On Saturday, August 25, 2021, all new students from the English Department attended Kaderisasi Angkatan Baru  (KAB)’s fourth agenda, A Journey of Your Life.  KAB is an annual activity for new English Department students that must be attended because it gives a great deal of information and knowledge about college life. This activity is conducted via Zoom Meeting. This event drew roughly 200 new students and more than 100 committee members.

Due to the COVID pandemic, KAB will be held online for the second time. The implementation was not done online two years ago for the Class of 2019. The Geget Winda Building is the place where KAB 2019 is located. We are hoping that this pandemic will be over soon, so in the next year, KAB will be held on campus rather than online.

The students from the 2019 and 2020 batches make up the committee in charge of this activity. There are three types of committees: steering committees, superintending committees, and staff. According to what has been decided, each committee has its own job description.

The committee prepared this AJYL activity quite some time ago. It has been prepared since the beginning of July, according to Rezeki Ernala Tarigan, a member of the Steering Committee. This event takes roughly two months to plan.

This activity has four agendas: spiritual presentations, organizational lectures, the introduction of the ESA Magna cabinet, and speeches from various students who will be class leaders candidates. Before AJYL began, the entire committee met for a 15-minute briefing to ensure that everything went without a hitch. After all of the new students have entered the zoom meeting room, the committee, particularly the supervisor, double-checks Maru’s traits to see if they are complete. The AJYL began at 1.15 p.m., with the MC, Narayudha, starting the event and directing non-Muslim students to another meeting room.

The title of this spiritual presentation is “Exploring one’s potential in the world of lectures through spiritual and intellectual activities.” Mr. Sutriadi gave the new Muslim students’ lecture, while Mr. Ruben gave the new non-Muslim students’ lecture. The two lectures were held in the breakout room. The lecture lasted around 20 minutes and was followed by a question and answer session where new students could directly ask the speaker any questions. Ater that, the new students were directed back to the main room to continue the next agenda.

There is a 3-minute break before moving on to the following agenda item, which is the presentation of organizational concerns; this time can be used by new students who need to use the restroom. The presentation on organization began after 3 minutes. The speaker for this event was Fauziyya Nurussyfa, a 2018 student. She shares her understanding of organization with new students based on her own organizing experience. This presentation  lasted 25 minutes, with 10 minutes set aside for questions about the organization from new students. Many new students used the “raise hand” feature to ask the presenters, showing their excitement for the organization.

ESA’s president, Muhammad Imanda, then started the introduction of the ESA Magna cabinet around 3 p.m. The ESA’s president read out all people involved in ESA Magna. The goal is to introduce new students to ESA’s cabinet.

Following that, numerous new students who would become candidates for class president gave short speeches. Some of those who are elected will run for class president; therefore, they must have a strong vision and mission for their peers to vote for them. About ten new students shared their visions and missions with the group. Following the presentation of the visions and missions, new students or the committee are given the opportunity to ask questions concerning the submitted visions and missions. If they are elected later, we can assess how prepared they are to carry out their vision and objective.

“From what I’ve seen, being a class leader can be beneficial in terms of strengthening ties with forces above and below us. Furthermore, being a class leader can help you develop leadership skills because it’s fairly uncommon for an ESA or academic problem to be reported first to the class leader, who then informs his students. In addition, I believe it can help with public speaking,” said Rezeki Ernala Tarigan, the Steering Committee 4.

Being a class leader has a lot of benefits. Rezeki Ernala Tarigan described some of them. The chance to be a class leader does not come twice, so take advantage of it while you still have the chance.

The last item on the AJYL’s agenda is this oration. After that, the MC called a halt to the activities. The AJYL documentation team screenshots the screen before new students exit the Zoom meeting room. AJYL went as planned; the entire agenda was well-executed from start to finish. However, there were a few issues, particularly unstable connections that took some time to resolve.

A Journey of Your Life’s photo session

“AJYL is anticipated to assist them in replanting the importance of spiritual values during their college years. Aside from that, there’s an organization lecture at AJYL. So, if the organization also needs to experience them while they are studying, new pupils are expected to be ‘literate,'” Rezeki Ernala Tarigan said.

Regarding the positive outcomes of the AJYL, it is hoped that incoming students have already implemented the AJYL. As a result, they are expected to gain something useful from this activity. (Sheren Agustin, Mahasiswa Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris, FPBS UPI)

The press is an institution that makes and publishes news to the mass media periodically. Etymologically, the press comes from the Latin, “perssare” taken from the wor­d “premere” which means “press” or “print.” In Indonesia, the notion of the press is regulated in Press Law No. 40 of 1999 which states that the press is a social institution and a vehicle of mass communication that carries out journalistic activities including finding, acquiring, possessing, storing, and conveying information both in the form of writing, sound, images, sounds and images, as well as data and graphics and in other forms using print media, electronic media, and all kinds of available platform. It purposes is to make and publish news to the mass media periodically.

