Posts Tagged ‘Tamil school’

Healthy food in canteens by CAP

November 6th, 2011
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This is very interesting article. I think this is a good effort. Perhaps other schools should be roped in to promote such traditional food.

SESAME seed balls and beetroot juice are among the healthy food choices which could be introduced at school canteens to replace junk food and carbonated drinks.

Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) education officer N.V. Subbarow said such traditional food and beverages are rich in nutrients and would help to counter the problem of obesity among primary schoolchildren.

“Obesity would lead to diseases that will affect our future generations who are the hope of our country,” he said at a healthy food campaign at SJK(T) Prai.

Subbarow said sesame seed balls are a rich source of calcium, manganese, copper, iron, zinc, vitamin E and fibre.

“A handful of sesame seeds contains more calcium than a glass of milk,” he said, adding that sesame seeds are good for women, especially in their menopausal stage.

Rich in nutrients: Subbarow (right) with CAP education officer Suseela (standing left) showing SJK(T) Prai pupils how to prepare the sesame seed balls.

He said beetroot is a natural detoxifier and blood purifier, a good antioxidant and rich in iron, which improves blood circulation and prevents anaemia.

Subbarow added that beetroot has a high content of vitamin C and B, and is rich in fibre and folic acid, which lowers blood pressure and improves blood circulation.

At the event yesterday, teachers and pupils learned about the preparation of sesame balls and beetroot juice during a demonstration by CAP education officer N. Suseela.

She made the sesame balls by grinding jaggery or gula Melaka together with sesame seeds.

A demonstration on how to make beetroot drink.

Subbarow said CAP was planning to hold a similar event for school canteen operators soon to teach them to prepare healthy food, as they had a list of healthy food preparations for schoolchildren.

Headmistress T. Lakshmi thanked CAP for their continuous support to the school.

She said the healthy food campaign is beneficial as it is cheap and easy to prepare.

She added that the CAP’s natural farm in the school is already bearing fruit as they have harvested vegetables from the organic farm it helped create in August.

source: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/11/4/north/9833906&sec=North

