How's it like being a scholar- Tseng Fan Shuen & Lau Shiyun
From left to right: Fan Shuen, Shiyun
With the A’s coming along, we interviewed ex-RVians who topped the A’s to gain some insight.
Do you remember Fan Shuen, most known for his role as SLA president on top of being choir president? In the interview, Fan Shuen exudes confidence only to be expected from a leader. In contrast, the humble Shiyun speaks of her school life modestly, despite turning up as a top scholar for A levels.
ACADEMIC UPS & DOWNS
Q: The golden question. How were your results?
Shiyun: In summary, my GPA was quite normal in Year 1&2 and started improving from Year 3. [modestly lists each year’s result]
Year 1: 3.3
Year 2: 3.4
Year 3: 3.7
Year 4: 3.4
Year 5: Lowest grades obtained - U for Econs, S for Physics
Year 6: Prelim 2- Almost all Bs & some Ds
A Levels- C for GP, As for everything else
Fan Shuen: [personal account] My Year 1&2 GPA was mediocre (3.3). Like many, I found it difficult to find passion in anything-- everyday was boring to me.
But my turning point came in Year 2 when Mr Oh asked me to join the F1 in schools competition and I thought, “Why not?” [for those who have no idea (like me), the competition involves designing a wooden toy car]
We had to do a lot of research and read papers for it. From there, I found my motivation to study (and passion for Science and Research).
As for Years 3&4, I had no motivation to study for Chinese but I thought of it as “a means to an end”. I knew that, at the end of the day, I had to be bilingual even though I wasn’t interested in Chinese as a subject, and I really wanted to succeed. [What did you get for O Levels? F: B3 ]
In Years 5-6, I was involved in too many things. I learnt that you can’t be too opportunistic. In Year 5, I went to MIT for research, so I didn’t take any common tests at all. Promos took up 70% of my entire year’s weighting. My results turned out rather bad, making me quite demoralised. However, failures can also propel one to work harder.
S: (pipes in) I have a different experience. For me, I was always aiming for improvement. I was gradually making progress as I wanted to see where my potential was when I put in my best effort.
Q: (To Fan Shuen) Since you mentioned failures that helped push you to work harder, can you share with us some of the “downs” you experienced?
F: My grades for GP and Econs in Promos were ‘E’ or ‘S’. And I almost got suspended for being late 5 times. Many teachers were very disappointed in me.
When reflecting on failures, what’s important isn’t what could be but what can be. Remember, you’re still running the marathon.
Q: (To Fan Shuen) How do YOU respond to failures?
F: I would be sad and disappointed for a short while but I won't mull over them. Instead I will work on my weaknesses. For example, when travelling from home to school and school to home, I would make productive use of my time by reading through notes.
Q: (To Fan Shuen) Were you aiming for straight As (for the A Levels)?
F: (confidently) I was aiming for straight As.
Q: (To Fan Shuen) What if you didn’t get that?
F: I would be really disappointed. I guess the most important thing is to be realistic and know yourself.
Q: (To Fan Shuen) How did you feel about being in the RV corporate video (doing a Science experiment)?
F: I’m appreciative, but when it was nearing the A Levels, people would walk by and say, “Confirm get straight As”, which put a lot of stress on me.
I shut off other people’s expectations and just focused on getting straight As.
Q: (To Shiyun) How did you feel about Fan Shuen being in the RV corporate video (doing a Science experiment)?
S: I was happy for him, but I knew that when he saw it, he would feel that people have high expectations of him, so I was worried too.
STRIKING THE BALANCE: CCAs & VIAs
Q: (To Shiyun) We saw pictures of you in Premonition (organised by PAYM)! Tell us more about your VIA experiences.
S: I planned quite a few events!
I started with planning for Famtastic 2013 (in Year 4) under CID 4 Sports Science with Boon Lay YEC, where we organized an event to help families bond. It was successful and attracted about 100 people.
I realised that planning events for the community is fun, so I continued to do so. Examples of events I organized include the very first Premonition in 2014, and West the Game in 2015.
I enjoy planning events and volunteering because I always learn a lot from the experiences. My volunteering experience started in Year 1 when I went back to my primary school as a student mentor for my juniors. After that, I volunteered for more events such as SEA Games 2015 and projects such as Operation DingDong.
