Malay over English? Or vice versa?

Alright2. So the last post didn't seem to be mind-blowing eh, haha! Well, one of my good friends told me, that I care too much about what people will comment about my blog. In some ways, yes I do. But at times, I just wanna let loose from the once-in-a-while mind-wrenching work and this tired body. But answering the questions using pics from Google Image actually added to my headache that night, haha. But I think the pics I pasted were really nice though, hehe.

I have a few heavy topics to discuss actually. But I can't do it at this time. I'll wait when I'm ready =) And you will have to wait too!

Okay. Now, let's discuss on the silenced topic on "Which language these schoolkids should study Maths and Science in?" Nothing have I heard about any objection on the decision made by the Minister of Education on continuing the teaching of Maths and Science in English. To me, there could be two reasons for it: One, because they respect the ministry's collective decision, and two, they are tired of fighting for Bahasa Melayu. I'll take reason #1.

Well, I wanna share my experience studying Additional Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Physics in Bahasa Melayu. Life in Form 4 was more to a a challenging year rather than a 'honeymoon year' definitely, where we were introduced to 'complex' subjects with 'complex' terminologies. If you were a science student too, and shared the same experience like mine, please do share.

I was excited then to be learning subjects I perceived as 'Whoa subjects', namely the four I mentioned previously. But there was one problem: to understand what the terminologies exactly meant. Especially in Add Math and Physics.

Add maths: Janjang (until now I can't really understand the word, though it's a malay word), Pengamiran (why 'Amir'? 'Integration' makes it a lot easier to understand why the mathematical operation is like that) Lokus Dalam Dua Matra (isn't it easier to say 'Dimensi' rather than 'Matra'?), Anu (in informal malay language usage, anu means 'that thing'. Translated in English to be 'Variable').

Physics: Troli terpampas geseran (You know what crossed my mind everytime we studied this? The Pampas in Brazil!), get logik (I never knew that there was a direct translation of 'logic gate' to 'get logik'. I though the concept was 'Get logic!')

Science: Titi Tetimbang (and in English, it's the more understandable 'Transistor'!)

Those are just a part of the kerzillion words that had my classmates and I confused of what we were learning. Thank God, we just made them easier to understand in our own ways by discussing them with the teachers, so that we could answer the exams correctly. And thank God, in SPM, the question setters didn't ask questions like 'Why is it called "terpampas geseran' or 'titi tetimbang'?" surely we would have memorized the terminologies dictionary instead. Painful!

And, the transition from learning in Malay to English in the University was QUITE a transition for most of us. We had this English Test for new university entrants, where most of the students who scored low were from boarding school (I wonder why..). I was quite taken aback by that fact. Though I passed and didn't have to go through Foundation Class, it wasn't fun to know that some of your friends were not there with you.

But then, that was just a small test. Venturing further into the mind-wrenching engineering subjects required most of us to have our own dictionary beside us everytime we were studying using the thick textbooks. Yes, it was time consuming, but in the end, we got out of the university with our english (I would dare to say) being way better than it was 5 years before.

So, in this present day, I would say that the younger generation is fortunate to be learning Science and Maths in English. I personally think that it is not a way to discriminate Bahasa Melayu. What good anyway does it bring Bahasa Melayu if most of the terminologies we have are direct translations from English, if not confusing terms that makes the learning harder?

Perhaps there are ways to inculcate the love for Bahasa Melayu inside the younger generation. Though I speak English most of the time, but I still love all the art and wonders there is in Bahasa Melayu. I also have high acclaims for those who have strong grip over the language, for not all have the strong command in this nation's mother tongue. The approach and the variety of learning materials and vocabulary usage at an early age probably, can help to instill the love for the language.

I suppose, if the children of the 80s were to be questioned about their experience in this matter, they would likely say the same. I might not think of this if not for the discussion I had with a few friends about this matter over a week ago. And yes, we had the same confusion. Either there were hiccups in the education system, or was it us who weren't bright enough to understand the terminologies, that can be another issue that can be debated on.

I think if the authorities of the education system were to conduct an exit survey of the students about their learning experience, that would be a great step to help the former improve their service. And an improved learning system will definitely benefit the progenies of the nation.

Find them in Google Image!

Ok, so Eija aka Ms Apple tagged me (through Facebook, not her blog! Isk..) in her "Tagging Game using Google Images". So here goes nothing..

I am..

Well, She-Ra rhymes with Zahira, hehe. And she's my fave woman superhero. Simply beautiful and strong! And she has a gorgeous unicorn to match.. fuuuhh.. in my dreams la..

I really want to go to..

Spain!! and the surrounding islands.. well, it's not impossible, so I will have it as a target before 30 (^_^)

My fave place..

Tiada lain.. Shah Alam tetap di hati (^_^)

My fave things..

