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97-542: Special Assistance Plan schools (or SAP schools, Chinese : 特选学校 ) refers to schools that offers the Special Assistance Plan. The SAP is offered at both primary (elementary) school level as well as secondary (high school) level, in Special Assistance Plan primary schools ( Chinese : 特选小学 ) and Special Assistance Plan high schools ( Chinese : 特选中学 ) respectively. Special: 7102 Special: 7118 Affiliated to: Affiliated to: A student's admission to

194-562: A SAP school (or any secondary school for that matter) is decided based on their results in the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). To enter a SAP school, a student must achieve a PSLE aggregate score that puts him in the top 10% of his cohort, with an 'A' grade for both the Chinese and English (before AL). This means that only a relatively small group of students who are academically and linguistically strong may enter

291-531: A SAP school. Consequently, SAP schools have a reputation of being the "elite" group of secondary schools in the country, alongside independent and autonomous schools. This stems from the Singaporean tradition of effective bilingualism in the education of the elite students from SAP schools. Some students, regardless of whether they are in a SAP school, are offered a chance at effective trilingualism in secondary education starting from age 13. The first language, English,

388-633: A celebration of SG50 , the outstanding achievements of the students, as well as the completion of the school's upgrading works which cost 2.67 million dollars. The school upgrading works were co-funded by the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan , comprising a revamp of the canteen and the air-conditioned library, as well as the construction of the park square and a new 300-seat auditorium. Nan Chiau High School commemorated its 70th anniversary in 2017 along with Nan Chiau Primary School (its former ancillary primary section before 2001). On 27 January 2017,

485-434: A conversion table. While exercising such derivation, the following rules should be observed: Sample Derivations : The Series One List of Variant Characters reduces the number of total standard characters. First, amongst each set of variant characters sharing identical pronunciation and meaning, one character (usually the simplest in form) is elevated to the standard character set, and the rest are made obsolete. Then amongst

582-535: A dedicated maker-space which was opened in March 2017, allows students to design, construct or modify meaningful or handy items with specialised tools in the lab, and supports the school's Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Applied Learning Programme (STEM ALP). As a North Zone Centre of Excellence for Chinese Language, Nan Chiau High School also features two language labs catering for enhanced Chinese programmes and activities. The labs are currently used to host

679-584: A major part of Nan Chiau High's niche curriculum as a SAP school. It is designed with the incorporation of Howard Gardner 's "Five Minds for the Future" (Disciplined Mind, Synthesizing Mind, Ethical Mind, Creating Mind, Respectful Mind), with an additional sixth mind, the 'Bi-cultural Mind'. The flagship programme develops students' interest in learning about eastern and western cultures by providing them with opportunities to integrate both cultures and to be immersed in other cultures, and to have in-depth understanding of

776-411: A multi-ethnic population where the non-Chinese / non-'Confucianist' communities formed at least a quarter of the population, the discourse was re-branded 'Asian Values', rather than Confucian Work Ethic. In Singapore, traditional Asian culture was seen as a source of the nation's economic success thus far. As such, the government embarked on programmes and campaigns to promote traditional culture, including

873-599: A newly coined phono-semantic compound : Removing radicals Only retaining single radicals Replacing with ancient forms or variants : Adopting ancient vulgar variants : Readopting abandoned phonetic-loan characters : Copying and modifying another traditional character : Based on 132 characters and 14 components listed in Chart 2 of the Complete List , the 1,753 derived characters found in Chart 3 can be created by systematically simplifying components using Chart 2 as

970-414: A practice which has always been present as a part of the Chinese writing system. The official name tends to refer to the specific, systematic set published by the Chinese government, which includes not only simplifications of individual characters, but also a substantial reduction in the total number of characters through the merger of formerly distinct forms. According to Chinese palaeographer Qiu Xigui ,

1067-404: A single standardized character, usually the simplest among all variants in form. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification and are thus identical between the traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. The Chinese government has never officially announced the completion of the simplification process after the bulk of characters were introduced by the 1960s. In the wake of

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1164-609: A student must obtain a PSLE score of AL8 or better for foreign language, and AL24 for Asian Language. Many SAP schools were historically Chinese language medium schools, i.e. they taught all academic subjects in Mandarin (including science and mathematics), and which may have taught English as a foreign language. Following Singapore's independence in 1965, the government recognised four official languages in Singapore (English, Mandarin Chinese, Malay and Tamil), but clearly designated English as

