However, Singapore also has aspects of the Chinese perception of self. For example, the concept of 'social harmony' is also present in Singapore. There are people who are afraid to speak out and disagree with other people, though it is not that prevalent in Singapore as in China. The China government promoting Confucianism as a means of social cohesion and easing social dissent also seems familiar-since the early years after independence to the present day, the Singapore government uses education to promote social cohesion. The 2007 Civics and Moral Education syllabus (http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/aesthetics-health-and-moral-education/files/civics-and-moral-education-primary-english-2007.pdf) states that one of the considerations made when developing the syllabus is the "The unique multicultural heritage of our nation that upholds values like service to the nation and community above self...thrift, diligence, respect for authority and the belief in social order."
Essentially, what this means is that we unknowingly have been exposed to both American and Chinese culture, and their perception of self. The question then would be what the Singaporean perception of self is? Personally, I think that a place society over self. I am the type of person that does not speak out a lot, either because I am not confident in myself or because I do not want to challenge other people and have to defend my own views. I would rather maintain the status quo rather than try and fight for change unless something is seriously wrong. While this seems to show that I lean totally towards the Chinese perception of self, this is also not entirely true. Having just said that I would fight for change if something is seriously wrong, there are indeed situations when I would value the self over society in terms of freedom of expression and freedom of speech. For instance, if the government suddenly announces that Singapore is now a single party state and all opposition parties are outlawed, I would disagree with that. If something goes against my individual rights, I will still place the self over society.
In other words, there is no single perception of self which I strictly adhere to. Due to the unique culture of Singapore as well as the education and exposure I have been privileged enough to have went through, I find that I have a mesh of different aspects from different cultures in my perception of self. The fact that I think I lean more towards the Chinese perception of self is possibly due to personal preference and personality, as I am more withdrawn and conservative. I suspect that most of my classmates and Singaporeans in general are also similar, and have integrated different aspects of both American and Chinese perceptions of self and made their own unique conclusion. However, there is no fine line on which side we stand.
I think that there are two main reasons for this. As already mentioned, Singapore's unique global position and heritage results in a lot of exposure to different cultures. Another reason which was not previously mentioned is education. Think about it; what are we learning now? Socio-economic studies. How many students would think about things such as their perception of self if they had not gone through this module? Practically zero. Through the discussions in class and the way these discussions are guided, how we view ourselves and the world has changed. Socio-economic studies is just one example. While it is said to encourage cramming and rote memorisation, class interaction is increasingly being stressed. It is commonly said that young children are easily impressionable. So teachers are now shifting from simply lecturing to encouraging students to question. Currently, Singapore is somewhere in the middle of a shift from the more stereotypically Asian system of rote learning to a more interactive and innovative system similar to America. Whether young children are encouraged to question their teacher or told to simply listen may lead to an emphasis on either social harmony or freedom of expression. Looking back on my primary school education, I wonder if I would still lean towards the Chinese perception of self if I had been more encouraged to speak up in the past.
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