Overall of the Critical Literacy

Assalamualaikum Mdm. How are you today? Hope you are in a good condition. Today, I want to conclude overall of our discussion on Critical Literacy subject that consist of 8 blogs which are reading 1.1 (Convicted killer), reading 2.1 (Battling the bullies), reading 3.1 (Please let me go to your school), reading 4.1 (Body language that speaks to muggers), reading 5.1 (Australia’s methadone madness), reading 6.1 (Invasion of baby snatchers), reading 7.1 (Dieting) and reading 8.1 (Drugs or guns). At first, when I heard about Critical Literacy subject, I’m scared. This is because everyone said that this subject is difficult to catch up on. This is maybe because Critical Literacy is a new subject for semester four which is different from all semester three’s subjects. Besides, we need to think critically. Actually, I’m not that good in critical thinking but I tried my very best to finished all the assessment that was assigned for me by Mdm Imasuzieyana Ibrahim. When I have finished the part of doing assignment and homework in the classroom, I always feel like whether what I’m doing is true or not. I always confused with the work that I have done. Then, I will ask my friends and Mdm itself to clarify whether the work that I have done is true or not. And then, they will tell me briefly about something that I need to know. I’m always wondering whether they like it or not when I’m always and keep asking questions to them. I hope that my friends and Mdm itself would not get mad of me or maybe bored to explain even single and easy problems to me. From this Critical Literacy subject, I found that I have better improvement in reading skills by applying skimming and scanning skills of the text. From the skimming and scanning skills, I could complete the ten elements that are required by the text or article. I also know about the meaning of the glossary that was provided in the blue book by referring to the red book which is the text book of Critical Literacy. From the first till the last article given to me, I started to learn more and more about Critical Literacy subject. It becomes interesting from time to time doing the ten elements. Sometimes I also feel like bored, stress and tension when I have to finish the ten elements that required me to think critically. And I think that it is one of the toughest and challenging subject to me in semester four. After we have finished this Critical Literacy subject, I feel so relieve because I do not have to think critically anymore. But I think that I’m going to miss doing the ten elements by think critically using my useful brain. Hehehe. Overall, this subject is interesting. This Critical Literacy subject also improves my reading and writing skills. By reading the text or article, I started to know and learn on how the sentence structured such as it using present or past tense to structure the sentences. Furthermore, I also can improve my grammar. Besides, I’m also being able to expand and increase my vocabulary by doing the ten elements and blogs. Actually, I would love to continue typing, comment and give response to fill in this blog but then I’m a bit sleepy right now. Shall we continue for the next blog???? But there is no more blog right????? Hehehe…Anyway, I want to thanks to Mdm Imasuzieyana Ibrahim for taught us a lot about Critical Literacy that is very critical to explain too. Also thank you for your hard work for teaching us in the class. I could see your efforts that want to explain more and more in order to make us understand on particular topics. I hope that you are satisfied with every inch of my comment and responses in my blogs and also my assignment and assessment in the classroom. I also would like to ask for more marks from you. Hehehe. Take care Mdm. Bye bye...

reading 8: Drugs or Guns

Assalamualaikum and good afternoon to Mdm Suzie. Here I would like to comments and responses to the article in the text book which is “Drugs or Guns”. Drugs or guns? What it is all about? When I first read the article, I don’t know what it wants to conveyed. Even though I have read it for the second time, I still could not reach the message conveyed in the text. I also ask a few of my friends regarding the Drugs or Guns and they said that the article is about the South African government that faces two legal cases challenging its priorities which are arms and AIDS. After I’ve read it several times, I did understand a bit about the article. What I got and know from the article is that one common argument from the plaintiffs is that scrapping the arms deal would give the government the money it says it doesn’t have for a national anti-AIDS program. From this argument, I can see that South Africa’s President, Thabo Mbeki is not responsible toward its own government. It is because, it is seems like he is more into buying the arms rather than treat the AIDS patient and rape victims. I don’t think that he is a good president as he did not play his role as a president of South Africa effectively.

The arms purchase has been mired in complaint and contention from its beginning 1999. as soon as the government opened the bidding process for submarines, corvettes, trainer jets and fighter planes from British, Swedish, German and Italian suppliers, political opponents of Mbeki’s ruling African National Congress and several NGO’s questioned the necessity of the deal. That is because they cannot see the necessity of a $ 6 billion weapons-acquisition deals. But, an opponent Pan-African Congress Member of Parliament, Patricia de Lille, claimed she had been given a tip about high-ranking officials who had benefited from the arms deal. After Tony Yengeni, the A.N.C.’s chief whip and head of the party defense committee was alleged of obtained a cut-price Mercedes-Benz from a company with links to the arms deal, Yengeni and a German executive from the company were charged with corruption and forgery. They face trial next year but deny any wrongdoings. It is also convey the message about AIDS. The government’s policy on AIDS was also under attack last week, this time from the Treatment Action Campaign, an AIDS-awareness group supported by civil, trade union and church organizations.

The judgment in the TAC case, due before Christmas, could well favor the AIDS activists because the judge has already indicated his support for making the drug widely available as soon as possible. If so, it will a slap in the face of Mbeki, whose controversial stance on the causes and treatment of AIDS has become a national talking points. When he recently cited six-year-old statistics to claim that violence took more lives in South Africa than AIDS, the national Medical Research Council confirmed that AIDS is indeed the country’s leading killer. A Committee led by female A.N.C.M.P.s last month called on the government to revise its HIV/AIDS policy and freely provide antiretroviral drugs to pregnant women and rape victims. Crawford-Browne also said that the government has no justification in spending $ 6billion on weapons for a country unlikely ever to confront a foreign military threat. A German firm involve in the weapons agreement has promised to build a factory in the Eastern Cape to produce condoms for South Africa’s safe sex campaign.

i think that is all for today because i don't know what to write more in this "Drugs or Guns". thank you.

reading 7: Dieting

Assalamualaikum and good evening. Hi Mdm. Today, I would like to comment and response to the article of Dieting: A Waist Is a Terrible Thing to Mind. This article covers a wide range of current issues relating to the phenomenon of weight control issue relating to physical and mental health, as well as the part played by commercial providers of weight loss products. The author also provides up-to-date information based on recent research into weight loss. The text is taken from “What you can change and what you can’t in The complete guide to self-improvement, by Martin Seligman. In Dieting, Martin Seligman informs people about the dangers and pitfalls of commercially available weight loss programs. He also provides an extended warning to readers that they should believe the claims made by commercially-driven product providers. Seligman suggest that there may be good evolutionary reasons for the more-you-lose-the-more-you-gain principle. It means that if we try to lose weight, our bodies’ rebel.

However one point which needs further explanation is what he means by ‘natural weight’. He does not really define this term and one is left with the feeling that ‘natural weight’ is the weight you happen to be. On the other hand, he does say that ‘natural weight’ is the weight from which point is difficult to reduce. Seligman itself also failed in attempts to lose his weight. He said that one cannot avoid the suspicion that the term ‘natural’ has been coined to provide an excuse for his own inability to attain the ‘ideal’ weight. Seligman without doubt views weight loss as a matter of commercial gain rather than as medical advantage. In addition, the real beneficiaries of weight loss products are not the consumers, who may indeed be harmed, but the unscrupulous producers who earn their living from exploiting the insecurities of others. The consumers are cast as victims, unable to resist the pressure to be dissatisfied with their own bodies. Seligman argues strongly that weight loss is not a matter of will power but depends on accepting our ‘natural’ weight. It follows that people who fail to lose weight are not their fault. at first glance, overweight people may not appear to have any problems, but behind their chubby faces and pot-bellies, they are just medical time-bombs waiting to go off.

An overweight person has increased risks of failing prey to hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular problems, cancer and many other debilitating disease. these potentially deadly conditions are in addition to the sheer weight that the person have to lug around everyday, making it hard to walk for a distance, climb stairs, or even just to get up from a chair. As for me, I think it is no fault to be in average size because there are people who do not like their body shape even though their shape is already suits them but still they feel uncomfortable with their body shape. Sometimes I also feel like my body shape not suits me because I think that from day to day, I become fat and fatter. I insist on taking dieting pills but I’m scared with the effect that perhaps would bother me in the future. But still I’m trying to use the cream that will decrease my weight and my mom is like an assistant to me because she is helping me in finding the cream that could decrease my weight even though at first, she told me that I don’t need the cream as I’m not too fat. As for the people who have weight problems, i think that it is better for them to find any solution such as taking dieting pills but with the doctor's instruction because if the taken of dieting pills were overdose, it might have side effects on the health problems on the body itself.

Being weight is certainly no fun, and is definitely hazardous to health. unless the person has some kind of illness that causes him or her to be overweight, it is possible to reduce one's weight with proper diet and exercises. It is better to keep within the normal range and stay healthy as much as possible. Living is much more pleasant and enjoyable without weight problems. Actually I would like to comment more but I think this could be enough to read by everyone especially Madam. Hehehe. Thank you for your attention. Hope we could have a briefly conversation regarding this topic that I think is interesting to be shared in the next class.Bye bye… =D

reading 6 role play n invasion of baby snatchers

Assalamualaikum and good evening to Mdm Suzie. Last week, we have done the role play that was assigned by you which are based on 5 articles. They are Without Any Warning, burning out at 9, Gangsterism in School, Out Of Puff, and Post Apocalypse. ‘Without Any Warning’ were presented by Saybah’s group which are Saybah as business owner, Fairuz as the consumer, Hanis as the reporter, Kaka as JBA Officer and Ash as Semambu assemblyman. Their role play is about the water cut that were facing by residents. JBA did not inform the business owner, consumer and Semambu assemblyman earlier about the water supply that had been cut. Due to the water cut, it causes dissatisfaction among all consumers. It is because when there is no water, they cannot do anything such as cook, wash and others. As for the business owner of laundry, the clothes that have been sent to the laundry shop cannot be washing due to the water cut. They acted very well and I can easily understand their role play.

As for Burning Out at 9, it was presented by Nadia’s group which is Nadia as pusher man, Ain as the adviser, Mira as the caller, Anis as the caller and Ain Azmi as flexible mom. Burning Out at Nine is about children or teenagers nowadays that did not have enough time to play. Their schedule is full with work. Besides, they have a strict parent who just wants their children to be perfect without give their children spaces to live normally like other children or teenagers. They also do a forum. I cannot clearly hear their voice as their voice is slow but their presentation is also interesting.

Gangsterism in School was acted by Leah, Nana, Alin, Sofia and Ika. All of them are the bully except Nana, as the victim of the bully. This article is about 4 bullies that bullied someone in school. They asked money from the victim but the victim did not give the money to all bullies. Because of that, the victim was physically abused by the bullies. From there, I can see that everyone now seems not afraid of bully someone. They did not think of the effects that they will get if they bully someone. I think their role play is the best because all of them give full cooperation and it look alike the real situation.

Shah’s group was presented on ‘Out Of Puff’. As for this group, they presented in a forum style. They are 5 members in the group that play different character which are Mino as the host, Agus as the Marlboro manager, Shah as Lisa’s father, Nana as Lisa and Wan as the counselor. This group are present about the effect of smoking, how to get rid from it and others. This article stated that the tobacco industry has engineered cigarettes and targeted their marketing specifically at women during the past few decades. It also discuss on how to get rid and avoid from smoking such as nicotine replacement therapy, medication and support. Besides, they also discuss about what smoking does. For example, tobacco smoke irritates the mouth, throat and lungs because it has a direct toxic and inflammatory effect on these organs. This group presented almost well because there are few of them plays around while the discussion was on progress but overall their role play is quite good too as the audience can understand it.

My group has presented about the ‘Post Apocalypse’. My group members play different role which are Z as the IT expert, Dinie as the blog commenter, Ida as comment reader, Ain as the video publisher and me as the blog publisher. The Post Apocalypse is about the web that needs commenters but they ruining the Net faster than they can save it. Serious comment from the blog commenter to the blog that had been published by the publisher is actually leads to the damage. Blog publisher had quit her job because she could not stand with the commenter anymore. As for our group, I think that our group did not present well. That is maybe because we did not practice well before we do the role play but I hope Mdm enjoyed watching our role play last week.

As for the ‘Invasion of the Baby Snatchers’, it discuss about the child abduction that seems rampant and about the other lost children because of kidnapping, murder, missing and so on. For me, I think these should not be happened because the children have their own parents. The parents should play their role as a parent effectively such as accompany their children wherever they go because nowadays there are lots of cases involving kidnapping, murder, missing and others. They should take any precaution and be aware with the situation nowadays. As for children, they tend to play around with their friends without think of the effect they will get. Obviously, they could not think as they still a child. They just want to enjoy their day and life as much as they can. Here, I would like to be a little bit bias. I want to condemn and comment about parents nowadays that seems do not know on how to take care of their own children. I also want to condemn and comment about the police. I think they did not do their job well because the kidnappers, murderers and so on still can enjoy their freedom. How come????

I think that is all for today’s comment and responses. Thank you Mdm.