The Teachers at our CCC School

CamKids is extremely lucky to have a number of gifted and dedicated teachers working for us at our CCC School – not always the easiest thing to do when you’re so far from a town - or a sealed road - or electricity! Our teachers are vastly experienced and totally dedicated to the children by providing the best education they possibly can.  We spoke to some of them, to find out their hopes for the future.

Probably our most experienced teacher is 62-year-old Sath Kry, from Tropaing Lorpeak village in Kampong Speu. He is married with two grown-up children. He was formerly deputy director of Tropaing Lorpeak primary school from 1981-2013, and has now been working at CCC since October 2013.  He says the reason he works at CCC School is “because I want to help teaching the children in this community, as it is poor and most of the kids never go school.” He goes on: “I want to share my knowledge to kids and don’t want to spend my time uselessly. Moreover, I want to have some additional income to support my family.”

Sath Kry says the differences between CCC School and public schools is vast: “At CCC School, the academic discipline is strict - all the teachers come to teach regularly and on time, complete all the requirements from Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport; they focus on kids’ behaviour, morality, hygiene, health care and school environment. At public schools, some teachers don’t pay attention on their teaching and they are not willing to do the job. They don’t come to teach frequently and don’t follow up the students who are always absent. Hardworking teachers are not appreciated or rewarded.”  He says his ambition is to see all the children who are studying at CCC School have “a bright future and become a human resource for Cambodia’s future development.” He goes on: “I also hope that all my work will contribute to the better lives of those children and join hands to build the human resources in Cambodia. I also want to see all the teachers at CCC have better living too.”

Sixty-four-year-old Thav Sophath from Ork Yom Village in Kampong Speu is married and has eight children. He was a former school director of Ork Yom primary school from 1988-2013 and has been working at CCC since August 2014. He says he wants the children at CCC “to be knowledgeable, educated and have a good future. Earlier, there was no school and the children here never got an education.” He continues: “I don’t want to bury my knowledge and I want to share it with the children.”  He also sees profound differences between CCC and public schools: “All the students here at CCC are truly competent to jump up the grade, but at public school, the students just finished the year and go up.” And, he adds, “all students and teachers respect the school discipline and good behaviour.”

Koy Sina, who is 28 years old and from Kbal Krolach village in Kampong Speu is married with a one-year-old son. She has been working at CCC since Oct 2013 and is also a kindergarten teacher at Tompoung Primary School. She loves teaching the kids, who she says are very disciplined.  Sina says she likes teaching the poor and disadvantaged kids “who have less opportunity”. She loves the school, because it offers “a good quality of education and the school wants the quality rather than quantity.”  Moreover, she adds, “the school supports the study materials, uniforms, health care and a tooth brushing program.” Her ambition for the children is that “they will be knowledgeable, moral, show good behaviour and become good citizens. I wish all the children be successful in their life and have a bright future.”

Finally, 28-year-old Hong Him is actually from Chbar Chros village, where the school is located. He has been working at CCC since 2009, over seven years, and was the first teacher before CCC school officially opened in March 2012. He had originally been teaching without pay for about three years because he pitied the kids who were eager to learn but had no school. “I was inspired by the elder people who want to see a proper school was built for young generation, that why I decided to teach without paying while my family faced financial problems too.” He has very definite ideas about what he wants for his pupils. “I want to help the children in my own community to have knowledge. I want to help CCC becomes an outstanding school where the children can get a good quality of education. And I want to help my community to have a better standard of living.” He likes the fact that all the teachers are dedicated in teaching and are in school regularly. “Both staff and teachers really pay attention to the children’s education, and all of the community and the parents are active participants in what we do.”

We are dependent upon regular donors to support our schools programme.  From just £5 per month, you can fund the cost of an education for a child - £20 per month gives a valuable education to 4 children. Please go to www.bit.ly/regdonation or contact us for more information.