Experience blogging!

Today I am going to write about my experience writing! Well, for being more precise, I´m going to right about my blogging experience. I would like to start saying that I really enjoy blogs in general, but reading them, not writing. There was some moment when I think to do me a blog, but I´ll never do the next step: actually do it! Fortunately, in my English class my teacher makes me to do a blog! Just kidding… It was her job to make me do it!
The difficult part was, obviously, to do it in other language. It´s hard to express thought and feelings in your own language; more difficult it is if you must do it in other code! Anyway, talking and writing in my own language never been a problem for me, so I guess that is simpler to express my ideas in English if I can do it already in Spanish. Maybe it´s more difficult for someone shy, which is not my case.
Considering that, I must say that I really enjoy share my thoughts, but it´s more difficult in other language. However, I´m very familiarize with English, luckily, so it wasn´t so hard do a blog like this. In fact, this assignment helps me to improve mi English, I think, or I want to believe! Especially because I hear a lot of English, but just once in a while I see it write. So, I lean when is my turn to write, and when I have to read my classmates’ blogs for post them.
I think that is a great idea for an English class, because it´s more fun that being in a classroom for three hours nonstop. With a blog, we learn doing, and class is more useful and interactive. In other way, the blogs help us to know who our classmates are; considering the fact that we are from different career and generations, it´s more probably that we talk and know a little more about them… or that´s what I believe!
A pleasure to meet you all =)

About María´s Blog

Well, today I´m going to right about other blog! Yes, it´s a little wear, but that is the assignment! I choose María´s blog because I post her sometimes, and it was chosen at random too; between all guys that I ever posted (unfortunately, is not all class), I pick one. Beside, one of his last names is the same that mine! So, for me is easier to remember her name.
Her blog´s name is “English class”; is not a very creative name, but my blog it called “English III”, so it´s the same idea! Anyway, the name of the blog isn´t everything. In fact, it´s just a detail.
She has 12 posts for 12 classes, so she has all of them! I assume that she always came to class, or maybe she post in her home… can be too. Checking her posts I see that she dance flamenco! What a great hobby! Well, that is something that I didn´t know about her. But, that is not my favorite post on her blog. I like the post about her favorite movie. In fact, I really enjoyed that class, and could see all my classmates’ blogs checking his favorites movies. The favorite movie of María is ‘The Matrix’. Is not my favorite movie, is not ever close to be I must say, but I can notice that she really enjoy that movie and I believe that she always going to remember it.
I can notice that she is psychologist; well, she will be psychologist one day! I´m not very closed to psychologist, but I can see that she like her career. That is very important!
For what I see, she has a very good level of English! She has family living in U.S.A, so maybe that can help her a little. In that aspect, I have nothing to say. I´m just going to suggest one thing: more photos! There is so much text, that some people can respond to that not feeling desire to read it.
That is my modest opinion.

Here is her blog, by the way: http://olvi-english3.blogspot.com/

Education, Creativity and Intelligence

I´m very surprised! I came to right on this blog all Thursdays, but today I find a topic that I´ll never expected. Is not just about education or the changes that public education needs (a very popular theme in my University); it´s about whole education system around the world.
I watch a video where Sir Ken Robinson talks about "Do Schools Kill Creativity". I think that it´s related to what we call in Chile “Ritalin kids”. Robinson says that traditional schools kill creativity in child, because don´t develop all the types of intelligence that we have when are kids. In that case, society creates kids for the future without knowing how is going to be the future. However, educational system limits the intelligence of the kids, focus on mathematical on language, but not carry out on dance, art or music. For that reason, humans, and especially academic teachers, think that all they have is a head. They are not familiarizing with his bodies. For all that reasons, many types of intelligence are dismissed for the educational system, and create kids who think they not are smart, and for real they are! It´s just another kind of intelligence.
I think that he may be right on his ideas, but it´s difficult to me believe that a structure like education is going to change. If he can diagnose a problem but can´t offer a solution, it´s very difficult that he will be eared. It´s a new way to see education for me, because I always think that the best idea for make a better society is having public education of quality, and n that way inequality decrees.
It´s a new point of view.

My Favorites Pictures!

I love pictures!!! I don´t like very much appear on it, but I love to see it. It´s difficult to think in my favorite picture, but I believe that I have two favorites pictures.

One of that was token from me in Temuco, south of Chile. It´s very beautiful and wear, because I´d never seen something like that: It´s a tree in the middle of a lake! Wear and wonderful! I write about that trip weeks ago, and this picture is from that vacations. Relative to that picture, was great o took it, and I always remember of the picture and of that trip, and for that

reason I like it: it´s beautiful, wear, and it represent a great moment too!

The second picture that I choose is from 2006, when I finished school. That day all my class was surprised that day, ´cause all the school was saying goodbye to us, and in the door was all our family! Was very emotive! A friend of my sister took this picture, because in that moment we hasn´t a camera. There I am with two friends of that time: Enzo in the left and Seba in the right. I was so happy and emotional that day, we all have a great memory of that moment. Today, I still see Enzo, is one of my best friends! But I don’t talk too much with Seba right now. Well, anyway, I really like this picture, for the moment that represent and because I was very happy too! After that, I give it to Enzo, in a cute mark, and he still has it, of course!

