Practical
Topic Of Speech
The Journey of Undi 18 Bill.
The Journey of Undi 18 Bill.
Audience Analysis
The targeted audience for delivering my speech will be the law students from different institutions of Malaysia. The rationale behind to have law students as the audience is because they have the great interest in exploring the new legislations passed in the Parliament and gazetted in which the minimum age for voting has been decreased from the age 18 to 20. It would be a hot issue to discuss the significant challenges before this law is to be implemented and how the new laws came into effect can impact society at large. Since we are still in the midst of Covid-19, the most appropriate and suitable place to deliver my speech to be conducted virtually, which is via Zoom Meeting. By having that, it would be much more convenient for the audience as it can be accessed at the tips of their fingers. As for the timing, the best time for the delivering of speech will be at night time from 9:00pm to 9:30 pm. This is due to students generally not having night classes and they have more leisure to be utilized. As for the size of the audiences, there will be approximately 100 students as it is the maximum number of participants for a Zoom meeting. Since the targeted audience will be from the undergraduate law students, it will mainly consist of the youths from the age of 20 to 24. The gender for the audience will definitely be both male and female. Further, the educational backgrounds for those audiences will be the law students from foundation, undergraduates as well as postgraduates to increase engagement. Taking into considerations that the religious beliefs for each participant differ, sensitive and controversial issues will be strictly prohibited to ensure the delivery of speech runs smoothly and every single audience could benefit from the speech. After the speech, there will be an QnA session so that the students can have a more interactive and engaging session as different perspectives in respect of the topic are all welcomed.
Speech
I believe all of us here are aware that in every democratic nation throughout the world, voting serves as an important tool for the community to decide the future or fate of themselves and the nation. Every person in a democratic country should be able to participate in all democratic activities, including the right to vote. The voting process was one of the most essential ways for individuals to have an impact on their government's decision-making. A country can no longer claim to be democratic if its citizens are denied the right to vote. Thus, the topic of my speech for today is "The Journey of Undi 18 Bill". It was notable that the issue of voting rights had been a protracted debate in Malaysia, where groups of young people between the ages of 18 and 20 are not allowed to vote. This problem has sparked several arguments, as active participation of teenagers in different aspects of life, including country politics, has become increasingly important. Before we look into what are the challenges faced during the implementation of Undi 18 Bill, it is pertinent for us to understand the how this amendment was being tabled and gazetted in the Parliament.
On 16 July 2019, a turning point in our country's democratic process occurred when a resolution to change the Federal Constitution was passed by majority members in Dewan Rakyat with bipartisan support from the government and opposition. The act was named the Constitution (Amendment) Act 2019, or Undi 18. Following Yang di-Pertuan Agong's assent, it was authorized by Dewan Negara on 25 July 2019 and gazetted on 10 September 2019. This resulted in changes to Article 119(1)(a), 119(4), Article 47, and the Eighth Schedule of the Federal Constitution, which reduced the voting age from 21 to 18, and 18-year-old residents were automatically registered as voters, as well as being eligible to run for Parliament or state assemblies. As a result, the amendment would increase the number of voters by nearly 1.2 million as soon as it was adopted.
Ladies and gentlemen,
However, It is undeniable that the change and execution of reducing the voting age were not easy to accomplish. This is due to the fact that the implementation of the Undi 18 Bill will present certain obstacles. The most obvious challenges was that when it comes to teens who have reached the age of 18, there is a lot of disagreement over whether or not they should be able to participate in the voting process. It is possible that despite the teen's seeming maturity on the physical level, he or she lacks the political maturity to understand economic and political-social concerns. In reality, maturity is a personal matter that is not influenced by one's age. It is encouraging to see a growing number of 18-year-olds beginning to take ownership of their own actions and conduct. Because they do not have to ask their parents or guardians for permission, they can do whatever they want. According to the "Age of Majority Act 1971," the age of maturity is 18 years old. At this age, individuals are legally able to marry, engage into a contract, obtain a driver's licence, and are no longer subject to juvenile court.
Furthermore, the challenge faced during the implementation of Undi 18 Bill is that not every teenager under the age of 18 has been instilled with a thorough education about our country’s politics and economy. Thus, it has a tendency to lead to an unjust democratic outcome. In fact, the preliminary goals of lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 is to provide a platform for the youth to voice out in the developing democratic system. However, most teenagers lack the political awareness in which the political awareness is described as the willingness of a teenager to concern and comprehend the way to respond to any political issues that arise in our country. According to a study conducted by Star Education to assess undergraduates’ political understanding, it has found that the students are uninterested in national and international politics. They are also not concerned about the campus elections. Therefore, their decisions would most likely be affected by their parents, peers and environment during the election process. To overcome this challenge, the Ministry of Education should develop a more scrupulous plan to guide and educate the youths about political awareness. For example, long-lasting school programs or school syllabus can be implemented in order to educate the teenagers about the framework of the government as well as the rule and regulation of the elections and voting system. This is to ensure that the teenagers will have a coherent and understandable perspective on the politics of Malaysia. Our government can also take other countries such as the United States as an example when pursuing the implementation of the Undi 18 Bill. The United States that lowered their voting age to 18 provides core courses with respect to governance and law in secondary school in which this can train the youth to recognize the importance and obligations they have as voters. All in all, the lack of political awareness can be deemed as one of the challenges during the implementation of Undi 18 Bill and it can be overcome by the cooperation between the Ministry of Education and the school authorities.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Things got harder when the implementation towards the automated voting system kept being delayed by the Election Commission of Malaysia. Among them is that the delay was allegedly caused by the Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented by the government to combat the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic last year. The MCO had caused trouble for the EC in implementing the Undi18 agenda when most of the efforts had stopped due to many restrictions and constraints. As a result, a sum of 1.2 million youths aged between 18 and 21 will miss out on the next general election if the implementation of the amended voting age and the automatic voter registration is further delayed. 1.2 million voters is a considerably large amount considering that youths carry much influence in today’s political arena. In addition, the current government’s policy making decisions have also resulted in outrage especially involving students aged 18 to 21 which are the ones that are mostly affected by last minute decisions which in turn further worsens the government’s political position among youths.
All in all, the journey for lowering down the voting age from 21 to 18 years old did not come easily. As we can see, the hurdles were non-stop when it came to putting it into action, and the youthful blood of the nation had worked tirelessly to achieve this successful end. Thus, we as the new eligible voters should then exercise our right to vote to determine a more transparent, fair and reliable government in ensuring our country's future sustainable development. To conclude my speech, I would like to quote from Kailash Satyarthi “The power of youth is the common wealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match with the power, idealism, enthusiasm, and courage of the young people.”
Thank you.
On 16 July 2019, a turning point in our country's democratic process occurred when a resolution to change the Federal Constitution was passed by majority members in Dewan Rakyat with bipartisan support from the government and opposition. The act was named the Constitution (Amendment) Act 2019, or Undi 18. Following Yang di-Pertuan Agong's assent, it was authorized by Dewan Negara on 25 July 2019 and gazetted on 10 September 2019. This resulted in changes to Article 119(1)(a), 119(4), Article 47, and the Eighth Schedule of the Federal Constitution, which reduced the voting age from 21 to 18, and 18-year-old residents were automatically registered as voters, as well as being eligible to run for Parliament or state assemblies. As a result, the amendment would increase the number of voters by nearly 1.2 million as soon as it was adopted.
Ladies and gentlemen,
However, It is undeniable that the change and execution of reducing the voting age were not easy to accomplish. This is due to the fact that the implementation of the Undi 18 Bill will present certain obstacles. The most obvious challenges was that when it comes to teens who have reached the age of 18, there is a lot of disagreement over whether or not they should be able to participate in the voting process. It is possible that despite the teen's seeming maturity on the physical level, he or she lacks the political maturity to understand economic and political-social concerns. In reality, maturity is a personal matter that is not influenced by one's age. It is encouraging to see a growing number of 18-year-olds beginning to take ownership of their own actions and conduct. Because they do not have to ask their parents or guardians for permission, they can do whatever they want. According to the "Age of Majority Act 1971," the age of maturity is 18 years old. At this age, individuals are legally able to marry, engage into a contract, obtain a driver's licence, and are no longer subject to juvenile court.
Furthermore, the challenge faced during the implementation of Undi 18 Bill is that not every teenager under the age of 18 has been instilled with a thorough education about our country’s politics and economy. Thus, it has a tendency to lead to an unjust democratic outcome. In fact, the preliminary goals of lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 is to provide a platform for the youth to voice out in the developing democratic system. However, most teenagers lack the political awareness in which the political awareness is described as the willingness of a teenager to concern and comprehend the way to respond to any political issues that arise in our country. According to a study conducted by Star Education to assess undergraduates’ political understanding, it has found that the students are uninterested in national and international politics. They are also not concerned about the campus elections. Therefore, their decisions would most likely be affected by their parents, peers and environment during the election process. To overcome this challenge, the Ministry of Education should develop a more scrupulous plan to guide and educate the youths about political awareness. For example, long-lasting school programs or school syllabus can be implemented in order to educate the teenagers about the framework of the government as well as the rule and regulation of the elections and voting system. This is to ensure that the teenagers will have a coherent and understandable perspective on the politics of Malaysia. Our government can also take other countries such as the United States as an example when pursuing the implementation of the Undi 18 Bill. The United States that lowered their voting age to 18 provides core courses with respect to governance and law in secondary school in which this can train the youth to recognize the importance and obligations they have as voters. All in all, the lack of political awareness can be deemed as one of the challenges during the implementation of Undi 18 Bill and it can be overcome by the cooperation between the Ministry of Education and the school authorities.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Things got harder when the implementation towards the automated voting system kept being delayed by the Election Commission of Malaysia. Among them is that the delay was allegedly caused by the Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented by the government to combat the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic last year. The MCO had caused trouble for the EC in implementing the Undi18 agenda when most of the efforts had stopped due to many restrictions and constraints. As a result, a sum of 1.2 million youths aged between 18 and 21 will miss out on the next general election if the implementation of the amended voting age and the automatic voter registration is further delayed. 1.2 million voters is a considerably large amount considering that youths carry much influence in today’s political arena. In addition, the current government’s policy making decisions have also resulted in outrage especially involving students aged 18 to 21 which are the ones that are mostly affected by last minute decisions which in turn further worsens the government’s political position among youths.
All in all, the journey for lowering down the voting age from 21 to 18 years old did not come easily. As we can see, the hurdles were non-stop when it came to putting it into action, and the youthful blood of the nation had worked tirelessly to achieve this successful end. Thus, we as the new eligible voters should then exercise our right to vote to determine a more transparent, fair and reliable government in ensuring our country's future sustainable development. To conclude my speech, I would like to quote from Kailash Satyarthi “The power of youth is the common wealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match with the power, idealism, enthusiasm, and courage of the young people.”
Thank you.
Speech Video Presentation - The Journey of Undi 18 Bill
Watch my speech video at : https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rXhDNXrGQHLv0lrnyG5T8qMZNLN4XjId/view?usp=sharing
Group Task Reflection
After weeks of intense discussions and preparations, our group was finally done with our group project which consisted of the video presentation as well as the infographic poster. Looking back at hours spent in recording the video presentation, designing the poster and compiling our work, it was indeed tiring yet satisfactory. For sure, the successful outcome of our group project is not one’s effort, but the fruitful result of the team’s cooperation and everyone’s hard work. Throughout the working process, everyone in the team had participated actively as we believe in the concept: “Alone we walk faster, together we walk further”. Each and everyone in our group had given the utmost commitment and we always had each other back whenever we needed the helping hand.
In terms of my own group dynamics and group discussion, it is undeniable that I have gained a substantial learning curve from our group project. As a group leader, I always ensure effective communication takes place among all the team members. I tend to be the one who initiates the conversation in our group in order to break the “ice” between our groupmates. In ensuring the effective two way communication in the group, I will always make sure all the members are on the right track and always ask about their opinions. This is due to the fact that I firmly believe effective and efficient communication only occurs when the person who receives the message gives five feedback to the sender of the message. This is also a way for me to listen to everyone's ideas and show respect to each of the team members. In fact, effective communication boosts up the team’s confidence and gets everyone engaged actively throughout the discussion of the group project. To be frank, there is no major conflict happening in our group, even if we do have, it would be we have more than one idea. Nonetheless, our group tends to adopt a more democratic approach where the idea contributor will enlighten the others in respects of the pros and cons of such ideas and we will go for the majority. There is no quarrel even once in our group as we used to come to a consensus in which everyone is satisfied with the outcome of the discussion. Further, whenever the team members feel stressed or lost due to the overwhelming tasks, I will always give them motivation by encouraging them as I believe team bonding is also pertinent in ensuring the great communication and interaction in a team. In addition to that, I notice that trust in each other is also one of the crucial elements when it comes to teamwork. I always give discretion to all the team members and put full trust upon them so that they will acquire the opportunity to expand their own creativity such as the designing the posters as well as video editing. Additionally, I observe that there is a strong team spirit among us. For instance, all our teammates will always take note of the important keys mentioned by the lecturer during the class and share with other groupmates. Upon the completion of the group project, I realised that it is crucial for us to raise our concern or any doubts by questioning if we have to avoid any errors to be made or any other unnecessary misunderstanding. By doing so, it can smoothen the group discussion at the same time ensuring everyone is in the same pace of the group discussion.
As for assessing my teammates, I will be starting off from Jing Lin. Few words to describe Jing Lin, namely detailed, proactive and responsible. Jing Lin always takes note of what the lecturer had instructed and generously shares them in our group. Most of the time, she is able to point out very detailed errors that we tend to make throughout the discussion of group projects. Further, she will always seek others' opinions before we come to a consensus. From here, it is undeniable that Jing Lin portrays a sense of respect towards everyone as she is willing to listen patiently to each of us. Moving on to Fatin, I would describe her as an easy going and creative person. During our group discussion, Fatin is the one who used to think out of the box by contributing extraordinary ideas. Her amazing ideas always make our masterpiece even outstanding. She is also approachable as she always questions our group if any of us needs help!
As for Cecelia, she is the most cheerful and hardworking member in our group. I can see no procrastination from Cecelia as she is always the first one who completes the tasks assigned even though the due date is like two weeks left! Besides, Cecelia is also a very resourceful person as she will send us sufficient materials which helps us a lot in our group project. As for Carmen, she is a lively and outgoing individual. In many events, Carmen will volunteer herself in assisting the team. For instance, our awesome video was edited by Carmen! She will ensure the work produced is the best outcome. Last but not least, the most diligent and patient person in our group. This is due to when we are facing difficulties in understanding certain knowledge, she will explain the concept patiently to us to the best of her knowledge.
In a nutshell, all the team members had played their role well in accomplishing our tasks. All of us cooperate well by communicating effectively among each other. The video as well as the infographic poster can never be done so perfectly without the hard work contributed by each and every one of the team members. Words can never be adequate for me to express how fortunate I am to work as a team with these awesome teammates.
In terms of my own group dynamics and group discussion, it is undeniable that I have gained a substantial learning curve from our group project. As a group leader, I always ensure effective communication takes place among all the team members. I tend to be the one who initiates the conversation in our group in order to break the “ice” between our groupmates. In ensuring the effective two way communication in the group, I will always make sure all the members are on the right track and always ask about their opinions. This is due to the fact that I firmly believe effective and efficient communication only occurs when the person who receives the message gives five feedback to the sender of the message. This is also a way for me to listen to everyone's ideas and show respect to each of the team members. In fact, effective communication boosts up the team’s confidence and gets everyone engaged actively throughout the discussion of the group project. To be frank, there is no major conflict happening in our group, even if we do have, it would be we have more than one idea. Nonetheless, our group tends to adopt a more democratic approach where the idea contributor will enlighten the others in respects of the pros and cons of such ideas and we will go for the majority. There is no quarrel even once in our group as we used to come to a consensus in which everyone is satisfied with the outcome of the discussion. Further, whenever the team members feel stressed or lost due to the overwhelming tasks, I will always give them motivation by encouraging them as I believe team bonding is also pertinent in ensuring the great communication and interaction in a team. In addition to that, I notice that trust in each other is also one of the crucial elements when it comes to teamwork. I always give discretion to all the team members and put full trust upon them so that they will acquire the opportunity to expand their own creativity such as the designing the posters as well as video editing. Additionally, I observe that there is a strong team spirit among us. For instance, all our teammates will always take note of the important keys mentioned by the lecturer during the class and share with other groupmates. Upon the completion of the group project, I realised that it is crucial for us to raise our concern or any doubts by questioning if we have to avoid any errors to be made or any other unnecessary misunderstanding. By doing so, it can smoothen the group discussion at the same time ensuring everyone is in the same pace of the group discussion.
