ECER'S EMPOWER KEMAMAN AIMS 100% PASSES RATE FOR 160 UPSR PARTICIPANTS
KEMAMAN, July 14: About 160 Year 6 pupils from five schools in Kemaman took part in a special preparation camp for the upcoming Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) examination, as part of the East Coast Economic Region (ECER)'s empower Kemaman initiative.
Known as Full Dress Rehearsal Camp, the two-day, one-night event was organised by the East Coast Economic Region Development Council (ECERDC) to assist the pupils in achieving 100 per cent passes in UPSR and improve their overall academic academic achievement.
Chosen among students with below-average academic performance, the participants were exposed to effective answering techniques as well as tips on common mistakes to avoid as shared by experienced lecturers, teachers and UPSR examiners.
ECERDC Chief Executive Officer Dato' Jebasingam Issace John said the camp is part of empower Kemaman's Academic Skills Training initiative which aims to improve the academic performance of students in ECER, particularly those who are taking the UPSR, Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR) and Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).
"This programme is specially tailored to cater to the needs of empower Kemaman participants, most of whom were academically weak and come from poor families. We are confident that this camp will serve as a tremendous boost for them to excel in the upcoming examination in September, and ultimately lead to better academic opportunities for them in the future," said Dato' Issace.
He added that all the 400 students from Kemaman who participated in empower's Academic Skills Training Programme in 2011 successfully achieved 100% passes in their respective UPSR, PMR and SPM examinations. Of this figure, 39 students scored straight A's in their UPSR examination.
Meanwhile, the Full Dress Rehearsal Camp was held at the Cheneh Recreation and Resort, Bandar Cheneh Baru in Kemaman. The event was officiated by Ayer Putih ADUN, Y.B. Tuan Haji Wan Abdul Hakim bin Wan Mokhtar here today.
The camp involved sessions for Mathematics, English, Bahasa Melayu and Science which make up the core subjects for the UPSR examination. There were also interactive and challenging activities designed to boost the participants' alertness and attentiveness.
The participating students are from five schools in Kemaman namely, SK Kampung Baru Kerteh, SK Kijal, SK Chukai, SK Ayer Puteh and SJK(C) Kuala Kemaman.
Kemaman is the second venue to host the preparation camp, following a similar camp held earlier in Jeli, Kelantan. The UPSR camp will be held at six other empower locations, namely, Bachok in Kelantan, as well as Bentong, Temerloh, Lipis, Raub and Cameron Highlands in Pahang.
The empower programme was first introduced by ECERDC in Bentong in March 2010 as a part of its effort to develop the human capital within ECER. Since then, it has been expanded to eight districts in three ECER states.
On an overall basis, ECER's empower programme currently involves 9,586 participants, consisting of 5,586 students under the Academic Skill Training Programme and 4,000 adults under the Skills and Entrepreneurship Training Programme.
At present, there are 1,300 empower Kemaman participants, comprising 800 students under the Academic Skills Training programme, as well as 500 adults under the Skills and Entrepreneurship Training programme which was introduced since March 2011.
The courses offered under empower Kemaman's Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Training includes Make-up & Grooming, Bakery, Sewing & Fashion Design, Hairstyling, and Wiring and Piping Installation, among others.
