Tag: Education

Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) today conveyed its condolences to the families of two students, at the Kedah and Pahang branches, who died recently.

Nurul Natasya Ezreen Azemi, 22, was pursuing a diploma in Office Management and Technology, Faculty of Management and Business at UiTM Kedah branch, and Muhammad Adham Hazim Mohd Rizaini, 21, was pursuing a diploma in Civil Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering at Pahang branch.

UiTM Corporate Communications Department’s Public Relations, Media and Protocol, in a statement today, prayed that the families of the two students will be given strength and patience in facing this difficult time.

“May Allah shower blessings on their souls,” it said.

In the meantime, it also said that the university has always been involved in ensuring the students’ welfare and convenience would be met under the ODL (open distance learning) sessions.

“Students who require internet facilities and devices will be assisted and welcomed to stay at the college or rented accommodation near the campus,” it said.

For the aspect of assessment and evaluation, UiTM, through the Academic Affairs Division, and the lecturers involved, have given early notification regarding important dates of assignments to students at the beginning of the semester, under the study plan of each course.

Meanwhile, the UiTM’s Academic Affairs, under its ‘prihatin’ initiative, has already extended assessment and evaluation activities during the final evaluation week, until August.

“It is implemented through academic circular 11/2021, which has been issued and communicated to all students and lecturers on June 18, 2021,” it said.

At the same time, the Student Affairs Division and Counselling Unit, always caring and ready to assist students in providing advice and any assistance needed while undergoing ODL during the pandemic.

“Students are encouraged to discuss with the lecturers, academic advisors or the head of the programme to resolve any issues related to assessment and evaluation schedules,” the statement read.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

— A study needs to be done to identify and assess the benefits enjoyed by the people of Sabah, especially the communities living around the Crocker Range Biosphere Reserve (CRBR), said Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment Dr Jamili Nais.

CRBR is a conservation area listed in the Man and The Biosphere Programme (MAB) network of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) on June 12, 2014.

Jamili said the study was necessary to ensure that RBBC truly benefits the community in line with the goals and objectives of its recognition through the programme.

“If the benefits are less significant (to the community), it would be good for us to work together to formulate new action plans.

“This is to ensure that the benefits can also be enjoyed by the people in or around this biosphere reserve,” he said when launching a webinar in conjunction with the 7th Anniversary Programme of the Declaration of CRBR as a UNESCO MAB site here today.

The MAB is an inter-governmental scientific programme launched by UNESCO in 1971, and to date, there are 714 biosphere reserves in 129 countries including two in Malaysia, namely RBBC and Tasik Chini Biosphere Reserve in Pahang.

Also present was Sabah Parks (TTS) director Dr Maklarin Lakim.

Meanwhile, Maklarin, in his speech said TTS has been entrusted by the Sabah government as the guiding agency in the preservation and conservation of the 350,584-hectare CRBR, which covers nine district administrative areas, namely Kota Kinabalu, Penampang, Papar, Beaufort, Tuaran, Keningau, Tambunan, Ranau and Tenom.

“Sustainable management will promote conservation and development without negatively impacting the conservation of biodiversity and natural ecosystem services, especially to various biodiversity resources and clean water supply,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

— The Graduate Management Admission Council™ (GMAC™), a global association of leading graduate business schools, has released its annual 2021 Corporate Recruiters Survey.

The report found that corporate recruiters project a robust demand for business school graduates, with nine in 10 of them expecting it to increase or remain stable in the next five years, according to a statement.

In addition, a higher proportion of recruiters in 2021 (37 per cent) expect the demand to increase than that in the previous year (30 per cent), with more than half of the European recruiters (54 per cent) sharing such a view compared to their Asian (32 per cent) and American (34 per cent) counterparts.

Among the key findings, MBA salary and hiring are expected to return to pre-pandemic levels; technology sector embraces MBA graduates for hiring and promotion; and, perceptions of online programmes are mixed depending on region, sector.

In 2020, the projected MBA median salary reached an all-time high of US$115,000 before COVID-19 severely disrupted the global economy and caused it to drop down to $105,000, three months into the pandemic. (US$1 = RM4.155)

According to survey respondents, demand for MBA graduates by the technology industry is anticipated to increase by 10 percentage points in 2021 compared to pre-pandemic 2020. In fact, with 96 per cent of tech recruiters projecting to hire MBA graduates in 2021, the demand for MBA talents tops the previous three years.

In addition, online programmes have been gaining traction in recent years. According to GMAC data, 50 more online MBA programmes accepted GMAT scores in the testing year (TY) 2020 as compared to five years earlier in TY 2016.

GMAC has been conducting the Corporate Recruiter Survey on behalf of the graduate management education community since 2001.

