Homecoming : School and Tuition Part 2

This essay continues where I left off in the prior essay on my schooling and college years..this essay focuses on the 2nd part which is my tuition experiences

I mentioned briefly that during my high school days tuition was another side that played a part in my education formation. Like any Malaysian kid who grew up in Malaysia and DID attend the Malaysian education system, tuitions was a staple schedule in one’s life.  My tuition years were also memorable to some degree as it allowed me to meet new people and build my network. Because the tuitions I attended were in the lower half of penang (Green Lane and below is considered lower half in my books), I had the opportunity to meet people from PFS and the girls from CGL. And as I mentioned in my other essays, girls from CGL were pretty popular and so these popular girls (some of them) were in my tuition classes. As such, I had “direct” access to check them out –which would often be the case as I would be asked at school about so-and-so and whether I knew her etc.

But tuition was more than just helping me in improving my social standing with my school mates. Remember how I mentioned that I was hopeless in my studies? And how suddenly just getting into science stream changed everything? Well the story is not so complete here as I am missing a crucial component to the big picture.  The reason for the transformation began with my Math tuition teacher, Ms. Chew, who would be one of the 2 most influential women in my entire life – the 1^st one being my mother.

Ms. Chew was not your average tuition teacher. For starters she didn’t care about your money – she only cared about your dedication, effort and results.  Unmarried and retired, Ms. Chew was probably the fiercest teacher I ever met. I still remember my first encounter with her that night ; she asked me straight up “are you going to work hard? Because I only take in students who work hard!” and she asked me that right infront of my mother.

“Sure, I will work hard” I replied coolly, thinking she would be just like any other tuition teacher that I would meet – one who would just take the monthly fee, leave us for 30 minutes for us to supposedly “do our work” in the middle of these tuition sessions. Her sessions were surprisingly short, twice a week, 1 hour each session. Each session started with some time allocated for correction, then the lesson, then taking down of her brilliant notes and then homework assignment. You didn’t do “any work” in the class except for correction. I was new to this concept. My 2^nd session in the class and I was told not to come. She told me not to come for the following class and was willing to refund. I was stunned. Clearly she was not happy with my homework work; she found my work shoddy and half-hearted. And she wasn’t interested in teaching me anymore. This would start the beginning of my refining process. I started out with her in August 1997, almost toward the end of my form 2 schooling year. I really don’t know how I survived her class but somehow I managed to stay on with her until form 5 toward the last class where I felt really bittersweet to leave her. On one part I was relieved that I could live my Tuesdays and Fridays without any fear, but on the other hand I felt sad – because I know how much Ms. Chew made an impact on my life – and somehow how despite her fierce ways, I managed to pull through. Ironically she was also a catholic and she once even told me that praying won’t help me if I don’t put in my effort. There were times I would just finish class in tears, crying and pleading with my mum whether I could go to another math tuition class. There were times where I knew mum felt sorry for me. But somehow deep down, I could not leave Ms. Chew because I could see the results – she was a terrific teacher so much so even my school mates would check out my notebook where I would copy her notes in. She made us have 3 books, Book A, Book B, and Notebook. You would do Tuesday’s homework on Book A, and pass Book A up for marking on Friday, and on Friday you would do Friday’s homework on Book B and pass up Friday’s homework on Tuesday while getting Book A back. Her systematic way of note taking and clear explanation would be instrumental for me in prepping me to make my own notes for my science subjects as I would use her principles in my other subjects as well. I would make my own notes for Biology and Chemistry which would help me greatly.

Had I not met Ms. Chew, I don’t think I would have discovered the other side of me – the driven and effort focused individual, determined to succeed. Ms. Chew’s demanding and high standards forced me to focus on my work and to concentrate and give a 100% in everything I do. Ms. Chew also showed me something which I never realized – that if I did give a 100%, I would do well – something that she herself affirmed me when together with my mum I went to deliver the news about my SPM result to her. She looked me in the eye (yes I still remember) and told me straight up in her no-nonsense-matter-of-fact voice “you had it all along; you are quite a capable and smart person”.

These days whenever I pass by Ms. Chew’s house (which is just next to the church) I would sometimes peer in her house to see if she’s still around. I would also reminisce the times I spent in her house struggling and slogging through. I would remember the times where I would sit in the church grotto praying hard so that I wouldn’t get scolded at class. Till today, I am who I am today because of Ms. Chew – my tuition teacher who was not interested in making money but rather building and developing quality students – and to be under her…that’s a humbling opportunity for me.

Of course I did attend other tuition classes, primarily for Add Maths, Physics, Bahasa Malaysia and Chemistry. All these extra help definitely did aid me in performing somehow better in school,  but no tuition teacher would have a greater impact to me than Ms. Chew. Of there was Mr. Jason who taught me Chemistry and physics, and Jason was extremely strong in Chemistry. His way of teaching allowed me to memorize the Periodic table in an effective way which helped me calculating the chemical equations.

Somehow although my education life started off with the bleakest hope, by God’s grace, and through the dedication of my mother, Ms. Chew and the awesome teachers I had in my junior and senior years, I somehow pulled through and would go on to do well in my tertiary education which would eventually land me in a promising job and a fulfilling career. Through divine intervention, the fact I learnt and began believing in myself. And I think that formed the basis for me – to believe in myself and trust myself.  My somewhat eventful education path paved the way and planted the seeds for me for the future.