Reflective Journal 5: Reflect on SES. You may want to consider the curriculum, the learning process, the assessment, difficulties you faced, how you overcame them, and how might SES be applicable in time to come.
One of the aims of “Socio-economic studies” in Hwachong was to help students better understand the culture of China and America, the two world’s economy superpower, so that our students can do well when working in these two countries in the near future. Having gone through numerous tutorials, I understood the different ways people react to challenges and do things in the East and the West and also how the culture of the East and the West affected the other countries. This will definitely help me to better communicate and work together with people from these two countries as conflicts with the people from these countries due to cultural differences would be kept to the minimum, thus, giving me an edge over the other people whom may not be able to communicate as efficiently due to a lack of understanding of the culture in the country.
Besides being helpful to my work next time, the immediate effect of this curriculum can possibly be seen when I take part in exchange programmes with foreign countries such as China (during BSC or Xi An immersion trip at the end of the year) as being able to understand their culture would mean that I can better immerse in their environment and interact with the people there. Also, when I study in a university next time, I will definitely meet people from different countries, with different cultures and backgrounds. Therefore, SES enables me to communicate with them better, making exchange of ideas and learning more convenient and effective.
However, though the school meant well when they started this new curriculum, students have to be willing to learn so that they can benefit fully from the curriculum. Otherwise, it would be better to have the electives of literature, history or geography like everyone else, as this will at least ensure that we learn certain skills such as analyzing a poetry (in literature) which may possibly allow us to read between the lines more efficiently and accurately (which may be useful in office politics next time).
In my opinion, the main challenge SES faces would be students not being able to see the benefits of this curriculum, and thus not take it seriously. This will lead to the students having a lack of drive to research and prepare for the tutorials, which will ultimately lead to inefficient learning as the student truly learns when he reads up and researches on the tutorials. If he only waits for the teacher to feed him with information, he may not be able to digest the information (judging that he has no background knowledge of what is happening), possibly leading to the failure of this curriculum as no learning has taken place.
As the saying goes, “No system is perfect.” Therefore, there are definitely pros and cons to every system. I feel that the mode of assessment now may not be very useful in gauging whether the student has really benefited from the curriculum. This is because assessments with high weightage such as research paper and term paper can be easily aced by blindly copying and paraphrasing chunks of details from the internet without understanding them. Also, reflective journals, another assessment which carries a high weightage, may not really reflect the student’s true feelings and learning experiences as a student can just look at the work of another student and edit whatever that student has written, before passing it off as his work.
Instead, I feel that the assessment that can best gauge whether a student has understood what has been taught or whether a student has put in the effort to understand what he has researched on is the class participation component which only holds 20% of the termly grade for SES. This is because only when the student opens his mouth to share his views and ideas about a particular topic, can the teacher understand whether the student has learnt. However, it may also be an unfair gauge of a student’s ability as a student may have prepared sufficiently but do not feel comfortable speaking up in class. Therefore, it is very difficult to have a mode of assessment that is the best and a teacher can only gauge the understanding of a student by prompting him in class.
One difficulty I faced in SES would be coping with the deadlines of the assignments and research work. This is because amidst all the homework, project work, ace assignments and tests, I have to spend time preparing for the tutorials before every lesson and also on reflective journals and the preparation of my term presentation which are all very time-consuming due to the long readings and thinking processes which I must go through in order to do a good work.
I overcame this difficulty by occasionally asking for extension of deadlines when the workload is really too much and also managing my time well. I have to prioritize my tasks well and also achieve a balance between work and play so as to cope with the demanding curriculum of the school and also provide myself with opportunities to relax and regenerate.
Overall, I find this curriculum extremely useful as it allows me to really understand the reason behind certain trends of the East and the West due to their culture and look forward to the next lesson!
(Word count: 888)
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Reflective Journal 4
Reflect on the societal problems faced by China and America. (Hint: you must definitely explain your responses to these societal problems. How can they be resolved? Who should be responsible for resolving these issues?)
I feel that the pressing societal problem China currently faces is the self-centred mentality which most of their citizens possess. This is because this mentality would lead to other societal problems such as people not having compassion for one another. For example, not long ago, a Chinese toddler, Wang Yue, was run down by two vehicles, with nobody lending a helping hand to her, revealing the self-centred mentality of the Chinese who refused to help as they are afraid of getting implicated.