Yerp.. Hugo XX smells so good! and of course I love my ring, hihi..

My fave drink..

Iced Milo.. nothing beats it!

My fave food..

Fuh, ayam goreng.. completes my plate!

My fave colors..

Purple and bronze.. for this time around la..

I live in..

.
In which Sg Buloh Country Resort is a part of it.

I was born in

Klang, and this is the picture of the old hospital, in which it has been brought down to replace it with the new Klang General Hospital Building.

My college..

Well, my university actually. Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, like no other.

My fave story..

.
Amazingly talented casts + amazingly tailored storyline = Voila! And yerp, Blake Lively is Hollywood's current finest damsel, definitely.

My hobbies..

Thinking (I think about lotttssaaa things, til it gets hard to organize up here), blogging, emceeing and singing are my main hobbies!

My wish..

Insya-allah.. (^_^)

Ok, done with pasting the pics. I will now tag Ms Syukra, Mr. Chalk and Cheese, Mr. Zhafri, Little Master Danial and Ms Alya Semot. Sila buat ye.

Feliz cumpleaños a mí!

Alright. Yerp. I'm 25 years old today. No biggie. It's just an increase in age. But seriously thank you for the birthday wishes my dear friends. It makes me feel remembered =)

Everytime my birthday arrives, I will always recall the best birthday moments I had before. They were not posh definitely, but were really sweet for the remembrance. There were three events that I remembered the most.

My first birthday party was when I was 4 years old. I had to share the party with Ain. At that time, it didn't really feel that nice to have another sister whom you have to share your big blueberry cake with! But yeah, as the big bully, I got to cut the cake first! (cuz she was shorter than I was.. so she could not stand to the level of the cake, haha). The birthday party was attended by my uncles and aunts and my parents' friends. Yerp, it did fell weird to be surrounded by people of skyscraping height. But oh well, no complaint cuz we enjoyed the birthday gifts. Haha.

The second birthday celebration was even more special. It was my 18th birthday. But since it fell on a weekday, my parents were out to work, so it was kinda not fun to celebrate without them. Suddenly the door bell rang, and three of my great high school buddies, Dzul, Iqbal and Aishah came, bringing along a blackforest cake. I was thrilled of the surprise. They bought me a handmade photoframe, which I still keep to the best condition until today. Then my parents came back with an orange-flavored cake. So there we had, two cakes! And on that very day, I got the first love letter ever in my mailbox. Sadly, it was from a disillusioned junior of my school. Haha.. thank God I never really see him after I left school.

On my 20th birthday, I was not at home. I went back early to UTP to settle some sponsorhip matters for TEC2004. I was accompanied by a few friends who happened to be the committee members. On the night of 16th January, we scheduled a meeting. I was kinda impatient because everyone seemed to be coming late to the meeting. It was already like 10 pm. I was waiting impatiently at the MPP room, when Doi said we were changing rooms because larger turnout was expected that night. So, Doi walked with me to the bigger room opposite the MPP room... when everyone shouted "Surprise!!" I was stunned, and I could not say a word. Everyone pulled me to the cake, and sang happy birthday. I was reaalllyy touched by that. If I can recall who were there.. Doi, Fatin, Wan Anas, Sari, Nina, Bet, Sarip, Anas.. there were more, but I can't exactly remember. That is why TEC2004 fellas will always be close to my heart, although we do not really meet each other now. But I still treasure the great moments we had =)

On this birthday, I wish to be more proactive and positive and to have a healthier body and mind. I wish to be a less critic (though that may seem hard!), to think deeper and to smile even more! =D

Best wishes for me for the future days to come =) All the best Sharifah!

Ehud dan Bara(c)k

Yeah, Bush memang suka Israel. Makin direstunya Israel untuk membedil Palestin.

Yes, the world is watching, but we can't do anything.. too bad.

Di Israel ada dua pemimpin yang nama depannya sama dan sama jahatnya: Ehud Olmert dan Ehud Barak.

Jika polisi Obama terhadap Israel sama seperti Bush, maka Obama juga tentunya akan memberi muka terhadap kedua-dua Ehud itu. Apatah lagi calon-calon Demokrat bertanding di atas timbunan wang yang disalurkan oleh Yahudi. Apatah lagi Obama akan memerintah di saat Amerika kekeringan dana. Apatah lagi Obama pernah menidakkan Islam dan berpaling langsung.

Dan jika Barak and Barack disebut dalam bahasa Melayu baku, bunyinya sama sahaja. Huh, kebetulan yang menambahkan lagi sengsara Palestin.

Malang bagi Palestin pula, Hamas dan Fatah tidak sebulu. Susah bila dua nakhoda bertelagah, siapa yang akan memandu kapal ke destinasi yang betul?

Apalah nasib Palestin? Dan siapa yang akan membantu membela?