No Right or No Wrong Ignite Talk Final

College Readiness: Let Their Voices Be Heard (FINAL PROJECT)

Here is my final project! I revised my second mini project that is basically based on College Readiness. This project is morally based on the idea of Kids, and but the difference between the second mini project and this Final one is that this Final project is ideally based more on the fact that Kids are the future. Hope yall enjoy!

Sources:

Homeless to Harvard. N.d. Photograph. TinyPicWeb. 28 Apr 2013. <http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=1tlvmb&s=6>.

Liz and her mom. N.d. Photograph. BBC NewsWeb. 28 Apr 2013. <http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51102000/jpg/_51102900_lizandhermom-1.jpg>.

2009 Aug Liz Murray. N.d. Photograph. Maximum Impact ClubWeb. 28 Apr 2013. <http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/51102000/jpg/_51102900_lizandhermom-1.jpg>.

Hill, Malcolm, John Davis, Alan Prout, and Kay Tisdall. "Moving The Participation Agenda Forward." Children & Society.18 n. page. Web. 28 Apr. 2013.

Coppock, Vicki. "Children as Peer Researchers: Reflections on a Journey of Mutual Discovery." Children & Society.25 (2011): 435-446. Web. 28 Apr. 2013.

Mini Project III

College Readiness: The Voice of the Kids

So I have just posted up my new project! It was very difficult planning about this one since I wanted to do something different. Coming about this project, I wanted to combine what I have done in the past and just go all out on it! I put a lot of work into it and I hope yall enjoy the video!

I was trying to be versatile with this work, meaning I wanted to incorporate the strong points I had in the last two mini projects. I also wanted to do some new stuff.

Mini Project II

College Readiness: The Voice of the Kids (Screen-Cast-O-Matic)

Hope you guys like it!

Source: Article "Children as Peer Researchers: Reflections on a Journey of Mutual Discovery" by Vicki Coppock. 
 

Inquiry Mini Project

So honestly, I just got done finishing up my mini project today. It took a lot of planning to do this, and I feel confident it's a good project!

Overall, this mini project wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I had fun doing it; I always have fun doing work for my ENGL 1102 class!

When you watch it, just imagine it as sort of like a trailer, the beginning of something big! Without further ado, I present to you my mini project for ENGL 1102: College Readiness: The Voice of the KIDS Pt. I

Welcome Forest View High School!

It was so awesome to see these young faces as I enter the room. The stare from the eyes of the Honors and APs. The glare from the bright lights above. So much hostility as make my way! Why is my heart beating so fast? Is it because I'm nervous about speaking to these high schoolers; or is is because I just got done walking everywhere downstairs trying to look for this class? Those stairs were hard to walk up; that's no JOKE! I finally felt the PRESENTS, the PRESENTS of the Forest View High School Seniors. 

I knew before I walked into this place the question that I wanted to answer before leaving this room; "What can these seniors from Forest View High teach me about the readiness of college?"

Sitting along my classmate, Kevin, Kevin and I introduced ourselves very poetically to the seniors. The seniors then respectfully showed me and Kevin their introduction. (I forgot all their names now, so I need to talk to kevin so see of he knows.)

As I interacted with the high school students in various activities that was hosted by my teacher Lacy, being able to be active with them gave me a possible idea of where they were from. I can tell some students were lazy, HUNGRY, geeky, and even TALKATIVE.

So when it came down to group work, each table's mission was to answer some questions on the poster. Some of the questions asked: how do you think? what do you do? how do you act?

I am going to let this picture speak for itself.

SPIT! SPLASH! SPLATTER! At the end of the day, it was all about understanding each other.
To answer my question before I came in this room, these young students taught me that even though we have different preferences on college readiness, it's all about what we are willing to do right now to prove ourselves if we are college readiness, not our past.

Found College Poetry

So in my 1102 English class my class and I took did an activity that involved the whole class to venture around our learning environment and seek any word or verses we saw pleasing; this either involved us looking around the classroom, the CHHS building, or even the campus. When the mini-venture was over, mostly everybody in the class had at least 2 word or verses that pointed out to them. We all as a class wrote at least two verses or words on the classroom board. On the board, I saw many different  and similar things, such as:

"home" "running away" 

"fire" "Caucion Caliente" "Love is out" etc.

Our assignment as a class was to individually make a poem some out of the phrases from the board! This interested me because it was the first time I was going to take phrases from my classmates and make a poem out of it! The BIG question was this "how am I going to connect theses phrases in a way where they make sense?" All I saw was random phrases and words posted on the board, so I decided to play with this assignment and see where it took me. This is what I got out of it:

!Precaucion Caliente!

