In Singapore, we’re provided with an enriching and holistic education.
Every student is unique, some are more geared towards academics, while others perform better in different fields such as sports, art, dance, etc.
In order for you to discover what interests you, you’re encouraged to pick and join a CCA in school.
There’s a variety of CCAs to choose from in most schools in Singapore, they generally fall under these categories.
– Sports
– Uniform Groups (UGs)
– Performing Arts
– Infocomm & Media
With these many choices for you to choose, you can experiment and find out which is most suited to you.
In this article, I’ll talk about how and why CCAs are so important even though it’s non-academic.
1) Holistic Learning
You may be wondering, “What does holistic learning really mean?”
Well, holistic learning means learning and picking up skills not offered in classrooms.
By being part of CCAs, you don’t have to channel all of your time as a student to study.
Instead, you’ll also have time to learn and enjoy something you’re passionate about.
And here are some things you can learn from being part of CCAs,
– Platform for you to work on your talent
– Platform for you to express yourself
– Learn the importance of teamwork
– Learn the importance of effective communication
– Learn the importance of time management and commitment
– Chance to learn about foreign culture
Isn’t that wonderful?
2) Finding Your Passion
Apart from holistic learning, CCAs give you a chance to find out what you’re passionate about and pursue them.
At a young age, most of us are unaware of what they truly want to do or be in the future.
Joining CCAs allows you to discover their passion and pursue them in a conducive environment.
Furthermore, to cater to students whose passions are more niche, schools are opening up more CCAs to be as inclusive as possible.
Nowadays, there are schools offering CCAs such as e-sports, coding, business development, library club, etc.
This way, there is a CCA for every student.
Students with uncommon passion will not feel left out.
3) Minimise Problems Outside School
Another reason why CCAs are important is because it gives you a purpose to stay in school after school hours.
With the advancement of technology in recent years, students are often recorded by by-standers making a nuisance in public after school in their uniforms.
This has ruined the reputation of many schools since it’s clearly visible which schools the students are from.
By being part of a CCA, you’re required to be committed and attend every session, which usually occurs 2 to 3 times a week.
This will keep you busy in school and not allow you to linger in public and potentially mix with the wrong crowd.
Your parents will be relieved knowing that you’ll be in school doing things you’re passionate about.
4) Time-Management Skills
Joining a CCA can be quite a commitment, you have to juggle between your academics and CCAs.
This may seem counterintuitive as you might think that you’ll score bad grades since CCAs will take away time that can be used to study instead.
However, that’s not the case.
Joining a CCA actually trains you to learn and manage your time better.
As we grow older, we start to bear more and more responsibilities and have to juggle between various commitments daily.
In order to not tire ourselves out and make the most of our days, we need good time-management skills.
Being in CCAs will test and train you on your time-management skills.
In the long run, the skills acquired will definitely benefit you when entering the workforce.
5) Social Skills
There’s no such thing as “exclusive” in CCAs, you’ll meet other students and people who are not of the same age and background.
This means you’ll have to socialise with people who aren’t from the same class.
Such exposure is good for you as when you grow up and enter the workforce since you’ll probably not know anyone there.
The social skills that you’ve developed will then come in handy and help you get some new friends!
6) Overseas Exposure
Some schools provide opportunities for their students to learn more about their interests in other countries.
For example, Republic Polytechnic (RP) brings its football players to Japan during the term break to let them learn about Japanese Football culture.
Such exposure can widen your horizons and give you a deeper understanding of your passion and interest.
7) CCA Points
“CCA Points” is one of the most prominent factors as to why secondary school students put in lots of effort and time into their CCAs.
Depending on how much you participate and contribute to your CCAs, you’ll either get 1 or 2 CCA Points.
You might be thinking, “what’s so good about CCA Points?”
Well, let me tell you why.
You’re able to use the CCA Points to further improve your O Level score.
Since most tertiary institutions take students based on their net score, the 2 CCA points might be what you need to enter your dream school.
Better start committing to your CCAs!
8) Bridge to Elite Schools
Some prestigious tertiary institutions are always on the lookout for young and talented students.
And they do give students who are not academically inclined a chance to be part of them as there will be students who are extremely talented in their field of interest but not academically inclined.
If you fall under this group, you might want to make sure to perform well for your CCA.
You’ll have to go through an interview process where you’ll have to be a “show-off” and show the school all your achievements or the positions you held.
The more your achievements or the higher your position is, the higher chance of you getting accepted into a prestigious school.
Conclusion
Many students don’t know how beneficial CCAs are and often dread attending them after a long day of school.
CCAs actually help and develop you to be someone greater than who you were yesterday!
I hope this article has enlightened you on how CCAs can actually help you in both your path of self-discovery and academic prospect.
Here are some related articles you might want to read:
Is CCA Compulsory in JC and Poly? – SmileTutor
CCAs to Gradually Resume in Schools: Why They are as …
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