Michaels Blog

I assumed that my topic would limit my research as it is quite specific, however I was happy to see that there was a lot of insightful information.

I think the most interesting part of all this research is gathering the diverse opinions and assumptions people make about a certain religion, or between an atheist and religious person. Morality is a very subjective view, it cannot be defined for every person, they define it for themselves. With that, comes different influences I have been looking at.

For instance, some people believe that religion provides a moral standard to follow and enforce. However some people believe religion causes a divide based on the distinct differences and stereotypes we put on each other. Prejudice is a very real thing, as well as people learning right from wrong in their place of worship. Some people assume that based on societal norms we make moral decisions, making religion obsolete. That would explain why every atheist I see is not a serial murderer haha (that was supposed to be funny).

In general most of the main principles I brought up about morality and religion were debated thoroughly between philosophers and critics. I think that everyone has a side of this debate that they can voice that is different from someone else’s reality. Because it truly does come from your parents as well, considering they are the ones who give you an inherent religion and choose how much they want you to participate in that. So different family situations and cultures call for different stories.

I think the beauty of it all is the common unity for good, seeing how even people from different places and religions can relate on similar principles they learned themselves, that they hold true to how they interact with the world around them.

Ethnography Project

• What is your topic? (What sub-community do you plan on investigating?)
  • Well my community started with Judaism, wanting to explain how it may play a role in the moral development and understanding of good and bad in its youth. Then I considered how Christianity, Judaism and an Atheist youth compare in their morality and how it changes between each of them
• What are your driving research questions?
  • Where do youth inherit their moral code?
  • Does religion instill morality?
  • How does morality develop between differing beliefs? How does this affect the larger generation?
• Whom do you plan to use as the subject for your project? (They should be Chapman students, as well as members of your chosen sub-community)
  • Well I think that the interfaith center will be a great place to understand a little bit as every religion has a representative that I can speak to, and try to understand their communities.
  • Ideally I interview people of differing beliefs and understand how their religion or morality were correlated in their lives. I think every religious experience has a different emphasis on what is kept sacred to the community, even actions which are forbidden.
  • I think that Chapman is a large community however I would not be giving the data enough truth as the survey would only be from students here. I think religion plays different roles in different countries and cities around the world and that morality can be compared within those cities. Which means that Chapman is a unique place, and I don’t think I would be comparing it at a large enough scope with data from here. Comment if you think otherwise.
• In addition to the required interviews and observations, what other research methods do you plan to use in your research? (secondary research, anonymous surveys, questionnaires, field notes, etc.)
  • I think I will interview a few religion representatives at the interfaith center, as well as a few students. However I am not sure a whole survey to collect data is needed. I think that the community members can speak for themselves and I can find more truth in data and statistics found online.
  • I think field notes would be helpful, given my experience as a Jewish teen and maybe I can get other recollections and information from my interviews.
  • Ideally my interviews develop some research questions or even an anonymous survey

Going to a Jewish Private school there were few things set in stone for my experience: a close class of smaller than 40, teachers who know me personally, and  my “favorite” (not my favorite, that was sarcasm) Hebrew and Bible classes.

I think everyone thinks about how their lives will change from high school; that is where we were last. The transition can be harder or easier depending on someone’s high school experience. For instance, a boarding school student is much less homesick than someone who went to their local high school.

The point of this all is that people have different things that they are used to in their environment and I think the scariest part is getting comfortable in that new place. Whether that be socially, physically or personally. Portraying your whole personality is not easy in a first impression and I think entering college we all have some vision of a new identity we will make for ourselves, trying to portray certain attributes.

With that we consider who we want to keep around us, who is toxic in your life, who propels you forward. Sometimes there is no one else to help you but yourself, and that means piecing the puzzle however you can, without the reassurance of your family beside you. The first semester in college can be a challenge for that reason, you are alone to deal with challenging tasks. Eventually you hope to find people to confide in and enjoy your time with, however that does not necessarily happen immediately.

The reason I brought up my past experience is because I feel like It developed into my concerns of college. Sadly, from my conversation with the Orange high students their concern was how to even sign up for college, completely unaware of the resources online, as well as the common app. They all were concerned with getting the funds and scholarships for school, they were concerned it would be a lot of work.

