Showing posts with label Week 005. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Week 005. Show all posts

Thursday, 27 September 2018

Session 5 task for certain members of the Friday Class


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Pramudyo:

STORY ONE
In my opionin, Diva’s first story is true, because the reason why she didn’t bring her suitcase made sense and losing her suitcase is an unlucky thing.  About hanif’s story, it kinda confuse me because it could be true or lie, but ultimately i believed that it was false because swimming into deep water for just saving a slipper didn’t make any sense. Kabik’s story is true, because simply it was coherent. Nicholas’s story is way to extreme and i refuse to believe it. My Story about movies was a lie, because i loved movies. Raja’s story is definitely a lie because fighting over a girl as an elementary student is way too early and didn’t made sense. Ricky’s story is truee. Sabrina’s story is very interesting, because staying in foreign country without parents is scary, but somehow i believed it as a truth. Bagas’s story is a truth, its fun to hear a story from someone about their passion on something.  Vivi’s story is way too scary, i believe its a lie.

STORY TWO
Hanif’s second story is truee, because it made much more sense compared to his first story, and i believe its hard to not eat chicken for a very long time. Kabik’s second story is a lie, i dont know why but i just felt that it was a lie. Ricky’s story is a lie. Vivi’s second story made much more sense compared to her first one, but disliking instant noodles? That is weird but it could be true. Raja’s second story is true, i never had experience any sleepwalking in my life, but after hearing his story, it made want to feel how is it like to expereinced a sleepwalking. Sabrina’s story is lie, because leaving your house because of justin bieber?? really? I dont believe it. Bagas’s second story is a lie, because it didnt sound convincing to me. Diva’s second story is a lie, because stabbing yourself with a pencil? I did not believe it. Nicho’s second story is true because he’s pretty much talking about this class hahaha. 

From my two stories, the one about lessons i learned from losing football matches is the true one, the other one about movies is a lie.

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Bagas:

Diva
I think the second story is more believable, because it is possible for a teenager to stab themselves because it is true that most of teenagers are reckless and most likely to be less cautious to whatever the consequences of what they will do to themselves.

Hanif
The first story is more believable because, children tends to be more active doing unreasonable things, and Hanif is a reckless kid. He put his life on the line just to safe his dad’s slippers. And because the second story is not convincing enough because it is impossible that someone never eat chicken for 18 years.

Kabik
Both stories have the details needed to make me think that both is the truth, but the second story is more convincing for me, because it is a typical story a high school girl will experience as soon as they sees someone that meet their expectations about the guy of their dream, with so much of good expectation and become obsessed with those boys.

Pramudyo
The second one is more believable as competition between schools are a common thing during high school years and in a competition there will be a winner or postponed winner (loser) and from losing a competition it is true as what Pram said that there are a lot of things that can be extracted from that kind of situation and work it out as a team.

Nico
The second one is the truth, I am 100% sure because it happened to me also. Simply because we are in the same class, every single class.

Raja
The first story is the truth, because from my experience war between school gangs is a common thing for most of the high school in Indonesia. Most of the time ,school will try to prevent such things to happen and try to interfere similar to what the school in Raja’s story have done to prevent the “war” or tawuran.

Ricky
The second story is the truth because Ricky is a guy who tries to be a man with a healthy lifestyle and what Ricky experience also happened to me for several times so I can relate more to the second story.

Sabrina
 I can assure anyone that the 2nd story of Sabrina is the most believable because for a teenage girl which obsessed to their idol, in this case Justin Bieber . they will do anything for their idol, including running away from home just to get their newest album.

Vivi 
The 1st story is more convincing because the details she put in the first story actually
Supported the flow of the story rather than the 2nd story , and the other thing is who can be sick with instant noodles.

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Kabik:

HANIF

*It is TRUE that Hanif’s dad lost his slipper in the ocean, I think it happens all the time to many people, once you get to the water with your slippers on it could get easily drifted.

# It is FALSE that Hanif  didn’t eat any chicken product until 2018 he tasted chicken and started liking it and eat it almost everyday without any specific reasons.

RAJA

*It is FALSE that Raja had tawuran when he was in senior High School, I can understand that mostly boys are obsessed with girls a little bit too much that they decided to fight to get the girls. But I can not believe that Raja would do this because he seems like a person who don’t like violence.

# It is TRUE that he had sleepwalking and took a shower without realizing it, this story is somehow sounds more possible for me because I know that some people have sleeping issues.

SABRINA

*It is FALSE that Sabrina is left all alone in japan without her parents for four days, it was because her grandfather is passed away that her parents went back to Indonesia, I think no one would continue their trip when they know one of the family member is sick or passed away.

#It is TRUE that Sabrina was runaway from home for about 30 minutes only, she said that she was a big fan of Justin Bieber. I can relate. once when I was a kid I runaway from home because my dad forced me to join the choir of my church and I didn’t want to. So I know exactly how she felt at that time, I totally understand.

VIVI

*It is FALSE that Vivi went hiking with her dad and some of his friends. Well, she sounds so convincing but after I listened to the second of her podcast I do think that this story is false.

# it is TRUE that Vivi does not like eat instant noodle, as I know, Vivi is having a healty lifestyle, she is very concern about what she eats, once when we had a lunch together she had the healthy menu while me, I don’t really care about my diet.

DIVA

*it is FALSE that Diva had traveled without any suitcases at all because she lost them on the way to Korea, I think the international flight would have a decent facility and take care of the passenger’s suitcases well.