1261-466: A total of 3,398 staff and students of both institutions came together to craft knots on a triple-ring with red strings, which resembles the school logo. The event set a national record for the most people making knotted rings together. A dedicated maker-space was also opened on 10 March 2017. Named The Nest, the tools-equipped space allow students to design, construct or modify meaningful or handy items in their own accord. On 1 August 2017, Nan Chiau High

1358-857: Is a certified education centre for the Enhanced Art Programme (EAP) for students who have keen interest in pursuing arts and design. Introduced in 2011 by the Ministry of Education, the two-year programme provide an enriched learning environment for Secondary 3 and 4 students who are inclined towards Art, as a complementary to the Art Elective Programme (AEP). Enrichment programmes such as the Aesthetics Week, Student-Initiated Project in Art and Lower Secondary Integrated Art Modules are also integrated for deepened understanding and application opportunities for

1455-440: Is actually more complex than eliminated ones. An example is the character 搾 which is eliminated in favor of the variant form 榨 . The 扌   'HAND' with three strokes on the left of the eliminated 搾 is now seen as more complex, appearing as the ⽊   'TREE' radical 木 , with four strokes, in the chosen variant 榨 . Not all characters standardised in the simplified set consist of fewer strokes. For instance,

1552-740: Is continuous with the 'Broad-Base Curriculum', with more elaborate programmes that cater to students' talent development. For instance, the Young Writers Programme, which is open to students who are interested in writing, has lessons conducted by various renowned Chinese language essayists in the region to expose and familiarise students to different forms of writing, and encourage them to appreciate different forms of written work. Students also have opportunities to attend cultural symposiums, national and international bi-cultural forums, research on contemporary issues, and embark on refined overseas immersions to strengthen their world and cultural views under

1649-454: Is derived. Merging homophonous characters: Adapting cursive shapes ( 草書楷化 ): Replacing a component with a simple arbitrary symbol (such as 又 and 乂 ): Omitting entire components : Omitting components, then applying further alterations : Structural changes that preserve the basic shape Replacing the phonetic component of phono-semantic compounds : Replacing an uncommon phonetic component : Replacing entirely with

1746-463: Is known for its strict regulations and discipline, with minimal tolerance of misbehaviour by its students. In 2004 the school gained attention for its disciplinary action on a student over misconduct, which was deemed overly harsh. This came despite the backing of many alumni, educators and parents, who claimed that the action taken was justified. Nan Chiau High School's current campus covers 7.6 acres of land off Sengkang East Avenue, constructed under

1843-809: Is now discouraged. A State Language Commission official cited "oversimplification" as the reason for restoring some characters. The language authority declared an open comment period until 31 August 2009, for feedback from the public. In 2013, the List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters was published as a revision of the 1988 lists; it included a total of 8105 characters. It included 45 newly recognized standard characters that were previously considered variant forms, as well as official approval of 226 characters that had been simplified by analogy and had seen wide use but were not explicitly given in previous lists or documents. Singapore underwent three successive rounds of character simplification , eventually arriving at

1940-475: Is set after the philosophy of its founder, Mr Tan Kah Kee . The motto is also shared by all Hokkien Huay Kuan schools, as well as several institutions in mainland China with the same founder, such as Xiamen Jimei Middle School of Fujian , Jimei University & Xiamen University . The school crest of Nan Chiau High School is represented by three interlocking rings, which symbolises its students' moral, physical and intellectual development. The red colour of

2037-512: Is the international language of commercial and the administrative and legal language of Singapore, a former British colony . The mother tongue reflecting the cultural and ethnic identity of the student. The "third languages" are foreign and Asian languages which are considered by MOE to be "economically, politically and culturally vital", such as Japanese, German, Spanish, French, Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Chinese (Special Programme) and Malay (Special Programme). In order to qualify for these programmes,

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2134-540: Is used instead of 叠 in regions using traditional characters. The Chinese government stated that it wished to keep Chinese orthography stable. The Chart of Generally Utilized Characters of Modern Chinese was published in 1988 and included 7000 simplified and unsimplified characters. Of these, half were also included in the revised List of Commonly Used Characters in Modern Chinese , which specified 2500 common characters and 1000 less common characters. In 2009,

2231-473: The ⼓   ' WRAP ' radical used in the traditional character 沒 is simplified to ⼏   ' TABLE ' to form the simplified character 没 . By systematically simplifying radicals, large swaths of the character set are altered. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms that embody graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms. In addition, variant characters with identical pronunciation and meaning were reduced to

