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New Appointments

New Appointments ReLex welcomes all new staff members

Shireen Savage A’Level Lecturer (Business Studies)

Shireen joined ATC in May 2012. She teaches Business Studies for the A’Level Department. Previously engaged to an esteemed corporate organisation where she has trained and facilitated many business programs, Shireen brings along these skills with her to further enhance her teaching methods in the A’Level Department. She is known for her dedication in educating students.

Edmund teaches Law of Trust, Law of Contract, Common Law Reasoning and Institutions and Jurisprudence.

With more than 15 years of teaching experience under his belt, he is definitely an exciting addition to the LL.B department. He enjoys reading, collecting comics, playing music and creative writing.

Edmund Lau LL.B Lecturer

Michelle teaches Common Law Reasoning and Institutions, Law of Contract and Criminology for the LL.B department. She also teaches the Contract Law module for the B.A (hons) Management Studies programme. An avid writer and reader who previously participated in moot competitions, she enjoys adding new languages to her arsenal and entertaining unusual contemplations.

Hui Ting teaches Criminal Law, Public Law, Commercial Law and Conflict of Laws. A former president of the Rotaract Club of ATC, she is an active leader and a great influence to them. She is a running enthusiast and a regular gym goer who runs almost every amateur marathon available in the country.

Hee Hui Ting LL.B Lecturer

Michelle Chong LL.B Lecturer Sara teaches Intellectual Property , European Union , Evidence and Contract in ATC. A huge gadget fan, he considers it a great joy to hold all the new gadgets in one’s hands right after its release.

Apart from that he enjoys reading law textbooks especially those regarding notes on evidence.

Sara Mahendran LL.B Lecturer

Shizreen sailed from island of Penang and has landed on our shores. Having just five years of teaching experience, she is an expert in Family Law, Tort, Common Law, and English Legal System (ELS). Shizreen is also cat lover and dreams on opening a cattery.

Shizreen Farina LL.B & A’Level (Law) Lecturer Uma teaches the Certificate in Business Studies and B.A (hons) Management Studies programme. From the royal town of Perak, she is the latest addition to the School of Business & Management. She takes pride in her job and enjoys snapping picturesque sceneries in her free time.

Uma Murthy, Business School Lecturer

Bala teaches Marketing as well as some of the Management modules for the School of Business & Management. A cool and relaxed person, Bala always encourages his students to think outside the box. He is devoted fan of Albet Einstein’s quote.

Balaraman Rajendran, Business School Lecturer

“It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.”

Feature

Recipient of Malaysian Law Scholarship to King College University of London

Editor…s Note

It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wings can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.

Recently, I became obsessed with storms; videos, books and highlights on hurricanes, tropical storms, typhoons …anything capturing the union of spirals of water, flashes of lighting and the booming of thunder.

I was following the progress of Hurricane Leslie and Michael that moved across the Atlantic Ocean and affected various coastal regions on that side of the globe. It occurred to me that these sometimes catastrophic incidents must have started from somewhere.

With the help of the “New Age” God, I came across an interesting video (BBC News The Birth of Hurricanes) on how hurricanes are formed.

B

eing offered a full scholarship to King’s College, London was much unexpected and the call that I received early one Saturday morning informing me about the good news was a yearlong wish come true. All the hard work that I had put in throughout the year had paid off! During my first year of the LLB programme, my favourite subject besides Criminal Law was actually Public Law which of course is all about the United Kingdom which I found to be very interesting and intriguing. It is no doubt then that I am so excited and very much looking forward to come to the very place I had only studied about and experience it all first-hand! This opportunity means a lot to me as it was something that I was working towards from the start and I am now in a place where I once only fantasized myself being. Words cannot describe how thrilled and elated I am to be studying law at THE place where it all originated from. The whole situation is so surreal and I hope that I will be able to take it all in the short two years that I will be living in London.

I chose to study the LLB with the University of London because I knew that it is a very much sought after degree and would open more doors for me in the legal fraternity. Receiving the King’s scholarship has further proven that I had made the right choice. I hope to gain a wealth of knowledge and have an unforgettable 2 years not only academically but also from being in a whole new exciting place with new friends and memories that I would cherish for a lifetime! by, Navini Rajikumara Currently studying at University of London

The birth of a hurricane requires at least three conditions. First, the ocean waters must be warm enough at the surface to put enough heat and moisture into the overlying atmosphere to provide the potential fuel for the thermodynamic engine that a hurricane becomes. Second, atmospheric moisture from sea water evaporation must combine with that heat and energy to form the powerful engine needed to propel a hurricane. Third, a wind pattern must be near the ocean surface to spiral air inwards. Bands of thunderstorms form, allowing the air to warm further and rise higher into the atmosphere. If the winds at these higher levels are relatively light, this structure can remain intact and grow stronger: the beginnings of a hurricane!

Often, the feature that triggers the development of a hurricane is some pre-existing weather disturbance in the tropical circulation.

For example, some of the largest and most destructive hurricanes originate from weather disturbances that form as squall lines over Western Africa and subsequently move westward off the coast and over warm water, where they gradually intensify into hurricanes.

The video captures an incredibly interesting notion. “A small disturbance –originating perhaps from the footprints of a child, can stir up the fascinating of storms” the video narrates.

I find this notion parallel to the paths each individual takes. We don’t stop to think at times how a small gesture, a word uttered out of anger, a simple handshake, an oblivious gaze at someone or some incident could all gather up into something enormous. Life threatening or salvaging, I guess it is up to us to figure it out.

On another note, this edition of ReLex, we cooked up a storm for you! Be sure to catch the latest updates on our energetic Rotaractors.

Be blown away by Ms Meera’s article on S114A of the Evidence Act 1950. Ponder, in the eye of the storm, on the link between Law as Emotion by Ms Michelle Chong. Also, look out for the latest ingredient for our Soup of the Day: English served with a fresh start.

I wish you all a happy reading as you seek shelter through any “storms of Life” that you may endure.

Faithfully Yours,

Felicia Ann Editor-in-Chief

*ReLex congratulates Navini on her success and wishes her all the best in all her endeavours. Hope you packed extra sweaters for your stay there.

Editorial Assistant

Graphic Designer

Charlene Singh

Aizat Hilmi

Law as Emotion

Law as Emotion:

The Missing Link (Part One) by, Michelle Chong LL.B Lecturer

The writer, during the course of her research, has sought to come up with a new theory that may be developed as a stand alone theory, or at the very least, complement or perfect all other pre-existing theories as studied in the University of London LL.B syllabus – A theory of law as emotion.

The study of Jurisprudence has always concerned itself with the persistent question of what is law. Eminent jurists have suggested many theories with regard to the nature of this elusive “phenomena” called “law. Some have suggested that law is to be found inherently in our nature, some propose that law is that which the sovereign lays down as a set of commands, and some even go on to suggest that law is an ideology used by the bourgeois to dominate the proletariats. Their endeavours, in the writer’s opinion, are strongly reminiscent of the story of Indian origin where several blind men were told to feel and subsequently describe an elephant. Likewise, there was no set definition of the province of jurisprudence or law’s empire and eminent jurists have tried to provide definitions based on their personal perspective. This is perhaps, why many jurists are generally to be studied within the particular context of their environmental upbringing and the era they lived in, such as Austin. The writer submits that these theories are not entirely incorrect, but believes that perchance, there is a wider picture that has silently escaped notice, a theory that transcends the ages and serves as the Missing Link to preexisting theories – law as emotion.

In her attempt to prove her theory of law as emotions, the writer was interested to note that Thomas Hobbes had in fact unwittingly used emotions as a base for developing his theory that law is a social contract between the people of the government. This is evidenced in his book, Leviathan, of which the relevant extract is reproduced in page 24 of the 2012 edition of the University of London subject guide: “I say the similitude of ‘passions,’ which are the same in all men, ‘desire,’ ‘fear,’ ‘hope,’ etc.; not the similitude of the ‘objects’ of the passions, which are the things ‘desired,’ ‘feared,’ ‘hoped,’ etc.: for these the constitution individual, and particular education, do so vary, and they are so easy to be kept from our knowledge, that the characters of man’s heart, blotted and confounded as they are with dissembling, lying, counterfeiting, and erroneous doctrines, are legible only to Him that searcheth hearts. And though by men’s actions we do discover their design sometimes, yet to do it without comparing them with our own, and distinguishing all circumstances, by which the case may come to be altered, is to decipher without a key, and be for the most part deceived, by too much trust or by too much diffidence; as he that reads is himself a good or evil man.”

In page 25 of the aforementioned guide, Thomas Hobbes went on to suggest that desire, hope, and anticipation were prominent reasons that lead to his formation of law as a social contract. Furthermore, page 56 goes on to discuss “Emotivists” as an argument against Finnis’ Natural Law theory, where emotivists are people that “believe that what we call our moral beliefs are ultimately just expressions of our emotional attitudes”. Emotions have traditionally been considered rather “unscientific” due to their temperamental nature varying from person to person, but recent research has suggested otherwise and many scientists have indeed studied emotions as a scientific school of thought. However, the writer digresses, for it is the essence of emotions as a pre-existing, undeniable fact that forms the basis of her theory of law as emotions.

Piero Scaruffi, one of the cognitive scientists involved in the study of emotions, claims in his book, “The Nature of Consciousness” (2006): “It can be argued that we would not consider a conscious being who cannot feel emotions, no matter how intelligent it is and no matter how much its body resembles ours”. Undeniably, each and every one of us will be subject to emotions of varying degrees and types at any given time.

