The Literary Arts Secretariat aims to ensure the preservation of the Malay Language, particularly by holding competitions targeted towards primary and post-secondary students. These competitions, which are oriented towards promoting the language, serve as a means for students to better their command of their mother tongue. As users and guardians of the Malay Language, the Secretariat believes that it is our responsibility for safeguarding of the language for the benefit of generations to come.
Malay Quatrain Competition (Pesta Pantun)
Pesta Pantun is a Malay quatrain competition organized specially for students in post-secondary institutions, such as junior colleges, polytechnics, ITEs and madrasahs. Participants engage in a lively and creative exchange of the Malay quatrains, recreating the times when the quatrains, or pantuns, were part of one’s daily life. Before the competition, participants are also given the opportunity to learn to create their own quatrains under the guidance of a number of prolific speakers.
Malay Oratorical Competition (Cakap Petah)
Cakap Petah provides a platform for the budding orators in primary school students to pit their skills against each other. The primary 3 and 4 participants are required to speak and present their thoughts like true orators to an audience. This year’s competition provides an interesting spin to the learning process – the participants partake in a fun-filled yet educational day camp. In addition, the competition this year is taken to a new level, through an online phase whereby participants use the skills gleaned from the camp to vie for votes from the virtual community.
For a glimpse at the competition at present, visit the Cakap Petah blog at www.cakappetah2012.blogspot.com.
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Nurul Hannah Mohammad Amran
Aqilah Abdul Rahim
persuratan@pbmuks.org