By: Andrea Lim
In the seminar rooms at the Sir George Smart Building, a
group of 20 students partake in a student-led class to learn Bahasa Malaysia.
An hour-long session, the class aims to help students increase their fluency
with Bahasa and to provide advice on clinical scenarios that are likely to be
encountered by NUMed students.
Starting in late January, the class provides an official
session to help facilitate students to converse in Bahasa and to guide them on
approaching clinical scenarios done in the national language. Unlike the
beginner
Bahasa Malaysia class, the Intermediate class does not have a formal tutor to teach Bahasa. Instead, teachers are mostly made up of Stage 4 students who already have 2-3 years experience in the hospital, making them ideal to teach and provide assistance on any common clinical scenarios. The class currently has 15 volunteer tutors and around 12 tutees, of which the number increases with every session. Most of the tutees are made up of Stage 2 students, who will be starting their clinical years soon.
Bahasa Malaysia class, the Intermediate class does not have a formal tutor to teach Bahasa. Instead, teachers are mostly made up of Stage 4 students who already have 2-3 years experience in the hospital, making them ideal to teach and provide assistance on any common clinical scenarios. The class currently has 15 volunteer tutors and around 12 tutees, of which the number increases with every session. Most of the tutees are made up of Stage 2 students, who will be starting their clinical years soon.
Although there are more teachers than students, not everyone
will be involved in teaching every week. Tutors are divided into small groups
consisting of 4-5 tutors and are assigned to a certain week. “Each week has a
different theme or a topic, and one lead tutor will be chosen to be in charge
of the session,” says Nafisah, a Stage 4 tutor. “We did it this way to allow us
to interact with the tutees so that we can deliver effective teaching.” So far,
the class has completed 3 sessions, which focused on basic topics such as
family relationships and daily activities. “We will be conducting Clinical
classes after the Easter break, which will focus more on actual clinical
scenarios such as physical examinations and history-taking,” Nafisah says.Despite the rocky first-start, attending students have found the sessions useful. “It has allowed me to gain better fluency and exposure to the language,” says Sabyasachi, a Stage 2 medical student. Being an international student from India, he also attends the beginner Bahasa classes, but says that the benefits provided are different from the Intermediate Bahasa class. “In the beginner Bahasa classes, we mostly learn new words, but not how to string them into sentences,” he says. “In the Intermediate class however, we learn how to put the words into sentences and it allows us to practice conversing rather than just learning words.”
Sabyasachi also comments that the small student-to-teacher ratio has made it easier to learn new words and meanings, as well as allowing better interaction between tutor and tutee. Malaysian students who attend the classes also find the sessions useful, as they not only help increase fluency in Bahasa, but also to receive advice and tips on how to approach common clinical scenarios in the national language.
“We feel that a class like this is essential for students
who believe that they need help in Bahasa,” says Afandi, another Stage 4
teacher. With the way the course is structured, NUMed students have plenty of
contact with patients, as evident from the Family/Patient studies in the first
two years and in the clinical years.
As students have found out, most patients do not have a good command of English and can only converse in Bahasa. “Although this is an English university, we have to admit that not every patient is able to speak English. Thus, having a good command of Bahasa will surely help students to get through the MBBS programme,” Afandi continues.
As students have found out, most patients do not have a good command of English and can only converse in Bahasa. “Although this is an English university, we have to admit that not every patient is able to speak English. Thus, having a good command of Bahasa will surely help students to get through the MBBS programme,” Afandi continues.
The class is held every Thursday, at 5:30PM in Seminar Room 2.11.
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