The Theory Having established that emotions do exist as a fact, the writer thus seeks to answer the age-old question of what is law by submitting that law is the result of emotions, as opposed to being the result of a social contract, the result of moral beliefs, and the like. To give an example, during the prehistoric era, it could be argued that cavemen did whatever they felt like doing. By using H.L.A Hart’s description of the evolution of societies, perhaps, one could imagine several cavemen being assigned tasks such as hunting or cooking. Assuming one caveman refuses to do his assigned task, the other cavemen may start to harbour feelings of resentment or consider it to be unjust. They may discuss it among themselves and thus decide to punish idle caveman by not giving him any dinner that evening. This is similarly relevant in today’s context – for example, consider the problem of trespass and theft. If, for example, a stranger walks into one’s house and decides to appropriate one’s laptop because said stranger has taken a fancy to it, certainly, emotions will be aroused within the “victim”.

If said stranger made a habit of doing every single day, the victims will feel upset and eventually, the government will realise there is a need to legislate against such actions in order to keep the general public happy. The writer argues that it is our emotions that lead to the creation of law, that communal emotions are the result and cause of law.

In further editions of ReLex, the writer will continue to discuss how law as emotions directly complements or enhances pre-existing conventional theories as expounded by notable jurists such as Thomas Hobbes, Marx, H.L.A. Hart, and Jeremy Bentham.

Evidence Act ALL INTERNET USERS BEWARE !

Burden of Proof on the account owner: Presumptions and the Recent Evidence (Amendment) (No. 2) ( S114A of the Evidence Act 1950) How does it affect you? The Internet is a friend and foe; a boon and a bane. A paradox in terms. In an increasingly global village, parameters of space, time and geography have become redundant. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter have made us into both tweeters and twits. What is becoming increasingly disturbing, however, is the growing number of unseen predators, bullies and stalkers who appear to be cocooned in the apparent safety of that final frontier, cyber space.

The bully could easily create a fictitious Facebook account and lure victims to his profile (particularly young and impressionable children or teenagers). Or he could indulge in simple bullying, which can be highly damaging. Now imagine if he does this, but on YOUR Facebook account. He enters a threatening / hate / defamatory / racially damaging / seditious (the list goes on) post on your account and the whole world thinks that it was YOU who did it. Who is liable in such a circumstance ?

If you can produce witnesses to say that you were nowhere near your computer or any other communicating device at the time the message was sent out, you may be able to get off. But a flat denial (from the accused) alone will no longer be enough today. This is because there has been a recent amendment to the Evidence Act 1950, which is Section 114 (A) of the Evidence (Amendment) (No.2) Act 2012, and which came into effect recently in June 2012.Some of the effects of the amendment, as listed below, have serious repercussions on us.

You could get into trouble if : ▶ You have a blog and someone posts a comment-you are deemed to have published it unless the contrary is proven. ▶ You have a Facebook account and a user posts something on your “Wall”, you are deemed to have published it (unless the contrary is proven).

▶ You have a home network with a few housemates sharing one Internet account. You are deemed to be the publisher (unless the contrary is proven) even though one of your housemates posts something offensive online. ▶ You have a wireless network at home but you did not secure your network. You are deemed to be the publisher (unless the contrary is proven) even though someone “piggybacks” your network to post something offensive. ▶ You have a party at home and allow your friends to access your PC or wireless network. You are deemed to be the publisher (unless the contrary is proven)even though it was a friend who posted something offensive. ▶ Someone uses your phone or tablet to post something offensive. You are deemed to be the publisher unless the contrary is proven. ▶ Someone “Tweetjacks” or “Facejacks” you or updates your Twitter/ Facebook account with something offensive, you are deemed to be the publisher unless the contrary is proven.

Although some critics have viewed this as being unfair in that it infringes the basis principle of adversarial justice that one is innocent until proven guilty, (as the amendment transfers the burden of proof on to the accused); supporters argue that the amendment is necessary as there are at the moment insufficient laws to curb offensive and criminal messages on the internet.

Often, the perpetrator goes uncaught. It is argued that the amendment will lead to more careful and responsible usage of the internet and social networks, and will deter users from using offensive language or messages.

There are other dangers too that could arise from this amendment. It could lead to a source of harassment to people whose identities have been abused, for instance the elderly who may have an Internet account but may not be that savvy about cyber crimes. If the elderly person does not know how to secure his wifi account, someone else could use that unsecured wifi to upload offensive postings. But it would be the elderly person who would be liable, unless he could prove otherwise.

In my opinion, the amendment is potentially not just dangerous but manifestly unfair – for instance, if a

Evidence Act

friend posts a message on my Facebook “wall”, do I really have control of what he /s he has said ? Why should there be a presumption that I have published it unless I prove otherwise ? Surely this violates a fundamental principle of justice. I am innocent until proven guilty. Right ? Wrong, as the effect of the amendment is that I am guilty until I have proven otherwise. To me, not only is this senseless, but a mockery of justice.

