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Project Task chosen: Task 2- Modernisation
Title of Project: Prevention Programme for Eating Disorders
Name of Candidates: Bernice Gan, Shirleen Ho, Huang Dongkun, Lisa Lau and
Sadelena Bte Isman
Group Index Number: VJ053
Date Submitted: 6 October 2008
Name of Supervising Tutor: Miss Monica Wong
Signature of Candidates:
Signature of Supervising Tutor:
Content Overview
1. Introduction
2. Research Methodology
3. Significance of Project
3.1 Impact of Media on Female Teenagers
3.2 Future Development of Eating Disorders
4. Our Proposal
4.1 Rationale for our approach
4.2 An Overview of the Project
4.3 Target Group
4.4 The Sports and Activities Programme
A. Sports Chosen
B. Modifications to Sports Chosen
C. Schedule and Duration of Each Session
D. Allocation of Students
E. Venues and Equipment
F. Teachers’ Involvement and Coaching
4.5 Term 2 Informative and Nutrition Module
4.6 Costs and Funding
5. Gauging Programme’s Success
6. Limitations of Our Project
6.1 Pilot Test
6.2 Project Focus Area
7. Further Extension of Our Project
8. Conclusion
9. References
9.1 Bibliography
Annex
10.1 Information on vigorous sports
10.2 Pilot Test Observations
10.3 Confidence/positive body-image Test sample
11 Surveys
11.1 A Student Sample Survey
11.1 B Student Survey Findings and Inferences
11.2 A Parent Sample Survey
11.2 B Parent Survey Findings and Inferences
12 Transcript for Interviews
12.1 With Dr Kumudhini Rajasegaran
12.2 With Mrs Emily Sim
13 Transcript for Emails with:
13.1.1 Skateline (Roller-blading costs)
13.1.2 Inline Culture (Roller-blading costs)
13.1.3 Vitage Fitness (Rope-skipping costs)
1. Introduction
In recent decades, the epitome of women‘s beauty has shifted to unhealthy skinny
frames due to commercial favouritism of stick-thin models. This has led to a higher
incidence of eating disorders (ED) among female teenagers in Singapore. Our group
therefore proposes a compulsory sports and exercise programme for Secondary
One girls to prevent this problem from worsening.
2. Research Methodology
In the course of obtaining information for our project, we surveyed 273 secondary 1
girls and 51 of their parents. We also interviewed an ED specialist Dr Kumudhini
Rajasegaran, a psychologist Lynn Soh as well as three other nurses from the
Department of Paediatric Medicine in KK Women and Children's Hospital. In
addition, we emailed various reputable organisations like the National University
Hospital and Temasek Polytechnic, etc for their price quotations and feedback for
our programme. We also interviewed the HOD of PE and CCA Mrs Emily Sim of
CHIJ KC (Convent of our Holy Infant Jesus Katong Convent Secondary School) to
provide us information and feedback regarding our programme‘s feasibility and
logistics when held in a Secondary School. We also carried out a pilot test on some
lower secondary girls to try out our modifications done on the chosen sports.
3. Significance of Our Project
3.1 Impact of the Media on Female Teenagers
Previously, ―plumpness symbolized fertility and success‖ and beauty was judged by
criteria like fatness and fullness.
For instance, the Victorian ideal of beauty was really "a fat woman by today's
standards, maybe about 5-foot-5 and 160 pounds‖ (Hollywood's Changing Face of
Beauty, May 12 2008) compared to the present average of 5 feet tall and 135
pounds. (Asimov, Isaac. The Human Body) However, beauty standards were then
altered drastically in the 1960s when fashion model Lesley Hornby better known as
Twiggy, (Figure 1) , weighing 91 pounds at 5 feet 6 inches, flaunted her waif-thin
body and brought to fame the ―Thin is in‖ slogan.
Figure 1: Lesley Hornby (Twiggy)
Source: Flickr.com
Later, the fascination with stick-thin models was extended by the rising popularity of
underweight models Kate Moss and Nicole Richie (Figures 2 and 3). In the 90s, the
lead actress of the highly popular television series ―Ally McBeal‖, Calista Flockhart
was diagnosed with ED. Since then, the thin-is-beautiful mythology has been
constantly reinforced with the media‘s portrayal of malnourished celebrities as the
key to beauty and attraction.
Figure 2: Kate Moss Figure 3: Nicole Richie
Source: dailymail.co.uk Source: US Magazine.com
With greater exposure to the television, the influence of the media on teenagers‘
perception of beauty cannot be underestimated. Research shows that an average
teenager today watches 3-4 hours of TV per day (Levine, 1997) and 1 out of every
3.8 commercials send some sort of ―attractiveness message,‖ telling viewers what is
or is not attractive. Hence, researchers estimate that the average adolescent sees
over 5,260 ―attractiveness messages‖ per year. (Myers et al., 1992)
The role of the media was borne out even more strikingly by Becker‘s landmark
study comparing rates of ED before and after the arrival of television in Fiji. Ethnic
Fijians have traditionally encouraged healthy appetites and have preferred a more
rotund body type. However, in 1998, rates of dieting skyrocketed from 0 to 69%, and
young people routinely cited the appearance of the attractive actors on shows like
"Beverly Hills 90210" and "Melrose Place" as the inspiration for their weight loss.
Domestically, ED‘s presence in Singapore is becoming more significant. According
to the Child Guidance Clinic (CGC) and the Eating Disorder Clinic (EDC) at the
Institute of Mental Health, the number of new ED cases had a significant 6-fold jump
from six in 1994, to 34 in 2001. (Figure 4) This parallels Dr Kumurajasegaren‘s
words that Singapore is now in the top 5 countries with ED. Moreover, the fact that
ED is the 3rd most chronic illness among girls raises increasing concerns over the
issue.
Figure 4
Source: http://www.sma.org.sg
3.2 Future development of Eating Disorders
Currently, the age of presentation of ED in Singaporean female is 17.6 years and the
onset of symptoms is 15.5 years. (Lee, Lee, Pathy & Chan 2005). For Western
countries like USA, the median age of onset is younger at 11-13, but can occur as
young as elementary school. The trend of younger ED sufferers was also confirmed
by the 2004 International Conference on Eating Disorders where it was widely
acknowledged that incidences of ED are increasing in childhood and hence early
preventive strategies are necessary. (Degnon, Shiffert & German, 2004). A sign that
the future ED sufferer would be younger is evident in this case with 1 case sufferer
as young as 12 year old being mentioned by NUS in their publication, Eating
Disorders – An Asian Perspective. From these, we believe that sufferers in
Singapore would come from an increasingly younger age group.
4. Our Proposal
4.1 Rationale for Our Approach
Although ED is induced by media proliferation, it would be unrealistic to curb the
mass media from influencing the girls. There were 14 recommendations aimed at
deterring the use of ultra-skinny models at London Fashion Week, but many have
since been abandoned, as they were not commercially viable. (Davis, 2008)
We are aware that ED is caused by a myriad of precipitating factors and that
implementing a sports programme alone would not be sufficient to eradicate this
problem. We intended to take on a holistic approach to this matter through
encompassing sports, nutrition and information. However, it is not viable to
implement a project which targets on too many aspects of ED and we felt that our
programme would be more focused and refined if we work on one aspect of it for this
proposal. Therefore, we believe that the most practical way of overcoming this
phenomenon would be to start a comprehensive school programme that
encompasses participation in sports activities and education on ED. As most ED
sufferers have low self-esteems, we would like to build up their self-confidence
through sports. Research shows that where sports is used creatively, with emphasis
on fun, effective goal setting and achievement, sports can build self-confidence as
targets are reached. (MindTools, 1998). A five-year study done by The Manchester
Metropolitan University (revealed in 2008) also showed that a teenager‘s physical
self-worth decreased significantly between 11-16 years old for females only. This
corresponded with a drop in activity levels at this age for the girls but not for their
male counterparts, who had no drop in physical activity level and hence no
corresponding drop in self-worth. Moreover, physical activities provide the girls an
alternative way of healthy weight loss. This would reduce the possibilities of them
losing weight unhealthily to look good.
Scientifically, exercise causes the secretion of adrenaline and endorphins, which
gives rise to heightened stimulation, thus relieving stress in a healthy and controlled
way. This, in turn, results in a healthy sense of well being.
Since our survey results reveal that about 78% of adolescent girls feel that
participation in sports would boost self-confidence, our target group is receptive to
our approach. (Figure 5) All the parents surveyed agreed that sports brings about
self-confidence (Figure 6) and most expressed support for the proposed programme.
(Figure 7) In addition, Mrs Sim believes that ―Exercise is the best way to boost self-
confidence‖ and that it has a strong correlation to academic results, quoting
Sengkang Primary School as a example of a school having PE lessons everyday in
a bid to help improve their students‘ academic abilities.
“Participation in sports would give an individual greater self-confidence and help her
develop a positive body image of herself". To what extent do you agree with this
statement?
Students’ response:
5%
18%
33% strongly agree
agree
disagree
strongly disagree
44%
Figure 5
Parents’ response:
30
30
25
21
20
15
10
5
0 0
0
strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree
Figure 6
Would you support the proposed programme?
(Parents’ response)
39
40
35
30
25
20
15
9
10
3
5 0
0
strongly support support object violently objects
Figure 7
Although there are currently campaigns like the Seventeen Body Peace Project and
the Dove Campaign For Real Beauty, they are insufficient as they only address the
issue generally instead of focusing on the changes they can initiate in individuals.
