MOOCs in Law by Hassan Qadri

The MOOC offering giants Coursera and EDX are back this fall with some very engaging course-ware. I have made a list of some such courses that are best suited for Law Students.

Courses offered by Coursera:

1.    

           1. Terrorism and Counterterrorism: Comparing Theory and Practice 

               Created by: Universiteit Leiden (Netherlands)

               Duration: Eight Weeks

               Session: Sep 19 - Nov 21

               Link:  https://www.coursera.org/learn/terrorism#

           2. Constitutional Struggles in the Muslim World

               Created by:  University of Copenhagen (Denmark)

               Duration: Ten Weeks

               Session: Sep 26 - Dec 12

               Link:  https://www.coursera.org/learn/muslim-world

          3. Introduction to International Criminal Law

             Created by: Case Western Reserve University (USA)

             Duration: Eight Weeks

             Session: October 3 - December 4

             Link:  https://www.coursera.org/learn/international-criminal-law

    

         4. International Law in Action: A Guide to the International Courts and Tribunals in The Hague

            Created by:   Universiteit Leiden

            Duration: Five Weeks

            Session:  September 26 - November 6

            Link: https://www.coursera.org/learn/international-law-in-action

    Courses offered by EDX:

         1. International Law

            Created by:   Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium)

            Duration: Eight Weeks

            Session: Begins on January 10, 2017

            Link: https://www.edx.org/course/international-law-louvainx-louv5x-2

    

        2. International Human Rights Law

            Created by:   Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium)

      Duration: Ten Weeks

      Session: Begins on January 10, 2017

      Link: https://www.edx.org/course/international-human-rights-law-louvainx-louv2x

  3. International Investment Law

      Created by:   Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium)

      Duration: Seven Weeks

      Session: Begins on October 1, 2017     (Not exactly around the corner :)        

      Link: https://www.edx.org/course/international-investment-law-louvainx-louv20x

  4. Human Rights: The Rights of Refugees

      Created by:   Amnesty International

      Duration: Three Weeks

      Session: Begins on November 16th, 2017     

      Link: https://www.edx.org/course/human-rights-rights-refugees-amnesty-internationalx-rights2x

  5. Freedom of Expression in the Age of Globalization

      Created by: Columbia University (USA)

      Duration: Six Weeks

      Session begins on October 12, 2016

      Link: https://www.edx.org/course/freedom-expression-age-globalization-columbiax-foe1x

  6. International Humanitarian Law

      Created by: Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium)

      Duration: Seven Weeks

      Session: Begins on  March 21, 2017

      Link: https://www.edx.org/course/international-humanitarian-law-louvainx-louv16x

For details do check the links out; and if you have any queries do not hesitate to email the instructors of the concerned course.

Hope it is of some help to you.

                                     A pathetic piece of aimless writing with a lesson..........

I have always been a good a writer, better than most of my peers; at least that’s what my teachers used to say. I am not sure but I think this praise made me over-confident and instead of mastering the art of writing through practice, I became complacent and self-satisfied and that is what turned out to be the reason behind my downfall. One corollary of this disastrous development was that I lost my niche, my power to write, to give words to thoughts the way I used to do, but it gets even worse because I noticed that I just hadn’t lost my way with the words but something more valuable, the “will to write”. Now that is a pickle of a situation, whenever I thought to sit down for a while and relax and put pen to paper, something of utmost importance came up from nowhere at all. Procrastination or Writer’s block or whatever they call it….I have got all of those……just like you get every disease you read about on the internet (Yes, my jokes are always that bad).

                          Well I started a blog to start writing some stuff but it didn’t went well, I guess I started caring too much about how many people were visiting my blog and all, too few is what their number was, it’s kind of pathetic anyways, my blog that is. But now it’s different, now I just want to write….to wander aimlessly……..to think from the tip of my fingers (pun intended)………..so the lesson for you is “No matter how pathetic you write, just write….” 

In case you cannot sleep! by Hassan Qadri

It was 3 am and a chilly night; I was in bed ready as ever to turn my sleep mode on, but there was a slight problem: I couldn’t sleep!....my mind would not shut down, it was teeming with the happenings of the past week; as always I was just waiting for the lights inside my head to turn themselves off, but that was not happening for me. Maybe I was having an episode of Insomnia; or maybe my sleep deprivation had more of a current reason….I had been using my laptop consecutively for 4 hours just before I decided that it was about time to take a nap….or maybe the meet up I was scheduled to have tomorrow with my school friends, whom I hadn’t seen for 5 years, had something to do with it…..Unlike most people I knew myself very well, so I was sure that my train of thoughts would duly hit its destiny and finally my nerves would have time to form those synapses that the damn neurologists are so proud of, but nothing seemed to work………….suddenly…………an idea came to my mind, why not make use of this time? I have already wasted a couple of hours waiting for my processors to cool off. To cut a long story short I thought about reading a book to make a more productive use of my time, but which book should I read…maybe this one…..what about that one……eventually I ended up opting for the book I have been reading for the last 6 months, although it comprised of a couple of hundred pages but I had still managed to put off its completion, so I picked that book up and was in bed once more, opening up the book I was saying to myself that It will be nice to have a sense of closure by at last finishing this book………………procrastination is such an evil……………………..how come I haven’t finished this book already…..it’s such a gem………………………………...…I will definitely work on restoring my reading habit………………………………………………..……..I have not been reading much lately……………………………………………..………………and I was fast asleep………….    

My Subjects for CSS bu Hassan Qadri

Outline:

·         Introduction

·         A word about optional subject selection

·         My optional subjects

Ø  Political science

Ø  History of Islam

Ø  Gender Studies

Ø  International Law

Ø  Arabic

·         Conclusion

Civil Services is an integral part of any government. Without it, policy making as well as its implementation is impossible. That is why, many of the Nations’ finest opt and strive to join this prestigious department.

                                           To be a part of the services, one has to successfully go through a series of exams: which are divided into the categories of compulsory and elective. Candidates are allowed to choose from a variety of subjects, based on their abilities, interests as well as prior studentship. Applicants are also influenced by the recommendations of their teachers, parents, or sometimes qualified relatives.

                                           I, being a C.S.S. aspirant, have also chosen my electives after giving them due consideration. My subjects are Political Science, History of Islam, Gender Studies, International Law, and Arabic.

                                           The first subject which I have opted for is the Political Science; it is an analytical subject which not only explains the art of governance but also other diverse topics related to society and man. In the words of my father, “Political Science is a subject imperative for every social animal”. On the other hand it also offers 200 marks, and comparatively speaking, going for it saves one the trouble of an additional subject because most of the other subjects are worth 100 marks.

                                            History of Islam is the second subject which I have chosen, and it is also my favorite subject. From my early childhood I have been reading books about the Prophet (P.B.U.H.) and his companions, attending sermons about famous Caliphs, listening to the tales of Muslim heroes, moreover, I had the same subject in my Intermediate and Bachelor examinations as well.

                                           Coming to my third subject which is Gender Studies, it is a relatively new subject in the C.S.S. curriculum and explores topics we have been ignorant of in the past. I have chosen this subject particularly, owing to my interests in Human Rights Law. Gender Studies has limitless scope when it comes to Human Rights in Pakistan.

My fourth subject would be International Law. Being a Law student, I explored all the relevant subjects and found International Law to be the most suited for me, thus, I went for it. The reason is simple, International law is comparatively simpler, tackles global challenges, and has International prospects as well.

                                         My reasons for selecting Arabic as a subject in C.S.S. examination are rather similar to the ones I gave for History of Islam. A history of scholarship in the subject runs in the family, and I have also thoroughly studied the subject in question in a seminary, not to mention the interest and the liking which I have developed for it.

                                        I think every student should opt for a subject he or she has prior knowledge of, or which comes recommended from someone experienced, and more than anything, which the student has an appetite for.               

Grammar and Language Learning

The importance of grammar is emphasized in learning nearly every language, and there is no doubt that it is imperative for error free learning. But sometimes, as it happens, grammar is given over-emphasis and several other important factors of language learning are ignored. Reluctantly, certain deficiencies tend to appear due to such practice.

                       That is what happened to me when I first started learning Arabic. I have always been a keen learner, and had honest interest in learning the new language, so in theory the experience should have been interesting and effortless. In contrast, even after burning mid-night oil for even a whole year I was dissatisfied with my gains. The reason was that I had been fed a hodgepodge

of grammatical rules, which I had efficiently mastered, but still could not fluently express myself in conversation or in writing.

                       That is when I switched to a different institute which utilized a strategy, suiting my appetite. The strategic change was simple, the mastery of grammar was given secondary importance whereas perfection of expression was the main goal. I found this experience to be more indulging and satisfying which brought the best out of me.

                       Although there had been a considerable wastage of time and resources, I had to accept that the prior arduous study of grammar did help me a lot even through the second learning experience.

                       Now, I am of the opinion that grammar though it is of paramount importance, should be given its due place. Students must be taught grammatical rules steadily, with examples. It should never be made a burden upon young pupils as to discourage them from engaging in its study. Their interest in grammar should be maintained.

The reasons why tourism is underdeveloped in Pakistan by Hassan Qadri

Tourism is an important part of a nation’s economy, provided it has a history of tradition and culture, or is simply bestowed with natural beauty. Pakistan is such a country; abundant in archeological cultural heritage as well as unspoiled natural beauty. But unfortunately, tourism is still very underdeveloped, a few reasons for which are discussed below.

Terrorism has impeded growth in nearly every department of Pakistan, including tourism. Most tourists avoid the country because of the impending dangers from enterprises involved in terrorism. Media reports have not helped the cause to say the least, their reports depict that the country has been overrun by insurgents, which is of course a spurious suggestion.

Lack of facilities is another issue. Most of the sights worth seeing are located in uninhibited and far off places of the country, consequently, there is next to no infrastructure there let alone five star hotels and the like. The situation tends to be even worse in winter when the weather becomes hostile, to add to the misery one could not find hot water or sometimes no water at all!       

  

Language is also one of the challenges a tourist has to face here in Pakistan. Apart from the national language Urdu, there are more than a dozen more languages that are spoken in different areas of the country, and most of them are totally different from each other. Moreover, there is no specific department preserved for interpreters and what freelancers are available can be counted on fingertips. And it is enormously difficult for a tourist to hire an interpreter eloquent in all the relevant languages, as the use of internet is not very popular among them. Try looking up for one on the internet if you will!

Terrorism has prevented Pakistan from exploiting its full capacity as far as tourism is concerned; the insidious dearth in facilities as well as difference of language is also a problem, at least for a prospective tourist. Concrete steps are a need of the hour, government as well as the private establishments should take keen interest in dealing with this precarious situation, so that the country may have a thriving economy.    

ADMISSION – SUMMER COURSES - 2015

1. NUML offers following short courses during summer vacation from 25th June to 29 th July 2015.

a. Language Courses (Min Qual: Matric OR Matric appeared)

(1) Arabic (2) Bangla (3) Balochi

(4) Chinese (5) English (6) French

(7) German (8) Japanese (9) Korean

(10) Pashto (11) Persian (12) Punjabi

(13) Russian (14) Spanish (15) Turkish

(16) Urdu for foreigners

b. Other Courses

For BA/BSc or Equivalent

(1) Statistical Tools for Social Science Research (SPSS, E-Views, STATA)

(2)Diploma in Banking & Finance

(3) Diploma in Development Economics

(4)Orientation Course for Teachers for teaching English Classes

(5)Use of SPSS in Social Sciences Research

(6) Orientation Course for MA English External Students

(7) Diploma in International Affairs (DIA)

For BA/BSc 2nd Div or Equivalent

(1) Orientation Course for MA English

For FA/FSc or Equivalent

(1) Personality Development

(2)Business Chinese Course

For Matric or Matric appeared

(1) IELTS

c. For BA/BSc or Equivalent with fluency in English and at least 2 foreign languages (Arabic, German, French, English - One foreign language will do as per necessity) working professional (active translators, teaching Staff)

(1) Promotional Workshop for Autumn Semester: Introduction to

Translation Skills and Studies (from 22 June to 03 Jul 2015)

(2) Introduction to International Translation Studies (from 06 to 24 July 2015)

d. Persian Language Course for Urdu & Pakistani Language Teachers.

2. Registration / Processing Fee : Rs. 500/-

3. For Details visit NUML website (admissions.numl.edu.pk). Candidates will submit the admission form online only. Processing Fee is Rs.500/- (Computer generated Challan Form will appear after completion of Online Admission Form). Candidate will fill in the form online and submit the print out of Application form, Undertaking form & Student ID form along with following documents (By Post):-

Attested copies of all educational documents, in case an applicant has appeared in Matric / Intermediate / Graduation Exams, then copy of Roll No Slip, CNIC/Form ‘B’, Parents / Guardian CNIC, 03 passport size pictures and paid bank receipt of Rs. 500/- (in original)

All documents along with application form should reach Islamabad Campus by Post latest by 12 Jun 2015. Incomplete Applications will not be entertained. All Applications should reach by Post. By hand applications will not be accepted.

4. Interviews will be conducted on 22 June 2015 at 8:30 am. Candidates must bring alongOriginal Certificates / Degrees / Roll No. Slip etc at the time of interview. Without original documents, interview will not be conducted.