A warm greeting from Journalism Board 2009/2010!

If you have been checking this site from time to time, we would like to apologise for not updating this blog as we promised. Journalism Board was assigned with the task of holding a whole new event by ELC which is “The Chronicler”, a creative writing competition. The preparation started in the month of February. Nevertheless, this is not an excuse for us to abandon our responsibility towards our club and we are deeply sorry for that. Hopefully, with modification of the existing ELC board, we shall see more improvement in this blog.

As we all know, study week has commenced. How time flies, huh? Another semester is going to pass us by and without realising it; the Journalism Team has been serving the club for one year already. The experience that we have gone through for the past 2 semesters is totally irreplaceable. It was all started from modifying this blog itself. I still remembered Wai Choong and me took few hours at IRC just to look for a suitable layout for the blog and brainstorm the ideas on the sections to be included. When our three members were recruited, Amira, Ashikin and Rosma, this was when Journalism Board started to work on the writings. Surely you have come across the posts on movies, sports, songs, Raya and so on if you have been reading this blog from the very beginning.

Other than that, our team was assigned the task of holding Scribes Showcase, a sub-event of Octoberfest last semester and for this semester, we improvised and made it a stand-alone event with a whole new name, which is “The Chronicler”. The theme for this first edition was humour and that’s reason for the event to be called, “The Chronicler: Pen-A-LOL”. The submission was rather encouraging and it is hoped that this event will be conducted every semester.

The Chronicler organising committee

What makes this edition special is that ELC has founded its own GLEE club, which was initiated by Wai Choong himself. Naming ourselves “Flamin’ Lips”, we have our debut performance by singing “Don’t Stop Believin’” during The Chroniclers Award Night. I have been enjoying myself during the practice and not to mention the performance itself.  In fact, all of us were! Hopefully, we can really make “Flamin’ Lips” works and gets to perform more in the future.

When “The Chronicler” ended, it was already the second half of the semester. Everyone started to get busy with their academic commitment; tests, projects, assignments, reports and list goes on and on. Journalism Team was not excluded. Unfortunately, this has caused ELC Gazette to be neglected. We hope the future Journalism Board won’t repeat the same mistake as we did.

Perhaps some of you are aware, ELC Election was held on 3rd May 2010 and new line of HICOMS have been appointed to lead the club for 2010/2011 session. They are:

Mohamad Shahril as Student Advisor,
Kan Wai Choong as President,
Kerry Tan as Vice President,
Yashadini as Treasurer,
and myself as Secretary.

We have modified our club’s organisation in hoping that we can improve the club’s performance. These will be manpowers that will be leading ELC for the next 2 semesters.

ELC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, 2010/2011

As Nabila Lau, former president said, “Work well, blend well”.

I guess it is about time to end this post. This also marks the end of the service of Journalism Board 2009/2010. We would like to say thanks to ELC for giving us the trust to take care of this blog.  We hope that  the new team of Journalism will continue to improvise and improve this blog to make it better in the future.

With this, I pass the responsibility of handling this blog to the new Journalism Team, Chik Ee Mun and Daphnee Lo.

Wish you all the best!

Regards,
Steward Baba
Assistant HOD
Journalism Board 2009/2010

p/s To our dear former president, Nabila Lau and student advisor, Jayiza, wish you all the the best in your internship. Will miss you while you are away and take care.

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!

This year is the year of Tiger, the third sign of Lunar Chinese Horoscope. It is believed that the year of tiger will be a volatile year, everything is taken to its limit in this big and bold year.  It can also be a year of war, disasters and all kinds of disputes, it is a year for massive change but this can also bring out the best.

Anyway, may this whole new year “roars” you guys with more prosperity, joy and opportunities.

恭喜恭喜！

Anyway, I hope this is not too late to welcome everyone back to campus, especially to existing ELCians. It is the time for us to hit the books again and embrace this whole new semester. Personally, I like the feeling of January semester. I am not sure the reasons but I just love it. Nevertheless, university life is not all about studies. In becoming well-rounded graduates as being emphasized by UTP, we shall also enhance our soft skills.

