Double Standard

While the Education Ministry is promoting soft skill to the students, students in school are still being advised to spend every single squeezed time studying. Thing got worse in a highly competitive premier school. Wasn’t chatting with friends about the current issue actually improving our soft skill? Apart from that, it is a way to strengthen our friendship bond. Malaysians are known for their friendliness instead of its robotic efficiency? Do we had compromise our social life in order to achieve excellence in academic? I suggested that chatting should be encouraged because this will build up our interpersonal skill. However, students should not use the time to gossip. (Eh, gossip allows students to train up their skill to pick trustable source.)

Discipline body should be headed by the lab assistants who have lighter workload and more flexible working time compared to teachers. They could also help on administration work such as filing out report book and analysis of students’ performance. Furthermore, they could help to plan and carry out the co-curriculum activities together with the committee member of the club. That should liven out our co-curriculum in our country. Effectiveness of civil workers in school is increased. Moreover, with lighter workload, teachers could concentrate on their initial responsibility, nurturing and sharing knowledge to the future leaders of our country.

Another suggestion, all above mentioned work could be done by trainee or newly graduated teachers or even those unemployed graduate. These are to prepare them for the challenge of the working world. Furthermore, experience is gained rather than idling time away for those jobless graduates. Pocket money could be earned too. Apart from that, generation gap is quite close so that they could tackle the wide array of students’ tricks in breaking the rules. With the same wavelength in thinking, their brain-storming co-curriculum activities which club’s committee member should be more appealing to students. Thus, truancy in co-curriculum time-slot should be minimized. However, financial burden to government cannot be neglected. Hence, in my opinion lab assistants could take over the job well enough. To gauge the effectiveness, implementation could be done in stages.

Currently, our school recalled all the rubbish bin in every class. While the motive is noble (to reduce waste), it is not effective. Alternative basket is added secretly and to those bolder one, openly. Some creative students actually stuff their rubbish in every possible hole and pores that could be found in our school. Reduction of waste is not happening but is recycled as 'decorations' are not recycling. Canteen operator also complained that rubbish is being left in empty dishes. Out of eye, out of mind. This increases their workload. And the prefects are supposed to stop those unruly teenagers. I shudder at the thought.

Next, in my trip to some schools, their toilets are locked. So, what is the use of the toilet then? I was informed that the toilets are locked all the time. It is only opened during recess, if you are lucky. This stretches the students' bladder to the limit. Toxic in their body couldn’t be excreted. And some students limit their intake of water. It is norm to be thirsty rather than suffering to hold their pee, even worse the indignation when you can't hold it longer. (What more, they will always be some naughty student trying to stimulate your need to pee) Even visitors are not spared. Sometimes, the school administration forgot to allocate the keys to the visitor. Visitors are not trusted as students always for visitors’ help to open up the toilet. In the end, visitors ending up had to beg the office staff for keys. What will happen if a student suffers from stomachache? I jitter at that thought.

If maintaining cleanliness of toilets is a problem, students had to be educated, not punished. Time-table is arranged so that all students had a chance to clean the toilets. After cleaning, the cleaner will have to round and check whether it is in satisfactory condition. If not, the student had to re-clean it. Let everyone had a part in maintaining the cleanliness of our school.