WHETHER it is the flip-flopping of the medium of instruction in national schools or the debatable quality of teachers, the state of education in Malaysia is a hot button issue at every mealtime conversation.It was no different for colleagues Dzameer Dzulkifli and Keeran Sivarajah, who were discussing how to improve education in Malaysia during a mamak session in 2009.However, unlike others who merely air their dissatisfaction, they decided to act upon it

The, Heat

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High achievers helplow performersCan the Teach For Malaysiainitiative spark profound changein our education system?... p26&28Headline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125Sparking a changeThree years ago, Dzameer Dzulkifli founded Teach For Malaysia outof a desire to improve Malaysia's state of education and a passionfor developing local talent. Today he faces the challenges of growingthe organisation and addressing the criticism levelled against itWHETHER it is theflip­flopping of themedium of instructionin national schools orthe debatable qualityof teachers, the stateof education in Malaysia is a hot buttonissue at every mealtime conversation.It was no different for colleaguesDzameer Dzulkifli and Keeran Sivarajah,who were discussing how to improveeducation in Malaysia during a mamaksession in 2009. How­ever, unlike others !who merely air theirdissatisfaction, they |decided to act upon it.Inspired by socialinitiatives Teach For —Australia and Teach First in the UK,Dzameer and Keeran launched TeachFor Malaysia in 2010. The non­profitsocial enterprise is aimed at enlistinghigh achieving young professionals andMalaysian graduates as Fellows to teachat low­performing secondary schools."We believe that high quality individ­uals should be teachers. I know that if wework on helping the students who needit the most, we will raise the quality ofMalaysian talent simultaneously ­ therewill be a multiplier effect," says Dzameer.TFM is the first chapter in SoutheastAsia and one of the 27 partners of theTeach For All global education network,which helps social enterprises globallyreplicate the Teach For America model toend education inequality.From Fellows to leadersThe decision to start TFM is not 100%altruistic, says Dzameer, who admits thathe also took the plunge to start his ownbusiness partly because he felt unfulfilledin his consultant job at PwC. "My dad isan accountant and economist and hehad an infectious enthusiasm about hiswork. My brother loved animals and wasalways clear about who he was. I feltlike something was missing," says the29­year­old.He soon discovered talent develop­ment to be his passion. He says TFM'stwo­year teaching fellowship acts as aleadership development programme,where Fellows can exercise their leader­ship and creativity in teaching studentsunder challenging circumstances. (Seesideb or for more on Fellows' experiences)The idea of teaching students inunderperforming schools may seemromantic to many, but in reality, it oftentakes graduates at least six months ormore to acclimatise to their teachingenvironment and familiarise with thesyllabus.Those who can't take the pressure endup throwing in the towel ­ around 1% to2% of Fellows drop out of the fellowshipbecause of wrong job fit.Dzameer says it is precisely thesechallenges of teaching in a high­needschool that forces Fellows to grow from aleadership development aspect, because"leaders are not developed by having iteasy".Facing the brickbatsDzameer says TFM's firsttwo years of operationswas focused on demon­strating the Fellowship'spotential to positivelyimpact students.He believes TFM's big­gest impact on studentsis "access" ­ creating op­portunities for them to beexposed to role models andexperiences beyond theircommunities to further in­spire them in their pursuitof educationOne way TFM creates"access" for students isvia "TFM Week", an an­nual event where industry leaders areinvited to teach alongside Fellows inthe classroom for a day. Among thosewho have participated in "TFM Week"include Datuk Jimmy Choo, Datin Padu­ka Marina Mahathir, AirAsia CEO AireenOmar, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, GE Aviationmanaging director Suresh Shanmugamand actress Aishah Sinclair.A spin­off initiative, "TFM Week:Flipped" was launched this year, involvingfield trips to workplaces and educationalfacilities. Recent field trip destinations in­clude Google Malaysia's office, Bernama'soffice, Kidzania, Univer­siti Malaya and UniversitiSains Malaysia.When asked how TFMFellows are more effectiveat teaching compared withformally trained teachers,Dzameer says participantsundergo a two­monthintensive course designedby Institut AminuddinBaki and Universiti UtaraMalaysia. For practicaltraining, Fellows have tostart off with classroomteaching for four weeks ata holiday learning camp.Fellows also have thebenefits of mentors to turnto, such as their leadershipdevelopment officers ­who mostly comprise former teachers­ and school­based mentors throughoutthe two years.Dzameer believes