tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36062237959089031812024-03-13T00:08:23.371-07:00The personal odyssey of the selfAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-31856798192076879302017-03-25T20:20:00.001-07:002017-03-25T20:35:54.331-07:00From Kompang to UKEC<b><br /></b>
<br />
“To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” -Eleanor Roosevelt <br />
<b><br /></b>
I have been making a lot of reflections lately, about the big decisions I made for the past few years; sacrificing my trip to Bath just so I could run for events coordinator of Malaysian Students' Society of Manchester (MSSM), sacrificing my plan to start a toastmasters club for university just to run for president of the Malaysian Society, and last November, taking the big step of running for Deputy Chairperson of United Kingdom & Eire Council of Malaysian Students (UKEC) when I was in the midst of starting a new society for engineering students in the UK. <br />
<br />
To be very honest, I had a very ambitious goal before I entered university. My original plan was to apply as an executive (Catalyst office) for my first year, and then run for chairman for 2 terms. But obviously that never happened because I missed the deadline for the application. Ever since then, I gave up my ambition of joining UKEC and set my focus on improving the state of MSSM, especially since we were on £2,000 deficit back then. <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUj1wZP61kbMsnYFJ-JJ8o6YvQIQVvVDHqWHO1em2bxOfZQ3IXJkRy6220kmvXI_ZBMiIDaz7JHJim2H9rTN3P20Gys3hEUNx4b1WPiTgoKAINolkewPtNoqVf22DKGvJ-mXGpp-6rK8/s1600/rafizi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUj1wZP61kbMsnYFJ-JJ8o6YvQIQVvVDHqWHO1em2bxOfZQ3IXJkRy6220kmvXI_ZBMiIDaz7JHJim2H9rTN3P20Gys3hEUNx4b1WPiTgoKAINolkewPtNoqVf22DKGvJ-mXGpp-6rK8/s320/rafizi.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Engagement session with Rafizi Ramli, Wong Chen and Nik Nazmi by Malaysian Progressive United Kingdom (MPUK).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Nevertheless, I still cross path with UKEC during my tenure as MSSM President. I started to learn more about UKEC's history when Rafizi Ramli, Vice-President of Parti Keadilan Rakyat came to Manchester for an engagement session hosted by Malaysian Progressives United Kingdom (MPUK). While I was accompanying him to perform ablution before Maghrib prayers, he told me about his mentor and also UKEC's founder, the late Adlan Benan Omar on how he started a society that built upon the idealism of changing the landscape of Malaysian student activism in the UK; from one that was partisan and a mere vehicle of the political masters in Malaysia (e.g. Kelab UMNO, Kelab MIC, Hizbi) – to one that promoted intellectualism, openness and the spirit of volunteerism. Coincidentally, a week later, I learned more about UKEC's history when I went to Cardiff to borrow a few kompangs. <br />
<br />
Traditionally, MSSM President have to choreograph Dikir Barat for Malaysian Night. Apparently, we never really bothered to invest in a few kompangs. That meant that I had to borrow them from other Malaysian societies, and I decided to go for Cardiff Malaysian Night just to borrow their kompang. I honestly hated myself because I thought I was going to waste my weekend. Little that I know that it would be the turning point of my life. <br />
<br />
In Cardiff, I bumped into some of the current and past UKEC committee members (Josh, Ryan and Syafiq). We decided to have dinner after the MNight and we had a very long conversation from 10pm until 5am while playing politiko. I still vividly remember our conversation where our topics ranged from Malaysian politics, to UKEC's past and aspiration. I got to understand more about the organisation that I wanted to join for a long time. At the end of our long conversation, Josh teased me about succeeding him as Deputy Chairperson but I never took him seriously and didn't really think about joining the organisation back then. <br />
<br />
Fast forward to April, I started to venture on starting a new society for engineering students. It started when I received a phone call from Mona, who's one of the person in charge of the HR department for UEM. UEM wanted to organise an engagement session with Manchester students over Easter break. However, I told her not to come to Manchester because nobody will be around and they may find themselves disappointed. But we didn't stop the call there and one of the questions that was raised was why aren't the engineering students as organised as KPUM which eventually led to the idea of starting Young Malaysian Engineers-UK (YME-UK).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4KUJVSRepkOB7Pk6ttYc0nLkJJZu3ufYXJl_xxdCjGKEzsVbARixwmTzH8r_9KfC4RlCcfcMR8C25L1rqNCUfSYZ1bGl0auNDM7_dd_YCTKKG0aR1kHXs2HIiXjuJiXCzQK7d5yT1QyE/s1600/yme_uk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4KUJVSRepkOB7Pk6ttYc0nLkJJZu3ufYXJl_xxdCjGKEzsVbARixwmTzH8r_9KfC4RlCcfcMR8C25L1rqNCUfSYZ1bGl0auNDM7_dd_YCTKKG0aR1kHXs2HIiXjuJiXCzQK7d5yT1QyE/s320/yme_uk.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Establishment of YME-UK at Taylors University after Malaysian Students' Technology Conference.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtA2zpAGCE9GpKkNgwmsXrtcIOe0Z2tvD0vYIL4LjNxrla8AJmNX_nDifyVPWQmtySgnJa-hn23K6uHrK8aiW0ieiNKW3IAhS9yNfWKKIWn4z7JMUqa6HNywJgvartV6d38adoGy2YQ8s/s1600/yme_event.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtA2zpAGCE9GpKkNgwmsXrtcIOe0Z2tvD0vYIL4LjNxrla8AJmNX_nDifyVPWQmtySgnJa-hn23K6uHrK8aiW0ieiNKW3IAhS9yNfWKKIWn4z7JMUqa6HNywJgvartV6d38adoGy2YQ8s/s320/yme_event.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Group photo with YME committee and speakers for our first event. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ08PNkgoJbThALJ2iB2Ac6wsWdOffREdL3Z0W5i5g0rXjf2ahdxu6y_QzCQoiY2Hg04F-p2uWR8GYBh1C-dYxJfKXuPd0lMPIrgH11Cog7-lsVkxvYAvRY0odrM6YEkm4bF6ICCv1Lfw/s1600/marcus_lee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ08PNkgoJbThALJ2iB2Ac6wsWdOffREdL3Z0W5i5g0rXjf2ahdxu6y_QzCQoiY2Hg04F-p2uWR8GYBh1C-dYxJfKXuPd0lMPIrgH11Cog7-lsVkxvYAvRY0odrM6YEkm4bF6ICCv1Lfw/s320/marcus_lee.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Marcus Lee whom trusted our vision to empower engineering students in the UK; the very person I trust and stepped up to take the role of President of YME-UK when I moved to UKEC. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
As I was about to retire from MSSM, I started to shift my full attention on YME-UK and personal development such as going to the gym and refining my public speaking through toastmasters. I was finally back for toastmasters after a year away due to my commitment for MSSM. Upon my return for the weekly sessions, I received a very warm welcome by familiar faces in toastmasters when they greeted me by announcing "Welcome back to our Malaysian friend and his Malaysian jokes, Faizul Zuraimi!!". <br />
<br />
On that same night, I received a call from Josh who convinced me to run for UKEC Deputy Chairperson. I never came back for toastmasters ever since (so much for the warm welcome). After the phone call, I sent in my nomination at 11:53pm. (could have been more dramatic if I sent my application at 11:59pm but oh well) <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0JAhwrFzXZJKUgKDiscJOujgl_UMj4N3YIY6Q9htW2x60J0ntL3ga7Ddlj-wVplca1gFSRxiaEq8odOFX7JHoXZmt8-SvHCBSB0clg_JM9gZqMeM-H57kScWwi7ohY-UpK0GEsvE2KaM/s1600/josh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0JAhwrFzXZJKUgKDiscJOujgl_UMj4N3YIY6Q9htW2x60J0ntL3ga7Ddlj-wVplca1gFSRxiaEq8odOFX7JHoXZmt8-SvHCBSB0clg_JM9gZqMeM-H57kScWwi7ohY-UpK0GEsvE2KaM/s400/josh.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With my predecessor, one of the most convincing person I've ever met. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
This year had been the craziest year for me because I had to juggle between UKEC, YME (I dropped in meetings every week last term), and my 3rd year engineering. It was much tougher compared to last year when I only had to balance between my role as the president for Malaysian society and my studies. Some of us including myself ended up doing more work in UKEC due to extra challenges that we faced internally. And there were times I felt I was burning out. But I never regretted a single moment. <br />
<br />
These are the moments that I feel I could only have while I'm still a student. Online meetings until 4am, staying up all night to prepare for the political session with YB Mukhriz, getting involved with real politics and student activism, and meeting amazing like-minded individuals as I travelled for almost every weekend to support different events- these are the memories that I will always cherish for the rest of my life. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQEzAUzmzQ-ZqsUD2laqG-1O_vygkmkgco-4pvdl542ZDTHfQ0E80oZsnL-UNzQOUMyCZ5IB9MpRulY58hogUxBb2zCuyuOMQIF7R91PuUeVeoQXplYfjwlY12wmzKVfzEFgapOyGfixE/s1600/shadow+council+elections.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
Joining UKEC is one of the best decisions I have ever made. As one of the American founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin once said, <br />
"All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move."<br />
<br />
Be the ones who move, and send in your application for UKEC today! :) <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<br />
<b></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQEzAUzmzQ-ZqsUD2laqG-1O_vygkmkgco-4pvdl542ZDTHfQ0E80oZsnL-UNzQOUMyCZ5IB9MpRulY58hogUxBb2zCuyuOMQIF7R91PuUeVeoQXplYfjwlY12wmzKVfzEFgapOyGfixE/s1600/shadow+council+elections.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQEzAUzmzQ-ZqsUD2laqG-1O_vygkmkgco-4pvdl542ZDTHfQ0E80oZsnL-UNzQOUMyCZ5IB9MpRulY58hogUxBb2zCuyuOMQIF7R91PuUeVeoQXplYfjwlY12wmzKVfzEFgapOyGfixE/s320/shadow+council+elections.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-14408153224260496152016-11-30T14:58:00.001-08:002016-11-30T16:32:07.784-08:00Reflection on EM-UKEC first strategic meeting.<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">A personal reflection on last weekend's EM-UKEC first Strategic Meeting with 22 different societies. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<br /><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext-bold"; font-weight: bold;"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">In 1995, UKEC was first formed in hopes to change the landscape of Malaysian student activism in the UK, from one that was partisan and a mere vehicle for political masters in Malaysia, to one that promotes intellectualism, openness, and spirit of volunteerism. (not elitism) While our course of actions may differ than 20 years ago, it is important for us to maintain true to our principles and go back to the basics of the organisation. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Time has changed. The Malaysian student activism is more dynamic than before. There has been proliferation of Malaysian student societies and people have started to question the status quo. Hence, it was about time for us to scrutinise these areas and delve further to find a concrete, outcome-driven action plans that are not imposed by the UKEC council, but rather a result of synergy between student leaders to work towards a common agenda. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">In the strategic meeting, we looked at 4 key areas, namely Promoting the Malaysian Culture, Intellectual Discourse & Student Activism, Synergising Malaysian Student Events and Addressing the Relevance of an Umbrella Body. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">I might miss a few points, but a more detailed statement will be released by the ukec team in the near future since we did assign a few people to take notes during the session. :) </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">1. Promoting the Malaysian Culture</span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">How can we make Malaysian Night more impactful? (Why is this important? check out </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hazim.mohamad.39/posts/10206845268762637" style="font-family: '.SFUIText';"><span style="color: #e4af0a;">https://www.facebook.com/hazim.mohamad.39/posts/10206845268762637</span></a><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"> ) </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">I have been part of MNight for 2 years as dikir barat choreographer and I enjoyed it thoroughly, meeting people who made my life enjoyable, and some of them made important mark in my life when they worked with me to start a new society. It is a great initiative by Malaysian Societies, and there are many ways we can make them more (culturally) impactful. Mnight should be more than "girl loves boy, some tragedy happen and then the boy dies classic love story" while culture is displayed in a superficial manner. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-If we were to bring back UKEC award, instead of giving generic award like best Malaysian Night, a clear set of criteria should be made ie the Most Historic Malaysian Night etc. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-Scriptwriters have the challenge of starting everything from scratch and not all of them necessarily know much about local stories that we have in Malaysia. So a bank of local stories can be compiled as a source of reference for mnight scriptwriters. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-It is recommended that the essence of the culture should be emphasised in mnight. For example, mnight booklet can contain information about each of the traditional dances which can be informative for the audience.(especially non-Malaysians) </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-There is little to no point in promoting our Malaysian Culture in a foreign country when there are very few non-Malaysians attending the Mnight. A few incentives can be spotted/highlighted to encourage msocs to get more non-Malaysian audience, ie</span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">a) Clashes of Mnight, which seem inevitable every year, shouldn't be a big problem if we can attract non-Malaysians to attend. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">b) It can be one of the criterias for UKEC award if we were to bring it back. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">c) It could give a better chance for more funding since thats when it meets its core purpose. I have been asking for sponsorship from Tourism Malaysia and I've been constantly asked about the number of non-Malaysians attended our Mnight.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Some emphasised on the essence of culture/identity itself, ie What is the definition of Malay? </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">What about other events that can be organised to promote the Malaysian Culture? </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">There are a number of events suggested, perhaps a TED style talk or workshops with topics that are centred on culture, or perhaps, a talent show (with a set of guidelines to make it more 'local'). And there are a number of ongoing events that can be emulated, such as the Malaysian Festival, and we can see some regions are collaborating to organise one as well which is especially beneficial for smaller msocs such as the West Midlands MFest. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">2. Intellectual Discourse & Student Activism. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">As mentioned earlier, UKEC was first formed in hopes to change the landscape of student activism, from partisan to one that promotes intellectualism. Hence, that leads to the question of how can we promote bi-partisan intellectual discourse instead of just giving platforms for politicians to serve their agenda? </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Some suggested to increase the standard of intellectual discourse. People react to structures. A more rigorous metric can be introduced for the research team to ensure that the content of the discourse meets the standard. While we need to lift up our benchmark, it is important to note that the information presented should be accessible to the target audience, where not everyone necessarily have background knowledge in economics etc. so a metric on how the contents presented should be included. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">While there are differences of opinion whether student organisations should take a partisan vs non-partisan stance when it comes to addressing politics, I feel that everyone has a common interest for our nation despite the difference in means to achieve them.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">I think political maturity needs to be instilled to have more impact in student activism. As argued by George Lakoff in his book "The Political Mind", voters opinion are often neither logical or self-made (example: Brexit, Trump), and we shouldn't let ourselves become vehicle for politicians to spread their agenda. Instead, consider different sides, encourage more public debates, have a team to make some fact-checks for the debate, and let the audience decide for themselves. Focus on policies that can make real difference (there are so much that need to be done for parliamentary reform) and bring them to the right channel. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">3.Synergising Malaysian student activities.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">There has been a proliferation of student organisations lately and everyone is working in silos, causing more overlap in events that are organised. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">I think it is necessary to highlight we are all non-profit student organisations and we serve a common interest. We are not here to compete. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Forming a common agenda (building towards TN50? SDGs, preparation for 4th Industrial Revolution) is not easy, but it is necessary to have an effective impact. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Some suggestions include:</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-streamline events promotion</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">-encourage more collaboration</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">It is true that many if not most student societies can survive on their own. However, I think we still need to have an umbrella body to address the macroscopic matters, which leads to </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">4.Addressing the relevance of an umbrella body.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Many felt that UKEC has lost its relevance for the past few years, especially when we are no longer the main point of contact for politicians and corporates in which we used to be before. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">I think we need to go back to the basics.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">UKEC was formed as a coalition of Malaysian Societies. Through the coalition, it amplified the voices of students. In the past, we played an instrumental role to pass a law that raised the allowances for JPA and MARA and made public statements on the University and University Colleges Act (UUCA) in 2011/12. The previous committee did a brilliant job at meeting this mandate when they made statements on pressing issues such as NSC and the one JPA scholars. Building on the past, this is definitely something that we need to continue.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Representing and meeting the needs of Malaysian students is not an easy job and it can only be done through collaborative effort, For example, looking at a smaller scale, drawing from past experience, Manchester has one of the largest Malaysian population in the UK, with 1,045 in University of Manchester alone. However, reaching out to 1,000+ students is not an easy job, since as Malaysian society, we usually reach out to only about 400 students, and our outreach can only be consolidated through working with communities such as Malaysian Community of Old Trafford (MCOT) and Malaysian Community of Cheetham Hill (MCCH). <br />
<br />
For UKEC to represent Malaysian students in the UK and Ireland, relationship between Malaysian societies and UKEC needs to be strengthened and it is a two-way street. The regional chairpersons also play a very important role in representation of Malaysian students by working closely with Malaysian societies, which can be done through organising regional small-scale events and encouraging them to have an ad-hoc committee. Some suggested for UKEC to have a volunteer corp because UKEC was built on volunteerism. Besides meeting the needs, we also need to set agenda, such as encouraging more people to vote for the next GE.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">“One voice can change a room, and if one voice can change a room, then it can change a city, and if it can change a city, it can change a state, and if it change a state, it can change a nation, and if it can change a nation, it can change the world. Your voice can change the world.” -President Obama.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Change is not easy. But hopefully, the strategic meeting will be a step forward to a positive change for Malaysian Student activism in the UK. </span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";">Disclaimer: Everything I posted is a personal opinion and may not necessarily represent the opinion of UKEC. We will produce a statement for the outcome of the strategic meeting in the near future.</span></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-NRYFt8t8GW29mlO2Z2VdCF5RdXC7-UP9aV555fIbal7sKOVcjnRTS4KjhYdvGzFGJtVdjCEmUbzYnQ9ymFEZDABXsWxmiL0itIp9iinSE2kmM2A_ZGTk46KICFszaiKLxTiQ8PqMRHI/s640/blogger-image-708171134.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-NRYFt8t8GW29mlO2Z2VdCF5RdXC7-UP9aV555fIbal7sKOVcjnRTS4KjhYdvGzFGJtVdjCEmUbzYnQ9ymFEZDABXsWxmiL0itIp9iinSE2kmM2A_ZGTk46KICFszaiKLxTiQ8PqMRHI/s640/blogger-image-708171134.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext-bold"; font-weight: bold;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: ".sf ui text"; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext";"></span><br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-29636538121603861612015-04-01T17:57:00.001-07:002015-04-01T17:57:17.131-07:003 key points from Simon Sinek's Start With Why; Leadership with Clear Purpose As I'm writing this, I'm currently doing preparations for speech number 4 in my competent communication manual for toastmasters. While going through the books I read on leadership and online resources that I can find, I thought I might as well put them together in a blog post for the reader's benefit. One thing that I must clarify is that none of the content in my blog post is my personal opinion or something that I made up myself, acknowledging that I have no credibility in this topic. This post is solely based on advices that can be found online and mainly from Simon Sinek's best-selling book <a href="https://startwithwhy.com/default.aspx" target="_blank">Start With Why </a>. <br />
