The TED Talk I chose was called, “The Unexpected Benefit of Celebrating Failure” delivered by Astro Teller. In process of elimination of which TED Talk best appeals to me, I found this topic very relevant to me. Recently, in a particular grade 12 course, I have lost hopes and gave up my willingness to persevere for better results because my grade dropped drastically after two evaluations. Basically, I stopped caring enough for that specific course just because of two failures. And I find that every other grade twelve is currently facing the very exact situation. So, I decided to watch this talk to change my perception of failure.
In this TED Talk, the speaker concluded by saying, “You cannot yell at people and force them to fail fast”. I wholly agree with this because this makes people inherently uncomfortable as the speaker mentioned. People worry of the negative response they might receive from their peers and colleagues. People tend to think of what others might think of them or that it may change their perception of them. And failure is a large source of demoralization which is why people apt to think that they will be mocked for it. The exact fear is present in students especially at Mackenzie and more particularly in grade twelves. We are scared to fail because if we fail we are aware of the terrifying consequences which include not being accepted into universities, being held back from your friends and being the spotlight of attention which causes embarrassment. However, I found inspiration and encouragement to persevere after the speaker emphasized, “The only way of getting people to work on big risky things, audacious ideas, and have them run it all the hardest parts of the problem first is if you make that the path of least resistance”. He further explains that the path of least resistance is where we can compete to see who is better at failing and whoever it may be receives rewards, even promotions. This idea completely enlightened me, which after giving some thought made complete sense. If failure is perceived as success, as an accomplishment, people won’t fear to fail. Instead, they will work harder to strive because after all failures, comes success. People give up efforts after each failure as they see no meaning but if they receive rewards for each failure, the amounts of failures will decrease and give success. The ultimate purpose is to embrace failures, which leads to success because resistance to fail is resistance to succeed. In the beginning, the speaker mentions how the balance between enthusiastic skepticism and optimism is required to accomplish any great dream. While this may be true for the large, time consuming projects that big companies executes, it is untrue for great dreams whose target is not billions of people. For instance, if someone decided to become a foster parent I would define that as a great dream. And this great dream does not require skepticism, or any logical reflections of how to nurture a child. Nurturing a child simply takes love and dedication to grow them into a capable adult. Such dreams to come true does not require one to devise a plan and create strategies; it’s simply done through love, care and most importantly passion. This talk made me reflect on my future by motivating me to live up to the situations and embracing failures. Embrace failures is crucial because they exist everywhere in every aspect of life, as without it success wouldn’t exist. It emphasizes on how failures shape our lives and showcase who we are. This motivational talk actually inspired me to work harder towards my goal which is to enter the health sciences, a very competitive and well reputed programme. The fact that failures lead to success allows me gather my willingness power once again and push myself through the hurdles and overcome each of them. Once the hurdles are crossed diligently, the success after it will follow. In other words, this talk changed my perception of failures entirely where instead of being depressed about the failures achieved; it enables me to acknowledge them for teaching a lesson and move forward. With this optimism, the failures will motivate me to remain focused and work harder to achieve better results and eventually to success. Yes, I would recommend this talk to a friend because there are so many individuals from youth to grown adults who fear from failures. Due to failures many of these individuals will not attempt to pursue any thing they might desire. Failure has become their barrier, and to break the wall of failure this talk emphasizes why it is important to embrace failure and be optimistic about it achieve success. Sometimes, it gets overwhelming to listen to facts, but this talk is filled with several personal stories to reconnect with and better understand the eminence of befriending failure.
