JubliTimes Issue No.11 June 2021

JubliTimes

ISS UE No . 11 : J u n e 2021

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Message From Principal

04

Learner Agency

06

Student�s Corner

10

Creative Corner

18

Past Events

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Upcoming Events: SJIS Virtual Open Day & Virtual JLC w w w. s e r i j u b l i . e d u . m y

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PAULUS LEE

MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL

Greet㏌gs students and parents!

Despite the challenges the pandemic has posed, I hope the

Jane performed a self-written song called “It’s Ok” at

first half of our academic year has been fruitful for each of

America’s Got Talent (AGT) and secured a Golden Buzzer –

you. As we are at the half way point of the year, rather than

reserved only for excellent performances singled out by the

just looking for solutions to better deal with the effects the

individual judges. This video has since gone viral and has

pandemic has brought to learning and schooling, I would

been viewed over 10 million times on YouTube!

like all of us to take a step back to be thankful.

Beyond the amazing talent she has, the video and I would like to draw your attention to a recent video

performance were so powerful because of the message of

audition of a girl by the name of Jane Marczewski.

hope, gratitude and thanksgiving that she carried. Through the audition video, we were told that even though she is only 30 years old, she was actually diagnosed with cancer in her lungs, spine and even her liver just last year, with only a 2% chance of survival.

She wrote the song “It’s Ok” in the midst of her struggle with cancer, amongst other personal issues she was facing.

In response to her cancer, she made two statements during the video audition: “2% of survival isn’t 0%. 2% is something and I wish people knew how amazing it is” and “You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy”. It was clear that her positivity, gratefulness and hope have kept her going strong.

As I watched this video, I thought that this would be a great reminder for us to pause and ponder. When was the last time we were grateful for the things we have? For a safe place to stay? For the opportunity to learn? For parents who are present and supporting us? For friends to share life with? For food on the table? For strong and healthy bodies? Whatever we may be facing in the midst of this pandemic, let us find time to be grateful like Jane, to learn to be positive, and cling to the hope for a better tomorrow.

For those who have not watched the video, here is the link: https://youtu.be/CZJvBfoHDk0

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各位学⽣及家⻓们，⼤家好！ 尽管新冠病毒⼤流⾏带来了巨⼤的挑战，但我希望⼤家在上半学年都收 获颇丰。转眼间⼀年已过半了，与其不断寻思着寻找应对疫情下学习和 上课影响的更佳⽅案，我希望我们所有⼈都能退⼀步去思考和感恩。 我想推荐您⼀个值得关注的视频，是⼀位名叫Jane Marczewski的⼥孩 的试镜视频。Jane在美国达⼈秀 (America�s Got Talent AGT) 演唱⼀ ⾸曲名为 �It�s Ok� 的歌曲，并成功获得了⻩⾦按钮 ‒ 这是每个评委保 留给他们个⼈认为出⾊的表演者⽽且直接保送半决赛的特殊名额。此视 频已在YouTube上疯传，且有超过⼀千万的观看次数。 除了拥有惊⼈的才华之外，她的视频和演出⾮常有影响⼒因为她传递了 希望、感激及感恩的⼼态。在她的试镜视频⾥，我们得知她虽然只有三 ⼗岁，但于去年不幸被诊断出与肺部、脊椎和肝脏的癌症，只有2%的 存活率。 在与癌症抵抗及⾯临其他个⼈问题的同时，她写下了这⾸ �It�s Ok� 的 ⾃创歌曲。为回应她的患癌，她也在试镜视频中表⽰：�2%的存活率

不代表0%。2%的存活率也意味着⼀些东西，我希望⼈们能理解这数 字有多么神奇。同时，你也别等到⽣活不困苦了才决定快乐。�显然易 ⻅，她的积极、感恩和希望促使她如此坚强。 当我在看这个视频时，我觉得这是⼀个能让我们停下来好好思考的提 醒。我们上⼀次为我们所拥有的东西⼼存感激是什么时候了呢？为了⼀

个安全的住宿地⽅？为了⼀个学习机会？为了⽆限⽀持我们的⽗⺟？为 了能分享⽣活的朋友？为了美⻝？为了强壮和健康的体魄？⽆论我们在 这场新冠病毒⼤流⾏期间⾯对什么情况，让我们像Jane那样，学着积 极⾯对，并且抱着明天会更好的希望。 若您还未看过此视频，可以点击以下链接: https://youtu.be/CZJvBfoHDk0

www.serijubli.edu.my

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Learner Agency

By Mr. Yew Kok Leh

learning are more clearly defined. New breakthrough practices are needed to reconceive and rebuild content, procedures and the human relationships of teaching and learning.

One of the key drivers that can take full advantage of the digital media and new The pervasive presence of modern tools like computers, smartphones, televisions and various types of digital devices have drastically changed the way people interact, communicate and learn. To keep up with the times, there is a need for a paradigm shift in the way formal education is conducted, and in the mindsets of key players, teachers, parents and society in general. New technologies can do a lot of things that were previously difficult to carry out in schools.

