TAKING a break from all the famous landmarks and places of interest in Kuala Terengganu, the participants of the BRATs workshop also dropped by the Tok Jiring “English Theme Park” (ETP). And no, it’s not a theme park where everything’s British.

The ETP is actually an initiative by the Terengganu State Education Technology Department (TSETD) to help improve the level of English proficiency among primary school students, by creating a fun, relaxed environment outside of the classroom where they can practise the language.

Housed within the Tok Jiring Teacher’s Activity Centre at Sekolah Kebangsaan Tok Jiring, the ETP the BRATs visited includes a book corner, computers with access to learning portals, a mini-theatre and some outdoor exhibits, including one on Malaysian national heroes.

So instead of just teaching from their textbooks, teachers in Terengganu can now take their students to the ETP for a more fun learning experience. Altogether, the TSETD have already set up three ETPs around Terengganu with ExxonMobil Malaysia’s support. The other two ETPs are in Kemasik and Kuala Berang.

“The objective of the ETP is to create informal learning sessions that would make learning English fun,” said Azman Othman @ Abdullah, the Terengganu State Education Department principal assistant director (English), who gave the BRATs a tour of the facility.

“Students can spend hours on games like DotA, Call Of Duty and so on because they enjoy it. If we can make learning English something enjoyable, the students will spend more time on it as well.”

ExxonMobil Malaysia’s Community Relations advisor Ida Ruzaini Altahari, who was also at the tour said, “ExxonMobil has been working with the Terengganu State Education Department for over a decade now to provide creative and stimulating resources to help make teaching and learning of English language exciting and fun.”