I may be concentrating more to the longhouse folks & rural primary school because I think bulk of the Dayak is there and those are our people that really need our guidance. I believe those are the Dayak that appreciate our guidance the most.

What I want to see, happen? How to make it happen? Who will make it happen?

-Let this be done in a big way, say during one of the Gawai Dayak

-To lead our Dayak vision to education

-To make us committed to the vision

-To begin with the similar end in Dayak mind, that is education.

-List of the successful scholar from the area & their qualification & where they work

-List of those attending university from the area, their major & expected graduation dates

-List of those in higher institute from the longhouse, major & expected completion dates

-List of those in secondary school from the longhouse, standard & their aim

-List of those in primary school from the longhouse, standard & position in exam

-Any other educational related issue

-To be maintained and updated by Tuai Rumah

-Given by Government or using fund from AJKK

-A task force can come up with a standard design.

-List of the successful scholar from the area & their qualification & employer

-List of those attending university from the area, their major & expected graduation dates

-List of the top student for each standard

-Picture of universities where they may study. (ITM, UPM, UNIMAS, Overseas Univ)

-Any other educational related issue

-Maintained & updated by Headmaster

-Provided by school

A task force can come up with a standard design.

-Created & maintained by SADIA or DEA

-Contains anything on Dayak in relation to education

-Homepage for DEA

-YB to initiate or call a meeting

-Secretary preferably from Education Department

-To discuss on how to go about (Vision, Mission, Strategy, Objective, Targets, etc)

-Lead by our YB or Resident

-Secretary to be Dayak Education Officer

-Member to be any interested person.

-Looking after all the Dayak education related issue.

-If DEA cannot be formed, then form a sub-committee of the present association such as SADIA.

-YB to propose this position of Dayak Education Officer to Education Department

-DEA to come up with the jobscope.

-If this position cannot be created, then we need a focul person there, who will be always ready to assist DEA.

-Contain educational issue, quiz, cartoon, etc.

-Task force or DEA to come up with the standard contain.

-Distributed by Jabatan Penerangan to schools & longhouses

-Put on the internet

-Any news related to education in Sarawak or Malaysia.

-DEA or task force to discuss further on the contain and airing time.

-Regular interview the Dayak Degree Holder or higher in RTM (Say 1st week of a month)

-Program telephone conversation with university student, especially the one overseas.

-University student to call RTM on program "Telephone Call from University"

-Regular Maths Quiz in RTM (2nd week of month)

-Regular Science quiz in RTM (3rd week of month)

-Regular English quiz in RTM (4th week of month)

-Regular program on education (monthly)

-All meetings to start with education issue - Education first

-One Dayak at university to correspond with at least one primary school

-Sending motivational message or post cards.

-Visit the school when on holiday.

-Once a year to expose selected student from rural area to city and motivate them in study.

-School to be involved.

-DEA to organise

-Volunteer to submit their names as guardians

-Those student to inform DEA

-To communicate with DEA yearly on their status

-Organise by SADIA or DEA

-Selection criteria to be formulated by DEA

-One state division, one holiday camp, once a year or more

-Can be organised at National Park. In US, there is a regular program specifically for kids organise by the National Park Ranger.

-Tadika co-ordinator & teacher is tuai rumah

-Tuai rumah to be taught on the basic ways of tadika management

-School teacher can guide or teach tuai rumah

-Tadika to be opened at ruai in evening, say 7 to 8.30 pm, Monday to Friday

-Manage by Tuai rumah

-Books provided by State library or donation.

-Easy to read type

-Old newspaper

-Rotate the books from one longhouse to another, say every 6 months.

-DEA to propose to the Government

-This is done in town & kampong, and to be extended to longhouse at rural area

-One evening per week or after Sunday prayer

-Lead by tuai rumah at his ruai.

-DEA to come up with the detail on how to do this

-Once a month event, to create a learning culture.

