Majlis Apresiasi FSSH 2023

Ini adalah kali kedua Majlis Apresiasi FSSH dilaksanakan secara bersemuka sejak pandemik. Alhamdulillah ini adalah kali pertama aku menghadiri Majlis Apresiasi FSSH secara bersemuka. Aku tidak menghadiri majlis ini tahun lepas kerana ada urusan yang tidak dapat dielakkan. Antara mesej yang disampaikan oleh Prof Arief hari ini yang dapat aku ambil:

  1. Niatkan apa jua usaha yang kita lakukan sebagai ibadah. Oleh yang demikian, lakukan dengan bersungguh-sungguh terhadap apa juga tugasan yang diamanahkan.
  2. Anugerah yang diberikan kepada lebih dari 100 warga FSSH pada majlis ini bukanlah bermakna tiada penghargaan kepada yang lain yang tidak menerima apa-apa anugerah. Tetapi perlu kita mengingatkan diri sendiri tentang anugerah dan ganjaran yang paling utama iaitu pada yang Allah akan kurniakan pada hari kiamat.
  3. Kejayaan yang di akhirat adalah lebih utama dari apa jua kejayaan di dunia ini. Ini adalah sesuatu yang sering didengari dan diucapkan tetapi bukan mudah untuk dihayati dan diambil ikhtibar dari contoh yang sedia ada. Sebagai contoh, kejayaan seperti yang telah dicapai oleh firaun meskipun merupakan satu kejayaan yang nampak gah dengan adanya piramid yang dikatakan sebagai salah satu keajaiban di dunia, kejayaannya bukanlah satu kejayaan yang patut dibanggakan. Ini adalah kerana pembinaan piramid melibatkan penganiyaan dan kezaliman kepada ramai orang dan piramid itu juga boleh dilihat sebagai satu bukti dirinya menganggap dirinya sebagai tuhan. Dengan pelbagai barang yang ditemui di tempat dirinya dimakamkan, kita boleh mengambil ikhtibar akan apa jua yang dimiliki di dunia ini adalah bersifat sementara sahaja.
  4. “Model keluarga FSSH Berjaya” berdasarkan prinsip yang tidak menggadaikan kesejahteraan warganya. Menyumbang yang terbaik mengikut kemampuan, tetapi bukanlah sampai menghasilkan tekanan yang mendatangkan kesan pada kesihatan fizikal dan mental. Dalam hal ini, kita merencanakan kecemerlangan dengan keikhlasan tanpa mengorbankan kesejahteraan.

Anugerah Webometrics 2022: Again?

Someone casually asked if I wish to submit the application for Citra Karisma this year under the Teaching category. I told her that I am not interested to do so. But then she posed this question “What if there is no one from our faculty submitted the application?” I looked at her in disbelief. There will always be someone who will submit his or her application.

For the Webometrics category, I decided to submit my application this year. Someone said “Hantar je la. Bukan nak menang kan?” My intention is, I just want to be one of the representatives of the faculty even though I know we are never short of applicants. I do not think too much after that. Let it be! After all, I would never dream to be a finalist again second time around.

I was contacted by the PIC to give a brief biography about myself on 11 July 2023 (Tuesday). It was nearly 5pm at that time. I was preparing myself to go back. The last thing I want is to write something about myself which people can read from the programme book.

I know that writing something about myself is good for letting others to know about me. But my stance has remained largely unchanged. I don’t take pleasure in being well-known. After discussing with few more people (you know who you are), they gave me lots of suggestions of writing a biography. One even volunteered to proofread my biography. “Oh come on! They have better things to do at this moment than to proofread my biography” I told myself.

I came a bit early the next day (12 July 2023, Wednesday). So, this is what I wrote.

Dr Hadijah Jaffri adalah pensyarah kanan di Sekolah Pendidikan, Fakulti Sains Sosial dan Kemanusiaan.  Berlatar belakangkan psikologi pendidikan, minatnya terhadap penulisan secara santai adalah salah satu cara terapi kendiri.   Dengan sokongan berterusan dan padu dari rakan-rakan khasnya Dr Norah Md Noor yang tanpa jemu dan tidak lokek berkongsi tips dan pandangan dalam penulisan blog di pautan platform https://people.utm.my/hadijahjaffri, Dr Hadijah giat menulis dengan niat berkongsi ilmu, pandangan dan maklumat yang mungkin bermanfaat kepada pembaca.

I told Norah. I can imagine her reaction when she replied to my Whatsapp message “Oit, jangan masuk nama aku dalam biografi yang kau nak bagi kat Citra Karisma tu. Rakan-rakan sudah“. Well, it is too late, Norah. I gave her two choices of wording: seperti atau khasnya. I know she does not favor either one. But it seems I leave her with no option at all (tongue in cheek!).