To me, academic work has never been the most important thing. You should balance academics and other aspects of your life, be committed to all, and find joy in them.
Q: (To Shiyun) How do you cope with CCA (as a student conductor of choir)?
[a relatable experience for many CCA leaders]
S: When I first became the conductor in Year 3, it was hard because I was introverted, and always thought that I wasn’t good enough. I even talked to my friends about it.
Eventually I began to gain confidence and realized that if you act like who you want to become, you will become that person.
In Year 5-6, school work became heavier. It was a struggle, but I gained more experience and I enjoyed conducting.
THE SHIYUN AND FANSHUEN YOU NEVER KNEW
Shiyun and Fan Shuen were actually friends from the same CCA who often studied together, and now, more… So we thought: Who better to ask about each party than themselves?
Q: Impression of Fan Shuen as a person (and how has it changed)?
S: I didn’t know him in Year 1&2. We just had common friends.
(F: I was the class chairperson in Year 1, but I was an irresponsible chairperson so I got stripped off the role.)
S: In Years 3-4, I was closer to Fan Shuen since we worked together in CCA exco, plus we were from the same class. My impression of him then was neutral…
(F: I had the realisation somewhere between Years 3-4 that my reputation was lousy. As president of choir, I was harsh on the members and result-driven. People were averse to my leadership due to the lack of people-centricity. I felt, then, that I had to put out my ego.)
S: It’s true that Fan Shuen changed for the better in Years 5&6. He became more friendly, people-centric, and extended help to a lot of people.
There are actually many different sides to him: to his family, he’s a very good son (he cooks, cleans the house and is respectful); to casual friends and teachers he’s close with, he’s full of nonsense; towards teachers, he’s appreciative and polite, and he often offers his help even to strangers.
Q: Impression of Shiyun as a person (and how has it changed)?
F: My impression of Shiyun in Year 1 was that she was a quiet, reserved and well-behaved student.
In Year 3, she became the student conductor and we had more interactions. Shiyun is passionate and people-centric. She would often look out for fellow choir members. She’s also humble and down-to-earth. Unlike me, she went out of her way to connect with juniors and choir mates.
Relationship:
Q: What was the spark?
F: I gradually started to like her.
It started with admiration because I saw in her what I was not ..like how she didn't have an ego, she was humble, and people-centric… I wanted to learn from her.
At the end of Year 4, during the holidays, I was really insecure because I was concerned about whether she liked me. It pushed me to confess because I wanted to find out whether she liked me.
Q: (To Shiyun) How did you find out?
S: It's quite a complicated story... I found out through friends when we were playing Secret Santa (Fan Shuen was my secret Santa, and he made me a very nice photo album). I wanted to find out whether he really liked me because he was acting distant during Christmas caroling (with the choir).
F: (explains) I wanted to actualize my feelings, but I was too embarrassed to be direct.
S: Eventually, I asked him via WhatsApp.
(S: Are we supposed to say this? It won't be taken down, right?)
(F: This is the kind of thing people want to read about)
Q: How did it progress while you were still in school?
S: At the start of Year 5, we confessed to each other but we didn't want to get into a relationship at that time and waited until after A Levels instead. I just treated him as a good friend in Years 5-6. I studied with Fan Shuen quite frequently, and he helped me tremendously.
F: My admiration for Shiyun continued as she always thinks of others. I wanted to become a better person. I began to establish my relationship with friends and family. I did more community service.
Shiyun was a motivation for me to become a better person because I wanted her to be proud to say that I'm her boyfriend. (smiling)
Q: Did you ever get distracted?
F: We were only occasionally distracted since we weren't so emotionally invested at that time...am I right to say that?
S: Yep.
F: I'm very happy the relationship was a positive one. Someone has to "police" the relationship, know when it's time to study- and that person was Shiyun. When I asked Shiyun out (alone), she went and initiated group dates instead (she’ll ask other friends whether they wanted to join us).
Q: Did you ever feel an impulse to start the relationship?
S: Actually, I was scared. I didn't know how to start since I'd never been in a relationship before.
If it was meant to be, it was meant to be, so there's no need to be hasty.
Extra Q: What were your parents' reaction? Were they in shock?
S: My parents already knew Fan Shuen (because we were already friends), so they weren't shocked. My mom said,"Okay, but focus on your studies."
F: They say that she is the perfect daughter-in-law. (smiling)
