Welcome to DASLP!

(This entry was written on the night of 29th August 2014, Friday)

What do you think of the title?

My friend/roommate nods her head in approval. She is half asleep – even though we’ve spent only half a day at Jalan Hospital Campus (JHC) today, we’re all dead tired. We’re not exactly third-year students yet, but we’ve asked for early clinical sessions before the real clinic begins. But that’s neither here nor there.

The purpose of this entry is to tell my future-juniors about the Department of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology (DASLP) here in IIUM Kuantan. In about three days, the first-years are going to arrive here for their taaruf week, and for some odd reason, I’m kinda excited about it.

I guess I’m just gonna ramble about our department and what it’s like to be an audiology student. Also about the campus itself, what to expect when you’re a first-year, etc. etc. Some of the things written here might not be applicable to all first-years, so yeah – just bear that in mind.

Ooh, and one more thing! I’m not exactly armed with photos of the campus and stuff, so…sorry to disappoint? Ehe~ I’m sure you can just google “IIUM Kuantan Campus” and there’ll be tons of pictures to choose from other blogs. :D

~*~

Transportation

I’m not really sure from which campus these first-years are from (PJ? Gambang?), but one thing I can tell ya is that the Kuantan campus is definitely larger than the PJ campus. Back in the CFS days, I could have a class at 8.00 AM and wake up at 7.50 AM and still make it to class in time (we took a bath afterwards, shhh don’t tell) because everything was within a walking distance. Well, it’s not the same here.

One of the most frustrating things that comes with a large campus grounds like this one is the fact that the bus service isn’t satisfying. Like, at all. It’s been a major issue since I was a first-year (2012/2013). The buses were often late, or sometimes they didn’t even bother to make the rounds at all.. Sorry to start off the entry like this, but I gotta give it to ya like it really is.

During the second semester of my first year, there was an attempt to improve the bus service, but in my opinion, nothing really changed. It’s this sucky bus service that leads many students to bring their own cars – and this, in turn, brings about another set of problems: parking issues.

There aren’t many parking lots around and it’s led me to wonder which genius had actually planned the layout of the whole campus because I swear to God, I’d like to strangle ya a bit. It’s a hassle, really, when there’s not enough space to park your car. Well – to be fair, you can only legally bring your car here once you’re a third-year student, but I brought mine back in my second semester of my first year anyway, ehe~

I guess we illegal car-bringers are partly to blame for the whole “there’s-not-enough-parking-spots-here” issue, but to be fair, we wouldn’t have brought our cars illegally in the first place if the bus service had been reliable, amirite?

But it’s not, so we did.

I think I should mention here that this illegal car issue brings about yet anotherproblem: the summons/compounds.

Please do not be surprised, because the summoning issue is quite a big deal here. Especially when it comes to parking your car. Kalau amek spot orang lain aje, saman. Parking tempat yang sepatutnya takleh park, saman. Kalau takde sticker student, saman. Saman here, saman there. If you’re lucky, you’ll see a lot of posts on IIUM Kuantan Chit-Chat group on Facebook bemoaning about the saman issue.

Again, I’m so, so sorry to start things this way, but. I don’t exactly have a draft of what to write here, so I’m just writing what’s on my mind at the moment.

However, keep in mind that things don’t have to be this way anymore this year. Why? Well, because:

1.     Last I heard, a new company is taking over the bus service here in the Kuantan campus. I haven’t been on a bus since I brought my car, but it kinda gives you hope when a new management is taking over, right? Hopefully this time the service is better!

2.     The new mahallah should be open by October, and I heard there’s quite a lot of parking space there, so…yeaaaay.

3.     You can always get tips and tricks from your seniors on how to sneak a car in here without the sticker and still make it through the semester without getting any saman. Huehuehue~

One question that you might have in mind is this: “If the bus service isn’t reliable, and we’re not permitted to bring cars during our first year…then how are we supposed to get around?”

Good question, young grasshopper! The answer is simple!

We walk.

(I’m so sorry if you’re a student of Kulliyyah of Science (KOS), because at the moment, it’s the farthest kulliyyah from the old mahallah – but the closest one to the new mahallah buildings so…yeaaaay! You’ll just have to wait till October to be free of your long on-foot journeys to and from your living quarters.)

The old mahallah buildings are across the street and across a…field? From Kulliyyah of Medicine (KOM), which was once the center of the universe here in Kuantan campus. Why do I call it that, you ask? Well, because that’s one of the two places where the ATM is (the other one is at the entrance gate), it’s the closest one to the library, and before the Kulliyyah of Allied Health Sciences (KAHS) was completed, the KAHS students had their classes at KOM.

