(Not-so) Superhuman Speeches

During icebreaker activities at the beginning of this year, the question, "If you could have any superpower in the world, what would it be?" was extremely popular.  I would always answer that I would like to be able to fly, but if I were being honest, I should have answered that I would like to be able to give flawless, riveting speeches.

In my past public speaking experiences, I have had a generally rough time.  I suffer from nerves, a lack of confidence, stuttering, sporadic eye contact, body language, and a plethora of other things that make giving a speech extremely difficult.  Last year, I had to speak at graduation. Even though I knew my speech inside and out and felt well-prepared, I can't even remember giving the speech because I was so caught up in my nerves and was constantly worrying about how the speech was coming off to the audience.

I am always much more confident expressing things through writing than by speaking.  When I go into an argument or have something really important to say to someone, I always write it down so that I am able to say exactly what I mean in the exact way that I want to say it.  One of my strengths is writing speeches and putting my thoughts on paper, but I consistently struggle with the delivery.

In order to help myself to give the best speech possible, I will make sure that I have solid ideas and organization so that I am confident in my written speech and can fully concentrate on the delivery.  I will practice my speech as much as I can and try to relax and connect with the audience so that my ideas come across clearly.  I am determined to make this speech the turning point that will lead to more positive public speaking experiences.

America Gets Educated

At the end of last year, the question to ask was, "Where are you going to college in the fall?"  Not, "Where are you going to work?" or "What are your plans for after high school?"  It was simply implied that most of the kids in my school would go on to earn a college degree.  Times have greatly changed.

Thesis: From 1940 until present day, technology has completely changed the job market, making a higher degree much more necessary for most careers.   The need for higher education to become more successful directly influenced America's attitude towards schooling and created a new ideology in our country which values higher education.

In my essay, I will compare the statistics given by the United State Census Bureau regarding Americans and higher education in the 1940's and now.  In 1940, only 4.6% of the United States population had a Bachelor's degree or higher, and 24% graduated high school.  Now, 32% of the United States population has a Bachelor's Degree or higher, and 88.4% graduated high school.  These numbers demonstrate an enormous shift in the way that our country views and values education.

Then, I will examine the correlation between the type of degree one earns and the amount of money they earn in their career, as examined in an article in the New York Times dated in 2013.  It attributes the paradigm shift in the number of years most Americans attend school to both a demand for more highly-trained employees in the job market, and the recession which caused many people to pursue college degrees.

Finally, I will comment on what this paradigm shift means for future generations and why it is significant.  Many people claim that the Master's degree has become the new Bachelor's degree, based on the new commonplace that many Americans attend college, where as in the 1940's, a college degree was not necessary to acquire "success" in life.  It is an interesting shift to observe, and it will be interesting to track firsthand as we make our way out into the job market after graduating in four years.

Some more sources I will use are:
An Overview of Higher Education in the United States 
The Economist--Higher Education: Not What it Used to Be

The Rise of the Abstract

Paradigm shifts occur often in society.  We may not notice them as they occur, as they are usually subtle and gradual, but they tend to be quite noticeable over long periods of time.  One example that immediately comes to mind is the shift in education in America and the levels of education needed for one to secure a stable career path.  While a high school degree used to be sufficient, a bachelor's degree is now expected, and some say that a master's degree is thew "new bachelor's degree."  One reason for this shift is that with new technology came a need for more educated employees in all fields of employment.  Additionally, education gradually became more and more common and the establishment of more and more universities as well as the addition of education laws by the government made it easier for students to pursue higher education.

