She left behind life of vice to clinch stellar N-Level results with support from friends, mentors

• Sarah (not her real name) was caught up in a life of crime since primary school
• She was admitted to the Singapore Girls’ Home in 2019
• During her stay, her mentors motivated her to succeed
• Encouraged by them, she worked hard and clinched three As and one B during the N-Level exams this year
• She said she chose to turn over a new leaf to support her family

SINGAPORE — Since she was in primary school, Sarah (not her real name) was caught up in a life of crime — stealing, smoking and selling drugs.

The 17-year-old student recalled recently how she revelled in the thrill of going up against the authorities and liked to see how much she could toe the line before crossing the limits of the law.

The turning point in the teenager’s life came a year ago when her misbehaviour landed her in the Singapore Girls’ Home, a rehabilitation centre for youth offenders. Sarah declined to specify the offences that got her there.

Speaking to TODAY, she said that she was initially apprehensive of what her time at the home would bring. But as it turns out, the support system there became the push she needed to turn her life around.

Sarah began to put in the work to make improvements in her life, including hunkering down to study for her N-Level examinations this year.

Her hard work eventually paid off — she clinched stellar results of three As and one B, scoring a total of five points when the results were released last Thursday (Dec 17).

Not only that, Sarah was also the top Normal (Technical) student among the 15 other residents at the Singapore Girls’ Home who took the exams this year.

When asked how she was feeling in the lead-up to collecting her results, she said: “I was nervous at first because I thought maybe I wouldn’t do as well as I wanted to. But when I saw my results, I was very happy with what I got.”

Indeed, the occasion was a joyous one. Her friends from the home who took the exams with her, as well as her dormitory mates, cheered and congratulated her when she shared the good news.

Sarah plans to study sports management at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) when she leaves the Singapore Girls’ Home next year. Eventually, she hopes to join the Singapore Armed Forces.

MENTORS HELPED HER BELIEVE IN HERSELF

The road to where Sarah is today was not without bumps and hurdles.

She said when she knew she was going for rehabilitation: “I imagined it to be more like a prison, where you go in as a punishment, serve your sentence, do what you are told, and then just get out of the place.” 

In the beginning, she struggled to adapt to her new environment and committed several infringements during her stay.

She also found it difficult to open up to her case worker and youth guidance officers, believing that her admission to the Singapore Girls’ Home meant that she would not have a future anymore.

“But they never stopped trying,” Sarah said. “When I opened up to them, I realised that my life does not stop here… they were very encouraging and they broadened my mind.”

In particular, her youth guidance officer, Ms Aini Mohd Yusof, stood out as someone who believed in her potential and never gave up on her.

“(Ms Aini) always told me that no matter what I do, as long as I put in 100 per cent, she will always be there to put in extra,” Sarah said.

“So when I’m about to give up, I always think about Ms Aini as I don’t want to disappoint the people who trust in me… I never expected someone to believe in me this much because nobody ever did.” 

Ms Aini, 33, told TODAY that she was very proud of Sarah and her achievements.

“A hundred per cent of it is her hard work. We are there to just support, motivate and guide her along the way,” she said.

FAMILY HER GREATEST MOTIVATOR

When it came to studying for the N-Level exams, Sarah said that she and her classmates initially had difficulties focusing on their schoolwork, especially during the partial lockdown period in April and May when family visits were restricted, to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

This was especially tough on Sarah who is very close to her grandmother. And because her grandmother did not have a smartphone, they could only rely on phone calls to keep in touch.

She started feeling more nervous about two to three months before the exams in September. That was when Sarah and some of her classmates asked for extra lessons and homework from their teachers to amp up her revision.

“My teachers know that I want to help my family,” Sarah said. “I want to do everything that I can for my grandma because she is very, very, very important to me.”

With this reminder, Sarah knew that she had to pick up the slack and work hard to complete her studies so that she can provide for her loved ones in the future.

“I didn’t want to disappoint my family. My grandma only wanted me to do well in my studies so I just wanted to do well,” she added.

While English and Tamil were her stronger subjects, Sarah struggled more with mathematics and science because she was absent for most of her early schooling years.

“I like maths but that doesn’t mean I’m good at it,” she said.

“So it was a bit difficult catching up with my work from Secondary 1 to 3, but somehow I managed to do it.”

Aside from her teachers, her dorm mates were also there to encourage her and help her. Those who were not taking the exams helped her with the homework, while her fellow N-Level candidates studied together with her and they kept each other going.

On the day of the results release, Sarah was accompanied by her mother, who was shocked and amazed to see her daughter’s stellar performance.

“She was very, very happy,” Sarah recalled. “When she saw me, she cried.”

Sarah is expecting to see her auntie and grandmother in person later in the week and to see their reaction to the good news.

“I’m looking forward to seeing them, but I’m quite nervous because I don’t know what my auntie will say,” she quipped.