Back to being a Student again

How many people are willing to be student again as an (working) adult? Or even dare to?? LOL

I am really grateful to be able to be given the chance to study to be an early childhood educator. After a big round, 7 years of working life post graduation, 15 years of additional schooling leading to nowhere, I am back to where I should be, where the flame of life and passion is still slowly burning, yet steadily.

I don't know if my lecturers were disappointed, but my mum is certainly a bit disappointed that I didn't use my diploma nor degree in my past 2 jobs. She is, however, very supportive in my current mid-career switch to early childhood. 

"Stable job to retirement!"

"Should have studied this from the very beginning!" 

"Waste money on the extra diploma and degree!"

Aiyah, how I know? Life turns in mysterious ways. Maybe that time have affinity with those schools and courses and jobs mah, and the people in it. Maybe I just had to spend the amount of money and time there mah. Karma mah. Just accept it lo.

Anyway, among my studies, I loved my primary school, secondary school. JC meh but the people rocks. I still enjoyed my environmental science course in RP, but it was the opposite in NTU. I love my coursemates all, just not the course. Mechanics of Materials, Structural Analysis still gives me trauma. I really cannot remember much from there, other than the people. Into the working life, I still pretty much gained a sense of fulfillment from going to courses. I love it when my Greendot bosses sent me to courses to upgrade ourselves. I also enjoyed going for Buddhist/Chinese cultural retreats. 

So, now back to being a formal student. I am totally okay. There were many supportive voices, only a few downing voices which peeled off by themselves end of last year thankfully so I can carry on with this course in peace. Peace is very important people. Just remember the good stuffs and forget the bad stuffs, trust me your life will be so much better.

The lecturer during the Orientation was sharing that it was the first time face to face session after Covid. How glad am I back to be in a physical classroom again! But this course will be around 80% online, 20% physical classes. It's okay. Something new every one learnt after 2 years of Covid. 

There are 32 of us, all female in this cohort. The alumni who was sharing with us had 2 males in her cohort. I dunno if we have Master holders in our cohort, but they had Master holder in previous cohorts. A glance through the classroom, we had ladies from young (like just graduated from Poly) to the wise (last school was 20 years ago). Some are young children Mamas; some are older children Mamas. Some are single like me, some are married, some are married without children. Some were MOE sponsored. Unfortunately, I failed the MOE interview, it's okay. Part and parcel of life. You get some, you lose some. Ultimately, we will all have what we want for the best for ourselves. Most of the time, I am not too worried, but I have to keep calm people around me down. LOL

I really applaud the courage of those young children Stay at Home Mamas (SAHM), to be able to juggle the studies with their children and housework. Also need to two thumbs up to their supportive spouses! 

I don't have many things to share about the learning yet, as we were just 2 days into the course. It was a typical 3 year diploma squeezed into 9 months. So we are not just on express train, it is macam bullet train. Other people's 1 year is equivalent to our 3 months. Maybe I had been wasting time in my life, so this time, life gonna squeeze me dry once. I'm up for the challenge. 

I am also super excited to put what I learnt to test when my sister's baby is born. Keep the baby in our prayers okay. I cannot wait to meet the baby. The alumni was telling us that when she was studying for the course, her baby was only 15 months. The baby was her guinea pig to put all the theories and practice on. Her husband too. So cute!

9 months will whizz by quickly. Just gonna hold my breath and put through these 9 months. I am confident with the new skills learnt, I can make difference not to the children's lives I interact with, but my own life. Really. Grateful and Happy just thinking about that. 

p.s. I'm thinking MOE failed me coz I don't use proper English. I'm super Singlish.