# It is TRUE that Diva had stabbed 3 herself three times with pencil accidently and left 2 scars on her hand, she said that it was happened when she was in elementary, I know most of the elementary students are very clumsy and reckless so I can say that it was true.

 PRAMUDYO

*It is FALSE that Pramudyo is hate watching movies, as teenagers I believe we spend most of our times watching movies in the spare time. Especially nowadays we have these famous and booming movies like The Avengers, Taken, The Purge, etc.

# It is TRUE that Pramudyo is learns a lot from his losing at the football game. Losing is not always means that you have failed. Like what he said in the podcast that by losing and competing you learn how to work as a team.

RICKY

* It is TRUE that Ricky was a third grader and scaring a second grader by knocking their doors. Again, as I said before, as a student of elementary it is very normal and we can find it common for children teasing their friends.

# It is FALSE that Ricky met a rabbit dog near his house in Bogor, because I don’t know what rabbit dog is and if it is a rabbit dog with bubbles around its mouth that indicates this animal is dangerous and his house is not safe.

BAGAS

*It is FALSE that Bagas’s life is changes because of boxing, he said that he did the boxing because of his ex-girlfriend, I don’t think it is true that he let himself do the physical exercise in order to make his ex happy with his body. For me it is sound like a body shaming, and I don’t think that the girlfriends would let the boyfriends do something like this.

# it is TRUE that Bagas have been playing drums for years, and performed in several cafes. He looks like he plays drums. I mean, I don’t really know how to identify drummers from their appearance but Im just sure that he plays drum.

NICHO

*It is FALSE that he went to Semarang and was drown in the pool, this story is could be happened in reality but his second story makes me sure that this first story of him is has never been true.

# It is true that Nicho do the assignments in the toilet, because I can hear clearly that he actually did it. This is very funny and smart that he shares this story and help me easily to justify the answer.

Notes:

(*) Means PODCAST 1

(#) Means PODCAST 2

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Nicho:

First Story
Kabik’s story is a true story because all the details are necessary and make sense for me. 
Raja’s story is a true story because i knew that Raja’s school was pretty ‘gentho’ so this is actually a believable story coming from his high school life.

Sabrina’s story is a false story because i do not think any parents would leave their children alone especially in the place they are not familar with for a few days.

Hanif’s story is a true story because i think as a child, we have this sort of spontaneous reaction which is expressed by Hanif jumping to the water.

Bagas’ story is a false story because i can not imagine Bagas with 100kg body could be exist in the pass. I do not think Bagas is that kind of person who would get bothered by his girlfriend’s opinions about physical appearences. The last one, is it even possible to hide broken nose to your parents? Twice?!

Ricky’s story is a true story because i could imagine Ricky being a little bit cruel to someone.

Diva’s story is a false story since she did not sound like she was upset at all.

Vivi’s story is a true story because it makes sense and she seems to be really excited when she was talking about it.

Pramudyo’s story is a false story because it is like a very exaggerated hatred over small things that does not deserve that much of hate.

Second Story
Hanif’s second story is a false story because i think chickens are common food and all of the sudden like it when moved into Jogja even eat it almost everyday? It does not make any sense to me.

Kabik’s second story is a false story because it contains hyperbole that does not fit with what i think about girls. Girls are harder to fall in love than boys.

Pramudyo’s story is a true story because he sounds very sincere and has a deep feeling which is a sign when you are talking about your passion or learn something in life.

Ricky’s story is a false story because i do not think he expressed enough fear that he should have when he met a rabies infected rabbit dog.

Vivi’s story is a false story because i think she sounds like reading wikipedia’s fact and had this kind of flat emotion. These are the features of typical made out stories because there is no feeling towards the story. 

Raja’s story is not a true story. Although i never have any sleepwalking before but i do not think that you could do a shower while maintaining your asleep condition.

Sabrina’s story is a true story because i do not know which one is a true story or not. I am just guessing at this point, her both stories was very hard to decide whether they are true or false. Well done Sabrina.

Bagas’ story is a true story. To be honest, i am confused. I just compare this story to the other one and decide which one is more belivable. Those whether intentional or unintentional delaying for this story and fluent story telling for the first one did a really good job on making me confused.

Diva’s second story is a true story because i think it is very common to be a reckless kid and it is more believable than the other one.

Confession
For my story, the first one actually a false story. I really did have a drowning accident but it was in a swallow pool so my father could bring me up to the surface with ease and without the passed out part.

For my second story is actually a true story. I had this accidental Statistics 1 class that i need to attend and then i realized in the morning that EWS assigment need to be submitted before 12. So what i did is that i went to the bathroom and did all of the the assigments there!

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Sabrina:

Diva
I think the second story is false. The reason why is because I think it is just impossible for Diva to stabbed her hands THREE TIMES. I mean like if it was twice maybe i'll believe her. Eventhough I thought the first story was false but when I heard the second one I decided the first one might be true. 

Hanif
It is kinda confusing but I think the second one is true. I personally don't eat rice at all (ever since I was 3). Rice is somehow scary for me. Like when I eat something and then there is rice in it, I would stop eating. So I can relate to Hanif on his second story.

Kabik
Her second story, in my opinion, can be true. My reason is simple. I've been in that kind of moment once. And also, her first story is not suspicious at all which makes me suspicious of her. She might want to trick us! 

Nicho
His second story sounds so convincing! I heard something, is it water or what? Or is it just an effect? Anyway, I still want to say that the first story sounds true to me. Because he makes it too obvious with the second one. He's trying so hard! Well done, Nicho!

