My primary school headmaster

Post 126 Behaviour Corrector

My primary school life reminds me of the words my old headmaster had repeatedly told us in each school assembly. Having gone through life for another 55 years since my primary education, I realise that my headmaster,deemed to be old by me then, was not really old; he could be only in his 40s at that time. He might have been remembered for his stereotyped speeches, but I found him a very gentle and kind behaviour corrector in encouraging us to follow rules and regulations, study hard, pay attention in class, not to tell lies, and be a good citizen when we grew up.

Life as educators in the 1950s was impoverished and without exception the life of my headmaster was a simple one. His material possession was literally only the few personal effects that he had had, with bicycle as his prized item. The Chinese saying of ‘eating grass to squeeze the milk’ was very befitting to my headmaster and his contemporary. Indeed having said that, it is without doubt that I am also very thankful to the well-intentioned teachers who taught with dedication. They were excellent behaviour correctors, just like my headmaster.

As the world becomes industrialised and with the emergence of capitalism, a person’s worth eventually is judged by his wealth and not by his character. Nowadays the standard of education suffers because people tend to prefer materialism to idealism. The word ‘character’ has now slowly lost its ethical significance.

Nothing remains when character wanes. – Ho Nee Yong

10 January 2012