History
The Hokkien Clan Association (otherwise known as the Hokkien Huay Kuan) started Tao Nan School on 8 November 1906. It was one of the six modern Chinese schools in Singapore with a curriculum influenced by the educational reforms in China at the end of the 19th century.
Classes were first held at the residence of Tan Kim Ching on North Bridge Road. With support from the Hokkien community, a purpose-built school was constructed. Benefactors include Tan Boon Liat, Lee Cheng Yen, Low Kim Pong, Tan Kah Kee, and Oei Tiong Ham, the sugar magnate from Semarang, Central Java, whose donation largely financed the purchase of land on Armenian Street.
The move to Armenian Street coincided with the 1911 overthrow of the Qing dynasty. Tao Nan became the first Chinese school to change the medium of instruction from dialect to Mandarin. One of the teachers was the philanthropist Lee Kong Chian (1894–1967). Pioneer artist Pan Shou was the headmaster from 1932 to 1940.
In 1982, Tao Nan School moved to a new campus in Marine Parade, where it still remains to this today. It was named a SAP school in 1990 and a Gifted Education Programme Centre in 1996. With 100 years of history (as of 2006) it is one of Singapore's oldest primary schools.
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