Jarod Yong

Kerja cikgu senang? Banyak cuti? X layak dapat bonus RM700? During the second week of school reopening, I walked into the most challenging class of the year. From far away, I could already hear a ruckus & it didn't die down even when I could be seen from the windows. My heart dropped as I wondered if they would be willing to learn from me today. When I walked in, I was practically ignored as the boys continued yapping away loudly in a circle & walked about the class freely as if the teacher was invisible. I stood there for the next 5 minutes feeling exactly the way I felt for the last 2 years trying to teach them remotely, like 🦗🦗🦗🦗. Putting on a strong front while wanting to cry, I mustered a stern voice calling for their attention. It must have been a very important discussion, as they were clearly unhappy at being interrupted & asked to return to their seats, banging furniture & displaying clear dissatisfaction. Since it was their first day back, I didn't...

Tengok betul-betul, guys. Itu bukan pekerja kontrak bernilai berpuluhan ribu. Itu GURU. Bersidai, membahayakan nyawa, berpeluh, & berletih demi kepentingan anak didiknya. Waktu sekolah ditutup, jangan beranggapan cikgu x buat apa-apa. Banyak guru yang x pandai main socmed, tetapi berjasa senyap-senyap. Jenis ini yang jarang dapat anugerah & naik pangkat. Tetapi berat juga yang dia pikul. Hormatilah guru anda. Hulurkan tanganmu membantu sebelum menekan keyboard bertoksik. Tabik hormat kepada Cikgu Belun, Cikgu Jemat, Cikgu Gabriel, Cikgu Alex, En Ferdinand, & gang! ❤️❤️❤️ Dato Pandelela bila nak belanja minum?

SPM preparations begin immediately. My students have less than 4 months before their SPM & many do not have access to tuition or educational support aside from what they get from school. Meanwhile, we need to be cognizant of their mental well-being & ease their return to school. Many admitted to not studying at all during the MCO. I've slowed down the pace in my lessons & avoided putting pressure on my kids. I'm figuring out how to make lessons a little more interactive while adhering to SOPs. Will share my ideas here when I can. Used to be I didn't take photos of my activities. Then, I got accused of not doing HIP because I didn't have "evidence" published on Google Sites for "pemantauan jarak jauh." Still not doing Google Sites, because it's not my job to help the pemantau. It's actually their job to help me, or am I working for communists? I'm already losing my mind trying to impact my kids. If you don't want to help, j...

What did you do during your first class? First thing I did with my classes is to get them to think forward. I saw a bunch of embarrassed & guilty faces as I walked in. But we don't have time to dwell in the past & how they've made a fool out of me during PdPR. We shared about our hopes & I focused them on the massive mission they had ahead, acing SPM. 1. Give each student a sticky note. 2. Students write down their names & their hopes. 3. After finishing, they paste their hopes on the whiteboard. Follow up: For less proficient students, they just read their friends' hopes & give positive supporting remarks. For more proficient students, they have to ask a question to the classmate, listen to the response, before giving a positive remark.

It wasn't easy getting this off the ground. When I first learned about this event, I knew that it would be a golden opportunity for my students as the organizers have an excellent track record & will actually give you funds to run your innovative project. However, every student I pitched from my own classes turned me down. I even reached out to those who did not attend my PdPR. No luck there. Thus, I asked my colleagues for recommendations. Messaged & called each one of those students. Got turned down again & again. Wasted time, money, & ... mostly hope. Even teachers' kids turned me down or worse... didn't pick up/read messages. I wondered if I was actually the village idiot? It was only very close to the closing date that I was able to get 4 students to say yes. So these 4 angels who said yes... they mean so so much to me. During the 4-month long camp, there were plenty of technical issues, data credit habis, laptop rosak, family conflicts, etc. 4 entire S...

Really liked what the Sarawak Teachers Union (STU) President, Mr Adam Prakash, & his team have been saying in the press, so I accepted an opportunity to be co-opted into the Kuching division STU committee & attended my first meeting last night. I hope to learn from other the members of the committee & make education better in Sarawak for everyone without excluding the teachers.

