KUCHING: iM Sarawak, a social development initiative led by the 1Malaysia Sarawak Advisory Council (1MSAC), has always stressed its commitment to helping the people of Sarawak.
To do this they focus on three main areas, one of which is education.
Chairman of the 1Malaysia Sarawak Advisory Council, Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum asserted, “We at iM Sarawak believe that a sound education is a sure way to improve one’s quality of life in the future.
“As such, we have embarked on various education initiatives in rural and interior schools. The very first of these is the iM Sarawak School Adoption Programme, an iM Sarawak signature project which started in 2014 with the co-operation of the Sarawak State Education Department.”
Under the programme, iM Sarawak sent reading resources to 1,145 schools across Sarawak to inculcate a healthy reading habit amongst the students.
These resources include story books, reference books, revision books and dictionaries. This programme encompasses both primary and secondary schools and covers close to 80 percent of all schools in Sarawak.
“Through follow-up visits we have found that the books are well received by both the teachers and the students. I also commend the teachers for their commitment in using the books to cultivate a love for reading in their students,” he added.
Taking example of Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Limbang, the teachers came up with a programme called ‘Program Santapan Minda’ where the students are divided into groups and take turns to read aloud to their group members. This helped build confidence and make reading a fun experience for the students.
Headmaster of SK Limbang, Hayati Sallehuddin said, “The books donated by iM Sarawak are very interesting as they have colourful illustrations. These illustrations attract the students to read and help cultivate a habit of reading and understanding. Through a strong reading culture, our students have discovered new potential in terms of reading. Some of them have progressed to achieve the ‘Anugerah Nilam’ at the divisional-level.”
The ‘Anugerah Nilam’ is an award initiated by the Ministry of Education to encourage students to read. The award is given out based on the number of books read by the students.
Other school initiated activities include conducting inter-class story-telling competitions; allowing the students to take the books back to their longhouses on weekends; incorporating reading sessions in the school timetable and leaving books in the parent-student waiting area.
The school teachers have reported that this increased interest in reading has resulted in better English language and Bahasa Malaysia fluency; increased confidence in the students when they speak and an increased interest in other languages.
In addition to that, some students have even won competitions such as the district level inter-school story telling competition as a result of their increased exposure to English and Bahasa Malaysia.
“The schools in the iM Sarawak Programme are doing wonderful things with the resources we have provided to them. It always amazes me how great things can be achieved with a little bit of help and a lot of dedication and effort. I hope our books will continue to be a source of education and delight for the students and future students of these schools,” added Salang.
iM Sarawak is a social development initiative led by the 1MSAC to help improve the quality of life of various communities throughout the state, in line with the principles of 1Malaysia.
It is designed to bring long-term sustainable benefits to the people focusing primarily on the areas of Improving Quality of Life, Education and Sports.
The 1MSAC was formed by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, to advise him on the needs of the communities in Sarawak.
The 1MSAC is chaired by Julau Member of Parliament (MP), Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum and its other members namely, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry, Dato’ Anthony Nogeh Gumbek; Limbang MP, Tuan Haji Hasbi Habibollah; former Hulu Rajang MP, Datuk Billy Abit Joo and Ir Irwan Zulkarnain Muhammad Hasbie.
The 1MSAC gathers inputs from the people and various government agencies to identify and propose projects under the iM Sarawak banner.
The iM Sarawak projects are community-based projects carried out by public and private organisations which include Yayasan Rakyat 1Malaysia; the Sarawak State Education Department; Sarawak Information Systems Sdn. Bhd.; the Minerals and Geoscience Department, Sarawak; the Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture; The Rotary Club, My Kasih Foundation, faith organisations and local individuals who contribute time and expertise towards the projects.