-Similar to story telling in the old days

-Organise by tuai rumah

-Top 10 in PMR & SPM per State Division

-To be given on special occasion, such as holiday camp or Quality Day

-Twice a year

-Organise by DEA

-Speaker to be anybody who knows the subject

-Briefing on education & finance (scholarship & loan)

-Record the speaker, and air it at RTM.

-Twice a year

-Organise by DEA

-Speaker to be anybody who knows the subject

-Briefing on education & finance (scholarship & loan)

-Record the speaker, and air it at RTM.

-DEA to come up with the agenda & frequency

-Area by area.

-MOM to be distributed in DEA Magazine.

-MOM to be posted in internet

-Say 1%, sort of zakat in muslim.

-Deduct from Government income tax if possible.

-Certain percentage from tourism industry to go here

-Timber industry also should contribute

-Any project at the NCR land to contribute certain percentage

-To be attended by YB & anyone who have the paper

-Agenda on the Regional objective.

-DEA to come up with this.

-If failed to do, replace the leader

-Tuai rumah to be at least pry 6 and able to read & write.

-Councillor & penghulu to be at least form 3

-Pemancha & Temenggong to be at least form 5

-Our YB to be at least a diploma holder

-Suggest during Gawai

-Instil education awareness to the longhouse folk

-Directly, has nothing to do with education

-It can motivate us to be the warrior of the future

-Person must be outside of longhouse.

-Preferably someone who has been to university

-Must be interested in education

-DEA to come up with the task

-Can be one or more from each area

-Even better if one longhouse one focal person

-Contributing prizes to top student

-Ensuring education corners are in order

-To know what sort of people that we have up there

-List of Dayak with email & their email address

-Education (PMR, SPM, University, Overseas, pass/fail, etc)

-Amount of scholarship awarded

-Average Income

-Number of millionaire

-Number of those below poverty line

-Computer literacy rate

-Computer is cheap especially for our leader, tax rebate some more

-This will make our communication alive

-This will let us share our idea

-As to motivate the new generation

-To give recognition for those who have been successful in education

-To create a reason for going back during Gawai

-Conducted by volunteer, same as Sunday School

-Organise by church or Dayak Education Officer

-Once a month

-Subject Math, Science & English

-Very useful for rural school so as to be of same knowledge as those in urban

-Kids like such a visual aid type of teaching

-If not, VCR/TV for teaching such as Sesame Street

-If not, one parabolic disc to one rural school to view educational program. In Indonesia, they have one specific channel, TPI or Televisi Pendidikan Indonesia.

-When centralise, can have better facilities for student & teacher

-More competition among student

-Easier for DEA or us to communicate with schools.

-To make it easier for kids & parents.

-To encourage kids going to school

-To reduce drop out

-Preferably games which require both mental & physical strength

-Sort of arranging 123 or ABC

-Running around looking for flora & fauna

-Making the tallest structure

-Science exhibition competition

-Yearly event, open to student category & open to all

-Topics on education

-Example : How to improve Dayak education.

-Example : How to improve Dayak in English, Math & Science

-English written outside school hours

-Timetable instead of jadual, notice board instead of papan kenyataan, etc

-English oral communication outside school hours, example, during work briefing, sport.

-Activate back English medium in LCE, MCE & common entrance.

-School to subscribe only English Newspaper and magazine.

-Education first in longhouse as safety first in company like shell, petronas, etc.

-Talk on education first.

-Education issue left & right.

-Going to Sabah Brunei Singapore only because looking for money to send kids to school

-Cock-fighting because want to get money for education

-Give awareness talk

-All movements are toward one and only objective - EDUCATION

Let's initiate this whole thing by setting up a protem committee to organise a 2 or 3 day workshop/seminar in Kuching or Miri to brainstorm on the problems that our people are currently facing and to come up with a working paper on the plan of action to tackle these problems in order of urgency. Gather all the Dayak/Iban organisations together and

get something going.

I have been disappointed by the attitude of many of the Dayak graduates who have no interest or whatsoever to serve their communtiy. Some who do, do out of self-interest ... just to make a bit of money for themselves and does not have any real interest in developing their people.