For example, collaborative and inquiry-based learning are made easier with the help of new tools.

Even though modern digital media has great potential in facilitating learning, it has not automatically gained acceptance from the deep-rooted traditional-minded society.

Perhaps the Covid-19 crisis that resulted in schools having to conduct lessons online has created greater awareness of the importance of these modern tools.

We frequently hear of education leaders and authorities mentioning the usage of modern technologies in teaching and learning in schools. They make it sound very simple.

Even their suggestions and ideas seem to be failproof and success-guaranteed. Those who are trained in the teaching profession and active practitioners will know that even simple ideas can be difficult to realise and put into practice when you switch from onsite to online learning. Assuming the cost of the supporting hardware is not an issue, the knowledge and skills of the teachers and the mindset and readiness of the students are just some of the challenges.

Nowadays, a new generation of computer savvy teachers have taken over the driver's seat to become principals.

Hopefully their knowledge and skills, coupled with advanced technologies, will help us see to a better implementation of digital media-aided learning. However, they still need to work hard. The challenges are real and plenty. As I mentioned earlier, it's easier said than done unless some drivers of new

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learning concept is Learner Agency.

Learner agency is about having the power, combined with choices, to take meaningful action and see the results of your decisions. It can be thought of as a catalyst for change or transformation. Within a school context, Learner Agency is about shifting the ownership of learning from teachers to students, enabling students to have the understanding, ability, and opportunity to be part of the learning design and to take action to intervene in the learning process, to affect outcomes and become powerful lifelong learners. Modern technologies and communication tools are the enablers of this process. The school needs to actively promote this driver in order that learners become more capable of independent thought, which in turn, forms the basis for autonomous action.

Understandably, learner agency is still a very new concept in most schools. There is plenty of room for better understanding and effective implementation. A lot of hard work is needed but the potential outcome of learner agency will definitely make the hard work worthwhile.

Lastly, I would like to mention that if any school had been practising learner agency effectively in the past, current online learning caused by the Covid-19 pandemic would be a much easier task.

学习者能动性

尤国礼先⽣

现代设备例如电脑、智能⼿机、电视以及各种电⼦产品等等的⽆

实施数码媒体学

所不在⼤⼤的改变了⼈们之间地互动、交流和学习⽅式。为了能

习。尽管如此，

够与时并进，过往正规教育的模式及⽼师、家⻓甚⾄整个社会的

他们仍需要努

教育思维⽅式都需要有所转变。新科技可以做到许多以前在学校

⼒，因为接踵⽽

⽆法做到的事情，例如合作及探究式学习在新科技的

来的挑战更多元

帮助下变得简易许多。

化。正如我之前 提到的，除⾮对于新的

尽管现代电⼦设备具有推动学习的 潜⼒，但在现今社会早已根深蒂 固的传统教育思想并没有完全 接受这些新设备。新冠病毒

学习模式有更明确的定 案，否则说得容易做得难。我 们急需以突破性的实践⽅式来重新构思和重建教学内容、步骤以 及以⼈为本的教学与学习。

疫情迫使学校转换成线上 教学，这或许能让⼈们

其中能充分地运⽤数码媒体和崭新的学习概念的关键驱动因素是

意识到这些现代电⼦设

学习者能动性。学习者能动性讲述的是其功效，结合不同的选择

备的重要性。

并采纳最具意义的⾏动从⽽让你看到你做的决定所产⽣的成绩。 它也被认为是改变教育或使教育转型的催化剂。在校园内，学习

我们经常听到⼀些教育界

者能动性是将学习的所有权从⽼师⾝上转移⾄学⽣，以让学⽣们

领导和当权者提及在学校

能理解、有能⼒和有机会成学习设置者，并且投⼊于学习过程当

教学及学习中使⽤现代电

中，影响学习结果，最终成为强⼤的终⾝学习者。现代科技和通

⼦科技。他们说得让⼈们听

讯⼯具能推动这项过程。学校也需要积极地去推动这⼀个关键驱

起来觉得很简单，甚⾄他们的建

动程序，以便学习者们更具备独⽴思考能⼒，进⽽为主动的建⽴

议和想法看似都是万⽆⼀失且保证

学习基础。

成功。那些受过专业教学培训的⽼师 们及教育业者都知道，当从⾯对⾯教学转

对于许多学校来说，学习者能动性仍然是⼀个⾮常新的概念，有

换成线上教学之际，就算是简单的教学⽅法都很难

⾜够的空间去理解和有效实施，也需要付出较多的努⼒去实施。

传递和实践。假设设置电⼦设备的成本不是问题，那么线上教

学习者能动性的潜在结果肯定会让所有付出的劳⼒变得值得。最

学的挑战就在于⽼师们的教学知识和技巧以及学⽣们学习的⼼态

后，我想重申，若过去有任何学校有效地实践了学习者能动性，

和⼼理预备的程度。

那因疫情所促成的线上学习将变得容易了。

如今，精通电脑知识的⽼师们已经担起先锋队的责任，成为了领 头⽺。他们的知识和技能，加上先进的科技将能辅助我们更好地

尤国礼先⽣

Introduction Mr. Yew Kok Leh is one of the members of Seri Jubli International School’s Board of Governors. Having been a teacher since 1983, he has developed over 18 years of writing experience in academic content, educational instruction and leadership training, as well as being co-author of Physics Textbooks and Academic reference books. He is also an active trainer and educational consultant in our school. He often turns his passion in art into drawings of comics related to education or even current issues.

