New semester. New quarter. So what will this new quarter bring us? Well as of now, we have been discussing about challenging the "status quo". We read "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr., and analyzed the methods that he used to challenge the status quo during his time period. It is pretty obvious that it's challenging to understand something that has occurred in the past but it's easy for us to relate to it if we compare it to something that has happened recently. Fortunately, we just got what we wanted.
This past Friday, Mr. Allen told us that somewhere in the world, the status quo is being challenged. That somewhere is Egypt. The majority of the class time was spent watching the news online about the Egyptian protesters. Apparently tens of thousands of people are out on the streets, demanding an end to the 30 year rule of President Hosni Mubarak.Citizens have been protesting against to what they think is a corrupt authoritarian government. Then even shut down the internet.
This goes to show that challenging the status quo can happen anywhere, at anytime. If something is deemed unfair, unjust, or just wrong, people are not going to stand there and wait for an event that will make things right. No, they are the ones that are going to proceed with action and do whatever is possible to make a difference.
And it's also mind-blowing how we can see something that has happened in the past occur now.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Metacognition: First Semester
When I first walked into 5th period Humanities class, I noticed something oddly familiar about that classroom. I realized that it was the classroom that was always dark and had only a few lighting every time I walked past it in my previous years of high school. So once I stepped in, I thought to myself "No way! This is the class with the cool-looking room!" What a great start to the first semester.
As the weeks went by, and as I reflect upon it as the semester ends, it honestly amazes me how much I've learned in a single class and the majority of it has to do with creativity. I feel like we talk about creativity almost everyday and that reminds me of how Mr. Allen told us today that in our future careers, in order to be successful, we need to be creative people. We are already in a highly competitive era for businesses and professions, but no doubt will the competition greatly increase in the next 10 years or so. So the more creative we are, the better we stand in our careers.
What stood out to me the most was taking the little things that we already know from previous learning and education, and simply taking a closer look at it. Things like listening to a musical piece and "vertically listening" to it. I never realized how there can be two different "songs" in one. Or understanding that everything typically has its "organizing principle" like in The Shadow Catcher novel or The Falling Stairs musical piece. Like I always say, you learn something new every day and that's exactly how I feel about this class.
The one thing I honestly wasn't prepared for for this class was the homework load. When we were picking our classes last year, all the seniors said that it was basically an art class in an English class. False. However, with all of the Mindbook entries, the blogs, the reading, the essays, and projects, it really helps me step into different worlds and become a better creative person as an individual. I am able to explore my resources and expand my own creativity.
All in all, I think that I made a very good decision about taking Humanities class and I hope that I will take everything that I've learned so far (and what I will learn) and carry it forward into my future life.
As the weeks went by, and as I reflect upon it as the semester ends, it honestly amazes me how much I've learned in a single class and the majority of it has to do with creativity. I feel like we talk about creativity almost everyday and that reminds me of how Mr. Allen told us today that in our future careers, in order to be successful, we need to be creative people. We are already in a highly competitive era for businesses and professions, but no doubt will the competition greatly increase in the next 10 years or so. So the more creative we are, the better we stand in our careers.
What stood out to me the most was taking the little things that we already know from previous learning and education, and simply taking a closer look at it. Things like listening to a musical piece and "vertically listening" to it. I never realized how there can be two different "songs" in one. Or understanding that everything typically has its "organizing principle" like in The Shadow Catcher novel or The Falling Stairs musical piece. Like I always say, you learn something new every day and that's exactly how I feel about this class.
The one thing I honestly wasn't prepared for for this class was the homework load. When we were picking our classes last year, all the seniors said that it was basically an art class in an English class. False. However, with all of the Mindbook entries, the blogs, the reading, the essays, and projects, it really helps me step into different worlds and become a better creative person as an individual. I am able to explore my resources and expand my own creativity.
All in all, I think that I made a very good decision about taking Humanities class and I hope that I will take everything that I've learned so far (and what I will learn) and carry it forward into my future life.
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