Nanyang Girls' High apologises after attire check made students 'feel uncomfortable'

Nanyang Girls' High School has spoken to its students and is monitoring the affected girls following the attire check. PHOTO: ST FILE

SINGAPORE - Nanyang Girls' High School (NYGH) has apologised to students and parents after an incident emerged during an attire check on Jan 22.

Chinese paper Shin Min Daily News reported that a female teacher, believed to be the Secondary 4 year head, had unbuttoned students' uniforms to check the colour of their bra straps during the attire check.

Shin Min reported that NYGH students are allowed to wear only white or beige undergarments.

A parent told the Chinese paper that the female teacher involved in the incident had been conducting the attire check on behalf of the male form teacher.

However, the teacher allegedly undid the collar buttons of students' uniforms and pulled out their bra straps during her checks.

In response to queries from The Straits Times on Tuesday (Jan 29), NYGH's head of relations and heritage Zhang Bo said that a female teacher's approach in conducting a recent routine attire check "had caused some students to feel uncomfortable".

In a statement, he confirmed that "the principal has sent an e-mail to all parents to clarify the matter and reassure them". Shin Min reported that the e-mail was sent last Thursday.

NYGH's attire policy aims to educate students to be neat and presentable, and guidelines cover students' general grooming and full attire, Mr Zhang said.

The school has spoken to its students and is monitoring the affected girls, he added. The teacher involved has also apologised to the students.

"The school is committed to establishing a nurturing and conducive learning environment for all students," he said.

ST understands that several students later posted about the incident on social media, expressing their disappointment at the way the spot checks were conducted.

Many of these postings have since been removed.

A 19-year-old former student of NYGH who declined to be named told ST that such uniform checks were not in place when she was attending the school.

However, teachers would give "verbal warnings" if they spotted students wearing undergarments of other colours, she said.

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