A diverse and interesting learning environment for all students Essay Example for Free

A diverse and interesting learning environment for all students Essay Accepting attitudes towards all human beings creates a diverse and interesting learning environment for all students. I recall an incident while at a summer program a few years ago. We, the students, were staying overnight on a college campus to participate in seminars that would further our growth and readiness for the future. As part of the program, we were required to stay overnight in the dorm rooms. We were each paired up with one other person who would be our roommate for the two days. I come from a neighborhood that is primarily white so I was pleasantly surprised to learn that I would be sharing a room with someone who was from the Middle East. We quickly settled into our rooms and prepared ourselves for the first of two days of learning activities. My roommate awoke, got up and spread a blanket on the floor to pray. I watched my roommate kneeling on the floor saying words in a language that I didn’t understand. When finished, I asked my roommate about this practice and learned a little bit about the Muslim religion and why prayers are said several times daily. See more: Satirical essay about drugs I also had the opportunity to share a little bit about my own faith. I had a large amount of respect for my roommate because it isn’t easy to pray in front of other people let alone people one doesn’t even know. I also gained respect because my roommate wasn’t ashamed of praying or of the Muslim faith. This experience has helped prepare me for life in a world made up of people from all over the world with different values, viewpoints and religions. My own background and life achievements would add to the diversity of University because I too have valuable ideas and customs that would add to the interesting mix of University life. My ability to gain respect for people who have different life values enables me to be a student of a University that embraces acceptance for other cultures. Even though I would be considered the majority, I welcome the opportunity to learn alongside people from different places.

The continued discrimination against homosexuals

The continued discrimination against homosexuals Homosexuality is very common in society. However many individuals still discriminate against them. Their prejudgments are based on stereotypes, and lack of information. Due to our social perception, people who are different from them is deem to be threatening. In this report, discrimination against homosexuals will be discussed, with facts, different supporting examples and cases from Singapore and the United States, with Singapore being the more traditionally conservative one. Ways to reduce discriminations against them is also mentioned and explored. The issue and who are involved? We can fall in love, but why cant they? Homosexuality is romantic and/or sexual attraction or behavior among members of the same sex or gender, making up around 10% of the population. Sadly, they continue to be one of the least protected by the government and discriminated against by the society. Homosexuality was categorized as a mental disorder until 1973. The words gay and lesbian are used to refer to homosexual men and women and bisexual refers to those that are attracted to both men and women. Brief History on Homosexuals in Singapore In 1960s, Homosexuality was categorized as a condition in a Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). Before enlistment, all enlistees would undergo a medical checkup and asked to declare their homosexuality status. Those declared will be downgraded to a Public Employment Status of 3 and were assigned to be clerks. In 1998, Senior Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew , live on CNN International, said, what we are doing as a government is to leave people to live their own lives so long as they dont impinge on other people. I mean, we dont harass anybody. these words helped set the tenor for official policy on homosexuality for many years. His comments is said to be one of the most significant events relating to gay rights. Before 2003, homosexuals were forbidden from being employed in sensitive positions in the Singapore Civil Service. Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong abolished this in a widely publicized statement. In 2006, Liberty League, an organization that promotes gender and sexual health for the individual, family and society, was granted $100,000. Brief History on Homosexuals in the US After W.W.11, thousands of homosexuals were dishonorably fired from the armed services and jobs, due to public display of homosexuality, and were ostracized from families and communities. In early 1953, homosexuality became by a necessary and sufficient reason fire any federal employee from ones job. In the 1970s, in some cities, anti- discrimination for homosexual laws was placed. California had its first openly gay elected official; Harvey Milk. Compared to Singapore, the US has a richer and more open homosexuality culture. In recent years, the US has slowly begun acceptance for homosexuality. Several television programs with elements of homosexuality, Will and Grace, Glee, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Greys Anatomy were aired. As the popularity of these shows increases, the gay community is closer to acceptance and justice by the society. They have gay pride parades and homosexual marriages supported by many areas of US, unlike Singapore. Discrimination against Homosexuals With the laws placed and the better recognition of the homosexual community, the situation in both countries seems favorable. However, homosexuals still face rampant stereotypes from the world and may worsen if deeper understanding of homosexuals is not being promoted and measures are not taken. This topic has been chosen because this is a very important issue in this society, and feels that they should have the same rights as heterosexuals. There have been many incidents of bullying and victimizing homosexuals that led to deaths in the US. Many have gone into depression. These should not be tolerated and something has to be done. Homosexuals do not come out for many reasons, the most common being that they are uncomfortable to declare to any society that is perceived to be homophobic. Negative stereotyping is often a result of homophobia, which refers to an irrational fear, prejudice or discrimination towards homosexuals, and can be name-calling and teasing to serious crimes like assault and murder. Positive stereotypes, or counter-types, also exist but may be no less harmful, as they are still oversimplified views of the group being stereotyped. Some examples of the common stereotypes that gays are described to be expressing too much of his feelings, very vulnerable and sensitive, likes touching himself and other people. They are also stereotyped to love talking about feminine things; the use of cosmetics, very concerned with their lips, skin and hair protections. Why this prejudice and discrimination affect society and is important. Current situation in Singapore Although being homosexual in Singapore is not illegal, performing any homosexual acts in public or privately, is. Section 377 of the Singapore Penal Code records the penalty for indecency between individuals which includes consensual, private, adult homosexual acts; imprisonment is up to 2 years. A gay group was denied permission to hold a forum on the role of homosexuals in society. The local media avoids homosexual issues in fear of getting their licenses suspended. In schools, sexuality courses focus more on heterosexuality-the only mention of homosexuality reminds students that it is illegal. Moreover, homosexual couples in Singapore, cannot rightfully own a home through the public housing scheme, thus many rent as private housing is unaffordable to them. Unsurprisingly, this shows that Singaporean society remains deeply conservative and the governments are still not as open to discussions about gay rights. Attitudes towards homosexuality are also tied up closely with the different religious values in this multi-racial society, like Muslims and Christianity which considers it as a sin. In Singapore, the government uses Confucian readings to create a certain amount of ideological coherence in its version of Asian Values and to give it some academic respectability. From an interview, 68.6% of the surveyors expressed negative attitudes towards homosexuality. Christians and Muslims were found to be least tolerant, older people are less tolerant and more educated people are more tolerant. Therefore, Singapore who is a traditionally conservative society may not be ready for a change. Current situation in United States Recently, there have been many news on homosexual bullying leading to suicides, for example , Tyler Clementi, a 19 year old student from Rutgers University. After his college roommate lived-streamed Tyler having sexual relations with his boyfriend, Tyler threw himself off a bridge. Asher Brown was a 13-year-old was tormented for the way he dressed and being gay. His bullies acted out mock gay sex acts in classes. His parents repeatedly contacted school officials on his bullying. Nothing was ever done. He shot himself in the head. Policy on lesbian, gay, bisexual, in US has evolved over time and varies between different regions. Five states and one district have legalized same-sex marriage. President Obama announced that he will work with Congress and the military to repeal the dont ask, dont tell policy that forbids homosexuals from openly serving in the military. However, there is still much opposition, commenting that homosexuals identities should not be made known. However, there have been many interviews and surveys that show that the US is slowly accepting homosexuals. For example the graph below shows that attitudes towards homosexuality in the US, over the years seem more positive. Source: http://www.norc.org/GSS+Website/Browse+GSS+Variables/Subject+Index/ Why is it important? A continuation of homosexual discrimination is detrimental to their mental health, which may increase suicidal tendencies or other mental afflictions. There are many websites contending that homosexuality is a sin, stating that it is entirely up to choice, easily changeable, and giving excuses to put down homosexuals, using reasons like God hates fags. People tend to associate HIV and AIDS as a gay related disease, thinking that as long as they avoid having sex with homosexuals, they are safe from HIV. This ignorance can cause them to practice unsafe sexual intercourse. Stereotyping them to be rapist, pedophiles are very common and these send a wrong message to the public, causing fear. This increases the fear in homosexuals for being discovered to be gay, causing them to feel immense stress and pressure, doubling the chance of depression and suicidal tendencies. The rejection and misinformation results in homophobia causing them to bully other people , verbal assaults, causing other people psychological stress and pain. Homosexuals may also face family and friends rejections. The result is a vicious cycle of prejudice and discrimination. Where can we start to fix the problem? How such prejudice and discrimination creates inequality to the society. The law, sec 377a, criminalizing sexual acts between homosexuals, encourages Singaporeans discriminate against homosexuals indirectly. Other countries have accepted same sex marriage and have laws to protect them. Homosexuals should also have the same benefits as heterosexuals. In Singapore, some teachers were being forced to quit because of their sexuality like Otto Fong, and Alfian Saat. In national