The Beacon Online: SAM Orientation Day

Pathway to new beginnings

I remember my first day of college vividly - it left a lasting impression on me that I will always look back on with fondness. A few days ago, my friends and I attempted to recreate that first day college experience for the March intake SAM students. Our programme coordinator, Mr. Fong Mun Chou, had called for a committee to organize an activity for the March intake’s orientation day that would help the new students get to know key locations inside the college (such as the library, the ECA office, and the Student Success Room). After much planning and deliberation, we were ready to carry out a mini “Amazing Race” on orientation day which was to be on the 31st of March. In the morning, the new students congregated in the Alpha Theatre for a general briefing. Then, our project leader, Ee Lynn Leong, and helper, Wen Yie explained the objectives and the rules of the activity to the students. The students were then split into groups of five to six people. Each group was given a clue that led them to their next location (of course, each group had a different sequence of locations!). At their next location, they had to engage in smaller games/activities in order to obtain their next clue and so on. The committee members were stationed at each location ready to give out their clues to the flurry of new students who could be heard dispersing loudly from the Alpha Theatre when they exited the theatre at about 10am. Altogether, there were seven locations and the group that finished the fastest would be the winner.

One of the locations was the Academic Service Centre, where committee member Fong Lian cracked students’ brains by giving them Math’s problems to solve. If they failed, one person from the group was ordered to do push-ups - which none of them took very kindly to. (Though I’m sure Fong Lian enjoyed it very much.) Then, there was the library where students were asked to play charades with one member of the group acting while the other members of the group tried to guess the word. Here’s the ingenious part: the word was a title of a book in the library where the next clue was hidden. The Career and Counselling Centre was another location, as well as the Student Success Room where students enjoyed a more relaxing game of scissors-paper-stone. The ping-pong table outside the ECA office was utilized by committee members (Esther and Jason) to challenge groups to a game of ping-pong in order to obtain their next clue. Committee member, Intan handled the Placement Centre by getting students to collect information about the “Group of 8” universities in Australia and students had another difficult time finding clues stuck around the ICT Office. Then, after completing the mini “Amazing Race”, the students had to solve a crossword with the names of the seven departments they had visited. Although all five groups commendably finished within an hour, Group 4 quickly emerged as the triumphant winner. After the new students were rejuvenated by the activity, the teachers took over for the rest of the day - to impart their energy and wisdom to the March intake students like they did for their previous intakes. Hopefully, all of this contributed to a memorable and enjoyable first day of college for the March intake students. Congratulations to everyone who participated on a job well done; and to all the new SAM students, welcome to TCSH!