Posted 09-09-2009
I have no idea of what to post in this special day (in the sense that the numbers are unique), so I will just put Frederic Prenji’s article here. The title is
HOW TO BE A BETTER PERSON IN 7 DAYS
There are many things that you can do to become a better person. You can work hard, exercise, and eat well for example. All of these things are great, no question about it. However, in my opinion, becoming a better person starts with being selfless. Doing good deeds for other people without expecting to gain from it is one of the most rewarding experiences that one can feel in a lifetime. Becoming a truly better person begins with giving outwardly. I’ve come up with this challenge:
7 days to becoming a better person.
Each day you do something selfless, that will not even take more than a few moments of your time, and experience first hand what it feels like to transform into a genuinely great person. Here’s the challenge:
Day 1 – Tell someone you love them
So many people out there never take the precious time to express how they feel to the ones that are truly important in their life. Expressing your love shouldn’t be seen as taboo or a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of confidence, and an expression of what you really feel. There is nothing more amazing than to know that someone loves you. On this first day of the challenge, choose someone in your life to make them feel that special feeling. It’s very simple, just sit them down and say something along those lines: “You know I don’t say this often enough but I do appreciate our bond and everything that you do for me. So I just wanted to tell you that I love you…I wanted you to know that.” In two minutes, you have made someone’s day….forget day, you’ve made their month! So pick a spouse, a parent, a sibling, a friend….anyone that you truly care about and say the magic word. You may get a little nervous just before, but once you say it, I guarantee you that you will feel amazing. Yes, becoming a better person is not a chore….it actually feels great!
Day 2 – Open your ears and listen
Everyone has their share of issues that they deal with on a daily basis. We all at some point need to be heard. We need to get things out and just blow some steam. Unfortunately, the art of listening is fading away. It’s becoming more and more of a struggle for people to find a good pair of ears to vent off to. So on day 2 of your quest to becoming a better person, you simply have to be there for someone close to you. That’s all you have to do. Listen to them. Let me tell you, I do this all the time with my friends. I make myself available for them and I just listen. You wouldn’t believe how it makes them happy to have someone listen to them. No opinions, no judgment. Listen unconditionally. You may not have realized the power of listening yet, but this exercise will prove it to you. It can make a tremendous difference in someone’s life, and it’s one of the best gifts you can give anyone.
Day 3 – Apologize
We all have made certain mistakes. We’ve all done things we regret. Unfortunately, the majority of the time, we never take the opportunity to make things better, perhaps out of pride or ego. So we carry this along with us. Sure, with time, its impact may fade a little, but there is a much more powerful method to deal with such situations. On day 3, it’s time for you to swallow your pride and apologize. Look into your past. Is there a particular person that you have lost touch with or haven’t spoken to in a while? Regardless of what happened, this is not the time to decide who was right and who was wrong. This is about healing a wound. Apologizing is not an admission that you were wrong. On the other hand, it is proof that you are confident enough to say it. This act will not only make the other party feel much better, it will inspire them. So by being the “bigger person” and apologizing, you create nothing but positive energy all around. This is as rewarding for you as it is for that other person.
Day 4 – Give away a valuable
Nowadays, the only time people give each other anything somewhat meaningful is on birthdays and holidays. What about the other 360-something days of the year? Simply giving contains so much power in and of itself. This is why on day 3, you will choose something meaningful that you will give to someone that you know will like it and/or benefit from it. It must be something in your home, that you already own. Perhaps a painting, or a book. Something that you hold dear and that will bring happiness and value to the person you choose to give it to. You see, sharing your wealth is one of the best ways to prove how much you care and necessary to becoming a good person. These types of gifts are so much more powerful than anything given on birthdays or holidays, because it shows that you gave it because you wanted to, not because you had it. This brings a whole new meaning to that gift and will make the person appreciate it even more!
