Due to the lack of interest and manpower, this blog will be temporary (and possibly permanently closed.)

Four teachers who mocked a student with special needs online have been slammed for their comments, with some calling their actions "nasty" and "dispassionate".

One of them, who is employed as an allied educator (AED), had made fun of his Primary 5 male student with special needs in a Facebook posting dated 1 July.

It is understood that the male teacher and his colleagues teach at a mainstream boys' primary school. The role of an AED is to provide teaching and learning support in schools.

Their comments were brought to light after a parent whose son had been a classmate of the student discovered the posting earlier this month.

Describing herself as Mrs Lim, she told The New Paper that she came across the comments made by the teachers when she was looking through her son's Facebook account.

Her son, who is also in Primary 5, is friends on Facebook with some of his teachers. The teacher who owned the account had initially posted a harmless message, saying, "I survived the first week of work."

This was in reference to the start of the school's third term after the month-long June holidays. However, what followed was the message by the AED teacher who is alleged to have started mocking the student.

"I am so looking forward to the next few months. Anyone got contact for santizers?" he said.

The teacher then replied to his comment, saying that he will be needing "a load of that plus boxes of tissues" as well as "wet wipes" and a "mucus collector".

Another teacher then jumped in to comment, "You need extra large economy bottle? Can get from JB!"

It is believed that the three teachers who made the comments are also form teachers of various levels in the primary school. The AED's Facebook profile showed that he has been in that profession since September 2009.

Mrs Lim said she was shocked that the comments were made publicly, adding that her son was classmates with the special needs student for two years.

"It was obvious who the teachers were talking about. If my son or his friends had come across the comments, they too would have known that their own teachers were making fun of a student."

The housewife who is in her 30s added that her son told her the student drools occasionally and mucus flows from his nose because of his condition. He also has difficulty sitting still, so the AED has to take him out of class at times.

"Teachers are supposed to be inculcating values in our children, and here they are showing themselves to be doing the exact opposite," she added.

Others also joined in to criticise the teachers involved for their comments.

Senior counselor Harry Low said, "What these teachers did was inappropriate, nasty and dispassionate."

Principal of South View Primary School Jenny Yeo noted that teachers need to be careful when using social media, especially since students look to them as role models.

When contacted, the boy's father, who was trained as a psychologist and is actively involved in the school as a parent volunteer, said that he was "shocked" and "upset" by the incident.

He was only informed of the incident only on Thursday, when he received a call from the school. The father was also thankful to Mrs Lim for highlighting the incident.

The school principal told TNP that she was alerted to the incident on Thursday as well, and that the teachers involved have been "counselled".

She added that the school takes a serious view of this incident and will continue to emphasise to its staff the need to conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times.


'Taken from Yahoo! News'

Hi The Mentor students,

The reason for the previous post is due to an incident that happened on The Mentor FB group chat a few days ago. I would like all of you to take note that when you're chatting, please be reminded to be polite and respect each other. If any of this incident take place again, I would not hesitate to remove your from the group. Thank you.

Internet Etiquette
Internet etiquette means the way a person conducts himself or herself when on the internet also known as Netiquette. It is also called netiquette, combining network and etiquette.

Proper Internet Etiquette

Mind your language - It is very important to avoid usage of improper or bad language. You might be told to go off line immediately if you are using foul or abusive language. Flaming or verbal abuse should be avoided completely while interacting on the Internet. Though you may not agree to it, it is not correct to verbally abuse and disrespect the other person because of it. If you want to give your opinion about it, it should be done in a polite manner and not by insulting or harassing the other verbally. Indulging in flaming can only lead you to gain online enemies. Therefore, never be offensive, racist, biased, libellous or obscene on the Internet, be it via email or otherwise. Some jokes are just in bad taste and will not be appreciated.

Banned Capitals - While chatting with anyone, you should not shout. In internet jargon, shouting refers to writing in capital letters. Avoiding using capitals, as it can be considered as rude, is one of the basic internet etiquette tips.

Guarding Your Own - Anything which goes on the internet does not remain personal. Keeping your very personal information to you is preferable. Posting personal, very private information in wrong places can prove disastrous. Being extremely careful while posting personal information will avoid further problems and complications.

Internet etiquette is all about being respectful and courteous and using proper language. All the other things then fall in place.

Hi ALL!!

A new member just joined the Mentor family! He is Benjamin, Sim Ee's younger brother! Benjamin is in the Sec1 group. The Mentor will be happy to welcome more students to join us! :) CHEERS EVERYONE!

In recent days, parts of this law-and-order city, whose murder rate ranks as low as Japan's, resembled scenes from the American TV series Crime Scene Investigation.

Against its staid nature, seven gruesome bodies have been found in various parts of the island since July 1, unrelated to each other — at a rate of one a day.

In fact, the grisly spate had begun earlier, from around mid-April when a decomposed body was found in a luggage bag at the casino resort of Sentosa.

A month later, an Indonesian maid's body was discovered submerged in a rooftop tank that supplies drinking water to nearly 200 residents at Woodlands. Her Bangladeshi boyfriend had been arrested.

Since then a total of 13 bodies have turned up, prompting shocked citizens to ask: "What has become of Singapore?"

Police investigators and pathologists — as well as sociologists — are working overtime to probe this epidemic of corpses. Most were believed to be murder or suicide victims.

Concern over two possible factors

Until a clear picture emerges, people are blaming it on the rapid intake of foreigners, as well as the presence of two casinos, or possibly both.

As a result, the second most densely-populated city in the world (next to Monaco) is now also poised to overtake Las Vegas as the second largest gaming destination as well.

These two factors have pushed economic growth sky-high but few ordinary citizens are celebrating.

Families are extremely concerned about the social impact they may bring — including crime, family stress and suicides.

"In fact, they may already have started to take a toll on society," said a housewife.

Several of the bodies had been found in surrounding waters or forested areas, a few having died or been killed some time ago.

Among the grotesque finds was the lower half of a decomposed female body which was discovered floating in the Bedok Reservoir, a source of drinking water for many Singaporeans.

So far, the phenomenon has not really dented Singapore's reputation as one of the world's safest cities, with an average of two murders a month.

This works out to 0.5 homicide per 100,000 people, a proportion close to Japan's and slightly ahead of Hong Kong's.

Relatively high suicide rate

But suicides here are another matter. Despite its prosperity, the republic ranked 43rd in the world in 2009 with 401 cases; that was before the casinos opened their doors.

At least half were non-Singaporeans, a few of them China mainlanders. In the latest case, a decomposed body was found near the National University of Singapore (NUS) on Wednesday.

Two days earlier, a couple taking a stroll along the Singapore River were shocked to see the corpse of a Chinese woman floating below the Helix Bridge.

Many Singaporeans are wondering if the 38,600-strong police force is adequate to cope with the population expansion — by 65 percent to five million since 1990.

Long overcrowded, the city state has undergone a tremendous transformation in almost every field.

Financially, people are generally richer, live better; most youths are better educated. But among the lower income earners, social problems and tales of poverty abound.

Number of homeless people increasing

As bodies were turning up, the state television reported that the Government was picking up the highest number of homeless individuals in the city in four years.

A total of 339 homeless individuals and 15 homeless families (totalling 50 people) were found last year — compared with 217 individuals and 17 families (comprising 82 people) in 2009.

Nearly one in every six households has more than US$1 million (RM3mil) in assets, making it the densest population of wealthy households in the world, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

But despite the high GDP growth, the lot of the other half is gloomier.

Widely-travelled business consultant Imran Ahmad likened it to "Singapore's long trip from Third World to First World and back to Third" in which serious crimes are getting more common.

The city before 2004 was less crime-prone, Imran noted. He named some recent social ills: floating corpses in drinking water tanks, a flabby (family) man dressed in wet underwear at Singapore Zoo, a woman threatening a train official after refusing to pay her son's fare — and so on.

Can changes still be made?

"It is impossible to turn the clock back. Nor does one wish to return to the past. However, Singaporeans must be conscious of society's direction," he warned.

