6th IMETC 2012

Date: 29-31st September 2012
Venue: Concorde Inn, KLIA

Alhamdulillah, I have been invited to be a keynote speaker at the 6th International Malaysian Educational Technology Convention 2012. It was a humbling and gratifying experience indeed to be given the opportunity to speak in front of the movers and shakers of the edutech realm. Thank you Prof. Rozhan Idrus for inviting me. The other three keynote speakers are Associate Professor Alla Saddik from Oman,Professor Junichi Yamanichi from Japan and Dr. Soon, Deputy Director of Bahagian Teknologi Pendidikan (BTP).

The 6th IMETC was officiated by Prof. Dato' Dr. Ansary Ahmed President/CEO Asia e University. This is my 1st time attending IMETC and I am glad I am given the chance to revive my knowledge on education technology from all the experts. During the latest Malaysian Educational Technology Association (META) annual meeting, I was being appointed as one of its Exco members, nominated by Prof. Yusof, the father of Education Technology in Malaysia. It is an honour and I'll do my best to contribute to the association, Insya Allah.

Wonderful and inspirational individuals I've met and networked with at IMETC. I've noticed that all of the professors/AP/academicians I've met at IMETC are so humble albeit their amazing accolades and credentials. Definitely a humbling experience. Who would have thought I would meet Dr. Bushro, the one who interviewed me for my HLP Scholarship interview at IMETC? She has been a great guide and mentor. I got the chance to meet Dr. Chiam from Sabah and Bee Ling from SK Bintang Utara who have been prolifically using IT in their schools. The best part is to meet my fellow HLP recipients, Aznita and Shikin. They are now studying in UKM and it's great to catch up and share ideas on our upcoming dissertation (read: stress alert..hehe)

My keynote address. My presentation focusses more on the educator's role in equipping ourselves to face the current trends and paradigm shift in E-Learning. Prior to this, I have interviewed and talked to several teachers, Mr. Adnan (SMS Sembrong), Jarrod (SMK Katibas), Azlimin (Maahad Al-Ahyar) to name a few. From their e-mails, tweets, FB messages and all, I was able to share the teachers' plights, issues and hope in the implementation of ICT in Malaysian secondary schools. I would like to thank my UTM lecturers especially my supervisor, Dr. Halina for guiding me. I would like to also thank Associate Professor Dr. Kamarul Kabilan who patiently guides me whenever I seek advice on my studies and presentations. You're awesome! In the context of e-learning, I strongly feel that the emphasis shouldn't be on the tools but on facilitating teachers in the use of these tools in the learning process. It is not fair to wiggle our fingers and finding faults when teachers are doing their best, teaching and multi-managing the various key-in systems. Perhaps they should create just ONE system hub where all the essential data can be managed better? Apart from teacher's resistance, infrastructure and professional development need to be revised and restructured so all of the stakeholders will not perceive E-Learning as a daunting task and instead,optimize it effectively to help students to learn better.

6th IMETC 2012

In an hour's time, I will be driving off to KL to attend the 6th International Malaysian Educational Technology Convention (IMETC) 2012. Alhamdulillah, I have been chosen as a keynote speaker for this spectacular event and to be honest, it has been so unexpected.

When Prof. Rozhan Idrus, the Chair of IMETC offered me to be a keynote speaker, I was tad shocked. From what I know, most of the past keyspeakers have been professors,reknowned academicians and the movers and shakers in edu tech domain. I am just a humble teacher/post graduate student. I feel jitters all right! Gradually, I perceive it as an opportunity, a platform to voice out the reality, enigma and possibilities of e-learning in Malaysian schools. I am flattered and humbled that a Malaysian teacher's view is deemed worthy to represent the Malaysian edutech academias.

Honestly, this is a milestone in my career and I see it as a golden opportunity for me to share my views and experience as a teacher with other professionals. The topic of my keynote speech is 'Reframing Education System: Current Trends & Paradigm Shift'. I hope by sharing my projects, my colleagues' views and students' expectations, we can come up with more pragmatic ways to optimize e-learning in Malaysian school. I would like to thank my lecturers at UTM for giving me the green light to be away for the convention. Wish me luck in my presentation!

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Johor State English Language Conference 2012

Date          : 12-14th June 2012
Venue       : M Suite Hotel
Organiser : Johor English Language Teacher Association (JELTA)

Balan Moses (NST), Dato' Syed Nadzri (NST), En. Hasidin (JPNJ), Datin Dr. Maimunah (M Suite) & Vincent (JELTA) during the opening ceremony.

