Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA

(MALAYSIAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL)

HEAR YE! HEAR YE!

INTRODUCTION

One of the skills learners need to acquire is the ability to comprehend various types of oral
texts of varying length and levels of complexity in terms of content and language.

This session aims to familiarise you with the range of listening skills that your students should
acquire and to enable you to plan for their practice and acquisition of the listening skills in
your MUET classroom.

CONTENT PAGE

SO WHAT’S NEW 2–3

SKILLS DRILLS 4–8

LET’S GET CRACKING 9 – 10

LET’S CHANGE HATS 11 – 18

LET’S REFLECT 19

SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS 20-22

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 Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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SO WHAT’S NEW

TASK SHEET 1

TIME : 30 minutes

AIM : To familiarise you with various listening skills in the Test Specifications.

ORGANISATION : Pair work

PROCEDURE:

• Get CPs to work in pairs.

• Ask CPs to refer to page 17 of the revised MUET Test Specifications and complete Task
Sheet 1 in their module.
• Check answers with the CP.

* This activity is to familiarise the CPs with the various skills in the Test
Specifications and use the mind-map for reference throughout the session.

ANSWERS

ii) Comprehension
• deriving meaning
i) Knowledge of words, phrases, iii) Application
• recalling sentences from • predicting
information context outcome
• recognising • paraphrasing • applying a concept
main ideas to a new situation
• recognising
supporting details

LISTENING iv) Analysis

TEST SPECIFICATIONS • understanding
language functions
vi) Evaluation • distinguishing the
• appraising information relevant from the
• making irrelevant
judgements v) Synthesis • distinguishing fact
• drawing • Following the from
conclusions development of a opinion
• recognising and point or an argument • drawing
interpreting speakers’ • summarising inferences
views, attitudes or information • identifying roles and
intentions relationships

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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TASK SHEET 2

PROCEDURE:
• Get CPs to work in pairs and respond to the task.
• Discuss the answers with the CPs and reflect on the Point to Ponder.

ANSWERS

A B

Components Examples of Illustrative Verbs*

demonstrate, predict, produce,

Knowledge solve, show

distinguish, explain, predict,

paraphrase, summarise, infer, give
examples
Comprehension
categorise, explain, generate,
rearrange, organise, rewrite,
Application summarise, tell, relate

conclude, compare, contrast,

explain, describe, support, justify,
Analysis interpret

define, describe, identify

Synthesis label, list, match

differentiate, identify, illustrate,

Evaluation point out, select, imply

* Source: Bloom, B.S. Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Handbook 1, Cognitive Domain, 1956

Point to ponder
• Do you think that knowing the illustrative verbs will help you to better understand the
test specifications for the Listening Component? If so, in what way?

Possible responses:
Yes, the verbs help the teachers to formulate questions and set tasks of different levels of
comprehension. Teachers will be aware of the levels of difficulties of the questions they
may want to pose to their students in the class.
If the response is ‘no’, impress on the CPs the above explanation. .

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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SKILLS DRILLS

TASK SHEET 3

TIME : 90 minutes

AIM : To familiarise you with some of the listening skills

ORGANISATION : Individual work and pair work

PROCEDURE:
• Get CPs to work individually.
• Tell CPs that they will listen to several short listening texts and answer questions on them.
• Give CPs time to read the questions before you play the recordings.
• Ask CPs to listen to the recordings and respond to the task. [ each recording will be played
twice.
• Check the answers with CPs.
• Get CPs to respond to the Points to Ponder.
[Tell CPs to refer to the mind-map on page 2 of this module.]

ANSWERS

TASK SHEET 3
Listening Text A

For question 1, write your answer in NOT MORE THAN THREE WORDS.

1. Over-fishing and destructive fishing pose a threat to

millions of jobs, global food security and the
well-being of the marine environment.

Points to ponder
• Do you think it is possible to guess the answer without listening to the text? Why do you say
so?
It is not possible unless you listen to the recording because it is factual.

• What skill is tested? How did you arrive at your answer?

Possible answer: Recalling information

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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For question 2, circle the correct answer.

2. Which of the following statements best explains why the speaker says that “the cost of our
favourite dishes is rising”?

A. Poor fishing practices are reducing the supply of fish from the sea.
B. Poor fishing practices are threatening the livelihood of fishermen.
C. Poor fishing practices are endangering the marine life.

Listening Text B

For questions 3 and 4, write your answers in NOT MORE THAN FIVE WORDS.

