Saint Andrew's Secondary School - Ethos, Uniform and Discipline

Ethos, Uniform and Discipline

Although St Andrew's is an Anglican school, it is not a requirement for students to be Christian.

The school crest includes the cross of St Andrew (the Scottish flag). The school motto is "Up And On", a phrase also incorporated in the School Song, the final words of which are "Up and On! Up Boys! truest fame/ Lies in high endeavour;/ Play the game! keep the flame /Burning brightly ever!"

St Andrew's students are known as "Saints", and the school newsletters is called Saints Times. Every year, the school also produces a school magazine which was called '"Up and On" in the earlier years, after the school motto.

There are five Houses: Gomes, Hose, Loyfatt, Romanis and Venn.

All students wear white shirts bearing the school badge. Lower secondary boys (Sec 1 and Sec 2) must wear dark blue short trousers with white socks; Bermuda shorts are not permitted. Upper secondary boys (Sec 3, 4 and 5) now wear long trousers, although Secondary 3 students have been allowed to do so only since the 1990s. The prefects in sec 3&4 wear long white pants. The school tie is to be worn on Mondays and at special events.

The school regards its system of Prefects as an important element in maintaining an ethos of service and high standards of conduct.

The school's Pupil Welfare Department aims to create a sense of belonging and promote moral education and community service.

Saint Andrew's maintains strict rules for behaviour inside and outside school. There is a new system of demerit points, used in combination with the school's long-standing policy of corporal punishment in the form of strokes of the cane. For 3 or 4 demerit points the penalty is Corrective Work Action or caning on the hand. Five or more demerit points mean a caning across the seat of the trousers.

Students who are late to school four times in a term receive caning, and are caned again on each subsequent lateness for that term. Students caught smoking or in possession of tobacco products are referred to the Health Science Authority to be fined and counselled, as well as being caned on the buttocks. For very serious offences such as drug abuse, or a second or subsequent offence of fighting or gangsterism, the caning is delivered in front of the school body ("public caning"), otherwise it may be carried out in class, such as for a first offence of fighting or bullying. Public caning on the buttocks is also administered whenever a case is referred to the police. For a repeat serious offence the student may be publicly caned and then either suspended or expelled.

After a series of bullying cases attracted attention in 2003, the school stated that the situation at St Andrew's was no worse than at any other school, adding that bullies receive a stern warning; repeat offenders or those who injure others are caned and, ultimately, expelled. An SASS student bringing pornography to school would be caned either in public or in class, depending on the seriousness of the case.

For cases where the offence has a victim or where there is conflict to be resolved, a system of Restorative Practices is in place. "In the process of resolving the conflict, the offenders are asked to suggest the appropriate consequences for their action, which may include any form of punishment. However, any students who fail to cooperate with the teacher will be dealt with differently."