New students begin orientation

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

THE establishment of the Katok Secondary School is to cater to residents within the vicinity, acting as a catchment area, said the Academic Deputy Principal of Katok Secondary School (SMK).

This is aimed at relieving a number of schools in terms of student capacity.

“Most of the schools have two sessions just to accommodate to the number of students. We are trying to reduce the number of students in (those) schools,” said Penroose Saleha Hj Mohd Salleh.

“So, students from areas such as Jangsak, Mata-Mata (and other schools), are being pulled out from their previous schools. It is not only to help these particular overpopulated schools, but also make it convenient for parents and students in terms of traveling,” the deputy principal added.

Speaking on the sidelines of the orientation day for students of Year Seven, Eight, Nine and 10, she added that the school can accommodate about 1,000 students.

“So far, 800 pupils have been identified as registered students which came from five government schools and several private schools in the capital,” she said.

When asked whether there are sufficient teachers to accommodate the students in SMK, she said it is hard to tell at the moment.

“For now, we are not sure if there are sufficient teachers to cater for all students because students are still coming in for registration. So, after we settle down, we would know for sure if teachers are sufficient. If it isn’t, the Ministry of Education (MoE) can accommodate more teachers,” she said.

“We are trying to get all our data now (to know) the actual number of students for all subjects.

“We will be liaising with officers from MoE on which subject requires more teachers and they will provide for us. It will be tackled as soon as possible, if the problem arises,” she assured.

For this year, the school does not include Year 11 students. However, there will be classes to accomodate Year 11 students for the following year.

“Because it is a big year for Year 11 students, as this will be their exam time, therefore, we do not want to disturb their sequence of study as they are already settled in their respective schools. However, by year 2015, SMK will be accommodating Year 11 students from this year’s Year 10,” she said

“We also need to project for next year, once we have students for Year 11. We have to make sure we identify the classes and teachers. Our planning is not only for this year but for the years to come,” she said.

Yesterday marked the first day of the three-day orientation. This was held at the multipurpose hall of the Katok Secondary School. The event started off with the welcoming speech by the principal of the school, Lim Chee Kong as well as deputy principals and senior teacher.

The students were briefed on the dos and don’ts and were then given a tour around the school compound by their respective class teachers.

Built on a 12-acre land, the then called PTE Katok, was opened in August 2008. The $16.8 million building has 41 classrooms, science and language laboratories, gymnasium, audio-video theatre, library, and art and agricultural science rooms.

The Brunei Times