2328-490: The Cultural Revolution , a second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977—largely composed of entirely new variants intended to artificially lower the stroke count, in contrast to the first round—but was massively unpopular and never saw consistent use. The second round of simplifications was ultimately retracted officially in 1986, well after they had largely ceased to be used due to their unpopularity and

2425-542: The Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) the character meaning 'bright' was written as either 明 or 朙 —with either 日 'Sun' or 囧 'window' on the left, with the 月 'Moon' component on the right. Li Si ( d.  208 BC ), the Chancellor of Qin, attempted to universalize the Qin small seal script across China following the wars that had politically unified the country for

2522-524: The Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan . It offers the four-year Express (Special) course for secondary education . Founded in 1947, the institution operates under the Special Assistance Plan (SAP), with the mission to nurture bilingual and bi-cultural scholars who are highly knowledgeable in the Chinese language and culture. Affirmed as the North Zone Centre of Excellence for Chinese Language,

2619-539: The Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level national examination, complemented by its signature cultural intelligence and global classroom programmes. Throughout the 4 years, NCHS students are exposed to a broad range of cultural knowledge and life skills alongside the academic curriculum. All NCHS students expect a 2-week based timetable, with supplementary lessons for four days allocated to individual subjects according to their academic needs (with

2716-520: The states of ancient China , with his chief chronicler having "[written] fifteen chapters describing" what is referred to as the " big seal script ". The traditional narrative, as also attested in the Shuowen Jiezi dictionary ( c.  100 AD ), is that the Qin small seal script that would later be imposed across China was originally derived from the Zhou big seal script with few modifications. However,

2813-488: The "Dot" stroke : The traditional components ⺥ and 爫 become ⺈ : The traditional component 奐 becomes 奂 : Nan Chiau High School Nan Chiau High School ( NCHS ) ( traditional Chinese : 南僑中學 ; simplified Chinese : 南侨中学 ; pinyin : Nánqiáo Zhōngxué ; Wade–Giles : Nan Ch'iao Chung hsüeh ) is a co-educational government-aided institution in Sengkang , Singapore affiliated to

2910-461: The 1919 May Fourth Movement —many anti-imperialist intellectuals throughout China began to see the country's writing system as a serious impediment to its modernization. In 1916, a multi-part English-language article entitled "The Problem of the Chinese Language" co-authored by the Chinese linguist Yuen Ren Chao (1892–1982) and poet Hu Shih (1891–1962) has been identified as a turning point in

3007-483: The 1970s and 1980s, Singapore began to change from a lower income, poorly educated society to a more confident, educated, vocal and individualistic society. Around the same time, in the 1980s, the world was witnessing the rise of Japan and the Asian newly-industrialised economies or NIEs, of which Singapore was one. Economically, America appeared unable to compete with rising Asian manufacturing competitors, especially Japan and

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3104-476: The 1986 General List of Simplified Chinese Characters , hereafter the General List . All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Chart 1 and Chart 2 in the 1986 Complete List . Characters in both charts are structurally simplified based on similar set of principles. They are separated into two charts to clearly mark those in Chart 2 as 'usable as simplified character components', based on which Chart 3

3201-508: The 1986 mainland China revisions. Unlike in mainland China, Singapore parents have the option of registering their children's names in traditional characters. Malaysia also promulgated a set of simplified characters in 1981, though completely identical to the mainland Chinese set. They are used in Chinese-language schools. All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Charts 1 and 2 of

3298-544: The 1990s, outperforming several established English-medium schools. This supported the Government to further expand the programme to two other institutions with strong Chinese heritage, including Nan Chiau High School , which was initially listed as an SAP school candidate in 1978. Six top performing SAP high schools are also approved by the Ministry of Education to offer Integrated Programme (IP) to their full cohort, with The Chinese High School , Nanyang Girls' High School being

3395-470: The Chinese government published a major revision to the list which included a total of 8300 characters. No new simplifications were introduced. In addition, slight modifications to the orthography of 44 characters to fit traditional calligraphic rules were initially proposed, but were not implemented due to negative public response. Also, the practice of unrestricted simplification of rare and archaic characters by analogy using simplified radicals or components

3492-716: The Global Classroom Programme. Apart from development of cultural intelligence, life skills are also incorporated into the curriculum to prepare students for the future, by assisting students in the acquisition of various life skills that will be useful as they become part of the 21st century workforce. The Learning for Life Programme (LLP) provides a unique cognitive-aesthetic domain of learning through drama, public speaking, debate, puppetry and creative Chinese lyrical composition, to strengthen self-expression and nurtures aesthetics appreciation in students, as well as to allow them to learn and embrace cultural diversity. In

3589-466: The Government was indifferent to Chinese language and culture amid declining enrolments in Chinese-medium schools. The selected schools were given additional teaching resources and given assistance to run classes with a lower student-to-teacher ratio. The programme was deemed highly successful with five of the designated schools consistently attaining top ten positions in the secondary school ranking in

3686-455: The Japanese invasion in 1942. After the war, the demand for education rose, especially for high school education. There was also a rising need to cater to students enrolled in the elementary schools affiliated to the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan . Thus, Nan Chiau Teachers' Training College was converted into a girls' high school on 8 March 1947, featuring a primary school section. Mr Yang Zhen Li

3783-402: The Ministry of Education (MOE) designated nine Chinese-medium secondary schools as Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools. These schools were intended to provide top-scoring primary school leavers with the opportunity to study both English and Mandarin to high levels of competence. Also, these schools were to preserve the character of traditional Chinese-medium secondary schools and allay fears that

3880-586: The People's Republic, the idea of a mass simplification of character forms first gained traction in China during the early 20th century. In 1909, the educator and linguist Lufei Kui formally proposed the use of simplified characters in education for the first time. Over the following years—marked by the 1911 Xinhai Revolution that toppled the Qing dynasty , followed by growing social and political discontent that further erupted into

3977-491: The School Management Model granted by the Ministry of Education in 2000. The campus was officially declared open by then Minister for Education and Second Minister for Defence Mr. Teo Chee Hean on 8 March 2003. The five-storey building cluster consists of an Administrative Block, a Science & Research Block, an Aesthetics block, and three classroom blocks. The Kong Chian Hall (main hall of Nan Chiau High School)

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4074-526: The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Applied Learning Programme (STEM ALP), students explore using Arduino Micro-controller in health related science and technology. Students also acquire science research skills to deepen their proficiency in Sciences. On 16 February 2019, a new collaboration with Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) was announced by Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan, and

4171-490: The Singapore Hokkien Festival, and was welcomed by numerous school alumni and educators, noting that the institution could finally fulfil its mission to preserve and advocate the Chinese heritage and culture with more support from the government. In commemoration, a public musical performance was staged at Nanyang Polytechnic on 23 June 2012. Themed " Equilibrium ", the musical was the first public performance in

4268-825: The Singapore Student Learning Space (SLS), a nationwide online learning portal developed jointly by the Ministry of Education and GovTech . The SLS empower students to conduct self-directed learning through a variety of interactive resources, and assist teachers in designing meaning learning experiences that promote critical thinking and teamwork among students. On 28 May 2019, Minister of Education Ong Ye Kung announced that Nan Chiau High School will offer two year Chinese Language Elective Programme (C-LEP, or 语特 in Chinese ) at upper secondary level along with nine other selected institutions from 2020. First introduced in 1990 at

4365-556: The Young Writer's Programme for students of six schools in the North 4 Cluster, as well as the school's Chinese calligraphy society. Other facilities in NCHS include a gymnasium, an indoor sports hall, a central plaza, an open-concept canteen, an eco-garden and a 1.3 acres field. As a Special Assistance Plan (SAP) school, Nan Chiau High School offers the four-year Express course which leads up to

4462-459: The art students. Nan Chiau High School has its unique overseas learning programme that offers all students an opportunity to go on subsidised learning trips to deepen their understanding on their academic subjects, perform community projects or involvement as part of the programmes within their Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs). Through this programme, opportunities are also infused for interaction with students, educators and subject specialists around

4559-512: The auspices of Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan . Nearing the end of the decade, the declining student population became more significant and the institution was on the verge of permanent closure. In 2000, Nan Chiau High School relocated to Sengkang New Town under an agreement with the Singapore Land Authority. The primary section separated to form Nan Chiau Primary School and relocated to 50 Anchorvale Link. That year, Nan Chiau High School

4656-444: The body of epigraphic evidence comparing the character forms used by scribes gives no indication of any real consolidation in character forms prior to the founding of the Qin. The Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) that inherited the Qin administration coincided with the perfection of clerical script through the process of libian . Eastward spread of Western learning Though most closely associated with

4753-447: The broadest trend in the evolution of Chinese characters over their history has been simplification, both in graphical shape ( 字形 ; zìxíng ), the "external appearances of individual graphs", and in graphical form ( 字体 ; 字體 ; zìtǐ ), "overall changes in the distinguishing features of graphic[al] shape and calligraphic style, [...] in most cases refer[ring] to rather obvious and rather substantial changes". The initiatives following

