the journal of a sensei

How To Write Progress Report

2012-01-14T20:20:00.000+08:00

In business, the bosses need to be informed of what’s happening on a project.

IN a well-established business organisation, a subordinate officer is usually required to submit periodic progress reports to his superior to keep him informed of what has been done on a project, what is being done and what remains to be done.

As progress reports are official documents, their tone should be serious and formal. Even though progress reports are often in the form of a memo, the writer should use standard English. Progress reports represent not only the writer’s ability to communicate, but also his organisational and analytical skills.

Progress reports can be written in different formats. However, the management should adopt a uniform format throughout. The following format is commonly used.

The beginning – If the progress report is a memo, it should contain the following standard items:

TO: Full name and position of the superior.

FROM: Full name and position of the subordinate with his/her initials.

DATE: Date the report is submitted.

SUBJECT: A phrase indicating the purpose of the report.

Introduction – Here the writer gives his superior some background information. Tell him what the project is and clarify its development over time. If there are earlier progress reports, a brief reference should be made to them.

This section is also known as “Background” or “Terms Of Reference” but in normal practice the heading is not required.

Body – This is the main section comprising three parts: “Work Completed”, written mainly in past tense, “Work in Progress”, written mainly in present tense, and “Work to be Completed”, written mainly in future tense.

Work completed: The first part of the body explains what work has been done so far. Follow the tasks chronologically or according to the sequence of the tasks completed.

Work in progress: The second part tells the superior what is being done. Perhaps there are some problems which hinder the progress of the project. As a result, part of the project may need to be modified or postponed. Explain your strategy for solving the problems encountered.

Work to be done: The third part specifies the remaining activities to be carried out. It is helpful to fix the deadlines for each of the tasks.

Conclusion – Here the writer gives a summary and evaluation of the progress or development of the project. Again the heading “Conclusion”, “Summary” or “Comment” is not required in a memo progress report.

Sample progress report

TO: Dr Razak Yusop, Regional Manager

FROM: Joseph Lam, Chairman of Organising Committee

DATE: Dec 27, 2011

SUBJECT: Planning for company motivation workshop

Our committee is in charge of planning a one-day motivation workshop scheduled to be held on Saturday, March 2, 2012. The proposed workshop, approved by the headquarters on Dec 8, 2011, aims to make our staff more aware of the importance of teamwork and contributing one’s best not only for individual career advancement but also for the ultimate growth and development of our Supreme Business Innovation Company. As requested, this update is submitted to you for your reference and advice.

Work completed

The committee met on Dec 16. We fixed a suitable theme for our proposed workshop, which was “Transforming Work Pressure Into Life Pleasure” or, in short, “Transformer Breakthrough”. The proposed motivation workshop was made compulsory by the managing director for all the staff members at the Petaling Jaya, George Town, Johor Baru and Ipoh branches.

Names of several popular speakers were proposed. They were Dr Manjit Singh from the National University of Singapore, Dr Hamzah Ibrahim from the Science University of Malaysia, Dr Grace Chong from the Multimedia University, Dr Loga Ramasamy from the Technology University of Malaysia and Prof Luke Yong from the Putra University of Malaysia.

Owing to heavy work schedule and other commitments, Dr Grace Chong and Dr Loga Ramasamy had indicated that they would not be able to come for the motivation workshop.

Dr Manjit Singh, Dr Hamzah Ibrahim and Prof Luke Yong had agreed to come. They would lead us in three separate sessions tentatively entitled “Knowing Yourself As A Team Player”, “Your Greatest Enemy” and “A Winner through Thick And Thin” respectively. Each session would take two hours, including a 10-minute intermission.

However, Dr Luke Yong mentioned that in the event that he could not make it, his faculty colleague Dr Paul Raj would replace him. The same topic would be presented. Dr Luke Yong would let us know by mid-January 2012 who would be coming.

Work in progress

We are finalising the workshop schedule and choosing the best venue in Petaling Jaya for our motivation workshop. Four hotels are available and we are studying their quotations and other terms. Meanwhile, we are also arranging for accommodation, food and refreshment for the speakers as well as our participants. We are also making a request to the hotels to provide us with a complete public address system. However, we need to get ready other ICT equipment such as laptops and LCD projectors. We are also looking into various estimated costs to ensure that the total expenses do not exceed the given budget.

Work to be completed

We will send out letters of invitation to all our company staff and a few special guests once everything is ready. Information will also be posted to our company website. A Master of Ceremony and a stand-by will be appointed by the Petaling Jaya branch manager shortly. Our CEO Datuk Michael Chew will deliver a speech and declare the workshop open.

There are a few more things that need to be done:

A staff member is required to fetch Dr Manjit Singh from the KLIA on his arrival. He will fly in a day in advance. His flight and time of arrival will be made known in due course.

The other two speakers will come on their own and report to the hotel in Petaling Jaya a day in advance too. Arrangement will be made for their meals and accommodation.

The management will work out the quantum of payment for each of the three speakers for their service.

All the necessary information must be relayed to the three speakers by the second week of February 2012.

We will make announcements to the press, various business leaders who have close association with us, the chamber of commerce, and a number of higher institutions of learning in the Klang Valley at least three weeks before the scheduled workshop.

Everything is going on fine so far. We have not been confronted with major issues and we are confident that the proposed motivation workshop will be able to reinforce the spirit of dedication and hard work among our staff members. This will go a long way in helping us to accomplish the vision and mission of our company.

Written by Yong Ah Yong

UTAR, Kampar, Perak.

http://thestar.com.my/english/story.asp?file=/2012/1/13/lifefocus/10196611&sec=lifefocus

The teh tarik man

2012-01-09T07:47:00.000+08:00

Mind Our English

Idiomania

By OH TEIK THEAM

HAMID, why are you not preparing teh tarik for your customers?” I asked the Teh Tarik Man the other day, as I dug into my fortnightly helping of roti canai.

Pointing at the blue-shirted young man standing a short distance away, he replied, “His name is Raman, and he is helping my wife and me run the business. Actually, he is on loan from my brother-in-law, who owns a restaurant in Penang.”

“Just like a footballer joining a club on loan, eh?” I teased him.

“Yeah,” he said, chuckling like a jovial car salesman.

“Raman is here because I have a frozen shoulder – I can’t lift my right arm completely. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I can resume my normal duties soon. Let me give you a piece of good news,” he added. “The health department gave my premises a clean bill of health yesterday.”

“I’m glad about the department’s certification and sorry about your medical condition,” I said.

Nodding, he said, “My primary goal is to maintain the business so that I don’t lose my regular customers. Raman works like a horse, and I am happy with his unexampled diligence. Even without preparing the teh tarik, I usually have my hands full: I serve the customers, collect the money and wash the dishes.”

“You can still prepare the teh tarik,” I said matter-of-factly.

“How do I do that?”

“If you tarik the drink downwards, you don’t have to lift an arm.”

“That is out of the question,” he demurred at my suggestion, his thick eyebrows rising to underscore his words.

“I lift my right arm above my head when I tarik my teh tarik. If I were to prepare the drink now,” he continued, after rubbing his upper arm a little, “I may lift my right arm from force of habit, and then –”

“You will be in pain,” I finished the sentence for him.

“No,” he corrected me with a naughty wink. “The pain will be in me!”

“Don’t worry about the frozen shoulder,” I said after I had recovered from a paroxysm of laughter. “It will heal by and by and you’ll be all right.”

With a smile full of cheerfulness pouring into the creases of his wizened face, the Teh Tarik Man said, “As you can see, I am keeping my chin up!”

The other day: At some time not long ago.

Dig into: To begin eating heartily.

Keep one’s fingers crossed: To hope.

A clean bill of health: A report that a person or thing is healthy or in satisfactory condition.

Work like a horse: To work very hard.

Have one’s hands full: To be very busy.

Out of the question: Not to be considered; impossible.

By and by: In the course of time; soon.

All right: (i) Healthy or safe. (ii) I agree; yes. (“All right, you may go to the party,” the father said to his daughter.) (iii) Satisfactory. (This article is all right, but it will be even better with another rewrite.) (iv) Acceptable. (Is it all right for me to go to the party?) (v) Certainly. (He is the culprit all right.)

Keep one’s chin up: To remain cheerful when faced with worries, disappointments or difficulties.

Until Today

2012-01-09T01:24:00.000+08:00

THE expression “until today” is very common among Malaysians. I think the phrase is often wrongly used and does not describe what a speaker is really trying to convey.

When you say “until today”, doesn’t it mean the situation or the process stops today and will not continue after today? For example, the statement “He was a bachelor until today” means “He gets married today”; it does not mean “He is still a bachelor today.”

Therefore, we cannot say “Malaysia is a multiracial country until today” when we know that Malaysia will still be a multiracial country tomorrow. Shouldn’t we say “Malaysia is a multiracial country even today” instead? – Nasir

You are right. “Until” means “up to the point in time or event mentioned” (online Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary). So, we should NOT say “Malaysia is a multiracial country until today.”, BUT “Malaysia is still a multiracial country today.”, where “still” means “continuing until a particular point in time and not finishing.” (OALD)

Your suggested sentence, “Malaysia is a multiracial country even today.” can be used when we want to emphasise how surprising it is that Malaysia is still a multiracial country today! “Even” as an adverb is “used to emphasise something unexpected or surprising” (OALD).

source

How To Critize

2012-01-06T08:12:00.001+08:00

George B. Johnston of Enid, Oklahoma, is the safety coordinator for an engineering company, one of his re-sponsibilities is to see that employees wear their hard hats whenever they are on the job in the field.

He reported that whenever he came across workers who were not wearing hard hats, he would tell them with a lot of authority of the regulation and that they must comply. As a result he would get sullen acceptance, and often after he left, the workers would remove the hats.

He decided to try a different approach.

The next time he found some of the workers not wearing their hard hat, he asked if the hats were uncomfortable or did not fit properly. Then he reminded the men in a pleasant tone of voice that the hat was designed to protect them from injury and suggested that it always be worn on the job. The result was increased compliance with the regulation with no resentment or emotional upset.

By criticizing, we do not make lasting changes and often incur resentment.

Other Than Using So Many... Use These instead..

2011-11-28T08:11:00.000+08:00

Wordwise: So many

By S.H. LOKE - The Star - Mind Your Language.

ALL kinds of things can be found aplenty. We enjoy bountiful blessings, food that exists in large quantities, and a great variety of fascinating customs. Here are some words to describe abundance. Using these specific words will enrich your language.

1. Avalanche

A large number of things that arrive suddenly at the same time.

An avalanche of congratulatory messages arrived from all over the world.

2. Shower

To generously give someone a lot of things.

John showers his wife with a lot of gifts.

A party at which the guests bring gifts.

During her baby shower, Pat received many lovely gifts.

3. Outpouring

Continuous expressions of strong feelings.

There was a great outpouring of joy when some students received their SPM results.

4. Flood

To arrive or go somewhere in large numbers

Thousands of spectators flooded the stadium.

If a feeling or memory floods over someone, or floods back, they feel or remember it strongly.

I felt relief flooding over me when our plane landed safely.

Memories of my childhood flooded back as I walked around my hometown.

5. Cascade

Something that hangs down in large quantities

Her cascade of wavy, black hair compliments her black eyes.

The lantana blooms cascade over her balcony.

6. Galore

To emphasise something that exists in very large quantities.

It was so delightful to see the cakes galore served at the party.

7. Gamut

A complete range of things of the same kind or a wide variety of things of the same kind.

The gamut of cameras exhibited at the show is staggering.

8. Myriad

Having a large number or a large variety of.

The Australian Great Barrier Reef is teeming with myriad forms of marine life.

Myriad stars twinkle like diamonds in the sky.

9. Multitude

A multitude of things or people means a very large number of them.

Multitudes gathered outside the embassy in silent protest.

10. Throng

A large crowd of people.

Excited shoppers throng the supermarkets during their sales.

Sam pushed his way through the jostling throng.

11. Droves

A very large number of people who go somewhere or do something.

Droves of people flocked to the computer fair.

Silver Jubilee / Jubli Perak

2011-11-26T01:30:00.002+08:00

I was talking to one of my colleagues few days ago, the name of our college hall was the topic of discussion. Which is Dewan Jubli Perak. Just to share this info..

A Silver Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 25th anniversary. The anniversary celebrations can be of a wedding anniversary, ruling anniversary or anything that has completed a 25 year mark. Silver Jubilee is followed by Golden Jubilee

Hence, the name of our hall is Dewan Jubli Perak because we have already celebrated 25th anniversary of our college in 2008.

A Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.

For example,

In Malaysia, Sultan Tuanku Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 15 July 2008 after 50 years successfully reigning the state of Kedah

A Diamond Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 60th anniversary in the case of a person (e.g. wedding anniversary, length of time a monarch has reigned) or a 75th anniversary in the case of an event

and there is also Platinum Jubilee.

Complimentary Close

2011-10-21T14:20:00.002+08:00

Yours faithfully

`Yours faithfully' is used when the letter opens with the salutation `Dear Sir/s or `Dear Madam'

Yours sincerely

`Yours sincerely' is used with the salutation `Dear Mr. Lee or `Dear Ms. Lopez'

On Your Bike, Malaysia = Get Lost, Malaysia?

2011-09-04T17:00:00.002+08:00

Appalling ignorance

RECENTLY, I saw a sticker on the rear windscreen of a car ahead of me that read “On Your Bike, Malaysia!”

I was shocked and speechless. Looking carefully at the sticker I realised that it was some sort of campaign to get Malaysians to ride their bicycles. I searched for it online and discovered that there will be an event held soon and that is the name of the campaign. I don’t know whether to be appalled or just brush it aside and say, oh well, the locals don’t know what the phrase means.

Now, I cannot be the only person in the whole of Malaysia who knows what the phrase means. In Britain, when one says, “On your bike!” (usually, they say, “on yer bike, mate!”) it means “Get lost!” So, we simply copy it and what are we saying? “Get Lost, Malaysia!” We are telling Malaysia to get lost, just when we are celebrating our national day.

This may be a British phrase but surely the organisers could have come up with a more positive and persuasive tagline than that? People must be laughing at our stupidity and ignorance right now. Please, please do not embarrass the country. Word play is one thing, but this is just appalling. – A

reader

source

Please Repeat Again...

2011-09-02T18:54:00.001+08:00

Question:

One of the meanings of “repeat” is to say/write again. Does this mean it is wrong to say “repeat again” in a sentence?

If the answer is yes, then please explain the following sentence given on p.1,284 of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th edition) under the definition of “repeat”: She kept repeating his name softly over and over again.

Answer:

Yes, we don’t usually say or write “repeat again”, because it would be redundant to do so. In the case of the sentence from the OALD, the idea of repetition is expressed three times: in the word “kept” (= did something repeatedly), in the word “repeating” and in the idiomatic phrase “over and over again” (= many times; repeatedly). Perhaps “She uttered his name softly over and over again.” would get rid of the redundancy, without losing the literary effect of the original.

