Month: June 2017

One of our most recent units for PLP was called Fear Factor. This unit was focused mainly on the Cold War, and the fear surrounding it. However, it also tied in the rise of organized crime in America, and the development of Las Vegas.

We did so much in the span of this unit. From reading the novel Fallout, to watching countless documentaries, we were really given a chance to fully understand the topics. Part way through the unit, we had to create a Blogpost relating past and current nuclear fear. And all this learning was in preparation for one thing, a field study! This time around we would be headed to Tucson, Arizona, and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Now, no field study goes without a project, so of course we would have our work cjut out for us on this trip. Sometimes we write essays, and sometimes we make videos, so of course our big project was to create a video essay. I partnered up with Tom for this one and we set out on an epic journey to create the World’s best video Essay.

We started brainstorming what our video would be about long before we stepped foot on American soil. We spent many hours figuring out and narrowing down our topic. We had charts like these to help us along the way:

Eventually our topic was narrowed down to a simple question: Was America’s nuclear Deterrence worth the cost?

Finally, the time rolled around for us to depart on our journey. First stop: Tucson. Now I’ve been to hot places before like California and Hawaii, but Tucson might just be the hottest place I’ve ever been. I wasn’t prepared for the dry desert sun scorching my skin every moment of the day.

To distract me from this heat, however, was our activities. Our time in Tucson was filled with information filled experiences. We visited the Biosphere, the Pima Air and Space Museum, the Sonora Desert Museum, a county fair (Ok, maybe that one wasn’t so informational), a missile silo, and many other places. Throughout this time, Tom and I collected interviews, photos, and information in general that would be useful in our video. We knew that it would be the on scene footage that could make or break our project.

After many action packed days, it was once again time to depart, this time for Las Vegas! I had never been to Las Vegas before, and there is honestly nothing like it. If I had to compare it to one thing, I would say that the Las Vegas Strip is basically a Disneyland for adults. It is a city of bright lights, good food, and crazy parties. Of course we wouldn’t get to experience the crazy parties. We definitely got the first two though, staying at the iconic Flamingo Hotel, and eating at the best buffets.

The work part of Vegas was quite cool as well. Some of our activities were going to many museums (including a wax museum if that counts), touring all the famous casinos, going to the Hoover Dam, and more. Tom and I got more than enough footage for our project.

Back in Vancouver was when the real work began. We had to start by writing an essay to answer our question. This essay would then be re written into the script for our movie. Three drafts and a couple thousand words later, our essay was finished:

Finally, it was time to start putting our video together. This was difficult but Tom and I were up for the challenge. We submitted our first draft, got critique, submitted our second draft, bit critique, and finally we submitted our final draft.
So, here it is, our Southwest Trip Video Essay:

Well, I think our video is pretty good, especially considering it was made by two students with limited iMovie skills.

In all, I had a blast on our field study this year. It was the perfect combination of work and fun. While it has it’s ups and downs, this trip was definitely one to remember.

This has been a great year for me as I have learned so many things about myself. But other than just passing all of my courses, why am I really ready for grade 12?

First off, I have learned new skills
This year has been challenging for me since I have been out of my element for a lot of it. Learning on an IPad has been extremely difficult for me, but it has taught me new skills. For example, I have learned how to successfully create animated videos and edit them in iMovie. A good example of this is a project that we recently completed, our concept blogposts. I created an animated video to go along with mine:

But not only have I learned new technological skills, I have also learned skills for how to learn better. I have learned how to create a deep inquiry question, that will take me so much further into the learning. An example of an inquiry question I have created is found in my Helmut Lemke Blogpost. Helmut Lemke was an inspiring World War Two veteran who came to speak to our class. We were tasked with creating an inquiry question based on something that Helmut had talked about during his presentation. I ended up with the question: In a time of war, who is a soldier’s greatest enemy?

To help answer this question I did research and also analyzed Helmut’s speech in a Podcast with some of my classmates. These are examples of skills that I have learned, skills that have helped make me more ready for grade 12.

