SINGAPORE — "Is this design right? Can I do this?"

These are some of the questions Mr Shawn Soh, a design lecturer at Lasalle College of the Arts, says he often hears from Singaporean students during their consultations with him.

Mr Soh took to TikTok on Saturday (Nov 25) to relay his frustrations about the way Singaporean design students tend to look for approval when working on their assignments.

He questioned: "As a creative, why are you asking for permission to express your own creativity? Why are you asking if your work is 'right'? As if in creative work there is a 'right' and 'wrong'?"

Mr Soh then attributes this mindset to Singapore’s education system, in which students were taught to answer multiple choice questions with only one correct answer and raised in an environment where it “feels wrong to stick out”.

He then poses a question to his viewers: "If you’re a designer, a creative, or an artist in Singapore, do you find yourself asking your lecturers if something is okay? Do you find yourself always wanting approval?"

Mr Soh — who is also a social media consultant, personal brand coach, influencer and runs his own design practice — goes on to advise students who do so to dig deeper to discover their individual identity and purpose as a designer. 

"Instead of asking what's right or wrong, why not just do what feels right to you? And then with that, you'll be able to find out who you are as a creative."

Mr Soh’s TikTok video has attracted over 76,000 views and 180 comments as of Tuesday afternoon.

While many viewers agreed that students should be able to express their creativity freely, they argued that the grading system and real-world demands often impose restrictions.

One top comment read: “There (is) no right or wrong. But there’s an A or an F, subjective to the lecturer’s liking and approval.”

Another viewer wrote: “The only way I can get good grades is if the lecturer approves my work. Nine out of 10 times I hate the work that I show them (but) they like it.”

Someone remarked: “When you move on to industry practice, it’s always up to what the higher management wants so in the end, you still have to ask them ‘can I do this?’”

These sentiments were echoed by TikTok user “sherrysicle” who posted her own video in response to Mr Soh.

Identifying herself as a fashion design student from Temasek Polytechnic, “sherrysicle” admitted to having asked her educators if her creative work is “correct” several times before.

“We’re not necessarily at school for fun. We’re doing it to get a grade to get a diploma, to get a degree. There are criteria to fill and guidelines to follow,” she said.

“Sherrysicle” then shared a personal anecdote where her design initially earned high praise and was dubbed runway-worthy by her lecturer, but she was eventually slapped with a D+ grade as she did not follow the assignment’s guidelines.

Several current and former art students also shared similar experiences in Mr Soh’s comments section, highlighting a disconnect between grading systems and an appreciation for creativity and originality.

In another vein, some online users agreed that Singapore’s education system leans heavily toward seeking the “right” answers rather than nurturing risk-taking and innovative thinking.

Elaborating further on Mr Soh’s point, TikTok user “Qdotsg” argued that Singaporean students are not rewarded in school for taking risks and thinking outside the box. 

As a teacher who conducts media skills workshops in primary and secondary schools, “Qdotsg” claims to hear the same questions as Mr Soh from his students.

He purports that local students are “bad” at creativity because they are “so used to finding the correct answer for everything” and doing things “by the book”.

The TikTok user goes on to say that he now replies to such questions by asking the students if they themselves like their work, in an effort to spur their interest and passion.

“The trick in the creative world is to just keep going and to just keep failing forward,” he said.

“Qdotsg” ends his video by advising students to stop asking their teachers if what they are doing is correct or not.

ASKING FOR PERMISSION A 'PATTERN' AMONG STUDENTS

Speaking to TODAY in his personal capacity, Mr Soh said he made the video because asking for permission to express creativity was a "pattern" he saw in his students.

He has worked as a part-time lecturer in graphic design and visual communication at Lasalle for the last two and a half years.

While he acknowledges the importance of good grades, Mr Soh hopes students can focus on learning instead. 

"I think being able to find your creative voice and pitch your creative ideas is so much more valuable than getting an A or B+ grade.

"I often ask (my students) to rephrase their question so it empowers them," he said.

"So instead of 'is this right?' or 'can I do this?', I get them to ask me 'this is my idea, what do you think?', 'how can I improve my design?'. The question has a different intent and places the student’s learning in front."