• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.15-25
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• 2022

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.7-15
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• 2023

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.17-21
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• 2023

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.7-27
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• 2018

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.7-15
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• 2020

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.13-22
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• 2009

School children in Brunei Darussalam, as elsewhere, learn how to apply a lot of algorithms and formulas in mathematics. These include methods of finding the lowest common multiple and highest common multiple of numbers and methods of factorizing quadratics. Investigations and experience have shown that both able and less able students learn to do these mechanically and unimaginatively and in a way that is reliable when answering examination questions. Most of them do not, however, learn these algorithms and methods so as to develop a deeper insight of what they learn and thereby perform even more effectively in examinations. Yet it is possible to teach these and other methods for understanding in ways that are enjoyable and enable students to use them effectively and with flair.

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.117-125
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• 1997

Many primary school children struggle with mathematics and have low self-esteem in their own abilities. They know that the subject is important but they cannot cope, get left behind in their work and begin to hate mathematics. This paper reports the efforts to encourage and help a group of seventeen low achievers in mathematics prepare for their "primary six" public examination. The children were lacking in many thinking skills, but with encouragement, guidance and practice, thirteen of them (76.5%) showed improvements in their mathematical thinking and passed this important examination. This paper discusses these children's thinking in mathematics and how improvements were made.

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.79-111
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• 2016

Malaya attained independence on August 31, 1957 from Britain. However this new nation faced a communist insurgency known today as the "Malayan Emergency" (1948-1960). Then in 1961, Tunku announced a wider federation of "Malaysia", viz. Malaya, British Crown Colonies of Singapore, Sarawak and North Borneo, and the protectorate of Brunei. Countering communism was a principal motive for "Malaysia". Sarawak's leftist elements were rejected with an armed opposition. Malaysia was formed excluding Brunei. Amidst its birth pangs, Malaysia faced hostile neighbors Indonesia and the Philippines; the former objected by way of Konfrontasi (1963-1967) while the latter laid claim to Sabah (formerly North Borneo). Malaya/ Malaysia was borne in the midst of the Cold War (1947-1991), a bipolar world between the US and the USSR. Malaya/Malaysia is utilized as a case of analysis and evaluation in the context of the twin trends of continuities and transformations in tracing the historical developments from the 1950's to the 1990's. The risks, motives, and challenges that prompted the shift in foreign relations reveal as much of the personality of the political leadership, the prevailing situations, and conditions from within and circumstances from without.

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.7-34
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• 2017

Various models have been presented to describe early Southeast Asian political formations that draw on both indigenous and imported Indic ideas. The most influential of these are the "Mandala" (Wolters 1968, 1982, 1999), "Galactic" (Tambiah 1976), "Negara" (Geertz 1980), and Anderson's 1972 "The idea of power in Javanese culture." This paper represents an initial attempt to compare the salient features of these models with historical and archaeological data from South Sulawesi where, exceptionally and importantly, societies developed independently of Indic ideas. South Sulawesi is unique in being the only region of maritime Southeast Asia where there are sufficient written and oral sources, often substantiated by archaeological data, to document the social evolution of its society from scattered, economically self-sufficient communities with ranked lineages practicing swidden agriculture to large political units (kingdoms) constructed around indigenous cultural and political concepts with economies based on wet-rice agriculture. This wealth of data provides us with a much more detailed picture of the emergence, development and support structures of early kingdoms than found in the models, which makes South Sulawesi of fundamental importance in understanding the social and economic evolution of pre-Indic influenced Austronesian societies in Maritime Southeast Asia.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.9
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• pp.4123-4126
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• 2015

Background: Carcinoma of the esophagus is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The most common subtype is squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). In the past three decades, the incidence of SCC has been reported to be decreasing whereas esophageal adenocarcinoma (AC) is increasing. This study assessed the trend of esophageal cancer in Brunei Darussalam over a three decades period. Materials and Methods: The National Cancer registry was searched for esophageal cancers from 1986 to 2012. Data on age, gender, racial groups (Malays, Chinese, Indigenous and foreign nationals) and histology type were collected. The rate (ASR) and Age Specific Incidence rate (ASIR) were calculated. Results: The predominant tumor type was SCC which accounted for 89% of all esophageal cancer. The gender ratio was 2.25: 1 (male: female) and the mean age at diagnosis was $66.9{\pm}12.9$ years, significantly younger for esophageal AC ($57.2{\pm}16.0$) compared to SCC ($68.1{\pm}12.0$, p<0.05), and among the foreign nationals (p<0.05 for trend). The proportions of SCC among all esophageal cancers in the various racial groups were: Malays (87.8%), Chinese (100%), Indigenous (100%) and foreign nationals (20%). None of the Chinese and Indigenous groups were diagnosed with esophageal AC. The overall ASR for esophageal cancer was 2.1/100,000; 2.0/100,000 for SCC with a declining trend and 0.17/100,000 for esophageal AC, without any trend observed. Among the two major racial groups; the Chinese has higher ASR (3.42/100,000) compared to the Malays (ASR 0.95/100,000). Conclusions: SCC is the predominant tumor type of esophageal cancer in Brunei Darussalam and more common among the Chinese. There was a declining trend in the incidence of SCC but not for esophageal AC.