by Mamawearpapashirt (Singapore) | Aug 20, 2012 | Education, Motherhood, Singapore, World Motherhood
Singapore has been dubbed a tuition nation.
Outside of the country, we are known as the “garden city” or the “little red dot” or even the city that banned chewing gum. But internally, we call ourselves a tuition nation. And I’m not so sure that it’s something to be proud of.
According to a recent online survey of 955 Singaporeans aged above 18, 80% of Singaporeans believe that tuition and enrichment programmes help children do better in schools. Spending on tuition has also doubled in ten years to a whopping S$820 million in 2008. These programmes are seen by many as a constructive way for children to spend their time.
I was most surprised to find that almost three in 10 Singaporeans felt that children should start some form of tuition at pre-school age. It made me wonder how many of us are driven by the fear of our children losing out to others versus a legitimate need, for instance, a child who requires some extra Chinese lessons because the language is not used within the home. (more…)
June, born and bred on the sunny and sometimes rainy shores of Singapore, is a mother of two - a chatty 4 y.o. girl and a toddler boy who babbles. She works part-time as a communication consultant, and she is deeply passionate about family, writing, faith, and good old-fashioned love. She can be found on her blog, Mamawearpapashirt.
More Posts
by Mamawearpapashirt (Singapore) | Jun 1, 2012 | Siblings, Singapore
The sibling relationship begins even when the younger one is still in the womb.
How so?
When I was carrying my second child, Javier, I began to introduce Vera, my first-born, to the concept of a younger sibling.
The day we discovered that the baby was a boy, we told Vera she was going to have a ‘di-di’ (little brother in Chinese) to play with, and that they would have loads of fun together.
Being the chatty 2.5 year old that she was at the time, she relished the thought of having a captive audience, and she would thoroughly enjoy talking and singing to my womb, or rather, the di-di who was stuck inside.
At first, I gave her the words to say, such as ‘I love you, di-di’ and so on. Thereafter, her creative self took over and for the remaining 4-5 months of the pregnancy, I think she pretty much dominated the airwaves where her little brother was concerned. (more…)
June, born and bred on the sunny and sometimes rainy shores of Singapore, is a mother of two - a chatty 4 y.o. girl and a toddler boy who babbles. She works part-time as a communication consultant, and she is deeply passionate about family, writing, faith, and good old-fashioned love. She can be found on her blog, Mamawearpapashirt.
More Posts
by Mamawearpapashirt (Singapore) | Mar 22, 2012 | International, Motherhood, Singapore, Working Mother, World Interviews, World Moms Blog Writer Interview, World Motherhood, Writing
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
I live in the tiny red dot on the map called Singapore. (It’s the dot right next to Malaysia.)
I was born here, but my ancestors (that means great-grandfather and beyond) were from China. Based on my basic understanding of the Hakka people, my dialect group (which means “guests” in Chinese), we were a bunch of nomads, so I guess you can say I’ve got the travelling genes. I constantly bug the hubby to ship us off to somewhere. Still working on it (him) though.
What language(s) do you speak?
I speak English, Mandarin Chinese, Babblese, and Wifese.
When did you first become a mother?
On that fateful day in February 2009, when suddenly (okay, not so suddenly, it took nearly 24 hours) out (more…)
June, born and bred on the sunny and sometimes rainy shores of Singapore, is a mother of two - a chatty 4 y.o. girl and a toddler boy who babbles. She works part-time as a communication consultant, and she is deeply passionate about family, writing, faith, and good old-fashioned love. She can be found on her blog, Mamawearpapashirt.
More Posts