Encouraged my students to take up the Project ID Young Educator Challenge & 6 of them actually signed up! Forming 2 teams, they designed a lesson for science & mathematics respectively. I was a little disappointed that they didn't pick English, but I got to let my little ones spread their own wings kan? Kan? 😅 I beamed with pride like a parent during their presentation, so that's what it feels like. They did really well in my eyes, even though none of them qualified for the final 5. They walked away with new skills & new experiences that will benefit them for the rest of their lives & that matters more than winning. Well done, Ivan, Kirtna, Rose, Calvin, Justin, & Jun Heng! I am super proud of you!

So proud of this boy. From a C to an A+. Went through a lot of struggles & issues to get to where he is in SPM. Most importantly, he was willing to listen, follow, & practice. He is now reaping the fruits of his effort. Praying for his success in life! If you're looking for an English tutor for your secondary-school-aged kids, I only have 2 classes. Book a free trial on mytuition.live

Cikgu pernah ditugaskan sebagai sukarelawan di PPV dalam Christian Ecumenical Center, Kuching, waktu murid cikgu dijadualkan menerima vaksin. Kebetulan cikgu ditugaskan di depan bilik pemberian vaksin demi menyempurnakan proses panggilan. Ini cerita apa yang cikgu nampak waktu tersebut. 👀 1. Terkejut. Cikgu cukup terkejut sebab cikgu nampak setiap staff dalam bilik tersebut tunjuk syringe & terangkan kepada pelajar apa yang mereka akan terima. Cara mereka bercakap pun sangat mesra & professional. Memang tabik hormat la saya dengan staff waktu itu. 👏 2. Di PPV tersebut, vaksin sudah diisi dalam syringe oleh staff lain & dihantar sikit demi sedikit ke setiap bilik vaksin. Jadi tak mungkin akan ada syringe kosong. Kecuali syringe itu sudah cukuk orang lain. 🤮 3. Parents dibenarkan masuk bilik vaksin bersama dengan anak. Rakaman juga dibenarkan & kebanyakkan parents akan ambil video. Suasana meriah macam buat video tiup birthday cake pula. Sebab insiden cucuk kosong berl...

Pegawai Perkhidmatan Pembersihan Siswazah DG41 yang telah disahkan jawatan tetap dan berpencen.

Based on the Form 5 Scheme of Work Part 1: Reading (Print Media vs Modern Media) >>Video Lesson: https://youtu.be/XfPPXuuKMkI >>For students, Google Form exercises: https://forms.gle/Z85se1DEF8qD4XT97 >>For teachers, copy the Google Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1R6KxSpy3ESl7jWS4LWtNEGe2Clke7pOmBTotwYj4MU4/copy Part 2: Listening (News Sources) >>Video Lesson: https://youtu.be/nV69eOQneY4 >>For students, Google Form exercises: https://forms.gle/REUUKmSwfHwc5Ud39 >>For teachers, copy the Google Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1COqYM9hq3bkmFUvFteWQ4j6F_UfwXGJB2_BH_d-oiDs/copy Part 3: Grammar (Impersonal & Personal Passive Structures) >>Video lesson: https://youtu.be/7ASA8L6pxUI >>For students, Google Form exercises: https://forms.gle/EHo8TWQUxDoFAHfr9 >>For teachers, copy the Google Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1V1JUAw5HDMwfmRfST5HbZry6LJViVVJXDxqg-XcptzU/copy Part 4: Vocabulary >>Video Lesson: https://...

  Semestinya cikgu telah menghabiskan banyak masa & usaha dalam memilih video yang paling sesuai untuk murid-murid anda kan? Tetapi bila waktu Google Meet, mereka hanya dapat tengok video tapi tak dapat dengar audio pula! Dalam 4 minit, cikgu akan tunjukkan cara senang kongsikan audio di Google Meet dengan Chrome. Sertailah komuniti guru bantu guru di "Manglish Is English Too": https://www.guilded.gg/manglish Tusyen atas talian: https://www.mytuition.live/teachers/jarod-yong/ SPM English Telegram: https://t.me/spmbi PT3 English Telegram: https://t.me/pt3bi  