Upon reflecting, I feel that this problem may have been caused primarily by the competitive environment in China. China has the world’s largest population of 1.3 billion. With such a huge population, there is definitely limited schools and work for the people. This may have led to the highly competitive environment in China, where students compete with one another to get into top schools while adults fight for jobs. In such a competitive environment, everyone is everyone’s competitor and there is definitely no reason for a person to help their competitor who may overtake them and eliminate them from the “competition” any time. Being exposed to such an environment for a long period of time, the citizens are bound to turn self-centred.
Having understood this societal problem China faces, I am actually deterred to live in China as it would be extremely scary to see people only looking out for their own benefits and totally not care about the others. This is definitely not the life I would like to lead as I prefer an environment where people look out for each other’s benefits and aims to help each other so that everyone improves together, instead of having the mentality that if you help others, you may get overtaken.
I feel that everyone should play a part in resolving this problem; with the government thinking of ways to resolve the issue (possibly making amendments to the education system), while the citizens consciously reminding themselves of the importance of social harmony and also cooperating with the measures taken by the government.
America, which is on the other side of the world, also faces its own set of societal problems, with the one which I feel is most interesting being teenage violence in the aspect of school shootings in America. The reason why I find it interesting is because this problem seems to be caused by the Constitution which allows freedom for every individual. The fact that the teenagers in America are allowed to carry a gun, threatens the safety of the people around these teenagers who have yet to mature.
Though the true purpose of the firearms was to allow the citizens to protect themselves in times of danger, it seems that these firearms are being misused in the hands of some teenagers. In my opinion, the American government should not allow teenagers to carry them as the teenagers may not be mature enough to use them in the correct manner. Although this may be seen as infringing the rights of the teenagers in America, I feel that the American government should still go ahead with this suggestion as it would ensure more social order in the country.
Having understood this societal problem in America, I am also deterred to live in America because I would feel very insecure in the country as there is a possibility that I will be shot without even knowing why I was shot.
I feel that the parents and the school should be responsible for resolving this societal problem. The unacceptable behaviour of the teenagers in the society may have happened when they do not even know that they are wrong or are just acting on impulse. Therefore, it was important for the parents and the school to teach them the correct way of handling things and also teach them a set of correct moral values so as to reduce the happening of such incidents.
In my opinion, it is very unlikely that the American government will take away this aspect of
rights which the teenagers are entitled to, as this is said to be their country’s pride.
Therefore, to conclude, I feel that both America’s and China’s societal problems can possibly be tackled by implementing Confucius studies into the curriculum of the students which emphasises on social harmony and helping those in need. Social harmony promotes peaceful interaction among human dynamics and hopefully, this can lessen the happenings of teenage violence (school shooting) in America as the teenagers would be more concerned about the welfare of the people around them after the Confucius teachings are stressed in the country. Learning to care for those in need can encourage the Chinese to look beyond their own needs and recognise there are others who require help, thus alleviating the problem of self-centredness in China.
Word Count: 800
I feel that the pressing societal problem China currently faces is the self-centred mentality which most of their citizens possess. This is because this mentality would lead to other societal problems such as people not having compassion for one another. For example, not long ago, a Chinese toddler, Wang Yue, was run down by two vehicles, with nobody lending a helping hand to her, revealing the self-centred mentality of the Chinese who refused to help as they are afraid of getting implicated.
Upon reflecting, I feel that this problem may have been caused primarily by the competitive environment in China. China has the world’s largest population of 1.3 billion. With such a huge population, there is definitely limited schools and work for the people. This may have led to the highly competitive environment in China, where students compete with one another to get into top schools while adults fight for jobs. In such a competitive environment, everyone is everyone’s competitor and there is definitely no reason for a person to help their competitor who may overtake them and eliminate them from the “competition” any time. Being exposed to such an environment for a long period of time, the citizens are bound to turn self-centred.
Having understood this societal problem China faces, I am actually deterred to live in China as it would be extremely scary to see people only looking out for their own benefits and totally not care about the others. This is definitely not the life I would like to lead as I prefer an environment where people look out for each other’s benefits and aims to help each other so that everyone improves together, instead of having the mentality that if you help others, you may get overtaken.
I feel that everyone should play a part in resolving this problem; with the government thinking of ways to resolve the issue (possibly making amendments to the education system), while the citizens consciously reminding themselves of the importance of social harmony and also cooperating with the measures taken by the government.
