From the Eyes of koko'

Hari Kadet Polis 2013

2013-05-23T21:17:00.004+08:00

I realised earlier this year that I have not blogged about my involvement with the Police Cadets even though I have been an advisor at my school since 2009!
So allow me to share with you what it is like to advise the Police Cadets.

One of the most important events of the year is the Hari Kadet Polis or the Hari Jadi for the cadets. It is officially on 31 March but, this year, it was postponed to April.

Sometimes, the police will make the long & sunny journey on a boat to my school to help train my students. Most of the time, however, it's the teachers who have to do what they can with the limited knowledge they possess.

In preparation for the event, I spent my afternoons, training the students to march &, the evenings, training them to sing national songs, police songs & cadet songs. I had to go intensive because my students were totally unprepared. I didn't want them to be an embarrassment during the event. There will be other schools involved &, like it or not, people will compare & people will talk. I want them to feel privileged, exclusive & proud to be part of this event. I want the other schools to learn respect & never to look down on rural schools.

Everybody looked really impressive & well-groomed. I'm so proud.

It rained after the event so we waited for the rain to subside before making our way to our boat ride back to school.

As expected, my students did very well during the event & left very good impressions on the police personnel. They sang the songs louder than the other schools because they were more familiar with them. They were also better at marching as a whole because of the training they received. I am very proud of them.

You might notice the lack of uniforms. My students are all too poor to afford uniforms with can cost around RM200. A month's wages for some of their parents.
In 2010, I wrote a letter to the MP asking for aid. I got it in 2011 & I purchased the uniforms you see in this picture. More are added to the collection every year.
I used to have a problem with inventory but now a very responsible teacher is taking charge so I'm pretty sure the uniforms will last for the long run.

There are a few more big activities planned for the cadets this year, including jungle trekking, a camp & a visit to the Song PD. Hopefully, all of these plans will materialise & you get to read about them right here!
Go, cadets!

All the pictures from this event can be found here.

Go & Vote!!

2013-05-03T23:26:00.003+08:00

I love my country.

Although I have travelled around a little bit, the more places I see, the more I appreciate my home.

I may be descended from pendatangs who came from China in dingy boats 3 generations ago. But, I still consider my home to be Malaysia. NOT China.

I believe in God. I respect the King. I accept the rule of law.

I speak Bahasa Melayu. Anuar Zain is my idol. I love sambal. I use -lah excessively. I have many brothers of different ethnicities.

I want to call myself a Malaysian. NOT a Chinese.

I want to see my country grow.

Although I have studied in a faraway land, I decided to come back, stay & develop my country.

Although I am very ambitious, I decided to serve my country deep in the jungle as a humble secondary school teacher.

I am doing my little bit for my country every day.

That's just the thing. We are only able to do a little bit.

There are people who can make a BIG difference with a mere stroke of a pen.

On Sunday, you will be given a chance to CHOOSE those people. This is when our little bits make a BIG difference.

Whatever or whoever you choose, that's your privilege. I will defend your right to make that choice.

Make sure you go EARLY.

Make sure you bring your IC.

Make sure you do not have any political symbols on you.

Make sure you GO & VOTE!!!

Tomorrow morning, I will be going into the jungle to stay overnight at a longhouse.

On Sunday morning, I will set up a polling station with my team so that even the people deep in the jungle can exercise their right to vote.

Some of them have to trek through a jungle. Some of them have to ride on a boat. They usually come in full attendance. What excuses have you got not to vote?

I am sick & tired of people who brag about how they did not register or how they will not go to vote. They will have 101 of the best reasons why they shouldn't do it.

Honestly, I am ashamed of knowing you & you have just lost my respect. For you do not love my country. You are taking for granted something very precious & valuable.

It doesn't really matter who wins or who loses, what matters is the LEGITIMATE citizens of Malaysia chose them.
Your choice matters.
It'll only take a few minutes of your precious Sunday. Monday is probably going to be a holiday anyway so don't complain about not getting enough rest.

Our nation is at a crossroads. The next elections could go either way.
There is no better time to vote than this Sunday. Every ballot paper dropped in a ballot box will be a ripple in history. You'll have taken part in the most tightly contested elections ever in the history of our country!
Every vote makes a real difference. YOUR vote makes a difference.
GO & VOTE!!!

I Was Cetak Rompak-ed

2013-04-27T19:30:00.000+08:00

Check it out. Somebody totally cetak rompak-ed a few of my FB pictures & used it in his FB profile.

A friend of mine noticed this FB picture from the friend list of a friend of hers. This was an old picture of me back in 2008.

There's also my latest FB picture where I'm all wrapped up I could be Keanu Reaves.

Honestly, I don't feel offended at all. This is really flattering really. I've seen people who use pictures of celebrities/cartoon/professional photos of made-up girls but I had never in my wildest dreams imagined that someone would use MY photos. lol. They're not even that good!

The first photo was a photo of me pretending to pay attention to a lecture when I was actually sound asleep a few seconds before the photo was taken. lol.
The biker picture was taken by my mom before my maiden long distance voyage on my bike. Way to go, mom!

I would send him a message to thank him personally but, unfortunately, he has blocked me. So, FB being the shining beacon of privacy security, simply tells me that he does not exist.
Well, if you're reading this, Ting PS, whoever & wherever you are... Thanks. You made my day.

Update (29/4/2013): After several readers easily Googled the identity of the person who owns this FB profile, I decided to protect her identity (including deleting comments).
Ting PS, I apologise for not foreseeing this earlier. I took action as soon as I got back from Hari Kadet Polis this morning & a tiring weekend conducting the Prefect Leadership Camp.

The Most Heartbreaking Thing In Teaching

2013-04-21T01:22:00.001+08:00

When I'm heartbroken, I get more like this than teary or emotional. lol

When you read the title, you're probably thinking some colleague stabbed my back. Or, maybe an administrator shut down one of my programmes. Maybe the students played a prank on me. Or, maybe a parent came at me with a parang & blew sumpits at me.
Honestly, character attacks, criticism, backstabbing comes with the territory.

I am the nail that sticks out. Some people will feel like hammering me down. Some people will support me & learn from my experiences.
Either way, I've learned not to let it bother me & instead focus on what I want to achieve.
Achieving it, in itself, is a good enough reward to me. I don't need no appreciation. I ain't no kindergarten kid.

Also, let me say that I am not perfect. I do make mistakes & I do cut corners to get the job done because honestly there is just too much to do!
I really salute the person who can be a perfect teacher & do everything the ministry prescribes, fulfil all his/her obligations & materialise all his/her ideas inside & outside the classroom.
I wish to be like that one day... and then some.

Here it is.

The most heartbreaking thing in teaching is building something great the first time around, leaving it in the hands of another, coming back to it a few years later, seeing your work undone, and having to do it all over again.

THAT is the most HEARTBREAKING & DEMOTIVATING thing about teaching.

Yeah... Pussy gets me.

How many of you have experienced the same thing?
Do you feel like doing it all over again?
Of course, I can do way better the second time around. But, it just stabs really deep to see something you put in a lot of tender loving care to build, disappear.
What's the point of doing it so great again when it might just disappear again when I go?
Sad.

It's hard not to play the blame game. I wont go into that today because I have never walked a mile in their shoes.
I guess I'm a victim of my own success. I did well the first time around which makes it hard to fill my shoes & do something similar. So, very few try. They'll have 101 very rational reasons not to. Interior school. No resources. No support. Blah blah blah. So what did they do? They allowed themselves to be defeated before the war had begun.
THAT's just how I am feeling now... I guess I'll have to go through the 4 stages of how to survive teaching I wrote about recently. Talk about putting my money where my mouth is.

THE STORY

I was head of the English Panel (with it the head of the English Language Society advisers) & head of the Police Cadet advisers back in 2010. That was my best year ever because I could do so much within that 1 year. I will briefly list down what I've done so you get to compare & contrast.

English Language Panel: Resurrecting The English Language Society. Again the next year. Starting the Katibas Global newspaper. Bringing the English Language Week to a whole new level. Pushing it even further the next year. Joined a video competition with ELS members. Again the next year. Staying back during the August holidays & giving a talk about PMR English paper. And again the next year + SPM. Rewarding excellent English Language PMR results. And again. And again + Kuching trip for straight A students. Producing the first ever wholly English school magazine. Amongst others.

Police Cadets: Field trip to the District Police Station (career talk + safety talk + gun display + bike ride), Police Cadet Day, Police talk in school, marching training, amongst others. Unfortunately, I did not blog about those. Will do so for my activities this year.

In 2011, I quit because I wanted to focus on being a good Chief Warden. With a laid-back leader, I had to play a bigger role in school discipline & academic performance. I organised an Earth Hour blackout. And again. Organised Hostel Open Day. And again. Organised Hostel Olympics. Got involved with almost every camp organised by the school because I was part of the discipline committee & representative of admin like this one. And this one. And this one. Organised motivation programmes for PMR students. Organised programmes for at-risk students. Organised birthday celebrations. Organised merdeka celebrations. Blessed the lower level staff. Defended the hostel allocation from buaya darat. Amongst others.
So you see, I wasn't just hanging around the canteen drinking coffee. I can't be a great Chief Warden if I still have to take care of a club or uniformed body.

This year, 2013, I quit as a Chief Warden because I feel that all my efforts to sustain school discipline & academic achievement has taken too big a toll on my body, personal time & well-being. I was almost doing the job of a principal albeit the power of a principal.
Now that I am no longer CW, admin wants me to do what I used to do. So, They made me head of the English Panel, head of the English Language Society advisers & adviser to the Police Cadet. I'm also a form teacher & I teach 5 English language classes: 1 Form 5 class, 3 Form 2 PBS classes & 1 Form 1 PBS class.
Yay to workload.

The English panel & English Language Society has become really simple under the previous head who was my junior & got transferred earlier than me. It has little or no impact on the school population like it used to in 2010 & 2011 like I designed it to be.
I'm still considering whether it is worth it to add it's re-resurrection to my workload.
We only have 4 English teachers. So, I'd rather not delegate unless they volunteer because the others are having an equally hard time with their involvements. And, who in the right mind would volunteer for more work except crazy baskets like ME?!

As for the Police Cadets, I was really disappointed when the uniforms I worked so hard to source were not taken cared of.
Back in 2010, after seeing how my students (all of them could not afford uniforms) looked really dejected for not having uniforms on Police Cadet Day, I wrote a letter to the Kapit MP for allocation to purchase uniforms to lend to the students. With some pulling of strings, I was successful. Then, I bargained with a tailor for top quality uniforms at a lower price. I obtained 27 uniforms.
In 2012, the ministry allocated some money for uniforms & a few more were added.

Today, there are only 18 uniforms left & all of them have missing accessories. The accessories can only be obtained in Sibu... 1 hour sampan ride & 2 hour express boat ride away.
The Police Cadet Day is on the 29th. I am involved in a Prefect Camp from the 26-28th so I have to purchase the missing accessories this weekend. However, this weekend has a school day replacement.
After teaching this morning, I rushed to Sibu & purchased all the accessories I needed. Tomorrow afternoon, I will make my journey back to school.

