McDonald’s Malaysia today honoured 25 recipients of Anugerah Guru Inspirasi 2021, in conjunction with this year’s National Teachers’ Day celebration.

The fifth edition of the award received more than 4,000 nominations from Malaysians between 2 April to 18 April 2021. From this pool of nominations that highlighted extraordinary teachers across the country, 25 teachers were selected as award recipients.

“Anugerah Guru Inspirasi serves as a platform to highlight educators who in essence, are really the extraordinary, everyday heroes in our lives,” said Azmir Jaafar, Managing Director and Local Operating Partner of McDonald’s Malaysia.

“We received heartwarming stories about teachers who go the extra mile in cultivating the minds of the younger generation and build a strong foundation that would shape their future. The stories we received reflected the unwavering dedication and commitment that these teachers have in carrying out their daily duties, big or small, that form the entirety of their profession,” added Azmir.

According to Azmir, many nominations this year spoke of the strength and resilience of teachers navigating through the current climate of the pandemic, using creativity and the power of perseverance to continue connecting with their students and making sure that no one is left behind in their studies. This include creating an interactive environment and providing sufficient tools for the students while they learn remotely.

One of the award recipients, Cikgu Nur Fadhlina from SK Gopeng Taman Gopeng Baru in Perak leverages YouTube as a platform to teach her students as well as provide tips to other educators who would like to develop videos as teaching materials. Her YouTube channel @LinnZack currently boasts more than 19,000 subscribers.

Another award recipient, Cikgu Ling Fong, teaches students with special needs at SMK Datuk Peter Mojuntin in Sabah, particularly students with impaired hearing. Cikgu Ling did not know sign language when she was offered to teach special education. Nevertheless, she worked hard and was not ashamed to learn from her students to master sign language to ensure she was able to relay her lessons at the school. With schools shut during the pandemic and learning had to be carried out online, Cikgu Ling Fong recorded herself teaching using sign language and uploaded the series on YouTube for the benefit of her students. Apart from that, she has encouraged her students to participate in competitions to boost their confidence, especially online competitions during the pandemic.

“These stories are just the tip of the iceberg of the massive sacrifice and dedication by educators. A lot of preparation and thought are put into carrying out new ideas, such as effective teaching materials for remote learning while keeping that spark of curiosity alive among our children. That is a huge responsibility, and these teachers that we are celebrating today carry this load with so much heart and zeal,” said Azmir.

The award recipients were chosen by a panel of judges consisting of representatives from McDonald’s, the Ministry of Education, and the media.

The nomination stories of the 25 award recipients can be found at www.mcdonalds.com.my/en/anugerahguruinspirasi/winners/2021. The heartwarming video capturing the surprise of the teachers when they were told that they were recipients of Anugerah Guru Inspirasi McDonald’s 2021 is up on McDonald’s Malaysia’s YouTube page at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrev4Oh8qA4.

Each of the 25 recipient of Anugerah Guru Inspirasi McDonald’s 2021 received a cash award of RM5,000, while the nominator will receive RM200 worth of McDonald’s gift vouchers as a token of appreciation.