22 May 2008
Interview with Jek Chieh |
Jek Chieh was a student from ACS (JUNIOR), and then ACS (BARKER ROAD), before he went abroad to further his studies in Perth. He did his foundation course at Taylors College. An Australian foundation course is the equivalent of a junior college program here in Singapore.
For his foundation course studies, Jek Chieh chose to do English, Philosophy, Geography, Economics and Mathematics modules. He also pursued a university course research project.
Jek Chieh counts soccer, listening to music, and lame chick flick movies among his many interests.
In a sit-down interview with iDiscipulus, Jek Chieh responded to the following questions:
1) What's it like studying overseas, in particular, Australia in your case?
Studying overseas is definitely a very different experience compared to studying in Singapore. Lifestyle- wise, there are a lot of changes overseas students have to undertake. For one, you have to spend more time doing household chores as you can no longer be dependent on your parents or domestic help because there isn’t any. In the area of education, Australia is certainly very different from that of Singapore. There is a lot more focus placed on presentations and projects. There is also much less focus placed on one major examination. Curriculum-wise, there is also much more freedom to do subjects that you would be perhaps be unable to take in a junior college in Singapore. For example, there are subjects such as media studies and philosophy. Having studied at a junior college during the PAE intake, I would also say that, by contrast, my experience of studying in Australia has been more stress-free.
2) Were you afraid of going to Australia on your own? Did you have any problems adjusting to the environment?
For me, I wasn’t afraid of venturing overseas to continue my high school education. Moreover, I was excited of the new found freedom that I envisioned I would gain. Also, I coincidentally met my secondary schoolmate who also made the decision to further his studies in Perth. However, I would say that in terms of lifestyle, Australia is quite different from Singapore. Shops usually close at 5pm. The Chinese food isn’t really up to standard as well. But then again the much more relaxed pace of life did do me some good. However, study in Australia isn’t for everyone— you have to be very independent.
3) How were the kids like at your school? Tell us more about the friends you made in Australia
As I had chosen to further my education in an international school, the cohort was 90% Asian, and the majority of those were from China, Malaysia or Singapore. In that sense, I was quite at home. I usually hung out with the Singaporeans in my school. Some of them had completed their A levels and were doing the same foundation program as I to better their chances of entering a course of their preferred choice. There were also many others like me who had also just arrived after their O levels. However, I also had the opportunity of mixing with a more cosmopolitan crowd, and hence gained a better understanding of the various cultures.
4) Whilst in Australia, where did you and your friends like to hang out for fun?
In Perth there really wasn’t anything really exciting or mind-blowing that I did for fun. We usually hung out at a friend’s place or just shopped in the city. As I really like to play soccer, I also used to play with the Brazilians from my school in Perth. That was something I would never forget. They certainly represented their country well!
5) What did you miss most about Singapore when you were studying in Australia?
While in Perth, I really missed local delights like "Char Kway Teow", "Laksa", "Hokkien Mee", "Orh luah" and a lot of other food. I also missed the friendships which I had nurtured during my teenage years.
6) Now that you're back in Singapore, what do you miss most about Australia?
Just a bit of background about what I’m doing now—I am currently serving my National Service in Singapore. Well, I would say that I miss the relaxed routine of going to classes, playing soccer, etc. I also miss the friends who are still studying there, because when you are abroad, you tend to have to depend on your friends as you no longer have any family with you.
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