Why didn't I do this earlier? Well, I was only informed last weekend. I checked the uniforms on Monday assuming they'd be there with just a few missing. It hurt to find that more than 10 sets have gone missing as well as RM300 worth of accessories.
After this, I will never lend the uniforms for any parade, skit, etc unless it is a Police Cadet activity.

As a whole, the Police Cadets were much better off than the English language panel because the previous head adviser organised a lot of activities for them, like camps deep into the interiors.
This year, I am actually more motivated to do Police Cadet activities because I have a good partner. I plan to write a letter asking for uniforms or accessories as well as organise another field trip to the Police Station.

Also, I am going to build up Form 4 students to take over leadership of the English Language Society and the Police Cadets next year. I feel that the students are too dependent on teachers to spoon-feed them with activities.
Will attempt to train students to plan & execute their own activities.

At the moment, I have very little time to mourn. I guess I'll lick my wounds & soldier on.

How To Survive Teaching

2013-04-14T22:33:00.001+08:00

This is how most people view teaching. And oh, how the envy goes both ways.

As with other professions, teaching has its own set of challenges; namely a posting in the interiors, overbearing leaders, unbelievable targets, Emmy award-esque classroom performances, classroom control, marking, clerical chores, office politics, subordination, workload taichi, etc.
It also has it's perks, long holidays & an above market rate salary. But, there are times I have been so drained & alone that I wonder if it was worth it. I have, many times during the past few years, seriously wondered why I'm still working at the level I am now. It is just so tempting & easy to join the "backbenchers". I'm glad that I didn't.

Today, I want to share about how I survived as a teacher. I believe the same principles can be applied to other professions & many aspects of life.
I know that there are many people out there struggling with the teaching profession. We have & will probably continue to have ups & downs in this profession.
The truth is. Work is work. It is especially hard if you don't enjoy it or do not think that it is your thing.

I guess we were not prepared for a hard life. Most of us had it pretty easy during our studying days. School & university was a breeze. We could sleep all day & do our assignments at the last minute.
We were probably not that serious about our part time jobs too because we had a parent-chute to rescue us should we fall into financial trouble.

So, what are you going to do? Do you want to thrive? Or, do you want to merely survive?

The easy thing to do would be to quit. Honestly, if you quit before you've truly tired to fight for your survival, you're a coward.

Believe it or not, you are actually a professional. You've beaten millions of other candidates & gotten yourself into a premier civil service position. Also, you have a degree. That means that you have something in between your ears. Use it.

Teaching is not easy but it is also the most rewarding profession in the world. You get to shape lives & make a difference.
If you feel that this is not what you want to do, don't bother to continue reading.
If you are fed up with your circumstances & want to do something about it, read on & follow the 4 steps I took myself recently.

1. Allow Yourself To Grieve

We are humans & we have emotions for a reason. It is our greatest ally as teachers & also our greatest weakness.
When our expectations are not met or if we have been unfairly exploited, it will build up in our emotions. An extended period of overworked or suppressed emotions will lead to breakdowns or burnout.

Do whatever you need to do to vent your worn out emotions. Scream, cry, eat ice cream, dance, travel, take time off, do the Harlem shake. Whatever you want to do, do it. You cant use your head if your heart is in a mess.

Once you've taken an emotional dump, you can move on to the next stage.

2. Accept Your Circumstances

Whatever your situation, be it condescending colleagues, unsupportive superiors, unfair distribution of work, an assortment of knives sticking out of your back, uncooperative students, mischievous pranks, aggressive helicopter parents, etc, accept it for what it is.
Also, you might need to begin accepting your inability to change your circumstances.

Don't try to make your circumstances out to be what they are not, because, the reality is, they will NEVER be what they are not. Do NOT compare. The more you do, the worse you will feel. Look at your circumstances as they are & make peace with your misfortune.

The sooner you accept your circumstances for what they are, the sooner you can work on making things better for you.

3. Appreciate What You Do Have

The truth is every cloud has a silver lining. Admit it. There is something within your circumstances that you love & it adds to you. It could be the students who respond to you, the colleagues who support you, the parents who appreciate you, the unique opportunities you have, etc. Any little positive thing. Hold on to it.

Understand that in every circumstance there is a good side & a bad side. Unfortunately, we are usually too obsessed with the bad side that we often overlook all the good that is around us.
If we focus on what is bad, we will eventually become that which we despise. If we focus on what is good, we can build on from there.

Until you can begin to see good things about your situation & appreciate it, you are not ready to thrive.

4. Teach Like You're In The Best School Ever

It sounds crazy, doesn't it? There you are being spun around like Kylie Minogue & here I am some idiot in the jungle telling you to teach like you're in the best school ever when, in reality, you are not!

Well, until you have unloaded your emotional baggage, made peace with your circumstances & begun to see the good things around you, you can't teach like you're in the best school ever.

Honestly, what have you got to lose? Your only alternative is to continue dwelling in the depths of despair at a place you despise. Isn't it time you turned the sheet thrown at you into gold?

Let me give you a simple comparison. Imagine a teacher teaching in the best school ever. Now, imagine a teacher teaching in the worst school ever. Which one will do better?

The truth is it's all the in head. Best or worst is merely a matter of opinion. The same school could be the best to one & the worst to another.

But, there is a whole world of difference in the actions taken by a person who thinks that he's at an awesome place to serve compared to a person who thinks that he should be working elsewhere.

Imagine that you are in the best school ever. What kind of activities would you like to carry out? Make it big. Make it slightly beyond you. Bring other people in. Above all, make it happen.
This is probably the most important advice I can give you as a teacher: Make things happen instead of allowing things to happen to you.

Network. During the holidays, visit your PPD & JPN. Find out who is the officer in charge of your subject. Find ways to collaborate.

Build relationships with the teachers from other schools. Find ways to collaborate.

Keep an eye out for events by NGOs / GOs relevant to your subject matter. Attend. Build relationships. Collaborate.

Keep an eye out for conferences. Attend. Build relationships. Collaborate. At one point of your career, you should be a presenter during one of these conferences. Everybody has something unique worth sharing.

There are infinite possibilities on how to thrive as a teacher. There is no reason for you to be unable to top yourself each & every year.

The time for self-pity & excuses have passed.

It is now time to take control of your circumstances & make a difference.
Remember, your circumstances do not decide what kind of teacher you become. You do.

What To Do When Facebook Rejects Your Legitimate Password

2013-04-06T23:44:00.001+08:00

Serving at a school in the middle of a jungle where the internet is shared between 40+ teachers & 30+ staff, one can only expect ninja turtle slow speeds. School's paying for a 1Mbps VSAT connection from TMnet but most of the time it feels like a 28k dail-up connection. During working hours, we can forget about using the mega traffic-jammed internet.

The internet many of you enjoy with seamless Youtube steaming & snap-speed FB picture loading is a wet dream of sorts. The only time we can experience that kind of speeds is in the middle of the night (when everybody is asleep) or during the weekends (when everybody is not in school). The rest of the time, we'll have to hit the refresh button every 5 minutes. The internet is a luxury here.

So you can imagine how frustrated I was last night when I was rudely disowned by Facebook.
I didn't go online all day as I was giving extra classes to a class of low proficiency students during the afternoon & evening. After a long day at work, I poured myself a glass of wine, sat down on my couch, turned on my computer, loaded Facebook & attempted to log in.

Facebook took me to a failed login page with a notice 'Do not log in from 3rd party websites. Type your username & password only on the Facebook.com domain.' Helloooooooooooo, that's exactly what I was doing & I am on your bloody site!

After a few failed attempts, I thought that it would be a great idea to reset my password so I clicked "Forgot your password?". BAD IDEA. I changed my password & I still FAILED to login. I kept getting the same notice. Why is Facebook accusing me of using 3rd party websites?

I repeated the reset password process a few times until eventually, the Facebook gods decided to lock the gates. "You have entered too many (reset) codes. Please try again later."
Oh, later. Okay, that means 10 minutes, right? NOT! I could not login nor reset my password for the next 12 hours! I was perplexed & agitated.

It was horrifying to think of losing the social profile (friends, pictures, etc) which I have had since the beginning of Facebook. Back in the day, it was only open to varsity students & you had to have a university email address to use the site. It was pretty exclusive back then. Nowadays, even a newborn kid can have a profile.

Anyway, I did a little digging on Google & found out that I could not reset again until after 24 hours! I found out that lots of other people were having login problems too but none of theirs was like mine. I couldn't find a solution anywhere. Facebook's solution was to make sure my caps lock is off. But my brother had an effective solution all along...

He had experienced the same thing & advised me to log in via the moblie version of Facebook. Then, access the desktop version via a link illustrated below. Worked like a charm! Thanks, bro!

So now you know what to do when Facebook acts absent minded & rejects your legitimate password! Give it a slap, bend it over & enter the stubborn site from another door!

Always Use Protection

2013-03-23T08:00:00.000+08:00

In a previous blog post, I wrote about how I met my girlfriend & got together with her. We've been together for 3 months now &, even though we only meet once a fortnight, our relationship is still going strong. Being away from each other for such long periods only makes the eventual embrace even more passionate & euphoric.

Having a girlfriend may be the unrealised dream of many men, but it must be taken very seriously as it is truly dangerous business. Girlfriends like mine have taken the lives of many single men & those of married men. So you really have to be careful if you want to ride one.

This type of protection is important too. Unfortunately, it's not what I'm going to talk about.

Every time I ride my girlfriend, I make sure that I always use protection. There is no such thing as too much protection. Especially when I take my girlfriend on looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong rides to distant lands.

Sturdy Full-Face Helmet
Obviously the most important piece of protection & you should have it on at all times.
Do not be shy about spending money on a good helmet. Make sure it is SIRIM approved.
Make sure it is a snug fit. You wouldn't want it to come off in the middle of the road now, do you?
Make sure it is COMFORTABLE. There are plenty of choices. Shop around & try before you buy.
Mine is a Zeus modular helmet which means I can actually lift up the front of the helmet. RM800.

Reinforced Gloves
I think gloves are the second most important piece of protection for a biker.
Gloves are not just cosmetic. Although, I had to admit, they do make me look badass. They also protect my knuckles.
The hands of bikers are totally exposed as they ride their bikes. Imagine a car door opening suddenly. Yeah, ouch.
Mine have reinforced plastic over the knuckles from Furygan. RM400.

Biker Jacket
A leather biker jacket looks bloody good, doesn't it? Check me out in full gear. I'll even let you touch me.
When you do, you'll notice that there are parts of my jacket with built-in plates protecting major joints & an aerodynamic turtle shell for the back. That's why REAL biker jackets are so expensive. It's practically body armour.
Mine is a Komine leather jacket with pores to allow air to circulate under the jacket. RM1300.