Secondly, I have refined my work ethic.
Last year, I worked hard in school, but I didn’t have an end goal in mind. I was content to put in enough work to get an A, but that was it. But this year, I’ve learned why it’s important to put in the work beyond just for the mark. I realized that learning is something that can benefit us greatly in the long run. But not only that, I learned valuable new ways to learn. Reading about a topic is one thing, but actually experiencing it is another. And that is what I get to do on our field studies. Things like visiting a missile silo, speaking to war veterans, and visiting a nuclear reactor are just some of the things that have helped me go deeper into the learning. Here are some photos of places we have been this year:

These experiences are what have really helped show me that learning is an experience and a process, not just a task. A great example of this is our Fear Factor video. We used information that we had gathered from our field study in Los Vegas and Arizona, and applied it to our project. We never would have been able to gather the knowledge that we did without the field study. Here is part of our video:

It is this change in my work ethic and my attitude towards learning that will help me greatly in Grade 12.

Thirdly, I have learned the skill of revision. This might seem like a small thing, but it is actually a vital part in the learning process that we do in the PLP program. Coming from my background in standard classes, I was surprised at the amount of feedback we received. And at first, I was a little discouraged. In fact, my first project ever, the Manhattan project, was met with a 5 minute audio clip of Mr Hughes giving feedback:

This helped me realize how valuable the feedback was. In a standard class, a teacher usually wouldn’t care enough to give that much critique. And understanding that was such a vital part of accepting the learning process in a project based learning program. So while I was discouraged at first, I now see critique as a way for me to make my learning that much better, and without it my work definitely wouldn’t be the same as it is. This understanding will also help me immensely in the years to come.

Finally, I have learned how to strive towards a goal as part of a team. Sure, I have done group projects in the past, but never the way that I have this year. I could talk about the Manhattan project, or even the puppet show, but if course I’m going to talk about the Macbeth project. Now although it could be argued that the Macbeth project was a bit of a failure, as the finished project was not at all how we envisioned, I like to think of it as a success of sorts. Creating a project as a team is no small task and I thought we handled it well but also learned some lessons. We did well at the beginning, splitting up into different departments and working on our different jobs. But it was during the work outside of class time, when full commitment was needed, that the problems became apparent. I learned that in a team environment, there will always be people who don’t feel the need to pull their weight, and there will be the people picking up the slack from those people.

This was a valuable lesson for us all to learn because at the beginning, there was an expectation that everyone would pull their weight, which didn’t happen. I also learned that every member of a team will have a different opinion and not everyone will get what they want. It is these valuable team lessons that we have learned that I think will help me in the future.

So to summarize, why am I ready for grade 12? Because of the skills I’ve learned the change in my work ethic, and my opinions on revision and teamwork. These skills have all helped me grow as a learner, and I will continue to keep pushing my self to grow. So with that in mind, I have set myself a goal for next year:

Plan my time better. After all I am the winner of the late night worker, and I definitely deserve this award. Now that’s not because I leave all my work to the last minute, it’s because I work on things for too long.

I want to end with the “unsung hero” of projects so to speak. This was not a very major project, but it’s one of the things I feel the most proud of. The soldier blogpost. This project actually pushed my comfort level because it pushed a different side of me to the surface. I am a very straightforward writer, but for this assignment I really had to look to the creative writing aspect. I was happy about this though and I feel like I created a successful project, writing the letter well in English and in French:

Well, by the time you read all this I’m probably already in grade 12, so I guess that’s it for now and I’ll see you next year.

As I mentioned in my last post, we have spent the last few months studying Lord of the Flies, by William Golding. We focused mainly on the concepts and symbolism in the novel, and expanded on this knowledge by writing paragraphs once a week. However, there were a few other things intertwined with this unit. For one, we also briefly studied the Canadian government, and how it works. This worked well with Lord of the Flies since it is a very political novel. We were also told from early on that this unit would culminate in a debate, which would happen during the spring exhibition. I was quite happy about this since I feel comfortable debating and public speaking.

