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The Metta School goes on a journey to engage learners through the arts.
The special schools are on a constant quest for a balanced and harmonious approach to support students in their learning and development. When Metta School first opened its doors in 2001 to serve children who needed more support in their learning, it took the traditional path of focusing on academic subjects to anchor their school curriculum.
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| By learning how to play musical instruments, and becoming good at it, students feel a sense of achievement. |
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Such an approach did not go as well as was intended. The students quickly became alienated from the school system and their disengagement manifested itself in many negative behaviours. Mr Ben Ee, a member of the School Management Committee, knew something had to be done if they were not to ‘lose’ the children totally.
“My own background is from the corporate world,” he shared. “In the corporate world, we do not get the marketing people to do accounts or vice versa. The right people must be matched to the different jobs we have so that we utilise people’s strengths for greater outcomes rather than dwell on their weaknesses.”
Continuing on, he said, “Metta students have their strengths. Through our interaction with them, we knew many of them liked to learn how to play musical instruments or dabble with visual art forms… That gave us the idea of engaging them in the arts…”
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| At Metta, students are exposed to instruments of different cultures, such as the Chinese flute. |
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Charting a New Route
Under the leadership of the most venerable Shi Fa Zhao, president of Metta Welfare Association and Mr Ben Ee, Metta School confidently strode forward to offer their pupils a unique brand of education – one that engages the whole person with equal emphasis given to right brain activities i.e. the performing and visual arts. The move taken marked a paradigm shift as the pursuit of the arts in the school is now regarded as a core curriculum, highly valued and desirable for all.
Secret of His Success
The move towards an emphasis for the arts was met with some scepticism and resistance from parents who wanted the school to revert to academic learning as the focus. The school stood its ground and won over even its greatest critics with many incredible stories of children being turned around by a dominant arts programme.
Within two years of its implementation, anecdotes of how the arts improved self-esteem and confidence abound. One such example is Zhan Long, whom teachers thought of as a well-behaved boy. However, the same teachers were also aware of how he gave up easily whenever faced with difficulties in class. Through the enhanced arts programme, Zhan Long, the star er-hu player of the Chinese orchestra, soon discovered that in order to succeed, he has to keep trying, sometimes over and over again.
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| In mastering the er hu, Zhan Long has learnt that to succeed in anything, he must be willing to try and try again. |
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| Teachers note that students have become more alert, diligent and ready to learn because of the programme. |
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Try, Try Again
Indeed, many children now see themselves as being “good at something”. More importantly, they have learnt to “keep at it” until they master the necessary skills.
These behaviours are positively translated in classroom behaviour and academic outcomes. Teachers and parents alike noted that pupils became more focused, diligent and were eager to learn. The school was also rewarded for its efforts by a great improvement in pupils’ attendance and a decrease in tardiness.
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