I asked Norah for her opinion as I was contemplating withdrawing from the nomination. She advised me to stay put. I told her that there is another finalist who is also from FSSH. So, FSSH has a representative already. I am just an extra. She told me that she is the OTHER person who is also the finalist! What a joy to hear that! She told me “Nanti kita dok meja sama ye. Kali ni sure ada makan. hahahaha Baru best experience kau masuk Citra Karisma“. This is her hint to make sure that I come to the event, not withdrawing (as I wish).

It is done. I already submitted it to the PIC. I want to express my joy and appreciation for her unwavering support in the greatest way possible. So, I will attend Citra Karisma again this year to eat. Like Norah said long time ago “Bukan senang nak dapat UTM belanja makan sedap“.

Note: Norah and I were not seated at the same table. So, her wish to sit and eat at the same table as me did not come true. This post was prepared earlier as a draft but I nearly forgot about it to publish it.

Are you a lecturer or a tuition teacher?

One of the students that I teach tuition this year is the daughter of my primary school mate. So, I told him that his daughter made some silly mistakes (she was confused about grammar i.e. verb and noun). But somehow other friends who also have children who are taking SPM this year know about the tuition thingy. One of them asked me “Kau bukan mengajar kat UTM ke? Sejak bila buat kelas tuisyen? Ada pusat tuisyen ke?”

The answer to the first question is YES. The answer to the second and third questions is NO. I am not trained to be an English teacher. But spending one year at school teaching English for Latihan Ikhtisas gives me the chance to conduct tuition class until now. I am still learning from my colleagues and former students who are senior English teachers. They are the ones who share ideas with me and teach the students on daily basis. I am clearly cannot compare myself with them on that level. My stance is simple. I teach courses such as pedagogy, and thus I need to remain abreast of school-related stuff. One way is to be at school as regularly as possible. That’s it. It is that simple.

What is the difference between being a teacher and me as a tuition instructor (I cringe to use the word “teacher” at this moment)? If I can use an analogy, the teachers are the gardeners, I am just a lawn-cutter. I just come once a while to spruce up things a bit here and there. The plants cannot thrive well without the care of a gardener.

UTM Blended Learning Reporting System 2023

Blended Learning UTM report can be accessed from the following link

URL: https://caps.utm.my/caps/

Userid : email utm (i.e. nihra@utm,my)

Password: staff number (unless you change it)

The steps are similar to the previous blended learning.

  1. Log in by using your email and staff number
  2. You will see the list of courses and blended learning level. Only level 5 will have the + button (blue color) activated where you can download your certificate. (Click the + button to see the button where you can download your certificate)

Note: Do not use this URL link (this is for last year 2022 Blended Learning) http://elearn1.utm.my/caps

MAJLIS BERSAMA NAIB CANSELOR BULAN OGOS 2023: 1 Ogos 2023 (Selasa)

Sesi kali ini, antara perkara yang aku belajar dari Datuk NC ialah tentang sikap. Bukan aku tidak faham tentang konsep sikap, tingkah laku dan apa kaitannya dengan tindakan, matlamat dan sebagainya sebelum ini. Tetapi dari kata-katanya membuat aku berfikir tentang “Apakah matlamat yang aku ingin capai?”

“The right attitude cultivates the right behaviour which leads to the desired outcome”

Melihat kembali usiaku yang akan menginjak ke siri 5 beberapa tahun lagi, aku hanya berharap matlamat aku untuk _________ dapat tercapai. Itu impian ramai orang. Tetapi melihat video viral tentang seorang penceramah yang juga pensyarah USIM yang meninggal ketika memberi kuliah subuh, aku tersentak. Dapatkah aku peluang sebegitu?

Wakelet is no longer free

Wakelet has its own community. After having being a member for about a year, I notice there are several changes in Wakelet. To be a member, I had to take a test and a certificate would be given as a proof of membership. However, the membership is valid for a year.

Honestly, I use Wakelet this semester to assign an asynchronous activity to my postgraduate students. They find Wakelet as a platform that easy to use. But, I notice that my students could not write any comment or feedback (unlike Padlet). At first, I thought it might be due to the settings. Later, I realise perhaps it has something to do with the new policies. Yup. It is no longer free.

Should I add another one more platform to subscribe? It is still affordable but unlike Prezi which I still use extensively for my class notes, I think having Padlet is sufficient for the time being. So far, since I started my subscription in 2020, the fees remain the same (the price is different for those subscribers who start their subscription in 2022).

I know that some of you might ask why should I subscribe these platforms whereas the UTM elearning is more than enough. The thing is, I want to enrich my students learning experiences. I know I can enrich their experiences without having to subscribe any platform but I believe that it is a good investment for myself to learn something new. I do not know how far I could keep up with the everchanging digital platforms, applications etc. But I try my best to something new every semester. This is my goal.

Pembelajaran Teradun Gantian

Semasa PKP, UTM menggunakan pembelajaran teradun gantian sebagai mod pengajaran. Pembelajaran teradun gantian (atau PTG) berbeza dengan pembelajaran teradun (atau Blended Learning). Perbezaan adalah dari sudut tujuan, cara pelaksanaan dan pemberatan pelaksanaan mod kombinasi bersemuka dan dalam talian.