The beginning of the development of the press in Indonesia began with the existence of the first journalist organization called PWI or Persatuan Wartawan Indonesia. The PWI organization was born on February 9, 1946, which was finally made as National Press Day. In fact, this has been regulated in Presidential Decree No. 5 Year 1985 signed by President Suharto on January 23, 1985. As one of the most important instruments in improving the quality of society, the Indonesian press has 7 common roles regulated in Law Number 40 of 1999 article 6.

The press plays a role in fulfilling people’s right to know, upholding the basic values of democracy that prioritize equal rights and obligations, encourage the realization of the rule of law and human rights, respect diversity, develop  public opinion, conduct supervision of criticism, correction and advice, and fight for justice and truth.

As we can see from the importance of the press for Indonesia, of course, every educational institution must participate in advancing the national press with the student press unit. This is in line with the existence of a Unit Pers Mahasiswa in the Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia. In an interview via Whatsapp chat with Ihsan Fajar students majoring in Science Education class of 2018 as the general chairman of the Unit Pers Mahasiswa, he mentioned that this student activity unit is a container to inform and defend students both in the UPI campus environment and off campus.

The Unit Pers Mahasiswa or commonly known as UPM originated from a literacy community in the 80s. Initially this community had activities such as reading, writing, and discussion. Until the end, it was decided that this organization became one of the student activity units that developed in the UPI environment.

Isolapos’s website that managed by Unit Pers Mahasiswa

In uploading the news, UPM has an official website that is isolapos.com and Instagram, Facebook, also Twitter account with the username Isolapos. Both platforms are media for UPI students to get the latest information related to campus. Not only that, UPM also always raises the latest issues that occur in Indonesia and the world. The method used in collecting information starts from an editorial meeting that discusses the latest issues, then continued with a mature discussion and brainstorming until it is agreed what material will be uploaded on the Isolapos platform.

After the agreement is obtained, the next step is to look for as much formalization as possible related to the issues discussed which are then written and assessed by the editor. If it is felt that the article is worth uploading, then the news will be directly published on all Isolapos platforms. Please also note that this editor is from UPM students themselves.

According to Ihsan, in this pandemic period it is very difficult to gather the latest news because everything is limited. So that, UPM changes methods and strategies such as development in data journalism and media design, then encourages reporters to have high morale and increase their skills. As a media platform in the UPI environment, the Unit Pers Mahasiswa has a very important role to voice opinions and defending the rights of students so that all parties can have equal rights and obligations.

By the Unit Pers Mahasiswa, it is also expected that all students can be more open and up to date related to the news in the UPI environment. As college students, we should also appreciate how hard news anchors work to deliver actual and latest news every day. (Adzahra Siti Robyati Adawiah, Mahasiswa Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris, FPBS UPI)

Perkemahan Wirakarya Nasional (PWN) 2021 or a community service event by Scout was held on December 3-10. It was held as a form of Scout Promise and Scout Law realization. About 1.500 scout members (age 16-25) attended the event as the representatives from 34 provinces throughout Indonesia. The event was carried out in Jambi Province.

One of the UPI students majoring in Multimedia Education, Kiki Saepul Anam, had the opportunity to participate in this year’s PWN event as a leader of the West Java contingent. He led 16 participants representing West Java.

Kiki explained that a lot of preparations had been made before holding this event. Selection and registration is held in August. The participants were selected from administration, insight tests, physical tests, arts tests, and interviews. Consultations were also carried out with several parties related to Covid-19 considering that this event was held in the midst of a pandemic.

Welcoming by Bujang Gadis of Batanghari

There were many activities in PWN. The event started with an opening ceremony. Then there were physical and non-physical community services. Physical service was building monuments, renovating damaged buildings, and all visible physical development. Meanwhile, non-physical services were the activity in the form of training people on many things: SDGs, leadership, biodiesel, etc. Other activities were tourism activities to promote and get to know more about Jambi, art performances to introduce each other to the culture of 34 provinces, and finally the closing ceremony to close the event.

To avoid crowds, the activities were divided into 2 groups: sub camp and main camp. The main camp operated at the Abdurrahman Sayoeti-Musa Campground on the Gelam River, Jambi, which is the Jambi campground area. Meanwhile, the main camp operated in 5 village development centers in Batanghari Regency, Jambi.

According to Kiki, the interesting experience of this event was the concept of a home stay or landlady. Over there, there was a local resident’s house and all lived in it. The participants did not set up tents at the campsite, they were grouped into several people consisting of 4-5 people and then joined the landlady or homestay. He lived as a member of the family there. It also made a heavy farewell at the end because it felt like he was parting with the second family there. To join the big event in the middle of a pandemic became his new experience too.

Everything was going well and safely because all parties involved were people who had been tested negative for COVID-19. Even the antigen swab was carried out 5-6 times during the activity. Health protocols were also implemented under the supervision of the COVID-19 officer unit and the National Police.(Fatimah, Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris, FPBS, UPI)

Shavira Amelia Johan, a student of Korean Language Education, Faculty of Language and Literature Education at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, won second place in The 25th Korean Speech World Contest. The 25th Korean Speech World Contest was held by the Indonesian Korean Eloquence Association to express the talents and hone skills of Indonesian youths who are interested in the Korean language. It was also acknowledged by Shavira when asked about her reasons for participating in the K-Speech World Contest.

