IV. Reflection in English 121

After a year of focused work in English I feel I have developed the skill to articulate what I want to convey to the reader in multiple ways. Looking at my most recent paper, the research paper, I think that I have grown at organization and careful flow of thoughts. The research paper I wrote was on the “Israeli Palestinian Conflict”. I could have chosen an easier subject to research, but I felt I had acquired the skills that I needed to really learn and understand this complicated issue. My dad’s side of the family is all Jewish and throughout my life I have always heard them talking about the conflict in Israel. I wanted to learn for myself each side of the story and then choose a side for me to take. After heavy research, I’ve realized that each group of people has valid points on why they think the holy land should be theirs. Using this 10^th grade English class, I have furthered my knowledge on current events and what’s going on in the world around me. I would say that “The Israeli Palestinian Conflict” was my favorite piece to write.

Another paper that I really enjoyed writing and felt I had a lot of insight on was the in class essay we wrote on “Black Boy” one day. As I was whipping out my ideas on paper I realized I was citing a lot of what happened in the book, and I was becoming increasingly talented at using specific information from a book source in a paper I was writing. I think that “Black Boy” affected me a lot also because there were a lot of racial issues and prejudice that really focused me into understanding what times were like back then. I think reading that book in class improved my reading skills because Richard Wright had a specialty at conveying emotions.  I’ve learned from him to add more of what my characters are feeling and thinking when I’m writing.

My strengths as a reader have definitely improved after reading the material we had this year. Reading “Lord of the Flies” really taught me a lot about paying close attention to detail and describing the setting in which the book is set. Listening to people reading aloud their work, like when we played Poetry Poker, helped me grow as a listener and respectful audience. I really appreciated the other works of art that were created this year in English 10 Honors. There were definitely some writers who truly impressed me and pushed me to write even better then I was normally used to.

A strength I have in English is being able to let ideas flow freely from me. If I really enjoyed a piece of work, I can write about it easily and let whatever I want to say come out on the paper. I know a lot of people have writers block, and luckily that doesn’t happen often to me unless I am super bored. Risks I took this year as an English student included writing my “Where I’m From” poem. I had never written anything like that in my life and it took a lot of personal information from me and condensed it into a poem. I liked the format of the writing and I think in the future I may try to use it again.

his year I have grown as a writer and a reader. I was pushed to go out of my comfort zone at times, like when we built a shelter outside to see what it was like for the characters in “Lord of the Flies”! That was definitely a new experience. When we were first introduced to read “Hamlet”, I felt very unsure because I knew how difficult Shakespeare was to understand. Mrs. Larkin definitely helped me to understand the hidden meanings in Shakespeare’s work because we had a lot of time in class to discuss the different chapters of the book. It was also helpful to watch the movie so I could see someone else’s take on the play. Something that was really fun with the Hamlet unit was acting out a scene from the play. I got to do one of my favorite scenes which was the gravedigger scene.  I played the gravedigger and I feel I did a good job at putting my own spin on it! I think Shakespeare would be proud.

Throughout this year I feel I have grown as a writer, a reader and an active participator in English class. I thoroughly enjoyed each class I had and always looked forward to what new activities Mrs. Larkin would introduce to us. I will really miss English 10 Honors because I was exposed to a lot of new methods of writing and a lot of new styles of literature. I really appreciate all the help Mrs. Larkin has given me over the course of the year and I hope she thinks that I have improved as well!

I. The Isles of my Portfolio in English 121 (Writing in the Discipline)

Chapter 1. Avoiding Sentence Errors
Chapter 2. Levels of Usage
Chapter 3. Verb Usage
Chapter 4. Pronoun Usage
Chapter 5. Subject and Verb Agreement
Chapter 6. Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement
Chapter 7. Adjective and Adverb Usage
Chapter8. Miscellaneous Problems in Usage

II. Students Output of E-Portfolio

1. Richard  Opiaza
2. mahira Minsab
3. DARLITO Bini
4. Bon jeson Fernandez
5. Lanie Tangkli

        

III. Writing in the Discipline as a Platform in Education for Sustainable Development

V. Integration of Education for Sustainable Development to English 121

Education for Sustainable Development

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) seeks to integrate the tenets, values and practices of sustainable development into all aspects of education and learning. ESD aims at providing every individual with the opportunity to acquire the values, competencies, knowledge and skills that enable him or her to contribute to a humane, socially just, economically viable and ecologically sustainable future. Among other things, ESD promotes a sense of both local and global responsibility, encourages future-oriented, anticipatory thinking, builds recognition of global interdependence and emphasizes cultural changes that embrace the values of sustainable development. Rather than remaining passive in the face of the above-mentioned challenges, ESDseeks to empower societies, communities and individuals everywhere to shape their future actively and responsibly. ESD raises interesting questions, for example, about learning how to generate creative solutions to current global challenges; about reflecting on new lifestyles which combine well-being, quality of life and respect for nature and other people; and about considering the viewpoints of people from different countries about what sustainability means in practice.

