Left to right: FINCO Chief Executive Officer, Clare Walker; CIMB Group Head of Corporate Responsibility, Rositah Mariam Sulaiman; Daily School Management Division (BPSH) Deputy Director of Learning Management Sector, Dr. Hajah Rahimah binti Adam; ELTC Head of Department Documentation and Publication, Dr. Sheila Adelina Ramasamy; Kelantan State Education Department English Language Officer, Hj. Mohd Pathiuddin Bin Mat Zain; Terengganu State Education Department English Language Officer, Fauzan Izzati Binti Roselan.
Marang, 2 July 2024: The Financial Industry Collective Outreach (FINCO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education recently launched the HIP-FINCO Reads Interactive Reading Corner (IRC) Toolkit as a resource under the ministry’s Highly Immersive Programme (HIP). This initiative provides accessible and engaging reading opportunities with practical ideas and resources for school teachers to use in their classrooms.
The toolkit, which is now available on the FINCO website, provides comprehensive guidance on establishing IRCs, ideas for diverse reading activities which promote critical reading skills, and customised resources for students of varying English proficiency levels. It also includes templates for communication with stakeholders to garner support for establishing reading corners.
“The ability to communicate effectively in English and to think critically is a prerequisite for today’s young people to thrive in an increasingly competitive and globalised job market. Under the Highly Immersive Programme, schools are encouraged to provide opportunities for students to practise English outside the classroom in addition to their timetabled classes,” said FINCO’s Chief Executive Officer, Clare Walker, at the HIP-FINCO Reads: IRC Toolkit Launch event held in Sektor Sumber Teknologi Pendidikan Terengganu.
Commenting on the initiative, FINCO Chairman, Tan Sri Azman Hashim said, “Over the past six years, FINCO’s English language programmes have provided teacher training, resources and IRCs to encourage students to improve their English through reading. The financial industry has been working closely with FINCO to send volunteers to schools for various activities, which help expose students to the English language, and develop their language proficiency.”
As part of the launch event, FINCO also celebrated the expansion of the HIP-FINCO Reads IRC initiative to 200 new schools in 2024 and welcomed its first 50 schools from Kelantan and Terengganu, which was enabled through the sponsorship by CIMB Foundation.
“CIMB Foundation is pleased to collaborate with FINCO for the expansion of the HIP-FINCO Reads IRC programme, a well-rounded initiative that aligns closely with one of our core pillars which is Education. We believe this programme is pivotal in cultivating the love for reading among students by providing them with the necessary resources, while guiding teachers in their efforts to increase their students’ engagement in reading activities. Reading has the transformative power to inspire young minds, paving the way for both academic and personal success. We hope these students will grow to become avid readers, imbued with curiosity about the world and the opportunities that await them,” said Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Foundation, Ahmad Shahriman Mohd Shariff.
Becoming proficient in English at a young age helps students to develop cognitive, academic, and social skills that are foundational for their future success. One effective way to promote English proficiency is through reading. However, many children who do not grow up in English-speaking environments seldom have the opportunity to practise English outside of the classroom.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022 findings, which saw a drop in the reading scores, have further highlighted the need for greater development of strategies to promote reading amongst students to not only improve proficiency in the English language but also advance critical thinking skills.
Since its inception in 2017, FINCO has collaborated with the Ministry of Education’s English Language Teaching Centre (ELTC) to train nearly 5,000 teachers and establish 615 IRCs in selected primary schools with high intakes of students from lower-income communities.
Under the IRC initiative, training provides strategies which enable teachers to effectively measure progress in students’ reading proficiency, supporting a more informed and data-driven approach to pedagogy, contributing to professional development for educators and improved educational outcomes for their students.
“Having a comfortable reading space that students love can influence them to spend more time reading in a cosy corner. Along with storytelling activities, I am sure the students can develop their vocabulary and literacy skills,” said Sriyanahida Binti Yahaya, an English teacher at SK Abdul Hadi, Kelantan.
Download the toolkit at: https://bit.ly/IRCToolkit
