| Wani Roslan |
TODAY is the start of the first day of school, a new academic year for students and the beginning of a hectic period for teachers where they will be caught up with preparing new teaching schedules and learning materials for their classes.
Dayangku Nur Azimah binti Pengiran Abdul Aziz, a teacher from Sayyidina Hasan Secondary School, expressed her excitement at returning to work and seeing the students again.
“After a long month of holiday, I have prepared my teaching work scheme and learning materials for my students. I’ve also been discussing how to make the lessons more interesting,” she said. She added that as a teacher, she needs to be prepared mentally, emotionally and demonstrate strong determination to attract the interest of the students and ensure that they are focussed in their studies and co-curricular activities.
Dayangku Nur Azimah said, “Dealing with students is very challenging, as they have different characters and personalities. Proper teaching techniques are required, the learning should not just be based on books, but fun activities should be added to make learning interesting.”
Meanwhile, Kaniz binti Abdul Shakoor, a teacher from Yayasan Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah (YSHHB) Primary School, talked about the new challenges expected for this new academic session.
“This year, I am teaching Year 3 students (lower primary) after 12 years being involved in teaching upper primary students, and I am excited to meet my new students,” she said. “And not to forget, I wish to congratulate all my former Year 6 students of 2018, especially Year 6 Jupiter, for their success and achievements and wish them a bright future ahead.”
She added, “I might be expecting slightly different challenges this year with a new environment, including getting to know the abilities and strengths of the new students. Insya Allah, I will use my knowledge and experience to improve myself to be a better teacher.”
Norlina binti Ahmad, a teacher from Bakti Dewa School, shared that her preparations for the new academic year are going smoothly.
“On the academic side, I have to refer to my previous work schemes and improve them based on the needs and benefit of the students. Last year, we achieved our goal and saw a good academic showing, especially in the PSR examinations,” she said.
Armacester Arsad, an Education Officer (Special Level) at Duli Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College (Maktab Duli), said of the new school year, “All my preparations have been done before the December holidays so I can just focus on my family during the holidays. Preparation work included sorting out action plans, schemes of work, lesson notes, and other items. Everything is good to go by the time school opens.
“As for my expectations for this new academic session, I am hoping everything will be good and running smoothly as planned, and I have evaluated my progress and will further improve myself in areas I feel need refinement,” she added.