3. What is the text mainly about?

Possible answer: An earthquake (in India)

4. Why did the residents run out of their homes?

Possible answer: They feared for their lives

Points to ponder
• What skills are tested in each of the questions?
• What information in the text helped you to arrive at the answers?

Question 3: Skill : Recognising main ideas

Possible explanation: Use of clues – the word ’earthquake’ and supporting

details like ‘Richter scale’ and ‘ causing people to run out of homes’ point to
none other than earthquake.

Question 4: Skill: Drawing inferences

Possible explanation: Although the answer is not found in the text, the listener
draws from his or her worldview and experiences to infer that during an
emergency, people leave their homes due to fear.

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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Listening Text C

5. ANSWERS

Name of the award

recipient (a) Dr./ Doctor Gurmit Kaur

Department
School of Medical Sciences

Award won
(b) Young Investigator’s/ Investigators’/ Investigators Award

Area of research
Intestinal infections by a worm

(c) What do you think is the relationship between the speakers?

Possible answers:

The man : interviewer/ chairperson/ host/moderator of a panel of

experts/recipients of awards in a formal setting / in the presence of an audience
(in a press conference/ forum )/ interviewer

The woman : interviewee/ one of several invited guests/ panellists/ researchers/

recipients of an award / interviewee

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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TASK SHEET 4

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Get CPs to work individually.

• Give CPs 1 minute to read the questions.
• Tell CPs that they will listen to the recording twice and ask them to answer the
questions.
• Check answers.

For questions 1 and 2, write your answers in NOT MORE THAN FOUR WORDS.

Preparation for a Test

Before the Test During the Test

Plan for revision Stay sharp and alert

1 Create your own test

2 Rest and sleep

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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For questions 3 and 4, circle the correct answer.

3. How many hours should a test-taker sleep before taking a test?

A. 48
B. 24
C. 8

4. According to the speaker, which of the following factors will affect the performance of
a test-taker the most?

A. Insufficient sleep on the night before a test.

B. Preparing for a test in a haphazard manner.
C. Answering test questions in a set order.

For questions 5 and 6, write your answers in NOT MORE THAN SEVEN WORDS.

What are the two good practices when answering questions during a test?

5. Allocate time for each question.

6. Answer questions you are confident with first.

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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LET’S GET CRACKING

TASK SHEET 5

TIME : 15 minutes

AIM : To provide listening practice using a song

ORGANISATION : Individual work

PROCEDURE:
• Get CPs to work individually.
• Tell CPs that they are given 1 minute to read the questions.
• Tell CPs that they will listen to the recording twice and ask them to answer the questions
while listening.
• Check answers

1 Why did the couple go out of town?

.
To get away from the hectic city life.

2 What time of the day do you think they arrived at their destination? How do you
know?
Late evening/ at night – they lit a (camp) fire.

3 Give 2 things the couple did.

.
i) pitched a tent/ lit a fire/ drank some wine/ swam in the river (any two)

ii)

4 What happened to them that night?

.
They fell sick/ were unwell/ didn’t feel good

5 What does the phrase ‘the strangest sight’ refer to?

.
The dead fish/ the silver fish lying on its side by the river bank

6 What do you think they were suffering from?

They probably had rashes all over their bodies/ diarrhoea/ stomach ache/ headache/
fever ( accept any logical answer)

7 From what you have heard so far, what do you think will eventually happen to the
. river?

(Do not accept polluted river as the answer)

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
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TASK SHEET 6

TIME : 45 minutes

AIM : To provide CPs with the opportunity to take notes while listening and
write a report based on the notes.

ORGANISATION : Individual and group work

PROCEDURE:
• Get two CPs to act out an interview [ See script below ].
• Ask the other CPs to individually take notes while they listen to the interview.
• Get CPs to work in their groups and share the contents of their notes to write a letter to a
local newspaper to express concern about the environment.
• Invite the CPs to present their letters.

Situation:
The couple in the song, George and Lisa, became very ill after their visit to the doctor and
were admitted into the hospital. Soon after George got worse and fell into a coma.
You are a close friend of the couple. You went to visit them and talked to Lisa, who was not
as badly affected as George. Below is an extract of your conversation with Lisa.

You : …Oh dear Lisa, how did this happen?

