Methodist Girls' School (MGS) is an independent

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

girls' school in

Bukit Timah Bukit Timah ( ), often abbreviated as Bt Timah, is a planning area and residential estate located in the westernmost part of the Central Region of Singapore. Bukit Timah lies roughly from the Central Business District, bordering the Central ...

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, founded in 1887 by Australian missionary

Sophia Blackmore Sophia Blackmore (18 October 1857 – 3 July 1945) was an Australian Christian missionary. She founded the Fairfield Methodist Schools, and also Methodist Girls' School in Singapore. She was the first unmarried woman missionary sent by the Woman ...

. It offers a six-year primary education in its primary school section and a four-year secondary education in its secondary school section. Since 2012, it has partnered with its affiliated school

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (ACS(I)) is an independent Methodism, Methodist secondary school in Dover, Singapore. Founded in 1886 by Reverend William Fitzjames Oldham, it was recognised as an International Baccalaureate World School in 20 ...

(ACS(I)) for a six-year

Integrated Programme The Integrated Programme (IP) is a scheme that allows high-performing students in secondary schools in Singapore to skip the GCE Ordinary Level (O-Level) examination (typically taken by students at the end of their fourth or fifth year in secon ...

, which allows its secondary school students to proceed to ACS(I) for Years 5 and 6 to complete the

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry int ...

History

Methodist Girls' School was founded on 15 August 1887 by

, an Australian missionary sent by the Women's Foreign Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church of America. The school started with 9 Tamil girls in a small shophouse on Short Street . At that time, girls were expected to stay at home and do household chores, meaning that most girls didn't get any sort of education at all . By 1925 the school was overcrowded, which precipitated a move to Mount Sophia, where it remained there until 1992 before being moved to its current location at Blackmore Drive. The secondary school section of Methodist Girls' School became an

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

in January 1989. In 1992, MGS moved to a new site at 11 Blackmore Drive. The road was named after the school's founder at the request of the school . Methodist Girls' School is a well-known institution in the region with a history of academic and sporting excellence. The school was routinely placed in the top ten schools of Singapore in the rankings by the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

before the rankings were disabled. In the current ranking system, the school consistently places in the Band 1 category, the highest achievable category. The school has also produced national top scorers in key examinations as well as academic competitions, in both the Primary and Secondary school divisions. In September 2010, the Ministry of Education (MOE) announced that Methodist Girls' School will partner

, which currently offers the

(IBDP), in its new scheme to introduce the

to seven more schools.

School identity and culture

House system

Upon admission, pupils are placed into one of the four houses in Methodist Girls' School. The selection is random, unless the student currently has any siblings or relatives attending the school. The four houses are Blackmore, Jackson, Lee and Olson.

Uniform

Pupils are easily recognized by the unique uniform of the school, which has not changed since 1922. The uniform resembles a sailor's suit, consisting of a pinafore with an upper section in white and lower section in navy blue skirt; and a white blouse with a sailor collar, which is to be worn over and covers 60% of the pinafore. Under the pinafore, single-colored undergarments (with the choice of white, grey, beige, navy blue or black) and shorts may be worn.

Pastoral

As a Methodist school, devotions are read and prayers are said every morning. Weekly chapel services are also held. Annually, a Discover Jesus Week (DJW) is organised, where daily chapel services are held. The Primary section also has a Christian Fellowship society and the Secondary section has a Servants At the Lord's Task (SALT) club. Meetings are held after school.

Affiliation and admission

The Secondary section is affiliated to

and runs a joint

from 2012. The secondary school is also affiliated to

Anglo-Chinese Junior College Anglo-Chinese Junior College (ACJC) is a junior college in Singapore that offers a two-year pre-university programme leading to the Singapore-Cambridge GCE Advanced Level examination. Established in 1977, Anglo-Chinese Junior College is the ju ...

. The Secondary section admits pupils from the Primary section if they obtain a minimum of 220 points, after sitting for the

Primary School Leaving Examination The Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE; ; ; ) is a national examination in Singapore that is administered by the Ministry of Education (Singapore), Ministry of Education and taken by all students near the end of their sixth year in primary ...

. Students from other schools wishing to enter Methodist Girls' School are subject to a higher cut-off point determined by the quality of applicants' PSLE scores for that year (for the 2018 intake, a score of 260). Students may also apply through the Direct School Admission (DSA) exercise, in which students may be offered a place based on academic, music or sporting achievements.

Academic information

Methodist Girls' School is a well-known institution in the region with a history of academic, music and sporting excellence. The school was routinely placed in the top ten schools of Singapore in the rankings by the Ministry of Education before the rankings were disabled. The school currently offers both the four-year GCE Ordinary Level (O Level) Express Course and the

Integrated Programme

Methodist Girls' School is a partner school with

, and jointly offers the

(IBDP) to its high-performing students. Under the Integrated Programme, students will bypass the

Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level The Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (or Singapore-Cambridge GCE O-Level) is a GCE Ordinary Level examination held annually in Singapore and is jointly conducted by the Ministry of Education (MOE), Singapore Ex ...

examination at Year 4, and join the cohort of

in Years 5 and 6, and eventually sit the

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

examination at the end of Year 6.

O Level Express Course

The Express Course is a nationwide four-year programme that leads up to the

examination.

Academic subjects

The examinable academic subjects for

offered by Methodist Girls' School for upper secondary level (via. streaming in secondary 2 level), as of 2017, are listed below. ''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 Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Education of the Government of Singapore. SEAB was established on 1 April 2004 as a statutory board overseeing national-based examinations in Sing ...

