Pioneer Graduates

The 2003 Cohort alumni may have gone on their separate ways, but their teacher Sian Roberts, is still doing well at Tanglin as a Learning Support teacher. Here’s her Tanglin story.

How did you become a tutor for the first intake of Sixth Form students?

I was a Sixth Form tutor in my first year of teaching at Tanglin. This was part of the reason I was employed, I think, because the Sixth Form was just starting and my previous job in the UK had been teaching in a Sixth Form College. They needed someone with Sixth Form experience as some of the teachers working in the school at that time only had limited experience in this area. I had a lot of 16-18 experience including writing university references (e.g., Oxbridge references) and that was definitely a gap in Tanglin expertise at that time, luckily for me! I came in as a German and French teacher so at first my actual teaching role in terms of my subject area in the Sixth Form was limited as there was only a very small number of languages students at that level but, over the years, that number expanded exponentially. 

How different was it teaching students 20 years ago compared to today?

There is a difference between teaching in the Sixth Form and being a tutor in the Sixth Form which was what I was back then. Of course, there were only 18 students at that time, all housed in a building specially built for just the Sixth Form which I think opened the year before I joined the school. This building seemed vast at the time as there were only those 18 students rattling around in there during the first year in a building designed for 100+ students. The Sixth Form grew rapidly and soon outgrew the building, so it was eventually demolished to make way for the new Sixth Form. I spent many years over in the Sixth Form, becoming a permanent fixture as a Year 12 and Year 13 tutor, often taking over Year 13 tutor groups when someone left as I could write University references in my sleep by that time! Each Head of Sixth Form has added their own seasoning to the Sixth Form soup but, somehow, it has always kept its true essence: that certain something that keeps Tanglin Sixth Form what it has always been. Times may change, but teenagers seldom do.  

How has your role changed since then?

My daughters both had their own journeys through the school, including the Sixth Form but since those days, my role has changed significantly. After the sad demise of German as a subject in the Senior School, I retrained as a Learning Support teacher. My Sixth Form connection now is in a mentoring capacity, where I enjoy guiding students through this phase of their education. I have seen many Heads of Sixth Form come and go from the first, Peter Welch whom I worked so closely with in the embryonic stages of the Sixth Form up to the present day where the Sixth Form is a fully fledged adult in its own right and offering two pathways to almost 400 students.

What were some challenges?

Some of the challenges were that everything was new; everything was being done for the first time. New courses being delivered; new teachers bringing their own expertise and old teachers trying to raise the level of their knowledge or resurrect old skills. The spotlight was certainly on the Sixth Form as the leading light of the school and, as has always been the case, being compared with the UWC Sixth Form experience – at the time, the only other real rival to Tanglin. Before the introduction of the IB pathway at Tanglin, a handful of students who wanted to study somewhere other than the UK post-18 would leave Tanglin to go to UWC (often to the cry of “Traitor” from the rest of their cohort!).

Any memorable student stories?

Because of the small numbers that first couple of years, we knew the students really well and felt particularly close to them and responsible for their welfare. We had one lady, Izzy Barclay who worked in a part time capacity helping students with their university applications but otherwise it was just Peter and I in that first year. We felt like the mum and dad of the brood! We took the students on a bonding trip to Bintan, which was interesting to say the least and included very dubious toilet facilities and being trapped in a one-man tent with a swarm of mosquitos! As for the students themselves, it is hard to remember stories about individuals…my memory isn’t that great, I’m afraid!

Do you keep in touch with them?

Not really…remember Facebook only launched in 2004! I see them when they come and visit school and I occasionally hear stories about them through the grapevine which is always nice. I did see a few of them at an Alumni event I attended several years ago which was lovely, but scary - as it made me feel so ancient! They are now 36 years old!!

Thank you, Sian.

Now let’s hear from Peter Welch who is now Director at the American International School of Bucharest. Since Tanglin, he has built up an impressive portfolio, which includes publishing a book titled Who on Earth Are you? How to Thrive in a Mixed-up World and being the Director of IB World Schools in Thailand, Turkey, and Finland. We caught up with him over Zoom.

You were the founding Head of Sixth Form back in 2001. How did this role come about?

I joined the school as the Head of Humanities in 1999 and after one year, I was appointed to be the first Head of Sixth Form – a year before the Sixth Form opened. That was a lovely challenge because I was supported to visit schools in the UK to learn about best practices for Sixth Form. I worked with the leaders of Tanglin at that time, particularly Ronald Stones (CEO, 1994-2006). We designed the building and the environment, the marketing, and the competition for the student uniform design that you still have today. We recruited 20 students, and it was a really a fun year! I was the Head for the next two years, and I taught History and Politics during that period as well.

What kind of challenges did you face as the founding Head?

