Essay : The Night Market

Question: Write an essay about night market.
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Change Mindset On English - TheStar

FIND it strange that some Malay intellectuals I met are against the idea of championing the English language over Bahasa Malaysia.

They look at me with disdain and ask why I am not proud of Bahasa Malaysia and where my identity as a Malay is.
I feel sad that these are the same people who lament the Malays’ weakness in English. I am really confused over their ambivalent stand. And they are not simple kampung folks but people who have PhDs from American universities.
It makes me wonder what is in their mind. Can’t they see that being proficient in English does not make one less Malay or less patriotic?

They keep harping on that English is just a tool for communication and that one does not need to go to English medium schools to learn the language. To them, it is all about having the right attitude.
And they ignore the fact that even with the right attitude, it requires a Herculean effort to master English if one attends Sekolah Kebangsaan where the English environment is missing.
How selfish and naive can they be when globalisation requires one to be proficient in English? Perhaps they are the exception with their high IQ, which makes becoming proficient in English easy for them despite studying in Malay schools in the 60s.
We have to think and care for the average and below average students who have difficulty mastering the English language. There are many out there who are unemployed or under employed due to their weakness in English. And many of them come from poor families where the role model for English at home is absent.
This country is unique in its history and we cannot compare with other countries where their national language reigns supreme and is highly regarded. While we would like to see Bahasa Malaysia as the lingua franca in all forms of communication in government and the private sector, the reality on the ground is different.
The education system itself is now creating two classes of citizens. The “haves” send their children for English education in the private sector while the “have nots” send theirs to sekolah kebangsaan. An uneven playing field is being created with the “have nots” having to struggle when they enter the employment market.
Why can’t we be honest with ourselves and accept that many schoolchildren suffer in silence when attending English lessons at sekolah kebangsaan? And the poor teacher, who is well trained to teach English, in many instances has to teach English in Bahasa Malaysia to make the students understand, interested and enjoy the lessons.
Given this sad situation, can we blame the students for being weak in English when they go for job interviews or to further their studies abroad?
No Malay would abandon their language as it is their cultural identity. No matter how Westernised they want to be, they cannot ignore the fact that they are born Malay which they will carry to their graves.
And when they go back to their kampung for their Hari Raya, they speak Malay despite speaking English at home in some elite area or at the golf club.
Let us be pragmatic. Let us have pity on the young boys and girls who have difficulty reading English newspapers, Enid Blyton, Shakespeare, Dandy and Beano comics, books, etc. Let us not close their window of knowledge by denying and belittling them for glorifying the English language.
The Education Ministry has done all it can to help the students become proficient in English. And they know it is a Herculean task and one that is not smooth sailing as English is now taught as a subject.
Even the American Peace Corps and British Councils were roped in to do the impossible - address the declining standard of English among our students.
Can we blame the Education Ministry for not being successful in their efforts when some Malay intellectuals feel that priority must be given to the enhancement of Bahasa Malaysia?
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad once asked: “What do the Malays want?”
When asked what he failed to do in his 22 years as Prime Minister, he answered curtly, “I have failed to open up the Malay mind.”
When I was in school preparing for MCE/Senior Cambridge, I enjoyed reading Shakespeare and also Sastera Melayu.

HASSAN TALIB
Gombak, Selangor

 Source from: TheStar
 (Link : http://www.thestar.com.my/Opinion/Letters/2015/03/31/Change-mindset-on-English/ )

Talk to Your Kids about Prescription Drug Abuse

Recent surveys show that teens are abusing prescription medications in record numbers. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 70 percent of children age 12 and older say they got prescription drugs, not from a drug dealer, but from a friend or relative.
For teens, peer pressure or wanting to escape emotional stress can lead to experimentation, which can in turn lead to abuse, addiction and sometimes to a drug overdose.
“Each day, more than 2,000 teens begin abusing prescription medications, believing that doctor-prescribed medicine is safer to experiment with than illegal drugs,” says Steve Pasierb, President and CEO of The Partnership at Drugfree.org. “Prescription medications can be very helpful when used as directed, but misusing or abusing these drugs can be dangerous and even deadly.”
Parents, teachers and other adults who influence teen behavior stand the best chance of recognizing and dealing with these dangerous behaviors. “Parents and grandparents take great pains to prevent poisoning in young children by keeping household chemicals out of the reach,” according to Pasierb. “The same approach needs to be taken to safeguard medications in the home.”
The first step is to get informed about the dangers and know how to intervene when you suspect or know that a child is abusing drugs. The web site www.RxSafetyMatters.org provides information and resources to parents and community groups on how to prevent prescription drug abuse.

Tips for parents include:

•    Learn to recognize the signs of abuse. Warning signs include sudden mood swings, changes in social circles, secretive behavior, excessive sleeping and a loss of interest in appearance or hobbies. Symptoms often occur in clusters.
•    Monitor your medications. Keep a detailed record of which prescription drugs you have in your home and the remaining number of pills. Store your medications in a secure location. If you have medications that you no longer need or have expired, dispose of them properly.
•    Educate others. Talk to your relatives, neighbors and other parents in households where your children spend time. Grandparents’ homes are frequently a source of pills, simply because older people take more medications. Talk to the PTA at your teen’s school, and encourage others to take preventive steps to prevent prescription drug abuse.
•    Talk to your children, and listen for clues. Make sure your children understand the dangers of misusing prescription medications – but avoid providing information about which drugs are popular to abuse. Listen to your kids, and always ask these questions: “Who are they meeting, what will they be doing, and where will they be?”
To learn more about how to prevent prescription drug abuse, download the free Parents Guide to Understanding Prescription Drug Abuse at www.RxSafetyMatters.org. Purdue Pharma L.P. developed www.RxSafetyMatters.org as a public service to help combat prescription drug abuse.

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