The short program was held from 17 (Wed) to 30 (Tue) August 2022. Due to the travel restriction of COVID-19, the short program was held online with co-organised by four universities this year even though it was planned to be held by each university on-site originally.
Schedule for every country starting from 17 August 2022 until 30th August 2022
UniMAP has become the host for 18 and 19 August 2022
From left, Assoc. Prof. Dr Latifah Munirah, Shareenda, Fatin, Nisrina, Farahin,Fakhrul, Anissaa, Darren, Danial, Ram, Hazim, Ts. Dr. Mohamed Nasrun
The first session will introduce UniMAP, beginning with welcoming videos showcasing Awang Batil and traditional dance performances, along with several tourist attractions in Perlis. The session will continue with a welcome note from UniMAP's Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation) and a presentation of the university's corporate video. This video will cover UniMAP's history, facilities, faculties, achievements, and scenic views.
The first activity planned for the participants was a showcase of Malaysian ethnic traditional costumes. Malaysia is a multiracial Southeast Asian country with many different ethnic groups, including Malays, Chinese, Indians, and indigenous groups such as Iban, Bidayuh, Kadazan, Bajau, and many more, each with their own traditional costumes
The session was hosted by Siti Nisrina Imtinan Tanjung and Nur Annisaa Syaza binti Saimi and featured a fashion show of Malaysian ethnic costumes, including those of Sabah, Sarawak, and all other ethnic groups in Malaysia. At the end of the session, a quiz was conducted to make the session more entertaining.
The next segment of the event featured traditional Malaysian instruments, specifically Kompang and Tanjak, hosted by Muhammad Danial and Thiphaniy Santana a/p Santhanadas.
Kompang is a well-known traditional musical instrument among the Malay people. It is categorized as gendang (small drum) which one of its material products is parchment. Kompang is persistently played in one group in which all players are sitting, standing, or walking. Kompang is played by using both hands, left and right. One hand holds kompang, and other beats it continuously.
Tanjak, is a traditional Malay male headgear made from a long songket cloth folded and tied in a particular style known as solek. Nowadays, it is usually worn on ceremonial occasions, such as royal ceremonies by royalty and weddings by grooms. In this activity, each participant learned how to style and wear a Tanjak. The cloth needed for the Tanjak was sent to all participants prior to the activity.
On the second day, the exciting Malaysian traditional dance was hosted by Darren Tan Ming Hao and Shareenda. Two types of dances were demonstrated, Inang Dance and Ayam Didik dance. Inang is a time-honored Malay dance that originated from the Malacca Sultanate era. Historical accounts state that the word Inang is derived from the word "Mak Inang", a nanny or chief lady-in-waiting responsible for looking after royal children. During the dance, the dancers wave their colorful handkerchiefs. The Inang beats and dance movements are faster-paced yet maintain gracefulness, swaying, and modest movements.
On the other hand, Ayam Didik dance is named after a domesticated and pampered hen or rooster owned by its owner. As a result, it is usually very friendly and graceful in its movements and manners. This dance is said to have been developed by a group of dancers from Perlis. The dance is accompanied by a song aptly titled 'Ayam Didik.' The Malay folk musical composition is played using the gong, gendang, and violin.
The last slot is the Malaysian traditional games, hosted by Danial and Fatin. "Sepak Raga Tujuh" is a Malaysian traditional game that is popular among people in Peninsular Malaysia, especially in the northern region. This game is played by forming a circle in an open field with five to ten players, where the sports ball is played with the feet and head, using certain techniques so that the ball moves from one player to another without falling to the ground. The sport requires speed, agility, and ball control techniques.
"Sepak Takraw," also called kick volleyball, is a team sport played with a ball made of rattan or synthetic plastic between two teams of two to four players on a court resembling a badminton court. It is similar to volleyball and footvolley in its use of a rattan ball and players using only their feet, knees, shoulders, chest, and head to touch the ball. The participants were shown some videos and demonstrations on how to play the games.
The session ended with a wrap-up by Fakhrul, making conclusion for overall session from day 1 until day 2. Before the session ended, everyone took a group photo including all the staffs from Pusat Kebudayaan UniMAP (PKBU).
HDU has become the host for 22th and 23th August 2022
HDU session aimed to help international students learn about Chinese culture. The program included lectures on digital China, Chinese art, Chinese food and clothing, and Tai Chi. HDU invited experts in each field to give online presentations, which included hands-on experiences and interaction with the students. In the morning, the students had a virtual tour of the HDU main campus, guided by Dr. Gu Renshu from the School of Computer Science. In the afternoon, Dr. Xiong Yingzhe, a teacher from the School of Foreign Languages, HDU, gave an introduction to Hangzhou City and digital China. The program also included a Chinese calligraphy class led by Professor Wu Yi-qiao, a famous calligrapher.
Session on Traditional Chinese Food and Clothing and the Silk Art by Professors Hu Yunwei and Zhang Zhaoxia. The program ended with a Tai Chi session led by Prof. Hua Hongguang, a teacher in the Physical Education Department of HDU. Despite the limitations of the online presentation, the students were very active and learned a lot of new information about Chinese culture, which deepened their understanding and inspired them to learn more.
PKNU has become the host for 24th and 25th August 2022
At Pukyong National University, 1. Tourism and Busan City Tour, 2. Korean culture with a foreigner's perspective, 3. K-pop dance, 4. Korean politics and economy, and 4. Korean politics.
In the first session, Professor Han Hee-jin, deputy director of Pukyong National University's International Exchange Headquarters, introduced Busan metropolitan city. She started by introducing the geographical location of Busan. Busan is composed of mountains and seas, a total of 15 districts in 1 group, and it is said that trade activities are active as it is the first trade port of trade. In addition, I introduced the cultural spirit of Busan by introducing the process of developing into Busan in the present big city, starting with the history of Busan. Busan is also a tourist city, so we introduced tourist attractions so that participants can have an interesting time when they come to Busan.
In the next session, Korean Culture with a Foreign Perspective, Professor Utai Uprasen of the Department of Global Regional Studies at Pukyong National University introduced Korean history and great men. We had time to introduce the great people of the Joseon Dynasty in Korea and to inform participants about the traditional culture and values of Koreans. In particular, students explained it easily through photos and PPT, and through the session, the participants liked it because they told them that they had a good and useful time.
K-POP Dance session was followed by Instructor Jo In-young, a lecturer at JUST DANCE, introduced K-POP, which is a big hit around the world these days. Especially, Jimin of BTS took dance lessons here among the countless trainees of JUST DANCE. Participants became very interested and were able to facilitate the progress of the class. This instructor taught the students step by step according to their dance skills, and the students had a hard time at first, but the more they learned, the more they adapted. In addition, this session can be expected to increase participants' interest in K-POP.
The last session, 'Politics and Economy in Korea', was introduced by Professor Heejin Han. Starting with a brief introduction of Korea, I briefly introduced Korea, including the population, language, and culture of Korea, introduced the past presidents of Korea, and introduced Korean politicians.
Through this session, participants were encouraged to have an awareness of Korea and had time to learn about Korea through introduction of Korea
UY has become the host for 26th and 29th August 2022
The University of Yamanashi has designed our session that offers a lot of hands-on experience and interaction to keep students satisfied although it is held online.
In the first session on Furoshiki cloth, an external lecturer, Ms. Mika Awaji (5th IEMOTO of Reido Koryu), was invited to give an introduction to the history and cultural background of the Furoshiki; a traditional Japanese cloth, before challenging them to actually use and tie a Furoshiki. The University of Yamanashi sent two sizes of Furoshiki by airmail over a month earlier to other universities, and all participants received their Furoshiki and were able to hold a Furoshiki in their hands. As tying the Furoshiki is slightly complicated, we had to take great care to stream it online and set up three cameras: one fixed camera to capture the teacher's facial expression and the whole scene from the front, a second fixed camera to capture the Furoshiki from above, and a third movable camera to capture the teacher's hands. With the help of the camera tests conducted beforehand, the students on the screen were able to tie the Furoshiki so well that the teacher was impressed with their achievement.
On the campus tour that followed, participants from the University of Yamanashi each had five minutes to give a presentation on their university life. The students introduced not only their campus but also the attractions of Yamanashi Prefecture, a day in the life, hobbies, part-time jobs, sports clubs, research activities, etc. to other university students. The UY students spent their time preparing for this presentation and practicing in advance. They had received advice from Assistant Professor Takanori Aida and an English language learning advisor.
As for the students from the University of Yamanashi, it was an opportunity for them to deliver their presentations in English and for them to take another look at their local area. As for the students from other countries, it was great to get knowledge of the University of Yamanashi from local students with their views and true voices.
Sawataya, a famous Japanese sweets shop in Yamanashi with a long history, were invited to give a lecture on the history and culture of Japanese sweets and to provide a hands-on simulated experience of making sweets. The initial plan was to ship the real Japanese sweets set to each university and participants are supposed to be able to try the real one and eat it. However, we found out that it’s really hard to send food to some countries due to regulations. After a lot of discussion with the SAWATAYA staff, the solution has come out; use flour clay instead. Mr. Takatoshi Furuya, the Japanese sweets craftsman explained that the wheat clay was almost the same in sensation as the NERIKIRI that he had initially intended to offer the experience, so the students were able to have the same experience as NERIKIRI, except that they couldn’t eat it. He said that he would love for the students to come to Yamanashi and try SAWATAYA's sweets when the travel restrictions are removed.
Flower arrangement on the 29th of August, students studied and experienced the Japanese traditional flower arrangement, ikebana. First, the students learnt about the history of ikebana, schools and vases used for ikebana through a quiz. After that, they had a hands-on experience with ikebana. Normally, fresh flowers are used for ikebana, but artificial flowers were sent to each country in advance so that the same type of flowers could be used no matter which country they were in. Under the instructions of the teacher, the students put the flowers into the vase in order and created a beautiful ikebana arrangement.
In the Music and Culture session that followed, the participants were divided into small groups for cultural exchange. Through discussions on the theme, the participants were able to deepen their understanding of each other's culture. Even though many of the sessions were hands-on, the participants, not having had many opportunities to speak out so far, had a great time talking with students from other universities in this session.
We provided a discussion session at the UY session and participants loved it. Survey results showed that most of the participants were satisfied with the UY session because of the hands-on experience and more discussion opportunities.
3oth August 2022
On the final day, the participants were divided into the same groups as at the opening ceremony, where they shared what they had learnt within their groups, reviewed the achievement of their group goals and created mini-presentations.
After each group gave their presentations, all participants, faculty members and staff voted on their favorites, with the design award and idea award. All participants also received a certificate of completion of the program.