While the previous example is extremely apparent, an example of a paradigm shift that is more interesting to me is the shift from classical music to romantic music to 20th century atonal music.  Music being produced today by modern affluent composers is known as "atonal" and is, put simply, the equivalent of abstract art.  There is no "tonal center" around which a piece is built so the notes are almost completely independent of each other and sound almost random.  This is completely different from the tonal music of the early classical periods, which has "consonance," or sounds right and pleasant most of the time.  "Dissonance" is when notes clash together and are unpleasant to the ear, which is the root of modern atonal music.  Since tonal music has dominated Western culture for hundreds of years, composers of the 20th century and on began to push the envelope to develop more innovate ways of composing music.  Just like the development of abstract art, artists and composers are always looking for ways to make their works creative and unique while still appealing to audiences.  I provided two examples below, one of classical music and one of atonal music (respectively) to demonstrate the paradigm shift.

Vote of Confidence

One of the ways that human beings learn to be civic is when civic activities become a part of everyday life.  In Chapter One of "Rhetoric and Civic Life," the author brings up an interesting point in saying that most children do not know the meaning of several words in the Pledge of Allegiance, or the meaning of the Pledge as a whole, yet they recite it every day before school.  The text points out that while children may not know the precise meaning of the words they recite each morning, they still understand the concept of the importance of patriotism and loyalty to the United States of America.  When civic activities are introduced to us so early in life, these activities become ingrained in us and become natural.  Eventually, once we learn to understand and appreciate the value of these activities, we truly become civic.

I remember the first time my dad took me to vote.  It was a crisp, fall day and I was wearing a pilgrim costume in preparation to rehearse for my school's Thanksgiving play.  I was in kindergarten and I was just beginning to confidently cut on the dotted line and recite my ABC's.  Even though I did not know anything about the candidates or the current events dominating the election, I felt so proud when I received the "I Voted Today" sticker and when my dad showered me with praise for being a "good American."  In that moment, I picked up the importance of voting and being an active citizen, even though I knew nothing about the process.

Each year, my dad took me back to the polls.  I'll admit that my main incentive for going back year after year was the free cookies.  However, as I advanced from coloring to painting, from ABC's to novels, voting became more serious and interesting for me.

Last year, I was able to vote for myself for the first time, which gave me a great sense of pride and efficacy.  I believe this is what being civic does for us as a whole.  Learning to be civic is so important because it enables us as citizens to feel involved in society.  Introducing civic activities into our lives at a young age prepares us to become successful, productive members of our communities and gives us the potential to contribute positively to society as whole in the future.

Don't Judge a Penn Stater by their Michigan Shirt

I have an obsession with people.  

It is not the creepy kind of obsession that ends up being the plot of CSI or Criminal Minds, but the kind of obsession that makes going to a school of more than 40,000 students very interesting.  

I love people-watching.  My favorite activity for relaxation involves sitting on a bench and watching the world, and the people living in it, pass me by.  I try to watch nonchalantly while "reading a book" or "checking my emails" and blend into the background.  For each person that passes, I make up a story.  I try to decide where they're going and what they're doing; how many siblings they have and if they're close; what their job or major is; what their hobbies are; and any other interesting things I can glean from their appearance, mannerisms, gait, expressions, and companions.  For my blog this semester, I would love to share my thoughts while people-watching around campus and share all the imaginary stories I make up in my head about the people I see.  

The challenge with this blog, however, will be to avoid seeming judgmental.  You see, it is very difficult not to judge a book by its cover or a person by his or her appearance.  The blog would focus solely on creative writing and the stories that I formulate about each person in my imagination.  Each week, the stories I make up will most likely be completely false.  Since we are all so different and we are part of a unique, diverse culture here at Penn State, there is no possible way to accurately judge a person from first glance.  However, it is interesting to try.  Hopefully, my blog will be intriguing, insightful, and entertaining.  

PSU People-Watching at its Finest

I am also weighing the option of writing about my extensive 47-item bucket list.  I would choose ten items from the list, describe them, and discuss how they came to appear on my list of places to go, people to see, and things to do.  If people-watching seems a bit too judgmental or controversial a topic, I will gladly write about my aspirations for life, bucket-list style.  After all, it is often better to be an active participant in the excitement of life than to sit and watch it stroll by.

Item #17: Go Backpacking in the Rocky Mountains

Practice Post

I am learning how to blog.





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