Pramudyo
His first story is just something. Who hates movies????? Ever since I moved to Yogyakarta, movies is like my main entertainment! Anyway Pram, This must be a lie! Sorry but I don't believe you. If he hates someone who loves movie, he hate me then.

Raja
I seriously can't tell which one is true or false. Both sounds convincing. But i'll just say that the second one, I think, is false. I mean like if you're soaked, as a normal human being, you should realize that you're soaked and woke up. But maybe Raja was too tired at that time? I don't know.

Ricky
I heard a couple weeks ago that Ricky have a house in Bogor. It is located near Mila Friday's school right? So I guess his second story might be true. Also, his first story sounds too plain that I had a thought that maybe he's trying to fool us?

Bagas
I do know that Bagas is good at playing basketball. But drums? I don't know. So i'll just say that I believed his first story more than his second story. But if you do play drums, Bagas, that is so cool! Also, it kinda amazes me how he played from cafe to cafe.

Vivi
I often talk to Vivi but I didn't know that she loves to hike! And about her second story, how can you hate instant noodles? In my opinion, it is the invention of the century. Instant noodles tasted good no matter how you eat it. Even if it is raw, it is delicious! (am I the only one who had eaten raw instant noodles?) Anyway, I think her second story is true. Just like what I stated on my comment about Hanif's story, it is possible that you hate something. 

About my story, actually the story about being all alone in Japan without my parents are the true one. Kinda weird right? And I do love Justin Bieber but I am not that crazy. The only Bieber's album I have is his 3rd album. Anyway, travelling without our parents was a chaos. We didn't know where to go and we always woke up at like 11 A.M. because we always sleep late and we had nowhere to go. Such a waste of time. I mean, why would you sleep so much when you're travelling?

That's all Sir. Thank you so much.

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Ricky:

Diva
I’m guessing the story where she lost her suitcase was false because it would be really hard to travel when her family lost all their suitcases, they would have to prolong their visit if they lost valuable items. The other story, although seems painful and I haven’t notice her scar, is more believable because we all get clumsy sometimes.

Hanif
Hanif’s story about saving his dad’s slipper is one thousand times more believable than never liking chicken. Excluding vegans, almost everybody in this world loves chicken. So my guess is the drowning story is true.

Kabik
 I don’t know Kabik well enough to guess which one is true. So, my rough guess is the story where she went to Bali with her family is true, because that’s just something so wonderful to do. While the other story, although really common, is just too boring.

Raja
Raja seems like a nice guy for me; too nice at times. Therefore, even though the sleep walking story seems sketchy and funny, I’m guessing it’s true. He is simply too nice to have a tawuran.

Nico
Nico and I got a lot of classes together, and he seems like the diligent type. He always asks questions when he is in class. Based on that, the drowning story is more plausible and the one where he did his assignment in the toilet is false.

Pramudyo
Football is a very popular sport in Indonesia, I’m not surprised if he loved it when he was a kid. For the other story where he hates movies, is not so believable. While he can dislike certain genres of movies, hating the whole medium it’s exaggerating. So the one story that is true is his football one.

Sabrina 
Sabrina seems as a pretty reasonable girl, but when Justin Bieber was a hit, we were all still pre pubescent; it’s very possible that she threw a tantrum and left for a few minutes. I’m guessing the other story was false because her parent’s would probably take her and her sibling with them.

Bagas 
I knew Bagas very well; he loves to talk  about his past experiences with me and vice versa. Because of that I knew his love for boxing is the true story while the drum one is false.

Vivi
Vivi’s story about her inability to eat noodles seems to farfetched; one portion is never too much. While her hiking story seems more inspiring and coming from a real experience.

My own story.
The first story, where I have my first supernatural experienced, was true. I was never a believer of the supernatural, but in that moment, I can’t find a logical explanation on why I can hear someone knocking back from inside the drawer. 

The second story was false. I never encountered any rabid dog. However, I did find a snake carcass when I jog in Bogor.

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Raja:

First Story
1. It’s a unique story , just imagine we travel to another country without any cloths and that’s
terrible. But for me it’s okay as long as we still have money and credit card. From diva story I
assume that it’s false because I believe that the officer from the flight company is able to find
it. Based on my experience anyway.
2. It’s a heroic story but somehow I don’t believe with the hanif story so I assume it’s false,
because I think that maybe someone helps you.
3. It’s an extraordinary story, Going to a restaurant with specific dress code it’s like well-planned.
I believe it is true.
4. Common story but It’s funny because until now I never hear that Nicho can swim or not so it’s
definitely true.
5. It’s very amazing you know, It is the first time I hear that there is someone that hate to watch a
movie. But one day I ever heard that Pramudyo was going to a teacher with his friend to
watch movie but I don’t know then. So I assume it’s true because for me pramudyo is a
unique person.
6. It is a true story about me anyway. So just a moment after we arrived at that school the
security bring us to the principal office, then about the newspaper It’s also true and the fact is
that until now none of my family know about this war. Lucky me right…
7. Ricky oh Ricky is that the way you scare someone. But I see that you are like funny person, IT
IS FUNNY NOT SCARY. SO I BELIEVE IT IS FALSE.
8. Going to Japan alone is an amazing story because you can test yourself while maybe in the
future you have the opportunity to live or study abroad but I believe that it is false because
Sabrina stay with her brother not alone.
9. Dear bagas. I have an important message for you, just be yourself you know if someone loves
you , you don’t have to change yourself, because what ever happened she should always love
you. But I think it’s true story
10. It’s a thriller story, going to mountain with those conditions, I think it’s false you know, from the
way you tell the story it’s very real
Second Story
1. I think it is true because I ever saw hanif ate a chicken in the orientation program.
2. I actually laugh when kabik said that she was flying. But somehow I don’t believe that kabik is
kind of person that is very easy to fly , I would say false
3. I don’t believe that pramudyo lose so many matches, maybe it’s just a few, so I believe false
4. Rabbit dog is impossible but I believe with those kind of things, maybe it is true.
5. I have the same person that hate to eat noodles so I think vivi is the one of them. It’s true let’s
say.
6. It’s true but in some way it is false because actually it was happened at night not in the
morning and anyway my mother laughed in front of the door and then I realised and woke up
in the bathroom.
7. It’s like kid habbits, the Justin Bieber addicts, I ever being someone like Sabrina , so I think it’s
true because we are same.
8. Bagas never told me that he’s a drummer, that’s why it is false, the way you told the story it’s
like you are nervous hahahah.
9. It think it is true, because I ever see someone that’s same with diva, anyway I will try to prove
it soon.
10. It’s true you know because nicho told me that he was trying to finish the assignment in the
toilet and he did it later.