service, they are downgraded to positions like clerks, and disqualified from some sensitive areas. All these are deemed to be discrimination and homosexual inequality. Workable solutions for individuals and institutions From what I have found out, these prejudice and discriminations comes from ignorance and misinformation. Unbiased sex education can help to change mindsets of people about homosexuality at large. Singaporeans are consistently taught that sexual acts between homosexuals are illegal but do not talk about why and how we should learn to accept them in our society. This is an important issue, thus this topic should be in Civic Moral Education where students can learn about it. The society can also educate homosexuality in the media, television shows, or host public homosexuality talks and events. For example, in the US, they have a Wear a Purple Shirt Day in honor of homosexuals that committed suicides due to bullying. We as individuals have to learn not to stereotype and listen to peoples misconceptions, but taking initiative to learn more about homosexuality from places like, internet and books. We are more than capable of making our own decisions, and more than capable of being accepting and inclusive. We should create an environment of diversity and acceptance for both heterosexuals and homosexuals. http://socyberty.com/issues/prejudice-and-discrimination-on-homosexuality-in-singapore/#ixzz174Rz1JxF http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_gay_history:_2000_to_2009_A.D. http://www.sgwiki.com/wiki/Singapore_gay_history http://knol.google.com/k/discrimination-against-homosexuals-in-singapore# http://www.norc.org/GSS+Website/Browse+GSS+Variables/Subject+Index/ http://articles.cnn.com/2010-01-27/politics/obama.gays.military_1_repeal-policy-that-bars-gays-servicemembers-legal-defense-network?_s=PM:POLITICS http://filipspagnoli.wordpress.com/stats-on-human-rights/statistics-on-discrimination/statistics-on-discrimination-of-homosexuals/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_United_States

Who are the biggest winners and losers in a globalised world

Who are the biggest winners and losers in a globalised world The world is increasing influenced by Multination Corporation and global brand. Nowadays, the idea that globalisation produces winners and losers are widely accepted. The winners and losers from globalisation can separated into two general categories. One is developing countries and the other one is developed countries. In this essay I will prove there are significant more winners than losers in globalization. The developed countries or developing countries all are being benefited by globalisation. Definition of globalization According to one of most popular definitions which International Monetary Fund(IMF) are given, globalisation is the process through which an increasingly free flow of ideas, people, goods, services and capital leads to the integration of economies and societies. Globalisation is not a recent phenomenon. In 1962, the term globalization was first time come forth to the journal called The Economics. However, at that time globalization more likely as a term to use by economists rather than popular words can be found everywhere. Globalisation can be defined as following aspects: free trade, foreign investment, organizational change in corporate sector and technological change. Trade make an important role in globalisation. According to Charles and McGraw (2008), the Great Depression of the 1930s was caused by highly barriers in international trade. Government who govern their countries constrained the exports goods and labour services to other countries and high imports taxation rate to protect their domestic manufactures. Due to this experience, after World War II, General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) are founded and made big impact in global trade market. World Trade Organisation (WTO) was established by GATT which make global trade system lower barriers through the principle and rules they negotiated. Free trade could reduce overall costs of production due to the imports; which company can purchase cheaper resource and workforce. Ultimately, free trade can cut our living costs and improve our living standards. Furthermore, free trade gives customers more choice on which products they are willing to buy. Because of free trade, we can get wider c hoice on domestic productions or international productions. Opening the domestic economies to foreign direct investment (FDI) is an important part of globalisation. The evidence (Charles and McGraw, 2008) suggests that FDI is making a significant role in the global economy. The outflow of FDI increased faster which from $25 billion in 1975 to $1.2 trillion in 2000. The multinational company made a significant influence in FDI. There has been a big change in the nature of the company due to the globalisation of the production and distribution. Corporations are now becoming part of global supply chains which spread their productions. As an international company they must adapt the international business environment quicker than domestic firms. Hence, they change their corporate strategy frequently. According to Charles and McGraw (2008) the role of technological change has made globalisation become more reality. Since the end of World War II, the world technological dramatically improved through Internet, telecommunication and transportation. Those improvements provide better condition for globalisation world widely. Winners in the developed countries Many people believe globalisation make developed countries become to loser due to off-shoring. Large employment opportunities are moving to developing countries because of cheaper labour costs. Off-shoring made lots of job lost in developed countries. However, all coins have two sides, job losses in the developed countries do