In general I noticed these kids had not considered college for their future necessarily. When I asked what they want to do when they grow up they shrugged their shoulders unsure, I asked if they wanted to go to college at all and they said “We don’t like school”. At this point I reaffirmed them that I indeed “dont like school as well, however I do not have the means to get a job and support myself so I accept that I need to learn more and meet more people in my life, that experience is through school for me.”

I tried to help them understand that school is for networking and developing as well. It is hard to see but you grow a lot through your experiences during school. I have tried to look at the glass half full during my experience, as dreadful as homework and getting up for class may be, there is a grand scheme of success.

Which form (or forms) of intelligence do you believe you are most gifted in? How do you use this type of intelligence in your everyday life? Describe some specific ways in which you use this intelligence to your advantage.

Analytical and Practical intelligence have always been my strongest forms of intelligence. I never was great at being imaginative or giving a lot of focus, however I am very decisive. I try to always think rationally and that is something that I have took pride in. I like to assess situations for their outcomes, understand repercussions, ultimately analyze the butterfly effect of a decision. I would like to think I do this well because I try to sympathize and be in everyone’s shoes. At the end of the day it is about understanding the people around you, how the world generally plays out, and it comes from the right combination of optimism and intelligence. I think both of these skills develop heavily through teen growth as people begin socializing and becoming aware of the bigger world around them.

I try to be in touch with my environment, whether that be my great friends or just the climate of the people around me. There are days where people are more irritable, when people need more help. When seeing people around, I ask “hey what’s up”, I look them deep into their eyes. Everyday their subconcious gives me another note, something going on in their life. You can see much more in a person’s eyes and tone than they sometimes will tell you. You never know when someone’s worst day is, and I’d like to be the person to know, to help my friends. That is my strongest use of practical intelligence in my day to day

Why do we as a society tend to measure and revere analytical intelligence over other forms, such as practical, creative or emotional intelligence? Do you believe that analytical intelligence is the best predictor of future success? Why/why not?

Society bases an individual’s intelligence on analytical intelligence. Considering problems appear everywhere in this world, it is hard to tackle them all. From an outsider’s perspective if you have analytical intelligence, for the most part, you have your life together. However, as more and more people become intelligent problem solvers, they lose their touch with creativity and sometimes practical intelligence. I think a unity of all the intelligence makes someone successful however I do not believe being “successful” is only analytical intelligence. I think a good, successful leader embodies all 3 forms of intelligence. If not, that person surrounds himself around people who contribute the other 2 qualities. This takes awareness of intelligence and knowing when to step down.

At the end of the day, we are all working to improve in our own ways. It is hard to compare yourself to others, so consider yourself your only competitor. People are gifted with different intelligence, however that does not mean that you do not possess intelligence. It is up to you to apply yourself and improve the intelligence you see needed for success.

The main point I took from Gladwell’s explanation of the achievement gap was that people were not given enough chances to succeed. Considering everyone matures and experiences  different lives, means that the education system cannot simply group people into grades expect them all to do well. I think the Matthew effect is a reality and there is nothing being done to change it. The

The 10,000 hour rule, if you want to succeed and master something you must apply yourself and practice constantly to improve (hypothetically 10,000 hours). We have seen this work ethic from the many great athletes in our generation who have worked tirelessly to improve in their sports. So it’s a combination of when you were born, and how hard you work?

Honestly knowledge comes from repeated exposures and being able to have repetitions and improve over time. I think this ties into the Matthew effect because I think the crux of the issue is that people are exposed to different knowledge and to different degrees of knowledge at different times. Sometimes being younger than your means less hormonal effects, less growth, than the average age of your class.

While everyone grows at their own rate, this can still have an affect on a person’s psyche and overall experience as a student. It could determine whether they play sports at a varsity level or not (considering physical growth). However, I think that if someone is truly passionate about something the 10,000 hour rule can trump the Matthew effect.

Take a high schooler just getting into basketball, he wants to play on the team but he’s short. He trys out, does not make it. He can work for that whole year, apply himself, do his hours, and come back with an edge over his competitors.

Essentially I hypothesize that we can balance these two principles in our lives and that is the journey of life. We know things, some things come easy to us, and some things we need to work extra hard for. Makes me consider nature vs nurture.

I think that people can have some inherent opportunities considering their economic and familial status. I do believe that people have predisposed genetics from their ancestors which make them more capable to do certain things. But as I said, if you work hard enough and are determined enough people will see that. We have seen many short players in the NBA for instance succeed. Take Muggsy Bogues, at 5’3 he did not have the predisposed genetics to be playing in the NBA. But he applied himself and perceived through the 10,000 hour rule.