Moreover, the fact that the "percentage of increase in ED cases now is comparable
as that of 20 years ago" is a testament to campaigns' failure, as claimed by Dr Kumu
of KK Hospital. In short, these campaigns have not been true to their claim to help
every girl feel positive about her looks. Unilever, Dove‘s parent company, also
produces Fair and Lovely, a skin-lightening product marketed at dark-skinned
women in several countries while Seventeen Magazine still displays skinny models
clad in body-hugging clothes. Comparatively, our programme attempts to eradicate
the insecurities of these girls by providing a comfortable, non-competitive and stress-
free environment. They would also learn to be critical about ED-glorifying media
through talks and sharing sessions. We do not just tell the girls to be confident like
how these campaigns do, but instead allow them to develop confidence through our
sports programme. Therefore, we are taking a more focused and direct approach,
reaching out to every individual.
Through our surveys, merely 18% of 13-year old girls have come across ED
campaigns (Figure 8); while barely 34% out of this 18% found the campaigns
effective. (Figure 9) Hence, there is an inherent need to devise a programme that is
more accessible to our target group. Also, according to Mrs Sim, she has not come
across such a compulsory full year sports programme in Singapore thus far. This
makes our programme refreshing and innovative, which may make it more appealing
to the students.
Have you come across any campaigns focused
on EDs? (E.g. Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia)
18%
No.
Yes.
82%
Figure 8
If yes, how effective do you think the campaign(s) was/were
in preventing eating disorders? (1=LEAST effective, 5=MOST
effective)
4.2 20 An Overview of the Programme
15
20
10 15
5 8
1 0
0
1 2 3 4 5
Figure 9
The programme would be compulsory for all Secondary One girls. This is because
isolation of specific individuals with ED tendencies would further alleviate their ED
problems. A notable percentage of ED patients mentioned being in the TAF club
previously to be the precipitating cause of their onset of ED, either because of
perpetual teasing or compulsive exercising. (Lee HY, Lee EL, Pathy P and Chan YH,
2005) Hence, to minimize teasing of overweight girls, the programme will be fully
inclusive of all students without singling out any individuals.
For project planning purposes, we have decided to customise this programme for
CHIJ KC Secondary. The whole programme will span for 3 terms, with the Sports
and activity modules occurring in Terms 1 and 3, since there would be examinations
during Terms 2 and 4. Every girl would participate in one type of activity in each term.
4.3 Target Group
We are focusing on the secondary 1 level of an all-girls‘ school, which is younger
than the current age of ED sufferers, ie. 15.5 years. This would enable us to address
the future trend of onset of ED at a increasingly younger age amongst teenagers.
Although single sex girls‘ schools account for only a small percentage (8.5%) of
schools in Singapore, of the 95 cases that schools documented, an overwhelming
47.3% were from single sex girls‘ schools. (HY Lee, 2005). This is further supported
by our surveys (Figure 10), where at least 27% of the Secondary One girls have
been or are still on a diet.
Has dieting ever been part of your eating
habits before?
14%
Yes, it had been in the past
13% Yes, it still is
I've never been on a diet
73%
Figure 10
Figure 10
Thus, we aim to provide early prevention through our proposed project. Being
impressionable at this age, the girls would also be more receptive to such a
programme. Also, 84% of the girls surveyed by us were keen on the idea of such an
extra recreational programme introduced into their weekly timetable. (Figure 11)
How would you like the idea of an extra
recreational sports and nutrition programme
introduced into your weekly timetable?
6%
10%
32%
strongly support
support
object
violently object
52%
Figure 11
4.4 The Sports and Activities Programme
A. Sports Chosen
Psychologist Soh recommended recreational team-based activities, as they do not
promote social isolation, which is an ED precipitating factor. Sports we were advised
to avoid were ballet, gymnastics and swimming, as they highlight one‘s body
contours, making the girls more self-conscious of their imperfections.
These 6 activities were further split based on the rigour of sport: passive or vigorous.
The girls would then choose one activity from each category. Vigorous sports were
included to provide challenges to allow goal-setting that girls can work towards, thus
boosting self-confidence as mentioned earlier. However, we also took into
consideration that overly strenuous activities might be counter-productive as targets
fixed may seem unattainable and become a demoralising force for girls who are not
so sports-inclined. Moreover, a sports programme skewed towards encouraging only
vigorous sports may end up promoting undesirable compulsive exercise disorders
instead.
These are the final sports and activities selected based on our conducted survey.
(Figure 12)
Which of the sports below are you most
interested in playing?
200
181
180
160
140 129 130
120
100
85
80 70
63 59
60 48 51 52
47
40 26 28
18 14
20 8
5 5
0
Figure 12
Final 6 chosen:
Vigorous Passive
Badminton Roller-blading
Captain‘s Ball Rope-skipping
Volleyball Hip-hop
B. Modifications to Chosen Sports
To allow more achievable goals, we applied modifications to the vigorous sports that
would make them easier and more fun. These modifications are beneficial since our
target group consists mostly of girls who have a sedentary sporting lifestyle to begin
with as inferred from research and the nature of CHIJ KC‘s school culture. Research
shows that over half of female teenagers exercise vigorously for 20 or more minutes
per session only. (Pamela M. Peeke, 2008) As for the latter, the school culture was
said to be more inclined to performing arts as mentioned by Mrs Sim. We tested
these modifications during our pilot test, whih observations can be found in the
annex under 10.3
Modifications:
- Touch rugby
Original Modifications Rationale
Dimensions of field: Dimensions Recreational players, who generally
68mx100m (half the diminished to lack stamina, should play on smaller
size of a rugby field) 45mx60m (half the fields than professional players so that
size of a standard they may have more touches and fun.
school field) Students may spend most of their time
running in a large field and will be worn
out quickly. It is also more difficult to
teach tactics & team play, such as
support, on an overly large field.
During a penalty, the Distance of retreat is The distance of retreat should be scaled
penalized team must scaled down to down proportionately to the reduced
retreat 10metres from 7metres. size of the playing field, so that it would
their touchdown line. be fair to both teams in which the non-
penalized team does not get too close
to its touchdown line as the penalized
team retreats.
After being touched 6 After being touched 7 As the size of the field is reduced,
times the ball is handed times the ball is adjustments have to be made to prevent
over to the other side. handed over to the over-ease of touching of players. (See
other side. Figure 13)
Figure 13: A girl attempting to
touch her opponent before the
latter gets a touchdown
Source: redsports.com.sg
- Volleyball
Original Modifications Rationale
Server only to Server to serve Allows ease for amateur players to serve (Figure 17)
serve behind the anywhere behind successfully across the net as less strength and
back line the attack line. technique would be required (Figure 14)
Height of net is Net lowered to Secondary One girls have not reached the peak of
2.29metres 1.70metres puberty and are generally shorter than the average
adult female. Based on our survey results, the
average mean height of the students was
155cm.(Figure 18) Therefore, the height of the net
has been lowered to a height of 1.7metres to offer
better chances for the students to successfully
attempt volleyball techniques such as ―spiking‖
(Figure 15) and ―blocking‖ (Figure 16) of the ball.
Libero No libero. All To encourage attempts in volleyball techniques such
specializing in players play as ―spiking‖ and ―blocking‖ which liberos are not
defense at the equal roles required to practice on court.
back row
Maximum of Maximum of four Based on observations from our pilot test, amateur
three hits per hits per side players could not hit the ball to their opponent‘s side
side within 3 hits, while more errors tend to be made
when they were allowed to have 5 hits or more per
side. Increasing the number of maximum hits also
allows more interaction between players on the
same team, thus promoting teamwork and
preventing more experienced players to be playing
between or among themselves.
Figure 14: The layout of a Volleyball court
Source: au.encarta.msn.com
Figure 15: The ―Spiking‖
Technique
Source: redsports.com.sg
Figure 16: Blocking of a
pass over the net
Source: redsports.com.sg
Figure 17: The ―Serving‖
Technique
Source: redsports.com.sg
Height of Secondary One Girls surveyed
90
83
80
70
60
54
50 51
40
30
25 24
20
10 12
10
5 4
2 3
0
≤144 145-147 148-149 150-151 152-153 154-155 156-157 158-159 160-161 162-163 ≥164
Figure 18
- Captain‘s Ball
Original Modifications Rationale
Players not allowed Players allowed to To allow players to pick up more ball
to dribble ball dribble ball handling skills other than passing of the
ball. Moreover, ―Dribbling‖ is a technique
common in basketball, which is the 4th
most-popular sport chosen by the girls in
our survey. (See Figure 17)
Court dimension of Increased court There was insufficient space for the girls
15.250m x 30.5m dimension 20m x to run with the ball and most could not
35m. dribble further than 2 running steps, we
concluded that the size of the court was
too small. Thus, we enlarged the court
dimensions and observed that the girls
were more comfortable with this
modification as more girls were able to
dribble as far as 4 running steps.
4 quarters of 10 4sets of 7minutes Based on our observations of our pilot
minutes test, players tend to tire out towards the
end of each quarter, especially in the 3rd
and 4th quarters. Recreational players
may lack in stamina, and thus should
play for shorter intervals than
professionals. This prevents tiring out of
players towards the end of each quarter,
and also ensures optimum enjoyment of
play during each quarter.
Participants do not Participants have to By ensuring that everyone has the
have to pass the ball pass the ball among chance to touch the ball, we hope to
among all of all of themselves encourage active participation. (Figure
themselves before before they can 19)
they can attempt to attempt to score a
score a goal goal
Figure 19: active participation in a
captain’s ball game
We have also included music into some sports. Research has shown that including
music in work outs facilitates better relaxation of one‘s mind and reduces the strain
of exercising, helping those girls not sports-inclined to better be at ease. Moreover,
from our surveys, we discovered that as many as 90% of the girls surveyed liked
listening to music when they exercised. (Figure 20)
Since music stimulates brain waves in sync with rhythm, ie. faster beats bringing
sharper concentration and more alert thinking, while slower tempos promote a calm,
meditative state (Elizabeth Scott, M.S., 2007), we have decided to choose different
genres of music to suit the different types of rigour of the sports or activities being
played.