Pn. Sallina Hussain, Pengetua Cemerlang & my mentor. I hope I can emulate her dedication and teaching fervour.

I was invited by JELTA to present during the plenary session at the conference. I feel humbled and grateful that I've been given the chance to share my ideas with others. Despite minor challenges faced, I perceive it as a positive sign that if you are doing something right, the right thing will happen, Insya Allah :)

Wonderful people I've met during the conference. I met and networked with a lot of teachers and I think a conference is a great platform to engage ourselves with new teaching methodology or keep abreast with the latest info pertaining to ELT in Johor. It was great to be reunited with my juniors, Intan & Terry. The ever bubbly Kak Rocky is someone who I respected as well. I used to be in awe of her due to her active participation in debate and drama so it's great to know she has now become a cool friend too. Meeting Uma from St. Andrew's Muar is serendipitous indeed. We used to teach at La Salle Brickfields and knew the same circle of friends. What a small world!

Sharing session with the conference participants. It was heartening to get positive feedbacks from them on the materials I've shared. Of course, there is always room for improvement and I will constantly try to improve my presentation skills from time to time. For those who are asking for the presentation slides, enclosed is my presentation and I hope it could benefit others as well. Sharing is caring!

Web 2.0 & 3.0 technologies in ELT

View more PowerPoint from Nor Fadzleen

Johor International Student Leaders Conference 2012

Attention to all students and teachers,

 Johor Student Leaders Council (JSLC) is organising the 2nd Johor International Student Leaders Conference 2012. Enclosed are the details pertaining to the conference:

Date: 26 & 27th June 2012

Venue: KSL Convention Centre, KSL Hotel

Participants: Local & international student leaders

The aim of JISLC 2012 is to encourage student leaders from schools (age 13-18) throughout Asia and beyond to meet and exchange ideas, views, initiatives, and visions on an international platform; engaging in a cross-cultural learning environment. 

The 1st Johor International Student Leaders Conference 2011. Don't miss the golden opportunity this time!

This year’s theme will bring together the viewpoints and proposals of student leaders all over the world on a very critical issue of sustainable development that may determine the future of the generations to come. The United Nations 2005 World Summit. Outcome Document refers to three reinforcing pillars that form the underpinnings of sustainable development which are: 

 i. economic development

 ii. social development

 iii. environment protection. 

To register as a participant or a presenter, check out  this link and download the forms enclosed at the bottom of the webpage.  If you are interested to be a paper presenter, please send the abstract of your paper presentation and we'll review them. Grab this golden opportunity to discover new things, hone your leadership skills and meet awesome new friends at the 2nd Johor International Student Leaders Conference.

For more information, please visit the official JISLC 2012's website. Hope to see you there!

ICELT 2011: A Photo Essay

A 7-hour drive to Lumut was worth it. I carpooled with Kak Rahmah, Kak Fuzi & Kak Suzi, all GCs from Johor. Alhamdulillah, we managed to reach the venue albeit mild difficulties in finding the location. There were altogether 365 presentations and it was so hard to choose which session to attend as there were so many interesting papers presented during the parallel sessions. Some of the sessions ended at 7.30 p.m. ! I guess a conference of such magnitude would attract so many presenters and participants. The title itself forecasts the excitement that awaits in the teaching of English Language.

I presented a 30-minute paper presentation on the first day. I shared the findings of my classroom-based Action Research entitled '3-2-1 Action!: Digital Storytelling in ESL Classroom.' I carried out Digital Storytelling Project, a project-based learning where students produce the final products with facilitation from the teacher . I've prepared the Student Module to assist my 4 SN1 students in producing their videos as well as conducting Digital Storytelling Workshop with them. Well, it's about time we give the teacher the break and let the students do all the hard work :) My main objective in carrying out this AR is to promote engaging and meaningful student-centred learning via web-based tools. All the students' work are virtually accessable via the DSP's blog and DSP's Youtube Channel. I am so glad and flattered that a lot of participants expressed their interests in the project and would like to try Digital Storytelling with their students and their teacher trainees. To me, whether you like it or not, E-Learning will be the main approach in English Language Learning as more students are tech-savvy and demand a more interactive and personalised learning. 

