Promoting English in Kelantan

HESS Exploration & Production Malaysia BV and the British Council have teamed up with the Kelantan State Education Department to promote English literacy skills to the community of Tok Bali, Kelantan.

The Tok Bali Literacy project aims to create a love of reading in English for students from three schools in Tok Bali.

“We want children to develop the habit of picking up a book and reading it, and we encourage parents to support their children to read at home because it is the one thing that can potentially change their lives,” said Keith O’Hare, British Council Head of English in Education Systems.

The launch featured language-related games and interactive activities to show children that reading can be fun and to engage with parents so they will encourage their children to read more. Parental engagement is a fundamental element of the Education Blueprint 2013-2025.

The English Literacy project has three parts. Firstly, the British Council is training the teachers of the three schools in teaching methodology and also empowering them so they can run the Community Events. Secondly, colourful storybooks from the UK are being placed into the schools, and thirdly, school teachers, British Council trainers and volunteers from Hess are coming together to run the Community Events.