English the way to go

I BELIEVE English must remain the medium of instruction for the teaching of Maths and Science at all levels. Policy-makers must ensure the policy stays for the sake of future generations.

People have hailed the new policy, saying it will bring about positive results in the long run. Unfortunately, there are also people who are demanding that the teaching of these subjects in English be stopped.

We cannot deny that English is a global language, not just used in trade, media, entertainment and politics, but also in the fields of information technology, medicine and engineering.

In this day and age, many non-English speakers are now encouraging their children to learn the language at school knowing that being proficient in English helps them to compete globally, and to “see” the world differently.

Look at Finland, Sweden, Korea and Germany. What do these countries have in common? They are all not native English speakers, yet, they have made great strides in learning English.

If they had not made the effort in doing so, would it be possible for brands like Nokia, Volvo, Samsung and Siemens to exist globally today?

I believe English must stay as the medium of instruction for both Maths and Science. Let us not deprive children of the competitive edge they will get if these core subjects continue to be taught in our schools.

The generations to come are only going to thank us for our far-sightedness in keeping this policy when they attain global success in various fields.

Article Source: http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2009/2/8/education/3188119&sec=education

UTM’s new look

UNIVERSITI Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has come out with a new look that will make it stand out from the rest.

UTM Vice-Chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Zaini Ujang said several changes had been made to the university’s logo and slogan in line with the dynamic role it wants to play in higher education.

Dr Zaini at the launch of the new logo and slogan. — Bernama

UTM, he said would use the logo with its name to the right of its insignia at its campuses.

“The change will make it easier for people to identify the logo with the university.”

He said this after lauching the new logo at the Sultan Iskandar Hall at the university’s campus in Skudai, Johor, last Tuesday.

Dr Zaini added that with 61 institututions of higher learning in the country, identifying each logo with the intitutions they represent was a dauning task.

The UTM slogan also saw some changes.

It now reads: “Inspiring Creative and Innovative Minds from Malaysia’s Premier University in Engineering and Technology”.

The new image would allow UTM to receive the recognition it deserves through team work and ethics, academic idealism and knowledge, he said.

He also announced the appointment of Prof Dr Mohd Tajudin Ninggal, 48, as deputy vice-chancellor (Student and Alumni Affairs).

Prof Mohd Tajudin’s three-year tenure starts from Feb 16.

He has been UTM counselling and career centre director since 2001, and replaces Datuk Prof Dr Alias Mohd Noor.

Born in Masjid Tanah, Melaka, Prof Mohd Tajudin obtained a bachelor’s degree in counselling from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in 1989, and was conferred the UPM Chancellor’s Gold Medal as the best overall first degree student the same year.

He then pursued postgraduate studies and received a master’s degree in counselling psychology from Western Michigan University in the United States, in 1994 and a PhD in counselling and supervision from the same university four years later. — Bernama

Eight new Master's programmes at AeU

ASIA e University is offering eight new Executive Master's Programmes for its February intake. The courses are offered by the School of Management and the School of Information Communications Technology. These include the Asian Executive Master's of Business Administration; Executive Master's in Strategic Human Resource Management; Executive Master's in Public Administration and Executive Master's in Islamic Banking and Finance under the School of Management.

Under the School of ICT, AeU, in collaboration with industry partners is offering the Asian Executive Master's in Open Source Computing; Asian Executive Master's in Open Source ERP (ADempiere); Executive Master's in Service-Oriented Architecture and Executive Master's in Business Process Management.

These are one-year programmes which are meant for career and knowledge development, especially for those who want to upgrade their skills in their respective areas.

Deputy Registrar Sahrul Haslan Hassan said upon registration, students will be briefed on the university and its guidelines, and on its Learning Management System (LMS) which allows them to access the digital library and allow them to conduct academic and financial transactions online.
The registration will be held at AeU's brand-new library, on Feb 8, from 9am to 1pm.

The chief librarian, T. Munisah Yusoff, said the library at AeU was a library with "soul". "We did not want to create a conventional library where it's only shelves and books. This library promises to be more than that," she said.

The library is spacious. The facilities include wireless Internet access for laptops and PDA users; group discussion rooms for discussion or study; 30 computer workstations; reading areas, as well as a multi-purpose room for talks and presentations.

There is also a cafe which will allow students to take a break and continue with their discussions. In keeping with the friendly and social ambience of the library, the gallery provides highlight and colour. Art pieces from local artists will be displayed there.

AeU is an international university that was set up in Malaysia with the support of 31 member countries of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD).

It benefits from the resources of the members of the ACD, through collaborations with institutions of higher learning and training centres in all 31 member countries, to offer its academic programmes and training courses.

Based in Malaysia, the university is a dual-mode university, which means it can offer programmes both in the open & distance learning (ODL) mode as well as the full-time on-site mode. Students will have the option to migrate from the ODL mode to the full-time on-site mode and vice-versa.

AeU will collaborate with institutions of higher learning (IHL) and training centres in the 31 ACD countries to offer academic programmes and training to all participating countries. Its programmes and products are focused on flexibility and relevance to the industry and, most importantly, it hopes to impart an Asian-centric flavour to its teachings.

There is a 75 per cent rebate on total tuition fees for the disabled and senior citizens. Flexible payment schemes are available, including PTPTN loans and EPF withdrawal options.

The registration exercise is being held at three venues: its KL learning centre at Ground Flour, Main Block, 4, Dataran Kewangan Darul Takaful, Jalan Sultan Sulaiman; the Kuching centre at Borneo E-Learning Consultant, 2nd Floor SL, 19 Lot 745 Jalan Datuk Tawi Sli, 3rd Exchange Commercial Centre, Kuching; and in its Kota Kinabalu centre at Borneo E-Learning Consultant, Suite 305, 3rd Floor, Wisma Sabah in Kota Kinabalu.

For more information call the hotline at 1300300238 or (03)27850088. You can email enquiries@aeu.edu.my or visit its website at www.aeu.edu.my

UM Students For Antarctica

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 10 (Bernama) -- Two Universiti Malaya (UM) students will for the first time be setting foot on Antarctica to conduct research on the ecology at the South Pole.

Behavorial Biology student Munira Shaipudin Shah, 24, and Ecology and Biodiversity student Thary Gazi,21, would be joining 69 students from Japan, South Korea, China, Canada, Europe and United States in the expedition.

UM deputy vice chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Mohd Amin Jalaluddin said the expedition, with cooperation of the National Antarctic Research Centre, was aimed at exposing Malaysian students to global issues at the South Pole.

"The expedition will hopefully help upgrade UM at international level, particularly in research," he told reporters here Tuesday.

Malaysian Science Academy chairman Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Mohd Nor hopes that the expedition would give Malaysia the chance to become a member of the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS).

"Although many local researchers are actively involved in research on Antarctica, we have yet to become a member," he added.

The two UM students would be leaving for Antarctica at 1am tomorrow (Feb 11) and scheduled to return on March 3.

-- BERNAMA

USM Produced RFIR System May Replace Smart Tag

PENANG, Feb 11 (Bernama) -- Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) has taken a step forward in the field of invention by producing a 2.45Ghz integrated Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) device using the zigbee (wireless technology developed as an open global standard to address unique needs of low-cost, low-power, wireless sensor networks).

Dr Widad Ismail, a lecturer in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering said the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation had granted RM20 million for her team to produce three products related to RFID.

"We had active and passive RFID which came with a system software that can suit the product that is expected to be a big hit in the country soon to replace the current Touch and Go and Smart Tag systems," she told reporters here today.

She said the usage of active RFID was something similar to the current usage of Smart Tag toll but the Smart Tag needed a point-to-point contact which used Infra Rate technology.

"We tested our active RFID in our School campus and the result showed that it can detect within the range of up to 30 meters indoor and 45 metres outdoor," she said, adding that the active RFID does not require manual touch on its reader.

She said the battery powered active RFID can be programmed and the system supports the reading from serial connector, communicates and interacts with MySQL server, tracking and monitoring for items in specific areas according to hardware distance-covering specifications.

"Additionally, the integrated module also supports cross platform functionalities as well as work with heterogeneous system," she said.

However, she said in collaboration with the ALIYA Technologies Sdn Bhd, a passive RFID was developed with the same usage, which comes with a tag, but the detection range was about three metres.

She said after proper installation of the software system, it would be nearly impossible for someone to miss the high-speed range point on the censor.

"We will launch the product during the Malaysia Technologies Exhibition next week in Kuala Lumpur and we are aiming for more companies to invest in our product," she said, adding that the fully local-made RFID product will be the cheapest in its field, in the market, today.

-- BERNAMA