Before i even stepped into NJC, i already heard many stories about it; about how it was a school for prodigy-wannabes, about its stifling mugger culture, and about the immense academic stress it puts its students under. obviously, those aspects of NJC didnt appeal to me much. when i was officially accepted into NJC, i made a commitment to myself, that no matter how hard life got, i would steer clear of this sickening stereotype of NJCians. "i will be the exception," i told myself, with perhaps excessive confidence. "i will be the counter-example."
and yet, with all things said and done, perhaps i was being too idealistic. of course, everyone knows that mugging and rote memory learning are not true paths to knowledge and enlightenment. who doesnt want to experience the fervour of a self-motivated, passion-fueled quest for knowledge, in an environment which fully supports and augments our capabilities in all mental faculties? that would be something universally desirable, but perhaps just as universally inaccessible, at least in Singapore. who would dare say that our current education system, which encourages rote memory learning to the extent that we are the only country to promote the use of 10-year series, is even close to the education ideal? the concept of the 10-year series is absolutely ridiculous - how can it be said that we are learning when all we do is simply memorise questions repeated from years ago? even worse, doesnt this signify that our teaching methods have not adapted and evolved over the years?
but what can i do about it? what can the humble chess piece do about the rules of the game? from the lowly pawn to the fearsome queen, all are bound by the laws of the chess board, cursed forever to move along their predestined paths. it is high time for this chess piece to cease his personal rebellion against the rules and quietly return to his role in the game. it was foolish of me to think that i could escape the rules of the game. perhaps it was even selfish of me. how can one expect to survive the game without following the rules?
here's A7X's Afterlife, live in the LBC. why? because it's awesome, that's why :)
