The Perfect Production: TED Talk on the Problem of Native American Education

Link to TED Talk: 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mosenV-0LjE&feature=youtu.be 

Public Speaking Synopsis

At the beginning of this class course, I made goals for myself to aim to accomplish after the class ended.  As the end of this class is coming near, I am looking back on my goals and accomplishments over this past semester for public speaking.  My two biggest goals that I made for myself at the start of this public speaking class, at the beginning of the school year, was to become a less nervous public speaker, and to help learn more memorization strategies before giving a speech. 

One of the goals I made at the beginning of the course was to get more comfortable with public speaking.  Although I am still a nervous public speaker, I feel like I have definitely improved compared to how scared I used to be when talking in front of a crowd.  Yet, there is still room for improvement as I feel that I can still be nervous when talking in front of my peers.  

In addition, before going into this course I would rarely make eye contact with my audience because I was too focused on reading information on a screen or on prepared notecards.  However, in different parts of this course I was forced to memorize speeches.  Memorizing what I would say in a speech allowed me to better connect with my audience since I would be able to make more eye contact.  Furthermore, in this class, I learned and used many strategies to help me to memorize text.  Therefore, without taking this class, I would have less of an understanding on how to be able to memorize and become more familiar with parts of my speeches.       

Ultimately, what I am most proud of in this class is that I was able to complete all of my memorization speeches.  Coming into this class, I was never able to memorize any sort of text, except song lyrics that I would listen and sing to during car rides. After successfully memorizing a few of my assignments, I am very pleased with myself for learning strategies to help me to do so.  However, there are still some things that I need to work on.  For instance, like stated before, I think I still have a lot of room for improvement to become a less nervous public speaker.  Although as a result of this class I sway a little less, sometimes, I still can get a little nervous and don't articulate my words clearly.  But, I think to help accomplish this goal I need to keep on practicing my public speaking.  Then, hopefully, each time I give a speech or talk in front of a crowd, I will establish more confidence for talking in front of such a large audience.  Finally, one of the most valuable things that I believe I will take away from this class is all of my knowledge on the topic of public speaking.  Not only did I learn tips for memorization, but I also learned important things to remember when publicly speaking (like eye contact, project your voice, clearly speaking, don't be fidgety, emphasize emotional words, etc.), what should be included into a debate to make a specific side of the argument stronger, and how to gather credible information for any given research assignment. 

Excellent Editing

After reviewing my TED Talk in class with classmates, and my teacher, I have discovered what is missing from my speech and what I can change in my speech to make it the best it can be.  Some of these things include developing a hook, having a clearer and more profound takeaway. 

Before today, I really had no hook at the beginning of my speech.  A hook is something that is used to grab the reader attention.  I started my speech by saying that I am a native american.  However, this is not something that is interesting for the reader to hear to truly grab their attention.  Instead, I edited the beginning of my speech and included a more interactive hook for the audience by saying: "Here at Cheshire Academy we have so many resources like our newly updated library with a vast variety of books, mac book computers, SMART boards, large supply of textbooks, our school portal, and projectors to show our powerpoint presentations.  Do you ever consider what our education would be like without these resources?  The most basic of native american schools on indian reservations do not have these things.  They don't have advanced technology that we are privileged to have in this modern technology-run world. "  By changing my hook, I now interact with my audience more and have a more interesting start to my TED talk about the problem of native american education. 

Secondly, I was told by peers that my takeaway was too broad and wasn't clear enough.  A takeaway should sum of the purpose of the whole TED talk.  In addition, the takeaway should give the audience something to contemplate.  I agreed that the take away in my TED talk wasn't very strong.  Therefore, I changed the takeaway of my speech to give an overview of a native american's life.  Then, I ended my TED talk expressing that "If this TED talk has impacted the way you look at Native Americans, then donate to the Native American Rights Fund and help these less fortunate people to live a better life, get a better education, and have more of an opportunity for success."  By saying this, I invited people to help the native americans and donate money toward a well-deserved cause, and I persuaded the audience to think about whether they wanted to help.

Overall, I would say that to make my TED talk better, these were the two things that I had to change.  Now that I have edited and changed them, my TED talk is more interesting for the audience to listen two.  Without a good hook and a good takeaway, a TED talk isn't complete.  The hook and the takeaway are two of the most important aspects of a speech and should be as strong as possible to help develop a great TED talk.

Spectactular Start to TED Talk Speech

I am a member the Ojibwa tribe on the Fort William first nation located in Thunder Bay, Ontario.  However, I do not live on the reservation like the majority of my cousins and relatives.  I live in the United States because my grandpa was able to live the "american dream."  My grandpa knew that in order to find hope and be successful that he had to leave the reservation.  So, he came to the United States and started his own engineering business.  The company was very successful and so was he.  Raising his kids in the United States, my mom raised me here too.  If it wasn't for my grandpa, I wouldn't be living in the wonderful home or town that I do today.  I would be living on the reserve, a place filled with little hope nowadays and much poverty.  Kids especially on reservations struggle in school since education for most Native American Indians is not ideal.  As students, even though we attend a private school in the Unites States, we can understand the challenges and struggles of striving to get an education.

Besides education, every day life on the reservation is not ideal.  Each year, when my family and I travel to our reservation, we spend a lot of time with our relatives, especially my cousin Kami.  Kami is like my insight to what is happening on our indian reservation.  Some of the things that she has told me about the reserve is that her cousins got pregnant and dropped out of school, her dad is back in jail for getting drunk and starting a fight, and her mom is too busy drinking that she has to be the one to care for her other three younger siblings.  Kami and the rest of her family live in a small two-room home on the reserve, with a tiny lawn displaying all of their scattered baby toys.  Like Kami's family, other families on the reserve live in poverty.  In fact, in 2012, a total of 29.1% of American Indians and Alaskan Native alone lived in poverty, making up 15.9% of the nations poverty and the highest of any other ethnic group (National Indian Education Association). 

Along with the harsh daily life of native americans, education is a growing problem. The native americans continue to need more help in the school environment as they aren't as academically advanced as others.  "In 2009, 19% of American Indian and Alaskan Native 9th grade females received special education services, compared to the national rate of 7% for all 9th grade females, and 8% for White 9th grade females. In the same year, 27% of American Indian and Alaskan Native 9th grade males received special education services, compared to the national average of 13% for all 9th grade males, and 13% for White males" (National Indian Education Association). 

