Burma Students’ Post
BSP NewsPaper
FRIDAY • April 8,2011 Nupo-Temporary Shelter Issue 2011­-Vol:1
Umphang District, Tak Province, Thailand.
The First Graduation Ceremony of
P.A.B High School
T he first graduation ceremony of PAB high
school was held on April 4th 2011 at 5:30 p.m.
The 16 students who graduated from the high
school were given the certificates by the princi-
ple, U Win Kyaw Thu, after he had addressed the
attended audience. Many people including stu-
dents, teachers, parents of the students, PTA mem-
P.A.B High School Graduation Ceremony
ber and the special guests, Mr. Ton from IHE and
Ms. Amber from ESC attended the ceremony.
--By Yoon (Upper-Intermediate)
BSP Newspaper
News ..............................................Page 1
Editorial .........................................Page 2
Article ............................................Page 2
Snappy Joke ...................................Page 3
Poem Section .................................Page 3
Crosswords ....................................Page 4
Lost Belover ..................................Page 5
Newcomer’s Exploration& Cartoon .......Page 6
9 BSP Newspaper
TOP OF THE CLASS PARTY
E SC English School held its “TOP OF THE
CLASS PARTY” for outstanding students in
previous session, the fourth session of 2010. The
volunteer teachers, local teachers and students took
part in this party. This time, the party was held com-
bined with Amber’s, one of the volunteers, fare-well
party. She has been teaching at ESC since February,
Top of the class students
2011. On Saturday April 2nd 2011 on the ESC bad-
minton court at 6:30 P.M, the party started with Kim
Kim’s piano-solo-tune and continued with certifi-
cate awarding for winning players of ESC badmin-
ton team in 2011 Karen New Year’s Day Badmin-
ton Tournament and outstanding students. Then,
teacher Amber gave some words of thanks which
was followed by student’s talent shows, group danc-
ing, solo singing with karaoke and hollow guitar.
During entertainment, the students sang and
enjoyed their dinner with spaghetti,garlic bread,
cookies and soft drinks. The party ended with Ma-
carena dance at 9:00 P.M successfully.
--By Rainbow
April-8-2011 Page-1
Editorial A Freezing Dutchman in Nu Po
By Ton Baars, Nu Po, April 1

In front of you is the Burma Students’ Post,
a familiar name, a new look and a fresh start. Almo-
st three years ago the BSP grew out of a newspaper
workshop after students showed their interest and
readers their desire to read about all things regard-
ing their lives.
Some months ago it was decided to have a
look at what BSP was doing and if it could become
a combination of a news sharing publication and a
skill learning activity. This pause has taken much
more time than first thought. After several meet-
ings we have decided on a new format, changed
the amount of pages, changed from a monthly to a
weekly and from now we will focus more on news
from Nu Po.
The staff of BSP consists of students and
teachers of ESC, however we encourage everyone
to submit stories about life in Nu Po. Interviews
with remarkable people, description of special
events, or just stories about everyday life. We also
encourage aspiring poets to send their poem, art-
ists to send their cartoons and every thing else that
you feel should be included in the newsletter. The
language of our periodical is English, however we
intend to translate articles we feel should be read by
everybody.
As with every publication, it is made for the
readers so keep us informed about what you think
about our newsletter and we will try to make it the
best newsletter in Nu Po, for Nu Po, by Nu Po.
C
enturies ago, the Dutch didn’t rule the foot-
ball grounds. Instead they ruled the 7 seas.
Dutch ships were superior compared with
their Spanish or British counterparts. Therefore, a
small country on the North-sea coast managed to
obtain colonies that were all over the world and
much bigger than Holland.
In the same period the Dutch started making in-
roads into the dictionaries of the world. Idioms like
‘Dutch Courage’, for gaining confidence after tak-
ing in large amounts of alcohol, ‘Double Dutch’,
for jump roping using two ropes turning in oppo-
site directions, a ‘Dutch Auction’, when the buyer is
found starting with a high price and gradually going
lower, ‘Dutch Treat’, a meal where everybody pays
for themselves or a ‘Dutch Uncle’ about somebody
giving firm but beneficial advice.
Sailors around the world would meet Dutch trad-
ing ships on every corner of the world. And most
sailors claimed to have seen a ship that had no sailor
on board, only dead bodies. This ship would, when
met, bring bad luck to the other ships so people
dreaded meeting this ship. The name of the ship was
‘The Flying Dutchman’ a name that is still used in
sports to nickname a fast going runner, cyclist or
football player.
The last two weeks you have witnessed another kind
of Dutchman, the freezing Dutchman.
-See page 4

The Approaching New Year of Burma

ACCORDING TO THE BURMESE CALENDAR, the first month of a year is Taku, and as the
waxing moon to become full on the 14th of the month, a festival of pouring water —called Ata Thin
Gyan— is held and marks the end of a year.
In Burma, all Buddhist have the desire to leave the misery, sadness, and sins of the old year behind
and enjoy the approaching New Year, full of joy with a clean mind. A day before the joyful festival, people
—boys and girls, old and young, rich and poor alike— go to monasteries to pay homage to the five respect-
ful —Buddha, the enlightened one; Dhamma, the teachings of Buddha; Singha, monkhood; Mata-Pitu,
mother and father; and Acariya, teachers, whom Buddhist are very grateful and thankful. After that, people
will cleanse the icon, or statue, of Buddha.
As the festival begins, roads and streets will be filled with people, especially boys and girls, pour-
ing water on each other not only as fun but also as a mean of cleansing the soul and relieving the heat of
summer. Meanwhile, some will visit the monasteries to fast, meditate, and follow the teachings of Buddha
while others will be contributing donations everywhere. During the evenings of Thin Gyan, when people
are not pouring water; there will be singers and many groups of dancers who compete to get a prize given
by certain people. It is enchanting to watch the Burmese traditional dances. -See page 3

BSP Newspaper April-8-2011 Page-2

 A WISH
Once, there lived a poor and honest wood-cutter and his wife, in a village near a river. He earned
his living by cutting old trees for firewood and selling it. One day, while he was cutting a tree, his axe fell
and sank in the river. He was very sad and crying by the river. Suddenly, a river-guard spirit came out of the
water and asked him, “Why are you crying so sadly?” He told his story about his important axe. The sprit
disappeared and came up again with the golden axe in his hand. “Is this yours?” asked the spirit, and the
poor man said, “No”. Again, the spirit disappeared and showed up with a silver axe and asked him, “What
about this?” and the wood-cutter replied, “ No, it is not mine.” Finally, the spirit brought his real axe and
asked him as usual. The poor, honest wood cutter answered, “Yes,” and the spirit gave him all three axes in
honour of his honesty.
A few months later, on a beautiful evening, the wood-cutter and his wife strolled along the river
for relaxation. This time, unfortunately, his wife slipped down and fell into the river. In a very short time
she sank in the river and disappeared. No one could help it. Luckily, the spirit appeared and asked him like
before. He explained the event and how he loved his wife. The spirit suddenly disappeared and came up
with Angelina Jolie. “ Is she your wife?” The wood cutter quickly answered “Yes , Sir.”
“Are you sure?” asked the spirit again, and he replied to the wood-cutter with the same answer,
“Absolutely sure.” The spirit was very angry and told him, “You are liar. Last time you were honest, but
now you aren’t. Why do you lie, my guy?”
The poor wood-cutter explained without hesitating.
“Sir, if I said ‘no’, you would bring Britney Spears and finally, my wife. At last you would give all
three ladies to me. So, for the poor one like me, how can I feed them these wives?
--By Rainbow

The Crying World From page 2

The wind blowing from the West Though Thin Gyan is a cultural and religious festival
The South flowers are dancing held to cleanse the soul and sins of the old year, people nowa-
The East Sun happy days forget what Thin Gyan actually is. Why Thin Gyan is held
The North pours rain and for what, why we pour water, we should know, but many do
not know. That is sad to say. In Thin Gyan, many alcohol will
The wild bud opens at night. be consumed and will be seen hereabout nowadays. Alcohol can
The red wind blows everywhere. damage one’s mind. A man cannot distinguish what is right or
Some rose falls down wrong after drinking alcohol.
But butterfly fled away In fact, Thin Gyan —New Year— is a reminder of how
The sun rises up warmly old are you. People grew older and older, day after day, month
The birds are silent why? after month, year after year. Therefore, people should realize
The road is very pleasant how old they are. Moreover, we should ask the question: ‘What
Where are all the trees? have you done to improve your life or the lives of those who are
Spider is working hard close to you and to serve the world in which you live?’ We are
Why does the frog watch? —it is true— getting older and drawing nearer to death. Thus,
Lily flowers like winter we should do something before we die in vain. Death will take
The grasses also love the lilies. every single man and woman. Nonetheless, we have enough
--By Anonymous time to make good deeds for our society.
If you are living for your own personal interest, remem-
ber your processions, your wealth, your beloved ones will not be taken with you when you die. However,
your feats for the good of the community will be following you. If you have done many wrongdoings, it
is sure that hell is awaiting you. The heaven, nevertheless, can reach if you have done many good deeds
—such as Dana, contribution; Sila, morality; and Bavana, love or kindness.
I wish you all participate this peaceful and joyful Burmese festival. May all be happy!

--By SHIN INDATHAKYA (Intermediate)

BSP Newspaper April-8-2011 Page-3

From page 2 CrossWord
This man, known for his stubbornness, admitted sev- New Orleans is a (1) in Louisiana. It was the (2) of
eral times that he finally felt cold in Nu Po. For 4 Jazz. Preservation Hall is famous for its jazz (3).
years he never acknowledged the fact that cold could The restaurants of New Orleans are another (4).
penetrate his body, as he was from that cold Northern The Conjun dishes taste (5). The (6) of New Or-
Europe country. leans is a blend of old and new. The historic French
After the Japanese earthquake, the weather in Nu Po Quarter is (7). New Orleans is a major (8). The city
changed drastically. Temperatures dropped to levels is also a center for business and (9).
not felt before, the sky turned a grey we usually see
2
in July, rain splashed on our heads and damaged roofs 5
as the Deluge had started again and wind added to 1 i
the discomfort. For 4 days the weather in Nu Po was
identical as the weather felt in Holland during Octo- 4 a i
ber and November.
With stories about climate changes and global warm- 6
ing abound, are we witnessing this event or is it a a
temporary blip in the weather pattern caused by the 3 c e t
earthquake? A week after the colds and rains the e
weather was almost back to normal. For a week we
could feel ourselves at home again basking in the
7 p t q
March sun only to be surprised again by another drop
in temperature. This second wave of Dutch weather
suggests that there is something wrong in our climate. 9 n y
On the other hand, not mentioned in the press as much
as the disaster in Japan, a second earthquake hit Asia
last week, this time in the North of Burma, destroying 8 e o
houses and killing 40, 60, 80 or more people.
It has been a long time since the Dutch ruled the seas, their language and opinions still try to influence
world events, but like the Freezing Dutchman admitting he was cold as well, the Dutch have to lower their
voice. And now the only place where the Dutch rule is on the green fields of Europe and the World.
counterparts a person or thing holding a position or performing a function that corresponds to
that of another person or thing in another place
making inroads progress, advance
beneficial favorable or advantageous
dreaded thought about with fear
the Deluge the biblical flood
blip an unexpected, minor, and typically temporary deviation from a general trend
weather the state of the atmosphere at a place and time as regards heat, cloudiness, dryness,
sunshine, wind, rain, etc.
climate the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long period

Burma Students’ Post Newspaper Members

Editorial Group & Esc Students

Layout Design - ESC Group

BSP Newspaper April-8-2011 Page-4

The Loss of A Beloved Community ¶ Bad gossip goes around the world while
Member good news keeps inside. There is no more pain than
V en. Nandakha or San Thar Tun or San Yee
Kyaw, 48 years old, who stayed in Damarakh-
ita Monastery in Nupo, Thailand, died of cancer on
March 31, 2011 at 6:05 p.m. One of his friends who
lived in the same monastery said “he had gotten a
departure date to New Zea-
land for March 8, 2011, but
it was postponed indefinitely
due to the devastating earth-
quake which hit last month.”
Ven. Nandakha became a
member of AASYC (All
Arakan Students and Youth
Congress) in 1990 and
served primarily in charge of Shwe Gas Movement
in Thailand as a CEC (Central Executive Com-
mittee) member in AASYC. In the course of his
participation in the Shwe Gas Movement he also co-
operated with the SYCB (Student Youth Congress
of Burma) in 2005 as AASYC’s representative.
He also served and cooperated with ALD (Arakan
League For Democracy) from 2005 to 2006. In ad-
dition, to provide for monks who faced difficulty
with accommodation since 2006 in Nupo, he led a
large group of people in building a monastery called
Damarakhita.
We, ESC students, would like to inform his
family, relatives, friends who are away from Nupo
that his remains were sent and burnt at Nupo tem-
porary shelter’s cemetery at 3:00 p.m. on April 1,
2011.
Thought
¶ We should not act like ants which save food
only, or spiders which produce silks from their ab-
domen but instead act like bees which absorb pollen
and produce honey.
¶ We should consider a person based on how
he behaves, what thought he has, what his habits
are, and how he constructs his fate.
¶ Good books are like teachers and friends
who always sit beside us and fulfill our lives with
insight.
¶ Bad books are like bad friends who con-
vince us of negative ways.
¶ We must practice ten times in order to per-
form one show. This achievement is the result of our
hard working. Therefore, we should give our praise
to the performers.
BSP Newspaper April-8-2011
bad gossip. Think and let the words go through your
brain first before you tell someone.
¶ It is difficult to change our behavior and cus-
tom even though it is easy to move mountains.
¶ It is also difficult to change our bad behavior
because people themselves can’t see their faults.
¶ You should consider others at the same time
when you think “for me”. It is kind as well as cour-
teous and respectful.
¶ There are sunny and rainy days in our lives.
We do not always have sunny days; sometimes we
have cloudy and rainy days. Don’t laugh, pointing
with your first finger, at people who are wet in the
rain, but instead help them with an umbrella.
¶ Even though it is already dead if words and
letters are published, however, human beings are
alive. We should put words, letters, and methods
which are already dead into our brain.
¶ We should let a desire for a good reputation
spread in our mind and our community. It may re-
move our difficulty in our lives.
--By BKM
From page 6
processes they utilize for understanding, the subject
matter they choose to explore, and the significance
of their conclusions for their lives and their com-
munities.Over this ten week session at ESC, I have
experimented in my classes with a mixture of tradi-
tional and Dogme teaching approaches, and I have
had mixed results. Look to future issues of BSP for
examples of these results, and other teaching-relat-
ed articles.
---------------------------++++++------------------------
Page-5
A Newcomer’s Exploration of Language one standard-- that they are not boring.
Teaching Theory Obviously, there are some problems
with this teaching approach for the context
Erin Lierl, Nupo, April 7 of Nupo. For example, in the camp, authentic
printed English-language material is not avail-
Language-instruction theory changes constantly, and opin- able. For students to select or create their own
ions regarding the most effective teaching methods are as materials, they will have to spend money they
varied as the individuals who are called teachers. Before don’t have at an internet shop. Also, the educa-
coming to Nupo as a volunteer English teacher, and as a tional background of the students in Nupo can
relative newcomer to the language teaching field, I was be at odds with the Dogme approach. Some
terrified to find myself unfit for the job. I spent count- of the students here have never attended any
less hours researching trends in language teaching, trying school, and others have only learned by rote
to find a theoretical and methodological framework for memorization in Burmese schools. As a re-
teaching that suited my personality and my beliefs about sult, some local teachers have suggested, ESC
education and society. One trend that I explored in depth students have low self-confidence, and do not
is known as the Dogme approach, which was developed feel qualified to take charge of their own in-
(in collaboration with others) by a language instructor and tellectual development. This may be true to a
teacher-trainer from New Zealand named Scott Thorn- certain extent, but it is certainly not the end of
bury. For a quick breakdown: the story.
Dogme is against: For me, the only thing that is certain
-text books, photocopies, worksheets is that to permit the creativity and freedom of
-teacher-centered teaching style thought that can give rise to creative solutions
-grammar-driven lessons to the problems facing us, educators must en-
Dogme is for: courage themselves and their fellow learners
-learner-centered teaching style to question everything-- including the ways
-locally-generated materials (using what in which they teach and learn, the cognitive
the students bring and what is in the class See page 5
room)
-emergent language focus (teaching struc
ture as it emerges, based on communica
tive needs)
-critical education (making a connection
between education and social change)
For proponents of a Dogme approach to language teach-
ing, materials such as photocopies, text books, and mul-
timedia tools are seen as artificial and external to the fo-
cus-- language-- which should arise naturally, through
authentic communicative exchanges. The teacher and
students should engage in a non-hierarchical learning pro-
cess, in which the teacher merely guides the students to
the edge of their knowledge and ability. The classroom
should become a small, interdepedent culture, in which
individuals tell stories, give opinions, and use language to
express themselves-- with the teacher as simply another
member of the group. Teachers should ask more questions,
and make less statements, than in a traditional classrrom.
Furthermore, they should only ask real questions (such as
“Have you tried sushi?”) rather than “display” questions
(such as “What is the past partciple of ‘run’?”). Grammar
should emerge from the content of the lesson, rather than
dictate it. And teachers should be judged only according to

BSP Newspaper April-8-2011 Page-6