To me, the perk of attending international conferences is to learn new technique, approach and oratory skills from world-reknown International speakers. I was mesmerised by Jan Blake's expertise in storytelling where she captured the attention of every single participant in the room. Prof Alan Maley imparted a very important asset that we, teachers tend to overlook, our voice. He introduced fun and engaging way to help teachers maximise the flexibility of our voice without having to shout or strain our vocal chords too much. My personal favourite is Paul Cookson. He is so oh talented and gifted! I shared his poems with my sons and they simply enjoyed them :) I had the chance to meet and talk to Adisa, a famous British poet that fuses rythms and beats in poetry. These two men really transform the conventional notion of poetry recitation. Who says poetry is passe? ;) Oh yes, who could forget the 2 Steves. They are hyperactive narrative maestros that demonstrated their love for lively and dramatic stories. Honestly, the conference managed to revive my passion towards injecting performing arts in my classroom teaching. Kudos Dr. Jaya and the committee members!

I've met a lot of passionate educators who I've networked and shared my views, rants and ideas on teaching. Phewww, I was reunited with Sim, my former coursemate after 10 years leaving the college. How time flies! She looks lovely and jovial as ever :) I had the chance to meet Darshini, a bubbly blogger from Kuantan who I've been corresponding with via my blog. Although we both are working with CDD on some projects, we never had the chance to meet one another. After chitchatting, we discovered that we have mutual friends, how cool is that :)  I met a group of Sabahan teachers that became my good friends during the conference. All of them forked out their own money and flew here just to attend the conference. Isn't that amazing? That's what I've been doing for the past 3 years, attending conferences sans financial support from others. Personally, some might call it crazy but to me, I enjoy learning new things and presenting helps me to sharpen my oratory skills too. I may not possess the vast experience like other presenters but I always believe that practice makes perfect.

Meeting Kak Rahmah, Kak Fuzi & Kak Suzi was a cherished moment as we shared our experiences and issues in school. Apparently, we faced similar predicament as it is challenging being a GC as some people in school might not understand why you have to go out most of the time.  This is one of the main issues that I am facing at the moment. As GC, we need to carry out official duties from the District Education Office, State Education Department and Ministry of Education too. I've been working closely with the aforementioned parties this year and that unfortunately means I have to be away from school frequently. Some assume it's like taking a holiday from school but the reality is we work and run here and there like headless chicken trying to accomplished official duties apart from the core business of teaching in school. Despite the challenges, I believe that when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. I am thankful as my principal is understanding of my situation and she advises me to juggle my responsibilities wisely. Alhamdulillah, my husband has been so understanding and supportive of my situation and I count my blessing as I have good friends who have always been there for me when I need them.

ICELT 2011

I'm off to Lumut, Perak this weekend to attend the International Conference on English Language Teaching (ICELT) 2011. I'm representing JPNJ and the title of my paper is '3-2-1 Action! : Digital Storytelling in ESL Classroom' which is based on my Action Research with 4SN1 recently. It took me about 2 months to conduct it as it involves hands-on activity (workshop on Digital Storytelling, writing storyboard and editting videos) to my target group (my students) and the project-based learning coordination as well. Nonetheless, I am glad that my students really cherished the knowledge and experience gained during the project.

The students are also exposed to the integration of Web 2.0. media tools (YouTube, Picnik, Facebook, Blog) in conducting this project. They really work hard to come up with their digital stories. They even surprised themselves (me too!) when they come up with such creative and wonderful videos. I dare say some of them are way better than me and you know, that's practically fine with me :) It's all about tapping into the students' creativity and utilising their multiple intelligence in learning English Language more efficiently. I do hope that sharing the experience of teaching Digital Storytelling with the conference participants would help others to see the potential of Digital Storytelling in enhancing verbal proficiency, creativity, active learning and high-order thinking skills. I am looking forward to learning more from other presenters and networking with other participants from all over the world.

20th MELTA International Conference

I'm heading off to Kuala Terengganu this weekend for the 20th MELTA International Conference. I've been attending this conference for the past three years and I perceive it as a lifelong investment to my professional development. This year, I'll be presenting a paper on the pedagogical approach in ESL classroom. I'll be talking on The Fun Theory and how it could be beautifully adapted in igniting creative sparks, promoting thinking skills and arousing students' interest in learning. I honestly look forward to learning and sharing new ideas with the local and international delegates. I've discovered that the conference rejuvenates my interests towards learning and rekindles my passion towards teaching. I do hope I could network with other teachers and perhaps, go shopping? Heh. Yeah, there's a lot of marking to be done for sure but I think I deserve to take a breather. Guess I need to plan my holiday carefully.

Happy holidays!

Johor International Student Leaders Conference 2011

Date: 23-24th March 2011
Venue: JPNJ
Organiser: Johor Student Leaders Council

JISLC was officiated by Dr. Hj. Zahari Bin Aziz, Deputy Director General of Education, Ministry of Education, Malaysia.