not means all negative sides in globalisation. According to Charles and McGraw (2008), when the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) established in 1994, clothing prices in the United States have decreased. For instance, blank T-shirts wholesaled for $24 a dozen in 1994 but now they only sell $14 a dozen. The lower prices on production are benefit for most of American who have more money to spend on other times. Generally speaking in economic aspect, most MNEs are come from developed countries, which through FDI to expand their capital and make huge profits. FDI and free trade provide opportunities to MNEs gather cheaper raw materials and workforce which reducing the overall costs of productions. Most of the MNEs have more advantages because their enough capital and high technology supported. Therefore, MNEs will establish subsidiaries in FDI countries and sell these products with high price directly which can make large profits. Multinationals benefit most from globalisation according to 87% of EU citizens. Nowadays, MNEs seem as the leader in developed countries economics, they occupied large parts of domestic market. MNEs doing their business development well which can reflect the developed countries are winners from globalisation as well. Overall, developed countries are winners in globalisation, they gains outweigh the losses. Winners in the developing countries According Lancaster (2000), the six billion people in the world which have five billion people live in developing world. How much impact of globalisation on this countries and people? There are many argument about winners from globalisation in booming are not necessary shared equally in the global wide. When the distributions are not equally, the developing countries might become losers due to their poor condition on economy and politics aspects. Peaceful and stable are essential for developing countries in long-term development. If trade flows could improve smoothly and countries enjoy that peaceful relationship, it might avoid many political and economic conflicts between countries or regions. WTO is an important organisation in globalisation that makes vital roles to keep world peace. Most of developing countries are following WTOs principles and rules to trade and investment. Due to this peaceful environment, developing countries can concentrate on their trade market and economic development. Moreover, investment and trade are increased dramatically since 1990. There are more and more foreign direct investment in developing countries such as China, Indian, Mexico, and Thailand. Investments in those countries provide large employment opportunities and increase their exports and growth rate therefore improve overall standard of living. The Asian countries financial crises in the 1997 made many experts to fight globalisation become stronger. They believe developing countries are losers in globalisation. However, the experience of China has been used as a good example to prove they are the winner of globalisation. Before reform, China was the world most important opponent of globalisation which is not opening their trade market. Since 1979, reform policy made Chinas economic become most competitive and booming country in world widely. According to Michael Dauderstà ¤dt Jà ¼rgen Stetten (2005) purchasing power parity in China is ranks secondly after America. Share of world trade increased from approximately 1% to almost 6% between 1979 and 2003. Since 2001, China access to the WTO which provide better free trade market environment and also become more competitive in international market. In a word, Chinas experience in opening up reveals in what way a developing country can become winners from globalisation. Beside s, China gives other developing countries more confidence to support free trade market and globalisation. Conclusion In conclusion, both of developing countries and developing countries are winners eventually. Through free trade, foreign direct investment and organisation, world village becomes more and more possible. Whereas lose employment opportunities due to off-shoring or many domestic firms are bankrupted due to MNEs, which can not stop the globalisation steps. As we have demonstrated that there are significant more winners than losers in globalisation. The number of words: 1196

Sir Thomas More Essay example -- essays research papers fc

Thomas More was born in Milk Street, London on February 7, 1478, son Sir John More, a prominent judge. He was educated at St Anthony's School in London. As a youth he served as a page in the household of Archbishop Morton, who predecited he would be a "marvellous man."1. More went on to study at Oxford under Thomas Linacre and William Grocyn. During this time, he wrote comedies and studied Greek and Latin literature. One of his first works was an English translation of a Latin biography of the Italian humanist Pico della Mirandola. It was printed by Wynkyn de Worde in 1510. Around 1494 More returned to London to study law, was admitted to Lincoln's Inn in 1496, and became a barrister in 1501. Yet More did not automatically follow in his father's footsteps. He was torn between a monastic calling and a life of civil service. While at Lincoln's Inn, he determined to become a monk and subjected himself to the discipline of the Carthusians, living at a nearby monastery and taking part of the monastic life. The prayer, fasting, and penance habits stayed with him for the rest of his life. More's desire for monasticism was finally overcome by his sense of duty to serve his country in the field of politics. He entered Parliament in 1504, and married for the first time in 1504 or 1505. More became a close friend with Desiderius Erasmus (ca. 1466-1536) during the latter's first visit to England in 1499. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship and correspondence. Th...

The Return :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Return by Sonia Levitin is a novel showing how difficult life is for Ethiopian Jews traveling to Israel. They face many hardships on their way, and there are many obstacles in their path. Many themes are depicted in this novel. Three meaningful topics that can be discussed are maturing and finding one’s own identity, prejudice and its effect, and cultural/family pressures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the themes that The Return illustrates is maturing and finding one’s own identity. An example of this theme is in the beginning of the novel when Desta does not want to depart for Jerusalem and wants to stay with her family. However, soldiers come to recruit from her village and Desta has to leave immediately. Desta does not complain about this situation. This shows maturity because Desta knows that her family wants her to leave for Jerusalem and that it is the best for her. A further example of maturing and finding one’s own identity is one Joas dies. Desta always relies on Joas in the beginning of the novel, but she then takes control by taking care of Almaz and herself. She trades with foreigners and struggles to survive with her sister. She also continues to travel even though there is a risk of death. This shows courage and maturity because it is very hard to take care of a nine-year-old child with very little food at hand. Another way De sta shows maturity is how she uses skills she learns to her advantage. An example of this is when Desta takes her holiday shamma and wraps Joas in it for a burial. This shows maturity because she follows what her culture expects of her. One last example of maturity illustrated in The Return is how Desta tells Dan, with no fears, that she does not want to marry him yet. She expects than Dan will be angry, but Desta tells him anyway. This shows maturity because she stands up for what she believes is right for herself and shows independence. As one can see, Desta matures in many ways throughout the novel performing bravely, independently, and lovingly in acts towards herself and others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another theme that The Return shows is prejudice and its effect. One example this novel shows is that enemies of the Ethiopian Jews are killing and forcing them to be soldiers. This shows prejudice because the enemies only think about themselves and treat other people like animals.

Effect of Communication Barriers and Overcoming These Barriers

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman for letting me speak. Let me introduce myself before we go to the topic. My name Mrs. Aida as a Public Speaking Trainer. Firstly, I want to explain to all of you what is communication? Communication is a process beginning with a sender who encodes the message and passes it through some channel to the receiver who decodes the message. Communication is fruitful if and only if the messages sent by the sender is interpreted with same meaning by the receiver. If any kind of disturbance blocks any step of communication, the message will be destroyed.Due to such disturbances, managers in an organization face severe problems. Thus the managers must locate such barriers and take steps to get rid of them. There are several barriers that affects the flow of communication in an organization. These barriers interrupt the flow of communication from the sender to the reciever, thus making communication ineffective. It is essential for ma nagers to overcome these barriers. The main barriers of communication are summarized below. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen,† Firstly let me explain one of communication barriers is Perceptual and Language Differences.Perception is generally how each individual interprets the world around him. All generally want to receive messages which are significant to them. But any message which is against their values is not accepted. A same event may be taken differently by different individuals. For example : A person is on leave for a month due to personal reasons (family member being critical). The HR Manager might be in confusion whether to retain that employee or not, the immediate manager might think of replacement because his teams productivity is being hampered, the family members might take him as an emotional support.Secondly is Information Overload. Managers are surrounded with a pool of information. It is essential to control this information flow else the information is likely to be misinterpreted or forgotten or overlooked. As a result communication is less effective. The next barriers was Time Pressures:  Often in organization the targets have to be achieved within a specified time period, the failure of which has adverse consequences. In a haste to meet deadlines, the formal channels of communication are shortened, or messages are partially given, i. e. , not completely transferred.Thus sufficient time should be given for effective communication. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen,† Distraction/Noise:  Communication is also affected a lot by noise to distractions. Physical distractions are also there such as, poor lightning, uncomfortable sitting, unhygienic room also affects communication in a meeting. Similarly use of loud speakers interferes with communication. Emotions:  Emotional state at a particular point of time also affects communication. If the receiver feels that communicator is angry he interprets that the information being sent is ver y bad.While he takes it differently if the communicator is happy and jovial (in that case the message is interpreted to be good and interesting). Complexity in Organizational Structure:  Greater the hierarchy in an organization (i. e. more the number of managerial levels), more is the chances of communication getting destroyed. Only the people at the top level can see the overall picture while the people at low level just have knowledge about their own area and a little knowledge about other areas. Poor retention:  Human memory cannot function beyond a limit.One cant always retain what is being told specially if he is not interested or not attentive. This leads to communication breakdown. So, how we as a manager to overcome these barriers of communicate? There are a lot of communication barriers faced these days by all. The message intended by the sender is not understood by the receiver in the same terms and sense and thus communication breakdown occurs. It is essential to deal and cope up with these communication barriers so as to ensure smooth and effective communication. As, in the previous section we have discussed the major barriers of communication.Let’s talk about  how to overcome these barriers of communication. Eliminating differences in perception:  The organization should ensure that it is recruiting right individuals on the job. It’s the responsibility of the interviewer to ensure that the interviewee has command over the written and spoken language. There should be proper Induction program so that the policies of the company are clear to all the employees. There should be proper trainings conducted for required employees (for eg: Voice and Accent training). Use of Simple Language:  Use of simple and clear words should be emphasized.Use of ambiguous words and jargons should be avoided. Reduction and elimination of noise levels:  Noise is the main communication barrier which must be overcome on priority basis. It is essent ial to identify the source of noise and then eliminate that source. Active Listening:  Listen attentively and carefully. There is a difference between â€Å"listening† and â€Å"hearing†. Active listening means hearing with proper understanding of the message that is heard. By asking questions the speaker can ensure whether his/her message is understood or not by the receiver in the same terms as intended by the speaker.Emotional State:  During communication one should make effective use of body language. He/she should not show their emotions while communication as the receiver might misinterpret the message being delivered. For example, if the conveyer of the message is in a bad mood then the receiver might think that the information being delivered is not good. Simple Organizational Structure:  The organizational structure should not be complex. The number of hierarchical levels should be optimum. There should be a ideal span of control within the organization. Simpler the organizational structure, more effective will be the communication. Avoid Information Overload:  The managers should know how to prioritize their work. They should not overload themselves with the work. They should spend quality time with their subordinates and should listen to their problems and feedbacks actively. Give Constructive Feedback:  Avoid giving negative feedback. The contents of the feedback might be negative, but it should be delivered constructively. Constructive feedback will lead to effective communication between the superior and subordinate.Proper Media Selection:  The managers should properly select the medium of communication. Simple messages should be conveyed orally, like: face to face interaction or meetings. Use of written means of communication should be encouraged for delivering complex messages. For significant messages reminders can be given by using written means of communication such as : Memos, Notices etc. Flexibility in meeting the targets:  For effective communication in an organization the managers should ensure that the individuals are meeting their targets timely without skipping the formal channels of communication.There should not be much pressure on employees to meet their targets. Conclusion Communication is a process of exchange of information between two or more people. Barriers that affect the process of communication can be reduced if the presenter and receiver of information to understand the role and duties of each in securing an effective communication process. By ensuring that the principles of communication clear, concise, accurate, complete and politely complied with, will allow this communication to achieve the desired goals.Hence all obstacles and weaknesses in achieving effective communication should be addressed and improved to enhance the importance of communication in everyday life. Overcome barriers to communication within the organization to ensure the free flow of information betw een sender and receiver and for effective communication among employees. Effective communication reduce error rates, reduce conflict and an understanding of and increase the profits of the organization. And we as managers must try their best to avoid communication barriers within the organization for effective business communication.

