Message for School Website 2025

Let me start off my 2025 message with a short story. A boy who has always loved going to school started making excuses such as “headache” and “stomachache” to not go to school for a few days within a week. His mother thought it was unusual of him and made a trip to the school to look for his form teacher to find out if anything had happened to the boy recently. Only then did the mother find out from the school that the boy’s form teacher Mr Hong had been seriously ill and warded in hospital for the past month. The mother went back home, sat the boy down and asked him “Are you worried for Mr Hong?” The boy looked up at his mother solemnly and tears flowed uncontrollably. “Yes, he was one teacher who really cared for me.”

Urie Bronfenbrenner, a Russian-born American psychologist once said “Every child needs at least one adult who is irrationally crazy about him or her.” The love and care of this teacher for the boy and vice-versa is something that we hope to embrace our children in, here at South View Primary School. Only when our Southviens feel loved and cared for, can they find motivation and joy in learning.

How about our educators? Our Minister for Education, Mr Chan Chun Sing highlighted in his 2024 MOE Workplan Seminar speech that quality teachers are the key to our education system, and it is important that we develop our people and create time and space for them to grow in their profession. We engender respect, so that our teachers are refreshed, and can better take care of our students. With the shared goal of raising a happy, confident and kind generation together, the three focus areas within the refreshed Guidelines for School-Home Partnership (Respectful Communication, Role Models and Real Connections) provide a common frame for parents and educators to align their needs and expectations for each other and to work towards a positive culture of partnerships.

Before the start of the end-of-year vacation in 2024, I challenged my colleagues to think about “What is one thing I want to try or do differently next year (2025)?” Only when we are open to embrace a dare-to-try mindset, can we hone new skillsets to better connect with and guide our Southviens to develop a Growth Mindset, Executive Functioning Skills as well as the 21st century competencies necessary for them to thrive and be future-ready. For you, parents, our cheerleaders of Southviens at home, MOE has also developed the Parenting for Wellness toolbox, packed with practical tips for parents to strengthen children’s mental well-being and emotional resilience and enable more effective parenting in this digital age. We will also be sharing snippets of these tips in our monthly school notifications in 2025, do keep a lookout for it.

A new year is a time for fresh starts for your child – new class, new friends, new challenges and learning opportunities! To our cherished family of Southviens, alumni, parents, and local community, your engagement and support are invaluable. Let us continue to work hand in hand, shaping possibilities together to cultivate a generation of Southviens, who are passionate learners with a heart to serve, reflective and rooted in core values.

Your partner-in-education
Miss Ang Mui Khoong
Principal