Abstract – The writing of freedom: the relationship between student and blog
It seems that nowadays students in whatever levels they are in do not feel the satisfaction of writing anymore. I believe the reason for this issue is that the act of writing is not being delivered to them in a more appealing way. Blogs are modern tools which are used by almost anyone and are often used as an educational tool to teach writing. In this project data from undergraduate students will be analyzed through questionnaires in order to identify their thoughts about blogging and writing in their second language. Among the results expected, I think that positive opinions will be stated by the students and the use of blog as an alternative and improved way of stimulating writing will be once more put to proof. I hope that with this work the frequency of blogging for education becomes more widely enjoyed as a means of turning learning how to write in a fun and productive process.
The writing of freedom: the relationship between student and blog
Introduction
If you are familiar to Internet, chances are you at least have an idea on how blogs work. Though we can say blog is just one of the many tools on Internet, it is known to be probably the most popular one. Today, they are widely used by a huge part of the Internet community, mostly to publish personal information, likes, dislikes, news or any other type of content you can imagine.
Originally, blogs have come a long way before the way they are now. Before the diary form we have nowadays, there were many digital communities such as Usenet, GEnie, Bix and even the e-mail services which experienced diverse forms of sending messages. Blogging comes up in the journalistic area, when some journalists start posting regularly in their “online diaries”. Naturally, back at this time, 1994, publishing in a blog was as complicated as making your own website, you had to know quite a lot about programming and HTML, but now with the rise of popularity blogs were regarded, much simpler forms of posting are now possible. Blogs are a new phenomenon which are now unstoppable, a truly feverish habit in some people’s lives.
Statement of the problem
It has been thoroughly discussed the use of blogs for education purposes for the past years, mainly because the tool has became really popular among young people and also because of its variety of possibilities at any one’s disposal. Many schools and colleges use this kind of technology to develop a more modern approach to teaching, and consequently, get closer to students who are now so interested in Internet and its branches.
Mainly, teaching and blogging are gathered together in order to improve one’s writing skills. This need to get students’ attention to writing has been put to discussion because students are not often interested in the traditional way of writing essays, they find the assignments really demotivating and are completely uninterested in the process of doing them. Blogs offer a different perspective of writing, turning it more personal and peculiar. Potential benefits as identified by learning specialists Fernette and Brock Eide and cited by Will Richardson (2006) in Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful webtools for classrooms include the promotion of critical and analytical thinking, creative, intuitive thinking, analogical thinking and the combination of solitary and social interaction.
Purpose of the study
This present work has as its main goal to analyze and describe some aspects involving the way students feel when they write in a blog, focusing on their feelings toward the act of writing. The students who participated in this project are studying “Letras” at Universidade Federal de Goiás, a huge and well-known university in Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil. They are familiarized with the act of writing, but not very fond of it. All of them share an interest in studying English, so their writing assignments are entirely in English due to matters of language practice.
As specific objectives, this work aims to reflect upon undergraduate students’ views on writing, methods and approaches of writing practices, motivation for writing and also to question students’ familiarity with web tools, conceptions of web tools, their appliance and their advantages and disadvantages in education.
Methods and procedures
This work will be made possible thanks to the cooperation of students from the fourth term of the Letras course at Universidade Federal de Goiás. A questionarie is to be delivered to these students as a form of examination, like a survey, to analyze data regarding their relationship with blogging and English language learning. This data will be analyzed and compared with the already chosen bibliography related to the subject, and shown in the project with the appropriate considerations.
References
Online material were used to design this research proposal, such as some authors cited in this work, who were appropriately quoted in some parts of this work. Here is a list with websites used as references:
Sports are played all over the world, and they are sure loved by everyone. Brazil, the country of sport legends such as Pelé and Dayane dos Santos, is of course no exception. Nevertheless, within Brazil there are some sports which are more popular than others. Well, it is not wrong at all to say that football and volleyball are the most popular ones in the country, even though it is quite obvious which one is the MOST popular in Brazil. That said, I would like to discuss the points which involve the practice of these sports, taking into consideration the players and team supporters.
