ROBERTO ANDRADE YACHAY TECH UNIVERSITY ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROGRAM YACHAY, ECUADOR
Credits
Portfolio Roberto Andrade English Language Program Yachay Tech University Level 6-004 Professor: Matthew Mackey July 25, 2016
Yachay, Ecuador
TABLE OF CONTENTS Portfolio letter Education (Response Essay) Developing of Ecuador (Exploration Essay) The Road not Token (Interpretation Essay) Censorships in Schools (Argumentation) Reality of Education (Final Research Project) Thank You Letter
Roberto Andrade San Miguel de UrcuquĂ, Hacienda San JosĂŠ s/n and Proyecto Yachay. Imbabura, Ecuador
July, 14, 2016 Dear Portfolio Reader,
Yachay is a university that looks for a big development. Yachay is the first university of Ecuador that looks to teach all the classes in English. For this reason, all students receive English in different levels. It is a requisite to be at least on level 6 of English, to be ready to receive classes completely in English in the fifth semester. I feel very happy to conclude all the English classes at Yachay, and I am finishing my first career semester at Yachay, this is very good for me. I have more than 1 year to keep preparing me and to keep learning more about English. I hope to continue having more experiences of English, experiences that will help me to move forward. Level 6 is obviously the most difficult level at English classes at Yachay, here you will have to write a lot, present all your works, and improvise a lot. It will determinate your skills of English. At the beginning of level 6, it was very difficult for me to write a lot, to be listening to much audios. Those experience helped me to learn about my own mistakes and be better. For example, in one of my essays I had a problem with some references, and that was very close to be consider as a plague. I had to talk to my professor and fix my mistake, now I am sure that I will not do the same mistake. About my presentations, it was a process of constant growth. Presentation after presentation I was improving my skills, improving my speech and my capacity of talk to the audience. This was the most difficult level, but the best level to improve the English language.
At the beginning of the semester my expectations were to improve my English, develop my speech at presentations and to improve my listening. I thought that “it will be easy, I knew a lot of English and will be easy for me�. During the semester, the level starts to be more difficult write and present a lot, making good your sentences you verb tense and more thinks that did the level get more difficult. Right now, at the final, I think that I improved a lot my English, more than I believed I had, and this level helped me a lot. Always when I’m practicing my English, I learn grammar, I improve all the characteristics that help me feel very good, I think that I completed almost a big part of my expectative at this level. As an English language user, I want to keep improving my English. Well prepared professors, my wish for learn, and all my goals that I wanted to complete, those things were fundamental for my success at this level. For a succeed, first you have to start believing in yourself, this is very important because you will face too much obstacles and enemies that will try to stop you, but you have to be strong, believe in yourself and be perseverant. That is the key. My projections as an English language user is to improve my English and be able to understand completely the language. Be able to listen and to speak perfectly and have conversations with people who speak English. At the same time, can study any career in English. This English level taught me a lot of things. I feel happy that now I officially ends all English levels, and can study any career at English. This experience was amazing and helped me a lot to be better each day. Thanks for read my letter. I hope you could have a nice idea of my experience. Gratefully, Roberto Andrade.