Meanwhile, a Chinese-language tabloid reported that a man was arrested for attempting suicide at a flat — half an hour after another man had fallen to his death in the same block.

The public is showing a mixture of bafflement, anger and worry about these social ills.

"Floating bodies are found everywhere every other day," said a man who wished to be known as Swift Disaster.

"Our crime rate used to be among the lowest, with incidents like these (ones) very rare.

"Foreign workers (are now) robbing and killing each other and domestic maids, illegal prostitution is on the rise, our void decks are being terrorised, rubbish bins being scattered.

"Our children no longer feel safe in the streets of our home. Our aspiration of becoming a First World standard in everything is taking a toll on our lives.

"I hope it's still not too late for us to make changes where needed and bring back the beautiful Singaporean lifestyle. It (might not have been) perfect but it was beautiful."

A DECOMPOSED body has been found in a forested area off Clementi Road - the second such incident within a week. Police said that they were alerted around 6pm yesterday, and are investigating. About 20 police officers combed the area, which is just opposite the National University of Singapore, before emerging with the remains in a white bag close to midnight. This comes after two land survey staff discovered a set of skeletal remains in the forest next to the Tanah Merah MRT Station last Saturday.









THE body of a Chinese woman was found floating in the Singapore River under the Helix Bridge on Friday night. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene at about 11.50pm by paramedics, the police said. The police had received a call at about 11.20pm informing of a dead body found floating in the sea off Bayfront Avenue. Upon arrival, they found the body floating under the Helix Bridge. A spokesperson for the Singapore Civil Defence Force told citizen journalism site STOMP: 'Rescue personnel retrieved the body with a lifeline and buoy. The body was found 2m from the bank of the river.' 'The body was that of a female Chinese of approximately 40-50 years of age.' Police have classified the case as unnatural death and investigations are ongoing.

A SET of skeletal remains has been uncovered by two land survey staff in the forest next to the Tanah Merah MRT station.

The police were alerted to the discovery at about 3.15pm last Saturday. Officers found the remains of an unidentified person at a forested area along New Upper Changi Road, which is next to the MRT station.

The Straits Times understands that some items were found near the remains, including a blue haversack and cash.

According to Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao, the skeleton was clad in a tattered black T-shirt.

An old mobile phone and some cash were also found nearby.

Indian foreign workers Pandi, 26, and Kumar, 32, who made the discovery, told the newspaper that it was difficult to tell if the deceased was male or female as the body had fully decomposed, leaving only the bones. A piece of rope was also found hanging on a tree branch about 4m away, according to the report.

A body was retrieved from the sea near Vivocity at about 4pm on Sunday (03/07). The police received a call at 3.20pm about a body floating off Harbourfront walk. It is believed to belong to a Malay man in his late 30s. According to netizen Amelia on citizen journalism website Stomp, the police coast guard fished the body out of the sea and brought it to shore. She added that it 'was all wrapped up'. The man was pronounced dead at 4.20pm by the police. The case is classified under unnatural death. Police investigations are ongoing.

Hi All :),

We are currently looking for new students to join the Mentor! HOORAY~ Current students please recommend your friends here too! The more the merrier!!! You can tell them about the BLUE ROOM purposes where all the Mentor students can use the room to study and borrow books :)

Weaker students are also strongly encouraged to come down and do self-revision :) Any questions can approach NIC! Students who cant concentrate at home can also come down and use the room!! :) Just remember to 'log in' in the log-in book.

First set up in 1994 at Potong Pasir, it started off as a tuition agency. However due to my passion in teaching, i started conducting small tuition classes. Throughout the years, I've tutored numerous students and friendships and bonds have been developed. The Mentor has seen its highs and lows, and I am still struggling to overcome several obstacles. Thanks to all students and parents who have trusted and supported me, appreciate it lots.


756 Upper Serangoon Road Upper Serangoon Shopping Centre #04-14 S534626

Tel: 63831416


Tutors:
Nicholas, Jasmine

Blog administrator:
Nicholas
Angel


Designer:
Angel
Note: Best viewed using Mozilla Firefox