Interview with Mr Lim Yan Hock

For me I frame it as ‘Great Memories of GM’, using the acronym of GM. I list three aspects of it: people, process and product. For ‘people’, in schools, students are key. So even though I’ve left GM for ten years, I still meet former students for coffee. The most recent one was in August this year. I was at NIE for the MLS graduation, and then there was this PE teacher who was staring at me, a trainee, so I asked her, ‘Which school are you from?’ She said, ‘Oh you were my principal when I was a student.’ I asked her which school, and she said Geylang Methodist.

Of course, as principal, you don’t remember them but they remember us. And then a few years ago, for my daughter’s birthday, we were going to Fullerton Hotel for her birthday. We were queuing up for the buffet, then there was this guy who called me from the Western section. ‘Mr Lim!’ He said, ‘Remember me?’ I remembered him. I think he used to be one of the quite naughty boys, and he was caned in the office, but now he’s a chef in charge of the Western section. He was so proud, he told everybody I was his principal, and he told me, ‘You sit down Mr Lim, you must try my buffet. I cook for you, you sit down’, and he gave me 50% discount and some vouchers.

I think though we may not remember the students, they still have a sense of gratitude for people. It could be for any principal or teacher who had taught them before, there is this sense of gratitude. I still receive cards from students and once I received a card from a student who had graduated from GM and went to a JC. He wrote and said that he missed the devotion at GM. He said he missed all the stories and all the values taught. Again, we see this sense of gratitude.

In general, I think what I remember most are the students. The sense of gratitude and they know we had made a difference and I feel the satisfaction of being an educator and a principal. We don’t have direct contact with them so much, but I think they see us in action, they hear our morning devotion and they see what we do. This morning I was reading – I keep all my cards and photographs – and I was looking at this photograph from this girl from 2007 from Faith 4-2. After the graduation service, we gave a CD containing their photographs from Sec 1 to Sec 4. Afterwards, she sent me something that was typed out nicely, in fact, I framed it, and she talked about the experience she had from Sec 1 to Sec 4, and of course, she also thanked the principal.

I’ve left GM for 10 years, and I think in the past few years I’ve been invited to 3 weddings of 3 GM students. Their parents invited me, and again there’s this sense of connection. I think the staff in a mission school and a government school are also different. I think in a mission school the staff are very clear, they know what the school is about, and they will chip in anything. Even though I’ve left GM for 10 years, even now I still receive a text from a former teacher. There is this sense of gratitude that I was here and part of the journey.

Then there are the other stakeholders of the school. I remember there was once, an officer, a brave boy of the Boys’ Brigade and they were going to Sentosa. I remember asking why this officer would want to bring the students to Sentosa. He’s not being paid, but he does it because of passion and the people. Again, this feeling of gratitude and paying back, and to do it on a Saturday and bringing the children along is part of a sense of community. Of course, most of those who help out at the Boys’ Brigade and the Girls’ Brigade are old boys and old girls. NPCC as well. There is a sense of connection.

Of course, there were also parents. In my time, the PSG (Parents Support Group) was fairly new. We worked closely together. They helped out with concerts, and the concert was a big draw. The loudest applause went to the performers, the line dancing they did. There was certainly a lot of engagement with the parents. Until today, they are still very involved. There are parents whose children have already graduated, but they continue to stay involved. I met them at all our school functions. There is again, a sense of connectedness to people. They are still contributing to the school. There is a sense of mission, partly due to the fact that we are a mission school, and there is a sense of purpose.

Of course, all the various Methodist institutions helped along the way. People are always a critical thing and form part of my great memories of GM.

The other one is ‘process’. One of the things that I did here in GM is what I call ‘behaviour modification through the arts. When we had PRIME, I told the architect that I wanted big pillars so that we could put up paintings, as our students’ artworks were very good. Mrs Tan Hui Leng was in charge, and the Sec 4s made big installations. So putting up the paintings that students can feel and touch was important. Or there was this one year in the new building when we did pebbles. All the students' decorated pebbles, even the staff contributed as well, and we put them along the corridor. The school Heritage Wall as well as in the open. We didn’t want it in a special room. We wanted it in a place where you can feel it and touch it. There’s no need to cover it as you can trust the students that they will not dirty the thing. There is a sense of ownership as it is part of their history. And because of our belief in them, the students do not draw on the wall. They do not draw moustaches on the principals’ faces, and even now I believe the wall is still clean. The paintings as well. There was one I liked about the four seasons, I’m not sure if it’s still up. When students can appreciate beauty, when they know what beauty means, they will behave in a beautiful way. That’s how the arts can help with behaviour modification.

Even the concerts that they put up, the students are so proud to put up performances. During our 80th Anniversary, we put up a school musical called ‘Rice Matters’. The title has two meanings – ‘matters’ as a verb to show that rice matters and ‘matters’ as a noun to say that it is actually a basic essential. That musical really brought people together, with NA students doing the lead roles. There was a common belief, and the people coming and seeing our students put up a full musical – original and all that -  gave them a lot of confidence. I think after that the Drama Club has since done a lot of cool things.

I think a part of  ‘process’ is also the fact that GM is a mission school – we had a songbook that students had to buy and use. We believe in the process of looking to Jesus in everything, during devotions that we have daily – in Church you only hear it on Sundays but in this school you hear it 5 times a week. And the songs form part of the memories, for the students and the staff. In the Easter that just passed, I received a text from one of the teachers saying that she missed the special Thursday morning when I sang with them. That year, we unpacked the value of ‘Fear of God’, and how ‘fear’ does not mean ‘scared’, but it means to ‘honour’ God.

In the process of looking to Jesus, God blessed us in many ways, for example, there was no lack of resources. Of course, we prayed very hard and we saved more money than we needed because Mr Sam Chin Hwa (?) – the director then – said that he wanted to build an indoor sports hall. So it was a gamble, as we needed approval from MOE to fund part of it, otherwise, the school would have to pay for all of it. The board said, ‘We’ll go for it, we’ll trust God’, and it came much later that MOE made it a standard and paid 85% of it. We saved money in the end. So I think when you look unto Jesus, through the process God had shown that he had been faithful to us as we had been faithful to him.

I used to give devotion every Monday. At the beginning, it was a chore for a new principal who had never gone to a mission school before as a student or staff. So every Sunday I would listen hard to the message that the Pastor was saying. Afterwards, I got the hang of it, and I would reframe the message so that I could use the school values for my topic during devotion, drawing from the values we have, whether it is prudence or whatever, and take it from the Bible, or fruits of the spirit. So after 1 year, I came up with a theme of what I wanted to do, so that it was more structured. For me, that process, well I guess it is a product for me having the devotion book – a product that I am proud to have. I compiled and chose the best 31 devotions and compiled them into a book of devotions.

The product is a result of all the people and all the processes that we have gone through. The musical, ‘Rice Matters’, was a product of all these blessings and work that the people had put in. Even the cookbook, which is for the 80th Anniversary – we managed to get 80 recipes – in fact, we received more than 80 recipes, and we selected from them. It’s a collection from the people, from Board members to parents to teachers – anyone related to us can submit their best family recipes. It’s a book that one of the parents said she is proud to have. A book that is hardcover and very friendly for anyone who cooks. It’s something that we are proud of as a product.

I think PRIME is a product of trusting God. I think the Church – a stand alone chapel block and yet we do not compromise facilities – again because we look to Jesus that we can have a stand alone Chapel that is connected to the school. Especially for the Geylang community, that gave the confidence that students can come back, that students who had left GM can come back to for the service because they are believers. This product is important because it serves people beyond their years in GM. Even if they are not believers, I’m sure if they have queries the first thing they will think of is here. And many of the students live in this area, so they may want to come and see.

The Heritage Wall showcases the hard work over the years to when GM becomes what it is now.

1. What about challenges in the six years? What was the most challenging?

One of them was the PRIME project. Then, I was given the choice to go to the former Rangoon Secondary School. I was told that if I didn’t take the opportunity, PRIME would be delayed. I said ‘I myself must like the place before the students can like the place’.  For me, I’d rather wait because to me the place is important. The student must love coming to school. The staff must love coming to school. So any PRIME, even if we are moving away for just 2 years, for me I would rather wait for a place that we can call home, that we would look forward to attending. This decision caused some delay and it was a challenge looking for a place. To me, making that decision not to go, I needed to give good reasons for not taking the offer, and would rather wait.

The other big challenge, I think, is getting support from the other institutions. Before you can get support people must see that you are doing things to benefit the school. Balancing how much to do, versus not compromising your core business. That is a challenge to manoeuvre.

2. You shared a few significant events. What was the most significant?

The musical, to me, is an accumulation of all the hard work. I remember Kim Siah came down and he was so proud that GM could put up a full performance. I think it showed the people that we trusted that they could make it. There were many people who came who followed GM through the years, and to see the transformation and progress of GM made them proud. Not just the musical, I think. The people who were involved in the musical gave me great memories.

3. What about in the area of teaching and learning? Where there specific things that you were trying to nurture or introduce?

I think teachers are key. I made the teachers write reflections of commitment to the school. It could be about how they want to do, or after one term of school, what is one thing they have done that has a positive impact on their work. So using the teacher as a key to engage the students. The teachers must stay motivated. The teacher must be reflective to be an engaged teacher. In 2005, we made them talk about their commitment, and how they could engage the students. I’m so glad the teachers were so willing to write their commitments and give them to me to compile. They didn’t feel coerced, and they wrote truthfully. That is in 2005, and in 2007 December, they wrote their commitment for 2008, which was my last year. They wrote what they wanted to do. I photocopied their commitments and I returned them their originals so they had something to refer to, to see what they had wanted to do. Whatever programmes you want to have, if the teacher doesn’t commit and reflect, it won’t go through.

Finally, as we are about to celebrate our 95th anniversary, are there any words you would like to share with current and future students and staff?

I remember when we celebrated the 80th Anniversary, I told the students I would be around for the 100th anniversary of the school. 95th is a milestone check and GM is a grand old lady. I think everyone should feel proud of the people, of the process and of the product. I think as we remember this milestone of the 95th year, we must remember the people, not just now but in the past. And the people to come – how can we ensure that GM will survive into the 100th year. Remember the process that helped GM reached the 95th. It’s not easy. Being proud of the products – whether the students or staff or just looking around the school you can see the products. I remember one year I made the teachers come down to the Heritage Gallery during a staff meeting and made them see it. Then the staff realised there’s a lot of product. So for the 95th Anniversary, I would like to reflect on the people who have come and gone and the people to come, and then the process, and finally to be proud of the product.