Fire like Africa

Fire from keeping calm

Fire when running for your life

Fire do not pop popcorn, it melts popcorn

Caution Hot!

*I felt that as I was doing this, everything connected in any way, and notice that poetry was a form where there wasn't a right or wrong way.

Am I College Material?

So I'm here in the Atkins Library, on my laptop listening to this song that is about "losing someone in life who meant more to you than you ever realize."  Sounds a little corny, but I remember as a kid, one of my close friends shared with me her connection with this song; so I'm just going to listen to this song to help me write about the Readiness for College, an assignment for my English 1102 class. The reason I'm hoping for this song to help me write more about college readiness is because everyone at least uses someone in their life as motivation.

 (My bird image)

Coming back to this assignment, what does readiness for college look like? What prepared me for college?

Honestly, college didn't hit me until my second semester of senior year in high school. I just always tried my best in school just to feel good about myself. But what got me here? To college? This is something I wrote in my journal for the assignment of College Readiness:

Lake Badin and Lake Wylie is my school
My home is my school
My family are my teachers
My teachers are just my enforcers
My friends are my arms and legs...

* Even though I never realize that I was going to college, the long journey put me here.

What's My Narrative like?

When it comes down to me writing a literacy narrative, what is my theme? my topic? my story?

For homework in my English 1102 class, I was reading about "Master" and "Little" narratives in a piece by Kara Poe Alexander. Although this amazing piece had great and methodic information about literacy narrative, I did not get a chance to read the whole entire thing. What I was really looking forward in this text was the definition of cultural, master, and little narratives.

(Notes)

First of all, let me share a literacy narrative in my own words. After reading this informative piece, I have brainstormed my own definition of a literacy narrative. A literacy narrative is defined as art being discovered or defined within ourselves, with the fact that we understand it or at least see it.

For example, one thing that I feel I can express about truly deep inside is the peace I can draw living in the city of Charlotte my whole life. I have experience some phenomenal things, such as going to the panthers game and rooting for my team, and I have faced some horrible things, such as getting into a car crash on the way to school. Lots of things have happened in Charlotte in my life, something we Charlotteons can relate.

But what's so different about Charlotte?

You have the east part of charlotte. South part. North part. West part. Northwest. Southeast. Northeast. Southwest. Rural. City. Suburbs. Metropolitan. Caucasian dominant. African dominant. Hispanic dominant. Diverse. Poor. Rich. Dirty. Clean. High class. Low class. Crowded. Deserted. Fun. Boring. Ghetto. Sketchy.......  I can go on and on.

What I always loved about Charlotte is the things that only we Charlotteons can do. Root for our home teams, Panthers and Bobcats. Enjoy the low temperature of 30 degrees fahrenheit around winter and 90 degree Fahrenheit around summer. See the beautiful flowers bloom during spring. Getting stuck in Interstate 85. Eating at Cook Out. Listening to rap/pop/rock. Go to the Charlotte Motor Speedway. I can go on and on.

Everyone has their own experience living in Charlotte, but living here has really been a factor in who we are. I hope this can be an example of a literacy narrative; if not, give me some suggestion on what a literacy narrative really is.

The Hidden Meanings in Kid's Movies

So the other day in my english class, my class and I watched a video called The Hidden Meanings in Kid's Movies: Colin Strokes at TEDxBeaconStreet, and what I picked up from Colin Strokes that really interested me was the topic of manhood. Colin Strokes talked about how often we are seeing dads teaching their sons the wrong value of manhood in today's society. According to the National Studies of NY Times, "one out of five women in America said they have been sexually assaulted in their lives." Pretty shocking huh? Now I agree on the fact that we "men" do sometimes fail to learn, but I do not agree with Colin that "men" should sometimes be taught better by our fathers. As a man, I feel though it's important for me to go venture on my own and seek my own potential. If I make mistakes, I will learn from them. That is my principle of manhood.

 My writing into the day: I based it on this topic.

Coming back to the fairy tales and super hero movies, I use to love pretending to be a certain character. Some characters are:

the Red Ranger from Mighty Morphan Power Rangers
the Spiderman
even Aladdin.

These characters fight for a purpose in their movies. They save the day, get the girls, and make a happy ending, but these aren't the main reason I liked them. I like all three of them because they make mistakes and then they get their hands dirty to fix it.

I'm not going to be the kind of man who tries hard to prevent myself from falling into ditches every time.  Every once and a while I want to fall in ditches and work my ass up.


"Manhood can play an evil character sometimes, and if it was to change it's way, only the man in the mirror can make that happen."

WordCloud of "Stuarts Hall's Representation"

Culture? Representation? Language?