I totally agree with you that education is one of the key factor to bring development to the natives. Whether it's a formal education or just an awareness level it is greatly lacking among the rural community.

May be we should stop talking about it and do something about it. Why not set up a special taskforce with support from our leaders to address this very critical and urgent issue. Get the graduates and the Iban scholars together and brainstorm together what can be done. Delegate

action items and pull our resources together.

Conduct tuition classes for the exam classes(form 3 and form 5) in Miri and other major towns, something similar to what the Sarawak Cultural foundaton is doing in Kuching.

Conduct career talks (with assitance from the Iban professionals) in rural schools and longhouses. The overseas graduates can share their experience overseas (with pictures) so as to encourage the teenagers to strive harder in their study. I made a trip to my longhouse recently and a lot of the longhouse folks were fascinated by it ... pama meh agi ari

ti bepangkong enggau cap langkau tiap malam!!

Provide career counselling and assistance to students and school leavers so that they are aware of the opportunities for them to further their studies both locally and overseas.

Provide awareness talks to parents to encourage them to invest in their children's education; target the vision to have at least have one university graduate per family.

Review our rural education system so as to address the needs of the rural folks. Emphasize on subjects which is directly applicable to their enviroment e.g. modern farming, basic economics. Let us endeavor to make our people to be skilled in something instead of trying to learn

everything from literature to algebra but at the end of the day cannot even speak English?!!!

I believe it is worth investing an extra ringgit to upgrade the teachers qualification or bring in graduate teachers to teach in the rural schools. Why not improve the housing facilities for these teachers so as to make them an attractive offer.

Currently there is an appalling lack of qualified English teachers. Would it be worth it to employ foreign English teachers on a contract or temporary basis. Can't afford to pay for them? Set a semi-voluntary type of agency. A huge no. of graduates in foreign universities do not have anything to do after the finished university. A lot of them spend time travelling all over the place, touring. Some spend time working as waiter/waitress just for the sake of travelling. Sarawak has a lot to offer in terms of adventure. Using such an agency we can bring them in for half a year or more and pay them a small amount of pocket (with their living expenses) and then allow them to tour the state afterwards. Obtain sponsorship from Sarawak Tourism Board to allow them to travel at a lower price??

Start an adoption plan

Start an adoption plan to adopt rural kids, lets say during their school holidays, to homes of Ibans in the towns to give them the opportunity to be exposed to urban development.

Set up holiday camps

Set up holiday camps specifically for the Dayak kids to inject the culture of learning and develop a real for knowledge in them.

Keeping all formalities/bureaucracy to a minimum we can organise a brainstorming session/workshop with advice from our Dayak ministers where we can present the problem & its urgency + some statistics on pass/fail figures in a typical rural school from the education department.

Of'course this problem with education is closely related to social illness and attitude of the whole Iban community (which have taken dinosaurus years' to set in) which may require a more concerted effort by both professionals and non-professional Iban to address. One obvious evil I see is alcoholism. I know we're not superman but until we have effectively address these underlying root factors we may not be able to effectively handle the issue at hand.

Disintegrated initiatives is not a promising action plans towards developing an improved standard of education of the dayaks. There is a need to approach the issue in a more integrated manner, multi-dimensional and in a structured systematic long term strategies. A broad strageic plan is required. A concrete policy direction and framework need to be develop first in setting the foundation, parameters, TOR and platform for implementation. Thus it is not a matter of bits & pieces but rather an integrated strategic approach.

First, there is a need to conduct a diagnostic journey to audit the present situation: Where are we now?, Where we want to be? and How are we going there? Who will be involved? A comprehensive environmental scanning & scenario analysis need to be done to find out the strength & weaknesses, opportunities & threats.

Second, develop a grand objectives and strategies that can drive us to where we ant to be.

Third, develop a specific strategies and action plan, identified the nature of learning intervention and development initiatives that can contribute to the grand objectives and strategies.

