Five Questions with Malaysia In-Country Coordinator Jonathan Koh

What does it take to help students feel at home somewhere unfamiliar while encouraging them to look a little closer? During our Malaysia term, in-country coordinator Jonathan Koh helped make those connections, bringing students into the everyday life of Sabah and supporting them as they found their footing.

For Jonathan, who also runs Borneo Sandakan Tours, the goal went beyond introducing students to beautiful places. He wanted them to listen to the people they met, consider different perspectives, and leave with more curiosity than answers. In this edition of Five Questions, he reflects on the experiences that challenged students, the growth he witnessed, and what he hopes they carried with them.

What did your role as TGS’s Malaysia in-country coordinator involve, from preparing for students’ arrival to supporting them throughout the term?

My role was to be the bridge between TGS and everything happening on the ground in Borneo. Before the students arrived, i helped coordinate the logistics, accommodation, transportation, activities, local partners and the overall programme.

Once they arrived, my role was to make sure things ran smoothly and to support both the students and staffs whenever challenges came up. Sometimes that meant dealing with very practical things, and sometimes it meant adjusting plans because of weather, timing or other unexpected situations.

But i think the most important part of my role was helping connect the students with Sabah. I didn’t want them to simply come here, visit places and leave. I wanted them to understand the people, culture, and environment around them and to feel comfortable asking questions about what they were expecting.

What did you hope students would come to understand about Sabah beyond the places they visited?

I hoped they would understand that Sabah is much more than the beautiful places they see as visitors.

Sabah has a very diverse population, cultures, religions and communities, and there are also many different perspectives on development, the environment, tourism and governance.

Through their time here, I wanted them to see that these issues are connected to real people and real communities. For example, during their experiences in Kiulu and Sabah Tea, they could see a different side of Sabah not just as a tourist destination, but as a place where people live, work and build their communities.

I also hoped they would understand that there isn’t always one correct perspective. Sometimes the most valuable thing is to listen to different people and try to understand why they see an issue differently.

Which experience during their time in Malaysia do you think was most meaningful to students?

I think the ROP experience in Kiulu was one of the most meaningful because it pushed the students outside their normal comfort zone.

They had to work together, adapt to a different environment and participate rather than simply observe. I think those experiences created a lot of opportunities for them to learn about themselves and each other.

The WeExplore experience at Sabah Tea was also meaningful because they were able to experience another side of Sabah and interact with the environment and local setting in a much more immersive way.

For me, the most meaningful part wasn’t necessarily one particular activity. It was seeing the students become more comfortable with being somewhere unfamiliar and starting to engage with Sabah with more curiosity.

What challenged students most about living and learning in Sabah, and how did you see them respond?

I think one of the biggest challenges was adjusting to a different pace and way of doing things.

Students came from an environment where they are probably used to things being quite structured and predictable. In Sabah, things don’t always work that way. Weather can change plans, transportation takes time, and sometimes you simply have to adapt.

I think Kiulu was a good example of this because they had to be more independent and work together in an environment that was different from what they were accustomed to.

What I found interesting was that, rather than allowing those challenges to stop them, they gradually became more adaptable. They learned to be patient, communicate with each other and accept that not everything needs to happen exactly according to plan.

I think that is an important part of learning outside the classroom.

Looking back on the term, what do you hope students took away from their time in Sabah?

I hope they left Sabah with more curiosity than answers.

I don’t think the purpose of spending time in another country is to come away thinking you understand everything about that place. I hope they came away wanting to ask more questions and understand things from different perspectives.

I hope they remember the people they met, the conversations they had, and the moments when they had to step outside their comfort zone particularly during ROP in Kiulu and WeExplore at Sabah Tea.

And ultimately, I hope they realised that Sabah is not just a place on a map or somewhere they travelled to for a school programme. It is a place with its own communities, cultures, challenges and stories.