ST JOSEPH ’ S INSTITUTION • JOSEPHIAN ANNUAL 2014 LEARNING JOURNEY
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It was finally the time for the assessment ! As we were classified as overseas Chinese , it was thought that our Chinese standards might not be on par with the locals . Firstly , we were given two pages and an hour on the topic about ‘ Sunday ’ to assess our abilities . It may seem unchallenging though ; however to the tour of thirty-five , it happened to be the contrary , given that the types of essays we were allowed to write were undefined . From the results , we were placed into two different classes .
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As the language used was in Mandarin Chinese , we were motivated to converse in Mandarin that proved beneficial to us .
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During break times , we usually strolled to the nearby café in the school campus for hot beverages that were affordable to students ! Be it coffee or tea , it served as a form of relaxation through which we warmed ourselves up . While we sipped our beverages with the company of cool winds and friends , we had the opportunity to appreciate the sight of verdant floras and malachite-colored shrubs surrounding the café , which soothed our restless eyes after a hectic day of lessons . The atmosphere was simply refreshing as we settled down to savor our desired refreshments .
The schedule planned for us was simple to follow ; which proceeded with breakfast , morning announcements and lessons . Lessons terminated at an estimated time of five-o-clock with a lunch break in between . Our perceptions of lessons may have been the same before we embarked trip . However , the classes here were an eye-opener to real education .
Lessons were totally conducted differently from Singapore . Fortunately in Taiwan , we were allowed to have a ten-minute break to refresh ourselves after every forty minutes , which was the reverse for Singapore ’ s curriculum system ( where there were no breaks given in between periods ). We were handed a pack of reading resources , which taught as much us for the entire term in Taiwan ; they were printed intact with strong hardcovers around them . As the language used was in Mandarin Chinese , we were motivated to converse in Mandarin that proved beneficial to us . In addition , when it comes to writing , it would seem difficult as the Chinese used there was in traditional Chinese ( which was totally different from the simplified Chinese we use in Singapore ).
Though the trials we faced , we overcame them as a whole ; helping our peers when they required linguistic guidance . It definitely bonded us together for the next few weeks there in Taiwan . Surprising , we unanimously regarded that the learning periods in Taiwan were more favorable than the usual semesters we have in Singapore , due to the better establishment and organization of the Chinese lessons , where we were taught fables and literature which aided us in our personal character development and knowledge . We had learnt more than what was expected of us to learn in Singapore , developing a prominent sense of passion to the language , culture and background .
What is night to a 15-year-old teenager ? It always remains lively , as he / she perceives . Dinner was never excluded from night activities ; usually , we had dinner at the night market near our site of residence , as we were given time to roam and utilize our meal coupons at selected outlets there . We had activities such as a game of badminton , table tennis , or even pool at the pool table after a hearty dinner and shopping spree . At times , we also organized card games using decks of cards we had brought from Singapore . The variety of games we engaged in let us experience immense happiness within our hearts , leaving that bittersweet sense of reluctance to part from each other .
On every Monday and Wednesday of the program , we were introduced to various interesting programs , varying from Kungfu ( Chinese martial arts ) classes to Calligraphy courses . Through these courses , they nurtured us to become more a Chinese . Apart from physical training , we also honed skills like being able to create our own handicrafts were also taken back from this trip as we immersed ourselves in the handicraft-making lessons there in Taiwan . These activities , too , bonded us together as blunders