China tries to step up pressure on Australia with warning to students

Posted to Facebook on 10/6/2020 2:33 AM
Commenting on “China tries to step up pressure on Australia with warning to students”
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3088254/china-seeks-step-pressure-australia-warning-students-risk

My warning about Australian government kept antagonising China would backfire, jeopardising Australian export, international education and tourism is not ill-founded.

It took a lot of hard work for late former PM Gough William to pave the way to Beijing, and developed relationship with China. It also benefited the US President Nixon to have dialogue with China through the Ping Pong diplomacy. Former PM Kelvin Rudd also played a role in reinforcing that relationship during his term in office.

Why must the Coalition especially the Liberal component behave so poorly to create unnecessary tension with China? With a big financial sink hole caused by the Coronavirus pandemic to fill, Australian economic downward slide may not see daylight for a long, long time without the injection of money from the major investor, China.

Should the economy continue to go south, the only way to reverse the trend is to have a new government with a totally different set of foreign policies, including reduced association with the US, and be more independent to stand up to the allies, who are bullies in disguise.

May God save Australia!

Thank you for reading.

China tries to step up pressure on Australia with warning to students

Parents and children remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

Posted to Facebook on 10/5/2020 3:49 PM
Parents and children remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the real professional teachers are not with the students face-to-face. The valuable, positive contribution to the students' wellbeing, especially the young children's, is being realised.

Many parents of younger students find themselves helpless to coach and assist their children with online study. Shouldn't parents take some time to reflect on how they have contributed towards the upbringing of their children, preparing them to face and deal with unforeseen expectation and uncertainty in life?

Thank you for reading.

Parents are the most important teachers in a child’s life

Reposted to Facebook on 9/5/2020 10:37 AM Posted to Empty Vessel (1/4/2016) on 3 April 2016 at 9:16 AM Commenting on “A Letter to Singapore Parents” https://iantan.org/2016/04/a-letter-to-singapore-parents/

It is a norm that most people want more things and more throughput but not prepare to supply more input. Every new generation, new replaces the old, whether it is technology, fashion, concept, management style, food, parenting method, education, etc.

Instead of just making ends meet, many choose to climb much higher in the Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs ladder at the expense of the fundamental need of parental love and care for the children; I do mean substitution of love by materialistic items.

As a spherical thinking educator, I am in favour of old style “teaching” including spelling, dictation, and “repeat after me” reading, plus practical logical and cognitive learning

Parents are the most important teachers in a child’s life the moment the child comes to the world. Parents attend school to learn English, maths, cooking, public relation, finance, and all sorts of subjects trying to achieve a brighter and better future, but they forget they have already brought the future to the world, their child. Parents do not “attend” classes on how to cope with and prepare the child, because parenting classes are hard to find. They blame their forebear for making their generation rebellious or what they have become, but never question what sort of a child they will bring up.

The difficulties faced by previous generation were that most chores were done manually and information was at a premium. They did not have the opportunity and luxury to “learn”. Unfortunately, parents of today are too lazy to learn despite the advancement in technology, and therefore they have no idea how to communicate with their children.

There is no one size fits all education system. It is evitable that the students of today have to learn more, some old but mainly new subjects. The society is getting more complex and speed of progress is getting faster. Parents can stay at the bus stop, drive in slow speed lane or the take the highway. The means and therefore the end result will be entirely different.

Apathy is the cause of all down fall. Contribute and voice your positive ideas; don’t just knock others’ without giving a good counter reason.

Why the university system is failing our graduates

Posted to Facebook on 30/4/2020 2:05 PM
Commenting on “Why the university system is failing our graduates”
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/work/2019/10/22/australian-university-graduate-jobs/

This news article was from 22 October 2019. If there was a problem for graduates to find jobs after graduation, what are the chances now after the coronavirus pandemic?

I had a chat with a FB friend yesterday over Messenger, and I discussed about why graduates should try to land themselves with a job relevant to what they had studied, before considering going for higher degree.

For years, I encouraged many students to take up an Advanced Diploma courses from TAFE, find a job and then find pathway to complete a degree later. It takes less time to complete an Advanced Diploma course than a degree, cost less, but has the advantage of having the core materials covered, relevant to fulfil the employment requirement.

Some TAFE and VET courses are more hands-on and practical, thus makes a TAFE graduates more employable.

As for future promotion, it is up to the individual to pursue further study.

Employers are looking for more than a degree or Advanced Diploma, and I shall discuss this more in later blogs.

Thank you for reading.

Why the university system is failing our graduates

Worried parents ask principals to take their kids

Posted to Facebook on 16/4/2020 10:29 PM
Posted to The Age (16/4/2020) on 16/4/2020
Commenting on “Worried parents ask principals to take their kids”
https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/we-can-t-do-this-worried-parents-ask-principals-to-take-their-kids-20200416-p54kk1.html

If parents can’t help their children in home schooling and home work, does it mean that many parents have low level of literacy and numeracy? It’s time some of these parents should re-enrol in a primary school.

Far too often, parents point fingers at teachers for not doing their job educating the children. It is time that the society must realise schools are the best and cheapest childcare centres around.

Respect the teachers, support the teachers.

Thank you for reading.

Worried parents ask principals to take their kids

No more Zoom for home-based learning after hackers show obscene photos to Singapore students

Posted to Facebook on 10/4/2020 11:16 PM
Commenting on “No more Zoom for home-based learning after hackers show obscene photos to Singapore students”
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hackers-hijack-home-based-lessons-on-zoom-to-allegedly-show-obscene-photos-to-children

Zoom video conferencing users beware.

Lack of security enables hackers to join the chat room. Read the attached news article from Singapore, banning use of Zoom school online home-based lessons. Zoom attracts Zoom bombing, like what the school children have experienced.

Zoom's security flaws have led to a number of organizations, companies, and schools banning or restricting its use.

Government and government agencies banning such use include NASA, Taiwan, Australian Defence Force, German Foreign Ministry, US Senate.

Google also ban its employees using Zoom on company-owned desktop and laptop computers, and administrators will disable it this week.

Many people with no knowledge or do not care about cyber security jump into the band wagon because it is the in-thing during this coronavirus pandemic, will be get more than they bargained for, and likely have their video conferencing posted to other media without their consent.

Stay Home, Stay Safe, Stay Away from Zoom.

Thank you for reading.

No more Zoom for home-based learning after hackers show obscene photos to Singapore students

Every graduate should have a good understanding of Marketing

Posted to Facebook on 4/2/2020 8:46 PM
Every graduate should have a good understanding of Marketing

Written on 4 February 2020

Every graduate should have a good understanding of Marketing, including the technique of selling products and services.

The graduate is the product and what they can offer are the services.

In one of my early careers, I was a professional cake decorator cum marketer. No matter how beautiful my creation and masterpiece was, it just looked beautiful and that was all. It did not feed my ”empty stomach”, so to say. That beautiful cake had to be sold to exchange for money, and for that I had to convince the market, the arena where exchanges took place, that the beautiful cake had its worth and value.

Graduates need to be able to market themselves as a total package, the person and what that person possesses in the grey matter.

Thank you for reading.