Issue 1 / Mar 2019
THE BROOKSIAN TIMES Latest news from Northbrooks Secondary
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE By Mr Nick Chan
Dear parents and the Northbrooks community, I warmly welcome all of you to join us for an exciting year in 2019! In this term’s newsletter, I would like to take this opportunity to unpack our School Vision. The first segment of the vision, ‘Every Brooksian a Champion’ highlights our aim to imbue the Champion Learning Mindset in our students. This Mindset involves never giving up in the process of learning and having resilience. The concept ‘resilience’ is sometimes defined as “the ability to bounce back”. But others argue getting back to a baseline is not enough – the goal should be to come back stronger, better positioned for the future, to “bounce forward”, as Professor
Patricia Longstaff of Syracuse University put it. On page 1, we learn about how Melvin Ang (Class of 2004) bounced forward when he faced setbacks in his life. We believe that this Mindset is the core quality that enables students to live their lives with passion. At the Appointment and Appreciation Ceremony for Principals, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung said, “Our children face a fastchanging, technologically-advanced and rapidly evolving future […]. Their best preparation is to know and be committed to developing their passions, talents and strengths.” Indeed, to prepare our Brooksians to be ready for an uncertain future, we strive to design a plethora of learning experiences for them to discover and pursue their passions. Read about some of the diverse passions of our Brooksians on page 4. The second part of our vision is ‘Impacting the community’. Here in Northbrooks, we advocate the idea ‘By Champions, For Champions’. This means our students are given opportunities to
plan, organise, lead and work in teams for their fellow peers in the Northbrooks community. One recent instance is when the student leaders had the chance to run this year’s CCA Display Day and Sec. One Orientation with much autonomy. Given the space to try and room to fail, they had a rich learning experience. Their efforts paid off too. The Sec One cohort participated in a new mass dance and our first ever evening campfire event on the last day of the orientation. What’s even more gratifying was the huge crowd of supportive parents who turned up for this event on a weeknight! We encourage all parents to participate in our school’s events whenever possible. Let’s work towards a synergistic and strong Home-SchoolCommunity partnership for many years to come! Let’s help our students, your children, to learn how to make mistakes, learn from their mistakes and grow in the process. And most importantly, let’s make their journey a positive, fulfilling and meaningful one. Thank you.
FACES OF NORTHBROOKS Bringing you closer to
Mr Melvin Ang By Ngeow Wei Qi, Nuh B Muhamad, Niki Sonia Noushin Saleh & Seth Neo (4G)
At one of the lowest points in attendance. Eventually, he his life, businessman and was asked to leave. former Brooksian Melvin Ang found himself at home, staring I would encourage at his room’s ceiling, not anyone, no matter knowing what to do with his life. It was 2006 and the then what the problem is, 18-year-old had just dropped to seek help from a out of Ngee Ann Polytechnic trusted adult. (NP). Melvin had been doing well in his engineering course in NP but frequent squabbles between his parents over financial issues at home took a toll on him. In his second year, he suffered sleepless nights and this affected his
However, Melvin did not give up on learning and turned to reading books.
selling refurbished guitars. To his surprise, he managed to From there, he slowly built his earn some money, enough to fund his private diploma and knowledge about business. first year of university. His He demonstrated resilience guitar business also gave the by starting a small business
30-year-old the confidence to start a few other businesses and eventually, his own brand, Kanshoku Ramen Bar. Continued on Page 3