1. An Inspiring Chinese Education Talk
Jointly Reported by:
Ho Chia Chien Sr1ComB
Photography by:
Kuen Cheng Photography Club
On 8 July 2023, Kuen Cheng High School Chinese Education Week Committee organized a special event to commemorate individuals who have contributed significantly to Chinese education. One of the main highlights of this event is the Chinese Education Talk attended by Senior Middle One students from both the Commerce and Art streams, as well as Senior Middle Two and Three students. The speaker for the talk was none other than Associate Professor Dr. Chong Siou Wei, a distinguished scholar from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR).
Before the lecture commenced, a heartfelt appreciation was extended to Dr. Chong with a beautifully arranged gift basket, by Madam Hee Siaw Fuey, Head of Co-curricular Department. This thoughtful gesture set a positive tone for the entire event. The lecture, aptly themed “A Seed Planted, A Tree Grows,” began with a warm introduction by both the President and Vice President of the Committee. They eloquently highlighted the event’s aim and expressed gratitude to everyone in attendance.
Madam Hee presenting Dr. Chong with the gift basket
President and Vice President of the committee doing the introduction
Dr. Chong commenced his captivating lecture by discussing a pivotal two-decade period in Chinese education’s development, shedding light on significant milestones and transformative changes. Introducing Zhonghua Guanyin School in Penang, Malaysia, as the country’s first modern school, Dr. Chong underscored its pioneering role in shaping Chinese education. He then explored the political turmoil of the post-1920s era, where rising nationalism in China prompted interference in Chinese schools by the British colonial government.
Dr. Chong doing presentation
It was truly an enlightening talk, Dr. Chong emphasized China’s political impact on Malaysian Chinese schools, especially the May Fourth Movement. In 1937, research showed higher enrollment in Chinese schools than in English schools, highlighting their popularity and significance. Dr. Chong also addressed the somber period of Japanese occupation, which tragically claimed the lives of patriotic students and teachers, impacting the development of independent Chinese high schools.
Furthermore, Dr. Chong highlighted the importance of reports as a turning point for independent Chinese high schools. The 1946 Cheeseman Report, emphasizing English language proficiency and the preservation of the mother tongue, widely encouraged school administrators, affirming the value of their institutions.
As the lecture neared its conclusion, Dr. Chong skillfully engaged the students by displaying a captivating picture on his slides. He encouraged them to participate in a guessing game, offering small gifts as rewards for the correct answer. Round after round, some students made incorrect guesses while others correctly identified the person’s position. Ultimately, a student triumphantly provided the correct answer—Cheong Fatt Tze, the esteemed founder of Zhonghua Confucian High School.
With the mystery resolved, the lecture culminated in celebration and camaraderie. The students and Dr. Chong gathered for a group photo, capturing the memorable occasion. The shared sense of accomplishment and newfound knowledge brought the lecture to a satisfying close, leaving an indelible impression on the students and fostering a deeper appreciation for the rich history and immense contributions by our Chinese ancestors.
Group photo
2. Chinese Education Quiz
Jointly reported by:
Rachel Koh Huey Shin Sr1ScC
Foo Zhing Yee Sr2ScA
Louise Kaien Too Sr2ScC
From July 11th to 17th 2023, the Kuen Cheng Chinese Studies Society and Kuen Cheng Creative Writing Society jointly organized a Chinese Education Quiz. Purpose of the event is to let our students learn more about the Kuen Cheng High School history and the overall history of Chinese education in Malaysia. This competition can be classified into three parts: preliminaries, semi-finals, and finals.
Preliminaries
On the morning of July 11th, all students in school are seated for the preliminaries. When seated, students were provided with a set of thoughtfully crafted questions with a total mark of 20 and were asked to choose the best answer from the options given. The students with the highest score in each class were promoted to the semi-final.
Semi-finals
The junior’s contest was held on the 13th of July during the second recess in the assembly hall while the senior’s one was held on the following day of the same period at the C9 activity room. The fun part of both semi-finals was how contestants pointed out their ideal selection of answers by making the hand gestures shown on the slides. At the end of the section, committees went around to record participants’ results and only those who gained a full score were successfully entering the finals in which both juniors and seniors were going to participate in the same match on the same day.
