Kembalikan anak ku...

Oleh:
Pn.Norlilah binti Ismail

Cikgu, anak saya ni..memang degil, susah nak dibentuk....saya dah tak tau nak buat apa dah dgn dia... Jangan bgitu, kalau puan berputus asa, saya lagi susah nak tolong.  Puan jangan gusar, ...ini adalah ujian Allah. Bukan kita sahaja diduga begini, dengan anak anak yang bermasalah....para anbiya' juga menghadapi nya..  Pada saya anak puan boleh dipulihkan...tapi penawar pemulihnya ialah PUAN ...ibunya!!

Ibu itu diam sejenak.... saya dah nasihat, marah, pukul, malah telah mengugutnya ..jika dia tidak berubah saya tak akan terima dia sebagai anak lagi....Masyaallah,..puan sanggup puan ugut dia begitu?..sampainya hati puan...kesian dia, dia anak puan...kalau bukan puan yang kesiankan dia, siapa lagi?...huduh, comel pun dia tetap anak puan. Dia perlukan bimbingan dan pertolongan puan...walaupun mulut nya berkata dia benci puan, dia tak suka cara puan didik dia, dia nak bebas...tapi jauh dalam sudut hati dia ..sebenarnya dia sangat takut....sangat sangat inginkan puan. Airmata si ibu mulai membasahi pipinya,.....aku tahu dia juga menyesal dengan kata katanya......

Puan, marilah kembali pada diri kita...mungkin semua ini berlaku kerana Allah mau menyedarkan kesilapan diri,..saya juga banyak melakukan kesilapan...dan kita istighfarlah mohon keampunan Allah...dan  bacalah Ya Muid..banyak banyak..semoga Allah kembalikan anak puan dengan selamat penuh hikmah...

4 hari kemudian,...cikgu, saya sedar kesilapan saya....keangkuhan saya adalah punca segala ini..anak saya mewarisi ini dari saya..oohhhh tuhan!!! ampunkan!!! saya baca  Ya Muid  berulang ulang, minta Allah buka hati anak saya balik!!!..dan saya diberi petunjuk ..keangkuhan saya, setiap kali Hari Raya, saya akan merencana awal awal, supaya kami dapat beraya di rumah ibu saya awal atau lebih lama,..saya sanggup bertekak dengan suami, dan akhirnya suami akur, walaupun saya tahu dia setuju kerana bosan dgn sikap saya....bijaknya saya ketika menberi hujah..dan ini didengari oleh anak saya...dan macam itulah diaberhujah dengan saya!!! hhhhuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhh....saya terus mohon ampun pada suami....cikgu, saya lah punca!!!! Ego dan degil dan sombong..dan saya pernah ugut suami saya akan balik ke rumah ibu saya pada hari raya kedua bersama anak anak..dan tinggalkan suami di rumah ibunya!!! Ya Allah buruknya sikap saya, dan sekarang anak saya pula angkuh pada saya..ibunya!!

Puan, syukurlah kerana puan menyedari kesilapan diri. Bukan semua orang yang mampu...teruskan membaca Ya Muid sehingga anak puan kembali.....saya yakin dia akan kembali...dan aku juga sentiasa membaca Ya Muid,..mohon Allah kembalikan anak murid ku...........................................amminnnn

Pemimpin Bertelagah...Rakyat Muak

 Tanggungjawab besar pemimpin adalah membawa perubahan dan pembaharuan positif kepada rakyat Oleh: MD RASUL BIN HARON mrasulharon@yahoo.com  Wadah Pajak Song(Cikgu Rasul) 

Menurut pengkaji-pengkaji sains politik, stail kepimpinan yang dianggap paling berkesan adalah gaya kepimpinan transformasi iaitu kepimpinan yang berupaya membuat perubahan dan pembaharuan kepada rakyat.

Kita sebagai rakyat dah muak melihat segelintir pemimpin yang bertelagah demi menonjolkan diri sebagai pembela rakyat. Hentam-menghentam dalam kalangan pemimpin lebih bersifat personal bukan memperjuangkan kebajikan rakyat. Senario yang memualkan ini dapat kita saksikan di dalam media massa. Mereka tidak segan silu mengeluarkan kata-kata kesat dan berbaur lucah di Dewan Rakyat dan di Dewan Negeri. Adakah rakyat yang menonton gelagat pemimpin yang mereka pilih selesa dengan aksi pemimpin mereka?  Bertelagah. Bertikam lidah. Beraksi bagai nak berperang.  

Dalam situasi ini Rasulullah SAW adalah contoh seorang pemimpin stail transformasi yang paling berjaya di dunia. Baginda berupaya menukar gaya hidup masyarakat Jahiliah menjadi orang yang beriman, individu yang bermusuhan menjadi bersaudara, yang kejam menjadi lembut hatinya.

Rakyat terutama yang tinggal di luar bandar sebahagian besarnya terdiri daripada petani, nelayan, penarik beca, penoreh getah dan golongan berpendapatan rendah yang lain amat mengharapkan berita gembira yang mampu mengubah nasib mereka. Kalau bertegang urat disebabkan memperjuangkan nasib rakyat tidak apa, ini tidak, pemimpin ini tidak betul; pemimpin ini penipu; pemimpin itu skandal; pemimpin itu rasuah dan macam-macam lagi versi yang keluar daripada mulut pemimpin-pemimpin.

Sekiranya kita menganggap bahawa jawatan pemimpin sebagai satu keistimewaan maka kita amat bimbang ia boleh menjejaskan tumpuan untuk memberikan perkhidmatan yang berkesan kepada rakyat sedangkan ketika menjelaskan mengenai tanggungjawab pemimpin ini, Rasulullah SAW bersabda yang maksudnya:

"Setiap orang daripada kamu merupakan pemimpin dan setiap pemimpin adalah bertanggungjawab terhadap apa yang dipimpinnya" (Riwayat: al-Bukhari dan Muslim)

Berdasarkan hadis ini, Islam memandang bahawa seorang pemimpin itu adalah sebagai wakil atau orang upahan kepada rakyat untuk mentadbir urusan rakyat. Persoalan besar yang timbul di sini ialah apakah hak-hak rakyat terhadap pemimpinnya? Memberi nasihat kepada seseorang pemimpin merupakan hak kita sebagai rakyat. Kita berkewajipan untuk membetulkan tindakannya, menyuruhnya untuk mengerjakan kebajikan atau mencegahnya daripada melakukan sebarang kemungkaran. Rakyat berhak menegur pemimpin kerana seseorang pemimpin dalam Islam adalah manusia biasa. Dia bukan seorang yang terlalu agung atau istimewa sehingga tidak boleh ditegur.

Kepada pemimpin, hentikan peperangan mulut, utamakan rakyat yang meletakkan pemimpin pada kedudukannya.

Reading Comprehension Strategies That Work: Anchoring Visualizations

Some kids have trouble with reading comprehension.  There can be many reasons they have difficulty, but one of the main causes of reading comprehension problems is that students do not create vivid images as they read.

I often listen to students read.  Some students have difficulty with word recognition, but many do not.  When your child has little or no difficulty sounding out the words in the passage, but still has comprehension difficulty, the problem may be that he or she is not skillful with visual imagery.  And even if your child does have trouble sounding out words, he may still have difficulty with comprehension as well.

Researchers have noticed that students are not as adept at making pictures in their minds of the material they hear or read as they were years ago.  Perhaps the explosion of visual images all around us has a lot to do with that.  Kids are “fed” visual images from television, movies, magazines, and billboards.  They may not be getting as much practice in generating their own images.

Visualization is used by top athletes and performers as an effective tool for positive outcomes.  Research has shown that athletes who practice their sport only “on the field” do not reach the same levels of success as those who, in addition to practicing “on the field” also practice their sport “in their mind.”

The brain is highly adept at using visual information.  In fact, more brain area is devoted to vision than to any other sense.  The brain is also very good at using spatial information.  These abilities have come down to us through the millennia as a survival mechanism.  We are highly adept visual and spatial thinkers.

The “anchoring visualizations” strategy teaches students to create visual images, and then to “anchor” them to a particular spot in the room.  What’s so amazing about this technique is that students are using two innate abilities, vision and spatial understanding, and the strategy can be used when students are involved in class discussions, lectures, or independent reading to significantly increase students’ visualization ability and reading comprehension. 

Here’s how the “anchoring visualizations” technique works:

As students listen or read, they use their visualization ability to create “pictures” (I call them “mind movies”) of the information.  These images should include rich detail because more vivid images will be remembered better.

The student directs his or her attention to a particular spot in the room, for example, the door, the chalkboard, or a picture on the wall.

The spot has now become a place to anchor the visualizations created while reading or discussing the contents from a story or textbook.  The spot is the visual and spatial storing place associated with the parts of the story that need to be remembered.

To recall an important fact from the story, simply have the student look at the spot that anchors the information. 

Applying the “anchoring visualizations” technique

Since it will be Halloween soon, let’s apply this technique to the story, “Little Red Riding Hood.”  Although this is a story at the elementary level, the technique works for any information, at any level of sophistication.

The story begins as Little Red Riding Hood is asked by her mother to take some food to her grandmother, who loves Little Red Riding Hood so much she has given her a lovely red cape with a hood. 

For this part of the story, a student can choose a place in the room, let’s say the TV set.  While discussing or reading this part of the story, have your child look at the TV set and create a vivid image of a little girl.  Ask questions such as: how old is she, what color is her hair, how long is the cape, does she have her hood up on her head or not, what color are her eyes, what is she going to carry the food in, what shape is the container...etc.  The point of the questions is to teach your child how to create detailed images. 

For the next part of the story, have your child choose another location, such as the table, as you read or discuss the next section of the story and encourage your child to make vivid images by using questions to get the information to come to life.

In our example, this technique was applied to an elementary-level story, particularly because the story of Little Red Riding Hood is well-known.  But as I mentioned, it also works for middle school and high school content. 

I’ve used this approach to teach kids about DNA, the story line in Romeo and Juliet, and other high school level material.  It is an approach that works on any content, for learners of all ages, because it uses the concepts of locations in space combined with visual input, visual imagery, and language, making it a multi-sensory technique.  And multi-sensory techniques work better because they engage more than one part of the brain.

What are the characteristics of “vivid images”?

Use your questioning to help your child create memorable images.  What makes images memorable?  First and foremost—images should stimulate emotion (think of a crying man holding a limp child).  Another necessary quality is that images are unusual (try a blue dog).  Encourage your child to include other aspects of memorable imagery:  color, details and especially for kids of all ages—is the image gross!  Yes, I said gross (think of a snot sandwich).  The gross factor is very powerful for memory!

Intersections of Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence: Things to be aware of during Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October

by B. Bullard

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness month, a time for reflection and for increasing awareness about the high rate of intimate partner and familial violence that occurs in the U.S. and around the world.  As President Obama’s recent presidential proclamation indicates, despite many gains, “domestic violence remains a devastating public health crisis when one in four women will be physically or sexually assaulted by a partner at some point in her lifetime.”  It is also important to consider the many ways that human trafficking intersects with domestic violence.

Domestic violence is commonly considered a “push factor” for human trafficking.  Due to the increased vulnerability caused by an abusive relationship, victims of domestic violence can find themselves isolated and without access to the financial and emotional support needed to leave to a safe situation, which puts them at high risk for exploitation.  Domestic Violence can also be a push factor for those who become traffickers.  According to a recent study, 88% of the traffickers interviewed indicated that they had grown up in homes where domestic violence was present.

Physical abuse is not the only or most common form of abuse used in domestic violence and human trafficking. Typically psychological, emotional and economic abuses are more widespread. The Duluth Model Power and Control Wheel is a tool in the domestic violence field that examines the non-physical types of abuse that can occur in relationships such as economic control, using children, using threats, etc.  At Polaris Project, we have developed a similar tool called the Human Trafficking Power and Control Wheel that shows types of abuse found within various trafficking situations, many of which mirror that used in intimate partner and familial abuse.

Human trafficking and domestic violence can intersect in even more profound ways.   Intimate partners can force their partners into highly exploitative situations.  A partner can also be a human trafficker.  Intimate Partner Trafficking is not a type of trafficking that has been researched, prosecuted or discussed to the extent as other trafficking trends we see – but it does happen.  However, much like intimate partner rape, it is likely that this type of exploitation is highly underreported.   Familial Trafficking is another way that trafficking and domestic violence come into direct contact.  While it is difficult to believe that a mother, father, brother, sister could force a relative to engage in commercial sex or forced labor, this is a trend that we see in forced commercial sex situations as well as domestic servitude.

So this October while we strive to be more aware of domestic violence, we should also be aware of how it can impact our work in the anti-trafficking field and how important it is for all of us to work together to stop these abusive and exploitative crimes from occurring in our communities.