介绍

尤国礼先⽣是致理国际学校董事会成员之⼀。⾃1983年以来他 都从事教师⾏业，同时他也在编写教科书、教育守则和领袖培 训等⽅⾯拥有逾18年丰富的经验。他更是物理课本和学术参考 书的合著者。他同时也担任我校的培训师及教育顾问。他也热 衷于绘画出与教育当前课题相关的漫画插图。

www.serijubli.edu.my 5

STUDENT’S CORNER "What my dad has taught me cannot be learned in school. Dads are life's most influential teachers." In this issue of Jubli Times, let us celebrate our fathers and honour them for making a difference in our world. Here are some of the entries of the SJIS Father’s Day Photo Contest that we organised this month.

Primary Category:

Ng Zynon (Year 3)

Jayden Koo Yi Zhe (Year 1)

Alexandre Gunn Sheng Li (Year 1)

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Ng Zyllnny (Year 2)

Nor Izz Rayqal bin Norazli (Year 3)

Isabel Jeevika Johnson (Year 6)

Chen Yi Le Elaine (Year 3)

Tiong Jia Tao (Year 4)

Tan Rui Yao (Year 2) & Tan Chee Ray (Year 5) Keerthikamala A/P Saravana Kumar (Year 2)

Tiong Jia Rui (Year 6) Reyshven A/L Mani Nadarajan (Year 4) www.serijubli.edu.my 7

Secondary Category:

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO A VERY SPECIAL DAD F - Faithful and true A - Always there to guide me T - Teaches me to think twice before I do anything H - He is overprotective over me and advises me not to do wrong E - Ever firm in imparting his ideals and principles R - Reasonable, understanding and a very approachable person There are not enough words to describe what my father means to me and what an influence he has on my life.

He never fails to show his love for me, I promise to keep you proud and glad at all times :)) No matter how many years go by, Dad, I'll always be that same little girl who loves you with all my heart.

Reyneisha Saravana Kumar (Year 7)

Dear father, I would like to thank you for all the lessons you taught me and all the time you spent with me having amazing experiences together. Thank you for being a great father. Happy Father’s Day! Dheeban Kumar A/L Saravana Kumar (Year 8)

Happy Father's day, my dear father. Thanks for always being there for me and teaching me life lessons. I'll forever cherish all the wonderful times we had. I love you father.

Low Tai Wen (Year 7)

I know you to be warm-hearted and caring, loving and nurturing. I know you to be soft and thoughtful. I know you are a philosopher. Thanks for sharing your love, time, knowledge and many more. Thanks for guiding me to be a better and good human. I appreciate all the sacrifices that you hold on me. Wishing you Happy Father’s Day to you.

Haran A/L Saravanan (Year 8)

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For my super daddy Good morning dad, It might be a bit surprise for you. Although Father's Day is not here yet, I still want to say that. In my eyes, you have always been very handsome, very powerful, very smart, I really admire you, You don't understand many things, but you will do your best to help me. When I'm helpless, I always want to rely on you, because as long as you are there, I don't have to worry about everything. And you protect and take care of me very well, never force me to do anything, always think about me. I don't want to let you down, I want to be better, to be your pride, I'm very introverted, and I don't dare to convey my thoughts completely, especially love. But now I have this opportunity to express my love for you. I am very grateful for everything you gave me and I really love you Sometimes I will make you and mum angry or sad, I am sorry for that(╥_╥)"thank you" and "I love you" are very simple words, but it is always difficult to say to me.I obviously love my family the most, but I can’t express my love, I'm also troubled by this.(⋟�⋞)Now, I will try to be confident and brave love you♥

Happy Father’s Day papa. I know we don’t talk much but you always say ‘I love you’ by your actions. You support me to do what I want. You concern me when I’m in a bad mood. You understand me well. Thank you for being so understanding. I love you <3

Soin Le Yee (Year 8) Chow Joslyn (Year 9)

Dear father, you're not just a father, you're my superman, batman, ironman and thor all combined together. They may have incredible powers like telepathy, omnipotence, superstrength and etc but my father has something greater which is his unconditional love towards me that transformed me from a seedling to a colourful flourished flower.

This is the element that makes him the best father out there. Iron man may be my favourite hero but my father is my number one favourite superhero. Happy Father’s Day!

Happy Father’s Day! You mean everything to me. I love you so much. Any man can be a father but it takes someone special to be a Dad. Ong Lee Tao (Year 9)

Jerrence Suresh A/L Reymen Suresh (Year 10) www.serijubli.edu.my 9

CREATIVE CORNER In this issue of Jubli Times, we will be featuring essays and poems from 9 of our students who participated in the Royal Commonwealth Society International Essay Writing Competition.

