Humanities

> “The Humanities are the stories, the ideas, and the words that help us make sense of our lives and our world. The Humanities help us address the challenges we face together in our families, in our communities and as a nation” – Lyn Maxwell White

The Humanities Department provides various opportunities for students to make meaningful connections between what they learn in the classrooms and the world around them. In our technologically advanced world today, Humanities education has become even more important to prepare our students for more complex and broader challenges of the future.

Real-Life Application of History and Geography Skills

Often, the study of History and Geography is a passive experience. This is not the case when students embark on field trips to put their History and Geography skills in action to connect with what they are learning in the classroom. For example, in History lessons Secondary One students get a better understanding of our local history through their Learning Journeys to various ethnic Heritage Centres and the National Museum to study the primary source materials. Upper Secondary students, on the other hand, learn part of modern world history through an exciting board game while putting their history knowledge and critical thinking to the test.

**Students learning History through a board game**

Our Geography education provides students with hands-on experience during Geographical Investigation fieldwork for Secondary Two students. Teachers design questionnaires to test students’ hypotheses, while students collate and analyse the data gathered from the tourists at Marina Bay Sands and Orchard Road before presenting their findings to their classmates. The Secondary Four and Five students carry out hydroponic farming to understand the role of technology in food production.

**Students measuring energy produced by a solar panel with a multimeter**

Department Programmes and Events

The department also regularly brings in exhibitions to enrich our curriculum.

The Central Provident Fund (CPF) exhibition complements our Social Studies curriculum in explaining how the government and citizens can work together to meet citizens’ housing, medical and retirement needs. The key message is that although the government has the CPF system as compulsory savings for employees, saving enough for rainy days is also an individual responsibility.

The Internal Security Department (ISD) exhibition showed the turbulent security history, from the communist subversion and the Laju Hijack to the recent threats from Jemaah Islamiyah, ISIS and self-radicalisation. The exhibition sends a strong message that security is not just the government’s responsibility; students can also play a significant part through the SG Secure national movement by staying vigilant to safeguard our way of life, peace and harmony.

**Students are attending a talk at the ISD exhibition held in school**

The Humanities department also builds our students’ confidence by exposing them to competitions. For example, a team of Geography students fabricated a model of an earthquake-resistant building that won the Merit Prize. This helped students to assess the effectiveness of strategies in mitigating and responding to the effects of earthquakes.

External Competitions & Events

The department encourages students to participate in external competitions/events to further develop a wide range of skills such as critical thinking, teamwork, time management and communication. Some of these competitions/ events include:

Geography Challenge by NUS
Historical Scene Investigations Challenge by NLB
Model United Nations Conference
National Budget Quiz