School of Education EXPLORIA and FSSH Gotong Royong 2020

School of Education EXPLORIA and FSSH Gotong Royong 2020 was conducted on 1 October 2020 (Thursday).  We were divided into groups.  Our group composed of academic and non-academic staff.  The dynamic our group is awesome.  We strategized to pick the places and how to pose and who would the be tracker since there are members in our group who are not in the best of health.

We had to detour a bit as it was starting to rain when we were about to take pictures nearby the Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying. We switched on our touristy mode. So, when we came across murals on the column at the faculty, we strike a pose.

As a tracker, it was my responsibility to walk as far I could, whereas the others who with health conditions would take the short-cut to go back to our faculty.  I am definitely not the fittest in this group but I tried my best to walk the farthest as I could.  I thought that I walked quite far but only managed to walk 1.7km.  I was not satisfied but my members said that it is enough when I showed them the results.  They were waiting for me at the designated place.  Some of them were panting and feeling breathless.  Age is catching up.  Indeed.

We walked 1.7km. I was assigned as the tracker. My average speed is 2.2 (Don’t know what it means though).
There are nine of us (not in any order): Prof. Madya Dr. Aede Hatib bin Musta’amal, Dr. Muhamad Abd.Hadi bin Bunyamin, Encik Mohd.Rafiz bin Abu Bakar, Puan Roziah binti Tamin, Encik Rosli bin Mohamad, Puan Mas Aminah binti A.Kadir, Encik Razeed bin Md.Supaai, Encik Zulraizam bin Shamsudin and me. The one who took the picture is Mas. Being young and energetic, we assigned her to take pictures for us.
Our Chair, Prof Fatin Aliah Phang and Dr Shahrul Ridwan were among the earliest to reach at the meeting point
A usual practice. Take picture before we start anything

COVID-19: Quizziz

I have been using Quizziz since 2016 (after I attended a one-day course at PULAU – Pusat Latihan UTM).  It is free.  Still is BUT if you want to have extra features, you have to pay USD24 per year (USD2 per month).  My first reaction is “What?” My brain starts to calculate the cost that I might have to pay in the future.  I have paid more than RM500 to subscribe few things. One of my friends said “If you are hesitant to pay, just use the free version.  The free version is still ok”.  Then later on, I find out that this friend is using the subscribed version which opposite from the advice given to me.

Should I upgrade my Quizziz to the payable version?  I am still thinking about it.  One of my seniors said that if I am serious in choosing teaching as my differentiated career path, I should invest on such tools that can help me to improve my teaching.  Ok.  One thing at a time.  For the time being, I will use Quizziz (the free version) and since I do not know the difference between the free version and the paid version, I will wait for a while.  I will look at some reviews first before deciding.

Anda rasa stres? Bimbang atau resah? Ataupun anda rasa sukar untuk positif atau tiada harapan?

A friend of mine gave the following announcement in our Whatsapp group.  I took the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS21) and like what I expect, the scores are high for stress.  My friends start to become worried about me.  Thanks, guys.  I am still ok.  I know how to manage my stress under control.  But, looking at the stress level, they know that when I am saying that I am ok, it means the opposite.  Oh, really?  Come on!  That is my initial reaction.  One of them private messaged me and really asked me to get help.  The only person that I can think of at this moment is this senior.  A certified counselor.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Antara kekangan yang menyebabkan pesakit lambat mendapatkan rawatan kesihatan mental adalah kerana tidak tahu apa yang perlu dilakukan.

Jadi, disertakan cara-cara untuk mendapatkan rawatan di fasiliti kesihatan kerajaan di Malaysia.

1. Lakukan Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS21) secara atas talian 

2. Jika keputusan dalam skala yang membimbangkan, bawa keputusan tersebut ke klinik kesihatan berdekatan.

3. Selepas pemeriksaan, doktor akan beri surat rujukan jika perlu

4. Bawa surat tersebut ke hospital yang ditetapkan untuk mendapatkan rawatan selanjutnya.

Selain itu, anda juga boleh mendapatkan khidmat nasihat dari

1. Kaunselor sekolah/tempat belajar/pejabat anda
2. Pusat Kaunseling Selangor
3. LPPKN terdekat
4. Mentari
5. Klinik Psikologi swasta
6. Hospital Pakar swasta

Sebarkan informasi ini kepada kenalan yang memerlukan. Semoga usaha kecil ini dapat membantu mereka yang menderita dalam diam.