Day 5 – Volunteer your time
The first few days, you have given back to the people close to you, but now, it is time to take this further than the comfort of your own surroundings! Giving back to your community and your society is just as important, and an integral part of making everything as a whole, a much better existence for all involved. On day 5, it is time for you to give some of your time away. It doesn’t have to be complicated. You can volunteer your time helping out at your children’s school, or at a local community center for example. It doesn’t have to be a full day or many hours. Volunteer the time that you can. What I mean is that instead of watching tv or surfing the web for example, take some of that time and do something that will help contribute to the development of your community. Ask around, could be something at work or related to a particular activity that you do. Nobody refuses a helping hand and everyone benefits out of it
Day 6 – Help out a stranger
So many people out there could use the help of some good people. After all, we are all humans and we should stick up for one another. I’ve always been amazed by stories of complete strangers risking their life to help a fellow human being. If we can just help anyone with a fraction of such a commitment, then we’ve all made a difference. On day 6, it’s time to do a kind gesture for a total stranger. Could be helping an elderly person with their bags, or helping a kid cross the street, there are so many tiny gestures that we can do in our daily life to help others it’s incredible. When you see a car break down on the side of the road, most people drive by, thinking that help is on the way or that someone else will stop. How about you become the person that stops? How about you become the person whose gesture makes a total stranger’s day? This is your opportunity to showcase how a good-hearted person reacts in such situations for the greater good of all involved.
Day 7 – Donate
The world is a big place, but in the end, we are a tiny community in the vastness of the Universe. All we have is each other. Although they may not live nearby, there are so many people around the world that need the assistance of good natured people. On this final day, it is time to take your good deeds global! There are tons of really good charities and organizations across the globe that make it their goal to help out those that are in need. Pick any organization about any particular cause that you may hold dear to your heart, and provide them with a donation. The internet makes it really easy now to find such organizations, so this final step is super simple and quick to complete. Donate whatever you can. The amount is not important. What is important is that even though your gesture was simple and quick, the difference it will make will resonate with far greater significance in the grand scheme of things.
So there you have it! 7 days and a better you comes out of it. As a matter of fact, if you have noticed, in becoming a better person, you have affected the lives of so many different people in such positive ways. With such small gestures each day, you have made a difference in your life as well as in other people’s, and that is what becoming a better person is all about. You may find that after these 7 days, you have now developed a habit and that you will continue each and every day to give back. If you have created a “momentum” of doing good deeds and that it will keep on going, then I have done my work. This can indeed become life changing! So you have the challenge and I would love to hear what you all have done and how it’s impacted your life and those around you
Hope you enjoy reading it…^_^
Jangan Dibaca!
Tulisan dibuat tanggal 16 Juli lalu, tapi ngga berani di posting, takut ada yang baca (apalagi mahasiswaku, hi…). Tapi pas lagi browsing dan liat2 chatting anak2 muda yang lagi pacaran mesra di Internet, jadi gemes ama anak sekarang and kepikir kenapa saya nggak nulis something buat suami sendiri aja (kalo pacaran kan dosa tau, kalo buat suami kan gpp), masa kalah ama anak muda he..he…
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This year we have been married for 9 years, and I thank God I have a successful and happy marriage. My colleague, who is about to marry soon in his ‘old’ age, asked me the tips in managing our marriage. Then, I try to recall what makes me happy of ours (well, I have to make it systematically since I’m accustomed to this style of writing ^_^):
1. Understanding
Whenever I am feeling down, of course I like to have a shoulder to cry on. My husband sometimes provides his shoulder for me, but other times he just says to me, “Pull yourself together; stop feeling so sorry for yourself.” Not romantic, huh? But I guess that’s because he knows very well when I need someone to listen to me or when I just don’t need his advice. By this way, he eventually teaches me to be a stronger woman.
2. Kindness
There is no need for him to buy me a huge present every week, because to him, to be generally kind costs nothing. He shows me some consideration, rides me to campus n picks me up from work, gives me a cuddle in bed; tell me he loves me and what a great mum I am. There are so many little things he does for me that show his caring to me.
3. Honesty
He’s honest to me, no cheating on me as let’s face it he would not want me to be unfaithful to him, too. There is no relationship without trust; therefore he ensures that I’m in no doubt that he’s one hundred percent mine.
Those are the main three things that I say about my husband. Actually, I try to write him a love letter to show him how grateful I am with our marriage (the idea is not 100% my original he he he), here it is:
Dearest Jo,
Several people have asked me about the nine year itch, because they think that after nine years, married couples start to feel constrained by their bonds of marriage. I just laugh, and I can honestly say I haven’t thought that ours is so constraining. While some friends say that the more years the more fights they have in their marriage, we just make ours more worthwhile each day.
