Worth Missing For...

Honestly, I am getting used to this blogging activity.  And I learn to love this somehow.  Even though this might be my last learning blog to complete the requirement for blogging activity in my English 2 subject, I'm still hoping to continue blogging in my beloved blogspot: Aisha's Notebook in the future.  

I'm going to miss this for sure.  Though I can't deny to myself that this learning blog do add in my weekly budget and consume almost two hours time of my hectic schedule, blogging is absolutely fun.  It stirred up my thoughts and really forced me to remember what I've been doing in my English every week.  When I happen to reminisce them, I began remembering our activities that are worth writing for. 

Every day is both a blessing and a gift from God.  That's is why it's worth living for.  As I live my life to the fullest, this blog will be my friend for all seasons.

No Time to Waste...

Stop the time for me please!...

This Saturday will never be a free weekend for my usual habit for movie marathons and gigs. I suppose my deadlines in English 2 and Natural Science subjects won't be that fun.  I will be writing and thinking and eating and thinking and writing again.  It's just the usual process that won't stop your mind from deep thinking all day through.

Why too pressured?  It's all because of my English term paper requirements that are to be passed next week.  If you like it, I'll be enumerating them one by one.  First on Tuesday: the complete sentence outline of my term paper from introduction, body, to conclusion; and also the note cards with the their references.  Then on Thursday: I am going to submit my term paper's first draft of ten pages, following the correct format as stated in the workbook.  Not to mention my other assignments in my other subjects, my tasks for this week is not that easy to start.  Every time I have many things to do, I simply eat it out, and unfortunately ending the day without any accomplishments.

So pathetic me but true.  It's like my mind hung up with the queues of tasks to be done.  

P.S.  I hope I can meet my deadlines this time.  I hope I can finish them before next week.

Aspiring Critics

As a group activity, we were tasked to comment on another group's sentence outline of their assigned topic.  My group, group 3, was to comment to the work of group 2.  On the other hand, group 4 will give critics on our outline.

Group 3 came up with an "impromptu" outline.  Just another way of confessing of being cramming (LoL). Honestly, that was not a well-thought-of assignment.  Yet we were able to finish our outline when our turn came.  Ma'am asked us to post it on the board.  And one funny thing about it was that Teacher Lynnie asked "what do you call that reading that must be read from left to right?"  Oops, our outline started from the left portion of the manila paper.

Every time there's a "criticizing" activity, there's always that negative notion telling "it's a bit harsh to comment on someone's work well in fact you have your own mistakes.   Maybe, he' just afraid that the owner will be mad at him for giving bad comments (Please don't be...).

However, for my part, giving critics has a positive approach.  It's one way to improve my work by letting other people correct my errors.  Sometimes, there are things that you haven't noticed yet the people around you know about it all the way.  That is why it's always good to ask for others opinions.  In that way, I can be assured of my own lapses.

Underpressured

Our referencing activity was absolutely fun! Though we were only given less time to write all the data from those books and online journals, all five groups really showed how teamwork affects the group's performance.  The time given for every reference we had was only one minute and thirty seconds (OH NO!).

I was one of the representatives of our group who was tasked to write all the needed information for reference writing.  Honestly, I was tensed and pressured because I represent my group.  Well, I just did my best efforts. 

Unfortunately, Group 1, my group, got only 19 points over 40.  We got deductions from the lack of information written in the reference and those extra infos that were not supposed to be there.  Our score did not even reached half.  However, looking at the brighter side of the week's activity, it was fantastic!

Stop Plagiarism!

The highlight for our week's topic was about writing bibliographies.  The purpose of such bibliographies is to give credits to those persons of whom we borrowed ideas and knowledge from.  Our teacher made emphasis on the case of plagiarism, commonly among students, which involves stealing of someone else ideas and making it their own.  Everybody should be aware of the possible consequences of this criminal assault!

Plagiarism is considered to be a mere theft of another persons ideas.  However, this can be avoided by making citations and references from the sources of such data and putting it all in the bibliography of the term paper. As discussed in the class, we are going to have a guide for writing the correct format of the references we have gathered from books, journals, magazines, periodicals, and internet sources.  Ma'am Lynnie required us to follow the APA (American Psychological Association) Style of citing the sources.  This APA format is widely used in public documentations.

Next meeting, we are going to have an activity about writing bibliographies in the APA Format.  I'm looking forward to it because I am certain that this is going to be fun! The activity will be time bound! (wh00o, I feel the pressure!)

Reminder: Bring manila paper, a marker pen, and masking tape. 

Strictly, NO MATERIALS, NO PARTICIPATION!

Business: My Chosen Field

We are now starting the preliminary steps for term paper writing, about the specific topic with its thesis statement.  In the past two weeks, each of us was asked to choose a specific topic in relation with our field.  As belonging to the College of Business Administration and Accountancy, my topic should be about business or just something about accountancy.

Scanning through my books in my major accountacy subjects, the Basic Accounting and Partnership and Corporation by Win Ballada, I came up with my final specific topic: The difference between partnership and corporation forms of business.  Since I am still in my first year, I am  not yet exposed to how the business world works.  That is why I selected a topic of which I have known and studied.  We were also advised by Ma'am Lynnie to have a topic that is familiar and of our interest.  One cannot write well if he doesn't like the topic to be discussed.

The reason that I preferred this topic because I want to know more about the difference of these two forms of business.  I want to read more about their variations from different sources and authors.  Though some authors have similar explanations about the differences, they still vary in a likely manner.  A few might have such differences that are not found in the others.

I spent time in the library looking for my possible sources.  Luckily, I found eleven books published by different authors.  I also tried browsing for online sources and I got three.  Yet, I still need more sources because the more sources I got, the better I can distinguish partnership from corporation and vice versa.  I just hope that this is going to be an interesting research.

Asking for a Consideration

We were done with our prelim exam in English 2 for the second semester.  But unfortunately, some of us were not able to finish the exam because it was time pressured.  We started at about 11 o’clock so there’s only one hour left. 

The part that I haven’t finished was in the “Writing a composition” in Test IV.  I was asking the proctor to give us more time.  But he reasoned out that the next class will be using the room.  So even if we’re unfinished answering, he would still be collecting it.  I made a suggestion to look for another room vacant or we can have it outside with him if there’s no other choice.  It was almost 12 noon when I started my composition writing.  And when the time’s up, I have only written one sentence for my composition and that’s my topic sentence.

On Thursday, the day for our prelim, Ma’am Lynnie was not around because she was busy with some works at the English Department.  Instead, she sent a proctor to conduct our preliminary exam.

I can say that the exam was not that difficult though.  Yet, it was a short of time.  After we passed our test papers, almost all of my classmates, including me, felt depressed because we didn’t have enough time to finish the exam.  However, there was a bit of relief when the proctor announced that he will ask Ma’am Lynnie to consider our lack of time.

With a feeling of optimism, I hope that there will be a consideration about our concern. Please…

Please Ma’am… (^.^)

How's My Vocabulary?

This week welcomed me with a punch!

Ma’am Lynnie introduced to the class a collection of sensory words or the SENSORY WORD BINS.  Yup! They are words that express the senses of normal human beings such as taste, smell, sound, sight, and touch.

I think the purpose of that was to check on our vocabulary, especially my vocabulary.  If you’ll ask me if I am good at that, then the answer is no.  I am not really that good at words.  I easily ran out of it when I write.  Though I like to read novels, magazine and short stories, I still don’t have enough investments of words, especially those that are used to describe.

However, I encourage myself to remember the new words that I encounter every time I read.  Not just remembering it but also knowing what it means.

PS:  I should improve my vocabulary.

On My Way Home...

Hurray! I'm at home at last.

It was indeed a tiresome trip.  I and amie, my roommate, went home to Dipolog City together after we had the day's Misa de Gallo this Saturday.  We were almost late to the seven o'clock trip.  And it was my fault.  I haven't prepared my things last night.  I haven't put my things on my bag yet after we attended the mass.  That is why everyhting went on the rush.  Because we did not arrive early at the bus terminal, there was no seat for the two of us anymore.  But we want to travel now so that we can arrive home before the sun sets.  So we decided to sit at the center-back part of the bus where the passengers rest their feet on.

I admit that it's not that easy.  With all those bounce and bumps against my but, I was really exhausted when I reached home.  But I enjoyed our trip because we entertained ourselves by talking a lot.  There are moments when we talk in English  and by using it we laugh at ourselves.  It is because there were only two of us talking on the way and our voices were to loud.  We hushed ourselves because we may disturb those passengers asleep. 

By conversing to the English language, it did not totally annoy the other passengers. For the reason that listening to an English conversation is entertaining as much as we appreciate English people talking with it.

It's Christmas!

I can't wait to go home...

On thursday, the last school day of the year 2009, English 2 was supposed to be my last subject after my Accounting class.  Fortunately when I came to CASS Building, most of the classrooms had lights off including ours.  My classmates and I waited at the hall way for ma'am to pass by for about fifteen minutes.  When we felt and sensed that we were not already having classes, we went home to our respective boarding house.

