Abang Mat Ali (second left) presents the awards at the event in state Education Department headquarters near Jalan Diplomatik in Kuching. — Photo by Muhammad Rais Sanusi
KUCHING: SMK Sungai Tapang has been recognised as the first ‘International Baccalaureate (IB) World School’ in Malaysia.
The international accreditation was awarded to the school recently, said state Education Department deputy director Abang Mat Ali Abang Masagus.
According to him, the IB title offers a continuum of international education where it encourages both personal and academic achievement, challenging students to excel not only in their studies but also their personal development.
“Such achievement is something to be proud of not just by the school, but also the state Education Department and the country as a whole.
“It is a benchmark for others too, in that a regular school can achieve something that everyone can be proud of,” he said in his remarks during an excellence service awards ceremony at the state Education Department headquarters near Jalan Diplomatik here yesterday.
Abang Mat Ali pointed out that other schools should emulate SMK Sungai Tapang’s achievement, adding that such feat was achievable as long as the school management, students and also parents worked as a team towards producing quality results.
On the event yesterday, he said those in the education field, particularly the teachers, must understand the vision for national education that would enable them to translate it into visible
results.
“We want productivity by those in the education system. At the same time, everyone needs to be innovative when it comes to achieving results. This is vital as fresh ideas are always welcomed.
“In producing quality human capital, the responsibility lies heavily on the teachers and therefore, competency and quality in this line of work is a must,” he added.
At the ceremony, Abang Mat Ali presented 69 individuals with excellence service awards, and another 16 with excellence awards slated for the education technology department.