As for assessing my teammates, I will be starting off from Jing Lin. Few words to describe Jing Lin, namely detailed, proactive and responsible. Jing Lin always takes note of what the lecturer had instructed and generously shares them in our group. Most of the time, she is able to point out very detailed errors that we tend to make throughout the discussion of group projects. Further, she will always seek others' opinions before we come to a consensus. From here, it is undeniable that Jing Lin portrays a sense of respect towards everyone as she is willing to listen patiently to each of us. Moving on to Fatin, I would describe her as an easy going and creative person. During our group discussion, Fatin is the one who used to think out of the box by contributing extraordinary ideas. Her amazing ideas always make our masterpiece even outstanding. She is also approachable as she always questions our group if any of us needs help!
As for Cecelia, she is the most cheerful and hardworking member in our group. I can see no procrastination from Cecelia as she is always the first one who completes the tasks assigned even though the due date is like two weeks left! Besides, Cecelia is also a very resourceful person as she will send us sufficient materials which helps us a lot in our group project. As for Carmen, she is a lively and outgoing individual. In many events, Carmen will volunteer herself in assisting the team. For instance, our awesome video was edited by Carmen! She will ensure the work produced is the best outcome. Last but not least, the most diligent and patient person in our group. This is due to when we are facing difficulties in understanding certain knowledge, she will explain the concept patiently to us to the best of her knowledge.
In a nutshell, all the team members had played their role well in accomplishing our tasks. All of us cooperate well by communicating effectively among each other. The video as well as the infographic poster can never be done so perfectly without the hard work contributed by each and every one of the team members. Words can never be adequate for me to express how fortunate I am to work as a team with these awesome teammates.
Self-Reflection
1st Public Speaking Class on 16.10.2021
“New Semester, New Start!” That is what I always remind myself whenever I start off my new semester. Public speaking class is always one of my favourite classes as it is less formal unlike the normal lecture. Rather, it is an additional class for us to acquire a new set of skills or something out of our academic syllabus under a different atmosphere! This is the third semester for my public speaking class and I am privileged under the supervision of one of the most lovely lecturers, Madam Noor Aida! To be honest, there were mixed feelings of anxiety and excitement before today’s class as I have no idea what insightful knowledge will be given by Madam Noor Aida. I am also curious about which aspects of public speaking I will be exposed to and what other new soft skills are waiting to be mastered!
Well, today was our very first class and we had our voting session for the new committee members! Some of the classmates volunteered themselves in the nomination and voting process. Madam Noor Aida also briefed us precisely on the upcoming tasks and I cannot wait to start off the listed tasks with my awesome team members. However, an incident happened when we were notified by Madam Noor Aida that certain fellow classmates were unsatisfied with the voting process as it was less transparent and unfair. For instance, some of the classmates were not aware that they were part of the committee members for the past tenure that disqualified them to be nominated this time. Some even alleged that there was manipulation of data during the voting process. The group chat was chaotic and finally Madam Noor Aida came out with a solution to revote which was the most fair, just and reasonable action. This minor incident taught me that communication play an important tool to convey a message or ideas accurately to avoid any unnecessary misunderstanding. This is due to if the students are aware with the requisite conditions to be nominated and clear their doubts with the lecturer via clear communication, and those who are unsatisfied with the voting process could have voice out earlier before the voting session ended, I am assured that the misunderstanding would never occur and it definitely ease everyone including the lecturer as the problems were able to be solved during the classes and not later. Thus, effective communications and teamwork should be learnt by every single one of us for a better interpersonal development.
For this new semester, I hope to improve on my time-management skills. This is due to the past semester I have been overwhelmed with the excessive assignment and other commitments. I have to throw away the procrastination habit and always prioritize on what is more important. Besides, I plan to utilize my leisure time for some workout as my tummy is growing bigger day by day due to long hours sitting in front of the computer! In terms of public speaking’s weakness, I would say sometimes I tend to speak at a faster pace where people barely can understand what I was trying to convey. Thus, I have to practice speaking at a firmer pace for self-improvement!