Education Education is the process of acquisition of knowledge, skills and values. For education, there are some methods, like teaching, discussion and you can find others. There are a few cases of people that failed after have high levels of study; although, there are some people that have successful without a high level of study, but they have a lot of responsibility and these cases are rare. We can find a lot of people that decide to invest in study, and another do not. Education is an important tool if you want to have a nice future. That does not mean that if you do not have education, you cannot survive or have future, but could be harder; or, if you have education, your future is secure. Study and responsibility are the keys of the successful. When you have education, you have important bases to become a professional in the areas that you want. For example, if you love Physics and you want to work in any work that contain physics; then, you have more possibilities if you study physics, than a person who never did, or maybe studied less than you. Education is a power tool, and give you a big advantage. Currently, when you see important persons, with a big company, work, or just have a lot of money, the majority of them are people that have studied a lot. You can find people with power and money, and they did not study high levels, but maybe they got luck in some business, or they could make money by play sports or another special skill. Education give you skills, knowledge and, also, some experience that help you to work. There are other cases of experience; like the experience that people acquired by work in a specific area a lot of time. These people maybe can earn the enough money for survive, or maybe they can earn more. I think it depends of a very important factor in the life: lucky. A lot of people got enough lucky for the successful. For example, Mark Zuckerberg, who left the university because he got lucky, and he was successful because
he created Facebook, and become millionaire. But at the end he studied, maybe not all the levels of study, but he studied. It allowed him to be a genius behind the computer, the knowledge and his skills that he acquired, were decisive for his successful. If you are at the University, it means you completed the fundamental level of study. Here, in this level, you will choose what you want to be in the future, your career, your profession and, here, you are almost apt to have a work. Maybe not a big work, but you can start acquiring experience to have better skills and knowledge. George Leef (2013) said that “The future won’t be similar to the past for many college graduates and telling young people that college will be a good investment is careless and irresponsible.” It is because when you decide to invest in a college, it does not mean that you will have secured your future, you will have an important work, and you will earn enough money. When you invest in a college, mean you invest in an opportunity, an opportunity that depends only of you. If you study, you are responsible, and you are dedicated and if you want to take advantage of this opportunity. Obviously, an investment in a college will give you skills and knowledge, but only of you depends if, you want to be the best, have more skills and knowledge of the rest. George Leef (2013) said too “These days, with the labor market saturated with college graduates, the time and money spent on college is often wasted.” That is a big reality, but you have to consider too, that when you have to choose your career, you have to know clearly what do you want and what do you want to be, then you have to be conscious if your career have a lot of demand or if not. For example, nowadays, laws is an exploited career in Ecuador, so if you insist in study that, you have to be the best if you want a nice job. In conclusion, when you invest on education you acquire knowledge and skills that will help you in your life. If you decide to study, you have to be very responsible and
that could be the key of the successful. An important thing of this essay is that, you have to be conscious of, if you invest on education, does not mean you have a future, a work. There are other factors like responsibility and your attitude.
References. Leef, G. (2013, June 12). Don't Buy The Hype, College Education Is Not An Investment. Retrieved April 26, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/06/12/dontbuy-the-hype-college-education-is-not-an-investment/#c9a43f47ee60
Development of Ecuador: Education In Ecuador, we have two kinds of education, public education, and private education. When we are talking about a “basic level of education�, this level is about school and high school, until the person finish the bachelor. This elemental level is obligatory for all, and the education rights and the national plan of good living helps to exercise this right. Ecuador is a developing country, that means is looking for a constant development, and education is the principal solution; however, the education system of Ecuador, neither the budget assigned by the government, are the correct. The government believes in that, the education is the solution for the economic situation, and the developing of the country. Education is a very powerful weapon, and the best solution for Ecuador. Ecuador has established that the education is free and accessible for all. The present government is characterized by the principle that they are following, the good living. Public education, especially college, is a great advantage. However, education is not the best. Years ago, the budget assigned by the government for public schools, high school and colleges, was wrong. The education in Ecuador, is better than other countries of South America, but is not enough for developing the country. The main problem is associated with the public education, a bad management, wrong budget, and wrong system. Now, this government has changed the budget for education, and Ecuador has better budget (But not the best), and that was not the solution. As much as the government has improved its budget, this does not encourage competition among high school and universities, and that creates conformity between universities. The government lately, has invested a lot in education. The main things that the government improved are the infrastructure, a better level of professors, and better pay
for professors, and those things are improving the education. While the government still investing in education, should change the system, a correct system with new objectives, and better goals. That is a process that could take many years, but could be the key for the development of the country. A solution for this problem of the education system, should be to incentive the competitiveness. The government should have other goals, for example, have more universities on the top of the ranking In Ecuador, there are only 6 universities in ranking A, where two of them are privates. Clearly there is an absence of competitiveness. That is an important thing, referring to the education system. Ecuador should have more than ten universities competing for being the best The government should give incentive the people to complete, at minimum, the university. This is another important thing, because, if competitiveness is a way to improve the education, the University needs people that would like to compete. The education of school and high school should be better, and that would incentive the people to keep studying. Although, Universities should have better study proposals, with ideas of a better future, and ways to be a better professional. Look for a better education system, for school and high school, would help to incentive people. In conclusion, as the government is improving the budget for the education, needs to improve the system, change objectives. Public education is a very important thing, and needs to keep improving this. The main objective of the government is to develop the country, to have a better economy, and education will be a key for this process.
