Hri Kumar said:

We need to recognise that we are dealing with life-changing issues. I do not know what would have happened to me if I had not made it to JC. There is a good chance I would be doing something completely different today. Others have not been so lucky. It is plainly wrong and illogical to deny a bright student advancement, or to disadvantage him, simply because of a weakness in second language. The sooner we pry this albatross from our necks the better.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Should a student be prevented from going to university if he fails his Second Language? Hri says no."

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Oikono said:

So what is wrong with how Chinese was taught? There was too much focus on memorization, at the expense of discussions. Too much ancient (and sterilized) materials were emphasized, at the expense of contemporary issues. Why not pair banal stories of Yue Fei with materials on modern Chinese nationalism? Why not talk about Li Bai in the larger scheme of how Chinese poetry evolved? Language training in my school was divorced from the deeper discussions of Chinese culture, politics and society that could have motivated me.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Can chinese be made more interesting? MOE should be rethinking its approach!"

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Alvinology said:

I am not going to type too much text as I am very tired… really need to get more rest. Nonetheless, I am anxious to share with everyone the photos I took at the Singapore Entertainment Awards 2009 Celebration Party, so here goes.

I was stationed at the artistes’ holding tent just beside the stage - meaning I have excellent access to the red carpet, the stage and even backstage with the celebrities. However, as I have to work also, I can only sneak in a few pictures here and there.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Big event over the weekend at the Marina Bay Floating Platform, attended by over 10,000 people. Singapore seldom host such big Chinese entertainment events and this one was held at the floating platform which previously only hosted the NDP. A behind-the-scene look by someone who was working at the event."

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QuaChee said:

But I have also found some good experiences with the Chinese nationals here. Now that they are more seen in the service sectors, they are learning fast. They seem to be bringing their 'quality service standards' (the ones from like the hotels) from their major cities to here.

Recommended by quachee: "A lot of complaints on the Chinese from mainland to Singapore... but I think we can leran a thing or two from them too. "

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Forbes said:

Low-skilled workers from China are ubiquitous in Singapore these days: in the shiny new terminal of Changi Airport, in coffee shops, in shopping malls, in supermarkets, at gas stations, at construction sites and populating the much-loved open-air food courts called hawker centers.

They also make their presence felt in five-star hotels, where one recent encounter found a Mandarin-speaking maid who could not comprehend a word of English. Most recently, Singapore's two bus companies began hiring drivers from China.

Chinese workers are just one constituency in Singapore's fast-growing foreign population, but they are the largest component of an expatriate contingent that crossed the 1 million mark in October, helping boost the overall population to 4.68 million in an otherwise chronically aging society. Foreigners make up about one-third of the national workforce. The country set a goal to raise its population total to 6.5 million within two decades, rejuvenating itself mainly through immigration from India and China.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Forbes on Singapore's Chinese labour influx."

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aX said:

Exercise grumbling so that you'll be sufficiently bitter for some mythical creature to act as if he/she doesn't notice and thus, not obliged to eat you.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "The photos are more interesting actually than the article."

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Melvin Ryan Tan said:

It's Chinese New Year again and this year is the year of the pig! So what does Chinese New Year mean to you? Youth.SG wanted to find out so badly that we ambushed ourselves on Orchard Road and asked random strangers about it. We're not satisfied with just interviewing our Chinese friends... We need to know what our friends from the other races feel about the Chinese New Year as well.

Recommended by alvinism: "Something happy for Chinese New Year to liven up the festive mood. Happy Chinese New Year everyone!~ "

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Daphne Loo said:

I don’t think they are very poor - in China, that is. The mother seems quite well-educated; perhaps not very highly-educated, but she definitely is educated. But my point is, they saved up so much to come to Singapore, so that he could study here, have a better education here, and hopefully, a better future. They have to live in such squalid conditions because they definitely don’t want to run out of money before she gets a job to support them. They’ve been here for 2 months, and trying to settle down.

Recommended by Adam Zhang: "Impressive reflection after viewing foreign family's living condition in Singapore."

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Language Log said:

Well, as I knew intuitively when I began studying Mandarin in 1968 and have reiterated on countless occasions since then, it’s because there’s far too much emphasis on HAN4ZI4 from the very beginning. I believe that students should NOT be exposed to HANZI for **at least** the first year of instruction, and preferably not for the first two years. Only then should the characters be gradually introduced.

Recommended by tinkertailor: "A Chinese language expert suggests an alternative way of starting to learn Mandarin. This might be of interest to our educators here."

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ss said:

Anyway, this is my third trip to the Picturehouse since it opened its doors, and it's pretty cool to see the Picturehouse Lounge put to some use, in hosting Smell of Rain's Meet the Cast/Crew session. I shall attempt to summarize the session in points, as it'll be easier to read than a long narrative. There were two sessions held, one after each screening this afternoon, and I attended the first one

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "an indie singapore movie, mandarin one some more!"

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Sponsored by Petronas and directed by Yasmin Ahmad:

Recommended by jseng: "Not exactly Singaporean but this touching CNY advertisement will appeal to all Chinese anywhere."

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Kent Neo said:

The arrangement of the twin temple were closely related to the anti-Qing rebel group 'TianDihui' or the 'Heaven & Earth' secret society. 'Tian' is the first character of the name of the 'Tianhou' temple while 'Di' is the last character of the name of the 'XuanTianShangDi' temple.

Recommended by ssf: "Pictures and descriptions of the architecture of Singapore temples. I've linked to the description of Wak Hai Cheng Bio."

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Yuhui said:

"Chinese (language) is so prevalent today that I think it has made Singaporean society the worse for it. ... given the nature of the world today and for the foreseeable future, our youths should speak and practise their English. Otherwise, we may end up with a society that is fragmented by the use of different languages. And then it'll be the 1960s all over again."

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "I don't quite agree with his view of the state of chinese in Singapore, but it is a good talking point. Yee-Wei"

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Zhao keeps a David Tao blog...

David still in Singapore following a strict schedule. In the morning he spends hour & a half in the gym then 8 hrs of rehearsal, after going back to his hotel, its voice training & memorising lyrics. He did said that he will be playing the guitar more in the concert & that's good news cos I love seeing him with his beloved guitars.

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失。心。疯。子。 said:

疯子前几天还在疯婆子和她的疯朋友面前抱怨，疯婆子每次买手机都是超贵的，疯婆子第一支手机就是在十年前当时得令的香蕉机“爸摇摇玲”，然后就是姣婆镜子指纹机“爸爸腰灵”，然后就是潇洒金刚机“爸爸舞铃”，接着就是全世界都用过的“爸饿摇铃”，再来就是蝴蝶机“爸饿舞铃”，之后就是“妻儿摇铃”，然后就是超级无敌钛金太空机“爸舅摇铃”，最近的姣婆怀旧机“妻儿零零”，用不到半年就厌倦的口红机“妻儿罢领”，直到现在的懒高贵机“爸爸零零”。

feng zi tells us about his trip to the handphone shop with his feng po zi.
the use of terms, all his blog entries are hilarious, and some (especially those debating the treatment of chinese language in singapore ) are really thought-provoking.

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Jordan's mum has some advice on bringing more luck into the home.

Two stones and a tiny pot of plant. What it signifies : Those 2 items are placed facing the South-East direction at the door. According to her, the stones will sorta act like a paper weight to weigh down whatever fortune that comes through our door so that it wont "float" away. The pot of plant is for good luck.

[TinkerTailor: interesting insight into the things chinese do to bring in that all-important luck]

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