We have also taken into account the types of music favoured by 13 year old girls
(Figure 21) since the music used is integral in ensuring that she indeed works out in
the right and productive way as it would induce a positive and happy mood in people.
(Scott White, Personal Power Training)
Do you like to listen to music while you
exercise?
10%
Yes
No
90%
Figure 20
What is your favourite genre of music?
2% 2%
2% 2%
11% Pop
Techno
Hip hop
45%
Light jazz
16% Country
Disco
Rap
Figure 20
Rock
20%
Figure 21
Modifications:
Rigour Activities Music
Vigorous Rugby Pop
Volleyball Pop
Captains ball Techno
Passive Hip-Hop Hip-hop
Rope Skipping Disco
Roller-Blading Light jazz
We chose swing jazz for passive roller-blading because we emphasize on skills and
stability instead of speed for the roller-blading activity. Studies have shown that ‗light
jazz‘ has around 60-80 beats per minute and ‗causes the brain to produce more
alpha brainwaves‘, (Gillman, 2008) which helps people to relax and thus remain their
composure for roller-blading.
Since we also need to synchronise music with the exercise, the tempo must concur
with the preferred work rate. Thus we chose music like ‗disco‘, ‗techno‘ and ‗pop‘,
playing at faster beats (100-130 beats per minute) for rope skipping and all the
vigorous sports. Moreover, our survey shows that the favourite music genre is ‗pop‘.
We are also using a variety of music as it would be more interesting for the students.
C. Schedule and Duration of Each Session
To prevent over-crowding and the shortage of facilities, two days (every Monday and
Tuesday) would be set aside for this programme, but each student will participate for
only one of the two days. These days are chosen as they are non-CCA days. Hence,
no CCAs would utilise the required equipment and facilities and lessons would end
relatively early by 2.15pm for all students.
Furthermore, we wanted to address parents' concerns about the programme being
too time-consuming, as 31% of them surveyed stated so. (Figure 22)
What are your main concerns if your daughter
is to participate in our sports program? (you
may tick more than one option)
Sports programme may be too
time-consuming.
Sports programme may be too
tiring.
4% 3%
17% 31% I am doubtful that the sports will
meet the objectives.
My daughter already has a
10% healthy image of herself
4% PE lessons are sufficient to
advocate an active lifestyle.
31%
If the school already has the CCAs
provided, the programme is
unnecessary.
My daughter is not the sporty
Figure 22 type.
Each activity session will last one hour. From our surveys, we inferred that the
ending time of 3.50 pm is justified since 69% of them supported the idea of the
sports module even though it would take place after school (Figure 23) and 72% of
them thought that the sports module should last at least an hour. (Figure 24)
Would you still be supportive of the
programme although the sports activities
would be held after school hours?
31%
Yes.
No.
69%
Figure 23
How long do you think the sports programme
should last per session?
30minutes
46%
60minutes
28%
90minutes
120minutes
9% 17%
Figure 24
This corresponded with the parents‘ wishes too, with more than 71% surveyed
agreed that each programme session should last at least an hour. (Figure 25)
How long do you think the sports programme
should last per session?
6%
29%
24%
30minutes
60minutes
90minutes
120minutes
41%
Figure 25
Although a significant percentage of about 30% of both parents and students
surveyed indicated that they would prefer the programme to last half an hour, this is
not very feasible as such a short duration is insufficient for a physical workout
session. The recommended duration is 1 hour, preferably on most days. (Steven
Dowshen, Chief Medical Editor, KidsHealth)
D. Allocation of Students
We derived a quota for each of the 6 final chosen sports for 2 terms based on the
figures obtained from our survey results. (Figure 12) These figures are reflective of
an entire Secondary One cohort since our survey base is 273, somewhat similar to
CHIJ KC‘s Secondary 1 cohort size of 280.
Vigorous Passive
Sport Total no. No. Of Sport Total no. No. Of
Of students Of Students
students per day students per day
allocated allocated
Touch Rugby 110 55 Roller-blading 150 75
Captain‘s Ball 110 55 Rope-skipping 70 35
Volleyball 60 30 Hip-hop 60 30
Instead of being allocated, most girls can choose their sports, thereby guaranteeing
their enjoyment of the activities. In addition, these activities are not part of CHIJ KC‘s
CCAs offered. The trying of new activities may invoke enthusiasm and active
participation, aiding programme‘s success. Moreover, Mrs Sim believes that the
turnout for our programme will be very good since the girls would be attending an
activity of their preference.
E. Venues and Equipment
These are the venues where the various sports and activities will be carried out. The
numbers beside indicate the number of students that will be present in each location
on each day.
Vigorous Passive
Touch Rugby Field About 27 Roller-blading East 75
(divided per half Coast
into 2) field) Park
Captain‘s Ball Hall and About 27 Rope-skipping Foyer 35
driveway in each
venue
Volleyball 2 Courts 15 per Hip-hop Gym 30
court
Floor Plan:
Touch Rugby (FIELD)
27 students 27 students
Figure 26: CHIJ KC School Field
Captain’s Ball (HALL)
27 students
Figure 27: CHIJ KC School Hall
Captain’s Ball (DRIVEWAY)
27 students
Figure 28: CHIJ KC Driveway
Volleyball (COURTS)
15 students 15 students
\
Figure 29: CHIJ KC Courts
Equipment:
Vigorous (All found in school) Passive (All equipment are provided for
by hired instructors)
Touch Rugby Rugby Ball, Cones Roller-blading Roller blades,
wrists/elbow/knee
guards, helmets
Captain‘s Ball Netball or any Rope-skipping Skipping ropes,
regular-sized ball, Pedometer,
Music and Radio
Chairs
Volleyball Volleyball, Hip-hop Music and Radio
Volleyball Net
Since all facilities and equipment can be found within the school premises or are
provided, there are no additional costs incurred in the acquisition of such items, thus
saving costs.
F. Teachers’ Involvement and Coaching
As the CHIJ KC teaching staff has after school meetings during our programme days,
Mrs Sim mentioned that it would be quite taxing on the teachers‘ part to facilitate the
activities. Hence, it was suggested that we seek assistance from CCPE (Co-
Curricular Programme Executives), and appoint several responsible Secondary One
student leaders to help settle administrative matters like attendance taking. Parent
volunteers from the CHIJ KC Parent Support Group can also be engaged to watch
over the girls. They would ensure that instructors are not too demanding on the girls,
as they can be easily disheartened when scolded or placed under pressure.
(Nethersole, Harvard Medical School Paediatrics Instructor) Mrs Sim also added that
the teachers can still do regular checks on the programme.
One adult will be put in-charge of one activity each day, and thus 3 adults will be
required each day.
For vigorous sports, our initial decision was to liaise with NIE trainee teachers, and
ask them to coach the programme as part of their final year practicum, since it
coincided with our programme dates. However, due to limitations like safety and
experience, we had to look for an alternative solution. We also considered getting
the school‘s resident PE teachers to coach the girls. Unfortunately, not all their
schedules were able to coincide with our programme dates, and nto all of them are
trained properly in the 3 particular vigorous sports. Hence, we finally decided on
hiring external coaches to teach the students. Being professionals in their area of
sport, they would be fully qualified to coach the girls. Mrs SIm also mentioned that
CHIJ KC does not have any problems regarding safety should external coaches be
hired. Moreover, cost is no longer such a big issue anymore since there is some
funding that can be provided by the school for such activities. (Mentioned under 4.6
Costs and Funding)
As for the passive sports, the only option is hiring specialised instructors. Though a
cheaper alternative would be to use videos where the girls learn via video
demonstration, we have decided against it as there would be a lack of personal
guidance, fundamental in introducing the sport properly and giving girls more
confidence. Moreover, following the video demonstrations incorrectly can result in
injury.
4.5 Term 2 Informative and Nutrition Module
Since term 2 is a hectic time for most students as it coincides with their CCA
competition season and mid-year-exams, the after-school sports programme will not
be held then. Instead, an ED doctor and psychologist sharing session, dietician talk
and a food fair would be organised to educate them about healthy eating habits and
media discerning.
4.6 Costs and Funding
The costs of the programme are as such:
Sports and Activities Approximate costs
(per person, for
10sessions)
Volleyball $80
Vigorous Sports Instructors Touch Rugby $90
Captain‘s Ball Free (taught by PE
teachers)
Passive Sports Instructors Roller-blading $8 per person
Rope-skipping $ 35 per person
Hip-Hop $80 for 10 1 hour
sessions (1 term)
Dietician Talks $ 300
(Costs per person: $ (300/280) = $ 1.10
From the interview with Mrs Sim of CHIJ KC, we found out that the Singapore Sports
Council gives a SEP (Sports Education Programme) grant of $10, 000 a year to each
school. There is also a Health Promotion Board (HPB) grant that is given to the
school for such sporting programmes. This money can be used by the school to fund
subsidies, purchase sports equipment, etc. Mrs Sim also added that it is feasible to
subsidise 50% of the costs of such programmes from the funding received. Hence,
each student would not have to spend more than $85.55 for the whole programme
after subsidies. (The cost will be lower if cheaper activities are chosen) In the event
that a student has financial difficulties and cannot afford the programme fees even
after subsidies, Mrs Sim said that the school can provide the programme free.
From our survey results, more than 72% of the students interviewed said that they
would be willing to pay up to $85 for our proposed programme. (Figure 30)This
shows that our programme is feasible cost-wise.
Would you be willing to pay the maximum price of $85? (I.e.
if you choose the most expensive sport from each category)
Response
12
Yes
No
72%
Figure 30
Moreover, the costs can also be borne by the students‘ Edusave account. Moreover,
85% of the girls surveyed are more likely to support this programme if payment is
made available through Edusave. (Figure 31)
Would you be more likely to support the
proposed programme if payment could be
made through Edusave?
15%
Yes.
No.