In addition, Native Americans from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, the state with the largest proportion of Native students, are not doing nearly as well as other races, like the whites, when it come to academics.  On a standardized math test in the 2012-2013 school year, only 42% of the native americans achieved "proficient" or advanced," compared to 80% of the white student.  Similarly, on the reading test, 47% or native Americans scored a level of proficient or higher, compared to 79% of whites (National Indian Education Association).  

Finally, the most devastating statistic of them all... graduation rates.  In 2013, only 49% of native americans graduated school within the standard 4 years.  Plus, 64% of the native americans  completed high school and got a diploma, with an extension of their years spent at high school.  However, this is still 17% or more lower than all the other subgroups in the state of South Dakota (Education Week).  

Ultimately, I hope what you all can take away from this TED talk is that people on Native American Indian reservations don't always live a good life.  They live in poverty, and education isn't ideal.  This problem of Native American's education needs to be recognized more amongst people, especially the government.  They are americans too, and it's awful to know that they aren't getting educated properly while we sit here in a private school that values everyones education so much.  With help, Native Americans can get a better education and be more successful in life.  Being well educated and getting a good education is their only hope to help them get off the reserve and be successful in life.  But, these graduation rates or test statistics will not change if no one helps, so lets help these people get a better education like most of us have.  

Research Report

Both my brainstorming and research is included in the blog titled "Planning Makes Perfect."

 

Peter Pan- What A Phenomenal Production

Every year, Cheshire Academy students put on and preform a play in the fall.  Today, I went to go see Cheshire Academy's fall production.  This fall, the play being shown was Peter Pan.  I have to admit, going into this play, I was a little skeptical of how good it would be and whether I would enjoy it.  But, I ended up really liking the play.  It achieved all of my expectations and was a fantastic performance by the whole student cast.  The aspects of the play that I liked the most and think are important to make a play enjoyable are humor, emotion, set design, and music.  

Throughout the play, humor was used.  The use of humor definitely got the audience more interested in what was being said and really complimented the whole production.  Plus, it was clear that the entire cast loved their roles.  On stage, everyone was enthusiastic and really embodied their characters well.  The emotion throughout the play was great and I was surprised to see that even after preforming the play twice in front of an audience the student cast still put all of their energy out on the stage while reciting their lines.  In addition, the set designs were impeccable.  For a small school play, I was not expecting the sets to look as great as they did.  The backdrops, props, and lights complimented every scene in the play very well.  Also, I can tell the most was made out of limited materials, and I commend the whole crew for changing the sets as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Finally, the music was the glue to this play, it connected everything together.  I loved the music played before the play started and during the intermission.  It was a great addition to the production.  Plus, while the stage crew was altering sets, I was impressed with the beautiful flute music interludes. 

From the very beginning to the very end, I enjoyed CA's production of Peter Pan.  I though everyone did a phenomenal job putting this whole performance together.  Every crew and cast member should be very proud and pleased with the end product they got after preforming this play.  I could tell, and I am sure others in the audience could tell, that Cheshire Academy students and staff worked really hard to put on this production.  After watching Peter Pan this fall, all I can say is well done Cheshire Academy cast and crew involved in this performance. 

Planning Makes Perfect

                                             

                                               Education on Native American Reservations

Introduction:

- INTRODUCE TOPIC:

Education on Native American Reservations is a major problem. 

- MAKE SURE TO ESTABLISH CREDIBILITY: 

My credibility: I am a Native American from the Ojibwa tribe in Ontario, Canada.  Although I do not live on the reservation or go to the reservation school systems, I have an insight to what life and education is like on the reserve.  My cousin, Cami, who is the same age as me, lives on the indian reservation.  There is no school to go to for high school on the reserve, so she travels about 30 minutes away to go to a public school off of the reserve in Thunder Bay, ON.  By visiting her each summer, I get a different perspective than the one I have and really understand the challenging reservation life. 

- MAKE SURE TO RELATE TOPIC TO THE AUDIENCE:

Connection: Even though we go to a private school (Cheshire Academy), we are all students and have an understand of what trying to get educated is like. However, Native American kids on reservation schools have a more so difficult experience at school compared to most kids here attending Cheshire academy. 

BACKGROUND-

Daily Life- (AI= American Indians  AN= Alaskan Natives) http://www.niea.org/research/statistics.aspx

- In 2012, 29.1% of AI/ANs (alone) lived in poverty - the highest rate of any race group - compared to 15.9% for the entire nation. (2012 American Community Survey)  

- In 2011, 52% of AI/AN (alone) children lived in two-parent households, compared to 75% of Whites (alone). (Aud, Hussar, Johnson, et al., 2012)

Body: 

FACTS (Ethos/Logos)

A Schools/Education- http://www.niea.org/research/statistics.aspx

- Some Reservation Schools are so bad that the natives go to public school system-- During the 2007-08 school year, there were 741 public schools located in AI/AN areas, with 82,406 AI/AN students. (Common Core of Data, 2008)

- During the 2010-11 school year, there were 49,152 students in Bureau of Indian Education Schools. (Bureau of Indian Education, 2011)

- BIE oversees 183 elementary, secondary, residential, and peripheral dormitories in 23 states. (Bureau of Indian Education, 2011)

- During the 2011-12 school year, private school student enrollment was 0.5% for AI/AN (alone) students, compared to 71.2% for White (alone) students. (Broughman & Swaim, 2013)

- Slow improvement-- Between 2005 and 2011, the achievement gaps between AI/AN and non-AI/AN fourth graders and between AI/AN and non-AI/AN eighth graders did not change for reading, but increased for mathematics. (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012)

- Indian kids need more help in school-- In 2009, 19% of AI/AN 9th grade females received special education services, compared to the national rate of 7% for all 9th grade females, and 8% for White 9th grade females. In the same year, 27% of AI/AN 9th grade males received special education services, compared to the national average of 13% for all 9th grade males, and 13% for White males. (Ross, Kena, Rathbun, et al., 2012)

Story (Establishing Pathos)

http://www.edweek.org/ew/projects/2013/native-american-education/running-in-place.html#losing-ground

Luzahan White Horse- 

- age 19

- graduated from Pine Ridge High School- June 2012 (took him an extra year to graduate)

- Year later: most of his days are spent playing basketball with his friends and doesn't have a steady or "formal" job ("I make money, I get by" - White Horse) 

- Kids don't like reservation school education: ("I mostly went to school to chill with my friends because there's nothing else to do on the rez" - White Horse)

- Kids also don't see thier lives changing: (But I don't see that my life is going to be that much different in 10 years. I'll probably still be here, playing basketball" - Pine Ridge Indian)

Statistics: http://www.edweek.org/ew/projects/2013/native-american-education/running-in-place.html#losing-ground

- South Dakota has the highest proportion of Native American students that in any other state.  But, the students are not nearly as advanced academically as others.  