Well, we know it from the start. We have the goal of being together forever, happily. We know that after we pass on, if we have lived worthily, hopefully our spirits will be bonded together eternally in the hereafter as man and wife. We know that true happiness comes from sharing life’s experiences together, and because we know these things, we strive to achieve that eternal happiness.
Over the last year, our lives have started to settle into a sort of beautiful rhythm. I appreciate knowing that we have a routine. It’s not boring to me.
I love you now more than when we were first married. While that first year was tough, it seems so much smaller now than it did even last year. I feel so free with you, so happy. I can share with you my deepest thoughts, my loveliest desires, and know that you will hold them safe in your heart.
Those who have not experienced the joy of being married can perhaps never know the safety, security, and peace that come from knowing that both parties are totally committed to each other, no matter what happens. No matter how sick you are, no matter how frustrated I might become with work, no matter how naughty our kids are, we stick together and see each other through every tough situation. I love you for that and hope each day that I can show you a little bit of that love.
It’s easy to find you sexy because you are. While some may laugh and say that it’s because we’ve been together so long, you give me goosey sometimes…and I love it.
You are my darling. My fresh, exquisite, handsome, lazy-n-sleepy husband and I am grateful each morning when I wake up next to you. Nine years or ninety, your love is my treasure and I’ll never throw that away.
I love you, and happy anniversary.
July 16, 2009
Your Jo.
I don’t know, we are both just different, but the three things I mentioned above has made us a solid partner (and you see our nicknames’ identical…halah, apa hubungannya ya?). May Allah always bless our love forever, amiin…
Lebaran without Mudik
Tahun 2009 ini saya tidak pulkam, karena tahun kemarin sudah mudik. Saya termasuk golongan yang nggak fanatik sama mudik Lebaran, jika dihitung2 semenjak menikah 9 tahun lalu sd sekarang, saya baru 4x mudik. Mudik pertama itu tahun 2002, anak pertama baru usia 1 tahun dengan hasil dia diopname di RS Lavalette Malang karena diare dan ISPAnya kambuh. Semenjak itu saya janji nggak akan pulkam jika punya anak masih kecil. Mudik ke-2 yaitu tahun 2004, anak kedua masih umur 1 tahun tapi harus mudik juga karena selepas Lebaran saya harus nyusul suami sekaligus pindah tugas baru ke Balikpapan. Alhamdulillah dia sehat2 saja (thank to ASI, too). Tahun 2005 saya pulkam pas acara pernikahan adik bungsu, sekalian nunggu panggilan pelantikan Widyaiswara saya di kampung halaman saya. Yang terjadi saat di bandara, anak pertama sakit sampai muntah-muntah, demam sampai 3 hari, adiknya juga kumat sakit giginya. Tahun kemaren, entah kenapa kami sekeluarga kepengen banget pulkam, jadi lsg saja beli tiket Gajayana PP untuk 4 orang. Tapi kami ngga berani sering keliling2 kota karena takut anak2 kecapekan dan sakit, terutama si kecil yang nomr 3 (wong tiket balik udah beli). So, mudik kemaren nggak banyak ceritanya deh.
Jadilah tahun ini kami tidak mudik ke Malang. Kalau dipikir2, mungkin ini yang terbaik buat kami. Anak2 masih bisa jalan2 ke Taman Mini atau Dufan jika bete di rumah mertua, terus yang jelas ongkos Lebaran juga lebih ngirit dibanding tahun lalu yang dihitung2 juga jadi lebih dari 2x gaji. Meski ngga mudik, Lebaran kan identik dengan pengeluaran ekstra: ZIS buat semua orang di rumah termasuk pembantu, THR pembantu 3 orang plus 1 orang ojek langganan kami, THR ortu, parsel lebaran, angpao ponakan2, uang jalan2, belum printil2 tak terduga lainnya mesti disiapkan. Alhamdulillah rejeki Lebaran ada saja meskipun kami PNS ngga dapat THR.