The effect of the amendment is also particularly important for us, in a college environment. It has ramifications for many college students who use social networks in a reckless, unthinking manner. Some students tweet and twitter and express their innermost thoughts, even if they may be harmful or offensive to others. What is even more scary is that some students are totally unaware of the potential liability that they may face as a result. It is important that we are aware of the new changes in the law and use the internet in a safe, responsible and accountable manner.

And for those who may have the misfortune of being “Tweetjacked” or “Facejacked” in the future – good luck !

by, Meera Badmanaban Senior LL.B Lecturer (and Reformed Facebook User)

A’Level

ATC Joins Debate Competition ATC’s DEBATE TEAM participated in the Taylor’s Open Debate Competition on 28 and 29 July 2012. The competition was held from 8:00am to 8:00pm (on both days) at the Taylor’s College Main Campus in SS15, Subang Jaya. It was very well attended by debating teams from various higher institutions of learning in East and West Malaysia, as well as Singapore.

ATC sent two teams to participate in the competition: Team A comprised of members Samantha Ho and Rutstein (with Kai Xiang as a reserve member) and Team B comprised of members Mei Xian and Edward (with Kailash as a reserve member). The teams were also accompanied by two lecturers, Mr Edmund Lau and Mr Saravana Mahendran, who participated as adjudicators in a total of ten debating rounds. Mr Siva, who assisted in providing transportation for the teams, was also present to give the team members a lot of useful advice and motivation prior to the commencement of the competition.

As this was the teams’ first time participating in an inter-college debate competition, all the team members were very excited. The lecturers and members all gathered at the Taylor’s Campus at 7:30am on 28 July 2012.

In fact, the ATC team was the first to be present for the event and also the roll-call. Aside from that, the ATC team members were also immaculately decked out in formal wear – every one of the members was dressed in white top (with tie), black blazer/coat and black pants.

The team really stood out from the crowd as every other team turned up in casual wear.

Following the delayed roll-call at approximately 9:15am, the first motion for debate was released – ‘This House Will Lift the Ban for Blood Donations From Men Who Have Sex with Other Men’. ATC’s two teams were put up to compete against six other teams for the motion.

The same was repeated for the next three motions for the day – ‘This House Will Find Warner Bros Liable for The Aurora Shootings’, ‘This House Will Force Professional Athletes to Complete Their Playing Contract with Their Existing Teams before Moving/Being Sold to Other Sports Clubs’, and ‘This House Believes That Aid from Western Countries to Elected Religious Political Parties Should be Unconditional’. The teams found the selected motions very challenging as they were tested on their knowledge of current events, sports, law, human rights, social re-

lations, international relations, religious and cultural mores, as well as the required strategies (i.e. role fulfilment, raising points-of-information and the use of extensions) and professional decorum during the debates.

The final motion for debate (on 29 July 2012) was ‘The State will Stop Giving Subsidies for Monogamous Relationships’. Despite being their first outing, ATC’s two teams came up in the first and second places for the 2nd motion above.

The above debates were all conducted in the British Parliamentary Style of Debating. ATC’s teams took turns as Opening Government (Prime Minister & Deputy Prime Minister), Closing Government (Member of Government & Government Whip), Opening Opposition (Leader of Opposition & Deputy LO), and Closing Opposition (Member of Opposition and Opposition Whip). All in all, ATC’s Debate Team was proud to have participated in all five preliminary rounds in the best spirit of competition. The adjudicators also gained valuable experience in judging dozens of debating teams from various other colleges over the above motions. Many of the rival debate teams were very competent as they have been participating in debate competitions for many years. Aside from that, many of the team members from teams such as Swinburne University (Sarawak), the National University of Singapore, and PT Mara comprised of students in their final year at the degree level (in multiple disciplines) while all the members of the ATC teams were A-Levels students. Realistically, everyone who participated in the debates was expecting only to get valuable experience from going against these skilled debaters. Therefore, it was surprising that ATC’s teams managed to not just compete with the above teams but even defeat them in the second round.

Finally, the ATC Debate Team would like to thank the management of ATC College for providing this opportunity to participate in the debating competition. The team looks forward eagerly to the setting up of a Debate Club for the college to train future debaters and take part in future competition –with the hope that ATC will be as well-known for her Debaters as she is now for her Mooters. Thanks should also go to Taylor’s College for providing the venue for the competition and encouraging a spirit of learning and fun for all the participants and adjudicators. While there were certainly several ar-

A’Level

eas that could be improved upon by the organisers, the ATC teams are generally satisfied with the way that the debating competition was managed. Be that as it may, it is the firm belief of all the team members that ATC would be competent in organising our own debating competitions in the very near future.

by, Edmund Lau LL.B Lecturer & Teacher Advisor for the Debate Team

Adjudicators:

1) Mr Edmund Lau Kok Ming

2) Mr Saravana Mahendran

Team A:

1) Samantha Ho Yuet Ching

2) Rutstein Dajai

3) Tiew Kai Xiang (reserve)

Team B:

1) Lee Mei Xian

2) Edward Tan Wen Kang

3) Kailash Sharma (reserve)

Soup of the Day: Serving English with a Fresh Start

How is Language Acquired? seeking an understanding to the mysteries of language acquistion

Most of the people nowadays do not invest time thinking about the origin of language. It is something that has always been present. We all use it. We start learning it automatically when we are born and as we grow older, we extend our vocabulary more and more. Yet some people seem to have the ability to absorb language so easily. There are those who also struggle with adopting new languages.

