Swinburne Sarawak partners WCS to run workshop for English teachers
KUCHING: Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus and Wildlife Conservation Society ( WCS) Malaysia Programme jointly conducted a four-day workshop on ‘Training for Teachers in English and the Next 100’ recently.
Swinburne Sarawak lecturers exposed participants to various pedagogies of teaching and learning English with insight on different learning and teaching methods, which could be studied in- depth by taking up the university’s Master of Arts in the ‘ Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages’ (Tesol).
Participants were guided on the use of two lesson plans from the ‘ The Next 100’ manual – on measuring and reducing daily consumption and waste, and using debates to engage students in current environmental issues including the benefits and drawbacks of zoos and the plight of endangered species.
Participants experienced a full day of activities at Matang Wildlife Centre, which ignited curiosity and encouraged critical-thinking to solve day-to-day environmental problems.
WCS Malaysia programme director Dr Melvin Gumal said: “It is encouraging to see so many educators interested in conservation and use it as a platform for teaching English.
“With so many concerns about the environment in Malaysia and globally, these educators will be part of the forefront to mould future generations to care more about the environment.
“Educators have a longer reach and a formal system that can impact the audience of students, youths and fellow teachers, better than the conservationists. Thus, WCS will continue to engage them to help educate others for a more positive impact on the environment.”
Co- organiser Christina Yin, a senior lecturer at Swinburne Sarawak and also the co- author of ‘ The Next 100’ manual, agreed with Dr Melvin.
“It is exciting to engage teachers with lessons from ‘ The Next 100’ manual. The best part is watching them debate passionately on critical topics, monitor their consumption habits, pledge to make a change and teach their students to do the same,” she said.
Teachers from schools in Johor, Kuala Lumpur, Sabah and Sarawak pledged to support future conservation activities, with some signing up for virtual ‘ Run for the Wild’ to be held at Swinburne Sarawak this Nov 24.
Virtual runners from all over Malaysia will clock in their run in support of WCS Malaysia’s conservation work on orangutans, sharks and rays.
Registration for the virtual run is still open online via http://www. runforthewildmalaysia. com/ register/online_registration.php.
In 2015, WCS Malaysia, with the support of the US Embassy, produced ‘The Next 100: Bridging for a New Beginning’ ( The Next 100) – a 228-page manual containing 24 English and conservation activities for Fulbright English teaching assistants and their mentors stationed at schools around the country.
The manual serves as a guide for teaching English using conservation activities to engage students, encourage them to use the language and practise environment-friendly habits.
The next workshop is scheduled for Dec 10-13. Interested educators can send emails to Abdul Najib Azhfar at aaini@ wcs.org to register, or get more information.