Kevin Cárdenas Yachay Tech T2-2 January 10, 2017 Dear Portfolio Reader, Thank you very much for reading my English Language Portfolio. It is a collection of all my work in English and it demonstrates my ability as an English learner at Yachay Tech. My portfolio has my best essays that I did during this level 6 English course. I am very proud for everything that I did during this level and I am ready to continue my academic career in English. As a student, I learned many things during Level 6 of English. When I started the level I did not feel so sure when speaking in front of my classmates, but with impromptu speeches I improved. I think that doing this exercise every day at the beginning of the class improves the ability to think in English and not in Spanish and then translate it. This has helped me to improve my improvisation and my individual and group presentations because I feel more comfortable. On the other hand, I believe that I also improved my writing doing the essays because I corrected my spelling which also helped me to enhance in my vocabulary. Moreover, during the classes, I learned a new vocabulary through interesting readings I did like “Why Self-Educated Learners Often Come Up Short” or “How does our language shape the way we think?”, this activity made me understand some words in a specific context and helped me to organize my ideas to do better essays. Besides, I improved my essays putting into practice APA norms like citations to avoid plagiarism. In addition, I am proud of my growth in speaking because at the beginning I felt that my pronunciation was not so good. However, through every class I improved and I believe that I enhanced my pronunciation. I think that now is not complicated to understand me when I am speaking because I try to talk in the clearest way. Besides, I enhanced fluency so that I can express myself in a better manner with my classmates. Furthermore, I am proud of my listening because at the beginning of the semester I had some issues understanding what the teacher was saying. I had to put all my attention to interpret what the teacher said in each class and I think that my skill of listening has improved because of the way that the teacher speaks. Through each class I understood her more and it became easier for me because I got used to the way she talks. Even though I have grown for moving out of the English Language Program at Yachay Tech, I will never stop learning and practicing English because it is a requirement in the process of my professional career. I have to keep learning English in order to improve my communication and then I will be ready to start my career process in a good way. I also plan to keep reading because this is the best method to learn new vocabulary and put it in practice with my speaking. Thank you again for reading my portfolio. I made my best effort and I hope you enjoy reading it. I think that you will agree with me that I have become more efficient in my
English because of the program at Yachay Tech University and I am ready to pursue my career.
Sincerely,
Kevin Cรกrdenas
The advantages and disadvantages of self-education Kevin Cรกrdenas Yachay Tech University October 02, 2016
The advantages and disadvantages of self-education Is self-education a good method to learn everything that people need to know? Well, there are situations where people who prefer self-education do not get the knowledge that they want like they could get in formal education because self-education is a way to learn the basics of a topic. In formal education, students can develop better knowledge because they have many ways to learn and it forces to people to follow a curriculum (Young, 2010). In contrast, self-education cannot provide the same opportunities for learning because the students have to study by themselves. However, self-education can be a complement of formal education with the purpose of improving student’s knowledge. I think that some people believe reading a couple of books is the same as getting a college degree which is a wrong thinking because self-education almost always does not give technical knowledge which is more important to be part of a job. Self-education is an efficient method to learn a small part of a specific field. Self-education can provide people dozens of books in order to know the basics of a field, but it will not give to people the abilities to get a deeper knowledge because the information that they get is not for doing research (Young, 2010). For example, reading about evolutionary biology can give you a little learning about that topic, but when people need to apply their knowledge in an advance way like in a laboratory they cannot do good work (Young, 2010). Therefore, I agree with the author because the knowledge that people acquire for their self-education is not the same as getting in formal education. Being in formal education proves that people have made a preparation to acquire a better knowledge with the purpose of founding a good job in a specific field. Furthermore, self-education attempts fail because many people do not have a discipline to learn what they want. According to Young (2010), formal education has
incentives for students such us assignments or grades to keep them studying. Nevertheless, Young (2010) found “deeper self-education requires more discipline than university because in self-education people need to do different activities that are more difficult than in formal education”. For instance, there are some topics that are difficult to understand and people need more concentration to understand them, but in the process, they can get bored and leave their studies (Young, 2010). Thus, I agree with this, studying alone can be difficult because people do not have a mentor or an instructor to help them when they are having doubts. For this reason, self-education could be more difficult to accomplish. On the other hand, self-education is an important method that can be related with formal education to acquire a complete learning. It can help to people to improve their skills and know how deep is their knowledge on certain topics. According to Young (2010), there is a “T” model which explains the basic knowledge that people have and the deeper knowledge where they are more experts. Additionaly, self-education is an important process to learn the current topics about a certain field. For example, there are topics that people learn in a certain time, but these issues are updated or changed according to the needs that require the new research fields (Young, 2010). For this reason, I agree because self-education could be an effective way to complement the knowledge that people receive in formal education and it can be a good way to keep informed about the issues that have changed. Also, it can help to people to keep learning and not just maintain what they have learned in an educational institute. In conclusion, self-education has its pros and cons depending on the situation. Self-education will not provide to people the same knowledge as in formal education. Also, self-education is not a good method to learn if people want to start studying something without any knowledge because they will not achieve a deeper knowledge
like they wish. Moreover, self-education will never give to people a technical knowledge because this is developed in specific places like laboratories where people can do experiments to get experience and learn from this situations or activities. By last, self-education can be a complement of formal education because when they are together they can provide a complete knowledge to the students. Furthermore, if they like what they are studying they can achieve a better learning in an easy way.
References Young, S. H., (February, 2010). Why Self-Educated Learners Often Come Up Short. [Blog]. Retrieved from: https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2010/02/24/selfeducation-failings/
Tenderness Kevin Cรกrdenas, Andrea Valenzuela, Vanessa Hinojosa Yachay Tech University November 15, 2016
Tenderness-Oswaldo Guayasamin “My painting is two worlds. From skin for inside it is a scream against the racism and the poverty; from skin to outside it is the synthesis of the time that I had to live” (Guayasamín, n.d). Oswaldo Guayasamín was an Ecuadorian painter, drawer, sculptor, graphic designer and muralist. His work is divided in three stages: Huacayñan, The Age of Anger and the Age of Tenderness. In the last stage he has more than one hundred of artworks. The importance of this piece of art is know the Ecuadorian art, culture and history. This painting has different elements like colors, shapes, characters which to be analyzed have a mutual interpretation. His work Tenderness pays tribute to mothers which protect and love their children despite adversities, and it is a symbol of defense of life. In this piece of art, people can observe different elements such as color, figures and shapes. Tenderness was done in 1989 by the Ecuadorian painter Oswaldo Guayasamín. This kind of work was done in oil on canvas with a measurement of 135x100 cm. The background of the painting has an opaque blue color, and in this painting there are a woman and a child. The woman has a combination of few colors which are yellow and brown. In addition, the woman has her eyes closed, and she frowns. Furthermore, she has a hump and her ribs are thin, she has big hands and her arms are slender and elongated which are hugging a child while she rests her head on his. On the other hand, the child has the same colors of the woman's skin and he is just as thin as the woman and he does not show his hands. The child's face does not show happiness, he is serious, his eyes are open, they are dark and they are highlighted with a sky blue color. The painting Tenderness transmits feelings and situations through all its elements. The title is Tenderness because it reflects the affection that the women has for a child. It is the adjective that describes delicacy, sweetness, pure and gratuitous love, and it
suggests that the woman is the child’s mother. The use of warm and pure colors to paint the mother and the child gives warmth to the bond that unites them. Also, colors are similar to the colors of the earth. The colors that were used more were the blue ones, yellow and green that contrast with the black and white, they aroused much the attention of the spectator. The position of the child in the center of the mother and the embrace of the mother represents how the protection of the mother's womb remains beyond childbirth. Moreover, the frowns seem like the mother does not want to relaese the child. On the other hand, the mother's eyes reflect her love, while those of the child convey his naivety and delicacy. Furthermore, the hands looks like the hands of indigenous people that work in the agriculture, and the shape of the lips and the ribs show the mistreatment or suffering of them. Additionally, the eyes and nose are reflections of the world of the indigenous. The author express the love of mothers, the wish to protect their children, and to reflect the reality of indigenous people. The title and the affection of the mother to the child show the strong link between mothers and their children, and it is a way to express the love, delicacy, and sweetness that mothers have. Also, the earthy colors relate mother with the earth. The earth give us food and it is generous like mothers are with their children. Moreover, the hug that the mother gives to her child shows as she tries to protect him, and it express the wish that life continues. In the same way, the frown of the mother is because she want not set free the child. It is interpreted as the mother want to avoid the suffer of the child and the wish that the child has a better future. Additionally, the agriculture hands and their bony ribs is an expression of suffer, mistreatment and abuse that indigenous people had. Moreover, the look of the child express the naivety and delicacy and it could be interpreted as hope for a better life.
Finally, the painting Tenderness is composed of a diversity of elements like shapes, colors and figures which communicates moods and states. The analysis of all these elements allows to get the meaning of the artwork. The interpretation of this painting is the love of the mother, the requirement to defend her child, and to reproduce the authenticity of indigenous people. Tenderness of Oswaldo Guayasamin send a message that the love of a mother is infinity and she always will protects us.
References Casalino D. (2016) Oswaldo guayasamĂn’s tenderness. Retrieved from: http://www.pixelle.co/oswaldo-guayasamin/ Universia Ecuador. (2013). Descubre. Retrieved from: http://noticias.universia.com.ec/enportada/noticia/2013/06/13/1030108/descubre -ternura-oswaldo-guayasamin.html
The importance of language on ethics Kevin Cรกrdenas Yachay Tech University November 22, 2016
The importance of language on ethics Have you ever asked yourself what has an important effect on ethics? Well, language has a great effect on ethics and morality because it changes the people’s mind and their way of thinking. There is some research where the people give their criteria and this depends on the native language that they speak. In addition, the language has on important relationship with the emotions in order to know what moral judgments are correct for people. First of all, the language changes the people’s way of thinking about moral dilemmas. They do indeed respond differently when considering dilemmas in a foreign language than when using their native language (Sedivy, 2016). In addition, Janet Geipel and her colleagues also found that using a foreign language shifted their participants’ moral verdicts (Sedivy, 2016). According to their study, volunteers read descriptions of acts that appeared to harm no one, but many people find morally reprehensible (Sedivy,2016). In fact, they read some activities that are against the morality and those who read the stories in a foreign language judged these actons to be less wrong than the others who read them in their native language (Sedivy, 2016). Moreover, when people judge morality, their judgments have two separate modes of thinking (Sedivy, 2016). One of them is the gu-level “feeling” and the other one is careful deliberation for the greatest good for the greatest number (Sedivy, 2016). For example, when people use a foreign language, their cognitive system prepare for strenuous activity in order to make less mistakes, this can happen when people read math problems with a specific difficulty (Sedivy, 2016). On the other hand, there is another research of Catherine Harris and her colleagues that shows the reaction that people have with some responses in different reactions when they were listening neutral and too words, this reactions were found by the skin’s electrical conductivity to measure
emotional arousal (Sedivy, 2016). The volunteers responded very mildly to the English phrases, but they had powerful reactions to the Turkish ones because this one was their native language (Sedivy, 2016). Furthermore, according to the author, there is an explanation between native and foreign tongues where the native language has a greater emotional intensity than those learned in more academic settings. The difference between these languages is the emotion that provides each one and the way that the language has been learned, As a result, moral judgments made in foreign language are less laden with the emotional reactions that surface when the people use a language learned in childhood (Sedivy, 2016). However, some people think that the language does not have effect on ethics and morality. They think that the most important things are the customs and culture that they teach o their family. In contrast, the language has an important relationship because it improves the way of thinking and people can make a difference between the right and the wrong things. In conclusion, the language has an important effect on ethics and morality because it provides to people a specific way of thinking. In addition, the language has a relationship with emotions and feelings to identify what things are correct or wrong.
References Sedivy, J. (2016). How morality changes in a foreign language. Scientific American. Retrieved from: www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-morality-changes-in a-foreign-language
The changes of the education system in Ecuador Kevin Cรกrdenas Yachay Tech University December 06, 2016
Abstract This paper explores different books that report what are the changes about the education system in Ecuador. It shows some important events that happened in the history of the education of Ecuador during the governments that the country had. The books taken to present this paper have been exclusively with issues related to Ecuador’s education system. The topics discussed in this paper are modifications that Ecuador applied in education with the purpose to get a better quality of education. In addition, some changes have been done to train better professionals in different areas with an important knowledge. Also, Ecuador has wanted to improve the entire educational curriculum, especially in higher education which takes an important role for the formation of new generations with new tools to get a better learning. Moreover, there is a comparison between the current educational system and the United States educational system.
The changes of the education system in Ecuador Have you ever wondered how Ecuadorian education has changed? Education in Ecuador has not been so good on times. During the course of its governments and changes in that country, education has become more important in order to train better professionals and improve the quality of life of all Ecuadorians. Ecuador's education system has changed its teaching with the passage of time and the way in which students can learn because of the modifications that the government has done. Years ago, students learned with old methods, they just learned to memorize and they did not analyze the information that they received. However, these methods have changed and students are learning with new ways and tools to know what they are doing in order to get a better knowledge. In the 18th and 19th century Ecuadorian education was restricted and the country did not have many educational centers for the training of its professionals. According to Freile (2015), Ecuador had schools for boys run by the Jesuits and the education for girls was very limited because they did not have the same opportunities as boys. On the other hand, when Ecuador changed its the government was created the first school of girls called Nuestra SeĂąora de la Caridad by the president Vicente Rocafuerte (Freile, 2015). In addition, during the government of Gabriel Garcia Moreno schools were formed for girls and boys in the capitals of the provinces, also, the government introduced technical education in college and high schools creating some schools like the Polytechnic, School of Fine Arts, School of Agriculture and the Conservatory of Music. Furthermore, in the second government of Eloy Alfaro, which began in 1906, secularism was imposed against the will of many people. In addition, the curriculum was changed, The government implemented access to free education and several public schools were founded (Freile, 2015). Moreover, Freile (2015) added that another
important contribution in education was the foundation of two normal schools in Quito for the training of teachers, besides, people who worked during the day were given the benefit to attend night school classes. Thus, Ecuadorian governments gave the same opportunities so that women can also attend educational centers and have an adequate education. In addition, the government separated the church from the educational processes and more people had access to education with the creation of new educational centers. Since 1990, Ecuador got loans from the World bank and the Inter-American Development bank for approximately one hundred sixty million dollars in order to improve education quality in the reorganization of schools, the government provided teaching materials, and training teachers to develop a new curriculum studies, but it failed (Cabrera & Espinosa, 2008). The curriculum in primary or basic education made students memorize concepts and they could not develop their intellectual skills. Cabrera and Espinosa (2008) argued that the knowledge that the teacher gave to the students was "right", students were obligated to learn what the teacher taught them and they were unable to analyze the concepts. The children did not develop their own criteria because they only memorized and repeated what the teacher was saying in class. For this reason, the children’s learning was insignificant and between 1996 and 2000, education was a failure because the seventh graders did not have many skills in language and mathematics (Cabrera & Espinosa, 2008). Although the Ecuadorian government tried to invest money in education, the country had not had a great change because the methods of teaching were not adequate and some teachers did not have the capacity to teach in a correct way. Nevertheless, Education has had a major change in the last elected government because education became more important and the new generations could have a better
level of knowledge. Education in Ecuador has been enhanced since 2006 because the government improved quality in education by investing 73 505 845 million dollars on the improvement of the infrastructure of two thousand four hundred eight educational institutions (Tamayo, 2009). Moreover, Tamayo (2009) added that in 2007 the government distributed a lot of textbooks to all public institutions for learning different subjects such as natural science, language, mathematics, and English. Furthermore, in 2007 education was implemented for the 9% of adults who were illiterate and this new form of education was carried out to reduce the large number of people who could not read and write (Tamayo, 2009). Also, the current government, led by President Rafael Correa, has several projects to eliminate illiteracy in Ecuador and one of the important projects focuses on educating young people and adults who are in jail (Tamayo, 2009). Furthermore, at the end of 2007 and the beginning of 2008 an educational census was carried out to improve the conditions of the Ecuadorian educational system, this will help to have better results with teaching around the whole country (Tamayo, 2009). It is clear that the current government of the country has made major changes which have improved the quality of education. The infrastructure of the new educational centers is adequate so that students have a better teaching and can put their knowledge into practice. Besides, education is not only for children and young people, but also for people who want to overcome themselves and get out of ignorance. Additionally, with the purpose to give a better education to Ecuadorians, the United States and Ecuador have a strong cooperation in the field of education, especially in English and university education. Through a wide range of English language programs, the US government supports Ecuador's efforts to improve the level of English nationwide and open the door to greater professional and academic opportunities for disadvantaged young Ecuadorians (Weinshenker & McInturff, n.d).
