Rotaract Club of NTU: October 2007

Once again, the Rotaract Club of NTU has come up with a bright idea to provide a helping hand to those in need. This time, the Rotaract Club of NTU has decided to bring into focus the welfare of children in Singapore. The organization in which we’re working together with is the Fei Yue Community Services Student Care Centre. Briefly, let’s see what organization is the Rotaract Club collaborating with this time.

First off, the main organization, Fei Yue Community Services itself has its own mission to effect life transformation through the provision of quality social services. Fei Yue Student Care Centre, another centre under the Fei Yue Community Services is a centre which provides before-and-after school care services for primary school children (7-12 years) with no alternative childcare arrangements at home. Their core services include:

1. Daily supervision and coaching of school work
2. Fun and educational activities: computer,
craftwork, story-telling and others
3. Balanced and nutritious meals

Aside from that, the centre also provides other programmes and activities that not only aim for the academic achievement in the children, but also to shape them into honorable and admirable individuals in for the future. These, for instances are:

1. Character Building Workshop

2. Read and Learn Programme

3. Natural Science Clinic

4. Computer Class

5. Festive Art & Craft

Fei Yue Student Care Centre operates daily from 7am to 7pm and the fees per student are $250 per month. However, for the less able families, MCDS subsidy is available to families with income below $2500 per month.

Well, that’s more or less for the introduction of Fei Yue Community Services. As for the Rotaract Club of NTU, the Youth Development Committee has assign teams consisting of two persons each to provide assistance to the children in Fei Yue. These teams are of none other than our own undergraduate students in NTU and their role in this activity is to help out the students in Fei Yue, who are mainly in Primary One to Primary Six.

Last Saturday, on the 6^th of October 2007 was the first day of this activity. The Rotaract Club of NTU will be sending out people to Fei Yue Student Care Centre every Saturday and Wednesday to tutor the children over there. The tutors that went last Saturday was Yong Choon Seang and Wen Yan, from the Youth Development Sub-Committee.

Upon reaching the centre, we were greeted by Ms Eunice, who was the teacher in charge that day. Aside from her, there is also another teacher in charge who was not in last Saturday, Mr Nelson Ng. Anyway, Ms Eunice showed us the way in and showed us the kids that were there. The children there were brilliant looking and cute, not to mention active just like any other children who seek fun more than anything else in everything they do. Once we were there, Ms Eunice assigned one student to each of our tutors and Choon Seang and Wen Yan. Aside from that, Ms Eunice also gave us a short introduction regarding Fei Yue Student Care Centre. It was more or less like what’s stated above, except that she said about 20% of the students over there now are from low income family and they’re subsidized by MCDS.

Back to our tutors and the students. Choon Seang and Wen Yan each teach their respective students different subjects, depending of whichever is their weak subject. Choon Seang did some English and Mathematics with his student, while Wen Yan focused more on reading skills and grammar notation with hers. Well, they’re not the only one having all the fun over there, we, from the Publicity Sub Committee also spent some time playing games with the students there. After roughly about 2 hours, it was time for our leave and we bid the children goodbye for the day. Ms Eunice sent us off.

It was indeed a very good way to provide help to the children in need academically where at the same time, we, too learn how to communicate and project our knowledge and make someone understands us. This activity will go on regularly every Wednesday and Saturday.