Our first assignment of the unit was obviously inspired by Lord of the Flies. The teachers left the room and told us we had about 20 minutes to form teams. These teams would be our groups for the rest of the unit. I ended up on a team with Tom, Chris, Alanah, and Teva, called team Tactical. Once the teachers returned, they told us that we would be part of a competition against the other teams. Different tasks throughout the unit would gain or lose us points:

Points could also be gained by things like winning the practice debates that we had in class. At first, teams worked hard to gain points and everyone was focused on winning the competition. But as time went on, the teams began to lose the desire to win the competition and follow the rules. As the unit progressed, I started to make a connection between the points system and Lord of the Flies. In Lord of the Flies, the boys set out rules quickly after crashing on an island. These rules included things like only letting the person who holds “the conch” speak, and never letting the signal fire out. At first, the boys are quite adamant about following these rules. But like our class, as time wore on, they lost focus on the rules and guidelines. So the exact same thing that happened in Lord of the Flies seemed to happen to our class as well.

We did a lot to prepare for the debates that would happen at the exhibition. Every class we would add ideas to posters that explored different concepts. These concepts were:

Power and Authority
Humanity and Inhumanity
Violence and Destruction
Human nature
Civilization and Savagery
Innocence and Evil
Individualism and Community

Insert photo of posters

We also wrote a paragraph about these concepts once a week. We also had our new teacher, Ms Maxwell, helping us with our debating skills.

Eventually, we were put into our teams for the debate. I was on a team with Jackson and Brianna, which was good because I thought the three of us worked well together. We did well in all the practice debates so I felt confident heading into the exhibition. We had prepared well with charts like this:

On the night of the debate setup was quick so my team had a lot of time to practice. Finally, it was time for the tournament to begin. The winners would be decided by a 3 way vote; two votes from judges and one vote from the audience. My team, ended up having to go first, so I was a little nervous. However, I thought my team did exceptionally well. We made good points and countered the other team’s points effectively. Once the round ended, the audience voted almost unanimously for us as the winners. However, both judges voted against us, so we ended up moving into the losers’ bracket. Afterwards, we found out that the judges had accidentally given some of our points to the other team, however I wasn’t too upset because I thought the other team had done a great job. I also knew that the judges had a very hard job and that they probably didn’t know what to expect until the night of the debates, so I thought they did a great job.

Our second round in the losers’ bracket lasted a minute and was decided by audience vote. We won almost unanimously, so we felt good about that. Eventually, the debate was won by Chris, Michael, and Maria which I thought was a good decision since they had done a great job.

If I had to do anything differently, I would have prepared a little differently. I would have focused less on Lord of the Flies, and more on how the concepts could be applied in the World today. I think that would have helped us come up with more unique points. But other than that, I thought my team did an exceptional job.

To conclude, I think that this debate was a great way to wrap up the year, since it drew upon all our skills; critical thinking, public speaking, thinking on the spot, etc. I had a lot of fun debating and would be happy to do another debate in the future.

Our most recent unit in PLP has been based around the novel Lord of the Flies, by William Golding. In this unit, we explored concepts that appeared in the novel and could connect to history and everyday life in general. Every week, we had to write a paragraph about one of these concepts:

Power and Authority
Humanity and Inhumanity
Violence and Destruction
Human nature
Civilization and Savagery
Innocence and Evil
Individualism and Community

Also every week, we would receive feedback on these paragraphs, making our next paragraph more successful. Our task now is to expand on one of our concepts, so here goes:

I decided to look into the concept of power and authority, and I wanted to really focus on what makes a good leader. Eventually, I settled on an age old question; As a leader, is it better to be feared or loved?

 

Niccolo Machiavelli said “It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.”
And although it is not usually wise to disagree with one of history’s greatest thinkers, Machiavelli’s statement couldn’t be more inaccurate. History has shown us that it is leaders who are loved that are capable of making the most difference. We can examine history as well as famous texts, which will prove that as a leader it is better to be loved than feared.

