The World Mate School Number Nine

The Cambodia Rural School Project

The World Mate School Number Nine

(August, 2001)

Mr. Chhip Saroun is the director of the World Mate School Number Nine. He has been a school director for 16 years. He was a fourth grade teacher from 1980 to 1998. When he became a teacher he went to Siem Reap town for eight months of training. His wife is a farmer and they have five children.

On the new building:	“The new building is important because it energizes the students who otherwise would not study to come to school.”
On teaching:	“I was born and raised in this village. I became a teacher to change the way lessons were taught. In the old system, the students weren’t active. The teacher was active, giving dictation and other things. Now we focus on student activities. Also, the students are taught to think for themselves, which is much different from before. The new system is better than the old system because before the students were afraid of the teacher, but now they are not afraid and are willing to talk and discuss things with the teacher. The new system works well.”
On the importance of education:	“It is very important for my children and my students to go on to other schools so that they can get good knowledge. It is important that they are not ignorant of history. Educated people consider things before they take action, so high education also means that they will have good tempers.”