ASSUMPTION PATHWAY
Second chance for 200 students

YESTERDAY was a day of hope for 200 pupils who failed their Primary School Leaving Examinations.

Failing PSLE might have meant dropping out for many in the past, but they were given another option yesterday with the opening of Assumption Pathway School.

The new school in Upper Bukit Timah is modelled after NorthLight School. It offers foundation programmes in English, mathematics and infocomm technology, as well as vocational courses such as food preparation, to those aged 13 to 16.

The 200 students who form Assumption's first batch - many of whom had regarded school as a chore before - seemed re-energised by the new opportunity, and their parents were mostly relieved.

Housewife Jasmine Siew's son Ong Yu Xiang, 12, who scored 68 for his PSLE, is among the new students, and she hopes the new school will help him build his confidence.

'He's always done poorly in school and his self-esteem is low. I hope he learns to be more independent and won't go astray,' said Madam Siew, 45, a mother of four.

Student Nicholas Tan, 12, meanwhile, was so excited that he turned up at the school gates at 6.30am.

His mother, Madam Carol Lim, 35, a housewife, said she was comforted by his excitement. 'He usually refuses to get out of bed for school, and tells me he has a headache. It was very different this morning,' she said.

BUKIT PANJANG GOVT HIGH
Long march to new 'old home'

A 2KM walk was the first order of business at Bukit Panjang Government High yesterday.

More than 1,600 students, alumni, parents and teachers took the 40-minute walk from the school's temporary location in Teck Whye to its brand new premises at Choa Chu Kang to mark its move back to its original campus.

The move was especially meaningful for graduating students Ker Shu Yang and Irna Nasrina, both 16 and in Secondary 4 this year.

They spent their first year of secondary school at the Choa Chu Kang campus, before moving to the temporary one for the last two years.

'The temporary school was more village-like with zinc roofs and squirrels in the field. But the new school is bigger, with more facilities,' said Shu Yang, who especially likes the new library with its verandah and the airy indoor study areas around the school.

Irna said she felt a sense of nostalgia when she entered the school's original campus again. 'It feels good. I was here in Secondary 1 and there were many good memories. I'm happy I'll be graduating from here,' she said.

DUNMAN HIGH
Starting afresh in an old place

THERE were no lessons at Dunman High yesterday.

Instead, the principal, teachers and students planted trees and held a celebration to mark moving back to their original campus.

For two years, many of the students, most of whom live in the east, have had to make the 25-minute bus journey to Mount Sinai Road where the temporary campus was situated. So, most were relieved about not having to travel so far any more.

Nicole Siah, who lives five minutes from the Tanjong Rhu campus, said she can now sleep for about 90 minutes more every day. 'Saving on travelling means I have a lot more time for other leisure activities or homework...It's like coming back home. The Year 2s and Year 3s who started school at the Mount Sinai campus won't feel this way,' she said.

Nicole, 16, spent one year at the Tanjong Rhu campus before it was closed for renovation. The upgraded school now has facilities like a double-storey library and roof-top tennis courts.

Casuarina trees, a hallmark of the school at its original Dunman Road site before it moved to Tanjong Rhu, were planted by current principal Sng Chern Wei and its three former principals Tan Thiam Hock, Cheah Chak Mun and Lim Nai Yan.

janeng@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Straits Times on 3 Jan, 2009.