Senin, 19 November 2012

Burma releases prisoners before Obama visit


The Burmese authorities (Pihak berwenang) say they have ordered (memerintahkan ) the release (pembebasan) of more than 450 prisoners under (atas dasar) an amnesty.

The latest in a series of such moves by the reformist government of President Thein Sein 
(Pembebasan kali ini merupakan yang terbaru dari serangkaian langkah yang ditempuh oleh pemerintah reformis pimpinan Presiden Thein Sein).

The announcement comes ahead ( terjadi menjelang) of a visit by President Obama next week. 

It isn't clear yet how many political prisoners are among those being freed; 
(Belum jelas berapa jumlah tahanan politik yang turut dibebaskan. )

Human rights groups believe at least three hundred prisoners of conscience remain (in jail.
(Kelompok-kelompok hak asasi manusia yakin sedikitnya 300 tahanan hati nurani (sebutan bagi para tahanan politik yang dihukum hanya karena menyatakan pendapat) yang masih berada di penjara)

Some critics have questioned President Obama's visit, saying it is too early to reward the Burmese government for reforms which have just started.
(Beberapa kritikus mempertanyakan kunjungan Presiden Obama dengan mengatakan saat ini masih terlalu dini untuk memberikan penghargaan kepada pemerintah Burma atas reformasi yang baru saja dimulai).

Ebola virus kills two Ugandans


The health ministry in Uganda says a new outbreak (wabah) of the Ebola virus has killed at least two people near the capital, Kampala.

Correspondents say it is not clear whether the new outbreak is related to the previous (terkait dengan wabah sebelumnya).

Last month Uganda declared itself Ebola-free after an earlier outbreak of the disease (menyatakan diri sendiri terbebas dari Ebola setelah sebelumnya terjadi wabah penyakit) killed at least 16 people in the west of the country.

Selasa, 06 November 2012

Tips for English - 1

Boleh saya sharing belajar bahasa Inggris yang mudah.
Ini pengalaman saya.

Adapun ringkasann metodenya spt di bawah ini. Di dalam workshop pembahasannya lebih detail. Dan pasti ada tanya jawabnya. Jadi lebih klear. kalau sekedar di milis ini sangat terbatas., Terutama untuk tabel-tebel dan diagram sering kali beantakan. 


Masrur Ch.

 
INI LHO CERITANYA CARA SAYA BELAJAR BAHASA INGGRIS DENGAN MUDAH
 
Kita semua semua pasti sudah pernah belajar bahasa Inggris. Persoalannya banyak dari kita yang sampai saat ini tidak bisa berbahasa Inggris dengan baik. Banyak sekali alasan dan penyebabnya. Untuk itu ada baiknya mempertimbangkan cara pembelajaran yang kami tawarkan.
Pembelajaran bahasa Inggris ada yang dilakukan dengan cara membeo atau mengikuti apa yang dikatakan oleh guru/orang. Cara ini akan tepat untuk pembelajaran percakapan atau pada pengajaran bahasa untuk anak-anak.  Namun pembejaran semacam ini akan kurang tepat bagi pembelajaran untuk orang dewasa di Indonesia yang sudah cara berbahasa ibunya telah melekat dan cara berfikirnya sudah dipengaruhi kultur bahasa Indonesia yang memang berbeda.  Selain memerlukan waktu yang panjang, orang dewasa akan kesulitan belajar hanya dengan membeo karena cenderung akan membosankan dan banyak lupa.
Untuk itu bagi mereka mencoba pembelajaran dengan cara analisis dan pemahaman (pendekatan penerjemahan) perlu dicoba. Sebab pola pembelajaran seperti ini ternyata banyak yang merasa berhasil meningkatkan kemampuan berbahasa terutama untuk meningkatkan kemampuan READING, WRITING, DAN TRANSLATING. 
Basis pembelajaran ini adalah pemahaman SPO concept. yang merupakan struktur bahasa yang universal yang digunakan untuk menganalisa struktur bahasa. Sejak dini peserta didik akan dikenalkan struktur dasar penyusun kalimat yakni Subject, Predicate dan Complement (Kata keterangan).  Subject adalah masalah pokok yang akan dibicarakan (harus berupa kata  benda atau yang dibendakan) sementara predicate adalah penjelasan mengenai subject itu; Jika kalimatnya menggunakan kata kerja (verbal) maka digunakan kata kerja sebagai predicaktnya, namun jika kalimatnya tidak menggunakan kata kerja maka (kalimat non verbal) maka kalimat itu harus menggunakan to be sebagai predikatnya.
Sementara kata keterangan bisa berupa kata sifat, kata benda, kata kerja (yang dibendakan/atau berfungsi sebagai kata keterangan). Dengan pemahaman ini maka peserta didik asal sudah diajarkan mengenai bentuk benttuk kata akan bias menyusun kalimat dasar.
 
Contoh:
Jalan itu (adalah) licin
Narkoba (adalah) sangat berbahaya
PT Usaha Jaya akan membangun jalan itu
Saya belajar bahasa di Universitas
 
Karena kita sudah tahu bahwa subject harus kata benda atau yang dibendakan, maka ketika mencari di kamus, kita harus memilih kata benda yang sesuai untuk menjadi subject. Kemudia kita juga memilih kata kerja atau to be yang sesuai untuk menduduki posisi predicat.  Dari kamus akan diperoleh sbb.
 
BHS INDONESIA
BHS INGGRIS
FUNGSI
Jalan itu
=  The street (n)
(kata benda)
(adalah)
= is
(to be)
Licin
= slippery (adj)
(kata sifat /adjective)
narkoba
= narcotic  (n)
kata benda
(adalah)
= is
(to be)
Sangat berbahaya
= very dangerous
(kata sifat
PT Usaha Jaya
= nama diri (n)
(kata benda)
akan membangun
= will constructs
kata kerja
jalan itu
= the street
(kata benda)
Saya
= I
(kata ganti benda)
belajar
= learn
(kata kerja)
bahasa
= language
(kata benda)
di Universitas
= in University
(kata benda dg kt depan)
 
Berdasarkan data-data di atas maka kalau disusun akan menjadi
 
SUBJECT
PREDICATE
COMPLEMENT
Jalan itu
(adalah)
licin
The street
is
very slipery
 
 
 
Narkoba
(adalah)
sangat berbahaya
Narcotic
is
very dangerous
 
 
 
PT Usaha Jaya
akan membangun
jalan itu
PT Usaha Jaya
will construct
the street
 
 
 
Saya
belajar
bahasa di Universitas
I
learn
language in University
 
Penyusunan kalimat ini sederhana dan amat mudah. Ibaratnya kita hanya tinggal menempatkan unsur-unsur kalimat itu pada tempatnya. Ini adalah langkah pertama dan tentu masih banyak yang salah.
Secara ringkas kandang fungsi berikut mungkin bisa menjelaskan bagaimana kalimat itu bisa disusu. Yang perlu diingat, kandang fungsi adalah untuk satu kalimat sempurna. Jika kalimat itu kalimat majemuk, maka itu berarti dua atau tiga kalimat yang semua bisa dibreakdown dalam kandang fungsi ini.
 
SUBJ.
PRED.
OBJ./COMPLEMENT
 
NOUN
VERB/
TO BE
(PREP) NOUN
ADJECTIVE
TO+VERB I       (untuk me…(aktif))
VERB+ING        (yg/dg/sambil me..)
VERB III            (yg/dg di…)
ADVERB
Fungsi dalam kalimat
Swimming
is
my hobby
noun
I
like
swimming
noun (gerund)
The store
is
behind the supermarket
prepositional phrase
She
is
happy
adjective
The book
Is
interesting to read
adjective (phrase)
I
want
to see my mother
to+verb III
I
saw
him wearing a black leather jacket made inbandung
verb+ing =(dg) memakai/
verb III = yg dibuat
He
fired
wounding one of the bandits
verb+ing = dg melukai
He
gave
me a bag wrapped with plastic
verb III = yg dibungkus
I
want
to buy the book displayed in the store
verb III = yg dipajang
H e
come
here quickly
adverb = dengan cepat
 
Lihatlah bentuk-bentuk kata kerja setelah predicate. Coba latih.
 
Prinsipnya dengan memasukkan kata-kata ke dalam kandang tersebut sesuai dengan fungsinya maka kalimat akan benar secara grammar (walau tetap ada beberap pengecualian). Dengan demikian dengan satu rumus ini anda dapat menyusun berbagai bentuk kalimat. Kandang fungsi di atas juga dapat digunakan untuk analisa makna kalimat untuk membaca dan menerjemahkan.
Berikut adalah contoh untuk kalimat majemuk dalam kandang fungsi yang disusun melebar.
 
S
P
C
S
P
C
The street
is
very slippery    therefore
PT Usaha Jaya
constructs
the street
The man
is
very happy      because
his son
has come
home
He
was
here,                but
he
doesn’t know
anything
 
Setelah kita dapat menyusun kalimat majemuk seperti di atas, kita akan membuat kalimat majemuk yang lebih sulit. Terus dan terus berlatih dari kalimat sederhana, kalimat negative, kalimat tanya, tensis kalimat majemuk yang sederhana kemudian kalimat yang lebih kompleks.  Kita juga akan belajar menyusun  kalimat yang dalam bahasa Indonesianya tidak jelas subjectnya atau predikatnya. Semua tetap akan semudah menyusun kalimat sederhana. 
Tentu pada tahapan ini bahasa Inggris belum sempurna. Namun dengan terus berlatih kita akan semakin kaya kosa kata, dengan belajr mengucapkan dengan dibimbing  guru, kita akan fasih.
Formula ini adalah hanya untuk sedikit memudahkan dalam proses pembelajaran. Tetap saja ada dari bahasa Inggris yang merupakan pengecualian. Tapi pengecualian ini tidak banyak dan sambil banyak membaca dan berlatih, kita akan dapat menguasainya juga.

English Sentences - 3


KALIMAT DAN UNSUR-UNSURNYA

1. Pola Kata Dasar                           

Suatu kalimat (dalam Bahasa Inggris) sekurang-kurangnya harus memiliki dua unsur dasar yang membangun konsturksi kalimat tersebut, yaitu subyek dan predikat. Subyek adalah sesuatu yang menjadi pokok persoalan di dalam suatu kalimat; dia adalah yang melakukan suatu pejkerjaan, atau dikenai suatu pekerjaan, atau juga menjadi topik suatu pembicaraan di dalam kalimat tersebut. Predikat adalah suatu kejadian atau peristiwa atau pekerjaan yang dialami oleh subyeknya, baik dilakukan oleh subyek tersebut atau menimpa subyek tersebut tergantung pada jenis hubungan (misalnya, aktif-pasif) antara subyek dengan predikatnya.

Di dalam suatu naskah pidato, karangan atau tulisan ilmiah, bisa kita temukan beberapa jenis kalimat dengan berbagai variasi bentuknya. Namun demikian kalimat-kalimat yang panjang atau kompleks sebenarnya hanyalah suatu perluasan dari kalimat-kalimat sederhana, atau kalimat dasar. Di dalam Bahasa Inggris kita mengenal pola kalimat dasar antara lain: (1) S P, (2) S P C, (3) S P O, (4) S P IO DO, (5) S P DO prep IO, dan (6) S P O C.

1.      Subject + Predicate.
The baby is sleeping.
The visitors left.
The train has arrived.
The plane is taking off.
The convict collapsed.

2.      Subject + Predicate + Complement
The new car is expensive.
The man is a political criminal.
The people in the meeting are police officers.
Honesty is the best policy.
New theories often sound promising.
3.      Subject + Predicate + Object
Everybody is talking about the game.
The students have just finished their assignments.
Not many people master political sciences.
The students did not understand the instructions.
Some people hate politics.

4. Subject + Predicate + Indirect Object + Direct Object.
My friend sent me some postcards.
We borrow him some books.
They bought us a new computer.
The boy threw the dog a stone.
My father gave me some money.

5.      Subject + Predicate + Direct Object + Preposition + Indirect Object.
My friend sent some postcards to me.
We borrow some books from him.
They bought a new computer for us.
The boy threw a stone at the dog.
My father gave some money to me.

6. Subject + Predicate + Object + Complement.
We appointed him chairman.
She considered me brother.
He called us traitors.
We believe him true.
They thought me wrong.
Latihan :
Tentukan pola dasar yang digunakan dalam kalimat-kalimat berikut ini:
1.      Laws make everyone’s life safer and more pleasant.
2.      This belief gave these rules a religious meaning.
3.      The judge did not know how to condemn a thief.
4.      The Babylonians produced the most famous ancient written laws.
5.      The FBI gave us investigations to courts.
6.      Special agents must be graduates of law school.
7.      The right to a free press had successfully passed us first test.
8.      Frederick the great granted toleration for all religions.
9.      Private wars among the knights made life difficult.
10.  The various ethnic groups have different cultural backgrounds.

Subject

Subject suatu kalimat mungkin terdiri dari Noun (phrase), Pronoun (phrase), infinitive (phrase), atau Noun clause.

1.      Laws are rules that define people’s rights and responsibilities towards society.
2.      Indonesia faced educational problems at the time of independence.
3.      Lawyers have public duties beyond their individual citizenship.
4.      The principal source of income of the federal government is a progressive income tax on persons and on corporations.
5.      Political scientists remained faithful to the constitution
6.      We tend to forget the informal aspects of political organization and process.
7.      He wrote a handbook on politics.
8.      Engaging in politics is not the same thing as studying politics in order to develop principles of general relevance.
9.      Learning is a process of acquiring cognitive, affective, or psychomotoric competence.
10.  To see is to believe.
11.  To answer the questions of ‘what is politics’ is as difficult as ‘what is life’.
12.  That frustration and anxiety may be the cause of some violent acts is the lawyer’s defense for his client.
13.  Whether or not he could win the case is still up the air.
14.  Why he murdered his wife is still a big question.
15.  Whether or not he will bring the case to court depends on how he perceives the incident.

Predikat

Dalam bahasa Inggris kita mengenal dua jenis kata kerja: (1) kata kerja biasa (ordinary verb), yang sering juga disebut kata kerja penuh (full verb), dan (2) kata kerja bantu (auxiliary verb/helping verb). Sebagian besar kata kerja dalam bahasa Inggris tergolong dalam kata kerja biasa, yang menurut infleksinya dibedakan menjadi kata kerja yang beraturan (regular verb), dan kata kerja yang tidak beraturan (irregular verb). kata kerja bantu atau auxalaries juga dibedakan menjadi dua: (1) primary auxiliary (to be, to do, dan to have) dan (2) modal auxiliary (can, may, must, shall, will, ought to, used to, need, dan dare). To be, to do, dan to have bisa berfungsi baik sebagai kata kerja penuh (Copula) maupun sebagai kata kerja bantu.
Predikate suatu kalimat dalam Bahasa Inggris bisa terdiri hanya dari satu kata kerja (terutama dalam Simple Present dan Simple Past Tense ), tetapi dalam banyak tense yang lain, predicate dalam suatu kalimat diperlukan lebih dari satu kata kerja. Predicate yang hanya terdiri dari satu kata kerja harus berupa kata kerja penuh, kecuali dalam susunan eliptik. Predicate yang memiliki lebih dari satu kata kerja biasanya terdiri dari satu kata kerja penuh dan satu atau lebih kata kerja bantu, tergantung pada jenis tense yang digunakan dalam kalimat tersebut.

1.      Some people look on laws with fear, hatred, or annoyance.
2.      The lawyer is a person with a very special knowledge of law.
3.      Laws may prevent us from doing things we wish to do at the moment.
4.      Most of a lawyer’s work is carried on outside the court room.
5.      Lawyers have completed a course in a law school.
6.      In law school, students are learning how to analyze and present problems for decision.
7.      Lawyers have been taking a special field of interest after a few years in general practice.
8.      The lawyer, like the doctor, has been governed by a code of ethics.
9.      Life, liberty, and property must be protected by laws.
10.  The man should have been thought of innocent before he was proved guilt.

Predikat suatu kalimat harus bisa dikategorikan ke dalam salah satu tense yang ada, dengan kata lain predikat harus disusun berdasarkan kaidah-kaidah tense. Suatu kata kerja bentuk –ing, misalnya, tidak mungkin menduduki posisi sabagai predikat tanpa dibarengi unsur yang lain, yaitu to be (be, is, am, are, was, were, been, being). Begitu pula kata kerja bentuk ke tiga atau Past Participle hanya bisa menjadi predicate jika tampil besama dengan to have (have, has had) atau to be. Suatu kata kerja bantu modal atau modal auxiliary tidak berhak menduduki posisi predicate secara sendirian atau tanpa disertai suatu kata kerja penuh, kacuali dalam susunan eliptik semacam short answer, agreements, disagreements, addition to remarks dan sebagainya.

Complement
Dalam Bahasa Indonesia, kalimat ‘Dia makan’ dan Dia sakit’ mempunyai pola sama, yaitu S P. lain halnya dengan Bahasa Inggris menjadi ‘He Eats’ dan ‘He is sick’. Kalimat yang pertama mempunyai pola S P C ( Subject + Predicate + Comlement ). Perbedaan ini disebabkan oleh karena jenis kata yang digunakan sebagai predicate dalam kedua kalimat tersebut berlainan. Kalimat yang pertama memakai kata kerja sedangkan kalimat kedua menggunakan kata sifat. Kalimat yang predicatenya tediri dari kata kerja dikenal dengan kalimat verbal, sedagkan kalimat yang predicatenya bukan kata kerja disebut kalimat nominal. Semua kalimat nominal dalam Bahasa Inggris menggunakan pola SPC, yaitu predicatenya berupa to be dilengkapi dengan complement.
            Complement mungkin terdiri dari Noun (phrase), pronoun, Adjective (phrase), adverb, prepositional phrase, atau gerund phrase.
Contoh :
1.      The people gathering in the room are advocates.
2.      The men that I talked to this morning are lawyers.
3.      The judge in charge for the trial is here.
4.      The responsibility for making safe and pleasant life is ours.
5.      The influence of English law on the growth of law in the United States was great.
6.      The universe would have been totally chaotic without the existence of laws.
7.      The juries are in the courtroom.
8.      One of the lawyer’s jobs is defending the rights of claimed violations.
9.      Something that most people, especially in the courtroom, do not like most is waiting.
10.  One of the most important things for the judge to consider before announcing the sentence is why one does such and such.

OBJECT
Sebagaimana halnya subject, object suatu kalimat bisa terdiri dari Noun (phrase), Poronun, Gerund (phrase), infinitive (phrases) atau Clause.
Contoh :
1.      the police arrested law-breaker.
2.      In criminal cases lawyers either prosecute or defend public rights against the community.
3.      The speech that he made concerning the needs of society has bothered me.
4.      Do you mind my interfering your affairs?
5.      He told me much about hunting.
6.      Whatever reason you are going to tell me, I want you to leave.
7.      The police asked the man to tell the truth.
8.      The lawyer asked the man why he committed the crime.
9.      The detectives have not found who had set the fire to the building.
10.  The poor boy did not understand that he was accused of committing a murder.

Adverb
            time                 when (I get up at 06.00 in the morning)
Place                where (I go to campus every day)
Manner            how (I walk slowly to the dean’s room)
frequency        how often (I always read books to Improve my English)

 



NOUN PHRASE (TOEFL Ps: 269-280)

Noun phrase: suatu kelompok kata yang terdiri dari Headword (atau kata inti), dan kata-kata lain yang mendahuli atau mengikutinya yang membentuk suatu kesatuan.
Noun Phrase terdiri dari 3 (tiga) komponen, yaitu :
1.      Headword: kata inti yang menjadi pusat dari kesatuan kata-kata yang mengitarinya,
2.      Premodification, (biasanya terdiri dari kata sifat dan kata benda) yang menerangkan headword, dan terletak sebelum headword tersebut,
3.      Postmodification, yaitu kata (biasanya terdiri dari prepositional phrase, non-finite clause, dan relative clause) yang menerangkan headword, dan terletak setelah headword tersebut.
Contoh :
1. Noun + Head (Noun)
Woman lawyer                              Government employee
Population problem                       Murder trial                            
Traffic regulation 

2.  Adjective + Head (Noun)
General + election                         Prosperous countries
treacherous king                            dangerous maniac      
political science 

3.   Present Participle + N
-          increasing population              ruling class
-          developing countries               amusing senators.

