Sibu Teacher

To see how Earth Hour began click on video. New posts are below video.

Idea for post special thanks to carver

To me young people are the most important. The young have to be taught, guided and molded to be useful to society. I suppose in a roundabout way, it means Thomas and I are also important as we are teachers.

However teaching is a challenging profession these days. It is not easy with disciplinary problems and some students do have ‘remarkable’ low motivation. But it is all part and parcel of teachers’ lives.

To make a difference.

After two months of break for me, finally it is time to get back to school. This year, things are going to be different for me as I am now a dad. The first thing I saw when I stepped into the teachers’ room was that few of my female colleagues are pregnant. Then, it came to me that they are all aiming for the “baby rat” syndrome. This is because the rat is the first animal in the Chinese calender. I am sure that most of your friends and colleagues are aiming for that too. As for me, well, sorry to say that one child a year is not something to brag about. I am having tough time sleeping at night and sometimes my hands automatically are trained to make milk for the young one, even though my eyes are shut. Miracles do happen!

As time goes by, then there is the issue of teachers being promoted if they teach Form Six classes. Personally, I do agree with the plan as it helps to uplift the teaching profession in our country. Unfortunately, I was not in the selection. Getting angry is the thing of the past. I always believe that something better is coming for me.

Then it came to my students. I was asked to teach the worst class whereby the students are not able to count or speak in other languages besides their mother tongue. I bravely take up this challenge as I believe that they want to learn something from me and I am their hope for their SPM English examination. I used all the methods that I know of, hoping that miracles will fall on them. The results, well we just have to see at the end of this year. I will keep you posted.

As you can see, the year of the rat seems to be a challenging year for me. What about you/

The Chinese New year is fast approaching and the traffic during the weekends is chaotic. I was wondering about the stalled traffic and I looked ahead. The cause of the temporary traffic jam? An unmotorized vehicle - the humble trishaw. Soon, it will be a relic of the past but for the time being, I hope it lasts forever and ever. It will be sad when this crop of trishaw operators reach an age when they stop because definitely there will be no younger generation taking over.

SCRIPT:

Scientists say a massive black hole is sending out a death ray deep in space that wipes out anything in its path.

They say the black hole was probably dormant and awakened by magnetic disturbances created by two galaxies in the process of a billion-year-long merger.

Such death rays have been observed before but experts say it’s the first time they’ve caught one in the act of battering another galaxy.

SOUNDBITE: Doctor Daniel Evans, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, saying (English):

“For the galaxy to be looking right down the line of sight, right down the barrel of the gun of that jet is extremely rare, so this makes it a really exciting discovery.”

Such jets from black holes produce high amounts of radiation, particularly high energy x-rays and gamma rays.

Nothing resembling life on any planet could survive such a blast.

But the experts say Earth has nothing to fear.

The action is happening ten trillion kilometres out in space, 1.4 billion light years away.

Paul Chapman, Reuters

‘Crunch time’ for climate change

To read the passage, and listen to the story, BBC world Service

Vocabulary: shifted
moved or changed from one position to another
head of state
official leader of a country (sometimes an elected politician, sometimes someone who has little real political power)
the podium
a raised table or lecture that people make speeches from, on which they can keep their notes to look at while they speak
cuts in greenhouse gas emissions
reductions in the amount of carbon dioxide and other gases which cause pollution
stressed the need
said how important it was
villain
(informal) someone people think is harmful or dangerous
with a flourish
with a big, noticeable movement to draw attention to what has been done
allied with
connected, joined or united with
broke diplomatic protocol
disobeyed the formal rules on how politicians and ambassadors should work with each other when they are at international conferences
he couldn’t see the day
he thought it would be impossible, even in the future

Listening skills also involved.

Everybody loves weekend, it is the time for leisure, recreation and other religious activities. And when everyone is having a grand time, you want to capture it and share it with others. That’s why Weekend Snapshot is here for you. Come and join the fun here.

I always feel happy when I see these oranges for sale. Locally we call it lut kam. It is so called because its skin peels easily from the fruit. I love the taste and its clean citrus smell. If I am lucky, sometimes I will get succulent, juicy sweet fruits.

It is also a sign the Chinese Lunar New Year is approaching. By the way, happy new Year to you all.

A degree is what we need to survive in this world. Without a degree, our choices in terms of a career are stunted and limited. Parents wishing to look for a California College for their kids should look into LA College or specifically Westwood College as an option. I googled and found it which is located in Los Angeles, California.

There are a variety of degree programs at Westwood spread out in five campus locations. Its program is well rounded and other than academic facilities there are also adequate recreational facilities. Students have the option to choose from within four advanced institutes: Institute of Design, Institute of Technology, Institute of Business and Institute of Justice.

It will be a total learning experience. Students while earning a degree can enjoy Los Angeles with its urban cityscapes, lush parks, majestic mountains, and bounteous beaches among others.

Much has been said about the achievements of Chinese type primary schools. They are supposedly great in producing excellent results in Mathematics. I do not have the statistics but I accept that as a general statement.

Today I went into a class to sit-in for a teacher who is absent. It is also the first day for these remove class students in a secondary school. To pass the time and also to test their English as I would be teaching them in a few more years, I carried out a quiz. They were very excited but didn’t understand my questions.

I then decided to hold a spelling quiz instead. I was shocked when the majority of the students in that particular class couldn’t spell twelve, yellow or even a simple word like school. I am now wondering what happened during the six years they were in primary school. They couldn’t have attended English lesson or Mathematics and Science lessons in English without picking up any basic English skills. And yet, here is the proof. They don’t know how to spell these basic words.

I intend to discuss with the teachers how to improve their English language skills but I am afraid it will be an uphill struggle. Who do we blame? The curriculum, the teachers or their upbringing? Whatever the reasons for their poor spelling skills, the teachers in the secondary school have just one year to help them catch up with the skills expected of them in Form one.

Being involved in a traffic accident is a difficult experience for every body. Some people become ruined or face a terrible financial set-back due to it. The problem is not with the system but lack of info. Our lives get turned upside down. Most of us know little about litigation and are unable to fight against the big insurance companies.

O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath based in Austin, Texas provides legal representation for accident victims. They have the experience to handle cases for their clients. If you have a case, they will help you win the case. Just call them for a free assessment of the case.

Sometimes aggressive trial tactics and strategies, state-of-the-art tools and techniques are necessary to win a settlement or to aggressively litigate your case. You need not fight alone. O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath will handle the legal matters for you.

The attorneys are Kevin Thomas O’Hanlon, Leslie L. McCollom, Justin Demerath, Rudolph Metayer and John-Peter Lund. Areas ad fields they are specialized in include car accidents, trucking accidents, slip and fall, Drunk Driving Victims, motorcycle accidents, bicycle / pedestrian accidents and wrongful death just to name a few.

To find out the complete list, look up Austin Injury Lawyer