2012-2013:

Math- 

- 42% American Indians achieved "proficient" or "advanced"

^ compared to 80% of whites 

Reading- 

- 47% scored level of proficient and above 

^ compared to 79% of white students scores 

4 Year Graduation Rate (2013): 

- 49% of American Indian students graduated 

High school completion rate: 

- 64%  (still 17% or more than other subgroups in South Dakota) 

Federal Cuts: 

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/12/04/13sequestration_ep.h33.html 

K-8 School Loneman School on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota (2013)- 

- laid off 12 staff members/20 percent of its staff 

- The 20% included included three of six middle school teachers (half of the middle school teachers said Principal Charles Cuny Jr.

Lac du Flambeau (school)

- cut one of two educators that was meant to teach students the Ojibwe language (the language they have to speak)

- "The Washington-based organization surveyed 161 Indian-lands districts that receive Impact Aid. Of that number, 144, or nearly 90 percent, had made cuts in the 2013-14 school year. More than half—78—put off maintenance and purchases and 56 slashed instructional positions."

Takeaway: 

People on Native American Indian reservations don't always live a good life.  They live in poverty, and education isn't ideal.  This problem of Native American's education needs to be recognized more amongst people in the United States.  We have the ability to change the world, and this is a way to start.  With help, Native Americans can get a better education and be more successful in life.  But, they need someone to give them a push and help.  

Characteristics of a Terrific TED Talk

The most recent assignment in public speaking class is to create our very own TED talk.  A TED talk is a speech that is given to an audience and can vary from 3 minutes to 2 hour.  In class, we watched three TED Talks.  There are certain aspects of TED talks that make them great.  Aspects of a good TED talk include an applicable topic to the audience, humor, visuals, and that it is entertaining to listen to. 

To begin with, in a good TED talk, it is important that the topic is relevant and applicable to the audience.  One of the TED talks we viewed in class that did a good job of this was a speech on the steps to be successful.  The audience can relate to this topic since most everyone wants to be successful in their life.  Additionally, it is important that when introducing the topic, you start with a hook.  Another one of the TED talks that our class watched, about multipotentialites, had a hook that started the speech by asking questions.  This is a good strategy since it engages the audience and gets them involved in the talk. 

Secondly, a good TED talk consists of humor.  In all of the TED talks that we watched in public speaking class, there was some humor.  All of the speeches had punch lines added into the script of their presentation where the speaker thought was necessary.  It is good to include humor in a TED talk because it keeps the audiences' attention and makes them more interested in the speech.  Who doesn't love some humor and jokes here and there?  Humor is a great strategy to tie the whole TED talk together, ensuring that the audience doesn't get bored. 

Another part of a good TED talk to keep in mind is that the speech should be entertaining.  This is one of the most crucial aspects of a TED talk as the speaker does not want his or her audience to get bored with what he or she is saying.  First, make sure the talk is an interesting topic.  Next, make sure to have the appropriate length of the speech.  It is not good if the speech is too short like the underwater astonishments TED talk we viewed.  After watching this TED talk, it left me wanting to hear more things about the sea that I believed was left out.  However, it is also not ideal if a TED talk is long.  I felt like the TED talk on how appearance isn't everything given by a model was extended more then it should have been.  This speech was around twenty minutes long when I felt as if it could have been condensed.  Furthermore if the speech is short it is also probably hard for the audience to connect to the purpose of the speech.  Or, if the talk is too long then the audience gets bored listening to the same repeated ideas.  

Finally, the last important aspect of a good TED talk is the inclusions of visuals.  Including visuals in your presentations helps to engage the audience in your talk.  It also helps the audience to not get bored with the speech.  One of the most common visuals in all of the TED talks that we watched in class were powerpoint presentations.  Each speaker talked with a slide from a powerpoint in the background.  The slides usually depicted what was being said at the moment in the speech.  One of the coolest visuals I thought were the videos included within the TED talk about the astonishing underwater creatures.  I enjoyed seeing the bioluminescent animals as well as how different aquatic species can blend into their surrounding environment.  For me, these visuals were helpful to understand what was being said in the speech, and kept me more engaged while listening to the TED talk. 

Ultimately, there are many important factors of a good TED talk.  However, I feel that the most important aspects are that the topic stated is relevant, there is humor, the speech isn't boring, and that there are visuals incorporated into the talk.  All of these ideas make up and build the basis of a great TED talk. 

3 Potential TED Talk Topics

1.) Problem- Education on Native American Reservations 

2.) I believe- its up to you do determine how successful you will be in life / there is a lot of opportunity to be successful (but, you have to want to do well and work hard) 

3.) Problem- the state's core curriculum 

4.) I believe- sports aren't everything (people get hurt badly from sports, people are offered more money for sports scholarships to go to College than they do for getting good grades and working hard in school)

TED Talks

Ken Robinson: "Do schools kill creativity?" 

http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_most_popular_talks_of_all 

In our national education systems, it is taught to children that is is bad to make mistakes.  Then, when they grow up to be adults, most kids are scared of being wrong... therefore, they lose their sense of creativity.  

David Gallo: "Underwater astonishments"

http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_most_popular_talks_of_all 

There is still a lot of the underwater world to discover, we only know about 3% about this underwater world, but what we do know about aquatic animals is amazing.  Animals in the ocean can do some fascinating things like blending into the surrounding environment or changing colors when fighting with other animals. 

