Empowerment, Scaffolding & SERU.

"If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime."

   The above quote is indeed conjuncted to a powerful yet domineering word of 'EMPOWERMENT'. In education field, this word is related to a term called 'scaffolding'; where to simply put it, let us bring our imagination to a construction building site, where we can see there will be lots of scaffolds (an ongoing built building will have the steel sticks around them; that what we called as scaffolds). We use scaffolds to support the in-progress building where then the scaffolds are removed once the constructions been done.      

Scaffolds in a construction site.

     In education, scaffolding can be said as a "support to the student in their early learning phase and then gradually removing that support system as the student masters the lesson. This parallels to how builders often apply scaffolding into what they build as support and framework, and gradually removes them when the building can already support itself." (Scaffolding In Education, 2012)

This empowerment or scaffolding could be related to the words of wisdom above, where if we give a man a fish today, he could only survive from the fish we've given them but when we teach a man to fish today, he could feed himself forever without us (teachers/instructors/facilitators). Back to the term 'scaffolding' used in education field of study, there is a man called Lev Vygotsky.  

This is him; Lev Vygotsky.

   He is a Russian psychologist who has develop a powerful theory which been ubiquitously used around the world. It is the theory of "Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)".

   Well guys, I will not be talking about this theory for this post but this is what SERU or Student Empowerment & Research Unit

 exactly is doing to empower University of Malaya's undergraduates (even postgraduates!).  SERU is part of the Student Affairs Division (Hal Ehwal Pelajar) that is responsibled for the design and implementation of soft skills programme to empower students to be in control of their own future.

I am here as a  REAL SAHABAT SERU (RSS) , where this is actually a peer coaching program to mould positive role models. We are the first batch of the one and only RSS in public universities all over Malaysia! 

This is so exciting as this kind of programme would endow students (especially University of Malaya's students)upon great skills as to become a leader in future. In  REAL SAHABAT SERU, I am placed in "U-Youth" team and really look forward into this programme and  to share knowledge as much as I could here, in "Inia's Legacy // Warisan Inia" blog! Till next time! Goodbye!

Hi Guys! This is some information about REAL SAHABAT SERU, University of Malaya, Malaysia.

Mission

SAHABAT SERU is a program to mould positive role model students through the development of soft skills and subsequently, be able to enhance and enrich the campus experiences of their fellow peers. It aims at developing peer coaches who are good listeners, encourage self-reflection and promote feedback through a guided one-on-one coaching exercise.

The selected students will experience specific workshops and supervised practical sessions to empower them as a SAHABAT SERU. Ultimately the program is designed in efforts to create a student-driven and student-friendly campus environment.

Responsibilities

SAHABAT SERU is a team of undergraduate students who are highly emphatic and feel obliged in supporting their peers who want to be leaders. A SAHABAT SERU shall encourage constant self-reflection and self-correction during peer coaching sessions. Briefly, coaches and coached students will walk through a planned action in addressing specific issue, observe, reflect and enhance the action until a solution is derived.

Role Functions

• The SAHABAT SERU team will actively participate and contribute to all supervised practical sessions, workshops and other on-going activities offered through the program.
• Providing one-on-one or small group peer coaching to students in a structured, regular team meetings in the subsequent semester.
• Record challenges and experiences in a journal and transfer the information into a self-created blog. Position Commitment The SAHABAT SERU team is required to follow through workshops, supervised team meetings and peer coaching meetings planned in two semesters:
  - 17 March to 17 May
  - 10 Sept – 6 Nov 2012.

Program Coordinator

The SAHABAT SERU coaches are advised by the unit SERU who will be responsible for the management and development of the program. SERU shall provide support and guidance to the SAHABAT SERU through regular basis workshops, team meetings, one-on-ones and communicate via email, if necessary.

Benefits

This program offers SAHABAT SERU an opportunity to develop a number of professional competencies including enhancing:

• interpersonal skills: understanding people better and motivating others
• leadership skills: communication, team-building and networking of friends

Awards

All SAHABAT SERU will be awarded merit points, certificate of leadership and other forms of appreciation that SERU deems fit.

If you are interested to know more about SERU, logon to: http://www.seru.um.edu.my.