About the Competition: Each year, aspiring young writers are asked to submit their pieces in response to a theme.

The theme for this year was Community in the Commonwealth. With the global spread of COVID-19, we’ve seen the lives of many citizens affected. However, through adversity, societies came together and stories of growth, community and hope continue to emerge. There are two different categories in this competition: Senior Category (14-18 years of age) and Junior Category (under 14 years of age). Each category consists of a list of topics to choose from. The competition is open to all citizens and residents of the Commonwealth aged 18 and under. All entrants receive a Certificate of Participation and one Winner and Runner-up from the Senior and Junior categories will win a trip to London for a week of educational and cultural events.

Heroes This is not a story about the pandemic, Not yet another sad piece of news about the pandemic.

This is not a story about companies facing bankruptcy, Or about people becoming jobless, Or about people sick in the hospital This is a story about ordinary people, Heroes...

Heroes among us.

This is the story about heroes like my father, Who helped people during the pandemic, Giving them supplies they needed, To help them survive.

When he drove into the rural areas, He saw people everywhere, He gave them the supplies, He felt happy helping people, This is not a story only about my father, this is also the story about people.

People who starve but still kept going, People who are jobless yet kept looking, People who are sick yet kept wanting to live.

Aren’t they heroes for not giving up, not giving in to their hardship?

Did they not help us remember to HOPE? Did they not help us remember to LOVE OTHERS? This is a story about humanity.

Lim Yi Ping, Year 6 10

MALAYAN TIGERS A female tiger named Ah Moi. She plants and sells golden bananas.

She loves the environment, a modern herbivore.

She belongs to the yellow-striped tribe.

She roars like a thunder, a crowd pleaser.

Little as she has . . .

She gives her bananas to the COVID-stricken urban poor.

A male tiger named Siva.

He builds and constructs modern jungles.

He loves people and the Sun, a typical omnivore.

He belongs to the shiny black-striped tribe.

He toils like bull, a faithful bread winner and a father.

Tired as he is . . .

He sanitizes the playground so the children can play in safety.

A male tiger named Simon.

He buys and sells shiny, blingy toys.

He loves charity, a fierce carnivore.

He belongs to the orange-striped tribe.

He slicks like a whistle, an opportunist.

Dark as it is at night . . .

He donates warm food to the grief-stricken COVID victims.

A female tiger named Sheila.

She tailors and sews garments.

She loves spirituality and family, a mild omnivore.

She belongs to the earthy brown-striped tribe.

She is nimble like a bee, a diligent dynamo.

She sews thousand PPE for the COVID frontliners.

A young male tiger named Hari.

He upgrades and repairs gadgets.

He loves coding and hacking, a processed omnivore.

He belongs to the golden-striped tribe.

He tweets like a bird, a tech savvy genius.

He runs vaccination drives for the COVID stricken.

All tigers come along together.

All tigers come out of their tribe.

All tigers battling the pandemic.

All tigers, the Malayan Tigers.

Yuvasree A/P Gunasilan, Year 5

www.serijubli.edu.my 11

IMPRISONED AT HOME The pandemic had spread rapidly throughout the world like a bee spreading pollen and caused all of us to stay in our homes in order to flatten the curve. Our life styles have changed enormously since then.

We never experienced this before and we need to turn over a new leaf. I was forced to stay at home and continue schooling online while the streets remain quiet.

At the beginning of the online classes, I enjoyed it a lot as I coud still see everyone virtually. We played online games, chatted on WhatsApp, and discussed homework with classmates on Zoom. I learned a lot of computer skills through this new schooling style. During my free time, I also discovered my passion for art and craft as well as history.I learned how Christopher Colombus found America. I watched some videos on drawing and started to follow their live shows every day. After a while, I was able to draw independently and my ideas just filled my mind freely.

Staying at home is fun but being stuck at home for too long …. it’s getting really boring! I felt like I was watching paint dry every day. I could only see my family members physically. I miss the school playtime when I could play tag, hide and seek and running around the school courtyard with my classmates. If only I could turn back time to pre–pandemic times so that I could meet my friends in real person, share our delightful snacks, and feel the warm hands of each other.

I also miss my dearest teachers at school even though they punish me sometimes.

Having classes at school are way better than online lessons. Learning in the classroom is lively and interactive. I could ask questions at any time and teachers could correct my mistakes instantly. I understood their teaching so much better in the classroom. I feel very close to my teachers when we’re in school as I could see their full body language compared to only their faces in my webcam. I could share my thoughts with them freely but now that I am online, we only have a very limited time to interact or my internet connection is interrupted sometimes.

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I miss the times when we did many amazing science experiments in the science laboratory such as melting a wax candle and making a volcano out of acid. I miss music class where we always go to the multipurpose room on the third level of our school and play different kinds of musical instruments. We usually dance and sing along the rhythm of the sweet music. I also miss our school library where we can pick a book and even borrow it home. There is a peaceful and large corner for reading in our library. I miss living life to fullest and now I feel handicapped.