<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"<i>Management is about doing it right, leadership is about doing the right thing." -Peter Drucker & Warren Bennis</i></blockquote>
<br />
<strong><u>Key points from the book. </u></strong><br />
<br />
<u>Introduction</u><br />
Leadership and management are two different things. Management is about the bottom-line; How can I best accomplish certain things? Whereas leadership deals with the top line; What are the things I want to accomplish? Or in other words, management is about the efficiency in climbing the ladder whereas leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning on the right wall. There's only one thing that leaders have, and that is followers, not Instagram followers ( because I don't have that many :P), but followers as in people who volunteer to go where you want to go.<br />
<br />
Generally, there are two ways to gain followers. The first is <b>manipulation</b>, or the carrot and stick method. In business, there are a number of ways to manipulate customers to buy your products, including by playing the price game, promotions by incentives, instilling fear, aspirations, and even novelty. Lets take novelty as an example, in 1970s, Colgate only had two different products. And when competitions came in, they felt the need to "innovate", and now they have about 32 different types of toothpaste for 1 brand. It worked in short term, but sales never maintained or raise in the long term. The problem is, their competitors do the same as well, and now they are trying to differnetiate themselves, which is probably going to repeat the same cycle. <br />
<br />
Manipulation leads to transaction, not loyalty. When you lose your kitten and offer a reward to get it back; you don't need to have long lasting relationship with the person returning it. Police incentivise by giving rewards to those who help with giving evidence that will lead to an arrest. And like any promotion, manipulation works if the incentives are high enough to mitigate the risks. While manipulations may be a viable strategy when times are good, a change in market conditions will make them very expensive. The American car industry learned this the hard way, when they had to rely on the high cost of manipulation when what they actually need is loyal customers to nurture.<br /><br /> In contrast, Southwest Airlines received tremendous support from their customers following the struggle after September 11 because of the company's emphasis on high class customer experience by sending checks. One note that accompanied check for $1000 read, "You've been so good to me over the years, in these hard times I wanted to say thank you by helping you out." Although the checks that Southwest Airlines received may not be enough to make any significant impact on the company's bottom line, they were symbolic of the feeling customers had for the brand- They had a sense of partnership. In short, using manipulations to gain followers is synonymous to using steroids to gain more muscles; you'll gain very quickly in the short-term, but you will suffer heavy consequences after a certain period of time. <br /><br /><br />The reality is, in today's world, manipulations are the norm. But there is an alternative. <br /><br />
<div class="irc_mutc" style="display: none;">
<a class="irc_mutl" data-ved="0CAcQjRw" href="http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.boscoanthony.com%2Fthe-golden-circle%2F&ei=e24cVcW5Bciy7Qbu34CgCg&bvm=bv.89744112,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNHVriSxi7O8rOvdWqiJGSZVhpG46w&ust=1428013054038980" jsaction="mousedown:irc.rl;keydown:irc.rlk"><img class="irc_mut" height="560" src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSMsHvEivyC6Qn1N_AMmQOg3LRmH7oNv-nSVLUdIzNWw2THYkz13g" style="margin-top: 0px;" width="668" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7r4N8nFtlZ5PBgDV7coUxENJardwq4LYDABODMaWDQOFN6IStvH-bkkDiK7Lj_53vi9bS3F1f7dgE4oc7W-kzMYfIq7RHCZdM6gef7nrt-qFW-cAAiTy1pgxwCwIgpvNpBJ_9UFdJ9Dg/s1600/goldencircle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7r4N8nFtlZ5PBgDV7coUxENJardwq4LYDABODMaWDQOFN6IStvH-bkkDiK7Lj_53vi9bS3F1f7dgE4oc7W-kzMYfIq7RHCZdM6gef7nrt-qFW-cAAiTy1pgxwCwIgpvNpBJ_9UFdJ9Dg/s1600/goldencircle.jpg" height="268" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /><br /><br />There are few leaders who choose to <strong>inspire </strong>than manipulate, and every single of these inspiring leaders thinks, acts and communicates exactly the same way. Consciously or not, they followed a naturally occurring pattern that is called<u> The Golden Circle</u>, which is inspired by the golden ratio- a mathematical relationship for proportion and even beauty, supporting the idea that there is more order in nature than we think. (symmetry of leaves, geometric perfection of snowflakes)<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCYk5hCPMn4KvHB4qzHee84ilu5avE0y44w44LnauLyy38gsUKSbbJg5AIzDs-4ji8Ib_7TvJXlrLhyphenhyphenlBofdgopJPybzvNOU0yp0_kZNaYOsVbwLa-X4n0nn4MlZqmPUFdagFGscxcc/s1600/simon-sinek-the-golden-circle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCYk5hCPMn4KvHB4qzHee84ilu5avE0y44w44LnauLyy38gsUKSbbJg5AIzDs-4ji8Ib_7TvJXlrLhyphenhyphenlBofdgopJPybzvNOU0yp0_kZNaYOsVbwLa-X4n0nn4MlZqmPUFdagFGscxcc/s1600/simon-sinek-the-golden-circle.jpg" height="196" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<u>1. The Golden Circle </u>Before we can explore its applications, lets define these terms starting from outside of the circle and moving inward. <br /><br />WHAT: Every single company know what they do, they know what services they provide and they know what products thy sell. <br /><br />HOW: Some companies and people know how they do it, they know how to explain how they are different or better, or they know their "differentiating value proposition", "proprietary process", or "unique selling proposition".<br /><br />WHY: BUT very few people or companies can clearly articulate WHY they do WHAT they do.(money is out of the question since profits are results, not the main reason why a company should exist.) Its the question of what is your purpose, cause or belief? Why do you get out of bed every morning?<br /><br />In the computer industry, Apple has the same access to the same number of talent, and other big companies like Dell or HP have brilliant engineers like Apple. They also have the capability to design great computers, mp3 players etc. But what makes Apple have stand out?<br /><br />Lets look at how a typical computer company do their marketing message: <br /><br /><em>We make great computers. (What) <br />They're beautifully design, simple to use and user-friendly. (How) <br />Wanna buy one? </em>..... not so compelling. <br /><br />Now, lets look at how Apple Inc. communicate: <br /><br /><em>Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. <br />The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user-friendly. <br />And we happen to make great computers. <br />Wanna buy one? <br /><br /></em>The products are still the same, but the message <strong>feels </strong>completely different. There's no trickery, no manipulation, no free stuff and no aspirational messages. Apple doesn't simply reverse the order of information, they start by clarifying the question <strong>why, </strong>why the company existed in the first place, which is to challenge the status quo. <br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/9GMQhOm-Dqo/0.jpg" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/9GMQhOm-Dqo?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<em>Apple's Think Different Campaign</em></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx6MLh8I1l4qGT9QDgek0BaK9GQv9iUhLkmE0owIRVOKjEsPHrXLPCNMfX5YcwLmB4AVlw7edRZ97K3XyzNuGHFEwt4o65act8NesxR5xlC-sLoWpMmxMm8MDzEgGDhyZoY-ug0EhLQuo/s1600/diffusionofideas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<br /><br />It is no wonder that we are comfortable buying phones and mp3s from Apple, but not from Dell or Microsoft, (they actually did have mp3 players in their production line) because Apple manage to communicate their <strong>why </strong>clearly. When the Golden Circle (why, how and what) are aligned, the message will be authentic, and it will be able to stand out. <br /><br /><u>2. This is biology, not opinion<br /></u><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhazb2PaoblOy42Ok6hx9S3o7zKTnBpneN9z6g09Si_FSEhtrSD-xz_xf6gZSNN-wW3DVNjeleQgixXD3el8y4Sly8oIb-9xcGIfRtzE7ABVJy-hZ90ut3Xipkj07IWt6do2BNMIU90is8/s1600/limbic+brain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhazb2PaoblOy42Ok6hx9S3o7zKTnBpneN9z6g09Si_FSEhtrSD-xz_xf6gZSNN-wW3DVNjeleQgixXD3el8y4Sly8oIb-9xcGIfRtzE7ABVJy-hZ90ut3Xipkj07IWt6do2BNMIU90is8/s1600/limbic+brain.jpg" height="208" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><br />The principles of The Golden Circle are much more than a communications hierarchy. Its principles are deeply grounded in the evolution of human behaviour. The power of WHY is not opinion. It's biology. If you look at a cross section of the human brain, from the top down, you see that levels of The Golden Circle correspond precisely with the three major levels of the brain. <br /><br /><br />The neocortex, or the rational brain, corresponds with the WHAT level. The neocortex brain is responsible for rational and analytical thought. Whereas the middle two sections comprise the limbic brain. The limbic brain is responsible for all of our feelings, such as trust and loyalty. It is also responsible for all human behaviour and all our decision making, but it has no capacity for language. <br /><br />Humans are irrational. We are more inclined to act based on our emotions than reasoning. This is what we mean when we talk about wining hearts and minds. The heart represents the limbic, feeling part of the brain, and the mind is the rational, language centre. <br /><br /><br /><u>3. The tipping point. <br /></u><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx6MLh8I1l4qGT9QDgek0BaK9GQv9iUhLkmE0owIRVOKjEsPHrXLPCNMfX5YcwLmB4AVlw7edRZ97K3XyzNuGHFEwt4o65act8NesxR5xlC-sLoWpMmxMm8MDzEgGDhyZoY-ug0EhLQuo/s1600/diffusionofideas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx6MLh8I1l4qGT9QDgek0BaK9GQv9iUhLkmE0owIRVOKjEsPHrXLPCNMfX5YcwLmB4AVlw7edRZ97K3XyzNuGHFEwt4o65act8NesxR5xlC-sLoWpMmxMm8MDzEgGDhyZoY-ug0EhLQuo/s1600/diffusionofideas.jpg" height="444" width="640" /></a><br /><br /><br />According to the Law of Diffusion, mass-market success can only be achieved after you penetrate between 15% to 18% of the market. That's because the early majority won't try something new until someone else has tried it first. <br /><br />Especially when you are going from zero to one (innovating with a new product/service), the goal of business then should not be simply sell to anyone who wants what you have- the majority- but rather to find people who the people who believe what you believe, the left side of the bell curve. It is the percentage of people who share your beliefs and want to incorporate your ideas for themselves. They look to WHAT you do as a tangible