Just because something is in print does not mean it cannot be questioned, and I am glad that you questioned the logic of that sentence.

source

Who or Whom?

2011-07-23T23:33:00.000+08:00

The usage of Who and whom

Mind Our English - thestar.com.my
Co-ordinated by Jane F. Ragavan

PLEASE explain how to use “who” and “whom”. Are the sentences correct?

1. Whom are they waiting for?

2. Whom do you I saw when I opened the door?

3. Whom are they referring to?

4. Whom do you think you are? – Lim Hian

“Who” is the subject pronoun and “whom” is the object pronoun. However, in modern British English, “who” is more frequently used as both subject and object pronouns, except after a preposition, and in formal speech or writing.

1. “Whom are they waiting for?” is correct, but too formal. “Whom” here is the object of the preposition “for”. “Who are they waiting for?” is more commonly used.

2. Your second sentence is ungrammatical. Did you mean “Whom did I see when I opened the door?” Here, “whom” is the object of the verb “see”. It is, however, more common to say “Who did I see when I opened the door?”

3. This question is similar in structure to question 1. Although “Whom are they referring to?” is correct, it is too formal. “Who are they referring to?” is more often used.

4. “Who do you think you are?” is the correct sentence, because “who” is the complement, not the object of the verb “are” (a form of the verb “be”).

There are well-known expressions, however, which use “whom” rather than who, but “whom” in these expressions come after prepositions, e.g. “To Whom It May Concern” written at the top of a reference for a job or scholarship, and “For Whom the Bell Tolls”, originally written by John Donne for a sermon in the 17th century and used by Ernest Hemingway in the 20th century as the title of one of his novels.

1 Sentence 8 Different Meanings

2011-06-22T08:00:00.001+08:00

READER Tam Yong Yuee of Mind Our English - The Star, sent in this snippet about Professor Ernest Brennecke of Columbia who is credited with inventing a sentence that can be made to have eight different meanings by placing one word in all possible positions in the sentence, “I hit him in the eye yesterday.” The word is “only”.

1. ONLY I hit him in the eye yesterday. (No one else did.)

2. I ONLY hit him in the eye yesterday. (Did not slap him.)

3. I hit ONLY him in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit others.)

4. I hit him ONLY in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit outside the eye.)

5. I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)

6. I hit him in the ONLY eye yesterday. (He doesn’t have another eye.)

7. I hit him in the eye ONLY yesterday. (Not today.)

8. I hit him in the eye yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for today.)

source:http://thestar.com.my/english/story.asp?file=/2011/5/26/lifefocus/8695332&sec=lifefocus

Has or Had?

2011-06-21T08:34:00.002+08:00

Has or had

THIS was a question in my child’s school test paper:

I saw a proboscis monkey which ______ a huge nose in the zoo last week.

A. has B. had C. have D. having

The answer given was A. Has

Please tell me why the answer is not B. Had to synchronise with the past tense of the sentence viz “saw” and “last week”. – A mother

The answer can be either B or A. The sentence uses a past reporting verb “saw”. A verb of perception can be used to report what you or other people see, hear, etc. (See Collins Cobuild English Grammar 2nd edition, 2005, p.316, 7.10 “verbs of learning and perceiving” and p.321, 7.27 “verbs used with ‘that’-clauses”). When a past reporting verb is used in a sentence, the relative clause that follows it also uses a past tense (tense consistency). Hence “had” is used:

“I saw a proboscis monkey which had a huge nose in the zoo last week.”

However, when reporting something that is permanent, a present tense verb can be used. Since proboscis monkeys always have huge noses, we can also use “has” in the sentence:

“I saw a proboscis monkey which has a huge nose in the zoo last week.”

Below are some examples of the use of the present tense and the past tense in similar sentences on the Internet:

“Back into the main area, we saw a Gymnocereus [a type of cactus] which has an odd habit, growing as a sprawling, spreading plant.”

(from British Cactus & Succulent Society, Southampton & District Branch Newsletter, December 2009)

The odd habit described is a permanent feature of the plant: so the present tense verb “has” is used.

“We saw a puffin which had about eight sand eels in its mouth to feed its young.” (from a report on a school trip to Skomer Island, off the coast of south-west Wales, UK)

Puffins don’t always have “eight sand eels in its mouth to feed its young”: so the past tense verb “had” is used in the relative clause.

By FADZILAH AMIN - thestar.com.my

Madam, Teacher or Cikgu?

2011-06-20T14:27:00.000+08:00

By FADZILAH AMIN - thestar.com.my

IT is acceptable to call a doctor whose name is Siti, Dr Siti and a police inspector whose surname is Lee, Inspector Lee? Is it all right to call a teacher whose name is Siti, Teacher Siti? Do we call a married teacher whose name is Lucy Lau Madam Lau? Is it correct to call this teacher Madam Lucy? Or is it more accurate to call her Madam Lucy Lau? – Bryan Yap Jet Rong

It is acceptable, in fact usual, to call (or more formally “address”) a police inspector whose surname is Lee, “Inspector Lee”. But a lady whose first name is “Siti” usually has another name after that, like “Siti Fatimah”. So, you should address her as “Dr Siti Fatimah” unless she has told you to address her as “Dr Siti” only.

You don’t address a teacher as “Teacher + her/his name”, but you may say “Cikgu + her/his name”. When addressing a Malaysian teacher, you may also use one of the following words before her or his name, whichever is appropriate: Puan, Encik, Cik, Mrs, Mr, Miss or Ms (pronounced Miz). When you have a new teacher, it is a good idea to ask the teacher what she or he would like to be called. (Ms, by the way, is a fairly new term that doesn’t indicate a lady’s marital status.)

As for the term “Madam” for married Chinese women teachers, a Chinese friend of mine (who was a teacher) explained the following to me. You use “Madam” with the lady’s father’s surname, but “Mrs” with the lady’s husband’s surname. Thus if Lucy Lau is married to Mr Lau, you call her “Mrs Lau”. If her original surname is Lau and she is married to a Mr Lim, for example, you can call her either “Madam Lau” or “Mrs Lim”. But as I said before, ask her what she would like to be called.

I don’t think you should call her “Madam Lucy” or “Madam Lucy Lau” unless she tells you to.

The Curse: Elements of a novel

2011-04-13T10:39:00.000+08:00

The elements of a novel include the following:

i. Plot - the structure of a novel. It shows the arrangement of events and actions within
a story (please refer to notes on Freytag‟s Pyramid below for details).

ii. Setting - the time, place, physical details, and circumstances in which a situation
occurs. Setting enables the reader to better envision how a story unfolds by relating
necessary physical details of a piece of literature.

iii. Theme - is the main idea, or message, of an essay, paragraph, or a book. The
message may be about life, society, or human nature. Themes often explore
timeless and universal ideas and may be implied rather than stated explicitly. Along
with plot, character, setting, and style, theme is considered one of the fundamental
components of fiction. It is the universal statement or feel when you read a piece of
writing.

iv. Character and characterisation - a character is a person in a narrative who may
represent a particular class of group of people. Characters in a novel a the vehicle
by which author conveys to us his / her view of the world. Characters maybe classify
either main character or minor character. The characterisation of a character is
revealed by actions, speech, thoughts, physical appearance, and the other
characters‟ thoughts or words.

v. Language - used by author to reveal the theme and purpose of the novel.

Novel: The Curse

2011-03-25T10:32:00.000+08:00

What is a novel?

Only in a novel are all things given full play – D. H. Lawrence

A novel is a long narrative in literary prose. Novels tell stories, which are typically
defined as a series of events described in a sequence. The novel has been a part of human
culture for over a thousand years, although its origins are somewhat debated. Regardless of
how it began, the novel has risen to prominence and remained one of the most popular and
treasured examples of human culture and writing.

There have been stories and tales for thousands of years, but novels must combine a
few unique characteristics in order to be defined as such. First, a novel is written down,
rather than told through an oral account. Secondly, novels are meant to be fictional in form,
differentiating them from myths, which are said to have their basis in reality or theology.
Although some modern scholars argue differently, there is no truly established guideline for
length, point-of-view, or even establishment of a moral or philosophical point in novels.

Complaining Frequency

2011-03-22T07:58:00.001+08:00

I am back people! (errkk.. is anybody still visiting this blog?)

Anyway,

I have this interesting thought to share;

A Secret Scrolls message from Rhonda Byrne
Creator of The Secret and The Power

From The Secret Daily Teachings

If you are complaining about things in your life, you are on the complaining frequency, and you are not in a position to attract what you want.

Get on to the frequency of good with your thoughts and words. Firstly you will feel good, and secondly you will be on the frequency of receiving more good.

May the joy be with you,

English Literature Component Courseware: My First Experience

2011-03-15T10:20:00.000+08:00

This semester, I had a chance to learn something new!

Instructional Computer Technology. I maybe quite a late bloomer on this.. haha, but people say, better late then never, right.

Anyway, for this class my friend and I decided to do a courseware on THE CURSE!

Armchair Critic

2011-02-08T22:05:00.002+08:00

The English Language is rich in vocabulary, including its ways of expressing distinctions meaning.

It is particularly rich in in idiomatic expressions.

Here is an example;

An armchair critic means a person who critically judges others' work and gives advice, but who has not himself experienced doing the work.

Spot The Error

2011-01-26T20:27:00.000+08:00

http://englishrescueteam.com

2011-01-10T22:04:00.003+08:00

What’s The Best Way To Learn A New Language?

Written by David

source: http://englishrescueteam.com/whats-the-best-way-to-learn-a-new-language/

It’s a million dollar question. Everyone has a different way of learning and different ideas of how best to learn. We’ve asked several of our colleagues and students here at the British Council what they think. Here’s what they said:

2011

2011-01-01T04:04:00.000+08:00

"If the students don't learn d way we teach, then, teach them the way they learn."

Happy New Year...

the difference between towards, toward and to.

2010-12-13T20:16:00.000+08:00

To, toward, towards

Your Questions Answered by : FADZILAH AMIN

thestar.com.my

I CANNOT tell the difference between towards, toward and to.

Examples:

a) Thank you for your effort/contribution (towards, toward or to) the implementation of the project.

b) Thank you for your effort/contribution (towards, toward or to) the completion of the project.

c) Thank you for your effort/contribution (towards, toward or to) the launch of the project.

d) Thank you for your effort/contribution (towards, toward or to) the start/end of the project. – Paul Chan

If you want to write British English, use “towards” or “to”. “Toward” is used in American English, which also uses “towards”.

“Effort” and “contribution” can be used with “towards” in all your sentences.

“Contribution” can also be used with “to” in all your sentences.

However, “effort” cannot be followed by “to” in any of your sentences, where “to” is used as a preposition. If you use “effort” in a sentence beginning, like yours, with “Thank you for your effort to ...”, the “to” there is an infinitive marker and must be followed by an infinitive. I shall alter the ends of your sentences so that they contain infinitives, in order to use “effort” with them:

Thank you for your effort to implement the project.

Thank you for your effort to complete the project

Thank you for your effort to launch the project.

Thank you for your effort to start/end the project.

I find that the altered sentences have meanings that are slightly different from the originals, where “effort” or “contribution” is used with “towards”, or where “contribution” is used with “to”. The altered sentences suggest that the person addressed (“you”) has worked single-handedly to implement/complete/launch/start/end the project. The original sentences suggest a group effort, where “you” only contributed “your” share. So it’s best not to use “effort” with either kind of “to” in your sentences.

What's Wrong With The Menu?

2010-11-24T23:13:00.003+08:00

Whoaaahh.. It has been quite awhile since my last entry! It took me a minute or two to recall the password for this blog! phewww...

Anyway, let's see the photo I took during my last visit to a kopitiam nearby my place.

so, can you please tell me what's wrong with the menu?

Are You Agree?

2010-11-05T12:36:00.000+08:00

English Fast & Easy Here is your English tip for today.

Don't say: "Are you agree?" Say: "Do you agree?" Don't say: "I'm not agree." Say: "I don't agree." Now, here is my question to you. Exams are fun. Do you agree?

You can just say: "We agree." or "I agree." Don't say: "I'm agree

taken from:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/English-Fast-Easy/143350989041499

English Fast & Easy Facebook page.

2010-10-20T18:35:00.001+08:00

Miss Pascal paid me a visit again, and this time she has this to inform all of you...

Hello again Miss Sensei

Hope you are well this October.

Just wanted to let you know that I have just created the English Fast & Easy facebook page.

Through the page, I will be sending out English tips once a week. The tips deal with common Malaysian English challenges.

You can become a fan by going to
http://www.facebook.com/pages/English-Fast-Easy/143350989041499

If you think your followers might enjoy receiving a weekly tip through facebook, would you mind posting ( NOT would you mind to post:)) the link for them.

English Fast & Easy 2 will be out in December! It is similar to the original but teaches useful vocabulary instead of phrases.

Finally, I would like to offer your school my 45-minute talk on English For a Global Environment free of charge! If interested, please contact me asap.

Best regards
Marianna

Never Ever

2010-10-13T01:04:00.000+08:00

Never ignore someone ,who really cares for you....
because some day you may realize that you have lost a DIAMOND while you were busy in collecting stones

How To Do Your Assignments

2010-10-06T07:36:00.000+08:00

College assignments may be different than the ones you completed in secondary school. Here are several tips that may help you succeed in your assignments.

Read the assignment thoroughly. Make sure that you understand what the lecturer is looking for as a deliverable.
Use standard English grammar and spelling. Though abbreviations and lack of capitalization or punctuation may be fine in text messages or Twitter, they are definitely not acceptable in other written assignments. Need help with grammar? Check out Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing.
Use spell check. Don’t rely on it exclusively, but do use it.
If there’s a minimum or maximum word or page count, write enough, but not too much.
Consider writing a draft of your assignment for your instructor to review prior to the deadline. (Yikes — check the second definition included in the deadline link.)
Post or turn in your assignment by the deadline. Many instructors (including me) do not accept late work. (See some views on late work at the Chronicle of Higher Education’s website.)
Thoroughly review your course syllabus. Many instructors include a weekly schedule of discussions and assignments. Don’t be surprised if when you ask when an assignment is due, your instructor replies, “You’ll find that in the syllabus.” Check WebCT Vista for due dates if they are not specified on the syllabus.
When taking a quiz or test in WebCT Vista, make sure you are aware what the rules are for using materials to help you take the test, that you know how many tries you have, and how the final score is calculated. (In many of my classes, the quizzes are “open-everything,” at least two tries are allowed, and highest score counts. But that’s just me.)
If your instructor specifies or indicates a preference for fonts and margins, use these when writing your assignment.

