SPEAKING SAMPLE PART 3 - OLD BUILDINGS

ny hi l phi khng no wink emoticon Hihi i thi th mem khng bit mnh s gp topic g u
nn phi lun chun b tinh thn cho topic l nh! wink emoticon
1. Is it important to conserve old buildings? Why?
Personally, I like old buildings and history so for me its a good idea to protect and preserve them.
We can learn a lot about our history from the buildings of the past and its fascinating for children to
see how people used to live many centuries ago. They are a very important part of our national
culture and heritage.
2. Is the history useful for the coming generations? Why?
If people are interested in it, then it can be useful, yes. You can learn how the world was in the past,
which countries had wars with each other and how and why cities developed where they did and
many other interesting things. Without history we wouldnt have any sense of belonging to a place as
people.
Maybe people many years in the future will look back at us in the 21st century and be amazed at the
things we did and how we lived. Theyll probably have more than just buildings to study theyll be
able to see cars, TVs and all the other things which make up life for us at the moment...so yes it
could be useful for them as a way to understand what was happening in the world.
3. What is the difference between houses built in the past and now?
I suppose the main difference would be the type of materials used to construct them. Old houses
used to be built using stone and they were also bigger than most houses built today. Most of the
houses were built simply as somewhere to provide shelter and a degree of comfort. Nowadays,
houses are built with a lot more planning and technology involved. They are designed to be energy
efficient, use recyclable raw materials or eco-friendly resources and are designed to optimize space
and their impact on the environment as well as provide a comfortable place for people to live.
(st
Topic IELTS ca tun ny 21/03/2015:

Some people believe when famous people support international aid, it makes the
general public think about it. Others think celebrities make the problem less important.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
It has become a common practice nowadays for international charity organizations to use celebrities
support as a way of promoting donations from the general public. While this seems a
disadvantageous action to some, I believe the advantages of using such a practice are by far more
significant.

One the one hand, there are many undeniable benefits of having celebrities support a charitable
cause. The fame of these celebrities will ensure that the intended message is instantly spread
across geographies. With the help of modern day social media and the internet, the message can
quickly become viral. In addition, famous people most of the time have charming and persuasive
public personas. They will not only broadcast the message widely but will also help shape the public
sentiments and make the public think more.

On the other hand there are several drawbacks to consider. It is not uncommon to see many famous
people supporting charities only for the sake of their own personal gains. This can lead to such
people wanting to have all the public attention on them and therefore undermining the original
charitable intention. This is the case even when the celebrities are not doing such thing intentionally,
as their greater than life personalities can still eclipse the entire cause.

With that said, I think that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages in the long run for famous
people can play an important role in international aid vis-a-vis attracting public focus. Given the
correct communication strategies, I firmly believe that much of the downside risk can be mitigated.
As the growth of our multimedia system nowadays, the influences of famous people to the
community are rising gradually. Therefore, some people claim that the participation of celebrities in
international aid could raise people 's attention, while others think that might bring negative effects. In
my essay, I will consider carefully two points of view above and include my own opinion.
From the first point of views, definitely, I think the contribution of singers, movies stars or sport
professional players, if they are willing to help, could bring many benefits for the international charity
groups since they have a strong ability and powerful impact to others. For example, as we can
observed from daily news, many famous actors or actress donate billions of dollars to help orphan or
homeless-old people, or building school in remote areas. Furthermore, another influence, which
cannot be overlooked, is the inspiration gained by celebrities. For instance, people, especially
teenagers usually follow their idols' behaviors, consequently, they would imitate to their precious
action
such
as
contributing
to
society.

On the other side, there is a fact that many celebrities doing for international aid just in order to raise
their reputation. For example, charity event organization sometimes has to pay money to invite a

well-known singer. Thanks to the appearance of those celebrities, the event attracts more visitors,
therefore, more donated money. In addition, some celebrities come to an event because of their
advertisement contract. All of these facts lead to a notorious picture of both charity organization and
that celebrities. Consequently, the public would lose their trust on these activities.

In conclusion, the negative effect comes from the minority of celebrities. I believe that most of them
still play an important role in supporting the community, such as international aid. Our charity
organization will receive much more help to figure out unsolved problems if those celebrities make
the right choices and use their ability appropriately.
-

Influence

"on"

ch

khg

phi

"

to"

nh

^^

- cu m c "strong ability" , mnh thy hnh nh c word using mistake th phi, ti "strong ability" l kh ng mnh
m, nhg phi l c th v kh ng g chc s g hn => a strong ability to represent issues
-

"as
+

we

wrong

word

can

form

nh:

observed"

"can

observe"

:)

+ trog academic writing, nn trnh s dng ""we" ( c "you" ) nh c, v th vn s d refer n c examiner na.
"As

we

"

can

observe"

impact
that

=>

on"

it

ch

celebrities

"as

can

=>

phi
that

"choice"

be

observed"
"to"

of

nha
celebrities

=>

""decision"

Mnh thy collocation h hay dg nhiu l ""make a decision" , cn ""make a choice" th mnh k r lm :)
* Tng quan mnh thy b cc bi vit ca bn hp l 1-2-1( ph hp vi discuss both view), v c c th manage thi
gian

dg

na.

Lexical resource bn p dg cg rt fog f, nhg grammar li hi n gin, c th b sung o ng/ b ng/ MQH (
rt gn ) , v c th ca cu na cg k nn ch n iu th hin ti :). Cn v ideas mnh thy bn vit kh m cg
mch
mnh

lc

na,

recommend

kiu
band

ng
7.0

c
nh

kh

nhg

clear

ch

v
l

kin

ri
ch

khi
quan

c
ca

bi
mnh

ca
thi

c.
^^

move on good work nh ;) In this day and age, for international charity organizations, the tendency to

use celebritys reputation to raise fund from the public has become more and more common. Whilst
many people argue it is a good idea, others believe that these famous people would mislead the
original aim of promoting donations. In this essay, I will look at both sides of the argument and give
my opinion.
On the one hand, it is undeniable that celebrities help support the fund more effective. It is their
common belief that for many, the representation of such people would mean that there are more
people concerned over the problem through the media and shared the news from the celebritys
pages, which often contribute to the raising of the fund. For example, by the act of being the main
sponsor of Bill Gates Foundation, Bill Gates has taken full advantages of the people, who are
following his personal pages, in order to call for a help from them as well as to spread the messages

to the magazines, newspapers used his news. By this way, not only the charity organizations could
receive greater resources of fund but also the public would be made to think about this problem
more.
On the other hand, it is said that celebrities in a majority of cases, did make the problem less
important. In the other words, they moved the communitys attention to another direction, which is
more relevant to their personal reputation instead of the organizations messages. In addition, some
of them even do not intentionally do charitable actions; it is rare for these famous people to speak in
front of the public for their own sake. They often make people and journalists waiting for them to
raise their attention, which is totally different from the original charitable hopes.
In conclusion, famous people have both advantages and disadvantages on charity purpose. While
they are believed that would enhance the resources of fund through the sharing of the people
following them and the concern of the media, some celebrities could lead the community to the
wrong attention. In my opinion, if famous people intend to play their part in promoting the fund
without any other calculation, up to a point, I agree that the advantages of the idea to use names or
images of the celebrities to get attention are clear.
There are many opinions suppose that people who are well known have more positive effects on
supporting to international aid organizations while others think that their fame of them will have
negative influences on activities collecting aid from society. Both side have valid rationales but I
personally agree with the first view and my reasons are outlined in this essay.
First, it is deniable that reputation of VIP (very important people) make them to receive more notice
from millions of people leading to their activities for donating aid have also more attraction than a
normal persons activities. Besides that, because of their fame, they definitely have a strong impact
on the young, especially their fans, who are easy to be affected by their idol. When a celebrities take
a nice activity, of course, young people surely have a good example to follow. Moreover, the
contribution of famous people for money is usually significant or spread quickly that the
consequence will gain the desired effect. For instance, Bill Gates, one of the most famous in the
world, gave very much money on stimulating the quality of health and decreasing poverty that have
positive results in the whole world.
On the other hand, there are many person exploit their celebrity to promote their image in a untrue
way. For example, they will agree with organizations to allow to use their reputation to appeal
provision from the public that they dont give any donations for anyone. Futhermore, many person
eastablish the charity to their personal aim that in some case, it is used for wrong purpose leading to
waste money and destroy faith of not only many usual people bu also all community.

