to the Bullseye National Convention, I met Sebastian Kon and Lee Kai Yang from our marching team. They were headed there as well. Then, I saw Yeo Khaining and Andria Tan as well. They were also headed for the convention. When I arrived at the CT Hall, the location for the Bullseye National Convention, everyone was there waiting. Caleb Chuang was talking to some of the marchers with Zi Quan. Then, we went and had a chat with them. I stood next to Caleb Chuang as he and Zi Quan chat. Then, Sean Mark and Vicky arrived. “Okay, guys! Please settle down!” cried Vicky. She was affirmative.
Vicky then addressed once again the issue of the lack of marchers at marchpast practices. Vicky and Zi Quan had not been happy over how the progress for the marchpast was going, and that they complained that the same people were turning up everyday for the practices but the rest of those who signed up did not. “Why is it always the same people coming everyday?” Zi Quan and Vicky groaned. The people who turned up frequently were Andria Tan, Yeo Khaining, Lee Kai Yang, Sebastian Kon, me and Benjamin Lew. Vicky expressed concern that if the marchers’ turnup rate continues at the pace it is going, the Sports Day performance for marchpast would be a disaster.
Vicky also said that the dancers were the best-performing and that Ivyna had gotten a good number of people too. However, she emphasized that there was not enough people for the banner competition, and hence, pleaded for recruits. The rest of the Bullseye National Convention was used to recruit more people to participate in the various competitions. One of them was the telematch, where Dylan S. Gill was in charge. He had also given advice to one of the march practices we did as well when we were practicing in the canteen after school.
I wanted to sign up for the telematch competition, but Vicky herself was hesitant in putting me in the telematch team for Bullseye and all the Bullseye National Committee members were very hesitant. In fact, they were unsure over whether to put me in the telematch team. Vicky told me to get back to her later on that. She was quite emotional.
Then, I met Eu Lynn and Benjamin Tenji to propose my banner idea as stated in the book. Benjamin Tenji and Eu Lynn were in agreement but they were a bit slow in planning Bullseye's banner. They told me to calm down and not panic much. I then met Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang, talking to them about the cool salute we did the previous year and was thinking of creating another cool salute. Zi Quan said that the management had not allowed any salutes for the year. He didn't reply to me when I asked him why there were no salutes involved. Other than that, Ivyna was in agreement with my dance moves. I told her to come up with exciting music, fast music, metal music and some cool K-POP moves for the dance competition. Then, we dispersed for our respective Sports Day practices.
The next day, 7th March, upon arriving at school, I asked Zi Quan if he knew why the management did not allow any new marching moves. He burst into a fit. “STOP ASKING ME! I DON'T KNOW! OKAY?!” he cried. My heart jolted. I had just asked him a question. Everyone just looked at me. “GO AWAY!” shouted Zi Quan. I just kept quiet, walked away, took my bread and went to the canteen for a meal. I wished we had marching moves like those of 2016. It looked cool and it was Bullseye's trademark.
When I returned, I just sat in the group, watching Zi Quan talk to people. Just as I was trying to ask if Zi Quan was okay, he threw into a fit and shouted at me again. “I SAID GO AWAY! DON'T TALK TO ME!” he cried.
During the Reading Time, my heart shattered when I reflected on what Zi Quan said. I was just gathering information to help the house. I just focused on the road ahead and tried to cheer myself up. I had athletics practice that afternoon. When I informed everyone in the class that they should write their names in the control book before using the washroom, Brandon stood up. He gave an interesting proposal.
Brandon suggested that they write their names AFTER returning from the washroom and said that so long as the information is recorded in the control book, it would be fine. I was a bit nervous and initially hesitant to accept his suggestion because the teachers said that students must record their names in the control book BEFORE leaving the classroom. However, I accepted him and told him that I also propose writing for them if they left the classroom for a hassle-free experience. They agreed, and I told them to let me know at the end of the lesson if they left for the washroom and the number of times they did so. I told them I will propose this to Ms Sharon, since she is not just our Economics teacher, but one of the teachers in charge of the Monitor's Council.
Then, Mr Lee came into the class and continued his lesson. He taught us about the types of energy. He and Brandon talked about the frog dissection before we begun the lesson. Mr Lee said that if Brandon Ooi did not bring the frog, we will not do frog dissection experiments in the lab. Mr Lee told us to use calculators when answering our questions as some people did not bring their calculators for their Assessment 1.
When Ms Sharon came into the class, I proposed to her on what Brandon suggested in class. Ms Sharon instantly said that as long as anyone remembers the entry and exit time from the classroom, they will be okay. Brandon also said that one person can write everyone's names if they used the washroom at the same time. For instance, if Brandon, Shane, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit and Nickolas Nashpal used the loo at the same time, either one of them can write for them. I told Brandon that I gave my trust to everyone in the class to be honest. Everyone agreed.
I have to admit that me being assistant monitor allowed me to improve my relationships with my classmates. No one argued anymore. We all had a good happy ending. Even Brandon Ooi and I had a friendly series of talks with one another.
Ms Sharon then introduced to us the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which measures the total final finished goods produced by a country within a given period of time. It is divided into nominal and real GDP. The nominal GDP is the GDP that is calculated with account for inflation. Real GDP occurs when the inflation rate and amount is removed from nominal GDP. To calculate GDP, the components of consumption, investment, government spending and the total value attained from the export value minus the import value is added.
GDP Formula = Consumption + Investment + Government Spending + (Exports – Imports)
Ms Sharon said that GDP is a good measure of a country's economic growth but it is not an accurate measure of how a country's economy is progressing because of the presence of other factors, such as inflation. And not only that; just because a country is having economic growth does not mean that the people in the country are happy or are having good living standards OR are making enough money. She said we will learn this in the next topic which is Living Standards.
After Economics, it was our break time, and we went for break. I look at Zi Quan talk to some other people while eating. He had a really nasty look on his face as I glanced at him. “What? Why are you looking at me?” he cried.
Then, it was Global Perspectives. I tried to get Vicky to tell me about the telematch registration status. Vicky did not answer. She only just said, “Wait first.” I was a bit impatient, but however I tried to keep my cool as much as possible. Mr Gallagher then continued to tell us about how to do our group project. He told us that we could do a fundraiser in order to raise funds for our cause. Mr Gallagher said at the end of the day it was up to us on how we plan to do our project.
I sat down on the chair, folded my arms, and just stared in space. I felt delusional. I only just wondered why was Zi Quan was acting at me in such a manner. and I also wonder why was Vicky dilly dallying on putting me into the telematch group. It seems like there was a change in the heart of Vicky. Something was very wrong here. I mean like, we are Year 11 students. And we are supposed to work together for the Sports Day. This is our chance to lead the school. This is our chance to show how great we are and how we are at our best. It seemed weird as why all my friends were very opposed to my proposals. I mean like it is not wrong to oppose a proposal but I just wonder why were people really upset with me. I only just want to help Bullseye to do its best and to find a solution to the problems we have; just like how I found the solution to the control book issue. I am confident to know the way out of this mess, and I believe that if everyone followed my proposals or at least consider some of the proposals that I have given we wouldn't be at third place in the Sports Day standings. We would be leading in the scoreboard.
I spent the entire Global Perspectives lesson just thinking about this and Glen noticed I was not in a very good mood.
“Wei Yiang, are you okay? What's wrong?” he asked. I just stayed silent.
Then we returned to 11N for Maths. We waited outside, and I had a chat with Mr Chan. Ms Janice almost forgot to sign the control book, but I got her to do so in the nick of time. She autographed the book as her Additional Mathematics lesson finished. Then, Ms Bee Yan came into the class and begun teaching us on probability and gave us homework.
During lunch, I interviewed Nieshaal Thambipillay for the school yearbook. He initially thought I was joking and fooling around till I told him that I am interviewing him and he was chosen for the yearbook. Then, I went to the school hall to read some of the information that Mr Narish had put up on the Sports Day information board near the back court of the school hall. I took down notes and recorded more information.
During History, Ms Visa taught us more about the Cuban Missile Crisis. Brandon Ooi and I had a friendly chat about the Bay of Pigs invasion by the United States on Cuba. Prior to the invention of nuclear missiles, there was no means to strike either the United States or the Soviet Union from their own territory. Instead, missiles had to be transported to another country and then set into position, facing the enemy. The United States had placed missiles in Turkey, and in response to protect the interest of Fidel Castro, the Soviet Union decided to ship missiles to Cuba and station them into Cuba pointing towards the United States. This was to scare then-president John F. Kennedy into thinking that they should not mistreat or bully Cuba. Fidel Castro wanted to create a communist state in Cuba however since he was close to the United States. America had been trying to remove Castro from power and replace Castro with another pro-United States Cuban government in order to strengthen the capitalist base and to prevent the spread of communism to South America.
I asked Brandon, Kelsey, Jo Yi and Eric if they attended the Bullseye National Convention. However, only Eric attended. I pleaded to them to attend the Bullseye National Convention in order to help Bullseye win. the next National Convention was scheduled for 13th March 2017.
Then it was up and then we went to the Art Studio for the day. Ms Nadia was discussing the Art and Design Paper 2 questions for the Mid Year Examination. We were told to state our choice for the Paper 2 questions so that we can draw our Prep works for Paper 2. Fortunately, I was at Prep 4 of Paper 2. Ms Nadia then showed us a slideshow containing images of what she expects us to do for Paper 2. I decided to choose the Greenhouse Energy Company logo.
After school ended, I went up to 11N to keep the control book and the Smartboard equipment. Then, I went to meet Ms Sarah. She hasn't signed the control book yet.
“Ms Sarah, you forgot to sign the control book,” I moaned.
“Oh yeah. Thanks thanks. Thanks for being a good monitor,” she said. She was in the management office. Ms Joyce also informed her of the same experience. They proposed a ‘best monitor award’ for me.
Then I went down to the canteen and met with Sean Mark. he was getting everyone ready for the athletics practice. I then told Sean Mark about what Vicky said about the telematch. Sean Mark said he will inform Vicky accordingly to sort out the arrangements.
I then sat down with Aaron Yong and Ethan Chan, and we talked about our Bullseye plans.
“Now you see. The Pre Sports Events have been completed. All you just need to do is to eat ginger onions and then you can pass gas like mad,” I grinned. The two of them laughed. It was so funny. Heng Le Onne, Le Anne's brother, heard my suggestion and said I was crazy. I intended for the two of them to shoot like a rocket when running, propelling them at supersonic velocity.
Aaron Yong told me the good news that Bullseye had won a couple of events in the Pre Sports Events; especially the high jump. I felt a burst of positive energy. Then, I told them all my plans, showing the book with the nice Bullseye flag drawing which contained the Bullseye plans to them. Ethan and Aaron looked at it. They were excited. I showed everyone in Bullseye the book. All were impressed by the plans; especially the cover. Loo Zane, Geok Minh and Prudence Wong gave good remarks. Ivyna, in reality, was considering my K-POP suggestion. She was so excited. She had to discuss this with Pei Chi.
I then changed into my sports attire and got back in time. We headed to the field where we did our runs. I performed well that day. But the thing is that Jason Leing was missing. Where was he?
Wednesday, 8th March 2017, arrived. Zi Quan arrived as usual in the morning. When I stared at him, he had a really angry look on his face again. I only wonder why was he so serious. I don't want to jump the gun on him. When he saw me, he shouted at me angrily for standing next to him. He thought I wanted to talk to him. We were just waiting for the school doors to open. The security guards opened the doors at 6:45am and then we went in.
The hall was dimly-lit, and I looked at Zi Quan. He had such a serious look on his face; a glare enough to scare people to death. I then greeted him and he scolded me. He shouted at me like mad till the whole hall heard me. I felt down and really terrified of what he did. I waited till Caleb Chuang arrived. He told me to discuss the Bullseye plans during break time when I invited him to discuss.
Before the assembly begun, I went to double check with Mr Narish on the scores. He told me that the score tally was still in progress and he would announce the final scores by the end of the week. Then, we had our English lesson with Mr Thomas.
“Yesterday was the Long Jump, right?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas,” I replied.
“They went to the stadium, right?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas.”
“Is it the Panasonic Stadium?” he asked.
“Yes, it's the Panasonic Stadium. We hold the Sports Day there every year,” I replied.
“Have you read books by Roald Dahl?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas. My favorite one was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
“Are there any other books that you have read?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas. I also read about George's Marvelous Medicine.”
Mr Thomas then opened the Edmodo page. “Today, you are going to learn from Roald Dahl on how to write a proper essay,” he said. He then showed a text of Boy, a life story written by Roald Dahl. He spent the whole lesson talking about Roald Dahl and all the funny things he said. The most funniest one was when he talked about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and how fat Aloysius Gloop got. He even boasted about his fat body till I laughed. Then, we also talked about Roald Dahl's other books, including books that had funny quotations and stories.
Afterwards, we went for Business Studies. Ms Chithra then talked about the differences between mass market and niche market when talking about consumers and consumer behavior in Business Studies. We were learning about the identification of markets for entry and exit of products.
During break time, I met up with Caleb Chuang, showed him the book, and re-explained all the Bullseye activities. I then told him that I could step in for him if he and Zi Quan were to be participating in the dance competition. He said I could do so. Then, we talked about the Bible Knowledge Postal Quiz in April. Ms Renee had been telling us about it.
Then, we had Global Perspectives. Once again, I asked Vicky for information on the telematch. She was adamant to let me know and when I showed her some of my Bullseye plans, she rejected most of them. We then had Maths thereafter, and then I begun to write the names of people who used the toilet. I only just needed them to sign on the initials column.
Later, during lunch, I met up with Gabriel Lim, Aaron Liew and Glen Kay to finalize the Business Studies coursework. We were collecting surveys but the surveys were not so successful and some people weren't as cooperative. I even discussed the Business Studies coursework with Glen during Global Perspectives. I wanted to have better performance and not be embarrassed by the class again.
Then, during Art, I managed to complete the second painting of Prep 4. Ms Nadia told me to start planning for Prep 1 of Paper 2. She drafted ideas with me on how to plan the Greenhouse logo. She told me to use my aloe vera plants from my house as the basis for the Greenhouse logo, since I had no cactus plants at home. We then had History, and Ms Visa gave us source questions to do on the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Then, it was Bible Knowledge, and Ms Renee discussed about the journey of Paul and Silas around Galilee and we had a long talk about the postal quiz, which was taking place from 21st April to 8th May.
The next day, 9th March, was greeted with another rude shock. The pass tag had disappeared again. Yes. The toilet pass tag. I asked who was there during Mr Steve's Mandarin Foreign class, which was using 11N. In fact, the pass tag was still there. On Wednesdays, because I would collect the control book after Mr Steve finished his lesson which was also the same day as my Bible Knowledge lesson, I would check the pass tags. In fact, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit and Brandon even saw the toilet pass tag there before leaving the room; just like me. So, I had to go and get a pass tag again. This time, I knew what to do.
During Economics, Ms Sharon talked to us about living standards. Everyone imagined good living standards as being in a rich man's hotel-class modern interior designed house, with nice air conditioning, good ambience lighting as well as comfortable, expensive furniture. Then, she related this to the Human Development Index (HDI) which is used to measure the progress of a country's development, and that GDP per head is used to measure how rich a country is among its population. Then, Ms Cynthia came in for Malaysian Studies. She had a disappointing look on her face. It wasn't a good one. She handed us our Malaysian Studies papers, disappointed at some of our results. Mine was just at over half the score.
Afterwards, it was break time, and discussed the Business Studies coursework with Gabriel and Glen. I told them I would present the Powerpoint presentation for the subject. Then, we went for Business Studies and Ms Chithra continued talking about market research. Companies would normally do some market research on the buyer and the product before planning their marketing strategies. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa continued the lesson. Brandon and I talked a bit and I asked him for feedback on the Control Book management. He said the management of the Control Book had improved, although the pass tag issue was a problem that needed urgent attention. I then told Ms Visa, who was coming in for History, about the whole situation and informed her I would seek a new pass tag as soon as possible. Ms Visa then continued to discuss about the Cuban Missile Crisis. We even saw various images of nuclear missiles being set up in the Cuban jungles. Afterwards, it was Malay, and Cikgu Niely was really serious with us.
Cikgu Niely then discussed our Malay Assessment 1 papers. Most of us performed badly. Cikgu Niely told us that we have to worry because the Malay Oral Exam would be happening the following week. I got a D for the Malay Assessment 1.
Then, it was lunch, and I went to find Ms Tan and Ms Kelly to request for another new pass tag. Apparently, I had tried to find them during break time but unfortunately, they were not available.
“Lost again? How come?” they cried. I had to tell them the exact same story again. They then told me to come and collect the new pass tag the next day. Somehow, it was a really mysterious thing. Someone had stolen the pass tag from 11N once again.
During lunch, I discussed with Caleb Chuang on the plans for Bullseye. He spoke to me that as one of the three Year 11 students coordinating the marchpast, including him and Zi Quan, he would be planning to put me in front to lead the marchpast. It was meant to be some form of good omen for me, since I was a Year 11 student. This reflects the responsibility given to us Year 11s to lead the Sports Day. At the same time, it is also a tribute to my five-year-long service marching for Bullseye in every Sports Day. Caleb Chuang and I marched every year from Year 7 to Year 11.
Caleb Chuang told me that based on the past two Sports Days, there would be three marchpast captains. In 2016, the three captains were Jeremy Yeap, Kie Yip and Alister Baptist. Likewise, the 2015 Sports Day saw Ivan Hiew, Jonathan Ong and Jeremy Yeap lead the marchpast contingent for Bullseye. Hence, this was why Caleb Chuang put me as one of the assistant marchpast captains, alongside Zi Quan; although officially, only two march captains’ names were mentioned, in this case. Caleb Chuang and Heng Zi Quan. He told me that based on the 2016 arrangement, Sean Mark would lead the parade, followed by Chong Vicky marching behind him. Then, Caleb Chuang proposed that me, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan lead the march team, based on the arrangement. I was excited as it would look cool marching with him in front. Every squad; from the head prefects to the contingent of each house, would be led by Year 11 leaders. Marching in front, in this case, would make me feel on the same par with the rest of our Year 11 mates. Even so, based on the tradition of previous Sports Days, Year 11s would be given priority to march in front, unless there are more Year 11 march captains.
Conversely, looking at the other teams, the Slamdunk squad was led by Brendan Cheah as the house captain, Ethan Wong as his assistant, and then followed by Sherwin, who is the march captain for Slamdunk, along with his assistant, Rick Tan. Touchdown would be led by Lim Wences, Heng Le Anne, as well as their two march captains, namely Julian Ong and Ryan Toh. Shaun Ting was proposed to be the third guy to stand in front of the Touchdown march squad, next to Julian Ong.
The only odd exception to this rule is Homerun; Joseph Diong would be leading Homerun's squad, followed by Marcus Chai, and then this would be followed by Ashley Teoh and San Ying. While Year 10s can become house captains, it was the Year 11s who took priority over the rest as 2017 was our final year as Nobel students.
For Bullseye, Jason Leing and Jien Min were proposed to carry the Bullseye banner that would flutter behind the squad. Conversely, Caleb Chuang was unclear of what happened to Jason Leing, and so was me.
Behind the scenes, I was planning for the 1500m, and had practiced everyday upon returning home from school. I only just did a sprint run at home, continuing the tradition from the Founder's Run practices.
After lunch, we then went back for Maths, and Ms Bee Yan begun teaching about probability. Then, it was English, and I went to 11B for Mr Thomas’ lesson. He told us on areas to improve from our previous day's discussion of the description of an accident. Then, he gave us a piece of text to do on description in narration. He told us to write a narrative story.
During the Editorial Board meeting, I presented the interviews to Ms Levina and she gave some feedback on the interviews. She said that I should interview the name and class. Then, she told me to interview teachers for the yearbook. Shi Tian then gave us an update on the production of the first newsletter for 2017.
The next day, Friday, 10th March 2017, was an important day as Mr Narish announced a lot of important information. He said that for the following week, we would run through a few dress rehearsal sessions and that time would be given for all the participants in the opening ceremony of the Sports Day to do their own practices. The rehearsal would be held in the school hall and the students would need to perform the opening ceremony according to the itinerary set by the school, in regards to the march in and out of the stadium. He told all house captains and their committee members to ensure that everyone was well.
After the assembly ended, we then went back to class for our Homeroom time, Then, I updated Mr Kevin Wai on the pass tag issue. I told him that I had spoken to Ms Tan and Ms Kelly and that the situation would be resolved very soon. Then, following the Homeroom time, we then went down for PE and I brought the control book along with the class as we headed to the school hall. Once we reached the school hall, I then passed the control book to Ms Sylvia and then joined Caleb Chuang and Sherwin in a game of football. Ethan Wong and Sean Mark practiced shooting the ball. Soon afterwards, Joshua Chew and Sherwin played defender and then they tried to defend the ball. Then, once that was done, they passed the ball around. Everyone passed the ball around, including me, and then Mr Victor also played passing with us.
Then Mr Victor blew his whistle and called for everyone to assemble everyone assembled in their class lines and all the teachers took the attendance of everyone. Mr Lim, Ms Sylvia, Ms Nadia, Ms Ting, Ms Lee, Ms Yap and Cikgu Niely were present. Then, Mr Victor made an announcement.
“OK guys!” cried Mr Victor, blowing his whistle. “Today we are going to have Sports For All,” he said. The whole hall screamed. I shouted the loudest because Mr Victor was having Sports For All for us. Then he told us that we will need to get into our house lines and proceed to the PE field with him.
Mr Victor then passed the time to Ms Sylvia. Ms Sylvia then said that we are going to have the 100 meters and Shot Putt for the day. “This week we are going to do the 100 meters as well as the Shot Putt; next week you will be doing your High Jump and Long Jump,” she said.
“So, who's going to win this year?” cried Ms Sylvia. I screamed and shouted Bullseye's name till everyone looked at me.
“Wei Yiang, Bullseye will lose!” cried Eugene Ho and Sheng Jit. Ryan Chok laughed at me.
“Which house is the best?” cried Ms Sylvia. I shouted Bullseye's name till some people told me that my saliva landed on their face.
Miss Sylvia told us to stand up and proceed to the few so we all got up and we assembled in our house lines we line up according to our four sports houses boost eye patch down home run and slam down and then miss Sylvia led us to the field.
On the way to the field, I spoke with Eu Lynn about Bullseye's rankings. I told her that we should not be telling other houses on our winning strategies and helping them especially in the athletics practices, the telematch events and all those other competitions because it will undermine Bullseye’s effort. I told Eu Lynn that as Bullseye is in 3rd place, it will be very beneficial if we could stop giving out all the strategies to other houses because it will enable us to win as what the Bullseye people had been doing in practices. As Bullseye had performed well in the athletics events, giving out our success story would only benefit Touchdown. After all, in my opinion, the interests of Bullseye would normally come first. The big deal was to bring Bullseye back to the first place ranking and show Touchdown and Slamdunk who is boss. Giving out our strategies and helping the other houses, in my opinion, would leak the plans for Bullseye to our opponents, who would overcome us. I had seen that some Bullseye people had been telling other people on Bullseye's success in the athletics events and are trying to help the other houses to perform well. “We should not tell the other houses the plans. If they want to do the training, we should not train them. Let them get the information from Mr Victor and train themselves,” I said.
Eu Lynn immediately criticized the plans. “Wei Yiang, that's not fair. There's no sportsmanship. Sports Day is not about competition, but about having fun and making friends in the process,” she said. Eu Lynn told me that my proposal was very bad as it isolates every sports house and allows Bullseye to dominate everything. I was only concerned of Bullseye's placing, and told her that we are suffering in third place and it would be great if we can help the other houses after we achieved a big lead. After all, in my opinion, helping the other houses would mean sacrificing the good of Bullseye to our opponents and allow other people to have great glory.
“The placing is not important. Yes, we are third place, but do you think it is fair if we do things for our own benefit?” she asked. I just kept silent.
Then afterwards I went to speak with Caleb Chuang about our Bullseye strategy. I said that we need to motivate everyone to do well in the Sports For All and we would just run and see how as to the result. If the result was great, we would be able to close in on Touchdown.
Brendan Cheah boasted the capabilities of Slamdunk and Ethan Wong laughed. Then, some people bought some food from 7-Eleven. Mr Lim then stopped Christopher Chew from buying some drinks from the store. Then, we headed to the PE field and each house was given the chance to do their warm ups.
I did the warm ups and stood next to Caleb Chuang. Sean Mark did the warm ups with us. “Come on guys, we can do this!” I cried, and all the Bullseye people thanked me for the motivation.
Mr Lim and Mr Victor were doing the 100m while Ms Nadia and Ms Sylvia coordinated the Shot Putt duels. They were measuring the field, marking out a 100m stretch of course on the muddy grass. While waiting for the events to start, I spoke to Caleb Chuang about the marchpast arrangements. Zi Quan had an angry look on his face.
Then Mr Victor and Mr Lim told everyone to be divided into boys and girls. The girls would do the Shot Putt first while the boys would go for the 100 meters. Once everyone was done, we would switch roles and actions. The girls would then dash and sprint while the boys would be fumbling with the Shot Putt metal ball. So we stood by for the 100 meters. Eu Lynn, Ivyna and Vicky had a chat as they proceeded to the Shot Putt area, which Ms Nadia and Ms Sylvia were using strings, tape and sticks to create a grid on the floor to measure the Shot Putt distances.
Back at the 100m distance course, Mr Lim told us to line up according to our class name list in order. Brandon Ooi was the first, followed by Eric and then me, as we were the only three boys from Bullseye in 11N. This would then be followed by Caleb Chuang and then Sean Mark, and so on till the last person. Every class would have four people to race accordingly.
Mr Victor stood at the end of the course. He had his stopwatch held firmly in his hand, and was about to start the race. Mr Lim told us to start only after Mr Victor put his hand down and gave the start signal. Mr Victor would hold his hand up and then move it downwards to signal the start. Mr Lim would give us the heads-up before we started.
The first batch of people were put in order. Brandon, Gabriel and Shane were the first. As there were no boys in Slamdunk from 11N, there were only three people racing.
Mr Lim then told us to listen to Mr Victor, who shouted “one, two, three, go!” before we started. He did the commands, and the three boys then sped off like Formula 1 racing cars. Gabriel had told me that he could not do a 100m and was really bad in it. Brandon Ooi ran till his face became so red, while Shane ran like a clown and he laughed. Brandon reached the finish line first, and he and Shane giggled like mad.
Then, it was the next batch of people. Eric, Glen and Sheng Jit were the next. They flagged off. Glen just jogged, while Eric sprinted like mad. He reached the finish line first.
Then, I was told to race with Aaron and Louis. When we flagged off, I overtook both of them. Things were cool. I invited Eric and Brandon to high-five each other as we three Bullseye people won all the first three races. They did so gently, after Ivyna asked them to do so.
Once we were done, I stood next to Caleb Chuang as he waited his turn. We talked about the next Bullseye National Convention. Mr Lim then told those who were done to line up behind the girls, who were doing shot putt.
Soon, as Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark arrived for their turn, I was wondering where Jason Leing was. It was a mystery. Oh, and Desmond Chan and Justin Yeo ran like two mice in a house. It looked amusing to watch them run.
Jordan Tay and Rick Tan talked about me and Caleb Chuang. Rick said that my plans to not give any suggestions or ideas to our opponents and not engage with them so that Bullseye's interests were protected were unfair to the other teams. He said that it was a Sports Day for everyone and that it doesn't matter and no one cared about the champion house or the scores. He heard this when I discussed the plans with Caleb Chuang. Desmond Chan then came to me and playfully brought up the idea of Bullseye winning the Sports Day due to corruption. In fact, I do not know how Desmond brought up this theory. Desmond is from Slamdunk and he is also a member of the Maths Olympiad CCA as well as a participant in various Mathematics competitions.
“The Bullseye captains influenced the judges and paid bribes to the judges. They paid a total of RM 100 to motivate them to give Bullseye the winner in dance. They also told the judges to let Bullseye win the running events and to give exclusive training to Bullseye,” he said. I rubbished off the claims. Desmond even told me that Bullseye was the winner for three years thanks to my plans with Caleb Chuang. He said that I was the motivator and driver behind Bullseye's 2014, 2015 and 2016 victory. While I accepted the fact that I drove Bullseye won thanks to me, I told him it was due to due diligence of the people from Bullseye who accepted the plans.
“Slamdunk is ahead of you. We are planning to become number one,” smirked Desmond Chan. I told him that we would soon catch up to him, and laughed off his theory.
We were called one by one to do the Shot Putt events. Ms Nadia and Ms Sylvia were measuring the course in front of us with a measuring tape. Each time whenever someone threw a ball, Ms Sylvia would mark out the position of the ball where it landed, and recorded the position inside a file that she had brought along. Ms Sylvia is actually recording the scores inside a table provided in a piece of paper in her file based on the landing position of the ball. The further the position, the higher the score.
The Shot Putt ball was really, really heavy. All in all, it was very difficult for one to throw it. Only the strongest will be able to master a much longer throwing distance.
Soon, it came to my turn to throw the ball. I then did gave my best but the ball landed really close to me. Ms Sylvia marked down the score. Ms Nadia was giving instructions to everyone on when they should throw the ball. Once I was done, I then had a chat with Caleb Chuang and continued talking about all the strategies I planned to him. In fact I was finding a way to fix the notice board because I felt the design was horrible and it could be improved further. When Janelle Arnelia was done with her 100m run, I proposed to her my ideas and she accepted them. However she said that the problem right now is that the committee do not have a lot of members willing to stay back to help do Bullseye's notice board and that they do not plan to make the board a really grand one. So instead Janelle told me that they plan to leave the board as it is for now. My heart sank, and although I accepted Janelle's reasoning, I was worried about what score would we get for the notice board but in this case I personally knew that we were not going to get a first place win in this case. I then volunteered to help Janelle out but she said that they had enough members to do the notice board together. When I told Vicky about the matter, she did not allow me to lend assistance to the notice board decorating process. “There is no need for you to get involved. We have people to do it ourselves,” she said. I felt helpless. On one hand, I have the solutions to every problem and any issue that Bullseye is facing and am willing to lend some assistance to all our Bullseye members in case help was needed. But Vicky did not allow me to do so. I felt sad. I want Bullseye to be restored to first place, but the past few plans were prevented from being executed. It was as if a patient wants to be cured from sickness, and that the doctor was prevented from treating the patient.
Then afterwards, I spoke to Caleb Chuang on the marchpast arrangements. He said that we will have our marchpast practices the following Monday as that Friday's practice was cancelled because not everyone can turn up. Zi Quan had also informed me of the cancellation. In fact, for the newcomers to the marchpast team, Caleb Chuang had given them a marching worksheet for them to do. He had designed the marching worksheet on his own, printed it out, and gave each of them the marching worksheets. The worksheets contain the moves which one would do when marching and personally I was thinking of having all the marchers to do some push-ups and sit-ups before we start the event before we start our practices. Most march captains do it as punishments, but I want all marchers to have some warm ups so that they can focus on practicing easily. However, I did not propose this plan to Caleb Chuang as for most people, push ups are not necessary for the marchpast. Additionally, Zi Quan was really in an angry mood when talking to me. I felt that proposing to him wasn’t good as he wasn't in good spirits.
On the way back to school, some people bought things from 7-Eleven after Ms Sylvia gave the green light for them to do so, since break time was approaching. I kept on thinking about what Vicky said to me. It was heartbreaking because as I mentioned earlier, I had no plan to interfere with what my friends are doing regarding the internal affairs of Bullseye and also the Sports Day preparations. But personally, I felt that in my opinion, the notice board, as well as several other aspects of Bullseye needed urgent attention. I felt that Bullseye was going to lose if these matters were not attended to. While walking back I told Vicky that if she did not allow me to at least propose some suggestions, Bullseye would lose. In fact, we were on course to losing. However, I was a bit hopeful. I knew that with a change of heart and a change of strategy, Bullseye would have a good chance of winning and potentially, we would be on track to victory. I was thinking of the greater good of Bullseye members. I mean, like, Vicky wants first place wins for Bullseye, and so did Sean Mark, Zi Quan, Eu Lynn, Ivyna, Caleb Chuang......everyone wants Bullseye to win. And any suggestion which benefits Bullseye should be allowed to take flight.
We then went for our break time as I sat down with Caleb Chuang and talked to him about this situation. Then, I went to find Gabriel, Glen and Aaron who then told me about the suggestions for the Business Studies coursework. I told them that I would present the report and the slideshow presentation to Ms Chithra by Monday, 13th March which was also our Malay IGCSE Oral Examination.
During Malay, Cikgu Niely briefed us about how the examination would look like she told us to remember our estimated time slot, because if we fail to do so and we somehow forgot our slot, we would miss the examination and we would be awarded a fail grade for our Malay Oral Exam. She spent the entire lesson talking to us about the oral exam. Then, she also told us that on Wednesday 15th March 2017, we would have our Malay IGCSE Paper 2 and Paper 4 trial exam in the school hall. During that period of time as such there will be no classes for the entirety of that morning. Cikgu Niely then wish us all the best for the exams and reminded us to be well prepared.
Then it was Combined Science ,and before we went to the Science Lab, I managed to get Cikgu Niely to sign the control book as I had somehow forgotten to ask her to do so. We then went to the Science Lab to meet Mr Lee. For that day's lab session, Mr Lee was doing a chromatography exercise. Mr Lee then handed each group a chromatography paper, a container, a chromatography paper holder as well as some liquids, and then we proceeded to do the chromatography exercise Brandon Ooi and Shane put too much of ink onto the chromatography paper until the chromatography paper, when dipped with the water to separate the mixtures, saw the ink taking on a funny form to which they laughed. Mr Lee wasn't quite amused. “Aiyoh,” he said.
After Combined Science, we then went for English. Ms Joyce was in 11N and she told everyone to quickly settle down and for those in Mr Thomas’ lesson to go for his classes quickly. I then presented Ms Joyce the control book to which she signed it and then I left for my English class with Mr Thomas.
In the class, Mr Thomas switched on the Edmodo application.
“Good afternoon! How are you?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Fine, Mr Thomas,” I replied.
Mr Thomas had a stack of books on his table. It was our exercise books. He told me to hand out the books to everyone in the class. I gave the books to everyone. Mr Thomas told us to read his comments that he had written in the book. it contained the areas as to where we went right and where we went wrong for our essay writing.
Then, Mr Thomas then asked us a question. “Have you heard about the Three Little Pigs story?” he asked. I laughed so loudly till everyone laughed. Enisha was glaring angrily at me.
Mr Thomas then told us about the Three Little Pigs story. He said that the story of the Three Little Pigs was a test of narrative writing. I used to read this story when I was a kid. Mr Thomas told the Three Little Pigs story to us and he read the entire text that he had written and narrated. Each time Mr Thomas read a particular phrase, I kept on laughing crazily. Even some people in the class also laughed.
“The wolf went up to the house of the first little pig. The first little pig had built a house out of haystacks. “Hello, hello, anyone home?” cried the wolf. “Not on the hair of my chimney-chin-chin!”” cried Mr Thomas as he read the text. There was a lot of laughter, and even Jien Min and Eugene Ho was laughing. Soon, even Enisha started laughing. All of us acted like kindergarteners for a day. Mr Thomas then had another plan for us.
“Can you write and narrate the story by yourself?” asked Mr Thomas. The whole class by then was acting crazily. “Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas wanted us to narrate the story as part of narrative writing practice. He told us to write the Three Little Pigs story as well as another story on our own and hand it in to him the following week.
“Please give me the work on Wednesday,” said Mr Thomas.
“But Mr Thomas, Wednesday is our Malay IGCSE Trial exam,” I pleaded.
“You have an exam?” asked Mr Thomas. The whole class was explaining by then about the Malay IGCSE Trial. Then, Mr Thomas told us to give the work to him on Thursday, 16th March.
“Thursday is our next class, right? Okay, we shall give the work on Thursday,” he said.
Monday, 13th March was an important day. It was the beginning of our Malay Oral Examination. And it was a week which had come to be associated with examinations.
The morning assembly then begun with Mr Narish briefing us about the Sports Day plans. Mr Narish said that at the end of the week, the first formal rehearsal would take place on 17th March in the morning, for a whole day, and informed everyone about that afternoon's Bullseye National Convention. I was keen on making Vicky known on my various proposals.
In fact for the Sports Day, I had been imagining a lot of funny things that could make Bullseye look great. Some of the plans that I have proposed for the cheering were inspired by the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests where student protest leaders carried large megaphones and flags. Those students mainly carried red flags. There were partial inspirations of cheering methods from protests in Malaysia as well, just like Malaysia's own Bersih protests. However, I had to be quite careful as I was reminded of what Sabrina Qistina warned me the previous year, and we had to stray clear of political elements.
There was also a plan for me to put some model tanks on the tracks to show off Bullseye's greatness like a national day parade when parading, but however because the management wanted to use the field for their own organizational methods, the plan was effectively cancelled. In part for the so-called national day parade idea, I was partially inspired by North Korean military parades. There was even a plan to put a cardboard cutout of a red flag that was that was shaped as a right angled triangle, just like what China, North Korea and other communist states did. In fact, I had planned a flag cutout to be used as the backdrop of a mini stage. Communist countries normally put red flag cutouts or any other thing representing red flags in any occasion or event, such as parades, party meetings and so on. While we had to stray clear of politics, I liked those red flag designs and eventually decided to paint one on my own Bullseye banner for 2017, thus continuing the initiative from 2016. The big deal right now is that the red flags represent Bullseye. While I looked to those communist states’ setups for inspiration for my banner and flag designs, we just took away the communist elements from it. No one can dispute the fact that a red flag in Nobel reminds one of Bullseye.
On another note, Ms Praveen informed everyone that there will be barricades set up near the library steps which are next to the Year 11 classrooms. She warned everyone not to cross the barricades and utilize the detour to use the nearby washroom or if better, another washroom, so as to not disrupt the examination.
After the assembly ended, I presented the Business Studies Marketing Strategy Report to Ms Chithra. She rejected the report and told me to redo the report, but the presentation was allowed to go ahead. Ms Chithra was doing our Business Studies Coursework Presentation. It was equally as embarrassing as the previous year, but not as bad. 11L had to use the Tutorial Room 4 for their lessons as their class was used as a waiting room and exam area for the Malay Oral Exam, which had just begun with our class, 11N, going first. Alia had to immediately head for her turn, followed by Brandon. Each individual spent a total of 30 minutes for their Oral slot. A total of 15 minutes were used by the candidate to read the role play card, five minutes to act on the instructions on the role play card, five minutes to answer basic questions in Malay and five minutes to present their speech topic to Cikgu Niely, who was invigilating the exam.
Alia and Brandon had to go to the examination venue first, which was 11L's classroom. The next person on the list, Cassandra, can only go after Alia returned to the class. If let's say Cassandra went before Alia returned, she will be asked to wait outside the exam room. This procedure would continue person by person. There will be a break in the exam for break and lunch time. Everyone had to remember who was entering and exiting the class and estimate their time accordingly. This was difficult if there were set teaching classes. Individuals who were heading for Malay Oral were exempted from writing their name in the class control book. However, I put a separate peace of paper on the control book, writing the time of their Malay Oral slots. I placed an asterisk on the control book to note down that people were leaving classrooms for their Malay Oral times. Alia went to the exam venue first. Grace, Jia Yee, Wee Shiang and Cassandra told her to quickly go. Alia did her exam from 8:00am to 8:30am, followed by Brandon Ooi leaving at 8:15am, Cassandra at 8:30am, Enisha at 8:45am, Eric at 9:00am, Gabriel at 9:15am, and Shane at 9:30am.
During Economics, Ms Sharon collected our GST Powerpoint slides. We printed them in hard copy form and submitted the coursework to Ms Sharon, who collected them. Eric almost forgot about his Malay Oral slot. Brandon, Shane and Ryan Chok teased him as he quickly rushed for the Malay oral exam.
When we went down for break time, I went to the school hall. Mr Narish, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Sylvia, Ms Praveen, Mr Neoh, Mr Chan and Mr Victor were judging the notice boards of all the four sports houses. All of them were holding pens, papers and wooden files containing those papers in order to take down the scores of all the houses based on the criteria that was being given for the Notice Board Competition. They wanted to see whether all the houses have fulfilled the criteria or not based on the judging rubric.
Every sports house was asked to present their committee members for the notice board judging process. For Bullseye, Vicky, Zi Quan, Ivyna, Eu Lynn, Dylan S. Gill and Benjamin Tenji were present to explain the board to the teachers. I went there to observe the judging process. Zi Quan repeatedly asked me to go away as I attempted to take down the scores. Mr Narish said that he was having a personal meeting with all the committee members regarding the notice board. “Wei Yiang, I am busy now, so I don’t think you should be here. You can ask the information from your captains, later, okay?” said Mr Narish as he briefed the members. I nodded, and then went to the lower canteen to meet Caleb Chuang.
“Mr Narish did not allow me to see them,” I told Caleb Chuang. “They're judging the notice board.”
“Mhmm,” said Caleb Chuang, as he sipped on spaghetti he bought from Uncle KC's stall.
Then, I went to meet Gabriel, and then told him, Aaron Liew and Glen that I will redo the report. Ms Chithra had asked me to hand in the report at the end of the week.
Afterwards, it was Art, and Ms Nadia told me to begin my Prep 1 for the Paper 2. Ms Nadia then gave me an artist reference to do, and I present to her my aloe vera pictures, which she told me to draw and paint them. The aloe vera plants would form the basis for my Greenhouse logo design. For the artist reference, I decided to base one of my painting on one artist named Claude Monet. I took one of his landscape paintings which contained plants, and painted them on my prep work.
Then, it was Mr Lee's Combined Science lesson. He came into the class, and Shane and Ryan Chok cheered him. “MR LEE! MR LEE! YEAH! MR LEE!” they cried. “Shhhh!!!! Exams next door!” cried Mr Lee, asking them to lower their volume. He then plopped his things on the teacher's desk, signed the control book, and proceeded to hand out his Powerpoint notes on Work and Power. The Powerpoint slides contained animations on cranes lifting objects and the design of the cranes looked funny.
Ivyna then had her turn going for the Malay Oral at 10:45am, followed by Glen at 11:00am, Kelsey at 11:15am, Sheng Jit at 11:30am, Krystal Goh at 11:45am, Jia Yee at 12:00pm, and finally I had my turn to do the Malay Oral at 12:15pm. I would only go when Krystal returned. So, while waiting for Krystal to return, my heart beat and thumped as I waited for Krystal to come back for the class.
Anxious of waiting, I left quickly, but however, Ms Sha told me to return to the class and wait for Krystal to return.
Once Krystal Goh returned to the class, I quickly left for the Malay Oral. I informed Mr Lee that I was leaving for the Malay Oral. Then, I left for the Malay Oral.
When I arrived at 11L, Ms Sha was waiting for me at the door. She ushered me in, and I greeted her. I took my Statement of Entry along for the Oral Exam.
Upon entering 11L, the classroom consisted of two tables. On one of the tables were three role play cards. They were literally made in the same material as hard paper flash cards. The other table had a chair next to it where candidates sit down in front of the table and read the instructions. The room was comfortably lit and air-conditioned, with the curtains pulled down.
Cikgu Niely had said to us in a briefing the previous Friday that out of all the three cards in the Malay Oral, we had to choose one card and then read the instructions on the card. All three cards contain different role play scenarios. Each card had two role play scenarios on it and we had to answer the questions. Once we chose the card, we could not put the card back and then take a different card. If we did so, we will be automatically disqualified from the examination.
“Take one card please,” said Ms Sha, gesturing for me to choose the cards. I nodded, said a prayer, and then picked one of the cards. Then, I sat down on the seat and read the questions. Two scenarios were given; communicating with a librarian to purchase a book, as well as informing my teacher of a leg injury, resulting in me being unable to play badminton.
The hum of the air conditioning whizzed through the room, as I looked in front. A small room with a door in it was in the class, hence the reason the teachers chose 11L. This class in particular used to be the school library, and that was why a room was present. One would feel as if he or she was waiting at a passport renewal counter in Malaysia, or in a clinic, waiting for them to be called.
I spent time trying to prepare the role play scenarios as Jia Yee was inside the room, conversing with Cikgu Niely. My preparation had come down to this. Cikgu Niely was with Jia Yee in the room, and the thought of being in the room role-playing with Cikgu Niely will soon be fixated on me. It was my first examination for an IGCSE subject. I had to look good.
The 15 minutes looked long, as the clock ticked down to the time which I was allowed to enter the room for my Malay Oral Exam. I was thinking in my head on how to react. Soon, I had found out the way to converse the first scenario, which was on borrowing books. I was stuck on the second scenario as I tried to comprehend it.
Just as I was about to finish making up the responses for the second scenario, the doors opened, and Jia Yee came out of the room. I greeted her, and she wished me all the best. Then, I went to the room, opened the door, and greeted Cikgu Niely. She told me to wait as Jia Yee had finished early. After five minutes of waiting, I was allowed to enter the room for the Malay Oral Exam.
Cikgu Niely greeted me and ushered me into the room. She told me to sit down, asked me to say the role play card number, and then she gave me words of encouragement. She asked if I was ready, and I said yes. “You can do it!” cried Cikgu Niely. “Just do your best, okay?” she said.
The small room inside 11L consisted of a table which Cikgu Niely sat down on. There was a cassette recorder on the table. Cikgu Niely then adjusted the recorder, pressed the start button and the recorder begun to record.
“Subject name, Malay Foreign Language. Code number, 0546. Centre name, Nobel International School. Centre number, MY319. Candidate name, Lau Wei Yiang. Start Role Play 1,” said Cikgu Niely. This process recorded the procedure of the candidate details and the beginning of Role Play 1. Then, the conversation begun. Cikgu Niely's role play question is in bold.
“Hi, selamat pagi. Adakah apa yang saya boleh bantu?”
“Selamat pagi, cik. Saya ingin meminjam buku sejarah dari perpustakaan ini.”
“Baiklah. Bolehkah tuan menjelaskan apakah jenis buku sejarah yang tuan ingin meminjam?”
“Saya ingin meminjam buku sejarah negara Singapura.”
“Baiklah. Buku sejarah dari negara Singapura terletak di ruang A. Tuan boleh ambil buku itu daripada sana.”
“Terima kasih. Saya ingin tanya adakah wifi atau Internet percuma dalam perpustakaan ini?”
Baik. Untuk makluman tuan, kita ada wifi dalam perpustakaan ini.
“Saya juga ingin memberitahu kepada cik saya ingin menggunakan wifi selama tiga jam.”
“Baik. Untuk makluman tuan, wifi ini hanya guna selama satu jam sahaja. Saya meminta maaf kepada tuan dan mermohon tuan untuk menggunakan wifi selama satu jam tersebut.”
“Terima kasih, cik. Saya ingin memberitahu saya ingin mempulangkan buku ini dalam satu minggu.”
“Baik. Sila menunjukkan kad pengenalan tuan untuk meminjam buku sejarah tersebut. Sama sama.”
Then, Cikgu Niely proceeded to Scenario 2.
“Hi, Wei Yiang, apakah keimbimbangan yang anda mahu menjumpa saya?
“Selamat pagi, cikgu. Saya ingin memberitahu awak kerana kaki saya sudah sakit dan saya tidak boleh bermain badminton pada minggu depan.”
“Oh, sakitnya. Bagaimana kaki anda terpaksa sakit?”
“Pada hari lepas, saya telah jatuh di atas jalan jika saya menunggang basikal dan saya telah melanggar dengan batu jika terjatuh.”
“Oh, macam ini. Ibu anda sudah bawa anda berjumpa dengan doktor?”
“Ya, doktor telah jumpa dengan saya dan dia bercakap saya tidak boleh bermain selama satu minggu.”
“Adoi. Macam ini.”
“Saya berasa kecewa kerana saya tidak boleh bermain dan saya ingin menelefon anda untuk memberitahu anda saya tidak boleh bermain pada minggu depan.”
“Baiklah. Cikgu mendoakan untuk kaki anda pulih dengan cepat dan anda akan bermain lagi. Jangan risau rehat untuk keselamatan anda.”
“Saya juga ingin tanya apakah pertandingan akhir yang akan diadakan pada minggu depan?”
“Baiklah. Cikgu ingin memberitahu anda pertandingan yang akan diadakan pada minggu depanadalah pertandingan bola sepak.”
“Baiklah, terima kasih, cikgu!”
“Sama sama, Wei Yiang.”
The role play exercise went smoothly, and I breathe a sigh of relief. The next section was a simple conversation in Malay. Cikgu Niely asked me about my family and I replied in perfect Malay. Then, I had to present a speech about my occupation to be a teacher. All was well executed, and Cikgu Niely praised me. I returned back to 11N in happiness. In fact, I took note of which slide Mr Lee was on before I left for my Oral Exam and by the time I returned. The terrifying Oral Exam was over. I informed Aaron Liew and Louis Soon to head for their exams after lunch.
Then, I went for my lunch and then brought down the Control Book. We then had Character Transformation, and Mr Neoh told us to do something exciting for him.
Mr Neoh told us to head to a public place, preferably a shopping mall, to interview five people, namely a Chinese, Malay and Indian person, plus an individual of the opposite sex as well as a foreigner. He told us to ask them about their personal details and so on and bring them for the next Character Transformation session. Then, we had our Malay IGCSE Trial Exam briefing by Ms Praveen. She told us that we would have two Trial Exam sessions; the first one, namely Paper 4, being from 8:30am to 10:00am, and the second one, Paper 2, being from 10:30am to 11:30am.
Once the Trial Exam briefing was finished, we returned to our classes and got ready for our next lesson. I asked Mr Neoh a few questions on the interview before I begun doing it. Then, during our Global Perspectives lesson, Vicky told me and Glen that we would be doing a fundraising program for our group. In fact, almost every group wanted to do a fundraiser for the Global Perspectives group project.
Mr Gallagher then asked me to explain my comment on Edmodo that referred to discrimination against some people when commenting on a student's work sample. I told him that it meant to discriminate against me because I still do not understand the rationale as to why I was informed that I had plagiarized the previous year’s Individual Evaluation Report. Mr. Gallagher told me that he was actually just showing a students work sample and that my work contained a lot of words and phrases that were not used by Malaysians.
After the Global Perspectives lesson ended, we went down for the fourth and final Bullseye National Convention. This was the last Bullseye National Convention before the 2017 Sports Day and it was a big deal because this is when Sean Mark and Vicky will attempt to finalize a lot of issues. The Bullseye National Convention, or ‘house meet’ for those who still insist for me to refer to it as such, was really important and it was held at the upper canteen.
When I arrived at the Bullseye National Convention, Zi Quan was ordering everyone to sit down. I stood next to him but he ordered me to sit down. I then asked why I was asked to sit down when everyone was when all the Year 11 students were standing up, but he didn't budge.
“Sit down!” he cried. “Just sit!”
So, I sat down and listened to Zi Quan attentively and not wanting to jump the gun.
One by one a lot of people were coming down the canteen stairs. Everyone was crowding around and sitting down at the canteen tables. I met with Areeya and Yap Dawn to propose the plans and tell them about the latest strategies for Bullseye. They were okay with it. Even Caleb Chuang was okay with me designing my own banner for Bullseye. Then, Sean Mark and Vicky arrived and called everyone to settle down.
“Bullseye members, please settle down!” cried Vicky. When I told everyone to settle down, Vicky told me to remain seated.
“Okay, guys! Bullseye members! So, this week we will be starting our practices and we will have a full dress rehearsal on Friday, alright? We will have our full dress rehearsal on Friday. So, this full dress rehearsal will be held during school hours and I hope that all of you can please attend. In fact, some of you are not attending the practices and it is very difficult for us, especially the marchers, yeah? “Marchers, please attend. I only still see the same people; the same five people, like for example, Andrea, Kaining; the two of you have consistently turned up for our practices, so good job. But for the rest of the marchers, I hope to see all of you at the practices, okay?” said Vicky.
Some people then asked Vicky about the school hour Sports Day practices, which are the practices that are held during school hours. Vicky then said that on Friday, 17th March 2017, the whole school would have a chance to take part in the practices. By this time the Malay IGCSE oral exam had concluded. Zi Quan had hinted that the practices would run till the end of the day, preferably 5pm on the 17th.
Then it was Dylan S. Gill's turn to come and brief everyone on the telematch competition. Dylan was in charge of facilitating the telematch competition for the Bullseye members. He then asked everyone who was interested to register for the telephone competition. “Guys we need more people for telematch,” he said.
I then proceeded to tell Dylan about my intention to register for television didn't say that he would take note of what I had registered and then I had told him also that I have spoken to Vicky about my intention to register for the competition in the previous Bullseye National Convention, but however he said he will take note of that. I also told him that Vicky had not informed me about my registration status. In fact, Vicky attempted to delay my registration status so as not to put myself in the telematch games. I was ready for it, as to not being chosen for the telematch competition.
When the house meet ended, I then spoke to Vicky and proposed that she create a single WhatsApp group for the entire Bullseye house, since Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk had it.
I highlighted the fact that there is no single WhatsApp group for Bullseye and that there are so many groups meant for so many activities, namely marchpast, dance, banner and the athletics. Hence, a single group would be very convenient and approachable. Vicky swiftly rejected the idea. “There’s no need for a single Bullseye group,” she said. I disagreed with the idea as this can result in the captains trying to reach members in all available groups which was a hassle.
Having a single WhatsApp group would help improve communications between the Bullseye members. At the same time, it can also provide good rapport and support from everyone in Bullseye. Since Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk had WhatsApp groups of their own and bullseye had tens of thousands of so-called fractured WhatsApp groups based on all the activities that one was to be in, be it march, dance, banner, or anything else, it would be beneficial for those who are participating in the Sports Day activities. However those who are not involved in any event were at a disadvantage. My intention is to tap into those who are not doing anything in order to give the best support, and proposals and suggestions and anything that they would like to suggest that would help Bullseye improve in its rankings. I mean, ladies and gentlemen, we want to improve the rankings really badly. In fact, I was really pumping up on improving Bullseye's rankings for the Sports Day, but because, Vicky, Zi Quan and a few other people in Bullseye were rejecting some of the proposals, I personally felt that it was very difficult for Bullseye to win.
I felt really fed up, particularly with Bullseye being in third place, and I was brunt on pushing it to first place. What made it even more difficult are people who consistently scolded, punished and roughed me up over simple plans. In such a crisis, all avenues were needed. It was as if I wanted to solve an issue, but couldn't do it. Talk about a doctor being stopped from treating a patient.
I tried talking to Zi Quan while waiting for my mum. I planned to mend the rift between the both of us. After all, we had known each other since Year 2. He ignored me and didn't see eye to eye with me. Whatever he said was in a rough and angry tone.
The next day, 14th March, I arrived at school early. As it was raining that morning, I went to the class and switched on my class’ computer for the benefit of the teachers in order to reduce hassle for them. Then, I went to meet Ms Tan and Ms Kelly, who provided me with the new toilet pass tag. I returned to 11N and fixed it.
When Mr Kevin Wai came in for our Reading time, he praised me for the timely and improved replacement of the toilet pass tag. Then, he briefed us on our Malay IGCSE Trial. Oh, and by the way, in case you're not updated, Jason Leing was still missing in action. Where was he?
Then, we had Combined Science, and Mr Lee continued talking about work and power. Jo Yi and Hao Yinn were the last two people to do their Malay Oral that morning. I then asked Mr Lee what he taught while I was in the Oral session. In fact, I had marked the slides on Mr Lee's notes which he handed to me with the words ‘oral’ while I was away from the class.
During Economics, Ms Sharon then came in and then told us to begin presenting about the GST presentation. My group was the first to present. I then took out my pendrive, went to the computer, plugged it in, and then the first slide was a slide which contained a lot of funny cartoons mocking the GST and taxes. The whole class laughed.
“What in the world is this!” cried Enisha.
Ms Sharon signaled the class to be silent. She had a hard copy of my slides. All group members were required to explain. Aaron was the first to present. Then, I explained about what the GST was. It was a tax introduced on 1st April 2015 by the Malaysian government. When I said ‘Government says thank you!’ everyone laughed.
Glen and Gabriel then presented their part, and then Aaron Liew said “Thank you for listening, and remember to pay your taxes!” in a funny tone. The whole class acted as if they were watching a comedy. Even Ms Sharon was smiling.
Ms Sharon said that all the group members presented well, but Gabriel and Glen needed to talk more. She said she liked the “Thank you for paying your taxes’ pun on the topic. The presentation was then followed by Grace's group, Kelsey's group, Ze Khai's group and finally Hao Yinn's group presenting.
During break time, I went to ask Mr Narish and double-checked the scores with him. Then, I went to find Ms Praveen to double check with her on the actual IGCSE timetable, to which she said it will be released closer to the exam date.
Then, I went down for break and talked to Caleb Chuang. He allowed me to coordinate with Zi Quan on that afternoon's marchpast. He had to participate in the dance competition. “I don't know if Zi Quan is participating in the dance or not. You need to check with him,” he said. I told him I was involved in the athletics events.
After break, we then had Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then told us to work on our individual reflection report once we were done. Then, we had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan collected some of the Geometrical House Design models based on our Geometrical House Coursework. She told us to submit the design of the house by the next day's lesson.
Following lunch, Ms Visa then gave us some source questions on the Cuban Missile Crisis. Then, we had Art, and Ms Nadia told me to continue with the Prep 1. I spent time finishing up and touching up the large aloe vera plant for Prep 1, as well as the picture of the artist reference by Claude Monet. I even drew a few more sketches of thorned plants and cacti from my mum's office.
Then, once school was over, I ran up, kept the Smartboard equipment, and shut down the PC and Smartboard. I then went to find Ms Sarah and Mr Raja to present the control book to them. They were in the management office.
“Wow! You never fail to ask us to sign the control book,” said Ms Sarah. The two teachers gave their initials and Ms Sarah once again praised me for being a good monitor and proposed that an award be given to me. Then, I went downstairs and changed into my sports attire for the athletics practices. Then, Sean Mark told me the bad news. Jason Leing was suspended by the school. As per the school rules, he received a temporary suspension. I did not know what offense did he commit.
Because Jason Leing wasn't present, Sean Mark had to coordinate a lot of athletics practices on Jason's behalf. So in this case, Sean Mark was training us for the day.
Sean Mark then told everyone about Jason Leing being suspended. He also informed everyone to do their own practices at home, building on the legacy of my Founder's Run training, which I did at home. He then brought us to the PE field once again and told us to do a warm-up lap of the field. Then, he did some bum-kicks and stationery runs with us, before doing some stretching exercises. All of Bullseye's top athletes were present; from Ivyna Ong and Eu Lynn to the younger runners such as Areeya Amali.
Then, everyone was presented to their respective distances. Areeya, Jade Lim and Esther Yong cheered me on as I ran my 1500m lap. Loo Zane was timing me. Then, I took the time to ask all Bullseye members on their opinion about the proposed singular Bullseye WhatsApp group. There was tremendous support.
After doing another lap, I went back to school for the marchpast practices. For the marchpast, Benjamin Lew was conducting for the day as Zi Quan had gone for his dance practices. Wern Shern had dropped out of the practices, which apparently made Zi Quan really angry. While Zi Quan was having a break from dance, he scolded Wern Shern for dropping out. Vicky then came over and reminded all the marchers to not drop out as Bullseye could not afford any dropouts as it would affect the performance of the house.
We then came to the middle of the week. It was 15th March 2017. Not only it was my uncle's birthday, but it was also the Malay IGCSE Trial Examination.
The morning of 15th March 2017 begun on a serious note. The school hall was deserted. All the captains who led the events had to also report for their Malay IGCSE Orals as well as the Malay IGCSE Trial.
The reason that the school hall was deserted was for the teachers to arrange chairs and tables in the school hall for the Malay IGCSE Trial Examination. The day would begin with Paper 4, followed by Paper 2. In the afternoon, candidates sitting for Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Second would have their Trial Examination in their classes. There would also be a Mandarin Foreign Oral Examination as well in next few days.
For the examination, we had to bring our Statement of Entry, along with a transparent pencil case and our identity cards. As the exam was taking place in the school hall, scenes from the Cambridge Checkpoint Examination just 15 months prior were remniscent.
In the morning, everyone had to go to our classrooms as the hall was being used for the IGCSE Malay Trial Examination. During the time in our classroom, I just chat with Nickolas Nashpal most of the time, in particular about the Maths Coursework as well as our tuition lessons with Mr Nehru. Then, we also talked about competing for all the exams that we had. “You will lose!” Nickolas teased me. I teased him in return.
Mr Kevin Wai came into the class at 7:50am and he switched on the computer to take attendance for us. He then told us that we needed to go down to the hall at 8:15am for the exam. Then, he had a chat with Louis and Gabriel on their Maths homework before we left for the school hall.
The corridor outside the school hall was crowded with people. As mentioned before, it represented scenes that reminded one of the Cambridge Checkpoint examination held in October 2015 as well as imagery of students from previous year 11 batches sitting for their IGCSE exams. For years we have contemplated that this would apply to a special batch of students but now we were in the shoes of our seniors sitting for the exam of our lifetime. I mean, that is to say, a trial version of the exam of our lifetime. That day would come in seven months time.
Outside the school hall, the familiar trolley that carried the exam papers was being pushed from the elevator to the front door of the school hall by Ms Praveen and Ms Sha, who, along with a bunch of teachers, were setting up the examination venue. The corridor that is next to the school hall was barricaded with red and white caution tape. Notice boards indicating the exam rules were present in and out of the school hall. There were also “Keep Quiet! Exams in progress” signs pasted on the walls and doors outside the hall, along with ‘No Entry’ stickers.
Everyone placed their bags, had a chat with each other to wish themselves very best, and lined up outside the examination venue. At 8:20am, everyone was asked to enter the school hall. One by one, everyone filed into the hall. The familiar clocks on screens, the details of the exam, a large canteen table for housekeeping matters by examiners as well as rows upon rows of tables reminded everyone of the familiar sight of the Checkpoint Examination. Oh, on another note, starting from 2017 onwards, there was no Cambridge Checkpoint Examination.
“Students, please keep quiet,” said Ms Praveen. She had a stern look on her face. Some people were slow. The noise level was still high.
“I said keep quiet!” cried Ms Praveen. “You are in the exam hall. These are exam conditions. You should not be talking after entering the hall,” said Ms Praveen sternly.
There were five other teachers examining us, other than Ms Praveen, Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sha. The teachers were Mr Kevin Wai, Mr Andrew, Mr Lee, Mr Chan and Ms Sim.
Ms Praveen said that the examination papers would be handed out. Ms Yew and Ms Sha then handed teachers stacks of examination scripts, and passed the scripts to everyone in the room.
Some people asked to use the washroom. “Quickly go. You should not be using the washroom before your examination,” said Ms Praveen. Under exam rules, a candidate can use the washroom after 30 minutes had passed from the commencement of the exam, and are prohibited from answering nature's call within the last 15 minutes of the test.
Then, each teacher handed us our exam scripts and were told to check the number of pages in the exam script. “You may start now,” instructed Ms Praveen.
The exam was quite straightforward. The hall fell silent, and the sounds of pens and pencils clattering, thumping footsteps and the hum of fans and air conditioning echoed the large atrium of the school hall. The comprehension questions in the Malay IGCSE Trial Exam reminded one of the worksheets and textbooks from one's primary school days. After all, it was the reflection of a moment- from Ms Thana's Malay lessons all the way to that of Cikgu Nurul, Cikgu Hasliza and Cikgu Zura's Malay lessons. More of which the white paper with black words reminded me of those manuals given by Ms Thana and Cikgu Nurul for Pemahaman, Penulisan and Tatabahasa in Year 1, 2 and 3.
The secret towards me being prepared for the exam was a series of past-year exam papers. Every Year 11 student would have it. In fact, I have bought past year papers for my IGCSE exams even in Year 10. The first one that was bought was for Mathematics as Mr Nehru, my tuition teacher, required me to buy them for his lessons. This was then followed by Malay, and then the rest of the other subjects.
Year 11 students would normally carry booklets of past-year exam papers to school in order to practice the exam questions. This situation is being made even more advantageous by a phenomenon in which the past year examination questions would be reused in the upcoming examination sitting. Cambridge would normally reuse some of the exam questions because it would make life easier when setting the questions and also to make the paper easier in case most people could not pass the previous exam sitting.
Even so our teachers would normally emphasize on doing the past year examination questions because that is one of the best ways to prepare for an exam while studying for an exam. One would assume that preparing for a test is very easy to do; memorize the key terms or take down the main points, and the exam would straightforwardly ask that. This is not the case in higher levels, as the examination question is being asked in a different manner. Gone are the days in which questions would ask what are nouns verbs and adjectives are, and ask you to name them, or asking the process of photosynthesis and asking you to name them, or asking what happened in the past in history lessons and asking you to list down what exactly happened. The questions contain a series of characteristics are designed to test the mind from all angles. It is more of personal reflection and tens of thousands of essay writing.
Anyhow the examination continued and we worked on our papers. Soon, it was 10:00am and Ms Praveen asked everyone to stop writing. “I still see students writing. Everyone, please stop. No turning around,” she cried.
The teachers then swept across the rows and columns of seats, flipping up the examination scripts. Mr Andrew was collecting the papers for our row. Then, as each teacher had hoarded their share of papers from the candidates, they proceeded to the front of the room and dumped their share of examination scripts on the large canteen table located in the front of the hall Ms Yew, Ms Sha and Ms Praveen were at the table and the three of them collected, grouped and stacked the papers before keeping them away.
“Okay, students,” said Ms Sim. “Your break time is from 10:00am to 10:20am. Come back quickly, as we will start the next paper at 10:30am.”
Everyone then left the school hall as the teachers placed the exam papers into a large plastic bag, before wheeling them to the Strong Room which was located on the second floor of the building. Then, I went for my break time and had a chat with San Ying on the logistics for Sports Day. Zi Quan was eating with his friends, and I could see his serious look. Everyone was talking about what they answered for the exam question.
After eating, I then went for a walk, had a chat with Puan Halimah, who was strolling the corridors, and then returned to the corridor outside the school hall following the toilet break. Then, I asked Ms Praveen about what we would do after Paper 4. She told me that everyone would carry on with the lessons as usual.
Following break time, everyone lined up outside the hall once again, prepared for their second entry into the examination. Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sha watched us as we entered, and Ms Sim was in front of the hall, holding a microphone. The words ‘Foreign Language Malay’ as well as the words ‘Paper 2’ and ‘Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes’ were plastered on the large screen of the school hall. The cool breeze flashed across my face as I took my Statement of Entry and my IC, plopped down on my seat, and watched silently as everyone went to their seats, prepared for their exam. This time, Cikgu Niely was there to watch us.
“What did I say? I said so many times, NO TALKING,” said Ms Sim. She folded her arms as everyone trudged into the school hall for Malay Paper 4. The Trial Examination was half-done.
“Okay, Year 11 students, you are going to sit for Malay Paper 4, so please. No talking. This is basic exam practice, ya. I am sure all of you know how an exam is like,” said Ms Sim. She also warned people against borrowing stationery during the examination.
“Okay, students, can we give out the exam papers?” asked Ms Sim. We all nodded. Then, every teacher walked to the front and were handed a copy of the exam papers. Ms Sim folded her arms, held the microphone in her right hand, and watched sternly as the serious exam ritual unfolded ahead of her. “You can start writing your name when you get the paper,” she said.
“The time now is 10:30am. You may begin,” she said. We begun the paper. It was an essay paper, also known as a karangan.
There was fierce concentration on our paper. I wrote whatever I could. Like Paper 2, the Paper 4 was as equally as straightforward. Memories from Year 1 trickled in. I could still remember the first time Ms Thana taught us to do karangan in Year 1. The hall was silent. I was only distracted by the footsteps. When I felt a bit tired on writing, I looked up, checked the time, and observed what was going on in front. I did not turn to my back as it was against the exam rules.
Through the Malay Paper 4, the computer screen kept malfunctioning and the teachers tried to fix it by operating the remote and pressing the buttons. The teachers tried to reconnect the projector to the computer, but failed. Hence, to solve the issue, Ms Sim decided to tell the time and remind us of the amount of time left till the end of the test. Fortunately, in the school hall, there was a clock installed in the front of the hall. However, only those who were seated at the back could see it.
At 12:00pm, our exam ended. There was a countdown and some people cheered the end of the exam.
“Some of you are still writing. Please stop writing,” commanded Ms Sim. Then, Ms Praveen, Ms Bee Yong and Mr Chan instructed some people to stop.
“Why are you all shouting? This is an exam! You are not supposed to talk in the examination hall!” cried Ms Praveen and Ms Sim.
The teachers then collected our papers, and Mr Lee smiled at his class, showing his sparky teeth. Then, he enthusiastically collected the papers by hopping through the school hall. Mr Kevin Wai collected mine. Then, once every teacher was done collecting the scripts, they went to the front of the hall, and presented them to Ms Praveen and Ms Sha, who counted the papers and sealed them up in a plastic bag. Ms Praveen then made an announcement.
“Okay, Year 11 students. Your exam has ended, and you may go back to your classes for your lesson, but before this, can I say something? I still see people not following the exam rules. I am VERY disappointed,” said Ms Praveen. She then told everyone that we had to improve on the next round and she acknowledged some people's excitement on the end of the exam, but that they can cheer outside of the examination hall.
Then, we returned for Maths, and everyone passed their Geometrical House model to Ms Bee Yan. The classroom resembled a property sales gallery with tens of thousands of house models. Ms Bee Yan told us that if we went to property galleries, we could see such models. I had went with my mum to property sales galleries and had interest in property developments at the time, more than my mum. SP Setia, EcoWorld, IJM Land and Mah Sing Group were one of the property developers I had patronized at their respective sales galleries.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and following lunch, I went to the Art Studio. The school support staff were carrying the tables aside and pushing the tables away. Then, we had Art, and I went to the Art Studio. After painting a painting by Claude Monet as my artist reference, along with six drawings of aloe vera leaves and thorned plants, I was ready to proceed to Prep 2. I took a new A2-sized paper and begun drawing a series of words in different fonts which I had typed on a piece of paper. The thorned plants were to form the basis of logo design for the Greenhouse energy company as prescribed by the exam question.
Ms Nadia had told me to type out the words ‘Greenhouse’ in different fonts to experiment with the forms of the logo, especially when the word ‘Greenhouse’ is needed as per the design of the question. Then, she told me to think of a series of colors to be painted on the words. She discussed with me on what colors to put on the fonts. I then marked out the color type for each font. Ms Nadia also told me to come out with at least five designs of the main shape of the logo which was inspired by the font.
Then, it was History, and Ms Visa did a discussion with us on the Cuban Missile Crisis. I was invited to give my views on to what extent that John F. Kennedy or Nikita Krushchev had made the right move, or if he could have had done better on the Cuban Missile Crisis. Fortunately, I had read about nuclear war in my pastime and how it looked like. The whole earth would become a radioactive wasteland and everyone would die. In fact, a nuclear blast can level a whole city, and today's nuclear weapons are much more powerful than those dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. So, this added knowledge helped me in my explanation. Brandon and I had a chat before Ms Visa arrived. He was showing off his AZ Tanks game in class.
That afternoon, as I was heading for my Bible Knowledge lesson in 11E, all the Mandarin Foreign and Mandarin Second students were about to sit for their Trial Exam. There was a hive of activity as everyone scrambled to check their name list before sitting for the Mandarin exam. Yong Xuan was busy asking if anyone had extra pen or pencil, and many people were being asked by Ms Sha to enter quickly as the exam was starting.
Meanwhile, in 11E, Ms Renee then came into the class. She then reminded us to keep our voices low as the Mandarin exam was about to start. Then, she gave us some work to do and Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew and I chat about the work as well as the Mandarin exam happening next door. Joseph Diong took some time off to play his table tennis and ping pong ball that he had brought to class.
While the Mandarin students were having their examination, the Bible Knowledge people were having fellowship sessions. In fact, Ms Renee gathered us in front of the class and led a discussion on Paul and Silas. Some of us looked at how the exam was when we used the washroom. I think the Mandarin students would be envious of us because of the lax environment we were in. We discussed about Paul's travels and how he and his followers had been targeted with arrest by the authorities by preaching the Good News.
Then, it started to rain quite a little and it became cloudy, and we sang praise and worship in the class. However, all of us heartily teased each other to talk softer.
Even Ms Sha had to come from 11B to tell us to be much more quiet. "I can hear you from the next class, you know," she said. Ms Renee had to lower the Smartboard volume as well.
Then, Ms Renee then talked about Paul's travels and we all listened attentively. Then, we were asked to share how God inspired our lives. When the Mandarin exam finished, Jien Min asked what fun was going on in our Bible Knowledge class. They were stunned as we were playing around while they did their examination.
The next day, 16th March, Ms Sharon told us about how to answer the examination questions and we did some essay questions on how to answer the topics which we covered on aggregate demand, aggregate supply, the role of the government, taxes, employment and living standards. Ms Sharon told me not to give real-world examples as I had used Singapore and the HDB flats as an example for my Assessment 1. She also told us about the format of the exam questions. In fact, her format is gold standard as it involves defining and explaining those questions.
Afterwards, it was Malaysian Studies, and then Ms Cynthia came in. She then told us about Malaysia's Five Year Development plans, such as the First Malaysia Plan, Second Malaysia Plan, as well as the New Economic Policy and the Wawasan 2020 initiative, just to name a few. The Five Year Plans and the New Economic Policy were introduced by Tun Abdul Razak, the second prime minister of Malaysia. The Wawasan 2020 plan was formulated by the fourth prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad, and a new concept then called 1Malaysia was promulgated by the sixth prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak; the son of Tun Abdul Razak. Some people criticized Malaysia for being too slow and too lousy in development as opposed to other more developed countries in the Western world.
During Business Studies, I presented the Business Studies Report to Ms Chithra, who accepted the report and told me that our group needs to learn to work properly and to cooperate properly. Afterwards, we then had History, and Ms Visa told us to present the answers on the Cuban Missile Crisis worksheet. Then it was Malay, and Cikgu Niely talked to us about our Malay Oral Exam.
"Teacher, how did we do?" asked Brandon. Cikgu Niely said that she cannot comment further details as the exam recording will be sent to Cambridge, and that as this is still an exam performance that had to be marked. However, she said that all of us did pretty well from her observation, since she invigilated all of us.
Later, it was lunch, and I had to go to find Ms Sarah as she sadly forgot, once again, to sign the control book. When I went to her office, she was not there. I then proceeded to the canteen. While having lunch, Zi Quan, Caleb Chuang and I talked about the next day's arrangements for the marchpast. We had a day full of practices.
Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang confirmed my location in the front of the queue, and we discussed some plans for the holiday practices. He also told me that I can lead if he was going for his dance. Pleased with the explanation, I then had a happy walk around the school. Then, I met up with Jordan and Ting Yi, who were talking to Rick. I then asked Rick if there was Monitor's Council meeting on the 27th March, which is the week of Sports Day. He said yes.
When we returned to class, Ms Bee Yan taught us data handling and how data is presented; in a tally chart, bar graph, pie chart or line graph. And then, once that was done, it was time for English with Mr Thomas.
Everyone was waiting happily, and I talked to Sherwin for a while. Then, Mr Thomas was seen striding on the hallway from his staffroom. He entered the class, and greeted us.
Mr Thomas, as usual, sat down on his fluffy chair. Of course, it was not a sofa, but a nice seat that made him comfortable. It was a normal chair, but he had the feeling of first-class comfort when teaching a First Language English lesson. Then, he opened his Edmodo page, checked it, and then stared at the class.
"Have you done your Three Little Pigs story?" he asked. I laughed wholeheartedly and crazily for ten minutes till my cheeks hurt. It was so funny, as all of us instantly transformed into kindergarteners for one day.
"YES, MR THOMAS!" I cried.
"Haiyah! Come on! Have you done it! I want to start the lesson!" cried Mr Thomas, as some people were still talking and not listening. He then got up and asked everyone to show the work. Mr Thomas peered at the work with a serious expression on his face, praising those who finished it.
"You must be responsible for your own learning," said Mr Thomas. "All of you must know that you should be responsible for what you do. If you give me the work and you don't finish it, I will not mark it. If you want me to mark, I trust that you be responsible for your own learning."
Mr Thomas then opened the Edmodo page and showed us a series of word effects. He said that we will do the story writing the next day, but we would focus on word effects first. I explained one correctly.
"Very good," he said. I then cheered and put my hands up in excitement. He laughed. Mr Thomas then explained how the word effects influence the story and convey the message to the reader. He then told us and taught us about various word effects. At the back of the class, some people were looking at their phones, unbeknownst to Mr Thomas and the management themselves.
Then, it was the end of school. I returned to class, kept the control book and Smartboard equipment, and went to meet Ms Sarah. Once again, she was really happy. "Thanks for being such a great monitor," she said. Then, I went for the Editorial Board meeting.
I presented the interviews to Ms Levina, who then asked Sarah Long to type them out. Ms Levina told me to ensure my interviews were comprehensive. She encouraged me to bring a laptop or recorder to school for interview purposes, but I was a bit scared on getting into further trouble.
It was Friday, 17th March 2017. Once again, the assembly was graced by Mr Narish. He had a whole lot of announcements for us.
Mr Narish outlined the activities for the Sports Week, which will occur after the holidays. On 27th March, a school rehearsal for the opening ceremony of Sports Day would take place. There will be a full-day practice for all those people participating in the marchpast, dance and banner. The next day, 21st March, would be a Stadium Rehearsal, where everyone, including those heading for the 1500m, 800m and other running events, would need to go to Panasonic Stadium for the rehearsal. Students would be given the opportunity to cheer for some running events at the stadium and watch the rehearsal as it will be a school day for everyone. The afternoon of that day would see students doing their own practices starting from the after-lunch period. On 30th March, the management team will run three full dress rehearsals, namely one in the morning before break, one later in the midmorning before lunch, and one in the afternoon before school ends. Zi Quan hinted that on the 28th, the practices for Bullseye would continue till the evening as there were plans to get everyone involved for the day. I would be involved with the 1500m. Cikgu Baliah then asked to see people who wished to be involved as a telematch helper. I called myself in and Cikgu Baliah assigned me to a group of four consisting of me myself, Yi Zhen, Charmaine Ho and Hazel Genji.
During our Homeroom time, Mr Kevin Wai announced more details of the inter-class newspaper collection. We were running slow, as the newspaper competition begun on 3rd March and was scheduled to end on 30th March. He said that we had to collect the newspapers and bring them to class on Monday, 27th March. He told me to be in charge of collecting the newspapers. Sheng Jit and Ms Visa proposed that everyone bring ten stacks of newspapers. The winner of the newspaper competition would receive a hamper and be awarded ten class points.
Mr Kevin Wai said that we should not have messy newspapers and that there should be no sabotage. He also said that taking newspapers from other classes was not allowed. Mr Kevin also mentioned that the biggest problem with people in 11N was that they were late to school and he had known it because I had collected and stapled all of the lateness forms.
Brandon Ooi and Shane were surprised. Mr Kevin said the one thing that was good of 11N was me completing the Control Book and he asked everyone to give me a round of applause.
Mr Kevin reminded everyone to be on time and he mentioned that the two outstanding people in terms of lateness to school was Glen Kay and Aaron Liew. Anyone who was late would need to submit the lateness slip to me and I had to compile it in the Class Control Book and the late forms must be passed to me by the end of the week. He said that he will impose a penalty of RM1 to be contributed to the class funds if anyone was late, and that there will be no class points if the late slips. were due late. Then, Mr Kevin Wai also reminded us to ensure all electrical appliances were switched off before leaving the room. The tables must be neat, books arranged neatly in one's table basket and the chairs pushed in. He said that out of all the classes, our class, 11N, was doing well and the support of the class on cleanliness and electrical appliances was needed for us to get Class of the Month. Mr Kevin was optimistic on that.
I believe I hadn't explained this already, but during break and lunch time, a prefect on duty would hold a record book, walk around the classes, and check on the cleanliness as well as the neatness of the class and see if they met the class cleanliness criteria. The scores would be written on the record book and be sent to Ms Lim to be compiled. The winner of the class cleanliness competition would be announced at the beginning of the following month, alongside the Class of the Month. Merit points would determine the Class of the Month, and the winner of the Class of the Month title would be asked to walk in front of the stage and be presented with gifts and an envelope containing the mystery treat for the Class of the Month. The treat could range from ice skating to bowling and even a McDonalds treat!
Afterwards we went down for PE. Caleb Chuang, Wei Zhong and Christopher Chew then played a game of football and I watched them. Then, Mr Victor also joined in the game. However, one of the balls almost smashed the spotlights installed on the hall's walls. "Careful!" I cried.
Then Mr Victor called all of us to gather. I presented the control book to Ms Sylvia who then signed the control books. Mr Victor told us that for the day's PE lessons, we would be doing the Long Jump as well as the High Jump. Mr Victor then instructed Sean Mark, Jien Min and Ethan Wong to bring out the High Jump mat. He then called for more volunteers, and I assisted them. Ms Sylvia and I went to the back and rolled out the large supports for the High Jump bar. However, for the day, we used a string. We then dispersed into our respective sports houses. The boys went to do the High Jump while the girls went for the Long Jump, which was located at the Long Jump pit near the futsal courts adjacent to the Art Studio. Mr Lim, Ms Yap, Ms Ting and Mr Victor accompanied the girls. The boys were taken care of by Ms Nadia and Ms Sylvia.
Then, Ms Sylvia, Dylan and I set up the high jump equipment. I I placed the poles next to the mattresses and Ms Sylvia tied a string. She told me to fasten the string on the other end while the string was let loose on her end. This was to ensure that it won't bring down the two poles and hurt people. A string was used instead of a horizontal pole as the latter hurt people when they landed. Then, Dylan, Christopher Chew as well as Ethan Wong arranged the High Jump mattresses so that people can lend on them safely.
Ms Sylvia then blew her whistle. She asked everyone to line up according to their sports houses. Bullseye was the first to do the High Jump. Everyone had to line up in a single file as she did the High Jump with us.
Brandon Ooi was the first to do it. He ran, leaped and flipped over the mattress. Then, Eric leapt. Ms Sylvia recorded their scores.
Then, it was my turn, and I leapt, but my leg smashed into the vertical pole, causing it to fall. It almost hit Ethan Wong and Benjamin Fong, who were tagging on the mattresses.
Everyone dared Christopher Chew to do a backflip on the High Jump thing, but Ms Sylvia put a halt to it. There was no cheering as the High Jump was a concentration event. Ms Nadia then met me after I was done. She called me over and told me to find more fonts for my Greenhouse logo design for Prep 2 for Art.
Those who were done were told to wait while watching everyone jump. Soon, it was the Touchdown peoples’ turn to jump. Ms Sylvia told Sean Mark to hold on to the High Jump mattresses as the leaping continued. When it was Christopher Chew's turn, he lunged for the High Jump thing and then leapt over it in a Superman-style pose and cleared the string. He then thumped on the mattress like an airplane landing on a runway, till it caused the mattress to slide along with him. He gave a thumbs up and grinned. The whole hall screamed. Seriously. He acted like Superman.
Those who were done with the High Jump were told to proceed to the Long Jump pit where Mr Victor was waiting for them. At the Long Jump area, the girls were taking turns leaping into the pit, which was filled with a lot of sand. I saw Ms Ajee in the art studio and waved at her. Ms Ajee had taken over some of Ms Feeda's classes for relief, too.
At the Long Jump area, Mr Lim and Mr Victor then told us to assemble and line up according to our houses. Before that, he told us to gather around the pit as he performed a jump. When he leapt, the sand splashed all over the place. In fact, his performance was as good as an Olympic champion.
Then, Mr Victor told us to line up, and we were told to leap. Brandon Ooi was the first. His body smashed into the sand, rippling the whole landscape like a meteorite. Then, it was Eric's turn, and he had a fantastic jump. When it was my turn to jump, I landed and my pants got dirty. I had to brush off the sand as Mr Lim and Mr Victor recorded my score.
Some people had amazing feats. Nieshaal Thambipillay jumped like mad till he splashed sand all over the place till all the spectators were dusted. And when Christopher Chew jumped, some of the sand flew to the main road outside the school.
After the PE lesson ended, I went for breakfast with Caleb Chuang. I brought my Bullseye book along, showed him the Sports Day information, and did some predictions on the placing by drawing a graph for him. I showed him alternatives and paths Bullseye could take to victory. He remained positive during the discussion. I told him that I would show Vicky that.
Then, after breakfast with Caleb Chuang, I went to see Vicky. While she took a look at my proposals, she shrugged the proposals off, including the graphs. Zi Quan criticized the graphs as a series of lines.
After break time, Cikgu Niely then let us do as we pleased while I analysed the scores and results thus far. I went to Ivyna and discussed the plans with her. Then, we had our Combined Science lesson. Mr Lee did a Copper Sulfate experiment with us in the Science Lab.
When we arrived at the Science Lab, Mr Lee greeted us, and Aaron Liew went to get a spare lab coat from Ms Mazlina. There was a Bunsen burner, a test tube, retort stand, tripod stand and also a piece of paper. Mr Lee told all the groups to get some copper sulfate from him at the front of his desk. There were two copper sulfate substances that he gave; a red and a blue one.
All groups were told to heat up the copper sulfate. Some people even tried to touch it, but Mr Lee said we shouldn't touch it as it was really dangerous. In fact, it is also dangerous to smell the copper sulfate, and it is highly advised to wear lab goggles. Hence, we brought them to our lab session.
Mr Lee said that the purpose of the copper sulfate experiment was to test the presence of water. He then provided each group with a test tube. Shane almost dropped the Bunsen burner from the table. In fact, it is very dangerous to drop the Bunsen burner.
Mr Lee told us to pour the copper sulfate into the test tube and heat up the copper sulfate solution so that it turns into enhydrous copper sulfate.
The Bunsen burner could not be simply switched on as such. Rather, Mr Lee came around with a lighter to light our Bunsen burner. When he lit ours, the Bunsen burner lit up in a large flame which was so big. Mr Lee told Cassandra to adjust the Bunsen burner carefully when switching it on. Then, we watched as the copper sulfate heated up. The blue copper sulfate slowly turned white. Shane and Brandon joked and we said it looked like as if fried rice was being cooked. Once the copper sulfate solution was heated up, Mr Lee then dipped some water onto the copper sulfate solution, which turned blue.
Then, it was time for Mr Thomas' lesson. We kept all the equipment and returned to class. Then, I greeted Ms Joyce, took my things and then went to 11B for Mr Thomas' class.
The first thing Mr Thomas reminded us was on the Commonwealth Essay Competition which we had to hand in at the end of March. He will be collecting our class' Commonwealth Essay Competition entries. Then, once this was done, he then opened Edmodo as usual, and showed us the questions. He told us to write a story, which we did. He also asked if we were excited for Sports Day. We had a good chat over that.
After school ended, I went to meet Caleb Chuang for the marchpast practices. We had a short practice from 1:30pm to 3:00pm. During the practices, all the practices were mainly conducted by Benjamin Lew and Caleb Chuang. Benjamin Lew and I looked at the marchers and observed their hand movements.
During the holidays, we had a few days of training. It was interesting to prepare for Sports Day. While the Bullseye people were busy with their practices, I had two big plans for the Sports Day. At home, I was creating a banner consisting of a red flag stylized after communist countries' party congresses where they displayed angled red flags in their party meetings. To commemorate Bullseye's past history, I wrote all the slogans of the past four house cheers onto the banner. I colored the banner with crayon. Additionally, I was also at home doing running drills for the 1500m. Sean Mark, taking a cue from my Founder's Run practice, had asked all Bullseye members to train at home.
On 20th March, I went back to school to train for the marchpast. Caleb Chuang trained us at the field outside school as we did not apply for permission slips. However, I did had permission slips for Bullseye's athletics training. We could not use different permission slips for different purposes.
The morning of 20th March 2017 was cold, wet and murky. The weather was really gloomy. Caleb Chuang met me, Andria, Khaining and Jian Yang outside Nobel before we went to the other field in the vicinity. Caleb Chuang then did some of the commands while he asked me to check their hand movements. Then, we watched as the three Year 7s did the moves.
Meanwhile, Mr Victor and his wife were doing running exercises with their two children. I believe that they were living in the area then. Mr Victor had put his cones on the ground and were asking his kids to run around the cones. We then waved at him, and some people from the other houses also used the field for athletics training. We then continued our practices until noon as Kai Yang and Sebastian Kon arrived. On the way back from the field, Caleb Chuang and everyone else went to buy some food and drinks from 7-Eleven while I waited.
The next day, on 21st March, I then had speed training with Loo Zane. On that morning, the sun was up. All the Bullseye members were there. There was no march practice that day, so Loo Zane focused us on speed and strength training.
The morning started with me going around to motivate the dancers and gave Ivyna some ideas. Ivyna said she can't accept anymore ideas as the dance choreography was finalized and it was unable to be tweaked. However, when I saw the Bullseye members dance, I told Ivyna that the dance moves were brilliant and similar to my proposal, but better. Her eyes lit up and Pei Chi grinned.
Then, Loo Zane gathered all of Bullseye's athletes for a warm up. We did some stretching and hand movements. Afterwards, Loo Zane gathered us and took us to the first floor. Loo Zane told us to stand at designated positions. She placed me, Aaron Yong, Prudence Wong and Shi Tian. Then, she said we were going to play a ‘game’. The name of the game was called "girls chase boys". This meant that the two girls would chase us. Conversely, it was 'guys chase girls', depending on how you looked at it. The short term mission of this game was for us to try and catch the front runner by tapping on them. The ultimate long term aim of the game is to deliver a Bullseye win during Sports Day.
Loo Zane then counted down and then blew the whistle, and we were off.
We then ran as fast as we could, circling the classrooms and the science lab like mad. Then thereafter, Shi Tian caught me by patting my back. Once that happened, the game ended, and Loo Zane praised us for making a good try. Then, we went down to the courtyard and did some planking.
Once the planking had ended, we had short rest. I took a look at the Art Studio. Ms Nadia had allowed us to stay back during the holidays, and could come on any day. Then, Loo Zane called us back, and we did some sprint drills in the courtyard till 11:00am, when we were dismissed.
Before I left for home, I proposed my strategy of ginger onions and volunteered to be the first person to do the experiment by eating them and see how fast I propelled. All the Bullseye members agreed. Then, I went to watch the dance and gave tips for improvement, to which they agreed.
On Wednesday, 22nd March, I went for athletics training with Loo Zane, who was supervising us. Apparently, I overheard Jason being suspended and because he had a two-week school suspension, excluding public holidays, this meant he was suspended on the week of 15th March; the same week as the Malay IGCSE Trial, as well as the week of Sports Day. This resulted in Jason Leing being unable to attend Sports Day. While I understood the reason for his suspension, it was a pitiful thing as it was a great loss to Bullseye.
Loo Zane told us to do our respective distances as she timed us while running at the PE Field. We did some stretching and bending once again. When it came for me to do my distance, I ran at my relaxed pace. All the Bullseye runners cheered me on as Homerun also did their practice. I was coming face-to-face with Nieshaal Thambipillay, the winner of the 10km race for the Founder's Run. The 10km would be a clash between two Founder's Run winners. I was pretty nervous as Nieshaal Thambipillay had won the 10km twice. However, I was still determined to beat him. He was my next target after Sean Mark.
Then, as I returned to school from athletics training, it got really cloudy, and I heard Zi Quan shouting the marching commands in the dismissal area. “SQUAD! ATTENTION!” he cried. It was his first time coming for holiday practices. He had expressed his intention not to come previously. Good thing he had a change of heart. I then waited for my aunt to come as I rested.
The next day, 23rd March 2017, we faced a big problem. Apparently, on 23rd March 2017, the security personnel restricted us from entering until a teacher was called. Hence, some people telephoned Mr Narish, who agreed to come. When Mr Narish arrived, he told the guards to let us in. We went in, and we opened the doors of the school hall, which were locked. Mr Narish brought the key and opened it for us.
Before we started, Mr Narish said that the reason why the guards restricted entry for us was because some people were misusing the holiday practices for social activities. He told us that practices mean practices and not a time to hang about. He meant serious business and said that the guards had informed Ms Bee Yong about the students’ behavior and what had happened. Everyone was told to do their practices thereafter.
Ms Bee Yong soon arrived at the school. She came in and then gave a serious lecture to everyone on what happened. Everyone listened to her attentively.
"Now, I have heard from the guards that some of you are not practicing. Okay? I want to emphasize that the permission given to you to come back to school is given for a reason. Because there are some students who have taken or used some of the facilities without permission, the guards had to ask everyone to leave the school yesterday," said Ms Bee Yong. In fact, at 1:00pm the previous day, the guards had told all students to leave the school immediately and some of them were really strict on that. A lot of people had to call their parents to take them home early. The incident happened long after I had left for home.
Ms Bee Yong also said that some people had come to school without even obtaining permission slips for the management, and that the guards had the right to deny entry to any student not following the proper procedures. Ms Bee Yong made sure everyone understood the rules before following them.
There was a light drizzle that morning, and because the school halls were locked when we arrived, the dancers used the classrooms while the marchers used the school hall. Bullseye's dancers, led by Ivyna, used 10N's classroom on the first floor because Ivyna did not want people to be distracted by all the noisy and nasty chants of the marchers and their commanders.
When Caleb Chuang arrived, he then told all the marchers to gather and we begun our practice. Benjamin Lew did the commanding and told everyone not to scratch. Then, we practiced for a short while before having a 10-minute break.
During the break time, some people were late, so Benjamin Lew had to order them to do push ups. Then, we continued the drills. We did the marching moves. Then, Jian Yang took out his marchers' worksheet and asked if he could pass the worksheet to Caleb Chuang. Benjamin Lew allowed him to pass the worksheet to Caleb Chuang.
The practices then continued on, and Caleb Chuang reminded everyone to finish their marchpast worksheets which contained the important marching moves.
As the practices ended early, I also spared some time during the holidays to do my Mid Year Examination prep work for Art and Design. Hence, I went to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia told me to take out my Prep 2 and continue working on it. I told Ms Nadia that I will present the fonts to her upon returning to school. However, I had to wait till Sports Day ended to present them. For the time being, I decided to do the shapes of the logo designs. Ms Nadia told me to draw five to seven shapes of the logos and present it to her, with the best one drawn on the Prep 2 art paper.
On that very moment, Hao Yinn was present, as well as Eugenie and Chee Kei. They were also here for their dance practices. Louis was also present, and he was working on his prep work. I did my prep work till my aunt came and I went home.
The next day, on Friday, 24th March 2017, we then had a short practice in the morning.
That day, I took the opportunity to show off a nice souvenir that I made for Sports Day 2017 – a Bullseye hat. Yes. A homemade one.
Inspired by the hats worn by supporters of Donald Trump during his campaign rallies, I decided to make one for Bullseye. I painted cheer slogans and Bullseye flags on the hat, along with details marking the history of Bullseye. It was like a mini tapestry on my head.
The morning started with a short marchpast session by Caleb Chuang and Benjamin Lew; the latter of which commanded most of us. Then, Loo Zane and all the Bullseye athletics people soon arrived, along with Sean Mark. He told me to do the athletics training first. So, all of Bullseye's athletes gathered at the school courtyard. I tagged along after Caleb Chuang, Benjamin Lew and Zi Quan let me go for my training. Zi Quan arrived a bit later and continued commanding the marchers.
Sean Mark and Loo Zane did some leg stretching with us. We did most stretching and strength training. Then, we tried to bend our backs. In fact, there was a lot of stretching. Afterwards, we then proceeded to do some tempo runs. Sean Mark led us by running from point to point. Then, we ran on a large circle around the courtyard, followed by more warm-ups and relay runs. Then, Sean Mark briefed us on what to do for the day and urged us to get some rest before our events. We were then given a break. In fact, all marchers and athletics people got a break. Some played futsal, captain ball and basketball in the courtyard while they took a break from their activities. They just threw balls into the basketball nets.
Later on, some people took a High Jump mattress and then set up the High Jump layout in the school courtyard. I then put on my homemade hat as I stood by and helped coordinate the High Jump. The reason for this was that some people were training for the MSSD competitions for High Jump. They were representing Nobel in the MSSD competitions.
While I held the string to measure the High Jump course, Prudence Wong praised my hat. "Oh! That is a very nice hat!" she cried. I told her that I wore it to keep myself cool. Honestly speaking, I didn't wear it to keep myself cool, but to show off the best of Bullseye.
Joshua Lim and Jeremy Kho, who were from Touchdown, kept on asking me about the Bullseye hat. Then, some people from Homerun, such as Jayden Wong, who is Isabella Wong's brother, went to also coordinate the jumping. Zher Xian, who is one of the monitors as well as one of the Bullseye marchers, also praised my hat. Then, I went into the hall and showed off the hat to the dancers, who cheered me on. So many people asked me about my hat.
As the day went on, I spent time with the people in the courtyard watching the MSSD high jumpers do their practice. Ms Sylvia then arrived and praised my hat before she did the high jump practices for MSSD. Then, at 12:00pm, I went back home.
On my way out of the school gates, Ms Nadia asked if I was planning to stay back for Art prep works that day. I told her I was not doing so and had to go home. She nodded.
Following the holidays, all CCAs and the Leadership Board meetings were cancelled so that everyone can rehearse and prepare for Sports Day. It was a very busy week as the Sports Day 2017 battle fired up.
On 27th March, we had a dress rehearsal in the school hall and we had to wear our PE attire that day as per what Mr Narish announced. According to a post shared on our Bullseye Marchers WhatsApp group, Mr Simon addressed one of the classes that those not involved in the rehearsal will continue and get on with their classes as usual while only the marchers, dancers and other people involved in the opening ceremony will remain in the courtyard and school hall for one final full day of rehearsals. The message also said that everyone will also be involved in the Sports Day Rehearsal the next day (28th March) at Panasonic Stadium, and also on Telematch Day (29th March). The same arrangement for 27th March would continue for 30th March and then followed by Sports Day on the 31st. We were informed to wear our 2016 Sports Day attire on the 28th, the 2015 Sports Day attire on the 29th, and any Sports Day attire from 2016 to 2013 on the 30th for a final round of practices. Everyone had to adhere to this attire rule. On another note, Ms Yew told me to get the form for the ICAS competition, which I did. I had registered for all the ICAS competition papers available, namely English, Maths, Science and Writing.
The day started off very festively. I wore my PE attire for the rehearsal. However, I had two worries one was about the marchpast arrangement which had to be settled because apparently Zi Quan has said that the march past arrangements may have been changed and that I may not be marching next to him. Instead, it would be Vicky who would be marching in the middle, with Zi Quan taking my proposed spot. However, Caleb Chuang said that it was not a big deal and that I would be marching next to them on Sports Day. There were at least three plans regarding the marchpast formation. Sean Mark would lead in all three plans as house captain of Bullseye.
Under the first plan, Vicky would march behind Sean Mark as the assistant Bullseye house captain, and this would then be followed by Zi Quan, Caleb Chuang and me marching together to form the first line of Bullseye marchers, behind which the rest of the marchers would follow. The second plan involved Caleb Chuang and Vicky switching places; and in this arrangement, Vicky would march next to me and Zi Quan. The third plan was that Vicky, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan would immediately form the first row of Bullseye marchers just immediately behind Sean Mark, with Vicky marching in the center. Caleb Chuang would be on the left and Zi Quan would take the position I am supposed to stand in.
Both first and second plans were reminiscent of previous Sports Days. Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan had told me that by right, I should march with them in the front row, since I was a Year 11 student as well and unofficially recognized as one of the three Bullseye march captains, with the fact that only two march captains, namely Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan, were recognized. The third plan was unheard of. In fact, Mr Narish followed the first plan for the 2016 Sports Day, and it was tradition for that to be used. When Vicky arrived at school, she said that Zi Quan may have the updated plan and not Caleb Chuang, who wasn't informed.
The second issue to face was the control book issue. Since the month of January 2017, the control book was working perfectly fine because all the information was settled. the teachers had signed onto the control book as they had to. All of them were disciplined and cooperative, and I thank them for that. As for my friends they had to use the washroom and some of them signed while some did not but the most important thing was that the teachers initial on the control book when they entered the class. These two issues were pressing issues, and had to be resolved.
However, for the first time since I became the assistant class monitor of 11N in January 2017, the control book operations were put to a series of ‘what ifs’. I faced my THIRD crisis after the incident of me doodling on the control book's cover page and the pass tag incidents, which occurred in February and early March. The control book system was the core of my bid for class monitor and a key hallmark of my initiatives since Year 7 to put together a more organized control book. Apart from the control book, Mr Kevin Wai had also entrusted me with logistical operations, and Sheng Jit the core operations where everyone can talk to him.
I could have asked Sheng Jit to handle the control book, but given his, as well as other monitors’ past track record, I couldn't find anyone to count on to get the situation solved. I was the only monitor who managed the control book well. Hence, the only thing I did was as such; I informed all teachers coming in for the day, namely Mr Raja, Ms Sharon, Mr Lee, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Janice to do the logistics of signing the control book. Before the assembly started, I went to meet all the teachers concerned as they went to the school hall. Mr Raja and Mr Lee told me not to worry, and so did Mr Kevin. But for Ms Sharon and Ms Janice, they were puzzled as to why I was not coming for classes. I explained to them that I was involved in the marchpast. I also reminded some people in the class to take notes of who used the loo or left the room. Then, I told Sheng Jit about the matter. In fact, I had to ask him to handle the control book temporarily. I had to let him know I was away.
Everyone first went for the assembly where Mr Narish announced the scores. Mr Narish was enthusiastic and used a lot of drumrolls, good intonation, and acted like a cool DJ and clown combined. He announced various scores and updates for Sports Day.
Mr Narish said that based on the Pre Sports Events result, the scores were 26 points for Homerun, 57 points for Slamdunk, 72 points for Touchdown and 73 points for Bullseye. YEAH! I screamed and shouted like mad. Mr Narish then announced the PLACINGS for the Notice Board Competition. According to him, Slamdunk won the Notice Board Competition, followed by Touchdown, Homerun and last but not least, Bullseye. He did not disclose the final score, but he said that if the points are added up with the Notice Board scores, which he asked the curious of the curious to do it themselves, it will get the final score.
Then, Mr Narish announced the next day's agenda, 28th March. Everyone, including non-participants, had to wear their 2016 Sports Day attire and head to the Panasonic Stadium for the rehearsal. While everyone had to gather at 8:00am sharp, the 1500m runners had to depart for the sports complex at 7:30am as the weather is cool enough to accommodate the longest track event ever, as well as to avoid the heavy traffic in the morning. At 8:15am, the rest of the school would depart for the stadium. Everyone would arrive at 8:45am, and have 15 minutes till 9:30am to gather. This would then be followed by a Pre Sports Event consisting of the 400m from 9:30am to 10:00am.
At 10:00am sharp, the marchers would do their first round of rehearsal, followed by a second round at 11:00am. Following the rehearsal, a prize giving ceremony would occur for the 1500m and 400m. Everyone would leave the stadium complex at 12:00pm, and arrive at Nobel at 1:00pm. Students would gather in the school hall before heading for their lunches. Thereafter, the sports house practices would continue from 1:30pm to 3:30pm and the day concludes. No after-school practice would be held as everyone was to rest for the Telematch Day the following day, on 29th March. A last-ditch practice would be held for the whole day on the 30th March, followed by the grand finale of Sports Day 2017 on 31st March to close off the whole thing.
“WHO'S GONNA WIN THIS YEAR!” cried Mr Narish. I screamed and shouted Bullseye's name so many times even till Ms Lim praised me. Even Mr Narish took note of that. The whole hall cheered for me.
Mr Narish then instructed all the 1500m runners to meet up with him, as well as aspiring telematch volunteers. I wanted to be a volunteer too. So, I had to stay back.
Mr Narish said that the 1500m runners will be using the school van to and from the stadium. “There will be no place for you on the bus,” he warned, as all seats had been accommodated for and booked. He told us to arrive at 7:00am at the earliest and then warned us to meet at 7:15am. “This is important. We need to rush. There is no time because of the traffic and also we don't want to start late, or else it would be very hot,” said Mr Narish. “If you are late, sorry. We will not allow you to participate,” he warned. There is no Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3 category for the 1500m; just male and female runners. Sara Yow was one of the female runners for Homerun's 1500m team. And I had to come head-to-head with Nieshaal Thambipillay. Mr Narish told us that he will be going with us via the school van and told us to pack lightly.
As for the telematch volunteers, I had applied to be a telematch helper on Friday, 17th March, prior to the start of the school holidays. Cikgu Baliah told us that each telematch game will consist of four volunteers; one from each house, so that everyone can be fair. I was in charge of the Year 7 games. Other than me, Yi Zhen (Homerun), Charmaine Ho (Slamdunk) and Hazel Genji (Touchdown), who is the sister of Benjamin Tenji, were the helpers. Yi Zhen was the leader for our volunteer group. Cikgu Baliah told us to meet her immediately on the 29th before the start of the telematch. She showed us a picture of how the games look like. Each group was in charge of two games. The first one was called the ‘Sarong Game'. Players need to wear a sarong, use a spoon and scoop water, and pour the water into a plastic bottle. The second one involved players picking balls from a hole and then dropping them into a container. The winners of the two games would be the houses with the most quantity of water in the bottle and the most balls in the container.
We left for class. I collected all of the permission slips from everyone involved in the Sports Day Rehearsal and placed them into the control book, stapling them. After reminding everyone to take note of who left the room and also reminding Sheng Jit to ask Mr Raja, Ms Sharon, Mr Kevin Wai and Mr Lee to sign, I then headed off to the management office to meet Mr Kevin Wai, whom I explained about the newspaper contest and handed him my newspapers. He told me to keep it in the class and he will settle the newspaper logistics with us.
Then, I met Mr Narish and asked him about the scores for the Notice Board Competition to aid me in my calculation. From what I estimated with Mr Narish, he told me that the scores for Slamdunk, Touchdown, Homerun and Bullseye were 96, 84, 82 and 76 respectively. Then, I went back to the class and calculated the score. According to my calculations, Touchdown had 743 points, 731 for Slamdunk, Bullseye 696 and Homerun 631.
At 8:00am, all the marchers, dancers and those involved went down to the school courtyard. I bade goodbye to my friends as I went down with Caleb Chuang. We talked as we walked. It was an interesting day. Bullseye was lagging behind. Something had to be done, as I planned my strategy.
Zi Quan then gathered us at the dismissal area and started practicing for the march. Soon, Zher Xian, who was part of the marchpast team, started to fool around again and Zi Quan scolded him. “Stop laughing! Stop scratching your heads!” he cried. He threatened punishment of 10 push ups for Zher Xian.
“If we don’t win march on Sports Day, a thousand push ups for all of you!” he yelled.
Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan put me to march in front, next to Vicky, as there were initial plans for three march captains just like those of the preceding Sports Days. This is also the main reason why Caleb asked me to be in the marchpast for 2017, as I, along with him and Zi Quan, are the only three Year 11s with prior marchpast experience. Sean Mark was planned to lead the team, followed by Caleb Chuang himself as marchpast captain, and then Vicky will stand and march between me and Zi Quan. Alternatively, I thought that based on past protocol, it would be Vicky that would march after Sean Mark and then followed by Caleb Chuang marching in between me and Zi Quan. So, Caleb Chuang placed me at the front as per the plan, and then Sean Mark came and decided to do the marchpast with us.
During the break time, Jian Yang and Kai Yang were playing around with the Bullseye flag that Sean Mark was holding, which caused Zi Quan to become cross. “OI! DON’T PLAY!” he shouted.
At 9:00am, all the houses were called to the courtyard for the announcements by Mr Narish. Ms Kay and other Bullseye teachers escorted us to the courtyard and school hall for the announcements. They came to the dismissal area to give us the heads up. Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang said they will confirm my placing in the marchpast team with Mr Narish to clear all doubts.
Mr Narish made the announcements. He said that there will be two rehearsals, namely one at 1:00pm and the second one at 2:30pm. He said that we will be left to our own groups and our own rehearsals first, followed by the break time period for the Year 7s, 8s and 9s. Then, we will continue our practices till the Year 10s and 11s have their break and lunch. Afterwards, we will do the two rehearsal sessions before we go home.
Zi Quan then called us to gather to start. I asked Zi Quan if I can substitute him in the practices while he went for dance, and he said that he had withdrawn from the dance competition to focus on the marching commands for Bullseye. Originally, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan were both involved in dance competitions, but however Zi Quan resigned from the dance competition on Ivyna's advice to get on his marching roles and get the marchpast squad in order while Caleb continued in the dance competition. Oh, and not to mention that Zi Quan was falling behind in his dance moves as well. Ivyna intended to kill two birds with one stone. Under the original agreement, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan would get Benjamin Lew to do the drilling as he is poised to become 2018’s marchpast captain, as well as me, since I was told of my role to be the potential third march captain under the original agreement.
Mr Narish approached us a few minutes after doing the practices while we were having a break to let the Year 7s to 9s head for their break time. He told us that the order would be the house captain leading first, followed by the assistant house captain standing in between the two marchpast captains, which would be the format for this year. I had asked Vicky to clarify the formatting as there were two conflicting formats, given that there were three march captains every year since 2013. The announcement by Mr Narish settled the situation given that Vicky, Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang had a few different messages about the formatting, and I was hoping to march in front with them just like the rest of the Year 11s. I accepted the result with an open heart, because it was Mr Narish's decision to do such formatting. Then, we went for our break time before returning for our practice.
We had practices time after time. Zi Quan kept on yelling commands as Caleb Chuang went for the practices. Then, he did push-ups. “SQUAD, ATTENTION!” he cried. His cry was the loudest of all march captains.
“SQUAD, RIGHT DRESS! NO SCRATCHING! LOOK IN FRONT!” he cried. Then, Zi Quan asked who was better; him or Kie Yip, the previous assistant march captain. Coincidentally, Caleb Chuang, the official march captain was like Jeremy Yeap; a friendly, happy-go-lucky captain, while their assistants roared. Joseph Diong then approached Zi Quan and praised him for being strict. Even Joseph acknowledged that San Ying wasn't as strict as him.
Then, it was our turn, the Year 10s and 11s, to go for break time. I then saw Joshua, Yi Zhen, Aaron Loke and the four captains were initially seen reciting a pledge formulated by Mr Narish simultaneously in the courtyard as part of the Sports Day Rehearsal. They were holding flags. In fact, Mr Narish and the management team had brought out the flags for the Sports Day Rehearsals. Joshua Chew, as head prefect, holds the Malaysian flag. Aaron Loke, his assistant boy prefect, held the Selangor state flag. Yi Zhen, the assistant head girl prefect, clutched the Nobel International School flag, and all four house captains held their respective houses’ flags.
The plan by Mr Narish, originally, for all the seven of them, was to recite the pledge in synchronization. That was what they did when they clutched the flags, and Mr Narish was watching them. Eventually, it was Megan Lee who would be chosen to recite the pledge, as Megan represented Nobel in golf competitions as well as the MSSD competitions.
Traditionally, I thought that the winner of the Founder’s Run would give the speech, as Nieshaal had done so for 2016’s Sports Day, given that he was also the 10km winner of Founder’s Run. The thing is that Nieshaal was also an MSSD winner; hence his speech in Sports Day 2016. I was hoping to recite the pledge due to my then-recent achievement in the Founder's Run 2017. I was thinking that since Nieshaal had won again, it would be good to give me a chance to recite the pledge as the newest, unexpected winner of the Founder's Run.
A concern that I have had for Sports Day was about marching with the leaders in front. Traditionally, based on previous sports day lineups for the marchpast competition, the house captain will march first, followed by the assistant captain in a single file, and that there would be three march captains forming the first row, followed by the next row of marchers with three people per row. As such, Caleb urged me to be in the marchpast so that there can be a total of three march captains as per the original plan, but this was confirmed otherwise. Coincidentally because of this, I would be one of six people who are Year 11s but were not march captains or leaders, but followers of the marchpast team in their own right. The others were Hoo Fang Yi, Desmond Chan, Nickolas Nashpal, Shaun Ting and Ye Sean.
After the break time, we practiced. Zi Quan belted, shouted and acted like a mad guy, giving push ups and punishments time after time. Then, it started to rain, and everyone in the courtyard had to take cover in the school hall.
The dance rehearsals were ongoing. Zi Quan and the marchers watched the dance for a while. While they were observing the dance, I reflected on myself. Being the second oldest in the marchpast squad after Zi Quan, I feel that I am tasked with having a great responsibility. As Year 11s, we were supposed to be leading Sports Day. Then, after some time, Zi Quan also met a boy from Slamdunk named Chiew Jared. He called him the 'Slamdunk Son'. He nicknamed him as such because he was in Year 7, as well as a marcher for Slamdunk. Zi Quan came to adore him and showed some affection for him.
Being the oldest in the whole marching squad donned on me that only me and Zi Quan were the Year 11s. Caleb Chuang wasn't there, and neither were the rest. For the whole day, me and Zi Quan dominated the scene as the only two Year 11s in the marchpast squad.
When 15 minutes of break time had passed, Zi Quan called everyone to fall in and march. He then shouted commands.
“Squad! Attention! Look in front! No talking! Squad, right dress!” he cried. Then, Vicky came and motivated us. She had a serious tone on her face. “Marchers! Please be serious!” cried Vicky. She asked us to follow the orders made by Zi Quan. Then, Vicky told us that we will have a dress rehearsal later before walking off. Zi Quan then continued drilling us, marching around the courtyard in unison and telling us the commands. When the practice ended, I wanted to ask Zi Quan some questions, but he scolded and shouted at me to keep quiet and not talk to him.
Some of the marchers then asked Zi Quan as to why I was not given a chance to lead Sports Day and command the march commands like him, since I was a Year 11 student as well. Zi Quan shrugged them off for talking nonsense. The marchers told him that they also wish for me to lead the marchpast as I was the only Year 11 in Bullseye not involved in the logistical affairs. Zi Quan just ignored them.
Then, it was the Year 7, 8 and 9 students' turn to take their lunch. Zi Quan and I went to the school hall to watch the dance and met up with Vicky and Caleb Chuang. The three of them had a talk. Then, Zi Quan turned to me after Caleb Chuang went back to do his dance.
"Why are you here? Why are you here? Go away! Go away!" he cried in an angry tone. Vicky asked me to wait outside the hall. I just walked away.
Inside the school hall, each house was given the leeway to practice their dance in front of the management team. The order given was Homerun, Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. All the members of the management; be it Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Lim, Ms Praveen and Mr Narish were watching. Mr Narish, Ms Sylvia and Ms Crystlyn were giving tips as to what was happening in terms of the dance moves. He also informed the dancers on their entry and exit from the track and the stands. Then, at 12:00pm, Mr Narish asked everyone to head for their lunch. Zi Quan then had lunch with his marchers as well as his 'Slamdunk son', Jared. I sat alone and then had lunch with San Ying and Sherwin as we chat. We had an early lunch as the opening ceremony rehearsal would take a couple of time to finish. We had to do two rehearsals.
Once we had finished lunch, the sky was very sunny. Then, it got cloudy. Zi Quan then asked all of us marchers to fall in, and I followed.
"Squad! Attention! Squad, Right Dress!" cried Zi Quan. He boomed and shouted. Caleb Chuang was involved in the dance, and we were with Zi Quan the whole time.
As Chew Jared then came from his lunch, he then went and gave Zi Quan a hug, and Zi Quan patted him. Then, he asked Jared to judge if we were doing our moves properly. He was alright. Jared was cheerful and he was really hyperactive as well.
Zi Quan bid goodbye to Jared as Sherwin and Rick Tan then called everyone to start their practices. Then, Caleb Chuang came and checked on us. All was okay, and soon thereafter, Joshua Chew, Yi Zhen, Aaron Loke, and all the house captains arrived with their large flags. The banner team were fitting poles onto a banner and holes were cut for greater aerodynamics to let the wind through the banner.
Soon, Ms Bee Yan came on the announcement and asked everyone to gather in the corridor according to our houses, starting with Homerun, Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. "Guys, please gather," said Zi Quan in response. He asked everyone to line up in the corridor. Then, Vicky gave us a briefing. "Marchers, remember, say, "left, right, left" loudly! When you salute, remember to salute to the judges!
Vicky and Sean Mark then told us that the opening ceremony would consist of a combined opening dance by all four houses. They then told us that the opening dance would last around ten minutes following the torch relay. During this time, Vicky would hold Bullseye's flag and station it till Sean Mark returned from the relay, before the commencement of the marchpast. The marchpast logistics were conducted by Mr Andrew, the Additional Mathematics teacher. Then, we would march in, sing the Negaraku and do other formalities, including the Sports Pledge, which would be led by Megan Lee. Following the pledge, we would march out and the dance performances can begin.
Then, we had the full rehearsal as Ms Bee Yong, Ms Sim, Ms Lim and the rest of the management team members such as Ms Bee Yan and Ms Cynthia watched in awe as the rehearsal begun. All the teachers and dancers cheered us on as we made our way into the school hall for the marchpast.
The hall was crowded with a lot of people. A lot of people, especially those from the Year 10 and Year 11s’ lunchtime were watching the opening ceremony rehearsal. There was grand music being played as it showcased the extravagance of the event. Dancers who were dancing cheered all the marchers as we marched in. Eu Lynn and Ivyna led the Bullseye dance delegation to cheer. Ms Bee Yan, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah were emceeing the opening ceremony.
Once everyone was inside, Mr Narish gave a briefing. Mr Narish said that the marchpast was without any consequences but however everyone must listen to the right captain’s commands and march in synchronization. He also told us that our “hands up” command which was to raise the hand for the Sports Pledge which was made by Megan Lee had to be synchronized as well. Mr Chan called on us to wriggle our toes to allow for blood circulation and prevent us from falling. We were then asked to go back to our positions outside the hall to re-march into the hall again.
Then, Mr Narish told all assistant house captains to hold their respective houses’ flags once again while waiting for the four respective captains to finish their torch relay. Mr Narish then mentioned about the opening dance and told all the four dance captains to prepare to dance. The dance would last ten minutes and he said it was well-executed and that all the dancers must come out onto the field once the torch relay had ended. Mr Narish then ran through the Negaraku. He then asked the people at the PA corner on the side of the stage to play the Negaraku. However, when we sung, Ms Lim said that everyone was not singing loudly enough, and asked for the song to be replayed. We also did a round of ‘hands up’ and ‘hands down’ when Megan Lee recited the Sports Pledge. Then, we marched out. Bullseye and Homerun had to turn left to exit the field on the day while Touchdown and Slamdunk turned right.
After exiting the hall, Zi Quan then continued to drill us with Vicky in presence. Caleb Chuang watched us. Then, Eric Wong and Alex Chia, who was holding our Bullseye house banner, set the banner down onto the floor of the school courtyard. Some people put the flags aside while we trained. Zi Quan then continued belting out commands, and Zidez Raja's voice was the loudest even till Zi Quan got annoyed with the loud voice. Previously, when I marched, my voice was equally as loud, especially when I was in Year 7. Now, Zidez had a larger amplifier. Zi Quan then continued to train us before we went for a break at 1:45pm. He and Vicky went to the hall, and I followed them. Then, I asked Zi Quan a question. “WHAT?!” he cried. “DON'T TALK TO ME!” he cried. I was planning to ask where Vicky was.
When I met Vicky in the school hall, I asked her on the telematch, since I had registered for it before the holidays. There was no confirmation if I was selected.
“Wait first,” she said.
I wonder what was taking so long. I had asked to register. Dylan S. Gill was okay with it, but ironically, Vicky was still asking for people to join as not a lot of people were joining. By right, I should have had been registered, since I was interested. However, Dylan S. Gill had said that I wasn't officially registered yet. Something was wrong. So, I asked Vicky once again. She told me not to ask so many questions. Then, when the committee met up, and Caleb Chuang, Ivyna, Zi Quan, Vicky, Sean Mark, Eu Lynn, Benjamin Tenji and all the respective captains met for a chat, Zi Quan shouted at me to go away. “Get lost!” he cried.
When we started to gather for the re-march, Sean Mark said that when the Negaraku and School Song are played, everyone must sing as loudly as possible. “Even if you don’t like the song, just sing. I don’t care whether the song is bad or not, but please, sing,” he appealed.
All the marchers then started marching in with Joshua Chew, Aaron Loke and Leong Yi Zhen leading the role as head prefects, then followed by Homerun, Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. The hall was filled with spectators, and some of the elementary school students watched what we were doing. Then, we sung the Negaraku, School Song and said the Sports Pledge with Megan leading us.
“Much better,” Ms Bee Yong exclaimed, before all of us marched out.
Zi Quan then gathered us and then continued the marching drills for another 45 minutes as some of the marchers asked for a break. He was strict and stern. Then, once the dance competitions finished, Caleb Chuang then supervised the drills as Zi Quan continued ranting out commands. “Squad, attention!” “Squad, stand at ease!” “Again!” “Squad, stand at ease!” “Too slow! Again!”
Caleb Chuang then passed the time to Benjamin Lew to command as Zi Quan had a rest. The duo checked the marchers for their signs of movement and coordination before we called a break. Mr Narish then came and announced to us that at 3:00pm, we will get ready for our final rehearsal before we headed home at 3:30pm.
Once we had a 15-minute break, everyone gathered at the hall for the final rehearsal of the day, as we marched in without incident. Following the rehearsal, Zi Quan then made an announcement with Vicky, Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark.
“Okay, Bullseye marchers. There will be no more practices today. That's all for today. Remember, please come tomorrow, ya?” he said, reminding everyone to be on time for their departure to the Panasonic Stadium the next day.
“Who is participating in 1500m tomorrow?” asked Vicky. “Anyone else participating in the events?”
All the captains singled me and Aaron Yong for the 1500m. The both of us would depart at 7:30am for the stadium. “Wei Yiang, wear your shorts, ya!” cried Sean Mark. He was counting on me to win the 1500m.
Zi Quan then dismissed us as the dismissal of the Junior and Senior School students begun. Then, that afternoon, Ashlyne Yong told us to meet at 10N for an emergency Monitor's Council meeting. The plan was to discuss the fundraising activities for the Monitor's Council and a proposal to man a booth during the Telematch Day to facilitate fundraising activities.
I went up to 11N, collected the control book and Smartboard equipment, and then proceeded to find the teachers to sign the book. Since it was impossible to keep track on who used the loo, I abandoned that. I looked at the book. Mr Raja had signed both his slots. I had to get signatures from Ms Sharon, Mr Lee, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Janice. Then, after settling the control book affairs and putting the book and the Smartboard equipment pouch back into the pigeon hole, I went to 10N for the meeting.
This meeting was called because for the whole month of March there was no Monitor’s Council meeting because of the presence of the Bullseye National Convention. Because the Bullseye National Convention took place on the 6th March, 13th March and also the fact that the 20th March 2017 was the holiday period, we could not get to have any Monitor's Council meetings. The last meeting of the Monitor's Council was on 27th February; exactly one month ago. This meant that there was only one Monitor's Council meeting in January, on the 23rd January 2017, as well as on 6th February 2017, 20th February and 27th February.
During the Monitor's Council meeting, Ashlyne Yong told us to pay our club funds once again in order to meet Mr Narish's compassion projects deadline. Because each leadership board, namely the Prefectorial Board, Librarian Board and Monitor's Council had to come up with fundraising projects, the Monitor's Council fundraising projects involved some charity sales. We sold lemonade on the Founder's Run and Ashlyne and the committee had decided to come up with a cookie sale on 29th March 2017, during the telematch, and needed some monitors to man the stall. The funds would be consolidated to the charitable activities by Fungates Superflow Foundation as intended by Mr Narish.
Ashlyne appealed to everyone to at least try to volunteer. However, I stood up and said that most of us would be busy during the telematch as we had to either cheer or to participate or get involved with the telematch, and urged all the monitors from Bullseye not to participate in manning the booth. “We are at third place, you know. Homerun will overtake us very soon!” I cried. “We need to save Bullseye!”
The room was filled with emotion and I apologized if I could not participate in the booth operations. Ashlyne was okay with that. Ethan Chan, who was in the room, cheered at me and gave the thumbs up. Many of the Bullseye people were riled up and were enthusiastic. Then, we discussed some of the items we wished to sell. We decided to sell peanut butter cookies, ice cream, jelly and a whole host of fast food.
After the end of the Monitor's Council meeting, I then went down to meet Aaron Yong, who was in the foyer, and spoke to him about the 1500m strategy, before going home.
The next day, 28th March, was the Pre Sports Events at Panasonic Stadium, which would also be the Sports Day Rehearsal Day at the stadium too. For that day, we had to wear our 2016 Sports Attire. All students would be bussed to the stadium while athletes competing in the 1500m will be transported via the school van as it was the earliest event of the day. As I am competing in the 1500m, we had to leave school at 7:30am in order to avoid the jam as well as the heat while running. Aaron Yong was my running mate for 1500m for Bullseye.
For a second day in a row the school was a bus with activity as the Sports Day atmosphere heated up day after day. I arrived at school at 6:45am, had a quick breakfast, and at 7:00am I decided to hit to the dismissal area where the 1500m runners were gathering.
The school custodians and Mr Narish were setting up the school van for our early trip to Panasonic Stadium. The school van's engine was starting quickly. Ms Sylvia, Mr Narish and Mr Victor were planning the trip to the stadium. I arrived at the dismissal area and Mr Narish told us to sit down as he took out his name list of the 1500m participants. He asked us to check our names and sign on the name list. We then sat down and I talked with Aaron Yong about the arrangements, confirming to him that our plans were to be well-executed.
So at 7:30am sharp, Mr Narish then took our attendance once again. He led us to the school's parking lot, where the school van was located. The school van then picked us up and we were on the way to the stadium. Mr Narish was accompanying us via the van to the stadium. As I was carrying Bullseye’s banner to display to the athletes, Mr Narish asked what was I bringing, and I told him it was a banner to cheer for Bullseye. Once all the athletes were in the van, we sped off. Everyone also looked at my banner and talked about it. I had spent the holidays fixing it. Now, it was time for action. This time, Sean Mark allowed the banner. I had spoken about it to him. Luckily it did not contain obvios political elements. The red flag remained a red flag.
As I looked out of the window, I could see the highways filled with traffic. The sun was gracefully rising and a calm, serene morning awaited. The direction towards Shah Alam was still somewhat okay as most folks would be headed for Kuala Lumpur. Aaron Yong and all the people were boasting about my 5km capabilities. Some even thought that I could even win first place for 1500m. Among the athletes in the van were Nieshaal Thambipillay, who won the 10km category for Founder’s Run, and Lee Chun Hang, who was 2016’s 1500m champion. Each house had to enter two athletes for the 1500m race for each gender category. Nieshaal Thambipillay was accompanied by Chuang Chu Xiang, Lee Chun Hang with Kevin Tan, and so on. Aaron Yong was my ‘running mate’ for the 1500m.
Upon arriving at the stadium, the weather was cool and we can feel the cool breeze. Mr Narish gathered all of us after we arrived, and gave us a briefing for warming up. He said that the 1500m runners will be going first, at 8:30am, and gave us half an hour to warm up and prepare for the race. So, I placed my bag on the stands and changed into my running shorts that I wore for Founder’s Run to give myself good movement. Sean Mark had reminded me before the race to wear shorts.
I tried to do the warm ups as much as possible while Aaron Yong wished me good luck for the 1500m race. Each house had to enter two runners for the race.
The warm ups were led by Julian Ong, who had been experienced in the track and field events. We did some elbow movements, hand stretching, stationery runs and all the necessary warm ups that Mr Victor had taught us. In fact, Mr Victor also did some warm ups with us as well.
At 8:30am, we begun the race. Mr Victor briefed us that we had to run a total of four rounds on the track to make the cut, and there will be a siren sounded from his megaphone when the first runner completed the third round. So, we got set and proceeded to the start line. The boys were the first. Mr Victor stood at the side of the track. He also told us that we must stay in our lanes for the first 100m of the race before we could cut into the next person's lane later on. He then told us to stand by.
The 1500m was seen as a Part 2 of Founder's Run, particularly because it featured the two male winners of the Founder's Run, which were me and Nieshaal Thambipillay. A battle of endurance between the 5km and 10km winners, as well as between the rookie and the veteran. Who will stand the ultimate test? We shall see.
Mr Victor then said, “On your marks. Get set,” and then blew a horn. Then, we were off. Everyone was running very fast as I tried to catch up. Within the first 100m, I edged close to the large group of runners. Nieshaal was in front of me and I was trying my best to reach him. To make the distance as short as possible, everyone ran on the innermost lane. Some runners puffed and panted as I overtook them, and soon the first round was finished. I struggled to maintain my steadiness and pace, as 1500m is not a 5km run. It is a speedy race and I had to keep up with the runners. So, I steadied myself as Nieshaal was ahead of me. Then, the second round was over. I was just behind Nieshaal, trying to keep the pace with him. Lee Chun Hang was leading as I tried to get used to a speedy race. Soon, I came close to overtaking Chun Hang as well. As the third round passed, Mr Victor blew his megaphone's siren. I ran and sprinted as fast as I could, and as the last 100m of the race approached, I stuck my hands, feet and whatever I could do as I crossed the finish line. I vomited a few minutes after crossing the line, while everyone praised each other for doing their best. Based on what I have thought, I got third place for 1500m. In fact, Nieshaal and I crossed the finish line at the same time.
I then went to use the washroom and had a drink of water from my water bottle, and installed the banner I had drawn for Bullseye over the PA system’s balcony so that all the people can see it. It had to be centrally located, just like the portrait of Kim Il Sung over Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. Ironically enough, the balcony and stadium stands reminded me hilariously of the Kim Il Sung Square and the large balcony walls reminded me of a place to put a portrait. We replaced it with my Bullseye banner.
“What is that ah?” cried Nieshaal, upon seeing the banner. He groaned when he saw the cheer slogans and the Bullseye flag drawn on it. “Come on, guys!” I cried. A lot of the people saw the banner. Mr Narish then asked what the banner meant. I explained to him the symbolism of the banner and how it related to the history of Bullseye. He accepted the reasoning. Aaron Yong praised my banner design.
Then, the next batch of 1500m runners who were female runners started their race with the same protocol. The girls’ race involved 10km second-place winner Alysha Yuen competing in the race. As they were cheered on, I screamed and shouted. Alysha Yuen eventually won the 1500m race. Mind you, Lee Chun Hang's record for the 1500m was a new school record.
Just as the 1500m runners finished their race, the rest of the students arrived by bus from Nobel. The crowd trickled into the stadium. As more buses arrived, teachers accompanied curious and excited students who were rowdy enough to the point they acted like desperate individuals trying to crowd around Taylor Swift or Michael Jackson. The teachers had to control them. A total of ten buses ferried all students and teachers to the stadium. The curious onlookers from the bus were then told to be seated and asked to cheer for the athletes while marchers and dancers got ready for the Sports Day opening ceremony rehearsal.
Athletes participating in the 400m were asked to gather at the track area of the stadium and have their attendance taken by Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia. A lot of folks were involved, including Ivyna and Eu Lynn. Ethan Chan and Prudence Wong were involved in the races as well.
Mr Narish then made announcements. He then told all the athletes to take their attendance quickly. He also informed marchpast and dance captains to gather their marchers and dancers to practice for their rehearsals.
Zi Quan was busy barking orders to all the marchers to ask everyone to come together and line up. He wanted everyone to settle down so that we can start. As we prepared to march, Zi Quan continued to show his anger against anyone who did not toe his instructions while marching, especially those that tried to scratch their itch or wipe their sweat. The only thought I could think when hearing his commands was how he simply got angry at me when I wanted to ask questions or talk to anyone in Bullseye’s committee. He got angry at everyone. While it was fair that he had roared at those who were trying to be funny with him, I don't see the rationale of him getting angry at me when I just wanted a simple chat with him.
As Bullseye was already performing badly, I wanted to give suggestions to the committee on how to improve and recover our lead so that we can win Sports Day. While my suggestions and proposals were not accepted, what made the situation worse was how a good friend of mine whom I had known since Year 2 snuffed down me and my ideas in an unfair and cruel way. He was a nice friend. He was a good friend. But it was really pitiful to the extent he had come to this state.
Zi Quan then told us the commands. “SQUAD! ATTENTION! SQUAD! RIGHT DRESS! SQUAD, ATTENTION! SQUAD! STAND AT EASE! SQUAD, STAND EASY! Again! Squad, stand easy!” he cried. He had a loud tone. Vicky told us to make Zi Quan proud by having Bullseye win the marchpast on Sports Day. Then, Vicky told us about the protocol. “Marchers, listen! Please cooperate!” cried Vicky. “Don't move, don't scratch, don't do funny things!”
Zidez Raja then told Zi Quan that all of us as marchers will amaze him and make him proud, saying that Zi Quan is literally crying at the moment in his heart. “Make Zi Quan proud, guys!” he cried. Soon, the whole marchpast gang was telling him to be strong as Zi Quan was really about to tear up. “This is your last year in school, and we will make you and Wei Yiang proud,” he said. Kai Yang then told everyone not to forget me as well, as I am also a Year 11 student. In fact, many marchers think that Caleb Chuang, Zi Quan, Vicky and Sean Mark were the only prominent Year 11 students aside from Eric and Alex, who were holding the banners. The whole squad then turned to me and motivated me, and told me not to cry as well. In fact, I was crying in my heart, but for a different reason. While I was crying as I did not have the chance to contribute my ideas, Zi Quan was crying because he was proud of everyone in the march group.
Zi Quan thanked everyone for the compliments. “Okay, Squad, Attention!” he cried. He said he was very proud of everyone for showing improvement day after day and time after time. Then, he continued the drills and everyone vouched for Benjamin Lew for the 2018 marchpast captain.
After another round of drilling, Vicky then called all of us marchers and then told us that every marcher would be given a bandanna to put on while marching on the track. She told us to measure our head size so that she can find the right one for us. Ivyna and Eu Lynn had bandannas for the dancers and were planning to expand this to the marchpast team. Then, we had a break, and I stood as Vicky, Eu Lynn, Ivyna, Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang discussed. Vicky asked me to go back to the stands. The 400m was ongoing. I peered at the track, talked to some folks for a while, and went back down to the basement where the five of them were still discussing. Then, I changed into my track pants from my shorts.
At 10:00am, Mr Narish asked all of us to line up on the track outside the stadium for the marchpast while Mr Andrew who was monitoring the marchers, gave the signal for us to start marching when the time had come. Zi Quan then went up. I followed him and called the marchers over. Then, we gathered downstairs, and each house had to assemble. Then, we were led to the track. Mr Andrew stood at the edge of the track with a look as serious as a mathematician. Then, he told everyone to stand by for announcements.
“Guys, no scratching, no talking, look in front,” said Zi Quan. Vicky also informed everyone to pay attention and stand still. She held the Bullseye flag as she settled some affairs on how to march with Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang.
Mr Steve and Ms Sarah begun announcing the entrance of the torch relay. Joseph Diong was the first to take the torch out. He then passed it to Sean Mark. “Guys, clap! Clap!” cried Zi Quan, calling us to clap for Sean Mark. Everyone clapped. He said that we can clap as the judging had not begun. Then, Lim Wences took the torch, passed it to Brendan Cheah and then the four captains reached the cauldron, dipping the torch into it. The cauldron burst into phoenixes of flames.
Homerun was the first to march, followed by Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. Everyone saluted past the judges as we made our way to the field, led by Joshua Chew, Aaron Loke and Yi Zhen. Then, we sang the Negaraku and then Megan Lee led the Sports Pledge. Once everyone finished marching, we returned to our seats to watch the dance competition. Mr Narish then met with all the marchpast captains and all the committee members. I then went to Mr Narish's discussion and listened to what he was talking so that I can take some notes. Zi Quan told me to shrug off and go back to the stands. I wanted to listen to what Mr Narish was saying so that I can advise the house captains and discuss as committee members, and even plan my strategy and game plan to revive Bullseye's first place win. I was optimistic and wanted to provide insights to the house. Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang continued to discuss with Mr Narish after all the other captains left, but however Zi Quan was too uncomfortable with me being with them listening to Mr Narish. When Zi Quan asked why I was not at the seat, I tried to explain, but he kept on cutting me off at every opportunity. “People ask you to go back so you go back. How difficult is it to follow instructions?!”, he cried. I gave in to him and headed back to the stands. I felt fed up with him and was losing my patience. I normally argue with people outside of school if they made me too angry. I didn't want to blow my cover in a civilized setting.
I tried to comprehend why he was treating me in a crude manner, but I just went up and sat down in the stands. After all, if I argued with Zi Quan, it would mean that a sign of disunity and cracks would have seeped within Bullseye. There were two compelling visions on how to revive Bullseye. And not to mention that Vicky, just like Zi Quan, did not allow any presentation of ideas and solutions. It was about me listening to Vicky and Zi Quan. No arguments if you dissent. It was a far cry to what Vicky was six months ago when I took up the role in the Editorial Board. She was much more lively and joyful but too serious when I met her for Global Perspectives, the Maple Group in the Leadership Camp, and now unease tends to strike again, this time on the eve of Sports Day.