4850-522: The changes to the education system, and adopted English as its language medium. As student enrolment started to decline, the institution went co-educational in 1984 with the enrolment of male students, and was renamed "Nan Chiau High School" In the 1990s, calls for Nan Chiau High to consider attaining independent status surfaced amidst shrinking student population, stating of the institution's ample human and financial backing along with its affiliation with several Special Assistance Plan primary schools, under

4947-407: The chosen variants, those that appear in the "Complete List of Simplified Characters" are also simplified in character structure accordingly. Some examples follow: Sample reduction of equivalent variants : Ancient variants with simple structure are preferred : Simpler vulgar forms are also chosen : The chosen variant was already simplified in Chart 1 : In some instances, the chosen variant

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5044-595: The confusion they caused. In August 2009, China began collecting public comments for a revised list of simplified characters; the resulting List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters lists 8,105 characters, including a few revised forms, and was implemented for official use by China's State Council on 5 June 2013. In Chinese, simplified characters are referred to by their official name 简化字 ; jiǎnhuàzì , or colloquially as 简体字 ; jiǎntǐzì . The latter term refers broadly to all character variants featuring simplifications of character form or structure,

5141-638: The country. In 1935, the first official list of simplified forms was published, consisting of 324 characters collated by Peking University professor Qian Xuantong . However, fierce opposition within the KMT resulted in the list being rescinded in 1936. Work throughout the 1950s resulted in the 1956 promulgation of the Chinese Character Simplification Scheme , a draft of 515 simplified characters and 54 simplified components, whose simplifications would be present in most compound characters. Over

5238-450: The early 1950s. The same anthem is shared with Nan Chiau Primary School , which was formerly its ancillary primary school before 2001. Nan Chiau High School's uniform is closely linked to its heritage as a former traditional Chinese school. Originally, the school uniform was in full white with the Chinese name of the school sewed on the right chest level of the blouse, much similar to other institutions with Chinese heritage. Students in

5335-447: The economic problems in China during that time. Lu Xun , one of the most prominent Chinese authors of the 20th century, stated that "if Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die" ( 漢字不滅，中國必亡 ). During the 1930s and 1940s, discussions regarding simplification took place within the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party. Many members of the Chinese intelligentsia maintained that simplification would increase literacy rates throughout

5432-443: The essence of both the east and the west, thus preparing students to become inclusive talents who are effectively bilingual and able to make strong and meaningful connections with the world. The four-year flagship programme is mainly made up of two segments, namely 'Broad-Base Curriculum' and 'Peaks of Excellence', which include cultural intelligence and life education to groom students to be world-ready. The 'Broad-Base Curriculum' spans

5529-498: The exception for Wednesdays). A common educational procedure for the four-year Express course, subject combination streaming for NCHS students is carried out at Secondary Two level. Usually, nine classes (A to I) will be allocated per cohort for upper secondary levels, with 2 classes allocated for students taking 3 pure science subjects (commonly known as "Triple-Science" combinations). Nan Chiau High students has sustained academic and non-academic results. A Band 1 school since 2006,

5626-512: The first time. Li prescribed the 朙 form of the word for 'bright', but some scribes ignored this and continued to write the character as 明 . However, the increased usage of 朙 was followed by proliferation of a third variant: 眀 , with 目 'eye' on the left—likely derived as a contraction of 朙 . Ultimately, 明 became the character's standard form. The Book of Han (111 AD) describes an earlier attempt made by King Xuan of Zhou ( d.  782 BC ) to unify character forms across

5723-401: The first year of the students' admission, with the introduction to Chinese culture and history, the history of Chinese immigrants and understanding diversity of local cultures. This is inculcated through various platforms such as cultural intelligence forums, bi-cultural camps, and Chinese lyrics competitions, as well as local and regional learning journeys. The 'Peaks of Excellence' curriculum

5820-465: The following decade, the Script Reform Committee deliberated on characters in the 1956 scheme, collecting public input regarding the recognizability of variants, and often approving forms in small batches. Parallel to simplification, there were also initiatives aimed at eliminating the use of characters entirely and replacing them with pinyin as an official Chinese alphabet, but this possibility

5917-430: The founding of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) to universalize the use of their small seal script across the recently conquered parts of the empire is generally seen as being the first real attempt at script reform in Chinese history. Before the 20th century, variation in character shape on the part of scribes, which would continue with the later invention of woodblock printing , was ubiquitous. For example, prior to

