Retired teacher was channel of the Lord’s will for her pupils

Lee Siew Kee, a teacher who retired two weeks ago, said she had a lifetime of fulfilment as she viewed herself as a channel of the Lord’s will and her pupils as objects of His love.

A rural posting in Kedah in the initial part of her career helped her with techniques to teach the poor. A second phase in an urban setting required a different approach to inspire the well-to-do — both of which convinced her that when it comes to teaching, the method employed must be tailored to the audience, or else the content would not get through.

That divine inspiration is why Siew Kee, who until she retired recently, was the only teacher of the Christian faith on the staff of SMK IJ Convent in Johor Bahru. She always resorted to prayer as the key to meeting the challenges she faced in her career.

It was an emotional day for SMK IJ Convent’s Head of Department for Mathematics and Science as she bade farewell to the school and the teaching profession.

Siew Kee, who reached the compulsory retirement age of 60 after teaching for more than 35 years, was given a grand send-off by teachers, pupils, the Board-of-Governors and Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) members.

Speaking of her early days in Kedah, she said, “Students came from poor families. Many of their parents were padi planters or worked in plantations.

“Teaching rural students was challenging as I had to come up with ideas to get them interested in their studies, let alone hand in their homework,” adding that the reward system was the best method to get students interested in their studies.

In 1999, she was awarded the Excellent Service Award by the Ministry of Education and in 2013, she was appointed Head of Mathematics and Science Department.

When the Apostolic Nuncio to Malaysia, Archbishop Joseph Marino, visited the school last year for its 92nd anniversary, Siew Kee gave him a guided tour of the school while briefing him on the school’s history.

Johor Bahru was a different urban environment for Siew Kee altogether. “My teaching style had to change as God had placed me in this school for a different purpose.”

She said she became more involved in her walk with the Lord as she had to seek Him continuously.

“There were new unfamiliar grounds to tread. The Lord is good and He sent many colleagues who guided me along the way,” she said with a smile.

She stressed that SMK IJ Convent, JB, is one of the few schools that runs Christian fellowship during school time every Thursday morning and afternoon, meeting in the chapel.

“We want to continue this legacy where Convent girls who have graduated will come back to share on the goodness of the Lord,” she said.

She pointed out that this Christian meet is also evangelistic in nature as they encourage non-Christian students to join in.

According to Siew Kee, there is also a special prayer meet that she organised for the students facing major exams like PT3 and SPM.

One of Siew Kee’s greatest achievements is organising the annual Christmas Concert. “This Christmas concert is also evangelistic in nature. We share the true meaning of Christmas. What is unique is that we have non-Christian students who participate,” she explained.

“I am happy to have been here for almost 32 years as I spent my primary and secondary schooling in Alor Star Convent and am happy to retire at this great institution in JB,” she said.

“I am happy to retire but, at the same time, am sad to leave this school after spending almost three decades here,” she said sadly.

In her parting words, “Love for teaching as the Bible says, love is the greatest, it overcometh all. So love for teaching will help teachers to overcome the changes and challenges that are in today’s education scene.”

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online