The dance teams begun dancing and then this is followed by the individual dance groups from each house. Then, we cheered and soon Zi Quan was also joining in, cheering with us. Sean Mark and the rest of the committee members arrived while we cheered. All the Bullseye members cheered for Ivyna and the dance team.
Then, after some time, Mr Narish asked us to do a second rehearsal once the dance was over. “House captains, march captains; please gather your marchers first. We will begin the second rehearsal soon,” he said.
Zi Quan then called out for us marchers. “Bullseye marchers, fall in downstairs,” he ordered. So, he told us to head to the basement tunnel and then gather. Then, he briefed us.
“When Sean Mark carries the torch, please clap for him. Okay?” he said.
“Bullseye marchers! Remember! Follow the instructions! Look in front! Stand still! No scratching!” cried Vicky.
The rehearsal started again. All four house captains stood on the track. Joseph Diong then came out with the torch and then passed it to Sean Mark, who then handed it to Wences and then he himself handed the torch to Brendan Cheah. Once the torch was lit, the combined dance by all four houses started before the marchpast begun. Mr Andrew then gave the signal for us to begin marching. Then, we passed the grandstand. As we saluted, I could see my Bullseye banner hung on the grandstand. It was like as if we were saluting to it. I could hilariously imagine Kim Il Sung's portrait hanging in Kim Il Sung Square when looking at it.
Then, we stood in the center of the field, singing the Negaraku and watching Megan do the Sports Pledge. We were then told to return back once the pledge was over. Zi Quan, Caleb Chuang, Vicky and I walked together. I did not dare say anything that could emotionally trigger either Vicky and Zi Quan. Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan bought 100 Plus for everyone. Zher Xian offered me one but I rejected it as I don't like 100 Plus. Then, I spoke to him about the telematch plans and the banner and how things went while we watched the dance.
After the dance was over, Mr Narish then asked everyone to gather on the track as the medals were presented to the winners of that morning’s athletics events. I called everyone to quickly sit down on the track as Mr Narish hinted of bonus points being given to the sports houses. Each house was told to do their house cheer. When I told the Bullseye members who is going to win, everyone shouted ‘Bullseye’ loudly once we finished our cheer.
Soon came the announcement of the 1500m races. I held my bated breath as the winners were announced. I was expecting third place finish. It was then announced that Nieshaal Thambipillay got third and I was ahead of him in second place, while Lee Chun Hang defended his 1500m title. I was so shocked but also happy. The Bullseye members screamed for me. Hence, I managed to deliver a stunning takedown of two rivals of mine; Sean Mark and Nieshaal Thambipillay. I felt so happy beating Nieshaal Thambipillay, the winner of the 10km. Indirectly, I was the ultimate champion of the Founder's Run. Winning over Sean Mark proved my capability as I was able to overcome an athletic figure. Winning over Nieshaal Thambipillay further cemented my rise in the area of sports. I felt happy that as a newcomer, I was able to overcome Sean Mark and Nieshaal Thambipillay all in one go. I felt like I was a figure rising, just like the rise of China.
As I ascended to the podium, I tripped and almost fell while getting onto the podium. The crowd roared in shock. Then, after all the awards were presented, Mr Narish asked everyone to get their bags and line up according to their class lists before heading to the busses to bring us back to school. I then packed up and headed to the school van while everyone congratulated my feat. While on the way back, Nieshaal and Aaron Yong congratulated me for getting second place for 1500m. “Finally you won Nieshaal,” said Aaron Yong. The whole van talked about how the race was indirectly a ‘Founder's Run Part 2’, since me and Nieshaal were Founder's Run winners. I was indirectly interviewed by the people in the van and Mr Narish talked to us as he asked us how we felt about the rehearsal. He said that the 2017 Sports Day is poised to be better than 2016, especially when he organized Sports Day for the second time. Chun Hang and Aaron Yong talked to Mr Narish about football and some food as to what they would eat upon reaching Nobel. Mr Narish said that we do another rehearsal after lunch before the day ended. He also contemplated doing a third rehearsal at the stadium but time was not on our side.
Our van was the first one to reach school, and Mr Narish, who had followed us back, asked us to gather in the hall while we wait for the rest of the students to come back. Soon, the hall was bustling with activity. The Year 7s, 8s and 9s were asked to go for their lunch first while the Year 10s and 11s waited. I then sat with Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan. I avoided eye contact with Zi Quan and sat with Caleb Chuang, reviewing my plans. Some of the students felt tired from the events and rehearsal, so Ms Lim said to everyone in the hall that she would offer to kill the lights in the hall to allow us to have a 10 minute rest. The whole hall cheered. Ms Lim was astonished at some people relaxing like tourists in a spa. I waited for 10 minutes even though the lights were switched off. When 10 minutes had passed, Ms Lim said that the lights will be switched on again however some students requested for a longer rest time.
“I gave you 10 minutes and you are still not enough. Go back home and sleep!” she exclaimed as she flicked on the lights. The Year 10s and 11s then went for their lunch.
I went to Uncle Tan’s stall and then purchased my food, and then made my way to the lower canteen where all the Year 11 committee members of all four houses were sitting. I sat down and Zi Quan gave a glare at me but then ignored me. I just listened to their discussions as being a Year 11 myself, I hope to have some input into how we can work as a team. After all, we Year 11s should be working together and we should be bonding together. I just want to mend the rift between Zi Quan and Vicky by having lunch with them.
Seated at the table were Sara Yow, Isabella Wong, Natasha Singam, Ivyna, Vicky, Sherwin, Joshua Chew, Sean Mark and many of the other committee members including Mr Narish, who was also having his lunch as well. Zi Quan shouted down every moment I tried to propose, make peace or interact with him, including apologizing.
“SHOW SOME RESPECT!” cried Zi Quan. Some people calmed him down and told me not to talk further as Zi Quan wasn't in a very good mood.
I also asked Dylan S. Gill and Jordan Tay who were the telematch captains for Bullseye (and were also seated at the table) to confirm if I was going to participate in the telematch competition the following day. While Dylan said he was not sure about that, Jordan told me that my name was in the list. Dylan also told me that from what he had heard, they were going to put me on the shortlist but it is not in the official list for the Year 11 games. The rest of the day went without any incident.
Hold your horses. I had registered on Friday, 17th March and now it is 28th March and I had not received any response. What in the world is this? How come some people can immediately get into Bullseye's telematch team while I had done the proper procedures and my status was pending for over a week? This is strange!
When I proposed to Vicky my plans and strategies during lunch and warned about the potential loss of Bullseye, she ignored me and did not care. In a last-ditch effort to mend ties with Vicky and Zi Quan, I tried to apologize to them. Vicky was defiant. “Wei Yiang, please,” she said. “I will come up with the plans, okay? You have no right to propose.” Zi Quan told me to show some respect to Vicky as the assistant house captain and not keep on proposing my suggestions and plans to her. Caleb Chuang pulled me aside. “Wei Yiang, chill, relax. It's okay,” he said.
After lunch, Zi Quan gathered all of us marchers at 2pm and briefed to us about the briefing. Those who were not involved in the Sports Day rehearsal or any activities related to Sports Day were asked to head to four classes to remain there till the end of the day. Bullseye's non-participants were told to go to 8O's classroom, Touchdown to 8B's class, Slamdunk to 8E's class and Homerun to 8L's class.
Zi Quan told us that Mr Narish said that we will have one final rehearsal at 2:30pm, followed by a rest and then we will resume our individual practices in the afternoon before calling it a day. So, to start, he did our individual practices. Zi Quan was very unhappy when Zher Xian tried to fool around during the practices. When a lot of people were late, Zi Quan told everyone to do push ups. He did the push ups as well, to be fair. I was planning to do that if I was march captain, too.
Then, Zi Quan then met his Slamdunk Son, Chiew Jared, introduced us to him and vice versa, and let him watch us practice and boast his practices to him. Zidez Raja told everyone to perform well and make Zi Quan happy till he cried. Zi Quan then continued the drills. Then, Benjamin Lew took over, and Zi Quan checked our hand positions.
Then, afterwards, Mr Narish asked everyone to gather at the school hall for the second rehearsal. So all of us lined outside the hall in our marching groups as Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yan and Ms Lim looked on. As the rehearsal begun, I followed the group into the hall and followed the same protocol again. Mr Narish then asked all of us to sing louder.
I told myself not to worry. We would have three more days and then we can get this over and done with it. I was fed up with what was happening and hopefully, this ordeal would be able to end soon.
We then marched into the school hall while Mr Narish told everyone about the areas to improve. In fact, everyone was a bit tired marching in. “House captains, please make sure you hold your flag properly,” said Mr Narish. He told all house captains to hold the flag in the same manner as Joshua Chew, whom he demonstrated the flag with.
Then, we were asked to march again for better synchronization. Mr Narish asked everyone to leave the hall before playing the marching music. We re-marched again, to more praises from the management. Mr Narish then asked all the dancers to cheer for us as we entered the school hall. Then, Ms Lim also praised us for singing loudly. Mr Narish then gave tips for Megan on how to stand and read the pledge. Afterwards, we marched out of the hall and Zi Quan told us to take a short five-minute break. I followed Zi Quan to the school hall.
Meanwhile, in the hall, Xin Yi then marched with the Slamdunk flag used for the marchpast. “This is my first time marching with a flag,” she said to Sherwin who looked on. Zi Quan met Ivyna and Vicky and Caleb Chuang. They talked about the proposed bandannas. I asked Vicky on the next arrangements. “Hold on, wait,” she said.
Ivyna and Vicky came over and gave us bandannas. Eu Lynn and Pei Chi had a large bag in which there were extra bandannas for the marchers. Then, we walked out to the courtyard. Zi Quan asked Benjamin Lew to call the marchers over. When everyone had arrived, Vicky then told everyone to take one bandanna and try to wear it. Some people fooled around with it, which made Zi Quan angry. He warned everyone that they need to pay for a new bandanna if it was lost, along with 200 push ups.
Once everyone was done trying out the bandannas, Vicky collected them, passed them to Ivyna and then they kept the. We did another round of practices. Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang checked us. Then, when the practice was over, Zi Quan gave a speech.
“You know, I am very proud of all of you marchers, but please stop fooling around; stop playing around. Okay? You guys have improved a lot; especially Zidez,” he said. Zidez Raja then smiled and took a bow.
Then, Caleb Chuang told everyone to come for Telematch Day the next day and wear the 2015 Sports Attire. He then told all marchers to hand the marching worksheets to him. Then, we were dismissed. I then asked Zi Quan if he was angry with me, and he said he wasn't happy with me coming over to him to ask some questions and chat with him. Before he took the chance to roar and bloat his temper, Caleb Chuang told me to give Zi Quan some space to recover as he was still not in a good mood. Then, I met Vicky and asked her about my telematch placement. “I will let you know tomorrow,” she said. I groaned.
The next day, 29th March was Telematch Day. My after school Bible Knowledge class was cancelled for the day. Aside from the telematch events, the day also includes Tug of War which will be played at the PE field.
On that morning, everyone arrived at school at the usual time, which was 7:45am. We all wore our 2015 Sports Day attire for the telematch competition. Upon arriving, I went to meet all my friends as well as my juniors to discuss the coordinated strategies for telematch. I met Caleb Chuang and then told him of the plans, which he agreed. I also asked him, if possible, to let Vicky and Dylan know my intention to go for the telematch competition as it appeared that they are still in the dark over whether to put me in.
The telematch competition was the last possible chance in which Bullseye can ebb a Slamdunk second-place lead. If Bullseye is able to win the telematch competition, we would be able to go up close to overtaking Slamdunk and possibly edge up towards Touchdown. Then, we would be in good position on Sports Day, and all that was needed was to win all the athletics events to secure victory for Bullseye. Should this plan happen, the difference in points between Bullseye and Touchdown would be the same as Bullseye and Slamdunk. Winning all the athletics events would put Bullseye in a close margin with Touchdown, the leading house, and we would be within a 20-point margin of overtaking Touchdown. And a victory of Bullseye in dance, march and banner would put us over the top. And we could win dance and our athletics people are in full swing. We have been performing well.
There was just one problem. There was no official Bullseye banner.
You see, each house had to carry their own sports house banner behind their march squad. Every house had their sports house banner on......except for Bullseye.
During the rehearsals in the previous two days, I had asked Vicky and Eu Lynn on the banner progress, but however, Vicky had told me to stop asking so many questions. I was worried if Bullseye had no banner, because it will ruin the victory strategy. Eu Lynn didn't say anything on the banner, too. And during the rehearsals, Eric Wong and Alex Chia only carried the sticks which held up the banner, but not the banner itself.
When Zi Quan arrived in the morning, I greeted him but he showed me his serious glare again. Then, I went to discuss with Vicky about the banner and the telematch. While Vicky told me not to worry about the banner, she still did not say anything about the telematch. That's strange.
Then, I met Caleb Chuang and told him about my plan to hang my own banner on the atrium of the courtyard so that all the telematch players could see it. He agreed. I also met Mr Narish to enquire on the Tug of War details, and I took them down in my Bullseye information book.
As the assembly begun, Ms Bee Yong announced that the 2017 Sports Attire would be handed out to us in the school hall by our class teachers. Our teachers handed out the Sports Attire to us, and Mr Kevin Wai passed the sports attire to me, who took them to my classmates based on the namelist. He improvised by asking everyone to pass the sports attire around. Some people even tried on the Sports Attire during the assembly. I saw some people put on their Sports Attire to have a look on it.
Ms Lim told us that we would need to put our bags in our classes and then come for the telematch to cheer. Ms Bee Yan informed all the telematch volunteers to come down after leaving our bags, for a meeting. As I was also involved as a telematch volunteer to arrange props, I had to come down quickly. Ms Bee Yan also asked us to inform our class teachers before we came down. So, I informed Mr Kevin Wai after putting my bags, but before I headed down to the hall for the briefing, I hung my Bullseye banner on the railing from balcony which is close to the management office so that all the telematch players from Bullseye can see it. Then, I took my homemade Bullseye hat, put it on, and then went to meet Cikgu Baliah. I plan to put on the hat for the whole day.
After meeting with my telematch group leader, Cikgu Baliah, I greeted her and she asked why was I a bit late, and I told her of the banner installation. I was placed in the same group as Yi Zhen and three others from other houses. Each group of telematch helpers had to come from all four houses to form a group of four which will be in charge of the respective games.
Apart from me being from Bullseye, Yi Zhen represented Homerun, while the two others, Touchdown and Slamdunk, were represented by Hazel Genji and Charmaine Ho. We were in charge of Year 7’s first and second games. There were around 10 to 20 people per game depending on the game type.
“What type of hat is that?” asked Yi Zhen, pointing to the Bullseye hat. “Did you base it on Donald Trump?” I explained to all the group members what it was. Charmaine and Hazel even asked how I came up with the design for the Bullseye hat.
For the first game, the players had to wear a sarong, run to a container filled with water, use a spoon to scoop the water up and pour it into the bottle. The winner of this game will be the house with the highest water level.
Whereas, for the second game, the players need to wear a cardboard holder, put a ball inside, and drop the ball into a container without taking the ball out of it. The house that had the most balls in the container would be the winner.
As people begun coming down for the telematch competition, I made sure I had four things; my pencil case, calculator, megaphone and Bullseye information book. Then, Cikgu Baliah briefed me, Yi Zhen, Charmaine and Hazel about when to set up the games. We were told to begin setting up after all the Year 7s had come into line.
Soon, everyone came down to the school courtyard. A huge crowd gathered on the top two levels of the school, watching the large action below. All telematch players had to gather in the hall for a briefing. Behind the school hall, Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia got out the tug of war rope and had to haul it. The rope was rough and heavy. They tugged on it many times and even Mr Neoh had to assist them. It was that heavy.
Ms Bee Yan then opened a slideshow in the hall to demonstrate each and every game moves per year level. She explained about the rules of the telematch game. However, Ms Lim had to keep on scolding people for talking. “I still see people talking, ya. Please. Otherwise I will minus marks from your house,” she said. Ms Bee Yan told telematch helpers to guide the telematch players as well and also set up the game. Then, she told everyone that they must be punctual for their telematch games. Mr Narish then told all Tug of War players to gather at the foyer and proceed to the PE field.
Then, all telematch players from Year 7 were told to proceed to the courtyard immediately. Cikgu Baliah then gave all four of us a piece of paper detailing the game. We had to explain it to the Year 7s on how to play them.
When everyone arrived at the courtyard, Ms Bee Yan asked to meet all the telematch captains. I went up to Dylan and asked him about my telematch status. He told me not to worry as he will settle my registration soon. Vicky, on the other hand, had a gloomy view.
The Year 7 students participating in the telematch were told to line up. Then, Ms Bee Yan told them the rules of the telematch game. Yi Zhen and Charmaine demonstrated how the game was played. Hazel and I, meanwhile, set up the equipment on the courtyard. Ms Bee Yong, Mr Neoh, Ms Kay, Ms Sim and Ms Bee Yan were some of the teachers checking us and guiding us.
The game soon started. I cheered frantically. Many of the Year 7 students were so excited to see me, as I was not only involved in cheering for them,but also planning the game for them. So before the game started I cried, “Come on guys, let's go! Come on, Bullseye! Come on! Let's go!” I cried. Then afterwards, the game started. Students took the sarong and wore it very quickly. Hold on a second. Bullseye was not catching up but then it did. The students started running for the container and scooped up the water. Then Bullseye continued leading in the telematch, but then, sooner or later, one of the students playing the telematch was too slow and then Touchdown overtook them. Then, afterwards, it seemed that Bullseye was already starting to overtake once again. What was most important was the amount of water in the bottle and the act being completed in the fastest time.
I peered at the large plastic bottle. The water in Bullseye's container was full. Then, the game ended. Bullseye was the first to finish, and I screamed. The teachers checked the whole thing, and the four of us telematch helpers were asked to check the game. Then, it was determined that Bullseye won the Game 1. I screamed and shouted crazily.
Then, Yi Zhen and I cleared the courtyard to arrange the facilities for the second game. I had a boost of confidence. I hoped we could win the second one. If all things went according to plan, Slamdunk would be denied of their chance of the champion house trophy. We must win the telematch, tug of war, and the athletics events on Sports Day. It will allow us to overtake Slamdunk. Winning the dance and getting good marks, preferably a second for banner and march, would allow us to reach first place for Bullseye, and a potential fourth Sports Day victory will be added, capping off my final year in Nobel.
“Okay! Year 7s! Are you ready?!” cried Ms Bee Yan. She explained the second game to the Year 7s, and this time, Hazel and I demonstrated the game. Then, Ms Bee Yan blew the whistle and the game begun.
Bullseye was slow. “Come on!” I cried. Then, we were reaching second place. The Bullseye players weren't as fast this time. “Come on, Bullseye, let's go!” I screamed again. I was shouting “Come on!” at the top of my lungs. It didn't work. Some of Bullseye's balls fell out. Slamdunk eventually won Year 7's Game 2. I groaned. We were told to keep the telematch equipment for the Year 7s. Cikgu Baliah thanked all of us and the four of us had a chat.
The Year 8s soon got ready for their first game. This game involved carrying a basketball while hopping on one foot. The toss was 10m in distance.
I cheered once again. I screamed and shouted. Bullseye was leading. We were on the verge of winning again. And after tons of disgusting moves, we won! I screamed!
The second game for the Year 8s soon begun. It involved sticking a tissue on a nose, picking up some candy balls and then tossing them into a container. It looked disgusting. This time, we must win the second game. Two consecutive victories will bring us closer to a Bullseye win. I cheered, screamed and shouted. I kept on running around and cheering. Despite the best efforts, the Bullseye people faltered, resulting in our biggest arch-enemy, Touchdown, winning the second game.
As the telematch went into intermission, I went down to meet Jordan Tay. “Jordan! Please cheer, scream and shout like mad, or else we will lose! Please! Please! We need you! Bullseye needs you!” I cried.
Jordan showed his sly look. He was sitting on the bottom support of one of the basketball hoops. Then, I met Caleb Chuang and told him about the two Bullseye victories. We were leading. Oh yeah! We are going to win soon! I had hopes! My plan was somewhat working to a certain extent. We need to win two games at once for Year 9.
The Year 9 telematch players were interesting. Samuel Lee was one of them. He was muscular and ready to go. Samuel was also part of our marchpast squad. Then, Nicholas Tee and Dylan Wong were there too. They were part of the march team too.
Nicholas Liang waved at me enthusiastically and I told him to make sure we notch a victory for Bullseye. He nodded and gave the peace symbol. Soon, Ting Yi joined Jordan for a chat. “Ting Yi, please cheer! Make Bullseye win again!” I cried.
Soon, the game started. Ting Yi and I screeched at our most annoying tones. The Bullseye members, fired up by our screeches, ran and acted the activities like mad. This game involved crawling on the floor with a series of toys, which was easy. And how mad those people crawled! I then went to the other side of the courtyard, watched and cheered with Caleb Chuang. Oh yes! We won again! I screamed so loudly till Kelsey was annoyed.
Game 2 soon arrived. This time, it was a pass-the-ball game. There were groups of 20 players from each house. Each team member wore a headband with a plastic cup in it, and they had to pass a ball in the quickest time possible. When the go-to action to start was given, everyone started passing quickly. Bullseye kept dropping its ball so many times. And Touchdown won again. Aiyoo!!!!!! I put my hands on my head and groaned.
Soon, the Year 10s were involved to play their Game 1. This game involved crossing the courtyard on bricks. It mimicked a game where one had to cross a river using stones like this. I remember reading this in a fantasy book when I was young. It was so difficult, and Touchdown won. Oh dear. There were three victories by both Bullseye and Touchdown so far. We must win the fourth.
As the games progressed, I kept on screaming and cheering for the Bullseye members and taking points down and walking around the courtyard to sense some action. I also kept asking Vicky and Dylan to confirm to me if I was in or not, since they had a difficult decision finding new people, and that I had registered for telematch with Jordan and Dylan in the first place.
The second game for the Year 10s soon started. It was easy; one would need to use a stick to push balls around cones. And the Bullseye members were skilled. I ran quickly. I cheered. And we won! Hip hip hooray! We won four games in total! I was screaming with my megaphone out loud. Then, Jordan, Ting Yi, Daniel and Rick were asked to get off from the basketball post by Ms Joyce as it was impeding the operations of the telematch.
Then, the Year 11 students were told to line up. We were on course for our first game. It is crucial that we win a Bullseye win here. A Bullseye victory in the Year 11 games would cap off our final telematch game ever.
I then stood next to Vicky, who was standing next to Ivyna for the start of the telematch. All the Year 11s lined up.
“Vicky, what about my telematch placing?” she asked. Vicky told me that I will be a substitute. She just told me to wait till she called me.
“Year 11s! This is your last ever telematch game!” Ms Sim cried. “Let’s give a big round applause to our Year 11s for their last telematch game!”
Ms Sim asked if all the Year 11s were ready, as I stood at the opposite end of the courtyard and cheered. “Come on Year 11s, let’s do this!” I cried.
Then, Vicky called me to come over. She told me that Caleb Chuang and I will be playing the first game in pairs for Year 11, while Koo Shi Tian from Year 10 was allowed to play the second game despite being in Year 10. She also played in the telematch for a different year level the previous year. We had to carry a hula hoop by using both of our bodies to hold it together for the first game, and toss it to Sean Mark, who was using his body to catch the hoops. Sean Mark, who is one of the catchers, can jump or use his hands to catch the hoops but must not exit a stationery hula hoop that was pre-placed.
The game soon started, and I cheered on people from behind. Vicky told me not to cheer loudly. “But we'll lose!” I cried. Caleb Chuang patted me and told me to chill. Everyone had to concentrate on the game.
“Come on, Bullseye!” I cried. Zi Quan got really frustrated. He asked me to calm down, and Eu Lynn asked me to chill.
The moment Caleb Chuang and I used our body to hold the hula hoop, the whole courtyard cheered me and Caleb Chuang’s name. However, we missed Sean Mark, and he groaned. Then, we went to the back of the telematch queue and sat down. We cheered everyone on. Once all was done the judges counted the number of hula hoops caught by each catcher. Homerun won. “Aargh!” I cried.
For the second game, the players had to balance two balls using a plate while wearing sarong, and everyone took turns balancing it. I cheered everyone as they balanced their ball. Benjamin Tenji, Ting Yi and Eu Lynn carried the plate with balls like French waiters. It looked so romantic, but, oh, well, Slamdunk won. No Bullseye victory occurred in the Year 11 games, but Bullseye won at least one game in all the other games.
At the end of the day, Bullseye won the most points. I sighed in relief for a short moment. We then went for the prize giving ceremony in the school hall. Ms Lim told everyone to settle down. Then, Mr Narish came onto the stage. He then announced the results, but just as he was about to start, Ms Lim got angry at people who were not settled down quickly. “I said keep quiet. Why are you all still talking? Later you will have your practice, ya. So, please. When people are talking, keep quiet.”
Then, Mr Narish presented the scores. For both the boys and girls’ Tug of War categories, Homerun won the Tug of War, followed by Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk. They were awarded 20, 15, 10 and 5 points respectively for each gender category. I cheered as the Bullseye members received their silver medals from Ms Bee Yong. Then, Mr Narish announced that Bullseye was the champion of the telematch, and we all cheered. I screamed the loudest. This was then followed by Homerun, Touchdown and Slamdunk.
“Alright, students, we are going to go for our lunch. KS3 students, you may go for your lunch first. Year 10 and 11, you may go back to class. All captains and assistant captains, please stay back,” said Mr Narish. He then informed everyone that following the lunch breaks, we will be doing our house practices and then we will also have another dress rehearsal at 3:00pm before we headed home. Those who were not involved in the march and dance were told to return to their classes.
I then returned to the class and kept my stuff. Then, Mr Kevin Wai came in and then briefed us on our newspaper collection. He said only ten people had collected the newspapers and he expects jus to hand the newspapers to him after Sports Day, as the deadline was extended to Thursday, 6th April 2017. He then took our attendance and then let us do our own things. I then took the time to compile the control book housekeeping issues.
On the way down to the canteen, Caleb Chuang and I had a chat. Then, Caleb Chuang told Benjamin Lew that he would be in charge of getting the marchers settled and that they can begin their practices thereafter without me, Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan, who were having lunch. The two of us went for lunch with Zi Quan. Caleb Chuang told Benjamin Lew to do so as the three of us were eating late. Benjamin Lew had somehow finished early lunch.
When Zi Quan and I had lunch with Caleb Chuang, he was not in a good mood. He just sat down in a gloomy mood. I only just chat with Caleb Chuang himself. He told me that we will begin the marchpast practices after our lunch break. In fact, he targets us to be completely settled by 2:00pm and we can officially begin thereafter. While the morning was an exciting affair, the second half of the day was gloomy.
At 2:00pm, Benjamin Lew had finished a short drill with the marchers. Caleb Chuang, Zi Quan and I went to meet him. Zi Quan said that only a 10-minute break would be allowed. In the meantime, I went to the lower canteen to see Bullseye's banner.
That afternoon, the Bullseye members were painting their banner in the lower canteen. A lot of used DVD Roms were used to create one of the sparkling words. The Bullseye banner had a large phoenix on it. A lot of red, orange and yellow were put on the banner, which sparkled like glitter. I felt so confident. We were going to win. I then went to observe the banner and gave good compliments to Eu Lynn and Benjamin Tenji. Eu Lynn told me not to disturb them.
The title of Bullseye's banner was ‘Bullseye: Win the War, Honor Above All’. It looked cool. Honestly speaking, some of my plans, which Vicky shunned upon, were slowly being implemented. The dance looked cool as well, but the banner was awesome. Since we had bagged a lot of points in the telematch competition, and that our banner and dance were bound to get good scores, all that was needed to shore up the marchpast. For this, I decided to step back and cooperate with Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang to achieve the victory.
We then went to the courtyard and did our drills. Joseph Diong saw us and told us marchers not to step out of line. “I am very strict with my marchers,” he said. He had ordered San Ying to give tons of pushups to the Homerunners. Zi Quan pledged to be strict with Bullseye. For this, I support. We need to at least bring Bullseye's marchpast stature up. If Bullseye can do well in the marchpast, we can win Sports Day.
At 2:30pm, Mr Narish called everyone for a rehearsal for the day. So, everyone had to gather at the school hall once again and line up outside the corridors for our marchpast rehearsal.
“Guys, look in front. Stop scratching,” said Zi Quan.
“Marchers! Remember! Hands firm!” cried Vicky.
Caleb Chuang then also told everyone to look at the judges and smile with pride. Then, the marching music begun and everyone marched into the hall. Joshua, Aaron Loke and Yi Zhen were standing with their flags and the all marchers were crying ‘left, right, left’ so loudly to the astonishment and shock of the dancers. Then, the Negaraku was played. We all sung, and the Sports Pledge was being recited by Megan Lee. Then, Mr Narish gave good comments and then we marched out.
Caleb Chuang, Vicky and Zi Quan were needed by Mr Narish. He wanted to brief the three of them. So, as such, Benjamin Lew controlled the marchpast and did the commands on his behalf. Zi Quan was training Benjamin Lew to be the successor of the marchpast team.
Then, we could see San Ying giving the Homerun team ten pushups. After our practices ended, Zi Quan told us that we can wear any attire as we pleased, be it the PE attire, the 2016 Sports Day attire, as well as those from 2014 and 2013, since we were bound to get the 2015 one washed. Then, Mr Narish called all the marchers and dancers to the school hall. He outlined the day's events, saying that from 8:00am to 10:20am, there will be a Dance Rehearsal for the dancers, including those performing in the combined dance. Marchers would come down at 8:40am. “And as for Sports Day, please be there by 1:30pm,” said Mr Narish, asking us to be there by then if our parents were driving us to Panasonic Stadium. Then, once the briefing was done, we were dismissed and Zi Quan met all of us marchers. He told us to come down by 8:40am or else he would give push ups. Then, he dismissed us and gave some motivation.
Then, before I left, I spoke to Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan. While Caleb Chuang was able to entertain me, Zi Quan scuffed with an angry attitude. “What do you want?” he asked. Caleb Chuang confirmed to me that no Bible Knowledge class would occur that afternoon. I was thinking that because Bible Knowledge occurs after school, it was exempted from the morning's Sports Day activities. Then, I thanked Vicky for giving me the chance to be in the telematch. She was silent. I bid goodbye to Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan and then went up to 11N to keep the control book and the Smartboard tools before going home.
30th March, the eve of Sports Day, would see a series of rehearsals and everyone would not be allowed to stay back after school in order to rest for the Sports Day the next day, 31st March. The aim by Mr Narish on prohibiting after school practices was to ensure that everyone had great spirit for the grand Sports Day events.
During Reading Time that morning, Mr Kevin Wai asked for newspaper collection and then some people gave him the newspapers. Then, at 8:00am, all dancers went down early. Ms Sharon then came in for Economics and did some questions with us. She told me to complete all the worksheets she had passed to me while I was away. She had five worksheets and two textbook questions for me to do. And Ms Cynthia continued to explain about Wawasan 2020 and talked about a long history of it. She told us to search it up on the Internet. Then, at 10:00am, I went down to the courtyard, and Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan were present. This time, I found out that Sheng Jit was also involved in the dance practices. So, I decided to push all control book necessities to the end of the day. We had to take a ‘short break’ to solve the problem.
Zi Quan and I had breakfast with Ivyna, Caleb Chuang and the dancers. Then, at 10:30am, Zi Quan and Benjamin Lew trained us for the march. Benjamin Lew did the commanding while Zi Quan checked and he took over thereafter. At the back of the courtyard, all the captains were fitting their flags and banners onto the poles. Bullseye's was on display. I thought that we had finished. I would come to learn that we had not.
Zi Quan begun the day by doing warm up exercises for all the marchers in same typical PE fashion, which was actually my idea. “Bend and touch your toes. One, two, three,” he said. Then, he did some stretching with us. “Stretch properly,” he said. Kai Yang and Jian Yang were also groaning as they stretched. Then, Zi Quan asked us to bend backwards and then flip our arms forward. He then gathered us and drilled us on the commands before asking Benjamin Lew to take over as he went to mingle with his “Slamdunk son”, Chew Jared. He had mingled with his “Slamdunk son” many times before, and the nickname is given to him, a Year 7 marcher from Slamdunk. Zi Quan spent countless times treating Jared nicely while he blew his fierce looks at his own marchers. He even pledged that he will “treat his Slamdunk son nicely if he was in [Bullseye]”.
Many of the people in our marchpast squad said that Zi Quan is crying and we should make him proud. We were told that regardless of whether we failed, Zi Quan will cry. So the best was to make him proud. The weather was fortunately cloudy that morning, making it a perfect experience to train.
Then, Mr Narish announced that the rehearsal will begin at 11:00am and asked us to gather at the school hall by then. And the same process would play out over again. Rehearsals are the last thing I look forward to, as I feel sidelined with my friends from Year 11 scolding me, and most of them are leading the marchpast contingent. Seeing Desmond Chan and Nickolas Nashpal being ordinary marchers from Year 11, I felt sad being in the same position as them despite marching since Year 7, and that Zi Quan had less marching experience than me and Caleb Chuang.
Zi Quan then trained us for a short while. He was trying to keep cool and calm as much as possible, as I can feel the both of us trying to avoid conflict. When he went for dance practice, Benjamin Lew took over the commanding. Soon, the Year 7s, 8s and 9s went for their break while the rest of us waited for them. While waiting, Zi Quan went to the school hall and I followed him to watch the dance. He did not see eye to eye with me.
Zi Quan was always cold and serious when I approached him. I dare not make him angry, as the worst I would have is a quarrel and shouting match with him. However, I tried to make the best out of a bad situation and was planning for a Sports Day which I would execute my plan in the next year, 2018 and break the norm of ex students not participating in Nobel events. After all, there would only be two more days and we are done with this and then I’ll get over it.
Being an ex student and returning for Sports Day is far-fetched. No one had done it before. I could not change what was fated in Sports Day, since I wasn't chosen to lead. I was prepared for Bullseye to lose. However, I told myself that I will sacrifice a few months of so on going to college and try to most likely have my moments again if Bullseye lost. If Bullseye won, then it would be good as all my effort of standing back had paid off.
I also felt that even though my friends were not happy with me and so on, I decided to give in and toe the line set by Vicky. After all, I felt that a small sacrifice would be worth it if Bullseye miraculously wins the Sports Day, as me not rocking the boat would contribute to a victory since following Vicky’s direction would mean that we would be united and that there would be no obstacles. And that’s what I told myself before giving in to Vicky and Zi Quan.
Since most of all the Pre Sports Events, Telematch and Tug of War were done, I felt that giving in to Zi Quan and cooperating with him would land us a higher chance of victory in the marchpast. And our arguments, fortunately, do not revolve on the marchpast. In fact, I never argued with him on the marchpast. I only was fed up of him screaming and shouting like mad at me without any reason. And all these happened outside of marchpast practices.
The marchpast rehearsal was initially planned to be done before break time, but time was needed to be given to the dancers to hone their moves, and hence, the official rehearsal was delayed to 11:00am. Soon, at 11:00am, Mr Narish asked all marchers and their captains to gather on the corridors to make their entrance into the school hall.
Zi Quan gathered everyone once again. Some people were talking, to which Zi Quan asked not to. Then, Mr Narish walked outside the hall. “We are starting soon. We are starting soon. Please pay attention,” he warned.
The music begun and each house's contingent made their way into the school hall. We then marched with pride and shouted ‘Left, Right, Left’. Zidez Raja had the loudest voice. Then, the formalities of the ceremony begun, and Mr Narish praised us for being at our best.
After marching out of the hall, Vicky then came to us and told Zi Quan and Caleb Chuang about the red bandannas. Then, she told all of us that we would get red bandannas at the end of the day to try them out.
We then continued our practices and Zi Quan told us to practice standing still for 30 minutes. Fortunately, since I do gardening most often, I could bear it as I am out in the hot sun as a young boy. Then, all the juniors were left for lunch. Benjamin Lew, Zi Quan and I went to the hall. I had a chat with Benjamin Lew while Zi Quan went to look at the dance. Mr Narish then called all captains for a briefing. This time, Zi Quan did not shout me down as Benjamin Lew was also listening to Mr Narish brief the house captains and their committee members. I then went back to class and saw Cikgu Niely and the whole class watching the Sports Day Rehearsals. They did nothing for the day.
Then, it was the Year 10 and 11s’ turn to have their lunch. Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark had lunch together. Then, I met Bullseye's athletes. I met Ivyna, Eu Lynn, Ethan Chan, Nicholas Liang and many of the other very prominent ones. Then, I gave them motivation. They were okay and ready to go.
They said they were at their best. I felt a big boost. We can win the athletics events. And when we had the marchpast, dance and banner settled, which I believe we can get first or second, we will be able to win the Sports Day. A first place win for Bullseye is on the horizon. However, many of my friends in Bullseye had struck the theory down.
Mr Narish then called all the marchers and dancers for a briefing. He told us that we will start our rehearsal at 2:00pm and then another one at 3:00pm. Then, he said that the Sports Day 2017 would begin at 3:00pm and told us that we will have another rehearsal the next day, which was Sports Day itself. He then gave us 15 minutes to make adjustments before we started.
Zi Quan then trained us on the basic moves. Then, each house captain affixed their flags and banners. All march captains trained their marchers. Then, it was time to start the rehearsal.
All of us gathered once again at the corridor, but some people requested to use the toilet. Zi Quan had to call all the marchers from the toilet. The only people waiting at the corridor for them were me, Caleb Chuang, Benjamin Lew, Sean Mark and Vicky. Zi Quan ordered them to do ten push ups before starting. Then, the music started, and Ms Bee Yong, who was outside coordinating, told all the Bullseye people to hurry up.
When we marched into the hall, everyone was in good spirits no thanks to the music being played in the hall as well as the air conditioning. Then, the formalities went without issue, except for Megan Lee's microphone malfunctioning, which was quickly fixed. After the rehearsal ended, Mr Narish then informed all flag bearers to meet him for a briefing.
Zi Quan then trained us again on the drills. Some people asked if I could command, since I was the other Year 11 among the mix. He ignored them. I didn't want to command as I stood back to give a chance for us to win march. Zi Quan warned everyone to perform well for him on Sports Day and threatened the push ups if Bullseye lost. However he had a caveat: If Bullseye won, he will order fried chicken from KFC for us. Many people like KFC, but not me. I was allergic to it.
Then, the next rehearsal came at 3:00pm, and things went well. Zi Quan said that everyone on the second attempt that afternoon was well-executed. He then told all of us to meet at the stadium the next day at 1:30pm, and if even one person was late, everyone would have to do 50 push ups.
As promised, at the end of the day, Caleb, Ivyna and Vicky came with red bandannas bought by the committee to try out. Caleb told all of us marchers to wear it on Sports Day when we march. Then, Vicky and Ivyna collected the bandannas and then kept them. They told us to retrieve it from Caleb Chuang the next day. After things were settled, I collected the control book and Smartboard tools and got the teachers to sign the book before keeping it in the pigeon hole.
All practices were banned after 3:30pm. CCA was cancelled. Everyone had to leave as the school entered shutdown mode. A note on the Sports Day Information Board said, “No practice – Rest up!”
Sports Day finally arrived after a long wait which seemed like forever. On the morning of Sports Day, I had a very unhappy feeling of having to deal with Zi Quan and Vicky’s impatient grouses which seemed like eternity. I only just wished for the ordeal to end because of that, as once Sports Day is over, I would not have had to deal with their annoying rants.
I felt that my proposals were not duely accepted by them, because as Year 11s, we should be leading Sports Day. We should be having equal dialogue and collaboration but however, Vicky appears to asking everyone to follow her style. This had been the case for my GP project as well as Leadership Camp and also during our CT time when she was leading our CT group.
Zi Quan had asked all the Bullseye marchers to be at the stadium by 1:30pm on Sports Day even though Mr Narish said that all the marchers should be there by 2pm. Zi Quan wanted to have an additional 30 minutes to get everyone up in shape and train. Mr Narish had also briefed us that we would be having a final full dress rehearsal at 2:30pm which would take around 45 minutes and then the rehearsal would end and we will prepare for the actual opening ceremony. He also threatened that latecomers would be given push ups as punishment.
As my aunt had to pick up my sister from school, she was running a bit late, and I was not having a good conversation with her, since Zi Quan had laid a hectic schedule for us. However, I managed to reach the stadium on time after having a grumpy mood. I greeted Zi Quan as I met him, and he said we will be waiting for the other marchers to arrive. He told us that we will start a bit later.
I brought a large Bullseye flag which I made out of plastic bags. I also brought the homemade Bullseye banner with the stylized flag and all the cheer slogans from the past four Sports Days and wore my very own DIY Bullseye hat. It looked so cool till Nicholas Liang, Zher Xian and Hua Onn took a good look at it. I put the props at the Bullseye seating area and then hung my banner on the railings.
We then begun at 1:45pm and Zi Quan briefed all of us that we will be doing our own practice for a short while before going to the full rehearsal. He also showed us the marching directions which we would take when going the center of the stadium. “I don’t want to see anyone scratching, wiping your sweat or doing anything funny when marching.”
Zi Quan then begun the drills for a short while and then we lined up in the tunnel of the stadium to get ready for the final rehearsal before the opening ceremony begins. He then continued barking out commands for us to follow. Then, Vicky and Caleb came and briefed us on what we should be doing.
“Marchers, please follow instructions! When marching out, don’t scratch, and just follow instructions!” cried Vicky.
Caleb told us that we will be marching sooner and asked us to remain focused. Then, Mr Narish asked us to head to the tracks where we will assemble.
“Guys, please move, quickly,” Zi Quan said. So we moved to the field and begun our march.
So, we got onto the field, and then we waited for the marchpast to begin. The entire rehearsal went smoothly without incident, and Mr Narish told us to be on standby at 3:50pm for the 4:00pm start of Sports Day.
Mr Andrew stood by the side and gave signals for the marchers to move. We marched confidently. “Left, left, left right left!” we cried. All the Bullseye people cheered us. Mr Narish asked all the spectators to cheer. Then, Mr Narish then gave information on the microphones and how to handle them.
During the marchpast, I could see the Bullseye banner that I put up. I think that some people also felt weird seeing it. But it looked cool, because Bullseye had TWO big flags and TWO banners. We bested all the other three houses.
As the dancers took to their rehearsal, Vicky told all of us marchers to wait while she gave us new bandannas for us to put on during the marchpast. “Marchers, please listen up! Wear these bandannas during the march past! Okay? Get some rest first!”
Caleb, Zi Quan, Vicky, Eu Lynn and Ivyna were talking and as the rest of the marchers went back to the stands, I waited for them to finish their discussion so that I can talk to Vicky and Zi Quan. When I wanted to talk to Vicky, Vicky asked me to go back to the stands first. Then, I approached Zi Quan, Caleb and Ivyna who were still talking. I waited for them to finish talking. Then, Caleb left and I begun to speak to Zi Quan as I gathered my confidence.
“Zi Quan, is it okay if I talk to…”
“Why are you still here?” he asked.
“Zi Quan, I would like to tell you something….” I muffled.
Zi Quan showed his cross face as much as a chief police inspector would against a criminal. “I said, go back! Do you understand?!”
I tried to explain that I wanted to make peace with him as a friend, but then, he boomed, “Just go back already, okay? Show some respect!”
“You show some respect first!” I cried. That was when I lost it after a week of holding my breath.
The two of us engaged in a shouting match and quarreled like two neighbors arguing over petty issues. Ivyna was in the middle, standing helplessly as the both of us traded barbs. Ms Paulina, who was on the opposite side of the tunnel, came and broke our argument up. “Calm down, both of you,” she said. “Relax”. She didn't get angry at us as she knew we were civilized.
After I went to my seat and watched the dance rehearsal, Sean Mark approached me and asked me to help out by leading the cheer, since I can scream very loudly. I nodded and said, “Can, no problem”. He told me he would be putting me as the cheerleader. Joshua Chew was the cheerleader of Slamdunk. Touchdown's cheerleader was Shaun Ting, and Homerun's was Timothy Hiew.
Then, we gathered in the tunnel and waited while Vicky applied lipstick on our hands to make a bow and arrow, and used water color as make up for us. The other Bullseye members who were helping out tied our bandannas for us. Then, Mr Andrew approached all the houses and asked us to run onto the field and line up in order, starting with Homerun, Bullseye, Touchdown and Slamdunk.
Mr Narish then approached all the marchers while walking on the inner track of the field. “Come on, guys. All the best,” he said.
Samuel Lee and Zidez Raja called on everyone to do well and “make Zi Quan cry”, meaning to make Zi Quan proud of us for the marchpast. Zi Quan acknowledged with a word of thanks and requested for us to be silent as the opening ceremony begun. The judges begun judging the marchpast the moment the music for the marchpast started playing.
The ceremony opened with Mr Steve and Ms Sarah emceeing the Sports Day. Then, the torch run begun, with Joseph Diong, Homerun’s captain leading. Then, he passed the torch to Sean Mark, then to Lim Wences and finally to Brendan Cheah, who handed the torch to Mr Tan Seng Kee, Nobel’s director, to light the cauldron. Mr Tan was flanked by Ms Sim and Mr Chan to officiate the opening of Sports Day 2017.
Once the Sports Day was officially opened, the four house captains ran back to their marching lines, and they were passed their house flags from their assistant house captains who were holding them. The combined dance soon begun as Mr Andrew gave the heads up to all the marchers.
The captains then marched forward, followed by us. As usual, Joshua Chew, Aaron Loke and Yi Zhen led the contingent, with the rest of following them. Then, we marched to the center of the field as the music played. We then saluted and I can see my aunt and sister. Then the Negaraku played, followed by the school song and Megan Lee leading the Sports Pledge. After we marched back, I breathed a sigh of relief as all the marchpast agenda is done. Then, we headed back to the seats to enjoy the show.
A contingent of dancers from all four houses performed to everyone’s satisfaction. Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan sat with the rest of the marchers at the back of the stands while I took out my pencil case, calculator and Bullseye information book to do the calculations. This is then followed by the cheer belted by all dancers, and everyone had to follow along and cheer. When I cheered, I cheered the loudest. Then, I said, “Who's gonna win this year?” and all the Bullseye members chanted Bullseye's name. The Homerun dance was the first to dance, followed by Bullseye, then Touchdown and then Slamdunk. Personally, I felt Bullseye's dance was already as good as yesteryear, and we were on track to catching a fourth dance competition victory for Bullseye. Victory would soon be on our side. The scoreboard was also installed, showing Bullseye at third place. I took the scores down and then calculated the scores when the athletics events started.
Afterwards, the battle begun for the series of gold medals and championship titles. I screamed with all my might as I led the house to scream the cheer. This begun with the 100m. Sean Mark led a stunning performance, followed by Areeya Amali, Ivyna Ong, Yap Dawn and Jade Lim. Soon, Nicholas Liang ran on the track. He sprinted like mad. I could see all the Bullseye members with fierce and pressurized faces, trying to make up for the third place win. Yi Zhen was also asked to participate in the 100m ‘for fun’ by the Homerun captains. They said that they did not have enough people.
Then, the 200m begun. I led the cheer. More pressurized faces soon followed. Ethan Chan had this one look. He and Sean Mark ran like mad with their faces looking like angry villains. They were pressing all their heart out to win the events. I screamed and cheered. Then, I had to take the large flag away from Zher Xian as he was annoying Casmie Tee with it. I then led the cheer and told Zher Xian that if he did his action to Casmie, we will lose points and I would feel quite angry.
Bullseye’s athletes won most of the competitions as I noticed the expressions of the runners trying to pump up Bullseye’s score. I felt relieved as we were starting to make progress in our points standing. Then, we were almost close to winning. All we needed to win was the dance competition and score a few points in march and banner to win the champion house trophy. Should the plans succeed, Bullseye will win a fourth year in power. I would, of course, feel relieved and satisfied of my sacrifices, and scream and cheer with Caleb Chuang. We would have had celebrated the victory of Bullseye, and ended our Year 11s and our time in Nobel on a high note. The points for Bullseye were screeching up like mad. Just a bit more of a push, and victory would soon follow.
I had brought that homemade flag on its own pole along with my banner to cheer for Bullseye, so that Bullseye would have two flags to motivate the runners. I screamed and cried till my throat ached. In fact, we would rival all the sports houses and all the Bullseye Sports Day extravaganza of the past.
Caleb Chuang then went to take some Revive drinks and provided them to the Bullseye members. I had a nostalgic feeling that Bullseye was on the verge of winning. With tens of thousands of wins by all the runners, it seems that Bullseye was slowly catching up to Slamdunk and Touchdown, ready to deny them any chance of victory. I screamed louder.
Then, it was the 300m, and Sean Mark was involved again. Him, along with Ethan Chan, Aaron Yong, Yap Dawn, Areeya Amali, Andrew Loke and Nicholas Liang were participating.
All runners were required to register at a tent located at the start of the 100m stretch of the track that passes in front of the stands. Then, they were brought to their respective start points by Mr Narish, Mr Victor and Mr Neoh located along the track. In fact, all runners were required to register. Whoever who didn't were disqualified, and this cost points for Bullseye.
The 300m runners started running. They then sprinted like mad. The 300m runners started on a bend, and Bullseye was in last position. This time, it was Sean Mark and Lim Wences competing. They sprinted like mad. Then, Sean Mark overtook everyone and sprinted like mad.
“Come on, come on, yes, yes, yes....YEAH! WE WON!” I cried. Zi Quan then told me not to scream so loud as he had headaches. Afterwards, Andrew Loke was involved, followed by Nicholas Liang. Both of them won their competitions. I shouted and shrieked like a mad guy. I told everyone to say the Bullseye cheer, but Zi Quan frantically yelled at everyone to stop as they shrieked the cheer.
Then, the next batch was involved. It was the Class 1 girls’ turn. Ivyna was on the track. She sprinted. Oh, wait, she sprinted. There she goes, there she went, and YEAH! WE WON AGAIN!
And then the next batch. Class 2 girls were running. This time, Alysha Yuen was leading. She won once again, to more cheers and shrieks from me. Even Lyn Wen was shocked.
The Class 3 girls then ran and I screamed and shouted till Areeya Amali won the event.
After the 300m runners were finished, I told Caleb Chuang about where we were. Then, the teachers were changing the scoreboard. Bullseye was edging closer to Slamdunk. Closer and closer. There was a prize-giving ceremony for the 100m, 200m and 300m. Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan went with some of the marchers to buy drinks again. I told Zher Xian that we may potentially edge Touchdown and win. He was so excited.
When Bullseye's athletes were receiving the awards, Sean Mark then asked me to lead the Bullseye cheer. I sat down, drank water, and exhausted my share. Some people gave me mineral water which I poured into my water bottle. I had finished drinking and my throat hurt.
The 4X100m race was about to begin. The runners from all four houses were asked to gather on the track where Mr Victor was. They were informed to proceed to the registration area.
There were three sets of 4X100m teams. The Class 1 Boys were represented by Ethan Chan, Sean Mark, Eric Wong and Dylan S. Gill. Nicholas Liang, Isaac Ng, Aaron Yong and Clement Soo formed the Class 2 team. Class 3 male runners were dominated by Andrew Loke, Edward Chang, Melvyn Lim and Darren Gill.
The Class 1 Girls consist of Ivyna Ong, Eu Lynn, Prudence Wong and Alysha Yuen. Class 2 representatives were Areeya Amali, Kristen Chew, Tan Ying She and Alyssa Kok. Amelia Collin, Lee En Yee, Ainsley Wong and Elissa Carmen formed the Class 3 team.
The 4X100m was the last chance for Bullseye to win the Sports Day. If we can bag every Bullseye victory in these events, we will be able to put a good show on Sports Day. In fact, this event would become very contentious.
The Class 1 runners were tasked to start. Because Dylan S. Gill was a bit slow, everyone else had to hurry up. Sean Mark was the last runner of the 4X100m leg, carrying the baton for the last leg. Eric Wong was the first, followed by Ethan Chan, Dylan S. Gill and Sean Mark. In fact, Sean Mark was hesitating to run quickly before Dylan S. Gill brought the baton over. He jogged a bit and Dylan S. Gill, who was too slow, caught up to him. Sean Mark sprinted and rushed. He eventually got second place.
The Class 2 male runners soon started. Isaac Ng and his team were very speedy. Aaron Yong was the first, followed by Isaac Ng, Nicholas Liang and Clement Soo. Clement did a really good job. He sprinted like mad and edged ahead a few millimeters of the Touchdown team.
Then it was the Class 3 male runners’ turn. The team soon started. Andrew Loke was the first. Then, he passed it to Melvyn Lim, followed by Darren Gill and Edward Chang. Sadly, Edward Chang failed to make the cut.
Afterwards, the Class 1 girls soon begun. Alysha Yuen was the first to start for Bullseye, followed by Prudence Wong, Eu Lynn and then Ivyna, who delivered a sprint so fast and furious till she made me scream so happy and shriek at my high-pitched tone, which was rare. Then, the Class 2 girls for Bullseye also won their event, while the Class 3 had to settle for silver. They came close to winning as I howled at the top of my lungs.
Then, it was the end of the show. All the students were asked to gather on the field. I told everyone to quickly sit down in order to get more house points. Instead, Homerun got more, followed by Bullseye, Slamdunk and Touchdown.
The whole school was eventually treated to a teachers’ run. It was a 6X100m relay. We got to see many of our teachers in the run. There were four houses competing, but this relay did not net points. The management team, which had their own Sports Attire in grey, was also invited to participate in the race. Mr Lee, Mr Simon, Mr Anthony, Ms Crystlyn, the Year 9 Science teacher, Ms Yong, Ms Renee, Ms Kay, Mr Loong, Cikgu Baliah, Ms Sha, Ms Yong Wai Yee, Ms Ajee, Mr Nick, Mr Andrew, Ms Kam, Ms Fadilah, Ms Charine, Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Janice, Mr Lim, Ms Ambiga, Mr Victor, Mr Narish, Mr Neoh, Ms Lim, Ms Sim and Ms Bee Yong were running. The race was won by the Management Team.
I tried to lead the cheer again but was asked twice by Vicky to sit down while the other Year 11s stood to motivate. Then, we took a group photo, which was captured by Han Ming.
We waited for the moment of truth as the results were announced one by one. The athletes received their awards, and Sean Mark and his sister, Laura Mark, got both sports boy and sports girl awards. Bullseye and Touchdown were neck and neck with many first and second place awards.
Zi Quan and most of the marchers sat behind while I sat in front with other Bullseye members, and talked to Areeya Amali. Caleb Chuang and all the Bullseye marchers behind dabbed. Bullseye got second and third for marchpast and banner. The winners of these two events were Homerun. The second-place winner for the banner competition was Touchdown.
Pei Chi, Ivyna and all the Bullseye committee members were in tears as they were told they got last for the dance competition, which was awarded to Slamdunk. Ms Lim tried to comfort them, emphasizing that maybe the next awards would give points to Bullseye. I tried to tell them that it’s okay, but Eu Lynn told me not to bother since they were too sad. I was wondering how Zi Quan would feel since Bullseye got second for marchpast as Homerun won a fifth consecutive year for march. The biggest shock of the night was the total tally for Sports Day. As the points were revealed from one digit to another, the scoreboard was revealed as Cikgu Izyani, Ms Sha and Ms Fadilah put the final numbers. Bullseye lost to Touchdown 648-649. Slamdunk came in third with 638 points, while Homerun trailed with 579 points. To this day it remains the closest score between two houses on a final Sports Day tally, as well as the closest Bullseye ever came to winning their fourth Sports Day title.
Touchdown ran their champion house run. I congratulated the Touchdowners with an open heart. I even congratulated Ryan Chok, who was from Touchdown. He had a happy look. “I know,” he said.
Aihhh…….there we went.
Zi Quan thanked all the marchers for their time and effort, and I stood next to Caleb Chuang as we contemplated the loss. Zi Quan said that no push ups would be given as everyone had given their best. His angry look soon faded into oblivion as he cried. In fact, he cried many times when training us for the marchpast. He then hugged Jared, his Slamdunk son. I then went home after meeting my friends as some of them praised me for a good effort.
Sean Mark addressed all of us on WhatsApp to apologize to all the Bullseye members and said it was his fault not being a good captain. He said that anything could have had changed the score of Sports Day 2017 as it was one point and told us to take it easy and not go too hard on it. Many of the marchers urged each other to come back stronger next year for me, Caleb and Zi Quan and make us cry. The marchers also acknowledged not to forget me as the focus was strongly on Caleb and Zi Quan. And Benjamin Lew said that the 648-649 scores will continue through to the next Sports Day and Nobel Cup, and urged everyone to work hard for 2018. Some of the Bullseye members demanded a re-match. Some ranted and complained about Touchdown's win. A lot of anger was directed on the WhatsApp group. The Sports Day was “too close to call”, just like the 2000 United States Presidential Election. Most importantly, they took time to acknowledge me as an equal, just like Caleb Chuang and Zi Quan.
I felt that I could have run 10km in the Founder's Run, or won 1st place for the 1500m. But however, I personally felt that Vicky and Zi Quan should have allowed me to propose my plans and ideas. I felt that I had the solution to the problem and could have had been that one point. And here was my take on this:
After the conclusion of the Cheer Competition, Bullseye’s standings dropped to third place. The house points and placings in order were Touchdown (587 points), Slamdunk (578 points), Bullseye (547 points) and Homerun (523 points). This was a cause of concern for Vicky and the committee. On the other hand, I was thinking about ways to get Bullseye’s points up. There were a few causes and concerns for this.
Zi Quan was affirmative in rejecting my plans for Sports Day. Each time when I chat with him, he said I should show some respect to the committee as I was fussing around on a wild goose chase. This is because I was trying to tell the committee my plans and suggestions, as I wanted Bullseye to increase to first place from third place. However, Zi Quan took the opportunity to scold and shout at me at every opportunity, be it during break, lunch or even before the morning assembly. I tried to play down the cold-hearted relations between me and Zi Quan when my mum asked me how he is doing. In fact, my mum asked me how was Zi Quan, concerned for him.
The committee was also a bit slow in reacting to my plans and proposals for Sports Day, in addition to them rejecting the proposals. One of the plans I had for the notice board competition was to design the Bullseye notice board complete with glitters and bright flashing lights on the word ‘Bullseye’ which was taken by Touchdown, who eventually won the notice board competition. Janelle Arnelia was in charge of the notice board for Bullseye, but however was too busy to care for it. I felt that some people who took Combined Science be put in charge of the notice board or other events if the pure science people were busy. Majority of the committee members for Bullseye, as well as other houses, were from 11O, 11B, 11E and 11L. Therefore, it sounded unfair as there were no individuals from 11N involved in the committee work, except for Ivyna Ong, who is the dance captain for Bullseye, and Tan Lyn Wen, who was part of Slamdunk’s Notice Board team.
Apparently before Sports Day 2017, I had did my calculations for the score and then took the opportunity to speak to everyone, including Sean Mark, who was house captain, and my best friend, Caleb Chuang. However, most people were too busy or too slow to react. I had even made a future list of who would win based on a graph and the points I made. These were ignored by the committee.
What could I have had done? I could have had stood up in protest. In this situation, I could vocally express my views or argue with people, but it could be seen as stoking division and disunity with Bullseye. In fact, Vicky and I meet multiple times, during the Global Perspectives class, the Leadership Camp, and Mr Thomas’ English class. I also felt Vicky was a bit annoyed seeing me in the same group many times. I even felt that I should start a fifth sports house with me as captain, to take on the other four. However, I decided in the best interest of Bullseye, that since we have a common goal to win, I decided not to argue with Zi Quan or Vicky as it would be detrimental to the future victory of Bullseye. At the end, it’s still better to give and take as this tiny sacrifice would be good for a common goal at the end. Thus, I decided to continue to go ahead with my practices for 1500m and give my best to the team, as well as cooperate during the marchpast practices.
I know that I cannot change the outcome of Sports Day 2017 as it is over. It is all done and nothing can be changed. I felt I could have had done more. I put in my best effort for the Founder's Run and 1500m. I had done all I could for the race.
Sean Mark said that everyone should take it easy because everyone thought that if they performed better or if any factors were tweaked, Bullseye would have won and anything could have influenced the Sports Day result. He pointed out that two main factors that could have changed the result on Sports Day. In fact, he only said one of two factors, namely the awarding of the dance competition championship to Slamdunk. In reality, Bullseye had gotten first place for the dance competition, and Sean Mark told us via WhatsApp that someone had informed Ivyna about this change in result. The reason of the decision to change the champion from Bullseye to Slamdunk was ‘to give chance to other houses’ to win, since Bullseye had won the past three dance championships under Jarod Ee and Krissy's stewardship. Ivyna had been notified about Bullseye's first place win and the decision to change it.
Following the conclusion of the Sports Day, I tried to forget the events of Sports Day 2017. I knew it was my final year in Nobel. After all, it seemed that all hope was lost. But there was another chance. However, I would not be able to attain it as I would be graduating from Nobel International School. And going to college would seem like a new experience for me.
The Bullseye loss to Touchdown in 2017 is considered an intriguing loss. On one hand, it seemed normal. Winning and losing are normal in any Sports Day. But this was not a normal Sports Day loss.
How can Bullseye and Touchdown even match up to the closest tally ever in Sports Day history? How come? This had never happened before.
Just imagine being unable to help your teammates all because you are being restricted and scolded. Even if you were to propose solutions, you are scolded. You are berated. You are verbally abused like no other matter before.
I have done all that I could. I won the Founder's Run. I got second place for my 1500m. I have done all I can to save Bullseye. However, I acknowledge that my teammates accepted my suggestion, but at the very last minute on Sports Day itself.
Vicky was a really, really autocratic person. I had to listen to her and no one can oppose her. Zi Quan acted in an angry tone to me. He scolded me. I had to argue with him verbally on Sports Day as he kept on getting angry at me so many times. I lost my patience with him, having given in to everyone all the while.
And not only that; I wish I could be Bullseye's next house captain. But unfortunately, Ms Lim would NEVER allow that to happen; what more the management of Nobel International School. Ms Lim had told us many stories of ex students being stopped in the past. She refused to budge her stand. Requests by ex students for any activities in Nobel were turned down.
I wished I can be Bullseye's house captain. People will ask me about why I did not volunteer myself to be house captain. I felt that I wasn't a great leader. I was only assistant monitor at the time.
What was to have had been the greatest plan I had ever done in Nobel International School's history remained scribbles on a drawing board. I know that if the plan was to be executed again, I would need to do it as an alumnus.
The grief of how Zi Quan treated me would forever be a grief I would carry for my whole life. Bullseye losing Sports Day 2017 was the biggest game-changing activity that would decide my life after leaving Nobel. The biggest-ever, most grandeous plan was ruined. Just like that.
I felt sad, regretful and suddenly, angry. I was really angry with what had happened. I wished I could scold Zi Quan in the same manner that he scolded me. However, it would look childish. Both of us are student leaders. And it is useless to scold and shout at people when we cannot even change the result. So, I came up with something. I came up with a plan. Yes, you heard it right. I had a plan.
And I had a blueprint, too. I would devise a strategy to win the 2018 Sports Day. As an ex student. Or a house captain. Or in one form or the other.
If Bullseye wins the 2018 Sports Day, it will allow me to show Zi Quan and Vicky, as well as all those who despise of me on who is boss.
Never mind. Forget 2017, and we will win 2018. All captains were talking about the 2018 Sports Day as a chance to improve. However, a big question lingered over my head: what should replace my big plan when I am still in Nobel as an ex student?
I needed an activity that has the same grandeur as Sports Day. An event as captivating as the leaders marching on the field. And an act that could make the same winning statement just like Bullseye's past victories.
I looked at my calendar. Awards Day falls on 19th April. Perhaps it would be good ground to plot my path to greatness and fame. I made the decision to join an Awards Day performance. I had to ask around. I just needed to start.
The first two weeks of April were four-day school weeks. The 7th April 2017 was our PTM 1, and the 14th April 2017 was Good Friday, resulting in short school weeks. The following week would be our Study Camp on 21st April. And another thing was about to happen; Beep Test. The beep test would most likely fall on the end of April, probably the 28th. So, there was an action-packed month of events. This would then be followed by the Malay IGCSE exam in May, and then, it would be June, July, August, September and October, which is the climax of the Cambridge IGCSE Exam. The Year 11 Graduation would be scheduled for 17th November 2017, and off we go from Nobel.
Not much time was left. I dread the 17th of November. I would miss my friends and teachers. However, unfinished work would persist. And this unfinished work could only be completed one year from then.
On our first day of school after Sports Day, 3rd April, I tried ignoring the conversations about Sports Day. Well, even Zi Quan still wasn't in a good mood and wanted to ignore it as well.
The morning assembly soon begun. We greeted our teachers. Then, Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong some people a stern lecture on talking during the morning assembly. “Anyone wants to come up and talk? I will pass you the mic,” said Ms Lim.
We were soon dismissed and went back to class for the lessons. Mr Kevin Wai soon met me, and he said that most of the people in the class had handed in their newspapers and he handed me some doctors’ slips from our absent classmates to paste and staple to the control book. Then, we went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave back our coursework reports. Then, she continued the lesson on market segmentation. We then did inequity and poverty during our Economics lesson and Ms Sharon talked about how wealth was distributed. During the lesson, I took down the names of anyone who used the washroom on Brandon's request to make their lives easier. Ms Sharon also returned our GST presentation coursework to us.
During break time, I had to meet a lot of teachers and let them know about their areas in which they missed out on signing. I marked the control book on the areas where there was no class due to Sports Day practices. Then, I had to get some teachers to sign the control book if they defaulted on them. Some people in the canteen were still talking on the 648-649 tie-up between Bullseye and Touchdown. Afterwards, we went for Art, and we continued our prep work. I presented five additional font designs to Ms Nadia, who told me to color them.
Mr Lee then came in for Combined Science. He then told us about a series of methods to test for substances, such as hydrogen, water, carbon dioxide and so on. He also taught us about filtration. Then, he also talked about the enhydrous copper sulfate experiment we did before the holidays in the middle of March. Brandon Ooi then suggested collecting his urine and then dropping it on the solution to see how the reaction will look like. The whole class laughed. “That's disgusting,” said Mr Lee.
During our Character Transformation session, we did an activity by Ms Crystlyn and Mr Neoh on how to do a resume. This is very important as it gives us an idea on how to promote ourselves and use it for job applications. And for our Global Perspectives project, Vicky told us that we will sell some soya cincau on Friday, during the PTM meeting, for the Global Perspectives fundraising project. We had to sell the soya cincau to parents during PTM so that we can generate income to finance the Dignity Foundation project.
Then, it was the Monitor's Council, and Ashlyne Yong then briefed us about the profit that we collected from the charity sales which we had done during the Telematch Day. Since everyone was busy screaming, shouting and acting like crazy as if it was the end of the world, Reid Ken and Casmie Tee were the ones manning the booths the whole time, and there was around RM 700 collected in profits. The Monitor's Council managed to sell at least around 70% of the food and drinks available during the Telematch Day.
Ms Cynthia had a really serious look during the meeting, because there were a lot of problems that should be settled. Ms Cynthia said that we as class monitors are the ambassadors to our class and we represent all the members of our class in the meeting. She said that the attendance rate among all the class monitors is not really good. The only valid excuse that is accepted so far is if there are monitors involved in Track and Field CCA, which is the only CCA held on Mondays back then.
Among all the Year 11 class monitors, at least one monitor from four of the five classes was present. The only Year 11 class with the fullest representation of monitors was 11O, as Ashlyne and Rick were president and vice president. I represented 11N, Pranavee represented 11B and Berlinda represented 11E. No monitor from 11L was present. And Ms Cynthia took note that some monitors had attended one-off meetings, which meant they attended as they pleased.
Ms Cynthia then highlighted issues faced with all monitors. The Year 11 classes, by right, should lead by example, and Ms Cynthia said that the class’ computers of all the Year 11 classes were not switched on, and it was inconvenient for teachers to use them. The second issue was the control book, obviously, but it applied to other classes. “So far, only Wei Yiang is able to complete the control book,” said Ms Cynthia. She then requested all monitors to switch on their class’ computers and electronic equipment before the start of the lesson.
Ms Sharon, who was in the class, then nodded. “Yes, in fact, he is the only one in the entire Monitor's Council that finished the control book. He has passed it to me each time I come in for the lesson,” she said. I explained that it was for every Economics lesson. Ms Sharon also said that she had personally seen the control book by herself. And Ms Renee as level leader had checked all the control books. The whole room was caught by surprise.
Ms Cynthia also said that class monitors by right are to be respected and that there have been many cases of students cursing and swearing at monitors. She then reiterated that class monitors are having the same roles and responsibilities as prefects; except that we do not have a uniform for the role. One way she suggested for us to do so was to speak to our Homeroom teachers who will assist us. Class monitors are required to be able to exert control over the class.
During the meeting, Zher Xian was joking around a bit and Ms Cynthia and Ms Sharon had to ask him to pay attention. Then, Ms Cynthia then asked everyone to brainstorm solutions on how to settle other issues, such as the table baskets’ neatness and also the class cleanliness, and present them to her in the next meeting. She told us to discuss this on what she said with our respective classes.
The next day, 4th April, it was raining and I went to 11O to meet Jason Leing. I told him that all because of his suspension, Bullseye lost the Sports Day. He had returned from his two weeks’ suspension period and was in school that day.
Jason and I then had a chat. When he found out that the score was 648-649, he was shocked at how close the score was. He jokingly asked me why I did not run a bit faster, since me winning first place would have resulted in a 658-649 victory for Bullseye.
I told Mr Kevin Wai during Reading Time about what Ms Cynthia had told us during the Monitor's Council meeting. He said he had received the same information from her and Ms Renee on the control book information, and praised me. I then brought up the issue to Mr Kevin Wai on the request by Ms Cynthia to have the classroom computers switched on before our lessons begin for the day. Mr Kevin Wai consented and allowed me to switch on the computers before the lessons begin.
Previously, I had only switched on the computer once before the lesson started. According to the Student Code of Conduct, it was forbidden to touch the computer or to use the computer without consent from the teachers. A student can only use the computer with the permission of the teacher, which was why I had to ask Mr Kevin Wai. The two of us had a chat outside of 11N while the entire class read some books or did some revision. Then, I went to switch on the classroom computer.
Then, we had Combined Science, and Mr Lee came into the class. He thanked me for switching on the computer early. He continued to explain more on filtration. Then, Ms Sharon came in and talked about poverty, population growth and the factors causing changes in population. After her Economics lesson ended, I then met with Ms Sharon and asked her if there was any other issue with the class facilities, control book and so on. She said no.
How wonderful it was as the control book situation went smoothly. The problem right now was that I had to find teachers who had defaulted on their control book registration. I plan to get them to sign it during their time when they used the classes. To solve the problem, I stuck a note on the control book to remind the teachers to sign the previous pages.
I went to the management office to find Mr Steve. I wanted to ask him about performances for Awards Day. He told me that there was one slot available for me and one performance. He told me to meet him on Thursday, 6th April to get the scripts from him. The script was a play on five ex students, namely Ethan, Megan, Michelle, Rebecca and Eric rejoicing their time in Nobel and where they currently stand. Mr Steve told me to meet him for the practices when he called them. Coincidentally, I was the last person to make the cut. Phew!
Then, I went for my break time and saw Kit Lee at the canteen table. I told her that Bullseye would have had won if she was present. Kit Lee laughed. San Ying and I had a good chat on how close the scores were.
Then, during Global Perspectives, Vicky then told us on our plans. I then started writing my Individual Reflection Essay. Vicky said that for now, we had to sell for half the day from 8:00am to 12:00pm and we might need to extend to 4:00pm. She told us to commit till 4:00pm if possible. And then, Ms Bee Yan continued telling us how to plot a line graph and a histogram. Then, we did some exercises on cumulative frequencies.
Following lunch, I managed to get Ms Sarah to sign the control book as she had defaulted for the past week before heading for History. We then continued our topic and learnt about the Vietnam War. Like Germany and Korea, Vietnam was divided into two, and it was fun learning about how lives in the divided states looked like. Then, during Art, I completed my Prep 2 and was ready to move to Prep 3. Ms Nadia told me to choose four fonts and designs from Prep 2 to be copied into Prep 3. I then went back to 11N to shut down the computer, projector, Smartboard, and met all the teachers who didn't sign the control book after school and got them to sign them.
The next day, on Wednesday, 5th April 2017, during the morning assembly, Ms Bee Yong then informed us about the PTM on the coming 7th April. Most people cheered, since there was only a four-day school week. The same would be replicated the following week, when Nobel observes Good Friday on 14th April 2017. She told us that Sports Day was over and now that was needed was to focus on our studies for the upcoming Mid Year Examination.
When we returned to class, I put my things down and switched on the computer for Ms Joyce. Then, I headed for Mr Thomas’ English lesson. He then talked about the scores of the Sports Day.
“Touchdown won by one point,” said Mr Thomas, giggling happily. It looked hilarious.
Then, Mr Thomas told us to hand in the Commonwealth Essay Competition entries to him via Edmodo. Many of us were wondering how to submit our entries. Back in 2016, there was a specialized Edmodo page created for us to submit our work. However, there was none for 2017, so Mr Thomas told us to hand in the work to him via our Edmodo page. Then, he told us to write a story where we had to talk about the climax. He opened Edmodo and showed us our task.
Afterwards it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us some exercises to do. I did my work while also looking at Eu Lynn, Sara Yow, Sophie and Nicole talk. “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” they cried. Then, Ms Chithra talked to us about market research and how we actually did that in our coursework.
The lesson just continued as usual. It was a normal day where we focused on our lessons. Vicky told us about how we will rotate when selling our soya cincau for PTM 1. In fact, the PTM day would be used by all Global Perspectives students from Year 11 to do their fundraising events, and Mr Gallagher briefed us on what to do. He sarcastically told us to press as much people to buy our products so that it can make our grades higher. Then in Maths, Ms Bee Yan taught us about statistics.
Later, during Art, Ms Nadia and Ms Praveen gave us a briefing on our Art and Design Final Piece for the Mid Year Examination. Ms Praveen said that we needed to hurry up as the school was planning to hold the Art Exam on 17th and 18th April for Paper 1, and then on 24th and 25th April for Paper 2. Hence, we needed to finish up our Paper 1 prep works by the end of the following week, and all the prep works will be kept in Ms Nadia's large briefcase for safekeeping for the Art Exam. We then continued with our prep works, and I continued to draw my Prep 3. I chose four designs and created another logo design to be drawn on Prep 3. Then I presented the sketches on my prep work to Ms Nadia, who asked me to enlarge some of the logos as they were too small. So, once I was done, I presented the work again to Ms Nadia, who approved of it and told me to begin painting Prep 3 the following week. Then, during History, while waiting for Ms Visa, Brandon Ooi played his AZ Tanks game. Coincidentally, the AZ Tanks game reminded me of the usage of tanks during the Cold War and in Communist countries. For instance, China deployed them for military parades and also used them in the quelling of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. Additionally, the usage of tanks would play a role in Soviet interventions in Eastern Europe; particularly in Hungary and Czechoslovakia. I had read about that in advance and we would soon be learning it as part of the History IGCSE syllabus. Then, Ms Visa came in, and Kelsey told Ms Visa that Brandon was playing his games on the computer. Brandon told her he wasn't doing anything. Ms Visa shrugged and continued the Vietnam War discussion.
During Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee then discussed with us on how to write our essay for our Bible Knowledge exam according to the Scriptures and told us how to explain and argue points. Before the lesson begun, Ms Renee had a short discussion with me and asked if I was able to cope with the Bible Knowledge subject, since I did not perform well in the Assessment 1. She told me that I could consider dropping Bible Knowledge to focus on the other subjects when the dropping of subjects were to take place. There were loads of essays to do for Bible Knowledge.
The next day, during the Reading Time, Mr Kevin Wai announced that there would be an exhibition by various colleges and universities, as well as a Road to College workshop, along with sharing of professions specially tailored for Year 11 students. He told us that it was for our application to colleges and universities following the conclusion of our time in Nobel. Mr Kevin also told us that there will be a charity initiative in which we can choose to wear blue or yellow to school and had to pay RM 2 for the initiative. It will mainly used for supporting underprivileged children, though I don't think he specified what it was for. We could choose to pay and not wear as well.
During Economics, Ms Sharon came in and taught us about the factors regarding the change in population. Then, she gave us some past-year exam questions to do. Ms Sharon gave us tips on how to do the questions.
Writing a past-year exam question is a norm for Year 11 students as it teaches us how to answer the exam questions during our IGCSE exams. It also allows us to be prepared in case the exact same questions were re-used. For Economics, there were two sections to the Paper 2 questions, namely a Section A, where we had to answer questions based on a case study. Then, in Section 2, we could choose three questions to complete and write the essay. Each question consisted of three sub questions which increased in difficulty.
Our class was also asked to do a coursework for Malaysian Studies. For the coursework, each Year 11 class had to create a video for the coursework in which we interviewed people and had to make a documentary on Malaysia's diversity. Sheng Jit was chosen to be the coordinator of the video as he is the class monitor, while Nickolas Nashpal was in charge of piecing the video. Ms Cynthia told us to interview 24 people and present the findings to Sheng Jit. There would be one interviewee per person, and we could ask questions about Malaysia's diversity. Sheng Jit subsequently created a class WhatsApp group for us so that we could communicate on the coursework. We had three weeks until 27th April 2017 to finish the job. The video should not exceed 30 minutes and must give a clear idea on how Malaysia had progressed as a country.
When Sheng Jit was nominated unanimously by the entire class, he said, “Why me?” and grinned. Nickolas Nashpal was chosen to piece the video because he was good in video editing. Brandon told Ms Cynthia that he had a YouTube channel titled ‘Natty Nashpalian’ and had a lot of videos on cars. Brandon Ooi told Nickolas to post the video onto his YouTube channel so that everyone can see it, but Ms Cynthia insisted that the video be given via a pendrive and played in the class for everyone to watch. “It should not be posted on YouTube because this is a school coursework, and I don't want people to come and give nasty comments on this class,” she said.
Even so, Ms Cynthia suggested that in order to expedite the Malaysian Studies coursework, there should be four groups in the class as we had 24 people in the class. This meant six people per group. There should ideally be an animator, two researchers, a planner and two people to suggest ideas.
Ms Cynthia then looked at Sheng Jit. “Sheng Jit, can I ask you a question?” asked Ms Cynthia.
Sheng Jit shrugged and grinned. “Yes, how can I help you?” he replied.
Ms Cynthia then asked why did he fail to attend all the Monitor's Council meetings, and Sheng Jit said that he was very busy and too lazy to attend. Ms Cynthia then told him to get all the information regarding the Monitor's Council meeting on Monday, 3rd April, from me. So, while on the way to break time, I had to tell Sheng Jit about what Ms Cynthia told us. Sheng Jit said he will begin being responsible via the Malaysian Studies coursework and he could unite the class, since he was the coordinator of the project.
During break time, a series of booths were set up in the school hall by various colleges and universities. These include Segi University, Sunway University, Taylor's University, INTI International Universities and Colleges, HELP University, KDU University College, Herriot Watt University and many more local universities. I just ignored the exhibition because I felt that it was too soon that we were leaving Nobel. It was so sentimental; having lost a Sports Day by one point and not getting the plans executed as per what was determined. I tried to forget it, but I was also stuck on completing the ultimate aim of making Bullseye win as an ex student. I wondered how it will work.
Later on, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra had to wake Gabriel up from sleeping as she gave us past year examination questions for us to do. Just like Economics, the Business Studies paper involved tons of writing. Ms Visa also gave us exercises to do on the Vietnam War and we discussed why South Vietnam, despite being more advanced than the communists, lost the war. And during Malay, Cikgu Niely discussed the Malay IGCSE Trial questions with us.
That afternoon, I went to find Mr Steve to get the script from him. I had to read it. In the script, Ethan, Eric, Rebecca, Megan and Michelle were all ex students from Nobel International School who graduated in 2017 and were in their 70s, rejoicing their time in Nobel. All five individuals are well-known, prominent individuals, having achieved or contributed to society and received awards and recognition for their contribution.
Later, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan told us that for our Mid Year Examination, our results will determine whether we would be downgraded to Mathematics Core or be allowed to stay in the Mathematics Extended. There would be no appeals following this decision and it would be final. We then had English, and Mr Thomas told us to write an essay, describing who would we chose if we could be anything or be in the shoes of important figures.
Later on, during the Editorial Board meeting, Ms Levina told me to interview Sean Mark and Nieshaal for the Sports Day edition of the school newsletter, as they were important athletes.
The next day, 7th April, was our PTM 1. On the day of the PTM, the Year 11s were involved in selling some goodies to the parents during the PTM in order to raise funds for the GP project. My group sold some soya cincau and the remainder was sold by the rest. Apparently, everyone sold some stuff during PTM to hungry parents waiting for a chat with teachers. So, on PTM day, we arrived as early as 8:00am and started selling. Glen, Vicky and I took turns selling the soya cincau, and we raised an approximately high profit of around RM 800 at the end of the day.
All Year 11s who were selling were told to meet Mr Gallagher at 7:45am in the school canteen. Posters that detailed the Year 11s’ Global Perspectives project sales were pasted around the hallways of the school. Vicky then met me and Glen. Together with Ellie, they were handing out trays to all the groups. There was a counter placed behind the school hall where Year 11s can pick up additional food to be sold. The food and drinks meant for the fundraiser were kept in boxes and subsequently stored at the stage.
The PTM soon started, and I could not help by trying to ignore the images of Sports Day that were posted on the large screen of the school hall. The stage was littered with art pieces from Year 7 to 11, as well as the pieces of Art and Design IGCSE students from the previous outgoing batch. One work that stood out in particular was the work of Reanne Koh, the Top in Malaysia recipient for Art and Design in the 2016 IGCSE Examination.
Each tray came with ten pieces of soya cincau wrapped in a plastic bag, and each individual willing to purchase it would need to put their money into a container placed on the tray. Subsequently, because the cash kept falling down, I kept the cash inside my pocket.
During the PTM, all the members of the Prefectorial Board had to provide refreshments and guide parents around the venue. Teachers chat and conversed important business with parents, and I would be involved in selling for the whole day. Romantic music beamed through the hall, refreshing every parent who came.
As the morning begun, I greeted all my teachers before selling the soya cincau. Then, after I had finished, Glen then took over. While on a break, I then met Caleb Chuang and talked to him about the Global Perspectives project. He and Zi Quan were ushering parents and giving drinks.
Then, at 10:00am, I met Ms Levina and had a chat. She asked me how was my sales for the Global Perspectives coursework, and I updated her accordingly. Ms Levina and I then talked about Economics as well as the Editorial Board interviews. For the time being, I was involved in doing the interviews. I also had to interview some teachers again for the yearbook as well.
After selling for another one hour, I managed to sell some things to Yi Zhen as well as other people who attended the PTM. Caleb Chuang was telling those who marched for Bullseye to support his Global Perspectives project as well. Then, Ms Nadia and I had a short chat and she bought some.
At 12:00pm, all the teachers went for a lunch break and I continued talking to Ms Nadia about the Art and Design IGCSE prep work. She said she will speak on my progress with my mum when she arrived at school.
That afternoon, my mum bought me some chicken rice for me to munch on for lunch. After we had our lunch, Mr Gallagher asked me on my progress and I responded positively to him. Before long, I continued selling towards the close of the day. PTM 1 ended at 4:00pm, and Vicky thanked us for selling. Ms June and I had a talk while waiting for my mum to arrive.
On Monday, 10th April 2017, Mr Chan addressed the Junior and Senior School students during the morning assembly. He said that we should be grateful that we had the Sports Day in the previous week, namely the last week of March, as the following Friday, 7th April 2017, saw afternoon downpours. The 7th April 2017 was our PTM day. At the same time, the day after Sports Day, 1st April, also saw heavy downpours.
“On Sports Day about a week ago, I saw everyone marching. I saw the marchpast. Everyone was marching on the field. All of you were enjoying yourselves. The weather was hot, but if you come to think of it, we managed to have our Sports Day.”
“I read the news. Exactly one week later, last Friday (7th April), there was a thunderstorm. The roads were flooded. There were traffic jams. People had difficulties getting around,” he recalled. “Imagine what would happen if Sports Day was held exactly one week later,” he said.
“I personally feel that God is very grateful for what He has given us, as He had held back the rain for us to have some fun.”
Mr Chan said that we should be grateful for the opportunities God has given us, and urged us not to waste the opportunities and be grateful to what we have, be it from our parents or teachers or friends as well.
I still wasn’t over the Sports Day that was disastrous for Bullseye. But what was needed now was to get on with our Malay IGCSE preparations.
All the teachers started talking to us about how we should be preparing for our IGCSEs. Mr Thomas has had been asking us to read thoroughly and complete the homework, aside from reading the messages he sent on Edmodo.
When we returned for Business Studies, I kept thinking as to what Mr Chan said. In fact, I was contemplating on the Sports Day and how horrible it was. Imagine a doctor trying to cure his patient but was stopped from doing so, resulting in the death of the patient. I just tried to focus on Ms Chithra's Business Studies and Ms Sharon's Economics lesson.
During break time, I then went to find Mr Steve. He told me that the first practice for Awards Day would be the next day's afternoon after school. Mr Steve told me to memorize the script. He told me that we would spend time to practice them. However, since I had Bible Knowledge, the Editorial Board CCA and the Monitor's Council meetings, Mr Steve decided that we will have practices thereafter in the morning. Originally, I wanted to be an emcee for Awards Day, but this was only what was offered. Mr Lee continued enlightening us with his Physics formulas, and Ms Nadia kept on emphasizing on the Mid Year Exam prep works for Art and Design. She told me to take pictures of three items to be used as the basis for my design in Prep 3 and 4. This was to allow the Greenhouse logo to be fitted on an item for further studies to gain more marks.
Mr Neoh then asked us to present our findings from the interviews we had to do before the school holidays on interviewing a Chinese, Malay and Indian person as well as a foreigner. I only managed to get the three locals but it was very difficult to find a foreigner. So, I decided to present my findings to Mr Neoh, and he accepted my findings. In fact, I was the only one who did the interviews.
During our Global Perspectives lesson, I focused on my Individual Reflection Report. And during our Monitor's Council meeting, Ashlyne Yong and the Monitor's Council committee organized a treasure hunt as part of the session. I was in the same group as Yui Xin, Ethan Chan and Zher Xian for this treasure hunt.
There were a few stations that we had to go to. There were five stations in total, manned by each of the Monitor's Council Committee members.
Ashlyne tried to brief people but each time she had to shout at them to listen because some of the people behind were fooling around. Each group was given a series of game rules and the winner of the Treasure Hunt would be the group with the highest scores. The first game involved players going to find Berlinda at the school corridor to guess a riddle. After completing the first game, players would move to the second booth in the canteen which was manned by Ashlyne. There, while tossing some fish ball, players would need to recite the school pledge and sing the school song. Following the second booth, the players would head to the foyer where Pranavee was manning the booth. There, players would need to answer a series of questions. After that, players would go to the fourth booth, which was manned by Rick, to solve a puzzle. The last booth was manned by Reid Ken, who played songs for us to guess them.
Soon, we were off, and Ashlyne told Reid Ken to release us after they had set up their booths. He then started by asking people to find other groups first while he set up his.
Our group first went to Berlinda's booth to guess a riddle. The riddle, however, was on some movies and songs which I did not know about except for the rest of the people in my group. Ethan Chan and Zher Xian talked about the movies that were coming up. Then, we went to find Rick, who helped me solve one of the puzzles. Berlinda said we can go to any group which we wanted, provided that we could complete all the booths in the treasure hunt game.
After proceeding to Rick's group, he gave us a worksheet to solve some puzzles. It was like a Maths game. Then, we went to Ashlyne Yong's booth, which was in the canteen. It looked a bit shy when we all sang the school song while tossing fishball and reciting the pledge. The entire group told Zher Xian to cooperate as he tossed the fishball crazily. The last booth we went to was Pranavee's booth. Zher Xian ran like mad as he was wanting us to be the first group to finish. However, we had trouble finding Pranavee's booth till we met her at the lower canteen. There, we had to talk about the aims, roles and responsibilities of a monitor. I gave an inspiring speech which made all the group members, especially Zher Xian, act in a funny manner.
When we went to find Reid Ken, he was in 10L playing some music and he told us to dance with the tune. Then, once we were done, we went back to 10N. We were the second group to finish. Zher Xian played jokes with Casmie Tee as her group was the first to finish. Zher Xian and Casmie were class monitors for 10O back then.
The winners of the first three groups were invited to collect a prize from Ashlyne, who was handing out the prizes. When Ashlyne announced that the prize was a book voucher, Zher Xian groaned and said that he wished it was money. Then, Pranavee then discussed with us on options on how to improve the services of the Monitor's Council. She said that out of the three leadership boards in Nobel, the Monitor's Council is not a leadership board in which individuals can continue to the upcoming year, unlike the Prefectorial Board or Librarian Board, and that we had to discuss how to improve the services. The membership of the Monitor's Council is not guaranteed in the next upcoming year. Additionally, the Monitor's Council had the least trust, and the entire board asked me to share how I was able to solve my problems as assistant monitor and looked to me for guidance.
The next day, 11th April 2017, during the Reading Time, Sheng Jit told us to present some of the findings to him on the Malaysian Studies coursework. Mr Kevin Wai announced that 11N's classroom would be used for the Art and Design Examination and that all 11N students were required to proceed to the TR4 Tutorial Room for classes.
Mr Lee came in and then he started calculating about sound and amps. Then, during Economics, Ms Sharon and taught us about the problems of development with us. Vicky then presented me with some reports, which we had to do during Global Perspectives. While waiting, Glen and I discussed on teaming up to interview people to present the ideas to Sheng Jit for the Malaysian Studies coursework.
While Global Perspectives and Maths went smoothly as per normal, Ms Bee Yan then did some past year questions with us after completing worksheets on statistics. She told us that for the Study Camp, two past year questions; one for Paper 2 and another for Paper 4 would be given to us.
Then, Ms Visa did some exercises with us and started the next chapter, which talks about the control of the Soviet Union over Eastern Europe. The topic focuses on how the Warsaw Pact came about and how the Iron Curtain was coined.
The term ‘Iron Curtain’ refers to a border dividing Eastern and Western Europe, in which communist countries’ borders with capitalist countries were concerned, such as East and West Germany, Austria and Hungary, as well as the Soviet Union's border with Finland. No one was allowed to cross it, and anyone who did so was killed or punished.
I was also asked by Ms Nadia to improve on my painting techniques during Art. Ms Nadia then told us the timeline in which we had to finish our prep work. She also briefed us about the Art and Design Exam format.
After school ended, I went to keep the control book and Smartboard equipment before heading to find Mr Steve, who then told me to head to the music room for the play. I hadn't seen the music room for some time after it was moved. The new location of the music room then was above the basement hall near Tadika Sri Nobel.
I greeted the people in the music room, who were accompanied with Ms Sarah. Of all the people in the play, Julian Ong was playing Eric. Alexandria Goh was playing Rebecca. Vicky was playing the role of Megan and Michelle's role was played by Ellie Lim.
Mr Steve and Ms Sarah were the people who crafted the script. The plan was to allow us to act out the script. Mr Steve said we do not have to read the exact words but however, we could use them as a guide. We spent time from 4:00pm to 5:00pm to practice the script.
The next day, on 12th April, Mr Steve then did some practices with us once again on the script. He told us that we could act as cool as possible and present the skit in a funny manner. After a 30-miute script session, we went back to the hall at 7:45am for the morning assembly. Ms Lim then briefed everyone about the rules and regulations of the field trip day the next day.
“You can bring handphones for the day, okay?” said Ms Lim. Some people teased Ms Lim about what they could bring for the field trip. Ms Lim said that anything that we brought to the field trip would be our own responsibility and custody of our personal belongings. Our last field trip as Year 11 students in Nobel was at the Tadom Base Camp in Sepang. The base camp is located close to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and from the place, we can see the planes taking off and landing at the close proximity of the airport.
After the assembly ended, Mr Thomas then said that everyone must take responsibility for their learning and complete the tasks. He told us that some people had not given him the Commonwealth Essay. I had already sent him a copy via Edmodo. Then, he hesitantly started the lesson as that morning's English lesson was the only one for the week. He spent the entire lesson telling us how to write a good essay.
Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra taught us on how to add value to our product. Ms Chithra told us that we need to learn to ask questions in class as our teachers would help us and that in college or university, it would be very difficult for us to ask questions during a lecture.
During break time, I then went to find Mr Steve again. He had requested us skit performers to meet him during the break time, and then we went to 11B to practice our scripts as the music room was being used. Fortunately, I was able to act very well. Mr Steve and Ms Sarah, who came in a bit later, said we were very skillful and advanced in acting. However, Julian Ong was not present as he was at the sick bay due to a sore throat.
While we were practicing, all of 11B's students had to wait outside the class for us to finish practicing the skit. When they were allowed in, I told Sherwin about my script presentation for Awards Day and he seemed interested in it. Then, I followed Vicky as we headed for our Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher then requested to see each group, who presented their activities and sales to him. Then, Mr Gallagher told Vicky and Ellie on how to channel the funds to Dignity Foundation. In fact, Mr Gallagher needed every group to have a transaction of the fundraising activities so that he can record them and put them into our grades.
Enisha kept on telling me to drop the Global Perspectives subject. She told me that since I was not involved in doing the report, I might fail the Global Perspectives test, and indirectly, from the previous year's report controversy with Ms Praveen, she said that I will not do well in Global Perspectives and told me to consider withdrawing from the subject.
During Maths, Nickolas Nashpal and I decided to have a mini competition during Maths by doing one of Ms Bee Yan's worksheets. We counted down before we begun the worksheet. The both of us teased each other that we will lose to our opponent.
After lunch, Ms Praveen then briefed us about the Paper 1 Exam for Art and Design. She told us that we will be having two slots; an 8am to 10am slot before the break time, and then a 10:30am to 12:30pm slot. Ms Nadia guided me on my prep work and told me on how to paint the colors properly. She also reminded us to prepare for our Paper 1's Final Piece on 17th April. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa taught us on the Hungarian Uprising. When I went for my Bible Knowledge lesson, Ms Renee then had a talk with me.
Ms Renee then told me that I could have two choices for my Bible Knowledge situation; either to opt out of the class early before the Mid Year Examination or to continue the subject till the period where we would drop our subjects. Ms Renee also expressed concern on me as to whether I was able to cope with the subject. She had given us another set of essay questions to do. Ms Renee suggested that if I could not cope, she would allow me to opt out of Bible Knowledge as early as possible. I just continued my work immediately after Ms Renee talked to me, as she had discussed this issue with my mum during the PTM.
The 13th April 2017 soon arrived. Our last field trip, as promised, to Tadom Base Camp.
This field trip would soon become very adventurous. As the final field trip for us Year 11 students, it promises to be an adventure for us.
Everyone wore their Sports Attire on that day. It was the second time that everyone wore their Sports Attire. While wearing the Sports Attire, I felt reminded of what actually happened during the Sports Day 2017. It was already two weeks since Sports Day.
The morning begun as normal as it was. I had my usual breakfast in the canteen and then went to have a chat with Krystal Goh. I told her that I was planning to do a ‘feedback tour’ on the control book management and where to improve as assistant monitor, three months into the job.
Krystal then told me I had no issues with anyone and she had no issue with me handling the control book. “You are the only one who completed the control book, Wei Yiang,” she said, before giggling at how responsible I was.
Krystal then said that the field trip location, Tadom Base Camp, was quite far. She told me that she always arrives at school early as her house is within KL. The same is said with Zi Quan as well, who lives in Sri Petaling.
As the crowd built up, I went to the foyer to watch the morning arrival of students and waited for Caleb Chuang. While waiting, I greeted many people who had arrived and still talked to those from Bullseye about how it felt like as if we were preparing for Sports Day once again. The 2017 Sports Day was a much more improved timeframe than the 2016 Sports Day and it was more exciting as well.
At 7:20am, Caleb Chuang arrived and the two of us talked to some of the Elementary School students as we walked into the school. The kids were really excited of the field trip activities that we were doing.
Everyone was armed with backpacks and some accessories such as food and drinks. Then, each class was told to gather. Mr Kevin Wai and I took the class attendance. For us Year 11s, we had a change of clothes as there were water activities involved. Then, once attendance was taken, I boarded the bus and sat down with Gabriel Lim, talking about Sports Day.
Unlike me, Gabriel had not attended the Sports Day on 3 1st March. I had to explain to him on all the funny things that happened that day, especially the 648-649 tie-up between Bullseye and Touchdown. Really. It was THE big news that came out of 2017. And it will forever be remembered for generations to come.
We departed from school at around 8am as the bus made its way to the LDP Highway. Then, it passed by my house in Puchong and headed all the way, following the LDP towards Cyberjaya and Putrajaya. Gabriel and I pointed out the various landmarks as the bus criss-crossed towards its destination. We were captivated by the sights of the area around Putrajaya and Cyberjaya as the bus passed the twin cities.
As the bus reached Serenia City, it exited an interchange which had a dead end on its flyover, and made its way onto the trunk road that bypasses KLIA. The area south of Puchong and Putrajaya was still in its early stages of development back then. It was a hive of activity because this area is located between Putrajaya and KLIA, which is part of the Southern Klang Valley Growth Corridor. The urbanized landscape soon transitioned into a rural landscape with the familiar oil palm plantations located adjacent to the airport. Minutes later, we then reached the Tadom Base Camp which was located next to the trunk road connecting Dengkil and KLIA.
The buses parked at a dirt parking area underneath some oil palm trees. We then got out and gathered at a dirt area near the parking lot as our teachers took our attendance. Everyone was excited as we were observing After we took our attendance, we were then placed into groups based on our class. Our class, 11N, was grouped up into four groups, so that we have seven people per group. In my group were Ze Khai, Alia, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Brandon Ooi, Ivyna Ong and me. We also had a ribbon placed on our heads to mark our group members so that we won’t get lost.
Ms Renee then liaised with Encik Nizam, who was one of the facilitators of the camp, who then introduced us to four of his colleagues, namely Farah, Halim, Rizal and Shakrul. Encik Nizam then greeted us and he introduced us to the camp. “You are going to have a lot of fun today!”
We were first brought to a mini hall located near the bus parking area. He then facilitated us into groups and played some short introduction sessions with us. We then played a few games, such as tagging one another as well as some rope activities. Encik Nizam then briefed us on what we were going to do for the day. He told us that we were going to do an obstacle course activity and gestured for us to follow him. Some people washed their hands before we left, as Encik Nizam led us.
Tadom Base Camp has a lot of lakes and was built on an old tin mining pond. As our first activity was on an obstacle course near a hill, our instructors brought us to trek the mountain nearby. The trek was long and curvy, with some steep climbs and geographical challenges. Encik Nizam asked if I liked the trek and I said yes.
The trek route approached an obstacle course where we had a swing rope to hold and swing it in order to land on the other side of a pond. I wanted to take off my socks aside from removing my shoes, but however I was told that there were sharp rocks in the pond and I might hurt my legs. So, I was scared of falling, but however, I held onto the rope until it swung me back to the edge of the pond close to the launching platform. Most people fell into the water, but a few who escaped were pushed into the pool. I was the luckiest one as I escaped and broke free from the assistants who want to shove us into the water for fun.
Then, we continued and had more obstacles, such as going under nets or balancing ourselves. There were many obstacle courses and it reminded one of an army camp where people in Singapore's National Service had to scale obstacles with live guns. Once we had finished, we waited for our teammates to arrive.
Encik Nizam told us that there are many hiking places that we can go to, and when I asked about the areas within Klang Valley, he said that Bukit Kiara, FRIM (Forest Research Institute of Malaysia) and Broga Hill are one of the popular places within Klang Valley that are accessible. He was delighted when I told him that there is a hiking trail near my house in Puchong.
After our obstacle course activity, Encik Nizam then took us on another walking tour. I had to accompany Gabriel most of the time. Soon, he told us that we would be going for our lunch and that he could not take us further as we had little to no time. As there was another floating obstacle course activity, my clothes got wet and I went to change them before lunch. I went to the multipurpose hall near the bus parking area to change.
We then headed to the Bamboo Lakeside Bistro which is located near the lakeside, for lunch. I decided to sit and eat lunch with Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang, Joseph Diong, Sean Mark, and a few other people from our Bible Knowledge class. Joshua asked me if I had enjoyed my last field trip and I said yes. I then took the opportunity to mingle with other people like Gabriel Lim, Louis Soon, Yi Zhen, Glen Kay, Jason Leing and a few others. Some decided to have lunch elsewhere but most of us ate at the restaurant.
After lunch, we then broke out into different activities based on class. Encik Halim was conducting the next activity for us. As Encik Halim called for everyone’s attention, I belted out the marching command we say on Sports Day: “Squad! Attention!” and Zi Quan playfully said, “Check!” We first went to play a caterpillar game where everyone had to hold each other to move forward on a sandy surface using our legs without walking or using our hands to move around. Louis got very angry at me when the crawling process resulted in him getting splashed by the sand. Then, we then did a screw balancing game where we had to balance 13 screws on a pencil supported by a few sticks. Ze Khai and I brainstormed ideas to prop up the stand, but however it kept on collapsing till Encik Rizal, who was assigned to our group, showed us the proper way to do so. And finally, we had to do a memory game. So one person would be required to meet with the instructor to remember a structure but however, we cannot communicate it verbally, but using sign language from our hands. Then, one person is required to draw the structure and get it correctly based on what we heard from that person who would communicate with us.
Wee Shiang was the first one to volunteer to spot the image that Encik Rizal told her and she tried to describe it but without success. I was then tasked with spotting and Encik Rizal changed the image in order to ensure that people don't cheat. However, some of my group members understood what I told them and almost got the image right.
We then went for a riddle contest near the place where the buses were parked. I took the opportunity to collect some oil palm seeds from the oil palm trees nearby which I would use to plant at my house. Mr Kevin was curious as to where I would plant the trees, and I was given a plastic bag to keep them. I initially held them on my clothes before being given the plastic bag by Mr Kevin. Once we were done, we took a group photo before being directed by Ms Renee back to the buses.
It started getting cloudy as the bus departed Tadom Base Camp. Our bus driver decided to use the KLIA Expressway to head back to school. While the bus was approaching the KLIA Mosque and the Movenpick Hotel, which had nice Islamic designs and was then under construction, I took the time to enjoy the hotel's architecture and take the sights of KLIA and KLIA2's control towers from the distance. There were many planes flying at low altitude because of the proximity of the airport's runways. Many of them were either taking off and landing, and there were many AirAsia planes departing the airport.
Many people closed the curtains and tried to sleep, while I looked out of the window. The bus soon drove on the KLIA Expressway with large power lines and signboards located on both sides of the expressway. Soon, the bus entered the ELITE Expressway and continued towards Nobel. From the ELITE Expressway, I could see Puchong in the distance as well as my neighborhood nearby. The expressway was on a high elevation, hence the view.
As the bus turned onto the North Klang Valley Expressway, it started getting even more cloudy and it drizzled a little. Fortunately, we were able to return to Nobel back in time before heading home. Then, I went to practice running for my beep test, and waved at Yi Zhen as she reached home. We were in for a long weekend thanks to the Good Friday holiday that Nobel was observing.
The new week started as Mr Steve called me early in the morning for a practice session. He did the practice session with me. Apparently, Julian Ong had gotten unwell and had a sore throat. Mr Steve told him to rest even though Julian had committed to performing in the skit. His responsibilities of performing Eric's role in the skit were soon taken over by Sherwin, who learnt the skit by heart.
During the morning assembly, Ms Praveen then informed everyone who passed by the Year 11 classes to keep quiet as the Year 11s’ Art and Design Mid Year Examination was about to begin. We went to the Art Studio and took our art supplies before heading to 11N and 11O for the exam. Since 11O and our class, 11N, were being used for the examination, many people had to keep their books outside of the classroom as we had no time to pack them away. Some people were blessed with lockers, but I wasn't so lucky. Fortunately, I had taken some of the books away. And then, instantly immediately, I was struck with a second crisis of my control book handling. While I had to entrust Sheng Jit with the control book as I was going for the Art Exam, it wasn't like the same arrangement on Sports Day's rehearsals and practices, as I had an exam to sit and could not bring the Smartboard equipment and other equipment and related stationery to the respective venues.
This time, Sheng Jit had to bring the control book to Tutorial Room 4 on my behalf because not just 11N's classroom was being used for the exam, but at the same time, I was also an Art and Design IGCSE student sitting for the Art Exam. Mr Kevin Wai told me not to worry and quickly head for my exams. Sheng Jit was requested to help me carry the Smartboard equipment to 11N, since the Smartboard was to be used for the examination, and then take the control book to the Tutorial Room 4. A couple of minutes later, Sheng Jit called for me as Ms Visa had asked for me to meet her, but however, I had to let him know that the exam was about to start. Ms Praveen informed Sheng Jit to let Ms Visa know about that matter and reminded him that non-art students should not be in the area. It wasn't just 11N alone; 11O's classroom was also used for the exams.
At the front of the room, Ms Nadia, Ms Praveen and Ms Yew Foong Ching were loading the computer with music that everyone had requested them to play during the Art Exam. Two red plastic pails were placed outside the rooms for students to collect water and dispose water without the need to head to the washroom to do so. Then, Ms Nadia passed our prep works for Paper 1 to each and every one of us to be placed at our desks for reference during the exam.
“Okay students, no talking. Please settle down; we are going to start the exam,” said Ms Yew, who was settling the logistics for the exam. Ms Nadia then handed A2 papers for us to paint on. Then, we were told to begin. Everyone was given two days to finish the exam, but it could only be finished during the exam period, which was from 8:00am to 10:00am, and then 10:30am to 12:30pm on the two days; 17th and 18th April 2017.
The exam soon started and we begun the exam. Aside from the two buckets outside the classroom, there was also a hair dryer attached to a power plug where we could dry our painting if needed.
At the time of the examination, certain areas of Selangor and Kuala Lumpur were experiencing water cuts, rendering the taps unusable. Hence, water was stored in large pails located around the school. To prevent us from clambering for water like rioters, we were given two pails; one to dispose and one to collect water. There was limited water supply for the whole school.
I first started drawing the gate's grills using my ruler. It was important to get things right. Drawing the gate was easy as it involved simple drawing techniques. I drew the straight lines of the gate. Then, I took time to draw my hand holding the grill. It took me a few tries to get the form right as I took out a picture that I have brought for the purpose of drawing the final piece for Paper 1.
I spent 45 minutes to sketch the entire drawing. Then, once that was done, I took out my water color paint and containers and went to fill the containers up with water. I stationed some cloth, ready to clean my brushes if needed. I had also worn an apron since the beginning of the exam so that I could prevent my clothes from getting dirty.
I took out green paint and poured the paint onto my palette. Then, I took some black paint, dipped my brush on it and darkened the green paint before painting my gate. I took some yellow paint, mixed it with the green paint that was darkened, and got a real color for the gate. Ms Nadia had told me before that the color of objects that I paint are not exactly 100 percent the color they are, and is in fact a mixture of different colors. Hence, she told me that every color needed some form of mixing, which is why I mixed the color of the paint. Then, I painted each and every metal grill of the gate.
After painting the gate, I then proceeded to focus on painting the color of my hand. This was a bit tricky, so I took some red and orange paint and mixed them together before dipping white paint to lighten the color. I felt more nervous painting a picture of my hand as it involved a lot of shape and form, and as such, was not that simple.
By the time I finished painting the picture of my hand, it was already 9:30am, and I was afraid of toning the colors of my hand on the art paper. So, I decided to paint the floor of my house first. The floor consisted of nice tiles and a corrugated concrete wall. That was quite straightforward.
At 10:00am, we were told to stop painting and to head for our break time. Ms Nadia then stopped playing the music in the classroom. Ms Yew told us to leave our things on the table as some of us were keeping our stuff. We then left the room and headed for our break time. I went to find Mr Raja to sign the control book. Apparently, Mr Raja was not in that day, so I needed to find the relief teacher who took over his class. I went to find Sheng Jit, and asked if the control book affairs was settled as I was in the Art Exam. Sheng Jit then told me that Ms Visa had called me, but Mr Kevin had settled the matter as I was in the exam.
The teacher that took over Mr Raja's class that morning was a Ms Yong who had taught Science for Year 9. I went to find her and got the control book initiated. After a quick break time session, we then went for the second session of the Art Exam.
The sound of Bohemian's Rhapsody illuminated the room as many of us had an upbeat feeling. It was the song associated with Ms Feeda and the Art and Design culture of the previous years. The song caused people to smile and dance a bit. It was a lively song. When some people almost laughed, they were told to keep quiet. Different teachers took turns to invigilate us. The first session was coordinated by Ms Paulina and Ms Ambiga; two English teachers who taught the Year 7 students. The second session was being monitored by Ms Nadia, who came to see us for a short while, and Ms Chua.
I continued to paint the hand and tried to use water color to draw on the hand. However, I smeared the image of the hand after applying and repainting the tone with dark. Worried for which I was unable to continue using the water color to tone and paint the hand perfectly, I decided to use pencil and pen to do some hatching techniques to shade the hand. The hand was really disjointed and as a result, the hand looked like that of a gorilla's, no thanks to shading, re-shading, recoloring and a lot of water mixtures on my hand. Even so, somehow, I had used a lot of water till I had to wait for 20 minutes to get the painting to dry.
While waiting for the hand to dry, I thought of plastering some paper over it and re-coloring the hand, since it looked botched. However, I decided to use toning to touch it up instead. I decided to just shade the hand using my pen and pencil. I spent the next two hours just shading my hand.
As I was about to use the dryer, I asked Ms Chua if I could bring the hair dryer to the back as the paper was drenched in water. It was soaked. Ms Chua allowed me to bring the hair dryer and assisted me to set it up. However, Benjamin Tenji wanted to use, so I had to bring it to the front and let him use. Ms Chua told me to wait my turn and let Benjamin Tenji use as we had a commotion over who should use the hairdryer first.
At 12:30pm, we finished the first half of the exam. Ms Praveen, Ms Sha, Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Nadia then came into the class. Ms Praveen asked us to stop drawing. Some people were still drawing, and Ms Praveen said that they must stop. Everyone stopped and were told to clean their art utensils. We were allowed to head to the washroom to clean them. Then, Ms Praveen said that while we were allowed to leave our art supplies inside the classroom, the door would be locked and we would not be allowed to access the room till the second session of the exam the next day. So, some people took their art supplies away from 11N before the class was closed and locked.
It took us 30 minutes to keep our art supplies. Ms Chua then told me that I shouldn't take the hair dryer to my seat as it was against examination policy; even though the paper was really soaked. We then went for our lunch, and I got the control book down for lunch as I wanted to prepare for the Character Transformation session. While having lunch with Sophie, we talked about the logistics and housekeeping issues for our Art exam.
During the Character Transformation session, we had educational consultants promoting tertiary studies in America to come over and speak. Then, Mr Gallagher told us to continue our Individual Reflection Essay for the Group Project. In the closing reports, Vicky was the one writing the main report while Glen and I were left to our individual essays.
When the Monitor's Council meeting recommenced that afternoon, Ms Sharon and Ms Cynthia then discussed on how to solve the various problems faced by the monitors. One of the problems was the arrangement of books in the basket. I proposed helping our classmates arrange their books by demonstrating on how to arrange a desk basket in the class for them, but most people wouldn't be too happy with folks arranging their baskets’ items in class. However, I told them that one way to solve the control book problem was to write all the dates in advance and find the teachers and let them sign if need be. If they had defaulted on autographing the control book, then it would be best to let the teacher know at a time of convenience to the monitors themselves, as each monitor has their own schedule. For me, I would settle all technicalities once school had ended before heading home. After the Monitor's Council meeting ended, I asked Ms Sharon on what happened during the Economics lesson as I was away for the Art Exam. Ms Sharon then said that she briefed the class that she would give some past year papers for us to do during the Study Camp the coming weekend. I told her that I would meet her after the end of the exam the next day, during break time.
The next day, we returned for our Art and Design exam's second session. I had brought along a color pencil and another printed paper with the reference of my hand. While everyone was re-directed to their Reading Time, I went straight away to the Art Studio to get my art supplies before heading to 11N for the Art Exam preparation. I placed my things there, and all the art students had to wait outside 11N while Ms Sha, Ms Yew and Ms Praveen arrived. They unlocked the room, and Ms Nadia also arrived to prepare the room for the exam.
The examination was soon about to commence. I went to the pigeon hole and took the control book and Smartboard equipment. I brought the control book to Tutorial Room 4 and gave it to Sheng Jit for him to handle. Afterwards, I asked Mr Kevin Wai if I could bring the Smartboard tools to 11N so that Ms Nadia would be able to set up the room. He said that there was no need to do so and that I could return the Smartboard tools to the pigeon hole. So, I kept the Smartboard stationery away before returning to 11N for the Art Exam.
I put on my apron, entered the class, set up my art supplies and painting equipment, and went to use the washroom before the start of the test. Then, I returned to the room. Ms Nadia and Ms Sha were testing the speakers and the computer. I had decided that all control book activity be settled upon the completion of the exam. Apparently, in the commotion the previous day, I almost lost the Smartboard equipment because the room was locked, but took it out in time.
The second session of the Art Exam soon started, and I begun to touch up my hand nicely so that it didn't look like the fist of a beast. Then, I started using my pencil to shade the grills of the gate till they came off nice and well.
I then shaded the hand and used a bit of black paint to paint the hand. It looked okay and it came off well as well. Then, once that was done, I did some touch-ups on the walls behind the grill of the gate. Before long, it was break time, and we had to put away our painting equipment.
When I went to see Ms Sharon, she told me that apparently, not much would be done except for the past year papers. Then, I went to meet Mr Steve. He told me about the rehearsal for Awards Day, which will commence after lunch following the Art Exam. He said that for me, I was able to comprehend and understand the skit, which was good and he had no problems. He told me to meet him after lunch as usual as communicated via WhatsApp.
Then, during the second session of the Art Exam, I was able to complete the touchups for the painting. I spent most of the time touching up the hands and the gate grills. The joyful music played in the background from the Smartboard's speakers.
When everyone was done with the exam, we had to fill in the relevant information regarding the exam, such as our name, class, title of the painting and the question number. For the title of the painting, we had to write the name of the question for Paper 1, since it was short. I just wrote the title ‘A view through a gate’. Then, we kept our art supplies and equipment and returned them to the Art Studio. Ms Praveen said that 11N students can only use the class from the next day onwards.
Following lunch, I then went to the school hall for the Awards Day Rehearsal. The school hall was filled with activity, as there was a dance performance and all the award winners ready for the rehearsal. Mr Steve then gathered me, Sherwin, Vicky, Alexandria and Ellie for a final rehearsal on the skit.
Mr Steve said that I had one of the best acting skills and encouraged the other four to act as cool as possible. He said that normally, if one were to act according to the script, it would be good, but trying to act in layman terms according to the Malaysian context would seem funny, and if one were to even forget some of the words, it was okay, as we were acting as 70-year-old senior citizens. He also said that there was no need to memorize the script word by word, and that since it was a really expedited rehearsal, any one of us could not have time to memorize or remember everything and that we can help one another out while performing on stage. After all, we have to act like old folks.
Our skit was the first performance of the day, and Mr Steve then said that this will then be followed by four of the outgoing Class of 2016 speaking, namely Marcus Yong, Alicia Samantha, Serena Chia and Hong En Eng. Marcus and Alicia had been awarded the Top in Malaysia and Top in the World for Mathematics, Additional Mathematics as well as Art and Design respectively. Following the speeches, there will be a presentation of the awards before a performance by the Dance CCA to end the Awards Day ceremony.
Mr Steve had a dry run of the rehearsal. While waiting for the rehearsal to begin, Sherwin told me to make sure that I stay in the same dorm as him and Joshua Chew so that they can comfort and take care of me during the camp. The teachers said that the camp is compulsory although in the permission slip, it was optional. At the same time, I feel that it is important as I don't feel confident of getting the necessary five credits needed to enter a college course. Most college courses require five credits from the IGCSE exams for a successful enrolment.
Some of the people who were gathered at the rehearsal were the best in their subjects. They include Yi Zhen, who was the best in Art and Design, Justin Yeo, the best in Mathematics, Berlinda Tan, who was awarded the best for the Bible Knowledge subject, as well as many other award winners from Year 8 to 10, not to also mention that award winners from the 2016 Year 11 batch were present as well. On another note, Alexandria Goh was given the best in subject award for Malaysian Studies.
We then had one rehearsal and our skit opened the event. I was the first to start acting. Come to think of it; the skit that we were presenting consist of the same group of people from our Mercy Ship Project. It was so cool; like a sequel.
Then, all of us had a conversation. Little did we know that the last part of the script, which we had to mention that Mr Steve would say a phrase when pretending to recall; “Academic excellence, along with solid character and good attitude will bring you far in life”, would be exactly the words Mr Steve said on the Awards Day.
Awards Day 2017 was held on 19th April 2017. All the Year 11s were required to attend the Awards Day. On that day, I was one of the performers participating in a skit for the Awards Day.
The school hall that morning was closed for the rehearsal for Awards Day. There was a final dress rehearsal that we had to do that morning for Awards Day. All students had to go up to their classes early that morning.
I had my breakfast that morning before going up to 11N to put my things down. There, I switched on the computer and Smartboard before heading to the pigeon hole to collect the control book and Smartboard equipment pouch. As I passed the management office on the way to the pigeon hole, I greeted Ms Bee Yong, had a chat with her about the Study Camp, and returned back to 11N to set up the Smartboard equipment
When Ms Bee Yong and I had a chat, she asked me if I was coming for the Study Camp and I said. She said that the Study Camp is very important for Year 11s as our IGCSE preparations would be honed from there.
Upon returning to 11N, I begun writing all the information in the control book for the month of May. I wrote the information for every single schooling day, from 1st May all the way till 16th June. Then, following a chat with Krystal Goh, I then went to find Mr Steve. He asked us to be present in the school hall at 8:00am.
At 8:00am, I informed Mr Kevin Wai, who was taking attendance, that I was needed by Mr Steve for the Awards Day Rehearsal. We will have one final rehearsal from 8:00am till 9:30am. The Awards Day itself will begin at 10:00am, and all Year 11s had to go for break time at 9:30am before the Awards Day begins at 10:00am sharp.
I also brought formal wear, complete with a tie. It was my first time wearing a tie in school. Mr Steve said that the six of us actors would need to dress up formally because we had to look like really successful people who had done some great contribution and innovation to the world.
Mr Steve and Ms Sarah then briefed everyone participating in Awards Day. The award recipients were told where to walk and what to do. The award presentations would be handed out by Auntie Clarine herself, as well as Mr Tan Seng Kee, the executive director of Nobel International School.
We then went up for a final rehearsal our opening skit before the awards presentations begun. Then, while the presentation of awards were in progress, Sherwin and I had a short chat about the Study Camp. Following the rehearsal, Mr Steve told all of us to go and change into our respective attires for Awards Day.
After changing into formal wear, I placed my uniform in a bag and placed it next to my seat. Then, we headed to the canteen for breakfast. Sean Mark was surprised that I wore a tie for the first time. I then had breakfast with Caleb Chuang and San Ying, who talked about me performing on Awards Day. This performance gave me a morale boost as it mentally replaced what I have lost on Sports Day. I was able to be at least one of the most ‘prominent’ people since I wasn't allowed to march in front and lead.
At 9:45am, we returned into the school hall and sat down on our seats. Each performer was given a seat in front of the hall. There were two rows of seats with a central walkway in the middle. Eight sofas and a glass table were placed on the walkway for the VIPs, namely Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Auntie Clarine, Mr Tan Seng Kee, Ms Sim, Ms Praveen, Ms Lim and Ms Ingel, who represented the Elementary School at the event, despite this event being solely for the Junior and Senior School.
Sherwin then wished all of us the very best. Mr Steve, who was walking around, briefed us on what to do. He then gave us the thumbs up and then told us to wait for his signal to call us to the steps of the stage. Then, all the Year 11s came into the hall, sat down, and were told by Ms Sim about what to expect. In reality, the previous year's graduating batch would be giving speeches to us in order to inspire us and to tell us how to ace our IGCSE exams in October. The teachers wanted us to have knowledge from the best of the best, as those students have done well in their IGCSE exams.
At 9:55am, Mr Steve then told us to go to the steps of the stage. We then sat in the holding area and then Sherwin, Alexandria Goh, Vicky and Ellie Lim were directed on stage. I was to walk onto the stage and greet them. Then, the time came to start, and Mr Steve told me to go onto the stage.
As I got on stage, I greeted Sherwin and interacted with them, and I almost forgot one part of the script at the beginning. Fortunately, I decided to play up to what Mr Steve said; act as old folks during the skit.
The skit went well. Alexandria Goh and Vicky were dressed in black dresses, while Sherwin had a boe tie and I had a long tie. Both of us were dressed in black, too, except that Sherwin's shirt was black, just like his black jacket.
After the skit was done, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah appeared on stage to welcome everyone to the Awards Day 2017. They then said the phrase we were belting out: “Academic excellence, along with solid character and good attitude will bring you far in life.”
Mr Steve then talked about how Nobel International School aims for everyone of us students to achieve this through the school's five core values, with character transformation being at the heart of this to achieve all three, along with the balance between academics and co-curricular activities.
Then, Auntie Clarine was invited to give a speech. She congratulated the award winners for their dedication and passion for demonstrating the school's core values. She gave a long speech, followed by the speeches from the previous batch of students.
Marcus Yong, the winner of the Top in the World award winner for Mathematics and Additional Mathematics, told all of us Year 11s on what we were to expect during the Study Camp and we came to Awards Day to learn from the best. He also said that as our IGCSE exams were arriving, it is best to start sooner than later. Alicia Samantha told her story about the struggles she had overcome as an IGCSE student. This was then followed by Bryan George, who was an additional speaker invited the event. He gave some study skills and tips for us Year 11s and emphasized on the past year exam papers. This was then followed by speeches from Serena Chia and Hong En Eng as well. All five students had three pieces of advice for us: Do the past year questions, make notes, and seek help from teachers if one did not understand the topics.
Then, it came to the presentation of the awards to all the Year 8, 9, 10, 11 and ex-students. Each student who got the awards had to receive them from Mr Tan Seng Kee, who was presenting the awards. Following the award presentations, Ms Sim then came on stage and addressed the Year 11 students. She said that everyone was present as the main purpose was to get the tools and mindset that we will apply during the Study Camp as well as our long-term aim to study for the Mid Year Examination and eventually, the IGCSE Examination in October.
After Awards Day had finished, award winners took the opportunity to take pictures. Some ex students then took pictures and rejoiced with their teachers. Little would I know that I would soon become a part of the ex student club.
Following Awards Day, we then had Maths and then lunch. The Awards Day ended at around 11:30am. Then, we then proceeded to continue with our lessons. During Art, Ms Nadia then told us to finish our prep work as soon as possible for Paper 2. We were told that we had a deadline of 26th April 2017 to finish all prep works for the Mid Year Examination. Apparently, I then started on Prep 4 for Paper 2. I had to copy two photos of the Greenhouse logo from the Prep 3. I decided to use logos instead rather than incorporating them onto images. Then, Ms Visa then taught us about the Hungarian Uprising of 1956, which people in Hungary protested against communism, with the whole movement crushed by the Soviet Union. When I went for my Bible Knowledge class, Ms Renee told me that there was no need to study for Bible Knowledge. My aunt picked me up early. I was caught off guard by the announcement. Ms Renee told me not to dwell on the Bible Knowledge work and that I would be relieved from coming to the Bible Knowledge class. Little did I know that the previous week's Bible Knowledge lesson on 12th April 2017 would be my last-ever Bible Knowledge session. A class which begun on a high note ended in tons of workload for me. Ms Renee told me that the intention was to allow me to focus on the other IGCSE subjects. As the level leader for Year 11 and also a teacher teaching multiple subjects other than Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee knew how hard it is to focus on a difficult subject. It was a good choice if I gave up Bible Knowledge so that I could perform well in more borderline subjects to achieve the five credits needed to enter college.
I remembered that when Ms Renee discussed our Bible Knowledge papers for Assessment 1, she asked if I could cope. And she also told the class that the future students who are sitting for Bible Knowledge might need to take their exams at night. Yes, at night, and as late as 8:00pm. This is to ensure that the Key Time for IGCSE exams for morning, afternoon and evening were adhered to for exam security purposes.
The next morning, all Year 11 students had to stay back for a briefing on the Study Camp. We were given the schedule for Study Camp. Everyone had to be in school by 7:30am as the bus would by then leave for Paradise Valley, in the rural town of Broga, which is divided by the Selangor-Negeri Sembilan border. We were told to line up according to our bus number, bring the necessary items as per the list of the Study Camp, such as stationery, past year papers and also accessories such as towels and toothpaste as asked by the teachers. We were also allowed electronic devices, but it should only be used to listen to music during the study process. Everyone should also come in their 2017 Sports Day Attire, and room selection would be held at the campsite.
During the Economics lesson that morning, Ms Sharon handed us two booklets of the past year exam papers for Economics. We had to do the past year papers during the Study Camp, and Ms Sharon told us to bring it for the Study Camp. The past year papers covered questions from 2014 to 2016 for Paper 1 and Paper 2 for Economics. Then, it was Malaysian Studies, and Ms Cynthia told us that she would extend the Malaysian Studies coursework deadline by another month, to the end of May. She was disappointed as our class had not begun the Malaysian Studies coursework; although I did present a few ideas.
Later, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra told us that past year papers would be given by her to do during the session. The same was said with Ms Visa and Cikgu Niely, who would provide work for us during the camp. Ms Visa then taught us about the Prague Spring, which was a similar but much peaceful liberalization process in Czechoslovakia. Sadly, the Soviet Union had to put an end to this by sending the Soviet army and that of other communist countries into Czechoslovakia.
During the lessons, many people just asked on what the activities would be during the camp. Brandon Ooi said that it would look very boring, but our teachers told us that it was a ‘study camp’ and our sole focus was on studying and not fun and games. On another note, during lunch time, I participated in the Beaver Computational Thinking Competition. I had to make an early lunch and then head to the ICT lab for the Beaver Competition. Ms Yew Foong Ching was supervising the competition. The competition was held during the KS4 lunch hours for my convenience. I was the only Year 11 participating in the competition. Most Year 11s were focused on preparing for their IGCSEs, and hence, did not join.
I could see younger people such as Kai Yang and Sebastian Kon participating in the contest. The competition involved in the competition. The competition tested on basic literacy and numeracy skills. I spent 45 minutes on the competition before heading back to class.
Ms Bee Yan then provided us with a booklet for the Mathematics past year papers. The booklets contained Paper 2 and Paper 4 questions from 2011 to 2016. And Mr Thomas briefed us about the camp. He said work would be given on Paper 2 and Paper 3, which contained a reading passage.
Then, during the Editorial Board, Ms Levina asked me as to why I was not done with the interviews and only managed to interview Ms Vishalini. I told her about the Art Exam as well as the extra classes, the preparation for Study Camp as well as the Awards Day skit practices. When CCAs first resumed, I was asked by Ms Levina to compile a list of teachers so that questions can be asked for the yearbook. However, I was most of the time thinking about all these issues. Fortunately, I compiled most of them, but I didn’t have enough time to interview them and lagged on that.
The purpose of the Year 11 Study Camp is to allow us Year 11 students to have deep focus on our IGCSE studies, train us on how to study for a major examination using a series of study skills and also allow us to answer and ask queries for exams from our teachers.
As the Mid Year Examination takes place immediately after the conclusion of the Study Camp, the teachers told us that this is a good opportunity for us to get our errands done. The Malay IGCSE written exams take place on 2nd May and 10th May for Paper 4 and 2 respectively, so during the Study Camp, we had a session with Cikgu Niely planned for us to address any issue we had for Malay IGCSE. Many of our teachers had asked us to bring past year papers, exercise books and some related stationery which they would ask us to use during the Study Camp. I even had to bring my art supplies so that I can paint at the camp.
Nobel International School had been conducting study camps since 2016. This was done in par to exert the seriousness of the IGCSE exams, ensure that we know what was expected of us, and indirectly, to continue the tradition of IGCSE greatness which had bagged Top in Malaysia awards since 2014.
21st April 2017 was the date of our Study Camp. It will last for three days, till the 23rd April 2017. Although I am not a fan of camps, I still came because I wanted to prioritize my IGCSE exams and get the five credits I need to enter college and avoid being a dropout.
Our teachers had given us a briefing on what to bring for Study Camp and had given a list of things that is recommended to be brought. Among the things we had to bring were extra clothes, towels, toothbrushes, shampoo, water containers and most importantly, stationeries that we need to use for our study camp activities. My mum helped me to pack all of them into a luggage bag to be brought to the camp. I brought two bags; a backpack and that luggage bag which contained my clothes. On another note, Mr Nehru had also written a note for me before the camp, wishing me all the best and asking me to fully utilize the techniques and discipline he taught me to do the Mathematics questions at Study Camp. He told me not to worry and that the camp will change my life by shaping me into a different person.
I bid farewell to my mum as we assembled in the corridor near the school courtyard. Everyone was sitting and talking to each other before we lined up at the corridor which faced the toilets on the ground floor. While waiting for the teachers to take our attendance, I looked around the cheerful environment of Nobel International School. The courtyard was bustling with the cheers of kids. The canteen was filled with people studying, and the corridors were crowded with people heading for their class lines. We were then instructed to gather according to our bus list which is placed according to our class, at the dismissal area.
I spent most of my time talking to Krystal Goh, Grace Tee and Gabriel Lim. Even Glen came to my comfort. I had to do two camps in a year. Honestly speaking, in order to graduate from Nobel and enter college and university and become a successful person, I need to pass five credits in my IGCSE exams. My results thus far were of worrying concern, as I mainly get a lot of Cs and Ds for my exam results. I wasn't an academically striving person, but more of a socially active person. Talk about being street smart. To ensure that I pass my IGCSE exams, I need to study. And the Study Camp is the best time for me to prepare for this all-important exam.
And I had not gone to a camp before ever since I entered Nobel. I should be very blessed to be chosen as assistant monitor, and I thank Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Visa and my friends in 11N as well as the people in the Monitor's Council who had appreciated, supported and given good rapport to me along the way.
If I wasn't an assistant monitor, I would not be attending the Leadership Camp, and would not even have a chance to prepare for the Study Camp, which is to prepare me for my IGCSE exams, and that IGCSE result would take me to college and university where I will earn my degree and get a good job in the future. That is the ultimate aim and goal of every student and their parents. Back in 2014, my mum expressed concern over my poor grades. She was afraid that I will become a dropout. My mum told me that if I failed my IGCSE exams, I would not be able to return to Nobel to re-take the exam, and I would not be able to proceed with the college applications, thus rendering me a dropout. And this is what nobody wants. Hence, Study Camp is the ultimate aim for me to successfully enter into college. My mum told me that dropouts will be shamed by society, have no respect and are out of jobs, which can make them a very pitiful society. It is very difficult for dropouts to earn money and are unable to survive. My mum wouldn't want me to be part of that club. So, in order to not be part of that club, I need to get five credits in my IGCSE exams. And a good way to do so was to be part of the Study Camp, which will help me prepare for it. And in order to know how I entered a camp, I had to prepare for one by joining one. And the Leadership Camp was good bet for it.
Mind you, if I did not join the Leadership Camp, only 11O, 11B, 11E and 11L would be represented at the camp. There were no prefects from 11N, making me 11N's sole Leadership Camp representative.
Our teachers then arrived and begun taking our attendance. Our class teachers took attendance as according to our class. Mr Kevin was taking the attendance for 11N, Ms Yong for 11O, Ms Chua for 11B, Ms Renee for 11E and Mr Lee for 11L. Ms Lim arrived with a serious look and talked to Jordan Tay and a few people. When she approached me, she asked if all was good and I said yes.
“Okay, Year 11!” Ms Lim cried. “Are you all ready to study?” she asked. All the Year 11s groaned and I did not know how to react because of being homesick and thinking about my academics at the same time. It looked like a silly question one should be asked, but it was a serious one.
We then boarded the buses as we looked as the last cars passed through the school compound and some latecomers arrived. Oh, how I wished I was like the rest of them, still in school, studying and going about our daily lives as usual. We were asked to wear our sports attires for the day. Five buses were catered to send us to Paradise Valley Resort, the location of our Study Camp 2017. Wearing the 2017 Sports Day attire reminded me of the harrowing horror of Bullseye's loss and the bitter experience.
After everyone boarded the buses, the buses drove off and made their way to the LDP Highway and drove past Bandar Sunway in the direction of Puchong. As the bus passed the Sunway interchange and made their way to the Kesas Highway, I can make out the last view of Puchong, and home sweet home before I can only see it on Sunday. The buses made their way to the Sungai Besi Expressway and onto the Kajang Bypass past Mines Resort City. I then saw some MRT stations that were newly built but yet to open under the second phase of the Kajang Line, and as soon as we knew it, we were on the Lekas Highway on the way to Broga. I just spent most of my time seeing the scenery and view from the bus to cheer myself up. Gabriel Lim tried to comfort me by saying that it was a camp.
Okay, to confess. Well, to him, it felt like going on a cruise ship. For me, it was like as if I was drowning in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with no one to help me.
Paradise Valley Resort is a secluded resort about 45 minutes from Kajang. It is located on the borders of Selangor and Negeri Sembilan in the town of Broga, which itself is divided into two, namely Broga, Selangor and Broga, Negeri Sembilan.
The resort consists of a fence that appears to look like an American West ranch fence. Inside the premises of the resort lie a main access road that appears more of a dirt-like road at first, but it leads to a large parking area. On the left hand side of the parking area were a few basketball and futsal courts, as well as small houses in which guests of the resort can rent for a fee to stay in the resort. Towards the inside behind those houses are windy, trail roads where one can jog or hike. The roads were mostly level and flat so that a car or heavy lorry can trudge on it.
In front of the parking lot, facing from the front entrance, are a series of obstacle courses. To the right of the parking lot lie a cafeteria where one can enjoy the view of a lake which you can canoe-kayak on, and beside the cafeteria is the Function Hall of the resort where individuals can book for meetings, fairs, team building events and other activities. Behind the Function Hall are the dorm rooms which we would be staying in.
Upon arrival, we gathered in the Function Hall of the resort for a briefing. Accompanying us on the camp were Ms Sim, Ms Renee, Mr Nick, Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Bee Yan, Ms Cynthia, Ms Sha and Mr Lee who will put up the night with us. The teachers asked us to sit on our assigned seat in the function hall. I was seated next to Jia Yee. A diagram was installed on a notice board for us to know our seating arrangements.
The Function Hall had medium-sized windows at the two sides of the hall. There is a glass door behind the hall, and the curtains that cover the windows have pine trees and natural landscaping on them. Inside the hall, the teachers had already placed brown tables that measure close to four metres long so that two people can sit on the same table. The chairs were covered with cloth to make it comfortable for us. There were eight rows of tables and there was a large space between the first half of the tables from the front to the middle, and the rest towards the back, in the middle of the hall as a large walkway for the teachers to walk past. There are tables behind the function hall for teachers to have a rest.
At the front of the hall, there was a large table and a microphone stand for teachers to make announcements to us. Behind the table, against the walls, were stacks of worksheets, past year papers, documents and all other things prepared by the teachers for the Study Camp for us to do. Everyone had to sit according to our classes in the order of our names.
Ms Renee and Ms Sim got on the microphone and asked us to settle down. Ms Sim was looking sternly as everyone was coming in slowly, so Ms Renee asked everyone to move quickly. All the teachers were there, seated or standing, but anxious and a bit serious as everyone entered the hall.
“Okay, good morning, Year 11 students,” called Ms Sim. There was no response.
“I repeat, good morning, Year 11 students.” The crowd was more energetic.
Ms Sim welcomed us to Study Camp and thanked us for coming. She said that we will be spending three days focusing on our studies and preparing for the Mid Year Examination, and eventually, the IGCSE examination. “I want everyone to be focused on their studies during this camp. Do I make myself clear?” she asked. We all said yes. Ms Renee told us that during the Study Camp, we would be spending time on the work that our teachers gave us and the ultimate aim of the camp is to get us to study.
Ms Sim said that everyone will be called to wake up with the sound of a siren blasted across the resort's premises. We were told that we could refill our water supply at three water coolers located in front of our dorms, at the cafe next to the Function Room and at a cooler located behind the tables where the teachers rested. Everyone was required to attend all activities, and no one was allowed to leave the confines of Paradise Valley Resort at any time. All students would need to remain in their dorms from the time they slept till the next morning when they woke up. Oh well. The last policy was a problem for me. Ms Sim emphasized that all the policies she mentioned must be followed and no nonsense would be allowed during our three-day stay.
The time was then passed to the resort staff who gave us a briefing about the amenities of the resort. They then gave us a wristband to keep and also explained the emergency contact number, customer service counter and any important information and contacts that we can ask about the resort.
After this, this was then followed by a talk by Ms Cynthia in which we had to learn how to set goals. Ms Cynthia then said that setting goals is important as this will allow us to navigate and achieve what we intend to achieve. Without goals, we could not get anywhere, and the same is said with our IGCSE exams. Ms Cynthia then gave us a worksheet for us to outline what goals we plan to achieve in the next one month, three months and six months from April 2017.