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For the PEDS project, there wasn’t a significant aspect in which I was assigned to do and be responsible for it because majority of the onside work was done collectively since this project was assigned. For instance, the initial surveys were done in pairs, where I worked with a partner to complete it. When creating the Poll Everywhere edition of the powerpoint lesson, we all contributed to the questions equally. We all collaboratively worked on the final survey made for students to determine based on their opinions whether or not this project was successful. However, I did feel that my contribution to this project did not match to those from my group. This is because I wasn’t always included in their conversations and decisions made for this project. It was a bit unfair. The first time when we were responsible to go afterschool to communicate with the teacher and layout our project, a few members including myself were not able to come for some reasons. So, we concluded that any two people should go, and communicate with the teacher to introduce this project and our plans. Hence, only two people went.
Overtime, this became a major barrier of communication within our group. Just because I couldn’t commit myself to the meetings the first time, I was not notified for the future ones as they had already planned. I was unaware of many of these meetings which were the most important part of this project in order for it to bring successful results. In addition to that, they did not update me with any new plans they had planned with the teacher, instead I was blamed sometimes for not being involved enough. Furthermore, the day on which the in-class lesson was organized to teach the class the lesson using Poll Everywhere, was the day that I was absent due to a field trip. This was the significant element of this project and I missed it, which is also why I feel that my contributions too little. Moreover, sometimes a couple members were unwilling to do the tasks and finish things up. They lacked motivation and did not put enough efforts. Personally, I never lacked willingness to get tasks done especially for this project, meaning Biology was not an issue for this project. It was because this project was flexible and since every part that I contributed to was collaboratively done, it was all finished during class and consumed less time. For these reasons, I was not able to contribute much and this is why I believe our PEDs project was unsuccessful. All in all, the major issue was the gap of communication in our group (between a group of grade elevens and one grade twelve). As I mentioned before, the biggest cause of this unsuccessful project was the lack of communication (at least on my side it was). So, if I had to change anything, I’d make sure I talk to my group members firmly and discuss with them our next steps properly and also ensure that the meetings with the teacher is not just with two people, but with all members. This way, the issue of communication will be eliminated within the group as well as with the teacher. Transparency would solve a chunk of the issues that I believe caused this project to be unsuccessful. Another minor thing I would change about this project is organizing more in-class lessons with the teacher because we in fact only had one meeting where we received the chance to teach the class a lesson. Having more of the in-class sessions would mean that we have more data and more data is better when drawing conclusions. I feel that with only one lesson done in class, the results cannot be conclusive enough to confirm whether this PED is a success or not. One suggestion I would give is that maybe have the teacher organize these groups instead of creating our own that way no distractions can distract the friends and let them off-track. What I discovered while working with my group is that when friends go with friends they are more likely to get themselves hooked to something and go on a completely different track. They tend to distract themselves in useless talks and not get the work completed in time. So, having the teacher to organize the teams would be suitable and beneficial to the students because they are forced to work with each other and contribute so that if one does not, they are being covered-up by their friend. The article on Addiction and Distraction, written by Tony Schwartz summates how distraction on the internet is practiced as a habit which interrupts daily routines. The author connects this idea and elaborates by describing his experience of how he realized his insane addiction to the internet. He realized his compulsive behaviors towards internet through the close observations on his deteriorating health. The effects on health were quite detrimental as he drank lots of diet soda, and increases consumption of alcohol almost every day and was no longer exercising regularly as he used to before.
