Speech by Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister for Education and Second Minister for Finance on Crescent Girls' School 50th Anniversary Launch of its Heritage Gallery and Arts Conservatory on Saturday, 29th July 2006 at 9 am

SPEECH BY MR. THARMAN SHANMUGARATNAM, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND SECOND MINISTER FOR FINANCE ON CRESCENT GIRLS’ SCHOOL 50TH ANNIVERSARY LAUNCH OF ITS HERITAGE GALLERY AND ARTS CONSERVATORY ON SATURDAY, 29TH JULY 2006 AT 9 AM

1. It is a privilege for me to be here at Crescent’s Golden Jubilee celebrations. Today we celebrate the vision and hard work of Crescent’s staff and stakeholders - the successive generations of school leaders and staff, SAC members, alumnae and parents who have made the school what it is.

2. It is a school that is much sought after. Walking through your Heritage Gallery, it is easy to see why. Crescent has distinguished itself to students and parents - in many fields, and over a period of decades. It was the first secondary school to receive the Public Service Award by the Prime Minister’s office. More recently, it obtained MOE’s School Distinction. These awards reflect Crescent’s relentless efforts to provide its girls a top quality, all round education.

3. They also reflect the confidence you have in your students. Because you have confidence in your students, you have been willing to innovate and break new ground in education. In breaking new ground, Crescent has developed peaks of excellence in areas such as the creative arts and information technology in recent years.

Launch of Arts Conservatory at Crescent
4. Crescent has however gone beyond opening up new trails for its own students. It has also been a leader in the Creative Arts and IT for the South 2 cluster of schools, and has been established as the Cluster Centre of Excellence in both Creative Arts and Information Technology (IT).

5. Two years ago, I was here to launch the Backpack.NET programme. It is the sort of thing that widens horizons - the horizons of both teachers and students.

6. I am happy to be here again today to launch another horizon-widening initiative, this time the Arts Conservatory. It is the result of a great deal of teamwork and effort – on the part of Crescent’s School Advisory Committee, its Alumni, Parent Support Group, teachers, students and well-wishers. I commend everyone involved for bringing this to fruition, and for sharing these Arts facilities with the rest of the schools in the Cluster as well as the neighbouring special schools.

7. The Conservatory can push the frontiers in arts education. It will allow our students to experiment with new forms of expression. It will also, I am sure, help to bring out talents in our students that many do not realize they have.

Tribute to Crescent’ Teachers
8. However, the defining feature of a Crescent education is not its programmes to develop special skills such as in the creative arts, or in using new IT-based learning methods. When we think of Crescent, what stays in the mind is I think its emphasis on developing character and leadership in students. That is how Crescent has nurtured strong individuals - individuals who have made significant contributions to society, whether in the civil service, business, politics or in the community. I hope this will also be how we think of Crescent 30 years from now, and that many more outstanding leaders will be nurtured from within your fold.

9 But we all know that none of this would have been possible without Crescent’s dedicated cast of teachers. At the heart of a quality education are our teachers - teachers who interact with their students and enthuse them, within the classroom, on the e-mail, on the performing stage or out on the field. It is Crescent’s teachers who motivate and spur your students to spread their wings, and make a difference with their lives.

10. Crescent’s teachers have also been at the forefront of professional development. In the past one year, I understand that the teachers presented six research papers at international conferences and jointly conducted a research project with the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) International. I was really quite impressed by this. It is the sort of zeal that we need in every profession in Singapore - an unyielding desire to improve, to delve deeper and to discover new ways of doing things - in this case, to improve educational practices so as to enrich our students’ learning.

Conclusion
11. So before I conclude, let me urge Crescent to keep up this culture. Aim to leave an impression on your students so that they remember you not just as teachers who gave them skills, but as the ones who gave them confidence in themselves, helped them to discover strengths they never knew they had, and spurred them to spread their wings, and make a difference to others.

12 I am sure that the strong partnership that the school has with its partners and stakeholders will help it keep the culture going, strengthen it and take the school to new heights. I congratulate the SAC, Alumni, Principal and staff of Crescent Girls’ School on the launch of your Arts Conservatory. Have a joyous 50th Anniversary celebration!