Ask anyone from any part of the world any words related to Brazil and at least one of them will be “football”, “Ronaldinho”, “Pelé”. The question is, does that really reflect the reality Brazilian people live? Is football such a national passion that really everybody, again, EVERYBODY is so crazy about it? In a certain way, it is correct to think like that. It is safe to say that the majority of men in Brazil are all devoted to the sport, in fact, so devoted that one may consider an obsession. The reason for that consists in the fact that the passion for football has become a kind of chain, an unchanging culture which is passed forward for a long time, from father to son. In fact, football has become such a strong part in male culture, that it has become a way of affirming masculinity. This excert of male behaviour is quite an issue if we take to consideration all the chauvinism and segregation it is created by that. For instance, women tend to complain a lot that their husbands often do not pay attention to them and care for them because of old sacred football-related reasons, and also, there is a part of men who are not blessed by this unconditional love, who happen to suffer prejudice from the ones who (luckly or not) are. Let’s call them the “pink team”.
The pink team is definitely a curious team. They are men who are not obsessed with football. Odd enough? For someone who is not familiar with the real Brazilian culture, maybe. But what happens is that there is a sort of division when it comes to preferences on sports. It may sound silly, but mainly in schools the fact can be put to proof. Basically, boys who do not fancy a nice football match are usually considered sissy, fragile, girlish boys. The assumption made by the “blue team” clearly involves not only boys’ tastes on sports, but also boys’ sexual orientation and social behavior. The majority of the boys victims of bullies on such a matter usually practice another sport, such as volleyball or dodgeball, since they are considered not “tough and rough” enough. It is sad to see such segregation happening right at such an early stage of life, but it seems that the cycle really starts at this point. It is worthy mentioning that some boys do like football, but are not really “football material” for not behaving as a proper sportsmen is ought to behave. Therefore, these boys feel unaccepted by the other boys and tend to find in another sport a more respectable enviroment to practice and above all things, have fun.
As mentioned before, it is really at school that this kind of relationship between boys and sports really shows up. Since every kid is obliged to participate in Physical Education classes, it does not matter if you are not really fond of practicing some sport, you just have to do it. Although the approach is not the most efficient and appropriate, it is surely important to any child to practice some sport. What happens however is that kids do not play a sport because they want to, but because they have to. This leads to frustration and lack of motivation, which also leads to a tense enviroment to work with children. It is necessary to understand that the main purpose of inserting physical activities in children’s school routine is to loose their study time and to promote interaction among them. What kind of interaction are we promoting if they are forced to do things they do not want to and if they cannot express their likes, dislikes and even real personalities without unforgiving judgement from a group considered the role model for men?
In order to make children have less troublesome childhood, we must re-think the obsessive way sports, but mainly football, is dealt here in Brazil. It is not rare to randomly find adults who have not overcome some issues suffered in the past for not enjoying certain sport as much as they “should”. As we all know, separating people in groups is certainly not the goal of an ideal society which each individual has her/his preferences and way of being.
VERBOTENE LIEBE – REVIEW OF THE “CHROLLI’S” STORYLINE
Verbotene Liebe is far from being seen as a soap opera for the narrow-minded. Its groundbreaking stories are all implied by its title: “Forbidden Love”. Since 1995, the controversial and popular German show has dealt with topics such as homosexuality, incest, drug abuse, HIV, schizophrenia, among many others. All stories shown by the soap opera take place in Düsseldorf, Germany. Even though Verbotene Liebe was created by Reg Watson, a large group of writers work building the storylines, considering the polemic topics previously mentioned.
For the last two years, Verbotene Liebe seemed to reach an unexpected popularity, outside Germany, where the show is broadcasted. This fame wasn’t foreseen by the writers of the soap opera, and it was received by all members of the crew with great surprise. The reason for the success, however, was related to just two characters and a widely spread chain of videos in YouTube. Christian Mann and Olliver Sabel, played respectively by German actors Thore Schölermann and Jo Weil, were the two male characters who made their fame upon sweet gay romance plus dedicated fans plus English subtitles.
