More Than a Diploma: MPI Equips Her to Build Foundations for Children

In December 2024, she quit her job to pursue a Diploma in Early Childhood Education (ECE) at Methodist Pilley Institute (MPI) – a decision she described as very faith-driven decision-making.

In fact, the diploma came as a surprise for her, but the real test was shifting from working full-time as a manager in a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in Kuching to becoming a full-time student again.

Kai Syn’s enrolment in the Diploma in ECE at MPI was arranged and sponsored by her church – St Thomas Cathedral in Kuching, following her consent.

The church had a plan to set up a new kindergarten, and the construction is expected to be completed in two years’ time and wanted Kai Syn to be involved in the setting up and running of the kindergarten.

However, she needed at least a Diploma in ECE as required by the government to do that.

Kai Syn holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master’s in Guidance Counselling from a public university. She then worked in an NGO caring for sick children and supporting the families.

For her, it was a great and stable life, and she was happy the way it was. However, God had a different plan for her – one that required trust; trust in the church’s decision and God’s plan for her.

She initially thought it was only a short course in Kuching and that the additional skills would help the church in whatever project they were planning.

Apparently, that was not the case – the diploma programme takes two and a half years.

Saying ‘yes’ would affect her career and her family. Despite being single and having no kids, her parents were still her concern.

“I believe this is the best timing for me to do this before my parents grow old and naturally will come with some sickness.

“I am confident that my parents can take care of themselves. They are still in good health and very energetic. So, I believe this is the right timing,” she enthused.

If everything goes as planned, the kindergarten project would be completed and expected to run by the time she completes her diploma.

Kai Syn may hold a master’s degree with more than 10 years of working experience, but she realised soon enough, learning can only be possible with the mindset of a student.

Just like other students, she was required to attend the orientation camp, go to classes like everybody else, and share a hostel room with a girl from a different generation than she is.

For her, the real challenge was her internal challenge – her inner critics.

She was worried that the students would ask about her age or whether she could catch up with them physically and so forth.

She knew that only with different perspectives and mindset could she overcome this internal challenge and slowly she accepted the things that she could not change.

She realised that age is not a barrier and, in fact, was able to communicate well with them.

“I try to understand their perspectives. I cannot say that I agree with everything, but I am learning to have empathy with the younger generation,” she said, adding that she would not disclose that she has a master’s degree unless being asked.

If they asked, she would reassure them that she is just a student like them.

Over the years, there have been many ECE in-service teachers who are also in their 40s enrolling in the Diploma in ECE.

Thus, just like these students, Kai Syn has no problem coping with the learning environment as the lecturers would ensure all learning is inclusive regardless of age.

Someone who believed in excellence, Kai Syn set a high expectation for herself, and she achieved it in the first semester with a CGPA of 4.00.

She said it is important to start strong as she anticipated a much more difficult semester ahead.

In fact, Kai Syn, who is now in the second semester, could feel that the difficulty level has increased.

Not only that, but she also realised that the standard level for the Diploma in ECE at MPI is very high.

She said she underestimated the programme, thinking that it is not that difficult since it is a diploma level.

“When I came in for the first lesson, immediately, I was like, okay, I need to let go of my arrogance, I need to embrace the learning process fully now,” she said.

Curious, she asked the lecturer why they have to set the standard so high for a diploma programme?

“According to the lecturer, since the Education Ministry has set a minimum requirement for early childhood educators to have at least a diploma, if the school did not set the quality high enough, the diploma means nothing.

“Because ECE is very important. If you do not give quality education to them, you will ruin a child’s foundation. When they proceed to primary school, you cannot help much,” she said.

With this understanding, Kai Syn realised not only would she get the qualification, but also competency as an early childhood educator at MPI.

Included in the Diploma in ECE programme is the field experience, whereby students must fulfil 40 hours of field experience during long semesters and 20 hours during short semesters.

To some, it could be a burden. Such training usually takes place in the final semester, but in MPI, students start from the first year, first semester.

“I think to start from the very beginning is a good practice. We can expose ourselves to the real-world setting; learn how to do it hands-on, feel it, and apply whatever we learn in the classroom.

“We have more things to observe, and we have the picture that when we graduate; what we are expected to do and what are the challenges that we are going to face.

“This is indeed a very valuable experience, and I believe you cannot find it at other institutes,” she said.

Apart from that, there are a lot of opportunities to learn beyond the classroom.

For example, early this year, the Department of ECE and the Department of Social Work organised a trip to Padang in Ulu Limbang where they spent five days at the Penan Village.
There, the students did their test teaching under the supervision of the lecturers.

At the end of April, they went for a two-day trip to Julau to help tidy up Tadika Methodist Julau and other activities.

“It was an eye-opening experience for us as we got to know how to set up the learning corner.
The lecturers explained to us what are the things that we need to consider, and the learning corners must be arranged according to children’s perspectives, not our perspectives. This is indeed a valuable experience for us,” she pointed out.

She believed that her experience working with children in her previous work helped her in her study.

The difference between her previous work and ECE is that in her working experience, it was not a structured programme. Her purpose was to make them happy during difficult times.

While in ECE, the programme is very structured to ensure children’s learning ability and experience and their development.

“I think things like communicating with children and with parents; those are the basic things that I have some experience in, and what is new now is that I focus on the children’s learning,” she said.

With ECE, she gained the foundation to conduct play stations or guidance sessions.

After the diploma, she said it would be her commitment to help set up the new kindergarten that the church intended.

For the long term, she might go further and continue studying and learning alongside the lecturers.

“I really salute them for their effort and hard work to teach us. I felt empowered to bring some positive change. You can feel that they really care about their students,” she said.