Besides being THE Important Building in campus (not really), KOM has the added bonus of looking like a completely haunted building because it’s one of the first buildings to be built here. (Seriously, it has this humming sound throughout the whole building – it’s like the walls have secrets and are trying to tell us…)

Anyway – close to KOM are KOD (Dentistry), KAHS, and KOP (Pharmacy). Point is, from the old mahallah buildings, all you gotta do is cross the street and the field-slash-semak-samun to KOM, then walk a bit to your respective kulliyyahs.

Unless you’re heading to KOS.

It’s quite far away.

(I’m so sorry.)

So, yes, our main mode of ka nadaation is our legs, but if you’re super lucky, some super kind seniors would sometimes stop their cars and offer you a ride.

Which is always nice and is always something to keep in mind when youhave your own car – remember that you were once a first-year student as well, so maybe if you see anyone walking, why not just stop your car and offer them a ride, eh? J

(Pernah sekali tu ada anjing liar tau. Kitorang tengah jalan kaki balik dari kelas. So my friend and I were trying to just blend in with the background and walk as fast as we could, hoping that the anjing wouldn’t notice us – but then a KOD senior, I think, stopped her car and told us to get in. It was such a kind gesture that I still remember till now.)

~*~

KAHS

As I’ve said before, my main focus here is DASLP, so I’m gonna tell you a bit about our kulliyyah first before delving into department matters. Okay ready? Here we go!

Our kulliyyah has six departments (I might screw up some of the official department names, sorry!): department of audiology and speech language pathology, aka DASLP – that’s us! (audio), department of biomedical sciences (biomed), department of dietetics and nutrition? Nutritional?? Sciences (diet),department of…of…optometry and…visual… I don’t know? (opto), department of radio, err, radiology? Radiography?? (radio), and department of physiotherapy (physio), the youngest department in KAHS.

Our kulliyyah building is a modest one – not as grand as KOM or KOD (the latter totally stole our kulliyyah budget…that’s why their kulliyyah is sooooogrand! – or so the rumours say), and not as big as KOP. Hey, but it’s home, I suppose.

It’s got a I with just one stall as of last year, it’s got common rooms for both sisters and brothers (in case you don’t feel like going back to your mahallah before classes start again), an exam hall, a pretty cute musolla (and by cute I mean…it can get really packed sometimes), a modest kiosk and a student-run shop (HEALS shop), elevators, two lecture halls yang sejuk gila nak mati so remember your winter coats okay, a computer lab, one Speech Clinic, one Physiotherapy Clinic, kitchens for the diet students, and…what else? Optometry Clinic also got there I think. And labs, of course, but I don’t know much about that because I’m not a biomed student…

The layout of the kulliyyah is pretty confusing. It’s like a maze. Even I don’t remember the whole thing. I just know where my classes are and that’s it. But it’s kinda easy to get to your classes because each department has their own, like, corridor, so memang korang ka nada kat koridor kelas masing-masing aje lah. Unless if it’s a mass lecture, or if you have classes with just another department, and also during PBL (problem-based learning) sessions,then you’d need to move around a bit. Usually in groups. So…no problem lah.

~*~

DASLP

The DASLP office is on the third floor, but our classrooms are on the first floor. The lecturers’ offices are on the first and second floor, also around the same corridors. The speech clinic and the exam hall are nearby, but on the ground floor.

We are the smallest department in terms of the number of students, I think. While other departments have twenty-something students in one batch, my batch consists of only 16 students. The juniors below me are 18 in total, so – ada la sikit perkembangan di situ.

The guys are a rare species, let me tell you. We only have four guys in our batch. The fourth years have only two, the same goes for the second years. But I have heard from sources that there will be SIX first-year brothers this time around! So…good news for the male population, I guess? Haha~

Personally, all I can say is that our small number can be both a blessing and sometimes it’s a…curse? Well, it’s not that bad. But yeah, it has its pros and cons.

If you notice, the name of our department has this bit that says “Speech-Language Pathology,” right? Well, as of last year, we don’t have any SLP students yet. Kinda wondering when they’re gonna start taking in SLP students…it’s quite exciting to see the department grow, ya know?

Well, you’ll find out more about DASLP once you meet us, I suppose.  :D

~*~

First Year, First Semester

Okay here’s the exciting part – I started writing this entry because I actually wanted to share about the subjects that are taught to the audiology students here in IIUM. I dunno why I wanted to write about this, really. I suppose it’s because I just wanted the first-years to sort of get an idea of what to expect once the semester starts? Yeah…

I’m sure the department will give the new students their student handbook during taaruf week – everything’s in there: the names and details of the lecturers, clinicians and staff members, and the sequence of courses that you’ll be taking throughout your four years of study in IIUM. But I guess I can give a little bit more information regarding the courses from a student’s point of view~

Right, here we go! These are the courses that the first-year students will be taking during the first semester.