So, buat yang ngga mudik, nikmatilah Jakarta yang ngga macet (luar biasa deh…dari Pondok Aren ke Ponodk Bambu cuma 30 menit, coba kalau hari biasa…). Selamat menuntaskan semua amalan Ramadhan dengan sebaik2nya dan Selamat Idul Fitri 1430 H. Semoga Allah mengampuni dosa2 kita dan menerima segala ibadah dan amalan kita, amiiin…
Have a Nice Test!
I have many ideas about the teaching my students. I ask students many questions during class sessions to build up to worldly knowledge as well. I always want my students to back their answers by facts, not merely opinion. This is academic setting, and students must be able to elaborate their answers systematically.
I also give many quizzes, tests, and much assignment. Even for their UTS and UAS, I never give easy items for them. When students do all those tasks, I expect them to get an excellent score. Second best is never good enough. But above all, I want them to achieve the good scores with their honest and hardest effort, for students’ integrity is number one for me.
Students of today think their teacher make it hard on them. When they think this, just make them remember that they don’t know that some day they could be President, a minister, or a top executive; so, go to college and get an education and later on become distinguished and successful people. Some day you might be president, and of course, you would want to do your job correctly. Prepare for the future. Act now for a happy, successful life.
Today this twenty-first century, what would we do without a good and qualified education? We would be considered foolish, and we could do no good things for our country, Indonesia.
The children of today are going to be the leaders of tomorrow. It is my duty, as a teacher, to help them to learn as much as possible so that some day they may fill in their jobs. Who knows what will test their strength, will power, and their knowledge in the future?
I just don’t know what sort of an education they will need to survive in the future. But I must make sure that my students can be prepared for the future by learning all they can, while they can, in such a way as to benefit themselves, their family, and our nation, Indonesia.
So, selamat menempuh UTS dan UAS 2009, dan juga selamat menunaikan Ibadah Shaum Ramadhan 1430 H. Semoga Allah SWT menjadikan Anda semua orang yang sukses dan berguna bagi Negara, Bangsa, dan Agama, amiin… 
How to Obtain the Validity and Reliability of an Essay Test?
To obtain the validity and reliability of the essay test I am constructing, I have to see it first from the defintion of validation and reliabilty first.
Validation is the process of accumulating evidence that supports the appropriateness of the inferences made from student responses for the test. To make sure that the essay test I gave to students are valid, there are two things to do:
First, I clearly state the purpose and objectives of the test. For example, the objectives of my essay test are:
1/ students write an organized paragraph
2/ students show logical development of ideas
3/ students use correct grammar and mechanics
4/ students demonstrate style and quality of expression.
By writing those objectives, I can ensure the content validity because the test clearly defines the achievement that I measure.
Next, I develop scoring criteria that address each objective. If one of the objectives is not represented in the score categories, then the rubric doesn’t give necessary evidence to examine the given objective. If some of the scoring criteria are not related to the objectives, then, the appropriateness of the assessment and the rubric is in question. Scoring rubric meets criterion validity, since I will know precisely the extent of test criteria that have been actually reached by my students. Here is my scoring rubric:
|
Criteria |
Yes |
No |
| Essay has an effective introductory paragraph | ||
| Topic sentence/thesis statement is stated | ||
| Essay has apparent body paragraphs | ||
| Essay has a satisfactory concluding paragraph | ||
| Ideas are concrete and well developed | ||
| Supporting details are relevant and sufficient | ||
| Essay reflects complete thought (cohesiveness) | ||
| Essay demonstrate syntactic variety and rhetorical fluency | ||
| Essay uses correct English writing conventions (punctuation and spelling) | ||
| Essay uses a wide range of vocabulary | ||
| Essay show good register and concise | ||
| Essay is written in neat and legible format |
Although the criteria in the rubric seem too detailed, all of them are related to the four objectives mentioned above. Using detailed scoring rubric ensures the validity of my assessment. Indeed, good grading practices can also increase the reliability of essay tests . Also, as far as I am concerned, a valid assessment is by necessity reliable.