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Diva:

For Hanif’s stories, I think that his second story is the truth one. The reason why is because the first story is too basic and he used it as a distraction so that we would think that the first one is the truth one since it is very simple. For Kabik’s stories, I think the truth one is also the second story. It is not because I think she couldn’t afford a party at a five star hotel but it is because I think that the story is way too simple for it to be truth, same as my thought on Hanif’s story. For Nicho’s stories, I think the truth one is also the second story, since his voice has an echo effect in the recording which made me convince that he was in the bathroom just as what he stated. For Pramudyo’s stories, I think that the truth one is the first one. When he was telling us about his hatred towards movies he sounded really genuine. Same goes for Raja, I also think his story that is the truth one is the second one because he sounded really genuine when he was telling the second one, the first one is believable but it sounded a bit too made up for me. Ricky’s stories got me the most confused. I honestly couldn’t tell which one was the truth one, but I’m going to say that the truth one is the second one because he made it very believable. For Sabrina’s stories, funny enough she actually told me the first story during High School. That’s when I know the second one is instantly fake since I have already heard the first one. Bagas’s stories were also really hard to guess which one is fake and which one is the truth one but I’m going to go with the first one as the truth.  Lastly, for Vivi. I think that her second story is the truth one because she sounded really assertive when she was telling the story.

For my stories the fake one is the first one, but it is actually not a hundred percent a lie. It actually happened but my suitcase came back a day later. 

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Vivi:

1. My guess on each of my friend's stories

Kabik = story 1: false, story 2: true

Sabrina = story1: false, story2: true

Diva= story 1:true, story 2:false

Hanif = story 2:false, story 1: true

Ricky = story 1:true, story 2:false

Pram= story1: false, story 2: true

Raja= story 1: true, story 2: false

Nicho= story 1: true, story 2: false

Bagas= story 1: false, story 2: true

2. Answers of my own stories:
My first story is actually false. I've never climb any mountain in my life (yet). My second story is very true. I don't like instant noodles, because it makes my stomach gassy. 

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Hanif:

First Story
1.       True. I have heard many stories about people losing their luggage in the airport
2.       True (my own story)
3.       True because the information was so detailed
4.       False, im pretty sure that nicho is a guy who is capable of swimming
5.       False, I understand people that hate a certain genre, but not people that dislike movies in general
6.       False, the teacher arrived on schedule and that seems impossible
7.       True, I have also experienced it in my school
8.       False, when a family member passed away, usually the whole family will check this family member unless something important is going on
9.       True, doing sports especially fighting sport usually changes someone’s mentality
10.   True, hiking is an enjoyable thing for some people and its normal for people to do it

Second Story
1.       False (My story)
2.       False, looks like the experience was a bit exaggerated
3.       True, I have experienced it myself and learned a lot
4.       True, I would have done the same thing and it is common for rabbits to hide in  bushes
5.       True, people might have allergies for certain food

6.       True, sleep walking is normal and maybe it is just his reflexes to start showering
7.       False, I do not think that people will go that far
8.       False, I do not know about people giving their position away in a band
9.       False, that seems too scary
10.   True, I think he is talking about the EWS task


======PREVIOUS CONTENT OF THIS BLOG POST - BELOW HERE==========

This is only for KABIK, VIVI, SABRINA, DIVA, HANIF,  RYAN, RICKY, RAIHAN N., PRAMUDYO, RAJA, BAGAS and NICHO.

However, if you didn't log-in to the EWS class with your fingerprint in U203 on Friday morning before you went to your Introduction to Business Class then ignore this because it means you were ABSENT for EWS session 5.

If you did log-in to the EWS class with your fingerprint in U203 on Friday morning before Introduction to Business, but you don't do this task, I will cancel your 'attendance' and mark you ABSENT.
 

Ask questions about Task 1 in the Temporary Friday Group if you want to. But be sure to send your answers to me personally (not to the group).




Ask in the Temporary Friday Group if you have any questions. Be sure to send your voice notes to me personally (not to the group).

