Singapore American School
1°25′33.53″N 103°46′28.60″E / 1.4259806°N 103.7746111°E
Singapore American School
| Established | 1956 |
|---|---|
| School type | Private International School |
| Superintendent | Chip Kimball |
| Location | 40 Woodlands Street 41 Woodlands Singapore |
| Phone | (65) 6363-3403 |
| Enrollment | 3,849 (2010)[1] 51 Nationalities |
| Faculty | 375 (2010)[1] |
| Campus | Urban, 37 acres (150,000 m²) |
| Sports teams | Eagles |
| School colors | Blue White Red |
| Website | www.sas.edu.sg |
The Singapore American School (abbreviation: SAS) is a private school in Singapore. Established in 1956, the school offers an American-based curriculum from preschool through to Grade 12 for approximately 3,800 expatriate students, making it the largest international school in the world.[citation needed] Approximately two-thirds of the students at SAS are United States citizens, with the rest of the student body comprising more than 50 nationalities. Few Singaporean students attend the school as Singapore government regulations prevent most local students from attending international schools within the country.
Academically, SAS has the largest number of high school students enrolled in Advanced Placement Program (AP) courses of any international school in the world,[citation needed] delivering 29 AP courses as an integral part of high school course options.[2]
SAS has a strong athletic tradition. It is part of the Interscholastic Association of Southeast Asian Schools (IASAS), providing SAS students with the opportunity to compete regularly with other international schools in the region in both academic and sports events. Such competitions and conventions include Model United Nations, the arts, and a host of sports such as swimming, cross country, and basketball. The school has a student newspaper, The Eye, which has won the Columbia Gold Crown award multiple times, as well as other rewards from the National Scholastic Press Association.[3]
SAS is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in the United States.[1]
The Good Schools Guide International reviewed the school as "an extremely spacious school for Singapore with wonderful, modern facilities, strong academics, and a plethora of options within the curriculum and extracurricular program".[4]
Faculty
Approximately 345 faculty members work full-time at SAS, 68% of whom hold Master's or Doctorate degrees in their field of teaching.[citation needed] 70% of faculty members are from the United States; non-US citizen faculty members most commonly come from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. The tenure of SAS faculty is, on average, six years. Most teachers at SAS have previously had experience teaching in other international schools.[5]
Academics
Curriculum
Singapore American School has a six-year curriculum cycle resulting in continuous review and renewal in all subject and service areas.[6] This cycle ensures that curriculum, service areas, and classroom resources are continually upgraded and connected to “best practices”. Each subject or service area is reviewed over a three year cycle: Year One is the Study Year and stakeholder feedback, current practices and “best practices” are reviewed, Year Two is the Development Year and curriculum revision/renewal is finalized and new/additional classroom resources are identified, and Year Three is the Implementation Year and the new curriculum is implemented and classroom resources are incorporated into the delivery of the program.
=Advanced Placement Program
Among 570 SAS students who completed 1337 AP exams in 2010, 285 students earned Advanced Placement Awards; in addition, 93% of all scores were 3 or higher, demonstrating qualification for college credit or advanced placement. AP exams SAS students have traditionally excelled in include Calculus BC ('08 mean score: 4.9); Chinese Language ('08 mean score: 4.8); World History ('08 mean score: 4.6); and Chemistry, Calculus AB, Biology, and Comparative Government & Politics ('08 mean score: 4.5). In addition, SAS graduates of 2000, 2001, and 2002 have received the AP International Scholar Award, given to only one male and one female student each year among all International American schools outside of the U.S.[7]
In addition to AP courses, honors courses such as Molecular Biology**, Accelerated Chemistry**, Algebra II/Trigonometry**, and Pre-Calculus** are offered. These courses provided fast-paced learning and go into the depths of certain topics; making it more challenging for the students and better preparing them for Advanced Placement Courses.
Interim Semester
Every Chinese New Years, the High School students get to spend a week in a location of their choice around the world. In 2010, students had a choice between various countries including: Sweden, Japan, China, Switzerland, South Africa, Egypt, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, India, France, Germany, Poland/Czech Republic, Oman, and other places including inter-Singapore trips. These trips are either service-oriented, or are geared more towards tourist activities, such as bungee jumping in New Zealand. Students choose their trip based on seniority (Seniors having first pick) and a lottery system randomly selecting which groups of people pick in which order (students with last names starting with A-C, G-I, etc...).