Cara pelaksanaan bagi pembelajaran teradun dan pembelajaran teradun gantian adalah berdasarkan kombinasi pembelajaran bersemuka dan dalam talian. Sebagai contoh pembelajaran teradun, seorang pensyarah boleh menggunakan kombinasi mod bersemuka dan dalam talian sepanjang satu semester (14 minggu) dalam julat 30 – 79% pembelajaran dalam talian yang menyokong pembelajaran bersemuka. Dalam konteks ini, pembelajaran dalam talian tidak menggantikan sesi pengajaran dan pembelajaran bersemuka. Mod dalam talian berdasarkan bahan pembelajaran, aktiviti dan penilaian yang dilaksanakan mengikut nisbah 1:7:3:2.

Akan tetapi pembelajaran teradun gantian pula ianya dilaksanakan di mana seorang pensyarah akan menggunakan mod pengajaran dan pembelajaran dalam talian sebagai gantian kepada mod bersemuka dalam julat 30-79% dalam satu semester pengajian (14 minggu). Contoh: Dalam tempoh 14 minggu, seorang pensyarah boleh menggunakan pengajaran dan pembelajaran dalam talian sebanyak 36 jam (30%) bagi kursus 3 kredit (120 jam). Mod dalam talian berdasarkan bahan pembelajaran, aktiviti dan penilaian yang dilaksanakan mengikut nisbah 40:40:20.

Akan tetapi sekiranya terdapat pelajar yang berada di luar kawasan Johor (seperti pelajar yang merupakan seorang guru yang berpindah mengajar ke Kedah ketika dalam pengajian sarjana), hal kes terpencil sebegini membolehkan pensyarah menggunakan mod pembelajaran dalam talian sepenuhnya sepanjang satu semester sekiranya perlu. Tetapi ianya perlulah dimaklumkan ke pihak fakulti atau sekolah.

Untuk maklumat terperinci, boleh rujuk slaid ini.

FSSH Strategic Talk 1/2023: Islamic engagement in Social Sciences and Humanities – 16 July 2023 (Sunday)

There is a strategic talk by two guest speakers from University College of Yayasan Pahang: Assoc Prof Dr Azhar Ramli – Deputy VC of Student Development and Community Diplomacy and Assoc Prof Dr Amran Muhammad – Dean, International Institute of Islamic Civilisation. The session is divided into 2 parts: a talk and a forum. FSSH dean, Prof Dr Arieff Salleh Rosman is the moderator for the forum.

There are some academic staff who were chosen to join the session i.e. compulsory. But there are others who come on volunteer basis. Other than academic staff, students are also invited. But it is examination week so it is understandable that some students could not come. Those who came are PhD students (with no final examination).

Strategic talk is meant for staff enrichment and enhancement of FSSH branding. This is aligned with FSSH 2030 vision. Thus, it is essential to be ready from now to fulfil FSSH 2030 objectives. One of the aims is to have 15% of academic staff with Professor status.

Among FSSH Itqan project’s aims are:

  1. Attractive branding.
  2. Great talent.

PART 1: Talk by Assoc Prof Dr Amran Muhammad

There is a movement in renewal and revival Islamic knowledge. One of the steps is through engaging research in Islamic revealed knowledge with sciences. There is a need of paradigm or platform in which the understanding of al fiqh al akbar as the fundamental of Islamic sciences should be enhanced. The root of Islamic sciences is known as kalam which comprises of usul al din, al fiqh and al akbar. This should be the fundamental knowledge. The root of Islamic knowledge is related to Iman (‘aqidah). The trunk of the tree of Islamic knowledge is usul al fiqh (al fiqh al awsat). The branches of Islamic sciences include fiqh (fiqh al amal and al zahir), tasawwuf (fiqh al qalb) and such which related to shariah (Islam) and akhlaq (ihsan).

All propositional knowledge is based on analytical knowledge (nazari, ‘aqli and mantiqi) which is related to realistism as compared to textual literary knowledge (based on naql, nassar and khabar) which is related to literalism and mystical/ metaphysical knowledge (zauqi, ilham and kashf) is related to spiritualism. The balance between analytical, textual and mystical knowledge is crucial to benefit human beings and civilisation.

As Muslim, being a consumer of knowledge is not enough. We need to be able to be analytic and scientific inviduals to ensure that we are able to navigate between logic, philosophy and revealed knowledge.

Phases of learning tawhid are divided into 3.

  1. ‘Aqidah: the discourse on the fundemantals of the ‘aqidah without the detailed discussion on the rational and textual demonstration.
  2. Usul al din: the discourse on the aspects of ‘aqidah in the light of rational and textual demonstration.
  3. Kalam: the discourse on various sects of ‘aqidah, particularly erroneous sects of elucidating their discourse, correcting their confusion and refuting their claims.

Go visit Kalam Research and Media.

PART 2: Strategic forum

Free floating discussion. There will be a seminar in collaboration of FSSH UTM and University College of Yayasan Pahang in September 2023.