America, which is on the other side of the world, also faces its own set of societal problems, with the one which I feel is most interesting being teenage violence in the aspect of school shootings in America. The reason why I find it interesting is because this problem seems to be caused by the Constitution which allows freedom for every individual. The fact that the teenagers in America are allowed to carry a gun, threatens the safety of the people around these teenagers who have yet to mature.
Though the true purpose of the firearms was to allow the citizens to protect themselves in times of danger, it seems that these firearms are being misused in the hands of some teenagers. In my opinion, the American government should not allow teenagers to carry them as the teenagers may not be mature enough to use them in the correct manner. Although this may be seen as infringing the rights of the teenagers in America, I feel that the American government should still go ahead with this suggestion as it would ensure more social order in the country.
Having understood this societal problem in America, I am also deterred to live in America because I would feel very insecure in the country as there is a possibility that I will be shot without even knowing why I was shot.
I feel that the parents and the school should be responsible for resolving this societal problem. The unacceptable behaviour of the teenagers in the society may have happened when they do not even know that they are wrong or are just acting on impulse. Therefore, it was important for the parents and the school to teach them the correct way of handling things and also teach them a set of correct moral values so as to reduce the happening of such incidents.
In my opinion, it is very unlikely that the American government will take away this aspect of
rights which the teenagers are entitled to, as this is said to be their country’s pride.
Therefore, to conclude, I feel that both America’s and China’s societal problems can possibly be tackled by implementing Confucius studies into the curriculum of the students which emphasises on social harmony and helping those in need. Social harmony promotes peaceful interaction among human dynamics and hopefully, this can lessen the happenings of teenage violence (school shooting) in America as the teenagers would be more concerned about the welfare of the people around them after the Confucius teachings are stressed in the country. Learning to care for those in need can encourage the Chinese to look beyond their own needs and recognise there are others who require help, thus alleviating the problem of self-centredness in China.
Word Count: 800
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Comments for Reflective Journal 3
For http://3s108-2012.blogspot.com:
Comment: Hi Ivan,I enjoyed your reflective journal 2 and this reflected journal did not disappoint me as well! I like your approach to the question, as you compared the two factors you were given, before coming to a conclusion of which you prefer, and how they can actually affect your life or the society. You are also proactive in researching for other sources and bringing in other examples like the part where you gave example showing how the Japanese approach the topic you were talking about, to strengthen your argument. Overall, I feel that this is a good piece of work done!
For http://3s109-2012.blogspot.com:
Comment: Hi Jack, I like how you explicitly explained how these beliefs actually impacted your lives, and it may be because you have experienced more than many of us, and have more experiences to share. When I went to visit the other blogs, it is seen that many, including myself, cannot relate to the beliefs as well as you can. However, just a little question, I am puzzled over why you quoted your friend's post that he believes more in the Western perception of self than the Chinese perception of self. Is it a style of writing of yours, or did you feel like adding that in to show the contrast between your friend's point of view and your point of view? Overall, this was an excellent work!
Comment: Hi Ivan,I enjoyed your reflective journal 2 and this reflected journal did not disappoint me as well! I like your approach to the question, as you compared the two factors you were given, before coming to a conclusion of which you prefer, and how they can actually affect your life or the society. You are also proactive in researching for other sources and bringing in other examples like the part where you gave example showing how the Japanese approach the topic you were talking about, to strengthen your argument. Overall, I feel that this is a good piece of work done!
For http://3s109-2012.blogspot.com:
Comment: Hi Jack, I like how you explicitly explained how these beliefs actually impacted your lives, and it may be because you have experienced more than many of us, and have more experiences to share. When I went to visit the other blogs, it is seen that many, including myself, cannot relate to the beliefs as well as you can. However, just a little question, I am puzzled over why you quoted your friend's post that he believes more in the Western perception of self than the Chinese perception of self. Is it a style of writing of yours, or did you feel like adding that in to show the contrast between your friend's point of view and your point of view? Overall, this was an excellent work!
Monday, February 13, 2012
SES Reflective Journal 3
The Chinese perception of self, as discussed in class, is mainly collectivism where there is higher value placed on group cooperation and individual modesty. Also, the Chinese are most comfortable in the presence of a hierarchy where they know their position and the customs or rules for behavior in the situation. The Chinese also puts societal needs above individual needs as they feel that it was important to maintain harmony and emphasizes a lot on “guanxi” or People-Relationship.
