Dear Members, Friends, and Partners in Debating,

SAID was involved in 4 local debate education programmes in Singapore in the months of March and April 2007. Below are the details of these 4 Singaporean events:

a) Singapore Ministry of Education Debate Across the Curriculum (DAC) Workshop (12th & 13th Mar)

Jointly organised by the Singapore Ministry of Education and SAID on 12th and 13th March 2007, the first-ever Debate Across the Curriculum (DAC) Workshop was attended by 70 teachers in Singapore. This pedagogy workshop was conducted by two world renowned debate educators, Dr Charles “Tuna” Snider, from Vermont University, USA, and Ms Bojana Skrt, from ZIP-Pro et Contra, Institute of Culture of Dialogue, Slovenia.

Held at Raffles Junior College, the workshop was aimed at sharing with teachers how best debating could be usefully employed to enhance active, self-directed learning among students, collectively, in a cooperative and competitive environment. Highly positive responses from the 70 teachers during the DAC workshop had encouraged plans to bring Dr Charles “Tuna” Snider and Ms Bojana Skrt back again to Singapore in December 2007 to conduct another longer, more comprehensive DAC course for our local teachers. SAID looks forward to contributing to this ground-breaking project again at the end of this year.

While in Singapore, Dr Charles “Tuna” Snider and Ms Bojana Skrt were hosted at the home of Ms Cheong En Min, 1st Vice-President of SAID. SAID also organised a series of debate-related events, over two days, for both of them to get a flavour of the debating scene in our local schools, as well as for them to pass on their invaluable advice and teaching points to teachers and students. They were involved in:

1. Giving a Public Speaking Workshop at Methodist Girls’ School to 200 students on 20th March 2007;

2. Debating and Adjudicating in an Exhibition Debate on “Banning of cosmetic surgery” against debaters from
Temasek Secondary School on 20rh March 2007.;

3. Debating and Adjudicating in an Exhibition Debate on “Negotiating with terrorists” at Raffles Junior College
against the Singapore World Schools National Team on 21st March 2007;

4. Debating and Adjudicating in an Exhibition Debate on “Single-gender schools” against debaters from
Chestnut Drive Secondary School on 21st March 2007; and

5. A Meet & Teach Session with 4 SAID under-10 kids at Trellis Towers,Toa Payoh, on 21st March 2007.

SAID would like to thank Mrs Lim Lai Cheng, Evelyn, Cara, Chitra, Inderjit and Patricia from the Languages & Literature Branch, Curriculum Planning & Development Division, Singapore Ministry of Education for driving the DAC initiative.

Together, we hope to work towards the proliferation of debating as an integral teaching tool in Singapore schools.

b) SAID-Kyushu University Debate Education Programme (20th March to 2nd April 2007)

5 Japanese debaters from Kyushu University Debating Section, Akira. Naomi, Hiroki, Tomi and Rumiko, were in Singapore for 14 days, from 20th March to 2nd April 2007, to better their English and to improve their debating skills. They are the juniors of Hiroshi and Masaki who came to take similar debate lessons from Loke Wing Fatt last year.

Akira. Naomi, Hiroki, Tomi and Rumiko were literally “home tutored” daily at Loke Wing Fatt’s home on how they could be better thinkers and debaters. They were also given daily opportunities to engage in joint debate training sessions with local debaters ranging from primary and secondary school students to experienced adult debaters affiliated with SAID.

To see the real Singapore and to interact with real Singaporeans, the 5 Japanese debaters stayed at the quirky and hip lodge called Betel Box BackPackers’ Inn, which is situated in one of the most colourful entertainment districts of Singapore known as Joo Chiat. No doubt they had many a day of wine, learning and roses there!

c) SAID Primary School Debate Initiative (March & April 2007 )

At the instigation of Mrs Lor Bee Kheng, an enterprising Singaporean mother who found SAID on the Internet and requested for our help to teach her son debating, Loke Wing Fatt initiated a primary school debate programme for boys who are below the age of 10 years at a private home at Trellis Towers, Toa Payoh. 3 boys are now in the programme, which commenced on 1st March 2007. We meet once a week for 1.5 hours of debate classes.

All 3 boys, Jun Heng, Wei Hao and Kok Ann, are responding well to the demands of debating and are enjoying the experience. Teaching them debating reminds me of the famous line “The Child is the Father of the Man” by the English poet, William Wordsworth. We hope to expand the group to include as more children, so they could teach us how to be proper men and women, in the coming months.

d) Methodist Girls’ School (MGS) Public Speaking Contest (19th April 2007)

The Methodist Girls’ School Public Speaking Contest was held on 19th April 2007. Founded in 1887, Methodist Girls’ School is a prestigious, centenarian girls’ school famed for producing strong-minded and well-rounded individuals in Singapore. At the event, 12 contestants aged between 13 to 16 competed, in accordance to the Plain English Speaking Association (PESA) rules and regulations. Women issues dominated the themes of most speakers. In the end, a pair of sisters, Ms Jessica Lee and Ms Hannah Lee, won the top honours fro the Lower and Upper Secondary School Categories.

SAID would like to thank Mrs Diana Goh, Vice-Principal, Mrs Beatrice Leong, Head of Language Arts, and Teachers — Ms Chuah Cheng Kim and Ms Monica Bong– of Methodist Girls’ School for allowing Ms Cheong En Min and Loke Wing Fatt the privilege of judging at the event. It was like watching a firework display, being surprised and awed all the time!

Attached are selected pictures of the above events for your viewing, please.

Thank you for reading.

Loke Wing Fatt
President
Society for Associated Inter-Tertiary Debaters (SAID)
Singapore