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.