I miss going out with my school-family. I miss school events! I remember 2 years ago I won the second place for 200m in sports day, I wanted to try again but sadly there isn’t any sports day during pandemic time. I also won the best student last year but I couldn’t receive the prize online. I was proud of myself and how I wish I could have a picture of me receiving this trophy onstage. However, the pandemic cancelled the Awards Night last year. I also miss the annual school camps whereby every student andteacher would go on a school tour and spend a few days together. It was like a family holiday. During the school camp, we had a lot of interesting activities and events like a treasure hunt, talent night, and obstacle challenge. It was very fun as I had plenty of time to stay with my friends and teachers. As a kid, my school life is a big part of who I am, so now that I have none of these, I feel like a small part of me is gone.

I deeply hope that one day this pandemic will be over and we can return back to our normal lives. The life where we could move around as free as bird, no face masks needed, sanitizing hands and social distancing! I pray very hard for this day to come very soon ! Perhaps,that life is gone and the world will be different forever.All I know is ,I miss the life I had before, perhaps I should have appreciated it more.

Tiong Jia Tao, Year 4

WISHING TO GO BACK TO NORMAL The pandemic has changed many lives around the world. A lot of death and despair has taken place. As ar result of of the rising cases of COVID-19, we have to follow many precautions and rules like the ‘Standard Operating Procedures’, otherwise known as ‘SOPS’. We are all restricted to do many things during this time. So, today I shall be sharing with you the many things that I have missed doing during the pandemic.

Firstly, I miss shopping a lot. I like to have many varities of clothes in my closet and I would put them on and pretend I’m modelling while looking into the mirror. My mom would take me shopping at least 2 times a month, some months she would take me multiples times to buy new pencils as my pencils are only 3 centimeters long after a week.

Secondly, I miss hanging out with my friends. We would sometimes call each other to one of our houses and party until 10.00pm at night as our parents had their own party-time in the kitchen or backyard.

We would sit around in their room(if we were in our friends house) or my room(if we were in my house) with our smartphones looking at a bunch of TikToks and laughing our heads off. Some of them would bring their younger siblings who were about my age, so they would too join us. We would also sometimes play pranks on our parents.

Thirdly, I miss going to school. I really miss my schoolmates and teachers, they always keep me company so I won’t feel left out.

They are really helpful and supportive. We now have to use Zoom in order to do lessons and I miss socializing with everybody.

Fourthly, I miss going to comic book stores.

Most people say comic books are for boys but I really can’t help it. Comic books have such amazing plots and storylines. My favourite type of comic are korean and japanese comics, otherwise known as Manhwa(Korean comics) and Manga(Japanese comics). Their plot-twists are the best. Especially for the thriller,action or horror genres. I recently got into these comics during the pandemic, I bought one collection online and it blew my mind. The art and fight scenes were so detailed! I

immediately asked my mom to buy me one of the popular Japanese comics which is called ‘Attack On Titan’. But, now that I have finished reading it and have asked my mom again to buy me more. But she is afraid of buying them online because we don’t know whether the person who is sending it has COVID-19 or not. So I have found a website online to read.

Also, I miss going for holidays. Before the COVID-19 virus came to destroy humanity, my family and I were supposed to go on a trip to Desaru Coast in Malaysia during my mother’s birthday in January. When I was informed that I couldn’t go, I was devastated. I had always seen the awesomelooking roller-coaster rides, wave-pools and slides which went in all directions in the advertisments on our television. But what I longed for the most was the ’Lazy river’ ride because you just have to sit there on a ‘Pool Floatie’ and the river would just take you around the whole water park and back to the place where you started. But sometimes you would knock into something or someone and you would have to move around to go away from that something or someone.

Lastly but not least, I miss being free.Before the COVID-19 pandemic I could pat my friends on their back or give them a ‘Highfive’. Now I can’t even touch my friend because otherwise I am making the risk of COVID-19 spreading in our school higher.Also, nowadays when I look at the front page there isn’t any good news like ‘Panda’s 1st birthday celebrated by zookeepers’ or ‘Malaysian artist’s dream came true as he was invited to a competition in America’. All the news I see is ‘COVID-19 pandemic is prolonged for Malaysia’ or ‘Famous Malaysian clebrity commits suicide due to the death of his or her mother’. It’s depressing to see this kind of new on the front page of the newspaper. I would put down the paper because of this.

These are all the unforgettable events and I really hope we can fight the COVID-19 and destroy it to make things to go back to normal for me and the rest of the world.

Isabel Jeevika Johnson, Year 6

www.serijubli.edu.my 13

KEEPING UP WITH CHANGE In the year 2021, I'm 13 years old. Here I am sitting in front of my computer screen instead of out with my friend. Here I am, confined at home, instead of going out with my friend. I had many wonderful plans this year, but can it be fulfilled? Probably no.

Why? Freedom… this is what I miss most. I want to fly in the blue sky like the seagulls I used to see near the beach; I want to gallop in the broad green grass like wild horse. I want to swim freely in the deep blue sea like dolphin. I’m also an animal on this earth.

Why had I lost my freedom? What had I done to deserve this entrapment I am in?

When can I take back my freedom? But hopelessly I’m inside a big invisible cage.

I miss going out without wearing a mask all the time. Wearing a mask is so troublesome and hard to communicate especially when it covers my voice. I don’t like wearing mask because it is hot and heats everything up when I’m talking. But I still need to wear it because it is for our health’s sake. At least that part of my freedom is still intact.

Outside! I miss the outside activities I used to do with my friends. I miss the days joining camps in school overnight. We would chat and play games until we fell

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asleep together. I remember the last time we went camping together in school. When the night fell and our curfew was up, we would pretend to sleep. After the teacher had left, we would start playing games till dawn came. After a few hours, we were so tired that we slept without turning off our phones. When the phone vibrates and the alarm rang the next morning, we would wake up really shocked. I miss that so much.

Now, I can’t have that because of this pandemic and we can’t gather around. The only camps I go now are all online!

Yes, there are many others things I miss during this pandemic. I miss meeting my relatives, I miss traveling, I miss not going out without wearing a mask, I also miss my school friends although we meet in our online classes. Nevertheless, I can’t deny that I have things I’m grateful I have. I’m thankful for my family constantly around me, I can only imagine going through this pandemic without them here.

Chloe Loh Yi Qi, Year 7

WHAT I MISS MOST DURING THE PANDEMIC Pandemic, pandemic, pandemic! Before I start, let me first say that I miss the life before I knew the word ‘pandemic’, or know the meaning of ‘pandemic’, not to mention experiencing one! The pandemic has been tough for all of us and caused a lot of problems, and life has changed in almost every way I can think of! Working, learning, shopping, even bonding with family has changed, from meeting face-to-face, to being stuck on a chair in a Zoom meeting.

As dreadful this pandemic is, it has definitely changed the way we see things and we miss the life before the pandemic.

One of the things I missed most during the pandemic is physical space! I miss being able to physically learn in school. Most schools, including mine, had resorted to online teaching to keep us safe. While I agree with the decision to switch to online teaching, some teachers are not familiar with online teaching and take time to learn how to use the platforms. Online teaching is slower than physical teaching. Bad connections are often the bedevils of online teaching and waste both the students’ and teachers’ time. The teachers’ internet cuts off during a Zoom meeting, the role of host goes to a random student, the teachers then try to reconnect while the student basically abuses the power of being a Zoom host and kicks the students. It has happened before. More than once. I very miss school when it was a real classroom and not Google classroom or Zoom meeting.

Another thing I missed during the pandemic is, surprisingly, buying new clothes. Before this pandemic, buying clothes was one of my least favourite activities. Every 2 weeks before the New Year, my family would all go to the mall for some shopping. We would

buy a bunch of snacks, decorations, gifts, and finally, clothes. Searching for clothes wasn’t any issue, but the one thing that I dread about clothes shopping is changing clothes in a hot, humid and cramped changing room. It has to be the worst part of this appalling experience. Some changing rooms are less compacted, while some are extremely small. It’s quite funny how something I dreaded has turned into something I miss. To a certain degree, the pandemic has changed my views on certain things, even things like crammed shopping mall changing rooms. Since this pandemic. I have worn the same clothes for about a year now, and it's starting to get old. I can still buy clothes online, but sometimes things get messed up, and I get a shirt twice the size of my ordered size. Yeah, I miss being able to choose my own shirts.

The final thing I miss is the freedom. I miss the life of not fearing death all the time.

Remember the time that we could go on trips, without any sort of 1-metre safety distance, not wearing masks, hanging out with our friends and family? I find it hard to remember any of those good times now. I think that's what everyone in this pandemic has wished to have. This pandemic really changed some of my perspective of what really is of value in life. Real happiness lies in the small, tiny things in our lives. I get that phrase now. I used to take my freedom granted, but now, stripped from my freedom and confined to my house, I am willing to do anything, I repeat, ANYTHING, to get rid of this nasty pest.

I miss the life I had before, but I am thankful for what it has taught me.

Low Tai Wen, Year 7

www.serijubli.edu.my 15

What many people miss during the COVID-19 Pandemic People miss many things during the pandemic of COVID-19. Some miss the coffee shops where they would sit there for hours, gaze at the sky, sipping coffee, without fear. Some miss how they can go as they please, but now they have to stay home and use up all the supplies. Some miss the hours of shopping at the mall without worries, but now they have to wear masks everywhere they go. Some miss the big, blue lovely sky which sometimes they will fly with on a plane among the sea of clouds. Some people miss the feeling of freedom before the pandemic.

For me, I miss my relatives living in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. The last I saw them was two years ago, before the pandemic of COVID-19 and at that time it was the Chinese New Year. My cousins are always annoying but I miss their voices and things. My aunts always bring some presents home for us or our grandma.

I miss my dad whom I haven’t seen for over a year. I miss the trips my mom and dad will take us on the weekends or when we can visit our relatives during December.