85%
Figure 31
5. Gauging Our Project’s Success
We have come up with our own questionnaire to gauge an individual‘s confidence
level and attitudes towards their own body image based on several reliable and well-
established questionnaires available on the Internet. By modifying and combining the
questions from the various original questionnaires to fit our programme, we can use
our new set of questions to and conduct them twice throughout the period of the
entire programme.- once at the start and once at the end. This is to judge the
programme‘s success in improving girls‘ attitudes towards themselves, a
fundamental in ED prevention. (A sample of the test can be found in the annex 10.3)
Should a girl display ED-tendencies from the test, she would be given counselling
and referred to specialists for follow-up. The results of these tests would be sent to
their parents, 88% of whom have indicated interest in receiving updates on their
daughters‘ progress. (Figure 32)
Would you be interested in receiving updates
of your daughter’s attitudes and confidence
test results through emails from the school?
12%
Yes.
88% No.
Figure 32
6. Limitations of Our Project
6.1 Pilot Test
Since the age of the IP1s differs from the age of our target group (Secondary 1s—13
years old), factors examined like stamina and level of interest in sports may differ as
well. This was because the Secondary 1s are currently undergoing exams and we
are not able to engage them. However, our group believes that the difference is
insignificant as the age gap is only 2 years, which would not result in drastic changes
in the factors e.g stamina.
Another shortcoming of the project would be how we used the same 10 IP1s
throughout all the games. This may make the pilot test slightly unfair as they have a
higher degree of fatigue than our actual participants, which possibly leads to slower
play and resulting in inaccurate results. Because of this same reason, we only let the
IP1s try out 10 minutes of each game version instead of the original full period (2x 20
minute halves). This is another limitation as true impact on the full game cannot be
reflected in the pilot project. To overcome this limitation, the feedback forms we
handed out included questions like whether they would be able to cope with the full
duration of the game for each sport.
6.2 Project Focus Area
For this project proposal, we focused entirely on the aspect of developing the sports
and activities programme, thus ignoring the full extension of the nutrition and
informative programme. However, in reality, it would be best to combine both areas
to achieve a more holistic approach towards the prevention of ED for our target
group.
7. Further Extension of Our Project
In order to better reach our objective of preventing ED, this programme could be
further extended to all Secondary schools, especially in elite schools like SAP and
independent schools, where students might develop ED due to the competitive and
perfectionist culture of their school, as claimed by Dr Kumu. The programme could
also be extended to other types of schools, eg. Boys‘ and co-ed schools.
To allow the programme to cater for an all boys‘ schools, the sports formerly
selected (Netball, Captain‘s Ball and Touch Rugby) would have to be chosen again,
since boys have different preferences from girls. Other team-based sports that are
known to suit males better such as soccer would be used instead of sports that
demand thinness such as running. This is to engage the boys better as they are
more familiar with these sports and prevent overemphasis of body figures. Also, as
males generally have a better physique than girls, games must be much more
physically challenging than those played by girls.
Likewise for co-ed schools, we would select sports that allow a mix of boys and girls
such as floorball. However, one area of concern would be the frequent comparisons
of body figures among boys especially in same sport to impress girls, or vice versa.
This may hinder our objective of preventing ED as Singaporean males normally
resort to eating disorders to obtain ―perfect 6-pack abs‖, for the former. (G. Boodman,
2007) Alternatively, we may split the boys and girls into different sports as they may
likely have different sports interests and sporting ability. This will also reduce the
pressure our target group would have to face in aiming for the perfect body in front of
the opposite gender and therefore preventing ED.
8. Conclusion
Our programme is purposeful in elevating ED awareness and its prevention through
encouraging healthy active living. Professionals such as Dr Kumu and Lynn Soh
have approved of our programme. Both also highly recommended its actual
implementation since they find a lack of local ED prevention programmes and
awareness campaigns. With their recommendations, we have also made
modifications to our programme, such as the removal of B.M.I monthly checks, so
as to further effectively reach our objectives of preventing ED. 2 other aspects
critical in ensuring smooth implementation of our programme are the possible
collaboration with NIE trainee teachers, as well as CHIJ KC‘s approval to include
our programme in their Secondary One curriculum, which we have received positive
feedback from.
9. References
9.1 Bibliography (alphabetical order)
1) Anna Davis and Rashid Razaq (13 August 2008). London Fashion Week scraps
plans to ban underweight models [Online] Available:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1044350/London-Fashion-Week-scraps-
plans-ban-underweight-models.html (27/08/2008)
2) Barbara P. Homeier, MD (June 2005). Eating Disorders [Online]. Available:
http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/feelings/eating_disorders.html (29/07/2008)
3) Cliff Notes (2008), Eating Disorders and their Sufferers. [Online] Available:
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/Section/Eating-Disorders-and-Their-
Sufferers.id-310993,articleId-53962.html (29/07/2008)
4) Creation Tips (12 July 2008), Teens and Early Puberty [Online] Available:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/rdoolan/puberty.html (29/07/2008)
5) Dan Hill (30 July 2003). US teens spend more time on internet than watching
TV [Online] Available:
http://www.cityofsound.com/blog/2003/07/us_teens_spend_.html (29/07/2008)
6) Deanne Jade, (2002). Eating Disorders and the Media. [Online] Available:
www.eating-disorders.org.uk/docs/media.doc (29/07/2008)
7) Deborah J. Kuehnel, LCSW. (1998) Eating Disorder Recovery Centre [Online]
Available: http://www.addictions.net/default.aspx?id=13 (29/07/2008)
8) Department of Health and Human Services (5 September 2008), What is a BMI
percentile? [Online] Available:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/childrens_BMI/ab
out_childrens_BMI.htm (05/0/2008)
9) Elizabeth Scott, M.S. (2007) Music and Your Body: How Music Affects Us and
Why Music Therapy Promotes Health [Online].
Available:http://stress.about.com/od/tensiontamers/a/music_therapy.htm (05/10/2008)
10) George K. Degnon, Sarah Shiffert, Bette Anne German (2004). 2004
International Conference on Eating Disorders. [Online] Available:
www.aedweb.org/events/FinalPrograml.pdf (29/07/2008)
11) Gerber,Robin (2008). Beauty and Body Image in the Media. [Online] Available:
http://www.mediaawareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/wome
n_beauty.cfm (29/07/2008)
12) Gibbons, Sheila (2003). Teen Magazines Send Girls All the Wrong Messages.
[Online] Available: http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1580
(29/07/2008)
13) Health A to Z (2007), What is Volleyball [Online] Available:
http://www.vball.org.uk/basicvolleyball/introduction_to_volleyball.htm (30/09/2008)
14) Ho, Gary. Health And Study. [Online] Available:
http://library.thinkquest.org/C0124861/health/sports/psychological_benefits.html
(29/07/2008)
15) International Touch Rugby (1996), What is Touch Rugby [Online] Available:
http://www.touchrugby.com/what_is_touch (30/09/2008)
16) Lee, H.Y & Lee, E.L & Pathy,P & Chan,Y.H (2005). Anorexia nervosa in
Singapore: an eight-year retrospective study. [Online] Available:
www.sma.org.sg/smj/4606/4606a1.pdf (29/07/2008)
17) Mind Tools (1998), Sports Psychology-Self Confidence [Online]. Available:
www.psychwww.com/mtsite/selfconf.html (29/07/2008)
18) National Eating Disorders Association (2008) Eating disorders are illnesses, not
choices [Online] Available:
www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/nedaDir/files/documents/Programs/NEDAOverview
.doc (29/07/2008)
19) Nethersole, Shari, MD. Humiliated by Soccer Coach [Online]. Available:
http://life.familyeducation.com/sports/emotional-development/42233.html
(29/07/2008)
20) Ng, Janice & Ng, Julia (2007). Six-fold increase in eating disorders among
teenagers since 2002. [Online] Available:
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/259641/1/.html
(29/07/2008)
21) Sheppard Pratt Health System, The Center for Eating Disorders. (2008)
Occupational Therapy Treatment [Online] Available:
http://www.eatingdisorder.org/about_the_center/therapies/occupational.php
(29/07/2008)
22) Steven Dowshen (August 2008). Fitness And Your 13- to 18- Year Old [Online]
Available: http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_fit/fitness/fitness_13_18.html
(05/10/2008)
23) Scott White. The Benefits of Listening to Music While You Exercise [Online].
Available:http://www.personalpowertraining.net/Articles/the_benefits_of_listening
_to_music_while_you_exercise.htm(05/10/2008)
24) Steve Gillman ( 2008) The Best Relaxation Music [Online].
Available:http://www.webraydian.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&i
d=1038
25) Tehran Times (2008). Younger children develop eating disorders. [Online]
Available: http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=168137
(29/07/2008)
26) The Manchester Metropolitan University (4th April 2008). Exercise boosts
teenagers' confidence Five-year study of adolescents [Online]. Available:
http://www.mmu.ac.uk/news/news-items/news-detail.php?id=836 (29/07/2008)
27) UC Berkeley Parents Network (Nov 1999), UB Parents Advice about School-
aged Kids: Early Puberty [Online] Available:
http://parents.berkeley.edu/advice/schoolaged/earlypuberty.html (29/07/2008)
Valrus (2005) Dove’s Campaign For Real Beauty [Online] Available:
http://everything2.com/e2node/Campaign%2520for%2520Real%2520Beauty
(05/10.2008)
28) Glair Weaver (2 September 2007). Internet Encourages Eating Disorders
[Online] Available: http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22346309-
5001021,00.html (29/07/2008)
Pictures:
1) Figure 1: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3147/2401983614_14c6dabe74.jpg?v=0
2) Figure 2: http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i./pix/2007/04_03/Mossleavin_468x752.jpg
3) Figure 3: http://usmagazine.com/files/nicole_blog_1.jpg
4) Figure 4: Lee, H.Y & Lee, E.L & Pathy,P & Chan,Y.H (2005). Anorexia
nervosa in Singapore: an eight-year retrospective study. [Online] Available:
www.sma.org.sg/smj/4606/4606a1.pdf (29/07/2008)
8. Annex
8.1 Information on chosen vigorous sports
Touch Rugby
Touch Rugby is a team game involving fast movements and minimal contact. The game is
similar to rugby but without the tackling, line outs and kicking. The objective of the game is
for each team to score touchdowns and to prevent the opposition from scoring. The ball may
be passed, knocked or handed between onside players of the attacking team who may in
turn run or otherwise move with the ball in an attempt to gain territorial advantage and score.
