Mainland China Postgraduates At UKM Help Empower Special Needs Students

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 (Bernama) -- A group of postgraduate students from mainland China at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) is helping to economically empower special needs students from a school in Ampang, Selangor, with skills that will help them find employment and improve their economic status.

The group’s project leader, Wu Nan, said their efforts will also support these special needs secondary school students and bolster friendship between China and Malaysia at the community level.

She told Bernama recently that the group pooled resources to purchase massage chairs, equipment and furniture that the students can use to learn basic reflexology skills.

Wu Nan, who hails from Wuhan city in Hubei province, said the group undertook the task knowing it is not easy for these students to find employment after leaving school.

The 10 students from the Graduate School of Business-UKM-Master of Business Administration programme (GSB-UKM-MBA) undertook the corporate social responsibility project under the guidance of their senior lecturer, Professor Mazzlida Mat Deli.

“These reflexology skills can be put to good use to earn money and uplift these students’ economic status,” said Wu Nan.

The special needs students they chose to help were from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Taman Tasik in Ampang, Selangor.

The school’s headmistress, Puan Norhayati Zakaria, said during the handover of the equipment that the school was among those in the state undertaking special education classes for special needs students.

Wu Nan said that the aim is to help special children find employment smoothly, and care was taken to create a professional and comfortable learning environment for vocational training.

“We actively raised resources and expanded the massage training base, which is located in a separate building on the school premises,” she said.

 

Special needs children can contribute to nation-building

 

The donated items include air conditioning equipment to ensure a comfortable treatment environment, sofas for teaching and rest areas, professional massage chairs, armchairs and other related facilities.

Norhayati said these students are taught several trades besides their core lessons, which are useful in expanding their career opportunities as they look for jobs after leaving school.

Besides reflexology, they learn the basics of massage, stitching, cooking, and gardening.

The school currently has 143 special needs students out of a total enrolment of more than 3,000 students.

Wu Nan said her project group includes students from various parts of China who are grateful to be able to pursue their studies in Malaysia.

They see the 12-week CSR project as a way to give back to Malaysia for the opportunity to study their MBA programme at UKM.

 

Project deepens Malaysia-China ties at the community level

 

By empowering special needs students economically, Wu Nan said they can contribute to nation-building in their own way, which fits Malaysia’s vision of inclusiveness as it prepares to celebrate Merdeka on Aug 31, 2026.

More than that, she said it would deepen grassroots friendship between China and Malaysia while empowering disadvantaged groups.

Li DongChen, another GSB-UKM-MBA student and a maths teacher back in China, said the project proves that Chinese students studying in Malaysia not only pursue academic advancement but also actively integrate into the local community.

He said Malaysia has always shown Chinese students great enthusiasm, tolerance and kindness.

“This is a token of our sincere gratitude and a gift for our Malaysian friends as international students,” he said, adding that a similar sentiment was shared by other members of the group comprising Meng Xiao, Zhang-Junhui, Yu Aizhuo, Tang Yiyang, Lizishuo, Yu Jia Wei, Jiang Boyang and Liu Ming Yu.

Wu Nan said she hoped the project would help special students realise their self-worth, as it embodies the social responsibility and practical value of the MBA programme.

“What is needed is greater cooperation between school and enterprise and greater social assistance,” she said.

Wu Nan said the group is also exploring partnerships with reflexology practitioners and businesses for future training, mentoring and empowerment exposure.

“Enhancing these students' employment competitiveness and self-employment ability will go a long way in their career development,” she added.

-- BERNAMA