Support for ‘Be English Speakers Today’ program
HOME INDEP Educ a on Founda on (IEF) received sponsorship from two family clans and a business firm to support and finance its outreach program known as ‘Be English Speakers Today’ or BEST.
PENAMPANG: INDEP Education Foundation (IEF) received sponsorship from two family clans and a business firm to support and finance its outreach program known as ‘Be English Speakers Today’ or BEST.
According to IEF chairman Datuk John Maluda, BEST is a program focused on providing free English Tuition to 10-11 years old children.
This is one of the 8-Point Plan under the Momogun Economic Transformation Agenda (META) being pursued and implemented by Momogun National Congress together with its member organisations and affiliates.
The tuition is currently conducted at seven centres located in SK St Paul Kolopis, SK Sugud, SK Babagon, SK Moyog, SK Kipouvo and Putaton MPH all in the Penampang District, and SK Kituntul, Ranau. All these tuition centres are at present fully funded by IEF.
The aims of the program are to improve the oral proficiency of the children in the English language, and to remove any inherent bias that they may have against the language. It does not teach grammar, writing skills or sentence construction.
The unique part of this program is that the children are taught by ‘Barefoot English Teachers’ who are people without teaching background but are proficient in the English language and love to work with children.
The effectiveness of the program is enhanced by the use of prepared teaching modules first developed by Dr Winnie Bosi and continuously being refined by Puan Julia Jock, exprincipal of La Salle School in collaboration with lnstitut Perguruan Gaya, Kota Kinabalu (lPG KK).
Julia, with the help of some teaching staff in IPG KK, also provides trainings to these ‘Barefoot Teachers’ as well as monitor the progress of the program in each centre.
IEF commenced the English Tuition in 2011 with its first pilot project in Kg.Putaton MultiPurpose Hall, Penampang. It was initiated by the founder and advisor of lEF, Tan Sri Bernard Giluk Dompok.
In 2012, lEF in collaboration with the JKKK in Kg-Kolopis, Penampang and the local office of Education Department organised the ‘Learning English in a Fun Way with lEF -A Community Based Project’ at SK St Paul, Kolopis, Penampang.
The program was well received by the community and over the years other centres were opened. In early 2017, the program was also known as ‘Be English Speakers Today’ or BEST.
IEF has plans to open centres in Kiulu and Inanam in 2018 but because of its limited rescource, IEF hopes that more sponsors will come forward to support this worthwhile endeavour.
The three sponsors who signed the letter of undertaking yesterday are EM Clan who will be sponsoring the centre in SK Kipouvo Penampang, Dangar clan for SK Moyog Penampang and BA Enterprise for SK Kituntul Ranau.
The sponsorship is for one year beginning January 2018 but will be renewed every year if the sponsors have the capability to meet the obligations.