ESD is relevant not only to formal education settings, training and workplace learning but also to public awareness-raising and non-formal and informal learning of many kinds. Thus, ESD should not be seen narrowly as another subject or concern to be added onto the formal education system or a workplace training programme. Rather,ESD is a teaching and learning process through which understanding of and orientation towards sustainable development become embedded in the core education and learning processes to be found in societies everywhere.

In whatever setting, ESD encourages an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to teaching and learning and promotes critical and creative thinking in the educational process. It therefore implies new ways of teaching and learning. The aim of ESD - for individuals to act responsibly in a globalized world - must be integrated into the manner in which all learning occurs: life-long and life-wide, in the workplace, the home and throughout society in general. To holistically address the development ofESD initiatives, four main thrusts have been identified: access to quality education, the reorienting of existing education systems to address sustainability concerns, public awareness and understanding initiatives, and training programmes to address specific social, environmental and economic sustainability issues.

Avoiding Sentence Errors

COMMA SPLICE

A comma by itself cannot join two sentences.  Doing so creates a comma splice.

INCORRECT EXAMPLE:            The clouds created a dark sky, the rain began to fall.

1.         One way to correct a comma splice is to write the information as two sentences.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:     The clouds created a dark sky.  The rain began to fall.

2.         Another way to correct a comma splice would be to use a comma along with a coordinating conjunction.  There are seven coordinating conjunctions whose first letters form the acronym FANBOYS:

For                   But

And                 Or

Nor                  Yet

So

CORRECT EXAMPLE:     The clouds created a dark sky, and the rain began to fall.

3.         A third option to correct the comma splice is to use a semi-colon.  This punctuation joins what could be two sentences.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:        The clouds created a dark sky; the rain began to fall.

SENTENCE FRAGMENTS

Sentence fragments are another common error.  A sentence fragment is a group of words, not a complete sentence.  Remember that to be a complete sentence, a group of words must have a subject and a verb and must express a complete idea.  Thus a group of words must not depend on the sentence before it or after it to provide a complete idea.

INCORRECT EXAMPLE:            When working on your term paper, first develop a time table to show when stages must be turned in.  Usually one month before the due date.

Usually one month before the due date is a sentence fragment.  It does not contain a subject, a verb, nor a complete thought.  To correct this fragment, add a subject and a verb.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:     When working on your term paper, first develop a time table to show when stages must be turned in.  Usually, you should develop a time table one month before the due date.

NOTE:           Verb forms ending in -ing, -ed, or -en that do not have a helping verb cannot be used as the single main verb in a complete sentence.

INCORRECT EXAMPLE:            The man painting our roof.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:     The man was painting our roof.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:     The man painting our roof had a dangerous job.

RUN-ON SENTENCES

Run-on sentences join too much information, usually two independent clauses without a conjunction or correct punctuation.

INCORRECT EXAMPLE:                        Ms. Davis was my first grade teacher in 1975 she is still teaching first grade today in the same school.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:                             Ms. Davis was my first grade teacher in 1975.  She is still teaching first grade today in the same school.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:                             Ms. Davis was my first grade teacher in 1975, and she is still teaching first grade today in the same school.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:                             Ms. Davis was my first grade teacher in 1975; she is still teaching first grade today in the same school.

INCORRECT EXAMPLE:                        My mother is the best cook in the world even though she does not believe it I know she will win the recipe contest at the county fair this year.

CORRECT EXAMPLE:                             My mother is the best cook in the world.  Even though she does not believe it, I know she will win the recipe contest at the county fair this year.

Levels of Usage

          It is crucial to learn to differentiate between levels of usage; essays and reports require a more formally constructed language than everyday speech. It is all too easy to pepper written work with colloquial phrases or weak constructions that come naturally to mind but are incorrect or inadequate in the context of formal writing.

          Language is sometimes rather arbitrarily divided into three major styles: formal, informal, and popular (vulgar). While there is some overlap between them, they operate under different conditions and achieve different ends.

Verb Usage

          A verb is a part of speech that usually denotes action ("bring", "read"), occurrence ("to decompose" (itself), "to glitter"), or a state of being ("exist", "live", "soak", "stand"). Depending on the language, a verb may vary in form according to many factors, possibly including its tense, aspect, mood and voice. It may also agree with the person, gender, and/or number of some of its arguments (what we usually call subject, object, etc.).

