Saturday, 8 December 2012

2. The best presentation I have seen, and here's why.



The best presentation by far which I have ever seen is Barack Obama making his powerful speech in Dublin. At the beginning of his speech, Obama spoke some of our Irish language "Tá athas orm bheith in Éireann", this really touched all us native Irish as not many would try to learn our language. He then went on to talk about the pint of Guinness which he received, which again plays a huge part in our culture.


Barack then showed that he understand the suffering which took place in our country during the years of ‘The Great Hunger’. He told us the story of his great-great-great grandfather which showed that he had done a lot of research connected with our country and that he had a great interest in our history. He continued to talk about other important parts of our  history, going into great depth which again showed that he truly cared and respected our country.

At the end, Obama told us not to listen to people who say that that our country, although small, cannot do something, and to focus on what we have achieved and what we can still achieve. Obama showed true pride of even being just a small percentage irish, which truly touched me. He again ended the speech off with a phrase from our language ‘Is féidir linn!’ – ‘Yes we can!’ This powerful ending left me speechless and with nothing other than respect for the American president Barack Obama for truly showing us all that he cared and respected all of us Irish People.


The amount of people who gathered to meet and listen to Obama’s speech in the centre of Dublin on the 23rd of May 2011, the reaction they gave and the general atmosphere in Dublin that day makes it even easier for me to admit that this was in fact the best presentation I have ever seen!

Word Count: 316

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Thursday, 6 December 2012

1. Which, if any, is more important in your opinion and why: Cognitive Intelligence (IQ) or Emotional Intelligence (EI).


Intelligence involves around the amount of knowledge a person has. To decide whether cognitive intelligence (IQ) or emotional intelligence (EI) is more important is a tough decision as they are both needed to achieve different things.

Cognitive Intelligence is “The ability to learn new things, recall information, think rationally, apply knowledge, and solve problems” (Kaplan & Sadock 1991).



This type of intelligence is very important in life as it is needed to do well in important tests such as the leaving cert. Cognitive intelligence is also referred to as intelligent quotient (IQ). There are many tests where you can discover what your IQ is. An IQ test compares your mental abilities to other people the same age as you. For an 18 year old in Ireland an average IQ score is 100.

http://www.iqtest.com/

Sample IQ Result Sheet

Emotional intelligence is “To effectively understand and express ourselves, to understand and relate well with others, and to successfully cope with daily demands, challenges and pressures”. (Bar-On, 2007)

Emotional intelligence (EI) is also very important as it is used to get through daily life. Our level of emotional intelligence determines how good a relationship we have with our friends and family, how satisfied we are with our life in general and how well we can adapt to changes. A low level of EI can result in violent behaviour and drug or alcohol abuse.



After exploring both cognitive and emotional intelligence separately, I have come to the decision that both are important, but emotional intelligence is more important. I decided this because although cognitive intelligence is needed to do well academically, this is not everything in life. I find it more important to be able to deal well with others and cope with the daily stress that life brings. A high level of EI is important to have a good quality relationship with the people who we care about in life which is essential, it also enables us to overcome difficulties and be satisfied and proud of our lives. 



Word Count: 330

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6. My notes and summary on the following video ..


o   Colonisation, World Wars, George W Bush are all results of adults decisions.

o   Anne Frank touched millions with her powerful account of the Holocaust, Ruby Bridges helped to end segregation in the United States, Charlie Simpson helped to raise £120,000 for Haiti – the word childish should be abolished when it comes to criticising behaviour associated with irresponsibility and irrational thinking.

 Anne Frank.


o   Children are full of inspiring aspirations and hopeful thinking – Adora's wish is that no one would be hungry. Adults don’t think like that because they know about history and the impossibility of it happening, whereas children still dream about perfection.

o   Imagination helps to push the boundaries of imagination. E.g. The Museum of Glass in Washington got some of their best ideas for glass designs from children as they don’t think about the limitations for blowing glass into a certain shape, they just think of good ideas.

o   Students should teach their teachers as well as the teacher teaching them.

o   Adults have a restricted attitude towards children; children have too many restrictions, especially in school. Children have no or very little input in making the rules.



o   Adults often under estimate children’s abilities – when expectations are low, children will sink to them!

o   When Adora was 6 she wrote over 300 short stories, her parents were supportive in getting them published. She could only find one publisher willing to work with a child – Action Publisher. They published her book called ‘Flying Fingers’.

o   ‘To show that you truly care, you listen’.

o   Children grow up and become better adults than the ones today. New generations and eras grow and develop and become better than the previous ones.

o   ‘You must lend an ear today, because we are the leaders of tomorrow’ – powerful quote to touch adults in listening to children.


Word Count: 305

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5. Plagiarism and Referencing - How I would enlighten a new college student.


Since I started college this year, it seems all I’ve heard from my lecturers is ‘Don’t forget to reference correctly’. Being honest, I let this statement go in one ear and out the other! It was only when I went to do my first assignment that I realised that referencing correctly can be difficult. References must be provided throughout your assignment after each citation and also in a reference list at the end. There are many different styles of referencing; the one which we follow at ITB is the Harvard style of referencing. Everyone is given a guideline to follow in their student handbook at the beginning of each semester.

Referencing is very important as if done incorrectly you can be accused of plagiarism and receive a 0% grade on your assignment. Plagiarism is taking someone else’s work or ideas and passing them off as one’s own (online oxford dictionary). The thing you have to remember is that you can take someone else’s work or ideas and use them – just remember to reference them!


I have provided a video which explains how to use the Harvard style of referencing effectively in less than 10 minutes which I would advise you to watch . I also found the UCD explanation of Harvard Referencing very beneficial, this can be seen on their library page.

Above is an example of a Harvard Style Referencing list.

Some Tips:
o   Referencing correctly comes with time, be patient!
o   Make a list of your references as you go, this will save you a lot of time at the end.
o   List your references in alphabetical order in your reference list.
o   Ensure you reference all citations used, even if you change it to your own words.
o   Take the time to reference as poor or incorrect referencing can lose you marks in your assignment.

Word Count: 309

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