THEY looked tired. Still tired, actually. They’d just arrived two nights ago from Cambodia but their 10-day trip has taken its toll. Exhaustion didn’t dampen their enthusiasm though; they were very willing to come out and meet me to talk about
their experiences.
I first met them at the airport on their departure. The younger girl,Nurul Wadaah Mohd Noor, was one of two Youth Development Centre students (in total, seven Bruneians went on this trip) selected to volunteer as an English teacher in Cambodi
a. It was the second phase of an 11-week education project she had participated in, run by the Society for Community Outreach and Training (SCOT), in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
SCOT’s contribution ties in with an existing initiative: the English Training Project Centre for Children (ETPC) run by Cambodian non-government organisation (NGO) Organisation for Building Community Resources (OBCR). Founded in 2005 by Thy Reaksmey, its Brunei connection began in 2011 when personal friend Fatin Arifin, who became the organisation’s director of sponsorship and public relations, made her first visit to the small school run by OBCR.
Since then, Fatin has been the permanent feature of the series of trips by Bruneian volunteers to the school, dubbed the English Training Project Centre (ETPC). Always seeking financial support for the centre, she had helped secure SCOT’s assistance for two batches of volunteers in July and August 2013.
I got Fatin to talk about some of the achievements of the centre and she speaks of some of the children who’ve passed through. Their foreign names rolled easily off her tongue; it’s easy to understand just how close to them she must feel.
“A teacher, Tola, used to teach at our school. She was one of three teachers at the centre in 2011. In her time there, she was inspired by the teachers and their work. Her parents were convinced and now she is studying in a university and wants to come back to teach at the school. We’re very proud of her,” beams Fatin. The path to a university education is not often trod by the village children, for it is a costly one and leaves one less earner for families who rely on each other for income.
Tola’s example provides testimony that the people in Samrong Tong (the school’s district) are slowly beginning to understand the long-term investment in education required for a future of more options. But for many others, they can only resist for so long the beckoning of filial duty and the pangs of debt. This struggle of choice often lends a bittersweet tinge to other success stories at the ETPC.
“There was this bubbly boy who talked a lot and was very bright, Dum Sei Leang. But I noticed on a return trip that he wasn’t at the school anymore,” recalls Fatin. One can only assume that he’d left for more immediate concerns of family.
“Another one was Som Ul. Very ambitious girl without a parent. She had to leave for her family as she was obliged to earn income. It was still a success as we managed to keep her in school for a while longer. She was supposed to leave in 2011 but stayed on longer than expected.”
Reaksmey wrote to The Brunei Times about the special relationship with Brunei: “So far, the friendship becomes stronger from OBCR, children, their parents and community. We went to visit cultural sites with OBCR, children, parents, and rode bicycles to teach children at home, and especially helped with rice planting. It has resulted in a deeper friendship involving a holistic dimension.”
He believes the efforts are having an impact on the children, helping them to think outside the box, improving their social relation and cultural exchange within the region. The project encourages using English for communication through daily interaction, daily teaching and community work. It also meets monthly with parents to hear their ideas on child education. This forum allows them to speak out about their needs and suggestions, and even share meals.
The reactions from the children at ETPC indicate great interest in the school and comfort with having foreign visitors as temporary teachers. Even at a young age, they understand how a small command of English can open up career opportunities in the future.
Seav Sokheng, 10, enjoys the library the most and likes practising his English with foreigners, hoping to one day speak with foreigners around the world. He recognises Reaksmey and Fatin as his teachers, saying that “they also play with children and the community”.
Eleven-year-old Meas Sreyoun’s favourite things about the school are the space and teachers, as well as ETPC’s cheerful T-shirt. She said, “I enjoy learning English and I really want to be good at it because I want to talk to foreigners and find a good job.”
Wadaah spoke modestly about the past week, admitting that her first experience outside of Brunei had humbled her. “I taught the pink book there (referring to the beginner’s class). It was very frustrating, challenging, trying to communicate with children using a new language.”
She said that observing how teachers at the centre coped with multiple jobs as well as spending time voluntarily teaching at the school was a real eye-opener to the hardships of the community.
“My knowledge prior to this did not prepare me for the actual experience. I realised how lucky I was, our governm
ent gives priority to education, even provides allowance. I used to be one of the students complaining about delayed university allowance,” she continued.
Despite the promise of ETPC in its bid to build capacity and empower rural communities in Cambodia, there are many
challenges that remain. Wadaah remarked especially on the great respect that the children have for parents, which offered some explanation to why children often opt to help their parents in the fields instead of staying in school for a better education.
“Keeping kids at school is our biggest challenge. We also want to teach the right level of English to the wide-ranging needs and abilities of the students,” said Fatin.
As a non-profit, the centre is also constrained financially. Fatin reveals that the long-term plan is to get the teachers to earn a salary, with Reaksmey on the staff as a manager. This would require formal accountability, but would enable dedicated human resource. It is only in this professional way that the school’s mission can be accomplished.
“Eventually, we want a proper school, not just a centre,” concluded Fatin.
A second batch of volunteers funded through the SCOT education project will be in Cambodia from
August 24 to September 8.
The Brunei Times
Source: The Brunei Times
Author: Danial Wood
Published Date: 27 August 2013