My Teaching Career ( Raffles Institution - 1978 - Feb 1985)

1978 - 1985 Raffles Institution

My teaching career started in Raffles Institution's Technical department after I completed NS. At that time, I was staying at Alexandra Road and would walk to school through Jervois Road in the morning.
When I arrived in RI on Jan 1978, Mr Philip Liau, a very charismatic Principal (I was told) was in the midst of handing over the leadership to Mr A K Sigamoney. I was told by the teachers that Mr Liau love to play golf and would usually leave the school in the afternoons for the golf course. The school would be run by Senior Assistants like Mr Tan Kim Cheng or Mr Patrick Pestana.

Photograph of Mr A K Sigamoney

RI Staff Photo 1983

As an ordinary teacher, I did not have much chances to speak to the Principal. In the few conversations with him, I found Mr A K Sigamoney to be quite fatherly and a genial person. I don't think he was ever angry or have ever shouted. At one time I stumbled on his quiet room in the Science Lab when I went to look for a Science teacher. There I found him working peacefully with no one around.

During that period, we saw to the separation of the Pre U levels from the Secondary in 1981. It was a reluctant move. The sentiments then was not to be separated. The synthesis between the older Pre U boys and girls and the younger secondary boys was excellent. However, it seemd that the decision was already made and thus, the formation of RJC. However, the circle turned a full round when RI became one again in 2009 with the merging of RI and RJC.

The saddest incident was when some students were killed during an oversea trip, in a mountaineering expedition.
Another low point was the fire which destroyed the beloved gym which was very near to the workshop block.
I also witnessed the first public caning of a RI boy in the Hall. His offence : theft of a pair of branded sports shoes. I think he was an scholar from Hong Kong. On that day, the whole upper secondary classes gathered to witness the caning.
There were also the regular 'half-days' when the school achieved excellent academic results ('O' and 'A') or sporting achievements (National Champions)

During that time, the most prominent person was the Senior Assistant Mr Tan Kim Cheng. His loud voice was omnipresent as he was an ex NCC officer. There were also many outstanding teachers like Hector Chee, Ho Hon Kum, Himmat Singh, Ms D Tambayah, Mr Puhendran, Mr Alfred Chen, Mr Thomas Ong, Ms Hwa, Mr Pates, etc.
My CCAs in RI were soccer and NCC(Land). The latter CCA was more or less forced on me by the then VP Mr Wong Chong Heng but it turned out that I enjoyed the 25 years of service to the Corps.
On the first day, I was already told by Mr Puhendran that I would be a soccer master, assisting Mr Alfred Chen. RI soccer was always second to rugby. Thus all the bigger boys in Sec 1 were already chosen for the game, leaving the others to other sports like athletics, hockey, badminton. etc. In one frustrating year, nearly half of my C team was roped into the rugby team. Thus I have start all over again to form the B team the following year.

RI also opened its technical workshops to other schools like SCGS, Fairfield Methodist, Crescent Girls School (Mrs Sigamoney was the Principal then) and Anderson Secondary. I still remember the late Bonnie Hicks when she had technical lessons in her lower secondary years.

There were many many happy memories especially with the teachers and boys.
One was the regular lunch break at Zion Rd Hawker Centre with my colleagues and Mr Ho, a Science teacher. As it was 2-session then, we have some time to walk to the hawker centre and back, just for the teo chew porridge there. Then there were the regular squash and badminton sessions in the afternoons. One felt so at home in the school then. Funny that I have never used the swimming pool in my 8 years in Raffles.

Unfortunately, the winds of change started to blow in mid 80s. The school was going 'independent'. Moreover, we were not hosting any other schools as they have their own workshops. Thus, the Technical Department had to be scaled down. I volunteered to leave RI as I felt that I was the newest to join the department and that the rest was very reluctant to leave. Mr Lee Kai Heng was the other teacher who left at the same time. Thus, sadly I left Grange Road at the end of 1984 (Feb 85), not knowing where I would be posted next.

 View of the field with its omnipresent Rugby posts from the main building

 View of the main teaching block from the running track

 These very steps where Rafflesians sat which cheering the teams or having half time talk during games.

 View of the field from the main building, with a glimpse of the swimming pool (middle of the picture)

 View of the middle part of the field from the upper level of the stand

 View of the former Technical Block from the Basketball Court. The mango tree on the right was planted from a seed in 1980.

Note : The mango tree on the right was planted by us in 1980. It is still fruiting very well. The jackfruit tree on the left was planted a year later.

The RI Technical Staff:
Mr Sng Jin Seng (Head), Ms Chiang Wai Lin, Ms Lee W K, Mr Fong Kwok Heng, Mr Lim Choon Hian, Mr Kwang Tuck Hon, Mr Lee Kai Heng, the late Mr Teo Siak Boon, Mr Suhaimi (Woodwork WS) and Mr Ang Swee Tian (Metalwork WS)