Citizenship Programme
1) NE Commemorative Days
Total Defence Day
Schools commemorate Total Defence Day on 15 February annually to mark Singapore’s fall to the Japanese in 1942. Total Defence Day serves to remind our pupils that Singapore is defensible and is worth defending, and we ourselves must defend Singapore.
International Friendship Day
IFD is commemorated in schools on the 3rd Friday of Term 2 that is a working day. International Friendship Day is a day dedicated to the understanding of Singapore’s relations with neighbouring countries and beyond. It aims to sensitise our children towards the geo-political realities inherent in Singapore, as well as nurture in our students the spirit of friendship and collaboration among different people.
Racial Harmony Day
On 21 July each year, schools in Singapore commemorate Racial Harmony Day (RHD) to mark the anniversary of the 1964 racial riots. On this day, students will reflect on and celebrate Singapore as a harmonious society built on a rich diversity of cultures.
National Day
National Day marks our Separation from Malaysia, and our emergence as an independent country in the community of nations. Since 1998, a National Day Ceremony was introduced in schools. This Ceremony aims to bring to the students a greater sense of the historical importance and solemnity of National Day. Schools conduct a 15-minute National Day Ceremony which is more formal than the festivities that schools usually organise.
2) Lead-up activities
In ACS(P), we commemorate NE Commerative Days by having lead-up activities to explicitly teach the pupils and do activities about the event. These activities are tied to our iHOPEFUL values and CCE learning outcomes. We provide pupils not only with skills and knowledge for the future, but with the values and attitudes to be good citizens, conscious of their responsibilities to family, community and country. We believe our pupils must learn the facts of how we became a nation, why our constraints and vulnerabilities make us different from other countries and why we must continue to work together and outperform others to succeed in future.
The cultivation of national instincts among pupils will have two prongs - first to develop an awareness of facts, circumstances and opportunities facing Singapore, so that they will be able to make decisions for their future with conviction and realism; and second, to develop a sense of emotional belonging and commitment to the community and nation so that they will stay and fight when the odds are against us. Through the various activities, we build strong school communities, instilling group instincts and loyalty through the rituals of school life as a starting point for cultivating a sense of belonging and commitment to society.
3) CCE Curriculum (MT)
The new CCE syllabus is anchored on core values, social and emotional competencies, and skills related to character and citizenship development. CCE lessons are based on the life experiences that students undergo, drawing out values and skills appropriate at the students’ age.
Students are guided to apply the core values of respect, responsibility, resilience, integrity, care and harmony; make decisions and act on them in a responsible way. There is also a reflection component to encourage students to think of their experiences, learn from it and apply their learning.
4) The ACSian Identity
To develop the pupils into ‘citizens of the school’, the school focuses on providing learning opportunities that build our pupils’ identity with our school. We believe that we must build in our pupils a deep sense of belonging so that there is a strong sense of school pride and affect.
This is done through:
- Lessons on ACS History and Heritage
- Celebration of school events such as Founder’s Day and Honours Day
- Participation in school events and activities such as ACS Carnival, Swim Meet, Track and Field Meet, TerrAqua Fest, ACS(P) Family Day, Conducive Learning Environment Challenge, House System
- Representing school in competitions.