The fall of Singapore to the Japanese remains as a topic that is close to the heart of many Singaporeans. It is also a chapter in the lower secondary textbook. Therefore, I have decided to visit the site of Reflections at Bukit Chandu. The address for the particular site would be http://www.s1942.org.sg/s1942/bukit_chandu/homepage.htm. This is indeed THE place to visit to find out more about how Singapore fought and fell to the Japanese.

From the website, I found out more about how the museum is organized and the “story” that the museum serves to unfold. At the first level of the museum, there’s the first interpretive centre which consists of a number of different galleries. In gallery 1, students will be able to see exhibits which tell them more about the Defense of Malaya and the Malay Regiment. This serves to provide background knowledge of the beginning of the struggle in the battle to protect Singapore from Japanese invasion. Afterwhich, students can move on to visit the exhibits that details the battle at Pasir Panjang in the form of a diary entry. Next, the video and graphic animations in gallery two will allow students to have a “blow to blow” account of the Japanese invasion. After the visiting the various exhibitions on level one, students can then proceed to the second level to learn more about Singapore during that period of time. Students will also be able to “experience” the life of a soldier as they “have their fun” donning the cast iron helmets, inspecting the rifles and their response upon hearing the air-raid siren.

While navigating through this website, I came across another webpage: http://www.s1942.org.sg/s1942/moff/exhibition1.htm. The Old Ford Factory is also another place where students can visit so as to find out more about the Japanese Occupation in Singapore. Within the exhibition over at Old Ford Factory, the entire 3 years and 8 months of life under Japanese rule are presented in thematic sections. Students can also have some “fun” and at the same time learning the syllabus while they spend their time trying out the Syonan Race.

All in all, the above suggested places serve to be good complements to the textbook in the teaching of the World War 2 period in Singapore. I am confident that students will enjoy their visit to these places adnw ill be able to learn history in a different manner.