2:50 PM 10/18/10 In class forced to write down thoughts

Today in class I took a test for career skills to see what we are good at. To much of my surprise it is completely unaccurate as it says Im a supervisor meaning being in charge and rising in positions. I hate being in charge as I like people giving me instructions so I dont have to think. Nonetheless it was a enjoyable experience to know what other people are interested and good at.

blog 4

     Happiness in work! Most people would say can those two words even be said in one sentence? While on the other hand, some would say they love what they do. Why is that? Well, ironically I never had a job but I think the reason for that is because those who like what they do, have found a job that suits their interest while those who dislike it have no interest in it. The reason I say that is because of the feedback I get from friends who did have jobs where they either liked or disliked them.   
     A while back I had a friend who was into skateboarding as a whole. So he applied for an apparel store where its clothing revolves around surfers and skateboarders. He told me while he isn’t having a blast working there he doesn’t hate it. The fact he doesn’t hate it is because even though he’s not skating he is doing something that revolves around his interest in skateboarding. Not everyone can find a job that they love but they can they can find a job that is close to their interest.
     Hate in work! It’s almost everywhere in America maybe even in the rest of the world. My friend who I mentioned earlier is probably the only person I know who is somewhere in the happier state in work. Most of my friends are in the unhappy state in work. One of my friends works in an office 5 hours a day. The only reason she’s even there is because her sister got her the job and she feels it’s her responsibility to stay there and help her out.  Art is actually her talent as she’s very gifted in drawing and painting. So an office is not her true calling but she keeps the job because she needs money and does not know what else she can possibly do in this tough economy.
     I think in this economy it’s very hard to be picky about jobs that make you happy. Some may be lucky to find a job that where they can use their talents or close to it. While others might not be so lucky and have to take the job because it’s the only paying job they can get in these tough times.

blog 3

Everyone has a different perspective of education. Some view it as a source of great knowledge. Some on the other hand like me, view it as a waste of time as it has nothing of particular interest. There are good parts and bad parts to education, but mainly I am unhappy with what I am doing in school. The only good part would be always meeting new people with all sorts of background and interests. For bad parts I find there are more than good parts, such as how schools kill creativity as explained in the video TED presentation by Ken Robinson. Another thing I dislike about the education system is the financial issue which affects almost everybody. Also I believe that social support is important to be happy in education such as being encouraged to do what you like. Afraid of being wrong is a huge negative emotion I feel toward education as it limits almost all my decisions. In this blog I will express why I am unhappy in education as a whole                 I’ll start off with the good part of education such meeting people. Humans by nature are social animals. We like to communicate, play, and do a lot of other things of explicit nature. This is the only thing that makes me happy in education as everyday in school; I see and meet different people. Each and every single person is different with their own unique characteristics such as some are creative, funny, and charismatic just to name a few. It is for this reason I like going to school to see fresh faces everyday.                          A bad part about education is how schools make creative classes such as, music, art, or dance much less important than say an academic class. Ken Robinson states “there isn’t a education system on the planet that teaches dance every day to children the way we teach them mathematics” (9:00 Ken Robinson) Meaning in every system creative classes are placed bottom as they are not as important as say mathematics or science. When I was in junior high I wanted to take drama class as an elective but my parents urged to pick computers as they assumed it would help me in the future. They automatically assume other creative classes were of no use to me as I would never be actor because the chances of becoming one are so slim.                                                                 I also dislike how a financial issue affects almost everyone in some way in education. Financial aid could pay for almost everything in one’s education but the catch would be you are required to take courses that you may not find in your best interest. I am affected by financial issues by the fact I don’t even want to be in college but I have no choice as this is the only way my parents will support me until I graduate and get a job. For me I think financial issue is the biggest factor in education as it limits the choices people can make in their education or can’t even afford to get education.                                               When I was in junior high I began to love movies and T.V. Shows. I was amazed as to how the actors could be so convincing as if you were right there with them. So I told my parents I didn’t want to go to college and instead go to an acting school. Without hesitation they told me to forget about it, and that it was one in a million chances that anyone can even make it big. They told me to just focus on practical things, such as math if I wanted to be an accountant or computers so I can be a programmer. None of these things are what I wanted at all, but yet I’m still in school unhappy as one can be.                         Being wrong is one of the worst things that can happen when you’re an adult. As I’m afraid to take risks for I know what the consequences will be I do not think I can be happy in education. Ken Robinson says in his video” If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original. We stigmatize mistakes. Mistakes are the worst thing you can make” (5:30 Ken Robinson) I agree with what he means very much because I feel as long as I don’t take a chance I’ll always be miserable in the current state I am in education.                                                                                                                               In the long run I am still unhappy in education for many reasons. Some would be financially because I can’t support myself yet to choose a career that is best suited for me. Another would be I have no social support to even learn what I’m interested in. Also I find there isn’t enough value of creative classes versus the academic classes so even if there is a class that I am interested in it would not be treated as important. While I do enjoy the company of others when in school, but mainly I am still unhappy as I am not doing what I am interested in. I think I will be unhappy in school until I gain the courage to get a job to support myself and really choose what I’m truly interested in.

