This article is taken
from TNP:
School bars students from mall - but is ban
working?
04 February
2009
HE LOOKS around carefully, his legs tensed and ready to run.
The coast seems clear, and his friends nod their
confirmation.
He dashes into McDonald's, and emerges 10 minutes later,
clutching takeaway bags in triumph.
His friends cheer, and they move off swiftly, not looking
back.
The boy has just committed an offence.
But it's not against the fast-food outlet - it's against his
school.
Coral Secondary School forbids any student in uniform from
entering the nearby White Sands shopping mall in Pasir Ris, among
other things.
The rule, which was imposed several years ago, also forbids
students in uniform from hanging out at the neighbouring housing
estate.
The boy told The New Paper: 'I'm not supposed to go to White
Sands at all, unless I want to go to the library after school.
'Even then, I can go only after I fill in a form and get it
approved by the Discipline Mistress or Operations Manager.'
And then he pointed to the school handbook, which has an extract
from the school's rule book.
It states that the school has banned its students in uniform
from loitering anywhere after school.
It expects the students to go home straight from school.
Only library okay
It wants them to 'stay away from White Sands Shopping Mall at
all times except to visit the community library after school after
seeking approval from HOD/Student Management, Operations Manager,
Vice-Principal or Principal'.
When asked to comment on the rule, principal Veronica Ng
responded through Madam Kathleen Ch'ng, the head of the department
of student management: 'Coral Secondary places much emphasis on
inculcating in our students good habits like using time
prudently.
'As such, it is in their interest not to loiter in the malls
after school.'
But many students are not too pleased about this.
Said one Sec 3 student: 'It's crazy. Some of us don't have lunch
at home. We have to eat outside, but we're not allowed to eat at
White Sands.
'We're not even allowed to just go in there to buy food to take
home with us.'
A Sec 2 student said that even her teacher did not see the logic
behind such a rule.
Her classmate added: 'Other students get to hang out here after
school. Why can't we?'
The school is so serious about the rule that it assigns teachers
to patrol the shopping mall and neighbouring areas after
school.
Offenders are sent for a two-hour detention.
And sometimes even the innocent get caught.
Said a Sec 2 student: 'One of my friends, who waits for her
mother near the shopping mall after school every day, almost got a
detention.
'She was saved by a bunch of classmates who explained to the
operations manager.'
Some parents are also upset by this rule.
Said the mother of a Sec 2 student: 'I was told that my daughter
had to go home and change out of her uniform before she can buy
lunch at White Sands.
'So instead of buying lunch and going home, she has to go home
to change, then go out to buy lunch and go home again.'
Family lunch impossible
A father was particularly riled that he couldn't even have lunch
with his daughter in peace.
'It's just stupid. The teachers don't seem to care that students
may be with their parents. So I have to keep watching out for
teachers, or my daughter may get caught.'
But many students are resigned to the strict regulation.
As another Sec 2 student put it: 'My mother tells me to just be
careful and don't get caught.'
One parent, whose son left the school three years ago, said: 'No
choice lah, just tolerate for four years and be done with it.'
Said a Sec 4 student: 'I don't really care any more. If I get
caught again, I'll just go for detention again. It's no big
deal.'
Teachers are also posted to the housing estate near the school
to prevent students from loitering there.
A Sec 2 pupil said: 'After school hours, we can't go to
the mini-mart in the HDB estate and it's just across the
road.'
It is understood that even students who simply walk through the
estate can accosted by a patrolling teacher.
This reporter saw a teacher stop a group of students there last
Friday.
According to a parent, the strict rules were imposed following
complaints from residents in the area.
Said the same parent: 'If noise is such a problem, then remove
the playground. It's always noisier than the students.
'In any case, teachers aren't supposed to be security guards. I
don't think MOE pays them to guard void decks.'
But not everyone opposes the strict rules.
One Sec 2 student said: 'I agree with the school, that loitering
can lead to trouble.'
One parent admitted: 'Ultimately, parents and teachers are both
concerned for the pupils. I may not like the ban, but it shows that
the school's making an effort for its students.'
Julian Lee, newsroom intern
