Jocelyn Tan is a QUT staff. She works in the International Student Services Office. She is a former Malaysian National. Her role in the team was very significant. Her good knowledge of ICT and her fluency in Bhasa Malaysia made her a real asset to her team.  Here Jocelyn is reflecting on her experiences…

I was involved in the Malaysia STOMP/ SEE Project as an accompanying staff member from QUT. I was very excited to be given this opportunity and was even more excited to be involved in one of the teaching groups.

My year 3 team with our students (Photo: Ibnu Isa)

My group consist of Georgia Catherine and Vicky Jacobs from QUT, and Lorna Minin, Aisamuddin Ahmad, Fatin Umira, Amalina Ferdaus, and Nurlina Gani from UPM. We taught in the Year 3 group and the aim was to introduce ICT through role play and drama. To do this, we incorporated a story from their English text book and replaced the characters with Australian animals. We encouraged the Year 3 students to create a similar story and use masks in their role play. The aim of the week lesson was for them to be able to create a digital story through role play.

Assisting my students with their actvitity

I think one of the successes was how quickly the Year 3 students grasped and learned ICT. I was impressed at how quickly they learned to navigate and use the laptop to create their digital story through ’One Stop’, even though some of them have never used a laptop before. The lessons planned for the week was taught in the first few days and Georgia our group teacher had to be creative and come up with more lesson plans.

Class 3 students showing off their finished masks

One of the main challenges I found was the language. Being able to converse in Bahasa Malaysia, I found myself speaking mostly in Malay to the Year 3 students as they had trouble understanding me in English. Some of the students were too shy to response in English even though they may understand some of the questions asked.

Congratulating my students for a job well done!

Coming from Malaysia myself, I was very excited to share some of my culture and experiences with the QUT students. One highlight of this trip was how well the QUT students have embraced the Malaysian culture and overcame the challenges faced. The weather, concerns of mosquitoes, and the unfamiliar food were all bravely embraced by the QUT students, and everyone was in good spirits. I felt most moved by the hospitality provided by the UPM students and the teachers at SK Temai, as they have truly gone out of their way to make our stay comfortable. I have gained many new experiences from this trip and found that I have learned many things from our counterparts in Malaysia.