Holiday with My Family

I just came back from KL. Even though it was raining everyday in Kelantan, especially in Kota Bharu, there was no rain in KL. I stayed at my cousin's house in Bandar Baru Bangi after picking my wife from UKM. We managed to go to Nilai 3, Sunway Pyramid, Sogo, and Pertama Complex. We also visited relatives in Semenyih, Bukit Antarabangsa and also Taman Melawati. Below are some pictures taken during the holiday:

Nilai 3, a shopping paradise

In front of the Sunway Pyramid

The Sunway Sphinx

Be Careful on your Long Travel

Tomorrow I will travel to Kuala Lumpur with my family. As usual, preparations must be made before embarking on a long journey to ensure you and your family's safety. Oil must be changed, tyres checked, brake tried etc. This holiday will be a test considering that the monsoon season already started. It was non-stop raining for the past two days in Kota Bharu, and travelling in the rain always has some difficulties. Hopefully we arrive there safely.

Red marks indicate the missing pieces

Holiday Hobby

Finally, I have the time to (nearly) complete Naruto jigsaw puzzle for my brother-in-law. However, two pieces are missing so the puzzle is not finished yet. I will leave it for him to finish it by himself, after he finds the missing pieces. Jigsaw puzzling was one of my favourite hobbies when I was a little kid still in primary school. Back then, I could finish 1000-pieces-jigsaw puzzle within a day. Nowadays, I can only focused on it during the holidays only.

Congratulations UPSR Students!

Today, the UPSR results are out. It is also the judgment day for teaching Science and Mathematics in English. In Kelantan, 11.41% of the total number of candidates (37,949 pupils) scored straight As, while the average pass percentage is 66.78%. Both SK Zainab II and I top the standing, and the Kota Bharu district has the most scorers with 1,596 pupils, Pasir Mas (599), Tumpat (412), Tanah Merah (338), Bachok (337), Pasir Puteh (350), Machang (249), Jeli (98) and Gua Musang (77). Congratulations also to my brother-in-law (picture right) for his 5As, and even though I did not promise him anything beforehand, maybe I will give something out of appreciation.

On the other hand, the Star reported that Education director-general Datuk Alimuddin Mohd Dom said that nearly 50% of the total number of candidates throughout the country answered the Science and Mathematics paper entirely in English. “The 518,616 pupils who sat for the UPSR this year are the first group to have started studying the two subjects in English since the policy was introduced in 2003,” he told a press conference Thursday after giving an analysis of the UPSR 2008 results at the ministry. The ministry then will discuss the matter before bringing it the cabinet for a decision.

Smart School Qualification Standards System

Smart School Qualification Standards (SSQS)

The Ministry has develop a system to monitor the usage of ICT in schools, and to give a rating for the school in order to determine its standard in using the ICT. The information will be gathered from 64 respondents consisting of teachers and students about the extent of their usage of ICT equipments in school such as the computers, the Internet connection and also the Lesson Contents Management System (LCMS). As the teacher responsible for ICT, I was assigned to complete the task. At first, it was so hard to send the information in the system because of the traffic congestion to access the website. Finally, with the alternative address available, I managed to finish the job.

Good Luck for All SPMians

Today is the start of Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination. Around 150 students from 5 classes, 1 of which is a science class, will know whether they have enough knowledge to pass this examination. However, the students are not the only one who feel the pressure, but also the teachers who want to upgrade the achievement from last year. Our main target is to be the best secondary school in the district of Gua Musang, although the passing percentage of Bahasa Melayu is quite a concern. Nevertheless, only 28 students from 147 form 5 students are Chinese, 2 of them Indians, 1 Siamese and 1 Aborigine. The SPM trial results are quite convincing, but the real test starts tomorrow, and the students have to prove themselves all over again. Good luck everybody, and make your school proud!

Deeparaya for RIMUP

Today we had Deeparaya celebration at the canteen. It was a programme organized by our Rukun Negara Club in conjunction with the Jabatan Perpaduan Negara dan Integrasi Nasional (JPNIN) or National Unity and Integrational Department, Kelantan. It was officiated by the director of JPNIN Kelantan, Mr. Abdul Hadi bin Mohd Salleh. After his speech, the Indian and aboriginal students performed several Indian dances with the help of music. Finally, all were invited for some refreshment. Below are several pictures from the event.

Multi-racial teachers

An Indian student performing a dance routine

Student performers

Some refreshment for all

Me and my mentee, Nur Nasuha

Mentor - Mentee

I was assigned as a mentor for 5 KRK students (Forms 1, 2 and 3 Teguh) along with my colleague, Mr. Husaini. We both agreed that he took the form 1 students because he teaches them, and I took the rest. Basically, we just give advices and help them in their studies. I find it an interesting task, and I help them as best as I can. My mentee of form 3 students are Nur Nasuha and Izwan Shafiq, while the form 2 student is Nur Adlina. I lend my books for the PMR students, and I wish the best for them in their examinations. Speaking of PMR, I enclose the picture of our school target student, Siti Nur Karimah.

PTK

I registered for Penilaian Tahap Kecekapan (PTK) for the first time today. There will be 4 competency levels which I have to strive for, and 20 papers which I can choose from. For starters, I will take paper 701/01 and 701/27. The papers are (sorry, not translated):

Part I : Kompetensi Umum
701/01 : Kompetensi Umum (Teras dan Profesional)

Part II : Kompetensi Khusus
701/02 : Pengurusan Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran
701/03 : Pengurusan Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran (Pendidikan Khas)
701/04 : Pengurusan Pentadbiran Umum
701/05 : Pengurusan Kurikulum
701/06 : Pengurusan Peperiksaan
701/07 : Pengurusan Perancangan dan Penyelidikan Dasar Pendidikan
701/08 : Pengurusan Pengambilan Pelajar
701/10 : Pengurusan Kokurikulum
701/11 : Pengurusan Penaziran
701/12 : Pengurusan Hal Ehwal Pelajar
701/13 : Pengurusan Pendidikan Sukan
701/14 : Pengurusan Bimbingan dan Kaunseling
701/15 : Pengurusan bagi Pensyarah Maktab dan Kolej Matrikulasi
701/16 : Pengurusan Buku Teks
701/17 : Pengurusan Pendidikan Swasta
701/18 : Pengurusan Pentadbiran Pendidikan Khas
701/26 : Pengurusan Penerbitan Rancangan TV dan Radio Pendidikan

701/27 : Pengurusan Pembangunan Perisian Kursus Pendidikan dan Pengurusan Teknologi Maklumat dalam Pendidikan

701/28 : Pengurusan Perkhidmatan Sumber Pendidikan
701/29 : Pengurusan Latihan Institut Aminuddin Baki (IAB)

You can clearly see the scratch mark

Student's Revenge?

Several of the teachers' cars were scratched yesterday by a dissatisfied student. It seemed that this damage was an act of revenge either towards the discipline teacher, or towards the Penolong Kanan HEM, who both did a great job of keeping the disciplinary problems in the school at bay. Unfortunately, other teachers' cars were the victims as the perpetrator rolled his way along the parking lot. Among the cars involved were Produa MyVi, Proton Waja, Proton Satria and Toyota Vios. The culprit, who is still to be caught, might be feeling unhappy with the punishment he got for the crime he committed earlier. It was a selfish act from a disgruntled person which should not be tolerated.

Examination Weeks

These two final weeks, form 1, form 2 and form 4 students will test the extent of their knowledge accumulated throughout the year. This is where they will know whether they really mastered the subjects or still have to make improvements. It is also a tool to measure their class placements for next year, whether they will remain in the same class, or they will be upgraded (or downgraded) to another class. Teachers will have to take their marks to make next year's 'take-off value'.