Teachers rewarded for being an inspiration
Thanks to abdul Muiz Hussin, students in a little fishing village in Gelang patah Johor, can now speak in Mandarin.
encik Muiz, as he is fondly known by his students, is a teacher at SK Kompleks sultan abu Bakar.
although he did not come from a Chinese education background, he learnt the language from a friend when he was in college.
Convinced that learning the language would give them an added advantage, he taught his students who were mainly non-Chinese, to speak it.
and the effort earned him the McDonald’s anugerah Guru Inspirasi 2020 award recently.
since its inception in 2017, the award given by McDonald’s Malaysia is dedicated to celebrating and recognising inspiring teachers who have gone beyond their call of duty to leave a lasting impact on their students.
“I did not expect to be honoured with this award for teaching my students Mandarin,” he said, reacting to the award.
Together with abdul Muiz, Darrel wong Lee sze from sK Limpaki, sarawak, and biology teacher selvamary Lourdesamy from sMK UsJ 12, selangor, were among 25 recipients of the fast food chain’s award.
wong was praised for never giving up on students who were deemed less likely to succeed and
for always taking the time to understand each of them.
wong gave each of his Year six students equal opportunities to learn and to persevere despite many setbacks. some of his students were illiterate and so he also had to find ways to win over some unsupportive parents.
He even started a YouTube channel to introduce his students to flipped learning and recently started a programme encouraging parents to read with their children.
“It is a nice feeling to have your efforts recognised and I was certainly not expecting this,” he said of his award.
Lourdesamy, who usually stays back for five hours daily to give extra classes to her students who need them, also provides them with notes on the subject. she prepares the notes to help them understand and make learning more effective.
“as a teacher, you don’t expect anything when you help your students. It always feels like it’s part of the job as we succeed when our students succeed,” she said.
she was nominated by one of her students who was moved by the compassion and dedication she had for her students.
Lourdesamy who remains a pillar of support for many students long after they have graduated, still receives gifts on her birthday and Teachers Day.
McDonald’s Malaysia managing director and local operating partner azmir Jaafar said: “reading this year’s extraordinary stories of teachers’ commitment, unwavering dedication and overwhelming compassion towards their students has reinforced our belief that teachers should be given as much recognition as possible for all that they do.”
each of the winners received rM5,000 in cash, a trophy, and certificate of recognition in conjunction with this year’s Teachers Day celebration. This year, almost 5,000 nominations for teachers that went above and beyond for their students needs were submitted nationwide.
Nominators received rM200 worth of McDonald’s vouchers as a token of appreciation for the contribution of their stories.