Knowledge, education key to changing life, mindset — Lo
Lo (left) presents an appreciation certificate to SMK Wira Penrissen teacher Phang Hui Kien, who is also the school’s public examination secretary for SPM. Looking on is co-curriculum senior assistant Juhari Pawi.
KUCHING: Knowledge and education are powerful tools that not only change people’s life but also their way of thinking, hence the need for teachers, students and parents to work together towards achieving a common goal.
Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang, who said this, pointed out that education has the ability to not only change and determine one’s future livelihood, but also chart the future of the nation.
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. To destroy a nation, all you need is to destroy its education system. The collapse of education is the collapse of a nation.
“Parents cannot just leave everything to the teachers. It’s a joint effort between teachers, parents and students. Parental support and cooperation are equally important in order to ensure the children’s academic excellence,” he said when officiating at SMK Wira Penrissen’s student excellence award ceremony, here recently.
Recipients of the excellence award listen to Lo delivering his speech.
Lo said apart from nurturing good discipline in their children, parents need to also ensure necessary provisions such as tables, chairs, books and references are available at home to facilitate a better and favourable learning environment.
“Teachers, on the other hand, should always attempt to upgrade their skills and knowledge with the current teaching and learning techniques and technology,” he added.
He also congratulated SMK Wira Penrissen teachers and students for their good disciplinary reputation as well as achieving encouraging results in public examinations and co-curriculum activities despite facing challenges such as inadequate classrooms, tables and chairs due to the large student population.
Lo subsequently announced an allocation of RM2,000 to the school for the purchase of chairs in response to a request by senior assistant Kerine Gadep, adding he would also assist in the construction of an open multi-purpose hall in the school to accommodate the operation of the school’s various curriculum and co-curriculum activities.
Earlier, Kerine in his welcoming speech highlighted some of SMK Wira Penrissen’s physical needs such as classrooms, tables and chairs, as well as an open multi-purpose hall to accommodate the school’s 2,305 students.
He also mentioned the need to upgrade the teachers’ toilets as well as the overcrowded staffroom besides touching on the daily traffic congestion in the school compound.
Kerine presents a special award to Nur Natasha Bintang Mohammad Jad, who scored 9As in last year’s SPM examination.
SMK Wira Penrissen, built on a 30-acre land, is a double-session institution with 176 academic and non-academic staff.
Among those present at the ceremony were SMK Wira Penrissen parent-teacher association (PTA) chairman Pengiran Samsudine Pengiran Tambi; Shabini Saini who represented the Samarahan district education officer, PTA exco members, teachers, parents and students.
