At the 2015 Catholic Education Conference, Archbishop Goh and Jesuit priest exhorted educators to point to the source of Catholic values and talk about the stories of their Religious founders. Catholic News reporter Mel Diamse-Lee sat in.

Archbishop William Goh challenged educators to speak of the source of values, Christ, to their students during teachable moments.

The impassioned homily of Archbishop William Goh rang out throughout the packed auditorium of St Gabriel Secondary School on March 16 as he encouraged teachers to talk about Catholic values to their students and point to Christ as the source of these values.

“A Catholic school that does not proclaim Christ explicitly at the end of the day, I don’t think is a Catholic school,” Archbishop Goh told some 400 Catholic educators, parents, members of school management committees and Religious Brothers and Sisters attending the Catholic Education Conference organised by the Archdiocesan Commission for Catholic Schools (ACCS).

At the Mass prior to the conference, he said that with the world changing rapidly as a result of technology, science and mass communication, “traditional values that we hold so strongly and steadfastly are being eroded away”.

Noting that “all our Catholic schools started with strong moral and religious values,” he added that “perhaps the current generation of leaders that we have … benefitted from our Christian Catholic education”.

However, because of secularisation and the negative effects of relativism, individualism and consumerism, these values are being challenged.

“What distinguishes us from non-Christian schools? Our values ultimately, are not simply ethical values, no, they are the values founded in Christ. Christ is the centre of all we do. When we give them [students] values but don’t give them the source of the values, we shortchange them. It’s like giving fish to people but we don’t teach them how to fish.”

Addressing teachers in the audience, he said, “As educators, you are to form minds. Your task is to give life. More than the physical and material, your task is to give the fullness of life … Ask yourselves, ‘Are we sincere in giving [students] a fuller life?’ ”

The archbishop also noted the four major challenges facing Catholic schools today: the dwindling population of Catholic students, the declining presence of Religious, whom he called “icons of the sacred”, from their schools; the role of the Ministry of Education (MOE) as the main payer and policy maker; and the autonomous way Catholic schools are run, being sponsored by various Religious congregations.

Keynote speaker, Jesuit Fr Christopher Gleeson, emphasised that telling stories, like Jesus did with parables, reinforces the Catholic identity of schools.

Character of Catholic schools

Picking up from where Archbishop Goh left off, Fr Gleeson gave the conference participants an opportunity to reflect on the theme of the conference, The Character of Catholic Schools. He put together a slide presentation with through-provoking quotations.

An educator for 21 years, he based his morning talk on the Vatican’s 2014 document, Educating Today and Tomorrow – A Renewing Passion.

Storytelling is a powerful way of transmitting the character of Catholic schools, Fr Gleeson said.

“Good storytelling builds on the experience of one’s listeners. The parables, which Jesus told, are ‘springboard stories’ leading people to discover the answers for themselves.”

From the Vatican document, he quoted: “Teachers are called upon to rise up to a major educational challenge, which is the recognition, respect and enhancement of diversity.”

He also spoke about “sacramental vision”, of finding God in all things, and being found by God in all things. “The test of our education is if we are able to produce people of discernment.”

Fr Gleeson’s afternoon talk focused on the character of a teacher, picking out the walk to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) as a model for teaching.

Pedagogy is about accompaniment, Fr Gleeson said. In the Gospel where Jesus met two discouraged disciples leaving Jerusalem, Jesus models the six “best elements of companionship”: walking with others, listening to their heart, telling a story, disposing (not imposing) blessing, and setting hearts on fire.

“True education is about transformation, and all teachers are, or should be, important figures in the lives of their students,” he said.

During the breakout session, where participants were grouped according to school levels, four questions were posed based on the sharing of Fr Gleeson on the key characteristics of Catholic schools that are successfully nurtured, challenges of operationalising what has been discussed, and which of the challenges participants would want to take up to help Catholic schools realise their Catholic identity.

