School News

Sri Bestari International School Presents: Tag Talks - Lending Students a Helping Hand to Build an Identity

Published by SchoolAdvisor | Jun 05, 2018

“So many things are possible, just as long as you don’t think they’re impossible.”

Asking your child what they want to be when they grow up, can prove to be a challenging task. They might have varied answers or they still could be unsure of the path they want to take.

Between the many choices they have counted on their fingers, children may unconsciously adhere to society’s expectations and feel the need to please society instead of finding an area of interest of their own. We do not want that, in fact, they should be taking charge and be brave enough to pursue a path of their own choice. As the saying goes, the world is indeed their oyster.

In Sri Bestari International School (SBIS), the students understand the need to take charge and are prepared to embrace the school’s core values; A growth mindset beginning with Gratitude, Resilience, Intentional Inconvenience and Teamwork (G.R.I.T). Hence, the very reason SBIS queued in Tag Talks for their students which represents a brand, value and identity to answer a very significant question raised by the students of the school, “Who am I?”

Tag Talks are to inspire students by exposing them to successful stories shared by individuals, who dared to be different and face challenges with grit. For the past year, there have been various speakers from all walks of life such as the Co-founder of the Picha Project; Ms. Suzanne Ling, An Astrophysicist; Dr. Nur Adlyka, a physicist and a published author; Ms. Viola Ho, a fellow Bestarian and a coding expert; Mr. Josh Teng and a concept art designer; Mr. Johnson Ting.

It was with great reverence towards these experiences that the students have conveyed their thoughts of Tag Talks of how it fed them with knowledge, meaning, motivation, a vivid imagination and exploration.

“It has made me realise that nothing is impossible if you try hard!” a student claimed.

“Tag talks had impacted me greatly as I realise now, how successful people work very hard and that they went through countless challenges to be who they are right now,” another student exclaimed.

In other words, tag talks are not just to shape an inspiration for students. In fact, it is to show them that they can be successful and at the same time, create a great sense of achievement, a cause or an awareness. An excellent example would be the Co-founder of the Picha Project, Ms. Suzanne Ling who believed so much in helping refugees, that she and her co- founders built a sustainable business for a good cause. The Picha Project delivers traditional meals to customers made by refugee families from marginalised groups. The reason for this project is to sustain and generate this cause for a continuous flow in years to come.

“We need to be respectful of other countries and let the refugees in to live a better life” added another student after listening to Suzanne Lim’s inspirational talk.

Listening to Suzanne Ling’s talk really inspired many students from SBIS and gained a lot of personal reflective responses. One student stood out with an exceptional understanding of the whole concept of the Picha Project, “I knew there were people who are less fortunate, but I didn’t expect that it would be to this extent. At that very moment of listening to Ms. Suzanne’s talk, my eyes opened and I could see the bigger picture of life beyond my privileged one. That first tag talk, was the day I realised that a small contribution actually makes a lot of difference and that’s how I’m going to start my life now onwards.”

In line with creating visionary students, SBIS’s students are also exposed to STEAM which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. STEAM works as access points for guiding students to take thoughtful risks, engage in experiential learning and persist in problem-solving. Recently, the students were designated with a project highlighting on the aspects of waste management as it is a crucial area related to the economic status of a country and the lifestyle of its population.

In order to improve waste minimisation strategy and control, the students of SBIS embraces the concept of ‘creating for the better’ instead of behaving just as a consumer. STEAM allows the students to be flexible in thinking, inadvertently creating a growth mindset. They would have to integrate knowledge gained from all subjects learned to come up with a strategised planning right up to creating their masterpiece and writing their data collected in the form of a report.

The students worked on this concept and created toys from recyclable materials to cut cost, cut waste and provide affordable toys for kids. All in all, the students are slowly progressing to be innovators, educators and leaders of the 21st century. Together with Tag Talks, it gives them a double boost in perception and realisation which broadens their minds.

 There’s so much of learning and growing that children need as they develop throughout the years and SBIS is committed in developing global leaders who will embrace a growth mindset and be determined to make a difference throughout the whole world no matter which horizons they've set their sights upon. The students of SBIS have the opportunity to listen to great stories and understand that they are definitely the author of their own stories. To put it strongly, It is theJourney of Realisation that Determines the Students’ Destination.

About Sri Bestari International School

Sri Bestari International School (SBIS) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Land and General Berhad, the sister school to the well-established Sri Bestari Private School that has been championing excellence in education for the past 22 years. They strive to provide an affordable and high-quality education which equips their students with the necessary skills, confidence and abilities for them to forge new and broad pathways. The school believes in combining the best people and the best learning approaches together to empower young minds.