Transitions

It's been a tad long hiatus. Entangled with work commitment, exam obligations and various overlapping tasks, it is easy to forget that I have this blog. After 12 years of teaching, I have decided to venture into a different realm.

I decide to be a student again.

I count my blessings that the Ministry of Education has given me this golden opportunity to learn and relearn. With the scholarship, I am granted two years of study leave and now, I am studying in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), majoring in Information Technology Management. I have always wanted to learn more on IT and I believe that the new gained knowledge could complement my experience and knowledge in English Language Teaching in years to come. Honestly, after 2 weeks of classes, it's definitely not a bed of roses. I have to learn C++ Programming, Networking and Systems Development apart from management subjects. It's a bit mind boggling for an ordinary English teacher like me but yeah, I'll try my best and hopefully I won't lose my hair by the time I graduated :)

I plan to focus on m-learning, which specifically cater to the use of applications in mobile learning. I feel that there is a major potential for m-learning to develop effectively in Malaysian schools. My target is to come up with a mobile apps that could assist learners to learn English Language more effectively, Insya Allah.

The hardest part of taking this painstaking journey is to leave my beloved students. I know there are those who question my decision to study. My explanation is tad simple. My study leave is granted by Ministry of Education, the same body that pay the other teachers' salary. So I reckon if they have no qualm with me leaving school to study, why should there be any issue, no? For me, it does not lessen my dedication towards the profession. After all, I'm merely trying to discover another path of knowledge. Ah well, we can't please everyone now can we? Alhamdulillah, my friends, former colleagues and ex-students have been very supportive and I am touched by their words of encouragement. Thank you to SMK Tasek Utara for giving me the opportunity to teach and discover my potential as an educator. Thank you to all my colleagues for your guidance and friendship. Thank you for my family for understanding why I need to do this. Pray that I can sail through my studies with ease.

A wonderful parting gift. Gigantic card, made lovingly by my beloved students. Love you heaps.

All in a day's work

 My blog had been in such a sorry state as I was frantically trying to cope with various obligations at one go. It has been a great test of patience and endurance and I thank Allah for giving me the strength to go through the manic ordeal. 

 First, it was English week and I count my blessings that I have good English teachers who gave their best to make it a success. The motto of our English Week is 'Keep Calm and Speak English.' The opening ceremony was officiated by the principal, Pn. Hjh. Zainab Ali and graced by a choral speaking performance from 1 KAA1. Sushmita from 3KRK1 serenaded the audience with her rendition of I Have a Dream. For the rest of the week, students had the opportunities to take part in Morning Speeches, Spell It Right competition, Explorace and the coveted event, Tasek Talentime. I believe that by initiating fun yet educating activities, students would be motivated to utilise English in their daily lives. Next month, our English Language Panel will initiate our 1st English Mini Carnival (EMC) where we will invite neighbouring schools to take part in scintillating workshops with engaging English Language games and activities. I'm so excited that I've managed to rope in the help of the American English Teaching Assistants (ETA). My students are all psyched up for this!

In the midst of English Week frenzy, I rushed to 5 schools in JB to conduct the inspection of the ULBS Assessment. The KPs were very cooperative and it was an eye opener to see various working ethos and filing systems. The next day, I had to rush to Bahagian Teknologi Pendidikan (BTP) for an assessment project affliated with the Johor Education Department. Oh, did I mention I have to rush to Port Dickson on the same day for my HLP briefing? Yeah, it was manic all right...

The esteemed speakers. Dr. Maimunah Ali, Dr. Ibrahim, Dr. Kamaruddin & Dr. Latip. One day, I hope I can be as successful as them, Insya Allah.

Despite having to rush here and there, I was relieved that I managed to reach PD safe and sound. Alhamdulillah, I  am selected as one of the recipients of  the Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan (HLP) scholarship this year. Regardless of the shortcomings that I faced, I've survived the rigorous interview and I've been granted 2 years study leave. Not forgetting full pay leave with additional allowance and perks, alhamdulillah. It wasn't an easy journey. The competition was stiff. According to Bahagian Tajaan Pelajaran (BTP) at Ministry of Education, out of 800 people being interviewed, only 120 people are selected. The briefing for the HLP Scholarship recipients were held at Avilion Admiral Cove, Port Dickson and it was jam-packed with brilliant learning nuggets that would assist us in prepping ourselves for the upcoming studies. It was such a humbling experience meeting 119 other recipients who are enthusiastic and optimistic on upgrading themselves. I see this as an opportunity to be a better learner and improve myself as a greater educator. I've planned to further my studies at UTM in September and hopefully, everything will be smooth sailing.

I also managed the school chess club alongside Syura and we had sent 12 participants to take part in the MSSD Chess Tournament at SMK Tun Syed Nasir Ismail last Monday & Tuesday. I am thrilled that Derrick Ng managed to be in the top 8 players and the rest had given their best in the competition. Despite the fact I am often not at school due to official duties, I believe that as long you learn to delegate and assign tasks to your students, it is manageable. I've also learned that it is hard to please everyone but the most important thing is to never neglect your core business, teaching that is. Facebook has been my saviour and I use it as a platform to communicate and teach my students amidst my absence in school. Not sure if work would slow down but hopefully, I'll be given the strength to overcome any trial or tribulation.