2nd blog

       When people think of education their initial impression is more work, school sucks, or just plain boring. They never stop to think of how education can ever be enjoyable or lead to happiness. Why do people think negatively about education? The TED presentation Ken Robinson explains that schools, instead of encouraging kids to be creative they educate kids out of creativity.  Since schools mainly focus on mathematics, literature and other things that most kids do not enjoy, they should balance out the criteria with more art, music, and other creative courses that kids might be interested in. While I'm not saying the entire educational system is bad for I had a lot of enjoyable experiences in school as well, such as group work and humorous teachers.  In this blog I will explain the positives and negatives of school as there are no all good or all bad areas in education. 

      On the top of the priority list in school are always math and science states Robinson. In this area is the most rewarding as well as almost all scholarships or jobs want these two subjects. In today’s society, creative classes are not taken seriously as people think the chances of becoming say an artist, musician or actor are extremely slim. So instead of encouraging kids to be more creative they are taught to be good at things that are of practical use such as math and literature. If school could be more enjoyable for kids, the classes should be evenly divided between artistic classes and practical classes. So that kids won’t feel overwhelmed about all the classes they aren’t interested. They should be taught that all classes are equally important and successful in the future, instead of being discouraged to believe their dream job is just a dream.

     When I was in high school there were many choices of electives, which was pretty fun as you could choose any of your interest. The only downside to this was the class a complete joke. The joke wasn’t the learning part; it was the how easy the grades were given out. For example you could fail all your tests and not show up and still manage to get a 65. Even the atmosphere of elective classes was not the same as math or English where as you fail the class you’re not going to graduate on time. This means that everything you choose in school of particular interest is not going to be taken seriously not even by the school. The only things schools care about are the classes they think are important which again in this case would be mathematics and science.

      Lastly I would like to talk about the good parts of education such as group work. Group work is enjoyable for many reasons for you get to work together and share thoughts instead of sitting by yourself thinking if it’s the right thing to do. Also group work is a great way to build your social interaction skills which everyone needs later in life either for work or personal situations.  Another thing that makes learning a great and fun experience would be humorous teachers. I was lucky to get quite a few hilarious teachers that believed if something’s funny you’re going remember it. I believe if a teacher breeds a good atmosphere students will keep coming back for more versus if a teacher that is nothing but mean and boring will just make students cut class and hate that subject.  Teachers are the most important thing in being happy in education because without teachers there won’t be an education system.            

      There are many reasons why people aren’t happy in education like those who are being discouraged not to follow their interest or just their subjects are not worth anything compared to other subjects. But there are also good things in education that makes it all the worth while such as having good inspirational teachers that drawn you to them making the learning process exciting. There’s nothing too good or too bad about education, but with the right improvements there could be happiness in education for everyone.