Lisa : I don’t know. When George and I arrived at the river bank late that evening, we
didn’t notice anything strange except for the stench. I commented on it but George
thought the smell could have come from the factory upstream. So we thought
nothing of it and had a nice time swimming in the river. After that, we went to
sleep, that’s all!

You : Then what happened?

Lisa : We couldn’t sleep all night. At dawn, we decided to take a walk and then we saw a
dead fish by the river bank. Then we noticed the condition of the river - the water
was filthy! There was a layer of brownish foam on the surface! Further down the
bank, there was this huge patch of oily sludge and there were more dead fish there!
Then we realised where the stench was coming from.

You Oh dear! But how come your condition is not as bad as George’s?

Lisa I don’t know but I guess he swallowed some water. After we got back home, we

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had rashes all over our bodies and then suddenly George had trouble breathing…

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LET’S CHANGE HATS

SAMPLE LISTENING LESSON

TIME : 15 minutes

AIM : To provide an example of a listening lesson

ORGANISATION : None

PROCEDURE
• Briefly describe the sample lesson to the CPs.

Topic : Self-Medication

Learning Outcomes : Learners will be able to

- recall information from stimuli
- select relevant details

Time : 80 minutes

Notes
Pre-Listening

Activity 1 To create
• A sketch titled “ A visit to the doctor” interest and as
a lead in
Woman : Doctor, please help my husband!
Doctor : What’s wrong with him?
Woman : He broke his arm!
Man : (Moans, groans) I’m going to die.
Doctor : Nurse, give this man an injection.
Nurse : Yes, doctor. OK, bear with me. This will hurt a
little. ( plunges the syringe into his arm)
Man : Ouch…!
Director : Stop! This is wrong! Do it quickly (repeat with
slowly/sadly/ happily)
To elicit from
• Students respond to the following question. students other
Besides going to a doctor when you are sick, what else would you do? forms of
treatments e.g.
traditional
medicine/ self

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medication

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While Listening

Activity 1
• Students complete a table while listening. Refer to Test
• Check their answers. Specifications
p 17 and
Statements True False Teacher’s
Guide p. 1
1. Young people do not take enough care of their health.
2. Food which is good for the animals is also suitable for Recalling
us. information;
drawing
3. Eating the organs of animals can improve and
inferences;
strengthen our organs. distinguishing
4. Health remedies and cures obtained from newspaper the relevant
from the
articles are reliable. irrelevant.
5. Royal jelly is especially made for the queen bee.
6. Honey especially royal jelly is beneficial for health.
Activity 2
• Students match words and phrases in Column A to the phrases in
Column B.
• Check their answers.

Column A Column B
Recalling
1. Food for animals can cause allergies.
information;
distinguishing
can bring negative results. the relevant
2. Animal organs from the
irrelevant.
must be taken with caution.
3. Advice on cures in newspapers

can weaken our immune

4. Honey system.

can be poisonous.

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Post – Listening

Activity 1 The idea is to

• Students draw conclusions orally. get students to
realise that
self-medication
can be
dangerous
Activity 2
• Students produce a radio advertisement to promote a healthcare product in linking of the
groups. listening skill
to speaking and
• Students take turns to present their work to the class – their ‘customers’.
writing skills
• ‘Customers’ fill a feedback form to be given to the ‘advertisers’.

Customer Feedback Form

Name of product

Price

Benefits

Would you buy it?  

________________________________________
Why ?
________________________________________

________________________________________

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WORKSHOP

TIME : 45 minutes

AIM : To provide CPs the opportunity to plan a listening lesson.

ORGANISATION : Group work

PROCEDURE :

• Get CPs to work in groups.

• Assign different texts to different groups and identify the students for whom the lesson is
to be planned.
• Ask them to plan a listening lesson and accompanying task sheets. They may use their
own materials or the transcripts provided.
• Ask CPs to present their work *.

* Please do not ask CPs to do micro-teaching. They only need to describe their
lessons. Encourage everyone to provide constructive feedback.

TRANSCRIPT ONE
80% of Malaysians will have low back pain sometime in their life. If your job
involves much sitting and driving, you are almost certain to have low back pain. Why is this
so? Because nature didn’t design us to sit for hours and hours at a stretch. Your back doesn’t
hurt for no reason. There has to be a reason for your pain. Something destructive is going
on. This destructive force is one of two types – one, is high force instant trauma and
another is low force long term trauma. Think of high force as being hit once by a big truck.
This will definitely do damage. Think of low force as being run over by 1000 motorcycles.
The end result is the same – one is quick , the other takes longer. Your back is damaged just
the same. You can do something like fall down or lift something wrongly or pow! Instant
destruction and pain. Or you can spend your days driving or sitting and get your back pain
slowly over time.
Sitting is bad for you. Sitting puts hundred percent more pressure on your spine
than lying down. It tires the muscles and wears out your discs. A healthy disc acts as a shock
absorber between the bones of your spine. A damaged disc can bulge out and press on nerve
roots causing pain in your back, hips and down into your legs if the damage is bad enough.
Sometimes surgery is the only thing that can help. However, here are some facts to
keep in mind. According to research, 50% of all back surgeries failed. Surgery also has
certain inherent dangers such as infection, drug reactions and complications. You might ask
how do I care for my back. Here are some tips to avoid back pain. One, if something hurts
your back, quit doing it at once. Two, don’t sit for too long and three, when you lift
something heavy, don’t bend your back.

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TRANSCRIPT TWO
Alexander the Great, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Aristotle, Julius Caesar,
Mahatma Gandhi, Beethoven. Most of you are familiar with the names of these famous
people. Although they were famous for very different reasons, they all share one thing in
common – they were all left-handers. Left-handers are people who find it easier to use their
left hands for most actions rather than their right. About ten percent of the population is left-
handed and almost two thirds of the left-handers are male.
What difference does being left-handed make? Medically speaking, left-handers are
more likely to suffer from allergies, depression, drug abuse, sleeping disorders and certain
learning disabilities. They are also more likely to be involved in accidents.
Throughout history, left-handers have faced prejudice. Societies all over the world
consider left-handers to be inferior to right-handers. Until recently in Japan, a man could
divorce his wife for being left-handed. In a number of cultures in Africa, the Middle East
and the South Pacific, the left hand is considered to be evil.
This prejudice against the left is reflected in the words used to signify ‘left’ in many
languages. The word `left’ itself comes from an old English word that means weak or
worthless. In other languages, it means deceitful, stupid, clumsy or awkward.
If a person became right-handed or left- handed purely by chance, we would expect
the number of left-handers to be similar to the number of right-handers. So why do a
majority of people prefer to use their right hand for most actions while only a minority
prefer their left hand? There are no clear-cut answers to this question.

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TRANSCRIPT THREE

Voice 1: Mr. Teoh, I understand that you are the managing director of Borneo Eco-
tours. Can you please tell us what eco-tourism means?

Voice 2: Well, in this country, it has been defined by the Eco-tourism master plan of the
government, as a tourism sector that is nature-based and one which brings
benefits to the local community. Many people are not very clear about what it
really means as there has been widespread misuse of the term by irresponsible
tour operators. So long as they bring tourists to the countryside, they think they
are promoting eco-tourism.

Voice 1: Where does Malaysia stand in terms of the development of eco-tourism?

Voice 2: Well, tourism in this country has always been concerned with quantity rather
than quality. With this year being “Eco-tourism year”, we’ll have the chance to
look at ourselves and rethink what we want. Most operators want to maximise
everything and we’ve already seen the consequences of neglecting the
environment. Only when we’re concerned about conserving the environment
can we have sustainable eco-tourism. Management strategy and education are
the two key elements in sustainable eco-tourism.

Voice 1: Can you please elaborate, Mr Teoh?

Voice 2: [ ..] Hmm…, Good management is critical for the success of eco-tourism.
Many of our eco-tourism destinations are located in sensitive areas such as
Taman Negara, Kinabalu Park, Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre and
the Mulu Caves. From the viewpoint of an environmentalist, I would say there
should be a limit to the number of tourists to these places. But from the
viewpoint of an operator, I would want as many allowed in as possible. Good
management is finding the right balance.

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TRANSCRIPT FOUR

Voice 1: Good morning to our listeners, for those who have just joined us. This is another
episode of the World of Cars and in the studio with us is car expert, Mr. Selva who
writes for a car magazine. So, Mr.Selva what is your opinion about the case that
was highlighted in the press previously about the three deaths in a parked car?
Voice 2: Ah… Those three deaths. It shouldn’t have happened. So much has been written
about it, yet Malaysians are still careless. This is a wake-up call to all Malaysians –
carbon monoxide kills. In the case of the small car, the owner had modified the
exhaust system. So the three people in the car were slowly poisoned by the carbon
monoxide which had leaked into the car.
Voice 1: So, you wouldn’t advise motorists to modify their exhaust system unnecessarily?
Voice 2: Precisely.
Voice 1: Anyway, what are the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning? I mean we can
easily see the smoke coming out of the exhaust.
Voice 2: The smoke you’re talking about is the result of something wrong in an engine.
That’s why you usually see smoke in old cars. But carbon monoxide is colourless
which means you can’t see it and its odourless, which means you can’t smell it.
Which means you can’t really tell when you are being slowly poisoned.
Hm… Yes, you get drowsy. You were asking me about the symptoms. Well, you
would have breathing difficulties and your sight would be impaired. Things look
blurry. You know, you can’t really see very well. You would have poor dexterity by
which I mean you would have poor coordination. The result is that if you are
driving you wouldn’t be able to drive safely.
Voice 1: Mr. Selva, how serious is the problem of carbon monoxide poisoning in our
country?
Voice 2: Due to our climate, we tend to rely heavily on air-conditioning in our cars. It’s
quite normal for Malaysian drivers to turn on the air conditioner from the moment
they enter the car and it remains at full blast until the end of the journey. Now due
to the nature of carbon monoxide poisoning, the motorist might not even be aware
that he or she is being poisoned.
Voice 1: What advice would you offer motorists?
Voice 2: Put up with the inconvenience. If you have to wait long for somebody, it would be
advisable to turn off the engine and the air-conditioning and wait outside. The heat
won’t kill you but the carbon monoxide will. Personally, I would switch off the
engine and wind down the windows even if it meant being uncomfortable.
Voice 1: Well, folks that was Mr. Selva’s advice. We have to take a commercial break now.
Stay with us listeners, we will be back shortly.

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TRANSCRIPT FIVE

Here is the news. Police are investigating a crash in the underground train station that
occurred during the rush hour this morning. One of the commuters who escaped with minor
injuries said that she heard a small explosion before the train screeched to a halt just as it
was entering the station. The doors were jammed and when officials opened the doors
manually 10 minutes later a second train slammed into the stationary train killing 12 and
injuring over a hundred people. Train officials said the computer system malfunctioned
inexplicably. Investigations are still going on to find the cause of the accident.

The recent floods in Alam Perdana have been attributed to illegal logging activities on a
nearby hill. Investigations showed that a group of people have been working at night using
bulldozers and even helicopters to fell the trees and move the logs out of the area.
Complaints by nearby residents stated that recent rains flooded their houses. They want the
authorities to arrest the culprits and make them pay compensation for their losses. If the
logging thieves can afford high tech equipment, they can also afford to pay compensation.
Police are investigating.

TRANSCRIPT SIX

A woman was found dead in busy Chow Kit Road in Kuala Lumpur late yesterday evening.
The body has yet to be claimed by relatives. Fellow beggars told police that she was a
regular beggar who sat on the steps of the pedestrian bridge at Chow Kit Road. Papers
found on her body identified her as Roziah Bulkarnain. A bank savings book was found in
her belongings and showed she had in excess of 100 thousand ringgit. Police have requested
those who are related to her to phone in and to identify the body. They expect to receive
many phone calls from people.

In an unrelated incident, loggers in Pahang have called in the Wildlife Department to look
into the matter of elephants destroying their logging camp. Losses are estimated to be
around 250 thousand ringgit. Evidently, a baby elephant was injured by a log which
accidentally rolled down the hill. The loggers believed that the mother elephant had called
on the rest of the herd to take revenge. The authorities think the loggers are reading too
much into the incident but will nevertheless look into the matter.

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LET’S REFLECT

TASK SHEET 7

TIME : 10 minutes

AIM : To reflect on what you have done throughout the Listening session

ORGANISATION: Individual work.

PROCEDURE:
• Get CPs to work individually and complete the Reflection Log*

* The CPs are not expected to share their reflections, but if time permits, you may invite a
few of them to do so.

Content/ Activities What I learnt from What I plan to do in Notes

these activities my MUET class
SO WHAT’S NEW?
• Task Sheet 1 –
Mind Map

• Task Sheet 2 –
Bloom’s
Taxonomy

SKILLS DRILLS
• Task Sheet 3 –
3 Short Texts

• Task Sheet 4 –
1 Long Text

LET’S GET
CRACKING
• Task Sheet 5 –
Song

• Task Sheet 6 –
Note Taking and
Letter Writing

LET’S CHANGE
HATS
• Workshop

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SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS

1. LISTENING STRATEGIES
Listening strategies can be classified by how the listener processes the input. He may employ
top-down or bottom-up strategies. The former involves tapping into background knowledge of
the topic, the situation or context and the language. Background knowledge activates a set of
expectations that help the listener to interpret what is heard and anticipate what will come
next. The latter is text-based – the listener relies on the language in the message (combination
of sounds, words, grammar that creates meaning)
Top-down strategies include:
• Predicting
• Summarising
• Drawing inferences
• Listening for the main idea
Bottom-up strategies include:
• Recognising cognates
• Listening for specific details
• Recognising word order patterns

2. LISTENING ACTIVITIES MAY INCLUDE:

• Listen and retell

• Listen and draw
• Listen and match
• Listen and predict
• Listen and mark choices
• Listen and complete blanks in a sentence
• Listen and tick boxes for the information mentioned
• Listen and decide if given statements are true or false
• Listen and complete a table/ grid/ diagram/ chart/ etc
• Listen and paraphrase ( choosing an answer from given options)
• Listen and write down key words or specific information asked for

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LET’S GET CRACKING

LYRICS

DOWN BY THE RIVER – Albert Hammond

City life was getting us down

So we spent a weekend out of town
Pitched a tent on a patch of ground
Down by the river
Lit a fire and drank some wine
And you put your jeans on top of mine
Said, “come in the water’s fine
Down by the river’.

Didn’t feel too good all night

So we took a walk in the morning light
Came across the strangest sight
Down by the river
Silver fish lay on its side washed up by the morning tide
I wonder how it died
Down by the river.
Silver fish lay on its side
Down by the river

Doctor put us both to bed

He doused us up and shook his head
“only foolish people go,” he said
“down by the river”
“Why do willows weep” said he
“cause they’re dying gradually,”
“from the waste, from the factories
“down by the river”
“why do willows weep” said he
“down by the river?”

In time the river banks will die,

And the reeds will wilt, and the ducks won’t fly
There’ll be a tear in the otter’s eye,
Down by the river
The banks will soon be black and dead
The weary otter raise its head
There’ll be a clean white skull instead,
Down by the river.

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Trainer’s Notes: Listening MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA
(MALAYSIAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL)

LET’S CHANGE HATS

Tapescript: Talk on self-medication

Today’s topic is health care and self-medication. You are young and therefore think
you don’t have many health problems. This gives you the impression that you don’t need to
pay attention to your health. This is one danger : the young don’t take care of their health until
it is too late. The other danger is that we have many mistaken beliefs, wrong reasoning or
misconceptions about how to cure ourselves and our family members. We shall look at some
of the aspects of this issue one by one.
The first point I want to make about wrong beliefs is that it is simplistic to believe that
what is good for animals is good for us. For example, when we see birds eat a certain seed, we
might think if it is good for the birds it must be good for us. But do you know that some seeds
are poisonous and even the birds like parrots for example which eat these seeds have to eat a
certain kind of mud or clay just to get the poison out of their systems.
Another myth is that we can strengthen our organs by eating the organs of other
animals. For example, many people believe if our liver or lungs are not strong, we should eat
the liver or lungs of other animals to strengthen our own. This is a simplistic and naïve belief
that can bring undesirable results. Consult a qualified doctor before trying your own cures.
Point number three, don’t rely on newspaper articles to cure yourself as even articles
in newspapers can be dangerous. There was a case in which the writer advised giving glucose
to children before exercise. Later it was pointed out by a reader that this was not a good
practice under certain circumstances. The writer, when replying to the letter then pointed out
in detail, when it would be advisable to give glucose. What if the reader had not written in?
My next point is about the so-called benefits of honey. Royal jelly in particular. I’m
not sweet talking you to try it but to warn you against the many misconceptions about this
sweet product of the hardworking bee. Royal jelly is given to the queen bee and that makes the
queen bee much bigger. It lives longer than the other bees and it can go on producing
thousands and thousands of offspring. But you should know that although royal jelly contains
protein, amino acids, sugar and vitamins which may be good for many people, it also contains
bee pollen. Some people are allergic to bee pollen especially those with asthma. So before you
think of taking royal jelly as a solution to your health problems make sure you are not
asthmatic or allergic to bee-honey or pollen. Oh yes, although honey is sweet and fragrant to
many of us there are those of us who are allergic to it. Moving on from there…

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