Recalling my Form 2 days in SMI

From the 4 classes of Form1 (1956) we had automatic promotion to Form 2; but were reallocated into 5 classes under these Form teachers:
           Form 2 A - Bro. Lewis Bertrand
           Form 2 B - Master Cheah Hoong Onn/ Master Oh Teik Toh
           Form 2 C - Master Yeap Poey Chong
           Form 2 D - Master John Lee
           Form 2 E -  Master Tang Tsang Chiew (Note: Hope I got his name correctly).

Many of my classmates from Form 1D were put together with me in Form 2 D. Master John Lee, our Form teacher taught us Geography and P.E. Our geography text book was "The Southern Continents" by Dr. G.E.D. Lewis. Often we were given homework to draw maps of the places we learned and failure to hand in the homework could result in perhaps a pinch in the tummy and punishment in having to draw the map concerned 10-30 times.
P.E. lessons were held in the school hall. I have to confess I disliked P.E. as I had difficulty in doing some of the exercises e.g. "forward roll", "bench vaulting", etc.
Those days we did not have free education; so every month a student would have to pay $2.50 school fees (if I rememeber the amount correctly).

I remember at that time the school had a "Milk for the Poor" programme. Students in every class were urged to donate tins of condensed milk regularly. The total number of tins collected by each class were written in chalk on the class "black-board" and updated daily. Even though no prizes were given to the classes with the highest collections, yet there was somehow a sense of competition to out do one another. To this day I am still wondering how the poor could consume so much sweetened condensed milk!

On 31st August that year our country Malaya declared Independence.. Shouts of "Merdeka" echoed throughout the land. For many of us the significance of that day did not sink into our minds till much later but a few things took effect immediately:-   we had to learn and sing our National Anthem "Negara Ku"; Bahasa Melayu was now our Bahasa Kebangsaan and many especially civil servants. teachers and students began to study it in earnest.

Now after more than 50 years perhaps we are entitled to stake a claim to be "A Class that grew up with the Nation"! Merdeka!