Sandy is an inspiring literature teacher with more than twenty years of teaching experience under her belt. She read Literature at the University of Calgary and completed the prestigious Interdisciplinary Summer School Programme (Art, Literature and Science) at the University of Cambridge in 2013.
Sandy has taught Literature and English Language at Raffles Girls School (Secondary) from 1993 and served as the Subject Head of Literature from 2005 to 2014. She has undergone International Baccalaureate’s specialised training in teaching Language and Literature as well as Literature and Performance.
Sandy’s deep love for Literature and her pedagogical expertise in inculcating a similar appreciation for the subject in her students is evident not only in her creative classes but also in how she makes visible the relevance, joy and value of Literature outside of the classroom.
A firm believer in twinning the arts of Painting and Poetry, Sandy grounds students’ experiential Literature encounters in Ekphrasis. She designed and developed a robust curriculum (The Discerning Reader, The Creative Writer) for the elite Raffles Academy of Literature class where high-ability students are required to not merely be consumers, but also critics and producers of Literature.
Outside the classroom, Sandy has been the Creative Director for School Concert Events and Literature-themed events for multiple years, including Movies under the Star, International Reading Week, and the Renaissance Faire. She organised a Creative Art and Writing programme entitled Illuminating Nature at WELL (Wallace Education Learning Lab) in 2012 with the local artist group, Caravan Artists and local poets like Madeleine Lee. Sandy has also led several teams successfully to the finals at the international Odyssey of the Mind competitions (2004 -2014). In 2014, her team won the Ranatra Fusca Award (for Outstanding Creativity) at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals in Iowa, USA.
Outside of the work arena, Sandy has a myriad of interests. She takes part in road runs, cycling events and enjoys working with weights in the gym. She is also a novice cellist under the tutelage of Mrs. Herminia Ilano, retired sub-principal cellist of the SSO. Sandy gains inspiration and perspective from her yearly sojourns to various National Parks. A consummate devourer of books on fantasies and medieval knighthoods, Sandy also indulges in learning the architectural elements of cathedrals, castles and medieval towns. Grecian sculptures and Mycenaean murals inspire and ignite her imagination as do the arts of the Italian Renaissance and the Flemish masters.