School opens

A HIGHTECH learning facility awaited students on their firstday back at Mount Hira College, and the best is yet to come according to the school’s principal.
The standardcurriculum college that specialises in studies of the Turkish language Islamic religion is rapidly expanding as demand grows for its services.
Principal Ekrem Ozyurek took the Star for a tour of the college’s newest school rooms, currently used by senior schoolers, but planned to host grades five and six, as well as the secondary school component once additional works are completed by term three this year.
“We are growing,” Mr Ozyurek said.
“The student population was 210 last year, and this year is about 240.”
A temporary science room sits by a new building that houses several classrooms, a moderatesized assembly area and special soundproofed learning area for tutoring or private study.
Once the entire project is complete, Mr Ozyurek said more classrooms, and art centre and administration facilities would be available, allowing the prep to year 12 school to cater for about 500 students.
The new rooms will be kitted out with stateoftheart video projectors and sound systems, allowing teachers to remotely control equipment without the need to wheel televisions on trolleys in and out of class.
Rooms also contain splitsystem cooling and heating facilities.
Mr Ozyurek said the school was entering its seventh year of operation, and this year would offer Japanese as part of its language program based on the results of a student survey conducted last year.