Bayan Baru MP speech on single school system

October 19th, 2011
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There was some brouhaha about MP for Bayan Baru asking to close down vernacular schools as per his speech in the Dewan Rakyat last week. He clarified yesterday that his speech was misunderstood.
I dug out excerpt of his speech (along with Q & A with 2 other MPs) from the Hansard as per below. He did not pinpoint vernacular schools only for closure, but also the religious schools.  And Namewee was used as an example of how far a person can be removed from multi-cultural society due to education. I still remember an academcian friend from a Chinese school background who didn’t know what was Deepavali! However, to blame it pure on school is not correct because the rest of the time, the children are free to mingle around with/learn about others through activities like tuition, open houses,  TV shows, and so on.
Having said that, I don’t think just because the guy studied in Chinese medium institutions, he is rude. Plenty of so-called religious people who went to national schools can also be foul-mouthed, rude and violent.  People who go overseas to study in Western countries, also can behave the same. Doesn’t mean much.
And I guess he forgot the private and international schools that allow locals to enrol. Should also be banned, if follow this logic. Doesn’t mean if you have money you can escape the rules right?
He also mentioned Vision Schools (Sekolah Wawasan). Need to do an independent audit to see how each school was treated in terms of rules and regulation, facilities, funds, priorities etc.
His conclusion is that should have singular secular school system.  Good suggestion, if ample allocation (time/venue/teacher/funds) is given for each student to also learn about own culture along with other people’s culture.
… Sama seperti undang-undang peninggalan penjajah yang sewajarnya dimansuhkan untuk kita melangkah ke hadapan sejajar dengan dasar transformasi negara, sistem persekolahan peninggalan penjajah juga harus kita mansuhkan secara serta-merta. Saya mencadangkan di Dewan yang mulia ini agar kerajaan berpendirian tegas dalam isu ini, setegas pendirian untuk menghapuskan ISA dan memperkenalkan sistem satu sekolah untuk semua. Mungkin pihak kementerian boleh memperkenalkan kembali Sekolah Wawasan yang dahulunya ditolak bulat-bulat puak ekstremis tetapi pada asasnya sistem sekolah pelbagai aliran bahasa berdasarkan sesuatu bangsa harus dihapuskan dari bumi Malaysia kita.
Salah satu punca kelahiran individu yang biadab lagi kurang ajar seperti Namewee ialah pendidikan awal yang sungguh rasis dan terasing dari dunia sebenar bumi Malaysia. Malaysia bukan negara China, Malaysia bukan negara India dan Malaysia bukan juga negara Arab. Malaysia kita adalah satu negara majmuk dan seharusnya sistem pendidikan kita diolah kembali. Transformasi sistem persekolahan atau pendidikan peringkat sekolah rendah dan menengah adalah suatu yang kini pincang kerana sistem peninggalan penjajah telah menyebabkan kemunculan generasi yang sungguh rasis dan hanya memikirkan kepentingan kaum masingmasing. Saya pasti Namewee tidak akan bertindak sebegitu liar dan memaki hamun seorang wanita dalam klip video terbarunya jika beliau diasuh secara betul dalam persekitaran yang majmuk. Sebenarnya saya kesian melihat Namewee kerana walaupun mungkin berbakat, perwatakan beliau amat hina dan jijik.
Tuan Yang di-Pertua, rancangan penambahan hampir 15,000…
Dato’ Zulkifli bin Noordin [Kulim Bandar Baharu]: Yang Berhormat Bayan Baru.
Timbalan Yang di-Pertua [Datuk Dr. Wan Junaidi bin  Tuanku Jaafar]: Yang Berhormat, masa sudah habis Yang Berhormat.
Dato’ Zulkifli bin Noordin [Kulim Bandar Baharu]: Seminit sahaja Tuan Yang diPertua. Sekejap sahaja. Saya cuma hendak tanya pandangan berkenaan dengan isu Namewee tadi. Saya lihat daripada sejarah pendidikan beliau ini, dia ini bersekolah daripada kecil di sekolah aliran Cina – Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina  Chung Hwa,  Chung Hwa High School, sampai ke universiti pun  Ming Chuan University, Taiwan. Jadi adakah ada yang tidak kena dengan sistem pembelajaran di sekolah-sekolah ini ataupun dia itu sendiri sebagai individu yang memang dilahirkan untuk biadab?
Timbalan Yang di-Pertua [Datuk Dr. Wan Junaidi bin  Tuanku Jaafar]: Yang Berhormat Bayan Baru, jam sudah pukul satu, Yang Berhormat. Jawab tengah hari nantilah. Terima kasih Yang Berhormat.  Ahli-ahli Yang Berhormat, Mesyuarat ditangguhkan dahulu hingga 2.30 petang nanti. Terima kasih.
Mesyuarat ditempohkan pada pukul 1.00 petang.
Mesyuarat disambung semula pada pukul 2.30 petang.
 [Tuan Yang di-Pertua mempengerusikan Mesyuarat]
2.32 ptg.
Tuan Yang di-Pertua: Sila, Yang Berhormat Bayan Baru.
Dato’ Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hashim [Bayan Baru]:  Terima kasih Tuan Yang diPertua. Sebelum saya meneruskan ucapan, saya ingin  menjawab apa yang telah dibawa oleh Yang Berhormat Kulim Bandar Baharu tadi sebelum saya akhir ucapan sebelah pagi. Isu sekolah-sekolah yang kita terima dari zaman penjajah dulu.  Kita sedar bahawa sekolah-sekolah sekarang ini sekolah aliran Cina, aliran Tamil, aliran agama tidak sepatutnya dijalankan lagi sebab penjajah tinggalkan kita satu sistem yang isu dia divide and rule. Dia memecahbelahkan kita. Akan tetapi, kalau kita masih hendak teruskan bermakna ia akan melahirkan mereka yang pemikiran ekstremis.
Saya sebut Namewee tadi sebagai satu contoh. Akan tetapi kita boleh melihat bahawa ekstremis-ekstremis ini masih wujud. Yang pergi ke  sekolah aliran Cina tidak memahami kebudayaan Melayu, kebudayaan India begitu juga yang aliran India dan aliran agama pun sama.
Jadi oleh sebab itu, saya meminta kerajaan mengkaji semula dan kalau boleh merubah sistem pendidikan negara. Sistem kita sudah gagal sebab ekstremis sudah wujud. Orang macam Namewee boleh wujud, boleh hentam kromo kaum lain,  masyarakat yang tidak boleh diterima oleh beliau. Ini akan menjadi satu – akan menimbulkan satu keadaan bermasalah kepada kita. Saya hendak sambung Tuan Yang di-Pertua.
Datuk Ismail Kasim [Arau]: Sedikit.
Dato’ Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hashim [Bayan Baru]: Ada lagi.
Datuk Ismail Kasim [Arau]: Setengah minit. Terima kasih Tuan Yang di-Pertua yang dikasihi dan terima kasih Yang Berhormat Bayan Baru. Saya ingin bertanya pendapat Yang Berhormat, apabila kita melihat sistem vernakular yang diguna pakai di negara ini. Walaupun kita melihat ada unsur-unsur atau pun elemen yang dibangkitkan seperti Namewee Yang Berhormat timbulkan di dalam perbahasan. Cuma kita bernasib baik, kita tidak ada proses indoktrinasi seperti mana yang diamalkan oleh negara-negara lain di mana kita membenarkan sistem dalam bahasa ibunda masing-masing dapat berjalan. Tidak ada proses asimilasi ataupun indoktrinasi yang cuba dibuat oleh kerajaan. Adakah ini tidak mencukupi pada sebuah negara yang bernama Malaysia pada hari ini, itu pandangan Yang Berhormat Bayan Baru yang saya minta beri penjelasan. Terima kasih.
Dato’ Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hashim [Bayan Baru]: Terima kasih Yang Berhormat Arau. Saya tidak nafi mungkin niat dan pemikiran atau pun cara kerajaan fikir mungkin untuk kebaikan. Akan tetapi, kita lihat dari praktiknya kalau kita lihat sekolah-sekolah agama pun ada guru-guru yang mengajar anak muridnya tidak menggunakan  chopstick sebab itu haram. Chopstick orang Cina yang guna. Kita Melayu guna haram.  Begitu juga dengan minuman Cocacola,  makanan Mc’Donald. Jadi ini contoh yang saya beri. Di sekolah Cina orang macam Namewee wujud. Kalau kita lihat yang belah kanan ini pun ramai yang perangai macam itu pun ada ekstremis.
Jadi oleh sebab itu kita harus sedar dan kita tidak mahu masa depan anak cucu kita ini terlibat dalam pemikiran seperti ini. Kalau murid-murid mungkin kita cakap tentang bahasa sahaja di sekolah aliran Cina, India dan agama. Akan tetapi, pemikiran mereka kena ubah. Walaupun kerajaan berniat baik tetapi saya percaya yang sehabis baik ialah satu integrasi, buat satu sekolah sekular, kebangsaan di mana semua kaum boleh mengambil bahagian. Okeylah, saya teruskan sebab takut tidak cukup masa.

 

MIC committed to relocation of low enrolment Tamil schools

September 27th, 2011
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 I hope MIC’s commitment becomes a reality, and not remain just a commitment. I wonder where’s the plan (if there is one) which details the timeline for relocation of the under-enrolled schools.  I’m sure we would like to know the roadmap or timeline for relocation of each and every school mentioned, the budget applied/allocated/received/spent, plus the status progress so far. Tha would be a good indication of “commitment”.

 

MIC is committed to relocating Tamil schools with low enrolment to new areas with many Indian residents.

MIC deputy president Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam said there were 14 schools which had fewer than 10 pupils and 69 schools with fewer than 25 pupils.

“We have told Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak that MIC needs a big financial allocation to tackle the problem.

“I have also raised the matter in the Cabinet that no Tamil schools are to be closed but only relocated,” he told reporters after a party seminar themed “Energising Indian Cooperatives”, which was opened by MICpresident Datuk G. Palanivel here yesterday.

Subramaniam said MIC was identifying suitable sites to relocate some Tamil schools and was confident this would cause the enrolment to rise.

He also denied a Tamil newspaper report saying that Sekolah Rendah Tamil Horvad, in Gurun, Kedah, would be closed because of poor attendance. He said a suitable site was being identified for the school.

He was confident that the Indian community would continue to support MIC to ensure Tamil schools continued to exist.

It is estimated that there are 107,000 pupils in 523 Tamil schools nationwide.

Subramaniam conceded that there were weaknesses in the process of improving and constructing additional buildings for Tamil schools.

“The financial allocations for Chinese schools are given straight to the school organising committees but it is a different case for Tamil schools,” he said.

source: http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/9/25/nation/9571598&sec=nation

SJKT Castlefield relocation problem

September 22nd, 2011
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This kind of SNAFU can happen, so just focus on the solution – get a new piece of land. The school need not worry because our DPM said vernacular schools are not marginalized. The government will fully cover the cost of relocating the school to another location, its the responsibility of MIC to ensure this.  Selangor government also said they take care of vernacular schools, so they will find a suitable land. Or Prasarana can help to identify a replacement land and state government can approve it. Its the responsibility of the federal and state governments, so I’m wondering what the school is being made to run around making applications to Land Office. Just be clear and insist on new buildings to be completed before any LRT construction is done. I don’t believe in temporary relocation because the “temporary” can turn out to be 3 years, 5 years, or even 20 years in cabins or shoplots!

Hendak seribu daya, tak hendak seribu dalih (where there’s a will, there’s a way).

SJK (T) CASTLEFIELD in Taman Perindustrian Puchong is in a tight spot after learning that the site it had identified for relocation has been taken up by another Chinese school.

Its board of directors chairman Nagamuthu Periasamy said the school had to be relocated because the proposed LRT project would have six pillars built within its current school compound.

The school had submitted an application to the Land Office for a 2.4ha site in Persiaran Indera, Pusat Bandar Puchong last September.

However, Puchong MCA has also identified the same plot of land for the relocation of SJK (C) Kheng Chee from Ladang Bukit Dinding in Karak.

On Monday, StarMetro reported that Puchong MCA announced that it was ready to submit architectural drawings to the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) in late October and the school would be ready for the 2013 intake.

Nagamuthu said the announcement came as a shock to them.

“The Department of Environment confirmed that the LRT route would pose a health hazard for the children.

“Therefore, we have been looking at relocation. The Land Office is in the midst of getting the opinion of other relevant authorities, such as Public Works Department, MPSJ and Selangor Education Depart-ment, before granting us the approval,” he said.

SJK (T) Castlefield, with 500 students and 35 teachers, currently sits on a 1.01ha land in Jalan TPP 1/17 in Taman Perindustrian Puchong. It has been in operation since 1988.

source: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/9/22/central/9538101&sec=central

SJKT Effingham land issue crops up again

September 9th, 2011
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This issue was first raised in September 2008, and 3 years down the lane, it pops up. Interestingly, this time its being raised by a member from the offending party itself.

From what I understand, the land taken by MIC has been developed as a commercial plot, so I’m not sure how this will turnout. Maybe like the Bakun dam case – “the land under question is already under water, so how to return it back” answer given by the court. Delay long enough and your case becomes invalid.

Anyway, this guy says got “solid proof” but didn’t show it. Hope the proof can stay “solid” after this.

 

A local MIC leader today asked the party to return a piece of land that he said was originally alienated for a Tamil school.

V Thiagarajan, who heads the Taman Mujur MIC branch, said party president G Palanivel should “do the right thing” by ensuring that the Effingham Tamil School get back the three acres of prime land.

The school is located in Bandar Utama, Damansara. The accusation about the land grab first surfaced in 2009, with former students and residents of the area claiming that the developer of Bandar Utama had set aside six acres for the school in 1999.

They said the late K Sivalingam, an MIC leader and an executive councillor in the then BN-led state government, decided that only three acres should be given to the school and the rest to the party.

There was also an allegation of mismanagement of RM300,000 in developer contributions to the school. MIC was accused of trying to channel the money to its Maju Institute of Education Development (MIED) although the developer disagreed.

MIC has claimed that there was an error in the description of the proprietor in the land title and that the party is the rightful owner of the three acres.

Currently, the school has 600 pupils, but the number is expected to increase steadily.

Thiagarajan told FMT he had “solid evidence” that all six acres belonged to the school.

“I plead with Palanivel to use his veto power to give back the land to the school,” he said.

“I have all the evidence to show clearly that the land MIC claims as its own should be part of school.”

source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/09/08/give-back-school%E2%80%99s-land-mic-told/