Music teacher Ng Sheh Feng has a mission - to debunk the myth that music is only for the "atas", or high-class people.

In the past three years, the Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary music coordinator has exposed students - many of whom come from less affluent families - to concerts, mentorship by Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music students, arts internships and lunchtime concerts.

She even went out of her way to arrange for two visually impaired girls to take O-level music - a first in Singapore. They passed the exam.

Ms Ng, 36, who yesterday received the President's Award for Teachers, has been playing the piano since she was young.

Still, at first, she could not answer the two girls who came up to her to ask if they could learn music as an O-level subject.

"I had not taught visually impaired students, and I didn't know if it was possible for music," she said.

But she and her colleagues spent the next year or so experimenting with different ways of assessing them, from replacing musical notation with an audio recording of students' compositions, and giving them more time during listening components.

She also worked with branches at the Ministry of Education and the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board in the process.

When she was posted to the secondary school in 2015, she had sensed a lack of interest in music among students.

"There was a misconception that music is only for the elite," she said. Some parents also felt music was not a practical subject.

"Our mission is to make music more accessible to all students, no matter their background," said Ms Ng.

She and a few other music teachers came up with a four-year programme, laying the foundation for students in the first two years and preparing them in the later years for O-level music.

Her school now has 23 students taking music across all levels.

"We have managed to make music cool, and more students see it as a possible pathway," said Ms Ng, the head of department for partnerships.

Amelia Teng