4.   Past participle + Head
-          written law                              established ethnics
-          standardized measurement     specialized agents
-          exaggerated rumors


5. Head + Prepositional phrase    
the nomination of presidential candidates     
power in political systems
the skill for agitating people              
lawyer with excellent reputation
people from hot climate countries

6. Head + Participial phrase
-          wars causing disasters
-          rumors leading to a social confusion
-          social conflicts resulted by the campaign
-          new bills proposed by the president
-          public question embarrassing the candidate

7. Head + Infinitive phrase
-          first social problems to fight against
-          institution to provide jobs
-          punishment to evaluate
-          president candidates to vote
Exercise:
1.      The first requirement of good citizenship and government
2.      The most terrifying exile penalty
3.      The societies of the countries of western Europe
4.      A special law governing nations and business abroad
5.      A bad character shown by previous criminal and immoral acts
6.      The National Crime Information Center
7.      The frequently changing policy system
8.      The further complicated government corporation problem
9.      These crude and unreliable procedures
10.  A very special knowledge of law
11.  The best way of testing the truthfulness of a witness
12.  A branch of the United States Department of Justice
13.  Police statistics voluntarily contributed by local law enforcement agencies
14.  A meeting place established by the government
15.  The phenomena studied by modern political scientists.

Home work:
1.         The fashion label outside the top super-luxury brands
2.         the mounting competition from retailers and discounters
3.         their steady loss of market share
4.         A typical example of this approach
5.         the problem with the US department stores
6.         the right merchandise in the right quantities at the right time
7.         the latest components of its reinvent strategy
8.         An organization’s capacity to identify
9.         people with apparently limitless energy and enthusiasm
10.      The financial impact of such people
11.      the agenda of the would be high performers
12.      a particularly important motivating force for new talent
13.      another essential motivator for high performers
14.      the time available for creative thinking and mastering new skills
15.      the provision of a coach or a mentor
16.      A commitment to fast tracking an individual’s development
17.      tens of thousands of other banana growers in the Winward Islands
18.     the most remarkable success stories of the past decade
19.      a global leader in high-quality domestic appliances such as washing machines and vacuum cleaners
20.      a hiding place for the irresponsible business




V E R B/PREDICATE

Bahasa Inggris kita mengenal beberapa bentuk kata kerja:
  1. bentuk dasar (infinitive)          (V0):               go                    Be
  2. bentuk present                         (V1):                go/goes            is, am, are
  3. bentuk past                              (V2):                went                was, were
  4. bentuk past participle             (V3):                gone                Been
  5. bentuk present participle         (Ving):             going               Being

Vo              V1 s/es        V2 ed1        V3ed2                  V-ing
Infinitive         Present            Past                 Past Participle              Present participl
(to) go             go(es)              went                  gone                          going
(to) have          have/has             had                 had                            having
(to) do             do(es)                did                   done                          doing              
(to) be              is, am, are          was, were        been                           being                          
(to) buy           buy(s)                bought             bought                       buying
(to) lie              lie(s)                  lay                   lain                            lying               
(to) lie              lie(s)                  lied                  lied                            lying   
(to) lay             lay(s)                 laid                  laid                            laying                                     

 Bentuk dasar (infinitive/V0) digunakan setelah kosa kata berikut:
Nouns: ability, attempt, chance, desire, failure, inability, need, opportunity,
              readiness, willingness, unwillingness, way, etc.
Verbs: afford, agree, aim, appear, ask, attempt, dare, claim, choose, arrange,
             decide, demand, deserve, desire, endeavor, fail, fight, forget, help,
             hesitate, hope, intend, learn, manage, need, neglect, opt, plan,
             prepare, pretend, promise, prove, reckon, refuse, resolve, seek,
             seem, survive, swear, tend, threaten, volunteer, vote, want, wish.


Bentuk present participle (V-ing) digunakan setelah kosa kata berikut:
Admit, appreciate, avoid, celebrate, consider, deny, delay, discontinue, dislike, dread, enjoy, explain, finish, go, imagine, keep, keep on, mention, mind, miss, practice, recall, report, resist, risk, stand, stop, suggest.

V E R B   P H R A S E
Predicate suatu kalima bisa terdiri dari hanya satu verb, terutama kalimat-kalimat yang menggunakan present dan past tense.
Namun demikian suatu kalimat yang mempunyai predicate yang terdiri lebih dari satu unsur; dengan kata lain predicate-nya berupa suatu phrase, tergantung pada jenis tenses yang digunakan dalam kalimat tersebut.

Empat (4) Konstruksi sederhana dalam Verb Phrase:
1.      Modal (can, may, must, shall/ will)  + Vo
2.       To have (have, has, had) + V3 – sudah, belum
3.      To be (am, is, are, was, were) + V-ing --sedang
4.      To be (am, is, are, was, were) + V3 –di, ter (passive)

Present tense à V1/s/es     kebiasaan, fakta, dilakukan berulang-ulang
Pat Tense      Ã    V2           dilakukan/terjadi di waktu lalu/telah lewat

Konstruksi yang pertama (modal + Vo) digunakan untuk menyatakan kemungkinan, keharusan, nasihat, larangan, spekulasi, waktu yang akan datang, dan lain-lainnya. Konstruksi ke tiga (to be + V-ing) digunakan untuk menyatakan bahwa suatu kejadian tengah berkangsung.  Konstruksi ke dua ( to have + V3 ) digunakan untuk menyatakan bahwa suatu kejadian telah selesai. Sedangkan konstruksi keempat (to be + V3) digunakan untuk menyatakan pengertian passive.

Examples:
1.      The lawyer will take the case to court.
2.      As good citizen we should obey the laws.
3.      The judge has sentenced the criminal to death.
4.      The trial had finished before the TV reporter arrived.
5.      The convict was listening to the prosecution…..
6.      The visitors stood up when the Judge was Entering the Courtroom.
7.      The criminal was taken back to the prison.
8.      The suspect was proved innocent.

Konstruksi-konstruksi tersebut bisa dikembangkan dengan cara menggabungkan dua atau tiga konstruksi menjadi satu. Proses penggabungan tersebut bisa digambarkan sebagai berikut:

1. She + to have + V-3   +    
   To be + V-ing =
     She  +  has   +   been  +  writing

2. We + to be + V-ing  +
To be + V-3 =
     We  +  are  +  being  +  followed

3. She  + will + Vo
                                  to have + V-3      +
                                               to be + V-ing =
        She +  will  +  have   +  been  +  living

Exercise : Underline the predicate of the sentence
1.      The whole body of Roman law was not organized until about AD 530.
2.      Life, liberty, and property must be protected.
3.      Today law enforcement has reached a crisis all over the world.
4.      Certain federal laws have been discarded.
5.      The FBI National Academy was founded in 1935.
6.      Increase in the number of automobiles and better highways have resulted in traffic problems.
7.      A trial is frequently called a search for truth.
8.      A witness for the defense might say the man was with him at the time and could not have stolen the money.
9.      If he had been proved guilty, he would have been sent to prison.
10.   After the accusation is filed with the court, the defendant is called in with his lawyer to answer it.

Derivational Morpheme (Prefixes and Suffixes)
In morpheme-based morphology, a morpheme is the smallest linguistic unit that has semantic meaning. A morpheme is composed by phoneme(s) (the smallest linguistically distinctive units of sound) in spoken language, and by grapheme(s) (the smallest units of written language) in written language.
The concept of word and morpheme are different, a morpheme may or may not stand alone. One or several morphemes compose a word. A morpheme is free if it can stand alone (ex: "one", "possible"), or bound if it is used exclusively alongside a free morpheme (ex: "im" in impossible). Its actual phonetic representation is the morph, with the different morphs ("in-", "im-") representing the same morpheme being grouped as its allomorphs.
English example:
The word "unbreakable" has three morphemes: "un-", a bound morpheme; "break", a free morpheme; and "-able", a free morpheme. "un-" is also a prefix, "-able" is a suffix. Both "un-" and "-able" are affixes. The morpheme plural-s has the morph "-s", /s/, in cats (/kæts/), but "-es", /ɨz/, in dishes (/dɪʃɨz/), and even the voiced "-s", /z/, in dogs (/dɒɡz/). "-s". These are allomorphs.

1.      To form Noun
-cy, -ation, -er/-or, -ess, -ity, -ment, -ness, -ship

Democracy                  autocracy                     monocracy                   diplomacy
Nationalization            appreciation                 explanation                  modernization
Painter                         teacher                         cooker                         dryer
Actor                           corruptor                     detonator                     generator
Mistress                       stewardess                   goddess                       waitress          
Solemnity                    difficulty                     reality                          possibility
Government                management                acknowledgement       commitment
Weakness                    happiness                     drowsiness                  laziness
Scholarship                  hardship                      leadership                    membership
2.      To form verb
-ize, -fy, -en, en-, de-,

Optimize         analyze            summarize                   hypothesize
Enlarge            enrich              entrust                         ensure
Redden           blacken            widen                          lengthen
Modify            glorify             identify                       beautify
Delimit            demystify        demoralize                   deconstruct

3.      To form Adjectives
-able, ed, -ful, -ical, -al, -ive, -less, -ous, -y, ic

Enjoyable                    readable                       understandable            forgettable
Amused                       polished                       wanted                                    exited
Beautiful                     wonderful                   useful                          thankful
Comical                       biblical                         spiritual                       usual
Talkative                     active                           attractive                     communicative
Backless                      useless                         hopeless                       meaningless
Industrious                  famous                                    generous                      dangerous
Sketchy                       yummy                        chubby                                    flabby


4.      To form Adverb  -ly
Slowly             quickly                        rapidly             amusingly                   
But: lovely, friendly, deadly, heavenly, lonely, are adjectives
        hardly, scarcely, usually, frequently, are adverb of frequency.

Exercise: Provide the verb noun, adjectives, adverb
Verb
Noun
Adjective
Adverb
-
Use
-
-
-
contain
-
-
-
-
examine
-
-
-
open
-
-
-
communicate
-
-
-
divide


-
-
protection
-
-
-
expression
service
-
-
-
-
termination
-
-
-
nationality
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Regular
-
-
functional
-
-
-
-
strong
-
-
deadly
-
-
-
interpretable
-
-
-
selective
dangerous
-
-
      hard
-
-
-
-
widely
-
-
-
-
individually
-
-
-
collectively
-
-
-
clearly
-
-
-
illegally
-
-








CLAUSES: (TOEFL Ps: 200-233)

Suatu kalimat, bila ditinjau dari jumlah clause yang digunakan, bisa dibedakan menjadi empat, yaitu :      1. Simple sentence,
2.      Compound sentence,
3.      Complex sentence,
4.      Compound complex sentence.

1. Simple sentence (kalimat tunggal) adalah suatu kalimat yang terdiri  dari satu Independenrt Clause (klausa bebas ).
Examples:
- He may be following us.   You must not say bad words.

2. Compound sentence (kalimat majemuk) adalah suatu kalimat yang terdiri dari   
     dua independent clause.
Examples:
- He ran out and he fell over the suitcase.
- She arrived at nine, went up to her room and did not come down until noon.

3. Complex sentence (kalimat komplex) adalah suatu kalimat yang terdiri dari satu
     independent clause dan satu atau lebih dependent clause (klausa terikat).
Examples:
- When he was invited to give a lecture, he was told that all reasonable expenses  
    would be refunded. 
- He left the town because he did not like crowds.

4. Compound complex sentence adalah suatu kalimat yang terdiri dari dua  
   independent clause dan atau satu atau lebih dependent clause.
Examples:
- I saw him when he arrived the first time but I did not see him when he came
    again.
- I was so young and had no experience with men; therefore, I didn’t know
     that he was actually just a good looking bastard who liked playing with girls.

Clause:
Clause adalah suatu konstruksi yang mengandung subject dan predicate.
- Independent clause adalah clause yang bisa berdiri sendiri sebagai suatu kalimat, tanpa menggantungkan diri pada clause lain à (simple sentence).
- Dependent clause adalah klausa yang tidak bisa berdiri sendiri sebagai suatu kalimat). Dia mempunyai arti hanya bila dihubungkan dengan independent clause.

3 Jenis Dependent Clause: noun clause, adjective clause, adverbial clause.
- Noun clause: klausa yang menduduki posisi dan berfungsi sama dengan noun
- Adjective clause: klausa yang mempunyai fungsi sama seperti adjective (menerangkan noun atau pronoun)
- Adverbial clause: clause yang mempunyai fungsi sama dengan adverb. Adverbial clause digolongkan sesuai dengan makna kata sambung yang digunakannya:    
clause of time, clause of place, clause of contras,
            clause of purpose, clause of cause, dan clause of result.

NOUN CLAUSE
Noun clause bisa dikategorikan sesuai dengan jenis kalimat yang membentuknya:
    statement, question, request, dan exclamation (kalimat seru).

1. Noun clause yang dibentuk dari sebuah statement menggunakan introductory word ‘that dapat berfungsi baik sebagai: subject, complement, object kalimat.
Examples:  clause ---the witness denied his testimony---
1.      That the witness denied his testimony is strange.
2.      The problem is that the witness denied his testimony.
3.      People do not believe that the witness denied his testimony.
2. Noun clause yang dibentuk dari sebuah Question yang mengharapkan jawaban ya atau tidak (yes/no question) menggunakan introductory word whether (or not) atau if. Noun clause ini juga bisa berfungsi subject, complement, maupun object kalimat
Example: clause --- Is the defendant proved guilty?---
1.      Whether or not the defendant is proved guilty is all the judge’s concern.
2.      The question is whether or not the defendant is proved guilty.
3.      We don’t know if the defendant is proved guilty.

3. Noun clause yang dibentuk dari sebuah Question yang menggunakan kata tanya (Wh question) tidak memerlukan tambahan introductory word kecuali kata tanya yang digunakan dalam kalimat itu sendiri, yaitu who, what, which, when, where, why, atau how (sesuai dengan masalah yang ditanyakan).

Example: 1. Why did the witness deny his testimony?
            2. How did the prisoner escape from the jail?
1. Why the witness denied his testimony is not known.
2. How the prisoner escaped from the jail is still a mystery.
3. The problem is why the witness denied his testimony.
4.      The question is how the prisoner escaped from the jail.
5.      Nobody knows why the witness denied his testimony.
6.      The guard cannot explain how the prisoner escaped from the jail.

Note :
- Noun clause yang dibentuk dari question, baik yes/no question, maupun
   Wh- question mengalami perubahan urutan kata menjadi pola statement (subject-predicate).

4. Noun clause yang dibentuk dari request juga menggunakan introductory word ‘that’ seperti statement. Noun clause ini biasanya menduduki posisi object.
Example: Be quiet!   à    The judge wanted that the visitors to be quiet.

Noun clause yang dibentuk dari exclamation menggunakan introductory word what atau how. Noun clause ini biasanya menduduki posisi object.
Example: What a terrible maniac the man is!
                  We cannot imagine what a terrible maniac the man is.

ADJECTIVE CLAUSE (Relative Clause)
Adjective clause adalah suatu klausa yang menerangkan noun atau pronoun yang mendahuluinya. Noun atau pronoun yang diterangkan tersebut disebut antecedent. Suatu adjective clause digolongkan sesuai dengan antecedent yang diterangkan oleh introductory word-nya.
Relative pronoun: who, whom, dan whose  untuk menerangkan manusia
(who menerangkan subject, whom menerangan object, whose menyatakan milik).

Relative pronoun which digunakan untuk menerangkan benda. Sedangkan relative pronoun that bisa digunakan untuk menerangkan manusia maupun benda.
Adjective clause dengan that/which/whom yang diikuti oleh sebuah subject, maka introductory word nya dapat dihilangkan. Relative pronoun which bisa diganti dengan that atau dihilangkan sama sekali. (see Reduced clause TOEFL P. 227-233)
The book (that) John bought is missing. à  The book John bought is missing.
The man (whom) we met was my uncle. à The man we met was my uncle.
The coat (which) she wore is red. à The coat she wore is red.

Relative pronoun when untuk menyatakan waktu, dan where untuk tempat, yang masing-masing bisa diganti dengan which setelah terlebih diberi preposisi yang menyatakan tempat (in, on, dll.).

Example:
1.      Lawyers who practice tax law usually have some training experience in accountancy.
2.      A lawyer is an agent whom person employs.
3.      The lawyer could not find the knife which was supposed to be the evidence of the murder attempt.
4.      The van which the man used to rob the bank is now in the police station.
5.      The police tried to find the person whose van had been used to rob the bank.
6.      The man was taken to the place where his van had been found.
7.      The reason why he attempted to kill the old man is that he wanted to take the insurance.
8.      The day when he can have his freedom again has arrived.
9.      The man that hired the van was the one he had never met before.

ADVERBIAL CLAUSE
Adverbial clause: clause yang mempunyai fungsi sama dengan adverb. Adverbial clause digolongkan sesuai dengan makna kata sambung yang digunakannya:
            clause of time, clause of place, clause of contras,
clause of purpose, clause of cause, dan clause of result.

Sebagian besar adverbial clause ini dianggap menerangkan predicate pada main clause-nya; sedangkan yang lainnya dianggap menerangkan keseluruhan kalimat. Suatu adverbial clause bisa berada di awal, tengah, atau akhir sebuah main clause.

Hal yang perlu diperhatikan dalam menempatkan sebuah adverbial clause adalah:
1. Adverbial clause yang (jauh) lebih panjang daripada main clause-nya, sebaiknya diletakkan di akhir kalimat,
2. Sebuah adverbial clause perlu dipisahkan dari main clause-nya dengan koma, apabila adverbial clause tersebut diletakkan di tengah (antara subject dan pedicate).
Example:

1.      Adverbial Clause of time :
The case starts whenever the complaint is filed with the court.
The man saw the accident while he was walking home.
The victim had been taken to hospital before the ambulance arrived.
The convict collapsed after he had heard the punishment.
We had never seen Anisa until she was promoted doctor of international law.
As soon as the judge had announced the sentence, the visitors left the courtroom.
Once she makes up her mind, she never changes it.
No cases start as long as people keep their promises.
As the judge was entering the courtroom, everybody rose from their seats.

2.      Adverbial clause of place:
Where there is poverty, there we find discontent and unrest.
Where there is trouble, there he was sure to be.
He believes that wherever there is trouble, a woman is involved.

3.      Adverbial clause of Cause:
They had to cancel the trial because the convict was too weak to sit in dock.
Since the man was proved guilty, the judge sentenced him a 2-year imprisonment.
As he had a perfect alibi, the judge set him free.
The case was closed on the ground that no reliable evidence was obtained.
Whereas a number of the conditions in the contract have not been met, the company has decided to cancel the contact.

4.      Adverbial clause of result : so…that   - adj/adv (Sedemikian rupa sehingga)
                                                     such …that - noun
She is so emotional that every little thing upsets her.
She behaved so emotionally that we knew something terrible had upsets her.
He was such a dangerous maniac that he should have been locked up.
The lawyer paid such great attention to the case that people believed he would win it.

5.      Adverbial clause of purpose: so that (Agar Supaya)
- He tried every possible way to get the evidence in order that he could put the man to court.
- The police had the picture of the criminal printed in newspapers so that people would recognize him.
- They are working night and day in the hope that they can finish the case as   soon as possible.
- To the end that justice may be served, the defendant will be offered every opportunity to establish his innocence.

6.      Adverbial clause of condition :
If you broke laws, the police would arrest you.
He would not have been arrested unless he had been against the laws.
The lawyer will do any thing to defend the right even if he has to risk his life.
The company will agree to give a raise provided that the strike is called off at once.
He would have forgiven her, if only she had apologized.
Suppose (that) your house burns down, do you have enough insurance to cover such a loss?

7.      Adverbial clause of contrast :
- We couldn’t meet the deadline, although we worked day and night.
- Though he had received less money than it should, he accepted the cut in salary
    without complaints.
- Even though she was proved guilty, many people believed her to be innocent.
- He claimed to be the successor when in fact he was an outsider.
- They made all attempts to defend the man, though they realized that they would fail.

Reduced Clause
BENTUK-2 SINGKAT ADVERBIAL CLAUSE

Adverbial clause of time:
- When walking home, the man saw the accident.
   (when the man was walking home).
- The convict collapsed after hearing the punishment.
                                      (after he had heard the punishment).
- Leaving the courtrooms, he was trembling.
(when he was leaving the courtroom)
Adverbial clause of cause:
- Having a perfect alibi, the man was set free.
   (since he had a perfect alibi)
- Not knowing what he said, she kept silent.
  (because he did not know what to say)
- Being scared, she began to cry.
 (as she was scared).

Adverbial clause of purpose:
- He tried every possible way to get the evidence in order to put the man to court.
- They are working night and day so as to finish the case as soon as possible.
- The lawyer had to work hard to get the evidence.

Adverbial clause of condition:
- I will find some eye-witnesses if possible.
                                                   (if it is possible)
- He will get there on time if driving on top speed.
                                           (if he drives on top speed)
- She will come if invited.
                          (if she is invited).