When and where do we use language?

Start to ask yourself what we were without language.

Would this world be able to exist in the way it does now?

Would anything be different or is language just a small part of our lives? I am quite sure that we will agree that language is the basic principle of life. It does not matter what language, it does not matter in which way we use it, language rules the world including Sign Language.

Everywhere we go, language is used to live the life we have. We need forms of language to cope with our lifes; we could not imagine a world without it. Often people who have been in severe accidents and suffer from brain damage involving loss of speech have to re-learn the language again by whatever means neccesary. Why do older people have more trouble learning a language than small children? What is important to realise is that without language the world would be silent.

Main Theories Behaviorists Bloomfield and Skinner:

They have a quite simple concept of explaining first language acquisition: children learn everything by imitating their parents and repeating what they hear.

“Language, like any other behavior, could be “explained” as just another set of responses” (Bruner 1983: 32). The behaviorist view was very popular in the 40’s and 50’s, but challenged, since imitation alone was not believed to be the only reason for language acquisition (cp.

Linguistics 201). The behaviourists tell us that the children only imitate the adults and memorize the words, but how can they disregard the fact that children often make grammatical mistakes? Does that mean that adults make many mistakes when they talk to each other or to the child? I am sure that the children did not hear their parents say “Candy is gooder than apples” or “We goed to the park”. Another argument against the

behaviorist belief is that “not all social groups adapt their speech to young children” (Timothy Didactics 2).

In Samoa, adults usually do not speak to the children and in some black communities in the USA it “is considered a waste of time to speak to children who are too young to give sensible replies” (Timothy Didactics 2). However, those children also acquire a language.

This must indicate that children do not just repeat the language they hear around themselves. It also seems that Bloomfield did only think about language as words, but not too much as a grammatical system. Bruner says about the behaviorists opinion that “language learning was assumed to be much like nonsense syllable learning, except that it might be aided by imitation, the learner imitating the performance of the ‘model’ and being reinforced for correct performance.” As we figured out before, though, children also say things that they have not possibly heard before. Bruner indirectly suggests that the behaviorists should put more emphasis on the grammar than on words only (cp. Bruner: 32).

Even though this empiricist approach of first language acquisition lasted a long time with its inclusion of reinforcement and conditioning, the common sense of people wanted to get rid of it. It was time for the Chomskyan revolution.

Generativist Noam Chomsky:

Noam Chomsky is one of the most influential and bestknown linguists of the second half of the Twentieth Century (cp. Timothy Didactics 1). He postulates that children are born with an innate capacity for learning language. He claimed that “the acquisition of the structure of language depended upon a Language Acquisition Device (LAD) that had as its base a universal grammar or a inguistic deep structure that humans know innately and without learning.” (Bruner: 33) Chomsky believes that there was neither special communication to an adult nor nonlinguistic knowledge of the world needed to learn a language (cp. Bruner: 33). The only condition for language learning is the exposure to it.

In other words, Chomsky says that there is a child’s competence that is there from the start, which is innate, and performance, which is the realization of language in utterance of speech. Therefore, we are born with a set of rules in our heads.

Soup of the Day: Serving English with a Fresh Start

Bruner thinks of Chomsky’s assumption as extreme, but also as a means of freeing “a generation of psycholinguists from the dogma of association-cum-imitation-cumreinforcement” (Bruner: 33).

Some people mistake Chomsky’s innateness theory as the claim that we are born with language. That cannot be said in this way. In Chomsky’s opinion, the LAD is “a series of syntactic universals, structural properties universally found in all languages” (Linguistics 201).

Words must be learned, we are not born with a large set of vocabulary in our heads. Only the syntactic structures of the LAD are inborn. We are born with the curiosity of language and with the ability to learn the language that is spoken around us. Thus, “children generate sentences based on learned words and innate syntactic patterns”.

The problem with the innateness theory is not the theory itself, because the ability to learn a language is definitely innate, but to decide “what the mysterious language acquisition device actually is” (Linguistics 201) .

During childhood, there is a period when the human brain is most ready to receive input and learn a particular language. This is known as the critical period. Between the age of two and six language acquisition takes place quite easily.

Chomsky argues that children do not simply copy the language they hear, because “the language they hear is highly irregular or even ungrammatical” (Linguistics 201). Interestingly, recent linguistic studies have found out that the language around the child has not many errors after all. Nevertheless, let us just think for a moment that Chomsky was right with his claim that language around children is ungrammatical.