Christian and Olliver have come a long way until they got together. Both characters roamed for different paths in Verbotene Liebe, each one with his own storyline, involving distinct characters. The crossover happened in 2007, when the two characters started being friends. Their start was not very good, for some differences in the background plots of the two characters influenced in their relationships. But eventually they worked things out and started having a really nice relationship, which was with no delay led to a romance. Christian is a determined, easy-going, funny guy who has been to jail due to his father faults. He also has interests on boxing and on studying about physical activities. Olliver, on the other hand, is a calm, generous, kind and polite guy, who is very close to his family. Olliver works as a waiter for her aunt Charlie. Though different, the chemistry between the two boys is so realistic that one can almost tell they are a real couple in real life. The actors really do their best to portray a close-to-reality gay couple without being too campy, or too macho, or too artificial.
Like any soap opera, couples have to face lots of issues in order to be together. It may be a little cliché, since soap operas seem to be always all about that, but in Verbotene Liebe that is beautifully executed. The “Chrolli” couple (this is short for Christian + Olliver) has been to such different things that it is really impossible not to fall in love with their story. Since their beginning as two gay partners they had to handle things involving Christian’s boxing carreer and Olliver’s family problems. However, these issues are exactly what seemed to generate all this comotion around the two handsome guys. Storylines like the bullying in the gym are stories which are going to be always stuck in people’s minds.
In the present time, the couple is doing just fine. They have been to many other awkward situations, but their story continues to be solid and well written, above all. Up to now, it has been two years that both actors share their lives with crazy international fans. This kind of fame made them one of the most popular ficitous couples not only in Germany, but also worldwide. A huge number of articles have been talking about these two characters, which are now very dear to fans from all around the world, and they will probably still be, since their fame does not seem to have barriers.
For the ones who are interested in watching one of the episodes:
Let me guess, you have been single for ages and now that you are actually dating someone, you are terribly afraid of losing this special person? Do you catch yourself premeditating each move of yours, fearing that you might do something inappropriate? Well, you are probably working your ass off to be the perfect boyfriend, but who said you had to do it all by yourself? You don’t need to be the best specimen of alpha male in order to keep a relationship going, but acting as perfect as possible sure is a thing that will make things more exciting for your lady/gentleman and for you, poor little perfectionist in love.
The operative word is “man”. Not man in the macho sense, but man in the sense of being responsible of carrying great responsibility, doing your best and being kind and polite all the time. Sure you can open doors, and pump iron, but can you be supportive? Has she/he got a new job? Give her/him a call. Has she/he written a poem? Read it. And if she/he is afraid of the dark? Be the one who turns on the light. Being a real man plays a really definite role in any relationship, because attitudes speak more than words.
One of the most important skills to have if you want to be the perfect boyfriend involves one of the five senses: hearing. Remember that you are not being the perfect boyfriend for yourself, but for someone else. Knowing what your beloved one wants is the main guide to achieving her/his heart. People like to be listened, that is a natural aspect of every single human being (and even animals and plants!). It is important to seem interested no matter how confused you are because communication is valued above all things. If you do lose the thread, and she/he suddenly demands a response, here are a few phrases that may come in handy: “What an interesting story!”; “I can’t believe it, tell me again… with more details”. Or if all previous ones fail: “Oh sorry, I was just thinking about how good-looking you are today.”
Once you have conquered your partner’s heart with the previous steps, it comes the time for you to make things even better by connecting with people that like your partner. That includes friends, neighbours, siblings and even the so feared parents. The main worry is not to overreact and try to desperately be friends with everyone she/he likes. Go with the flow, being yourself, demonstrating how important your partner is for you, so you can easily be welcomed in the family or group of friends your partner belongs to. Remember key facts about them, such as their names (so you avoid saying things like ‘oh her, the fat one with no hair’), their connections with your partner etc.
