N.E.mation! participants learn about blood donation
Participants of animation competition N.E.mation! visited seven immersion sites across S'pore on Saturday. For the first time, the S'pore Red Cross Academy is involved in the competition. Participants tell KINTAN ANDANARI (kintana@sph.com.sg) what they learnt
When her grandfather contracted dengue several years ago, he needed blood urgently.
Recalling the incident, Claris, 12, told The New Paper: "He needed a blood and platelet transfusion. I'm glad there was adequate blood in the hospital to treat him."
She added that she cannot wait to turn 16 so she can donate blood.
Last Saturday, Claris was one of 10 N.E.mation! teams visiting the Singapore Red Cross Academy and the Blood Bank at Dhoby Ghaut.
Organised by Nexus, the Central National Education Office, N.E.mation! is an annual inter-school digital animation competition which encourages students to express their thoughts on Total Defence.
The visit to Dhoby Ghaut was part of a site immersion programme for students to understand how the Red Cross contributes to Total Defence, and how blood donation saves lives.
Claris, a Secondary 1 student,from Bendemeer Secondary School said: "For the competition, our entry is about the various kinds of donations, including blood donation, so (learning about) the process was helpful."
The size of the needle used to draw blood, however, spooked some of the students.
Lee Jia Yue, 14, from Dunman High School, said: "I didn't expect the needle to be so big.
"But I will still donate blood in future because the pain only lasts for a while and one bag of blood can save three people."
According to the Singapore Red Cross, only 1.8 per cent of Singapore's residents donate their blood.
Its spokesman said: "These people (the youth) are the future of our country. By knowing first aid skills since young and how blood donation saves people, they can positively impact our community and keep Singapore strong."
DONORS NEEDED
The society hopes the number of blood donors here can be raised to at least 3 per cent.
For Jia Yue's team, their entry's theme is "Unity in Diversity". Team member Clara Chua, 13, said: "We want to show how blood donation transcends different races and religions. In times of crisis, you need blood, and it can come from people from all walks of life."
A total of 100 teams have been shortlisted for this year's N.E.mation! competition. (See report, right.)
On Saturday, all the participants visited one of seven immersion sites around Singapore to learn about the work of various agencies in the nation's total defence.
Apart from the Singapore Red Cross, the other agencies are the Internal Security Department, the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the Republic of Singapore Navy, the SAF's 10C4I Battalion, and the Infocomm Development Authority and Smart Nation Programme Office.
At the IEXperience immersion site, hosted by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore and Smart Nation Programme Office, students got a glimpse of Singapore's Smart Nation vision.
Outram Secondary School student Genieve Chin, 13, said: "One of the technologies shown was an application on CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).
"It may be simple, but applications like these make us ready for emergency situations."
Colonel Joseph Tan, director of Nexus, said: "These visits enrich students' understanding of the work of various agencies that contribute to a strong Singapore.
"More importantly, in the Total Defence of Singapore, we hope students realise that the security forces cannot do this alone. There are many things that they too, can do in their daily lives to contribute to Total Defence."
About N.E.mation!
N.E.mation!, which is in its 11th year, is an inter-school digital animation competition that encourages students to express their thoughts on Total Defence.
This year, there was a total of 760 entries from 437 teamsfrom secondary schools, junior colleges and centralised institutes.
Yesterday, 100 shortlisted teams pitched their story ideas for three minutes to the judges and 40 teams were picked.
Today, those teams will be presenting their improved story ideas to the judges. Then the list will be cut to 20.
On Saturday, the final 10 entries will be picked and these teams will begin animation production for three weeks during the year-end school holidays.
VOTE
From January next year, the public can vote for the top 10 videos on N.E.mation!'s Facebook page and website, and via SMS.
Entries will be judged based on creativity and content, entertainment value, animation skills and aesthetics by both public and a panel comprising industry professionals.
The winning team will receive a fully sponsored overseas learning visit to renowned animation studios worth more than $20,000.
For more details, visit www.nemation.sg or follow their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/nemation.
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