Vol. 3, Issue. 3, 2012

Article 1: Stockbroking in Islam: A Rveiew of Literatures and Its Future Development in Malaysia

By: Mohammad Mahbubi Ali

The study aims at discussing the concept and practice of Islamic Stockbroking, and examining the opportunities of Islamic Stockbroking in Malaysia. The study adopts library research to discuss the concept of Islamic stockbroking. It also employs a semi-structured interview with industry players to prognosticate the future development of Islamic stockbroking in Malaysia. The study reveals that stockbroking is not a new concept in Islam. Classical jurists have discussed thoroughly the concept of samsarah (brokerage) from an Islamic perspective. The current practice of Islamic stockbroking in Malaysia employs two tiers of wakalah contract. Furthermore, the study concludes that the future of Islamic stockbroking in Malaysia is very promising, triggered by drivers on both the supply side and the demand side. The large Muslim population, wealth and economic growth are among the key factors for the development of Islamic stockbroking from the demand side. On the other hand, the Shari’ah compliance of 89% of Malaysian stocks, Malaysia’s position as an Islamic finance hub, and the natural progression of Islamic finance are all factors underpinning the future of Islamic stockbroking from the supply side. This study will add new literature in contemporary Islamic finance as not many study has been conducted on the subject matter.

Keywords: Islamic stockbroking, samsarah, Malaysia, shari’ah

Article 2: WAQF Reporting Framework: Reporting Guidelines for Islamic (WAQF) Councils

By: Dalila Daud

The purpose of this paper is to propose a new reporting framework that may overcome the lack of transparency to the stakeholders in waqf organisations. A conceptual model base from several theoretical frameworks is combined in order to get better framework. In order to come out with new definition of reporting, this paper explores prior literature and theories regarding financial disclosure and explored. The study explores and reviews prior literatures and come out with a new way of waqf reporting. This framework will be the first innovative waqf framework that emphasis on property management, which provides an apparatus to the councils by achieving the outmost benefits of the assets. It is supposed to be a useful tool to enhance internal management planning and decision making of properties as well as to demonstrate high level of transparency in disclosure amongst the councils.

Keywords: Framework, waqf, accountability, waqf reporting, councils.

Article 3: Readiness and Development of Green University Framework in Malaysia

By: Keoy Kay Hooi, Kweek Choon Ling, Fadzil @ Padzil Hassan, Ren Shumin, and Unangoni Motshidisi

This study seeks to explore emerging themes following the green campus initiative and to validate critical factors for successful green implementation through the means of empirical evidence through both quantitative and qualitative research approach. The study also hopes to develop a “customised” Green University Framework based on localisation approach and to explore the readiness of Malaysia Higher Institution to engage and gauge the important of implementing Green University (GU) initiatives at their respective organisation.

Keywords: Green Campus, sustainability, green university index, readiness, Malaysia

Article 4: The Impact of Information System on the University Administrative Process

By: Othman Ibrahim Alsalloum, Abdullah Ayedh Al-Ruwaili, and Khalid Mohammed Hogbani

The research aims to study the impact of the applications of Management Information Systems (MIS) on administrative work in general and at King Saud University in particular. It focuses on the advantages of the MIS applications on the administrative process, as well as their requirements and constraints. The research also discusses the availability of the required infrastructure such as hardware, software, Internet access, electronic specialized systems, and electronic archiving. However, the application of efficient managementinformation systems at work needs attracting specialized human recourses to this domain, training them, developing their skills and providing financial and moralsupport by the senior executives. The most important obstacles countering MIS use and applications were the staff's unawareness of their importance, lack of training, reluctance of some leaders to change due to fear from the impact on their authorities, and the large number of failures of university networks and computers at work.

Keywords: Management information, administrative, systems, field study, King Saud University staff, government administrations.

Article 5: The Impact of Using Modern E-Learning Technologies on the Academic Achievement

By: Othman Ibrahim Alsalloum, Tareq Ben Salem Al-Zahrani, and Saleh Abdel-Aziz Al-Kureadess

This study aims to investigate the effect of usinge-learning on the academic achievement of grade eight students in science. This study is conducted on grade eight students at Prince Salman Educational Complex School in Riyadh in the second semester of 1430 H. The researcher randomly selected the sample of the study from the overall average ofgrade eightstudents at school. The sample, in its final form, consisted of (60) students distributed as follows: (31) students representing the experimental group and (29) students representing the control group. The findings suggested that there were no statistically significant differences at level (0.05) between the mean scores ofthe experimental group and the control group in the pre-measurement of the academic achievement level for grade eight students in science. The study also concluded thatthere were no statistically significant differences at level (0.05) between the mean scores ofthe experimental group and the control group in the post-measurement of the academic achievement level for grade eight students in science in favor of the experimental group. The study concluded that there were no statistically significant differences at level (0.05) between the mean scores ofthe experimental group in the pre- and post-measurements of the academic achievement level for grade eight students in science in favor of the post-measurement attributed to the use of e-learning technologies.

Keywords: E-learning, academic achievement, scientific material, science course, impact, students, educational issues.