My Journey Part 5 ( My Career)
My Career I started my career in the teaching profession in 1981. As soon as I graduated, I was placed in a school about 15 km away from home. I was 7 months pregnant with my first child. I was assigned to the afternoon session. I was given the Remove classes to teach Science, and the subjects History and Physical Education for the form one classes. Remembering words of advice from my education lecturer, never to negotiate or bargain, take whatever is being shoved to you. You can start doing that once you are in the third year or so. Being pregnant was no excuse not to conduct the PE class according to the set syllabus. Three months into teaching I had my first-born. By the end of the year the travelling has taken its toll, I moved to a school nearer to home. I was given subjects close to my heart, science, health science and biology. In 1983, I signed up for my Masters class, In early January 1984 I had my 2ndchild. I did a dissertation on the understanding of decimals. My subjects were my form three students. Indeed it was an eye opener to me to gather data that showed difficulties in understanding decimals. I managed to finish my writing before I had to leave the country to join my husband who was on study leave to pursue his doctorate in the United Kingdom. Sad to say, though while in Durham, I continued my final write up I was not able to complete my Masters. I was communicating with the lecturer supervisor via the snail mail. Back in 1980s the email was unheard of, at least to my knowledge. I did not graduate. I came back and looked for him. By then he was already in Australia, on sabbatical leave. My only mistake that I was quite naive about the procedures involved, that there was a thing as request for extension etc. Perhaps it wasn't meant to be. But the second time I took the Masters in Education was back in 2002.
When I was studying for my degree, I went on a lot of field trips. I was a major Biology. The exposure to field trips to various sites around the Klang valley was an add on experience for me. Thus, I wanted to share these experiences with my students. So, during my short stint in my second school ( 1982-1986), I managed to organise field trips to two places. Twice, I managed to bring my students to the University Malaya’ Research Centre in the district of Gombak. We stayed overnight on both occasions. I wanted my students to experience the trip into the nearby jungle. Looking and learning about local plant and animals specimens that were found in their natural habitat. Overall I think most of these students were experiencing such trips for the first time in their student life.
During the early 1980s, there was a lot of hype about scientific expeditions to the Endau-Rompin National Park (Taman Negara Endau-Rompin), a protected tropical rainforest in the southernmost prolongation of the Tenasserim Hills, Malaysia. It is south of the state of Pahang and northeast of Johor covering an area of approximately 870 km2 (340 sq mi), making it the second-largest national park in Peninsular Malaysia after Taman Negara. It has approximately 26 km (16 mi) of trail. It was gazetted as the second national park by the in 1993.
In the early 1980s , besides carrying out scientific research, the Science Society of Malaysia welcomed participation from schools. I think this is their effort to cultivate interest amongst the secondary school students. So, I decided to put in an application . And it was such a pleasant surprise that my application was approved! I didn’t have to do much persuasion. My form five students were elated and excited when I first mentioned this to them. There was a lot of groundwork that needed to be done. Seeking approval from the Education District Office, parents, and going to the local government health clinic to get supplies of malarial pills about 14 days before the trip. And that in May 1986. The last year before I went on a 4 years non-pay leave to The UK.
There were about 10 of my students , all boys from the class of 5 Science two. It was not an easy journey We took the night train from KL train station to reach Gemas train station at 6 am . From that train station we were instructed to move to a police station ( I can’t recall the exact station). We were picked up in a 4 wheel Land Rover and were taken to Kampung Peta, an orang asli settlement in the deep jungle. From there 2 long sampan awaited us to transport us upstream ( about 45 minutes ride ) to the base camp where the scientists were stationed. Our sleeping area was just an open shed and were each assigned to our hammock to sleep in. There was 2 makeshift latrines. Bathing was in the nearby river. A completely new experience for my town boys! And good experience too to work alongside these group of scientists to help gather data. From measuring the girth of trees, to collecting samples and making measurements of shrimps caught in the study area. There were night trips to observe the tracks of wild animals. Crossing the wide and fast river by holding on to the rope, also using a rope to climb an almost 90 degrees inclination slope to reach to a swamp area and to discover the many new species of periuk kera or pitcher plants. Looking back, I don’t how I managed to make this trip. Too many experiences and incidences that made this a trip that will forever be one of the highlights of my early journey as a teacher. There was supposed to be another male teacher to accompany me on this trip but he pulled out at the last minute. The sad part was no verbal reasons was given but just a written note left on my table just a day before the trip!.
