KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — For most Malaysian children, English is their second language after their mother tongue.
English however, is only the fourth or fifth language for Orang Asli children living in remote parts of Gerik, Perak.
So, when Michael Hillary Louis arrived at SK RPS Dala in Gerik, he started drawing up unconventional lesson plans.
A majority of the children were from the Temiar indigenous group, with their parents mostly working at pineapple farms and rubber plantations linked to the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) and Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda).
And Michael taught the children, by using what they were most familiar with - nature.
"During one lesson, I taught them about different parts of the coconut tree and the various products that can be processed from coconut.
"Since most of their parents only sell raw coconuts, this was new knowledge to them.
"As children naturally have sweet teeth, we also did a cooking show in our class and I showed them how to make mocktail drinks.
"During these activities, the children learn new words and we repeat them during our daily spelling sessions.
"I also stress on sight words such as ‘the’ and ‘and’ which are important for them to form proper sentences.
"The children are more eager to learn when we use elements around them in lessons,” Michael told Malay Mail.
As a Teach for Malaysia (TFM) fellow, Michael spent two years teaching English to Primary Four, Five and Six students at SK RPS Dala between 2022 and 2024.
The 28-year-old was part of TFM’s first cohort of fellows who were sent to co-teach with existing teachers at schools in interior areas.
Living in remote areas may seem daunting for most youngsters but not for Michael who hails from Kampung Gading in Telupid, Sabah.
To him, the slow-paced life at Gerik town was a relatively more advanced version of his hometown, Telupid.
Teaching English, however, was not the only challenge that Michael faced.
The local community endured internet connectivity woes until the middle of 2023 and still grapples with frequent blackouts - another reason why Michael tapped into natural resources for lessons.
Frequent sightings of tiger footprints since May 2023 also kept the residents in fear.
Initially, teachers-cum-wardens would light up fires along the fences surrounding the school and hostel grounds to ward off the tigers.
Through his TFM fellowship, Michael managed to secure enough funds to install seven solar spotlights there earlier this year.
By the time Michael left the school last month, the students could read short sentences in English and had a wider vocabulary too.
He had also trained 11-year-old Arwin - the school’s first representative in 38 years to an English story-telling competition at the state-level Karnival Pendidikan Sekolah-Sekolah Murid Orang Asli.
"For a first-timer who has never stepped out of Gerik, he did very well on stage.
"He also remembered the self-regulating techniques which I taught him to calm himself whenever he got nervous and forgot the sentences,” he said, recalling how Arwin often became frustrated repeating the same sentences.
Michael is currently in his final semester of his postgraduate diploma in education at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris.
The biochemistry graduate from University of Malaya said he will be "back in his elements” while he serves as a trainee science teacher at SK Pekan Telupid for the next four months.
As the first in his family to enter university, Michael said he feels obliged to give back through teaching and if he moves up the rank, he wants to impart his enthusiasm to upcoming teachers and school administrators.
