School Crest, History and Song

School Crest, History and Song

School Crest

The torch symbolises a beacon of truth and wisdom as students constantly seek to increase their knowledge and capacity for learning.

The three stripes on the torch depict the unity and cooperation from staff, parents and the community as they support our students’ learning to achieve excellence and success in their endeavours.

The colour red represents the enthusiasm and passion for life-long learning.

The colour yellow symbolises the bright future that is attainable when students strive for academic excellence, self-discipline and sound values in life.

The colour brown symbolises our loyalty to school and deep roots in our community and nation.

The colour turquoise indicates the proximity of the sea at Punggol and the limitless opportunities for learning.

The turquoise ring represents the well-balanced, value-added education provided at Punggol Secondary School.

School History

In 1956, a group of prominent female educationalists in Singapore, which included the late Mdm Wang Yu Chong, discovered a lack of vocational training courses in Singapore, especially for young girls of schooling age. Together with Mdm Ang Pek Hoon and a group of Chinese education enthusiasts, they established the Singapore Girls' Vocational High School to educate and prepare girls for the workforce. 

The school was named Singapore Girls' Vocational High School because back then, there was no Chinese medium vocational school. The aim of the of the school was to provide opportunities for female teenagers to study mainstream subjects and attend  vocational training courses such as Book keeping, Home Economics and English and Chinese Typewriting. It was one of the first few schools which provided vocational training courses. 

The school was established on 8 May 1957 using houses at 45 - 47 Oxley Road as our campus. The school was led by Mdm Wang Yu Chong as the principal, together with four other teachers and a staff member. 

In the first year, there were two classes for the higher stream and one class for the junior stream, with a total of 108 students. Chinese Language, Commercial Book-keeping, Accounting, Sewing, Home Economics and English Language were taught. Within two years, subjects which were more relevant to the workforce were taught, resulting in more people registering for placement. By 1959, there were a total of 12 classes.

In 1972, there was a change of members in the School Advisory Committee. The new committee was headed by Mr Ang Keong Lan, Chairman, and Mr Huang Guang Ming, Vice-Chairman. The reestablishment of the school at a new premise was well-supported by the board of directors. With the donation from the board of directors, the Lee Foundation, and a grant given by the Ministry of Education (MOE), the school was re-sited to Toa Payoh East and renamed Pei Dao Secondary School.

In 1978, in keeping with MOE’s policy of the integration of students from different language streams, Pei Dao Secondary School began to take in English stream pupils and became co-educational. Since then, the pupil enrolment has grown.

In 1986, the school relinquished its aided school status and became a government school.

Pei Dao Secondary School was renowned for its prowess in Volleyball, in both ‘B’ and ‘C’ divisions, winning many championships at the local and national level since 1982. It also won many value-added awards for Express or Normal courses in the GCE ‘O’ and ‘N’ level examinations for the years 1993, 1995 and 2000.

In 2001, Pei Dao Secondary School was renamed Punggol Secondary School and relocated to Punggol New Town. The school retained its Chinese name because of its strong emphasis on the character development of pupils. Punggol Secondary School will continue to shine as a beacon of truth and wisdom and will be the model school in Punggol New Town.

The school official opening was held on 1 August 2003, by Ms Penny Low, Member of Parliament, Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.

Since the inception of the school, Punggol Secondary School continues its mission to provide a values-based and value-added education to all its students. We are guided by our philosophy that education is a journey of self-discovery and we provide our students with the opportunities to discover themselves, acquire the relevant skills and be instilled with strong values so as to navigate the future with confidence.

In chronological order, these are the Principals who have headed the school:

• Mdm Wang Yu Chong - 1957 – 1969

• Mr Ling Ling - 1970 – 1978

• Mr Lim Chin Chee - 1979 – 1983

• Mr Wong Tong Hoi - 1984 – 1990

• Miss Chee Mei Chun - 1991 – 1996

• Mr Ow Chiong Hoo - 1997 – 2000

• Mr Goh Soon Guan - 2001 – 2004

• Mdm Lee Eet Fong - 2005 – 2011

• Mr Benedict Keh - 2012 – 2018

• Mrs Angeline Huang - 2019 – 2022

• Ms Valerie Tng - 2023 - present

School Song

Chorus

Forward, Forward, Punggolites!

Foremost in every endeavour.

Celebrate our school with honour and pride,

Marching onward ever.

Verse 1

Seas of love, Oceans of joy,

Boundless waves of opportunities.

Surge and lift us higher still to where streams of wisdom fill

Our lives and our school and community.

Verse 2

Aims are high, Goals are clear

Champion skills and education.

Ardent diligence in truth is inspiring our youth To cherish the success of our nation.

(Lyrics suggested by Principal and Staff of Punggol Sec School. Revised and adapted by Mr Derek Cable)