Robert Pick, one of the three plenary speakers. He has been appointed as the Master of Marlborough College Malaysia, which will be situated in the Iskandar Region. Trivia bit: Kate Middleton, Prince William's fiancee was one of  its famous students ;)

Serious fun : Taking a flight to a better future

My students who presented during the Poster Presentation. L-R: Mujahid, Benard and Amira. They presented on 'Speak Like A Leader', an oratory programme conducted by the Student Leaders Board in my school.

My students and I. Glad that they really enjoyed the conference!

Moderating for the parallel session. I was in charge of Track 1 and moderated three sessions that day. The student leaders from various countries shared their ideas on how global diversity affect the leaders of tomorrow.

Workshop sessions.

Mini UN Session. Representatives from Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Thailand, South Africa and Vietnam presented the issues plaguing their countries during this session. One of the highlights of the conference.

Omani representative aired his view on health awareness in Oman.

Mujahid, Kak Liza and I. Big grin on our faces despite running here and there like headless chickens in managing the conference.

The officials. Fareeza (IJ Convent), myself and Navinder (SIGS). It was fun working with both of you. Hope to see you soon!

Johore International Student Leaders Conference 2011

Theme : "Student Leaders in the Face of Global Diversity"

The rise in globalization now imposes upon student leaders all over the world to begin expanding their vision of the true meaning of 'diversity'. Indeed the word 'global diversity' does not yet have a broadly shared or universally understood meaning. For some it denotes race and gender while for others it could mean ethnicty and culture that not only embraces differences but also celebrates unique ideas, perspective and eperiences. This way, student leaders are able to better prepare themselves as future leaders who are able to remain relevant and globally sophisticated.

Essentialy, the theme of this conference has a particular focus on globalization as well as internationalization. It also revolves around the multi-faceted meaning of global diversity which at a more basic level would include diversity in culture, arts, language, race, gender and ways of living. To this end, the organizer encourages submissions that approach these topics from a variety of perspectives. However, submissions on other relevant topics are welcome and we also encourage sessions within and across a variety of disciplines and field related to Student Leadership. Papers to be presented can be about a project, initiative, programme that the presenter has undertaken, developed or is a part of. It can also be a narrative account based on the presenter's views, observations and readings. The conference is opened to student leaders from the age of 13 to 18.

REGISTRATION

International Participants

• Participation of international presenters and participants at the JISLC 2011 is upon invitation only.
• Interested student leaders can express interest to participate by submitting an abstract to the secretariat accompanied by nomination letter (cover letter) from the Ministry of Education from his/her country as endorsement.
• The abstract will be reviewed by our review panel. Once accepted, the student leader will be informed via email and will be advised on the official registration procedures. An official invitation will be sent to the successful presenter.
• The official invitation includes full board accommodation and meals for 1 presenter (student leader) only. It does not cover local cost for accompanying teacher/guardian.

Local Participants

• Local student leaders (from Johore as well as other states within Malaysia) are welcome to either participate as a presenter or a participant in the conference.
• To participate, student leaders need to complete the registration form below and submit to the secretariat before February 28^th, 2011. Participation in the conference is on a  FCFS basis. Participants are required to pay a nominal fee of RM30 upon registration on the conference day.
• To present a paper at the conference, a student leader is required to submit their abstracts accompanied by a cover letter from his/her respective school no later than February 28^th, 2011 (refer to Call for Papers section). The abstracts will be reviewed by our reviewed panel. Once accepted, the student leader will be informed via email and will be advised on the official registration procedures. An official invitation will be sent to the successful presenter.
• The official invitation includes full board accommodation and meals for 1 presenter (student leader) only. It does not cover cost for accompanying teacher/guardian.
• Johore student leaders are also invited to watch the proceeding of the mini UN meeting to be held on the 24^th March 2011. The round-table meeting will be an in camera proceeding, however, Johore student leaders can view the live feed that would take place at the JPN Johor's auditorium. Kindly express interest to view the round-table meeting during the conference registration on the 23^rd. Please note that meals are NOT provided for the viewers throughout the meeting.
  
  For further information, do visit this site.
  (sourced from The Johor Internationalisation of Schools' website)

21st IAVE International Youth Conference : A Photo Essay

Last week, I was given the opportunity to participate in the 21st IAVE World Youth Volunteer Conference. Held at the Singapore Management University, the event successfully united all the youth leaders, teen volunteers and NGO officers from all around the world. The main objective is to engage and explore how volunteerism can help create substantial multiplier effects within communities and play a critical role in a sustainable future for all.

The Johore Student Leaders Council (JSLC) members who attended the conference. The entourage was sponsored by Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA). [back : l-r: Syafiq Azhar, Syafiq Nash, Sarvind and Hafiz. front: l-r: Nabila, Kothai, Sara and Sofiya.]

