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LUMEN | PROGRAMMES
The
Overseas
Residential Programme
A physical , mental , emotional and social challenge
By James Ham , Jeremy Stephen Silva and Pereira Brandon Scott
A unique programme - the Overseas Residential Programme ( ORP ) caters to
Secondary 4 students from the Integrated Programme . The ORP aims to boost students ’ development in these aspects : physical , intellectual , emotional and social . Partaking in an overseas trip over a span of about three weeks , the students are placed in an unfamiliar environment and undergo a period of self-discovery . There were two concurrent programmes , ORP
Vietnam and ORP Shangri-La that ran from 21 May to 10 June 2016 . The following students ’ reflections provide a glimpse of their experiences .
Shangri-La
The first five days saw us spending our time with hospitable and very welcoming villagers who provided us with food and lodging . We danced along to the Tibetan music with the villagers , played basketball and explored the village with the children who were exceptionally independent at a tender age . As part of our service component , we assisted the villagers with their daily tasks such as farming and looking after livestock . The enriching component , however , was interacting with the villagers and their children , as they were outgoing and found happiness in small things . What surprised us was the fact that the villagers were modern and had the same technology that Singapore has , like an iPhone . The villagers taught us an invaluable lesson : to look on the bright side and find joy in the simple things in life , something that cannot be learnt in a classroom .
Another component of the ORP was trekking . It took us beyond environments that we were accustomed to as we hiked up mountain after