KUCHING –About 70 Monitors and Assistant Monitors from SMK Tun Abang Haji Openg learned how to be an effective leader at a leadership camp at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus recently.
For two days, the students, their teachers and staff of Swinburne Sarawak’s Student Services covered a series of themes which included team building, public speaking and leadership. Participants are encouraged and expected to implement what they have learnt during the camp in their school and immediate communities.
“Having the camp at Swinburne Sarawak is good exposure for the students. They had the opportunity to interact with international students, something many of them had never experienced before,” said Cikgu Fathi Bin Suria, a science teacher and coordinator of the program.
“As Monitors, the students have, until now, mostly been attentive learners. From this experience, we hope they now can become active leaders and role models,” he said. Cikgu Fathi also said that the students enjoyed the presentation by the staff (of Swinburne Sarawak) and said the quality of the activities in which they participated in were ‘A’ class.
The school was fortunate to be given the opportunity to conduct the program at the university, he said. “The facilities are good. For example, the auditorium is air-conditioned and our students have good comments about the hostel where they stayed.”
According to Haji Hussain Bin Taiban, Registrar and Director Student Operations Swinburne Sarawak, “We welcome partnership with schools in conducting such camps for their students. With the facilities and expertise that we have, and as part of our corporate social responsibility, we are pleased to contribute towards the personal growth of these youths especially in helping shape them to become leaders in their communities.”
Having spent time at and learning more about the university, I hope they are motivated to do well in their studies, especially after knowing that it is not impossible to study at an international university, he added.