Adverbial clause of contrast:
- Though working day and night, we couldn’t meet the deadline.
   (though we worked day and night)
- Though dangerous, diving is a favorite to some people.
   (thought it is dangerous)
- Though sentenced to death, he remained calm.
   (though he was sentenced to death)



Conjunction or Connectors used in Compound Sentences
and, but, so, either. . . . or, neither. . . . nor, or, etc.:
He ran out and (he) fell over down the stairs.
Jakarta is so beautiful but it is crowded and polluted.
I am too tired to go out so I prefer to have dinner at home.
On Sundays I usually either stay at home or go out with friends.
Smoking neither gives you good nutrition nor improves your performance
You pay the money now or I call a police.

Conjunction or Connectors used in Complex Sentences
After:                          She washed the dishes after she had cooked the meal
After she had cooked the meal, she washed the dishes
Although/though:        Although they were poor, they were honest.
As:                               As John says, it’s time to go home.
It’s time to go home, as John says.
                                    As the weather is nice, it seems a good time for me to go out
As . . . as:                    He is as tall as his father was.
Because:                      He left the town because he did not like the crowds.
Because he did not like the crowds, he left the town.
Before:                        He had left the town before the police came to his house.
Before the police came to his house, he had left the town.
If:                                If you try hard you will certainly succeed.
You will certainly succeed, if you try hard.
Since:                          I have not seen him since the day we left school.
Until/till:                      He worried about everything until his daughter arrived.
Until his daughter arrived, he worried about everything.

When:                         Time seems to pass quickly when we are happy.
When we are happy, time seems to pass quickly.
Where:                         He built his home where is ancestors had lived.
Whether…or not:        John is the best runner whether he knows it or not.
Which/that:                 This is the house which/that Jack built.
While:                          Do not cross the tracks while the lights are red
While the lights are red, do not cross the tracks
So . . . that:                  She is so smart that all her friends adore her
So that:                        I have to leave now so that I can catch the first train to Jogja.
So as:                           I have to leave now so as to catch the first train to Jogja.

Exercise:
Underline the dependent clause and determine its type:
1.      When people wrote down their laws, they began to realize that rules were made by men as well as revealed by gods.
2.      Most people do not get into the courts, because they obey the laws of society.
3.      A criminal case starts when a policeman arrests someone who breaks law.
4.      A trial is a search for what it should be.
5.      The judge explains the law that applies in the case.
6.      After judgment is pronounced, the trial court’s work is over.
7.      Since the British system of justice prevailed in American chores for 150 years; there is a strong family resemblance between American courts and the courts of the United Kingdom.
8.      A difficult case may last for several weeks, but usually trials are shorter in British.
9.      The trial will decide whether the accused person is guilty or not.
10.  Most lawyers today are generally college-trained-men who have completes a course in a law school.
11.  This method was more prevalent many years ago when educational facilities were few and the body of law was small.
12.  After a person has completed formal law-school training he must take an examination to enable the state to check whether he has learned the fundamentals of the law.
13.  This examination, which is called the bar examination, is difficult.
14.   If a man wants to practice patent law, he must know something about engineering, chemistry, physics, and similar subjects.
15.  The training of a lawyer is so board and so varied that many men use their legal education for entering other careers.
16.  The law recognizes the close, intimate relationship and protects the client so that what a client tells a lawyer is considered just as confidential and secret as what is told to a priest or doctor.
17.  The law permits every man to be his own lawyer in a lawsuit, if he wishes, but this is not wise.

PARAGRAPH
Basic Paragraph Structure
A paragraph is a unit of writing that consists of one or more sentences focusing on a single idea or topic. In many languages, the fundamental unit of composition is the paragraph.  A paragraph consists of several sentences that are grouped together.  This group of sentences together discuss one main subject.   In U.S. formal academic English, paragraphs have three principal parts. A well-written paragraph often has the following structure:
  1. Topic Sentence: This sentence outlines the main idea that will be presented in the paragraph.
  2. Support Details or Examples: This is the part of the paragraph that presents details, facts, examples, quotes and arguments that support the main idea.
  3. Conclusion Sentence: This sentence summarizes the main idea of the paragraph. It may also lead the reader to the topic of the next paragraph.
There are many different types of paragraphs, depending on what you are writing:
  • Descriptive Paragraph: This paragraph describes something or someone. For example, you can write a descriptive paragraph describing your best friend, including what she likes and dislikes, where she lives, what she wants for her birthday, and her favorite food.
  • Expository Paragraph: This paragraph explains an idea; it is also called an information paragraph. For example, you can write as expository paragraph explaining how to make chocolate chip cookies.
  • Persuasive Paragraph: This paragraph tries to convince the reader of something. This type of paragraph may start with a phrase like: "I think that..." The support section may include sentences that start with, "One reason is...," or "For example..." It may end with something like, "This is why I think that..." For example, you can write a persuasive paragraph telling why people should vote for you for class president.
  • Narrative Paragraph: This paragraph describes an event or tells a story, usually in chronological order. For example, you can write a narrative paragraph detailng what you did on your first day of school.

The Topic Sentence
A topic sentence usually comes at the beginning of a paragraph; that is, it is usually the first sentence in a formal academic paragraph.  (Sometimes this is not true, but as you practice writing with this online lesson site, please keep to this rule unless you are instructed otherwise.)  Not only is a topic sentence the first sentence of a paragraph, but, more importantly, it is the most general sentence in a paragraph.  What does "most general" mean?  It means that there are not many details in the sentence, but that the sentence introduces an overall idea that you want to discuss later in the paragraph. 
For example, suppose that you want to write a paragraph about the natural landmarks of your hometown.   The first part of your paragraph might look like this:
       My hometown is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep.
(Notice how the first sentence begins with "My hometown..." a few spaces to the right of the paragraph edge.  This is an indentation.  All paragraphs in English MUST begin with an indentation.)
Note how the first sentence, My hometown, Wheaton, is famous for several amazing geographical features,is the most general statement. This sentence is different from the two sentences that follow it, since the second and third sentences mention specific details about the town's geography, and are not general statements.
Here are some examples of sentences that cannot be used as topic sentences. Can you figure out why they are inappropriate? 
  1. My hometown is famous because it is located by Wheaton River, which is very wide, and because it is built near an unusually steep hill called Wheaton Hill.
  2. There are two reasons why some people like to buy cars with automatic transmission and two reasons why others like cars with manual transmission.
  3. Clouds are white.
The problem with sentence #1 is that it contains too many details. Topic sentences are general, and details should appear later in the paragraph. A better topic sentence would be like the one mentioned above, My hometown is famous for several amazing geographical features.
Sentence #2 is not appropriate as a topic sentence because it mentions two topics, not just one. Paragraphs are usually about one main thing and so their topic sentences should also be about only one main thing.
The problem with sentence #3 is that it is toogeneral. It is also very boring! Would you like to read a paragraph with this topic sentence? Most people would not.
We can rewrite sentences #2 and #3 in the following ways to make it better:
  • There are two reasons why some people like to buy cars with automatic transmission. OR (in a different paragraph):
  • There are two reasons why some people like cars with manual transmission.
  • The shapes of clouds are determined by various factors.




Supporting Sentences
Consider again the above-mentioned, short paragraph:
       My hometown, Wheaton, is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep.
(Again, note how this paragraph is indented on the first line, about five or seven spaces in from the left-hand edge of the paragraph. Always remember to indent your paragraphs!)
When a reader reads a topic sentence, such as My hometown, Wheaton, is famous for several amazing natural features,a question should usually appear in the reader's mind.  In this case, the question should be like, "What are the natural features that make Wheaton famous?"   The reader should then expect that the rest of the paragraph will give an answer to this question. 
Now look at the sentences after the topic sentence.  We can see that the second sentence in the paragraph,  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful,indeed gives an answer to this question. That is, the second sentence gives some explanation for the fact that Wheaton is a famous town. Similarly, we can see that the third sentence also gives some explanation for the fact that Wheaton is famous by giving another example of an "amazing natural feature," in this case, Wheaton Hill.
The second and third sentences are called supporting sentences.  They are called "supporting" because they "support," or explain, the idea expressed in the topic sentence.  Of course, paragraphs in English often have more than two supporting ideas.   The paragraph above is actually a very short paragraph.  At minimum, you should have at least five to seven sentences in your paragraph.  Here we can see our paragraph about Wheaton with a few more supporting sentences in bold font:


       My hometown is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep. The third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree stands two hundred feet tall and is probably about six hundred years old.
In this lesson, we will talk about supporting sentences again in the section, "Details in Paragraphs," below.
 
The Concluding Sentence
In formal paragraphs you will sometimes see a sentence at the end of the paragraph which summarizes the information that has been presented.  This is the concluding sentence.  You can think of a concluding sentence as a sort of topic sentence in reverse.
You can understand concluding sentences with this example.  Consider a hamburger that you can buy at a fast-food restaurant.*  A hamburger has a top bun (a kind of bread), meat, cheese, lettuce, and other elements in the middle of the hamburger, and a bottom bun. Note how the top bun and the bottom bun are very similar.  The top bun, in a way, is like a topic sentence, and the bottom bun is like the concluding sentence.  Both buns "hold" the meat, onions, and so on.  Similarly, the topic sentence and concluding sentence "hold" the supporting sentences in the paragraph.  Let's see how a concluding sentence (in bold font) might look in our sample paragraph about Wheaton:
 
       My hometown is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep. The third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree stands two hundred feet tall and is probably about six hundred years old. These three landmarks are truly amazing and make my hometown a famous place.
Notice how the concluding sentence, These three landmarks are truly amazing and make my hometown a famous place,summarizes the information in the paragraph.  Notice also how the concluding sentence is similar to, but not exactly the same as, the topic sentence. 
Not all academic paragraphs contain concluding sentences, especially if the paragraph is very short.  However, if your paragraph is very long, it is a good idea to use a concluding sentence.
 
Details in Paragraphs
The short paragraph in this lesson is a fairly complete paragraph, but it lacks details.  Whenever possible, you should include enough details in your paragraphs to help your reader understand exactly what you are writing about.  In the paragraph about Wheaton, three natural landmarks are mentioned, but we do not know very much about them.  For example, we could add a sentence or two about Wheaton river concerning HOW wide it is or WHY it is beautiful.  Consider this revision (and note the additional details in bold):
 
       My hometown is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. On either side of this river, which is 175 feet wide, are many willow trees which have long branches that can move gracefully in the wind.  In autumn the leaves of these trees fall and cover the riverbanks like golden snow.  Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep.  Even though it is steep, climbing this hill is not dangerous, because there are some firm rocks along the sides that can be used as stairs.  There are no trees around this hill, so it stands clearly against the sky and can be seen from many miles away.  The third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree stands two hundred feet tall and is probably about six hundred years old.  These three landmarks are truly amazing and make my hometown a famous place.
If we wished, we could also add more details to the paragraph to describe the third natural feature of the area, the Big Old Tree.
Why are details important?  Consider the example of the hamburger, mentioned above.*  If the hamburger buns are the topic and concluding sentences, then the meat, the cheese, the lettuce, and so on are the supporting details.  Without the food between the hamburger buns, your hamburger would not be very delicious!  Similarly, without supporting details, your paragraph would not be very interesting. 
 
