Public Speaking? Oh Great.

I can remember back to 5^th grade when I wanted to be the vice president of our class. As soon as I learned that giving a speech in front of the whole school would be a requirement, my heart drop to the pits of my stomach. I had never given a speech before and I wasn’t quite sure what to say. Needless to say, I made it through without dying. I’m not sure how but I got through the rest of my school years without having to give a speech, many presentations, but not another speech. Well, until 3 weeks ago in class.

A group that I’m around 3 days every week, it shouldn’t be that bad. Unfortunately, speaking in front of crowds will probably always make me nervous. I understand that being nervous is only normal but I would like to work on controlling my nerves more and becoming more confident in myself. The only way to improve these weaknesses would be to practice in front of large groups of people or to give more speeches.

As for strengths, when it comes to public speaking, I think I do well with organization and staying on the right track to get my overall message across. After reading the article “How to Give a Killer Presentation,” I learned that this pretending to be on journey is a great way to make sure you stay on topic and to connect with your audience on an intimate and efficient level. In the article, it is said that “If you frame the talk as journey, the biggest decisions are figuring out where to start and where to end.” With this being said, in order to help strengthen my public speaking skills further, I will work on deciding which points to begin and end with. To achieve this goal, I will take more time in constructing my speech and narrowing down the points I want to get across to the audience.

Thanks for reading. 

Is the internet good? ...or bad?

The internet connects us on a global level.

Growing up in the age of information, it’s hard for us to see the drastic change in society due to the invention of the internet. The internet offers us with quick ways of communication, different ways of learning, tons of entertainment, and so much more. A world without twitter, snapchat, Facebook, and google just seems so foreign. Using the internet has many positive aspects but with every pro there are also cons. The internet is so widely used, from 4 year olds to 70 year olds, that sometimes young children come across the wrong things and hackers can come across your identification.

THESIS - Although the internet has made a tremendous impact on our lives, since the introduction of social media and major communication and informative websites, it has caused us to become less interactive with others on an intimate level. The change in modern day society allows people to share their everyday adventures in a matter of seconds. The shift from face-to-face interaction to over the internet is evident especially with the use of social media. Since the invention of the internet in 1958, the advancements have led to people becoming more reliant on the internet to gain knowledge and communicate. 


For my essay, I plan on discussing the shift from face-to-face interaction to becoming a society that is dependent on the internet to interact with others. My body paragraphs will focus on the different impacts that major social media networks and informative websites have on us. The essay will follow a timeline, introducing when these websites were invented and the purpose they serve. I will use many different sources that show different sides of the argument and how the internet got to the point that its at today. Some of the sources that I plan to use are present throughout the article


Thanks for reading. 

Paradigm Shift

A paradigm shift is when many things do not fit your pre-set category anymore. Once you realize these things have outgrown their recent category, you begin to approach them differently. Then you develop of a new category to put these things into.

There are many things that have changed shaped offer the years, from revolutions of dance to simple things such as how one prefers their coffee. For my paradigm shit topic I have two ideas; how technology has changed over the years and how society has begun to accept gay people.

The first idea I have for my paradigm shift would be how the use of technology has changed over the years and the impact it has taken on our lives. Technology is a wonderful thing. If is used for medicine, entertainment, and so many things in between. This is a broad topic, therefore, I believe there are so many smaller topics within this idea that I will be able to discuss. For example, I can talk about uses of technology within medicine and how it saves lives. Also, I can talk about how the size and use of cell phones have evolved. ETC.

Another topic that has come to my mind was influenced by the events taking here at PSU. It’s National Coming Out Week and this has influenced the idea of how society has emerged to accept gay people. In one point in time, being gay was looked down upon and not socially acceptable. Now with the help of passing gay marriage in the USA and the support of (almost) a whole nation, being true to oneself has become important and more socially acceptable.

What is RCL?!?

At orientation when picking my classes I never was really clear on what class I chose for English. I knew it was honors but I wasn’t sure what it would be like. Would it be like a regular English class? Would it be like AP Literature with analyzing Shakespeare? What do you learn in a Rhetoric and Civic Life English class?! Learning how to be civic in an English class? Apparently, a lot and it’s quite enjoyable.

I'm not a stranger to rhetorical analysis, rhetorical appeals, and things of that sort. Actually, in high school they were one of my favorite things to write/do. But I think it’s quite safe to say that I've never heard of textual analysis or contextual analysis, maybe the ideas but not that actual terms. I think I have a pretty good grab on the difference between the two. Textual being more of the actual text with its characteristics. It involves the rhetorical devices which highlight specific features of the text. On the other hand, contextual is more of the bigger picture. It includes the background and hard evidence (support) of the argument. Contextual analysis is what connects the written text to the actual world.

Chapter 2, “The Flight From Conversation,” really interested me. I do believe technology is a great thing but I think it’s causing trouble in society. Every time I go to dinner I always notice how people at other tables are always using phones and not having a normal face-to-face conversation. It really bothers me because I think in the long run not being able to hold a normal, intriguing conversation will hurt us greatly as a society.

Usually when I have to read textbooks, I struggle with retaining and understanding the information. One thing that I have taken notice to is how the book is filled with so many relatable examples and situations. This allows the text to be easier to relate to and understand. This makes me excited for the semester because learning isn’t a hassle!

Thanks for reading! J

                                                                              

Passion Blog Ideas

Which am I MORE passionate about?

Self-expression or understanding international cultures?

“Live your life with abandon.”

To live your life with reason AND to be happy seems like the perfect goal. Whether you’re into politics, how the earth was created, or food, there’s a reason as to why you’re here. So many people struggle with the idea of finding their true selves or to find their inner passion. The first way to figure out how to find your passion in life is to accept who you are and why you are that way. Once you are comfortable with yourself, then you can begin to express yourself and share your passion and views with anyone willing to listen. In choosing to blog about self-expression and happiness, I will talk about ways to find yourself and ways to be happy, etc.

“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” -Audre Lorde

To understand cultures around the world will open so many doors in life. It’s not only important to realize how cultures are different but also important to realize how cultures are the same. Today many people say things are wrong and unreasonable just because they don’t understand it and don’t take the time to understand and absorb it. Understand that the world is bigger than you. Knowing about different traditions and cultures enhances our outlooks on life. It makes it possible for people of all ages to feel comfortable in such a diverse world. Also, learning to accept that “different” is never a bad thing opens or eyes in so many ways. In choosing to blog about understanding international cultures and traditions I will explore many different cultures and how they are different and similar.