Reliability refers to the consistency of assessment scores. If my test is reliable, my student will get the same score regardless of when he/she completed the test, when the response was scored, and who scored the response. Two forms of reliability in classroom assessment and in rubric development involve rater (or scorer) reliability. Rater reliability generally refers to the consistency of scores that are assigned by two independent raters (interrater reliability) and that are assigned by the same rater at different points in time (intra-rater reliability). Sometimes I use interrater reliability by assigning my Teaching Assistant (TA) to score my students essays using the scoring rubric I prepared previously, or by grading papers together (me and TA) for clarity of evaluation and time efficiency. This will check whether there is great discrepancy of TA’s scoring and mine or not. If our scorings do not show great discrepancy, I can say that my test is reliable. Other times, I can also make intrarater reliability by scoring again the works several weeks later. If the previous scores do not show big discrepancies with the second scoring, then my evaluation is reliable.
Steps in Constructing My Language Test
I’d like to share some steps in constructing a language test. Those are based on my experience in teaching Diploma III at STAN Jakarta. Some strategies are taken from Brown’s principles, with certain modification. Here they are:
First of all, I determine the objective of the test beforehand. For example, when I give a reading test, the purpose of it to test their reading skills, which can be seen from their abilty to deal with the types of reading questions.
Second, I enlist the test specifications as the outline of the test. This includes the time allocation, the skills tested, item types and tasks.
Third, I create the test tasks. The test tasks must be in line with objectives stated earlier. For example, I choose Multiple Choice format for Reading Test for practicality purpose. I make the first draft of test items and tried them out in classroom teaching before administering them in the actual test. For the final version for the actual Reading Test, I make the parallel forms of the sample test.
Finally, I make the scoring criteria and feed back. For example, Reading Test items are each worth 1 point, so 100% correct answer will worth 20 points. Then each student’s score will be graded according to the letter grade of A, B, C, D, and E with certain comments of Excellent, Very Good, Good, OK, and Try to be More Careful Next Time. I also have to provide a brief information to student on which reading skill he/she has to improve.
To be precisely clear, the following is the summary example of my test construction for my students:
Type of test : Reading Test
Objective : 1/ Students recognize the main idea
2/ Students know the details
3/ Students know the meaning from context
Specification : - 30 minutes, multiple choice format, 20 total items.
- tasks: main idea, details, vocabulary
Sample Items
Directions : This test contains several passages, each followed by a number of questions. Read the passages, and for each question, choose the best answer—A, B, C, or D—based on what is stated in the passage or on what can be inferred from the passage.
(Passage 1)
When the people of Boston threw the tea from the English ships into the ocean, few of them, if any, realized that this was the start of the War of Independence. This war was a long and bloody struggle exacerbated by politicians out for personal gain.
- What is the best title for this passage?
- The Boston Tea Party
- The War of Independence
- American Politicians
- English Ship at War
- The word exacerbated in line 3 can be best replaced by ….
- aggravated
- exaggerated
- stopped
- continued
- What is the impetus of the War of Independence?
- The Boston politicians started a fight with Englishmen
- The people of Boston dumped English tea to the sea
- There was lack of tea at Boston
- People did not believe in the deal made by Boston politicians
Scoring Criteria: – Each item is worth 1 point; maximum total correct answer is 20 (=100%)
- Grades for reading performance: 85-100% = A; 70-84% = B; 60-69% = C; 50-59% = D; below 49% = E
- Give comments on which skills need to be improved
Hopefully this sharing will give you some insight on language assessment. See ya! *=*
Strange? It’s O.K.
I got this article from a friend. It’s so enlightening, that’s why I need to publish it here. This also a relief for some people who are categorized as the ’strange’ one in this crazy world. Check this out:
ANEH MEMBAWA NIKMAT
by ZAINUDDIN DJAFAR
“Dunia memang aneh”, Guman Pak Ustadz
“Apanya yang aneh Pak?” Tanya Penulis yang fakir ini.
“Tidakkah antum (kamu/anda) perhatikan di sekeliling antum, bahwa
dunia menjadi terbolak-balik, tuntunan jadi tontonan, tontonan jadi
tuntunan, sesuatu yang wajar dan seharusnya dipergunjingkan,
sementara perilaku menyimpang dan kurang ajar malah menjadi
pemandangan biasa”
“Coba antum rasakan sendiri, nanti Maghrib, antum ke masjid, kenakan
pakaian yang paling bagus yang antum miliki, pakai minyak wangi,
pakai sorban, lalu antum berjalan kemari, nanti antum ceritakan apa
yang antum alami” Kata Pak Ustadz.