On the other hand, the America’s perception of self is individualism where higher value is placed on self-reliance and “freedom” from externally imposed constraints. The Americans are most comfortable working with their social equals and are seen as being more task-orientated as relationships seem to be less important than getting the work done.
The tutorials of Socia-Economic Studies allowed me to understand why the two countries are so different, be it in their way of management or their way of viewing things. For example, I understood that China’s perception of self may be influenced by certain Confucius teachings while the mindset of an individualist may be influenced by the American War of Independence which started mainly because the people were treated with inequality.
Many countries seemed to be influenced by their beliefs, including Singaporeans. Being a Singaporean, these beliefs have affected me in many ways such as the way I do things and the way I behave.
The Chinese perception of self has affected my behavior in a way that, when a teacher or my fellow classmates praise me, there was no way I could turn around and say, “Thank You for Your Compliment”, but instead my first reaction would be I am not good enough to deserve your compliment. This may be due to the fact that our country is influenced by the belief of “modesty” in China. I personally feel that this should not be how we behave, as we should learn to accept the compliments of others, and not constantly feel that we are not good enough, as this would lead to a low self-esteem.
Also, the Chinese perception of self of following the instructions of the people who are of higher rank has influenced the way we Singaporeans do things. For example, in Hwachong, we have a lot of homework, project work and other commitments which makes life very stressful. However, nobody really stands up and say that we do not want to do all these work, or negotiate for lesser work. Instead, we silently get all the work done and this is very similar do China’s way of doing things where one leader speaks, and the subordinates follow with no opinion. I feel that there would be a negative impact on our society if this carries on, as nobody would dare to oppose the current system, thus leading to no new progress in the country as the system is not constantly improved.
However, there is the positive side of the Chinese perception of self. For example, as one of the Chinese teachings is that we should always contribute back to the society which aided us in our success, we can see many successful entrepreneurs contributing to the society by donating to needy funds and non-profit organizations which help the needy. I have been affected by this belief as well as I find joy in doing Service-Learning projects. For example, I used to help teach dyslexic kids at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore last year, going down to Queenstown Primary School once a week.
Similarly, the America’s perception of self has also have a positive impact on the society of Singapore. For example, Singaporeans now know exactly what they want for the country and are more willing to speak up and also show it through their actions. This is evident from the fact that in the recent general elections, Singaporeans show their discontent to PAP’s way of management by voting for the opposing party. Then, Singaporeans voiced out their discontent such as having an influx of foreign talents who compete for jobs and resources with them, traffic congestion and also the high ministerial pays which does not seem to match with the quality of work produced by them. This is a very positive impact on our society as when our citizens are more willing to voice out their discontent, or rather ways of improvement, the country would be able to improve faster.
In conclusion, I feel that both the America and China perception of self has affected me. However, the China’s perception of self seems to suit me better, as being a Chinese, I have been brought up with Chinese beliefs and the Chinese perception of self, which probably explains why many things I do now can be related to the Chinese perception of self.
Word Count: 797
Monday, January 30, 2012
Comments
Comments on 3s108-2012.blogspot.com :
I really enjoy your post as you are able to link your stand to our curriculum. For example, you explained how our school's OP relates to Google's success, in your Point of View. I also like how you explain about your preferred management style, as you acknowledge the kind of work which suits the system which we, Singaporeans have been going through, but also state how much you dread having to work in a company which is exactly like Lenovo, where you do not have a say. Fortunately, most companies in Singapore encourage their employees to propose new ideas on how to improve the company and they also have someone who gives instructions on what to do, which suits your working style! Also, I like the many examples you quote in your journal and also both sides of an argument in every of your point. Thanks for sharing your journal with me!
Comments on 3s110-2012.blogspot.com:
I would like to point out the fact that you do have quite a number of grammatical and spelling errors which I hope you can change in time, for example, the spelling of "etc", and also I think that "employee orientated" should have a "-" in between the words. Going back to the topic, I feel that it is good of you to present Apple as another example to support your claim that the working cultures does not reflect the respective societies. However, I think that your main focus should be on Lenovo and Google as this is what the question is asking for. Next, I would like to commend that you did quite a good job in explaining why you wanted to choose the Google's way of working style and how it will help in your development of your creativity. Also, I fully agree with your point of view about the three companies and that the working style does not really reflect the respective society. Thank you for opening up another point of view for me about the fact that the working style does not really shows the respective society.