In conclusion, despite of arguments, I think celebrities have more benefits on supporting the aid to
organisations than ordinary people.)
There are many opinions suppose that people who are well known have more positive effects on
supporting to international aid organizations while others think that their fame of them will have
negative influences on activities collecting aid from society. Both side have valid rationales but I
personally agree with the first view and my reasons are outlined in this essay.
First, it is deniable that reputation of VIP (very important people) make them to receive more notice
from millions of people leading to their activities for donating aid have also more attraction than a
normal persons activities. Besides that, because of their fame, they definitely have a strong impact
on the young, especially their fans, who are easy to be affected by their idol. When a celebrities take
a nice activity, of course, young people surely have a good example to follow. Moreover, the
contribution of famous people for money is usually significant or spread quickly that the
consequence will gain the desired effect. For instance, Bill Gates, one of the most famous in the
world, gave very much money on stimulating the quality of health and decreasing poverty that have
positive results in the whole world.
On the other hand, there are many person exploit their celebrity to promote their image in a untrue
way. For example, they will agree with organizations to allow to use their reputation to appeal
provision from the public that they dont give any donations for anyone. Futhermore, many person
eastablish the charity to their personal aim that in some case, it is used for wrong purpose leading to
waste money and destroy faith of not only many usual people bu also all community.
In conclusion, despite of arguments, I think celebrities have more benefits on supporting the aid to
organisations than ordinary people.

http://scholarshipplanet.info/check/2526/ielts-people-believe-famous-peoplesupport-international-makes-general-public-about
https://books.google.com.vn/books?
id=4wCHBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA6&lpg=PA6&dq=COMPACT+ADVANCED+C1&source=bl
&ots=vSbrLKPnVB&sig=0VWNSct5Ldu9bKIjT4qR839UVik&hl=vi&sa=X&ei=9I8RVaIC
hOfyBYvZgoAB&ved=0CGoQ6AEwDw#v=onepage&q&f=true
TNG HP IDIOMS HAY CH 'NG VT'
1 - Not enough room to swing a cat: ch mt ngi nh (phng) b nh l mi
2 - On the hoof: lm vic g bt cn i, khng tnh ton trc
3 - Pigs might fly: ci ny him! i n Tt nm sau nh!
4 - Play possum: chi tr gi cht

5 - Proud as a peacock: vnh vnh t c

6 - Puppy love: tnh yu gia hai bn tr
7 - Queen bee: ngi quan trng
8 - Queer fish: 1 thng d
9 - Quiet as a cat / Quiet as a mouse: cm nh hn
10 - Rat race: cuc ua danh li
11 - Shaggy dog story: 1 cu chuyn ci nht
12 - Sick as a dog: ang say (tu xe) v bun nn
13 - Sick as a parrot: bun phin chn nn
14 - Sing like a canary: chim ln vic g cho cnh st
15 - Sly as a fox: co gi
16 - Smell a rat: cm thy c chuyn khng bnh thng
17 - Snake in the grass: mt thng la o, 2 mt
18 - Straw that broke the camels back: git nc trn ly
19 - Stubborn as a mule: cng u cng c
20 - Sweat like a pig: m hi ht

Lee Kuan Yew

1

Finland schools: Subjects scrapped and

replaced with 'topics' as country
reforms its education system
With Finland radically reforming the way its children are taught, Richard
Garner visits Helsinki to find out if the teachers approve

For years, Finland has been the by-word for a successful education
system, perched at the top of international league tables for literacy
and numeracy.

Only far eastern countries such as Singapore and China outperform

the Nordic nation in the influential Programme for International
Student Assessment (PISA) rankings. Politicians and education
experts from around the world including the UK have made
pilgrimages to Helsinki in the hope of identifying and replicating the
secret of its success.