Thanks for reading my collection of thoughts the achievement gap and how it can be fixed. I compared it to basketball because it was an easy connection for me to make personally.

As a student with learning differences (ADHD and Dyslexia), I had teachers who neglected my abilities, or tried to help improve them. The first educational figure who gave me hope was my reading specialist, I called her Conny.

Making any first grader go to a reading specialist 5 days a week on top of school was a struggle. But I knew what I had to do, and Conny met me in the middle to make my experience fun and constructive. The only way any teacher got across to me was by incentivizing me with food and helping me all the way through, not leaving my side as I would begin to doze off. Although learning was taxing, I left Conny with a smile. Because each day I grasped a little more of the world. The once unfamiliar white and black street sign was readable, I could do it. Landmarks and places did not only have physical characteristics to remember them by, but actual names.

Then I had Ms Demichelli at the beginning of third grade after moving from a small suburban neighborhood Palo Alto, to San Francisco. I had an inherent hate for reading and writing as it still took me a while, It was not my specialty. Ms Demichelli had a dyslexic daughter and immediately told me “Sweetie please come to me after class so I can give you the sparknotes and summary”. This began a routine of 1 on 1 time with her before and after classes. Checking and proofreading my papers, checking if I did the sparknotes reading (not the actual book the whole class was reading). Ms Demichelli knew that manually reading was not an option, she wanted me to explore and understand the world of english, regardless of how much reading I actually did. Soon enough I read faster, and got up to speed with the other students.

I am not sure which experience I want to talk about, but I do want to note some points of my perspective as a student, and how teachers can be very helpful, or indeed your worst nightmare. The audience is every student and teacher. I want this to open up thoughts and ideas of how people find their understanding of subject matter and what the good teachers have done in my life.

The issue I am trying to adress is a disconnect between teachers and students. Often times, teachers assume that a student isn’t giving their full effort, when really they do not have the tools do so. I want to open up a discussion about how alternative learning methods can make a difference for all students, and how they helped me.

As the author I want to highlight my points of growth and retrospect. When recalling these experiences from such a young age, there is only so much understanding one can have. Only after some deep processing of my educational experience did I begin to grasp the situation. Your experiences as a young adult shape you more than you can understand.

I am still struggling to put together a good single story. I have so many points of reference and people who have each contributed to my education in very important ways, however I have to narrow it down.

Sprinting to class I secure a seat and begin the most torturous thing I had anticipated, the in class essay on our freshmen summer reading, “The Kite Runner”. My mind scattered like a jigsaw puzzle as I try to put something called a “thesis” or an argument from what I remember, then I write an over encumbered body paragraph, so many points that every other sentence disrupts any sound thought you may have read previously. Pssh transitions were far too complex for my writing.

I get a C- back, the teacher said that if you get below a B you can improve it and meet with her. So I took initiative. I sat down in Ms Rubins office and immediately she blurts out she told me that “there is nothing to worry about sweetie, I have seen many people not do well on their in class essays and learn a lot. Let me help you!” Still looking down in disgust and inability to complete this simple writing task, she reassures me “this essay will be something too look on and laugh at. You will be able to write essays in a few hours receive an A, it will get easier and I will help you.”

I trusted Ms Rubin and luckily was blessed to have a teacher with such persistence and confidence, it started to reinstill hope that I would be ok, just trust the process.

Writing was never something I liked, I hadn’t learned to read until 3rd grade so books and writing were not part of my life until much later. I had a negative connotation with books and writing considering how hard it was for me to complete even the simplest of tasks, I was behind. Writing was not my strong suit, but Ms Rubin helped me disassemble my writing and help me find my voice. To this day I think of Ms Rubin and she reminds me how to keep my essays concise, clear and argumentative.

I left high school with A’s in english, and continued in the AP level. Once my pitfall, turned into one of my strengths. Sometimes you just need the right guidance to succeed. The stigma around writing died down and I began to enjoy myself, i’m still trying to read more though…

I am fortunate to have found such a remarkable teacher to bring me the joy of writing and shift my whole perception. It is sad that not everyone get the opportunity to do so.

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This is a blog for my English class. I come from San Francisco, I like to be active (the picture was on one of my hikes), and play basketball. I hope to share more with you over these blog posts!

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard”-Kevin Durant