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KEPALA BATAS – A non-governmental organisation (NGO) has gone out of their way to assist students who are struggling to learn from home after the pandemic had shut down all educational institutions.
Understanding the difficulty of learning online without a smartphone, prompted the PTA of Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Pokok Sena, here, to provide free smartphones to five selected students, who hailed from poor families.
The effort, which was also assisted through sponsorship from an NGO, Penang Movement Organization, gave hope to students from the less fortunate.
Standard Five student, Nurirdina Padli, 11, said she now no longer must fight with her sister every time she wants to study online.
The fourth child of the five siblings said she was having difficulty learning online as she had to share a smartphone belonging to her father, Padli Musa, 47, with her sister.
“Before this, it was difficult for me to learn because we only had one handphone and I had to share it with my sister. I don’t want to burden my father to buy my own smartphone because he earns just a token sum.”
The handover ceremony was conducted via a drive-through by the headmaster Mohd Zubir Mat Zain and the NGO representatives.
A father, Mazlan Abdul Rahman, 42, said giving a smartphone to his son Asfa Darwisy, nine, means a lot even though his son is attending the school's Special Education.
“I did not expect my son to be chosen to receive a smartphone. Although my son has nerve problems and is a slow learner, but he is still eager to study.“
Meanwhile, Mohd Zubir said, the school is grateful for this contribution to learn from home.
“This gift is not only given to students from the B40 group, but it is more to students who have good performance as an incentive to motivate them.
“It is hoped that this grant will enable them to learn better as they now have to learn in the new normal,” – The Vibes, December 4, 2020
