News from the Past: Opening of PTE in 1974

First junior college for sixth form students

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (December 28, 1974) – Brunei’s first junior college for sixth form students will open in the new school term in January 1975, and between five and 10 years from now, the state may well have its own university college and college of education.

The Director of Education, Pehin Dato A D Bumford said that the sixth form centre would open in temporary premises at the Maktab Melayu Seri Begawan Sultan in Muara with this year’s lower sixth form students from government schools who will be promoted to the upper sixth.

Later in the year, when the results of the ‘O’ Level examinations are known, successful fifth form students will enter the lower sixth.

Pehin Dato Bumford said, “Initially we will have between 400 and 500 students at the centre, depending on the ‘O’ Level results.

“The idea is to reduce this number to 250 or 300 as we realise that to train too many graduates is just as dangerous as having too many students drop out at form three.”

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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History of the Establishment of Duli Pg. Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College, Gadong:

In November 1974, a new chapter in the Ministry of Education in Brunei Darussalam was chartered with the inception of a Sixth Form Institution known as Pusat Tingkatan Enam (PTE or literally translated as The Sixth Form Centre). The first intake of 245 students commenced their sixth form education in January 1975 at the temporary site shared with Maktab Melayu Paduka Seri Begawan Sultan, Jalan Muara, (MMPSBS).

The first principal for the centre was Ustaz Abdul Saman Kahar, after a short stint of 6 months he was posted back to Religious Affairs Department (where he was seconded from), to hold a new post of Head Religious Officer. In June 1975, Yang Mulia Pengiran Hj. Mohd Zain bin Pengiran Hj. Lampohbecome the second principal and Datin Hjh Norsiah bte Hj. Mohd Daud was the Deputy Principal.

In 1976, the Centre saw the historic send of of 26 Malay Medium students of the first intake to further studies overseas under the Government of His Majesty's scholarship.
In 1979, the centre moved to its new 26 million dollar campus on an 88 acres site at a prime area in Gadong.

Another very important milestone in the Centre's history was chartered on 17th April 1986 when the centre was officially renamed by YTM Paduka Seri Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah ibni Kebawah Duli Yang Maha Mulia Paduka Seri Baginda Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzaddin Wadaullah to Maktab Duli Pengiran Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah.
The Principal during this renaming ceremony was Cikgu Omar bin Hj Khalid and the Deputy Principals were Cikgu Awang Jeluddin bin Hj awang Damit and Cikgu Awang Muhammad Hadi bin Abdullah.

In April 1986 with a first intake of 74 students, the Matriculation Scheme for Malay Medium students wee introduced by University Brunei Darussalam. The implementation of this scheme was in line with the national policy on Bilingualism (Dwi Bahasa).
Since its inception in 1975 to 1999, the total number of students who have passed through the corridors of this college was 11 478 students.

For the year 2000, the college students population was 1226 with teaching staff strength of 108. In a spa of 25 years, the college has successfully and proudly produced and prepared scholars for institutions both locally and abroad.

Source: www.mosaicbruneischool.blogspot.com retrieved on 8 December 2014