KUALA KUBU BHARU: The journey to many of Sarawak’s rural schools is rarely straightforward. Some villages have patchy internet coverage. Others lie far from the bustle of Kuching, where opportunities can be harder to come by.
For many children growing up in locations such as Singai, Stass, Skibang and Muara Ahi, the next few days could be their first introduction to leadership, public speaking and critical thinking.
This is done not through textbooks but via games, conversations – and a group of teens who have travelled across the South China Sea to meet them.
“It’s not just about teaching skills,” said 19-year-old Debre Kok, president of Kolej Yayasan UEM’s Initiative Club.
“We want them to know they’re capable – capable of learning these skills, developing them, and eventually pursuing meaningful careers. We want them to know that path is open to them.”
From tomorrow to Wednesday, Kok and 16 fellow volunteers will travel across five rural districts in the state, visiting eight schools and learning centres in collaboration with Yayasan LaSallian Kuching.
Together, they hope to reach more than 320 children through workshops on leadership, teamwork, creativity, communication and other essential 21st-century skills.
When Kok’s teacher adviser suggested organising an outreach programme, she immediately thought of her home state.
“This is actually my first project as president. I might be a little biased because I’m from Sarawak, but that also means I know what’s happening there,” she said.
She points to her years spent volunteering after SPM, where she saw first-hand how many children in rural communities had little exposure to skills valued in school and later in the workplace.
“Statistically, Sabah and Sarawak have consistently been competing for the last place on the education index. I’ve met children who simply haven’t had access to these kinds of opportunities. That’s why we chose to go there,” she said.
Instead of formal lectures, the team has designed the programme around hands-on activities. Children will build spaghetti towers, solve team challenges, create imaginary inventions, debate ideas and practise speaking in front of their peers – all while developing confidence, communication and problem-solving skills.
Indeed, Kok believes confidence is the foundation on which everything else is built.
“In many of these communities, children grow up accepting that this is simply their fate. Our outreach is about telling them, ‘You can do this.’ We’re showing them how, and we’re giving them people who believe in them.”
This message extends to the volunteers themselves. Most are 18 and 19 years old, many from peninsular Malaysia, and this will be their first time spending days travelling through rural Sarawak.
“The message we’re sending our volunteers is that everyone has something to contribute, and what you have can potentially change someone’s life,” Kok said.
“We also want them to see that not everyone grows up with the same opportunities they do.”
It’s a lesson the Initiative Club has already seen unfold closer to home. For years, members have travelled twice a week to Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (T) Kerling in Selangor to tutor pupils in literacy and numeracy.
One former beneficiary, Shaanthosh Kumar, credits the club’s volunteers with helping change the course of his life.
“They never made us feel like charity cases. They made us feel valued, capable and worthy of dreaming bigger,” he said.
“Their commitment never faded, and because of that, our lives changed.”
Today, the 20-year-old is pursuing a diploma after becoming the first child from Rumah MyKita Kerling to complete SPM and continue to higher education.
For Kok, that’s exactly the kind of impact she hopes the Sarawak outreach will have.
“It might only be three days for us, but if one child leaves believing they’re capable of more than they thought, that’s something they’ll carry with them long after we leave.”