“Conyo Talk”: The Affirmation Of Hybrid Identity And Power In Contemporary Philippine Discource Essay

I. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM This study is conducted to find out the current status of the â€Å"conyo† talk in the Philippines. The study specifically answers and defines the following questions: 1. Origin and history of â€Å"conyo† talk in the Philippines 2. How does â€Å"conyo† talk affects the Filipino society? 3. Is â€Å"conyo† talk a part of our culture or not? 4. Why is â€Å"conyo† being discriminated? 5. Why do Filipinos love to mix languages? II. HYPOTHESIS No stated hypothesis in the study. III. RESEARCH METHOD The researcher used historical research method to examine the past events in order to identify the origin and definition of unfamiliar terms. This method also helped the researcher to broaden their experiences. It aims to determine the past eents in making the research possible. Acoording to Good and Scates (1972), the divisions of sources of historical research are the documents which report of events which are composed of impressions made on some human brain by past events and the remains of relics which are physical objects or written materials of historical value and produced without deliberately aiming to impact information. With these divisions of sources, the researcher were able to know more about the subjects past conditions that can be used for the study. IV. CONCLUSION AND FINDINGS ‘Conyo’ talk is a cultural identification where its speakers can be described as having a profound cultural ambivalence. ‘Conyo’ speakers use it not spontaneously, like in situations of code switching, but intentionally to demarcate their own space. This type of discourse is clearly used as a strategy to give the impression of being privileged socially and  economically. The switching between languages clearly conveys the multiple and complementary identities its speakers create for themselves. They have created a ‘social community’ taking on the role of stereotype images of Spaniards or Americans that exist in the Philippine popular imagination adding â€Å"local color† to their everyday discourse. They communicate with other ‘conyo’ speakers directly, without the need of explanations. Discussions on why ‘conyo’ talk exists have gone beyond face-to-face everyday conversation. ‘Conyo’ speakers have created an effective space through the help of Internet where anyone from anywhere can join in. And â€Å"space is fundamental in any form of power of communal life† (Foucault 2000, p. 361). The Philippine linguistic and cultural phenomenon â€Å"coà ±o talk† (a mix of predominantly Spanish and English with tagalog) is a type of discourse that purportedly identifies and differentiates people of ‘power’ from the common masses, and arose from the impact of Spanish and American colonization. Due to steady linguistic influences, resulting from contacts with different peoples and cultures, a word or a phrase may take on another meaning among a given group of people, entirely different from its original significance, where â€Å"a meeting of cultures in the intercultural sphere results in irreversible intra-cultural changes† (Mey 2007, p. 171). In the last decade, it has become the solution to problems of intercommunication where some Filipinos draw on the languages they know and tailor them for their specific shifting communicative needs. ‘Conyo’ talk became an emulation of how English and/or Spanish speakers talked to native Filipinos: a sentence in English and/or Spanish with some Filipino words. In time, it has become a stance among the middle class and the preferred means of communicating with others and establishing potential relationships. In conclusion, this study reflects the contradictory and shifting positions and boundaries of some Filipinos due to lack of confidence in their language fluency, social and economic status. The participants of the web discussions analyzed are searching for a comfortable position to show societal identification. On one hand, they want to affirm their right to be different and highlight their individuality, and on the other hand, they criticize everything that separates them from other individuals or threaten their individuality. Philippines is a hybridized society, and many Filipinos want to preserve the double cultural standard, maintaining the dominance of  Eng lish and Spanish as languages of power, but embracing as well their complex identities manifesting openly the hybridity of their identity as Filipino, Hispanic and Anglophone.â€Å"Conyo talk†: the affirmation of hybrid identity and power in contemporary Philippine discourse. The common ground that unites all ‘conyo’ speakers is their cultural peculiarity and historical memory. In the Philippines, despite being a colony of Spain for more than 300 years (1521-1898), Spanish has remained an exclusive language. It continues to be reserved only for the upper/middle class and university-educated people. Later, when the islands as a nation was transferred to the Americans through the Treaty of Paris in 1898, English – spoken by the educated, upper/middle class – was accorded the same privileged status. Social structures are the determining factors on how speakers behave, their particular ways of speaking, choices of words and rules for conversing. Filipinos who speak fluently Spanish and/or English are perceived to be from upper/middle class and are treated with more respect. On the other hand, Philippine languages are considered inferior and the languages of the poor and illiterates. And because of the continuous disregard for Philip pine languages and the high esteem held for Spanish and English, some Filipinos who have not come to terms with their perception of themselves as the ‘other’ created a hybrid language where they persistently