Fr Edward Seah, acting executive director of ACCS, also gave an update on the seven key areas of improvement identified at the ACCS conference in September 2013. Among these were the creation of a directory of Catholic educators, school chaplaincy teams, greater laity involvement, formation and induction of principals and vice principals, and implementation of a Catholic ethos self-assessment framework and a Civics and Moral Education/Religious Education curriculum.

Feedback

Participants at the conference felt encouraged and inspired by the homily and reflection points given.

Canossian Sr Margaret Goh, lead chaplain and supervisor of the four Canossian Schools and St Magdalene’s Kindergarten, said, “The conference was well thought through, especially with Fr Edward giving an update on what ACCS has accomplished in the key areas for improvement. I embrace the bishop’s challenge of evangelising in the sense that there is a need to point to the source of values. The [Catholic] schools can be avenues for evangelisation, without imposing.”

Mr Eugene Yeow, a Catholic Junior College teacher, said, “It was good for me to know that the good practices are there. The spiritual health of schools is not as bad as we are led to believe, although it could be better. Kerygma [ongoing formation] can be provided in order to deepen the faith [of teachers]… so the students get the best out of our own experience.

“The personal challenge would be the mindset of teachers, the tendency for Catholic teachers to be more quiet when it comes to evangelisation. The transformational step is to view why there is a need for it. It is so that the children can see the impact. On a school level, hopefully there would be a continued dialogue between Catholic schools management and MOE.”

Madam Elizabeth Dass, a teacher at the Canossian School (For the Hearing Impaired), felt that the conference was “something like bread, feeding us with information. It was an avenue for sharing with other teachers and sharing faith, opinions, experiences and frustrations. At the end of the day, we can always mention Jesus during teachable times. The conference inspired me to mention Jesus in a teachable way.”

Sr Delphine Kang, supervisor of Marymount Convent School, thought that the conference was “really very good. A lot of people were very excited, very inspired to be witnesses and sacraments in the school. It’s not new but it’s an awakening. It’s good now and again to be reminded.”

Parent volunteer, Ms Clare Leong, said, “I think the conference has been successful in getting the Catholic educators together to work towards a more united direction for all Catholic schools in Singapore. I really appreciated the opportunity to share and to exchange each school’s experiences, ideas and practices.

Source: Catholic News, April 5, 2015, Volume 65, Number 07

Four new principals of Catholic schools in Singapore were commissioned by Archbishop William Goh on Saturday, 24 January 2015, in a special commissioning mass organised by the Archdiocesan Commission for Catholic Schools (ACCS).

The new principals are Mr Wilbur Wong, Montfort Junior School; Mr Mark Gerard Minjoot, Montfort Secondary School, Mdm Soh Lai Leng, Catholic High School; and Mr Kevin Hannah, SJI International Elementary School.

More than a hundred family members, friends, educators, colleagues, students and fellow principals attended the mass, held at the chapel of St Joseph Institution International.

Children of God

In his homily, Archbishop William pointed out that all three readings of the day coincidentally speaks about a vocation in life. He reminded those present that every human person ultimately “has a vocation to be a child of God, who share in the life and love of God.”

Citing examples from the three readings, Archbishop William affirms that, “at the end of the day, everybody who is called to proclaim the good news, must be at the service of truth and love.” He further questions, “Isn’t education a pursuit of truth and love?”

He explains that a Catholic school provides beyond simply an academic formation, but also human, moral, psychological, and most importantly, spiritual formation, pointing out that, “This is what makes a person human. Because every human person who has a soul, is seeking for God ultimately. In every person, the heart is restless.”

The principal and bishop

After reminding educators that every student is called to be a child of God, and the holistic approach of a Catholic education, Archbishop addressed the principals directly, “My dear principals, although your ultimate target, your audience, is your students, your immediate target is in fact your teachers and those who work directly under you. It’s like being a bishop actually.”

He elaborates further, “As a bishop, my audience is the entire people of God. But I can’t reach out to every single person in my life! Yes I preach to big crowds, I make appearances, but I cannot journey with everyone personally. So who will be my mouthpiece? My priests. Therefore it is the duty of the bishop to ensure that his priests are formed, and his priests are aligned to the mission of the church.”

