-NiE ,
ADVANCED Respect
11
29 MARCH 2017
Ownership, respect and responsibility
TAKING pride in the neatness and orderliness of your room is something you may have found your parents trying to instil in you. The ripple effect is intended to spill over into simple gestures like washing your own cup after use or rather picking up after yourself. How impressed would your neighbour be if you placed your shoes neatly at the front door when you paid him a visit as opposed to simply tossing your shoes in a pile! What’s the importance of being good stewards of other people’s and your belongings? It all boils down to living the golden rule. As Wikipedia puts it: It’s the law of reciprocity. It is the principle of treating others as one would wish to be treated oneself. It is a maxim of altruism seen in many human religions and human cultures.
NiE Activity
Learning to respect property can be broken down into the following: • Ask before borrowing something, instead of taking it without permission • If you do borrow something, take care of it as if it were your own • If you break something, own up to it with an apology, then repair or replace it.
Story 1: Vandals target fire hydrants KUCHING: The state Fire and Rescue Department has spent over RM2.5mil in the past six years to repair 2,599 broken fire hydrants due to vandalism. State Fire and Rescue Department director Nor Hisham Mohammad said the department spent an average of RM400,000 over the last two years fixing and repairing 202 and 195 units respectively. Last year, the department repaired 205 hydrants to enable it to operate using an alternative hydrant adapter. Among the major types of damage were broken spindle valve, leaking hydrant, missing chamber cap and missing outlet pillar thread, Nor Hisham said.
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The Star, Jan 6, 2017
Story 3: Cops seek motorcyclist in road rage episode GEORGE TOWN: A motorcyclist created a scene when he repeatedly kicked a car along busy Jalan Magazine in a road rage incident. The man was also heard shouting profanities at the driver in a two-minute video which has been widely circulated in cyberspace. It is learnt that both the motorcyclist and the driver nearly had an accident earlier while travelling along Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling. During the 11.30am incident yesterday, the motorcyclist also smashed the car’s side mirror before throwing a RM5 note at the driver as compensation. He gave chase on his machine when the driver drove off and continued with his harassment by repeatedly hitting the car with his helmet. The Star, Jan 9, 2017
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Once you have done so, gather in groups of four and exchange opinions. As you do so, think of some actions that could be taken to improve the situation presented in each article. Finally, write a 350-word opinion piece based on your discussion. Use these questions to guide you:
1. What can you do to make this a more respectful world? 2. Does respect play a role in living harmoniously in society? Explain. 3. Do you think that people in our society are respectful enough of each other? Why? 4. Do you consider yourself to be a respectful person? Why, or why not? In what ways do you show respect to others? Use one example from any of the articles to substantiate your point(s).
5. How is respect related to the golden rule and to violence? 6. What are the benefits of people treating each other with respect?
Critical thinking
● Identify ● Reason ● Measure ● Organise
Creative thinking
Problem solving
● Imagine ● Brainstorm ● Connect ● Invent
● Question ● Research ● Recreate ● Present
Here are stories of vandalism that appeared in The Star. You will find a thermometer next to each story. Rate the severity of the vandalism describing situations in which a person damages the property of another. Use a pen to mark an arrow (or colour one in). (Rating: 1 for less severe, 10 for extremely severe.)
Story 2: Vandalism of hall puts JKKK members on high alert THE Byram Village Development and Security Committee (JKKK) members in Nibong Tebal, Penang, are on the alert after their hall was vandalised. Its secretary V. Chanrasegaran said the break-in was discovered when he visited the hall in the morning. “I noticed that the front grille and door were opened and a window pane was shattered when I arrived. I went inside the hall and found the air-conditioner and its fuse box were also damaged. I believe the thieves were looking for valuables and tried to remove the air-conditioner but failed,” he said. “There are also no CCTV cameras around the building. We have classified the case as vandalism as nothing was taken.”
Communicating ● Oral ● Written ● Aural
Collaborating ● Listen ● Contribute respectfully ● Compromise
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The Star, Jan 17, 2017
Story 4: Ipoh mayor: No permission given for signboard stunt IPOH: The mayor has denied that permission was given to a group of youths to scale the city signboard, whose pictures and video of the feat have since gone viral. Speaking to reporters during the New Year countdown on Saturday night, Datuk Zamri Man said he had checked with the council and no approval was ever given. “We got to know through a website that the youths had put their lives at risk by climbing the signboard. We only allow contractors to scale the hill for maintenance works and even then, they have to follow the safety regulations set by us,” he said. The photos, which were posted on Instagram on Friday, saw several youths scaling the hill and pitching a hammock on the signboard. On Saturday, the council issued a strongly-worded statement, saying that the signboard was off-limits and that it had never allowed anyone to climb it because it was dangerous. “I don’t know why they wanted to do it. It’s dangerous. They can be fined. This is vandalism. What if the signboard topples or gets damaged? The hill is 20m high and lives are at stake.” The Star, Jan 2, 2017
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