Being a part of a club is a good start. Not just being a part of it, involve yourselves in it. Be active! Not forgetting, I would like to welcome our newly-registered ELCians who have joined the club especially our juniors of January 2010 intake and those who have attended our very first Mass Gathering. ELC welcomes you to our very special club! Trust me; there is no regret to be a part of us. ELC is now nearly 2 years old and it may not be as magnificent as other clubs. However, it has been progressed over time and this is all due to the commitment given by the members of ELC. We are the manpower to make the club grow.

Currently, ELC is taking part in publishing UTP’s very first newsletter which is known as the  “Heart of Tronoh” (H.O.T.), collaborating with UTP Student Representative Council (SRC), MEDTECH and International Student Council (ISC). For a humble club like ELC, this is a grand achievement for us to work hand-in-hand with other major organizations. A thing that we should be proud of and this will be the benchmark for more progression of ELC in the near future. Don’t you think so? Yes, I do think so!

We have so many activities this semester for our members to take part which includes:

1. Monthly Mass Gatherings

2. Teens in Campus (This February)

3. The Chronicler: Pen-a-LOL. (This April)

4. Campus Bulletin (UTP News letter)

And more. Now, it is all up to you. We count on you! Together, we make ELC better and better. We have fun and at the same time, we progress! Once again, WELCOME TO THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLUB!

Regards,
Steward,
Assistant Head of Journalism Department
UTP ELC

Do you realize that the British and the American both uses English- but they are not entirely the same? Some words may bear the same meaning but they are different in terms of the spelling. Introducing Henry Yew, he will guide you to differentiate the usage of both the British English and the American English in Starlight. You will be fascinated, somehow, to know that you mix and match them both in a sentence (which confuses people). May be it is the Malaysian English, then.

What if at times, you don’t know how to say the word, or that the word have slipped off your mind and you cannot recall that particular word? May be it’s a foreign language,  your long-lost mother tongue, or simply it could have been your everyday English. Do you resort to ‘body language’? I remember a joke about this.

Question: How does a blind man ask for a comb? Common answer: Places his hands over his head, combing his hair to send the shop owner a signal indicating a comb is needed.

True answer: Simply ask him, he is blind not dumb.

The point is, at times, body language plays a vital role in conversation. People tend to know what you are talking about with little gestures and movements. Say you’re hungry, you place your hands on your stomach. If you’re bored, you yawn. In Firelight, you will discover a true to life experience about language by Tien Zyee, more than you think you already knew.

Octoberfest is just next week! Excited? Do check the Torchlight for more details. See you in the Main Hall buying chocolates, surviving the Strongest Link and showcasing your hidden writing talents!

Have an awesome weekend ahead!

Chief Editor,

WC Kan

Have the celebration mood kicked into you already? For me, it surely has! Can you verbalize the immense feeling when you put your pen down in the final test, for now, that stood in the midst of this Raya/mid semester mood? The feeling is awesome because you just have so many things in store that you want to do during the Raya-break and that you can start doing them now.

To start off my holidays, i had a wonderful lunch with my coursemates immediately after test. My friends and I will not meet until the end of the mid-semester break and it’s nice to have a get-together. After that, I watched the Cinderella Man. It’s definitely the best boxing movie ever made! It has a perfect blend of faith, sacrifice, love, friendship and responsibility. The scenes are well shot and the star-studded casts made this movie a true award winner- Russel Crowe, Renee Z and so many more. Have a watch at it this break if you have the chance and you will be spell-bound just like me.

This time, let Rosma take you into the meaning of Raya in Firelight as you will salivate to the photographs provided. Indeed, Raya has set another mood for a great time to eat, especially with your loved ones. Apart from Raya, we will be talking about discovering and revealing your hidden talents a lot these days. Check out Torchlight to find out more about the upcoming Octoberfest. Standing in the Spotlight this time is about you trying to be an athlete and ways for you to work up to be a great one. It is not as easy as just to say it, but to act it out- walk the talk, remember. Stay glued to Streetlight with two more chapters of The Will.

