Traditions

Two weekends are normally designated in March for the annual Additional Sports and Sports Days. This is the time when the whole student population comes out in competitive spirit to gain points and glory for their respective Houses. At the end of Sports Day, the champion House would be declared and awarded custody of the Hong Kong University Old Boys’ Cup. There is a separate challenge cup, donated by the University of Malaya Old Frees, for the winner of the Additional Sports. There are eight Houses in the school named as Cheeseman, Hamilton, Hargreaves, P Ramlee, Pinhorn, Sirajuddin, Tunku Putra and Wu Lien Teh.

Once a year since 1964, Free School would organise an inter-House cross-country run that raced through the roads around Jalan Masjid Negeri (formerly known as Green Lane), Jalan Ayer Itam and even cutting across a cemetery. Participation was compulsory for all students. But because of increasing risks from traffic, the school moved the annual run to the Youth Park and Botanical Gardens in 1992.

Joining a student body has always been a tradition for any Penang Free School student but more than being a mere member, a student is eventually encouraged to aspire for leadership roles in the club or society he joins. The earliest society to be formed in Free School was the Debating Society in 1912.

A memorial service for the school’s founder, Reverend Robert Sparke Hutchings, has been held regularly on the 21st of October every year since 1948 at his tomb in the heritage Protestant Cemetery, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah (known formerly as Northam Road). An Anglican priest would conduct the service which is attended by the School Prefects, a few teachers, Old Frees, representatives from Hutchings Secondary School and sometimes, a few parishioners from the St George’s Church.

The first issue of the Penang Free School Magazine was published in 1909 as a means to increase the students’ literary output and give voice to their expressions. The magazine also became a chronicle of all events that took place in Free School and provided information on the whereabouts and achievements of the Old Boys worldwide. Until World War Two, three editions were published every year but after the war, the PFS Magazine was turned into an annual publication. When the magazine first appeared in 1909, it set a new tradition for other schools in the Straits Settlements and British Malaya to follow.

The Board of Prefects has a long history going back to as early as 1865 but it is likely that the tradition of appointing Prefects in the Free School might have begun much earlier. From the beginning, Penang Free School had adopted the Madras System of Instruction whereby the school master was required to appoint leaders among the boys who could lead their classes and coach the less capable ones. Out of this system evolved the tradition of Stipendiary Monitors and Prefects. From the beginning too, the selection and acceptance of capable boys into the Prefects Board was a responsibility undertaken by the Senior Prefects themselves and this was a jealously guarded tradition of the school.

Traditionally, there will be a week of orientation at the school to break the ice between the Upper and Lower Sixers. In the past when there was a bigger student population, an Orientation Ball would be held to cement the ties.

Speech Day, or Founder’s Day, comes once a year on the 21st of October. This is a ceremony steeped in tradition.

In the old days before the country’s Independence in a tradition that dated back to the School Charter in 1816, the guest of honour was the Governor of the Settlement and he would be present at all prize-giving days or Speech Days.

Later, the role of attending Speech Days was taken over by the Resident Councillor of Penang. After the country’s Independence in 1957, Speech Day now starts with the arrival of the Yang diPertua Negeri Pulau Pinang (Penang Governor) and the inspection of a guard of honour mounted by the school’s Cadet Corps. He then enters the Pinhorn Hall together with the Headmaster, the chairman of the Board of Governors, the presidents of the three Old Boys’ Associations, and other invited guests. After the national and state anthems are sung, various speeches are given and the occasion then ends with the presentation of book prizes and singing of the School Rally. The School Band will be in attendance as also a gamelan ensemble.

It is a feature of Penang Free School life that the students are encouraged to work hard and play hard. It is a school tradition that apart from their lessons, the students participate in as many sports and play as many games as possible. Football had always been a popular game with the boys. When the school was still located in Church Square, the Ranong grounds at the Esplanade would be used for football games and practices in the afternoons. When the school moved to its present premises, the 14-acre School Field provided ample space not only for football but also athletics and other games like cricket, hockey, rugby, tennis, among others.

A requirement for the Penang Free School student is to join a uniformed group in the school, such as the Scouting Movement, Cadet Corps, Boys’ Brigade, Red Crescent or the School Band. These uniformed groups have been around the Free School for ages but none has been longer than the Cadet Corps whose history goes back to 1906. The Scouting Movement in the school dates back to 1915.

School assembly in the 1930s

The Weekly Assemblies are held on Monday mornings. It starts with the students all assembled in the School Hall and the teachers would be on the stage. At 7.30 am, a Prefect would ring the School Bell to announce the arrival of the Headmaster and the Head Boy would call the school to attention. In the past, his iron-shorn shoes would reverberate around the silent hall as he walked to the stage. The national and state anthems would be sung, and then the announcements made by the teachers followed by a short speech by the Headmaster. At the end of the Assembly, the School Rally would be sung.