Maris Stella High School
Maris Stella High School (MSHS) (Chinese: 海星中学; pinyin: Hǎixīng Zhōngxué) is a government-aided, all-boys Catholic secondary school with autonomous status. As a full school, it comprises a primary section offering a six-year programme leading up to the Primary School Leaving Examination, as well as a secondary section offering a four-year programme leading up to the Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level examinations. Run by the international Marist Brothers at Mount Vernon Road, Singapore near Bartley MRT station, Maris Stella High School is one of the eleven Special Assistance Plan (SAP) high schools in Singapore.[1]
Maris Stella High School 海星中学 Sekolah Tinggi Maris Stella | |
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Address | |
25 Mount Vernon Road Singapore 368051 Bartley, Singapore | |
Coordinates | 1.3414°N 103.8778°E |
Information | |
Type | Boys Autonomous Government-aided Special Assistance Plan (SAP) |
Motto | 勤·勉·忠·勇 (Diligence, Determination, Loyalty and Courage) |
Established | 1958 |
Session | Single session |
School code | 7111 |
Principal | Mrs Woo Soo Min |
Enrolment | approx. 1,500 |
Colour(s) | Blue Black |
Website | marisstellahigh.moe.edu.sg |
History
Founding
Maris Stella High School was founded in 1958 by the international Marist Brothers to ease overwhelming applications for admission to Catholic High School.[2] The school begun operations with eleven teachers, running a primary section of 163 students and a secondary section of 124 students. Academic lessons took place in the afternoon at St. Stephen's School in Siglap.[3]
As enrollment rose, other schools were approached for assistance in lesson grounds. Between 1963 and 1966, Maris Stella High School functioned concurrently at different premises. Among them were Silat Road Government Integrated Primary School, St. Patrick's School, Opera Estate Convent, Tung Ling English School, and Jalan Kembangan Integrated Primary School. Numerous issues plagued the institution, both in administration as well as in conducting lessons, as the premises used were miles apart. Nevertheless, the results of the students remained spectacular, with their consistent 100% passes in the Government Examinations over the decades.[3]
Mount Vernon campus
On 22 October 1966, Maris Stella High School moved into a permanent campus at Mount Vernon Road. The campus was built with fifteen classrooms and a four-storey science block. A grand celebration was held to mark the official opening of the new school.[3] In 1969, the second phrase of the campus development was completed, consisting of an administrative block and a 1600-seat auditorium. In total, these two phases of development cost over S$1.3 million.[4]
In 1974, the development project for the expansion of the campus was launched. The new five-storey building for the primary section was completed by the end of October 1975, at a cost of about $1.1 million. The new building was officially declared open on 11 September 1976.[3]
A separate 3.11 hectares site for the primary section was acquired in 1982, which was adjacent to the present school building. A designated three-storey school building was built and opened in 1987, and that year, in order to cope with its large student population, the primary and secondary sections were split into independently functioning entities.[5]
Attainment of SAP status
In 1978, the school was selected as one of the initial list of Special Assistance Plan schools. The first batch of nine schools, including Maris Stella High, welcomed its first full cohort of Special Stream students in 1979.[6] That same year, the school introduced instruction in English for several subjects.[7]
Autonomous status and the new millennium
In 1996, Maris Stella High became an autonomous school, the additional funds providing extra programmes and facilities.[3] From 1995 to 1997, the school moved to a temporary site at Mount Vernon Secondary School while the school was rebuilt.[8]
In 2002, Maris Stella High was designated as a Cluster Centre of Excellence for Information and Communication Technology (ICT).[3]
Principal
Name of Principal | Years Served |
---|---|
J. Chanel Soon F.M.S. | 1958 – 1981 |
John Lek F.M.S.[9] | 1982 – 1984 |
Anthony Tan Kim Hock F.M.S. | 1984 – 2009 |
Lim Choon Kiat Joseph | 2009 – 2015 |
Woo Soo Min | 2016 – Present |
Academic information
GCE O Level Express Course
As a non-Integrated Programme Special Assistance Plan school, Maris Stella High School offers four-year Special (Express) course. The Express Course is a nationwide four-year programme that leads up to the Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level examination.[10]
Academic subjects
The examinable academic subjects for Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level offered by Maris Stella High School for upper secondary level (via. streaming in secondary 2), as of 2017, are listed below.[11]
Notes:
- Subjects indicated with ' * ' are mandatory subjects.
- All students in Singapore are required to undertake a Mother Tongue Language as an examinable subject, as indicated by ' ^ '.
- "SPA" in Pure Science subjects refers to the incorporation of School-based Science Practical Assessment, which 20% of the subject result in the national examination are determined by school-based practical examinations, supervised by the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board. The SPA Assessment has been replaced by one Practical Assessment in the 2018 O Levels.[12]
Sciences | Language & Hunanities | Arts & Aesthetics |
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Notable alumni
- Lee Yi Shyan: Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry & Ministry of National Development, Member of Parliament for East Coast GRC[13]
- Ong Ye Kung: Minister of Education; MP for Sembawang GRC, 2015
- Koh Poh Koon: MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC, 2015
- Moses Lim: Actor and comedian
- Cavin Soh: Actor and singer, Mediacorp
External links
References
- "School Information Service (SIS)". sis.moe.gov.sg. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
- Sharp, Ilsa; Yan Poh, Koh (16 December 1978). "THE SUPER SCHOOLS:Tenacity and faith - that's Maris Stella". The Straits Times. Retrieved 19 November 2017 – via NewspaperSG.
- "school-history". marisstellahigh.moe.edu.sg. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- "$1.3 million wish comes true, and Brothers now have another". The Straits Times. 7 October 1969. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
- Mei Kiang, Seah (8 June 1985). "Maris Stella to be split into two schools to cope with high enrolment". Singapore Monitor. Singapore. Retrieved 29 December 2017 – via NewspaperSG.
- Lee, Kuan Yew (2011). 李光耀 - 我一生的挑战 - 新加坡双语之路. Singapore Press Holdings. pp. 97–122. ISBN 978-981-4342-04-9.
- "Maris Stella High goes bilingual". The Straits Times. 16 April 1978. Retrieved 31 October 2017 – via NewspaperSG.
- "Maris Stella to have smaller classes from '97". The Straits Times. 18 August 1995.
- "Ministry of Education Appoints 60 Principals in 2009". Ministry of Education. Archived from the original on 17 October 2009.
- "Express Course Curriculum". www.moe.gov.sg. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
- "School Information Service". Ministry of Education, Singapore. Ministry of Education, Singapore. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
- "GCE O-Level Syllabuses Examined in 2018". Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB). Archived from the original on 28 April 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)