References. Briones F., Rivas J., Viteri A., Estrada L. (2011). La Educación en el Ecuador, Situación y Propuesta del Sistema de Vouchers Educativos como Alternativa. Retrieved May 17, 2016, from Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral Web site: https://www.dspace.espol.edu.ec/bitstream/123456789/16995/1/La%20Educaci%C3%B 3n%20en%20el%20Ecuador,%20Situaci%C3%B3n%20y%20Propuesta%20del%20Sist ema%20de%20Vouchers%20Educativos%20como%20Alterna.pdf Leef, G. (2013, June 12). Don't Buy The Hype, College Education Is Not An Investment. Retrieved May 15, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/06/12/dontbuy-the-hype-college-education-is-not-an-investment/#c9a43f47ee60 Darling-Hammond L., (1998). Unequal Opportunity: Race and Education. Retrieved May
17,
2016,
from
education-darling-hammond
http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/1998/03/spring-
Interpretation of: The Road not Taken
Have you ever asked yourself what should have happened if you would have taken another decision? Life sometimes puts us in hard situations, and the actions that we choose to deal with such problems, defines our destiny. Sometimes we spend more time worried about our problems, then trying to solve it easy and faster. In this poem we can see how the author use some literary figures for explain his main point. Robert Frost tells us in the poem, “The Road Not Taken” that the decisions we make define our destiny and shape our future.
In the first paragraph uses words like "forest" to show that life is a path not defined and asymmetrical, not as a road that is symmetrical and has a fixed final destination; also shows us that we are alone when making our decisions, especially those that will define our future as what career follow or what work accept, because no one will decide for us. In the second line explains that we only have one chance to choose because we cannot choose two paths at the same time, so in the end, using the "And Looked down one as far as I could. To where it bent in the undergrowth ", it shows that a person analyzes each decision which can more, since we can never know exactly what will happen to take one or another decision, all decisions have hidden and unexpected things we fail to see.
The poem through metaphors tries to explain how humans confronted in your life difficult decisions. From the first line Robert Frost used metaphors like a: “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood “, with this metaphor we can relate the two roads with difficult
decisions and the yellow forest with our life. Maybe the author chose a forest, because it
is easier for the reader to relate life with a natural space instead of an artificial one. Other metaphor that we can analyze is: (Frost, 1920) “Because it was grassy and wanted wear” With this metaphor the author shows, how the decision that we choose can be have a lot of obstacles, but we can't come back.
In the life you must not have to look back and turn around. “And both roads, that morning equally lay” said Robert Frost. With this statement, he is explaining that when you take the hardest way to solve the problems, you maybe can be tented to go back and go for the easy way. “In leaves no step had trodden black” in this verse we can understand that one of the road was never taken, because there was no signs of steps. We you took the less easy road, you maybe can realize that almost anyone has passed through the things that you are experiencing. “Yet knowing how way leads on to way”, said the author to explain the courage you must have to take the difficult road despite of knowing it is going to put harder in the future. And finally “I doubted if I should ever come back”, author explain that you must not retire in your life, because when you doubt, you are doubting about yourself capacity.
Your decisions in life can have a considerable change to your life. Robert tries to say and compare about the two different ways, that in any part of your, life have to choose. When you chose the “a” option, and after that you see what was the results, you think and say “What should have happened if I chose the ‘b’ option?” This is an issue that everyone has to deal with in his life. The consequence of each way maybe is very different to the other, but you never know how should have been the other results. When you see the results that you have after a case, maybe you have bad results, so then you think the other option would be better.
With a variety of literary figures the author presents how humans always is facing different decisions that will build your future. In each paragraph Robert Frost shows clearly the different factors that exist in the moment to choose a decision. For example when to take one road to cannot come back. This poem helps to emphasize how important decisions make differences in the life.
Censorship in Schools. Should be the learning of kids without a censorship? Censorship is an important tool to determinate the information. Some topics in school, can have several things that maybe do not have to been teach yet. When we talk about school, talk about children from 5-6 to 12 years old. Those children do not have the capacity to think as an older person, more than 16 years old. Censorship can improve learning and help to keep kids mind thoughts. The mind grow of kids does not have to be accelerated. Each people have to live their corresponding stage, and this includes kids who do not have a develop mind. Censorship of some things in school is important to keep this order. For example a five years old kid has to have censored topics that maybe a ten years old kid is ready to live. The teachers and books have to be especially for a specific age. All of us know that, you are going to school to learn, to learn about a lot of things. However, the material taught has to be especially for those kids. For example, teach history to an eight years old kid, he does not have to know all the details about kills and deaths, it can be bad for the kid. Censorship of obvious topics can incentive to an investigation. All kids have different interest, for example, if for a one kid like history, and when he received history class, and an obvious detail was censored, after class this kid can investigate on the internet about this, and he can find worst things. Parental control and well prepared teachers can control this dangerous investigations. At the school, teachers have to be conscious of what they are avoiding, and have to be prepared to answer all the questions that kids can have. At the house, parents have to control their sons, because they are not ready to use internet or to learn extra material.
In conclusion, the censorship have to be practiced in schools, there are some information that do not have to be taught to kids. Schools need to have well prepared teachers that can teach the specific information to kinds without a problem. The parental control is important, because is son easy to access to the wrong information.
Reality of Education Do you believe that an education gives you a better future? Education is the process of acquisition of knowledge, skills and values. For education, there are some methods, like teaching, discussion and you can find others. We can find a lot of people that decide to invest in study, and others do not. The principal investment that you will need, is about your personal investment that have human capital, and other things about yourself. Education is an important tool if you want to have more possibilities of works in the future. That does not mean that if you do not have an education, you cannot have a work or survive, but could be harder; Likewise, having education does not mean you have secured your future. Study and responsibility can be the key for the success. Education is crucial for success in peoples live, but real success depends on both a personal investment in developing our own human capital and an education received from a university. The education starts when you are born. There are different kinds of education, in your house, you are learning about the ethics and morals, these are taught by the members of your family. Having a discussion with other people is other way to have an education, you learn different things and thoughts that maybe can be important for your life. Then, when you are apt to go to school you have to go through 3 important stages of education, school, high school and college, and at school start your principal education. Here you start to invest a part of your life, learning new things and important things that will help you in the future. Then you go to the high school and start to learn important things for your future. After this, you have to go to the college. In college you have to decide what you want to be in the future, what profession you would like to study, and is a hard decision. Here all your knowledge that you acquired at school and high school are used, and you will compete with so much people.
Education is a large process and you start since you are a kid. Education give you knowledge and values that is useful for you, make you a better person, and make you have a good affluence to the society. But then, you need education for other things, for example professional skills for your future. This professional skills you will get on the college. This is important for you, when you are looking for a nice future with opportunities. This skills can be improved with the experience that you will get from college and from some jobs. The experience and knowledge, both are very important factors in your professional life, and in your normal life too. In any time of your life you will have to have at least some knowledge of anything, this will help you to survive and to the success. Education is crucial for success because nowadays, employers look for a well prepared person, and for that you need to complete the college. You will get knowledge, skills, and values that will be helpful for you at the moment to find a job. When you have an education, you have important bases to become a professional in the areas that you want. For example, if you love Physics and you want to work in any work that contain physics; then, you have more possibilities if you study physics, than a person who never did, or maybe studied less than you. Education is a powerful tool, and give you a big advantage. However, taking the same example of physics, What if the work is disputed by two persons and both studied physics? Here comes an important thing called Human capital, and this will determinate advantages for you. Education gives you an important part of Human capital. The human capital is all of your skills, values and achievements that you reach. Having an education gives you a big part of this, give you a determinate knowledge, experience; although, those things of human capital are not depending only about education, depend on your capacity to be better than the rest, to be more responsibility, to have more experiences, to be more useful. The university is an important stage to learn all of this steps, and improve them.