Forthly, monitor & evaluate the implementation plan.

Fifth, review and recommend continuous improvement.

Thus you can apply the principle of strategic planning/scenario planning to address the fundamental issues that impede efforts and initiatives.

Malaysians by average are lazy readers! Thus including dayaks. If we are to reflect to what we had experienced since our boyhood we may say that I have not read enough yet.

Another possible solution is Go Back To Basic. Look into dayaks society itself. What sort of institutions and learning platform do we have to develop educational experience of our people? Does reading, learning, continuing education and development are parts of our values, norm and beliefs? If there is any meaningful initiatives it should first address the fundamentals - the values and the way we do things in our society --that's I called back to basic. There is a need to look and think forward rather than living in the legendary world of kumang & keling. A paradigm shift, break-it thinking, do it different way. Learning and development in any society, is only possible through the establishment or creation of learning society. The basic of this is again values and systems- that need to support the learning society. If there is missing systems and values that can support learning in a society than there is a neet to inject in or add on these values and systems. Otherwise any initiatives or learning interventions won't be able to sustain the dynamics of the internal & external environments.

Of all the professions in Sarawak, the teaching profession is where we can find the majority of our dayaks civil servants. Teachers are the nearest model that any students will look upon. Look around you, are our dayaks teachers that committed, dedicated and projecting the image of role model. My experience, majority of them just don't understand how important they are in cascading positive values and beliefs that can assist in creating and developing a solid foundation in our society.

These teachers, a frontliners are indeed the most forceful change agents that can turn around the mindsets of our dayaks society in the remote areas. I am taking teachers as an example. Look to our SAO, DOs & other dayaks officers that serve in divisional and district levels. Most of the time these people travel to longhousesor kampung to create opportunities to claim for lodging & subsistence allowance. Yet our longhouse people show high respect to them. What has they done do far to pass information and transform our society. very little indeed. Amongst these supposedly change agents, we lack among them people that are called "paradigm pioneers". Gone are the days when we are proud to say that we are the grandchildren or descendents of great dayaks headhunters! In the words of Menteri Ikan Jabu, we should now create another breed of tranformational hunters' society - the "knowledge hunters".

Thus it is equally important to identify who in the dayaks society that can play a transformational roles, as change agents and as facilitators of social development.

Talking loud and nasty, i dare to say that we are still lack of leaders in our society, either amongst the politicians, civil servants or corporate executives. If learning (includes education, training & development) is to take place in dayaks society there is a need to have a true "tuai kayau" & "manok sabong" within us. A visionary leaders than can lead us to leap frog to the new millennium. Since we are far left behind, we can effort to crawl but to leap and spring forward to keep pace with others.

Education is the window to the world and reading is a key to it. But to instill this culture into our children is easier said than done. There are also not many Dayak books on sale. Those that are in the market may not interest our children.

How can we encourage reading while attracting the attention of Dayak children? When I was growing up, I like short story books and story books with attractive, colourful pictures. Kids in their teens like to read exciting short novels, mysteries and detective stories for example.

Maybe this is a way to go. While much of these books don't directly contribute to their school

work, the main idea of it all is to encourage them to read and positively broaden their minds beyond the scope of school work and what parents can teach them.

Reading materials in Iban, in particular are already available. But these are very drab that they don't attract our children. Stories about Keling, for example, can be presented with a different approach. Have attractive colourful pictures accompany these stories, just like Alladin, Sinbad, Cinderella and other western children stories. Why not produce Dayak literary works together with English and Bahasa Malaysia translations? It also encourage others to read Dayak books. A lot of us including me, have excuses for not able to do more to help our community. But I feel that if we can start writing stories, short or long, strange or otherwise, this little effort can help our community in a big way.

We don't need to spend so much time on this. An hour a week is more than enough. Write about funny things that happen in our daily lives, profound happenings that occured to you that may help change your life forever etc. There is no need to go into controversial matters. The main idea is to encourage the children to start a reading culture.

Once we have the materials to start with, we can have these stories published. This will be the next huddle.

For the time being, we can start by writing. Encourage reading and writing to our sons, daughters, nephews, nieces, our longhouse neighbours and others. Rather than buying expensive presents, buy books. This will go a long way to improve the education standard of the Dayaks.

Anembiak sekula patut nemu nama tuju sida besekula ,lalu apai-indai patut mega nemu enggau dalam nama tuju sida nganjong anak sida besekula. Jangka aku laban kitai Iban nadai `vision' nyengkaum cita-cita.

Anembiak sekula patut ngembuan cita-cita, lalu kitai ti apai-indai patut meri perangsang ka sida. Enti anak kitai ngembuan cita-cita nyadi pengajar, peransang sida ngambi ka nyadi pengajar ka bisi `master', manah agi enti bisi Ph.D. Maioh ari kitai Dayak dianjong sekula di Semenanjung Malaysia udah bekau ti bulih pemutus periksa ti manah ba PMR. Tang sekeda ari sida dianjong pulai baru, laban sekumbang ti belajar di menoa orang, bisi ngaga ulah ti

enda manah. Jangka aku sida tu nadai `asas yang kukuh' taja pen sida iya pandai. Sida enda nemu ngatur pendiau enggau pengawa diri.

`Science subject' ia ka bendar enda tentu tusah. Aku empu belajar aba aliran sains rambau ka

besekula 12 tahun ka udag lepas. Rambaunya mimit amat bansa kitai Iban dipilih masuk ngagai aliran sains. Ari sekula ka endor aku belajar, maia ka agi Ting. 3 semina siko aku aja indu kitai dayak dipilih masuk nagagai aliran sains, udah bekau ti nerima pemutus periksa SRP. Kitai raban bansa Dayak tinggal ba matapelajaran sains enggau maths, jangka aku laban kitai

selalu ngerunding ka subject tu tusah dipelajar. Lalu kiati nadai confident ka diri empu.Engka mega laban pengidup bansa kitai, nadai serta jarang amai didedah ngagai sains enggau maths. Laban `alam sekeliling berkait rapat' enggau cara kitai berfikir.

Tebal agi apai-indai kitai bansa Iban, beridup ari pengawa bumai-betupi. Kitai bansa agi maioh penanggol, kelebih agi ba belanja enggau cara kitai befikir. Penanggol mesti dibuai dulu. Tang

anang ngelak ka penanggol apai-indai kitai ti deka ngemansang ka pelajar sekula anak sida, nyadi ka penanggol kita bala anembiak ti benong besekukla. Laban resipi ti manah nuju ngagai pemandai ianya; `Asas yang kukuh' + Semangat + Yakin = Kejayaan

Maya nya suba bala kami Apai-Indai or representative di terang ke bakaniorang ngira markah maya PMR tauka SPM ila. Mayoh mega penerang bukai ti dipadah ke bala pengajar ngagai kami ti enda ulih dipadah ke aku magang. Ambis pengawa ti nerang ke utai nya, dia kami diasoh mai anak diri empu betemu enggau guru subject siti-siti. Dia bala kami ulih meda markah ti ulih bala anak maya ujian penggal. Enti anak bisi gagal tauka lemah ba pelajar nya, dia pengajar deka nanya nama kebuah ti bakanya. Arinya nembiak deka madah ke kebuah,ba mua-mata apai-indai diri empu. Laban mayoh nembiak malu madah ke diri enda nemu maya ti dalam kelas takut ke diketawa ke bala pangan.Bisi mega nembiak takut ke pengajar maya belajar. Lalu maya nya suba nembiak deka madah ke bala pengajar nama kebuah sida iya tau bulih markah ti baruh tauka gagal.Aku meda mayoh nembiak deka berunding enggau guru

pasal subject siti-siti.