If you don’t have anything to do this Raya break, stay with us at this Gazette. Even if you do have things in mind, make sure you keep up with us- and bring to us some Raya cookies. From the Journalism team, we would like to wish you Selamat Hari Raya and Happy Holidays. Have a safe journey home and please look after yourself during the break- don’t get carried away for you still have the second half of the semester to go.

Signing off,

WC Kan,

Chief Editor.

The Journalism Department is taking full knot speed ahead. So, be wary and be careful not to fall off this ship! Hold the grip tight, for I will take you on the cruise of the birth of the revolutionized Gazette.

If you notice, ‘light’ is present in all sections. Why ‘light’? Basically, I’m amazed by the power of light. You can put light into darkness, but you can never stick darkness into the light because the light always triumphs. Light is used metaphorically in this Gazette. Light paves the way to our destination just like the usage and the importance of English is to us. Appreciate light, appreciate English.

The first deck is our Journalists- Amira, Shikin, and Rosma. Amira will star in Limelight while Shikin will play in Spotlight. Rosma will write on fragile yet hearty issues in Greenlight. What are they, actually?

Starlight- This section tells the interesting ELC events held. Just like a star in the night sky, the events held sure is Star-studded.

Firelight- This section brings forth general stories from UTP and beyond, firing to international level.

Limelight- This section is all about entertainment. Songs, movies and books are of our primary interest and make sure to keep up with our enthusiastic Amira.

Greenlight- This section focuses on greening the Earth. It will be about the environment and health. Journalist Rosma will open your eyes to the ever-changing world.

Spotlight- This section serves you the latest news from the sports arena. Be sure to compete with Shikin in this high-level section.

Streetlight- This is your chance to showcase your hidden talents. Creative original writings will be posted.

Moonlight- The moon is beautiful, you say, and so is our history. This section tells on the board, preamble and our past events.

Torchlight- Look out for this torch frequently. This section posts all latest announcements for ELC members.

Headlight- This will be the home page. It will be written by the editors- WC and Steward. This page will give you a brief description to all the updated pages at once.

Check out the pages. We promise to keep this Gazette alive, after all, it is already traveling. Bon Voyage, Journalism team!

Gathering was initiated by montage presentation showing the past events of ELC, followed by introduction of HICOMS and also, the directors for all three divisions together with HODs and AHODs of every department.

There was a speech by our dear president, Nabila which was impromptu, welcoming all the new ELCians. She said that our club is unique because it comprises members of multiple backgrounds, be it local or international.

President, Nabila Lau

There was another presentation done by Journalism Department in promoting the ELC blog. He reminded everyone not to forget visiting the blog, everyday.

Take note of this!

In the gaps of the agenda, we were playing games. First one was charade, in which one must mimic the title of songs or movies that were given to them and others were expected to guess the right answer.

Paper, scissors, stone – simple game but this time, it was done in a big crowd where all members of the hall were involved. The stairs of LH3 were packed.

Went outside of the hall, we were playing “I love you, do you love me?”, “007 Bang” and the list went on.

The whole event was lasted until 10.00pm. Afterwards, it was the committee recruitment for the next event of ELC: OCTOBERFEST.

Since Monday will be a holiday, the crowd was not as much as we expected since most of UTPians may choose to go home. Nevertheless, it was a good start for our very first gathering. Hope everyone has enjoyed themselves throughout the night. See you all again during the next gathering!

Again, anyone who wish to submit their masterpieces to be posted in this blog, send them to following emails:
kanwaichoong@gmail.com
memoriesof2704@gmail.com

Incentives will be given for extraordinary writings or articles.

The time has come once again for us to wave our Jalur Gemilang with pride and gratitude while we stand tall singing our patriotic songs. ‘Merdeka’ is an occasion very dear to Malaysians. What is the first word that strikes your mind when you hear the word ‘Merdeka’? To many, it means freedom. To me, I simply hear ‘Hope’. Why hope, you may ask?

