Like many teenagers the world over, high school aged students in Malaysia attend school five days each week. Saturday normally means a time to sleep in, relax with a video game, or tweet with friends. For a group of Malaysian students from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, their quest for knowledge pushes them to take part of their Saturday free time and attend additional weekly classes which help prepare them for life.
- Pianist plays prelude
- Group study at seminary
- Teacher Interaction
- Students study together
- Puchong Students Interact
- Saturday afternoon Seminary
- Students at PJ seminary
- Student ponders what he has read
- Teacher of Seminary class
- Happy Student at seminary
- Breakfast before class
- Spring blossom
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
In areas surrounding Puchong, students attend classes every Saturday morning. Teenagers living in Kuala Lumpur, Subang Jaya, Petaling Jaya and Klang areas meet for classes Saturday afternoon. In addition to class time, many students and their parents invest an additional 2 hours of travel time getting to the classrooms.
Seminary is a worldwide, four-year religious educational program for youth ages 14 through 18. It is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In seminary, students and their teachers meet each week during the school year to study scripture, learn leadership skills, and garner truths which will help throughout their lives. The curriculum is organized in a sequential or chapter by chapter manner. Instruction concentrates on a different volume of scripture each year, rotating between the following four courses: Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants and Church History. Courses are taught throughout Malaysia by volunteers and Church-service missionaries.
When asked why these young people give up their free time to come to additional school, most echoed a recurring theme. Daryl Snelson from Puchong said it has become a habit which makes it just like regular school but "I really like to come here, I learn a lot and it is fun to share". Anesha Augustin shared, "I may learn science and math in regular school, but coming to Seminary gives me the opportunity to deepen my knowledge of things which build character. I would not miss Seminary for anything!"
Parents often are required to transport their children to Seminary. For four years, Wong Wuit Weng has driven every Saturday afternoon from Klang to Petaling Jaya so his children can attend classes. He said "my children are important and Seminary has taught them to be persistent and stick to something they start. My son has grown and is more mature because of his discipline to attend Seminary every Saturday."
Peter Krouskop was asked why he brings his 16 year old son and waits the hour and a half for class. His answer, "Simple, he is worth it".