More students see Maxis eKelas HIP competition benefits

KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 (Bernama) -- The Maxis eKelas HIP (Highly Immersive Programme) StoryFest English Competition, an annual campaign under Maxis’ flagship community programme, saw a positive response from students, with targeted engagement to encourage more participation.

Maxis Berhad said for the 2022 campaign, Maxis eKelas brought the competition directly to over 6,000 students, via physical roadshows and storytelling workshops, at over 30 schools.

“Submissions for this term increased by over 50 per cent in comparison to the previous year’s campaign. Students sent in their original works in four categories - public speaking, poem recitation, storytelling and essay writing,” it said in a statement today.

A total of 60 winners from the categories were rewarded with prizes, including smartphones, book vouchers, and gift boxes filled with exclusive eKelas merchandise.

HIP was introduced by the Ministry of Education (MOE) in 2016 to improve the English proficiency of students, by increasing their exposure to the language through a variety of activities in and out of the classroom.

Since 2019, eKelas has been recognised by MOE under its HIP initiative, where eKelas students of Year 4 and Form 5 who participate in the competition can collect co-curricular marks, which are then included in their school certificates.

MOE’s Sports, Co-curricular and Arts Division principal assistant director, Dr Faizulizami Osmin, in the same statement, said that HIP was an important programme aimed at creating a rich English language learning environment in schools.

“We are pleased to see Maxis’ continued support for the HIP through its eKelas programme, as well as increased participation. Well done to all the winners! I hope their achievements will inspire even more students to join the competition and take advantage of all the learning opportunities,” she said.

Meanwhile, Maxis chief corporate affairs officer Mariam Bevi Batcha said the significant increase in submissions was highly encouraging, and it has become a popular competition for the fifth year running.

“We look forward to more students joining Maxis eKelas, so that they can benefit not just from digital learning content daily, but also from these exciting campaigns,” she added.

eKelas is Maxis’ flagship community programme, which aims to improve the academic performance of students in rural communities.

For more information on eKelas, visit www.ekelas.com.my.

-- BERNAMA