look at this imba shit quoted frm the new paper:
'Arsenal have to press Barcelona constantly, fighting like DOGS for oossesion until the final minute.'
LOL...
P/S: go find a lollipop and suck on it, noobs. Make sure it's big enough for all of you, suckers...
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Reflective Journal 4
As the Chinese say "in the blink of an eye", one term of ten long weeks has passed, whether we like it or not. Many things have happened, some we wish could happen again and some we most definitely hope not. In these ten weeks or so, there were many holidays which restricted the amount of Cultural Differentiation Elective (CDE) lessons we could have. An example is Chinese New Year.
However, with all the set backs that we had, we still managed to complete 7 tutorials in total. Personally, I feel that CDE is a wonderful subject and I have definitely gained a lot of enriching experiences just by being in the class. CDE is a completely different subject comparing to others such as Maths, Science, English Literature, etc. If possible, I definitely wouldn't mind if we can have CDE lessons throughout the year and not just for one semester.
I feel that by joining the ip-BSP was a privilege as I can have CDE lessons, unlike most of my friends. By having CDE lessons, I have improved myself as a person because for each passing CDE lessons,I start to talk more, contribute more in the class as a student. Not only in just CDE lessons, but also other subjects such as our Integrated Humanities Core, which is Social Studies. This can help me not only for getting higher Oral Participation marks which is a crucial 10% of our End of Year grades, but it also helps me improve in a sense that I realize that no matter how stupid the thing I said is, it is still useful to the class because it might lead to another idea being formed or it might even be a good one itself. The point is, nothing I say will be harmful to the class as long as it is well thought out.
One of the most important thing is that I have indirectly grew an interest in the differences between the East and the West. I started to do online researches about the differences and why are they so different, etc in order to exploit them myself and I find great joy and satisfaction when I successfully find out something I didn't know about. I believe that this will no doubt benefit me whether in the form of knowing more about their cultural for easier interacting or understanding, or so that it will be easier for me to decide to work in Eastern countries or Western ones.
On the other hand, I also feel that there are things that can be improved on during our CDE lessons in order to help the students improve as well. I realize that even though there are much contributions by the students in class, most of them are shared by the same students, such as Shuen Rong, XiaYu, Jia Wen, etc. some of the relatively quieter ones have not much chance to participate in class orally because their points might be taken by others or they are afraid that they might say something wrong. Hence, I feel that the solution to this is by making all students present on their reflective journals at least one time each term. It will be judged not by content but by the fluency of the speaker, his speaking skills, etc. This can contribute to the Oral Participation criteria as 5 marks or so. This can help the quieter ones to gain some marks so that at least this criteria of the grade would not totally "kill" them. However, this might be a waste of time if everybody was to present on every reflective journal, and so, I suggest that every student will only be given one chance to present on one reflective journal for the term. We can have one student to present every lesson and will start from those who speaks the least in class. This way,some of those who are very active in class might not have a chance to present and so, their Oral Participation marks will not include this criteria.
In conclusion, I find that CDE is a very fruitful subject mainly because it is interesting such that I do not fall sleep easily and thus, I gain more knowledge in CDE than other subjects.
However, with all the set backs that we had, we still managed to complete 7 tutorials in total. Personally, I feel that CDE is a wonderful subject and I have definitely gained a lot of enriching experiences just by being in the class. CDE is a completely different subject comparing to others such as Maths, Science, English Literature, etc. If possible, I definitely wouldn't mind if we can have CDE lessons throughout the year and not just for one semester.
I feel that by joining the ip-BSP was a privilege as I can have CDE lessons, unlike most of my friends. By having CDE lessons, I have improved myself as a person because for each passing CDE lessons,I start to talk more, contribute more in the class as a student. Not only in just CDE lessons, but also other subjects such as our Integrated Humanities Core, which is Social Studies. This can help me not only for getting higher Oral Participation marks which is a crucial 10% of our End of Year grades, but it also helps me improve in a sense that I realize that no matter how stupid the thing I said is, it is still useful to the class because it might lead to another idea being formed or it might even be a good one itself. The point is, nothing I say will be harmful to the class as long as it is well thought out.