“I was interested in this competition because I wanted to find a lot of experience in the field of Korean language as well as hone my skills, considering that I am a student majoring in Korean.” The Korean Speech World Contest was held on September 11, 2021, and ended with the winner’s announcement on September 21, 2021. Students who successfully become the first champion are rewarded with a holiday to Korea for four days and become the representatives for Indonesia to compete with other countries at the international level. At the same time, students who succeed in becoming the second and third winners are entitled to entertainment prizes in the form of products from Korea.

Shavira revealed this is not the first time she has participated in a competition related to the Korean language. She admitted that she had participated in various competitions related to the Korean language since the 1st semester.

“In the first semester, I tried to participate in an essay writing competition held by Sungkyunkwan University but lost. Then, in 2021 I also participated in a translation competition for Korean literature held by the Korean Cultural Center Indonesia, Alhamdulillah I got the 2nd runner up. In addition, I also participated in a speech competition organized by Kyung Hee University and the speech competition by Gyeongsangbuk Do, respectively, but lost until the last time I entered this competition and finally won.”

However, despite having participated in many competitions, Shavira admitted to being nervous and did not expect that she would be able to get a second place in the speech competition this time.

“When the committee announced the winner, I actually gave up. If I lose again, that’s fine. But while hoping that at least I can get 3rd place. When the announcement was made, it turned out that I actually won 2nd place, and I was really surprised when I heard it and didn’t believe that I got 2nd place.” However, the award is indeed worthy of her achievements. It is because, in addition to often participating in the competition, she is also willing to spend time between college activities and her organization to be able to prepare the competition script.

The 25th K-Speech World Contest provides a choice of four themes that each participant can choose by themselves. The first theme is the steps to spread the Korean language to the global village and the development of Korean culture. The second theme is measured for the prevention and eradication of human infectious diseases globally. Then, the third theme is steps for the peaceful unification of the Korean peninsula and world peace. And the last theme is measured to promote friendship with the Republic of Korea using Hangul and Hallyu culture as subject matter.

For this competition, Shavira chose to discuss the first theme because she was interested and had an idea of how to spread the Korean language to the world. She wrote two ideas on the theme. The first idea was to increase the number of competitions about Korean, even online. Then, the second idea is to increase the number of Korean language majors on the Indonesian campus, considering that currently, there are only four universities with Korean language majors, which is relatively small compared to other Asian countries.

In the future, after graduating from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, she hopes to become a teacher of the Korean language and a good translator. Shavira’s success is a clear example of a great fighting spirit, continuously improving her skills and never giving up. This enthusiasm and effort must be used as inspiration and motivation for the younger generation in Indonesia. (Laila Mukaromah, Mahasiswa Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris, FPBS UPI)

The 4^th International Conference on Arabic Language and Literature (4^th ICALL 2021) was conducted on November 02, 2021 in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. This Conference aims to boost up the creativity and innovation of Arabic Learning and Islamic subjects as well as to facilitate a scientific forum for Arabic language study, Islamic subjects, and its teaching. In response to this demand, the Departement of Arabic Language, Faculty of Language and Literature, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia conducted this conference.

The main purpose of ICALL is to address various issues and challenges in the teaching and learning of Arabic language and literature, Islamic subject, the culture of Arabic-Islam and to find out solutions to these challenges. Such the issues include identifying the values, creativity and innovation in the teaching and learning of these subject areas.

The 4^th International Conference on Arabic Language and Literature (4^th ICALL 2021) was by the Arabic Language Education Department of Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia. This conference (4^th ICALL 2021) was different from the previous ones because it was held online through the Zoom meeting application due to the coronavirus pandemic. This was the first ICALL online conference ever, considering that previous the conferences were held offline at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia.

This activity presented several speakers from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia and universities abroad as follows Prof. Dr. Syihabuddin, M.Pd. from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Prof. Madya Dr. Muhammad Anas Al-Muhsin from Universitas Pendidikan Sultan Idris Malaysia, Syekh Prof. Dr. Ibrahim Salah (Principal of Al Azhar University, Egypt 2015-2017), Dr. Zeinab Ibrahim (Professor of Arabic Studies at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar) Prof. Dustin Cowell (Professor of Arabic Language and Literature at University of Winconsin-Madison in the United States).

Meanwhile, the specific materials that were delivered to the conference participants are as follows: (1) Methodology of Arabic teaching for non-native speakers; (2) Arabic Linguistics and Literatures; (3) Strategies for teaching and learning Arabic for non-native speakers; (4) Arabic Morphology and Syntax; (5) Arabic Islamic Culture; (6) Arabic History. (Tedy Mohamad Nur, Prodi Bahasa dan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Pendidikan Bahasa dan Sastra, UPI)