Building on this point, Archbishop William hopes that principals, Catholic educators, and those working in Catholic schools, may continue to build their faith and hold onto Catholic principles, “because we cannot give what we do not have.”

Archbishop William concludes his homily by empowering those working in Catholic schools, that they should not be afraid to teach and guide students according to Christian values, because “the very fact that parents have chosen to send their child to a Catholic school, means they are saying ‘this is a good place for my child’.”

At the end of the homily, all principals and vice-principals present were invited to recite a prayer of commitment, and received a blessing from the Archbishop.

Past experiences

Mr Wilbur Wong, Montfort Junior School, was previously the Deputy Director for the Engagement & Research Division at the Ministry of Education, and before that he was principal of Telok Kurau Primary from 2005 to 2013.

Some key priorities he sees in his role as principal are, “to understand the needs of my students, staff and parents and continue to build on the good work of my predecessors. To ensure that Montfort Junior School continues in the tradition of St Louis Marie de Montfort and develop each Montfortian to be a ‘Man for Others’.”

Mr Mark Gerard Minjoot, Montfort Secondary School, was previously the principal of Greendale Secondary School from 2008 to 2014, and before that a vice-principal at Victoria School, as well as Deyi Secondary School.

Mdm Soh Lai Leng, Catholic High School, was previously principal of Holy Innocent’s High School for six years, and before that she was vice-principal at Marsiling Secondary School, as well as Naval Base Secondary School.

“I am happy to be back in the Catholic school family, and also excited because this new role is different and interesting. It will be a totally different environment for me, because this is an all-boy’s school as well as both primary and secondary levels,” Mdm Soh describes.

Mr Kevin Hannah, SJI International Elementary School, is Australian and has worked in Perth, Jakarta, London, Kuala Lumpur, and most recently, was Head of Junior School at All Hallows School in Somerset, UK.

Mr Hannah, who has been working in Catholic schools for most of his career, describes, “Once I committed to becoming a teacher there was never any doubt that I would end up in Catholic education. An education system that is underpinned by the Gospels, that emphasises the uniqueness of every child and with a pastoral system based on forgiveness resonates with me.”

By Msgr Ambrose Vaz

My dear friends, the occasion of the feast of the holy cross indeed provides a very good backdrop for our celebration of teacher’s day. You know as teachers very often, you will use something as a kind of visual aid in order to bring out a message. And today when we look at the cross, we see that as a beautiful aid, to remind us of the tension in life that exists, and the need therefore for someone to help us to cope with the pressures and difficulties of life. And the one, who therefore hangs on the cross, Jesus, is for us the ultimate teacher, the ultimate educator; the one that helps us not only to recognise, but to accept and to live out the mysteries of life.

And so the readings we find today are also appropriate in helping us recognise not just the paradigm but also perhaps the method of education. And if you look at our first reading, we have the story of the Israelites in the wilderness. They have been rescued out of Egypt in slavery and were on their way to the promise land. But on the way they started to get impatient, and started to grumble and to complain. Even as we look at this, we realise, ignorance, very often leads to a certain amount of frustration, and correspondingly impatience – an impatience that sometimes makes us arrogant, and even rebellious. And so as we look at the first reading, on the way through the wilderness, the people lost patience.

Today in the face of that kind of impatience, caused very often by ignorance or misinformation, there is a need for education, a need for someone to enlighten us. But even as we do that, we ask ourselves, what would be the source of that information? What would be the means by which we impart this information? And so the reading would go onto tell us, the people grumble and complain, and then Moses recognises that there was a need to do something, because their grumbling and impatience led to a certain degree of frustration to the point that they were bitten by fiery serpents.

