Rajan says some of the classrooms in SMK Kota Kemuning are congested and have up to 50 students. — LOW BOON TAT/The Star
KOTA Kemuning residents want the government to expedite the building of a second secondary school in the township.
The one and only secondary school, SMK Kota Kemuning, was reported to be overcrowded.
The school that opened in 2002 was designed for 1,500 students but now has about 3,800 students.
SMK Kota Kemuning Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) committee member Rajan Apavoo said some classes had up to 50 students each.
He said the transition, Form One and Form Two classes were in the afternoon session while Form Three, Form Four and Form Five classes were in the morning session.
“The students’ desks are very close to each other and arranged up to the front wall where the board is located.
“The cramped conditions make the classrooms hot and uncomfortable.
“Some ceiling fans do not work properly, so several students bring portable fans.
“The toilets are overused and filthy.
“Students refrain from drinking water so that they do not need to use the toilets,” he said.
“The PTA did crowdfunding for some urgent repairs to the school toilets and roof.
“The school canteen cannot cope with the crowd.
“Students complain that the recess is over before they can by food because the queue is very long,” he said at a press conference in Kota Kemuning in Shah Alam, Selangor.
Rajan said the school’s PTA had to sponsor 100 tables and chairs for Form One students this year, as there were 891 new students from six feeder primary schools in the vicinity.
“Outgoing Form Five students numbered only about 600.
“We expect the enrolment to increase every year, as there are many new neighbourhoods in the surrounding areas.
“There are 90 classrooms at the moment, which includes those that had been converted from a meeting room, living skills workshop and seminar room.
“Next year, the school management will be forced to convert the hall into classrooms.
“We need the government to revive the second school project and in the meantime, do the necessary repairs at SMK Kota Kemuning,” he said.
SMK Kota Kemuning 2 (the second school) development working committee chairman Kuan Chee Kheong, who is also SMK Kota Kemuning PTA past president, said they petitioned for the additional school in 2011.
“The school was finally approved in 2018 and the groundbreaking ceremony was held on March 28 the same year.
“However, the project was put on hold after the change of government in May that year, and there has been no progress on the matter since.
“We have brought up the matter with Kota Raja MP Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu but there has been no response from him.
“We sought help from Kota Kemuning assemblyman and Klang MP Ganabatirau Veraman and he highlighted the issue in Parliament last month,” he said.
Kota Kemuning Residents Association president Mohd Radhi Cheah Abdullah said the cramped conditions were demoralising for teachers and students of SMK Kota Kemuning.
“How are the teachers coping with the high number of students?
“Students are being deprived of learning in a comfortable place and this may affect their mental health and also their academic performance,” he said.
Traffic is also very bad during drop-off and pick-up times, said SK Bukit Kemuning 2 PTA president Ali Naazzam Ajhuree.
“The primary school is next to SMK Kota Kemuning and is also overcrowded, with about 2,000 pupils although it was designed for 900.
“Parents and those ferrying the schoolchildren struggle every day to pass through the area.
“I have seen parents argue because of the traffic problems.”
The working committee said it planned to hold a protest if nothing was done.
StarMetro reached out to Selangor Education Department for comments about the issue, but was told by an officer that they were not allowed to comment without approval from Education Ministry.
Rajan says some of the classrooms in SMK Kota Kemuning are congested and have up to 50 students. — LOW BOON TAT/The Star
Kuan who is SMK Kota Kemuning PTA past president said they petitioned for the additional school in 2011 and it was approved by the government in 2018.
