Full Press Release:
A Brief Introduction toMatrix Global SchoolsBandar Sri Sendayan, Seremban, MalaysiaMatrix Global Schools is built on a newly-developed, 20-acre lakeside campus, with over 600,000 square feet of built-up space, providing the highest quality of affordable private schooling, from preschool, through to Cambridge iGCSE. Both schools offer a full range of exciting, state-of-the-art facilities, with a team of professional, well-trained and experienced teachers, using internationally recognized methods, and low teacher-pupil ratios.The schools and campus are in the final stages of construction, and our management team plans to move into the school in July 2014.Global Vision….Global MissionWe live in a fast-changing world, and our children face an uncertain future, in terms of the skills they will need to succeed and excel. We all agree that the pursuit of academic excellence is paramount. But at Matrix Global Schools, we also understand that there are other, equally important strengths required, in order to become “second to none”.Our Vision:To be “Second to None”; a leader in global education, and technological awareness.Our Mission:To nurture creativity, ambition, determination, and independence, so our students graduate to become outstanding leaders of tomorrow, communicating confidently and effectively, possessing life skills which are “Second to None”.LocationAlong with the D’Tempat Country Club, The Matrix Global School campus lies at the hub of the new 6000 acre township of Sendayan, 10 kilometres from the State capital city of Seremban, a 15 minute drive from the North-South highway, and one hour from Kuala Lumpur by highway or train. KLIA International Airport is 20 minutes away, and the coastal resort of Port Dickson 30 minutes by highway. The historic town of Malacca, which is a World Heritage Site, is 45 minutes away.The township of Sendayan is currently under construction, with low density, secure, architect designed quality housing in green surroundings.First Class FacilitiesThe school has first class facilities, including spacious libraries, auditorium, lecture theatres, and science laboratories. Sports facilities include a full sized football/rugby/cricket field, indoor futsal, badminton and basketball, squash, wall climbing, kayaking, obstacle course and a flying fox. The D’Tempat Country Club adjacent to the school campus provides an Olympic sized swimming pool, squash courts, a bowling alley, and an 18-hole golf course.Comfortable and spacious student accommodation is available for up to 440 weekly and termly boarders, in the student hostel, which includes recreational and canteen facilities. Quality staff accommodation in the form of purpose built apartments, are also available on the higher floors.Matrix Global Schools• Currently under construction in the new township of Bandar Sri Sendayan, NegeriSembilan• Due for completion in July/August 2014• 20 acre campus with state of the art facilities, rivalling any school in Malaysia• Private and International Schools linked by a bridge. Sharing a common culture,common facilities, common vision and mission• “Soft opening” Summer Camp for intending students and students on school holidays,from September to December• International School to follow Cambridge UK curriculum. Private School to followMalaysian curriculum.• Affiliated with Ellesmere College, a long-established in UK private boarding school, with planned exchanges involving sports, student and staff exchange programmes and sharing of Matrix Global School’s interactive curriculum.• Collaboration with Wistron, a Fortune 500 technology corporation in Taiwan.• Total capacity 2500 students (Matrix Private School – 1500 students, Matrix International School – 1000 students).• Residential Court will accommodate up to 440 students and 24 staff.Matrix International School is planning two unique programmes, which will be part of the curriculum; computer programming and video and film making. Strong supporters of these two programmes are our UK Principal, Chris Frankland, and our Canadian Primary Headmistress, Shannon McIntyre. Chris has been in Malaysia for more than 30 years and is well-versed in Malaysian culture and education, and a keen photographer. Shannon, a strong proponent for video and filming, brings with her more than 10 years of experience in schools globally. She too has spent some time in Malaysia prior to this, under a Government-initiated project, training and supporting Malaysian teachers in selected schools. Chris says that computer programming is a ”must-have” for those who really want to excel in the IT industry, and points out that such courses are extremely successful and popular in the UK. The other core USP, involving digital photography and movie making, is one which can incorporate all subjects, and really place our school on the education map. “One must always be able to use the computer to fast-track and improve our tasks. There is a need to create, and not to merely utilise computer programmes and applications”, Chris says. Shannon, on the other hand, is initiating the video and filming programme which will have many applications. “The objective of this is to integrate photography and film making into all aspects of the curriculum,” says Shannon. Discussions are well on the way with a prominent person from industry players like Entertainment Tonight, Canada as well as our local Astro, in conjunction with local colleges and private Universities. All we can say at this juncture