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A

AA

For years, Finland has been the by-word for a successful education system, perched at the top of
international league tables for literacy and numeracy.
Only far eastern countries such as Singapore and China outperform the Nordic nation in the influential
Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings. Politicians and education experts
from around the world including the UK have made pilgrimages to Helsinki in the hope of identifying
and replicating the secret of its success.
Which makes it all the more remarkable that Finland is about to embark on one of the most radical
education reform programmes ever undertaken by a nation state scrapping traditional teaching by
subject in favour of teaching by topic.
This is going to be a big change in education in Finland that were just beginning, said Liisa Pohjolainen,
who is in charge of youth and adult education in Helsinki the capital city at the forefront of the reform
programme.
School lunches around the world

Pasi Silander, the citys development manager, explained: What we need now is a different kind of
education to prepare people for working life.
Young people use quite advanced computers. In the past the banks had lots of bank clerks totting up
figures but now that has totally changed.
We therefore have to make the changes in education that are necessary for industry and modern society.
Subject-specific lessons an hour of history in the morning, an hour of geography in the afternoon are
already being phased out for 16-year-olds in the citys upper schools. They are being replaced by what the
Finns call phenomenon teaching or teaching by topic. For instance, a teenager studying a vocational
course might take cafeteria services lessons, which would include elements of maths, languages (to help
serve foreign customers), writing skills and communication skills.

More academic pupils would be taught cross-subject topics such as the European Union - which would
merge elements of economics, history (of the countries involved), languages and geography.
There are other changes too, not least to the traditional format that sees rows of pupils sitting passively in
front of their teacher, listening to lessons or waiting to be questioned. Instead there will be a more
collaborative approach, with pupils working in smaller groups to solve problems while improving their
communication skills.
Marjo Kyllonen, Helsinkis education manager who will be presenting her blueprint for change to the
council at the end of this month, said: It is not only Helsinki but the whole of Finland who will be
embracing change.
We really need a rethinking of education and a redesigning of our system, so it prepares our children for
the future with the skills that are needed for today and tomorrow.

Pupils at Siltamaki
primary school perform a rap as part of their cross-subject learning (Jussi Helttunen)

There are schools that are teaching in the old fashioned way which was of benefit in the beginnings of the
1900s but the needs are not the same and we need something fit for the 21st century.
The reforms reflect growing calls in the UK not least from the Confederation of British Industry and
Labours Shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt for education to promote character, resilience
and communication skills, rather than just pushing children through exam factories.
But there would currently be little appetite in the UK for going as far as ditching traditional subjects.
Even in Finland, the reforms have met objections from teachers and heads many of whom have spent
their lives focusing on a particular subject only to be told to change their approach.
Ms Kyllonen has been advocating a co-teaching approach to lesson planning, with input from more than
one subject specialist. Teachers who embrace this new system can receive a small top-up in salary.

About 70 per cent of the citys high school teachers have now been trained in adopting the new approach,
according to Mr Silander.
We have really changed the mindset, he said. It is quite difficult to get teachers to start and take the
first step but teachers who have taken to the new approach say they cant go back.

READ MORE:
FINLAND TO REMOVE CURSIVE HANDWRITING FROM EDUCATION CURRICULUM
THIS IS WHAT SCHOOL LUNCHES LOOK LIKE AROUND THE WORLD
Early data shows that students are benefiting too. In the two years since the new teaching methods first
began being introduced, pupil outcomes they prefer that word to standards have improved.
Finnish schools are obliged to introduce a period of phenomenon-based teaching at least once a year.
These projects can last several weeks. In Helsinki, they are pushing the reforms at a faster pace with
schools encouraged to set aside two periods during the year for adopting the new approach. Ms Kyllonens
blueprint, to be published later this month, envisages the reforms will be in place across all Finnish
schools by 2020.
Meanwhile, the pre-school sector is also embracing change through an innovative project, the Playful
Learning Centre, which is engaged in discussions with the computer games industry about how it could
help introduce a more playful learning approach to younger children.
We would like to make Finland the leading country in terms of playful solutions to childrens learning,
said Olavi Mentanen, director of the PLC project,
The eyes of the education world will be upon Finland as it opts for change: will it be able to retain or
improve its showing in the PISA league tables published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development.
If it does, how will the rest of the education world react?

