the sun's on my side
bring me for a ride
i smile up the sky
i know i'll be alright
♥ ♥ ♥

Thursday, February 24, 2005

Life in a poly - a survival guide

Reality bites at poly. For good or bad, life there may not be what secondary school students expect. Like the girl who thought a diploma was a breeze - until she failed all her subjects. Another student worried that poly was a dog-eat-dog world - until she got there and started enjoying herself. Clearly, there's a gulf between poly myths and truths. So here, poly seniors come up with their own guide. Jane Ng & Yeo Ghim Lay report.

MIND YOUR EQ
Every subject at the polytechnic has major projects and they all need to be done as a team.
Your peers will be judging you. At Republic Polytechnic, students are asked to assess teammates' contribution, which goes towards the final grade. 'If you can't work well with people, your evaluation will be affected,' said first-year engineering student Nilofer Ashraff, 17.
Third-year business student Joyce Tooby from Singapore Polytechnic had to cajole her teammates to cooperate. Each of them thought he was doing more than the others. So she listed the tasks each was handling. 'When they could see that everyone was contributing, they were more willing to work,' she said.

BE A SHOWMAN
Just as projects are a staple in polytechnic life, presentations happen often. Students can find themselves standing in front of a lecture theatre filled with 100 of their peers.
The first few presentations, at least, can be terrifying, especially when it comes to the grilling sessions when students throw up questions.
First-year Singapore Polytechnic student Edison Ng recalls having to practise in front of the mirror and presenting to his parents to prepare.
'I like to talk, but when I had to present I got scared and felt the air-conditioner was very cold,' he said.
It took a whole semester before he got used to it. Now, the presentations he does every other week are a breeze.

DO YOUR RESEARCH
Polytechnic isn't a playground. Students from all five listed a string of deadlines they had to meet every other week. And answers are no longer found in the textbooks.
'Previously, you could rely on 10-year series to get you through. But in poly, you search for your own resources,' said first-year occupational therapy student Jasmine Ong, 21, of Nanyang Polytechnic.
'Work doesn't end when lessons are over, as we are expected to do our own research after that,' said Miss Ong, who has at least three major projects per semester and stays back late almost every day.

PICK AND CHOOSE
'Know what you want to do in life before you choose your course because this is just a stepping stone in your life,' said Singapore Polytechnic's Edison Ng.
Students emphasised the importance of selecting the right course, and not just doing what their friends are going for.
For those who have done so, knowing that they have made the right choice makes learning a joy.
'Unlike secondary school, I'm learning what I am interested in here because I chose my own course. It's a refreshing change from subjects being forced onto you,' said Mr Sean De Rozario, 19, a second-year aerospace technology student at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

NO MORE UNIFORMS
A highlight for many polytechnic students is exchanging their secondary school uniforms for chic casual wear.
As Temasek Polytechnic third-year product engineering student Celeste Wong said: 'Going to poly is like attending a fashion parade. The students, especially from the business school, are well dressed.'
Business student Jonathan See, who has to wear a suit and tie to class twice a week for his course on persuasive communication, said learning to coordinate his clothes is part of polytechnic education.
'I wore a long-sleeved blue shirt with a gold tie the first week and my classmates said the colours clashed,' he said, but admitted that he enjoyed dressing up for class.