KUALA LUMPUR: The third term of the 2021/2022 school session for 12 states in Group B kicked off with students generally excited to attend face-to-face classes for the first time in months.
Parents said unlike online classes, face-to-face schooling allowed students to interact with their friends and teachers and offered a more conducive environment for learning and development.
The schools in Group B are from all the three federal territories, Melaka, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Penang, Sabah, Sarawak and Selangor.
A check at SMK Maxwell here found that parents were thankful seeing their children attend school physically after going through a tough period of studying from home.
Mathibathanan Ramakrishnan, 57, said it was far more beneficial for students to attend classes in person, especially in terms of their mental health.
“In school, my son can socialise with his friends and teachers. The learning process is also more efficient because it’s easier to ask questions. To me, online classes still have many problems,” he told Bernama yesterday.
SMK Maxwell, which was affected by the floods, reopened after it was cleaned up by parents who are also alumni of the school.
In SELANGOR, Zainal Sadari, 38, said his twin daughters, Ariana Nur Iman Tihani and Althia Nur Iman Tihani, were very excited to attend pre-school at SK Meru in Klang yesterday morning as they had not met their friends for a long time.
In PERAK, parents were seen sending their children to SK Seri Ampang in Ipoh using the drive-through concept introduced by the school as part of Covid-19 prevention measures.
In PERLIS, students were also in high spirits to clock in for the new term.
A Year Five pupil of SJK Tamil Kangar, K. Jeyshrini, said she was glad to be able to return to school.
Noor Damia Mahamad Noor, a Year One pupil of SK Putra, Kangar, said she did not sleep well last night because she couldn’t wait to come to school in the morning.
In MELAKA, state Education and Technology Committee chairman Datuk Rais Yasin said 85,136 pupils from primary schools and 65,219 students from secondary schools began the new term on Monday.
He said there were 71 students from primary and secondary schools still taking shelter at three flood relief centres (PPS) in Jasin.
In Negri Sembilan, a student of SMK Tuanku Abdul Rahman in Gemas, Puteri Nur Hidayatul Akma Mohd Khairi, 16, showed great enthusiasm although she was not dressed in her school uniform.
Puteri Nur Hidayatul turned up in a long-sleeved T-shirt, sports pants and slippers because her uniform and other school equipment were damaged in the floods which hit Taman Sungai Gemas.
In Pahang, 34 schools including 10 in Pekan district could not yet begin the new school term yesterday as they were still flooded.
In Kota Kinabalu, Sabah education director Datuk Dr Mistirine Radin said 536,395 students started the new term yesterday, involving 1,075 primary and 218 secondary schools.