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6014-506: The history of China and Chinese–English translation studies. Simplified Chinese characters Simplified Chinese characters are one of two standardized character sets widely used to write the Chinese language , with the other being traditional characters . Their mass standardization during the 20th century was part of an initiative by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to promote literacy, and their use in ordinary circumstances on

6111-550: The history of the Chinese script—as it was one of the first clear calls for China to move away from the use of characters entirely. Instead, Chao proposed that the language be written with an alphabet, which he saw as more logical and efficient. The alphabetization and simplification campaigns would exist alongside one another among the Republican intelligentsia for the next several decades. Recent commentators have echoed some contemporary claims that Chinese characters were blamed for

6208-687: The institution has developed students with exceptional results for both GCE 'O' Level academic subjects as well as Co-Curricular Activities (or CCA). In 2014, Nan Chiau High School's 'O' Level students achieved a Mean-Score (based on L1R5 Grading) of 10.6, with more than 90% of the students obtaining A1 grading for CCA involvement. The examinable academic subjects for Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level offered by Nan Chiau High School for upper secondary level (via. streaming in secondary 2 level), as of 2020, are listed below. Notes: Mathematics and science Language and literature Humanities Arts and aesthetics The SAP Flagship Programme forms

6305-726: The institution is a direct phonic translation of the term " 南僑 " in Chinese which meant the Overseas Chinese of the Southeast Asian region ( 南洋華僑 ), particularly the Malayan Peninsula . The name of the institution is a reflection of its mission to empower youths through education, shared along with several other institutions which share the same identity, such as The Chinese High School (presently Hwa Chong Institution ) as well as Nanyang Girls' High School . Nan Chiau High School's motto, Sincerity & Perseverance (誠·毅) ,

6402-574: The institution is known for its strong Chinese foundation in terms of teaching of the language and promulgation of the heritage and culture, which are not confined to the classrooms. To date, Nan Chiau High has nurtured three President's Scholars , and is currently one of Singapore's leading schools for Infocomm Technology . It is also one of the joint organisers of the National Secondary School Chinese Creative Writing Competition. Nan Chiau High School

6499-403: The institution's history to have the production and songs composed entirely by teachers and students. On 29 December 2013, a home-coming event was held at the former Nan Chiau High School campus at 46 Kim Yam Road, which thousands of alumni, former and present principals, teachers and staff of the institution gathered at the former school hall in a brunch buffet setting. The event was held before

6596-504: The junior college level, the LEP programme aims to nurture students who excel in mother tongue languages through the study of literature and participating in cultural activities, and has been highly regarded for nurturing effectively bi-cultural and bilingual leaders across industries. Nan Chiau High shares its heritage with several other institutions in Singapore with the same founder. The name of

6693-483: The main language of basic and higher education, government and law, science and technology as well as trade and industry. This is reflected in the Bilingual Policy which came into effect in 1966. While according official recognition to the languages of different ethno-linguistic communities in Singapore, it sought to promote English as a neutral common language to unite a culturally diverse nation of immigrants. English

6790-528: The mainland has been encouraged by the Chinese government since the 1950s. They are the official forms used in mainland China and Singapore , while traditional characters are officially used in Hong Kong , Macau , and Taiwan . Simplification of a component—either a character or a sub-component called a radical —usually involves either a reduction in its total number of strokes , or an apparent streamlining of which strokes are chosen in what places—for example,

6887-435: The nation's cohort, which increasingly reflected the increasingly critical status of the Chinese-medium schools, in stark contrast over a decade. The need to preserve traditional Chinese schools with rich heritage and culture became a pressing agenda for the government, with raising English standards and attracting capable students into such schools a key priority, as pointed out by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew . In 1979,

6984-416: The official relaunch of the site of the former campus as a commercial development of offices, schools and F&B establishments. In March 2015, Nan Chiau High School celebrated its 68th anniversary. Themed "Appreciating our Past, Inspiring the Future", the event was graced by Guest-of-Honour, Minister for Defence, Dr Ng Eng Hen, which saw the school and the community coming together to mark the occasion with

7081-408: The piloting schools with Hwa Chong Junior College in 2004, followed by River Valley High School in 2006 and Dunman High School in 2008. Catholic High School and CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls' School were approved to offer Joint Integrated Programme in 2013 with Singapore Chinese Girls' School . With rapid economic development and exposure to Western, particularly American popular culture and values in

