On Tuesday, June 27, 2006, The English Speaking Union of Malaysia (ESU Malaysia), as part of a new initiative, launched The ESU Malaysia – Gift of Knowledge Program, by donating a selection of books to Sekolah Menengah Anderson, Ipoh, Perak. The purpose of this effort is to bring English literature to schools that might otherwise not have financial access to these publications, and by doing so, help to raise students’ proficiency in English.

Sekolah Menengah Anderson was established in 1909 and has, over the years, produced many of Malaysia’s best and brightest. In line with the school’s mission to strive for excellence through quality of education, principal, Raja Abdul Rahman bin Raja Amran has expressed his intention to find ways to improve the standard of English amongst today’s pupils, to be comparable to that during the school’s glory days. In this respect, he feels this program would be greatly beneficial. English teacher, Encik Md. Azlan received the books on behalf of Anderson.

The books, over 100 titles, include a variety of simple reading material, such as “Franklin is Lost”, to more challenging award winners such as “They Marched into Sunlight” by David Maraniss and “Collected Poems of Robert Lowell”. The books were selected to suit the profile of students who range from first to sixth formers.