Cikgu menghabiskan banyak masa sediakan setiap lesson, kan? Jangan bazir usaha yang dicurahkan dalam PdPR. Rakam sesi anda & kongsikan dgn murid-murid di group ataupun upload ke YouTube & jadikannya bahan rujukkan kepada semua . Dalam 4 minit, cikgu akan ajar anda cara senang merakam PdPR dengan OBS. Cara ini boleh digunakan dengan semua: Google Meet, Telegram, Teams, Zoom, Webex, Jitsi, Twitch, Discord, & lain-lain! Sertailah komuniti guru bantu guru "Manglish Is English Too": https://www.guilded.gg/i/aE9Q0qNE Online Tutoring: https://www.mytuition.live/teachers/jarod-yong/ SPM English Telegram Group: https://t.me/spmbi PT3 English Telegram Group: https://t.me/pt3bi

  Work from home, they said. Be productive, they expected. Reality... The weight of the world is on my shoulders. 😂 Who else finds it hard to work from home? 🙋

Siapa guru tingkatan sila angkat tangan! Cikgu akan tunjukkan cara mengambil kehadiran PdPR di APDM untuk SEMUA murid dengan menekan SATU butang sahaja. Serious! Lepas ini, pasti anda akan seronok mengambil kehadiran setiap hari! 😅 Setiap hari minggu, guru-guru tingkatan perlu klik 3 kali di APDM bagi mengambil kehadiran setiap murid. Kehadiran ini sama saja setiap hari tanpa mengira kehadiran sebenar pelajar tersebut. Tambahan lagi dengan kelajuan laman itu yang sangat mencabar kesihatan mental. 😵 Cuba bayangkan kalau anda perlu mengambil kehadiran untuk 30 pelajar setiap hari... Sakit jari & sakit kepala, kan?! Cikgu harap jasa baik para guru seMalaysia diberkati & cikgu doakan mudah rezeki kepada semua. 🥰 Pautan skrip: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1R1yZKaALU0UYA5FsVyOHGq1zMUtAG_aQ/view?usp=sharing Sertailah komuniti guru bantu guru "Manglish Is English Too": https://www.guilded.gg/i/aE9Q0qNE Online Tutoring: https://www.mytuition.live/teachers/jarod-yong/ SPM...

Apabila anda membuka webcam di Telegram, adakah kosong sahaja? Tak jumpa-jumpa setting webcam dalam applikasi Telegram? Nak pakai Telegram video call untuk PdPR? Janganlah memalukan diri waktu mesyuarat panitia macam aku buat pada minggu lepas! Tak test terus pakai dalam mesyuarat! 🤣 Sertailah komuniti guru bantu guru "Manglish Is English Too": https://www.guilded.gg/i/aE9Q0qNE Online Tutoring: https://www.mytuition.live/teachers/jarod-yong/ SPM English Telegram Group: https://t.me/spmbi PT3 English Telegram Group: https://t.me/pt3bi

Apa pendapat anda? Yang mana lebih baik untuk kegunaan PdPR anda? (a) Logitech C920 Webcam     (b) Free Droidcam app (Android) =PAUTAN BERGUNA= Droidcam (Play Store) https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dev47apps.droidcam Droidcam (Windows) https://www.dev47apps.com/droidcam/windows/ Sertailah komuniti guru bantu guru "Manglish Is English Too": https://www.guilded.gg/i/aE9Q0qNE Online Tutoring: https://www.mytuition.live/teachers/jarod-yong/ SPM English Telegram Group: https://t.me/spmbi PT3 English Telegram Group: https://t.me/pt3bi

  My appointment was at 11.30am. I arrived at Dewan Suarah Kota Samarahan at 10am &, by 10.15am, I was already vaccinated. Everything was organized & very professional. I never felt uncomfortable & was very confident with the way that things were run. What I needed: (1) My IC (2) Smartphone with MySejahtera app installed & logged in (3) a pen Firstly, I checked in with the MySejahtera app with one of the many QR codes plastered all over the entrance area. Next, there was a short wait to present my IC, have my attendance taken & be given a consent form to fill. Once the form was signed & having consented to be vaccinated, I was moved into the hall for a short wait to be entered into the system. I presented my IC & the signed consent form. Then, I scanned a QR code with the MySejahtera app & was asked a few questions like my name & profession to confirm my identity/attendance. Later, I was waiting to be vaccinated. Inside the fully-enclosed & ...

The story that inspired me the most: Cikgu Lian Fee Choo   Needing a little bit of motivation after my struggles as a PDPR teacher, I looked at a few of the stories from this year’s recently announced Anugerah Guru Inspirasi McDonald’s winners. While reading the story of Mr Kalai at SK Nanga Tau, Bintulu, I smiled at the thought that there are great teachers like him in the heartlands of my ibu pertiwiku. Additionally, I was thoroughly impressed with Ms Ling Fong of SMK Datuk Peter Mojuntin, Penampang, who brilliantly set up a shadow theater so that her deaf students could communicate with a panel of hearing judges. Following that competition, her students were recognized for their talents & invited to perform at events! However, the story that inspired me the most was one of a principal at SMK Kemabong in Tenom, Sabah. How refreshing to read about a leader in the civil service who walks the talk & does not lead from an armchair. Therefore, it is no wonder that she played...

After asking 3 boys & waiting 4 weeks for the name list, fortunately, the first boy I asked to collect the info came through! 🤣🤣🤣 PDPR2.0 started early for many schools in Sarawak because our schools in red zones were shut down 3 weeks before Raya. However, students lodging in the school hostels were not allowed to return to their respective hometowns in order to protect the students & their families back at home. You see, my students come from all over Sarawak, so their long journeys home would put them at significant risk to COVID exposure.

Just finished sending RM10 worth of mobile reloads to each of the 81 girls stuck in the hostels while schools in Kuching are closed to help with the mobile data needed for PDPR online classes. Thank you to everyone who sponsored my students with this Gift Of Learning! In Sarawak, schools in red zones have been closed for the past 2 weeks. For most students, you stay at home when the school is closed. For boarding students, you have to stay at the school hostel to protect you & also your loved ones. While you're boarding, the school will take care of all your physical needs, with 5 meals a day & study facilities. However, there is one essential item that schools are not equipped to provide: a broadband internet connection. When one student got cut off during my online class because she ran out of data & had no more credit to purchase more data, I realised that there may be more in her situation, so I asked permission from past sponsors to use their funds for this purpose...

When he found out about my students' needs, he sent me a simple message asking "how can I help?" When he came to my school, he said, "we'll comply with all the conditions set by the school." Social distancing, no protocol, no fanfare, no students involved in the exchange, no problems. We requested that the foodstuff be dropped off at the school & we would arrange the distribution ourselves. No, problem. There was just the Chief Warden & myself involved in the handover. We exchanged a few kind words & then they left to help other people. There was no political logos or large portraits on the sumbangan. No jamuan. No tarian. No majlis besar-besaran. Dear politicians, this is how you EARN respect.

I'm always on the lookout for easy opportunities for my students to earn certificates. If you come across one please let me know! A curated collection of certificates will help them in their future university applications. My students have plenty of sports-related certificates but very few academic ones. English-related ones are even rarer. This time around, I'm getting them to participate in the Energy Efficient Challenge by Suruhanjaya Tenaga Malaysia. There is an article writing competition for my students with better English & a poster competition for those struggling with the language. Best part is every participant gets a certificate. Thank you, ST!

A big thank you to every Malaysian who contributed to this care package for my quarantined students! Each of them will receive RM50 worth of food! 😍 Hailing from all across Sarawak, my students are some of the best athletes in the country. Being isolated at quarantine centers meant that many of them are detached from the support of far away family members. I am thankful that, when I asked for help, Malaysians of various racial & geographical backgrounds showed their love & support, as my students were going to sleep hungry at the quarantine centers. This care package demonstrated to them that they are not forgotten & that there are many people rooting for their recovery & academic success from all over the country. Stay safe, everyone!

For Anugerah Guru Inspirasi McD 2021, I want to nominate a former colleague of mine at the Sarawak State Sports School who has inspired me to become a better teacher. Cikgu Matthew Apok is the kind of teacher who would accept all responsibilities assigned to him & work hard to deliver on all of them. ahem… unlike me You will not find him taking pictures of his work & sharing it on social media ahem… unlike me   or even in the school WhatsApp group. Once he has completed a mission, he would quietly fade away onto the next task, rarely receiving recognition or praise for his numerous contributions throughout the years. This is the kind of teacher I want to see nominated for this award: The unseen ones who work hard behind the scenes while others benefit from their work. As a football coach, he had the arduous task of building the basics in the junior players who might have plenty of technical skills, but very little in terms of teamwork, tactics, & strategy. His work wit...

