My Naquiah Prefect Story

’Euan, we would like you to be a Naquiah Prefect.’
Those were the words that came through the phone, making my heart pump like a drummer fisting a drum non-stop.

Naquiah Prefect is a body of senior students which supports the well-being of the Middle School (Form 1 to Form 3) at Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar. Our duties include spending an hour per week at the juniors’ boarding house to coach them in heir studies. I also hold termly events and weekly activities that help them bond better, like sports sessions, parties and movie screenings.

I was so concerned to take up the role initially. I was unsure how much commitments it requires throughout my term. I regarded the position as a waste of time that I do not need in my personal development, for I am aware and proud of the communication skills, work attitudes and other attributes that I possessed at that time.

But no, Mr. Hughes told me that the role was not set for my personal development. It was for the younger students who board at school. For the young souls who have little exposure of the outside world, and are undeniably unaware of the steps ahead of their time as lower forms in school. The prefects act as an inspiration to this generation of young kids, for it resembles a buffet of personalities that shows much diversity which the younger ones can take as examples. I was undeniably very well convinced by my houseparent himself. I thought about the change I might be able to make, and I took the offer to be a Naquiah Prefect.

I was honoured to be able to speak to the many juniors and to get to know them. I tried my best to share inputs and opinions with them. The satisfaction of knowing that someone younger looked up to you and listened to your advice was beyond what I could have imagined. I do not mean they were just a group of fans who listen to what you had to say, but taking you as an example and working on their own attributes to reach where they could take them, helped me realise how much importance are in the image I portray and the behaviours I have.

The role helped me in terms of my patience and empathy. I am now more willing to listen to a younger audience with their opinions and trying to understand where they are coming from.

I could tell the differences in the juniors’ personalities and how we could approach them differently. I had done part-time teaching a few years back, coaching kids aged 5 to 12. It was a drastically different experience. The students at KTJ are a little older, most in the age range of 11 to 15, certainly more physically and mentally mature than the ones I have dealt with earlier. However, they are young teenagers who are going through phases, like puberty, which slowly transforms them as they grow into adulthood. As a 20-year-old this year, I could see myself in the juniors, and I felt familiar with what they are going through. I saw the curiosity about the world, physical changes, pressures from academics and even emotional roller coasters in their lives- things I had personally gone through which I could now talk about with them with confidence and understanding.

My time spent with them, within and beyond my duty hours, was enthralling. Through conversations, I learned about their opinions on the school rules, I listened to their ranting about teachers and losses in house sports events, I talked to them about the friendship issues they had and even how the dining hall food tasted that day. I learned a lot through looking at things from their eyes. This made me feel proud and glad, as my time spent with them did not go to waste at all, but was able to enhance the understanding between young teens and me in a school community- despite a large age gap. The thought that a junior could be homesick and depressed in a boarding school, at age 11, made me sad. We were not able to identify every single case of loneliness, but we could try our best in making them feel included and welcomed.

As we had fun events occasionally, like my favourite one was Naquiah Christmas party which took place at the end of my first term as an Upper Six. We had a tough and busy time baking cookies, practising our performances, managing games stations for the kids, but it all did not go in vain. I had the time of my Naquiah Prefect life working with the other prefects to make plans work; I engaged with the juniors, spent time playing and eating with them; seeing the genuine happiness in their eyes gave me an approval for all the effort we have put in prior to the event. This is an experience I doubt that anyone can find in other clubs at KTJ, other than LEO. There is literally no other places where you have a direct connection with so many of them, and where you can sprinkle a little dust of yourself on them as inspirations- the sprout of even bigger dreams.

I am glad that in 2019, I am part of an evolving community where we allocate talents the right way to inspire, and to create a ripple effect to the rise of even more potentials in the next generation. It is wondrous seeing the next batch of seniors being so enthusiastic about taking up the role, for it prepares a platform for them to get to know the younger juniors and further enrich the juniors’ experience at KTJ.

By,
Euan Thum.