Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Good evening everyone. My name is Toyota Moko, and I am an international student from Japan. As the first-ever international student speaker on commencement, I am very honored to be here tonight to be given this opportunity to speak on behalf of the graduating class of the 2003. Born and grew up in Tokyo where speaking English was absolutely absent in my eighteen years of life, one day the life-changing experience came to me. When I was fifteen-years-old, the summer of 1998, I came to America for the very first time for the home stay program through my high school. The three weeks I spent in Snohomish have brought me a wonderful encounter with my American family. John, Margo and Jennifer Turner have truly become my second family away from home. Despite the fact that I was a stranger from Japan, the Turner family treated me as if I was a part of their family, even though I had spoken broken English. During these three weeks, I was exposed to many cultural differences between America and Japan, and I was especially moved by the American people and its society where one is able to not only accept, but mutually respect and honor multicultural background and heritage. Coming from homogeneous country of Japan, this to me was a very fresh insight, and I still remem ber how it struck me. After I came back to Japan, I kept in touch with my American family via e-mail. And they invited me to stay with them if I were to study at the college. I spent years preparing for my study abroad, and with the great help of the Turner family, Ms. Joy Fitzpatrick who is the international student program coordinator, and my parents, I entered America as an international student on March 11, 2001, only one week after my high school graduation in Japa... ...y just few weeks ago on May 17. My grandfather was full of ambition and care for his family, and he especially loved me as his granddaughter. I was able to make this speech because I do believe that my grandfather will be sitting in the first row and listening to my speech at this very moment. He kept his promise to be alive until I have become twenty years old, so it is now my turn to promise him to carry on his spirit and all the knowledge and wisdom he had taught me. And more than anybody else, this honor goes to my dearest Turner family and my parents and family in Japan for making it possible for me to experience this incredibly astounding journey in America. Congratulations class of 2012! From the bottom of my heart, I wish all of you a shining future! Thank you for having me this special moment. Arigatougozaimasita! (Japanese: "Thank you very much.")

Vygotsky and Paigets Perspective of Learning

The theorists, Piaget and Vygotsky both had views on the significance of learning and the role of play, which they considered being a crucial part of a child’s development. Although they had similar views, they differed in terms of what children do when they play (Drewery & Bird, 2004). This essay supports learning opportunities and examples of children’s play through experience, events and interactions with people, places and things. Piaget explained the importance of learning through play, in which children explored and experimented for themselves with minimal adult interactions. He considered development went through four stages: sensori-motor, pre-operational, concrete operational and the formal operational stage. (Papalia, Olds & Feldman, 2004). The sensori-motor period (0-2 years) is the 1st stage, as the infant’s interactions are based on exploring their environment through their senses and abilities to practice schemas, such as grasping and sucking, this also included practice play as the infant is able to repeat actions continuously but with no intention. This stage follows on to the pre-operational stage (2-7) where children’s language is developing rapidly, allowing them to express themselves. They are starting to use pretend play and parallel play which means children are talking but it is not directed to others. This also means that they only see the world in their terms, they are egocentric (Drewery and Bird, 2004). The concrete operation (7-11) and the formal operational (11-adult) periods are the third and fourth stages. These are not considered in early childhood education but are still important as they can think realistically and logically about situations and understand their world (Pulaski, 1980). However, Vygotsky argued differently. He proposed that children are social learners and like to explore and discover new things with the help of adults and peers. This was scaffolding and the zone of proximal development (ZPD). He also considered culture surroundings, language and thinking (Whitebread, 2003 cited in Beaumont, 2002). He thought children could perform better with others than on their own. This is shown through the ZPD, the difference between what children can do alone and with help. Like Piaget, Vygotsky believed there were things that children couldn’t understand. However, Vygotsky believed that given proper help children could perform what Piaget would consider, not possible. Scaffolding however, meant that in order for a child to learn, a more competent adult or peer can help support and guide the child’s learning through the ZPD until the child is able to do the task alone which helps the child use private speech, a way of understanding is to talk to themselves and also to reason, problem solve, extend memory and imagination skills (Woolfolk, 2004 cited by Educational Psychology, n. d. ). Vygotsky considered cultural surroundings, language and thinking to be important. He said for children to learn, they need to interact through communication with others. This was explained through cultural influences and what was important within each setting. Language is part of culture, which is the key to communication about customs and knowledge of people. Through cultural tools, such as books and television, we could help extend children’s communication skills with others in their environment (Tauranga Regional Free Kindergarten Association, 2003). These theorists can support learning opportunities within Aotearoa through experiences, events, and interactions with people, places and things. For Piaget however, his first two stages are only considered in early childhood education (Nuttall, 2003). Piaget considers that children learn best when their left to discover their world by themselves through hands-on involvement but adults need to provide stimulating activities within their environment (Hedges, 2003). The Aotearoa context gives children the independence to experience and learn about what they enjoy on their own through experiences, events and interactions, with little supervision. It also encourages them to explore and develop knowledge and skills at their own pace. Ministry of Education (1998) states that, ‘Educators should enhance children’s learning and development through extending children’s thinking and actions through sensitive and informed guidance, interventions and support (p. 19). Piaget’s practice play and pretend play are supported in Aotearoa. These are concepts used to explain the child’s use of creativity and spontaneous play which provides great interactions with people, places and things. Each child brings experiences from their own environment which builds knowledge and skills amongst children but this can be slightly difficult, as children naturally parallel play (Drewery & Bird, 2004). A way to enhance their interests could be a dress-up day. The Ministry of Education (1996) explains that ‘Children experience an environment where their play is valued as meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised’ (p. 84) Vygotsky’s theory is well acknowledged in Aotearoa. He believed that children learn best through social environments which lead to powerful and competent learners. Children learn better through the ZPD with the support of an adult or peer. This provides the use of private speech for the child, which creates better understanding and extends skills such as problem solving and imagination (Connor & Diggins, 2002). According to Royal Tangaere’s theory of learning, some of Vygotsky’s ideas related to hers. She believed in the Tuakana/Teina concept which was related to the ZPD and scaffolding. The Tuakana (older sibling) contributes to the Teina’s (younger sibling) learning and vise versa. This provides both siblings the responsibility of ako (learning as well as teaching (Te Whaiki, McCarthy & Durie, 1997). Secondly, Vygotsky believed that each child brings with them, their own cultural experiences from their environment as a way of communicating. As a multi-cultural nation, it is important to consider each child’s culture; therefore part of culture is language and the values and beliefs that influence them. As teachers we are encouraged to be aware of other cultures. When we learn about the culture of children we are able to understand and help them learn and experience more about culture through communication such as books or music (Tauranga Regional Free Kindergarten, 2003). We could also organize cultural outings to Museum’s which is a great place for learning. As Ministry of Education (1996) states, ‘Children experience an environment where there are equitable opportunities for learning, irrespective of gender, ability, age, ethnicity, or background (p. 66). Examples of these theories are shown throughout children’s play. Piaget’s idea of the sensori-motor stage and the pre-opertional stage can be put into practice as follows: Infant: A is lying down on her stomach, where toys are placed in front of her. She picks up a soft ball, looks at it then puts it in her mouth, drops it then picks up a rattle and turns on to her back. She lifts it up and shakes and listens to the noise. She then puts it in her mouth then continues the enjoyment of shaking the rattle. Toddler: The wiggles come on and children start dancing, B gets up and begins to dance. As he listens to the sounds of a car, he pretends to drive going, ‘Brum brum! , and then drives around the room saying, ‘I’m driving my car! ’ Young Child: A is in the sandpit with children surrounding her. She picks up a frying pan and pretends to make a cake with sand. A then picks up a spoon and pretends to mix the cake, then places it down saying, â€Å"Cook for 2 minutes† using her fingers to count. She pulls it out straight after and says, â€Å"Mmm, smells good! That will be for me and mummy†. Vygotsky’s views can be shown in practice through an infant as: M is learning to walk, he can stand up while holding onto the couch, he wants to let go, but does not have the balance or coordination. A teacher comes over and M reaches out his hands, gesturing that he needs help. She takes his hands and walks with him saying, â€Å"Good boy, you’re doing so well! † She then lets go to see if he can stand on his own, he stands for a few seconds then falls. He crawls back to the couch, stands up and gestures to the teacher to help. She stands three feet away, puts out her hands and says, â€Å"Try again†. He takes a few steps then falls again. Toddler: L wants to climb up the plank. The teacher recognises that he is not confident enough on his own. She takes his hand nd helps him, he turns around and repeats this a few times, the teacher lets go of his hand half way up, he stops and says, â€Å"Help! † Teacher says, â€Å"You can do it, have a go, I’ll stay with you†. Looking unsure, he has a go while the teacher encourages him. In being successful, L is overjoyed, and the teacher supports the accomplishment. Young Child: H is learning literacy, he seems to be frustrated and is struggling. The teacher approaches him, and asks if he wants help. H replies, â€Å"Yeah, I can’t do it†. Firstly, the teacher writes his name at the top and says, ‘H, copy over your name with a pen†. â€Å"Yep†, H says. In doing so, the teacher encourages him and supports his learning. The teacher helps H do his literacy activity until he is able to do it himself. He shows her when he is finished then she gets him to put a smiley face on the page, to show what a great job he did. There are many more theories that could be acknowledged throughout this discussion but Piaget and Vygotsky will always provide teachers with a solid understanding of how children learn and the role of play which provides great learning opportunities for experiences, events and interactions with people, places and things within New Zealand.

Shock Culture Shock Essay - 5954 Words

The Comparison of Culture Shock and Reverse Culture Shock Name: Cai Miaosen Instructor: Li Binbin 1. Introduction In recent years, the people who pursue their overseas studying have doubled in number. The overseas returnees also increase at a fast rate. Many people who have already got the foreign passport or the right of residence of other country gradually return to motherland to work and settle down. But unfortunately many of these people are suffering the varying degrees of culture shock or reverse culture shock. They are playing an indispensable role to China’s social and economic development. Therefore, the research of culture shock and reverse culture shock are of great necessity and realistic significance. Many foreign†¦show more content†¦The reverse culture shock the phenomenon when people returning to their home culture after they are accustomed to a new one can produce the same effects as described above. This results from the psychosomatic and psychological consequences of the readjustment process to the primary culture. The affected person often finds this more surprising and difficult to deal with than the original culture shock. In recent years, with the rapid development of China’s economy and the high pace of globalization, more and more Chinese want to pursue their overseas study. Some of Chinese and overseas Chinese who have already got the passport or green card of foreign countries or the right of residence in the foreign countries return to China working or settling. The number of returnee is increasing with the development of China’s economy and they are playing an important role in the development of social economy. 3. The manifestation of culture shock and reverse culture shock The manifestation of culture shock includes light levels of mild discomfort to deep psychological panic and psychological crisis. 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