Cameron Russell: "Looks aren't everything. Believe me, I'm a model."

http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_most_popular_talks_of_all

How you appear is powerful, but, it is also superficial.  Most girls are unhappy with the way they look, but this talk explains how there is more to want to do in life then be a model and look good.  

Critiquing My Public Speaking (Topic: "How-To" Speech)

My How-To Choose a Pet Speech- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=plEMRpKOoy8&feature=em-upload_owner 

Aspects that make a good speech include a good introduction, body, conclusion, use of language, and delivery.  

In my introduction, I feel like my speech could have better captured the readers attention if I used a different strategy to introduce my topic.  I tried to get this "hook" by asking questions, but am not so sure how affective this attention getter actually was.  Other aspects of my introduction, however, I feel liked I did very well in.  For instance, I think that my topic was clearly introduced within my introduction and I think the topic was related to the audience because everyone can own or purchase a pet if they choose to do so.  Another mistake I made in my introduction was that I didn't mention my credibility.  However, I did mention my credibility in my conclusion where I said I owned my guinea pig Summer.  I thought it worked better in the conclusion then in the introduction.  Finally, the body of the speech was previewed in my thesis (responsibility, affordability, and which pet is best for someone). 

In my body, I think I did a goo job of making the main points clear.  I had a topic sentence for every paragraph and support in an orderly fashion.  Also, I had support for most if not all of my main points.  Whenever I could, I would try and use specific examples and evidence to support my claims.  Additionally, I tried to use clear transitions during my speech as much as I could where I thought they would work well and help move the speech forward.  

In the conclusion, I ended with the transition "in conclusion" and restated my thesis to further summarize the main points I made throughout my speech.  Lastly, I think my closing and call to action were effective.  My call to action was encouraging others to go out and buy a pet.  Plus, I included in my closing and call to action information about my guinea pig, Summer.  I feel like this was the glue to my conclusion that related everything together and helped explain what a pet really means.  It also explained my credibility of the topic since I have owned a pet and gone through this process myself.  

The language used in the speech was related directly to the topic.  Also, during my speech, I tried to vary the use of the word pet.  I think I improved on this from the time I was practicing in class and realized while practicing that I said that word a lot.  If I preformed this speech again, I might have been able to vary up the word choice a little more than I had.  Similar to the use of language, I think my overall delivery of the speech was decent.  

The delivery of my speech was fairly good as well.  My notecards were ready before I began my speech but I didn't have any visual aids in my speech, and my whole speech I thought was poised.  One thing I can work on was the amount of eye contact I made with the audience.  Although we were not supposed to memorize this speech, I looked down at my notecards more then I hoped to keep me on track and help me not lose my spot.  Another thing I could work on was body language.  I think because this was one of our longer public speaking assignments, I was nevervous.  Therefore, I swayed a little bit while talking and presenting my speech.  For the most part, I think the speed I talked in was good.  It was too fast, and it wasn't too slow (and my speech was 3 mintues long).  I think I spoke loud enough for the audience to hear me but could have spoken louder especially since there was a lot of background noise going on.  During part of my speech, girls talking loudly and the sound of a truck passing by drained out my voice in the How-to speech.  Also during my speech, I used some but few 'ah' and 'um' filters.  Finally, the last couple of things I could use improvement in my speech are changing the pitch and tone of my voice and sounding more enthusiastic.  I admit, I could have shown more enthusiasm but I think there was little room for the changes in tone in my voice throughout my speech.  

Overall, I think that my How-to speech went well.  I explained my topic thoroughly and got across all of the points I needed to.  I researched concepts and ideas that needed to be researched for this speech on how to choose a pet.  Also, I feel like the audience liked the topic.  Most people were paying attention to the presentation of my speech.  Finally, my topic was within the time range since it was three minutes long. 

FINAL Draft

Don't you just want to snuggle up with a cat or dog on a rainy day?  Or, if you don't like cats or dogs, don' you what to have a pet companion in your life? However, choosing a pet can be a difficult task as there many steps to consider before and while getting one.  Keep in mind when choosing and purchasing a pet, that some things to consider are which type of pet is best for you, whether you can handle the responsibility that comes with caring for a smaller creature, and the whether the pet is affordable and within your price-range. 

One of the first steps to take when purchasing a pet is what type of pet you would most desire.  The are a plethora of pets to choose ranging from dogs to fish to hamsters or rats and nearly everything in between.  Then, it is necessary to research which stores are nearby that have the pet you would like in stock.  It may be beneficial to call the stores first instead of driving to each one to determine whether the store has the pet you are looking for.  Finally, after arriving at the store, it is time to chose the perfect pet for you.  Some things to consider while choosing your soon-to-be pet is how "cute" they are.  This "cuteness" factor can depend on multiple things that can include the color of the pet's fur, skin, scales, or feathers.  Also, choosing a pet it can depend on their size- whether they are big or small.  Finally, the last factor in choosing a pet can depend on their age and whether they are babies or adults.  

Additionally, before even deciding to have a pet, you should think about whether you can handle the responsibility that comes with owning one.  If you do not want to have too much responsibility, I would advise getting a fish, or another type of pet that doesn't require much effort to care for.  Just remember that caring for a dog or even a guinea pig can have its struggles.  I know that when I had my guinea pig, I would never like cleaning it's cage and my mom had to help at some points when I was too occupied to clean the cage or feed her (my guinea pig).  

Finally, one of the last but most important things to factor into purchasing a pet is the cost and affordability.  Not all animals are cheap.  For instance, certain types of dogs can be a lot of money.  Additionally, some animals may require veterinarian care, which is also an expense on you on top of the cost of the pet.

Overall, after going through all of these steps and thinking about important factors like responsibility and cost, it is a life changing experience to own a pet.  A pet is a companion that you can always rely on to be there, until they die and then you possibly get a new pet.  If you do not love or feel a connection to any of the pets at the store at a first look, don't worry.  Occasionally, this can be a long and challenging process.  Keep going to other stores until you find a pet that suits and achieves all of your expectation. Now, I hope with these steps in mind, you are able to find the true perfect pet for your home. 