Macbeth:

A great counter to Machiavelli’s point lies in the play Macbeth, by Shakespeare. Macbeth is the epitome of a feared leader, with his ruthless wife at his side. Once Macbeth gets a taste of power, he develops an insatiable craving for more, eliminating his competition until he is the King of Scotland. Showing this kind of dominance creates fear and obedience in many, but Lord Macduff feels a different kind of fear, a fear that Macbeth will do whatever it takes to gain more and more power. Macbeth, however, realizes this and tries to scare off Macduff by killing his family:

“He has kill’d me, mother:
Run away, I pray you!” (Macduff’s son, Act 4 Scene 2)
Macbeth is clearly using fear as a tool to keep people in line. This tactic of being feared however, ultimately leads to Macbeth’s downfall. Macduff eventually kills Macbeth, since he knows that Macbeth has to be stopped. In fact, Macduff perfectly describes Macbeth as a tyrant:
“Then yield thee, coward,
And live to be the show and gaze o’ th’ time.
We’ll have thee, as our rarer monsters are,
Painted on a pole, and underwrit,
‘Here may you see the tyrant.’ “(Act 5 Scene 8)

Ultimately, Macbeth’s desire to be a feared leader leads to his downfall, and he is a great example that leaders are better off loved than feared.

History:

More great examples that it is better to be loved than feared lie in history. Arguably the greatest leader of all time, Julius Caesar, was adored by his people. Instead of trying to create obedient subjects who catered to his every will, Caesar gave the people what they wanted. He offered citizenship to people outside Rome, conquered barbaric tribes, and gave land to retired soldiers.

This kept the people happy and kept Caesar safe. Since Caesar didn’t have to worry about an uprising, he was able to focus on creating one of the World’s greatest empires. It seems that a feared leader has a target on their back, whilst a loved leader is left in peace to rule peacefully. Caesar is not the only loved leader who created a thriving empire. Alexander the Great, another one of history’s successful leaders was also loved by his people.

When Alexander conquered a place, he would let the people continue to live normally, instead of oppressing them. This created an empire where Alexander was able to rule prosperously for years. Not only will loved leaders rule longer, they will benefit society. It is usually during the reign of a loved leader that cultural growth and beneficial political reform is seen. This is when our World truly advances and the human potential is maximized. For example, during the Middle Ages, one of the most brutal and fearful times in history, leaders were usually feared or they would be overthrown. This caused little growth in the arts and very little political reform. In contrast, the Renaissance was filled with loved leaders such as Lorenzo'”the Magnificent” Medici. These loved leaders are what allowed for the rich cultural growth that occurred during the Renaissance. Since the citizens did not have to spend their time worrying about their leader, they could fill their days with creating art, trading goods, and other activities that benefited society for the better. The contrast between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance clearly shows that it is only during the reign of a loved leader when society can advance.

Lord of the Flies:

In Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, it is clearly shown that a loved leader is more effective than a feared one. When the boys crash on an island, it does not take long for them to realize the need to elect a leader. In contention is Ralph, who comes across as calm and collected, and Jack who leads his choir with an “iron fist”: “When [Jack’s] party was about ten yards from the platform he shouted an order and they halted, gasping, sweating, swaying in the fierce light.” (Chapter 1). Not surprisingly, the boys elect Ralph as the leader. This shows that even if humans know nothing about two people, they will always gravitate away from the one who uses fear to gain obedience. This seems to contrast directly with Machiavelli’s opinion; he thought that leaders should be cruel and merciless. Obviously the boys in Lord of the Flies disagreed. In fact, through the course of the story, Ralph becomes less and less loved by the children. As their affection for Ralph is lost, the children gravitate towards Jack. Jack promises the thrill of the hunt, something that wins him support from the boys. This switch in the boys’ attitude shows again that people will gravitate towards a leader that they love, as they switch from Ralph to Jack.

To conclude, famous texts such as Macbeth and Lord of the Flies clearly illustrate that leaders are better off being loved than feared. They provide key examples which directly counter Machiavelli’s statement. History has also shown that it is the loved leaders, the likes of Caesar and Alexander the Great, who are the most successful.

So, while Machiavelli was a literary genius and had groundbreaking ideas for the time, it appears he was wrong about one thing; as a leader, it is much more beneficial, both for the leader and the people, to be loved than feared.

Just to sum it all up, here is a short animation that gives a quick summary of my ideas:

Well there you have it, my ideas on the concept of power and authority. I really enjoyed creating this post because at first, I wasn’t sure what stance to take on Machiavelli’s statement. This made the research and developing my thesis extremely interesting.