Colourful traditional costumes and cultural crafts could be seen all around Northbrooks Secondary School on Thursday morning, as President Halimah Yacob joined in the school’s festivities to celebrate Racial Harmony Day.
Madam Halimah’s first stop was the school hall where local fusion food, cultural crafts and ethnic costumes from the three major ethnic groups were on display at booths run by students.
Next was the audio visual aid room, where she caught a glimpse of students sketching on their iPads during an art lesson.
Racial Harmony Day, which officially falls on July 21, is an annual event with schools holding activities to educate students on race and values such as respecting differences.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, Madam Halimah said: “It was heartening to witness our younger generation coming together to learn about our multicultural society. It is important for our children to be aware that we live in a diverse society and that our difference is a strength and a cause to celebrate.
“I thank our schools for their efforts and encourage them to continue to foster racial harmony and build bridges of understanding among our communities.”
Madam Halimah was also introduced to the school’s applied learning programme on aerospace in the flight simulation room, where she observed a flight simulator demonstration.
The event ended with an interaction session, where students got an opportunity to chat with the President. There, Madam Halimah shared her life experiences and gave advice about being compassionate and helping others.
One of the students who participated in the session was student council president Ang Kay Lee, 14. The Secondary 3 student was impressed by how friendly Madam Halimah was and expressed appreciation for the insights she shared.
She added: “It was an eye-opening experience having the chance to better understand her leadership style by listening to her perspectives and way of doing things.”
Another student, Ranbir Singh, 12, shared his own unique experience with multiculturalism – he had been learning Chinese since nursery school.
He was first taught the language by his babysitter and, subsequently, his mother encouraged him to continue learning it. He has kept up with his studies at secondary school, learning Chinese as his mother tongue language.
Said the Secondary 1 student: “Although it is now a bit of a struggle as I learn new words, it is still fun to do so. And being able to better understand and communicate with others is also helpful. It gives me a bigger picture of different cultures.”