. The SPA Assessment has been replaced by one Practical Assessment in the 2018 O Levels.''

Sophia Blackmore Academy

In 2005, the Sophia Blackmore Class (SBC) was started for Upper Primary and Secondary pupils with stronger academic abilities. The Sophia Blackmore Class was the school's answer to the Ministry of Education's Gifted Education Programme. The SBC seeks to address the needs of a group of pupils who have a different pace and learning profile. The SBC curriculum is modelled after the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) in consultation with renowned educators, like Sandra Kaplan, in the field of gifted and talented education. The name was later changed to Sophia Blackmore Academy (SBA).

Music Elective Programme

The Music Elective Programme (MEP) is a special 4-year programme, leading to the GCE O-Level Music as well as Higher Music, offered by the Ministry of Education. Its objective is to provide opportunities for academically able students with an aptitude for music to take up the serious study of music and develop their skills of listening and music making. The MEP curriculum helps students to acquire a better sense of aural skills to appraise and analyse music of Western tradition as well as music from other cultures, such as Japanese Music and Indonesian Gamelan. It gives students a stronger foundation in music theory, a deeper understanding of music history and the ability to compose music. It provides opportunities to interact with MEP peers through camps, enrichment activities, concerts and overseas trips. One of the few schools in Singapore offering the Music Elective Programme(MEP), Methodist Girls' School has gained recognition, both before and after starting, for producing musicians such as pianist Abigail Sin and violinist

Kam Ning Kam Ning () is a violinist and daughter of the violinist-composer Kam Kee Yong (甘琦勇), and grandchild of Kam Beng Soo and Ooi Kooi Aun. Born in Singapore in 1975, she was given violin lessons at the age of six by the elder Kam, and had her ...

, amongst others. Many pupils are also members of the

Singapore National Youth Orchestra The Singapore National Youth Orchestra (SNYO) is the national youth orchestra of Singapore. It is recognised by the Ministry of Education as a National Project of Excellence and a key development programme for talented young musicians. Since 1 ...

Notable alumni

Politics and government

Belinda Ang Belinda Ang Saw Ean (born 24 April 1954) is a Singaporean judge of the Court of Appeal. Ang received her Bachelor of Laws from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth in 1976 and her Master of Laws (with distinction) from the University Colle ...

: Judge,

Supreme Court of Singapore The Supreme Court of Singapore is a set of courts in Singapore, comprising the Court of Appeal and the High Court. It hears both civil and criminal matters. The Court of Appeal hears both civil and criminal appeals from the High Court. The C ...

Kwa Geok Choo Kwa Geok Choo (; 21 December 1920 – 2 October 2010) was a Singaporean lawyer. She was the wife of Lee Kuan Yew, the founding Prime Minister of Singapore and the mother of Lee Hsien Loong, Lee Hsien Yang, and Lee Wei Ling. She was the ...

King's Scholar A King's Scholar, abbreviated KS in the United Kingdom, is the recipient of a scholarship from a foundation created by, or under the auspices of, a British monarch. The scholarships are awarded at certain Public school (United Kingdom), public ...

; wife of the first Prime Minister of Singapore,

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (born Harry Lee Kuan Yew; 16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean politician who ruled as the first Prime Minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. He is widely recognised ...

Geh Min Dr. Geh Min () is the former President of Nature Society in Singapore. She was formerly a Nominated Member of Parliament from January 2005 to April 2006. Early life and education Geh studied at Methodist Girls' School and Anglo-Chinese Sc ...

: Former

Nominated Member of Parliament A Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) is a non-partisan member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed by the president to contribute independent and diverse perspectives to parliamentary debates. They are not affiliated to any pol ...

Arts and entertainment

* Ning Cai: Singapore's first professional female magician *

: Violinist; Second prize winner of the prestigious

Queen Elisabeth Music Competition The Queen Elisabeth Competition (, ) is an international competition for career-starting musicians held in City of Brussels, Brussels. The competition is named after Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Belgium, Queen Elisabeth of Belgium (1876–1 ...

, 2001 * Abigail Sin: Award-winning pianist

Sports

Christel Bouvron Mei Yen “Christel” Bouvron (born 1 October 1984) is a Singaporean former swimmer, who specialised in freestyle and butterfly events. She is a two-time Olympian (2000 and 2004), a double finalist at the Asian Games (2002), and a gold medalis ...

: Former national swimmer and Olympian; multiple gold medalist at the biennial

Southeast Asian Games The Southeast Asian Games, commonly known as SEA Games is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with sup ...

* Nicolette Teo: National swimmer and Olympian; multiple gold medalist at the biennial

Joscelin Yeo Joscelin Yeo Wei Ling (; born 2 May 1979) is a former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) from Nov 2006 to Apr 2011 and a former competitive swimmer from Singapore. Yeo won 40 gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games. She also represented ...

: Former national swimmer and Olympian; multiple gold medalist at the biennial

External links

Official website of the Methodist Girls' SchoolMethodist Girls' School MOE Awards

References

{{use dmy dates, date=October 2014 Educational institutions established in 1887 Girls' schools in Singapore Independent schools in Singapore Methodist schools in Singapore Primary schools in Singapore Schools offering Integrated Programme in Singapore Secondary schools in Singapore Schools in Central Region, Singapore 1887 establishments in Singapore