With the aim to upgrade the teaching skill of the Than Hsiang group of kindergarten teachers, Than Hsiang Kindergarten, Penang organized a two-day workshop on the 30th & 31st Dec. 2009.

The first day began with the MELS ENGLISH TRAINING COURSE whereby the teachers were briefed on the common mistakes faced in the English pronunciation. It was a lively discussion with the lecturer’s great sense of humor, which drew enthusiastic response from the teachers.
Afternoon was scheduled for fun and relaxation. The singing session was joined by the Than Hsiang youth group, who displayed their vocal talent and finger play and physical movement. In coordination with the recently introduced “Ten Good Deeds ‘ method of teaching, a newly composed song, ‘Ten Good Deeds of Merits and Wisdom ‘, made its debut along with other popular nursery songs such as “ Mummy’s Joy ” and “ Counting of Inhalation and Exhalation ”. It is hope that the children will learn to enjoy the songs.

The second day saw the speakers from the Education Department giving talks on the important aspects of pre-school education and the activities suitable for kindergarten children using the thematic approach. The speakers urged teachers to do away with the tradition method of teaching with lots of written work. They demonstrated interesting activities to be carried out in classroom teaching. The outcomes of the lessons have to cover the physical, intellectual, cognitive, social and emotional, creativity and spiritual development of the children. The teachers found the lectures of the experienced educators most beneficial.

The final and main programme of the training was the presentation by teachers of what they had assimilated from the day’s training. The teachers drew lots to form groups of 5. Two of which present the lessons in Bahasa Malaysia while the rest in English. Each simulation grouping focused on the theme assigned. Further, each group needed to list in details its theme of the exercise, time required, objectives, content, learning methods, learning materials, teaching procedures etc.

After lunch and a short rest, each group began their preparation by dividing works among themselves. Generally, the scope of works included preparing teaching tools, designing workbooks, wall posters and etc. After completion of preparation each group then took their turn to present their work.

When each group completed their teaching simulation, the lecturers would then evaluate on the group’s performance with reference to the list stated in their plan. Besides criticism on the weakness, credits were given where they were due.

The presentations provide an opportunity for the teachers to discover various different methods of teaching. The exercise, not only provide an interesting experience, it also help us to identify our shortcomings and enable us to take remedial actions.

After attending the workshop, the teachers strongly felt that with the new knowledge, they would definitely be able to perform better in the field of education.