Thursday, 20 September 2018

A poem: First Kiss


I was let down by the train
the voice it gave the number 
for complaints, again
and I'm always huddled 
against the rain
crossing off the 
sunless days that remain


and I don't know what it is 
I'm waiting for
we never know 
what this life has in store


in my cubicle of dreams
staring at those cells 
upon my screen
and staring at the shelves
my supper's here and
I'm eating by myself, again


and I don't know what 
someone might see in me
but I want to feel
what this life makes of me


this time will pass
I'll make my way
it won't always be 
'today'


I'm soaring over fields
leaving behind the 
chimneys and the wheels
an ice cream for you
the first kiss on the cheek
was at the zoo


and I don't know why
you have fallen for me
but now I must try to be
the one you need


our time has come
we'll make our way
who cares about those 
'yesterdays'


I don't care about the train, let the
voice say those same things every day
and let's soak up the rain, let it
wash away the doubts so none remain


and now I know what it was
I was waiting for
I never knew 
what this life had in store


Wednesday, 19 September 2018

Declarations Of Independence




Talk about how your life is changing - adapting to academic work - where you live - who you live with - problems with student life - trying out new things - new experiences - homesickness - managing your time - keeping a balance between work and play - keeping healthy, and anything else that touches upon your life as it stands in 2016...


Share your thoughts ~ ask your questions ~ tell us what you think about what other people have to say! 

Use the COMMENTS feature below.



Women in Indonesia: Informal Employment, Wage Gap & Violence

9 March 2018 from HERE 

Like in many other countries around the globe, Indonesian women often find themselves in a more difficult position than men. For example, there are much more women than men who work in Indonesia's informal sector. Moreover, a significant portion of these women are unpaid workers. While 57.51 percent of Indonesia's total female workforce is employed in the informal sector, the rate is 48.81 percent for men.

Being employed in the informal sector entails risks as informal sector workers typically have lower - and unstable - incomes, and lack access to basic protection and services. Meanwhile, money flows in the informal sector are not taxed and informal activities cannot be included in the country's GNP or GDP calculations.

But not only do women have a bigger chance to fall into the informal sector, they also have to face injustice in the form of the men-women wage gap, meaning that women usually get paid less than men for the same work.

Based on recent research of the International Labour Organization (ILO), conducted through its Better Work Indonesia program, the clothing (or garment) industry of Indonesia is among the worst cases in terms of wage gap in the country's manufacturing sector. On average, informal female workers in Indonesia's garment industry earn 20 percent less than their male counterparts for the same work and with the same (low) educational background.

Meanwhile, the ILO report states that 80 percent of workers in 200 garment factories spread across Indonesia are women aged between 15-35 years, with the majority only having completed (Senior) High School (in Indonesian: Sekolah Menengah Atas, or SMA).

Albert Bonasahat, team-member for the Better Work Indonesia program, said Indonesia's garment companies still regard women as workers that can be paid less, while their obedience (to the boss) is stronger. However, Bonasahat said this is a wrong stereotype. Meanwhile, he added that the wage gap should actually not occur anymore as the Indonesian government already ratified ILO Convention No. 111 concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation. Hence, gender discrimination is an illegal in Indonesia. But, problematically, law enforcement in Indonesia is weak.

The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) urged the Indonesian government to increase efforts to protect women's rights across the country, particularly by enacting the long-overdue bill on the elimination of sexual violence.

The annual report of Komnas Perempuan stated that there were 348,446 cases of violence against women in full-year 2017, up 25 percent year-on-year. Most of these cases involve incest and cyber-violence (which is online harassment or the spread of private content on social media or pornographic websites). When divided by type of violence, 41 percent of the cases involved physical abuse, 31 percent sexual abuse, 15 percent psychological abuse, and 13 percent economic abuse.

However, the rise in cases of violence against women last year not necessarily means that violence against women is rising in Indonesia. Mariana Amiruddin, Komnas Perempuan Commissioner, said the increase is attributed to the fact that more and more victims dare to report the violence. Still, it is feared that many violent cases remain unreported across Indonesia as victims are afraid of repercussions. The report also noted that 71 percent of reported cases of violence took place in a private or domestic setting.

Komnas Perempuan emphasized that existing local laws in Indonesia do not cover all types of violence against women, hence resulting in a legal vacuum and powerless victims. Therefore, the bill on the elimination of sexual violence needs to be passed quickly.

Another article: Women's Empowerment In Indonesia: Where To Now?

Salah, Pogba, Özil … the Muslim heroes of English football

Liverpool fans’ love for the ‘Egyptian king’ shows how much the sport has changed since the days of NF chanting on terraces

by Nabila Ramdani taken from HERE

Cut through the bigotry of a vocal minority, and there are some pretty uplifting football chants to be heard in England nowadays. Particularly popular at Liverpool is one dedicated to an Arab striker.

It contains the lines: “If he’s good enough for you/He’s good enough for me/If he scores another few/Then I’ll be Muslim too,” and ends with the words: “He’s sitting in the mosque/That’s where I want to be.”

Those who revere “Egyptian King” Mohamed Salah – the subject of the song – are not just paying tribute to arguably the best player in the Premier League at the moment. They’re also adhering to a distinctly British tradition of tolerance and respect. This should be cause for immense national pride.

Before hatred of Islam became an obsession among high-profile rabble-rousers and their followers, it was black players who had to put up with racism. Febrile stadium atmospheres turned poisonous, with groups such as the National Front recruiting at games. Xenophobic ditties belted out in the 1970s and 1980s infamously included: “There ain’t no black in the Union Jack/Send the bastards back.”

What changed was the emergence of men such as Cyrille Regis, the former West Bromwich Albion and England forward born in French Guiana. He was part of a generation of non-white players who revolutionised not only the game, but attitudes across the country. Regis, who died in January, aged 59, would never have claimed that prejudice had been wiped out, but with so many charismatic stars just like him, hatred based on skin colour was rendered evil, and embarrassing.

