[quote]yup, the teachers suck a lot

for example, all they do is give exam papers (from schools like XMSS only) and go through TYS. NO NOTES to save paper. Just reading from tb. we learn the basics but got no idea how to do data based qn, worth 20 marks each at the end of paper 2.
The arts (el, humanities) teachers waste time in class by chit chatting. HW is given but not marked
A lot of time is wasted for lame \"enrichment\" programmes.[/quote][quote]fin89 how long was it since you graduated?
Just bc NH was good last time doesnt mean it is good now
NH's results were better than ever but that doesn't mean that the environment is good. Sure some schools like NYGH are elitist and rich, but at least they have teachers who can teach.
NH have some good teachers--those who retired already AHAHAHA
I am ashamed to be from NH not bc its not a brand school but bc it's morality and such is not good. All the teachers do is talk but they don't do. Like i said, the teachers will only stay back with you if you pester them. They won't automatically ask you to come.
Of course there are good teachers anywhere but the point is for a school like NH there is not enough.
Come on, how can you trust the words of an alumna over that of a recent graduate? When the worst is over all you can rmb is the good stuff and that is the truth, ladies and gentlemen. Maybe 20 years down the road I'll think like you, fin89.[/quote]Hi serafiel,

I'm a friend of fin89. I'm an ex-student from Nanhua(2003 to 2006) and Hwa Chong (07-08 ).

I'm typing this in an attempt to reverse the effects of your comments here in the forum. This will be a long post, so please bear with me. My Nanhua days were the best days of my life and given a second chance, I will still choose Nanhua and go through the discipline talks and gruelling tests all over again. It's not the students or teachers per se, but rather the entire school environment that allows for the gaining of knowledge, growing of character and forging of friendships. My sister is still in the school now (sec 3 this year). I know Nanhua isn't perfect (which school is?), but from what I can see (since you love to harp on how 'current' the info is), Nanhua is still a great place to spend the 4 years of secondary school education. I remember that the months that followed my graduation from Nanhua, I missed Nanhua like mad. So please do not say that 'When the worst is over all you can rmb is the good stuff'.

Are you complaining about the quality of the education? Or the quality of the values system?

Let's discuss the teachers first. Are you taking GP(general paper) now? I wish you all the best because after taking GP for almost 2 years, you are still making sweeping statements like 'NH have some good teachers--those who retired already'. There are still many dedicated teachers in Nanhua. I agree that not all teachers in NH can teach (some of them are in the profession just for the MOE scholarship but it's the same in every school, HCI included). Maybe I'm lucky I was mostly taught by good teachers back then. Surely not all the teachers in NH now can't teach. My sister's teachers all gladly stay back to coach her when she asked. Do you expect them to automatically ask you to go see them? Your grades have to be bottom-low to be entitled to that special treatment I guess. If you are afraid of your grades dropping, just go approach your teachers and they will go through the concepts again. It's the same in HC right? They call it 'consultation' and as far as I'm concerned, you have to ask the teachers for it, unless your grades really cannot make it. My sister's bio teacher (she's been teaching in NH since i was there) stays till 7pm every school day. I had a really bad chinese teacher back then. She was so bad my whole class hated her (but we love nanhua nonetheless). The whole class got A1 for O level express chinese except 2 got A2. Did we attribute our results to the teacher? NO (by the way, she has retired). We worked hard largely by ourselves and the Chinese department did a good job preparing us too. My class got almost full distinction for Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Combined Humanities(Geog) because the teachers were passionate about teaching. Many of them are still in NH now! The teachers in NH are generally hardworking and dedicated even until now. You speak as though all teachers in NH suck, but I feel that the problem lies with you. You magnify and focus on a problem so much that you cannot appreciate the better aspects. If you hated NH so much why did you not go over to NUS High or NJC IP when you had the chance in sec 2?!

I have to agree with you that some enrichment programs are of not much use, but I won't say I hate them. Do you know that NH has a SKY program now? It's kind of elitist because only students who are strong academically are chosen for it. The program serves to develop its students into scholars by providing opportunities for students to excel beyond the textbooks. It only started recently I'm quite sad NH didn't have it earlier.

What do you mean by 'it's morality and such is not good'? I still remember 忠孝仁爱 礼仪廉耻 (i still rmb the school song btw). I can see that you lack some of the values, maybe the school really has some problems instilling them now. You said guai kia become pai kia. OMG like the school ask them to become pai kia? Those who become the so-called pai kia did so because they think pai kias are more cool. They 自己不会想, how can you blame the school? You said the students cracks racist jokes but hello, HCI does that too! SAP schools do that, it's a reality. Non-SAP schools do that also. About the point which you mentioned that nobody wanted to do project with you, I believe it was due to your attitude more than your size? Another evidence to support this is that you 'hate' some people in HCI too. It is clear that you 'hate' people pretty easily. The plaits weren't cool but it gave us identity. I'm sad to see many students tuck out their shirts and tie pony-tails right after they step out of school. If there is a reason why NH is going downhill disciplinary-wise, it would be because of the students who doesn't value the moral values, not because the school does not do a good job instilling them. Truth be told, parents play a large role instilling the moral values, a much bigger role than the school.

I want to laugh when you complained about the speech day. The prize-giving ceremony is a way to give recognition for students who have worked hard and made the school proud. To be honest I complained about the prize too. But after getting a plaque and certificate of commendation for getting 7 distinctions in A levels, I would very much accept a $20 POPULAR voucher.

Just because you had a miserable time in NH doesn't make NH suck. Perhaps we should have a poll for every graduating student to see their level of satisfaction?? In that way parents will have concrete statistical data to see for themselves, instead of coming to online forums and risk exposing themselves to severely slanted opinions of ex-students who doesn't know 天高地厚.

If parents want their children to go to a school with about 90% of good teachers, please send them to top-tier independent schools (if your child's grades make the cut) because only independent schools have full power over which teacher to hire/fire. Some independent schools don't perform as well as NH anyway. Govt-funded schools have to accept teachers assigned by MOE, and that means getting inexperienced teachers or teachers who teach for the sake of MOE bond (but this doesn't mean you wont see them in indept schools). As a side note, when I have a child of my own in the future, I will send him or her to HCI or NYGH, but if he/she can't make the cut, NHHS will be next. And for parents who care about the value system in schools, NHHS is a good choice (I think all chinese schools are good for that matter) but please do not rely entirely on the schools.

The quality of the education a school provides depends very much on its stakeholders - students, parents and school.