(Note that I do not know if the department has made any changes to the course outline, so please just don’t be surprised if what I write below is slightly different from what you’re going to experience later this semester.)

So! Here it is:

Department Core Courses:

1.     Language Development (4 credit hours)

2.     Basic Linguistics (3 credit hours)

3.     Introduction to Clinical Practice (3 credit hours)

4.     Human Structure and Function 1 (3 credit hours)

5.     Developmental Psychology in Health Sciences (2 credit hours)

University Required Courses:

1.     Islamic Worldview (UNGS) (3 credit hours)

2.     Bahasa Melayu Kerjaya (2 credit hours)

3.     Fardhu Ain OR Study Circle 1 OR Study Circle 2 (0.5 credit hours)

~*~

Department Core Courses

Language Development (LD)

Okay, let me just tell you something. Each semester there’s going to be one subject that’s worth 4 credit hours. You absolutely have to try and do your best to score these subjects because they get progressively more challenging through the semesters/years. So, since this is the first semester of the first year, this is obviously one of the less challenging 4-credit subjects around. So…do your best!

Other than being a challenging subject, LD is actually very interesting now that I think back on it. We had Miss Juliana (better known as Miss Ju, one of our speech therapists) as our lecturer back then, and she did things a little differently. We didn’t have a mid-semester exam for LD, but instead we had assignments, which were pretty different as well – not the usual “write and essay of blah blah blah.”

What exactly do you learn about when you take LD? Well. Language development, of course. Duh, right?

Basically we learn about how a child develops language. Are we naturally born with a special app that allows us to pick up language? Or is language something that you have to seek on your own? Is ‘language’ only defined as the words we produce using our voice? Or do hand gestures, nods, and eye movements also fall under ‘language’? Is ‘speech’ only made up of the speaking part? Or does it also consist of our comprehension? Is there a difference between a man and a woman’s language style? Or are they the same?

When does a child usually attain their first word? And why does it usually occur at that age? How many words should they have in their vocabulary once they turn three years old? Should they be able to understand double-meanings in a sentence? What does play activities have anything to do with a child’s language development? How do we know if a child’s language is developing accordingly?

Trust me when I say that you’ll do quite a bit of reading for the assignments and also for the final exam. Well, this shouldn’t surprise you, as reading is the main method of getting things done if you call yourself a student. But I suppose what I mean is that you’ll really need to do your research, especially when it comes to the assignments.

I dunno about the batch below me, but back in the days, we had two video assignments: an individual one and a group task.

For the individual task, we were asked to shoot a video of us ‘interviewing’ a child of a certain age range. Then we had to analyze the child’s language and explain what we see in the video. I basically did an ‘interview’ with my great-aunt’s grandson (err, my opah’s brother’s cucu…get it? xD). He was around 1 year old at that time, I think. And by ‘explain’ I mean we had to make a transcription of the whole video AND present the video and our analysis in front of the whole class. Fun, right?

As for the group task…well, it’s pretty much the same but you’re doing it in a group. Same thing – transcript the video, analyze the content – but there were no presentations, if I recall correctly. Then we had to comment if the child’s language is developing accordingly or otherwise.

I remember the final exam being a reeeally long one. We had to write a lot and our hands hurt by the end of it all, haha~

One question that you might have in your head, though, is this: “Why do we need to know about a child’s language and speech development if we’re studying the human’s auditory system?” I wondered a lot about the relevance of speech-related subjects back in the days. I guess I can say that I kind of resented them, because I thought I was an audiology student, not a speech student.

Well, think about it. How do children pick up languages? Primarily, it’s by listening to those around them. If their hearing is abnormal, then their language development will be impacted as well. See the connection? I do now. I didn’t see it back then.

Basic Linguistics

This subject, to me, personally, felt like any other English class, except a little bit more advanced. I remember that I really liked to read the text book because it’s got these funny comics that sort of explain stuff better.

I forget much of what the first part is about, but the gist of it is that we’re dissecting languages – in our case, mainly English and Malay. This is where you’ll be introduced to morpheme, morphology, phonology, semantics, syntax, and a whole lot of other linguistic terms. It’s also where you’ll dissect the components of a sentence. You know, subject, object, doer, verbs, nouns and all that~

Some ‘stimulating’ (I hope, lol) things to ponder about: what’s the smallest meaningful unit in a language? Is it a word? Does the ‘un’ in ‘unrealistic’ carry any meaning? If it does, does that mean ‘un’ is the smallest meaningful unit in this case? But can ‘un’ stand on its own, all alone, in a sentence? Why do we have dialects? And what are the impacts of dialects? Is one accent (orang KL cakap luar kan?) more superior than another (mu kecek klate dok?)? Why or why not? Bandarap I bin kookim???

