New "Semester" Scheme For Form 6?

I've received the following complaint from a Form 6 student. I don't agree with the bits which said some of the activities are a "waste of time", but the concern over long school hours is very valid. When commenting, please remember that the writer is a 17-year-old.

I am a lower 6 student. A new system has recently been implemented in all schools with Form Six classes throughout the country. All Lower Six classes from 2009 will have to stay back until 4pm. This new system started in my school in early July.
I found out from the teachers that this batch (2009/2010) was used to try out the suitability of the semester-based system to be implemented in schools in the future. Unfortunately for us, our exams are still not semester-based.

Staying back till 4pm means we, Lower Six students will not have a chance to participate in the extra-curricular activities as all the club and uniformed body meetings are held after 1pm. What about our co-curriculum marks? We were told that 10% of the overall criteria to enter local universities is from our involvement in co-curricular activities.

Study Opportunities atPrivate Higher Educational in Institutions Malaysia

Quality Assured Tertiary Programmes With Many Options
Local and international students in the pursuit of higher education are spoilt for choice by the wide range of study options and choices of both local and foreign universities, all at highly affordable costs. Underlying this is the current trend of setting up branch campuses in Malaysia by reputable universities from the UK and Australia. Furthermore, various universities from the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, France, Germany and New Zealand are offering twinning, franchised and external degree programmes in partnership with Malaysian higher educational institutions.

Local private universities also offer competitively priced and excellent quality degree programmes as an added alternative.

Poised as the centre of educational excellence in the Asia- Pacific region, Malaysia’s educational programmes offered by private higher educational institutions (PHEIs) are of excellent quality. These institutions of higher learning are governed by various acts such as the Education Act 1996, the Universities and University Colleges (Amendment) Act 1996, Private Higher Education Institutions Act 1996 and the Malaysian Qualifications Agency Act 2007. English, an international lingua franca, is the medium of instruction making this a plus factor for students who aspire to succeed in their career.

Categories of Private Higher Educational Institutions (PHEIs)
There are 2 categories of PHEIs in Malaysia:

* Non-university Status
o Private Colleges
o Private Institutions
* University Status
o Private Universities
o Private University Colleges
o Foreign Branch Campus Universities

Types of Qualifications Awarded
By Private Colleges

* Awarding internal or self-made certificate and diploma qualifications
* Conducting foreign university collaboration degree programmes
* Preparing students for external professional examinations

By Private Universities and University Colleges
- Awarding their own degree qualifications
By Foreign Branch Campus Universities
- Awarding identical degree qualifications as the host university overseas

Study Options at Private Colleges
A. Internal Awards at Diploma Level
Private colleges have been developing and awarding their own diploma level qualifications to students since the early 1980s. They use English as the medium of instruction. The greatest strength of the internallydeveloped programmes is that they are recognised and granted with ‘advance standing’ entry status by many foreign universities in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, Germany and the USA, allowing entry into these universities’ second year or final year bachelor degree programmes.

B. Preparing Students for External Professional Examinations
These colleges undertake to provide classes with tutorial support for students and prepare them for external examinations set by the local or foreign examination boards. Qualifications offered include those from the following globally recognised institutions :

* Professional Associations (ACCA-UK, CIMA-UK, ICSA-UK)
* Semi-Professional Examination Bodies (IBBM, LCCIEB-UK, NCC-UK)
* External Academic Programmes at postsecondary level (GCE ‘A’ Level - UK, SAM Australia, Canadian Pre-U)
* External English Programmes (University of Cambridge Local Examination Syndicate)

C. Bachelor Degree Programmes from Universities in the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Germany and France
Students can complete their foreign bachelor degree programmes at colleges in Malaysia which have an interinstitutional collaborative arrangement with host-universities from overseas. The most common collaborative arrangements that these colleges have with the host universities offering foreign degrees are the Split Degree or 3+0 Entire Degree arrangement.

(i) Split Degree Arrangement
This comes under the Twinning Degree, Credit Transfer Degree or Advanced Standing (Validated) Programmes.