Nowadays the hate-mongers who seek to warp majority opinion tend to focus on religion. And they are by no means found only at football grounds; politicians and authors, mainstream media commentators and online trolls all get involved.

They particularly despise Muslims, doing what they can to link 1.8 billion people worldwide with every crime they can think of, and especially terrorism. There have been calls for anyone associated with Islam to be interned or deported and – in at least one case – for them to become the victims of a “final solution”, just as Jews were during the Holocaust. In the case of young Muslim men, they are caricatured as potential killers, ready to take up arms for barbaric groups that corrupt one of the world’s three great monotheistic faiths to their own ends.

In fact, Salah is a fairly typical Muslim. Beyond being hard-working, community-minded and committed to peace in his home country and abroad – he prays devoutly with team-mates Sadio Mané and Emre Can, celebrating every goal by prostrating himself on the ground.

Muslims at Manchester United include Paul Pogba, signed in 2016 for a then record transfer fee of almost £90m. Like his fellow Muslims, he is well-known for donating much of his huge salary to charity. It is the same for Riyad Mahrez – who helped Leicester to win the League in 2016 – and N’Golo Kanté, his old team-mate, who is now at current champions Chelsea. At Arsenal there’s Mesut Özil, at Manchester City Yaya Touré, Mamadou Sakho at Crystal Palace, Islam Slimani at Newcastle … the list goes on and on.

I have spoken to many young Muslims at major grounds in London, Leicester and Manchester who are not only watching their heroes, but increasingly playing the game, too. Inevitably, British Muslim footballers will start breaking into England’s top flight, joining the legions of foreign players.

In turn, those who might have seen Muslims as inward-looking and awkwardly conservative are changing their opinion. “Cool” is an overused word, but indisputably stylish sportsmen are having a profound effect on mass perceptions. Just as the British started to drop racist stereotypes in every walk of life – from advertising to situation comedies – from the late 1970s onwards, so Muslims are coming to be portrayed more positively.

They are certainly considered trendsetters who can thrill and inspire by shining in a multibillion-pound industry that has huge influence. Some show off earrings, tattoos, imaginative hairstyles and all the other accoutrements that appeal to their millions of social media devotees, but they also post images of themselves reading the Qur’an on the team coach, or posing in Mecca on their Hajj pilgrimage.

This naturally infuriates the Football Lads Alliance (FLA), a Muslim-hate organisation which imagines that supporters have not moved on from the days when players with dark skins had bananas, monkey chants and the N-word hurled at them from crumbling terraces.

The FLA frequently joins forces with equally repugnant mobs such as the English Defence League, which was originally modelled on the football hooligan “firms”. It affects a perverse loyalty to the British armed forces, yet its members rack up criminal convictions and jail time for various offences, many linked to extreme violence. Meanwhile, all propagate the myth that only one religion can produce antisocial extremists. They completely ignore terrorist murders carried out by radicalised white men just like themselves, for example, preferring to spread collective guilt against Muslims at every opportunity.

Such behaviour is as divisive as it is dangerous, but now more and more of these racists are being called out – not least by some of the most progressive football fans in the world.

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VIDEO: Do you know who the Muslim players are in the Premier League?


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PODCAST: The Liverpool and Egypt footballer Mo Salah became a phenomenon last season; breaking records and winning almost every award going in the English Premier League. In his adopted city of Liverpool, football fans of different faith, nationality and club allegiance describe how Salah has broken down the boundaries that divide them. Reporter Nick Garnett travels from the back-streets surrounding Liverpool’s stadium at Anfield to the Pyramids of Egypt to uncover how Salah’s exploits off the pitch may even eclipse his achievements on it. [BBC]

Classroom culture shock

An Australian teacher trainer learns a lesson (or two) in East Java 

The Australian government currently supports a number of programs that aim to increase skill levels of teachers in Indonesia and promote cross-cultural exchange. These programs offer exciting opportunities for those looking to expand their horizons. But how prepared are teachers from Australia in taking up this challenge?


Towards the end of a year-long teaching contract in China, I began scouting around for my next adventure. On the internet I found an advertisement for teacher trainers for the Islamic Schools English Language Program (ISELP) in Indonesia. One of the goals of this program was ‘to increase the proficient use of best practices in English language teaching and learning’.

This, I knew, would be a challenge! Education institutions in Indonesia commonly employ traditional teaching methodologies such as rote learning and text translations. These methods are poles apart from what is currently considered best practice in English language teaching.

Working at a pondok pesantren

I was selected to join the program and was placed in a pondok pesantren (Islamic boarding school) in East Java for 18 months. My brief was to work with junior high school English teachers and assist with the implementation of the new national competency based curriculum introduced in 2004. Other program goals included raising the English language proficiency levels of teachers and promoting cross-cultural exchange. 


Pondok pesantren are a cheaper alternative to public sector schooling. Established and led by a kyai (religious teacher), pesantren aim to provide both general and spiritual education in a family-like atmosphere. While most students board, a significant number are day students, especially if they live nearby.

A pesantren can comprise several schools, representing primary, junior and senior secondary levels. In addition to divisions due to educational stage, pesantren commonly offer both the curricula of the Department of Religion and the Department of National Education. For example, at the junior secondary level students can select to follow the Madrasah Tsanawiyah stream (the Department of Religion curriculum) or the Sekolah Menengah Pertama stream (the Department of National Education curriculum). Initially this complex system took a while to work out.