Verbs can be conveyed in many ways. Lets look in particular at the word "wear"

         She wears a pink dress - This sentence is made up of three main parts, she, being the noun. Wears, being an action or 'doing' word. Pink, describing the noun about to be added to the sentence and, Dress, the noun which pulls all these words together (giving them all one key point) to complete the sentence.

Pronoun Usage

          The proper use of pronouns has all but ceased in our modern age. In truth, common vernacular has begun to create a new rule with regards to proper usage here- mainly, that there is no rule. Furthermore, the proper use of pronouns has even accrued a sort of negative stigma in our modern speech; it is seen as stuffy, even obtuse in some cases. This is not quite the travesty that some linguistic purists might make it out to be. If the goal of conversation is communication, and if understanding is achieved, then what have we really lost? Yet, there are instances in which one might need to adhere to proper usage, particularly in scholarly writing and, perhaps, in formal interviews, etc. Thus, I have compiled a quick guide to proper pronoun usage. My goal here is to make the rules as simple and accessible as possible. So, without further rambling, let us begin.

Subject and Verb Agreement

The 20 Rules of Subject Verb Agreement in Standard English

1. Subjects and verbs must agree in number. This is the cornerstone rule that forms the background of the concept.

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The dog growls when he is angry. The dogs growl when they are angry.

2. Don’t get confused by the words that come between the subject and verb; they do not affect agreement.

The dog, who is chewing on my jeans, is usually very good.

3. Prepositional phrases between the subject and verb usually do not affect agreement.

The colors of the rainbow are beautiful.

4. When sentences start with “there” or “here,” the subject will always be placed after the verb, so care needs to be taken to identify it correctly.

There is a problem with the balance sheet.Here are the papers you requested.

5. Subjects don't always come before verbs in questions. Make sure you accurately identify the subject before deciding on the proper verb form to use.

Does Lefty usually eat grass? Where are the pieces of this puzzle.

6. If two subjects are joined by and, they typically require a plural verb form.

The cow and the pig are jumping over the moon.

7. The verb is singular if the two subjects separated by and refer to the same person or thing.

Red beans and rice is my mom's favorite dish.

8. If one of the words each, every, or no comes before the subject, the verb is singular.

No smoking or drinking is allowed.Every man and woman is required to check in.

9. If the subjects are both singular and are connected by the wordsor, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also the verb is singular.

Jessica or Christian is to blame for the accident.

10. The only time when the object of the preposition factors into the decision of plural or singular verb forms is when noun and pronoun subjects like some, half, none, more, all, etc. are followed by a prepositional phrase. In these sentences, the object of the preposition determines the form of the verb.

All of the chicken is gone.All of the chickens are gone.

11. The singular verb form is usually used for units of measurement.

Four quarts of oil was required to get the car running.

12. If the subjects are both plural and are connected by the wordsor, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also, the verb is plural.

Dogs and cats are both available at the pound.

13. If one subject is singular and one plural and the words are connected by the words or, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also, you use the verb form of the subject that is nearest the verb.

Either the bears or the lion has escaped from the zoo. Neither the lion nor the bears have escaped from the zoo.

14. Indefinite pronouns typically take singular verbs.

Everybody wants to be loved.

15. * Except for the pronouns (few, many, several, both, all, some) that always take the plural form.

Few were left alive after the flood.

16. If two infinitives are separated by and they take the plural form of the verb.

To walk and to chew gum require great skill.

17. When gerunds are used as the subject of a sentence they take the singular verb form of the verb, but when they are linked by andthey take the plural form.

Standing in the water was a bad idea.Swimming in the ocean and playing drums are my hobbies.

18. Collective nouns like herd, senate, class, crowd, etc. usually take a singular verb form.

The herd is stampeding.

19. Titles of books, movies, novels, etc. are treated as singular and take a singular verb.

The Burbs is a movie starring Tom Hanks.

20. Final Rule – Remember, only the subject affects the verb!

Challenges of Grammar Rules

The problem with some grammar rules from the perspective of modern linguistics is that there is not one absolute grammar in the English language. Most American native English speakers equate standard English with being correct and any non-standard variation of English with being incorrect.

In reality, however, the concept of standard American English is really the privileging of a particular dialect of English that originates from the Ohio River Valley. This is the dialect of English that the anchors of the nightly news speak and that we base our notions of correct and incorrect grammar on. It is important to recognize that no grammar is any more correct or incorrect than any other on a functional level, and our notions of correct and incorrect are culturally constructed.