Final but not final draft

There are many aspects to consider when purchasing and choosing a pet.  First, you have to decide which pet you would most desire.  There is a plethora of pets to chose from including cats, dogs, fish, hamsters, birds, guinea pig, rabbits, etc. 

Next, you need to research what pet stores are nearby and which you would like to purchase a pet from.  After deciding which pet store, you go to the pet store and ask where the pet you want is located. Then, you chose which pet is the best for you.  Some things to consider when choosing the pet of your choice is how "cute" they are, the color of their fur/scales/feathers, their size (big or tiny), or even their age (whether they are babies or adults).  

Also keep in mind that the process to buy a dog can be different than that of a hamster.  If you want to purchase a dog, it is common to go to certain stores that have breed the animal you are looking for. At that store, you need to know which kind of dog you would like.  Some dog types would include golden retrievers, poodles, shitzus, pugs, etc.  Then,  you purchase the dog that you feel is best to be your pet. 

If you do not love or feel a connection to any of the pets at the store, don't worry.  This can be a long process.  Keep going to other stores until you find the perfect pet for you. 

Now, I hope with these steps in mind, you are able to find the true perfect pet. 

How-to choose a Pet

(Rough Draft)

There are many aspects to consider when purchasing and choosing a pet.  First, you have to decide which pet you would most desire.  There is a plethora of pets to chose from including cats, dogs, fish, hamsters, birds, guinea pig, rabbits, etc. 

Next, you need to research what pet stores are nearby and which you would like to purchase a pet from.  After deciding which pet store, you go to the pet store and ask where the pet you want is located. Then, you chose which pet is the best for you.  Some things to consider when choosing the pet of your choice is how "cute" they are, the color of their fur/scales/feathers, their size (big or tiny), or even their age (whether they are babies or adults).  

Also keep in mind that the process to buy a dog can be different than that of a hamster.  If you want to purchase a dog, it is common to go to certain stores that have breed the animal you are looking for. At that store, you need to know which kind of dog you would like.  Some dog types would include golden retrievers, poodles, shitzus, pugs, etc.  Then,  you purchase the dog that you feel is best to be your pet. 

If you do not love or feel a connection to any of the pets at the store, don't worry.  This can be a long process.  Keep going to other stores until you find the perfect pet for you. 

"How-to" Topics

Topics:

1. How to prepare a survival kit-                                                                                                

How to prepare a survival kit might be a good topic because there is a vast amount of things to talk about.  There are especially a lot of items that you could talk about that are needed for survival.  For example, batteries, fire, knives, water, etc. would be useful items to have in a survival kit.  Additionally, I think this is an interesting topic because it informs people that survival kits are important and people should have one just in case something bad happens.  Not many people have survival kits, and this could help to encourage more people to have them. 

2. How to choose a pet-                                                                                                                   How to choose a pet can also be a good topic because most people don't just say "I'll get a dog" without actually examining each one and then choosing which they would like.  In this speech, there is a vast amount of things to be talked about.  For instance, the "criteria" to a pet could be talked about.  This criteria includes concepts such as cuteness, how furry the animal is, how big they are, etc.  Lastly, what type of animal to get can be talked about in this speech.  When choosing a pet, there are a ton of animals to decide from. 

3. How to score a game of tennis-                                                                                                                    I think this would be a good topic for me to do a speech on because I love tennis.  For me, this topic wouldn't require much research since I know how to score a game very well.  Also, not many people may know about tennis, or, in fact, how to keep score in a game.  By giving this "how-to" speech, it would inform my audience about a game that they may not have known about before.  Also, this speech may encourage them to go out and play this wonderful sport called tennis. 

The Great Debates

Regarding our second debate topic on whether social media has a positive or negative effect on people, I think both teams did a better job preparing and stating their arguments in this debate than the first on the legal drinking age.  In this debateI think that my team's (the affirmative side) opening statement had a clear thesis that stated our argument and had some good points about why social media has a positive effect on teens.  The other team also had a good opening statement with some great specific points and statistics to back their argument up.

The next part of the debate was the rebuttal.  Compared to last time, I believe that both teams had stronger rebuttals that in the first debate.  There were definitely less fallacies than there were in the last debate rebuttals.  For the most part, both teams brought up good points that attacked what the other teams said in their rebuttals.  Around all of the  points were brought up in the rebuttals and talked about.  I know that my team tried to plan the rebuttals ahead this time because in our last debate, our rebuttals were not the best.  Consequently, I feel this prepared us more to go against the other team's argument.  There will still some points that we weren't prepared to hear in the negative side argument.  But, overall, I think the rebuttals served their purpose to say why what they said wasn't/wasn't necessarily correct. 

Finally, the last part of the debate were the closing statements.  I don't think my team (the affirmative argument) had a very strong argument compared to last time.  In this debate, the closing statement was just a list of what points were made in the argument.  There were no important points left 

Ultimately, this was a much better debate than the first but could still be improved.  After being timer for this second debate, I realized how our time wasn't utilized very effectively.  Either time ran out and people got cut off from what they were saying, or they didn't talk long enough and didn't use the whole time period to debate.  If there was a third debate, the debate could be made better if both teams used the full time to their benefit.   This also pushes the debate teams to be more organized and prepared for planning what they will say in the debate based on the maximum amount of time they can use. 

The day after the second debate, we started what is called "lightning debate round."  Overall, I think I did pretty well on this assignment because it was on the spot.  I argued my topics to the best of my ability.  By the second time I did the lightning debate, I got a feel for the little amount of time you have.  In my first lightning debate round, I got cut off in the middle of my rebuttal because time was over.  Today, when I debated for the second time, I made sure to use as much of the time as possible.  Consequently, these quick debate helped me to learn how important time is. 

There's no hating debating! :)

Affirmative Argument 

Thesis: Social networking has a positive effect on teens more so than a negative effect because it can boost ones confidence, is a good way to communicate with others, helps people form relationships with one another, is used for music, is used by colleges for teaching or recruiting students. 

Supporting Details (Evidence- Logos and Ethos):

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/21/living/social-media-positives-teens-parents/

- A child advocacy group called Common Sense Media did a study and found that every one in five teens said social media makes them feel more confident.  Only 4% who said it lowers their self esteem. 