One of the most important thing is that I have indirectly grew an interest in the differences between the East and the West. I started to do online researches about the differences and why are they so different, etc in order to exploit them myself and I find great joy and satisfaction when I successfully find out something I didn't know about. I believe that this will no doubt benefit me whether in the form of knowing more about their cultural for easier interacting or understanding, or so that it will be easier for me to decide to work in Eastern countries or Western ones.
On the other hand, I also feel that there are things that can be improved on during our CDE lessons in order to help the students improve as well. I realize that even though there are much contributions by the students in class, most of them are shared by the same students, such as Shuen Rong, XiaYu, Jia Wen, etc. some of the relatively quieter ones have not much chance to participate in class orally because their points might be taken by others or they are afraid that they might say something wrong. Hence, I feel that the solution to this is by making all students present on their reflective journals at least one time each term. It will be judged not by content but by the fluency of the speaker, his speaking skills, etc. This can contribute to the Oral Participation criteria as 5 marks or so. This can help the quieter ones to gain some marks so that at least this criteria of the grade would not totally "kill" them. However, this might be a waste of time if everybody was to present on every reflective journal, and so, I suggest that every student will only be given one chance to present on one reflective journal for the term. We can have one student to present every lesson and will start from those who speaks the least in class. This way,some of those who are very active in class might not have a chance to present and so, their Oral Participation marks will not include this criteria.
In conclusion, I find that CDE is a very fruitful subject mainly because it is interesting such that I do not fall sleep easily and thus, I gain more knowledge in CDE than other subjects.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Reflective Journal 3
This reflective journal will be reflecting on the student presentations that were presented to us during the past few weeks on certain questions based on particular tutorials. This presentation will be graded in our termly report card as a term grade. Personally, after experiencing so many presentations, I have some comments that I would like to make and also talk about the most interesting thing I find about the presentations.
After going through so many of them, I feel that there are many things that one should be taking note of while presenting, and they are mostly the basic skills of presentation. When presenting, not only should the presenter remain eye contact with the audiences constantly, projecting his voice and sounding clear is also very important as not taking note of these points will potentially lead to the presentation being very boring, especially for the audiences. These are my reflections on the presentations done so far.
Firstly, I realized that most students that went out to present were very monotonous and dull when talking. They were unable to engage us audiences very deeply and thus, whenever I turn my head around, there will definitely be three or four students who are yawning or sleeping, if not more. Even though many might disagree, but I feel that this has been somewhat interesting as after the student has finished presenting and the teacher gave comments on the presentation, what the other students do is they divert topic by talking about contents in the particular tutorial instead of about what the student has presented without knowing it, even if the teacher posed a question pertaining to the individual presentation. Hence, the student just presented to the teacher to get the marks and not for learning purposes. Thus, the extra information in his presentation will not be known unless the teacher mentions it in class.
Secondly, there was one specific presentation done by a student from 3A2 that I couldn’t possibly forget. The student engaged the audiences deeply by using many, if not mostly, bombastic words in his presentation. Many of us were amazed at the presentation because not only was his script filled with words that are not as simple as those used by others, but the voice of the presenter was very clear, and not as if he was mumbling like what many before him did.
However, I feel that there can be things that could take place in order to make our presentations more meaningful to the audiences.
Personally, I think that after the students presented, the teacher should make each and everyone of us to take turns to comment on the presenter’s presentation, either by agreeing or disagreeing with the presenter’s point of view. The student can also add on to what the presenter had mentioned. This will not only be beneficial in a way that students can learn from the presentation instead of not gaining anything from it, but students can also earn their Oral Participation points which play a huge role in their academic result.
In conclusion, I feel that I have learnt a lot just by watching others present. I will try to do my best for my own presentation and hope that I can do well. I will learn from other people’s mistake and not repeat it, in order to strive for a better result for myself.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Reflective Journal 2
Having going through the class discussions about the Google Way and the Apple way of managing workers, I learned more about the "system" in almost every China company, and thus, I think that the Apple way of managing and innovation through extrinsic motivations is more suitable to be implemented in Chinese companies, comparing to the Google Way of providing intrinsic motivations.
