ISSUE NO 5: THE DEFECTS OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN IRAQ (EDITORIAL)

THE DEFECTS OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN IRAQ

This article clarifies the reasons behind these defects and drawbacks in our educational system; our task as reporters is to shed light on this essential subject, and how to tackle this issue.
In fact, this system has been facing so many difficulties, especially in the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. These difficulties and consequences can be listed as follows: 

First, the absence of new teaching programs in our universities, this is why this matter creates a dangerous problem that threatens student's future; therefore, the officials in the Ministry should take this problem into consideration and find out a solution as quickly as possible. 

Second, Iraqi students suffer from a lack in their practical field. In other words, they witness obstacles for instance in their laboratories. So, this lack especially in the equipments of Labs, might affect the intellectuality of our students.


Third, some students have great ambitions, fantastic performance and skills and would like to complete their Higher studies in or outside Iraq, But unfortunately giving such a chance to our students is very limited due to the lack in teaching staff or sometimes because there are no professors in these departments qualified to supervise MA or PhD theses. On the other hand, the budget of the Ministry of Higher Education makes it unable to offer scholarships, because its budget is insufficient to sponsor these significant projects. 

In my opinion, if concerned officials do not do their best to meet our students' needs to achieve their dreams, Iraq will face a dangerous future filled with backwardness and uneducated people. So, all officials must work hard in this regard to support those students and their ambitions. This thing will serve Iraq and increase the number of scholars and scientists to put Iraq at the highest level of the pyramid of Higher Education.


Ibrahim Albayati

ISSUE NO 5: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE!!

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE!!

Hey friends... AROUND THIS TIME, MANY OF US ARE ABOUT TO BE DONE WITH EXAMS, SCHOOL FINALS.. UNIVERSITY FINALS, AROUND THIS TIME A QUESTION KICKS IN MIND "WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE"WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP TO BE TAKEN AFTER WE PUSH OUR WAYS INTO THIS NEW WILD WORLD?WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR TOMORROW?
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH ME.... JUST LIKE MY FRIENDS BELOW DID.

Dia A. Sulaibi
I just can't help it, but I can't stop thinking about tomorrow. I always get too busy with what is today, but in the end of the day, “futuristic” thoughts come back to "haunt" me. I guess it is a healthy thing after all. Anyway, I believe my next step in life will be the PhD and then marriage, or maybe the other way round -who knows!-. Still, I have many thoughts and projects up my sleeve that I would like to keep to myself for the time being.

Farah Ahmed
I often wondered about my future as I was about to finish secondary school. It is very hard to make any definite choices, because I know they will affect me for the rest of my life. As for now, I am only focusing my attention on finishing my studies. Then I want a job that will satisfy me, challenge me, and bring me joy. I believe that a job should be like a hobby. I want to love my work, and know that I am making a difference in this world . I would like to travel overseas, to get married and have a family and to live with my future family in a quiet, peaceful setting.

Rafil Saad
I think my next step after graduation, is to find a good job with a good salary.... But, currently my mind is only focusing on this important phase; graduation form Translation Department. So, I will postpone all things that make confusion in the mind. I will get married and make a family, but that will not be achieved till 10 years at least. Thank you hala for that question. Finally, I have one word to say "if you believe in something ....you will do everthing" .

Isq Transangel
I think that the only thing in my mind right now is to finish this school year with good grades and I hope to be one of the top students (inshalla). But I don’t tend to think about things on the long term, I just focus on the present time.

Farah Ali Abd AlHalim
Actually, I am not the kind of person who thinks about her future a lot. I am a person who thinks about the present only because I believe life has many ups and downs and the future is not ours to see. Whatever will be will be (que sera sera)

Farah’s brother:
You cannot know the future. However, you should have an expectation of what will happen in the days ahead of you. This "expectation" comes from your knowledge, the one that you gained from your past. As you can see, it's a series of things in relation to each other (The Butterfly Effect). Basically, what I'm saying is : your future is already set, and you're the one who set it on its course.


Duaa Farouk
What I care about right now is to graduate. I have big dreams for the future I’d like to achieve, but probably its hard to get here and there so I stopped thinking about the future a long time ago and I live each day at a time not planning for the next. Because you don’t know what God will give you.

Aseel K. Mahmood
I kind of live my day. I am not really sure about tomorrow; that is never guaranteed


Prepared by 
Hala Hikmet

ISSUE NO 5: MY LIFE WITHOUT YOU (POEM)

MY LIFE WITHOUT YOU

It was hurtful when
You left me alone.
It was just like
A night without the moon.
It was like a day
Without the sunshine.
It was such as flowers
Full of thorns
It was as a blob fell
Into the sadness of ocean.
It was such as a thirsty for
Water lost his way in the desert
After you left me I turned
Into a dried-up rose
That rose was watered
By your big love
After you left it, who
Is going to water it?


Written by:
SAFA F. ABDULSAHIB

iSSUE NO 5: AN INTERVIEW WITH Asst. Prof. UROOBA SAMI

AN INTERVIEW WITH

Assistant Professor
Urooba Sami

- Who is Assistant Professor Urooba Sami as an academic, and as a mother?

- I am Assistant Professor Urooba Sami, I have got the degree of being an Assistant Professor seven years ago, I taught literature in AL-Mustansriyah University since having my post-graduate degree, and also I participate in several academic conferences in the college of Arts, besides being a supervisor and expert for many academic thesis, and moreover I am a member of many committees for thesis discussions. I am a mother for three children: two boys and a girl, I am really considering my students and dealing with them as my true children.

- Why do you prefer literature, in other words, why did you choose to be a literature professor?
- Since my early childhood, I used to read Arabic literary works for Gibran Khalil Gibran, Taha Hussein, and Al-Akkad. So, literature opens my mental horizon and widens my interests in reading books, and gaining sublime knowledge. During my life, I realize that really literature is a dynamic element in formulating my personality.


- Who is the best playwright in your view point?
- In fact, there are so many playwrights, but my favourite one is Samuel Beckett and his beautiful play Waiting for Godot, he is the founder of the Absurd Theater.


- What are the most immortal works of Shakespeare?
- All Shakespearian works are immortal.


- What is your favourite T.V. channel?
- My favourite T.V. channel is MBC4.


- Do you have a certain hobby?
- Reading researches and going to health canters.


- What is your impression towards the Hamlet Play that was performed by an elite of Translation students in the Faculty of Arts, especially an hour before the show?
- I was convinced that the play will be a real achievement and a genuine success.


- What is your advice for the student, who acted in the Play?
- My dear students, you have achieved something great. So, look forward to be great in your future.


- Who supported you to be Urooba Sami?
- My gratitude is to my parents.

- Anything you would like to add?
- Thank you, to all my students who participated in acting Hamlet. Be as successful as Shakespeare's works.


INTERVIEWED BY: 
IBRAHIM AL-BAYATI

ISSUE NO 5: HAMLET

HAMLET
PRFORMED BY TRANSLATION STUDENTS

It is an honor to write this article about one of the famous plays of the well-known playwright and poet, William Shakespeare; that is Hamlet.

Hamlet is a tragic play full of tragic events; it talks about a person – Prince Hamlet - , who cannot make up his mind when he witnesses difficulties. Whose uncle Claudius murdered his father to take the throne and to marry his mother. This significant play was performed in Al-Mustansriyah University, Faculty of Arts, Department of Translation on Assembly Classroom no 1 at 11:00 AM. 

The ones who played the main roles are brilliant students of the Department of Translation and they worked hard together for a month and a half ceaselessly. They held so many rehearsals for the sake of achieving fruitful success.

One cannot deny the efforts of Assistant Professor Urooba Sami the co-founder of this project, who exerted efforts to sublimate this project as a success. Thanks also to Assistant Lecturer Dia A. Sulaibi, the director of the play, who worked hard giving us instructions and recommendations to act in a good way. 

We also thank the Deputy Chairman of TD Dr, Mehdi Al-Ghazzali, who hailed this project and supported us to achieve perfection. The actors of HAMLET were very fantastic in their performances, all of them without exception. Many thanks to our colleague Mushriq Amjad Jaber (who played the Hamlet) for his incredible performance, and also to the other wonderful students who graciously performed in the play: Abeer Farouq (Ophelia), Israa Abbas (Queen Gertrude), Sabbar Sadeq (Leartes), Alaa Hasan (Horatio), Haider Kamel (Ghost), Hussein Jafar (Polonius), Azzam Abdulsattar (Rozencrants), Abbas Abdulmuhsin (Grave-Digger), Yasser Mohamed and Ammar Hassan (courtiers) and last but not least Ibrahim Tala’at -that is me- (King Claudius).

Special thanks for the Dean of the Faculty of Arts Dr. Mohamed Al-Shammary, who attended the performance, and to all the audience. Also, special thanks for Sara Hadi, who prepared the script and for Ghazwaan and my brother Abdulbaki Al-Bayati for their special efforts in picturing the play. 

There is no better way to end up the article than by the Shakespearian proverb "To be, or not to be, that is the question". We are really proud of ourselves because Hamlet has been acted in Al-Mustansiriya University for the first time , since its establishment. This huge achievement is attributed to our department (TD).

Ibrahim Al-Bayati

ISSUE NO 5: YASSER QASSIM MOHAMMED

YASSER QASSIM MOHAMMED

(A  Translation Student  and Football Player)  

Yasser Qassim Mohammad born in Baghdad in 1987, is a 2^nd year student at Department of Translation in the College of Arts. He was one of the golden figures who participated to gain the Cup of Iraqi Universities with his team. The Championship was held on 2^nd May, 2010. It is to be mentioned that he is the sole player in that team from the Department of Translation.

The beginning of our player was with the cubs of the Police Club, and then he moved to the classes of juniors and young of that club then to the first class of the same club. Afterwards, he made a transfer to the Al-Shula’a Club. 

Nowadays, he is in the Al-Hassanein Club for football. On the other hand, one of the achievements of our player was the winning of the Championship of School Teams which was held in Algeria in 2007-2008.

We wish him the best of luck and a successful life in order to serve our country well.

Prepared by 

MUSHRIQ AMJAD