BRINGING OUT
student is one that gives their best in school and has a burning desire to succeed while continuously maintaining a sense of humility.
Penang Free School (PFS) Physics teacher Choong Lai Yong, 60, who has been teaching since 1979, regarded students in the modern era to be very fortunate as they have access to various learning resources.
Choong, who teaches the sixth form, said teachers are now equiped with laptops and students are trained in research work as well as in presentations.
At PFS, teachers also dedicate themselves to help the students with tutorial classes prior to the examinations.
Choong said comprehensive cocurricular activities at the school also served as a good training ground for the students to become holistic students.
She said at Penang Free School (PFS), all students are given the same opportunity regardless of their background.
“Therefore they are able to adapt with the learning culture of excellence and have a sense of belonging to the school,” she said.
Choong said a teacher needs to help students get back on track with their studies as paper qualifications are important and would help them in the long run.
“Our students are always welcome to approach us and we encourage them to do so to further improve their understanding on the subjects,” she said.
Choong said the PFS students were lucky to be the students of the school, as the school and its buildings have stood tall through the years of the country’s history.
“Most of the main buildings are well preserved. However, the landscape may have changed. They were a clump of bamboo trees near the main block which are no longer there,” she said.
Choong said she is really happy to learn that her students have since gone on to make a name for themselves.
She said she would leave the school with a heavy heart and with many great memories after serving as a teacher for 37 years.
“I would be spending more time with my mother after my retirement on Nov 10,” she said.
Choong received certificates for excellent service in 2000 and 2008.
Meanwhile, PFS ParentTeacher Association (PIBG) president Johari Yusoff, 65, saidthePIBGandtheschool had a close rapport for the well-being of the children.
“We want students to have a balanced achievement in both academics and co-curricular activities. We hope to get all straight As for all students in the main examinations,” he said.
“The teachers are also being paid from the PIBG fund for extra classes after school,” he said.
PFS Senior Assistant of Administration Ho Nean Chan, 55, said students were able to adapt to the new education format that requires Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) as well as the PT3 examination format.
“They are intelligent but students need time to understand the questions,” he said.
Ho said the teachers have an informal peer-learning discussion to brainstorm on the learning ideas and to share learning materials.