Well, today was our very first class and we had our voting session for the new committee members! Some of the classmates volunteered themselves in the nomination and voting process. Madam Noor Aida also briefed us precisely on the upcoming tasks and I cannot wait to start off the listed tasks with my awesome team members. However, an incident happened when we were notified by Madam Noor Aida that certain fellow classmates were unsatisfied with the voting process as it was less transparent and unfair. For instance, some of the classmates were not aware that they were part of the committee members for the past tenure that disqualified them to be nominated this time. Some even alleged that there was manipulation of data during the voting process. The group chat was chaotic and finally Madam Noor Aida came out with a solution to revote which was the most fair, just and reasonable action. This minor incident taught me that communication play an important tool to convey a message or ideas accurately to avoid any unnecessary misunderstanding. This is due to if the students are aware with the requisite conditions to be nominated and clear their doubts with the lecturer via clear communication, and those who are unsatisfied with the voting process could have voice out earlier before the voting session ended, I am assured that the misunderstanding would never occur and it definitely ease everyone including the lecturer as the problems were able to be solved during the classes and not later. Thus, effective communications and teamwork should be learnt by every single one of us for a better interpersonal development.
For this new semester, I hope to improve on my time-management skills. This is due to the past semester I have been overwhelmed with the excessive assignment and other commitments. I have to throw away the procrastination habit and always prioritize on what is more important. Besides, I plan to utilize my leisure time for some workout as my tummy is growing bigger day by day due to long hours sitting in front of the computer! In terms of public speaking’s weakness, I would say sometimes I tend to speak at a faster pace where people barely can understand what I was trying to convey. Thus, I have to practice speaking at a firmer pace for self-improvement!
2nd Public Speaking Class on 23.10.2021
Today was our second public speaking class with Madam Noor Aida! Before we kicked off the topic of discussion, Madam was trying to recap us in respect of what we had done for the last class, which was the election for the committee members, and briefing on the tasks for this semester. From there, I believe all of us can observe how dedicated Madam is as she is always making sure no man is left behind and everyone is on the right track and pace. Further, Madam also asked us to share with our classmates our thoughts after watching those videos posted on UUM Online Learning. It was a wrap for me as I gave it a try by sharing with Madam and my fellow classmates pertaining to the second video, namely “The Barriers of Communication”. It was indeed a little accomplishment for myself as I stepped out of my own comfort zone and shared the knowledge I have acquired after watching that video. The complement and feedback given by Madam in fact boosted up my confidence to speak in front of a crowd. Not only that, I also gained new insights from other presenters on their respective topics inter alia, what is communication, development of a central idea in a speech and audience analysis. It is undeniable that there are a lot of aspects I have to learn from them for self-improvements in terms of clarity and pace of speaking.
After the presentation session, Madam started the lecture session on the new topic namely “Event & Protocol, Greetings and Titles”. It was totally a fresh new topic for me as I had never been exposed to such a topic of discussion. Throughout the lecture, I am able to understand that an event protocol is pertinent in ensuring society rules are well-adhered by the citizens, formality and courtesy and different protocols might be applied in different events or circumstances. One of the most simple examples would be choosing the right outfit for an event is no less important. It is impossible for us to wear jeans when attending a formal ceremony right? Event protocol is not merely a procedure but a fundamental communication tool to achieve the success of the event itself. I totally agree with Madam’s opinion, saying UUM’s protocol to mandate everyone to wear formal clothing when attending class comes with its purpose which is to train our students to be well-prepared and more professional for their future career. Besides, Madam also covered the different pillars and elements to be included in an event protocol itself such as event timing, invitations as well as the precedence of the events. Madam also shared with us some tips and tricks in improving our mingling proficiency. For instance, it is no less important for us to be well-informed with some current issues, never interrupt when people are speaking and think before we speak in order to make people comfortable and make the conversation even more engaging. It is noteworthy to bear in mind that mean gossip, controversial issues and private questions should be avoided when we are speaking with people we are not close to. Last but not least, Madam also shared with us the variety of greetings and titles across different nations. I really like the way Madam utilized the real life examples to make students understand better and always ensure there are two ways of communication during the class! Looking forward to the next class with Madam to acquire more new knowledge!
After the presentation session, Madam started the lecture session on the new topic namely “Event & Protocol, Greetings and Titles”. It was totally a fresh new topic for me as I had never been exposed to such a topic of discussion. Throughout the lecture, I am able to understand that an event protocol is pertinent in ensuring society rules are well-adhered by the citizens, formality and courtesy and different protocols might be applied in different events or circumstances. One of the most simple examples would be choosing the right outfit for an event is no less important. It is impossible for us to wear jeans when attending a formal ceremony right? Event protocol is not merely a procedure but a fundamental communication tool to achieve the success of the event itself. I totally agree with Madam’s opinion, saying UUM’s protocol to mandate everyone to wear formal clothing when attending class comes with its purpose which is to train our students to be well-prepared and more professional for their future career. Besides, Madam also covered the different pillars and elements to be included in an event protocol itself such as event timing, invitations as well as the precedence of the events. Madam also shared with us some tips and tricks in improving our mingling proficiency. For instance, it is no less important for us to be well-informed with some current issues, never interrupt when people are speaking and think before we speak in order to make people comfortable and make the conversation even more engaging. It is noteworthy to bear in mind that mean gossip, controversial issues and private questions should be avoided when we are speaking with people we are not close to. Last but not least, Madam also shared with us the variety of greetings and titles across different nations. I really like the way Madam utilized the real life examples to make students understand better and always ensure there are two ways of communication during the class! Looking forward to the next class with Madam to acquire more new knowledge!
3rd Public Speaking Class on 30.10.2021
Today was the third session of our public speaking class. As usual, we were given time to scan our attendance. Madam Noor Aida tried to refresh us on the previous topic discussed, which is the "Event protocols, Greetings and Titles". A few students volunteered themselves in summarizing what they have understood from the last lesson. I really prefer how Madam is always trying to recap on the previous topic to ensure that all the students can really understand well and to clear their doubts if we have any.
We were then tasked with drafting our own 15 minutes-long speech and writing an audience analysis based on the topic we have chosen. Madam had eventually uploaded all the useful notes as it was a synchronized learning session where students are required to study on their own by utilizing the materials provided by the lecturers. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Madam for the comprehensive notes to ease my understanding during my reading on the topic of audience analysis. The video provided by Madam was really useful as well as personally, the auditory learning style suits me better. In order to express ourselves, Madam also gave us the discretion in deciding our own topic of speech regardless of the scope of discussion.
Before starting to draft my speech, I have done some research regarding the suitable topic to be chosen. Finally, I decided to write a speech titled “The Journey of Undi 18 Bill”. This is due to the nature of the topic being somehow more relevant to the youths like us. By having the chance to write my own speech, I verily believe that my writing skill will be improved drastically. Looking forward to the next class!
We were then tasked with drafting our own 15 minutes-long speech and writing an audience analysis based on the topic we have chosen. Madam had eventually uploaded all the useful notes as it was a synchronized learning session where students are required to study on their own by utilizing the materials provided by the lecturers. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Madam for the comprehensive notes to ease my understanding during my reading on the topic of audience analysis. The video provided by Madam was really useful as well as personally, the auditory learning style suits me better. In order to express ourselves, Madam also gave us the discretion in deciding our own topic of speech regardless of the scope of discussion.
Before starting to draft my speech, I have done some research regarding the suitable topic to be chosen. Finally, I decided to write a speech titled “The Journey of Undi 18 Bill”. This is due to the nature of the topic being somehow more relevant to the youths like us. By having the chance to write my own speech, I verily believe that my writing skill will be improved drastically. Looking forward to the next class!
4th Public Speaking Class on 06.11.2021
Time flies and today was our fourth public speaking class with the most lovely lecturer, Madam Noor Aida. Guess what? Madam briefed us on the group projects that we are going to execute in a team. We are tasked with certain group works including producing a video presentation on the topic of public speaking etiquette which eventually covers a wide range of subtopics such as methods of correct voice projection, methods of controlling and overcoming fears, rules and regulations, appropriateness of language as well as taboo and obstacles. Besides, we are required to create an infographic in a group in which we need to put in the content in respect of public speaking etiquette. Madam also reminded all the students to work as a team in accomplishing the tasks given in order to ensure all the students will give their best commitments and contribute well to the team.
Besides the group project, each of us needs to write up an individual reflection upon completing the group project. Among the primary goals of this evaluation is to assess our own ability to work and communicate effectively in a group, as well as to examine our peers' cooperation in a group. Personally, I believe this assessment is very crucial in the sense that we can know the strength and weakness vested in our own and thus several initiatives can be taken for future self-improvement.
The most interesting part of today's lesson is that we were asked to discuss the task distribution in our own groups. I initiated the conversations with my group mates on Whatsapp by taking the lead. I'm fortunate enough to have a group of people who are always willing to help each other out and participate actively in our discussions. Everyone was encouraged to share their thoughts and ideas during our discussion. My personal motto is "alone we go fast, together we go far," and I firmly believe that teamwork is the best way to get things done. I also volunteered myself in taking up the responsibilities for designing the infographic as this is the skills I would always love to try on. At the end of our discussion, we were able to distribute responsibilities fairly, and I took full advantage of the conversation to get to know my group mates a little better. Even this small communication between teammates reminded me that an effective two-way communication is very crucial. Another important key takeaway from the discussion is that we should always be respectful and listen to others. This not only can avoid misunderstanding but to make our work progress more efficiently. The art of communication is something life-long to be mastered as it will definitely be widely implemented in our future career.
Besides the group project, each of us needs to write up an individual reflection upon completing the group project. Among the primary goals of this evaluation is to assess our own ability to work and communicate effectively in a group, as well as to examine our peers' cooperation in a group. Personally, I believe this assessment is very crucial in the sense that we can know the strength and weakness vested in our own and thus several initiatives can be taken for future self-improvement.
The most interesting part of today's lesson is that we were asked to discuss the task distribution in our own groups. I initiated the conversations with my group mates on Whatsapp by taking the lead. I'm fortunate enough to have a group of people who are always willing to help each other out and participate actively in our discussions. Everyone was encouraged to share their thoughts and ideas during our discussion. My personal motto is "alone we go fast, together we go far," and I firmly believe that teamwork is the best way to get things done. I also volunteered myself in taking up the responsibilities for designing the infographic as this is the skills I would always love to try on. At the end of our discussion, we were able to distribute responsibilities fairly, and I took full advantage of the conversation to get to know my group mates a little better. Even this small communication between teammates reminded me that an effective two-way communication is very crucial. Another important key takeaway from the discussion is that we should always be respectful and listen to others. This not only can avoid misunderstanding but to make our work progress more efficiently. The art of communication is something life-long to be mastered as it will definitely be widely implemented in our future career.
5th Public Speaking Class on 13.11.2021
It was our fifth class for public speaking today! Before we started, Madam Noor Aida requested all the students to open their camera as a class group photo is needed for our class report in the “Majalah Khas Pusat Ko-k”. Despite it being merely a class photo, it took us around 10 minutes. This is due to the nature of line learning, not everyone has as strong access to the internet as their respective houses and I totally understand the circumstances. Hope that the Covid status can get better so we may return back to campus for physical classes to avoid these inconveniences.
The classes were followed by Madam’s lectures on the topic of “Arranging Information and ideas to form speech” During this lesson, we were exposed to several ways in arranging our speech namely chronological, topical, spatial, comparative, problem-solution. And causal. It is very important to choose the appropriate method to arrange our ideas. For instance, when we are delivering a speech on a historical event, the chronological method is more suitable to be adopted. Before that, I only had the knowledge that speech can generally be either factual or descriptive just like an ordinary essay. Today’s lecture was really fruitful as it enhanced my understanding in how to produce more cohesion and coherent speeches that is applicable in my essay writing skills, as well as how we can make our speech more understandable by our targeted audiences. Not only that, Madam also gave u s some hands on exercising in determining the topic sentences, thesis statement as well as the supporting details in an essay. Personally, I view that the thesis statement is the most difficult pillar to determine in a speech or an article. This session helps me a lot in the sense that I am able to fully understand the elements to be included in a good speech in order to convey our message well to the audience.
After the lecture, Madam asked the students if they had any terrible public speaking experiences to share. Most of my friends were facing challenges such as getting nervous easily, public fear and external distractions. As for myself, my bad experiences would be that my mind get blank easily and left out important points when I was speaking in front of a crowd. Madam also shared with us some “tips and tricks” on how to overcome these common challenges when presenting or delivering a speech. To summarise today's lesson, it was quite vibrant, and I received a great deal of knowledge that I may apply to my future public speaking talents.
The classes were followed by Madam’s lectures on the topic of “Arranging Information and ideas to form speech” During this lesson, we were exposed to several ways in arranging our speech namely chronological, topical, spatial, comparative, problem-solution. And causal. It is very important to choose the appropriate method to arrange our ideas. For instance, when we are delivering a speech on a historical event, the chronological method is more suitable to be adopted. Before that, I only had the knowledge that speech can generally be either factual or descriptive just like an ordinary essay. Today’s lecture was really fruitful as it enhanced my understanding in how to produce more cohesion and coherent speeches that is applicable in my essay writing skills, as well as how we can make our speech more understandable by our targeted audiences. Not only that, Madam also gave u s some hands on exercising in determining the topic sentences, thesis statement as well as the supporting details in an essay. Personally, I view that the thesis statement is the most difficult pillar to determine in a speech or an article. This session helps me a lot in the sense that I am able to fully understand the elements to be included in a good speech in order to convey our message well to the audience.
After the lecture, Madam asked the students if they had any terrible public speaking experiences to share. Most of my friends were facing challenges such as getting nervous easily, public fear and external distractions. As for myself, my bad experiences would be that my mind get blank easily and left out important points when I was speaking in front of a crowd. Madam also shared with us some “tips and tricks” on how to overcome these common challenges when presenting or delivering a speech. To summarise today's lesson, it was quite vibrant, and I received a great deal of knowledge that I may apply to my future public speaking talents.
6th Public Speaking Class on 20.11.2021
Today was a special day in which we had no class for public speaking. Instead, all the students are required to attend the OnCE programme titled "UUM Menghargai Ibu & Ayah (UMI) melalui Seni: Kasih Keramat Sejati". This is a live programme held in UUM and livestreamed on Facebook due to the nature of this pandemic. Personally, the theme for this programme is somehow very fresh as rarely we at the university level, have the opportunity to get involved in programmes that adopt “family” as the theme.
At the beginning of the programme, a video was played and it mainly talked about the relationship among family members. In the video itself, the family members were unable to meet their loved one due to the pandemic Covid-19. Although it was a short duration video, it impacted me to spend more time with family members. This is due to starting from online learning, I tend to spend very little time with my beloved family members as the assignments are quite overwhelming. The video also reminds me that family is the priceless asset for every single of us and we can never take them for granted. The programme was then followed by a series of concerts, live band as well as poem recitation. One of the poems that still remains in my mind is “Pengorbanan Ibu dan Ayah”. This poem reminds me that parents are the one who always stand by us and showering us with plenty of love and cares, and thus we can never neglect their sacrifices.
All in all, I believe this programme benefited the students in the sense that they will cherish their parents and family members even more. I would say universities should be organizing more programs like this and not merely focusing on academics as it is no less important for students like us to always be respectful to parents. This is due to the fact that the aspects of emotion is also one of the crucial pillars for students personal development.
At the beginning of the programme, a video was played and it mainly talked about the relationship among family members. In the video itself, the family members were unable to meet their loved one due to the pandemic Covid-19. Although it was a short duration video, it impacted me to spend more time with family members. This is due to starting from online learning, I tend to spend very little time with my beloved family members as the assignments are quite overwhelming. The video also reminds me that family is the priceless asset for every single of us and we can never take them for granted. The programme was then followed by a series of concerts, live band as well as poem recitation. One of the poems that still remains in my mind is “Pengorbanan Ibu dan Ayah”. This poem reminds me that parents are the one who always stand by us and showering us with plenty of love and cares, and thus we can never neglect their sacrifices.
All in all, I believe this programme benefited the students in the sense that they will cherish their parents and family members even more. I would say universities should be organizing more programs like this and not merely focusing on academics as it is no less important for students like us to always be respectful to parents. This is due to the fact that the aspects of emotion is also one of the crucial pillars for students personal development.
7th Public Speaking Class on 27.11.2021
Today was the seventh class for our ko-k, which was also the last day for attending the ko-k for this semester. Although the class starts with usual scanning attendance, I can still feel that the atmosphere is less cheerful as everyone knew that seven classes of kok-k passed in a glance. Madam Noor Aida is kind and considerate enough as she did not intend to give a lecture. Instead, she gave us more time in polishing up our speech, recording our individual project as well as finishing up our group project. This really gave me relief as part of my individual project is yet to be done. Madam also gave us an extra week to complete the tasks in hand as she wishes to witness the best work done from all of us.
Madam also opened the floor for us to seek for clarifications in regards to the assessments. Being patient is one of the values that I need to learn from Madam. This is due to Madam addressing every single students’ question with patience as she always hopes that none of us will be left out and able to produce quality work without doubts. Furthermore, Madam also asked us to contribute some ideas on activities to be carried out when we are returning to the campus next semester and I am so excited about it! I also took the opportunity to consult Madam pertaining to the infographic. Fortunately, our infographic is all good and no major amendments needed. The other groups subsequently showed Madam their group poster and asked for feedback. I observed that Madam is generous enough in giving compliments and at the same time some useful advice to each group to further improve on their posters. This is very important to encourage the students and give them motivation in continuing their tasks!
By the end of our last class, Madam required each group to take a screenshot of our respective progress of the group project. As for my group, me and my teammates were working on the video presentation and successfully uploaded it to Youtube and Weebly. Madam also left us some kind words. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my utmost attitude towards Madam for all her tutelage and advice in both the art of public speaking as well as some positive life values. I believe we will be having Madam Noor Aida as our lecturer for the next semester and I am looking forward to learning even more from madam. Thank you Madam!
Madam also opened the floor for us to seek for clarifications in regards to the assessments. Being patient is one of the values that I need to learn from Madam. This is due to Madam addressing every single students’ question with patience as she always hopes that none of us will be left out and able to produce quality work without doubts. Furthermore, Madam also asked us to contribute some ideas on activities to be carried out when we are returning to the campus next semester and I am so excited about it! I also took the opportunity to consult Madam pertaining to the infographic. Fortunately, our infographic is all good and no major amendments needed. The other groups subsequently showed Madam their group poster and asked for feedback. I observed that Madam is generous enough in giving compliments and at the same time some useful advice to each group to further improve on their posters. This is very important to encourage the students and give them motivation in continuing their tasks!
By the end of our last class, Madam required each group to take a screenshot of our respective progress of the group project. As for my group, me and my teammates were working on the video presentation and successfully uploaded it to Youtube and Weebly. Madam also left us some kind words. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my utmost attitude towards Madam for all her tutelage and advice in both the art of public speaking as well as some positive life values. I believe we will be having Madam Noor Aida as our lecturer for the next semester and I am looking forward to learning even more from madam. Thank you Madam!
Tasks & Activities
Video Summary - Communication and its Barriers
Communication can be defined as a process of delivering or passing certain ideas, opinions, information, thoughts or understanding from one to another in the form of writing and speaking. Thus, it serves as an important tool in an organization or even outside an organization. Generally, the nature of communication can be in various ways. First of all, it is a two way traffic where it emphasizes two ways communication between management and workers and the communication is done when the message has been accurately understood by the receiver and the feedback was given back to the sender. Further, communication is used for a pervasive function in all management purposes including but not limited to planning, directing and controlling. Communication is also a continuous process and it aims to develop mutual understanding. An effective communication involves six stages which are ideation, encoding, transmission, receiving, decoding and action.
It is undeniable that the importances of communication can be in many ways such as in ensuring smooth working of enterprise in an organization and building human relationships. It also forms the basis of managerial function and to contact with the external parties. Nevertheless, there are a few communication barriers that might exist in our daily life namely Physical Barriers, Psychological Barriers, Organizational Barriers, Semantic Barriers and Mechanical Barriers. Physical Barriers are environmental factors that obstruct or reduce the sending and receiving communication which include physical distance or noises. Psychological Barriers are usually caused by motives, attitudes, emotions which create psychological distances between people that bring consequences such as misinterpretation and frustration. Next, the Organizational Barriers create several issues in communication such as filter information by supervisors and diversion of information. Semantic (or referred as to symbols) or Language Barriers tend to cause different meanings to different persons and hence unwanted misunderstanding will occur. Lastly, the last communication barriers is Mechanical Barriers. It will lead to poor communication due to the inadequate arrangement of all transmission of new facts and figures, poor official layout as well as defective procedures.
It is undeniable that the importances of communication can be in many ways such as in ensuring smooth working of enterprise in an organization and building human relationships. It also forms the basis of managerial function and to contact with the external parties. Nevertheless, there are a few communication barriers that might exist in our daily life namely Physical Barriers, Psychological Barriers, Organizational Barriers, Semantic Barriers and Mechanical Barriers. Physical Barriers are environmental factors that obstruct or reduce the sending and receiving communication which include physical distance or noises. Psychological Barriers are usually caused by motives, attitudes, emotions which create psychological distances between people that bring consequences such as misinterpretation and frustration. Next, the Organizational Barriers create several issues in communication such as filter information by supervisors and diversion of information. Semantic (or referred as to symbols) or Language Barriers tend to cause different meanings to different persons and hence unwanted misunderstanding will occur. Lastly, the last communication barriers is Mechanical Barriers. It will lead to poor communication due to the inadequate arrangement of all transmission of new facts and figures, poor official layout as well as defective procedures.