However, a degree does not always mean success. Tim Levin (2016) said that “College may be your best option for high earnings years after graduation, but, like any other investment, there are risks involved. And that’s because not all colleges, or degrees, are created equal.” This is because, there exists a lot of people that have a degree and they have not success, why? The answer is simple, they aren’t responsible, and maybe they didn’t study hard. An example of this can be the comparison of two students, both are graduated, but the difference is their personal investment. For the success you have to sacrifice a big part of your time trying to be better in your weak points, be better than the rest. At the same time, we have to be conscious of where we are investing our money and time, if it will be worth or will be useless. The personal investment can be explained by ourselves responsibility and study. Your responsibility and your dedication to study will determinate and important value that we talked before, human capital, and with a high human capital you will have more advantages for your future. Greggs Fisher said that “We can define human capital as the present value of your future labor income, or lifetime earning power. Contrast this with financial capital, or your monetary investments. Over the course of your career, you effectively convert human capital into financial capital by saving and investing a portion of your employment income.” With a high human capital you have more possibilities to have success, and how Greggs says, “you effectively convert human capital into financial capital”, this highlights the importance of human capital. Having education make you a better person? A lot of peoples have so much education, but they are not good peoples. This is a clear example of if you have education you are a better person, this maybe is true, but not always. The society believe that the education is an obligatory process, that is right, but the wrong thing that they believe is, having an education will secure your future, will give you a secure job, will be the key for the success, and this is not all the process. A bad person is created by a bad education
since he grew up. Those people are prone to have a low human capital, and then they can’t reach the success, they can’t have a decent job or a well-paid job. Society talks about the education will secure your future. George Leef (2013) said that “The future won’t be similar to the past for many college graduates and telling young people that college will be a good investment is careless and irresponsible.” It is because when you decide to invest in a college, it does not mean that you will have secured your future, you will have an important work, and you will earn enough money. When you invest in a college, mean you invest in an opportunity, an opportunity that depends only of you. If you study, you are responsible, and you dedicated your time and if you want to take advantage of this opportunity. Obviously, an investment in a college will give you skills and knowledge, but only of you depends if, you want to be the best, have more skills and knowledge of the rest. This will give you a better human capital. Human capital make you an important person to the society. Employers will prefer a person with a high human capital working for them. At the moment of looking for a job, so much people is fighting for this, but who wins? Who studied in the most expensive university? Well, where you study the university affects to your human capital, but the most important thing is how good you are doing what you like, and the difference that you have of the others persons. A high human capital gives you a lot of advantages, and those advantages will help you to have a better future. Nowadays, the society are divide by this personal value, and if you are looking for a job, so if your human capital is better than the other postulants, you will be the first option.
There exist people that have success without having a high level of education. How can it be possible? In the life we find important factors that determinate your future. Your destiny and your luck are important factors. This person got success without
education because their abilities, they luck and their perseverance in what they are good. Those persons can be famous people, or professional players of some sports, and those people can have success without education. They have money, they are important, their human capital is high in their activities. Those people that are successful without education are limited. Maybe they can be successful doing what they know best. The thing is, this ability will not be forever. And what happens next? After some years of success, and after they cannot continue in their activities, they will have no success. They have no education, they cannot work in any works, or in a big work. This is why is important the education. For example a football player, he can have successful for twenty years, but then what? If he doesn’t have a degree or an education, he won’t have success after his football career. He needs to study to have a work and continuing having success. In conclusion, education give you knowledge, skills and values. Those things are important for your future. A complete level of education is when you finished the college. Invest on education can give you big opportunities, if you are responsible, you should have a better future and always you have to look for have a high human capital. A high human capital will give you big opportunities for your life, at you can continuing increasing your human capital. When you finish your education you can have big expectations, but you may be sure that you were responsible. Education is very important, because it will be an important tool for you the rest of your life.
References Leef, G. (2013, June 12). Don't Buy The Hype, College Education Is Not An Investment. Retrieved April 26, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/06/12/dontbuy-the-hype-college-education-is-not-an-investment/#c9a43f47ee60 Levin, T. (2016, July 6). A Degree Is a Risky Investment but You’re Still Better off Going to College. Retrieved July 6, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/timlevin/2016/07/06/a-degree-is-a-risky-investment-butyoure-still-better-off-going-to-college/?ss=education#2374866b1db3 Fisher, G. (2014, Dec 22). Human Capital and Your Investment Portfolio. Retrieved July 6, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/greggfisher/2014/12/22/human-capitaland-your-investment-portfolio/#5768a1f439c3
Thank you for reading my Portfolio, hope that can be useful for you. Good luck at level 6 of Yachay Tech University English language Program.