7178-430: The public and quickly fell out of official use. It was ultimately formally rescinded in 1986. The second-round simplifications were unpopular in large part because most of the forms were completely new, in contrast to the familiar variants comprising the majority of the first round. With the rescission of the second round, work toward further character simplification largely came to an end. In 1986, authorities retracted

7275-465: The re-construction, the high school section conducted lessons at a temporary campus at Guillemard Road, while the primary school section continued lessons at the unaffected classroom blocks of the Kim Yam Road campus. The new campus was officially opened by then Minister for Education Mr. Ong Pang Boon , on 8 March 1969. In 1974, the student population of the institution went up to 2700, the highest in

7372-505: The region and the globe. These included famous writers, entrepreneurs, and students from sister schools such as Ming-Dao High School of Taiwan & Sagano High School of Kyoto , Japan . Nan Chiau High School offers a wide variety of extra-curricular activities, labelled Co-Curricular Activities (CCA) by the Ministry of Education , consisting of sports groups, uniformed groups, performing arts, clubs and societies. Of which, many CCAs have attained spectacular performances throughout

7469-455: The revitalised Speak Mandarin Campaign (targeted at English rather than dialect speakers, as was historically the case) as well as SAP schools. The SAP school programme is periodically criticised in the national media by Singaporeans who are concerned about the ethnic segregation that it inevitably promotes. SAP schools offer mother tongue lessons in only one language: Mandarin. This means that

7566-492: The rings depicts a persevering spirit in the pursuit of a bright and promising future, as represented by the golden background. The heart shape in the centre of the overlapping rings symbolizes care and concern for the total welfare of the pupils in a student-oriented system. Nan Chiau High School keeps its original school anthem in Mandarin. The anthem was written by Ms Lin Zhen Ru, and moderated by Professor Zhao Xingdao (Mr.) in

7663-426: The same set of simplified characters as mainland China. The first round was promulgated by the Ministry of Education in 1969, consisting of 498 simplified characters derived from 502 traditional characters. A second round of 2287 simplified characters was promulgated in 1974. The second set contained 49 differences from the mainland China system; these were removed in the final round in 1976. In 1993, Singapore adopted

7760-437: The school name is sewed onto the shirt as a modification to the traditional design adopted by other traditional Chinese schools, where rings were used to secure the buttons. Female students wear white blouses bearing the traditional Chinese characters of the school name on it in red, with navy blue pleated skirts. During Assemblies and important functions, every student will wear a red-coloured school tie. Nan Chiau High School

7857-447: The school's history, with 48 classes in the six-year high-school section and 24 classes at the primary-school section. Two-year pre-university classes were also offered to top students alongside senior high classes, with good GCE Advanced Level examination results yearly. To cope with the increased enrolment, additional 300 thousand dollars was spent for constructing the 5th storey of the school building. In 1978, Nan Chiau Girls' High

7954-461: The second round completely, though they had been largely fallen out of use within a year of their initial introduction. That year, the authorities also promulgated a final version of the General List of Simplified Chinese Characters . It was identical to the 1964 list save for 6 changes—including the restoration of 3 characters that had been simplified in the first round: 叠 , 覆 , 像 ; the form 疊

8051-421: The senior high and pre-university section wore white shirts with dark coloured skirts, before the pre-university classes were made mandatory to be taught at junior colleges, a policy declared by the ministry of education in 1979. Nearing the 1990s, the school uniform was switched to be worn with dark coloured school pants or skirt, with dark coloured school tag was sewed on the left side of the shirt. The uniform

8148-817: The traditional character 強 , with 11 strokes is standardised as 强 , with 12 strokes, which is a variant character. Such characters do not constitute simplified characters. The new standardized character forms shown in the Characters for Publishing and revised through the Common Modern Characters list tend to adopt vulgar variant character forms. Since the new forms take vulgar variants, many characters now appear slightly simpler compared to old forms, and as such are often mistaken as structurally simplified characters. Some examples follow: The traditional component 釆 becomes 米 : The traditional component 囚 becomes 日 : The traditional "Break" stroke becomes

8245-577: The vast majority, if not all, of the students in SAP schools will be ethnically Chinese. These students will have little opportunities to interact with people of other races, which can potentially cause issues in a multi-racial country like Singapore. Besides, the SAP does not have Malay or Tamil equivalents, which might be viewed by some as MOE not placing these two languages on an equal level as Mandarin. In addition, subjects that are related to Chinese culture may also be taught in Mandarin, such as Chinese literature,

8342-461: Was abandoned, confirmed by a speech given by Zhou Enlai in 1958. In 1965, the PRC published the List of Commonly Used Characters for Printing  [ zh ] (hereafter Characters for Printing ), which included standard printed forms for 6196 characters, including all of the forms from the 1956 scheme. A second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977, but was poorly received by

8439-532: Was also held to be the language of international higher education, science/technology and commerce. As such, it was indispensable to Singapore, given her ambition to become a 'Global City', articulated as early as 1972. As the English language gained importance, more parents inclined to send their child to English-medium schools, which adversely affected enrollment of Chinese-medium schools. In 1977, admission to Chinese-medium elementary schools made up only 10 per cent of

8536-406: Was also ranked the top value-added school in the Ministry of Education's 1999 ranking of Special/Express schools in Singapore. In November 2010, Nan Chiau High School was formally recognised by the Ministry of Education to be included as the 11th Special Assistance Plan (SAP) school, with effect from 2012. The news was given by minister of education Dr Ng Eng Hen during his opening address at

8633-543: Was converted from an Air Rifle Shooting Range under the two-year school upgrading project in 2012 funded by the school management and Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan. The auditorium provides a venue for performances apart from the main hall, as well as conducting sharing talks and academic lectures. The revamped library, opened in 2013, features dedicated study areas, a small platform to hold forums and press conferences, as well as three discussion rooms available for student-teacher consultations, projects and group studies. The Nest,

8730-691: Was facing budget deficits. Singapore politicians from the dominant People's Action Party synthesised these various situations and developed certain ideas that came to be known as the Asian Values discourse. According to this line of argument, Singapore, along with Taiwan , Hong Kong , South Korea and Japan , had succeeded so spectacularly in no small part because of their shared Confucianist cultural heritage, which emphasised values such as hard work, education, family unity, deference and loyalty to authority figures, community spirit (in contrast to Western individualism ), etc. To better sell this argument to

8827-418: Was featured in an episode of Channel 8's "When The Bell Rings" documentary series. This eight episode documentary series featured eight Special Assistance Plan (SAP) Schools in Singapore, and told stories of their transformation through the times. The episode on Nan Chiau High was the fourth episode to be aired. In January 2018, Nan Chiau High School became one of the first 62 institutions in Singapore to pilot

8924-500: Was followed by a signing of Memorandum of Understanding. Students from Nan Chiau High School, as well as the other five institutions affiliated to Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan, will benefit from corporate partnership through school-based programmes co-developed with SUTD. These programmes aim to inspire students to empower and embrace the developments in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), with focus in technology, design and innovation. Since 2013, Nan Chiau High School

9021-495: Was initially established as Nan Chiau Teachers' Training College in 1941 by Mr Tan Kah Kee , a Chinese businessman, community leader and philanthropist, to support the local education needs. The initial schooling site was incorporated from mansions donated by Mr Lee Kong Chian , on a plot of land in River Valley . The campus was used as the base and training barracks for Dalforce , a Chinese volunteers' army formed promptly before

9118-403: Was initially included in the list of 12 newly accorded Special Assistance Plan schools. However, with the concern from the Ministry of Education over the surplus of school places that might hinder the success of the scheme, the number of SAP schools were amended to nine, which excluded Nan Chiau Girl's High School. In 1980, the institution ceased senior high and pre-university classes following

9215-592: Was named after the school's co-founder, Mr Lee Kong Chian . The air-conditioned hall is the common venue for weekly assemblies and dialogue sessions, as well as hosting competitions and symposiums such as the National Secondary School Chinese Creative Writing Competition and the NYP-YTSS-NCHS Science Research Symposium. The 300-seat auditorium, housed at the fourth level of the aesthetics block,

9312-439: Was redesigned as an effort to preserve the school's identity along with the relocation of the campus in 2000, which integrated the original heritage of the uniform in the 1960s and the 1990s. Currently, male students wear white studded shirts with traditional Chinese characters of the school name on it in red. Navy blue shorts are worn for years one and two, and long pants for upper secondary levels. The six metal buttons bearing

9409-412: Was the first principal of the institution, which had an initial student enrolment of 900 students. A female hostel was also built in the 1950s. By the 1960s, Nan Chiau Girls' High had gained reputation as one of the state's top high schools. In 1965, the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan spent 2 million dollars to rebuild Nan Chiau Girl's High School to meet the needs of an increased student enrolment. During

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