  It’s that time of year again! McD is once again giving recognition to Malaysia’s teachers! Now that schools are reopening nationwide, both my students & I have a lot of readjusting to do. To be honest, I feel physically exhausted teaching face-to-face, as I am sure many students are too. However, as I was scrolling through this year’s nominations & reading their stories, I felt encouraged & motivated to do more for my students too! Be inspired too here: https://www.mcdonalds.com.my/bm/anugerahguruinspirasi/nominees Besides motivating & teaching effectively, I read of many teachers who are nominated for going the extra mile with providing food aid, study materials, and extra classes. Many have not given up on challenging students or situations, and I was also deeply moved by a school counselor who prevented a suicide attempt. Teachers do so much & without such a platform, many unsung heroes who shy away from the limelight would not have their inspiring stories ...

Looking for reading materials or comics by students for students? Proudly presenting #WeAreTJ, a website celebrating the English language creations of my students at SMK Tabuan Jaya! Visit: WeAreTJ.com You'll find plenty of interesting essays, poems, & comics! Support my students by reading & commenting on their work! We also have a nice home on the internet for the next 5 years thanks to sponsorships from Dr Selvanayagi, Chieng S. Li, Suit Lin, Nisa Shan, Jesselyn Tiong, Rachel Donald, King Ting Chai, & Charles Lee!

I bet you've seen this screen-captured table. I'm in a lot of education social media groups & every year around SPM season, this SPM baseline table will be reposted without fail in exactly the same way: some dude expressing shock at the low grades required for passing certain SPM subjects while lamenting the horrible state of our national education system. I enjoy intellectual discussions, but, if some random table is the basis for one's thesis, I roll my eyes & scroll away. However, I keep seeing this post repeating itself again & again & worse still I get tagged in some of them again & again until my eyes just can't roll any further. It's time to explain what a baseline is to those who are not teachers. What Is Baseline Data? Every school does this kind of data analysis, which is why those who cry wolf are usually not teachers. Why? A baseline is used to estimate the possible grades of our exam-taking cohort based on past SPM results. How? Base...

  Imagine leaving everything that you're familiar with to head to a faraway school for your secondary education for 5 long years away from your family. Half of every day was filled with tiresome physical exertion while the other half with mental exhaustion. Not to mention a certain nosy English teacher. Worse still, COVID-19 has delayed everything for 4 months, incurring significant time & opportunity costs on your part. You should be working part-time & planning your further education by now. This was the experience of my Form 5 students of 2020. Today, they finished their English SPM 2020 papers & I am very proud of them as they have displayed plenty of grit & perseverance despite their circumstances. After their last English paper today, they enjoyed a sweet treat to motivate them to keep up their fighting spirit for the subsequent SPM papers & also their life goals. Nothing in this world comes without a price: the bigger the dream, the bigger the sacrifice. ...

Over the past few weeks, I noticed that my SPM 2020 Form 5 students were becoming increasingly focused on their studies. Some started asking deeply relevant questions reflecting their diligence in revising for the SPM English test. A few of the weakest ones were finally able to apply the exam techniques I taught them, reflecting plenty of effort on their part. This is in stark contrast to a year ago when many of them were still very happy-go-lucky. The extreme few would refuse to do any work & answer back rudely, while a handful would sleep in my class after all night gaming sessions. Also, remember all the crickets during my MCO online lessons? After the last extra class session with them, each student received 2 pieces of KFC fried chicken during lunch: 1 original recipe + 1 hot & spicy. All of my students are boarders, so they were allowed to stay at school until the end of the SPM examinations. KFC may not mean much to most children from middle-class backgrounds, but for my...

Last extra class session with my F5 SPM 2020. Fortunately, hostels students are allowed to stay in the hostels so all of my students were able to physically attend the session. Can clearly see that many of them are earnestly learning & focused. Many of those with weaker proficiency were able to practice the tips I taught them. I feel encouraged that they will do well. I pray that they will find the exam questions super easy & their examiners will be in a superb mood when grading their papers. Amen! 😂 Anything you want to say to them?

This morning someone shared with me a viral tweet mocking Rina Harun, Women & Family Minister in Malaysia, for her heavily accented English. Although I have no affinity for Rina, I really found the post & the subsequent jeering comments very offensive. If Rina was one of my students, I would tear into each one of those mocking turds. You should be ashamed of yourselves! English teachers have learned a long time ago not to laugh at accents. It will not only discourage the person being laughed at, but also those who sound like that person. For a fleeting moment, you get to feel so atas & so great that you sound like a penjajah, while being ignorant of the damage you are doing to the progress of English language use in Malaysia. Unbeknownst to you, you're discouraging generations of fellow Malaysians from using English! We should be celebrating such open use of English by a politician despite her struggles with the language. That's the kind of grit we want to see in al...

Out of the 62 Form 5 students under my care, only 9 attended the first live Form 5 #PDPR2 .0 online lesson conducted earlier today. Additionally, 5 others who couldn’t attend the live session just did the assignments. For the rest, I have shared the lesson recording + notes in our respective class Telegram groups. While all my students have access to a mobile device, there are many legitimate reasons for them to miss my online lessons: (1) there is no mobile coverage in their area; (2) their connection is slow; (3) they have started working out of necessity to help support their families; & (4) they must help at home during the hours PDPR 2.0 is conducted. There are also students who don’t attend online lessons because (1) they aren’t interested in the subject, (2) they don't like the teacher, & (3) they play games until the wee hours of the morning so they can't get up for their education. Previously, there was flexibility for the teacher to negotiate lesson duration ...

I guess you've heard about PDPR2.0 where students have to stay online daily from 7am-1pm & attend classes similar to that of their regular school timetable. This presents a significant barrier for my current students as they are mostly from rural low-income backgrounds. For English alone, they need enough data for 2.5 hours of online video meetings + another 2.5 hours of self-access. It's sad that what stands between my students & their teachers is $$$. I'm hoping to collect enough RM20 contributions so that I can support those who are committed to attending online classes with enough data for their English lessons. I'm promising the students who attend every online meeting for the month of February with RM20 at the beginning of March. Sorry, if I have to bother you again in March for help. As usual, a recording & notes will be made available for those who are not able to attend. I know teachers who are utilizing funds out of their own pockets. Unfortunatel...

Honored to be amongst some of the most recognized teachers in Malaysia in a private session with YB Syed Saddiq of MUDA . This is the first time I have ever been consulted by a minister. I'm impressed that we had representation from all over Malaysia. We even had someone from a P3 school. Kudos to the person who set this up. During the session, YB wanted to hear from us about the situation on the ground. What the students & teachers are going through preparing for SPM 2020. Also, what were our recommendations. ==Personal Thoughts/Notes From The Session== 1. YB was punctual & stayed beyond the 1-hour session. I'm so impressed with this because this demonstrates his respect for our time. I've lost many hours of my life just waiting for VVIPs to arrive. 2. YB didn't talk much. He was mostly listening & asking questions. 3. Teachers were very much echoing each other, on our experiences and thoughts from our students. 4. TLDR: There is no win-win situation when ...

In October last year, my former student from SMK Katibas asked if I could conduct a talk for her class at UiTM Puncak Alam. Although I was rushing to finish two books before the start of the new academic year, I always make an effort to say yes to former students, teachers, or lecturers. Little did I know, I would have the pleasure of presenting at a masterclass in webinar organization. Here's what they did right... ~~~PRE-WEBINAR~~~ 1. I was contacted months in advance and was able to comfortably make time. 2. The webinar was postponed to a later date selected at my convenience. 3. The UiTM Puncak Alam students were resourceful & got all the necessary photos and an up to date bio from the internet for their promotional materials. 4. Respectfully worded reminders were sent on WhatsApp prior to the webinar. 5. My refusal to give them a copy of my slides was accepted. 6. Links to the webinar were provided the day before. ~~~DURING~~~ 1. After the welcoming speeches, a comedy vide...