Case study: Finnish approach

It is an English lesson, but there is a map of continental Europe on the whiteboard. The children must
combine weather conditions with the different countries displayed on the board. For instance, today it is
sunny in Finland and foggy in Denmark. This means the pupils combine the learning of English with
geography.
Welcome to Siltamaki primary school in Helsinki a school with 240 seven- to 12-year-olds which has
embraced Finlands new learning style. Its principal, Anne-Mari Jaatinen, explains the schools
philosophy: We want the pupils to learn in a safe, happy, relaxed and inspired atmosphere.
We come across children playing chess in a corridor and a game being played whereby children rush
around the corridors collecting information about different parts of Africa. Ms Jaatinen describes what is
going on as joyful learning. She wants more collaboration and communication between pupils to allow
them to develop their creative thinking skills.

I am delighted to see this interdisciplinary them or topic type of learning led by a team of core
subject teachers. Back in the 1980's, learning and memory information from brain research indicated
that minds establish initial concepts for an idea, and then any related information was "filed" by
association, to form something like a semantic network. It's so much better to teach with related
ideas than to tell a student, "Wait till next week, when we're in chapter 2." I used Dr. Joan Fulton's
CPOI (Cognitive Process of Instruction) for the last 17 years of my 42-year career and was so sold on
its results, that I shared my experience in two companion books: Brain-based Teaching for All
Subjects, and Thematic Teaching. madlonlaster.com
T VNG TING ANH CH NGI TT K XU (P2)
B. T ch ngi xu (ngi m mnh khng thch)
* Be bad news: ch ai hoc ci g m ta nn trnh th tt hn
Ex: I would never go with her. Shes bad news.
* A fair-weather friend: ch ngi bn ti. Nhng ngi m ch l bn khi ta thnh cng
Ex: I knew it before-hand that she is just a fair-weather friend who now has completely abandoned us
when things suddenly went wrong.
* His bark is worse than his bite: Ch sa ch khng cn
* (give someone) A kick in the teeth: ch vic mun dy cho ai bi hc. ( ting Anh ngi ta dy
ai bi hc bng cch m vo rng)
Ex: I dont think we need to reason with him anymore. He wont listen to anything we say. What he
needs is just a kick in the teeth.
* (to be) a pain in the neck/ass: (ch ci g ) lm ngi khc hay bc mnh
Ex: Having to read all of this long and boring novel is really a pain in the neck.
* It takes all sorts to make a world: i ny c nhiu loi ngi m
Ex: - Several customers of this hotel are very unpleasant. They complain all the time
- it takes all sorts, doesnt it?
* He thinks he is Gods gift to women: Anh y ngh c gi no cng si m anh y
Ex: Ive gone to visit John yesterday and I couldnt believe how he has changed. He was talking
about beautiful girls he had in recent years. He thinks he is Gods gift to women. John has changed
a lot indeed.
* He thinks the world owes him a living: Anh y ngh anh y gii hn bt k ai khc (trong ngh
nghip)
Ex: the last candidate for this position is very arrogant. He thinks the world owes him a living. I think
we shouldnt employ him.
* (all) sweetness and light: dung ch ai tt bng qu mc m c th dn n nghi ng.
Ex: She has been beaten and insulted by her boyfriend Jack and now when Jack asks her to come
back she agrees right away. Its all sweetness and light.
(st) MR LEE'S RED BOX
Mr Lee Kuan Yew had a red box. When I worked as Mr Lees Principal Private Secretary, or PPS, a good part of my
daily life revolved around the red box. Before Mr Lee came in to work each day, the locked red box would arrive first,
at about 9 am.