Ba fikir aku tu jalai ti manah bendar ngambi Apai-Indai diri empu nemu status anak diri ba sekula sebedau sida iya ngambi peresa PMR tauka SPM.Mayoh nembiak diatu pandai ngemula ke Apai-indai diri empu pengawa sida iya ba sekula.

Ngambi ka chonto, maia kami sekula di sekula Tatau ka lama suba di Kuala Annau, sekula tu kala nyadi siti sekula bulih percentage ka tinggi ba pemutus test SRP ba bagi sekula luar bandar ba Sarawak. Maia nya principle kami kitai Iban mega. Sekula endang merinsa amat kelebih agi maia kemarau, bala endang mandi ai masin ari tasik nyin. Tang diatu sekula Tatau udah manah. Kami ka terubah ngambi test SPM dia (1988) Ka agi olih di kingat ka aku, dua tiga serak SPM, pemutus test endang agi bisi manah, tang dalam early 90s bisi nurun

amat.

Ba pasal ngemansang ka education quality kitai bala, utai tu ba runding aku maioh bepun ari attitude anembiak sekula nya empu, good foundation ari apai indai sida, good support from communities ka endor sida diau, religion (enda kira nama pengarap) enggau moral support from school (qualified and motivated teacher).

Conclusion. Panjai-panjai ka runding kitai. Peda pendiau anak kitau ka sekula, bala anak madi kitai, bala anak betunggal kitai, peda olah sida. Kati bisi ka kitai berandau enggau apai inadai diri pasal pengawa kitai di sekula? Kati bisi kala kitai mantai ka pemutus test kitai ngagai sida apai enggau indai, lalau berunding ka ka pasal mana kebuah test kitai nurun tau ka niki? Ba penemu aku, enti ka ngemansang ka sekula, tau dilengka ka dulu hal ka enda tentu berat dirunding ka anambiak sekula, laban 'pengering individu' (self-build) endang kunci peransang kitai, ukai semina ba sekula tang ba pengawa bukai mega.

Enti ulih utai baka tu tau dibantai tau dikenatai ke kitai ngagai sida iya ke `tuai megai' kitai baka sida YB awak ke sida iya tau nyukong tau nulong. Ukai kitai ngumbai sida iya enda nemu pekara tu tang kitai bedau tentu ninga rita ke bebatang amat deka dikena niri serta negi ke penemu baka tu.

Tang ukai aku bejai bansa kitai, kebuah bansa kitai tu lubah nyingkang lubah ngejang laban bansa kitai agi maioh ngembuan ati KEPAPAS. Penyakit tu meh mai kitai bansa tau puntan nuju pemansang dalam semua julok ati.

Ba penemu aku kitai patut ngaga REVOLUSI BARU IBAN ari bermacam-macam aspek ngambi ka mujur baka bangsa bukai. Pelaba aku nadai salah enti kitai begelumu ngena internet tu ngambi ka ngubah kitai bangsa manah agi. Katai patut ngubah pendiau kitai iban, runding kitai iban, serta macam-macam agi utai ka patut di ubah.

Kitai iban ukai enda pandai, tang iya ka pandai jarang deka nguji ngemansang ka bangsa diri laban bangsa kitai baka ka susah amai dekadi kemansang ketegal kelalu mundur.

Uji nuan buat berunding ngambi ka kitai iban semua iya ka pandai bergelumu muka siti projek ka besai. (e.g : ngubah runding kitai bangsa, maju ka menoa kitai, ngajar semua kitai bangsa komputer, etc.)

I have written some thoughts as to some possible reasons to the current situation the Ibans are facing with respect to our educational performance.

My reasons are not exhaustive and they are merely my point of view. I may be wrong in my assumptions but there is a need for us to understand the situation a little better in order to have a better insight of the whole issue.

My proposed recommendations are coming up next. Stay tuned I will mail them to you. What I proposed is for all of us fortunate few to share our own experience. How did we get to be the individuals we are now. What did our parents do right and what do we want to do different to get better results.

My apologies if my remarks in the attachment seem a little too rude for some people.

Reasons for the problem: