Education at large : student life and activities in Singapore, 1945-1965

The first part of the book contains documentation of a groundbreaking exhibition held in 2007 on student activities and societal engagements during post-war Singapore 1945-1965 and transcripts of forums held in conjunction with it. The second half centres on oral history accounts of mostly former Chinese school students who shared about their social, cultural and political activities in complex but exciting times.Education-at-large broadens our understanding of Singapore's educational history in the transitional period between the end of the Second World War and the country's independence; examines the ways in which student activities and activism resonated with, and contributed to, the country's wider social, political and cultural life, as well as the decolonisation process; and stimulates debates about Chinese education and student activism in Singapore. CONTENTS Foreword: Those Unforgettable Experiences of Youth Lee Huay Leng Translated by Chan Cheow Thia Exhibition Photographs Historical Photographs Part I. Forum Documentation A Bilingual Forum: Inhabiting Two Different Worlds Dialogue Between Han Tan Juan and Koh Tai Ann Transcribed by Gan Woan Wen Translated by Tan Hui Yi and Swee Hui Weng Question and Answer My Project Work Experience Nur Nasuha My Thoughts on Participating in the Exhibition “Education at Large: Student Life and Activities in Singapore, 1945–1965” Hsin Shu Han Transcribed by Chan Cheow Thia Translated by Chiu Wei Li Some Thoughts on the “Education-at-Large” Exhibition Tan Pin Pin Perspectives in Student Movement Research Huang Jianli Transcribed and translated by Chan Cheow Pong A Very Brief History of Idealism in Singapore Kwok Kian Woon Transcribed by Chan Cheow Pong Translated by Low Yen Yen A Historical Account of the Chinese Book Industry in the 1950s to the 1960s Zhong Hongzhi Translated by Ng How Wee (i) From Pre-war to Post-war Era Bookstores during the Pre-war Era: Building a Cultural Bridge through Distribution Bookstores during the Post-war era: From Wholesaling to Publishing Overview The Publishing “Craze” Publication of Singaporean and Malaysian Literature (ii) Bookstores and Students 1. Banned Publications 2. Books on Literature, History and Philosophy 3. Self-Improvement Books and Books about Self-cultivation for Youths (iii) Bookstores and the Political Situation 1. The Establishment of a Bookstore 2. Impact of Anti-war Efforts 3. Carpet Ban on Communist Publications 4. The Rise of Local Consciousness 5. Change in Education Policies Part II. Oral History Brief Biographies of the Interviewees Lim Chin Joo Tan Kok Chiang Chen Mong Tse and Chai Chu Chun Lee Leong Seng Tan Teck Keng Chua Hiang Yong Youthful Wanderings amidst Student Movements An Interview with Lim Chin Joo Interviewed by Chiu Wei Li, Zhou Zhaocheng and Lee Huay Leng Transcribed and Compiled by Lee Huay Leng Translated by Chiu Wei Li and Chan Cheow Thia Family Background Encountering the Student Movement of the Times Transfer to Chinese School — Taking a Different Road An Interview with Tan Kok Chiang Interviewed by Lee Huay Leng Transcribed by Wang Peijie Translated by Chiu Wei Li and Francis Lim Khek Gee Family Background The May 13 Student Movement The SCMSSU Days Those Organised and Unorganised Times of Youth An Interview with Chen Mong Tse and Chai Chu Chun Interviewed by Zhong Hongzhi and Lee Huay Leng Transcribed by Zhong Hongzhi Translated by Low Yen Yen 1. Family and Education Background Students and Bookstores The Burgeoning Student Movements The May 13 Student Movement The Impact of Student Movements Active Older Siblings Observation as Historical Participation An Interview with Lee Leong Seng Interviewed by Chan Cheow Thia and Teng Siao See Transcribed by Lee Hui Jun, Ding Lee Yong and Chan Cheow Thia Translated by Teng Siao See Family Background The May 13 Incident and the SCMSSU thereafter Perception of Current Affairs The Establishment of Nanyang University Concern for One’s Future Growing Up with Literacy Classes An Interview with Tan Teck Keng Interviewed by Chan Cheow Thia, Teng Siao See Transcribed by Ku Ka Tsai, Lim Woan Fei, Chan Cheow Thia Translated by Ho Sheo Be Family Background Night School Collective Recreational Activities Activities and Current Affairs Teaching Literacy Classes Marriage Inspired by Literacy Classes The Sojourns of a Village Youth An Interview with Chua Hiang Yong Interviewed by Chan Cheow Thia Transcribed by Chan Cheow Thia, Chan Cheow Pong Translated by Lim Meow Nar Raising Funds Joining Small Learning Groups Organising Art Exhibitions Senior Middle School Classmates The World Beyond the School Campus Ethnic Chinese Students Learn Malay Passion for Popular Culture Part III. Appendix The Singapore Chinese Middle School Students’ Union: A Lost Echo of an Era Lim Chin Joo Translated by Melissa Gay Introduction Historical Background and the Formation Process of the SCMSSU The Organisational Structure of the SCMSSU List of SCMSSU’s Office-bearers The Premises of the SCMSSU Inauguration of the SCMSSU Message by Dean Huang Fangkui The Guiding Principles for SCMSSU’s Tasks Ahead: Excelling in Studies and Strengthening Unity I. Publicity Week to Drum Up Enthusiasm for Learning II. Cadres’ Training Classes III. Group Excursions, Spring Camps, Summer Camps IV. Commemorating International Women’s Day and the March 30 Student Protest V. The Commemoration of May 13 by Various Schools VI. The Debate: Malaya as our Country VII. A Letter to Fellow Students: Strive to Do Well in the Term Examinations VIII. External Relations: The Pan-Malayan Students’ Cultural Festival and the Afro-Asian Students’ Conference IX. Protesting Against the Federation Government’s Travel Restrictions X. The Wholehearted Support of SCMSSU for the 1956 Merdeka Talks On the Eve of the Storm Dissolution of the SCMSSU The Formation of the “Anti-Persecution Delegation” More Students Arrested The Management Boards’ Refusal to Close Down Chinese High and Chung Cheng High Tan Lark Sye’s Impassioned Speech The Anxious Management Boards The Students Stood Firm Intervention and Mediation by the Pan-Malayan Students’ Federation Dialogue with Lim Yew Hock and Chew Swee Kee Dispersal of the Students by Force A Great Setback to the Student Movement The Lost Echo of an Era Thoughts of Exhibition Visitors Transcribed by Lynn Ong Participating Schools Editors’ Notes: A Collective Imagery of Youth in the Island-State Chan Cheow Thia About the Editors Organising Committee/The Tangent Committee