Poh (left) and Danald speaking during the live talk organised by the Kuching District Education Office in conjunction with Kuching district level Teachers’ Day celebration.
KUCHING (July 7): Teaching is a vocation that enables teachers to make a difference in the lives of students entrusted under their care, said Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kuching Most Revd Simon Poh.
He said at this point in time, teachers may not realise how much impact they may have on their students.
“Teachers, especially Christian teachers, will never know what the future holds for their students and what God’s plan is for them.
“But all you need to do is to be there among your students and give your best for every student that comes your way,” he said during a live Christian Religion Talk on YouTube which was held in conjunction with the Kuching district level Teachers’ Day celebration.
He gave tribute to all teachers and educators and encouraged them to view teaching as a vocation as they touch the lives of children and students.
He said he has been blessed by many of the Catholic and Christian teachers as well as teachers of other faiths during his school days.
“Teachers have made a difference in my life. My teachers never knew that I would become a believer in Christ and even less imagined that I would be a priest and Archbishop now.
“But they diligently gave their time and attention to teach me, kindly and patiently guided my mischievous antics in school, and channelled me along the path to commitment, sacrifice and seeking to do good as they have shown me,” said the Association of Churches in Sarawak (ACS) chairman.
Poh also called on teachers to promote teaching as a vocation to the younger generation and show them the joy of teaching so that they will be inspired to follow in their footsteps.
“There is a great need for more dedicated and committed teachers in Sarawak. I read in The Borneo Post on June 21 that there is a large-scale shortage of teachers with plan to recruit more teachers and on July 1, Education, Science and Technological Research Minister Datuk Amar Michael Manyin Jawong highlighted that 8,829 teachers in Sarawak had to teach subjects that they are not trained in.
“With the recruitment of new teachers, we pray that this will be a step forward for the people of Sarawak.
“I invite you to promote teaching as a vocation to young people and encourage them to be ready to serve the people wherever they are sent later after graduation,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bishop of Anglican Church in Sarawak and Brunei Rt Revd Datuk Danald Jute said teachers face many challenges particularly during this Covid-19 pandemic.
“The pandemic is no doubt challenging for all but definitely more challenging for educators who now have to implement Teaching and Learning at Home (PdPR) which is not an easy task.
“When we teach online, we ‘enter’ our students’ home and thus directly or indirectly invite parents and guardians to ‘enter’ our classroom. Sometimes there might be cases of no Internet connection, absent students and even parents who become critics and come up with unfair comments and criticisms,” he said.
Citing the Teachers’ Day theme ‘Berguru Demi Ilmu, Bina Generasi Baharu’ (Teach for Knowledge, Build a New Generation), the ACS deputy chairman said building and developing a generation is not a difficult task.
“However, to build a new generation of noble characters who are strong in facing challenges and able to compete and lead at the world stage; who know the meaning of respect for fellow human beings and who are able to be leaders regardless of race and religion, that is something that’s very challenging.
“This challenge is largely borne by teachers. This shows how important your role and responsibilities are as educators. Our future depends on all of you,” he said.
The talk, which was organised by the Ministry of Education’s Kuching District Education Office, was held specially for Christian teachers with a focus on teaching as a vocation.
It was moderated by Felix Chuo Sing Tiing of Kuching District Education Office.