Semester 2 Reflection

During science this semester, I have developed various skills through our lab experiments and research. This semester, we worked through our physics unit and biology unit. This is a reflection of how much I have grown as both a scientist and learner this year.

In the biology unit, I practiced the desired student learning outcome(DSLO) of collaboration. This was when we had to dissect a cow's eyeball. I practiced this skill because to dissect this eyeball I had to collaborate with my partner to ensure that both of us were splitting the work equally but also doing the work correctly. In addition, I believed that it was important for both of us to understand the steps we were going through, not just blindly following directions. It was evident that my partner and I both understood and learnt a lot about the dissection of a cow's eyeball in this document, where we realised the purpose of parts of the eyeball and compared them to a human's eyeball.

Dissecting a cow's eyeball

My collaboration also improved this semester because I got to know my peers much better since we had all of the first semester to get to know each other. This helped me feel more comfortable when talking during labs so I asked more questions which enhanced my knowledge. This applied to several labs in which we had to collaborate in to achieve a common goal. For instance, when we had to extract DNA from a wheat germ, I had to trust my partner since this was a delicate procedure, as you can tell from this document. This semester, it was much easier to put my trust in my partner and collaborate to complete this procedure correctly.

During the biology unit, I not only practised the DSLO of collaboration but also that of cultural competence. This is because when we discussed about genetics, cloning was a touchy topic. Some believed that people should be allowed to create clones while other's completely opposed the idea. Therefore, I had to ensure that I respected both opinions and took into factor the ethical morals of doing such a thing. We went deep into this topic and even viewed examples in nature, Hollywood, and the science lab, as you can see in this document.

While I have written a lot on biology, in addition to this unit, we also had our physics unit. For our very last project, we had to create a mouse-trap car(a piece of wood with DVD wheels that moved because of the force a mouse-trap created). This project really tested my creativity, one of the DSLO's. This is because my partner and I had to come up with a way to make our car move a long distance which was difficult considering our materials. In the end, we decided to use a triangle design which wasn't a very original idea, but we had to be creative on how to make it work. 

As you can tell from above, I have improved a lot this semester. My ability to collaborate with my peers, my creativity, and cultural competence, have all grown, thus not only making me work better in a science lab but improve me as a learner!

My Independent Writing Project: Double Crossed

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HxqpUU3iqOvhO4zyPVRjUlCfBA4RfbXH5VGwyvgCk2E/edit?usp=sharing

Analyzing a Conflict

1. Our conflict is a war in Afghanistan between the Afghan Government and supporting countries against a terrorist group called Al-Qaeda, regarding political power and religious beliefs.

2. This conflict is a national and international conflict.

3. The main issue driving this war is political control since both groups are battling for power, but right now the government is control. Another issue is the difference in both of the parties beliefs since Afghanistan is a Muslim-based country, most of the people including the government are Muslim, but Al-Qaeda is an extremist group who uses violence in their religion which isn't what most people believe being Muslim is about. A third issue is the country's history since once the twin towers were bombed, the U.S wanted the leader of Al-Qaeda since the group was behind the bombing, however, the Afghanistan government refused to hand the leader over, which hence started the war and created the issue on what the U.S should do.

4. This is an inter-group conflict because it affects two different groups: the terrorist organization and the government. Outside of the people directly involved in this conflict, the U.S and other supporting countries have a stake in the outcome since currently sending U.S troops and other country's troops to help the Afghanistan government is helping the Afghanistan government stay in control.

5. The two parties do not have equal power, the Afghanistan government has more power. The actions of each party directly affect both, for example, the Afghanistan government receiving help from other country's troops affect the Al-Qaeda group and their ability to control Afghanistan.

6. This war has been going on for 17 years and is an intense conflict. It is life-threatening since many troops and people are dying, whether it be that people are caught in the cross-fire or are fighting.

7. The style of this conflict is competing, as both parties are fighting for power and their beliefs. None of the parties are listening to each other or compromising so there doesn't seem to be an immediate solution.

8. This conflict has been going on for a long time and the result has been that no side wants to give in to the other, in other words, no party wants to admit defeat or even listen to each other's ideas. There have been attempts to solve this conflict including Saudi Arabia and the U.S intervening, but the conflict has not yet been resolved.

P.E Reflection - Sending and Receiving

Poem: I Walk With a Falcon

This poem is about overcoming your biggest fear: Yourself. It's about how we all have a limited time on this planet so we shouldn't be afraid of ourselves, instead, we should be living our life as we choose to do so. We should be brave and cast our doubts away so that we don't regret our decisions in the future. Despite being pressured by our peers, we can't let their criticism take away from ourselves.