This year’s survey was administered in partnership with the Association of MBAs (AMBA), the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), MBA Career Services & Employer Alliance (MBA CSEA), and career services offices at participating graduate business schools worldwide.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

— The lack of infrastructure is not an excuse not to provide opportunities for excellent persons with disabilities (PwD) students to further their studies at higher education institutions (IPTs), OKU Sentral president Senator Datuk Ras Adiba Radzi said.

In this regard, Ras Adiba, who represents the PwDs in the Senate, said there was a need for better enforcement of Section 28 (1) and (2) of the PwD Act 2008.

Section 28 (1) of the act states that PwDs shall not be excluded from the general education system on the basis of disabilities, while Section 28 (2) of the act states that the government and private educational providers shall, in order to enable persons and children with disabilities to pursue education, provide reasonable accommodation suitable with their requirements, including infrastructure, equipment and teaching materials, teaching methods, curricula and other forms of support.

“(Therefore) The amendment to the PwD Act should be expedited this year to provide reasonable adjustments that are in accordance with the needs of the group,” she told reporters at the OKU Sentral drive-through vaccination centre here, today.

Ras Adiba had previously called for amendments to the PwD Act 2008 to empower the rights of the disabled community.

On Wednesday, Higher Education director-general Prof Datuk Dr Husaini Omar said that programmes offered to PwD applicants were based on an agreement with the institutions by taking into accounts several criteria, including the academic achievements of the candidates and the disabled-friendly infrastructure provided at the IPTs.

Ras Adiba, who is also the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chairman, said this implied that most buildings in IPTs did not meet the standards outlined in Section 34A of the Uniform Building By-Laws 1984.

“Failure to abide by the law has caused difficulties to PwD students to access the buildings and facilities at IPTs.

“We have to look at the perspective of a PwD himself, don’t do something thinking that we (PwDs) will be okay,” she said.

Ras Adiba added that OKU Sentral would discuss with universities on ways to assist the students in order to provide equal educational opportunities.

“They (PwD students) also work hard to become intellectuals, so who we are to say that they have limited opportunities when they have more abilities than others,” she said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

Carrying heavy loads, travelling along tortuous roads and river crossing is definitely not something routine for pharmacists Gan Siew Pei and Hadiatul Ain Hasanuddin but they went through them all the same to ensure an Orang Asli community received COVID-19 vaccination.

Having to go down to the ground with workers of the Jerantut district health office and the Department of Orang Asli Development (Jakoa) was a once in a life time experience which they will never forget.

Gan, 26, said she and Hadiatul Ain, 29, tasked with the responsibility of preparing and ensuring the vaccines were always in good condition before being taken to the vaccination centre at Kampung Orang Asli Sungai Kucing, Ulu Tembeling here.

“The challenge started when we had to travel over a road pitted with potholes and strewn with puddles for an hour.

“Then we crossed a river by boat for about 10 minutes, and then, weighed down by a special vaccine-filled container, which can maintain a temperature of between two to eight degrees Celsius, we trekked up a small hill.

“Hadiatul and I had to carry together the special container filled with an ice pack and Sinovac vaccine doses because it weighed almost 20 kilogrammes, and ensuring that they were in good condition and complying with the stipulated temperature range to boot,” she told Bernama here, yesterday.

The second of three siblings said preparations had started last Friday.

She said the supply of vaccines was picked up at the Tanjung Lalang Health Clinic, Temerloh and transported to the Kuala Sat Rural Clinic here to be stored first before it was taken to the vaccination location yesterday.

The Pahang-born, who said she was earlier doubtful about the reception of the vaccine by the Orang Asli, was eventually relieved when the majority of the community easily understood the briefing given on the side effects after an injection.

Hadiatul Ain, who was eager to carry out the task regarded the challenge she went through as tiring but worth it because “not everybody could enjoy such an experience especially more so when visiting an Orang Asli settlement via land and water”.

“Prior to this, our routines were only giving medications to patients at the clinic, this time we departed a bit from our actual duties.

“We assisted the nurses and doctors in making preparations to provide vaccine injections whereby 150 doses were provided for the residents in this village.

“After taking care of the vaccines and ensuring they arrived safely to the vaccination centre, Gan and I played our role at the last station, namely, explaining on the side effects and the appointment date for the second dose,” said Hadiatul Ain, who has worked as a pharmacist for the past five years.

Meanwhile, the role of health workers from among the Orang Asli also helped in facilitating the affairs of vaccinating the community.

Among them, Health Treatment Assistant Bahari kalang, also played a role in persuading those Orang Asli who refused to be vaccinated other than assisting in the registration when the vaccination process started.

“For example, today (yesterday) one or two did not want to be vaccinated. They refused even after the Tok Batin (village headman) had talked to them.

“So, I met them and talked with them carefully and clearly on the good of vaccination and eventually they relented,” said Bahari, who has been a health worker for 20 years.

He conceded that his participation in the Orang Asli Mobile Team, which often met the residents of the village, facilitated the task of bringing around the Orang Asli concerning vaccination.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency