Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email With today being Teachers Day, I wonder how a school’s condition affects teachers as well. Just take example of SRJKT Ladang Escot which ran on diesel generator and water from mountain area until last year. Thanks to the by-election in Hulu Selangor, they managed to see some good things happening at the school. Of course, one can ask, what was being done after all the previous elections….
There are many more schools in dire conditions, in rural areas, in towns. Hope these basic problems can be fixed.
TWO students of SRJK(T) Ladang Escot made their school proud when they scored straight As in the UPSR examinations last year, a breakthrough for the 65-year-old school.
Parents and teachers of the Tamil primary school firmly believe that a more conducive school environment has helped pupils in their studies.
Headmistress P. Murugayee said the school’s overall passing rate for the examinations for Year Six pupils also improved significantly from about 40% in the previous years to 50% last year.
The school set up in 1946, has been without electricity supply for a long time. It finally received electricity and clean water supply during the Hulu Selangor by-election in April last year.
The school, which has 60 pupils currently, was running on a generator with the diesel supplied by the parent-teacher association (PTA) and raw water channelled from the nearby mountain water.
All smiles: Students studying in a more comfortable classroom, which is equipped with fan, lights and projector.“We are pleased to see this improvement, it is our best achievement so far.
“The children can learn in brighter and cooler classrooms without the noise from the generator,” she said.
Since having electricity and water supply, Murugayee said the school managed to have longer classes and more activities involving parents and pupils.
“Many pupils come from poor families with little awareness about the importance of education and we have organised a few motivation and education awareness sessions in school,” she said.
She added that with donations from the private sector and allocation from the Education Ministry, the school was able to conduct some renovations in 2009 when a proper canteen was built and some classrooms extended.
“We also have computers, photocopy machine, projectors and other multimedia facilities now to help motivate the children and allow more activities in the classroom,” she said.
P. Vijaya, 48, a mother of one of the UPSR top scorers and a Year Three pupil, said the school environment was now more conducive to learning.
“It used to be very warm in the classroom and my children always complained to me. Water and electricity supply are important for the school,” she said.
Year Six pupil S. Elvis Anderson said he was glad the school finally had electricity and water supply as their classrooms were more comfortable and they could have many activities in the school now.
Meanwhile, Kuala Kubu Baru assemblyman Wong Koon Mun, who visited the school said education was important for every child and no one should be deprived of a quality education in an encouraging environment.
source: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/5/16/central/8657133&sec=central