Also, some of our classmates had not gone there for our English class at 10:30.  Maybe they already sensed that we are not meeting in our class already.  Though, I have thought of not coming to class that day, I still encouraged my self to go to school because what if they are having classes.  So just to make sure, I went to school on the last day for christmas break!

Merry Christmas Everyone! (hohoho!)

Late at Night

Wow!  I have really done it.  Doing my two requirements in English, an assignment in composition writing and a project about samples of paragraph development, it took me twelve hours to finish it.  Yes, it's true.  I started from one o'clock in the afternoon to exactly one in the morning.  I was really absorbed with what I was doing that I myself forgot the time.

I was shocked when the watch on my cellphone showed me that it was already past midnight.  Though this is not the first time for me to stay awake this late.  I was used to it somehow when I was still in high school doing projects in the eleventh hour.  Well I guess it's just part of the student life - to panic when there's no time left.

But while doing these projects, I have made little self-evaluation of my own.  The project was actually given two weeks before the extended deadline.  And the time given to us by Ma'am Lynnie was just enough to look for the samples.  Though I already got the samples, the part that took me long was the designing of the pages.  The cutting of the colored papers and pasting it consumed most of my time.

However, it's another lesson to earn.  Well, good for me if I will apply it next time. 

The Week's Longest Task

If I were to choose between having a class or making long projects for a certain deadline, I would rather prefer to sit on my chair and listen to my teacher's discussion.  Ma'am Lynnie has given us a project about the different methods of paragraph development since she will be out for an international conference in Manila.  I can say that it's really a lengthy task because there are eighteen methods.  And each method will have a corresponding sample paragraph, of which we are going to search in newspaper and magazine articles.

But, thank God because it will be done by pair.  Fortunately, my partner is Elmar.  But not that fortunate enough though, because he's nowhere to be found.  Where's is he? I did text him last night but he didn't replied.  Instead, he sent me a load request (haha...).  Until now, I am still waiting for his reply. (Elmar, help!.)

Well any way, I have already started it.  I already bought a newspaper of yesterday's issue.  I don't have any magazines so the only source I can have is the newspaper.  Sad to know that the way to find the samples is by reading them through the articles.  That is why I don't  have any choice but read it.  Though reading the articles is a laborious process, I still enjoyed it in some way because a learned from it.

Deal or No DeaL?

Our first meeting in English 2: Writing in the Discipline was extraordinary. I have met different students from different colleges of whom I made friends with. We are A3-2 heterogeneous section so it is expected to be a class of various fields in engineering, education, marketing, and accountancy. Yet most my classmates are from the College of Business Administration and Accountancy, my fellow yellow Griffins. Everyone was busy talking with their seatmates, including me of course, when our professor came in.

Her name is Lynnie Ann Deocampo. The moment she entered the room, everything went silent. She smiled, introduced herself, and started talking about the rules and regulations in our class. She talked in English so fluently. Really, I am fascinated. Wow. It seems like the words she uttered came naturally from her mouth. The statements were fluently spoken by her that it captured the attention of everyone.

Speak in English. That's the first and the last rule. Whether you like it or not. From the time we enter the room, we should be talking in the English language. As what Ma'am Lynnie told us, "There is no room for the vernacular here." If ever one is caught speaking in a language aside from English, he or she will have a certain deduction from his or her own grade. And if we are caught by our own classmate, he or she can earn that corresponding deducted point which will be given by teacher Lynnie herself. Better risk my own life than dare to speak in Cebuano.

Deal or no deal? I know why our professor implemented that rule. It is for our own good. Just like a mother wanting the best for her child. Because I believe that one way of improving my skill of communicating in English is by using it myself and expressing my ideas in the way that is effective to the one I am talking with. That is why I'm on this challenge. Ma'am, I am taking it as a deal.

(^.^)!

The Mistaken Class

Today's Tuesday. The first day of class in my second semester in college.  After my Accounting 112 class, I hurriedly proceeded to my next class in English 2.  I and my new classmates, though there are also some who where my blockmates last semester, were waiting for our English 2 professor.  I have so many expectations about what will be my teacher look like.

Finally, the moment of waiting was over and a female professor came in.  Then I realized that she's the English professor.  She introduced herself and wrote her full name on the board.  Talking about her expectations in the class and the rules inside the four corners of the classroom, I came to the impression of her as a good professor.  While she was talking in front, everyone was attentively listening to her.

But everything came different when she announced that she was not our English 2 professor after all.  She apologized.  It was a mistake that she entered our classroom without really knowing what section we belong.  Well, all just came to a laugh.  It was been a funny encounter for the first day of school.

However, it was been nice meeting you ma'am.  She is Prof. Faith O. Miguel.