This poem began with a bunch of lines that I liked from a film festival. As I developed this poem, I got more and more ideas from the lines and wrote my own poem that spoke directly to me. Enjoy!

I Walk With a Falcon

Lost in the light,
Dead in my mind.

Storms crashing my heart,

Winds tearing me apart.

Shaken,

The world falling like dice,

Twisting on the game board,

Rolling through life,

Always landing on 1,

Never a 6.

Not even once.

Hourglass flipped,

Sand seeping,

Anguish a veil of black,

Ribbons of crystal hope,

Waving in the past.

I’m drowning under the waves,

Under the tide,

Under the world,

Under my life.

I want a future that floats.

To soar above city lights

Gliding on snowy wings.

I don’t want to be afraid,

Not anymore.

People assume,

I’m some vulnerable creature,

Like I’m a baby bird,

Trapped in a cage.

Like they are God,

Holding the key.

But all that charity,

Can be cast into a trance,

Clenched in the clutches of shadows,

And careless memories.

Because,

I walk with a falcon,

Poised on my fist.

Podcast - Organ Trafficking Black Market

Rosa Parks

1. Why is bus segregation even a big deal? Who cares who sits in the different parts of the bus? Why does this matter at all? 
It is a big deal because it shows inequality and treats the blacks as inferior and the whites as superior. It physically shows that blacks are treated as second class citizens which is unjust. It also shows that the blacks are complying like they have no control over their choices and life, which reinforces the whites power over them. 

2. Put yourself in Rosa Park's shoes: You're going home from work. You have a family. A small incident arises. What do you honestly do? How far would you go? (Jail? Pay a fine? Lose your life? Explain your limits.) 
I would honestly probably not do anything at all because I would be too frightened of the consequences, which is exactly what the white officers want. Since only a small incident had occurred, I wouldn't think that it was big enough for me to get involved in. If I were to intervene, the furthest I would go is paying a fine but would likely only go that far. The pay I earn is probably very little as it is, and my family would need me - which I would prioritize over being right.

3. Parks' words are very deliberate. She says, "You may do that." What do you think about the wording of her statement? (p. 116--the star with a #4 in it)
Parks' words show how she is allowing the white officer to arrest her, as though she is the one with authority who can control the white officer's decisions. It is showing that she has power and is equal, if not a class higher than the white officer. She isn't letting the white officer make her choices for her and is, therefore, making it seem like she has the option on whether she is to be arrested or not.

Reconstruction

Modern Day Slavery

For our PSA, my group and I researched about the coal miners in Jharkhand, India. The coal mining is a form of modern slavery and told me a lot about our world today. I learnt about all of the health hazards these miners face, ranging from being buried alive by rock slides to inhaling toxic fumes. This is because they are not given any protection from the dangers of the mine. In addition, I learnt that the highest pay the miners can earn is $8 per day, which is barely enough to help their families. The devastating part about the mining in Jharkhand is that these miners work at their own free will just so that they are able to support their families.

However, there are a few actions that can be taken in order to make our world a better place. The government of India could finance these coal mines so that they are more stable and safe. The government could also make laws about the safety equipment required to allow the workers to mine so that the coal miners are at a smaller risk of dying. People could also donate to charities to help coal miners, unfortunately, there aren't many organizations that help this cause, so activists could begin organizations and helping fund safety equipment for the coal miners. These are just a few ideas on how people could help the coal miners in Jharkhand, India. 

Adolescence Reflection

There are many stereotypical characteristics associated with teenagers.

Here is a list of them:

• Teenagers lie to their parents
• Teenagers sneak out to parties
• Teenagers throw tests with bad grades away
• Teenagers get drunk at parties
• Teenagers skip school for fun
• Teenagers talk back to their parents

I don't demonstrate many of these, however sometimes I talk back to my parents and slam door. Occasionally, if I get a bad test score I tell them that everyone else also got a bad score, so I lie to them, but most of the time I don't demonstrate these actions.

Some of these stereotypes that I never do are skipping school for fun, throwing tests with bad grades away, and sneaking out to parties where I get drunk. 

A few characteristics that I would want my friends and family to associate with me as I go through adolescence are that I am hardworking, I get good grades, I am fun to hang out with, I balance my social life with my school life, and I finish my homework on time(organized). 

My Name

My name is one that most people have probably never heard before and would most likely mispronounce it if they did. It is of Indian origin since both of my parents are Indian. My dad named me after a college friend: A girl who was a year older than him. He especially liked her name, and luckily my mother did too, so my name was decided. My name means several things, but the main meaning is courage. In addition to that, it means the goddess Durga(the warrior goddess), divine, strength, and the flowing river. My name is Tavishi.