Let’s look deeper into the history of Malaysia and admire its amazing roots while we embrace our 52th anniversary. After many years of foreign ruling, our nations’ heroes finally acquired independence from the British. It was the hope that the people of Malaya longed for. Though I have never experienced the hard life before independence, as a child, I have always listened to the astonishing stories told by my grandfather and studied the colourful History textbooks during my secondary school, and never would I wish to live through those times. Thankfully, we got our independence without much shedding of blood and the magnificent ‘Merdeka’ was cheered seven times to the relief and joy of many.

After 52 years, Malaysia has come a long way to be on the right track and becoming a modernized country that has traveled through ups and downs, the good and the ugly. With the newly-introduced One Malaysia concept and the motto ‘People First, Performance Now’, we hope to tear down the invisible racial barrier built between us, equating us for our strengths and not separating us by the skin color, and strive for excellence of the country. We are Malaysians and we should be united as one stable foundation. Dividing ourselves will lead to the downfall of a country which eventually brings chaos and disharmony.

In schools, even to universities, how many of you will actually sit with people of different races? Or befriend one of opposite culture to you? It is high time we correct our mindset and remove the prejudice we have toward others. What benefits do you get from acting like one? And what are the benefits if you don’t? I suppose you do know.

I was in Kuala Lumpur this Independence Day and from my observation, there wasn’t much high spirit about the Merdeka. May be it was because of the H1N1 scare that drove many indoors and people avoid going to gatherings to celebrate the event. In an effort to show your support this Merdeka, I would sincerely hope that you will comment on this post, particularly posting a shout-out of ‘Merdeka’. Show your love towards the country.

While we bask in this year’s Merdeka, let us remind ourselves that unity is the secret ingredient that will make us stronger. The more unified we are, the stronger a nation we become. It is my hope that this beloved country we shelter in together will continue to remain as a harmonious and peaceful country that progress forward in realizing our ultimate goal.

Happy Merdeka to you,

WC Kan,
Chief Editor.

Rather being long-winded with words, just let the pictures do the talking.

Launching Ceremony @ 9.00am, 25 August

VIPs

Jennifer Lye and Timmy Ong: Master of Ceremony

Welcoming speech by Project Director: William Liew

Speech by our dear Rector

Rector officiates UTP Book Fair 2009

VIPs Tour around Book Fair

Book Fair Family Members

Top view of Book Fair

Exhibitors, Publishers, Book Stores & Sponsors

Secretariat Booth

Games Booth

Everything will come to an end, eventually. When the clock strikes 5.00pm on 27 August, it marked the end of UTP Book Fair 2009. In other words, it is time for cleaning up!

Taking down “UTP BOOK FAIR 2009″ at the D9 entrance

Everyone was working..

Keeping the books away

Empty D9 in which it was previously packed with books and visitors

Photo-taking Frenzy

On behalf of the committee members of Book Fair, we would like to express utmost gratitude for everyone who has given their full support throughout the event. Without you all, we might not be able to make this event a success.

THANKS TO ALL THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS OF UTP BOOK FAIR 2009.

YOUR HARDWORK AND DEDICATION FOR 4 MONTHS IS PAID OFF!

CONGRATULATION!

Stay tuned for next BOOK FAIR!

*Special thanks to Technical & Media Department of UTP Book Fair 2009 for providing the photos.

Due to the unforeseen circumstance, we have to postpone our Recruitment Drive. It is rescheduled to be held on 23rd (Sunday) and 24th (Monday) of August. There is no change in venue, which is at V4 Foyer, from 10pm until 12pm.

In case some of you are still not aware of the departments that are available for interview, here is the list of it.
1. Publication and Promotions
2. Human Resource Management
3. Sponsorship
4. Business and Entrepreneurship
5. Journalism
6. Public Relations

This interview session is open to ALL students of UTP. Do come and be a part of family of ELC. We welcome you!

Note: For those who are interested in maintaining the blog or whoever loves writing and all, Journalism Department is recommended for you to join.

COME AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT!