LEADING CHANGE
2011/07/06
By Ahmad Fairuz Othman
A group of young professionals held a motivational course for 40 students in Kota Masai, Pasir Gudang recently
WHILE many of their peers are focused on their careers and enjoying leisure activities, a group of young graduates are carrying out volunteer work.
The Klang Valley-based group, who call themselves Small Changes, go by the motto Small Changes, Big Differences.
They conducted a two-day motivational course for 40 secondary school students in Kota Masai, Pasir Gudang, recently.
The Form Four and Form Five students of SMK Kota Masai 2 are from disadvantaged backgrounds and had done well in the Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR) examination.
Project coordinator and Small Changes founder Azri Malek Wan Haron, 25, said they decided on the project because they were concerned about the inequalities in educational opportunities in urban and rural areas.
He said students in rural areas were also disadvantaged by the fact that they had less exposure to role models, such as professionals.
"The aspirations of young people are shaped by their environment," said Azri, a law graduate of Cardiff University in Wales, United Kingdom.
"The son of a doctor is more likely to become one because of the influence of his father, while the son of a farmer is more likely to follow in his father's footsteps because he has no other role model to look up to.
"We hope to increase their exposure to other career paths. We believe every person should be given an equal chance to be the best that they can be."
The motivational course is the group's first project which targets students with disadvantaged backgrounds.
Azri said the group's membership included lawyers, lecturers, doctors, engineers, interior designers, quantity surveyors, accountants and economists.
He said they had rallied their relatives and friends to raise funds for the programme.
"We hope we can impart skills that we acquired in our studies and be a reference point for the students," said Azri.
The course started with an ice-breaking session between the students and facilitators.
As they took part in games such as human knot and power hand shake, the timid and shy students became excited and eager.
The first day's programme was called "Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail". Students were divided into groups and asked to build bridges using straws within a limited amount of time.
In the evening, the message that English was fun and should not be a barrier to success was imparted to the students through the "I Love English" module.
Murni Wan Mohd Nor, 25, who conducted the module said it was heartening to see students gaining confidence in using the language.
"It was fun watching the students having the courage to try speaking English. They laughed and learned together with their friends," said Murni, a graduate of International Islamic University Malaysia.
In the Career Presentation module, the students learnt about the various career paths that they could pursue.
Most of the students were aware of the work carried out by traditional professionals such as doctors, lawyers, accountants and engineers. But, they were unfamiliar with careers in interior design, quantity surveying and other fields.
Azri said they had received positive feedback from the students and teachers.
"Many of the students were quite sad when the programme ended. We were touched when students thanked us for believing in them. Some of them were in tears," said Azri.
Another facilitator Wan Zokhri Idris, said the programme was an eye-opener as it revealed that some of the students lacked confidence.
"I asked a boy what he was aiming for in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination. He told me he was aiming for 6As, 2Bs and 1C. I asked him why not aim for 9As? He said he didn't think it was possible," said the 28-year-old lecturer.
Some of the students said they were happy because they knew more or less where their paths would lead to after SPM.
"We now tell ourselves that if we think we can, we surely can," said Lumi Shara Jagat.
Muhamad Azim Huzaimi said: "The programme was fun as we didn't get punished for doing something wrong. Every module was exciting and motivating."
The participants received dictionaries, stationery, SPM exercise books and storybooks.
The group is planning to organise similar courses in the future.
For details, visit www.smallchanges2011.blogspot.com.
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