My best Friend!

I don´t have many girlfriends, so must of my closest friends are men. Well, it´s very difficult for me think in who is my best friend, because all of them are very closed to me and I care about them very much. But, if I have to pick one, y think maybe Francisco could be one of my best friends.

I met him in my school in Rancagua. I was in my third year when he comes to my school, and immediately we talk, and since that moment, we are friends. More of 5 years are past for that day. We realize very quickly that we have a lot of thing in common; in fact, we think very similar in a lot of stuff. For that reason, we connected very fast! Both are very rational people, and we see life in the same way, but he is more pragmatic, and I am more idealistic.

I like go out with Francisco and all the friends that we have in common, from the school too. It´s great that his friends and I have a great relation, so it´s easy to plan the weekend together, when both are in Rancagua, ´cause we go out together with them and our old friends from the school.

We trust one each other, and for that reason we never fight; I don´t remember a big argue with him, maybe because we connected so well, that know how the other it´s going to react.

We don´t say it a lot, but both know that we are very important one for each other.

Skills in Sociology.

Well, like you must know, I study Sociology. In my career, you don’t need an inborn skill, I think, but you have to read a lot, so you have comprehension of lecture, and, of course, you must love read!
However, there are some skills that you should learn studying sociology. First, you must have “sociological imagination”, like Mills says. That is the skill of see a social reality and finds there some sociological problem. For other hand, you must have a skill to relate the ideas of different authors, so I believe that good memory can help you with that, but is not necessary; if you have it, some much better, but if you don`t, it´s Ok. Is not like studying art without knowing who to paint!
My University is providing to his students of these skills, but I think that develop the “sociological imagination” and the skill to relate ideas, are qualities that you can acquire with practice. With all the research that the career make you to do, and with all the courses of Sociological Theory, I think that the students developed all this skills.
For that reason, I don´t think that we need to change our course in my career. Well, obviously I´m interesting in particulars themes, like Sociology of Religion, for example, Latin American Sociology or Sadistic process. But in general, for the skills that I mentioned before, I think that we are very well.
I´m prepared to work? I don´t know actually! But I have a knowledge that I want to apply!

My Notebook!

My relation with technology is not very closed! I used, of course, but I always have problems with all kind of tehonogic object. However, if I have to choose my favourite piece of techologic, I think that I opted for my notebook.

Last year I worked in a research for Catholic University, so I could save some money and bought it! I used all the time, for things related with my career, with my work, and for my free time too. I have it since laste year, and I really care about it. Never put it pen drives if I´m not shure about his source, and don´t used for download music or movies. And, of couse, I keep it clean! I like it because it´s mine! I choose it, I bought it and I used! I don´t have to share the PC with my sister.

Since I bought it, my life became easier! I don´t have to wait until my sister finish her work, and she always download thinks, so the old PC that we usted to share, was with virus all the time! Now, I can do my thinks without think in finish early, and I can use my free time in internet with no problem. And, of course, can I choose without problems the picture on the screen!

So, for all this reasons, my favourite piece of technology is my notebook, but like I said, technology and I don´t have a very good relation.

Temuco!

Since 2007, my first year in University, I was not traveled away from my home in Rancagua in holidays, at least with my family. I went to Pichilemu last vacations with my friends, but is not a beautiful place actually, and I wasn´t visited a lot either. But in 2006, I went with my family to Temuco, because a family member (is like a second degree causing of my mother, but in my mom`s family, we are all very closed) got married. We went in car, and my dad drive the entire road. It was a great trip!
My mom is from Temuco, so she was like our tourist guide, with an aunt and others members of Porath family. We visited de Central Market and ate the greatest cheese that I ever tasted! We visited a museum too, the “National Museum of Rail-worker Pablo Nerura”. There, all the family went with us ´cause my grandfather use to work driving trains (he died at 2005), so was very moving.
We also visited Caburgua Lake (on the picture), Pucón, Villarica, and all that awesome places. I loved it! My mom always told me how beautiful was that places, and finally in 2006 I could be there.
I liked Temuco and all the places around it, not just for the natural beauty; it was a familiar atmosphere! My family and I want to go there again.

Classic! A great Sociologist

Well, today I´m going to right about a classic sociologist. I respect his work, and was the firth author that I liked. His name is Emile Durkheim, and all the science community of sociology field agrees that he is one of the greatest minds of our time.
He was born is France at 1858 and died in France too in 1917. During his career, he wrote a lot of book, articles, chronics and ethnographies. He found the first review about Sociology, with that he motivated too many intellectuals to know more about this new discipline.
His most important works are “The Rules of Sociological Method”, “The elementary forms of the Religious Life”, and “Division of Labor in Society”, or “The Suicide” for name a few. In “The Rules…”, he suggest a way to know the social facts; he said that social fact has to be studied like things. This phrase was, and still is, very polemical, but he gets things straight: social facts are NOT things, but have a cause and a consequence. For that reason, is so much better for us, sociologists, investigated it like things.
His theory about moderns’ societies is based on mechanic and organic solidarity: that is the difference between a traditional or modern society. He is one of “The fathers of Sociology”, and the only one of them who says that his work was Sociology!

