Hey everyone, here’s part two of the miniseries ‘The things I learnt from teaching kindergarten’. The children’s lack of awareness about differences between the races made me reflect on the way the concept of racial harmony is taught in schools. Here’s a picture of the eggs the children painted in celebration of Easter Sunday before you read the post. Of course I taught the lesson. :D



All the kids in the childcare were effectively bilingual in English and Mandarin. It was only a matter of time before they noticed that I never conversed with them in Mandarin. That’s because I’m not Chinese and I never studied it myself. Eventually the big question came: “Teacher, why don’t you have a Chinese name?” I hesitated for a second. It dawned on me (surprisingly for the first time) that the children did not understand the cultural and racial boundaries that are glaringly obvious to grownups.

To understand my hesitation, one has to understand the context from which the hesitation arose. In Singapore we’ve been schooled in the idea of being racially aware, recognising, accepting and even celebrating cultural differences from the age of seven. This has worked well to preserve the peace we enjoy in the country. But perhaps inevitably, such a method has created a heightened awareness of the distinctions between cultural groups, as opposed to viewing society in its entirety. The children currently lived in an ideal world where people were just that. No labels, designations, religion or race attached to them. I could have explained the obvious, that I was not given a Chinese name because I was not of Chinese descent, that there are four main ethnic groups in Singapore and we should all live together peacefully, “regardless of race, language or religion”.

But I couldn’t do it.

Maybe it’s because the idealist in me didn’t want to be part of this aspect of socialisation. It is true that it would be years before the children fully understood what I was saying. Regardless, I was suddenly acutely aware of the impact of educators in early childhood and felt very under-qualified. Luckily four-year-olds don’t have a very long attention span and they soon found something else to do. That was the end of the discussion with the kids but the conversation continued to irk me. Sometimes I wonder if an upbringing in a society where meritocracy is prized higher than anything else has made me hypersensitive to anything politically incorrect. Order, equality, opportunity. This privileged lifestyle creates perfectionists, idealists with a limited belief in the realities of the world.

Perhaps my hesitance had to do with my own inability to reconcile my own feelings about the contrived way in which the concept of ‘racial harmony’ is introduced in schools. Maybe one day I’ll be able to recite a semi-rehearsed speech about the importance of harmonious co-existence for the progress and prosperity of the country without flinching.

But until then I hope that children will be taught to be kind and respecful to people for kindness' sake.

PAST • FUTURE