Similarly, I also find myself addicted to distraction. Like Tony, I am compelled towards Facebook, which is my primary interface for distraction instead of checking emails. Now, that I recall the effects of distraction, I remember that I snacked too frequently when being distracted. The hunger for some reason just drastically increases at an instant and other time it makes me sick of it. My resolution was very much like Tony’s ambitious plan. I informed my father to shutdown Wi-Fi after bedtime. This plan showed positive results, my chronic procrastination reduced by a great amount and I was more focused and my irregular cravings for food had stopped. This issue is not only relatable to the author and me, rather to every being who utilizes internet as a part of their daily routines. The distraction nature of the internet is definitely a problem because many internet users have not yet realized of how major this problem is and can become. Others who know that this problem exists cannot map out a way from this problem. The rest who are like me and Tony still remain the victims of distraction of internet; though know how to manage time and internet wisely so that it would not interrupt our lives with a negative impact. As mentioned in the article, Tony references a survey in which it states of how millennials check emails outside of work more than during work hours. This evidently proves how distraction caused by internet (in this case with emails) is accumulating as a major concern. Distraction to the internet is so widespread that it’s hard to control. It causes build-up of pressure because distraction causes one to fall behind in schedule which pressurizes them to work harder to get the task done on time. This pressure can cause the change in eating habits which directly impacts on their heath and cause more issues of not taken care of them. Distraction on the internet can also cause the unnecessary shopping which results in less wealth. There are so many more issues; the ones listed just scrap the surface of the problem. If I tried to disconnect myself from the internet, I wouldn’t be able to function appropriately because I’d feel as I am lacking the information which I need to harness it from the internet. I believe that the point of vacation is to enjoy it in every aspect as one would wish. Personally, I would hate to have myself disconnected from the internet. Otherwise, it would kill the purpose of vacation. I want to enjoy moments in my vacation and be in touch with the world (in terms of information and with long-distance relatives). As a result, I would not eat properly because I would feel that I am incomplete (missing out on the information that I should know) if I were disconnected from the internet. Hence, in a way I would go insanely crazy without internet on a vacation. Schools should address this issue because as mentioned above, many individuals are unaware of the existence of this issue. More importantly, it should be addressed to students in the school because majority of them struggle to create an effective plan on how to evade distraction from the internet. They suffer the consequences such as stress form the pressure created from the distraction on internet and seek opportunities to reduce the impacts. They should be educated on this topic so that they can know how to improve their current results with few simple, personal steps. Distinctive PED tools were presented in class to enhance student learning and the instructor’s teaching. From the list of presented PED tools, it was difficult to narrow the wide range possibilities with just two as they were all genuinely beneficial and possessed its own advantages and disadvantages. Each tool demonstrated was quite enticing and drew attention. However, a select few were repetitive in terms of concept. I wouldn’t want to specify them, but I assume you know them very well. As a regular high school instructor, the two foremost tools that I would consider effective for student learning and teacher practice comprise of Block and Focus as well as Poll Everywhere.
One of the two tools selected contribute towards improving student performance and the other benefits teaching practices. To be specific, Block and Focus which is a Chrome Extension, is what I believe the most essential tool any student requires. Block and Focus allows one to concentrate on school work, by avoiding distracting websites which generally include all sorts of social media platforms. Personally, I would use this extension for my English course this year because it motivates me to stay on task. Most importantly, this tool will eliminate the probability of me procrastinating on any assignment. This is a very advantageous tool for me specifically because I tend to delay my tasks often of simply take too much of time on one. This tool will guide me to completing tasks in the allotted time and also blocks me from social media which is my greatest distraction. And the best part is the bell which rings after the block-session has terminated. The bell provides a signal to go back on social media, which feels as great as a reward. When one is aware of receiving rewards after the accomplishment of any task, they tend to do it faster and in my case more effectively. Previously, in English class I procrastinated on a group presentation, which I want to ensure, is not repeated again. And to put this in practice, I have already downloaded the extension and using it whenever completing journal entries, or any regular homework assignments. The other tool which I chose to best suit an instructor’s practice was Poll Everywhere. This tool is available as an app as well as a website. Imagining myself as a teacher, I would use this tool before introducing to a new unit in a course. Determining where the class stands before the beginning of a new unit is essential for me to recognize, so that I can plan ahead accordingly, which will benefit them the most. In addition, I would also incorporate this as an activity after a few lessons to recap what has already been taught and covered in the unit. This way, I can freshen-up their memory which enforces them to update and keep-up with the material taught. And lastly, I will integrate this tool upon the completion of a unit or the course. This is a great tool for me to investigate the class’s overall preparation and benefits them by knowing what sorts of questions may appear in their upcoming evaluation. Again, the largest advantage to this is that student’s name will not appear in the results after the poll has ended. It is kept completely anonymous, which aids the people who are timid and shy to participate, and thus removes the competition factor which tends to cease certain population of the class from participating. Hence, this is great for collective responses as polls instead of individual results. When, the project was assigned, I was initially bewildered on what was exactly were the expectations of this project and its purpose. I could have checked out the website on which the assignments are always posted, but didn’t have time to so, after being caught in other coursework. Due to this reason in addition with being lazy, I did not even take time to take a glance and see the assignment itself until about two days prior to its due date. I commenced working on the project late, and even more, I kept delaying parts of it each time I tried to spend time on it. With this said, by the end of the submission, I truly felt unsatisfied with my final product. I desired my final product to appear as an appealing poster type, more like an infographic. But due to the unconditional work habits, my final product seemed incomplete, and too simple. Near the end of doing the poster, I came upon the realization that I cannot extend the length of the poster, rather restart if required a larger size. Due to time restrictions, I stuck to the original piece and submitted it in. later, when I looked at other products from the class, I felt that I did not put much effort into it and that my final product appears more preliminary than a finished product. I was disappointed in myself, but at the time, I assured myself that such bad work habits will not be repeated for any course.
Without a doubt, I can say that I procrastinated on the learning task assignment. When the work periods were provided, the initial two classes were unproductive due to the unavailable internet and logon services on the TDSB computers. Even, after those days, when the logon services and Wi-Fi/internet resumed in class, I either worked on other coursework or talked to other classmates because I was demotivated to physically start on the research and most importantly, I didn’t want to read through the presentations for the process of topic selection. I procrastinated due to other factors as well, such as the coursework for other loaded courses and extracurriculars. I was busy with completing a biology lab report, along with a math quiz and its assignments, and a culminating English presentation all due Monday (the same due date as the learning task assignment). Although I was glad I received an extension, I was also aware that I will not be able to manage my time through all the work efficiently. Hence, I did procrastinate, because I could have used the time provided in work periods to effectively complete the task and leave the remaining time for other coursework. But since I didn’t do this due to and rather be unproductive, I accomplished very little from the goal that I had. During the class periods, when we were required to work, I was mostly working on other coursework, to get all caught-up or to simply stay ahead, but I didn’t realize that with me working on other subjects, I was working towards an unsatisfied result. I predicted that even if I procrastinate, I will manage somehow to make this task appealing. Although, this thinking backfired when I realized I was given more course work from each other course. Honestly, for this task, I expected to do well enough, earning a satisfactory mark on it. When this task was assigned, I felt that I could do well although I will have to put time into it. I thought this because the expectation(s) for this task was to utilize a creative medium to present the researched information on the chosen topic and I am not creative in any aspect. My creativity seems far too simple to be creative and so for me personally, I had to give more time and effort to this task. Of course, for any task in any course, grades are significant to me. Thus, for this project as well, grades are significant to me. Keeping this in mind, even if I prioritize grades first, I tend to not give importance to certain projects until the last minute arrives and the pressure of the due date is stressing me out. I performed the task and started to spend time starting Thursday, with the most on Saturday/Sunday. With this said, I can say that I undoubtedly delayed this task far too much, which should be corrected in the future tasks. Yes, I am worried about the tasks in one way which is that if they require something creative each time I will tend to procrastinate just as I did because it also takes me a while to brainstorm. And thus, I will not receive a pleasant grade which I desire. I suppose you can alter one thing that I presume everyone in the class experienced. For instance, a course like this should have more projects which are not purely researched based, because they tend to not fascinating and becomes boring and tedious to do. Rather, tasks such as the first major assignment should be assigned more often. This way, when