UKM Students Research Articles

Frekuensi Latihan Pliometrik (Push Up dan Pull Up) terhadap Prestasi Memanah

This article aims to examine the extent of the influence of the frequency of plyometric exercises (push ups and pull ups) on archery achievements of 30 meters distance in the STKIP Pasundan Archery UKM students in Cimahi. The research method used in this study is the experimental method, while the population and samples used in the study are students who are members of the UKM (Student Activity Unit) Archery STKIP Pasundan Cimahi. For research instruments or data collection tools used is the instrument used is to test arrow shots to the triangle target with a distance of 30 meters. The results of this study show that there is a significant effect of the frequency of plyometric exercises (push ups and pull ups) on archery achievements of 30 meters in distance from the UKM STKIP Pasundan Cimahi students. The calculation results show t = 6,703, p = 0,000 means significant. Thus the alternative hypothesis is accepted. This means that the frequency of plyometric exercises (push ups and pull ups) has a significant influence on archery achievements of 30 meters distance in the STKIP Pasundan Archery UKM students in Cimahi. The mean for the initial test and the final test shows a positive difference. Thus, there is a difference in archery achievements of 30 meters between before training and after training

The UKM Students Perception towards Cyber Security

The world moved to digital era tremendously. Therefore the societies need to aware on the issue related to the cyber security. The purpose of this study was to identify the student perception, knowledge and awareness regarding cyber security. The research found that the student perception, knowledge and awareness were average. Thus, some program, such as awareness seminar, courses should be driven to take in order to highlight the society concern about cyber security.

Screening of Three Different Alleles of mtDNA (G709A, G3496T, A3537G) in Subpopulation of UKM Students

Human DNA consists of nucleus DNA (nDNA) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). Both are valuable in medicine and forensic genetics but in this project, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in mtDNA are used to trace the mutation occurred. Mutations in the sequence of alleles can lead to haplogroup variation and also certain diseases. The purpose of this study is to screen of mutations on alleles G709A, G3496T, and A3537G in Malay population of The National University of Malaysia (UKM) students. These SNPs lie in the ND1 (nitrogen dehydrogenase subunit 1) coding region, and the reports state that these three alleles are prone to mutate. From MitoMap Web site, the mutations of these alleles are reported to have potential in causing several diseases with the collaboration of other SNPs mutation. Allele G709A is reported to have an association with hearing loss and Leber Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) while allele G3496T is associated to LHON only. Allele A3537G is related to diabetes. A total of 100 DNA samples were collected from Malay students of UKM and preserved on FTA card to be purified later. The concentration of the DNA on the purified FTA card was between 10μM to 20μM. An attempt was made by amplifying those three loci from the genomic DNA. The amplified product was detected and separated using 1% gel electrophoresis. Before sequencing, the PCR products were visualized under UV light using gel documentation system. All PCR products were sequenced to detect the mutation on every single position chosen. From the alignment of sequencing results, allele G709A and allele G3496T showed no mutation. Meanwhile four samples from alleles A3537G has the mutation. From the results obtained, it seems that mutations are rare in all selected alleles. It is recommended to increase the sample size and alleles selected in the future to increase the strength of the study. This study also should be applied to other populations in Malaysia such as Chinese and Indian.

Negativity as Criteria for Newsworthiness in Malaysian Newspaper Sports Corpus

This study is an attempt to identify criteria for newsworthiness in Malaysian sports newspapers. It also seeks to find out how the media shapes the perception of Malaysians through sports news stories. Employing a corpus-based approach, with The Reuters Corpus Volume 1 and Malaysian English Sports News Corpus, the researchers of the study conducted a thematic analysis to look for recurring patterns that would detect the criteria for newsworthiness in the headlines and content of the corpus. It was found that football dominates the pages of the newspaper, and negativity, reference to elite people and nations are the most prominent news values. The patterns of language reveal a very negative sports world in which achievement and winning are stressed at all cost. Players and coaches are pressured to do well or they risk losing their jobs. Scandals are running rampant in the sports world as cases of corruption, drug abuse and bad behaviors among athletes and coaches are consistently reported in the news. Following McKane’s (2014) categorization of newsworthiness criteria, and using snowballing sampling method, 85 UKM students were asked to show their criteria for newsworthiness on a questionnaire, which resulted in a mismatch between the news stories and the readers’ expectations.