Knee & Shin Pads
Besides the knuckles, the legs of a rider are also completely exposed when riding. If a rider falls, the first part of his body to touch the ground is his feet. At high speed, imagine what the friction between flesh & asphalt would do.
I use mine on long distance rides as an alternative to padded biker pants.
Mine are from Fox. RM300.

Biker Shoes
If you have the extra cash, get some biker shoes for your long distance rides. Biker shoes are unlike conventional shoes (such as the sneakers in the picture). They provide additional protection & support to your ankles.
Good ones will set you back around RM1000.
I'll get one as soon as I can find a real girlfriend to pay for them.

Lots of Rest
Don't be a hero. When you feel tired, and you will, REST!
You will feel tired after just 30 minutes of riding. Yup, it's that difficult. Imagine sitting in the same position for an hour with only a small part of your groin to support your body weight. Also, imagine the heat down there!
Have some iced coffee to boost your senses. RM2. Hydrate often too.

Suited Up & Ready To Roll!
My girlfriend, the Kawasaki ER-6f. Isn't she beautiful?
A knapsack fits perfectly at the back & supported by the elevated pillion seat. A hot chick would fit perfectly too.
I rode all the way from Kuching to Sibu for 8 hours in this gear. There was discomfort & some circulation obstruction. I compensated by resting often.
Getting to the destination in one piece. Priceless.

Biking is a lot of fun. Esp when you bike has more than enough power for your speed fix. Honestly, I overtook every car on the road with total ease!
However, riding a bike is serious business. It's extremely dangerous & there are a lot of risks.
I'm sure you're family (just like mine) will give you a full time course on its dangers. They do that because they care for you. Appreciate their concerns & address them.

Honestly, we cannot live life avoiding all risks. That is no way to live. We would not have done anything worthwhile in our lives if we were so afraid of the risks. Every damn thing in the world has its risks! Some things in life are worth risking it all for.
Neither is it a recipe for success. Imagine if the successful people you knew ran away from all the risks in their lives. They'd probably become a teacher. lol.
What we should do is manage risk. Use our God given intellect & exercise wisdom.

Don't be a moron. You can embrace risk & act stupid. You might actually get away with it for a long long time. But remember, it only takes 1 accident to rob you of your life; or even worse.
Be smart. Suit up. Always use protection.

Meaningful Rewards In Sibu

2013-03-12T00:23:00.000+08:00

We're gonna have a blast & we don't care who's watchin'.

I push my students hard so it's only right that I reward them well.
This is the 3rd consecutive time I've rewarded my school's PMR students who have scored A in the English paper. I started this in 2011 & did another in 2012. I also rewarded straight A PMR students with a trip to Kuching earlier this year.
All with the same purpose: To give my students a reward big enough (students rarely get to go to Sibu due to a poor socio-economic background) to jolt them out of their comfort zones & entice them to aim higher & work harder in the exams (English can be considered a near useless foreign language here where the Iban language is the lingua franca).

Obtaining great exams results is really important for my students who do not have the money or connections to catapult them in life. They are dependent on government/private sector grants & scholarships.
This is why I really push them hard to do well in their exams. Even if it is just PMR, A lesser exam if compared to SPM. However, I think it sets a great foundation for their studies in the upper form & gives them insights into SPM.

Also, I reward them with trips to open up their minds & expose them to glimpses of the world outside of the wilderness. During the whole duration of the trip I discuss social issues relevant to their area, share with them my ideals & brainstorm solutions. I try my best to convince them that they are capable of success & I tell them that success is supposed to be shared so that, in the end, the whole community benefits.

Anyway, enough of the philosophy lesson. Time for some pictures of what we were up to in Sibu.

It's clean, comfortable, affordable & within walking distance of everything in town.

8 students obtained an A in the 2012 PMR English language exam. I was overjoyed. This was a group I have taught since they were in Form 1. Our school had never had that many students scoring As in English before. Also, we have never had so many straight As.
3 of them were straight A students whom I have already rewarded with a trip to Kuching. Therefore, I decided not to take them along for this trip because gaji cikgu sikit saja mah. 8-3=5. A trip for 5 students would not be cheap but it'll be money well invested.

I put them up at SanYong Inn. I am a regular there so I got a great deal for our 3 rooms. 2 Twin Single rooms & 1 single room with a queen bed. The boys were in 1 Twin Single room while my brother & I were in another. The girls had a single room with a queen bed to themselves.

Believe it or not, 3D movies are available in Sibu!

I love watching movies at the cinema so I'd always catch a movie whenever I can. Anyway, it'll be a wonderful treat for my students.
That night, we watched Jack the Giant Slayer. Unfortunately, it was all in 3D. I hesitated because tickets for 7 people costed A LOT. In the end, I decided to splurge a little bit & paid for everyone's movie. It was worth it!
My students had an absolute blast! They ooed & wowed at the 3D effects. We left the cinema smiling that night.

Students are really good at pretending for the camera.

One of the places I wanted to take them to was a bookstore so that they could enjoy my teacher discount. I usually go to Academy Book Centre so the staff recognised me & gave us all a generous discount.
I also took them to a stationary store for their stationery supplies. It's a stationery store I regular too so they got a teacher discount as well. See how kind I am?

at the Sibu Heritage Centre

I also took them to the Sibu Heritage Centre & we visited the Cultural & Heritage Museum on the second floor. This museum is really well done. It's worth a visit if you are in Sibu just to learn about the rich history of this town.
This place is also one of the most photogenic parts of Sibu town.

We also went to the market, the night market & I let my students explore on their own while I settled some bills & bought my groceries.
One afternoon, I gave each of them a ride on my girlfriend, the powerful Kawasaki ER-6f. They loved it! And, I loved scaring the living daylights out of them. LOL!

Roti canai, roti telur, murtabak, tosei & teh tarik at New Nur Islamic Cafe.

Sibu is a really good place for food.
Here's a picture of us at the best roti place in town IMHO, New Nur Islamic Cafe. There is an Indian man there who will make the roti fresh at your request. It's got relatively cheap Muslim food too. (Muslim food is ridiculously expensive in Sarawak. I have no idea why.)

at Noodle House

We had lunch at Noodle House. It's a non-Halal cafe with the best & cheapest mille crepes in Malaysia! My favourite dish here is the Sizzling Beef with Rice with a glass of hot Black Tea. They've got really great filled Kompia too.

at Nice House Restaurant

I had to have a Chinese dinner before I went back to the jungle so we visited Nice House Restaurant. It's got one of the tastiest Chinese cuisine in town & also one of the cheapest! Cheap & good! The perfect combo!
We ate until we could not eat no more literally. We left with bulging bellies. LOL.

We had dinner at Pizza Hut with a few super cool teachers from my school. The teachers & I split the bill between us like real men & found out that we didn't have to pay much actually. We could have ordered more food. haha~~~
Surprisingly, I discovered that some of my students disliked mushrooms & wouldn't finish the mushroom soup. Strange. I thought everybody loved mushrooms.

McD is a happy place for many children so I took them to McDonalds for lunch. Cheaper mah from 12pm-3pm.
I haven't been to McD for a while. I've actually outgrown fast food & am now seeking healthier alternatives. Anyway, is it me or have the burgers shrunk? Nonetheless, we had a good time enjoying each other's company.

3rd of March was my brother's birthday so we surprised him with a cake a midnight. He was in his boxers. LOL.

Finally, I'm sure you're asking: how much? It's actually not much.
I spent a little over RM1000 on 7 people for transportation, 2 nights accommodation, food & entertainment.
For such a small amount of money, I'm sure I gave 5 of them a memory they will cherish for the rest of their lives. Hopefully, just hopefully, this memory contributes to their success in the future. May their success bring sustainable growth to their beautiful unknown & humble home.

View all the pictures here on my FB Page.

How To Break Teachers

2013-03-06T07:00:00.000+08:00

What we should all aspire to do, no?

Have you ever wondered where do GOOD teachers come from?
You know, those who are committed & motivated. They have a purpose & know what they want.
Are they born? Or, are they made?
If they were born, then is there any hope for common people like you & I?
If they were made, how?

Push some to the left. Push some to the right. Push all the work away!

On the other hand, where do BAD teachers come from?
Those who are Tai Chi experts & who consistently produce sub-standard or half-hearted work.
Do they make a conscious decision every morning to be the way they are?
Or, are they merely victims of consequence & external factors acting upon them?

How can we prevent ourselves from descending into such depths?
Is it possible for those of us who have fallen into the pit to claw our way back out?

I like to think that 90% of teachers start out with the best of intentions. They want to do a good job & provide a halal income for their family. They try to do what they can & we should not expect more from them.
As time goes by, what happens to these 90% of teachers? After decades of teaching, what's left of the 90%? Why do the best always leave? Why are so many burnt out, demotivated & deluded?

This is my 5th year as a teacher. Let me be honest with you. Some day I feel like I'm going nuts.
I may seem like some kind of magic teacher unicorn who seems motivated & committed all the time with all my silly activities & unrealistic ideals.
But, believe me, I have my ups & I've had more than my fair share of downs.

Still hanging in there!

Some days I hold on to my sanity at the ends of my teeth. Holding on for dear life lest I tire & fall off the edge into the abyss of selfishness & indifference.
There have been countless times where I have considered greener pastures of different professions or teaching in a different country.
You cannot imagine how strong is the temptation of following in the footsteps of colleagues who have it extremely easy & still receive favourable annual reviews & promotions.

Trying to be a good teacher is bloody hard & it's not because of nosy parents who bring up lawyers at every sentence or students who have invisible horns. Most of the time, it's the system itself.

Factor #3: Mismatched Priorities

I understand that we are called to develop individuals holistically. At the same time, we have to be accountable to our country & its people which makes documentation & publicity stunts necessary.
However, I do feel that sometimes our superiors are too focused on building accountability that it takes away a large chunk of time & effort which can be put into the actual nitty-gritty of student development.

Sometimes I feel that we gather a museum full of plans, reports & other types of paperwork nobody reads, just because we are paranoid. We are afraid that our results won't be good enough & we'll get audited. Or, we're afraid that some Nazir dude will come & go through everything in our museum. Or, our boss is striving for Pengetua Cemerlang & he'll grill us if we do not angkat him/her.

Why do we have to put in so much effort into something that does not directly benefit our students?
Are we actually paid to write glowing reports, carry out publicity stunts & compose plans with ever more ridiculous slogans?
Why are our rewards (Guru Cemerlang, LMPT, promotion, et cetera) so dependent on the above?
If we can write up glorious paperwork & come up with activities that have snazzy names, is it okay to be mediocre teachers in the classroom?

The ideal thing would be to trust teachers again.
They should not be drowning in paperwork or fenced in by policy, bureaucracy or tradition.
They should be set free to do what they think is right with or without the paperwork.
Give them goals & targets. Give them the resources, authority & moral support they need to do what they need to do. Back them up for God's sake.
Let them bend the rules or tradition a bit. Besides, aren't we preparing our students for the FUTURE?

