Xinmin Secondary School is an autonomous secondary school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

 in Hougang

Hougang

Hougang is an urban planning area and a suburb in the north-eastern area of the city-state of Singapore. Under classification by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the area is part of the North-East Region, an urban planning division. Hougang borders Sengkang in the north and Serangoon to its...

, Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

. It offers classes taught in English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

, Chinese

Chinese language

The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...

, Malay

Malay language

Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...

 and Tamil

Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...

.

The school was founded as Sin Min Primary School in 1945. Secondary school classes began in 1956. Under the direction of former principal Mr. Lee Hak Boon, the school achieved an autonomous status. As of 2005 the Principal was Mrs Low-Sim Ay Nar. In September 2005, the school won the School Excellence Award, the first neighbourhood school to win the award. In late 2006, Mdm Liew Wei Li became principal. In December 2010, Mrs Ong Hong Peng took over from Mdm Liew Wei Li as principal of Xinmin Secondary School.

History

Mr Goh Tong Pak led the school to become in the top 20 Value-Added Schools in Singapore from 1992 to 1997. Under the leadership of Mr Lee Hak Boon, the school attained autonomous status from the Ministry of Education with effect from 2001.

In the same year, the school was accorded the Singapore Quality Class accreditation.

From being a neighbourhood school attracting students with Primary School Leaving Examination

Primary School Leaving Examination

The Primary School Leaving Examination is a national examination taken by all students in Singapore near the end of primary six in primary school, which is also their last year in Primary school before they leave for secondary school. It is administered by the Ministry of Education...

(PSLE) aggregate scores of around 191 in 1994, the school is the recipient of the School Excellence Award, the most prestigious award a school can ever receive from the Singapore Ministry of Education. Today, it attracts students with PSLE aggregate scores of approximately 245 (as of 2007) to its Express stream.

Achievements

Performing Arts

• 2009 SYF Central Judging for Chinese Dance - Gold with Honours
• 2009 SYF Central Judging for Band- Gold with Honours
• 2009 SYF Central Judging for Guzheng - Gold with Honours
• 2009 SYF Central Judging for Choir - Gold
• 2009 SYF Central Judging for English Drama - Silver
• 2009 SYF Central Judging for Chinese Drama - Silver
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for Chinese Dance - Gold with Honours
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for Band- Gold
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for Guzheng - Gold with Honours
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for Choir - Gold with Honours
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for English Drama - Silver
• 2011 SYF Central Judging for Chinese Drama - Bronze

Uniformed Groups

• Outstanding Cadet Award (NCC): 2005
• St. John Ambulance Brigade - Gold
• Girls' Brigade - Gold
• National Cadet Corps (Land)- Silver
• National Police Cadet Corps - Gold(2011)
• Boys' Brigade - Silver

Academics

• GCE 'O' Level Band 1 (Express Stream) School
• GCE 'O' Level Band 2 (Normal Stream) School
• Academic Value-Added (Express Stream) - Gold
• Academic Value-Added (Normal Stream) - Bronze
• Singapore Secondary Schools Debating Championships 2007 - B Division Champions
• SBL-LISHA Culture and Heritage Debates 2007 - Champions
• Society of Associated Inter-Tertiary Debaters-Victoria School Debate Invitational 2007 - 1st Runners-Up
• Meridian Junior College Debate Invitationals 2008 - Champions
• Temasek Junior College Under-16 Debate Invitationals 2008 - Champions

Physical/Sports

• Trim-and-Fit Gold Award
• Badminton - B Division Girls National 1^st
• Volleyball - C Division Boys National 2^nd
• Volleyball - B Division Boys National 4^th

School crest

The display of grace and exuberance depicts vibrant and dynamic students. The three bold strokes surging forward signify students embracing the future with confidence and optimism. The three figures represent the close partnership between school, home and community.

School Song

The school song is written and sung in Chinese and is sung everyday after the national anthem and pledge. It was written by the school's founding principal, Mr Yap Fun Fong.

Original Mandarin School Song

新民 新民
我们要做社会的主人
我们要做时代的明灯
不读死书 手脑并用
要学要做 即知即行
新民 新民
我们要有科学的头脑
我们要有创造的精神
为了仁爱 为了信义
为了自由 为了和平
新民 新民

Original Mandarin School Song In Pinyin

Xin Min Xin Min
wo men yao zuo she hui de zhu ren
wo men yao zuo shi dai de ming deng
bu du si shu shou nao bing yong
yao xue yao zuo ji zhi ji xing
Xin Min Xin Min
wo men yao you ke xue de tou nao
wo men yao you chuang zao de jing shen
wei le ren ai wei le xin yi
wei le zi you wei le he ping
Xin Min Xin Min

English translation

Xinmin Xinmin
We want to be the master of our destiny
We want to be the beacon of our time
Not through rote learning; but through the training of a versatile mind
With keen wit and a readiness to put knowledge into practice
Xinmin Xinmin
We want to develop an analytical mind
We want to cultivate an innovative spirit
For love, integrity, freedom and peace
Xinmin Xinmin

Houses

Students are split into the four houses Falcon, Barracuda, Jaguar, Scorpion in which they compete against the other houses in Aesthetic, Academic and Physical events. These events include the annual sports days, house noticeboard designing, cross country race and academic competitions. The winning house will gain the house cup for that year.

Student Leader Board

Formed from the merging of the Prefectorial Board and Student Council, the Student Leader Board was formed in 2003. Headed by the Executive Committee (EXCO), the Student Leader Board (SLB) is split into four teams A, B, C, D. The teams will rotate doing different task every term (3 months/10 weeks).

SLB plans events including the school's annual Graduation Nite, Secondary one orientation,Speech and Homecoming Day, fund raising events, NE (National Education) and cultural events, and symposiums, as well working with CCA leaders to plan the Secondary 2 Adventure Training Camp for potential CCA leaders.

Student Leaders are required to wear a gold-coloured badge with the words Student Leader against a dark blue background. The attire is complete with the school tie (blue) and tie pin.

As of 2011 the current president is Desiree Ng.

House Committee

Xinmin Secondary's houses are led by students who volunteer to contribute to their houses in areas of sport, cheer and aesthetics.

Class Committee

An individual council found in every class. Led by the class Chairman, the class committee seeks to link between the classes and the school administration. Acting as bridges, the class committee help make communication between students and staff easier, through representation. Class Chairman and Vice Chairman are required to wear a gold-coloured badge with the words Class Chairman/Vice Chairman against a red background.

School events

Events range from inter-school, to school cluster, to nationwide. Events include Xinmin Secondary's annual symposiums, concerts and Homecoming Day.

Xinmin's Secondary 65th anniversary celebrations

2010 marked Xinmin's 65th anniversary. To celebrate the occasion, Xinmin Secondary held a series of celebrations, starting with a musical "Shine - Dare to Dream" by the students to depict the story of how Xinmin changed over the years since its founding, held in March 2010. There was also a record-breaking can project led by students known as "Yes We Can" that started in December 2009 to commemorate the 65 years of Xinmin's history. There was also be a gala dinner where an auction was be held to raise funds to build a Performing Arts Hub and an alumni dinner(千人宴) in the school at the end of the year.

Speech-cum-Homecoming Day

The annual carnival, also known as Homecoming Day, involves the efforts of most students, teachers and alumni. The school is open to the public, who can enjoy food and activity stalls in and around the school compound. Stalls include Movie screening, Dunking, Jostling and Fishing.

External links

• Official website
• Singapore Government School Information Service