element that demonstrates their own purpose, cause or belief to the outside world. <br /><br /><br /><u>Summary</u>Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, Steve Jobs, Professor Yunus and many other great leaders inspire others by showing their convictions on their beliefs, by having a clear action plan and by starting with why. <br /><br />This book made me think a lot about the significance of having a clear belief and communicate as well as remind about your organisation's belief to those around you. It makes a lot of sense when you think about it because once you have or attain the same values or principle, the people in your organisation//community//society will have a sense of belonging and it is one of the factors that can help them perform better in their tasks. <br /><br />Personally, I want to close the gap between the rich and the poor through education, because I firmly believe that education is the key factor for those who want to advance further in their career. There's a study that shows those who are well-off and performed badly are more likely to pursue their university qualifications than those who are poor but excel in their studies. Yes, it is true that the lucky ones have their parents' support and there is nothing wrong with that, because I strongly feel that the world is not a zero-sum game. To me, the deciding factors are our ability to learn both hard skills (mathematics, writing, reading) and soft skills (communication, leadership, especially listening) which is the reason why I decided to continue blogging and share as much as I can from a selection of books that I have read. <br /><br />My dad always remind me that there are two ways to achieve happiness; purpose and pleasure. I hope this blog post will help you to find your purpose.<br /><br />Leadership is not a process of invention, it is the process of discovery. :)<br /><br />Do subscribe to my blog for more posts! <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
<div class="irc_mutc" style="display: none;">
<a class="irc_mutl" data-ved="0CAcQjRw" href="http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.boscoanthony.com%2Fthe-golden-circle%2F&ei=e24cVcW5Bciy7Qbu34CgCg&bvm=bv.89744112,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNHVriSxi7O8rOvdWqiJGSZVhpG46w&ust=1428013054038980" jsaction="mousedown:irc.rl;keydown:irc.rlk"><img class="irc_mut" height="560" src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSMsHvEivyC6Qn1N_AMmQOg3LRmH7oNv-nSVLUdIzNWw2THYkz13g" style="margin-top: 0px;" width="668" /></a></div>
<br /><strong> </strong>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-249936020263258522015-01-03T17:48:00.001-08:002015-01-04T02:16:29.989-08:00Leadership & Public Speaking. Introverts & Extroverts<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO5InAlXjWXXkRJE5j_YBjJ8AYXe_hEhBJCdHB1kRSEj_0v6SMccoEkStYs_A5vHZswQ1_078-D8qAsZwTuphBSMLACmV5UDEwbE4_0eui9jvM4fkVXQHKNmXjVoEEFPFfjMm8hKpbGSM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-01-04+at+12.15.27+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO5InAlXjWXXkRJE5j_YBjJ8AYXe_hEhBJCdHB1kRSEj_0v6SMccoEkStYs_A5vHZswQ1_078-D8qAsZwTuphBSMLACmV5UDEwbE4_0eui9jvM4fkVXQHKNmXjVoEEFPFfjMm8hKpbGSM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-01-04+at+12.15.27+AM.png" height="296" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">source: http://www.mypersonality.info/personality-types/extraverted-introverted/</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br>
<br>
<br>
"<i>You can learn how to be bitchy, but you don't really have to be a bitch</i>."<br>
<div>
In other words, you can act like an extrovert, but you don't really have to be one. (and vice versa)</div>
<div>
<br></div>
<div>
Public speaking and networking or people skills have high importance and becomes more salient when we progress from school to work. A few examples include job interviews or even scholarship interviews, where in some cases the interviewers will look for those with good "people skills" as in how well they voice out their opinions and how they disagree with others without being too aggressive. A common misconception is that some people tend to believe that public speaking are for those with extravert characteristics, and settle with a delusional belief that some people are just born with the ability to speak well in public. However, there are a number of introverts who have capabilities in networking and public speaking, such as Abraham Lincoln, Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. Besides, not all extroverts are necessarily good at it naturally. The truth is, you can change your behaviour, not your character; you can overcome your shyness, but you can't change your introvert characteristics. So, the question is, how can introverts (or anyone who's interested- extroverts or introverts) acquire these skills? </div>
<div>
<br>
<br>
There are only two ways and there is no shortcut to this.<br>
(1) learn<br>
(2) practice<br>
<br>
<u>1. Learning</u><br>
I learned public speaking while I was in the marching band (unexpectedly). Back in 2010, I was appointed as the Drum Major because there were no other candidates left and I had to take the job. Being introverted, I was more used to spending my time with smaller groups and I was very uncomfortable with the fact that I had to lead a group of 80 band members. I was very horrible, even infront of my own juniors because I stammered and mispronounced words a lot to the extent that my juniors made fun of me from behind- and it was very embarassing since I know I have to face this for many more months as the Drum Major.<br>
<br>
So, I had no choice but to push myself out of my comfort zone in order to improve my speaking as well as leadership skills. Question is, how? I didn't like to read any books because there were too many words and I rather spend my time on playing video games. One day, I followed my dad to a bookstore and I scanned through the books under the non-fiction section. I realised that many of these books are practical advises to help us to grow, and I felt like these books might be relevant for me. I purchased a book called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Influencer-The-Power-Change-Anything/dp/007148499X" target="_blank">Influencer by Kerry Patterson</a>, read it but didn't understand half of it because it was very "wordy". Nevertheless, there's a slow progress because I start to pick up these concepts and I continued to read more books.<br>
<br>
As I progressed, reading slowly becomes a habit, not because I was so disciplined (if you know me well, I'm a very lazy bum) but because I felt like I'm growing//learning a lot from it. Here's a list of recommended books that are related to leadership skills and public speaking that helped me a lot (including the book, Influencer that I mention above)<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0671027034" target="_blank">How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie</a><br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Public-Speaking-Dale-Carnegie/dp/148406027X" target="_blank">The Art of Public Speaking by Dale Carnegie (at least read this one!)</a><br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/1594484805/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420333659&sr=1-1&keywords=drive+daniel+pink" target="_blank">Drive by Daniel H. Pink</a><br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell/dp/0316017930/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420333772&sr=1-1&keywords=outlier+by+malcolm+gladwell" target="_blank">Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell</a><br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Habits-Highly-Effective-People-Powerful/dp/1451639619/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420333855&sr=1-1&keywords=7+habits+of+highly+effective+people" target="_blank">7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey</a><br>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Start-Why-Leaders-Inspire-Everyone/dp/1591846447/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1420333975&sr=1-1&keywords=simon+sinek" target="_blank">Start with Why by Simon Sinek</a><br>
<br></div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_7HkaBQGAVf88eUahkn9q8bOuRS5bN7jMRiKrkKMTUHsteXWgHc6DUpjGn5z1iMPdF_13RkVvtJyH06vYL3UIIfrBPeIzxZBaKtTRPPiLwsR1gQEhpgrmNtlbjxIs6pZVeX47A3UA0g/s1600/bandd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_7HkaBQGAVf88eUahkn9q8bOuRS5bN7jMRiKrkKMTUHsteXWgHc6DUpjGn5z1iMPdF_13RkVvtJyH06vYL3UIIfrBPeIzxZBaKtTRPPiLwsR1gQEhpgrmNtlbjxIs6pZVeX47A3UA0g/s1600/bandd.jpg" height="320" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">band days ~</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br></div>
<div>
<br><u>2. Practice </u><br>Like any other skills that you learn such as music or maths, we all need to have some practice. There are a lot of platform out there where we can improve our public speaking skills. If you are still in school, join a debate team, Model United Nations (MUN) or a public speaking competition. If not, find out about your local toastsmasters club. Toastmasters club aim to help those who want to improve their public speaking in a very friendly environment, so I highly recommend it as it is certainly worth the investment. Not enough time to join these societies? Then go online, there are actually FREE classes for public speaking online, all you have to do is look. One website that I would suggest you to go is this https://www.coursera.org/learn/publicspeaking. Although the lecturer won't be able to give you direct feedbacks, there's always peer-based assessment where you can join a facebook group and ask them to give you feedbacks, or just ask your friends to help you. If you want to practise anytime anywhere, try start a conversation with a stranger.<br><br><br>Back to focusing on the introvert and extrovert subject...<br><br>"<i>There is no correlation between the best speaker and those with the best ideas.</i>" - Susan Cain, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Power-Introverts-World-Talking/dp/0307352153" target="_blank">Quiet</a>.<br><br><br><u>Energy excites, charisma inspires.</u><br>RAHHH!!! With a roar, Steve Ballmer, the man who replaced Bill Gates as CEO of Microsoft, bursts onto the stage of the company's annual global summit meeting. Ballmer loves Microsoft- he says so in no uncertain words. He also knows how to pump up a crowd. His energy is almost folkloric. He pumps his fists and runs from one end of the stage to the other, he screams and he sweats. He is remarkable to watch and the crowd loves it. As Ballmer proves, without any doubt, energy can motivate a crowd. But can it inspire a population? What happens the next day or the next week when Ballmer's energy is not therer to otivate his employees? Is energy enough to keep a company of about 80,000 people focused?<br><br>In contrast, Bill Gates is introverted and awkward, a social misfit. He does not fit the stereotype of the leader of a multibillion-dollar corporation. He is not the most energetic public speaker. When Bill Gates speak, however, people listen with bated breath. When he speaks, he doesn't rally a room, he inspires it. Those who hear him take what he says and carry his words with them for weeks, months or years. And that is an exemplary of a good leadership.<br><br><u>What makes a great leader?</u>In his book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others-ebook/dp/B0058DRUV6" target="_blank">Good to Great</a>, Jim Collins defines what he calls "level 5" leaders, as those with strong professional will and genuine personal humility. Leadership isn't just about giving instructions or telling others what to do, its also about listening to those around you. To those who are more extraverted, learn to listen. To those who are introverted, learn to speak up.<br><br><br><br>For my next post, I will write about the golden circle of why inspired by Simon Sinek. Since I will be having exams, it would be most likely that I will post after the exams which is at the end of this month. But nevertheless, do subscribe to my blog for more! :)<br><br>Thanks for your time to read.<br><br><br><br></div>
