Living in a hostel, the children brush up on their lessons with some excelling in school
IPOH: A hostel set up here to help Orang Asli children with their studies is doing well, with some excelling in the SPM examination.
Located at Jalan Francois, off Jalan Tambun, the Shalom Marian Hostel provides the children with free boarding, food, care, transportation to schools and tuition classes as they prepare for the SPM exam.
Hostel director Joseph Boon Chai said the premises, set up by the charity organisation Light of Shalom Society Malacca, currently houses about 50 Orang Asli children aged between seven and 17 from various villages in Gua Musang, Kelantan.
“Our operations started in Melaka about 20 years ago, with the primary aim of helping the poor and needy.
“Most of them were Orang Asli children from interior areas in Pahang,” he said.
Chai said in 2018, more children from Gua Musang were taken in, with fewer numbers from Pahang.
“After the Covid-19 pandemic, the building in Melaka was taken back by the owner, and we decided to move to Ipoh, which is nearer to Gua Musang,” he said.
He noted that Orang Asli school dropouts in the interior areas remain a serious issue.
“Some parents would rather have their children close to them, while others want them to get a proper education,” he said.
“Most of the children had just average abilities and lacked a proper foundation when they first arrived here,” he added, noting that about 80% of them could not initially read or write.
“We gave them intensive sessions to help them prepare and catch up with other schoolchildren,” he said.
Chai said the children studied in SK Marian Convent, SK La Salle, SK Methodist (ACS), SMK Convent, SMK St Michael and SMK Anderson.
“Three are currently enrolled in colleges while one is in Form Six. We have had Orang Asli children who did very well in the SPM,” he added.
Chai said the aim was to take in and help more Orang Asli children in the future, depending on funding.
He added that the society also raised funds with the help of churches.