• Twinning Degree Programmes allow students to partially complete the first or second year of their degree at a local college, with the remaining years to be completed at the specified foreign partner university, which will then award the degree upon graduation.

• Credit Transfer Programmes are also offered by colleges that have links with foreign universities. Stdents who have met the required credit hours of the subject studied locally can transfer the credit hours to the foreign university of their choice. This flexible arrangement is most popular among the US universities.

• Advanced Standing Programmes are the private colleges’ internal diploma programmes validated and moderated with ‘Advanced Standing’ entry status by a group of overseas universities for direct entry into the second or third year of their degree programmes. Upon completion of the ‘recognised’ diploma course in Malaysia, students will be awarded the foreign degree after successfully completing the remaining portion of the degree programme in the host university overseas.

(ii) 3+0 Entire Degree Arrangement
This arrangement allows the entire foreign bachelor degree programme to be completed in a Malaysian college. There are two possibilities for students:

* ‘3+0’ Foreign University Degree Programme
* External Programme for Degree Qualification

3+0’ Foreign University Degree Programme
Under this arrangement, some colleges are permitted by the foreign partner universities from the UK, Australia, US and France to conduct the entire degree programme in Malaysia on their behalf. The overseas universities will then award the degree. This novel study option, in operation since 1998, has made Malaysia a popular education destination for those who want to save costs.

External Programme for Degree Qualification
For external programmes, students register at a college which functions as a tutorial centre preparing the student for the final external examination. The degree obtained is equal to that obtained by internal students of the foreign university.

D. Master’s Degree and Post-Graduate Programmes

In collaboration with foreign universities, many colleges offer students a wide range of foreign master’s degrees and postgraduate studies of international standard at relatively low cost.

“In Malaysia, we offer quality and value-for-money education with many choices of international qualifications for your selection.”

Study Options at Malaysian Private Universities
Students can study at these Malaysian home-grown universities to earn their qualifications at both bachelor degree and postgraduate degree levels. In both cases, English is the medium of instruction. The relatively cheap course fees combined with worldwide recognise qualification make these campuses much sought after by local and international students. The areas of study offered include business, computer science, engineering, IT, medicine, services and languages.

Study Options at Foreign University Branch Campuses
Degrees offered by a branch campus of a foreign university in Malaysia is identical in every aspect with that of the parent campus in the country of origin. The first foreign university branch campus, Monash University Malaysia was set up in Malaysia in 1998.

Students registered in the Malaysian branch campus of an overseas university are automatically students of the parent campus. Such students have opportunity to spend one or more semesters at the overseas parent campus (but not the final year) with no disruption to their studies. The cost of studying for a degree in a branch campus in Malaysia is substantially lower than that in the parent campus overseas.

Six Easy Steps to Study in Malaysia

1 The student submits an application form for study, together with the relevant documents to the intended educational institution which has the official approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs (Immigration Department) to recruit international students.

2 The student’s application is accepted by the educational institution, which then helps to apply for a student pass at the Malaysian Immigration Department in Malaysia (except for students from the PRC).

3 Upon acceptance, a letter of approval for the student pass is released by the Malaysian Immigration Department to the educational institution for them to pass on to the student.

4 Before leaving his/her country for Malaysia, the student informs the educational institution of his/her port of entry (airport), flight number, arrival date and time.

5 Upon arrival at the airport in Malaysia, the educational institution’s representative receives the student at the immigration check-point.

6 Within 2 weeks of the student’s arrival, the educational institution submits the student’s passport to the Immigration Department, which attaches the student pass sticker.

Education in Third World

With the daily challenges posed by economic difficulty and other threats, governments in developing countries are working very hard to ensure that their educational institutions continue to provide a standard of education that can make its citizens at part with the educated people in more economically sound countries. To a certain extent, these Third World countries have succeeded in their crusade for quality education. The problem is that a good education comes with a price and it is often a price that many people in Third World countries are not able to pay. So, although quality education is available, it is still unreachable for a large segment of a developing country’s population.