Reading – A Great Way To Learn English

2010-10-05T12:55:00.000+08:00

Finally an update! yeayy!

I really believe in this...

Learning the English language can be a difficult task. There many methods of learning English to help you overcome the various problems associated with grammar, spelling, pronunciation, and even English slang. One method is actively reading. The more that you read, the more you broaden your understanding of the language, and as a result, the faster you will learn to read and speak English.

Textbooks are a very helpful learning tool, but newspapers, magazines, and novels are great ways to give you a better understanding of the English language. You will learn the various English expressions, phrases, sentence structures, and words, which will help improve your vocabulary. Make sure that you keep a dictionary close by when you start reading because some words and phrases can be tricky.

Reading on your own is not just effective, but it is also extremely motivating. When you read on your own, you will be reading something that you have chosen. It will be interesting because it is what you chose, rather than something your teacher told you to read. As a result, you read much more willingly. Learning words naturally is both fun and educational. You will also learn how to use the correct words at the appropriate time. Generally, you should read at least a few pages per day. If you believe that you do not have time to read, take a book or magazine with you everywhere that you go. This will allow you to read in a variety of places such as when you are waiting in a long line at a bank or traveling on a bus.

Students who read a lot will actually learn to think in English. When students read every day, they will first learn slowly, but then they eventually start to learn faster and more easily. Reading helps the brain concentrate on English. Your brain will be repeating the words and phrases that it has seen many times. By reading a book in English, you have given your brain thousands of English sentences. Soon, you will begin speaking the language with confidence.

Reading is a great way to review and remember English words. By reading newspapers and magazines, students will remember what they learned long after they have completed an English learning class. As well, reading is an activity that can be enjoyed by all ages.

Reading maps is also a helpful tool. It will expand your knowledge of the geographic areas. If you are in business, you will most likely be required to write in English. Reading will help your writing because it will provide you with more expressions that you were not previously familiar with.

When reading English, phrases will eventually come easy to you when you are writing or speaking the language. Things like verb tense and how to use words such as “however” will become part of your understanding of the language. You will start to use them correctly without thinking. Correct phrases will just appear in your head. Also, when you read something that matters to you, you will remember it more. For example, if you read the lyrics of a new song by your favorite band, you are much more likely to repeat them and keep the words and phrases in your memory.

Reading and listening are both great ways to learn English, but reading is usually much easier than listening. With the aid of a good dictionary, you can understand English texts much more easily. The more you read, the easier it will become. It is not always easy, but it is worth the effort.

10 Amazing Lessons From Einstein

2010-09-04T08:51:00.000+08:00

Albert Einstein has long been considered a genius by the masses. He was a theoretical physicist, philosopher, author, and is perhaps the most influential scientists to ever live.

Einstein has made great contributions to the scientific world, including the theory of relativity, the founding of relativistic cosmology, the prediction of the deflection of light by gravity, the quantum theory of atomic motion in solids, the zero-point energy concept, and the quantum theory of a monatomic gas which predicted Bose–Einstein condensation, to name a few of his scientific contributions.

Einstein received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics “for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.”

He’s published more than 300 scientific works and over 150 non-scientific works. Einstein is considered the father of modern physics and is probably the most successful scientist there ever was.

10 Amazing Lessons from Albert Einstein:

Follow Your Curiosity

“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.”

What piques your curiosity? I am curious as to what causes one person to succeed while another person fails; this is why I’ve spent years studying success. What are you most curious about? The pursuit of your curiosity is the secret to your success.

Perseverance is Priceless

“It's not that I'm so smart; it's just that I stay with problems longer.”

Through perseverance the turtle reached the ark. Are you willing to persevere until you get to your intended destination? They say the entire value of the postage stamp consist in its ability to stick to something until it gets there. Be like the postage stamp; finish the race that you’ve started!

Focus on the Present

“Any man who can drive safely while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the kiss the attention it deserves.”

My father always says you cannot ride two horses at the same time. I like to say, you can do anything, but not everything. Learn to be present where you are; give your all to whatever you’re currently doing.

Focused energy is power, and it’s the difference between success and failure.

The Imagination is Powerful

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions. Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

Are you using your imagination daily? Einstein said the imagination is more important than knowledge! Your imagination pre-plays your future. Einstein went on to say, “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” Are you exercising your “imagination muscles” daily, don’t let something as powerful as your imagination lie dormant.

Make Mistakes

“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.”

Never be afraid of making a mistake. A mistake is not a failure. Mistakes can make you better, smarter and faster, if you utilize them properly. Discover the power of making mistakes. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again, if you want to succeed, triple the amount of mistakes that you make.

Live in the Moment

“I never think of the future - it comes soon enough.”

The only way to properly address your future is to be as present as possible “in the present.”

You cannot “presently” change yesterday or tomorrow, so it’s of supreme importance that you dedicate all of your efforts to “right now.” It’s the only time that matters, it’s the only time there is.

Create Value

“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value."

Don’t waste your time trying to be successful, spend your time creating value. If you’re valuable, then you will attract success.

Discover the talents and gifts that you possess, learn how to offer those talents and gifts in a way that most benefits others.

Labor to be valuable and success will chase you down.

Don’t Expect Different Results

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

You can’t keep doing the same thing everyday and expect different results. In other words, you can’t keep doing the same workout routine and expect to look differently. In order for your life to change, you must change, to the degree that you change your actions and your thinking is to the degree that your life will change.

Knowledge Comes From Experience

“Information is not knowledge. The only source of knowledge is experience.”

Knowledge comes from experience. You can discuss a task, but discussion will only give you a philosophical understanding of it; you must experience the task first hand to “know it.” What’s the lesson? Get experience! Don’t spend your time hiding behind speculative information, go out there and do it, and you will have gained priceless knowledge.

Learn the Rules and Then Play Better

“You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else.”

To put it all in simple terms, there are two things that you must do. The first thing you must do is to learn the rules of the game that you’re playing. It doesn’t sound exciting, but it’s vital. Secondly, you must commit to play the game better than anyone else. If you can do these two things, success will be yours!

Thank you for reading and be sure to pass this article along!

Written on 3/09/2010 by Mr. Self Development who is a motivational author that offers a practical guide to success and wealth; support him by visiting his blog at mrselfdevelopment.com. .

A Visit To Turtle Santuary

2010-09-03T10:17:00.002+08:00

Few weeks ago, my students and I went to Cherating Turtle Sanctuary. It was indeed a very informative and enjoyable trip.

Now I Know What It's Called...

2010-09-01T01:36:00.002+08:00

Convex mirror

A convex mirror, fish eye mirror or diverging mirror, is a curved mirror in which the reflective surface bulges toward the light source. Convex mirrors reflect light outwards, therefore they are not used to focus light. Such mirrors always form a virtual image, since the focus (F) and the centre of curvature (2F) are both imaginary points "inside" the mirror, which cannot be reached. Therefore images formed by these mirrors cannot be taken on screen. (As they are inside the mirror)

A collimated (parallel) beam of light diverges (spreads out) after reflection from a convex mirror, since the normal to the surface differs with each spot on the mirror.

[edit] Uses

Convex mirror lets motorists see around a corner.

The passenger-side mirror on a car is typically a convex mirror. In some countries, these are labeled with the safety warning "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear", to warn the driver of the convex mirror's distorting effects on distance perception.

Convex mirrors are used in some automated teller machines as a simple and handy security feature, allowing the users to see what is happening behind them. Similar devices are sold to be attached to ordinary computer monitors.

Some camera phones use convex mirrors to allow the user correctly aim the camera while taking a self-portrait.

I Like...

2010-08-27T11:37:00.002+08:00

I found this at theenglishteacheronline.com

Teaching is the profession that teaches all the other professions

-author unknown

Happy 1st Ramadhan

2010-08-10T21:28:00.003+08:00

Assalamualaikum and good day all..!!

It's 1st of Ramadhan and this blog of mine is getting a face lift!

How do you like the new design? Simple? Yes, and I like the color, don't you? :)

Student jailed for sitting exam for "customer"

2010-07-27T08:00:00.001+08:00

An 18-year-old student was sentenced to six months in jail for sitting examinations for his "customer" in Hong Kong.

Zhao Chunlin, from Henan in China, pleaded guilty to three charges of conspiracy to defraud and using a forged identity pass.

He was paid RMB2,500 (RM1,182) to take three papers - microeconomics, macroeconomics and calculus - in the Advanced Placement Examinations for a Hong Kong student.

He went to the island on a travel permit on May 18.

On May 19, he successfully hid his real identity from the examiners and took two papers.

When he was about to sit for the third paper at the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessmen Authority the next day, an examiner noticed his ID was different from the others.

Upon checking, the examiner found the card was fake.

Zhao, who was enrolled at a university in United States, said a man - named Ricky - approached him in Shenzhen to sit for someone else's examination for RMB2,500 for each paper.

He took the offer with an intention to ease the financial burden of his parents, who worked 10 hours a day to raise his tuition fees.

Source: Apple Daily

http://www.dailychilli.com/news/5236-student-jailed-for-sitting-exam-for-qcustomerq

On Self-Assessment

2010-07-25T01:49:00.001+08:00

Self-Assessment Does Not Necessarily Mean Self-Grading

Friday, July 16th, 2010

Most faculty judiciously avoid having students self-assess because it seems hopelessly naïve to imagine them being able to look at anything beyond the desired grade. Even so, the ability to self-assess skills and completed work is important. Moreover, it is an ability acquired with practice and developed with feedback. It seems like the kind of skill that should be addressed in college. And perhaps there is a way.

Professor Heidi Andrade and doctoral student Ying Du suggest that teachers frame self-assessment as an opportunity for students to reflect on their own work with the goal of learning more, making the work better, and thereby improving the chances for a good grade. In this paradigm, self-assessment is not the same as self-grading. Rather, students are looking at their work and judging the degree to which it reflects the goals of the assignment and the assessment criteria the teacher will be using to evaluate the work.

“Put simply, we see self-assessment as feedback for oneself from oneself.” (p. 160) Students in Andrade’s educational psychology course were given rubrics and checklists for each assignment. Prior to submitting the assignment, students used these assessment tools to judge their work. They were required to submit their self-assessments with the completed work, but their assessments were not graded.

Andrade and Du then conducted a series of interviews with students to explore their reactions to self-assessment conducted this way. They chose their sample purposefully “for its potential to illuminate areas in need of further study, not to represent a larger population.” (p. 163) This limits the generalizability of their findings, but their interviews offer insights into the experience of a population who responded thoughtfully to the experience.

Students in this sample reported that their attitudes toward self-assessment became more positive as their experiences with the process accumulated. Noteworthy was the fact that none of this sample reported having any previous experiences with academic self-assessment. Not surprisingly, they didn’t value their opinions about their work and saw self-assessment as a vehicle for figuring out the teacher’s expectations.

“The difference between self-assessment and giving the teacher what he or she wants was a recurring theme. A few students referred to self-assessment in terms of their own expectations. More often, however, students spoke of the tension between their own and the teacher’s expectations. … Over and over again, students rejected their own judgments of their work in favor of guessing how their teacher or professor would grade it.” (p. 168)

These students reported that their ability to self-assess depended on knowing what the teacher expected. In an appendix Andrade and Du share some of the rubrics and checklists used in this educational psychology course. They are very clear and explicit.

When they self-assessed, these students reported that they checked their work, revised it, and reflected on it more generally. Before this class their self-assessment efforts were “relatively mindless.” (p. 65) But from this experience they learned that careful self-assessment could improve their work to the degree that they did get better grades. Most did not see the larger value of the skill they were developing. Most did not use self-assessment in their other courses. They did see potential value in doing so. “They cited a lack of motivation and a lack of support for self-assessment among the reasons that ‘we slip.’” (p. 166)

by Maryellen Weimer.

Abolish the UPSR and PMR examinations

2010-07-25T01:43:00.000+08:00

The problem is not exams, it is with the education policies

Saturday, July 17th, 2010 - The Star

THE recent proposal to abolish the UPSR and PMR examinations had created a heated public debate among Malaysians, who in general are against such a move. I too join in the chorus calling for the idea to be dropped. It would be irresponsible and unwise to abolish these exams which have been in place for many decades and served their purpose reasonably well.

Our education system may have become very exam-oriented but the cause is not the exams themselves. Many major changes to the education system are made abruptly without due debate and consideration. The folly of such decisions are then realised a little too late when the damage has already been done.

Tendency for education to become exam-oriented is a universal problem and is not just peculiar to us. Even advanced nations have gone through such problems, some even worse. They have not done away with exams but found alternate ways to overcome it to some extent.

Doing away with exams may be the easy way out, but it will only lead to greater repercussions which we will regret later.

Whether we like it or not, exams are necessary as there are no better means available to assess the capability of the student.

If we abolish exams, what are we going to use to gauge a student’s knowledge and capability for selection to enter universities and get scholarships? How are we going to set a national standard for all students to measure up?

Instead of abolishing existing exams, we should device ways to make the exams more “intelligent”, whereby they can be used to assess the overall ability, aptitude and capability in critical thinking, reasoning and maturity of thought.

Examinations should be tailored to evaluate these aspects instead of the usual “vomiting” out of memorized facts as it is being done now. There should be more stringent criteria for awarding As in examination.

It is deeply disturbing that the national education system has long been used as a political tool which is the main reason for the pathetic state it is in now. There seems to be no sense of purpose or direction with repeated changes to the education policies. It should be left to the officials in the Education Ministry, academia and teachers to run the system in a more professional manner without undue political interference.

by Dr. Chris Anthony, Butterworth.

source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/17/focus/6681805&

Strong Body or Strong Character

2010-07-13T07:57:00.000+08:00

Expressions of strength

By S.H. LOKE

WE admire strong people who outshine others in character and confidence. Some are physically strong, while others are emotionally or mentally strong. Here are some words associated with strength which you can use to describe people with a strong body or a strong character.

1. Robust

Very strong and healthy.

All the robust girls were chosen to take part in the tug-of-war on sports day.

2. Stocky

A stocky person has a body that is broad, solid and often short.

The stocky farmer could easily carry 20kg of vegetables by hand.

3. Sturdy

Somebody or something that is sturdy looks strong and is unlikely to be easily injured or damaged.

The sturdy angsana tree outside my house survived last night’s storm.

4. Steadfast

Not changing in your attitudes or aims.

He proved his steadfast loyalty to his company by not accepting jobs with better offers.

5. Stalwart

A loyal worker or supporter who is completely reliable.

He trusts Jack, his stalwart worker who has been with him for 20 years.

6. Steady

Sensible and reliable.

Rick is a steady student whose results are consistent.

7. Staunch

Strong and loyal in your opinions and attitude.

She is a staunch supporter of the ruling party.

8. Resilient

People and things are resilient when they are able to recover easily from unpleasant

and damaging events.

