Today we have a very special guest, Simon Ma, who agreed to a sit down e-interview for our new Einstein blog. Simon was part of Einstein's second organizing team (known affectionately as OT2), and is currently serving his national service in the Singapore Police Force. He graduated from RI in 2019 with distinctions in Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and German, and also participated actively in his CCA of Raffles Interact. Without further ado, let's delve into some precious memories Simon hold on to when it comes to his Einstein Journey.
How did you first find out about Operation Einstein?
From being a participant in 2017 when it was first started to, being one of the five exco members for 2018-2019, I joined Operation Einstein as it is a fun and meaningful student-run community service project that I felt personally drawn to as a science student.
What was something unique about Operation Einstein that drew you in?
Etched in my memory is Professor Sow’s animated sharing in the RI Year 1-4 Lecture Theatre, as I saw the experiments for the first time laid out across the table on stage - including his very own creation, the laser light show – a rubber sheet with a small mirror stretched over a PVC pipe with a handle, which projects a really cool undulating laser pattern on the wall.
The way he engaged us and made those seemingly innocuous objects spring to life – that was something I wanted to bring to the kids, because being part of the largely exam based science curriculum made me keenly aware of the boredom and sometimes angst that these kids experience, and project onto their whole idea of “learning”. I signed up as a volunteer as soon as big daddy Bryan did his sharing.
What did you learn from your two year tenure at Operation Einstein?
From August 2017, we've held more than 40 sessions. Einstein has participated in carnivals by CDAC and SINDA , such as at the opening of Vibrance@Yishun where Education Minister Ong Ye Kung graced the occasion. We've also organized sessions at various CDAC centers where we take a minds-on approach using Feynmann’s Technique in sparking children’s curiosity in scientific phenomena shown by our experimental setups. In 2019, we launched Phase 2 of our project involving 2-day camps for kids to select their preferred science module to learn and explore through experiments.
The 2019 Einstein June Camps were definitely a daunting challenge and taught me to stay calm in the face of deadlines and liaisons combined with the stresses of JC and the impending A Levels. I learnt that the process matters much more than the product, that all the components that I integrated into the camp like ice cream making, digestive system, spherification, cabbage pH indicator are just a spark for the kids, a gateway to their own personal journey of scientific discovery. Whether it catalyses change in the kids depends on a host of factors and I’m happy to say I did the part.
It was heartening to see them respond positively to the hands-on activities, and it was memorable to lug all the ice box and luggage to the kids and make the spectacle unfold for them, thereby learning to think and react on the spot. Outside of science however I forged bonds with them in other areas like K-pop and doing random stuff during the lunch break which I treasure a lot.
What do you wish for Operation Einstein to grow into? Any parting words?
I hope Einstein continues to be not just about the science, but about holistic individuality in every kid, cater to even more diverse groups and hopefully go online too in the midst of this crisis. To the next OT and beyond: Jiayous, stay healthy & stay hungry (for knowledge and improvement of course)!
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