Reflective Essay 2

My competencies in reading and writing that I have acquired through ENGLCOM are comprehension and grammar. I have learned a lot from this course. The exercises, activities and essays that we had to do helped me improve in my reading and writing skills. I have learned that there are four reading skills and that helped me a lot when I research, when look for something important or when I read a book. During the first half of the term, we did a lot of readings. We read as a class. Exercises were given to us so that we can apply what we have learned. Through this, I have developed critical reading and creative reading. I was able to analyze the texts well, not just reading alone without understanding.

During the second half, we were required to write essays: four minor essays and two major essays. There were times that we complained about the number of pages that we should do. But at the end of the day, we realize that the number of pages that were required to do was just right. There was a time when I almost went beyond the number or pages required. Although writing essays needs a lot of work, I still believe that this is the one that had helped me a lot in the course because practice makes perfect and I believe that I have improved from the very first essay to the last. The essays that we do were edited by a partner and a professor. They evaluated our essays so that we would know if our essay is good or not. I learned how to construct stronger thesis statements. I have also learned APA in text citation. Before, I do not know how to cite my references. I just copy and paste it. I did not realize that what I was doing was already plagiarism. Because of this course, I have learned also to cite my references to respect other people’s work. I was able to meet my expectations in this course. There were a lot of paper works, but it was worth it. Writing essays have helped me a lot in improving on the areas I had to work on before which was comprehension, grammar and vocabulary.

Argumentative Essay: Life Imprisonment VS Death Penalty

Crimes are becoming more and more rampant in our country. A lot of prisoners are being sent to jail everyday. Punishment for those who commit major crimes like murder and such could be life imprisonment or death penalty. Although criminals are a menace to the society, the process by which they are penalized are still important and as such, life sentence in a country like Philippines is more applicable because 1) they are also human beings and they have the right to self-correction through rehabilitation, 2) with the corrupt and unfair justice system that we have, death penalty is abused and 3) death sentence is irreversible.

First, criminals are also like us; they too are human beings who have the right to self-correction through rehabilitation. Sometimes these criminals kill, steal and the like because of their environment. An example is poor people. These people may have reasons why they commit crimes. They have nothing to eat or no money to spend. So what do they do? They steal from people just so they can live a normal life. Another instance is when they are paid to do something illegal. The poor have no other choice because they think that this is he only way to have a normal life.

There is still room for change. On my trip to Palawan, we went to Iwahig. Iwahig is where different prisoners from Manila, Cebu and other places are kept. What is interesting about this prison is that criminals are not behind bars. They are free to wander around Iwahig. There are three classifications: brown, blue and orange. These classifications show how much longer the prisoner will stay in Iwahig. Brown and Blue inmates are free to roam around. They even sell products to tourists to make money. On their shirts, minimum and medium is written respectively. This means that they have less than five years to stay in Iwahig. Based from how I interacted with these inmates, I can see that they have changed for the better. Even though they are about to get out of prison, some inmates just lived there and brought their families to Iwahig. There are houses made for them. They are too scared of what the people might do to them when they learn that they are already out of prison. Some might seek for revenge. These people are human beings too. They know how to feel and love. They, too, fear the people around them. These people can still change if given a life sentence but a death penalty is something you cannot correct anymore.

Second is that the justice system in our country is corrupt and unfair; thus, death penalty is abused. I have heard some stories from people that our justice system is not very fair. Why? It is because people who have money can easily file a case and get done with it while for the poor cannot afford to make "under the table" agreements that is why our justice system is corrupt and unfair. We all know about the plunder case of Erap. He abused his power before as the President of our country. He was accused by Chavit Singson of taking jueteng money and tobacco tax kickbacks. His trial in the senate was a mess since the trial was aborted for no good reason at all, ("Only God Can Get Rid of Erap Now", 2007) This only proves that we have an unfair and corrupt justice system in our country.

Last is that death penalty is irreversible. We cannot be assured that death sentence will be given to deserving criminals because of our current judicial inefficiencies. A mistake is death penalty is something that you cannot take back. Our current judicial system has been abusive of death penalty. They do not choose life imprisonment. In life imprisonment, you can still see that there is a change in man. Life imprisonment somehow helps the prisoner. Death penalty cannot. A criminal also has a family. He is influenced by those around him. When he see that he is still loved by his family because they visit him frequently, there is still chance for him to change. A death penalty is irreversible. Once you get a life from another person, it cannot be brought back.

Life imprisonment is more advisable than death penalty. Another life cannot be wasted because of another life or wrong doing. Who knows, maybe this person will change the future, right? Death penalty is a risky one. It is something that cannot be undone. It should be taken seriously and should not be abused. There is still a room for change in a person. We cannot be certain of death penalty as a solution to a crime that has been committed. Life is an important gift given by God. We should learn how to take care of it. Death is not the only solution to the problem because in the end, it is our loss and not only their family's loss because they too are human beings. We all know what it feels like to lose someone.

Reference:

Only God Can Get Rid of Erap Now. (October 7,2007) Retrieved April 5,2010 from

http://www.artfreaks.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=415

Reflection:

I had a hard time writing this essay. :( It was hard to choose what topic to write about. When I chose this, life imprisonment vs death penalty, I looked for references that can help me write this essay. But I was not able to find something that would support my stand. It is a good thing that I know something about this but still it was not enough to make a good essay. I should have looked for sources that would have supported my stand.

Definition Essay: Time: An Indefinite Period

We all know what time is. We think that time is something that is shown by the clock. There is more to know about time than just seeing it as something on the clock. A lot of us say that "Time is gold." But do we really know how relevant time is? A period of time is considered as a resource under your control and enough to accomplish your goal.

Time is different in many ways. It depends on culture. Filipino and Americans have differences in culture. They are different in the way they give importance to time. Americans are said to be always "on time" while Filipinos have this manana habit- doing things later. Even a man or a woman is different in dealing with time. Women tend to take time longer than men. This is because women love attention. Time appreciation is also different in different environments. In rural areas, people wake up early. In urban areas, people wake up whenever they want; it always depends on their schedules. Even though people have control over time, time should not be wasted. One should be wise enough to manage his or her time.

Time is very important. Life is short. Every day, every minute, and every second matters. Each day is an opportunity. Any way you look at it, any person has to design and manage his or her time. Today, technology is evolving. Everything is fast paced. New technology emerges in an instant. If you delay something, somebody else will be ahead of you. This is a lost opportunity. This has a major impact on businesses. For example, in a factory, output for every man hour is very critical. Labor is always measured specially where labor cost has gone up. Also in advertising, every second is paid. Every second is important in relaying the message to the people. Everything today is fast paced. Time is under your control and it should not be wasted because every second is enough to accomplish something. Speed is the name of the game. The fastest will emerge a winner and the other will be left out.

Jollibee today is known as the top leading fastfood chain in the Philippines. Mang Inasal is a new fastfood chain. Mang Inasal just started recently and the company was able to introduce the chicken barbecue concept. The reason behind this is time. Mang Inasal was able to come up with this idea in less than five years. Jollibee was already operating for more than fifty years but they were not able to think of this concept. Knowing that Mang Inasal's chicken barbecue was a hit, Jollibee also introduce their own chicken barbecue. Mang Inasal used time as a resource and they accomplished something immediately and that is introducing the chicken barbecue. Another is Windows and Mac. If Mac was able to come out earlier than Windows, people would know how to use it. People who use Mac say that it is much easier to use than Windows. Mac is more user friendly and easier to use than Windows. But Mac was not fast enough to introduce their software. People are used to using Windows because they are more familiar with it. If only Mac was popularized way back when Windows was introduced, then Mac will emerge as the winner. Windows was able to use their time well and they managed to get people's attention. They introduced a software that is easy to use at an affordable price. Time should be a resource under your control and enough to accomplish something.

Time should be given importance and it should not be wasted. Time is different depending on where you are from, what you are and what culture you have. Time is important, be it in business, school or even just waking up in the morning. We may be different in dealing with time. Time should not be wasted because time wasted is a lost opportunity. It is a resource that should be under your control. It is up to you how you will manage it as long as you use it wisely to accomplish your goal.

Reflection:

All I can say is that I am really happy with the output of this essay. I really worked hard on this. I had a hard time to not go beyond the required number of pages. In this essay, I can say that this is a very abstract definition for time. I have discussed about some examples that may involve time and how it is different for each of us.

Cause and Effect Essay: Influence of Media on Youth

We, as a part of the Information Age, are exposed to different kinds of media- TV, audio, and print types of media. We should be aware of how media affects the youth so we can limit ourselves from too much exposure to media. The purpose of this essay is to show the influence of media to youth in relation to body image, sex and violence.

Advertisements or some TV shows raise the standards of women and men on how they should look like. Media influence men and women to get the "perfect body shape" by using models. This is verified to be true because according to "Media Influence on Youth", (n.d), a study shows that 69% of girls are influenced by magazine models. These are models in billboards that show a "perfect body". One example is Angel Locsin posing for a Folded and Hung billboard. A lot of people can see this especially the youth, for they are one of the target markets of media. According to "Media Influence on Youth", (n.d), by the time a girl turns eight years old, she becomes weight conscious. 80% of nine year olds start dieting and since 1970, eating disorders have grown by 400%. This only proves that media has a big impact on the youth today. According to Witmer (n.d), teenage girls, who are the target of media, see the idea of thinness as a beauty. This will cause eating disorders and some even turn to smoking for weight loss. ("Media Influence on Youth", n.d)

Media also expose sex. Movies and TV shows people who are doing it, just like from the local movie, "And I Love You So" which shows a lot of sexual scenes. A lot of teens are exposed to these kinds of movies. Even though some movies only show kissing and flirting. These are still forms of sexual acts. Three out of four say that "TV shows and movies show sexual scenes that it may seem normal for teenagers to have sex." ("Media Influence on Youth", n.d) Also, music videos contain more sex per minute than any other media. The youth loves watching those videos and this will have a great effect on how sex may affect them. Print media also deliver the message of sex; for example, the ads for Guess. A lot of their billboards show a black and white picture of a man and a woman, close to each other. There is an intimate connection between the models. These pictures have topless models, unzipped pants which clearly suggests sex.

Media show violence to children especially boys who loves seeing action movies like the ones with superheroes. According to Mediascope National Television Violence study, children exposed to violence develop aggression, desensitized by the violence around them and fears of being a victim of violence. In TV shows and media, there is always a good guy and a bad guy. On TV, 73% of the time, the perpetrators go unpunished and this develops a message that violence is a successful method in resolving conflicts ("Media Influence on Youth", n.d) Exposure to media violence is related to aggression, anger and a negative effect on helping behavior (Bushman 2006). Children learn violence simply by just imitating after observing. If the child sees that the violence shown in media is real, then there would be a greater impact. The child will be more aggressive and more violent.

Media is said to affect the youth by exposing "perfect bodies", sex and violence. Children tend to imitate what they have seen on TV shows and movies and apply them in real life. Teens develop eating disorders to attain the "perfect body". Furthermore, sex becomes normal for teenagers to do because of media. Also, children become aggressive and angry when exposed to violent media. These are just some ways on how media can affect you. However, you can still help your child avoid becoming what media expose. You can educate your child on what media is trying to tell them. Show them the health risks of being thin and tell them how these ads are edited by Photoshop. Tell them the right way in dealing with these types of media and convince them to be contented of what they have. For kids that are exposed to violence, tell them that violence is not the solution for everything. Rather, it should be done through conversation not confrontation.

References:

Children and Media Violence. Retrieved March 17,2010 from http://www.mediafamily.org/facts_vlent.shtml

Media Influence on Youth. Retrieved March 17,2010 from

http://www.crisisconnectioninc.org/teens/media_influence_on_youth.htm

Witmer, Denise. How Does Media Affect Body Image in Teens. Retrieved March 17,2010 from

http://parentingteens.about.com/od/bodyimage/f/media_bodyimage.htm

Reflection:

In this essay, I used a lot of references. The essay was based from the references I got and of course, my opinion. It was not easy to make this essay. The topic is very interesting that is why I had to research more about it. I did not know that the media has this great impact on the youth.

Comparison and Contrast Essay: Tennis and Badminton

A lot of us may wonder, what makes Tennis and Badminton different from each other. Aside from being a racquet sport, some say that Tennis is harder and Badminton is easier. I can say that both are hard to do because I have tried both. People may see it differently but there are similarities in these racquet sports. The purpose of this essay is to show the similarities and differences of Tennis and Badminton in movements, equipments used, and point system.

First, there are differences in movement. In Tennis, sideward movement is done while in Badminton, forward, backward, diagonal right and left are the movements present. Badminton is a faster sport because you need to hit the ball or shuttlecock before it touches the ground. On the other hand, for Tennis, you can still wait and anticipate longer because the ball is allowed to bounce on the ground. Service is done in Tennis and Badminton; this is when you serve the ball or shuttlecock to the opponent. In Tennis, service is done behind the baseline while in Badminton while in Badminton, you are to serve in front of the baseline. It is said that both services are done underhand but this is disadvantageous for the Tennis players because their opponents can immediately hit the ball with greater force and speed. This is considered a bad move in Tennis because the court is a lot bigger and players would not be able to hit the ball because chances are, the ball will travel very far from the player.

Second, let us discuss about the equipments used in playing this sports. We all know that both are racquet sports. However, their racquets differ in size and strings. Tennis uses a bigger racquet while Badminton is played with a lighter and longer racquet. A Tennis racquet is heavier and the head is wider than that of a Badminton racquet. Next are the balls used in these sports. Tennis balls are round while shuttlecocks are triangular-like in shape with a round end at the head. Tennis balls are reusable while shuttlecocks can easily be destroyed. For the courts, in Tennis, it can be played on grass, clay or sand type of court while Badminton courts are made of taraflex. Nets are also used in Tennis and Badminton. They are shorter and are tied to the ground for Tennis. On the contrary, nets are tied at the height of five feet for Badminton

Last is point system. Both Tennis and Badminton use a rally point system. They differ in how many points you have to earn before you win. In Tennis, you only need 4 points; they are counted as 15-30-40-60. In Badminton, it is from 1 to 21.

I may have pointed out similarities between Tennis and Badminton earlier but there are more similarities that you may not know about. I have said that both are racquet sports, both involve the use of courts, balls and many more. Tennis and Badminton have the same events for men and women. Both have men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles and mixed singles and mixed doubles wherein men and women are to play with each other. Also, both sports are played in Olympic and Asian games. These are the similarities these sports have.

I have tried both sports but I prefer to play Badminton. They may differ in movements, equipments used and point system but I still prefer to play Badminton. I have been playing it for more than 5 years and have fallen in love with it.

Reflection:

I did not have a hard time making this essay since I know the topic very well. I am a bit satisfied with my essay but I did not use references so I think not everything is correct about the essay. I only based it on what I have learned before. If I had used a reference, I think the essay will be better.

Static-Descriptive Essay: Nothing Beats A Summer Adventure With Family

People are busy throughout the year. Some people deal with their jobs or careers and people like us deal with tons of school work. All of us are so busy that we do not spend much time together. Summer is the only time where families and friends can cherish every single second with each other. Spending summer at the beach with my family is one of the events I am looking forward to.

Every year, I feel excited as I wait for summer to come so I can lie down on my back and feel the warm sand under the sun. Two years ago, we spent our summer at the beautiful beaches of Subic. Being there made me feel so relaxed as I watched the waves dance and the sun smile at me. We stayed in a house made of wood while we were playing beach volleyball. We ate foods that are delicious and if I remember it correctly, they served it with love. As we munched on our delicious foods, we enjoyed exchanging stories with each other. It has been a long time since we last shared smiles with each other. Being with them made me feel so alive and thankful to God He gifted me such wonderful people. Being with my family makes me feel closer to home even if we are miles away from our house.

Piggy back rides are my cousins' favorite. They love it when they feel bigger and taller. I just love the feeling of being able to carry people. It makes me feel that I am strong and trusted by other people. Though I get tired at times, I still tend to put a smile on my face because it is such a wonderful sight to see that I make them happy.

I have a cousin who takes great pictures. I instantly smile and pose whenever my cousin points his camera at me. He loves it when I make goofy faces - eyes crossed, my tongue sticking out and wacky hands. I do not know why, but I just love seeing people laugh because of me. A picture takes a second to capture but it takes a thousand words to explain the picture.

Being one with the beach keeps me calm and feel so relaxed. As I watch families enjoy the company of each other, I sit down on one corner adoring the view. They are all smiles and full of laughter. It makes me feel alive as if my heart just wants to jump out and say, "Thank God I am alive!"

At night, I find it peaceful being alone. I watched the moon dominate the sky as it lit up the beach. I counted the stars and noticed that I was counting the same stars all over again. Mom joined me in my journey throughout the night. She kept me warm and cozy. It felt as if the night will never end when I am with my mom. I consider her one of the people who influenced me the most. She is my best friend.

The next morning, I was the first to get out of bed. I watched the sun go up and it smiled at me. I got out of the hotel, took the elevator and ran out to the beach to get some good heat from the morning sun. I felt the breeze touch my skin as waves danced again, watched the birds fly around the sky and people goof around as I do one of my favorite things at the beach every morning which is to feel the shore in the morning.

Spending summer at the beach with my family is one of the events that I am looking forward to. As I wait for next summer, I hope everything will be okay. Every year, I yearn the company of my family at the beach. I just hope everything stays the same.

Reflection:

I find it hard to make this essay. First, I had trouble with what topic to discuss in this essay. There are only a few that I can remember. Also, it was hard to "show" what I felt during that time. Maybe I could have "showed" more to improve this essay and I should not have repeated some parts of the essay. I think there are a lot of overused words in this essay like waves dancing, and the like.

Process Essay: Tips on How to Shop for Less

We all know that shopping is one of the favorite hobbies of women. Though shopping is fun to do and we love seeing clothes and accessories we want to buy, it is still risky because we tend to buy a lot then we run out of money. We girls love to shop when a certain store is on sale; we love to shop at bazaars too because we think that it is cheaper to buy at bazaars. When shopping at bazaars, there are ways in being able to buy what you want at a cheaper price and without spending more than your budget.

There are lots of Do's and Don'ts when shopping at bazaars. When preparing to shop you should know what suits you so that you will have an idea on what to buy. You should learn how to budget yourself. Let us say before you go to a bazaar, you bring only an amount of 1000 pesos, then you will not be tempted to spend more than your budget. Before shopping, you should also take a look at your closet to make sure that you will not buy clothes that you already have. When shopping, you should dress comfortably. Wear only a tank top, jeans and comfy shoes so it would not be hard for you to fit clothes. You should also be familiar with the place where the bazaar is so you would not be lost. Remember a certain store if you find that unique and fitting to your style. Always remember that you should not buy on impulse; focus on what you need to buy. There are a lot of cheap clothes that you can buy but do not buy it on impulse for it will make you spend more than your budget. Do not waste time trying on all the items, learn to use the clothes that you already wore when shopping and do not buy pieces you will only use once.

It is not easy to bargain. Some vendors are not easily convinced. They do not give in immediately when the buyer asks for a lower price. Do not show excitement over the piece. Vendors will definitely not lower the price if he/she sees that you really want it because they will think you will buy it at any price. Ask the price first, but leave it and browse other stores. If you cannot find any cheaper price for that piece, go back to the last store and ask for the last price. You should know how to make excuses to vendors so that they will lower the price.

Here are tried and tested excuses when bargaining. First, tell the vendor that your allowance is not enough to buy that price. Do not ever mention what school you are from because if they find out that you study in a well known university, they will not lower the price. Next, tell the vendor that it is your birthday. This will definitely work because the vendor will lower the price as a gift from you. Sometimes they can even give you freebies or more discounts. Next, promise the vendor that you will buy again from her next time so that she will give you a discount. Another tried and tested excuse is tell the vendor that it will be a gift for your friend who will go to another country. The last excuse is when you say that the price is cheaper in another store. The vendor gives discounts when they hear this because this is a form of competition. They want customers to buy from them so they will earn more than other stores and get a bigger market share.

Shopping is fun especially if you can spend less and spend within your budget. These are just few tips of what you can do when you shop at bazaars. You can also add more ways or tips on bargaining and shopping for less. If you want to save more, then invest your savings for another purpose. This is the thing to do: "shop for less".

Reflection:

This essay was a bit easy to do since I just based this from what I do when I shop. I am not satisfied with what I have written. I think it is too cluttered or there are too many ideas in the paragraph. The topic is not that interesting too. I think? Or that is what the reviewer thinks. :))

Reflective Essay

English is not an easy subject to learn because we are not used to it. My competency in reading and writing English is my grammar. I think it is easy to talk to other people in English for it sounds more professional.

I have to improve on my vocabulary and reading. I am not much of a reader but I am more of a writer. Sometimes when I am feeling too happy or too sad, I tend to write poems or stories and then later on I can get back to it and read it again because it makes me feel better. I do not like reading long stories, novels, and the like. It bores me. It is not fun for me at all. I have books at home that I have not yet finished reading.

I have to work on my vocabulary. Sometimes when a person says something or some word I do not know, I go blank. I think I should start bringing a pocket dictionary. That will help me.

I expect ENGLCOM course to be tasky because there are a lot of paper works to be done like essays. I also expect it to be fun because we will not be reading or writing anything business-related. I am not saying I do not like business. I just need a break from it after what has happened to me last term. I actually looked forward to the ENGLCOM course. Not because of new friends but because I have interest in the subject except reading. I think it would not be as easy as many people say, I find it challenging- writing essays, reading essays or other short stories.

I think this course will help me a lot in achieving my goals. I had a vision of graduating or studying while earning money at the same time then buying my parents what they want instead of me getting what I want. This course will help me to communicate well with other people, especially when building relationships with business partners. This course will definitely help me in achieving my dreams. What will happen to you if you cannot speak and understand English? With the fast growth of technology, it is hard to be left out and to cope with the changing world. Somehow the English language, keeps us together even though everything is changing.