These previous things indeed are important ones, but there is nothing like small bad daily things to kill someone’s relationship. Things such as surprising the person you love, reaffirmating your love for her/him, giving presents, taking her/him out for dinner and even being hygienic can be major points to maintain a relationship healthy and pleasing. But one thing: do not be so hard on yourself. Sure being a perfect boyfriend is good for any couple, but it is good to remember that the person that you are with likes your wrongs as well. Sometimes extreme perfection can be as tragic as extreme imperfection. Just make sure that you are having fun and being happy!
It is a huge commonsense to assume that Japanese people are all well behaved, strict, responsible and uptight. Well, this is clearly a mistaken concept since lots of teenagers and even adults seem to stray from this pattern. Visual Kei (ヴィジュアル系) is a fresh example of this sort of rebel path that the Japanese crowd follows nowadays. The term, which means “visual style”, refers to the movement that has its basis in the fashion and music area, with strong characteristics of eccentricity, androgyny, extravagance and strangeness. The movement had its start in the 80s, supported by bands such as X Japan, D’ERLANGER and BUCK-TICK, and it is still made famous by bands and artists such as 雅-miyavi- (Miyavi), Kagrra,**, アリス九號.*** (alice nine.), ムック (MUCC) and ナイトメア (Nightmare).
Although Visual Kei is constituted of two sides, the fashion aspect appears to consolidate the whole movement and to state its purpose throughout shock and surprise. Bands within this trend tend to characterize themselves in a very uncommon way, wearing elaborate costumes, strong make-up and having unusual hair styles. However, these fashion tendencies vary even among the movement, and as a consequence several sorts of branches have appeared since the beginning of Visual Kei. As examples we can mention fashion ramifications like the Oshare Kei trend, which is based on happy feelings, usually featuring fashion with lots of colorful accessories; the Eroguro Kei trend (Erotic and grotesque), which had its inspiration from an artistic inclination in the 80s made popular for its focus on sadism, sexual appeal and shocking horror; Angura Kei, Koteosa Kei, Nagoya Kei and other trends are also relevant to Visual Kei.
When it comes to music, Visual Kei shows peculiarity and variety, gathering a great deal of rhythms, musical instruments, and a big range of vocal diversity as well. It is just impossible to categorize Visual Kei’s music by naming only one sort of style, neither rock nor pop, which are rather general terms, are enough to classify it. All this assortment of musical aspects was the reason why Visual Kei ascended through the conservative taste of Japanese people and became very famous among teenagers, and it is considered to be an important economy niche to the music market in Japan. Most of the bands from this tendency are composed by five or four members, obligatorily with the presence of a drummer, a bass player, a guitar player and a vocalist. A very peculiar thing to be highlighted is that the common misconception about oriental music appears to fall apart if we take Visual Kei to consideration, possibly symbolizing Asia’s embrace and adaption of the occidental culture.
Although it has never trespassed selling numbers of popular singers, Visual Kei is far from being an “underground hype among alternative people”. Female teenagers seem to be the ones who were gotten by the poetic, sometimes strong lyrics, since they are by far the majority of consumers of this kind of market. This does not imply only in tons of money cashed in by the compulsive shopaholic habits which are quite common in female teenagers in Japan, but also in a tendency that makes them follow their favourite bands path, using their costumes and acting like them. A rather curious fact is that “fan-service” is quite common in the Visual Kei scene, since bands’ fans always claim for some “make-out session” among the members of the bands, driving them crazy.
It is the most probable thing that someone who is not in Japan may think that they are all the opposite of what we showed here, but this is, of course, an old-fashioned stereotype which was built by people who clearly did not know them deeply. Although followers of Visual Kei are not even 50% of the population of the kimono’s land, they are still a crowd to be considered. With its particular kind of visual and music, Visual Kei stated a very unique way of thinking modern trends, and it is by far one of the most intense movements worldwide, though not so famous in countries in the west side of the globe.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Kei
http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Kei
* The title alludes to the very popular song “Japanese Modernist” by a Visual Kei, Eroguro band called メリー (Merry).