<div>
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> (ps. Carl Jung clarified that there is no such thing as absolute introvert and absolute extrovert. There's a range of spectrum to these traits, meaning that some people can be mostly introverted and a bit extroverted)</span></div>
<div>
<br></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-32216358398892664082014-12-19T15:13:00.000-08:002014-12-19T15:20:54.503-08:00Leonardo Da Vinci's unrealised Golden Horn BridgeIts been more than one year since I wrote an entry on my blog because I'm a lazy bum. But I suddenly felt a bit motivated when my friends suggested that I should write something on my blog, especially since I have time to post lengthy facebook//instagram posts, why not make time for my blog?<br />
<br />
Currently, I am studying Civil Engineering in University of Manchester and I am on a winter break with my family in Istanbul. Since I'm studying Civil Engineering, I should be passionate about structures including bridges; since I'm currently in Istanbul, a blog post on Leonardo da Vinci's Golden Horn Bridge in 1500s, an unprecedented bridge design that was 300 years ahead of his time, which connects the Europe and Asia continent in modern-day Istanbul, would be most appropriate for my current interest. <br />
<br />
Utilizing three well-known geometrical principles ( Honestly I have shallow knowledge on these principles, so if you are intrigued to analysis the bridge, please ask Mr.Google :P) ; the pressed-bow, parabolic curve and keystone arch, da Vinci designed an <strong>unprecedented</strong> single span 240m long and 24m wide bridge for the Golden Horn, which would have become the longest bridge in the world of that time, and certainly could have been one of the most significant tourist attraction in the world. <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0w2AWxRDtYmaHcjfuAHoAgcKbB7rC5ba8ggisSaGMbZSYAQS2dAvmyb6lMs5V09BvTDTghIKDJ2TJo5gzk-ueikhvSWuscdL5N70lqdTLuTC3AFk9_bdW0KtdI10sOkmNoiqazzDufE/s1600/Leonardo_Bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0w2AWxRDtYmaHcjfuAHoAgcKbB7rC5ba8ggisSaGMbZSYAQS2dAvmyb6lMs5V09BvTDTghIKDJ2TJo5gzk-ueikhvSWuscdL5N70lqdTLuTC3AFk9_bdW0KtdI10sOkmNoiqazzDufE/s1600/Leonardo_Bridge.jpg" height="217" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">design of the bridge</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Unfortunately, like many ideas that are unfamiliar, or 'too far ahead of time', it was ultimately rejected. Instead of putting in effort to understand the design and perhaps make some suggestions, as most people should as learners, skeptics including engineers and architects advised Sultan Mehmed II to turn down the proposal. I have nothing againsts skeptics and in fact, I like them for their critical mind, but I personally think skeptics should also test out and try ideas instead of simply rejecting them.<br />
<br />
For five hundred years, <i>the beauty and symbolism of Leonardo da Vinci's graceful design intended to span the Golden Horn inlet in Istanbul (then Constantine) remained an obscurem tiny drawing in a corner of one of Leonardo's volumnious notebooks. </i>It was until 1996 when Vebjorn Sand, a Norwegian artist, proposed the Norwegian Public Roads undertake the construction of the project, which eventually turned reality in Oslo, Norway as the mini version of da Vinci's design.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEDpLs5VOCf-7WidZL8h5BZmyvt7rfwdYEnQpXHpticZ0Y1NnkXzsMXe4hlDFP_-ILTa3y2UT6kDqf2_F0HVhdxzn46oGQDdsvIXPH8uFgsbkVXaoKQuuQda7uGH-AnH_wMvan4vv7-TA/s1600/galata+bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEDpLs5VOCf-7WidZL8h5BZmyvt7rfwdYEnQpXHpticZ0Y1NnkXzsMXe4hlDFP_-ILTa3y2UT6kDqf2_F0HVhdxzn46oGQDdsvIXPH8uFgsbkVXaoKQuuQda7uGH-AnH_wMvan4vv7-TA/s1600/galata+bridge.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leonardo da Vinci's mini Golden Horn bridge in Oslo, Norway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Imagine, what if the engineers were more curious and open to new ideas, or if they were willing to take the risk and spend enormous amount of resources in this ambitious project, or at least test the idea on a smaller scale before proceeding to the big project, da Vinci's bridge could have been a reality, and certainly, a central figure for historical monuments in the world. (the bridge could have been in Assassin's Creed too :P)<br />
<br />
<br />
SOURCE: http://www.leonardobridgeproject.org/about-us.htm<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-82363583797769066482013-10-11T08:35:00.003-07:002013-10-11T08:37:43.926-07:00Our first social projectFor our first social project, we hope to help orphanage with their education by means of technology. Our center goal would be building relationship with orphans through education, as opposed to simply promoting flipped learning. And of course, we'll start by knowing and adjust according to their needs. <br />
<br />
With lectures turned into video lectures, there'll be more time for students and teachers to interact, challenge them if they learn fast and help if they can't cope. We'll also always bear in mind that it's not about technology, but how we use the technology.<br />
<br />
Tomorrow, I'll be dropping by at the orphanage to give them the video lectures before leaving to the airport for mid-term break. Since facilities are limited as they only have 2 computers, on the 27th of October, we'll hope to have participants ranging from 20-40 people to volunteer and help out at the orphanage to solve mathematic questionnaires in accordance to their level. We'll have them to bring their laptops with them so that they can use the video lectures as an alternative to text books for reference.<br />
<br />
If this model works, we hope to raise fund to invest in some computers for the orphanage, hoping that it can be turned like a "learning" cafe (instead of cyber cafe) and visitors can come at an allocated visit hours to help out the orphans with their studies.<br />
<br />
Lets hope this project will be a success, and wish us good luck! :)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-72401346369007319442013-09-07T10:40:00.002-07:002013-09-07T10:40:19.187-07:00Update 8/9/13 : The Heart of Education"Education is not the learning of facts, but teaching the mind to think" -Albert Einstein<br /><br />To those of you who have been following my blog or who are aware of my "project" , I'm sure you guys are familiar with the implementation of flipped learning that I have been working on since early this year. The problem with flipping the class isn't technical , the challenge is persuading the teachers to at least try flipping their classes.<br /><br />At the heart of education is teaching & learning. Change this , and our education will be improved , which is why education reform is actually a bottom-up approach where students and teachers are the ones who should be actively involved.Of course , looking at the bigger picture , flipping the class isn't the only solution, but it is a start for education reform.<br /><br />Last week while I had an appointment with the principal regarding the flipped day (a global initiative which was scheduled to be on the 6th of September) , and I was told 2 things:<br />1) some may view it as "Americanism"<br />2) it may be an assumption that the teachers haven't done anything.<br />(Actually,some aspects of the flipped learning is carried out by teachers on daily basis , such as challenging the students to think on some difficult problems or having them to do some group work. However , the difference is that the emphasis on having the students the focus on the content before engaging in some challenge in class is more in flipped learning method. Students get to learn through video lectures that are prepared by teachers so that more time will be spent on teaching them how to think as opposed rote learning. Indeed knowing facts are important , but I believe that more priority should be on challenging our thinking.)<br /><br />Given the circumstances , I believe it is best to get teachers with experience on flipped learning , as they have more credibility on this topic , to have a dialogue with those who are interested(not forced) to flip their classes. Therefore, I've been trying to get some teachers who may be willing to help through emails , forum in FLN(flipped learning network) and recently just started a TED conversation. For now I'm just waiting for some responses.<br /><br />As for my social enterprise , Voices of Global Students , I've already made the MVV( Mission , Vision and Values) for the organisation a month ago, and I'm currently trying to figure out a business plan for my organisation. I'll be attending a social entrepreneurship bootcamp at the end of this month, in effort to refine my business plan and deliver a presentation on it. Those with the most appealing project will be funded RM250,000 by the foundation, which will be a major boost in the purpose of the organisation.<br /><br />I've faced a number of setbacks , but at least I learned to pick myself up when I received a number of support from my friends. This project isn't something that I can do alone , and I hope some of you could contribute by getting involved in the dialogue (if you are one of the teacher with experience on flipped learning) , some suggestions on the business plan , and support the facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/voicesofglobalstudents .<br /><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-7268339242620780782013-09-07T10:07:00.000-07:002013-09-07T10:07:18.221-07:00Aren't we preparing for jobs that don't exist yet?<div class="MsoNormal">
How are we preparing ourselves for our future jobs that
don’t exist yet? Is it by burning the midnight oil to study for exams? Have you
ever wondered how are you going to apply what you learned in school in real
life? What are you actually learning, to be obedient, or independent thinkers?
Did you know that our education system was modelled and conceived during the
Industrial Revolution?<br />
<br />
In his article, “How To Get A Job?” Thomas L. Friedman asserts that since jobs
are evolving so quickly, a bachelor’s degree is no longer considered an
adequate proxy for your ability to do a particular job by employers. Whether
you acquired your education through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS),
homeschooling, or Stanford, all they care is one thing: how you add value to
what you learned. Paraphrasing Harvard education expert Tony Wagner, “ the
world doesn’t care anymore what you know; all it cares is what you can do with
what you know”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So what is education?