After Ms Cynthia’s session, we then proceeded to keep our bags in the dorms at 11:00am. The dorms were divided into male and female dorms, and I slept in the same dorm as Sherwin and Joshua Chew, who had agreed to take care of me and attend to my needs during the camp. The dorms were filled with stacked beds, but at least, the toilet was luxurious. Then, at 11:30am, we went for lunch and I ate with Joshua Chew and Sherwin. The two of them then told me that I can ask them questions or address my concerns, and they would talk my concerns with my teachers. I told Joshua and Sherwin about my sleep schedule. He told me that they will bring me to speak to Ms Renee later in the evening.
While having lunch with them, I kept on cheering myself up by looking at the green scenery and the crystal-clear waters of the lake. Ten red tents were pitched by the resort staff for folks who wanted to camp by the lakeside. The lush mountain scenery reminded me of the Awana Genting Highlands resort that I went as a kid.
Following lunch, we then had our first session for the day at 12:30pm, which included History, Economics, Global Perspectives and English Literature. Ms Visa had arrived to facilitate the session along with Ms Sharon, Ms Vishalini and Ms Cynthia. While there are students taking two or more similar subjects offered in the same block, we will need to focus on our blocks and subjects selected during the period as according to the daily timetable.
Each study session lasted a total of two hours, with 15-minute breaks in between. It was two hours of full concentration, and it was no joke. Ask one Year 11 student of the full concentration of studying, and they would tell you of tales that seemed like torture and nightmare. No one was allowed to move, walk, stretch or so on. We should be sitting still and studying. It was mentally bearing on all of us.
Teachers would take time to drive in from Nobel for their sessions with us. Many of them did not follow us via the bus ride from Nobel. Instead, they had to take the inconvenient trouble to come down to Broga, conduct their session, and return home following the end of the session.
“Okay, students, so now we will have the first block session which will comprise of History, Economics, Global Perspectives and English Literature,” said Ms Sim.
Ms Sim was disturbed by some people who were not listening and chattering among each other. “Who is still talking?” she asked.
Ms Sim then continued and said that for students who are taking Global Perspectives and English Literature, Mr Gallagher and Ms Sarah were waiting for them at the cafeteria where they will conduct their activities there. For the rest of us, the teachers started handing out work for us. Ms Sharon and Ms Vishalini asked all the Economics students to take out the past year papers they gave and to focus on the 2015 October and November series, Paper 2, variant 2. Ms Visa and Ms Cynthia handed out worksheets that focus on Paper 4 source questions for us to do.
The purpose of Study Camp, as mentioned earlier, was to get us focused on the books. As I am not an academic-wise person and someone who rarely seriously studied, it was very hard for me to focus on the work given to me, considering that the circumstances require me to sit at my seat for at least two and a half hours, or even three hours, just to do the work given to me.
What made it worse was that there was no clock in the room. So, as a result, I could not tell the time and had to ask people for the time of the day.
Each teacher presented students with their respective work or asked them to take out their study materials to do. The History students were given a couple of worksheets with source questions to do. For the Economics students, Ms Vishalini and Ms Sharon told them to do the May/June 2016 questions for Paper 2, Variant 1. The Global Perspectives students for Mr Gallagher's first batch of students were told to bring their electronic devices to the cafeteria to meet him and focus on research. And for the English Literature students, all of them had to take out The Merchant of Venice which was written by William Shakespeare and bring them along to the cafeteria, where Ms Sarah would also conduct her session.
The worksheets given by Ms Cynthia and Ms Visa for History contain source questions that touched on Nazi Germany, and since there were no Cold War topics, it did not simulate my enthusiasm for the session. Ms Visa went around and checked to see if we were okay. It was like the combination of an exam hall and it was, like, so torturing to sit on the Study Camp for so many long hours. We were also restricted from using the washroom too many times, so everyone could only go to the washroom once per session.
While we were doing our work, all the teachers went around to check on us, walking up and down the room and patrolling us like security guards. The 11N class row was largely empty because many of the students in 11N took English Literature, and were with Ms Sarah.
The room was as silent as an examination hall, but as noisy as a library. The room was initially hot. Then, it got cold. Afterwards, it then became warm again and then I became quite tired. The teachers walked around, and peered at everyone's work. On another note, the people from 11O were wearing their class jackets for the camp.
After the History session for me ended at 4:00pm, we then had a 15-minute break in which we got to stretch and do what we wanted to do. Most people just talked and chit chatted. Some went out for a walk, especially Chrisopher Chew, Sheng Jit and their parkour gang friends who went to do their moves at the basketball court. Ms Renee stopped them and then they came back as the 15-minute period was up.
During the break time, I had a chat with Ms Renee, Sherwin and Joshua Chew, who told me about how to navigate the technicalities of the camp. Then, I went to Mr Kevin Wai and had a chat with him about the Study Camp. He said we had to try our best to concentrate as the Study Camp was a test of patience and endurance. “The main purpose is for you to study; to prepare for your exams,” he said. “Your IGCSE will be in October, so you should know how to study,” he said.
The next session was Additional Mathematics, Economics and Global Perspectives. Ms Vishalini and Ms Sharon stayed and continued to give out the tasks, while Ms Janice arrived for the supervision of the session. Everyone was then informed by Ms Sim, who blew a siren for us. “Year 11 students, please come back now,” she said.
You see, some of the teachers drove all the way from Nobel to Paradise Valley Resort as they had class earlier in the day with their students. Not all teachers accompanied us on the bus ride, so there were some who came on their own just for the camp. Ms Visa, Mr Gallagher, Ms Sarah and Ms Janice are some of them just to name a few. They would go home once their sessions were finished.
Ms Sim then got on the line and made an announcement that the next session of Global Perspectives (GP) students would go and meet Mr Gallagher in the cafeteria while the rest would continue their session in the function hall.
Mr Gallagher then gathered us and then we worked on the group project report that we had been working on as part of our task for the Study Camp. Vicky then brought her computer and I just sat down, waiting for my time to type on the computer. I also brought my iPad for the Study Camp for me to write my part of the report, and Glen Kay used his phone to type his part. Each time I typed, I always thought of home and family while looking at the lake. Enisha took every free opportunity to stare at me with a serious look. While we typed, Mr Gallagher joked with a few people and asked them on their grades if they hadn't completed the work he had given them.
I focused on writing my Individual Reflection. In my reflection, I described on how Vicky wasn't as communicative as she was and did not spread the workload out. I saw the skies getting cloudy. It was a very cloudy day. The clouds were grey in color, and as soon as we knew it, it started raining. It rained and there was loud thunder as I kept my ears covered to prevent myself from being shocked by the excessive boom and bang of the thunderstorm.
Following the conclusion of our session with Mr Gallagher, we then returned back to the function room once we were done. My seat mate, Jia Yee, meanwhile, had a thick Additional Mathematics book and tons of stuff given by Ms Janice.
Ms Sim then told us to have a break. According to the schedule, it was meant to be a Games Time for us. This meant we could play sports if we needed. Those who weren't interested to play games were given the option of having a shower. So, I went back to my dorm and then called my mum using a small Nokia phone she gave me to keep in contact, and then went for dinner. I sat with San Ying, Yi Zhen, Sophie Tan and Krisha to have dinner. They comforted me on my second virgin camp experience and told me to reach out to them if I had anything that concerned me. After dinner, most people went for a walk. Wei Zhong, Sherwin, Joshua Chew, Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang, Joseph Diong and a few other people had a game of futsal with Mr Gallagher in the futsal court before he left. Everyone spent the evening having a walk and enjoying the sunset before heading back to the hall for our next activity. A few teachers, including Mr Raja, arrived.
The evening session on 21 April 2017 comprised of Economics for us 11N students. For the other classes, they had Biology and Physics with Mr Lee and Ms Renee. Ms Sharon then did our bit of past year papers and I tried to answer the questions posed in the past year question while Ms Sharon walked around. However, I did ask Ms Sharon on the tips on how I can write my essay as well as to check my answer style for the Paper 2 essay questions. Ms Bee Yong arrived that evening and also came to check on us as well. She was having a serious look in her face, feeling pleased on the projecting academic achievements in this Study Camp. Ms Lim, Ms Praveen and Mr Chan were also there that evening to see everyone. I tried to put on my best face just in case Ms Lim saw me, as she will tell me to grow up if I said that I am homesick, just like during the Leadership Camp.
After studying from 6:45pm to 8:45pm, we then had a 15-minute break. I saw Ms Sharon and Ms Vishalini go to their cars and get ready to head back home. Ms Sharon was driving a Kancil. Everyone went out to have a walk and enjoy the cool breeze. Mr Raja then stood in the distance and I went to talk to him about the weather. Everyone talked to each other while I went back into the function hall first. Then, Ms Renee went out and called everyone back into the hall.
This was then followed by the next block session which is Chemistry (for the other classes) and Combined Science (for 11N). It took place from 9:00pm to 11:00pm. Mr Lee then gave us some worksheets to do for Combined Science. He gave us three worksheets, namely Paper 2, Paper 4 and Paper 6, to attempt the questions. During the period, I felt so tired and also sleepy after a period of time as the study session carried into the midnight hours.
At 11:30pm, all of us were instructed to go back to our dorms and have some rest. Ms Renee then warned that the teachers would check on us, so we had to make sure we were hitting the sack. I stayed behind to talk to Mr Lee and Ms Renee while waiting for everyone to head back to their dorms.
I spoke to Mr Lee and asked some questions to him as I do not want to see everyone head back at once, so that I can have peace. Mr Lee and I talked about how to answer the Combined Science Paper 6 question, as I had trouble answering Paper 6 as the questions were an “Alternative to Practical” question and that I was a bit puzzled on how to answer a question which involved experiments and lab experience, since we do not go to the science lab every day. Mr Lee then said that all I had to do was to imagine what if it was me myself doing the experiments conducted in the question. I then nodded and asked him what if I did not know how the experiment looked like, since I am less likely to conduct an actual experiment almost everyday. He told me to refer to the textbook for the examples of the experiments or look at his notes, and that he would be available to have a one-to-one discussion with me if I still do not understand.
Mr Lee then asked me to get some rest, and then I went to see Ms Renee. Joshua Chew and Wei Zhong were talking to her. The both of them were discussing certain housekeeping things with her, while Joshua also asked her on tips to answer the Biology questions. They were also talking about the Christian Fellowship and the proposed Praise and Worship session for the coming Sunday. After Joshua finished speaking with her, I then spoke to Ms Renee and talked to her on the next day’s agenda. Ms Renee said that we would have breakfast served at 7:00am, while we would get ready by 8:00am for the next session. She then asked me to get some rest.
Ms Bee Yong then approached everyone and asked everyone to go to sleep. “Okay, go and sleep, please.”
I made my way to my dorm, took my pillows and slept in an enclosed corner below the stair ramps where there are walls across every side. In our dorm, which was on the ground floor, there was a stair ramp which I can see, but the ramp is for the stairs outside the dorm. There is an opening that has no door, but inside, there are walls around it that make it look like a mini room. I slept there as the rest of the boys made a lot of noise and laughed and had a bit of fun before sleeping. I also did not want people to disturb my sleep you see, and this is why I had not gone for any camp in Nobel before that. Not to mention that the lights were not off, so that was a problem too. Some people also wondered where was I, and only a few found me there. Jien Min and Sherwin saw me and asked me to sleep back on my bed so it was comfortable, but then I said, “nah, it’s OK, I will sleep down here.”
“You’re sure you want to sleep there?” asked Sherwin.
“Sweet dreams, Wei Yiang,” Joshua said as he saw me.
While waiting to sleep, I just heard people talking and stayed there till the lights were completely off. Ethan Wong, Jien Min and Ryan Toh’s voices were heard by me as I waited for the lights to switch off. Then, I heard Ms Bee Yong’s voice and then she was calling everyone to sleep. Ms Sha also tried to calm everyone down to rest and sleep. I also heard Ms Sim and Ms Renee’s voice too. Then, the lights were switched off and everyone quieted down as Ms Sim asked everyone to sleep. I then had a chat with my aunt and talked things. I talked as soft as possible so that no one will notice or hear me.
Then, Ms Renee was checking and then saw me sleeping in the corner below the stair ramp. Then she called me and I went outside the dorm and talked to her. Ms Renee asked why am I not asleep yet, and I told her I was homesick because I have never slept in a camp before, with the exception of the Leadership Camp. Beside her was Mr Nick, who was also on guard checking on everyone before they slept. Ms Renee understood my concern, but she also asked if it was my first camp and I said, “no it’s the second one. I went for Leadership camp in February this year.”
Ms Renee told me that the most important thing is that I get some rest before the next day’s session, as I have a whole day ahead of me. I then went and slept on the bed.
“Wei Yiang, you’re sleeping on the bed right?” asked Ryan Toh, and I said yes. I also told him I felt homesick and he said, “Don’t worry, just get some rest.”
“Oh, he’s missing his house, right? Never before I have seen someone miss his house,” Ethan Wong said.
“Don’t worry so much, Wei Yiang, sweet dreams, okay?” Joshua said.
“Everyone, let’s not disturb Wei Yiang, let him get some rest. He’s feeling very sad,” Sherwin quipped.
Some people tried to make some noise. Wei Zhong was whispering “Tom”, and then “Tomty Tomty” a couple of times for fun, referencing the year 2020, pronounced as “twenty twenty”, reminiscent of Wawasan 2020.
Ms Bee Yong then came in and checked. When the door opened for patrols, everyone stayed silent till she left. Then, after some time, Ms Sim came into the room. After she left, I pulled my blankets and bedsheets and pillows and slept under the corner because it was cold.
I only kept thinking about home, but I was telling myself in my head, “You should know why you are here today, Wei Yiang. IGCSE is more important than staying at home and being homesick. If you missed the camp, how are you going to focus on your IGCSE? What if you failed the IGCSE? Will you become a dropout?”
I stayed awake the whole night and could not sleep. Then, I woke up. It was 4:00am. I then lay down till 4:30am and then woke up with my Nokia phone my mum gave me, and walked around the resort. It is a norm for me to wake up early at that hour, even on weekends. I then took out my breakfast and then headed out to eat breakfast while walking around the resort. Then, I gave my mum a phone call and spoke to her. She was in the backyard reading articles on her phone. The backyard of my house is where I placed my plants, and my mum enjoys the cool air from the plants.
After calling my mum, I then walked around the resort and more people got up. Then, the sun rose, and at 7:00am, I saw Mr Lee come out of his dorm and stretched his legs, and soon, all the teachers came. I spoke to Mr Kevin Wai, Joseph Diong, Justin Yeo and Desmond Chan and when I found out that they were headed to Sunway College for the Sunway A Level Maths and Logic Competition, I was surprised, because I didn’t expect such a thing to happen.
“If you feel sad staying at Study Camp, you can follow them!” Mr Kevin Wai said with a laugh. My house is in Puchong, near Sunway College. Nobel is also within short driving distance. The Nobel school van was catered to bring them to Sunway College, and they were wearing school uniforms. Mr Kevin Wai accompanied them on their trip to Sunway.
When I explained to Ms Sha and Ms Bee Yong in a conversation just during breakfast time that I could not sleep the whole night because I was homesick, Ms Sha instructed me to go back and rest. She followed me back to the dorm and made sure that I had enough sleep. I then laid down on the bed and tried to think happy things, such as the video of the Singapore MRT trains that I watch at home. Ms Sha then came after a while and asked if I was okay, and afterwards, she said, “Please, go to sleep. You must sleep.”
I then woke up at 9:45am, close to 10:00am, and I brushed my teeth in the dorm. There were a lot of chargers attached to the sockets. Everyone charged their phones at night while sleeping.
Ms Sha was outside the function hall walking around and then saw me. I then made my way to my seat and tried to comprehend what went on. It turns out that there was an exercise being done in a workshop on how we can manage our time while studying.
Afterwards, I kept the worksheets given during the workshop and then ate more bread that I have brought to keep myself focused. Then, I returned to the Function Hall and sat down at my seat. I saw Cikgu Niely arriving at the Function Hall as she brought her materials to the camp for us. “Selamat pagi, cikgu! Apa khabar?” I asked. “Khabar baik,” she responded. Cikgu Niely then walked to the front of the room, and prepared her materials. She then greeted Ms Renee and Ms Sim, who assisted her to put the materials.
Malay was the most important of all the subjects for us. So, Cikgu Niely gave us a worksheet in which we had to answer the questions. Aside from that, we also had to write an essay in Malay as part of the revision process for our Malay IGCSE exams. So far, everything went well for me without hassle as I conditioned myself to stay focused because the Malay IGCSE is around the corner.
At the same time, there was also Mandarin Second Language and Mandarin Foreign Language. Ms Ting and Mr Steve were also there to guide those who had problems with the subject, as Mandarin IGCSE is also held in the same examination sitting as the Malay IGCSE, although it is an optional subject. Mr Steve then announced to everyone taking Mandarin Foreign of an error in the worksheet and asked them to correct it.
For those taking Bible Knowledge, Ms Renee ushered all of them to the cafeteria to have a discussion while the rest of us continued with our work. I was actually by right supposed to follow them, but however, since Ms Renee had asked me to opt out of the subject early to focus on other subjects since I could not take the pressure of that subject, I stayed in the function hall to do my Malay IGCSE worksheets given by Cikgu Niely.
Afterwards, we then had lunch, and then we proceeded for the next session. Ms Nadia had arrived at the camp with our Mid Year Examination prep works so we can continue them. “All the art students, Ms Nadia is waiting for you at the cafeteria,” Ms Sim said, and urged us to head to the cafeteria to meet her.
As Business Studies and Art are only offered for me in this session, I asked Ms Sha for advice. Ms Sha then told me to join the Art students with Ms Nadia, and my work for Business Studies would be delivered for me to do later.
Ms Nadia then gave us our Paper 2 preps and then we continued painting them. I had already finished my Paper 1 preps and decided to focus on the paper 2 one. While we did our preps we took the time to have short conversations with each other. Sara Yow told me not to worry about home as we would be going back the next day (23rd April). While it indeed shows we are going back in less than 24 hours, it seemed like as if I was stranded for already three days at the resort despite us arriving more than 24 hours prior. It looked like it was forever. Enisha looked at me in a serious tone despite the circumstances as I tried to focus on my painting.
I overheard Ms Nadia saying that she had to come to the art studio at Nobel that morning and then take the art preps all the way here in her car just for us to do. As I thought of home, I just looked at the serene waters of the lake to calm me down. It was very homesickening for me to be in a camp.
I just focused on my prep work. I then begun Prep 4 of Paper 2. I had made a checklist in my Student Organizer to check off the works and art pieces which were completed. Then, I painted the two Greenhouse logos. It was done quickly. Ms Nadia then came to check my prep work and she approved of it. Then, the two of us discussed on how to do the annotations for the pre works.
Once we were done, we laid our prep works to dry and Ms Nadia took it back for us. Those who finished early headed back to the Function Hall to do either their Business Studies, Accounting or ICT materials. As the Business Studies session was still ongoing, I took the opportunity to get some stuff done on the work given by Ms Chithra. Ms Chithra then showed me the steps to do the questions. I tried to do a few questions, but then, the session ended and then we went for dinner. All Business Studies students were given a green booklet prepared by Ms Chithra and Ms Vishalini.
Then, we had a break, and I spent the 15 minutes of break time talking to Mr Raja. At 3:00pm, all students were treated to a Study Skills Workshop which was organized by Ms Bee Yan. Joseph Diong, Justin Yeo and Desmond Chan had by then returned with Mr Kevin Wai from Sunway College. Ms Bee Yan then told us that most people would take notes in order to summarize the content in the textbook or exercise book so that it will be easier for us to study for the exams. She experimented with ways in which we could remember what we learned in class. Ms Bee Yan also said that it is also important that we understand and grasp what is being taught in class and not just merely read and remember. She then gave us methods in which we could take notes, such as doing a mindmap and using colors to justify things.
Soon, we had reached the end of Ms Bee Yan’s session, and Ms Sim came on to announce a few things. “Okay, thank you Ms Bee Yan. Now, what we are going to do is that we are going to go for our games and shower session, and please come back by seven so that we can begin the next session, which is English. English First and Second. But first, before you go, I would like to see all the boys. Yes, all the boys. So girls, you may leave first.”
Ms Sim waited till all the girls left as this is an issue that is very serious that involved the boys.
Ms Sim then started speaking. “Ok, boys. Thank you for staying back. Do you know why we asked you to stay back? Because I just want to highlight something that happened last night.”
Ms Sim said that there was a lot of noise in the dorms and that there were reports of people partying up at night and not sleeping from Ms Renee, Ms Bee Yong and the level leaders as well as other teachers. “I just want to say that I am very disappointed with all of you. Ms Renee, Ms Bee Yong and the teachers are all disappointed. Ms Bee Yong was told that there was noise in the dorms. When we checked your dorms during the time when everyone was having their block sessions, when everyone was in the hall, there was food all over the place and there was rubbish everywhere,” she spoke, as her eyes trained their focus onto every single individual in the hall. “Somebody was eating snacks in the middle of the night.” Ms Sim also mentioned the bins, both big and small, were full of rubbish. “Who did it?” she asked.
The entire hall kept silent, as if not wanting to mention anything that occurred or refusing to own up. “Who did it? Who ate snacks (or food) in the middle of the night and spilled rubbish everywhere, all over the floor? Who did it?” she boomed with a sense of seriousness. The return answer was silence.
Ms Renee was also serious. “I also saw from my observations that there is not one person, but a group of people eating and chit-chatting all night,” she said.
“Going once. Going twice. Going thrice,” boomed Ms Sim.
Ms Sim continued, “if no one wants to admit that they ate in the middle of the night, that they spilled rubbish on the floor, we will have to do what is called a “collective punishment”. All of you, boys, every single one of you, would need to go back to your dorms, take out whatever food, snacks or drinks you have kept in your bags out of the bag, and surrender it to us. You will only be able to eat twice a day, namely during break and lunch (as well as dinner).”
“I believe I have been very clear. Does everybody understand what I am saying?” She then asked if anyone has any questions.
I raised my hands and spoke to Ms Sim, as I fear the prospect of not being able to have an early morning breakfast as that is the normal routine I have everyday. I asked Ms Sim why would everyone’s food need to be collected just because of one person’s wrongdoing. “It is not fair for those who have not done any wrong and just followed the instructions during the camp,” I said. I told Ms Sim that if my food were to be taken away, it would result in me being hungry and not have a good start to the day just because of someone who misbehaves, and that it would result in health problems if there is not a good breakfast. Normally, I would eat wholemeal bread in the morning and home food, thus avoiding the breakfast served by the resort. The resort served heavy food, which is not my liking for every morning, as well as mostly curry food in a dish of nasi lemak. I am allergic to curry and spicy food. At the same time, I also asked if water is considered one of the confiscated drinks, and told Ms Sim of my predicament if that collective punishment were to occur. Inside my bag, my mum packed two containers of bread, and two containers of Jacob’s biscuits for me to eat throughout the camp.
“Wei Yiang, first of all, I am sorry if you are unable to have your snack in the morning [if that bread is the only thing you have]. I am truly sorry and I deeply apologize. But we have no choice but to do so, as nobody admitted that they ate snacks in the middle of the night [and we cannot find out who did it]. If somebody had admitted, we would have confiscated their snacks instead. You can keep your water (and water bottle)”, Ms Sim responded in a sense of pity. “I’m sorry, Wei Yiang, but we have no choice but to do so.” Ms Sim added that the snacks would be returned at the end of the camp.
Soon, the entire hall was outraged and some of my friends felt pity for me if I could not eat the only breakfast I have. There were cries for the culprits to admit themselves for the sake of the majority. The teachers had made it clear that they meant business. Had no one admitted, probably one person would have had no energy for the day. Behind the hall and in front, the individuals, feeling ashamed of themselves and, fearing the added shame of making more innocent people hungry, raised their hands and admitted it.
“Whoever who did it, please admit it, raise your hands and stand up,” Ms Sim said. The entire hall called for the individuals to stand up and be honest.
Benjamin Fong, Koo Sheng Jit, Sean Mark, Lee Min Han, Aristotle Koh, Jason Leing, Jien Min, Eugene Ho and Ethan Wong raised their hands and stood up one by one.
“Thank you for your sincerity and being honest. I am happy and am also glad that you all have admitted your mistakes. I’m sorry to say that we have to confiscate your snacks as punishment,” Ms Sim added. “For the rest, you may go for your dinner now.”
While some people headed for dinner and others went to their dorms, I headed back to my dorm to reach out for the mobile phone my mum gave me, in order to make a phone call to my mum. I saw Mr Nick and Ms Renee confiscating the foods of the individuals who admitted to eating snacks in the middle of the night. They took the snacks away and kept it in a place where only they themselves know. I then talked to Sherwin and Joshua Chew about the predicament I faced when I asked Ms Sim a question just now. Then, I burst into tears. Ms Joyce, upon seeing the situation I have, came to comfort me. “What’s happening here? Why are you crying, Wei Yiang?” she asked.
Ms Joyce then accompanied me to make a phone call with my mum, and also sat down with me while I made the call. “Don’t cry already, Wei Yiang. You are a big boy already. You see, you have a lot of friends and teachers to help you and take care of you. Alright? Joshua and Sherwin have also been taking care of you since yesterday, the first day of the camp. So, you should also listen to them too. So, you wipe your tears first, and then take your phone and call your mum,” she said. “Tell your mum that Ms Joyce is hear to comfort you and you are getting ready for dinner. Oh, and tell your mum I said hi as well. So, I will be seeing you later, right?” I said yes. “Ah yes, we have English later.” Ms Joyce then asked if I am in English First or Second language, and I said First Language. Okay, take care ya, see you later, bye,” said Ms Joyce as she went for dinner. Ms Joyce had arrived for that evening's English session. She also told me that Mr Thomas would also be there.
After I finished making the phone call to my mum, I went to wash my face and went to the cafeteria for dinner.
For that evening, 22nd April, we had Mr Thomas, Ms Yong Wai Yee, Ms Charine and Ms Joyce to help coordinate the logistics for English First and Second. When heading back to the function hall, I saw Mr Thomas arriving. He had brought along his wife as well to the camp. I greeted him and he introduced his wife to me.
Students who took English Second were given a booklet by Ms Joyce and Ms Charine which comprised of completing the blanks in a sentence as well as the matching of words and phrases. It sounds elementary. For the First Language English students, we were given a worksheet by Mr Thomas and Ms Yong and we waited for a briefing by Ms Yong. Mr Thomas and Ms Yong then asked us to read the passages and answer them accordingly before we discussed the answers.
Suddenly, at around 8:00pm, a series of night flies started fluttering into the function hall and then swirled on the lights close to the ceiling. The pesky creatures soon started flying around people, causing everyone to be annoyed. However, I felt calmed by the flies as it was naturalistic. So, during the break time, at 8:45pm, after First Language English, the teachers then ushered everyone out and turned off the lights in the function hall in order to try and see if the flies can be chased out during the 15-minute break. Once the break was over, they switched on the lights and everyone came in. It appeared that the problem had worked. However, within 20 minutes into the session for the next subject, Mathematics, the pesky flies started doing their nonsensical business around the lights again, and the teachers had to be forced to switch off some lights in the middle of the session in order to reduce the number of flies in the hall, but it did not work.
At 9:30pm, Ms Sim then announced that the lights would be switched off completely for ten minutes to get the flies out of the hall. The moment the hall went dark, Benjamin Fong, Jien Min, and a few other people made funny noises as the lights went out, thinking that they can act crazily at night.
“Hey!” Ms Sim shouted. “Quiet! Behave yourselves!” she scolded.
Some people started talking and whispering. “I can still hear some noises,” said Ms Sim.
Then, after 10 minutes, the lights came back on, and Ms Sim said that they would not be allowing anyone to leave the room as they would tape the entire glass door with masking tape to prevent the intrusion of the flies back into the room. At 10:30pm, I wanted to leave for the washroom as I could not hold myself any longer. I asked Ms Sha if she could grant me permission to use the washroom as I could not hold it in, and she said yes. It appears that the flies after some time, had stopped entering the hall. I went outside and on my way to the washroom, and saw the lights switched off outside the hall, and two candles with some burning incense were placed outside the hall to chase the flies away. The teachers, fortunately by then, had removed the masking tape after the flies had left.
Maths was not a boring thing as it took me time to crack the questions. I tried to remind myself of what Mr Nehru told me. He told me to adhere to THREE principles: Calm, Patience, Concentration to successfully attempt the questions. However I felt sleepy close to the end as we approached 11:00pm. Ms Sim was walking around and all teachers rested behind the hall.
We then went back at 11:30pm and got back to sleep. On the second round, I slept on the bed and waited for everyone to sleep as I felt comfortable as the next day is the last day of camp. Fortunately, I managed to get some good night’s sleep.
The last day of camp saw us get into our warm up morning run which was conducted by Mr Narish. So, I got up a bit later (but still early) and ate my bread as usual. Then, I waited for an hour for my food to digest and then I started running the mountain trail. Everyone then arrived at 7:00am before Mr Narish then begun the warm up session. Me, Nieshaal and Le Anne, being the Year 11 winners of the Founder’s Run, then led the warm up team.
“Who wants to go for 5km? Who wants to go for 10km?” Mr Narish asked. The majority wanted a 5km run and Mr Narish then asked us to get ready, and we ran the trail which was coincidentally the same trail which I ran earlier. So, we ended the trail with me coming in first place. Afterwards, everyone went for breakfast, and we were given a choice to go for a Christian Fellowship praise and worship session or do our own revision in the hall. Feeling fatigued from studying the entire night, I went for the Christian Fellowship session which was held at another small hall near the dorms to compensate for Sunday worship services at my church. We sang, “How Great Is Our God” and a few other Christian songs. It was great to praise the Lord. I stood in the front of the hall and then we sang. As it was a Sunday, it was good to sing praise and worship on Sundays, especially with my friends. Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and Sherwin led the praise and worship, and then we sat in a circle and said prayers to all of us to do well in the IGCSE exams, as well as the avidly approaching Mid Year Examination.
Once the praise and worship session ended, we then had a break. Gabriel and I had a chat and he told me that his mum was going to pick him up early. I asked him if we could potentially leave from the venue itself, and he said that it was possible.
I then asked Ms Renee if I can get my mum to pick me up from the venue and she asked if I had spoken to my mum. So I called my mum and she agreed to pick me up from Paradise Valley since I was too homesick. Ms Renee then told me that if my mum came, I had to let my teachers know and my bus leaders know that I will be going back with my mum.
We then returned to the function hall for our last activity which was to do Mathematics past year papers. So we did our past year papers for an hour till 11:00am. After two hours of concentration, everyone cheered as the final study grind ended. Then, we packed our bags and brought them to the function hall. I saw my mum and then she greeted me and Gabriel who were talking to each other. Before we ended the Study Camp, we gathered at the function hall where Ms Cynthia gave a closing speech.
“So finally, your study camp is over!” she said to cheers and loud applause.
Ms Cynthia then congratulated everyone for their hard work and determination and said it demonstrated the school’s core values. Then, Ms Renee came on the line and announced that everyone will be given four pieces of paper to write motivational messages to our friends, namely one for our partner who is sitting next to us, two for those from other classes, and a third message for ourselves. The three yellow papers were meant for other classmates, while the last one which was colored was for us, ourselves, in which we had to write what we aim to achieve and that the message will be kept by the teachers and only returned to us after the IGCSE ends.
I wrote messages for Jia Yee, my seat mate, Yi Zhen and Caleb Chuang. Jia Yee also wrote me a message too. Once we are done, we took a group photo and Ms Sim wished us all the best for our exams. While me and Gabriel were picked up from the venue, the rest went home by the large buses that came to pick them up. Yi Zhen would write me return messages for my note to her. I got three other messages too, from Lyn Wen, Berlinda and Pei Chi. After returning home, I cycled outside my house and saw Yi Zhen arriving home as well. Then, I read a message from my neighbor, Mr Hing, which was sent via WhatsApp. When I met him, he asked me on the WhatsApp message. He asked me what had I learnt during the three days of Study Camp and would the camp encourage me to improve myself. He wished me all the best for my Mid Year Examination.
The camp taught me what is the discipline that I would need to demonstrate in order to study for the IGCSE exam. In fact, it was quite beneficial because it taught me what methods to do and what culture to adopt when preparing for that big exam of a lifetime. Following the Study Camp, everyone was treated to a ‘replacement weekend’ because 24th April 2017 was the coronation of Sultan Muhammad V of Kelantan as the 15th Yang di Pertuan Agong. It was really a teaser for us to have an additional day logged into the weekend.
Although the Mid Year Examinations had officially begun the previous week, it wasn't as crowded as it was because the main exam would kick off in the first week of May. It will run for three weeks before a one-week relief from exams in the final week of May. The Art and ICT students were among the first to begin their exams. The Art students had to spend four days, namely 17th, 18th, 25th and 26th April 2017, from 8:00am to 12:30pm in the art studio, to do the final piece for the Mid Year Examination which was the Mid Year Examination’s version of the Art exam, with two days for Paper 1’s Final Piece and another two days for Paper 2's Final Piece. It took up the period between the start of school, past break time, with a break, and it lasted till 11am when we had to return to our class afterwards. The ICT students also had to do their ICT practical exam for the Mid Year Examination during their lesson. And for the first time in Nobel International School's history, the Mid Year Examination's first official paper would begin in April, on 28th April 2017.
Because the Yang di Pertuan Agong's coronation was held on Monday, 24th April 2017, it resulted in the Art Exam being pushed back to Tuesday, 25th April and Wednesday, 26th April. Fortunately, no back to back exams occurred and everything was smooth sailing. However, there was bad news. All the Art students MUST complete their prep work by Wednesday, 26th April or risk losing their entire grade for Art and Design for the Mid Year Examination. Yes. That was Ms Nadia's ultimatum. Yes, Ms Nadia was very serious with us. She had been as strict as a lion since Year 7, and my memories with her were ingrained since then. Fortunately, she had not been that strict and did not scold people a lot.
Some people complained to Ms Nadia that they should be given an additional one more week to finish the prep work, but Ms Nadia said that it cannot be done because Ms Praveen urgently needed the marks. Not to also mention that for Art and Design, the Mid Year Examination will also be our IGCSE Trial result for Art and Design. It was the only subject to have such an arrangement.
When we returned to school on 25th April 2017 for the start of our second paper for Art and Design, we came to school, exhausted from the Study Camp two days prior. It was a hectic schedule. All of us arrived at school and then waited at our class line. 11N had to change their class again and they were asked to go to the tutorial room again.
A 7:30am, everyone was asked to go up to their classes for Reading Time. I went to the tutorial room to hand Mr Kevin Wai and Sheng Jit the control book and directly proceeded to 11N, where I waited there for the Art Exam to start.
Ms Praveen soon arrived and greeted me. Then, we had a chat. “How's your Study Camp, Wei Yiang?” asked Ms Praveen. I told her that I had managed to complete all my four prep works for Paper 2 and that the Study Camp went well and that I also have a good preparation for IGCSE and am confident of doing well in the Malay Exam on 2nd May. “Very good, Wei Yiang, keep it up,” she said. When everyone arrived, Ms Nadia said that we could complete our prep works if we were able to finish the Final Piece early. She was carrying a large briefcase from the Art Studio which contained our prep works for Paper 2. The briefcase was so heavy till Benjamin Tenji and Timothy Hiew were asked to carry it. They suddenly dropped the briefcase and all the art preps spilled out of it. “Ehh!!!” cried Ms Nadia as it happened. “Sorry, cher,” said Benjamin Tenji and Timothy Hiew as they picked up the prep works and carried them into 11N.
At 7:45am, everyone was ushered into the room to begin setting up their art pieces after Ms Nadia and Ms Yew Foong Ching placed the prep works, which were sealed in plastic wrappers, on our desks. Then, we got our items ready, and Ms Nadia and Ms Praveen loaded the songs onto the music player software installed on the Smartboard. Everyone got their art supplies ready, and we begun our final piece at 8:00am after Ms Praveen told us to start. Then, Ms Praveen came to my desk and asked to inspect my art paper and preps. I took out the preps, showed them to her and she looked at my progress. Ms Nadia also came and looked at the progress too. Then, once they were done, I continued with my Final Piece, tracing out the logo of the Greenhouse sign based on the question. I refer to my Prep 4, picked out the cactus-inspired Greenhouse sign that I drew which looked like a circle, and begun to trace them on the blank A2-sized art paper.
Because Paper 2, which is the design-based assignment for Art and Design IGCSE, was so simple, I was able to complete most of the tracing of the Greenhouse logo much faster than my option of tracing the grills of the gate and various other toning and coloring. This was because Paper 2 tested on design development while Paper 1 tested on shape and form. Hence, to ensure that we had form and toning in our Paper 1, I spent more time to trace and paint the art piece than Paper 2.
After spending 30 minutes to trace the logo, I then proceeded to prepare my paint, brushes and water containers to paint the logo. Some people tried to change the song, but were told to stop by Ms Paulina, who was invigilating the exam. Then, some people complained the song was too soft, and Ms Paulina adjusted the volume. I then used light green paint and came this time, armed with two water containers instead of one. My mum told me to have two containers so that there will be a dual filtration process for my brushes. While the water supply to Nobel had been restored, the buckets left outside the classroom were still retained for one's convenience.
I managed to complete painting the core background paint of the shape of the logo within a short time. Then, before I knew it, it was break time.
I then went to find Sheng Jit, who was tasked with handling the control book. I talked to him and went to the tutorial room to have a look at the control book. I was the only monitor who took Art and Design IGCSE in Year 11, unless you count in Cassandra, who did so in Year 10.
Then, I went to find Mr Lee and Ms Sharon to sign the control book, before heading down to break time. I asked them what they taught us, and Mr Lee and Ms Sharon told me that the class spent time doing past year papers. During break time, I had a chat with Lyn Wen about the art exam.
At 10:30am, we then continued with our Art Exam, and I spent some time trying to make the Greenhouse logo look nice. I used mainly red, yellow, light green and white for the logo. Soon, I had ran out of green paint and could not paint the rest of the logo. Hence, I decided to solve the problem by mixing blue and yellow, but it was no use. Fortunately, I did not paint that on the art paper because my mum had another innovation. She asked me to bring rough paper to dip my paint on the paper to ‘test’ it before applying it onto the painting to prevent mess-ups.
During the middle of the test, the music player experienced an error, and some people asked Ms Chua, who was invigilating the session, to assist. However, she was unable to fix the error in time, so most of the exam was done without music. Then, when Mr Simon came in to invigilate the Art Exam later on, he fixed the music player to everyone's satisfaction. He had to shut down the computer and restart the computer for it to work.
At 12:30pm, I had completed most of the painting for the Paper 2 Final Piece. Ms Nadia, Ms Yew and Ms Praveen then came in and asked for us to halt our work. Then, everyone took time to wash and clean their palette in the washrooms. The washroom had a very smelly smell because some people failed to flush the loo, and I can't stand even a single second in the washroom while washing my painting equipment.
While waiting for everyone to return, I sat down, re-arranged my prep works and kept them in the plastic wrapper that was attached to it. Then, at 12:45pm, we left the room and the prep work was kept in the room. Ms Nadia said that anyone who wanted to take their preps to complete them would be able to do so during our Art lesson that afternoon. I originally planned to do annotation for my prep works during the exam the next day if I had time, but Ms Nadia gave us leeway to do our Paper 1 prep works’ completion if some people hadn't finished. Timothy Hiew, Faythe Chow, Chee Kei and Yen Tong were one of the slowest people to complete the prep work. Before lunch, we went to the Art Studio, where Ms Nadia was showing us our Paper 1 prep works for those who needed them.
After lunch, we then had History, and Ms Visa taught us about the Prague Spring, which happened in 1968 in Czechoslovakia. Like the Hungarian Uprising, the Prague Spring was also a protest against Soviet policies and communism. However, unlike the Hungarian Uprising, the Prague Spring was more peaceful, and while there were no elections, people were able to criticize the government and set their own prices for goods and services. All these three elements were not allowed under Soviet control. The Hungarian Uprising, on the other hand, was to be a complete removal of communism in Hungary and the withdrawal of Hungary from the Warsaw Pact and Comecon. The communist policy was mainly dominated by dictatorship and little opposition, making life difficult for people under communist rule. Sadly, the Prague Spring was crushed by the Soviet Union and members of other communist countries. Because of what happened in Hungary and Czechoslovakia, Leonid Brezhnev, the new leader of the Soviet Union, required all countries to have a one-party state governed by communist ideals and to remain members of the Warsaw Pact, with withdrawal from the Pact prohibited. I also then discussed about the 1989 Tiananmen Square protest, which resulted in a similar, bloodied killing of citizens by the Chinese government with live bullets on 4th June 1989. The government of China continues to deny the occurrence of the incident.
During the History lesson, Brandon asked if I was okay, and I said yes. He told me he saw me crying during the Study Camp. This caught Ms Visa's attention, who asked on the matter, too. I had to do loads of explanations.
After History, we went down for Art, and Ms Nadia and I planned the annotation process for both Paper 1 and 2. She told me to annotate Paper 1 first, and then move on to Paper 2 the next day. Fortunately, I had done most of my annotation for Paper 1, and I managed to complete the rest during the one-period lesson.
During the Art lesson, Ms Nadia then talked to us about our Mid Year Examination results and she said that she will mark the strictest as possible to the IGCSE standard. She told us that Ms Feeda had told her about the syllabus and how things would go. She then told us that some people had almost lost their prep work and she said that our prep work was our own responsibility. In fact, some people had to redo their prep work if they lost it, thus wasting time.
The next day, we Art students had to leave the assembly early to head for our Art Exam. There was a presentation by a group of Year 8 students on the stage, and we had to miss it. We took our Art supplies to the second floor and headed to 11N, where the exam was taking place. When we arrived, Ms Praveen, Ms Sha, Ms Yew and Ms Nadia were setting up the room. They told us to wait at the stairs while they prepared the room. Ms Nadia asked some people where their prep work was and that some people hadn't handed them their prep work. Eu Lynn took her prep work from the art studio and handed it to Ms Nadia to compile. Ms Nadia groaned and said that it made her life difficult as Ms Praveen was asking where the prep works were. Everyone was supposed to compile them before we left the previous day.
At 8:00am, we were once again instructed to enter the room as the teachers readied the music player containing the songs. Then, we begun, and I managed to ready a new batch of water color. I painted the Greenhouse logo and touched up the words. I managed to finish touching up the logo in the first half of the second session of the exam.
After the first half of the exam ended, I then went to meet Ms Renee, and asked if I was able to stay back for Bible Knowledge. She told me that there was no need to do so. Also, she informed me to skip the Bible Knowledge exam the following week. Then, I asked Sheng Jit if he had managed to bring the control book to the class for the lesson. He said yes.
During the second half of the exam, I took some time to do some annotation and check the annotation of the prep works for Paper 2. I just sat down most of the time, waiting for the exam to finish. I did some minor touch up on the Greenhouse logo.
At 12:30pm, Jien Min cheered as the exam ended, but Ms Nadia gave the silence signal. “Stop painting. Leave your prep work on your table,” said Ms Yew, as she instructed us to wash our art supplies and scrub them clear of paint. I then took my things to the Art Studio before heading for lunch. The teachers then left the art pieces on our tables.
While having lunch, I talked to Caleb Chuang about the art exam and wished him the best for his ICT exam, which would take place that same afternoon. Then, following lunch, we went to the Art Studio to continue our prep works. Ms Nadia said that she will open the Art Studio till 5:00pm so that everyone can complete their prep work. When Ms Nadia and I inspected the preps, she said she was confident I would achieve a C. Back in 2016, Ms Feeda had worried about my possibility of getting a C due to my attitude for Art and Design. However, for 2017, I promised a change and wished to improve, and was grateful to Ms Nadia for giving me a second chance.
During History, Brandon complained that I had failed in my control book duty as I was not in class. However, I told him that I was in the Art Exam and assured him that the control book operations would resume the next day, as Wednesday, 26th April was the last day of the Art Exam. Ms Visa then continued with the next topic, which was on how the Berlin Wall was constructed and the purpose of the Berlin Wall in keeping people in Berlin in. While the earlier topic on the Berlin Wall which was in the beginning of the year was about how Germany was divided after World War II, this topic in particular talks about how the wall was constructed and how people died when trying to flee from East Berlin to West Berlin. Then, following the end of the History lesson, I went to meet all the teachers and apologized to them for not reminding them to sign due to the Art Exam. Ms Sarah asked in particular about the Art Exam and thanked me for being a good monitor once again. “You always never fail to get people to sign the control book,” she said. I then went to the Art Studio and did some touch-ups on my prep work till 5:00pm, when my mum came to pick me up. With the Art Exam now gone, the focus was on the Mid Year Examination and the Malay IGCSE Examination, which takes place on 2nd May 2017 and 10th May 2017.
The morning of Thursday, 27th April 2017 started off on a rough note and everyone had to re-arrange the tables back to what it was before the Art Exam. Mr Kevin Wai told us that we should not rearrange them back to what it was as the Mid Year Examination would begin the next day. However, Brandon said that the tables would be adjusted back to the examination format in the evening, and Mr Kevin Wai agreed.
Mr Kevin Wai reminded us that we will need to go back home immediately after our Malay IGCSE Paper 4 finishes at 10:00am. He said that no one was to remain in school and loiter around after our exams were over. Then, we had our Economics lesson with Ms Sharon. She then came in, and I switched on the computer for her.
“Okay, class! How many of you were at the Art Exam yesterday?” asked Ms Sharon. Those in the class who went for the Art Exam put up their hands. Ms Sharon then handed out some worksheets to us as well as past year examination questions and told us to do them. “The class had done the past year papers, and I want you all to complete them. Because of you many of you had the Art Exam, I was not able to continue the lesson as it will not be fair to you. Instead, I plan to have an extra class to complete the remaining topics. The extra class will be on a Saturday or school holiday. Are you guys okay with that?” asked Ms Sharon.
Brandon Ooi and some people in the class groaned and complained. Ms Sharon said that the purpose of the replacement class was to complete our syllabus or else we are unprepared and unequipped to go for the IGCSE Exam. “If you don't want replacement class, then you cannot do the exam. We are not only going to cover the remaining topics, but also on how to answer the questions,” she warned.
When everyone agreed to the replacement class, Ms Sharon then told us that she will set a time and date to finish the last remaining chapters. There were only around four chapters to be completed.
Then, Ms Cynthia came into the class. “Ms Cynthia, I've switched on the PC for the teachers every morning,” I said. “Thank you, Wei Yiang; thank you very much,” said Ms Cynthia. “I have heard from teachers that you have completed the control book. Well done,” she said.
Ms Cynthia then asked us on our progress for the Malaysian Studies coursework. The query was then directed to Sheng Jit and Nickolas Nashpal, who were responsible for producing the video for the coursework.
“Starting,” said Sheng Jit. “There were some ideas discussed.”
Ms Cynthia's eyes bulged in horror. She said that every other class had started the video and were making progress despite a lot of commitments, and that 11N was really slow on that. She then said that the Malaysian Studies coursework would be extended by another month to get us to finish it. The video would be played once the Mid Year Examination was over.
Then, Ms Cynthia talked about the Mid Year Examination format for Malaysian Studies. She told us that if we did not do well in Malaysian Studies for the Mid Year Examination, we should be ashamed that we did not take time and effort to care about our country. Ms Cynthia also told us to reflect on what we had learned from Malaysian Studies and we had to share our experiences from the last 16 months of learning Malaysian Studies and what it means for us to be a Malaysian. “Even if you fail Malaysian Studies, I want you not to forget on the significance of being a Malaysian and why should we be proud of our country; our home,” she said.
We then went for break time, and then Ms Praveen gave us a briefing on the Malay IGCSE Exam that was to commence on Monday, 2nd May. Ms Praveen then briefed us about the technicalities and she said that
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra then told us about the exam format. Some people asked her on the questions of the Study Camp past-year paper handout. Then, Ms Chithra did a short recap on the exam scope for Business Studies.
Then, it was History, and Ms Visa then talked about the fall of Communism, which begun with the rise of Solidarity, a labor union in Poland in 1980, and how massive protests and revolutions in 1989 led to the downfall of communism and the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991. And finally, during Malay, Cikgu Niely gave us tips on how to answer the questions of the exam. In fact, this was Cikgu Niely's very last Malay class before our Malay IGCSE exam.
During the class, Cikgu Niely expressed her appreciation of how she had taught us and gotten to know us. And Cikgu Niely also talked to us about the exam and what to expect. She said that the exam would not be so difficult and she believed that we could do well during the Paper 4 on 2nd May. When the class ended, Kelsey, Cassandra, and Grace gave Cikgu Niely a hug. They were in tears as not only the Malay IGCSE was approaching, but also due to the fact that they will miss Cikgu Niely as well. I also offered to give her a hug as well. It was so touching.
Soon, we went for our lunch. Yi Zhen, Co Sheen, Sophie, Krisha and Kit Lee were discussing about the Study Camp. From their discussions, it seemed that a Second Study Camp would be planned for us. Honestly speaking, if it required an overnight stay, I won't be so interested in attending. I wouldn't want to go through an unpleasant sleeping experience at the camp.
Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan then discussed about our Maths past year papers and told us to do them. And finally, during English, Mr Thomas then spoke to us about one of his plans. He had a very interesting plan for us.
“Can you all give me your emails? Do you have email?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. “We have Gmail.”
Mr Thomas then said that it will be very good if he can have our emails. He did not state the reason why. He then asked me to take a paper out and write my email on it. Then, he asked me to pass it around. So, I passed the paper to Ivyna, who was sitting behind me. “Pass it around. Please write your email,” he told the class. When everyone had wrote down their emails, Aaron Loke handed the paper to Mr Thomas, who then took note of it.
“There are 22 of you, right? Some of you are absent,” said Mr Thomas. He then asked some people who didn't give their emails to Mr Thomas, and they asked him on the reason as to why he wanted their emails.
“You see, I want to send the work to you if I am unable to meet you,” said Mr Thomas. “Some of you are having Art Exam, some of you were at Study Camp, and others may be involved in other things. And some of you are absent. So if you are absent, I can give you the work, okay?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Can you please ask those who are not here to pass their emails to me?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Mr Thomas then said that everyone can choose to reach out to Aaron Loke or me to hand in their emails. Then, Mr Thomas sat down on the computer and opened Edmodo. He asked us if we remembered Diudiu, the text we did the previous year, back in January 2016.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Do you still miss Diudiu?” he asked. The whole class laughed. “We are going to do it again,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas said that we will do a few topics in class, including Diudiu. He said that his original plan was to give some study material from Edmodo for use in our Study Camp, but he had to coordinate everything with Ms Yong Wai Yee. He then told us to read the text on Edmodo before we did our discussion in the class. It was an urgent affair as we had English Paper 2 the next day. We were discussing a summary and word effect exercise. He also showed us our Paper 2 revision file on Edmodo as well, which was published earlier, on 25th April 2017.
After the English lesson ended, I then went for my Editorial Board CCA session and Ms Levina told me that my delay on the interviews was too much for the board and asked if there was too much workload. So, she gave some of my tasks to the other people to interview and then told me to edit one of the articles for the newsletter, which was to be released soon.
Friday, 28th April 2017 was our first day of the Mid Year Examination. We all got ready for our first batch of papers. It was the first time Nobel International School held the Mid Year Examination in April. Never had a major exam started this early. The reason for this was to accommodate the Malay and Mandarin IGCSE papers.
During the morning assembly, Ms Lim and the management team were presenting out the Wow! Awards, and were also announcing the Cleanest Class and the Class of the Month, which they did every morning assembly. However, something surprising happened.
A lot of Year 7 teachers were presenting out the Wow! Awards. In particular, Cikgu Baliah, Ms Ambiga, Ms Paulina, Mr Simon, Ms June, Ms Gerardine, Ms Sarah and Ms Malini were the teachers involved in giving the awards. Year 7, 8 and 9 teachers formed the majority of the 15 teachers giving awards. The only teachers from Year 10 and 11 who handed the awards out were Ms Visa, Mr Nick and Mr Thomas.
When Ms June was presenting her award, she then mentioned that she was presenting the award to me. It seemed like a weird choice. Of course, I was having a feeling that a Wow! Award would come to me. However, I did not expect it to come from a Year 7 teacher such as Ms June. In fact, the most likely teacher that would hand me an award would be either Ms Visa, Mr Kevin Wai or Ms Nadia. Ms Visa and Mr Kevin Wai would most likely give me a Wow! Award for the control book achievement, and Ms Nadia would probably give one to me for being my best in working hard for the prep work. In fact, Ms Visa, when presenting her Wow! Award, said that she knew this student very well since Year 7, and that student had shown tremendous improvement over the years she had taught him. And that student is a boy whom she is a class teacher and History teacher of, in Year 11. The award that Ms Visa was giving went to Ze Khai. Mr Thomas was giving an award for Aaron Loke. This meant that every single academic year, I received a Wow! Award from every teacher, namely Ms June (2013 and 2017), Ms Lee and Ms Samantha (2014), Ms Ng and Ms Sylvia (2015) and Mr Thomas (2016).
Ms June said in her announcement that she wanted to present the award to me because she wanted to commemorate my achievement in the Founder's Run. I mean, like, that was the number one reason. And that was what she said! Upon hearing this, the whole school screamed and shouted like mad.
I mean, like, close to three months had passed since the 2017 Founder's Run. And why would a teacher want to present me an award to be recognized when the Founder's Run result was already well known?
I was then invited to come in front to receive the Wow! Award from Ms June. When I reached the front, Ms June then praised me. “Good job! Well done, Wei Yiang. Keep it up. Proud of you!” she cried, patting me on the back. She then gave me a hug. “Awww,” cried the whole hall. Ms Lim then kept on praising me. “Wow! Good job! Everyone recognizes you for your Founder's Run!” she exclaimed. “He is the best, you know. Good job.”
I returned to 11N's class line, and many teachers and students praised and cheered for me as well as smiled at me. When I sat down, Grace, Cassandra and Enisha took a look at my Wow! Award. Ms June had wanted to recognize me for demonstrating the school's five core values. All the Wow! Award winners were asked to take a group photo after the assembly.
When we returned to 11N following the assembly, I was faced with another pressing issue, which was on how to deal with the control book affairs during the Mid Year Examination. Unlike the Assessment 1 and 2, which is a small scale, informal examination conducted during the lesson of a particular subject itself, the Mid Year Examination involves a special timetable for the subject. While the subject teachers still come in for their lesson to sign in the control book and so on, which was not of an issue, the main question was as to how to inform people who used the washroom to sign the control book. This act, when done during lessons, was quite easy, but it was not the case during a serious examination like the Mid Year Examination. Instead, I was to let the teacher who was using the class to sign the control book, and to ask those during the exam or who were in the class at the particular time to take note of who left the room so that I could update the information in the control book.
Our first exam of the day was History Paper 4. Those that were taking History were instructed to head to either 11N or 11O for the exam, and as soon as the day started, everyone was scrambling to leave their bags outside of the classroom and take whatever study materials they need and go to their assigned class. A notice board was put up to inform everyone of the location of the classes they had to head to, as well as their seating arrangement. Ms Yew and Ms Sha told everyone to hurry up and quickly proceed to their assigned venue so that the exams can start smoothly.
In 11N, all those from the class who took History, as well as some people from 11O and 11B, were assigned to sit in the room as well, such as San Ying, Jason Leing, Sean Mark and Jien Min, who sat to the right of 11N. Then, Mr Victor came in with the exam papers. I presented him with the control book and he signed it. Then, I switched on the computer and Smartboard for him. “No need, no need,” he said. I can switch it on myself,” he said.
Mr Victor was cool when he conducted the exam. When he entered the room with the papers, he had the smile of the rock star. He entered the room, grinning at us while also greeting us.
“Yeah! Mr Victor!” cried San Ying, Jason and Sean Mark. They were glad to have him to invigilate that morning's exam.
Mr Victor then plopped the exam papers on the table. “Okay, guys, please settle down. Shh! Shh! Your exam is starting!” he cried. “Whoever wants to go to the toilet, please go first!”
Then, I told Mr Victor to sign the control book. “Later I will sign,” he said.
Mr Victor then watched as a lot of people went to the washroom. Then, he went to unpack the exam papers from the plastic bag which sealed and contained them. After opening all the papers, he then walked around and handed the exam papers to us, plopping the sheets of paper on our desks. Mr Victor then went to the door and then yelled at those who went out to use the loo to quickly return. The English Literature exam was also ongoing at the same time. Those who were not taking History or English Literature were told to head to 11E and 11L for the entire period. While waiting at 11E and 11L, they continued to either do their revision or talk to their friends to socialize and take time off from a hectic period of studying.
Back in 11N, everyone had returned from the washroom. “Hurry up! Quick, quick, quick!” cried Mr Victor. All the candidates sitting for the exam then returned from the loo and piled into the room, seated at their desks, waiting for Mr Victor's command.
“Please write your name, class, date and so on,” he instructed. Jien Min then jokingly asked Mr Victor if he can write his telephone number or his bum on it. Mr Victor then shrugged him off and told him not to ask silly questions.
“Check the paper and see if it is the correct paper. Otherwise, you will do the wrong exam,” he said. Then, at 8:20am, all of us begun the History paper. It was a series of essay questions testing us on the Cold War, which was easy to do. Then, San Ying told Mr Victor that he had forgotten to hand out the blank answer papers. He then realized it, opened the second package containing the answer papers, and handed them to us.
As the exam begun, Mr Victor adjusted the fan for those who did not feel comfortable. The fans fluttered at high speed, and it felt like a hurricane while doing the exam. Since I was sitting under one of the big fans in 11N, the wind fluttered my exam paper and it gave me a relaxing feeling while I attempted the exam. Mr Victor then placed a thread of string so that we can tie up our answer papers together to the question paper.
The skies outside the school building were very cloudy, and it rained quite a little. I could hear the announcements from the Elementary School's break time at 8:50am. They were being told to line up.
As the exam dreaded on, I managed to finish the exam paper quickly. The exam soon followed on. When people used the washroom, I tried to remember who did so. I needed to get clarification from Mr Kevin Wai on the need to write names in the control book when using the washroom during the Mid Year Examination. This was not the Assessment 1. It would become the FIFTH crisis, or I should say, major challenge, that I would face as assistant class monitor, after the act of me doodling on the cover page, the loss of the pass tag, the control book operations during Sports Day and the control book operations during the Art Exam. I felt optimistic, as the first four challenges were solved through Ms Visa and Mr Kevin Wai, who were guiding me every step of the way. I had solved the information issue in the control book by writing the information in advance. I had gotten the toilet records sorted with my classmates, who proposed solutions to the problems. And I had managed to solve the four challenges with good remarks from my classmates, even though there were conflicts and issues. But I was resilient. I was determined to solve the issue.
At 9:50am, we finished our History exam. Mr Victor then told us to stop. “Shh! Stop writing! Put your pencils down!” he cried. Some people snickered. Jien Min then made a funny joke and said, “Put your PANTS down”. Mr Victor then laughed on it as he picked up our scripts, walking from table to table. He then returned to the front of the room, arranged the papers nicely, and then kept them in the plastic bag. Then, he told everyone that they would be dismissed. I then went to ask Mr Victor when the Beep Test would be held. He had not informed us when the Beep Test would be held because we did not have PE lessons for the whole month of April. Every single Friday in April was void of a class. 7th April 2017 was our PTM. We had a holiday for Good Friday on 14th April. The previous week, on 21st April, we headed to Paradise Valley that morning for Study Camp, and now, we were in the midst of the Mid Year Examination. Mr Victor said that he did not know about the date of the Beep Test. This meant that I had to ask Ms Sylvia. Mr Victor then left the room in a hurry.
I then went to meet my friends who were in the other classes. I had a chat with Cassandra, Lyn Wen, Yi Zhen, Joseph Diong and Caleb Chuang. Just as we were about to leave for the canteen, I realized that I forgot to let Mr Victor sign the control book. So, I returned to 11N, got the control book and ran to the staffroom and got him to sign the control book. “Oh ya hor, sorry, sorry, I forgot to sign. Thank you,” he said, autographing his signature on the book.
Mr Kevin Wai was in the staffroom and he smiled and gave the thumbs up. I then went up to him and asked if those who used the washroom during the exam be required to sign the control book. He then responded in the affirmative, and I thanked him before leaving the room. And I reminded all teachers to sign 11N's control book if they were using the class, as some people had defaulted on that. Then, I wrote all the names of the people who used the washroom during the History exam, including me. There were six other people who used the loo; San Ying, Sophie, Jien Min, Brandon, Gabriel and Ze Khai.
I then forgot that I needed to see Ms Sylvia. So, I met her in the staffroom and asked her about the Beep Test. She said that we will most likely do the Beep Test on the first week after the end of our exams. After thanking her, I went to the canteen, sat down on my seat, and wrote all the information for the month of May in the control book. I had to refer to my Student Organizer to take note of the days and other information, such as public holidays.
The next session of the exam was then about to begin; the First Language English Paper 2. For this exam, individuals sitting for the test had to go to 11O, 11B, 11E and 11L. Those who were not sitting the paper were told to head to 11N. Me, Lyn Wen and Ivyna went to check the notice board for our seats in the exam. We were seated in 11O for the test. Before I left for the exam, I told Cassandra to substitute me in informing the next teachers entering the class to sign the book, namely Cikgu Niely, Mr Lee and Ms Joyce. The English exam would be held from 11:00am to 1:00pm.
We then entered 11O and we had a short chat. In 11O's class, Mr Nick then entered for a short Chemistry lesson. We just sit down and chat as Mr Nick then talked to some people on the Chemistry syllabus. Then, at 10:50am, Mr Kevin Wai came in for the Additional Mathematics lesson. He brought in a stack of papers. “No talking; please settle down,” he said. Everyone then put their things out of the class and used the washroom. Then, once everyone returned, Mr Kevin then handed out the exam papers to us. “No talking. Write your name and class on the exam paper. Don't start yet,” he instructed us. We did what he told us and waited patiently for the exam to begin. Then, at 11:00am, he then commanded us to start the test.
The First Language English paper was straightforward as whatever Mr Thomas told us was generally applied in the paper, from the word effect to the summary writing. The First Language English exam was conducted by two teachers. Other than Mr Kevin Wai himself, Ms Renee then came into the class at 12:10pm for her Biology lesson with 11O.
As the exam drew towards its close, everyone scribbled and some people chattered a bit. “Shhh,” said Ms Renee. Then, the exam finished, and Ms Renee asked everyone to stop writing. “I still see some people writing. Please stop,” she said. Ms Renee then collected our papers and then we 11N students from our First Language English class attempted to return to 11N, but however, all of us were stopped by Ms Joyce. She initially told us to remain in 11O before Ms Renee had to come and tell Ms Joyce that everyone was told to return to their respective classes. Ms Joyce then relented and let us in. I then checked the control book and then informed Ms Joyce to sign it. She adjusted her glasses, looked for her slot, and signed the book. Then, Brandon Ooi collected the Friday snacks from Uncle KC's stall which was a hamburger for the day. Following which, we then munched on our snacks before we were dismissed.
The sky was cloudy as we left school. I told my aunt who was there to pick me up on my English test. As we passed by the Art Studio, I then met Ms Nadia for a short chat before heading home.
On 2nd May 2017, we had our Malay Paper 4, which lasted for 1 hour from 9am to 10am. The Malay Paper 4 was our very first ever IGCSE Exam. Cikgu Niely had told us back during our briefings for the exam about the unusual timing of the Malay Exam.
Foreign Language Malay (0546) was the only Malay subject offered at the time, and everyone in Nobel was required to take that paper. Well, I mean, all Malaysian students must take this subject, but there was no First Language Malay then. Set teaching for Malay was virtually non-existent and only one paper was given during the exam.
Malay and Mandarin were the only two subjects in the IGCSE calendar that were not offered in the month of October, which Nobel normally uses to hold the IGCSE exam. Instead, an inconvenient, expedited schedule was presented for us and it results in the Malay and Mandarin exam being held in May. Had Nobel been given the choice on when to hold the exams, the school would have had held the Malay and Mandarin exams in the October/November exam season.
On a really, really bad note, my birthday, 15th May was the last day of the Mid Year Examination. For the final time in Nobel, I would be inconvenienced by exams in my birthday month, May. This had been the case since my entry into Nobel in Year 1 in 2008. The good side was that only one paper, Economics Paper 1, was present. It was really easy to do. Looking back on my time in Nobel, exams in May totally ruined a total of ten birthdays for me.
On the day of the examination, everyone arrived as per our school timing; I arrived as usual at 6:45am. All Year 11 students had to gather in their classes before the examination, and that there was no assembly on the day because the hall was set up for the IGCSE Malay examination while the courtyard was used by the elementary school for their morning assembly. Everyone was revising for their Malay IGCSE, but most people in my class, 11N, were just talking among themselves. Ze Khai and I spent some time talking behind the class at his desk about the Malay examination and also boasting about ourselves trying to outdo each other in grades on the Malay IGCSE exam with Nickolas Nashpal. As the Mid Year Examination was also taking place in the same week as the Malay IGCSE exam, it provided us a perfect chance to see who, among the three of us, can win each other in grades. We competed with each other in Combined Science, Economics, Business Studies, Global Perspectives and Malay, while Nickolas and I competed with each other only in Mathematics Extended, and Ze Khai and I only competed in History subject. We jeered and boasted our capabilities. “You will lose!” Nickolas cried, and I replied the same. Mr Kevin Wai then entered our class and took our attendance. He then informed us that we needed to have the necessary materials for the exam, especially our Statement of Entry. Gabriel and Louis then asked me some questions about the exam, and I entertained them. The entire class was half nervous and half relaxed. Mr Kevin Wai also informed us about our next exam, which will take place on 10th May 2017, which was Wesak Day back in the year 2017.
At the back of the classroom, Brandon, Shane, Eric and Ryan Chok were looking at Brandon Ooi himself playing World of Warlords in the class. He was using his phone. Then, Brandon then checked his phone for his Instagram, Snapchat and WhatsApp information. He giggled and played some games on his phone. Kelsey and Cassandra then had a chat too, and so did Grace and Jia Yee. The class was very jovial and lively; a calm before the storm. Everyone was a bit nervous but we tried to relax and keep cool.
At 8:30am, all the Year 11s were asked to take their bags and make their way down to the school hall where we placed our bags against the walls of the school hall. We got our Statement of Entry, identity card and transparent pencil cases as we waited patiently for our turn to enter the school hall. Everyone felt nervous when time ticked closer to the exam.
The line outside the examination hall was bustling with activity. The Elementary School students were having their break time and all the little kids were looking at us, catching a glimpse of the action. They were surprised at the large amount of barricades erected outside the school hall, which enclosed the corridors next to the school hall. Cassandra and Caleb Chuang put their bags next to mine, and Caleb Chuang and I talked to the elementary kids as they cheered us on for our exam. They told us that Malay was really difficult for them, which was understandable.
The doors opened at 8:45am as everyone was asked to enter the school hall. Ms Sha and Ms Yew were checking our Statement of Entry. Those who had brought handphones were asked to place them inside a wide tray that is being carried by Ms Shahidah, who was one of the office staff. Candidates who had successfully passed the checking were ushered to the school hall and directed to their assigned seats.
Upon entering the school hall, I took the time to find my assigned seat for the exam and settled down. Ms Praveen was standing in front of the hall, holding a microphone. Next to her was Ms Sim, Ms Renee, and a few Year 11 teachers. Those Year 11 teachers present in the hall were Mr Kevin Wai, Mr Lee and Mr Andrew. The other Year 11 teachers were having classes with the Year 10 students. That means that the three Year 11 teachers present; plus Ms Renee, Ms Praveen, Ms Sha, as well as Ms Yew, total up to seven teachers invigilating us. Alongside them were Mr Chan, Ms Sim and Ms Bee Yong, who were there to see the start of the exam. They stood at the right hand corner of the hall. Mr Chan and Ms Bee Yong watched from the entrance of the school hall, while Ms Sim and Ms Praveen fumbled around with the large stack of Cambridge-branded examination scripts.
“Students, no talking in the examination hall,” Ms Praveen warned. “Everyone, quickly come in and please take your seats,” she said. Ms Sim was folding her arms, along with Mr Chan, signaling that the examination was a really serious matter to behold of.
As this was our first ever IGCSE paper, everyone, not just me, felt nervous for the exam. We then sat down and waited, as Ms Yew took out a large scissors and cut out the examination wrapping. There were stacks of exam papers. The bag containing the exam papers was blue in color and contained the Cambridge logo on it.
The teachers were then given a stack of exam papers. Mr Kevin Wai handed the exam papers for our row. Within minutes, he placed my exam script on my desk. Ms Praveen further warned us not to open the exam papers.
The exam instructions were beamed verbally to all students across the examination hall by Ms Sim. “Do not open the question paper until I tell you to do so. You are now under exam conditions and must follow the rules stated in the “Notice to Candidates” guidelines.” She then briefed us using a pre-prepared script by Cambridge on what to say to the candidates of a Cambridge exam.
As we were instructed to begin the paper, I felt at ease the moment I saw the questions, and I finished the exam within 45 minutes. The questions tested us on essay writing in the Malay language.
The first question asked me to list eight things present at an airport via the given images. It was really easy to do, and I bet you that even a Year 1 student in Nobel could have had answered the questions without hassle. The second question asked me to write about my favorite movie. I wrote about the movie ‘Great Day’ which I watched in Year 4 in 2011. We had to write on why we chose the movie, what we liked about the movie, and what is the next movie that I planned to watch. I mentioned that the next movie I plan to watch was ‘The Journey’, a sequel created by the directors of ‘Great Day’.
The third question allowed us to select one out of three questions available. There were three topics, namely relocating from one place to another, a new restoran, and a story which we had to continue from the basis of a young boy shouting and resulting in the police attending to him. I chose the story option.
As soon as I knew it, an announcement that the last fifteen minutes of the exam were approaching. I quickly finished my story as the final five minutes ticked in. Soon, Ms Praveen announced the end of the exam. Our exam papers were collected, as the teachers brought them to the front of the school hall, counted and then tallied the papers before sealing the scripts in a second bag. Then, Ms Praveen told us that we could only leave the school hall when our names were called. When the dismissal process started, we listened to our names and we left the school hall upon hearing our names being called for dismissal.
On the way out, many people took their stationery. I almost left my Statement of Entry and IC behind, before Mr Kevin Wai signaled to me to go and collect it. Some of my friends warned me before I reached the door. I had placed the Statement of Entry on the floor as we were instructed to do so in order to have ample space on the table to work on our papers.
Outside the hall, I then talked to Grace and Cassandra, who expressed great satisfaction on the exam paper. Ze Khai and Nickolas talked to me about the exam as we left the school grounds. They greeted my aunt, who was waiting to take me home. When my aunt asked me about the exam, I said that it was so easy till it looked like a primary school exercise, and we had a good laugh on the car ride home. I then reached home, picked up my bicycle and had a good ride around my neighborhood in the morning sun as I beamed with happiness on my examination performance.
The next morning, on 3rd May 2017, I was involved in two papers; Global Perspectives and Combined Science. The Global Perspectives paper lasted for 1 hour and 15 minutes, while the Combined Science Paper was a 1 hour 15 minutes’ exam.
The school hall had been cleared for the assembly that morning, and all the examination equipment were removed. Ms Bee Yong said in an announcement that everyone had to take the exam seriously. “Year 10 and 11, I hope you are all doing well with your exams. Year 7, 8 and 9 students, your exam begins next week, so please start studying,” said Ms Bee Yong.
After heading back to our classes, I then proceeded to put my bag outside the classroom; towards the end of the hallway. Then, I went to the pigeon hole to take the Smartboard equipment and control book, and greeted some teachers along the way. As I passed the Year 7 classes, some of the students waved at me; especially Yeo Khaining and Andria Tan; both of whom had known me in the marchpast for Bullseye.
When I returned to 11N, Ms Joyce was entering the class. I passed the control book to her and headed to 11B for the Global Perspectives examination, which would begin at 8:30am. Ms Joyce told me that she will switch on the computer on her own and sign the control book later.
Mr Thomas did some chit-chatting with us on the Malay paper. Then, we were told to keep all materials, if any. Mr Stellio, who came in after Mr Thomas’ English lesson, then handed us the Global Perspectives papers. Then, he told us to begin. The exam questions were easy, and I just scribbled my answers. In fact, Global Perspectives is not a right or wrong answer test, but it is about arguing your points and opinions. It is one of the easiest papers in the IGCSE exam.
The exam was quite straightforward. I tried to think about the previous day's exam and how things worked. The Penulisan paper was over, and now, all that was needed was a series of straightforward comprehensions.
After the Global Perspectives exam was over, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal then had a chat with me as we walked out of the class. The sky was gloomy as I tried getting Ms Joyce and Mr Raja to sign the control book. I only managed to get Mr Raja to sign it before going to find Ms Joyce. Sadly, she wasn't in the staffroom. So, I returned to 11N and kept the control book there before heading for my break time.
During break time, I sat down with Yi Zhen and San Ying and we had a chat about the exam. Then, following break time, we went up to our classes. 11N was being used for the Additional Mathematics exam. And given the number of people defaulting on signing the control book, I had to set things straight.
I went to 11N, and Ms Sha, Mr Gallagher, Ms Janice and Ms Bee Yan were setting up the room for the Additional Mathematics exam. Then, I took my things from my bags. We were told to go to 11E for the duration of the exam.
After taking my things, I went to 11E and placed them in it. While 11N was being utilized for the Additional Mathematics exam for all other classes, 11O did their Additional Mathematics exam in their class. So, while waiting, I went up to Ms Sha and Mr Gallagher. I wanted to tell the teachers to inform people leaving the class to sign the control book. However, Mr Gallagher and Ms Sha told me to leave. They were not happy with me lingering around 11N waiting for people to cooperate and sign the book. They told me to get Ms Janice to sign the book later.
I then went to 11E, sat down and studied Combined Science with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal. Then, Mr Gallagher soon came to the class. I asked him as to why was he really asking me to leave the area quickly as the most important thing was to sign the control book. He told me that the exam was about to begin and the teachers felt that non-exam students were delaying the start of the test. He told me that I could settle the control book issue with the teachers following the test.
During the study session, I took out my Combined Science past-year papers to do them. I had brought my Paper 4 with me. I was wondering why the exam was called Paper 3. Perhaps I had mistaken the paper number. While doing the papers, Mr Gallagher was busy calling those who had defaulted on handing him the reports for the Group Project and the previous year’s Individual Evaluations.
Then, it was lunch. I then met Jordan, Rick and Jearn Xiu. They were speaking to Mr Lee. He had handed a copy of online IGCSE notes for the Physics syllabus. The notes were printed by Z-Notes, an online website for simplified IGCSE notes. Han Ming, who was also sitting with them for the day, had a copy of Z-Notes for the Chemistry exam, which takes place at the same time as the Combined Science exam.
After lunch, we then went up for the Combined Science exam, and Mr Raja came into the class with the Combined Science paper. We then sat at our designated seat, and got ready for the exam, which was to begin at 2:00pm that day. Mr Raja informed those who wished to use the washroom to do so immediately. I went to the washroom and then took note of who went to use the loo. Then, Mr Raja signed the control book and then I took note of those that used the toilet, passing them the control book to sign. Mr Raja unpacked the exam papers from the translucent plastic bag containing them, and then stacked them.
“Okay, students; no talking,” he said. He then took out the papers and told Ryan Chok and Shane to keep quiet. Then, he handed out the examination papers. Mr Raja then made sure the projector and the computer were working well. He then told us to start.
The exam was quite okay, and I was able to focus and concentrate on the exam. I skipped some questions which I felt were hard, and then focused on the easier questions. Then, Brandon Ooi went to the washroom, and I took note of that. This was then followed by Ryan Chok and Nickolas Nashpal, followed by Kelsey, Enisha and then Cassandra.
As the exam ticked on, I was able to complete the paper, and then I heard the Elementary School's dismissal announcements. Then, at 3:15pm, Mr Raja told us to stop. He then collected our papers. Brandon was showing off his funny grin in front of the class. Mr Raja told everyone to remain silent until he kept all the scripts. He then walked around the room and then reached Hao Yinn's table. Then, he went to the front, kept the papers and then told us that we can do our own things till the dismissal time. So, I went to find all the folks who used the toilet during the exam, and they went to sign the control book. Everyone soon left the room, and I stayed back and had a chat with Mr Raja. I wanted to gauge the feedback for my control book operations. Mr Raja told me he had no problems dealing with me despite some setbacks I had. I wanted to ask for feedback on how to improve my services to the school community.
The next day, Thursday, 4th May, was the First Language English and Economics examination. The First Language English exam was a Paper 3 exam, which focuses on directed writing and composition. The Economics paper was a Paper 2 exam, directing us to choose questions to answer in essay form. These two examinations were to be held in the morning. The afternoon exam was a Biology paper, and fortunately, we were not involved.
As the morning begun, I took the Economics past-year papers given by Ms Sharon and attempted the Paper 2 questions upon reaching 11N. Then, I switched on the computer. Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa soon came in to take our attendance. Then, Mr Kevin and I discussed on the exam protocol and how it affected the control book operations. Mr Kevin then told me about the fact that the examination would still certainly affect the name-recording during an exam, given stricter protocols involved. However, he told me to try and get the names of people who used the washroom, if possible. He said that there was no need to go to the extent to remind Mr Gallagher and Ms Janice about what was in place as the teachers knew what to do for students who used the loo. He also mentioned that more leeway to the control book protocol was given during exams due to the strict exam rules.
When the English exams begun, those who were sitting for the First Language English examination were told to remain in 11N. Individuals sitting for the English Second Language exam were told to proceed to 11L.
Some people from 11O then came over for the exam as we were grouped in the exam sitting according to our classes. I felt happy seeing Caleb Chuang come over for the exam. Then, I met Ashlyne Yong and updated her on the control book protocol. “You're so hardworking, Wei Yiang,” she said.
Ms Sharon then came in for our Economics lesson with a large stack of exam papers. She then told us to get ready for the exam. Everyone was cooperative. She then handed the exam papers to us after some people fumbled and were tardy. Then, we were given our exam papers. “Check if you have enough pages for your exam,” said Ms Sharon. She also said she had extra paper if we ran out of space to continue our writing for the exams. Then, we begun. The questions tested us on the word effect, as well as a story which we had to write. The exam was held from 8:00am to 10:00am.
At 10:00am, when the examination finished, Ms Cynthia collected our papers. Then, she signed the control book, and we left for our break time. Caleb Chuang and I talked about exam stuff as we headed for the canteen. Then, upon reaching the canteen, Joshua and I talked about Economics. I then continued doing Economics Paper 2 questions that Ms Sharon had given me.
After break time ended, we then returned to 11N, where the Economics exam was being held. Only four people from 11O were assigned to sit in 11N as per the Economics exam seating plan, namely Ashlyne Yong, Bethany Ng, Brittany Lim and Kai Yee. This was to ensure all tables were filled up.
Then, Mr Raja came into the class. “Okay, students, please settle down,” she said. Then, Ms Sharon told me she will sign the control book later when I asked him. Meanwhile, many people were using the washroom, and Mr Raja told them to quickly use the washroom. Then, he handed us our exam papers and we were soon told to begin. Mr Raja had to keep on telling Brandon Ooi to settle down.
When I read the exam paper, the first section of Paper 2 consisted of a long text. It was a case study which we had to answer ten sub-questions on. The case study talked about the economies of Singapore, China, India and a few other countries. There were six questions in the second section, with three sub-questions for each question. We had to answer three of the six questions.
Mr Raja walked around the room, patrolling us as the exam begun at 10:45am. The cool breeze made me shiver as I looked at the questions, trying to understand them. Then, I begun writing. I felt my hands freezing as the air conditioning blew on. I asked Mr Raja to lower the speed of the fan in the room so that I can write properly.
Then, I continued writing, and I wrote a lot of things. Ms Sarah then came in for English Literature and took over from Mr Raja. I only panicked because I was afraid that I cannot finish the paper. Soon, Enisha complained that the fan on her side was too slow, and asked Mr Raja to increase the speed of the fan, to which he obliged.
During the exam, Brandon Ooi, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai, Sheng Jit and Aaron Liew used the washroom. I took note of that and continued writing on my exam script. Then, once the exam finished, Cikgu Niely, who came in to invigilate, then collected our papers. When Cikgu Niely had finished collecting our papers, she then talked to us about the Paper 2 exam for Malay. She informed us that we would have exams as usual despite 10th May being the public holiday for Wesak Day. This was exam protocol as specified by Cambridge.
Some people gasped when they learned about 10th May 2017 being Wesak Day. Many people just ignored it. Then, Sheng Jit wished he was sleeping in his room, having a rest from the tens of thousands of exam stress.
During lunch, I then had lunch with Yi Zhen. "Wei Yiang, I'm reporting you to Ms Bee Yong," she joked. I wondered what was going on. She jokingly said so because I gave Lyn Wen a pat. Then, after lunch, we then returned to 11N. Ze Khai, Nickolas and I then sat down and discussed as the Biology paper was being held. We did some revision on Business Studies. Nickolas Nashpal asked me a few questions relating to Business Studies and I could not answer. Then, Ze Khai and I talked about History, as the History exam was going to occur the next day. The Paper 1 and 2 would cover the Core Content, which was on the Treaty of Versailles, Paris Peace Conference, World War I, the League of Nations, the Cold War, Communism, Korean War and the Soviet control in Eastern Europe. The Depth Study portion would cover the Nazi Germany and 1920s USA topics. Ms Visa had told us to focus on Nazi Germany for the Depth Study. Ms Bee Yan was invigilating us, followed by Ms Charine, who had come in to relief Ms Joyce for the day.
The next morning, on Friday, 5th May, I arrived at school early. I had not ate my breakfast because I wanted to practice for the Beep Test in the school hall, in the same conditions to stimulate the Beep Test, just like how I practiced for the Founder's Run and the 1500m.
I then put my bags down and placed my water bottle to mark the distances. Then, I ran in the hall from the two points, one after another. I wanted to do the Beep Test practice because I was wearing my PE attire that morning. It would be crazy for one to run in their school uniform.
I then ran and made it until Level 5. Then, I took a rest. The crowd soon built up in the hall. Krystal Goh was curious as to what I was doing. I was practicing for the Beep Test. As the crowd built up, I then stopped running and then went to have my breakfast. When I returned, some people asked why I was sweating, and I had to explain the whole thing. Many people started rekindling the atmosphere during the Founder's Run.
During the morning assembly, Ms Bee Yong then reminded us on our exams. She told us to do well in the exams and focus on our studies. "Now is the time to be studying. If you haven't started studying yet, you better do it now," she said.
The Business Studies paper was held in 11N. It was a Paper 1 exam, and I wanted to please Ms Chithra. I only hope that I don't get stuck on the exam papers.
Everyone in 11N who took Business Studies were delegated to 11N. Some people from 11O, who also took Business Studies, such as Ashlyne Yong, came in. I presented to her the list of control book signatories. She smiled once again and gave the thumbs-up. In the Monitor's Council, every monitor from Year 11 who were present for every Monitor's Council took Business Studies. Me, Ashlyne, Rick, Pranavee and Berlinda were in Ms Chithra's classes. On the other hand, Sheng Jit was in Ms Vishalini's Business Studies class while Aristotle Koh was in Ms Chithra's class. Jearn Xiu and Ye Sean did not take Business Studies.
Mr Kevin Wai was invigilating the exam because it was our Homeroom time. He then told everyone to settle down and then handed us our papers. "I still hear some people talking. No talking," he warned. Once he told us to begin, he walked around the room. Soon, I saw Mr Victor's shoes. He was walking around and smiling like a rock star in the exam. He then walked around as I moved my eyeballs between him and the paper. I did my Business Studies paper, but I felt I gave some silly answers. Soon, Mr Victor collected the paper and I directed him to sign the control book upon the conclusion of the exam. Then, we went for break. Mr Victor did not give me clues as to when the Beep Test would be held.
During break time, I studied for the History paper. Then, following break, I went back to 11N to sit for the two-hour History exam. Everyone then gathered in their respective classes for the exam. The hallway was crowded with people finding their respective classes for the exam.
The History exam for me was quite interesting. However, I only studied on the Cold War. Then, Ms Bee Yan came in and I took time to read about the Cold War. Everyone involved in the exam then came into the room. Sean Mark, San Ying, Sophie and Jien Min; the people who were sitting the exam with us 11N students, then came in. San Ying and Sophie quizzed each other on the Cold War. I wanted to join in but they wanted to revise the thing on their own. Then, Kit Lee asked me for some explanations on the Cold War, and then San Ying and Sophie joined in. Before I knew it, I was giving a History lesson to those who did not understand the topics for the exam. San Ying chided me for not explaining the Treaty of Versailles properly but praised me when I explained about the Cold War. Jason Leing then said I am obsessed with Caleb Chuang and me being in different classes, and joked with me about how I related that to the Cold War topics.
When Mr Lee came into the class, he carried the History exam papers. He entered the class at 10:50am and told us to put our things away. Soon, the whole class was swarmed with people putting their books out of the room and then returning for the exam. I took my transparent pencil case, sat down and waited for the test to begin.
Mr Lee then took time to open the exam papers. When everyone was seated, he held the stack of papers in his hands. "Shh! No talking," he said. Then, he walked around, passing the papers to us.
"Write your name and class but don't open the paper yet," he said. Then, once he had handed all papers out, he then told us to begin. When I opened the paper, I groaned. Most of the questions were on the Treaty of Versailles. Oh dear.
The fans calmed my nerves as I wrote some points to begin writing on the paper for History. Fortunately, I was able to steady myself and do the paper. Mr Lee walked around the room, and his boots thumped on the floor. He smiled, looked at us and then I requested for permission to use the washroom. He gave me leeway, and I wrote my name in the control book before departing. Once I finished returning from the room, I wrote the time of my return. Mr Lee told me he will take note of people who used the loo and told me not to worry.
The exam soon dragged on, and at 12:10pm, Ms Joyce entered the room to invigilate the second half of the exam. Everyone seriously focused on doing their papers, scribbling all the information that they wish to answer, on their scripts.
At 1:00pm, Ms Joyce then called on everyone to stop. She then told everyone to put their pens down. Ms Joyce had to tell Louis multiple times to cease answering the exam, and she had to take his exam paper first. He cried. Then, Gabriel was finishing his last answer, and Ms Joyce collected his paper. Soon, Ms Joyce went around to collect all our papers. She put Louis and Gabriel's papers aside. Then, she informed us that we could be able to take our bags in. The other classes soon had some noise as the exam ended. Ms Joyce then told Sheng Jit to collect the Friday food and told us that we could only return to our respective classes at 1:30pm should there be people not from 11N be in the class sitting the exam. Sean Mark and Jason Leing had to wait till 1:30pm before they could return to their classes. Ms Joyce signed the control book and I took down the names of people who used the washroom, asking them to sign the control book. They eventually did. Jason Leing and Sean Mark even wondered how I became assistant monitor in the first place.
After the exam ended, I then went to talk to Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal, who spoke to me about the following Monday's Combined Science exam, teasing each other and boasting about who would be the best in the test.
The following Monday, on 8th May 2017, it was our History Paper 1 and Combined Science Paper 1 and 6.
Ze Khai and I were discussing on the History topics before the start of the assembly. We then had our assembly, and Ms Sim and Ms Bee Yong briefed everyone on the rules and regulations of the examination. They told us that the exam is a time for us to know where we stand, what we went right and wrong, and how we can improve, as every action we do is a learning process for us. We had to return to our classes early for our exams.
When we returned to our classes, we then proceeded for our exam. We were having the History paper, and once again, it was held in 11N. Mr Raja then came into the class with the History papers. We were having History Paper 1 that morning. It was bound to be an easy paper.
Unlike History Papers 2 and 6, the History Paper 1 was a series of structured questions which tested us on facts, how far did certain actions of certain individuals influence an event, as well as to allow us to argue our points on whether we agreed or disagreed with the statement. We were entering the final full week of our exams.
Mr Raja then handed our History papers to us. We were having a 2-hour paper, from 8:00am to 10:00am. Everyone quickly huddled into 11N for the History exam. Ms Praveen was seen outside the Year 11 classes asking people to quickly go for their exams. Then, we begun the paper at 8:00am, and I can certainly feel the paper being an easy one to do.
During the exam, Mr Raja patrolled the class before Ms Sharon came in at 9:20am. Then, we handed our History papers, and then went for our break time. I went down to the canteen and had a chat with San Ying and wished her a happy birthday. “Thanks,” she said. Then, I told her about my upcoming birthday on 15th May. In fact, thanks to the Malay IGCSE examination on 10th May, the examination period for Year 11 students extended a day later, to 15th May. It would not have had been the case if there was no Malay IGCSE examination.
After break time, I then returned to 11N and met Mr Raja. The Physics examination was about to begin. We then returned to class and I spent the entire time revising for Combined Science and talking to Nickolas Nashpal. Mr Raja was in the class once again as he had two Accounting set teaching lessons that day. As the Physics exam was being held in 11O and 11L, Mr Raja told us to keep our voices low as the people from 11O may hear our noises and that we might disturb them.
During the free period, I did some Combined Science past-year papers bought by my mum. Almost everyone in Year 11 carried a thick book of past-year papers. Many have either bought the past year papers physically or sourced them online. The most common method to source the IGCSE papers online was from a website called IGCSE Center. The website contained IGCSE papers from the Year 2002 onwards till October/November 2016; the latest examination sitting. While the website is not affiliated with Cambridge, it gets exam papers from Cambridge, and publishes them on the website for everyone to view it. This website had been promoted by many teachers, especially Mr Lee. I had found out about the website from Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew and Wei Zhong, who supplied me with the link for the website during our regular break-time chats.
Then, after feeling tired from doing the past-year papers, I then decided to fill in the information for the control book and check with people who had used the washroom. It was then Combined Science, and Mr Lee came into the class. Brandon Ooi asked Mr Lee if he could reveal tips. Although he did not gave tips for the exam, he said that the exam paper for Combined Science was very easy.
“Trust me, the exam is very easy. All of you will score A,” he said.
“Serious ah, teacher?” asked Brandon.
“Yeah, seriously. It is so easy,” said Mr Lee. He told us that the questions will be very straightforward. Then, he placed his things on the chair. I then showed Mr Lee my past year papers and asked him for some questions. He then guided me with the questions.
Mr Lee then told anyone who had questions to come over to him and ask him. Then, he went to the back and had a good chat with Brandon Ooi and Shane. In fact, Brandon Ooi was playing his AZ Tanks game. Mr Lee went to him and asked him what the game was. “Put it down, keep it. Later Ms Bee Yong scold,” he said.
Then, Brandon Ooi and Mr Lee had a chat on the exam topics. Mr Lee said that both the Paper 1 and Paper 6 questions were straightforward. He said that there was no need to do a lot of revision for Paper 6, and in fact, the hardest of all the three papers was Paper 3. He said that Paper 3 consisted of 50% of the overall marks for Combined Science, and Papers 1 and 2 contribute 20% and 30% each, which caused the entire tally to total up to 100%. He kept joking and laughing at us while playing some jokes. He was a really funny teacher.
Afterwards, it was lunch, and I sat down with Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew and talked to them about what Mr Lee said. Joshua then told me that Mr Lee also told him that the Physics paper would be easy, and in reality, it was easy and he scored really high marks as a result. “Trust me. Mr Lee is right. All the best for Combined Science,” he said. I then told him that it was Physics Paper 4 that they were sitting, and that I am sitting Papers 1 and 6. Joshua then told me that Mr Lee will put certain questions in an easy manner.
“It is very easy, Wei Yiang. Mr Lee told me it is so easy and then when I did the exam, I can do it. He also said that there is no need to study a lot. Even baby also can do,” said Joshua, mimicking my usual funny phrase of my reaction to an easy paper.
When I returned for the Combined Science exam, Mr Kevin Wai then came into the class with our exam papers, along with a multiple choice answer sheet which consisted of a series of letters that we need to shade according to the question. He had brought two exam papers with him; Paper 1 and Paper 6. Mr Kevin Wai then told us to go to the washroom quickly if we needed to do so. Then, he signed the control book and we were seated at our desks. Brandon Ooi, Shane, Ryan Chok, Sheng Jit and Eric went to the washroom as usual. When they returned, Mr Kevin Wai told everyone to settle down. Kelsey, Enisha and Cassandra were the last to enter the room. Then, Mr Kevin Wai started handing out our exam papers. He also brought a stack of OMR answer sheets for us, which would be used for the 45-minute multiple-choice question exam. While the Paper 1 lasted 45 minutes, from 1:40pm to 2:25pm, the Paper 2 was a 1-hour paper, from 2:30pm to 3:30pm.
“Shh! No talking!” he cried, as Brandon led out a soft giggle. “Write your name and class. Do not start yet,” he said. He walked around the room, handing our exam papers to us. Then, Mr Kevin Wai told us to answer on the OMR answer sheet and use a pencil. It reminded me of Aaron Liew using his ballpoint pen to shade the answers during the 2016 Mid Year Examination a year prior on his OMR paper, resulting in the machine failing to detect his answer and Ms Sangeetha getting very angry with him and that she had to mark his work manually.
The exam then begun, and I was surprised. It was so easy, as what Mr Lee said! However, I did not manage to finish three questions when time ran out. Mr Kevin Wai told us to stop and collected the exam papers and the OMR answer sheet. He then arranged them nicely, placed them in plastic bags, and opened another plastic bag to hand our Paper 6 to us. “Write your name and class,” he said. Then, we begun the 1-hour paper. It was not as easy, but I was able to comprehend the questions and understand them. After an hour, the exam soon ended, and Ms Janice collected the exam papers. I then went to the staffroom to get all the teachers to sign the control book if they defaulted on them.
The next morning, 9th May, during our Combined Science lesson with Mr Lee, we did our revision for Maths and I brought the Maths past-year papers for Paper 2. This was because the Mathematics exam would be held from 10:50am to 12:50pm.
I kept on showing the exam papers with Nickolas Nashpal. Mr Nehru had done some revision and some exercises with us during our one-to-one Maths tuition on Saturdays and Sundays. Normally, Mr Nehru will do my tuition time with me before going to find Nickolas Nashpal in the afternoon. My tuition time with him was from 10:00am to 11:30am on Saturdays and 1:00pm to 2:30pm on Sundays. And not just that; on Sundays, Nickolas Nashpal's tuition time with Mr Nehru was immediately held after mine. Mr Nehru would need 1 hour to drive to Nickolas' place before starting the tuition.
Mr Nehru would normally have a 'competition' with us during our tuition time. He would check our books and not allow us to do the past year papers till the tuition time itself, so that we can have empty past year papers for us to compare the results. So, Mr Nehru would normally start with me. Since my tuition time was the first, he would base the past-year exercise on the paper which I had not done yet. Then, he would take a picture of the paper which I did and tell Nickolas to do the same so that we can compare our marks, and Mr Nehru will update me the following week and see who had won. He told us to concentrate and not lose our concentration or else we would have our marks impacted.
So, during the Combined Science lesson with Mr Lee, Nickolas Nashpal and I met and found one past year paper which we hadn't done yet, and were ready to start. Then, Mr Lee approached us. We all told him that the exam paper we did for Paper 1 and 6 was really easy. Mr Lee said the reason the exam paper was very easy was the fact that he himself was using a very easy version of the paper. He told us that Combined Science, just like Mathematics, was divided into the Core and Extended paper. He was using the Core paper for Combined Science instead of the Extended paper. While the Core paper is easy, the exam result would only produce a maximum grade of a C for the subject, whereas the Extended paper allows students to score up to A* for the subject.
Mr Lee wanted us to experience how the Core and Extended papers looked like. He then told us that he will begin the separation of students into Core and Extended papers after the end of the Mid Year Examination. He did not give us further details and told us to wait. Then, Mr Lee saw Nickolas Nashpal and I comparing our grades from Mr Nehru's tuition class. We then readied ourselves, and Mr Lee counted down. "Three, two, one, start!" he cried, clapping his hands. Then, we begun to do the paper. Brandon Ooi and Eric Wong were really stunned and surprised. They told Mr Lee they also wished to compete as well, and then they took down the exam paper we were doing and flipped open their Maths books which were given by Ms Bee Yan to do them. Mr Nehru also used some of the past year papers from the booklet which was given by Ms Bee Yan. We had two copies; one purchased on our own and the other given by Ms Bee Yan. We spent the entire Combined Science and Economics lesson to do the past year papers for Mathematics. Sometimes, both the papers in our own copy and the one given by Ms Bee Yan matched. Brandon Ooi and Eric checked theirs. Brandon then found out that he had done the paper and will compare our marks with his. Eric then decided not to compete, so we kept on doing our work. I concentrated for two hours to do the work.
After that, we then had break and I took time to continue the past year papers. Then, we returned for our exam at 10:30am.
Students taking the Mathematics Extended paper would need to go to 11O for their exam, while Mathematics Core students remained in 11N. 11O, 11B, 11E and 11L were being used for their exams. Some people thought that because Mathematics was an exam dedicated for everyone, there was no need to change their classes. However, when they found out they were in the wrong class, they scrambled to get into the correct class. At that period in time, Maths Extended and Core separation was practiced for 11E and 11N.
In 11O, Mr Nick came into the room and then brought a large stack of Maths exam papers. We then got ready for our exam. Mr Nick then told us to settle down and then begun handing out the papers. Then, Shane went and put his pencil case outside the room as it wasn't transparent, taking in only the pens, pencils and relevant equipment. I then placed my calculator cover in my bag and returned to my seat. Mr Nick then told us to write our name, check the papers and wait till he gave the signal to begin. Then, at 10:50am, we were allowed to open our papers and begin. I then started having full concentration to do the Maths exam.
Upon entering the first question, I tried to answer it. I managed to answer three questions in the first half of the exam. There was one question per page and there were 10 pages. The reason for this was because the exam paper required tons of workings.
Soon, I got stuck on a question of circle theorems. I then continued. I remember Mr Nehru's advice not to panic and concentrate. I decided to flip through the questions, mark out the difficult ones, and do the easy ones first. I managed to mark out five difficult ones and focused on one question regarding matrix transformations. It was easy to do. I took my tracing paper and then drew the images according to what the questions asked. Then, I did some questions on equations and expanding the brackets of the equations. Time passed, and I managed to do most of the questions. The tip Mr Nehru gave me was working.
As the exam neared its end, I struggled to finish three remaining questions but failed to finish them. Then, Ms Renee, who was in 11O for the Biology lesson, then collected our papers. "Okay, your exam is over. I'm going to collect the papers now," she said. Then, she collected all the papers, picking them up one by one. Before we left the room, Ms Renee gestured for me to come to her. She told me not to attend the Bible Knowledge exam on Thursday, 11th May, and Friday, 12th May. Both the exams would be held at 10:30am on 11th May and 8:20am on 12th May. The two papers last for one and a half hours. Ms Renee told me to skip the exam and do revision for my other subjects. She asked what were my subjects on those two days, and I told her that I would have Business Studies Paper 2 and Malaysian Studies on Thursday, 11th May, as well as Maths Paper 4 on Friday, 12th May. Ms Renee was happy that I did not have a lot of papers left, but told me to focus on those remaining papers, including the Economics exam on 15th May. That exam would be easy as it was a multiple-choice question.
After the exam finished, I went down for lunch and then had a talk with Nickolas Nashpal after finishing my meal. The both of us teased each other and told us we will lose to the other. "Let's see who loses when the results come out," said Nickolas Nashpal. "I managed to finish ALL questions," he said. I defaulted on three questions due to the lack of time. Then, we returned to our class for our own free period. Meanwhile, the Physics Paper 1 and 6 were ongoing, so Ms Sarah, who was in the class, told us to keep our voices low. I then presented to Ms Sarah the control book and I ushered her the pages which she forgot to sign. "Thanks once again for being such a good monitor," she said.
At the back of the class, Shane, Brandon, Eric, Ze Khai and Ryan Chok look at Brandon Ooi play his AZ Tanks game. Nickolas and I sat down together and did a quiz on Business Studies. I answered all the questions wrongly. Gabriel and Louis read something while Cassandra and Kelsey checked their phones. The entire class did their own things and Ze Khai and I talked about life till the end of the day.
The next day, 10th May 2017, was the Wesak Day public holiday. However, it was also our Malay IGCSE Paper 2.
You see, ladies and gentlemen, the IGCSE exam MUST be held on a public holiday because it had to conform with Cambridge's exam standards. If a school does not wish to hold the exam as per their schedule, they would violate Cambridge's guidelines. This may render them being ineligible to hold future exams and would be blacklisted by Cambridge. Hence, for exam security purposes, and to prevent people from cheating and discussing the details of the paper, all schools must hold exams at the time and date required by Cambridge. If Nobel International School were to hold the Malay exam a day later, candidates from different schools would tell the format of the paper, disadvantaging schools across Malaysia. So, to be fair, the inconvenience of holding an exam on a public holiday would need to be borne by teachers and students alike.
Previously, when Ms Praveen briefed us about the Malay Paper 2, and when Mr Kevin Wai spoke to us the previous day during Reading Time, they told us to arrive at 8:00am at the latest for attendance-taking, and that the exam would be held from 9:00am to 10:00am.
On the morning of 10th May 2017, the school was as deserted as city streets during a festive season. All of us went to 11N straight away when we arrived. I reached the school at 7:45am. When I reached 11N, the class was filled with people. Everyone was in the class. Brandon, Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong and Ze Khai were playing jokes. I arrived at the same time as Cassandra. Gabriel and Louis were in front of the class. Mr Kevin Wai soon arrived and then took our attendance. Then, he had a chat with Nickolas Nashpal, Ze Khai, Eric, Cassandra and Enisha.
At 8:30am, Mr Kevin instructed all of us to leave the classroom and head down to the school hall. I managed to meet many of my friends from the other classes, especially Caleb Chuang, when we walked to the school hall. I carried a small bag which consisted of my Statement of Entry, pencil case and stationeries.
Outside the school hall, Ms Sha and Ms Praveen pushed a large trolley containing the Cambridge exam papers. “Sorry, sorry, excuse me. Sorry, please make way!” they cried. Then, outside the hall, the doors opened. A lot of teachers soon arrived. Ms Sim soon walked in the courtyard, bypassing the crowded corridor. She gave us thumbs-ups and greeted us. “How's everything? Okay? Last paper! Last paper!” she cried.
When everyone got their stationeries ready, Ms Praveen opened the door. “Okay, students! You may come in now! No talking!” she cried. Ms Sha and Ms Fadilah checked our items if they were okay. I presented my Statement of Entry, identity card and stationery to Ms Sha, before being told to enter.
Mr Chan was smiling with his arms folded. He looked at us and greeted us. I greeted him before I entered. Then, I sat down at my desk.
“Students, no talking,” said Ms Sim. She was announcing the information to us. Everyone quickly took their seats. Then, once everyone entered, the doors closed. Everyone was really cooperative, particularly because it was a public holiday and we could return home early.
Ms Sim then asked us if all was good. “Can we start?” she asked. We gave the thumbs up. Then, Ms Sim then instructed the teachers to unpack the exam papers. “Ms Praveen, Ms Sha, you may give out the exam papers,” she said. “Teachers, please take eleven copies and hand them out please,” she said.
Ms Sim then read out the instructions from the pre-prepared script from the Cambridge Exam Manual. Then, she asked if anyone did not have a paper. We all said that we had our papers, and then we were told to begin.
The second paper, Malay Paper 2 was also as much as a piece of cake as the first, as I managed to answer the questions which were very straightforward. Like Paper 4, it also took one hour without any sweat. I can bet with you that the exam was really easy to the point that a Year 1 student can sit it. In fact, to rephrase it, a student from Year 3 to 6, in KS4, can answer Paper 4 while a kindergartener, a Year 1 student and Year 2 student can answer Paper 2 with basic study skills. Seriously. It was THAT easy.
I was doing the paper. Soon, half the paper was done, and then Ms Sim called out that there were 15 minutes till the end of the exam. Then ten minutes. No one used the washroom as the paper was so easy. In fact, throughout the one-hour test, only five people used the loo. The clock ticked down, and finally, our Malay exam was over.
As the papers were collected, I felt a sigh of relief as the Malay examination became a thing of the past. “Any other questions, candidates?” Ms Sim asked when she wanted to confirm if all are well. The moment the Malay exam was over, everyone in their seats sneakily turned and grinned while I stared towards the front for fear of breaking the exam rules. Then, everyone headed home as I told my mum, who was picking me up, that the second paper was much easier than the first, and all the Malay exam papers were easy.
The rest of the exam week went by smoothly. The next day, 11th May, was a treat to two exams, namely Business Studies and Malaysian Studies. Originally, I was bound to sit the Bible Knowledge exam. The Bible Knowledge exam was held at Tutorial Room 4. Since Ms Renee told me not to sit for the exam, I only had two subjects that day, making life easier for me.
The morning begun normally as we went up to our class for Reading Time. Before the day begun, everyone greeted Cikgu Niely who arrived in school that morning to thank her for teaching us Malay and that we found the Malay exam so easy to attempt.
Students taking the Business Studies exam were told to proceed to 11B, E and L for the exam, and those who weren't sitting the Business Studies paper were told to head to 11N and 11O. I then took my things, packed them up, and headed to 11B for the exam. The exam was Business Studies Paper 1, which lasted for one and a half hours.
As I arrived, Ms Bee Yan came into the class with the Business Studies papers. Then, after some people decided to use the washroom, Ms Bee Yan closed the doors at 8:20am when everyone had returned. He then handed out the papers to us and then gave us time to read the questions before starting the exam at 8:30am.
Business Studies Paper 1 was a short-answer response. It was very straightforward, but however, the short answer response involved so many short essay writing. All our points required elaboration and explanation, which was quite tricky if we did not even remember one point. Each elaboration consisted of three to five points. Then, after Mr Nick had started invigilating, Mr Kevin Wai came in for Chemistry. He reminded us to write our teachers’ names on the paper so that it would be very easy to compile. There were two teachers teaching Business Studies; Ms Chithra and Ms Vishalini.
After the Business Studies exam ended, we went for break. I then met Ms Renee, who told me that she will inform Ms Praveen and the other teachers that I was not going to take the Bible Knowledge exam. Then, I went for break, and Joshua Chew told me he would inform the invigilator in the Bible Knowledge exam that I would not be sitting the exam.
During the Bible Knowledge exam, I stayed in 11N, and some people asked why I was not sitting the Bible Knowledge exam. I then went to see Ms Renee. She told me that I do not have to worry and to proceed back to 11N. I had to explain the matter to my classmates, and read my Malaysian Studies book while talking to Ze Khai. Many people did not take Malaysian Studies with the same seriousness as the other subjects as the Malaysian Studies exam was not tested in the IGCSE exam.
Later on, when Ms Sarah came in for English Literature, I then spoke to her about areas which I can improve my services as assistant monitor. She said that I had no issues with her and there was no need to improve my services further. Then, Ryan Chok and Shane approached her for consultation on the English Literature subject. I spent time talking with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal throughout the entire time. When Cikgu Niely came into the class, she gave a speech thanking us for being cooperative despite being at times not listening to her. She said that our Malay IGCSE exam results would be known by the end of the year. Everyone thanked her. And Enisha, Kelsey, Cassandra, Grace and Wee Shiang gave her a hug.
The Malaysian Studies paper was to be held from 2:30pm to 3:30pm. During lunch time, many people jokingly said that everyone will fail Malaysian Studies as no one focused on that. Krisha also echoed the same sentiment during lunch time. Since the Malaysian Studies exam was the last such exam ever, Alexandria Goh had been going around during lunch and handing her Malaysian Studies notes to everyone. This was because Alexandria Goh felt that some grace be given to Malaysian Studies because it was the last Malaysian Studies exam and that everyone should try to at least get some good marks in the subject.
When we returned to class for the exam, Ms Bee Yan went around giving us tips on Paper 4. She told us that those in the Mathematics Extended class can be downgraded to the Mathematics Core class if we did not do well in the exam. Ms Bee Yan then told us that we will not be able to appeal our new placement and that it would be final without any change.
Then, at 2:10pm, Ms Joyce came into the class and told us to keep our books. "Those who want to go to the toilet, please go now," she said. Then, she gave a total of ten minutes for us to keep our things and use the washroom. After ten minutes had passed, everyone returned. Ms Joyce then handed out the paper for Malaysian Studies.
The exam was quite challenging, particularly because many straightforward concepts were not looked at upon. I felt my answers were silly. Ms Joyce then walked around the room and told Ryan Chok not to doodle on his Malaysian Studies paper. "You are not supposed to be drawing. You are supposed to answer the question," she said. Some people were blank on how to answer. Brandon and Shane just slept a bit throughout the paper. Then, an hour later, Ms Joyce collected the papers. I felt that I had done the paper quite terribly.
Friday, 12th May soon arrived. I tried to practice the Beep Test once again but there was no time as the crowd built up once again, and that I had revision to do for the Maths Paper 4, which was tough. Before the morning assembly begun, I wished a very happy birthday to Sherwin and then we went up for our exam following the assembly. During the assembly, Ms Bee Yong said that although our exams were ending, she said that we should still continue to focus on our studies after that.
I went up to 11N and then Nickolas Nashpal and I did a past year paper from 2012 on the Paper 4 booklet Mr Nehru gave. Then, I checked answers with him, but however, since Nickolas did not bring Ms Bee Yan's past year papers, we could not confirm that together. So, we did the past year papers we bought for Mr Nehru's lesson. The Bible Knowledge exam was held from 8:20am to 9:50am. During the lesson, I also talked to Mr Victor about the Beep Test. He said that he hadn't finalized details on the Beep Test yet.
After break, we then had the Maths Paper 4. We did the exam from 10:50am to 1:30pm. Those who were taking Maths Extended had to head to 11O for their exam. During the exam, Ms Renee was invigilating. She asked if everything was okay. Then, she told me to drop Bible Knowledge immediately when the period to drop subjects begun. Ms Renee then gathered all of us for the exam. Everyone who was outside the class quickly headed for their paper. The exam was much more tougher than the Paper 2 exam. Despite the hard challenges, I managed to finish Paper 4. The final Friday of the exam season soon passed. All that was needed was the Economics paper and then my birthday celebration on the same day, 15th May.
As the last official day of the Mid Year Examination coincided with my birthday on 15th May, seeing Economics as my last paper was like a celebration to me because I celebrate my birthday and the end of the exams. 15th May 2017 would be my last birthday celebration as a student of Nobel International School.
On the morning of 15th May, I felt quite lukewarm because it was my last birthday celebration being a Nobel student. I arrived quite early. I didn't study that much, because the Economics Paper 1 was a straightforward paper.
The morning was bustling with activity as everyone arrived at school. Most people wished me a happy birthday before I entered. Then, I went to store my birthday cake in the front office's fridge.
I then went to the school hall, placed my things down, and Krystal Goh met me and wished me a happy birthday, and so did Adrinna Yee. Then, I took my bread and headed to the canteen with the newspapers. I then read the newspapers in the canteen. While reading my newspapers, I met a couple of teachers who were walking past the canteen to the lift. They were wishing me a happy birthday.
It looked quite surreal as 15th May 2017 would be my last birthday that I would celebrate in Nobel, given my impending graduation from Nobel at the end of 2017. It was a bit saddening. Everything was a last for me. The last Sports Day. Last Founder's Run. The last of anything in Nobel as a student. Of course, I can look forward to more activities in Nobel. However, I won't be a student anymore. I was thinking of just one thing. Maybe a Sports Day 2018 to rival that of 2017.
After having my breakfast, I then went to the school hall and kept the newspaper and food container. Then, I headed to the foyer. I then met Ms June who wished me a happy birthday. Before long, I looked at the bright atmosphere of the school foyer. I then met Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew, whom I walked with to the school hall to have a chat with them. Joshua told me that I would and will be older than any one of them in their social circle because he's born in June, along with Joseph Diong, and Caleb Chuang is born in September.
Then, at 7:45am, we then had the morning assembly with the usual protocol. The assembly kicked off and Ms Bee Yong continued to tell us to focus on our studies although the exams were over. Afterwards, we went back to 11N to begin our Economics exam. Mr Kevin Wai also wished me a happy birthday.
The Economics paper was a 45-minute exam that was held from 9:00am to 9:45am. It was not just my final paper, but it was also the final exam for all the subjects for the 2017 Mid Year Examination for us Year 11 students. We took our Economics books and revised, but however, most of us just relaxed because it involved answering the questions on a multiple-choice OMR sheet and that the amount of marks in this paper was quite low. Mr Raja came into the class, put his things down, and thanked me for switching on the computer for him. Then, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal talked to me and we boasted on our marks when the exam results would be released.
At 8:45am, Mr Raja told us to keep our things as he headed to the strong room to retrieve the Economics exam papers. He then told us to settle down as Sheng Jit, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi used the washroom for a short while. Then, he proceeded to hand us our papers. At 9:00am, we begun the Economics exam. This exam, given its simple answer format, was also a piece of cake, just like the Combined Science exam. The exam was very short and lasted a short while. Then, afterwards, my friends and I set up my birthday cake in the canteen as the whole canteen sang the birthday song for me.
Caleb Chuang and I set up the birthday cake at Jordan Tay and Rick Tan's table, and Glen Kay assisted us. I took the cake out from the fridge located in the front office, and Glen Kay accompanied me with the cake. When the whole canteen sung the birthday song for me, I feel touched as it was my last birthday celebration in Nobel. At the same time, it was also a great end to the exam season as the stress of academics drew to a close.
During the birthday celebration, Rick Tan and Jordan had a chat with me as they tasted my pandan cake. It was a nice and healthy flavor as opposed to the cream-laced cakes of other people's tastes. Then, we returned to our class following the end of our break time and re-arranged the tables to suit the original seating arrangement. Ms Sha and Ms Yew then removed the exam information from the retractable whiteboard placed outside the Year 11 classrooms, and dumped them into the bin. We then put our things back into the class. In fact, for most of the classes, we had rearranged the furniture back to their original position before heading for our classes. Our teachers were returning to the classes for their lessons.
I then headed to the Art Studio for our Art lesson with Ms Nadia. She was calling everyone for a one-to-one consultation session with her. Ms Nadia was discussing with us on where we went right and where improvements were needed for the Art Exam. She also wished me a happy birthday.
During my consultation with Ms Nadia, she showed me a picture of my final piece. Although I got a C for Paper 1, Ms Nadia wasn't amused because I did not pay attention to shape and form. In fact, what was really weird was that I drew SIX FINGERS on my hand when grabbing the grill of my house gate. On the other hand, for Paper 2, while I fared better on my Greenhouse logo, Ms Nadia said that I should improve on my neatness and ensure that there were no color variations.
Behind the Art Studio, Yi Zhen and Jien Min were hugging each other like mad. I looked in disgust when I saw them doing that. If I had warned them against that, Jien Min would get angry at me despite such acts being discouraged in the school rules. That was gross. Eu Lynn and Sara Yow, meanwhile, were showing off their latest keychains.
When we returned to class, Mr Lee had finished marking all our Combined Science papers. He then handed Paper 3 to us to discuss them. Nickolas Nashpal won me by 20 marks in the Paper 3 exam. And Ze Khai was ahead of me by five marks.
During our Character Transformation session, Ms Lim then came into the school hall. She had plans for us Year 11 students. It was a plan for the Year 11 Graduation in November 2017.
Ms Lim then said that everyone was required to attend the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony which was then tentatively scheduled for 17th November 2017. Each individual was told to pay RM 200 for the graduation ceremony and that everyone must attend it. “This is a very important moment because you are graduating from Nobel and we want to celebrate your achievement in Nobel over the last 10 years,” said Ms Lim. She also told us that we must attend as a token of appreciation to our parents and teachers for spending time in Nobel since Year 1.
Ms Lim then asked on how many people spent their time in Nobel since Year 1 in 2008, and Ms Lim was very pleased to see a large number of people who have been in Nobel since 2008. She also told us that the graduation ceremony would be a testimony for us, especially those who were in Nobel since 2008.
When some people did not wish to attend the ceremony, Ms Lim asked why did they refuse to do so and those who did not wish to attend the ceremony complained of the expensive price of RM 200. She also told us that the ceremony was more important than the price and jokingly asked if they could not even afford it.
Then, we returned for Global Perspectives and then Mr Gallagher gave us a briefing. He told us that we would get our marks for the group project by the following week at the latest; the week of 22nd May. He then said that he will finalize the marks for us and then told us that some people were highly asked to drop Global Perspectives, and Ryan Chok was one of them.
After returning from the Global Perspectives lesson, I went to find Mr Raja and Ms Janice and got them to sign the Control Book. Then, I kept the control book and the Smartboard equipment in the pigeon hole and then went to 10N for the Monitor's Council meeting. I was a bit late because finding Mr Raja and Ms Janice took as long as finding Nemo. All the monitors praised me and also sung the birthday song for me. Ashlyne Yong then played some icebreaking games with all the monitors in the class. Then, Zher Xian talked to me over what was my birthday wish and so on. He was really cool and funny in the class. Ms Sharon then came into the class and so did Ms Cynthia. Then, Ms Cynthia announced that there was an Asia Leadership Conference at Sunway University on 10th June 2017 and asked how many of us were interested to attend it. There were only five slots, and it was reserved for all the Year 11 monitors to attend. I was interested to attend, and Ms Cynthia said she will give forms to me, Ashlyne, Rick, Pranavee and Berlinda, since the Year 11 monitors were in their final year in Nobel. Ms Cynthia said that the next forms will be reserved for all other year levels when enough placings were available.
Once the Monitor's Council meeting ended, I spoke with Ms Sharon on our Economics papers, and she said that most of us in the class were doing on just an average performance, and that many of us had improved, although much more improvements were needed.
The next day, on 16th May, I asked Ms Sylvia on our Beep Test, and she told me that the Beep Test would be held on Friday, 19th May. I then started practicing the Beep Test at home, and went to the extent of playing the Beep Test soundtrack. Later, we were ushered to our classes, and Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa then came into the class for our Reading Time. I asked Mr Kevin on the control book operations during the Mid Year Examination. He told me not to worry about the incomplete information if collecting information on people using the washroom was impossible. Then, Mr Kevin Wai told us that we will have the opportunity to drop our subjects if we did not perform well in the exam and that anyone who wished to drop their subjects would need to provide a form to do so.
Mr Kevin Wai told us that we had a new class teacher, a third one to join the current two. He introduced us to Ms Colleen, who was a very nice and young teacher. Ms Colleen had been taking a break from her studies and had decided to come to Nobel for an internship. Mr Kevin Wai then told us to make Ms Colleen feel comfortable at home and socialize with her. As assistant monitor, I introduced her to how we do things in Nobel and then showed her the control book process. I also introduced the people of Nobel and how the school works.
Then, it was Combined Science, and Mr Lee came into the class. He then brought our Paper 1 to us to discuss the information. Altogether, Nickolas Nashpal, Ze Khai and me myself were within a one-mark range of each other. Me and Ze Khai had the same marks for Paper 1 while Nickolas Nashpal was a mark higher. The whole class came to peer at our results. Ryan Chok shouted obscenities as he saw the surprising result. The whole class was very excited about me and Nickolas Nashpal's 'competition'.
Mr Lee then discussed the papers with us before Ms Sharon came in for our Economics lesson. Ms Colleen then told Gabriel and Louis to sit with her in front of Mr Lee as she tutored them on the exam paper one-to-one, showing where did they went wrong. When Ms Sharon entered the room, she then told us about how many of us did well but were still unable to grasp the concept of answering the examination questions properly. Ms Sharon then told us that she will plan to do an extra Economics class on 29th May 2017 and that we will be encouraged to attend the class in order to ensure that we can complete the syllabus, and that she will also teach us to answer the Paper 2 questions once we returned from our Mid Year Break. Then, Ms Sharon handed us our Economics Paper 2 as she told us where we went wrong and how we could improve. I asked Ms Sharon many questions as I didn't understand why I got the questions wrong. Ms Colleen then continued to sit in front and guide Gabriel and Louis on the exam questions for Economics, pointing them to concepts that they did not understand. Ms Colleen would also tutor the two of them during Mr Kevin Wai's Mathematics Core class.
Later, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher told me to come to him. He wanted to have a word with me.
Mr Gallagher then spoke to me on my Individual Reflection for the Group Project. He told me that I had criticized Vicky's conduct in the group project. In fact, I had mentioned in my report that Vicky did not delegate me much work as I wanted more work, since I wanted to complete the group project faster and that I would have had chosen another group for the Group Project. I described my relationship with Vicky in a series of conflicts between the group members and mentioned Vicky’s name many times in a not-so-good-way. I also said in the reflection statement that I should have worked with Caleb Chuang, who was in the other class of his, which could result in less conflicts.
Mr Gallagher said that although I had grievances to the group members, which was normal, he told me to apologize to Vicky on the writeup. "I'm not saying you are wrong or whatever, but take this as a learning experience," he said. So, I apologized to Vicky, who accepted my explanation. Mr Gallagher also told us that he was still marking our exam papers and would give us our exam papers shortly. Enisha, upon hearing Mr Gallagher's remarks, told me to drop the Global Perspectives subject. She said that my essay writeup in the previous year was horrible, since I got called to Ms Praveen's office on that for the Transportation and Infrastructure Individual Evaluation Report, and that this Group Project analysis by Mr Gallagher was viewed negatively; hence her call for me to drop Global Perspectives.
When we returned to class, Ms Bee Yan walked into the class. She told us that she hadn't finished marking Paper 4 yet, and she would give us our Maths Paper 4 later on in the week. Then, she told Daryl Yeo and Derek Yong to hand out the Maths Paper 2 to us. Nickolas Nashpal and I got a C, but Nickolas was ahead of me by 15 marks. As Ms Bee Yan discussed the papers, I was wondering what will Mr Nehru say to me on my Maths performance. I felt like I could be delegated to Mathematics Core. If that happened, I wonder if Mr Nehru would get angry at me.
After lunch, we then had History, and Ms Visa gave us our History exam papers. We discussed Paper 6 first, which talked about Nazi Germany. Ms Visa then delegated us into two groups before discussing the paper; those who were planning to drop History would be seated at the back of the class and would be allowed to do their own things. Students who were planning to continue taking History as a subject for IGCSE would be seated in front and Ms Visa would do the discussion of the exam papers with them.
A lot of people in the class did not plan to take History and were aiming to drop History as an IGCSE subject. The people who plan to drop History were Gabriel, Glen, Kelsey, Aaron Liew, Louis Soon, Eric Wong and Hao Yinn. Half the class decided to drop History. Ms Visa decided to do the separation of people on their choice of taking History because she did not want to waste time on people who would disrupt the History lesson by struggling in the subject and not paying attention. Then, during Art, Ms Nadia then continued her consultation of people on the final pieces for the Art Exam. After school ended, I then went to ask Ms Sarah to sign the control book, as she had defaulted on signing it again.
The next day, on 17th May 2017, Ms Praveen then decided to see all Year 11 students following the end of the assembly. She wanted to do a briefing on the dropping of subjects for Cambridge IGCSE.
Following the completion of the Mid Year Examination, Year 11 students had to choose which subjects to drop prior to the commencement of the IGCSE examinations. This is because from July 2017, all the Year 11 students will be classified into their examination subjects.
Dropping a subject for Cambridge IGCSE is one of the actions considered by Year 11 students if they could not cope with the struggle of sitting for an examination. At times, students would feel that they are really stressed by studying for the IGCSE exams, and for certain particular subjects, they have found it really difficult to study those subjects. When a student consistently fails a subject or has lost interest in that subject, and that it is an annoying and frustrating thing for them to study that subject, the student would be advised to drop the subject. There was only one subject that I was planning to drop then; Bible Knowledge.
When I took Bible Knowledge, I assumed that the exam would be the same as Year 7, 8 and 9, where one could just simply study and answer the questions. Because the exam standard for Bible Knowledge was really hard and that I consistently performed poorly in the subject, Ms Renee had asked me to drop Bible Knowledge. Dropping Bible Knowledge would not have any impact to my examination schedule because Bible Knowledge was an after-school subject.
However, since Bible Knowledge is an O Levels subject and not an IGCSE subject, it did not qualify as the IGCSE subject withdrawals but it is still listed as part of the subject withdrawals. Bible Knowledge is also an additional subject, hence as of the withdrawal, I have a remainder of eight subjects, namely Combined Science, Economics, Mathematics, First Language English, History, Art and Design, Global Perspectives and Business Studies.
Ms Praveen then told us that we had until 30th June 2017 to drop the subjects, and all that was needed was to list down the subjects to be dropped on a form which would be given to us, and then we had to get our respective subject teachers to sign the form. We can hand in the form to our Homeroom teachers. Everyone was allowed around nine to ten subjects for the IGCSE exam, but we were only allowed to drop a maximum of three subjects. This was to maintain the seven-subject requirement for the International Certificate of Education (ICE) which was offered by Cambridge to students who took seven subjects and above, as the ICE certification would allow us entry into major colleges and universities. At the same time, the seven-subject requirement was also needed just in case we failed Malay IGCSE or performed poorly in other subjects in the IGCSE exam in October 2017. This was to give us a buffer of five credits in the exam needed to apply to various colleges and universities for our tertiary education.
Giving a leeway of more than two subjects allows one of each to back up just in case the other would have failed to bring us the necessary list of credits, while also fulfilling the minimum requirement of seven subjects for ICE. As most of us would have already had finished the Malay and for some, the Mandarin examination, we would have a total of eight subjects, namely four core subjects consisting of two science subjects, English First or Second, and Mathematics, plus four elective subjects of our choice. The people from 11O which is the pure science class would have three science subjects (Biology, Chemistry and Physics), the English languages, Mathematics, Additional Mathematics and two elective subjects, while us 11N people would have the same arrangement as the other classes, however instead of two science subjects, we would only have Combined Science and Economics as the core subjects. Anyone who dropped a subject will have to complete a form that allows us to drop subjects. We will need to submit the form to our homeroom teachers by 30th June 2017.
Ms Praveen said that all of us will need to at least retain a total of seven subjects for the IGCSE examination as the school requires us to do so. This is very important as it will not only allow us to have the minimum of five credits to enter most pre-university and college courses, but at the same time, it also qualifies us for the International Certificate of Education (ICE) which gives an overall grade based on the performance of our IGCSE results. “It is very dangerous if you have less than seven subjects, because if you dropped many subjects and there is only five, it will be quite difficult for you to cope as you may not have five credits to enter college,” said Ms Praveen during our briefing.
Ms Praveen then handed us the forms, and we were off. I immediately noted down that I wanted to drop Bible Knowledge and needed to find Ms Renee to drop the subject. This withdrawal is quite important, because the second half of 2017 would be quite busy, as the teachers would already be ending the syllabus by June, and then in July, IGCSE preparations would formally begin.
When we returned to class, Ms Joyce was waiting for us. She asked me why the computer wasn't on and I told her that we had a briefing with Ms Praveen on the dropping of subjects. I got the control book and Smartboard equipment from the pigeon hole and presented them to Ms Joyce. Then, I went to Mr Thomas' class quickly before Ms Joyce started the lesson. Mr Thomas then discussed the exam papers with us. I got an A for Paper 2. He then did some discussions and it was straightforward to understand. Then, I went for Ms Chithra's lesson and she also discussed the exam papers. She told me that my performance had dropped for Business Studies, and I told her the reason was that more chapters were involved.
When Ms Chithra started discussing the questions, she told us that she took the questions from the past year papers. Wei Zhong exclaimed. He screamed and shouted happily. This was because he got the highest in the class as he had downloaded so many past year papers from the Internet. And this was in contrast to 2013, when Wei Zhong cursed me for 'cheating' by using the past year papers from Cambridge Checkpoint for the Final Year Examination for Science in October of that year, when I was in Year 7.
During break time, I met Ms Renee, who told me to meet her in the staffroom after school to present the drop subjects' form to her so that she could sign it. Then, we went for our Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher then presented the exam papers to us for discussion. I did quite well and got a C for the exam. Then, I went to meet Mr Gallagher and told him about what Enisha said to me on dropping the Global Perspectives subject. "No, Wei Yiang. I won't allow you to drop GP," he said. I was puzzled. "Do NOT drop GP," he pleaded. I kept on wondering why it was as such as I headed back to 11N for Maths. Ms Bee Yan then presented us with our Paper 2 and continued to discuss it.
During lunch, I met Hans Kuberan, who was having lunch with his friends. He greeted me and asked me on Mr Gallagher's lesson and how amusing it was and the Global Perspectives coursework, curious for tips on how to navigate his Individual Evaluation Report. I then told him about my experiences on doing the Individual Evaluation Report. "Hans, I think I may not be able to give you the best advice. My friends said mine was horrible and that I should drop GP," I moaned.
"No, Wei Yiang," said Hans Kuberan. "Mr Gallagher showed yours in the class. He said your report was amazing." I was surprised.
"Really? Which report did he show?" I asked.
"The first IR. The one on transport and infrastructure," he replied confidently.
I was surprised. That report was redone. I even met Ms Praveen over alleged plagiarism for that report. I told Hans Kuberan that.
"But yours is the best, Wei Yiang. Mr Gallagher is proud of you on your report. He said you have improved a lot," said Hans Kuberan, as he praised me. He told me that my report was the role model for everyone to follow and told me to keep up the good work. I was crying inside my heart. It was a contrast to the previous year, when I met Ms Praveen over alleged plagiarism of the report. Little did I know that the worst report had turned into the best report ever. When I spoke to Hans Kuberan about what Enisha said, he told me to carry on with the Global Perspectives subject. "I am confident you will do well in your IGCSE. Mr Gallagher said that your grades are very good," said Hans Kuberan, patting me. I was on the verge of writing Global Perspectives on my drop subjects' form. Mr Gallagher told me he will not entertain any request to drop Global Perspectives.
Then, we went for Art. Ms Nadia had an interesting plan for us.
"Since we are free right now, we need to discuss what we want to do from now until the Art IGCSE questions are released. But what I want to talk right now is to give you suggestions on how to improve your prep work so that you can prepare for the Actual IGCSE exam," said Ms Nadia. "Many of you need improvement on your prep work, so I want to tell you how to do it."
Ms Nadia then decided to reform the prep work process. She told us that it is much easier to plan the final piece, which is the drawing that we drew during our Mid Year Examination after the climax of all the prep works, and that it was unnecessary to go with the flow from Prep 1 to Prep 4.
"If you don't know what to do for your final piece, you can start from Prep 1, then Prep 2, Prep 3 and then Prep 4. But if you know what to do for your final piece and have a clear idea on what you want to do, then you can start from Prep 4 and go all the way back to Prep 1. Meaning that we are REVERSING the flow of your prep," she said.
Initially, I was puzzled as to why we should reverse the flow of the prep work process in what Ms Nadia had said. This was because according to the Art and Design IGCSE syllabus, we had to convey the flow of the idea and design development from Prep 1 to the final piece. But Ms Nadia said that while the production of the prep works is reversed, the most important thing is that we convey our message of how we develop our idea from Prep 1 to Prep 4. This means that the prep works do not necessarily have to be drawn in the specified order, as in we had to draw Prep 1 first, followed by Preps 2, 3 and 4, but it should be able to achieve the objectives of conveying the message of our design development from the first prep to the final piece. She said that it would be faster for us to reverse the order of doing the prep works by doing Prep 4 first, and then followed by Preps 3, 2 and 1, if we had a clear idea on what to do for our final piece. This would allow work to be sped up, as traditionally, in an Art and Design IGCSE format, the students will need to present various ideas and subject matter and take a lot of photos and do a lot of research, which wastes time. Ms Nadia then told us that if we knew how to do the final piece, it would make our life easier as we could find the subject matter, artist reference and various photos that correspond to the final piece, thus cutting down the time needed to do our prep work. She said that one common mistake in Art and Design IGCSE is the time management by us students, and this method would allow us to speed things up and complete the prep works faster.
According to Ms Nadia, all that was needed to do was to identify the elements from the final piece and then decode them into the respective prep works. In this case, the final piece would form the basis for the four prep works, as opposed to the idea development in Prep 1 forming the final piece. Ms Nadia then explained that we can also do the prep works in the traditional order, but with the final piece as a guide. The thing is that the Art and Design prep works' process assumes that the student does not know anything as to how to do the final piece. However, if we knew what to do in our final piece, according to Ms Nadia, we could finish the prep works in quicker motion and that it will aid us to choose our subject matter, artist reference and allow us to seamlessly plan our annotations for Prep 1, Prep 2, Prep 3 and Prep 4, which was the old syllabus back then.
Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa continued to discuss our exam papers. We just did discussions and nothing else. Those who did not wish to take History and were interested in dropping the subject were left to their own things.
The next day, 18th May 2017, I went to see Ms Renee before the start of school in order to drop Bible Knowledge. Ms Renee told me to meet her during break time to sign the form.
When we returned to class, Mr Kevin Wai then told us to do our reading. Then, Ms Sharon came in and then discussed the Paper 2 questions with us. She fixed our class on 29th May and gave us the permission slips. Once that was done, Ms Sharon continued to discuss the papers while Brandon Ooi kept on asking her questions and asking if he could have more marks since his questions were wrongly marked. Then, Ms Cynthia came into the class. She had a very disappointed look on her face. She shook her head as she spoke to us.
"I have seen your marks. All of you performed horribly," she said, as she spoke to us. Then, she handed our papers. "I don't know why all of you do not score very well in your Malaysian Studies exam," she said. "Is it so difficult for you to even understand your country? What a disgrace," she moaned. Then, Ms Cynthia blurted out the answers one by one, and Ms Cynthia even said that some people were giving funny answers, especially those that disrespect the prime minister, race, religion and the royal institution. Some people even said that the prime minister is elected by the people and that Vision 2020 aims to have 20 people create 20 things. When the Malaysian Studies lesson ended, Ms Cynthia said that even though we did not do so well, we should at least have a clear understanding of our country.
Then, Ms Cynthia asked Nickolas and Sheng Jit about the progress of the Malaysian Studies coursework. "Still starting," said Sheng Jit, grinning at the class. Ms Cynthia's eyes then bulged. "I hope that it will be done by next week," she said. Every class would then have a chance to play their Malaysian Studies video.
During break time, I went to the Junior and Senior School's management office with Ms Renee, who signed on my subject dropping form. Then, I went to hand the form to Mr Kevin Wai, who was in the office. He accepted my form and took it.
Then, following break time, we went for Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, and Nicole and Sophie kept on saying that Ms Chithra looked gorgeous. Ms Chithra then continued discussing our papers and provided the answer scheme for us to refer. She then told us to redo the Business Studies papers on our own and check our answers by ourselves. Then, during History, Ms Visa finished discussing the papers with us. She said that she was supposed to teach the second depth study of the syllabus, which was on life in the USA in the 1920s. The other depth study was on Nazi Germany. However, Ms Visa said that she decided not to teach that depth study but she would go a bit into it as she told us that it is more convenient to study life in Nazi Germany because that chapter ties in with the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles, which we learnt the previous year in 2016. Then, we had Malay, and Cikgu Niely told us to do our own things in class. I updated the control book with dates for the first week of June.
During Mathematics, Ms Bee Yan continued to discuss our Paper 2 with us. And Mr Thomas did more discussions on our Paper 2 as well during English.
When we met that afternoon for the Editorial Board session, Ms Levina gave me time to assist people in the room to write and edit essays. I have forgotten to say that aside from me, Hua Iong and Andrew Ariffin were the other two Year 11 students in the board. I had to do some edits for the upcoming school newsletter.
Friday, 19th May 2017 was our PE beep test. It was our last one as Year 11 students. And it was my second chance of having some fame following Sports Day. I was still
On the morning of the Beep Test, I brought along my running shorts to school. Prior to the beep test, I had practiced the whole thing with the beep test soundtrack at home. The beep test involved running a 10m distance and ensuring I reach the distance before the beep.
We all had our morning assembly as usual and thereafter we had our homeroom session. During the morning assembly, Ms Lim was announcing the list for the Class of the Month as well as the Wow! Awards for April, which was overdue no thanks to the exams. 10O was awarded Class of the Month with a trip to Laser Tag as the reward. Then afterwards, we gathered in the school hall for the PE lesson and I carried the control book down for the PE teachers to sign.
I then asked Mr Victor if I am allowed to change into my running shorts for the purpose of running during the PE lesson for the Beep Test. As running with shorts had improved my performance, especially during Founder’s Run and the 1500m in Sports Day, I believe it can make my body flexible for the Beep Test. Mr Victor didn’t respond, so I called him a few times.
“What are you waiting for?! I said go now!” he cried, raising his voice. I then went and got my pants changed, and then came back. I asked Ms Sylvia if shorts was allowed for PE purposes and she said yes. I was careful not to pull the wrong handle and accidentally break the school dress code regulations. If the answer was 'no', I would put my pants aside.
Then, we came back and then afterwards, we then warmed up as Mr Victor briefed us on the beep test. Then, he gave us time to prepare while he tested the beep test soundtrack. I had practiced for beep test at home with the soundtrack.
Ms Nadia then assisted me to fill water, but it was freezing cold. So, I quickly dumped the water away and filled in the normal temperature for the water from the water cooler and placed it for standby beside the starting line which we would run. Ms Sylvia got everyone in line as we got ready for the signal.
“The multi-stage fitness test will begin in four seconds. Three,” it said. Then, we begun.
The first few rounds went early and a couple of people dropped out. Everyone was watching me run the beep test. All went well as we progressed to level 2. Then, as the beeps come faster as everyone cheered. I then ran as fast as I could to reach the lines before the beep. As my mouth got dry in the sixth level, I sipped some water and continued.
Then, I reached level 7. Then level 8. Sheng Jit and I were the last two remaining ones in the test.
At Level 9.11, I missed a few beeps and thought the PA system stalled, and that was my final score as Yi Zhen and a few others came to watch the race. Following the beep test, I changed back into my PE pants and kept my running shorts.
We then discussed about the beep test during break. I told Yi Zhen that I had trained everyday. We then had a chat as we talked about the various practices I had for Founder's Run, the 1500m and this beep test. Then, following break time, we went for our Malay lesson in which Cikgu Niely allowed us to do our activities. The whole class soon went to the back and looked at Brandon Ooi play AZ Tanks. After that, we went to the Science lab for lab session, where Mr Lee asked us to do an experiment.
Mr Lee then provided us with wires, bulbs, batteries and a switch. Each group had to build a series and parallel circuit. Brandon Ooi then joked about putting Louis' hand into the switch which made him really angry. Then, Brandon Ooi asked Mr Lee if they could connect the clip on the wire to the socket. Mr Lee said that it was dangerous and the bulb would not switch on. When Brandon Ooi did that, the circuit did not work according to what he envisioned.
Ms Colleen sat down with Gabriel and Louis and taught them on how the circuit was being built. Then, Mr Lee then gave us a worksheet which involved building the circuit according to the diagram given on the worksheet. Then, he came to check on us. I then connected the circuit together with Lyn Wen and Cassandra. Then, we watched the bulb as I went to see what Brandon Ooi was doing. They had put the circuit as an illuminated necklace around Shane. Mr Lee gave them a sly look.
Mr Lee then told us that he originally intended for us to do a blast furnace experiment but it was too dangerous and it contained elements which were difficult to understand which were not present in the syllabus.
Following the lab session, Ms Joyce was waiting for those who are taking English Second in 11N. I then gave the control book for Ms Joyce to sign and then headed for the English First lesson with Mr Thomas. Mr Thomas then talked about how we should organize the essay of a topic, but however, he was puzzled and all the people in the class gave the sly look when I responded with a lot of smiley emojis. He had posted all the information on Edmodo at 8:57pm the previous night. And he was surprised that I had read it.
“One good thing about our friend here is that he is always responsive, which is what I like about him. He is a very good student, but however, the most important thing is to do the work and have the spirit,” he said, referring to me.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I responded.
"But we will not do this today. We will discuss the exam papers," he said. He then handed our Paper 3 to us and spoke to us about the paper. Overall, I got an A for both papers and the entire subject. Then, he told Isabella Wong to collect everyone's emails once again as he had lost the paper containing the list of emails which was provided to him by me before the Study Camp. Isabella Wong then walked around and told us to put our emails on the paper. Then, Mr Thomas told us about a plan.
"We are going to do something called 'blended learning'. So, I will send some work to you using email, and then I want you to complete the work and then send it to me, okay?"
"Yes, Mr Thomas!" I cried.
Mr Thomas then told us that he hopes to get the task done as soon as possible before the week is out, and to set up the email for us. Then, he told us to read the two tasks on Edmodo. Once the lesson was done, I got Mr Lee to sign the control book as he had forgotten to do so.
The new week then begun. It was the last week of May.
The morning of 22nd May 2017 soon begun with another normal assembly and Ms Bee Yong's daily lectures on studying. Then, we returned to our classes and I headed for Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson. She then talked about the break-even graph and break-even point, indicating how profits can overrun costs in the longer term. Businesses would normally see costs being higher than profits in the short term but profits eclipsing costs in the long term. Ms Chithra then told us that she would have an extra class with us for two days in order to complete the topic efficiently, namely on 30th May and 31st May 2017. “I will let you know what would be the time and I will give you the permission slips,” she said.
Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon did the Balance of Payments chapter with us. Ms Sharon then told us that we will have our Economics lesson in 11E, and that our slot would be from 9:00am to 10:00am for the extra class on 29th May 2017. A lot of teachers had started holding extra classes during the holiday period to complete their chapters before the end of the period in which anyone can drop their subjects. Ms Sharon then told us that we will be moving very quickly in order to complete the chapters for the syllabus and that she will be speaking quite fast.
Meanwhile, Ms Colleen was in front of the class doing some Maths work with Gabriel and Louis. The two of them had decided to drop Economics and Ms Colleen then did some Maths revision with them. I looked on while also listening to Ms Sharon teach us.
During break time, I then had my breakfast and then spoke to San Ying and Yi Zhen before heading for our Art lesson with Ms Nadia following break time. When we arrived at the Art Studio, Ms Praveen was in the Art Studio. I greeted her and she had a nice smile and she told us to have a seat. When everyone arrived into the Art Studio, Ms Praveen then had a briefing for us.
Ms Praveen had written on the whiteboard of the Art Studio, a detailed plan of the Art and Design timeline. It was titled ‘Art and Design Runway’. The Art and Design IGCSE Examination would take place on 25th and 26th September 2017 for Paper 1, which is a subject matter-based paper, and 3rd and 4th October 2017 for Paper 2, which is the design-based paper. The Art and Design IGCSE examination was the first subject to be tested of all the exams in the October/November 2017 series.
Ms Praveen then listed key dates on the board. The Art and Design IGCSE questions for October/November 2017 would be released on 1st July 2017. The IGCSE Trial Exam would occur from 31st July to 11th August 2017. From 14th to 18th August, the entire school would participate in rehearsals for a concert, tentatively scheduled for 18th August. The PTM 2 would be held on 25th August, and the Second Mid Term Break from 28th August to 3rd September 2017. The Year 11s would go on Study Leave on 25th September; a day before the start of the Art and Design IGCSE Examination.
This means that there are only ten weeks from July to September to prepare a total of eight prep works; four for Paper 1 and four for Paper 2. Additionally, with other events on the key dates ommitted, we only have five weeks at most to finish the prep works, which is not a lot of time. And not to also mention that completing a single prep work takes about a week to finish; not including time for other lessons. Ms Praveen emphasized on deadlines and expectations before she left. Present in the room other than Ms Nadia and Ms Praveen were Ms Sim and Ms Sha from the management office.
The bar for Art and Design IGCSE was raised to the highest level. Since the year 2014, four Art and Design IGCSE students had bagged the Top in the World as well as Top in Malaysia for the subject. With Ms Feeda having left Nobel six months prior, the onus was on Ms Nadia to deliver a Top in Malaysia for the subject of Art and Design. And back then, Art and Design was the flagship subject selected by Nobel to deliver Top in Malaysia and Top in the World. Besides Art and Design, there were many other subjects which had a Top in Malaysia award over the years.
The Art and Design IGCSE, given its reputable success in Nobel at the time, like Bullseye, was poised to deliver a fourth year of impressive records. That one student pressured to deliver the record for Art and Design IGCSE was Leong Yi Zhen. Her art pieces were so amazing to the point that it can be compared to Alston Tee, Lim Shermaine, Reanne Koh and Alicia Samantha; the previous four Top in Malaysia winners for Art and Design IGCSE. At the same time, given the impressive track record of Top in Malaysia winners from the past four batches, surely there would be one student from the Class of 2017 that will deliver the winning shot for Top in Malaysia. The question then was who would it be.
Ms Praveen, Ms Sim and Ms Sha were discussing this throughout the briefing with us in the Art Studio. They were wondering if we were able to produce another Art and Design IGCSE Top in Malaysia winner. All eyes in the room soon fixated on Yi Zhen. Immensely, she was pressured to deliver the next Top in Malaysia Award for Nobel International School. While Art and Design IGCSE was one of three subjects who made the list of the Top in Malaysia awards in 2014, four students bagged Top in Malaysia awards in 2015, and three students in 2016 bagged Nobel's first ever Top in the World award for IGCSE in 2016. Alicia Samantha and Reanne Koh bagged Top in the World and Top in Malaysia for Art and Design IGCSE respectively. So, all the four teachers in the room were betting on Yi Zhen to deliver Nobel's fourth Top in Malaysia award for Art and Design.
Yi Zhen was clearly feeling the pressure. “Zhen, can you do it?” asked Ms Nadia, before the whole room laughed. Yi Zhen was clearly grinning like mad and was a bit embarrassed and pressurized. “I'll try,” she said, before she almost broke into tears and the four teachers patted her.
The room was really pumped up. Then, Ms Praveen, Ms Sim and Ms Sha left the room. “You see, Zhen? You have the high standard,” said Ms Nadia. She then laughed. “Jien Min! You must encourage and motivate her!” Ms Nadia added. “She almost cried just now!”
Then, Ms Nadia talked about the Art and Design IGCSE questions. She then guessed which questions would come out. “The questions that are used in your Mid Year Exam come from the May/June series. Meaning to say the current students sitting IGCSE right now are using your exam questions for their Final Piece,” said Ms Nadia. Jien Min then joked if the current Art and Design pieces that we did for the Mid Year Examination be sent to Cambridge so that we can finish the whole Art and Design IGCSE process early, and that we can focus on our other subjects, but Ms Nadia said it wasn't possible because the school is taking the October/November series for Art and Design. Then, we were left to do our own things. When we returned for Combined Science, Mr Lee then told us about his plan to have extra classes with us. He told us that we will hold the Combined Science extra class during the Mid Year Break. Brandon Ooi then asked if we can hold the extra class after school ends, but Mr Lee said that he was normally tired after school ends and needed rest at home. Hence, the schedule to the Mid Year Break. He also said that he wanted rest on Saturdays and as such, could not fulfill Brandon Ooi's request. “So, we will have our class during the holidays. I will let you know when your class will be,” he said. Then, Mr Lee talked about the electrical circuit and told us to calculate the voltage.
After Mr Lee's lesson ended, we then had lunch and then headed for our Character Transformation session. During the Character Transformation session, Mr Neoh was back to emcee us after some time. He then conducted the session, and proceeded to sign the control books.
“Why are all the control books incomplete? Only 11N's one is complete,” said Mr Neoh. The whole Year 11 batch then looked at me and all the heads of the Monitor's Council looked on in embarrassment. The next thing I knew, was Rick Tan grinning at me.
Then, Mr Neoh talked to us about a sudoku game on the screen of the school hall and told us to play the game with him. He then talked about riddles with us and then told each group to do a stare game. I was involved with staring at Jia Qing. Mr Neoh also told us to come up with a group cheer. The ‘Ok Alright Guys’ group was so funny, especially with the slogan. Many of them credited me for saying that phrase, which was the inspiration for the name of their group, and some people in that group who were in the same class with me came up with the phrase. Teachers also say this phrase to call the class for their attention. Then, we had our Global Perspectives lesson, and Mr Gallagher told me that I wasn't allowed to drop Global Perspectives as my results for each of the IR1, IR2 and Group Project marks were good and could score a C and above. “Don't listen to Enisha,” he said, before scolding her for teasing me to drop Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then asked Shane and Ryan Chok to present their reports to him as they had defaulted on presenting the reports.
After school ended, Ashlyne Yong then discussed with us on an agenda presented by Ms Cynthia on ways to improve the Monitor's Council. The entire discussion plan was stalled prior to the Year 11's Mid Year Examinations. So, once again, I was asked to lend my expertise to the entire group of monitors on how to manage the class. Then, Ms Cynthia confirmed the permission slips for the Asia Leadership Conference and handed them to us. Me, Rick Tan, Ashlyne Yong, Berlinda and Pranavee would end up being the only people from Year 11 heading for the conference. Casmie Tee and Erica Er were also given slips to head to the Asia Leadership Conference. None of the Year 11 committee members from the Librarian Board or the Prefectorial Board were heading to Sunway for the conference. Ashlyne Yong then told us that we would have a meeting on 26th May after school hours to elect the next committee members of the Monitor's Council so that the Year 11s can hand over duties to the next committee in order for us to head for our IGCSE exams. The response was underwhelming and Ashlyne had to call everyone to make it. “Can you guys make it? Please? We need to hand over the responsibilities to the Year 10s. We need to sit for our IGCSE exams,” she pleaded.
Many people were not happy with the meeting being on a Friday afternoon. Zher Xian scuffed at the idea of a Friday meet, and many of the younger monitors had the same attitude. However, Ashlyne had to beg them. When everyone agreed, Ashlyne told us that she will give us permission slips for the election of the next committee of the Monitor's Council. The reason for this inconvenient schedule was due to the two-week Mid Year Break from 27th May to 11th June, and that in the two Mondays of June, a lot of handover duties would need to be done before the Monitor's Council was officially handed over from Year 11 to Year 10 students.
Ashlyne chided some people who were attending that afternoon's Monitor's Council meeting for not attending previous meetings as they did not know the agenda and hence blamed Ashlyne for the matter. So, when everyone agreed on the 26th May meeting, Ashlyne then dismissed all of us while I spoke to them on my expertise. Rick was even more interested to know about how I managed affairs other than the class control book. I then spoke to Ms Cynthia about how I switched on the computers before the class begun. Ms Cynthia then told me that there was no need to switch on the computer if the teachers can switch the computers on themselves and if I am not so free. “But please make sure the computers are switched on as much as possible,” she said.
The next morning, 23rd May, during the Reading Time, Sheng Jit announced that we need to give ideas for the Malaysian Studies coursework. Back in April, Sheng Jit had created a WhatsApp group for our class, 11N, in order to communicate important matters as well as discuss the Malaysian Studies assignment. He told us to communicate with the group to meet the Thursday, 25th May deadline for the coursework. Ms Visa and Mr Kevin Wai told Sheng Jit to add their contacts into the WhatsApp group so that they can be a part of it.
Mr Lee soon came into the class and then continued his lesson. He then told us to calculate the voltage of the lamps. Then, Ms Sharon came in and then continued her lesson. She then talked about imports and exports. She asked me to pass the worksheets to everyone so that they can take some notes down using the worksheet.
Ms Sharon then passed the permission slips to us for our extra class which was to be held on 29th May. “Please take one,” she said, handing them to me to hand the slips out to my classmates. She then signed the control book and then Glen passed me a late slip to staple in the control book.
Then, Ms Sharon begun her lesson and talked about why countries export things in order to ensure that the economy grows. She then said that it is better for a country to export stuff as this allows the country to make more money. However, a country cannot export too much because it will have a negative effect on the country's population needs. Countries would normally focus on exports as it will improve revenue, but imports are equally as important for international trade. “We will learn about international trade during the extra class,” she said. The topic of international trade is the smallest and shortest topics in the Cambridge IGCSE Economics syllabus. While the entire class was listening to Ms Sharon teach us, Ms Colleen was doing some alternative exercises with Louis since he had forgot his Maths worksheet. Gabriel, on the other hand, was doing a series of equations with her.
Then, we had break time, and then we went for our Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher finalized our work. He was recommending that Shane and Ryan Chok drop the Global Perspectives subject because they were lagging behind in the subject. When I asked Mr Gallagher as to why I should not drop Global Perspectives, he said that my Group Project results, despite the blunder that occurred the previous week, was able to score a good score. He also told me not to drop Global Perspectives as opposed to Enisha’s suggestion, since he said that my Global Perspectives marks are very high as despite the setbacks faced for my IE1 and IE2 which I did in 2016 for Year 10, I would be able to score a B as the coursework would be sent to Cambridge. Only then did I realize why Ms Praveen sounded the alarm on plagiarism allegations for my IE1; the works were official Cambridge IGCSE exam documents. Enisha had told me to drop GP as she said I would fail. Had I dropped Global Perspectives, I would lose one of the important C grades for my IGCSE exam, as the coursework and exam marks for Global Perspectives add up together. Mr Gallagher warned that I might lose a potential C grade as he knew that from my work submitted to him, I would do well despite the two various controversies over the last 18 months. We then had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan taught us on sequencing.
Before Ms Bee Yan started the lesson, she then called some people in the class to change to Mathematics Core. “Those of you whom I called your names, please move to Maths Core,” she said, pointing to 11B, where Mr Kevin Wai was conducting the Mathematics Core lesson. Ryan Chok, Enisha, Krystal Goh, and at least five other people were told to move from Mathematics Extended to Mathematics Core. My heart was thumping as Ms Bee Yan mentioned the names. I don't wish for mine to be mentioned, or else a good lecture from Mr Nehru awaits me the coming weekend. Fortunately, Ms Bee Yan stopped announcing and continued her lesson. “That's all,” she said, to which I breathed a sigh of relief.
After the Maths lesson, we then had our lunch time and then we went for our History lesson where Ms Visa begun talking about life in the United States. Ms Visa said she will teach the topic for the time being as Ms Cynthia asked her to teach it. In fact, Ms Visa was also contemplating sending those who wished to continue with the History lesson to Ms Cynthia's class while she attended to those who were not planning to take History. Brandon Ooi asked if we could watch movies on the United States based on the topic. He was pleading and joking with Ms Visa, but she said no.
After the History lesson, we went down for Art, and Ms Nadia then entertained some people who wished to look at their Art and Design Mid Year Examination prep work. Eugenie, Yen Tong and Chee Kei were discussing and flipping through the work with Ms Nadia.
The next day, on 24th May 2017, an announcement was made in the school hall during the morning assembly in which a TED Talk competition would be held. The TED Talk competition would invite prospective speakers in Nobel to present a speech on a topic they wish in any format. The event was run by two English teachers from Year 8, namely Ms Paulina and Ms Ambiga. All students who were interested could register and then present them on the first Monday after the Mid Year Break, which was on 12th June. The deadline for registrations was Friday, 26th May.
During English, Mr Thomas then started creating the email software that would form the basis for him sending us emails for our blended learning exercise. He held the paper with the email addresses we gave him that was passed to him by Isabella Wong, and Aaron Loke and Sherwin were asked to be the 'software technicians' to test the email software. Sherwin was asked to teach Mr Thomas how to set up the software on Gmail. Then, once that was done, he typed a message and the first word, 'test', was published.
Mr Thomas then continued his lesson on word effects and opened his Edmodo page. He told us to check his posts in which he would post for the day's lesson on Edmodo.
While heading for Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, I then met Ms Ambiga outside the Year 7 classes and enquired on the TED talk. Sadly, she told me that it was only open to students from Year 7 to 10, and that us Year 11s were excluded.
Ms Chithra then continued to brief us on our holiday extra classes before beginning her lesson. Each time she wanted to start briefing, Nicole and Sophie kept on saying, "Ms Chithra! You look gorgeous!" till she got so fed up. She then passed us permission slips for us to return to school during the holidays for her Business Studies classes, which were on 30th and 31st May. "Please give the forms to me tomorrow," she said.
During break time, I then went to talk to San Ying before heading to Mr Gallagher's class for Global Perspectives. Vicky and Alexandria Goh spent the entire lesson talking about world affairs with Mr Gallagher. Then, during Maths, Ms Bee Yan then continued our lesson on sequencing. The day went on, and during Art, Ms Nadia then discussed about the format for our prep works. She then briefed us once again on the format and expectations for Art and Design IGCSE. One of them was on the work being sent to Cambridge to be assessed. Ms Nadia also took the opportunity to talk to me about my prep work. "You can improve further, Wei Yiang. I am confident you will get a C in Art, if not a B," she said. "Tell your mum to buy new brushes and art supplies before the exam starts," she said.
Some people asked if the questions could be released earlier, but Ms Nadia said that the exam questions would be released on 1st July 2017; no earlier, no later.
The next day, on 25th May 2017, Mr Kevin Wai then told us about the newspaper contest. Apparently, it was just a charity event and the competition element was cancelled. “Teacher, we thought that it was a competition,” groaned Brandon. Mr Kevin said that the school cannot afford a hamper or so on for us because all the funds were channeled to the production of the school's 2017 concert.
The concert was planned to be named the ‘SHINE Musical’ and was to take place on 14th and 15th July 2017. The plan was to hold the concert at HGH Convention Centre, just like the 10th Anniversary Concert. However, the concert was postponed to a tentative date of 18th August 2017. Mr Kevin Wai had to explain to Ms Colleen on what the concert was about.
When Ms Sharon came in for Economics, she gave us some worksheets to do and asked us to calculate the import and exports of the countries listed. Then, she also talked to us about the benefits of importing and exporting goods and services, along with their advantages and disadvantages. She also informed us about our class venue, 11E, and that our lesson will be from 9:00am to 10:00am on 29th May. “If you are dropping Econs, you don't have to come for the extra class,” she said.
“Yes!” cried Enisha, as she told Ms Sharon that she will drop Economics.
During Malaysian Studies, Ms Cynthia came into the class for our very last Malaysian Studies lesson, and what was to be done was to play the video that was made by Sheng Jit and Nickolas Nashpal for our long-overdue Malaysian Studies coursework. Sheng Jit was asked to play the video, but then he said that Nickolas Nashpal had published the video online as it was too difficult to punch the video into the thumbdrive and it has lost memory and disk space. Ms Cynthia shook her head in disgust, bulged her eyes and had a very disappointing look on her face. She then walked to the back of the class, took a seat, and told Shane and Ryan Chok not to fuss around in the class. Sheng Jit and Nickolas Nashpal then stood at the class computer and they opened Nickolas Nashpal's YouTube account. I then passed the control book to Ms Cynthia, who thanked me and signed the book.
Nickolas Nashpal then opened the video and for most of the time, it showed Sheng Jit, Aaron Liew, Shane, Ryan Chok, Brandon Ooi, Cassandra, Kelsey, Grace and Jia Yee interviewing people. “Why are there only very few people interviewing people?” she asked. “What is this?”
Ms Cynthia then asked if the Malaysian Studies video involved the entire class. “Everyone contributed ideas. Nickolas created the video, and Shane was asked to ‘promote the culture of our country,’” said Sheng Jit, and this caused Ryan Chok and Shane to laugh so loudly and the two of them, along with Eric Wong and Aaron Liew, were all laughing so wholeheartedly. Then, Shane took a good jab on Aaron Liew's muscular size and said that he added humor to the video and it deserved more marks. All the boys behind the class were laughing happily.
“What is the main point that you want to make using this video?” asked Ms Cynthia. She told everyone that they did not understand the objective of the coursework and were very likely to get low marks. “You are supposed to include EVERYONE in the video or at least have a credits section mentioning who did what, if you could not have everyone in the video due to time,” she said, adding that there was no credits section.
Later on, before break time, Brandon Ooi dumped some of his worksheets from Additional Mathematics into the rubbish bin. Grace and Cassandra expressed disgust at his behavior. This is because Brandon did not want to take Additional Mathematics as an IGCSE subject. He felt that there was no need for it. He had also dumped his Malaysian Studies worksheet and exam paper the previous week as well.
During break time, I then had breakfast with Caleb Chuang. He told me not to disturb him for the time being as he was doing his revision. Mr Nick apparently asked the class to do corrections from their Chemistry exam and to re-practice the questions. I just sat with him and watch him do his work while talking to Joshua Chew and Julian Ong. “Luckily you did not take BK,” he said, telling me that I could have wasted time on Maths, which I almost got a D on.
When we returned to class for Business Studies, Ms Chithra then told us to present a copy of the permission slips when entering the school for the Business Studies extra class. She then said that our Business Studies venue would be in 11E, the same class which we use for our Business Studies classes. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa then started talking about the 1920s USA era. It was quite a very boring topic. Conversely, the Cold War, Treaty of Versailles and Nazi Germany were much better things to discuss about in History. Then, we had Malay, and Cikgu Niely let us do our own things. I took the time to compile, organize and file the control book while also talking to Cassandra, who was looking at the detailed records. She said that she had never seen such detailed records, from everyone signing the control book when using the washroom, to all the teachers’ signatures being collected.
After lunch, Ms Bee Yan then taught us on sequencing. Before she begun the lesson, she announced that she would be leaving Nobel on 30th June. As usual, it was a smack in the face in the long list of teachers leaving the school.
Ms Maddy. Ms Fatin. Ms Seline. Mr Paul. Ms Evelyn. Ms Feeda. You name it. Since 2015, many teachers had been leaving Nobel International School. The news of Ms Bee Yan leaving Nobel was a smack in the face for the many of us who like her lesson.
Ms Bee Yan told us she was leaving Nobel as to join her husband in the United Kingdom. Due to this, she apologized to us and was unable to be with us till the IGCSE exams at the end of the year. Many of us were sad and astonished at Ms Bee Yan's decision to leave Nobel. “Don't worry. Mr Chan will still be here,” she said, to laughter from the class and Mr Chan. The main teacher who would take over Ms Bee Yan's lesson would be Ms Glory. I was wondering how Ms Glory looked like. Ms Bee Yan's last day with Nobel would be on 30th June. However, we would have to leave her earlier, on 22nd June, which would have been her last lesson with us, as the following week would be the Hari Raya Aidilfitri holidays. Then, we had English with Mr Thomas. He then told us to do a word effect in the lesson. However, the people at the back of the class were not listening to him.
“Okay, everyone, stand up. Please stand,” he said.
“Now?” I asked.
“Stand,” reiterated Mr Thomas, as some people also asked why they needed to stand up.
We all gasped as we stood up. Mr Thomas looked with a stern face, pacing his eyes across the room.
“Last time, the school used to have class participation marks for Year 10 and 11,” said Mr Thomas. “In fact, many teachers in the management wanted to keep the class participation. I was the one who fought to abolish it.”
“In fact, there must be class participation or else no one would take responsibility for their own learning.
“KS3 students have class participation. The reason why they have to do so is to teach people how to be responsible for their own learning. But for Year 10 and 11, we do not have this,” said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then told us that the reason why Year 10 and 11 students do not have class participation is for us Year 11s to be the role model for the younger levels. “However, it seems like all of you have failed to lead by example,” said Mr Thomas with a stern look on his face.
“When the teacher is talking, all eyes should be on the teacher,” he said. “Some of you have failed to complete the work and are sleeping in the class.”
“I think after the holidays, I will do a worksheet on taking responsibility for your own learning,” he said. “Can you please promise that you will take responsibility for your own learning, complete the work and hand them in to me?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“I only hear one person responding. How about the rest?” he asked.
“YES, MR THOMAS!” cried the class. Mr Thomas was delighted. His serious stare continued as the lesson moved on. Then, during the Editorial Board, Ms Levina discussed with me and Shi Tian on how to arrange the format of the 2017 Yearbook. I then took time to edit articles and talk to Ms Levina on the updates of Ms Sharon's Economics lesson.
It was the last day of school for the first half of the academic year, 26th May. Mr Kevin Wai then presented to us our new timetable for the second half of the year during our Homeroom time, which takes effect from 12th June 2017 after returning from our holidays. After 18 months of waiting, I finally get to have a relaxed Friday timetable and an Economics lesson in the afternoon. The biggest beneficiaries of the timetable were the Art and Design IGCSE students. This was because the set teaching period where Art and Design is located in, consisted of three sets of two-period lessons instead of two sets of two-period lessons, with a single one-period lesson in the week as seen in most timetables. An English lesson before lunch time is a good omen for me.
Also, not to forget; on Tuesdays and Thursdays, all lessons for Year 11 students would begin at 7:30am as opposed to the normal 8:00am start. I wished I had that in 2016, and I was wishing for an early start to the school day. This also allowed us to skip the Reading Time and head straight for our lessons. At least, we had PE for us in the second half of the year, as well as Character Transformation sessions. Gone are Malaysian Studies and Malay, which were not relevant in the road to the IGCSE exam.
That means that Thursday, 25th May 2017, was our last Malaysian Studies lesson. Ms Cynthia had told us that despite 18 months of being in Malaysian Studies, it was really disgraceful as some people did not comprehend the pride and joy of being a Malaysian and that she also gave some stories of how people wished for Malaysian citizenship but were denied of that luxury.
When we went for PE, Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew played a game of football before the start of the PE lesson. All the boys were accompanied by Mr Victor to the courtyard to do some strength tests. We did some push ups, sit ups and all the planking exercises as well as the various exercises Mr Victor told us to toughen up on. “Boys! This is your last fitness test! Please do well!” cried Mr Victor. Oh. So much for being the last of all things.
Each teacher was instructed to record the performance of the students. My performance was recorded by Ms Nadia. Mr Victor was recording the performances of Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Lim Wences and the big names of Nobel's track-and-field athletes.
I did some push ups and sit ups. Gabriel was my partner. Everyone had to find a pair, and Sean Mark and Jason Leing paired up with each other. We did a series of exercises.
Meanwhile in the hall, the girls were doing their Beep Test. Some of them who had finished were using the toilet and walking outside the school hall. I caught a glimpse of Yi Zhen and Co Sheen skipping and talking about their Beep Test performance with Natasha Singam.
After the PE lesson ended, Sherwin and Joshua Chew practiced shooting the ball. The ball smashed into one of the exit signs in the school hall, damaging it. Sherwin and Joshua Chew repaired the sign in the hall. Meanwhile, I spoke with Ms Nadia on what to improve for Art. She told me to improve on the texture, quality, paint thickness, artist reference and have clear pictures for the Art exam. The artist reference and relevant photos taken must be at a maximum of size A5 if it were to be pasted on the prep work.
When we returned for our Malay lesson with Cikgu Niely, we were shown a movie by Cikgu Niely on Upin and Ipin in the class. I used the time to jot down the new information from the timetable into the control book for the month of June. Then, it was Combined Science, and Mr Lee brought us to the science lab for our next experiment. He then taught us how to refract light. Mr Lee gave each group a glass prism and a torchlight, telling us to trace and label the lines. Ms Samantha did that with us in Year 8 in the science lab, and Ting Yi dropped the glass prism by accident.
When Mr Lee asked me to hand each group a prism, I was afraid of dropping the prism on the floor. In fact, I almost dropped one of the prisms, but fortunately, it landed on a table nearby.
During the experiment, Mr Lee told us to turn the prisms around to study how light was refracted. Then, he gave a second prism to each group to measure the reflection and refraction of light. This time, Lyn Wen passed the prisms around. When she returned to our group, she held the prism in her face, causing it to magnify. I told Lyn Wen that the prism made her look cute and she laughed. Mr Lee also gave us a mirror which we used to make designs using the angle of light.
Then, Mr Lee told us that we would be having our frog dissection experiment after the holidays and he will arrange the experiment for us. He also told us that during the Combined Science extra class on 1st June, he will be focusing on the recap of the Chemistry topics. He passed the permission slips to me and told everyone to receive a slip from me. “Please bring it during your extra class or else you cannot come into the school,” he said. Afterwards, we then went for our English lesson with Mr Thomas. He then did some discussion with us on the traditional classroom versus online classroom setting, and told us to check our Edmodo at 10:00pm every evening just in case he sent something to us. Then, he did a final test of the Gmail messages, and Sherwin placed a smiley emoji using text to test it. “hopefully, the final test,” read the message.
Once that was done, I went to keep the control book, Smartboard equipment and get Ms Samantha who was taking over Ms Janice's Additional Mathematics lesson to sign it and also meet Ms Sarah to get her to sign the control book, along with Mr Raja and Ms Joyce, who had forgotten to sign. Then, I went to 10N for the election of the next committee of the Monitor's Council.
There was less people in 10N as we waited for everyone to arrive. The room was chilling as the cool breeze enveloped the room. I then sat down and waited. Ethan Chan, Yen Kwan, Casmie Tee and Zher Xian were in the room. Then, Zher Xian had a chat with me and we had a short chat. I spoke to him about my Beep Test practice strategies. Ethan Chan was really excited and chipped in to listen on that.
Soon, Ashlyne entered the room, along with Pranavee and Berlinda. Rick Tan soon arrived thereafter following a short meeting with Mr Nick. Like Caleb Chuang, he had been asked to redo the exam questions and their class had to present their answers and corrections to Mr Nick.
As more people soon arrived into the classroom, Ashlyne called everyone to settle down for the one-hour Monitor's Council Committee Election for the second half of 2017. “Guys, please settle down,” she said. “Please cooperate.”
Some of the people in the class were not cooperating. So, as a result, Ashlyne, who was holding her yellow ruler as a pointer, had to spank the ruler on the table like a judge to call for calm. Even so, she had to scold some people behind the class who were fooling around. She even walked to Zher Xian and asked him to behave properly, as he was playing jokes and acting crazily.
The agenda for the election was to elect the secretary, treasurer, and the level representatives for each of the years for Year 7, 8 and 9. The Year 10s and 11s do not have a level representative because they were represented by their presidents and top committee members.
Some of the Year 10s were joking around and Ashlyne had to call them to pay attention. She even pointed her ruler at them like a disciplinary teacher. Ethan Chan and Zher Xian were giggling behind the class, while Casmie Tee was really annoyed at Zher Xian's actions.
When Ashlyne invited people to nominate themselves, many people asked Zher Xian to be nominated for the post of Treasurer as he was really rich. The whole thing ended up being a joke on Zher Xian being rich because of his family's wealth. Ashlyne was quite furious. She had to shout at them to get their attention. Other than Zher Xian, Reid Ken was nominated, along with Yui Xin, Ethan Chan and Yen Kwan, to be the secretary and treasurer. Reid Ken was eventually elected as the treasurer, with Yui Xin as secretary.
Because everyone was acting like fools except me, who just sat still with my Student Organizer to take notes, the election for all the other posts were postponed because the turnout was low. Some people even left early to Ashlyne's dismay. Even Rick, Berlinda and Pranavee had errands to do and left early.
Ashlyne thanked me for coming and taking my time to attend the meeting as I watched her being accompanied with her mum while my aunt had a chat with me.
The extra classes soon came, and we were in for a week of activity.
On 29th May, we had our Economics class. Ms Sharon had three Economics classes with the Year 11 students, first beginning with the 11N students, followed by the Group 1 students whose class was held during my History lesson, and the Group 3 students whose class took place during my Global Perspectives lesson. This meant that Ms Sharon had three hours of classes. Our class was the first to begin at 9:00am.
After registering at the guardhouse upon arrival, I then walked into the school gates and met Ze Khai, Brandon Ooi, Jia Yee, Nickolas Nashpal, Glen Kay, Alia, Eric Wong, Shane, Ivyna, Kelsey, Sheng Jit, Krystal, Lyn Wen, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi and Hao Yinn, who had arrived. Ms Sharon then took her things to her staffroom next to 11E. She had opened the Powerpoint slides and had set the presentation for the extra class. We entered the class and were seated. Ms Sharon then handed us two worksheets; one for Unit 49, which was on International Trade, and one on Unit 50, which was on exchange rates. I sat in the front seat, and Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal sat behind me. Glen sat in the seat on the left and greeted me.
“Okay class, so thank you for coming. You see, we only have four chapters left to cover for the syllabus, and we are done and you can start preparing for your IGCSE,” said Ms Sharon. “Normally, we can only cover one chapter in a week, so with the extra class, after your holidays, we can finish Chapter 51 and 52, the last chapter, and we will be done. Then, we will have more time to start revising, but the first thing I want to tell all of you is how to answer the questions.”
Ms Sharon first showed us the common mistakes most students made when sitting for Economics Paper 2. She said that the problem with many students was that they fail to answer according to the question and mentioned other things that were not in the question. “For example, when the question asks you to define ‘absolute poverty’, many of you give examples of absolute poverty. This is wrong,” she said, pointing to us that we could lose marks even for such an easy question.
Ms Sharon then explained the format of Economics Paper 2, which is divided into two sections. Section A contains questions relating to a case study given, which is in the form of a long text. There would normally be five to ten questions on Section A. The most tricky part of Paper 2 is answering the Section B question.
In Section B, candidates answer three questions from a presented list of six to eight questions. Each question consists of four sub-questions, namely a), b), c) and d). All questions contain a writeup on how the world's economy works, and students would be left to answer the four questions using their Economics knowledge. Real-world examples are not allowed in the IGCSE exam, except for examples from the textbook. One example of a real-world example is stating the global financial crisis of 2008-2009.
Students would be asked to define a key term in question a), proceed to explain two factors from a given topic in question b), analyze a scenario in question c), and discuss between a series of events in question d). Ms Sharon then told us how to answer the questions and she stylized the answers for us to follow as the benchmark. She also continued from the balance of payments structure, especially on imports and exports, from where we stopped in the previous lesson.
Then, Ms Sharon talked about the International Trade. She told us that this topic only had three slides and the other slides printed in the notes can be cancelled as they were not included in the syllabus for 2017. “This topic will take only 3 minutes to finish,” she quipped. She told us that countries try to specialize in goods and services to help make international trade possible and to contribute towards economic growth. All that was needed to do was to understand the advantages and disadvantages of specialization, which had four points each. And that was that. The shortest topic in Cambridge IGCSE Economics.
Ms Sharon then spent some time to talk to us about exchange rates. “This is a very popular topic that is asked in the exam. Please pay attention,” she said. She then told us about the purpose of exchange rates as to how two currencies have different values, and compared the Malaysian ringgit with the Singapore dollar. Then, she introduced to us two exchange rates; a fixed exchange rate and a floating exchange rate. The exchange rates are based on market value as well as the value of a country's exports and imports.
When Ms Sharon talked about the floating exchange rate, I tried to imagine a life float which is floating on water. Then, we had a discussion on which exchange rate is better. Ultimately, we decided that the floating exchange rate is better. Nickolas Nashpal and I wanted to lead all the discussions, but we kept on arguing over who would go first. Eventually, I gave in to Nickolas.
As the discussions ended, Ms Sharon's Group 1 students were waiting outside the class. I could see Han Ming smirking with his water bottle and notes. We were then dismissed as Ms Sharon said she will cover Chapters 51 and 52 after the holidays. Nickolas, Ze Khai and I chat on the debate as well as our marks. Then, Ze Khai and I bid goodbye as we walked out of the school compound. He greeted my aunt and we left.
The next day, 30th May, was the first day of the Business Studies extra class. I presented my permission slip to the guards, signed in my name, and headed to 11E for the lesson. Ms Chithra was busy setting up the room and I was the first to arrive. And then, Alicia, Nicole and Sophie were on the scene.
“MS CHITHRA! YOU LOOK GORGEOUS!” they cried. Ms Chithra brushed them aside. She then switched on the projector and tried to fix it. Then, once the computer was ready, she plugged in her pendrive and then opened the Powerpoint slides and presented them. The lesson was to last from 8:00am to 12:00pm. She had to use the classes to cover two sub-topics a day. All four topics in total were related to Operations Management.
Everyone who entered Ms Chithra's Business Studies class were treated to a long period of information dissemination till our heads became clouded with word after word of dry-run lessons. Ms Chithra told us that we will have a 15-minute break after every one hour of lessons.
Ms Chithra's lesson was nothing much as everyone listened to her lesson. Those who had laptops brought them to take down notes. Wei Zhong was armed with his laptop taking down notes and looking at past-year papers. Ms Chithra just talked with no less humor. A dry, plain and dirt-cheap entertainment run greeted us.
At 9:00am, when Ms Chithra gave us the first break, she then sat down in the front and entertained those who wanted to ask her questions. I went out of 11E to stretch my legs and look at the view of the courtyard and the skyline of Kuala Lumpur from the balcony of the top corridor.
Then, after 15 minutes, we returned to continue the lesson. My head soon became drowsy as the second hour kicked in. Most of us wore our sports attire or PE attire, or even other T-shirts such as the Founder's Run t-shirt to feel comfortable. Then, hours of Ms Chithra's lesson passed and in the third hour, I spent my time answering and explaining questions asked by Ms Chithra. Just as the fourth hour passed, Ms Chithra told us that we will stop for the day as most people groaned as they were tired.
Then came 31st May 2017. It was the second day of our Business Studies remedial class. Ms Chithra then proposed to shorten the time of the class and have longer breaks if we felt tired. Many agreed, and Ms Chithra then taught us about the methods of production. While listening to the methods and what Ms Chithra was teaching, I tried to focus and take down notes. After 30 minutes, Ms Chithra then gave us a short break. Then, we continued on.
Meanwhile, down in 10L's classroom, Mr Lee was having extra classes for his Physics students from 11O. I managed to catch a glimpse of Caleb Chuang during the break time given by Ms Chithra. I waved hi at him, and the whole batch of 11O's students then kept on cheering, screaming and shouting. And Megan Lee was leading the tirade.
Back in 11E, Ms Chithra then continued with our lesson. She told us that we can eat if we felt sleepy and drowsy. I took out my food container with Jacob's biscuits to munch on while she taught us. It made me feel better as Ms Chithra explained the concepts.
After Ms Chithra's class ended at 12:00pm, Mr Lee's lesson ended as well. All the 11O students were waving goodbye to Mr Lee. Mr Lee told me to meet him tomorrow for Combined Science. I saw him walk from the school gates to his car, which was parked in front of WQ Park. Mr Lee then got into his car. His car was parked on soiled ground. There was no road divider to divide the asphalt and the car-parking space. That reminded me of the same type of spot in front of my house which I built some mounds to plant vegetables on at the time. Just as Mr Lee's car was driving off, my aunt arrived and soon, while she drove home, I could see Mr Lee's car ahead of us. I looked forward to Mr Lee and his amusing lessons.
Mr Lee's Combined Science lesson was held from 9:00am to 12:00pm on 1st June 2017, and it was held in 11N.
The morning arrived without hassle, and I arrived at the school gates and registered my name. The guards initially asked if Mr Lee was coming. When Ivyna arrived, she signalled to the guards that there was a class, and Ivyna and I walked to 11N. When we reached 11N, the guards opened the door for us. Kelsey and Cassandra, along with Shane, Louis, Aaron Liew and Ryan Chok, were waiting outside.
Once the class was open, I placed my bags down at my desk, and headed to the pigeon hole to collect the Smartboard equipment from there. When returning back to the class, I greeted Mr Lee, who was walking with me.
“Do I need to sign?” he asked me. “No need. Today is a holiday, so no need to sign,” I replied.
“Oh, okay,” said Mr Lee. He then told me that if that was the case, he need not sign after the holidays.
“No, no, please, no! When school reopens, you MUST sign!” I pleaded. Mr Lee laughed.
We then reached 11N, Mr Lee and I entered the class. Brandon, Shane and Aaron Liew were looking at Brandon's latest World of Warlords game. Mr Lee then jokingly said that I should give him the opportunity to use his fingers to write on the Smartboard and not use the pen. “The Smartboard pens must rest as well, since it is a holiday,” said Mr Lee. The whole class laughed.
“You know what?” said Mr Lee. “Yesterday, the whole 11O class was talking about you,” he said, pointing to me. “Yes, yes! Caleb Chuang told me he saw you, and the whole class cheered. This resulted in laughter from me and everyone in the class.
Mr Lee then switched on the computer, plugged in the pendrive, and I flicked on the projector in the class. Then, he opened his slides and asked me and Kelsey to distribute some handwritten photocopied Chemistry notes. Then, he passed us some of his slideshow notes as well and started talking about heating and cooling. Mr Lee then explained all the topics in the handwritten notes one by one. He guided Louis and Gabriel in an enthusiastic manner till they felt entertained. Ms Colleen was also present to guide them.
Mr Lee then continued explaining about the Chemistry topics, telling us which areas did not come out for the syllabus. He also handed us a series of exercises to do in class. Mr Lee had to tell Brandon Ooi to pay attention most of the time as he got excited.
The Chemistry topics that were taught by Mr Lee were very interesting. He then told Brandon Ooi that the frog dissection experiment would be ready and he had liaised with Ms Mazlina on the matter. Then, he continued teaching us and explaining the format for the IGCSE exam for Combined Science.
Mr Lee's lesson soon became a bit tiring. Then, it was 12:00pm and everyone was hungry. We then went home and as I left the school grounds, I could make out Mr Lee heading to his car to drive home.
A week later, on 10th June 2017, I was involved in a delegation from Nobel being headed to Sunway University for the Asia Leadership Conference. Sunway University would become my future home following my graduation from Nobel.
Sunway University had two main buildings; the College building and the University building. The College building is an art-deco architectural-style building that existed since 1987. On the other hand, since 2015, a 12-storey building was built, which was the University building, to relief congestion and overcrowding in the old College building. The Asia Leadership Conference took place in the University building.
On the morning of the Asia Leadership Conference, I arrived at Sunway University at 8:00am. I then saw Ashlyne headed in the direction of a series of escalators. I followed her and then proceeded to the escalator which led us to the first floor where a series of three lecture halls were. There was a counter which we registered, and all student leaders from all the leadership boards were there. Ms Kay greeted me and we all registered and were given a tag. We then proceeded to JC 3 Hall where we were seated for the opening address. Aside from Ms Kay, Ms Renee was also present to meet us.
The hall was a large hall filled with tonnes of seats. There were many schools in attendance that day. A large crowd built up as more students and teachers from various schools entered the hall. Each student was given a welcome pack by the organizers. I sat down at the front seat closest to the left corner of the hall before being asked to move to the upper row. I sat with all the Nobellians as the event was about to start.
Samuel Kim, the head of the Asia Leadership Conference, opened the speech by welcoming everyone. He then talked about the importance of leadership and how it is relevant in today’s world. We were then treated to a series of talks before breaking out for our first session in a series of four sessions. This included a simulated TED talk session by the organizers on leadership, as well as a plenary speech by the committee members of the Asia Leadership Conference.
Each student was given four sessions where we would head to various venues and classrooms within the University Building for our activities. All four sessions of mine were located on the seventh floor classrooms, and that floor is where the offices of the Sunway University Business School were located. I spent some time climbing up the stairs to the 7th floor of Sunway University, and would continue doing so after being enrolled with Sunway. I was literally too afraid to use the elevator. In fact, during my time in Sunway, I NEVER used the elevator. Despite my tiredness and exhaustion from climbing up and down the steps, using the stairs at Sunway became a norm during the conference as well as after entering Sunway for my Foundation course and Degree course.
My first session was with Emily who is a trainer hailing from the United States. Emily talked about building high impact teens and how it was important for us to have self esteem. She did a few role plays and icebreaking in the class, and there was one guy who was the youngest in the class, at only 14 years old. Emily then told us to introduce ourselves and then asked us on how sociable we were in school and what leadership role did we play. Then, we did some mock conversations with each other. We also talked about our future professions that we plan to do once we grew up.
For the second session, Ms Puay Siang from Singapore was the speaker. Ms Puay Siang talked about how entrepreneurship can change the world and so on. She said that business is one thing that is leading the world and that leaders are very important in which they are able to manage people effectively through effective communication. Hence, most new business leaders are entrepreneurs and are willing to learn to lead the future of businesses. Ms Puay Siang then talked about how Singapore was a startup landscape for many enterprises and is one of the best choices for entrepreneurs. One thing that I like about Ms Puay Siang is to get to talk to her about developments in Singapore, especially the Circle Line Stage 6. The Circle Line Stage 6 was a project to close the loop of Singapore's MRT Circle Line, connecting Marina Bay MRT Station to HarbourFront MRT Station. The Circle Line in Singapore is not a complete circle, but acts as a line that goes around the city limits. We also had the opportunity to talk about the Downtown Line Stage 3, which was planned to open soon, as well as the Tuas West Extension, an MRT extension of the East West Line from Joo Koon MRT Station to the Tuas area. There is an MRT station that is located next to Tuas Checkpoint, which connects Singapore into Malaysia via the Second Link. Ms Puay Siang was really excited on my knowledge on Singapore.
Following her talk, we went down to the cafeteria at the College building of the campus in order to have our lunch. The lunch buffet was held at the Sunway College study area, and each student was served a packet of fried chicken with broccoli and rice. I then ate a quick lunch before heading
The third workshop commenced after lunch; for once, Ms Kay was also listening, and our speaker, Ms Yim, said that Ms Kay as a teacher had became a student. This led to laughter from the crowd and then Ms Yim told us that every leader had a different trait and that all of us had different leadership styles. Then, she talked about communication between leaders.
The last workshop involved our next speaker, Mr Joseph, asking us to sit in a circle. He then talked about what career was best for us and told us about the best career options available. He spent most of the time talking and some people asked him questions. I was the only one from Nobel in the group.
Once the last workshop was done, we then returned to the JC 2 Hall for a closing session by Ms Puay Siang, Emily and two other panelists before a closing speech by Dr Elizabeth Lee, the then Senior Executive Director of Sunway Education Group. I sat with Rick, Ashlyne and Pranavee. Ms Puay Siang and Emily then did a truth and dare game as well as to share what food they hate, which was quite amusing. When Dr Elizabeth Lee mentioned about global challenges, she then talked about Trump and asked if anyone supported him, and Rick grinned at me and smiled, saying, “Wei Yiang, say that you support!”
The Asia Leadership Conference ended on a high note as everyone was invited for a group photo. Once that was done, I talked to Ms Puay Siang about the Circle Line Stage 6 project. Apparently, there was a public consultation exercise which invited the general public to submit the station names for the three MRT stations under the project. I wanted to name two of the stations after Tunku Abdul Rahman and Lee Kuan Yew. Then, I got Ms Puay Siang's contact and then left the hall, where my mum was waiting for me. She was talking to Ms Renee before I went home with her. It was cloudy and about to rain. The lush environment around Sunway University was stunning like a five-star hotel. I headed home in exhaustion from the day's activities.
The new week of school in the month of June 2017 started on 13th June instead of 12th June due to the Nuzul Quran public holiday. It was also our first week under the new timetable. This timetable would be the last timetable change as Nobellians. As we entered into our classes, we then went to our classes. The management team begun the lessons for Year 11 students at 7:30am sharp under the new timetable, as it would allow us to have more lesson time to prepare for the IGCSE exams. I was very happy as I had been wishing for this to be applied to us in the second half of 2016. I want classes to start early. It is unnecessary having reading time to begin the day and waste 30 minutes of our time on something that is not productive. Compared to the rest of the school, lessons begun at 8:00am. It was all past year papers with Ms Chithra in her lesson, and every teacher begun to roll out past year papers. Ms Chithra also took time to start teaching the last topic for Business Studies, which was on pricing strategies. She said that it is very common for sellers to use the numbers 8 and 9 to give the impression of a cheap product or discounted price. For instance, if nasi lemak was sold at RM 8.90, it would give the impression that people are paying less. In fact, more people pay more when purchasing nasi lemak sold at RM 8.90 as opposed to being sold at RM 9.00. This allows more profit to be made.
When we went for Art, Ms Nadia then called us for a briefing. For Art and Design, Ms Nadia had been in a dilemma over what to do following the Mid Year Examination, since the Art and Design IGCSE examination questions from Cambridge for the October/November 2017 series would only be released on 1st July 2017. During our art lesson that day, Ms Nadia gave us two options to choose from, namely to either redo the Mid Year Examination questions or practice drawing techniques and that we will need to stick to that activity for the rest of the period until the questions come out on 1st July. Ms Nadia hinted that there is a possibility that Cambridge will re-use the questions from our Mid Year Examination, as the questions that were used for the Mid Year Examination were taken from the May/June 2017 Art and Design IGCSE questions and hence, she said that it would be a good idea to re-do the questions. Since the questions used for the Mid Year Examination were from the May/June 2017 Art and Design IGCSE papers, and that Cambridge had a technique to re-use old questions for the coming examination. For the drawing techniques, Ms Nadia said she would give us an object to draw and she would guide us on how to draw them. All of us would need to use our art paper. So, she gave us a choice to choose and let her know accordingly and then she will make the arrangements.
I decided to choose the first option because I believed that re-doing the questions would allow me to save a month of hard work should the questions come out for the IGCSE examination. At the same time, since I was uncertain about how the situation would go, I would thus be able to have more time by starting early, and that I would be able to focus on other subjects. Ms Nadia had told us that if that particular question came out for the IGCSE examination, we would be in luck, save time, and also finish our prep works quicker, because we had June as an additional month to get things done. I told Ms Nadia that I prefer to redo the gate paintings that I did for the Mid Year Examination. After all, it is better to re-do the paintings that I did, just in case. So, I informed Ms Nadia of my choice. On another note, Ms Nadia also told us that we might choose to guess the topics that will be released for the exam.
When we went for break time, me, Sophie and Yi Zhen talked about the Art and Design topics. I told them of my choice to redo the questions. But before I left for the canteen, I made sure that Mr Raja signed the control book. Two of his Accounting lessons covered both my Business Studies and Art lessons, so it was really convenient for him.
After break, we then went for English, and Mr Thomas was waiting for us. I then told Ms Joyce to sign the control book. Since the timetable had changed, I had to inform every teacher to keep to the new schedule. Ms Joyce nodded and told me to leave the class quickly so that she can begin her lesson.
Mr Thomas had started using “blended learning” as an option for us to do our revision for English. In addition to Edmodo, Mr Thomas had also wanted us to use Gmail or any other email application for us to receive work sent by him. So, in class, everyone had to write down our emails on a piece of paper that was distributed around the classroom, and hand it back to him. Subsequently, starting from 24th May 2017, he begun to send us reading material for exam revision. The reading materials and questions comprise each of the different section formats in the examination and he hopes that we will complete it within a day or two after receiving the email, and send it to him for review if possible. He would also discuss some of the questions in the class. I would thus always complete the work on time for him to discuss.
Mr Thomas then discussed about blended learning. He told us that blended learning was a usage of physical and electronic equipment to conduct a harmonious learning experience for all of us. This meant using emails, the Internet, interactive lessons and so on to do the lesson.
“You see, what we want to do here is blended learning. I may not be able to see you everyday, because we will have the Hari Raya holidays and so on, and last week, we already had a holiday. So, because there are so many holidays, I want to do this ‘blended learning’ with you today.
Then, Mr Thomas opened his Gmail application. “Have you all seen this?” he asked. He showed us the four email messages he sent over the Mid Year Break for us to do. The messages were sent on 29th May, 1st June, 5th June and 12th June 2017. All of the emails contained texts, which we had to respond to via letter-writing. There were three texts in total that we had to read and use the text as a basis to write a letter. Mr Thomas had told us to finish the texts immediately so that he can discuss them in class.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. “I already completed them.” Then, I showed him a text of the La Decima text which I printed out. He had asked us to bring that material to his class.
“Very good,” said Mr Thomas. “How about the rest?”
When Mr Thomas realized that the rest of the people in the class did not complete their work, he was really annoyed. “Didn't you see the messages? I asked you to complete immediately!” he cried.
“I asked you to keep to the deadline! You were supposed to complete the work on that day itself!” he cried. He was so astonished that no one, except for me, Adrinna Yee, Sherwin and Ye Sean, had seen the messages.
“You see, if all of you act like this, it is very difficult for us to continue our learning because you are not responding to what I had asked,” said Mr Thomas. “Can you please check your email every evening after coming home from school?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Then, Mr Thomas opened his Edmodo page and then showed us the latest post on Edmodo. He told us to do an exercise on Hotel Paloma and write a letter of complaint as our homework. He discussed the text with us to formulate points for us to write.
Alexandria Goh had went to Seoul, South Korea for her holiday during the two-week break, and I had asked her if she had visited the Cheonggyecheon Stream in Seoul. She was visiting the capital city of South Korea, which was much more vibrant than Pyongyang, North Korea. While she did not visit Cheonggyecheon, she had seen the Namdaemun Gate, which is a famous city gate to Seoul erected during ancient times. Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa talked about the Prohibition era during the 1920s, when the sale of alcohol was prohibited. Brandon Ooi kept teasing Louis and Ms Visa had to stop him.
After lunch, we then had Mathematics, and Ms Bee Yan did a discussion of the mark scheme for the past-year papers she had given us. She told us that for Maths, the mark scheme would allocate marks for workings and we need to show detailed workings in class. Then, she told us to do the past year papers while Mr Chan walked around, inspecting our workings like a surgeon. I then asked Ms Bee Yan to sign the control book. Afterwards, it was Economics, and all of the Mathematics Core students from 11N were returning, waiting outside the class. I personally feel that some people would miss being in the Extended class, having downgraded to Mathematics Core.
Ms Sharon started the last topic. It was on free trade and protection. Countries would normally protect their local industries with import tariffs, and Ms Sharon told us that international trade was really important for all the economies of the world, but tariffs threaten to impact international trade and also economies. There are also non-tariff barriers to protect their industries, such as paying firms to stay in the country. And with that, the last Economics lesson had come to a close.
After the Economics lesson had ended, Ms Sharon then asked those who were going for the Economics Remedial to follow her to 11O. I was part of the remedial class. The remedial class was held from 3:30pm to 4:30pm after school hours.
Back on Thursday, 25th May 2017, Ms Sharon had asked me to join her remedial class in order to improve my Economics performance. This was made after an analysis of the Mid Year Examination results as well as the list of individuals who wished to stay or to drop Economics for the IGCSE examination. In our class, 11N, alone, the people who dropped Economics were Enisha, Eric Wong, Gabriel, Krystal Goh, Aaron Liew, Louis Soon, Ryan Chok and Grace Tee. I mean, like, quite a number of people had dropped Economics.
When I reached 11O, I met Caleb Chuang, greeted him, and sat down on in the front. Because that seat I was seating at was Caleb Chuang's seat, the whole 11O class cheered. Caleb Chuang then greeted Ms Sharon and then some people from her other two set teaching groups came in. Among the people in the Economics remedial class were Janice Low, Jien Min, Han Ming, Lyn Wen, Kevin Tan and Hao Yinn. There were around ten people who had joined Ms Sharon's remedial class.
Ms Sharon then settled us down and then started speaking to us. “Okay, so guys, thank you for coming to the remedial class. The reason why all of you are chosen for this remedial class is not to say that you did not do well in Economics, but it is to for us to see how you can improve in Economics. So, I am conducting this remedial class to help you comprehend and understand certain parts of the topics in order for you to at least get a C and above, because even if you get a D, you still pass, but you cannot go to college. And all of you don't want this to happen, right?” said Ms Sharon.
“We will be focusing on three things for the remedial class: past year questions, past year papers, the techniques of how to answer the past year papers as well as on MCQ. Also, we will also focus on which topic you may not understand.”
Ms Sharon then said she will take out the EASIEST past year question for us to do as a warm up. She chose one question from Section B of one of the past Paper 2 questions and told us to answer. There were four questions:
a) Describe two ways in which land is different from labor.
b) Explain the significance of opportunity cost for a government when making its spending decisions.
c) Using a production possibility curve, analyze the impact of an increase in resources on an economy.
d) Discuss whether building of more roads will benefit an economy.
Ms Sharon then told us that since it is the easiest question, she will try to see where we went wrong and also to check our answer structure if it was correct. “Once you are done, you can check your answers with me,” she said. So, she asked us to copy down the question and do it.
The questions were very easy. The first question taught us on the factors of production, which we learnt in Ms Levina's class the previous year. Thinking of that question reminded me of Ms Levina and her funny lessons. The second question was testing us on the concept of opportunity cost while also talking about the aims of the government. The third one was on the Production Possibility Curve and how this action impacts the economy based on the factors of production and the opportunity costs involved. The last question pools in many topics, such as market failure, economic growth, living standards and opportunity costs.
When I did the questions, there was little to no hassle. Ms Sharon then sat in front of the class and marked the Year 10s’ exercises. Then, Ms Sharon walked around and checked on us. It took me around half an hour to answer the questions. When I was done, I presented my answers to Ms Sharon, who marked them. I got 19 out of 20 points for the question. Ms Sharon also took the opportunity to mark Sherwin's question as well. He was also present for the remedial class. Then, once everyone was done, Ms Sharon then discussed the answers and I answered most of the questions before Ms Sharon asked other people to give their points. Ms Sharon then told us that we will be focusing on another set of past year papers for the next remedial class. “This time, it will be a bit harder,” she said.
The next day, the 14th June 2017, I went up to the class straight away. All of us Year 11s do not have to line up in the school hall unlike the other year levels as the teachers allowed us to use the classrooms to focus on our studies. As I went to the pigeon hole to take the control book, Smartboard equipment and went back to 11N to switch on the computers, I was thinking of something.
I was thinking of trying to aim for the Top in Malaysia. After the disastrous outing of Bullseye back in March, as well as a skit performance on Awards Day which made me feel like as if it did not fit the cut, I thought of joining the ranks of the best performers in the world.
Aiming for Top in Malaysia would see myself being displayed on banners, advertisements, as well as being engraved into Nobel International School's success stories. A second, Founder's Run-style operation was about to take place. The only thing was where to start.
All that was needed to do was to take the highest-scoring subject and just put in more effort. Then, it would be very easy for me to achieve an A-star (A*) in IGCSE. And that highest-scoring subject was First Language English. There are eight subjects that I had to focus on: English, Maths, Combined Science, Economics, History, Art, Global Perspectives and Business Studies. Since I had gotten an A* for the First Language English examination during the Mid Year Examination, it would be better for me to do well in that subject and achieve an A*. I got a C for Maths, C for Combined Science, C for History, C for Art, C for Global Perspectives and D for Business Studies for the Mid Year Examination. So, focusing on the English paper was the most logical choice to do as it did not involve a lot of effort. It would definitely be too difficult to focus on Art and Design, and neither would be as equally easy for me for any other subject than English.
If I had achieved a Top in Malaysia for First Language English, I would be the second person after Jade Wong in 2015 to achieve such a distinction, and of course, Mr Thomas would be the happiest man in the world.
At 7:30am, we were told to go down to the school hall for the morning assembly. Yi Zhen was conducting the assembly. During the assembly, everyone was treated to a series of announcements by Ms Paulina and Ms Ambiga on the TED talks. Then, the Year 11s were told to leave for their classes.
Upon returning to class, Ms Chithra told me to head for her Business Studies remedial, which will start the following week, on Monday, 19th June. A few people were singled out for the Business Studies remedial, including Wei Zhong. However, Wei Zhong and I expressed concern that we would miss our last leadership board meetings on Monday. Wei Zhong was scheduled to attend the Prefectorial Board meeting, and I was destined for the Monitor's Council meeting. The Monitor's Council would elect the new president and vice president. It would be our last day being in the Monitor's Council meeting, as all important business for Year 11 students was to end at the end of the month.
“Just tell your teachers that you have remedial class,” said Ms Chithra. The remedial class would last for one hour, from 3:30pm to 4:30pm. “Who is the teacher for prefects?” asked Ms Chithra. Wei Zhong was then told to speak with Mr Narish on the matter. Then, Ms Chithra continued our topic on pricing strategies.
Wei Zhong, whom Ms Chithra had placed him in her remedial class, and was scheduled to attend the Prefectorial Board meeting for his last time as well, was worried, and so was I. I stood next to him as he spoke to Ms Chithra. “Can you just ask your teachers in charge for the prefects to let them know that you have remedial class? Remedial is important,” said Ms Chithra. Wei Zhong said he would try to make the arrangements. This meant that I needed to inform Ashlyne Yong about my remedial with Ms Chithra.
When we returned to 11N, Ms Sharon was in the class and we did some revision together. Ms Sharon then begun discussing the format of how to write an essay question from Paper 2. Ms Sharon then once again repeated what she said during the remedial class and told us on how to answer the questions. She then gave us some essay questions to do and we discussed them. Those questions were from May/June 2016, Paper 2, Variant 1. We spent most of the time drawing the demand and supply curves, and labeling the Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply labels, including for those topics that were taught in Year 10.
After Economics, we then had break, and I found out that Mr Raja had not signed the control book. I planned to let him sign it when I return for Combined Science, since his Accounting lesson also occurred during my Art lesson. I then met Ashlyne and Berlinda and told them that I had a remedial class with Ms Chithra the coming Monday, 19th June.
During Art, Ms Nadia then discussed about the prep works’ format and confirmed who were to take the two options given the previous day; be it doing some drawing techniques or redoing the prep works from the Mid Year Examination. Most of the people then wanted to do the drawing techniques. Then, Ms Nadia talked to us about our expectation for the Art and Design IGCSE examination. She told us that for the actual IGCSE exam, we need to be very quick because we do not have a lot of time. Then, she let us do our own things in the class. I then discussed with Ms Nadia on my arrangements for redoing the prep work.
After Ms Nadia's lesson, we then returned to 11N for our Maths lesson with Ms Bee Yan. We then continued doing the past year papers. Ms Bee Yan walked around the class with Mr Chan, teaching us on how to show the workings. Before we begun, Nickolas Nashpal and I decided to race each other to see who got the highest marks for the 2011 Maths Paper 4. “Three, two, one, start!” I cried, and we started scribbling our answers. Nickolas Nashpal was sitting next to me in the class. He kept looking at me and grinning to see if I got distracted. I kept on laughing when he acted in a hillarious manner. “Concentrate!” he cried. “Mr Nehru said you cannot concentrate! Crashed the car again!” he cried. Ms Bee Yan asked what was the matter, and Daryl Yeo told her that Nickolas and I were competing. She then asked Nickolas if we had the same Maths tuition teacher. Nickolas spent some time telling her about the whole Maths tuition experience. Then, once we were done, we checked the answers. I lost to Nickolas Nashpal by one point. “Too bad! You lost!” he cried, and we all laughed. Mr Chan, who was walking around, gave me a pat and asked what was the matter. I showed him the scores and he grinned and patted me again. We treated the revision process like a game.
Then, during lunch, I then spoke to Alexandria Goh about the various sights of South Korea. “You should have visited the Demilitarized Zone,” I said. “Oh, no!” she cried. “I don't want to get shot!” We had a good chat about the division of Korea and what South Korea's attractions looked like. She was showing off her photos to Vicky, Yin Wei and Ellie Lim on her trip to Seoul.
I managed to get Mr Raja to sign the control book, and then during History, Ms Visa did some recap on the sale of beer in the United States and then we did some notes. Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher then took time to check some people's individual evaluation reports.
The next day, 15th June 2017, a Thursday, I came to school with four of my A2 art paper. I had prepared them since Ms Nadia had told me to bring the art papers in order to begin work on my prep works for the redoing of the Mid Year Examination questions. I then went straight to 11N when the school doors opened at 6:45am, and then went up to put my things. Then, I took my bread and newspaper and had breakfast at the canteen, flipping through the newspapers as well as the remedial notes and exercises that I did in Ms Sharon's class. Once that was done, I went up to 11N, switched on the computers and projector, and got my Economics books ready.
I then went next door to 11O and had a look. Joseph Diong, Justin Yeo, Julian Ong and Joshua Chew were doing their past year papers. They were asking and answering questions. Some, like Natasha Singam, who had arrived early, were checking their phones or were having a power nap before the lesson started. The people in 11B were more or less socializing, while the people in 11L were busy playing some games. Mind the all-boys class, you know, excluding two girls.
When the Economics lesson begun at 7:45am, Ms Sharon came into the class and then gave us some past year papers to do. I passed the control book to her to sign. We did the October/November 2016 Paper 2 Variant 2 questions. Ms Sharon then went around to check on us on how we answered the Section A questions. Then, she did a comprehensive discussion with us.
When Brandon Ooi wanted to use the washroom, I asked him to sign the book once he returned, but he yelled obscanities. Ms Sharon had to tell him to apologize upon returning and then initialize in the book. Then, Ms Sharon went around to guide everyone on their work before giving a worksheet on free trade and protection. Ms Sharon, in my opinion, has the most organized examination essay structure out of all the teachers. For Economics, Ms Sharon has been focusing on how we should answer and practice the past year examination papers, such as how we should answer the essay questions. She even had a format on how our questions should look like for the essay questions. For instance, for Economics, when we had to discuss the four factors of production, she prefers us to begin the essay with, “There are four factors of production, namely land, labour, capital and enterprise,” and then mention the four factors with definitions, explanations and examples.
After Ms Sharon’s Economics lesson, I greeted Ms Joyce and went for Mr Thomas’ class. I told her to sign the control book before leaving for Mr Thomas’ class. When I reached 11B, I then met Sherwin and had a chat with him before looking at Alexandria Goh showing her pictures from Seoul as well as her experience touring South Korea. Soon, the large figure of Mr Thomas was striding down the hallway. He entered the class. “Good morning! How are you?” he cried.
“Fine, Mr Thomas! I have done the work,” I replied.
“What work is that, may I ask?” enquired Mr Thomas.
“The Hotel Paloma letter.”
“Ok, we will discuss it soon.”
Mr Thomas then asked if everyone else had finished the Hotel Paloma work in our exercise books. Then, he discussed all the answers with us and told us to hand in our exercise books to him.
We then went down for break, and I sat down with Caleb Chuang for breakfast before talking to Yi Zhen on that afternoon's art lesson activity which I was planning to do. Yi Zhen asked about the benefit of redoing the work. Then, I met Jordan and Ting Yi and sat down with them, talking about the IGCSE exams.
During Combined Science, Mr Lee then brought us to the Science Lab where he taught us on how to measure the angle of incidence. He then said that we will hold the frog dissection activity on another day.
Cassandra and Lyn Wen were looking at how shiny the mirrors given by Mr Lee were. Then, they put the mirrors in an angle in which we had to measure the best angle of incidence and angle of refraction. At the back of the class, Ryan Chok had put the mirrors in a manner till the line produced by the light formed something in a shape so obscene till Mr Lee groaned at him. He, Shane and Brandon Ooi were laughing till Mr Lee had to ask what the matter was.
When the lab session had ended, I passed the control book to Mr Lee to sign it before heading for the Tutorial Room 3 for Mr Gallagher's Global Perspectives lesson. Mr Gallagher then asked for me to present my two individual reports for him to check. He told those whom he hadn't seen the reports to present them to him to check so that he can submit them to Cambridge as soon as possible. Our reports were meant to be sent and marked by Cambridge. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra finished up the topic with us and told us that she will schedule the remedial the following week for those who wanted to attend.
After lunch, I went to the Art Studio, interested in the lesson. As I was approaching the Art Studio, Ms Nadia, who was standing outside the Art Studio, ordered everyone to get their art blocks. “Everyone, I would like to see you with your art blocks now! Everyone! All of you! Including you, Wei Yiang.” she cried. Soon, everyone panicked as everyone forgot their art blocks. I brought around four art blocks to practice my preps. I asked Ms Nadia, “Ms Nadia, I thought that you allowed me to do my preps?” This is even more ironic as I had spoken to Ms Nadia the day before that I wanted the option to redo the preps. Ms Nadia said that I could not do so as the minority had to follow the decision of the majority and that Ms Praveen had given the directive to do painting techniques. As such, I just sat down solemnly in the Art Studio as everyone asked if I had art paper which I could lend to them. When they found out that I did not have enough art paper, Timothy Hiew lent some of the art paper to them, but many went to get some of the art paper in the Art Studio 3 which was meant for other people to use.
“Hey! Why did you take those art paper? You are not supposed to touch it! It is other people's art paper!” she cried. Ms Nadia was furious that everyone did not bring their art blocks and instead borrowed spare art paper from the studio which was meant for other people, as well as art paper which was not supposed to be touched and only used for other students’ activities. Some of them borrowed from me. She ordered everyone to write 1000 words on the art papers we took as punishment for not bringing art blocks and borrowing them from the studio without permission.
“All of you who borrowed from other people must also pay RM 50 to replace the art papers. I am very disappointed with all of you! You all are Year 11 already; still behaving like primary kids!" yelled Ms Nadia. She was really angry and flew into a rage. Then, she got angry and kept on lecturing us.
In tears, I raised my hand, stood up and started to speak, “Ms Nadia, I know that I may not be able to follow you, but is it okay if you allow me to do my preps and practice it separately? I have spoken to you before and I would like to do my preps as I would be able…..”
Ms Nadia then asked me to get my art paper from Art Studio 3 and then begin re-doing my preps. The rest spent the entire time in the art studio sitting down and writing lines as punishment. Ms Nadia proceeded to guide me as I begun to re-do the questions. After the end of the lesson, everyone showed some sense of guilt as they handed in their A2 paper which contained the multiple lines of words to Ms Nadia. The words read, “I promise not to borrow from other people without permission and bring my art blocks to class.” It was reminiscent of the punishment exercise used in Year 7, 8 and 9 which I had detailed earlier. Ms Nadia then assigned Yi Zhen and Rosemund to collect the RM 50 from all of us and pass it to her. She told me that I did not have to pay the fees as I did not borrow any art paper and solely wanted to redo the prep work. Then, during History, Ms Visa, Cassandra and Brandon Ooi comforted me. Cassandra asked if I was okay, and Ms Visa asked me to get my face washed. She had to tell Ms Visa about what happened during the Art lesson.
Then, during the Editorial Board CCA session, Ms Levina told me, Hua Iong and Andrew Ariffin about our Editorial Board activities and that we could continue our activities till the following week's class.
The next day, 16th June 2017, during our Homeroom time, Mr Kevin, Ms Colleen and Ms Visa came in to collect the subject withdrawal forms. Then, we went for our PE lesson and Mr Victor then brought us to the field to do some running exercises. It was our first PE lesson since the end of May. When Mr Victor brought us to the field, I could feel the breeze as I run. Sean Mark, Caleb Chuang and I led the crowd, and everyone screamed. Then, Mr Victor gathered us and then told us to do some relay runs. He then brought us to do some push ups and sit ups, and I brought along my cloth mat to prevent my clothes from getting dirty. Behind the group, Christopher Chew and Benjamin Fong were showing off their parkour moves. There was one time Benjamin Fong did some parkouring that day and accidentally flung some dog poo from the floor and it hit him in his hair.
“Aargh! Dog poo!” he cried. Christopher Chew and Sheng Jit were laughing and this made Ms Sylvia very angry. Mr Victor, on the other hand, told us that we will be doing some ball games the following week. He said that those who had football could bring football for the football game.
When we returned to school, Ms Lim, Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia were giving Benjamin Fong, Christopher Chew, Sheng Jit and Aristotle Koh a good lecture over what they did during PE. Meanwhile, I then sat with Kit Lee and Sophie during break time, who talked about what happened during the previous day's Art lesson. They comforted me on what Ms Nadia did during the class.
Then, we returned for Maths, and Ms Bee Yan proposed that we hold a farewell party for her the coming Friday, 23rd June, before our Hari Raya Holidays begun. Then, we had Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher was asking some people to drop Global Perspectives if they didn't perform well. When we returned for Combined Science, Mr Lee did some funny topics with us in class. He taught us about sound waves and how it is measured in amps. He took some time to hand out the worksheets and notes to us before the class started, passing the papers over to our desks.
Mr Lee kept on using Brandon Ooi as an example in his lesson and was mimicking the word ‘amps’. He said that Brandon Ooi had high velocity and high amplification because of his loud and high-pitched tone. The class kept on laughing at Mr Lee's funny stories. In fact, Brandon Ooi kept laughing and talking during the class, till Mr Lee had to call him ‘Ooi Brandon’ in reverse.
The second week of June then commenced. It was 19th June 2017. It was also the day where I had my last meeting for the Monitor's Council. At the same time, it was also the last week where I had my CCAs. Year 11s would then be asked to drop out of CCAs, too, to focus on the IGCSE exams.
The morning assembly then commenced with a motivational speech by Ms Sim. She said that 2017 was the year where there were a lot more fun activities and where the entire school came together as one, as to being united and working together. Never before then had Year 7s and Year 11s; the youngest to the oldest, worked together to make Nobel so joyful and wonderful. She then talked about the Sports Day and how everyone came together; especially the four houses. Ms Sim then told us about how we were working as one and demonstrating the school's core values. The year 2017 really demonstrated the compassion of Nobellians at their best.
After the assembly ended, we then had Mr Lee's lesson in which he continued to talk about the measurement of sound waves. His lesson on the morning of the 19th was not as interesting, but his presence motivated us for the day. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra then did some graphs with us. All of us had to bring some graph paper, pencils, erasers and calculator for the lesson. Ms Chithra then told us to calculate and draw the break-even chart in which the total profits must exceed total costs. However, I kept on struggling to draw the break-even graph. We had to do a break-even chart for Bill's Bear Factory. The graph even got crooked many times. Ms Chithra had to ask me to redo the graph again.
On the remedial class, Ms Chithra told me and Wei Zhong to let our teachers for the Prefectorial Board and Monitor's Council know about the remedial and that she will speak with them. Then, it was break time, and I got Mr Raja to sign the book. I checked on him and thanked him for signing. Then, it was the Global Perspectives lesson, and Mr Gallagher gave those who had finished their work a worksheet to do. It was based on the 2015 IGCSE past-year questions for Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then told us to do the questions while he checked on those who did not hand in their work. Once that was done, he discussed the answers with us. Then, it was our English lesson with Mr Thomas.
I returned to 11N, got Ms Janice and Ms Joyce to initialize the control book, and then went to Mr Thomas’ class. He was arriving into the class and switching on the computers. “Come, please take one,” he said. It was a worksheet titled ‘TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR LEARNING’.
Mr Thomas then told us to do the worksheet and answer the questions. "I want no nonsense during my class,” he said. “Please answer the questions truthfully.” He walked around the class, checking on people who answered the questions.
I spent some time to answer the questions. There were three questions. They asked on the meaning of that title, its importance and how we can use it. While I wrote a few scribbles, Adrinna Yee wrote a paragraph on it. Mr Thomas then took it and inspected it before handing it back to her.
“The reason why I am giving you this work is because I want all of you to be serious in your learning. Some of you have not been answering the text I have given to you on Edmodo or via email.”
Then, once we were done, Mr Thomas asked us to present what we understood about the meaning of ‘taking responsibility for your learning’. I then presented my answers. He then included a fourth question which stated: ‘Responsibility with teacher/what should teacher do for me?’
I proposed that Mr Thomas institute an icebreaker activity in order to attract those who were not listening and to woo students, which can motivate them to participate in the lesson.
“You see, an icebreaker activity is good. But too much icebreaking activity is not good because we want students to understand the seriousness of the IGCSE Examination,” he said.
“I am giving you this worksheet because I want all of you to understand that this is a very important exam. You MUST be responsible for your own learning because you are the one sitting for the exam, you see. You look; those people behind. Our friend behind is sleeping,” he said, pointing to Kevin Tan. “Can somebody wake him up, please?” asked Mr Thomas.
Eugene Ho and Jien Min woke him up. Mr Thomas asked him to wash his face, and Kevin Tan left for the washroom. Mr Thomas continued to lecture us on the importance of taking charge of our own learning and asked for our cooperation to answer his emails and do the work. “Otherwise, I am very sorry, but I have to give up on you,” he said.
“Can you please be diligent and do the work I give you?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
Mr Thomas then nodded. He wants everyone to be proactive and do his work. He hates it when people start ignoring his messages. Then, he discussed the topic of teenage driving in which we had to write an argumentative essay on whether we should lower the driving age from 18 years of age to 16 years old. Before long, it was lunch time. “So, shall we stop here today?” asked Mr Thomas. I replied in the affirmative before he released us for lunch.
Later on, during Character Transformation, Ms Praveen then came for a briefing. She informed us that all those who had dropped their subjects would be told to go to Tutorial Room 2 for their free period. The free period is a time where a student is not having any subjects, and they would be told to do their own things or their own revision. Then, Ms Lim then came for a briefing on the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony. She said that each person must pay the RM 200 fee to our Homeroom teachers. She also added that the venue of the graduation ceremony would be at Hotel Majestic Kuala Lumpur.
Many people immediately criticized the high fee and the location of the graduation ceremony, which takes place at Hotel Majestic. For past Year 11 Graduation ceremonies, Nobel held the graduation ceremonies at Sunway Resort Hotel, which is much cheaper and nearer to the school with a much lower rental fare. Some people even said that they and their parents opted out of the graduation ceremony to tighten their belts. However, Ms Lim disagreed, saying that the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate our ten years of schooling in Nobel. She asked us to think about it and pay the fee accordingly.
Then, Ms Lim and Mr Neoh announced that for our final school event as Year 11 students, it would be the Teacher's Day celebration, which will be held on 20th July 2017. Each class was presented with a theme. The themes were as follows:
11N – King and Queen of Egypt
11O – Beauty and the Beast
11B - Rapunzel
11E – Witch and Witchress
11L – Ultraman
All of us laughed and gasped at the themes, which looked weird but funny. Then, Ms Lim told us to return to our classes to discuss on the themes for Teacher's Day. She signed all the control books before I collected it and returned to 11N.
When we returned to 11N, Mr Kevin Wai then talked to us on how we should do the theme. The requirement for Teacher's Day was to dress our teachers up in costumes according to the themes. Sheng Jit and Kelsey were tasked to coordinate the whole thing. Brandon Ooi suggested that Ms Visa dress up like an Egyptian mummy, and Kelsey agreed, saying that Mr Kevin and Ms Colleen dress up as mummies. The whole class was filled with ideas on what to put Mr Kevin and Ms Visa as. Even Brandon Ooi suggested that since I was the assistant monitor, I can accompany them on stage as well. Mr Kevin was worried that if he was dressed in toilet paper, he may trip and fall off the stage. Mind you, each class was required to do a fashion show catwalk on Teacher's Day. Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa did some questions with us on Nazi Germany. She did some Depth Study questions from Paper 6 and we had to write about Nazi Germany.
After the lesson ended, I went to 11O for Ms Chithra's Business Studies remedial class. I placed my things down, went to 11N, collected the control book and told Ms Sarah to sign it and kept the control book and the Smartboard equipment back in the pigeon hole. Then, I went to 10N and informed Ashlyne about my remedial class with Ms Chithra. I passed her a piece of paper containing two names for President and Vice President of the Monitor's Council. My choice for the President and Vice President were Erica and Zher Xian. The Monitor's Council was due to hold an election and farewell party for the Year 11s. I was sadly unable to attend as Ms Chithra was waiting for me in her Business Studies remedial class.
During the remedial class, Ms Chithra gave us a Paper 1 past-year exercise from 2016 and told us to do it. Among the people in the remedial class were Sherwin, Sara Yow, Sophie Tan, Eu Lynn, Nicole Kau, Wei Zhong and Kevin Tan. Ms Chithra walked around and guided us. We had to do the questions and Ms Chithra talked to each and every one of us. Then, when Ms Chithra came to me, she asked me if I could cope with the Business Studies workload. I told her that I would give my best. Some people were not doing the work given by Ms Chithra, and she had to ask them to do it.
Then, after the remedial class, I went back to 10N to participate in the Monitor’s Council meeting, and Wei Zhong returned to his Prefectorial Board meeting.
You see, that last meeting for us Year 11 monitors was to elect a new committee comprising of the president, vice president, secretary and treasurer. So, I placed my bet for president and vice president via a note I gave Ashlyne before going to meet Ms Chithra.
“Alright, so Wei Yiang was late because he had remedial class for IGCSE. He had voted before he went for remedial; for president, he voted Erica,” said Pranavee.
“Thanks,” Erica responded slyly. The moment Pranavee announced the vice president’s vote by me was for Zher Xian, the response was electric. Zher Xian stood up and shot out of his seat like a rocket. He cheered, ran to me and gave me a hug.
“I love you, Wei Yiang! I love you!” he cried.
Ms Cynthia and Ms Sharon asked where was I and why was I late, and I told them that I met with Ms Chithra as she asked me to attend the remedial class. The IGCSE was important business which one could not ignore. I told them that the Business Studies remedial classes would be held every Monday. Ms Sharon asked if Ms Chithra had given past-year papers. I responded in the affirmative.
Some people asked why I chose Zher Xian. I attributed his traits to the then-Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, who had a hearty and funny yet serious character, and that I wanted some enthusiasm in the board. Then, when the board meeting ended, I spoke with Ms Sharon on the past year questions for Economics. Rick and Pranavee then asked what did Ms Chithra do during the remedial class. I told them it was all past-year papers.
The next day, 20th June, I met Ms June to wish her a happy birthday while at the staffroom. Then, we had our Business Studies lesson at 7:30am with Ms Chithra. Ms Chithra then gave us some past-year papers to do. While I did the papers, Eugene Ho looked at his social media accounts on his phone before doing the past-year paper. Wei Zhong had his laptop open, scheming through past year papers on his device. Then, Ms Chithra checked my past year papers given during the previous day's remedial class. She took a good look at it and asked me to improve. Then, we went for our Art lesson. The whole class just sat down and did their own things. Jien Min and Yi Zhen looked at pictures on Yi Zhen's phone. Ms Nadia then guided me and told me to watch my toning. I took out my gate grill picture, drew the grills and painted it. I got started on Prep 4 of the work, following Ms Nadia's idea to move backwards from Prep 4 to Prep 1 as it would be easier. Ms Nadia then kept on checking my toning to ensure that everything was fine. Then, Ms Nadia asked me what if the questions did not come out in the actual exam. I just told her that I will restart the whole thing all over again. After all, I wasn't willing to take chances.
"Are you sure you want to continue?" asked Ms Nadia. I nodded. It was better to go on, since I had started with it. After all, Ms Nadia had given this suggestion.
Following our Art lesson, we then had break and I got Mr Raja to sign the control book. Sophie and Yi Zhen were curious as to why I decided to redo the prep works. I told them that I wouldn't want to wait till 1st July to start, and also I wanted to start early just in case the went back to our classes for the English lesson. Mr Thomas then discussed the pros and cons of lowering the teenage driving age from 18 years old to 16 years old. He then took a look at my essay. Some people said that teenage driving at 16 is too dangerous; others said that it will train teens to drive given the advanced safety measures. The vehicular driving age in Malaysia is 17 years of age, but individuals can obtain driving licenses at 16 for motorcycles. Mr Thomas told us not to start the essay because he wants us to organize thoughts for the essay, and that we will do the essay on Thursday, 22nd June. I wanted to do the essay first, but Mr Thomas stopped me. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa continued to discuss about Nazi Germany with us. Those who did not take History sat behind and did their own revision.
After lunch, we then had Maths, and Ms Bee Yan agreed to the farewell party. Since Ms Bee Yan’s last day would be on Friday, 30th June, it would be a fitting tribute for her when we sent her off. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon gave us a bout of questions to do on Paper 1. We did the questions, which was a multiple-choice format. I managed to get 17 questions out of 20 questions correct. Then, I went to 11O with Ms Sharon for the remedial class. Ms Sharon then gave us Paper 2, variant 1 of the May/June 2014 series to do it. The questions were a bit more tough, and discussed on taxes and population. Each IGCSE examination had three variants distributed to different schools in order to make it tougher for students to share their answers. This means that for every subject, there would be three different versions of the exam paper being published. Cambridge's examiners knew that if every school was given the same paper, it would be easy for candidates to copy and check answers. Hence, they put many versions to make it difficult for people to copy and check answers, hence upholding the exam standard.
I completed the questions and handed the work to Ms Sharon, who took the work to be marked. Everyone handed in their papers before leaving.
The next day, on 21st June, we then had our morning assembly, but for the Year 11s, it was limited to the school pledge. All Year 11 students were asked to head to their classes at 7:50am for the start of their lessons. During Business Studies, Ms Chithra gave us two blue booklets containing questions from 2013 to 2016 for both Paper 1 and Paper 2. We had to do the questions. I then started working on the October/November 2016 Paper 1 questions. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Sharon told us to do the past year questions in our booklet that she had given to us prior to the Study Camp. We were instructed to work on Paper 2, Variant 1 questions from May/June 2014.
While doing the papers, Ms Sharon then gave back my work from the remedial class and guided me on areas for improvement. The whole class was furiously scribbling away at their work.
There was another trend coming up during this time around; a very interesting trend. It was on an event called a 'Prom'.
During break time, everyone was discussing about it. I did not know what it was. It looked weird. This so-called 'Prom' topic was kicking off speed. Eu Lynn was talking about it. And the name looked so funny.
We then returned for Art, and I completed most of my Prep 4 paintings. I was about to proceed to Prep 3. Ms Nadia then asked me to take some of the existing pictures that I have to draw. "You must also take new pictures, Wei Yiang. You cannot use the same one again because the examiner might think you have not enough subject matter," she said. The whole class just did their own things and talked about Prom while I continued my prep works. I then begun tracing another series of gates for Prep 3. Ms Nadia told me to get some newspaper ready.
Then, we went for our Maths lesson and Ms Bee Yan then gave us another set of questions to do. Nickolas Nashpal and I decided to race each other again. Most people talked to Ms Bee Yan as it was her second last Maths lesson with us. Ms Bee Yan then told the two of us to start and we furiously duelled each other to race on.
After lunch, we then had History, and Ms Visa discussed more about Nazi Germany, and Brandon Ooi was playing a lot of jokes in the class. Ms Visa couldn't shout at him; she called him politely. "Brandon, my dear Brandon. How are you today?" she said in a cute tone and asked if he was to be treated like a 'big baby'. He laughed so wholeheartedly. Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher then asked some people to hand in their coursework as he hadn't compiled them.
Thursday, 22nd June soon arrived. The morning soon begun with our Economics lesson with Ms Sharon, who discussed the previous day's Economics questions. She kept telling us how to write an essay which included the key points for Paper 2. She also recapped key topics in the questions, such as exchange rates and international trade which relate to the question. Then, it was our English lesson. Mr Thomas then told us to start doing the teenage driving argumentative essay. He told us to take out our books and start writing after organizing our points. I then scribbled my points as Mr Thomas walked around the class. He was disappointed that some people were not starting. He paced his steps, inspecting everyone's conduct with a serious look on his face. Then, he continued to watch us. Once we were done, we handed the books in to Mr Thomas. It was a silent lesson as Mr Thomas told us to focus on our work.
The Prom topic had been raging on for a week by then. Shaun Ting had told me that the purpose of the Prom was to celebrate the end of our high school life with a party. The term 'prom' actually comes from 'promenade dance', which is a party filled with love and romance to celebrate the end of our high school life.
A ticket for Prom costs RM 120 and I paid the fee to Shaun Ting during break time. I myself made a good request to sit with Caleb Chuang. Shaun Ting was in charge of the Prom, and along him, Vicky, Alexandria, Joshua Chew, Lyn Wen, Julian Ong, Yi Zhen, Daniel Ngew, Ryan Toh, Jien Min, Nieshaal, Aaron Loke, Jason Leing, Ellie Lim, Faythe Chow, Natasha Singam, Eu Lynn, Yin Wei, Co Sheen, Krisha and Joseph Diong were involved as part of the committee. In fact, Shaun Ting considered the proposal seriously.
Ahead of the Prom, each individual was encouraged to make a romantic proposal to a person of the opposite gender, which was called a 'promposal'. It's like a marriage proposal, but for the purposes of Prom. Mind you, back at the time, the school wasn't so kind to such romantic acts, and Ms Lim was a bit strict on that, so most people who wanted to prompose did it when the teachers weren't looking.
Anyhow, following the break time chat with Shaun Ting over the Prom, we went for our lab session with Mr Lee in the Science Lab where he taught us how to use an decibel meter to measure sound. All of us were tasked to measure our friends' voices. Shane, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi were screaming at the top of their lungs and teasing Louis to the extent that he screamed when he got angry. The three of them looked at the decibel meter with funny results. Mr Lee got annoyed and told them not to simply play with the decibel meter.
When Lyn Wen and Cassandra measured my sound, I screamed at my squeakiest tone till the whole class laughed. Mr Lee compared my tone and said mine was as loud as Ryan Chok's. Then, we went for Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher continued to receive more work from everyone else, and during Business Studies, Ms Chithra told us that she had uploaded all her slides for the last few chapters, namely pricing strategies, quality control, marketing strategy and location decisions. She then did a recap of the topics, and the easiest one was on location decisions. Businesses will normally find places which are very convenient to set up business as the location determines the number of customers to their stores.
Then, during lunch, I spoke with Sophie and San Ying about the Prom before I went for Ms Nadia's Art lesson. I did a bit of painting on Prep 3 and pasted the newspaper onto the wall which I drew adjoining the grills of the gate. Because I did not have enough newspaper and other textural materials, I did not finish the work. Ms Nadia then told me to wait till the questions came out before continuing my work. The questions would be released on 1st July. Following Art, I had a quick History lesson and then went to get Ms Sarah to sign the control book. She immediately sung her tune of thanks. Then, I went for my last-ever Editorial Board meeting where I spent time with Ms Levina to discuss about the Editorial Board affairs. Most people just did their work. She invited me to write about the Teacher's Day celebration but I refused as the IGCSE Trials would occur in a month's time. I bade farewell and Ms Levina thanked me for my Editorial Board services. As I trudged out of the ICT lab, I felt a sense of sadness. It was my last-ever CCA session in Nobel. I had a good run with the Editorial Board. My mission to join my dream CCA was complete.
It was Friday, 23rd June; the last day of school before the Hari Raya Holidays.
During the morning assembly, there was a short skit presentation for the Hari Raya celebration and the school by then was decked in Hari Raya decorations. Green Hari Raya banners decked the front of the school. The skit was presented by some people from Year 7 and 8. Tia Sophia and Kayleigh Ann were doing the skit presentation for Hari Raya.
Then, we had our PE lesson, and Mr Victor played a football game with us in the school hall. Christopher Chew and Jien Min practiced shooting the ball before Mr Victor called us. Since I had brought along my football as well, Mr Victor then decided to play a game with us. In fact, Ms Sylvia also decided to join the game. Mr Victor then divided us into two teams; one with Ms Sylvia and another under him. Me, Caleb Chuang, Wei Zhong, Joseph Diong, Julian Ong, Sherwin and Joshua Chew were in Ms Sylvia's team. Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Christopher Chew, Jien Min, Ethan Wong, Aristotle Koh and Nieshaal joined Mr Victor's squad.
Caleb Chuang and I played defender in the first round. We aimed and struck the ball and kept on defending and blocking Nieshaal Thambipillay, who was advancing with the ball. Those who were not interested to play football were allowed to do their own things and watch the game. Mr Victor then said he wished to have a game with the girls, and San Ying was excited and cheered. "Mr Victor! Girls' game for football!" she cried.
Caleb Chuang and I then played defender before he himself switched positions with Joshua Chew to take position as the striker. Sean Mark and his team were really strong, but then we managed to score a 1-1 with them. Then, Caleb Chuang broke the tie and then it resulted in all the girls and all of us screaming, with Ms Sylvia doing a Wonder-Woman pose. Once Mr Victor finished a game with us, he then invited girls to join the game. So, San Ying, Sophie, Yi Zhen, Natasha Singam, Co Sheen, Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow, Ranae Lim and Jane Yap joined the game. The uptake among girls for football was less than the boys. So, Mr Victor coerced some people to join him. "Come, come! Drag them onto the court!" he teased. In the end, few more people volunteered, and the girls then had a football game. There were a lot of screams as everyone watched San Ying in particular strike the ball, and Jane Yap was there defending the whole thing. Ellie Lim was asked to referee the match. The football game continued past break time and everyone had a lot of fun.
During our Maths lesson, we all bid farewell to Ms Bee Yan and she wished us all the best. She had said at the beginning of the month that a new teacher named Ms Glory would take over from her. The entire class presented a large card to her. Rosemund and Berlinda presented the card. Jane Yap brought some cupcakes for our Maths lesson and we had a fun time wishing Ms Bee Yan well.
Ms Bee Yan requested for us to give our full attention to Ms Glory to guide us throughout the months leading up to the IGCSE Trials in August. I was wondering how Ms Glory looked like. Then, I invited Ms Bee Yan to sign the control book for the last time. It was so touching.
Then, I went for Global Perspectives and Ms Janice arrived to sign the control book, and Mr Gallagher did his usual routine of checking and correcting people's work. When it came to Mr Lee's lesson, he then gave us a worksheet and then kept on mentioning Brandon Ooi as 'Ooi Brandon' when he played around in the class. It was all about Ms Levina and the usual rants all over again. Mr Lee talked about the various rays and many people were interested to know about gamma rays.
As I returned the control book and Smartboard equipment to the pigeon hole, I gave Ms Bee Yan a hug before leaving for home. "Take care, Wei Yiang. All the best for your IGCSE," she said. And we were off for the Hari Raya break.
It was the month of July, and the Art and Design IGCSE questions were released as promised, on 1st July 2017. For your information, Art and Design IGCSE would normally have questions coming from Cambridge. Every question for the October/November series exam would be released on 1st July of the same calendar year of the examination taking place. For the May/June series, Cambridge would release questions on 1st January of that calendar year. This means for each examination series, a period of three months is needed to prepare all the prep works and final piece. While the syllabus has since changed, what is of the essence is time. Time management. The key test of endurance for all Art and Design IGCSE.
Back in those days, Art and Design IGCSE involves two phases; a preparatory period and the controlled test, and it applied to both Paper 1 and Paper 2. Paper 1 was a fine-art-based question, while Paper 2 was a design-based assignment. A preparatory period of three months is required from July to September. This means that we had to prepare a total of eight prep works for two papers within the three months. Each student had to choose one question and do the prep works based on that question.
The moment that we had dreaded for 18 months had arrived.
At 1:42pm on 1st July 2017, Ms Nadia created a WhatsApp group for our Art and Design IGCSE batch and then sent us a WhatsApp message containing the questions for the exam. There were 10 questions for each paper:
Paper 1
1. Painting equipment
2. Alfresco dining
3. Zigzag
4. Stormy weather
5. A standing figure, leaning on the back of a chair
6. Building site
7. Looking through blinds or a lace curtain
8. Mechanical patterns
9. Cultural adornments
10. Potted plants
Paper 2
Ms Nadia then told us via WhatsApp that we will meet on the following Tuesday, which is 4th July 2017, to discuss and approve the questions for Art and Design IGCSE. Each one of us had to choose a question for the exam; one for each paper. Of course, no one chose the second question written by Christina Rosseti in Paper 2 which was too hard to understand. Ms Feeda in the previous year had told us to avoid such questions. In fact, NO ONE from Nobel in the entire history of Art and Design IGCSE ever chose such a question. This is because the question, based on a poem, is so hard till it is very difficult to decode. That particular question was the hardest question in Art and Design IGCSE. It was too much a risk to choose such a question.
When I took a look at the questions, I focused on Paper 1 first, because I was doing the gate topic. Sadly, unlike what Ms Nadia said, no questions were repeated from the May/June 2017 series as what she had said. I had already drawn a few drawings from Prep 4 and Prep 3 in reverse for the redone work for the Mid Year Examination, using the available time to do so. My brushes got soggy and worn out. I had to buy new brushes.
Anyhow, I scanned through all the ten questions for Paper 1, which we would do first. Unlike Paper 2, where the questions were printed in paragraphs, Paper 1 involved sentences. While I was scanning the questions, depressed at the fact that no questions from the May/June 2017 series were repeated, the last question caught my eye: Potted Plants.
I looked at it. Given that I always do gardening as a hobby, the last question, Potted Plants, was of interest to me. It got my attention instantly, and my mum, who looked at the questions, instantly agreed and suggested for me to do the Potted Plants question. Doing the question would give me a taste of home away from home; a garden in school tucked away from that of home sweet home. The usual gardening activities that I do would motivate me to complete the Paper 1 prep works and final piece.
Hence, I immediately settled on the Potted Plants topic. I told Ms Nadia via WhatsApp and then she told me to confirm it officially when we meet on Tuesday, 4th July. I then told her that I decided to choose Potted Plants as I like to do gardening as my hobby. Ms Nadia accepted my reasoning and told me to let her know this on Tuesday when we met, to keep it on record. However, I had no idea on what to choose for Paper 2. There were so many questions written in a form which was so complicated for me to comprehend. Ms Nadia told me to focus on Paper 1 first.
You see, as an art student taking Art and Design IGCSE, every student has the choice to his or her questions for the exam. It is recommended for us to choose the questions that we like. However, since a lot of prep works, supporting studies and time management is needed, the topics need to be approved by Ms Nadia, since Ms Nadia as an art teacher would know which strengths and weaknesses we are in. This is because Ms Feeda told us last time (before she left Nobel) that there was one student who proposed his topic to her for the exam and insisted on going on with his chosen topic despite Ms Feeda advising him against doing so because the topic is too difficult for him to do so. He got a really bad grade for the exam, but luckily he did not fail the test. So, in order to ensure that we get our desired grades, Ms Nadia told us that we need to propose the topic and obtain her approval for it before we can begin our prep works.
A side note by Ms Feeda when teaching us in 2016 was that every art student has a different personality, character, habit and learning style. The four traits must go hand in hand. Hence, just because a student likes a certain topic and imagines it perfectly does not mean that the student can produce a good quality of work. As marks come into play, it is not fun and games, but a serious piece of work. So, every question that we choose must be approved by our art teachers before we start doing our prep work. Ms Feeda's notion then was that our motor skills may not comprehend well with our analytical skills as Art and Design IGCSE, being a subjective species, bases its assessment on the quality of work. This means that just because a student likes to look at cars does not mean that he is good at drawing cars. Hence, what was needed was a consultation session to approve the topics based on the four traits, and that is needed for us to have a good result for Art and Design IGCSE.
When we returned to school on Monday, 3rd July 2017, I immediately met Ms Nadia on the way into the school. She told me that we will be doing Paper 1 first and we will meet the next day to discuss the questions. Ms Nadia also asked me to think carefully before confirming the question.
For the 2017 batch of Art and Design IGCSE students, only ONE student dropped Art and Design IGCSE. Jien Min had dropped the subject and would not be taking it for the IGCSE exam. I could have had been the second one, but I decided to stay on. Ms Nadia was confident of my abilities. I spent time talking to Ms Nadia at her staffroom and on the way to the canteen for breakfast. Then, while eating my bread, I thought of how to execute the Art and Design questions.
I then met Sophie Tan and Yi Zhen outside the Year 11 classes before the morning assembly to discuss the questions. I had decided my choice on Potted Plants. Yi Zhen understood it and told me about how many plants I had outside my house. Being neighbours in the same area, we all know where we live.
During the morning assembly, Ms Lim was unhappy that people were talking during the assembly and asked if anyone wished to come up and speak to the whole assembly. “I will pass the mic to you and then you can talk,” she said. Following the conclusion of the assembly, I was thinking of going up to speak in front of everyone. The thing is, I would do it for something important. On another note, the new Head Prefect was elected. Daphne Wong, a Year 10 student from the Debate Club CCA and also a winner of many debate competitions, was chosen as the Head Prefect and led that morning's assembly. There was an interview competition which was announced as well for those who were interested.
Upon returning to class, Mr Lee then entered the room. I collected the control book and Smartboard tools and presented them to him. Then, he signed the book and proceeded to hand out a series of notes on voltage. “Please take one,” he said, flipping the notes to us. Then, he taught us about electromagnetic waves. Then, it was Business Studies, and I headed for Ms Chithra's lesson. She reminded me about the afternoon remedial and asked me and Wei Zhong if there were any prefect or monitor meetings. She was happy that we did not need to attend those meetings.
In our Business Studies lesson, a considerable number of people had dropped the subject. Glen, Aaron and Gabriel Lim had dropped the subject. I reflected on how much better our coursework would have been if they intended to take the subject. It was a waste of time and coursework marks. Aside from the three of them, everyone else remained in the subject.
Ms Chithra then told us to take out Paper 2 and do it. I tried to answer the questions while she sat in front of the class. During the whole lesson, Eu Lynn and Sara Yow kept on talking to Ms Chithra about how gorgeous she was. In fact, Nicole and Sophie also joined in while I tried to do my work. I had to refer to the Business Studies textbook a couple of times to find the answer. Long lines and indications to list five ways of doing things with five lines of explanations was so tiring. The format was given and we had to fill in, for example, one way where Tim can emphasize quality control, and a paragraph of explanations. We had to do this five times. The short answer response was quite long. I kept on trying to concentrate as the whole class chanted how gorgeous Ms Chithra was and that I had to do the work.
Afterwards, it was our break time. When I went to find Mr Raja to sign the control book, I saw him diligently indicating his signature without being reminded and was pleased with him. Then, I went for break time and I saw Caleb Chuang do his work. Then, I spoke to San Ying and Sophie about the examination format for History.
During break time, everyone was asked to settle down and Ms Lim, who was downstairs, praised us at how disciplined we were while also chiding some of the basketballers and footballers who were playing for not wearing their school uniform according to the dress code. Then, we headed for our Global Perspectives lesson with Mr Gallagher.
Since 2016, the majority of people in his class were predominantly individuals from 10N/11N. Jia Yiu, Ellie Lim and Alexandria Goh were the people from 11B, Rosemund Chong and Ashley Teoh were the ones from 11E, and no one from 11L joined our class. Enisha, Gabriel, Aaron Liew, Louis Soon and Ryan Chok dropped Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher spent the entire time checking people's files. Then, following the Global Perspectives lesson, we went back to 11N. Ms Joyce was waiting outside the class as Ms Janice was still having her lesson. I then had a chat with Ms Joyce as she asked about my progress for English. “How's Mr Thomas?” she asked. I told her that his lessons were good, and described to her on the activities
Mr Thomas had asked everyone via email to print out the documents of the “Elephant Shooting” article when heading for the English classes on that day, 3rd July 2017. While he said that everyone had printed it out by 12th June 2017, the original date in which we were tasked to do the exercise, we could not do it as we had another activity in the class which we were discussing; the Hotel Paloma exercise as well as the Teenage Driving Age. So as such, Mr Thomas emphasized the presence of the “Elephant Shooting” article. This article tells us about a pitiful elephant who was shot dead as it tried to find food, and did not deserve the shooting.
When Mr Thomas found out that a number of people did not print out and bring the article to the class, he criticized those who did not present themselves with the article as he felt that they were not responsible with their studies.
“You see, I have asked you many times to bring your elephant shooting article. I wonder how many of you saw my message,” he groaned, as he opened the email containing the message. “I am sorry, but I will need to give up on them if they still continue like that. I hope that you won’t be like them, and I will not waste my time and energy for the rest who deserve to be guided.” He then proceeded to discuss the Elephant Shooting article while also talking about the points in the article. We had to highlight the points in the essay as Mr Thomas guided us. He had to ask those who had brought the article to share it with their friends. I lent mine to Jien Min while looking at Sherwin's and Aaron Loke's. We did some exercises in our exercise book.
Afterwards, we then had lunch, and I sat down with San Ying for a chat. She mainly talked to Krisha about their further studies after leaving Nobel. The main topic which we discussed was the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony's fee.
During our Character Transformation session, Ms Praveen then had a briefing with us on what those who had dropped their subjects had to do. Students who have dropped a subject that is being conducted during a particular period will need to go to the Tutorial Rooms located at the first floor near the Year 7 classes in what the teachers call a “free period”. They will remain there until their next class. During their free period, they were allowed to do anything as they please, but it was emphasized that studies should take priority rather than playing games or socializing. Then, once that was done, Ms Praveen then briefed the students who were taking ICT Practical on their exam date and schedule. For those taking ICT Practical, they would need to go to the ICT lab for their exams and the exam would be held on 26th and 27th July. That means that I would need to note down the names of students sitting for ICT Practical. We then returned to 11N, and Sheng Jit collected RM 20 from us to purchase the Teacher's Day outfit for Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Visa and Ms Colleen.
Sheng Jit then suggested that Ivyna come up with the dance for the Teacher's Day, while Kelsey, Cassandra, Enisha and Hao Yinn would be involved in the Teacher's Day costume process. Mr Kevin Wai also supported the idea and told us that he hopes we can win the Teacher's Day fashion show competition. Then, Brandon Ooi and Sheng Jit were asked to do some research on some mummified costumes, and there were so many funny costumes from Google Images.
Afterwards, we went for History. Of all the students who dropped, only nine of us remained in the History lesson; Alia, Brandon, Cassandra, Sheng Jit, Krystal Goh, me, Ze Khai, Wee Shiang and Jo Yi. Ms Visa then did a recap on the Treaty of Versailles with us.
During the Business Studies remedial, Ms Chithra was feeling unwell and had to return home early, so as such, Ms Vishalini, who was teaching Business Studies and Economics, came to give some work for us. She then passed us another past year paper for Business Studies Paper 1 to do. Ms Vishalini then taught us about how to answer Business Studies Paper 1. “Ms Chithra had gone home early, so I want all of you to complete this. You see, Business Studies is all about understanding the concepts,” she said. I just focused on doing the paper while Ms Vishalini walked around the class. Once we were done, Ms Vishalini collected our papers. Then, she told us that we will be focusing on Business Studies Paper 2 which was how to answer the case study questions.
The next day, 4th July, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra was back in school. She then told us to do another set of past year papers. Then, she called all those who were in her remedial class to get the work which we handed to Ms Vishalini. Ms Chithra guided me and told me that I need to give more explanations for my point writeup and not to mix the points. Before long, at 8:40am, it was time for our Art lesson with Ms Nadia. The commencement of the Art and Design IGCSE October 2017 Series was about to begin.
Ms Nadia met all of us in the art studio to give us a briefing on all the topics for Paper 1 and 2. However, she decided to brief us on Paper 1 first because she felt that we must be focusing on Paper 1 in order to allow for the preps to be completed before IGCSE trials which occur from 31st July until 12th August 2017. So, she started briefing on the various concepts of the exam for each question and the examples that we can use to start brainstorming our idea.
Ms Praveen was also in the art studio accompanying us while watching Ms Nadia brief us. She also told us that Art IGCSE was not a walk in the park, and that we need to discuss with Ms Nadia so that we can begin our progress early. Ms Praveen also said that the management team will closely monitor our progress to ensure that we met the schedule of finishing our Paper 1 early so that we can begin Paper 2.
Ms Nadia displayed a slideshow containing the topics for Paper 1, as Ms Praveen had told her to begin Paper 1 with us. Each slideshow contained pictures as to how to approach the topics. Then, Ms Nadia talked about the ten questions as Ms Praveen was in the back of the Art Studio, standing upright and folding her arms and watching Ms Nadia brief us. The ten questions had different approaches for the prep works and final piece. Ms Nadia then showed us the pictures for our expectation on how to do the prep works and final pieces. The hardest question of all the ten questions for Paper 1 was ‘Zigzag’, followed by ‘Mechanical patterns’. Of course, the easiest question of all the ten was ‘Potted plants’. Ms Praveen and Ms Nadia agreed with that.
When a show of hands was asked for the Zigzag question and the Potted plants topic, Eugenie Kuu was initially interested in doing Zigzag, along with Benjamin Tenji. Me and Yi Zhen chose the Potted plants topic. In fact, Yi Zhen was surprised when looking at me choose the question as well. Then, once she was done, Ms Praveen then told us to get approvals from Ms Nadia before starting. Then, she also said that we can begin the prep works in the following week once we were ready.
Ms Nadia then met all of us individually and asked us to confirm our topics in the art studio before leaving for our break time. I then confirmed my topic as the ‘Potted Plants’ topic. Meanwhile, Rosemund then went around and asked how many of us needed watercolor paper.
Rosemund told us that she would be purchasing watercolor papers for us should we need them. She will buy the watercolor papers from ArtFriendz, which is an art stationery shop at IPC Shopping Centre in Mutiara Damansara. So, during break time, I asked Rosemund how watercolor paper was different from the traditional art block. The watercolor paper is a much more water-durable and water-absorbant paper, which eliminates the chances of staining or messing up the art piece being drawn on the paper. Happy with Rosemund's explanation, I accepted the reasoning and told her that I would ask her to buy for me and I will pay the fees the next day. Rosemund planned to head to IPC Shopping Centre to purchase the watercolor paper from us.
Rosemund informed me that only two watercolor papers were needed; as one watercolor paper would only contain two prep works. Initially, I was surprised as to why two were only bought. In this case, the first paper will be used for Prep 1 and Prep 2, back to back, while the second paper would follow suit with the Preps 3 and 4 in the same fashion as the first. Compared to the actual Art and Design IGCSE process, all our Art and Design preps for the 2016 Final Year Examination and the 2017 Mid Year Examination were all done on four separate papers, one for each prep. And so far, I had only experienced doing two series of full Art and Design IGCSE work, so as such, I hope I can get it right the third round, since the first two series of Final Year Examination 2016 and Mid Year Examination 2017 did not go well.
Then, we went for our English lesson, and during the class, Mr Thomas opened his Gmail page and showed us samples of Kit Lee and Aaron Loke's work, whom he had displayed on an email message he sent to us. The two of them had the best writeup of the entire batch. Mr Thomas had chosen one from each class he taught. The writeup was based on the Teen Driving Age.
“Have you seen this?” asked Mr Thomas.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“How about everyone. Have you seen this?” he cried.
“Uhhhh! You are supposed to see this! So many of you have not seen this and read my messages! You are supposed to be taking responsibility for your own learning! Only our good friend is doing so,” said Mr Thomas, pointing to me.
“If you all don't want to do the work, I will have to give up on you. I don't want to care anymore. I will focus on those who want to learn and want to get good marks in the IGCSE exam,” he said.
Mr Thomas then talked to us about the sentence structure and gave us points to note down. Then, he discussed the Elephant Shooting work with us. He then asked if everyone had done and invited everyone to present their books as he walked around, inspecting them. Mr Thomas had a disgruntled look when he found out that Eugene Ho, Jien Min and Kevin Tan had not finished their work. Some people even sweared when they found out that they had forgotten the work. Ivyna and Isabella Wong had shocked looks on their faces. Then, when Mr Thomas had finished inspecting everyone's work, he gave a very long lecture on how he had to make it very clear that one should be responsible for his learning.
“If you do not do the work, I will NOT mark it,” he said. “I am very disappointed. Very disappointed. I want all of you to do the Elephant Shooting work but you all aint finished with it. I have many more things to show you,” he groaned, pointing at the Edmodo posts and Gmail posts. He said that he will leave it to us to do our work if we continued to have this attitude.
Afterwards, during History, Ms Visa led a question-and-answer session on the Treaty of Versailles and gave us work to do. She handed us worksheets to paste into our exercise books, and all contained questions and notes on the Treaty of Versailles, as well as the Paris Peace Conference. While doing the work, Sheng Jit and Brandon, along with Ze Khai, were proposing ideas for the Teacher's Day celebration. They planned to parade Ze Khai naked with his muscles, since he liked doing bodybuilding. Ms Visa disliked the idea. “That is so sexy,” she said, before the whole class burst into laughter. When Ms Visa saw me laughing, she was shocked and asked what that was about. Then, Brandon suggested that I myself act as a king and parade Mr Kevin, Ms Colleen and Ms Visa instead. Ms Visa rejected the idea, and so did I. “He's too small to be a king,” said Ms Visa. Then, Ms Visa jokingly asked Brandon to parade himself instead as he was giving all the wacky ideas. In fact, Ms Visa said that he can act like a soldier from Egypt and parade them. Brandon then suggested that Ze Khai was the best option as he had bigger muscles and buttocks. “Ew, gross!” cried Cassandra.
Sheng Jit then suggested toy guns, but Ms Visa said that they were not in the World War I era but in Ancient Egypt. However, Brandon suggested to build a mock cannon. The discussion was cut short as Ms Visa discussed the answers and talked about the Big Three, the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, the causes and consequences of World War I, and the concerns of the allies regarding Germany.
Afterwards, we then had lunch, and I had to remind Ms Sarah to sign the control book before leaving for the canteen. “Oh ya,” she said, as she picked up the control book. “Thanks once again for being such a responsible monitor,” she said.
At the canteen table, I sat with Yi Zhen and Sophie as we discussed the Art and Design IGCSE questions. Rosemund was still collecting the fees for the ArtFriendz water color paper stocks. Everyone in the art batch was buying watercolor paper except for Glen Kay, Louis and Yan Chern. Then, Yi Zhen and I discussed the Potted Plants question that I was doing and we ended up talking about our housing area, my garden and other things that strayed away from the topic of Art and Design. Then, lunch time was over, and we entered 11N, coming face to face with the one and only Ms Glory.
Ms Glory is a really nice teacher. She had blonde hair and two round glasses with a broad mouth. She's not just nice in her outlook but also appearance as well. And she had a soft but sweet voice.
Mr Chan was in the class and told us to settle down. “Now, I would like to introduce all of you to Ms Glory. Ms Glory is a very nice teacher. She is replacing Ms Bee Yan who, you know, has left Nobel. So, ya. So, don't forget to say hi and ask her questions!” he exclaimed. Then, Ms Glory gave us a short introduction of herself and we took out our Maths past-year papers and begun doing the papers.
Everyone was told to complete three sets of May/June 2015 past year papers, namely Paper 2 and Paper 4. We were also told to finish the entire past year paper book which Ms Bee Yan had provided us before the Study Camp. All these tasks must be done before the IGCSE Trials kick off on 31st July. In fact, we had been provided with the IGCSE Trial timetable before the Hari Raya Holidays.
Nickolas Nashpal and I selected one question from 2014 and then started to do it. We then raced again as Mr Chan smiled at us when we did the countdown. Then, once that was done, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon came into the class.
“Okay, class, so take out your past year papers and do Paper 1, Variant 2, October/November 2015,” said Ms Sharon. Since it was a short one-period lesson, Ms Sharon told us that we will focus on Paper 1 in the one-period lessons and Paper 2 in the two-period lessons on Wednesdays and Thursdays. We then did the paper and I got 78% of the questions correct. Ms Sharon then said that Paper 1 is a paper in which we can get bonus marks if we did not do well in Paper 2. I then compared the results with Nickolas Nashpal and Ze Khai. Nickolas got 100% correct while Ze Khai got 77% correct. A one-mark score divided us again.
For Economics, everyone in 11N is supposed to take this subject as it is one of our core subjects, since we only took Combined Science and not two Sciences like the other classes. However, Enisha, Gabriel, Krystal Goh, Aaron Liew, Ryan Chok and Grace Tee had dropped the subject. As I left the class, Ryan Chok had thrown his Economics books away. The previous week, he had dumped his Economics notes into the bin after receiving them from Ms Sharon. Even Grace, Kelsey and Cassandra expressed disgust at his attitude, along with Brandon's, who throwed things into the bin.
Then, I kept the control book and Smartboard equipment, and Ms Sharon told us to proceed to 11O if we were taking the remedial class. Only me and Jo Yi were taking the remedial class for Economics. When we reached 11O, Ms Sharon put her things down and then told us to do one of the questions from the October/November 2014 series and we did Section A of the paper. She told us to spend 40 minutes on the question. The topics talked about the Indian economy and we had to calculate the GDP and other related calculations. Ms Sharon than told us how to do the calculations in our remedial class.
All teachers by this time would have had finished the last few topics and are preparing us accordingly for IGCSE trials. Some teachers had been asking their students to come for remedial classes. Ms Chithra and Ms Sharon had selected me for Business Studies and Economics remedial classes as my grades for these subjects were not that good.
Ms Chithra’s Business Studies remedial classes were held on Mondays and Ms Sharon’s were held on Tuesdays. I prefer Ms Sharon’s remedial classes because she would focus on teaching the certain concepts of Economics as well as practicing the past year papers. Ms Chithra would just give us some worksheets to do and explain concepts to us individually. All the remedial classes were held in 11O’s classroom. The remedial classes commenced in the second week of July. Both Ms Chithra and Ms Sharon would focus on past year examination questions time after time in order to ensure that we are well prepared for the exams.
The next day, on Wednesday, 5th July, I met Ms Nadia in the morning and asked if Ms Nadia was planning to open stayback periods for Art and Design IGCSE. She said no, and she also told me to present my pictures before starting my question. She asked if I had taken a picture of a flower pot, and I told her that I did. She told me to send the photo to her during the Art lesson after break time.
Mind you, I was awake since 2:00am in the morning, walking around my garden and doing my own things before going to school. I only wished classes begun at 6:00am instead of 7:45am. We could end earlier at that rate. 7:45am was considered too late for me. I was really wanting to get things settled with Ms Nadia.
Upon reaching school, I decided to present my English work to Mr Thomas and speak to him. He was already in the school premises. I spoke to him about my areas of improvement for English. I was determined to get into the Top in Malaysia rankings.
I was hoping to really excel at my best for First Language English. I wanted to get the Top in Malaysia for that subject as that subject has the highest marks. It is unwise to choose a subject where one had failed. We must be doing well in what we are good in.
Still reeling from the 648-649 loss to Touchdown and the brutal treatments by my friends in Sports Day, I decided to begin the project for a Top in Malaysia. This is because it will replace Sports Day as the number one achievement in Nobel and fill the void gap left by the loss of Bullseye to Touchdown. At the same time, this will also give the fame that I deserve, since many of my friends sidelined me for Sports Day 2017. It would also be the second solo achievement for that year had it succeeded, after the 2017 Founder’s Run, so it would have had been a good idea to pull of two shock surprises.
First Language English has always been my top scoring subject in every exam. As such, I hoped that I could excel in that subject in order to achieve the fame of being advertised for my achievements. I normally score 70 to 80 marks out of 100 for the exams, so I would do good by going a bit further by achieving 20 more marks to meet the target of Top in Malaysia or Top in the World. To ensure that I achieve the target, I spent more time hitting the books for this subject. I also took attention and consulted Mr Thomas regarding the English exam to ensure things came up well. I would do First Language English past year papers in my free time to try my luck at acing the exam. If I got an A* and 100 marks, I would technically qualify for the Top in Malaysia or Top in the World award since 100 marks is the highest possible mark that one would obtain for the exam. Getting 99 marks would probably qualify me for a Top in Malaysia.
The chances of one landing the Top in Malaysia is higher when it is closer to the highest possible mark. Even if two students from two different schools in Malaysia or elsewhere score 100 marks each, both of them would be crowned Top in Malaysia despite the circumstances.
I did not explicitly mention the Top in Malaysia intention to Mr Thomas. I didn't want him to know that I was acting in a funny manner. He would think that I was crazy to do that.
Mr Thomas was having his breakfast in the teachers’ staffroom. He was having a cup of coffee as he sipped it. I knocked on the door, and Ms Ambiga opened the door for me. “I would like to see Mr Thomas,” I said.
Mr Thomas was waiting at his seat. “Good morning. How are you?” he asked. Then, Mr Thomas offered me a seat. I then sat down.
“What is it that you want to ask me?” he asked, as he gave me a serious stare.
“Mr Thomas, I am asking if there are areas which I can improve for First Language English,” I said in a soft tone.
Mr Thomas smirked. “Are you having any problem? Any major problem?” he asked.
“No, Mr Thomas. I just want to ask which areas that I can improve from your perspective,” I replied.
Mr Thomas laughed. He smiled and looked at me, fixing his eyes on my innocent face. “There is no need to improve. All you need to do is to look at the punctuation and then read carefully and then answer. You are doing well. Keep up the good work!” he cried. “You are doing very well. You are answering my messages. All you need to do is to work on your handwriting. That's all!” he cried. He gave me a pat, and I thanked him for his advice. Then, I greeted Ms Yong Wai Yee, who was in the staffroom making coffee, before leaving for 11N.
I returned to 11N and started switching on the classroom equipment. Then, Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok came into the class and they played a bit of jokes. Before long, many more people arrived. I then went to 11O. All of the students there were having their past year papers. Joseph Diong and Justin Yeo had piles of past year papers on their table, discussing and comparing answers.
At 7:45am, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa entered the room. They told us that we need not attend the morning assembly unless otherwise specified. Time would be given for us to do our revision on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, while classes would begin at 7:30am on the other days. “Please make sure you come early, ya,” said Mr Kevin.
It was another day of lessons with Ms Chithra as she continued to ask us to do our Business Studies papers. We just did our work, and Ms Chithra kept on asking those who weren't doing their work to focus on completing the past year paper booklet. Then, we had Economics with Ms Sharon. We were then instructed to do another set of past year questions for Paper 2. This time, Ms Sharon gave us the freedom to choose which questions we wanted. I picked a question from 2016.
As we were beginning to do the questions, Enisha and Grace left for the Tutorial Rooms to do their work during the free period. Then, a soundtrack of ‘It's a Small World,’ played under the Disney Dream Pop soundtrack, buzzed around the courtyard. The Elementary School was using the song for their break and lunch time assembly. I normally play and listen to it at home when I study in my car porch to get a closer feel to my garden. I would snap on biscuits and bread while studying every evening and occassionally taking breaks to read about the Singapore MRT system, Singapore Concept Plans and various other government documents on Singapore. One of my cousins was involved in the procurement of the MRT trains for the Downtown MRT Line. I had spent some time doing so during the Hari Raya Holidays, and mimicked the atmosphere of Study Camp.
Speaking of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, there was still some commemoration of Hari Raya, although in muted and low-key tones. Hari Raya Aidilfitri had been celebrated on low-key tones and not on a grand scale since that of the 2012 celebration. Perhaps it was because the Junior and Senior School do not commemorate it that much. On another note, I had managed to visit the Prime Minister's Open House during the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration at Seri Perdana, Putrajaya. It was cool going there after my Maths tuition on Sunday, 25th June. It looked so cool.
During the lesson, Brandon Ooi and Shane were talking loudly and Ms Sharon had to ask them what was going on. Then, she paced the class, inspecting the contents of our answers before discussing them. Nickolas Nashpal and I mainly answered the most questions and led the discussions. When I answered wrongly, Nickolas Nashpal sneered in his hillarious, Mr Nehru-like fashion, saying, “You lost!”
Afterwards, it was break time, and I then went to have my breakfast with San Ying, Sophie, Kit Lee, Krisha and Yi Zhen once again. I gave Kit Lee good compliments on her essay being published by Mr Thomas. Then, I went to the Art Studio, where Ms Praveen and Ms Nadia were arranging things in the Art Studio. Ms Sim was also there. Then, I greeted them and sat down. I then told Ms Nadia about my question number. “Wait first, wait first!” she cried. Ms Praveen praised me for having decided on my question. Then, Ms Sim and I had a chat on the Art and Design topics. She asked if I was ready, and I responded in the affirmative. Then, I thanked Ms Praveen for having the management team fit three slots of two-period Art and Design lessons in the timetable. With the lengthened time period, it will allow us to complete our prep works with ease. “Thank you so much, Wei Yiang, you are most welcome,” said Ms Praveen.
When everyone arrived at the Art Studio, Ms Praveen told us to finalize our questions for Art and Design IGCSE. Everyone needed to note down their questions to Ms Nadia, who was coming around with a piece of paper to finalize the questions. Ms Praveen then told us that we need to choose our questions wisely and carefully for the exam. While Ms Nadia went around asking and guiding us on our questions, Ms Sim and Ms Praveen entertained us by displaying the questions on the whiteboard's projector and giving us guidance on what to paint and draw. Then, once everyone was being noted of their questions, Ms Praveen then told us that we could begin our prep work the next day.
After Ms Praveen and Ms Sim left, Rosemund then collected the RM 3 for the watercolor paper and handed everyone who had bought watercolor papers from her their respective sheets of paper. Then, I presented my picture that I had taken of a flower pot to Ms Nadia, and told her that I wished to start from Prep 4. After all, it is the last prep work before the Final Piece, and having a top-down view of the exam allows us to have a clear idea on what to put in Prep 1, Prep 2 and Prep 3. The most important message was to convey the flow of idea development from Prep 1 to Prep 4. The prep works, need not necessarily begin in the proper order. It can be done in reverse, as long as one has a clear idea on what to do for the Final Piece. This will save time, reduce hassle and red tape, as well as allow us to easily plan Prep 1 and 2, which are normally the hardest to plan as seen in Year 10 the previous year. Ms Nadia's post-Mid Year Examination suggestion was soon put to the test.
The first picture that I used for Prep 4 was a picture of a decorative flower pot which contained a plant with large leaves. The pot had decorative holes designed to look like flower patterns. This pot was used by my next-door neighbor and displayed in front of her house. Ms Nadia told me to retain that photo for Prep 4 and said that we could potentially use it in the Final Piece. I was then asked to trace the picture on the watercolor paper that Rosemund had given me.
I paid RM 3 for the ArtFriendz watercolor paper that was given by Rosemund and thanked her for the purchase. It was very exciting. However, I was surprised as to why only two watercolor papers were given. “Why are there only two?” I asked Rosemund. “You paint two of your preps on one paper,” she said. Then, Ms Nadia told me to divide the watercolor paper into two. There would be two sheets of paper in total. Prep 2 would be at the back of Prep 1 on the first paper. Prep 4 would be followed behind Prep 3 on the second. This was opposed to printing four preps on four separate papers as in the Mid Year and Final Year Examinations of 2016 and 2017.
“Did you take any more pictures?” asked Ms Nadia. I told her I only took one. “You must take more pictures, Wei Yiang. Ask your mum to take the picture and WhatsApp to me so that I can check. This weekend must take more, ya!” she cried.
By norm, as per the normal procedure for Art and Design IGCSE, we should be starting our prep works with the order of Prep 1, followed by Preps 2, 3 and 4. Prep 1 focuses on the gathering of idea developments and artist references, Prep 2 focuses on the idea development, while Preps 3 and 4 incorporate some pictures from those drawn based on Prep 1 and 2’s design work. I decided to begin with Prep 4 first because Ms Nadia had told us in May that we can begin with Prep 4 first if we had a clear idea on what we wanted to do for the final piece, and start working backwards, akin to a top-down view rather than starting from scratch.
Each of the four preps would need to feature a series of paintings, which would be painted based on photos we got from the Internet or taken on our own. Using a camera to take our own pictures form something called ‘first hand studies’ or ‘primary sources’, while the ones from the Internet were 'second hand studies’. Art students must take pictures to form their subject matter; the professional word used for their drawings on the prep work. Long story short, we must take photographs and draw our drawings from the photographs.
Since I got started with Prep 4 first, and had shown to Ms Nadia the flowerpot photo which I had took, Ms Nadia was very pleased. “The Prep 4 should be easy,” she said. “It can be done in one week.” All that was needed was two pictures for Prep 4. Ms Nadia told me to snap more pictures so that I can quickly get started on Prep 3.
For an art student, as the prep works involve taking pictures and painting them, and the fact that it is also an examination piece which would be sent to Cambridge, I need to get Ms Nadia’s approval on what should be painted on the prep works before I can start painting. The four prep works would form the basis for the Final Piece, which was scheduled for 25th September, 26th September, 3rd October and 4th October.
Prep 4 was relatively easy, since it only needs two paintings. In fact, if I had two paintings, I could finish it quickly. I felt excited as I begun Prep 4. I managed to finish tracing the painting before the lesson ended.
Before I start painting, I would normally wear an apron to protect my uniform or other shirts when painting the prep works. I would not be happy if my clothes were dirtied, so I just wore my apron. Time was of the essence. There was no time. I needed to find a way to have more time.
I then asked Ms Nadia if she could allow us to stay back after school to complete the prep works. Ms Nadia initially refused to allow staybacks. Before we left the Art Studio, Ms Nadia gave everyone a plastic bag to keep their prep works inside them. The prep works were our responsibility, and we must not lose them. Otherwise, we will fail the exam.
I then went for my ICAS Writing exam, and it was held at Tutorial Room 3. Other than me, Alexandria Goh and Ellie Lim were the other participants in the ICAS exam. I have not mentioned the other ICAS tests before. While ICAS is compulsory for those in KS3, it is optional for Year 10 and 11 students. The three of us Year 11s were the only ones participating in the exam.
Ms Paulina was invigilating us for the exam. She handed us our answer sheet and we had to shade in the details. I also caught a glimpse of some of our younger juniors from Year 7, 8 and 9. Khaining and Andria were there to sit their ICAS exam. Xang Yen was there too. He waved at me. We had to shade in the letters that correspond to our name. We also had to shade our school in as well based on the letters. Then, I spent one hour to do the ICAS Writing paper. Once that was done, I returned back to 11N where I did some of the past year papers while Ms Glory walked around the class to check on us.
Then, it was lunch, and Yi Zhen and I talked about the watercolor papers. In fact, everyone was surprised by my decision to begin from Prep 4. “Ms Nadia discussed this with us before. Anyone can start from Prep 4. She did not say that the preps must go according to the order. The most important thing is that all the details, like the subject matter, artist reference and everything must be there,” I replied. All of them agreed with my suggestion, but prefer to go it in the proper order, starting with Prep 1, 2, 3 and 4. Then, we had History, and Ms Visa continued to discuss about the Paris Peace Conference. I raced with Ze Khai to answer the questions. This was then followed by another Global Perspectives lesson, where Mr Gallagher continued to inspect people's works. He then told us to present our work if he called us. Everyone would be called to give him his work. Mr Gallagher told those who were not finished with their Individual Reflection and the two Year 10 2016 Individual Evaluation Reports to finish them. Some of the people had defaulted on their reports for a year. Then, when school ended, I had to get Ms Janice, Ms Sarah and Mr Raja to sign the control book as they had defaulted on their task of signing the control book. All three of them were in the Management Office.
The Management Team were about to call a meeting with the teachers. When I slipped in, I had to interrupt them for a while to get Mr Raja, Ms Janice and Ms Sarah to sign.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I would like to see Mr Raja, Ms Janice and Ms Sarah. You forgot to sign the control book,” I remarked.
The whole office was in shock and awe. There were murmurs among the teachers as to how no monitor was actively asking teachers to sign the control book. Mr Lee immediately pointed to everyone in the room that I was always getting the control book done. I had a short chat with Ms Renee on the book, and Ms Cynthia thanked me for being responsible. Mr Kevin Wai was boasting in the room about how 11N always completes the control book. Once I was done, I bade farewell to the teachers, who were told by Ms Sarah that I should be presented with an award.
When I returned home after school ended, my mum told me to prepare two containers of water so that I can dip my brush in the first one, and then the second one to ensure that it is clean. This is because Art and Design IGCSE involves a lot of fine painting, and one would need to ensure that the painting looked like as if it was like a real photo, to the point where it appears like high speed printing or high definition photos, but you get the idea. That is the expectation and we had to work with it. Hence, we need more time to make it look picture perfect. And then, the marks would follow based on that precedent. What was needed now was a stayback time. I needed the stayback time for a quicker finish of my prep works. My Mondays and Tuesdays were booked, so we had to deal with Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
The next morning, on 6th July, I came first thing in the morning to set up the classroom and then talked to Krystal. She talked to me about how difficult it is to get from her house in Kuala Lumpur all the way to Nobel each morning. Then, I walked around the school grounds and greeted people. I saw the morning sunrise and then had a walk downstairs to the canteen for breakfast. After that, I went back to class as the Economics lesson got started. I also took a permission slip for the return to school on a Saturday and filled in all our Art and Design friends’ names on it. Enisha volunteered to write her name on her own.
Ms Sharon then came into the class and then briefed us on how to answer the questions. She told us that students in Economics would normally confuse themselves between the terms of ‘analyze’ and ‘discuss’ and that many students would normally discuss certain advantages and disadvantages under the question which asks students to analyze. “So, please do not confuse these two terms. When a question asks you to analyze, you are supposed to look at a scenario as to what actually happens when, for example, AD (aggregate demand) curve shifts to the right,” she said. Then, she talked about the sentence structures for both questions. Ms Sharon also took the opportunity to ask us to refer to the marking scheme which is present in our Economics past year paper booklet that she gave us. Then, she drew a demand and supply curve and explained where we would get marks for our labels on the diagram. She also told us on which areas would marks be awarded for the essay questions in which we answered.
Then, once that was done, I went for Mr Thomas’ lesson. He then talked to us about how we can improve our essay formats. Mr Thomas then continued to discuss the Elephant Shooting Exercise and how the text formats and answer formats jive.
During break time, I had to find Ms Joyce to get her to sign the control book as she had forgotten the control book autograph practice again. Everyone was still trying to adjust to the new timetable. Following that, I went to the canteen to get everyone to list their names. Then, we went for our Combined Science lesson and Mr Lee took us to the Science Lab. He then gave us a voltmeter to measure the voltages used in an electrical circuit. He then told us to build our electrical circuits and clip the voltmeter to the wire so that the electricity can be measured. Eric Wong and Ryan Chok placed two voltmeters and both of the voltmeters displayed different results. Mr Lee told us that it was because of the different currents located at two ends of the circuit. Mr Lee also instructed each group to note down the voltage and the potential difference, which he would discuss the next day during our class. And then, it was Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher still continued checking the work of some people. He discussed with Alexandria, Vicky and Ellie on crime and social control. They were talking about gun violence in the United States. Derek had also produced his Individual Evaluation Report on that.
Afterwards, we then had Business Studies, and Ms Chithra taught us how to draw another break-even graph. However, I spent some time to plot the graph. Ms Chithra told us to finish the work at home. And during her lesson, Eu Lynn and Sara were singing a song from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, which was so funny. Ms Chithra had to ask them to plot the graph. “Do your work!” she cried, before they laughed. “Why all of you want to act like kids,” she groaned.
Then, I had a quick lunch with San Ying and then proceeded to the art studio. I brought my paint and other equipment. Ms Nadia and I then worked together to plan the painting layout for the leaves and the pot on Prep 4. I drew several layouts of the bottommost leaf of the painting, which came portruded from a hole in the pot, and labeled the colors on my Student Organizer to refer to them before I started to draw. I begun taking out my paint, brushes and the two containers while Ms Nadia prepared the art studio for everyone.
I went to the sink to fill up my two containers with water before readying a piece of cloth to dry my brushes. Then, I took out a large rough A3-sized paper and then placed it next to my watercolor paper. That paper would be used for paint testing, to which I would dip my paint on that paper to test the color and see if it matches my flower pot photograph before painting.
So, I begun. I called Ms Nadia to come over and watch me. Then, I dipped my brush. “I want to see how you paint,” she said. I took my breath and checked the color quality on the rough paper and then Ms Nadia approved it. Then, I begun painting. “Nice. Very good. Like this,” said Ms Nadia to her satisfaction.