The ball may only be passed backwards or sidewards, a forward pass will result in a penalty
in which the team must retreat 10metres from its goal line. Defending players prevent the
attacking team from gaining a territorial advantage by touching the ball carrier on the person,
his clothing or on the ball. After being touched 6 times the ball is handed over to the other
side. (International Touch Rugby, 1996)
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team game in which a net fixed across the middle of a court. Play starts by
one player serving the ball over the net from behind the base line. When the ball crosses to
the opponent‘s side, it must be hit back to the other team within 3passes. Each player is
only allowed to touch the ball once. Some common volleyball techniques include digging,
setting and spiking. The objective of the game is to force the ball down onto to the floor of
the opponent‘s court, or to put them under so much pressure that they are unable to return
the ball. After each time a team wins the ball back from the opposition each player
rotates one position clockwise. This rotation is a special feature of the game and it means
that all players must play both in the front line and the back line. (Volleyball Association of
Singapore, 2008)
Captain‘s ball
Captain‘s ball is a team game similar to netball in many ways except that the scoring
methods are different, and that the rules of stepping are much more flexible. The objective of
the game is to score as many goals as possible, and to prevent the opponent team from
scoring from their side. Players with possession of the ball may not bounce or move his
position, but should pass on the ball to another team player while having his first landing feet
staying put on the ground. Scoring methods in Captain‘s ball may vary as well, some scoring
with their captain‘s standing on chairs to catch the balls their teammates throw, or to receive
the ball with the ball over the base line of the attacking side. Ball-passing techniques may
include the shoulder, chest and bounce pass. Other important techniques such as screening
of players, and dodging of the body would prove useful in a game of captain‘s ball.
Pilot test observations
PILOT TEST.
Aim: To test out our suggested modifications and its impact on the game. (??)
Duration: 2 sets of 10 minutes for each sport.
Target group: 10 IP1s(female) of Victoria Junior College aged 15.
Summary: For each sport, we had the IP1s to play 2 sets (10 minutes each) of the original version of
the sport followed by our modified version. Breaks of 15 minutes were given to them in between
games to recover and we also handed out feedback forms during this period.
Different yardsticks were used for different sports to determine whether the games were
challenging enough or too challenging for the girls. This would ensure that the goals set by the girls
are truly within their reach in order for them to gain more confidence by achieving the targets.
TOUCH RUGBY.
To gauge the ease of the game, we used the number of passes/touches to score a goal and the
number of goals scored. We assumed that the lower the number of passes used and the higher the
number of goals scored, the easier the game is for the girls.
The pilot test was carried out on a grass patch, dimensions similar to half a field.
Observations:
As the actual plan was to have 20 students playing in half a field (45m x 60m), we proportionately
decreased the field size to a quarter of a field (10 students) for more accurate results. However,
even though the number of passes used to score a goal decreased, this size was apparently too small
as we noticed that a handful of girls did not get the chance to participate. Since active participation
is vital for our programme, we enlarged the field size in our original plans to 50m x 65m instead.
For penalties, we also shortened the distance between the ball carrier and the penalized team from
10m to 5 m. This makes the game more challenging as goals will not be scored too easily that the
sense of fulfillment awarded is little. We tried this distance out by giving each team 5 penalties each.
The goals scored using penalties decreased from 7 to 4 after the modification. The girls also gave
feedback that they do not mind the modification as they “get bored of games that seem too easy for
them”.
NETBALL. (NOTE: I’m not sure if 10 ppl should play in half a court/a full court in pilot test?)
The games were held in VJC's netball courts.
Our main concern was the height of the net. Original version of the game required the net to be
placed 2.286m above the ground but we distinctly saw the girls having difficulty in spiking the ball
over as the number of ball crosses was only 10 compared to 40 in ________(professional video). As
we understand that these girls may not be as physically apt as national players, we lowered the net
height to 1.5m in the second game, causing the number of balls spiked over to increase by 15. The
girls reflected that their self-confidence was boosted when they were able to spike balls over to the
opponents more often and even win points for their own team.
Also, by national rules, the ball must be returned to the other side within 3 hits. This was a worry as
most girls were not trained and took about 5 hits before they can return the ball in the pilot project.
Thus, we changed the regulations to return the ball within 4 hits so as to make the game sufficiently
challenging for the participants.
CAPTAIN'S BALL.
The games were carried out in VJC's netball court, which is of similar dimensions to courts used for
national netball competitions. (without net).
One major change we made was to allow dribbling as opposed to the usual rule of staying static
after receiving the ball. As reflected by the feedback sheets, this makes the game more interactive as
the girls are able to "regain ball possession" more easily, which in turn encourages them to steal the
ball away from opponents more often. However, as there was insufficient space for the girls to run
with the ball and most could not dribble further than 2 running steps, we concluded that the size of
the court was too small. Thus, we enlarged the court dimensions from (15.250m x 30.5m) to (20m x
35m). We observed that the girls were more comfortable with this modification as more girls were
able to dribble as far as 4 running steps. In fact, from feedback forms, the girls are more receptive to
this approach than the traditional way taught in PE lessons.
However, we also realized that the girls were likely to dribble the ball across the court themselves
and score without engaging the other team players. This was against our idea to involve all girls.
Hence, we decided to add another new rule that participants have to pass to all team players before
they can attempt to score each goal. By ensuring that everyone has the chance to touch the ball, we
hope to spur active participation and no players will feel inferior even though she may not have
good ball skills.
8.2 Surveys
8.2.1 A. Student Sample Survey
Dear respondent,
We are a group of five JC 1 students from Victoria Junior College. As part of our A-level curriculum,
we are doing our Project Work (PW) this year. Our chosen project task is ‗Modernisation‘ and we are
currently focusing on the aspect of Eating Disorders (ED). For our project, we are expected to come
up with a hypothetical solution to tackle our identified aspect of modernization. Hence, we have
decided to implement a compulsory Nutrition and Sports Programme (NSP) for all Secondary 1
students.
We deeply appreciate your participation in this short survey as your honest responses are of great
importance to us. Thank you!
Background Information of our project:
In this programme, students will participate in sports and games aimed at boosting their confidence
and building up a strong and healthy body image to prevent risks of ED (e.g. anorexia nervosa,
bulimia), which are associated which low self-esteem and poor body image. The program will be an
extension of the school timetable, and will be held by their school once a week in Term1 and 3 of the
school curriculum, each session lasting approximately 1-2hours.
The students will also be educated on the adverse effects of ED, and taught how to discern and
adopt a critical perspective when dealing with negative body image messages from the media. This is
because ED‘s proliferation in modern times is greatly attributed to the media.
Age: _____
Height: _____
School: __________________________________
Qn1. ―Participation in sports would give an individual greater self-confidence and help her
develop a positive body image of herself". To what extent do you agree to this statement?
□ Strongly Agree
□ Agree
□ Disagree
□ Strongly Disagree
Qn2. How would you like the idea of an extra recreational sports module (other than P.E) introduced
into your weekly timetable?
Strongly agree
Agree
Objects
Violently objects
Qn3. How long do you think the sports module should last per session?
30minutes
60minutes
90minutes
120minutes
Qn4. Would you still be supportive of the programme although the sports activities would be held after
school hours?
□ Yes
□ No
Qn5. Which of the sports below are you most interested in playing? (Please tick 2 from each
category)
Category A
Touch rugby
Volleyball
Futsal
Badminton
Captain‘s ball
Netball
Basketball
Rugby
Tennis
Category B
Rollerblading
Rope-skipping
Kickboxing
Aerobics
Pilates
Yoga
Belly dancing
Hip hop
Latin jazz
Qn6. Do you like to listen to music while you exercise?
Yes
No
Qn7. What is your favourite genre of music?
Pop
Techno
Hip-hop
Light Jazz
Country
Disco
Rap
Rock
Q8.Would you be more likely to support the proposed programme if payment could be made through
Edusave?
□ Yes
□ No
Qn9. Has dieting ever been part of your eating habits before?
Yes, it had been in the past
Yes, it still is
I‘ve never been on a diet
Qn10a. Finally, have you come across any campaigns focused on eating disorders? (e.g. Anorexia
Nervosa, Bulimia)
No
Yes. (please proceed to answer question below)
Qn10b. If yes, how effective did you think the campaign was in preventing eating disorders?
1(being the LEAST effective)
2
3
4
5(being the MOST effective)
Thank you
8.2.1 B. Student Survey Findings and Inferences
Sample Size and Profile: 273 Secondary 1 girls
Qn1. ―Participation in sports would give an individual greater self-confidence and help her develop a
positive body image of herself". To what extent do you agree to this statement?
5%
18%
33%
strongly agree
agree
disagree
strongly disagree
44%
77% of the students surveyed agreed that this statement is true. Hence, it shows that our target group
is receptive to this approach employed by our programme, which increases its feasibility.
Qn2. How would you like the idea of an extra recreational sports module (other than P.E) introduced
into your weekly timetable?
6%
10%
32%
strongly supports
supports
objects
violently objects
52%
84% supported the idea of an extra recreational sports module introduced into their timetable, further
increasing our programme’s feasibility as our target group supports its implementation.
Qn3. How long do you think the sports module should last per session?