- 29% of teens say that social media makes them feel less shy 

- 52% of teens say that social media has helped them develop friendships with others. Only 4% said that their friendships were negatively affected by social networking 

http://socialnetworking.procon.org

- Spread information quickly- more than 50% of people learn about news through social media.  Social media is the second most common way that Americans learn about the news.  27.8% of Americans hear about news through social networking, 28.8% hear about news by newspaper, 18.8% by radio, and 6% for other types of print publications. 

- Improve relationships/Make new friends- "52% of teens using social media report that using the sites has helped their relationships with friends, 88% report that social media helps them stay in touch with friends they cannot see regularly, 69% report getting to know students at their school better, and 57% make new friends" (ProCon.org). 

- Makes teens feel less shy- 25% of teens report that because of social networking, they feel less shy, 28% more outgoing, and 20% more confident. 

- Social networking sites are use for teaching- More than 40% of US colleges use social networking for teaching.  Communication- 30% of teachers use social networking as a direct source of communication to students.   "Educators from around the world interact with each other and bring guest teachers, librarians, authors, and experts into class via social networks like Twitter and social networking tools like Skype. Edmodo, an education-specific social networking site designed for contact between students, teachers, and parents, reached over 49 million users in 2014" (ProCon.org) 

- Many people listen to music through social networks- 64% of teenagers listen to music on YouTube, rather than on the radio or through.

- Used by colleges to recruit students- "96.6% of four-year institutions use Facebook to recruit students, 83.4% use Twitter, and 79.3% use YouTube. (ProCon.org) 

Pathos (Stories/Examples):

Communication-

I have younger cousin who I only see once a year during the summertime when I go and visit her and her family.  She hasn't gotten to the age yet where she needs a phone so she uses her moms Facebook account to keep it touch with my family throughout the rest of the year.  Without social networking, it would be much more difficult to stay in contact with her. 

Quick Information-

"Twitter and YouTube users reported the July 20, 2012 Aurora, CO theater shooting before news crews could arrive on the scene [3], and the Red Cross urged witnesses to tell family members they were safe via social media outlets" (ProCon.org) 

Used to fight against bullying-

A freshmen varsity soccer goalie named Daniel Cui from Hillsborough, CA was "blamed for and bullied about a losing season until over 100 of his teammates and classmates changed their Facebook profile photos to one of Cui making a save, silencing the bullies and building Cui's confidence" (ProCon.org)

Discovery because of social networking-

At the age of 12 years old, Justin Bieber was discovered on YouTube.  Then, in 2012, at the age of 18 years old, Bieber’s net was worth about $80 million

Keep Calm, and Debate On!

For our first class debate, I think think my team (the negative side) did okay on the debate.  The other team was a little more organized than us, and got their points across clearer.  The affirmative team (the other team) won the debate mainly because they had a clearer argument on why the drinking age should be lowered.  However, there is room for improvement for both teams.

First off, our opening statement (for the negative side) stated our position clearly and had a good thesis, but didn't get into enough depth of why the drinking age should not be lowered.  The whole opening statement was a total of only a minute long.  Next, our rebuttals weren't very strong.  It was mine and another persons job (two people) to rebut the argument, but I don't think either of our rebuttals were that affective to the overall argument.  For me, it was hard to think of what do rebut against because the affirmative team made good points in their opening statements that I didn't think they would mention.  Therefore, I couldn't think of a quick argument to go against what the other team said. The other person rebutting after me, however, should have mentioned the points I forgot to bring up in the argument about what the other team had said.  I also didn't realize how little time we got for the rebuttal.  I was cut off when time was over, and I hadn't finished making my point yet.  The second rebuttal was the opposite of mine.  It was short and didn't really argue anything that the opposing team had brought up in their argument.  Finally, I think our closing statement was good.  It served its purpose of wrapping up the argument, and also gave the audience a good point to think about that wasn't mentioned previously in the debate.

The affirmative team's opening statement has some good points in it.  I especially liked the pathos incorporated into the debate by telling a brief story relating to the legal drinking age controversy.  Unfortunately, the other teams opening statement was very fast.  Therefore, it was hard to hear and understand/remember all of the good points that were mentioned.  Secondly, their rebuttals weren't too strong.  The first rebuttal only brought up one point about how you have rights to go to military, but can't go home for a drink.  The second rebuttal, also, only talked about one thing.  In this case, it was how I made a false assumption about European countries.  I suppose this is a good thing to call me out on though, because it makes their argument stronger and ours less reliable.  Lastly, in their closing statement, a section of it was trying to rebut the European country drinking age concept saying that it was in fact comparable to the United States, but this made the closing statement very confusing.  It would have been better if that argument was left out of the closing statement. 

Overall, since this was our first experience with debate, the debate wasn't too bad.  Yet, there are definitely some things that can use improvement for both teams.  For the opening statements, both teams needed to talk slower.  This will ensure that the audience is able to clearly understand what you are trying to say.  In the future, it will be beneficial for both teams to try and think of arguments that the other argument might bring up and think about rebuttals to the arguments ahead of time.  This required more preparation, but will immensely improve the strength of an argument.  Lastly, especially for the affirmative team, it is critical to make sure that the closing statement is clear and concise.  It is also a good idea to leave the audience with a point that was not made before in the argument. 

When in doubt, debate it out!

Affirmative Argument

Thesis: Lowering the drinking age is a reasonable decision as 18 year old are considered adults, it would help the economy, there will be less amounts of fake ID's, and the "thrill" of drinking wouldn't be as important. 

Support: http://drinkingage.procon.org 

- 18 is the age of adulthood in the United States, and adults should have the right to make their own decisions about alcohol consumption. After turning 18, you get rights and responsibilities of adulthood like being able to "vote, smoke cigarettes, serve on juries, get married, sign contracts, be prosecuted as adults, and join the military - which includes risking one's life" (ProCon.org). 

- Lowering MLDA 21 would be good for the economy. More people would legally be able to drink in bars, restaurants, and other licensed establishments. The revenue from 18-21 year olds would increase immensely for private business owners.  Also, the more tax revenue would be collected by the government.

