Singapore Tombstones Epigraphic Materials · S.T.E.M.
崇本女校 · 育德女子學校 Chong Pun Girls' School
A Pioneer in Chinese Girls' Education in Colonial Singapore, 1916–1985
Tomb Record · c. 1916–1917
Madam Chen Deyi
陳德儀 · 陳粉蘋
Principal of both Yu De Girls' School (育德女子學校) and Chong Pun Girls' School (崇本女校). Her tomb inscription, dated to approximately 1916–1917, provides rare personal evidence bridging the school's name change and confirms institutional continuity. Sons: 黃和洲, 黃和華.
MOE Award recipient. This tomb is a remarkable window into the earliest chapter of girls' education in Singapore.
Overview 概述
Chong Pun Girls' School (崇本女校, also romanised as Chong Ben) was a pioneering Chinese-medium girls' school in early 20th-century Singapore. For nearly seven decades, it played a central role in advancing female education within the Hokkien community during the British colonial era — at a time when sending girls to school was far from the norm.
Its story is inseparable from that of its brother institution, Chong Cheng School (崇正學校), which gave it life; from the Soon Thian Gong Temple (順天宮), which sustained it financially; and from a remarkable succession of women educators who shaped its character and reputation.
Origins 創校源流
The most direct and reliable evidence for the school's origins comes from the Nan Yang Shang Bao survey of Chinese schools published on 21 June 1932:
南洋商報 · Nan Yang Shang Bao, 21 June 1932, Page 6
小坡美芝律崇本女學校，最初為崇正學校女生部分出，後乃自樹一幟，但其教育行政，及經濟等，均與崇正有連帶關係。
"The Siao Po Beach Road Chong Pun Girls' School originally emerged from the girls' section of Chong Cheng School. It later became independent, though its educational administration and finances remained closely linked to Chong Cheng."
This account is fully corroborated by the memoirist Yao Nan (姚楠), writing in the Lian He Zao Bao in 1983:
"The school was founded in 1916, originally under the name Yu De Girls' School (育德女子學校), and renamed Chong Pun in 1917. It shared the same board of directors as the boys' school Chong Cheng School, and the two schools were located on the same premises, separated by the Tiger Balm Hall, which had been built by the Hu family. Among the Chinese-medium schools of that era, the buildings of these two schools were considered quite grand and impressive." — Yao Nan (姚楠), 联合早报 (Lian He Zao Bao), 18 June 1983, Page 44
Chong Pun grew directly out of the girls' section of Chong Cheng School in the Beach Road / Besi Lane (美芝律) area of Siao Po (小坡), before eventually gaining its own identity, its own name, and its own leadership.
A Note on the Name Yu De (育德)
The school operated briefly as Yu De Girls' School (育德女子學校) in 1916, before being renamed Chong Pun (崇本) in 1917. The tomb of Madam Chen Deyi (陳德儀), dated to approximately 1916–1917, records her as principal of both schools — providing uniquely personal evidence of this transitional moment.
Location & Early Growth 校址與發展
From its founding, the school operated in the Beach Road (美芝律) neighbourhood. By 1924, student numbers had grown from around 60 to nearly 100. By 1932, the school had over 100 students in a rented shophouse at $60/month with 4 classrooms but no dedicated sports ground.
南洋商報 · 29 February 1924, Page 16
本坡崇本女學校之近况，教職員循循善誘，學生由六十人增至百人，全校教室過於狹小，有礙教授與學生身體之發育，熱心教育諸君不可不注意。
Chong Pun Girls' School — student numbers have grown from 60 to nearly 100 under the patient guidance of its teachers. However, the classrooms are dangerously cramped, hindering both teaching and the physical development of students.
In 1938, both Chong Pun and Chong Cheng moved into a purpose-built Art Deco campus on Aliwal Street in Kampong Glam, with a hall donated by the Haw Par brothers (胡文虎).
Chong Cheng School / 崇正學校 — NHB Heritage record. Chong Pun shared the Aliwal Street campus from 1938.
Finances in 1932 一九三二年經濟狀況
The Nan Yang Shang Bao survey of June 1932 gives a clear picture of the school's finances during the Depression years:
Monthly Expenditure
~$450
Regular operating costs
Tuition Income
~$180
Per month
Government Subsidy
Tens of $
Per month
Shortfall — Covered by
Soon Thian Gong
順天宮公款撥充
Teaching Staff
8
Salaries $45–$80/month
Enrolment
100+
Students
Temple Patronage 廟宇資助
順天宮 · Soon Thian Gong Temple
Both Chong Pun Girls' School and Chong Cheng School were financially sustained by Soon Thian Gong Temple (順天宮), also known as Lu Ban Tan Da Bo Gong Temple (魯班潭大伯公宮). Monthly deficits at both schools were covered entirely from temple public funds (公款).
順天宮民國十五年董事表 · Soon Thian Gong Temple Board of Directors, 1926 — 南洋商報, 16 October 1926, Page 4
民國十五年二月十日
順天宮
崇正學校
崇本女校
新任董事
第4页 广告 专栏 1
南洋商报, 11 February 1926, Page 4
名譽總理
陳嘉庚
胡文虎
蔡新義
王嘉祿
林金殿
呂亞囘
陳延謙
正總理
鍾水泮
副總理
李光前
司理
陳臣位
財政
陳文清
查帳
王會儀
陳觀波
董事
王水斗
陳火輪
陳芳歳
薛中華
陳山精
傅芙蓉
陳森茂
陳金塔
薛武院
陳期宰
林戊已
陳溢貢
陳貴賤
何秀填
任期丙寅丁卯戊子辰三年附佈
Principals & Educators 歷任校長
c. 1916–1917
Madam Chen Deyi 陳德儀 / 陳粉蘋
Principal during the transition from Yu De Girls' School to Chong Pun. Her tomb inscription is among the earliest documentary evidence of the school's existence and name change.
c. 1923–1924
Principal Chen Guanbo 陳觀波校長
Referenced in a February 1924 newspaper report noting the growth of student numbers and the pressing need for expanded premises.
1923–c.1927
Madam Peng Mengying 彭夢瑛女士
Under her five-year leadership the school was thoroughly reorganised and expanded. A Junior Normal teacher-training course was established, and the school's academic reputation rose markedly.
1930s
Madam Fang Wenjun 方文鈞女士
A Sin Chew Jit Poh report from February 1934 describes her encouraging students to attend school on Lunar New Year's Day per government directive.
1938–1942
Madam Peng Mengmin 彭夢民女士
Principal at the outbreak of the Pacific War. Both she and Fang Wenjun subsequently served as principals of Nanyang Girls' School.
A Colleague Remembers 同仁憶述
联合早报 · Lian He Zao Bao, 18 June 1983, Page 44 — 姚楠
崇本女校在三十年代與中華、崇福、南洋等校齊名，但戰後情況，我就不大清楚了。
"Chong Pun Girls' School was, in the 1930s, considered on a par with schools such as Zhonghua, Chong Hock, and Nanyang. My wife, Sun Jinxiu, once worked there as a teacher of music and art, and also served as General Affairs Director."
Later History & Legacy 後期歷史與遺產
The school continued operating through the post-war decades. In 1985, Chong Pun Girls' School and Chong Cheng School merged to form Chongzheng Primary School (崇正小學), which subsequently relocated to Tampines.
The historic Aliwal Street campus was gazetted for conservation and today houses the Aliwal Arts Centre, a living cultural landmark in Kampong Glam.
Chong Pun Girls' School exemplified the Hokkien community's determination to advance female education during the early Republican era. Its graduates and teachers are its most enduring legacy.
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