According to Weinshenker and McInturff (n.d), the United States is Ecuador's main partner in university education and between the two countries there is a strong and growing academic exchange. Nearly 2,300 Ecuadorians study in the United States. The Secretariat for Higher Education of Ecuador, SENESCYT, contributes approximately 800,000 million dollars to the Fulbright Commission, which has almost doubled the number of scholarships available to Ecuadorian academics (Weinshenker & McInturff, n.d). The US government provides academic advice to Ecuadorian students in order to give them better knowledge in their education. However, today, many students are against the system to enter to higher education. In order to have the opportunity to study in a public university, the applicant must take a test of skills for about two hours that is evaluated in several educational centers which are located in strategic areas for the convenience of all the aspirants of the country. Nevertheless, many students do not achieve the expected result to enter to the university that they desire. This is due to various circumstances, one of them is that there are many applicants for the most prestigious universities or for the most requested careers. For this reason, they blame the new system for their failure because they cannot earn a chance in the university and in the desired career. Additionally, many people say that the new system assigns the applicants where they should study, but the applicant is the one who chooses his career and the university of his preference around the whole country and in the modality of his/her preference. The government implemented the National Leveling and Admissions System (SNNA) in 2011 in order to improve the quality of education in the country by giving different opportunities to new university students. One of the advantages of this new system is the allocation of scholarships at national and international level, these are implemented to train new professionals with a deeper knowledge in different fields
which will help to the academic and technological development of the country. In addition, according to figures from the SNNA, in 2009 and 2010 the entry rate for applicants to higher education was 54 and 55%, while from 2012 this increased to 71.99% (El Telegrafo, 2012). On the contrary, many years ago, many high school graduates entered the universities because of their economic status or some help within that institution. They practically bought their entrance to the university, but they did not earn them. Furthermore, several educational centers did not have a good academic level and therefore the government decided to close about fourteen institutes of education in 2012 after an intense evaluation that began in 2009. In conclusion, the Ecuadorian educational system has had different changes in the course of governments, the quality of education has been improving and students have new opportunities to acquire better knowledge than the previous generations. Also, education for Ecuadorians tries to be fair and equitable so that everyone can have a good level of knowledge and be professionals with great learning standards. Education in Ecuador did not have great relevance before the present century, despite the changes that had taken place, the educational system had many flaws and the teaching quality was poor. Therefore, the last elected government decided to give more importance to education by making great changes in order to improve many aspects in teaching for the training of better professionals. Teaching methods have improved and teachers are better prepared and evaluated to be sure of the good learning that the new generations of the future will have.
References Arcos, C., & Espinosa, B. (2008). Desafíos de la educación en el Ecuador: calidad y equidad (pp. 67-74). Quito: Crearimagen. Tamayo, M. (2009). Cumplimiento del derecho a la Educación en el Ecuador (pp. 189202). Quito: Rispergraf. Freile, C. (2015). Hitos de la Historia de la Educación en el Ecuador (siglos XVI-XX). Para el Aula. 13, 4-6. Telégrafo, E. (2012). Desde la creación del SNNA, se incrementaron matrículas. [online] El Telégrafo. Retrieved from: http://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/sociedad/4/desde-la-creacion-del-snnase-incrementaron-matriculas Weinshenker, J., & McInturff, R. (n.d). Apoyo de los Estados Unidos al programa de educación del Ecuador. pp.1,4. Retrieved from: http://photos.state.gov/libraries/ecuador/32152/pdfs/EducCoop%2014%20SP.pd f [Accessed 7 Dec. 2016].
Photos Class 6-002
Thank You! I hope that you like my portfolio and thank you for your time reading it. If you have any questions or concerns email me at kevin.cardenas@yachaytech.edu.ec Best regards, Kevin Cรกrdenas