In November 1986, I packed my bags and with my two young children travelled to the UK to join my husband. Stayed there until April 1990.
I returned to Malaysia in 1990, reported to the Ministry of Education and was placed in the elite Victoria Institution. What do I still remember about my time here? Well, for sure it was being assigned to teach not only Biology at the form 4 and 5 level but also to teach at the form 6 level. This was really a nerve wrecking time for me. It meant getting up early in the mornings, reading, understanding the subject content and strategizing on the best teaching techniques. I graduated with a degree in Science with Education. Understanding the subject matter to enable me to earn the degree and understanding the subject in order to impart them to my students to my opinion are two separate entities. But I managed well I think. It was a totally new experience for me to handle selected students ( this was a controlled school).Entry into the school was based on merit, academics excellence and extra cocurricular activities. The school culture and ethos was something that I had never experienced before. The students were given a free hand to handle a lot of things. They were trained to lead, in and outside the classrooms!. I noticed that activities for clubs and societies were basically managed by students. The teacher advisor literally were advisors in the true sense of the words. All activities were planned by the students. Students lead, teachers advised. A good formula to nurture student leadership and entrepreneurships. This school celebrated its 100 years in 1993, the same year that I applied for transfer out of the school to one that was nearer to home. Commuting from Selayang to Jalan Hang Tuah in Kuala Lumpur in those days was quite stressful on certain days. In the early 1990s, the stretch of road from Selayang to Kuala Lumpur was single laned. On days when there was an accident, would mean reaching school way past 8 in the morning!
In 1994 I moved to SMK Ideal Heights in the Gombak district. New school, new environment, new working culture. My first ever school where everyone was at their desks working. Very little interactions, exchange of words amongst colleagues only when necessary. The teachers here were so disciplined that nobody left their desks even after the school finished for the day. Teachers abide by the rule imposed by the principle to leave the school compound at least about 15 minutes after the school was officially over. I remember a few teachers giving me the dos and don’ts ,the expected norms. It was quite stressful, actually. But soon to change. I initiated the pot luck activity. Anyone who had anything to contribute (food) would bring something to the common table to be shared with. Soon there was a small group of closed buddies and one of the common activity that we created was shopping in KL after school. We did managed to also go on a family trip to the seaside in Lumut, Perak. A very effective way of destressing! Here, I continued with my activity of bringing the students out for field trips. I managed to take a group of them to the Sungai Relang Field Centre in Hulu Selangor. I managed a few other activities with my students.I was put in charge of the science society . I was lucky to have a bunch of students who were equally passionate about my interest. We shared a common interest in a lot of things. So during the weekends I would be driving my Nissan Vanetta with a few of them onboard and we would go round the neighbourhood collecting used newspapers from houses. And most of the time these kind people were happy to get rid of their stacks of papers parked on the front porch of their houses. We managed to collect quite an amount, filling up almost half of the space in the yet to be used pure science lab. We realised it could be a fire hazard if kept for too long. So we called a national newspaper, The New Straits Time. Soon there was a representative and of course it was not complete without the usual photo shoot! The amount collected was nothing to shout about .But the experience and the lesson learned which I hoped to be a stepping stone in creating awareness of conservationism amongst students. The other projects which I managed to complete before I was made the Assistant Principle in Student affairs was the creation of an Ecology Pond and the Quiz Board. For the Quiz board , I took them on a trip to the geology department in University Malaya to view an example of the board that I wanted my students to recreate. And they did a wonderful job using their background knowledge in electronic circuits. The ecology pond involved quite a bit of digging the hard soils. There was a topic at the form 4 level in my subject biology that I thought would be best approached by hands on experience with the actual flora and fauna of a pond. So for that purpose it meant going to the nearby used mining pool in the area to collect species of the water plants. I realised that with the introduction of the water plants into the pond, the water skaters showed their presence, the frogs came to lay their eggs, the dragonflies and the bees came to feast on the nectar of the flowers. It was quite a sight! The students without much instruction took their own initiatives in keeping the pond clear of unwanted materials. I was able to use the pond for 2 consecutive years until I had to slow down to make way for my post in 1996.
But once I was appointed as Assistant Principal for Student Affairs and cocurricular activities, I had to be released of my advisory post of the science club. That was the start of endless learning the ropes of the new post. The post required me to be in charge of lot of sub units, all relating to students well-being, that is the discipline, student welfare, the textbooks loan, the school canteen, the school magazine, the clubs and societies as well as the sports and games. Of course it was not a one man task. I had teachers who were assigned to head the various sub units. But how can one give instructions on what to do if one is not equipped with the knowledge of the how’s . The skills of communicating instructions, the knowledge of the dos and don’ts based on the various surat pekeliling ( Circular letters) needed to be digested so that instructions do not contradict the expected norm. So this is where the role of the head of school come in. During my initial years of holding the post, whatever knowledge that I had was by observation of the previous person who held this post. She vacated the post to return to her hometown. And I was lucky I was working under a head who knew her job well. But sad to say that she soon left for another school and soon after that was the start of a roller coaster of frustrations, of confusions , lost leadership among others. Maybe it was because I was used to a certain style of leadership . The previous head was firm in her ways, yet she allowed us a say in the running of the everyday affairs. She had about 12 years of experience as the head. The new head was a fresh appointment. Before this, she was the assistant head for the afternoon session in her former school. I am sure she had her strengths that resulted in her appointment. As soon as she reported for duty, she was sent to do a six week course at Institut Aminuddin Baki, the KPM’s unit in training of heads of schools. But her style of leadership was something that I found it hard to comprehend. A mixture of lassier faire, a bit over the top in her democratic style. She loved gardening! So much so that there were certain individuals who were favoured to be seen doing these extracurricular activities instead being in the class teaching!
Well, of course eventually I was transferred out of the school to a neighboring school as Assistant Principal in Academics. That was in year 2002. I got a phone call from my relative who was then the PPD officer at the Gombak District Education Office. Apparently, I was singled out as the troublemaker, the rebel who stood in her way, who prevented her from doing her job. But believe me I was not the only one frustrated with how the school was being run under her leadership. There were a lot of anonymous letters (surat Layang in Bahasa Malaysia) sent to the district office. Mind you, I never wrote them. In fact, I even went to see the head of the District Office and I was shown the multiple letters received by the office from anonymous persons from my school. They were all written in good Bahasa Malaysia, which I must confess was lacking in me. So, I left, and reported for duty on the 16.12.2002. Of course, news had already travelled to the new school about my reputation. So, the minute I reported for duty, I could still recall the stern words belted out by the principal of that school. “we are here to work, not to cause trouble. I don’t tolerate nonsense” There were harsh words. I kept silent. The first day when the school reopened, the PPD officer came, courtesy call and all. But I knew it was more than that! But it was okay, say and think what they want. I am a working person. My integrity and work ethics are intact. I never deflect when given any tasks before this and I was going to go on to do what I have done all these while. I have worked hard all my life, given 100% of my time and energy.
But of course, this new position was a new ball game to me. I had to learn the ropes fast. And I did just that. Just like my previous post, I dived in hand in hand with the teacher assistants: - teachers and academics, the school timetable, the school data, examinations, plus numerous committees that was under my responsibility. I plowed on. Soon, the principal saw me as who I was. I became her trusted right-hand person. She delegated a lot of duties to me. So much so that in the year 2006, I was again awarded the prestigious Perkhidmatan Cemerlang or Excellent Service awards (my second since it was first introduced in the 1994) Of course, the usual backstab comments came back to my hearing. “Why of the people, she doesn’t deserve it etc “. Well, tell that to the principal. I did not work to please anybody, but I worked because it was expected of me.
Yes, the initial few first years was hell. I was doing my master’s program for the second time. That started in my previous school. It was a form of escapism to me, a diversion. So, that meant waking up in the early hours of the morning to finish my assignments and then to continue with the schoolwork. I was once again teaching the form six biology, besides the form 4 and form 5 classes. I was doing 8 periods per week (the maximum number of teaching periods that an Assistant Principal was expected to do).
What was the wow moment for me? I was able to revamp the timetable to be fair to all students. All students deserved equal chance to be in the top class if they qualify. There is no such thing as constraints. It’s us who created those constraints. And there is no such thing as selective teaching for selective classes by selected teachers. All teachers and students should be given equal opportunity to get the same quality of teaching and learning. The only thing that differs is the emphasis and approach on the students. This means a good teacher is one who is able to vary her method of teaching based on the needs of the students. Poor performing students will need the remedial approach Wherelse high performing students may just need the teacher to facilitate the teaching and learning process. If only the so called ‘excellent’ teachers are selected to teach the top classes, how else can she or he gain experience in remedial teaching. A good teacher should be able to perform in all circumstances. Thus, the need to do some changes in assigning teachers to the different levels of student needs. Thus, a subject teacher will be assigned to teach one good class and one class of low performing class of students. And of course, not many of us like changes that move us from our comfort zone to new territories that require adjustments and adapting to new challenges. There will be resistance to changes. Sometimes not loud resistance but rather silent. And I know the old guards were not happy about the changes. And because of those changes, we see a spike in the minority students’ achievements. Many more were getting straight As than before. Before, as soon as the internal exams were done with, students from public examination classes (the form 5 especially) would go on a study leave. That would like almost a month before the date of the public exams. All that soon to change with a timetable carefully worked out to group the students according to their achievements in the trial exams, to do enhancement or remedial classes according to the groups of students. Teachers were required to come up with materials. Of course, this was something new. There were remarks, negatives and all. But that was for the good of all. But there were teachers who were on board with me. They appreciated the changes.
Well I was there from 2002 to 2007! A good solid 5 years or so! But my mentor principal retired in 2008. A new principal came in 2009 and by then I was eager to move on to new fields, new challenges. That was when I tried my luck at applying for the post of lectureship at the KPM’s training wing for heads of schools. I went for an interview and received an offer soon after. At the same time too, I applied for a post as a biology teacher at the Matriculation College. I went for the interview at Putrajaya and I got an offer too. So, after weighing the pros and cons I decided on the job at the training institute. It was closer to home and that I was very keen to move into that area at an early phase in my career, but my husband was not too keen to allow me to venture into that area. He thought I would be away from home most of the times and furthermore, the children were of school going age. He himself was involved in his department job that required him to be frequently away from home. So, in 2009 the letter came. In fact, I received it late. It arrived at the State Education Office. But for whatever reasons only known to them, it was not posted to the district office. I had to make my own queries. The orientation for the new officers were already into their second week. As soon as I got the offer letter, I left to report at my new workplace. So, I was there from November 2009 to until I retired in 2017 (about 10 years). I served at the Malaysian Ministry of Education from April 1981 to April 2017 (36 years of service with a break in service from November 1986 to April 1991).
So, that was my journey in the education field, from an ordinary classroom teacher, to a school administrator and lastly the last 10 years as senior lecturer at the training institute.
At the training institute I was again exposed to totally new experience which I will pen and share in my later writings, Insha Allah.
Picture 54 : 2008- With the general staff of SMK Kepong. 3rd from left in the front row is Pn Hjh Aziah ,the principal
No comments:
Post a Comment