Zerowaste

It's after the exams (hypothetically speaking, cause I haven't started yet) and you feel an intense urge to burn your notes. Before you start your mini bon fire, NUS office of estate and development and environmental sustainability provides you with a green alternative - recycle your notes. And if you happen to take an exam just outside the grounds, you can dump them in after your paper. You feel good about being finished with the module and save the environment at the same time. What not to like? The bins will be filled I tell you - to the brim.

D.C

My friend and I were observing a group of students at Macdonald's. They were huddled in a group the entire time we were there, all staring intently at their PSPs. The great irony: For a generation so connected to the internet, so "in-touch" with the world, they were, for that period of time, so disconnected from each other.

Something struck up in me then and I resolved not to get a PSP. Afterall, I already have a PS2 that is collecting dust somewhere in the house. I wonder if it still works.

Chingay

I caught this year's Chingay parade with my grandma and within minutes I was kind of put off by the jester who was trying too hard to please. I 'll give him A for his effort though.He finished the show with a sore throat. The show on the whole was alright but my grandma remarked that the the afternoon broadcast of China's Spring Festival was better. I feel inclined to agree.

Mulholland drive

is a movie that makes you go "huh?" from the start all the way till the very last 10 minutes and after it ends, you still can't connect some dots so you turn to Wikipedia for an explanation. But you don't totally get it and when you lie down to have a rest, suddenly something hits you - why the guy did what he did, why an object was there. Then you sleep, the movie happily resolved in your head.

Sensitivity

Sometimes we speak without giving a thought to how others might feel.

Be it in project groups or just amongst friends, no matter how familiar, we should not just blurb out whatever we have to say , even if it is the truth . There has to some tact involved, some thought put in because let's face it, words can hurt too ya?

Then on the other end, we have people who don't say much. That's all well and good. But the limit's kinda tested if you speak to the person expecting a reply and he barely even blinks. I mean come on...

100%

So Singapore got a silver.

But no matter, the team did their best and they did us proud by fighting to the end.

Now, let's give our 100%.

Rebro now

During my signaler training in army I remember there was an exercise that had us in the jungle to try to "rebroadcast" signals from the main station to the target one . Essentially because the main station and the target station were so far away, we were to act as the middleman to transmit the message from the main to the target station.

But that's a troublesome position isn't it?

Words fail

when it's 9pm, you haven't eaten dinner and the bus you take looks very much the one you took the last time only this time round, bicycles actually overtake it. Imagine that.

Take him!

I was reading the news online today when this article jumped out at me.

Basically it says that more and more parents are sending their children to court by applying for the Beyond Parent Control(BPC) order. The tool is usually reserved for serial runaways, violent teen terrors and those experimenting with sex, crime or drugs.

These days, some of the reasons parents give are:
1.their child won't do his or her homework
2.the child comes back at 6.30pm instead of 2pm

And of course from the case in the article itself, their child spending too much time on the computer.The article goes on to accuse parents of "outsourcing" their responsibilities to the state.

For myself, I am appalled and disappointed. This does not reflect well on the parents at all. If there are problems, they should be settled within the family. This is even more so if it is a minor problem like spending too much time in front of the computer! If all else fails, loan the computer away for a while, not go to court! Seriously.

Wakata

I realised that from last Wednesday to the Wednesday that just passed I had been giving tuition everyday. This is despite having papers on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday. Why? The simple answer was that my students had papers too during the same period. And I think that not turning up for tuition now would be not only affect me monetarily but greater than that is the moral obligation.

It doesn't matter that I haven't finished studying for the exam tomorrow because it's not only myself in the equation now. And when I asked one of my students how he fared for the paper and he answers that he knew how to do all the questions I went through the day before, I smile, because I see the worth in what I am doing.

And yes, I finally understand.

Who wants to take

this module with me?!? Oh. Not in NUS ah. Sian.

edit: don't know got practical not le...

The real music

I admire people who admittedly do something simply because they love to. It says a lot about someone and their character and passion for something if they do it simply for love of it.

There is now an orchestra called the Really Terrible Orchestra. The New York Times wrote an article ("And the Band Played Badly") about the endeavor to join together a bunch of admittedly bad instrumental players and perform works of music. Now they are a smash sensation and their concerts in Scotland and England are always packed to capacity! (As the musicians say, perhaps too it is because they offer concert-goers a few free glasses of wine before the concert).

Music is such an inspiring force of art and it inspires me when I hear of groups of people who are inspired by the music regardless of talent level. I also must say that this encouraged me to perform music for the love of it--not because I'm paid for it, or because it is "what I do", or because I admire the lifestyle of musicians, etc. It is all about the joy of the music and the love with which people have for it.

So bravo to the Really Terrible Orchestra!

Singapore dreaming

I have never watched the movie. But I chanced upon an essay my friend sent me through e-mail that inspired it. It was written in 2000 for the Singapore International Foundation's 10th anniversary book.

The couple who wrote, directed and produced the film, also founded the satirical and highly irreverent Web site, Talkingcock.com that has been featured in Time Magazine, The Economist, The BBC and other international media.

Despite the numerous awards the movie won, what resonated with me most when I read the essay was how true it was.

The best paragraph I read?

"If there is any blame to be laid, it is the upholding of a compliant,
unquestioning culture; that some people should never be challenged because of age, status or whatever. It is not solely the establishment's fault; all political parties are entitled to play politics. But it is wholly our fault for
not fighting for what we believe in."

I damn near cried.

Share the joy

Every morning without fail I will see the same Malay guy sweeping along the walkway from my home to the MRT station. And almost every time I will feel like saying "hello" or "good morning!" because I think that is the least he deserves for getting up so ruddy early in the morning. However, every single time that thought comes it gets extinguished by the million other things that pops up in my head and I would pass by with barely a word.

On my way back home after band today at 11 plus, I saw the cleaner sweeping leaves from the road and I thought to myself "that's really one hardworking guy."

And that's about the time I made up my mind to at least greet him the next time I see him.

Because, I think we shouldn't be nice to same few people when we can share the joy with so many others.

The magic number 2

It's especially magic to the muggers who mug at science library. Because I noticed that

(i) 2 weeks before the first exam is the perfect time to start revising your work.

(ii) During these 2 weeks, you should take about 2 days for each module, 1/2 per day. If you do this without fail, you should have time to finish studying all your modules and have some time to take a breather.

and last but not least,

(iii) 2 pm is the best time to eat because it's literally "二" le (hungry). And also the science canteen will magically empty itself of people at precisely...you've guessed it 2pm.

Exams are finally coming to an end! YAY!

Numerus subtracticus

Just found this highly amusing. Hmz.

Bottom-ranked school shoots to top after introducing Harry Potter-themed curriculum
By DAVID WILKES source

A primary school has been praised as "outstanding" in an official government report after introducing Harry Potter-themed lessons, it has been revealed.

The fictional young wizard created by J K Rowling has helped standards at Robert Mellors Primary and Nursery in Arnold, Nottinghamshire, rise dramatically after pupils picked him to be the inspiration for all their classes.

This term has seen the seven to 11 year olds learning subtraction with the help of a Potter-esque "spell", writing their own plays based on the best-selling books and even keeping fit by pretending to get on and off imaginary broomsticks.

Year classes have been named Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin, after the school houses at Hogwarts, the wizards' school attended by Harry in the novels and hit movies.

The children wave wands as they join in the fun of learning and staff have got in the spirit of things by donning wigs and costumes.

So enthralled are the pupils by their lessons that behaviour in class has improved as well as their results shooting up.

The school, in a deprived area, has jumped from the bottom 25 per cent of schools nationally to just outside the top 5 per cent over the last three years after deciding to let pupils pick a theme for the curriculum each term.

JK Rowling's magical Harry Potter series has improved standards across the curriculum

Previous themes have included the Titanic, Africa and Princes and Princesses.

During the most recent visit from Ofsted, the inspector witnessed a maths lesson where the children were motivated to learn about subtraction by pretending that it is a magic formula created by Harry Potter.

Pupils were not allowed to answer questions without first saying a spell - "numerus subtracticus", which they devised themselves.

The official report describes achievement at the school as "outstanding".

"Pupils enter the school with standards well below average. Over the last three years, standards and achievement have improved greatly and were above average in Key Stage 2 tests in 2006," it says.

"Pupils are enthusiastic about their work in mathematics and particularly enjoy practical tasks and those that allow them to investigate mathematics. Some pupils said they enjoyed calculations because they knew what they were doing and they liked getting things right.

"They commented that mathematics is fun because they are always challenged and their teachers link it to the work they are doing in other subjects. Lessons observed were taught through the topic being covered in literacy. For example, subtraction was seen as a spell by 'Harry Potter'."

The interim report added: "Behaviour in lessons was of the highest standard and reflects pupils' enjoyment.

"Pupils were confident and all were able to work independently when required. The youngest children did not need to be told to put on aprons when working with liquids: they knew the expectations and responded accordingly."

Yesterday headteacher Donna Chambers said: "Other schools do topic-based learning, but not to the extent we do.

"With maths, the teacher will say 'today we are learning how to do inverse operation'. They put on their Harry Potter hat and wands, and work it out in their books."

Mrs Chambers, who was previously deputy head at Eastwood School in Nottingham, joined the school just over three years ago because she wanted a challenge.

"Historically the school had a really bad reputation, which is why I applied for the job here," she said.

"But that has now all changed.

"Letting the children choose a theme for each term has had a massive impact on their enthusiasm and motivation.

"We don't have any behaviour problems at all, even though we attract children who have been previously excluded."

Looking at the example lessons below I can only conclude one thing - their primary school life is so much more fun than mine. =(

Example lessons from the "Harry Potter curriculum"

•Maths: subtraction is seen as a "spell" which has been created by Harry Potter. Children have to say the magic words "numerus subtracticus" when they give an answer eg "58 minus 14 - numerus subtracticus - equals 44".

•English: to learn about dramatisation, pupils create their own scripts for plays based on the text from chapter two of J K Rowling's debut novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

•Art: imagine what Harry Potter would do if he painted a version of Vincent Van Gogh's 1889 masterpiece The Starry Night. The Potter-inspired versions featured witches, dragons and other beasties.

•History: the history of flight, starting with a discussion of Harry Potter's broomstick, then discussing if that is real and tracing the real development of aviation, including the Wright brothers.

•Geography: comparing the children's home town of Arnold, Nottinghamshire, with Goathland, North Yorkshire, where the scenes of Hogsmead Station were shot for the Potter films.

•Computers: take a virtual tour of Harry's fictional school Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry on the internet, then create a map of Robert Mellors Primary and Nursery School using similar information.

•Science: put a stick of celery in a beaker of blue dye and see how it takes in the fluid, turning the celery from green to blue. Discuss whether Harry Potter could use this to turn one of his foes a different colour.

•Music: learn how to create a mood by performing a piece of music relating to the theme "Hogwarts at night". Using percussion instruments, the children made appropriately spooky sounds.

•PE: balance and co-ordination is taught by getting the pupils to pretend they are Harry Potter and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger getting on and off their broomsticks (pupils used imaginary broomsticks).

MY NAME IS H W KANG , though in this time and age when fame is the altar at which many people worship, I'm not sure why you should care who I am or that i exist.

I am not a celebrity nor am I a friend of theirs. I do not own a shop owned by one and definitely do not have any ambitions of being one. In school, my teachers recognise me by the grades I get, and in the army, the extras i sign. My friends treat me as well as I am of use to them.I am such a nobody so much so that no one apart from my friends and friends gives me a second a look or gives a damn what I am doing.

Is there any wonder why so many people have trouble finding themselves? We have difficulty identifying with ourselves because other people impose their views on who we should be on us. We are labelled by the way we walk, talk, dress, smile, think, laugh , cry, sing. etc. Reality shows are so popular because the programmes gives us the chance to judge other people, often bearing ill intent.Too often we judge too superficially. All too often we embarass others to make ourselves feel superior.

I am nineteen, an age bordering on adulthood. To an adult my friends may consist of like-minded individuals between eighteen and twenty-one. To them, i may be no more than a child. To a child I am old enough to be distrusted, to be forever excluded from the young and beardless.

In truth, I do not really care about all of this. However, the point is, you do( if you have already read till here). Why that might be I don't really know nor do I really care. The thing is, I have reason enough to believe that someone, somewhere on the other side of the world , may be at some time reading my idiosyncratic nonsense in the hope that (gasp) it may lead him somewhere which, I tell you now, it does not.