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The high degree of pastoral care extends to the School’s boarding facility, SIS House. This boarding facility is exclusively offered to SIS students from abroad and out-of state, providing accommodation with modern amenities and caretakers. A live-in House Master and Resident Executive oversee the students’ welfare, supported by round-the-clock security services. The House Master and Resident Executive also manage and maintain discipline at SIS House, and boarders live in a harmonious and respectful community. |
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SIS House aims to be a residential experience that lives up to its motto, “a home away from home". Without boasting, we are able to say our boarders return from their classes to a safe and inviting sanctuary where they can expect a warm welcome and a friendly face. Boarders are presented with amenities for their every comfort, from the fully furnished, spacious units, to activities that promote boarders fostering lasting friendships, to opportunities to practice self-management and independence. At SIS House, boarders are assigned to shared units for a reason: We want these individuals from different backgrounds, nationalities and exposures to discover and learn from each other’s experiences and cultures. Lessons abound on customs, cultural orientation and most importantly, co-existing harmoniously in a shared living space. The reward is in seeing our boarders form close-knit, caring and independent household units built on a foundation of compromise, trust and an ever-ready willingness to help. We further enforce these values with an active social calendar. Monthly birthday celebrations and festivities are occasions for an abundance of food and camaraderie, while movie and sing-along nights keep our boarders entertained and bring out their artistic talents. Trips and excursions to nature conservations, landmarks and attractions offer boarders a change in scenery, besides educating them of the rich heritage and history of Malaysia. The boarders’ health and well-being are also maintained with regular sports and games like badminton and basketball, with keen participation for bragging rights to the championship. From the trivial upkeep of the units’ overall cleanliness and tidiness, to the more critical such as monitoring their time management and learning to resolve their issues, we inculcate in our boarders the practice of self-reliance. Boarders are made aware early on, and take advantage of, our “open doors” policy – no appointments are ever necessary in seeking either the Resident Executive or I to discuss a problem they are facing or just simply to look for a companionable chat. The organizational skills, independence and responsibility that our boarders display when they leave us are traits they earn from keeping with a regular routine of good habits, and are traits they are rightfully proud of. As caretakers, our wards are not just an obligation or a responsibility discharged to us. Ultimately, these boarders become family, in every sense of the word. Being SIS House Master in these past 3 years has been a rewarding and enriching experience. The hours are long and exhausting, but we’re amply rewarded when we see our boarder go on to achieve success not just academically, but in their personal lives. We’d love to have you drop by and to visit us to experience the SIS House brand of hospitality. Please do not hesitate to contact me to arrange an appointment. Mr. Foo Lai Tuan, |
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At SIS House, we are a diverse community of boarders from all over the world, which provides boarders the opportunity to learn about each other’s customs and culture. SIS House organises regular social activities and excursions for boarders to congregate and celebrate in an atmosphere of respect, tolerance and fellowship.
Excursions and Trips
Boarders are also given the opportunity to participate in long weekend and overnight trips to local attractions located within the vicinity. These excursions usually involve an educational or experiential objective, by appreciating the natural wonders they visit or learning to work in teams to navigate trails in the forests when hiking.
The boarders adventures’ have included:
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Sports and Games
SIS House encourages its residents to be active by arranging for the boarders to experience a variety of physical sports and competitive games weekly. These activities occur mid-week or on weekends as a form of relaxation for the boarders and a much-needed break from the grind of their daily assignments.
Some of the sports and games frequently in demand include basketball, badminton and table tennis. Besides encouraging boarders to be more physically active, these games also benefit them by cultivating their teamwork and coordination skills.
Along with these conventional sports and games, the House Master has been known to organise friendly matches and tournament between teams consisting of boarders, and among units to motivate participation and good-natured competitiveness.
The boarders have also been privileged to be invited to the Bukit Kiara Equestrian & Country Resort for the BMW Malaysia Open Tennis 2012, where boarders witnessed tennis greats like Venus Williams, Marion Bartoli and Shuai Peng play.
I came from Indonesia to study in SIS, and learn more about language, culture and society. My parents initially had concerns sending me so far away from home to study. They were soon assured when they were introduced to the House Master, the security and they saw the facilities:- air conditioner, wi-fi, water heaters, water dispenser, laundry services and the rest. I was excited about the new and convenient facilities. This is another reason why I feel so at home even though I’m in a foreign place.
Everything changed when I started living in SIS House. At first it was a shock to have the speakers blaring in the morning for wake-up calls, or checking in at night by curfew time, or not having the privacy of my own room. Every area here is structured to make us more disciplined, and at first I didn’t really like it.
I realized I had to change to survive and quickly learn to be independent. As time passed, I learnt how to manage my belongings by keeping them appropriately and safely, do house chores like cleaning and tidying, and respect and tolerate each other’s space and privacy. Submitting my assignments on time and being punctual for classes are rules I have to follow, and this helps me to manage my time better.
I had to think about others I was living with, and communicate with them closely. Unlike in school, with my housemates I need to speak and discuss with them regularly because we live in the same space and more importantly, learn to care about the people I am living with. If anything happened to me, my housemates took care of me, and vice versa. We help each other to overcome homesickness and because we all go through it, we understand each other. We hang out, share with our House Master or distract ourselves by doing something interesting. It’s about living with people who I barely knew at first, to living with people I now consider as family.
Also, we have international students living here which forces me to speak in English as that is our common language. This is definitely a benefit to me and the reason I came here, and the result is I can now speak the language fluently. I learnt more about cultures too, about different nationalities and their customs which taught me to broaden my perspectives and widened my view about the world.
I thought it was going to a problem getting vegetarian food here, but the cafeteria serves tasty vegetarian food. In fact, one of my favourite times in SIS House is dinner time. If we ever get bored, we can go to the nearby Sunway Pyramid shopping centre. There’s the free shuttle bus or we can use the connecting pedestrian bridge, which makes it so easy.
Being far away from home is not hard but it is not easy either. It is a challenge that should be taken, and encouragement from family and friends is needed. It took time for me to adapt and it wasn’t easy. But it was interesting to try something new, and the longer I kept at it, the more I could do it. I realized that I needed this experience to be successful in future. I am proud to be who I am now because I have learnt so many things that changed my life, and made me a better person. This is the most precious period of time in my life to learn about good habits like these, and I’m really satisfied I made the decision to board at SIS House.
Greetings from SIS House! 