Soon, Sophie and Yi Zhen entered the Art Studio. They were followed by Eugenie, Natasha, Enisha, Chee Kei, Wei Wei and Hao Yinn who arrived. More people soon filed into the Art Studio quickly. Then, Glen greeted and saw me paint on my watercolor paper. Everyone then settled down, and Rosemund handed out the watercolor paper to those who hadn't paid yet.
Ms Nadia then watched me as Timothy Hiew and Eu Lynn played jokes and talked to each other. “Focus! Focus! Your color!” cried Ms Nadia. I then practiced mixing the toning. Ms Nadia told me to call her when I was done.
Everyone else then begun their prep work in earnest. When I was done, Ms Nadia then approached me as I called her. She approved the leaf toning and painting. Then, she told me to paint on the large leaf at the top of the painting, and told me how to paint, as we discussed it by drawing sketches of leaves on other papers. I then proceeded to paint the leaf using the same practice that Ms Nadia asked me to do. I had to do one painting first followed by the rest. Then, when Ms Nadia checked my painting, she told me to apply toning using pencil and asked me to bring colored pencils to the class the following week. “Your leaf must be detailed, okay?” she said. The work must look as realistic as possible. “Ask your mum to snap the pictures out and print them and bring them next week, okay?” she asked.
The Art Studio was buzzing with activity. Each student had their respective paper. Ms Nadia then proceeded to guide Louis. He was doing the Zigzag question. She spoke with him and told him how to navigate his prep works. Everyone, except me, begun from Prep 1. Most of us did our tracing, but I was the first to apply paint. When we were done, I presented the form to everyone but however, Yi Zhen stopped me because the consent of all art students must be gotten before the permission slips be put out. Even so, since Ms Nadia had rejected a Saturday, 8th July stayback period, which I had placed there, this meant that we cannot stay back unless Ms Nadia and the management approved of it. I wanted to have staybacks as soon as possible so that we can get our prep works finished faster. After all, it is the dream of all art students to finish their preps in good time. Then, we went for History and Ms Visa continued our discussion on the Treaty of Versailles and we mainly answered questions that she asked.
The next day, Friday, 7th July 2017, during Homeroom, Mr Kevin Wai then proceeded to continue our discussion on the Teacher's Day performance. Ivyna then spoke to Ms Colleen about her role as Bullseye's dance captain and then spoke to her about possible dance moves.
“Who is going to buy the costumes?” asked Mr Kevin. Sheng Jit then said that he, Kelsey, Cassandra and Ivyna will source for the costumes, alongside Hao Yinn. The class was interrupted by Ms Cynthia. She carried with her a marking rubric for the Malaysian Studies coursework. Sheng Jit went to receive the rubric from Ms Cynthia. “Oh! Luckily we got a C!” he cried. The entire class peered around him to look at the coursework marks.
Later, it was PE, and Caleb Chuang and I played a few football matches while Wei Zhong taught me how to kick and defend. Soon, Mr Victor came and played a few games. “We are not going to do football today,” he said. Then, he did some exercises in the hall with us. Mr Victor then did some stretching. He told us to try and fold our legs and put our hands on our toes before stretching them out. It was very challenging to do that.
After PE ended, I then went to find Ms Nadia, who talked to me about the number of photos I must take. She had suggested me to take around five photos. Then, it was break time, and Yi Zhen and I discussed about the revision of the prep works and my choice of moving the prep works backwards.
Then, it was Mathematics, and then Nickolas Nashpal and I checked our answers while also doing the questions. Mr Chan then entered the class and told us to show him our work if we were done. He said that he will hand out more questions to us if we were finished with the book. And then, we had a normal Global Perspectives lesson with Mr Gallagher, who talked about the answer format for Global Perspectives.
Mr Lee had asked for us to be segregated for Combined Science into the Core and Extended papers. I chose the Extended paper with Ze Khai, Nickolas Nashpal, Ryan Chok, Shane, Eric Wong and all the clever nerds, since my results allow me to head for the Extended paper. Then, he handed us worksheets that asked us to calculate the voltage of electricity and the potential difference. Mr Lee then kept on asking Brandon Ooi to not talk in the class. “Ooi Brandon, hold your horses, calm down,” he said. This caused the entire class to laugh. Mr Lee also talked to us about AC and DC currents. His notes were the same notes used by his Physics students.
For most subjects, typically, a day in the life of a Year 11 student in the second half of the year is focused on past year exam papers. Past year papers form the basic needs of IGCSE students as the IGCSE questions strain the student's ability to answer them like a wrestling match. Teachers give us loads of past year examination papers to do because it is believed that the past year examination papers will teach us how to answer the exam based on the syllabus and structure of the essays or questions, and at the same time, there is a chance that by sheer luck, one of the questions in the past year exam papers would be reused for the examination. We, of course, still had PE lessons and Character Transformation (CT), but however, there is the absence of major subjects like Malaysian Studies and Malay. Except that in PE lessons, we did not have the “Beep Test” or any other fitness tests.
Year 11 students like us would spend a lot of time and effort searching and doing past year questions online in order to be one of the “lucky ones” to coincidentally meet an old question in the exam. Teachers spent countless hours drilling the exam questions and even print stacks of past year papers for us to do. Every teacher has their own style to guide the exams, and most of the exam questions involve essays which require time, patience and effort just to see and do.
The second week of July soon arrived. It was 10th July 2017. That Monday morning start off on a smooth note, as we got on with our daily housekeeping affairs. Ms Lim then told the teachers who were taking the attendance to update the information on the attendance as well as the Teacher's Day plans inside the teachers’ WhatsApp group.
After returning to class, we then had our Combined Science lesson, and Mr Lee continued his humour from the previous Friday. He spent time telling us about why we cannot put so many plugs into one socket. This is because the socket can overheat and explode, causing a fire to break out. He also told us about the various dangers of electricity. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra gave us work. It was a worksheet on the break-even point. Ms Chithra had to ask me to redo the work as it was messy.
Then, we had our break time, and then I spoke with San Ying about how long I hadn't spoken to Caleb Chuang. He had so much of errands to do. Fortunately, I did not take Biology, Chemistry or Physics. I would be pressed by a lot of work. Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher spent the whole lesson discussing about gun violence with Vicky and Ellie. I just took the time to look at Edmodo. I was thinking about how to score a Top in Malaysia for English. After all, it would be another candidate to replace the Bullseye loss in 2017. It would require extraordinary effort to do so. I would need to get an A* for English in order to do well in the subject. Later on, as we went back to 11N after Global Perspectives, Ms Joyce was talking to Brandon Ooi and I greeted her. She had a really serious look on her face as there was serious business for those in English Second to do.
When we returned for English, Mr Thomas told us that we plan to do story-writing. It was part of the Paper 3 Directed Writing and Composition paper. There is a section in which we had to choose between a story and a descriptive essay or letter. He also talked about how the Elephant Shooting article did not go well and told us about how we should work and cooperate to ensure that the lesson moves really smoothly as well as to ‘take responsibility for your learning’. Then, he opened Edmodo and started showing us about how a story looked like. He had two posts on Edmodo.
Mr Thomas then talked about the various novels. He also kept on mentioning about Roald Dahl and how his stories were written, recapping from the previous year. “Do not start writing yet. I will tell you what to do,” he said, telling us not to begin the story writing until he had given a task.
During Character Transformation, I submitted a copy of my draft resume for the interview competition. The school had organized an interview competition and everyone from Year 7 to 11 were invited to participate in it. The competition was held in the school hall, and Ms Paulina, Ms Ambiga and Ms Yong were invigilating us. There were around ten people from Year 11 participating in this competition; me, Ivyna, Vicky, Ellie, Alexandria, Yin Wei and Sherwin were among the few. The rest of the class used the Character Transformation time to discuss the Teacher's Day celebration. Originally, we planned to use the hall for our interview, but as the hall wasn't conducive, Ms Yong then brought us to 11O for the interview.
I was the first to be interviewed, but I had a bit of trouble answering the interview questions. Ms Yong guided me and told me where to improve on. Once I was done, I returned to the hall, where Sheng Jit and Ivyna were presenting their plans to Ms Colleen, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa on how to dance. Mr Kevin then told Ivyna to bring the costumes latest by the following Monday for them to try on. In the meantime, Ivyna taught the three teachers on how to dance.
Ze Khai then proposed that Nickolas Nashpal show off his muscles. The two of them were actively involved in the Strength and Conditioning CCA. Since Nickolas Nashpal also had his YouTube channel, Sheng Jit then said that he could film the event on Teacher's Day for free publicity. Mr Kevin accepted the idea of Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal accompanying them during the Teacher's Day parade. “The two of you can become bodyguards. Your muscles are so big,” he said. Then, we returned for History, and Ms Visa did a recap on the League of Nations. Since I had answered most of the questions, Ms Visa then directed all questions to Brandon Ooi as he was joking around in the class. In fact, Brandon Ooi pronounced George Clemenceau's name really hilariously. Then, he confused David Lloyd George with George Clemenceau, as well as the functions and operations of the League of Nations. Once the History lesson was done, I went to get Ms Sarah to sign the control book as she had forgotten again.
During the Business Studies remedial, Ms Chithra guided me on how to draw the break-even chart. She gave everyone a series of past-year papers. This time, Sara Yow, Rick Tan and Sherwin were in the class with everyone else. Sara and Sherwin kept on saying that Ms Chithra was gorgeous. I kept on waving at Sara Yow happily and she waved at me enthusiastically. We had to do the papers. Ms Chithra kept on asking everyone to do their work.
The next day, 11th July, we came up to class early. I logged on the computer. It was drizzling that morning. Brandon Ooi was in the class playing his phone. Then, I went for breakfast, had a chat with Mr Thomas, and then returned to the Year 11 classes. I then entered 11O and spoke to Joseph Diong and watched him and Justin Yeo tackle the Mathematics past year papers.
During Business Studies, I presented the break-even graph and the worksheets that I did the previous day during the remedial class to Ms Chithra, who marked them. Sadly, I was asked to redo all the worksheets, especially the break-even graph. In fact, Wei Zhong and Sara Yow were also asked to redo their work as the break-even point was calculated wrongly.
Later, we went down for Art. I had brought along a batch of pictures and presented them to Ms Nadia. There was a picture of a banana tree in a flower pot, another leafy plant of my neighbour placed against the wall, and two other pictures of plants in my garden. All the photos were rejected by Ms Nadia except for one, which she told me to take and draw in my Prep 4 as the second photograph. The one that was approved was the second leafy plant my neighbour planted. It was a tall plant with big leaves. The rest of the photos were deemed too difficult to draw by Ms Nadia. So, I took some time to trace the plant. Once I had finished tracing the plant, Ms Nadia approved of it and told me to prepare some newspaper the next day to paste on the wall behind that plant. In the meantime, I painted the leaves and stem of the plant, as well as the flowerpot. Ms Nadia looked at it in approval. She told me to apply white toning on the leaves, which I did, and begin planning for Prep 3. So, for Prep 3 Ms Nadia asked me to take a few pictures so that there are more options. Ms Nadia told me that more pictures need to be taken in order for the both of us to have more choices to discuss and find the best suitable one to be painted. In the meantime, a section of the photograph from the first picture that I drew for Prep 4, which was the pot with flower patterns, was to be drawn as a close-up. I had to draw a picture of a leaf potruding from the hole of the pot to get started. Along with that photo, three other photos must be presented to Ms Nadia. This meant that aside from the newspaper texture to be pasted on the wall behind the pot drawn on the second photo, it was all done for Prep 4.
Then, Ms Nadia announced that everyone would be allowed to stay back after school beginning from Wednesday, 12th July. We will be allowed to stay back from 3:30pm till 5:00pm. I personally feel that we should be allowed time till 5:30pm so that we can complete our prep works faster. After all, time is of the essence of the prep works. Initially, Ms Nadia only allowed us to stay back till 4:30pm; for an hour. However, many people complained that the stay back time was too short. So, Ms Nadia then extended the time by 30 minutes. However, this did not satisfy the mood of the majority of the people in the Art Studio. Ms Nadia then told us that she can only afford a stay back time until 5:00pm as she had to drive home.
Afterwards, we went for break time, and Sophie and I discussed the inconvenient arrangements of the stay back periods. Ms Feeda had previously allowed people to stay back until 5:30pm or 6:00pm, which was beneficial to them, but not Ms Nadia. Honestly speaking, during my Year 10 period, I had no interest in staying back for Art and Design IGCSE prep works. However, as this was the real deal this time, I had to invest time to stay back and finish the prep work. I was determined to get it done before the IGCSE Trials, which begin on 31st July.
We then returned for the English lesson with Mr Thomas, and he showed us bites of stories from the Internet. He then recapped the previous day's work on the Mamba story. Then, he gave us exercises to do via Edmodo. We had to read a series of stories on the textbook and answer the questions. Mr Thomas kept on patrolling the class, searching for awkward actions. When he went to the back and found that some people did not bring their exercise books, he groaned. “I hope I don't have to give up on you,” he said. He then went into a long raging lecture in the class on being responsible for our grades. He said that we bear the fruits of our own labour.
During History, Ms Visa then told us to make notes on the League of Nations and gave us revision worksheets on the Paris Peace Conference, Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations. We had to answer some questions, and once again, Brandon was asked to answer. This time, Brandon and I competed just like the Maths duel between me and Nickolas. Ms Visa always kept on rejecting my raised hand as she favoured Brandon to answer so that he wouldn't do hanky panky things in the class. We then had our lunch, and Ms Sarah informed me this time that she had signed the control book on her own accord to my pleasure.
Then, it was lunch and then Maths, and Nickolas Nashpal and I checked our answers for the previous day's past-year questions. We all teased each other as we got wind to defeat each other in the next paper. Ms Glory saw the match, and Nickolas Nashpal had to explain that we were doing a game that we normally play in Mr Nehru's Maths Tuition. Then, Daryl Yeo did the countdown. He wanted to be part of the action. And then we begun. We furiously scribbled.
When Brandon Ooi asked what was going on, Nickolas Nashpal told him not to disturb us. We scribbled and continued, grinning at each other. Ms Glory asked me to take it easy and relax. I then told her to sign the control book. “Are you the monitor?” she asked. I replied I was the assistant monitor, and that the class monitor of 11N was Sheng Jit. Behind the class, Brandon Ooi and Eric Wong chat with each other, while Mr Chan walked around, coaching those who had trouble tackling the questions. Afterwards, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon came into the class. Ryan Chok bid farewell to Brandon Ooi as he went to the tutorial rooms. Then, Ms Sharon did a Paper 1 question from 2016 and we did our work, checking the answers. This time, I beat Nickolas Nashpal in the answers. Then, Ms Sharon did another question from Paper 2 during the remedial class. I took some time to finish it and eventually I had to do it at home.
We then made it to Wednesday, 12th July 2017. During that morning's Business Studies lesson, I presented Ms Chithra with the break-even chart. This time, she approved of it in satisfaction. Then, I returned to Ms Sharon's Economics class. She then told us to finish all the 2016 Paper 2 questions; namely the May/June 2016 and October/November 2016 series questions for that year. I then presented the remedial task and she marked it while guiding me the areas which I had been shortcoming on. I then took out some paper and begun answering the May/June 2016 questions from Paper 2, Variant 3. The first text talked about the China and South Korean shipbuilding industries. It looked interesting learning about other countries while also doing the paper. Once I was done, I presented my work once again to Ms Sharon, who marked it. She noted some errors in my calculation questions. On the other hand, the explanation was okay. Then, I proceeded to do the next question from Paper 2, Variant 3 of the May/June 2016 series. Ms Sharon asked those who had done their work to get her to mark their work if needed. Kelsey and Ivyna then presented their work. Then, the ‘It's a Small World’ song started ringing in my ears again, followed by ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go'. All the assembly songs for the various break times were being played in the school courtyard. Soon, it was our turn for break time. Ms Sharon then saw Brandon Ooi and Eric Wong looking at their phones and she told them not to use it and asked where had they stopped.
Then, I went for a quick break with San Ying before heading to the Art Studio. I then told Ms Nadia that I will bring the additional photos that my mum had taken to the next day's lesson. Ms Nadia and I then begun to paste newspapers on the art piece for Paper 2. We spent the entire lesson pasting the newspapers. Then, I asked Ms Nadia if I could use aluminium foil that I picked up from the floor. She then approved on it because I wanted to use it to create a concrete wall's texture. However, we could not paint the aluminium foil, so we pasted more paper. Ms Nadia then took white sticky glue to apply on the painting and I had to paste them one by one. Then, I told Ms Nadia that I will come in the afternoon to do my painting.
Meanwhile, Yen Tong and Eugenie were calling Ms Nadia for help as they felt their work wasn't nice enough, and Ms Nadia guided them. Then, we went back for Maths, and we did our past year papers. Nickolas Nashpal wasn't in the mood to compete. He said that he will only compete if he were to lose to me as it wasn't fun. I then took the time trying to answer some questions. Ms Glory had reminded us that we were to finish the entire Maths past year paper booklet given by Ms Bee Yan for both Paper 2 and 4 by 31st July; the start date of the IGCSE Trials. I then did the work. Of course, I wanted to do Ms Bee Yan's work during Mr Nehru's lesson, and he did some with us, but however, he was concerned if our teachers found out that he did the work with me and Nickolas.
Then, it was lunch, and I then went for lunch with San Ying again before heading to find Jordan Tay and Rick. Jordan was memorizing his Z-Notes from Chemistry and Physics. He and Rick were sitting in the foyer. Before long, we were then asked to go for our assembly time. We then had History, where Ms Visa told us to answer the questions on the League of Nations in the exercise book. She gave us a worksheet to paste in the exercise book, which contained the questions. Kelsey and Cassandra then borrowed my glue to paste the worksheet in the book. Soon, Brandon joined in, and then, the entire class was borrowing my glue. While doing the questions, Brandon was playing jokes with Ms Visa, asking her a lot of nonsensical questions, from how she should dress up on Teacher's Day to whether I was a good assistant monitor or not. He also said I was really responsible and also responsive in the class. Then, Ms Visa discussed the questions, and this time, asked Sheng Jit to answer all the questions. When I raised up my hand, Ms Visa told me to “hold your horses”, and it made Brandon laugh. She asked me to give chance to others to answer. Then, we had our Global Perspectives lesson. Once that was done, I got Ms Janice and Ms Sarah to sign the control book. I had to wait for Ms Janice to finish her lesson before I entered the class to get things settled. After keeping the control book and Smartboard tools, I was off to the Art Studio for my first-ever stayback session.
On our very first stayback session that day, 12th July, only 13 people were staying back for Art and Design prep works. Ms Nadia was in the Art Studio waiting for us. The 13 people were me, Yi Zhen, Natasha Singam, Faythe Chow, Lyn Wen, Cassandra, Wee Shiang, Enisha, Sophie Tan, Eugenie Kuu, Chew Chee Kei, Yen Tong and Hao Yinn.
Ms Nadia told us to start. Then, I spent time painting the walls and pasting the newspaper to make the rough texture of the wall. Then, I painted it to make it as toned as possible. I presented the picture to Ms Nadia, who checked on it. Once that was done, I then painted the texture of the leaves using yellowish and whitish paint. Just as I was starting to paint, Ms Nadia then told us that we would end the stayback session. It was 4:45pm.
“I thought we can stay back until 5:00pm?” asked Faythe Chow. The whole class then had a commotion. It was only 4:45pm, and we thought we could stay till 5:00pm and things would end from there. Ms Nadia then said that while we were allowed to stay back until 5:00pm, we cannot PAINT until 5:00pm as she had to give 15 minutes for us to clean and tidy up our work, and that she will LOCK the door and leave at 5:00pm.
“Faster! Faster! Hurry up! Keep your things! Faythe! Stop! Everybody stop!” cried Ms Nadia. Most of us groaned. The whole room groaned as we all missed the Art Studio and had to stop for the day. We kept our things quickly. Some people who were still painting were instructed to halt their work. And we were ushered out of the room and Ms Nadia locked the door behind us. I forgot my water bottle and Ms Nadia had to open the room again, wait for me to take my water bottle, and locked the door. All of us waited outside the Art Studio for our parents. To rephrase it, everyone except me went to the foyer while I waited for my mum. Then, as I was worried my mum would be late, I went to join my friends in the foyer. Then, my mum called me and I walked to her car. We waved at Ms Nadia as we left.
The next morning, I arrived early and Ms Nadia was giving announcements on her phone. She was online on WhatsApp. I was thinking of booking more time in the morning to do my prep works, since I always arrive early in school at 6:45am. So, I WhatsApped to Ms Nadia that I would like to go for a morning prep work session but however she was silent on the issue. So, when I saw her arriving at school, I asked Ms Nadia if she can allow me to go to the art studio in the morning. She was not in a good mood that day as she wanted to get things done in her office but she decided to stay with me in the art studio while she watched me do my prep works. She was very grumpy and not amused that I suddenly called her to the Art Studio like that, because it interrupted her breakfast schedule. But instead, she relented and the both of us stayed in the art studio until it was time to head back to class. Ms Nadia was in a grumpy mood. “I have to do prayers, eat my breakfast and put my things. Now, I have to accompany you,” she said. I got my art supplies ready, took my things out, and spent the time to paint the background walls of the painting. Ms Nadia then wrote her personal reflection report, which was to be submitted to the management. Then, once everything was done, I went back to 11N for the Economics lesson. I took the control book and Smartboard tools and arrived just in time as Ms Sharon reached 11N. We then continued our work and our past-year questions. Ms Sharon spent time checking and guiding those who were unsure how to pan their answers. Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas briefed us on our story writing. He said that we could write a story of our choice. We had unlimited options on what to write, and he said we can make it as funny as possible. He then showed us a few samples on Edmodo. Then, we went for break. I sat down with Caleb Chuang and talked. The whole canteen looked at us. I hadn't talked to him in a while. Afterwards, I went to wave and high-five Ng Ai Lin. She was Ze Khai's sister. In fact, I had high-fived with her many times. I just didn't say about it earlier.
We then returned to 11N to get our things and headed to the Science Lab. We were learning about Ohm's Law Experiment.
Mr Lee greeted us as we entered the Science Lab. He handed each group an ammeter, voltmeter, a bulb, switch, battery, switch and an eureka wire. The ammeter was to measure current flowed in an electricity circuit, while the voltmeter measures the voltage.
By this time, Aaron Liew and Shane had a good relationship with each other. They sat down at their table and talked. Mr Lee handed out our worksheets to us. But this time, he had a twist. He SEGREGATED the worksheets based on those who were taking Extended and those taking Core for Combined Science.
Each group was told to assemble and construct the electrical circuit based on the diagram given on the worksheet. Shane and Ryan Chok constructed theirs while talking to Aaron Liew. In fact, they were closer to Aaron Liew socially than in the past year. We had to note down and record the information on the worksheet and to calculate the potential difference and Ohm's law. The lab session was very funny as some people retrieved funny numbers on their voltmeter and ammeter. Aaron Liew screamed as he touched the eureka wire by accident. Mr Lee told us that the eureka wire was very hot and it was dangerous to touch it.
Then, it was just another usual day with Mr Gallagher. However, Ms Janice was absent, and I needed to find Mr Andrew to get him to sign the control book. Then, Ms Chithra continued with our Paper 2 during the lesson.
“Those going for remedial, please bring your Paper 2 booklet,” said Ms Chithra.
Afterwards, we then had lunch. I ate my food quickly before heading directly to the Art Studio, skipping the long assembly session in the process. Then, Ms Nadia was at the Art Studio and met me.
It took me a week to finish Prep 4, and then Ms Nadia announced that I progress to Prep 3 on the same day. One prep down; three more to go. So, Ms Nadia told me that I had to take more pictures. Ms Nadia approved a close up of what I painted on Prep 4, and then I started painting the close-up of a leaf emerging from a hole. I drew and traced the leaf, and sketched the format of the prep work in my Student Organizer. Ms Nadia told me to leave some spaces for annotations. On another note, Prep 4 is at the back of Prep 3, so I had to use the same art paper to draw Prep 3. This meant painting on both sides of the watercolor paper. I had to put newspaper on the table before putting my watercolor paper on top of it in order to protect the Prep 3 from being smeared or stained.
Soon, everyone arrived in the Art Studio and some people even brought their phones or computers to refer to the work while painting. Chu Xiang had to refer to some of his pictures he took on construction scaffolding when drawing his Prep 1. He chose the sixth question: Building site. Since most people chose the first question, Painting equipment, it was very easy for them to look at their art tools and draw them on their Prep 1.
After tracing the close-up, I then presented the work to Ms Nadia. She approved of it. I then painted half of the drawing before being asked to stop. We then went for History, and over there, Ms Visa then did some discussions with us on the Paper 1 answer schemes. The questions tested on the Treaty of Versailles. Then, once we were done with History, I quickly kept the control books, got Ms Sarah to sign it again, met Mr Raja and asked for his autograph, and dashed to the Art Studio to complete the first painting of Prep 3. We were going as planned. I needed my mum to snap some pictures. Then, once I was finished with my painting for Prep 3, I presented the close-up drawing to Ms Nadia. Then, she told me that if I were to paint in the morning, I would need to let her know a day in advance so that she can prepare the Art Studio for me. “I was having my breakfast that morning, you know. You disturbed my schedule,” she said. Then, Ms Nadia told me to present the photos taken by my mum before continuing Prep 3. Otherwise, I cannot work on my prep work.
It was very challenging to stay back everyday. Ms Nadia only allowed us to stay back on three occasions, namely before school, break/lunch time and after school until 5:00pm. Ms Nadia will ask us to stop at 4:45pm and then close the doors to the art studio. We were also allowed to keep our things in the art studio if we were going to continue the next morning.
If I am doing my prep work in the morning, I would arrive as usual at 6:30am, which is one hour before the school gates open at 6:45am, and then wait for Ms Nadia to open the art studio. Then, once the studio doors open, I will have my breakfast there, since Ms Bee Yong and the management team allowed us to eat in the art studio. Then I will do my work till 7:45am where we had to keep the items.
The next day, on 14th July 2017, we came to school with a fresh mind. That morning, Ms Lim was briefing everyone about the Teacher's Day celebration. She told us about our activities and then asked the teachers to update the attendance in the WhatsApp group once again. The Teacher's Day celebration would be held on 20th July, and it would occur in the afternoon following school hours. Ms Bee Yong also briefed us on our expectations and how we should honor our teachers. On another note, Ms Nadia was not happy because we left some of the Art Studio's equipment as they were and did not return the items back as they pleased. She posted all the information on WhatsApp. Glen tried to make a joke out of it, but Ms Nadia said it ain't funny.
When we returned to class, Mr Kevin Wai handed our progress reports to us and told us to get our parents to sign them. Then, Ivyna and Sheng Jit taught Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Visa and Ms Colleen the dance moves. Thereafter, we went for PE.
Mr Victor told us that he plans to hold a netball competition. In fact, he wanted a girls versus boys clash. Then, he continued his daily exercises. He and Ms Sylvia were planning for us to do a netball competition the following week. He did some push ups, sit ups and so on. This time, he called Sean Mark, Jason Leing, Benjamin Fong, Aristotle Koh and Ethan Wong to demonstrate funny moves which we had to follow. Soon, I volunteered to join as Mr Victor wanted more volunteers and the whole year level wanted me to demonstrate. When I got on the stage, everyone cheered for me and started chanting Caleb Chuang's name so that he can come up and join. However, Mr Victor said he had enough members and that we could continue the various exercises as planned. The whole hall groaned, and Caleb Chuang volunteered. The whole hall screamed like mad.
Mr Victor told us to do sit ups, planking and so on. Then, he asked all the stage-goers to demonstrate the time where we could plank the longest. I was planking and then me, Caleb Chuang and Sean Mark were the last ones holding it. Then, everyone was cheering between me and Sean Mark till Sean Mark exhausted and everyone cheered for me.
“Founder's Run Champion!” cried Mr Victor.
After the PE lesson ended, I asked Ms Nadia if she could extend the stayback time from 5:00pm to 5:30pm as I had remedial classes on Mondays and Tuesdays. However, Ms Nadia said no.
Then, we had our Maths lesson, and Mr Chan asked why we weren't competing. I told him that we were having a short period and couldn't compete to finish the whole paper. He laughed and gave me a pat. On occasions, Nickolas Nashpal and I would compete on the past year papers during the Maths lesson, and Ms Glory, who replaced Ms Bee Yan as she had left Nobel in June, would cheer us on as we tackled the questions. Then, we went for Global Perspectives as Mr Gallagher asked for articles. Vicky and Ellie were talking on the United States and Trump, and I tried chipping in. However, Mr Gallagher told me that I cannot influence the election and it was the choice of Americans. Then, he said all the bad things about Trump that he had been whining about for a year.
Once we returned for Combined Science, Nickolas Nashpal, Brandon Ooi, Ze Khai, Eric Wong, and everyone in the class were engaged with Mr Lee. When he entered the class, the entire class cheered, “MR LEE! MR LEE!” so loudly and gave him a really wonderful welcome. Then, he placed his bHe gave us a worksheet and graph and told us to draw a graph and calculate the potential difference. He spoke in an enthusiastic tone as he asked everyone to calculate it. Nickolas Nashpal and I kept on answering the questions. When I got a question right, I cheered and all the boys in the class will scream and cheer happily. Then, Mr Lee told all of us to give a chance. He told Jia Yee to answer a question on the potential difference. Jia Yee smirked and gave a guilty smile while Mr Lee gave her clues. When she got the answer right, everyone screamed and shouted happily. Even Ms Colleen was surprised at that.
At 1:00pm, Mr Lee told Sheng Jit and Eric Wong to go and get food from the canteen. Brandon was horsing around and Mr Lee had to calm him down. “Ooi Brandon, chill. Just chill. Calm down,” he said, as Brandon was laughing. Then, he taught us about resistance before calling it a day. We went home happily and in excitement. Yes, Mr Lee said Brandon's name in reverse. This is because he wanted to use the Malaysian slang, ‘oi’ in a funny manner, and what better way to do so than Brandon's surname. The whole class was laughing in a funny manner like a comedy show. Mr Lee had to calm everyone down. He is so funny as a teacher.
The week of 17th to 21st July was a busy week for us. The week comprised our Teacher's Day, a second stage of the interview competition, as well as the beginning of preparations for the school's 2017 Concert.
There was a series of baby photos displayed on the Student Affairs notice board next to the canteen to commemorate Teacher's Day. There were baby pictures of ten teachers pasted on the board, namely Ms Chume, Mr Lee, Mr Gallagher, Ms Ambiga, Ms Chithra, Ms Lim, Mr Neoh, Ms June, Puan Faharna and Ms Sharon. All of them looked cute, especially the baby photo of Mr Lee. He was doing a cool pose. They looked cute.
During the morning assembly, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah then introduced the concert to us. The concert was open for those from Year 7 to 10 to participate. The name of the concert was titled, ‘Gen N – Dreaming Out Loud’, and was scheduled for Saturday, 19th August 2017; the same day as the opening ceremony of the 2017 Southeast Asian Games, which was hosted by Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur.
The original plan was for the concert to be held at HGH Convention Centre and was originally scheduled for 14th and 15th July 2017. And not only that; it was originally scheduled to be named the ‘SHINE Concert’ or ‘SHINE Musical’. However, due to certain circumstances, the concert was changed to 19th August 2017, and proceeds from the concert will go to Fungates Superflow Foundation. This was the second mass fundraising event after Founder's Run five months prior. This concert would instead be performed at Nobel International School as opposed to HGH Convention Centre.
Unbeknownst to us, who were in the midst of preparing for our IGCSE, talent scouting for the Gen N Concert was done for some time already since the second term begun in June. It was during the assembly that Mr Steve had announced the concert. He and Ms Sarah were the directors of the concert. Then, he told us that anyone who wished to sign up could meet with a few respective coordinators; namely Ms Ambiga from Year 7, Ms Paulina from Year 8, Ms Samantha from Year 9 and Ms Yong, the Science teacher from Year 10.
When we got back to class, Mr Lee then continued the potential difference exercises. He then told us to calculate the charge of the electrons. The class was still in the midst of waking up. Then, during Business Studies, I presented my Paper 2 to Ms Chithra, who told us to work on case studies. Behind the class, Eugene Ho was checking his phone and Wei Zhong was looking at the answer schemes on his computer. Nicole and Sophie asked Ms Chithra some questions about their work.
Afterwards, we then had break and then I ate breakfast with San Ying and Krisha, who was planning to go to the United States. We had to avoid talking too much to avoid a Trump topic. Then, it was Global Perspectives, and Vicky and Ellie spent a bout of time talking to Mr Gallagher about the gun policies of the United States as well as Trump's policies. I listened attentively to them. “Sorry Wei Yiang, we are not talking about Trump,” he said.
For Global Perspectives, ultimately, only three people from 11N dropped Global Perspectives as originally thought; Gabriel, Louis and Aaron. Ryan Chok, who was originally persuaded to drop, remained in the subject, giving headaches for Mr Gallagher, who kept on ranting on how his life was easier if Ryan Chok had dropped. Then, we went for our English lesson. Mr Thomas then opened his Edmodo page and told us about the specific task he had planned for 11N and B. He then told us he wanted to do a writeup on Puschkov's Submarine with us. Then, we had to show him the stories that we did during the weekend. When Mr Thomas found out that some people had not done their stories, he said that he would give up on them if they persist. “I have planned a lot of work for you, but if you all don't want to attend to it, then I have nothing more to say,” said Mr Thomas. He was puffing and panting like an athlete to get the syllabus done. He then told us to do a writeup on photography and then told us to list fifteen things about Puschkov's Submarine based on the text.
“But we will do other work first,” said Mr Thomas. He told us to forget about the Edmodo posts for the time being but keep them in view.
During Character Transformation, Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Colleen and Ms Visa then tried on the costumes which Ivyna had prepared. Then, the whole class was asked to watch Ze Khai, Nickolas Nashpal, Ms Visa, Ms Colleen and Mr Kevin Wai do their proposed fashion show walk. Ivyna led them as Ryan Chok and Shane tried to parade behind in a hilarious manner, causing the whole class to laugh. The whole situation was like a comedy. Shane then suggested Aaron do the parade instead, and Aaron laughed. Even Ryan Chok was also proposing that Eric also join Mr Kevin, but Ivyna said that two muscular figures are enough.
When Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal showed off their muscles, the whole class cheered and laughed as the two of them grinned. Mr Kevin led the way, followed by Ms Colleen and then Ms Visa. Then, Ivyna asked them to parade again.
First, Mr Kevin Wai was to make his entrance onto the stage, lifting his hands up while giving a sly expression as if he was mediating. Ivyna then played some surrealistic music which had a low-toned sound. Then, there was some dynamic but slow music. Ms Colleen and Ms Visa would do some dance moves. They would twirl around while giving evil stares. Ze Khai and Nickolas would flex their muscles and show their bodies as if they were warriors and soldiers protecting the royalty. They would walk to the front confidently.
When the whole performance was revealed to the class, everyone clapped and screamed happily. Even Gabriel and Louis were laughing.
At the side of the classroom lay a large model pyramid to mimick the backdrop of Egypt; home to the Pyramids. During break and lunch time, Kelsey, Ivyna, Cassandra, Sheng Jit, Hao Yinn and Enisha had built the pyramid using gold-coated paper. The entire pyramid looked like one giant gold bar. Mr Kevin Wai was to wear a white robe with gold accessories on it. Ms Visa would don a black dress with a gold belt, and Ms Colleen would also have a gold belt on it. Ze Khai and Nickolas would wear black singlets with gold accessories on them. Most of their time would be used to show off their muscles from their YouTube channels. To a certain extent, they looked like bodybuilders.
The whole class laughed at the entire performance. “We are going to win this,” said Mr Kevin Wai. He was so excited and asked me to give my comments. I told him that he can act a bit more serious while Ze Khai and Nickolas can do cool stunts. The whole class laughed. Brandon suggested that I take part in the performance as well, but Ivyna said I did not fit the look for the performance as I was quite short. Then, we went for History, and Brandon kept on using the time to give suggestions to Ms Visa on how she should act on the stage. He even cheekily said that Ms Visa should act in a romantic manner, which resulted in him being glared at by Ms Visa. Then, once we were done with the lesson, I then went to Ms Chithra's Business Studies remedial and completed the Paper 2 questions. During the lesson, Rick Tan, Sara Yow and I chatted. It brought us to the days when we were in 8O and 9O in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
The next day, during Business Studies, Ms Chithra discussed some of the questions that we did. Then, we went for Art. I presented ten photos to Ms Nadia, who chose one of them. I then spent time to trace the pictures during the Art lesson. The photo that Ms Nadia asked me to draw was a picture of rows of what Chinese people refer to as ‘metal palm’ trees in Chinese culture. Most homes and workplaces would have this tree.
After tracing the pictures, I then presented the paintings to Ms Nadia. She told me not to worry about writing the words ‘Prep 4’ or ‘Prep 3’ on them because the most important thing is to have space for the pictures. Then, I was instructed to begin painting the ‘metal palm’ tree picture.
I got my palette and water colours ready. I mixed green and yellow paint and split the thing into two sets of paint; one light lemon-colored paint mixed with a much more yellowish form of color, and a darkish green paint mixed with much more greenish paint. Then, I painted the pots and leaves and the stems of the tree. I painted the core, primary colors first and told Ms Nadia of my plans to add some touch-ups to make the work of art look realistic. Then, we went for break and I spoke to Yi Zhen and Sophie of my plans again. This time, Caleb Chuang came to have breakfast with us, along with Krisha, San Ying and Kit Lee.
Once we were done, we then had break time assembly and Aaron Loke asked everyone to settle down. The whole Year 11 batch cheered for him. Then, we were told to return to Mr Thomas’ class. When we reached his class, I spoke to Sherwin about the remedial class with Ms Chithra. Soon, we caught a glimpse of Mr Thomas walking down the corridor to 11B. He then walked into the class, placed his things down, and asked us to settle down.
“Uhh!!!! I have no time to waste!” cried Mr Thomas. He then told us to take out one of the handouts he gave us. The handout contained a text on Greyhound buses. Mr Thomas then told Eugene Ho to read the text and answer the questions. Then, he asked Jien Min to do the same. Both tried to answer but had difficulties. “Ah, you see. This is what happens when you do not take responsibility for your own learning,” he said.
Then, Mr Thomas told us to list the points of Greyhound buses and I answered his question. He accepted my responses, but sombrely. He then asked for answers from Adrinna Yee, who answered his text correctly. Then, Mr Thomas then told us how to write a summary. He then told us to take the fifteen points we had written on Greyhound buses and organize them into a summary as homework.
“Can you give me the work on Thursday?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried. Then, we were left for our History lesson thereafter.
Ms Visa then provided with two worksheets to do on the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations. While we did the worksheet, Ms Visa kept on talking to Cassandra and Ze Khai for the next day's Teacher's Day celebration. The whole class told Ze Khai to act as cool as possible. Brandon told him to flex his ‘sexy muscles’.
Then, we had lunch, and after that, we had Maths. Ms Glory then told us to continue our work as she and Mr Chan will check our books the coming week before the IGCSE Trials. Nickolas then told me he wasn't interested to compete. So, we did our own things. Daryl just talked to me about my Maths tuition while I did the past-year booklets. Then, we had Economics, and Ms Sharon then told us to continue our questions on Paper 2. This was then followed by another remedial session with Ms Sharon, who then taught us on how to draw the graphs properly and label them. She told us on how the marks were allocated for labelling the demand and supply curve. Then, she also talked about calculations and the formulas for calculating the various questions in Section A of Paper 2. Most students would lose marks due to incomplete diagrams; all just by missing out certain labels, and the same step was said with calculations. She told us that this would make us lose bonus marks which we could easily score in just with a few simple steps.
The next day, 20th July 2017, was the Teacher's Day. It was a year since the Dignity Foundation picnic, and we were treated to a major event. On another note, when Mr Steve announced details about the concert on Monday, 17th July, it was then three years since the 10th Anniversary Concert on that same date in 2014.
During the morning assembly that day, Ms Lim then told us that the Teacher's Day celebration would be held from 1:00pm to 3:30pm in that afternoon. While she spoke, the stage was decorated with glittering lights and a small flight of stairs which was to be used for the fashion show run. This meant that lessons would run for half a day, leaving me with only four subjects; Business Studies, Economics, Art and Maths.
That morning, I had went to the Art Studio to continue painting my Prep 3. I then started to touch up the leaves with some texture. Fortunately, Ms Nadia agreed to me going to do my prep work early. She ate her breakfast in the Art Studio while I did my work and Ms Nadia guided me on.
Ms Nadia told me to paint the soil of the painting with an algae-like look so that it appeared to look like real soil. “Next time, you can eat in the Art Studio,” she said, as she told me that Ms Praveen had allowed art students to eat in the Art Studio. I was wondering why was there an allowance as such. Ms Nadia told me not to worry. It turns out that the allowance was given for art students to save time from walking to the canteen and leaving their work unattended, thus allowing for a quicker completion of the prep work due to the lack of hassle given from moving about as such. However, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, we had to stop at 7:30am if there was a morning assembly coming up.
After the morning assembly, we headed back to class. Everyone would be given an early lunch, with time to give their teachers a chance to dress up for the Teacher's Day celebration.
When I met Ms Chithra during Business Studies and presented the work for her to mark, she pointed many areas which I had to improve in. Then, Nicole and Sophie asked Ms Chithra if she would act gorgeously during the Teacher's Day celebration. As usual, Ms Chithra appeared unimpressed and brushed off Sophie and Nicole's joke. Then, we went for Economics, and Ms Sharon then discussed some of our Paper 2 questions. The questions talked about trade unions. The entire lesson was interrupted by Brandon Ooi singing and dancing the ‘It's a Small World’ song. We asked Ms Sharon on areas which we had missed out and whether our explanations, if not mentioned in the answer scheme, qualified for a correct answer. Ms Sharon then told us that normally, the examiners would mark according to the mark scheme but it ultimately depends on whether the examiner is kind enough to accept our answers. She said that as long as our answers were highly relevant and make sense, it would be accepted. She told us to complete three questions from Section B of Paper 2, Variant 2 of the October/November 2015 series.
During break time, Ivyna and Hao Yinn unpacked the costumes for Teacher's Day and I spent the entire time watching them teach Mr Kevin, Ms Colleen and Ms Visa the dance moves. They had placed everything behind the class; from the pyramid model to the costumes. Kelsey and Cassandra joined in to watch, followed by Brandon Ooi and Sheng Jit. I quickly went to the Art Studio to complete my prep work.
When the soil was done, Ms Nadia told me to do the color toning on the edge of the pots. So, I did them and spent time to tone the colors properly. Although it involved just one area of the pots; a tiny area, I spent the entire lesson just to touch up a total of three pots. Then, Ms Nadia told me to draw the shadows on the floor from the image, and I really spent a great deal of time trying to make the image look like as if it was printed by a Fujifilm photo booth. Then, we returned to our class to begin the Teacher's Day preparations.
On the way back to 11N, I saw the entire foyer and courtyard filled with activity. I met Xang Yen and talked to him for a while before heading to 11N. In the class, Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Colleen and Ms Visa were being given makeups. Ivyna, Grace, Kelsey, Cassandra, Enisha and Sheng Jit were giving makeups to them. Then, Ivyna presented the three teachers their costumes. “Ms Visa, you look beautiful!” cried Kelsey. I also gave Ms Visa good remarks. Then, I went down for lunch and talked to San Ying and Sophie. Following lunch, I went back up to see Ivyna do the dance moves for the three of them teachers. Then, I went down to the school hall for the celebration. Cassandra, Ivyna and Kelsey then applied lipstick and makeup to Ms Visa and Ms Colleen before we made our way down to the school hall.
The school hall was lit with a romantic atmosphere. The words ‘Happy Teacher's Day 2017’ was projected on the screen in cursive form. The hall was filled with a lot of people, jam-packed just like as if the school was as if one large mega-bar and club. Multi-colored stage lighting filled the atmosphere, and the stage was decorated with a series of neon lights that made one look like as if they were in the 1990s. A sense of nostalgia for many teachers.
As everyone filed into the hall, we sat down. I sat down, watching the whole thing. A large, red carpet was rolled in the centre of the hall for the fashion show run. A combination of Paris Fashion Week as well as the aroma of a bar from the 1990s was a good treat for everyone in Nobel. Never had Nobel been so united with so many events.
Behind me, Lyn Wen and Kelsey were talking as we saw the stage lights twinkle. Everyone was asked to sit and space out the middle portion of the hall so that we can easily see the catwalks on the red carpet.
The teacher’s day begun with Ms Joyce opening the event and then followed by the management team members revealing themselves in superhero costumes from Star Wars. When Ms Lim, Ms Sim, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and Mr Chan revealed themselves, they acted as cool as possible. Mr Chan was holding a lightsabre and swung it in a tremendous manner. His act and stunts were the coolest of any teacher. His blue lightsabre caught everyone's attention as he acted in the coolest manner possible. Ms Lim acted as if she was in an action movie. She acted like crazy, and she was even more crazier and scarier in appearance, which resulted in cheers and wows from the crowd. The whole hall screamed at her performance. Ms Sim then acted as the Jedi and did some knockout punches. Ms Praveen then acted in such a cool manner as well, and she played the role of one of the aliens from Star Wars.
Ms Bee Yong was the last one to enter the stage, and just like Mr Chan, she held a lightsabre as well, resulting in the whole school giving her a standing oviation.
The Teacher's Day celebration begun with a rock dance by Soon Qiao Qian, Yui Xin, Geok Minh, Laura Mark and a few other girls, who danced like the Wonder Women. They wowed the crowd as rock music blared the whole hall. It was enough for some of us, including me, to cover our ears. Then, Ooi Song Jun was asked to play ‘Kiss The Rain’, and he made a few missteps when playing the piano piece. He played the wrong keys to a certain extent as the crowd motivated him as he was nervous on stage. There were also performances by some Year 11s, such as Pranavee, Ivyna, Janelle Arnelia, Janelle Tan, Yin Wei and Vicky.
When Ivyna and the Year 11 dancers were invited to do a graceful-style performance, they brought out umbrellas reminiscent from a sunny day in Florida. Pranavee, Ivyna and Janelle Arnelia led the performance with their stunning umbrellas, followed by Pei Chi, Xin Yi, Isabella Wong and a few other people from Year 11. They twirled and acted energetically, resulting in encore from the teachers who were sitting below the stage. Then, Vicky, Marcus Chai and Yin Wei then sung a solo performance which made the atmosphere look romantic, followed by another performance from Janelle Arnelia. There was a Chinese performance by some Year 9 and 10 students as well, who sang some Chinese songs for teachers who were teaching Mandarin. Adding Chinese songs to a 1990s-style atmosphere made the whole celebration look like Teresa Teng and all the pop stars’ 1990s concerts, reminiscent of words in karaoke films which were highlighted as they were colored. I still had such karaoke soundtracks at home.
Then came the much-anticipated fashion show run. A series of loud, energetic electronic music rumbled as the lights of the stage flashed. Each class was asked to do the presentation of their class teachers, who were tasked with performing their respective fashion show catwalks.
The first class to come up on stage was 7N, and they were represented by Ms Sarah Wong and Ms Ajeerah. They were decorated with flowers and holding fruits as some of the people in 7N paraded with them. Next to follow was Ms Lee, who was dressed up with pom-poms, as the Year 7s cheered their teachers.
Cikgu Azira, Ms Kiran and Mr Loong then took to the stage wearing costumes from a Chinese opera as the entire hall cheered for them. This was then followed by Cikgu Izyani, who was dressed as Anna from Frozen while her partner, Ms Ambiga, dressed up like Elsa, and then that was followed by Ms June and Ms Chume, who were dressed up like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Ms Chume was dressed up as Snow White, while Ms June dressed up like a wicked villain who gave Snow White the poisoned apple. Some students in the class acted as the seven dwarfs.
The Year 8s soon begun their catwalk with a Bollywood performance by Cikgu Farhana and Ms Levina. Everyone from 11N and 11O cheered for Ms Levina as she walked down the aisle, dancing with Cikgu Faharna. Enisha, Lyn Wen, Grace and Kelsey took the opportunity to cheer for Ms Levina, who had taught us Economics the past year. I was so excited when I saw Ms Levina and Ms Farhana dance the Bollywood dance. It looked cool. This was then followed by Mr Anthony and Ms Sylvia, who danced the Gangnam Style song. The opening tone of Gangnam Style played as everyone sang Oppa Gangnam Style, with loud chants and cheers from the Year 9s and Year 10s. Afterwards, Cikgu Baliah and Mr Steve then followed, acting as if they were from Hawaii. Ms Yong and Ms Alison then came out, acting as Pirates of the Carribean. This was then followed by Ms Kam, Ms Malini and Ms Paulina dressing up as anime characters, such as Hello Kitty and Doraemon.
The next catwalk came from the Year 9s. That begun with Mr Michael, Ms Hii and Ms Belle, who paraded like master chefs. Mr Michael had a very large top hat as he paraded and all the Year 9s cheered him on. This was then followed by Mr Andrew and Ms Nadia, who acted in a romantic manner. Then came Cikgu Zura, who showed off her fashion attire, followed by Ms Gerardine and Mr Lim, who danced in a romantic dance remniscent of Italian renaissance. Afterwards, Mr Simon and Ms Ting came out in another form of romantic gesture, followed by the Year 10s.
When Ms Charine and Mr Gallagher came out onto the stage, they acted in such a cool manner, and Mr Gallagher wore something like a fake beard, which made his beard even longer like a pirate. Then, Mr Narish and Ms Janice came onto the stage, armed with swords. They acted like knights in shining armor and a hero in their own might, wearing red capes along with metal knight attire. They swerved and slashed their swords like mad, depicting the Roman Empire. Then, Mr Raja and Ms Vishalini came out for their skit as they paraded down the aisle, to more cheers. This was then followed by Ms Sharon and Ms Samantha dressed in Japanese clothing. When they walked, everyone in 11N cheered for Ms Sharon. And to cap off the Year 10s’ performance, Mr Thomas and Ms Chithra entered the catwalk route. Electronic music played as the two of them stood next to each other, and then they walked down the stage, waving and acting with a dare. There were cries of ‘Ms Chithra! You look gorgeous!” from the Year 11s, and then Mr Thomas walked next to her. He was wearing a green shirt with eyeglasses, and so did Ms Chithra.
Then came our turn to perform. Mr Kevin Wai then appeared on the stage as some of the props team helped to set up the pyramid. Then, this was followed by Ms Colleen and Ms Visa walking behind them in still motion. Then, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal arrived. Oh, what big muscles they had! The entire school was wowed by Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal, who showed off their muscles. There were loud screams and cheers from the whole hall. It was the loudest ever. Then, Ms Yong and Mr Stellio appeared to a rendition of Beauty and the Beast. 11B soon followed with Ms Chua acting in funny character. Next to appear were Mr Nick and Ms Renee, who dressed up as devils. And when they walked, the whole Year 11 batch screamed. Then came the awesome performance of Mr Lee and Cikgu Niely, dressed up like Ultraman.
All the Year 11s then kept on chanting, “MR LEE! MR LEE!” as he paraded down the avenue. He did some dabbing moves as well as some cool martial arts moves. Then, he acted in a funny manner as the whole hall screamed. So many people were chanting his name. He was one of the coolest teachers ever. And with that, the show came to an end.
Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen, Ms Sophia, Ms Sim and Ms Lim, who came out onto the stage with Star Wars outfits, were the judges. Soon, Ms Lim mentioned the winners of the competition. It was announced the our class, 11N, got the winner’s post for the fashion show competition for the KS4 category. To celebrate our achievements, we had been awarded a cash prize for us to spend on the reward. Aside from 11N, the other winner for the Teacher's Day competition was 8N, who were represented by Ms Faharna and Ms Levina. There were two consolation prizes selected from each level, and the winners for KS3 were 7E and 8L for KS3, and for KS4, three consolation prizes were awarded to 10O, 10L and 11O. The consolation prizes were given to those who were having outstanding performances and were decided by the judges. Ms Malini then entertained everyone with a song to end the Teacher's Day celebrations.
After school, I then got down to the Art Studio as Ms Nadia opened the Art Studio for us. She then went to change. I then asked Yi Zhen if we could eat in the Art Studio and she said yes. Then, I munched on a few snibs of Jacob's biscuits before commencing to paint and touch up the painting.
Sophie and Yi Zhen went to purchase some ice cream from 7-Eleven and bought it back to the Art Studio. They then munched on some food and drinks. Then, Timothy Hiew, Benjamin Tenji, Lyn Wen, Eu Lynn and Faythe Chow arrived. They then proceeded to 7-Eleven, while I begun to paint my work.
While painting, I took some breaks and had a chat with Chee Kei. Then, I looked carefully at my work and painted. I then smeared some of the paint, to which I spent time to touch up the painting. Once everything was done, I then dried my work of art. Ms Nadia then came into the Art Studio at 4:30pm. She talked about how amazing the Teacher's Day was and how she managed to perform well. Then, she also told us that she was also involved in the Gen-N Concert. Afterwards, I called her and she took a look at my work. Then, I finished painting the item. Ms Nadia asked if I was planning to stay back the next day, Friday, 21st July. She said she will only allow us to stay back till 4:00pm as Ms Praveen would not allow some time after that and that she had to go home by then. Once we were done, Ms Nadia told to tidy up the work. She asked Lyn Wen and those who went to 7-Eleven why they spent at least 20 minutes to go to 7-Eleven when the whole thing could be done in 10 minutes. It was 4:45pm, and everything was done for the day.
The next day, 21st July, I returned to the Art Studio and Ms Nadia told me to begin painting the second painting. She asked me to present my photographs. After inspecting the photographs, she selected an image which contained a large, dark-green leafy plant with some light, whitish green patterns. “Draw this,” she said. I then spent time to draw the painting. Then, I presented the work to Ms Nadia, who approved of it. Eugenie Kuu was the second person to join the early-morning prep work session. She came for her time to do the work and Ms Nadia guided her as well. We kept our things and then proceeded to the morning assembly for a normal talk by Ms Bee Yong on how we should have gratitude to our teachers.
During our Homeroom time, Mr Kevin Wai proposed that the cash prize be spent on a movie at a cinema. Many of the people in our class were excited about a movie trip, but however, many people were unsure over what to watch. Kelsey suggested that we have a food bash session, but then everyone was puzzled over what to do. Mr Kevin Wai told me to redo my resume and present it the following Monday as it did not look so good.
Then, we went for PE, and I played some football with Caleb Chuang before starting the PE lesson. Mr Victor then announced that a netball game would be played and that anyone was interested to participate in the netball game. So, Mr Victor spent the entire PE lesson playing netball, and boys were invited to join the netball tournament. Sean Mark suggested that the boys take off their shirts and play netball. I found that gross, and so did all the girls.
While the tournament was ongoing, Ms Nadia and I chat on the Art and Design prep work, as she was there supervising our PE lesson. Then, she told me about the Art and Design work and where I should improve.
Then, we went for break time, and then I talked to Yi Zhen about the afternoon session for the Art and Design stayback sessions. I was very curious on the Friday staybacks. Then, we returned for our Maths lesson and continued our work. Nickolas Nashpal told me he will not entertain any competition requests except for the IGCSE Trial, which we will ‘compete' in. Then, it was a normal Global Perspectives lesson and then our Combined Science lesson with Mr Lee.
When everyone returned to the class, Mr Lee showed us a list of formulas and told us to calculate the voltage and as such. Everyone was racing to answer his questions till the entire class sounded like a combo of a comedy show and a night market. Mr Lee then taught us how to answer the questions. It was really interesting to watch as we all discussed the answers on his Physics worksheets. Then, Mr Lee approached Jia Yee when having a break in teaching. He asked her if she wished to have an arrangement for Combined Science to be taught to her in Mandarin, since it would be easy for her to understand. Behind the class, Brandon Ooi showed off his AZ Tanks game on his computer. “Ooi Brandon, please, no computers in the class,” he said. Then, Ryan Chok and Aaron Liew went to bring our Friday lunch as Mr Lee taught us. Once the lesson was over, I kept the Smartboard equipment, got Ms Janice to sign the control book, and talked to her about how cool her Roman performance was. Then, I went to the Art Studio for my first-ever Friday stayback session. I was determined to finish Prep 3. With a third painting, it seemed like it was the beginning of the end for Prep 3. I hope to begin Prep 2 the following week.
Inside the art studio, a calendar containing the months of July, August, September and October had been pasted on the wall by Ms Nadia. This calendar contained all the important information such as the dates of IGCSE Trials, Gen-N: Dreaming Out Loud Concert, the Parent Teacher Meeting (PTM) and the various holidays and festivals. Ms Nadia used the calendar to track our timeline and each day, the calendar is crossed. Ms Feeda also had a calendar pasted on the wall for all the previous batches of Art and Design IGCSE students. The calendar was pasted to mark the countdown to the Art and Design IGCSE Examination, and to freedom for all the Art students.
My aunt brought me some home-cooked lunch and exchanged it with the Friday food from Uncle KC. Then, I ate some chicken rice bought from home before beginning the work on the first painting. Ms Nadia left us to do our work as she went for Friday prayers. Then, Faythe Chow and Yi Zhen listened to music as they did their work. Chee Kei and Eugenie played some K-Pop songs on the computer. Then, Timothy Hiew and Benjamin Tenji cracked some jokes with Lyn Wen, and I joined in as well. They all made some funny jokes.
Ms Nadia then returned from the surau after Friday prayers and a meeting. Then, she asked Timothy Hiew as to why he was going to 7-Eleven again as if it were his theme park. Afterwards, Ms Nadia checked my work and told me to bring tiny sediments of micro-pebbles on Monday, 24th July. I spent my time touching up the Prep 4 and Prep 3 work. Some people asked Ms Nadia why I decided to begin from Prep 4, and Ms Nadia had to do some explanation. Then, at 4:00pm, my aunt came to pick me up and take me home. I immediately went home and tried finding gravel, sandy pebbles.
We enter the last week of July. 24th July 2017 was Eric Wong's birthday. I entered the Art Studio that morning with the pebbles. Ms Nadia told me to leave the pebbles aside as we planned how to touch up the Prep 3. Then, Ms Nadia told me to do some touch ups first before settling with the pebbles. She told me that the pebbles are too big and asked me to bring more varieties. Then, I worked on touching up the dark-green plant painting on the leaf. I used whitish green paint to paint the painting.
At 7:30am, we stopped our work and then headed to the school hall for the morning assembly. All of us Year 11s left our bags in the class. This would be the only morning assembly which we would do for the week. We would be left to study for our exams. The IGCSE Trials would take place in a week, with the ICT Practical exams commencing first. And I didn't want to disturb Caleb Chuang as he was having his ICT Practical.
During the morning assembly, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah announced that more talents would be scouted for the Gen-N Concert. Apparently, there were not enough people joining the performances and Ms Sarah and Mr Steve made a call for performers. Then, Ms Lim briefed everyone about the next day's field trip on 25th July 2017. Everyone would be going except for the Year 11 students, whom Ms Lim asked to focus on studying.
We then returned to our class, 11N, for Combined Science. Mr Lee then finished up the last chapter with us on AC and DC currents as well as amps and volts. Then, I went to Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, where we did more past-year papers on Paper 2. Ms Chithra then briefed the format of the IGCSE Trial Examination with us.
It was the same routine everyday; come to school, do past year papers, consult teachers, do the prep works and go home, for over three months till the IGCSE exams. Some teachers printed past year papers for us, and for me, it was Ms Bee Yan for Maths, Ms Chithra for Business Studies, Ms Sharon for Economics and Mr Lee for Combined Science. They did past year papers and printed them for us so that we can use it during lessons.
After Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, I then went to have a short chat with Caleb Chuang. Then, he told me he would be busy until the end of the IGCSE Trial Exams. And then thereafter, we had Global Perspectives. This time, Mr Gallagher asked me to hand in my Individual Reflection for the Group Project, as well as the two Individual Evaluation Reports from 2016. I had to pass them to him the next day. Then, I returned to 11N following Mr Gallagher's class to get Ms Janice to sign the control book again, as well as for Ms Joyce to sign it. Mind you, Ms Janice had forgotten to sign the book many times. If only every monitor did the same, there would be no issue and I wouldn't be assistant monitor, too. Satisfied with the results, I then headed to 11B for Mr Thomas’ lesson. Brandon Ooi and Ms Joyce were chatting, and Louis Soon and Gabriel were being given advice by Ms Joyce.
During Mr Thomas’ lesson, he then spoke to us about our expectations for the IGCSE Trials. “Next week is your trial exam, is that right?” he asked.
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
“Then, I shall give you my briefing for the trial exam,” he boomed.
Mr Thomas told us to write an essay about racial inequalities. He then told us about the Paper 2 format and how to write a descriptive essay. Then, Mr Thomas told us to do some word effect practice in the class. He said that everyone did not understand the word effects and spent time to talk about them with us. Afterwards, it was History, and we went for our lesson. Before I left, I spent some time talking to Mr Thomas. Then, I asked him a few questions before heading for lunch.
When we returned from lunch for the interview competition during Character Transformation, I presented my new resume to Mr Kevin Wai and Mr Neoh, who took a good look at it. Besides Mr Kevin, Mr Neoh had asked me to redo the resume. So, we had a short interview competition at the Tutorial Rooms. This time, Mr Neoh conducted the interview. I was the only one from 11N who joined the competition and got mine settled first. Then, once that was done, I returned to 11N where Mr Kevin Wai was having an announcement.
That week was Ms Colleen's final week with us in Nobel after a two-month internship. Her last day with Nobel would be on Friday, 28th July. Mr Kevin told us that Ms Colleen would be returning to continue her studies. All of us felt sad that Ms Colleen was leaving Nobel. Many people in the class gave her a hug. As such, Mr Kevin Wai proposed that we hold a farewell party for Ms Colleen during our Friday Homeroom period. I then talked to Ms Colleen, who gave me, Grace, Jia Yee, Cassandra and Kelsey some advice on tertiary education. I also wished Eric a happy birthday. He grinned and smiled.
During the History lesson, Brandon Ooi showed off his AZ Tanks game on the computer. Everyone watched him play the game. Then, I returned to my seat and took my History books and compared the tanks on Brandon's AZ Tanks game with various events in the History topics. I told Ze Khai that Brandon's tanks looked like the tanks used in the Prague Spring, Hungarian Revolution and the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Then, Brandon Ooi told us not to disturb him as he and Ze Khai played the game.
When Ms Visa arrived, Brandon Ooi kept his computer containing the game so that Ms Visa could not see it. Then, Ms Visa did some revision on the Cold War with us. It was a very short one. We then talked about the Cold War. Ms Visa then said that everyone was invited to make a Powerpoint presentation to present to the class about any topic we wished in the Cold War. I volunteered to do the topic on the Korean War. Ms Visa also said she will hold a remedial class with us and it would be optional for us to join it. “The class will be from 3:30pm to 4:30pm, after school. We need to end at 4:30pm because of the jam,” she said.
Brandon Ooi then asked where Ms Visa was leaving, and she said her house is in Puchong. Being a Puchong resident myself, it was really hectic because of the jam, and the entire class begun talking about it. Ze Khai himself also lives in Puchong, just like me. Ms Visa's house is at Bandar Puteri.
Almost every teacher have already started making the necessary preparations. For instance, Mr Raja has been holding after-school remedial sessions from Mondays to Thursdays with some of his Accounting students. The remedials on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays were in 11N, while the Thursday one was in 11E. Ms Sharon and Ms Chithra had also asked me to attend their remedial sessions too. For Ms Sharon, she had our Economics remedial session on Tuesdays after school, while Ms Chithra had scheduled hers for Monday. Both Ms Chithra and Ms Sharon conduct their remedial classes in 11O. With so many remedial classes, I decided to ignore Ms Visa's remedial class to focus on my prep work. It wasn't optional, but for Ms Chithra and Ms Sharon's classes, it was compulsory.
Speaking of Ms Chithra's classes, Ms Chithra asked me to do more Paper 2 questions in light of the upcoming IGCSE Trials. Once again, I had to skip that afternoon's Art session because of the remedial. Ms Chithra then told us how to answer the questions. Then, Sherwin kept telling her that Ms Chithra was gorgeous, and Ms Chithra shunned him off.
The next morning, on 25th July, I placed my things in 11N, and went to find Mr Thomas. I asked him on more advice on where to improve for English. Mr Thomas was having his breakfast in the staffroom. He had made himself a nice cup of coffee, and the whole room smelled of nice aroma. Mr Thomas told me that I was doing very well, and my work is approaching the quality of an A-grade scorer. I slumped a little. Then, I made my move for the Art Studio.
Just as I was about to leave, Mr Thomas told me that he had forgotten to give us our exercise books. “Wei Yiang, can you please pass it to your friends during break time?” he asked. I then told him that I will be heading to the Art Studio and will pass the books to everyone later on after the lessons were over and when everyone was heading for their break time.
Then, I went to the Art Studio to begin my prep works. A long line of buses; at least ten, were parked outside the school, spewing gasoline into the air till the whole place got polluted. Eugenie and Chee Kei had reached the Art Studio, and Yi Zhen was arriving. I met Ms Nadia and told him that I had to find Mr Thomas. Then, I begun touching up my prep works. Ms Nadia guided me on the prep works as I begun working on the dark-leafed plant. Ms Nadia did not allow us to leave our things straight away as another class was going to use the Art Studio. Her Year 10 class was going to use it.
When I returned to class, Ms Chithra then continued our past year papers. Some people just looked at their phones in class. Then, we returned to the Art Studio for our Art lesson. Mr Raja told me he had signed all the Accounting lessons for the day.
In the Art Studio, the top brass of the management team was waiting for us. Ms Praveen, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Sha, Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sim were present in the room, alongside Ms Nadia. Ms Praveen had written a long schedule on the whiteboard. It contained a timeline from 3rd July all the way to 4th October, the final day of the Art and Design IGCSE Examination. Well, the presence of the management team meant serious business.
I greeted Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen, Ms Sim, Ms Yew and Ms Sha. “Wei Yiang, I heard from Ms Nadia that you are staying back everyday. Keep up the good work,” said Ms Praveen. Then, Ms Praveen asked me why I did not stay back on Mondays and Tuesdays; I had to explain about the Business Studies and Economics remedial.
When everyone had reached the Art Studio, Ms Praveen then begun her briefing. “Okay, good morning Year 11 students. Now, I am here this morning to give all of you a briefing. I have been informed by Ms Nadia that most of you are very slow on your Prep 1,” she said. “By right, you should be finishing your Prep 1 and 2 by this time and beginning your Prep 3.”
Ms Praveen then told us that in reality, we had to begin our Prep 3 very soon. Many people were still in Prep 1, but some had started Prep 2, which was good. The reason why we had to begin Prep 3 was because we had not enough time. Conversely, I was already finishing Prep 3, but in reverse, hence meeting the two preps’ mimimum criteria for completion. With Prep 4 and Prep 3 done, all that was needed to do was for Prep 2 and Prep 1. The information from Prep 4 and Prep 3 would greatly benefit me to do Prep 1.
Then, Ms Praveen talked about all the constraints from the timeline. “I believe some of you have your ICT Practical this week. Sorry, tomorrow. Your ICT Practical is tomorrow. Can I have a show of hands? How many of you are taking ICT, please put your hands up,” said Ms Praveen. Those who had DROPPED ICT do not have to raise your hands. Among those in the Art Studio that morning, Wee Shiang, Benjamin Tenji and Timothy Hiew were taking ICT. Ms Praveen said that those taking ICT would already be constrained by the exam, which would be held from 8:00am to 10:30am for Group 1 students, and 10:40am to 1:10pm for Group 2 students. Then, she mentioned the dates of all the exams and events as well as holidays. For every single week till the end of August, there will be an event occurring.
The next two weeks would be our IGCSE Trials, followed by the Gen-N Concert and the related practices in the third week. The fourth week would be our Study Camp 2 and the PTM week, followed by the Second Mid Term Break. There would only be another two free weeks till 15th September 2017 before our final week of school thereafter, followed by the Art and Design IGCSE examinations on 25th September, 26th September, 3rd October and 4th October. “So, if you look at it, there is no time. There is not much time till your exams. Your IGs are coming, and all of you would need to finish your work quickly. Is that clear?” asked Ms Praveen. We all nodded our heads. Then, Ms Praveen told everyone that we needed to start Prep 2 by the current week of 24th – 28th July 2017.
Ms Praveen also said that all of us would need to quickly finish the Prep 3 and Prep 4 latest by the second last week of August in order to enter the Paper 2 preps in September. Ms Praveen said most of us were very slow in the preps and urged us to buck up in order to ensure all preps are completed by the eve of our actual Art and Design IGCSE examination. “Do I make myself clear? Any questions?” asked Ms Praveen. Then, I raised my hand and told Ms Praveen about additional stayback sessions for Art. She said that more stayback periods would be given in jest.
Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong then told us that they had made accommodations for the Art students to go to the Art Studio during their free periods to get their prep works done. For instance, Enisha had dropped ICT and Cassandra had dropped Accounting, so as such, they were given permission to do their prep works in the art studio during their free periods. Fortunately, I was occupied, and that Bible Knowledge was considered an after-school subject, so no free periods were incurred.
I then proceeded to touch up the painting. When I was done touching up all paintings, I presented the work to Ms Nadia. She accepted it and told me to bring sticky glue from Art Studio 3. So, I walked over, took the glue over, and brought along a bag of gravel pebbles. I also went outside the driveway of the school to collect more gravel. Then, I presented the gravel to Ms Nadia, who told me to use a paintbrush to apply glue so that the work would look neat. I moved my prep work to another place, applied the glue, and poured the pebbles onto my work so that it stuck. Then, I did more touch-ups to the painting. Meanwhile, everyone did their work as Ms Nadia played music for us. Timothy Hiew and Eu Lynn continued their usual rants. They had ranted about who was Ms Feeda's favourite student the previous year and now they are duelling over who Ms Nadia would choose. I'd say that Ms Feeda had a soft spot to Yi Zhen and I was the same for Ms Nadia. Then, I used some color pencils for touch-ups. Before long, it was break time and we kept the work. Ms Nadia told me to start Prep 2 that afternoon. Phew! However, I had the Economics remedial, so it was not a thing for me. I could begin Prep 2 the next day, though.
Mr Thomas was waiting for me at his staffroom. He held a heavy stack of books which I had to carry to 11N. I heaved and puffed. Then, Mr Thomas helped me with the books. He placed the books in 11B instead as most people were there. Mr Thomas told me that I can hand the books to the majority of our classmates during break time. I then took the books from 11N to 11N's classes. I wanted to pass to everyone who was leaving the class. Mr Thomas told me to put their English books on the table. So, I spent time putting the books on the table as Zi Quan took down the information on which class was the cleanest.
When I finished my breakfast, I talked to Jordan Tay on his ICT exam preparations and wished him all the best. He, Branson, Ting Yi, Han Ming and Jearn Xiu were going to sit the exam the next day. I talked to him about ICT. Rick then asked me how did Ms Nadia treat me. Fortunately, I had good tales to share.
The canteen was only filled with Year 11 students. The whole school was deserted. I felt so calm and peaceful as we can do our studies in peace. Every teacher had gone on their field trip except the Year 11 teachers.
After break, we went for our English lesson and Mr Thomas then talked to us about a few novels and how their genres looked like in order to brief us on our Paper 3 Directed Composition and Writing paper. He was looking at a series of stories which we can be inspired by to write on. Then, we had another writeup which we had to look at. Mr Thomas consistently talked about his Edmodo and email postings. He then discussed on newspaper articles. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa then begun the presentations. Brandon Ooi was told to present on the Treaty of Versailles. He presented things in a funny manner and talked about how fat George Clemenceau was. This was then followed by Cassandra presenting about Nazi Germany, and last but not least, Sheng Jit then presented on the causes and consequences of World War I.
Then, it was lunch, and then Maths. During our lunch time, Ms Lim then talked about the graduation ceremony logistics for us and asked if we had paid the fees for the graduation ceremony. Many people were still undecided on paying as it was, at the time, the highest-ever fees charged for a Year 11 Graduation Ceremony. Ms Lim then made her case on the prominence and testamony of being a Year 11 student. Then, she said that we will miss out on it as the most prominent moment in our life in Nobel if we did not attend it. And it was really peaceful enjoying the serene quiet of the school.
When we returned to class, Nickolas Nashpal accepted my challenge to one more duel. He said it is useless playing the game if I did not win. However, since I won over him the previous Sunday on 23rd July, he accepted my challenge.
“3, 2, 1, start!” I cried, and we scribbled furiously. Daryl then joined the race as well as we kept on racing. Then, I tapped my calculator furiously till it fell down on the ground. Ms Glory, who was walking by, cheered us on. Following Ms Glory's lesson, Ms Sharon then did a Paper 1 question with us. We did the Paper 1, Variant 3, October/November 2014 paper. Then, I went for remedial with Ms Sharon, and we had another paper done. This time, Ms Sharon told us to work on our Section A questions for Paper 2, Variant 1 from October/November 2014. It was very easy to do as the calculations for that particular question were straightforward for me.
All the students by this time were returning from the field trip, and the road was clogged with traffic as I saw everyone return. Everyone was wearing their sports attire as they headed far and wide.
The next day, 26th July, my mum presented me with a few pictures of her office plants that she took at the workplace so that I can discuss the next steps with Ms Nadia. So, when I headed to the Art Studio that morning and discussed with her, she selected two of my mum’s office paintings for Prep 2. To study texture, I brought more pebbles just in case I wanted to paste them on my prep work.
Ms Nadia and I discussed the outline for Prep 2. As opposed to Prep 3 and Prep 4, Prep 2 is much more difficult than those two other preps as it involved a lot of mixed media and artist references. There had to be a lot of mixed media, subject matter and artist references because the type of elements in Preps 3 and 4 decide the basis for Prep 1 and Prep 2.
Ms Nadia then told me to select another view of a pot and then trace it on the left-hand corner of Prep 2. I took out the second watercolor paper that Rosemund had given me. Then, I traced another view of the dark-green, whitish-lime plant painting. Once I was done, I presented it to Ms Nadia, who approved of it. Everything which we did on our prep work must be approved by our teachers and we cannot draw as we please.
Then, Ms Nadia told me to paint the painting in the same fashion as Prep 3, based on that. However, there was no time to paint them as it was 7:30am. I packed my things and then went up to 11N. Mr Kevin Wai was in the class reading with everyone. He was sitting behind the class, next to Ryan Chok, Eric Wong and Shane, reading his book with them. Then, Mr Kevin greeted me. He asked why I was a bit late, and I told him that I was at the Art Studio to do my prep work. He nodded his head, and I set up the control book and Smartboard equipment.
All the ICT students from 11N as well as other classes were told to head to the ICT Lab for their ICT exam. I then took down a list of students heading for the ICT exam and stapled it into the Control Book. Then, I went for Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, and she told us to continue our past-year papers. Ms Chithra then asked who had gone for the ICT exam. Dylan S. Gill and Wei Zhong, two people from our Business Studies class, had left for the test.
After returning from Business Studies, Ms Sharon then discussed the Paper 2 question with us on the work she gave the previous week which tested on the Chinese and South Korean shipbuilding industries. Then, she told us to focus on our calculations and answer methods before trying the other questions from the Paper 2, Variant 3 from May/June 2016 which we had not done.
Then, once we were done, I quickly scurried to the Art Studio and continued painting the painting which I had started on Prep 2. Then, Yi Zhen soon arrived, followed by Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow, Glen and Louis. During the entire Art lesson, everyone was talking about Prom. It was the talk of the community of Year 11 students. When I was done painting, I presented the painting to Ms Nadia, who approved of it. Then, she told me to focus on my painting and touch-up for that painting. Then, we headed for our Maths lesson, and Nickolas Nashpal and I continued the competition from the previous day. Ms Glory cheered us on as we did the work.
During lunch time, the talk about Prom continued. I sat down and had lunch with Caleb Chuang, who was too exhausted to talk thanks to the gruelling ICT examination that morning. So, I spoke to Joshua Chew instead. The entire Year 11 community were conversing on Prom.
When it was History, I decided to present a slide on the Korean war. The title slide had a city skyline of Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea. Everyone liked the presentation, including Ms Visa. Brandon Ooi and Ze Khai scuffed at the portrait of Kim Il Sung. Then, it was Global Perspectives, and I handed in my work to Mr Gallagher, who approved of them but pointed some mistakes in my report, which were to be amended. I took time to amend it during the Global Perspectives lesson and then handed it to him, who was satisfied with the work. After ensuring Ms Sarah and Ms Janice signed the control book again, I then headed to have a chat with Mr Thomas on my work, and then proceeded to the Art Studio to continue my prep work. Everyone in the Art Studio then went to 7-Eleven to buy some food and drinks. I took out my work and begun to touch-up the prep work. Normally, we would use Art Studio 1 for our lessons, but when it came to doing the prep work during the morning and afternoon stayback sessions, we would use Art Studio 3. I then ate Jacob's biscuits and then begun touching up the work. Ms Nadia had to get some work done in the office, so Ms Ajee was there to take over from her.
Me and Wee Shiang were the only people in the Art Studio. While painting, I saw something funny happening on the futsal court, which was adjacent to the Art Studio. Some people from Year 10 had taken off their shirts and played football. Then, I realized that they were playing shirtless but with their pants on. In horror, I called Ms Ajee, who saw the action. Then, she rushed out of the Art Studio like a mad woman.
“Hey! What are you doing! Stop it! Why are you not wearing your shirts! Put on your shirts! Otherwise, I will report to Ms Bee Yong!” she cried. Nathanael Lee and Eu Gzin were one of the people. Then, once Ms Ajee had settled the matter, she came back and I presented the work to her. Then, everyone returned to the Art Studio. At 4:45pm, Ms Nadia came and told us to stop so that the Art Studio would be closed. Ms Nadia and my mum, who was waiting outside, had a chat while I cleared the stuff. We then left our prep work on the table so that we can return the next day to finish them. My mum took the opportunity to talk to Sara Yow and a few others on the way out before we left for home.
The next day, Thursday, 27th July 2017, I returned to the Art Studio to complete the prep work. I then ate my breakfast, went to find Mr Thomas for a short chat, and then met him in the office. I asked Mr Thomas on how I plan to write a story. I then presented my work to him, who marked it. He told me that I was doing well except for some grammar and punctuation. Satisfied, I returned to the Art Studio to complete my prep work. Ms Nadia told me that a few new paintings of leaves were needed. She took some of the pictures of some leaves from the photos my mum took, and presented them to me to paint. I had to draw two leaves. I spent the morning drawing the leaves. Then, I went up for the Economics lesson with Ms Sharon.
During the Economics lesson, Ms Sharon briefed us on our Economics exam. This was the last Economics lesson we had with her before our IGCSE Trials. She told us on how to answer the Paper 2 questions and spent a long time talking with us on answer formats. Then, when she was done wih the briefing, Ms Sharon then walked around, inspecting some of our answers for Economics whom we presented to her. I presented one answer which I did in my free time to Ms Sharon, who examined it. Then, she pointed some areas which I had missed on my answer. Once the lesson was done, a lot of people were waiting outside the class, including Ms Joyce, who gave a serious stare at the class. Everyone was impatient, so to appease the English Second students, we packed our things and got ready for English. I passed the control book to Ms Sharon, who signed it, and quickly left for Mr Thomas’ class before Ms Joyce got angry at people who were taking time to leave.
Mr Thomas was in the class, scrolling through his Edmodo and email pages on the computer. He was checking his email for the work in which some people gave him. Sherwin was presenting to Mr Thomas his writeup of the Elephant Shooting interview passage. Then, Mr Thomas presented our task for the day, which he posted on Edmodo. He spent a whole time talking about our compositions and we kept on talking about which was the best story to write on. I kept on talking about my plots which I practice on Trump, North Korea and the like. Then, he talked about the sentence structure for the Directed Writing Essay, which was my favorite part of the entire exam. At least, I can use it to brag about North Korea in it.
Afterwards, I went for break, where Krisha told me more details about the Prom, which was to take place on 20th November 2017. Then, we went for our Combined Science lesson. There were no more lab sessions that day, so Mr Lee then talked about our expectations for the exam. When he found out that Ms Colleen was leaving Nobel, he was shocked. “We must hold a farewell for her. All of us miss her,” he said, and the whole class laughed.
Mr Lee said that those taking Core and Extended would have different papers to take, and then told us that we had to sit separately according to the type of papers we were taking. Then, Brandon Ooi asked Mr Lee many funny questions, and Mr Lee kept on smirking and playing jokes at Brandon, causing the whole class to laugh. Then, when Mr Lee was done, he handed Paper 4 to those taking Extended and Paper 3 to those taking the Core exam. Mr Lee then told us to do the paper and then ask him if we were stuck. Ms Colleen told Gabriel and Louis to sit next to her as she guided them. Then, she asked them if they were able to cope with the paper or not. Once that was done, she then continued guiding them.
Meanwhile, Brandon Ooi, Shane and Ryan Chok were asking Mr Lee some questions. Then, Mr Lee proceeded to guide them. When I asked Mr Lee many questions that I didn't understand, Mr Lee thought that I might have chosen the wrong standard and asked if Core was a better option for me. I prefer to soldier on with the Extended paper.
Then, we had Global Perspectives, where Mr Gallagher continued checking our reports. Some people had confusion on the reports, so Mr Gallagher said that our Individual Reflection for the Group Project should be 1000 words, and for the Group Project Report, it would need to be twice the number as the Individual Reflection. Once that was done, we went for Business Studies, to more past year papers. Dylan S. Gill then complained to Ms Chithra about the work given as to when he headed for ICT.
After lunch, we had Art, and I spent my time trying to paint one of the large, long leaves from a plant taken from the picture. I had a quick lunch before heading to the Art Studio. Then, I had to do touch-ups multiple times because I kept messing up the color. It was then History, and I put my things in Art Studio 3 before heading for the History lesson, where Brandon Ooi played his AZ Tanks game as usual. He had been playing the game in his classes since the beginning of July. Then, Ms Visa discussed the exam format with us. Once that was done, I returned to the Art Studio. This time, Louis was in the studio doing his work the entire time. Since he had no History lesson, he was in the Art Studio working on his prep work. He had dropped ICT, History, Economics and Global Perspectives and was hard at work. Louis then managed to finish both his Prep 1 and Prep 2. Ms Nadia then gave him a clap. “Well done, Louis! You have finished your preps. Keep it up!” cried Ms Nadia.
Then, Ms Bee Yong came into the Art Studio and then checked on us if we were okay. Then, I continued my work, touching up the painting. The Art Studio was crowded with more people. Many were in the midst of completing their Prep 1. Some were still very slow, such as Faythe Chow. Then, I took a break and crossed out some of the dates in the calendar to update it.
I would usually cross out the calendar the most times, putting many symbols in its place. I will even be creative to cross the dates, such as substituting the cross with many symbols and images.
I managed to finish my Prep 4 and Prep 3, and got started on Prep 2 for Art and Design. For Prep 4, I got the two paintings done. I also completed the subject matter and mixed media for Preps 3 and 2 and have broken everything down to the smaller preps. I stayed back before school starts and after school ends, frantically trying to race time after time to finish the prep works. However, my prep 1’s commencement date was delayed due to the IGCSE Trial Exam which was held from 31st July to 12th August. This was further complicated by Ms Nadia denying us time to stay back or even complete our preps during the IGCSE Trials. She said to us that we must focus on our other subjects for the exam. Ms Nadia also did not allow us to bring home our Art and Design IGCSE preps for us to do at home, as she is afraid that we may lose the preps.
“I will not be responsible for any loss or damage of your prep works as you are responsible for it. If you lose it, it is not my problem,” she said. Ms Nadia then told me to focus on Prep 2 for the time being, and wait till the end of the IGCSE Trials to finish Prep 1. Many people were demotivated that they cannot do their preps during the two-week IGCSE Trial period. However, Ms Nadia did not budge. She said it was important for other exams.
The next day, 28th July, was our last schooling day before the IGCSE Trials. During our Homeroom period, we had a farewell party for Ms Colleen. Mr Kevin Wai then brought some cupcakes for Ms Colleen to try out. Then, Mr Kevin Wai told us to keep our books and everything in the class for the exams. We spent the whole time arranging the tables in the class for the IGCSE Trial Examination.
Then, it was PE, and Mr Victor then allowed us to do whatever we wished to unwind before the IGCSE Trials. So, he played a game of futsal with me, Caleb Chuang, Wei Zhong, Sherwin, Sean Mark, Ethan Wong and Christopher Chew. I then played defender with Caleb Chuang to release stress following the exams. Then, while we were defending the ball, Caleb Chuang and I accidentally collided into each other, resulting in Sean Mark, Joseph Diong, Joshua Chew and Wei Zhong asking me to be careful. One of the balls soon flew up to the balcony on the first floor. Sean Mark then went to retrieve it. Outside the hall, Ms Sylvia then played futsal with the girls.
On another note, it was Mr Victor's birthday, and everyone sang the birthday song for him. Mr Victor told us to treat him some ice cream, but the best birthday gift to him was for us to be on our best behavior for the PE lesson. The girls then provided him with cards and flowers, to which he appreciated them. Some people even joked with Mr Victor, saying that there should be no classes for the day to celebrate his birthday. When Mr Victor said we could do whatever we wanted, the whole hall screamed. Mr Victor wanted us to unwind before the IGCSE Trials.
Then, we had break time, where everyone was talking about the IGCSE Trials. It was a busy moment for all of us as the trials were upcoming. While everyone was discussing about IGCSE Trials, I decided to have a walk around the corridors near the courtyard.
As I was walking around the school corridor, I could see the school custodians, Mr Chuang, Puan Halimah and Ms Bee Yong in their hard-hats, along with some other members of the management team, as well as engineers. Upon seeing them, I went to Sheng Jit and notified him about a possible impending fire drill. Then, I went and told everyone. However, I was being cursed for giving out the information or ignored at. “Who cares about a fire drill,” said Sheng Jit.
I then pleaded to him about this. “The fire drill is important! The teacher who is using the class must take the control book along with him or her!” I cried. Sheng Jit just rubbished off the concerns on the fire drill and said I was just fearmongering people. Enisha then told me to relax, as the reason why the teachers were wearing hard-hats was to inspect the building. She said that they were engineers just ensuring the proper usage of the building as planned. However, I tried to point out that they were testing fire equipment. She shrugged at me.
Afterwards, we then had Maths, where Ms Glory checked on our work and see if we had done the past-year papers. I then informed her about the fire drill and the engineers with hard hats. “You must bring the control book down if the alarm rings,” I pleaded. Instantly, Daryl Yeo shot down my idea. He called it a silly theory and told me not to continue talking about it. Ms Glory then said that she was not aware of the fire drill or any announcement on it, other than fire exit routes being talked about during assembly. Then, during Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher briefed us on the examination format. I had tried to bring up the fire drill issue with him. He said no announcements were given and no other nonsense would be entertained. Enisha blasted me down and called me a fool for bringing up such a theory to Mr Gallagher. “There was no fire drill announcement, so how sure are you that it was a fire drill?” she scolded. I had even told Ms Janice to do so in case of fire drill, and informed Ashlyne, Pranavee, Berlinda, Rick and Jearn Xiu during break time to inform their teachers, but were met with disbelief. Ms Janice, on the other hand, was stunned.
“A fire drill? How did you know about it?” she asked. She was puzzled. And Mr Gallagher ignored my responses and requests to get everyone to be prepared for the fire drill.
An hour into Mr Gallagher's lesson, the fire alarm bell rang and some people were screaming and shouting like mad as Mr Gallagher tried to ensure that everyone was calm and ready to evacuate. Enisha then told everyone in a hysterical manner. “See? See? What did I told you? Wei Yiang was right!” Enisha then begged me for mercy in a crazy manner. The fire drill was my fifth crisis as assistant monitor following the doodling on the control book in February, the pass tag issue, the disruption to the name recordings during the Mid Year Examination, and last but not least, the challenge of recording everyone's names as they left the washroom.
According to Nobel's then-established fire procedures, the teacher who was in the class at the time is tasked with taking the control book down for the evacuation process. I was worried whether Ms Janice, who was using 11N for Additional Mathematics, would do so. The purpose of bringing the control book down was to assist in the roll-call of students to ensure everyone was safely evacuated. This was because the control book contained the class name list. However, the evacuation procedures did not say whether the teacher who would bring the control book was conducting a set teaching lesson or not. There were five occasions of set teaching in Year 10 and 11 as opposed to two in Year 7, 8 and 9 back then, which was limited to Mandarin and Reading/Bible Knowledge.
Mr Gallagher then asked us to follow him out of the Tutorial Room. I followed him as he told me to be silent. We then met a crowd of Year 7 students who waved at me and called my name. Then, Mr Gallagher led us through the lower canteen and out to the main road via the futsal court. Teachers and staff wearing hard hats guided us to safety.
Upon exiting the school building, Mr Gallagher then took out his name list and did a roll call for us. I then met Mr Kevin Wai. He told me that he will ask Ms Janice if she had brought the control book down from 11N as requested under the fire evacuation procedures.
Once everyone had been evacuated, we stood under the sun as I spoke to Ashlyne and Rick, who were stunned by my sudden announcement about the fire drill. I had to explain the men in hard hats to them and how they were checking the fire alarm system before the drill. I also took some time to explain to Pranavee on what transpired.
When we returned to the Tutorial Rooms after we were allowed entry into the building, it was 11:30am, and Mr Gallagher wrapped up his lesson. We then went for Combined Science. I tried finding Ms Janice, but I couldn't meet her. The control book, however, was still on the desk and not signed by Ms Janice.
Mr Lee then did some revision with us in Combined Science, and I tried telling him about the fire drill and my experience dealing with the control book during the fire drill. Brandon Ooi asked Mr Lee on tips for the exam, and Mr Lee told us that the best tip for the exam was to do our best and ensure that we do as many past year questions as possible. And we were off. The Art Studio was closed that day as Ms Nadia wanted everyone to go home and study. I had to spend 10 minutes explaining to Ms Janice on how she should have had taken the control book during the fire drill and getting her to sign it. I even had to brief teachers on the fire drill policy.
The IGCSE Trials are a mock exam that is held by the school to gauge our performance outside of the Assessments 1 and 2, Mid Year Examination and Final Year Examination. This IGCSE trial exam is set by the teachers to mimic the format of the exam papers set by Cambridge, and to increase the difficulties in order to allow us to have a clear guideline on how we can navigate the exam and how we can improve.
During the IGCSE trials, I focused on two main subjects, namely Mathematics and First Language English. And during the IGCSE trials, there were days where we do not have exams, depending on what exam is offered for the day. So, when Nickolas, Ze Khai and I did not have a test, we will quiz each other on subjects and try to outdo each other.
The first day of the IGCSE Trials was on 31st July. There were three exams that day: Bible Knowledge Paper 1, History Paper 1 and Mathematics Paper 1 and 2 for Core and Extended respectively.
All Year 11 students had to gather in the school hall for the morning assembly, which was led by Daphne Wong as the new head prefect. There was no Art and Design IGCSE prep work time that day, as Ms Nadia had literally BANNED all prep works so that we would not get distracted from the IGCSE Trials.
The morning assembly then saw Daphne Wong conduct quite a professional assembly, as we waved good morning to Ms Bee Yong, Ms Lim, Ms Sim, Mr Chan and the rest of the teachers before the usual morning assembly format of the Negaraku, School Song, Rukun Negara and School Pledge. Then, Ms Praveen made an announcement.
"Okay, Year 11 students, you may go back to your classes for your IGCSE Trials," she said as we moved out quietly while the whole hall looked on. Ng Ai Lin gave me a high five and wished me all the best for the IGCSE Trials. The same dilenma plaguing me during the Mid Year Examination for the control book resurfaced, and I decided to ignore the toilet information for the time being unless I was in the class.
When we got up to the Year 11 classes, we put our bags outside the class. Then, Ms Sha came with a retractable whiteboard and pasted all the information on the whiteboard regarding the name list for the exams. Our class, 11N, was being used for the Bible Knowledge exam, and all of us who weren't taking Bible Knowledge had to head to 11O for their free period. I set up the computer in 11N and put the control book in the class for Mr Raja to sign. I checked the whiteboard while on the way from the pigeon hole near the Management Office to 11N to see where I was assigned for my free period. "Okay, Year 11 students! Quickly go to your classes!" cried Ms Praveen. "You are late!"
We scrambled as fast as possible to our classes. I greeted Mr Lee as he carried the Bible Knowledge exam papers to the class. Then, I wished all my Bible Knowledge friends the very best, headed to 1O for my free period, took out my History book and did my revision.
Inside 11O, Ms Yong Wai Yee had written down an Edmodo code for a special 11O First Language English group. I had jotted down the code in my Student Organizer before PE when meeting Caleb Chuang in 11O on Friday, 28th July and joined the group. Ms Yong Wai Yee had opened the Edmodo page to put an informal revision for First Language English for 11O, since the majority of them took First Language English except for Megan Lee and Dylan Tan. She revised the subject with them during their Homeroom lessons.
For that morning's lesson, Mr Nick came into the class and sat down while I read about the History topics with Ze Khai. At the back of the class, Brandon Ooi was playing his AZ Tanks game on his computer. I had also played the game at home with my sister, and then talked to Brandon Ooi about the game. He was really interested. Then, all of us watched him and Shane play the game. They moved their tanks and shot each other using their tanks' cannons, and laughed. The game required players to navigate a maze and shoot the other opponent. Once again, the tanks reminded me of the Prague Spring and the Hungarian Uprising during History.
After looking at them play the game, I returned to hit the books and then took out my Mathematics papers to do. I then solved equations while also asking for help from other people in the class. All the 11N and 11O students were in the class, including Rick Tan, who helped me with the questions. Those questions were mentally torturing.
When Mr Nick's lesson was done, Ms Renee entered the class for Biology. She asked if I was doing fine and said it was good for me to drop Bible Knowledge so that I can have that free time to work on my Mathematics and History papers for the day. Then, Ms Renee asked everyone to do their work. Soon, the Bible Knowledge exam was over, and Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang, Faythe Chow and all the Bible Knowledge people came out of the class. Mr Raja then left and then we returned to 11N. Brandon Ooi and Ryan Chok played with each other while Aaron Loke and Shane cracked some jokes. We then went for break time and I went with Joshua Chew and Caleb Chuang. I spent the whole break time doing Maths past-year papers with Caleb Chuang. Grace then came to us. "Wow! Best friends! So hardworking!" she cried. Soon, all eyeballs were on us as we did Maths Paper 2 and revised them.
Then, following break, we then had an assembly as Daphne Wong told everyone to settle down. Then, Ms Lim came. "Okay, so Year 11! How is your study for the IG Trial? Okay, so I want to let all of you know that you will have photo taking for your graduation after the Trial exam, okay?" said Ms Lim. Then, Ms Lim asked us if we had paid the fees for the graduation ceremony. When Dylan Tan said that he hadn't, Ms Lim gave her serious frown. "Aiyo! Why you don't want to pay! This is very important!" she cried. Then, Ms Lim also told us that it will be a very sad thing if our parents skipped the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony. Some people didn't want to invite their parents to save cost, as they protested the high fees. Ms Lim then said that although the fees are high, it is still worth it if we went for the graduation and invited our parents to the ceremony. Following the break-time assembly, we were led back while Ms Lim spoke to the Year 10s. While on the way back to 11N for the History paper, I could see Ms Lim chiding some of the Year 10s for being late and for playing basketball and football and did not take note of the time.
Upon reaching 11N, Ms Janice then entered the class and then I checked with her on the control book areas which she failed to sign. Then, I brought my transparent pencil case, sat down and waited patiently for the exam to begin.
At 10:40am, Ms Janice told everyone to keep their things. Aside from all the 11N people who took History, Kit Lee, Jason Leing, Sean Mark, Adrinna Yee, Ethan Wong, Jien Min, Janice Low and San Ying were assigned to our class. Those who were not taking History had to go to 11B, 11E and 11L for their revision. The History paper was a 2-hour paper, from 10:50am to 12:50pm.
Ms Janice, who was invigilating the class, chided Jien Min, Jason Leing, Sean Mark and Ethan Wong who wanted to use the toilet at the last minute. She then waited for them to return to 11N before distributing the papers to us. "Write your name and class. Do not start yet," she said. Once she had handed out the exam papers, she then handed us some blue-lined answer papers which contained the school's logo, along with a hole in it.
"Okay, students. This answer paper is for you to answer the questions. Understand? You are supposed to fasten the paper using string which I will give you when you are done," she said. You can begin reading the paper, but DO NOT start yet," she said.
The questions contained a lot of references to the Treaty of Versailles. We had to answer any three questions. Two questions tested on the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles. Another two questions tested on the Cold War, and the last question tested us on the construction of the Berlin Wall and the Prague Spring, as to how the Soviet Union consolidated power over Eastern Europe. I instantly chose the last two questions to answer them. Then, we were commanded to begin. Ms Janice told us that more paper would be given if we needed them.
As I started answering the first question on the Cold War, Ms Janice walked around and handed some thread to us. Then, the room got cold as the fans kept on spinning and the air conditioning was on full blast. My hands hurt as I wrote for a long period of time. Then, Ms Janice then gave out paper to some people who had finished writing on certain areas of the paper. Each student was assigned with two pieces of answer paper. The exam paper only contained text, so we had to write our answers on the answer paper provided by Ms Janice. Then, at 11:40am, Ms Joyce came into the class for English Second. The exam went quite well for me, and before long as I knew it, the papers were being collected. I tied my papers to the main exam paper and fastened them as Ms Joyce collected the papers. When some people started talking, Ms Joyce showed her serious face. "I don't want to see anyone talking," said Ms Joyce, collecting our papers. "The exam is not over yet." Then, once she had collected the papers, I told her to sign the control book and we left the class for lunch time.
During lunch, I went to have my meal with Caleb Chuang, who was busy looking at his Maths worksheets. We had a chat about the exam. Then, Joshua Chew and Caleb Chuang discussed on how to solve the equations. Afterwards, it was our Mathematics Paper 2. I then went up, put my things down, and went for the exam. Since the exam begun at 1:50pm, everyone had to scramble quickly. I went to use the washroom and then got my things ready. I took my calculator and geometry set into the class. Ms Yong was in the class to prepare for our exam. Students who took Mathematics Core proceeded to 11N, where Mr Kevin Wai was waiting for them.
"Okay students! Please settle down! If you wish to answer nature's call, please do so quickly!" she cried. Then, everyone used the washroom while Ms Yong told some of the 11O students that she will post the information on Edmodo in the evening for the English First revision. Soon, she turned to me.
"Wei Yiang, I see that you have logged into the 11O Edmodo group. I'm sorry, but this is for Year 11O only. May I ask why did you log in onto the page?" she asked. I had signed into the subject page on Edmodo, and I told Ms Yong that I wanted to have some additional revision when she asked. She accepted my reasoning.
Then, Ms Yong proceeded to hand out the examination papers to us. Then, she told us to read the questions. Nickolas Nashpal was seated behind me. This means he can watch my every move and report that to Mr Nehru. I hope to impress Mr Nehru AND beat Nickolas Nashpal. Once everyone was handed their scripts, we were told to begin.
The exam questions for Mathematics was really tough. In fact, there was a question which tested on the travel time between Tanah Merah and Expo MRT stations; two MRT stations in Singapore. The questions grilled my nerves, but I told myself to stay calm during the exam, which lasted one and a half hours. Soon, I stayed calm, and within minutes, I was advancing, question after question. However, I failed to finish three questions. There were so many questions, consisting of equations, graphs and many other wacky questions.
At 3:20pm, Ms Vishalini, who had entered the class for Economics, then collected our papers before we left. As I returned to 11N, I kept the control book and Smartboard stationery. There were no remedial classes during the exam week as well, so I also left for home early. While on the way to the dismissal area, I got Ms Sarah to sign the control book, and once again, she thanked me for being a good monitor. Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew were discussing things with Ms Renee. On my way out of the school gates, I looked at the Art Studio, which was shuttered. I took one good look at it before heading home.
The next day, 1st August 2017, was the second day of the exams. Everyone went up to their classes early. I went to 11N, took the control book and Smartboard stationery, and placed the control book and Smartboard pens in the class. I checked to make sure that everything was okay and that the information of toilet-leavers were recorded. Then, I went down to the canteen to have my breakfast.
While having my meal, I then met a few teachers, including Ms June, who greeted me and asked on my IGCSE Trials. Apart from Ms June, I also met Ms Lee, Ms Kiran and Cikgu Baliah as they headed for the elevator. Following my meal at the canteen, I went up to 11N and kept my food container before walking around the Year 11 classes.
Inside 11O's classroom, Justin Yeo was peering at a booklet with Joseph Diong. Every class had a copy of that booklet. It was a manual for invigilators on what to say to candidates during the Cambridge exam. Every teacher whom we had spoken to had done the instruction briefing using that manual. It contained all the information printed from the Cambridge website. The pages were laminated and printed with Cambridge's logo. A sticker pasted on the front cover that said, "Do Not Remove. For teacher's use only." The booklet can be downloaded from the Cambridge website.
I knocked on the door of 11O and then entered the class. I greeted Joseph Diong and then talked to him. He was having his textbook from the Book of Acts ready.
Meanwhile, Fang Yi came into the class, and then Krisha. All of them took out their past-year papers and begun their revision. Then, I had a short chat with them. Soon, Ashlyne came into the class, followed by Bethany Ng. Then, Caleb Chuang arrived and I greeted him. I chat with him for a short while before Ms Yong entered the class. Then, I returned to 11N where I sat down, placed my things, and answered a few questions which Gabriel asked me. Then, Mr Kevin Wai entered the class and took our attendance. I switched on the computer for him, and he asked me to note everything down in the control book. This was then followed by Mr Raja entering the class with a stack of examination papers.
Behind the class, Brandon Ooi was looking at his phone. Mind you, the rules on handphone regulations were much more stricter at the time, and a ban on usage was given. However, they still looked at them until Mr Kevin entered the class. Then, once attendance was taken and Mr Raja entered, he then clicked on the examination slides and set up the exam. We then left the class for 11O. The Bible Knowledge exam was about to begin.
On that day, 1st August 2017, I had the First Language English examination. Mr Thomas had posted information on Gmail for us to look at. It was a list of advice for Paper 2.
There were three examinations in total for that day. The Bible Knowledge Paper 2 exam was from 8:05am to 9:35am. The First Language English Paper 2 exam was from 10:50am to 12:50pm. At that same time, English Second Paper 2 was also taking place concurrently with the First Language English examination. Then, in the afternoon, following lunch, there would be a Biology Paper 2 from 1:35pm to 2:20pm, and that would be followed by the Biology Paper 6 from 2:25pm to 3:25pm. Those who were taking Extended for Biology took Paper 2, while those taking the Core paper took Paper 1. All Biology students took Paper 6 regardless of whether they took Core or Extended.
At 7:50am, we then took our things and headed to 11O for the reading time. I then saw Caleb Chuang and all or Bible Knowledge people being accompanied by Ms Renee to 11N for the exam, where Mr Raja was stationed. Then, we entered 11O and were then told to do our work. Ms Renee then came to 11O for the Biology lesson and sat down in the front.
Two thirds of the entire Year 11 batch were having their Biology exam in the afternoon. Many, like Ashlyne Yong, had detailed notes of the exam. However, since most people knew how to do English, the only concern that they had for the day was the Biology paper. Many were panicking, afraid that they were fail.
During the free period, I sat down on my desk, thinking of how to achieve the ultimate aim of getting Top in Malaysia for English. It was a tough hurdle, but I was determined to do it. All that was needed were past year papers for First Language English, which I want my mum to buy for me. And not only that, there was the Study Camp as well. It would take place following the exam and the Gen-N concert on 19th August. I then spent the time talking with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal. We ended up talking about History instead due to the History paper the next day. However, I need to get some past year papers for English.
After spending time looking at Mr Thomas' notes as well as some notes from my other subjects to pass the time, I then went to see Brandon Ooi play his AZ Tanks game before continuing my revision. Then, Nickolas Nashpal and I discussed how we would score in Mathematics, Economics, Business Studies and Combined Science. Before long, Ms Renee had left, and then Ms Nadia came into the class. She sat down as I greeted her. Then, I spent some time talking to her about the Art exam and so on. Some people, such as Jason Leing, whom they had not seen Ms Nadia for some time, instantly greeted her. Then, there was a large group talking to Ms Nadia, followed by a consultation with Ms Nadia by the Art students.
Ms Nadia and I then had a chat. "Wei Yiang, ask your mum to buy new brushes, ya. Your brush already come out," she said, pointing to the hairy section of the brush that had already worn out. Then, we discussed about the Art preps and then Ms Nadia asked me for information on websites.
Then, it was break time, and then we went for break. Caleb Chuang was busy revising his Biology and Chemistry notes. The amount of notes he had, along with past year papers, caused the canteen table to be overflowing with books, worksheets and a lot of notes.
After break time, we then went for our English examination.
The First Language English exam was held in 11N, O, B and E, with a small amount of English First students in 11E. From there, there would be English Second students in 11E and 11L.
I then entered the class and sat down at my seat. Ms Joyce was in the class, talking to some people. Then, she came to me and asked how did I find the English lesson with Mr Thomas. She also mentioned about how some people from her English Second class, namely me, Co Sheen and Hua Iong had progressed to English First. Then, when everyone arrived, Ms Joyce then made announcements.
"Okay, First Language students, please settle down. When you come in, sit down and be quiet," she said. "Hurry up, hurry up! Your exam is starting."
Brandon Ooi and Shane bid goodbye, and so did Aaron Liew, Ryan Chok and Eric Wong. The four of them were parting ways with Shane as they were headed to 11E for the English Second examination.
When everyone was in the class, I asked Ms Joyce to sign the control book. "Later I will sign," she said. Then, she asked everyone to settle down. "I believe I had made myself very clear. This are basic exam rules that you should know," she said. Then, Ms Joyce took the exam papers and passed them to us. Then, we were told to write our names as Ms Joyce read the information from the Cambridge instruction booklet which I saw that morning. Then, we were told to begin.
A couple of people from 11O, such as Ashlyne Yong, Bethany Ng and Caleb Chuang, were in the same class as us doing the exam. The tips given by Mr Thomas had helped us to do well in the exam. I had no problems doing the test. Then came the word effect questions. And then a summary. It was quite easy to do.
The sun streamed into the room from outside the windows. I miss being under the sun. Fortunately, 11N had big windows. The two-hour exam from 10:50am to 12:50pm passed without any issue as I noted the people who used the washroom.
After the exam ended, we then went for lunch, and I sat down with Joshua Chew and Sherwin, whom I talked about the paper. It was quite easy. Caleb Chuang wasted no time to study for Biology. He had a lot of notes on his table.
When we returned to 11N, we had to move to 11E because the class was used for the Biology examination. So, I went to spend the rest of the afternoon talking to Nickolas Nashpal and Ze Khai. We talked about all the subjects and other general discussions. Meanwhile, in the class, Mr Nick was answering queries to some students on the Chemistry exam. When the exams ended, everyone talked about how tough the Paper 6 was. Even Berlinda said, "I hope Ms Renee doesn't kill me!" I then proceeded to get Ms Glory to sign the control book, whom she had forgotten, as well as Ms Sharon. Then, I asked her on some Economics questions before returning the control book and Smartboard tools to the pigeon hole. Then, Ms Joyce came into the class and asked if I had seen her purse. Coincidentally, her purse was shockingly on the teacher's desk. Gross.
We then entered the third day of examinations. It was 2nd August 2017.
While the IGCSE Trials was taking place, the entire school was having Assessment 2 from 31st July to 4th August. We will never have any Assessment 2 because we were all gearing for the IGCSE exams. As usual, I went up to our class early after having break. Fortunately, 11N was not being used for any exam. Then, I met Joseph Diong, but Justin Yeo told me not to disturb them as they were preparing for the Chemistry exam. So, I went for a walk around the school. I then greeted teachers, met some people from the lower levels, and then returned back to 11N. It was drizzling that morning, so all the students had to return to their classes while the Elementary School used the school hall for their assembly.
At 7:45am, Mr Kevin came into the class to take attendance and collect the Graduation Ceremony fees. Then, Mr Raja entered the class and told us to do our work. Meanwhile, Sheng Jit and Kelsey asked Mr Raja some Accounting questions. I just sat down and read my History books and did some past-year papers that I bought for History.
The morning was quite slow to a start as Mr Raja begun his lesson. He kept on asking the class to be quiet as there was a Chemistry exam in progress. There was a Paper 2 and Paper 6 that morning. I spent time talking to Nickolas Nashpal. Then, I spoke to Cassandra about how I felt about the Sports Day loss to Touchdown, which resulted in the 648-649 line-up. I told Cassandra how I wasn't chosen to lead the marchpast too. Cassandra also expressed her same sentiment; she was originally in the line-up to be the netball captain but wasn't chosen. Instead, Yin Wei led the netball team for Nobel Cup 2016. "Don't worry, Wei Yiang! I feel the same too," she said.
While taking breaks from my History revision, I then watched Brandon Ooi play his AZ Tanks game again. He hid the computer below the desk so that no teacher can see it. Then, Ms Sharon came in for Economics and sat down on the teacher's seat. Some people asked her on Economics while the class continued their activity. Each time the noise level raised, we had to yell, "Shh! shh!" to keep the class in control. I made the most quiet reminders. In fact, Shane and Aaron Loke had this really good relationship with each other. A year prior, they were arch-enemies.
When we went for break, I asked Caleb Chuang how the Chemistry exam was. "Mhmm," he said. Then, he continued his revision for Additional Mathematics. What a hardworking guy. He worked at breakneck speed like clockwork.
11N was used for the Additional Mathematics exam. I wished Ashlyne and Caleb Chuang all the very best before heading to 11E, where I continued my History revision with Ze Khai. During the entire time, Brandon Ooi played on his phone and talked to his friends. With Brandon Ooi and Jia Yee withdrawing from Additional Mathematics, there was no one from 11N in the Additional Mathematics exam. Likewise, the same was said for Bible Knowledge, which I dropped.
Ms Chithra then came in for Business Studies. Sherwin, Sophie, Nicole and a few others spent the time saying that Ms Chithra was gorgeous. And Ms Chithra also had to spend the entire time quietening down the class because the Additional Mathematics exam was steps away. "You can talk to your friends, but please do not talk so loud!" she cried. Then, following the Business Studies lesson, Mr Nick then came in for 11E's Chemistry lesson and he was mobbed by a huge crowd who talked to him about how the Chemistry paper went.
Then, we had lunch, and prior to the lunch break, everyone gathered in the hallway outside of the Year 11 classes to talk about how the Additional Mathematics paper went. Some teachers, such as Ms Paulina, had to tell everyone not to raise their voices as the Year 7s were having their assessment. We then went for lunch, and I high-fived Ng Ai Lin again. She was Ze Khai's sister. Then, after heading to Caleb Chuang's canteen table, I saw him with his notes again. This time, he was working on the Physics past-year paper. What a really hardworking guy. He would have Physics the next day.
After lunch, I then went to 11O to sit with Caleb Chuang and study. This was because 11N was being used for the English Second listening test. Ms Vishalini told us that we had to keep our voices really low because of the listening test. Hence, if we talked loudly, it would be very difficult for the students to hear the questions.
Meanwhile in 11N, Ms Sarah was calling everyone to head to the class quickly. "Hurry up! Hurry up! You are already late. The History students would be having their exam very soon," she said. Ms Sarah was frustrated that the students were slow, and Ms Sha had to come and assist them.
While studying, Wee Shiang talked to me and Caleb Chuang as we sat down on the floor, reading our books. Wee Shiang and Caleb Chuang talked about how life was going for them. The English Second exam lasted for 50 minutes, from 1:35pm to 2:25pm. After talking to Wee Shiang, I then proceeded to do my work and read the History textbook. Then, at 2:15pm, I went to my bag, took my things, and stationed myself outside 11N to wait for the English Second exam to finish. The volume was turned up to the maximum as I could hear what was being said. Everyone was asked to write what the question asked. And the questions were so simple and basic.
When the exam was collected, Ms Sarah had a serious look on her face. Then, the English Second students went out and then I entered the class with the rest of the people who were taking History. I plopped down on my seat as Ms Sarah kept the English Second papers. Then, I reminded Ms Sarah to sign the control book before being seated for the test. I checked my stationery, sharpened my pencils and waited for the exam to begin. Brandon Ooi and Cassandra borrowed some pens from me.
"Okay, now students, please settle down. I will give your papers shortly," said Ms Sarah. Time was running out. She quickly handed out the papers. We started the exam at 2:30pm sharp. It was a very hectic schedule. We were having History Paper 4.
Two questions were given for each Depth Study. There were two Depth Studies presented to us: Nazi Germany and the USA. Prior to the exam, Cassandra had spoken about the Weimar Republic being mentioned in the exam. That came true, and I struggled to answer the questions. I barely managed to finish the second question. I was halfway through it when Ms Janice collected the papers. The exam soon finished and Caleb Chuang and I had a chat while we went down the stairs to the dismissal area.
Thursday, 3rd August soon begun. A fourth day of exams soon started.
My sore body worked its way up the stairs as I set up the room. Then, Brandon Ooi entered the class and played on his phone. I then walked to the canteen for the usual ritual of having a good day's meal to begin the day. Once I was done, I returned to 11N and then took attendance with Mr Kevin, who arrived early. Then, we had to prepare to move classes.
11N was being used for the Accounting exam that morning. I quickly scrambled to 11B, where I spoke with Ze Khai about the History topics. Mr Kevin Wai came in for the Chemistry lesson in 11B. We did our work as I spoke to Mr Kevin on the attendance. Then, afterwards, Mr Thomas came into the class as he asked me a few questions on First Language English Paper 2 and talked to me on the Paper 3 writeup.
Then, it was break time. I took the opportunity to read the History books before my exam later while sitting with Caleb Chuang. Then, the same order of business revolved again. We went back to class following break time, took our things to class, and sat down while readying ourselves for the History exam.
Mr Lee then came into the class with a stack of exam papers in his bag. He took them out, placed them on the table and signed the control book. Then, he handed the papers to us as many people returned to the class for the exam. Sean Mark and Jason Leing talked to Mr Lee. Then, Mr Lee asked the class to settle down. He picked up the Cambridge instruction manual to read out the speech to us in the Cambridge format. Then, we begun the test.
Two questions were given for History Paper 2, as it was a source-based question. The first question tested us on Franz Ferdinand's assassination, while the second one talked about the Hungarian Uprising. I chose the Hungarian Uprising as I felt more comfortable doing that, and begun to attempt the two-hour paper, which lasted from 10:50am to 12:50pm.
The wind blew as fast as possible thanks to the fan. I raised my hand and told Mr Lee to lower the speed. Soon, the room was freezing. Then, at 11:40am, Mr Lee handed the invigilation to Ms Janice, who came into the room. I struggled to compare between sources as the questions asked how the two sources agree with one another. There were seven questions asking the same thing. And the last one asked as to what extent all the sources portray the information accurately. It involved a lot of brain power, but I was able to overcome that.
After the exam ended, I walked out of the class, got Mr Raja to sign the control book, and then went for my lunch to relieve myself from the stressful exam. I then took out my Combined Science notes, showed the Physics portions to Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew, and begun preparing for the Combined Science exam. He was also doing his Physics revision for the Physics exam. He was taking Physics Paper 2 and 6.
After returning to 11N, Mr Raja then returned to the class for our next paper, the Combined Science Paper 1, 2 and 6. Those who were taking the Core paper, Paper 1, were asked to sit on the left hand corner of the classroom. Those taking the Extended paper, Paper 2, sat on the right. Both papers were multiple-choice questions. We had to move quickly. Sheng Jit and Ryan Chok went to the toilet as quick as possible. Mr Raja told them to hurry up and use the loo. Gabriel and Louis borrowed my pencils for the exam.
When everyone was fully settled, we started the exam late. Mr Raja handed each student an OMR multiple-choice answer sheet and a question paper. Then, he told us to ensure that we had the correct paper; Paper 2 for Extended students and Paper 1 for Core students. The class was equally divided into students taking Core and Extended. 13 students took Core, while 11 sat for the Extended paper. Me, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal were sitting next to each other, ready for the 'competition'.
The exam then begun, as it was a 45-minute paper. We had to do Paper 1 first as Mr Raja invigilated us. I circled the answers on the question paper before shading them on the OMR paper. I almost did not finish the paper but finished it in the nick of time. Then, when we were done, Mr Raja collected our OMR paper and our question paper.
The boys behind the class, especially Shane, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong and Ze Khai grinned at each other. Then, they grinned at Brandon Ooi. Mr Raja finished collecting the papers and then kept the OMR papers and the question paper into the plastic bags. Then, he put the plastic bag aside and took out a stack of papers for Paper 6. "Shh! No talking!" he cried. Brandon Ooi wanted to use the loo but Mr Raja did not allow. "Teacher, my bladder is bursting!" he cried. Mr Raja said that he could only allow people to use the washroom once he had started the next paper. Brandon Ooi then prayed as hard as possible, hoping that his urine wouldn't splash out just in case his bladder exploded.
Once Mr Raja handed the papers, he let Brandon off and Brandon ran like a 100m sprinter to the toilet. I focused on doing the paper. I tried to comprehend the exam questions on how the experiment worked. Soon, the exam came to a close as Ms Sarah collected the papers and signed the control book. Another day of exams was over.
The last day of the first week of exams soon started. Friday, 4th August 2017, had arrived. I had three exams that day; Global Perspectives Paper 1, English First Paper 3, and Economics Paper 1. The day should be easy.
The day begun in earnest, as we went to our classes early in the morning. I then took the control book and Smartboard tools and switched on the computer. When I switched on the computer, coincidentally, the computer was not completely logged off. It was left as it was the entire night. I was puzzled. Then, Krystal Goh went and switched on some of the YouTube channels as she wanted to see Nickolas Nashpal's YouTube channel. She asked me to log into my account as the YouTube thing did not switch on. When she saw all my favourite videos and documentaries, she thought what was that. I then told her it was my YouTube account which was logged into the page. All of us laughed. I logged out of my account and then left the computer as it was.
Then, at 7:45am, Mr Kevin Wai came into the class to take our attendance. He then discussed about our next steps in tackling the actual IGCSE examination in October as well as the details for the Study Camp. He then asked who wishes to come for the Gen-N Concert on 19th August. Before long, we then went for our exam.
The first exam of the day was Global Perspectives. I stayed in 11N to sit for the exam, which lasted from 8:25am to 9:40am.
Mr Victor then came into the class with the exam papers. He did not have the rock-star smile that he had during the Mid Year Examination. Instead, he had a serious look on his face. "Okay, class, please settle down," he said. Then, those who did not take Global Perspectives had to head to 10B, E and L. I readied my stationery and asked Mr Victor to sign the control book. Within minutes, he handed us our papers but had trouble reading from the Cambridge instruction sheet. Eventually, he just ignored it and told us to start. The exam was straightforward and easy, and I had little sweat doing it.
Once the exam ended at 9:40am, Mr Victor collected our papers. He then let us go for an early break time as the next exam would begin at 10:15am.
During break time, I spoke with Sherwin about how I intend to write about North Korea for the composition exercise. He laughed as Justin Yeo got fed up about me talking about Kim Jong Un.
Then, we ended our break time and returned to class to sit for the English First Paper 3, which lasted from 10:15am to 12:15pm. When we returned to 11N, Mr Chan walked in with a stack of papers for our First Language English exam. Ms Glory was not in the class that day, and hence, Mr Chan took over.
Mr Chan told everyone to quickly settle down. Then, he handed out the papers to us and read the examination instructions. He kept calm as he asked everyone to settle down. He was a man of patience and peace.
During the exam, I came up with my best story of North Korea and wrote it down in the composition. I spent some time crafting the essay, writing them down. There was little to no problem during the exam. However, my back was itchy, but that didn't stop me from losing my concentration.
Once the exam was over, Mr Lee collected the papers, and I remained in the class for the Economics exam. I then went to use the washroom and came back. All of us were ready. Mr Lee then handed out our Economics Paper 1. He gave us an OMR answer sheet and a question paper, just like the one used in Combined Science. He then read the instructions to us, and we begun the exam at 12:35pm. Non-Economics students had to go to 11L.
The exam was straightforward as I managed to answer all the questions in quick time. At 1:20pm, the exam stopped and Mr Lee collected our papers. Those who were not taking Economics brought the food up to our classes, and we retrieved them from the back of our class. Finally. Half of the IGCSE Trials was gone. I left the school in happiness as I went home with a smile on my face. I was done. And I had finished my responsibility for the first week.
During the weekend, I took the opportunity to participate with my neighbour, Mr Hing, in the Kuala Lumpur 2017 SEA Games torch run. Originally, I had signed up to be a torchbearer, but was not chosen and instead asked to join the run casually. Mr Hing and I went to UiTM Shah Alam to take part in the torch run, where we were escorted by police and treated to a speech by Khairy Jamaluddin, the then minister of sports. I wanted to record this as representing Nobel for the torch run, and had to write a proposal letter to Ms Lim afterwards based on Ms June's guidance. Sadly, the proposal wasn't accepted as it did not meet certain criteria.
Stormy weather greeted the start of the second week of IGCSE trials. All of us skipped assembly that morning, 7th August, to head up to our classes. We were excused from assembly by the management. Everyone did their past year papers as usual, since the rain made all sports events like basketball useless.
11O, yes, 11O, was disciplined. The entire class was already in their class at 7:15am, furiously working on their past year papers. They were busy studying Biology that morning. Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and a few other people met Ms Renee when she arrived to meet all the Year 11 students. Their whole class was hard at work, preparing for the Biology test.
The mood in 11N was much more relaxed. This was because we had no Biology exam. However, some of us had Economics that morning. Our exam was from 10:35am to 12:50pm. The Biology exam was from 8:25am to 9:40am, hence explaining the tense moment that morning among the majority of the Year 11 students.
Mr Kevin Wai and Ms Visa entered the class. They took our attendance and then left the class. Mr Lee entered the class for his Combined Science lesson. As usual, he entered the room, plopped down on his seat, and logged onto the computer.
"Mr Lee! Have you marked our papers?" Mr Lee then said he was still busy marking the Physics papers and hadn't had time to mark ours. Then, we continued our revision as Brandon Ooi then played jokes on Mr Lee. "Ooi Brandon, please calm down. Calm down!" cried Mr Lee.
The Biology exam soon started, at 8:25am. Then, Mr Lee left the class and Mr Raja entered the room. Brandon Ooi greeted Mr Raja and then he signed the control book. Mr Raja had a whole lot of exam paper-marking to do. He was marking the Year 10s' Accounting papers for Assessment 1. I then sat with Nickolas Nashpal and Ze Khai, who quizzed me on Economics.
While having a break, I walked around the class. I went to the front to look at the traffic, and then headed behind to look at the foyer. Then, I sat down and continued to do my Economics Paper 2 past-year papers.
Then, it was break time, and I went to have my breakfast. Suddenly, something funny was happening. Jian Wen climbed through a hole in the fence next to the lower canteen with his bag, clambered down the nearby slope, and then headed across the street to SK Kelana Jaya. He then walked to that school's bus stop near the traffic light and walked away! He then called a Grab vehicle to take him home. Oh dear! That is so scary!
Many people in the canteen were disgusted at his behavior and he was the talk of the town. He only had one paper that morning; Biology Paper 3. And that was it.
Mind you, the lower canteen next to the hall back then did not have a concrete wall, but a wired fence. The fence got broken time after time again, making it easy for him to escape. Every student was prohibited from leaving the school premises without the permission of the Principal. As I sat down with San Ying, Krisha and Sophie were in awe as to what happened to Jian Wen. Everyone in the canteen had mixed reactions. Jason Leing, Ethan Wong and Sean Mark were laughing at his actions because he managed to escape the school grounds like a prisoner busting from jail. Then, I sat down with Joshua Chew to discuss the Economics paper. Caleb Chuang then worked on his Chemistry paper. He had loads of work to do. He can't bust out of school just like that, as he had to do his revision and also wait for Mr Chuang to take him home.
After break time, we then returned to our classes for the Economics exam. I was assigned to 11N for the test. Ms Janice then entered the room with the papers as we quickly got settled. Ms Renee, meanwhile, was notified by Berlinda about Jian Wen's actions. I can really imagine Ms Renee's disgusted look on her face.
The Economics exam was a 2 hours 15 minutes' paper. This Paper 2 is the most challenging part of the Economics exam. As many of 11O's students were assigned to 11N for the exam, I then saw many people coming in for the test. Then, Ms Janice asked everyone to settle down. We got settled quickly, allowing Ms Janice to hand out the exam papers and getting started with the exam.
I got my pencil, ruler and calculator ready as the question asked a lot of calculations, key terms and for me to draw the demand and supply curve. Using my ruler, I traced the curves on my paper. Ms Janice walked around the room, handing out thread to us. Then, I attempted to answer question after question. Then, I got stuck. I labeled the paper in order to continue the write-up. I didn't manage to finish some questions at the end of the exam. The announcements from the school courtyard disturbed me a little, along with the music. Then, I could heard Ms Lim scolding some Year 7 students. What a horror was it to be scolded by Ms Lim.
After the exam ended and Ms Joyce collected our papers, I got Ms Joyce to sign the control book. I then realized that Ms Janice had not signed it. Then, I went down to the canteen to have lunch with Caleb Chuang. Then, I went to the school hall to have a look. Something was happening.
In the school hall, the school custodians were constructing an arch. The arch was made out of plastic PVC pipes and braced by bracings and wire. Two smaller arches were already installed the previous week, with their foundations anchored in containers filled with cement and bricks. I initially wondered what the arches for. Then, I saw Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and the management team supervising the whole installation process. Mr Chan and Ms Praveen told me that the arches were installed as part of a backdrop for the Gen-N Concert. Mind you, the concert was also advertised on the school's website. The plans called for the arches to be decorated.
The custodians constructed two large metal scaffolding normally used in construction sites. The scaffolding was intended to install the larger arch of the two. Because the arch was so flexible and the PVC pipes were thin, the arch could not stand on its own, so wires were used to hold the arch up to the ceiling to prevent it from collapsing. There were three arches in total; one large arch and two smaller arches.
The workers first installed the arch on the ground. There were six workers in total. Two workers were on scaffolding installed on the stage to allow them to reach the ceiling, where two wires were hooked from the ceiling to support the arch. Then, the arch was slowly being installed, and then another ten workers were called in to aid the installation process. They lifted the arch, and then suddenly, arch begun to sway as all the workers held onto the arch to keep it standing.
While watching the arch being installed, I saw one of the custodians accidentally let go of the arch, as he could not bear the weight of the arch due to him losing his balance. The arch swayed from left to right, and then, it hit him and another worker, causing both of them to fall from the temporary scaffolding. Then, the structure swerved and then the whole arch crashed to the ground. The collapse of the largest arch caused all the arches to fall and the scaffolding to shake and crash to the ground. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but it was very dangerous. In fact, the scaffolding and temporary supports almost caused the stage to cave in. Someone could have had been hospitalized. The workers were installing the arch and were in the process of fitting the support cable onto the arch when the incident happened.
When the arch collapsed, it caused a loud sound, and Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and me, who were watching, shrieked and ran for our lives. The whole school was rocked by rumbling, and all the teachers in the Elementary School's staffroom behind the stage came out, curious to look at what happened. Soon, the entire KS4 community was watching us. One of the workers who fell was assisted by one fat worker, who was the school's gardening worker. Then, the music begun playing and then we had to assemble for the assembly. However, because the collapse rendered the school hall unusable, and no teachers were there to coordinate the assembly, everyone was told to quickly proceed directly to their classes instead of gathering for an assembly.
I then returned to class and took my things to 11O to continue with my studies for Mathematics. Then, I sat with Caleb Chuang, Wee Shiang and Cassandra and discussed again. I talked about what had happened in the school hall. 11N was being used for the English Literature exam, from 1:50pm to 3:20pm. The day continued peacefully as I ook out my Maths Paper 4 past-year booklet to do my work. When I told Ms Yong, who was in the class about what happened, she was so surprised and shocked. Then, she talked to me about the 11O First Language English work on Edmodo. I told her I am doing the work and using it for my reference. She told me that it may not be fair to the people in 11O if they saw me in the group, but she allowed me to stay on.
The next day, Tuesday, 8th August 2017, was Jordan Tay's birthday. The first thing in the morning that I did was wait for Jordan to arrive. When he reached, I met him and said, "Happy birthday, Jordan!" Ting Yi and Branson Choon sang the birthday song. I sang along with them as Jordan tried to cut us off. Then, the whole 11L class sang the birthday song, including Mr Lee, who reached the class to take attendance. Then, I returned to 11N to get things done. Mr Kevin took our attendance, and then Mr Raja entered the class.
There was a Chemistry exam that morning. Like the previous day, all the 11O students were already in class at 7:00am. They had a high punctuality rate. Acting like soldiers, they immediately scrambled to the class and did Chemistry past-year papers. A lot of people kept visiting the class to the extent that Justin Yeo had to put a sign up which read, "Please do not disturb! People need to study!" The sign was then changed to "Please do not disturb! Revision in progress!" Nieshaal and Justin Yeo put up the sign for everyone to see. The Chemistry paper was a 1 hour 15 minute paper, from 8:25am to 9:40am.
Back in 11N, we did our own things and Brandon once again played his AZ Tanks game. Mr Raja entered the class and I ushered him to sign unautographed sections of the control book. Then, I updated the control book accordingly with all the late slips, doctor's letters and the like. Once I was done, I then talked to Brandon Ooi about how me and my sister played the AZ Tanks game at home. The whole class was interested to listen to my story. Then, I shuffled between watching Brandon play his game and me doing the Maths Paper 4 past-year booklet.
There was so much noise in the class till Mr Raja had to tell everyone to lower their volume. He was a gentle man, and everyone listened.
During break time, everyone was talking about the Chemistry exam and I also added to the discussion of the construction disaster in the school hall. Then, during the break time assembly, Ms Lim then told us that we are not allowed to enter the school hall due to preparations for the concert. The hall was sealed off as the workers repaired the scaffolding and the installation of the arch continued without incident. However, the workers involved in the previous day's incident were bandaged.
I then proceeded to 11O and got ready for the Maths exam. Ms Renee then came in and invigilated us. Many people used the toilet before the exam. The paper was much harder than the first. I struggled to concentrate but however wasn't able to finish the very difficult question that tested on angles and chords.
During lunch, the whole hall was sealed with construction tape near the stage, and teachers entering the Elementary School's staffroom were told to use the side doors from outside the hall for safety reasons. This means that teachers need to use the futsal court or the foyer to access the staffroom. Safety had to be prioritized after the accident. The workers, meanwhile, were receiving treatment at the sick bay and one had to be hurled into an ambulance when his head still bled. The entire management team was there in the foyer helping the worker onto a stretcher to be sent to the hospital for a checkup. It seemed like his situation got serious. We returned to 11N and continued with our usual discussion for the next day's Combined Science paper. The whole class watched Brandon Ooi play his game as Ms Glory returned to the class. Then, Ms Sharon came in and talked to those who took Economics about the Paper 2 and how she set it. She used past year questions to come up with the questions, but however, she tweaked some of the questions just in case some people could memorize the exact answers. Nickolas Nashpal quizzed me on Business Studies for the next day's Business Studies paper. I answered so many questions wrongly.
We then entered Wednesday, 9th August. It was Singapore's national day, and I wished Ms Bee Yong a happy Singaporean National Day. The class was excited as three quarters of the exam were finished.
That morning, I had my Business Studies paper. Paper 1 was held that morning, from 8:30am to 10:00am. So, I remained in 11N for the exam.
Mr Raja handed us our papers. The Business Studies paper was somewhat mediocre. Almost everyone in 11N took Business Studies and around a small number dropped the subject.
Then, it was break time, and I exited the room, exhausted from the paper. There was no time to waste. I had to attend to the Combined Science paper the next. I read my Combined Science books during break time. I merely sat with Caleb Chuang but did not have time to talk to him. The hall was still barricaded and the school had called engineers to settle the entire problem in the hall. Mr Chan and Mr Tan Seng Kee were liaising with the engineers on the installation of the arches and the backdrop for the concert.
Later on, those who were taking Additional Mathematics Paper 4 were told to head to 11N and 11O for the exam, which lasts an hour, from 10:50am to 12:50pm. Hence, I moved to 11E once again for my free period as Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal sat the paper. In 11E, everyone was seated down and were studying for their next paper. I spent time with Sherwin as I talked to him. Meanwhile, Rick Tan was playing Jordan Tay's rubics cube with Jia Qing and Desmond Chan. Ms Chithra was in the class for her Business Studies lesson. I felt a little bit embarrassed as I felt that I did not do well during the Business Studies Paper 1. She was marking some of the Year 10s' coursework which we did the previous year. Following Business Studies with Ms Chithra, Ms Renee came into 11E for Biology. I saw her marking all the Biology papers as I got restless over studying. So, I went to spend the entire lesson with Glen Kay, talking about our Art and Design prep works.
Then, we had lunch, and I sat down with San Ying while discussing about the exam. Most of us were done with the papers. There were less things to do. Then, following lunch, we returned to 11N as we discussed a lot of things. Nickolas Nashpal and I had a talk before I went to meet Ze Khai. He was sitting down, relaxing and checking his phone. Then, Ms Sarah entered the class and read a book while also marking the Global Perspectives work from Year 8. We then relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the day before Nickolas and I started our competition again on Combined Science. We had to keep our voices low as the Physics Paper 4 was taking place in 11O.
We enter the second last day of exams, 10th August 2017. The hall was still sealed off for the construction of the backdrop for the Gen N Concert. I could see a series of decorations being installed as well. The hall could not be used for the Elementary School's assembly either, no thanks to the large amount of equipment present on the floors of the school hall. This time, a series of scaffolding was erected to reach the central series of spotlights hanging above the basketball courts in the school hall. The lights were undergoing servicing.
The morning then begun with the Literature Paper 2 being held in 11N. We had to leave for 11O, and I sat down with Caleb Chuang and continued talking about the accident resulting from the installation of the arch. The English Literature Paper 2 was a 1 hour 30 minutes' paper, lasting from 8:30am to 10:00am. Mr Kevin Wai told us to leave the class at 8:15am before the exam begun, as Ms Sharon carried the papers for the test.
Then, it was break time, and I saw the school workers install and repair the lights. They were testing the lighting and sound system for the following week's concert. I looked on and saw the workers decorating and counterweights to the arches to prevent them from falling. Caleb Chuang, meanwhile, revised for ICT Theory. Then, during the ICT Theory exam, I then went to 11B for the free time and continued doing my Combined Science revision. I ended up talking to Glen, Ze Khai, Cassandra, Kelsey and Sherwin.
During the free time where we did our exams, word started spreading that our IGCSE Malay results would be released at 2:00pm that day. Yes. The exam which we sat on 2nd and 10th May. Kelsey and Cassandra informed us about this. A sense of nervousness wrecked the room. Many people were surprised. Cambridge would be releasing the May/June 2017 series results for that year's examination session. Most people were confused. I was also confused thinking about it. Everyone in the room soon had mixed emotions.
Before long, the free time was over and I went to have lunch with Caleb Chuang. He was exhausted from his ICT exam. I just talked to Joshua Chew about Combined Science. He asked me how Mr Lee set my paper. I had to tell him once the exam was over.
After lunch, we then had our Combined Science exam. The Combined Science Paper 4 was held from 1:45pm to 3:15pm.
A lot of people used the washroom before the commencement of the exam. Brandon, Sheng Jit and all of their fellow friends went to the loo as Mr Raja prepared the exam for us. He was visibly frowning, annoyed at their tardiness. Then, when everyone returned to the class, he handed our papers to us as we did the Combined Science exam. Mr Raja told us to sit according to Core and Extended once again. When the exam was over, Grace was letting everyone check their results using her phone. Since I didn't have a phone then, Grace helped me log in to the Cambridge website and key in my name, candidate number, centre number and a special login code. Then, the results were displayed. I got an 89%; an A for Malay. Shockingly, I was one point below the 90% threshold for getting an A*. The one-point curse, which begun on Sports Day 2017 and ran through the examination period, came back to haunt me in my pursuit for five credits to enter college. I did not know whether to cheer or cry. On one hand, I got an A. However, on the other hand, I was one point behind the A* grade. The feeling of Sports Day 2017; the 648-649 tie-up between Bullseye and Touchdown, came back to haunt me.
I went to meet Joshua Chew and told him about the Combined Science paper. It was a bit challenging but it was doable. I walked and talked with Joshua Chew and Caleb Chuang as I returned the control book. I held the book in my hands as Joshua took a good look at the completed control book. Then, Joshua gave the thumbs up for the control book. “How much did you get for your Malay?” he asked me. When I told him that I got an 89%, he was quite shocked. "Very well done, Wei Yiang. Proud of you," he said, patting me on my back. We talked and walked till we reached the management office. I went in to meet Cikgu Niely and told her about the results. Then, I gave her a hug in appreciation of her efforts. I really cried. Tears were streaming down my cheeks. I was bot happy and sad. What a funny feeling. Then, Ms Sha, Ms Praveen and all the office members then praised me on my achievement. I then walked to the dismissal area. Then, Joshua Chew and I talked as we left the dismissal area. Joshua Chew then waved at my aunt, who came to pick me up. They had a good social exchange.
The next morning, Friday, 11th August 2017, was our final day of IGCSE Trials. I had Business Studies Paper 2 to cap off the last day.
I was really relaxed. I just tried not to think about the exam. Many people had finished their exams except for me and those taking Accounting and Business Studies. The hall was still being used for construction. No one was allowed to enter the school hall after the incident on 7th August.
When I met Ms Praveen that morning, I asked if the workers were okay. Ms Praveen felt positive. Fortunately no one was hospitalized. However, the workers who fell down had gotten a bit of scratches and only needed to see a doctor and rest up. The gardener had bruises and scratches from the collapse of the scaffolding, while one Malay worker had to take leave. His head was bandaged. Ms Praveen said that the school hall can be used from the following week.
Word soon got around that a Top in Malaysia recipient was announced. It was none other than Justin Yeo, who had gotten the Top in Malaysia for Foreign Language Malay. There was no First Language Malay back then. Everyone had to take Malay as a Foreign Language.
Justin Yeo winning the Top in Malaysia Award for Foreign Language Malay was stunning. Everyone was surprised. In 11O, the whole class was crowding around Justin Yeo, as if he was about to deliver a victory speech. He just smirked and covered his face in astonishment as the whole class praised him. I then went into 11O to watch what was happening. However, Justin tried to shoo everyone away as he was about to prepare for his Accounting exam.
The Accounting exam was a 45-minute exam. We had to head to 11B that morning, where Ms Nadia was in the class, talking to us. I then spoke to Ms Nadia on the stayback periods. Ms Nadia said that the normal Monday-to-Friday after-school staybacks will resume. However, additional stayback sessions will need to be approved by Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong before we could proceed.
Then, we had break, and I spent time watching the workers install the arches and secure the footing. In fact, I had suggested to Ms Praveen that morning that the arch can be held back with more counterweights, and further counterweights must be installed to prevent the construction platform from collapsing, since Ms Praveen told me that the school planned to put up a heavy backdrop. Alternately, I told her that more scaffolding be installed for safety reasons, but she said that two was enough and thanked me for my suggestions.
During break time, Justin Yeo's achievement made informal headlines. Everyone then went around, praising him. He was soon mobbed by folks from all walks of life from every class. What a celebrity! He was paraded around the school by Jordan Tay, Rick Tan, Ryan Toh, Jearn Xiu and Ting Yi as many teachers congratulated him, starting with Cikgu Niely, followed by Mr Lee, Ms Janice, Ms Yong Wai Yee, Puan Halimah, Ms Ingel and Mr Chuang. I kept walking around and telling all the teachers on Justin Yeo's great achievements. The whole school reacted as if Malaysia had won the World Cup.
Then, we went for our Business Studies exam. The exam was from 11:45am to 1:15pm.
Before the exam begun, Ms Glory then talked to us about the concert and asked if anyone had bought tickets. The tickets would remain sold till Wednesday, 16th August. Then, we did our revision, with Nickolas Nashpal quizzing me till I couldn't answer the questions.
At 11:40am, Ms Janice, who took over the class, begun to distribute our exam papers. We then prepared for the exam, and then she handed the papers to us. The last paper for the IGCSE Trials had begun.
I had quite a challenging time answering the paper. There was a lot of writing and brain power used. And at 1:15pm, we were done. Eric Wong and Shane then went to collect the food from the canteen. Ms Joyce did not allow everyone to go at once. Uncle KC had prepared burgers for us. I felt so happy and in joy after the end of the exam. It was a sigh of relief. Then, everyone pushed the tables back to what they were, and mingled outside the class. I placed my books back in my basket and then had a chat with Joshua Chew, Sherwin and Caleb Chuang as we walked to the dismissal area, satisfied after a long fortnight of exams. Upon reaching home, I surfed the Internet and rode my bicycle around the neighborhood. I felt so free. All that was needed next was to finish my Art and Design Paper 1 preps, begin the Art and Design Paper 2 preps, and prepare for two more things; the House Captain Election as well as the IGCSE Exams.
The next day, 12th August 2017, was the official Ausmat Pitch Competition at Sunway College. Originally, I planned to go, but because I wasn't feeling so well, I decided to stay at home and do my revision. I told Mr Thomas to inform Ms Yong on the matter. She was fine with that.
Alexandria Goh was chosen to head to Sunway for the pitch competition. In fact, Ms Yong organized selection sessions in which the finalists for the competition were selected. Many were unaware of that due to the IGCSE Trials, so Ms Yong only selected Alexandria Goh. Aside from Alexandria Goh, a team of students were to head to Sunway to cheer her on. Yi Zhen, Daniel Ngew and Han Ming were one of them. I was originally scheduled to be on the trip to Sunway, but decided not to go thereafter.
In the wake of the IGCSE trials, full speed was pressed on towards the IGCSE exams. And not only that; the school was going to have a really big bash with the Gen-N Dreaming Out Loud concert.
The morning of 14th August 2017 was a really impressive morning. When we entered the school hall, a large, black cloth was installed on the wall behind the stage, with the words ‘Dreaming Out Loud’ emblazoned on the largest arch in cursive form. Glitter stickers were pasted on the cloth to make the whole thing look like a starry night. The black wooden facades of the stage's stairs were pasted with DVD roms. The three arches were installed with yellow and grey cloths. There were electrical wires connecting a string of LED bulbs installed on the three arches to a power socket. It would look impressive on the day of the concert. All the scaffolding was dismantled. However, there was no time to waste. I needed to return to the Art Studio to continue with my prep work. Ms Nadia had opened the Art Studio for me to enter on my own.
I then took out my painting and then continued painting. Then, Hao Yinn arrived and begun her work. However, we had to stop our work at 7:30am because the morning assembly was about to begin.
When the morning assembly begun, Mr Steve said that the entire week would be used to practice for the concert. The rehearsals would be held from 3:30pm to 5:30pm every afternoon following the conclusion of school hours. The concert in total would last a total of two and a half hours, and comprise of between ten and twelve acts.
Mr Steve also announced that the concert would have two sessions; an afternoon session and an evening session. The afternoon session would occur between 3:00pm and 5:30pm, while the evening session would be held from 7:00pm to 9:30pm. In fact, Mr Steve also said that the evening would be more grander than the afternoon session.
Originally, the concert was named as the “SHINE Musical”, which was meant to be an acronym connected to the school's motto and core values. However, Mr Steve and Ms Sarah, who were planning the concert, decided to change the name because the name was too boring. Instead, ‘Gen N – Dreaming Out Loud’ was initiated because it had a nice and more lively feeling as opposed to the previous name.
Every year level, from Year 7 to 10, were involved in the concert. No Year 11s were involved as we were a big liability to the IGCSE exams. There were many talents in the concert, but Mr Steve said that time would be given from Wednesday, 16th August, to Friday, 18th August, to prepare for the concert.
While Mr Steve was making his announcements, some people in the hall were still talking. So, Ms Lim had to come out and give a lecture to everyone.
“I can still see people talking. I can pass you the mic if you want to talk,” said Ms Lim. “Anyone? Come and speak now. Anyone.”
When Ms Lim called for volunteers, I was thinking of volunteering to speak. She was saying that anyone who talked while announcements were being made would be invited to speak. “Whoever who wants to talk, come and talk now on the stage. I will pass you the mic,” she said. She called for volunteers once again.
I wanted to make my case of an impending nuclear war between North Korea and the United States. I wanted to inform everyone just in case turmoil would break out. After all, I was really scared. I was even uncertain whether I would sit my IGCSE in October thanks to this.
Ms Lim then counted down the numbers from three to one. Then, when she saw no one taking the speech, she then passed the time to Ms Bee Yong to make her announcements.
Then, Ms Bee Yong came and gave a speech. “Alright, yeah. So, your Assessment is over. Year 11s, your IGCSE Trial is over. You might think that everything is over and that the concert is here and we can have fun. Well, let's have some fun, but be sure to continue to focus on your lessons,” she said, in her usual monotonous tone.
We then returned for our lessons. Mr Lee came into the class. He placed his things down and handed out Combined Science Paper 1 to us for discussion.
"Teacher! Mr Lee! How did we do?” cried Brandon. Mr Lee then told us that we will see in a moment. He said that many of us did quite well in general. As Mr Lee then handed us our papers and the OMR answer sheet, we took a good look at our marks. Nickolas Nashpal and I immediately compared our marks. “YOU LOST!” cried Nickolas. He beat me by fifteen points in the multiple-choice question paper. I tried to tell him that it was a close race, but he said that I still lost whether the race was close or not. I achieved 23 out of 60 marks while Nickolas got 38 out of 60 marks.
Mr Lee then discussed the answers, and each time Brandon was told to calm down by Mr Lee. Then, we went for Business Studies, and Ms Chithra discussed our Business Studies Paper 1. I just barely made it past the 50 percent mark.
During break time, Mr Steve, Ms Sarah and the management team tested the arch's lights. It looked so cool and impressive. The lighting was yellow in color and produced a glitter effect. The lighting was so cool as if one were to be walking in a futuristic exhibition. The lighting of the arches were witnessed by the school custodians, Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong and Ms Praveen.
Ms Bee Yong, who was holding a black notebook and wearing a black coat, communicated with Mr Steve and Ms Sarah on the lighting and the stage plan.
I watched the top brass of teachers inspect the progress for the concert. Mr Steve was laying out other plans for the concert, and held a paper containing the seating plans in his hand. The plans included the rows for VIPs, performers and the general audience.
When we headed for Global Perspectives, Mr Gallagher handed our exam scripts back to us and he discussed the answers. He had to chide Shane and Ryan Chok for talking. Mr Gallagher talked all sorts of hilarious examples and statements which made all of us laugh in reference to our answers. Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas handed our exam papers back to us to discuss the answers. I got a B for English.
Mr Thomas then talked about the areas which we can improve on. Just as he spoke, Eugene Ho, Jien Min and some people behind the class were sleeping.
"There you have it. They are hitting the sack. Argh. When I see such behavior, it pains me because I am here trying to tell you something and dedicate my time to help you prepare for the IGCSE exams, and I am wasting my energy and breath talking to you here, you know!" he cried. Mr Thomas said that it would be a bit of relief that he can just give up on them as he does not want to be like other teachers who shout and pout and scold people for exhibiting such actions, and that justice be served on those who fail to heed the teacher's advice and respect the teacher.
"We cannot take canes and beat them, right? Why should we cane students who fail to listen? This is not helpful, but exerting harm on the students. Instead, the best way to teach them a valuable lesson would be to give up on them. Unless we ignore them, they will continue such behavior in the class."
"Otherwise I will stop. I will stop here," he said, plopping himself down on the chair. "I give up. It is pointless having this discussion. I will only continue if you wake them up. Can somebody wake them up, please?" he asked.
Sophie then tapped their tables and shook Kevin Tan, who woke up. "Ha! How are you!" cried Mr Thomas. Then, Mr Thomas proceeded to ask the others to wake up. He then told Eugene Ho and Jien Min to go and wash their faces. Mr Thomas then continued his rant, saying that it is not fair to everyone if the teacher uses his time to scold or call people up. "It is a waste of time, you know. Some of you are here to learn and have put in the necessary effort," said Mr Thomas, pointing to me as an example. "But others are not like this. I hope all of you can respond to my emails. If you don't respond, I think I will stop sending emails. I also want to close down the Edmodo. It's a waste of time for me," groaned Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas was frowning. He said that he will not continue teaching if everyone behaved like that. He made sure everyone promise him to respond to his emails and do the tasks via the blended learning exercise before moving on.
During lunch time, I then went to see Yan Ying, and greeted her. She had returned from the United Kingdom. Ivyna, Hao Yinn and the entire 11N class were giving her a welcome party. They decorated the class with a series of party streamers and then held a banquet with food and drinks. It was a pity that Yan Ying had missed the 2017 Sports Day. She could have had been a great house captain, unlike her replacement.
Yan Ying did not sit for the IGCSE Trial. As such, she was not able to have a forecast grade. However, Yan Ying was told to sit for some tests to determine her forecast results. So, she had to sit for those tests throughout the entire week. In fact, Yan Ying also missed out on a lot of things, such as the Study Camp, the Malay IGCSE Examination, as well as the wonderfully-executed Teacher's Day celebration.
During Character Transformation, every Year 11 student was told to take a mugshot picture of themselves in the school hall. Ms Lim had told us that we needed to take a mugshot photo for the purposes of them being displayed during the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony. At the same time, Ms Lim also said that we were to send in a picture of ourselves when we were a baby. When Ms Lim announced that, everyone was surprised and shocked but also excited at the same time. Each one of us had a puzzled look on our face.
11N was the first class to take their mugshot. We had to line up in the order as per our namelist, and Ms Tan and Mr Jeffrey were the ones taking our photo.
While waiting for my turn to take my photo, I was thinking of heading to the same college as every one of my friends. At least, we can still meet each other everyday. However, I also had another concern: what would happen to the Bullseye victory plans? That would soon become a big, big, issue.
I had plans to become house captain for the year 2018. I had mentioned this on the Global Perspectives Edmodo page. In fact, during the Global Perspectives lesson that day, I had talked about such plans. Enisha said that I would no longer be a student of Nobel, hence rendering my plans useless. Then, I said that I wanted to make Bullseye win as an ex student if I could not become the house captain. Enisha said that my plan will fail. I was determined to prove her wrong. However, I was afraid to tell Ms Lim this for fear that she will chide me. Ms Lim had stopped every ex student
I did not even talk to Ms Lim about this plan. My frustration, anger and high emotions arising from the Sports Day 2017 loss to Touchdown was a hard pill to swallow. I was scolded by many people for proposing the plans, which I feel did not get executed. Some, of course, were executed, but it was at the last minute. A series of fumbles led to the loss of Bullseye to Touchdown. We had won 2014, 2015 and 2016. We had the plan to win 2017, but it had failed. And I had tried my best to find things to replace the loss of Bullseye as a student in Nobel when in Year 11. The Awards Day skit failed to appease me. I had banked my hopes on a Top in Malaysia for First Language English, and this was further motivated by Justin Yeo's success in Malay IGCSE. But what if that failed? The one last plan; win Nobel Cup 2017, which, according to the calendar, was scheduled for 13th November 2017. That day would be held in the midst of the IGCSE exams. I planned to head to Nobel Cup when there are no exams. More on that later.
Anyhow, I was waiting in line to take my picture, and smiled when Ms Tan and Mr Jeffrey took my photo. Ms Lim then said that other classes would have their photoshoot during break and lunch time for the convenience of everyone because it was impossible to take everyone's photo during the Character Transformation session. Mr Jeffrey had a fatigued look on his face as he sweated like mad, particularly because the air conditioning units at the back of the school hall were out of order.
Then, Ms Lim talked about our seating arrangement for the graduation ceremony. She then told us we could book tables and then informed us she will paste a chart in which we can write our names on them. I wanted to sit with Caleb Chuang, but I needed to indicate to him which table he was sitting at on the graduation night. Yes, the graduation ceremony would be held at night.
Then, we returned for History, and Ms Visa discussed History Paper 1. We gave our answers in the class and discussed them. Ze Khai and I compared our marks. He won me again. I mean, like, it is good to compete in an examination, right? At least, we can have the same fun and joy as the World Cup or the Olympics. It would motivate us to study.
After History, I returned to the Art Studio to complete Prep 3. There was no Business Studies remedial that day, since Ms Chithra cancelled it. Ms Nadia picked more leaves and pictures. Then, I had to draw a picture of trunks in a pot, and planned the color scheme with Ms Nadia. Once that was done, I begun working on it. The usual stayback sessions were on.
Ms Nadia walked around the room, checking on everyone's art pieces. She then talked to Louis, who was doing the Zigzag question. Ms Nadia guided him as he took the patience to paint his art. Then, Ms Nadia walked to Faythe Chow. "Eh, Faythe! No talking! Faster! You are very slow!" she cried, as Faythe was talking to Natasha Singam. And Ms Nadia also issued the same reminder to Natasha Singam, reminding the importance of keeping with the deadline of the Art and Design IGCSE examination. I took the time to touch up all paintings while the trunk painting dried. The work came off as clean as fine art. As the stayback session drew to a close, Ms Nadia then delivered the good news to me. I can finally start Prep 1 the next day, 15th August. Yay!
I feel so happy. Finally, I am meeting my target for Paper 1. If only Ms Nadia allowed us to stay back after school during IGCSE Trials, I would have had finished the four preps for Paper 1. But there is no time to waste. Lost time must be made up.
The next morning, 15th August, I then did touch-ups on my Paper 2 upon reaching school. Then, at 7:30am, I left for the classes. Ms Chithra was waiting for me. However, Ms Nadia said that I had to keep my art supplies because the Year 10 will be using the Art Studio for their Art lessons.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra continued discussion of Paper 1 to an annoying choir of remarks stating how gorgeous she was. Then, it was Art, and I returned to the Art Studio to continue with my prep work. However, Ms Bee Yong and Ms Praveen were in the Art Studio. They had something important to talk to us.
Ms Praveen then told us that we were very slow and that we need to speed up. Then, she talked to us about the prep work format and how we were to keep them. She said that we will need to begin Paper 2's prep works as soon as possible by the next week even if we hadn't finished Paper 1's prep works. Then, Ms Nadia displayed some Powerpoint presentation slides that showcase pictures for every question. For each question, many of the pictures shown were very straightforward despite them being lengthy. The biggest controversy was Question 2 of Paper 2, which showcased a poem by Christina Rossetti.
Who Has Seen The Wind?
Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I:
But when the trees bow down their heads,
The wind is passing by.
Christina Rossetti 1872
The only pictures shown on the slideshow by Ms Nadia were a series of trees being blown in stormy weather. It is the HARDEST question of all the Art and Design IGCSE questions. Ms Feeda in the past forbade us from doing such questions. When a show of hands was requested for this question, no onw put up their hands.
"Luckily no one choose this question. If someone choose it, I will have heart attack," said Ms Nadia, to laughter from the whole class. By then, Ms Sim had arrived.
"This question is very hard," said Ms Sim. "I also don't understand this question. It is not like the question asking about sports and games equipment, which is very straightforward. Even the question that asks you to create a title screen for a computer game is much more easier to understand," she said, shaking her head at that question.
Once Ms Nadia was done presenting the questions, Ms Praveen then talked about the timeline. She said that there were only SIX WEEKS till the Paper 1 exam for the Art and Design IGCSE Examination. The Paper 1 Final Piece will take a total of eight hours, four for each day. Paper 1’s Final Pieces occur on 25th and 26th September 2017 and the Paper 2 Final Piece will take place a week later, on 3rd and 4th October 2017.
"For those who are still on Prep 1, you need to buck up. You are very slow," she said. Ms Nadia then mentioned Faythe Chow, Timothy Hiew, Natasha Singam and Yen Tong's names. Ms Praveen then told them that they need to complete their preps or else they would not be able to venture into the Paper 2 prep works. Then, Ms Praveen and Ms Sim left the Art Studio so that Ms Nadia can continue to discuss with us.
After the briefing, Ms Nadia said that based on Ms Praveen’s advice to us, she would give us one more week to finish the Paper 1 preps, and if we fail to complete our preps by the end of the week, we will have no choice but to abandon them, begin Paper 2’s preps, and complete the Paper 2 preps by the middle of September so that if we are lucky enough to finish early, those that have not completed Paper 1’s preps can do so. And that was the ultimatum.
I then got started on my Prep 1, and all I had to do was to find the artist reference and copy the first batch of paintings. Ms Nadia then asked me to produce my photos. "You must take different photos, Wei Yiang. If you take this amount, it is not so good," she said. Ask your mum to take a picture of the plants outside the Art Studio when she comes, okay?" she asked. Then, she selected one photo of the texture of the pot and told me to copy it. She denoted the size to be painted. I then sketched the drawings in my Student Organizer and denoted the colors. Then, I proceeded to paint the pot. Ms Nadia then checked on it and told me to get rid of the white spots, which are areas not touched by the paintbrush.
Meanwhile in the Art Studio, Eu Lynn and Sara Yow were talking about the latest fashion trends. And everyone was talking about the Study Camp 2, which kicks off the coming week. I had overheard Ms Praveen and Ms Nadia's discussion which would allow us to do our prep works until 11:00pm at night if the Study Camp 2 was held at night. I shivered. However, Ms Nadia confirmed to me that it would be a day camp during school hours.
Once the Art lesson was over, I set my prep work to dry. Then, I went up to 11N to get my food container. Caleb Chuang was on his way back from the ICT lab, and I greeted him. I talked to him on the way back to our classes. Then, I proceeded to the canteen to purchase a ticket for the concert, which costs RM 120. A booth had been set up at the corridor near the upper canteen for us to get our tickets.
A lot of students crowded the booth, and tickets were selling off like hot cakes. I managed to get one very last ticket that was sold. Mr Steve and Ms Sarah were manning the booth.
Then, I waved at Ai Lin and she gave me a high-five. She then asked me if I was planning to come to the concert, and I nodded. She had a really good chat with me.
After the booth visit, I then returned to class where Mr Thomas discussed Paper 3 with us. While discussing, he spoke about how I used North Korea as a basis for my composition. He scanned the class, making sure that everyone listened and not dose off. Then, during History, Ms Visa discussed our papers as well. Brandon Ooi spent the time playing AZ Tanks with Ze Khai before the start of the lesson. Later, it was lunch, and I could see the sound and lighting system being tested for the concert.
Ms Glory discussed the Maths papers. Once again, Nickolas Nashpal and I compared our marks. I achieved a total of 34 marks out of 70 for Paper 2, while Nickolas got a total of 52 marks out of 70. "Too bad! You lost! I won't challenge you again!" cried Nickolas Nashpal. I was laughing like mad and was laughing wholeheartedly. Mr Chan then came over and we explained the 'competition' to him. He was also grinning. Nickolas Nashpal had promised not to challenge me again if I lost. Then, it was Economics, and Ms Sharon then returned our Paper 1 and Paper 2. I got 16 out of 30 questions correct. I was dealt with another blow as Nickolas Nashpal told me he ain't playing any games with me in terms of challenging us on the subjects. I sighed. He jokingly told me that he wouldn't want to converse with me anymore.
There were no remedial classes that week due to the discussion of the questions. There would also be no remedial classes the coming week due to the Study Camp 2. Ms Sharon and Ms Chithra had informed me of the non-existent remedial classes. At least, I can spend more time doing my prep works.
Ms Nadia then told us that Ms Feeda was planning a visit to Nobel. She wanted to see how we are doing in our prep works. Everyone in the Art Studio was excited, especially Yi Zhen, Eu Lynn, Benjamin Tenji and Timothy Hiew. It would be Ms Feeda's first time visiting Nobel since she had left us in November the previous year. I also felt excited to see Ms Feeda. I want to show her as to how I had changed my attitude and improved myself in Art and Design IGCSE. I wanted to prove her wrong that she had doubted my capabilities to do Art and Design IGCSE. And I also want to prove to her that I can get a C when she had doubted my ability to get a C.
I thought of showing my Art preps to Ms Feeda because I also want to tell her how much I had improved and did some effort to make the improvements as opposed to trailing in Ds and Es in Year 10. I want her to feel proud and happy for me for turning over a new leaf. I felt excited to present my work to her. My case was like a sudden miracle - a student on the brink of failure having a turnaround and succeeding. It was like an unbelievable point, but Ms Feeda would be coming soon. I felt that she would be very proud of me for what I had achieved in 2017 as opposed to being in 2016.
When my mum came to pick me up, I took a few pictures of the preps with my mum’s phone before leaving the Art Studio. Then, that evening, I connected to Ms Feeda's contact and shared the prep works to her via WhatsApp. Ms Feeda, of course, gave her own points and suggestions, but she said that the prep works needed a bit of refinement from her point of view. The one good thing that she said was that my work was very nice. She didn't say anything about being proud of me, but then gave her own opinions and points on the prep work.
The next morning, on 16th August, I discussed with Ms Nadia in the Art Studio when she came in the morning. I presented the school plants picture to her, which I had printed at a stationery shop near my house and that she asked. Then, I was told by Ms Nadia to proceed to paint the picture on the prep work. Mind you, each prep work contained so many paintings. It was tiring, but worth it.
While painting, I then talked to Ms Nadia about Ms Feeda's comments on my work. As I was beginning to explain about the conversation with Ms Feeda, she then raised her voice at me.
“Why did you show your preps to Ms Feeda? This is an exam work and you cannot be taking pictures of it and sharing it with others!” she cried. At first, I was puzzled to hear this because there was no exam occurring and was in disbelief over why a prep work could not be shared. After all, this is not a Mid Year Examination or a Final Year Examination, neither is it held in exam conditions. I was baffled.
"Wei Yiang, did you share it with other people or only with Ms Feeda?" Ms Nadia boomed. I then told her it was a one-to-one discussion with Ms Feeda. Ms Nadia then said that I should not even be taking a picture of my prep work and everything in the Art Studio was confidential. Being puzzled, I wondered why this can be a big issue. How can this be an exam condition as to what Ms Nadia spoke of? How can this be a serious matter? After all, it is not an exam condition and copycatting people's work is illegal. To make matters worse, Ms Feeda had displayed samples of prep works on her blog, and there were so many samples and pictures of prep works pasted on the walls during the Art Exhibition which is held every PTM meeting, as well as in the Art Studio. Everyone could see the prep works all over the place when visiting Nobel. Ms Nadia then lectured me sternly as to how this can constitute a deduction of marks. Not only that; she told me that I might FAIL my Art and Design IGCSE and also she might not want to assist me anymore. That was harsh.
I mean, like, I was still puzzled. In fact, I was having the most puzzling look on my face ever. How could this be a very serious issue? It was the first time I had heard of it. Even Ms Feeda had snapped pictures of everyone else's prep works and posted it on her social media accounts. It was normal, so I was wondering how abnormal that was. Ms Nadia then calmed down upon hearing my comments from Ms Feeda. It was a one-to-one issue. Then, there was silence for the rest of the time. Even Hao Yinn, who was in the room, was baffled as to what was happening when she entered. Ms Nadia then told her to get her things and begin her prep work.
Ms Nadia then told me to find an artist to do the artist reference, and I had to think of what to put.
Upon returning to class, I was waived past the late line as Ms Bee Yong and Ms Lim had informed the prefects on the Art and Design students returning from the Art Studio, which resulted in us being let through. Zi Quan and Michelle Ott were taking down those who arrived late. It was an opportunity for me to see how the late line looked like.
When I reached 11N, Mr Kevin Wai was in the class reading his book. Then, I went to take the Control Book and Smartboard equipment, but however, Sheng Jit had brought them to the class and taken the attendance accordingly. Mr Kevin soon realized I was in the Art Studio to do my prep work.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra then continued discussing Business Studies Paper 2, which she had marked. I performed much more worse on Paper 2 than Paper 1. It was like a guilt to me. A lifetime guilt. Then, I returned for Economics, where Ms Sharon handed us our Paper 2. We had discussed the Paper 1 the previous day and were in the midst of discussing Paper 2. Ms Sharon then talked about how many people did not use the key terms properly or went out of the explanation and off topic.
After the Economics lesson ended, I checked my answers with Nickolas Nashpal before asking Ms Sharon to sign. Then, I went to find Mr Raja, who signed the control book in satisfaction. He had forgotten to sign it. Following my meetup with Mr Raja, and after looking at the school hall and talking to Jordan and Rick, I then headed to the Art Studio to continue my prep work.
Ms Nadia was still not in a good mood from that morning's incident. She told me to use the computer and find a painting from the Internet based on the drawings which I am doing. I selected a leaf painting by Georgia O' Keefe, and sent it to my mum to print it out. Then, Ms Nadia said that I should print it from the library as it is faster. I was worried that Cikgu Afza, the head teacher of the library, will lecture me for not doing my part of printing the work from home.
Ms Nadia then told me to head to the library to print out the picture. I was nervous about printing the picture in the library. Ms Nadia gave me RM 50 and told me to pay it to Cikgu Afza, the then-head of Nobel, International School's library when printing out the picture.
So, I walked to the library, met Cikgu Afza and paid the printing fees. "Why didn't you print at home?" she asked. "Ms Nadia asked me to print it," I replied. Cikgu Afza then asked what the picture was for, and I responded to it being used for my prep work. Cikgu Afza then asked me to search for the picture, and she printed it for me.
Then, I presented the photo to Ms Nadia, who said that it was too small. So, she gave me another RM 50 and told me to print the painting again. I scurried up to the library, printed a larger picture, and returned to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia then told me to reserve the smaller picture to be pasted in the prep work. I spent time during the lesson to draw and touch up the painting. Ms Nadia had asked me to copy Georgia O' Keefe's painting onto the prep work by painting it.
Then, everyone entered into the room and continued with their prep works. Ms Nadia spent time entertaining Chee Kei, Eugenie, Hao Yinn and Yen Tong on the K-Pop songs. Then, she also went around and spoke to Timothy Hiew and Eu Lynn. Glen then looked at me and smiled. Then, I asked Ms Nadia to come and check my work. "Good, continue," she said.
"What about Ms Feeda?" I asked, curious to know about her coming.
"Don't talk about Ms Feeda!" she cried.
The day then carried on with another discussion of the Mathematics papers for IGCSE Trial as Ms Glory gave us our Paper 4 for discussion. Nickolas Nashpal and I cracked jokes as we compared our marks. Afterwards, we then had lunch, and I sat down with Sophie and Yi Zhen for lunch, since Caleb Chuang was so stressed with his results. Then, I went to the school hall. Mr Steve and a few people from Year 9, such as Yeoh Ning Jie and Lim Shu Yi, were setting up the PA system. A mass rehearsal was about to take place that afternoon. This was because I overheard Mr Steve announcing that there would be an after-school rehearsal. It was going to be quite interesting. We then returned to class to discuss the History papers, and Mr Gallagher taught us how to structure our essays for the exam.
Upon returning to the Art Studio, I then continued drawing the artist reference. Then, I presented the work to Ms Nadia to be touched up. She approved of my actions. Then, I continued my work. Once that was done, Ms Nadia then told me to do a color scheme based on the artist reference, which was Georgia Keefe's leaf painting. I had to color a series of colors from dark to light color. Timothy Hiew, Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Lyn Wen and Benjamin Tenji went to 7-Eleven to buy some food. They came back with a lot of snacks which puzzled Ms Nadia in the process.
Meanwhile, in the school courtyard, a large crowd of dancers in costumes were lining up outside the school hall. I saw the large crowd when heading to the Art Studio from 11N, as well as when I headed to use the washroom. The rehearsal took a long time. Even when my mum came to pick me up, not everyone had headed home yet. Not to mention that Ms Nadia was also involved in the rehearsal, and she had to leave us while we did our prep work.
The next morning, on the 17th August, I came to school early and finished touching up the leaf painting which I copied. This time, to save time, Ms Nadia allowed me to have my breakfast in the Art Studio. I had also bought the First Language English past year papers, completed some work inside the booklet, and handed them to Mr Thomas to mark for me that morning. He told me that he will return the past-year booklet back to me during the English lesson later on.
I then went back to the Art Studio to complete my work. Then, once that was done, Ms Nadia then told me to begin drawing the picture of the school's long-leafed plant. Finally. The final painting for Prep 1 and I would be done.
I returned to class, as Ms Sharon told us to do some past year questions from Paper 2. She handed a worksheet containing the Paper 2, Variant 2 paper from October/November 2014. I presented her the control book and placed the Smartboard pens and eraser on the tray of the Smartboard.
I then asked Nickolas if he were to race. "No," he said, shaking his head. Then, I continued my work. We were told to answer questions 4, 5 and 6 in Section B. I took out my test pad and begun writing the answers. Many people had completed their work in the book, so Ms Sharon then gave us that worksheet. The assembly songs then blared in the courtyard, especially 'It's a Small World After All'. Brandon then begun singing, resulting in Ms Sharon asking him to keep quiet and do his work. Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas gave us a handout of a text titled 'The Pedestrian' and worked on the exercises based on the text with us.
During break time, a live performance rehearsal was occurring in the hall, and many people peeked through the doors of the hall to watch the rehearsal. There was loud music blasting from the school hall. A series of Year 10 dancers were dancing. They were wearing ties as Mr Steve watched on in amazement. Then, I spoke to Jordan and Rick as we walked down the hallways. We waved at Auntie Clarine, who was in school inspecting the concert practices.
After break time ended, we went up to class as Mr Lee continued discussion of the Combined Science papers in class. He pulled out Paper 6 and then brought the paper to us. Once again, Nickolas Nashpal bested me again and the whole class was really interested in the competition. Then, we had Global Perspectives and then Business Studies, where Ms Chithra talked to us about what to bring for Study Camp 2 the coming week. She told us to bring the two past year paper booklets to do them.
The day soon continued with more concert practices. The noise was unbearable as loud music continued to echo from the school hall. I ate a quick lunch, headed to the Art Studio and then attempted to continue with my prep work. Ms Nadia stopped me. "I need to discuss your Paper 2 questions," she said.
As opposed to Paper 1’s questions, which had one question which is done as per my liking and is quite straightforward, such as ‘Potted Plants’, Paper 2 involved a series of weird design questions, which I do not know which one was the easiest. I suggested to Ms Nadia for her to choose the question which was easy for me to do and something for me to overcome, and Ms Nadia chose Question 5 which asked me to use nuts and bolts as inspiration to design lettering for the word “Workshop”.
When I first thought of the question, I was thinking as to how I would have to do it. Ms Nadia told me to ask my mum to get some nuts and bolts from a hardware toolbox at home. It took me some time to digest the question. I was wondering how to navigate that question for Art and Design. In fact, the question appeared to be so difficult. I am not a hardware guy.
Everyone was not allowed to continue their prep work till the end of the day. And Ms Nadia told us that she hopes to see us begin Prep 1 of Paper 2 the next day. She told us that if we were allowed to continue our Paper 1 prep works, we would never get started on Paper 2 and would fail the Art and Design Actual IGCSE exam. She would keep our Paper 1 prep works and not allow us to touch it.
To compensate for that, Ms Nadia gave us additional stayback periods on 25th August, the day of the PTM 2 (Parent-Teacher Meeting 2) as well as on 28th, 29th and 30th August during the 2nd Mid Term Break. We were also given time to do our Art and Design IGCSE preps on 19th August for a full day which was the day of the Gen – N Dreaming Out Loud concert. We were only allowed access to our Paper 1 prep works on 19th and 25th August. Ms Nadia was very strict on this. We were not allowed to touch our Paper 1 prep works at any other time, for fear of us not being able to complete Paper 2 on time.
The class originally vouched for 21st August 2017, which was to stay back during the school's self-declared holiday in conjunction with the concert, but Ms Nadia wanted a rest. She was involved in performing in the concert, and felt it was too tired having to come to school to prepare the Art Studio for us. If only we had staybacks in July, I could have had finished my Paper 1 quicker. If only. But there was no time to waste. For the time being, Ms Nadia allowed us to do our Paper 1 preps till the end of the week.
Rosemund then asked if anyone wanted copies of watercolor paper. I paid the RM 2 fees to her so that she can buy them. Then, we were told to head back to our classes. I went back for History, where Ms Visa allowed us to do our own revision. Then, I returned to the Art Studio. Since Ms Nadia was involved in a performance for the Gen-N Concert, Ms Ajee then took over. Almost everyone was involved in the concert that afternoon, and a rehearsal was occurring in the school hall. Ms Lim and Ms Bee Yong were there to oversee the rehearsal while we worked on our prep work.
Timothy Hiew, Lyn Wen, Sara Yow, Yi Zhen and most of the people in the Art Studio went to purchase their food and drinks from 7-Eleven. Then, Ms Nadia approached Ms Ajee, who was in the Art Studio to handle us. She had a nice, white transparent umbrella with fancy dress. Ms Nadia then asked if the umbrella was nice, and I gave good remarks. I worked on the school plant painting. The plant was very difficult to trace due to its interlocking leaves. When I was done, I then presented the painting to Ms Nadia, who nodded at it. Then, she told me to begin painting. So, I started painting the delicate plant. It was quite challenging to paint. This is the most difficult painting in the entire Paper 1 prep series. To make it easier, Ms Nadia told me to bring crayons to settle the painting.
On another note, Timothy Hiew said that Ms Feeda would most likely come to Nobel the coming week, during our Study Camp 2. Everyone looked forward to it. Then, Lyn Wen and all the people in the Art Studio then listened to Bohemian Rhapsody and sung along with it for the rest of the day, and they all talked about various artists of songs, along with celebrities.
The next day, Friday, 18th August, was the final rehearsal day before the concert. The entire afternoon following school hours would be used for the concert rehearsal, while the lessons would go on as scheduled in the morning.
On the morning of 18th August, I went to the Art Studio to continue my painting. I brought colored pencils to paint the painting. Ms Nadia told me that I would have the last two days to do my painting for Paper 1. "Next week bring the photos, ya. We will start Paper 2 already," she said. Then, she told me to begin Paper 2 from Prep 1 instead of Prep 4. The reversing periods had ended.
Ms Nadia said that the entire management already knew about it and took the matter seriously and warned me not to share the pictures in the future. “Ms Bee Yong already knows about it, you know,” she said. I was wondering what was the big issue with me sharing with Ms Feeda one-on-one, and I asked Ms Nadia that, since it was meant to be a PRIVATE conversation.
“What if Ms Feeda shares this to more people? In fact, Ms Feeda contacted me and asked why you even took the picture in the first place!” she cried.
It turns out that after I shared the photos to Ms Feeda on my prep work, Ms Feeda had subsequently shared my prep work and gave some good and bad remarks on my prep work to Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and Ms Nadia, causing all of them to know about this. Ms Nadia showed me her WhatsApp contacts with all the comments from Ms Feeda. It looked weird, because there are so many samples of prep works and final pieces displayed in the Art Studio. Alston Tee's work was there. Yi Ruth's work was there. Tian Huey. Reanne Koh. Lim Shermaine. All the big names in Art and Design IGCSE. How can their work be up on the wall when it is even forbidden for me to take a picture of my prep work? It's not like as if one could copy it. And I asked Ms Nadia that.
“Those prep works you see in the Art Studio are already COMPLETED prep works for Art and Design IGCSE. Their exam has ended. Yours is still ongoing, so you cannot take the picture. In fact, if you want to have the photo up there; and in fact, if we teachers want to display the student's work, we have to ask them for permission, you know!” she cried. I then had to explain to Ms Nadia about how I intended to tell Ms Feeda that I have improved and done well. I almost teared up when talking about this achievement.
“You know what? Ms Feeda told me that you have improved a lot and asked you to continue your prep work,” she said, smiling at me. “In fact, she told Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong this, and all of us are happy for you and proud of you.”
I was literally tearing up. “Really? Did I do anything wrong?” I asked. In fact, I cried, and Ms Nadia patted me and asked me to wash my face.
“No, no, just don't take a photo of your prep work again, okay?” said Ms Nadia. I thanked Ms Nadia for the compliments. She told me that no trouble or serious matter other than that had occurred. And yes, Ms Nadia confirmed to me that Ms Feeda would indeed be coming on Wednesday, 23rd August, or Thursday, 24th August, to meet us. She had to confirm the time.
While the Art and Design prep works preparation was not held in the examination conditions, the types where you cannot bring things in to cheat and you would be disqualified if doing so, the prep works are, in fact, examination pieces, which is something that I do not know.
During our Homeroom time, Lyn Wen told me that the prep works are in fact not allowed to be shared even if we want to ask for people’s feedback, because the prep works are based on the questions we got from Cambridge and the prep works, are, in fact, part of the examination process, including the final piece. It is the prep works that tie in with the final piece and just like the final piece which we do under exam conditions, all the prep works are compiled with the final piece and sent straight to Cambridge International Examinations (now called Cambridge Assessment International Education).
When Mr Kevin Wai took our attendance, he briefed us on the upcoming Study Camp. He told us that we will spend the whole day in the school hall to work on our Study Camp. "You need to bring your past year papers for your session," he said, and told all his students in Mathematics Core to do the same. Then, Mr Kevin reminded us of the one-day school holiday on 21st August 2017 and that we should not come to school that day. Mr Kevin Wai also told us to refer to the timetable on Study Camp 2, which he gave us on Wednesday, 16th August.
During PE, I then had a chat with Ms Nadia as Mr Victor did our normal exercises. Ms Nadia told me to do Paper 2 starting in the correct order, from Prep 1 to 4. This is because Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong also asked her why I am going from Prep 4 to Prep 3, 2 and 1 in the opposite direction when in fact, Prep 1 should be done first. Ms Nadia thus instructed me to begin Paper 2 from Prep 1 based on Ms Praveen’s remarks. Then, Ms Nadia also told me that I will need to begin Prep 1 for Paper 2 that afternoon.
When I asked Ms Nadia if I could begin planning from Prep 4 to Prep 1 while painting from Prep 1 to Prep 4 based on the final piece, Ms Nadia did not allow that. She said that unlike Paper 1, where a clear-cut layout in which we can use the photos we took for our final piece, the one for Paper 2 is very different as it involves design and not fine art per se. So, I needed to come up with designs. At the same time, I did not have an idea in mine for my Final Piece in Paper 2 as opposed to Paper 1.
Mr Victor then did push-ups, sit ups and other usual exercises. He told us to do strength training again, which strained our muscles. Then, during break time, I then went to meet Rosemund, who told us that she will hand us our watercolor papers that afternoon. The day then continued with our usual lessons. During Maths, Ms Glory reminded us to bring our past-year papers and told us to do them during the Study Camp. We spent the entire lesson doing the past-year papers as Mr Chan walked around to guide us. Then, it was Global Perspectives, and Mr Gallagher once again told us to bring our iPads and electronic devices just in case we need to use them. Then, it was Combined Science, and Mr Lee had a funny lesson with us.
As everyone returned from Tutorial Room 4, I spoke to Cassandra and Lyn Wen about the Art preps as we walked into the class. Then, when we entered the class, Brandon Ooi, Ryan Chok, Eric Wong, Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal played some jokes and arm-wrestled each other. Then, Brandon Ooi talked about a lot of funny things, from his latest games to how Aaron Liew can become a professional arm-wrestler. Then, they played behind the class. They also talked about how many times they played with each other.
Then, Mr Lee entered the class. He was carrying his bag which hung from his arm. All the boys behind the class then saw Mr Lee entering. And Brandon had a cheeky idea. He cheered Mr Lee's name.
"LEE ENG HOE! LEE ENG HOE!" cried Brandon. Then, Shane, Eric, Ryan Chok, Ze Khai and even me started chanting his name.
"LEE ENG HOE! LEE ENG HOE! LEE ENG HOE!" we cried.
"Please don't call people's name," said Mr Lee as he gave a puzzled look on his face. Then, he plopped down on his seat and then signed the control book. It reminded me of me myself calling my neighbor, Mr Hing, in his full name, Hing Fook Soon. Mr Lee then handed us some past year papers. He also told us that we will be doing past year papers during the Study Camp 2. Then, he provided us with some past-year papers to do in the class. He gave us our Paper 3 and 4 worksheets and briefed us. He then told us to do some past year papers and explained concepts in a funny manner that was so amusing. As fast as it begun, our Combined Science lesson came to an end. Sheng Jit and Eric Wong brought food from the canteen. We were served spaghetti. Then, we were dismissed from class. I went to get Ms Janice to sign the control book before heading to the Art Studio.
After reaching the Art Studio, I then had my lunch by snacking on home-cooked food brought by my aunt, who was on standby. Then, Rosemund handed us two watercolor papers from ArtFriendz for our Paper 2 preps.
Ms Nadia then told me to find an artist reference for Paper 2's Prep 1 immediately. I chose a Google doodle which was drawn in the shape of a steam engine as the inspiration for my art piece. She then asked me to print in the library, but however, the library was closed for the day. So, Ms Nadia told me to refer to the computer and do the painting while asking me to print the Google doodle via my mum. Ms Nadia also urged me to get more nails and bolts and take pictures of them during the weekend as they weren't enough. "I will only allow you to go to Prep 2 once you have finished all the work. You cannot move to the next prep without my permission," said Ms Nadia, as I was thinking of planning for Prep 2 since Ms Nadia told me that only two pictures were needed for Prep 1.
I spent the entire afternoon with less guidance from Ms Nadia to draw the Google doodle which looked like a steam engine. Ms Nadia was involved in the rehearsal for the Gen-N Concert. I begun painting at 2:00pm. While painting, I talked to Lyn Wen, who was asking about which prep we were in and which question were we doing. Yi Zhen and Louis chose the question to design the CLIMB computer game screen page based on stairs. She took pictures of her house's steps which had the same tiles as me, since we live in the same area. Louis was also designing the CLIMB computer game screen page as well. Christopher Chew and Benjamin Tenji were using their basketballs to design the 'NerG' design based on sports and games equipment. The two of them like playing football, and had chosen the question.
At 2:15pm, Lyn Wen and Timothy Hiew went to 7-Eleven to buy things for the rest of the people in the Art Studio. Yi Zhen and I had a chat while doing the painting. Then, I had finished sketching the Google doodle, and had begun applying color to my work. While doing the work, I then proceeded to do some touch-ups. Then, while waiting for the touch-ups to dry, I went to the hall to see what was happening.
Mind you, the rehearsal was in full swing. The noise of bass music could be heard booming through the walls of the Art Studio. Since the Art Studio was located behind the school hall's backstage and Elementary School staffroom, the sound was so loud till it blasted and boomed, causing all the windows and tables of the Art Studio to vibrate like an earthquake. The vibration was so loud till Faythe Chow's water container containing the brushes spilled onto the floor.
I then went to the washroom and carried a mop, and Faythe thanked me. Then, once I was done, I went to the washroom to return the mop back to its designated place. Then, Ms Nadia returned, and while walking along the corridor, I asked her to check my prep work. Then, she agreed and told me to take more pictures of nuts and bolts during the weekend. I was told to touch-up the Google doodle image.
I spent some time toning some colors to make the Google doodle steam engine look real. While toning may seem like a 15-minute job, it actually took me three hours just to do the Google doodle painting. Unlike most people, who chose an artist reference from an established artist, the Google doodle picture was the closest piece of art I could find from a painting of nuts and bolts.
Soon, some people decided to leave when they were done. Yen Tong had to leave early, followed by Wei Wei. Most people stayed till 4:00pm to finish the work. We just did our work while Lyn Wen got some work done.
Speaking of Lyn Wen, the entire Art batch was planning to give a gift to Lyn Wen for her birthday. Eu Lynn and Timothy Hiew were spearheading a fundraiser of a gift to buy for Lyn Wen. I decided to contribute RM 10 to buy the gift. They spent the entire stayback session that day talking about what to give Lyn Wen on her birthday on 29th August. Timothy Hiew proposed a stayback session on 29th August so that we can celebrate Lyn Wen's birthday. Sara Yow was also on board with the project.
After a second round of concert planning, Ms Nadia returned to the Art Studio with her costume. She showed it to us. Timothy Hiew's eyes lit up and he grinned, showing off his braces. Ms Nadia had a nice, white gown and a white umbrella decorated with tonnes of jewelry. Ms Ajee then helped her to put up and adjust her shirt. Eu Lynn jokingly asked if she could accompany Ms Nadia on the concert stage, but Ms Nadia glared at her. "You should be doing your prep work. You are very slow, you know," said Ms Nadia. Then, Ms Nadia asked us if we had purchased our tickets. I said yes, and many people said yes, too.
Gen-N – Dreaming Out Loud Concert is a concert prepared by Mr Steve and Ms Sarah Wong, who directed the performing arts landscape in Nobel International School. The two of them had been scouting for talents from across Nobel and have made a lot of announcements in the last few weeks in terms of preparation for the concert. The concert was held on 19th August 2017 in the school hall. It is Nobel’s first concert since the 10th Anniversary Concert on 17th and 18th July 2014 at HGH Convention Centre.
Three years had passed since that concert. The purpose of the Gen-N concert was to showcase Nobel's talents, as always.
And unlike the 10th Anniversary Concert, the Gen-N concert was to be a day filled of pomp and fanfare. It was meant to be a talent show and not a mass, grand concert. However, it still has a much higher quality and is also able to attract a higher sense of excitement than the 10th Anniversary Concert in 2014.
The Gen-N Concert has around 15 performances ranging from a skit to a series of cool, K-Pop dances. While the 10th Anniversary Concert was meant to be a celebration of talented, world class performing arts and a symphony of legacy building, the performance for the Gen-N concert was of a much more lesser-than usual expectation. This talent production was intended to give a platform for new rookie performers to showcase simple skills and also provide some confidence performing in front of a much more smaller audience; hence the holding of the concert in Nobel International School and not the HGH Convention Centre. And despite the lesser sense of expectations, the quality was great.
The morning of the 19th August 2017 was a showcase of pomp and great affair. Ms Nadia allowed us to do our prep work for half the day as she would arrive at Nobel in the afternoon for the concert. I arrived at school at 1:00pm to prepare for the start of my prep work for Paper 2 after having lunch from home.
The school was already bustling with crowds of performers, dressed in nice concert attire. Some were changing into their performing attire in the washrooms, while others, including Mr Steve, were handling the logistics for the big night. There was to be a final dress rehearsal of the concert that day before the 3:00pm show.
I then met Ms Nadia, told her to come to the Art Studio, and presented some pictures that I had taken from a hardware toolbox from my house. Ms Nadia selected a bolt and a metal doorknob and told me to paint them on my prep work. So, I spent the whole afternoon to paint the two pictures.
I first started painting the metal bolt on the top left corner of my Prep 1 of Paper 2. For that afternoon, Timothy Hiew, Faythe Chow, Natasha Singam, Yi Zhen, Lyn Wen, Chee Kei, Hao Yinn, Wei Wei, Yen Tong, Sophie, Chu Xiang, Hao Yinn, Wee Shiang, Cassandra and Enisha were there to do the prep work.
Timothy Hiew and Natasha Singam then cracked jokes about people doing sexy things in life. Then, Lyn Wen was talking about memes and fashion. And Chee Kei and Yen Tong kept on playing K-Pop songs in the Art Studio to allow them to concentrate on their work.
After spending one and a half hours to trace and paint the metal bolt, I then did some work in my First Language English past-year paper. I plan to present that work to Mr Thomas on Tuesday, 22nd August. Then, I painted the doorknob. The metal bolt was grey in color and the doorknob was gold. I had to mix black and yellow to make the goldish color.
Trying to tone a piece of metal bolt was really tricky. I had to keep on dipping and adding white and black many times to get the correct color, confirming this by using rough paper to test the paint by dipping on it. And then, I had two containers filled with water to filter the paint. I had to wash my paintbrush many times to ensure it is clean enough to be used.
Then, Lyn Wen and Yi Zhen were asking which questions did we choose for the prep work. All of us responded on the topics we had chosen. The 'Workshop' lettering question was chosen by me and Chu Xiang. Being a hardware guy himself, as he had done the 'Building site' question in Paper 1, Chu Xiang was really much more proactive than me on the Workshop lettering. He had drawn a lot of scaffolding and construction cranes on his prep work.
Yi Zhen and Louis were doing the 'CLIMB' computer game screen question. But above all, many chose the question which allows the student to develop a design for a talent show named 'Cutting Edge'. And many chose to draw figurines and fashion models with the dress design originating from leaves.
Suddenly, as we were doing the prep works, the vibrating from the rehearsal soon started again. The blasting caused all the tables to shake, and I speared my painting when the whole tables shook, thanks to the noise from the school hall vibrating the walls and the room like an earthquake.
I then stopped for a second as I waited for the vibrating to end. Then, I continued with the prep work and managed to touch up the first painting, which was on the bolt. Then, I proceeded to touch up the second painting, which was the doorknob. I did both paintings at the same time for greater efficiency. I was wearing my PE outfit that day as it was much more comfortable than my uniform.
After the rehearsal ended at 2:30pm, Ms Nadia came back to the Art Studio to check on my prep work. Then, she told me to plan on starting my Prep 2 and present the plan to her.
Then, at 3:00pm, a lot of people in the Art Studio kept their things and went for the concert. I just spent time to do my touchup in the Art Studio. I was the only one doing my work in the Art Studio, aside from Lyn Wen, Hao Yinn, Cassandra, Chu Xiang and Yi Zhen. Thirty minutes into the concert, I went to the school hall to watch the concert for a short while as my prep work dried. I presented my ticket, and saw a few people dancing on stage.
The hall was crowded with folks who had come to watch the show. The arches were lit up with golden lights, and loud music was playing in the school hall. After watching, I returned to the Art Studio to complete my prep work. I did the touch-ups and then rested and waited for the paint to dry. To speed things up, I used the hair dryer to dry my prep work.
At 4:30pm, Ms Nadia returned to the Art Studio once her performance had ended. Everyone complained about the tables and furniture in the Art Studio vibrating. "Sorry, sorry! Just hang on for one day. Afterwards, there will be no issue," said Ms Nadia. Eu Lynn was disgusted. Her figurines were smeared thanks to the vibration. Then, everyone asked Ms Nadia about a possible stayback on Monday, 21st August. "I will think about it," said Ms Nadia, pledging to discuss that with Ms Praveen. I got my Prep 1 done, and at 5:00pm, my mum took me home. Ms Nadia asked me to prepare some lettering for Prep 2. If, at the rate which I was going, were to be realized, I could finish my prep works for Paper 2 by the second week of September.
That evening, I wanted to return to Nobel to visit my friends. Initially, my mum was skeptical, but then relented. So, I reached Nobel at 9:00pm and then went to the school courtyard. The Art Studio was closed for the night. I met Ms Glory in the school courtyard and told her about improvements I wished to make for Mathematics. She told me that the only area that I had to improve was on trigonometry and quadratic equations. "Just keep on practicing the past year paper and you will be fine," she said.
The 7:00pm concert was very lively. More people attended the concert. In fact, the concert was attended by a majority of people from Year 11, such as San Ying, Brandon Ooi, Ryan Chok, and the like. Zi Quan was there, and so was Ting Yi, Bethany, Brittany, Yong Xuan, Faythe Chow, Christiana Chin, Kai Yee; at least half the Year 11 batch were there, including Caleb Chuang.
When the concert ended at 9:30pm, a lot of people sprung out of the school hall, and I got the opportunity to mingle and chat with my friends. Lyn Wen was there, asking why I suddenly returned for the concert. I told her that I was excited and just wanted to see.
Then, everyone introduced me to Caleb Chuang, who grinned. "Caleb! Your best friend had arrived!" cried Lyn Wen. Then, Caleb Chuang and I had a chat. Soon, we were chatting away and talking to Mr Thomas, who gave us a sense of wisdom and remarks for the exams and the Study Camp.
"The questions are very easy. All you need to do is to read the text and understand it," said Mr Thomas, who was attending the concert.
"Yes, Mr Thomas!" I cried.
"The examiners want you to understand the questions, you see. So, they are trying to test your character as well. You must show them that you understand the question. And when you write, you must include all the main points to prove to them that you understood the question," continued Mr Thomas. Then, Caleb Chuang asked him a few questions on the summary and I asked on the composition part. Mr Thomas then gave his tips on how to succeed. Then, my mum took pictures with me and Caleb Chuang, and I also took a photo with Mr Thomas. I also got the opportunity to take a group photo with Jia Yiu, Timothy Hiew, Zi Quan, Jien Min, Yi Zhen, Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow, Natasha Singam, Co Sheen, Sophie Tan, Cassandra and Enisha, who were attending the concert. We took the photo in the school courtyard. The chairs in the school hall were stacked up by th
I met Mr Steve soon after and gave good remarks about the concert, even though I did not watch the whole show. I proposed to him to hold an outdoor concert which would look very cool. "No lah," said Mr Steve. "Outdoor concert is very difficult. Later if it rains, then everyone will get wet," he said. I nodded my head in agreement. After all, Jackie Chan, a singer from Hong Kong, did outdoor concerts. And I proposed to Mr Steve that a Chinese concert be held. He laughed when I told him that he could be the lead singer. We went home happily and in joy, talking about the concert. In fact, the term, ‘Gen-N’ refers to ‘Generation Nobel’, showcasing the culture and tradition of the school in the concert.
The next day, 20th August, I met my neighbour, Mr Hing, who showed me some nails, nuts, screws and bolts to design the Workshop lettering. He opened his toolbox and we took pictures of more nails and bolts to be used.
Art and Design IGCSE Paper 2 is a different breed of question as opposed to Paper 1, which focuses on fine art. This is also why the subject itself is called Art and Design; there’s one paper which focuses on doing art, and another which focuses on the design aspect of things. The design paper focuses less on fine art, which is something easier to do for everyone, since there is less emphasis on toning, mixed media and painting techniques.
To give one an example of how fast it took to finish Paper 2, I only had to draw three mixed media drawings for Prep 1 of Paper 2 which was that of a nut, a screw and an artist’ reference which was the Google Doodle image of a steam engine. It took me a day to finish painting Prep 1, and hence, progress to the next prep work.
As Prep 2 focuses on the design lettering of the word “Workshop”, it also took me another week to complete drawing all drawings. This was also made easier since I spoke with Ms Nadia how the final piece would look like, and she agreed with me on my choice of a poster for the lettering, provided that the proper order of preps be produced. I told her the choice via WhatsApp, but she told me to follow the proper flow with the idea of the final piece in mind.
Ms Nadia soon agreed for us to return to school on 21st August, which was the school's holiday due to the Gen-N Concert, although she told us that we will only have three hours that day for the prep work. She then fixed the time from 1:00pm to 4:00pm.
The turnout was massive. The Art Studio was filled with the frequenters, such as me, Lyn Wen, Sophie, Timothy and Yi Zhen. When I reached the Art Studio at 1:00pm, Ms Nadia was in the Art Studio. I plopped my things down and sat down. Ms Nadia worked with me to touch up the Prep 1 of Paper 2. Then, I used some pencil to do some hatching. Once done, Ms Nadia told me to draw some word fonts for Prep 2. She selected a bolt, nail and two screws for me to draw them. She asked me to present the designs on a piece of paper for approval before sketching them on my prep work.
I took some time to do the screws and paint them before presenting the work to Ms Nadia. Then, I took a short break, read a vocabulary book by Marianna Pascal to enrich my learning of idioms, and then continued my work. Lyn Wen, Natasha and Eu Lynn were talking about so many famous singers in the class.
Meanwhile, in the school hall, Ms Bee Yong and Ms Praveen were preparing the hall for the next day's Study Camp 2. A funfair-filled environment was being transitioned into one of serious business. I saw the configuration of the hall change when going to the washroom. I updated Ms Praveen on me heading to Prep 2, and she was delighted. “Very good, Wei Yiang, keep it up!” she cried. Then, I went to use the loo and returned to the Art Studio to complete my Prep 2 paintings. I presented the work to Ms Nadia, who approved of it. I then continued touching up the work before the short, three-hour session ended.
During the entire time, Ms Nadia walked around to check the work. She chided Natasha, Faythe, Yen Tong and Eugenie for being too slow on their prep work. She also went around to guide people on their work and give advice to people when they are stuck. At the end of the stayback session, we kept our stuff and Ms Nadia gave us a briefing. We had looked at the timetable for Study Camp 2, and there was no session which was allocated for Art and Design, unlike the Study Camp 1 in April. Ms Nadia told us that the management will sort that out for us.
Study Camp 2 soon arrived. The second one was suitable for me as opposed to the first Study Camp, as it was held in school and not at a distant place. It was held from 22nd to 24th August 2017. This meant heading home every day, just like a normal school day and not an overnight sleepover, hence eliminating my feeling of homesickness. It was much more relaxing to have the Study Camp in school, which was a familiar setting for me.
For this Study Camp, it would be following the same format as the first. Just like the first Study Camp which was held on 21st, 22nd and 23rd April 2017, we had to hit the books while sitting at our desk for hours.
STUDY CAMP 2 PROGRAMME
Tuesday, 22nd August 2017
Time Programme
7:45am Gather in School Hall
8:00 – 9:00am Session 1
Finding a balance/Reality check
9:00 – 10:30am Session 2
Chemistry/Combined Science
10:30 – 11am BREAK
11 – 1pm Session 3
Block 1 (History/English Literature/Global Perspectives/Economics)
1 – 1:30pm LUNCH
1:30pm – 3:30pm Session 4
Additional Mathematics/Mathematics
Wednesday, 23rd August 2017
Time Programme
7:45am Gather in the hall and warm up
8:00 – 10:30am Session 5
Mathematics
10:30 – 11am BREAK
11 – 1pm Session 6
Block 4 (Information and Communication Technology, Business Studies, Accounting)/Biology (Group 1)
1 – 1:30pm LUNCH
1:30pm – 3:30pm Session 7
English First and Second
Thursday, 24th August 2017
Time Programme
7:45am Gather in the hall & warm up
8:15 – 10:15am Session 8
Block 2 (Accounting/Business Studies/Information and Communication Technology)
10:15 – 10:45am BREAK
10:45 – 1pm Session 9
Physics (Group 1 & 3), Biology (Group 2), Economics (Group 4)
1 – 1:30pm LUNCH
1:30pm – 3:30pm Session 10
Additional Mathematics (Group 1)/Block 3 (Additional Mathematics, Global Perspectives, Economics)
Group 1 refers to the students from 11O, Group 2 are 11B and 11E students, Group 3 are 11L students while Group 4 represent the students from 11N.
Prior to the Study Camp on Friday, 18th August, I had spoken to Ms Praveen to allow me to bring a plant to the Study Camp as I feel that having a plant makes me improve my communication and serve as a motivational tool for my First Language English preparation. She was okay with it and said that I could do so if I could improve my concentration. Well, concentration must be improved since I am for the Top in Malaysia for First Language English. The grand goal cannot be sacrificed. It would be a fitting replacement to Bullseye's loss to Touchdown on 31st March 2017. I chose a Chinese ‘money plant’ and placed it in a plastic bottle filled with water. It was a versatile plant; one that can grow on land and in water. I used a steel container to stabilize the bottle by placing the bottle inside the steel container. Then, I proceeded to paste some motivational words on the plant. Just like how the banner motivates the Bullseye people to do their best on Sports Day, I believe that the plant would make me do a good job in my IGCSE exams, especially First Language English, the planned crown jewel of them all.
On the first day of the Study Camp 2, I went to the Art Studio to draw some of the Workshop lettering after having the designs approved by Ms Nadia. I drew a total of seven font designs for the Workshop lettering. I planned to create some logo-style lettering for the Workshop font as required by the question. Then, at 7:30am, Ms Nadia asked me to leave the Art Studio as everyone was gathering in the canteen for the start of Study Camp 2.
Study Camp 2 was a second chance for us to improve on our conduct during Study Camp 1 and also to allow us to mentally prepare for the IGCSE exams, which will kick off in a month and a half's time. At the same time, it was also another chance for us to not be distracted by other things which can happen during our preparation for the exams. The Study Camp 2 aims to build on Study Camp 1 and continue from what we went wrong in the Malay IGCSE exams in May, and the IGCSE Trials at the beginning of August. Overall, I got a pretty decent grade for my IGCSE trials, despite some subjects which need improvement.
Everyone waited in the canteen for the school hall to be operational for the Study Camp. Everyone was sitting down at the school hall and waiting for instructions. The large crowd of Year 11 students took up every single seat and table in the school canteen. Thereafter, when the school hall’s doors opened, we entered the hall and sat at our seats according to our name list and get settled for the day. Ms Praveen was asking everyone to enter the hall quickly as Ms Bee Yong, Ms Cynthia, Mr Kevin, Ms Sha, Ms Yew Foong Ching, Mr Lee and all the other teachers were watching. Ironically, the decorations for the concert and the backdrop of the event on stage were not taken down. The signs “Dreaming Out Loud” in cursive writing and the three tall arches were still perfectly standing on the stage. I had my pencil case and Student Organizer on the table for good measure. We had to bring the books for our subjects according to the Study Camp 2 programme and our teachers told us what to bring. Most of them asked us to bring past year papers that they have provided in class.
I also made a table in my notebook highlighting the possible predictions and placings of the top 10 students plus my ranking for the eight subjects I would sit exams for this IGCSE session come October 2017. This was to motivate me and see where I stand and how I can improve on certain aspects of things, since I want to become Top in Malaysia for fame. A similar strategy was used for the Founder’s Run to motivate me to improve as well. I also predicted who would get Top in Malaysia and Top in the World for the particular subjects.
Eng 1st Maths (E) Comb Sc (E) Econ History Art GP Business
1 Justin Yeo Justin Yeo Kelsey Le Anne San Ying Yi Zhen Rosemund Le Anne
2 Ye Sean Natasha Chok Megan Kit Lee Alicia Vicky Megan
3 Aaron Loke Desmond Eric Yi Zhen Cassandra Rosemund Alex Goh Kelsey
4 Wei Yiang Fang Yi Ze Khai Christiana Rosemund Natasha Sherwin Ivyna
5 Vicky Caleb Shane Joshua Chew Berlinda Sara Yow Wei Yiang Brandon Ooi
6 Ellie Le Anne Nashpal Eu Lynn Ze Khai Eu Lynn Yen Tong Nashpal
7 Faythe Chow Joseph Diong Krystal Berlinda Brandon Ooi Timothy Ashley Vicky
8 Alex Goh Rick Tan Wei Yiang Sara Yow Sheng Jit Sophie Tan Caleb Jason
9 Caleb Chuang Yi Zhen Alia Pranavee Wei Yiang Chee Kei Sarah Low Sean Mark
10 Joseph Diong Joshua Chew Wee Shiang Han Ming Krystal Enisha Kevin Tan Zi Quan
WY Wei Yiang (20th) Wei Yiang (25th) Wei Yiang (30th) Wei Yiang (85th)
Getting a Top in Malaysia would be a great pride for everybody. For me, it would be a second manifestation of the Founder's Run in academic form. As well as a chance to show off that I am not just great in sports, but also academics, too.
I am not an academically-centric person; nor myself being a booksmart, but a streetsmart. I struggle in my studies, but succeed in other areas.
As I entered the hall, I went to my seat. We were arranged according to our name list as per class. I then placed the plant on my table and then waited for everyone to come into the school hall. Many of the people in the hall saw my plant, and Mr Kevin asked me on that, too. He was curious as to why I brought the plant. That was when I told him of the Top in Malaysia plan. What my Bullseye banner was to the Bullseye members, was the plant to my IGCSE studies. Even Ms Bee Yong was baffled on the plant. Many of my classmates took turns peeking and turning their heads to look at the plant.
Once everyone settled down, Ms Praveen gave us a short briefing and outlined our expectations for the Study Camp.
“Okay, good morning, Year 11 students. Welcome to Study Camp 2,” she beamed. The hall was a bit drowsy, so Ms Praveen greeted everyone again with thunderous response from the crowd.
Ms Praveen said that for Study Camp 2, we will be following the same format as the first study camp that was held at Paradise Valley Resort in April. She said that as since we have gone through one study camp and several rounds of examinations, we should be knowing what to do during the camp. Fortunately, this camp was not something that we should be sleeping in thereafter.
“For those of you that have dropped some of your subjects, and the subjects you dropped are on the timetable, you should be continuing with your own revision,” she said. Ms Praveen then asked if we can give the full cooperation during the camp and we said yes.
Our first agenda of Study Camp was, once again, a talk with Ms Cynthia to open the camp, just like the first one. Ms Cynthia was handling the session “Finding a balance/Reality check”. Ms Cynthia then begun the discussion by highlighting the time between August 2017 and the IGCSE examinations in October 2017 and how much time we have left to prepare for the exams.
“If you look at how much time do you have, your exams are around the corner,” she said.
Ms Cynthia spoke in a soft, but bold and calm tone. She then said that anyone who had not started their preparations for their exam “should be worried”, as we have finished the IGCSE Trials and are on course to heading towards the actual exams in two months’ time. She also said that we needed to find the balance for the exams.
Ms Cynthia then divided us into groups for an icebreaking activity that we had to do that morning. We had to sit in groups and discuss how we can find a balance between studies and relaxation. I joined a group consisting of me, Sherwin, Julian Ong, Joshua Chew, Caleb Chuang, and a few other people from 11O. So, Ms Cynthia called for volunteers to explain and I was the first to explain how I can balance between my studies and relaxation. As I was called to explain, everyone was smiling and clapping as I begun to speak. I told everyone that I study in a relaxed mode as I believed that being relaxed is key to good performance. Then, Yi Zhen volunteered to answer the question on study methods. After that, Ms Cynthia then told us that we should make the best of the remaining time we have and worked with us to set goals on why we should be doing what we are doing, that is to say, being focused for the IGCSE exams. She also gave us a reality scenario on what we can do better on study techniques such as mind maps and notes in order to improve our study skills. We were also taught how we can set goals that are realistic and what can be achievable in terms of our grade and post-IGCSE studies in college and university.
After meeting with us, we then went for our first session which was the Chemistry/Combined Science session. For this session, it was a compulsory session in which we 11N students took Combined Science and the rest of the classes opted for Chemistry. Mr Nick was seen handing out past year papers to the students who took Chemistry, while Mr Lee came to aid us in answering the past year papers he gave for Combined Science. Mr Lee was proactive and motivating, especially to Louis and Gabriel Lim who had some difficulty trying to answer the questions. He also came to me and asked how is everything, to which I responded, “all good”.
Then, Mr Nick taught the Chemistry students on tips to deduce covalent bonds and chemical equations. He made an announcement to the whole hall on how to deduce them, writing the equations on a large whiteboard in front of the school hall. He also taught everyone, including us who were taking Combined Science, on how to refer to the Periodic Table which is printed at the back of the exam paper.
When Brandon Ooi tried to crack a few jokes with Mr Lee, he was told to do his work. Then, I focused on answering the past year paper. It was very easy and very straightforward to do. Mr Lee asked if I was okay, and I nodded and responded to him.
The set-up of the Study Camp 2 was about the same as the first Study Camp, but better. A whiteboard was set up along with a canteen table for the teachers to put their work. The hall was much more spacious because of its large size. Because the tables were placed in an exam format, it was easy for the teachers to walk around and check on us, due to the gaps between the tables.
The teachers did not have to comprehend with a much smaller space, as they used the stage of the school hall to put up their past year papers and stationery which were handed out to us students. There was a row of canteen tables placed behind the school hall for teachers to do their rough work or rest. Benches were placed next to those tables so that it can be more comfortable and spacious for the teachers to do their things.
Some teachers, who were tired, sat down at the back of the hall, including Mr Kevin, who looked around with a nice smile. At the same time, Mr Chan was also there to take care of us. He walked around, greeting all of us and aiding those in need. He watched over us as we focused on our full concentration to do our work.
Soon, we had break time and then we went to the canteen. Yi Zhen and Jien Min looked so curious trying to snap up what plant was that on my table and we had a discussion on it. “Nice plant,” Yi Zhen said. I then went to sit with Sophie, San Ying and all my Art and Design batch people in order to discuss the prep works. Then, I went to have a chat with Caleb Chuang before we were called back for our next session.
On the way back to the school hall, I waved hi to Ai Lin and her friends, who gave me a high-five. Then, I also met some people in the canteen, including Loo Zane, on the prospect of the next house captain election to decide the fate of Bullseye. That was important as well.
The next session focused on the subjects of History, English Literature, Global Perspectives and Economics. As three of the four subjects were subjects that I am taking for IGCSE, we focused on the subjects based on the assigned block. As History is my Block 1 subject, I decided to pay attention to History. Ms Visa and Ms Cynthia were there to guide us.
Ms Visa and Ms Cynthia then gave us some past year papers to answer during the session. A quote on the cover page, titled, ‘History may be kind to me, for I intend to write it’, which was written by Winston Churchill, was on the front cover page of the past year paper booklet. Answering a question based on the Cold War was very easy, since there is a great hype over the North Korea nuclear missile treats by Kim Jong Un then. Ms Visa conducted the History lesson for those from 11N and the rest of those from other classes were conducted by Ms Cynthia. Ms Visa was smiling and going around to see if all are okay. She also asked if I was doing fine and I said yes.
Each student had to sit in an exam format in the school hall. The seating format was much better and much more comfortable. There was a gap between each table in the examination format, but however, there was an even bigger gap of around six metres in the middle of the hall to form a walkway that teachers can easily access without banging into the tables and students’ peace, just like the study camp in April. There was also a larger space behind the hall for teachers to sit down and do their work.
Ms Cynthia talked about the format for History; the Paper 1 was on Core Content, which consisted of the Paris Peace Conference, Treaty of Versailles, League of Nations, the Cold War and the rule of Eastern Europe under Communist regimes. Paper 2 talked about the agreement between two sources, and Paper 4 was on the Depth Studies, which focused on Nazi Germany and life in 1920s America. Ms Visa once again reminded us to focus on Nazi Germany as it was related to the Paris Peace Agreement and the Treaty of Versailles, which was easier to comprehend.
While doing the work, Ms Visa greeted people like Gabriel and Louis, who had dropped History. The Global Perspectives students, meanwhile, were given a worksheet by Mr Gallagher to work on. The Economics students were told to take out their past-year papers from Paper 2 to attempt the structured questions. English Literature students were armed with The Merchant of Venice to refer to in their writeup by Ms Sarah.
During the session, I can hear ‘It's a Small World’ being played. Then, ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go Go’ for the assemblies. The tune of ‘It's a Small World’ cheered me up and made me feel better. When I felt tired, I looked at the plant and am motivated.
Then, at 1:00pm, we had lunch, and I waved hi to Ai Lin again and told Loo Zane that she was my preferred candidate for House Captain of Bullseye. She was shocked, but then relented.
After lunch, we had Additional Mathematics and Mathematics session where Ms Glory, Mr Chan and Ms Janice (for Add Maths) came to help us. We then took our past year papers given to us by Ms Bee Yan who left Nobel at the end of June to continue our practices. I tried to concentrate as much as possible to solve so many questions. Mr Chan was always the proactive guy, helping anyone with a serious talk and his sharp concentration to offer assistance to tackle the questions. Then, Ms Glory handed us a Paper 2 past year question to work on. It was a separate worksheet, and we were told to do it.
The session was filled with happy faces from the teachers, as everyone took the Maths session really seriously. We then worked on it as Nickolas and I competed again. I had told him to compete before the session begun, and he agreed to a contest. I focused on concentrating and did my work.
Once the session was over, Ms Praveen then told us that it was our end of the first day. “Now, tomorrow, you must wear your PE attire. We are going to have a Zumba tomorrow morning,” she said, telling us that we can gather in the hall immediately when we arrived the next day.
We were then dismissed. Mr Kevin and Ms Praveen told me to leave the plant on my table. I then headed to the Art Studio to continue my Prep 2, painting the fonts as asked to by Ms Nadia. Timothy, Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow and Benjamin Tenji soon left for 7-Eleven. I spoke with Louis, who was staying back after school for the first time as we did our prep work. The four people that went to 7-Eleven returned with food and tonnes of snacks.
When Ms Nadia checked on us, she looked at Louis’ work and guided him accordingly. Then, she took a good look at mine and asked me to touch up the work. She then told me to create borders for the outline of the Final Piece on my prep work at home, and produce a color scheme for the logos, which I did by painting the various colors in different tones on the top right corner of Prep 2. Then, once I did the color scheme, I then presented it to Ms Nadia, who agreed with me and told me to present the border designs once I was done with my work.
The next day, 23rd August, was a bit of a fun time where we had to wear our PE attire for the day. I then did my prep work in the Art Studio till 7:30am, and Ms Nadia told me to draw the border designs which she had approved on my prep work. Then, once that was done, I proceeded to the school hall to place my things down.
Every Year 11 student who arrived early was ushered to the school hall, which was open, and we placed our bags at our seat. The reason why we had to wear our PE attire was that we had to do a few dance and Zumba moves.
In the school hall, Han Ming had printed out some Economics notes from Z-Notes, as well as that of Chemistry and Physics. He handed a copy to Jordan, Jearn Xiu and Ting Yi. Then, he sat and chat with them while I walked around the hall, talking to Krystal, Yan Ying, Ivyna and a few other people from 11N and 11O.
Speaking of Yan Ying, she had to do a few assessments the previous week and was not in class for the entire day; only returning to 11N to take her meal coupons for lunch. Then, Ivyna and I talked about Bullseye to Yan Ying, asking why did she abandon the house so early, resulting in the 648-649 tie. Yan Ying did not believe that the one-point gap was true. And when I asked her how she felt about Study Camp, she was exhausted and gave a tired look on her face. Fortunately, everyone was used to it. Ivyna tried to motivate Yan Ying but she was so exhausted.
As for Krystal Goh, she had told me as to how she was asked to come for the Gen-N concert but was unable to make it and that it was inconvenient for her due to her house being in Kuala Lumpur. Then, she also talked about the concert and asked if I met Caleb Chuang during the concert. “We had a really good time. I had so much fun with Caleb Chuang,” I cried, resulting in Krystal groaning and laughing.
At 7:45am, Ms Praveen came in and made an announcement. She asked all of us to settle down. “Year 11 students, can I have your attention please?” she asked. She told us about the Zumba session and asked for volunteers to go up on stage to lead the Zumba. So, I volunteered, and everyone cheered for me as I waved on stage. There were a total of six volunteers asked to do the Zumba exercise. Many people cheered for Caleb Chuang and asked him to join me, but he declined. Eventually, Jane Yap, Benjamin Fong, Aristotle Koh, Ethan Wong and Sean Mark went on stage. Ethan Wong and Sean Mark high-fived me before starting the exercise.
So, the teachers played us music in order to get us to dance and move around. The music was of a funny but rock-style music as we twerved our bodies. Because I made so many funny moves, even all the people on stage also followed me, and many people got exhausted after I led them. After moving around, we then continued from the previous day’s session where we focused on Mathematics. As usual, I tried to tackle the past year questions and get through from there, and Mr Chan was seen attending to those who cried for help. The same was said with Business Studies in the next session when Ms Chithra came to supervise the session.
Mr Chan was the man of the hour. His patience and calmness soothed those who were stuck and were in doubt. His actions were not just one that comforted people but also reassured them that everything was fine. His technical expertise in teaching Mathematics helped us tackle the questions. Ms Glory then came around to help us to do the questions as well. I continued doing the work, motivated by my competition with Nickolas Nashpal.
A sea of numbers and letters greeted me as I tried tackling the equations. I skipped questions to which I feel I cannot do, and when in doubt, Mr Chan helped show the way to me on how to tackle the questions.
Soon, the first session ended, and we went for break time. I high-fived with Ai Lin once again and went to talk to Caleb Chuang. Then, I went to see Melvyn Lim and Ethan Chan to discuss the next Bullseye house captain elections.
I told them that Nobel Cup is very important if we were to win the year 2018. I told them in part of my intention to come back as an ex student to support Bullseye. All were skeptical on that. It looked like a plot from a dream; a fantasy. In fact, Ethan Chan, Melvyn Lim and Aaron Yong expressed their support for me as house captain if I was a student. However, as I was about to leave Nobel, they said so otherwise.
Then, it was the Business Studies session, and Ms Chithra and Ms Vishalini were in for the session. Alongside Ms Vishalini and Ms Chithra, Mr Raja was there to aid the Accounting students, Mr Narish and Mr Stellio were there to help those taking ICT, and Ms Renee was there to supervise 11O, who was taking Biology.
Ms Praveen then made an announcement on what we should be doing. While Ms Sim made the announcements for Study Camp 1, it was Ms Praveen who was doing so for Study Camp 2.
Ms Renee then provided some past year papers for those in 11O to do them. They were tackling Biology Paper 6; the hardest question of all papers which involve lab questions. Nobel, unlike other schools, use the Paper 6 Alternative to Practical exam because the other option, which was to do a lab experiment in an exam setting, was too logistically demanding. This was the same for Biology, Physics and Combined Science.
For us Business Studies students, we were told to do our past-year papers from our booklet. Ms Chithra made an announcement for all the Business Studies students to take out their blue, binded past year paper booklet. Nicole Kau and a few other people including Sophie Tan were chanting, “Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous!” Ms Chithra then brushed them aside and asked them to continue their work. So far, every subject had required past year questions.
As I looked at the past year questions, I then took a break and stared at the plant to motivate me for the next session which was First Language English, as Mr Thomas and Ms Yong would be coming. I had written motivation messages on its pot to cheer me up.
At the same time, Mr Raja had also handed out questions on Paper 1 and Paper 2 for Accounting, guiding students on how to balance the Accounting books. Mr Narish and Mr Stellio were also providing questions on how to answer the ICT Theory questions in the exam. They gave out three sets of ICT Theory Paper 1 from 2014, 2015 and 2016. We then spent time doing the exam, as Ms Praveen told us to have a break to stretch before continuing our work. The teachers continued walking around the hall, while Ms Praveen watched us on. Everyone spent time doing their work and did the questions together. Meanwhile, Ms Sha and Ms Bee Yong had arrived to see how evryone was doing. They looked at us for a short while before leaving.
At 1:00pm, we then had our lunch and I sat down with Jordan, Rick, Jearn Xiu and Mr Lee, who was having lunch with them together. Jordan kept on talking about his ambition as a pilot, amazing us. Then, I met Ai Lin again, high-fived her, and then continued my discussion with Ethan Chan and Aaron Yong about the Bullseye House Captain Election.
Soon, after lunch, we had our English session with Mr Thomas, Ms Joyce, Ms Charine and Ms Yong. Mr Thomas then came into the hall, striding happily and boldly with his serious facial expression. When Mr Thomas saw me and I greeted him, he smiled. “How are you?” he asked.
Then, Mr Thomas walked to me and whispered to me. “I had spoken to your mum. You told her that you had an ambition to get Top in Malaysia for First Language English. Is that correct?”
I nodded. I was surprised that my mum told him that. He was informed of that during the Gen-N concert. “Hrummmph!” cried Mr Thomas as he gave a stern smile, and smirked.
Uh oh. Now, Mr Thomas is aware of it. He jokingly told me that he wouldn't help me if I had an aim to get Top in Malaysia for First Language English. Then, he smiled, and gave me a hard pat on the back. Then, he looked at the plant and its pot, took it up and then looked at it. He then saw all the North Korean drawings as well as the plans for First Language English on the pot. “Haiiih!!!” he cried, seeing the plans. “Why did you want to aim for a Top in Malaysia?” cried Mr Thomas, laughing at me.
While the English Second students were given past year papers to do from Ms Joyce and Ms Charine, Mr Thomas and Ms Yong gave us instructions through announcements and just asked us to bring our English notebooks instead.
Mr Thomas and Ms Yong gave us some reading passages to do in our exercise books and then wait for instructions. They gave out a small piece of paper containing the work for the day. It contained a passage from Paper 3, as well as a composition exercise.
“Read the passages carefully,” Mr Thomas beamed to the crowd.
“Students who are taking First Language English, please listen carefully,” called Ms Yong. She then explained the passage and what should we do to answer it. We then started answering the passages and then Mr Thomas gave us a word of advice before the end of the day. I tried to think of North Korean stories for my composition, which Mr Thomas gave us. Then, I passed my First Language English past year papers to Mr Thomas, who pledged to mark them. We spent the rest of the day, from 1:30pm to 3:30pm, to attempt the work Mr Thomas gave us.
On the other hand, Ms Joyce was checking 11N's English Second students. When Ms Joyce came over to me, she gave me the thumbs up upon seeing my First Language English work. Bewfore long, the session was over, and Ms Praveen told us that we will return for the next morning's session, praising us for our conduct during the Study Camp.
“I am very proud of all of you. It is just the second day of Study Camp 2, and all of you have improved since Study Camp 1; I was told. Well done,” she said, asking us to give ourselves a round of applause. Then, we were dismissed. I then proceeded to the Art Studio to continue my prep work.
Every afternoon following the Study Camp sessions, I would proceed to do my art preps in the Art Studio at the end of the day. But however, everyone had a concern. The morning session after the warm up on Thursday, 24th August was not having the Art and Design subject, and we were wondering about the arrangements for Art and Design IGCSE. Ms Nadia said that we could be called to the art studio for the Art and Design session, so she told us to have our art supplies on standby the next day. I then took time to do the borders of the prep work and Ms Nadia told me to paint them. Once again, Timothy, Sara, Eu Lynn and Lyn Wen went to buy food from 7-Eleven. Sophie and Natasha tagged along too.
When I finished creating a border design made out of circular bolts, Ms Nadia told me to do another one based on nails. So, I did one in an easy manner, but as I was drawing the first few nails, it was time to head home. Everyone just did their prep work. Then, Ms Nadia told us that we can station our art tools overnight, just in case we were to draw again the next day.
The next morning, 24th August 2017, was the third and final day of the Study Camp 2. I then reached school as per normal, and went to the hall to put my things before heading to the Art Studio to continue my prep work. I then completed the border studies and headed to the school hall.
We then did a short warm up session of stretching and icebreaking activity. It involved some exercises from our PE lesson as well as other hand movements. The activity was led by Ms Praveen herself. Then, Ms Praveen came and addressed the crowd.
“Okay, all the art students, please stand up and go to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia is waiting for you. You will have your session in the art studio. Move now.” We then stood up and headed to the Art Studio to continue our prep works. Ms Nadia then continued with our preps, walking around and attending to those in need. She gave us books containing students’ designs from The One Academy. I just did my preps while most of the people chatted while doing their own. Eu Lynn, Hao Yinn, Yen Tong and a few others were guided by Ms Nadia on how to approach their prep works.
I then completed the list of borders and was told by Ms Nadia to touch up my prep work. Then, I did some touch-ups on Prep 1 as Ms Nadia took a second look at my Prep 1. She told me to add some color. So, I used white and black to make the toning on my screws, nuts and bolts.
Some of us spent time to look through The One Academy's art catalogue. Then, Ms Nadia walked around to guide everyone. Timothy and Sara Yow continued to crack jokes while everyone did their preps.
After the session had ended, Ms Nadia then told us to head to the hall for a briefing by Ms Praveen, who had come to the Art Studio to tell us to head to the school hall. When we reached the school hall, Ms Praveen made an announcement that following the end of the Study Camp at the end of the day, there would be an important briefing for us regarding the IGCSE exam, and we needed to stay back for the briefing.
We then went for break, and I greeted Ai Lin, high-fiving her once again. She asked me about the Study Camp. Then, Caleb Chuang was walking with me. I let him have his food on his own as I went to talk with Sophie and Yi Zhen, who were having breakfast with Kit Lee and San Ying. We then had a fruitful chat about the Study Camp thus far and our pathways of choice.
Later on, it was our Economics session in which Ms Sharon focused on answering the past year papers as she walked around to check on us. Those who had dropped Economics, like Louis, were left to do their past year papers, in which case, Louis was doing his Maths work. There was no time given during that free session to do the Art preps because time was needed to focus on the other subjects.
Ms Sharon told us to do Paper 1, Variant 1, May/June 2016 and then followed by Paper 2, Variant 3, October/November 2014. Then, she walked around and then I presented my answers to her to be checked. The Economics session lasted quickly. Those from 11O and 11L were having their Physics session with Mr Lee, who was walking around in a funny and enthusiastic manner, guiding everyone on their work. Those from 11B and 11E did their Biology session with Ms Renee, who handed out Paper 6 to them. This was then followed by a quick lunch, and then a session with Mr Gallagher, who came down to the hall to assist us.
Mr Gallagher told us to have our iPads and electronic devices for our Global Perspectives session as he asked us to find information from the Internet for our session as he guided us. He also gave us a past year paper to practice on for Global Perspectives. However, I just answered the questions without the use of my iPad.
As the Study Camp drew to its close, Ms Praveen congratulated us for making it through the last Study Camp. “I hope that with the end of the Study Camp, all of you are well-prepared and ready for your IGCSE. Now, I need all of you to stay back for a short while, because I am going to make an announcement on your IGCSE exams.
In order for us to improve from our IGCSE Trials, the teachers panned a forecast grade for all of us. Ms Praveen told us that the forecast grade would be based on our teacher’s assessment on each of our performances over the past year in terms of examinations, and the forecast grade that our teachers would give us would be based on what grade do they think we can achieve in the subject as they had experienced guiding us for the subject for years.
“Your teachers will give you your forecast grade next month,” said Ms Praveen. She also informed us on how the forecast grade would work. A forecast grade would be given as to how the teacher would feel of our performance in the IGCSE exams based on the Mid Year Examination and IGCSE Trials. And not just that; a forecast grade is not the true indicator of the IGCSE results, as the forecast grade is just a predicted grade by the teacher. The actual IGCSE results can be much better than the forecast results, or worse than that, too.
Then, Ms Praveen talked about the IGCSE exams. Every student would be subjected to a Study Leave, and the last day of school for Year 11 students was 20th September 2017. The next day, 21st September, would be the Awal Muharram public holiday, followed by the start of our Study Leave. During that time, students would not be allowed entry into the school, and a permission slip would be given, filled in, and handed in if the Year 11 students were to return to school to meet with their teachers. Technically, we would be treated as semi-outsiders and were barred from the school premises.
Once everything was done, I took my plant and then left for the Art Studio. Suddenly, we saw Ms Feeda at the Art Studio. Ms Nadia was with her, waiting for us outside the Art Studio as we returned to the Art Studio from the hall to continue with our prep work. Everyone greeted Ms Feeda. Ms Bee Yong was also there with her, talking with her. We then took out our preps and then continued our work. Then, Timothy, Eu Lynn, Benjamin Tenji, Lyn Wen, Faythe Chow, Natasha Singam and Sara Yow left for 7-Eleven once again.
“Aiyah! Mamak gang again!” cried Ms Feeda. She labelled those people as the 'mamak’ gang because of their frequent visits to 7-Eleven. Aside from the aforementioned people, Jia Yiu and Eugenie are indirectly part of the gang. Instead, they form another gang – the K-Pop Gang, consisting of Yen Tong, Eugenie, Jia Yiu, Chee Kei, Wei Wei and Hao Yinn.
Ms Feeda went around the room, checking on everyone as they did their prep work. She then came to Louis and asked how he was doing before checking on me, Glen and Yan Chern, who were staying back to do the prep work. I asked Ms Feeda how she thought of my prep work, and she said it looked good. “Make sure your work is neat, ya,” she said.
When the ‘mamak gang’ returned to the Art Studio, Ms Feeda then told all of us that she purposely came as Tanarata International School was having their holiday period and that she was free to join us and check on how we were doing. I told Ms Feeda about my prep works’ progress. Ms Nadia also told her about how much I had improved and then Ms Feeda was really happy with me. “Good, good,” she said.
Then, Ms Praveen and Ms Lim arrived at the Art Studio. They were on their way to the car park as they were taking their kids home from Tadika Sri Nobel. The car park was located next to the Art Studio. They then greeted Ms Feeda and gave her a hug. Ms Feeda had a light chat with them outside the Art Studio as I did my work. Then, I called Ms Nadia, who approved of my prep work. Then, I was told to start touching up the Prep 2 paintings. “Once you are done, that's all for Prep 2. You can start planning for Prep 3,” said Ms Nadia.
As the day came to a close, everyone gave Ms Feeda a hug. Yi Zhen had tears in her eyes when hugging Ms Feeda. And so did Enisha, Cassandra and Sophie. “Cher, please don’t go!” they cried. Then, Ms Feeda asked Yi Zhen how her work was.
“I think you can get Top in Malaysia, right, Zhen?” asked Ms Feeda. The whole room soon came alive as Ms Lim and Ms Praveen urged her on. “Come on, Zhen! You can do it! Next Top in the World award for Art and Design!” cried Ms Lim. Then, Ms Praveen smiled. “I think you will do well,” she said. Ms Nadia jokingly said she will ask the management team to belanja Yi Zhen and pay her some bonuses if Yi Zhen achieved Top in the World for Art and Design.
The next day, 25th August, was the last day of August before the Second Mid Term Break, in terms of schooling activities. During this time, everyone was winding down for the final schooling month for Year 11s; the month of September.
The 25th August was our PTM day as well. Ms Nadia had allowed us to stay back in the Art Studio for one whole day just to finish the prep works. I spent the entire day, from 7:30am to 5:00pm just to finish my prep works.
As usual, I came to the Art Studio to get my prep works done. Ms Nadia told me to ask my mum to bring me to snap pictures of various objects in preparation for Prep 3 of Paper 2. Then, I went up to the staffroom to get my books from Mr Thomas. He gladly handed me the past-year booklets. “I have done some marking in it. Please read the comments,” he said.
Then, I returned to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia told me that I should continue touching up Prep 1 and Prep 2 before moving to Prep 3. So, I did. I spent the whole morning looking through my preps and then touching up the paintings with paint and pencils.
The first people to reach the Art Studio were Chee Kei, Hao Yinn and Eugenie, who came that morning and did the prep works with us. Ms Nadia then also told us that we can touch up our Paper 1 preps. She had allowed me to do some touch ups on my Paper 1 preps since I had come close to finishing Prep 2. All that was needed were photos for Prep 3, but both Prep 1 and Prep 2 for Paper 2 must be touched up first.
I spent the morning working on Prep 1 and Prep 2 for Paper 2. I did some outline on the Workshop lettering font for Prep 2. I used a marker pen to trace the outline. When it did not come out quite well, I used a small brush to apply black paint on the edges of the seven fonts to touch them up and make them look nice. Once that was done, I applied some toning onto the bolt to make it look realistic.
At 9:00am, Yi Zhen arrived in the Art Studio to do her prep work. The room was silent without any music being played. Then, Wee Shiang and Cassandra arrived.
Then, once that was done, I begun working on Prep 1. While working on Prep 1, I tried toning the colors. I spent a total of two hours to tone the colors on my prep work. Eugenie then went to the computer and started playing a K-Pop band, BIGBANG's soundtrack. Then, they jiggled as they did their prep work, causing Yen Tong to spill her paint. She shrieked in horror as she tried picking up her prep work. I worked on my prep work dutifully and finished touching them up.
At 11:00am, I felt restless, and went to the school hall to find Ms Nadia if she was free. Upon arriving in the school hall, there was a hive of activity in the school hall.
The stage still contained the backdrop for the Gen-N concert in its entirety, displayed to parents and visitors who came for the PTM. Because the wall was draped with the backdrop, boards and easels were used to display the various projects, models, art works and art pieces of all students. Additionally, the two rollable screens were used to display pictures of various events, from field trips to the Gen-N concert and Teacher's Day.
Ms Nadia was busy, so I had to wait for her in the Art Studio for one hour till the lunch break for teachers. When the lunch break occurred, my mum bought fried chicken rice for me, and I ate lunch in the Art Studio. Then, everyone peered at my food. Yi Zhen was interested to look at it. Then, Lyn Wen and Enisha arrived to continue their prep work.
When Ms Nadia looked at my prep work, she asked me to let her see it. Feeling impressed, Ms Nadia approved of the work. I then asked Ms Nadia for permission to do my Paper 1 preps’ touchups. So, she gave them to me.
I then focused on painting the leaves of the school plants on Paper 1's Prep 1, which I had kept in the plastic wrapper along with my pictures. Then, I touched-up Georgia O’ Keefe's leaf painting which I had copied. I needed to complete Prep 1. Then, while waiting for the paintings to dry, I checked my Paper 2's Prep 3 and Prep 4 for any mishaps. Then, I decided to touch up Paper 2's Prep 4 and Prep 3 as well.
At 2:00pm, Brendan Cheah came into the Art Studio to talk to Chee Kei. He placed his feet on the CPU of the computer, and he accidentally toppled it over before he placed it back up. Brendan and Chee Kei conversed in Mandarin. Then, Co Sheen came to see Yi Zhen in the Art Studio, as well as Natasha. I just continued my prep work.
Ms Nadia, as well as Ms Feeda in the past, had banned us Art students from inviting our non-Art friends from coming over to talk to us as we did our prep work. The main reason for this was that we will get distracted from our priorities of doing the prep work. Additionally, Ms Nadia and Ms Feeda were afraid that our friends will accidentally take the prep work or misplace it. In fact, Ms Nadia said that it was our responsibility for us to keep the prep work safe and secure as well as to prevent any further incidents of damage or loss to the prep work and art pieces, given that it is our final piece for Art and Design IGCSE.
Once I was done with my prep work touchups for Paper 1 at the end of the day, I presented the work to Ms Nadia as she returned to the Art Studio. With Paper 1's preps now done, Ms Nadia told me to focus on Prep 3 of Paper 2. I kept all the Paper 1 prep works and Ms Nadia told me to draw a poster containing the word ‘Workshop’ on Prep 3, and work on it. My mum then took me back home once the PTM ended. The entire PTM stayback session was filled with a lot of food, as most people spent the entire time snacking on food bought from 7-Eleven.
The holidays were a fun time to mingle with people. Unfortunately, I had to spend three days during the 2nd Mid Term Break to do my art preps in the art studio. Fortunately, I managed to finish all the preps ahead of schedule and still mingle with my friends as compensation. However, there were good and bad experiences. First came the three-day stayback session on 28th, 29th and 30th August.
On 28th August, Ms Nadia opened the art studio to accompany us, and we were given time from 9:00am to 3:00pm to do the prep work. During that morning's prep work session, around half of the people in our Art class came to the Art Studio.
As the morning begun, I continued touching up my Paper 1 prep work pieces, since I wasn't finished on Friday the 25th. So, I continued my work. Meanwhile, Timothy Hiew and Benjamin Tenji were planning a small celebration for Lyn Wen, who would be celebrating her 17th birthday the next day. Everyone did their work as usual, while Glen gave a cool look on his face. I first begun painting Prep 1 of Paper 1, followed by Prep 2 of Paper 1, Prep 3 and then Prep 4. The spotty looks and white spots needed to be covered with paint. I spent the whole day trying to make Prep 4 look realistic.
At 1:00pm, Ms Nadia fell sick and went to the sick bay. That day was also Mr Thomas’ birthday, so I also wished him a birthday via email since Sophie Tan told us that it was Mr Thomas’s birthday. In fact, everyone was surprised about Mr Thomas’ birthday. I also took the time to do my First Language English past year questions while waiting for my prep work to dry.
The next day, 29th August, was the second day of staybacks. This time, we were given time from 8:30am to 2:00pm to do the prep works. I then focused on touching up Prep 3 this time. Before beginning to touch up Prep 3, I then touched up one of the paintings in Prep 4 which had a plant facing the wall, before looking on and checking on the leafy flower pot painting; one of the two paintings in Prep 4. Once that was done, I then headed to Prep 3 to do my work on touching up my mum's office pot paintings. I touched up the soil and used my hands to flick paint so that it made some yellow and brown spots in the soil. Then, I headed to touch up the dark-leafed painting and the close-up of a leaf protruding from a hole in the pot. A touch up would need three hours to complete, factoring into account paint drying times, art utensil washing, as well as rest time, too.
At 12:00pm we celebrated Lyn Wen’s birthday and gave her a ukelele for her birthday which touched her. Me, Timothy Hiew, Natasha Singam, Faythe Chow, Sara Yow, Jia Yiu, Eu Lynn, Lyn Wen, Yi Zhen and Enisha then took a photo together outside the Art Studio. We all sang Lyn Wen's birthday song and then gave her a ukelele.
“Dank memes dank dreams!” I cried. Everyone laughed.
Recently, I had done a good deed by watering the plants of the school using wastewater which I used from my Art and Design prep work preparations. Feeling the need for the school to save water, I had been using my water to water the plants in the school compound, since the prep works require a lot of water usage for washing and cleaning the art supplies and painting equipment. I decided to do this kind act in order to contribute back to the school and to society. I had used a lot of water to wash my paintbrushes, and what better way to do so than to water the plants with the water that had accumulated from the washing of my Art utensils. That is to say, the clean water. In fact, I did so much washing till I spent time during the concert week to water the school's plants. Some of the gardeners were on board with the idea, too, since I did gardening at home.
After having lunch, Eu Lynn and Sara Yow cracked jokes with Timothy Hiew while painting their work. Sara Yow had a nice yellow hat which she bought. Then, I managed to complete my Prep 3 touch-ups, thus allowing me to proceed to Prep 2.
We entered the third day of staybacks for Art and Design IGCSE. I begun work on Prep 2 upon arriving at 7:45am in the morning. We were given until 4:00pm to finish the prep work.
On that same day, an additional Biology class by Ms Renee for 11E students was being given. The class was held from 9:00am to 10:00am, and many people, such as Eu Lynn and Rosemund went for the class. Ms Renee had scheduled the class to explain biological concepts in the class to prepare the students for the IGCSE exam.
I then started touching up the leaf of Paper 1's Prep 2. It was really challenging to do. I had to strain my eyes many times. Ms Nadia came in the morning to check on us. She then walked around, guiding everyone in the Art Studio on their prep work. Then, she checked on some people who were very slow and asked Eugenie and Yen Tong not to lie down and dance to K-Pop music and continue their work. Then, she talked to Louis and guided him on his prep work. At 11:00am, Ms Nadia had to leave the school for a short while to do some errands. Then, at 11:30am, my mum gave me fried chicken rice for me to munch on. I then ate at 12:00pm and then decided to clean up my pallette. I had painted a lot of stuff, and decided to give myself a break.
While giving myself a break from Art and Design IGCSE prep work and decided to use the water stored in a pail I placed in the concrete sink in the art studio to water the plants. Ms Nadia had gone out to buy things while Lyn Wen, Timothy Hiew and a few other people decided to go and buy food. The ‘mamak gang’ were out to hunt for food from 7-Eleven. Some people, such as Enisha and Hao Yinn, ordered food via food vendors.
There were tonnes of water from the Art Studio thanks to me washing everything. I had placed a bucket in the sink of the Art Studio, and took them out to water the school plants. I felt that I wanted to loosen the burden on the gardeners, so in order to do so, I hoped that my good deed would help the school save their water bill.
At 12:45pm, I was watering the plants near the school library when a tall, muscular man approached me. He boomed at me and scolded me for watering the plants. After all, why should I be hurled abuses at for watering the plants? Isn’t this contrary to me being praised for wiping the tables when I was in Year 4?
The man clutched his fist. He had the look of a tiger on his face. He growled at me like a mad guy.
“Stop pouring water on the plants! Go away!” he cried.
I felt that watering the plants was a kind act to do. If Nobel can punish misbehaving students to clean the floor in the school compound, it is absurd to stop people from watering the plants and doing a good deed. After all, we should be saving water.
“If you want the water, take the water back to your house and water your plants. Don’t pour it on the school’s plant. Do you understand?” he boomed, before telling me to go back to the Art Studio and do my work.
I went back to the Art Studio and continued my preps and told Yi Zhen about my predicament. Yi Zhen told me that it is not good to water the plants in the school without permission. I felt it was absurd, because when I cleaned the canteen tables in Year 4, there was no need to ask for permission to do so and yet I was rewarded. I then had my lunch, continued my preps and then headed home for the day as Enisha trained her serious glare on me for the act and conversation I had with the muscular gardener man. The silver lining behind this was that I completed the touch ups of Paper 1's Prep 2, Prep 3 and Prep 4 during the holiday period, as well as that of Paper 2's Prep 1 and Prep 2. Then, I spent the afternoon touching up Prep 1 of Paper 1.
The picture of the school's plant was the toughest one to paint. This was because the plant itself had long, triangular leaves and many, many leaves. It was so difficult to touch them up. Ms Nadia told me to use coloured pencils and crayon instead of paint to reach into the tiny confines of the leaves. Of course, I used paint to draw the leaves, but however, more mixed media techniques must be given in order to enhance the flow of the prep works. I had to touch up the pots of Prep 1 as well.
Ms Nadia returned to the Art Studio at 2:00pm. She guided me on how to touch up my prep work. My mum then came to pick me up at 3:00pm. Before leaving for home, Ms Nadia checked my prep works and approved of them. Then, on the way home, I told my mum about the issue with the school gardener. She told me it is not good to water plants without people's permission. “The gardener may be afraid that too much water may cause the plants to die,” she said.
30th August 2017 was the last day of grace period given by Ms Nadia for us to do our Prep 1. Now, the focus would be on Prep 3 and Prep 4 of the Paper 2 art pieces. The end of the road is nearing for me for Art and Design IGCSE.
The SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur was in full swing, beginning on 19th August 2017, the day of the Gen-N concert, and ending on 30th August. Due to the high medal tally by Malaysia in the SEA Games, the prime minister at the time, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, declared a public holiday for Malaysia on Monday, 4th September. I wasn't that happy for a holiday as it will shorten my time with my friends in Nobel, thanks to lesser schooling days.
The beginning of September was an important time for us. The road to the IGCSE exam was nearing. We came back to school with nervousness as September started. The IGCSE exam was getting closer and closer. And my time in Nobel was ending as fast as possible. Time was running out.
Tuesday, 5th September 2017 was an important time for us. Upon seeing the date, I panicked. There will be not much time for me to mingle with my friends in Nobel.
The morning of 5th September was anything but. As usual, I went into the Art Studio, placed my things down, went to have a chat with Mr Thomas, who gave me feedback on my latest practice, and returned to the Art Studio. Ms Nadia then told me to work on my Prep 3. I then begun by tracing a poster containing the Workshop lettering on it. I wanted to do a poster for the Workshop lettering for one of the options. Ms Nadia told me that the Workshop lettering must fit on an object. So, I chose a photo as one of the options.
Since the room was quite hot, I pushed open the windows of the Art Studio in order to allow fresh air to envelope the Art Studio. After all, a good taste of fresh air is great for me, particularly because it is healthy. After all, being in an air-conditioned room for long periods of time isn't quite great. Moreover so because no one else was in the Art Studio other than me and Ms Nadia.
At 7:10am, Hao Yinn arrived at the Art Studio and begun her prep work, followed by Yi Zhen and Sophie minutes later. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, due to the early start of lessons, less people would patronize the Art Studio. To save time, I would normally put the Control Book in 11N first before heading to the Art Studio for my continuation of my prep work, which I would work on.
At 7:30am, I went back up to 11N, took my books and got ready for Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson, where she told us to do our work. Wei Zhong looked at his computer, while I peered at the past year papers. Then, it was our Art lesson, and I went back to the Art Studio to complete my prep work. By this time, I had started on Prep 3 of Paper 2.
Ms Nadia then guided me as I touched up the first of four paintings; the poster which was intended for the Art and Design IGCSE Final Piece. I decided to draw the poster design to resemble an art workshop. So, Ms Nadia guided me as I touched up my work. Paper 2 was much more faster and straightforward to do, particularly because it involved less emphasis on fine art, which meant less time needed to do the toning, painting and other matters involving fine art. This made the progress from Prep 1 to Prep 3 of Paper 2 really fast, and within two weeks, I had reached Prep 3.
I then told Ms Nadia that I intend to do the poster for the Final Piece, and she agreed. Ms Nadia said that the most important thing for me was what I intend to do for my Final Piece for Art and Design IGCSE.
During the Art lesson, Timothy Hiew spent time with Natasha Singam to have a chat, while Eu Lynn and Sara Yow talked as well.
When it was break time, I then sat down with San Ying and talked about the graduation arrangements. By this time, many people were talking about Prom.
While we were paying attention to our Art preps, a lot of focus was placed on the Prom King and Prom Queen for our Year 11 Prom. I nominated myself for Prom King and sent my name to Lyn Wen on 25th August during our PTM stayback for Art. Aside from me, nine other people were chosen. Two people were selected from each class, namely me, Sheng Jit, Sean Mark, Justin Yeo, Aaron Loke, Ye Sean, Aristotle Koh, Christopher Chew, Timothy Hiew and Brendan Cheah. For the Prom Queen, the nominees were Jia Yee, Yan Ying, Yin Wei, Yi Zhen, Xin Yi, Janelle Tan, Rosemund, Le Anne and Sara Yow. Out of the nominees, four were selected to the second stage of voting. Me, Sean Mark, Aaron Loke and Timothy Hiew were selected as the finalists for Prom King, while Yin Wei, Yi Zhen, Xin Yi and Le Anne were selected as the finalists for Prom Queen. There were also other title contests, such as ‘most likely to sue the school’, ‘most likely to start a fire’, ‘most likely to do their own makeup in labor’, and ‘most likely to go viral as a meme’. Lyn Wen always kept priding herself on being viral as a meme.
After discussing about Prom during break time, we then went back for our English lesson with Mr Thomas. Once again, he flew into bits of frustration as to the fact that a lot of people have not completed the word effect exercise, except for a few that had done it. He then talked about the skydiving exercise on Gmail and then we did an exercise on Harold Sparrow. Then, it was History, and Ms Visa gave us revision exercises to do. She provided us with a Source Question for us to analyze from Paper 2 about the Treaty of Versailles. We were told to sit in groups to discuss. So, I sat down with Ze Khai, Brandon Ooi and Sheng Jit to discuss the source questions on the Treaty of Versailles.
The source questions featured an angry image of George Clemenceau, a picture representing a German man heading to the guillotine, a choir being conducted by Woodrow Wilson, a German man being grabbed and forced a medicine which was labelled with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, as well as pages of texts. We had to study the sources and discuss them.
Then, we had lunch and then followed by Maths. During lunch, many people were involved in taking their graduation photo which they had missed out at the beginning of August. And then, during Maths, we did our past year papers. Nickolas told me he will only compete with me in the IGCSE exam and not in class during revision, because he said that Mr Nehru told us that the ultimate aim is the IGCSE examination. Afterwards, we had Economics, and Ms Vishalini came into the class as Ms Sharon was not around that day. She spent some time to give us a revision worksheet on Paper 2, which contained questions on developed and developing countries, poverty as well as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Once the day was done, I returned to the Art Studio to work on my Prep 3. Then, the ‘mamak gang’ which consisted of Lyn Wen, Jia Yiu, Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Timothy Hiew Faythe Chow and Natasha Singam went on their way to the 7-Eleven shop nearby. When I was done with my poster, I focused on touching up my Prep 1 and Prep 2 of Paper 2 further. Ms Nadia guided me as I touched them up.
The Art Studio was lively as Ms Ajee came in to guide us as well. Then, suddenly, it begun raining, and the rain got heavier. Fortunately, the freak storm lasted a short while. Ms Nadia then told me to take three more pictures of objects which the Workshop lettering can fit on. It can be anything. So, after my mum picked me up from school, I went to Sunway Resort Hotel to take a picture of the hotel’s table lamps, as well as a picture of a pouch which I kept my iPad in, along with a notebook.
The next morning, Wednesday, 6th September 2017, I returned to school with the pictures and presented them to Ms Nadia. She then told me to trace them on my prep work. Then, I went up to see Mr Thomas and presented some of the questions I did in my exercise book for him to mark. He told me he would return my book during English.
From 7:00am to 7:50am, I spent time to trace the notebook, pouch and table lamp on my prep work. Then, once I was done, I went up to 11N, and the whole class was engaged in reading or doing their revision. I then informed Mr Kevin about me being in the Art Studio, and Cassandra soon followed as well.
The morning begun with Ms Chithra's Business Studies lesson. Ms Chithra once again told us to do our revision in the class. The whole class was silent as we did our work. Then, we returned for Economics.
Another intern teacher, Ms Shannon, came to assist Ms Sharon during the Economics class. Ms Sharon told us not to confuse her with Ms Shannon as the names look similar. Ms Shannon was only here for around three weeks before she left. She was a university student doing internship.
Then, Ms Sharon told those who had completed the relief worksheet to present the worksheet to her. She marked mine and pointed out areas which I had missed. Then, once I was done, I pulled out my Paper 2 past year question and did it. Ms Sharon had all the while focused on Paper 2 as Paper 1 was a straightforward exercise for us to do. I then spent time to do the 2016 questions as it was the question bank latest to the exam.
At the back of the class, Brandon, Ze Khai and Shane were discussing and joking with one another. He then talked about a lot of funny things as I heard the assembly music blasting from the ground floor.
Ms Sharon then told us that she won't be present in school the next day as she had to return to her hometown for family matters. When Brandon Ooi asked where her hometown was, Ms Sharon said that her hometown was in Penang. So, we would be given relief worksheets to do them. I wanted to tell Ms Sharon that my grandparents live in Bukit Mertajam, on the mainland, but didn't have time to tell this to her.
Then, it was our turn for break time. I hurriedly rushed to the Art Studio and started to paint the lamp, pouch and notebook.
During the Art lesson, Ms Nadia went around once again to check everyone. Then, Ms Praveen entered the room to look at us and check on our progress. She was happy as I had progressed to Prep 3. I told Ms Praveen that I would plan to finish the Prep 4 by the coming week, and she was pleased with my progress.
Then, Ms Nadia told me to touch up the objects, so I had to spend time touching up the work. I then touched up the pouch and the notebook. Because they had a leather cover which reflected light, it was quite difficult to apply the toning. The table lamp was as equally difficult as well. I did not manage to finish toning the objects on time as I frustratedly struggled to maintain the toning. Then, it was Maths, and we went back to 11N for a second round of past-year papers revision. This time, Daryl Yeo was interested to compete with me, and Nickolas Nashpal flagged us off. “Three, two, one, start!” I cried, and we started scribbling furiously.
“Wow, all of you like to compete! Very hardworking!” exclaimed Ms Glory as we begun racing. We had full concentration like mad for the 80 minutes of the Maths lesson. Then, we had lunch, and then Ms Lim made an announcement to the Year 11s. Ms Lim said that for the graduation, she then informed us that the price for registration remained the same as opposed to some requests to reduce it. She said that renting the venue, Hotel Majestic, was quite an expensive affair and it was Nobel’s first time using the hotel for the Year 11 Graduation. Then, she told us that we had to submit our baby photos by Friday, 8th September and at the same time, we were also told to write a short essay reflecting on our time in Nobel, which would be due three days later.
Ms Lim also informed us that those who had been in Nobel for ten years since Year 1 in 2008 would receive a special gift from Auntie Clarine on the night of the graduation ceremony. Once Ms Lim was done briefing us, we then returned to our classes and then continued with our lessons. Ms Visa continued with our Source Analysis and then that was followed by Mr Gallagher asking for work and telling us to review our work. Mr Gallagher then asked me to edit a few segments of the work before submitting it back to him.
Then, I returned to the Art Studio after asking Ms Sarah and Ms Janice to sign the control book again. They had forgotten to sign it again. I then returned to the Art Studio to complete the necessary prep works, touching the thing up. The ‘mamak gang’ then went on their usual food run again. Then, Ms Nadia checked my work. Prep 3 was considered done. All that was needed was to begin Prep 4. It can be completed in one day. However, Ms Nadia needed me to touch up everything before I could begin Prep 4. So, she told me to wait till she gave me the signal to start Prep 4.
After the end of the day, everyone was allowed to leave their prep works on the table to allow ease of convenience when continuing the prep works the next day.
We then entered the next day, 7th September 2017. I arrived at school to do our prep works as usual. I then touched everything up. I focused on touching up the lamps. When that was done, Ms Nadia gave me the green light to enter Prep 4. I begun the day by sketching the drawings for Prep 4. Ms Nadia told me to do Prep 4 on a portrait format, which was new to me. At the time, everyone did their prep work on a landscape format. I then presented two choices; the iPad pouch and the poster to Ms Nadia, and then I was off to do my work. The final prep work for Art and Design IGCSE was beginning for me. It was the beginning of the end for the Art and Design IGCSE process.
The sky was gloomy that morning, and a cool breeze greeted my entrance to 11N for the Economics lesson. Ms Sharon was absent once again, and there was no teacher who was relieving her class. So everyone did their past year papers as usual. Ironically, Louis was not in the Art Studio because he wasn't feeling well and resting in 11N. As I was tired doing my past year papers and had done two questions on Economics Paper 2, I then went to meet the rest of the class, who was watching Brandon Ooi play AZ Tanks. The whole class was watching. Even Louis came over to watch it, curious what to see Brandon was doing. He was playing AZ Tanks with Nickolas Nashpal. Then, I walked to the back of the class to look out of the window before heading back to my seat to take some things. Then, I headed to find Ze Khai while bringing some of my notes.
As we were looking at Brandon, Ms Praveen then walked to our class and entered the class. “Excuse me, what are you all doing? Why are all of you gathered here like that?” she asked. I then walked towards her as she walked to see what was going on.
Then, Ms Praveen walked over to Brandon. “Why are you playing games in class? Please keep your laptop now. Wei Yiang, you shouldn't be watching people play games. Please go back and do your work. Louis, you should be doing your revision and not looking at games. All of you go back to your seats now,” said Ms Praveen.
We all went back to our seats as Ms Praveen came to check on us. Then she asked who the relief teacher was. None of us knew who was coming in to relief our lesson. Then, Ms Praveen asked all of us to do our work. We were just relaxing after doing long hours of revision. Ms Praveen left the class and Nickolas and Ze Khai teased Brandon Ooi. “Busted!” they cried.
“Luckily Ms Praveen did not confiscate my laptop,” said Brandon, as he giggled at the whole incident. Then, we did our work till we went for English. Brandon cautiously took out his laptop and started playing again. No one dared go near him in case Ms Praveen got angry at him. Kelsey then told him to stop playing the laptop but he didn't care.
Then, Ms Joyce came into the class for English, and I went for my English lesson with Mr Thomas. He then continued his discussion on Harold Sparrow. Before long, he saw Eugene, Jien Min and Kevin Tan sleeping behind the class.
“Oh well, you see. They have slept again,” said Mr Thomas. “I hope none of you are like them. Otherwise, I will have to give up. Okay? I will have to give up, because your exams are in one month. I will not care about them right now,” he said.
“Shall we ignore those who are not listening? Because you see, if I tell them to keep quiet and do what other teachers do, it is useless, because I will be WASTING my time here and not do anything. Shall we ignore them and continue?”
“Yes, Mr Thomas!” I cried.
The whole class opened their bulging eyes as to what I said. Then, San Ying started waking them up, but they failed. Mr Thomas continued talking about Harold Sparrow.
During break time, I then asked Ms Praveen on when the timetable for the IGCSE exams will come out. “The timetables will be given closer to the exam date, okay?” she said. Then, I went for break time and mingled with San Ying and talked about the baby photos and so on. Krisha also talked about her baby photo.
Then, we had Combined Science and Mr Lee gave us past-year papers to do. He gave us Paper 6 and we did it. When we finally finished the papers, he told us to mark them and posted the grade thresholds for October/November 2016 on the Smartboard. Mr Lee then briefed us about the IGCSE grade thresholds.
Cambridge will normally set a grade threshold for the subjects AFTER marking for the exam papers are completed at the end of every examination session. This is opposed to the traditional schedule where the grade boundaries are set BEFORE the exam papers are marked. While Nobel uses the traditional schedule of setting grade boundaries, Cambridge uses their format of setting boundaries, and it is a dynamic format.
The grade boundaries for Cambridge IGCSE are set based on the amount of students scoring a certain score in the exam. The main objective is to ensure that the majority of students who sit the exam score a C at most. And from there, such grade boundaries were made.
Then, when we finished our paper, Mr Lee then discussed the answers and we marked our papers accordingly. When we had finished our paper, I compared the results between me and Nickolas. Even the whole class came over to look at it. We laughed and made a joke out of it. Then, Lyn Wen also came over to peek at me and Nickolas. In fact, Nickolas won over me by 20 marks. The whole class cheered and gasped upon seeing the results and were urging for a second round.
“Tomorrow we will do the second round,” said Mr Lee. The whole class screamed.
After Mr Lee's lesson, we then went to Mr Gallagher's Global Perspectives lesson, where he continued asking us to edit our articles. He even took a look once again at my two Individual Evaluation Reports I did in 2016. Then, it was Business Studies, and Ms Chithra did a bunch of calculation questions for us. Some people asked Ms Chithra on the exam format.
Then, I went down for lunch, and then headed to the Art Studio. I managed to paint the lamp and the pouch. Then, when everyone reached the Art Studio, Ms Nadia got on with the work. She then went around and checked everyone's prep works. Then, when I was done painting, she took a look at my prep work with satisfaction. I was the only one doing a portrait-sized prep work for the entire Art and Design IGCSE exam for our batch. We then returned for History to do a series of Paper 1 questions on the Treaty of Versailles with Ms Visa. Brandon Ooi then continued playing his game, but then Ze Khai joined him to watch. I didn't want to watch. Brandon teased me because of Ms Praveen coming to break up his game that morning that he thought I was chided at by Ms Praveen. He kept his laptop when Ms Visa arrived.
Upon returning to the Art Studio after having a chat on the control book with Ms Sarah, Ms Nadia then checked on my prep work as I inscribed the Workshop font logo onto Prep 3 and Prep 4. All the work for Prep 4 was completed on the same day. Before we left, Ms Nadia then checked the prep work. Everything was fine. “Okay, Wei Yiang, your Prep 4 is done, BUT, I want you to paint the background of the prep. You paint it orange,” said Ms Nadia. She told me to paint the background of the prep works because there were stains on my prep work. “You need to make it neat,” she said. “Paint your Prep 1, 2, 3 and 4 for Paper 2 first, and I will give you your Paper 1 preps to paint,” said Ms Nadia.
When we were dismissed, Ms Ajee was dismissing the Art and Crafts Club from Art Studio 1. I greeted her and told her of me completing the prep works. She cheered for me and gave me high-fives. Then, Ms Nadia told my mum about my progress and how I managed to complete all the preps. Everyone was happy, and it was a cause for celebration.
The next morning, Friday, 8th September 2017, I skipped the Art Studio prep work time because I wanted to have a short break from the prep works. I had finished all the prep works for Art and Design. Finally. Mission accomplished. The end was in sight. I was so exhausted.
The prep works were done, barring the painting of the background, which was left. I went around the school hall telling everyone that I had completed all my prep works. Lyn Wen and Cassandra, who were in the hall, cheered. All Year 11s were told to attend the morning assembly that morning as we had announcements.
The morning assembly was quite fruitful as Daphne Wong led the morning assembly. Then, there was an announcement by Mr Narish. It was on the House Captain Election, as well as the upcoming house meet, or I should say, the Bullseye National Convention.
Mr Narish said that on Monday, 11th September 2017, which is the 16th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the United States, the 2018 House Captain would be elected.
Individuals aspiring to be the next house captain would need to prepare a speech stating as to why they should be chosen as their respective house's captain. Candidates must not have any disciplinary record or disciplinary action, have positive feedback from house teachers, demonstrate good behaviour and most importantly, be a Year 11 student in 2018. I met all the criteria except for one.
Yes, I did not have any disciplinary record, and many teachers, especially Ms Yong Wai Yee, gave me great feedback on how I demonstrate my patriotism for Bullseye. I had great leadership skills and great behaviour in school. However, I failed to meet the last criteria, which was me myself being in Year 11 in 2018. I would already have had been graduated.
I mean, I have wanted to offer myself to be Bullseye's next captain. However, I did not volunteer to be the House Captain of Bullseye as I felt that I would not make a great captain. I didn't want to bear the shame of making Bullseye lost and I felt that I could not keep up a winning streak for a fourth year. I felt that a much better captain can take the role of House Captain of Bullseye. I felt that Sean Mark, who was elected, would make a much better captain than me. Even if I wanted to be House Captain of Bullseye, I would never be able to do so as the teachers would nominate the house captain.
At the same time, as Bullseye was doing well, I did not wish to be house captain because there was no case for me to make. But however, if I had the choice right then and I was in Year 10, I would make my bid for house captain as I knew what to do.
Ms Lim would NEVER allow me to be house captain as an alumni. She had already told everyone that they had ten years to join any activity as they pleased. Now that we were approaching the end of our time in Year 11, it was much more a logical choice to give the time to the younger members of Bullseye. Ms Lim would instantly BAR ex students from contesting the sports events and school activities. She told us that we had our time in Nobel and if we miss it, we only had ourselves to blame.
In fact, I had made plans to be house captain in 2018, too. All I need was to approach the management and make my case. I can afford to sacrifice time till the end of March to participate in the activities. After all, the victory of Bullseye was important. However, I knew that the management would not allow it. In fact, I was even too scared to approach Mr Narish or Ms Lim to propose this idea.
The announcement by Mr Narish on the conditions for house captain dashed all hopes for me leading Bullseye. However, this made me even more fired up. I had to do something for Bullseye. I know that I did not have the chance to make my case during the 2017 Sports Day, because of some of the attitude of my friends. But I was determined to prove them wrong. And I could kill two birds with one stone.
We must make sure Bullseye wins. But we can make sure our proposed plans make Bullseye win as ex students. And I was determined to do it.
I want to prove Ms Lim wrong that ex students cannot make a big influence on school events. And I wished to also prove my friends that they were wrong to mistreat me during the 2017 Sports Day.
11th September 2017 would be the decision day for the House Captain of Bullseye. Who would it be?
The Year 11s were treated to a short announcement by Ms Praveen, who told us that we would be given our progress reports containing the IGCSE Trial results, along with the IGCSE Forecast results. We were informed that we would be handed a paper containing the results of the IGCSE Trial as well as the forecast results. Ms Praveen then briefed us once again on both results. We had one week to get our parents to initialize and return forms containing the IGCSE trials and forecast results. Ms Praveen told us that we had to return a form containing proposed forecast results for each subject, initialized by our teachers.
Following the IGCSE Trials, during the week of the Gen-N Concert, each student was given a form to pass to their teachers, who would note down all the information regarding the forecast grade. The grades were put as to what the teachers thought of us. Mr Thomas had told me that he will put a star on the A grade, an A*, if I put in more effort for First Language English. That was the logical choice for a Top in Malaysia award. I was doing really well.
We then returned to class, and then Mr Kevin briefed us on our forecast results before we went for our PE lesson. Mr Victor just let us do our own things. He said that it is no point for us to do some exercises. So, Caleb Chuang, Joshua Chew and I played a game of football. However, when Jien Min joined the game, he kicked the ball until it almost hit the florescent lights of the hall's ceiling, causing me to shout at him and caution him.
On another note, I spoke to Ms Nadia about my progress and she told me of her confidence of me achieving a C for Art and Design IGCSE. I had never received a C grade before in my Art and Design results. My results were always a D or E as I had struggled in Art and Design IGCSE.
We then went for break, and I spent some time hanging out with Caleb Chuang as the exams neared. Our last day of school was scheduled for 20th September. We would never have the time to do our activities. We would just be let off as we were, to face our IGCSE exams.
When we returned to class, life went on as usual. It was past year papers again for Maths, as well as work-checking by Mr Gallagher during Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher then told us that a briefing for Global Perspectives would be held prior to the exams in order to answer the questions for Paper 3. Then, during Combined Science, Mr Lee then gave us Paper 2 to work on. He then told us about the various topics for the subject and the syllabus before discussing the paper with us. This time, the gap between Nickolas Nashpal and I had narrowed. He was just eight points ahead of me. Ze Khai and Nickolas were told to get the Friday food for us. Then, when things were done, I then kept the control book, bid farewell to Mr Lee, got my home-cooked snack from my aunt and went to the Art Studio.
Ms Nadia wrote our progress on the whiteboard in Art Studio 3 for Paper 1. It appears that despite the odds, Leong Yi Zhen, Alicia Tang and Sin Yen Tong had been placed in the first category, which was that they had finished all preps. I was in the second, but without the annotation for all the preps. There were some who did not even start the Paper 1 preps, and were in the danger zone. The only thing that I had to do, was annotate my prep works.
Ms Nadia had earlier asked me to focus on painting first, and save the annotations for later. Some people, like Yi Zhen, wrote the annotation during their prep work. So, when the time came, I asked Ms Nadia how to proceed with the annotation, as Ms Nadia had told me not to write any annotations without her permission. Of course, yes, anything that we need to proceed would require Ms Nadia’s approval, from the subject matter studies, to the color scheme.
While I stayed back the most, it was Glen, Louis and Yan Chern that finished their prep works during their free periods incurred from their dropped subjects. Alicia, Yi Zhen and Yen Tong had completed everything. Only me, Glen, Louis, Yan Chern, Rosemund and Jia Yiu did not have annotations placed on our Paper 1 prep work. Natasha, Christopher Chew, Enisha and Eugenie had finished Prep 1, Prep 2 and Prep 3 without annotations. Faythe and Chu Xiang were in the most dangerous zone, being too slow on that. Ms Nadia was visibly worried for them. When Faythe wanted to join the 'mamak gang’ to go and buy food, Ms Nadia was really annoyed because Faythe's progress was slow.
Ms Nadia then told me to draft my annotation and show it to her by Monday, 11th September in order to finalize the annotations. Annotation in Art and Design is quite important because it allows the examiner to see how we had done our prep work.
What was very interesting about my prep work annotations was that Ms Nadia had asked me to TYPE out the prep work annotations, print it and paste them onto the prep work. Once that was done, everything would be ready for the big day. In the meantime, I spent the entire afternoon painting the background of all the prep works. This meant that the whole paper was filled with orange paint, barring the pictures.
As the afternoon weared on, it got cloudy and it started raining. I just focused on my prep work. Then, I had a chat with Sara Yow and Lyn Wen. Then, Sara asked me a question.
“Wei Yiang, can you go to Prom with me?” she asked me.
“Of course, why not?” I responded. “I will be at Prom!” I cried.
The whole room cheered loudly. I had a puzzled look. “What's the matter?” I cried.
“Wei Yiang, this is supposed to be romantic,” said Eu Lynn. She told me that people who had been proposing promposals to people of the opposite gender would normally ask them out for Prom, and the purpose of Prom was to get people to find another partner of the opposite sex in a very romantic manner. I then had that weird look on my face.
“Eh, eh, why are you talking? Finish your work!” cried Ms Nadia, responding to Eu Lynn. I had finished painting the background of all the Paper 2 preps, and then Ms Nadia gave me the Paper 1 preps to paint them. All prep works were painted with an orange background for neatness. The only exception was Paper 2's Prep 4, which had a purple background.
Then, Ms Nadia looked at the calendar. “Why are there so many drawings on the calendar? Who did this?” she cried. I then explained to Ms Nadia that I had found a creative way to cross the calendar out.
Normally, in the Art Studio, we would have a calendar counting down the days till the Art and Design IGCSE Examination. All the important dates have been pasted up on the calendar. There was a calendar template from the Internet which Ms Nadia had printed out and written all the important dates, such as the Art and Design IGCSE Examination for Paper 1 and 2 on 25th September, 26th September, 3rd October and 4th October; the endless list of school and public holidays; the Gen-N concert, English Second Language Speaking Test and all the nonsensical dates which we had to take note of. So, as each day had passed, the calendar was crossed out day after day. And normally, we would put an ‘X’ on the calendar.
Most of the time, people would forget to cross the calendar out, so I would mark the dates out myself. Ms Nadia wanted the calendar to be crossed out to ensure the time is updated. But however, marking the calendars with normal dates was really boring, so I decided to add a unique twist. The cross would be replaced with a drawing. Any drawing. And I drew the maps of the Korean Peninsula, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, China, the United States, Malaysia, Singapore and the like, including plants, trees, the flag of Bullseye, and all the funny things. Even Christopher Chew had added a picture of himself to one of the crossed-out dates, to promote the Chris Chew YouTube channel as well as he himself. Yes. Christopher Chew had a YouTube channel.
Glen Kay had even wanted me to put Kim Jong Un's face on it, since I like reading about North Korea. He even suggested drawing a portrait of Donald Trump, as well as Caleb Chuang's face. He even offered his face, along with Christopher Chew's face, to be drawn.
Not only that; I improvised the calendar by trying to draw a PORTION of the drawing when the date was cut out, along with a cross. Then, when all the dates are cut out, there would be a nice ‘masterpiece’ in the Art Studio. It would be a work of art in itself. Talk about drawing a portion of a painting which would take a month. Then, there would be one painting for each month; July, August, September and October.
Ms Nadia wasn't amused. “Aiyoh.....,” she groaned. Ms Nadia then said the drawings caused the whole calendar to look messy. “Why do you need to put drawings? Why not put the cross?” she asked. “Otherwise, I will cross it myself or I can just take down the calendar, since the exam is coming,” she said. The whole class laughed. I laughed the loudest. “Not funny!” cried Ms Nadia. She then said the end of our Art and Design IGCSE exams would be in good timing as her birthday falls on 31st October. Everyone started cracking Halloween jokes and how scary Ms Nadia was when we were in Year 7, 8 and 9.
After returning home, I did my write up and sent the text to her by WhatsApp and then she checked everything for approval. It took me two days till 12th September to cut out and paste all the prep works’ annotations in order to get things done.
When we returned the following Monday, 11th September, I went directly to 11N, skipping the morning Art prep sessions. Then, we returned for our morning assembly. This was our second last morning assembly as Year 11 students. It felt so surreal.
The morning assembly started off like any other morning assembly; greet teachers, sing the Negaraku and School Song, and recite the Rukun Negara and School Pledge. Then, Mr Narish announced further details for the House Meets, which I call the Bullseye National Convention. I really hate Bullseye being a normal house. Hence, I decided to change the names of certain things; including the House Meet name. It was so BORING. Bullseye National Convention sounds better and more grander. You know, like a BIG DEAL. And all the Bullseye members approved of it. Those who did not approve would never understand the reason. They would look in disgust. They would never understand the long term goal and vision for Bullseye.
We then returned to class for Combined Science, and Mr Lee gave us a Paper 1 worksheet to do. He then brought the worksheet and told us to do it. Then, I approached Nickolas Nashpal to compete with him, but he refused.
Then, we had Business Studies, and once again, we did some work during Ms Chithra's lesson. The likes of Ms Chithra being called a gorgeous person were starting to dim. There was only one week left of the lessons before the Study Leave.
During break time, Shaun Ting told me that he will put me next to Caleb Chuang during the Prom, and gave me my Prom ticket to keep it. This was then followed by a small but sweet commemoration of the 9/11 attacks which I initiated with San Ying, Sophie, Yi Zhen and Kit Lee, to remember the 2996 people which were killed in the attacks on 11th September 2001. Once again, I also posted on my Edmodo pages about how we must remember the 9/11 attacks and how it was the worst terrorist attack ever. Then, I went to find Rick Tan to borrow his Business Studies Insert for Paper 2 as I lost mine. He gave it to me to do it.
Later on, during Global Perspectives, I wanted to continue to commemorate and remember the 9/11 attacks with Mr Gallagher. He talked about how bad terrorism was. When I told him about Donald Trump proposing to rebuild the World Trade Center's twin towers and how he wanted to solve the problem of ISIS, Mr Gallagher immediately hurled rants on Donald Trump. Even Vicky and Alexandria Goh were talking about the 9/11 attacks as well, to commemorate the 16th anniversary back then. Mr Gallagher then uploaded a series of past year papers for students who had handed in their work. I took a good look at it and attempted it.
Then, it was English, and I talked about the 9/11 attacks with Mr Thomas. Mr Thomas then asked questions about the 9/11 attacks and tested me on my knowledge. We then even theorized about the fourth plane which did not hit its target, United Airlines Flight 93. It was headed for Washington D.C., but the two possible targets were either the White House or the United States Capitol. Then, Mr Thomas gave us work on word effects and showed us a few of his posts. He then exaggerated about the severity of the 9/11 attacks when he saw my post on Edmodo asking everyone to remember those who died on 9/11.
Later, we had lunch, and I gave back the Business Studies Insert to Rick. Following lunch, we were given a talk about us furthering our studies in HELP College. While the talk was underway, each class was invited to head to the ICT lab to do a Teacher's Evaluation in which we gave feedback to our teachers. This practice was initiated since 2015, and I did not mainly talk about it. We were told to give remarks on where our teachers can improve upon.
When it was our class, 11N's turn, we went to the ICT lab to do our Teacher's Evaluation. Those who were done were allowed to leave. When I left, the whole Year 11 batch was outside in the school courtyard. We were told to form a heart shape to take a group photo for the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony. I stood in front as our photo was taken by Mr Jeffrey from the second floor. Initially, everyone did not want me to stand in front, but then Min Han and Ethan Wong relented and brought me in front to snap the group photo. Yi Zhen stood in the middle of the photo, along with the other prefects. Then, we returned to 11N, and Mr Kevin Wai handed out our IGCSE Trials certificate and IGCSE Forecast Results Certificate. My results were as follows:
IGCSE Trials IGCSE Forecast Results
First Language English A* A
Economics D D
Global Perspectives B C
History B C
Combined Science C C
Mathematics C C
Art and Design E C
Business Studies E C
Then, once we were done, we had History, and Ms Visa did some work with us. Once I was done with History, I went to the Bullseye National Convention, also known as the house meet. I didn't keep the control book yet, but I went quickly as to ensure that I would not be late for the Bullseye National Convention.
The Bullseye National Convention was held in the Dismissal Area. Everyone was present; but the most important people to be present was Sean Mark and Chong Vicky, as they were the ones handing over the house captain duties to the next batch of leaders. The sky was dark and gloomy. It was about to rain, and I headed to the convention to watch the handover.
Every single Bullseye member was present. The loss of Bullseye to Touchdown initiated many reactions from the members of Bullseye. Everyone was angry, particularly of the one-point loss to Touchdown. And everyone was FURIOUS. I had the most angriest look on my face when I arrived. What a silly thing to lose by one point. And all the Bullseye members were there for one reason; to demand change.
The house members were crowded around a centre point, just like a stadium. The house members were really pumped up, determined to win. Everyone wanted a 2018 Sports Day victory for Bullseye, and were willing to work towards it.
And change starts from the Bullseye National Convention and polls for the next commander-in-chief.
Sean Mark then addressed the crowd. He was flanked by Vicky, as well as some of the Year 11 committee members. Zi Quan was standing next to them, followed by Ms Yong Wai Yee. Caleb Chuang was standing near the gate with the 2017 marchers from Bullseye. Other than Caleb Chuang, Zi Quan, Sean Mark and Vicky, Eu Lynn was the other member from the committee, alongside Ivyna.
Sean Mark then spoke. “Okay guys, so what we are going to do today is to choose the next house captain of Bullseye. Now, this house captain election is very important, because, if you can remember; if you guys can remember, we LOST by a POINT on Sports Day this year. I want everyone to take this election seriously. We lost by an election, and I hope that all of you would PLEASE elect a house captain that can make us win again next year,” said Sean Mark.
“Yeah, guys. Like what Sean said, we lost by one point. Remember, every point counts. The house captain that will be elected would be responsible for THIS YEAR's Nobel Cup will be the one responsible for NEXT YEAR's Sports Day. And not to mention that the Nobel Cup points will contribute to the Sports Day points next year as well, as from what we have seen this year,” said Vicky.
Sean Mark then asked for volunteers, and then I nominated Loo Zane for the post. Then, Ethan Chan walked up and spoke.
“The reason why I wish to be house captain is this. Guys, remember this. We lost by one point. ONE point. Just one point. You know, it is just one point. We were one point away from winning. We almost won this year's Sports Day. So, I am running for house captain because I believe that we can win. I want Bullseye to win again and I hope for Bullseye to be the champion house not just for this year's Nobel Cup, but next year as well. We lost last year's Nobel Cup, and by winning this year's Nobel Cup, we can win Sports Day next year, and that is why I want to run for house captain,” said Ethan Chan. He then vented his anger on Touchdown, telling everyone about how we should stay united, as every single point would make a difference thanks to the support we gave for our sports house. He then talked about various figures who had made contributions to the Sports Day tally and mentioned me, Sean Mark, and even himself as the role models. The moment my name was mentioned, all the Bullseye members were cheering my Founder's Run 2017 feat.
Then, the next person to give a speech was Shi Tian.
“If you elect me as house captain, we are going to WIN!” she cried.
The whole Bullseye squad screamed and shouted like mad.
“We are going to win Sports Day! We are going to work together!” yelled Shi Tian as she hurled some chants. She expressed her anger on how Bullseye had lost by one point and vowed to fix it.
Then, Loo Zane was invited to give her speech. She then talked about how our athletes were good and how we were better than the previous year but lost by a point. She then had great speeches on how everyone was united but needed to ensure that we take things seriously and not make a single point loss in 2018. “If we lost by a point this year, we will win by 100 points next year!” she cried.
Apart from the three candidates, there were no other Year 10 candidates nominated. Zher Xian then jokingly nominated me for house captain.
“I have an idea. I nominate Wei Yiang for house captain,” he said, and pushed me to the front. Then, Sean Mark told me to return as I was a Year 11 student. “Wei Yiang, you are not Year 10, please go back!” he cried, laughing away at Zher Xian, who played the joke. The fourth candidate to be nominated was Scott Heng, but however, he gave a boring and uninteresting speech. All four captains were either chosen to volunteer themselves or were nominated. I nominated Loo Zane as I had eyed her for weeks since the Study Camp 2 and the conclusion of IGCSE Trials.
Then, the house members voted for the next house captain. Ms Yong Wai Yee then announced that Shi Tian was elected as house captain, and Ethan Chan the assistant captain. Shi Tian won the election with 42 votes. Ethan Chan got 21 votes. Loo Zane managed 18 votes and poor, poor Scott Heng only successfully got one vote.
“Who's the one who voted for Scott Heng?” cried Sean Mark, laughing at the result. “Don't tell me you voted for yourself!” Sean continued as he teased Scott Heng for potentially voting for himself. House captain candidates cannot participate in voting.
I then stayed back to record the nominated names for the house committee for 2018. I wrote the election results on my Student Organizer before recording the other names. Benjamin Lew was chosen as the 2018 marchpast captain as decided prior to Sports Day 2017. The dance captain was Valerie Pang, although Andria Tan, Wong Zhi Wei and Tan Ying She, who was from Year 9, were nominated. Leng Zhi Xuan and Melvyn Lim will lead the banner. Koh Geok Minh would be the secretary for Bullseye, and Prudence Wong would serve as treasurer. Loo Zane and Scott Heng would conduct the athletics training for Bullseye, and Isaac Ng would assist Benjamin Lew as assistant marchpast captain.
I then went to 11N to return the Control Book and Smartboard equipment, but however, the door to 11N was locked. Then, Zher Xian, who was walking around the hallways, asked me what the matter was. He then called a security guard to open the door of 11N for me to return the Control Book back to the pigeon hole. I then gave Mr Raja and Ms Sarah the control book to sign it before I returned it. Then, I headed to the Art Studio, where Ms Nadia told me to further touch up the purple background of Prep 4 to make it neat. While touching it up, I presented to her a draft writeup of the annotation for Paper 2's preps. She took it and read it. She told me to write it by hand before letting her check them. We then weaved through each of the four prep works for Paper 2. Then, Ms Nadia and I planned the annotation for each prep, which I spent time writing and working on. It was raining, but it was a short storm.
The next morning, I went to find Mr Thomas and presented him another essay writeup of mine. He then approved of it and then checked it. Then, I returned to the Art Studio and then continued the writeup of my prep work. Ms Nadia was looking at the computer and then checking on Hao Yinn, who was in the midst of doing her Prep 4 for Paper 2.
During Business Studies, Ms Chithra discussed some of the papers with us. Then, it was Art, and I returned down for the Art lesson. Ms Nadia told me to touch up the orange backgrounds of all the Art preps for Paper 2, which I did. Then, while waiting for the background to dry, I worked on my annotation.
Ms Nadia then assisted in the planning for Paper 1's annotation. All that I had to do was to describe my annotations on the prep work. Then, while I worked on my draft annotation, she then checked everyone else. She then assisted Louis with his annotation. Then, she called on Faythe to quickly hurry up and finish Paper 2 as she was really slow and hadn't finished the Paper 1 preps yet.
During break time, more people were talking about Prom and the other arrangements for the IGCSE and graduation ceremony. The end was nearing. We were coming to the end of our journey in Nobel. And I was writing about my writeup for the graduation ceremony. Everyone had to write about their reflection over their time in Nobel.
Those who were in Nobel for a longer period of time were able to write more experiences. However, I wrote the longest. The shortest was written by Lucas Tan.
Then, it was English, and Mr Thomas continued his lesson. He then kept on reminding us about our expectations. "So many of you have not done the work yet. If you continue ignoring my emails, I will not care and mark your work if you do not hand it in to me. I don't want to waste my time for those who are willing to take responsibility for their own learning," he said. He then handed out some handouts to us and continued our lesson. Then, behind the class, some people were sleeping again. Mr Thomas just ignored them as he didn't want time being wasted to chide people for not paying attention.
Then, it was History, and Ms Visa did some source analysis with us. It was a normal, but serious lesson. This time, it wasn't Ms Visa being serious, but the whole class working on their past year papers. We then had lunch, followed by some time to do the Maths past year papers. Nickolas Nashpal and I decided to race again, and Ms Glory handed out some past year papers from the May/June 2017 exam series. The day soon flew by with a multiple-choice question rank on Economics. I then returned to the Art Studio to continue touching up all the prep works' orange backgrounds for Paper 2, and begun touching up the backgrounds for Paper 1.
The next morning, on Wednesday, 13th September, Ms Chithra did not conduct our Business Studies lesson. Instead, she was there to announce the launch of Nobelfest 2017 during the morning assembly. She brought us down to witness the launch of Nobelfest 2017.
The theme of Nobelfest 2017 was 'Colors of the World' and the organization of Nobelfest 2017 was headed by Ms Chithra herself. Alongside Ms Chithra, all the teachers who were teaching the commerce subjects for Year 10 and 11, namely Mr Raja, who taught Accounting, Ms Sharon, who conducted Economics, Ms Levina, who also taught us Economics the previous year, in 2016, and Ms Vishalini, who was a Business Studies and Economics teacher, were involved in setting up the Nobelfest. Since the Nobelfest bases its core theme on business and the world of work, it was not surprising to see all Business Studies, Economics and Accounting teachers guiding Nobelfest.
Just like the 10th Anniversary Concert, which was the previous time a school concert was held prior to the Gen-N concert, the last time Nobel held a carnival was in 2014 as well, during the Carnaval do Nobel on 30th August 2014. This was also not to mention that for every single year since 2012, the Young Entrepreneur Challenge (YEC) was held. As the YEC was a smaller-scale affair, the teachers want to institute a yearly affair for the Carnaval do Nobel and expand the scope of the YEC. Thus, Nobelfest was the solution to the problems.
The Nobelfest was also meant to be a competition between all classes to see who can raise the most profit. The class with the highest profits would receive a reward from the management team. Just like the Carnaval do Nobel, the Nobelfest was held on a Saturday, 4th November 2017.
When Ms Chithra launched the Nobelfest, she, along with Mr Raja, Ms Sharon, Ms Levina and Ms Vishalini, touched a large globe to launch Nobelfest. The globe lit up with colors to launch Nobelfest and it resulted in laser beams carving the logo of Nobelfest 2017 on the screen of the school hall. Each class would have a month and a half to prepare for the big day. Sadly, we Year 11s were not involved in the Nobelfest. Ms Chithra, who was making the announcements, then said that each class was told to come up with a booth and sell any product as they pleased, with the funds being channelled to Fungates Superflow Foundation.
Ms Chithra then invited us for Nobelfest before bringing us back to class. Then, we returned to 11N for Economics. Ms Sharon then practiced some questions from 2017 with us. She also talked about the Nobelfest, too. Anyone who went to Nobelfest would be given a coupon booklet which costs RM 10 per booklet. Each booklet contained 10 pieces of $5 coupons. We then practiced the Paper 2 Structured Questions for the exam. Brandon Ooi kept asking a lot of questions pertaining to Nobelfest the whole time.
Then, I quickly went down for Art, and spent time drafting my writeup for the annotations. I managed to complete painting all the prep works' backgrounds. It was business as usual in Maths, where more past year questions were done. During the class, everyone was given the chance to check their answers with their friends. I checked mine with Nickolas and Daryl. We then had lunch, followed by History and then Global Perspectives. All we did was spend time to do our past year papers. Mr Gallagher guided us on the exam practice as well. I did not stay back after school ended to complete my prep work. For the first time in months, I can leave school early.
The next day, 14th September, I went up to class and then went to Mr Thomas' staffroom to hand him one of my practice questions for the composition exercise. I had spent time online and offline with Mr Thomas practicing the First Language English past year papers. I was determined to get a Top in Malaysia for the subject. Mr Thomas told me to take it easy and not put too much high hopes on that.
During Economics, Ms Sharon discussed the exam paper format and talked to us on how to structure our answers. She told us that the question format would be the same although there would be some differences. Then, she posted the grade boundaries information on the Smartboard while we did our work. Then, during English, Ms Joyce came into the class and told all the English Second students that a briefing would be held on the English Second Language Speaking Test the following week. "Before I start, let's ask all those who are not in the class to leave and wait for the rest to come," she said. Then, she called all the First Language English students to quickly leave the class.
Mr Thomas then told us to do a letter which we had to write about our resignation as veterinarians due to the demanding nature of the job as well as the negative prospects of the clinic we were working in. Then, he kept on talking and lecturing about our expectations for IGCSE as some people were still sleeping in class. Mr Thomas was frustrated, but continued his lesson as he wanted responsibility on ourselves.
Then, it was break time, and I spent time talking to Kit Lee, San Ying, Krisha and Sophie on the graduation. "It's okay, life goes on," said Kit, patting me on my back. Then, Lyn Wen expressed sympathy on my sadness. There was one more week left till we would leave for our Study Leave.
Then, it was Combined Science, and Mr Lee then came into the class to give us another multiple-choice question to do from Paper 1. He gave everyone the papers across the board. "For Extended students, please score higher, ya!" he cried. We then did the MCQ and then Mr Lee discussed the answers with us. I took down the marks of everyone in the class. Then, I compared it with Nickolas Nashpal. I was shocked. We had the same marks!
Then, Mr Lee gave another worksheet to do. This time, he gave a harder version of the MCQ; Paper 2. We did it again, and this time, I trailed Nickolas Nashpal by 10 marks. The class was cheering like fans in an ice hockey game. Mr Lee asked everyone to calm down before we got out of control.
Then, we went for Global Perspectives, and then I continued the practice questions given by Mr Gallagher. Then, he gave me another question to do. Before long, we then had Business Studies. Ms Sharon then came into the class as Ms Chithra was absent. Some people showed her Economics notes.
"Okay, you can come to me if you have any questions on Business Studies as I used to teach Business Studies before," said Ms Sharon. Then, we did our work and Ms Sharon gave us some Business Studies past year papers by Ms Chithra.
I then had a quick lunch and went for Art. I then prepared the draft for all my prep works. Then, Ms Nadia told me to print the Paper 2 Prep 1 Artist Reference, which was the Google doodle drawn in the form of a steam engine, and paste it on the work. I then went for History and returned home to type all the prep works' annotations once Ms Nadia checked it. Then, I emailed the annotations to my mum and then got her to print it out before she returned home.
The next day, 15th September 2017, was the final Friday ever. It was our LAST-EVER Friday as students in Nobel. I would say, the last Friday, at the very least, in terms of a normal schooling day.
During our Homeroom time, Mr Kevin Wai was handing out the School Leaving Certificate. It was a certificate which determined our separation from Nobel International School.
To everyone, the certificate stood for freedom, joy and happiness as they did not have to return to Nobel again. But to me, it was a sense of separation. A separation the likes of how Singapore was expelled from Malaysia. I termed the graduation as a kind way to expel a student from school.
When I received the certificate, Mr Kevin Wai asked us to sign on our names to indicate that we had received the certificate. However, I was reluctant to do so. Mr Kevin passed a list around as we signed the certificate. Then, Enisha forced me to sign the list, and I relented, because Mr Kevin wanted to return the list to the office.
Then, we went for our PE lesson. It was our last-ever PE lesson. Our last.
During the PE lesson, Mr Victor once again let us do our own things. He played basketball with Alex Chia, Lim Wences and Brendan Cheah. Then, he played futsal with me, Caleb Chuang and Joshua Chew. He then spoke to the girls, cracking jokes with them. And during my rest period from the football game, I spent time talking to Ms Nadia. I told her about how far I had come through in Art and Design IGCSE. But there was one thing left. The prep works were done. I was due to paste some annotations. Preparations must be made for the Final Piece. I told Ms Nadia that I will practice the Final Piece on my own art paper and present it to her to see where could I improve in. It was a rehearsal before the Actual IGCSE exam for Art and Design. She agreed.
Then, it was break time, and then I proceeded to talk with Yi Zhen, San Ying and Sophie again and had breakfast with them. Once things were done, I then went up for Maths, as Ms Glory talked to us about the last final week before our exams. Then, it was Mr Gallagher's lesson, and we did our practice questions in class. Mr Gallagher had to tell Ryan Chok to stop talking to Shane and focus on his work. In fact, Mr Gallagher was asking Ryan Chok to hurry up and finish his work. Mr Gallagher then gave everyone till 30th September to finish their Individual Evaluation Reports and Group Project Reports. He was intending to send them to Cambridge. And it hit me as to why Ms Praveen called me in June 2016 to ask on the first Individual Report. It was a Cambridge work. An exam work.
When we returned for Combined Science, Mr Lee then gave us our past year papers for Paper 1. He told us to do the October/November 2011 Paper 1, Variant 1 questions. We spent some time answering the questions and Mr Lee discussing them. I wrote down the marks of Ze Khai, Kelsey, Nickolas, Lyn Wen and Glen. All of them got 37, 32, 21, 28 and 32 respectively. I got 27. I was ten points behind Ze Khai, but I beat Nickolas Nashpal by five points.
This resulted in the whole class screaming and shouting happily. "YEAH! YEAH!" cried Shane and Ryan Chok, as if I had scored the winning goal at the World Cup. "Shh!!! Hold your horses. Hold your horses!" cried Mr Lee, asking everyone to settle down. Lyn Wen was shocked when she was one point ahead of me. Then, I ranted about the 648-649 score again.
Mr Lee then asked Ze Khai, who achieved the highest score in the class, and Ryan Chok, to get the Friday food for us. Then, we snacked on the food. After Mr Lee ended his lesson, I then thanked Mr Lee for signing the control book and lending his cooperation over the last eight months. "No worries, thank you for being an awesome monitor. You are amazing," said Mr Lee. I then went home happily, talking about the 'competition' we were in.
Monday, 18th September 2017 started on a sombre note. It was the date of our last morning assembly.
On that day, I had planned to stay back after school to sort out the prep works. I needed to paste my annotation. I had printed out all the annotations for all eight preps. I had to paste them.
That morning, I went to the Art Studio to begin pasting my prep works. Ms Nadia told me to cut out the words and paste them. All the paragraphs and words were typed out.
No one in Nobel's Art and Design IGCSE had typed out all the annotations online and pasted on the prep work. I was the first. I had to type all the texts, from the titles to the texts. Even the words, 'Prep 1' had to be keyed in on the computer and then printed by my mum. Everyone except me wrote on their prep work. The annotation in Art and Design is important as it allows students to communicate their flow from the first prep to the final piece. Ms Nadia did not allow me to write on the prep work as my handwriting might look really messy.
During the morning assembly, Ms Lim then gave a standing oviation to all of us. "Okay, students, do you know that today is the last assembly for the Year 11 students?" asked Ms Lim. She then told everyone to turn to us and wave at us. Then, she asked all of us Year 11 students to stay back for a class photo session. It would be our last of everything.
After the assembly ended, each Year 11 class was invited for a photography session. All the Year 11s' class teachers and assistant class teachers were also present. Ms Lim then coordinated each class, asking the class monitor and assistant monitor to stand in front. Even Ms Lim was surprised as I was assistant monitor. I sat next to Ms Visa, Gabriel and Louis for the photograph. Ms Lim then asked all of us to smile as we took our picture. Shane and Ryan Chok gave their sneakiest and biggest grin.
After 11N was done, it was 11O's turn to take their photo, followed by 11B, 11E and 11L. I watched as 11O and 11B took their photo before heading back to class.
It was then Combined Science, and we had to do our own things as Mr Lee took his time coming up as he had photos to take. Then, Mr Lee entered the class. He just had a chat as he gave us tips for IGCSE.
Shane, Ryan Chok and Brandon Ooi asked him questions. "Mr Lee, we will miss you," said Brandon Ooi. "You are our best teacher," he continued. Everyone then talked about how Mr Lee amazed us. Soon, all the boys in the class were crying out for Mr Lee. It was our very LAST Combined Science lesson with him.
"All of you will be divided into Core and Extended. Please make sure you receive the correct paper," he said.
Then, I told Mr Lee that I would miss everyone. "I know you will miss Caleb as well," said Mr Lee, patting me. "Caleb is your best friend." This caused everyone to have a very empathetic attitude. "My tips for you for IGCSE is very simple. Just practice the past year papers. That's all," said Mr Lee.
When Mr Lee packed up his things to leave the class, I then held the control book to him. "Come on, Mr Lee. This is your last time to sign this," I said, holding up the control book. Then, he signed the book. "Okay, okay, very good," he said, as he took out his pen and stroked the book with it. "Thank you for being a good monitor. You are amazing. Better than my own monitors. All the teachers are proud of you," he said.
Then, we went for Business Studies with Ms Chithra. She then gave us some past year papers to do. "This is your last week, right? Your last week?" she asked.
"Ms Chithra, you look gorgeous! We will miss you!" cried Nicole. Then, we did our work as everyone talked about Ms Chithra and how nice she was as a teacher.
Later on, during break time, I went to meet Caleb Chuang in his class. Mr Lee had gone to 11O for the Physics lesson. He was giving out the grade thresholds for Physics. Then, we walked and talked. I spoke with Caleb Chuang. Little did I know it would be my very last schooling days with him.
Then, we had Global Perspectives. Mr Gallagher was serious with us.
"I have not received some of your work! Nashpal! Derek! Please give me your work!" he cried. Then, Mr Gallagher told us that he will schedule an extra class on Friday, 29th September. "I want all of you to attend. I will give you the forms later," he said, referring to the permission slips he would pass to us. Then, it was our English lesson with Mr Thomas. He then did some summary writing with us. Before he ended the lesson, he told us that we would need to be diligent to respond to his emails for our English revision.
He then continued his work and talked about many points for our word effect. He was frantically rushing the whole lesson, determined to complete everything by the day. He spoke and talked like clockwork. "Do you understand? Read the questions carefully and have a peaceful mind for the exam. Ohhh! Some of you are not listening!" he cried, as he rushed the lesson.
Before we ended our lesson, Mr Thomas had a plea for us. "Can you please read my emails?" asked Mr Thomas. I responded once again with my usual, "Yes, Mr Thomas!" narrative. Then, we went for lunch, and during Character Transformation, Ms Praveen made the bold decision that will determine our IGCSE exams; a briefing, along with the handing out of our Statement of Entry.
Two years prior, for Cambridge Checkpoint, we were given a Statement of Entry by Ms Lee for that examination. Now, as we were about to head into the biggest exams of our lives, Ms Praveen and Ms Yew, along with Ms Sha, were handing out the Statement of Entries to all of us.
The Statement of Entry listed down our exam details, subject information as well as all the exam rules and regulations. The rules and regulations were accompanied by a crossed-out handphone sign. Then, Ms Praveen gave us a briefing on what we should do for our examinations. She told us that we will not be allowed entry into the exams and must bring a transparent pencil case, transparent water bottles; in which we can use our own if it is transparent, our Statement of Entry, identity card and the relevant stationery for the exam.
"For calculators, please do not bring in the casing," said Ms Praveen, referring to the calculator casing which protects the screen of the calculator. This was because the casing contained a lot of equations on it.
Then, Ms Praveen talked to us about entry into Nobel during the Study Leave. This Study Leave would run from Friday, 21st September 2017, until the last day of our examinations on 14th November 2017. During that period, anyone entering Nobel would only be allowed in for exams or extra classes with their teachers barring the presence of a permission slip. The same applied to any activity we would like to do in Nobel, which includes meeting up with teachers. Once the briefing was done, Ms Praveen wished us all the best for our IGCSE exams. At the same time, the IGCSE timetable was officially released to us online.
Then, Ms Lim came and gave us a briefing on the graduation ceremony. She told us that the ceremony would be held from 7:00pm to 10:00pm. She also handed out the graduation ceremony tickets to us. There were two tickets; one for us students and another for our parents. Some people ordered more for their parents. Before we left, I then asked Ms Lim if I can volunteer to make a speech during the graduation. After all, there would be one student invited to make a speech. However, Ms Lim said that it wasn't possible because the individual chosen would normally be a top-scorer.
During History, Ms Visa then gave some past year papers and offered to check our work. We just did our work and talked to Ms Visa. The entire 11N class was planning to have a party during lunch time as part of the Teacher's Day treat. There were two treats given to us. The party was to celebrate the end of our time in Year 11 before the IGCSE exams as well as to commemorate our relationship as a class.
After the lesson was over, I then went down to the Art Studio to paste the annotations on my Paper 1 preps. Ms Nadia guided me as she asked me to paste my annotations. The room was bustling with activity, as some people panicked as they couldn't finish their prep works. Some were also worried on the exams. Then, I handed another RM 2 to Rosemund in order to purchase some watercolor paper for my Final Piece painting during the actual IGCSE examination. I also took out a practice painting which I did of my Final Piece, and presented it to Ms Nadia. She then agreed with the painting and told me to improve the painting quality of some of the leaves. Literally I painted the entire Final Piece draft at home and presented it to Ms Nadia. This may look weird, but to me and Ms Nadia, it was not unusual, since in Year 7, 8 and 9, Ms Nadia allowed us to practice our exam pieces and paintings at home before the Art Exam itself.
The Final Piece itself must be done during the Actual Art and Design IGCSE Examination, but art students are allowed to practice the painting and present it to their teachers for feedback on where to improve before sitting for the eight hours' controlled test.
The next day, 19th September, I arrived at the Art Studio and continued pasting and cutting all the prep works' annotation onto the Paper 1 prep works. While having a break, I presented my past year paper for English to Mr Thomas for marking. I met him in the morning while he had breakfast. Then, at 7:30am, I went up to 11N to put my things and headed for Business Studies with Ms Chithra. We then did work in class. Eu Lynn and Sara Yow asked if they can throw a party with Ms Chithra the next day to celebrate the LAST Business Studies lesson. Ms Chithra said no. "Do your work!" she cried. Then, we went for Art with Ms Nadia. I continued pasting the annotations on my prep work. Some people even asked why did I type out the entire prep work annotations, especially Enisha.
Then Timothy Hiew panicked as he almost lost his prep work. "Haa! Haa! If you lost your prep work, then sorry. I am not responsible," said Ms Nadia. This was the danger of Art students; the fear of losing the Art and Design IGCSE prep works. Fortunately, Timothy Hiew found it in time.
During break time, when I sat with San Ying, I then talked about the final days of school and how I would miss everyone. "It's okay, Wei Yiang. We miss school as well," said San Ying.
We then had our last English lesson with Mr Thomas. He had nothing to say or teach for this lesson.
Mr Thomas looked as casual and calm on that morning. He sat down as we entered the class. Then, he stood up and walked.
"I hope all of you are ready for two things. I hope that you are ready for the exams, as well as for your responsibility during this study break. All of you must learn to read, read, read, and write, write, write," said Mr Thomas.
Mr Thomas then paced the room. He looked at all of us. "I hope that you are taking responsibility for your exams. When is the English exam?" asked Mr Thomas. The exam fell on 30th October 2017. I instantly responded to him.
Mr Thomas was surprised. "Oh, 30th October. That's very good. Our friend remembered the date," he said.
Mr Thomas then told us to respond to his emails and that was that. He then gave brief outlines on Paper 2 and 3. Then, as the lesson ended, he told us that he would meet each other on emails.
I then asked Mr Thomas if I could meet him physically to talk to him. He told me he preferred to communicate via email.
"Take care! All the best to you!" he cried, patting me. I gave him a hug. "You will do well!" Then, we went for History, and Ms Visa discussed the answers for the past year papers.
Then, Ms Visa called me to come over to her and then checked my work. “You need to include points. There are no points here. You must explain some points. Use the PEE (point, explanation, evidence) format,” she said, before putting a ‘Well Done’ on my work.
We then had lunch, and then Maths. Ms Glory then checked our work. Then, some people, including Brandon Ooi, asked Ms Glory for tips in the examination. Ms Glory just told us to practice the questions. This was then followed by our Economics lesson with Ms Sharon. She came into the class and then told us that it was our second last day of school. Many people took the time to ask Ms Sharon some questions before we left. I then headed to the Art Studio and then completed pasting all the other prep works' annotations on Paper 2. And then Ms Nadia checked on everyone's preps before leaving.
Some people were scared of the Art Exam, but Ms Nadia told everyone to take it in good strides. Sophie, Wei Wei and Chee Kei were the most panicky. By this time, more people were gathered in the Art Studio to do the prep works. Many were rushing to finish all prep works by the next day. Ms Nadia had set an important deadline. Everyone had to complete it. And fast.
20th September 2017 was the last schooling day for all the Year 11 students, as 21st September 2017 was Awal Muharram and 22nd September was our first day of Study Leave. On this last day, each teacher in the class would give us a farewell to all the students and all of us would be wished the best of luck in the IGCSE exams. It was a day without party; but a day of meeting our teachers and signing things off before going for the exams. I thanked my teachers and told them I will do my best in the exam.
The morning begun with a normal routine. The last day of school for us Year 11s had arrived.
As I arrived at school, I greeted Krystal Goh and talked to her about how fast we had reached the last day. Then, I went to the Art Studio and pasted the last, final few pieces of annotation on the prep works for Paper 2. Ms Nadia then guided me as I pasted the annotations. When more people reached the Art Studio, Ms Nadia told them to quickly finish up their prep works and complete them. "Faster! Faster! Today is the last day!" she cried.
We then begun the day with our first lesson of the day. It was our Business Studies lesson. Throughout the entire lesson, everyone was taking pictjures with Ms Chithra. Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Sophie Tan and Nicole tried taking pictures and selfies with Ms Chithra. Initially, Ms Chithra was hesitant but then relented and took pictures. "I am afraid that Ms Bee Yong or the management team will catch me," she said.
Before leaving the Business Studies lesson, I told Ms Chithra that I will do my best.
"Ms Chithra, thanks for helping me in Business. I will do my best," I said solemnly.
"No worries, Wei Yiang. Take care. All the best to you too," she said.
I returned to 11N, asking Mr Raja to sign the control book. "Mr Raja, thank you for signing the control book. Thank you for cooperating," I said to Mr Raja.
"You're most welcome, Wei Yiang. Take care. All the best for your IGCSE," he said.
Then, it was our very last Economics lesson with Ms Sharon. She discussed our Paper 2 Structured Questions. Then, she talked to us.
"Okay, so I wish you all the best for your IGCSE exams. May I ask if anyone wants to meet me during the Study Leave?" she asked. Then, Kelsey asked if she could let everyone know when she was free. You must let me know first when to meet. Then, I will arrange. Whoever wants to meet me, please meet me after class," said Ms Sharon.
Ms Sharon then gave us a brief outline for the Economics paper. She told us to make sure to include the main points in Paper 2, which would take place on 7th November. Then, Ms Sharon invited us to join the Nobelfest on 4th November if possible. All of us talked to Ms Sharon once things were done. Her last advice was for us to practice the past year papers. "I wish you all the best for your exams," she said. "Good luck to all of you."
I then presented Ms Sharon the control book and she signed it. I thanked her for signing and cooperating. "No worries. You have completed all the pages in the control book. You are the only one out of all the classes who did it," she said.
Then, it was break time. I took the opportunity to have one last breakfast time with Caleb Chuang. We then had a chat. It was so touching. The final time we were together before the IGCSE storm. Everyone cheered.
I then went for Art and completed pasting all the prep works. Ms Nadia then told us about the IGCSE exam for Art and Design. "Do you know that yours is the FIRST exam out of all the IGCSE exams?" she asked. The Art and Design subject was the first exam of all the exams. The ICT examination was the next exam following the Art Exam. Then, I finished pasting my work, but Ms Nadia told me that for Paper 2, I needed a new introduction. It had to be redone. What a setback.
"Never mind. Later before you do your Paper 2 Final Piece, please print a new annotation. Ok?" she asked. It was our LAST Art lesson with Ms Nadia. Then, as the Art lesson ended, many people said that they were scared for the exam. After all, the Art and Design exam was the FIRST exam out of all the exams.
During Maths, Ms Glory wished us all the best. Mr Chan then gave a speech at the end of our lesson. "Just do your best and just do the questions. Keep studying. Good luck," he said, smiling. With every farewell, smile and touching message, we were being let go from the grip of our teachers and left to be as independent as we were.
I then wanted to have a final lunch time with Caleb Chuang, but he was busy. Instead, I had lunch with San Ying, Sophie, Krisha, Lyn Wen, Yi Zhen and Kit Lee, who wished me the very best. Then, Ai Lin also wished me the best. A lot of people in the canteen from Year 10 and 11 wished me the best for the exam. It was really surreal. I was parting from Nobel, slowly. One at a time.
Ms Visa and Mr Kevin Wai, our class teachers, then joined all of us for a party during lunch in which we were given pizza for us to eat. We had a few games and so on, while me and Lyn Wen and a few others went down to the school hall to watch people go about their daily lives. I didn’t eat the pizza given as I don’t like pizza. The pizza was a treat for our class in winning the Teacher’s Day 2017 Fashion Show Competition.
During History, everyone then did their own activities. We played some games in class to wind down the lessons. Ms Visa took pictures of us playing ping pong balls on the table to say a final farewell to us. Some people spent time taking selfies with their friends. And during Mr Gallagher's lesson, he bade me farewell and wished me the best. He then gave permission slips to us and told us to bring them on 29th September when we meet him for the extra class. The final two hours of the day was used to exchange wishes of good luck. Everyone was going from class to class, while Brandon and Ze Khai showed off their muscles and took pictures of each other. Then, when the lesson ended, I went to 11N , met Ms Sarah and then told her to sign the control book.
"Ms Sarah, thank you for cooperating and signing the control book since the beginning of the year," I said to Ms Sarah.
"Thank you Wei Yiang. Thank you for being such a good monitor. No one would be like you. All the best for your IGCSE," she said. Then, I walked with her as I took the control book and the Smartboard stationery back to the pigeon hole.
I can still recall the last time I placed my control book and classroom equipment at the pigeon hole near the management office for the final time. It was a heartsickening day as my last day of action was to get things settled, never to be re-done again. Also, before I left, I met Ms Levina, who told me that she had wanted to schedule a final group photoshoot for the yearbook committee, but I could not make it due to the Study Leave restrictions. Eventually, she told me she will take my mugshot for the Year 11 Graduation and put the faces on the front page of the Yearbook Committee on the yearbook itself.
Before I left the school compound, I went to Management Office, where all the teachers were having a meeting. I individually thanked all the teachers who used 11N for taking their time and cooperation since January in order to ensure the control book process. "Thank you for making 11N special by signing the control book. It was great working with all of you," I said.
Ms Joyce immediately praised me, and so did Mr Kevin Wai. Then, Mr Kevin told me that the meeting was to start soon, and Ms Praveen told me to leave quickly in order for them to start the meeting. I updated Ms Praveen on my Art preps' progress. "Ms Praveen, I have finished everything. I am ready for the Art exam," I said confidently. "Well done Wei Yiang, you need to leave quickly. See you next week!" she cried.
As I walked out of the dismissal area and headed to the Art Studio where my aunt was waiting for me, I also took the opportunity to take a final photograph with Caleb Chuang together before we head for the IGCSE exams, and everyone wished each of us the best of luck. Caleb Chuang was coming down from the classes upstairs. The both of us took a picture before we headed home. Caleb Chuang and my aunt had a chat as I used my aunt's phone to take a photo. As I went home by my aunt's car, I looked at the photo of me and Caleb Chuang. It was so touching to bid farewell. We would never see each other again. I felt sad. More sad than happy.
As part of the protocol for IGCSE, this would be the final day before a series of restrictions kick in for us when we go about our IGCSE examinations. Ms Praveen met us for a briefing on the 18th September 2017 to discuss the examination protocol during our Character Transformation (CT) time. She told us the following things we should adhere to during the exam:
1) Firstly, all students will be subjected to a “Study Leave” period which will apply from the 25th September 2017. During this “Study Leave” period, students are barred from entering the school and if they need to do so, they need to request permission from the teachers and fill in a permission slip containing the date and time of the meeting and the purpose. It is up to the teacher and management team to approve the return to school during study leave and the teacher and students concerned can only meet during the specified duration of those meeting.
2) Students must bring the Statement of Entry, identity card and their examination stationery on the day of the exam. The most important thing is to NOT lose the Statement of Entry, as we would need to pay RM 50 for a re-print.
3) If let’s say we arrive more than 15 minutes after the exam starts, we would not be allowed to take the exam and will be marked absent on the attendance sheet.
4) Only transparent pencil cases would be allowed in the exam. Water bottles should also be transparent.
“Study Leave” would be a thing in which we have to take a break from attending school in order to completely focus on our exams. As Year 11s, exams are the biggest priority of all the students. All of us would need to focus on exams. We have spent the second half of 2017 to focus on the test. Everything would be left to us to go about the exams.
During the first few days of my Study Leave, I spent time doing my own things at home, aside from revising for my IGCSE. I revolved from running a 5km run at home versus gardening as well as scenic drives. The Art Exam was approaching, and I regularly communicated with Ms Nadia on the logistics for the Final Piece.
As soon as it sounded, my first exam, the Art and Design IGCSE, has approached. On 25th September 2017, I arrived in the morning as early as possible at 6:45am and waited in the Art Studio. It was so early and I was a bit nervous for the exam, because what I was thinking in my head was like there must be no nonsense moves in the exam, given that this is the actual IGCSE exam for Art and Design as opposed to a normal school test.
I had brought along my Statement of Entry, an image of my neighbor's plant with leaves portruding from the holes of the pot, as well as all my art supplies. My mum spent the whole weekend just to buy brand-new art supplies, from paintbrushes to paint, in order to ensure that my work came out in top form as if it was printed by a Fujifilm printer. I watched the cars drop students off in school as I arrived early. No one was there. I mean, no YEAR 11 students were there except for the Art students.
Then, more people arrived. Yi Zhen arrived, Sophie Tan arrived, Enisha arrived, Hao Yinn arrived……all of them. It took some time till 7:30am before Ms Praveen arrived and asked if all of us are okay. She can feel that we are quite nervous for the exam.
“Don’t feel scared. Relax. Why are you guys so scared?” she said with a chuckle. She told us not to worry and everything will be fine. It was understandable, as the Art and Design IGCSE exam is the first exam of the IGCSE exam series.
We were then instructed to come up at 7:45am in order to prepare for the exam to start. I went up early. Ms Praveen was there, and I greeted her. She, along with Ms Yew and Ms Sha, were preparing the exam venue for us. The Art students were using 11N and 11O for the exam. Ms Praveen then asked if I had everything ready and I said yes. Soon, more people arrived.
Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong stood in the front of the Year 11 classes, which were divided by a barricade to prevent other students from accessing it. The barricade also fenced off the toilets on the west side of the school building from the other students so that no peeping tom would go and sneak on the art students’ behaviour. Then, Ms Nadia arrived and prepared the room too.
Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong checked our art bags for any suspicious supply and also verified our identity cards and Statement of Entry which we were told to bring for the exam. After we were checked, we then entered the assigned classes for the exam. Class 11N and 11O were to be used for the Art and Design IGCSE exam. Everyone took out their Art supplies and the Statement of Entry, along with their identity card, to prepare for the start of the exam. My assigned candidate number for the exam was 0444. I thought it was of a really bad luck kind of number.
Each student was assigned with two tables at their seat so that they can put their Art and Design prep works on one table and focus their attention to the final piece on the other. The prep works were arranged on the table in transparent plastic as we arrived. Alternatively, we can also put aside the prep works and place our painting equipment on it to manage the preps. Again, Rosemund also supplied the watercolor paper for the exam, so I also paid around RM 2 for one watercolor paper from ArtFriendz. Ms Nadia also said that she would also allow us to use the paper supplied by the school for the Art and Design exam, and we would also be allowed to use our own papers. I sat at my assigned seat at the last table. Some people, such as Glen and Louis, took the school's papers. Everyone had their own paper except for Glen, Louis and Yan Chern. Everyone except for them got their papers from Rosemund.
The room was fitted with all the other equipment which we students can use for our exams. There were two buckets placed on the corridors outside the room; one filled with clean water and another empty bucket for us to dump the dirty water into it. We had to request for permission to use the washroom, even if we were to wash our paintbrushes. A hair dryer was fitted at the back of the room and a glue gun in the front for all of us to use.
The examination instructions were read out by Ms Yew Foong Ching, in the presence of Ms Sha, Ms Nadia, Ms Praveen and Ms Bee Yong. Then, we were commanded to begin as Mr Narish was the first to begin invigilating us. Ms Nadia had submitted a music list which would be played during the art exam for us to concentrate better. I submitted a few songs, namely the Pororo theme song, the Pokemon bicycle song and a few North Korean music. When the Pororo song first started since it is the first on the list, everyone was puzzled and reacted with a face palm look.
I then placed all my art supplies on the left table, moved the prep works to the left of the table and placed it on the floor to ensure proper space for me to draw. I then begun to draw the flowerpot nervously. It took about an hour for me to finish sketching the flowerpot and its leaves for the final piece. The flowerpot was my elderly neighbour’s plants she placed near the roadside on a pedestal. Then, I went to paste some newspaper over the leaves to form the texture of the leaf and experiment with texture.
Then, I proceeded to fill my two cups of water and placed some waste paper to do paint testing before doing my final piece. It is a practice my mum recommended for me to do in order to ensure that the paint does not mix and smear the beauty and quality of the painting. I then started to paint the leaves and constantly looked and glared at it from afar with half-closed eyes to see it as real as possible. Then, I begun to paint the pots and backgrounds, paying attention to the toning. To paint one spot of the drawing for Art and Design IGCSE can take up to two hours for such a small spot. I then focused on painting the primary colors first, and would do the touch up the next day.
After around 15 minutes of painting, I would usually take a short 3-minute break before continuing. I would wait for the painting to dry while thinking what should I touch up next. I would normally wash my painting utensils when it got dirty.
Mr Narish then walked around the room, checking on us, while Ms Nadia wrote down the list of questions on the. I decided to proceed very SLOWLY in order to ensure that things were well and that the work needed to be handed with great care as if the painting was an expensive painting displayed in an art museum. This must be noted that it is an examination piece. Cambridge would be seeing it. Then, at 8:30am, Ms Nadia left the room. She went down to the Art Studio, where the Year 10 students were working on their Art and Design Final Year Examination.
I painted very slowly and took frequent breaks. I didn't want to smear the paper containing my Final Piece. I had to be very careful, because this Final Piece is a masterpiece in itself. Aside from that, I also took really great care to protect my clothes by wearing my apron before painting. I looked at the picture I had while painting my work, referring to it.
The Art and Design IGCSE examination is an eight-hour exam which is divided into two days. At the time, the syllabus contained two papers, so as such, the examination would need to be held for four days; two for each paper. We were not allowed out of the room for the entire four hours, from 8:00am to 12:00pm. Everyone had to stay in it for that time. No break and lunch time. Just a four-hour gruelling exam.
At 9:20am, I took my first break and then sat down, thinking what I should paint next. I had by then pasted the newspapers on the largest leaf on the left-hand corner of my painting. I used white glue as well as my water glue to stick the newspapers. Then, once I had stuck them, I spent five minutes to dry the glue stains before painting over the newspaper. To speed things up, I used the hair dryer to get things done.
At 10:00am, I was already about to finish painting the primary color layers of the pot. I kept on referring to it. Then, I applied sticky glue using a glue gum and poured some gravel onto the glue so that it stuck. I sat next to Lyn Wen, who was also using the glue gun and was cutting some of the glue to make some of the texture for her painting equipment, which was drawn on her final piece. Mr Narish then left the room and he was replaced by Ms Paulina, who came to invigilate. Ms Sha and Ms Yew then came in at 10:15am to check on us, while Ms Nadia went and took pictures of us in action around the room.
At 10:30am, I then returned to my seat and then touched up some of the leaves and the pot. At that time, Benjamin Tenji then went to the washroom to dry his things. The room was busy with a lot of painting, some classical music, as well as some clanging and ruffling of art equipment.
Soon, it was 11:00am. I spent the next one hour touching up my work. Time flew as fast as possible. Then, at 12:00pm, Ms Yew came in and told us to stop. "Please leave your prep work and final piece in the exam room," she said. Everyone was then given their time to clean up their art supplies. We were not allowed to leave our art supplies in the room and must take them out. We were then instructed to clean up and wash our utensils and bring our art bags down to the Art Studio. When everyone had left, the door was locked and then we all left the room, headed downstairs and waited for our parents to take us home. My aunt was waiting for me. She then talked to me about the Art exam as she brought some lunch for me. Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sha locked the doors of 11N and 11O as we left the classes in order to prevent people from messing around with our exam work.
The next day, we waited in the Art Studio as usual to wait for the exam to start. I arrived at the Art Studio, placed my things there, and ate some carrot bread. Then, I went to find Mr Thomas to ask him on my work progress. He had a fru itful conversation with me. He asked me what exam I was having that day, and I told him that we were having the Art Exam.
"Is it a drawing competition? What did you draw?" he asked. I told him that it wasn't a competition per se. He was just kidding about it. Then, I had to explain about the potted plants and the like on my prep works and final piece.
When I returned to the Art Studio at 7:15am, Yi Zhen was waiting in the Art Studio and everyone was talking. Then, at 7:30am, I took my things up and waited at the Year 11 classes. The whole area was barricaded and sealed up.
The Year 11s were soon informed via WhatsApp by Ms Nadia to come up, and they came up at 7:45am to prepare and standby for the commencement of the second half of the examination at 8:00am. Once again, prior to entering the exam venue, Ms Praveen, Ms Sha and Ms Yew checked our things as well as our Statement of Entry and identity card. Then, we were told to enter.
I then prepared my table and filled up my water container in preparation for the continuation. This was the second session of the Paper 1 exam. We would have FOUR HOURS to finish Paper 1's Final Piece.
All our prep works were neatly placed on the table. I pushed them aside and then waited to begin. Then, Ms Yew told us that we can officially continue with our drawings. I then did a bit of touch up on the painting.
In the first hour of the exam, I focused on completing outstanding portions of the painting which were not completed. I had to look really closely when using the small brushes. For that exam, Mr Kevin Wai then invigilated us. As my painting involved delicate fine art, I had to constantly dry the painting using the hair dryer and consistently paint the thing properly in order to touch the thing up.
At 9:00am, Mr Kevin then left and then he was replaced by Mr Raja, who came to invigilate us. Mr Raja showed his serious look and put his hands behind his back as he walked around the room. I showed full concentration touching up the painting. The skies outside were a bit cloudy, but then, it got sunny again.
I was all done by 11:30am and finished cleaning and tidying up everything. At 12:00pm, we were given the command to stop and then clear the utensils. Those who had finished clearing and tidying up the mess were given a sticker that contains the details from Cambridge which we had to paste on our prep works and the final piece.
There are a total of five stickers; four for the prep works and one for the final piece. All we had to do was to write our name, candidate number (mine is 0444), centre name (Nobel International School) and centre number (MY319) for the four preps’ stickers. For the final piece sticker, we had to write the same, but with the question number (10) and the title which is the description of the question (Potted plants). We then went home and some of us gathered at the art studio while waiting for our parents to pick us up, including me. While waiting for my aunt, I talked to Lyn Wen and Yi Zhen about the Paper 1 exam.
I spent my days under study leave and IGCSE season relaxing while studying and doing things I like to do. I am not as stressed as the rest as they have set high expectations on themselves. I would go for my exercises or cycle around my neighborhood or even do the things that are fun while I still studied. However, on weekends, my maths tuition teacher Mr Nehru would come to tutor me for my Maths exams which would be held at the end of October, on 25th October 2017 (Paper 2) and 31st October 2017 (Paper 4). I would also focus on my First Language English papers which are held on 30th October 2017 (Paper 2) and 2nd November 2017 (Paper 3) All the subjects except for Global Perspectives have more than one paper each.
Art and Design: Paper 1 and 2
Mathematics: Paper 2 and 4
History: Paper 1, 2 and 4
First Language English: Paper 2 and 3
Combined Science: Paper 2, 4 and 6
Business Studies: Paper 1 and 2
Economics: Paper 1 and 2
Global Perspectives: Paper 3
We are only told to come for our exams and not linger around once the exams finish. All of us would need to depend on ourselves to focus and study, and some of our teachers may not be free as well. I also took time to do a rehearsal for Paper 2’s final piece at home and showed Ms Nadia how can I improve for the Paper 2 final piece before coming on the 3rd of October.
On Friday 29th September, I arrived at school at 9:30am, ready for Mr Gallagher's extra class, which was held from 10:00am to 11:00am. It was already the Junior School's break time when I arrived, and I walked in, along with a few other people. I then met Ms Lim, who asked why I was in school. I informed her about Mr Gallagher's extra class. Coincidentally, Mr Gallagher was walking around the corridor. He told us to proceed to Tutorial Room 4.
When I reached Tutorial Room 4, there was a lot of people waiting there. Mr Gallagher then ushered everyone who arrived to the room. He was going to give a briefing on how to answer the Global Perspectives Paper 3 examination.
Everyone was in the room with small bags as we were only there for the Global Perspectives extra class. The extra class was held for both of Mr Gallagher's set teaching groups. I managed to catch a glimpse of Caleb Chuang and then waved at him. He waved at me. I then met Rosemund, who told me that she will hand out another watercolor paper to us for the Art and Design Paper 2 on Tuesday, 3rd October. Mr Gallagher then opened a Powerpoint slide and looked at us. He then talked about what a factual statement was and what should we write in the paper. "I will post this up on Edmodo," he said.
During the lesson, Shane and Ryan Chok were not listening, and Mr Gallagher had to call them to listen in the coolest, rookiest manner. "Shane, Chok! Listen up!" he cried.
Then, Mr Gallagher taught us about how to argue our points. He then gave examples of gun violence in class and how we could use that to argue our points. Soon, his face turned into a serious stare.
"For those of you who have not completed your IRs (Individual Evaluation Reports), reflection and group work, you must submit them to me via Edmodo latest by 11:59pm tomorrow night. Otherwise, it will affect your grades," he said. Then, at 11:00am, our class ended. I talked to Sherwin and Caleb Chuang on the exams. They were busy talking about their Bible Knowledge exam which was scheduled for 9th October. Caleb Chuang, meanwhile, had his ICT exam scheduled for 5th October; the day following the Art exam.
The entire school, meanwhile, was having the International Week. I could see and make out Mr Michael walking in the corridor near the management office in a French chef dress. He looked like someone from the Rattoullile movie, a movie based on a rat and a chef in Paris.
Then, I went to the Art Studio and met Ms Nadia to have a chat about the Paper 2 Prep 4 annotations. Enisha, Cassandra and a few others, including Faythe Chow, were working on their Paper 2 preps. Ms Nadia told me to bring the annotations on Tuesday, 3rd October and paste the thing in my Prep 4 when I was done. Then, I proposed to her my design of the Workshop lettering poster, and she told me to practice the Final Piece at home and present it to her via WhatsApp.
On the second session of our Art and Design IGCSE exam, we came on 3rd October 2017 for the second paper, Paper 2. Once again, we gathered at the Art Studio and waited there to be called up to the examination venues again (11N and O). This second session was met with relief, as the second session was the last stretch of the Art and Design IGCSE exam.
While waiting, I decided to push open the windows of the art studio to let the fresh air into the studio, since it was very stuffy and usually it is very rare for me to experience fresh air as we are always going in and out of buildings. Soon, Yi Zhen came and asked why the windows were open, since it was rare for one to see open windows. I just said it was to let the fresh air, but she felt it was hot. Then, Wee Shiang, Hao Yinn, Yen Tong, Timothy Hiew and everyone else arrived at the studio. I then went up to the second floor to wait for the exam to begin after having my breakfast.
I greeted Ms Praveen, Ms Yew and Ms Sha who were preparing the venue. Ms Nadia was also there preparing the prep works. They asked me to wait for a while. Then, Ms Nadia told me at 7:45am to go down and call everyone up to the exam hall, and so I did. I ran down and told everyone to come up to 11N and O. I also told the last person to close the windows of the art studio which I had opened. So, once everyone heard the message, they came up and I ran back and told Ms Nadia and Ms Praveen that everyone is coming, and they were all on smiles. Soon, everyone arrived and got their bags ready and went through the same exam inspection process again by Ms Praveen, Ms Nadia and Ms Yew, who checked our bags. Ms Yew checked mine. Then, we proceeded to our assigned seat and then sat down and waited for the exam to begin, with our Paper 2 preps on the table.
The teachers then begun to set up the music player and load the songs, before Ms Yew made the announcements again on what we should do before we were told to start.
Completing the final piece for Paper 2 was much easier than the Paper 1 final piece, since there is no requirement for toning and other things such as texture and mixed media. The moment the exam started, all I did was draw the workshop lettering and there were less pitfalls to deal with. I drew the poster for the Workshop lettering and I got the primary colors done within a short time. To prevent myself from being too bored during the exam, I took some longer breaks and then thought of what I would do for my next few preps. I managed to complete 60% of the effort for the final piece on the first day before heading home. I then placed an outline on the nails and bolts in black color.
The Final Piece for my Paper 2 was a poster that consisted of a series of cartoon-like designs of nails, screws and bolts interlocked together in an intricate pattern in red, blue and yellow. A large, grey nail laid in the center with the words 'Art Workshop', along with details, such as the date, time and venue of the workshop. The date for the workshop was chosen as 24th September to commemorate Caleb Chuang's birthday celebration. The time of the workshop was from 7:00pm to 9:00pm. The word 'Workshop' in 'Art Workshop', on the other hand, was laced with the lettering of the Workshop fonts which I had done in Prep 2, 3 and 4, as requested by the question. I also spent my time cutting and pasting the annotation on Prep 4 when Ms Nadia gave me permission to do so.
When the exam ended, all of us cleaned up our things. Then, Benjamin Tenji accidentally lost his Sharpie marker and paintbrush, but then found them. Once we were done, we were dismissed and waited for our parents in the foyer.
On the second day, 4th October, I also opened the windows and the same process was repeated. The Art Studio was in lukewarm mode. I decided to head up early to the Year 11 classes after opening the windows and when more people entered the Art Studio.Ms Nadia promised a nice party for all of us the minute we finish our Art and Design IGCSE exam, but did not reveal the menu as it was a surprise. However, because I was in a rush for the exam, and everyone was headed for the hall, no one closed the windows and I was worried that the Art Studio would be impacted if the windows were still open, as it rained during the 4th October session. I only hoped that someone closed those windows. I got my work done in the first hour and a half, and then afterwards, I waited till the exam ended. It was a lukewarm feeling for me; after spending four months just to do two papers consisting of four preps each and one final piece, it was a done deal for me.
The moment the command was given for the exam to be halted, everyone was so happy. Benjamin Tenji and Enisha were grinning, and Glen Kay, who was sitting in front of me, smiled and gave his thumbs-up. We were once again given the candidate stickers to place on our prep works and thus we were done finishing the exam. All of us were instructed to put our final piece on top of our prep work. I spent some time with Ms Praveen and Ms Yew Foong Ching to clean up the class once the exam ended, and they told me they can do it themselves. I thanked Ms Praveen, Ms Sha, Ms Yew and the management team for arranging the exam for us. Then, we went down to the Art Studio for a surprise which was planned by Ms Nadia.
Ms Nadia was not happy with the opened windows. “Why are all the windows opened?” she groaned. “It almost rained in the studio, you know. Later all the water splash into the art studio. Luckily I saw it and closed it.” I apologized and said, “Sorry, I was rushing for the exam, but never mind, never mind, problem settled already. Case closed.”
Ms Lim, Ms Nadia and Ms Bee Yong had prepared a banquet party for us in the art studio and treated us to a variety of snacks. “Eat lah! Celebrate lah! Your exam is already over! Yeah!” cried Ms Lim. It is tradition for Ms Feeda in the past to throw a banquet party to celebrate the end of the Art and Design exams and to honor the heroes of the examination, and ever since, this tradition was continued. It was the only rare time where food was allowed in the Art Studio.
There were cupcakes, ice cream and various buns. I took some of the buns. Then, Glen and I talked about our next subjects while everyone played songs to celebrate. Even Ms Lim was dancing to the songs.
Ms Lim approached me and gave me a pat on the back for my Art and Design IGCSE efforts, and encouraged me to savour some of the snacks on display. Ms Nadia and I discussed the preparation effort and how much I had learned or gained along the way. At least, the Art and Design IGCSE exam is over and now we can focus on other subjects. We were given candles by Ms Nadia as a gift. Each candle had a label attached to it with a note.
My note read:
“Dear Wei Yiang,
Continue to achieve success and all the best in your future endeavours. Remember the time when you were in Year 7 and I scolded you and you cried? I believe in you and want you to improve and I know that you can do it. I also know your strengths and weaknesses and I want to help you and I believe that you can do well. All the best and take care.
Ms Nadia
4.10.2017”
I spent time mingling with all my other friends in the art studio and wished them all the best before heading home. A few days later, Ms Nadia provided me with the pictures of all eight prep works from Paper 1 and Paper 2, as well as the Paper 1 Final Piece. She had forgotten to take the picture of the Final Piece from Paper 2.
Mr Nehru, my Maths tuition teacher, continued to work with me on practicing my past year papers. He was called for extra Maths tuition during my Study Leave. “Concentrate!” he said when I lost focus. He told me that my Maths results are good, but the reason my grades were poor was that I lost concentration and panicked during the exam.
He gave me three advices: Be calm, be patient and concentrate in order to get good marks. This was what caused my Maths results to improve from D to C for the first six months of 2017 with the exception of a D in the IGCSE trials, and subsequently, he pressed for me and Nickolas Nashpal whom he also taught to go to Mathematics Extended despite being allotted to the Mathematics Core with Mr Kevin Wai and his class of students. While the Maths Core is an easier paper to do, consisting of Paper 1 and 3, a student which achieved 100 marks which is an A* grade for IGCSE will be downgraded to a C grade as the performance is easy. The Mathematics Extended is a harder paper, but the chances of scoring a C in Maths Extended is an equivalent to a B in Maths Core, and hence, Mr Nehru asked me to take the extended paper as I am qualified for it and had the potential to do well.
During the Study Leave period, I practiced for my runs again. I also planned some post-Nobel strategies for Bullseye. Each time when I saw Yi Zhen's transporter van enter my neighborhood, I would wave to the people who were riding the van home, including Joshua Lim. The morning would start off with me riding my bicycle, talking to my neighbour, and doing gardening. I would also go for scenic drives with my aunt. I normally focused on my past-year papers. My revision was not intense, but relaxed. I had to admit; throughout the IGCSE exam period and the Study Leave, I only focused on either First Language English or Mathematics, and nothing else. I wanted to get a Top in Malaysia award to compensate the loss of Bullseye in 2017. What a bad experience.
The Mathematics Paper 2 was the first exam since my Art and Design IGCSE exam and after 20 days of relaxation. The exam was held on 25th October 2017. As the exam was to be held in the afternoon, from 1:00pm to 2:30pm, I had to leave early at 11:30am so that I can reach school latest by 12:00pm to go for the exam. My mum took me to school after having lunch at 11:00am. I spent the morning prior to have a ride on my bike around the neighbourhood to calm myself before the exam.
As I reached school, I had my statement of entry, IC and all the related documents in one big plastic bag, as well as my scientific calculator, compass, ruler, pencils and erasers as well as pens in my transparent pencil case, which I carried along for the test. I then bid goodbye to my mum and then entered school. All the Year 11 students sitting for the test were waiting in the library; some of them were standing outside the school hall, which was the main venue for us. The Mathematics Core students were only just a small fraction of the rest and they did their exam in 11N and the exam was very short; they just had one hour of test as opposed to us having 30 minutes extra.
The school courtyard was bustling with activity when I arrived. It was the Junior School's lunch time. I then walked to check the hall. Then, I had a chat with Xang Yen on the Maths exam, as he was curious to know what it was. Soon, the assembly music begun to play, and Xang Yen had to head to his class line.
According to the name list, Nickolas Nashpal would be sitting behind me, thus making my heart beat very fast. This is because the both of us treated the exam like a “competition” to see who had the highest marks. I then went to the library and met Jordan Tay who was scheming his past year papers and talked to him. Justin Yeo, who was sitting next to him, was furiously focused on his set of past year questions. His concentration was too focused, to the point where he would not take his eyes off the exam paper to not break his concentration.
Caleb Chuang, meanwhile, was doing his past papers too with a smile on his face. He was sitting next to a large, tall desk placed near the bookshelves. I sat next to him and waited for the test to start. All the other Year 11s were busy focused on their past year papers with mixed feelings. I was the only one who did not have a past year paper. I saw Nickolas Nashpal and we all teased each other competitively with “I will beat you!”
Soon, it was time for us to gather outside the hall. The hall was barricaded with red and white tapes, segregating other students from the exam precincts. Everyone filed out of the hall as I scrambled ahead of them to the venue and placed my bag outside the hall. I got everything ready in hand and lined up behind Ashlyne Yong and her friend, Bethany Ng before entering the hall. Once it was time to begin, Ms Sha and Ms Yew Foong Ching checked our things to ensure that they are in order. Then, we proceeded to our seats. Ms Sha was holding a basket for students with handphones to place them in, which they can retrieve at the end of the exam.
At the side of the front of the school hall were two large screens projected by projectors. They displayed a clock which we can see in the hall. The centre screen was projected with the name of the subject, “Mathematics (Without Coursework)”, its exam code, 0580, and the time and duration of the exam, as well as the name of the paper, Paper 22. Paper 22 means, in the following order, paper number 2, variant 2. Boards and signs placed in the hall display the examination rules along with a “no handphone” sign. Each school would be given different variants of the exam paper so that it would be difficult for candidates from different schools to cheat.
“No talking in the examination hall,” said Mr Chan as he approached us on his microphone.
I straddled to my seat, placed my statement of entry and identity card on the floor, and waited for the instructions of the examination. Ms Praveen was watching with the no nonsense look as some of the candidates entered in a trivial manner.
Present in the examination hall were a few teachers plus Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Sha, who were facilitating the examination. The teachers present were Ms Sim, Mr Kevin Wai, Mr Lee, Ms Chua and Ms Glory. Ms Cynthia was also present to look on the examination. Around 10 teachers were there to look after us.
Disobeying the examination rules is a serious offence and could lead to the disqualification of a student from all the subjects of the IGCSE exam. It is one thing for us to study for the dreaded test, but one trip on the line would cost us our subjects and our future.
Ms Yew Foong Ching came on the microphone, reminding the candidates that the calculator must not have a cover attached to it. Some students placed their calculator covers in their bags or in the front of the hall. The teachers stared seriously to the arrival of some latecomers, and shook their heads in disbelief.
The examination rules were read out to us. “Do not open the exam paper until I tell you to do so. You are now under exam conditions and must follow the rules stipulated in the “Notice to Candidates” form that you can see at the front of the room.”
The exam paper provided by Cambridge was very different to the ones which we were given in school. The exam papers did not consist of pieces of paper tacked together by staples, but a booklet published in the same manner as a magazine. Instead, six A3-sized papers were binded by staples at the spine and folded into two, just like a magazine or a book you would see in a bookstore, to form the examination paper.
The inside of the paper was bordered by a border that is made up of the words “CIE”, which stood for Cambridge International Examinations (now known as Cambridge Assessment International Education). There were signs in capital letters saying, “DO NOT WRITE OUT OF THIS LABEL” which corresponds to the page border which is printed.
Then, we were given the command to start. The game was on. We started scribbling instantly, as if we were 100m sprinters shooting off from our starting blocks at the sound of a gun.
The examination questions were easy as I tried to focus my concentration and not be distracted. Soon, I managed to cross the half page of the paper. Within a matter of time, I completed the paper, but I did not have time to finish answering a few questions in the exam. It was a sigh of relief as the exam papers were collected back and one half of my Maths workload was gone.
When the exam papers were collected, I breathed a sigh of relief. One and a half hours was the duration of my Maths tuition time with Mr Nehru. When we were done, we left the hall quietly. Some people in the hall were given additional time to finish the paper. They were seated down to do their work. Not to also mention that for the exam, we had Nigel Chew come to take the exam. He was a private candidate; a homeschooled fellow.
Upon leaving the hall, the Elementary School was gathering for their dismissal. We left the school premises as our names were called. I greeted Puan Halimah and Ms Prema while chatting with them about my Maths exam. I also took the opportunity to meet Mr Chuang, too!
The second paper which I attempted the next day, 26th October, was History Paper 4. This paper is a case study paper in which we have to answer to our chosen Depth Study. For Nobel, we had two depth studies, namely Nazi Germany and the USA. Ms Visa had told us to focus on Nazi Germany as this was the topic which we not only covered as a depth study, but also in the earlier chapters of our syllabus when talking about World War I and the League of Nations. If we were to study about the USA, the workload would be higher, and Ms Visa did not even cover it in detail during our classes. The questions required us to answer the question with four points, each consisting of 10 marks to make a total of 40 for one part of the question. There were two parts to the question (a and b) and we had to choose one.
The History exam was held from 1:00pm to 2:00pm. My mum sent me to school for the examination. This exam was held in 11N and 11O's classroom. I was assigned to 11N's classroom as my exam venue. I arrived at school at 12:00pm, greeted the security guards, and entered the school.
Upon reaching the Year 11 classes, a lot of people were seated down, waiting for the History exam to start. San Ying, Kit Lee, Sean Mark and a few others were in groups, looking at their History textbooks. Many of them had sat the Chemistry exam that morning, which was held from 9:00am to 10:00am. The Chemistry exam was Chemistry Paper 6.
At 12:45pm, Ms Sha and Ms Yew went to the Strong Room and took out the exam papers, preparing the venue for the test. Soon, as they were done, Ms Sha then checked our exam materials, from our Statement of Entry to the identity card before our entry to the classrooms. Once everyone entered, we were being read the instructions for the exam, and were handed our exam paper. Ze Khai sat in front of me, while Krystal Goh sat behind me.
Like the school hall, 11N and 11O were decorated with examination notices and barricades which showed a crossed-out handphone, along with the examination rules. It is terrifying to imagine that one's effort of studies can be cancelled if a small, minor rule was broken.
For this exam, there was a lined answer booklet printed by Cambridge as part of the examination stationery, but however the teachers had stationed additional lined paper for us to use if we exceeded the number of pages. The lined answer booklet was light red in color and contained the Cambridge logo in the front of the paper. The pages contained a red border with red lines. The cover page contained a place where we could write our name, centre number and candidate number on it.
The clock started ticking as Ms Sha invigilated us. It was cloudy that afternoon, but I managed to complete the exam paper with success. We had to choose one out of two questions from our depth study. I chose a question on how violence and intimidation were effective in allowing Hitler to control Germany by 1934. The paper was straightforward. It was easy to do.
The entire exam was muffled by the sound of clicking pens and fluttering paper. Ms Sha kept on walking around the room, folding her hands. Soon, ten minutes passed. Then twenty. Thirty. I took time to write. Then, the exam was over, and Ms Sha announced the end of the examination. Then, she collected the papers and then we were allowed to leave. I then talked to Ze Khai about the exam. He was really cool, and we walked down as the Elementary School's dismissal time was ongoing. Once again, I waved hi to Ms Prema, Puan Halimah and Mr Chuang as I left. Even Ms Ingel took time to greet me as I left. They were dismissing the Elementary School students as they queued up in the foyer to hear their names being called. I spoke to Ms Prema about how it looked like as if it was yesterday that I was lining up just like the Elementary School students, and how fast it was from Year 1 to Year 11 for me.
“You were like them last time you know. So fast, and now you are graduating and sitting for your IGs!” she cried.
The next day, 27th October 2017, was History Paper 1. Unlike the previous day, this one was my favourite as it touched on communism, capitalism and all the topics of History that we learned. I like looking at the Cold War and the divided nations of Germany and Korea, which I like to read on, as well as nuclear bombs. The questions touched on our entire History syllabus.
As usual, I arrived at school at 12:00pm. I would arrive an hour before my exam starts. The exams I took on Wednesday, 25th October, and Thursday, 26th October, begun at 1:00pm. So, I reached Nobel at 12:00pm to give myself ample time to settle down for the exam. Then, upon arriving, I went up to the Year 11 classrooms; the same venue, for my exam.
Just like Paper 4, we were given a lined booklet which we also had to write our name and candidate number as well as subject name on it. The lined booklet was branded by Cambridge and it was quite neat and serious in design, too. And many people were discussing the Biology exam that morning. They had Biology Paper 2 and Paper 4.
We entered 11N which was used for the exam, and Mr Kevin Wai was invigilating.
“No talking in the examination hall”, he warned, as we took our seats upon entering the classroom. The school hall and the Year 11 classrooms were used for the test.
For the first section, Section A, I chose questions 7 and 8 in which the questions focused on the Cold War, the Soviet Union and the Berlin Blockade. Question 7a) asked on what a strong Communist Eastern Europe presented for the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, aka the Soviet Union) and I explained that the Eastern European communist countries presented a buffer zone between the USSR and the Western democracies. The next few questions asked on the development of the atomic bomb and the Berlin blockade, to which I successfully tackled. While the first two subquestions, a and b, asked us directly, the last one requested us to agree or disagree with providing statements, and we had to argue both. However, I had a difficult time and did not finish answering Section B.
This exam tested on the Depth Study in Section B. The questions tested us on Nazi Germany. Sadly, I hadn't studied much on that topic, instead focusing on the Cold War. I couldn't answer the question on what the SA was. I was quite puzzled on what the Night of the Long Knives was. Long story short, I was puzzled. The only question that I could answer was how far did the Munich Putsch pose a threat to the Weimar Republic.
Once the exam finished at 3:00pm, I handed in my papers as Mr Kevin Wai announced an end to the invigilation of the exam. Then, we left. Many people were talking about which question did they answer. We followed the other Junior and Senior School students as we exited via the dismissal area.
Mr Thomas lately had been asking us via email to bring colored pencils to the exam for highlighting and annotating, and he had been sending us multiple volleys of exam questions for us to do despite being engrossed in the Maths and History exams. He gave us deadlines which seem too soon, sometimes asking us to do within one day and hand the work to him. I spent most of the 20 days in October 2017 which I had no exams to do the English First revision and hand in the exercises to Mr Thomas.
“YOU NEED NOT WRITE BUT YOU MUST READ, READ AND READ, AND LEARN, LEARN, LEARN AND LEARN THE STEPS,” he said on Gmail, asking us to follow the steps carefully. He spent at least five hours and dozens of time to prepare the exercises. He said we should spend three hours at the very least, to attempt his exercises.
“TO CROWN IT ALL, AN ENGLISH FIRST A* IS, TO ME, THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS QUALIFICATION IN IGCSE,” he beamed. This phrase shocked and made me excited, as I had a high expectation for First Language English.
Imagine achieving Top in the World as well as being commended by him. This is the IGCSE version of Founder’s Run.
“Thomas
10:03 P.M. SATURDAY, 28.10.2017.” It was a declaration.
“How great is our god!” I responded. Shaun Ting sent me an email reminding me not to respond publicly as everyone can see the messages I sent and get false notification.
Time after time again, my mum and Mr Thomas had told me that it was impossible to get a Top in Malaysia or achieve 100 marks for First Language English as it requires one’s English to be very deep. Despite achieving A* for First Language English in various contexts, I still could not achieve the three-digit score.
So, on Monday, 30th October 2017, I came to school, anxious and nervous for the First Language English examination. The exam was to begin at 9:00am. I arrived at 6:45am; the same time I normally came to school, for the exam. I brought my series of colour pencils as part of the exam stationery and went to Staffroom 2 on the second floor to meet Mr Thomas. Mr Thomas assured me to be relaxed and keep my cool, as my nervousness exemplified a teetering tightrope which I had to perfectly maintain my balance. I walked around the school and talked to my friends as we waited for the examination to begin. I then met Xang Yen in his Year 8 class and spoke with him, before heading to the canteen.
As the rest of the school got on with their day as usual, I was sitting in the canteen and waiting for the exam to start. I just watched the Elementary School have their morning assembly. Some people, such as Branson Choon and Jordan Tay, had arrived early for the examination. They were in the canteen studying for their test.
The problem with the IGCSE target for Top in Malaysia/Top in the World which I set was that the grade thresholds will only be announced after the exam results are marked. The examiners marked the papers first, and then the result boundaries will be placed later. What makes things even worse was that the boundaries changed every year. For example, in 2016, someone who scored 69 out of 100 would score an A while in 2015, someone who received the same score will get a B. It is opposed to school-based assessments in Nobel where the boundaries are set and we aimed for it, or the Founder’s Run where the winner is allocated to the first individual who crossed the line. However, I disregarded this and tried my luck to see if I can achieve 100 marks.
At 8:30am, Ms Sha, Ms Praveen and Ms Yew pushed a large trolley containing all the examination equipment into the school hall. They wheeled the trolley down the corridor. Soon, the entire corridor was bustling with a large crowd. I stood next to Caleb Chuang and talked to him before we moved forward to enter. Ms Fadilah and Ms Sha held a tray for anyone who had phones to put them in it. Then, we were ushered to our seats in the examination hall.
While I sat down in the hall, there was no announcement as everyone filed in. It was like clockwork and everyone was cooperative. Krystal Goh then sat in front of me, and Lyn Wen sat behind.
“Okay, students, may I have your attention, please,” said Ms Yew. “Did anyone lose their calculator?” she asked, holding a calculator in her hand. “If this calculator is yours, please come to collect it after your exam,” she said.
Ms Yew than made the exam announcements. Then, we were handed out the examination materials by our teachers. The start of the First Language English examination was witnessed by Mr Chan and Ms Bee Yong, who were there to watch the exam kick off in an orderly manner. Alongside all of them were some of our teachers, namely Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Chua, Mr Nick, Ms Cynthia and some of the management members, who invigilated or watched over us.
Mind you, when the examination started, the teachers checked our Statement of Entry and our identity card. Individuals who needed help or have any questions of the exam raised their hands so that they can attend to queries by invigilators. However, invigilators will never attend to any question of the content in the exam paper, even if we did not understand the instructions posed by the question.
The exam came with two booklets, one for the question paper and a second Insert which is another booklet containing the texts which we need to look at to answer the question. Unlike the History exam, the English exam did not have the specialized booklet given for the History exam. Instead, the questions came in a normal question paper.
The Insert of the exam was a paper in which the text was printed. The title of the text for our exam was ‘The Price of Fame’. It talked about a woman named Mia who had a bad experience with a talent show. The story was a horrible and embarrassing story centered on Mia. She talked about all the bad experiences in a diary written a day after that talent show. I spent my time reading the text as my heart beat. Aside from that text, another text, titled ‘Why I'm Leaving The Band’, talked about a musician who talked about his experiences with music, the DJ and songs and explained his disgust for the band he played along with.
I brought my colored pencils and highlighted the required things for the answer, such as what is asked based according to the passage, and the word effect in which we need to select “four powerful words and figures”.
I then begun writing about the text in the first question. I wrote an interview conversation between an interview and Mia. Things went well. Then, the word effect question appeared. My heart beat furiously again till I felt that my seat vibrated like and earthquake. I had to do this and give my winning shot. Then, I had to list fifteen things on how a musician can get a record deal, and write it in a summary, based on the second passage.
The calm of the exam hall was interrupted by the grand, steadfastly entrance of Mr Thomas. He paced the hall, checking on us while walking like a professor. He was smiling. He was talking to us. And he was asking how were we doing. He looked pleased as we did our paper. Soon, my nervousness subsided. My heart warmed, and I could see Mr Thomas walking to me. He smiled at me as he passed my desk. Beside him, Ms Yong Wai Yee was there. Like him, she was smiling, but she was a bit more serious than Mr Thomas. Then, she folded her arms and walked the length of the auditorium, inspecting everyone's conduct. Both of them were pleased with our actions, nodding their heads in satisfaction.
Mr Thomas was seen having a smile on his face as he walked around the hall. Occasionally, he stopped to help people, careful enough not to accidentally guide us to an advantage. He then stood in front of the hall upon making his rounds. Then, he had a smile on his face and grinned at all of us. Soon, everyone was grinning at him. He then made a second round, followed by a third. He walked confidently, in a respectable manner, checking on us. Then, he picked up some people's examination scripts and read them. He nodded in satisfaction.
The clock then struck 11:00am. The exam had ended. Mr Thomas proceeded to the front. He then gave an announcement to call down the curtains on the First Language English Paper 2 examination.
“I would like all of you to have your pens down and pause. Please check the answers carefully and make sure that all your details are correctly filled in. Please be patient as your papers would be collected, and then you can leave,” he said in his usual, gentle voice. He gave a similar announcement during the 2015 Checkpoint Examination which we had sat for. Then, everyone was asked to hand in our papers. We then left after we had completed all the necessary arrangements. Some people were still doing their paper. They were given extra time. I greeted Mr Thomas before I left. “How was the test?” he asked. I could give no more than a satisfying answer to him. Some of the Elementary School students were coming out for their lunch time. We then waited in the foyer to be dismissed. I had a fruitful discussion with my aunt on the way home. Once I reached home, I rode my bicycle in excitement and ran around my neighborhood.
The next day, 31st October, was the second Mathematics paper, Paper 4, and the dreadful life of Maths for me, would come to an end. This second paper was an even tougher paper with more complex questions than Paper 2. This exam was longer, and lasted two and a half hours. We were in for the second round of Cold War Mathematics.
31st October was also the birthday of Ms Nadia, so I made sure to wish her before heading to school.
The examination was held from 1:00pm to 3:30pm. This time, I arrived a little bit later, at 12:30pm, so that I did not have to wait for a long time. Round 2 of the Mathematics exam was starting. The duel was about to begin. I headed to the library again, and sat with Caleb Chuang. Then, we headed to the corridor outside the school hall to line up for entry into the exam hall.
Me and Nickolas, were strangely silent as we entered the hall for the exam and sat down, as opposed to the previous session in which we dared and challenged each other. It was the last Maths exam ever. Our last class with Mr Nehru was on 29th October, a Sunday. He took pictures with the both of us and wished us the best of luck. He was happy at our performance and where we were in the test.
Everyone soon entered the exam hall. Mr Chan was ushering us in. His calmness helped us navigate rough waters, and his wisdom would usher us through the complicated Mathematics Paper 4. Then, Ms Sim made the announcements for the exam and read the instructions to us. Ms Glory was in the hall and among the teachers invigilating us. The Mathematics Core students, meanwhile, headed to 11N for the exam.
When I first saw the Maths questions for Paper 4, I was in a state of shock as the questions were very weird, but I remembered Mr Nehru’s advice and tried to stay focused on the questions. Eventually, I picked out one which was easy and attempted it. The questions that scared me the most were the ones with x and y labelings, as well as the ones with shapes and graphs. I also attempted a question which asked us to use tracing paper, and I have brought tracing paper along for the exam. I managed to finish at least three quarters of the question but sadly, did not manage to finish all. At least, the Maths exam was over.
When the Maths exam finished and the papers were collected, I finally burst into happiness in my heart. Of course, I did not cheer out loud; we were still under exam conditions. Then, Mr Chan collected our papers as Ms Sim announced the instructions. Some people were given additional time once again. I wished I was one of those additional people, but if you were to be part of that club, you'll need to fulfil some criteria before joining it. Then, we met some people from the Junior and Senior School as we left. I talked to Xang Yen as I completed my Maths exam, and he was talking about my college priorities.
On 1st November 2017, I sat for my Combined Science exam which was held in 11N. We had to do two papers in one sitting, namely Combined Science papers 2 and 6. Ms Sha was invigilating us for the day.
I arrived at school at 12:30pm and went up to the classroom. Then, I waited outside, along with Ze Khai and Nickolas Nashpal. “You will lose!” we cried. Then, we dared each other to see who can ‘win' the Combined Science paper.
Combined Science, like Maths, has core and extended papers. All the students who took core sat on the left, and the extended students on the right of the classroom. Me and Ze Khai talked to each other and wished us best of luck before the exam.
For Combined Science, Cambridge had printed out a specially-used multiple choice sheet in which we had to shade A, B, C or D. The shading must be done in pencil as it will allow the sheet to be processed easily.
The multiple-choice answer sheet consisted of a red background with bold words that said, “SHADE ONE ANSWER ONLY”. There was a border of Cambridge logos encircling the borderline of the multiple-choice answer sheet. There were 50 multiple-choice sections in the answer sheet. I struck luck in this exam as one of the multiple choice questions were copies of the past year exam questions. However, for Paper 6, what exhausted me was the tonnes of pages that I had to answer in the paper. I did not manage to answer all the questions, unfortunately.
Mr Thomas did not stop sending messages despite the break in preparations for First Language English's Paper 3 which would be held on 2nd November, and he was very insistent that we do his exercises and pay attention.
“DON'T TAKE LIGHTLY THE TEXT READING, ORGANISATION AND WRITING OF DIRECTED WRITING. IT GIVES YOU 25 MARKS,” he said.
One of the good things I like about First Language English Paper 3 was the Directed Writing and Composition part of the exam. This is because I can make my stories exciting, which can impress the examiners.
Mr Thomas emphasized for us to keep to the word limit in a one-page Microsoft Word letter to us. “Why should we give others the cane to beat us?” he asked. He also urged our story to have a rising action, climax, falling action and resolution so that it would be interesting.
“Your exam story should be about 500 words or so. Don't write the number of words at the end, though. OK?” he asked. I responded to him “OKAY!” and placed a lot of smiley face emojis.
Thursday, 2nd November 2017, was a day with three subjects’ examinations which I have to take, both in the morning and in the afternoon. I had the First Language English examination from 9am to 11am in the school hall, followed by the Global Perspectives paper and finally the History paper immediately following the Global Perspectives paper. This meant that I would need to spend the whole day in school, from 6:45am to 4:30pm. It was my first whole-day examination.
The problem with the arrangement is that on the timetable, there is a History examination at the same time as Global Perspectives, with another History examination at the end. As I take both of these subjects, I saw a written note at the bottom of the timetable:
“2-NOV-17 Students taking both History + Global Perspectives are required to take the Global Perspectives paper first followed by the History paper.”
The other History examination is a specially designed exam for students who are taking History but had to do the Global Perspectives examination which was held at the same time. However, I am afraid that we may be rushed into doing two exams at one go. I queried this to Ms Yew Foong Ching and she said that we will have enough time to go for the two exams and transition between them. I checked the timetable and found out the classes are side by side each other.
On the morning of 2nd November 2017, I arrived in school at 6:45am as usual. Then, I went to the canteen for my breakfast. After having breakfast, I then walked around the classes, meeting and greeting people. I wanted to talk to Xang Yen, but he was busy studying. Then, I went and talked to some teachers in the staffroom before heading down to the school canteen to wait for the examination to start.
At 8:00am, Ms Sha, Ms Yew, Ms Praveen and Ms Fadilah went into the school hall to prepare for the start of the examination. Then, they pushed a large trolley into the school hall. The crowd started building up. Soon, the Year 1 and 2 students made their way to the school canteen, and all of us had to get up and leave the canteen as requested by Elementary School teachers. The canteen operators from Uncle KC's stall placed some pre-cooked food on the table for the students to eat them.
The corridor soon became crowded with people as I sat down with Caleb Chuang to talk to. Minutes later, we were ushered to the school hall. Inside the hall, Ms Praveen was watching as we entered. Upon entering, some people who had accidentally brought their phones into the hall were then asked to hand them to Ms Yew, who put the tray in front of the hall, on the stage. Seriousness set in as Ms Praveen lectured the exam rules and the severity of the two-hour examination begun, from 9:00am to 11:15am.
The First Language English Paper 3 consisted of an Insert and a question paper, just like Paper 2. The Insert contained a text titled, ‘Friendship Contracts’ which reminded me of the relationship with my best friend, Caleb Chuang. The text talked about a girl named Isabelle who moved to the area, and the writeup was from Isabelle's parents’ perspectives. Isabelle's parents kept on criticizing the friendship contract given by her friend during her birthday party. The examination question was divided into two parts; Section A and B, but the main focus was on B. I attempted the first questions and used my color pencils to highlight the points while keeping to the word limit.
The first question involved writing a letter to Isabelle's friend's parents, Mr and Mrs Dubois, on whether the friendship contract would be agreed upon or not. That was easy. I argued against the friendship contract, telling Mr and Mrs Dubois on how it looked weird to have such a contract and that the contract can incur liabilities and trouble for Isabelle.
The second question was a struck of luck for me as I chose the last question – “Write a story where a character returns to a place they do not wish to go back to.” I based my story on someone from North Korea who has to return from South Korea back to the North in order to feed his or her family while avoiding artillery gunfire from the North Korean military. I happily enjoyed writing the story as I had planned for something like this. I thought that by doing this, it would be a good thing to convince the examiner to award the highest marks since he might enjoy the story. Seriously. It looked funny.
Many people from North Korea escape to South Korea. Seriously, I had grown obsessed on reading about North Korea. There had been tens of thousands of funny things in the news lately on North Korea. The latest news then was a ninth nuclear test and the threat of nuclear war from Kim Jong Un, which I got scared on. He planned to strike Guam, you know. And I based my story on a North Korean sailing back via boat on the ocean near the Korean Peninsula.
After the examination finished, I walked out and went to have my lunch, before heading for my next paper for Global Perspectives. When the exam ended at 11:00am, I went to Uncle Tan's stall to order some food. Then, I slurped on my meal before greeting Jade Lim and Elissa Carmen. I then walked around the school and had some time walking around before going up for the exam. I then met Caleb Chuang and then talked to him about the number of papers that I had to take that afternoon.
Soon after, everyone arrived and was gathered outside the Year 11 classrooms for the exam, as Ms Sha and Ms Yew Foong Ching came to set up the room. Then, we checked a board containing our seating arrangement before we entered for our exam. Ms Yew invigilated the exam for us.
A lot of people were headed for either the Global Perspectives or the History exam. Both exams begin at 1:00pm. The History Paper 2 begun at 1:00pm and ended at 3:00pm. The Global Perspectives paper was a one hour, fifteen minute exam, starting at 1:00pm and ending at 2:15pm.
The Global Perspectives exam was very easy for us to do. We were given an insert to refer to when doing the questions. The question was a favorite – global warming. I was seated in 11B to do my exam. What I liked to look at were the images printed on the examination paper of the cooling towers of the nuclear power plant.
The questions were very direct and they were easy to answer. I managed to complete the exam within 40 minutes.
As the exam ended, Ms Yew then collected the papers and then I got ready to move to the next class for History. Ms Yew instructed those who were going for the History exam after the Global Perspectives exam to leave first.
“Okay, students who are taking History, please proceed to 11O now.”
So I got up, left my seat in 11B, where the Global Perspectives exam was held, and proceeded to 11O for the History exam. Ms Praveen was outside to direct us to the exam venue. “Move quickly. No talking,” she called, as the exam would begin shortly. The rest of the students then left and went home happily. Ms Vishalini was waiting for us in 11O and told us to settle down while she talked to us. I greeted her and asked if this was the venue for History students who took Global Perspectives, and she said yes.
Ms Vishalini asked those who wanted to leave for the washroom to do so immediately before the exam starts. So I left, for the washroom and returned quickly. Afterwards, we sat down and begun the exam.
Ze Khai was talking about Franz Ferdinand and Austria Hungary before the Global Perspectives exam. When I opened the paper, I felt like I was going to fail the exam when seeing Section A, which had a source analysis question on the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. I then flipped the pages till the second section, Section B, came out which was about the Soviet Union’s intervention in Hungary against protestors who are against Communism. Oh wow! Ze Khai's prediction was correct!
The title of Section B was ‘Was the Soviet Union justified in intervening in Hungary in 1956?’
All the text sources which were published on the exam paper were taken from our History textbook. The text sources were a news article by Russian news agency TASS, a statement by Imre Nagy, the President of Hungary on 4th November 1956, a statement by the Soviet Minister of Defence on 7th November 1956, and a statement issued at an Eastern Bloc meeting on 6th January 1957, which did not come from the textbook.
Two pictures were published; a magazine from TIME on three figures with guns and the words ‘Hungarian Freedom Fighter', as well as a cartoon of Nikita Krushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union at the time, along with two of his government officials. Krushchev was seen smearing a World History book with fresh blood. He did not appear to smear the whole book though; he smeared a section which published on the Hungarian Revolution.
Soon, ten minutes passed. Then twenty. Thirty. I took time to write. It took time for me to answer the questions. Time initially seemed slow, but then sped up. Then, it begun to rain outside. And then I failed to finish the final question as the time ran out. I could hear the dismissal music and the blasting of names from the loudspeakers.
By the time I finished the test, I told Ze Khai of how correct his prediction was. Then, he laughed. Soon, I was exhausted and had to endure the car ride and traffic congestion home. The sun was setting and everyone was heading home.
So far, I had completed all the papers in Maths, English, History and Global Perspectives. With another three more subjects remaining to finish (Business Studies, Economics and Combined Science), my load was lessened. I hadn’t touched my Business Studies papers in a while, and I hope to touch it before the exam starts. Exam fatigue is setting in, and I hope to have a break before the year is out.
On Saturday, 4th November 2017, I went for Nobelfest 2017. I went to Nobelfest in the morning, for around three hours.
Canopies were erected in the school courtyard. Every class was invited to sell their things. I reached the school and talked to Xang Yen. Then, he sold some cookies and curry puff to me. I took the cookies but rejected curry puff.
The school driveway was used to erect a large, bouncy castle. A lot of kids were playing and jumping happily on the castle. There was an area where people could fish for guppy fish. At the same time, a booth was set up in the school foyer for people to purchase coupons or get some makeup.
The school hall was removed of the examination format. In its place, a large fence separated a game of football with a large rock climbing inflatable tower. The game of football was played with the players standing and rolling around in bubbles to move the ball around. There were also song requests being played by the Year 10s, who manned a music booth at the PA system.
I spent the morning walking around with Cassandra and Caleb Chuang, and we talked about our past examinations. Caleb Chuang then said that he only had three more papers left; Physics Paper 4 and Chemistry Papers 2 and 4. We then walked and talked, and Lyn Wen joined us.
Caleb Chuang and I then went to the Year 8 booths, and we talked to Kaleigh Ann. She was planning to leave Nobel at the end of the year, just like the two of us; except that for us, we HAD to leave, but for her, she CHOSE to leave.
I spent my time talking to Caleb Chuang. I talked about how we can rouse up Bullseye following the Nobel Cup. He agreed with some plans which I proposed, and I told Ethan Chan that. My eyes were focused on the 2018 Sports Day. I told him that we could make Bullseye win as an ex students. He nodded his head, but gave me a puzzled look.
I then spoke to Ms Sharon about the Economics revision and asked her questions. Then, I met Mr Thomas and talked to him, followed by a chat with Mr Lee, who was hanging out with the Year 10s. Then, I met some people who came for Nobelfest as well, such as Yi Zhen and Daniel Ngew, who talked with me. I just spent time walking around and looking at everyone do their Nobelfest plans. Then, I met Ms Levina and talked about the upcoming Economics paper. She was excited to hear my story. Then, she told me that she will arrange individual photos of the Editorial Board committee members, including me as well.
Before I left, I spoke to Ethan Chan, the assistant house captain of Bullseye. I then presented him the plans for Nobel Cup. I told him to refine the plans and give the Bullseye members some emotion. Every Bullseye member was angry, and were determined to win the Nobel Cup. He agreed after I discussed the plans. I also wanted to tell this to Shi Tian, but she was busy. Ethan Chan told me that he will tell her that. Then, I went on a tour of all the Bullseye members to pitch my case, especially to Zidez Raja, who was so excited to talk about it. He then told me he will motivate the Bullseye members. I also told Zidez about my plans. Then, I met Melvyn Lim, who was excited to hear my plans as well. My mum was speaking to Ms Visa as I left. I told her about how the History exam went. She was alright with that.
The Economics exam occurred on Tuesday, 7th November 2017. It is the second out of three days in which I had a full day of exams, as I have Combined Science at the end of the day. The Economics exam for Paper 2 was held from 9:00am to 11:00am. I arrived at 7:45am and then went to have my breakfast before heading to the library. There, I read my Economics books and then walked around the school courtyard and waited for theexam to start.
Economics Paper 2 had a structured question and more of which writing was expected. I just relaxed and did not do some practices to calm my mind down. Then, at 8:30am, we gathered. We were allowed to enter early, and for the exam, Ms Sim was invigilating.
The hall was restored to its serious academic form, rubbed and stripped of its funfair-like atmosphere. Ms Sim then asked if everyone was ready, and then greeted us. “Alright, candidates, we are going to start soon. I understand that some of you are on your last paper, so just keep going and just hang on. Then, you will be free and having fun!” she cried. She then instructed the papers to be handed out, and we did our exams as usual, although it was a bit tough for me when answering some of the questions in Paper 2.
Each student was handed a red answer booklet that contained ten pages, along with the Economics question paper.
Section A of the Economics question paper contained a large demand and supply curve showcasing the price and quantity of steel, which illustrates the market of steel in China. A text above the question paper talked about the Chinese steel industry and the gross domestic products of the United States, Germany, China and Australia. It also talked about the differences between developed and developing countries.
We were presented with eight questions. We had to identify two monetary policy measures, which are interest and exchange rates. We had to identify and explain two causes of a fall in the birth rates, namely poor living standards and less income, which made it difficult to support families. We had to calculate China's contribution of gross domestic product (GDP) growth, the number of children born in Nauru in 2015, draw a Production Possibility Curve diagram, explain using the information from the text on what might occur to the market for steel in China in 2015, as well as attempt two discussion questions.
For Section B, I chose questions 2, 3 and 7 as it was very easy to do. The easiest question to do in Section B, was Question 2a, which asks us to define ‘demand’. It was so easy.
When the Economics exam finished at 11:15am, I then went to have my lunch. I sat away from some of the Elementary School students who were having their lunch, so as not to disturb them. After lunch, I went for my Combined Science exam. It was a bit challenging, but it was still easy to do it.
There were three exams occurring at the same time; Combined Science Paper 4, as well as Physics Paper 2 and Paper 4. I sat with Caleb Chuang to do our revision. Then, everyone else. Brandon Ooi then said hi to me and Caleb Chuang. Many of them were in the library following the Economics exam. Jordan Tay, Han Ming, Branson Choon, Jearn Xiu, Rick and Ting Yi were doing their Physics revision together.
At 12:45pm, we then entered 11N for the Combined Science paper. Mr Kevin was there to invigilate again. Like in the previous Combined Science examination, all of us were seated according to whether we took the Core or Extended paper. Then, when the exam started, I had no problem tackling all the questions except for the chemical equations.
When we finished our test, we had to be quiet when leaving the room at 2:30pm, fifteen minutes after the exam concluded, as our teachers had to sort out and keep the papers. Then, as we passed 11B and 11E, where the Physics exam took place, we saw everyone doing their work in a serious manner. We were told to quickly leave as the exam was ongoing.
I also took time to also do my revision for Business Studies. I dread doing it because I thought the questions were so hard. But I decided to give my past years a try while also planning for Nobel Cup which will be held on 13th November 2017. This was Bullseye's last chance in 2017 to win Nobel Cup. It would serve as a good omen to end 2017 but also look forward to winning Sports Day 2018. A message to reflect on the past and improve for the future. I had felt so tired studying till I got a headache and fever on 21st October 2017. The opening of the Downtown Line in Singapore quelled the sombre mood. My cousin was there to witness the opening of the Downtown Line Stage 3, as she was invited by Singapore's Land Transport Authority due to her being the procuring contractor for the MRT trains. She took a few pictures of the opening ceremony.
The Business Studies exam on 9th November went well, but the eyes are on Nobel Cup, since a lot of unnecessary stress had been induced from the exam. I was baffled at the amount of writing and things I did not know or didn’t study, since the focus was on other subjects.
On 9th November, it was Xang Yen's birthday. I wished him the very moment I arrived at school for the Business Studies paper. He was heading back to his class. I arrived at 12:30pm and headed for the school hall.
The Business Studies paper was a 1 hour 30 minutes paper. Each question was filled with points and long lines which we had to put our answers. And each answer for each point and sub question took at least half a page. It was a psychologically short, but physically long answer response.
During the exam, Mr Kevin Wai invigilated as many of the other teachers, including Mr Lee, Ms Janice, Mr Raja and Ms Sha looked on. It went somewhat well, but for many answers, I struggled on it. When the exam ended, Jian Wen and Jia Qing were doing their Business Studies paper. They were given extra time. Once the paper was done, I then talked to Puan Halimah about the fact that I had two papers left. Now, all that was needed to study for Economics Paper 1 and Business Studies Paper 2.
Nobel Cup was held on Monday, 13th November 2017, at iM4U Sentral in Puchong. While Year 11 students were barred from the school grounds, they are not spared from going to any Nobel event located outside of school grounds. As iM4U Sentral is located near my house, it was easy for me to access and at least get some breathing space from my exams.
On the morning of Nobel Cup, 13th November 2017, I went to iM4U Sentral to view the Nobel Cup after having a scenic drive with my aunt. I greeted Ms Lim and she asked how are my exams. “Two more papers,” I said. Ms Lim said, “Good”.
While the Study Leave restrictions applied to school grounds, it excluded school events from the equation. It was a good thing to have some form of entertainment through the doom and gloom of revisions.
The onus was on Bullseye to see if they can regain the Nobel Cup from Touchdown. If Bullseye can do so, we would be able to lead Sports Day and hopefully win the Sports Day in 2018 if the format was the same as the 2017 Sports Day, with Nobel Cup attached to it. I greeted Ethan Chan and saw Caleb Chuang and spoke to him, and it turns out that he had his last paper, the Chemistry Paper 4, on 8th November. I cheered with the Bullseye members and saw Ethan Chan and a few others, and hence, I joined in to cheer with the Bullseye members and Caleb Chuang. I returned home for lunch and then came back to see them off. Seeing Caleb Chuang in Puchong was like Kim Jong Un welcoming the South Korean president to North Korea. Ms Kiran also asked why I was not studying, and I told her my house is nearby and that I am taking a break.
As the Bullseye members lined up, I sat with Caleb Chuang and talked about my last paper. He was happy. And I told him that I had something for him. I wanted to give him a gift on our graduation day, 16th November.
The Economics exam on the final day, 14th November, went smoothly, less than 24 hours after Nobel Cup begun. Ms Sim invigilated us. The final day of IGCSE exams had arrived.
The Economics exam was held from 9:00am to 9:45am. Prior to the start of the exam, everyone was so happy and did not even bother to study. Some were frantically circling the answers in the questions. It was a multiple choice question and all that was needed to do was to choose either A, B, C or D.
As everyone was told to enter the school hall for the exam, many were too excited and could not control their nerves. For many, Economics Paper 1 was their last exam. Even Megan Lee and Christiana Chin were laughing and cackling like mad. They cackled till all the kids watched them. Soon, they even waved and high-fived one of the Year 1 students.
“Students, please settle down,” said Ms Sim, who invigilated our exam. Then, everyone settled down and the question paper was handed out, along with our red multiple choice answer sheet.
All the questions, I would say, almost all, were past year questions! Everyone was grinning happily as the questions were too easy and everyone finished it. Within 30 minutes, everyone was done. There were 30 questions in total, and over half of them were past-year questions. Then, as the clock counted down, everyone cheered when the time was up, as it marks the completion of most people’s last paper. The teachers told everyone to remain silent. “Students, please remain silent,” Ms Yew Foong Ching warned. Ms Sha was laughing but tried to control her laughter as the exam ended. She was talking to Ms Yew Foong Ching and Ms Praveen that it was the last day of exams and that everyone was too excited. Even the teachers were so excited. The stress and shock of IGCSE was coming to an end.
Once the papers were collected, Ms Sim then made an announcement. “Alright! So, your exam is over!” she cried, and this resulted in cheers from the students. The cheer was as loud as a football stadium. “Shh!!!!” cried Ms Sim, as some people screamed and shrieked hysterically. “The exam hasn't ended. You can cheer once you have left the hall,” she said, reminding us that some people were being given extra time. Then, once she confirmed that no one was having extra time, she passed the time to Ms Lim.
“Okay, Year 11! So your exam is over! Now, I just want to make an announcement. I hope all of you can arrive at Hotel Majestic early. Your graduation is in two days, this coming Thursday. Please arrive at around 2:00pm sharp. You will collect your graduation gown and go through a rehearsal before we start your graduation ceremony,” she said.
Ms Lim then asked how many of our parents were coming, and we all raised our hands to answer her question. Then, Ms Lim congratulated us on finishing our last paper. Ms Sim then made an announcement.
“I know that this is your last paper, so keep it up and good job. For some of you, you still have another one more paper this afternoon, so all the best for it, and, yeah! Well done!” she cried.
After the exam, I met Ms Sharon who was discussing with a few people about the exam and she said that she had seen the exam paper and all of the questions were past year questions. Then, I had a very long break and did my Business Studies past year paper questions. I then had lunch and walked around the school, talking to people like Xang Yen about my graduation.
At 12:30pm, I gathered outside the hall for Business Studies Paper 2. The final paper for me for Cambridge IGCSE was about to start.
A subdued crowd gathered outside. Then, Ms Sha allowed us into the hall again. We then sat down as Mr Kevin Wai invigilated. We were then told to begin.
The Paper 2 for Business Studies was a very interesting one because the case study was all about gardening which is my hobby. The company’s name is Garden Supplies (GS). However, I did not manage to finish the paper within the time given. A few people, such as Soon Jian Wen, had additional time but at least, I have been released from the birdcage earlier.
After the end of the Business Studies paper, I watched as the teachers packed the papers and returned to the staffroom. Before leaving the school hall, I thanked Ms Praveen and all the teachers in the school hall for their invigilation and their time to prepare the exams for us. “You are most welcome,” said Ms Praveen.
Finally. I can do all the things in my life that had been grounded due to the IGCSE exams! It was a sigh of relief as I took time to get my exam papers off the radar and start planning for the future. I only wished we had more time to mingle in school, because the Year 11 graduation is on the 16th of November.
Originally scheduled for 17th November 2017, the Year 11 Graduation Ceremony was pushed forward to the 16th November 2017, by one day.
I have many different feelings about graduating from Nobel. I felt like I had one unfinished business. The Bullseye victory must be restored. However, as a Year 11 student approaching graduation, I can't restore everything as a student. And if I was given one more year in 2018, I would restore the great glory of Bullseye.
I mean, like, not only I was just sad over Bullseye losing. I was angry with the tumultuous events leading up to Sports Day, and I believe that I was restricted or not allowed to go in the effort of Bullseye's victory. So, it paved the way for me to try and make Bullseye win as an ex student.
On the other hand, the thought of leaving Nobel. This was a fun, very interesting and very wonderful place. Every year, when I dread about people leaving Nobel, I feel very sad.
When Yen Choo left Nobel; when Nigel Chew left Nobel; when even Ryan Tan and Yatisan left Nobel, or Amanda Teoh, or any other people whom I know of, they talk about the bad things about Nobel. They talk about the cock and bull story and about how other schools were better. Even in 2015, during our Homeroom time when Ms Ng showed us a video of High School Musical in the class, Eu Lynn said that their school was really cool. However, I believe that Nobel can be as cool as those other schools.
I feel being sad when associated with people leaving Nobel. I felt really demotivated, because my main thing was that I cannot complete the Bullseye victory plan before leaving Nobel. So, being robbed of that opportunity was saddening. 648-649. The shocking loss ever. No one can replicate it.
So, on the 15th of November, I came back to school for half a day to mingle with everyone who decided to come back and have a short fun. I arrived as usual, and went to my class, 11N, where the tables were rearranged back to their original configuration as it was before the exams, and the barricades and exam equipment removed.
A few other people came as well. Ivyna, Brendan Cheah, Sophie Tan, San Ying and Pranavee are among those who came. After having breakfast in the morning, we went to the school hall for the morning assembly. As most of the Year 11s did not come, we just stood behind and waited for the assembly to start while the other year levels assembled in their classes.
The assembly went on normally as usual and we were told that there will be a CCA Exhibition to offer the CCAs that are offered in Nobel for the year 2018, as 15th November is the CCA Showcase Day. There were a series of booths being offered by different CCAs. The CCA that had the biggest booth was the Christian Fellowship club, and Aaron Yong, Koh Geok Minh and Edson Tay were playing musical instruments, as Ms Renee, the teacher advisor for Christian Fellowship, looked on.
I spent most of the day mingling with my friends. I took some time to talk to Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and Caleb Chuang on the conclusion of the IGCSE exams and how things went for all of us. I also took the opportunity to meet my teachers and thank them for what they have given us and for even knowing them. I walked around the school and talked to the rest of the younger students on how things went for them. I even took the opportunity to mingle with Ms Nadia and take pictures at the Art and Design Club booth with a large model boat that has been painted for a photo booth. I then had a picture with her. All the teachers and students walked around to enjoy the exhibitions. Caleb Chuang and I savored the Christian Fellowship booth as sang songs of praise to God.
I decided to take a brisk walk around the corridor before heading home, and bumped into Auntie Clarine. I told Auntie Clarine that 16th November, the next day, is my graduation and explained how long I have come through Nobel. I told Auntie Clarine I can remember the location of my first class in Nobel, 1 Sincerity. “Yes, I know. You were so young then,” she said. I then had a short chat while walking around the corridors and thus went home after telling her I’ll see her on the graduation night. I left school at 1:00pm that day.
16th November 2017 will forever be remembered as a day in which the “fun ended”. I also call it a “mini version of Hong Kong’s handover”, or the mini version of the Y2K bug. After dreading for so long, the graduation ceremony for the Year 11 students had arrived.
Graduation was originally scheduled for 17th November 2017, but it was brought forward one day early. It is the day I wished should not happen, since we, or I should say, I myself, have more things to be done.
I only wished we Year 11s could have some fun together, to mingle with each other and to spend time together. Why, of all days, does the Year 11 Graduation have to occur at the end of the school year when things are shutting down. I felt that if I was in charge of planning the dates, I would give the Year 11 students four weeks to enjoy themselves and take some time to rewind, unwind and reflect on their time while having fun. Give Brandon Ooi, Shane, Ze Khai, Nickolas and Ryan Chok time to play basketball. Give Sean Mark and his friends (Ethan Wong, Jason Leing, Jien Min) time to mingle around and act cool. And also, let Ivyna, Xin Yi, Pei Chi, Janelle Tan and Isabella Wong have some time to dance together. We have spent a long time working on the IGCSE exams, so now it is time for us to enjoy life. I feel that shutting school down so soon after IGCSE and graduation would be so harsh, as we would have to end things as soon as we end our exams without spending time doing the things we like in school.
The Year 11 Graduation Ceremony was held at Hotel Majestic Kuala Lumpur, also addressed as the Majestic Hotel. Hotel Majestic is a hotel which opened in 1932 during the British colonial era but closed on 1st January 1984 to make way for a performing arts centre and the National Art Gallery, which was planned to occupy the premises. The hotel was reinstated in 2011 and continued operating till this day.
Previously, Nobel International School holds the Year 11 Graduations at the Sunway Resort Hotel and Spa, but it was moved to the Majestic Hotel starting from 2017. Before our IGCSE exams, Ms Lim had been persuading the Year 11s to buy tickets, but however, the tickets were very expensive at around RM 500 per person. Some of our Year 11 people from our batch had refused the tickets as it will cost an arm and a leg, but Ms Lim shunned their reasoning, as the tickets would be worth it in order to celebrate their moments over the last ten years in Nobel with a graduation.
Ms Lim had said that each one of us who had studied for ten years since Year 1 in 2008 will receive a special gift from Auntie Clarine on the graduation night. The gift would be only revealed on the night and no tip offs would be given early on.
Prior to the graduation ceremony, Year 11 students, beginning from July 2017 onwards, had been arranged by Ms Lim to book tables in July, August and September 2017 which we and our friends would sit, and also for our parents to sit. There are also tables that were set up for teachers and staff to sit on during the graduation dinner. Sadly, I did not get to have a seat with Caleb Chuang as he was dilly-dallying on where to sit. Instead, I sat in the same seat as Glen Kay.
Ms Lim was in charge of organizing the graduation ceremony and felt that the graduation ceremony would be a nice way to commemorate our time in Nobel as well as highlight the best moments that came up through our ten years of study in Nobel. Hence, she requested and appealed to all of us to attend. After all, it would be a testimony to our time in Nobel.
On the morning of the graduation day, I ran 5km in front of my housing area in order to prepare for a potential 2018 Founder’s Run participation, and to also commemorate the graduation. Some of my relatives from Bukit Mertajam, Penang, were also there to attend the graduation.
I left my house after lunch and reached Hotel Majestic at 1:30pm. A lot of people were already there, and I went to meet some of my friends, such as Nickolas Nashpal. We were then ushered to try on our graduation gowns and graduation hat. Those who arrived queued up and then took the gowns for testing and trying. I then spoke to Rick Tan, Jordan Tay, Shaun Ting, Ting Yi and Nieshaal on the affairs of the graduation.
Of course, I felt sad and also missed not only them, but everyone in our Year 11 batch. In fact, I am proud to say that I have communicated with all of them across all classes at least around three times in a year.
After we tried on our graduation gowns, we then proceeded to the Grand Ballroom of Majestic Hotel where we sat down and waited for instructions from Ms Lim. Ms Bee Yong, Mr Jeffrey and several members of the management team were there to assist us in the graduation rehearsal. Ms Lim asked us to sit down on chairs that faced each other in front of the stage in the ballroom. It was 2:00pm and it started raining cats and dogs.
Ms Lim then gave a briefing on how the graduation ceremony would work. We would enter the ballroom and be seated on the chairs in the names of the alphabetical order of our class list. Then, this will then be followed by the Negaraku, Auntie Clarine’s address, the presentation of scrolls and the address of the Valedictorian. In this case, Desmond Chan was chosen to be the valedictorian. I previously asked Ms Lim if I could volunteer to be the valedictorian to speak on the stage, but Ms Lim said that the valedictorian’s post is reserved for someone who had achieved a lot of outstanding academic results. Given that Desmond is good in Maths and had achieved a lot of academic competitions and good academic results, Ms Lim said that Desmond was thus qualified to be the valedictorian from the management team’s discussion. Many of my friends from our batch in Year 11, such as Jason Leing, Jien Min and even Derek Yong suggested I be the valedictorian as I can speak well.
Before the valedictorian’s address, we would be invited on stage to receive the graduation certificates and scrolls from Auntie Clarine. The certificates would then be presented to us, and we need to take two photographs on stage; one with Auntie Clarine and another on our own. We would then return to our seats and wait for everyone to receive their certificates and scrolls. The scroll is a dummy scroll; we would collect our actual certificate after the ceremony ends.
Ms Lim said that our order to receive the awards will be based on the class list which we sat according to in the order on the chairs in front of the stage. There are two groups of chairs divided by a blank space; the blank space was to facilitate VIP access onto the stage. “For example, the first person is Alia binti Zulklifi from 11N, so Alia, you will need to go onto the stage and receive the certificate from Auntie Clarine as well as a scroll. Pose for your photograph first. Then, walk to another side, take a picture, alone and then leave the stage.”
Alia was grinning and a bit shy when Ms Lim mentioned her. Ms Lim then invited the opposite group of students from 11B, 11E and 11L to get onto the stage for the demonstration. They were a bit shy and reactive and Ms Lim laughed.
Desmond Chan was then invited onto the stage to practice his speech. Everyone clapped as he uttered a thanks and then said thanks to me as I clapped the loudest. Then, we all posed for a group picture. I stood next to Caleb and Lyn Wen in the middle row towards the right end as we posed for a photograph with our graduation gowns. Everyone grinned and showed diamond teeth as the cameraman clicked our graduation group photo.
Before everyone left, Ms Lim called all of us to gather as she made a last note before ending her briefing. She said that at the end of the graduation dinner, there will be a tea ceremony for us to thank our parents, and we need to present a flower and teacup to them. Students who spent ten years in Nobel would only be allowed to join the tea ceremony.
Then, we left the hall and mingled with our friends outside the hall. The doors closed as a series of dance performance rehearsals by the Year 10 students kicked in.
We then proceeded to the next activity which was to take photographs with our friends. I managed to take pictures with Sara Yow, Eu Lynn, Sean Mark, Megan, Le Anne, Joshua Chew, Sherwin, Rick Tan, Gabriel Lim, Jordan Tay, Berlinda Tan, Ashlyne Yong and a few others. The high point was when I wanted to take a photo with Caleb Chuang. All the people around us started getting excited and using hands to make a heart shape to symbolize our good friendship. Caleb Chuang and I had also taken pictures on our own too. I also got to mingle with many of my friends’ parents as well.
Between 5:00pm and 6:00pm, guests and teachers started trickling in to the hotel. My family members also arrived to have a group picture with me. Then, I also managed to get photos with Mr Lee, Ms Sarah, Ms Nadia, Mr Raja, Mr Thomas, Ms Colleen and Cikgu Niely. I also got to take photos with other teachers as well.
Then, the announcement came on for all guests to enter the Grand Ballroom as the ceremony was about to start. The caterers were all at the side waiting for the ceremony’s official green light and thus the food was stationed perfectly.
At 7:00pm, the ceremony started and we all lined up in the order of entry according to our names. We then waited for the doors of the ballroom to open, and once it opened, we entered. Everyone was holding up their cameras and taking photos and videos of us entering the hall. We then sat down and then waited for everyone to enter.
The audience then rose in respect of the Negaraku, Malaysia’s national anthem. After everyone was seated, Mr Thomas and Ms Yong, the emcees of the night, introduced themselves and described the graduation ceremony as an emotional one for the Year 11s and how far that they have come.
Auntie Clarine was then invited to give a speech in front of the crowd as we cheered and I myself clapped enthusiastically. Then, Auntie Clarine saw me and then spent at least 15 minutes talking about me. She recalled how we had spent the previous day walking around school and talking with each other, and what I have spoken and shared to her.
“Wei Yiang told me one thing yesterday which he would not fail to do after leaving Nobel. He said, “I will always come back for the Founder’s Run!”. The ballroom broke into thunderous applause. She mentioned that she would meet me afterwards.
Auntie Clarine also singled out Daniel Ngew as one of the people who had studied in Tadika Sri Nobel (now known as Nobel Early Years) before joining Sri Nobel, which Nobel International School was known then. She said that Daniel was one of the loyal students being there since kindergarten. Tadika Sri Nobel is the kindergarten that is attached with Nobel International School on the same premises. “Daniel, do you know that your kindergarten teachers are here to see you graduate?” Auntie Clarine asked Daniel, to which he grinned.
Auntie Clarine also asked us to embrace the uncertainty despite being in a very uncertain world, and look forward to a “new beginning”. She also said that we should be thanking our parents as we are fortunate to have gone through a “paid school” as opposed to national education curriculums in government schools.
“You should be very lucky, because in Malaysia, government education is free, while Nobel is a paid school. You should thank your parents for coming out with money to provide the best education for you”, she said. Auntie Clarine also urged all of us to continue being the best we can be and carry our experiences and lessons we learnt in Nobel to college and university.
Then, it was time for the presentation of awards. “Now, it is my great honor to invite Ms Clarine Chun to present the awards to the graduands,” said Mr Thomas.
Each one of us received a dummy scroll and a large booklet containing a certificate congratulating us on finishing Year 11. The certificate in the booklet read, “Congratulations, class of 2017 for completing Year 11 in Nobel International School! WE ARE PROUD OF YOU!”
As I made my way onto the stage, and my name was called, I gave Auntie Clarine a hug. “Well done, Wei Yiang. Congratulations! Well done!” she said. I hugged her as I was in a bit of tears thinking it was my last moment in Nobel with her. The other person to give Auntie Clarine a hug was Caleb Chuang, who also hugged her emotionally.
Desmond Chan then came on the line and begun to address the crowd by telling his tale of the story in Nobel and how he had fellow teachers to help him. He also recounted his life in Nobel and how he was fortunate enough to meet good friends who would help him overcome challenges.
After Desmond finished his speech, we were ushered to our dinner tables as the waiters started serving a three-course dinner. There were mostly some western food, so I tried to take some chicken and Asian cruisine if need be. Soon Qiao Qian, Pek Yui Xin, Laura Mark, Ethan Chan, Melvyn Lim and a few Year 10 dancers and performers performed beats and songs and dances to entertain the audience.
Midway through the dinner, we were given pieces of colored paper with our writings on it. It was the exercise we did during Study Camp 2017 on the last day, 23rd April, where we wrote our aims, goals and wishes which our teachers would keep till the graduation day. The notes contain wishes and aims we wish to achieve for the IGCSE exam. On my note, I wrote that I would achieve Top in Malaysia for First Language English, get the five credits, and do well in my other subjects and improve in subjects like Combined Science as well as score A for Malay IGCSE. It was meant to be a time capsule which we can reflect to see if we achieved our success. Apart from that, I also wrote that I will also hope to see through a successful Bullseye victory in 2018 as an ex student.
Soon, we had approached our third and final dish. Baby photos of us that we sent, were played on the screens to the awe and enjoyment of the audience. We had to send in baby photos of us for our graduation.
Afterwards, all of us Year 11s were ushered out of the hall to keep our graduation gowns and prepare for the “tea ceremony”. The tea ceremony is designed to thank our parents for their time and effort as well as to appreciate their efforts towards us in life. So, we had to line up outside the hall in the same name order as us heading to the hall earlier for the official presentation of awards. In our hands, we carried a teacup and a bouquet of flowers. Ms Lim also mentioned during the briefing earlier that we had to present the teacup to our dads and the bouquet to our mums. For those that do not have only one of their parents present, they would present it to whoever is present, be it dad or mum. Those individuals whose parents did not come were not allowed to join the ceremony. They had to sit in the lobby of the hotel.
So, the rest of those whose parents did not come had to wait outside the hall, as we delivered the bouquet and tea to our parents. I gave them to my mum, who thanked me for the offer.
“To all parents, thank you for taking your time to send your child to Nobel. It means a lot to us for how much you have spent your time for your children,” said Auntie Clarine.
“Now, I would like to invite all guests to join us in a toast,” said Mr Thomas.
Everyone cried, “Yam Seng!” and then drank the tea. Then, we returned to our seats.
Auntie Clarine then announced to all the students who had spent ten years in Nobel to come on stage.
Everyone went on stage except the students who did not study in Nobel since Year 1 in 2008:
1) Alia binti Zulklifi
2) Eric Wong Khai Min
3) Gabriel Lim Boon Jin
4) Kelsey Tay Veng Yen
5) Lai Jia Yee
6) Ng Ze Khai
7) Ryan Chok
8) Tay Wee Shiang
9) Tan Lyn Wen
10) Tham Jo Yi
11) Yoon Hao Yinn
12) Ashlyne Yong Shuan Ping
13) Chang Kai Yee
14) Chua Yong Xuan
15) Dylan Sean Tan Jie Qi
16) Hoo Fang Yi
17) Eugenie Kuu Khai Yih
18) Jason Leing Wen Zhe
19) Leong Yi Zhen
20) Lim Yin Wei
21) Yong Co Sheen
22) Ethan Wong Tzeng Wye
23) Ho Jien Min
24) Eugene Ho Wen Jun
25) Isabella Wong
26) Janelle Tan Yung Huey
27) Pranavee
28) Sherwin Thasan Shan
29) Tan Yue Hong
30) Teh Jia Yiu
31) Aristotle Koh Xiang Rong
32) Chew Chee Kei
33) Chin Joe An
34) Heng Le Anne
35) Jane Yap Kaa Yee
36) Kue Wei Wei
37) Ranae Lim Rui Sean
38) Soon Jian Wen
39) Vianna Cheang
40) Yeo Eu Lynn
41) Ch’ng Tze Chen
42) Chong Yan Chern
43) Chuang Chu Xiang
44) Jonathan Chong Ming Jun
45) Lee Jearn Xiu
46) Lee Min Han
47) Ong Ting Yi
48) Tee Wei Zhong
49) Sara Yow Cui Fen
50) Soh Jia Qing
51) Yue Wai Kit
Once everyone was on stage, Auntie Clarine congratulated everyone who had been in Nobel for ten years and asked the crowd to give a round of applause. I was standing next to Caleb Chuang who was also on stage, and Auntie Clarine announced that all those who had been in Nobel for ten years would receive a headset consisting of headphones and some high tech remote plug. The crowd cheered and me and Caleb Chuang hugged Auntie Clarine again before everyone left the stage.
“It is with great pleasure that we end the ceremony tonight,” concluded Mr Thomas. I kept on saying, “Yes Mr Thomas” and waved a small Bullseye flag that I had brought for the event, as he signed off.
Everyone thrudged home and my mum and I went to the car to get Caleb Chuang’s birthday gift which I had brought. It was a large gift that I did not give to him on 24th September, his birthday, as he did not want me to disturb his IGCSE preparation. The gift was in a box that is decorated with the map of North and South Korea. So, I presented the birthday gift to Caleb Chuang. He was touched and smiled. “Thank you, Wei Yiang,” he said. I also met Auntie Clarine and talked to her. “See you in Founder’s Run next year (2018)”, she said.
Ms Mee Ping also thanked me for loving Caleb, while Mr Chuang asked what gift has he got. Caleb then opened the gift to another box in it, and then another box, and then another box till he got a pair of sports shoes that I have bought for him. He thanked me and the crowd started to thin out of Majestic Hotel. I then said goodbye to my friends and teachers as Ms Bee Yong closed the doors of the ballroom after everyone had left and I stayed till the end for Caleb to also go home. My family members got in the car and drove back home to the LRT station near our house to get the other car home, as they had taken LRT to the venue. I then cried before going to bed, in tears.
The next day, 17th November 2017, was the class party day. So, I came to school as usual, at 6:45am and then we entered and did our breakfast and normal routine as usual. After having my breakfast, everyone then gathered in the school hall. I waited for everyone to arrive and watched people arriving at the front entrance. A few Year 11s then arrived, such as Ivyna, Caleb, Lyn Wen, Janelle Arnelia, Eugene Ho, Sean Mark, San Ying, Sophie Tan and a few more. Then, as soon as we know it, it was already 7:45am.
The assembly opened with our usual greeting of the teachers and the management team, and the school pledge. Afterwards, we were introduced to Mr Nigel Rhode, the new head of CCA who is replacing Mr Neoh, who was resigning from Nobel.
Mr Narish then got on the air and then begun to announce the winner of the Nobel Cup 2017. He said that Bullseye won first place, Slamdunk as last place, while Touchdown and Homerun were tied. He did not give any further score, but only mentioned the placings as he projected the placings and colors on the screen in the hall.
I spent most of my day going around and getting signatures from my friends and teachers. Mr Thomas had promised me, after I thanked him for his services on Gmail, to write an official thank you message to me once his roles and duties for the year are over. He wrote a long page, calling on me to continue my spirit in college in 2018 and that he hopes to keep in touch. Ms Praveen, Ms Lim, Ms Bee Yong, Mr Raja, Ms Levina and a few other teachers wished me the best in college.
Joshua, Sherwin, me and Caleb Chuang were in 11E as I joined them. We then sung prayers and praises to the Lord while Caleb and Joshua played the guitar to sing the praises. We also said prayers to each other and we also told each other to give our all in college. Of course, I miss my friends very much, but graduation is the last time which I will see everyone; the next opportunity, the final one, would be on Prom on 20th November 2017.
Brandon Ooi was busy with Ryan Chok, Ze Khai, Sheng Jit and Shane playing their video games and AZ Tanks which they had brought to class. Janelle Arnelia, Xin Yi, San Ying, Ellie Lim and Alexandria Goh were in 11B looking at social media. Jearn Xiu, Han Ming and Jordan Cheam, along with Brendan Cheah were also playing in the class, with Jonathan Chong and Yan Chern playing some games with Daryl Yeo.
The rest of the school was going out their class party events, dancing, playing and eating in the classroom. I also took the opportunity to go around the school to see the year levels partying around. Some were playing basketball while others strolled around the school.
At 11:00am, Ms Lim asked everyone to come down to the school hall as the teachers had decided to show everyone a movie called, “The Kid from the Big Apple”. She asked everyone to be quiet or else she would not show the movie. I did not get to watch the entire movie as my aunt came to pick me up to head to Paradigm Mall where Mr Kevin Wai, Ms Visa and all of us from 11N were treated to a movie at Golden Screen Cinemas. The movie that we were treated to was Justice League. Mr Kevin Wai said the treat was in conjunction with the Teacher’s Day Fashion Show championship which was won by our class, aside from the pizza treat in September. Originally, he proposed to watch Thor, before we settled on Justice League.
Justice League is a superhero movie that focuses on superheroes uniting to save the world after the death of Superman. Following the death of Superman, superheroes from various movies, such as Captain America, Spiderman and Batman try to save the people from war and chaos that broke out after Superman’s passing.
I originally planned not to go for the movie screening, but I went as a courtesy call, since I am the assistant monitor for 11N. Sheng Jit, the monitor, was present. The movie lasted for 2 and a half hours.
After the movie ended, I dropped by Nobel where I met Caleb Chuang and the rest of the people who had finished watching The Kid from the Big Apple. I went and said goodbye to most people, and then, as I made my way out from Nobel, I paused, looked at the line at the door, and crossed it. It was my last time crossing as a student, and I want to make the best moment out of it. Then, I went back home sadly as I met more of my family members who came to visit us because one of my cousins had an awards seminar. Hence, this is why they also took advantage to attend my graduation.
Prom was held on the 20th November 2017. Prom is addressed in short for “promenade dance”, in order to describe a gathering of high school graduates and would-be college freshmen who want to celebrate their transition from one chapter to another. For the 2017 prom, it was held at Ruang, Shah Alam, which is an entertainment venue.
This prom was organized by the Year 11s themselves and is not affiliated with Nobel International School. Shaun Ting is the person in charge organizing the prom. The theme was “Aurora Borealis”. It is tradition since 2016 for an outgoing batch in Nobel to hold a Prom.
The Year 11 Prom is very important because it is a gathering of high school graduates for a romantic dinner. As it is a custom for some people to bring their girlfriends or crush to the prom, for the last six months before prom, many people had been giving “promposals” (which is a portmanteau of the words “prom” and “proposal”) to people of the opposite gender. It works like a wedding proposal, but to attract either girlfriends or boyfriends to accompany them to the prom. There was one time Sara Yow just cheekily asked me when we were staying back for our art preps if I can go to prom with her and I said yes, and everyone happily shrieked. I asked, “What’s the matter? We can go together what…”, and Eu Lynn said that it was meant to be a boyfriend-girlfriend thing. I said, “Aiyah, we can go together as friends lah,” and I mentioned that I prefer to go with Caleb Chuang instead.
“That’s gay, Wei Yiang. It’s bromance,” said Eu Lynn. “Prom is meant for people of the opposite sex.” Eu Lynn and Sara said that it will ruin the objective of prom if people were to be “gay and lesbian”. I gave the funny stare as I thought what they were talking about.
Unlike the graduation, the prom committee had purposely placed me and Caleb Chuang at the same table because not only I had requested to have some time with Caleb following the conclusion of the IGCSE exams (and also we are in different classes), but also the prom committee, like all the Year 11s, know who Caleb Chuang and I are and how we like to get along. I was seated with Sherwin, Julian Ong, Wei Zhong, Joshua Chew, Joseph Diong and Desmond Chan on an eight-seater table. Those that were lucky enough to have their promposals succeeded were seated at the same table as their prom partner. For instance, Jien Min and Yi Zhen were seated together in Prom, as well as Joseph Diong and Berlinda Tan, Sheng Jit with Yan Ying and so on.
The Year 11s had started preparing for prom as early as June 2017. Many had done their promposals and were selling tickets then.
There was also a contest, such as, “most likely to go viral as a meme”, “most likely to sue the school”, “most likely to accidentally start a fire”, and so on. But there were also top posts, such as “Prom King” and “Prom Queen”. But more on that later.
I arrived at Ruang, Shah Alam at 5:00pm. Unlike the ordinary prom-goer, I wore a Korean outfit for the prom to symbolize me being able to be with Caleb after two years of being in different classes. This is also in reference to North and South Korea who are still divided to this day. I saw Nickolas and Ze Khai and Shaun Ting, and he asked for me to wait till everyone arrived so that we can begin at 6:00pm.
The prom committee had placed a funny “no entry” sign to the first floor of the venue as that would serve as the prom committee’s operation room. The no entry sign was decorated with a funny sign that included a sad figure standing behind the words on the sign and going broke.
After everyone arrived, we were seated and treated to some performances. I sat down with Caleb, and everyone was excited to see the two of us at the same table. Glen Kay then performed his Chinese yoyo performance, while a few people such as Jien Min and Sherwin did some musical instruments. There were other people that were not from Nobel which were invited to the prom to perform. Lyn Wen had invited Rheanna, her friend, to perform at the performance. Lyn Wen likes to sing and play the guitar as well as ukelele.
I tried to savor some Chinese food and Asian cruisine in addition to the mostly Western food available. However, I could not finish my food and Sherwin then passed some of the food to the caterer.
At 10:00pm, everyone then gathered for the ballroom dance. As the event involved people who could find the opposite gender regardless of the promposal being made or not, many people danced and even kissed each other. Wow!
Shaun Ting then came on the announcements and asked everyone to vote for the competitions (eg “most likely to become a meme”, Prom King, Prom Queen) as well as additional categories, such as “best dressed,” “best crush” and so on.
Prom King and Prom Queen are awarded to a few people who have nominated to be in the competition. I had nominated myself in August 2017 before the IGCSE exams to be Prom King. Among the nominees for Prom King other than me were Sheng Jit, Sean Mark, Justin Yeo, Aaron Loke, Chang Ye Sean, Aristotle Koh, Christopher Chew, Timothy Hiew and Brendan Cheah. For Prom Queen, Yan Ying, Jia Yee, Yin Wei, Yi Zhen, Xin Yi, Janelle Tan, Rosemund Chong, Le Anne and Sara Yow. Everyone voted back in August, with me, Sean Mark, Aaron Loke and Timothy Hiew being the top four nominees. The other four nominees for Prom Queen who were lucky were Yin Wei, Yi Zhen, Xin Yi and Le Anne.
That evening, everyone voted, and Aaron Loke and Xin Yi were elected Prom King and Prom Queen respectively. I was chosen for the Best Dressed award among the guys thanks to my Korean outfit; Berlinda Tan got best dressed for the girls.
During Prom, I went between tables to speak to people around the room. I spoke to Alia, Wee Shiang, Jo Yi, Desmond Chan and many more from other classes. Following the conclusion of Prom, I took a few pictures with my friends before going home. I also got to take the “no entry” sign home as a souvenir.
The Post-Nobel Snippets.
After leaving Nobel, I had a secret plan. A plan which I did not want people to know. After the Nobel Cup 2017 victory of Bullseye, I personally felt that if I returned to Nobel, we would be able to win Sports Day 2018.
I wanted to be the 'comeback kid' and also to have a chance to show off the best of Bullseye. I know that I could not make Bullseye win as a student in Year 11, but we had to move forward. The only way to recover from the psychological, emotional and official lost of 2017 was to make Bullseye win as an ex student.
No one had done such a thing before. I want to prove Ms Lim wrong. I want to prove the critics wrong. I want to show everyone that Bullseye can rise up once again to at least show everyone that a Touchdown victory in 2017 would not stop us from being so down. And I want Bullseye member
There was an outpouring of grief at the Bullseye loss. There was also anger, fuelled by the one-point margin. And we had done the first step. We had won Nobel Cup 2017. As the winner of Sports Day 2017 was also the winner of the Nobel Cup 2016 the previous year, I have a strong feeling of Bullseye winning Sports Day 2018. But the current students could not do it alone. All that was needed for me to be there. I planned to lend my emotional support and push the scores up.
I feel so angry at what happened in 2017. I had many emotions. I want Bullseye to win and continue the legacy. And all that I needed to do was to delay my enrolment of my Foundation in Arts entry to Sunway College from January to March 2018.
The Founder's Run occurs on a Wednesday. As someone who attended classes and achieved a 100 percent attendance record, I want to carry on this tradition to Sunway. Additionally, I wasn't confident of achieving five credits for my IGCSE. So, that was the natural choice. And putting it all together will make sure that I have enough effort to make Bullseye win.
Making Bullseye win would prove to Ms Lim that ex students and alumni would be able to lead certain events while still not hogging the opportunities for existing students, something which Ms Lim hates. She will never give an opportunity for ex students in order to shine the spotlight on existing students.
On the first day of school of 2018, 2nd January 2018, I went to Nobel early in the morning. There was a light drizzle, which stopped soon thereafter. When I saw Mr Lee walking to the school gates, I cheered his name. "MR LEE!" I cried. He then looked at me and waved.
I stood outside Nobel, watching and greeting teachers and students as they walked in. I saw Nicholas Liang, Hua Onn, Isaac Ng and Sebastian Kon. Then, I also greeted Melvyn Lim as well as he went in.
At 7:15am, Heng Le Anne arrived. I greeted her. She then walked into the school. I then followed her. She was about to give some books to the Year 10 students. She then met a few people in the courtyard, and Aaron Yong and some people from Year 11 greeted me. I waved at them and had a chat.
As I was walking to the canteen, I met the muscular-sized gardener who scolded me in August 2017 while assisting him to water the plants.
"Why are you here? Please leave now. Come, follow me!" he ordered.
I had that sly look on my face. He told me that I had graduated and could not enter the school anymore. He then told me to follow him. As he kept on uttering some strong words at me, Xang Yen's parents, Mr Andy and Aunty Joyce, who were in the foyer, called me and asked what the gardener was doing. Then, they talked to me as they were purchasing Xang Yen's uniform from the uniform shop.
Ms Lim was walking around the school foyer. "Wei Yiang! What are you doing here? Wow! Ex student also come back. You should work here!" she said with a smile.
My mum then asked me about what happened and I told her what the gardener did. Then, she spoke to him. I also informed her that the gardener was the one who got angry at me when I stayed back for my Art preps on 30th August 2017.
As my mum spoke to the gardener, Mr Andy then told me not to cry as he comforted me. The gardener than walked to me. He introduced himself as a Mr Chan. I then talked to him. He apologized for his rough actions that morning and told me I was welcome. "You can come, but please register yourself as a visitor," he said.
The gardener apologized for his actions on 30th August 2017. "I'm sorry. I am very sorry," he said. He had a guilty look on the face. "I didn't know you were helping me. I thought you were playing around. I am so so sorry," he said. "I should not have scolded you that day," he said. He had misunderstood my intention that day, and he praised me for helping the school.
After leaving the school that morning, my mum and I went to Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam to practice for the 2018 Founder's Run, before going on a trip to Tun Razak Exchange as I wanted to view the sales gallery.
On 17th January 2018, the IGCSE results were released. When I saw the results, I was shocked. I got a D for First Language English. Economics and Art and Design were the same grade. I failed my Business Studies. It was a small sacrifice for the good of Bullseye. I hoped that Ms Chithra wouldn't get angry at me for that grade. Surprisingly, I got a B for Combined Science. I thought I would perform poorly. I cried upon receiving the result. At least, Ms Bee Yan commented on Facebook that I had got a C for Maths which was really wonderful as she did not expect it as such.
The most important lesson for any student aspiring to take Art and Design IGCSE is not to take it if you are not committed to stay back after school or spend some time, say at least, one week, to perfect and touch up one piece of painting on a prep work consisting of four paintings. I feel happy for my Art results, as I had scored a C, something which Ms Feeda previously felt that I could not achieve.
I went to collect my IGCSE results on 1st February 2018. It was after school that I went to collect it. I headed to the front office to collect my certificate. I greeted Ms Yvonne, who was at the foyer, to present my results. I then walked around the school, greeting my teachers. I also met many of the juniors there. But what was most important was the victory of Bullseye.
The Bullseye members were very happy to see me. They rejoiced when I met them. I then saw the dance practices occurring in the school hall, along with a Christian Fellowship meeting. Then, I saw the Founder's Run notice board. Mr Narish had put one big notice board specifically for Founder's Run. There was one phrase on the board. It read,
"At a marathon, even as you get in line at the start, you're already a winner, as you would have done what most have failed to do. You showed up."
Founder's Run 2018 occurred on 7th February 2018, a day before the one-year anniversary of my first ever Founder's Run victory.
Then, I walked around and spoke to Ms June, Ms Joyce, Mr Raja and Mr Kevin; many of them who talked to me and asked about me. As I went down, Ms Bee Yong then asked me a question.
"Why are you still here?" she asked, folding her arms. I'm just visiting the school," I responded. "You should be doing your studies. You shouldn't be here anymore," she said.
Throughout the month of January, I personally felt that Bullseye should win. I vouched to myself and pledged to attend all the events that were available. What was most important was to make sure Bullseye won. Then, it would deal a whole blow to Touchdown and show everyone who was boss.
No ex student had ever done this before. Everyone in Bullseye felt so angry about Touchdown's victory. All the Bullseye members want it back. They want it back as soon as possible.
I had recently created an Instagram account then. And I had chat with many Bullseye people. All of them wanted the Bullseye victory back, ten out of ten. The Bullseye members were really frustrated over the loss of Bullseye to Touchdown the previous year. They felt happy if I came back as an ex student to participate.
I spent my time practicing for Founder's Run. I wanted to see if I could win again. I had wanted to try and win again, as well as make Bullseye win.
I only felt puzzled as to why Ms Bee Yong wasn't happy with me returning to Nobel then. After all, in the past, teachers had made pleas for every ex student to return to meet them. And they miss them, too.
The morning of Founder's Run 2018 was joyful. Everyone was in a sea of neon green. The 2018 Founder's Run t-shirt had a picture of the Kuala Lumpur skyline on it. Everyone was arriving at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, the venue for that year's Founder's Run.
I didn't have much to write here, because, you know, as an ex student, it was very difficult to find friends to participate in the activities I were to do. But I remembered my mission.
Founder's Run 2018 looked weird to me. I was participating in the race. However, I had no class to go to, no class teacher as well as traits no less favorable than an outsider. Despite all those traits, I did not receive my Founder's Run t-shirt. My mum told me that Ms Lim was bringing my t-shirt to the run.
When I arrived, I met Aaron Yong, Ethan Chan, Valerie Pang, Geok Minh, Hans Kuberan, Ng Ai Lin and a few other Year 11s who greeted me. They were all there to lead the house activities for the year 2018. I feel motivated seeing them. I shook hands with many teachers, namely Cikgu Niely, Mr Raja, Ms Nadia, Mr Kevin Wai and Ms June.
Everyone was asked to gather at the main entrance of Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, just like any other year. Mr Nigel was making announcements for everyone to gather at the entrance.
"Okay, Junior and Senior School students, please gather at the main entrance and line up according to your class line now," he said. "Move quickly."
While mingling with Cikgu Niely and having a chat with her, seven buses pulled into the parking lot of the botanical garden, and more people got off the bus. The students then proceeded to the entrance and sat down, where Mr Nigel was conducting a briefing. He was soon flanked by Mr Narish, who was preparing the start area for everyone. I then had a short chat with Nikhil Thanasan. He was so cool and professional talking to me, updating me on the progress of Bullseye.
After everyone had arrived, a warm-up was conducted by Mr Victor and Ms Sylvia as everyone did the basic PE warm-ups. Ms Lim then handed me my shirt and I changed into my Founder's Run shirt before the warm-up. She then told me that I will be in the Parents' Fun Run, and will be flagged off between the 10km and 5km student runners. Then, following the warm-up, Mr Narish then flagged off the 10km runners. Auntie Clarine was holding a red horn in her hands, and Mr Narish was indicating the direction in which students must run, namely to the left, instead of heading straight.
The 10km runners soon started. When the Parents and Teachers Fun Run was flagged off, I ran as fast as I could. Soon, I crept up to the 10km runners, overtaking them before turning right into the connecting road. I soon stopped by a few water stations, where Ms Nadia was watching me. Then, I passed a few checkpoints, where the teachers asked me to head straight. Moments later, I executed my moves and then headed back to the finish line.
When I crossed the finish line this time, the teachers were already well-prepared for my entrance. They were not waiting for me to arrive; they knew I had arrived.
Upon arriving at the finish line, many people were chanting, "Again, ah?" because it was my second time winning the Founder's Run. As such, I became the first person in Nobel to win two separate categories of the Founder's Run, namely the 5km students' category and 5km parents' category. Running in the parents' run was beneficial to me as it helped me to prepare for races for bigger marathons in the future.
A few minutes later, Nicholas Liang approached the finish line, followed by Tharun Raghavan, who got second place once again for the second consecutive year. He had also won second place in the 2017 Founder's Run a year prior.
As everyone reached the finish line, many were impressed by me taking a two-time win in the 5km category for Founder's Run. Then, I met with Aaron Yong, Ethan Chan and Benjamin Lew. I brainstormed my strategy to them for the Sports Day. "Last year, Touchdown won the Sports Day after winning Nobel Cup 2016. This year, based on this trend, we will win Sports Day if we focus ahead," I said. All of them nodded and there were chants of Bullseye's name. Then, Shi Tian arrived, and I discussed the plans and strategies with her, showing some predictions and graphs of all the current and future events for Sports 2018. Shi Tian agreed with the plans. "Yes!" she cried, punching her fist into the air.
While waiting for announcements, I spoke with all the Bullseye members, such as Yeo Khaining, Andria Tan, Kai Yang, Melvyn Lim and Hua Onn. I showed them my plans. They were really receptive to it.
There was a light drizzle towards the end of Founder's Run as the medals were presented. Everyone cheered for me as I went up on the podium to receive my second ever Founder's Run medal. Just like Nieshaal Thambipillay, I had improved in my timing by two minutes. Nieshaal had a time of 58 minutes when winning the 2016 Founder's Run for the 10km, and 56 minutes when winning the 10km for the 2017 Founder's Run. Once the run was over, it was announced that Bullseye was the champion house of the 2018 Founder's Run. The points were announced by Mr Narish. I then had a good picture time with Ms Nadia, Aaron Yong and Ethan Chan before heading home. Now, all that was needed was the Cheer Competition. And the rest would follow.
With me winning a second Founder's Run victory, I was planning to enter into more bigger runs. I eventually entered the Score Run 2018 and won the 5km category for that race. But for Bullseye, we need to win the Cheer Competition as well as the Telematch events to win a fourth year of Sports Day victory, which had been delayed since 2017.
The biggest challenge on coordinating Sports Day as an ex student was Nobel's security policy. While the Bullseye members were supportive of my actions, the teachers weren't as supportive because of my status of an ex student. However, I just brushed off the label, as the most important thing was the unity of Bullseye rather than individual differences. I only cared about showing the people whom I despise of in 2017 of how they could have put things right had they accepted my plans and proposals for Bullseye and not gotten angry at me throughout the entire process.
With Bullseye winning Founder's Run, we had a big boost for the house. I wanted to go to Nobel quite often to present plans and proposals to the Bullseye members. It was to motivate them to improve and win. It appeared to us that we would be overcoming the one-point gap for Bullseye.
To motivate the Bullseye members, I created a Facebook group to motivate them. The group consisted of past and present Bullseye members.
What was the most important thing to do was to win Sports Day 2018. And I needed to meet the Bullseye members and look on their progress, too.
We were making good progress. We were leading quite well. We were overcoming the other houses. Initially, Bullseye was leading and was tied with Homerun. It was making a bigger lead; pulling away as fast as possible.
Then, in March, I wanted to visit Nobel once again with my friend, Glen Kay. We planned to visit on 5th March. However, when Glen sent me a message, it required all alumni to request approval from Ms Lim before visiting Nobel. At the time, I felt it was quite strange, as ex-Nobelians who were visiting only needed to register at the security post.
On that same day, 5th March, Glen told me to just follow him. I then asked him about the approval from Ms Lim, and he told me he had gotten the approvals settled. We then entered the school and Glen told me to stick to him. We then met Ms Bee Yan, who was in the Junior and Senior School's management office. Mind you, Ms Bee Yan had returned from the United Kingdom and rejoined the school. We had a good chat with her and Ms Bee Yan talked to us about our plans. Then, we met Mr Kevin Wai. "You're still here again!" cried Mr Kevin as he spoke to me and Glen Kay. He told me that I had visited the school three times in the last two months prior to that; first on the 2nd January 2018, followed by the 1st February 2018, and then the third on 7th February 2018 during the Founder's Run.
Then, we went and met Ms Visa and Ms June. I greeted Mr Thomas and we took a look at the Year 11 classes. Mr Kevin said that no other monitor repeated the same action as what I did the previous year. I was surprised. I think he misses my responsible act, too. The Year 11 classes were filled with books and other things. Their batch wasn't like us.
After looking at the Year 11 classes, I then followed Glen and we went to see the school hall and look at the notice boards. Ms Bee Yong was there and Glen greeted her. Ms Bee Yong then lectured him for not getting the proper approvals. Then, she turned to me.
"My dear, you're not supposed to be here anymore," she said." You need to register first. Then, she called that same gardener who despised of me to escort us out. I then lectured Glen and asked him as to why he hadn't gotten the proper permits. "You should register to approve first," I said.
The Pre Sports Events soon begun. I communicated with Melvyn Lim via Facebook Messenger, talking to him about the Sports Day preparations. He then updated me accordingly. I also got the 2018 house cheer for Bullseye when I asked for it. This was very different as to when I was in Nobel as a student. As I cannot enter the school, I cannot receive Mr Narish's announcements.
The theme for Sports Day 2018 was Justice League. It was very different as it involved themes from a movie. Melvyn Lim then told me about other details of the Sports Day so that I could calculate the score. I kept discussing with him on how to motivate the members of Bullseye. I then told him about Tun Dr Mahathir leaving UMNO to form Bersatu and take down the latter in Malaysian politics. The 9th May 2018 General Election hadn't occurred yet. I psychologically wanted to be the role model for him, by proving to people from my cohort that Bullseye could had gone either way.
Then, I discussed with Melvyn Lim about all the cool things I wanted to do in Nobel, from the drone proposal in 2015 and 2016 with Caleb Chuang, as well as the plans to bring a Chinese drum to Sports Day to bang it for Bullseye. He laughed and got so excited at the idea. The same proposal was also put forth to Caleb Chuang, but however, he was not so interested as he was focusing on his A Levels in Methodist College. Caleb Chuang told me that we were ex students and we cannot do anything. Melvyn said the same, but he agreed when I told him that we must portray ourselves as Bullseye members rather than ex students or current students.
The Cheer Competition was held on Friday, 16th March 2018. I decided to improve on my visits to Nobel. I would talk to people outside the school.
Everyone was asked to wear their 2017 Sports Attire to the Cheer Competition. It was also the Telematch Day as well. For the first time, the Cheer Competition and Telematch were held on the same day. I needed to visit the school because I believed my motivation and cheering would help push Bullseye's scores up. To make matters worse, Bullseye was dropping to second place thanks to some Pre Sports Events starting.
I then decided to head to Nobel. We needed to rescue Bullseye. And many of the Bullseye members asked for help. We need to put sportsmanship above everything else.
I stood outside Nobel and greeted the Bullseye members to give them moral support. This was the demonstration of sportsmanship at its best. There were police patrol cars coordinating traffic control. Then, I stood at the bus stop near the school, greeting everyone who entered.
At 7:40am, some of the management members arrived. They were responding to queries by parents over why I wasn't entering the school. They thought I was a current student. Coincidentally, because everyone, just like me, was wearing the 2017 Sports Attire for the day, it resulted in confusion.
Mr Jeffrey soon approached me and told me to quickly leave. So, I then left soon after. Him and Ms Yvonne asked me a few questions. I had to explain to them about how the Bullseye members asked me to motivate them.
The Sports Day soon heated up. The lead-up to Sports Day on the final week of March begun. The Pre Sports Events took place in rainy weather on 26th March 2018 and 27th March 2018. Those days were my orientation dates for my Foundation in Arts at Sunway College. I wanted to go to the Panasonic Stadium to rouse the Bullseye members up, but I was required to attend my Orientation. The runners were running like mad. It was crazy running in the rain.
While the orientation in Sunway was ongoing, I was thinking of Bullseye's welfare. And as Sports Day approached on 29th March, I decided to go to the stadium as the afternoon class was cancelled.
When I reached the stadium, I was greeted by Nikhil Thanasan once again, and he told me about all the information again for Sports Day. Then, I proceeded to hang my homemade banner for 2018, which was that of a nuclear explosion. I had brought along homemade flags for Bullseye, too. The banner was my third banner that I made for Bullseye; there was one in 2016 which depicted the Bullseye flag against a lightsaber, and the 2017 banner was a stylized angled version of Bullseye's flag with all the history of the house cheers pasted on it.
When Ms Lim saw me hanging the banner, she told me to remove it. "Wei Yiang, you cannot hang the banner, ya. You are ex student already. We need to give chance to the current students, ya," she said. She thanked me for cooperating, although she had no problems with me hanging the banner behind.
The Sports Day rehearsal soon begun. Ethan Chan and Koo Shi Tian were at the track to prepare for the marchpast. Melvyn Lim had designed the banner for Bullseye as well.
The opening ceremony soon started, as each house paraded in front of the stands. Mr Narish was watching over us. He was watching everyone parade on the field. In attendance were Ivyna, Yan Ying, Eu Lynn, Sean Mark, Lyn Wen, Caleb Chuang and a few others from or 2017 batch who had come to watch. The first-place lead for Bullseye had turned into a second-place trail. Then, when the athletes started running and I was cheering, Bullseye's lead shrunk. I could only pity the Year 7 Bullseye members; they did not perform well that day. As the day wore on and the evening hours arrived, Touchdown lifted the trophy for the second consecutive year. I could only just heave my head as I left the stadium following a chat with Caleb Chuang. And Mr Leonard, an A Levels teacher at Sunway, who got angry with me for playing the piano in the morning the next day, infuriated me and my desire for Bullseye's victory. It had only grown stronger.
I personally felt that Ms Lim had succeeded in her objectives. It appeared that she was right. It appeared that ex students could not influence the score for Bullseye.
Bullseye lost the Sports Day by over 70 points. Touchdown scored 828 points, with Bullseye trailing in second place with 751 points. It was a public relations disaster for me. What more, the entire months of January and February went really messy and in a horrible manner.
I worry about a potential Touchdown victory in 2019. In fact, it would be Bullseye's last chance to win the Sports Day. I spent every day in Sunway thinking about it. I kept telling Melvyn Lim about my woes. In fact, life in Sunway is much more boring. Everything is taken as a non-event by the student community, compared to Nobel, where every achievement is spotlighted. I could only just follow Nobel's happenings on my Facebook page, or call my friend, Xang Yen, to ask on the happenings.
In April, it was announced that Ryan Toh, Jordan Tay and Shaun Ting got the Top in the World for Mathematics. Justin Yeo once again bagged Top in the World for Additional Mathematics, and Kit Lee got the same award for Business Studies. Alexandria Goh, on the other hand, got the Top in Malaysia for Global Perspectives.
When I reflect on our teachers teaching us and doing revision for our IGCSE, it looked like they were preparing us for a competition. A competition against other schools and for us to win awards. The revision for IGCSE was no less like a competition. It was really similar to the Kangaroo Maths Competition or the ICAS. I also wished to speak in front of the Year 10s during Awards Day, but sadly, only those vying for a Top in Malaysia and Top in the World were chosen.
A lot of people from our Class of 2017 were in attendance as I sniffed some sadness over the fact that they were in Nobel to celebrate their achievements while I was in Sunway having my class. I could only look at the windows from the 5th floor of Sunway College's building and the 10th floor of the University building over Nobel. It looked so weird. I wished I was with them.
I also managed to get in touch with my teachers too. I prepared cards for my teachers for Teacher's Day 2018 in Nobel on 24th July 2018. I soon found out about how each class was given a fine dining experience with their teachers. It looked cool. But however, the fight for Bullseye's victory was on. We needed to get Bullseye back up again.
During my time in Sunway, I got to meet up with two Nobelians who were older than me. Kanesh Rudra himself was in Nobel, but he left when Nobel turned into an international school in 2012. Erik Goh was also with Nobel before the international school era. He was from the Red Team in Nobel back when the houses were not given names and only called by their colors.
During our classes, Kanesh and I brainstormed ideas on how to prop Bullseye back up. The first target for Bullseye was the Nobel Cup 2018. It must win that tournament, as well as the 2019 Founder's Run and a bunch of Pre Sports Events in order to get back up to speed. We discussed many strategies as we could. More or less, it was a refinement of the strategy. And I also communicated with Melvyn Lim as well.
While plans were being discussed behind closed doors, everyone in Bullseye was gearing up for the next house captain election, which was held on 13th August 2018. Like the people of Malaysia who voted in the 2018 General Election to change the government, the people of Bullseye were exploding with anger. They were furious on two straight losses to Touchdown in 2017 and 2018. They were all riled up, as the fame of Bullseye was slowly fading away. If Bullseye had won 2018, it would have seen the 2017 loss as an intentionally-curtailed bid for Bullseye's victory, and to stoke the claim that Bullseye won all Sports Days in the process.
The new house captain for Bullseye was Chia Zheng. He was the brother of Chia Yan Ying, my classmate and friend from my 2017 batch. Assisting him were two assistant house captains, namely Ashwin Jeyabalan and Alyssa Kok.
Ashwin is a proactive and serious captain. He had joined Nobel since Year 7 in 2015. He was a really enthusiastic guy for Bullseye. Alyssa Kok, on the other hand, is good in athletics and also proactive. With the emotional connection of Chia Zheng to Yan Ying, it was very easy to make my case for the 2019 Sports Day Victory.
All three of them had seen Bullseye's first two Sports Day victories. Their batch had great people like Nicholas Liang and Andrew Loke, both of whom are good in athletics.
I managed to speak to them and present my case at the first opportunity. All of them accepted my plans. I regularly showed them my predictions for Bullseye. And I was determined to make Bullseye win in my capacity as an ex student. And when I visited Nobelfest 2018 on 27th October, I proposed to them my plans and opportunities for Bullseye to win. The plans consisted of graphs, tallies and calculations on every single event. The first prediction was a Touchdown win.
Zidez Raja initially got demotivated by my prediction, but I told him that the result can be changed if we can change ourselves. He agreed. I presented the plans to Areeya Amali, Alyssa Kok, Ashwin, Yap Dawn, Elissa Carmen and Aleeza Ng, who all agreed with my plans. They said that I had come up with one of the coolest plans for Bullseye.
Nobel Cup was in my windshield mirror. This was Bullseye's really last chance to redeem itself. And it was a really good time for Bullseye to prove its comeback. I had proposed to Ashwin the same strategies I made in the past, but better and more refined. Everyone had a good discussion and agreed with the plans. Initially, Ashwin was reluctant to accept my suggestions, but he did.
Nobel Cup 2018 was held on 13th November 2018, exactly the day since Nobel Cup 2017. I arrived at iM4U Sentral, the venue of Nobel Cup, at 8:30am, after my aunt sent my sister to her school. I saw a fleet of buses arriving at the stadium. Then, I saw Mr Victor in his car. I waved at him in his parked car. He waved at me.
When Mr Raja emerged from the bus, I waved at him. "Wei Yiang, the Bullseye members are coming. Please go and cheer for them," said Mr Raja. Then, I saw Ashwin and all the Bullseye members emerging from the bus. I waved my hand at him, greeted him, and then shook his hand. "Hey, Ashwin, good to see you!" I cried. Ashwin then gave me a pat and I greeted Chia Zheng as well. Then, everyone gathered in the court for a briefing.
"Students, please gather in your houses. Bullseye over here, followed by Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk," said Mr Narish. He was quite serious. I then greeted him. Then, once everyone was settled, Mr Narish then gave a briefing to everyone. He was serious as he uttered out the rules of the game, making sure that everyone followed the guidelines with guilt and dignity. Once he was done speaking, I took out my megaphone and shouted, 'Come on Bullseye, come let's go!" The Bullseye members screamed and shouted happily.
Each house was then escorted to their respective competition venues for a briefing by appointed referees for their games. And the first game was a battle between the two houses for all sports events was Bullseye versus Touchdown, which scared me.
The first game begun at 8:59am. The court was soon smashing with the sound of bouncing balls. Mr Gallagher was refereeing the futsal game. I cheered and shouted. Sadly, Bullseye lost the first game with Touchdown. Then, in the next two games for the basketball tournament, Bullseye trounced Homerun and Slamdunk in the game. The game was competitive, as Bullseye also defeated Slamdunk in the futsal game.
While the game was ongoing, I spoke with Mr Raja, Mr Narish, Cikgu Azira and Cikgu Baliah as they coordinated the game. I walked around and recorded the scores on a piece of paper. Then, I transferred the scores to my computer, where I had a Microsoft Excel graph containing predicted calculations.
As the game wore on, it got cloudy, and then Cikgu Azira served me some lunch, along with a few other teachers who greeted me and received their food. I also took the time to record the scores and finalize them. Then, at 12:00pm, I left for Menara Sunway, where I was meeting some groupmates from Sunway College for the iLabs Make It Challenge competition, and thereafter, I walked to Sunway College for class. There, I informed Kanesh about how the game went.
"Is Bullseye leading?" he asked, as we waited in our class for Ms Neethasha, our Psychology teacher to arrive. I told him about the scores. It showed Bullseye in a lead. He and Erik Goh cheered. We had Psychology with Ms Neethasha, followed by a test for our Film as Art subject by Ms Jaslind at 2:30pm that afternoon.
Once the class ended, I went back to Menara Sunway to discuss the iLabs competition with my groupmates before heading home. Ashwin then informed me that Homerun won both futsal tournaments on the way back. While Touchdown won its first games over Bullseye in the Junior category, it was trounced by Bullseye in the Senior category.
Then, on 16th November 2018, the results were announced. Homerun got 280 points, followed by Bullseye and Touchdown, tied with 275 points each, and Slamdunk leading with 270 points. This was then changed to Bullseye leading by 290 points, followed by Touchdown 285, Homerun 280 and Slamdunk 270. Ashwin told me that the badminton scores were affecting the whole scoring system. Finally. Bullseye had secured its first win. The next step was to win the Founder's Run.
Mr Aram, who was a Nobel teacher, kept on criticizing me on Facebook on my antics towards Bullseye. I had chatted with him on Facebook due to him being an ex-Nobel teacher. However, he was rebuffed by many people from Nobel over his actions, along with Mr Gallagher himself. I spent the entire month of December 2018 plotting on the Founder's Run win.
Bullseye would need to win the Founder's Run to expand its lead. Some Bullseye members were attempting to celebrate its success in the Nobel Cup, but I advised against an early celebration of Bullseye's victory.
As 2019 rolled around, Bullseye was in full swing. I had done some predictions on the Bullseye National Conventions, also known as the house meets, to give the captains some early planning. I had predicted dates corresponding to the various events to give a head start to the Bullseye committee. The plan was to let all the Bullseye members know the advance actions of the management, so that we will be able to have a head start. Then, when all the houses start planning their strategy, we would be ahead of them and ready to face Sports Day 2019.
I also took the opportunity to meet Daryl Yeo's sister, Marissa Yeo, who would send me some updates if need be. She was very nice and communicated with me via social media. Daryl had introduced her to me and normally, Daryl and I would meet and talk at the 6th floor tables of the University Building.
The Bullseye spirit, meanwhile, was riling up. Soon, the Bullseye National Convention dates were announced. We want to get ready for the grandest, most outrageous scheme for Bullseye. This was the beginning of a new era for Bullseye.
We should not be giving up at the last minute. Even Melvyn Lim had expressed doubt that we could do so, since all of us had graduated from Nobel, including him. However, I wanted to prove him wrong as well.
The Bullseye National Convention would consist of four dates, 14th January 2019, 11th February 2019, 4th March 2019 and 11th March 2019. Two of the dates, 14th January and 11th February 2019, were predicted correctly in December. In fact, it was announced in December of the predictions and I had sent it to Ashwin via Instagram. When Ashwin found out the dates were predicted correctly, he was shocked and really baffled.
When I told Melvyn Lim about my correct prediction, he was laughing like mad. This was because I told him that if all my predictions were correct and Bullseye won, I could become a professor already; a Dr Lau Wei Yiang.
I went to Nobel on 2nd January 2019 to watch the first day of school once again. It was really very meaningful as I greeted some of the Bullseye people. Then, when I returned on 14th January, I was in for some sombre mood.
On the way to Nobel International School that day, the sky was filled with dark clouds as I made my way to Nobel. The road was really congested. I only prayed for the journey to be safe. My aunt was afraid that we will meet an accident as we headed to Nobel.
Upon reaching Nobel, it started raining. I then headed to the guardhouse to register my name. The security guards asked for my ID. I wondered if they were asking for my identity card (IC) or an ID tag. I did not know what to answer. They just let me in.
Then, I headed for the Multipurpose Hall, which was a new hall constructed next to the basement hall where the Christian Fellowship CCA normally met. Initially, I was unsure what was that and where it was, and that the Bullseye National Committee was to be held there. As I passed the upper canteen, where Touchdown was having their house meet, I met Mr Thomas, who told me that the hall was a new hall that was built after I left Nobel.
Upon reaching the Multipurpose Hall, I managed to meet Ms Yong Wai Yee, Cikgu Baliah, Cikgu Zura and Ms Sharon, who had arrived at the hall.
Mr Narish then came into the Multipurpose Hall. He then walked up to me. "Wei Yiang, I think you should leave because the house meet is a private event. You can discuss with your Bullseye members after they have finished with the house meet," he said. So, I went up to the upper canteen and had a chat with Mr Thomas, who asked me about my studies in Sunway. I then talked to Ms Kiran and Ms Bee Yong, who encouraged me to go and support the Bullseye members.
"Wei Yiang, you are still here!" laughed Ms Bee Yong. It was a change of mood. "Go and meet your Bullseye members! Go to the house meet!" she cried. Then, I spoke with some of the Bullseye members from Year 9, 10 and 11. "Touchdown is planning to win the 2019 Sports Day. They must be stopped!" I cried. When Zidez Raja looked at the predictions with Tharun, which showed Touchdown leading, once again, they felt demotivated, but when I told them that the result could be changed, they looked at the ceiling, and then smiled. Zidez Raja then talked in his most confident tone. "Yes, I agree. Yes, Bullseye MUST win!" he cried. We talked as everyone selected their activity, be it march, dance, banner or so on, for the Sports Day.
Then, Ms Yong asked everyone to line up before leaving. Once we left, I spoke with Areeya Amali and Yap Dawn outside the school gates. Then, I met Xang Yen as well and had a chat with his mum before leaving.
The next stage was to prepare for the Founder's Run. Bullseye must win the Founder's Run. All that we needed was a lot of signups. In the leadup to th 2019 Founder's Run, Bullseye was able to amass a lot of people to sign up. Many people who signed up early were infuriated at the performance with Touchdown in the previous two Sports Day outings. The Bullseye members were really fed up. Many people were mobilized to sustain and save the fame of Bullseye. This was because if Bullseye lost a third Sports Day, it would be close to the end of Bullseye's long great greatnesses for us.
When Bullseye lost Sports Day 2017, the momentum for winning was still present, but as time wore on, the momentum and feeling of Bullseye's greatness decreased. All the Bullseye members want to relive the spirit of 2014, 2015 and 2016. And what better way to do so than a Bullseye victory in 2019.
The Bullseye victories of the past had put Bullseye on the center stage. It was a Sports Day win that mattered to everyone. And everyone in Bullseye was determined to have it back; both past and present students then.
As Bullseye's winning drought wore on, no one could wait even one more second for the victory to return.
The Founder's Run 2019 was held on 22nd February 2019, while Sports Day 2019 occurred exactly a month later, on 22nd March 2019. In fact, 22nd March was also the original date of Sports Day 2013 before it was postponed. Seeing the number 22 made me think of the year 2022, when Qatar was to host the World Cup that year.
The morning of 22nd February 2019 was greeted by a rainstorm in the morning, which disrupted my sleep. My Founder's Run t-shirt was delivered the previous day, on 21st February. My mum went to take the shirt from Nobel while I accompanied my aunt to a clinic in Kuala Lumpur. When I got up at 5:00am, I put on my Founder's Run t-shirt. It was black in color and the words 'Founder's Run 2019' were emblazoned in a yellow outline of a shoe.
I brought along two homemade Bullseye flags made out of umbrellas, my pencil case, notebook and a calculator to take down the scores.
Upon reaching Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam that morning, I then met Isaac Ng. He was the first to talk to me. "Wei Yiang, win first place again," he said with a chuckle and a smile. "See how first lah," I replied, laughing away.
My mum and I first talked to Ms Cynthia, who asked about me. Then, we talked to Mr Chan Lik Hoong. He then told us about Nobel planning to expand to include the A Level programme. My mum's eyes lit up. "Wei Yiang had also wished for Nobel to have A Levels," she said.
Back in July 2018, while walking the hallways of Sunway's library, I was reading some A Level Economics textbooks and answer schemes even though I wasn't an A Levels student, nor was I interested in doing A Levels. However, I felt that Nobel should have an A Levels programme as the school had the potential. On the other hand, some international schools also offered A Levels as well.
Soon, everyone was asked to gather. Ms Cynthia then asked everyone to gather. I was confused when an announcement for the '10km Parents Run' was announced. Then, we were led a warm up by the teachers. Eventually, I was reassured that it was the 5km Parents' Run.
The teachers set up a mini stage where Ms Colleen, who had returned to Nobel the previous year, led the warm-ups. There was a jazz dance for everyone to get moving. Once the warm up was done, I wished Ashwin and all the Bullseye members the best, as Ms Visa guided me to my starting position. Some teachers, including Ms Visa, Ms Cynthia and Mr Chan, asked me why I did not have a bib like the other students before realizing that I had graduated. Ms Sylvia and Ms Bee Yan wished me the very best and talked to me before the run begun.
As the race started, the 10km runners were flagged off first, followed by the 5km Parents Run. Mr Kevin Wai asked me to run slowly. However, when the race started, I soon picked up speed.
Throughout the whole run, I had gotten a stomach ache as I fuelled up too much water before running. However, I managed to keep a far lead from the rest of the runners. I then sprinted up and down, and then headed to the finish line. I then crossed the finishing tape. While I had managed to become the first person to win the Founder's Run three times, there was no applause as the constant wins had become boring. Thus, I pledged to do a longer race in 2020; a 10km. It took one and a half hours for everyone to finish running.
I then talked to Ashwin about the plans. He listened carefully, and so did Alyssa Kok, who was really excited on it as well.
When the results were announced, I was greeted with claps as I got my medal from Auntie Clarine. Then, following the medals ceremony, she took a picture with me. Soon came the score tally. I tallied up the scores. In fact, Ashwin told me that initially, Bullseye was leading, then got tied with Touchdown before being overtaken by the latter.
For the Founder's Run tally, Bullseye managed to get 458 points, followed by Slamdunk with 382 points, Homerun 376 and Touchdown 363 points. Bullseye was leading by a lot! Very impressive! This resulted in Bullseye's second consecutive Founder's Run victory. In fact, Slamdunk got the most signups, followed by Bullseye, Touchdown and Homerun. The total tally overall was Bullseye at 736 points, Homerun 651, Slamdunk at 647 and Touchdown at 644 points. Ashwin, Chia Zheng and Alyssa Kok were invited to lift the trophy. I screamed, shouted and yelled at the scores as if I had won a lottery.
The next step was to win the Pre Sports Events. This time, Touchdown, Homerun and Slamdunk were very angry with us. However, I tried to rile Melvyn Lim up by talking about how Bullseye defeating Touchdown was like Malaysian voters voting Datuk Seri Najib Razak out of power. And I gave many theories and ranted as to how cool were we to defeat Touchdown on Sports Day 2019.
The first day of Pre Sports Events, 4th March, was the next test of endurance for Bullseye. For me, I just had to wait and pray while the score was settled. Then came the next Bullseye National Convention on 5th March. It was originally meant to be scheduled for 4th March, but was postponed to accommodate the Pre Sports Events. On that day, I acted like as if I was doing an election campaign rally in my car porch, and I complained in my speech about how bad the situation had gone for Bullseye with Touchdown winning.
Four days later, on 8th March 2019, the 5th anniversary of MH370's loss, Mr Narish announced the results. Bullseye was surging at 840 points, followed by Touchdown at 714 points, Slamdunk at 706 points, and Homerun at 701 points. Ashwin sent the results to me.
When I heard the results, I screamed and shrieked like mad. I shouted like crazy till my neighbor, Mr Hing, got really annoyed. I was screaming till the whole neighborhood heard me. Even Melvyn Lim was surprised.
I was acting like Tunku Abdul Rahman, punching my fist and screaming "Merdeka!" many times. I wanted to achieve an 800-point gap for Bullseye so that the three other opponents would not catch up to us. The gap was 140 points.
The theme for the 2019 Sports Day was 'Transformers'. For the first time that year, I decided to base my banner on the official theme. I spent the entire semester break for Sunway University to do the banner. I put a skyline of Kuala Lumpur as the backdrop behind a red autobot from the Transformers movie. Mind you, we need to have some unity in the themes. I continued to boast to Melvyn Lim that if Bullseye won, I can be a professor because of my predictions which guided the house.
I was afraid that Ms Lim did not want me to hang the banner. After all, I was confident that the Bullseye members can see it and speed like mad. It would look impressive and awesome. And Bullseye's notice board was trailing behind. I quickly reminded Ashwin and everyone to have the notice board restored for the notice board competition. I made a Bullseye group to motivate and support each other, causing everyone to rile up and get excited.
The scores for the Notice Board and the Cheer Competition were announced during the Telematch Day on 20th March 2019; the same day as my orientation for my business degree, also in Sunway. Homerun won the Notice Board competition, followed by Slamdunk, Bullseye and Touchdown. The Cheer Competition was won by Slamdunk, followed by Touchdown, Bullseye and Homerun.
In the weeks leading up to Sports Day, I motivated everyone online and made a rallying cry. The Touchdown streak must be defeated on 22nd March. But Slamdunk was advancing. It was on the border with Bullseye.
22nd March soon arrived without hassle. I went to the stadium. I was updated on the banner progress by Enya Chok. It looked cool. We might win it.
Everyone was seen practicing for Sports Day's Opening Ceremony. The moment of truth had arrived. The last stretch. Win a few events, and we win the trophy and head home in pride.
Bullseye was leading with 1215 points, followed by Slamdunk with 1074 points, Touchdown with 1027 points and Homerun with 1010 points. I brought a large homemade Bullseye flag, alongside two smaller ones and a banner. I put up my banner at the parents' stand before Mr Gallagher and Ms June told me to hang it at the Bullseye stand. However, Ms Lim, once again, told me not to hang it but allowed me to hold it. The banner was so large and big. I was informed by Mr Loong that Ms Lim wanted to communicate that to me.
Some people, such as Sean Mark, Isabella Wong, Brendan Cheah, Zi Quan and Sara Yow came to watch the Sports Day. "All marchers, please get ready," said Mr Narish. The marchers soon assembled on the field.
The ceremony was launched by four mascots from each of the four houses which depicted the Transformers' autobots. Ashley Cheah was Bullseye's mascot captain. I steadied myself for the opening ceremony. Ms Cynthia was emceeing. The four mascots came out to welcome Auntie Clarine, who held a torch in her hand. She passed the torch to Jayden Wong, who then passed it to Joshua Lim, Chia Zheng and Cathryn Toh. All the house captains ran with the torch, before handing it to Mr Tan Seng Kee to light it.
The cauldron then burst into flames, followed by the marchers from all four houses. We all screamed when Bullseye marched in. The marchpast contingent was led by Homerun, followed by Touchdown, Bullseye and Slamdunk. The Sports Day 2019 was a rife of rivalry as Touchdown and Bullseye clashed and clanged their might on who would be the champion house.
Then, banner holders walked with each house's banner from the sides of the stadium. For the first time that year, the banner holders did not accompany the marchpast squad, which was led by Isaac Ng.
Then came the national anthem, the Negaraku. But no school song followed, and nor the school pledge. I overheard one parent moaning about the school having the house cheers, the school song and the school pledge in the past and that the school did not have them for the 2019 Sports Day.
The Sports Pledge was then led by former Touchdown captain Lim Wences' brother, Lim Wenxin, and Bullseye's sprinter, Alysha Yuen. Then, the marchers marched back. It was the shortest marchpast parade ever. Then, the dances begun.
I tried adjusting my banner, but the wind caught it like a sail and fluttered it around, throwing me off balance. I managed to grab it while navigating and trying to not obstruct people who were viewing the dances. And then, Ms Joyce said I could not hang my banner as it will confuse the judges, who were judging it.
Then, the competitions started. I then took notes down. Soon, an avalanche of Bullseye victories in the races overwhelmed me. However, the target of 800 points of leeway which I targeted was too far to reach, but we were leading. Melvyn Lim had said that such a long gap was impossible. But Slamdunk was 100 points away from us. We had to be fast.
Nicholas Liang and I took large Bullseye flags and waved them, cheering the crowd on.
"Do you want to see Touchdown win?" I asked. The crowd replied with a deafening 'No'. "Let's show them the exit door!" I cried. Then, we saw Slamdunk catching up, but Bullseye's athletes managed to pull ahead in the last moment. I told Nicholas Liang and Ashwin that the scoreboard was slow in updating.
"Are we leading? What is the placing of all the houses?" asked Nicholas Liang. I told him that we were leading by 200 points.
Ashwin then picked up the paper which I was calculating my score on. He glanced at it with a serious look as if he was a university professor marking exam papers. "So, if now that Bullseye's score is like this, and Slamdunk is at around 1103 points, if we win most of thre 4X100m and 300m categories, we should be the champion house," I said.
I groaned as my target was not to be achieved. Melvyn appeared to be right. I told Zidez Raja that we had not won yet. "We must CONFIRM it," I said. Once we confirmed the score, we can celebrate it.
The Bullseye members then made a grand entrance for Ethan Chan's arrival. He had came from Kolej Tuanku Jaafar in Negeri Sembilan for the Sports Day. He was greeted in cheers as I introduced him. He was in the campus in the morning and came in the evening.
"Thank you for coming a long way to support Bullseye," I said to Ethan Chan. He smiled and chanted, "Yes! Bullseye must win!" he cried. Then, I gave Tharun my marathon tips so that he can try to aim for first place. He had won second for every Founder's Run.
Then, I made an announcement. "This is the score without the marchpast, dance and banner. All we need to do is to pray that we win those. At 1364 points and leading by a huge margin, we are going to lift the trophy. This result and calculation is accurate," I proclaimed to the crowd. The Bullseye members screamed and shouted. All the while, my screams were so loud till the parents and spectators complained.
The Bullseye members were ushered to the field. Every captain led their house to scream and shout crazily. I shouted so loudly like mad till Ms Lim asked me to stop shouting. Then, I played a flute, to which Ms Lim told me to halt.
All the awards were given, from the running events to the Sports Boy and Sports Girl. Homerun won both march and dance. Bullseye won the banner competition. When I heard that, I screamed and shouted like mad.
I then went to see Sean Mark, Brendan Cheah, Zi Quan, Isabella Wong and all of the cohort-mates from 2017 who were seated in the stands. "I have the points and I know which house is the champion house. I have proof," I proclaimed.
"Wei Yiang, we don't need to know your information. We want to be SURPRISED," said Brendan.
"We will display the first and last numbers on the scoreboard," said Ms Cynthia. Those numbers weren't much. Then, these were followed by the tens. Bullseye had 1_87 and Slamdunk had 1_96. The moment it was revealed that Bullseye had 1387 points and Slamdunk had 1196 points, all of us screamed. I shouted, pouted and hugged my mum. Then, I was soon tearing up. I had made Bullseye win as an ex student. It was history in the making and a moment to be proud of. The critics were wrong and I was right. I was right in those aspects. And it showed that my rejected 2017 plans worked in 2019.
"Thank you to Sunway University for making Bullseye win!" I cried, honoring the Nobelians in Sunway.
Ashwin and Chia Zheng ran with the trophy. Ashwin ran backwards while Chia Zheng ran forward. The Bullseye members led the champion house run. Soon, the Touchdowners decided to join in as well. I congratulated every Bullseye member, and then thanked the teachers of Bullseye. Then, Zidez and I joined the Bullseye members to take a picture.
"MERDEKA!" I cried. Zidez then shouted as well. "MERDEKA!" he yelled. Soon, everyone was acting like Tunku Abdul Rahman as we celebrated the liberation of the championship from Touchdown after two years of loss.
Chia Zheng and Ashwin called the Bullseye members together. The Bullseye members were joined by Benjamin Lew, Ethan Chan and Caleb Chuang, who watched him deliver his victory speech.
"Listen, you might think we have won just because we wrote papers and stuff like that. But the reason we have won is because of you guys. Some of you did not even want to stay back and this trophy is the reason you stayed back to practice. This trophy is the result of all your efforts," he said.
Alyssa Kok then chipped in. "Every single one of you have played a role," said Alyssa Kok. Ashwin then told everyone that he hopes to see such efforts continue in the years to come, pointing to the trophy.
Then, I gave a speech thanking all the Bullseye members, the captain and the committee. "I would like to say thank you to all our friends from Sunway as well as other colleges who came to support us, such as Ben or Ethan. Thank you for coming. It is not a matter of whether you are a ex student, a parent or teacher, but we worked together to make this happen," I said.
"Bullseye is not a house, but a movement."
The whole house soon got riled up and started chanting my name. They screamed and shouted, before saying the Bullseye cheer. Then, I ran a lap of the track, carrying the Bullseye flag. I felt tears streaming down my cheeks as I ran. Then, I acted in a fatigued manner as I posed a photo with the trophy. My neighbor, Mr Hing, said that I looked like Bruce Lee when I took the photo and showed it to him. Then, Ms Lim told me not to shout so loudly as it looked really ugly. "You really have to calm down," she said. When I explained to her that it was to motivate the Bullseye members, she said this takeaway phrase:
"Winning an event is just a bonus. If everyone wants to win, who is going to lose? The most important thing is that you enjoy the process of Sports Day," she said. I then took pictures, congratulated people and thanked the folks on Bullseye's victory. I then thanked Ms Yong Wai Yee and Ms Kay for their enthusiasm. Ms Yong said she liked my enthusiasm. Then, I thanked Ms Bee Yong for her morning assembly speeches, and Mr Narish as well, as he coordinated an amazing Sports Day 2019.
22nd March 2019 will forever be known as the '9th May 2018 of Nobel', no thanks to the spirit, enthusiasm and passion for Bullseye as it demonstrated Bullseye members at their best. We had finally reclaimed the victory of Bullseye.
Every single month since then, I kept on commemorating the 22nd of every month. Then, a month passed, then two, then three. I felt that the Bullseye victory deserves similar mention as Malaysia's 9th May 2018 election, which was known as the 'second independence day of Malaysia', where Malaysians placed high hopes on a new government resulting from the first change of government since Independence in 1957.
When I took some break from my studies, I tutored Marissa Yeo on the Geography topics. She praised my Geography knowledge; especially the topics in the lead-up to the Mid Year Examination and the Assessment 2. As time passed, it was August 2019, and a new house captain election had to be done.
Ashwin informed me that I should not be proposing the plans to the Bullseye members, as some people from Bullseye would feel that I am more of an annoyance than a benefit. Unlike Ashwin, many of the Bullseye members do not understand the big picture of Bullseye as opposed to him, and this was well-known with the advice that I gave him when trying to coerce people to rescue the notice board which nets points for Bullseye. To Ashwin, the intentions were good, but to many Bullseye people, they feel that it is more of nagging and pestering. He told me to be careful, as future committees may not be as accommodating as him. I accepted his advice, and he told me to take note of this, saying it is better for him to tell me then than another captain informing me on it.
Aside from Sports Day 2019, I set my sights on the Nobelfest 2019. I had been selling vegetables I grew in my garden at the morning market near my house. As a student doing the BA (Hons) Entrepreneurship programme in Sunway University, I was really interested to put the business model in Nobelfest 2019. And me and my neighbor, Mr Hing, were talking about the plans as well.
The second half of 2019 was first interrupted by the haze. This was the third time that haze had plagued my studies, after the 2013 haze incident and 2015 haze incident. While Nobel closed due to the haze, Sunway University continued with classes as usual. However, I pressed on with the ambitious Nobelfest project.
Me and Mr Hing started a mini business company project named 'TGA Corporation', in which I was the chief executive officer (CEO) while he was the advisor. Before I left for classes in Sunway every morning, I spent time with him talking about profits, losses and finance for the project. It looked cool, as if you were simulating a game.
Initially, I was planning to sell vegetables directly, but however, I changed the product to vegetables planted in soil. This was because it will allow the vegetables to sustain themselves with nutrients throughout the long day at Nobelfest.
Nobelfest 2019 was held on 2nd November 2019. Every class was invited to come up with a name for their booth. If I was given the chance to name the booth, I would call it 'TGA Corporation'. Even Mr Hing was excited to see the venture take off during Nobelfest. The plans were to sell the vegetables, get the profits and donate it to Nobel International School for charitable activities.
On the morning of 2nd November, I set up the booth outside Nobel, near the main road, as the school might not allow us to sell. I brought a green table while my mum watched over the booth. Some people paid using their Nobelfest coupons, while others paid using cash. I accept both.
I had been talking to Xang Yen about business concepts lately, and this was complicated by the fact that he did not take Business Studies for his IGCSE; nor did he take Economics.
The Nobelfest was lively and joyful. I initially walked around the school building, greeted Ms Lim, and savored some of the stuff on sale. I also took the time to sell my products to Ms June and a few other teachers while also working on my coursework in the school canteen. I then looked at some of my Marketing notes given by my lecturer, Dr. Munirah, on the marketing topics to guide me. Then, while waiting for profits to be collected at my booth, I frequently walked in and out to check. I even sold some vegetables to Mr Chuang, as well as some passersby, including an Indian lady waiting for a bus to the LRT station as she was heading to Subang Jaya that afternoon. My sister drew a placard for me to hold while selling.
At the end of the day, I took pictures with Ms Sharon, Melvyn Lim, Marissa Yeo, Ms Nadia, Ms Bee Yong and Mr Gallagher. I even showed some of the plans for Nobel Cup to Ashley Cheah, the newly-elected house captain of Bullseye. She was assisted by Zi Sheng, the assistant captain of Bullseye. Even Sean Mark, for your information, came to buy vegetables from me with his mum. Mr Chuang even suggested that I sell in Nobel next time, pending approvals.
The Nobel Cup was on the horizon. The 2019 Nobel Cup would be the first test of Bullseye since the 22nd March 2019 Sports Day victory of Bullseye. In the lead up to the Nobel Cup, Xang Yen had vowed revenge for us Bullseye members for stealing the show on Sports Day. He told me this when I contacted him.
On 8th November 2019, a group of students from Nobel went to Sunway for an Ausmat workshop. They arrived at Sunway at 8:30am, while I was still having my lecture for Business Law with Mr Bala. They went to the classrooms in the college building for the workshop.
After having my lunch, I then went to the Sunway Campus Library (now called the Tun Hussein Onn Sunway Library) to read the newspapers. As I peeked my head above the newspapers, I could see the Nobellians coming into the library. I then toured the library with them, talking about the Nobel Cup with them and introducing them to Sunway. Then, as we left the library, while waiting in the foyer of the University building, a piece of paper dropped out of my calendar which I normally carry in Sunway, to mark dates of assignments and so on. Fortunately, no one saw the paper, because it contained the predicted dates for Sports Day 2020, and the Sports Day 2020 date was CORRECT. It was predicted back in August 2019. The dates of the Sports Day and the various Sports Day events were coincidentally CORRECT. I didn't want my plan to be foiled so early.
On 11th November 2019, the date of Nobel Cup 2019, I used the LRT to head to iM4U Sentral from my house. Upon reaching iM4U Sentral, I tried the same trick. I screamed the magic words, "Come on Bullseye, come let's go!" again, but no one paid notice. Then, I watched and cheered as the Bullseye members played their futsal and basketball games. This time, the Bullseye members bested all the other houses and scored the highest score in the futsal game. All the Bullseye members screamed and shouted. We were leading. I met Mr Raja, as well as some of the Bullseye people to cheer them on. Then, I quickly left for home to get ready to head to Sunway University for class. That year, Nobel was using the iM4U Sentral for basketball and futsal, as well as Forum 19 for the other matches, while Chess was held on the school premises. Four days later, Marissa Yeo updated me with the disappointing news. Bullseye had lost the Nobel Cup. To make matters worse, Slamdunk won the Nobel Cup with 135 points. It resulted in Slamdunk's first ever victory in any major tournament. Bullseye and Touchdown were tied with 125 points, and Homerun scored 115 points. Thus, this milestone made the Nobel Cup the only tournament where every house was able to win an edition of the tournament. Homerun won the 2013 Nobel Cup, followed by Bullseye in 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018, as well as Touchdown in 2016 and Slamdunk in 2019.
The act was able to jolt the top bigwigs of Bullseye, especially Melvyn Lim, who panicked like mad. Plan B had to be activated.
If Bullseye won Nobel Cup 2019, it would be on the verge of winning Sports Day 2020. Had Bullseye won Nobel Cup 2019, it would have had been the first three-year victory streak for a Nobel Cup event. It would also have had been the first time Bullseye had won both a Sports Day and a Nobel Cup in the same Gregorian calendar year, after 2014 and 2015. Plans to do so in 2016 were foiled by the loss of Bullseye to Touchdown in Nobel Cup 2016.
To achieve Plan B, everyone in Bullseye had to register for Founder's Run. All Bullseye needed to do was to win the Founder's Run in order to achieve a lead and win Sports Day 2020. It was to be the climax of Wawasan 2020, and it would achieve Bullseye Vision 2020, a plan made by me and Caleb Chuang in 2015. Now, we were in the same situation as at the end of 2016 to early 2017. At that time, Bullseye failed to overtake Touchdown, but this time, we needed to overtake Slamdunk but at the same time, avoid Touchdown.
The year 2020 soon arrived. It was the year where all Malaysians were hoping for. The year where Wawasan 2020 was achieved; a vision for Malaysia to become a developed country.
The dates for Sports Day and Founder's Run were released. 27th March 2020 and 14th February 2020. I then checked my computer and the predictions. I was right! I screamed and shouted like mad. It was as if I had won the lottery.
I was only worried that the management will come after me for asking me as to how I told some people the date before it was even released. It was a coincidental match-up! When I told Melvyn Lim this, he was shocked. All of us were so excited that the dates were correct. Not to also mention that the 2020 dates were predicted not just as early as August 2019, but on 23rd March 2019; the day following Sports Day 2019.
I told Melvyn once again that 'illuminati will come' if the prediction was right. Illuminati did come, but in a scary way.
Meanwhile, some people were getting sick. They were developing some illness from some unknown virus. And they centred around a wet market in Wuhan, China.
This sneaky virus, initially thought to be a localized issue that could be settled within a few months, soon spread like wildfire. Initially addressed as the 'Wuhan Virus', it was temporarily called '2019-nCoV', or the 2019 Novel Coronavirus. The virus was then given its name, the Covid 19 virus, also known in full as Coronavirus Disease 2019, with the name of the virus called as 'SARS-CoV-2'.
It was in the first week of my new semester on 14h January 2020, that I got wind of the new virus emerging from China. While being in Sunway's library after classes, I read more about this new virus. There was NO CURE. There were very funny symptoms, but most of which was a dry cough. Even Mr Hing's wife told me that it was like a SARS 2.0.
Immediately, I put on my mask when the virus first started enveloping the world in January 2020. I was even too scared to head back to Penang for Chinese New Year. I decided to limit my trip to Penang to just a day only. By the time I returned back to my home on 25th January 2020, the virus had reached Malaysia. I was thinking of closing borders and cancelling flights, but Malaysia's government wanted to proceed with Visit Malaysia Year 2020, and were adamant to do so.
What made it even more worrying during my time in Sunway was that two of my friends in my class came from China; namely Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces respectively. So, I was worried of getting the virus from them. Fortunately, they were safe and sound.
The virus initially started gaining ground in Malaysia, but most were limited to imported cases. I instantly shut my mini business at the wet market which I sold my vegetables, as I was afraid of mystery viruses jumping from wet markets, which were common all over Asia. Thinking of Covid 19 in those early days reminded me of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak, which we at Nobel had inherited precautions from. And it reminded me of the trauma that I saw from the North Korean nuclear war threat in August 2017. I was scared then, and was scared of this new virus. However, I tried to keep myself happy by focusing on my semester. We were doing our Mata Pelajaran Umum subjects; subjects that involve Malaysian studies and were taught in Malay. I was taking Tamadun Islam dan Tamadun Asia, as well as Bahasa Kebangsaan A; the tertiary education version of Malay in school. I also took Hubungan Etnik, but was asked to drop the subject by my program coordinator, Ms Yeong, as I did not follow the subject line-up plan.
Meanwhile in Nobel, I was visiting Nobel day upon day. Every single week in February, I made trips to Nobel on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays to meet the Bullseye members.
I let them know about how bad the trauma of 2017 and 2018 was, and how were we in the same position as in January 2017. They listened carefully as I showed them the predictions. And not only that; when I told them that I had predicted the correct date, all of them were so excited. But however, I was careful to take note of some fake news as well, both from Covid 19 and Sports Day. We had to navigate the challenges.
The theme for Sports Day 2020, which was announced by Mr Narish on 10th January 2020 during the morning assembly, which, coincidentally, had its date correctly predicted on 23rd March 2019, was the theme of 'Endangered Animals'. For once, I felt a sense of relief because I had been complaining to all the Bullseye members that I hate the themes of Spiderman, Superman, Batman and so many cartoon characters. I was thinking that why can't we have real-world themes such as those from the 9th May 2018 General Election, or the Hong Kong protests, or from any other themes. In fact, Xang Yen and I discussed the themes for Sports Day on a phone call. Pokémon was one of the themes being discussed, along with the Olympics, since 2020 was the year of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Bullseye's mascot was an Ethiopian Wolf. Originally, some people from Touchdown told me and tricked me that it was a kangaroo. And they told me the wrong scores, too, but that was after Founder's Run 2020 was concluded.
What was needed was to get the message across. On Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, I would head to Nobel following my classes to discuss plans with the Bullseye members. I can't go into the school compound, so I discussed with them at the bus stop outside the school.
I made my case to them. I did this every week from January to March 2020. Some people asked as to why I wasn't focusing on my studies. I was scared that some teachers would chide me for coming. After all, it was sportsmanship at work, too. Mr Nick, who teaches Chemistry, even told me that I shouldn't be at Nobel that often and should be focusing on my life in Sunway. But we were closing in on the semester break at the time.
Then came Founder's Run 2020. It was the 5th Annual Founder's Run.
The 2020 Founder's Run was a really different setup from that of the previous editions of the Founder's Run. This Founder's Run was really different. For a start, it was not held at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, but rather, it was held at Bukit Jalil Park. It was closer to home for me. The reason that Founder's Run was held at the Bukit Jalil Park was because Fungates Superflow Foundation was launching the Seeds Connection Psychological Center. The intention of the 2020 Founder's Run was to promote Seeds Connection as Fungates Superflow Foundation's new venture into counselling and wellness. And not only that; regarding the park as well, my dad had brought me there since I was a kid. And in the lead-up to the Founder's Run, I practiced there while my aunt brought my neighbor to the IMU Chiropractic Clinic at International Medical University for a checkup.
As the Covid 19 outbreak progressed, people begun recovering from Covid 19 despite the absence of a cure. Malaysians were restricted from travelling to China. And this restriction soon applied to South Korea, Japan, Iran and Italy, where mass Covid 19 outbreaks soon followed.
The Covid 19 outbreak also affected the preparations for Founder's Run as well. Originally, parents and alumni were invited to join the race, but as the epidemic progressed, the parents' race was cancelled and all students had to get their temperature recorded before the start of the race.
Being affected by the cancellation, my mum could only collect my Founder's Run 2020 t-shirt from Nobel while I focused on my own studies.
On the day of Founder's Run 2020, 14th February 2020, I took the LRT to the Bukit Jalil Park to watch the Founder's Run from a distance. The school had set up tents and canopies. I didn't want people to be angry with me coming, but I want to see if the Bullseye people were okay. So, I just stood aside and looked at the park. Founder's Run was made an internal event, which meant that only existing students and teachers of Nobel could attend.
I saw a lot of people jogging, especially frequent park-goers. I was thinking as to why the parents' run was cancelled due to Covid 19 when there are many park-goers on the paths. Then, I saw Mr Gallagher wearing sunglasses while riding his motorcycle. He was going around the park, as signs were placed to guide the runners. Then, I went home and then had a hike up the hill near my home which had a view of the buildings near Bukit Jalil Park. I then waited from updates of the Founder's Run from Wong Rui Zhi.
I had recently met up online with Wong Rui Zhi lately. He was a Year 9 track and field runner from Bullseye and I had showed him my predictions via Instagram. He was a nice, cool and energetic guy and ran the MSSD for Nobel in track and field, just like Sean Mark.
When I showed him the predictions, he was really excited to see it, as well as all my crazy stories and theories over the years with Bullseye. Then, I also gave him tips for the run, and he lobbied everyone to sign up for the race.
After the race, he announced that Bullseye was leading, with 539 points, followed by Touchdown with 444 points, Slamdunk with 400 points and Homerun with 393 points. He snapped a picture of the scoreboard for me. The moment he announced this to me, I was so happy till I screamed, shouted and cheered very enthusiastically. I immediately texted my friend, Xang Yen, as well as Melvyn Lim. Xang Yen, who was from Slamdunk, did not attend the run that day. He wasn't feeling well and was staying at home to study for his IGCSE exams. He was in Year 11 at the time. Xang Yen groaned and told me that he will attend Sports Day and made sure he was able to do so, in order to save Slamdunk. And Melvyn Lim was so excited. He cheered like mad, and the next thing I knew was that I was shouting like mad till the whole neighborhood could hear me.
Bullseye, despite edging a slow start, managed to take off. It won Founder's Run 2020, which gave it a boost. And then the points begun rising. I spent time following my final exams in Sunway to head to Nobel to speak with Areeya Amali, Yap Dawn and Elissa Carmen at the bus stop on the points. We were leading, and we were soon having 740 points in our score.
The Covid 19 virus soon took a turn for the worst. Malaysia changed its government again via the 'Sheraton Move', which resulted in a lack of federal administration over the Covid 19 policies. It caused a large political turmoil, and Xang Yen jokingly told me that Slamdunk will change Bullseye in that same fashion. However, the Covid 19 outbreak soon escalated.
Initially, everyone thought that all was well. However, the escalating nature of the outbreak resulted in Sports Day 2020 being made an internal event in a bid to ban outsiders from transmitting the virus. Melvyn Lim had planned to attend Sports Day 2020, but this was soon made not possible. I had proposed for him to lift the trophy if Bullseye won, since I lifted it in 2019. Melvyn wasn't able to attend Sports Day at the time due to his classes in Sunway with the Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) programme. The Sports Day 2020 being made an internal event erased all of our hopes of heading to Sports Day 2020.
Since the theme of the Sports Day 2020 was 'Endangered Animals', I had planned to draw a banner for 2020 which celebrated the theme of sustainability. As a student of Sunway following my graduation from Nobel, I was introduced to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which is practiced by Sunway University and Sunway Group. The goals were crafted in 2015 to advocate for environmental protection and sustainable development, which synced with the theme of Endangered Animals that was created by Mr Narish. At the same time, since I did gardening projects out of recycled materials and had green fingers, it would be an ode to show off my sustainable activities at Sports Day 2020. There were many other initiatives to show off my gardening projects and sustainable initiatives on Sports Day.
Plans for the banner involved using one of the Sustainable Development Goals' symbols on my banner. Since the theme of Sports Day revolved on Endangered Animals, the appropriate goal was 'Life on Land', which consisted of a picture of a tree and a flock of birds. I spent the entire month of March, during my semester break, to draw the banner, which also involved drawing a tree with flowers and an Ethiopian Wolf. However, the banner plans for Sports Day had to be stopped halfway because the Sports Day was declared an internal event, rendering it useless.
Mind you, the theme of 'Endangered Animals' was crafted by Mr Narish as Australia was experiencing wildfires in its forests in January 2020. As such, Mr Narish wanted everyone to pay tribute to the animals killed in the bushfire, as well as encourage everyone to have an awareness campaign on human activity against wildlife indirectly through Sports Day 2020. The pandemic soon got out of control, and a religious cluster at a mosque in Sri Petaling caused a lot of cases to explode and spread. Sports Day 2020 was eventually cancelled by Ms Lim, who announced the cancellation on 12th March 2020.
Being an important event for Nobel International School and the largest-ever event in an academic year, Sports Day was the heartbeat, soul and pride of every student in Nobel International School. It was a big deal for me when Bullseye lost. And for the Year 11s in 2020, it was to be their moment to shine in front of the crowd.
Ms Lim made the sudden announcement on Thursday, 12th March 2020. Originally, everyone was having their Reading Time before being called to the school hall for that announcement. The moment Ms Lim made the announcement, Chong Vanice was the first to scream and shout. Soon, she was in tears, and many of the Year 11s were in tears too. They were unable to do their various events. After all, marchpast and dance practices were in full swing, and the banner was coming up as well. Sadly, it was half-done and had to be discarded.
Ashwin had to make a painful announcement to everyone. Everyone was sad as the entire Sports Day preparation process had to be halted. Then, my mum asked me to do a reflection between the 2017 loss of Bullseye to Touchdown, as well as the 2020 cancellation of Sports Day.
Even though I, or I should say, we, as Year 11 members from Bullseye, lost Sports Day in 2017, nevertheless, we were fortunate enough to experience a Sports Day in our lives, as opposed to the Year 11s in 2020. While my plans and proposals were rejected by Vicky to a certain extent in 2017, the Year 11s in 2020 did not even get a chance to propose or to execute them. It was a sad thing as grief flooded the entire school at the cancellation of Sports Day.
Then, the Movement Control Order (MCO) followed, on 18th March 2020. The roads were deserted of cars. I could still remember my FIRST DAY of MCO. There was a blackout at 1:00am that morning. Fortunately, it was good timing as I was going to do my long runs. I was wanting to do my practices till the pandemic concluded. Soon, running and exercises were banned. Everyone had to work or study from home, including me, who had to attend online classes when the new semester begun. They were helpful as there were recorded lecture videos, which aided me when I retook Principles of Business Finance, which I failed in 2019, along with Business Statistics. All involved calculations, and it added to my already-struggling Maths performance in 2017. Fortunately, I was enjoying the MCO due to the good companionship of my neighbors. The date of Sports Day 2020, 27th March 2020, was greeted with an afternoon rainy weather. I was already anticipating Sports Day 2020 ending late, as well as rain on Sports Day 2020.
Originally intended to end on 31st March 2020, it was extended three times before ending on 3rd May 2020.
When the MCO was lifted, it was replaced with a conditional MCO, or CMCO, before entering into the recovery MCO, or RMCO, on 10th June 2020.
Meanwhile, during the MCO, I was thinking about what would happen to Bullseye's score. My mum determined that Bullseye having the highest scores as of the cancellation of the Sports Day 2020 resulted in Bullseye being informally declared as the 2020 Sports Day Champion House. Even so, the Sports Day trophy was indirectly still in Bullseye's possession since 22nd March 2019, so it fit in such manner.
During the MCO, I was informed about Ms Sylvia's passing. She was admitted to hospital for a week due to autoimmune disease and passed away on 16th April 2020. When the news was announced to me by Marissa Yeo, I felt sad. Ms Sylvia was a really enthusiastic, cheerful and motivating teacher. Nobel had lost a wonderful PE teacher. And the loss of Ms Sylvia was felt all over the Nobel community of ex students. It was really saddening, because we had lost a great teacher who can do Nobel some good.
Schools reopened on 24th June 2020. On the first day of school, everyone was wearing their Sports Day Attire for the year 2020. It had a picture of a deer on it, drawn in black. Then, on 15th July, everyone from Year 1 to 11 returned to school.
I would say that Nobel had the best SOP management of any school in Malaysia. Lessons learnt from the H1N1 pandemic in 2009 were once again put to the test, but the whole protocol was greatly refined to include social distancing and controlled movements.
When I watched a video of Mr Chan explain about bubonic plague on Nobel's Facebook page, I can't help but draw the Covid 19 standard operating procedures comparison in Nobel in 2020 to the H1N1 outbreak in 2009 and 2010. Back in 2009, it was my first time wearing a face mask and sanitizing my hands. And in 2010, Nobel had to shut down due to H1N1 cases in the school, and as a result, they had to replace the schooling days on my birthday, 15th May, resulting in my birthday weekend being affected due to that, since Nobel as a private school then were required to replace schooling days.
Everyone was complaining that it was the first time we as a society had experienced a large, devastating pandemic. However, I disagree, as H1N1 and the SARS outbreak were the big factors as well. And I contributed RM 2 for Nobel's face shield donation programme in September of 2020 as well.
I spent time discussing with Marissa Yeo about the SOPs, such as social distancing, temperature monitoring and hand sanitizing, and had proposed some measures to be implemented in Sunway. Many of them were approved of by our Senior Executive Director, Dato Dr Elizabeth Lee.
However, enthusiasm was not dampened by the sports events.
While the management had banned sports activities, they were planning to organize the Nobel Cup 2020 on 10th November 2020 under a series of strict SOPs. And for that, Mr Narish kicked in with the election of the 2021 House Captain in August 2020. This election was held via Zoom, a video calling platform used by most organizations during the pandemic to call in for meetings or for classes. While the election was held, the house captain was not announced. But plans to retake Nobel Cup 2020 were in full swing as Malaysia's Covid 19 response was really good at the time. After the initial mass wave in March 2020, there were only single-digit cases recorded each day, adding to the relief. Many teachers were rolling up their sleeves to get Nobel Cup 2020 settled. I was bank on retaking Nobel Cup 2020 from Slamdunk. Had that occurred, it would have had been the first time since 2015 that a Sports Day and Nobel Cup were won by the same house in the same calendar year.
Then came a second, but larger Covid 19 wave, shuttering everything from schools to mass gatherings in a second CMCO, causing the Nobel Cup plans to be cancelled. The wave soon got serious, but fortunately, I got to keep updated on the United States Presidential Election. It was Trump's second campaign running for a second term, but unfortunately, he lost the election due to his handling of Covid 19. I even watched the live broadcast. The electoral map count initially showing Trump leads in many states, before withering down to a Biden win. I wasted my energy cheering at the results. The election result was the same as 2016; 306 – 232, except that Biden is the one winning the election. Five states which voted Trump in 2016 flipped to Biden in 2020; Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.
Then, in 2021, we reached a third Bullseye victory year, since we held the trophy from 2019 and aced the scores in 2020 despite the scores not being certified. This resulted in an indirect three-year victory streak since the first edition in 2014, 2015 and 2016. As lockdowns and restrictions continued to abate Malaysia, I focused on my largest gardening project yet; a large row of trees which spanned 300m in length. It took me half a year to plant all of them. And not only that; discussions were in progress to secure a fourth Bullseye victory year in 2022.
When drawing a commemorative poster for Bullseye to mark the six years of victory; 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, I placed the word 'Bullseye' above a list of the winning years. By coloring the fourth 'L' from the left and the adjacent 'S', in a different color, the letters of Bullseye not just represent the winning and losing years, but also the various timelines, important figures and various symbolism. This meant that the letter 'B' in Bullseye represented Brian Ong, the first house captain to achieve a Bullseye victory in 2014, the 'U' to represent Caleb Chuang, the two Ls to represent my name, Lau Wei Yiang, the 'S' be dedicated to Sean Mark; the two Es symbolizing extraordinary years before and after the pandemic, and the Y to represent the Covid 19 spike protein, marking the Covid 19 pandemic which begun in 2020. This would form something which I call the 'Bullseye Prophecy', similar to the 'Rahman' prophecy which uses the first letters of Malaysia's first six prime ministers.
When I proposed this to as many people from Bullseye as possible during the June 2021 lockdown, many agreed with the symbolism, especially Benjamin Lew, who gave a really good compliment on it. Even Melvyn Lim said that my 'Bullseye prophecy' looked funny. And from there, plans begun to initiate a fourth Bullseye victory year for the year 2022. The one where we left out on in 2017, which was not achieved. It looked strange. An ex student-led initiative had now closed in on achieving three years of Bullseye victory. With 2021 passing, it was vital to secure the Bullseye victory of 2022.
Benjamin Lew was the first to make comparisons between me and Mr Narish, especially on how we did things for Sports Day. For me, if you ask me on how I did things for Bullseye, I would normally make predictions on the Sports Day as well as talk about the history of Bullseye to the Bullseye members. I want everyone to feel proud of being part of Bullseye. And I want to portray Bullseye in a different way as to how people would normally portray Bullseye. Normally, I would feel that the existing portrayal of Bullseye by Nobel was not really good enough, and something boring. And during my time in Nobel, I have realized that Bullseye's portrayal as a normal sports house, along with the existing dart, bow, arrow and bull, would not be enough to convince everyone in Bullseye to be at their best. There must be some form of notion to motivate everyone. And that is why since 2015, me and Caleb Chuang had went around to motivate everyone in Bullseye. I have met everyone in Bullseye during my time in Nobel to make good on our notion. And to add to it, we also want to celebrate the past victories of Bullseye.
Lee Kuan Yew, the first prime minister of Singapore, had consistently said that Singapore must aspire to be the best in everything so that it can be famous and attract tourists and businesses as it did not have natural resources of its own. Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, wanted to have record-breaking attractions in Dubai, such as the world's tallest building, the world's largest shopping mall, as well as other record-breaking projects in order to find a source of income to replace the declining oil industry in Dubai. And motivated by this, I want Bullseye to be at its best, and this was what I proposed to all the house captains, along with every single member of Bullseye then, who would be in agreement with it. And to do this, Bullseye needed to win as many times as possible in order to make that happen, so that we can be famous in Nobel.
And to beat Mr Narish in planning, we needed to duplicate all that Mr Narish was having, from Powerpoint slides, strategies and literally everything he did, along with his enthusiasm.
Reflecting on the past events, the loss of 2017, and a lot of areas and shortcomings for Bullseye, I felt that we needed to win that fourth year. It had failed in 2017 with the 648-649 loss to Touchdown. I wanted to best Sean Mark in that initiative. And 2022 would be that year. So, despite the lockdowns and the MCO, I led a coalition of ex students and existing students to bring forward the case for the 2022 victory. And I also declared 22nd March as the 'Bullseye National Day', to commemorate the struggles of 2019.
I wasn't vaccinated against Covid 19 due to needle phobia. So, while waiting for the restrictions to ease for Covid 19 vaccination, I had three things to focus on; my tree planting project, the Bullseye plans for 2022, as well as my full marathon plans. I had wished to run a full marathon following the conclusion of the pandemic. I had mastered the half marathon distance during the lockdown, and I wanted to do a full distance.
The year 2021 would be known as a fully-online academic year for Nobel because of the split learning options, with choices to choose from online and physical learning, as well as the fact that Nobel only opened in April 2021 for face-to-face lessons. It looked dull for many people. I could only pity how unfortunate the students were in that circumstance.
As the year 2022 arrived, the Covid 19 restrictions eased. When I saw competitions beginning, I could only hope the best for Bullseye. Then came Nobel Cup 2022 on 15th July, and Homerun won their first Nobel Cup tournament since 2013. Fortunately, the Nobel Cup was divided into two editions; one for KS4 students and another for KS3 students. The KS4 category, which involved Year 10 and 11 students, was won by Homerun. However, Low Chen Yi, another student in Nobel, informed me that Bullseye was leading. For the first time since 2012, a yearly tally of scores was used. I could only just hope that Bullseye would last till the end of the year. Instead, I kept on praying for Bullseye to do well, and communicated with some people in Nobel.
Winning the year 2022 was very important for Bullseye, because it commemorated 10 years since Bullseye was first formed, as well as 10 years since Nobel turned from Sekolah Sri Nobel, a private school offering the national syllabus, to an international school. And because of that, it resulted in a mass reshuffle of all the students into new, different houses, called by the current names instead of either Red, Blue, Green and Yellow. The Bullseye anniversary was important as it marked our milestone as a sports house.
Then came the Nobel Cup 2022 for KS3 students in November 2022. This Nobel Cup involved every student from Year 7 to 10. I rushed to Forum 19 to save Bullseye, if need be, and propped up the scores. Ms Bee Yong greeted me, but told me to leave after an hour. While being in the short moment at Nobel Cup 2022, I felt so lost given that almost everyone were new students. But it was okay. Soon, everyone would know me after some time if I was given the opportunity. I only managed to record a few scores. As the Nobel Cup 2022 took place, I was only curious as to what would happen if some people saw my inked finger, since I voted in the 2022 General Election, which was held three days prior.
When Nobel announced that it was moving to Damansara Jaya, a sense of grief and loss gripped me. Being in Nobel since 2008, I had a special place at the old campus in Kelana Jaya. I had felt that Nobel would not be the same anymore. I was informed by my friend, Sherwin, on this. It felt sad for me as it would never be the same anymore for Nobel. Instantly, from the very beginning, I was worried, and told some people that the Damansara Jaya residents would complain about the school traffic. I had foresaw that this would happen, given that Sri KL International School in Subang Jaya also experienced this similar issue. And I had told some of the students in Nobel this. I could only help but observe Nobel's last day of school in Kelana Jaya on 2nd December 2022.
Nobel never had a school year ending in December. Photos from the last day of school showed a Christmas-like atmosphere. Each class was treated to a theme, and the theme for the Year 7 students was based on Christmas. As mentioned before, I personally felt that Nobel International School should have a Christmas celebration at the end of the year. We had commemorated Chinese New Year, Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Deepavali, Merdeka Day and the Mid Autumn Festival together. We should be celebrating Christmas as well. It would be a good omen and good reason for me to celebrate Christmas with Caleb Chuang.
In October 2022, I had started reflecting on my life in Nobel, as I could see the 20th Anniversary of Nobel International School approaching in 2024. I had thought of writing a book of my life in Nobel to commemorate the 20th Anniversary. I spent every day in October noting down everything from Year 1 to 11. I was thinking not just how to write the book, but also thinking how we as Nobelians should commemorate the 20th Anniversary. After all, Ms Lim once said we weren't here to witness this anniversary.
When meeting Puan Halimah at Nobel's new campus at Damansara Jaya on 17th June 2023, during the Open Day, I was invited by her to write the book. I immediately expressed interest as I was thinking about the project. And this is the result of the book you are reading right now.
The new campus of Nobel International School at Damansara Jaya was twice as large as the old campus. Upon arrival at the Open Day on 17th June 2023, I immediately gave Teachers' Day cards to the teachers, along with a birthday card to Auntie Clarine. All the cards were themed on the basis of Bullseye. The cards given to all the teachers contained a koi fish holding a Bullseye flag, inscribed with 20 calendar years of all the years of Nobel being in existence, from 2004 to 2023. The birthday card to Auntie Clarine contained a picture of all the eleven house captains of Bullseye from 2013 to 2023, holding up letters on placards that read, 'You Are Great!'
Mr Jason, a teacher from the Elementary School, took us on a tour. The new campus looked like a five-star hotel. There were five levels of academic space available for use, which occupied the original KDU College campus. The classrooms were much more spacious than it was in the old campus. And the school hall was quite amazing.
Nobel also adopted naming of halls after important people, such as the Wright Brothers Hall or Marie Curie Hall. And not just that; there was also a table tennis station on the ground floor as well. There was even a specialized gym for the PE students.
I also got some opportunity to speak to Mr Chan, Mr Chuang and Puan Halimah. Mr Chuang had told me that Caleb Chuang was doing well. "He's very fat, you know!" he cried. I was surprised as to why Mr Chuang said as such. "But he goes for exercise. He will normally have a walk around the neighborhood every evening," he said, adding that Caleb Chuang had been working in the office for long. And Mr Chan told me that all events had been postponed due to the heatwave. Sports Day 2023, originally scheduled for 23rd June 2023, was postponed indefinitely to November 2023. The Founder's Run was also postponed as a bad heatwave was occurring since April 2023. Puan Halimah and I discussed details for the book.
On the Bullseye project, we had won Nobel Cup 2022 in November, as well as the overall score for 2022. There were fears that Bullseye could not win the Sports Day 2023. And it was important.
2023 was a very important year for Bullseye, because a champion house win in 2023 will confirm as well as double confirm all the three years without a Sports Day being held, namely 2020, 2021 and 2022, even though Bullseye had the highest standings in 2020 as well as an informal victory in 2022. While in 2021, the Elementary School had a Virtual Sports Day, there was none for the Junior and Senior School. So, at least, we can 'confirm' those years.
The year 2023 also boasts the same calendar as 2017, so by winning 2023, we would indirectly win 2017, a year which we had failed to win. And by winning 2023, we would have FIVE YEARS of Bullseye victory. So, a very important plan must be put in place for 2023. And another big supporter of Bullseye soon jumped on the bandwagon; Mr Thomas.
Initially, I thought that he was kidding me that he wanted to support Bullseye, since he was in Touchdown before retiring from Nobel in 2021. But then he told me he was serious.
When planning for Sports Day 2023, the initial date was the one that caught my attention. The original date of Sports Day 2023, which was 23rd June 2023, was my neighbour, Mr Hing's birthday. Given that I always cheered happily upon seeing him everyday, I was thinking that it would be a very good reason to scream and shout for Bullseye when thinking of him. So, I designed many of my props for Bullseye to look like Chinese cultural ornaments.
My own banner for Bullseye, for a start, was designed to resemble a Chinese painting, with the words 'Bullseye' designed to look like Chinese character strokes. At the same time, the banner also included mountains, plus a runner running with the Bullseye flag. The mountains had two layers; a sharp-pointed range and a lower, gentler range. Those two mountains had symbolism as they tied to the emergence of society from the challenges faced by the Covid 19 pandemic. This is because the mountains resemble the graph of Covid 19 tests and confirmed cases in Malaysia since 25th January 2020. At the same time, a large, red sun was drawn, to represent Bullseye and the center of the archery dart. There are also blue, green and yellow coronaviruses hit by arrows to take a funny play on the other houses. There was also a large hibiscus flower drawn on the banner, with five concentric outlines of the flower to represent the five years of Bullseye victory, the five core values of Nobel International School, the five principles of the Rukun Negara, the five year levels in the Junior and Senior School from Year 7 to 11, and each petal to represent a period of four years in the life of Nobel from 2004 to 2023. The hibiscus is also important as it symbolizes the 60th Anniversary of the formation of Malaysia in 1963, and each petal was drawn to represent Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, Singapore and Brunei, which were originally comprised to join together to form Malaysia. Brunei withdrew from participation while Singapore was expelled after two years.
As there was no theme for Sports Day 2023, I decided to come up with my own theme, based on traditional Chinese culture. The koi fish represents a significant form of good luck for Chinese civilization, too. I wanted to make it very grand for Bullseye, since everyone else would just listen to the teachers, who were coordinating the sports events for 2023. In fact, I wanted to rival all the other houses so that all Bullseye members would feel very happy with us.
Since I graduated from Nobel International School, as well as most of the people in the recent years since Bullseye's 2019 Sports Day victory, most Bullseye members may not know the special place Bullseye holds in Nobel. Some people whom I have talked to, like Koh Khai Wen and Joanna Lee, have kept on mentioning that Bullseye always wins Sports Day. The two of them were from Touchdown and Slamdunk respectively. However, while Bullseye had kept on winning, what most people in Bullseye do is just stick to the traditional approach and treat Bullseye like any other house. I wouldn't treat Bullseye in such a manner but find a way to promote Bullseye not just to the people in Nobel, but also the world. I have also told Mr Thomas that Bullseye deserved worldwide attention.
To win the 2023 Sports Day, Bullseye would need to have an uphill struggle in its pursuit for a fifth victory year. Jovyn Lim, who was Melvyn Lim's sister, released a score list showing Bullseye in third place, while Touchdown was leading. Touchdown had 1400 points, followed by Homerun with 1250 points, Bullseye with 1200 and Slamdunk with 1000 points. Jovyn was the treasurer of Bullseye for 2023. Initially, the plans called for the Sports Day to involve intensive training, but however, the postponement of Sports Day from June to November gave enough time for Bullseye's members to re-strategize. Additionally, I came up with a training strategy for Founder's Run, in which I suggest that ten to twenty people train for the run, so that Bullseye would be able to win a large landslide of all the top 10 positions for the race.
Putting many of my own themes for Bullseye to represent the Chinese traditions does not just pay ode to my neighbor, Mr Hing, as an indirect birthday gift, but it also recognizes the diversity of Nobel's students, of which half of them come from Chinese vernacular schools. Since the year 2022, Mandarin had become the most spoken language in Nobel as opposed to the English language. Hence, because Chinese schools were the origin of many of Nobel's students these days, the methods to cheer the Bullseye members would need to change. So, Mr Thomas and I regularly brainstormed methods to motivate the Bullseye members.
There was also another interesting plan for Founder's Run 2023, which was originally scheduled for 1st July 2023. The plan was to commemorate the 26th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to China. And because the theme color of the handover was red in color, I was thinking that a Bullseye victory in the Founder's Run would be a perfect commemoration of the handover ceremony. However, like Sports Day, it was also postponed.
In the lead-up to Founder's Run 2023, a Virtual Founder's Run was announced, in which students can run any distance as they pleased. When the virtual run was announced, I was having a sixth sense since the beginning of May 2023 that there would be points contributed for every 1km run. So, I told Jovyn to motivate the Bullseye members to do so. Initially, we were trailing behind Slamdunk and Touchdown, because Slamdunk had themost registrations for Founder's Run, followed by Touchdown, Bullseye and Homerun. Suddenly, as the Virtual Run progressed, the Bullseye members logged in a lot of scores and it caused Bullseye to overtake Touchdown and Slamdunk, resulting in a first-place lead. This lead eventually resulted in the total distance being converted to the actual score, where Bullseye led.
On my end, I had planned to show off the full marathon distance on Founder's Run by running on the main roads at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam twice. I did a practice run to see if it was possible. I was going to demonstrate to Auntie Clarine and my best friend, Caleb Chuang. He was coming for the Founder's Run.
In the months before Founder's Run 2023, I could not sleep. For the first time, Founder's Run was held on a Saturday, on 22nd July 2023. The date was announced after a long, postponed period. On the day of the run, I arrived at 6:30am and begun my warm up before starting my run at 6:55am. It would be a long run before I would arrive and finish at the same time as the 5km runners.
Unlike in previous years, where Founder's Run had a 10km race, succeeding Founder's Runs only had the 5km run. I felt that if a 10km race was present, I would be interested to participate in it, and since my finishing time for the 10km distance would be at 40 to 45 minutes, I would not just best Nieshaal Thambipillay in his 56-minute Founder's Run timing for 10km in 2017, but also potentially become the first person from Nobel to win both the 5km and 10km categories of the Founder's Run.
I wanted to demonstrate the full marathon distance to show Auntie Clarine how far had I come since the first Founder's Run victory in 2017. At the same time, I wanted it to be an inspiration to the Bullseye members to see how cool we were as a house. I had been proposing the plans to Caleb Chuang, who was so excited to hear it.
As I started running, the cool breeze greeted me as I ran. The first 5km was really smooth. Soon, I was running along the hilliest route at the park, before making a detour to a reservoir located at the highest point of the park. Before long, I was running back to the finish line. I had to do two rounds, of which there were two detours from the official 5km route that day.
While on my way around the park, I could see the teachers setting up the route, and three water stations were erected. Some of the teachers were stationed with water. Then, I was reaching the finish line, and waved to Cikgu Baliah on my way back. As I reached the finish line, I narrowly missed some people as I vouched to the second round. When I found out that I had taken 1 hour and 10 minutes to finish the first lap, I was so excited. Then, I carried on.
As I headed once again to the first detour route on the way, I saw the sky getting cloudy and dark. Then, as I made my U-turn to return to the main route after clocking in 20km, it started raining. I had not drank water for the entire run. So, I stuck my tongue out to collect some rain water for hydration. I was thinking if the teachers would flag off the run or ask the students to wait or call off the race altogether. I was wondering if Founder's Run would go on as planned.
I then saw a school van from Nobel drive along the route. I was thinking that the teachers were coming after me. I then continued running, determined to finish my long run.
As I rejoined the 5km route, I saw some student runners running. They passed me a large leaf, which I rejected. They were using a large leaf to shield themselves from the rain, which was getting heavier. Then, I saw Mr Gallagher riding his motorbike on the left. He greeted me. My legs were so fast till I was able to overtake him on his motorcycle.
I soon came across a large number of people walking in the rain. Because my speed was so fast, I almost banged into groups of people as I tried to swerve. Soon, the school van was passing by, handing out papers or leaves to anyone who needed them, as the rain droplets were pelting their eyes.
Then, I reached a T-junction. The students were headed back to the main entrance while I continued my second detour. As I ran, a lightning struck a hill close to me, forcing me to head back as it was too dangerous. Some people from another run, which was held at the park, were sheltering in the pergolas from the rain. I soon sprinted, overtaking so many people. Some students who were running then saw me run like a sprinter. In fact, I was sprinting. Then, I made a few turns, cut corners, and almost smashed into people while running as I tried to steer clear due to my high speed. Then came the finish line. I made my large sprint, and Mr Chuang called my name. "Lau Wei Yiang!" he cried. He was talking to my mum while videoing the Founder's Run. I then passed the finish line, and saw a cheering crowd. Auntie Clarine was in the middle of the crowd and she was leading the cheer to anyone who finished. Mind you, I was running at fast speed till I almost crashed into Auntie Clarine. I almost fell down due to me suddenly stopping.
I then met Caleb Chuang, who was smiling at me. Unlike what Mr Chuang said, Caleb Chuang was still his normal self. He didn't grow fat at all, unlike what Mr Chuang said. But to a certain extent, he had put in more flesh than I last saw him. It was my first meeting with Caleb Chuang since he returned from the United Kingdom from his studies.
Everyone soon arrived. There were loud bursts of thunder and lightning. Then, everyone was asked to gather in their sports houses. I saw someone hold Bullseye's sign and took a picture of it with my stylized design of the Bullseye wording according to the Bullseye prophecy.
Auntie Clarine made a speech congratulating everyone on running in the rain before the prize giving ceremony was held.
The prize giving ceremony saw Wong Rui Zhi become the second alumni after me to win the Founder's Run. He got third place for the Parents, Teachers and Alumni category. Enid Chow became the second person after me to win three Founder's Run titles.
Once that was done, teachers and students were told to turn to the back as a group photo was to be taken. Fortunately, I had prepared eight hibiscus flower designs for this moment. The flower designs were originally to be brought to Sports Day, but it was fortunately ready for Founder's Run. The flowers were a 2D-cut-out, and as such, on each flower, I drew the previous banner designs that I drew for the previous Sports Days, along with the Bullseye posters in 2021 and 2022. The 2021 poster was designed in the Bullseye prophecy lettering design, while the 2022 poster involved a medical frontliner holding a syringe in a bow and aiming it at the Covid 19 virus, which forms a vector for the year 2022 that was projected on the poster. The Covid 19 virus replaced the '0' in 2022, which was colored in the same manner as the Bullseye prophecy lettering. On another note, when it was announced that Bullseye had won the 2022 Nobel Cup in November 2022, I cheered, screamed and shouted so loudly upon hearing the news. I even jumped out of my seat while looking at the news on my computer. It was so exciting, because we had won four years. The plan by me and Caleb Chuang from 2014 was a reality.
When we took the group photo, we were told to cheer, "Founder's Run! We can do it!" at the camera. I led the screaming and shouting of the cheers. Then, I spoke to Caleb Chuang. He was speaking to Ms Ng and Ms Lee; two of our class teachers from Year 9 in 2015 and Year 8 in 2014 respectively. When I said to Ms Ng that she had missed so many things in Nobel from the time she left, Ms Ng then agreed with us. Then, we took a group photo. Caleb Chuang and I had also talked to some other people when we finished the race earlier on. When I told them that I was planning to demonstrate the full marathon distance on the day of the Founder's Run 2023, Caleb Chuang was saying, "He kept on telling me. He told me so many times." I also managed to meet Khai Wen, Jovyn Lim and Joanna Lee for a chat before leaving. I had initially gotten to know Joanna in September 2022 and taught her Geography. Coincidentally, she lives in the same area as me. I had also known her friend because she used to study in the same school as my sister. Joanna also likes Geography as her favorite subject and thanks to me tutoring her for the 2022 Final Year Examination, she had gotten 89 marks for the subject. The same manner as I scored in my Malay IGCSE in 2017.
For Khai Wen, however, I first met her in February 2023 during an evening walk, and she and her family fed wild boars at a Chinese school near our houses. Khai Wen and I live in adjacent neighborhoods.
In August 2023, Khai Wen had asked me on guidance on how to proceed with Art and Design IGCSE, as she was taking Art and Design that year. The syllabus for the Art and Design IGCSE examination had since changed. For a start, Nobel had changed the exam formatting and the naming of the papers. While we Art students in 2017 refer the two portions for Art and Design IGCSE as Paper 1 and Paper 2, the syllabus for the year 2023 involved referring them as Component 1 and Component 2. I also found out the information from Ms Feeda on the change of title from papers to components.
Speaking of Ms Feeda, Nobel International School had invited Ms Feeda back to Nobel on 6th April 2023 to give a workshop session to Khai Wen and her class. Being renowned for having set the benchmark and standard for Art and Design IGCSE in Nobel before moving to Tanarata International School, Ms Feeda was asked by the management to help and guide the Year 11 students for Art and Design IGCSE. Additionally, Khai Wen had also been guided by Ms Nadia as well, just like me.
Ms Choo is the lead Art and Design IGCSE teacher in Nobel International School today. Khai Wen had informed me that for Component 1, the equivalent of Paper 1 in 2017, eight sets of prep works would need to be completed, from Prep 1 to Prep 8. Initially, I thought that she was referring to eight sets of prep works overall, since we had done four preps for Paper 1/Component 1 in 2017 and four preps for Paper 2/Component 2 that same year. When I found out that Component 1 consisted of eight prep works which need six months to finish, I was quite shocked. Had this been introduced in 2017, I would have had been asked to drop Art and Design IGCSE from the very beginning, just like Bible Knowledge. Component 2, on the other hand, remained the same in the essence of the questions being set by Cambridge, and only consisting of four prep works each. Both components need to also have a Final Piece which we did in the past.
Under the new syllabus for Art and Design IGCSE in 2023, the Final Piece for Component 1 need not be held in an exam format, although Nobel held the Component 1 Final Piece in an exam setting, according to Khai Wen. However, for her, she had only completed up to Prep 2 of the Final Piece for Component 1 for the exam, and that for the Final Piece, Khai Wen only sketched the Final Piece on the day itself. The new syllabus kept Prep 1 and Prep 2 as the same format as it was in 2017, but however, for Preps 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, each of the preps would need to be accompanied by at least two to three subject matter images drawn from photographs presented to Ms Choo, alongside with a fourth picture for the Artist Reference, if any. While Component 2 had its question given by Cambridge, the art teacher is supposed to set the theme for Component 1. To make matters worse, Khai Wen told me that she had to draw some figurines for Component 1. For Component 2, however, she chose the question 'Protected', which was a choice out of five questions as opposed to ten questions for us back in 2017. In that component, Khai Wen had to draw a chameleon, and she had trouble taking pictures as the chameleon moved around regularly. Initially, when I read the syllabus content, a portfolio was to be made for Component 1. I initially thought it was to be a booklet. Instead, up to eight prep works had to be made.
During my visit to Khai Wen's house to guide her on the Art and Design IGCSE, I gave an explanation of my experience doing Art and Design IGCSE, from me crying in Ms Nadia's class, pleading to redo the Mid Year Examination prep works on the view through a gate, to the visits to The One Academy in 2016 by Ms Feeda. Khai Wen's mother, Ms Jenny, had told me that Khai Wen insisted on taking Art and Design IGCSE despite being advised to drop the subject. She had dropped only one subject; ICT, which was taken by my best friend, Caleb Chuang.
Khai Wen's father, Mr Koh, was initially confused as to why one would need to take a long time to do the Art and Design prep works. He compared the tedious process to a normal painting. "Why not just paint the painting normally, apply the colors and finish it?" he asked, saying that all eight preps could be completed within a few days. However, Khai Wen and I pressed him against his assumption, as Art and Design IGCSE involved a tedious and delicate process to do. I also showed Khai Wen the prep works that I painted, which were on the Potted Plants topic and the Workshop question. I enjoyed rewinding back to my days in Nobel during the IGCSE days. Khai Wen, on the other hand, had said that a painting on a Workshop topic was displayed in the Art Studio.
Khai Wen and I compared our Art and Design IGCSE journeys over the years. I felt envious when Khai Wen told me that Ms Choo had allowed art students to do their prep works during the IGCSE Trials, when in my case, Ms Nadia had BANNED them. I told her that I could have had saved three weeks to finish all my prep works. Additionally, I told Khai Wen that the prep works could be completed in one and a half months for Component 2, just like how I spent the whole of July 2017 and half of August 2017 to finish my prep work. Ms Choo, just like Ms Nadia, had pasted a calendar to count down to the actual IGCSE exams, except that no crossing of dates was visible.
When Khai Wen showed me the picture of the Workshop topic pasted in the Art Studio, I immediately recognized that it was Chu Xiang's work. He was the only other person who chose the Workshop question. I could recognize his name from the Cambridge sticker he pasted on his prep works and Final Piece.
During the holidays, on 8th September 2023, I went to Nobel to see how the Art and Design prep works were going. I managed to see Khai Wen, who waved at me from inside the school foyer. She was playing table tennis with her friend, who was from Bullseye, at the table tennis station. I then saw Ms Choo come out of the foyer to her car. I was going to wave at her and thought Khai Wen was going to introduce her to me. I was wanting to see how the prep works were different.
While the prep works were ongoing, I invited the principal of the Chinese school near my house to support Bullseye. The principal was very eager to support Bullseye and really could not control her emotions. She then expressed her support for Bullseye, and to commemorate that, I decided to draw a plaque to be displayed on Sports Day 2023 to commemorate the occasion. The principal's support was welcomed by all the Bullseye members, as well as Mr Thomas, who actively advocated for the principal's support. A plaque, along with her name, was created by me. At the same time, as Sports Day 2023 was announced for 20th November 2023, I decided to create a Christmas tree to be displayed on the Sports Day 2023 to cheer for Bullseye.
Soon, I started realizing that the phrase 'Go Bullseye', was so boring. It made people look sleepy and tired. So, I decided to change the tune by introducing a new phrase titled 'Hail to Bullseye'. At the same time, all the Bullseye members whose birthday fell in July, August, September, October, November and December were demanding for the Bullseye victory. Even the transporters at the school of the principal who supported Bullseye, as well as the kids, were all wishing for the Bullseye victory.
Then, on 1st November 2023, I went to Zoo Negara with the Year 8 students for the purpose of not just to present my PhD research proposal to the teachers, but also propose the victory strategy for Bullseye. I took the LRT and walked from the nearest LRT station to Zoo Negara.
When I reached Zoo Negara and met the Nobelians, I managed to recognize many familiar faces as I had been introduced to them, such as Caleigh Chan, Joanna Lee, Wong Pei Yi, Teh Szi Wei and Zoe Siah. I was wondering how the Bullseye members would react to the Bullseye plans. It would be very interesting to watch, because when I spoke to Jovyn Lim as well as Melvyn Lim, all of them were so excited to hear my plans. Then, as the Year 8 students were about to leave, I showed a placard which read, 'Bullseye, all the best!' which resulted in all the Bullseye members acting crazily and cheering loudly. Even Mr Thomas was delighted.
I also took the opportunity to rejoice and relive my past Nobel memories with Mr Steve. I then talked to him about my performance during the 10th Anniversary Concert of the 手牵手 song. "Wah! You still can remember it!" said Mr Steve, uttering those words in Mandarin. We normally converse in Mandarin. I would normally converse in Mandarin with my Mandarin teachers. Among the topics that I spoke to Ms Kiran, Ms Joyce, Mr Steve, and some of the teachers at the zoo while they took their lunch at the restaurant in the zoo were my PhD ambitions, the marathon plans, as well as how to commemorate Nobel's 20th Anniversary. The last one was really important.
Soon came the Nobel Cup, and then Sports Day 2023. The moment of truth had arrived. It was time to see if five years of Bullseye victory would be achieved.
I had billed a fifth victory year as 'unprecedented in the 20-year history of Nobel International School', as it would become the longest victory streak ever achieved by a sports house. This meant that any future house committee approaching this five-year milestone would have a tough time, and that this five-year victory streak would future-proof the records of Bullseye years into the future.
2019 was the May 9th version for Bullseye. 2020 was the fulfilment of Wawasan 2020 for Bullseye. 2021 was a repeat victory streak from 2016. 2022 was the achievement of a long loss dream. So, if Bullseye won 2023, we would be making unprecedented history. And I had billed this message to all the Bullseye members. All of them were excited.
On the morning of 20th November 2023, I arrived at 6:30am and was greeted by Mr Lew Wei Him. I had been introduced to him twice before; during the Open Day on 17th June 2023 by Ms Joyce, when I was finding someone to pass the Teacher's Day cards before leaving Nobel that day; as well as on Founder's Run 2023 on 22nd July after the run had concluded. I was introduced to him by Ms Sha as he was the one planning the Founder's Run events. I had wanted to suggest reviving the 10km run. Ms Sha told me that Mr Lew was involved in planning the sports events. "Everyone knows you, Wei Yiang," said Ms Sha. Even the students, surprisingly, knew my name.
Mr Lew is the head of CCA at Nobel International School. He, along with Mr Wong, were the ones planning the Sports Day 2023. Mr Wong was a Science teacher and a teacher who runs a Chinese calligraphy CCA club in Nobel. He was quite an aged teacher from my outlook of him, but a nice teacher, too.
Khai Wen had complained about the Sports Day, saying that the 2023 Sports Day would be the worst Sports Day ever. I was planning to bill it as one of the best, because of Bullseye's possible unprecedented record, should it win the Sports Day.
The date of 20th November 2023 was also an unprecedented record, as it marked a day after the one-year anniversary of the 19th November 2022 General Election. I felt that a Bullseye victory was best to commemorate that election, which resulted in Anwar Ibrahim being appointed as prime minister after 24 years of waiting.
The Sports Day soon started with the arrival of the teachers. I was asked to seat in the parents' seating area by Mr Nigel. Fortunately, that seating zone was located next to Bullseye's stand. Hence, it was really a boost for me. I then greeted many teachers, including Ms Bee Yong, who arrived. Then, Ms Bee Yong and I had a chat.
"Wei Yiang, don't you have other things which you can do?" asked Ms Bee Yong. I then explained to her that I wasn't so free but came to the Sports Day as I was free that day. "I don't mind you coming, but you should live your own life," said Ms Bee Yong, adding that I had been coming to every Sports Day ever since. She also informed me that the field trip was an internal event, too.
Meanwhile, Mr Chan was picking up rubbish littered around the stadium. He invited everyone to join him in plogging the stadium clean of litter. Soon, the entire community was clearing up the trash from the stadium. Mr Lew oversaw the installation of the PA equipment for Sports Day.
Then, at 7:30am, I begun filming the Sports Day. "Let us see if Bullseye can win the fifth year," I said in the broadcast as the voice-overs. The students soon got onto the field, and I begun screaming, "Hail to Bullseye" as I filmed. Mr Thomas had asked me to film the live broadcast of the Sports Day.
Mr Steve and Ms Sarah were involved in emceeing the Sports Day. They started off with an introduction of the Sports Day and acknowledged Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Mr Nigel and Ms Praveen, being the management members of Nobel International School. "This is actually the first Sports Day that we are having after three years. Because of the pandemic, we were obviously unable to have Sports Day, but that doesn't mean the sports spirit is gone from Nobel," said Ms Sarah. "So, we were supposed to host our Sports Day earlier this year, but unfortunately, it had to be cancelled because of the heatwave, but here we are!" cried Mr Steve.
"Actually, come to think about it, we've had a lot of weather challenges, right, this year? We've had to battle the heatwave, the rain and finally the haze, but here we are now! We finally made it to this day," added Ms Sarah.
While Mr Steve was making his speech, Zi Xuan, the 2023 assistant house captain of Bullseye, was waving at me enthusiastically. This was because I had asked Khai Wen to pass a booklet that I made which contained the proposals to Derrick Chou, who introduced me to her. I had billed him as the 'Big Boss' of Bullseye, since he was the 2023 Bullseye House Captain. Mr Thomas had also took pride in me labeling him as the 'Big Boss'. To ensure that Khai Wen did not take advantage of the plans, I placed the whole booklet in an envelope and sealed it with multiple layers so that only Derrick Chou can open it. I did not want the plans to be foiled. Mind you, I had noted Touchdown as Bullseye's enemy number one. We will lose if the plans were foiled. And I had told Khai Wen of another surprise on Sports Day. She was really curious. The clue was that her friends from Bullseye, namely Nadia Lee, Zi Xuan, Derrick Chou and all the people associated with them would be surprised and shocked. The only person who had seen the surprise was Jovyn Lim. It was the placard commemorating that Chinese school principal's support.
Zi Xuan then waved happily at me. She then led Jolene Ooi, another Bullseye member whom I known from the Bullseye Instagram group that I created, to wave at me enthusiastically. The two of them were smiling and waving at me while the other Bullseye people wondered what was going on. Each student was asked to sit according to their houses, while grouped by year level. I immediately waved at the two of them happily to motivate them.
Mr Steve then talked about how the Sports Day 2023 was to revive the passion of sports in Nobel, while Ms Sarah then acknowledged the parents in attendance. They then passed the time to Hannah Tan to lead the national anthem, school song and school pledge.
Hannah Tan was no stranger to me, as she had met me during the Open Day while touring the Art Studio in the new campus. She had known me because she was introduced to me by Caleb Chuang and told me that I was Caleb Chuang's best friend. Hannah then asked everyone to wish Mr Chan, Ms Bee Yong, Ms Praveen and the teachers and management staff a very good morning. Once all of the teachers were greeted, the Bullseye members were curiously pointing in Mr Chan's direction. No, they were not pointing at Mr Chan. They were pointing at the large tools of contraption equipment that I had brought for Sports Day. There were tonnes of banners, red Bullseye flags and placards stashed at my seating spot. There were a total of seven Bullseye flags which I had brought; five small flags and two big ones that I made out of cloth. To ensure the cost was none, broken umbrella cloth was used to make the flags. It was just coincidental that Mr Chan was standing at the spot where my flags and banners were, taking pictures of the event.
Ms Bee Yong had advised me earlier in the day not to bring the banners and flags, telling me to just come with nothing except myself. However, for that matter, I can't agree with the suggestion as the large props would allow Bullseye to rival all the other houses.
When the Bullseye members pointed at the contraptions, they thought that it was weird that one would bring such contraptions to Sports Day. As 2023 was the first Sports Day since the start of the pandemic, many of the Bullseye members thought that it was weird to have such a thing. However, for most people during my time in Nobel, they knew the main intent of the props.
The moment the school pledge was recited, all the Bullseye people looked at me. Zi Xuan and Jolene looked at me reciting loudly, and they grinned and enthusiastically said the school pledge happily. Then, everyone was invited to be seated.
"And now, we would like to give a shoutout to all the sports houses," said Ms Sarah, as she and Mr Steve introduced all the house captains. Each house committee back in 2023 consisted of four captains; two male captains for House Captain and Assistant House Captain, and two female captains for the same position to give a sense of gender equality. The introduction of the house captains soon followed, with each house's succeeding 2024 House Captain and their assistants being introduced.
Due to the postponement of Sports Day due to the heatwave, Derrick Chou, the 2023 house captain, could not see out Sports Day 2023 as a Year 11 house captain. Instead, the Sports Day 2023 was coordinated by the Year 10 house captains who would be the 2024 House Captains. Bullseye's house captains were Aiden Ooi and Soh Yu Yee. When their names were mentioned by Ms Sarah, I screamed and shouted loudly, and said the phrases 'Hail to Bullseye'. Then, each house was tasked to cheer their house cheer. I asked the Bullseye members to scream louder. Each house was told to do their cheer, starting with Bullseye, Homerun, Touchdown and Slamdunk. The Slamdunk team did not have energy, and were motivated by other houses.
Then, Mr Steve requested that everyone head back to the stands so that the sports events can begin.
When I watched the sports events begin, a young girl from Year 8 was screaming Bullseye's name as loud as possible. When both of us combined our screaming voices, the noise screeched till the whole stadium echoed in annoying sounds. The Bullseye members soon cheered as loud as possible as the races begun. I felt that the runners at the time were too slow and did not exhibit the skillful techniques like the runners in 2019. They looked like as if they were jogging the 100m than sprinting the 100m. It looked weird and surprising, as in my years in Nobel, runners would sprint like a quick blast as if they were competing at the Olympics.
Then, I heard someone calling my name. It was Jolene Ooi. She was chanting, "Lau Wei Yiang!" at me. When I heard my name being called, I felt surprised because so many people knew my name. It is quite difficult for one to know an alumni's name, especially one who had left Nobel from more than five years ago. “How did you know my name?” I asked Jolene. She smiled and grinned happily.
Some of the Bullseye people were curious to find out what was in my stash. They then played with some of my flags and cheered for Bullseye while also displaying the Chinese school principal's placard. The whole thing made them even more excited. The climax was when I brought out the Bullseye Christmas tree which I made. It contained a picture of a mountain in the same style as my banner, along with a red sun and white snowflakes. The Christmas tree was made out of three-ply box cardboard. There were a total of eight snowflakes to represent each Sports Day which contained a Bullseye Sports Day victory, and five figures of skiers to mark each Nobel Cup victory for Bullseye.
Jolene Ooi then got excited. She then wanted to take a picture with me and the Christmas tree and requested I publish it on my social media accounts. Then, the race was in intermission and a short break was being commissioned. Mr Steve then announced that Bullseye was the house with the most points and was leading.
On my seat, I had opened a large file which contained a score sheet, and was recording the scores with my calculator and stationeries. Bullseye by then had won most of the races, and I could feel the momentum decreasing. So, I held the Chinese school principal's declaration placard high up. Then, Teh Szi Wei, who was sitting in the stands, saw the placard and read the wordings on the placard.
To make it even more interesting to the runners, the placard consisted of the name of the principal. To make it look appeasing to the Bullseye members the principal's name was designed to ensure that the letters look like smiley faces. I then added stick legs so that they look like spectators cheering for the crowd, and Mr Thomas suggested that the bull horns be added to the name. This resulted in the name being made to look like large bulls. When I first saw the design, it looked like demons.
Szi Wei was then talking to some of the Year 8 students, including Jun Cheng, who was from Bullseye. "That's Lau Wei Yiang," she said. "He's very famous already, you know. Everybody knows him," she said, as I overheard their conversation. They were sitting at the highest seats in the stands and were looking at me. Szi Wei had nice, round glasses. All of them were smiling at me. Some of them were from the same class the previous year, which was 7 Courageous. Caleigh, Joanna Lee, Szi Wei, Alyssa Chang and a few other people were from 7 Courageous in 2022, but some of them split classes. In fact, there are two Joannas in Year 8 at the time; Joanna Lee and Joanna Crystal Vijaya. The latter of the two is from Bullseye.
Then, Teh Szi Wei called my name. "Lau Wei Yiang!" she cried. I then asked Szi Wei how did she know my name. In fact, she had known about me for so long even though she did not know me. Then, I called Szi Wei by her full name. She gasped, laughed and shrieked happily. Jun Cheng then inspected one of the funny Bullseye designs. He peered at the designs with interest.
Mind you, Szi Wei was a very responsible class monitor for 7 Courageous. She's quite open minded as well as outgoing. At the same time, she is really cheerful as well. While Szi Wei had been in Nobel since Year 1, many people, including Caleigh and Joanna Lee, were from Chinese schools, so all that was needed was to put a principal's placard to appease all members of society. In fact, Joanna Lee was from the same school as the principal who declared support for Bullseye.
On another note, I felt that it was a lost opportunity for one the people in 7 Courageous in 2022, Lee Sze Shuen, to leave Nobel. I felt that there was no opportunity for me to showcase the Sports Day and true meaning of Nobel, because Sze Shuen had left. I felt that she should have had gotten the chance to see the Sports Day. Sze Shuen was Caleigh and Joanna Lee's friend. She had left Nobel primarily due to Nobel moving to Damansara Jaya, and that it would be too inconvenient for her. Sze Shuen went to Tzu Chi International School after leaving Nobel. Seeing her leave Nobel made me sad, as I did not feel like leaving or graduating from Nobel. And mind you, Caleigh was informed of me graduating from Nobel prior to the field trip. I was quite surprised that she knew about me too.
Then, I held the placard up high and screamed and shouted, "Hail to Bullseye", resulting in all the Bullseye members screaming and shouting the same phrase. They liked it better than the official cheer given to them. Then, I continued screaming and shouting. The act of displaying the declaration placard from the principal had a huge effect; all the members of Bullseye soon started speeding on the track. Soon, Derrick Chou was running and he won first place. Then, after some time, the races ended, and everyone was treated to a Teacher's Run by Mr Nigel.
"Every house must have one teacher. One teacher per house," he said. "Lane 1, Bullseye. Lane 2, Touchdown. Lane 3, Homerun, Lane 4, Slamdunk, Lane 5, Management," he said. The management team were invited to race as well.
All the teachers, including Mr Lew, Mr Wong and even Ms Bee Yong were racing. Everyone was screaming and shouting for their teachers. Then, once the Teacher's Race was over, I kept on shouting, "Hail to Bullseye" as if we were at a protest march. Then, Mr Nigel asked everyone to get changed and return for the prize giving ceremony. "We will award marks for cleanliness," he said, referring to the cleanliness of the house stands, while at the same time, also threatening to deduct points for individuals who were not dressed in their track bottom for the prize giving ceremony.
I had to leave for home early as my mum wasn't available to pick me up then. When I reached home, I had my lunch and then arose to footage of Aiden Ooi and Soh Yu Yee, along with the assistant captains lifting the trophy.
I instantly called Mr Thomas, and had a good chat with him. Finally. The great, glorious five-year victory of Bullseye was achieved. We won 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. In fact, I wanted to win five years because four years of victory is an indirect similarity to 2017, as the first Bullseye victory period stretched into 2017 for three months till 31st March 2017. That would indirectly result in four years of Bullseye victory. So, like the Founder's Run and all other things, I want to best Sean Mark. The mission was accomplished.
That evening, I went to parade at the Chinese school near my house where its principal supported Bullseye. The school transporters cheered the principal's support for Bullseye and paraded around the school as they made their way up the road towards the school compound, which was located on a hill, to park their cars as the school gates opened for the transporters to enter at 5:00pm. I had a good relationship with the transporters, and all of them congratulated the Bullseye victory that evening despite the rain. All the students from that school cheered and screamed rowdily when hearing the Bullseye victory; an ode to a second Chinese New Year celebration.
In the lead-up to Sports Day 2023, I had humorously promised to 'declare' a holiday for every single day from 21st November 2023 till 9th February 2024 in order to allow everyone to celebrate Christmas and prepare for the Year of the Dragon, to be celebrated during the 2024 Chinese New Year celebration. All the Bullseye members were so excited. And speaking of Chinese New Year, I originally wanted to make my own lion head and bring it to Sports Day to cheer.
Then, I begun the mammoth task of writing this book. It took quite a while, but it went on for eight months. And I spent time thinking of how to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Nobel International School.
I believe that every single day was a celebration of the life of Nobel. However, I hadn't had time to celebrate the anniversary in person, but I was able to celebrate by writing this book.
I want to thank everyone who had helped me through my life in Nobel. Being in Nobel was an experience that could not be replaced at all, be it during my time in Sunway or even in the world of work.
I did not attend the 2024 Founder's Run because I was resting for the Twincity Marathon on 28th April 2024, the next day. I won 10th place for the full marathon category. Instead, I met Mr Loh, Mr Gallagher and a few other teachers during the Year 9s' field trip to Putrajaya on 18th April 2024 to compensate for that. They were excited to hear my ambitions for the full marathon. I also took the opportunity to pass a pre-written message to Mr Steve, who left Nobel at the end of May. I felt heartsick when Mr Steve announced that he was leaving Nobel. He scolded people in our Mandarin class in 2013 many times and even punished the whole class to write lines. But he was a great teacher; a teacher who put me the 手牵手 song for the 10th Anniversary Concert, and someone who even vouched for me in the best and worst of times. He will be dearly missed.
And for the 2024 Sports Day; the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, Bullseye was leading, you know. It appeared that the spirit from 2023 was carrying on. I was so surprised that we were leading again. I almost screamed and shouted, but I had to conserve energy for my marathon training.
When I found out about Bullseye's lead, it was morally right for me to step aside and see how they would react. All Bullseye members were in great spirits. For me, winning the 20th Anniversary Sports Day would not just commemorate the 20th Anniversary of Nobel International School, but also celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Bullseye's first-ever Sports Day victory on 9th April 2014, which resulted in ten years of victories for Bullseye in Sports Day, Founder's Run and Nobel Cup, as well as five years since the existing victory streak started on 22nd March 2019. The plan was to be the most outrageous, most grandest and most ambitious plan in Bullseye's history and would have had commemorate double celebrations. It would have had recognized the victories, efforts and initiatives put by every Bullseye member since the days of Brian Ong.
As the results initially seemed, a sixth Bullseye victory year in a planned streak of six years seemed possible. It appeared that Bullseye was doing well. When the results were initially announced, Bullseye had 1960 points. It had done well in the Founder's Run. And I was thinking that the score should be 2020, 2022, 2024, 2030 or 2040 points. In the end, I targeted 8888 points, so that it would attract feng shui-conscious investors.
On the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, Bullseye was leading by a lot, with 2190 points. We were about to win a SIXTH year, but suddenly, the results turned around. The loss of Bullseye was the worst Sports Day performance for Bullseye in its history, but one valuable lesson that I learned from this was to cherish the good and bad moments. The Bullseye loss in 2017 marked an end to the first Bullseye victory streak, but I feel very happy because I had achieved the aims, which was to win five years to future-proof Bullseye. A 2024 win would have had also extended the longest winning streak in Bullseye's history, as well as that of Nobel International School. It wasn't needed, but it was at least on the drawing board as that would pay respect to all house captains of the past. All I needed to know was that although Bullseye lost 648-649 to Touchdown in 2017, I should not go too hard on it by just one point as I wrote about it. At least, the mission was accomplished.
History of Nobel International School's Principals
Primary/Elementary School
2004 – 2012: Ms Michelle Loh Kim Hui
2013 – 2014: Ms Shum Swee Ting
2015 – present: Ms Ingeldeep Kaur
Note: Puan Halimah was briefly the Principal of the Private School Wing from 2012 to 2013.
Secondary/Junior and Senior School
2006 – 2011: Mr Chan Lik Hoong
2012 – 2014: Ms Evelyn Tay
2015 – 2020: Ms Chia Bee Yong
2021 – present: Ms Praveen Shaadan
Note: Ms Bee Yong was promoted to Senior Principal from 2021 to 2024.
Nobel International School Head Prefects’ History
2013: Rhonda Tan
2014: Brandon Lee
2015: Aashtad Cyrus Daruwalla
2016: Sabrina Qistina
2017: Joshua Chew
2018: Daphne Wong
2019: Brendan Yee
2021: Ainsley Wong
2022: Kew Ming Qiao
2023: Ryan Lee
2024: Ong Li Hern
*Data for Junior and Senior School since 2013
Bullseye House Captain History
2013: Dominic Chow
2014: Brian Ong
2015: Lim Wei Ming
2016: Sabrina Qistina
2017: Sean Mark
2018: Koo Shi Tian
2019: Chia Zheng
2020: Ashley Cheah
2021: Ainsley Wong*
2022: Adam Luca Marchione
2023: Derrick Chou (M), Lim Zi Xuan (F)
2024: Aidan Ooi (M), Soh Yu Yee (F)
*informally agreed by all Bullseye members
THE GRADUATING CLASS OF 2017 – FULL COHORT NAME LIST
(As appeared in the school's registry)
11N
1. Alia binti Zulklifi
2. Brandon Ooi Jun Jie
3. Cassandra Danial Morgan
4. Chia Yan Ying
5. Enisha Kaur Ravinder
6. Eric Wong Kai Min
7. Gabriel Lim Boon Jin
8. Hooi Wei Shane
9. Ivyna Ong Suet Li
10. Kay Han Jie, Glen
11. Kelsey Tay Veng Yenn
12. Koo Sheng Jit
13. Krystal Goh Suet Yi
14. Lai Jia Yee
15. Lau Wei Yiang
16. Liew Ji Rong Aaron
17. Louis Soon Yi Heng
18. Ng Ze Khai
19. Nickolas Nashpal
20. Ryan Chok
21. Tan Lyn Wen
22. Tay Wee Shiang
23. Tee Min Yen
24. Tham Jo Yi
25. Yoon Hao Yinn
11O
1. Ashlyne Yong Shuan Ping
2. Bethany Ng Shu Yee
3. Brittany Lim Xin Yin
4. Chang Kai Yee
5. Chow Ka May, Faythe
6. Christiana Chin Wei Yan
7. Chua Yong Xuan
8. Chuang Caleb
9. Desmond Chan Chun Wai
10. Dhevina Sree Harry
11. Dylan Sean Tan Jie Qi
12. Hoo Fang Yi
13. Joseph Diong Chuan Jin
14. Joshua Chew Ning Wei
15. Julian Ong Wei Zong
16. Justin Yeo Zhe Yen
17. Khu Khai Yih (Eugenie)
18. Krisha Chin Nair
19. Lee Jean Wei
20. Lee ZeHui
21. Leing Wen Zhe
22. Leong Yi Zhen
23. Lim Wences
24. Lim Yin Wei
25. Lucas Tan Ee Kiat
26. Natasha Singam
27. Nieshaal Thambipillay
28. Ryan Toh Ewe Seng
29. Sean Mark Wai Hon
30. Shaun Ting Sathar
31. Sophia Chang Leqi
32. Tan Rui Kang, Rick
33. Yong Co Sheen
11B
1. Aaron Loke Jun Meng
2. Adrinna Yee Weng Lum
3. Alexandria Goh Hui Yi
4. Benjamin Tenji Teh Yi Kang
5. Chang Ye Sean
6. Chong Vicky
7. Ethan Wong Tzeng Wye
8. Ho Jien Min
9. Ho Wen Jun
10. Isabella Wong Yuin Lynn
11. Janelle Arnelia
12. Janelle Tan Yung Huey
13. Janice Low Shin Huey
14. Lim Weizin
15. Ngei San Ying
16. Nicole Kau Yen Yen
17. Ong Pei Chi
18. Pranavee Pushpathangan
19. Seah Xin Yi
20. Sherwin Thasan Shan
21. Sophie Tan Xi Ping
22. Tan Yue Hong
23. Teh Jia Yiu
24. Toh Jen Thong
11E
1. Alicia Tang Sook Mun
2. Andrew Ariffin Masri Conrad
3. Aristotle Koh Xiang Rong
4. Ashley Teoh Synn Ee
5. Benjamin Fong Choon Ming
6. Berlinda Tan
7. Bryan Yap Chuan Yoong
8. Chew Chee Kei
9. Chin Joe An
10. Christopher Chew Chang En
11. Daryl Yeo Wen Jie
12. Derek Yong Zher
13. Heng Le Anne
14. Hiew Ee Feng
15. Jane Yap Kaa Yee
16. Kue Wei Wei
17. Lee Hua Iong
18. Natalie Seah Shu Ann
19. Ranae Lim Rui Sean
20. Rosemund Chong Wei
21. Soon Jian Wen
22. Vianna Cheang Hui Wen
23. Yeo Eu Lynn
11L
1. Brendan Cheah Han
2. Ch’ng Tze Chen
3. Chen Hui Jun
4. Chia Tze Lik
5. Chong Yan Chern
6. Choon Hooi Geng, Branson
7. Chuang Chu Xiang
8. Dylan S. Gill
9. Heng Zi Quan
10. Hiew Li Xin Timothy
11. Hong Han Ming
12. Jonathan Chong Ming Jun
13. Jordan Cheam Shen Liang
14. Jordan Tay Jiun
15. Lee Jearn Xiu
16. Lee Min Han
17. Ong Ting Yi
18. Ngew Dick Fung
19. Tee Wei Zhong
20. Sara Yow Cui Fen
21. Sarah Low Ren Ern
22. Soh Jia Qing
23. Yue Wai Kit
Current School Pledge
We, the students of Nobel International School, pledge to live by the following principles:
• Character transformation the anchor in life
• Commitment to persevere when faced with challenges
• Creative and innovative in thoughts and actions
• Courageous to venture beyond comfort zones
• Compassion to reach out to others
Old School Pledge (2004 – 2011)
We, the students of Sri Nobel, pledge to be:
• Courteous, Kind and Caring
• Considerate and Helpful
• Physically Fit and Healthy
• Disciplined and Well-mannered
• Cooperative and Share what we can
• Respectful and Obedient
• Loyal to our School.
School Song
Deep in my heart, I dream of having a right school to go to
To have many friends, cool teachers leading me
I made up my mind to be the best I can
I know I can achieve it in Nobel
This is my school
This is my world
Nobel, the place for me to grow
I love my school
I love my teachers and friends
Together we’ll be trained
Have noble hearts and minds
This is my school, this is my world
The place where values are instilled and character is built
Nobel, the school with the difference
This is my school
This is my world
Nobel, the place for me to grow
I love my school
I love my teachers and friends
Together we’ll be trained
Have noble hearts and minds
This is my school, this is my world
This is my school
This is my world
Nobel, the place for me to grow
I love my school
I love my teachers and friends
Together we’ll be trained
Have noble hearts and minds
This is my school
This is my school
This is my school, this is my world
List of Nobel International School's Events
Academic Awards Day – An occasion held to honor the IGCSE students for their achievements, as well as the Best in Subject for various other levels.
Assessment – An academic event designed to test and monitor students’ knowledge. There are two assessments annually; Assessment 1 and Assessment 2. The tests are conducted by the teacher during the lessons in a non-examination setting.
CCA Celebration/Awards Day – A day to celebrate the achievements of Nobellians in the various co-curricular activities (CCA) organized in the school by its clubs and societies.
Chinese New Year Celebration – A celebration of Chinese New Year, normally held in the month of January or February. This is Nobel International School's biggest festive celebration schoolwide and showcases the Chinese traditions and cultures. This celebration is run by the Mandarin department.
Christian Fellowship Camp – A camp organized by Nobel's Christian Fellowship CCA Club to spread the knowledge and teachings of Jesus Christ for non-Muslims.
Class Party – A year-end celebration in class with food, games and various activities with no lessons for the day. This event is normally held on the last day of school.
Deepavali Celebration – A celebration of the Festival of Lights across the Hindu and Indian community.
Examination – An academic event designed to test and to monitor students’ knowledge. There are two examinations in a year, namely the Mid Year Examination and the Final Year Examination. They run on a specified timetable and no lessons would be held for the day. Students are to use their free time to study.
Field Trip – An in-school excursion to a specific place or destination to allow for exploration activities by students and teachers.
Founder's Run – First begun as a charity run in 2016, it is held yearly at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam. The run is a 5km run which traverses hills at the botanical garden. This run is also a competitive long-distance running event between the four sports houses of Nobel International School, with a fun run for teachers, parents and alumni. The run succeeds various other runs organized by the school since 2012 and is named to honor the school founder of Nobel International School, Auntie Clarine.
Hari Raya Aidilfitri Celebration – A celebration honoring the breaking of fast by Muslims following the holy month of Ramadan.
IGCSE Examination – The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is the Year 11s’ main examination held in the months of October and November. The Malay and Mandarin exams are held in May annually.
International Week – A week that is held to showcase the cultures and traditions of countries around the world by each class.
Language Week – A week designed to showcase the languages of English, Malay and to a certain extent, Mandarin. Formerly held separately as English Language Week, Minggu Bahasa Malaysia and Mandarin Week, the Language Week enables students to know more about different languages and cultures.
Leadership Camp – A camp designed for student leaders of Nobel International School, tailored for prefects, monitors and librarians, which teaches individuals to focus on being great leaders. The camps are sometimes organized separately.
Mathematics and Science Week – A week designed to showcase Maths and Science as part of the curriculum, from numbers to experiments. The Maths and Science Week now includes the basis of ICT as one of its subjects.
Merdeka and Malaysia Day Celebration – A day designed to honor the patriotism of Malaysia and to celebrate the struggles of Malaysia and Malaysians, commemorating the formation of Malaysia in 1963 and the Independence of the Federation of Malaya from Great Britain in 1957.
Mid Autumn Festival Celebration – A celebration of the Chinese Mid Autumn Festival in September, which honors the legend of Chang ‘Ee ascending to the moon.
Music Week – An event held since 2010 to showcase the traditions and cultures of music and musicians, innovated by Mr Kwan.
Nobel Cup – A team sports-based event held in November annually, comprising of six main sports; captain ball, futsal, basketball, badminton, table tennis and chess, which is competed between the four sports houses. This event was started as an initiative by former Student Council president, Chew Wei Zhuen, during his Student Council Election campaign in 2013.
Nobelfest – A charity, bake sale event held to raise funds for Fungates Superflow Foundation. Each class has to come up with products and a business plan for the Nobelfest, which is a competition between all classes in Nobel International School.
Parent-Teacher Meeting (PTM) – An event in which parents and teachers meet to discuss activities and other academic and school affairs. There are two PTMs held annually.
Prefectorial Board Installation – This is a ceremony formally held to install the new prefects of Nobel International School and officially appoints the Head Prefect of Nobel International School, organized during the morning assembly.
Pre Sports Day Events – A series of sports events relating to Sports Day which is not held in Sports Day. This event comprises longer-distance track-and-field events, along with the Sports Day Rehearsal.
School Founder's Birthday Celebration – An event held in May to celebrate the founder of Nobel International School, Ms Clarine Chun's birthday. Fondly known as Auntie Clarine, her birthday falls on 6th May annually. A token of gifts and goodies, primarily food packaging, is presented to her to be given to charity during Love on Wheels initiatives, as Ms Clarine Chun is not just the founder of Fungates Superflow Foundation, but also the Fungates System, which runs various kindergartens across Malaysia.
Sports Day – A sports event which is currently centered in June or July based on track and field events. The Sports Day is the largest annual event held in Nobel, which includes competitions ranging from high jump to the 100m sprints, as well as non-sports events such as the marchpast, dance and banner events. The Sports Day is the grand tally of all annual scores for the sports events, which include Founder's Run and to a certain extent, Nobel Cup.
Study Camp – An in-excursion camp cum workshop for Year 11 students. This camp focuses on giving students the space to study and complete work and assignment in preparation for the IGCSE exam in October. There are two Study Camps held annually.
Teacher's Day – A single-day celebration aimed at honoring the contribution of Nobel's most valuable educators.
Year 6 Bridging Ceremony – A ceremony held at the end of the year to formally transmit Year 6 students into Year 7, from the Elementary School to the Junior and Senior School.
Year 11 Graduation Ceremony – An event to celebrate the graduation of Nobel's Year 11 students from Nobel in a buffet dinner setting. Students who have been in Nobel since Year 1 receive a special gift.
The Nobel International School Glossary
Absenteeism – A student being absent from a normal school day.
After-school subject - A subject held after school hours.
Art stream student - A student who does not take either Biology, Chemistry or Physics, and instead takes Combined Science for his/her IGCSE examination.
Art Studio - A place where art and craft is done in Nobel International School.
Assembly - A gathering every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday in which the Principal will make announcements, along with that of other teachers.
Assembly music - A music played to gather everyone for assembly.
Basket - A metal basket located under every student's class table.
Bathroom Unplugged - A planned sequel to the Living Room Unplugged, initially coined by Mr Steve.
Book Bank - The Elementary School's library.
Break time - The break time for Nobel's students after the first periods of the day.
Bullseye victory year - A year in which the Sports Day Champion House is Bullseye. This term was coined in 2016 to describe a year with a Bullseye win in Sports Day following the 2014 and 2015 Sports Day. It was once again used to refer to the 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 Sports Days.
Cafeteria - A place for food and drink in Nobel.
Cambridge Assessment International Education - The examinations board which sets the curriculum for Nobel International School, as well as the organizer of the IGCSE examination.
Cambridge Secondary Checkpoint – An exam held in Nobel from 2013 to 2016 for Year 9 students. This exam was a smaller version of the IGCSE which tests on English, Mathematics and Science.
Car point - A location where students gather at for pick-ups by their parents when their name is called during the dismissal time.
CCA - Co-curricular activities which every student in Nobel must join. There are different clubs and societies for every CCA, which is normally held after school.
CCA Department – The department involved in planning for Sports Day, Nobel Cup and organization of CCAs in Nobel International School.
Champion house - The overall winner of a sports event in Nobel International School. There are three champion house titles: Nobel Cup, Founder's Run and Sports Day.
Character Strengths Recognition Award - An award presented to students who had demonstrated outstanding character traits from a series of character traits.
Character Transformation session - A session in the academic timetable which teaches about the character traits and how to have good character.
Class line - A queue in which students line up in pairs to head to and from their classrooms and different locations in Nobel. They must line up in this manner during the morning assembly.
Class monitor – A person who manages class affairs on behalf of the Homeroom teacher.
Class participation - Assessment criteria for students responding in class.
Classroom - A venue for students and teachers to conduct their lesson.
Compassion project - An activity done by Junior and Senior School students in relation to charitable activities by Fungates Superflow Foundation.
Coursework - Projects and assignment given to students to complete over a period of two weeks or more.
Courtyard – A location in Nobel International School's old campus where there is an open-air space in the old building without any physical separation from the exterior of the school building.
Computer lab – Also known as the ICT lab, it is where students have their ICT lessons.
Control book - A book which was used till 2018 record classroom activities and classroom data which is the responsibility of the class and assistant monitor. The book is to be checked by the Level Leader at the end of each week.
Corridor - Hallways connecting various points in the building.
Counselling room - A place for mental health therapy providing a listening ear to students in need. There are three counselling rooms introduced since 2021; the Tree Room, the Rose Room and the Song Room.
Demerit points - Points deducted for school offenses.
Disciplinary action - Action taken against students for violating the school rules.
Dismissal area – An area in the school premises in which students are required to be at for dismissal.
Domestic Science Room - A place where Elementary School students do their cooking.
Exercise book - A small, A6-sized book mainly used by the Elementary School students.
Expulsion - The termination of a student's membership in Nobel International School, usually as punishment.
Ex student - Term used to describe former students and alumni of Nobel International School
Final Piece - A painting produced by Art and Design IGCSE students based on the supporting studies produced, or prep work.
Fire drill – An annual fire evacuation exercise practiced in Nobel International School, where everyone had to respond as if it was a real emergency situation.
Fitness test - A test which comprise the Beep Test and Strength test for Junior and Senior School students.
Foyer - The area near the front entrance of Nobel International School.
Free period – A term used to describe a period without any subjects after Year 11 students drop their subjects. They would be asked to head to another venue to do their revision.
Friday snacks – A snack given on Fridays due to the half-day school session on Fridays.
Global Perspectives Project (GP Project) - Projects done by students studying Global Perspectives in Nobel International School.
Head prefect - The head prefect of Nobel International School. He or she coordinates the Prefectorial Board and is responsible for emceeing the Morning Assembly.
Heart-to-heart Quotes Thursday - A session during the pandemic where inspiring quotes are delivered to students.
Homeroom teacher - The assigned class teacher for the class. He or she would be assisted by up to two teachers.
Homeroom time - A 30-minute period for homeroom teachers to do some housekeeping matters such as school announcements, messages and handing out of school t-shirts.
Homework Pouch - An A3-sized pouch for students to keep their homework.
House Captain – An individual who is leading a sports house in Nobel International School.
I Wills - A series of five 'I Wills' designed to nurture a student's character in the former Character Building syllabus from 2005 to 2011.
International Middle Years Curriculum - The academic curriculum used for Year 7, 8 and 9 students since 2022.
Innovation centre - A place where games and social activities are conducted for Elementary School students.
In-school suspension - The suspension of a student in school under detention conditions in which the student must complete work assigned by the school on improvement on his or her behavior.
International Primary Curriculum - The curriculum used for Nobel's Elementary School since 2019, designed by Cambridge.
IGCSE - The International General Certificate of Secondary Education, which is an exam taken by Year 11 students in Nobel.
IGCSE Trials - An exam that is taken by Year 11 students as a mock exam in the lead-up to the IGCSE exams. The exam is used to determine the forecast results for IGCSE.
Lab session - A period during Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Combined Science lessons in which students head to the Science lab.
Late line - A queue that is formed outside the assembly venue for late comers.
Late slip - A red slip received by latecomers which has to be handed to the Homeroom teacher.
Level leader - The head teacher of the respective year level.
Library - The school library of Nobel International School, divided into the Book Bank for Elementary School and the Junior and Senior School's library.
Library Ambassador – A student librarian.
Librarian Board - The leadership board consisting of student librarian ambassadors.
Literacy Circle – A concept introduced by Ms Celine Ritz, Nobel International School's consultant based from California, USA, which involves a group of people, namely the questioner, connector, summarizer (formerly the Literary Luminary) and illustrator, working out a story.
Living Room Unplugged - A performance held on 20th January 2017 in a living room setting for individuals to perform without stage fright.
Locker - A shelf for students to keep their belongings in it.
Lost and found area – An area where students can pick up their belongings which they lost.
Love on Wheels - A free, feed-the-poor program that is held every evening, where volunteers from Fungates Superflow Foundation would hand out food to underprivileged folks around Jinjang.
Lunch time - The lunch time for Nobel International School's students during their lunch hour.
Makerspace - A place where students can try hands-on 3D printing, introduced in 2023 when Nobel moved to Damansara Jaya.
Management - The term used to describe Nobel International School's management team.
Marchpast contingent - A group of marchers marching on Sports Day.
Meal coupon - A coupon given to students to exchange for their lunch during lunch time.
Merit points - Points awarded for good behavior and good conduct to a student.
Message Book - A book for Elementary School students to paste their messages in it.
Monitor's Council - A leadership board consisting of every monitor elected by each class.
MSSD - Majlis Sukan Sekolah Daerah - An inter-school event based on education district. Nobel is located in the Petaling Utama Education District.
Nobel Academic Scholarship – A scholarship awarded to students in Nobel International School with exceptional academic performance.
Nobel Arts and Sports Scholarship – A scholarship awarded to students in Nobel International School with outstanding talent in the field of arts and sports
Nobel Early Years – A kindergarten located within Nobel International School's campus.
Nobel jacket – A jersey blue jacket worn by Nobel's students.
Nobel socks - School socks introduced since 2012 with the words 'Nobel' on them. It is compulsory for students to wear the school socks since 2012.
Notebook - Also referred to as the A4-sized exercise book in Nobel, it is used for Junior and Senior School lesson activities.
Office - A word feared by students in the early days of Nobel, from 2005 to 2011, of being brought to the office for punishment. The term is used to describe the working spaces of Nobel's staff.
Old campus - The original location of Nobel International School before moving to Damansara Jaya. The old campus was located in SS5, Kelana Jaya, near Wisma Rehda.
Optional uniform – A subsitute variation of the official school uniform which consists of a blue t-shirt for boys, pink t-shirt for girls, and short pants, which is usually offered to Junior and Senior School students.
Official uniform – An attire which consists of a maroon polo t-shirt along with brown khaki pants for boys and brown khaki culottes for girls which must be worn every Monday.
Parents' Portal - An online account accessible for parents via the School's Website for the purposes of payment, CCA registration and collection of news.
Past year papers - A series of booklets containing historical papers from previous examination years of the IGCSE Examination, used by Year 11 students.
PE – A period in the daily timetable in which students do physical activity.
PE Area – An area near the driveway of Nobel International School which consists of a basketball court, used for PE lessons. The PE Area becomes a driveway during arrival and dismissal times.
PE pants - A now-defunct, green track bottom which was worn for PE lessons from 2005 to 2019.
Period - A 40-minute session in the school time table.
PE field - A public football field near the old campus which was used for Nobel's PE lessons and Sports Day training.
Prefect – A student who is tasked with enforcing school rules.
Prefectorial Board - A leadership board consisting of prefects.
Prep work - A series of supporting studies produced for Art and Design IGCSE by the students of Art and Design IGCSE in preparation for their Final Piece.
Prohibited areas - Areas where students are not allowed to head to, or not allowed to be at during a specified time.
Prom - Also known as a 'promenade dance', it is organized by outgoing Year 11 students to celebrate their completion of their IGCSE examinations.
Pure science student - A student selecting either Biology, Chemistry and Physics, or at least two of the three, for their IGCSE examination.
Reading time - Also known as the 'Reading Revolution', it is a 30-minute period where students would read books in their classes before the start of school on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Relief period – A period in which a relief teacher comes in to replace a teacher who was absent or not present in school.
Remedial class - Additional classes given by teachers to help weak students.
School team - The school team for various sports and games in Nobel International School, which comprise of selected athletes from Nobel.
Science lab - A lab used for Science activities in Nobel International School.
Sekolah Sri Nobel - The original name of Nobel International School from 2004 to 2011.
Smartboard - An electronic board used to project electronic software used for lessons.
Soup Kitchen - A feed-the-poor initiative in a restaurant setting where free food is provided to underprivileged folks for lunch in Jinjang.
Sports attire - A shirt in one of the four houses' colors and black track bottom worn for Sports Day, Nobel Cup, and other occasions.
Sports boy/girl - An award being given to the best male and female athletes of Nobel International School during Sports Day.
Sports pledge - A pledge recited by a student in Nobel who is normally good at sports, to pledge competitiveness and honesty during Sports Day.
Staffroom - A location where teachers would be stationed at to do their work.
Staying back - A phrase used by students who are staying back after school hours.
Student Affairs Department – A department handling housekeeping affairs regarding students, from attendance to academic records and disciplinary records.
Student Code of Conduct - A series of rules and regulations designed for students of Nobel International School to follow.
Student Council – A now-defunct leadership body in Nobel International School which existed from 2013 to 2016 in the Junior and Senior School. The purpose of the Student Council was to organize events and bridge the gap between teachers, the management and the student body.
Student gate - A pedestrian walkway connecting the school foyer with the outer car points outside Nobel's new campus at Damansara Jaya.
Student organizer - A booklet for students from Year 3 to Year 11 to manage their homework.
Study Leave – A period for Year 11 students to stay at home and study during the IGCSE examination. Year 11 students cannot come to school during the IGCSE exam in October and November for other purposes except for taking their examination.
Subject teacher - A teacher which teaches a subject in Nobel International School
Temporary suspension - The temporary restriction of a student from coming to Nobel, imposed by the management team.
The Big Move - The process of moving furniture, equipment and facilities from Nobel's old campus in Kelana Jaya to the current campus in Damansara Jaya in December 2022.
Thoughtful Tuesday – A mental health initiative brought by Auntie Clarine, Ms Sarah Tan and Ms Colleen to spread joy and awareness during the lockdowns.
Top in Malaysia/Top in the World – An award given to students who had received the highest mark in their subject for the IGCSE Examination.
Tutorial Room - An empty room used for lessons which is not a classroom.
Vincent Van Gogh Unplugged - A successor event to Living Room Unplugged, which was held in 2018.
Withdrawal - The official resignation of a student from Nobel International School.
Worked out Wednesday – An initiative during the pandemic to get students to exercise on Wednesdays.
Worthy News Monday - An initiative during the pandemic where students are exposed to news worldwide, as well as announcements.
Wow! Awards - A precursor award to the Character Strengths Recognition Award.
100% Attendance Award - An award given to students who had attended every single day of school in the academic year without an absentee record.
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