The Chinese are used to a hierarchy system where people of lower reputation or workers of a lower position in the company are supposed to follow whatever orders that are given to them without question. Even during meetings, when the boss, director or even manager suggested some new ideas, the worker do not speak out even if he has an idea greater than all of the others. This is a total contrast with the Google Way, where everybody is supposed to be giving their own opinion. Thus, this would not be able to maximize the potential of talented workers.
Unlike the way Google is encouraging their workers to work hard, people in Chinese companies work hard solely for one reason: money. The extrinsic bonuses such as a promotion, raise in salary, etc. that a person get when he/she finishes her job perfectly is the main motivation as to why the workers are working hard. In their point of view, doing a job well done means improving the company, which brings to the point where the company earns more and so, rewards the workers. On the other hand, most workers in Google work hard in order to improve the status of the company, as they will feel that they owe the company due to all the free food, 20% free time, etc. that the company gives. Hence, I feel that the Google Way is not suitable to be implemented in Chinese companies because of the hierarchical system that the Chinese people are used to.
Now, to the second part of this journal, I would like to talk about the role of Confucianism in modern China. I will be talking about the Confucian ideology of moral values, and about people living together in harmony.
I feel that the Confucianism is just a temporary revival in modern day China. First, the idea that moral value is over money is not quite possible in modern China. People in China act in their own self interest to such an extent that they streets of China are well known for being dangerous and that people walking alone at night is almost impossible to escape from being robbed. Not only that, but in the current society, it is extremely difficult to find somebody who would encourage moral values over money. This is due to the fact that money is now the root of everything, even respect. Even though some people may argue that moral values are indeed more significant than money, but if you put a 50 dollar note on the ground and a stranger picks it up, at least 60% of the people who found the note would keep it to him/herself instead of even trying to find the owner of the money. If the person is to bring the money to a police station of ask around, most likely the police that is on duty or the other stranger being asked about the cash would simply just slide the note into his/her pocket when the founder of the money leaves. Hence I feel that the role of Confucianism in modern China can be described as "easier said than done".
Not only that, but in a survey done in year 2008 shows that China is ranked 10th among 13 major Asian economies in terms of how corrupted a nation is. On a scale of zero to ten, where 0 is the least corrupted, Singapore scored 1.13, coming in top of the list. However, China scored 7.98, which is an increase of 1.69 comparing to the previous year. China was ranked even lower than India, who scored 7.25 to come in 8th. It is evident that Confucianism is just a temporary revival in modern China as the people in China were not capable of living in harmony and have a mindset of unity. This directly leads to the fact that people in China are not willing to help the poor, which is also one of the ideologies of Confucian. This can be seen from the fact that if people in China are actually doing something to help the poor, China won't be so corrupted because some people won't be "forced" to commit illegal acts.
In conclusion, I feel that the Google Way is not suitable to be utilized in China companies as shown in the way Lenovo failed to improve their market sales after hiring a Westerner with the mindset of the Google Way. Not only that, but I also feel that Confucianism is just enjoying a temporary revival in modern China because it is obvious that the ideology of Confucianism is not working on the people's way of thinking.
The Chinese are used to a hierarchy system where people of lower reputation or workers of a lower position in the company are supposed to follow whatever orders that are given to them without question. Even during meetings, when the boss, director or even manager suggested some new ideas, the worker do not speak out even if he has an idea greater than all of the others. This is a total contrast with the Google Way, where everybody is supposed to be giving their own opinion. Thus, this would not be able to maximize the potential of talented workers.
Unlike the way Google is encouraging their workers to work hard, people in Chinese companies work hard solely for one reason: money. The extrinsic bonuses such as a promotion, raise in salary, etc. that a person get when he/she finishes her job perfectly is the main motivation as to why the workers are working hard. In their point of view, doing a job well done means improving the company, which brings to the point where the company earns more and so, rewards the workers. On the other hand, most workers in Google work hard in order to improve the status of the company, as they will feel that they owe the company due to all the free food, 20% free time, etc. that the company gives. Hence, I feel that the Google Way is not suitable to be implemented in Chinese companies because of the hierarchical system that the Chinese people are used to.
Now, to the second part of this journal, I would like to talk about the role of Confucianism in modern China. I will be talking about the Confucian ideology of moral values, and about people living together in harmony.
I feel that the Confucianism is just a temporary revival in modern day China. First, the idea that moral value is over money is not quite possible in modern China. People in China act in their own self interest to such an extent that they streets of China are well known for being dangerous and that people walking alone at night is almost impossible to escape from being robbed. Not only that, but in the current society, it is extremely difficult to find somebody who would encourage moral values over money. This is due to the fact that money is now the root of everything, even respect. Even though some people may argue that moral values are indeed more significant than money, but if you put a 50 dollar note on the ground and a stranger picks it up, at least 60% of the people who found the note would keep it to him/herself instead of even trying to find the owner of the money. If the person is to bring the money to a police station of ask around, most likely the police that is on duty or the other stranger being asked about the cash would simply just slide the note into his/her pocket when the founder of the money leaves. Hence I feel that the role of Confucianism in modern China can be described as "easier said than done".
Not only that, but in a survey done in year 2008 shows that China is ranked 10th among 13 major Asian economies in terms of how corrupted a nation is. On a scale of zero to ten, where 0 is the least corrupted, Singapore scored 1.13, coming in top of the list. However, China scored 7.98, which is an increase of 1.69 comparing to the previous year. China was ranked even lower than India, who scored 7.25 to come in 8th. It is evident that Confucianism is just a temporary revival in modern China as the people in China were not capable of living in harmony and have a mindset of unity. This directly leads to the fact that people in China are not willing to help the poor, which is also one of the ideologies of Confucian. This can be seen from the fact that if people in China are actually doing something to help the poor, China won't be so corrupted because some people won't be "forced" to commit illegal acts.
In conclusion, I feel that the Google Way is not suitable to be utilized in China companies as shown in the way Lenovo failed to improve their market sales after hiring a Westerner with the mindset of the Google Way. Not only that, but I also feel that Confucianism is just enjoying a temporary revival in modern China because it is obvious that the ideology of Confucianism is not working on the people's way of thinking.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Reflective Journal 1
When the timetable for the year 2010 was posted on the Summary Message Board, I kind of regretted choosing the non-CSE Bicultural Studies Programme(BSP) as I had to stay back on two seperate days which are Monday and Wednesday respectively, resulting in me having to stay back every schooling day. However, this point of view changed swiftly after I heard the opening address of the Cultural Differentiation Elective subject which I had to take due to my participation in the BSP. The talk was by Ms Yeo and Mr. Corr, who was my History teacher back in Secondary Two.
In general, I feel that the Cultural Differentiation Elevtive(CDE) is a fun and open subject where students can speak out their opinion and what they read about the particular topic the teachers are discussing. Unlike many other subject like History, Geography which my friends in the normal Intergrated Programme(IP) are forced to take, CDE is stress-free as the homework are not that complicated because all we have to do is read an interesting handout on a tutorial given by the teachers and answer a few questions. The questions are often what I take down as notes. Hence, I feel that CDE is a subject which I learn alot from without going through too much stress.
Nevertheless, everything has its pros and cons. CDE is a subject which does not focus much on written assignments. Rather, it focuses more on a student's oral participation in class. A large percentage of the total marks of this subject is by speaking out in class and also by excelling in the presentation we have to make. As a shy person, this has become a challenge to me because I belong to the category of students who speak less in class.
In the first official CDE lesson this year, we learnt about "The Google Way". It is a management style which is implemented by Google, encouraging alot of innovation. There will be transports sending the worker to work, and the worker can work during any time of the day or even night, as long as the worker can finish his/her work on time. Not only that, Google also provides its workers with luxurious facilities like swimming pool, delicious buffet meals everyday, spa, etc. Nonetheless, the main point about "The Google Way" is the 20 percent rule that is taking place.