In general, Chomsky is clearly against the behaviorist view and believes that children deduce rules from the language they hear, “which they can then use to produce sentences that they have never heard before” (Timothy Didactics 1).

Taking in account again that the language a child hears is not fragmented or inaccurate, this proves again that the language’s grammar and structures are not innate, “the capacity to learn language is” (Linguistics 201).

Psychologist Jean Piaget:

The cognitive psycholinguistic is concerned primarily with the way thought, language and speech are related.

Piaget “views language acquisition within the child’s broader intellectual development” (Linguistics 201). I am sure that there is some link between the cognitive development of a child and first language acquisition, but this theory does not explain language acquisition!

“Piaget’s theory helps explain the order in which certain aspects of language are acquired” (Linguistics 201).

Therefore, the cognitive theory is not that helpful if we are wondering what is really happening when and how children learn a language. All children “regardless of their other talents and general intellectual ability” (Linguistics 201) do acquire language. Some learn faster, some start a little late, but all succeed learning language until a certain age. “Even a severely retarded child will acquire a native language without special training” (Linguistics 201).

Comparison of the Three Theories The behaviorist theory seems to be very old fashioned and demonstrates patterns that are part of language acquisition such as imitation and repetition. I think that children indeed imitate their parents or brothers and sisters and that they learn from that. I am sure they can repeat words and save them in their grammatical patterns. However, I cannot agree with it completely because I do not think that this is the only way infants acquire language. I found out earlier that in some cultures adults do not talk to children very often and that those children -even without the possibility of imitating- learn the native language.

Children who are more exposed to language than others might learn a language faster, but a certain input is not essential for learning language.

In my opinion, the only fact that is definite about language acquisition is that the child needs to be exposed to language. I remembered reading about “Akhbar’s experiment” and it convinced me: Akbar who was a Mogul emperor of India in the 16th century, “desired to learn whether language was innate or acquired through exposure to the speech of adults” (Linguistics 201). Therefore, he put two infants together with a mute nurse and had only her take care of them. The children

Soup of the Day: Serving English with a Fresh Start

did not learn how to talk, which indicates that language “does not simply emerge spontaneously in the absence of exposure to speech” (Linguistics 201). All those findings point out more and more that Chomsky’s innateness theory is the one that gets very close to the actual language acquisition process.

It is possible to learn language when we are exposed to it, because we have a LAD that is accountable for a fast and successful language acquisition. All infants “regardless of environmental factors and differences in intelligence, are able to acquire very complex grammars at a very early age” (Linguistics 201).

Still, I think that children also need to learn through experiences. Maybe it is not necessary, but I believe reactions and input from parents are something very important to a successful development of a child. I think that the capacity of language learning is innate, but it does not feel right to say that there are no other factors involved in it.

Moreover, we have noticed that Chomsky is certainly incorrect in his claim that children do not hear well-formed, accurate language. They do and might profit more from that than Chomsky wants to admit. On the other hand, I do not believe in the repetition theory. I doubt that children learn a language like that. Here, I agree with Chomsky and his statement that children deduce rules from adult’s speech and those help them formulate new sentences that they have not heard before.

Again, I am at a point where I have to say that a combination of theories make more sense than each one alone. All three theories are “probably correct to a degree; each describes particular facets of a complex phenomenon” (Linguistics 201). I would like to mention another linguist, because he tries to explain with his crosslinguistic study how children acquire language. Slobin introduces a number of practical strategies about what children are doing while learning language. Chomsky, however, does not believe that knowledge of grammatical structure can arise by application of step-by-step operations (cp. Slobin 1986: 1159).

All in all, the mystery of language acquisition has not been answered to complete satisfaction. by, Felicia Ann Lecturer of English Literature

ATC’s Got Talent: Where Talents Converge

organised by: A’Level Students of the Student Representative Council (SRC)

Date : 30th November 2012 Time : 7pm - 10pm Venue : ChinWoo Auditorium LOOK OUT for our exhibition booth in October for tickets!! *RM10 for ATC Students

Rotaract

Installation Night: Rotaract Club of Ampang Rotaract Club of ATC attended Rotaract Club of Ampang’s “Installation Night” on the 28th of July 2012 at the Olympic Sports Hotel. Rotaract Club of Ampang is the sister Club of the Rotaract Club of ATC, and together we have organised projects, events and attended District functions. The Rotar act Club of Ampang boasts a history of 25 years since its charter, and this “Installation Night” also marks its 25th anniversary. As of now, the Board of Directors of the Rotaract Club of Ampang consists mostly of former ATC students, who mostly are young working adults in the legal profession.

All guests of the “Installation Night” were entertained with an interactive detective game which syncs with the theme of the ceremony: “The Stranger Beside Me”. The game required the dress code of rookie detectives. Besides good food, we had fun participating in the activities, we certainly had a different perspective as opposed to the conventional speeches, food and performances.