The accompanying officers with Syafiq, one of the JSLC members. Far left is Madam Rosliza Rosli,  the International Relations Officer for the Johor Education Department.

The plenary session by Hugh Evans. He is a world- reknown humanitarian and the CEO of the Global Poverty Project.

I attended a talk by Hugh where he explained extensively on Resource Management. As the JSLC would be organising an international conference soon, it is vital for the team to know the best way to get sponsors and sustain the cashflow on upcoming projects.

I was fascinated with SCAPE, the hub for youth activities in Singapore. I seriously think we need to provide teens with various mind-rejuvenating activities that would deter them from unfavourable influence. We need to encourage youth to be involved in volunteerism as is the key to maintain an equilbrium of needs and wants.

I attended a session on Project Management, led by Samantha Kerr. She is the chairperson for the Scottish Youth Parliament. A laidback approach yet full of brilliant ways to help youth kickstart their projects.

International Culture Night. On my left is MP Assoc. Prof. Dr. Fatimah Lateef who officiated the event.

Baju kurung meets hanbok :)

The Malaysian team, garbed in our national attires. I am proud of them as they managed to network with the other delegates effortlessly. Way to go!

The team's night out at Vivo City. Thanks to Tracy Ter, our Volunteer Ambassador (VA) who has been a wonderful host. We bonded so well with her. We miss you so much, Tracy :)

Jamilah and I at Esplanade. Jamilah is the Youth Development Officer at Yayasan Mendaki, Singapore. She has achieved so much in her life yet she is so down to earth and friendly. We'll definitely keep in touch, Jam!

In a nutshell, the conference had opened my mind and broaden my perspectives on leadership, youth volunteerism and project management. When I discovered that Singaporean students have social service as part of their school curriculum, I was definitely enthralled with the concept. I believe we need to cultivate volunteerism amongst our Malaysian students albeit the fact it should come from the heart and not be enforced upon the teenagers. I also believe that leadership is not just about giving orders and producing excellent documentation alone. A true leader needs to be involved at grassroot level, physically involved in community-based activities and initiate change that would lead to a better tomorrow. Apart from attending conferences, I have discovered that there are a lot of books that students can rely on as a guidance in conducting their community projects. So if you miss the chance to attend the youth conference, you can always go to amazon.com and select books that specifically focus on student leadership. Service above self :)

19th MELTA International Conference 2010: A Photo Essay

The opening ceremony was officiated by HRH Raja Zarith Sofiah, the Patron of MELTA. HRH gave a thought-provoking speech on the evolving learning paradigms of ELT. It was interesting to bump into some famous bloggers such as RockyBru and Nuraina Samad (I was too shy to say hello) who  graced the ceremony as well. Power to the bloggers :)

The esteemed Dr. Hyacinth Gaudart conducted an engaging workshop 'Learning Is Fun!'. I bought her book 'Lively Language Learning' and it is worth every cent. A must have for every teacher!

Dr. Sultan Al-Sharief  from UQU, Makkah, Saudia Arabia presented his paper on CALL Authoring Software. Definitely gained a few pointers on how to integrate CALL in ELT.

Presenting my paper "Utilising Web 2.0. technologies in teaching the new KBSM English Literature Component".

Alhamdulillah, the presentation turned out smoothly and I also received good feedbacks from the audience.

  Noor Azliza Zainal Abidin from Wawasan Open University gave an exciting demonstration on ways to integrate games in learning. It was indeed awe-inspiring and fueled my enthusiasm to explore the realm of interactive games in order to sustain my students' interest in learning.

I presented MY LIT PROJECT, my school-based action research for the Creative Teacher Showcase. I integrated the use of Web 2.0 tools in enhancing the teaching of the new cycle of the English Literature Component.

The displays. I've used Blogspot, Youtube, Flickr, Hot Potatoes, Zymic, Slideshare and Macromedia Dreamweaver & Firework to develop this e-learning project.

Alhamdulillah, I won 1st prize in the Creative Teacher Showcase. The success was even sweeter when the Sultanah Johor herself, HRH Raja Zarith Sofiah was there to give away the prizes. She was indeed pleased when she knew I'm from Johor and her words of encouragement are definitely the cure to all the difficulties I had to face (it's a looooong story)  in order to attend this conference. It was definitely worth it!

Attending this conference was the best investment I've ever made. I've gained new knowledge, sharpened my oratory skills, networked with optimistic language practitioners and rejuvenated my passion for learning & teaching.