Today we realise that when we remain impatient, angry, or ignorant, we end up hurting ourselves. The analogy given could be that bitten by fiery, poisonous snakes. And so Moses, recognising this, realises that the only way he’d be able to educate them, the only way he’d be able to help them effectively was to intercede with God. And so from the impatience caused by ignorance, we end up feeling more pain, more suffering. The help that we get eventually, has to come, has to be supplied through the intercession of God. And so that’s what Moses would do; he interceded for his people. In other words he asked God for the answers. Moses has a situation in which he has to give an answer; the people asked him why. And Moses turns to God for the answer. And the answer God would give to him was “believe in me, and as a sign of that faith you have in me, build a bronze serpent. When you look at it in faith, you will be healed.”

Today my dear friends, this is what education is all about. Education is much more than the imparting of information. Sometimes information can cause even more problems. Because we may not know what to do with that information, how to use it, and we may not know for what purpose to use it. And so a true educator is one that does not only impart knowledge, but also the reason for that knowledge, and the purpose and goal in using that knowledge. And ultimately we say, all knowledge comes from God, and all knowledge is to be used in order for us to be able to appreciate and serve God. And so that’s what the people would be made to realise, they wold be given a vital piece of information, that even though they are not aware of why they are made to walk in the wilderness, even though they are not very confident about why things are the way they should be, they have got to realise that the one that allows that and calls them, is the one who knows best.

And today when we talk about our catholic schools, we ask ourselves whether we are actually doing this. Are our students in our schools able not only to receive information, much knowledge, secular sciences and other wisdom, but are they able to see that the knowledge they receive, is ultimately pointing to serving God. Would they be able to recognise that the knowledge they receive is for a particular purpose, to help them not only acknowledge the God who gave them this knowledge, but to be able to use it to serve Him.

And so in our second reading, we see the example of Jesus himself. Jesus who empties himself, so that he’ll be able to be a model of humility, a model of the one that has come to show us how to be truly wise. Our true wisdom comes when we empty ourselves of our pride, when we are able to recognise that knowledge is from God, and therefore we are going to benefit from that knowledge. It means we have got to empty ourselves of our pride. Again today in our schools, that is what hopefully we are doing. Allowing our students to realise that the more brilliant they get, the more knowledge they receive, the more humble they are required to be. Because the knowledge and information they receive is not for themselves, but to be used to help others recognise God.

And so as we look at our gospel, this is what Jesus says as he tells Nicodemus the whole plan of God. God so loved the world that he emptied himself, He gave His Son, he gave up something, so that others may be prepared, better informed, and to be able to respond. Today my friends as we celebrate the feast of the Holy Cross and at the same time we celebrate teacher’s day, we thank God for the gift of our teachers. We thank God that in His effort to bring us through education, the education to being formed into his children, into the likeness of His Son, He has allowed us to have people in our lives, teachers, educators, who through humility, through emptying themselves, through their service, allow us to experience this. Our catholic schools are visible signs of the willingness of God to reach out to us, to be able to experience Him. Today we honour our teachers, who not only impart secular sciences and knowledge, but who through their life example, humility, and sacrifices they make, communicate to our students that knowledge alone is not enough. But knowledge has to shape character, and character has got to point us to God. As we celebrate this Mass today we pray for all our catholic teachers and schools, for all our teachers to continue in the mission of Jesus, the true educator, who educated us to the point of laying down his life. And therefore if all there is any reason for us today to teach, to proclaim, it is Christ.

Our theme today has been “Christ, Our Claim to Proclaim”. Our very reason and essence for being able to teach and communicate knowledge to others, is because essentially the true knowledge, true wisdom, truth itself, is Jesus Christ. And so let us celebrate Christ, our claim to proclaim, and even as he invites us to continue the mission that he came to achieve, the mission that he came on, let us at this Mass express our willingness to do so. Our willingness to walk in his footsteps, proclaiming the love of His Father, through the way that He lived in humility and service. Let us pray that we too can continue to be that kind of proclaimer, in a way that we as teachers, educators, parents, and all those involved, interested in education, will and should continue to do. Let us pray today for our teachers, and for our students that they be open to receive this education that comes from God through our teachers.