PS: Here is a photo of Durkheim, and a photo of a puzzle!!! Why? Is the way I see organic solidarity… Maybe sociologist understands me! :P

Always a polemic topic...

Education… always a polemic topic. In Chile, not everyone have access to good education, but it´s a right for all the kids. The law says that 12 years of education are the minimums for a Chilean citizen, but doesn´t say anything about quality. I think this is the main problem of education. Good education must be a right for everybody, and not just education for carry out this 12 year that law says. However, there´s good education, but is given for privates schools. If you can pay, you can have it. If you can´t, you are doomed to have a mediocre education; in that case, the opportunities to continue with your studies (superiors), are less than a student of a private school.
Education was better before the dictatorship. There were privates schools too, but free education was a good one. Superior education was less in numbers of students and institutions, but it was much cheaper, free in most cases. Today, education is a business, everything is about money. The schools half publics, half privates, are an example of that. Mi school in Rancagua was of this type and it wasn´t very good; in fact, was, and still is, a mediocre school, these were good teachers too, but in general, quality was poor. Principal and owner of the school was interesting only in money, everybody knew it. For that reason, I don´t think that increase subvention for this type of school is a good idea, but that is what President Piñera wants; it give an incentive to make money with education.

My favorite movie.... Espiritrompa!

It´s very difficult to me think in my favorite movie. I loved movies; it is an art that always admired. Cinema Paradiso, Modern Times, Psycho, Citizen Kane, are one of my favorites. Even I buy the DVD of all of them. However, in this case I choose “La Lengua de las Mariposas”, a Spanish film directed by José Luis Cuerda. It is a beautiful movie, and I cried all the time when I watched. It´s wear, because I never cry about problems of real life.
The story is about a kid who started to go to a public school, and meet a teacher who changes his way to see the world. The context of the film is the civil way in Spain, precisely before it started. The father of the child, his friends, and the teacher are contrary to Franco and the military.
I saw it for the first time in my home. A friend told me that was a great movie, and he knows a lot about films, so I watched. My mom saw it with me, and both loved it. After that, I always recommended.
I think that this movie is better than others, ´cause is not just entertainment, is an historical film, and shows who is possible to fight for ideals, not only with a big uprising, but teaching and being a master too. The relationship between the teacher and the child of the movie is, for me, an emblem of that. Is that what makes me cry…
Please, see this movie, and find out why the author named like this.

English galore!!! =P

Today all the class visited a web page in English. This particular page is like a public class, because you can learn vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar, and is not just another boring page for students; in fact, it is even fun.
When I saw the page, the first think that I notice was the BBC in the title. That made me thinks that it is a serious page, so I could visit it with no problems, and learn online. Internet is more than msn and Facebook page!
I visited a section called “The Flatmates”, were you can listen a group of friends talking in normal situations of life. I listen some dialogues, one about a nurse and his boss, and others between two friends. I read his biographies and I notice that there are characters of different races. I think that is a great idea, considering that in Great Britain there are many immigrants.
I listed some pronunciation classes, and it was OK, but I´m not use to Britain accent. I think that is easier the American accent, but Britain´s sound better, don´t you think so?
By the way, here is the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/
Greetings,
Victoria

A day that couldn´t be worse, but it was.

The night of February 27th I was in home. That night I was planning to go out, have a few drinks and play poker with my friends. So, about 11:00 pm I took the public transport but it was crashed, so I couldn’t go out. In fact, I went to the Regional Hospital from Rancagua, and I was there for like three hours, accompany with some people of the police to state injures. After the consult with a doctor, and check that everything was right, I went home with my parents. My brother and sister were in home waiting for me.
I had a bump on the head, and I wasn´t feeling so good, so I ate something and went to bed. Finally I could be comfortable in my bed, thinking that this terrible day was over… Or that was I believe… five minutes later, an earthquake started! Luckily I wasn´t scared, so I get up of bed, totally calm and, with my sister, wait until the earthquake was over. Then, went down to the first floor of my house, I slept there with all my family.
Now, with my friends say to me that with my accident, we saved all of us.

A little about me

Hi everyone! I´m Victoria and this is my first blog, so I will try to do my best. So... let´s get strarted! I´m going to say a little about me first. I was born in Rancagua, my family and best friends are from there, but since 2007 I´m in Santiago, studying. If I got time, I try to go to my home. Fortunately, is just one hour in bus, so isn´t complicated. Here in Santiago I study Sociology, this is my fourth year. I love my career.
Well...that´s for today!
Greetings