What are we learning in school?<br />
<br />
“Education is not a filling of vessel, it is the kindling of flames” – Socrates<br />
<br />
With change happening at an unprecedented scale and rate, we face challenges
that require us to be creative, as in combining old ideas into a new one,
curious, and lifelong learners. The word education is derived from the Latin
word, Educe, which means, “to draw forth from within”. It’s about “lighting”
the potential in us as learners rather than filling our minds with loads of
information. Having that said, how do we solve this problem within our circle
of influence?<br />
<br />
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created
them.” – Albert Einstein <br />
<br />
In the heart of education is teaching and learning, without it there won’t be
education. Hence, what needs to be improved is teaching and learning, by
creating a condition where teachers not only teach the students, but making the
students teach amongst themselves. It’s not about putting more effort by using
the old solution; it’s about changing our teaching and learning methodology in
classrooms, provided that the teachers have the autonomy since they (should) know
what they do best. One of the solutions is flipped learning, or also known as
the student-centered learning. <br />
<br />
In it’s most basic sense, the flipped learning is basically where what you do
as homework will be done in class and what you do in class will be done as
homework by the use of video lectures. The definition of flipped learning is
very slippery, as there could be many versions of it. For example, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flipped Class 101 ( as Bergmann and Sams
,pioneers of flipped learning call it) , teachers create video lectures for
students to watch at him so that they can help them with what used to be their
homework in class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some have moved to
Flipped Class 201 where students work on their own pace until they attain mastery
in the topics they are studying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apart
from that, others didn’t focus on mastery , but<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>rather other deeper learning strategies such as problem or project based
learning, inquiry , challenge based learning etc. It’s entirely up to the
teachers on how they would like to run their class. <br />
<br />
So what is flipped class, or preferably known as flipped learning? Here are
some points on what flipped learning is. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Transfers the ownership of the learning to the
students.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Personalizes learning for all students<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Gives teachers time to explore deeper learning
opportunities and pedagogies with their students. (Problem based learning,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Challenge based learning , Mastery etc.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Makes learning (not teaching) the center of the
classroom<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Maximizes the face-to-face time in the
classroom. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Since many people tend to have misconceptions on the flipped learning , here’s
a list of FAQ on it.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1. Does it make the teachers less
important?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With the flipped learning, the role of a teacher is
empowered, by giving perspectives, inspire and mentor the students instead of rote
lecturing. The class will be student-centered instead of teacher-centered.
Students will be more likely to claim ownership of their education. It's not
just about the student-teacher ratio, it is about student-teacher time ratio.
With this, struggling students will receive more help from their teacher, and
students will also get to see things from many different nuanced perspectives,
which develops their critical thinking skills. In short, technology doesn't replace,
it complements with the teachers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2.Isn't it more like
an opportunity to bring boring lectures to a different location?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I believe that there are many approach that can be made to
make the video more interesting, such as having more dialogue, make it
approximately 10 minutes short and etc.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3.What if the
Internet is simply too slow?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We can always consider using flash drive , or burn the
videos into a disc.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">4. What if the
teachers are interested, but do not have the time to produce the videos?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not all the teachers are expected to make these videos for
their classes. Besides , as for a start , we do not need to flip the whole
subject , we can begin by using the method only for difficult topics, as
pointed out here (http://faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-flipped-learning.html)
on myth no.2. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:DocumentProperties>
<o:Revision>0</o:Revision>
<o:TotalTime>0</o:TotalTime>
<o:Pages>1</o:Pages>
<o:Words>865</o:Words>
<o:Characters>4937</o:Characters>
<o:Company>KTJ</o:Company>
<o:Lines>41</o:Lines>
<o:Paragraphs>11</o:Paragraphs>
<o:CharactersWithSpaces>5791</o:CharactersWithSpaces>
<o:Version>14.0</o:Version>
</o:DocumentProperties>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Flipped learning is becoming increasingly popular in
universities like Harvard and Stanford University. It shows that it can bring
outcome we desire , provided when we implemented it correctly. Since in the
heart of education is the learner and educator , I believe learners or students
should play their part in the education reform that is already happening now ,
especially in the U.S.A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do support and
like my facebook page here <a href="https://www.facebook.com/voicesofglobalstudents">https://www.facebook.com/voicesofglobalstudents</a>
and follow my blog on faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com <br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-20451301775929625062013-06-27T07:14:00.002-07:002013-06-27T07:15:56.381-07:00Update: 27/7/13 and the audition for TEDxKL Having finished my exam , we have started on trying to implement the flipped classroom in our physics class, by having different topics assigned to different groups, and post the video lectures or any learning resources on the physics website. Hopefully, next term, we'll get to have it fully implemented for at least 1 or 2 topics. If the desired outcome is reached , I'll get to make presentation on the student-centered or flipped learning in school as part of the effort in balancing real learning and learning to answer exam questions. I think it's just a matter of time.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
While waiting for the desired outcome, I'm planning to audition for a slot on TEDxKL this Monday. Unfortunately it's on a schoolday, I have a few problems such as lack of transport (hopefully I could find a taxi to go back to school) and now I'm asking if I could have the audition on Saturday instead after the Speech Day(last day of school). As part of preparation for the talk on TEDxKL (that is , if I pass the audition) , I'm taking an online course on public speaking https://class.coursera.org/publicspeak-001/class/index and joined it's facebook group to hone my public speaking skills. It'll be a big challenge for me. Failure or success, I'll certainly learn a lot from this experience, and I certainly need a lot of luck and support. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-16029747798513877322013-06-04T22:20:00.001-07:002013-06-04T22:20:16.684-07:00Education is Everyone's Business: Do something about it! <span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;">There's a wonderful quote from Benjamin Franklin. "There are three sorts of people in the world: Those who are immovable, people who don't get, they don't want to get it, they're going to do anything about it. There are people who are movab</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;">le, people who see the need for change and are prepared to listen to it. And there are people who move, people who make things happen." And if we can encourage more people, that will be a movement. And if the movement is strong enough, that's, in the best sense of the word, a revolution. And that's what we need. - Sir Ken Robinson</span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_how_to_escape_education_s_death_valley.html" rel="nofollow nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_how_to_escape_education_s_death_valley.html</a></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii-HL7XOdzDvaT6dCoEEP9i1WhnTaKv-rlbjnS7pRDfRbqJoW4XPH6DK-Fcu8mKvJoIleZWcJyO0igPr4qDLg7FdniEJU-0kf4PnYkwXBgd9MF1Dx0hW67N5oluihqQtDOIqHh2Plz5ro/s640/blogger-image--951448680.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii-HL7XOdzDvaT6dCoEEP9i1WhnTaKv-rlbjnS7pRDfRbqJoW4XPH6DK-Fcu8mKvJoIleZWcJyO0igPr4qDLg7FdniEJU-0kf4PnYkwXBgd9MF1Dx0hW67N5oluihqQtDOIqHh2Plz5ro/s400/blogger-image--951448680.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span>
<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;">"You know, I grew up in the inner city, and there were kids who were failing in schools 56 years ago when I first went to school, and those schools are still lousy today, 56 years later. And you know something about a lousy school? It's not like a bottle of wine. Right? (Laughter) Where you say, like, '87 was like a good year, right? That's now how this thing -- I mean, every single year, it's still the same approach, right? One size fits all, if you get it, fine, and if you don't, tough luck. Just tough luck. Why haven't we allowed innovation to happen? Do not tell me we can't do better than this." -Geoffrey Canada</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 17.99715805053711px;"><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/geoffrey_canada_our_failing_schools_enough_is_enough.html" rel="nofollow nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://www.ted.com/talks/geoffrey_canada_our_failing_schools_enough_is_enough.html</a></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQ9zrXSq9G9jeJXAq-9dCxdcFKAvCWNXx-IhNZ7xnFWY_ti9bGkVp0RLdEJYVhmiGsP1EXg46JStjEw9EDJexOEapOl6DVsS2lmUG-WlBd5ReMtWTPDJTCbqlDY17Dtx6xAj1UbsdbTU/s640/blogger-image-1245904161.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQ9zrXSq9G9jeJXAq-9dCxdcFKAvCWNXx-IhNZ7xnFWY_ti9bGkVp0RLdEJYVhmiGsP1EXg46JStjEw9EDJexOEapOl6DVsS2lmUG-WlBd5ReMtWTPDJTCbqlDY17Dtx6xAj1UbsdbTU/s400/blogger-image-1245904161.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> As part of the effort in improving the education system, I've been hosting a conversation on TED( http://www.ted.com/conversations/18310/what_can_we_do_an_open_lett.html) to kill time while taking a break from studying for my exams. Through the conversation, I manage to reach many people from different parts of the world with common interest, and I've learned a lot from having conversations with them both through TED and email.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> I've received a number of articles and an ebook on education including <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/196483.The_Big_Picture" target="_blank">The Big Picture: Education is Everyone's business</a> from the TED community to help further my understanding in the field of education. In the first chapter of the book,it clearly stated the real goals of education which basically are as follows;</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">1) to be lifelong learners</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">2) be passionate</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">3) be ready to take risks</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">4) be able to problem-solve and think critically as well as constructively</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">5) be able to look things differently</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">6) be able to work independently with others</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">7) be creative</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">8) care and want to give back to their community</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">9) persevere </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">10) have integrity and self-respect</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">11) have moral courage</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">12) be able to use the world around them well</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">13) speak well,write well , read well and work well with numbers</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">14) to be curious</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">15) most importantly , truly enjoy their life and their work</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"> It seems that we are deviating ourselves from the real purpose of it; we've been too focused on exams. Yes , we are learning something in school , we do learn maths , science , chemistry , history etc. , but it seems that we are learning to be good at answering the exam questions rather than understanding the subject. However,exams are indeed important , we need exams or tests to check our progress and to know as to whether we have conceptual understanding of what we are learning. But it shouldn't be the dominant culture of education, it shouldn't be something that we would stay up to burn the midnight oil for, spending lots of money for tuition fees or seminars, and have classes or lessons in school completely centered on how to be good at answering exam questions just to get good grades ( and forget what we've learned 5 days later! But still , for us students , it's better for us to follow the system and work hard to get good grades for now)</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"> For example,concerning the unemployment. In his article on <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/29/opinion/friedman-how-to-get-a-job.html?ref=thomaslfriedman&_r=0" target="_blank">How To Get a Job?