that TFM Fellowsmake great teachers because they havethe benefit of inexperience. "There isa sense of possibility and hope among>■ Continues on page 28Headline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125Teachers shouldbe competitive>• From page 26them and they tend to challenge the sta­tus quo, which is refreshing in a systemthat is rigid. They learn how to navigatearound things. Likewise in any organisa­tion, there is always a maverick," he says.While TFM Fellows compete with newteachers for allocated teaching positions,existing teachers are not at risk of losingtheir jobs to Fellows because civil servantsare not easily dismissed, he says."If you want to be a teacher, you have tomake it competitive. A performance­basedassessment and exit should be intro­duced ­ which I believe willbe looked into in the newblueprint. The challengewill be in implementing theblueprint," he says, addingthat there should be greaterautonomy and accountabil­ity for schools.Shifting gearsOver the past three years,recruitment numbers forFellows have been encour­aging, as there has been asteady increase despite atightening of the selectioncriteria, he says. This year's2012/2013 cohort has 72 Fellows, a 33%increase from last year's batch of 54.TFM'sinaugural 2010/2011 batch comprised 50Fellows.Being funded by both the Ministry ofEducation and private sector is critical inensuring there is government support andcollaborating with corporations allowsTFM to attract talent.TFM also collaborates with corpora­tions such as CIMB and PwC for joint­em­ployment programmes whereby freshgraduates commit to the TFM Fellowshipfor two years before they are hired by thecompanies.Recognition by the private sector isimportant to nullify the excuse thattaking two years off to teach for TFM willjeopardise one's career plans, he says.Asked about individuals who sign upto teach only to boost their CV, Dzameersays the recruitment team usually detectssuch individuals at the selection stage.However, he qualifies that not everyonewho teaches for TFM is solely passionateabout teaching but Fellows usually have amix of teaching aspirations and personaldevelopment goals.Moving forward, the emphasis willshift towards ensuring the organisation it­self is sustainable in the long run throughmeans of recruitment and funding. "Join­ing the social sector is notsexy so we have to thinkhow to change this mind­set. For the first two levelsof employment of aboutfour years' experience, ourpay is very competitivebut we have to improvethe remuneration for themore senior roles," he says,adding that there alsoneeds to be a clear careerprogression for employees.The management isalso looking into im­proving organisationaleffectiveness, with effortsto build up its alumni network so thatex­Fellows can continue to improve edu­cation in any field they are working in. Forinstance, TFM is currently collaboratingwith alumni working in Boston Consult­ing Group and Google.Ultimately, the challenge for TFM is tochange the mindsets of the public whoare sceptical and pessimistic towards theeducation sector."It's very much like the perceptiontowards joining the civil service ­ there isa huge pessimism that needs to be fixed.We try to change that. When you step intothe classroom to make a difference in thekid's life, it's just you and the kid ­ there'sno room for the 'culture is bad' excuse tofail your kids," he says. EHHeadline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125"It's verymuch like theperceptiontowards joiningthe civil service— there is a hugepessimism thatneedsto befixed. J J"I know thatif we work onhelping thestudents whoneed it the most,we will raisethe quality ofMalaysian talentsimultaneously—there will bea multipliereffect. ■■BY KATHLEENTANDatin Paduka Marina Mahathir was one of the guest teachers during TFM WeekHeadline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125Dzameer Dzulkifli says challenging circumstances force Fellows to grow into leadersHeadline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125Internationally­renown shoe designer Datuk Jimmy Choo takes a hands­on approach whileteaching students during theTFM WeekHeadline Sparking a changeMediaTitle The HeatDate 19 Oct 2013 Language EnglishCirculation 20,000 Readership 60,000Section NEWS Color Full ColorPage No 1,26,28 ArticleSize 1261 cm²AdValue RM 21,375 PR Value RM 64,125

Sparking a change: Three years ago, Dzameer Dzulkifli founded Teach For Malaysia out of a desire to improve Malaysia's state of education and a passion for developing local talent. Today he faces the challenges of growing the organisation and addressing the criticism levelled against it.

http://repo.uum.edu.my/10028/1/Sparking_a_change.pdf

Sparking a change: Three years ago, Dzameer Dzulkifli founded Teach For Malaysia out of a desire to improve Malaysia's state of education and a passion for developing local talent. Today he faces the challenges of growing the organisation and addressing the criticism levelled against it.

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