Factors of Interacting with the Quran in Religious Life Appreciation Process among UKM Students

The Quran is indeed has been proven to be used as a therapy to get peace in daily lives, and the Quran is a remedy or an antidote for treating various diseases either physical or spiritual. Miracles revealed to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH are the Muslim holy book that does not have any similarity at all with other scriptures. However, the condition that often occurs particularly among students and raising concerns of many parties when the students less interact with the Quran. Therefore, this study aims to answer the question about what is the extent of students’ involvement and the difference between male and female students of UKM themselves in terms of interacting with the Quran? This descriptive quantitative study was conducted using questionnaire form that was designed by the researcher. Analysis of this research applied descriptive method of frequencies and also t-test with the aid of SPSS program. The findings of this study clearly show that the faith interaction and practice subfactors resulted in higher mean scores, while the other six interaction subfactors with the Quran are at the mean scores that tended to be higher. Next, the t-test results clearly show that there are significant differences in terms of interaction with the Quran among male and female UKM students. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n4s3p606

Using Diacritics in the Arabic Script of Malay to Scaffold Arab Postgraduate Students in Reading Malay Words

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the use of diacritics in the Arabic script of Malay to facilitate Arab postgraduate students of UKM to read the Malay words accurately. It is hypothesised that the Arabic script could facilitate the reading of Malay words among the Arab students because of their earlier exposure to the Arabic script in comparison to the Romanised script. Method – Twelve Arabic fi rst language speakers participated in a reading experiment that used DMDX, a Win 32-based display system for psychological experiments, to investigate whether or not Arabic vowel diacritics can facilitate Arabic fi rst language speakers to read Malay words accurately. A total of 100 Malay bi-syllabic words were used as stimuli in three different forms: 1) Arabic script without diacritics; 2) Arabic script with diacritics; and 3) Romanised script. The participants’ responses and reaction times were recorded to analyse accuracy and speed. Findings – Arabic first language speakers were more accurate when reading words in Arabic script of Malay with diacritics and when reading Romanised script than when reading Arabic words without diacritics. Arabic speakers read Malay words faster in Arabic script without diacritics and in Romanised scripts than when reading words in Arabic script with diacritics. Significance – This study shows that the use of a more familiar script to a certain extent does facilitate language learners to produce the target language more accurately compared to using a less familiar script. Hence, educators should explore any possible means to scaffold learners in their learning process.

Comparison between Science and Technology and Social Science Students’ Understanding towards General Studies

Amid the fact that general studies have been regarded as a holistic education and that they are capable in producing all-rounders, in Malaysia specifically we have only met with the paucity of research that has automatically impeded any validation of the fact. In UKM for instance, the concept of general studies begins simultaneously with the establishment, but just how far it is effective is open to debate. In generality, it can be said that both students and the faculty have underestimated the significance of general study courses. The emphasis on the broadening of this general studies in principle is consistent with the aspirations of liberal education at the initial phase of the establishment of the UKM, which is towards creating graduates who can think laterally and in balance. This study seeks to analyse the views of UKM students on how they understand the philosophy and importance of general studies. This study involves 400 respondents who were chosen among third year students who have registered for the courses. The study data were obtained through a questionnaire using the SPSS program. Descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, cross-tabulation statistics, and correlation coefficient were employed to explain respondents backgrounds and assess students’ views on generic skill courses. The study outcome demonstrates that students have regarded highly over the generic skill courses, in general. There has been an insignificant difference between social science and science and technology students. Based on the study findings, several suggestions have been put forth for the improvement of generic skill courses so that it will produce students who have generic skills needed for the workplace market.

