LOVE FOR SCHOOL (Bruas Estate Tamil School )
I started teaching at the age of twenty. My first school was a Rural School which can be best described as an isolated school which did not have the basic facilities such as electricity, proper toilet and bathroom.
It was built somewhere in the nineteen fifties and was a very small building which is less than 500 square meter length and width. It was located on a small hill beside one of the old highways in my state. It can be best described as the hidden part which has been dominated by the Estate Indians and The Village Malays. This small town is an agricultural area and until today the beauty of its nature still preserved and not influenced by the modern life style.
The isolation of this school from the out side world never stoped it from getting any aid or help. The plus point about the schools location which was near to the highway or main road made it vissible to the vehicles that pass by the road. This was agood sign those early years where this school was chosen as one of the school to get the World banks distribution of new books and milk bags every two months. Milk bags as heavy as 10 kgs usually 2 or three bags were left on the corridor when ever these vans pass by the Road. The childrens story books by Tolstoy and Charles Dickens were distributed to this school for the minimum number of learners. Those poor children who studied here were fed daily a glass of milk and biscuits.
At this place when I stayed and taught, I met an Irish lady with two children of mixed marriage, I was surprised to meet a western woman who dressed like a Chinese and her complexion had toned like a Chinese. I asked her, if she is a foreigner, and she replied “yes” and said she is from Ireland and living in that “cowboy town” with her husband and his family. I asked her how she finds living in that small town. Her answer was “rotten”. I told her she will be used to the situation and all she needs only matter of time.
Then I turned to my friend who is a local girl and asked her about the Irish woman, and she told me that , the Irish woman married to the sawmill owner’s son who had studied in Ireland and upon his return he brought his wife.
Back to my schools story,it was a unique School which consist of well disciplined children and who looked tidy always. Even though that school was one of the smallest school with the minimum number of students yet it was able to produce the results equal to bigger Schools.
The Principle was a highly spirited man with values in life, so he had done his best by training the little kids by giving them responsibilities . It was quite common there, that the teachers there attend in service courses at the same time, So most of the time only the principle would be available in the school and everyone was under his control from teaching , administration and leisure.
It was one of the cleanest school I had ever taught. At certain times there were no teachers, because everyone including the principle attended meetings and courses. So the supervisors were The senior students, I mean The standard six students played the role of teachers, such as collecting letters from the Postman, marking students attendance, teaching the lower classes and looking after the cleanliness of the school. They all had been trained like soldiers, each and everyone were given responsibilities, few students were in charge of watering the plants, few were appointed to burn the rubbish which had been swept by the girls.
Our teaching hours were enjoyable and quality one . Since we were only three of us, My self, Guna and Darusman. We three were a bunch of buddies who used to be together always. I mean during our school hours. We taught for long hours from morning seven thirty till evening four thirty.
We hardly had time for leisure and the working days were really hard. We stayed back in the school during lunch hours because there were no food stalls or shops available. The kids brought food from their home prepared by their mothers. The pure solid and not preserved food. Those were the best food I tasted during those years. Besides that once in a while before we leave for our home, few children brought for us packed vegetables which were freshly plucked from their garden, such as beans, aubergines and okras.
Their love was unconditional and pure .We teachers played the role of their guides and counselors. So we were like their leaders and they loved us very much. One of my girl brought her childhood nursery photo and asked me to keep it. Her name is Kaliammah and I was told that she was given to her grand parents since her birth and her parents lived somewhere far away.
When we celebrated teacher’s day, it was a feast day. I suggested to the other teachers that we cook for the students in the school and everyone agreed with my suggestion. So on that day early morning Darusman The Malay Teacher went to the market and bought everything for the preparation of different types of noodles.
The expenses we divided into four. We fried” pastas”, ”Kuehteow”, and “Beehoon” The rice noodle. I was the Chef and Darusman was my assistant. He advised me to add all the flavours. He said a meal should consist, sweet, savor, salt, Chillies and bitter . This Teacher had explored food, he was an expert of food and flavours.Even though it happened more than 25 years ago, but the sweet memories of the kids, the School and my friends' still very fresh till today. What to say, about my feelings of being with the most wonderful human beings who were very loving and caring during my days in that school.I hope all my friends and students still remember me till today.
It was built somewhere in the nineteen fifties and was a very small building which is less than 500 square meter length and width. It was located on a small hill beside one of the old highways in my state. It can be best described as the hidden part which has been dominated by the Estate Indians and The Village Malays. This small town is an agricultural area and until today the beauty of its nature still preserved and not influenced by the modern life style.
The isolation of this school from the out side world never stoped it from getting any aid or help. The plus point about the schools location which was near to the highway or main road made it vissible to the vehicles that pass by the road. This was agood sign those early years where this school was chosen as one of the school to get the World banks distribution of new books and milk bags every two months. Milk bags as heavy as 10 kgs usually 2 or three bags were left on the corridor when ever these vans pass by the Road. The childrens story books by Tolstoy and Charles Dickens were distributed to this school for the minimum number of learners. Those poor children who studied here were fed daily a glass of milk and biscuits.
At this place when I stayed and taught, I met an Irish lady with two children of mixed marriage, I was surprised to meet a western woman who dressed like a Chinese and her complexion had toned like a Chinese. I asked her, if she is a foreigner, and she replied “yes” and said she is from Ireland and living in that “cowboy town” with her husband and his family. I asked her how she finds living in that small town. Her answer was “rotten”. I told her she will be used to the situation and all she needs only matter of time.
Then I turned to my friend who is a local girl and asked her about the Irish woman, and she told me that , the Irish woman married to the sawmill owner’s son who had studied in Ireland and upon his return he brought his wife.
Back to my schools story,it was a unique School which consist of well disciplined children and who looked tidy always. Even though that school was one of the smallest school with the minimum number of students yet it was able to produce the results equal to bigger Schools.
The Principle was a highly spirited man with values in life, so he had done his best by training the little kids by giving them responsibilities . It was quite common there, that the teachers there attend in service courses at the same time, So most of the time only the principle would be available in the school and everyone was under his control from teaching , administration and leisure.
It was one of the cleanest school I had ever taught. At certain times there were no teachers, because everyone including the principle attended meetings and courses. So the supervisors were The senior students, I mean The standard six students played the role of teachers, such as collecting letters from the Postman, marking students attendance, teaching the lower classes and looking after the cleanliness of the school. They all had been trained like soldiers, each and everyone were given responsibilities, few students were in charge of watering the plants, few were appointed to burn the rubbish which had been swept by the girls.
Our teaching hours were enjoyable and quality one . Since we were only three of us, My self, Guna and Darusman. We three were a bunch of buddies who used to be together always. I mean during our school hours. We taught for long hours from morning seven thirty till evening four thirty.
We hardly had time for leisure and the working days were really hard. We stayed back in the school during lunch hours because there were no food stalls or shops available. The kids brought food from their home prepared by their mothers. The pure solid and not preserved food. Those were the best food I tasted during those years. Besides that once in a while before we leave for our home, few children brought for us packed vegetables which were freshly plucked from their garden, such as beans, aubergines and okras.
Their love was unconditional and pure .We teachers played the role of their guides and counselors. So we were like their leaders and they loved us very much. One of my girl brought her childhood nursery photo and asked me to keep it. Her name is Kaliammah and I was told that she was given to her grand parents since her birth and her parents lived somewhere far away.
When we celebrated teacher’s day, it was a feast day. I suggested to the other teachers that we cook for the students in the school and everyone agreed with my suggestion. So on that day early morning Darusman The Malay Teacher went to the market and bought everything for the preparation of different types of noodles.
The expenses we divided into four. We fried” pastas”, ”Kuehteow”, and “Beehoon” The rice noodle. I was the Chef and Darusman was my assistant. He advised me to add all the flavours. He said a meal should consist, sweet, savor, salt, Chillies and bitter . This Teacher had explored food, he was an expert of food and flavours.Even though it happened more than 25 years ago, but the sweet memories of the kids, the School and my friends' still very fresh till today. What to say, about my feelings of being with the most wonderful human beings who were very loving and caring during my days in that school.I hope all my friends and students still remember me till today.
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