As far as the various officers who have worked with Mr Lee can remember, he had it for many, many years. It is a
large, boxy briefcase, about fourteen centimetres wide. Red boxes came from the British government, whose
Ministers used them for transporting documents between government offices. Our early Ministers had red boxes, but
Mr Lee is the only one I know who used his consistently through the years. When I started working for Mr Lee in
1997, it was the first time I saw a red box in use. It is called the red box but is more a deep wine colour, like the seats
in the chamber in Parliament House.
This red box held what Mr Lee was working on at any one time. Through the years, it held his papers, speech drafts,
letters, readings, and a whole range of questions, reflections, and observations. For example, in the years that Mr Lee
was working on his memoirs, the red box carried the multiple early drafts back and forth between his home and the
office, scribbled over with his and Mrs Lees notes.
For a long time, other regular items in Mr Lees red box were the cassette tapes that held his dictated instructions and
thoughts for later transcription. Some years back, he changed to using a digital recorder.
The red box carried a wide range of items. It could be communications with foreign leaders, observations about the
financial crisis, instructions for the Istana grounds staff, or even questions about some trees he had seen on the
expressway. Mr Lee was well-known for keeping extremely alert to everything he saw and heard around him when
he noticed something wrong, like an ailing raintree, a note in the red box would follow.
We could never anticipate what Mr Lee would raise it could be anything that was happening in Singapore or the
world. But we could be sure of this: it would always be about how events could affect Singapore and Singaporeans,
and how we had to stay a step ahead. Inside the red box was always something about how we could create a better
life for all.
We would get to work right away. Mr Lees secretaries would transcribe his dictated notes, while I followed up on
instructions that required coordination across multiple government agencies. Our aim was to do as much as we could
by the time Mr Lee came into the office later.
While we did this, Mr Lee would be working from home. For example, during the time that I worked with him (19972000), the Asian Financial Crisis ravaged many economies in our region and unleashed political changes. It was a
tense period as no one could tell how events would unfold. Often, I would get a call from him to check certain facts or
arrange meetings with financial experts.
In the years that I worked for him, Mr Lees daily breakfast was a bowl of dou hua (soft bean curd), with no syrup. It
was picked up and brought home in a tiffin carrier every morning, from a food centre near Mr Lees home. He washed
it down with room-temperature water. Mr Lee did not take coffee or tea at breakfast.
When Mr Lee came into the office, the work that had come earlier in the red box would be ready for his review, and he
would have a further set of instructions for our action.
From that point on, the work day would run its normal course. Mr Lee read the documents and papers, cleared his
emails, and received official calls by visitors. I was privileged to sit in for every meeting he conducted. He would later
ask me what I thought of the meetings it made me very attentive to every word that was said, and I learnt much from
Mr Lee.
Evening was Mr Lees exercise time. Mr Lee has described his extensive and disciplined exercise regime elsewhere.
It included the treadmill, rowing, swimming and walking with his ears peeled to the evening news or his Mandarin
practice tapes. He would sometimes take phone calls while exercising.

He was in his 70s then. In more recent years, being less stable on his feet, Mr Lee had a simpler exercise regime. But
he continued to exercise. Since retiring from the Minister Mentor position in 2011, Mr Lee was more relaxed during his
exercises. Instead of listening intently to the news or taking phone calls, he shared his personal stories and joked with
his staff.
While Mr Lee exercised, those of us in the office would use that time to focus once again on the red box, to get ready
all the days work for Mr Lee to take home with him in the evening. Based on the days events and instructions, I tried
to get ready the materials that Mr Lee might need. It sometimes took longer than I expected, and occasionally, I had
to ask the security officer to come back for the red box later.
While Mrs Lee was still alive, she used to drop by the Istana at the end of the day, in order to catch a few minutes
together with Mr Lee, just to sit and look at the Istana trees that they both loved. They chatted about what many other
old couples would talk about. They discussed what they should have for dinner, or how their grandchildren were
doing.
Then back home went Mr Lee, Mrs Lee and the red box. After dinner, Mr and Mrs Lee liked to take a long stroll. In his
days as Prime Minister, while Mrs Lee strolled, Mr Lee liked to ride a bicycle. It was, in the words of those who saw it,
one of those old man bicycles. None of us who have worked at the Istana can remember him ever changing his
bicycle. He did not use it in his later years, as he became frail, but I believe the old man bicycle is still around
somewhere.
After his dinner and evening stroll, Mr Lee would get back to his work. That was when he opened the red box and
worked his way through what we had put into it in the office.
Mr Lees study is converted out of his sons old bedroom. His work table is a simple, old wooden table with a piece of
clear glass placed over it. Slipped under the glass are family memorabilia, including a picture of our current PM from
his National Service days. When Mrs Lee was around, she stayed up reading while Mr Lee worked. They liked to put
on classical music while they stayed up.
In his days as PM, Mr Lees average bedtime was three-thirty in the morning. As Senior Minister and Minister Mentor,
he went to sleep after two in the morning. If he had to travel for an official visit the next day, he might go to bed at one
or two in the morning.
Deep into the night, while the rest of Singapore slept, it was common for Mr Lee to be in full work mode.
Before he went to bed, Mr Lee would put everything he had completed back in the red box, with clear pointers on
what he wished for us to do in the office. The last thing he did each day was to place the red box outside his study
room. The next morning, the duty security team picked up the red box, brought it to us waiting in the office, and a new
day would begin.
Let me share two other stories involving the red box.
In 1996, Mr Lee underwent balloon angioplasty to insert a stent. It was his second heart operation in two months,
after an earlier operation to widen a coronary artery did not work. After the operation, he was put in the Intensive Care
Unit for observation. When he regained consciousness and could sit up in bed, he asked for his security team. The
security officer hurried into the room to find out what was needed. Mr Lee asked, Can you pass me the red box?

Even at that point, Mr Lees first thought was to continue working. The security officer rushed the red box in, and Mr
Lee asked to be left to his work. The nurses told the security team that other patients of his age, in Mr Lees condition,
would just rest. Mr Lee was 72 at the time.
In 2010, Mr Lee was hospitalised again, this time for a chest infection. While he was in the hospital, Mrs Lee passed
away. Mr Lee has spoken about his grief at Mrs Lees passing. As soon as he could, he left the hospital to attend the
wake at Sri Temasek.
At the end of the night, he was under doctors orders to return to the hospital. But he asked his security team if they
could take him to the Singapore River instead. It was late in the night, and Mr Lee was in mourning. His security team
hastened to give a bereaved husband a quiet moment to himself.
As Mr Lee walked slowly along the bank of the Singapore River, the way he and Mrs Lee sometimes did when she
was still alive, he paused. He beckoned a security officer over. Then he pointed out some trash floating on the river,
and asked, Can you take a photo of that? Ill tell my PPS what to do about it tomorrow. Photo taken, he returned to
the hospital.
I was no longer Mr Lees PPS at the time. I had moved on to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, to continue with the
work to strengthen our financial regulatory system that Mr Lee had started in the late 1990s. But I can guess that Mr
Lee probably had some feedback on keeping the Singapore River clean. I can also guess that the picture and the
instructions were ferried in Mr Lees red box the next morning to the office. Even as Mr Lee lay in the hospital. Even
as Mrs Lee lay in state.
The security officers with Mr Lee were deeply touched. When I heard about these moments, I was also moved.
I have taken some time to describe Mr Lees red box. The reason is that, for me, it symbolises Mr Lees unwavering
dedication to Singapore so well. The diverse contents it held tell us much about the breadth of Mr Lees concerns
from the very big to the very small; the daily routine of the red box tells us how Mr Lees life revolved around making
Singapore better, in ways big and small.
By the time I served Mr Lee, he was the Senior Minister. Yet he continued to devote all his time to thinking about the
future of Singapore. I could only imagine what he was like as Prime Minister. In policy and strategy terms, he was
always driving himself, me, and all our colleagues to think about what each trend and development meant for
Singapore, and how we should respond to it in order to secure Singapores wellbeing and success.
As his PPS, I saw the punishing pace of work that Mr Lee set himself. I had a boss whose every thought and every
action was for Singapore.
But it takes private moments like these to bring home just how entirely Mr Lee devoted his life to Singapore.
In fact, I think the best description comes from the security officer who was with Mr Lee both of those times. He was
on Mr Lees team for almost 30 years. He said of Mr Lee: Mr Lee is always country, country, country. And country.
This year, Singapore turns 50. Mr Lee would have turned 92 this September. Mr Lee entered the hospital on 5
February 2015. He continued to use his red box every day until 4 February 2015.
(Photo: MCI)

Finland to remove cursive handwriting

from education curriculum
The move has sparked debate over the future of handwriting in the
classroomCursive handwriting will be scrapped from the Finnish

education curriculum and replaced by lessons in keyboard typing, it

has been announced.
The countrys education board said that the change - set to take
effect in 2016 - will reflect how typing skills are more relevant than
handwriting. The move has sparked debate over the future of
handwriting in the classroom.
Minna Harmanen from the National Board of Education
toldFinnish publication Savon Sanomat that "fluent typing skills are
an important national competence".
In September 2013 cursive handwriting was removed as a
compulsory skill in the US, where 43 states have adopted the
standard as of last year.
Misty Adoniou, senior lecturer of Language, Literacy and TESL at
the University of Canberra, told The Independent: "I think they
[Finland] have made a sensible decision, and it has probably come
about from a sensible curriculum review.
"Cursive writing is a reflection of a time when we used a fountain
pen and ink - a writing technology.
"Nobody is arguing that children shouldn't learn to write by hand.
However writing technologies have continued to evolve and most of
us use a keyboard of some kind to most of our written

communication, so it does make sense to spend some time at school

ensuring children have those keyboard skills."
LEAVE YOUR TRIBUTE

LIVE BLOG

Remembering Lee Kuan Yew: My father was a

workaholic
Lee Wei Ling, 60, is Mr Lee Kuan Yew's only daughter and director of the National
Neuroscience Institute
PUBLISHED ON MAR 24, 2015 6:00 AM

- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/remembering-lee-kuan-yewmy-father-was-workaholic-201503#sthash.Xp30Tfhq.dpufOCT 21, 1978: PM and Mrs Lee with daughter Wei Ling, 23,
after she received her Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery with honours, and five prizes at the University of
Singapore convocation. She topped her medical class of 1978. -- ST FILE PHOTO - See more at:
http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/remembering-lee-kuan-yew-my-father-wasworkaholic-201503#sthash.Xp30Tfhq.dpuf
My parents and I were in hospital waiting for my father to have a stent put in, but none of us said a word.
It was not because of an unspoken tension over the state of his health - we were all too busy working.
There my father sat on his hospital bed huddled over his laptop with my mother, who was checking his draft, while I,
too, had a computer on my lap.
As I watched the three of us in the room, it occurred to me that any passer-by would get no sense at all that my father
would soon be going in for an angioplasty.
- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/remembering-lee-kuan-yewmy-father-was-workaholic-201503#sthash.Xp30Tfhq.dpuf
Yes, my father was a workaholic, and as a 73-year-old holding the post of senior minister in 1996, he did not see his
impending surgery as reason enough to stop working.
But the episode also showed me how my father stoically approached the challenges before him without a hint of
emotion or anxiety. He was unflappable.
He found it was never helpful to panic, because doing so would never positively affect the outcome of any situation.

I believe these were the steely qualities that took him through his 31 tumultuous years as prime minister, but they
may not always work as well at home.
In my family, I am most like my father in temperament, and when you have two strong-willed people in one house, it
can get difficult to control.
Occasionally, we would get into fights when neither of us would back down.
In 2002, one such disagreement resulted in my moving out of our Oxley Road home.
My father wanted me, an exercise fiend, to stop working out because my bones had become so fragile that I suffered
repeated fractures.
He called me into his study and gave me an ultimatum.
"The doctors told me you could cripple yourself with the exercise. As long as you are staying in this house, I've to look
after your welfare," he said.
Not wanting to give up my exercise, I decided to move out to live with my brother Loong.
It was probably not the response my father had anticipated, but he realised then that I was a 47-year-old adult who
was going to make up my own mind on things.
The next year, when I told my father I was going to hike a volcanic crater in Hawaii immediately after I was
discharged from hospital, he gave a very different response.
"Be careful."
He said nothing more.
- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/singapore/more-singapore-stories/story/remembering-lee-kuan-yewmy-father-was-workaholic-201503#sthash.Xp30Tfhq.dpuf