Factor #2: Work Environment

They say a new broom sweeps cleaner.
When new teachers are posted to a school, it's a frenzy. The seniors climbs over one another to be the first to use the broom to sweep away their burdens.
New teachers tend to inherit all the worst or unwanted duties at school.
Honestly, teachers are not brooms. We are supposed to build them up to be leaders & beacons of inspiration.

Remember the story of the Little Red Hen?
When new teachers are given a task, they tend to have a go at it wholeheartedly. Sadly, all too often, they are abandoned with the task. They ask for help but get very little in return. Eventually, when they get the job done, they are left to feel unappreciated or, if they win something, everybody wants a piece of the cake. What's worse is, if they ever make a mistake along the way, they are belittled & humiliated.

No matter how we have been treated in the past when we were juniors, we are still capable of generous acts of consideration for the greater good of developing these young teachers to be better than we are. That is the only way for our education system to progress.
I just cannot imagine a system that deliberately sabotages it's successors. What will happen to a system if the new generation gets worse & worse over time?

When duties are assigned to juniors, our attitudes as seniors matter a lot more than we think.
If we see the job as dumb & worthless, do you think that the juniors will think differently? Can we blame them for performing poorly or feeling demotivated?
We need to help them see how what they do fits into the whole machinery of the school. In actual fact, every part is essential to the functioning of the school. From the top man to the groundsman. They should be made to feel proud & appreciated even if they were, say, Head Stamp Licker.

Factor #1: Leadership

If a school has a good leader, there would be very little problems in the school. Well, except too much work or a lot of pressure to perform. But, if you wanted to get something done, your leader will make it as easy as he can for you. And, most importantly, he has your back any time something bad happens or if you do not meet your targets.
Sadly, I do not hear of many leaders like this.

I often hear about leaders who take the lead in... taking things easy.
They don't get their hands dirty with the school, student discipline or student achievement.
They want to be away from school as much as possible. Joining every meeting or event possible.
The school has no direction & everything is pretty much laissez-faire.

There are also the tyrants who want everything done in their way.
They could be chasing after titles like Pengetua Cemerlang or Sekolah Kluster & cracking whips without due consideration for the minions who move brick after brick to build their pyramids.
They make their teachers do the most meaningless & menial tasks because THEY SAID SO.

There are also leaders who take advantage of their position to make money off the school or their position. Cuti, claim, purchases, you name it they've maximised it. Costs are inflated & quality of work is questionable.
You want to buy teaching aids or photocopy exam questions? Tough luck. School's got no money for you. Do it at your own expense. Then, school pays for expensive stuff that nobody uses.

Now, imagine if new teachers were to work under these leaders. What kind of teachers would they become under such leadership?

We need good leaders in schools. Not those who are old or near retirement. Not those who are power crazy or steps on other people to get promoted. Not those who are clearly looking to line their pockets. And especially not those who have consistently shown that they are incompetent as teachers or are untrustworthy.

We need leaders who want to take the school to another level.

Leaders who care about their students, teachers & staff. Leaders who are not afraid to get their hands dirty & work hard. Leaders who walk the talk.

If we put good leaders in schools, everything else takes care of itself.

Do any of the descriptions above reflect your workplace? What have you done to cope?
Have I missed any factors worth mentioning? How do these factors affect your ability to perform?
Do you think that I'm full of it or am I totally wrong? Do let me know.

Let's discuss in the comments section below.

I Finally Got A Girlfriend!

2013-02-20T20:57:00.001+08:00

It's a new Chinese year & time does fly by when you're having a good time. I've been away for more than 2 weeks! CNY has basically been early mornings & late nights. It's the one time of the year when I get to visit people's houses & get served like a boss. I eat their food & I even get paid to do it! Good times!
I also hung out with old friends who come back once a year & visited greying relatives who are starting to forget who I am. I love them all & miss them so much.

Anyway, I've got something non-teachery to share.
I've been keeping it quiet on the social media because I want you to be the first to see it & read about it here!
Well, I've met someone & she's awesome! She's so awesome she let me write this blog post about her! Let me tell our story from the very beginning.

This is not quite the love story you'd expect.

I first got to know about her through a mutual friend. I hung out with him some time during the middle of last year. We discussed passions in life & then somehow got to this topic. We discussed personal preferences & options available in our lives. My friend listened intently to me & mentioned that he happened to know this great Japanese Thai with an adventurous personality. He wanted to hook us up but told me to check her out online first.

I did just that but I did not really like what I saw. She was fair, athletic & had wondrous curves but there was something about the way she looked that didn't particularly appeal to me. Yes, I can be quite picky. Why not? A relationship is going to take a lot out of me. Esp if this turns out to be something for the long term. I cant possibly wake up every morning & stare at a face that didn't particularly appeal to me, right?

But still, she intrigued me. I wanted to get to know her & maybe just make a new friend. I called my friend & we set up a meeting.
We met for the first time in December. The first time I saw her, she took my breath away. She was nothing like her photographs. She looked even better in person!

Her skin was fair & glowing. She had large lovely eyes which curved upwards at the ends. When she smiled, I swore the whole room lit up. She had a powerful deep voice that felt like honey to my ears & turned me on intensely.
She looked great without make up. Seriously. She wouldn't need any make up or accessories.
There is no other like her. She is unique & perfect the way she is. Right there & then, I knew: I had to make her mine.

She had an interesting life story too.
Her parents are actually Japanese. But, they made her in Thailand. She's currently residing in KL but she doesn't like it there. After a few dates, I could tell that she liked me too. She was willing to move down to Kuching or Sibu. She liked the charm & intimacy of smaller cities & hated the congestion of big cities like KL or Tokyo.

During Chinese New Year, she came to Kuching & we spent a lot of time together. She even followed me to Sibu (but stopped short of getting on an express boat with me to school)! hahaha~~
I couldn't get enough of her. I neglected my friends, my family & my blog. I just loved going places together & listening to her deep voice.
We share many similar interests like travelling, sports, adventure, nature & we both liked speed.

My family was particularly excited to meet her. Especially my sisters & cousin sisters. They all wanted to see her & touch her. They asked me a lot of questions about her. My family & friends who have seen us say that we look great together. A good sign.

The thing is she is so good physically, she blows my mind. It is really easy to know which buttons to push because she is so responsive. She is always ready to go. Anytime. Anywhere. The first time I had her in between my legs, she was radiating power & strength. She had so much stamina & power in that small engine. It's unbelievable. She is also very loud. She isn't shy about showing she's having a good time. Gosh, she turns me on so bad!

It had been a long time fantasy of mine to have something like her. I'm living a big boy's dream come true!

Click to see a picture of my new girlfriend & I. CAUTION: Not for Kids! (Like this is going to stop you.)
Read this piece again after viewing the picture. ;-)

Janji Ditepati In Kuching

2013-02-03T20:39:00.000+08:00

Over the long weekend last week, I took my straight A PMR students all the way from the lush rainforests of Katibas to the asphalt kingdom of Kuching. We spent the long weekend sightseeing, dining & meeting people.
Last year, I promised that every straight A student would receive a fully sponsored trip to Kuching. And, as an infamous ladies man would say... Janji Ditepati.

Over that same weekend, a few people surprised me with their questions. They said some pretty harsh things about the people group my students came from. I had the impression that they were severely looked down upon by some wealthier city folks.
There were also people who could not understand that there was nothing in it for me. They kept looking at what I was doing in many twisted angles trying to figure out how I would benefit.

Honestly, I do not treat my students for who they are. I treat them for who I know they can be.
I do not give in order to gain from them. I give so that they may, in turn, give to others.
I live a full life. I have many great friends who believe in what I do. I have a healthy body & I exercise regularly. I live beneath my means & can afford many luxuries.
I don't need anything from my students. In fact, I am in a great position to give for I give out of abundance. Some people have way more than me but they clench it in their bulging bellies & airtight fists whilst thinking others are the same.

Many of my students come from poverty or broken families getting by with around RM500 a month. That is an unimaginable sum for many of you reading this now. Many have never set foot in Kuching. Many have never even been out of the jungle.
This lack of exposure to the outside world has caused many of them to be limited mentally or have their thoughts narrowed by their environment.

As a result, you will find that in a rural setting like this, young girls get married off by their parents at the first suitor, quit school & become housewives. Also, the smarter girls who could have had a better life, instead have dangerous boyfriends, have sex, get pregnant & leave school in shame. I have seen this all too often. Some of my ex-students are already divorced with kids before 20.

I want so desperately to show them that there is more to life & that there is a whole wide world out there for them to explore & thrive in. But persuasive words alone can only go so far. Also, it is not possible for me to bring all of them on trips into the world. Fortunately, I have just enough resources to do it for the few of them with the potential to make the best of it.

Anyway, enough of my philosophical nonsense. Time for some sharing & pictures!

We took 3 boats to Kuching & 3 boats back. Departing at 7am & arriving at 4.30pm.

I put them up at Beds Guesthouse which is owned & run by a friend of mine.
I wanted to expose my students to the foreign travellers there.

THE Kuching icon.
You haven't been to Kuching if you haven't had a picture with this cat.

We visited the Sarawak Museum. The oldest museum in Borneo.

Took a boat ride across the river to see Fort Margherita & the new State Assembly building.

We visited the legendary Mount Santubong.

The Sarawak Cultural Village is a must.
I wanted them to be proud of their culture & never forget their roots.

I treated them to Kolo Mee, Laksa, Kueh Chap, Belacan Bee Hoon, Cha Kueh, Rojak, Ice Kacang,
lunch at Bing! & dinner at Basaga.
I also arranged for people who have lived exemplary lives to join us for a few of our meals.

First time at a beach. Cute. =)

How can I be sure that the kids I took on this trip will be any different? I don't.

I can lead a horse to water but I cannot make it drink. I shared with them my ideals & leave the rest up to them.

And that's the beauty of it, for whatever they choose for themselves will be even more meaningful than something I have imposed on them. What matters is I saw a need & I did my little bit of good. If more people in the world did the same, we'd be living in an utopia.

All in all, I've spent less than half a month's salary on this trip for 4, but I believe it has made a lifetime of significance.
It's worth every cent because of the invaluable experiences my 3 students have had & the inspiration their stories will be to others. Let's hope that it sparks the beginning of an intellectual revolution deep in the wilderness.

Check out all the pictures here on my FB Page.

Perkhidmatan Saya Masih Panjang

2013-01-20T00:33:00.000+08:00

I'm back in Kuching this weekend after a mad rush to attend the wedding dinner of a buddy of mine last night. I would usually stay away from such events unless I was personally invited by the bride or the groom.
I dislike lectures from zealous married marriage missionaries & having to explain why I'm the weirdo who is unmarried & worse *gasp* ungirl-friended.
I also dislike the facial expression of people who react to the revelation that I am a lowly teacher. Yes, I kidnap children & sell them off to child armies in Africa. No, I dont teach the almighty Form 5 because I am an incompetent teacher.
I pity the person who teaches Form 1.

But, this wedding was a must. This guy is a great friend of mine & this event would definitely bring together other great friends. I was right. I got to reunite with some of my long time no see buddies & we reminisced over beer, Chinese food & cigars.
Made some new friends too. Met one person who could genuinely see why I am doing what I'm doing. Enlightened banker, he is.