The Rotaract Club of ATC had always maintained a strong bond of fellowship, particularly with the Rotaract Club of Ampang. It was envisaged that in future events, there will be a more coherent mutuality in exchange of ideas and skills. by, Hee Hui Ting LL.B Lecturer Immediate Past President Rotaract Club of ATC RY2012/2013

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Hong Kong Rotaractors’ visit to Kuala Lumpur On the 6th of July 2012, the Rotaract Club of ATC, collaborating with the Rotaract Club of Ampang , was given an opportunity to host a group of rotaractors from Hong Kong . Hosting this group from Hong Kong was part of our International Project for this year, and it was a great success. Throughout the five days, four nights trip in Kuala Lumpur, our club members, together with the Hong Kong rotaractors had great memories to cherish.

There were a variety of activities that was carried out. The most memorable one was the visiting of zoo and becoming a zookeeper for a day. ATC Rotaractors, together with Hong Kong Rotaractor members were separated into groups and were assigned to clean and feed different types of animals. For most of the members, this was their first experience as a zookeeper and it was a golden opportunity for them to have close interactions with all the animals and through this zoo-keeping process, we grew closer together and became better teamates. We all realised one important thing from the activity;how difficult is it for a person to be zookeeper, and that they need to work hard and give their blood and soul to earn every penny.

We also visited popular heritage sites and other destinations in KL. Several interesting places like the headquarters of the Malaysia Post Office, Petaling Street, the former railway platform, and Batu Caves were visited. We did not leave out our abundant shopping malls like Sg. Wang and Sunway Pyramid Complex. From these visits, our Hong Kong friends not only got a taste of what wonders Malaysia could offer, but we ourselves discorved our country had numerous interesting places to visit.

This exciting occasion was then further highlighted by introducing the Hong Kong members to famous food spots in KL. They were treated mixture of local delights -a combination of Indian, Chinese, and Malay cuisine. They were very intrigued by the variety of mouth watering food as this is something new and different for them. Malaysia is afterall melting pot for diversity of races and culture.

Rotaract Club is an international youth orientated organisation, so it was a major step for us to walk into the global scene by interacting and getting along with the Hong Kong members. This was truly and educational and exciting experience and indeed very much a great success as we really managed to expand our network globally.

Besides that, the interaction between our club members had also improved and we eagerly look forward to our next International Service Project. by, Chong Hui Ting Vice President, Rotaract Club of ATC RY2012/2013

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words of wisdom: from a dedicated past President

by, Hee Hui Ting LL.B Lecturer Immediate Past Presidentl (Rotaract Club of ATC)

July 2012 signifises the start of a new Rotary year. It could mean a lot of things to many people, but to most of us in Rotary International, it signifises the start of a new term, a new year with new aspirations, fresh faces in the Board, the excitement of planning and brainstorming for new projects, and maybe more. True enough, I embraced the coming of July knowing the new Rotary theme for RY2012/2013 is ‘Peace Through Service’. Rotary International President Sakuji Tanaka explained that peace has different meanings for different people, and by embracing this common motto, throughout the term of RY2012/2013, we can savour happiness and satisfaction of seeing a better, more peaceful world, one that we have achieved through our own efforts.

July 2012 is when I officially ended my term serving as president in the Rotaract Club of ATC. I would like to take this opportunity to share my experience in Rotaract during these years and hopefully, would inspire you to be part of our extensive and wonderful organisation.

Membership When I was in ATC pursuing my LLB Intermediate, the popular dissatisfaction among students is the lack of campus activities. Hence, life became almost routine-like and boring; where most of us repeat the daily pattern of attending classes, lunch, and attending more classes. I came to know of Rotaract when my friends, who were members, started talking about how much fun they had when they attended events and participated in activities, I therefore made a mental point to get to know what Rotaract was. The following year when there was a membership recruitment event, I eagerly placed my name on the list. In my LL.B Part 1, I was recruited to the Board of Directors and during my LL.B Part 2, I was elected as President.

My agenda in joining Rotaract is some sort of an accidental coincidence, almost reckless, because popular belief would tell you that being a board member in the Rotaract Club of ATC requires a lot of effort and commitment. Hence, most of my friends spent time thinking whether they have the capability and discipline to balance their studies and Rotaract commitment before agreeing to be part of the Board of Directors. I am not of disapproval of my fellow Rotaractors who contemplate reasonably and take precautionary steps. In fact, this should be exemplary. I am also not saying that being a Board member is an easy job requiring little commitment and no hard work. I am also definitely not saying that studies

can be negligible if one has the excuse of being a committed Rotaractor.

However, I am here to tell you that since day one as a Rotaractor, I have never ever regretted a single second of it. I will continue to be part of Rotary International because of the rewards that one can only reap as one has walked the footsteps in this organisation.