They always take us on trips to mall, parks, zoos and museum, when we can drive without anxiety of the pandemic.

I miss when we went to the mall for my favourite bookshop, I would sit there for hours reading a book that caught my eye. I would enjoy all the interesting covers and an interesting summary of the story and read it until my mom sneak up on me and scares me pit of my wits.

I missed when we saw a Lego shop then we immediately rush in so fast like a car that was over the speed limit. My brothers and I LOVE Lego so much that we would buy everything in a shop but our parents wouldn’t allow us.

I miss the library the mot since I have always visited it, but this pandemic is ruining my life. All the books in the library are my best friends, but I miss it the most because I am a bibliophile. The number of books in the library has always impressed me and it has some interesting books that I had wanted to discover.

There are still many things that I miss but it would take too long to tell them all, but I am lucky enough as I have my families and friends accompany me throughout this difficult time. Many people are crying in their minds because they miss their love one who have to lived very far away.

Numerous people griefs the death of their loved ones, those who had died to the hands of the COVID-19. Nevertheless, the thing we miss most is our connection with the whole world, which we can communicate with.

Reeves Tien, Year 7

The Hidden Problem of Humanity “Welcome, everyone! Today, we are proud to announce the opening of the first ever museum in Hearthome City – the Copper Museum!” announced Wilson, the owner of the museum. A thunderous round of applause came from the massive crowd gathered in front of the gleaming, shining new museum. As I stood behind the curtains, I wiped my brow and rehearsed my lines. I could not mess this up.

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“Now, I would like to invite someone very special to give a story about our special section in the museum,” boomed Wilson, “he’s been known as the Speaker of Truth, the Man with the Silver Tongue, yes, that’s right, it’s…Sir Kelvin Brroowwwwn!”

As the curtains parted, silence fell over the crowd. People stood on their tiptoes, peering with their curious eyes, shivering with anticipation. I swallowed the lump in my throat, and put on my signature joking smile.

I stepped on stage, and grabbed the microphone. The crowd was looking at

me, some with awe in their eyes, some with anticipation at my first sentence. I shook my head, and said, “Alright, who broke the bee nest this time? What’s with all these people?”

The crowd burst into laughter, lightening the mood instantly. I spoke into the mic, and said, “Now, steady your little wings there, because what I’m saying next is not going to be fun. I’m talking about the coronavirus pandemic.”

Instantly the crowd stopped talking and laughing. Some faces paled at the memory of the pandemic. I cleared my throat, and started my speech. “I see you all still remember the pandemic. It was like a storm, blowing in suddenly and leaving a mess, except it didn’t leave.

“No word could describe it. It was horrifying, to say the least. Every day, thousands of people were dead, and there was nothing we could do except cower in our homes, praying.

It was terrifying. Every day, looking at the daily case numbers was like looking at humanity’s expiration date, knowing one day we would all die.

“That was when something built into our biological, evolutionary drive kicked in. We all know it as ‘survival instincts’. We wanted to live. And this was what peeled away at the woven masks of the antagonists among us, the ones that would sacrifice others for themselves, and revealed the shining angels, the ones that helped. The pandemic stripped everyone bare, revealing their true identity.

“The antagonists were, to put simply, well, bad. They were the ones that would steal from your cart when you weren’t looking, and push you away for some sanitizer. They were the ones that were willing to do anything, however inhumane, to survive.

“But those weren’t the only ones. There were to ones who, for their own comfort, were willing to put others in danger. They were the ones parading around without masks, holding things like ‘Muzzles are for dogs, I am

a free human!’ They were the ones that would scold you for telling them to protect themselves and others. I believe we were all shocked to see this stupidity, and perhaps at some point, we ourselves displayed some of such ‘stupidity’? They, or we were either so in denial that we couldn’t see the situation even if people’s lives were on the line, or it’s just plain stupidity.

“But with every bad, there’s a good. The good people were the ones like doctors, who worked 25 hours a day to take care of the patients, to make sure no lives were lost. They were the people that worked day and night to create a vaccine. I look up to these people, and still do even after the pandemic was officially over.

“But those weren’t just the good people. You, who wore a mask and sanitized before and after touching things, who kept your social distance, who didn’t go out other than for necessities, you are a hero too. You kept yourself and everyone around you safe. You helped save humanity from the brink of extinction!

“So, I, seeing everything unfold, was fascinated by all of the things going on. We humans had the capacity to be both the devil and the angel. We could be selfish, but we could also change our ways to be good. Why, you ask. Why, are we so fluctuating?

“It’s simple. Education. It defines us. The ones who were bad were the uneducated, the ones who didn’t listen. So, take your education seriously, or it’ll quite literally, cost you your life. Thank you.”

And as the round of applause boomed from the crowd, I stepped off stage. Just like any other day.

Ang Zen Keen, Year 7

www.serijubli.edu.my 17

PAST EVENT

HIPPO English Language Olympiad 2021 On 26th April 2021, 35 of our students participated in the international HIPPO English Olympiad Competition. During the competition, participants were tested in their reading and listening skills as well as their daily use of English. Even though our students did not make it to the next round, we are still very proud of them!