I really enjoy your post as you are able to link your stand to our curriculum. For example, you explained how our school's OP relates to Google's success, in your Point of View. I also like how you explain about your preferred management style, as you acknowledge the kind of work which suits the system which we, Singaporeans have been going through, but also state how much you dread having to work in a company which is exactly like Lenovo, where you do not have a say. Fortunately, most companies in Singapore encourage their employees to propose new ideas on how to improve the company and they also have someone who gives instructions on what to do, which suits your working style! Also, I like the many examples you quote in your journal and also both sides of an argument in every of your point. Thanks for sharing your journal with me!
Comments on 3s110-2012.blogspot.com:
I would like to point out the fact that you do have quite a number of grammatical and spelling errors which I hope you can change in time, for example, the spelling of "etc", and also I think that "employee orientated" should have a "-" in between the words. Going back to the topic, I feel that it is good of you to present Apple as another example to support your claim that the working cultures does not reflect the respective societies. However, I think that your main focus should be on Lenovo and Google as this is what the question is asking for. Next, I would like to commend that you did quite a good job in explaining why you wanted to choose the Google's way of working style and how it will help in your development of your creativity. Also, I fully agree with your point of view about the three companies and that the working style does not really reflect the respective society. Thank you for opening up another point of view for me about the fact that the working style does not really shows the respective society.
SES Reflective Journal 2
The Google style of management is more or less employee-orientated as they give their employees a lot of freedom, believing that this will give them the motivation to come out with great ideas, for example, their employees are provided with very good facilities for them to relax and enjoy and they also have the freedom of choosing their work time. Google also has the 20% rule where employees are believed to be motivated to finish their work using 80% of their work time so that they have 20% of spare time to think of their passion and possibly come up with a good project. However, I feel that this may just be a one-sided belief on Google’s side that their employee who be independent and make good use of the freedom and facilities they are provided with. Another side of the argument would be that the employees take advantage of the 20% free time and just relax while using the resources Google have for them; therefore, I feel that Google should be careful in monitoring the actions of their staff.
Google is a company which started in America and the working culture and management style of Google clearly reflects the American society. Firstly, the American society is recognized as a society which believes a lot in freedom and this can also be seen from their national symbol of the Statue of Liberty. Linking back to Google, their employees are given a lot of freedom and decision-making opportunities like choosing their work time and planning their own work schedule so that they can work hard and play hard. As the American society believes that their citizens are able to govern themselves well and thus, should have the freedom of doing what they think is right, Google which shares the same beliefs can be seen as reflecting the American society.
In contrast, the style of management in Lenovo differs greatly from that of Google. In Lenovo, the style of management closely follows one of the principles of Confucian teachings, which is to obey one’s superior and follow the orders of their boss. However, I feel that this should not be the case in any company as it stifles creativity and only the opinion of one person is heard in the company, which may slow down the development of the company as no human is perfect and when the decision-making person makes a wrong decision, the company’s development would be affected as resources are wasted.
The Chinese society has always been one where subjects obey and carry out whatever their superiors ask them to do, usually without asking for the objective. No doubt this kind of management style is more efficient, effective and organized compared to that of America, as there is only one voice and there would not be any disparities and arguments, there are also disadvantages to this kind of management style. I feel that China, being a country with a huge population, should not rely on this kind of management style as they have the advantage over many countries of a huge population, and would definitely be able to reach greater heights if they have creativity.
Personally, I feel that I am more inclined to the working culture and management style of Lenovo. I deduced that I am more suited for the working culture of Lenovo from several examples.
Firstly, I feel that I am very reliant on notes given out by my teachers as I prefer to be told what to study on, and I would probably fail my tests without the notes. This fits the working culture of Lenovo where people are instructed on what to do.
Another example would be because in Singapore, Singaporeans do not really have a say in much things. Narrowing down to our education system, we have a fixed curriculum which the school would come up with and it was impossible for us to just stand up and say that we do not wish to have this curriculum. Being exposed to this kind of environment from young, I am very used of not having a say and thus, would suit the working environment of Lenovo where people just follow instructions.
Lastly, I personally do not like to have too much freedom as I feel that people would become over-relaxed and end up having low efficiency. Also, I do not like to have too much autonomy as there would be many disparities and everything would not be in place as people have different point of views of things and chances would be that things are not done because whenever a point is raised, there would be someone having a different point of view opposing it. Therefore, I feel that I suit the working culture and management style of Lenovo.