** The band’s name has a comma at the end.
*** The band’s name has a dot at the end.
EXTRA STUFF:
Pictures (click on the pictures to enlarge):
X Japan, origin of Visual Kei
雅-miyavi- (Miyavi), Visual Kei nowadays
アンティック-珈琲店- (Antique Cafe), an example of an Oshare Kei band
蜉蝣 (Kagerou, translation: Mayfly); the band, in its early years, used to fit into the Eroguro Kei movement
Videos:
MUCC’s (ムック) song “路地裏 僕と君へ” (“Rojiura boku to kimi e”, translation: “The Back Alley From Me To You”) – An example of Eroguro Kei-ish performance
AN Cafe’s (アンティック-珈琲店-) song “スマイル一番 イイ♀” (“Smile ichiban ii onna”, translation: “The best kind of smiling woman”) – An example of an energetic Oshare Kei performance – Portuguese subtitles!
My name is Victor Hugo Oliveira Magalhães and I would like to sign up for the job your company is offering. I am 24 years old, I have a degree in Languages and 4 years of experience working as an English teacher.
In the meantime I was working as a teacher, I had to deal with several students’ and colleagues’ issues. Regarding that, I think I am good at establishing nice connections with people and handling any problem they may have.
The reason why I want to work at your company is that I want to try a new area besides teaching. Working as an international representative has been one of my professional goals for a long time, so I really think this is the time to fulfill it.
I am available for personal contact whenever it is convenient for your team. My address, phone numbers and e-mails are attached on the cover of this letter.
I’ll be throwing a party in my house on next Saturday at 3 p.m., and I want you to come by to at least say hello! It’s a party to strengthen the bonds among our classmates in college so it’s going to be a lot of fun! Almost everybody is coming, so there will be a lot of people to talk to, and we’ll do a lot of other activities, such as playing videogames, volleyball, cards, watching some nice videos and other funny stuff. If you come the only thing I’ll expect from you is your good temper and some games to play. There is no need of bringing any food, I’ve got it all set. If you can’t come, please contact me before the day of the party.
“ Shelter covers with a big shelter of love every heart which is up to engage in a really sweet story. “
It doesn’t matter what kind of human being a person is, every individual in this giant world needs love and like to be exposed to some of this great feeling. Well, Shelter has plenty of it and will certainly deliver love to your heart in a touching way that you will never forget.
Produced and written by Jonah Markowitz, the movie makes use of the surf world as a background for Zach (Trevor Wright), a surfer who has a dream of being a graffiti artist but just can’t try to accomplish this goal due to his duty of taking care of his little nephew, Coby. Struggling in his unpleasant work to support his irresponsible older sister, in his way Zach meets Shaun (Brad Rowe), a writer trying to get through some kind of inspiration problem. Shaun encourages Zach to pursue his dreams even though his situation seems so bad that it would be impossible to do that. An intense feeling of love and strenght starts to grow between the two surfers, and they are both decided of changing their lives.
Trevor Wright (Zach)
Brad Rowe (Shaun)
The movie has a nice flow in the beginning, with beautiful scenes of beaches with nice people, everything happening in a chain of occasions that is easy to follow. But it suddenly gets into a quick pace that may seem a little bit weird, because things like Zach’s love for Shaun show up out of the blue, with no clue given about them previously in the movie. Although this may be a problem, the movie certainly catches up the good pace again, and then everything goes just right.
The acting is good, with really touching scenes from the actors, who know how to express all the anger or sadness that is necessary in the movie. It is also a well-produced movie, since there are a lot of impressing images of the city where the characters live. The scrpit is nice and clear, doing justice to other movies with larger budgets out there.
Shelter is an interesting movie that shows in a nice way that it doesn’t matter one’s situation, it is never too late or too hard to go after your dreams and live a life that you think you deserve. Although in the middle of it things go quite faster than normal, the whole piece is definitely worth of watching.
If you’re still not willing of watching the movie, here is some incentive:
