Tak kenal maka tak cinta. Jom Kenali Universiti Awam (UA) Malaysia.
UIAM - UiTM - UKM - UM - UMK - UMP - UMS - UMT - UniMAP - UNIMAS - UniSZA - UPM - UPNM - UPSI - USIM - USM - UTeM - UTHM - UTM - UUM

Thursday, June 26, 2014

46 Good SPM English Model Essays / Free Essay Samples for O-level, IELTS, TOEFL & MUET Writing

Panduan MUET Guide Tips
Panduan MUET

46 Model Essay Samples for SPM English, O-level, IELTS, TOEFL & MUET Writing

Preparing for the upcoming MUET writing test and want to read some good essay examples? Read Free MUET Tips & Essential MUET Guide. Want to read some samples of good essays for IELTS writing? Or simply looking some ideas and inspiration for your SPM English writing homework? Below is the list of 46 free model essays for SPM English, O-level, IELTS, TOEFL & MUET Writing.

        Descriptive Essays

  1. Friend
  2. Friends
  3. My Best Friend
  4. Describe an afternoon at the bus station
  5. A Horrifying Swim
  6. A Prominent Malaysian Leader
  7. A Demonic Gold
  8. My Mother
  9. My Favourite TV Programme
  10. The Night Market
  11. Malaysia, a Unique Country

    Narrative Essays

  12. A Horror / Tragic Story
  13. Finally, A Voice Message
  14. Forgiven
  15. Home
  16. Race
  17. That is the reward for my patience and hardwork
  18. A Holiday I Would Never Forget
  19. Couple Foils Robbery Attempt
  20. Write a story starting with: “The widow had to work hard to bring up her little son alone...”
  21. My Most Embarrassing Situation
  22. A Road Accident
  23. Autumn on Sugarbush Street
  24. Of Bombs and Ice-Cream
  25. After All, It Isn’t That Bad

    Argumentative / Persuasive Essays

  26. Haze: A Danger to Health
  27. Money
  28. Cell phones - One of Our Greatest Technologies Misused
  29. Importance of Studying English
  30. Faith
  31. Thoughts On Sharing

    Reflective Essays

  32. Are undergraduates ready for the real world?
  33. Does School Prepare Us for Life
  34. What would you do if you had a lot of money
  35. Which do you prefer, living in the countryside or living in the city?

    Factual Essays

  36. Pollution
  37. Social Networking Website
  38. The Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA)

    Directed Writing

  39. Anti-Smoking Campaign Speech
  40. Informal Letter
  41. Informal Letter Sample
  42. Formal Letter: Letter of Application
  43. Formal Letter: Letter of Complain
  44. Complain Report About School Canteen
  45. Book Report
  46. Police Report on Accident
Want even more good sample essays for your SPM English writing, MUET writing or IELTS writing preparation? Enter email address now to get them!


► Read more on 46 Good SPM English Model Essays / Free Essay Samples for O-level, IELTS, TOEFL & MUET Writing

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Malaysia Education Blueprint Annual Report 2013 (Laporan Tahunan 2013 Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025)

National Education Blueprint Initiatives Show Encouraging Achievement

PUTRAJAYA (The Star Online): Four initiatives under the Malaysia Education Blueprint (MEB) 2013-2025, including pre-school enrolment and vocational education transformation, have shown encouraging achievement.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the pre-school enrolment achievement was at 81.7% (793,269 pupils) among children aged four and five compared to 80.05% in 2012.

“This is encouraging as a result of the various efforts taken by the Government, including providing incentives like the opening of 8,883 preschool classes to accommodate 192,173 pupils.

“If enough attention is given to the preschool enrolment rate, the ministry is confident of achieving 100% enrolment across all levels by 2020,” he said.

On the Vocational Education Transformation initiatives, Muhyi­ddin said the number of students was raised to 20% through the cooperation and involvement of the private sector in providing the facilities.

“The changes in the national education landscape will make vocational education the main choice of students and their parents like what is happening in developed countries,” he said when unveiling the MEB Annual Report 2013 here yesterday.

Two initiatives that had also shown encouraging achievements were the District Transformation Programme and Inclusive Education Programme.

The District Transformation Pro-gramme pioneered in Sabah and Kedah showed positive outcomes for the national examinations – the UPSR, PMR and SPM, said Muhyiddin, who is also Education Minister.

“Both states produced improved results, in fact their best since 10 years ago. The gap between rural and urban schools in Sabah and Kedah has become narrower and their achievement is much better than the national average,” he said.

Six other initiatives that met the KPIs included the Higher-order Thinking Skill (HOTS), Literacy and Numeracy (Linus), Professional Up-skilling of English Language Teachers (ProELT) and the Transformation of Teacher Education Institute, Principal’s Charter and Parents’ Engagement Toolkit.

Those initiatives were from a total of 25 implemented last year under the blueprint that was officially launched on Sept 6.

“The annual report is an important document which should be referred to for improved action. Whatever the achievements, they should serve as a guide for the ministry in drawing up better strategies and approaches,” said Muhyiddin.
Laporan Tahunan 2013 Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025

Malaysia Education Blueprint Anual Report 2013 (Laporan Tahunan 2013 Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025)

Download pdf files:
  1. Laporan Tahunan 2013 PPPM (Bahasa Malaysia)
  2. Malaysia Education Blueprint Anual Report 2013 (Bahasa Inggeris)
The full speech by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Education, launching Malaysia Education Blueprint Annual Report 2013 below:

TEKS UCAPAN
YAB TAN SRI DATO’ HJ MUHYIDDIN BIN HJ MOHD YASSIN
TIMBALAN PERDANA MENTERI
MERANGKAP MENTERI PENDIDIKAN MALAYSIA
MAJLIS PELANCARAN LAPORAN TAHUNAN 2013
PELAN PEMBANGUNAN PENDIDIKAN MALAYSIA 2013-2025
17 JUN 2014
SMK PUTRAJAYA PRESINT 11 (1)
PUTRAJAYA

Bismillahhirramanirrahim
Assalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh, Salam Sejahtera dan Salam 1Malaysia,

1. Pertama, marilah kita memanjatkan rasa syukur ke hadrat Allah S.W.T kerana dengan limpah dan kurnia-Nya, dapat kita bersama-sama dalam Majlis Pelancaran Laporan Tahunan 2013, Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia (PPPM) 2013-2025. Majlis ini memberi kesempatan kepada saya untuk menzahirkan penghargaan di atas kerja keras warga Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia dan warga pendidik dalam memulakan langkah pelaksanaan PPPM. Dan pada hari ini saya berasa bangga dapat menyampaikan laporan tahunan yang pertama bagi pelaksanaan PPPM.

2. Terlebih dahulu saya merakamkan ucapan terima kasih kepada Pengetua SMK Putrajaya Persint 11 (1) yang telah memberi ruang dan kesempatan untuk sama-sama kita berhimpun di sini bagi menyorot catatan pencapaian beberapa inisiatif PPPM yang telah kita usahakan bersama. Terima kasih jua saya ucapkan kepada YB Menteri Pendidikan II, Dato’ Sri Idris Jusoh, YB Timbalan-Timbalan Menteri, Ahli Panel Dialog Nasional Pendidikan Negara, dan Panel Bebas PPPM yang turut hadir dalam majlis ringkas tetapi amat bermakna dan penting bagi kita meneruskan agenda transformasi pendidikan.

Para hadirin yang saya hormati.

3. Sebagaimana yang telah kita sedia maklum, Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025 telah dilancarkan secara rasmi pada 6 September 2013. Walaupun PPPM ini dilancarkan hampir di penghujung tahun 2013 tetapi pelaksanaan beberapa inisiatif telah dimulakan pada awal tahun 2013. Alhamdulillah, kita semua telah dapat melihat kejayaan awal bagi enam inisiatif dalam tempoh 100 hari pelaksanaan dan pada hari ini pula, saya amat berbesar hati dapat menyampaikan Laporan Tahunan 2013 PPPM untuk pertama kalinya kepada semua pihak sejajar dengan Anjakan ke-11 PPPM iaitu, meningkatkan ketelusan untuk kebertanggungjawaban awam secara langsung.

4. Syabas dan terima kasih, saya ucapkan kepada semua pihak yang telah menghasilkan laporan ini tetapi yang lebih penting dari itu ialah usaha keras dan komitmen tulus ikhlas daripada pihak pengurusan Kementerian hinggalah kepada kumpulan pelaksana iaitu para guru yang telah memberi sumbangan yang bukan sedikit, untuk memastikan PPPM ini dilaksanakan dengan jayanya.

5. Seperti yang telah dimaklumkan oleh YBhg Dato’ KPPM sebentar tadi, sepanjang 2013, Kementerian telah memberi fokus kepada 25 inisiatif utama dengan tumpuan untuk memberi sokongan kepada guru serta meningkatkan kemahiran teras yang memberi impak terhadap keberhasilan murid.

6. Saya percaya sepanjang tahun 2013, Unit Pelaksanaan dan Prestasi Pendidikan (PADU) yang dipimpin oleh YBhg Dato’ Prof. Dr Rujhan Mustafar telah memainkan peranan yang sewajarnya bagi memastikan inisiatif-inisiatif mencapai KPI yang ditetapkan. Saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada YBhg Dato’ Prof. Dr Rujhan Mustafar atas sumbangan yang diberikan dan beliau kini tidak lagi bersama-sama PADU. Dan dalam kesempatan ini, saya ingin mengalu-alukan kehadiran CEO, PADU yang baru iaitu Pn Khadijah Abdullah (memperkenalkan CEO). Beliau bukanlah orang baru dalam dunia pendidikan. Pernah menjadi guru, pensyarah di maktab perguruan, dan pensyarah di university sebelum menceburi diri dalam bidang korporat. Saya berkeyakinan dengan kelayakan dan reputasi cemerlang yang dimiliki, beliau mampu memimpin PADU bagi merealisasikan PPPM ini.

Para hadirin yang saya hormati,

7. Saya berpendapat bahawa Laporan Tahunan PPPM ini merupakan satu dokumen penting yang perlu dirujuk untuk kita menambahbaik tindakan. Saya telah dimaklumkan bahawa, daripada 25 inisiatif yang dilaksanakan pada tahun 2013, ada inisiatif yang telah menunjukkan pencapaian menggalakkan. Tetapi ada juga inisiatif yang mencapai sebahagian daripada KPI dan sebilangan inisiatif lagi memerlukan tumpuan serta perhatian yang lebih khusus. Apa pun pencapaiannya, ia harus dijadikan panduan untuk Kementerian merangka strategi dan pendekatan yang lebih baik.

8. Di sini saya ingin menyatakan beberapa inisiatif yang berjaya menunjukkan pencapaian memberangsangkan. Dua inisiatif yang berkait dengan akses ialah,

a. Enrolmen prasekolah, dan
b. Transformasi Pendidikan Vokasional

Dua inisiatif berkaitan ekuiti iaitu,
a. Program Transformasi Daerah, dan
b. Program Pendidikan Inklusif

Dari aspek kualiti yang diberi penekanan dalam gelombang 1 ini, terdapat enam inisiatif yang mencapai KPI, iaitu,
a) Kemahiran berfikir aras tinggi (KBAT)
b) Literasi dan Numerasi (LINUS)
c) Profisiensi Guru Bahasa Inggeris (ProELT)
d) Transformasi Institut Pendidikan Guru,
e) Piagam Pemimpin Sekolah, dan
f) Sarana Ibu Bapa

Dua inisiatif yang berkait dengan kecekapan iaitu,
a) Transformasi Kementerian, dan
b) Pembaikan infrastruktur asas

Manakala satu inisiatif menyentuh tentang perpaduan yang berjaya dilaksanakan pada 2013 ialah Rancangan Integrasi Murid Untuk Perpaduan (RIMUP).

9. Program Transformasi Daerah (DTP) sebagai contoh, adalah inisiatif yang menunjukkan pencapaian paling ketara. Program ini yang dirintis di Sabah dan Kedah, bertujuan untuk meningkatkan prestasi sekolah di samping merapatkan jurang pencapaian antara sekolah bandar dan luar bandar. Sekolah yang berprestasi rendah telah dibantu oleh SIPartner+ dan SISC+, manakala sekolah-sekolah dalam Band 3 hingga 5 diusahakan untuk mencapai prestasi yang lebih baik.

10. Pada 2013, program rintis ini memperlihatkan keberhasilan yang signifikan apabila kadar peningkatan keputusan peperiksaan kebangsaan (UPSR, PMR, SPM) di kedua-dua negeri tersebut adalah yang tertinggi berbanding semua negeri lain di Malaysia. Malah, pencapaian peperiksaan kebangsaan yang diraih ini adalah yang terbaik bagi kedua-dua negeri tersebut semenjak 10 tahun yang lalu. Jurang pencapaian antara sekolah bandar-luar bandar di Sabah dan Kedah nampaknya semakin mengecil dan jauh lebih baik daripada purata bagi seluruh negara. Sesungguhnya kejayaan ini amat membanggakan dan memberi kekuatan kepada Kementerian untuk memperluaskan lagi Program Transformasi Daerah ini ke seluruh negara mulai 2014.

11. Pencapaian pendidikan dari segi akses sejak negara merdeka pada 1957 amat menggalakkan. Ketika itu, tidak banyak kanak-kanak mendapat akses. Lebih separuh daripada populasi tidak pernah mendapat persekolahan formal, hanya 6 peratus mendapat pendidikan menengah dan 1 peratus memperoleh pendidikan lepas menengah. Kini kita telah mencapai enrolmen hampir sejagat di peringkat rendah iaitu sekitar 96 peratus.

12. Atas dasar bahawa setiap kanak-kanak warganegara Malaysia berhak mendapat kesamarataan peluang pendidikan bagi membolehkan mereka mencapai potensi masing-masing, PPPM telah melaksanakan beberapa usaha ke arah peluasan akses seperti;
a. Peningkatan enrolmen prasekolah;
b. Transformasi pendidikan vokasional (TPV);
c. Penawaran pelbagai aliran pendidikan;
d. Penerusan akses kepada pendidikan bagi kumpulan khusus; dan
e. Transformasi Tingkatan Enam;.

13. Kementerian yakin sekiranya kadar enrolmen murid di peringkat prasekolah diberi perhatian, kita mampu mencapai 100 peratus enrolmen merentas semua peringkat sekolah menjelang 2020. Oleh itu, bagi tahun 2013 tumpuan inisiatif bagi mencapai akses ialah meningkatkan enrolmen prasekolah. Pada tahun 2013, enrolmen prasekolah yang dicapai berada pada 81.7 peratus (793 269 murid) daripada kanak-kanak berumur 4+ dan 5+ berbandingan 80.5 peratus pada tahun 2012. Ini merupakan pencapaian yang menggalakkan dengan beberapa usaha Kerajaan memberi pelbagai insentif seperti membuka sebanyak 8,883 kelas prasekolah pada 2013 bagi menampung seramai 192 173 (24.2%) murid.

14. Inisiatif Transformasi Pendidikan Vokasional merupakan satu lagi usaha ke arah meningkatkan pencapaian akses seiring dengan aspirasi sistem di dalam PPPM. Pendidikan vokasional suatu ketika dulu dianggap sebagai pendidikan kelas dua dan hanya diceburi oleh murid yang tidak berminat untuk belajar dalam aliran akademik. Kini, melalui Transformasi Pendidikan Vokasional, murid yang menyertai aliran vokasional dipersiapkan dengan kelayakan dan kemahiran yang diiktiraf oleh industri supaya diterima dalam pasaran kerja serta mampu menjadi usahawan yang berdaya saing pada masa hadapan. Mereka juga dapat melanjutkan pengajian hingga ke peringkat diploma melalui pewujudan Kolej Vokasional. Perubahan dalam lanskap struktur pendidikan negara dan bidang ini menjadi pilihan utama murid serta ibu bapa sebagaimana amalan negara maju. Pada tahun 2013, peratus murid ditingkatkan kepada 20 peratus melalui kerjasama serta pelibatan pihak swasta dalam menyediakan kemudahan pendidikan tersebut.

15. Sistem pendidikan negara juga tidak mengenepikan peningkatan kualiti pendidikan untuk murid Orang Asli. Sehingga kini, sebanyak 39,149 (0.74%) daripada murid sekolah rendah dan sekolah menengah seluruh negara merupakan murid Orang Asli. Bagi membaiki pencapaian murid Orang Asli, inisiatif PPPM 2013 menjurus ke arah meningkatkan penguasaan literasi dan numerasi; meningkatkan taraf kemudahan infrastruktur di sekolah dan asrama; meningkatkan hubungan sekolah dengan komuniti melalui Kelas Dewasa Ibu Bapa Murid Orang Asli dan Peribumi (KEDAP); dan meningkatkan kualiti serta kebajikan guru.

Para hadirin yang dihormati,

16. Gelombang 1 PPPM memberi tumpuan kepada menyokong guru dan memberi tumpuan kepada kemahiran utama kerana Kementerian memahami bahawa guru memainkan peranan yang amat penting dalam menjayakan transformasi pendidikan. Guru adalah individu yang mencorakkan murid. Jika pengajaran dan pembelajaran guru menarik dan hebat, sudah tentu murid yang dilahirkan juga hebat lagi bijaksana.

17. Bagi mencapai hasrat ini, keutamaan Kementerian adalah meningkatkan kualiti guru bermula dengan Transformasi IPG. Pada tahun lalu, syarat pengambilan guru telah diperketatkan. Sebanyak 42 peratus pengambilan merupakan pelajar dengan sekurang-kurangnya 7A dan 70 peratus dengan sekurang-kurangnya 5A. Langkah ini merupakan petanda baik ke arah amalan sistem berprestasi tinggi seperti Finland, Singapura dan Korea Selatan yang membenarkan hanya pelajar dalam kelompok 10 peratus hingga 30 peratus teratas menyertai profesion perguruan.

18. Profesion perguruan terus diperkasakan melalui inisiatif Piagam Guru dan Pemimpin Sekolah. Pada tahun lalu inisiatif ini telah berjaya menghasilkan Instrumen Penilaian Bersepadu (Unified Instrument, UI); menghasilkan Pelan Induk Pembangunan Profesional Berterusan (PIPPB); dan memperkemaskan laluan kerjaya guru. Bagi Piagam Pemimpin Sekolah, syarat pemilihan pengetua dan guru besar berasaskan prestasi telah diluluskan dan dilaksanakan, untuk memastikan calon yang terbaik memimpin sekolah.

19. Satu lagi kejayaan cemerlang yang dapat dicapai dalam aspek kualiti guru ialah peningkatan penguasaan guru Bahasa Inggeris. Kejayaan ini penting dalam usaha Kementerian untuk melahirkan murid yang berkemahiran dalam sekurang-kurangnya dua bahasa. Kementerian telah menetapkan standard penguasaan bagi guru sekolah rendah dan menengah berdasarkan Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR).Buat pertama kalinya, Kementerian menjalankan ujian penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris secara besar-besaran melibatkan 61,000 guru, guru pelatih dan pensyarah. Keputusan penilaian tersebut membolehkan seramai 14,000 guru dikenal pasti untuk menjalani program peningkatan bahasa atau Professional Upskilling for English Language Teachers (Pro-ELT)dan menduduki Ujian Aptis.

20. Dalam ujian ini bagi guru-guru Kohot 1 seramai 5010 telah menunjukkan keputusan yang menggalakkan dengan pencapaian 76.4 peratus guru meningkat sekurang-kurangnya satu tahap profisiensi. Peratus guru pada tahap BI yang telah meningkat sekurang-kurangnya satu band ialah 90.8 peratus manakala guru B2 yang meningkat sekurang-kurangnya satu band ialah 42.1 peratus. Sebanyak 10.8 peratus guru telah menunjukkan peningkatan dua tahap penguasaan.

21. Turut dipaparkan di dalam Laporan Tahunan 2013 PPPM ini ialah kejayaan inisiatif LINUS (Literasi dan Numerasi). Peningkatan penguasaan Bahasa Malaysia dan Bahasa Inggeris dalam kalangan murid menjadi keutamaan segera PPPM 2013-2025. Inisiatif LINUS telah mensasarkan 100 peratus murid menguasi literasi Bahasa Malaysia dan numerasi. Pada tahun 2013, LINUS 2.0 telah menunjukkan pencapaian yang memberangsangkan bagi murid Tahun 3, iaitu 99.1 peratus murid menguasai literasi Bahasa Malaysia dan 99.3 peratus menguasai numerasi. Literasi Bahasa Inggeris Tahun 1 yang baharu dilaksanakan pada tahun lalu telah menunjukkan peningkatan yang ketara daripada saringan garis asas 50.1 peratus kepada 63.3 peratus dalam saringan 2.

22. Walaupun terdapat peningkatan pencapaian yang ketara bagi literasi Bahasa Inggeris, sasaran 100 peratus yang ditetapkan pada akhir Tahun 3 masih jauh untuk dicapai. Sasaran ini memerlukan kadar peningkatan lebih 18 peratus setahun dalam tempoh dua tahun akan datang. Kadar peningkatan ini jauh mengatasi kemajuan yang pernah diperoleh bagi literasi Bahasa Malaysia dan numerasi. Sasaran yang ditetapkan amat mencabar kerana terdapat sebilangan besar sekolah yang mempunyai ramai murid Tahun 1 yang tidak menguasai literasi Bahasa Inggeris

23. Di samping inisiatif, Kementerian akan terus melipatgandakan usaha meningkatkan kemahiran berfikir aras tinggi (KBAT) dalam proses pengajaran dan pembelajaran. KBAT merupakan elemen penting bagi melahirkan modal insan yang mampu bersaing pada abad ke 21. Bagi tahun 2013, beberapa inisiatif telah dilakukan untuk meningkatkan KBAT seperti Program i-Think di 500 buah sekolah. Sepuluh buah sekolah juga telah memasuki fasa pencalonan untuk program International Baccalaurate Middle Years.
Para hadirin sekalian,

24. Sokongan kepada guru dan meningkatkan kemahiran teras perlu diiringi dengan kecekapan kita mengurus pendidikan dan kemudahan infrastruktur yang kondusif. Pada tahun lalu, Kementerian telah memulakan usaha untuk mentransformasi Kementerian. Sebagai langkah permulaan, perwakilan kuasa ke JPN bagi kontrak perolehan, perkhidmatan dan bekalan sehingga RM 5 juta telah dilaksanakan. Profil kompetensi kepimpinan 251 jawatan utama JPN dan PPD juga telah selesai dilaksanakan. Pada tahun ini, penyusunan fungsi Bahagian-Bahagian di Kementerian sedang diusahakan dan jika mengikut perancangan keberkesanan transformasi ini akan dapat dilihat pada 2016 nanti.

25. Begitu juga dengan usaha untuk meningkatkan kualiti infrastruktur di sekolah. Kementerian telah berjaya membaiki 1,693 buah sekolah yang daif pada tahun 2013. Namun begitu, Kementerian sedar bahawa masih banyak lagi sekolah yang berkeadaan daif untuk ditingkatkan kualiti infrastruktur khususnya di negeri Sabah dan Sarawak. Kesemua perkara ini memerlukan kita melipatgandakan usaha agar suatu hari nanti sistem pendidikan negara kita adalah sebaris dengan negara-negara yang terbaik di dunia. Insyallah.

26. Dalam usaha menyediakan sistem pendidikan yang berkualiti, Kementerian terus dengan agenda memupuk perpaduan melalui interaksi murid dalam pelbagai program yang di sediakan di sekolah. Satu daripadanya ialah pelaksanaan Rancangan Intergrasi Murid Untuk Perpaduan (RIMUP) dengan tumpuan kepada tiga aspek, iaitu kebudayaan dan kesenian, sukan dan permainan serta patriotism dan jati diri. Pada tahun lalu sebanyak 20 peratus sekolah rendah terlibat dengan pelaksanaan RIMUP. Inisiatif ini mensasarkan sebanyak 60 peratus sekolah akan melaksanakan RIMUP pada 2014.

Para Hadirin Sekalian

27. Saya ingin mengucapkan syabas kepada semua pihak yang bertungkus lumus dalam melaksanakan inisiatif PPPM. Meskipun telah terpancar beberapa kejayaan awal PPPM dalam tempoh setahun yang lalu, kita tidak seharusnya leka atau terlalu awal untuk berpuas hati dengan kejayaan yang telah dicapai. Beberapa isu dan cabaran masih dihadapi khususnya dalam usaha merapatkan jurang pencapaian murid dan prestasi sekolah Bandar dan luar bandar.

28. Selain daripada jurang pencapaian, masih wujud jurang digital, status sosial ekonomi antara kaum dan jurang lokasi yang perlu diatasi supaya hasrat PPPM untuk memperluaskan akses, memperkukuhkan perpaduan, meningkatkan ekuiti, kualiti dan keberkesanan sistem pendidikan negara dapat dicapai.

29. Kementerian Pendidikan telah mengiktiraf pelan transformasi pendidikan negara melalui penyediaan Laporan Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025. Untuk melangkah ke tahun 2014, Kementerian akan meneruskan usaha bagi mencapai aspirasi sistem seperti yang telah ditetapkan dan dihasratkan dalam PPPM seperti peningkatan penguasaan Bahasa Inggeris dalam kalangan guru dan murid, sebanyak 100 peratus Pengetua dan Guru Besar yang berpotensi tinggi untuk mengisi kekosongan jawatan dengan menggunakan syarat baharu, dan 31 peratus sekolah berada dalam Band 1 dan 2.

30. Transformasi menjanjikan perubahan. Dan perubahan yang akan dilaksanakan pada 2014 adalah merentasi sistem pendidikan negara. Guru masih menjadi tumpuan utama dan peranan yang perlu dimainkan adalah menjadi pemimpin dalam bilik darjah. Pelbagai bentuk sokongan, bimbingan dan latihan disediakan bagi meningkatkan pengetahuan dan kemahiran pengajaran.

31. Bagi pemimpin sekolah, mereka perlu berperanan sebagai pemimpin pengajaran yang cemerlang dan meluangkan lebih banyak masa untuk melatih guru, menjadi agen perubahan di sekolah dan dalam komuniti. Manakala pegawai di JPN/PPD, mereka perlu menjadi pembimbing dan menyokong pihak sekolah. Perlu mengadakan lawatan kerja ke sekolah dengan lebih kerap dan membantu sekolah menyelesaikan masalah.
Tuan-tuan dan puan-puan,

32. Saya percaya sepanjang pelaksanaan inisiatif PPPM 2013, banyak pengajaran dan pengalaman telah diperoleh dan dipelajari bagi Kementerian meningkatkan lagi usaha. Antaranya adalah :

a. Kejayaan cemerlang beberapa sekolah dalam PISA 2012 yang setanding dengan pendidikan terbaik di dunia boleh dijadikan contoh bagi sekolah-sekolah lain untuk meningkatkan prestasi;

b. Pencapaian cemerlang beberapa inisiatif membuktikan bahawa kejelasan matlamat yang hendak dicapai dan perancangan yang teliti merupakan faktor kritikal kejayaan; dan yang tidak kurang penting ialah,

c. Pelibatan pihak berkepentingan. Sokongan dan kerjasama daripada pihak berkepentingan khususnya para ibu bapa amat-amat ditagih. Saya rasa amat bangga apabila dimaklumkan telah ada sekumpulan jurulatih dari kalangan ibu bapa yang secara ikhlas membantu Kementerian menarik sokongan ibu bapa untuk sama-sama memastikan kejayaan PPPM. Sebahagian daripada mereka turut hadir hari ini - ucapan setinggi-tinggi terima kasih kepada mereka.

33. Kajian telah menunjukkan kira-kira 80 peratus transformasi yang dilakukan oleh mana-mana organisasi yang berskala besar gagal mencapai hasil yang diharapkan. Kajian juga menunjukkan bahawa organisasi yang menggunakan agenda perubahan adalah empat (4) kali kemungkinan untuk berjaya dalam proses transformasi. Ini bermakna transformasi pendidikan yang sedang diusahakan perlu melibatkan perubahan amalan dan keupayaan mengurus perubahan. Matlamat PPPM seharusnya disampai dan dipahat sedalamnya dalam setiap sanubari warga pendidik agar kita semua senada dalam melaksanakan transformasi pendidikan. Oleh itu, saya menyeru kepada semua barisan pemimpin baik di peringkat Kementerian, JPN, PPD dan sekolah serta semua pihak berkepentingan agar menjadikan PPPM sebagai keutamaan, satu agenda dan satu impian. Insyallah suatu hari nanti kita mencapai kejayaan yang kita impikan.

Sekian, Assalamualaikum w.b.t.

Source: Ministry of Education, Malaysia


► Read more on Malaysia Education Blueprint Annual Report 2013 (Laporan Tahunan 2013 Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025)

Sunday, June 15, 2014

I Almost Flunked in My SPM Trial Exams - 7 Tips on Keeping Continuous Momentum Till the End of SPM

I Almost Flunked in My Trials

by Balqis Badawi [Writing Contest 2014 ★ Winner ★]

THERE, almost there. Almost. I almost flunked in my SPM trials examination. People around do expect high from me, being one of the boarding school student, de cream de la cream, they say. SPM is about 3 months to go, and I almost failed in my trials, getting E's mostly in Science subjects; Biology around 42/100, Chemistry 44/100, excluding Physics, I was able to obtained a C+ with 56/100. Another E was for the so-called killer subject for students who hated numbers and counting; that is Additional Mathematics, which I passed the subject with the help of my project assignment, getting 41/100. Crying over the spilt milk, I have experienced that and it was not that worth it if it continues by days past. My friends asked me how did I get up and move on? And most importantly is how did I gear up till the end of 3rd December 2012?

So, what was the key to gear up the engine, having the continuous momentum till the end? The key is to get everything right from the beginning.

1. Get your time right.

The right time to study, the right time to rest, the right time to exercise, playing around, the right time to perform your prayers at time. When you put and use your time at the right time and right place, you will see everything seems right and nice accordingly. It is better if you could make an appropriate schedule that is within your capability. For instance, based on my experience before, the right time for me to study is not during the preparation class, which was from 9pm to 11pm. I am usually fresh early in the morning, around 3am to 5 am. So, what I did was I slept during the preparation class (prep) and get up early in the morning. Well, of course, I was awake when the warden came to check us during the night prep. :) Trust me, once you found the right time, you will get the time right.

2. Get the right schedule of yourself.

After you found the right time and you got it, it is advisable for you to make up a schedule. So, you would not get everything crammed up in your head. Sometimes, the schedule is not by you jotting down the daily activities done, as everyday would be different events happen, thus, you could make 2 types of schedule. First, the daily schedule based on your routine. What you usually do. Stick to it. And ensure the schedule lists are among the things that you want to do it and you can also do it. The second schedule is in your mind, you, yourself know about it. And you just need to visualize it!

Saying if today, you have additional class at night, what you usually do at night should be done at other time. Trust me, making schedule maybe look so 'skema' but it helps, or at least, it motivates you to move!

3. Get the right materials for the period that last.

These materials must include the basic of subjects, the references and the exercises. For me, as I almost failed in the Sciences subjects, I focus more on how to catch up in these subjects. What I did was to get the right materials. For the basic of subjects, I highly recommend the students to use the Pan Asia exercise books, especially for Biology, Chemistry and Physics. It is because, the exercises are based on the topics, and the answers include explanation as well. It helped me a lot to detect where I was wrong, and even I got it right, but my understanding for the question was wrong, it makes me clearer in that matter. One more thing about the basic concept of the subject is you need to know how to tackle it. You can either ask your teacher, ask your seniors, ask your friends, or ask yourself how you are going to deal with the subjects. Plus, you can also list down the sub topics so you could be clearer for the subject. Tick after you think you have quite understood the sub topic so, that you could know where you are at that time. Varying the type exercise books to improve your basic on the subject is encouraged too, but make sure you have time for it.

Pan Asia SPM Exercise Books
(Among the books I used. The Pan Asia exercise books were bought at Pustaka Mukmin, Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, Kuala Lumpur)

Next, for the reference materials, for reference books, besides textbooks as the primary reference, I usually get other references which are written by the textbook authors. And usually the Pelangi publisher got most of them. In my view, they are good to be used, as the examination is actually based on the textbook, and the writer of the textbooks must have the idea on what to elaborate further in the reference books. Besides, the notes given by the teachers are as well important, as reference materials, as the teachers have also years of experiences in teaching and keeping update with the requirement of the examination questions. What students can do is to digest those notes, and also exchanging notes with other schools, especially among SBP and MRSM. Not to forget, some SMK/SMKA/Maahad have also very good notes; thus, try to discuss among your friends and plan who will take which school to exchange notes with. However, do not take forever to exchange notes as it may waste your time later. Notes are essential but you need to be selective (picky) with it. Use the notes which you could understand better. Do not get lots of notes, and in the end they are brought home just to be recycled!

Lastly, for the exercises, at my end, I have done the trial papers from other states, SBP and MRSM trial papers as well as the past year questions. For the trial papers, make sure you have the answer as well. Based on my past experience, usually the teachers will help in this matter, distributing sets and sets of trial questions, to be done and discussed together, but, having lots of trial papers, sometimes, you will have insufficient time to check all of them. You are not just taking 3 subjects for your SPM, but 7 subjects at least! Hence, for this matter, I suggest students to get a copy of their own for the answers. If you could not get them from the teachers, I believe there are lots of other sources especially on the Internet. Make a copy of them, and identify your mistake. Improve yourself, and at least feel a little bit proud when you managed to answer the questions, although it is first question. :) What is a question without an answer, right?

P/S: Past year questions are compulsory to be settled before entering the hall. If you could possibly make it, why not? :)

4. Get yourself the right and clean intention.

Ask yourself, why are you struggling in learning all of this knowledge? What do you want in the end? Remember, to work with the end in mind. The right intention will bring you to the right track, having the clear vision and mission, as well as to gain continuous motivation and best support from the right person. When I was at this 17 years old age, counting weeks to SPM, I took a piece of paper, I wrote on it, "Kenapa NUR BALQIS BINTI MOHD BADAWI mesti dapat 11A+?". And I listed down about 7 concrete reasons, hoping with having a look later, it could motivate me better. Around the empty spaces on the paper, I jot down, what my parents had always advised me, what my teachers motivated me, what my siblings and relatives promised for me if I achieve good results, (at least with no subject failed). Along the way, there will be two sides, the positive sides, and vice versa. It is up to you to choose which one you want, as sometimes, people will bring you down, but there will always are people who will push you to your limit. If think you are a Ferrari, act like a Ferrari engine, and do not act like a Kancil car. And I do believe everyone is not a Ferrari, you are much better than that car. :)

5. Get the right company.

Especially when you are studying by yourself. The right company is among them who excel in their studies. Or at least they who have passion in studies and learning. So, when you are studying, learning, or doing exercises, once you stuck up on a question, at least you could have someone to ask. Someone to refer to. If you are always with the friends who are same level with you, when you both bottled up at a question, to whom you should refer then? For me it is not only about the right company, but it is also about time. At this very end, time is really precious and you do not want to be stuck up at a question too long. It is like you need experts around you. For instance, when I was gearing up in my momentum, I woke up around 4am to do the trial papers. If I could not understand or find the solution for the question, I would wake up my roommate, who is good in that subject. Well, it was a plus for me to get a bright friend and also someone who is willing to help me early in the morning, although by disturbing her sleep. :D

6. Get the right study group and the right people in the study group.

Making study group in a smaller size should be just nice too. For example before, for my Additional Mathematics, I was put in a group of 5. When I stuck on a question, the leader, usually who got A in the subject, will guide us. And for that matter, my tutor could explain to me from the basic about that question, and I got it clear and as easy as that. I did not have any idea about the question and the topic related to it, but it seems really effective by having that small study group. An additional point that I would like to add up, study group is not about discussion all time long, but it also needs one-to-one interaction. Some people may be too weak and shy to ask, hence, by the leader giving more attention to one another, I think that should help. When the group is smaller, the attention is better. The smaller, the merrier!

7. Get the right attitude.

Why? Simply because attitude shows what is in your mind, and the most important is, it resembles who you really are. You cannot learn about attitude, but you can rather practice and train it in yourself. You can install the positive or negative elements in your mind, and look how you respond to it. At this point, attitude is really essential, as it helps you to motivate yourself, to maintain a good mind and to keep going, like what the Dory in the Finding Nemo movie once said before, “Just keep swimming!”. Here, it means, “Just keep moving on!”.

Get the attitude of being self-discipline, taking care of our hygiene, respecting time and using it wisely, be nice to everyone around you, so, that, you build a positive healthy lifestyle inside yourself and around you. Avoid doing mischievous things that soon, you know that you will regret, sooner or later. Between the SPM gaps, is among the critical time you should take care of. Avoid from doing outrageous, weird, harmful things, and even when you say you want your time out; reading novels, onlining throughout the hour passed, seems really not beneficial and may drag you to regretting it later. Why? Because I am afraid if we are an addict of novels or surfing the Internet, we just could not bear to leave it although three hours has passed! I experience that before. So, if you want to have time out, do exercise, or take a walk for a while, talk to your friends about good and positive stories and matters (but not gossiping, that is quite inappropriate), and other things that you enjoy doing it! Or like me before, give a call to your parents, their voice will cheer you up and also calm you down. :D

Lastly, one of the good attitude that you must instill inside yourself is to always pray to God. Each of us has their own religion and their own way to recite and perform prayers. Thus, as our nature is being dependent to our creator, always ask for His guide, bless, and ease in our works and daily life. Prayers will grow us stronger and having deep faith in facing obstacles and circumstances. If it is not sooner, it will still come later. I remembered before, when I got these 3 E's in my trial, my aunt who is a teacher said that I should not worry because if God wills, at least I could get C for those subjects. I keep on praying and working hard, asking for strength from the Strongest One, eventually I achieved 2 A- and an A for those subjects. Who said miracles could not happen? Miracles could happen, for them who believe it will happen. So, keep on praying, guys!

I think that is all what I would like to share. I believe there are lots of seniors out there who had made a drastic change and succeeded in SPM after they had slumped in their mid-terms or trials like me. So, no worries guys! Though challenges are everywhere, but do the best you can! If the past candidates have proven it, so, this would be your turn to prove it too! I wish all of the SPM candidates all the best for the upcoming examination. Thank you for reading this post and may it helps though a little. Bonne continuation!

Balqis Badawi, 19, completed her SPM in 2012. Though not that successful, she is grateful to achieve 10As and 1B in her actual SPM. Feeling blessed, she wanted to share her experiences, thoughts and opinions with the SPM candidates, to highlight that it is never too late to work for your SPM proper even after your trial examinations. She is now completing her matriculation in law at Centre of Foundation Studies of IIUM in Petaling Jaya.


► Read more on I Almost Flunked in My SPM Trial Exams - 7 Tips on Keeping Continuous Momentum Till the End of SPM

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Self-Reflection: Good grades, so what?

Guest post written by Savier
The Pencil Box
In this article, I am going to briefly discuss if getting good grades is important for the future. Please allow me to start off this article by sharing some of my own personal experience.

I did not consider myself a bright student when I was young until I was Form 3 when I “accidentally” obtained the third position in class (accidentally because I am not sure how I got it - probably my classmates did pretty badly!). I felt proud of my achievement and started to become greedy. I told myself I wanted more, I wanted to be the first in the class! I began to study hard and after that incident, I aced most of my exams and passed my O level with flying colours. I was awarded the “Top in Brunei Darussalam in Accounting” by the University of Cambridge and the Ministry of Education, Brunei. That’s when I started to have the mindset that my future would be bright just by studying hard and scoring all A’s in the exams.

Self-Reflection: Good grades, so what

After my high school, I was having difficulties in deciding which university I should go to and what course to take. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to have some senior friends to give me good advice and I ended up doing Engineering. One piece of advice that influenced me the most till today was a quote by one of my seniors just a few weeks before I left the country.
“Having a Ph.D doesn’t mean that you can handle the working world”
After listening to that quote, I went home and did a self-reflection. I started wondering if it was compulsory to get good grades to become successful in life. I wondered whether the things taught in the classroom would be sufficient enough for me to prepare for the future.

I realized - No! It is not compulsory for you to get good grades in order to be successful. It has been a tradition that most of our parents have high expectations on us. And because we were taught since young to get good grades, scoring A’s in examinations became a common practice for us. In my point of view, we should start changing this mindset. It is no longer relevant today. I consider myself lucky for being able to realize this early; that one does not need to be defined only by their academic performance. Look at Bill Gates and Steve Jobs; they didn’t need a degree to become successful. Don’t get me wrong, I am not discouraging you from furthering your studies. What I wanted to emphasize is to stop having the mindset of “Getting good grades mean you will perform well in your future career”. Instead, start finding out things that will prepare you better for your future aside from the A’s.

There must always be something that is not covered by the syllabus but is extremely important for the future; for instance, how to communicate effectively. Your language class may have taught you how to speak and write properly but communicating with people effectively is a skill that requires a lot of practice. How do you deal with your clients? You may have learned that inside the classroom for a semester or so during your undergraduate studies but is that the case in reality? Start discovering by working as a client server and see how it differs from what you have learned in class.

There are so many useful skills that you need to acquire in life and most of these will not be formally taught in class. Begin your discovering journey today and start learning by joining a club or the student council. It’s the simplest yet most efficient way for a beginner to start learning things. Try involving yourself with as many activities as possible but be sure that you pass your exams too. Try to rotate or join different clubs and see how they work and how you work with different people. As you go along, you will definitely develop yourself with skills and by then, discover what you love doing.
 
Most of the skills that I have today came from activities that I joined outside classes and I find them very useful. The more things you join and experience in life, the more stories you will have to talk about especially during your interview. You are competing with someone for the same position and you wouldn’t want to talk about how many A’s you got during high school. I believe your employers would strike you off from the list immediately. Impress them by telling them what you did and I believe they would love to hear what you have to say.

Read again and think about it.

Now it is 2:18 AM and it’s time for me to go to bed, we’ll talk again soon!

Cheers!

Savier is a Chemical Engineering student in Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus. He was a member of the Student Council in 2013 and also the one and only student representative in the Swinburne University Council 2013-2014. He is an animal lover and whenever he is free, he volunteers with the SSPCA in their adoption event, helping stray animals find new homes. He is friendly, loves talking, and exchanging ideas and experiences with people. He is a food hunter and usually goes around exploring delicious food. He is a university advocate at The Pencil Box (www.jclathepencilbox.org), a site that helps students accelerate their learning curve in university by publishing articles on self-development, leadership and creative learning.


► Read more on Self-Reflection: Good grades, so what?

Thursday, June 05, 2014

A Few Tools to Help You Present Better

Guest post written by Esther Ling
The Pencil Box
"Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected." - Steve Jobs
So you’ve done your research required for that assignment. Done the homework for the presentation. Got your results from the lab. You give yourself a pat on the back, thinking, ‘I’ve put in a lot of effort, the lecturer should now appreciate my hard work.’

Not quite.

You’ve still got to complete the assignment, do the presentation, and write the lab report. Quite often we think effort translates easily to well-deserved appreciation and good grades; after all, the teacher should have noticed right? But we forget we sit in a sea of scores of students doing the same thing as we do.

How about, instead of waiting to be noticed, get noticed. Imagine this scenario: You’ve been waiting to give your presentation in class for two hours. Everyone else in the class has been dull and droning, leaving the assessors tired and fidgety. Then it’s your turn. What can you do to enliven up the situation and draw attention to your work? It boils down, quite a lot, to how well you have prepared your content, and how you present it.

Quite often we swot over getting the information we need, but pay little attention to how we present it. You could have the best data, research, results, but if you don’t present your findings well, well then, what is the point?

Think about how you can better present your work.

If it’s the assignment, are your sentences too long? Are your paragraphs long-winded? Have you proof-read the content? Is the case structured in a convincing, well-thought out manner? Is it easy for the reader to understand?

If it’s the lab report, have you used the right tone for sentences? Do your tables and figures summarize your paragraphed content concisely, or are they just stand-alone tables and figures? Are the results convincing?

If it’s the presentation, is it just another boring power-point presentation where you talk with monotonous tones? Or is it one that you have carefully crafted to intrigue the audience about your work?

Perhaps if we spent a little more time on how we present, rather than just the 'what', we would get more attention and deliver more meaning.

In addition to the preparatory thought you put into designing how you present, here are some tools you may consider:

PowerPoint

We can certainly come up with better ways to craft our powerpoint slides. How many times have we put people to sleep with our dull slides? Alexei Kapterev actually came up with a humorous slide titled 'Death by PowerPoint.'


Death by PowerPoint from Alexei Kapterev

LifeHacker has brilliant tips in this article.

Prezi

If you find PowerPoint boring or would like a different way to present your work, you could try this presentation tool. It uses the concept of a story board that you zoom in and out to tell ‘your story,’ instead of the usual slide format. Its main advantage is its ability to show the link of ideas. According to Prezi, “Teachers have the task of conveying complex ideas in a short amount of time, struggling to fit enough detail into each slide. Often, teachers are forced to fragment data, charts, and diagrams by breaking them up over several slides, where the connection between them is lost.”

A well designed Prezi can capture the audience’s attention instantly. You can get a student license for free by using your student webmail to apply for one.

Infographics

If you must use pictures and diagrams, make sure they get the point across.
Here's some examples of great graphics: Six Revisions

If we put a little more thought into how we present our work to others, perhaps there would be better sharing of ideas and findings in university.

Esther Ling
Esther Ling is a final year electrical power engineering student at Curtin Sarawak. When not immersed in solving equations and completing lab reports, she writes for The Pencil Box, a student initiative she founded in 2013. The Pencil Box helps students accelerate their learning curve at university, by providing articles on self-development, leadership and creative learning. The Pencil Box website: www.jclathepencilbox.org


► Read more on A Few Tools to Help You Present Better

Join over 50,000 people who get FREE latest scholarship updates via email!

Free Scholarship Updates:   

More scholarships available at Malaysia Scholarship Information Centre

Do Not Miss Any Job Offers! Get Student Part Time Jobs via Email!