is that learning in our school will be different and it will be fun.... “This is going to be a wholly different International School”, says Chris.Matrix Private School, consisting of the Matrix Primary & Secondary School is also designed to be unique, and epitomises the life skills philosophy. The delivery of our lessons practices the experiential learning approach of our International School, whilst at the same time, honing the “testing” skills required by the national KSSR and KSSM curriculum. The curriculum will be adjusted wherever possible, towards the provision of key life skills, required outside school and eventually in the workforce. Our music curriculum, for example, will be tailor-made to lead to either the Trinity or the ABRSM examinations. Another example is our cooking classes, conducted within specially designed practical kitchen classrooms, to create young “Master Chefs” who will become familiar with healthy diet, food presentation and serving skills, alongside table etiquette. The objective is to equip our children with the kind of social skills to allow them to confidently enter the adult world, and the world of work. We like to say that “we send our students out of class”, says Felix Lee, Matrix Global School’s CEO, by which he means that our lessons do not only take place in the classroom, or in school, but at every opportunity, experiential learning will take place outside. Another hallmark of Matrix Private School is in the provision of Mandarin. We are in the final stages of our collaboration with the Kongzi Institute, Universiti Malaya, to enable our school to become a recognised and authorised Test Centre for the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban) in Beijing, to conduct the International Chinese Proficiency Test. This will be done by teachers jointly selected by us, including some from Beijing, China.Affiliation Agreement between Matrix Global Education & Ellesmere College20th March 2014 was a key milestone for Matrix Global Schools, as we finalised our affiliation agreement in Shropshire, England with Ellesmere College UK, a 130 year old British residential school. The agreement, between our CEO, Felix Lee and Brendan Wignall, Principal of Ellesmere College was also witnessed by the Chairman of Matrix Concepts Group, Dato’ Haji Mohamad Haslah Bin Mohamad Amin and our Group CEO, Dato’ Lee Tian Hock. This affiliation already positions us as the Premier Private School Group in the Region. As part of this agreement, Matrix Global Schools will be exporting our specially-designed teaching methodology, using interactive computer tablets. Currently being developed for use in our school and Ellesmere College, this interactive addition to the curriculum is unique in the region, as it is based on the concept of collaborative/co-operative learning where the lessons are seamlessly integrated with the students’ tablets, which reinforces learning, and takes students to higher levels of understanding and attainment.Matrix Global Schools is without doubt a feat of innovation and design, which took 2 years of detailed planning, and is now nearing completion. The adoption of our teaching methodology by a 130 year old British residential school, with an amazing track record, confirms our direction, our standards, and our passion for the provision of quality private education. “Education is not about learning” says Felix Lee, a statement which always raises many eye-brows. He continues: “Education is about the process of learning....it’s about the journey and never about the destination”. This is in line with one of our 5 educational philosophies, where we insist that “Our Lessons are for Life!” In living up to these 5 philosophies, the curricula of the schools are all aimed at the provision of life skills, from the inter-personal skills, to oratory skills, through initiatives such as our “Roast or Toast” programme.Why the partnership with Ellesmere?We have a shared sense of values. Both schools are very close in agreement and mindset in terms of what constitutes an outstanding school. Namely:• A focus on the individual, and emphasis on individual performance. We identify and nurture childrens’ strengths.• We want our children to reach the very best of their capabilities• Our children will be engaged in everything they do in school• We foster positive relative relations, between students, teachers and parents• We encourage individuals to help each other• We believe that confidence is the key to successThere will be three main areas of collaboration and cooperation with Ellesmere:1. Sports AffiliationExchanging sporting skills such as rugby, swimming, tennis, squash, which entails Ellesmere and MGS exchanging sporting skills via an exchange of students and their related activities.2. Student exchange and staff immersion programmesThere will be student exchange programmes during the summer semester at Ellesmere, and staff placements between Ellesmere and Matrix Global Schools, for a staff immersion programme.3. Sharing of Matrix Global School’s Interactive CurriculumMGS will be designing and producing a series of interactive programmes, using “Augmented Reality”, for key learning components in the Cambridge curriculum, to be shared with Ellesmere College.Our overall objective is simple; to ensure that in all we do, we ensure recognition, for our school, and for our students; that in everything we do, we do to the very BEST. That is clearly reflected in our school motto: Nulli Secunda – Second to None.
