Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Children Upbringing in the Modern Days

Comment:

You want the ‘best’ for your daughter (and son), but you don’t really know how to discipline them. For some parents, its all about the best results, the best schools, the best presents, the best clothes, but they sometimes forget about the best discipline and moral upbringing.

WHO would you blame more? The parents who don’t know how to discipline their children, and turn them into brats (demanding and selfish person)? Or the poor girl/boy, who was brought up (by such parents) with all the good material things in life, but was not given moral and discipline education?

(Note: For a Muslim, that would also means religious education and upbringing - as religion teaches the children to love, respect, take care of the parents, and respect others, and do good and kindness to oneself and others, etc.).



Teen 'pistol-whipped mother' over used car

Yahoo!7 March 30, 2011, 10:51 am A US teenager has been charged after reportedly pointing a gun at her mother, pistol-whipping her, and forcing her into a car. And all because the 17-year-old girl wanted a new car. The trouble started when a car salesman at a local dealership told the Rachel Anne Hochero she could not sign for a loan by herself, and would need to be accompanied by an adult. Ms Hochero reportedly got into an argument with her mother on the phone, because she refused to help her daughter with the loan.

The teen drove home, where she allegedly became infuriated and pulled out the gun, and forced her mother to drive to the Nissan dealership. The girl's mother chose not to press charges because her daughter had recently been "accepted to several Ivy League schools."

Police decided to press charges after discovering the gun was stolen. The girl has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill. She has not been charged in relation to the stolen gun.


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Saturday, March 26, 2011

China New Apartments & Cities: No Inhabitants ?!


http://www.sbs.com.au/dateline/story/about/id/601007/n/China-s-Ghost-Cities?cid=23225
(26 March 2011)

CHINA NEW APARTMENTS AND CITIES: EMPTY ?!

Vast new cities of apartments and shops are being built across China at a rate of ten a year, but they remain almost completely uninhabited ghost towns.

It’s all part of the government’s efforts to keep the economy booming, and there are many people who would love to move in, but it’s simply too expensive for most.

Video journalist Adrian Brown wanders through malls of vacant shops, and roads lined with empty apartment buildings… 64 million apartments are said to be empty across the country and one of the few shop owners says he once didn’t sell anything for four or five days.

So are the efforts to boost the economy going to end up having the opposite effect and creating a financial crisis for China?

Also see video at:
http://www.sbs.com.au/dateline/story/watch/id/601007/n/China-s-Ghost-Cities

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China's Empty City
(10 Nov 2009)

Doubts remain whether strong economic growth in China can be sustained by public spending alone. China's economy is continuing to grow despite the global recession, helped by a massive government stimulus package of $585bn. But doubts remain whether such strong growth can be sustained by public spending alone.

Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan reports from Inner Mongolia, where a whole town built with government money is standing empty

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/11/2009111061722672521.html#


Comment:
ITS call investments. Its all about investments for the rich chineses. Its not for the ordinary layman. Look at how different a layman live and a rich chinese man live. Its expensive for sure, for a layman.
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Thursday, March 24, 2011

SPM Results: MALAYSIA


Comment:


With the new year, this time around, if you say I got an 'A', it can means A, A+, or A- ... But who cares, an A is an A... But, the reality is, * Are Malaysian students getting smarter? OR* Is it the system (education grading system) that out smart them ??


1- Creative and innovative teaching and learning --> Produce creative and innovative thinking students (as opposed to students that memorized notes to pass their exams).

2- Problem solving techniques --> Produce students with the necessary skills to effectively solve problems and provide solutions (as opposed to students who produce 'script answers' to exam questions).

3- Effective 'social skills' --> Produce self-confidence students, and being able to effectively socialized in a positive way, as opposed to students that keep to themselves, shy, lack confidence, self-interests or selfish, and do not know how to interact with friends and peers.

4- Leadership skills --> Produce students with the quality of 'how to lead' and also be a 'good supporters and followers.' This is learnt directy and indirectly from co-curriculum activities and clubs (but with the recent budget cuts on clubs and other positive social activities, how far these students can learn positive leadership skills ?).


Hence, the government and school authorities need to take ALL this into considerations, and not just the final exam paper results (in PMR, SPM, STPM, college exams, etc.)!... (If they are sincerely serious in developing the youths, and constantly emphasizing that the youths are the backbone of the country).


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SPM results: 9,239 straight As

Submitted by shaza on Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011 Local : SMK Assunta : SPM results

Performance improves after 10-subject limit implemented last year

Ee Ann Nee Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011 13:04:00


JUBILATION: SMK Assunta students celebrate after getting their SPM results this morning — Pic: Shahir Omar PUTRAJAYA: A total of 9,239 candidates obtained distinction (A+, A, A-) in all subjects in the 2010 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination, compared to 7,987 candidates in 2009. Education ministry director-general Datuk Abdul Ghafar Mahmud, who announced the results here this morning, said it was the best SPM result in four years, just like last year’s UPSR and PMR examinations. He said students’ performance in the examination was encouraging and showed improvement in terms of quality and quantity.

“The move to limit each SPM candidate to a maximum of 10 subjects, which was implemented last year, gave students the opportunity to focus on their studies and work on their chosen subjects in a more intensive and comprehensive way.” A total of 363 candidates from government schools scored straight A+ or Super Distinction in the examination, compared to 214 candidates in 2009.

Overall, the Average National Grade (GPN) rose to 5.19 from 5.34 in 2009. Abdul Ghafar said the gap between urban and rural students inched closer this time around with the GPN reduced by 0.18 from 2009. “Candidates from rural areas fared better than candidates in urban areas in Bahasa Melayu and Science. "However, efforts need to be stepped up to close the gap between candidates in rural and urban areas especially in English, History, Mathematics, Islamic Education and Moral Studies.”

A total of 368,559 candidates or 91.2 per cent obtained their SPM certificates this year compared to 364,046 in 2009. This year, candidates were also able obtain their results through SMS, which would be provided until midnight on March 30.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2011&dt=0324&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Dalam_Negeri&pg=dn_01.htm

(24 March 2011)


SPM terbaik dalam 4 tahun


Oleh THOMAS CHONG pengarang@utusan.com.my Abd. Ghaffar Mahmud menunjukkan keputusan peperiksaan SPM pada sidang media di Putrajaya, semalam. PUTRAJAYA 23 Mac - Keputusan Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2010 adalah yang terbaik dalam empat tahun ini dengan seramai 9,239 orang atau 2.28 peratus calon sekolah Kementerian Pelajaran memperoleh gred cemerlang ( A+,A dan A-) dalam semua mata pelajaran yang diduduki.

Ketua Pengarah Pelajaran, Datuk Abd. Ghafar Mahmud berkata, daripada jumlah tersebut, seramai 363 calon berjaya mendapat gred cemerlang tertinggi iaitu A+ dalam semua mata pelajaran. ''Sebanyak 368,559 orang atau 91.2 peratus calon berjaya mendapat sijil berbanding 90.8 peratus calon pada tahun lalu.

''Sebanyak 81 daripada 103 mata pelajaran telah menunjukkan peningkatan prestasi yang menggalakkan berdasarkan Gred Purata Mata Pelajaran (GPMP)," katanya ketika mengumumkan analisis keputusan SPM 2010 di sini hari ini.

Mengenai pelajar terbaik, beliau berkata, seramai empat calon berjaya mendapat A+ dalam kesemua 12 mata pelajaran yang diambil dan 47 lagi mendapat A+ dalam semua 11 mata pelajaran. ''Terdapat 207 calon yang mendapat A+ dalam semua 10 mata pelajaran dan 105 calon mendapat A+ dalam semua sembilan mata pelajaran," katanya, Abd Ghafar berkata, sebahagian besar sekolah di Malaysia dikategorikan dalam pencapaian sekolah cemerlang, baik dan memuaskan.

''Hanya sebilangan kecil iaitu 66 buah sekolah atau 3.1 peratus sahaja yang memperoleh pencapaian berpotensi," katanya. Menurutnya, seramai tujuh calon berkeperluan khas termasuk yang rabun, buta dan pekak berjaya mendapat keputusan cemerlang bagi semua mata pelajaran. ''Seorang calon rabun telah berjaya mendapat lapan A+ dan tiga A dalam 11 mata pelajaran yang diduduki dan seorang lagi calon buta mendapat enam A+, tiga A dan satu A-," katanya. Tambahnya, pelajar paling cemerlang dalam SPM 2010 akan diraikan oleh Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin dalam satu majlis yang akan diadakan di Lembaga Peperiksaan di Kuala Lumpur pada 1 April ini.



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Thursday, March 10, 2011

Neo-Colonialism of MNCs Banks !


Comment:

'Neo-Colonialism' ... ITS just another way of saying that one has been 'exploited' and not paid adequate salaries, and other benefits accordingly.

Also how about the HIGH 'Interest Rate' of 15-18 % (per annum) charged by commercial banks on the balance on credit cards... Other developed countries like Australia, NZ, and UK, to name a few, have already lower their annual 'Interest rate' on credit cards balance, to less than 10 % per annum... something that Bank Negara (BNM) should look into !

[Note: Better still, don't own a credit card, or just keep only 1 credit card, for transactions or registration into hotels, while on holidays, online buying, etc... I know of some, who carries 4-8 credit cards in their wallet, and boast of it... More cards, means more debts!]


http://www.utusan.com.my/ (10th March 2011)

PERSATUAN Kebangsaan Pekerja-Pekerja Bank Citibank berpiket kerana tidak berpuas hati dengan pihak pengurusan bank tersebut, di hadapan Menara Citibank, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, 9 Mac. - Utusan/HAFIZ JOHARI





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