Monday, November 26, 2012

AP Seniors: COW work for 11-27

Good morning.

1. Click here to view an RSA animate lecture from Ken Robinson. Leave comment (short paragraph) highlighting any takeaways.

2. Click here to view an RSA animate lecture regarding language. Consider the links between language, as presented here, and Newspeak, as presented in 1984. Leave comment (short paragraph) highlighting any takeaways.

3. On Thursday, I will check for your customized word bank. Use the existing files (Edline) and any other online or binder resources to build your own bank. A) First, group your terms and devices into 3 categories: own it; know it; need it, or some analogous form. Leave space for notes or amendments. B) Develop a bank of verbs for academic discourse. C) Begin a bank of "go-to" words.




5 comments:

Anonymous said...

This little clip was incredibly interesting in regards to the education system we have come to call ordinary and beneficial to the future of society. However, Ken Robinson believes something of the contrary. He feels that the system is foolish, that it is based on principles established much too long ago to be considered useful. One point that really struck my interest was his theory on educational structure. Students are grouped in a way that Robinson and myself believe to be quite vague. Students should be grouped based on their performance and learning capabilities instead of age. I could not help but agree with him.

Dan Rafuse

Anonymous said...

First video:
An idea from this video that I noticed was the fact that our education system is outdated. We are still learning similar ways to the students hundreds of years ago. This shocked me because, although we have a different education then people from older times, the factory system is still the same. We are like items in a factory going through an assembly line year by year and when we graduate we are finally ready to be put on the market. It is accurate and quite scary.

Second video:
What I realized in this video is that people mask their real intentions all the time. Literal questions or phrases are almost never used. I learned that language is used at two levels, based on safety and reading between the lines. Language is based also off of politeness. Directness is usually avoided for most people, which is very interesting. Overall, from this video I learned that language is extremely complex!

Amanda Ward

Anonymous said...

2. As presented by Steven Pinker, people have a tendency to refer to things in a different manner than what they mean, hoping that the person they are speaking to will pick up what they are actually intending to say. This does not always work but people do it very often. The structure of Newspeak is relatively similar. Words are shortened or altered but maintain meaning. The creators of the language probably took the words people were altering anyway and turned them into a brand new language.

Dan Rafuse

Kayla Lantos said...

1. I definitely agree that kids are overmedicated for ADHD. While a few kids may have a serious problem, for most it's totally normal for to get distracted and be hyper. Medication just stifles their personalities and creativity. I also agree that the current "industrial" system of education does not encourage creativity enough.

2. I enjoyed the analysis of different relationships and the awkwardness that ensues.

Lantos

Matt Litchfield said...

Matthew Litchfield

1. I love this talk by Sir Robinson. He makes some truly profound statements about the modern education system that really resonate with the student experience. It makes me wonder what the world would look like if we were educated differently - would we be happier, more creative people? I think the best part of his talk is the humor he adds to it.

2. I wasn't a big fan of this talk· The animate seemed only to cover a very brief section of a much larger topic - it was concentrated on the function of language in human interaction: specifically, hidden meaning. He had some good examples (like the movie), but I would have liked to hear more about other aspects of language. As for the talks relationship to 1984, I would say the talk highlights languages ability to confer meaning deeper than the chosen words between two people. While Newspeak restricts human expression, it's compactness and simplicity serve as an efficient abbreviation of language, which could actually leave more room for interpretation than language with a more varied composition.