The 20 percent rule is a management way where the workers dedicate 80 percent of his/her working time on projects assigned to them, whereas the remaining 20 percent is for the workers to do research on their own. There will be a meeting one per 2 weeks for the workers to discuss about their findings during the 20 percent of working time for the past 2 weeks. The innovation of the Google workers is the main reason why Google can keep producing new additional features which no people have even think of.
Personally, I do not think that I am disciplined enough to receive such treatment. I feel that if I were to work in the Google office, things wouldn't really work out. This is because the facilities there are too tempting. I wouldn't be able to focus on the project I am assigned to because I will most likely be lured by the ammenities provided by the company. Best of all, everything is free.
Second, I am not one of those innovative and hardworking workers. Thus, the 20 percent rule would be backfired if it is to be applied at where I work. As I said, I am not disciplined enough. I will most probably be playing games or dreaming my day off during the "20%". I will be struggling to speak during the meeting where we discuss about our findings, leading to me being sacked sooner or later.
However, I am a fairly sentimental person. Thus, if I were to be working in such an environment where the management provide me with such good treatment, I will definitely be touched, boosting my loyalty to the company, driving me motivated to do better and work harder. So, it might also be a good thing.
In conclusion, I feel that CDE is a meaningful subject which trains me to speak up and encourage me to stop being a shy boy. I will surely do my best to engage myself in class discussions more often in order to boost my grades and also to learn more. CDE is a subject unlike any other. It is special, in many different, positive ways.
In general, I feel that the Cultural Differentiation Elevtive(CDE) is a fun and open subject where students can speak out their opinion and what they read about the particular topic the teachers are discussing. Unlike many other subject like History, Geography which my friends in the normal Intergrated Programme(IP) are forced to take, CDE is stress-free as the homework are not that complicated because all we have to do is read an interesting handout on a tutorial given by the teachers and answer a few questions. The questions are often what I take down as notes. Hence, I feel that CDE is a subject which I learn alot from without going through too much stress.
Nevertheless, everything has its pros and cons. CDE is a subject which does not focus much on written assignments. Rather, it focuses more on a student's oral participation in class. A large percentage of the total marks of this subject is by speaking out in class and also by excelling in the presentation we have to make. As a shy person, this has become a challenge to me because I belong to the category of students who speak less in class.
In the first official CDE lesson this year, we learnt about "The Google Way". It is a management style which is implemented by Google, encouraging alot of innovation. There will be transports sending the worker to work, and the worker can work during any time of the day or even night, as long as the worker can finish his/her work on time. Not only that, Google also provides its workers with luxurious facilities like swimming pool, delicious buffet meals everyday, spa, etc. Nonetheless, the main point about "The Google Way" is the 20 percent rule that is taking place.
The 20 percent rule is a management way where the workers dedicate 80 percent of his/her working time on projects assigned to them, whereas the remaining 20 percent is for the workers to do research on their own. There will be a meeting one per 2 weeks for the workers to discuss about their findings during the 20 percent of working time for the past 2 weeks. The innovation of the Google workers is the main reason why Google can keep producing new additional features which no people have even think of.
Personally, I do not think that I am disciplined enough to receive such treatment. I feel that if I were to work in the Google office, things wouldn't really work out. This is because the facilities there are too tempting. I wouldn't be able to focus on the project I am assigned to because I will most likely be lured by the ammenities provided by the company. Best of all, everything is free.
Second, I am not one of those innovative and hardworking workers. Thus, the 20 percent rule would be backfired if it is to be applied at where I work. As I said, I am not disciplined enough. I will most probably be playing games or dreaming my day off during the "20%". I will be struggling to speak during the meeting where we discuss about our findings, leading to me being sacked sooner or later.
However, I am a fairly sentimental person. Thus, if I were to be working in such an environment where the management provide me with such good treatment, I will definitely be touched, boosting my loyalty to the company, driving me motivated to do better and work harder. So, it might also be a good thing.
In conclusion, I feel that CDE is a meaningful subject which trains me to speak up and encourage me to stop being a shy boy. I will surely do my best to engage myself in class discussions more often in order to boost my grades and also to learn more. CDE is a subject unlike any other. It is special, in many different, positive ways.
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