Jarod Yong

picture taken from picasaweb.google.com As many of you would know, I have just finished my practicum at a Malaysian Secondary School. In this school, I had the opportunity to teach a highly motivated & good proficiency class. With this class, I have experimented with a writing activity. This writing activity involves getting the students to work in groups to practice their writing skills on blogs. I called this experiment: 1 Maju Group Blog Project I mentioned this in a previous post: My Students Blog Too! Yesterday, I completed a post-mortem on the experiment. In this report, I evaluated the advantages and limitations of implementing a group blog writing activity in a Malaysian Secondary School classroom. The full report can be found at the 1 Maju Group Blog Project Website I will put up a summary here. The advantages I observed were: - Positive Group Work - Motivating - Language Enrichment The disadvantages I observed were: - Individual Focus Lacking - Sl...

It has finally come to an end. My 12-week practicum at SMK Puteri Titiwangsa. The overall experience has been really good & this school has given me the extra drive to do my best in my future teaching profession. hmmm~~~ Which gets me thinking... should I start praying to be posted at a girls' school next year? Anyway, SMK PT is a wonderful school to begin your teaching journey in. The students do not have any major discipline issues & the general population is very welcoming towards outsiders like myself. Furthermore, the admin staff has a very good working relationship with the teaching staff. This means that anything a teacher needs for his students will always be provided for swiftly. I guess one of the main factors for the excellence in this school is the humble, friendly & shrewd principal, Datin Rokiah. Just as I have begun to settle in, I am forced to leave this school... And this, with a heavy heart... taken from en.wikipedia.org Just like Henr...

taken from inmagine.com A few months ago, I was given a task by a friend to write for an online magazine. The topic was a letter written to a younger me. At that moment of life, I was pondering upon what it really means to be with a woman & what is she in a man's life. Here is my letter to a younger me... ~~~~ Dear Younger Me, I know exactly how you feel. I understand your needs. I was curious like you were. I watched the same movies and read the same novels. I know that you like girls, keep it that way. They require a lot of work but everything you put into her comes back multiple folds. She is the perfect investment. Invest in her and you will never end up with a loss! But how do you choose? Remember to choose only one. I know you are curious about other women but honestly speaking, one woman is more fulfilling than many women. When one woman decides to give you her all, it is better than any gift you can ever imagine. Definitely better than what the many women...

taken from nywcc.org As many of you will already know, I am a teacher trainee currently undergoing practicum. Every teacher trainee in practicum will have to be supervised by a lecturer. These supervisors will surprise teacher trainees once in a while with visits to check on the trainee & observe his/her lessons. Near the end of practicum, supervisors can nominate any teacher trainee they think deserves recognition for being outstanding in their teaching. Soon, a team of secondary observers will be assembled & appointed by the practicum committee of the university. They will be given the task of scrutinising every nominated trainee to determine whether he/she deserves the 'high-competency' grade. They meet the trainee, talk to him/her about his/her thoughts on teaching, read his/her lesson plans+reflection+portfolio & they will also observe one of his/her lessons. If trainees are able to impress during the tough reevaluation, their names will be recorde...

taken from science.nationalgeographic.com After breaking fast at 7.14pm yesterday, I could proudly say that I have completed 14 days of solid food fasting. However, I shamefully regret that I have to end the fast. I have been losing body mass since I started the fast. Even though I think the majority of what was lost consisted of fat, I should stop before I lose more than I can gain back. I will be taking part in a pageant in November & casting for some TVCs soon so I will need to look & feel my best. This 14 day fast is the longest time I have ever fasted in succession & also my first fast in 3-4 years! After completing 14 days, I have found the fast to be very beneficial to my lifestyle & wellbeing. I think I will continue to enjoy the benefits long after my fast. Being hungry for the whole day has helped me appreciate food more. I started savouring each bite & enjoying my food more. Even the most tasteless & plain of foods can provide great s...

Children nowadays are more privileged & are very active online. As some of you have noticed, many students from my school read my blog. I have no qualms about students reading my blog, commenting on what I have written & creating a link on their blogs to mine. However, I do have a problem with one thing that they do online... Requesting to be added to their friends list on a social networking website. This happens to me all the time on friendster . I mentioned this issue in a previous post: The Professional Divide . Since then, much has changed & the situation has now escalated! I am amazed at the throng of requests that I have been receiving! I am mainly displeased at the manner in which they make the request. A rare few would send me a message with the request & ask me nicely. These people make me really happy and they seem to honestly want to make a new friend. However, too large a majority of students plainly send only the request. These people are ...

A student puked in one of my relief classes today. The best part is I had to teach the class how to clean it up. Here's the story... ~~~ It happened when I was reliving a Form 1 Moral class. I was busy with my work while a group of students were laughing & joking with each other. One of them paused to talk a long drink of water. But before she could finish, her friends told another joke! She laughed with a chunk of water in her mouth & choked on the water. The result was a gag effect & semi-digested lunch on the floor. Initially, I ignored the sound of splashing fluids. However, I grew curious when the fluids didn’t stop flowing! I thought to myself, "that doesn’t sound like a mouth of water." I looked up to find a red-faced girl with vomit all over the floor & especially on her pinafore. All her friends were just staring at her. Unsure of what to do. They were staring for a long... long time... "Does anyone have tissue?" I a...

taken from visionmagazine.com Fasting is not easy... All through the day, you have an uncomfortable stomach ache & a constant desire for your favourite foods... This pain & hunger was driving me nuts! I HAD TO KNOW WHAT I WAS DOING TO MY BODY!! So, I did some internet research. I found these sites most useful: Fasting - Wikipedia.org (2008) The Health Benefits of Fasting - Carol, W. (2002) And let me share what I have discovered from my research... ~~~ I found out that fasting technically begins when the body uses its stored energy reserves. This is usually 12hrs after the last meal. Your body will break down: first the food in stomach, glycogen in liver, glycogen in muscles, ketones in fat, protein in muscles and finally the protein in organs. However, once the body starts using protein stores (from muscles & organs), a person is technically starving (BAD!!). Cons of Fasting I tried to look for the detrimental effects of fasting but there are none ...

picture taken from flickriver.com The 1st of September marks the beginning of the month of Ramadan for this year. Ramadan was the month during which Prophet Muhammad received the first of the Koran's revelations. Therefore, it has been ordained as the holy month of fasting for all adults of the Islamic faith to cultivate piety. (Al-Baqara 2:185) The fast begins each day at the break of dawn and ends at sunset. During the fast, Muslims are forbidden to eat, drink, or smoke. During the month of Ramadan, koko' is also going to attempt a fast. Just like my Muslim friends, I will have my fast from dawn until dusk which is around 6am - 7.30pm every day. However, there is one element I will not go without: water. Unlike the Muslims who fast both solids and fluids, I will only fast solids because my body is not accustomed to fasting. I dont want my body to break down because I overdid my fasting. The purpose of my fast: detox & spiritual awakening. Let's see h...