Communication Skills and its Impact on the Marketability of UKM Graduates

Organizations have always placed emphasis on the public’s voices as an effort to continue enhancing their service towards society. University’s performance and its relevance in a nation is highly dependent on the marketability of its students. The ability to widely distribute their students and to heighten their mobility in society and in the work field importantly reflects the overall performance of the University. The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia placed eight compulsory soft skills courses every student has to pass before they can graduate. This was done to ensure that all of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s students are exposed with all dimensions of soft skills throughout their studies as they play a crucial role in enhancing students’ marketability. Perceptions from 35 final year students, 2 lecturers, 3 Private Sector representative and 20 first year students towards the beneficial roles of these skills were conducted via interview. It’s agreeable that communication skills are the most favorable to determine the marketability of UKM students. Low command of both Bahasa Melayu and English are one of the contributing factors to this. UKM graduates are seen to be less sensitive towards recent issues around the world thus they’re not confident to participate in a group discussion. This article will reveal problems and strategic ways to encounter challenges, by enriching UKM students with different learning experiences of good communication skills and its impact towards their marketability after they graduate.

Arabic Language Courses for Students at the Faculty of Law UKM - Importance and Challenges

One of the objectives of Law Faculty of National University of Malaysia known as Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (henceforth UKM) is to produce trained and capable graduates in multiple fields of law and practice, including Islamic law. UKM uses two medium of instruction in teaching; Malay language and English. Arabic language is not directly used in teaching law students but they will be exposed to Arabic terms and references in Islamic law courses. In four years of study, students of the Law Faculty at UKM have to sit for 8 Islamic law courses such as Introduction to Islamic Law, Islamic Criminal Law, Islamic Family Law, Islamic Jurisprudence and Evidence and Procedures in the Syariah Court. To enable the students to master the Islamic law courses, they have to learn the Arabic language in 3 semesters within the first two years of their study. Many questions have been posed as to the relevance of studying the Arabic language for students in FacultyofLawat UKM. This paper serves to answer such questions. The purpose of this paper is to explain the importance of teaching Arabic language to the students of Law Faculty UKM. A brief overview of the implementation of teaching Arabic to the law students in UKM is provided. The relevance of studying Arabic language is explained and discussed. This paper also identifies some of the challenges faced in teaching Arabic to law students especially to the non-Muslims. The paper concludes with some recommendations for future improvement.

Listening to German Native and Non-native Speakers: An Evaluation of Students’ Comprehension

Acquiring the German language in a non-native environment is a challenge to the students in UKM because the surroundings do not promote a conducive atmosphere for the students to communicate in the language. The students rely solely on their time in class to practice the four skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. One of the most problematic skills to acquire is listening as the students are exposed to native German speakers only from the listening CD accompanying the text book ‘Studio D’. The previous research conducted by the instructor revealed that the students have difficulties in listening to native German speakers. However, the instructor could not determine whether articulation and accent of a native speaker, content difficulty or effect of background noise was the main factor leading to the problem. Thus, this research aims to evaluate the ability of the students to understand the dialogues spoken by native and non-native German speakers. For this research, authentic recordings of native and non-native speakers speaking were used as listening material. Students were divided into two groups: the first group listened to dialogues by native speakers and the second group listened to the same dialogue by non-native speakers. The students were then asked to answer multiple-choice and open task questions corresponding to the dialogues. It was found that the students who listened to the dialogues by non-native speakers performed slightly better. This suggests that the students‟ comprehension does not rely solely on native or non-native speakers but there are other contributing factors like contents and type of questions.

Vous ou tu?: Towards Understanding the Politeness Concept in French

Politeness strategies in French have a primary goal of establishing and maintaining good social relationships between fellow members of the community. They are determined based on the principles of savoir vivre, literally translated as the knowledge of living, and savoir faire, the ability to say or do the right thing. In general, students taking French face difficulty in understanding the use of the pronoun Vous and Tu. This indicates that they do not master the concept of politeness in this language. Many studies have been made on this issue but none was done among students in Malaysia. In this study conducted among UKM students, questionnaire was distributed to identify the existing problem and intervention strategies, such as the use of flashcards and oral drills in role-plays were carried out. Implications derived from this study on the teaching and learning of the French language is that researchers are able to identify strategies to address the problems faced by students and to come up with a method that can be used in teaching to facilitate students’ understanding of the concept. Once this concept is clearly understood, this in turn will boost students’ confidence to converse in French.

RECONSTRUCTING THE IDEA OF PRAYER SPACE: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE TEMPORARY PRAYING PLATFORM PROJECT OF 2ND YEAR ARCHITECTURE STUDENTS IN THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MALAYSIA (UKM)

<p><strong>A</strong><strong>bstract</strong></p> <p>God created human as caliph on this earth. Caliph means leader, care-taker and guardian. Therefore humans have an obligation to maintain, preserve and conserve this natural for future generations. Today we see a lot of damage that occurs in the earth caused by human behavior. Islam saw the whole of nature as a place of prayer that must be maintained its cleanliness and purity. Therefore as Muslims we need to preserve nature as we keep our place of prayer. The main objective of this paper is to re-questioning and re-interpreting the idea of sustainability in Islamic Architecture through a critical analysis of first project of 2nd year architecture student of UKM which is the “Temporary Praying Platform”. The discussion itself will be divided into three (3) main parts. The first part will be discussing contemporary issues in Islamic Architecture especially in the design of Mosques while the second part will expand the framework of sustainability in Islamic Architecture. The last part will be analyzing some sample of design submission by 2nd year students of UKM on the temporary praying platform project. It is expected that this paper can start a further discussion on the inner meaning in Islam and how it was implemented in the design of praying spaces in the future.</p> <p><strong>K</strong><strong>e</strong><strong>y</strong><strong>w</strong><strong>ords</strong>: Sustainability, Islamic Architecture, Temporary Praying Platform</p><br /><p><strong>A</strong><strong>bstrak</strong></p> <p>Tuhan menciptakan manusia sebagai khalifah di muka bumi ini. Khalifah berarti pemimpin, penjaga dan wali. Oleh karena itu, manusia memiliki kewajiban untuk memelihara, menjaga dan melestarikan alam ini untuk generasi mendatang. Sekaranginikitatelahmelihat banyak kerusakan yang terjadi di bumi yang disebabkan oleh perilaku manusia itu sendiri yang disebutkan sebagai khalifah di bumi. Islam melihat seluruh alam sebagai tempat beribadah yang harus dijaga kebersihan dan kemurniannya, oleh karena itu, sebagai umat Islam adalah perlu melestarikan alam seperti menjaga tempat ibadah mereka. Tujuan utama dari makalah ini adalah untuk mempertanyakan dan menafsirkan kembali gagasan keberlanjutan (sustainable) dalam Arsitektur Islam melalui analisis kritis tugas pertama dari mahasiswa arsitektur angkatan tahun kedua dari Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), yaitu tugas perancangan " tempat beribadah sementara "atau “<em>temporary praying platform</em>” . Kajiandibagi menjadi tiga bagian utama. Bagian pertama akan membahas isu-isu kontemporer dalam Arsitektur Islam terutama dalam desain masjid. Kajian kedua adalah kerangka keberlanjutan dalam arsitektur Islam. Bagian ketiga adalah analisis dari beberapa sampel pengajuan desain oleh mahasiswa. Diharapkan tulisan ini dapat memulai diskusi lebih lanjut tentang makna batin dalam Islam dan bagaimana penerapannya dalam desain ruang beribadah yang sustainable.</p> <p><strong>K</strong><strong>at</strong><strong>a kunci</strong>:Keberlanjutan, Arsitektur Islam, tempat beribadah sementara</p> <p> </p>

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Learning Contract Course: Experience and Performance of the First Cohort

Research from different parts of the world recognizes the effectiveness of a learning contract course in improving the personal skills of students. Therefore, UKM has chosen this approach to improve the personal soft skills of its students. The university has carried out this approach by making HHHC9118-Soft Skills as a compulsory course for all students. This course requires the students to implement a project or activity in accordance with a written contract that they plan together with their instructors. Moreover, the students are awarded with eight credit hours after taking up this course. This research evaluated the effectiveness of the learning contract course in developing the soft skills of the 2,378 participants, who had already finished the course. A literature review and a survey were conducted to obtain the data. The questionnaire contained 10 statements, which were either positive or negative, that asked about the self-esteem levels of the respondents. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software. The results showed the respondents positively interpreted all the statements in the questionnaire, which proved that a learning contract successfully improved the soft skills and self-esteem of UKM students. Therefore, this approach effectively improved the soft skills of the students.

Physical Activity, Aerobic Fitness and Body Composition among Students in Malaysia and Libya

The purpose of this study is to compare the physical activity (PA), exercise time and Body Composition, Body Mass Index (BMI), % Body fat (%BF) and aerobic fitness (VO2max) among students in the Faculty of Education UKM Malaysia and Faculty of Education Sabha University Libya (SUL). Respondents drawn from both faculties of education of the two institutions were of average age between 18-25 years. Four-site skinfold thicknesses and Queen’s College Step Test (QCT) were used to determine the percentage body fat (%BF) and aerobic fitness (VO2max) respectively. Physical activity pattern and health status were also assessed by means of the seven days activity of self-reported questionnaire. The study showed a significant difference in terms of moderate (8.59 hrs/wk, 7.48 hrs/wk; t=-3.3, p=.001) and vigorous (4.3 hrs/wk, 6.3 hrs/wk; (t= -7.7, p= .000) time spent in exercising. This also similar with scores for BMI (SUL: m = 22.2; UKM: m = 24.4) and %BF (SUL: m = 13.6%; UKM: m = 16.3%) among students of both SUL (Libya) and UKM (Malaysia). However, analyses revealed that there was no significant difference in VO2max between student-teachers of SUL and UKM (t= -.99, p = .324). This study concludes that participants score an above average of 44 ml.kg -¹ .min -¹ that are considered as being in good fitness and good health. Although SUL students scored lower BMI and less %BF than participants from UKM who reported engaging more time in vigorous physical activity, SUL participants spent significant time in moderate exercises. Lifestyle among student-teachers of UKM Malaysia and SUL Libya did not differ in terms of aerobic fitness but showed significant influence of moderate exercises towards BMI and %BF as for Libyan participants spent more time in moderate activities like walking and gardening.

Frequency Analysis of Personality Development in Malaysian Engineering Students Influenced by German Sojourn

The required personality sets of engineering graduates are always associated with the needs of the working market. These personality sets could be gained and moulded by the engineering graduates based on the academic landscape, curricular activities, and the social environment to which the students are exposed. With the establishment of the double-degree programme between the National University of Malaysia (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, UKM) and the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE, Germany), there is interest to compare the personality outcome acquired by the UKM students who participated in the double-degree programme (UKM-UDE) to the students who chose to continue their education to completion in UKM. Hence, this study aims to compare both groups of students in a frequency method using the Big Five Inventory (BFI) survey. Graphically analysed BFI data collected from filled questionnaires by the students displays the scores of the parameter “agreeableness” marked by the participants of both groups of samples. The frequency analysis of personality development in the UKM engineering students exhibits an increase in scoring of extraversion domain while showing small changes on other domain scores such as agreeableness, openness and conscientiousness. This resulted from the purely UKM study environment (i.e., curricular activities, academic landscape, and social environment). On the other hand, the frequency analysis of personality development in the UKM-UDE students displays an increase in openness domain although with slight decrease in the agreeableness domain. Such personality development is presumably due to exposure of the international study environment in UDE, Germany. The results from both sets of student samples are compared and discussed.

Students’ Generic Skills at The National University of Malaysia and The National University of Indonesia

This study examined the students’ generic skills (communication, IT, numeracy, learning how to learn, problem solving, working with others, and subject-specific competencies) at the National University of Malaysia (UKM) and the National University of Indonesia (UI). Students’ self-reports demonstrated that UI students rated their generic skills higher than UKM students, and that among business management students, those at UKM rated their skills higher than those at UI, while in the economics department, UI students gave higher scores than UKM students. Multiple regression analysis showed that subject-specific competencies, learning how to learn, and numeracy were significantly associated with UI students’ academic achievement.

