From the perspective of an ACS (I) alumnus and future Tengah resident
It has been some time since the announcement that ACS Primary is moving to Tengah in 2030.
If I may offer my own personal take on this event as a partial alumnus without direct affiliation to ACS(P), as well as a future Tengah resident, what actually matters to me isn't the admitting of girls into the ACS family of schools (Didn't they already have girls in ACJC for the longest time ever, as well as girls in both ACS (Independent) with the introduction of the IB programme and opening of ACS International, both in 2005?), or the soaring of property prices in the future heartland town of Tengah (which I'll certainly be most happy about), what holds far greater importance is the supposed levelling of the playing field for entry into one of the most prestigious primary schools in the country.
With the exception of ACS (I) moving into the Dover neighbourhood in 1993 (which can't quite be counted as Dover had an extremely small HDB community back then, and also because of the independent school's proximity to ACJC, which essentially serves the affluent Holland-Bukit Timah community), this marks the first time any ACS school is going to be built right smack in the middle of an HDB town.
Whether this actually plays out fair and square, and will ACS (P) at Tengah be deemed the poorer cousin of ACS (J), as with how Barker is viewed in relation to its independent sibling, still remains to be seen, but as with many other societies in the world, Singapore's structure of social stratification is highly entrenched, even right down to the language we speak (which may not be as evident in other countries), so I guess this brings us forward a step in the right direction.
Without being a true blue ACSian and not spending the full 10 years in the ACS system, this may be the very reason why I wasn't able to understand the outburst of emotions from the ACS community. But as chairman of the ACS board of governors Richard Seow has said, isn't it wonderful to be able to share ACS with the rest of Singapore?
There may have been various reactions from different quarters of stakeholders, but I certainly hope that ACS will be able to progress as a school (and of course, us as a Singaporean community and a nation on the whole), and rid ourselves of any mindsets that will only prove to be divisive to the very society we live in. But what exactly is the definition of progress? That's highly subjective too.
Though I'm guessing that everyone, including current and past generations of ACS boys (and girls of course), is clear that the current student demographics of the school are not entirely representative of Singapore society at large.
Do we really want to keep it at that, or do we have a choice at change?
The author is an alumnus of Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) - and no other ACS school, as well as a future Tengah resident who has already booked his HDB flat in the new town. All views expressed are his own.
Infographic Credit: Channel News Asia
Came across this article on CNA a few days ago, which resonated with the elitism and social stratification theme I was discussing: Should children of alumni get priority for Primary 1 registration?
To me, the distance of students' homes from school is certainly a valid reason to enrol in that particular school. After all, no one wants children to be tired out from travelling long distances just to get to and from school. But alumni? On what grounds should children of alumni get priority? It's probably more of a parental preference rather than an absolute reason to constitute admission priority. Should we really continue this unhealthy practice in Singapore?