Kamal Shafie's Blog

A panoramic view of modern Kuala Lumpur skyline. While I was trapped in my hotel room during my mandatory quarantine, one of my favourite things to do is to stare outside my enormous glass wall and gaze at the magnificent skyline of modern Kuala Lumpur. My favourite building in this city is the iconic Petronas Twin Towers. Although I’m a Malaysian, I don't often go to Kuala Lumpur. The city was never a place for a ‘kampong’ boy like me. Life, however, always has a way of surprising you. Here I am, staying in a luxurious hotel with the best view of the concrete jungle (fully sponsored thanks to the generosity of my sponsor - the Hornby Trust) - alhamdulillah (all praise be to god) , what more could I have asked from you O’ Allah. This reminds me of a beautiful verse from Surah Ibrahim (Verse 7): "And ˹remember˺ when your Lord proclaimed, ‘If you are grateful, I will certainly give you more." A room with a view - The iconic Twin Towers of Petronas, Kuala Lumpur A BLESSING ...

ARE YOU THE NEXT HORNBY SCHOLAR? If you are an experienced English language teacher or a TESL/TESOL/TEFL practitioner looking for a postgraduate scholarship opportunity in the UK, you could be!    The A.S. Hornby Educational Trust logo [Source: British Council Bangladesh ] The A.S. Hornby Educational Trust Scholarship  is a highly esteemed international scholarship for ELT (English Language Teaching). The Trust was established by A.S. Hornby, a well-known ELT specialist who produced the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press (OUP). The scholarship was initiated in 1961 and is dedicated to the teaching, and to all teachers, of the English language.   If you’re planning to do your Masters in ELT or TESOL in the UK, chances are you’ve already heard of the Hornby scholarship. The award scheme is highly prestigious due to its competitive selection process and the small number of recipients for the award every year (there were only ...