Around Bali

Bali, the fabled "Island of the Gods", has been enchanting visitors for centuries with its rich cultural traditions and spectacular pano ramas. From lofty, misty enshrouded volcanoes and cool mountain lakes down through terraced rice fi elds to a golden strand lapped by azure waters, every square inch of Bali offers a fresh and unforgottable image.

No less enchanting are its people, some 2.7 million souls whose artistry and piety are recog nised throughout the world. Balinese Hinduism, a complex fusion of Indian cosmo logy, Tantric Buddism and homegrown mytho logy, is the primary faith of Bali's inhabitants, and so deeply woven into the fabric of their daily lives that the line between the spiritual and the material is blurry at best.

The shoppers among you will fi nd Bali a treasure house of handicrafts and fine works of art. The Balinese are incredibly gifted artists and craftsmen, and their material creations are imbued with the same sense of wonderment with which they regard their universe.

Stone and wood carvings, traditional and modern paintings and intricately designed jewerly in gold and silver are readily available in shops and galleries throughout the island.

As for recreation, there is no shortage of options. Nature walks, horseback riding, diving, surfing, bungy jumping and white water rafting await the adventurous here.

Taken from Hello Bali, 2000

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Goldilocks And The Three Bears

Once there were three bears that lived in a house in the woods: a papa bear, a mama bear, and a baby bear. One morning they decided to take a walk before breakfast to let their porridge cool.

A little girl named Goldilocks lived with her mother nearby. Goldilocks took a walk through the woods and found the bear’s house. She smelled the porridge in the kitchen and went inside. Goldilocks tasted the porridge in each bowl and finally ate up the porridge in the small bowl.

Then she sat on a big chair, but she didn’t like it, because it was hard.

Afterwards she sat on the small chair, and it was just right. But while she was sitting on it she broke it. After eating the porridge, Goldilocks felt full and sleepy, and then she went upstairs. There she found a small bed. She lay down on it and fell asleep.

While she was sleeping, the three bears came home. When they went into the kitchen, they got very surprised. Someone had tasted their porridge, even eaten up baby bear’s porridge, while they were taking a walk. Moreover the poor baby bear was upset when he found that his little chair broke into pieces. When they went upstairs, they found out that Goldilocks was sleeping. Baby bear cried out,

“Someone has been sleeping in my bed and here she is!”

Goldilocks woke up when she saw the three bears; she jumped out of bed and ran out of the house to her home. Never again did she make herself at home in anyone else’s house.

(Source: Dit. PSMP, 2006)

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School Uniform, another Good Lesson

School uniform is special clothes worn by all students of a particular school. The uniform of a school may differ from others. Why should schools use uniforms? Below are some reasons.

First of all, Notre Dame’s Department of Sociology produced a study in 1998 concerning school uniforms. Their fi ndings using 10th grade students showed that uniforms have no direct effect on “substance abuse, behavioural problems or attendance.” It also claimed a negative effect on student achievements for those students considered ‘pro-school’.

Secondly, uniform helps to create a strong sense school ethos and a sense of belonging to a particular community. As such it promotes discipline and helps to drive up academic standards, which is why a uniform is often adopted by schools which are being reopened with a  fresh start after being classifi ed as failing.

Finally, uniform acts as a social leveller, under which all students are equal in the eyes of the school and of each other. In institutions without uniform students are often competitive and worry endlessly about their appearance and the clothes they should wear.

Pupils without expensive designer clothes and trainers may be singled out as social outcasts, or stigmatised as being from poor backgrounds. For these reasons many parents prefer uniforms as they save them money on buying clothes for school wear.

Considering the fi ndings, schools should implement the uniform as their identity. The government should also publish some kind of rule which makes uniform compulsory for schools.

Taken from: Interlanguage: English for Senior High School Students XI

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Home Schooling

Home schooling is an education system which provides child’s main education programme at home. Home schooling takes the place of full-time school attendance and, in the United States and Canada, it usually meets state requirements for compulsory education.

Although home schooling could achieve the objectives of compulsory education, there are some points that should be noticed from the home schooling.

First, the idea of taking our children’s education on home schooling can be a bit intimidating. Since our country is so large and the people are from so many different kinds of backgrounds, students need some kind of social glue to make them stick together and to give them a sense of unity in spite of all the differences. They will not get such a unity when they are in home schooling. They will get the sense of unity when they are in the compulsory public schools since it is the easiest and best places to make this glue.

Then, the home schooling may not be able to prepare children to fi t into the mass society, which means, among other things, believing what most people believe and liking what most people like. Or it may not be able to help children to fi nd a set of values with which they could resist and reject at least many of the values of the mass society.

Recognizing the lack of home schooling in the case of children’s socialization opportunity, we should afford them abundant social opportunities.

We can have active home school support groups. We can hold ongoing park days, meetings at the zoo, the science museum, book clubs, history clubs, language clubs, home school scouting troops and many more options to provide them opportunities to socialize with others.

Source: Interlanguage: English for Senior High School Students XI

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Gawai Dayak

Gawai Day or Gawai Dayak, is a festival celebrated in Sarawak. It is both a religious and social occasion. Gawai Dayak literally means “Dayak Festival”. Dayak visit their friends and relatives on this day. Those far away receive greeting cards. The mode of celebrations varies from place to place.

The festival is celebrated on the 1st of June every year. However, it actually starts on the evening of 31st of May. Gawai Dayak celebration may last for several days.

On the evening of 31st of May, the ceremony to cast the greediness spirit away (Muai Antu Rua) is held. Then, offering ceremony (miring) is conducted. Thanking gods for the good harvest, guidance, blessings and long life is done through sacrifi cing a cockerel. At midnight spirit welcoming procession (Ngaluh Petara) is held. Then, the celebration gets merrier as people start singing and reading poems.

On the 1st of June, the homes of the Dayaks are opened to visitors. Cock-fi ghting, blowpipe skill demonstration, and ngajat competitions are held. It is also during this time of the year that many Dayak weddings take place. Today, it is an integral part of Dayak social life. It is a thanksgiving day marking good harvest and a time to plan for the new farming season or activities ahead.

Adapted from: Interlanguage: English for Senior High School Students XI             

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The Little Girl and the Wolf James Thurber

One afternoon, a big wolf waited in the dark forest for a little girl to come along carrying a basket of food to her grandmother. Finally, the little girl came along and she was carrying a basket of food. "Are you carrying that basket to your grandmother?" asked the wolf. The little girl said yes she was. So the wolf asked her where her grandmother lived and the little girl told him and he disappeared into the woods.

When the little girl opened the door of her grand mother's house, she saw there was somebody in bed with a nightcap and nightgown on. She had approached no nearer than twenty-five feet from the bed when she saw that it was not her grandmother but the wolf, for even in a nightcap a wolf doesn't look anymore like your grandmother than Metro-Goldwyn lion looks like Calvin Coolidge. So the little girl took an automatic out of her basket and shot the wolf dead.

Taken from Readings to Remember, 2004

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