Interdisciplinary Tomlin Economics

Right now I am finding Ms. Tomlin's economic class extremely worthwhile and useful. Many students, myself included, are always questioning why are we learning what we are learning in school if it has no real life application. For example, if someone wants to be a police officer, how does learning advanced mathematics help them with what they are trying to pursue. The reason I love Ms. Tomlin and her class is because she is giving us real life situations: i.e. credit cards, interest rates, student loans, mortgages, car loans, and applying them to the real world situation. We are put in charge of our household and we have to make financial decisions about are hypothetical future.
Ms. Tomlin does a good job of guiding us and does not want us to settle for government assistance programs or NYCHA housing. She is letting us know that our adult lives start now, with the applications for credit cards and student loans. She advises us not to spend beyond our means, so that when we are out of college we are not buried in debt. She wants to make sure that we are aware that when we first start receiving our paychecks, that we must take into account social security, state, and city taxes. By covering all bases, she is making sure that we are fully prepared for our lives as independent adults and I will always appreciate her for that. I feel that I am fully prepared to live on my own right now.

Self selected response: Catcher in the Rye

I would like to reflect on J.D. Salinger's critically acclaimed novel, Catcher in the Rye. The story was brought under the microscope after John Lenin's murderer opened the novel and started reading it waiting for the police to arrest him. The story is a coming of age novel which tells the story of a young Holden Caulfield, who is petrified at the thought of leaving behind a childhood he never knew. Now, Holden has to transition to yet another unknown, adulthood. The thought of an unfulfilled childhood leads to apprehension for Holden's outlook of himself as an adult. However, Holden comes to terms with the transition after seeing Phoebe ride around the merry-go-round in Central Park. It is at this point that Holden looks at life as a circle, with a beginning, middle, and end. The transition to adulthood is now looked at as a natural part of the life cycle. Just as babies become children, and children become teens; so do teens into adults. The reason I can relate to the novel is because I am in the process of becoming independent, and Salinger covers all points in order to come of age.

English Creative Writing Class

Currently, we have a new student teacher teaching Ms. Lee's English Creative Writing class. His name is Mr. M, and he goes to City College of New York. He is at a crossroads right now, and he is debating whether to continue pursuing a career in teaching. I think he is a great teacher because he helps us with our writing. He wants his students to think outside of the box. He provokes deep reflections and thoughts. He intertwines philosophy and psychology to add more depth to our writing. We speak about every day things, such as religion, school, and dealing with other people. We also have very sadistic discussions. For example, the other day, we were forced to write about the end of times. In the end of times there would be a group of 20, of which only 10 would be chosen to survive. The group members would have to vote to choose who would make the cut. Each respective group member would vouch for their survival based on what skills they had. For example, those who were doctors survived because of the need for health care, where as a harp player was voted off. The writing exercise made us decipher between needs and wants.

I would like to discuss what I have been learning in Ms. Tomlin's class. I find the justice system very interesting, especially in regard to what is and what is not constitutional. What is interesting about it is that there is no distinct answer, that is why lawyers have to argue from different viewpoints in order to make there case. A lot of the times, the justices even have opposing opinions on what they interpret the constitution to say. It is incredible that the United States Constitution has lasted so long. Society and culture has changed so drastically and it is truly incredible that our constitution has been able to adapt with that. The reason for this miracle is the amendments that can be made as time changes. It is really cool to see the constitution as a living thing.

I would like to discuss the movie Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. If you guys have seen the prequel, you know that Caesar is the main character who the story is centered around. With a synthetic drug tested on apes to see if it can cure Alzheimer's goes wrong and wipes out the majority of the human race, Caesar is the leader of his ape community. However one day the apes hear a gun shot. When they gather to see where the shot has come from they encounter humans. These humans tell Caesar that they are the last of what is left of the human race and they want to use the apes environment in order to use a damn to create electricity. This causes a conflict among the ape community. Many of the apes have a negative outlook on humans because they have been on the receiving end of some harsh scientific testing. Koba, one of the apes who is strongly against humans, disregards Caesar's thoughts on co-existing with the humans. Koba goes to the human headquarters and sees the armory and the amount of weapons in it. Instead of telling Caesar, he takes one of the guns, stealthly shoots Caesar, and blames the humans for it so they have a reason to go to war with the humans. It is interesting because at first apes saw humans as savages who killed their own kind. Now with the apes increased intellect , they are beginning to become power hungry and killing each other. It is interesting to see the connection made with intellect and power, and how far any living thing is willing to go in order to seize it.

Class is going great

So far I am really enjoying class. The concepts discussed in the Socratic Seminar are very intriguing because we are discussing things that pertain to real teen life. We talk about subjects like social media, and how they impact today's genreation and society. The great thing is we get both ends of the spectrum so there is no bias. It ties in well with the themes in Farenheit 451 of letting media and things we see that have power over what we think. By seeing both extremes of the spectrum, we are able to make our own opinions. I believe Ray Bradbury's purpose in writing this book was to have the current and future generations examine their own views and values, and whether or not they were shaped by media. I feel that Ms. Hegeman and Ms. Gilpin have done a good job in spear-heading the discussions, prompting us to think outside of the box reflecting on ourselves.

My Passion

I am passionate about my education. My family comes from a strong educational background and I feel like I have to live up to that. I really like all of my classes this year. I especially like my science classes along with my math classes. My science teacher expects a lot out of all of her students. It is good even though she is very strict, she also has a unique teaching style. I learn a lot in her class because she outlines the whole year's coursework up front. Therefore, if you want to read ahead, you can, just so you don't get surprised by any material. Another one of my good teachers is my history teacher. She is very upfront with all of her students about what is expected of them. She also gives her own perspective on what she has to go through, telling us her point of view. That makes the students respect her more and work harder for her by seeing what she has to go through as a teacher.  I plan on going to college and not only getting my undergraduates but also a masters.