- The drinking age of 21 is not effective because the majority of teens will drink alcohol no matter the law. "According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, underage drinking accounts for 17.5% ($22.5 billion) of consumer spending for alcohol in the United States. In 2006, 72.2% of twelfth graders reported drinking alcohol at some point in their lives" (ProCon.org).  If the drinking age were to be lowered, than there wouldn't be as much of a "thrill" or need to break the law and drink alcohol for young adults.  

- Many people under the age of 21 already have fake ID's so they are able to purchase alcohol or get into clubs serving alcohol.  If the drinking age was lowered, then there would be a smaller amount of false identification and that would overall  be better for the nation's security.

Logos and Ethos: 

- A statement was made that "There are fewer drunk driving traffic accidents and fatalities in many countries with a drinking age of 18" (ProCon.org). For instance, European contires have legal drinking ages lower than 18.  In the 1980's, the United States had a lower amount of traffic accidents and fatalities.  But, despite this fact, in 1984, the US raised the drinking age to 21.   

- Drinking age enforcement isn't a priority to the police.  "An estimated two of every 1,000 occasions of illegal drinking by youth under 21 results in an arrest" (ProCon.org). 

- Lowering MLDA 21 would reduce the number of underage people who are hurt from alcohol-related injuries or accidents.  If someone does get hurt by alcohol, and they are underage, a lot of the time they are afraid to do anything about it with the fear of getting caught for underage drinking.  If the drinking age was lowered, then more people would seek to get medical help if in a dangerous circumstance because of alcohol.

- Allowing 18- to 20-year-olds to drink alcohol in regulated environments with supervision would decrease unsafe drinking activity.  However, if the legal drinking age is 21, then this age group isn't allowed to drink in bars, restaurants, or other licensed locations.  This then results in drinking at unsupervised places like fraternity houses or at house parties.  Here, there is a likelier chance to be binge drinking and doing sorts of unsafe behavior due to the fact that there isn't any supervision.

Pathos (Examples/Stories): 

Isn't it a good thing to help our economy?  I mean, we don't want our economy to fail, right?  By lowering the drinking age, more people will go to bars and restaurants and purchase drinks.  Ultimately, these immense amount of purchases would boost our economy with the increase of revenue for buisnesses and the government. 

If they say that lowering the drinking age would cause and increase in suicide rates or criminal activity of teens: 

"In a 2002 meta-study of the legal drinking age and health and social problems, 72% of the studies found no statistically significant relationship [between teens and suicide or criminal behavior]" (ProCon.org).

Negative Argument

Thesis:  Lowering the drinking age would be a horrible decision because teenagers aren't mature enough, underage drinking can cause problems with brain functions, high school and middle school students then have easier access to alcohol, and it will give more people the freedom to go to bar or clubs. 

Support: http://drinkingage.procon.org

- Alcohol consumption can interfere with development of the brain that associates with functions like emotions, planning, and organization.  There more potential for chronic problems like addiction, dangerous behavior, poor judgement, memory loss, depression, violence, and suicide. 

- Lowering the drinkign age would give high schoolers and even middle schoolers easier access to alcohol.  "Surveys show that the most common source of alcohol among 18- to 20-year olds is their 21- to 24-year-old peers" (ProCon.org)

- The drinking age should not be lowered because people are more mature and responsible at 21 than 18. 18-year-olds "are more susceptible to binge drinking, risky sexual activity, and other irresponsible behavior due to lack of maturity" (ProCon.org).

- More people can go to bars or night clubs, which aren't particularly safe environments for teens. "76% of bars have sold alcohol to intoxicated patrons, and about half of drivers arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI) or killed as alcohol-involved drivers in traffic crashes did their drinking at licensed establishment" (ProCon.org). Additionally, the communities near bars or nightclubs have a greater amount of assaults and other violent crimes. 

Logos and Ethos: 

- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimated that the drinking age of 21 "decreased the number of fatal traffic accidents for 18- to 20-year-olds by 13% and saved approximately 27,052 lives from 1975-2008" (ProCon.org). 

- In 2007, there was a Gallup poll discovering that "77% of Americans would oppose a federal law that lowers the drinking age in all states to age 18" (ProCon.org)

- The drinking age of 21 helps to prevent underage binge drinking. Most people Binge drink when they are 21- to 25-year-olds (45.9%).  Only 1.5% of people binge drink when they 12-13 year old.  7.8% when they're 14-15, 19.4% when they are 16-17, and 35.7% when they are 18-20.  Still the people who binge drink most are within the legal drinking age (ProCon.org)

- Lowering the drinking age will result in having 18-21 year olds use more illicit drugs than before. "A peer-reviewed study from the Journal of Studies of Alcohol and Drugs found that the younger a person begins to drink alcohol, the more likely it is that they will use other illicit drugs" (ProCon.org) The lowered drinking age would increase the number of teens who drink. Therefore, the number of teens who use other drugs would increase as well. 

Pathos (Examples/Stories): 

Imagine you are a parent.  You have a kid that just turned 18 and his college friends are taking him out to a night club for some drinks since he is now in the legal drinking age.  He drinks with his friends all night and start driving back to campus.  The driver, your kids best friend, didn't realize how much he had to drink.  He passed out in front of the wheel and swerved into another car.  Your kid died.  He died because of the lowered drinking age. 

If the other group says other countries have lower drinking ages: 

The rate of drinking among US teenagers is lower than most European countries. US teenagers also show equal or lower rates of intoxication and/or binge drinking than younge adults from European countries.  Plus, European countries report higher rates of intoxication and binge drinking for people under the age of 13. 

My Dramatic Monologue

http://youtu.be/3iUjJ7bjzHA

Possible Debate Topics

Should there be year round schooling? 

Are video games too violent? 

Should animal testing be banned? 

Should the death penalty be abolished? 

Should parents be required to attend parenting classes before having a child?

"Lights, Camera, Action!" - Dramatic Monologue Performances

Although I have not preformed the final draft of my dramatic monologue just yet,  I think I am getting better at expressing my emotions when I rehersed the monologue.  However,  I think there is still some room for blocking in my preformance.  I am still trying to figure out where to add the handmotions, or what actions would be appropriate at certain parts of the dramatic monologue.  During my dramatic monologue, I plan to be sitting in a chair pretending to talk on the phone.  A good way into the scene, I will get out of my set and start pacing around, like I would do if I was on the phone with a friend in my own home.  Once I get out of the chair,  I feel like there will be more room for blocking and hand gestures.  Sittin the the chair, with a phone in one hand, it is very hard to have any hand movement while preforming my dramatic monologue.