Personally, I enjoyed this subject a lot. We were taught by Dr. Wan Aslynn, the linguist of DASLP, and she’s really cool if you behave in her class. I dunno if we have any other linguists in the department though… If we don’t, then there’s a big chance that Dr. Wan is going to teach you, too. J

Introduction to Clinical Practice (ITCP)

Well, my batch called it ITCP, the one below us called it ICP, so meh.

Aaaanyway. It’s pretty clear what you’re gonna do for this subject, right? We, back in our first year, had the class along with the second-years because originally it’s a second-year subject. I suppose the department’s decided that it’s better to introduce stuff during the first year, so, starting with the batch below me (the second-years now), they took ITCP in the first year.

Basically we were split into groups and then we visited several clinical settings. I went to Hospital Pantai in Klang (private audiology clinic), and KIWANIS, which is a non-profit organization that focuses on the welfare of children with Down Syndrome. Another group went to NASOM (the National Autism Society of Malaysia) and Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan (HTAA, government audiology clinic). I think that was it? Yeah, I think so…

So anyway, then we had to come up with reports regarding our visits. It’s a lot of fun visiting those places – the only comment that I have is perhaps this: back in my first-year, I hadn’t yet seen the full picture. Like, I didn’t really know much about the audiological testing and procedures and our job scope, so it was kind of difficult for me to connect the dots between the visits and what it had to do with me as an audiology student.

That’s the practical part, I suppose. But the theoretical part was, I dunno, rather dry? Haha. It’s mostly about our job scope and work ethics, so yeah. We had a written exam at the end of the semester.

HUMAN STRUCTURE AND FUCTION ONE (anatomy, or ‘anat’ – even shorter, right?)

ALL CAPS. THERE IS A REASON BEHIND THIS.

THIS IS THE ANATOMY CLASS, PART ONE. YES. WE LEARN ABOUT THE BODY AND ITS FUNCTIONS.

JANGAN FAIL.

JANGAN FAIL.

JANGAN FAIL.

It’s a 3-credit subject and it requires a lot of reading, understanding, and memorizing. Please read. Do not throw it aside. Because seriously if you don’t score this, you’ll regret it. Why? Because when you progress to second and third years, the subjects WILL BE TOUGHER and you’ll regret not scoring anatomy and physiology in your first year.

It’s like any other biology classes, with lectures and labs and lab reports. I enjoyed the lab sessions. We got to see and examine real human body parts, borrowed from KOM (thanks, KOM). The cadaver is soaked in formaldehyde. Sampai pedih mata kadang-kadang. One of the first things that our lecturer, Dr. Munirah, warned us about was to NOT WEAR CONTACT LENSES DURING LAB SESSIONS.

There’s also a new concept that will be introduced to you when you take this subject, which is problem-based learning (PBL) sessions. What’s PBL, you ask? Well basically you’ll be divided into groups that consist of students from the five departments in KAHS (the physiotherapy students won’t join in, because they have their own anatomy & physiology syllabus).

Basically you’ll be given a case (not a real one, don’t worry) that’s related to the latest anatomy & physiology chapter that you learn in class, and then, in that group, you’ll have to discuss what is wrong with the patients and relate it to the latest chapter that you’ve been taught.

Then, in the following week, you’ll be asked to present your findings. Your presentation will be marked by your facilitators – these are lecturers from KAHS and they’ll basically guide you during the discussion, to help you get the diagnosis correct, etc. etc.

There aren’t any exams for PBL, but I think it makes up about, I don’t remember exactly, 10%? Yeah, maybe 10% of your carry mark for this subject. So, make sure you participate in the discussions, ask questions, and do your best in the presentations~~

Yes, this subject is tough and there’s no other way around it – but, as Dr. Wan Aslynn once said to us: “Well, it’s only going to get tougher, my dears.”

Developmental Psychology in Health Sciences (psycho)

It’s an easy course, and an interesting one as well. It studies the theories of the human psychology, specifically regarding children as they are growing up.

We were taught by a lecturer from UMP (Universiti Malaysia Pahang), but she was an IIUM graduate. Our classes were at night, okay, because she couldn’t make it during the day.

We had an assignment, which was to write about any of our memories from our childhood (7 years old up till 17). Bonus marks if we can relate it to the stuff that we learned in class.

