Sherrie and I

原址：smh-national

作者：Anna Patty

FOREIGN students are being paid less than the minimum wage, sharing with as many as 10 others to a flat and battling for utensils in overcrowded hospitality courses, according to industry sources.

The State Government has formed a taskforce to investigate the exploitation of students who are lured to NSW with false expectations of job opportunities and unrealistic study plans.Students have complained that some private colleges are not delivering the courses and qualifications that were advertised to them. Some employers are said to pay rates below the minimum wage of $14.31 per hour.

A student from Korea said yesterday that she was studying graphic arts in Sydney and working up to 39 hours a week in a shop for $9 an hour."Living expenses and transport are very expensive in Sydney," said the student, who did not wish to be identified.

The president of the National Union of Students, David Barrow, said international students could only work 20 hours a week, forcing some into blackmarket jobs and under-the-counter low pay arrangements.Mr Barrow said they were being exploited by "dodgy English-language providers, unscrupulous landlords and underhand bosses".

"Landlords have been able to exploit international students and we have heard some three-bedroom apartments can house 10 students, each paying $150 a week."

The State Government says it is aware of the concerns of these students who contribute $5.3 billion to the state economy. The Minister for Education, Verity Firth, comm-issioned the taskforce to look at ways to improve their experience.

It will be chaired by David Riordan, the chief executive of the Department of Education and Training's nternational arm. The taskforce will focus on the quality of education and training as well as recruitment practices, the social inclusion of students in NSW, welfare and safety.Mr Riordan said he was aware of reports of exploitation and it will be investigated. "There have been some cases. But on the whole, the industry acts responsibly," he said.

"Australia is one of the leading countries for international students to further their studies and NSW is the premier destination."

The taskforce, which is expected to present its findings by October, will look at the transparency of student recruitment and marketing practices. It will consult private education providers, police, universities, independent schools and vocational training authorities.

A former president of the Merrylands CBD Committee, Sheldon Ross, who runs an international sales and marketing company, said he was aware of at least six students from India who had arrived in Australia with unrealistic expectations of study and work."They are given an understanding by the overseas agent they signed up with that jobs are abounding," Mr Ross said.

Dr George Brown, academic director for the Think Education Group, a private vocational and higher education provider, said he knew of some providers who had exceeded their government-approved enrolment capacity by up to 1700 students. He said students in less reputable hospitality courses were forced to race each other to class to be first to the limited stock of cooking utensils.

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大家都不容易，但是也不要逼人太甚嘛……

恭喜~

每日小抄

昨日傍晚Kat姐与俺进行例行通话时，发现其已经吃了半年的“黑多多”牌“指甲、头发、皮肤”维生素片和同品牌深海鱼油都出现了剂量误服情况……然后……我今天就看到了这一篇儿《维生素片没能耐让嫩活成老妖怪！》，Kat姐~嫩自己看着办啊~~~

其他有趣的还有：

嫩所不知道的一些“屁”事儿~

新鲜人看这边！100条省钱小替普~（巨长慎入）

直树节要当一个聪明的人~

一个建议：你该问你面试官这三个问题

一个未来趋势：Youtube也能让你拿到大学学分！

一个设想：时间是幻觉么？

一个提醒：健康的果汁也有可能带给你危害

一个创意：一封与众不同的情书及其回复

"What Does Love Mean?" See How 4-8 Year-Old Kids Describe Love

By:Ladan Lashkari

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds: "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think...

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."

Rebecca - age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."

Billy - age 4

诗人！

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."

Terri - age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK."

Danny - age 7

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss."

Emily - age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."

Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

诗人二号！

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate."

Nikka - age 6 (we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

好心眼儿小孩~

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday."

Noelle - age 7 

Puppy love?

 "Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."

Tommy - age 6

"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore."

Cindy - age 8 

 "Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken."

中国父母一般都很有默契，最好的一块儿给孩子！

Elaine - age 5 

 "Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford."

Chris - age 7 

 "Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."

Mary Ann - age 4 

 "I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones." (Now THIS is love!)

Lauren - age 4 

看来有些事情还是不知道比较好吧~

 "When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." (what an image!)

Karen - age 7

诗人三号！

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross."

Mark - age 6

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget."

Jessica - age 8

哲学家！

And the final one... Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."

＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

Marriage Quotes from Kids by Kids

Note: We understand that many people throughout the United States and the world are experiencing terrible pain within their relationships. We want to help all that we can and do not take the issue lightly. But we also feel the need to laugh and take note of the humor that often exists in relationship dynamics and viewpoints. 

Question: How do you decide who to marry?

"You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming."

Alan, age 10

爱屋及乌的另一种诠释？

"No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with."

Kristen, age 10

Question: What is the Right Age to Get Married?

"Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person forever by then."

OH~我已经错过了最佳时机?

Camille, age 10

Question: How can a stranger tell if two people are married?

"You might have to guess based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids."

Derrick, age 8

难道小Derrick是DV受害者？

Question: What do you think your mom and dad have in common?

"Both don't want any more kids."

Lori, age 8

Question: What do most people do on a date?

"Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough."

Lynnette, age 8

"On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date."

Martin, age 10

技巧！

Question: When is it okay to kiss someone?

"When they're rich."

Pam, age 7

现实主义者

"The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that."

Curt, age 7

好公民

"The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do."

Howard, age 8

如果人人都这么想那就好了，如果人人都这么干那就糟了。

Question: Is it better to be single or married?

"It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them."

Anita, age 9

a will-be 贤妻良母

"To be single. Because then you can just play video games instead of having to be all romantic and stuff."

Tyler, age 10

Question: How would the world be different if people didn't get married?

"There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?"

Kelvin, age 8

Question: How would you make a marriage work?

"Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a truck."

Ricky, age 10

年末年初，总是盘点的时节。

蘑菇今天要找出这些问题的答案，再学习学习他人的智慧，最后发个白日梦~

倒计时一天，各位礼物准备好了么？但是也要算着点儿，看看人意大利警察如何借花献佛滴~

其实……土人蘑菇从来没正经过过圣诞节，基本上就只晓得圣诞老人和火鸡，对其他的啥啥奇风异俗完全真空~

Remeber the Milk——起始页，蘑菇曾用了很久的hao123，自从改用Maxthon2.0以后被强迫使用其自带起始页（经常访问的收藏一项很适合懒人蘑菇）。今天才发现的这一澳洲土产貌似互动性更强，而且名字很Q！

延伸阅读：

读写网：2008推荐十大全球化网络产品

2008十大另类搜索引擎——概念化产品居多，但展现出来的搜索引擎界发展趋势不能说不诱人，起码诱惑了蘑菇……

守门员谷歌——即使搜索引擎界头牌，网络守门员比中国国足守门员可难当多了~

澳大利亚律师使用Facebook提交材料——追踪犯罪嫌疑人，社交网络的新功能？

延伸阅读：

Facebook的爆炸式增长

棒棒议员为韩美自由贸易协定大打出手——原本以为海峡对面已经打得够八点档了，棒棒啊棒棒，你又一次超越了蘑菇的想象……（BTW本蘑是多么想念C4的海峡两岸~）

要上网不要上床——昨天才在开心网看到的投票，囧

与人相处之道——亟需蘑菇钻研的内容

如何成为优秀译员——"And the most arduous part of the journey starts when translation trainees leave their universities. "

考前熬夜别忘了喝咖啡——看来本蘑一直走的“先睡再背”路线是米错滴~

蘑菇按：

新添资料积累向分类“Sherrie写小抄”。不定期即时更新。