DISCUSSION TEXT

NATIONAL EXAM

National exam becomes the hot topic in most of discussions. Though the Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by the government on the organization of the national exams, the controversy over whether it is necessary to maintain the national exams (UN) has continued. Some debates include the primary questions such as; does the quality of Indonesia education depend on the national exam?, will the quality of the Indonesian education system worsen without national exam?

People, who support the national exam explain that the quality of the Indonesia education system will drop without the national exam, so they try to defend the current system.

However there are people who disagree with the opinion. Those who against this national exam kept in our high school education say that it doesn't need the national exams because the quality of education does not just depend on the national exam. Further, the national exam only measures a small portion of students' competence in specific subjects, and does not measure students' competences throughout the semester.

In fact, the national examination can still be useful as an instrument to evaluate or detect the level of students' cognitive competence in several subjects, on a national scale.

source : http://bos-sulap.blogspot.com/2010/02/national-exam-in-pros-and-cons.html

EXPLANATION TEXT

FORMATION OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM

Where did the Solar System come from? How did we go from space to a star with planets orbiting around it? Before we can look at the formation of the Solar System, we have to see what this region looked like.                 

Throughout the Milky Way, there are clouds of cold gas and dust, just sitting there, doing nothing. At some point in the distant past, this cloud was disturbed; either through the collision of another galaxy, or the explosion of a massive star.

The explosion would have sent waves through space that squeezed the gas and dust together. The clumping material was able to attract more material with its gravity, and started to collect into the solar nebula. The mutual movement of all the atoms in the cloud gave the solar nebula a direction to spin.

The Sun formed out of the largest collection of mass at the center of the solar nebula. Because it was spinning quickly, the rest of the nebula collected into a flattened disk around the newborn Sun – astronomers call this an accretion disk. Within the accretion disk, additional clumps gathered together; these would eventually form the planets.

The planets started out as tiny specks of dust that clumped together. As they continued to gather together, they became pebbles, rocks, boulders and eventually planetoids. These planetoids violently collided together to become the planets we know today.

By studying the decay of radioactive elements in meteorites, astronomers have been able to determine that the Solar System formed about 4.6 billion years ago.

When astronomers look out into the Universe, they see other Solar Systems forming at different stages. Some are large clouds of cold dust, others are starting to collapse. Others have accretion disks, and some might even have planets clearing out paths in the dust of the disk. We can’t see the formation of our own Solar System, but we can see it happening everywhere we look, so we assume our Solar System formed in the same way.

source : http://www.universetoday.com/15567/formation-of-the-solar-system/

Folklore Task

SANGKURIANG

Long time ago in West Java, lived a beautiful girl named Dayang Sumbi. She was also smart and clever. Her beauty and intelligence made a prince from the heavenly kingdom of Kahyangan desire her as his wife. The prince asked permission from his father to marry Dayang Sumbi. People from Kahyangan could never live side by side with humans, but his father approved on one condition, when they had a child, the prince would transform into a dog. The prince accepted the condition.

They get married and lived happily in the woods until Dayang Sumbi gave birth to a baby boy. The prince then changed into a dog named Tumang. Their son is named Sangkuriang. He was very smart and handsome like his father. Everyday, he hunted animals and looked for fruits to eat. One day, when he was hunting, Sangkuriang accidentally killed Tumang. His arrow missed the deer he was targeting and hit Tumang instead. He went home and tells her mother about the dog. “What?” Dayang Sumbi was appalled. Driven by sadness and anger, she grabbed a weaving tool and hit Sangkuriang’s head with it. Dayang Sumbi was so sad, she didn’t pay any attention to Sangkuriang and started to cry.

Sangkuriang feel sad and also confused. How can his mother love a dog more than him? Sangkuriang then decided to go away from their home and went on a journey. In the morning, Dayang Sumbi finally stopped crying. She started to feel better, so she went to find Sangkuriang. But her son was no where to be found. She looked everywhere but still couldn’t find him. Finally, she went home with nothing. She was exhausted. She fell asleep, and in her dream, she meets her husband. “Dayang Sumbi, don’t be sad. Go look for my body in the woods and get the heart. Soak it with water, and use the water to bathe, and you will look young forever,” said the prince in her dream. After bathing with the water used to soak the dog’s heart, Dayang Sumbi looked more beautiful and even younger.

And time passed by. Sangkuriang on his journey stopped at a village and met and fell in love with a beautiful girl. He didn't realize that the village was his homeland and the beautiful girl was his own mother, Dayang Sumbi. Their love grew naturally and he asked the girl to marry him. One day, Sangkuriang was going on a hunt. He asked Dayang Sumbi to fix the turban on his head. Dayang Sumbi was startled when she saw a scar on his head at the same place where she, years ago, hit Sangkuriang on the head. 

After the young man left, Dayang Sumbi prayed for guidance. After praying, she became convinced that the young man was indeed her missing son. She realized that she had to do something to prevent Sangkuriang from marrying her. But she did not wish to disappoint him by cancelling the wedding. So, although she agreed to marry Sangkuriang, she would do so only on the condition that he provides her with a lake and built a beautiful boat, all in one night. 

Sangkuriang accepted this condition without a doubt. He had spent his youth studying magical arts. After the sun went down, Sangkuriang went to the hill. Then he called a group of genie to build a dam around Citarum River. Then, he commands the genies to cut down trees and build a boat. A few moments before dawn, Sangkuriang and his genie servants almost finished the boat.

Dayang Sumbi, who had been spying on him, realised that Sangkuriang would fulfill the condition she had set. Dayang Sumbi immediately woke all the women in the village and asked them to wave a long red scarf. All the women in the village were waving red scarf, making it look as if dawn was breaking. Deceived by false dawn, the cock crowed and farmers rose for the new day.

Sangkuriang’s genie servants immediately dropped their work and ran for cover from the sun, which they feared. Sangkuriang grew furious. With all his anger, he kicked the unfinished boat. The boat flew and landed on a valley. The boat then became a mountain, called Mount Tangkuban Perahu (Tangkuban means upturned or upside down, and Perahu means boat). With his power, he destroyed the dam. The water drained from the lake becoming a wide plain and nowadays became a city called Bandung (from the word Bendung, which means Dam).

source : http://ceritarakyat.50webs.com/Cerita%20rakyat_Indonesian%20folklore_West%20Java_Sangkuriang.htm

REMEDIAL ENGLISH TEST 1

• Change into passive voice

1. Mrs. K asked them to pay the school fee in time.

They were asked to pay the school fee in time.

2. Should we do the remedial test in a piece of paper?

Should the remedial test be done in a piece of paper?

3. You must not forget to write your name.

Your name must not be forgotten to write.

4. Are you speaking English during the English class?

Is English being spoken during the English class??

5. She crossed the answers several times.

The answers were crossed several times.

6. We have finished doing our task before other students.

Our task has been finished doing before other students.

7. Will you be waiting for them all day long?

Will they be being waited for all day long?

8. We celebrated the 47th anniversary of our school yesterday.

The 47th anniversary of our school was celebrated yesterday.

9. They were having dinner when suddenly the stove exploded.

Dinner was being had when suddenly the stove exploded.

10. The teacher had punished them for something they did not do.

They had been punished for something they did not do.

• Change into active voice

11. We are invited for lunch by the headmaster.

The headmaster invites us for lunch.

12. Many students are being given the English remedial test by Mr. T.

Mr. T is giving many students the English remedial test.

13. Was English being studied diligently by them last night?

Were they studying English diligently last night?

14. This test has been being finished in 45 minutes by the students.

The students have been finishing this test in 45 minutes.

15. Have they been being taught math by Mr. Good for three years?

Has Mr. Good been teaching them math for three years?

• Two Objects

16. Has Mr. Fajar been showing them his new blog?

a. Have they been being shown his new blog?

b. Has his new blog been being shown to them?

17. They do not ask her several questions.

a. She is not asked several questions.

b. Several questions are not asked to her.

18. Has Mrs. Nanik been reading us another story?

a. Have we been read another story?

b. Has another story been being read to us?

19. Didn’t he tell you the school regulation?

a. Weren’t you told the school regulation?

b. Wasn’t the school regulation told to you?

20. We were introducing him our pretty sisters last night.

a. He was being introduced to our pretty sisters last night.

b. Our pretty sisters were being introduced to him last night.

ENGLISH TEST 1

Change into passive voice

1. Mr. T tells us to close our notebooks.

We are told to close our notebooks by Mr. T.

2. We must write this test in a piece of paper.

This test must be written in a piece of paper.

3. I should not forget my name too.

My name should not be forgotten too.

4. The students speak English during the English class.

 English is spoken during the English class.

5. Did anyone ask any question about me?

Were any question asked about me.

6. I cannot do this test during the time given.

This test cannot be done during the time given.

7. We have been waiting for him all day long.

He has been being waited for all day long.

8. Mr. Jack has invited you to lunch tomorrow.

  You have been invited by Mr. Jack to lunch tomorrow.

9. The students did not do the English test easily.

The English test was not be done easily by the students.

10. Must you check the answer before you give it back.

 Must the answer be checked before you give it back?

11. We are doing the passive test in the multimedia room.

 The passive test is being done in multimedia room by us.

12. Would you join the remedial test if you got bad mark again?

Would the remedial test be joined by you if you got bad mark again?

  

    Change into active voice

13.   The white board has been cleaned by you.

You have cleans the white board.

14.   The interview will be done in this room by us.

 We will do the interview in this room.

15.   English was being studied diligently by them last night.

 They were studying English diligently last night.

16.   This test must be finished in 45 minutes by the students.

 The students must finish this test in 45 minutes.

17.   We have been being taught math by Mr. Sus for three years.

 Mr. Sus has been teaching math us for three years.

18.   Will the coming UAN test be being faced by you in the month of April?

 Will you be facing the UAN test in the month of April?

19.   The vocabulary book should be submitted by us this morning.

 We should submitte the vocabulary boo this morning.

20.   Batik shirt must be worn by the students on Friday.

 The students must wear batik shirt on Friday.Plural

Two Objects

 Mr. Fajar is showing us his new blog.

·         We are being shown his new blog.

·         His new blog is being shown to us.

22.   They will be asking her several questions.

·         She will be being asked by them several questions.

·         Several questions will be being asked by them to her.

23.   Mrs. Nanik has been reading them another story.

·         They have been being read another story by Mrs. Nanik.

·         Another story has been being read by Mrs. Nanik to them.

24.   Does he tell you the new law of Archimedes?

·         Are you told by him the new law of Archimedes.

·         Is the new law of Archimedes told by him to you?

25.   We should have given him our new projects before he came here.

·         He should have been be given our new projects before he came here.

·         Our new projects should have been be given him before he came here.