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Portfolio #11 Metacognitive Analysis

Metacognitive Reflection

The capacity of writing is extremely crucial in all the human beings. Writing is a way of communication that represents language through the inscriptions of signs and symbols.In my opinion writing  is a challenging work because in my writings I can see what I have learned, what I have acquired and what is still missing.

For a long time my writings were not accomplished. Firstly I used to write without being conscious of the huge variety of synonyms, antonyms or the distinctive linking words. Secondly I did not have a clear idea of what I wanted to express in my writings, sometimes I could not find the purpose of them. Besides I found very awkward the organization of the paragraphs of a thesis statement and also the topic establishment of it. Unquestionably, those difficulties plus the lack of appropriate words made my writings ghastly and abominable.  Therefore it was very arduous for me to attain a way of improving the different patterns. Finally, after reading some theory and discussing it in class, I tried to put into practice all what I have learnt in order to write more academically.

 Nonetheless, from my point of view, I still need to train myself and boost what is necessary. I must continue working impenetrable. Furthermore, I have to be aware of the assorted mistakes and attempt not to make them again. Writing is a hard work and it is my responsibility to achieve this skill.

New Vocabulary in my writing!

Ghastly:

1) Very bad or unpleasant [= horrible]:

A ghastly little hotel

The whole thing was a ghastly mistake.

The weather was ghastly.

2) Making you very frightened, upset, or shocked:

A ghastly accident

3 look/feel ghastly to look or feel ill, upset, or unhappy:

Are you all right? You look ghastly!

—ghastliness    noun [uncountable]

Abominable:

Extremely unpleasant or of very bad quality [= terrible]:

Abominable cruelty

—abominably   adverb:

Mavis behaved abominably.

Boost:

To increase or improve something and make it more successful:

The new resort area has boosted tourism.

Boost somebody's confidence/morale/ego      

The win boosted the team's confidence.

Impenetrable:

1)      Impossible to get through, see through, or get into:

The trees formed a dark and     impenetrable barrier.

The impenetrable blackness of the night

2)      Very difficult or impossible to understand:

Impenetrable legal jargon

Essays and Thesis Statements

What is an essay and its characteristics click Here

To see more about thesis statements click Here

Entry #10 Research paper

 Nobody can say you cannot do something

"Art changed my life, before all was medication and screaming; now I have hope"

Everyone can be happy, even those suffering from a mental illness; art is one of the ways in which these people can be part of this society.

A mental illness is a medical condition that disrupts a person´s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning. Just as diabetes is a disorder of the pancreas, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life. 

To begin with, serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and borderline personality disorder. Secondly, mental illnesses can affect persons of any age, race, religion or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character or poor upbringing. Mental illnesses are treatable. Most people diagnosed with a serious mental illness can experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in an individual treatment plan. It is very difficult for those people who do not have someone to support them, because those treatments need constancy and perseverance. And sometimes most of the patients do not follow what they have to because they do not receive the necessary attention from their families, and therefore they finally abandon their therapies. A person that lives with someone that suffers from one of the previous mental illnesses, has to be very conscious of what they have to do with that person, how to react at certain times, how to act when the patient is in crisis. It is not a painless work, sometimes you do not know what to do with him, and it causes affliction. For that reason it is essential that the family which has a member with one of these disorders is able to understand firstly that they have a person with a problem, and secondly and very important, that they can provide a good treatment with the necessary emotional support.

According to the distinctive places where patients can go to spend their time learning different skills and can be seen by different psychologists and psychiatrists, we can mention the hospital called Borda, a very famous place where many people are attended there. However, this building does not have the necessary tools to work , as it has been left aside by the authorities, but what most people do not understand or know is the fact that in spite of all the deficiencies this hospital has, it is the only place that contains the best doctors around the world. It has workshops where patients can develop their own abilities, and the most important thing is that this place is a public one; unfortunately many social works do not cover the patients´ treatments. Sadly, the government of Downtown wants to overthrow that building, what he does not know is that loads of people live there and spend their life going there. So if it disappears, many of them will not know where to go. Lots of people do not believe that someone with mental disorders is able to create a piece of art; however the patients of Borda have been able to develop their talent thanks the different workshops the hospital has. There, they have a radio in which they can tell others what they feel and think and also they can give their opinions about different topics. This radio is called ¨La Colifata¨.

Patients that can play any instrument participate in the radio programme and show the audience what they can do. Doctors also take part in this project. We have already mentioned the term workshops that mean places where patients go and do different activities proposed by therapists and psychologists. 

There is also another place where they can express what they know an that is the F.A.B. In the F.A.B.(Frente de Artistas del Borda) currently operating Theatre artistic workshops, puppets, music, mime, Participatory Theatre, Body, Dance, Visual Arts, Literature, Journalism and Photography. To them we add one of "deinstitutionalization" theoretical workshop where discussion on this topic considered Ideology axis FAB. Each workshop runs a coordination team composed artistic coordinator, one psychological and one or more contributors. Thus, the proposed work is interdisciplinary, as it has with the joint participation of members of different artistic disciplines and psychologists, with subsequent incorporation into the work team sociologists and social psychologists, among others. The artistic coordinator serves to convey conceptual and practical resources pertaining to their artistic discipline, coordinates a group creative process, and brings his knowledge of codes of professional and human relations in their field. 

In conclusion, art is everywhere and manages to show the best of anyone, even of those with mental illnesses.They only need support and affection,the rest can be done as any human being.

Sources:

Nami(1996)Mental illnesses.[ONLINE]Available at http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=By_Illness.[Last Accessed 09-08-2013 2013]

Frente de artistasdel borda(2007)Talleres[ONLINE]Available at http://www.frentedeartistas.co.ar/talleres/.[Last Accessed 09-08-2013]

Pablo Irles (2008).Aquarius 2008 colifata.[ONLINE]Available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTvfVCgBPUs.[Last Accessed 09-08-2013]

Entry #9 New alternative conclusion paragraph

Jimena-Magali



Having a lot of people become concious about the risks of irresponsible behaviour of drivers who use cellphones on the road, legislators should treat this danger seriously.

Entry #8 Immigration

Peer Assessment between Magali and Florencia

What is Immigration?


Immigration is the movement of people into a country or region to which they are not native in order to settle there. There are lots of reasons why people immigrate, one of them  for instance, is economic, people think that perhaps in another country they would improve their situation, there is a necessity to find a new job in another place. On the other hand, there are many who have to move because of a natural disaster, that situation is extremely frustrtating, several people do not recover from that episode. And finally there are also a few who decide to build a new future far away from their former country, they prefer to change their lives and look for a modern and advanced state. Immigration is the introduction of new people into a country that is not your own.




Immigration is the movement of people into a country or region to which they are not native in order to settle there. There are lots of reasons why inabitants immigrate, one of them  for instance, is economic, people think that perhaps in another country they would improve their situation, there is a necessity to find a new job in another place. On the other hand, there are many who have to move because of a natural disaster, that situation is extremely frustrtating, some communities do not recover from that episode. And finally there are also a few who decide to build a new future far away from their former country, they prefer to change their lives and look for a modern and advanced state. Immigration is the introduction of a multitude into a country that is not your own.






Sources:
Wikipedia(2013).Immigration.[ONLINE]Available at: en.wikipedia.org.[Last Accessed 09 June 2013]

Entry #7 Topic Sentence- Body -Conclusion Sentence

Entry #7
Assignment shared with Florencia Tovagliari (ISFD N°41)

The significant decision to have a child


(Magali´s paragraph)


Having a first child is difficult because of the significant adjustments in your life(Topic Sentence).One of the things you have to take into account when you decide to have a baby is the fact that from that moment on you are going to think about someone else. It is not only to have a baby because this fact is part of our life, but to take responsibility for this human being. Your body starts changing; your mood also changes because now you will have to pay attention to what the other person wants, your attitudes will be different too, as perhaps at times you will prefer to stay at home taking care of your baby than going out to enjoy yourself. Your life will change; of course due to a good reason if you have been thinking carefully about it, if not, it will probably be a circumstance for you, so you have to be extremely sure that you have made the correct decision. This is especially for those girls who usually think that a baby would be a good option to feel happy; unfortunately they do not consider all the changes this choice involves. Giving birth is an extraordinary experience if you have the necessary tools to face this event, but it will be gruelling, if you do not contemplate all the modificatios this incident implies. (Conclusion Sentence)








(Florencia´s version)





Having a first baby will definitely change your life, from your schedule, workload, sleeping time to your body and your mind. (Topic Sentence). One of the things you have to take into account when you decide to have a baby is the fact that from that moment on you are going to think about someone else. It is not only to have a baby because this fact is part of our life , but to take responsibility for this human being. Your body starts changing; your mood also changes because now you will have to pay attention to what the other person wants, your attitudes will be different too, as perhaps at times you will prefer to saty at home taking care of your baby than going out to enjoy yourself. Your life will change; of course due to a good reason if you have been thinking carefully about it, of not, it will probably be a circumstance for you, so you have to be extremely sure thet you have made the correct decision. This is especially for those girls who usually think that a baby would be a good option to feel happy; unfortunately they do not consider all the changes this choice involves. Giving birth is an act of love  and courage, all women are prepared to do it but there are some of them who are not prepeared to face this event, they need to be aware that a child is a responsibility for life.

Metacognitive Analysis:

According to our work, I think that we both agree with our topic and conclusion sentence, my  mate´sentences are suitable for my text, and from my point of view her conclusion sentence is better than mine, because she has a short reflection about what a woman is able to do, she finishes with an excellent idea of women, the fact that we are able to give birth. So I think what she writes is great. On the other hand, maybe my topic sentence is stronger than her, because of the vocablury I use,  however as I said before both have concurred, and that means we have a great connection in our works, what makes me feel comfortable and secure.

Structured Paragraph Writing

Entry #6:

English Academic Writing Introduction, parts of a paragraph:

•     Topic sentence.

              The subject.

              An interesting topic.

               Give your opinion.

•       Body.

         The heart.

         Gives supporting details or arguments.

         Details ordered by importance/ by chronology.

•      Closing sentence.

         Remains the topic to the audience.

         A little extra argument.

University of Massey, writing structured paragraphs:

• Style
• Correct punctuation
• Paragraphing.
•    Clear  and logical paragraphs.
•    Understandable material.
• PARAGRAPH:
• A distinct section in a piece of writing.
• Indicated by a new line.
• Started with a topic sentence.
• Sentences related to each other (COHERENCE)
• One main idea, one focus. (UNITY)
• Cohesion
• Main idea supported by examples and details. (DEVELOPMENT)
• Concluding paragraph:
•     Main points summarized.
•     Short.
•     Main conclusion stated.
•    It must satisfy the reader.
• Do not:
•     Introduced new material.
•     End with a generalization.
•     End with a quotation.

Alex().Introduction to English Acadeic Writing. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.engvid.com/introduction-to-english-academic-writing-parts-of-a-paragraph/-[Las Accessed 30 May 2013].


The Student Learning Centre Albany Campus(2005). Writing Structured Paragraphs. [ONLINE] Available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w183qB0KDFg.[Last Accessed 30 May 2013].

ISFD N°41
Licciardi, Magali Rocio
Tovagliari, Maria Florencia

Extravagant Writer

Some quotes and works of this fantastic writer!

  

¨She could not complain about not having shoes, when the person she is talking to had no legs ¨

¨Power is the ability not just to tell the story of a person, but to make it the definitive story of that person ¨

I am extremely fascinated by this quote:

¨Each time he suggested they get married, she said no. They were too happy, precariously so, and she wanted to guard that bond;  she feard that marriage would flatten it into a prosaic partnership¨

She is a writer

   ENTRY #5                                                                            

According to her speech, Chimamanda Ngozi assures that she writes because she has to and claims the production of writing as an obligation.
The way she speaks is comprehensible and the most important thing is that she is able to make you pay carefully attention to what she says.
Chimamanda ensures that she has the necessity of sitting and writing  for hours and also that she likes writing to those people who really enjoy the kind of fiction she enjoys. She is a writer who is not interest in Hobbits or alternative universes, for instance. Instead, she writes about real human beings, living in real places, therefore she calls this Literature as a Real Literature. In her opinion, Literature is in charge of intructing and delighting, and at the same time she underlines that Realistic Literature is to search for humanity with much less cynicism. Literature show us that we are different, she insists on a magnificent diversity in the world and that to be a human is to want to be valued. How important is for us to feel valued.

                       



                                On the other hand, her books and writings are powerful and have distinction for her; she remembers her childhood reading British books, English as an important language in her life, English books by Charles Dickens, for example, also Virginia Woolf. What she really highlight is that Modern Literature transmits the sensibility of citizenship, learning a second sensibility, a second Englishness. But who exactly inspires her to write? Well, her inspiration comes from her father, from the eyes of her mother telling stories. There is a sense of belonging to the mass og humanity.
She writes because she loves to do it, because she has grown up among books, she writes because she has the necessity of doing it.

Improved version of I am a writer

               Oh yes, I am a writer! I love writing, expressing what I think and feel, especially when I have been through a circumstance, I have the necessity of expressing how could I manage the situation. it is very difficult for me not to be allowed to say what I think. From my point of view, everyone needs to express their feelings, my way of telling things sometimes is Writing.

            Many times some peopleprefer to hide their feelings and decisions because they think that maybe others can attack them, but personally I am completely  sure that if you do not say what you feel or think (of course in a good way) , you will probably feel miserable then.  There also others who need to be aggressive when they have to comment something, so for me, writing is an execellent way of expressing our ideas. Indeed, the fact that you write and read very often, makes you improve your vocabulary, the way yu speak and getting new words in your own speech.

             According to my new experience, when I was a child, i always had a kind of diary in which I write all the things that happened to me, including the good things and the bad ones. There, I felt strong; nobody could say nothing to me because that was my owns space where I was free to write what I want to. Writing was a hobby that I did through my my years as a child. It was something I did sometimes but never really said I did seriously because when you are highly insecure child, seriousness can be costly.  It can be costly to your ego, mostly. it can be costly to hear that you are not as great as you think you are in your head. It is easier to live in your head and with that ego that you could be a writer only if you took it seriously. Perhaps if I had continued writing, I would be known today. Who knows? When I was at school, I aleays participated actively in different contests, sometimes  I did not win but that was not a problem for me, the fact that I was able to show what I do, made me feel happy and recognized.
 

         On the other hand, we can also talk about what is happening nowadays with children, adolescents and even adults. They are losing the capacity of writing, as they use their computers and therefore they prefer sending an e-mail than writing in a sheet of paper. The problem is not to use the computer rather than a sheet of paper, but as they do not practise writing, they probably do not remember how to write a letter for example. Many of my students do not remember how to write a letter in Spanish, so imagine what happen in English. Who does not want to receive a letter from your kids or partner? It is a good idea for instance to exchange letters from one school to another. It is a good exercise. Writing is very important in our lives. It makes you more competitive and also helps you to develop your ability to express things. Perhaps you can ask what can I write?  Well, one of the common examples of everyday life may be for instance, if you have to say something nice or tell someone some bad news, you can write a gentle letter and express what you think and  know, thus you do what you have to without being rude.

              

                I am a writer, I write because words live on me and inside of me. I write because the fragmented thoughts that live with me must come out of me to make sense. I write because I have to, I write because I want to. I write because I am a human who feels too much, I write to feel more. I write because I am a writer.

APA citation rules !

ENTRY #4


  This guide provides basic explanations and examples for the most common types of citations used by students. For additional information and examples, refer to the Publication Manual.

AUTHORS

One author

·         In most cases, providing the author's last name and the publication year are sufficient:

Smith (1997) compared reaction times...

Within a paragraph, you need not include the year in subsequent references.

Smith (1997) compared reaction times. Smith also found that...

Two authors

·         If there are two authors, include the last name of each and the publication year:

...as James and Ryerson (1999) demonstrated...

...as has been shown (James & Ryerson, 1999)...

3 - 5 authors

·         If there are three to five authors, cite all authors the first time; in subsequent citations, include only the last name of the first author followed by "et al." and the year:

Williams, Jones, Smith, Bradner, and Torrington (1983) found...

Williams et al. (1983) also noticed that...

Corporate authors

·         The names of groups that serve as authors (e.g. corporations, associations, government agencies, and study groups) are usually spelled out each time they appear in a text citation. If it will not cause confusion for the reader, names may be abbreviated thereafter: 

First citation: (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 1999)

Subsequent citations: (NIMH, 1999)

Work with two authors

Beck, C. A. J., & Sales, B. D. (2001). Family mediation: Facts, myths, and future prospects. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Two or more works by the same author

·         Arrange by the year of publication, the earliest first.

Postman, N. (1979). Teaching as a conserving activity. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.

Postman, N. (1985). Amusing ourselves to death: Public discourse in the age of show business. New York, NY: Viking.

·         If works by the same author are published in the same year, arrange alphabetically by title and add a letter after the year as indicated below.

McLuhan, M. (1970a). Culture is our business. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

McLuhan, M. (1970b). From cliché to archetype. New York, NY: Viking Press.

Book by a corporate author

·         Associations, corporations, agencies, government departments and organizations are considered authors when there is no single author

American Psychological Association. (1972). Ethical standards of psychologists. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

ANTHOLOGIES, COURSEPACKS, & ENCYCLOPEDIAS

Anthology or compilation

Gibbs, J. T., & Huang, L. N. (Eds.). (1991). Children of color: Psychological interventions with minority youth. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Work in an anthology or an essay in a book

Bjork, R. A. (1989). Retrieval inhibition as an adaptive mechanism in human memory. In H. L. Roediger III, & F. I. M. Craik (Eds.), Varieties of memory & consciousness (pp. 309-330). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Work in a coursepack

Goleman, D. (2009). What makes a leader? In D. Demers (Ed.), AHSC 230: Interpersonal communication and relationships (pp. 47-56). Montreal, Canada: Concordia University Bookstore. (Reprinted from Harvard Business Review, 76(6), pp.93-102, 1998).

Article in a reference book or an entry in an encyclopedia

·         If the article/entry is signed, include the author's name; if unsigned, begin with the title of the entry

Guignon, C. B. (1998). Existentialism. In E. Craig (Ed.), Routledge encyclopedia of philosophy (Vol. 3, pp. 493-502). London, England: Routledge.

ARTICLES

Article in a journal - for electronic articles retrieved online

Mellers, B. A. (2000). Choice and the relative pleasure of consequences. Psychological Bulletin, 126, 910-924.

·         Note: List only the volume number if the periodical uses continuous pagination throughout a particular volume. If each issue begins with page 1, then list the issue number as well.

Klimoski, R., & Palmer, S. (1993). The ADA and the hiring process in organizations. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 45(2), 10-36.

Article in a newspaper or magazine

Semenak, S. (1995, December 28). Feeling right at home: Government residence eschews traditional rules. Montreal Gazette, p. A4.

Driedger, S. D. (1998, April 20). After divorce. Maclean's, 111(16), 38-43.

Article from an electronic source

·         Provide the same information as you would for a printed journal article and add a retrieval statement that will identify the source of this information.

·         In general, it is not necessary to include database information (APA, 2010, p. 192).

·         You can identify your source by including ONE of the following:

WEB PAGES

Web pages & non-periodical documents on the Internet

·         Include the author, title of the document, and if available, always include the date the material was updated or posted online. If the page may be changed or moved, include the date of retrieval. Include the URL of the document cited.

·         If there is no author, place the title in the author position.

·         If there is no date, replace the date with (n.d.) to signify that there is no date for the material.

·         Add a description of the source in square brackets after the title, if this is necessary to clarify the type of source e.g. [Bibliography] [PowerPoint slides] [Multimedia presentation]

Library and Archives Canada. (2008). Celebrating women's achievements: Women artists in Canada.Retrieved from http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/women/002026-500-e.html

·         If the source material is likely to change over time (e.g. wikis), include the retrieval date.

Geography of Canada. (2009, September 29). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved September 30, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Canada

Further examples and explanations are available in sections 6.22-6.26 (basic rules), sections 6.31-6.32 (electronic sources) and chapter 7 (examples and more information) of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.