Tanpa banyak tanya, penulis melakukan apa yang diperintahkan Pak
Ustadz, menjelang maghrib, penulis bersiap dengan mengenakan pakaian
dan wewangian dan berjalan menunju masjid yang berjarak sekitar 800m
dari rumah.
Belum setengah perjalanan, penulis berpapasan dengan seorang ibu muda
yang sedang jalan-jalan sore sambil menyuapi anaknya”
“Aduh, tumben nih rapi banget, kayak pak ustadz. Mau ke mana, sih?”
Tanya ibu muda itu.
Sekilas pertanyaan tadi biasa saja, karena memang kami saling kenal,
tapi ketika dikaitkan dengan ucapan Pak Ustadz di atas, menjadi
sesuatu yang lain rasanya…
“Kenapa orang yang hendak pergi ke masjid dengan pakaian rapi dan
memang semestinya seperti itu dibilang “tumben”?
Kenapa justru orang yang jalan-jalan dan memberi makan anaknya di
tengah jalan, di tengah kumandang adzan maghrib menjadi biasa-biasa
saja?
Kenapa orang ke masjid dianggap aneh?
Orang yang pergi ke masjid akan terasa “aneh” ketika orang-orang lain
justru tengah asik nonton sinetron “Intan”.
Orang ke masjid akan terasa “aneh” ketika melalui kerumunan orang-
orang yang sedang ngobrol di pinggir jalan dengan suara lantang
seolah meningkahi suara panggilan adzan.
Orang ke masjid terasa “aneh” ketika orang lebih sibuk mencuci motor
dan mobilnya yang kotor karena kehujanan.
Ketika hal itu penulis ceritakan ke Pak Ustadz, beliau hanya
tersenyum, “Kamu akan banyak menjumpai “keanehan-keanehan” lain
di sekitarmu,” kata Pak Ustadz.
“Keanehan-keanehan” di sekitar kita?
Cobalah ketika kita datang ke kantor, kita lakukan shalat sunah
dhuha, pasti akan nampak “aneh” di tengah orang-orang yang sibuk
sarapan, baca koran dan mengobrol.
Cobalah kita shalat dhuhur atau Ashar tepat waktu, akan
terasa “aneh”, karena masjid masih kosong melompong, akan terasa aneh
di tengah-tengah sebuah lingkungan dan teman yang biasa shalat di
akhir waktu.
Cobalah berdzikir atau tadabur al Qur’an ba’da shalat, akan terasa
aneh di tengah-tengah orang yang tidur mendengkur setelah atau
sebelum shalat. Dan makin terasa aneh ketika lampu mushola/masjid
harus dimatikan agar tidurnya nyaman dan tidak silau. Orang yang mau
shalat malah serasa menumpang di tempat orang tidur, bukan malah
sebaliknya, yang tidur itu justru menumpang di tempat shalat. Aneh,
bukan?
Cobalah hari ini shalat Jum’at lebih awal, akan terasa aneh, karena
masjid masih kosong, dan baru akan terisi penuh manakala khutbah ke
dua menjelang selesai.
Cobalah anda kirim artikel atau tulisan yang berisi nasehat, akan
terasa aneh di tengah-tengah kiriman e-mail yang berisi humor,
plesetan, asal nimbrung, atau sekedar gue, elu, gue, elu, dan
test..test, test saja.
Cobalah baca artikel atau tulisan yang berisi nasehat atau hadits,
atau ayat al Qur’an, pasti akan terasa aneh di tengah orang-orang
yang membaca artikel-artikel lelucon, lawakan yang tak lucu, berita
hot atau lainnya.
Dan masih banyak keanehan-keanehan lainnya, tapi sekali lagi jangan
takut menjadi orang “aneh” selama keanehan kita sesuai dengan
tuntunan syari’at dan tata nilai serta norma yang benar.
Jangan takut dibilang “tumben” ketika kita pergi ke masjid, dengan
pakaian rapi, karena itulah yang benar yang sesuai dengan al Qur’an
(Al A’raf:31)
Jangan takut dikatakan “sok alim” ketika kita lakukan shalat dhuha di
kantor, wong itu yang lebih baik kok, dari sekedar ngobrol ngalor-
ngidul tak karuan.
Jangan takut dikatakan “Sok Rajin” ketika kita shalat tepat pada
waktunya, karena memang shalat adalah kewajiban yang telah ditentukan
waktunya terhadap orang-orang beriman.
“Maka apabila kamu Telah menyelesaikan shalat(mu), ingatlah Allah di
waktu berdiri, di waktu duduk dan di waktu berbaring. Kemudian
apabila kamu Telah merasa aman, Maka Dirikanlah shalat itu
(sebagaimana biasa). Sesungguhnya shalat itu adalah fardhu yang
ditentukan waktunya atas orang-orang yang beriman.” (Annisaa:103)
Jangan takut untuk shalat Jum’at/shalat berjama’ah berada di shaf
terdepan, karena perintahnya pun bersegeralah. Karena di shaf
terdepan itu ada kemuliaan sehingga di jaman Nabi Salallahu’alaihi
wassalam para sahabat bisa bertengkar cuma gara-gara memperebutkan
berada di shaf depan.
“Hai orang-orang beriman, apabila diseru untuk menunaikan shalat
Jum’at, maka bersegeralah kamu kepada mengingat Allah dan
tinggalkanlah jual beli [1475]. Yang demikian itu lebih baik bagimu
jika kamu mengetahui”. (Al Jumu’ah:9)
Jangan takut kirim artikel berupa nasehat, hadits atau ayat-ayat al
Qur’an, karena itu adalah sebagian dari tanggung jawab kita untuk
saling menasehati, saling menyeru dalam kebenaran, dan seruan kepada
kebenaran adalah sebaik-baik perkataan;
“Siapakah yang lebih baik perkataannya daripada orang yang menyeru
kepada Allah, mengerjakan amal yang saleh, dan berkata: “Sesungguhnya
Aku termasuk orang-orang yang menyerah diri?” (Fusshilat:33)
Jangan takut artikel kita tidak dibaca, karena memang demikianlah
Allah menciptakan ladang amal bagi kita. Kalau sekali kita
menyerukan, sekali kita kirim artikel, lantas semua orang mengikuti
apa yang kita serukan, lenyap donk ladang amal kita….
Kalau yang kirim e-mail humor saja, gue/elu saja, test-test saja bisa
kirim e-mail setiap hari, kenapa kita mesti risih dan harus berpikir
ratusan atau bahkan ribuan kali untuk saling memberi nasehat. Aneh
nggak, sih?
Jangan takut dikatain sok pinter, sok menggurui, atau sok tahu. Lha
wong itu yang disuruh kok, “sampaikan dariku walau satu ayat”
(potongan dari hadits yang diriwayatkan oleh Al-Bukhari no. 3461 dari
hadits Abdullah Ibn Umar).
Jangan takut baca e-mail dari siapapun, selama e-mail itu berisi
kebenaran dan bertujuan untuk kebaikan. Kita tidak harus baca e-mail
dari orang-orang terkenal, e-mail dari manajer atau dari siapapun
kalau isinya sekedar dan ala kadarnya saja, atau dari e-mail yang
isinya asal kirim saja. Mutiara akan tetap jadi mutiara terlepas dari
siapapun pengirimnya. Pun sampah tidak akan pernah menjadi emas,
meskipun berasal dari tempat yang mewah sekalipun.
Lakukan “keanehan-keanehan” yang dituntun manhaj dan syari’at yang
benar.
Kenakan jilbab dengan teguh dan sempurna, meskipun itu akan serasa
aneh ditengah orang-orang yang berbikini dan ber-you can see.
Jangan takut mengatakan perkataan yang benar (Al Qur’an & Hadist),
meskipun akan terasa aneh ditengah hingar bingarnya bacaan vulgar dan
tak bermoral.
Lagian kenapa kita harus takut disebut “orang aneh” atau “manusia
langka” jika memang keanehan-keanehan menurut pandangan mereka justru
yang akan menyelematkan kita?
Selamat jadi orang aneh yang bersyari’at dan bermanhaj yang benar…
Semoga bermanfaat.
I think you can also forward this message if you find it useful. No reward or gain for you, except that Allah will be ridho with your good deeds…amin.
