Dr. Susan Lim began her work toward becoming a surgeon and researcher by attending one of the top-ranked secondary schools in Singapore, the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School. Founded in 1899 as an all-girls school, it is one of the oldest schools in the country.
When the school first opened, it was led by an English headmistress overseeing an initial enrollment of seven students. By 1952, the school enrollment was 900 and was open to students of all ethnic backgrounds. The Singapore Chinese Girls’ School opened its enrollment to boys in 1905, but the school administrators decided to end the practice in 1936 and return to an all-female enrollment.
Graduates of the school, such as Susan Lim, know that academic excellence has been the primary goal of the faculty and administration. The Singapore Ministry of Education honored the school with the School Excellence Award in recognition of its teaching methods and the high results those methods have achieved.
The School of Excellence Award was not the first recognition given to the school for its outstanding academic accomplishments. In 1971, students at the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School took the Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education O-Levels for the first time. Astonishingly, all students taking the examination at the school passed.
Singapore Chinese Girls’ School has built its curriculum around the traditional core values of sincerity, courage, generosity and service. The school is open to children from Primary 1 at six years old through graduation with the General Certificate of Education O-Levels. Students are prepared through the carefully structured curriculum to choose a variety of educational and career paths following the exit examination.
The school participates in the Integrated Program in collaboration with Catholic High School and St. Nicholas Girls’ School to offer its students an alternative to the usual educational pathway to a junior college and the General Certificate of Education A-Level. The Integrated Program combines academic and leadership development stressing ethical pursuits.
Future world leaders have emerged from the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School ready to take on the new challenges offered at the university level and beyond. This is due to the school’s educational process that focuses on the character and leadership potential of each student. The classes seek to help students achieve personal well-being, social well-being and responsible decision-making.
At the heart of the success of the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School is its mission to help each student to achieve the full potential of her character and capabilities. Its vision statement focuses on making each student an asset to Singapore while its value statement reinforces the importance of strong moral fiber and integrity.
The philosophy of the school is represented in the school’s colors of gold and jade, colors inspired by the JinYu philosophy of Chinese tradition. The gold represents the purity of the character and integrity found in each student. The jade, unlike gold that can be melted and formed into a new shape, must be shaped and crafted using care, artistry and love in much the same way that the school helps to form the personality of each student.