What does the discussion forum on drafting reveal to you about the ways in which different people approach drafting? Why are these differences important?
In the forum on drafting, we discussed writing and drafting methods we use, and we shared our points of view. We all have similar opinions about what drafting is and why it is essential for the work we aim to present. However, we make use of different writing strategies. For example, there are those who prefer to split the workload into sections and revisit it in different moments and those who prefer to work on their piece as a whole, in a more concentrated way. These differences are significant for our growth, as they help us practice openness and creativity by trying new methods and considering other perspectives. The idea, for instance, I was given, to develop a writing in separate sections at different times, it was something simple, but it had not crossed my mind earlier.
0 Comments
Describe a time when you encountered a new cultural experience, i.e. eating a new food for the first time, participating in a different holiday celebration, learning a new way to greet someone, etc.
When I was 23 years old, I decided to learn Hebrew, and along with the language I learned many things about the Jewish culture. Celebrating Hanukkah in Greece, going to the Synagogue for Pesach and visiting the Jewish School of Athens for Purim were unique experiences. How does your outward appearance (i.e. clothing, makeup, hairstyle, accessories, etc.) reflect your cultural identity?
I think that my outward appearance reflects my identity as a Greek, European female. Even if clothing differs in European countries, we all have a western style of clothing. I rarely put on makeup. However, I don't think that affects my identity. How do your behaviors and practices (i.e. rituals, daily activities, routines, habits, etc.) reflect your cultural identity? I think that my behaviors and practices distinguish myself from other people. My activities are related to my nationality, to my social class, to my age, to my gender. My routines and some of my habits, for example, are different from the those of Italians or Americans or other nations. I can't think of any ritual that reflects my identity. How do your beliefs and values (i.e. opinions, commitments, memberships, principles, etc.) reflect your cultural identity? I think that my beliefs and values reflect my cultural identity. My opinions about, I don't know. My commitments reflect my personal identity and my goals. My memberships as well, reflect my identity related to my age, as I have memberships on online services. My principles are... How do your dietary and domestic practices (i.e. hygienic routines, meals and mealtimes, food choices, daily chores) reflect your cultural identity? My dietary and domestic practices strongly reflect my cultural identity. Dinner time, for example, is at 8, 9 or even 10 pm, in contrast to the US, where, as far as I know, dinner time is earlier. My food choices also reflect my cultural identity, as I tend to choose Mediterranean ingredients, like tomatoes, olives, olive oil, oregano, feta cheese, etc. I don't know if my daily chores reflect a cultural identity, because I How does your region or location in the world reflect your cultural identity? This question seems strange. My region can reflect my cultural identity, in the food choices. My location also reflects my cultural identity, if I think of the weather. Our houses are also built with windows and balconies and terraces given that we usually have a good weather. Other reasons why my region or location would reflect my cultural identity could be something that I can't think right now but I have to continue writing. Let's see if any ideas come Describe a time when you were judged, excluded, or misunderstood because of one of the cultural traits noted above. First I will try to remember something related to my identity as Greek. I can't remember incidents related to my nationality. As a female, I was once judged for my driving by a rude male driver who did not want to admit that he was not right. It was many years ago, and it was the first year I was driving. I remember that I reacted and I yelled at him. How do you generate, or come up with, ideas? Do you follow certain patterns of thinking or action when you are trying to generate ideas for something? Do you make lists or map out your ideas visually? Are there particular resources (the library, the World Wide Web, teachers) you browse to generate ideas? Why do you use particular resources and not others?
When I want to generate ideas, I think of similar situations and try to recall old ideas employed in other contexts that could be modified or redefined. If I want to come up with ideas for an essay in a foreign language, I think of similar pieces of writing in other foreign languages I speak. Otherwise, I search for examples, models, videos, and related websites. I prefer to use the internet as a fast and convenient research tool I am familiar with. How do your peers (in your culture and/or community) seem to generate ideas? How similar or different do these processes seem to be from your own? I have the impression that my peers in my culture don't know how to generate ideas and give up quickly or improvise. My peers in this course, on the other hand, employ various strategies to generate ideas: they brainstorm, they create mind maps, go outside, talk to other people, etc. I think that I should try some of the techniques my peers mentioned. How do your elders (parents, older relatives, mentors) seem to generate ideas? Do they use the same resources as you do? In my circle, even older people are somehow familiar to technology and use it to find ideas, without, though leaving more traditional ways. When, for example, my mother wants to find travel destinations, uses not only a printer guide but also Google on her tablet. What does the discussion forum on generating ideas reveal to you about the ways in which you generate ideas? What do your peers’ contributions to the discussion forum reveal about alternative ways of generating ideas? Before I started writing my response, I thought that I didn't know how to generate ideas, but when I reflected for a while, I realized that I use some strategies without having taken it seriously. The discussion forum revealed that my "ideas toolbox" is poor, and my peers gave me numerous alternative ideas. It also showed a cultural difference between my country and other countries and confirmed the ineffective educational system we have that in many cases does not equip students with skills like these but only with knowledge. What role has writing played in your life? Describe your relationship to writing and language.
I had the impression that I am not the kind of a "writer" person. Reflecting for this journal, though, I remembered that since I learned how to write, I was always writing something. Poems, short stories, journals, content for a "newspaper" we had created as kids, letters to penpals, e-mails, blog and social media posts and academic papers. As a foreign language learner, writing has not been one of my favorite activities. How would you describe your previous writing experiences, overall? Whether good or bad, in what ways have your writing experiences prepared you for, or led you to, this course? My prior writing experiences have been positive in general, and even if I don't get excited to write in my native language, Greek, or in the foreign languages I speak, I usually manage to be creative and convey my message. Moreover, the experience I have so far as a Graduate student, my profession as an Italian language teacher and my overall journey as a lifelong learner, met in perfect timing, before my other courses begin. What do you hope to do with writing in the future? How might you draw upon prior writing experiences in order to achieve those goals? What do you need to practice in order to be a more successful writer? In the future, I hope to apply the knowledge and the skills that I expect to obtain during this course, to my academic writing, to enhance my marketing skills, to create meaningful content for my students and perhaps be motivated to start writing personal journals. I believe that understanding the power of some skills and habits of mind is a great motivator for practice and development. What do you hope to gain from this writing course and its members? What are your expectations for yourself in this course? What are your expectations for the other members of the course? Through this course, I hope to gain not only knowledge but also experience that will help me write better papers in the graduate school, describe better my services to prospective students, and reinvent my relationship with writing. Furthermore, I expect to develop new habits of mind that will help me redefine myself as a writer, for example, being more reflective and critically thinking. As for the other of the course, I look forward to exchanging opinions, perspectives and helping each other to become a successful writer. |
Archives
October 2017
FeedbackWould you like to give me your feedback? Feel free to contact me! |