Pasir Ris Secondary School

Infobox Singapore School
name = Pasir Ris Secondary School
思励中学 (sī lì zhōng xǘe)
Sekolah Menengah Pasir Ris


motto = Pride And Responsibility
established = Jan 2,1985
type = Government, Co-Educational, Single-Session
principal = Ms Cheng Hwee Yeang
city/town = Tampines
school code = 3235
school colours =Yellow, Green
enrollment = approx. 1500
homepage = [http://www.pasirrissec.moe.edu.sg/ http://www.pasirrissec.moe.edu.sg/]

Pasir Ris Secondary School is a secondary school in Singapore. It was one of the first secondary schools to be established in the area, which was then called Pasir Ris. Today, the area is now known as Tampines, Pasir Ris being another area close by, but the school's name has been left the same to retain its historical value. The school has been ranked among the top 50 schools in Singapore, consistently over the past 3 years, based on academic results.

History

Pasir Ris Secondary School was established on 2 January 1985 at the premises of Chongzheng Primary School. At that time, Pasir Ris Secondary School had its own premises under construction. With eleven Secondary 1 classes and 16 teaching staff, it was the first secondary school to be established in Tampines New Town to serve the growing number of students there. The school moved to its own new school campus, located at Tampines St 21 on 8 April 1985.

In 1997, a building extension project started so as to add on more classrooms for the school to go single session in 2000. A new wing was built on the campus, adding a new science lab and other facilities such as more computer rooms, and IT resource rooms. The school began its single session on 2 January 2000 with 39 classes.

The school was validated and in 2004, Pasir Ris Secondary received the People Developer Standard(PDS).

The school underwent PRIME in end 2005 to provide students with a more conducive environment through the improvement of school facilities. During the period, the school was relocated to temporary premises on Bedok South Road, the former premises of the Temasek Primary and Secondary Schools.

Upgrading of the school buildings were completed by November 2007. However, the construction of the sports hall will continue until mid 2008(tentative). This is due to the fact that construction of the sports hall started much later than that of the rest of the school, as it was added to the plans under a ministry directive to progressively provide secondary schools with indoor sports halls. Pasir Ris Secondary School is part of the first batch of schools to receive this facility.

The school has a fully wireless-networked campus. Wi-fi access is available in many public areas in the school.

Leadership

The school has been led by various principals, namely
*Ms Paramitha Bandara ( Jan 1985- Dec 1994)
*Mr Ng Siok Yen ( Jan 1995- Feb 2000)
*Ms Yeo Hong Mui ( Feb 2000- Nov 2004)
*Ms Cheng Hwee Yeang ( Nov 2004- present)

Each principal introduced a unique set of ideas into the school that has set the basis for its continuous improvement and progress. The school has progressed year-on-year, with improving academic results in the GCE examinations.

Academics

Pasir Ris Secondary School has seen constantly improving results since the inception of the school.

More recently, in 2005, the school was placed in Band 9 for the express stream and Band 5 for the normal stream on the school achievement table. In 2006, the school was placed in Band 8 for express stream and band 2 for normal stream.

This table is obtained through comparison of the schools' results in the GCE 'N' and 'O' Level examinations. These results effectively mean that the school is ranked among the top 50 schools in Singapore. The school has in the past few years also gained a reputation among parents in the area of having responsible and caring teachers. This has led to the increasing popularity of the school as a first choice amongst students enrolling in secondary schools after the Primary School Leaving Examinations.

Achievements

A nationwide initiative, Co-Curricular activities(CCAs) are intended to enrich the school life of students by exposing them to various experiences. PRSS offers 20 CCAs to its students. New groups are being added according to the needs of students. Besides core CCAs, other interest groups such as Debating and Snooker exist in the school. Students with such interests may join such groups. Dragon boating is a CCA unique to the school, as there are relatively few schools offering such a CCA to its students.

Concert Band

The Pasir Ris Secondary School Concert Band (Pasir Ris Band) is the Concert band of Pasir Ris Secondary School. It was started in the early 1990s and has participated in Eight SYF competitions, most recently attaining a Silver medal in 2007, and held five concerts at the Victoria concert hall.

The band has participated in the WASBE 2005 and also made numerous public performances. It has also participated in numerous international exchange programmes, allowing students to gain valuable experience.

Chinese Orchestra

The Pasir Ris Secondary School Chinese Orchestra started off as the Pasir Ris Ruan Ensemble in 1995 and expanded to a full-scale orchestra in 2001. Under the baton of Ms Ding Xiao Yan, the orchestra won the Gold Award in the Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) Central Judging for Chinese Orchestras in 2003 and 2005. In 2007, the orchestra won the Gold with Honours Award, being the first neighbourhood school to achieve this.

Choir

The Pasir Ris Secondary School Choir is the Choir of Pasir Ris Secondary School. Over the years, the Pasir Ris Secondary School Choir has evolved into a 70-member strong choir and is now led by the Choral Conductor, Ms Joey Lye. In 2007, the Choir achieved a Gold at the Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) Competition.

Other CCA Groups

There are a variety of other groups in the areas of Sports, Performing Arts, Uniformed Groups and Clubs to cater to differing interests. Examples include the Malay Dance group, which achieved a Silver Award at the 2007 SYF, and other groups such as the Infocomm club, which achieved a Merit Award at the 8th School Video Awards.

The school's uniformed groups have consistently done well at the SYF. In 2007, the National Cadet Corp(NCC)(boys unit) and the National Police Cadet Corp(NPCC) achieved gold awards at the SYF. The NCC (girls unit) achieved a silver at the SYF.

The school also is part of the Laguna National Golf and Country Club Youth Golf Program. This has allowed students with the interest to be exposed to golf under this sponsored program, at no cost to them.

Co-Curricular Activities

Cultural Activities and Clubs

*Art & Craft Club
*Chinese Cultural Club
*Chinese Orchestra
*Choir
*Concert Band
*InfoComm Club
*Malay Cultural Club
*Service Learning Society

ports & Games

*Badminton
*Golf
*Netball
*Sea Sports
*Snooker
*Soccer
*Table Tennis
*Taekwondo
*Volleyball

Uniformed Groups

*National Cadet Corps (Land)
*National Police Cadet Corps
*Red Cross Youth

External links

* [http://schools.moe.edu.sg/prss Pasir Ris Secondary School]