Last night, I was also given the most amazing compliment of all time.
One of my buddies told me this: "I really look up to you, man. I read your blog. Because all of us have dreams but you are the only one I know who is actively pursuing yours."
Or something like that. Beer does mess with memory retention.
Imagine if someone said this to you. WOW. Right?

Honestly, I have never viewed myself as a person who has made it. I am someone who has achieved a little in life but I still have a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong way to go. Actually, I want to keep building up & doing more & making an even greater difference exponentially every single year. Only stopping the day I die.

I was very heartbroken when a teacher I looked up to & sought leadership from when I was at my lowest point 2 years ago said to me: "Saya mengikut rentak ketua saya."
I wanted him to support me. I wanted him to encourage me. At that point of time, I was beaten down in almost any possible way & I was down emotionally & mentally as well as exhausted physically. I was swimming against the current. I was working very hard & putting in long hours. I gave my best & I was given scorn in return. So I looked to him for hope.

Even after his reply, I tried to reasoned with him. Utterly unbelieving what I just heard.
Shouldn't we set our own standards according to our conscience & then actively pursue it instead of blindly imitating poor leaders who have very little desire to see growth & make a difference?
To which he replied that should be the way. BUT: "Perkhidmatan saya masih lagi panjang."
Justifying his previous statement & his refusal to fulfil his fullest potential. Also, totally discouraging me & shattering my already broken spirit.

For a short period of time ensuing, I actually followed in his footsteps. Tired. Broken. Leaderless.
What else was I to do? Wouldn't you have done the same at your lowest moment?
That was the pits for me. Life was a meaningless living hell.
At one side, you see the screaming need for almost everything imaginable. At another, you choose to do nothing about it.
I had a pretty relaxing life though. I could sit back & do as little as I wanted.

Thank God. I woke up from my zombie existence a few weeks later.
I opened my eyes & saw others just like me. Working their hearts out doing what they love for the students they love. Yet at the same time gaining nothing but scorn. No appreciation. No thank you. Just criticism & nit-picking.
The ones doing the bare minimum were having a ball of a time. They were free to enjoy doing whatever they wanted to do for themselves. No criticism. No demands. What a wonderful life.
Imagine if it was the other way around. What a wonderful working environment that would be.

Right there & then. I realised.
Perkhidmatan awak masih panjang. Perkhidmatan saya LAGILAH panjang lagi! Adakah saya patut lebih releks dari kamu?
This kind of warped logic entraps many men. Not I. That is not the life I want to live.
I want to be more than a conqueror. I want to live my life to the fullest. I want to make a difference in the lives of the neglected & the less fortunate.
I dont care about getting rich. I dont care about getting tired. I dont care about getting scorned or criticised.
I will fight the good fight & continue to do what I believe in my heart is right.

The time to complain is over. Now is the time to act.
The time to be sorry is over. Now is the time to dream.
The time to depend on others is over. Now I will depend on my faith.
The time to be led is over. Now I will lead others who are not led.

I'll be honest with you. My past 2 years as Chief Warden has been nothing but hell on Earth. I worked really really hard to sustain a sinking ship. I got attacked by people who were supposed to lead / support me. I was criticised by people who would not lift a finger to help or teach me how they would do it.
I never shared about this because I believe in promoting what I love instead of bashing what I hate.

Realising that I was not alone made me burn. An anger at injustice burned deep. It pierced my soul.
From then on I saw: Why 90% of teachers have mental illnesses. Why teachers burn out. Why good teachers turn bad. Why talented teachers leave the public education system where they are needed most.
I saw good teachers cry. It broke my heart.

From now on, I will not only try to make a difference in the lives of my students. I will also do the same for all the good teachers I know. I will provide them with the leadership, encouragement & love that they deserve.
Just as I would give to my students, I would give to good teachers even more.

Photo by Tom Hussey

Watch out. Perkhidmatan Saya Masih Panjang.

p/s: Oh, for those of you who use "perkhidmatan saya SUDAH panjang" as an excuse, please do the education system a favour: retire or resign. I appreciate your many years of service but you are taking up valuable space a younger person would make better use of.
The civil service is not a welfare service. It is an accumulation of the best & most passionate to glorify our nation.

2013 So Far

2013-01-13T00:52:00.001+08:00

You must be guessing why I haven't posted a new blog for so long. Well, it's because there is no more Internet at school.
The contract with TM ended in November & the school admin decided against renewing it in light of 1BestariNet which is free! The best part is I will only have to wait... until.... March.
I'm hoping that we'll get a connection sooner but I'm betting good money that there might be delays due to the remote location of my school & city-folk's apparent fear of boats & crocodiles.
So, I can only access Internet when I come down in Sibu for the weekend.

Sadly, when I do have a weekend in Sibu, I only have 1.25 days: Friday afternoon to Sibu. Sunday 7am back.
Factor in time for grocery/supplies shopping from various sources, banking, maybe a movie, catching up with great friends & loads of walking (coz I've got no car), I have very little left for the net. When I do get online, I'm reading the news, emails & catching up on FB/Whatsapp/SMS.

I'm currently wrestling with a fever, sore eyes & runny nose to stay up & write. Hopefully, I don't finish too late. This will be just a simple post.
Next week, I'll try to write about my plans for the year & it's gonna be BIG (you'll get a sense of what I'm talking about if you've been following my FB page).

So, how has your year been?

You know, I do wish it was easier to get to school.

I actually began my journey to school on the 30th of December. With my brother on tow, I took a flight to Sibu & spent the night at a hotel before making our way to the wharf early the next day for the 7am boat to Song.

A long boat filled from end to end. Typical at such times of the year.

We got most of our groceries & supplies from Sibu. In the end, we carted 9 bags/boxes of stuff to school. Not an easy task, mind you!
And that my friend was how I spent my 27th birthday & New Year's Eve, carting stuff on & off 2 boats on my way to school & doing housework.

We cleared a room, rearranged the furniture, swept away cobwebs, swept the floor, wiped down everything, cleaned the fridge & unpacked. We only mopped the next day. There was just so much to do for the both of us!
But, let me tell you now that it was worth it.
I'll take some pictures of my flat & share it once I get a few things up.

Once we got to my 3-bedroom flat at school, we immediately started clearing the spare room for my brother. That room had been a store for 4 years. It was filled with all sorts of nonsense & forgotten stuff. Eventually, most of it went to the landfill. LOADS of it. Sorry, Captain Planet.

My brother has been sleeping without a pillow (I didn't want him to use the hostel pillows) & a fan (which was out of service long ago). Fortunately, he can sleep with the windows wide open & enjoy the cool virgin jungle air. Bloodthirsty mozzies are kept away by Ridsect Goodnight.

My brother helped out with the chores & have been helping out every day since.

My brother has been really helpful around the house & he helps out with our (we live with another teacher) chores. I do find that he is not used to housework or doing his own laundry but this is a good experience for him & I'm glad that he is willing to learn.
He has been coping well with the new environment & I guess the novelty of having a big city boy / brother of a teacher studying in the same school really excites my students. They were very welcoming to him &, hopefully, they will influence each other for the better.
He has also detected slips & errs in the lessons of a few of my colleagues. I do not blame them because many of them are new & inexperienced. But, I will have to find a way to compensate if I want my brother to do well in SPM. I've already got a plan in mind.

Haven't cooked for the 2 years I was Chief Warden.
The first meal was the worst. I threw away a dish because I added too much salt!
The rest were slightly less saltier.

Since I am no longer a warden, I started cooking again. It's actually quite challenging to cook for 2 people. When I was cooking for myself, I couldn't care less what I prepared. Now that I have to cook for my brother, I am more careful about flavour & nutrition.
I am really rusty at cooking. Fortunately, my brother eats up everything I prepared without a comment. hahaha~~~ I have since improved & will continue to improve as time goes by.

Here's a picture of breakfast: Wheatbix + fresh fruits + jam + milk
I make it a point to eat healthy.

School is the same old same old. Sometimes I feel like I don't fit in. I found out a long time ago that I am not a conformer. I am a reformer. So I guess such a situation is the best situation for me to shine & lead other like-minded big-hearted people. This year is going to be exciting. I'm going to try many new things & I expect them to be nothing short of spectacular.

Until next time, have a great week!

PMR 2012: Record-breaking 8 As for English!

2012-12-23T01:52:00.000+08:00

This year, many of my colleagues & I worked our socks off for our PMR students. Personally, I have pushed them as far as I could towards excellence in their PMR with my programmes & beliefs, my BI seminar, my weekly motivation sessions & rewarding students for PMR excellence.

Here is a summary of our school's 2012 PMR results:

103 candidates
Pass (You have to pass every subject to pass PMR): 74 candidates or 71.84% (1.5% less than 2011) passed PMR
Average Grade (GPS) (The lower the better) is 2.84 (0.05 more than 2011)
Top Scorers: 3 8A candidates. 2 7A candidates. 3 6A candidates. 4 5A candidates

According to Subject:

BM	99.03%	25 As
ENG	74.76%	8 As
MAT	96.12%	10 As
SCI	99.03%	12 As
SEJ	96.12%	8 As
GEO	97.09%	19 As
KH1	100%	14 As
KH3	95.89%	3 As
BB	97.7%	21 As

When I heard the results.

For the first time ever, 3 of our PMR students achieved 8As while 2 of them achieved 7As. That's like 5 straight As in some urban schools. It was a gargantuan task which I believe every teacher involved worked really hard to push the students towards their potential. The students themselves also worked very hard to get there.
I never doubted that they would be excellent. From the very first week in January, I looked at their track record & set high targets for them during our motivation sessions. I'm glad that most of them have reached their potential. I will probably have a post-mortem session with them during the first week of next year.

Let's talk about something that I am directly involved in. I am very proud to have taught a class which produced 8 As for English!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! NOT BAD FOR A JUNGLE SCHOOL!!!
I wasn't easy, but my students managed to do it. If you remember from a previous post, I set a target of 10 students achieving As. Still, I am proud of them as I know that they did their best.

Let's recap on past achievements.

Prior to 2010, the school had only 1 student EVER who achieved A in PMR English.
In 2010, I taught the best Form 3 class & the class produced 4 students with an A in PMR English. The FIRST ever straight 8A student came from that class too.
In 2011, I did not teach the best class. That class produced 1 student with an A in PMR English.