TEACHING READING
In my view, teaching reading is one of the best practices for EFL students, because it is a kind of an exercise of reason. As an expert said, it is an exercise dominated by the eyes and the brain, and provides huge advantage for EFL students (Harmer, 2004).
In my context, I have experienced many activities dealing with reading practice. Mostly, the main objective is to understand a reading text or to get the important information from it. For this goal, I always convince my students that English text can be understood if they keep on reading it until the last sentence of the passage. For me, an English text can be comprehended even though there are new vocabulary and structures that my students have never seen before. They have to guess and predict the meaning the context and train their brain to digest the information on the passage. I usually make an illustration for them: they are just learning how to get to Blok M by car, and I told them the way to get there and that they just need to drive according to the instruction. Do not stop over if they find something strange or need to know (it’s the new vocabulary or structure), because the more often they did that, the longer it will be to get to the destination. To get the idea of what a text is about can be done in shorter time if they are skilled, or keep on reading for comprehension rapidly.
After they get the idea of the text, I usually ask some questions to check whether they can extract the information on the passage. It can be a combination between open-ended questions and Yes/No questions. This activity can be a practice for speaking for my students.
In other objective, I can also use reading as communicative task, i.e. activity to foster my students’ ability to communicate in English. For example, I give a text, and my students are asked to discuss it in small groups as the task assigned for them, such as:
- to get a clue in a case study,
- to rearrange the jumbled paragraphs into a good story
- to discuss their stand points after reading certain issue
- to discuss the moral value of a folk tale
- to find the suspect in a crime story, etc
The last objective and also the most important for me is to stimulate them to pronounce better while reading aloud (another exercise for speaking). It’s a good practice because I can monitor my students’ progress in speaking by doing this. I can know easily whether my students keep on improving or not. (I usually motivate them to practice reading aloud at home, read bedtime story, or recite a poem. It’s a good exercise for pronunciation, stresses, and intonation). Reading a text aloud can indicate our speaking proficiency.
So, teaching reading is also a kind of teaching skills to my students. I like teaching reading, because it will also encourage me to keep on improving. In reading, we will continue to find something new: it can be some difficulty, some new skills, or more information that can widen our horizon.
***
TEACHING THE LANGUAGE SYSTEM
Teaching the language system means that a teacher presents students with clear information about the language they are learning. It is a complex task, especially for me, because teacher must show students what the language means and how it is used, what the grammatical form of the new language is, and how it is said and written (Harmer, 2004).
In my experience, the best way to present language is in context. The challenge for teacher, in my view, is to provide good context for students that enable them to understand the language system. From my experience, the context for my students can be:
- physical surrounding: classroom, campus, our Ministry of Finance, etc
- student’s world: their lives, problems, hobbies, interests, etc
- global world: recent news, trends, stories, lifestyles, etc.
For example, when I want to teach grammar, let say comparative sentence, I provide them a reading text taken from the Internet on recent topics that contains many sample usages of comparatives in a passage. The activities will be suited to the objective in the lesson plan. A good context can be motivating for students to learn new language.
Talking about the presentation of structural form, I do not really explain much on forms and pattern, since my students have got it in semester 1 (I teach Diploma IV or semester 7, so my students should know a lot about grammar). Rather, I use the lead-in model (in the hope that my students will be aware of the key concept) or elicitation (because it is more time saving and less frustrating for students don’t have to practice something they have already known). For me, elaborate explanation depends on whether there are corrections needed to be made. But sometimes, if they do not aware of certain mistake, I just repeat their sentence by using different intonation (like questioning), so as other students can think that it is an indication I doubt what a student said is correct.
In short, a teacher should show students not only what language means but also how it is used, and the activity can vary depending on the topic and the context that the teacher planned before.
***
About Me
I’m just an ordinary person: a housewife, a mother of three, a government official, and a student, too. My hobbies are singing, reading, cooking, and traveling. I don’t like sports; it’s tiring and time consuming for me. I sometimes draw sketches, and my husband thinks that I’m talented. My favorite drawings are ordinary people and urban scenes. By the way, I teach art course for the children at my housing area on Sundays. It’s a free one, wanna join it?
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efidrew