KOTA KINABALU: More schools in Sabah are expected to benefit from the Reading Hunt programme to improve pupils’ English proficiency.

The programme initiated by Soroptimist International Kota Kinabalu (SIKK) with the cooperation of the Sabah Education Department (JPS) and Sabah Library should see 14 schools in seven districts taking part next year.

The Reading Hunt programme is a pilot project sponsored by the Financial Industry Collective Outreach (Finco) and was conducted at SK Rampayan, Menggatal here.

“Finco is in the midst of developing modules to expand the programme to more schools next year.

The programme provides teachers with the resources to make reading in English a fun activity.

It is hoped that through the programme, the children will widen their engagement with English reading materials.

The year-long programme ran during English class and culminated in three Reading Hunt events.

A total of 43 Year Four pupils from SK Rampayan participated in the pilot project, while 19 others took part in an English activity run by the state library concurrently.

Volunteers from AmBank, Prudential, Maybank and SIKK assisted the teachers in running the activities.

The Reading Hunt programme was developed by the English teachers of SK Rampayan with support from SIKK volunteers, namely Hanaa Abdullah and Audrey Fung.

Finco is an integrated initiative by financial institutions to carry out their corporate social responsibility.

It was set up by Bank Negara Malaysia to focus on implementing programmes to boost students’ command of English especially those from underprivileged backgrounds.

Among those present at the last Reading Hunt event in the school were Sabah Education Department principal assistant director Mohd Fadzli Abdul Rozan, Finco Steering Committee deputy chairman Syed Anuar Syed Ali, SK Rampayan headmistress Masnah Bidin and SIKK president-elect Francine Rajah.

Media source: The Star Online, Metro News
https://www.thestar.com.my/metro/metro-news/2017/11/15/programme-to-improve-pupils-proficiency-in-english/