Encourage students to study at local institutions

BY NUR FARIHAN RAZALI

BAU: Educators should encourage students who are weak in English to enter institutions of higher education owned by the state government.

Opar State Assemblyman Billy Sujang said, “This is because English is used as the medium of instruction in these institutions.

“Starting in 2026, five universities will provide free education and they include Swinburne University of Technology, Curtin University, Sarawak University of Technology (UTS), Laila Taib College and i-CATS University College.

“Among those universities, Swinburne University of Technology, Curtin University and UTS use English as a medium of instruction,” he said.

Billy was speaking at the Yayasan Sarawak School Uniform Assistance Voucher Ceremony for the Opar State Constituency at the Bau District Office Complex, here on Thursday.

“We can’t allow students to feel afraid of the English language.

“Therefore, teachers in secondary schools especially need to give awareness and exposure to them. Sarawak needs a skilled workforce when it becomes a high-income state in 2030.

“Of course, to go in that direction, the skilled workforce in question must have knowledge of technical and engineering skills,” he added.

Billy emphasised that the students must believe that they could communicate and write in English if they practised every day.

On the school uniform vouchers, he said they were given to Primary One pupils of Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Opar, SK Tembawang, SK St. Theresa and  Form One students of  SMK Bau.

At the same time, he also approved Minor Rural Project grants of RM10,000 each  to the Parent-Teacher Associations of SMK Bau and SK St. Theresa.