Word Count:795
Google is a company which started in America and the working culture and management style of Google clearly reflects the American society. Firstly, the American society is recognized as a society which believes a lot in freedom and this can also be seen from their national symbol of the Statue of Liberty. Linking back to Google, their employees are given a lot of freedom and decision-making opportunities like choosing their work time and planning their own work schedule so that they can work hard and play hard. As the American society believes that their citizens are able to govern themselves well and thus, should have the freedom of doing what they think is right, Google which shares the same beliefs can be seen as reflecting the American society.
In contrast, the style of management in Lenovo differs greatly from that of Google. In Lenovo, the style of management closely follows one of the principles of Confucian teachings, which is to obey one’s superior and follow the orders of their boss. However, I feel that this should not be the case in any company as it stifles creativity and only the opinion of one person is heard in the company, which may slow down the development of the company as no human is perfect and when the decision-making person makes a wrong decision, the company’s development would be affected as resources are wasted.
The Chinese society has always been one where subjects obey and carry out whatever their superiors ask them to do, usually without asking for the objective. No doubt this kind of management style is more efficient, effective and organized compared to that of America, as there is only one voice and there would not be any disparities and arguments, there are also disadvantages to this kind of management style. I feel that China, being a country with a huge population, should not rely on this kind of management style as they have the advantage over many countries of a huge population, and would definitely be able to reach greater heights if they have creativity.
Personally, I feel that I am more inclined to the working culture and management style of Lenovo. I deduced that I am more suited for the working culture of Lenovo from several examples.
Firstly, I feel that I am very reliant on notes given out by my teachers as I prefer to be told what to study on, and I would probably fail my tests without the notes. This fits the working culture of Lenovo where people are instructed on what to do.
Another example would be because in Singapore, Singaporeans do not really have a say in much things. Narrowing down to our education system, we have a fixed curriculum which the school would come up with and it was impossible for us to just stand up and say that we do not wish to have this curriculum. Being exposed to this kind of environment from young, I am very used of not having a say and thus, would suit the working environment of Lenovo where people just follow instructions.
Lastly, I personally do not like to have too much freedom as I feel that people would become over-relaxed and end up having low efficiency. Also, I do not like to have too much autonomy as there would be many disparities and everything would not be in place as people have different point of views of things and chances would be that things are not done because whenever a point is raised, there would be someone having a different point of view opposing it. Therefore, I feel that I suit the working culture and management style of Lenovo.
Word Count:795
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Reflective Journal 1
Reflective Journal 1
Feelings about SES before attending the first lesson
Before attending the first lesson of SES, I was very puzzled about what this subject is about and also wondered why the others have their IHE subjects while I don’t. I went to the internet to do a brief research on SES and found out that SES generally refers to the “use of economics in the study of the society” in a very general term. Well, I began to worry about what lies ahead as this topic seems to be really, really broad and it is no longer like the Sciences where I can just study and get my straight As.
However, what strikes me most is that this is a very unique subject, not because it is only offered to CSE-SMTP pupils, but because it enable us to really link what we have learnt in school to what is happening around the world and somehow understand how some things work. This made me look forward to my first lesson of SES.
Introduction
Socio-Economic Studies (SES) is a subject introduced to CSE-SMTP students who are believed to be stronger in Math and Science. I feel that the reason behind introducing this new subject into our curriculum is to raise our maturity level on how we view both local and global issues, so that when we become leaders next time, this set of skills can come in handy.
Syllabus
After going through the first tutorial, I took a glance at what we will be learning for the year and found out that it will mainly be discussing about the East and the West as they are expected to be the world’s two major economic powerhouse, with China (East) developing very quickly now and so, I feel that studying this subject would definitely put me in a better position when it comes to looking for a job, or even clinching business deals.
Expectations
With regards to my expectations, I must admit that I do want all my A grades which will prove that I understand what is going on in class. However, I would also like to broaden my horizons and really understand how economics and the society are inter-linked, and also I hope that through this year’s study of this subject, I would be more skilled and abled in analyzing different case studies critically. Lastly, I hope that the lesson would not be too dry but instead, have a lot of group work or discussion carried out so that the lesson would be not only enriching, but also captivating as well.
Mode of Assessment
Firstly, 20% of our SES marks comes from class discussion. For this component, I feel that it isn’t really a worrying issue for me as I just have to get used to my new Secondary 3 environment, before I start speaking up in class. However, I feel that this component really requires everyone to do their homework before coming to class, so that they have something to say and discuss with the class. Also, to score in this component, I feel that it is important to listen what others I saying so that you do not repeat what others have said.
