All the Best for Your SPM Trial 2014

I would like to wish GOOD LUCK to all my students who are taking SPM trial examination. I hope you will do better than your mid year examination. I saw that most of you focused on completing the papers today at school. 5 Bestari and 5 Jujur, I have your papers with me right now and I hope to complete the marking in two weeks time at the most. 

Narrative Essay Form 5 Bestari 2014

Today, I did a narrative essay lesson with my 5 Bestari class. I hooked my laptop into a screen and asked my students to continue my sentence. It started with 'I was walking down the stairs...' Once they had given me the response, I typed it into the laptop, correcting the mistakes as we went along. Here is the complete essay: 

     I was walking down the stairs when I heard a scary sound coming from the kitchen. It was past midnight. I was curious to know what happened, but I was too scared. Nevertheless, I tiptoed towards the kitchen because I was afraid somebody or something that made the sound knew I was there. I tried to peek into the kitchen but I could not see anything because it was dark without the lights on.
  
    Suddenly, the sound mysteriously disappeared. My heart beat heavily. With heavy steps, I went into the kitchen, reached for the switch and turned on the lights. I checked under the dinner table, peered under the sink and opened the cabinets but there was nothing. Out of the blue, I heard a knock on the kitchen door. I became frightened again.
  
    I was running towards my bedroom when my I-Phone rang. An unknown number appeared on the screen. I let it ring for sometime before I answered it.  I just kept quiet to listen to his or her voice. However, I did not hear any sound coming from the other side. Nervously, I said, “Hello, is anybody there?” There was silence. Angrily, I hung up. A few seconds later, the phone rang again. Furiously, I shouted, “What do you want?” That ‘thing’ replied my question by laughing maniacally. I was shocked and the phone fell from my shaking hands. It landed on the floor with the screen facing up. I looked at the phone anxiously. It looked like a tiger ready to pounce at me. I remembered a scene from The Ring where something horrible crept out from a television. I was afraid that the ‘thing’ would creep out from my phone!
  
    All of a sudden, there was a message coming in. I braved myself to pick up the phone. I opened the message and read it. All my curiosity turned into a joy when I saw what was written. It said: HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Then, my parents and my siblings came in from the kitchen door with a big birthday cake in their hands singing the birthday song merrily.

Gotong-royong

Gotong-royong is loosely translated as 'cooperation' in some dictionaries while Wikipedia mentions the word 'communal work'. It is an act of gathering together to accomplish a task which is usually for the mutual benefit. In Malaysia, gotong-royong is widely held nationwide and it is a culture of the multiracial people. 

Today, a gotong-royong was held in my village in order to clean up the surrounding from possible Aedes breeding. All villagers cooperated in clearing their homes from rubbish before bringing it to the waiting MPKB lorry at the village mosque. Refreshments were provided by the committee. 

Several causes of dengue fever have been identified by the authorities. Poor drainage system, among others, is said to be one of the main causes. Aedes mosquitoes, easily identifiable because of its black and white stripes on its body, like to breed in stagnant water. When the drains could not properly flow the water, it gets stuck. This will become the perfect place for Aedes to lay their eggs. Another possible cause is the dirty habit of throwing rubbish everywhere. Rubbish containing tins and bottles can hold rain water and this will attract the dreaded dengue vector. Aedes mosquitoes also like to be in dark places, so, uncut grass is also a suitable place. 

Apart from above-mentioned causes, residents are also susceptible to this dangerous disease when their homes have containers which hold stagnant water such as the ant traps and the flower vases. The danger also comes from the uncollected rubbish when the local authorities do not timely collect the waste material. Ignorant residents add insult to injury when they simply do not know their responsibility in fighting these silent killers. Instead of minimizing the deadly effect, they actually contribute to the ever increasing percentage of dengue cases. 

In order to combat the problem, there are several suggestions. The most obvious answer is by reducing the mosquito habitat. It is only logical that when there is no killer vector, there will be no disease. Putting away those open cans, tins and used tyres properly as well as taking care of clogged drains and rubbish will deprive the Aedes mosquitoes of their breeding places. The authorities should also help by providing fogging service accordingly to the schedule, especially at those places which are flagged as dengue areas. At homes, residents should supply larvicide to the ant traps and flower vases in addition to changing the water on alternate days. 

Stricter punishment should be imposed on those who have repeatedly ignored the warnings about taking care of their surroundings. Currently, the authorities impose RM500 fine on each detected larvae. This should be enough to make the residents think twice about leaving their open containers unattended. Gotong-royong is one of the ways to prevent dengue fever from spreading. Cleaning up should be merrier when residents do the task together. Awareness campaign in all kinds of media, electronically or printed, can be a stepping stone to guide those ignorant residents about the danger of dengue fever. They should be told that the disease affects all without prejudice, and they are not excluded from possible death.    

Cambridge Placement Test (Result)

Some of my TESL friends ask me how to check the results for their Cambridge Placement Test (CPT). It was a test designed by Cambridge University which must be taken by TESL teachers nationwide to determine their level of proficiency in English Language. 

Here is the link:

 

Here is the letter about the CPT: