Tag: Preperation

Day 9: Keep Calm and Plan On

Kaitlin LiszkaAgriculture

Today we spent the morning hard at work putting the finishing touches on our lesson plans for our second teaching episode, Ag Day, which will occur during our FELDA visit. We also created our third (and final) grouping of instructionals teams for our third teaching episode in Malaysia. Creating and working with unique instructional teams each time allows for us to learn and engage with different teaching styles. Each instructional team is composed of a U.S. secondary agricultural teacher; a U.S. pre-service agricultural teacher candidate and a U.T.M. pre-service agricultural teacher candidate. Our third lesson will be taught at a Vocational College, and each team will get to teach on a different topic.

A Vocational College in Malaysia is a little different from what we would envision in the United States. It is comprised of students aged 15 to 18. Students in Malaysia take a one to two week exam when they are in Form 3 (about age 15), and their score determines the options they have to finish their education. There are three main choices that students have based upon their scores; go to what we would consider a boarding school or elite university preparation academy, attend a Vocational College, or continue in a National Secondary School (SMK). The digging that we did during our lesson planning session has me super excited to see what their facilities include. I know that their food processing facilities look very intriguing! (Check out their Facebook page here)

 

To wrap up our morning of planning, we did a partial working lunch of SPAGHETTI! Dr. Melanie, Dr. Husna, and the other faculty have been hard at work for this whole experience to try to accommodate all the participants, and to the joy of the American participants somehow got us almost American-like spaghetti. The UTM students were a little less thrilled, as they were missing their staple of rice in our meal again. After lunch, we had a quick orientation to staying with host families because tomorrow we will begin our travels to FELDA to see another aspect of Malaysian culture and education!

In the afternoon, we traveled to another part of UTM’s campus to see the Institute of Bioproduct Development (@ibdutm). Not only did we learn how they uses herbs to support the nations wellness industry, we learned from the director about his experiences that demonstrated the need for understanding other cultures to better your lifestyle and the importance of truly immersing yourself in the culture so that you can learn the most about it. I also found interesting the idea he brought up of taking probiotic supplements when you take antibiotics to replenish the good microbes in your body because antibiotics kill all the microbes, good and bad. We also learned that some put probiotics in animals feed to help prevent them from becoming sick as opposed to using antibiotics to treat illness.

 

During the tour, we got to smell some of the products that they produce in the Herbal/ Phytochemical Processing part of the facility.

 

I think the real fun fact that we all learned today though, is that the reason your coffee creamer is flammable. It’s because of the lactose in it! So I guess don’t try to put out a fire by dumping your milk on it…

Ms. Kaitlin Liszka (@KaitlinLiska) is a pre-service agricultural education candidate (#psuaged21) at The Pennsylvania State University (@TeachAgPSU).

Reading Signage Without Knowing The Language

mlc5898PreTrip Observations

Signs are used to communicate a message to a reader and assist the reader in decision making with the information provided. There are many different signs used. From informing us on road conditions to recommended behavior in public. This summer I will be traveling to Malaysia for a month, so I thought it would be a great idea to get familiar with the signs. Most of the signage in Malaysia is written in their official language Malay. To stay safe and get around the country I’ve had to learn a few keywords and phrases.

Jalan means “road” or “street.”

If you come across a sign that has the word “Jalan or Jln” in it, you’ll know it’s a street sign.

  

Peringatan means warning! 

Anytime you see this sign pay close attention because it has relevant information.

Perhentian Tekis means “Taxi Stop.”

If you ever get tired of walking or need a lift just look for this sign. A taxi will be on its way!

Beri Laluan means “Give way.”

This is similar to our Yield sign here in the United States, so make sure to always yield if needed!

Hati-Hati Memandu means “Drive Carefully.”

It’s always a good idea to drive carefully; especially if cows are involved! Mooove out the way!

Berhati-hait dengan peragut means “Beware of snatch thieves.”

When traveling tourists are easy prey for purse snatchers and pickpocketers so if you see this you’ve been warned! Keep your belongings close and be careful!

Dilarang means “prohibited.”

Sometimes we need a little reminder not to do certain things in the bathroom. Like squatting on the toilet or even washing your feet in them!

No matter where you go you’ll find signs that have valuable information on them. Some may seem bizarre, but if it’s there then it’s for a good reason to follow them! Lucky for you, if you ever travel to Malaysia, you’ll know a few!