College admissions
High-performing SAS seniors have gained entrance to some of the most selective institutions in the United States. Members of the class of 2009 were admitted into highly-regarded schools such as Brown University, the California Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Elon University, New York University, Duke University, Emory University, Georgetown University, Harvard University, Northwestern University, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Stanford University, the University of Chicago, UC-Berkeley, UCLA, University of Southern California, Purdue University, Williams College, University of Michigan Ann Arbor and Yale University.[8]
Every year, more than 200 admissions officers from colleges around the world visit SAS. Their presentations, and question and answer sessions, allow students from the high school to begin grasping what kinds of schools they're interested in. Following the spring of junior year, formal college advising begins, in which students and parents schedule one-on-one appointments with their counselor to formulate a list of prospective schools. This process is facilitated by world-class counselors.
Extracurriculars
As part of the SAS education, students participate in extracurriculars. Many student-run and school-run clubs and organizations exist on campus, acknowledging a wide spectrum of interests.
Athletics
Within the high school, boys and girls' junior varsity and varsity teams exist for cross country, soccer, volleyball, basketball, rugby, football, swimming, tennis, touch rugby, badminton, softball, and track and field. Athletes compete not only with local schools and community teams, but also with rival IASAS schools.
Following the conclusion of the spring IASAS tournaments, intramural sports are also offered. These activities vary yearly based on student demand and faculty interest.[9]
Community service
An annual Service Assembly held in the fall of every school year allows students to know more about the service clubs available at SAS — all of the service clubs are predominantly student-run, offering leadership opportunities within each club. Some of the biggest service clubs in the high school include SAVE (Students Against Violating the Environment), Habitat for Humanity, Peace Initiative (a club dedicated to human rights and the education of children),Global Issues Network and Wish for Kids (which hosts a yearly service trip for students and teachers to work with the children of Maravilla Elementary School, Philippines.) In addition to Wish for Kids, there are many other clubs, such as the Bintan Club, Aiding China, and Outreach Vietnam, that take trips to nearby countries to perform further service.[10] Also, for the 2012-2013 school year, Kiva Club, granted service status in the 2011-2012 school year, will be a student-led club that will aim to raise, in collaboration with Business Club,[11] money and lend the money in the form of micro-financing to help in injecting liquidity into poverty-stricken villages.[12] Details on how funds are raised and the philosophy of Kiva Club is constantly updated on their website from August 2012.[11]
Academic interests and honor societies
Academic clubs at SAS include Business Club,[11] Debate, Math Club (which allows students to compete in the Southeast Asian Math Competition), Knowledge Bowl, Digital Frontiers, Speech Club, and Model United Nations (a student-led simulation of the United Nations where each student represents a nation).[13] Impromptu speaking, extemporaneous speaking, debate, and oral interpretation are also offered under the yearly IASAS Cultural Convention (includes Extemporaneous speaking, Impromptu, Oral Interpretations and Drama) giving students a chance to compete with others in their area of interest.
In addition to open-participation student clubs, selection-based honor societies exist at SAS, providing high-achieving students recognition for their talents. The honor societies present at the school are French Honor Society, Mandarin Honor Society, Japanese Honor Society, National Honor Society, Quill and Scroll Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, International Thespian Society, National Art Honor Society and Tri-M (Modern Music Masters).[14]
Fine and Performing Arts
Fine and performing arts clubs within the school include A-Capella Club, Animation Club, Dance Club, Dead Artists' Society (a club for those interested in art), Jazz Ensemble, Photography Club, Technical Theatre Club and Theatre Make-Up Club. Drama is also prominent at the school, offering thespians many opportunities to perform, whether it be in the fall production (musicals and plays alternate each year), student-directed shows, Cultural Convention or the annual Scenes and Monologues Night.[15]
Other activities
Other extracurriculars offered at SAS include student government, language clubs (Cantonese, French, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, and Taiwanese), and small-scale athletic clubs such as Aikido, Climbing Club, and Golf.[16]
Facilities/Food
Following the conclusion of a three-year expansion project in 2005, the 37-acre (150,000 m2) SAS campus has been divided into four divisions: the Primary School (including the Early Childhood Center), Intermediate School, Middle School, and High School.[17]-
- Air conditioned classrooms
- Outdoor covered playgrounds
- Cafeterias offering both local and western cuisine from Haven Pizza, Subway, and the school's local caterer. There is also the Eagle's Zone Cafe run by Food Haven.
- Computer labs
- Division-specific libraries
- School-wide WiFi access
- Art studios
- Photography darkroom
- Photography studio
- Performing arts facilities
- 1,200-seat auditorium
- 500-seat theatre studio
- 455-seat drama theatre
- 455-seat multi purpose theater
- Music rooms, including air conditioned practice rooms equipped with pianos.
- Jam Room/Recording Studio (Run by Paul Koebnick, and the Independent Performing Artist's Union.)
- Dance studios
- Athletic complex
- Six softball fields
- Two Baseball fields
- Eight soccer/football fields
- High-ropes course
- Eight swimming pools
- 400-meter track and field with covered stadium seating
- Ten large indoor gymnasiums
- Six auxiliary indoor gymnasiums
- Thirteen lighted tennis courts
- Weight-lifting rooms
- Three indoor climbing walls
Cafeteria facilities on campus consist of various catering outlets owned by Singaporean company Food Haven, as well as cafeterias privately catered by "Ho Brothers Catering". Along with this, there is a [Subway] sandwich outlet on campus, and ID card operated soda vending machines are common throughout the campus.
Notable alumni
- George B. Fitch (Class of 1965): Mayor of Warrenton, Virginia, and a former candidate for Governor of Virginia. He was one of the co-founders of the Jamaican Bobsled Team for the 1988 Winter Olympics, which inspired the Disney film Cool Runnings.
- Jim Baker (Class of 1966): author whose books include Crossroads: A Popular History of Malaysia and Singapore and The Eagle in the Lion City: America, Americans and Singapore. Member of the faculty at SAS since 1971, teaching history and economics.
- Julia Nickson-Soul (Class of 1976): actress who has appeared in Rambo: First Blood Part II, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Babylon 5 and Walker Texas Ranger.
- Cork Graham: combat photographer imprisoned in Vietnam for illegally entering the country while looking for treasure buried by Captain Kidd. Attended SAS from 1972-1977.
- Michael P. Fay: an American teen convicted of theft and vandalism while in Singapore. He was sentenced to 4 months jail and six strokes of the cane, which caused international outrage including a plea by then US president Bill Clinton to commute the caning sentence.
- Michael Graham: rugby union player for Philadelphia Whitemarsh RFC and the international USA Hawks.
- Lynn Collins: actress who has appeared in John Carter (film), The Merchant of Venice (2004 film), X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and TV series such as True Blood
- Tammy Duckworth: US Congresswoman from Illinois and Iraq War veteran
References
- ^ a b c Singapore American School U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
- ^ http://www.sas.edu.sg/HSCounsel/About/pdf/profile.pdf
- ^ 2003 Scholastic Crown Recipients Columbia Scholastic Press Association. Retrieved 29 May 2008.
- ^ http://gsgi.co.uk/countries/singapore/singapore-american-school?
- ^ http://www.sas.edu.sg/about/ourfaculty.html
- ^ http://www.sas.edu.sg/curriculum/reviewcycle.html
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/hscounseling/Academics/APScholars.htm
- ^ http://www.sas.edu.sg/about/universityacceptances.html
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/index.html
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/clubs.html#CommunityServiceClubs
- ^ a b c http://sasbusinessclub.com/#/
- ^ http://sasbusinessclub.com/#/kivaclub.html
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/clubs.html#AcademicClub
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/clubs.html#HonorSocieties
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/clubs.html#FinePerformingArts
- ^ http://hseagle.sas.edu.sg/aa/clubs.html#RecreationalClubs
- ^ http://www.sas.edu.sg/about/facilities.html