46%
30minutes
28% 60minutes
90minutes
120minutes
9% 17%
A majority of 46% thought that the module should only last an hour per session. Hence, we have
decided to keep to this duration.
Qn4. Would you still be supportive of the programme although the sports activities would be held after
school hours?
31%
Yes.
No.
69%
59% of the students indicated their support for the programme still, although it would take place after
school. With the information gathered from Q3, we have decided to make the programme last 1 hour
after school only.
Qn5. Which of the sports below are you most interested in playing? (Tick 2 from each category)
200
181
180
160
140 129 130
120
100 85
80 70
63 59
60 47 48 51 52
40 26 28
18 14
20 5 5 8
0
From the survey results gathered, the top 3 vigorous sports selected are: Captain’s Ball, Tough rugby
and Volleyball. Since basketball is quite a popular choice too, we have decided to implement certain
elements of basketball into captain’s ball so that more students can be satisfied. As for passive sports,
rollerblading, rope-skipping and hip-hop were the top 3 choices. We have decided on quotas for the
number of students allowed in each session based on the popularity levels as indicated by the survey.
Qn6. Do you like to listen to music while you exercise?
10%
Yes
No
90%
Qn7. What is your favourite genre of music?
2% 2%
2% 2%
11% Pop
Techno
Hip hop
45%
Light jazz
16% Country
Disco
Rap
Rock
20%
Qn8.Would you be more likely to support the proposed progamme if payment could be made through
Edusave?
15%
Yes.
No.
85%
85% would be more likely to support the NSP if they were allowed to pay by Edusave as it would
offset the costs they would have to bear on their own.
Qn9.Has dieting ever been part of your eating habits before?
14%
13%
Yes, it had been in the past
Yes, it still is
73% I've never been on a diet
27% of the girls surveyed had either been on a diet before or are still on diets. This show that the
prevalence of body image consciousness and even eating disorders is true within our target group.
Although these diets may not necessarily constitute a serious case of ED, it indicates the risk and
tendencies these girls may be facing.
Qn10a. Finally, have you come across any campaigns focused on eating disorders? (e.g. Anorexia
Nervosa, Bulimia)
18%
82% No.
Yes.
82% of the surveyed have not come across ED campaigns before. This reaffirms our stand that ED
campaigns are not effective in raising awareness as they do not reach out to our target group which
are potential ED sufferers. Hence, our programme is more practical as it directly reaches out to the
target group through an implementation of a compulsory sports and nutrition programme in their
secondary 1 curriculum.
Qn10b. If yes, how effective did you think the campaign was in preventing eating disorders?
20
15
20
10
15
5 8
1 0
0
1 2 3 4 5
From the 18% who indicated that they have come across ED campaigns in the past, less than 20%
found them effective in preventing EDs.. This reaffirms our stand that ED campaigns are not effective
in raising awareness
8.3.2. A. Student Sample Survey (2)
Sample size and profile: 43 Secondary One girls
Q1) Below is a table showing a list of sports courses and their approximate prices.
Sports Course Approximate costs (per person, for 10sessions)
Volleyball $40
Touch Rugby $45
Category A Captain‘s Ball Free(taught by PE teachers)
Category B $40
Rollerblading
Rope-skipping $18
Hip-hop $40
N.B: Costs above have already been 50% subsidized by the Sports Enrichment Program
Would you be willing to pay the maximum price of $85? (I.e. if you choose the most expensive sport
from each category)
yes
no
8.3.2. Parent Sample Survey
8.3.2 B Parent Survey Findings and Inferences
Sample Size: 51 parents of secondary 1 girls
Q1: Are you aware that girls as young as 13 may be at risk of developing eating disorders?
12%
Yes.
88% No.
88% of the parents surveyed were aware of the fact that girls at their daughter’s age were susceptible
to developing eating disorders.
Q2: Is your daughter on a diet?
18% 17%
Yes
No
65% Not sure
While most of the parents at 65% claimed that their daughters were not on diet, the percentage of
parents who were aware of their daughters’ dieting habits was still worrying at 17%, thus reaffirming
our stand that teenagers as young as 13year olds develop unhealthy eating habits. The remaining 18%
has also confessed that they were not sure of their daughter’s eating habits, suggesting that they are
not playing an active role in their daughters eating lifestlyle.
Q3: ―Participation in sports would give an individual greater self-confidence and help her develop a
positive body image of herself". To what extent do you agree with this statement?
30
30
25
21
20
15
10
5
0 0
0
strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree
The results of this question is strongly encouraging to our project since 100% of the parents surveyed
showed support in using sports as a way to cultivate healthy active living in their daughters.
Q4: What are your main concerns if your daughter were to participate in the NSP? (Nutrition and
Sports Programme) (you may tick more than one option)
4% Sports programme may be too
3% time-consuming.
17% 31% Sports programme may be too
tiring.
I am doubtful that the sports
10% will meet the objectives.
My daughter already has a
healthy image of herself
31% Physical Education lessons in
4% school alone is sufficient.
School already has sports CCAs.
Q6: Which duration do you think is the most reasonable for the sports and activities module of the
NSP?
6%
29%
24%
30minutes
60minutes
90minutes
120minutes
41%
The main concerns of parents about the programme was that the sports programme may take up too
much of their daughters’ time and physical strength, such that they may not have full focus on their
academics. Therefore, the team has also surveyed their preferred duration of the sports programme,
where majority of the parents at 41% stated 1hour to be the most reasonable duration.
Q5: How much are you willing to spend on this programme per term?
6%
24%
35% $0-20
$20-40
$40-60
35%
$60 and above
Majority of the parents found the prices $20 to $60 most reasonable, thus enabling us to work around
the prices of the sports lessons and dietician talks.
Q7: Research has shown that parents can play an influential role in developing their child‘s healthy
attitudes about food and nutrition. Would you be keen to participate in a healthy eating bonanza (held
on a Saturday in Term2) where you will team up with your child to prepare a fuss-free healthy and
innovative meal?
23%
Yes
No
18% 59%
Maybe
59% of the parents have stated interest in playing a part in our Healthy eating food fair, suggesting a
possibly good turn-up if there would be an actual implementation.
Q8: Throughout the period of the entire program, the EAT test will be conducted twice- once before
the start of the programme, and once after the programme has ended. This is to judge the
programme‘s success in improving the your daughters‘ attitudes towards healthy eating habits, a
fundamental in the prevention of ED. Would you be interested in receiving updates of your daughter‘s
EAT test results through emails from the school?
12%
Yes.
88% No.
A high percentage, 88%, of the parents would like to receive emails on the EATS survey results of
their daugthers. This reflects the high concern which parents might have on their daughters. By
keeping the parents aware of their daugthers eating attitudes, we would also be improving the parents’
involvement in shaping healthy eating habits in their daughters.
Q9: Would you support the NSP?
39
40
35
30
25
20
15
9
10
5 3
0
0
strongly supports supports objects violently objects
A total of 48 parents out of the 51 we surveyed were receptive to our NSP programme. It is highly
important that the programme gain the support of parents since they would be the ones providing
payment for the sports programme and dietician talks, as well as the participation for our healthy-
eating food fair. Without their support, most of the components of the NSP programme cannot be
carried out smoothly.
8.4 Transcript for Interview With Dr Kumudhini Rajasegaran
1. How long have you been working with eating disorder patients?
I worked in Melbourne before. 2 years of experience.
2. From your experience, what is the approximate age range of your ED
patients? Do you see a significant trend (e.g sufferers getting younger)
developing in Singapore?
Patients are usually around 14 to 16. However, the youngest patient she came across in Australia
was only 9 years old. Even though this is not a Singaporean, I believe that in the next 5-10 years,
Singapore's ED situation will also resemble that of the western countries. Hence, the trend of ED
sufferers growing younger is reflected.
3. Is there an ideal BMI that we can refer to when conducting BMI checks
for secondary 1 girls?
No, but BMI can be used as a screening tool for ED. The usual guideline is that anything above 18 is normal.
However, we cannot follow this guideline strictly because to conclude accurately from the BMI, we have to
consider various factors like contribution of muscle mass to weight, diet, frequency of exercise, family's heights
and weights (hereditary factors) and culture of society. Hence, it would be unfair to use BMI as a determinant
for ED, as a person with a very light BMI may not actually have an ED, but may just be naturally skinny,
etc.Moreover, measuring weights of the girls may prove to be counterproductive, since it will cause them to be
more conscious of their weights. Constant weight measurements are also a sensitive issue as it would be a
constant reminder to the girls of their imperfections. Also, some girls may feel quite insulted because they
actually do not mind their current weights in, so these weight checks will only grow to affect them negatively.
4. Apart from BMI checks, are there any other tests we can do/signs to spot
to examine for ED?
The Eating Aptitude Tests (EATS) can be used to pick out potential ED sufferers.
Also, if we were to use BMI, we may not be able to observe a significant change over a short period of
time (at least 6 months) since BMI calculation involves both weight and height. Hence, rate of
drop/gain in BMI can be quite insidious considering the span of our project. Perhaps measuring rate
of weight loss/gain would be more effective and trend is more obvious.
Furthermore, instead of doing these checks, you could focus more on implementing the exercises and
activities.
5. Is low-self-confidence a primary factor behind ED? In your opinion, is
our approach of using sports to boost the girls' self-confidence, and make
the girls both physically and mentally stronger, an effective one to curb
ED?
Important to keep in mind that low self-confidence is only one of the many factors leading to ED.
Others include socio-environmental factors, such as the media. For instance, magazines featuring a
skinny Paris Hilton are negative influences as they encourage young girls to idolise them. From these,
people also deem stick-thin figures to be the "ideal, perfect image", which is wrong. However, it is
difficult to change social perceptions of famous, popular stars like Nicole Richie etc. Moreover,
magazines with positive influences like 'MIND YOUR BODY' are not appealing enough to the youths.
6. If so, what kind of sports do you think we can recommend to these
Secondary 1 girls to help alleviate the ED problem? (As we understand,
there are some sports like dance that should be avoided due to the
overemphasis of body shape and figures)
(Psychologist Lynn Soh)
I strongly recommend team-based sports or activities with a recreational nature. These are good as
they discourage social isolation. Hiphop is a very suitable option, as it is popular among teens and
promotes interaction. Gymnastics and ballet are not advised because they tend to emphasise body
image and competitive sports like swimming are also not advised as they may exert unnecessary
pressure on the girls and cause further destruction of confidence.
7. Have you ever heard of cases where ED sufferers include sports as part of
their recovery phase? If yes, please share some details.
Yes, SGH has been carrying out such activities in the form of physiotherapies for ED sufferers
admitted into hospital.
8. Do you think the current ED campaigns have been insufficient/ineffective
in curbing ED?
To me, there isn't any ED campaign that has made a significant impact on teens. For instance,
although Seventeen magazine has come up with a LoveYourBody Campaign, it is an ironic platform
to advocate healthy body image since it portrays superstars and idols that are overly thin on other
pages of the magazine. I personally like the Dove campaign for Real Beauty. However, although it
has good intentions, it is not appealing to teenagers which are the ones with the highest ED
developing tendencies. This is because it showcases unknown people with ordinary figures and looks.
Moreover, the fact that the "percentage of increase in ED cases now is comparable as that of 20
years ago" is a testament to campaigns' failure.
9. What other treatment do you recommend we should include in our project to
stop the spread of EDs? (e.g nutrition etc)
ED is not a disease. One possibility is to educate them on the adverse effects of ED. Terrible
consequences such as affecting bone growth, fertility, brain mechanism as well as the psychological
impact. Basically, rasing awareness among your target group is a good measure. Concentrate on
promoting good mental and physical health such as having sufficient sleep, food and exercise. Teach
them the ability to discern between healthy and unhealthy body images, adopt a critical perspective
as to what they see in magazines, on tv etc.)
Preaching not encouraged as teenagers being teenagers don’t like people to preach to them. Instead,
it may be a better approach to use peer support and family support to guide them about ED. Student
Councillors and teachers can also play an active role. Fun, interactive yet educational programmes or
games can be introduced to bring message across in a light-hearted way.
10. Lastly, please share any suggestions/comments you have on our project.
From my experience, ED sufferers do not come always have to come from girls' schools. Instead, it is
more of the perfectionist nature present in elite and independent schools that promotes ED.
Nevertheless, Psychologist Soh told us that CHIJ Katong Convent's teachers had invited her to do a
talk recently due to the growing number of weight problems there.
BMI-for-age weight status categories and the corresponding percentiles are shown in
the following table:
Weight Status Category Percentile Range
Underweight Less than the 5th percentile
Healthy weight 5th percentile to less than the 85th percentile
At risk of overweight 85th to less than the 95th percentile
Overweight Equal to or greater than the 95th percentile
Figure: BMI percentile
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/healthyweight/
assessing/bmi/childrens_BMI/
about_childrens_BMI.htm
8.5 Transcript for Interview With Mrs Emily Sim
Q1) What do you think of exercising as a mean to boost self-confidence?
Exercise is the BEST way to boost self-confidence.
In fact, Sengkang Primary has daily PE as students perform better academically.
Q2) Is the sec1 cohort generally more busy in term 1,2 or 3? Will there be any problems if we hold
our sports programme in terms 1 and 3?
Term 1 and 3 would be the best.
Term 2 and 4 have no solid weeks.
Alternatively, you may straddle the weeks.
I think that the students will surely attend this programme because it’s compulsory.
Q3) Is KC more of an artsy or sporty school? Will the students be responsive to the idea of sports?
KC’s niche area is Arts.
However, over the years KC is getting stronger in sports. We won colours award this year.
Q4) Is KC currently using blue slips (for exemption from PE lessons by CCA groups)?
There is no need for blue slip.
Q5) Were there any similar programmes carried out in KC before? If yes, please give some details.
There is none of such programme in Singapore.
I’ve seen adhoc programmes only.
Q7) For this project, we have calculated that the maximum costs a student would have to pay is
$80. Will the school be able to provide subsidies or any form of funding to help alleviate the
financial burden on the students? If so, what would be the amount approximately?
Sport’s Council gives SEP(Sports Education Programme) grant of $10 000 a year and the school has
the autonomy to give out subsidies, purchase sports equiptments and facilities. We will subsidise 50%
of such programmes. There is also Health Promotion Board grant so the students will only have to
pay $40 for this programme. We will pay for students with financial difficulty.
Q8) As the programme would take place after school hours, do you think it would take up too
much of the students’ time?
There is time constraint for the students, of course. However, if you make it compulsory, I think the
attendance will be good.
Q9) Our group hopes to ask non-PE teachers to help in administration work (such as taking
attendance) or even assist coaching of simple sports such as Captain’s ball. Do you think the
teachers will be agreeable to this extra workload?
I’m not sure whether it is feasible due to time constraints.
The teachers have meetings on the days when the students have no CCAs.
Thus, it will be quite taxing for teachers to coach on these days.
However, I would suggest getting help from CCPE (co curricular programme executive),and
responsible student leaders. Teachers can do regular check on them.
Q10) How many NIE trainees does the school accept per year.
We have many NIE trainees for other subjects but only 2 trainees for PE.
Q11) Will the school be agreeable to having external coaches guiding the students? (safety reasons)
Yes, we have no problem with that.
Q12) Will the school provide the equiptments for this programme?
Yes. In fact, we have all of the equiptments that you might need.
Q13) Lastly, please give some comments on our project or add on to any aspects we may have
overlooked. Do you foresee any obstacles or problems that we may encounter?
Nopes. Exercise is just the BEST way to boost self-confidence.
8.6 Transcript for Emails with:
8.6.1 Skateline (Roller-blading costs)
Email Correspondence with Mr. Albert Tan from Skateline
Email sent:
From: Shirleen ho <ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com>
Date: August 11, 2008 10:11:06 PM SST
To: <info@skateline.com.sg>
Subject: Enquiry: Fees for 10week Enrichment Programme
Dear Sir/Madam,
Hello, I am a student from Victoria Junior College who intends to initiate a 10week roller-blading
enrichment course for students (age 13). I have decided to send out this email after coming across
Skateline's website. As the approximate costs for the programme would be crucial information as part
of my proposal, I have decided to make costs enquiries from Skateline.
The roller-blading enrichment programme would take place once per week for 10 consecutive weeks,
each session lasting 90minutes. There would be approximately 180students in the programme, hence
there might be a need for instructors to instruct on 2 separate days each week, in order to provide
sufficient venue and space for effective learning and enjoyment.
Therefore, I would greatly appreciate if you could provide me with your quotation for the programme
mentioned above. Please reply to this email address regarding any queries.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely,
Shirleen Ho
Victoria Junior College
Email reply:
RE: Enquiry: fees for 10week enrichment programme
From: Albert (albert@skateline.com.sg)
Sent: 18 August 2008 02: 01AM
To: ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com
Cc: 'Edna' (edna@skateline.com.sg)
Hi Shirleen
Thank you for your email and invitation for Skateline to quote.
I have attached a proposal with the price package in it. Please have a look at it.
Should you need further clarification, please feel free to contact me (93370577) or Edna (62894126).
Thank you.
Best Regards,
Albert Tan Cheng Meng
Senior Instructor
HP (65) 93370577
albert@skateline.com.sg
Skateline Pte Ltd
Head Office
16 New Industrial Road, #02-02
Hudson TechnoCentre, Singapore 536204
Tel (65) 62890021 Fax (65) 62843234
Attachment:
th
Dated: 18 August 2008
Attn: Ms Shirleen Ho
Victoria Junior College
Dear Ms Shirleen
Re: Inline Skating Program for students at Victoria Junior College
Skateline Pte Ltd specializes in Inline Skating and we would like to introduce this sport to your school.
This is also in line to promote healthy living and sports in schools. Currently, we have a few programs
endorsed under the Sports Education Program (SEP)
I understand that you are busy and I hope that you will spend some time reading through this
proposal to have a better understanding of who we are, what is the SEP program and how to benefit
from the SEP funding.
What is the Sports Education Program?
The Sports Education Programme (SEP) is a collaborative partnership between Singapore Sports
Council (SSC) and the Ministry of Education (MOE). The SEP aims to advocate the importance of
sports education, encourage sports participation in schools and increase sporting opportunities for the
young. It also serves as an integrated and structured approach to link sports service providers with
schools to ensure that innovative and quality sports programmes are delivered. (Taken from SEP
website)
How to benefit from the SEP?
With regards to the SEP funding, Singapore Sports Council will subsidize 50% of the course fees to
promote sports in the schools. This fund will be given to the school at the start of the year for 2008.
Schools will then go to the website (http//sep.ssc.gov,sg) to choose their preferred program and to
contact supplier for their choice of program.
According to the meeting which was recently held, the will be no need for schools to go through Gebiz
for ITQ‘s, as long as the program is for the SEP.
Skateline Endorsed Programs under SEP
The following are the programs endorsed by the SEP for the year 2008.
1) Program ID: 1094 – Sports Exposure
Inline Fun Start
2) Program ID: 1169 – Sports Play
Skateline PE Curriculum
3) Program ID: 1874 – Sports Play
Skateline Health Fitness Program (TAF/HFC)
4) Program ID: 1144 – Sports Play
Skateline Learn To Skate Level 1 (Beginner)
5) Program ID: 1157 – Sports Development
Skateline Learn To Skate Level 2 (Beginner to Intermediate)
6) Program ID: 1162 – Sports Development
Skateline Learn To Skate Level 3/4/5/6 (Intermediate to Advance)
Fees and Venue
Inline Skating shall be conducted at the premises of Victoria Junior College, unless otherwise stated
by the school. In the event of rain, the school will advise further as to whether to postpone the class to
a different day or to continue with Inline Skating indoors (School hall, Corridor, etc.)
Price plan
There will be a minimum requirement of 30 students to start the class.
Each student will be quoted at $100 for 10 sessions of Inline Skating for 1.5 hours each session. As
your school is under the Singapore Sports Council SEP, there will be a subsidary of 50% off the total
sessions if you choose to use it.
For example: Cost is $80 per student – SEP $40, School/Student $40 (please visit sep.ssc.gov.sg for
more details on the SEP program)
The progression of each student varies according to their ability.
All classes are inclusive of:
Insurance coverage for all students in our programs
Skates and protective gear during the lesson
Skateline Learn-To-Skate Booklet
Wearing inline skates with full protective equipment including helmet is mandatory during lessons.
Skateline is the only skate school here that enforces the safety requirements of being fully geared
when learning to skate. An insurance coverage of up to $10,000.00 is provided for all students
Please see below for equipment provided during classes:
S/No Items Brands & Model
1 Inline skates RollerBlade, K2
2 Helmet Prowell & Ergo (Approved and certified)
3 Protective gear Skate gear – wrist, elbow and knee
Class Ratio:
1:15 (max); to uphold teaching and quality standards.
To maximize the progressive learning of the students, we recommend that each class will have a maximum of
50 students. This way, our instructor will be able to spend more quality with each and every student to help
them learn faster and to better aid those students who are having problems coping with the class.
Skateline Pte Ltd Phone Fax Email Website
16 New Industrial Road #02-01 Hudson Technocentre +65 +65
Singapore 536204 62894378 62843234 skateschool@skateline.com.sg www.skateline.com.sg
Reg. no. 200410138k
8.6.2 Inline Culture (Roller-blading costs)
Email Correspondence with Mr. Martin from Inline Culture
Email sent:
Enquiry: Fees for 10week Enrichment Programme
From: shirleen ho (ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com)
Sent: 06 August 2008 15: 25PM
To: martin@inlineculture.com.sg
Dear Martin,
We are a group of five JC 1 students from class 08s35 of Victoria Junior College. Our group members
are Bernice Gan (Leader), Shirleen Ho, Lisa Lau, Sadelena Bte Isman and Huang Dongkun. Our
Supervising Teacher is Ms Monica Wong.
As part of our A-level curriculum, we are doing our Project Work (PW) this year. Our chosen project
task is ‗Modernisation‘ and we are currently focusing on the aspect of Eating Disorders (ED). For our
project, we are expected to come up with a hypothetical solution to tackle our identified aspect of
modernization. Hence, we have decided to implement a compulsory sports programme for all
Secondary 1 girls.
For our project we intend to initiate a 10week roller-blading enrichment course for students (age 13).
From your website, it is mentioned that to date, Inline Culture has one of the largest logistical support
to teach in schools. As the approximate costs for the programme would be crucial information as part
of my proposal, I have decided to make costs enquiries from Inline Culture.
The roller-blading enrichment programme would take place once per week for 10 consecutive weeks,
each session lasting 90minutes. There would be approximately 120students in the programme, hence
there might be a need for instructors to instruct on 2 separate days each week, in order to provide
sufficient venue and space for effective learning and enjoyment.
Therefore, I would greatly appreciate if you could provide me with your quotation for the programme
mentioned above. Please reply to this email address regarding any queries.
Thank you for your time and we hope to hear from you soon.
Yours sincerely,
Bernice Gan, Shirleen Ho, Lisa Lau, Sadelena Bte Isman and Huang Dongkun.
Contact details:
Shirleen Ho: ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com(email)
98565490 (mobile)
Supervising Tutor: Miss Monica Wong (wong.shuehmei.monica@vjc.sg)
Email reply 1:
RE: Enquiry: Fees for 10week Enrichment Programme
From: Martin (martin@inlineculture.com.sg)
Sent: 19 August 2008 05: 05AM
Reply-to: martin@inlineculture.com.sg
To: 'Shirleen ho' (ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com)
Dear Miss Shirleen,
Thank you for your renew interest in Inline Culture's Products and Services.
All the equipments are provided. As requested, attached is the quotation. Please feel free to contact
me should there be further queries or problem regarding the programme & price. If the programme is
confirmed, kindly endorse the reply slip & fax it back to me.
I look forward to your favourable reply. Thank you
Regards,
Martin
Inline Culture Certified Instructor (ICICP)
First Aid Certified (EMT First Rescue Singapore)
International Skating Certified Coach Level 1 (ISCC)
National Coaching Accreditation Programme Level 1 Certified (NCAP)
Inline Culture
144 East Coast Road
Singapore 428834
Retail : 6 344 5522
Office : 6 244 5522
Fax : 6 440 5563
Hp : 9 272 9210
Email: martin@inlineculture.com.sg
Web: www.inlineculture.com.sg
Attachment:
__________________________________________________________
Name of Programme Inline Skating Level 1 & 2
Programme Category Sports Play
Sport Type Inline Skating
Target Audience Primary School Students
Secondary School Students
Junior College Students
Venue Requirements Basketball Court or equivelent = 30pax
Equipment Requirements 1. Inline Skates
2. Wristpads
3. Elbowpads
4. Kneepads
5. Helmets
All of the above will be provided FOC
Description of Programme Students will learn:
Proper Gearing up of skates &
Equipment usage
Important basic fundamentals of
inline skating.
To handle different terrains, stairs,
slopes and grass confidently during Urban
Skating Course.
Objectives of Programme To introduce inline skating to students
To develop basic fundamental skills needed
for students to inline skate.
To instill a safe, fun learning experience for
all students and further enhance team spirit,
leadership, confidence and team work skills.
Number of sessions 10 sessions
Duration of Each Session 1.5 hours
(Number of hours)
Minimum number to start 20 students
Instructor to Student Ratio 1:20
Cost (Per Pax) $100
Contact Details Contact Person : Mr Martin
Office : 6244 5522 / 6344 5522
Mobile : 92729210
Fax : 6440 5563
Email : martin@inlineculture.com.sg
Website : www.inlineculture.com.sg
Contacts
Name Of School : _________________________________________________________
Teacher In-Charge : _________________________________________________________
Telephone : _____________________ Handphone : __________________
Email : _________________________________________________________
* Please Submit Feet Sizes of students/participants prior 5 days before commencement of lessons
* Postpone / Cancellation of lessons can only be forwarded on the same day & time slot.
8.6.3 Vitage Fitness (Rope-skipping costs)
Email Correspondence with Rope-skipping instructors
Email sent:
Date: Sun, 10 Aug 2008 14:25:16
From: ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com
To: hansen@vitagefitness.com)
Subject: Enquiry: Fees for 10week Enrichment Programme
Dear Hansen,
We are a group of five JC 1 students from class 08s35 of Victoria Junior College. Our group members
are Bernice Gan (Leader), Shirleen Ho, Lisa Lau, Sadelena Bte Isman and Huang Dongkun. Our
Supervising Teacher is Ms Monica Wong.
As part of our A-level curriculum, we are doing our Project Work (PW) this year. Our chosen project
task is ‗Modernisation‘ and we are currently focusing on the aspect of Eating Disorders (ED). For our
project, we are expected to come up with a hypothetical solution to tackle our identified aspect of
modernization. Hence, we have decided to implement a compulsory sports programme for all
Secondary 1 girls.
For our project we intend to initiate a a 10week rope-skipping enrichment course for Secondary One
girls From CHIJ Katong Convent. I have decided to send out this email after coming across the Vitage
Fitness website, which mentioned that coaches would be available for enrichment courses. As the
approximate costs for the programme would be crucial
information as part of my proposal, I have decided to make costs enquiries from Vitage Fitness.
The rope-skipping enrichment programme would take place once per week for
10 consecutive weeks, each session lasting 90minutes. There would be
approximately 100students in the programme.
Here are the few enquiries which I hope to ask:
1) How many coaches would you recommend be hired for all 100students to
enjoy an optimum learning experience?
2) Would the students be required to purchase their own jump ropes for the
enrichment programme? if yes, how much would each student be required to
pay for his own jump-rope?
3)Finally, what would be the approximate total costs of such a programme?
Therefore, I would greatly appreciate if you could provide me with your quotation for the programme
mentioned above. Please reply to this email address regarding any queries.
Thank you! We are sure that your information would be of tremendous help to our project.
Yours sincerely,
Bernice Gan, Shirleen Ho, Lisa Lau, Sadelena Bte Isman and Huang Dongkun.
Contact details:
Shirleen Ho: ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com(email)
98565490 (mobile)
Supervising Tutor: Miss Monica Wong (wong.shuehmei.monica@vjc.sg)
Email Reply:
Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:18:52 +0800
From: hansen@vitagefitness.com
To: ginger_shirleen@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: [website feedback] Enquiry: fees for 10week enrichment programme
Dear Shireen,
We are the official training provider for Rope Sports Singapore.
Close to 6000 students and adults have gone through our programs this year. Participants will learn
rope skills according to phrases and will even be able to entertain with a performance cum
competition at the end of the program.
I have attached a sypnosis of The SkipFit System for your perusal. The cost is $35/pax. Cost includes
an activo pedometer and quality jumprope for everyone. We will provide at least 3 coaches for 100
students.
This program is funded by the Southeast Community Development Council. CHIJ KC will be eligible
for some funding since it is under this district. Do share your plans with us as both SECDC and
ourselves are planning to develop interest groups in the district for a freestyle competition at the end
of the year.
Health and Energy
Hansen Bay
Program Director/Coach (Health & Wellness)
Vitage Fitness
M (65) 97939745
F (65) 65828922
www.vitagefitness.com
"The First Wealth is Health"-Ralph Waldo Emerson