A Note on Formality.    In addition to having a particular kind of structure,  academic paragraphs (and multi-paragraph essays, which will be topic of another lesson) are different from "ordinary writing" (such as letter writing) in that certain kinds of expressions are not allowed.  For example, in formal essays, you should not use contractions such as don't or aren't.  Instead, you should write out the words in full, for example, do not and are not.
Also, in formal essays you should avoid the first and second person.  That is, do not use the pronouns I or you.  The pronouns we and us are sometimes used in formal essays in some major fields, but in general you should not use these unless you are certain that they are customary in your field  and/or your professor allows them.  It is safer simply to use the third person.
TOO INFORMAL
(Do not use)
ACCEPTABLE
don't
do not
doesn't
does not
aren't
are not
weren't
were not
can't
cannot
couldn't
could not
won't
will not

Here is a look at the completed "model" paragraph:

Slave spirituals often had hidden double meanings. On one level, spirituals referenced heaven, Jesus, and the soul, but on another level, the songs spoke about slave resistance. For example, according to Frederick Douglass, the song "O Canaan, Sweet Canaan" spoke of slaves' longing for heaven, but it also expressed their desire to escape to the North. Careful listeners heard this second meaning in the following lyrics: "I don't expect to stay / Much longer here. / Run to Jesus, shun the danger. / I don't expect to stay." When slaves sang this song, they could have been speaking of their departure from this life and their arrival in heaven; however, they also could have been describing their plans to leave the South and run, not to Jesus, but to the North. Slaves even used songs like "Steal Away to Jesus (at midnight)" to announce to other slaves the time and place of secret, forbidden meetings. What whites heard as merely spiritual songs, slaves discerned as detailed messages. The hidden meanings in spirituals allowed slaves to sing what they could not say.

The example of Argumentative Paragraph

During the economy global crisis, Government should increase the salary of Indonesian House of Representative members. People who disagree with that proposal believe that it is not wise to increase the salary of them because there are a lot of poor people in this country. It is undeniable fact that is really happening, but there are also some reasons to improve the prosperity of Indonesian Representatives. Logically, when the prosperity and salary are enough, the tendency of being a corruptor would be lower. As we know, the sallary is already much enough, but there are so many things that can tempt them to abuse their authority. Moreover, they need an appreciation for the big responsibility as representatives. Hard work and full dedication are highly demanded from them. Last, to accommodate public’s aspiration in rural area, it needs extra money. Indonesia’s area is very large and consist of many islands. They need to going by plane and hotel accommodation when meet people in remote places. For those reasons, government needs to increase the salary of representatives in order to improve their work.

Example of Descriptive Paragraph

A Friendly Clown

On one corner of my dresser sits a smiling toy clown on a tiny unicycle--a gift I received last Christmas from a close friend. The clown's short yellow hair, made of yarn, covers its ears but is parted above the eyes. The blue eyes are outlined in black with thin, dark lashes flowing from the brows. It has cherry-red cheeks, nose, and lips, and its broad grin disappears into the wide, white ruffle around its neck. The clown wears a fluffy, two-tone nylon costume. The left side of the outfit is light blue, and the right side is red. The two colors merge in a dark line that runs down the center of the small outfit. Surrounding its ankles and disguising its long black shoes are big pink bows. The white spokes on the wheels of the unicycle gather in the center and expand to the black tire so that the wheel somewhat resembles the inner half of a grapefruit. The clown and unicycle together stand about a foot high. As a cherished gift from my good friend Tran, this colorful figure greets me with a smile every time I enter my room.

 

ESSAY

The Elements and Structure of a Formal Essay

In this class, we will be asking you to use the writing process to write formal, college level essays.  Formal essays must have five basic elements if they are to be successful:
These five elements are absolutely essential.  We will be grading your papers on whether or not the five elements are present.  Each of these elements is discussed below.  At the end of this document is an outline and brief description of standard essay structure

1. The Thesis Statement

As you learned from the “Reader as Writer” reading, a thesis is a statement of fact or opinion that you will defend in the course of your paper.  The thesis statement includes the reasons or points you will be making to support your initial statement.  A thesis statement does two vitally important things.  1) it establishes the subject and purpose of your paper, 2) it gives your readers a roadmap of the points that will be discussed in the paper.
Here is an example of an effective thesis statement:
Overall, online learning offers many advantages to a diverse array of students. Disabled students, adults returning to school and rural students all benefit greatly from online learning. Online learning does not come without problems though. Computers can crash and servers can go down. Dealing with these problems can be time consuming and frustrating.
Cindy’s paragraph is effective because it states the writer’s opinion (online learning offers many advantages to a diverse array of students,  but online learning does not come without problems) and her reasons for this opinion.  In the body of her essay, the author went on to discuss in detail 1) advantages to disabled students;  2) advantages to returning adult students; 3) advantages to rural students; 4) disadvantages to all students. Thus, her thesis served as a very effective roadmap for what was to come in the essay.
Here is an example of an ineffective thesis statement:
I enrolled in my first online computer class this summer. So far I learned that there are definitely some disadvantages and advantages of an online class. I feel that I need the interaction that you get with a usual classroom environment. I like to know how I'm doing in the class, being able to have questions answered right away, and meeting my fellow students. I guess that I am a people person and like the interaction that a classroom has to offer.
John’s paragraph is ineffective because the reader has no idea what the author is going to discuss in the paper.  Each sentence is a possible topic, but there is nothing to indicate how the ideas connect to one another, which ideas are important, or what points the author is going to use to support his ideas.

 

 

2. Body Paragraphs

As noted above, your body paragraphs need to directly and specifically discuss the points mentioned in your thesis statement in the order they are mentioned in your thesis statement.  If you don’t do this, your roadmap isn’t just invalid, it’s misleading, and your readers will become confused. 
When you write the body of your paper, you should always be looking back at your thesis to see that you’re following the roadmap.  If, as you’re writing, you think of another point it’s important and logical to make, you need to revise your thesis so that the roadmap is still valid.
A body paragraph takes a point –for example, advantages of online learning for disabled students—and discuss it in detail, giving examples and evidence to support that point.  Here’s Cindy’s body paragraph on advantages of online learning for disabled students:
Disabled students are one group of people who benefit greatly from online learning. Many disabled students face great obstacles when trying to receive a college education. Just getting to school can be difficult and expensive. Many schools do not have specialized computer programs that can help blind or deaf students. Though schools are now required to provide sign language interpreters for deaf students, many still miss things that are discussed in class. Schools are often large, making it hard for some students to even get to the classrooms. With online learning, disabled students no longer have to worry about these things. They are now on the same level as everyone else.
You see how Cindy has given us examples and reasons why online learning is advantageous for the disabled.  Notice how in her thesis she simply lists the disabled as one of the groups that benefit from online learning.  She uses the body paragraph to discuss this point in depth and provide evidence to support it. 

3. Transitions

Providing logical connections between ideas is one of the most important keys to good writing.  If you and I are talking about how uncomfortable the hot weather has been, and all of a sudden I say “Lobo, my pet slug died,” you’re going to be completely confused.  You won’t know how I got from the weather to the tragic death of Lobo.  What’s missing is the transition, the thought that links one idea to the next.
Let’s say, on the other hand, that we’re talking about the hot weather, and I remark “The hot weather isn’t just uncomfortable; it’s dangerous too.  In fact, Lobo my pet slug, insisted on going outside for his daily walk and he died of heat prostration in two minutes flat.”  I’ve built a bridge between the two ideas with one simple sentence that connects the old idea (hot weather is uncomfortable) with the new idea (hot weather is dangerous). 
The good news about transitions is that they don’t have to be complicated.  They can be as simple as one word or a single sentence.  You just need to be sure that as you read over your paper you ask yourself what the connection between each of your ideas is.  For a list of good transition words, see the “Paragraphs”  document in the “Grammar” folder under Course Documents. 

4. The Conclusion

It is said that “A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.”  However, this is not supposed to be the case in your essays.  Your conclusion serves two specific functions:  1) it summarizes what has been said in the body of the paper without repeating it, and 2) it provides the reader with a relevant final thought on what you want them to do, think, believe, or understand, now that they've read your essay. Note that a conclusion is definitely not the place to introduce new ideas.
Here’s a case study of a good conclusion.  Maureen was writing about the positive and negative aspects of online communities.  Her thesis statement was: 
Having a virtual classroom as the sole source of instruction is a growing trend with several wonderful advantages. We can have discussion where each person’s contribution is uninterrupted, where gender is not necessarily a factor, where appearances does not distract us and where many disabilities are no longer a barrier. There is potential for misunderstanding, false identities, magnified emotions, and information overload, but the advantages balance the negatives to make virtual classrooms a welcome addition to our educational system.

In the body of her paper, Mo discussed the points she raised, setting an optimistic tone both about the advantages and about the fact that problems with online classes were resolvable.  Her conclusion ties these ideas together, reminds the reader of thesis without repeating it, and leaves the reader with a relevant final thought.
As virtual classrooms and our educational systems evolve into the mainstream, we will need to find the balance between the advantages and challenges of this new forum for education. The difficulties the online environment poses do not outweigh its advantages, particularly since there are solutions to  many of these problems.  Ultimately, the fact that education is growing to include the internet as a standard learning option means we will have another forum for people to flourish and develop in their intellect and ability. This is a wonderful opportunity that will benefit us all.
Notice that Mo hasn’t added any new ideas or arguments in her conclusion.  If you get to the end of your paper and say “Oh!  I just thought of another thing,” do not tack it on to the conclusion.  As stated above, “When you write the body of your paper, you should always be looking back at your thesis to see that you’re following the roadmap.  If, as you’re writing, you think of another point it’s important and logical to make, you need to revise your thesis so that the roadmap is still valid.”
Anna’s pet peeve:  do not cheat by using the words “in conclusion” to announce the arrival of your conclusion.  The content of your concluding paragraph should make clear that it is in fact the conclusion without you having to say it.

5. Appropriate Diction and Tone

The purpose of this class is to teach you how to write formal, college level essays.  Part of writing these essays is learning the diction (word choice) and tone customary in this kind of writing.  Here are some guidelines for the appropriate diction and tone of your essays.  Note that these guidelines do not apply to the other kinds of writing you do in this class.
·        You are writing for an audience of classmates and teachers.
·        You are speaking to these people in a professional or formal capacity, as opposed to a casual and friendly capacity (such as we use in our chat room or email exchanges).  Imagine you are dressed in your nicest clothes and speaking to an audience that has come to hear you and learn something from you.
·        Your audience has a basic understanding of your topic and does not need common or simple terms explained to them.
·        You should not use slang or informal language in them.  One of the problems with John’s thesis statement in the Thesis section above is that tone is much to informal.
·        Your focus should be on facts and ideas rather than rumor and conjecture.
·        You should not include “I believe,” “I think,” “I feel,” “In my opinion,” etc. in your essay.  It is assumed that an essay represents your ideas and opinions.  These are useless fillers. Don’t believe me? Try crossing those phrases out, and you’ll find your sentence works just as well without them. Note: it’s perfectly fine for you to discuss your own specific experiences (“Once when I was in a chat room, I had a five hour conversation with someone about snails.”)
·        Do not use any version of the phrase “It goes without saying.” If something goes without saying, your reader will wonder why you are bothering to say it. You should wonder too. The same goes for “not to mention.”
·        Avoid rhetorical questions like “How would you like to . . .” or “What do you think of that?” These direct addresses to an audience set an informal, “talky,” tone and don’t actually accomplish anything but taking up space (since, of course) your audience cannot answer you.

Standard Essay Structure

Here’s an overview of how a standard essay is structured. Just something to keep in mind as you work on formulating your thesis and start thinking about writing your rough draft.
I. Thesis (A statement of opinion that you will discuss and defend in your essay)
Example: As more and more people integrate the internet into their work and private lives, we will see a dramatic increase in both written and verbal communication skills.
A. Sub Point #1 (Sub points break the thesis down into parts which you will then discuss at greater length in the body of the paper. Sub points serve the reader as a road map to the organization of your paper.)
Example: Writing skills naturally improve with internet use, since almost all online communication is conducted through the written word.

B. Sub Point #2

Example: In addition, while internet users become more proficient at writing, their spoken communication skills will also improve, because writing will give them practice organizing and expressing their ideas.
(Note: you may have more than two sub points)

II. Body
A. Discussion of Sub Point #1
Explain this idea in more detail.
Raise possible objections, problems with this idea.
Answer these objects and defend this idea.

B. Discussion of Sub Point #2

Explain this idea in more detail.
Raise possible objections, problems with this idea.
Answer these objectionss and defend this idea.

Discussion of further Sub Points if you have listed them in your thesis.

III. Conclusion

Your conclusion restates your thesis (puts it in different words), and leaves the reader with a relevant final thought on what you want the reader to do, think, believe, or understand, now that they've read your essay.

Example

The Three Africas

        When many people hear the word Africa, they picture steaming jungles and gorillas. Hollywood films have shrunk the public image of this immense, varied continent into a small segment of its actual diversity. To have a more accurate picture of the whole continent, however, one should remember that there are, roughly, three Africas, each with its distinct climate and terrain and with a style of life suited to the environment. The continent can be divided into the northern desert areas, the southeastern grasslands, and the tropical jungles to the southwest.
        The northern regions have the environment and living patterns of the desert. Egypt, Libya, Algeria, and Morocco have hot, dry climates with very little land suited to farming. Therefore, the population tends to be clustered into cities along rivers or the seacoast or into smaller settlements near oases. For thousands of years, people have lived in this vast region, subsisting partly on what crops and animals they could raise and partly on trade with Europe.
        The southeastern grasslands provide a better environment for animal life and for some kinds of crops. Many wild animals inhabit the plains in this region--elephants, giraffes, rhinoceros, antelopes, zebras, and lions. The people in this area have long been expert cattle raisers and hunters. Tea, coffee, cotton, cashew nuts, and tobacco are some of the main products grown in this region. Fishing also provides some food and income for people along the coast. The population here is less concentrated in cities and towns than in the north, but tends to be denser in areas where adequate rainfall and fertile soil make farming possible.
        West Africa is the region closest to the Hollywood image of mysterious jungles. As in the other two regions, the way people subsist depends upon their environment. This does not mean that most of the people live in grass huts in the jungle. Such nations as Nigeria have become highly modernized by income from oil, timber, and minerals. Most of the western countries have some farming that provides food and income; sugar cane, coffee, and tobacco are the important cash crops, while bananas, rice, and corn are raised for food. Fishing in the rivers and along the coast also accounts for food and income, and precious stones, especially diamonds, enhance the economy of Angola and the Ivory Coast.
        Even a superficial look at the major regions of Africa shows that it is a varied continent with several environments. Although most of the continent is tropical in its range of temperature, the climate ranges from deserts to rain forests. Similarly, human life-styles vary from the simplest rural villages to industrial cities, both new and ancient. Contrary to the myth, however, jungle life makes up only a very small portion of the whole of Africa.

READING AND UNDERSTANDING
Level of Education unit curriculum (Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan)
According to Nasution (1999), the curriculum is a set of plans and arrangements on the objectives, content and teaching materials and methods used to guide the implementation of instructional activities to achieve certain educational goals. Objectives include the national education goals as well as conformance to specification, state and regional potential, education unit and learners. Therefore, the curriculum prepared by the educational unit to allow adjustment of educational programs to the needs and potential in the region.
There are few curricula have been developed today, such as:
1. Curriculum 1994
2. Curriculum 2004
3. Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC)
4. Level of Education unit curriculum (KTSP)

In the development Education Unit Level Curriculum (KTSP), which vary based on National Education Standards (SNP) to ensure the achievement of national education goals. National Standards of Education Content Standard, Standard Process, Competency standards Passed, Education Workforce Standards, Standards for Infrastructure, Standards Management, Financing Standards, Assessment Standards. Two of the eight standards, which are nsional education and Competency Standards Content Standard Passed is the main reference for the education unit in developing curriculum.

Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 20 Year 2003 (UU 20/2003) about the System of National Education and the Indonesian Government Regulation Number 19 Year 2005 (PP 19/2005) about the National Standards of Education has mandated curriculum unit level education of primary and secondary levels of education have been prepared by educational unit based on the content standards and pass the competency standards and is guided by the guidelines established by the BSNP.

KTSP is an operational curriculum developed and implemented by each educational unit in this case refers to the law school is the educational unit (Sutrisno, 2008). In developing the SBC is done by each group or the education unit and school committee / madrasa under the coordination and supervision of Department of Education / Ministry of Religious Affairs office of district / city for Secondary Education and Special Education.

KTSP Emphasis is on developing the ability to do (competence) and tasks with specific performance standards so the results can be felt by students in the form of mastery of a set of specific competencies. This educational program standard device should be able to deliver students to have a competency of knowledge, and values used in various fields of life.
Indeed, KTSP is a curriculum that reflects the knowledge, skills and attitudes which refers to the concept of education as suggested by Bloom, which in turn can improve students' potentials optimally. Accordingly, the curriculum is prepared to foster the learning process in schools oriented mastery competencies that have been determined by integrative. OH developed is able to adapt to various changes (containing the basic principles, are flexible in accordance with the times) and its development through the accreditation process that allows the subjects can be modified within their growing demands. Thus, this curriculum is the development of knowledge, understanding, abilities, values, attitudes and interests, to perform a skill or task in the form of skills and sense of responsibility. Furthermore, this curriculum is a curriculum design that was developed based on a number of specific competencies, so that after completing a certain educational level, students are expected to master a series of competencies and apply them in later life.

KTSP implementation in Indonesian education system does not just change the curriculum, but it involves fundamental changes in the education system. Application of KTSP requires a paradigm shift in teaching and schooling, because the application of KTSP not only caused changes in concepts, methods and strategies of teachers in teaching, but also concerning the pattern of thought to carry away, philosophically, the commitment of teachers, schools and education stakeholders.
In KTSP placed teachers as facilitators and mediators who help keep students' learning process goes well. The main attention on students learning, not on discipline or the teacher. The function of a facilitator or mediator that means, namely: (1) to provide learning experiences that enable students are responsible to make design and process; (2) provide or provide activities that stimulate students' curiosity and help them to express ideas, provide the means that stimulating students to think productively, provide opportunities and experiences of conflict, (3) monitor, evaluate, and indicates whether the student thought the road or not. Teacher shows and questioned whether students apply knowledge to deal with new problems. Teachers help students evaluate hypotheses and conclusions.

KTSP DEVELOPMENT PRINCIPLES:
1. Centered on the potential, progress, needs and interests of learners and their environment The curriculum was developed based on the principle that learners has a central position to develop their competence in order a human being faithful and obedient to God's compassion Esa, morality, healthy, knowledgeable, capable, creative, independent and becomes citizens of a democratic and accountable. For support the achievement of these goals competence development adjusted for potential learners, progress, needs, and interests of learners as well as environmental demands.
2. Diverse and integrated
The curriculum was developed with attention to diversity learner characteristics, local conditions, and levels and types of education, without distinction of religion, ethnicity, culture and customs, as well as socioeconomic status and gender. The curriculum includes substance mandatory component of curriculum content, local content, and development
an integrated self, and have been prepared in the relevance and sustainability
antarsubstansi meaningful and appropriate.
3. Response to the development of science and art
The curriculum was developed on the basis of the awareness that science knowledge, technology and art of growing dynamically, and by Therefore the spirit and content of the curriculum encourages students to followed and properly utilize the development of science
knowledge, technology and art.
4. Be relevant to the needs of life
Curriculum development conducted by involving stakeholders interests (stakeholders) to ensure the relevance of education with needs of life, including life community, business world and the world of work. Therefore, development of personal skills, thinking skills,
social skills, academic skills, and skills is a vocational necessity.
5. Comprehensive and continuous
The substance of the curriculum covers all dimensions of competency, field scholarly study and subjects who planned and presented for all sustainable levels of education.
6. Long Life Learning
The curriculum is directed to the development process, acculturation and empowerment of learners that lasted a lifetime. The curriculum reflects the linkages between the elements of education formal, nonformal and informal, to conditions and demands an environment that is always evolving and the development direction human beings.
7. Balance between national interests and regional interest
The curriculum was developed by taking into account the national interests and local interests to build a social life, state and nation. National interests and the interests of
area must complement and empower in line with the motto Unity in Diversity within the framework of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia.
School-based Curriculum Development in the Primary Schools
School-based curriculum is the general policy ordained by the Curriculum Development Council for schools' consideration in the design of a quality curriculum conducive to effective pupil learning. Schools are encouraged to adapt the Central Curriculum to suit their unique contexts. When designing the school-based curriculum, schools are advised to observe closely the directions and requirements stipulated by the Curriculum Development Council in the official curriculum documents. Based on careful analysis of pupils'needs, abilities and interests, schools' ecological contexts, leadership style of the principals and middle management, as well as the readiness of teachers, schools need to employ the most appropriate teaching, learning and assessment strategies and use diversified learning materials to integrate the teaching-learning-assessment cycle in their school-based curriculum. It is important to ensure that all pupils have equal opportunities participating in rich learning experiences that aim at promoting whole person development and life long learning.
School-based Curriculum in the Primary Schools
In order to further improve teaching and learning in primary schools, the School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section has started working with primary school teachers since 1998. We work together with teachers in designing school-based curriculum in various Key Learning Areas. This partnership with frontline teachers has cultivated a collaborative lesson planning (CLP) culture and has promoted educational action research that aims to help teachers make informed decisions in teaching and learning.
When reflecting on the process of developing a school-based curriculum with serving teachers, we find that an understanding of the school ecological contexts and pupils' learning processes is essential.
We are working towards the following goals when supporting schools:
Merging curriculum knowledge and teachers' tacit knowledge through collaborative lesson planning and action research such that new understanding can be constructed on how pupils learn, what learning and teaching strategies work, and how to facilitate assessment for learning.
Empowering teachers and other school stakeholders to make their own decisions in the curriculum development process is crucial. This is done through training a group of curriculum leaders who have hands-on pragmatic experience gained inside and outside the school and would continuously develop and adapt the curriculum based on pupil learning and pupil feedback.
Promoting a mutual learning culture among schools through different channels. This sharing and exchange between schools can enrich principals' knowledge of school management and teachers' repertoire in different Key Learning Areas (KLAs). Building learning communities of reflective educators who advocate evidence-based practice and research on different teaching and learning issues. While the development of the school-based curriculum hinges on the involvement of school communities, expertise and professional judgments of teachers and their ownership towards the curriculum is a prerequisite. A successful curriculum conducive to student learning relies on teachers' and curriculum leaders' enthusiastic participation and school administrators' awareness and flexibility in coordinating and facilitating efforts of various stakeholders within and without the schools. Teachers have to engage in continuous professional development activities and see the close relation between research and curriculum development. They have to become independent professionals who can make informed and practical decisions.
Aiming at strengthening and sustaining the growth of school-based curricula, the School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section will continue to provide schools with regular and flexible professional services, develop school-based curricula in different Key Learning Areas, and implement action research.
The development of the School-Based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section
Since September 1998, the School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section has been rendering on-site professional support services to primary schools to help them develop quality school-based curriculum. Curriculum development officers work closely with various stakeholders from the local primary education sector in the development process. These stakeholders include:
1.      teachers participating in collaborative lesson planning or action research,
2.      curriculum leaders in primary schools, and
teachers who would like to share their valuable experiences with other schools. Our Experience
Through co-operating with primary schools in the past 11 years, we have captured valuable experiences and generated knowledge in developing the school-based curriculum in various Key Learning Areas and subjects.
  1. The prime aim of the school-based curriculum is to enhance students' learning, particularly in the areas of learning-to-learn skills and open-minded attitudes. When equipped with these skills and attitude, students are better able to face the challenges of an ever-changing society.
  2. School principals' and teachers' understanding of learning is of pivotal importance towards the success of the school-based curriculum. This knowledge cannot be gained solely from academic studies at tertiary institutions. Principals and teachers have to embrace an open attitude to explore knowledge and discuss curriculum goals with reference to subject knowledge organization, pedagogy, and assessments. They have to put this knowledge into practice in the contexts of their schools. Drawing evidence from students' feedback elicited from various means, principals and teachers need to reflect on their own practices and adopt improvement measures where necessary.
  3. Changes in organizational practices are deemed necessary. The mode of collaboration between schools and the Section emphasizes reflections and involvements of the participating teachers and principals. Arrangements that facilitate school-based curriculum development include organization structure, timetabling, assessment systems, and teaching and learning resources. Principals and staff members at managerial level need to negotiate for compromises regarding the school policy and administration measures, and incorporate into the school-based curriculum learning experiences that benefit students.





Our Changes
1. From Service Provider to Partner
We understand that many schools still see us as experts, expecting us to support schools and resolve their problems. While we are striving to meet these expectations, we hope that schools could develop a better understanding and interpretation of "knowledge" in contemporary world contexts where information technology and knowledge grows rapidly. In Chapter 10 of the Basic Education Curriculum Guide (2002), the Curriculum Development Council defines three kinds of knowledge: "Knowledge for Practice", "Knowledge in Practice" and "Knowledge of practice". Based on this concept of knowledge and the mutual trust between schools and the team of curriculum development officers, we have developed quality school-based curricula in various Key Learning Areas. We hope that this idea of constructing practical knowledge in schools will continue to grow. The SBCDP Section has transcended from being a service provider to becoming a partner of schools. We strongly believe that this partnership will benefit schools in the long run.
2. From Individual Scheme Participants to Members of a Learning Community
To implement the development of the school-based curriculum in various schools, we have focused on teaching and learning, using various KLAs and school subjects as platform for development. Together with serving teachers, we have formed "curriculum development groups" working on lesson planning while examining teaching and learning problems in pragmatic ways. Understanding the need for disseminating the knowledge from the participating groups to the whole school, we engage in constant professional dialogues with school principals and teachers. Regular in-house and inter-schools sharing sessions are useful platforms to spread our knowledge. Over the years, the tie between local primary schools and the SBCDP Section has grown much stronger and we all are members of a learning community emphasizing continuous learning. We still keep constant contact withs chools previously receiving our service. We see the growth of a sprouting learning community attracting generous contributions from teachers and principals who are willing to share their curriculum development experience and knowledge.

4.      From Applying Knowledge for Practice to Initiating Evidence-based Research
With a view to generating a more thorough understanding of teaching and learning problems, we are not content with applying only knowledge for practice that may not be context-specific. After conducting thorough literature review, seeking advice from international curriculum experts and conferring with schools, we have conducted over 40 collaborative action research projects with schools since 2000. While conducting the research with teachers from different schools, curriculum development officers identified curriculum-related teaching and learning issues, devised corresponding practical remedies and intervention strategies, captured experiences, and generated knowledge. Teacher committed enthusiastically to discussion and reflections, two major features of action research. A wide range of data collection methods, such as lesson observation, interviews, and questionnaires have been deployed to collect evidences in the schools. When analyzing and interpreting the data, we have adopted an open and critical attitude to gauge the teaching and learning effectiveness, we have been skeptical about our assumptions and reflective throughout the whole process. The most rewarding moments came when we discovered how students learned better. This could inspire teachers to improve teaching and learning. In some schools, we noticed that the research experience has significantly fostered teachers' professionalism, and this has boosted their confidence in cultivating an "evidence-based" research culture in the schools. 
Lessons learnt by the School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section
Lesson 1: Getting a Good Start
  1. Negotiate with teacher participants on mutual goals, expectations & commitments, supporting modes
  2. Beware of the school ecology: planning at the school level for the new school year starts in May-June while planning at KLA level starts in August, not in September.
  3. Get the right participants: strategic allocation of teaching staff
  4. Allow time for CLP/meeting: help teachers to prioritize their work given teachers' limited time

Lesson 2: Treasure 'half-baked' ideas as well as refined programmes/packages
  1. Allow the flexibility for adaptation and modification
  2. Be alert to participants' readiness, experience, problem-solving skills and understanding of teaching and learning. Effective strategies in one context may become ineffective in another
  3. Develop learning communities in schools instead of implement one-off programmes

Lesson 3: Don't lose sight of the content-knowledge/KLA knowledge
  1. Strike the balance between generic curriculum strategies and content knowledge
  2. Treat 'what to teach' (e.g. experimental inquiry in science, hermeneutic interpretation in humanities, logical thinking in mathematics, communication in languages etc.) as important as 'how to teach' (e.g. co-operative learning, whole class teaching, independent learning etc.)
  3. Be able to articulate flexibly between generalization and specific context in curriculum practices

Lesson 4: Be sensitive to adults' learning in the school context
  1. Handle power relationship and micro-politics with care
  2. Value empathy, people skills as well as instrumental and technical knowledge and skills
  3. Be alert to the dynamic and intricate relationship between teacher participants: as supporters, change agents, facilitators, collaborators, critical friends

Lesson 5: Connecting curriculum strategies with evidence-based practices, critical inquiries and collective reflection
  1. Facilitate the 'plan-act-observe-reflect' cycle
  2. Apply different methods of inquiry and appropriate tools: classroom observation, analyzing pupils' work, being sensitive to pupils' conversation inside and outside classrooms
  3. Develop second-loop learning among teachers - challenging teachers' assumptions for further understanding and continuous improvement
Lesson 6: Strategic dissemination of evidence-based pedagogical practices inside and outside schools
  1. Facilitate whole school curriculum development: vertical continuity and horizontal coherence of the school curriculum
  2. Provide opportunities for teachers' knowledge to go public: an important platform for empowering teachers and fostering their ownership.
  3. Beware of both the 'content' and 'form' of experience sharing: 'thick' description, triangulated data, critical inquiries and reflection that help the experiential understanding of teaching and learning should be encouraged
Strike the balance between the tension of 'sharing success for positive reinforcement' and 'labeling effect to become exclusive'

Lesson 7: Capability building of curriculum developers as a means for knowledge construction
  1. Knowledge for practice: Acquisition of relevant and appropriate knowledge through reading literature or seeking advice from consultants.
  2. Knowledge in practice: Facilitating teachers to share their experience and knowledge in platform such as sharing sessions is useful in externalizing the tacit knowledge embedded in their practice. However, we should avoid sharing ignorance or just sharing grievances in sharing sessions.
  3. Knowledge of practice: In the process of generating new knowledge in context, individual teachers' competence, confidence and risk-taking attitude, courage to problematize the unproblematic are vital
  4. Integrating personal and organizational knowledge for documentation and dissemination.