By Megan Hon (20S06D), Chairperson, Shitong (20S06G), Vice-Chairperson, Zhang Ming (20S07A), Musical Director, and Ruoqing (20S06O), Secretary 

Psst… do you feel like you are a green banana sometimes, with stiff fingers that never seem to follow what your brain dictates? Well, here at RIPE, we can be your personal catalyst for your RIPEning journey!

Jokes aside, RIPE actually stands for Raffles Institution Piano Ensemble, and we are one of the Performing Arts CCAs offered here in RI. And no, we do not have the whole ensemble banging on a single piano (poor piano)—it’s much more peaceful than that. Contrary to popular belief, we usually practise duet or quartet pieces, with the number of hands on one piano at a time totalling up to no more than six!

By Soccer (Boys)

While the football boys aren’t exactly known to have the sharpest minds out there, don’t let the cheery, happy-go-lucky exterior fool you. Trainings are intense and serious, with the basic expectation that everyone should put in their 100% and push themselves; expect sessions to include drills like possession, high press, crossing, and practising the D (our signature move). Furthermore, don’t be surprised to see the footballers putting in the extra work, be it with self-trainings or going for runs. With our motto “Belief, Desire, Teamwork”, all footballers are expected to put in their all to bring out the best in themselves and their teammates.

By Raffles Debaters Exco ’20

Who are debaters? Perhaps you have seen us on one of our regular trips to Chill, leaving with an armful of coffee, honey lemon and Strepsils (and sometimes, to the sighs of our coaches, spicy seaweed that is bound to ruin our throats). You might also have spotted us going up to the cashier at Popular bookstore, trying our best to balance a teetering tower of blank index cards. If you happened to be in school on a Monday or Wednesday afternoon, you may have even caught us rushing up the stairs to the 4th floor classrooms (the only cardio we do in this CCA).

Jokes aside, the simple answer is this: we are a motley crew of people who bond over our common love for arguing (in debates only, we must stress—it is probably unwise to extend this into one’s daily life) and desire to become better at it. Although we say “arguing”, debating is more than that—it is a clash of style and wit, where speakers go head-to-head in a fiery exchange of arguments and rebuttals. In debates, teams are given a topic, such as “This house would support military retaliation against cyber attacks”, to either propose or oppose (we don’t get to choose our sides!). Speakers then construct and defend their case while attacking their opponent’s case, often by evaluating moral principles and practical outcomes for different stakeholders. Ultimately, logic and rhetoric must be wielded effectively to convince the judges of their team’s stance.