Moving on, there will be a five minute presentation which I feel that if proper research is done, it should be quite OK as I suppose everyone has experience presenting a speech in Secondary two for language arts which is three minutes long, where most people complain about the lack of time for them to present. Then, we have to do a 1000-word assignment to be submitted after the presentation. This 1000-word assignment should also pose no huge problem as it is mainly just putting whatever that was presented into words.
However, my main concerns would be with the 10-minute presentation where we have to lead the class in a discussion and also the research paper, which till now, stays a mystery. As I have never led a class in any discussion, I am extremely worried whether what I would have prepared for that day is sufficient and also whether it is captivating enough. As for the research paper, it really seems to be very hard and tedious and I hope that before I do the research paper, I would already be equipped with the necessary skills to complete the paper.
Conclusion
In conclusion, as I missed the first “proper” lesson, I am still not really sure what will be done for SES but I hope that it is going to be very interesting and although I am very worried about the syllabus and the mode of assessment. However, I believe my teacher, Ms. Yeo would be able to offer me great assistance when I am in need so that I would not be lost and I look forward to my next lesson!
Word Count: 791
Feelings about SES before attending the first lesson
Before attending the first lesson of SES, I was very puzzled about what this subject is about and also wondered why the others have their IHE subjects while I don’t. I went to the internet to do a brief research on SES and found out that SES generally refers to the “use of economics in the study of the society” in a very general term. Well, I began to worry about what lies ahead as this topic seems to be really, really broad and it is no longer like the Sciences where I can just study and get my straight As.
However, what strikes me most is that this is a very unique subject, not because it is only offered to CSE-SMTP pupils, but because it enable us to really link what we have learnt in school to what is happening around the world and somehow understand how some things work. This made me look forward to my first lesson of SES.
Introduction
Socio-Economic Studies (SES) is a subject introduced to CSE-SMTP students who are believed to be stronger in Math and Science. I feel that the reason behind introducing this new subject into our curriculum is to raise our maturity level on how we view both local and global issues, so that when we become leaders next time, this set of skills can come in handy.
Syllabus
After going through the first tutorial, I took a glance at what we will be learning for the year and found out that it will mainly be discussing about the East and the West as they are expected to be the world’s two major economic powerhouse, with China (East) developing very quickly now and so, I feel that studying this subject would definitely put me in a better position when it comes to looking for a job, or even clinching business deals.
Expectations
With regards to my expectations, I must admit that I do want all my A grades which will prove that I understand what is going on in class. However, I would also like to broaden my horizons and really understand how economics and the society are inter-linked, and also I hope that through this year’s study of this subject, I would be more skilled and abled in analyzing different case studies critically. Lastly, I hope that the lesson would not be too dry but instead, have a lot of group work or discussion carried out so that the lesson would be not only enriching, but also captivating as well.
Mode of Assessment
Firstly, 20% of our SES marks comes from class discussion. For this component, I feel that it isn’t really a worrying issue for me as I just have to get used to my new Secondary 3 environment, before I start speaking up in class. However, I feel that this component really requires everyone to do their homework before coming to class, so that they have something to say and discuss with the class. Also, to score in this component, I feel that it is important to listen what others I saying so that you do not repeat what others have said.
Moving on, there will be a five minute presentation which I feel that if proper research is done, it should be quite OK as I suppose everyone has experience presenting a speech in Secondary two for language arts which is three minutes long, where most people complain about the lack of time for them to present. Then, we have to do a 1000-word assignment to be submitted after the presentation. This 1000-word assignment should also pose no huge problem as it is mainly just putting whatever that was presented into words.
However, my main concerns would be with the 10-minute presentation where we have to lead the class in a discussion and also the research paper, which till now, stays a mystery. As I have never led a class in any discussion, I am extremely worried whether what I would have prepared for that day is sufficient and also whether it is captivating enough. As for the research paper, it really seems to be very hard and tedious and I hope that before I do the research paper, I would already be equipped with the necessary skills to complete the paper.
Conclusion
In conclusion, as I missed the first “proper” lesson, I am still not really sure what will be done for SES but I hope that it is going to be very interesting and although I am very worried about the syllabus and the mode of assessment. However, I believe my teacher, Ms. Yeo would be able to offer me great assistance when I am in need so that I would not be lost and I look forward to my next lesson!
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