interactions between people increase, they can get work done faster, and have less chances to procrastinate (if each member contributes and cares enough for their mark). Also, for each assignment, it would be nice and appreciated if we had an example from previous years, just to have a rough idea and so that it’s not as difficult to commence the project. Since the expectations are loose, this should be available to provide an easier start many people like me that were merely stuck and confused what and where to begin from. Thinking of the word technology, you can brainstorm innumerous ideas instantaneously! That’s all because we live in such a nation where technology has evolved greatly within the last two decades and due to this, we encounter in our daily lives. Knowing this knowledge, people out of this school board or even in developing countries might be predicting that we as students would be experiencing and interacting with such advanced technology every day in our schools. However, it’s not fully correct. Our schools in the board try to incorporate technology, but they either forget to model how to use it effectively or result in insufficient funding. Both these factors play a large role for which why classes where technology is present display unsatisfying results. For this reason, in my course IDC, our teacher discussed with our class of why teachers especially in high schools fail to engage students in courses that are predominantly theory based. Form this topic, our debated the different viewing s of the teachers and students on technology in classroom. After the discussion, we arrived to a conclusion of trying to convince several teachers who do not utilize technology in their classrooms to experiment this idea and identify that technology can indeed increase student engagement and their achievement. Within the third week since the school resumed, the class was split into three, each group representing a scope related to implanting PEDs (Personal Electronic Devices) in a classroom. I volunteered to participate in the group specifically focussing on increasing student engagement and achievement by having PEDs in the classroom. We commenced this group activity by recording and planning the requirements for this experiment. What I really admire about this project is that it was goal-directed. By this I mean that the execution of this experiment is entirely dependent on if it goes as planned, so there’s no rush. This is a major advantage because this allows us to execute our plan more effectively, and provides the opportunity to make modifications along the way to increase the productivity. Also, since this project is group-oriented, there is no such pressure of doing things independently and so, the tasks are distributed evenly. This benefits each member to perform their assigned task in a better way because it’s not cramming everything on one individual. As we were performing this task, I felt that our group was not efficient and productive many times. Many members of our group would get “off-track” for long periods of time, ultimately wasting time and being unproductive. Another major drawback was that many certain individuals in the group would dominate others severely, meaning despite of another person being right or wrong, they would merely disagree to show that only their opinions are accounted. I was always dominated, and if I tried to lead or put my opinion forward, I would either be ignored or disagreed. Some positives were that even if some people dominated others, the remaining would try and patch-up for them and incorporate everyone. In addition, when we worked together, people who were responsible of their parts would ensure that they completed it, meaning all members contributed and ensured that they completed the assigned tasks. So far, in the project, the planning was successfully completed with the input of everyone’s ideas to estimate how long this experiment will be carried out for. Later, my partner and I were responsible of creating the diagnostic student survey for a baseline of what they perceive on having PEDs in the classroom. This is crucial for us to recognize what areas do students lack in and require a change (with the help of PEDs to increase their engagement). There were no complications in working with my partner as there was a mutual understanding. It was not clearly decided of who is certainly responsible of what job after completing the first task because it was dependent on who the teacher may be and the course that we would have to examine on. The biggest concern I have is that, certain group members when required to work on a certain task, they distract themselves by browsing gaming sites or social media or doing their other courses’ homeworks. I become peeved by this because this causes a broken bridge of communication, where I (and I am pretty sure others too) are confuse don what exactly we are doing and where to go from here. They only stay on task when being supervised (and sometimes this too doesn’t stop them from being distracted). I think this is because each member excluding myself is in grade eleven, which explains why they don’t understand the frustration of grade twelves. Hopefully, they understand that regardless of what grade they are in, they should give importance to the class they are in and work hard for it. I predict the outcome of the project would be quite successful primarily because we are confident that students would have an alternative to presentations for their lessons or having chalkboard lessons. They would become more engaged with PEDs and have increased interest in that course, thus improving student achievement as well. |
AuthorA grade 12, who is always mistaken as a niner. Archives
January 2017
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