Remote School Becomes A Beacon Of Hope For Orang Asli Children Through Anak Kita Programme

KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 (Bernama) -- Tucked away from the bustle of the city, deep within the dense forests and clear waters of Tasik Banding, stands a school that serves as a beacon of hope for Jahai Orang Asli children in the remote villages of the Royal Belum rainforest, Gerik, Perak.

Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Sungai Tiang, the only school in the area, serves 125 students from Year One to Year Six and is accessible only by a nearly two-hour boat ride across the lake and through the jungle.

Despite the challenging terrain, the classrooms echo with the voices of Orang Asli children, who typically communicate in their native tongue but are now learning to pronounce syllables and words in the national language and beginning to understand basic numbers.

Every word spoken and spelled out by these young learners reflects their unwavering determination to learn, despite limited resources, a tenacity now given new momentum with their school’s selection as one of 104 in Perak to join the Anak Kita programme.

The school’s headmaster, Mohammad Rezal Shuib, said the programme is a collaboration with Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, involving the placement of Guru Bitara (Master Teachers) from the local community to co-teach with remedial teachers, helping to ensure more effective communication and engagement with the students.

He said Orang Asli students face significant educational challenges compared to mainstream students due to their different cultural and language backgrounds, as well as geographic, socioeconomic and environmental factors that shape their overall learning experience.

“The strength of the Anak Kita programme lies in its ability to adapt to local challenges, making it a more inclusive and effective educational initiative.

“At SK Sungai Tiang, for instance, most students are from the Jahai tribe who speak their mother tongue. Having a Guru Bitara, who understands the local culture and language, makes learning smoother and more effective,” he told Bernama.

Launched on Sept 27, 2024, the programme is a national education reform initiative under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The initiative is led by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education, in collaboration with Unit Pantau MADANI (UPM), Yayasan Hasanah, three public universities and seven civil society organisations, with UPM overseeing its implementation until December this year.

Mohammad Rezal said the remedial classes have yielded positive results, although students progress at different rates depending on their abilities.

“For example, some students could previously only write single letters like ‘A,’ but now they’re able to combine them into syllables such as ‘K-A’ and spell simple words like bola (ball), even if they’re not yet fluent.

“When they see letters like ‘L’ and ‘A,’ they can now identify the corresponding sounds, which in itself is a significant achievement. Their reading may still be slow, but we can see clear progress,” he said.

Education deputy director-general (Policy and Curriculum Sector) Dr Rusmini Ku Ahmad said the programme was designed to address three key post-pandemic education challenges: mastery of the 3M skills (reading, writing, counting), SPM performance and student dropout rates.

She said the 3M component currently supports 53,252 students across 1,288 primary schools, while the SPM programme provides academic assistance, particularly in core subjects such as Bahasa Melayu, History, and Mathematics, to 10,119 students from 327 schools in the 2024 cohort, and 20,000 students from 905 schools in the 2025 cohort.

The Dropout Student programme is a targeted initiative aimed at reintegrating at least 500 out-of-school students into the education system through focused support, including transportation, school supplies, food vouchers, counselling and continuous support. 

Meanwhile, UPM director-general Mohd Khalid Mohamed Latiff said the 3M component has benefited over 53,200 students across Perak, Kedah, Kelantan, Johor, Selangor, Sabah and Sarawak, with marked improvements in literacy and numeracy since its rollout earlier this year.

Yayasan Hasanah Education Advocacy senior manager Aeti Abdullah noted that the programme’s impact at SK Sungai Tiang lies in its ability to adapt to the unique needs of each school.

“It doesn’t rely on a one-size-fits-all model. Its success is best reflected in the voices of the students, the commitment of school leaders and the dedication of educators who consistently go above and beyond.

“The next step is to scale, support, and sustain these efforts nationwide. What’s working at SK Sungai Tiang shouldn’t be an exception; it should become a model for systemic change across the country,” she said.

She added that students attend two remedial classes each week, one each for Bahasa Melayu and Mathematics, using the specially developed RIMBA Module designed for remedial learners.

The classes are co-taught by a remedial teacher and a Guru Bitara, with student progress closely tracked through the MYSkor system.

-- BERNAMA