PROGRAMMES | LUMEN
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For the Senior School students who had service as the highlight of their trip in Cambodia and in the Philippines , they had to work diligently to improve the facilities of the local schools by repainting the school , building extra classrooms , as well as coming up with teaching aids for the local teachers . Many of the students have never handled saws and hammers before ; nonetheless they learnt how to take up these unprecedented challenges as they faced them .
Things were different in Laos . The students did not interact with Laotian children , but instead helped out at the Lao Zoo , building homes and shelter for the abandoned or previously abused animals . There were also animals that were driven close to extinction due to poaching activities . For a week , the students resided in a guesthouse inside the zoo , and had to consume vegetarian food as part of being an animal conservator .
“ Saving the animals is a tough fight and right now , it looks like a losing battle . We have come back as ambassadors for animal rights and while success may seem impossible , the war isn ’ t over until we give up ,” said Cheryl-Ann Goh . Although the experience varies from person to person , everyone was agreeable on the IPW being the most laborious yet meaningful one week for the Senior School students . ‘ An authentic eye-opener ’, ‘ a unique experience ’, ‘ a valuable life lesson ’ are three common comments that best sum up the International Project week . Perhaps , Isaac Lam ’ s enthusiastic response best
The students have since returned to their familiar first-world environment ... who have learnt to become persons for others .
encapsulates many others ’ sentiment when asked if he wanted to relive the experience : “ Most definitely !”
The students have since returned to their familiar first-world environment , but this time , a different group of people ; people who better appreciate their lives in Singapore and who have learnt to become persons for others .
This page ( top ): Making a connection in Lombok
This page ( centre ): Hard at work cleaning up an enclosure at the Lao Zoo
This page ( bottom ): Giving the classrooms a fresh coat of paint in the Philippines