"Teacher, berapa markah saya?"

"Hi, W, you got 64% for your English paper. Congratulations, it's a 'B'. Let's work hard to get you an "A" in the next exam."

"Teacher, I will work hard."

Unlike the student above, many of my students barely passed their recent exam (40% is the passing mark), and some have evidently written themselves off after so many years of underachievement and negative reinforcements of false beliefs ("saya memang tak pandai"). To top it all, for every student who tries to speak the language, two or more will put him/her down, discouraging any potential growth or increase in confidence. This is the reality of the streaming system: the good become better and the poor become worse, and the path of these students is really decided from the first day of school, unless some intervention is done.

Yet, some students have decided to change that. I've been so encouraged to hear stories of students who deliberately speak the language despite the flak they get from their friends: "Biarlah mereka, kami suka Bahasa Inggeris." They stutter and they stumble, getting it wrong more often than right, but they are my 'fire-starters'.

And I hope this fire catches on.

"Bolehkah sir membantu saya?"

22nd February

"Thank you, class"

"Thank you, sir!"

I place my well-used marker pens back into my bag and pack up as the students line up to thank me. This is my favourite part of the day. At the end of a long day of school, my Form 1 students typically take my hand and touch it to their foreheads to say their goodbyes: the 'salam', a part of the Malay culture which I've come to love.

N, the class monitor, seems to linger at the back of the class while I bid goodbye to his classmates. As the last of the students leaves the room, he walks up to me and speaks softly, "Sir, bolehkah sir membantu saya?"

"Ada apa, N?", I reply.

"Tak, tadi di dalam dewan semasa pelawat itu datang, saya sedar bahawa Bahasa Inggeris saya sangat lemah. Saya tak mahu fail lagi. Bolehkah sir ajar saya lebih lagi?"

3rd March

Word is getting around that I am opening our house up for tuition. It's free and it's for the students in my English classes - that should be enough to attract the attention of the students who cannot afford the overpriced tuition centers here. We can start a little later so that the students (and I) can rest after 7 straight hours of lessons, and parents would be involved as they'd have to send their children to our house.

Two girls meet me in the staff room to ask if the hearsay is true and if they can come along. Moments later, in 1M, I see an open invitation written in large words on the whiteboard, detailing my house address and the tuition time for anyone who is interested!

6th March

S, a new student from 1B, appears from the canteen and walks towards me, visibly sullen. I stop walking and we meet in the middle of the assembly grounds.

"Cikgu, maaf cikgu. Hari ini dalam Ujian Bahasa Inggeris saya tak buat soalan summary dengan baik. Saya tak tahu. Maaf cikgu", he says, choking on his words and occasionally wiping his eyes.

I reassure him that we still have the rest of the year to work on writing a good summary, and I invite him to the tuition class later. 

Today was our first day. What's so amazing about this class? I didn't start it. They did. These kids came despite having exams tomorrow (and after the English paper has already ended!), realizing there is much to do to catch up. 

For every disruptive kid, there is a kid who genuinely wants to learn and take back those stolen years. That's why I teach for Malaysia!