Inspiring feat as woman finally completes her STPM journey
DESPITE facing learning difficulties and with no prior formal lessons in the language, a woman in Sibu, Sarawak, attained a B- in the Chinese Language subject in the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) 2024, China Press reported.
Huang Yu Yin, who is a slow learner, managed to complete her journey in getting her STPM qualification despite it taking her several years to do so.
According to one of Huang's teachers, the subject is challenging as it requires candidates to have knowledge of classical and contemporary literature.
Candidates are also required to demonstrate their logical skills and provide an analysis.
The teacher commended Huang, saying that she is a keen and diligent student.
To her teachers, young people like Huang are the reason they joined the teaching profession.
'She started learning Chinese from scratch. This meant she had to read hundreds of literature texts from the pre-Qin dynasty period up to the modern era.
'Not only that, but she was required to write essays of more than 1,000 words on the subject,' the teacher said.
According to her mother, Zhan Shu Quan, Huang was required to have a passing grade in the SPM Chinese Language exam before she was allowed to take the subject in Form Six.
As such, Zhan arranged for her daughter, who had never attended Chinese classes, to go for a two-month intensive course during the Movement Control Order a few years ago.
'I had never imagined that learning the Chinese language could be so fun,' Huang said.
The course allowed her to sit for the Chinese Language SPM exam as a private candidate.
She passed and successfully enrolled in Form Six.
However, her journey was not smooth sailing as she was diagnosed with depression due to stress from her Form Six studies.
Despite the challenges, Huang was determined to persevere.
Her mother helped her arrange for tuition, besides getting information on university enrolment requirements. Huang has now applied for a Bachelor of Education course with the hope of becoming a Chinese Language teacher one day.
For those keen on a similar career path, she said: 'As long as you believe in yourself and are willing to work hard, you can succeed.'
The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a, it denotes a separate news item.
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