After preforming my dramatic monologue in class, I believe one aspect that I thought could use some work was making more eye contact with the audience and talk louder.  When I preform my dramatic monologue, I hope to make sure to talk loudly like I did in my first monoloue and maybe even make eye contact during the scene (while talking on the phone-- basically looking around to room). 

When watching other stdents in our public speaking class preform their persoanal dramatic monologues, I realized even more than while preforming our regular monologues that it is very important to pronounciate and pace the words you say well.  This allows the audience to have a clear understanding of what you are saying.  With no clear pronunciation of words, it is very difficult to comprehend what exactly the speaker is talking about.  Similarly, with too slow or too fast of pacing of words, it is hard to hear what is being said by the person talking.

One dramatic monologue I particulary liked was Baron's.  Baron was preforming a dramatic monologue from "Fight Club."  I enjoyed watching him preform his monologue because right at the beginning when he slams the door after he walks into the room/into the fight club, he has everyones attention- all eyes are on him.  I like this opening when he shuts the door becuase it sets the tone for the rest of the dramatic monologue.  Also, I never knew that Baron could be loud and get mad, but he sure did when preforming this monologue.  I was shocked at how well his emotion showed when he was simply reciting lines from a movie.  I wasn't expecting his dramatic monologue to be so intense! 

Another students dramatic monologue that I enjoyed watching was Hannah's from the movie "Mean Girls."  I liked listening to her preformance because I have watched the movie Mean Girls multiple times before and was wondering if she would talk like the stereotypical white girl "Regina George." I never saw her preform the final draft of her monologue but every time she rehearsed it in class, she talked loudly and it was easy to uderstand what exactly she was saying.  Even the rehersals were well preformed and executed. 

In Class Writing Assignment- Sept. 21st

The motivation of the character in the dramatic monologue was to make the audience laugh.  The whole concept of what the girl and her best friend wanted to do in their day was meant to be comedic.   The backstory of this dramatic monologue was that a teenage girl was planning out what her and her bestfriend were going to do later in the day.  They always go to the mall but wanted to try something different.  After they thought about what they wanted to do, they decided to go to the mall anyways.  The setting of the story is at a girls home (the girl is talking on the phone to her friend). Lastly, there is little room for blocking in this monologue since it is just a telephone conversation to a friend. 

"Boredom" - Dramatic Monologue

I am so bored! Aren't you bored? What do you want to do? (Beat.)

Believe it or not, I'm sick of going to the mall.  Although I really do need to get a new pair of shoes to go with those pants I bought last week.  But I'm sick of the same old thing, the same old stores, the same old food at the food court, and the same old stupid guys making the same old dumb comments when we walk by.  We need to come up with somethings more exciting then just going to the mall or going to the movies. (Beat.) 

Maybe we should start training to become athletes.  Triathletes.  Ya know, swim, run, bike? if we did that, we would be in fantastic shape, we'd win money and prizes, maybe even scholarships to college, and we would be so busy training all the time, we'd never be bored again! (Pause.) 

Of course, training like that taakes serious commitment, years of work, and total discipline.  We'd never have time to do anything else,  We'd never see our friends or be able to eat when we wanted or go to parties.  it woul dbe a constant drag... our whole life would be reduced to swimming, running, and biking. 

(Pauses as she reflects what life would be like as a triathlete.) 

So.. do you want to go to the mall? 

Experience is Everything

My "Who am I" monologue- 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=zxYVHo8EZzE 

(me playing field hockey- one of my favorite sports- talked about in "Who am I" monologue) 

After watching my “Who am I” Monologue, I recognized some aspects of my monologue that I thought were great and other that I thought could use a little work/ that I can improve on. Some of the strengths of my monologue were that I wasn’t fidgeting or swaying when I talked. Another important aspect of my monologue that I though I did well with was projecting my voice and having a steady pace. For the most part, my voice was loud during the duration of the time I was talking for. Additionally, my speech was only two seconds over a minute long. I feel like when I talked, I had a steady pacing of words throughout my whole speech. Yet, I still had some weaknesses. Even though I didn’t fidget while giving my monologue, I felt like I could have been a little less stiff and a little more relaxed when I was talking. Plus, I was a little hesitant at one point when talking about what I was going to say. I should have worked on memorizing that part of my monologue more. Lastly, I could have looked around at the audience more. For the most part, I was looking at the camera of my ipad. Occasionally, I would look left or right at the members of my audience. 

(A women making eye contact while giving a presentation to a buisness) 

In my next monologue, I will work on making more eye contact with my audience. I will also try and be more relaxed when I talk instead of just standing still like a statue. I feel like I can be more relaxed when I talk if I am confident about what I am saying. Furthermore, the better I memorize my speech, the more confident I will be when I present the next monologue and the more relaxed I will apear when giving my monologue. 

Lastly, from watching my peers give their “Who am I” monologues in class, I learned that you need to project your voice a lot when speaking. When one of my classmates was talking, the window blinds were clashing against each other. On top of this sound, you could also hear the lawnmower cutting grass outside. All together, it was very difficult to hear and understand what the speaker was saying. Words were muffled by the sounds in the environment. Therefore, a very loud and projected voice is needed when publicly speaking, otherwise it can be hard for an audience to hear what you are saying. Also, even if there are no lawnmower sounds or rustling window blinds, if a speaker is not talking loud enough, it is challenging to comprehend what they are saying. 

(person projecting their voice) 

Overall, this “Who am I” monologue assignment opened my eyes to what parts of public speaking I am good at and which parts could use some work. I have to admit, this assignment challenged me. I didn’t think it would be possible for me to memorize this speech and then be able to perform it in front of an audience (my public speaking class). I definitely underestimated how difficult it was to memorize a speech and then perform it. However, I feel like I am getting more comfortable with public speaking and I hope by the end of this course, I will develop skills to help me become better at memorizing speeches.