This year, 2012, I was back in the best class. The class produced 8 students with an A. The 3 8A students & 2 7A students came form that class too.
I attribute this to the teacher factor. It might seem haughty or proud to claim that I made a difference but, mind you, my students do not go to tuition nor do they speak English outside of the classroom.
~~~~~~~

I did my part in pushing the students towards their goals with individual attention, consistent long-term coaching & monitoring as well as genuine concern &, often times, firm discipline. There is no special sauce. I believe that I have done nothing unique & that any teacher can do the same if not BETTER. It just takes someone with a big heart & a strong spirit.

Looking towards the future. I want to move on to a bigger challenge. If the conditions are right, I will be able to do the same for the SPM students next year. If not, it will be for my brother & a select few SPM students. That will be my elite project.

They have done their best & produced excellent results. Honourably, I will hold up my end of the bargain.
Bye bye, $$$$.

My students did exceptionally well, so I will reward all 103 of them with a simple gift regardless of their final result because even the hopeless ones tried hard. Maybe I'll give them some chocolate.
103 candidates (-8 A students) x RM3.5 = RM332.5

I got this for my students. Hershey's Milk Chocolate for RM20.80 per pack. 6 bars inside so roughly RM3.50 per bar.
Only RM332.5 to bless more than a hundred students who accepted my challenge, listened to me & worked hard.
This is proof that you don't have to bleed money to give your students good gifts. You just have to look at the right place with the right attitude.

During my motivation sessions, I promised every straight A student I'd take them to Kuching for a weekend.
3 candidates x RM500 trip = RM1500

I promised every English A, that I'd take them down to Sibu for a weekend just like I have for every PMR English A student for the past 2 years (2011 & 2012).
8 candidates (-3 straight A candidates) x RM200 trip = RM1000

I will hold a post-mortem meeting with them next year & be RM2800++ poorer.
But, it is an investment in a generation which I believe will spark a change in the local population... An intellectual & cultural revolution.
My wish is that they will become good people & contribute to the sustainable development of their lands & the well-being of the rural Iban people.

Putting My Family First At Last

2012-12-13T00:36:00.000+08:00

For most of my teenage life, I really hated my parents. I blamed them for everything bad in my life. Like all those stupid music/language lessons I had to take. I even blamed them for everything that they didn't do for me. Like branded stuff, being handphone-less & unable to go out with my friends. Now that I am older, I realise that they really honestly did what they thought was the best for me. Deceived by emotions & pop culture, I was blind to all the good healthy things they have given me.

Now that I am older, I choose to see them & love them for their good side. Nobody is perfect. Not even ourselves. Everybody has flaws. Especially our parents. Once upon a time, I wanted them to accept me for who I was & not what they wanted me to be. (That's the ultimate desire of every child. To know that your love is unconditional.) I guess now that I know better, instead of pointing fingers, shouldn't I take the lead? I am truly ashamed of the child that I was. Now that I am an adult, I will adopt the ways of an adult & love my parents the way they want to be loved.

One thing I do realise is that they are getting older. Raising & educating 6 children is by no means an easy task. 1 is difficult enough, talk about 6! (Personally, I'm only having 2.) They are very stable financially but they are also well over 50, their bodies are getting weaker & my father has heart issues. After so many decades of pushing so many children to do their best, I'm sure they are also very tired. Yet their job is not yet finished, they have 2 more teenage children in Form 4 & Form 3. It is a steep uphill climb to ensure that the 2 remaining children are well prepared for an uncertain future.

When I started teaching 4 years ago, I had 4 siblings (out of 5) who were still in school. (Yes, there is a big age gap between us.) Since then, 1 sibling has done average while another 1 did relatively well. They have since moved on to tertiary studies. In all that time, I have been busy pouring out my heart & soul into a forgotten people whom their own people (who are educated) couldn't be bothered about. However, every time I go home for the holidays, I feel a deep sense of guilt & shame. I can't help but think: If I took my siblings under my wing, they would have done better. In my heart, I knew this was true & it eats me inside. I carry this burden until this day & I feel like I've let my 2 siblings down.

My parents are ageing & are not as forceful or persuasive as they were with me. They've been really soft with my younger siblings & I do feel that my siblings are taking advantage of my parents. (Yup, wake up parents. Your kids are still milking you long after they've stopped nursing. This might help.) I feel that it is my responsibility as the eldest child (who happens to also be a teacher for crying out loud) to play a larger part in the lives of my siblings. I hate feeling extremely inadequate when my father comes to me with a question about our education system or a request & I am unable to do anything because I am sooooooo freaking isolated & uninformed in my jungle school.

Especially now that my youngest brother is really struggling in school even with all the support, technology, camps & tuition money can buy. Next year is his Form 5 & if he continues on his current path, it will not bid well for him. SPM is the single most important exam in a Malaysian's life. You can judge the worth of a person by looking at his/her SPM results. (Degrees are overrated. Truly.) I plan to bring him with me into the jungle school & give him the best of all that I have in my personal capacity & my network of great teachers in my jungle school. In my 4 years, I have done so much & learned even more. I shall use that for him. I will create something unprecedented for the Form 5 next year. Watch me.

At the end of the day, you can bring the horse to the water but you cannot make it drink. My brother is a human being & should be treated with respect & love. I am really happy that he has accepted this exotic adventure & is willing to follow me to my jungle school. No tantrums. No arguments. In fact, he is embracing it. I believe these are the first signs of his maturity. My hope is that he will work his arse off next year & get the best possible results. I believe that he is meant for great things. That is why I am investing in him & giving to him my best. Therefore, I expect nothing but the best from him.

After 4 years of working my arse off for other people's children, I think it's about time I put my family first.

My Beliefs In Developing Students For High-Stakes Exams

2012-11-24T16:20:00.000+08:00

When I look back upon the year, I'd stay that beyond my duties as a chief warden, I played a very large part in shaping this year's PMR students. Close inspection of my methods reveals my underlying beliefs in developing these students to face high-stakes examinations.

Méthode #1: Year-long Brainwashing

Need I say more?

Many administrators & teachers think that one hit wonders like Motivation Camps or Guru Pakar Lectures are good enough to motivate or push students to do better. These programmes are great & they do provide a short-term injection of enthusiasm. However, I do feel like an ongoing programme throughout the year would be more effective. It's human nature to procrastinate & this is especially rampant in today's microwave generation. Humans need reminders & constant engagement to stay focused. With so many subjects & so much to cover, the preparation should actually begin from Day 1, if not earlier.

That is what I did with my Weekly Motivation Sessions. Every week without fail until the last week of PMR (See... I'm so proud of this fact. haha~~), I'd meet with my PMR students & I'd remind them of their goals. For those who needed encouragement, I'd remind them of how great they were. For those who needed to be put in their place, I'd put fourth my thoughts candidly. I was with them from the beginning of the year & I monitored their progress throughout to tailor my message to their individual / seasonal needs. I made sure they left every session with something to think about.

Méthode #2: Regular Exercise

Preparation for the rat race.

Many teachers brush off anything beyond the classroom or their office hours as 'none of their business' even though it is an opportunity at the extraordinary. I have read that nutrition & general health plays a powerful role in cognitive function. Better health = better cognitive function = better focus + better retention + better processing = better academic performance.

I was unable to dictate what they ate every day so I gave them advice on nutrition. What I was able to do was improve their general health through physical exercise. I did this during my Weekly Motivation Sessions. I took them jogging with me & watched as their stamina & self-esteem improved. They also enjoyed themselves = stress relief. That in itself is a good enough reward & boost to their preparations.

Méthode #3: Exam Drills

A predicted outcome of our school system.

At the end of the day, students are evaluated with their exam results. I agree that exams are simplistic evaluations which do not do justice to our talented students & their multiple intelligences. However, that is our reality at this moment & we have to do our best to portray our students in the best light. Even though a certain Swede called this cheating, I advocate exam drills & believe wholeheartedly that it makes a difference in a students performance in the actual exams.

Every year after the mid-year holidays, I'd tell the Form 3 English teachers to perform exam drills in classes. The teachers would conduct an actual exam of a full English paper during class time to get students used to having the exams (esp the time frame & the pressure). We would use 5 periods for this & 5 periods to discuss the exam paper. During discussions, emphasis was given to best practices & how they can present their answers better.

Méthode #4: Best Practices

The straight & narrow.

Examiners mark according to a schema. This means that they look for certain things & overlook other things when contemplating the marks to award a particular answer. Naturally, different questions require different kinds of answers. Examiners are humans too. I please them to get more marks from them. I do this by making their jobs easier. I make their jobs easier by making it easier for them to find what they are looking for in my students' answers.

Thus, I train my students in the best practices for the exam early on. So that the other Form 3 students are not left out, I gave up half of my August holidays to stay in school & give the students a seminar on best practices.

Why didn't I enlist the help of Guru Pakars? Well, they were too shy to risk their lives getting on a skimpy wooden boat & traversing crocodile-ly waters to my school. I do it on a weekly basis. BOOYA!

Méthode #5: Personal Touch

Yes, we were posing.

At one stage, the benefits of preaching to the masses reaches a plateau. This year, I tried to breakthrough the glass ceiling with individual coaching. My hypothesis is that personal touch & individual attention makes a difference. It also humanises us & shows them that we care for them. Love & attention. Something that all humans crave but are too shy/proud to admit.

I dedicated a whole weekend (Friday afternoon - Sunday night) to give personal time to each student from my Form 3 classes. I went through an essay assignment I gave them & discussed with them how they could improve & what they should look out for. I also highlighted grammar errs & lexical mismatches. I decided to focus on essays because that was where most of the marks & potential improvements were.

Unfortunately, I did not have the time to quantify the benefits of such a taxing exercise but feedback was very encouraging. Students reported that they remembered my advice from these sessions & it motivated them to study harder. I might expand on this next year & meet individual students a few times over the year instead of having it crammed into one weekend.

Méthode #6: Being There

I didn't ask. I knew they needed it & I gave it to them freely.

This year, I wasn't called up to invigilate the PMR examinations. Since I had a lot of free time, I decided to spend it with the PMR students during their examinations. I started the year taking care of them so I might as well finish well & see them through the last of their exams.

I'd be there during their self-study time. I'd go down earlier every morning to pray with them & give them a little motivation speech. I'd line them up, wish them well & give them a high five as they leave the study hall for the examination rooms. I'd wait for them when they finished & ask them how they did. I comforted those who needed comfort. I reminded them to focus on the next paper instead of worrying about the one they just had. I did all that for EVERY exam.

I believe that children need more quantity time than quality time. Just being around for them is good enough to encourage them or remind them of their goals. Too often we push them away & then wonder why they do not want to spend time with us.

~~~~~

These are some of the programmes I developed exclusively for the PMR students. They may not be the best but I am still learning, innovating & cooking up a storm. Feel free to adapt any of the above & do share your experiences! Also, I feel that my methods & beliefs are strongly linked to my personality & my talents so keep that in mind when adopting any method. Make it an extension of yourself instead of a copycat of someone else.

I'm sure all of you have your own unique & awesome ideas on how to develop your students but you may not have the courage to put it into action or the confidence to believe in your ability to pull it off. Honestly, I struggle with the same doubts... but I say f**k it & do it anyway. Often times, fortune favours the bold.

Panduan Ringkas Pengurusan Peperiksaan STPM (A Concise Guide To Invigilating STPM)

2012-11-14T12:00:00.000+08:00

STPM 2013 Semester 1 exams were over last week & now the STPM 2012 exams are coming up next week.
Basically, the new STPM students (with their first intake this year) will have 1 STPM exam every semester. Previously, under the old STPM (which will run for the last time this year) had students sit for 1 heavy exam at the end of 3 semesters.