It was fun writing that assignment.

Not much to say about the course itself, but man, attending the classes was… There’s just a lot of memories, okay? We usually travel in one big group, because it’s dark so it’s logical. Pernah ada anjing ikut, pernah redah hujan tengah-tengah malam nak pergi kelas. It wasn’t fun then, but it’s fun to recall those memories (and laugh at your past-self, ha ha, padan muka kau dulu-dulu!) now.

~*~

University Required Courses

The previous part is about subjects that the DASLP requires you to complete during your first semester as a first-year student, but the following section is about the subjects that the university wants you to complete. So yes, everyone has to take these subjects, no matter what kulliyyah or department you’re from.

These subjects will later be reduced as you progress through your degree years, because by then, more department courses will take over your class schedule.

Needless to say, these subjects are, most of the time, quite easy to score – so it’ll be a real shame if you miss the chance to do so. Do not miss the chance to score these subjects. Kalau tak score, menyesal, because this is the chance to really boost your CGPA!

Islamic Worldview (UNGS)

I don’t know about you guys, but back when I was in CFS, I already knew about the UNGS package. UNGS is a three-subject package that all IIUM degree students have to complete. The subjects are Islamic Worldview (first year, first semester), Islam, Knowledge and Civilization (first year, second semester). And Ethics and Fiqh for Everyday Life (second year, first semester).

Basically it’s like all those Pendidikan Islam classes in high school, except in English. Or better yet, it’s like BTQ back in CFS. Yes.

Now, all three subjects are worth 3 credit hours. If you realize, Human Structure and Fuction 1 is also worth 3 credit hours. Rugi tak kalau kita tak score UNGS? It has the same weight as HS&F1, but it’s so much easier to understand, digest, and score. If you miss the chance to get an A in this, I personally think that it’s a shame.

Okay, so, on to the subject itself. “Islamic Worldview” – what does this phrase make you think of? Basically it’s about a worldview that is shaped by our religion, which is Islam. Example: perhaps your Chinese or Indian friends might think that it’s totally normal to go out during sunset, but to you, as a Muslim, this might be a bit improper because this is the time for you to perform your Maghrib prayer. See how your religion shapes your worldview?

The lecturer who taught me the first two UNGS courses was Dr. Tijani from Nigeria. He is super kind and super talented in what he does. I like his teaching methods. You don’t have to be a DQ student or anything to score, because he basically accepts it even if you are only able to provide the translations of Quranic verses related to the exam questions. You don’t necessarily have to be a hafiz or a hafizah~

So I guess my bit of advice for UNGS is just this: try your best to score, because it’s real easy to get an A and this can and will boost your CGPA!

Bahasa Melayu Kerjaya

HA-HA. Korang mesti ingat just because we’re from IIUM we’re safe from BM, right?? (Well, at least that’s what I thought…)

Guess again~

There’s not much to say about this subject. It’s BM lah. But we didn’t learn stuff like we did at school I don’t think. During the final exam, we had to write like, an academic essay? Yeah. There’s also a whole section on how to sit for an interview for a job and how to address people according to their titles when you’re at a majlis rasmi.

We were taught by Cikgu Chow. Yep, a Chinese lecturer!

Fardhu Ain/Study Circle 1/Study Circle 2

So~ ada sesiapa yang still ingat FAPT tak? Fardhu Ain Placement Test kat CFS dulu? Or do you not have that anymore?

Well, point is, it’s the same stuff all over. You take a test during taaruf week, and according to your score, they’ll sort you out into either a fardhu ain class, study circle 1, or study circle 2. There will be a final exam, as usual, but these subjects are easy-peasy, right?

It’s worth 0.5 credit hour, and to me, personally, I viewed this subject as something that will help me throughout my whole life. That 0.5 credit hour wasn’t my priority, really, but it’s the stuff that you learn from it. So make good use of this, I suppose~

~*~

The End

Well, that’s the end of my bebelan, I suppose. I started this entry with the aim of providing any information I can regarding, first and foremost, the department of audiology and speech language pathology and its subjects; the things to expect when you’re an allied health student; and lastly, about IIUM Kuantan in general.

I hope this little (little?? Really??) blog entry’s helped you a bit in understanding the bigger picture.

I’m really excited to meet the first-year audiology students. Not sure I’ll be that friendly or talkative, but nonetheless, I am excited to meet you guys. :D We’ll have our own DASLP welcoming night. We’ll play games and get to know each other~ I look forward to that!

I guess if you have any questions, you can just ask away in the comments. I'm not sure if I'll be able to answer them back, but I'll try. :D

Okay, that’s all, I suppose.

BYEEEEEEE.