</a> , Thomas L. Friedman , who is also the author of of The World is Flat, said that there are 2 main reasons why people get rejected for jobs which are:</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">1) Employers don't care what you know , they only care on how you can add value to what you know. And in spite that you have degrees or masters in any particular field related to the job, many can't tell the employers how they can add value. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;">2) They don't know what they want, and it comes through because they have not learned the skills that are needed. I believe this is the fault of the education system itself, not the students or the teachers.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; line-height: 16.359375px;"> Why do college drop-outs become rich while those with high credentials don't? In my opinion, the successful people have a few things in common, they are lifelong learners, creative, relentlessly "entrepreneurial", inventors and solution-finders. As <a href="http://www.uncollege.org/book/" target="_blank">Dale J. Stephens</a> (founder of UnCollege , and he is about my age!!!) clearly asserted that the requirements are confidence, curiosity and grit, which is pretty much aligned with the real purpose of education. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> Perhaps <a href="http://flipped-learning.com/?p=1073" target="_blank">flipped learning</a> (although there are many ways to flip the class) isn't the only approach when it comes to improving the education within the constraints of the public education system. There are other approaches such as <a href="http://www.studygs.net/pbl.htm" target="_blank">problem-based learning</a> and <a href="http://www.servicelearning.org/what-service-learning" target="_blank">service learning</a> . Regardless of the terminologies, learning should be student-centered as learning is personal. When learning stems from your own initiative and action , it becomes more relevant and meaningful. Of course, this is facilitated by teachers , who are acting as mentors.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> The world is changing , but schools hardly changed. Education is everyone's business, and I believe we all should do our part; whether you are a student , a teacher , or a parent. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> As Sir Ken Robinson ended his talk by quoting Benjamin Franklin on 3 types of people, the immovable,movable and those who move, lets be one of those who move, by asking ourselves what can we do? and most importantly , by start taking action.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As for now , we are trying to replicate the desired outcome of student-centered learning. Do follow my blog on faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com for updates.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Thank you.</span><br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-17421696127200583002013-05-13T07:58:00.001-07:002013-05-13T07:58:11.041-07:00How do Finnish kids excel without rote learning and standardized testing? by Erin Millar<br />
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Learning from the country ranked 1 and consistently in top 3 for their education system..</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
some excerpts from the article </div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Dr. Sahlberg argues that if we want young people with the competencies to innovate and make our economy more competitive, we need to model our schools after how innovation actually happens. “Teaching and learning have traditionally been conceptualized as linear, deterministic procedures,” he wrote in a paper on economic competitiveness and education. “Innovation is an organic entity. Teaching and learning in schools should rely on principles of active participation, social interaction and reflection.”</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
The reality in Canada, which is unfortunate in Dr. Sahlberg’s view, is that students are rewarded for competing against their peers, teachers are held accountable by their class’s performance on exams, and schools are compared through widely published standardized test results. Finland takes an alternative approach. Students receive only narrative evaluation instead of marks or grades until Grade 5. Thereafter, their grades rely on how they’ve performed relative to their individual potential rather than as compared to their classmates. “Teachers stress grades as little as possible,” Dr. Sahlberg says. “This means that students ‘compete’ against themselves, not one another.”</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
One of the ways the Finnish education system accomplishes this is by giving individual teachers greater autonomy in teaching to the needs of their classes, rather than a top-down, test-based system.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Garuda, Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 20px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
source:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/canada-competes/how-do-finnish-kids-excel-without-rote-learning-and-standardized-testing/article11810188/?utm_content=buffer508d5&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-64406903445392019012013-05-10T19:23:00.000-07:002013-05-14T01:40:52.281-07:00An open letter to teachers//educators<br />
<div>
<u style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">An open letter to teachers</u><br />
<u style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><br /></u>
"Read not to contradict and confute ; nor to believe and take for granted ; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider" - Francis Bacon<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<u><br /></u></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<u><br /></u>
<br />
<div>
My name is Faizul , and I'm an A-level student who is currently studying in Kolej Tuanku Jaafar, in Negeri Sembilan , Malaysia. For the past few months, I've been working on promoting the flipped learning, something I learned from the Internet while I was preparing my presentation on Massive Open Online Courses(MOOCs) for the school assembly. To those of you who are unfamiliar with the flipped learning, you can visit my blog here http://faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-flipped-learning.html . Included in this blog are some rebuttals on common misconceptions about the flipped learning.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I'm lucky that the principal and the deputy principal in my school are in support of this idea, they are open to new possibilities. Unfortunately,not many people in Malaysia have heard of the "flipped learning" as far as I'm concerned. When I wanted to make a presentation on the flipped learning in one of the weekly Monday school assembly in my school, I was told that I should not appear as if I'm trying to tell the teachers how to teach, for I am only a student. The deputy principal asked me to use the term break(which was 2 weeks long) to figure out an effective way in presenting the flipped learning.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
At that time I'd been reading Sal Khan's book , The One World Schoolhouse:Education Reimagined. In his book, he mentioned something about the flipped learning, and I think the Khan Academy (www.khanacademy.org) really does complement with the flipped learning, so I made a presentation on the Khan Academy for the school assembly after the term break, hoping that the teachers will get a hint on the flipped learning. -- ever since then , some people have been calling me Mr.Khan!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
3 days after the presentation on the Khan Academy, the deputy principal emailed to the teachers on the flipped learning, hoping that we can have our own video lectures, which is more aligned to the A level syllabus than Khan Academy or other resources that we can find online. Unfortunately , I think most of my teachers seem to be skeptical as to whether the flipped learning is going to work, which is understandable because it is unfamiliar.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGofiLw8v-3nLZjoeCxNGSkcTNeZ4vKxbUO4GpWkWfFKz-Kux0gF4Eux2NmoRs0p8t0XBnr5wOTc_bhSAUpN8aM65bUr9vdJJb7ttQ3O5tyUD2FACYKpYI352hBCErVuh6zVQNAEPXJIg/s1600/IMG_1060.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGofiLw8v-3nLZjoeCxNGSkcTNeZ4vKxbUO4GpWkWfFKz-Kux0gF4Eux2NmoRs0p8t0XBnr5wOTc_bhSAUpN8aM65bUr9vdJJb7ttQ3O5tyUD2FACYKpYI352hBCErVuh6zVQNAEPXJIg/s320/IMG_1060.PNG" width="213" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br />
Deputy Principal's email to the teachers<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
Here are some common questions on the flipped learning:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>1. Does it make the teachers less important?</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
With the flipped learning, the role of a teacher is empowered, by giving perspectives, inspire and mentor the students instead of rote-lecturing. The class will be student-centered instead of teacher-centered. Students will be more likely to claim ownership of their education. It's not just about the student-teacher ratio , it is about student-teacher time ratio. With this,struggling students will receive more help from their teacher, and students will also get to see things from many different nuanced perspective, which develops their critical thinking skills.In short, technology doesn't replace,it <b>complements</b> with the teachers.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>2.Isn't it more like an opportunity to bring boring lectures to a different location?</b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
I believe that there are many approach that can be made to make the video more interesting, such as having more dialogue, make it approximately 10 minutes short and etc.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>3.What if the Internet is simply too slow?</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We can always consider using flash drive , or burn the videos into a disc.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>4. What if the teachers are interested, but do not have the time to produce the videos?</b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
Not all the teachers are expected to make these videos for their classes. Besides , as for a start , we do not need to flip the whole subject , we can begin by using the method only for difficult topics, as pointed out here (http://faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-flipped-learning.html) on myth no.2. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
On top of that , I believe that school leaders should find those with the highest ability to combine the subject with their ability to present this in the most creative and engaging ways. For mathematics , we can also use the materials from the examsolutions (www.examsolutions.net , this website has been very helpful with my maths!) </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
As many of us might be aware, change is happening at an unprecedented scale. New job markets emerge, technology is changing exponentially, an it is evident as we can see from Moore's law. It is most likely that we students are preparing ourselves for jobs that don't exist yet.</div>
</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
The education system we have now is based on the Industrial Revolution, it is human construct and a response to certain conditions in certain places and time. The world is very different compared to back then. It is evident that our education system needs to be changed. There has also been a degree inflation , in which jobs that used to require degree , now requires masters , and jobs that used to require masters , now requires PhD. 10 or 20 years from now , does it mean all of us need to acquire PhD? You can visit my blog here on my thoughts about the education system. http://faizulzuraimi.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-education-system.html.</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
Since the world is ambiguous and ill-defined , the context always change given the pace of change, I think what we students need to be is creative, curious and lifelong self-learners. Being creative is about making fresh connections so that we see things in new ways and from different perspectives. As Robert Greene quoted, "The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways".Besides, human communities depend on diversity of talents,not singular conception of ability. I believe flipped learning is the best solution, given the restrictions of the education system. </div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
I'm sure many of us heard of the cliche that change is constant, change is inevitable-- So what about progress? I believe that progress is a choice. And it is our choice if we want to progress. I believe the first step for progress , is by applying the flipped learning. The choice is ours to act within our circle of influence. And it is certainly an important choice for it concerns our education.</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
If you wish to be in touch , here's my twitter account : https://twitter.com/FaizulZuraimi </div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
or you could send me an email on faizulzuraimi@gmail.com </div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
Thank you for your time to read this , I really appreciate it.</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
Sincerely,</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
Faizul</div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: small;">
</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-89448150880269538212013-05-04T09:44:00.003-07:002013-05-09T01:38:56.955-07:00The flipped learning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxjfEtrumSbP-kuVBnRGyRyIFMfu2zAYhv0OxgXcMpNH4RsEAk494EMckX_1tmFHPrphqHNvftnmhS633OkYw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxXp11SmjvUqYlYRbj6lXeh9pSEdlR-UrphodAzlrlR-AsAUe_wDtyGE3UA6I5zmA1R92YdUucHzmKpAkjQjw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
First things first, I think it's important for us to understand what the flipped learning is and it is certainly not something that I came up with myself; the earliest work done in this field was by Eric Mazur , at Harvard who developed peer instruction in the 1990s. The flipped learning is pioneered by Aaron Sams and Jonathan Bergmann. Above are a few videos on what flipped learning is. <br />
<br />
<br />
Flipped Learning Defined<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Flipped learning is when teachers do not use face-to-face time to deliver direct instruction. Instead direct instruction is delivered asynchronously."</blockquote>
<br />
<br />
<br />
I think it is pretty much expected , many people tend to have some misconceptions on what the flipped learning is,for it is more than just about flipping the class and I think it is best that we should clarify on that.<br />
<br />
<br />
from http://blog.peerinstruction.net/7-myths-about-the-flipped-classroom-debunked/<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 1: Flipped classrooms are primarily about putting lecture videos online</strong><br />
<em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked: </b></em>Flipped classrooms can be just about putting lecture videos online and having students do homework in class, but they can and should be about much more than that. Research-based methods for flipping your classroom include <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2012/09/04/how-one-professor-motivated-students-to-read-before-a-flipped-class-and-measured-their-effort/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Just-in-Time Teaching</a> and <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2012/03/15/peer-instruction-101-what-is-peer-instruction/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Peer Instruction. </a></div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 2: You need to flip your entire class </strong><br />
<em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked: </b></em>You can flip just one concept or topic, many, or all. When you are just starting out with flipped teaching, it is a good idea to pick a set of the key concepts or topics that are the most difficult for students and go from there.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 3: Students will love not having lectures in class<br /><em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked:</em></b> While most of us have stared out at a classroom full of bored, half asleep students mired in the tedium of our lectures, when you try to flip you class you may face student resistance in the particular form of demands for more lecture. <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2012/03/02/peer-instruction-and-student-resistance-to-interactive-pedagogy/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">See this post for some tips on how to address this. </a></div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 4: Flipped classrooms are the latest edutrend<br /><em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked: </em></b>The first modern call for pushing information coverage out of the classroom and guided practice in, dates to at least the late 1800s with the casebook method. Pre-recording lectures for out-of-class viewing shows up in the <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/use-of-the-term-flipped-classroom/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">research literature in 2000.</a></div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 5: There is only one way to flip a class<br /><em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked:</em> </strong>According to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Flip-Your-Classroom-Reach-Student/dp/1564843157" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Bergmann and Sams 2012</a>, there are many of ways to flip a class and no one right way. Bergmann recently posted his definition <a href="http://flipped-learning.com/?p=1073" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">here</a>, and he says “you see there is no ONE way to flip a class and in this lies one of the great strengths of this methodology.” <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2012/03/15/peer-instruction-101-what-is-peer-instruction/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Peer Instruction</a> is, of course, our favorite way to flip the classroom. However, we are also big fans of <a href="http://www.teambasedlearning.org/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Team-Based Learning</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project-based_learning" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Project-Based Learning</a>.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 6: Flipped classrooms replace faculty with computers</b><em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked: </b></em>This is definitely not the case. In a flipped classroom, instructors are essential and they do many of the same tasks that they do in traditional teaching environments, such as helping students learn, selecting and covering content, and assessing student achievement. The most prominent difference is that a flipped classroom leverages the instructor’s expertise during in-and-out of class time in different ways. Flipped learning operates from the assumption that content coverage occurs primarily out of class and should be more of a shared role with the students, rather than just the job of an instructor.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Myth 7: Students will not do work out of class, even for credit<br /><em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Debunked: </b></em></b><a href="http://www.peerinstruction.net/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;">Peer Instruction Network </a>member Ives Araujo thought this too. So, for a semester he studied his university students’ completion and engagement with pre-class assignments over the course of a semester. On average the large majority of students did their pre-class work AND demonstrated strong effort. <a href="http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2012/09/04/how-one-professor-motivated-students-to-read-before-a-flipped-class-and-measured-their-effort/" style="color: #8a1200; text-decoration: none;" title="How one professor motivated students to read before a flipped class, and measured their effort">Read how he measured this here. </a> He has since gone on to observe the same completion and engagement rates in high school classrooms. We do find that you need to provide credit (points) as a motivator, however.<br />
<br />
Here are some useful links on flipped learning:</div>
<div>
<a href="http://assets.techsmith.com/Docs/pdf-landingpages/flippedclassroom-why-flip.pdf" target="_blank">Why follow the flipped classroom model?</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aGuLuipTwg" target="_blank">Why should we flipped the classroom?</a>(video)</div>
<div>
<br />
<a href="http://assets.techsmith.com/Docs/pdf-landingpages/flippedclassroom-explore.pdf" target="_blank">So how do I get started with the flipped learning?</a></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_901806167"></span><span id="goog_901806168"></span><br />
<a href="http://assets.techsmith.com/Docs/pdf-landingpages/flippedclassroom-flippingyourschoolordistrict.pdf" target="_blank">flipped learning at a large scale</a><br />
<br />
<br />
As for those skeptics , here's a result of a <a href="http://flippedlearning.org/cms/lib07/VA01923112/Centricity/Domain/31/2013_FLIPPED_LEARNING.pdf" target="_blank">survey</a> (click on the link if you can't see the picture) made in the U.S. (I think it can be replicated anywhere in the world , provided that it is implemented properly )<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf3W8MvKI8xHXq53-Os08qO_0sOsxchK8MJyvS3s8rCLkIK6kXuHvezioIMIa1m1TdrCEB-ScLM4Pm8Xnehoh-DHLgUFsEyrEZsfRsORLj74Hx09SeSlRvpII3rpGxENAcTLKBSouyexs/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-05-09+at+4.30.22+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf3W8MvKI8xHXq53-Os08qO_0sOsxchK8MJyvS3s8rCLkIK6kXuHvezioIMIa1m1TdrCEB-ScLM4Pm8Xnehoh-DHLgUFsEyrEZsfRsORLj74Hx09SeSlRvpII3rpGxENAcTLKBSouyexs/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-05-09+at+4.30.22+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Once again , let me clarify that this isn't my idea , I don't get credit for this. I'm just sharing it because I think it is necessary for us to have a more effective way of learning.The primary reason why this is important is that we(students) are most likely preparing ourselves for jobs that don't exist yet, for change is happening at an unprecedented scale. With flipped learning,we can have many different nuanced perspectives as it helps us in our critical thinking(which I believe is important for the challenges we face in the world).<br />
<br />
There may be very powerful positive points that are not all obvious at first sight. That is how entrepreneurs work. They see the value that those around them have not yet spotted-- there might be more positive points on the flipped learning that I haven't spotted myself, in which you can find out. Value and benefit are by no means always obvious.<br />
<br />
<br />
Thanks for your time to read this , I really appreciate that.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<br />
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3606223795908903181.post-64236551205582508712013-05-02T08:49:00.000-07:002013-05-10T19:24:02.335-07:00The education system Over the years , there has been an increasing consensus that the education system needs to be changed . Creativity(process of coming up with an original ideas that have value).and curiosity are the traits that I believe most employers would look for. Change is happening at an unprecedented scale. The number of discoveries and new infomation found doubles every 18 months . That is why it is important to be creative,since the real-world problem is ambiguous , the context always change.<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0898438); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(191, 107, 82, 0.496094); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); font-family: Noteworthy; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 24px;">The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways</span> . For futher details on this , you can watch Sir Ken Robinson's talk on TED , on revolutionising the education system and how school kills creativity.<br />
<br />
In his book , Out Of Our Minds, he explained how our education system is based on industrial revolution, where basically students are taught to suffice the needs of the industrial revolution. It is a human construct and certain responses in certain places and time; which is obsolete in our age. There is also a hierarchy of disciplines , in which science is prioritised. I'm not saying that science is not important , I'm saying that science and art are equally important; they are not mutually exclusive , they overlap one another , they complement one another. On top of that,most students don't get to explore the full range of their ability and interest. Without being too wordy, I'll just paste a picture here to illustrate my point<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5t42eFg6uzKz_laAhndsLYtaH8iUSptoNN0PW8IdylE4rxgerFTRcqBMa8PLWGorZq0iHtg2MoENKCzl0uQXqgVbv7_Gc0JF6JyDZUz3VuXyBGErB4HpmqVc4qpRVlJa1f0lhRkIhyMI/s1600/education+system.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5t42eFg6uzKz_laAhndsLYtaH8iUSptoNN0PW8IdylE4rxgerFTRcqBMa8PLWGorZq0iHtg2MoENKCzl0uQXqgVbv7_Gc0JF6JyDZUz3VuXyBGErB4HpmqVc4qpRVlJa1f0lhRkIhyMI/s320/education+system.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
"Everybody is a genius, but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid." - Albert Einstein</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
However , I think that there is no point to blame the politicians or whoever invented our current industrial-revolution based education model, it was suited at those time anyway , and it is certainly egalitarian which is a good thing. Sometimes it's not just about finding the right answers , sometimes it's about asking the right question. I think the question that most of us should us is that "What can we do about this? " " What can we do about our education system within our circle of influence?" instead of " Why didn't the politician or the authority do something about the education system." </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This question brings forward to a story that I want to tell you. First of all I'm an A-level student, who is currently doing first year college in Malaysia, I don't even have a job and I certainly don't have much influence in the society. But still , there are </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
things that I can do, and I'm still working on it, which is promoting the flipped learning method .I believe(as it is empirically evident) that it works within the constraints of the education system, and will produce students who are </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
curious , lifelong self-learners and most importantly , creative ,for human communities depend on diversity of talents,not singular conception of ability.I will post my story in promoting the flipped learning in my next entry.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09121485838662786100noreply@blogger.com2