          One day I was in Atkins Library reading an assignment called "Stuarts Hall's Representation" for my english class. I was really into it while reading it because Hall expanded and constructed the definition of culture in so many different ways. He included the principles of culture, and one principle that I found very remarkable was LANGUAGE.

I  use to think of language as communication owned by certain backgrounds. According to Hall, language is more than a communication line, it's a representational system. To put that in my own words, language is any kind of relationship anybody can have with another. That includes art, music, emotion, work, skills, or even vision. The connection people have with another is a language. Language can be shared through so many possibilities.

For example, taking the class "Intro to Engineering" has really been a lot of work. What kills me the most is the things we talk about in that class. I sometimes don't get what my professor is saying when he talks about water fluid systems underground and its propulsion. So what can I do about that? I start to study more on civil engineering online to see what my professor was talking about. I also talked to my professor in his office about how can I really get my mindset into this class. I had to search beyond my imagination. Incorporation was the key. I had to talk the language of engineering, something I have never done.

It took me a while to digest the introduction of Stuarts Hall's Representation passage. My eyes were getting tired. My head was not into it, but after reading it about three times, I finally got it. I finally got it because I found ways to relate to it.

*Language is a tool for us to communicate, but the best way we can communicate is if we know our own identity.






Here is a Wordle I did on the Intro of "Stuarts Hall's Representation."

Gamer vs. Reality

What does it mean to be a gamer?

Honestly I am not a current video gamer. Every then and so I play video games and computer games, but it's just not my type of taste. Even though I'm not a consistent video/computer gamer I believe I am a gamer in my own nature.

For the past week in my english 1102 class, my whole class has addressed a topic dealing with being a "Gamer". What does it mean to be a gamer? Reading the passage "Good Video Games and Good Learning" by James Paul Gee, this guy picks out the key learning principles that gives a gamer when the gamer plays game. The main learning principles that I think gets me thinking the most are production, agency, and thinking.

If I'm not a video gamer, than what am I?
                                        PHYSICAL GAMER!

I'm going to switch it up a notch and talk about how the game, SHUTTLECOCK, influences me in the three main principles that I like.

*Shuttlecock = kick bag (if that's a good comparison)

Agency: Once I'm into the game, I have control, the momentum, and vision to react without being corruptive within myself to mess up the game.

Production: This is very important because it's not only about kicking the shuttle, it involves teamwork and communication to keep that shuttle in the air.

Thinking: I have to be patience with the shuttle and see where it goes as soon as it is kicked up into the air. When I think smartly before I react my motion in my vision becomes slower, and it gives me an advantage.


*Playing video games, computer games, sport games, and other types of games, are always going to involve some sort of learning experience; the best thing about the learning experience is the the act of trying.

Time for a Daybook makeover!

January 14, 2012. 
On the second day in my English 1102 class, a certain assignment was given to all the students in my class. Honestly, I didn't read the homework assignment before coming to  class so I had no clue what to expect of this certain assignment. Easy and chill, I enter room CHHS 134 with me, myself, and I. As I went to look for a seat, my English teacher, Lacy, had things like magazines, strings, tapes, markers, and scissors laying upon the font desk. This was bad news! Was I suppose to bring something too? My buddy, Kevin, then shows me his daybook. I see crazy food, bakery, pink background, all sorts of food pictures on Kevin's daybook. Man, this guy must love to cook! Then I realize at that moment, I had an assignment to come to class prepared with materials to decorate my daybook. I pulled out my daybook out of my bag and all I saw was a new composition notebook just like any other. This was important to me because giving my daybook a makeover should represent me and my creativity. 

In class, Lacy wanted everyone to decorate their daybook with whatever tools available. My only choice was to use the materials up front. I came across many different magazines. Here are some of the images that I ripped out of the magazine, because there weren't enough scissors around, that I posted on my daybook.

1. "A young boy with a content word hanging over his head." It seems like to me this young boy is curious about new knowledge, and I feel that curiosity leads to big dreams.

2. "Different paint colors splattered all over each other." I look at this picture and it just looks like messy paint, but what's hidden underneath this messy paint is a person who likes creatively be different with art. Being different with my art gives me identity.

3. "Scuba divers jumping into the ocean."These scuba divers jumping into the ocean. Seems to me they are going to explore the ocean. Exploration helps me keep walking and helps me experience new things.

4. I also put short yellow strings on my daybook because these yellow strings have so many ways to be used and the yellow color just gives me a sunny day!

After I finished my daybook in my english class, I felt like all these pieces on my daybook makes a part of me. When I got home later that day, there was more that I wanted to put on my daybook to add to my identity.