identify with their former colonizers. Consequently, ‘conyo’ talk has become the response for many Filipinos who, constrained by their background and having been deprived, at one point, of ‘power’ -economic as well as social – , are constantly subjected to the idea of being ‘the other’. ‘Conyo’ talk has become a metaphor of what they have been denied – the Spanish language, and an affirmation of their existence and the power that should be theirs and should continually flow to them. Its representation, as Blumenberg (2010) aptly wrote, â€Å"indicates the fundamental certainties, conjectures, and judgments in relation to which the attitudes and expectations, actions and inactions, longings and disappointments, interests and indifferences, of an epoch† (p. 14). ‘Conyo’ talk has become a social-cultural default for many who want to be perceived as coming from upper-middle class, or simply an individual with ‘power’. The advent of Internet and Web discussions has opened new venues for people to discuss matters that affect society without being prejudiced. The opening threads of â€Å"What is conyo ba?†, â€Å"Why do  Filipinos love to mix languages?† and â€Å"Why are conyos discriminated?† shed light on the need to comprehend how this discourse came into being, why speakers have chosen to speak it, what it represents to them. Participants facilitate, and even guide the flow of conversations – from discussing its possible origins, their position towards its speakers or the discourse itself to expressing themselves in ‘conyo’. It is evident, from the examples cited, that its speakers endeavor to assert their identity as Filipino, Hispanic and Anglophone. They have created among themselves a type of jargon that is textually mediated where norms and rules are flexible, subject to interlocutors’ interpretations, and as in many social practices, they facilitate â€Å"perceived anomalies to pass, in order to make sense of the rules and make the coding categories ‘fit’ the data† (Firth 2009, p. 69). Thus, when two participants wrote in Spanish: â€Å"?porque hay conyo? para el pene puede lo entre.† and â€Å"exactamente, Una mujer tiene un conyo asà ­ que puedo utilizar mi pene serà ¡ malo que una mujer tenga†, no one seemed to mind the faulty grammar; on the contrary, the intention was accurately understood by some and were amused by these remarks. ‘Conyo’ talk’s unwritten rules of conduct aremultifunctional and reflexively relate to its context of use. It is like a language game where the interactants position themselves intersubjectively. Thus, when one reads â€Å"Yu-uck, that’s sooo s-q-H2o!† or â€Å"OMGeesshh dude pare bro labuyo!†, only a person familiar with this type of discourse can understand and infer the utterances’ meanings and allow themselves to be subjected to it. In this case, comprehension is achieved â€Å"procedurally and contextually in what is said is invariably assessed in a particular, loc al context, by particular persons, at particular moment† (Ibid., p. 71) IV. ANALYSIS Just like English and Tagalog, â€Å"conyo† talk is just another way of Filipinos, especially the teens, to express and to communicate. Despite being referred to as the way of the â€Å"rich kids† to talk, â€Å"conyo† talk can be heard almost all around the Philippines, especially, in conversations in almost all of the universities in the Metro Manila. Students from private schools and universities are more likely to be heard talking in a â€Å"conyo† way. English and Tagalog words are combined to make a sentence or phrase. I can say that to talk in a â€Å"conyo† way is part of the Filipino students’ culture, especially those who are in the â€Å"higher ups† in our society. But looking on the brighter side of it, I noticed that this â€Å"conyo† talk shows how intelligent the Filipinos are. It may sound annoying, but only the Filipinos can do that to talk with each other using a combination of two languages. They can position themselves more easily without fear of retaliation or ridicule as well as express solidarity, difference and/or power similar to everyday interactions or the hybridity-of-the-everyday. Participants use a more informal language, colloquial forms and other features that are usually associated with spoken language. In this case, hybridity occurs in the responses to the threads posted in reaction to positioning within the ambiguity of what is a Filipino. Are Filipinos only Asians, Hispanics, or Anglophones, or all of these? At the same time, in their continual accommodations of positions and power differences the idea of otherness may haunt the possibility of identification, for in many multiethnic societies such as the Philippines, â€Å"discourse is bounded by the essentialism of social status† (Tate 2007). Factors independent of specific speakers and circumstances, such as economic forces, power relation as well as factors directly related to speakers’ social networks and relationships, their attitudes and their self-perception and perception of others, influence their use of one or another language, or both. In virtual interactions, due to anonymity, member participants have more freedom to create identities to reflect their thoughts and belief. V. REFERENCES http://siba-ese.unisalento.it/index.php/linguelinguaggi/article/viewFile/12641/11252 Blumenberg, H. 2010, Paradigms for a Metaphorology, Cornell University Press, U. S. Bhabha, H. 1990, Dissemination, in Bhabha, H. (ed.), Nation and Narration, Routledge, New York, pp. 291-323. Firth, A. 2009, Ethnomethodology, in D’hondt, S., Ostman, J.O. and Verscheren, J. (eds.), The Pragmatics of Interaction, John Benjamins Publishing, Amsterdam, pp. 66-78 Mey, J. 2007, Developing pragmatics interculturally, in Kecskes, I and Horn, L (eds.),Exploration in Pragmatics, Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin, pp. 165-189.