THANK YOU FOR THE SCRIPT

Dear students,

Couldn’t thank her more for the answer script given that day. I did ask my students to copy the sample answer script that I took from SMKLB, by courtesy of my fellow teacher there last a couple of days. It really matters us both teachers and students as we could have a close look at and even dissect sort of writing grouped in band A. So far, I simply asked them to copy and nothing more. However, they all looked delighted and passionate enough copying the sample A essay which I deleted the owner’s name for no apparent reason. The least they could learn out of the dull activity is studying a true format of report writing or even new words such as succulent and scenic which I myself rarely use them.

I might ask them to copy that same essay a few more times to give them feel as once they have ‘ feel ’ for writing good essay they tend to produce the same. Skinner’s theory of repetition might apply in this case. I still remember when I once asked my students to copy seven times each essay of seven different formats which altogether equal to 49 essays. My philosophy behind those questionable exercise is to expose them to different formats of writing and to improve their spelling as quite a number of them back then and even now as a matter of fact could not spell even simple words correctly. The sole underlying reason is they seldom write and use the words in their writing. They may in many occasions hear or speak those words but rarely put them in written. That exercise would indirectly help them improve their spelling as well even a bit tiring yet time-consuming.

Another thing I might benefit from the article is I can lift certain key words and ask student to fill in the blanks using the lifted words. Aside from having a clear picture of report writing format, they can learn new sentence structures and new-found-vocabularies as well.And on top of that reading activity takes place. I might ask them to commit to memory a few phrases that are useful and stylish for writing. For Part C , the novels, most students simply spilled over what they have memorized as the question asked was about events. They, almost all of them, didn’t really try to understand the requirement of the question before answering. Their answer did not reflect their understanding of the question as they simply wrote what they have memorized right from the start. That is truly a backwash effect of simply asking students to memorize as they never took pain to think of other answers or make a slight adaptation to the one they have memorized. It seems I need to let them truly understand the whole story and just memorize excerpts instead of the whole answer scripts. Yet another tall order is in waiting.

Yesterday, I read an article in nst from a reader. It really captured my attention . The writer, a former school principle stressed that today’s debate on the decline on English which usually revolves around teachers’ weak grasp of the language itself and failed curriculum does not really touch the issue to its core as we have a lot of sophisticated learning tools in the wake of computer and internet era which can be of a great help to both teachers and students. Those things, according to the writer is no uncommon when debating the fallacy of English language. Instead, he emphasized that students need to have what the axiom still holds true till now : no pain no gain. If students are passionate enough to mastering the language, be it English or other languages, they need to have passion, perseverance and tenacity. Without having all those things, they cannot fare better in any language or discipline they are going through. He said that back then in 1960s he had to finish 13 work books of an average 30 pages each during form three and submit a few essays weekly. Apart from reading , he also learned grammar. However, lately, students are very dependent on teachers and could not be burdened with extra work as we teachers might get complaints from parents or even other teachers, let alone students themselves who always favor a short cut like preferring KFC to home-cooked meals. Students would not be as strong and sturdy as an oak but as weak and vulnerable as mushroom. In short, students are now spoon-fed thus deprive of discipline and creativity.

And what roles we teachers have to play in order to revitalize the learning of English to bring back the glory days of 60’s batches. I think students need to get involved in the language. They need to say words aloud, recite phrases or poems and most importantly enjoy the language. This is a proven fact as the likes of Aidil, Aina, Ainur, Yo and Mat Yie all have participated actively in English activities held in school. They enjoyed the learning the subject and of course to master anything first and foremost ones need to enjoy it , the rest will follow suit. It is no different with us teachers, need to fall with teaching first before all other skills come in. Do I enjoy teaching? Or I just enjoy the challenge it poses. Or I make myself enjoy for I have no other option. If they say, writing is therapeutic , the same applies to teaching so long we throw our heart into it. Only the challenge of teaching is our subject is ever-mobile.

It feels thousand of things stuffing my head and butterflies inside my hollow stomach this fasting month keep wildly fluttering that cause me to feel disoriented not knowing where and what to start. And to make matter worse, I invariably felt indecisive of whether or not the thing I do is the right thing to do or the thing that I simply feel at ease doing it regardless of its impact on students. I rarely took ample time to think and foresee skills students need to acquire before each class. The easier way out, I simply photocopy a few sample questions or exercises that I can fill 40 to 60 minute slots. That is never enough as students coming from different levels of English acquisition demand special attention that may cater their needs and problems. Unfortunately, more often than not, all I do now is one - fits – all lesson plan. This in fact does not do justice to them and it denies my students their right to learn the best lesson they deserve using the best laid lesson plans available. This part, I should hate myself most I don’t not give my all yet expecting different result. My biggest mistake is as far I am concerned is I feel all I need to just follow the steps I have ever applied to my last two previous batches. I should not be like that as different breed demands different modes of learning as their backgrounds are if not totally but different.

Again, this is the time when all that is necessary is to look deeper down inside to unearth formulas which might be of great use for students whose level of confidence as low as 62 marks for their highest score. Though we may have passed 80th minute seemingly trailing 0 – 2 , I do believe in 90 minute game as thing ain’t over till it is over. The last score may still be regarded a score no matter whoever heads or legs or even hidden hands that slot in the goals.

We have almost passed the second half of Ramadan. May Allah bestow upon us His maghfirah and rahmah without Whose rahmat we are no different to dust spewing elsewhere in the humid air. Here is a quote worthy to have a contemplation.

‘Make your now wow, your minutes miracles, and your days pay. Your life will have been magnificently lived and invested, and when you die you will have made a difference’
Mark Victor Hansen


Sir