My mother is a resilient woman who ensured much suffering in her younger years.

Rubber is a very resilient material.

9. Tenacious

If you are tenacious, you are very determined and do not give up easily.

He survived the ordeal in the jungle as he is a tenacious adventurer.

10. Stoical

Someone who is stoical does not complain or show they are upset in a bad situation.

Bob is well-liked by his boss, because he is stoical even when he is loaded with too much work, and he always goes the extra mile.

source: http://thestar.com.my/english/story.asp?file=/2010/7/9/lifefocus/6398127&sec=lifefocus

Whatever You Give To Life, Life Gives You Back!

2010-07-11T16:47:00.000+08:00

An inspirational story from my inbox...

A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business.

Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young
executives in his company together.

He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you."

The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant
the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed.

Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.

Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.

Six months went by -- still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however.
He just kept watering and fertilising the soil - he so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection.

Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room.

When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful --
in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives.

Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified.

He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!"

When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed - Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer! His name is Jim!"

Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed.

"How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.

Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it,
and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer!"

* If you plant honesty, you will reap trust

* If you plant goodness, you will reap friends

* If you plant humility, you will reap greatness

* If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment

* If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective

* If you plant hard work, you will reap success

* If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation

* If you plant faith in GOD, you will reap a harvest

So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later.

"Whatever You Give To Life, Life Gives You Back!"

MUET Result

2010-07-07T18:21:00.001+08:00

from The Star;

Collect your MUET results from 10am tomorrow

PETALING JAYA: The mid-year Malaysian University English Test (MUET) results will be released tomorrow.

According to a Malaysian Examinations Council statement, candidates can collect their results from 10am onwards at their respective schools and institutions.

Private candidates will receive their results by post. Candidates can also check their results via SMS by typing MUETIC number and sending it to 15888 from 12.01 midnight on that day.

Alternatively, they can go to www.mpm.edu.my from 9am onwards.

Candidates who wish to retake MUET to improve on their mid-year MUET results can register at state education departments or district education offices.

Registration for the year-end MUET closes on July 22.

A total of 81,731 candidates sat for the 2010 MUET at 872 examination centres nationwide.

Idiom: Get On One's Nerves

2010-06-28T00:55:00.000+08:00

get on one's nerves: irritate someone; make someone upset.

"I know you like that song, but it's getting on my nerves. Can you play something else?"

source: http://www.eslcafe.com/idioms/id-g.html

A Chance To Win An iPod Touch

2010-06-25T08:29:00.000+08:00

Hey you...let's take part in this contest

English S.O.S

If you’ve spotted some Bad English lately, raise the S.O.S with a photo and send it to us. The best picture selected by the British Council wins MPH vouchers worth RM50 every fortnight and an iPod Touch every three months. Sounds good? Don’t sit on it, snap away and send us an S.O.S!

http://englishrescueteam.com/english-s-o-s/

What Is Verb?

2010-06-24T22:29:00.000+08:00

What is a Verb & How are they used?

A verb is a part of speech that describes a state of being or an action. Less formally, it is also known, as an action word. It is often the core of any statement, all sentences need to include at least one verb. Recognizing the verb in a statement is a fundamental part of comprehending the intended meaning of a statement.

Take the following sentence, for instance: The straitjacket restricts most upper body movement. “Restricts” is the word that indicates action in the sentence. Even when the action does not indicate much in terms of activity, “restricts” is the sentence’s action word or verb. Here is another example: They were in a state of shock. In the proceeding example, the action does not exist, although the verb conveys a state of being. Additionally, the word “be” is unlike other typical verbs by definition, however it is still a verb.

Verbs are different to most parts of speech because they change form. Endings are can be added to the verb, wherein the word “yearn” becomes “yearned” to reflect the past tense, “catch” becomes “caught” for the same purpose. Different verb types have different meanings, when related to concepts such as past, present, and future tenses; first, second, and third-person points of view; singular and plural forms for number; and active and passive voices. Modals such as would, could, may, and might; and auxiliaries like have, will and do can accompany verbs for different meanings!

As declared above with verb tenses, a verb’s relation to time is quite significant. Verbs can state whether an event occurred earlier, is occurring currently, or will occur in the future. Events that are currently unfolding will use a verb’s present tense. Events that took place in the past will use a verb’s past tense. Events that have yet to occur will use a verb’s future tense!

Verbs which are changed to make the verb’s past tense form with “d” or “ed” are regular verbs. Irregular verbs are ones that do not follow the formula for regular verbs when changing onto the past tense. The spelling of the various irregular verbs can be hard for people not well-versed in the English language. In these instances, familiarity through exposure to written English is recommended.

The simple tenses of verbs are classically used to teach people who are just learning the language. Many know that there are several, more complex verb tenses, such as present progressive tense, past perfect tense, and etcetera. Progressive verb forms, for example, denote the subject’s action over a period of time. The perfect tense, another type of verb form, states the action’s completion.

Finally, when relating to the subject, verbs and subjects have to agree. A singular verb has to be accompanied by a singular subject, and a plural subject has to have a plural verb. This is called subject-verb agreement.

Find information on Grammar Correction Software and English language resources at EnglishGrammarSoft.com.

MELTA 2010

2010-06-07T08:22:00.001+08:00

The Malaysian English Language Teaching Association (MELTA) will host its 19th International Conference on the theme Transformations in English Language Education: Vision, Innovation, Implementation at THREE different locations:

The Royale Chulan, Kuala Lumpur : 7- 8 June 2010

M.S. Garden Hotel Kuantan , Pahang : 11-12 June 2010

Four Points Sheraton, Kuching, Sarawak : 17-18 June 2010

I will attend MELTA 19th International Conference this weekend, I missed last year's conference. This year it's going to be my second time attending this conference as a participant. I really hope that in few years to come I will one of the presenters at MELTA conference. God willing.

for more information about MELTA 19th International Conference

click here

Apple Pie Order

2010-06-06T09:03:00.000+08:00

Apple pie order means a perfect order.

No Frills

2010-06-04T08:00:00.000+08:00

I was flipping through Giant (the hypermarket) brochure just now and came across 'No Frills'

So, with the help of wikipedia, I've found the meaning and I thought I'd share with you what it means...

No-frills or no frills is a term used to describe any service or product for which the non-essential features have been removed to keep the price low. The use of the term "frills" refers to a style of fabric decoration. Something offered to customers for no additional charge may be designated as a "frill" - for example, free drinks on airline journeys, or a radio installed in a rental car. No-frills businesses operate on the principle that by removing luxurious additions, customers may be offered lower prices. Frills or tassles on a carpet are not necessary but make the rug look fancy. Frills on any goods are not necessary but are a luxury. No frills means to live without certain luxuries.

What Is Going Bananas?

2010-06-03T22:01:00.001+08:00

Going bananas means:

Behaving in a crazy way or becoming extremely angry.

Example: She is going bananas over Jason Bieber.

New Blog?

2010-06-02T21:42:00.002+08:00

I am thinking of creating another blog for this blog... erkk? what am I saying? hahah.. well.. the thing is, the blogspot account that I use for this blog has reached its limit for photo uploads!

It's not fun writing entries without putting any photos right... so I think I am gonna create another blog with this blog's url and this blog will have a new url. erkk.. u got what I mean?

It means, this blog will continue to exist, but with a different url, so to all of my readers out there, take note of this change ok...

I Like..

2010-06-01T22:25:00.000+08:00

I found this blog interesting..
http://malaysian-english-for-dummies.blogspot.com/

When Is Father's Day 2010 in Malaysia?

2010-05-24T22:49:00.002+08:00

To answer the above question...

Father's Day 2010 in Malaysia will be celebrated on Sunday June 20.

and I found this website

http://www.fathersdaycelebration.com/

very interesting, it has beautiful wishes for Father's Day, so if you are out of ideas what to write in your Father's Day card, you might want to visit that site. It gives great Father's Day gift ideas too..

Beside or Besides?

2010-05-17T08:46:00.000+08:00

Beside/besides.

This following excerpt appeared in The Star, April 26, page N39: “…Wan Aishah was resplendent besides her husband….” The wrong word was used. It should have been beside (a preposition meaning “at the side of, next to”) – not besides (an adverb meaning ”in addition to, apart from”).

source

A Confession of an Unhappy Professor: Essay Writing

2010-05-14T08:46:00.000+08:00

“Here we go again”, I think every time that a new pile of turned in essay papers falls onto my table. I’ve been teaching English in this university for ten years, and still there are only a few students that surprised me with their essay writings. The rest of them seems to discover new and extremely exiting ways to irritate me and turn essay paper reading into a nightmare.

I take the first paper. Go thought it. No, I’m not reading yet. The reason I’m not doing it is because it’s not labeled. I mean, there is not even a small attempt to tell me who this unknown author is, what class he belongs to, and what his topic is. And I’m sitting here, staring confused at the paper…. I start feeling like that Greek hero trying to solve Sphinx’s puzzle. If you want to get an unsatisfactory grade, this is the perfect beginning for it. I’m not even going to read this paper. It’s not like something is going to pop up to make me understand who the ultimate genius of this eternal writing is.

I take another essay paper and realize that my happy essay checking evening has only just begun. A wonderful mixture of fancy typefaces looks right at me, and there is no way I’m going to understand something (or at least a heading) from all these italics and bolds. I bet that even Picasso’s paintings are easier to comprehend. Whatever this essay paper is about, I don’t feel like pretending to be Sherlock Holmes: “It’s simple, Watson! This essay paper is about monkeys that love bananas. How did I come up with such a smart conclusion? Because I’m one smart guy”. Give me a break.

Even though I gave this paper a chance, it failed on the next stage – plagiarism check. And this is something I’m not able to forgive under any circumstances. Every student has a chance to make several essay drafts. Is it so hard to come up with something that can be called “personal opinion”? Why do so many students prefer to take quotations, but don’t feel like providing references? And here’s one more thing about quotations – an essay paper that is made of them on more than a half can not impress any professor. I’m not an exception.

Next essay paper goes to a trash bin, too. No, not because I’m “cute and cuddly”, but because it is full of slang and contractions. Never, please, never use contractions and slang (the last one especially) in your academic writing. Do I look like a jolly uncle that comes to visit and asks his nephews about their trip to Rollercoaster Park? If I do, than… I don’t know what to say.

And here’s one more thing that makes me want to cross an essay paper over with a red marker. A page-long Introduction that is written to impress me and make an essay paper look bigger is worse than bad breath and republicans. If you don’t know what to write about to fit into my requirements for amount of words, try to use your head for a change.

Similar to long Introductions are vague explanations. You probably wanted to make a point. But after that you felt tired, or had to go and water the flowers, or you work as a Superman and have to save the world at nights instead of writing essays for my class… whatever it is that stopped you from writing good explanations, it doesn’t make me feel happy. Maybe, your intentions were different, but I got it this way, and this is the way I grade it.

Why do students want to use the word “believe” instead of “agree”, or “think”? Believe means to have faith, to hold something true on the basis of feelings, without evidence. You are writing as a scientist, so you think, argue, accept, and hold on the basis of some evidence. The rest concerns your religion and believes.

Another thing that irritates me is using “we” instead of “I”. Did Madonna help you on writing this essay, and you feel like giving credit to her? Unless it is a group activity, please use “I”.

And finally – why do you use “its” as possessive, when you mean “it’s” in the meaning it is (which is a contraction, remember)? Can’t you be just a little more attentive?

With respect,

Your grumpy professor.

Jennifer Burns is the head of customer care center at Custom-Writing.org, help essay. Having completed a number of academic assignments himself, Jennifer uses her knowledge to provide individualized customer support to students, who order academic essay and essays writing

Beauty Contest

2010-05-13T07:55:00.001+08:00

Beauty contest/beautiful contest.

The usual expression is beauty contest, where the noun beauty is a modifier (in this example a noun functioning as an adjective).

A beautiful contest is rare – what with contestants jealous of one another and back-stabbing or bad-mouthing or sabotaging one another!

source

Affect or Effect?

2010-05-12T23:27:00.001+08:00

Affect/effect.

Affect is a verb, and effect can be a verb or a noun.

As verbs, affect and effect have very different meanings.

To affect is to influence, to “have an effect on, make a difference to” (temperature affects the viscosity of a syrup).

To effect is to “cause to happen, bring about” (to effect a change). Incidentally, affect has another meaning: to “pretend to have or feel” (he affected a British accent when he returned home after a one-year stay in London).

source

There is Or There are?

2010-05-08T19:16:00.000+08:00

Here are some other examples of there is/there are use.

There’s a lot of reasons to be optimistic. (incorrect)
There are a lot of reasons…. (correct)

There’s two sides to every story. (incorrect)
There are two sides….(correct)

There’s several storms arriving in the West. (incorrect)
There are several storms arriving in the West. (correct)

There’s not options out there that they like at the moment. (I actually heard this one on ESPN.) (incorrect)
There aren’t options…. (correct)

How To Write An Essay

2010-05-06T07:46:00.000+08:00

Essay writing is definitely considered to be a part of academic life and essay writing requires certain skills or the part of the writer. A good written essay exhibits the skills of proper organization of ideas, good vocabulary, systematic argument and collection of relevant ideas. Fare importance should be given to diction and style used for essay writing. Certain important points to be considered while writing an essay are as follows:

1) Formulate a plan :

Get into the habit of writing a plan before starting an essay or project. A plan in hand can help you to formulate ideas and thus allows you to structure your final essay in an appropriate and logical way. Essay plans can be helpful in reminding you of important points that can be used to cover in your essay.

Your plan towards essay writing should involve using of keywords and phrases, making of notes of important references and formulating the essay in a logical order. Your planning should also consist of finding which words you may need to define and find out what you could research to make your case stronger. Try to eliminate anything that is irrelevant. In other words, make note of key things that will be relevant for the essay writing.

2) Work on your title:

It is preferable to choose and write your title with proper heading before you proceed further with the other paragraphs. Keeping the title in mind, you can write your essay in an easier manner. You will be able to write easily, once you have managed to remain focused towards your title.

3) Have a proper structured body :

The body of an essay plays an important role in the over all making of the essay. The body of the essay will consist of points for discussing, elaborating, describing and arguing about the subject. Once you structure your concerned topic for production, you can then put in your ideas within the body paragraphs.

Jack william is a freelance writer who writes about the topic of college students. Mr. william often writes about specific topics used in college such as Buy Essay.

When Is Mother's Day?

2010-05-05T19:40:00.001+08:00

When is Mother's Day in Malaysia?

In Malaysia, Mother's day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May every year.

Mother's Day Date

Different countries celebrate Mother's Day on different dates. Check out the exact date for Mother's Day in your country from the list of Mothers Day dates 2010 given below and start preparing for a big surprise of love for her.

Mother's Day 2010
Country	Day	Date
India	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
United States	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Australia	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Belgium	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Brazil	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Canada	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Denmark	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Finland	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Germany	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Greece	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Italy	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Japan	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
New Zealand	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Singapore	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
South Africa	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Turkey	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Sweden	Last Sunday in the month of May	May 30, 2010
Austria	First Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Hong Kong	First Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Netherlands	Second Sunday in the month of May	May 9, 2010
Taiwan	First Sunday in the month of May	May 2, 2010
Hungary	First Sunday in the month of May	May 2, 2010
Portugal	First Sunday in the month of May	May 2, 2010
Spain	First Sunday in the month of May	May 2, 2010
United Kingdom	Fourth Sunday in the month of March	March 14, 2010
Romania	First Sunday in the month of May	May 2, 2010

Why Were After If?

2010-05-03T23:53:00.000+08:00

The word ‘were’ after ‘if’

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED by FADZILAH AMIN -THE STAR

I’M A little confused on how and when to use the word “were” after the word “if”. Must “were” be used after “if” in any circumstance? The attachments were taken from newspapers here on the use of ‘if’ and ‘were’. – Marc Ong

No, “were” need not be used after “if” in all circumstances, only in some. There are so many other verbs in the English language that can be used in the past tense in second conditional sentences when we are talking about an unlikely or impossible situation. Here are some examples in which the simple past tense of verbs other than “are” are used in the if-clause with “would” in the main clause:

“If I had wings, I would fly.”

“If you lost 100kg in a week, you would really be slim.”

However, in second conditional sentences beginning with “I”, “were” is usually used instead of “was”, for example in:

“If I were you, I would not buy that car.”

“If I were young again, I would try to be a professional tennis player.”

Writing Good Memo in Business Communication

2010-04-19T00:32:00.000+08:00

Tips for Writing a Good Memo in Business Communication

Business writing differs significantly from article or academic writing. Business communication is generally in the form of reports, policies, instructions, procedures, memos, letters, orders or rules & regulations. Memos are business letters but only for employees & used within an organization.

Memos are used to give information to employees such as changes in some procedures or rules, policy change or for specific purpose like request to attend a meeting. The format of the memo differs from business letter format. Memos generally contain sections like to, from, date, subject & text of memo.

Points to remember while writing a memo:

If you are sending memo to specific person, then you should write correct name of the reader. You can write job title along with name to make it more formal.

Subject should not be vague or unclear. It should be brief & specific, which can give an idea about the purpose of the memo.

Generally, memos do not contain salutation or complimentary closing.

The text in text section of memo should be concise, clear, to the point.

Avoid use of long and complex sentences that contain too much information. Short sentences make your message more readable and understandable. You can use headings & bullets to make your memo easy to read.

First paragraph in text area or opening paragraph should contain background of the problem & purpose of the memo. Memo’s recipient should get an overview of the memo by reading the first paragraph only.

In next paragraphs, you can explain the steps you have taken or methods and sources you have used to solve the problems.

Last paragraph should be the closing segment, where you can request your reader to take an action to solve the problem. Some people use conclusion at the end of memo to summarize the content. Conclusions are also useful for suggestions and recommendations or if you wish to make a request to the reader.

If there are any attachments, always mention at the end, after closing segment.

Always proofread your memo before sending it. You can use software programs, which are available for business writing, for proofreading & to check and correct English grammar & spellings in your memo. Some software programs enrich your text with adjectives & adverbs, which enhances the simple sentence into more professional and sophisticated one & suggest context related synonym for repeated words.

For information on business English writing software please visit

http://www.truevalue4money.com

MUET Clinic

2010-04-13T08:17:00.002+08:00

Dear students,

I will conduct a MUET class today at 4pm. Those interested please be at A11 - 4pm today.

Thank you

From The Secret

2010-04-13T08:16:00.000+08:00

A Secret Scrolls message from Rhonda Byrne

From The Secret Daily Teachings

Most people don't realize how much passion they put into what they don't want. When you speak to a friend and you tell them all about an "awful" situation, you are putting passion into what you don't want. When you react to an event negatively, with the response that it is "terrible", you are putting passion into what you don't want.

You are a beautiful passionate being, so make sure you direct your passion wisely.

May the joy be with you,

hehe!

2010-04-09T16:20:00.002+08:00

I like.... hehe... so cute right?

I am guilty of that too... ngeee...

Malaysian English

2010-04-09T01:21:00.001+08:00

Hey all...

I just want to introduce my friend's blog

http://malaysian-english-for-dummies.blogspot.com

Learning & Teaching English : How to Teach Adults English As a Second Language

2010-04-08T11:09:00.002+08:00

Persuasive Essay

2010-04-02T04:07:00.000+08:00

Writing a persuasive essay is much like preparing for a debate. You need to study your persuasive essay topic from various perspectives, establish your main argument and gather supporting evidence. You also need to know how to write a persuasive essay, namely how to organize parts of the persuasive essay in the way that will work best.

Try the following instructions on how to write a persuasive essay. They are indispensable in writing a well-planned and thoroughly considered persuasive essay.

1.Start with an Impressive Lead-In

The introduction of your persuasive essay is the first words you utter to render the readers to be well-disposed to you. Moreover, it is by the introduction that the reader decides whether to go on reading you essay or leave it in peace. Thus, the introduction of your essay should be attention grabbing and impressive enough to induce the reader to read further on.

Writing a persuasive essay, you need to pay particular attention to the first sentence you are going to write down, namely a lead-in. It is the most important part of the whole persuasive essay, out of which you come out either a winner or a loser.

To write a strong and impressive lead-in, try the following strategies:
7.start with an unusual detail;
8.put a strong statement;
9.quote a famous person;
10.introduce a short and up-to-the-point anecdote;
11.open the essay with a statistic or fact;
12.start with an emphatic rhetorical question;

Before deciding on one of the strategies, try all of them. You will be surprised to find out how different strategies can enrich and smarten up the introduction to your persuasive essay.

After you have put the opening sentence, be sure to introduce a sentence that will show that you see both pros and cons of the subject matter under consideration. Then write a thesis or focus statement, which has to reveal your own point of view. A well-formulated thesis statement is the key to success, as it is the central part of your essay, around which all other parts are organized.

Remember that a good introduction should be brief, concise and end with a closing sentence that will be transitional to the next paragrath.

2.Support Your Thesis in the Body

The body of your persuasive essay is the main part of your writing where you present supporting evidence and elaborate on the reasons you stated previously. The body should be a proof that you have researched and examined your persuasive essay topic and that your arguments are reasonable and reliable.

In order to prove your thesis statement and dispel the opposing arguments, you need to: 1) state the facts of the case; 2) prove your thesis with arguments; and 3) disprove your opponent's arguments in three consecutive steps.

Statement of facts is a non-argumentative presentation of details, summaries and narration concerning the problem discussion. In this part of the body you should present supporting evidence without stating your own point of view and trying to persuade the readers in it.

First, you should remind the readers of some events, provide vivid illustrations that will show the significance of the topic. Statement of facts should be clear, brief, and vivid. If you obscure the facts, you are defeating the purpose. Thus, delete irrelevant information and information which contributes little to the reader's understanding.

After you've introduced some facts, you can get down to proving your thesis with arguments. This should be the longest section and the central part of your persuasive essay. With the readers rendered attentive by the introduction and informed by the statement of fact, you must show why your position concerning the facts should be accepted and believed.

Now comes the time to deny the truth on which the opposing argument is built. Be patient in thinking over the refutation. It is the most difficult stage that needs time, concentration and absorption.

The proven way to hook readers' attention is to leave your strongest argument for last so that to leave them with your best thought.

3.Write a Memorable Conclusion.

Your conclusion should be a "mirror image" of your introduction. It means that you should refresh the reader's memory and remind him of the thesis statement you put in the introduction. It is not a mere waste of time or words, but the best way to convince the reader to take your side.

As well as in writing the introduction, you can try several ways to write a memorable conclusion for your persuasive essay.

Except for restating the introduction, you can summarize the main points to enable the readers to recall the main points of your position.

A nice way to conclude the persuasive essay is to write a personal comment or call for action. It could be: 1) your prediction; 2) a question that will let the readers make their own predictions; 3) your recommendations to solve a problem; 4) a quotation. It's up to you to decide!

The last line of your persuasive essay, that is the "tag line," needs special attention, for it is the second most important line after the lead-in. Thus, it is important that it:
4.renders the readers to be well disposed to you;
5.magnifies your points;
6.puts the readers in the proper mood.

Once you have put the full stop after the "tag line", your work is over. But make sure that the words you have put in your persuasive essay will be "working" long after your readers stop reading it.

written by: Linda Correli

Public Speaking – The Art of Speech Making

2010-04-01T18:30:00.000+08:00

Public Speaking – The Art of Speech Making

How do you speak naturally while all those people are watching you?

This document covers hints and tips on public speaking and presentation skill, dealing with public speaking nerves and anxiety, public speaking skills and public speaking techniques, public speaking training.

Common Fears of Public Speaking

What happens when you have to speak in public?

Did you know that public speaking tops the list of phobias for most people? Not spiders or heights – public speaking – speech in public!

Well, if you didn’t know that, we bet your body does. It will do all kinds of unpleasant things to you when you have to stand up and face a sea of faces with the hope of getting your message across in a compelling and interesting way.

Your hands may sweat and your mouth goes dry. Your knees may shake and a quaver affects your voice. Your heart may race and those well known butterflies invade your stomach.

When all that happens most people don’t think of getting their message across in a compelling and interesting way; they just think of getting off the ’stage’ as quickly as possible!

Have we frightened you sufficiently yet?

It’s normal

We don’t really mean to frighten you, just remind you that your body reacts ‘in extremis’ when put under pressure, and for most people, public speaking is just about the worst pressure they can be put under.

It’s normal to be nervous and have a lot of anxiety when speaking in public. In a way, it’s less normal not to have nerves or anxiety; in fact, to feel you have a phobia about public speaking.

Why do we get Public Speaking anxiety?

Fight or flight

Our bodies are geared to fight or flight from ancient time – fight that mastodon or get the hell out of the way. We don’t have too many mastodons around these days, but the body still reacts as though we do. So, if we have to get up and speak in public, all that adrenalin and noradrenalin goes coursing through our bodies – way more than we need.

We can’t run away (well, we could, but we’d be out of job pretty quick if we did it too often), so our only option is to fight. But in terms of speaking in public, it can be hard to define just what we’re fighting.

Why does public speaking do this to us?

Good question. You’d think that for most people, being given the opportunity to impress their audience would be a fantastic one. There you are in front of a group of people, the spotlight is on you and for the length of time you’ve been give, the world is yours.

Or is it?

The very fact that the spotlight is you is enough to trigger every fear, anxiety and phobia you’ve ever had about public speaking.

Here’s why

You may be judged by all those people, and judged badly
You may feel like a fool
You might make mistakes and loose your way
You’ll be completely humiliated
You’ll never be as good as _________ (fill in the blank)
‘They’ won’t like you
‘They’ won’t ‘get’ what you’re trying to say

How to overcome fear of Public Speaking
What good are Nerves

Public speaking may not be comfortable, but take our word for it, nerves are good. Being ‘centre stage’ is not a good place to feel too comfortable.

Nerves will keep you awake and ensure you don’t get too complacent. Hard to feel complacent when your heart is beating so hard you’re sure everyone watching you can hear it.

If channelled well, nerves can make the difference between giving a humdrum presentation and giving one that keeps people listening.

Get your attention off yourself

It’s very tempting to keep focused on how you’re feeling, especially if you’re feeling really uncomfortable. You’ll start to notice every bead of sweat.

To make your nerves work for you, you need to focus on just about anything other than yourself. You can distract yourself by paying attention to the environment in which you’re speaking and seeing how you can make it work for you.

Once you’re actually in front of your audience, pay attention to them. If you can, notice how people are dressed, who’s wearing glasses, who has on bright colours. There will be dozens and dozens of things you can pay attention to help you trick your mind into not noticing what’s going on with you.

Anything will do and you will find that the less you concentrate on how you are feeling and the more you concentrate on other things, the more confident you will feel.

How to build confidence in Public Speaking

Your audience can be your friend

Unless you know you’re absolutely facing a hostile group of people, human nature is such that your audience wants you succeed. They’re on your side!

Therefore, rather than assuming they don’t like you, give them the benefit of the doubt that they do.

They aren’t an anonymous sea of faces, but real people. So to help you gain more confidence when speaking in public, think of ways to engage your audience. Remember, even if they aren’t speaking, you can still have a two-way conversation.

When you make an important point pay attention to the people who are nodding in agreement and the ones who are frowning in disagreement. As long as you are creating a reaction in your audience you are in charge.

Keep them awake

The one thing you don’t want is for them to fall asleep! But make no mistake public speaking arenas are designed to do just that: dim lights, cushy chairs, not having to open their mouths – a perfect invitation to catch up on those zzzzs.

Ways to keep them away include

Ask rhetorical questions
Maintain eye contact for a second or two with as many people as possible
Be provocative
Be challenging
Change the pace of your delivery
Change the volume of your voice

Public Speaking Training

Get a coach

Whatever the presentation public speaking is tough, so get help.

Since there are about a zillion companies out there all ready to offer you public speaking training and courses, here are some things to look for when deciding the training that’s right for you.

Focus on positives not negatives

Any training you do to become more effective at public speaking should always focus on the positive aspects of what you already do well.

Nothing can undermine confidence more than telling someone what they aren’t doing well.

You already do lots of things well good public speaking training should develop those instead of telling you what you shouldn’t do.

Turn your back on too many rules

If you find a public speaking course that looks as though it’s going to give you lots of dos and don’ts, walk away! Your brain is going to be so full of whatever it is you’re going to be talking about that to try to cram it full of a whole bunch of rules will just be counterproductive.

As far as we’re concerned, aside from physical violence or inappropriately taking off your clothes, there are no hard and fast rules about public speaking.

You are an individual not a clone

Most importantly, good public speaking training should treat you as a unique individual, with your own quirks and idiosyncrasies. You aren’t like anybody else and your training course should help you bring out your individuality, not try to turn you into someone you’re not.

Hints and Tips for Effective Public Speaking

Here are just a few hints, public speaking tips and techniques to help you develop your skills and become far more effective as a public speaker.

Mistakes

Mistakes are all right.

Recovering from mistakes makes you appear more human.
Good recovery puts your audience at ease – they identify with you more.

Humour

Tell jokes if you’re good at telling jokes.
If you aren’t good, best to leave the jokes behind.
There’s nothing worse than a punch line that has no punch.
Gentle humour is good in place of jokes.
Self-deprecation is good, but try not to lay it on too thick.

Tell stories

Stories make you a real person not just a deliverer of information.
Use personal experiences to bring your material to life.
No matter how dry your material is, you can always find a way to humanise it.

How to use the public speaking environment

Try not to get stuck in one place.
Use all the space that’s available to you.
Move around.
One way to do this is to leave your notes in one place and move to another.
If your space is confined (say a meeting room or even presenting at a table) use stronger body language to convey your message.

Technology

Speak to your audience not your slides.
Your slides are there to support you not the other way around.
Ideally, slides should be graphics and not words (people read faster than they hear and will be impatient for you to get to the next point).
If all the technology on offer fails, it’s still you they’ve come to hear.

You can learn to enjoy public speaking and become far more effective at standing in front of a group of people and delivering a potent message.

When it comes to improving your public speaking skills we have three words:

practise, practise, practise!

Jo Ellen and Robin run Impact Factory and have trained thousands of people in the art of Public Speaking for events from Wedding Speeches through to Key Note Conference Speeches.

Ace that interview By CHRISTINE JALLEH

2010-03-29T08:46:00.001+08:00

For my INK 226 students...

Ace that interview
By CHRISTINE JALLEH

There are several things you can do to create a good impression during a job interview.

WOULD you be free for an interview next week?” Congratulations if you have just received such a phone call. For the job-seeker or the student applying for a scholarship, this is an important stage towards achieving your goal.

Now that you’ve got your foot in the door to the application process, your next step would be to convince the interviewer or interviewers that you are the candidate they are looking for.

Before you put on your colour-coordinated suit and shiny shoes, be sure that you are prepared for the interview ahead.

What is an interview?

Bruce Elder, the author of Communication Skills, defines an interview as “a meeting of persons face to face for a particular purpose in which one asks questions that the other is expected to answer.”

While interviews are still conducted to get answers to questions, today’s interviews can range from the one-to-one, panel, face-to-face, telephone to even an online chat or Starbucks café interview!

Whichever the situation, always remember that the interviewer(s) have arranged to talk with you because they like what they see on your cover letter and resume. Now, they would like to get to know you better.
Be confident: Always remember that the interviewer has arranged to talk with you because she likes what she sees on your cover letter and resume.

The first impression

The interview begins the moment you step into the room even if no questions have been asked.

Everyone gets a first glimpse of you and immediately, a first impression is formed.

Here are some common positive and negative comments after meeting a candidate:

“I think she forgot to iron her shirt!”

“Is he auditioning for American Idol? I thought we were looking for an accounts executive, not a rock star.”

“She looks so worried! I’m worried if she can do the job.”

“He looks friendlier in person. He looks so serious in his photo.”

“She looks so confident. I like her.”

Some of the comments may seem unkind but that’s the reality of first impressions.

Put your best foot forward by appearing friendly, calm and confident. Remember your parents’ advice: smile and sit up straight!

The interview

Before going to the most important part of the interview, the interviewer(s) would introduce themselves and their roles in the organisation.

Then, they will ask a few questions to put you at ease:

“Have you had your lunch?”

“So ... you’re from Penang. What are your favourite hawker foods?”

“How did you come here? Could you easily find our office?”

“You have such an unusual name. Is it a Malay name?”

Relax and answer the questions as briefly and as best as you can.

Even if these are casual questions, take note that the interviewer(s) are evaluating you and your answers.

Now is not the time to share your gastroenteritis problem or your dislike for hawker food (unless you can recommend other appetising alternatives).

Questions and answers

After the introductions, the interview will begin in full swing.

The interview is your chance to demonstrate how capable, intelligent and dedicated you are while the interviewers want to see if you’re a good fit or representative for their organisation.

Most of the questions will seek to discover your abilities, past experiences and your approach to people, tasks, responsibilities and most importantly, dealing with difficult situations.

Interview questions can be neutral:

1. Tell us about yourself.

2. What do you know about us?

3. Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten years?

4. Who has influenced your life and why?

They can also be questions inviting positive answers:

5. Why do you think you are the right candidate for this position or scholarship?

6. Tell us about a personal achievement that makes you proud.

7. What are your strengths?

But they can also be questions inviting negative answers:

8. What are your weaknesses?

9. Tell us about a mistake that you made and what you learned from it.

10. It’s very difficult to work with different types of people. Describe an experience where you had a conflict with someone and the results of the situation.

It’s easy to look your best when you answer the neutral and positive questions but the negative questions can be the deciding factor that differentiates you from the rest.

More and more organisations are looking for people who can handle both pleasant and painful situations.

Be prepared for such questions and think it through before you give your best answer of how you positively handled that prickly situation.

Don’t forget to dazzle them with your charming personality – show them that friendly, kind or funny person your family and friends know you as.

Here are some links to:

Job interview questions and answers

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/interview questionsanswers/a/interviewquest.htm 50 common job interview questions and answers

http://www.eveandersson.com/general-comments/attachment/1565/50interviewqas.pdf

Sample scholarship interview questions and answers

http://opsf.byu.edu/Advice/ScholarshipInterviewQuestions.aspx

One vs many

The one-to-one interview is still quite common but the more popular practice is the panel interview.

Even if you are expecting a one-to-one interview, be prepared to speak with a group of three or even five people.

One of my first job interviews involved talking to four people who were seated in chairs scattered across the room – thankfully, I remembered my manners and greeted each person individually. I also took care to remember each person’s name and looked at everyone when I answered their questions. Needless to say, I was hired!

You may also be interviewed in groups of three or four by a panel of interviewers. Even if you need to stand out from the other people you are interviewed with, you can still be cordial and courteous with each other.

The final flourish

The interviewer or interviewers will signal the end of the interview by asking if you have any questions.

“Does my work experience fit into the needs of the organisation at this time?”, “Are my qualifications and skills suitable for the position?” and “Is there anything I could do to improve my chances for this position?” are some questions recommended in the book Communication Skills.

Other useful questions include, “What is a typical day/week like for this position?”, “When can I expect to hear from you?”, “Will travel be required for this position?”, “Will training be provided for this position?”

In most cases, you will be asked about your expected salary and given a summary of staff benefits. Do hold off these questions until you are offered the job.

Here is a link to other suitable questions to ask during a job interview:

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/interview questionsanswers/a/interviewquest2.htm

Remember to thank the interviewers for their time and follow up with a phone call or an e-mail to find out the outcome of the discussion. All the best!

Christine Jalleh is a communications specialist with a Master’s degree in English Language Studies. She blogs about communications, culture and travel at http://christinejalleh.com

Today's Quote

2010-03-22T10:46:00.001+08:00

Motivation is what gets u started
Habits is what keeps u going

A Week Later

2010-03-13T00:22:00.002+08:00

It has been a week since my last post! I've been busy (what a cliche excuse) with work and also because this blog can no longer accept anymore photos adds the laziness to update this blog.

Anyway, lately I've been reading a lot about our National Education Blueprint which really gives me clearer understandings on our education in general. Education is such a big agenda in our Ninth Malaysia Plan and not to forget the latest one; GTP - Government Transformation Programme.

It is really interesting to see how our government has invested a lot in education.

erkk.. this post is not going anywhere.. haha.. need to continue on my readings..

see ya!

What Should I Do?

2010-03-04T00:08:00.002+08:00

This blog account has reached its limit for photos. It means that I can no longer upload photos (not even 1 photo actually) to this blog.

What should I do? Are there any other ways that I can use to put photos here?

I just don't want to delete any of the photos from my previous post.

arrghhhh... !

Outstation

2010-03-02T07:36:00.002+08:00

Where is Miszsensei? I haven't seen her for the past few days..

Owwhh.. she is outstation

That's the common usage of 'outstation' in our country and that is not how we convey the message that the person is actually out of town. So, let's see the explanation I got from Mind Our English - The Star

The word “outstation” is not used in modern standard English to mean “out of town” or “out of the capital city”, although some Malaysians use it to mean that. It was a British colonial word, when there were still main trading stations and outstations, which is defined by the OED as “a station at a distance from headquarters or from the centre of population or business.”

The modern meaning of outstation (outside Australia and New Zealand) is “a branch of an organisation situated far from its headquarters.” (Concise OED 2009)

What Is Love?

2010-02-26T08:40:00.000+08:00

Terms of endearment
By LUCILLE DASS

Although love defies description, this has not stopped writers and poets from waxing lyrical about the subject.

NO, the headline doesn’t mean the 1983 romantic comedy-drama film. It’s that time of the year. The splendour of love is in the air. Also, apt I thought, to embrace and celebrate LOVE as an antidote to the spectre of racial and religious taunts that harm social cohesiveness and the inherent Malaysian spirit.

Cole Porter’s song title asks, “What is this thing called love?” (note to teachers: an excellent question form to use for meaningfully varied punctuation and oral practice). We could respond with Frank Sinatra’s “Love is a many splendoured thing.” Indeed, love is a definition-defying entity since it has no particular form. Yet, its felt existence and particular experience empowers and continues to inspire endless definitions and descriptions.

Love, if we’ve experienced it, is neither manipulative nor abusive; it is humanitarian and seeks the good of all; it heals and restores relationships – “Love heals all.” Love transcends the politics and angry polemics of the day; it transcends physical attraction and emotion, beyond the ‘feel good’ factor, to empower an ascent of one’s spirit to a peak that is restorative in essence. This singular capacity and quality of love within our being is reason enough to celebrate the cause and course of love.

Love has been the cause for the rise and fall of many in history – both individuals and institutions – since essentially, love is relational, a quality, that has inspired a treasury of expressions on the essence and effects of love. It has also given us a list of intriguing terms of endearment used by loved ones to refer to their significant other, depending on the object and nature of love in question – romantic, familial, spiritual, humanitarian, aesthetic or patriotic. And, with apologies to the French, the language of love belongs to all, because according to Dr Gary Chapman, “The craving for love is our deepest emotional need ...” After all, we are all created in God’s love.

One of my favourite quotes on the immeasurable depths of love comes from Kahlil Gibran :

Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.

Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;

For love is sufficient unto love.

When you love you should not say, “God is in my heart,” but rather, “I am in the heart of God.”

This finds a bold parallel in Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables: To love another person is to see the face of God. Divine love turns to “divine madness” when you fall “madly in love” and transform into “lovebirds.” Even Friedrich Nietzsche concedes: There is always some madness in love. But there is always some reason in madness. In turn, Don Byas squarely states: You call it madness, but I call it love. Blindness is another common characteristic attributed to love. Here’s a refreshing take on the “Love is blind’ cliché, by Will Moss: Love is not blind ... it sees more and not less, but because it sees more it is willing to see less. Makes sense.

Apart from the literary giants’ great works on the subject of love, the Good Book is equally rich on the subject since (like all faiths) love is the key to Christian life. The biblical chapter “Song of Songs” celebrates the beauty, sanctity, mystery, and power of love. Perhaps, the chapter from 1 Corinthians 13 is better known to many for its description of what constitutes and does not constitute love. The chapter is equally distinctive for the ranking of spiritual gifts and summarily states: In short, there are three things that last: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love.

On terms of endearment employed, again, Kahlil Gibran strikes a soulful note with his “Eve of my heart”, and “A column of light”. A quote of his that both flutters the heart and tugs at its heartstrings is his description of his beloved: a beautiful tune on the lips of life (when alive); a silent secret in the bosom of the earth (when dead).

On the lighter side, the French have an interesting list, which amounts to “Darling”, “Sweetie”, “Poppet”. Here’s a sample to pick from: “Mon amour” (my love), “Mon ange” (my angel), “Mon bébé” (my baby), “Mon cher/Ma chère” (my dear for masculine/feminine), “Mon chéri/Ma chérie” (my dearie), “Mon Coeur” (my heart), “Ma belle” (my beautiful).

The list also features some barnyard animals. Terms that have been farmed out include, “Ma biche” (my doe), “Ma caille” (my duck), “Mon chaton” (my kitten). Other animals include hen, rabbit, otter, wolf (yes!), even pig and flea (reminds you of “love bug”, no?) Well, the annoying insect has even inspired a French farce, “A Flea in her Ear” by Georges Feydeau) – dwells on love (and sex).

Not to be outwitted, the English language has its own stockpile you can choose from. Categories range from heavenly bodies to earth-bound flora and fauna, and more. Popular on the list are “Darling”, “Love”, “Beautiful”, “Dear” (I had an uncle who endured unto death [no pun intended] the “dear” endearment that turned into “Listen dear”), “Honey”, “Sweetheart”, “Baby doll” and the like. “Angel”, “Star”, “Twinkle”, “Sunshine”, and “Dove”, have also made their heavenly descent.

Next, the bakery yields choice pastry, like “Cutie-pie”, “Cookie”, “Shortcake”, “Muffin”, “Cupcake”, “Honey bun”. Other food/vegetable/plant/fruit favourites include “Pumpkin”, “Sweet pea”, “Buttercup”, “Peaches”, and “Sugarberry”. From the animal world you can pick “Kitten”, “Duckie”, “Tweetie”, “Pet”, “Sugar bear”, or “Tiger” – apt too, if you make your match in the zodiacal year that began on Valentine’s Day!

Body parts, especially the face, surfaces above all with: ‘Angel eyes’, ‘Angel face’, ‘Sweet face’, Sweet lips’, and ‘Baby face’. Then in sheer abandonment to midsummer madness, nonsense words take on sense: ‘Koochie-koochie’, ‘Pooch’, ‘Mooch’, ‘Buttons’. Better still, create your own sweet nothings, ‘tis the season after all.

Cancellation of Credit Card

2010-02-25T08:37:00.000+08:00

The best and effective way to write a letter for cancellation of credit card:

Cancellation of my Citybonk Credit Card

I would like to cancel my Citybonk Credit Card, number 0909090999, with immediate effect.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

(Your full name)

The Most Romantic Word

2010-02-24T07:42:00.000+08:00

“AMOUR”, the French word for love, has been voted the most romantic word in the world in a pre-Valentine’s Day survey of language experts.

It narrowly beat “amore”, the Italian word for love, although Italian was named the world’s most romantic language. Italian words also dominated the top places in the list of most romantic words.

“Bellissima”, which is both Italian and Spanish for “very beautiful”, was voted the third most romantic word, while “tesoro”, which is both Italian and Spanish for “treasure” (as in “Mi tesoro”/“My treasure”) came fourth.

The survey was conducted by London-based Today Translations which polled over 320 of its linguists.

After Italian, they found the second-most romantic language was French, which was way ahead of Spanish and English in joint third place.

In the same poll, the firm asked its linguists to pick the least romantic-sounding way to say, “I love you” in any language. The winner was Japan’s “watakushi-wa anata-wo ai shimasu”, ahead of the Welsh “rydw i’n dy garu di” and “qaparha”, which, the firm noted, is Klingon, as spoken in the Star Trek universe. – Reuters

Be Grateful

2010-02-23T09:10:00.000+08:00

If you make time to list all the things you are grateful for, and you feel the feelings of gratitude, you will feel amazing every day. Your frequency will be high and you will move through your days in love with being alive, bringing joy wherever you go, positively affecting one person after another.

When you live a life like this, everything you want will come before you even ask.

May the joy be with you,

A Secret Scrolls message from Rhonda Byrne
Creator of The Secret

Minutes of Meeting

2010-02-22T07:52:00.000+08:00

PART of my duties is as a note-taker during meetings. I am not sure how to prepare the minutes. For example, should I use the past tense? I’m really confused. My boss doesn’t really care much about the tenses. He is more concerned that everything discussed is written down. Also, should it be “Minutes of meeting” or “Meeting minutes”? – Rahemah

To answer your later question first, we usually write “Minutes of the Meeting held on ...” as a heading for the minutes.

Minutes of a meeting are normally written in the past tense, because the minutes are written after the meeting is over, based on the minute-taker’s notes during the meeting.

By FADZILAH AMIN - The Star - Mind Our English

Affect or Effect?

2010-02-21T19:30:00.000+08:00

I HAVE commented before on the wrong use of the words “effect” and “affect” by many Malaysians and here’s one I found in The Star’s SMS your views on page N36, Feb 14. Under the heading, “Crippled sub” was the message: A submarine not capable of diving is considered crippled. Major or minor defect, it effects the efficiency of underwater operations – Subra.

The correct word is: affects.

I think The Star should not publish any text messages, letters or reports that contain any mistakes as this may mislead people, especially students studying English, into thinking that all printed texts are correct.

– Hussaini Abdul Karim - The Star - Mind Our English

From The Secret

2010-02-16T15:30:00.001+08:00

Whatever feelings you have within you are attracting your tomorrow.

Worry attracts more worry. Anxiety attracts more anxiety. Unhappiness attracts more unhappiness. Dissatisfaction attracts more dissatisfaction.

AND . . .

Joy attracts more joy. Happiness attracts more happiness. Peace attracts more peace. Gratitude attracts more gratitude. Kindness attracts more kindness. Love attracts more love.
Your job is an inside one. To change your world, all you have to do is change the way you feel inside. How easy is that?

The difference a little punctuation makes

2010-02-15T23:23:00.000+08:00

The difference a little punctuation makes

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart. I can be forever happy – will you let me be yours?

Gloria

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For youhttp://nurullah1.com/olderblog/, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we’re apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?

Yours,

Gloria

source:http://nurullah1.com/olderblog/

Great speech: Adrian Tan on Life and How To Survive It

2010-02-13T23:04:00.001+08:00

Great speech: Adrian Tan on Life and How To Survive It

This convo speech by Adrian Tan, a Singapore lawyer, is becoming viral online. Reposted here as a record of what makes a great speech.

source: http://blog.trinetizen.com/wordpress/?cat=18

This convo speech by Adrian Tan, a Singapore lawyer, is becoming viral online. Reposted here as a record of what makes a great speech.

Life and How to Survive It

I must say thank you to the faculty and staff of the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information for inviting me to give your convocation address. It’s a wonderful honour and a privilege for me to speak here for ten minutes without fear of contradiction, defamation or retaliation. I say this as a Singaporean and more so as a husband.

My wife is a wonderful person and perfect in every way except one. She is the editor of a magazine. She corrects people for a living. She has honed her expert skills over a quarter of a century, mostly by practising at home during conversations between her and me.

On the other hand, I am a litigator. Essentially, I spend my day telling people how wrong they are. I make my living being disagreeable.

Nevertheless, there is perfect harmony in our matrimonial home. That is because when an editor and a litigator have an argument, the one who triumphs is always the wife.

And so I want to start by giving one piece of advice to the men: when you’ve already won her heart, you don’t need to win every argument.

Marriage is considered one milestone of life. Some of you may already be married. Some of you may never be married. Some of you will be married. Some of you will enjoy the experience so much, you will be married many, many times. Good for you.

The next big milestone in your life is today: your graduation. The end of education. You’re done learning.

You’ve probably been told the big lie that “Learning is a lifelong process” and that therefore you will continue studying and taking masters’ degrees and doctorates and professorships and so on. You know the sort of people who tell you that? Teachers. Don’t you think there is some measure of conflict of interest? They are in the business of learning, after all. Where would they be without you? They need you to be repeat customers.

The good news is that they’re wrong.

The bad news is that you don’t need further education because your entire life is over. It is gone. That may come as a shock to some of you. You’re in your teens or early twenties. People may tell you that you will live to be 70, 80, 90 years old. That is your life expectancy.

I love that term: life expectancy. We all understand the term to mean
the average life span of a group of people. But I’m here to talk about a bigger idea, which is what you expect from your life.

You may be very happy to know that Singapore is currently ranked as the country with the third highest life expectancy. We are behind Andorra and Japan, and tied with San Marino. It seems quite clear why people in those countries, and ours, live so long. We share one thing in common: our football teams are all hopeless. There’s very little danger of any of our citizens having their pulses raised by watching us play in the World Cup. Spectators are more likely to be lulled into a gentle and
restful nap.

Singaporeans have a life expectancy of 81.8 years. Singapore men live to an average of 79.21 years, while Singapore women live more than five years longer, probably to take into account the additional time they need to spend in the bathroom.

So here you are, in your twenties, thinking that you’ll have another 40 years to go. Four decades in which to live long and prosper.

Bad news. Read the papers. There are people dropping dead when they’re 50, 40, 30 years old. Or quite possibly just after finishing their convocation. They would be very disappointed that they didn’t meet their life expectancy.

I’m here to tell you this. Forget about your life expectancy.

After all, it’s calculated based on an average. And you never, ever want to expect being average.

Revisit those expectations. You might be looking forward to working, falling in love, marrying, raising a family. You are told that, as graduates, you should expect to find a job paying so much, where your hours are so much, where your responsibilities are so much.

That is what is expected of you. And if you live up to it, it will be an awful waste.

If you expect that, you will be limiting yourself. You will be living your life according to boundaries set by average people. I have nothing against average people. But no one should aspire to be them. And you don’t need years of education by the best minds in Singapore to prepare you to be average.

What you should prepare for is mess. Life’s a mess. You are not entitled to expect anything from it. Life is not fair. Everything does not balance out in the end. Life happens, and you have no control over it. Good and bad things happen to you day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment. Your degree is a poor armour against fate.

Don’t expect anything. Erase all life expectancies. Just live. Your life is over as of today. At this point in time, you have grown as tall as you will ever be, you are physically the fittest you will ever be in your entire life and you are probably looking the best that you will ever look. This is as good as it gets. It is all downhill from here. Or up. No one knows.

What does this mean for you? It is good that your life is over.

Since your life is over, you are free. Let me tell you the many wonderful things that you can do when you are free.

The most important is this: do not work.

Work is anything that you are compelled to do. By its very nature, it is undesirable.

Work kills. The Japanese have a term “Karoshi”, which means death from overwork. That’s the most dramatic form of how work can kill. But it can also kill you in more subtle ways. If you work, then day by day, bit by bit, your soul is chipped away, disintegrating until there’s nothing left. A rock has been ground into sand and dust.

There’s a common misconception that work is necessary. You will meet people working at miserable jobs. They tell you they are “making a living”. No, they’re not. They’re dying, frittering away their fast-extinguishing lives doing things which are, at best, meaningless and, at worst, harmful.

People will tell you that work ennobles you, that work lends you a certain dignity. Work makes you free. The slogan “Arbeit macht frei” was placed at the entrances to a number of Nazi concentration camps. Utter nonsense.

Do not waste the vast majority of your life doing something you hate so that you can spend the small remainder sliver of your life in modest comfort. You may never reach that end anyway.

Resist the temptation to get a job. Instead, play. Find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that will have value in itself.

I like arguing, and I love language. So, I became a litigator. I enjoy it and I would do it for free. If I didn’t do that, I would’ve been in some other type of work that still involved writing fiction – probably a sports journalist.

So what should you do? You will find your own niche. I don’t imagine you will need to look very hard. By this time in your life, you will have a very good idea of what you will want to do. In fact, I’ll go further and say the ideal situation would be that you will not be able to stop yourself pursuing your passions. By this time you should know what your obsessions are. If you enjoy showing off your knowledge and feeling superior, you might become a teacher.

Find that pursuit that will energise you, consume you, become an obsession. Each day, you must rise with a restless enthusiasm. If you don’t, you are working.

Most of you will end up in activities which involve communication. To those of you I have a second message: be wary of the truth.

I’m not asking you to speak it, or write it, for there are times when it is dangerous or impossible to do those things. The truth has a great capacity to offend and injure, and you will find that the closer you are to someone, the more care you must take to disguise or even conceal the truth. Often, there is great virtue in being evasive, or equivocating. There is also great skill. Any child can blurt out the truth, without thought to the consequences. It takes great maturity to appreciate the value of silence.

In order to be wary of the truth, you must first know it. That requires great frankness to yourself. Never fool the person in the mirror.

I have told you that your life is over, that you should not work, and that you should avoid telling the truth. I now say this to you: be hated.

It’s not as easy as it sounds. Do you know anyone who hates you? Yet every great figure who has contributed to the human race has been hated, not just by one person, but often by a great many.

That hatred is so strong it has caused those great figures to be shunned, abused, murdered and in one famous instance, nailed to a cross.

One does not have to be evil to be hated. In fact, it’s often the case that one is hated precisely because one is trying to do right by one’s own convictions. It is far too easy to be liked, one merely has to be accommodating and hold no strong convictions. Then one will gravitate towards the centre and settle into the average. That cannot be your role. There are a great many bad people in the world, and if you are not offending them, you must be bad yourself. Popularity is a sure sign that you are doing something wrong.

The other side of the coin is this: fall in love.

I didn’t say “be loved”. That requires too much compromise. If one changes one’s looks, personality and values, one can be loved by anyone.

Rather, I exhort you to love another human being. It may seem odd for me to tell you this. You may expect it to happen naturally, without deliberation. That is false. Modern society is anti-love. We’ve taken a microscope to everyone to bring out their flaws and shortcomings. It far easier to find a reason not to love someone, than otherwise. Rejection requires only one reason. Love requires complete acceptance. It is hard work – the only kind of work that I find palatable.

Loving someone has great benefits. There is admiration, learning, attraction and something which, for the want of a better word, we call happiness. In loving someone, we become inspired to better ourselves in every way. We learn the truth worthlessness of material things. We celebrate being human. Loving is good for the soul.

Loving someone is therefore very important, and it is also important to choose the right person. Despite popular culture, love doesn’t happen by chance, at first sight, across a crowded dance floor. It grows slowly, sinking roots first before branching and blossoming. It is not a silly weed, but a mighty tree that weathers every storm.

You will find, that when you have someone to love, that the face is less important than the brain, and the body is less important than the heart. You will also find that it is no great tragedy if your love is not reciprocated. You are not doing it to be loved back. Its value is to inspire you.

Finally, you will find that there is no half-measure when it comes to loving someone. You either don’t, or you do with every cell in your body, completely and utterly, without reservation or apology. It consumes you, and you are reborn, all the better for it.

Don’t work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone.

You’re going to have a busy life. Thank goodness there’s no life expectancy.

Is or Are?

2010-02-08T08:06:00.001+08:00

‘Is’ and ‘are’ confusion

COULD you please tell me which of these sentences are correct?

1a. There is an apple and a mango on the table.

b. There are an apple and a mango on the table.

2a. The meeting lasted two hours.

b. The meeting last for two hours.

3a. Alice is good at Mathematics.

b. Alice is good in Mathematics.

c. Alice is good at / in cooking.

– Ho Lee Tyng

1. THE correct sentence is (a) “There is an apple and a mango on the table.” The “be” verb after “There” in this sort of structure agrees with the first noun, when there is a list of nouns mentioned. Since the first noun “apple” is singular, “is” is used after “There”.

If the first noun is plural, like “apples”, for instance, the plural verb “are” is used:

“There are several apples and a mango on the table.” BUT

“There is a mango and several apples on the table.”

2. The correct sentence is (a) “The meeting lasted two hours.” We can also say “The meeting lasted for two hours.”

Sentence (b) is incorrect because the singular subject “meeting” does not agree with the plural verb “last”; and also because the sentence ought to be in the past tense, since you won’t know how long a meeting is going to last until it is over.

3. Sentence (a) “Alice is good at Mathematics.” is correct. When we use “good” to mean “skilful”, it should be followed by “at”.

So, sentence (c) should use “at” as well: “Alice is good at cooking.”, but you can also say “Alice cooks well.” or “Alice is a good cook.”

source: mind our english - the star

When To Use Be, Been & Being

2010-02-07T13:54:00.000+08:00

Be, been and being

By FADZILAH AMIN - thestar.com.my

WHAT is the difference between be, been and being?

Could you describe when and how to use them especially in academic writing? – IF

“BE” is the base form of the verb “be”; “been” is the past participle of the verb “be” and “being” is the present participle of the verb “be”.

“Be” is used whenever the base form of a verb needs to be used, for example after an auxiliary verb, e.g. in “You should be a good example to your younger siblings.”

It can also be used in the infinitive form of “be” as in “He wants to be an engineer.”

“Been”, like past participles of other verbs, is used to form a passive verb and also the present perfect and past perfect tenses, e.g.:

“The bag-snatcher has been arrested.” (passive sentence with passive verb “has been”)

“My parents have been a source of strength to me all my life.” (“have been” is a verb in the present perfect tense)

“She had been hungry all day until I brought her some food.” (“had been” is a verb in the past perfect tense)

“Being”, like present participles of other verbs, is used to form the present continuous (progressive) tense and the past continuous tense. Here are some examples:

“The little girl is being difficult, crying all day, because her mother won’t buy her a doll.” (“is being” is a verb in the present continuous tense)

“He was being friendly to her, but she thought he was trying to flirt with her.” (“was being” is a verb in the past continuous tense)

I am sorry, I can’t be more detailed than this, since space is limited. I have just given you some basic explanations and a few examples. You can consult a grammar book for further information. You need to be grammatical when you write, whether for academic purposes or other purposes.

There are also different kinds of academic writing, depending on what subject you are studying.

To All FACEBOOK Lovers... Be Prepared For This...

2010-02-07T01:36:00.002+08:00

Another redesign for Facebook on 6th birthday

NEW YORK: Facebook is redesigning its site yet again, this time to better emphasize applications, games and search.

Links and items have moved around the home page as Facebook tries to streamline navigation and make games and apps stand out more.

The latest evolution continued Friday after Facebook started rolling the changes out late Thursday, the company's sixth birthday.

The changes were being made in stages, so not all users were seeing them right away.

The world's largest online social network has continuously morphed its home page as it's grown from a closed hub for college students to a Web and mobile destination for 400 million people worldwide.

Past changes have sparked protests from many users, though Facebook says it makes them to serve its audience better.

Facebook says that it conducts months of testing and that many users request such changes.

With the latest redesign, links to friend requests, messages and comment notifications are no longer scattered around and now reside on the top of the page.

On the updated site, the search box stands out more.

Microsoft Corp., which powers Facebook search and advertising, said Friday in a blog post that search results on the social site will go beyond just links to include "richer answers combined with tools that help customers make faster, smarter decisions."

Under a new agreement, Microsoft will run text ads next to Facebook search results worldwide, rather than only in the U.S. as was the case before.

However, Microsoft loses the right to sell display ads - the online billboards that command more money than search ads, but aren't as lucrative yet.

Facebook will now sell those ads directly.

Facebook's chat feature also becomes more prominent with the redesign. Users can now see friends who are currently online without clicking on a link.

This doesn't include all friends, only the ones they communicate with often.

There are also new links on the left that take users to online dashboards where they can organize games and applications and find new ones by seeing what their friends use. Games such as "Farmville" and "Mafia Wars" have surged in popularity on Facebook. - AP

the redesign will take place in stages... my friend's FB in Australia is no longer the same as ours.. we gonna have the new face of FACEBOOK soon...

No More Photos... uhuksss

2010-02-06T14:42:00.002+08:00

Hi all...

I am having a little situation here...
This blog of mine has reached its quota for uploading photos!
Oh nooo! A post would be bland without a photo to spice it up... this is so sad...

Dear blogspot I need more storage for my photos pleaseeeee!

Tired of Your Life and Job?

2010-02-03T07:55:00.000+08:00

this is the remedy.... enjoyyyy...

Caused & Was Caused By

2010-02-01T23:58:00.000+08:00

Idioms: The Bank Teller

2010-02-01T07:58:00.000+08:00

ON my first day at work as a bank teller, the manager called me to his room and said in the tone of a father giving advice to his child: “Always be alert and careful when you are handling cash. Avoid small talk with the customer when you are counting money lest you lose your concentration and incur a cash shortage. You may be a teller, but you don’t have to say much most of the time.”

I nodded, and he continued: “Make a point of being courteous to every customer – remember that every bank account is of account. Courtesy is good for the person you’re dealing with, good for your own well-being, and certainly good for the bank’s balance sheet. Try to get more ‘smileage’ out of your work.”

Before he ended the conversation, he added: “I hope I can safely rely on you to work extremely hard.”

“I think I can depend on me to do my level best,” I said.

When I returned to my ergonomically designed work station, the chief cashier handed me a bundle of money and said: “Count this bundle of one-ringgit notes to make sure there are one hundred pieces.”

“May I use the machine to count the pieces?” I asked.

“No, you may not,” he said in a measured tone. “Count them manually. With practice, the task of counting paper money will soon be a piece of cake for you.”

Later, I related the counting chore to another colleague during our lunch break. “When I counted up to sixty-four, I said to the chief cashier: ‘If it is right this far, it’s probably right all the way. I’m returning the bundle to you now.’”

“I don’t believe you said that to the chief cashier,” he said. “You are pulling my leg, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” I said. “I’m just trying to relax a bit.”

As I was about to leave the bank that day, I overheard the manager ask the chief cashier: “How is the new teller doing?”

“I think he will soon reflect in his work the confidence the management has in him,” the chief cashier replied.

“Ah,” I thought, “that’s music to my ears!”

Small talk: Light conversation on unimportant matters.

Make a point of: To treat (something) as important.

Do one’s level best: To make one’s best effort.

Make sure/certain: (i) To confirm. (ii) To ensure. (You should go early if you want to make certain of getting tickets for the show.)

(A) piece of cake: Something very easy to do or obtain.

Pull someone’s leg: To make fun of someone in a friendly way, especially by trying to make him believe something untrue.

Music to someone’s ears: Something very pleasant for someone to hear.

Why We Need Sex Education

2010-01-30T07:25:00.000+08:00

I found this article on the net... It was quite an old one but it's the best article that I can get hold of that gives clear explanation on the need of sex education in school..

I especially like the part .. not falling for the “if you love me, you will have sex with me”

here is the full article..

We all need to face facts that our young people are having their first sexual experience at an earlier age and have a shallow understanding of HIV. Not only that, we read of gang-rapes, unwanted teenage pregnancies, baby dumping and even stories of teenagers being totally unaware that they are pregnant until they deliver. Sex education is not only about the mechanics of sex but also learning how to respect our bodies and one another. It need not encourage promiscuity, but properly taught can encourage abstinence till marriage and not falling for the “if you love me, you will have sex with me” line. It is needed to encourage responsible sexual behavior and avoid unwanted pregnancies, STDs and HIV/AIDs. One last point — parents should not just leave it to the teachers but take it upon themselves (no matter how embarassing) to have frank discussions of responsible sexual behaviour with their kids. After all we want the best for our kids and want to protect them in every possible way, don’t we?

source

Moral vs Morale

2010-01-28T07:48:00.000+08:00

Don't get confused with moral and morale. Both have different meanings.

Morale means a state of individual psychological well-being based upon a sense of confidence and usefulness and purpose whereas Moral means:
# concerned with principles of right and wrong or conforming to standards of behavior and character based on those principles; "moral sense"
# the significance of a story or event; "the moral of the story is to love thy neighbor"
# psychological rather than physical or tangible in effect; "a moral victory"; "moral support"

List of 20 High Performance Schools: My Primary School Is Listed! Yeayyy!

2010-01-27T23:28:00.002+08:00

The hot topic among teachers for this past week is High Performance School! To my surprise, my primary school that I attended (like millions years ago) made the list! Really proud of that school! Long live SK Zainab 2! yeayyy!

Here is a news excerpt...

List of 20 High Performance Schools

PUTRAJAYA, 25 JAN, 2010: Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today announced that 20 schools - 14 secondary and six primary - had been accorded the status of high performance schools or Sekolah Berprestasi Tinggi (SBTs).

Muhyiddin, who is also Education Minister, said of the 14 secondary schools, 10 were fully residential schools and the rest day schools.

"These schools were chosen from among schools that showed outstanding performance in the field of academia, co-curriculum and niche areas.

"The schools will be guided and monitored closely to ensure they continue to attain even higher levels of performance," he told reporters at his office here today.

The 10 fully residential schools are Sekolah Tun Fatimah (Johor Bahru), Sekolah Dato' Abdul Razak (Seremban), Malay College Kuala Kangsar, Sekolah Seri Puteri (Cyberjaya), Sekolah Menengah Sultan Abdul Halim (Jitra).

Kolej Tunku Kurshiah (Seremban), Kolej Islam Sultan Alam Shah (Klang), Sekolah Menengah Sains (SMS) Tuanku Syed Putra (Perlis), Sekolah Sultan Alam Shah (Putrajaya) and SMS Muzaffar Syah (Melaka).

The four day schools are Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) (P) Sri Aman (Petaling Jaya), SMK Aminuddin Baki (Kuala Lumpur), SMK Sultanah Asma (Alor Setar) and SMK (P) St. George (Penang).

The six primary schools are Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Seri Bintang Utara (KL), SK Taman Tun Dr Ismail 1 (KL), SK Bukit Damansara (KL), SK Zainab (2) (Kota Bharu), SK Convent Kota (Taiping), SK Bandar Baru Uda 2 (Johor Bahru).

At the same time, Muhyiddin stressed that SBTs were not elite schools which benefited only a limited number of students.

Instead, he said each school in the country had the same opportunity and a level playing field to be recognised as SBTs.

"Any school that meets the targets of excellence and criteria set (by the Education Ministry) will be recognised as a SBTs and get the same privileges," he said.

Muhyiddin said the ministry targeted to have 30 SBTs by next year and 50 in 2012.

He said the rationale in having SBTs was to raise the quality of the best schools in the country to be world class, produce outstanding students and narrow the gap between schools within the system.

He said SBTs would be given additional autonomy to pursue innovation in school management and raise the productivity of students.

As for curriculum, he said, it would be flexible in terms of teaching and learning as well as syllabi for compulsory and elective subjects, conforming to public examinations and use of the national language as the medium of instruction or multiple languages.

Beside these, Muhyiddin said the schools concerned were also given leeway in fixing the minimum periods for subjects, extending schooling hours and allowing students to complete their studies a year earlier, just like the express promotion system that was introduced previously.

In terms of budget ownership, he said a lump sum grant would be channelled to the schools at the beginning of each year and that they would have the full flexibility to spend as needed and were exempted from the ministry's centralised procurement system.

"Every school has its own budget, but with this status, they will be given additional funds and they can use the money as needed," he said, adding that the grant might be less than RM1 million but had not been fixed yet as this depended on the size of the SBT.

He also said management of staff at these schools would be based on meritocracy and not seniority, besides flexibility given for the paying of overtime and performance incentives.

"There will also be flexibility to re-assign under performing staff and delegation of functions based on academic and non-academic reasons," he said.

source: http://www.malaysiandigest.com/news/36-local/1831-list-of-20-high-performance-schools-sbt.html

Anything or Everything?

2010-01-27T09:12:00.003+08:00

Sometimes we got confused which one is to be used... is it anything or everything?

Here is an article I took from Mind Our English

WHICH is the better sentence? We should never ever give up on everything that we do. OR We should never ever give up on anything that we do. I think it is the second sentence, but why is that? – MOE reader

You are right. The second sentence is better. This is because “anything” is usually used in a negative sentence, and both your sentences are negative.

“Everything” is better used in a positive sentence, e.g. “We should be wholehearted in everything we do.”

by:FADZILAH AMIN

What Is TESL?

2010-01-25T11:54:00.001+08:00

My new friend inspired me to come up with this entry, thanx Marni!

She suggested that I put lots of TESL stuff in this blog to generate more hits... waaahhh great idea.. I never thought of that before!

So, for start, let's have the meaning of T.E.S.L first;

TESL is an acronym for Teaching of English as a Second Language.

ESL (English as a second language), ESOL (English for speakers of other languages), and EFL (English as a foreign language) all refer to the use or study of English by speakers with a different native language. These terms are most commonly used in relation to teaching and learning English, but they may also be used in relation to demographic information.

Cute!

2010-01-25T08:00:00.000+08:00

can you see the blue circle.. can you guess what is that in the circle...

it's a little teddy bear hanging just below the plate number... it looks so cute!

Thank You Redmummy

2010-01-21T08:00:00.000+08:00

Well... c'est la vie... life must go on... though I have yet to receive any sort of compensations from the travel agency... this blog must go on right? hahaha...

special thanx to redmummy.com for this

due to an entry in redmummy.com regarding the photo issue.. this blog received almost 400 hits!

What Would You Do

2010-01-18T12:13:00.000+08:00

What would you do if the above photo ends up in this brochure...

without your permission...

a free trip to Beijing courtesy of the company would do.... hmmm...

Please Don't Hate Me For Posting This...

2010-01-18T07:54:00.000+08:00

Happy Monday morning people... I just love Mondays... full of possibilities for the week ahead... challenges and adventures to be experienced...

how about this for an early monday morning breakfast.... hahaa...

and also this..... yummmeeeyyhhhh...

happy working all... just be thankful that we have a job that can support us n our family...

The Time Is Now

2010-01-12T07:42:00.000+08:00

"The way to get things done is to stimulate competition. I do not mean in a sordid money-getting way, but in the desire to excel." Charles Schwab

I'm going to try that with my students, do you think it is going to work? hmmmm.....

New Semester

2010-01-11T23:08:00.005+08:00

New beginning...

to all of my students...

Wanted... Who? What?

2010-01-08T08:00:00.000+08:00

Happy Friday people!

Weekend is just around the corner.. what is your plan for this weekend?

Trying to find a wife? Or a maid? or fishing partner? hehehehe

Arghh... Men...

2010-01-07T07:56:00.000+08:00

Yes John, you are really 'helping' Sheila... haha....

Latest Attraction At Our House

2010-01-05T07:59:00.000+08:00

Hi readers, I'm Bubu.. let me out of this cage..... meoww...

this is not the same Bubu that we had before.. we are baby sitting him just for a few days.. his mommy went to KL..

careful.. you might get yourself electrocuted..

one of his favourite place.... trying to get our attention...

another favourite place..

monkeying around... what is that yellow thingy?

euwww! he got himself in a fight on the second day he was here... poor Bubu.. don't know how his mommy going to react... huhu..

the journal of a sensei

How To Write Progress Report

The teh tarik man

Mind Our English

Idiomania

By OH TEIK THEAM

Until Today

How To Critize

Other Than Using So Many... Use These instead..

Wordwise: So many

By S.H. LOKE - The Star - Mind Your Language.

Silver Jubilee / Jubli Perak

Complimentary Close

On Your Bike, Malaysia = Get Lost, Malaysia?

Appalling ignorance

Please Repeat Again...

Who or Whom?

The usage of Who and whom

Mind Our English - thestar.com.myCo-ordinated by Jane F. Ragavan

1 Sentence 8 Different Meanings

Has or Had?

By FADZILAH AMIN - thestar.com.my

Madam, Teacher or Cikgu?

The Curse: Elements of a novel

Novel: The Curse

Complaining Frequency

English Literature Component Courseware: My First Experience

Armchair Critic

Spot The Error

http://englishrescueteam.com

What’s The Best Way To Learn A New Language?

2011

the difference between towards, toward and to.

To, toward, towards

Your Questions Answered by : FADZILAH AMIN

What's Wrong With The Menu?

Are You Agree?

English Fast & Easy Facebook page.

Never Ever

How To Do Your Assignments

Reading – A Great Way To Learn English

Finally an update! yeayy!

I really believe in this...

10 Amazing Lessons From Einstein

A Visit To Turtle Santuary

Now I Know What It's Called...

Convex mirror

[edit] Uses

I Like...

Happy 1st Ramadhan

Student jailed for sitting exam for "customer"

An 18-year-old student was sentenced to six months in jail for sitting examinations for his "customer" in Hong Kong.

On Self-Assessment

Self-Assessment Does Not Necessarily Mean Self-Grading

Abolish the UPSR and PMR examinations

The problem is not exams, it is with the education policies

Strong Body or Strong Character

Expressions of strength

By S.H. LOKE

Whatever You Give To Life, Life Gives You Back!

MUET Result

from The Star;

Collect your MUET results from 10am tomorrow

Idiom: Get On One's Nerves

A Chance To Win An iPod Touch

Hey you...let's take part in this contest

English S.O.S

What Is Verb?

What is a Verb & How are they used?

MELTA 2010

Apple Pie Order

No Frills

What Is Going Bananas?

New Blog?

I Like..

When Is Father's Day 2010 in Malaysia?

Beside or Besides?

A Confession of an Unhappy Professor: Essay Writing

Beauty Contest

Affect or Effect?

Mind Our English - thestar.com.my
Co-ordinated by Jane F. Ragavan