COVID-19: Doodlemaker

To prepare my class notes for next semester which I have to conduct 100% using online format, other than Prezi, I decide to explore other options such as video.  Yup.  I am not a video maker.  Some even commented that my videos are not professional looking and yada yada yada.  But, with zero experience of video making and editing and I never had any professional training in computer science field, creating a video is not my game.

Yet, I have little choice when I have to diversify my lesson delivery format.  I notice that my students have no difficulty to get accessed to Youtube even though they claim that they have difficulty to get my Powerpoint (audio) notes from Google Drive.  What kind of choice do I have other than exploring other options, right?  So, here I am using Moovly, Powtoon, Biteable and whatsnot to explore online video editing since I find out that using offline video editing platform will  require large storage (for the videos).

So far, I use the free version such as Moovly, Powtoon and Biteable (to the max).  One of my seniors said that 20 videos might be considered as a lot for her, so if she was me, she would use the free version of Moovly.  Yeah, right.  20 videos (each video is only 3 minutes long).  That is not an option if you need to have a slightly longer video.  But coming from someone who never even explore whatever options of video editing, I just brushed off her comments.  Not a valid comment to be considered.

I ask around before I make any decision to explore new video editing platform.  Alhamdulillah I keep in touch back with my old primary schoolmates who work in IT and whatsnot.  So, they advise me about available video editing platform and share some tips (technical stuff) which I try to implement.  It is not easy for someone like me to learn about something technical but with the support that they give me, they notice that I have improved (even though deep inside my heart, I don’t 100% believe it).  But, what matters most is their support in my journey to improve my skills.

So, this is my first video using Doodlemaker for my research methodology class.  The title of the video is: Quantitative sampling design. 

What I like about Doodlemaker is they have voice annotation that have several options that I can explore.  Unlike other video making platform, I need to record my own voice and upload it to suit with the video that I am making.  The thing is, I don’t know how to copy past audio recording and stuff (a basic thing that I do not have any mastery yet).  So, what are the options that Doodlemaker has?  I can use my own recorded voice or I can type the script of my explanation and choose a voice that I want.  I can select British, American, Australian and Indian accents.  Cool, huh?  I also can choose either I want to have a male or female voice.  Cool, isn’t it?  For the time being, since I paid USD49 for that subcription, I better use it to the maximum.  Like Prezi, I have calculated that if I have only 10 notes per year, it means that each of my note costs USD6.  I need to have more than 10 notes to reduce the cost, right?  That’s what I am doing now.

 

Pencegahan bunuh diri

Depression is a real deal.  If you have a fever, it is common for us to go to see the doctor to get helped.  What if you feel “sad” over a prolonged period of time?  Saying “Sabar banyak-banyak.  Baca Al-Quran.  Banyakkan berzikir” [Translated: Be patient.  Read the Quran.  Recite zikr a lot, continuously] is  common.  Ironically, that is the common thing any depressed people will hear from people.  The thing is you cannot cure depression through that.  It is a medical condition which involves and affects the physical or biological functions.

Getting help from professionals is needed.  It is a must.  I vividly remember  the moment I removed my backpack and started to holding to the rail on the bridge on the way to my school.  As I looked down on the River Wear below, it felt tranquil.  At that time, I desperately needed to feel calm and peace.  My mind was not in its right state at that time.  Losing my dad few months ago was a tragic that I had to bear on my own.  Friends were there at times but I felt lonely.

When I met my supervisor, he knew that something was amiss and urged me to get help.  He prompted me to get a break.  I nearly broke down when he said that.  Looking at his concerned face, I went to get help.  It was not easy to overcome and get rid of suicidal thoughts that kept lingering on my mind.

When I came back (without getting my PhD yet), I was not myself.  Not many of my colleagues noticed this.  Not their fault.  I was fighting my own demons.  One of the things that I learn is to change my body movement when I start to think “weird” stuff.  But little did I expect that some seniors noticed my weird behavior.  Rather than concern and empathize, they were not helpful.

Fighting depression on my own is not easy.  I learn and am still learning to manage my emotions.  It is not easy.  This is a struggle that I acknowledge and the battle is still far from the end.