Teachers Respond To “Where Are Teachers After School?” Article By Posting Photos of Them Sanitising Classrooms in PPE Suits
The coronavirus has caused some major changes for students across Malaysia when it comes to going back to school. With strict SOPs in place, students must adhere to regulations within school grounds but also out of them.
An article in the Utusan newspaper titled “Where Are Teachers After School?” highlights how students do not follow the SOPs when school ends and school authorities including teachers are not vigilant enough to monitor the movement. This begs the question: Where do teachers go after the bell rings and what do they do?
A recent viral tweet posted by user @Cikgufadhli may answer that question to sceptical parents, as it shows school teacher, Cikgu Khairul Nizam Mohd Sopery from Sekolah Menengah Bandar Estek sanitising the school grounds with other teachers.
This debunks the notion that teachers clock-out after school. In fact, they’re proving that not all educators have the luxury to go back and relax while there’s a looming virus threatening their students’ safety.
Semalam ada satu keratan akhbar berkenaan seorang mak mempersoalkan keberadaan guru-guru bila anak-anak balik sekolah kan ?
Yang ni contoh terbaik. Cikgu Khairul Nizam Mohd Sopery dan rakan gurunya sanitasi sekolah setelah setiap kali tamat sesi persekolahan. pic.twitter.com/71BNCsNxZ0
— Mohd Fadhli (@CikguFadhli) September 30, 2020
Following the tweet, Cikgu Khairul is seen dressed up in a full PPE set, holding a sanitization machine which he does every day once school is over.
Cikgu Fadhli advises parents to not be so quick to judge teachers and instead of accusing them, they could lend some help whether it’s by sanitising the school or giving a donation.
Kan bagus kalau ada mak ayah serah diri pada sekolah untuk bantu guru-guru. Tak dapat serah diri, serahlah duit ke, emas gelang permata ke. Paling kurang ringankan beban kami guru-guru.
Barulah kita jaga kita. Buka guru jaga anak kita. Hehehehe. pic.twitter.com/rQiSe0UsS0
— Mohd Fadhli (@CikguFadhli) September 30, 2020
Aside from that, many netizens including the former students of the primary school who knew Cikgu Khairul had also praised him for his hard work and for being a dedicated teacher.
Saya mengenali Cikgu Khairul Nizam pada tahun 2016.
Selain sibuk mendidik pelajar, dia juga aktif buat kerja amal Dan kemanusiaan. Dia juga ada tubuhkan NGO iaitu Briged Negaraku.
— A.I.M (@AkwaMahzan) September 30, 2020
seingat aku, dulu satu sekolah rendah dengan si Nizam ni. sementara masa kecil-kecil dulu, cita-cita semua nak jadi cikgu, dia sorang je cita-cita nak jadi Perdana Menteri ehh. hehehe. Nampak gaya cita-cita dia konsisten la sampai sekarang. Hehehe. ✨✨ https://t.co/qnMHQuiqrs
— meow (@mnnabcdefghijk) October 1, 2020
Alhamdulillah.. Terima Kasih Cikgu.. https://t.co/VDtzo6mZ3D
— Adruce Ferdaus (@adruce_ferdaus) October 2, 2020
Another twitter user @Aqilahezani claims that teachers in her aunt’s school sanitise classrooms too and that it was unjust for people to accuse teachers of slacking off. Her tweet that reads, “I wonder what time these teachers get home from work?” suggests that they probably spend most of their waking hours making sure that the school is safe.
Sekolah makcik i pun diorang guru-guru ni akan sanitasi setiap kelas dan setiap meja murid lepas habis waktu sekolah.
So agak-agak pukul berapa guru-guru ni baru boleh balik rumah ya? https://t.co/4ILgRmCw8C
— Aqílahh (@Aqilahezani) October 1, 2020
While Utusan’s opinion piece about a teacher’s responsibility sheds light on how students, especially those in primary school, need more adult supervision, they shouldn’t be so quick to judge or generalise all teachers for not being proficient.
As mentioned by our PM in his latest announcement, pointing fingers gets us nowhere and we should lend a helping hand instead.
After all, we all have the same goal which is to keep our children safe and lessen the spread of the virus.
We hope to see more appreciation towards heroes like Cikgu Khairul as well as other dedicated souls like him.