Should you be rewarded for your efforts in school?

The answer for me is a definite “Yes”. All people alike love receiving rewards. Why should students be exempted?

Let us look at why people love receiving rewards. It makes them feel that their work is appreciated and that their efforts have paid off. It will also motivate them to work even harder.

From my knowledge, the Singapore government gives out quite a few awards each year to those who did well academically, in sports and aesthetically. However, this does not cater to everyone.

Some students may be trying very hard but cannot make the mark both academically and aesthetically. However, they are not rewarded and may just give up. To remind these students that they are just as important as anyone else, they also should be rewarded.

I feel that achievements need not be big to be rewarded. In my old primary school, they had this thing called the “five-mark challenge” where pupils improve by five marks each time for each subject. If they achieve this in two or more subjects, they are rewarded. This strategy has worked and has really helped to pull up the grades of some students especially those in the weaker classes in the school.

Therefore, I feel that it is a “win-win” situation if students are rewarded for their efforts in school.

What is Beauty?

To me, there are two kinds of beauty. The first kind is outer beauty and the second kind is inner beauty.

What most people see as beauty is outer beauty. Outer beauty is the nice hair you have, the beautiful face and the wonderful body shape a person has. I agree that this is a form of beauty but I feel that the other kind of beauty is more important.

The other kind of beauty is a person’s character. For example, a person’s kindness towards something else is a form of beauty in itself.

In my opinion, many people only care about their outer beauty. This can be seen in the way some people go about their life. Many people dream to become celebrities and stars so that they can be seen by others as beautiful. I feel that this is very vain but from what I see this will carry on happening for a very long time.

A person who only sees a person’s outer beauty is a very silly person. It is for that reason that many people who marry celebrities often divorce soon after. It is because many of them only see the celebrities’ outer beauty and his/her character.

In conclusion, I feel that people should really think about what they define as beauty.

Should you criticise people or the opinions they have?

This is a difficult question because as human beings none of us like to be criticized. However, without criticism, a person will never be able to improve from their current state.

Let me give you an example. Let’s say a student hands in a composition and the teacher just puts a tick at the end of the composition indicating that he/she has read it. The student will just continue writing compositions of the same standard and will never improve.

First, let us look at why people do not want to be criticized. The reason is that they will “lose face” or in other words be humiliated. Everyone on Earth has his/her own pride.

Therefore, I feel that people should critcise others but do it in a polite manner. A person who says “I feel that your play can be improved by designing better costumes” comes across much better than a person who says “The costumes were very lousy!”

A person will probably be more willing to accept the first person’s criticism as it sounds more like advice than the second one which is pure criticism even though both mean the same thing.

My final stand is criticise all you like but do it properly.

Will having fun make you happier than studying?

On first thought, I think I would be happier if I could have fun and not study at all. However, on the whole, I do not think I will be happy forever.

For example, after PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examination), I was given the freedom to do whatever I wanted for the next 2 months. I rushed into doing all the things I had missed out on for the past 3 months while studying for the exam like playing computer games, playing Nintendo Wii, going outside to play soccer (by myself). You might think that playing soccer yourself is not fun but it actually is.

However, during the last 1 or 2 weeks, I kind of felt a bit bored with the fact that I was tired of doing those things. Then, I started studying again and it was quite interesting all the sec 1 topics. A month later, I was tired of studying again.

Therefore, I feel that there is a need to strike a balance between work and play. If you work too much, having fun will make you happy. If you have have been playing all day, you will be happy to work.

Another example is let’s say there is this person “x”. X always comes home complaining about the work he does at his workplace. One day, he loses his job and goes for many job interviews. Finally, he lands a job and comments, “I am glad I am working again." It is the same story here.

Is it your Duty to Donate to Charity?

I think it is not anyone’s duty to donate to charity. Although some people give themselves the burden that they have to donate a part of their salary to charities, my personal opinion is that people should not be forced to give to charity. Donating to charity should be from the heart.

Why must donating to charity come from the heart? Would it make a difference if a person gives the same amount of money to charity whether he is happy or not? The money is the same but the people who are the ones receiving the money will not feel good when they hear such things. To many charitable organizations especially those such as old folks home, the old folks may be very downhearted. A simple smile at them can do a lot more good to them than the things the money donated can be used for.

To me, there are many other ways of donating to charity other than donating money. Helping out at the charities is one of those ways. This can help a lot. From what I know, many charities are not lacking in funds but lacking in volunteers.

Why do people want to donate to charity? To some selfish people, all they want is to show to others how generous they are but to others, they understand for example what is like to be in need and therefore donate.

In conclusion, I feel that it is not necessary to give to charity but it goes a long way when you do.