Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Reflections on Expository Essay Test

It has been a turbulent term for me and results are out now. To get C5 for expository is not really good. Some really common errors are the lack of transitional phrases and failed to get my facts and information right. Besides, out the 3 questions given to me, I decided to take question 3, which was about Arts because I was not sure about adolescence and not really sure about social media.

There has not been any improvement from last term’s results; the only thing I hope now is that I will keep that C5 score, meaning that I need to get 7 marks for my feature article.

Writing has never ever been my talent, because I don’t write naturally and have the ability to do so. Besides, maybe I just hate writing English because in Chinese, I do love it and write well. I do not have a passion for English but the trick here could be to develop a passion for English such that my marks will change.

Lack of vocabulary, foundation skills and poor knowledge contribute to the fact why I have done poorly for this test. To do so, this world is not about reading. Throughout this June holidays, I will push myself forward, more reading and most importantly, analyze and learn the skills in the Visual Guide of Grammar. I still have one more term before EOY comes knocking on the door. 18 weeks starting from the June Holidays to EOY, I have got to make sure I get my skills right.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Resources for LA Feature Article

These are the following resources used for my LA feature article:

1.) http://www.jobs.co.za/job-seekers/career-advice/article/76/removing-stereotypes-and-prejudices-from-the-workplace
2.) http://www.forbes.com/2009/11/12/discrimination-workplace-prejudice-leadership-managing-bias.html
3.) http://www.submityourarticle.com/articles/Camilla-Patten-4309/Prejudiced-behaviour-as-a-result-of-stereotyping-44181.php

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Blog Posts - Comment 10

This comment is based on Wei Kiat’s blog post entitled “Sabbatical Term 1 (Hwa Chong Proficiency of Communication”.

I think that overall, you have reflected well and have told us specifically what this sabbatical was all about. Actually, I do not know why they had this name because apparently, in the content, it stated that it was giving speeches and presentations while communication will refer to me as talking with other people. Upon reading the title of this sabbatical, I would have thought that it was going to teach us how to communicate well, the should and should nots and the list goes on. Having such a sabbatical in Hwa Chong will be beneficial to the students, especially since many of us have the fear of going on stage and do a good presentation. This will enhance the presentation skills of students and boost their confidence as well.

Blog Posts - Comment 9

This comment is based on Ming Fwu’s blog post entitled “Dewy Decimal System”

First, well done, as I read through most of your blog posts, I realised that all of them have a relation to the book we are studying in our curriculum, “To Kill a Mocking Bird”. It’s really good to see that you take note of small little details like this post, regarding Scout having asked about the teacher’s teaching methods. I mean, many of us in class do not pay attention to these details because we concentrate on the focus of the book, which would be Tom Robinson’s trail but many of us do not take note of them because we think that it is useless. But a small note here would be: there needs to be more room for discussion. Discuss more on why it isn’t used today and why was it used in the past. Elaborate more. But overall, it has been a good blog post. Well Done.

Blog Posts - Comment 8

This comment is based on Ban Siang’s blog post entitled “AAT Lessons and School Syllabus”.

To start, I would like to give you a stern warning that you should not be criticising any teacher in our school negatively because your blog is public. I agree with most of your points there, but maybe I would like to bring up something new, which has to do with AAT. So, what is our school’s purpose in implementing these 2 programmes, especially the AAP and AAT? One concentrates on persuasion, while the other concentrates on thinking. To mention, these 2 skills have to do with the recent Singapore General Elections, one must have the skills to do public speaking such as to persuade residents to vote for them while one must think well such as to make sure that they can improve the lifestyles of the people. So, now we know why, it is to work hard towards our aim, to groom pupils into future people on the political stage.

Blog Posts - Comment 7

This comment is based on Tian-Le’s blog post entitled “Book Review”.

As a librarian, I do write book reviews for the Library blog and every time I write, I always refer to a “so-called” template which tells me what the content should be like. Firstly, very importantly, you have to state miscellaneous information regarding the book in the 1st paragraph. Follow that up with a summary of the book. Then, very importantly, you should highlight the main themes of the book and discuss it briefly. I like your content, especially when you compared the book to “To Kill a Mockingbird” which shows comparison of similarities. More content that you may want to add is about the author and lastly, every book review should end with a quote or an encouraging sentence to persuade readers to grab the book. If you are promoting the book, do note that you should not reveal the ending of the book.

Blog Posts - Comment 6

This comment is based on Cheng Tat’s blog post entitled “Leaving Kids Alone at Home”.

The content in this post is very limited and does not answer the question. What is the purpose of a blog post? It is to give your own opinions about a certain topic of interest, then allow other people to comment, thus both sides are able to gain knowledge. I think that in this blog post, you should have addressed your own opinions such as to give a broader view of the topic and not only give background knowledge of the topic. What do I feel? Well, they should be punished by the law, but the severity depends on the conditions such as them having a stressed life and so on. This will function like the Tribunal for the Parents Maintenance Act.

Blog Posts - Comment 5

This comment is based on Ivan Ong’s blog post entitled “Hard News Story”.

This article has been written generally well but there are some minor flaws. Firstly, I think part of the content is irrelevant to the topic such as the last few paragraphs, which mentioned why Tom Robinson was in jail. There is no need for you to state it, even if you want to state it, wrap it up in 2 short sentences. Besides, more content should have been added such as to improve the article. When something happens, we always look for reactions, so maybe you may want to touch on the reactions of Calpurina and Atticus, followed by the actions they had taken. Lastly, the ending was a little abrupt; you could have wished the best for Helen, Tom Robinson’s wife or look to the future or put a general statement on how you feel that this incident will affect Maycomb.

Blog Posts - Comment 4

This comment is based on Zhi Hao’s blog post entitled “LKY’s Comments T2P9”.

I feel that all the points that you have stated are definitely valid. But I mean, look at reality now, obviously the PAP has to do so. What were you expecting? A PAP candidate goes up to the stage and starts rallying by saying that the opposition party is better than them, thus, the residents should vote for the opposition party. This will never happen. Mr. Lee Kuan Yew is representing PAP and has to put in a good word for them, such as to sway the mindset of the voters. Most importantly, his comments are not backed by evidence. He claimed that the voters have to accept the consequences, but the Worker’s Party, who has indeed won Aljunied GRC has said that they will fulfil their promises and I look forward to the development in Aljunied for the next 5 years.

Blog Posts - Comment 3

This comment is based on Liak Ghee’s blog post entitled “Are girls the stronger sex?”

Firstly, the content is very limited and should have been expanded more to a wider range of aspects. These aspects include the politics; take for example, Singapore, during the General Elections 2011, were there female candidates that won? Yes, but however, compare that number to the number of male candidates won. Besides, as compared in your post, the personalities of the 2 different genders. Females also intend to be more emotional and sympathetic compared to men. My opinion with regards to this topic is that this topic should not be in place. We may be different genders, but when comparing, you have to base it on a certain aspect, not in general because the 2 genders have different personalities, needs and purposes.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Feature Article

The Maycomb Tribune
Ewell Dead during Attempted Attack

Head of Ewell Family, Bob Ewell was dead during a planned attack on the honourable lawyer, Atticus Finch’s children.
Alabama, Maycomb. Reported by Kervin Tay


Bob Ewell was found dead during his planned attack on Atticus Finch’s children, Scout and Jem. Both of them were believed to be on their way back from school during the night when Ewell attacked them from behind.

One of the victims, Scout, gave the recount, “I don’t know what happened… we were struggling…I’m lucky to be alive because the knife had pierced the costume was in only.”

“Ewell had attacked us from behind, with a knife. In the dark, we could not see anything and we struggled when he attacked, I suffered some cuts but we’re really lucky to be alive. During this attack, we heard footsteps and were saved.” said anxiously by Jem, the older of the two children.

According to Mr. Heck Tate, the police commissioner of Maycomb said that Boo Radley was the saviour, by pinning him down. Police are also continuing investigations of the death of Ewell.

“There are currently two possibilities, one – Boo had killed him for the safety of the children, two – he had killed himself in the struggle, when the knife was on the ground and he fell on it.”

Ewell’s motive of the attack is currently unknown but police suspect that it was because of revenge during Tom Robinson’s controversional court case. Besides, there were recounts of Ewell threatening Atticus before.

“I would like to express my gratitude to Boo Radley for helping and saving my children. Thank you so much. Besides, I am just glad that this has finally ended,” Atticus, the father of the attacked children said.

Police are appealing for witnesses to come forward or contact Mr. Heck Tate.

Blog Posts - Comment 2

This comment is based on Jonathan Ng’s blog post entitled “Maycomb Tribune – Tom Robinson’s failed escape attempt”.

I feel that it is written pretty well but there is definitely room for improvement. One such point would be that you should add in photos to describe what happened or not the picture of the late Tom Robinson. Besides, you should have described the tones of the two men, Atticus and Mr. Ewell when interviewed. I would also like to suggest another new headline for this article, like “Negro shot dead in attempted escape”. It would be much more specific and shorter. Lastly, there could be more specific evidence such as the time of the incident, instead of just stating yesterday, you could say yesterday morning.

Blog Posts - Comment 1

This comment is based on Wei Kiat’s blog post entitled “Facebook: A Waste of Time?”

I feel that the points you have brought up in your post are all valid but I would like to give my own opinion on this issue. Facebook is a social networking site, and some benefits do include an easy platform for communication and for leisure. However, Facebook is classified under cyber space, anything can happen in cyber space. Scams, for example would be one, the friends you make online, do you know who he/she truly is? Maybe on Facebook, the user is a female but who knows, behind the scenes, the user is actually a male, trying to con you of your money. Cyber space or modern technology is an important tool today in our modern society. It is mostly used for propaganda, take for example in Singapore, where it is now mostly used for the General Elections 2011 such as to gather support and interest from the public