Finals
Students who have successfully made it to the finals gathered in the hall during the second recess of July 17th. The organiser placed four chairs marked with “A”, “B”, “C” and “D” at the front, and the contestants had 30 seconds to answer by standing in front of the corresponding chairs according to their answers. For each correct answer, each contestant will acquire 1 mark represented by a piece of small rectangular paper. At the end of the competition, students were given small gifts like pens, sticky notes, notebooks, file and book divider stand for their participation.
Students heading to the chairs according to their answers
Students picking their gifts
All in all, no matter what they achieved in the competition, everyone gained valuable experience and knowledge. Participation in this Chinese education competition gave them a better understanding of the history of Kuen Cheng and the Chinese education as a whole, and at the same time improved their awareness of their own capabilities and the motivation for learning.
3. Chinese Education Week Festivity 2023 Opening Ceremony cum Visit from Taiwan Universities
Jointly reported by:
Rachel Koh Huey Shin Sr1ScC
Foo Zhing Yee Sr2ScA
Photography by:
Kuen Cheng Photography Club
To commemorate the efforts and contributions made by the Chinese ancestors in fighting for Chinese education, a series of activities were held for the 2023 Chinese Education Week. This special event was jointly organized by the Kuen Cheng Co-curricular Department, the Chinese Studies Society and the Creative Writing Society. The opening ceremony of the Chinese Education Week was held on the 12th of July 2023. We are honoured to have invited students and professors from various universities in Taiwan to celebrate this meaningful occasion together.
The opening ceremony kicked off with the majestic performance of the 24-Festive Drums Club. Up next was a speech from our Principal, Dr Chua Lee Lee urging students to be grateful for our ancestors’ hard work for Chinese Education. Without them, we would not have been able to enjoy such good educational resources we have now. Therefore, she hopes that everyone will work together hand in hand to preserve the Chinese language with gratitude and cherish it. Let’s appreciate and feel the charm of the Chinese language through more upcoming activities.
24-Festive Drums performance
The upcoming event is the school’s choir performance. With a group of 45 students, the song titled “领航” was performed along with Teacher Hee Siaw Fuey’s impressive piano skills and beat accompaniment from one of the 24-Festive Drums Club members. The performance indeed earnt a round of big applause from the audience.
Madam Hee playing the piano
Next, students from different Taiwan Universities formed a group and started their performance on the characteristical songs of each Taiwan’s decade on stage. These songs included Teresa Teng’s “我只在乎你”, Aaron Kwok’s “对你爱不完”, Hip Hop group Nine One One’s “痴情玫瑰花” and more. At last, the students sang in a group to Fish Leong’s “小手拉大手” which ended their performance beautifully.
Performance by students from different Taiwan Universities
The last performance is a collaboration among three clubs by Kuen Cheng School Choir, the Calligraphy Club and the Chinese Folk Dance Club. The choir sang to Malaysian singer Chow Kam Leong’s “一颗种子” which is the theme song of this year’s Chinese Education Week while the dancers performed gracefully along to the music. In the end, a long paper inked “一颗种子 一株树”, which was fascinatingly written by a student representative from the Calligraphy Club, was presented to the audience from in front of the stage.
Chinese Folk Dance Club dancing to the Chinese Education week theme song, “一颗种子”
A student representative from the Chinese Calligraphy Club writing “一颗种子 一株树”
A group photo was taken to record this memorable event of the day. While students returned to their classes when the performances came to an end, performers and the event committees headed to the canteen to have their lunch after all of their hard work paid off meaningfully.
Group photo
4. Hunting for Treasures
Jointly reported by:
Chok Jia Yien Jr3S(2)
Leong Jomin Jr3S(2)
Photography by:
Kuen Cheng Photography Club
In order for students to get a better understanding of the history of Chinese education in Malaysia as well as the history of Kuen Cheng, the Academic Department and the Chinese Studies Society jointly held a Chinese Education Week from 10 July 2023.
Among the various activities and events, there was a treasure-hunt where students were handed a piece of paper filled with quizzes and were asked to complete them. The activity was held near to the canteen’s elevator lobby from the 10th of July to the 14th of July.
Picture of the information boards
Students were required to answer the questions listed on the paper by heading to the information boards where the answers were given. The information board contained the history of Kuen Cheng High School and Chinese education. How it all started, the progress, and the hardships that the pioneer educators had to face.
Once students were done with the quiz, they were asked to pass it up to the committee members for marking, and if the students managed to get all of the questions correct, a prize of their choice would be given to them.
Picture of the information boards