Here are the Top Three Scorers for each category: HIPPO Little (10 years & below): Keerthikamala Kumar, Latreia Lim, Tan Rui Yao HIPPO S10 (12 years & below): Low Tai Wen, Sofie Zaidi, Josiah Yeoh HIPPO S15 (15 years & below): Ang Zen Keen, Soh Jing Huai, Dheeban Kumar

More about HIPPO English Language Olympiad： This unique Olympiad is organised by GLOBAL HIPPO ASSOCIATION. GLOBAL HIPPO ASSOCIATION is a non-profit organisation founded in 2012 with the purpose of promoting the importance of English language knowledge and bringing together children from different countries. Hippo “English Without Borders“ Olympiad is an international Olympiad which promotes English language, challenges students around the globe to compete in English language knowledge, and improves the co-operation between teachers. The 1st English language Olympiad organised by GLOBAL HIPPO ASSOCIATION was held in 2013, and has since been held every year with more than 35,000 candidates from over 40 countries around the world.

For more information, check out their website @ https://english.edu.my/hippo.html 18

PAST EVENT

Parenting Support Program To kickstart our <Parenting Support Program>, we had our very first sharing session by Tr. Lieu and Tr. Gao on 19th June to talk about “Partnering with the school to achieve effective online learning!”

They had a good time of discussion and sharing with almost 20 parents who joined that day. We hope that more parents will be able to join us next month when we roll out our next program. Stay tuned!

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PAST EVENT

Little Tauke Garage Sale Challenge (31st May - 27th June) During the Mid-Year school holidays, Seri Jubli International School partnered with Little Tauke and Ativ Academy to organise an Online Garage Sale Challenge.

The program aims to instil skills of entrepreneurship, marketing, and video creation for product promotion to the participants.

We had a total number of 19 participants from 8 different schools that participated in this program! The participating schools included SJK(C) Chong Hwa 1, SJK(C) Chong Hwa 3, SJK(C) Chong Eng, SJK(C) Paloh, SJK(C) Kahang, SJK(C) Ping Ming, SK Canossian Convent and Seri Jubli International School.

Participants went through 3 days of business training, followed by 4 days of video training, before they presented their final Sales Video which was posted on our FB Page.

As a finale, we had an FB Live Showcase on 27th June to feature their sales, and to select the winners of the challenge: Best Product, Best Content & Best Delivery! We are extremely proud of all the participants, especially Team Seri Jubli International School which was represented by Jeevika, Josiah and Rayyan! They did a fantastic job in their video presentation, and was the only team that incorporated animation in their video creation!

Here are the links to their videos: https://fb.watch/6pj7gkVr1R/ https://www.facebook.com/ SeriJubliInternational/videos/ 331855428496807/ (Starting at 29:35)

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www.serijubli.edu.my 21

PAST EVENT SJIS Carnival Day

SJIS Carnival Showcase by the Secondary Entrepreneurship Club On 28th April 2021, our secondary students organised a carnival for all the SJIS students.

The objective of the carnival was to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset and skills among our students.

To find out more, click on the links below! https://www.facebook.com/827302784336644/posts/1337231283343789/?d=n https://fb.watch/6pf9_J_8Nb/

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PAST EVENT

World Environment Day As part of the World Environment Day, Seri Mulia Sarjana International School (SMSIS) Brunei organised a special program in collaboration with Seri Jubli International School Kluang, Destiny Academy Muar and Columbia International School Japan on 3-4 June 2021.

To know more, click on the link below! https://www.facebook.com/827302784336644/posts/1357536444646606/?d=n

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Upcoming EVENTS SJIS Virtual Open Day! Interested to know about about our school but don't know how? Fret not! We will be having our Virtual Open Day on 24th July!

Come and take our virtual campus tour to experience being on our campus! Don’t forget to sign your child up for the Online Trial Classes for Science and ICT! As an added bonus, enrol your child to our school that week to get a special limited-time offer!

Don’t let this pandemic disrupt your child’s learning. Come and join us!

Sign up now via our QR code or contact us via https://bit.ly/serijubliwhatsapp (+6016-9200039).

JOHOR LEAD CONVENTION GOES VIRTUAL! Due to the pandemic, the Johor LEAD Convention (JLC), which was initially planned to be held in Seri Jubli International School this 31st July, will now be Fully Virtual!

In preparation for this, the Leaderonomics Club Team in KL will be training 32 of our student representatives from SJIS to carry out the activities and hosting the teams from other states using the Google Meet online rooms.

One of the highlights of the program, the MAD Project Presentations, will be conducted online as well with judges from SJIS who will give feedback to the groups. The people who are watching will also be given the power to vote for the best MAD Project!

Seri Jubli International School Contact Information

23A, Jalan Kluang Perdana 34, Taman Kluang Perdana, 86000 Kluang, Johor.

Phone: 017-4040039

Email: admin@serijubli.edu.my

w w w. s e r i j u b l i . e d u . m y

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