BONUS POST!!! +30 coins

Alright, bonus post to make up for some early ones that lacked a little...... dijon mustard one could say. Anyway, this is a response post to the NY Times article "The Why-Worry Generation." Well, I honestly agree with most of the topics the article brought up. I thought it was very well rounded in its way of describing what the 1982-2002 generation's ego is like and what effects it has. The fact that our generation has been brought up with Youtube, American Idol, and the all around fascination with celebrities has given "us" the idea that any of us can be rock stars and become famous. Many kids who do not try much or at all in school are mostly encouraged and helped every step of the way through grade school. These factors, for the most part, have created a very large ego that fuels the "I'll be just fine" attitude. I think a lot of this comes with the fact that before the "real world" while still in school, many kids have never experienced true misfortune or having to deal with problems like unemployment, or working to make a living. Therefore, when kids are first confronted with such issues, the risk of this scenario is not as obvious to them, and their parents will not always be there to pick them up if they fail.
The article also makes a great point as to how this egotistical viewpoint is not always bad. Being able to stay optimistic in the face of adversity is a great attribute to have in our current world. However, one negative impact was not mentioned about this. How being so self-confident and egotistic makes for really crappy people. People who are so full of themselves tend to lack compassion and be really self-centered. In a time with a recession and other factors affecting many people, are narcissistic people really needed? One key point to the work environment is caring and cooperating for people besides just yourself, and this is why our generation is probably seen as so obnoxious.

College Questions FTW

Does your high school record accurately reflect your effort and ability?
Well, my transcript, I believe, contains a nice list of accomplishments from my high school career. Unfortunately, I believe my full potential is not entirely presented on that page. I have spent every year of my high school career working hard and, for the most part, my grades show it. But there is one variable that I think has slightly skewed the way I am presented on my high school record. I found in my first two years I always had at least one teacher that had some odd grading practices. By this I mean it was difficult to get a hold of how you were doing in the class due to lack of updates of grades and/or explanation of how a project was to be conducted. Is this all to the fault of the teacher? No, but it makes life extremely difficult for a teen who is juggling twelve million other assignments for classes at the same time. So when that quarter report comes in and you see your grade for a class for the first time and its substantially lower than you other classes, it’s a little innerving. I found that this year, I seemed to have this issue with a majority of my classes. It appeared that there was a great lack in communication between the student and the teacher on how I was doing in the class and thus fewer opportunities to work at improving the grade. As a result, I feel this had an effect on my grade that seemed to "water down" my average.

I realize though, in the end, a few points here or there will likely not drastically alter the path of my life. Aside from occasionally complaining about how teachers conduct their classes, I feel that a major factor of a high school record is the extracurricular component of which I think also greatly represents my hard work. Playing in the band (something many students in my class are no longer a part of), being on Mathletes, National Honor Society as well as keeping up with a sport are all things I take pride in having on my high school record. I think they are all things that a college would like to see a student participating in as well as the fact that the activities are not too much or too few in number. I feel if you have 2,000,000 clubs and sports on your transcript, it sheds doubt on the fact you actually gave a true amount of effort and passion in what you decided to do after the bell has sounded. I truly believe that my high school record has everything on it I want and I am mostly confident in how it presents the work I have put into my high school experience.

Why do you want to major in engineering?
I was initially pushed towards engineering by where I was most academically proficient. Math and science is my element, and I feel most comfortable when dealing with the topic matter in these subjects. Engineering seemed the most logical choice. However, my official decision was brought about by the question "What can you do that you will enjoy every day?" I can believe that being a doctor would be a noble profession to undertake, but I know I would not enjoy going to work every morning if I was a doctor. I really wish to use my education to give back to the world, and I feel I can accomplish that through the engineering field with maintaining the joy in what I do. I have not fully decided what specific section of engineering I would like to pursue, but I am currently leaning towards environmental engineering.

I constantly hear about the environmental troubles of the world from the current Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico to the impending doom global warming seems to present. Instead of standing idly for these global problems or, even worse, complaining for someone else to do something about them, I wish to be able to actively participate in the solutions to these problems. My high school career has been defined by the pleads of my educators to take "pride in my work" and "make a difference in the world." I find that engineering is a field where I can accept to tackle these wishes with utmost seriousness. I have realized that engineering is an effective synthesis of my raw talents and personal desires for my future occupation. I hope my future in college will reveal more about my aspirations in engineering but it is nice to have a definite direction in my studies.

Book Owners Have Smarter Kids...

Hm, an interesting observation made by Laura Miller, however, I believe there are some quite broad statements made that are not necessarily true although there are some good points. The writer cites a recent study made by what I believe to be sociology professors stating, "that just having books around the house (the more, the better) is correlated with how many years of schooling a child will complete." I feel that this is a an extremely faulty statement even after it is stated, "Children with as few as 25 books in the family household completed on average two more years of schooling than children raised in homes without any books." The wording of the statements does not imply that the children independently picked up the books, but says their mere presence has an effect on their learning. What is the problem? I think the writer or researchers failed to mention or complete a study of the parents of those children. I think it is unwise to think that most under-privileged kids would be more studious if they simply had books in the house. Who is going to motivate them to read said books? I know when I was young, I would have gone outside to do some other recreational activity until a book was suggested or thrust into my hands. Why do they think the more knowledgeable children are in homes with more books? Probably because their parents are knowledgeable people themselves and thus those students have the advantage. What the author says is true, books can do a great deal of good for students, but declaring that the mere presence of them in a house is going to make them automatically read them does not seem as likely as she assumes. The statement would hold more water if it mentioned how active parents are in the reading of their children.

Favorite Book so far...

My favorite book so far is the Five People You Meet in Heaven. Yes, it's a pretty simple book but one that I have always remembered fondly. I think thats the key to understanding what book is your favorite. A book that when you look back on reading it, you remember its deep messages and how you wished to read it in your free time.
The story is about a man who runs an amusement park and has an accident that sends him on a journey to understand his life through the five most important people in his life. I remember being deeply moved by its messages and the really satisfying conclusion. I'm sure I'll discover more complex books in the future but for now this one is my number one.

Who Has Most Impacted Your Literacy?

It's not exactly a who but I believe school most impacted my literacy. I had a lot of trouble getting interested in books when I was younger and school usually forced me to read, and thus find something I liked. A lot of times I was given a choice out of a reading list and many of my favorite books resided in those lists such as The Five People You Meet in Heaven and The Diary of Anne Frank. Unfortunately, because book projects are becoming less plausible for English teachers to assign because of book summaries are so easily available, that motivation has become less evident. I still manage to find books to read but I forget a lot to pick up a new one. If someone wants to recommend a really good one I'm totally good for that. Sorry this is so short.... its late, and its been a long day.

The Beginning

Most of my reading started when I was very young when my father read to me. I started with most of the common beginner picture books, Goodnight Moon, Dinosaurs Dinosaurs, and Curious George. I think school is the main reason for the continuation of my literacy as for every grade, reading assignments were always pleantiful. I always had a problem finding a book that could hold my interest, but in my younger years, certain books like some youth-centered novels based on the diaries of American soldiers held my interest and were able to help me continue to develop my reading. I think if more books had been recomended to me when I was younger I would have read more. But I think my parents and schooling fostered reading enough from an early age that it has never been an issue.