About one night a week for the last few months, a line
forms at the canteen in Pioneer Junior College (PJC).
Hot food like chicken wings and chap chye is dished out
to hungry students who come to school at night to get some studying
done before the year-end examinations.
The food is brought and served by parents, while
teachers often drop in as well in case students need help.
In Singapore, where it is sometimes hard to find a
quiet place at home to study, schools and community organisations
like churches have stepped into the breach.
At least 10
secondary schools and JCs allow self-study sessions on their
premises at this time of the year. Students enjoy a conducive
environment to study, and moral support from their peers and
teachers.
At PJC in Choa
Chu Kang, up to 250 students will come to study, especially when
dinner is provided.
First-year
student Clifford Foo, 18, said that he has been coming two or three
times a week since the school opened its doors in mid-July.
IT'S A PARTNERSHIP
As parents, we
provide them with healthy food. When we speak to them as they line
up for food, it helps to lighten the atmosphere. We also get to
informally check on how things are going as the exams can be quite
stressful.
MRS HARJIT KAUR, chairman of PJC's
parent support group, whose son is in JC1.
"When my
friends stay back to study, I feel motivated to do the same," said
Clifford, who lives in Lakeside.
"It also helps
that we don't even have to walk out to buy dinner."
Mr Dennis Lee,
PJC's head of department for information and communications
technology, said different subject teachers are rostered to provide
consultations during the study sessions. Students have the roster,
which helps them plan ahead for their revision.
About 30
parents are actively involved in helping out with the programme,
said Mrs Harjit Kaur, 46, chairman of PJC's parent support group.
Parents volunteer to prepare food for the students as most canteen
stalls would be closed, she said. Students also appreciate the
gesture and feel encouraged by it.
"We see it as
a partnership. As parents, we provide them with healthy food. When
we speak to them as they line up for food, it helps to lighten the
atmosphere. We also get to informally check on how things are going
as the exams can be quite stressful," said Mrs Kaur, whose son is
in JC1.
Parent
volunteers also help out at St Andrew's Junior College's (SAJC)
night study sessions, where they are in charge of catering food for
students a few times a week.
"We try to
make sure that they have balanced meals when they spend long hours
studying in school," said Ms Christie Kamala, 59, the vice-chairman
of SAJC's parent support group.
At some
schools, programmes start because of demand from students. Mrs
Linda Chan, principal of the School of Science and Technology,
Singapore, said that it started a night study programme in 2013 as
students had asked for a quiet place for revision ahead of the
O-level exams.
Teachers
supervise the sessions, and light snacks are provided. "The
positive feedback we received encouraged us to continue with this
practice," said Mrs Chan.
Ms Celine
Quek, the year head for Secondary 4 and 5 at CHIJ St Theresa's
Convent, said the night study programme in her school has been
popular with students since it started in 2009. Teachers take turns
to supervise the sessions, usually attended by 40 to 80 students
taking the N- and O-level exams.
"They get
moral support. Sometimes, you just need an extra pair of eyes
around to (have the motivation to) keep quiet and study."
Some night
study programmes are also run outside of schools. Since 2014, the
Woodlands Evangelical Free Church has opened its doors to students
two nights a week for two months during the exam period. About 20
young people come each time - usually regular churchgoers who bring
their friends along. It will start its programme tomorrow.
The church's
initiative was started by a parent who is a churchgoer, said Mrs
Annabel Chau, 53, a staff member in the youth ministry. "He felt
that students need a quiet place to study. Even at home, Grandma
might be watching TV or something, which can be distracting."
Students are
free to use the ground-floor area, and some hot beverages are
provided.