Awareness and Socialisation of Consumer Rights Among UKM Students

Youth is often the target of marketers. This is due to the fact that youth constitute a huge volume in society and their buying behaviour is easily influenced through media and peers. Many companies target to satisfy the youth consumers’ needs and wants. As young consumers, youths are not always having the right tools to assess their wants and adjust to their buying capacity. When students in the university are already having low amount of pocket money, it is a challenge to spend the money wisely. Previous studies have shown that university students are attracted to having credit cards and tend to overspend to the extent of being declared bankrupt even before starting a career and paid job. In an attempt to avoid the fallacy of shopping sprees and being indebted, it is important that the young consumers have adequate knowledge on their consumer rights. This paper is based on research conducted in 2011, funded by the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism. The sample comprises of 1008 students randomly selected at campus amenities’ areas and also the halls of residence, answering self administered close-ended questionnaire. Likert scale data was analysed using the SPSS 20 program to acquire mean scores and chi-square values. Respondents’ perception ranking of acquiring consumer rights was high for basic needs, while consumer values was moderate and the consumer socialisation was overall rated good.

The Body Weight Perception and Weight Control Behaviors among Undergraduate Students in National University of Malaysia (UKM)

This study was conducted to evaluate the associations between Body Mass Index (BMI), body weight perception and weight control behaviors among the undergraduate students in UKM and to identify gender differences in BMI, body weight perception and weight control behaviors between males and female students. A total of 200 subjects of UKM students have participated in (50% males and 50% females). Subjects involved were in the range of 20 to 25 years old. Information about socio-demographic, body image perception, body shape, weight control behaviors were obtained by questionnaire. Anthropometric measurements of body weight and height were also taken. The mean for age, weight, height and BMI were 22.2±1.4 years, 69.1±13.4 kg, 1.7±0.1 m and 23.3±4.1 kg/m respectively for males while 22.5±1.4 years 2 56.8±14.8 kg, 1.5±0.1 m and 22.2±4.7 kg/m for females respectively. There were significant differences in 2 weight, height and BMI between males and females (p<0.05). Based on BMI categories (WHO, 2004), the results showed that 16.5% of the total subjects were classified as underweight, 57.0% normal weight, 17.0% overweight and 9.5% obese. Results showed that the actual weight (BMI) of subjects was significantly related to the body weight perception in overall (p<0.05) and also for both sexes (p<0.05). There were also a significant differences between actual body weight (BMI) (p<0.05) and body weight perception (p<0.05) with weight control behaviors in overall and in both sexes. Understanding the reasons for gender differences in actual weight and body weight perception can help health professionals in helping people to make strategic decisions to control body weight.

Teaching Science and Mathematics in English Steering Mastery in English Language Amongst Sciences Students in UKM

This study was conducted to ascertain teaching Science and Mathematics in English will enhance English proficiency amongst the science stream students in UKM. The study found that the students agreed that the teaching of Science and Mathematics in English can improve their English proficiency. The results showed that teaching Science and Mathematics in English is capable of being a driven force in mastering basic English language and communication, and also in improving the explanation of the concept of Science and Mathematics in English.

Managing Student's Grades and Attendance Records using Google Forms and Google Spreadsheets

Google Spreadsheet is a powerful tool to manage student record online. It is more than a Web 2.0 version of Microsoft Excel as it performs many functions that are not available in Excel. One of many uses of Google Spreadsheetsthat could be useful to lecturers is managing students’ grades and attendance online. In this paper the author wishes to present his innovative ways of managing students’ grades and attendance records using the wonder of Google Spreadsheet. In order to experiment with the Google way of doing things, the author embarked on a self-directed learning journey of discovering the functionality of the tools. By immersing himself with hundreds of syntax used to create functions in Google Spreadsheet, he managed to create a number of potential useful innovations, one of which is the management of students’ grade and attendance record. In this paper, he wishes to share his recent experience of experimenting the innovation with a group of students in UKM. In conclusion, Google Forms and Spreadsheet not only offer the more innovative ways of of managing students ‘grades and attendance records but also provide a useful platform for exploring and experimenting with Google Spreadsheets’ functions.