As a Head Invigilator, I had to instruct my invigilators on what to do & what to say. All of this is really high stakes & protocol heavy as any slip up might end up in complaints or complications. Instead of just yapping & yapping away at my invigilators, I decided to come up with a guide & a step-by-step script of what to say.

I developed this guide by compiling key points taken from a Head Invigilator's meeting I attended in Miri recently, the 2 guide books I was given & my prior experiences invigilating PMR & SPM.

I piloted this during the STPM 2013 Semester 1 exams last week & improved on it. I will use it again for next week's STPM 2012 exams.
The guide is written in BM. I apologise if I made any errors. I would really appreciate it if you would inform me of any grammatical errors or factual inconsistencies.

Go ahead, download & print. Use this during your meeting with your invigilators & let them use it during the exams. They don't have to remember anything. All they need to say or remember is on this piece of paper which they can fold up & keep in their wallets!
Feel free to add to it or modify it as you wish.

I decided to share this guide over the internet to make it easier for other Head Invigilators. Do let me know if any of the information in the guide is confidential. I will have it removed immediately.
Otherwise, feel free to use it &, remember, sharing is caring! =)

You can find the guide with this link.
Panduan Ringkas Pengurusan Peperiksaan STPM (A Concise Guide To Invigilating STPM)

I've also uploaded an example of a Pelan Tempat Duduk (Seating Plan). Pelan Tempat Duduk STPM (STPM Seating Plan)

And also an example of a Surat Panggilan Taklimat Pengawas STPM (STPM Invigilator Calling Letter). Surat Panggilan Taklimat Pengawas STPM (STPM Invigilator Calling Letter)

Finally, an example of a Jadual Pengawasan STPM (Invigilator Roster). Jadual Pengawasan STPM (STPM Invigilator Roster)

Head Invigilators for PMR, SPM & STPM (maybe even UPSR) may download & modify all of the above for your personal use.
Oh, and if you do, please share them with your friends! =)

My Transfer Appeal Letter

2012-11-10T19:50:00.001+08:00

Tuan/Puan,

Dengan segala hormatnya, perkara di atas dirujuk. Tujuan surat ini bukanlah untuk bercerita tentang keinginan saya untuk menjaga orang-orang tua saya ataupun mengikut jejak isteri dan anak saya. Saya tidak akan berkongsi tentang kesukaran yang saya hadapi di sekolah pedalaman dan betapa lama saya telah berkhidmat di sana. Semua itu adalah sebahagian daripada cabaran saya sebagai seorang pendidik.

2. Bagi pengetahuan tuan/puan, saya merupakan seorang guru opsyen Bahasa Inggeris yang boleh ditempatkan dimana-mana sekolah. Maka, saya mengharapkan bantuan daripada pihak tuan/puan, seorang pemimpin dalam JPN yang nampak gambaran besar untuk mengurniakan saya cabaran yang baharu.

3. Saya hanya meminta untuk diberikan satu matlamat di mana-mana sekolah negeri ini, dan sokongan penuh dari pihak tuan/puan untuk melaksanakan misi ini. Saya hanya berharap untuk berkhidmat dibawah seorang pemimpin yang berwibawa. Saya ingin berjasa untuk ibu pertiwiku dan saya percaya bahawa saya boleh mencapai keajaiban di mana-mana sahaja. Bak kata pepatah “benih yang baik kalau di campak ke darat menjadi gunung dan jika dicampak ke laut menjadi pulau”.

4. Pada mulanya, saya telah memohon ke Sibu, daerah yang terunggul di Sarawak, kerana saya ingin belajar dari guru-guru yang terbaik, meningkatan diri dari segi profesional dan menguasai kelemahan saya seperti dalam bahagian kertas kerja. Walau bagaimanapun, permohonan saya telah ditolak dan kini saya mengharapkan sesuatu yang lebih baik daripada kebijaksanaan tuan/puan.

Segala perhatian, pertimbangan dan tindakan tuan/puan didahulukan dengan ucapan ribuan terima kasih. Sekian, terima kasih.

Updated: 17 November 2012. I've decided to only include the Malay version of my letter because it has been heavily modified based on valuable comments from my readers & major help from a past student of mine. Thanks so much! The letter is definitely so much better now!

Repair Squad: Redeeming At-Risk Students

2012-11-03T11:13:00.002+08:00

I have always had a heart for at-risk students. I have many friends who were at-risk students at school &, sadly, they were often misunderstood or falsely accused thanks to preconceived notions. The more that they were falsely labelled, the more that they stopped bothering to prove otherwise. In the end, they embraced & labelled themselves as they have been labelled by a harsh & restrictive education system. That's why so many of them became tough nuts to crack & they lashed out at people trying to 'help' them.

At my school, the students are so malleable & respectful of teachers. Still, there are students who have less than desirable behaviours. Instead of punishing them all the time or expelling them from school, I decided to put myself out there & experiment with a new way to reach out to them.

I'm no expert, but I think some fundamentals in human behaviour are:
- guys socialise via activity. we cant sit down & talk all day like women.
- guys like to feel important
- everybody wants to belong
- everybody needs to be proud of something

With all of the above in mind, I started the Repair Squad this year with a small group of hand-picked at-risk Form 5 students. I would personally lead them on simple repair projects in the hostels or around the school.
I wanted to give them an avenue to contribute positively to the school after so many years of vandalism or apathy. I also want to give them a sense of belonging at school & do not feel as detached from the school as they would after being punished again & again for so many years.
I also wanted to get to know them so I could influence them. Let them know that I care for them & they have the potential for great things.
I rewarded them with free t-shirts & public praise / recognition. You can see them happier & walking taller than before.

Although I did take part in a Kem Jati Diri this year, I do not believe that such one touch efforts can bring about any kind of significant change in a person. Expecting it to do so is a folly that many make because we'd rather be rubbing shoulders with the cream than digging dirt down in the ditches. Something gradual & ongoing would be even more effective. That's how I've designed the Repair Squad activities.

Here are some of our projects this year:

transporting fertiliser provided by the District Agriculture Dept for use in our hostel gardens

preparing & installing noticeboards for the new hostel blocks

planting new trees around the school

installing new colourful English language hostel room labels

recycling damaged beds into tables

managing pests / infestations

You can view all the pictures of the Repair Squad activities on my FB Page here.

2012 School Activity Photos

2012-10-28T00:22:00.001+08:00

Hey guys, I won't be writing anything much this weekend except to inform you that I am currently in the process of uploading to my FB Page photos of all the school activities I was involved in this year.
After that, I will upload photos from past years in the order of 2011, 2010 & 2009.

MY MISSION: Finish the 2012 activity photos by this weekend! YOSH!!!
Do check them out here or https://www.facebook.com/mryongjk/photos_albums!

If you see something you like, do feel free to LIKE.
If you see yourself or your friends, do feel free to TAG.
If you see something that causes you to think, do share in the COMMENTS.

Check it! =)

Making Friends As A Young Adult

2012-10-13T13:35:00.002+08:00

BFFs

I remember when I was young I made friends with everyone and anyone. I was genuinely colour/status/religious/socio-economic/pecking order blind.
I rarely saw the flaws in other people & could see a lot of good in everybody. I worked on clicking with other people & doing things that we could enjoy together.
I just genuinely enjoyed the company of other people & enjoyed learning about different perspectives.

I guess during that time, everyone was in school & everyone had something in common: bad teachers, good teachers, hot school girls, hot teachers, bloody exams, favourite subjects, confusing subjects, music, movies, computer games, sports, football & so on.
We were probably less reserved back then & were more willing to share anything about ourselves with people we barely knew.
We also had more time to spend with each other & just hangout.

best buddies from uni

Fast forward to university & everything was still good. It was the same old study assignment exam routine albeit higher stakes & higher fees.
Everybody at that stage still had a lot in common although they may be studying for different fields: bad lecturers, awesome ones, hot uni girls, hot tutors, hot lecturers, gay ones, bloody assignments, bloody exams, awesome courses, boring courses, music, movies, computer games, sports, football & so on.

However, that was also a time when I started to sense that things were different than from back in school. People studying different degrees carried themselves differently, dressed differently & they were definitely treated differently.
I was regarded & treated different according to what I was studying & where I was studying.
I did not give it much thought. I carried on enjoying the company of people & genuinely wanted to reach out to as many as I could. I made a lot of friends during my school & university years.

watch out. she may smell sweet & sound like butterflies but let your guard down & she'll change you.

I don't know how things changed but I'd say it probably started when I dated a hot yet introverted girl.
As with any boy-girl relationship, there will be times when you fight/argue. During one of those highly emotional & intense moments, she questioned my choice of friends & certain people I respected.
You see, prior to that, I respected & loved all my friends without prejudice.
She changed that. She made me see that not all friends were created equal. She made me see that certain people were bad & disgusting. That moment changed my life forever. There's nothing like a woman to screw you over.

That was the beginning of a more reserved me. That was when I stopped trying to make friends with everybody. That was when I started to be selective about who I let into my heart.
When we broke up, my world fell apart. The hurt I felt from losing her made it even harder for me to restore the original me, the me I was before her.
I became a shadow of my former self. I was really really lost. I started pushing people away. I became very selective. I guess I got a taste of what it was like to be an adult.

best buddies from junior high

Adults are way more complicated & divided than children or students are. They are expected to conform to the tome of political correctness & society's code of conduct. Those who do not are expected to be ostracised by 'normal' adults.
Unless you're close, many adults will rarely talk about what matters to them or what they really think. They wall up their hearts & fence up their emotions because deep inside we are all imperfect & politically incorrect.
They look at you funny if you have different skin/clothes/car/profession. Also, sometimes certain areas of a city are only for certain types of people.

put on a pair of glasses, hire a cameraman & students will gather around you like a moth to the flame

When I started teaching, I struggled between sharing a professional relationship or a friendship relationship with my students. Initially, I picked the former. I tried to keep that professional distance between my clients & me but it didn't feel right.
These were children. They loved me freely & only wanted to be loved in return. They did not understand the cold relationships adults have with one another.

Now, I'm taking the middle ground. I'll love them & care about them but, at the same time, I will not let them get too close. I will be honest & explain the situation to them whenever they overstep their boundaries. I guess this might help prepare them for what is to come.

I find that I'm not the only one evaluating who I should spend time with. People do it to me too.
As adults, everybody has a job & very limited time outside of it to spend liberally. It is understandable for people to be selective.
I don't know how many times I've randomly met old school friends who would give me 1 word answers to questions about him/her & life & then shut right up. It was a major hint of not wanting anything else to do with me. Sad sad moments.

best buddies from high school

I want to go back to the good old days but I realise that as I age, relationships with adults & as an adult will only get more & more complicated.
It is just sad to know that with new people or some people that I used to know, it will not be as easy to build a friendship anymore. They will have to classed as colleagues / contacts / associates / acquaintances / business partners / suppliers / clients / stakeholders instead of plainly friends.