Before we began the first intake, I was in a meeting with Ron Stones, Steward Hilland (Head of Junior School, 1996-1998, and Head of Senior School, 1996-2004) and Marilyn Cole (previous Director of Studies). At that time, we just had three people sign up. We were worried whether this was going to work at all. In the early days, it was risky to start Sixth Form without a track record because UWC already had a successful IB programme. We eventually managed to get 18 students and another 20 students the following year, and it began to roll forward but yeah, it was risky when we first started. A lot of teachers back then were teaching A-Level for the first time, so they were learning new curriculum and assessments.

How did you overcome the challenges?

Tanglin has always been a remarkable school. I faced significant challenges as the Head, but I’ve always felt very supported by the people around me. We also had this wonderful building and a lot of support during the set-up process. Ron, in particular, was a great supporter of mine. He was a gentleman who was, in many ways, quite private, so he didn’t speak much, but I knew that he supported my career. He gave me the opportunity to be the Founding Head of Sixth Form and he had done that more than once in my career, for which I am very grateful.

You mentioned that you visited schools in UK to learn about their best practices. How did you apply what you learned at Tanglin?

Some of what I learned was to build community and culture. You need to develop a tradition if you are starting new projects and to do that, you have to create a sense of connection and belonging. For example, one of the schools I visited would begin every week with an assembly and each student would shake the hand of every teacher. I thought that was a really nice tradition.

What was it like teaching the first intake of Sixth Form students?

When I think of all the roles that I’ve been lucky to have, this was perhaps my favourite. We were all very close with the first group of students. We were starting something new, and I had to be across all the details and planning. I was involved in not only the teaching and setting the school up, but I also had a support role for the students. I have a great fondness for that particular group of students because they really were remarkable people. We were in this lovely new building and there were not many people so taking ownership of it and making it ours was a really lovely process for all of us. The students all got on very well with one another.

What is the difference between teaching students back then vs students today?

I remember going on a holiday study trip to UK during the first summer of our first year. We went to London first where we visited museums, watched shows, visited York University before going to the Edinburgh Festival. We stayed in a hostel when we were at the festival, and I let the students go experience music, theatre, and comedy at the world’s biggest international festival for the first time in their lives. I imagine if you ask them now, that was a wonderful and life-changing experience. They could see what life would be like after they graduate. I guess what I’m trying to convey is that it was much more relaxed back then. Today, for very understandable reasons, education has become more conscientious, more health and safety conscious etc. But in the earlier days, there was an informality and freedom for young people that I believe we all appreciated.

What was it like working with Sian?

Sian was one of the early teachers who had a very strong pastoral, social and emotional role. She was an approachable person who was always kind, fun, funny and I remember her sense of humour. Sian was a lot of fun to work with and she brought a nice caring energy to the students.

Do you still keep in touch with your students?

Yes, I do. We had a lovely Zoom call in the middle of the pandemic when lots of us were connecting with old friends. It was great to be online and talk to them all. There is Vanessa who became an actress in London and Sam who went on to become a journalist for Financial Times. Georgina, who is now based in Zurich, Switzerland, is always very kind to remember my birthday because she was my history student and I used to joke in class and mentioned that a history date was my birthday as well. Malati, whom I believe is in Singapore and working as an event planner, also remembers my birthday every year. She is such a gorgeous, kind person. Arya, too, has done lots of things in his career. They are all incredible adults. You always think of them as kids and students because that was how I knew them.

What a wonderful throwback, Peter. Thank you for being an important part of Tanglin’s history! Now that we’ve heard from Peter, let’s catch up with a couple of alumni on their favourite memories.  

Thinking back 20 years, it's funny what random moments come to the forefront. I was at Tanglin for the last four years of senior school. A few that come to mind. I remember a school trip camping in Australia, where we lay on flat rocks that were warm from the day and learned about constellations; having the opportunity to look at designs and be part of choosing the uniforms for the new 6th form; Dr Randford in a fully committed Freddy Mercury impersonation at the school talent show (not everyone knowing who Freddy Mercury was!). Since school and university, I've spent most of my career across Asia/Middle East; and I’m now based in Zurich.

- Georgina Ho (2003 cohort)

I attended Tanglin from 1990 - 2003. I started in Reception and was in the first cohort to start Year 7, the first to go through GCSEs and A-Levels at Tanglin. I helped design the new uniforms with the school council and Ronald Stones so it’s brilliant to see the kids still wearing them and what a huge school Tanglin has become. I am currently an actress based out of London; my professional stage name is Vanessa Emme. I moved to London in 2015 from Dublin. I have a theatre background, but I am now mainly doing TV. I just wrapped a 5-month shoot got Season 2 of The Chelsea Detective.

- Vanessa Fahy (2003 cohort)