Teamwork Each and every one of us are entitled to our own participation of events and activities. But how many of us understand the intricacies of organising one? Every term, the Rotaract Club of ATC organises activities which contributes to society, develops the youth, improves and promotes international understanding and enhances friendship and goodwill among youths of different walks of life. Being part of an organising committee is challenging, especially when a particular project is big. We have dealt with people who rudely reject our proposals. We held endless meetings which continue for hours and adjourn later to online forums on a daily basis. We experienced the time where we lost faith in our plans, and encountered sleepless nights worrying about our projects. Not to forget all of us are students.

Therefore inevitably, we have to allocate time for classes amid all these problems, have the mentality strong enough to set our worries aside as we focus on our studies, prepare ourselves for classes and discipline ourselves not to sideline any of our academic priorities. The stress was present and lasting before a project is successfully executed. The pressure felt was more intense as a president because I bore the responsibility of supervising the team and to maintain their cohesive teamwork, provide motivation and most importantly, ensure the success of projects.

But what kept me going were the fruits I sow in the end. It would be the same case to all Board members. The feeling you experience in the end of a project, knowing that all efforts you have placed, the discussions-turned-arguments type of meetings, the blood and sweat, all turned up to be worth the while. You will never know what you can get by setting yourself up to the standards of accepting challenges like these, unless you attempt this yourself. All of us have the potential to achieve so much more than what we believe we can. We just need to take the first step out.

Leadership Of course a lot of factors come into interplay to ensure the

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smoothness of the Club, and for different Rotaractors, they would opine for various factors personal to their belief. To me, I learnt a lot on leadership from Rotaract. When I learn to be less autocratic and demanding, and when I toned down from overzealous dictatorship, I got to know that being more receptive towards different working styles and more understanding to each individual’s predicament would serve the team better. People would cooperate more willingly while the commitment was genuine and it facilitated the success of projects, promotes friendship and provided motivation and push for team members to continue to commit and place effort. In RY2011/2012, among many projects we executed successfully, the Rotaract Club of ATC have hosted a Rotaract District 3300 Professional Development Project, Sign For Your Life 2.0 which aims to educate youths from different fields on the importance of legal knowledge in life. It was held in a form of a race which involved different organisations, public bodies and businesses, considered to be one of the biggest events we have ever held. This project won us the best Professional Development Project in RY20111/2012 within Rotaract District 3300, attributable to the efforts of all Rotaractors who have planned, executed and managed the entirety of this large-scale project.

Studies One of the greatest challenges I faced as an active Rotaractor leading one of the most active Clubs is the art of balancing studies and work together. But along these years, I got to know that excuses that one can make, is only self service noise because as the saying goes, “Where the heart is willing, it will find a thousand ways. Where it is unwilling, it will find a thousand excuses.” Being able to focus on studies while juggling with Rotaract responsibilities required a lot of discipline, intricate time management and sacrifice.

Many of the Rotaractors I know from ATC are good students and they excel in studies, because they are able to deal and prioritise accordingly. As students, it is our rightful responsibility to place studies as paramount, but adopting another duty on our shoulders should not be automatically labelled as blindly adding on an extra burden, but seen as the courage to face another challenge which eventually shapes us to become a better and stronger person.

During the past one year as president, every single successful project would not been possible but for the efforts of the Board of Directors. I am proud and thankful to be given an opportunity to lead the Club, and I owe it all to the faith of the members, Board members, advisors and ATC who have provided support, encouragement and assistance all the while. As I pass the Rotaract Club of ATC into the hands of the incoming president, I wish him all the best, that under his leadership and inspiration, the incoming Board of Directors and this Club can live on this legacy.

District Awards and Recognition Night The Distirct Awards and Recognition Night is an annual event to acknowledge the contributions of Rotaract Clubs all around Rotaract District 3300, and also to formally award Projects which are deserving of its title. This year, the event was held in the Royal Selangor Club Kuala Lumpur on the 16th of June 2012, and was attended by more than 300 Rotaractors and Rotarians from within District 3300, comprising the whole of Peninsula Malaysia excluding Johor and Melaka.

The Rotaract Club of ATC was awarded the best Professional Development Project following the successful launch and execution of Sign For Your Life 2.0, a Project which aims to educate legal knowl-

edge among all youths from different walks of life by incorporating these serious matters into a form of a workshop and a race. It was felt that the creativity of the method of delivery would have been inspiring enough and truly, everyone who participated in that event went home with more knowledge and heightened awareness than before. Hence, we felt that we have accomplished our task within the meaning of the Professional Development as a service avenue, because we had successfully brought the message across to urge the youths out there to increase their legal knowledge and skills for the benefit of their professional self in the future. Besides, the Rotaract Club of ATC was also awarded the Changemaker Award for recognition of contributing a change to society

at large from our overall performance during the year.

Everyone had a fun time during the night indulging in food, drinks and performances. From these awards, it was hoped that it would inspire fellow Rotaractors to continue to exert positive energy and to contribute towards the society we all live and play a part in. by, Hee Hui Ting LL.B Lecturer Immediate Past Presdient RY2012/2013

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