Certainly, it is impressive to see that developing countries have educational institutions that are world-class and which offer education that can rival that provided by wealthier nations around the world. There is a clear recognition of the role that education plays in overcoming hardship and poverty. However elusive it may be, a good education is still viewed as the best way to a better life.

Among the developing countries that have superb educational systems are such “emerging markets” as Mexico, India, Brazil, Turkey, the Philippines, Egypt, South Africa, Malaysia, Thailand, much of South America and several of the Persian Gulf Arab States.

Obviously, the poorest of the poor in these countries will have a hard time getting into the best schools in their vicinity. Of course, there are always scholarship programs available but these are few. Besides, people at the lowest spectrum of the economic scale are more concerned with more pressing issues related to their mere survival such as where to find food and money for clothing and shelter. After these basic needs are met, that is the only time that parents can really focus on their children’s schooling. In fact, studies indicate that once their basic economic needs are met, the first priority of most poor families is how to send their children to a good school.

India recently launched EDUSAT, an educational program aimed at giving quality education to even its poorest citizens. Among the group’s first initiatives is the development of a $100 laptop which the government hopes to distribute by 2007 to public schools all over the country.

Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Education, Kids And Teens, and Weather

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jonathon_Hardcastle

JPA Website for Overseas Courses

Check this website before you choose your course overseas

Hope of coming home to serve country dashed

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/11/focus/4876973&sec=focus

I read with great empathy the plight of this writer. Unfortunately I have also checked the JPA list of recognised qualifications and can confirm that the Graduate Diploma in Education at the University of Western Australia is not recognised.

Only the Bachelor of Education is recognised.

In fact, no Diplomas are recognised from any of the Universities in UK or Australia in the arts and humanitarian subset. I have not looked at the rest of the courses.

So if you have any friends or family who intends to come back to work, please ask them to check with this JPA website first to avoid grief in the future when the nasi sudah jadi bubur...


http://www.interactive.jpa.gov.my/webinteraktif/frmMainIktiraf.asp

The site is easy to use and is very fast. You can search through the fields as detailed below.

Negara / Country :
Institusi / Institution :
Bidang / Field of study :

atau / or

Carian / Search:

The fact of the matter is this. The onus is on the students to check before they enrol for a particular course.

All countries have their own list of accepted qualifications and one must be very meticulous in finding out the details and also bearing in mind that the list can change at any time.

At one point, the Singaporean government decided to arbitrary only recognise about 20 Universities throughout the world for the MB Bch degree.

So suddenly, many Singaporeans who were already half-way through the medical course in "unrecognised" Universities faced the bleak prospect of permanent unemployment in their own country.

Luckily, the Singaporean PSC came to their senses and gave these poor souls an exception as they were already half-way through. But the restrictions remained for a few years as far as I know...

"To be forewarned is to be forearmed."

Source : Author SAMCWPEN,The Star

Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign at SEGi University College

The most common cancer and the number one cause of cancer deaths amongst women in Malaysia based on a research conducted by the National Cancer Registry (NCR) is Breast Cancer. The cancer is caused by an uncontrollable growth of cells that multiply within the breast tissue.

Breast cancer, if not detected in its initial stage or treated properly, spreads fast, often infecting the lymph nodes and other parts of the body including the lungs, bones and liver.

In understanding the importance of early detection and prevention of breast cancer; SEGi’s Learning & Development department in collaboration with MAKNA (National Cancer Council) today organised a Cancer Awareness & Fundraising Programme at SEGi University College’s Multipurpose Hall (MPH).

The awareness and fundraising programme was attended by more than 250 students from the nursing faculty, including lecturers and SEG International staff who were keen to know more about Breast Cancer and its methods of prevention.

Ms. Habiba Abdul Rahman, an Outreach Programme Facilitator at MAKNA since 1993, spoke on the importance of Breast Self- Examination (BSE) is the best method in detecting lumps.

“It is important that those below the age of 35 conduct monthly Breast Self- Examinations, this is the best way to detect a lump” adding that the check should be done on the seventh day of menstruation.

Ms. Habiba also stressed that individuals who have been diagnosed with cancer seek immediate treatment as opposed to seeking help through traditional medication. “If you want to visit the sin-seh, or bomoh, do so once you have consulted your doctor, it is important that you get the right treatment without prolonging it any further.”

MAKNA whose mission is to mobilise resources in order to provide curative, preventive, research and support services to cancer patients and their families, also provides screening, early diagnostic facilities to enable early form of detection in cancer.

The awareness and fundraising event ended at 1.30pm where the students and staff were asked to sign up for a Breast Self- Examination workshop, where they would be taught on the right procedure and method to do the self examination.

For further enquiries on the talks or events organised by the Learning & Development Department, call SEGi University College (03-6145 1777 or 1800-88-7344) email to askme@segi.edu.my or log on to www.segi.edu.my.

Article Source: http://www.systematic.edu.my/news/cancer_awareness.htm

Malaysia Education

Malaysia is located in the tropics of Southeast Asia, straddling the South China Sea. Recent developments are putting Malaysia on the world map, as she focuses on becoming a knowledge-based economy. To develop world-class quality education and meet the demands and requirements of the new millennium, as well as to affirm the position of English as a second language, the Government has initiated major educational reforms by formulating new legislations on education. These were tabled in the Parliament from 1995 to1997, and covers all levels of education, from pre-school to higher tertiary education. Malaysia is indeed becoming a dynamic and exciting regional centre for education excellence.

Acquiring a University Education

In Malaysia there are ten local public universities, one international university, six private universities and over 500 Public Higher Educational Institutions (PHEIs) providing undergraduate and postgraduate studies. PHEIs are non-government aided institutions that are fully funded by the private sector, and are open to all races in Malaysia as well as foreign students. PHEIs complement and supplement the government's efforts in education development.

To ensure quality education and to safe-guard the interests of the students. all private educational institutions are required to register with the Ministry of Education. The private institutions are well guided by laws on the establishment, management and operation of private educational institutions. PHEls that are approved by the Minister of Education are constantly under the scrutiny of the National Accreditation Board (NAB) or Lembaga Akreditasi Negara (LAN), a statutory body responsible for governing the standard and qua1ity of higher education provided by the PHEIs. LAN is committed to uphold the highest academic standards, and plays a vital role in the establishment of minimum standards and accreditation of courses.



The Systematic Education Group of Colleges operates eight Private Higher Educational Institutions. Established in 1977, Systematic's prime objective was to provide training to school leavers for their future career in Accounting, Business, Computing, Marketing, Management, Banking, Secretarial and Commerce and Industry. Malaysia is extremely conducive to study, and many Malaysian students have won prizes for outstanding academic results. With more than 23 years of experience, Systematic has produced a consistent flow of World and Malaysian prize-winners for the various professional courses, such as LCCI, ACCA, CIMA, ICSA, ABE and CIM. The catalyst for Systematic's success is the complete training system, that includes specially written materials including study packs, past year questions and answers, and test packs that are updated yearly. From its humble beginning in the 70's, Systematic Group of Colleges currently has about 10,000 students, with approximately 200-300 international students studying in the various Systematic City campuses in Malaysia. These students are from Indonesia, China, PakiStan, Maldives, India, Myanmar, Taiwan, Sri Lanka and even as far as Belgium. There is a host of specially organised activities, such as orientation programmes, festive and cultural events, and community projects, to assist international students to acclimatise.

In Malaysia institutions of learning are committed to international students' welfare . There is a wide range of off-campus and on-campus accommodation to meet different students' budgets, and all living accommodation is modem and comfortable. Estimated living expenses range from USD 3,000 p.a. to USD 5,000 p.a. and vary from one state to another throughout Malaysia. The cost of living also varies depending on the students' style of living. We have the experience, the people and the facilities - don't give yourself anything less. We welcome you to visit us! .

Article Source: http://www.malaysiaeducationguide.com/