Well, at least in my profession I can still relive a moment of pure honest friendship with teenagers. A gulp of fresh air before submerging into a deep superficial world of adult relationships.

Muhhibah Visit From SMK Song

2012-10-07T15:34:00.002+08:00

A month ago, the only other Secondary School in our district, SMK Song, paid us a Muhhibah visit. 50+ teachers from SMK Song came in boats & motorcycles to play a few sports games against our teachers. Unfortunately, that was a weekend where a large majority of our 40+ teachers including our principal were not around. In fact, there were only 10-15 teachers around. Still, it didn't hinder us from having a good time.

In the morning, we arranged for Netball & Volleyball. Most of the teachers played volleyball. We gave every teacher a chance to play & supported them regardless of their abilities.
I played a few games too. I'm not very good but I did have a good time.

We have around 10 female teachers in our school but, during that weekend, none of them stayed back. So we arranged for the students to play netball against the female teachers from SMK Song. Unfortunately, only 4 female teachers came from SMK Song so we mixed the teams up with both males & females.
I joined in too in the second half. I played GK & nobody could score against me with my height, speed, strength & my long strong arms. hahaha~~

After the games, the teachers from SMK Song went to bathe in the river. Apparently, they encountered a gigantic swarm of bees at the riverbed which forced all of them into the water. It was like a giant black ball of buzzing death. Some of them still had their cellphones in their pockets.
hahaha~~ Hilarious!

In the afternoon, we played Football. It was the highlight of the day.
Our team trained for 1 month before this game. We played weekly friendlies with the students & had futsal games every day.

I played for 75 min in the 90 min game. I played mostly in the right back position.
Earlier on we were very defensive as the other team tried to break us again & again to no avail. Then, we started scoring. Before we knew it, it was 2-0 after the first half. As our opponent grew tired, we became bolder & started to push up higher. In the end, we won the game 4-1.
I love playing full field football; much more than futsal. However, as I age, I find fewer & fewer friends willing to exert themselves this way. They're either getting fatter or lazier or hindered by injuries. I really cherish rare moments like these.

We're having another friendly on the 17 of October. This time it will be in Song on their home turf.
I wonder how we will do. It's in 2 weeks & we haven't started training yet.
I hope we'll do well. I'm probably going to organise a game this afternoon. Hopefully, it doesn't rain.

Meanwhile, check out all the pictures here on my FB Page.

'Tis The Season To Be Transfered

2012-09-30T14:02:00.004+08:00

During this transfer season, I am constantly reminded of a story by the Brothers Grimm: The Golden Goose. This is a funny story about a simple man who was generous to an old man & was given a golden goose. When people saw the goose, they wanted to take a piece of it but was stuck to the goose instead. They wouldn't let go even though others laughed at how funny they looked.

Once in a while, a school will receive golden geese in the form of teachers who are head & shoulders above the others. Every school administrator loves to welcome such teachers & they naturally want more of them. On the other hand, they should also be prepared for that one day when goose will want to go.
How many principals would refuse to let go of the golden goose? I have heard of too many & sometimes it's the District Education Officers who get stuck to the golden goose.

They held onto the goose because it was golden but little did they know that greed & selfishness reaps what it sows. How many times have I seen a golden goose turn into a molten goose burning everything in it's path to get that coveted transfer?
They cause enough nuisance so that the administrator will be relieved to see them go. In the process, they lose themselves & our country loses a great asset because they will probably repeat from step 1 when they face difficulties at their new school.

What about the other geese in the pen? When they see how the golden goose is treated, will those who want that elusive transfer want to be golden geese themselves?
I believe this sets a horrible precedent for the profession: If you don't want to be in that school, cause trouble until you get to the school you want. Someone once told me "if you are too good, they won't let you go so don't be". It is a very practical advice but it is very bad for our profession & esp for the students.

To administrators, I say let them go. A teacher whose heart is not at your school would NOT make a good teacher anyway. They'll distract themselves with other stuff (tuition, Avon, etc) to fill that hole in their heart. Even when they fail to get the transfer, they will know that you are on their side & will be better able to continue working with you.
Dear principals, remember where golden geese come from. Great teachers are MADE not BORN. YOU are the leader of the school. YOU are responsible for making golden geese.
I'm sorry to be so critically honest with you but that is what I would expect from you too. You should take proactive steps to turn every one of your teachers into golden geese or you have failed as a leader. You should not be dependent on handouts or luck. Leadership is a conscious choice to do things a certain way to inspire loyalty & excellence. You have been empowered by the ministry. Now, lead the way. If you are not willing to lead, please step down.

Dear teachers, remember why you became a teacher.
If you are looking for money, sorry, wrong profession. Please RESIGN.
Go into business. I think the local curry puff seller is making even more than I am. You wouldn't want to be one of those corrupt officials siphoning money off the school now, would you? Or do you?

If you are looking for an easy job with half-day work & lots of holidays, sorry, wrong profession. Please RESIGN.
Good luck finding a job like that. Even get rich quick schemes make you work & beggars have to beg too.

If you only want to teach in rosy grass is greener schools, sorry, I apologise to the world for conditional teachers like you. You bring shame to our name.
Every student given to you is an honour. From the dumbest to the smartest. Poorest to the richest. From deep in the jungle to up in Gangnam street. You should treat them with the same love & work for them the way you'd work for your most favourite students/school. Anything less makes you unworthy of your name, Cikgu.

Dear teachers, where you are shouldn't be a hindrance to you being the BEST teacher that you can be.
Whether you get the transfer or not, you will still have students looking to you to lead them. Are you willing to sacrifice them on your vendetta against a Napoleon administration? Is it ethical?
They deserve nothing but your best. You are paid to give them a good education. Just like your own children, they should be in the centre of every decision you make as a teacher.
If you are not willing to bite the bullet & be a teacher at the school you are placed in, please RESIGN.

Anyway, all the best! May you get your transfer & still be better nonetheless!

I Brought Gangnam Style To The Jungle

2012-09-23T01:40:00.000+08:00

I did the Gangnam Style in the jungle!
I did it yesterday morning during the Uniform Bodies Camp at SMK Katibas. When I was put in-charge of the morning exercises, I thought to myself... why not?

After 1 week of practising every day to downloaded youtube tutorials in front of mirrors smaller than my belly, I made it happen.
Believe me when I say, this dance is harder than it looks. Bloody hard. I'm not the most natural of dancers. So if I can do it, so can you.

It wasn't a perfect rendition of the dance but I enjoyed it &, most importantly, the students enjoyed it.
This was probably the first time most of them heard the song. Some of them even started shuffling at the horse-riding part!
**snicker** So outdated!

I've got Psy glasses!
Now, where can I find cowboy attire?

I embedded bits of aerobics to parts of the dance & simplified it to make it easier for the students to follow. Of course, I did not tamper with the signature horse-riding part: the best part of the dance.

Honestly, I find K-Pop in general totally unpalatable mainly due to the Korean pride in man-made beauty & their over-reliance in beats & mixes in the songs.
But, I really like Gangnam Style. I feel that it's fun & it doesn't take itself too seriously. A far cry from the overly stylised & sexual themes of the typical K-Pop. Still, I can't understand neither.
There is an excellent translation of Gangnam Style here.

Basically, Gangnam is a classy & affluent part of South Korea where the people are apparently mature & civilised during the day & yet crazy during parties at night.
The song is about the search of a man who is has the Gangnam personality (civilised by day & crazy by night) for a woman who is similar to him.

Check out more pictures on my FB page.
Sorry, no video. I wouldn't want to embarrass myself to the whole world now, would I?

Sustainable Philanthropy of a Common Teacher

2012-09-09T23:15:00.001+08:00

When you love something you don't mind spending your hard-earned money on it.
That's why men are willing to part with ridiculous amounts of money for a ring with an enormous stone & then splash even more cash on elaborate preparations & celebrations.
Also, it's the reason why women are willing to purchase tons of merchandise bearing the images of pop artists although they do not understand a word they say in their catchy songs.

It also works the other way around.
The more you invest time/effort/money into something, the more you pay attention to it.
At the end of the day, you invest because you love it & then you cant let it go because you've put in too much. It could be a vicious cycle or it could be a wonderful synergy of motivation, passion & purpose.
I say 'invest' because putting time/effort/money into something you love is never a waste. You will always gain something from it that feeds your spirit.

Similarly, if you're a teacher & you love what you do, you will usually spend your own money on your activities or on your students.
Plainly because you don't mind parting with a little bit of money to make things better for others.
Then again, little things have a way of becoming really big.

By the end of 2012, I will have spent RM6240:

Birthday Cupcakes	450 students x RM2	900
Exam Rewards	30 students x 4 classes x 4 exams x RM0.5 3 top scorers x 4 classes x 4exams x RM2.5	240 120
Staff Appreciation	1 kitchen staff x 10 months x RM10 1 guards x 10 months x RM10 4 labourers x 10 months x RM10 9 wardens x 2 semesters x RM10	100 100 400 180
PMR Rewards	5 English A students x RM200 2 PMR 7A students x RM500	1000 1000
SPM Rewards	1 BI A student x RM500 1 SPM 7A student x RM500	500 500
MISC	12 months x RM100	1200
		RM6240

That's almost equivalent to 2 months of my salary.
I love doing what I do. Even though I do not make much compared to many of my high flying friends, working here to give purpose to young people & train them towards a better life is something that feeds my spirit. I feel there is a greater purpose in what I'm doing.
Men were never meant to work for money. We were meant to work for ideals.
This is my ideal: to see change in the impoverished Iban people of the Katibas region.

This is why I am very willing to spend my own money on my students & my activities.
As the years go by, my spending has increased with my responsibilities (from an English language teacher to Data Teacher to English Panel Head to Chief Warden).
Just by looking at the amount I'd spend this year, even a donkey would know that it is not sustainable.

Currently, I am unmarried & I have no girlfriend.
I have no financial commitments except towards my parents & life insurance. I don't have to pay for a car or a house.
I have plenty of disposable income & I invest it back into my work at school.
However, I do not plan to stay like this until retirement.

In the next few years, I plan to find a special woman, get married & start building a family together.
By then, whatever disposable income I have would have to be kept for a rainy day. I would not be able to do what I am doing today.
I would have to put an end to most of the 'carrots' I use to motivate/appreciate the people who work with me & the incentive-distracted students whom I put through the pressure cooker every day.
I feel that my work has become even more effective with these self-sponsored initiatives. It also gives me credibility when I advice students/staff because I put my money where my mouth is & give something to them at my own expense.

I need to find a way to make it sustainable.
No, I am not willing to cheat, steal or beg.
No, I am not willing to make money off my poor students or my co-workers who labour tirelessly with me.
No, it must not distract me from my work at school. It is why I'm doing this in the first place.
I have a few ideas & time will tell if they materialise. You'll be sure to read about it on my blog.

Anyway, do you spend your own money on school too?
What do you do to make it sustainable?
Do share!