Within the pesantren where I was posted, each school had its own administrative staff, headmaster and deputy headmaster. Teachers sometimes work across the schools, despite different timetabling systems. From an outsider’s perspective, it seemed quite hierarchical. Decisions were made at the top and passed down through layers of administration to those at the bottom. Information did not always reach those who needed it. And positions of leadership for women were largely confined to the primary sector.

Tools for teaching

Teachers in Australia can expect a certain level of resourcing in terms of access to equipment such as computers and photocopy machines, library resources, and teaching support materials. In comparison, teachers at pesantren are thinly resourced. They are expected to pay for their own photocopying, and then recoup the money from the students. Because the school photocopier was broken throughout my 18 month placement, teachers had to travel to the nearby town for photocopying. Library resources were non-existent, and there was very little in the way of teaching support materials.

  

Pesantren management often choose to spend limited resources on symbolically valuable items. Language laboratories, a big ticket item, are a popular purchase. They feature in promotional brochures and help create an image of the pesantren as a modern institution with state-of-the-art technology. But their educational value was limited. Half a dozen portable CD players or even a small computer lab would have wider cross-curricular application. But despite limited application, language laboratories continue to pop up in pesantren, even though there is no money to mend existing broken equipment.

In the classroom, English teachers use student workbooks often chosen by the principal. These are purchased from visiting booksellers and are very cheap – around Rp4000 (about 50 cents) for one semester. Unfortunately, the low price is reflected in the quality of the texts, which contain numerous errors. Good quality texts are available, but at around Rp25,000 (A$3) for a year, they are considered too expensive for the students.

For teachers, many of whom have never seen the curriculum, the workbook provides some level of guidance. Despite being trained practitioners, pesantren teachers receive a much lower wage than their government school counterparts. Many work seven days a week in two or more jobs to make ends meet. The cost of supplementary materials and the time burden of lesson planning mean that teachers are often dependent on the workbook. The standard practice is for each class to work its way through the text, learning the vocabulary and set dialogues and translating each passage into Indonesian – the hallmarks of a passive approach.

As the workbook was the main resource for teachers, my challenge was to use this resource in active and innovative ways. The teachers I worked with were very enthusiastic about learning and trying out new ideas. They tested out running dictation and jigsaw reading activities, which the students found much more enjoyable than translation exercises.

A key task was to find practical ideas that both motivated students and required little preparation or resourcing. Teachers taught large classes (around 40 students) often in crowded, poorly maintained classrooms with the barest minimum of equipment. At first, teachers commented on how unmotivated students were to learn English, but as time went on more reported the small successes they were achieving in the classroom, especially in terms of increased student motivation.




In addition to new teaching methodologies, teachers were increasingly able to arm themselves with more teaching resources. A key component of the program was to build up a bank of teaching resources that supported a more communicative approach to learning English, and that required minimal preparation or photocopying. By buying a laminator we could create reusable teaching resources.

We established a centre to house these new resources. This raised a new set of problems. Libraries are virtually non-existent in many pesantren, and there is no ‘borrowing’ culture. Teachers constantly had to be chased up to return borrowed materials. There was a sense that once you got your hands on something, you held on to it.

A learning journey

Most of the teachers were very keen to participate in professional development activities. Workshops about teaching methodologies and planning sessions were reinforced by team teaching and demonstration lessons. These lessons were an important component of the program, as they provided teachers with the opportunity to see the ideas presented during workshops in action and to practise new ideas in a supportive environment.

For me, working in a different cultural context meant stepping outside my comfort zone to some degree. Although it was a challenge learning to adapt to such a different working environment, there were many rewards on both professional and personal levels. Perhaps one of the most valuable professional lessons was how to live without a photocopy machine! (Most teachers in Australia feel their right arm has been cut off if they don’t have access to such piece of equipment). Upon returning to the classroom in Australia, I felt somewhat overwhelmed by the choice of equipment and resources available. I had become quite comfortable with working with minimal resources; in Java there was a sense of freedom in being less reliant on technology.

On a more personal level, it was a rewarding experience to discover new ways to communicate and negotiate with people. In Australia we are used to being direct in our communications with each other, but this is generally viewed as impolite in Indonesia. As I learned to be more indirect in expressing my ideas or requests, I found I was better understood by others and vice versa. There were fewer instances of ‘miscommunication’ based on cultural differences.

During my time working in Indonesia, I found I learned as much about the intricacies of my own culture as I did about Indonesia’s. The ability to be flexible and maintain an open mind are key factors when engaging in cross-cultural programs, as is a willingness to listen and learn from those around us. Before leaving Australia, I felt confident that my level of cultural knowledge, Indonesian language ability and experience teaching abroad ensured a reasonable degree of preparedness. Looking back I can see that I was only part of the way there. The reality was that after 18 months in-country, I was still learning as much as I was teaching. ii

By Louise Blair, from INSIDE INDONESIA ...HERE

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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cracks down on bad grammar

Iran, North Korea, Syria and ... commas. While Mike Pompeo is focused on a number of key geopolitical concerns, an email obtained by CNN suggests that the secretary of state also appears to have had it, up to, here, with, the rampant, improper use of commas by State Department staff.

In the last few months, two emails have gone out from Pompeo's top staff to employees throughout the State Department giving careful, meticulous instructions on comma usage.

The latest email, sent in early September and obtained by CNN, gives "updated guidance ... regarding correct use of commas in paper for Department principals."

"The Secretary has underscored the need for appropriate use of commas in his paper (both their inclusion and omission)," the email declares. It also notes that Pompeo prefers adherence to the Chicago Manual of Style, which states "effective use of the comma involves good judgment, with the goal being ease of reading."

The email includes a long string of examples, including many from the Chicago Manual of Style, outlining when a comma should be added and when it should be excluded, and providing detailed explanations for both -- along with color-coded highlighting.

"The administration is committed to achieving a lasting and comprehensive peace agreement, and remains optimistic that progress can be made," one example reads, with the comma after agreement highlighted in bright yellow -- meaning it is wrong. "No comma when single subject with compound predicate," the email instructs.

According to one senior State Department official, Pompeo is a stickler for correct punctuation, which prompted his staff to send out the guidance emails. The State Department did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Another senior State Department official noted that past secretaries of state had their own grammar tics -- Colin Powell "famously focused on font and font size" and Condoleezza Rice was picky about margins and people "cramming too much into the regulated lengths for memo types."

"During employee evaluation season there is an annual debate about the use of the Oxford comma," the official says, and "Oxford comma advocates" -- meaning a comma before the last item in a series -- "usually win."

The secretary's desire for strict style guide adherence contrasts with President Donald Trump's tendency on Twitter to forego standard guidelines on punctuation and capitalization. A retired teacher who received a letter from the President even sent it back with corrections because she said it was filled with grammar and style mistakes.

VIDEO

Chicago Manual of Style

Other news: Huge spelling mistake on Cathay Pacific plane


Tuesday, 18 September 2018

Indian film's love affair with fantasy

By Tom Brook BBC News

India has witnessed extraordinary growth and the realities of life for many have improved dramatically in recent times, but to the dismay of some of its critics mainstream Bollywood continues to peddle escapist fantasy.

The most popular films in India are so-called masala pictures - diversionary fare delivering a combination of romance, comedy, action, melodrama, song, dance and nearly always an unrealistic happy ending.

Some cultural commentators maintain the country's mainstream film industry produces fantasy because, despite improvements, many Indians still live under conditions of extreme poverty.

Bollywood dancers

Top Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor says: "We believe in escapist cinema. We like to get away from the harsh reality of things. We are constantly escaping the truth and looking for entertainment."


Bollywood films are very often seen as reinforcing and reflecting the values of a patriarchal culture with women portrayed in stereotypical roles.

Top Indian director Shekhar Kapur agrees. "We hang on to this idea of the Suffering Woman that in her suffering that she would be the Great Woman."

But one of Bollywood's biggest female stars, Priyanka Chopra, sees it rather differently. She believes there has been some progress.

"One of my most critically and commercially acclaimed films was a film Fashion that was entirely on my shoulder(s). It was a girl's journey in the fashion industry and her ups and downs, so yes, I do think that Hindi films have evolved in terms of female parts."

Although Bollywood films are evolving some areas are still taboo. Portraying certain kinds of sex can be fraught with difficulty, top independent filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has discovered.

His 2010 film - That Girl in Yellow Boots - showed massage parlours selling sex in the sleazy underbelly of Mumbai. It provoked a backlash.

"The moment you deal with sex, for a lot of people, it becomes morally upsetting, and because you're dealing with it in a very real way. If you do it in a very suggestive way or a dramatic way, it's fine.

"A lot of people involved with the film were embarrassed about the film. A lot of people we thanked in the film who actually lent us money, they said, 'Please take our names from the film,' because they don't want somebody to see and say 'You gave the money to make this film!'"



Middle-class revolution
India's large young population is stirred by the same issues and topical debates found in the West.
While Hollywood may still be reluctant to address certain hot button subjects such as abortion and gay rights there's much more opposition in India.


Bollywood actor - and heartthrob - Ranbir Kapoor, 29, says: "It's still a little taboo for a mainstream actor to do a gay role, but we are hopeful. We're not pushing the boundaries that much to actually make a film on abortion or just gay rights.

"I think someday we'll get there. Someday we'll have total freedom of making anything and everything we want."

The biggest move towards more realistic cinema comes from India's burgeoning new wave of filmmaking fuelled by the country's young middle class. While the vast majority of Indians go to single-screen cinemas, the urban generation with money to spend flock to newer multiplex cinemas seeking films that are a little more daring and challenging than Bollywood crowd pleasers.

One of the directors catering to the needs of this growing audience is Dibakar Banerjee, who sees his most recent film, Love, Sex aur Dhokha, as a reaction against Bollywood.

He thinks his picture portrays a realistic view of love and the impact it can have in the lives of ordinary Indians - a portrayal that he argues stands in contrast to Bollywood love stories.

Bollywood, he says, might preach love conquers all but his film presents a very different picture.

"What happens in real life is that when a person from one caste marries or falls in love with a person from another caste, they might be killed for that in some places in India," he says.

Replacing fantasy with reality can bring big rupees to the box office as the makers of Delhi Belly discovered. Their film was one of the biggest successes this year in India's multiplex cinemas.


The picture is an irreverent crime caper replete with lavatory humour. It's seen as India's first mainstream move into "gross-out" adult comedy.

The screenplay comes from writer Akshat Verma - a man on a mission to inject more lifelike and relatable portrayals into Indian films.

"My biggest problem growing up, watching a lot of Indian films, was characters in situations I did not relate to," he says. "So my desire was to try and write characters which were some of the people I'd known, friends who had a rudeness or irreverence to the way they approached the world, with a certain dark humour."

Although there are divisions within the Indian film industry over storytelling and content a workable equilibrium appears to have been established.

Bollywood has a well-established star-system that continues to bring escapist fantasy to the masses. While the country's growing independent film movement strives to bring Indians more gritty and realistic movies.

But both these sectors happily co-exist - and both are flourishing.