The Power of Technology

As this year has truly opened my eyes to global issues, one issue that is very applicable to me and many of my peers is the use of technology.  Technology is what we use to communicate with others, to entertain ourselves, and even to learn.  I'm doing my English final on a blog on the internet for crying out loud!  Most of my classes require that I have a phone, computer, or even tablet to complete assignments nowadays.  Technology is so vital to our society, and it seems as though it would be weird to live without it.

Although technology can have a bad reputation, I strongly believe that technology is what created the best experience I could have had in AP Language and Composition.  I took this course to learn how to write, while also getting the great opportunity to learn about authors, controversial issues, and how to express myself.  With the use of technology, we have been able to watch speeches of people such as Martin Luther King Jr. and JFK.  We have been able to watch interviews, see and read the news to begin a discussion, read other students' writing to get inspiration, and we were even able to share our own work with other students for feed back.  To be honest, before coming to this class, I was sort of scared of technology.  I had no social media, and I was a rookie smart-phone-user.  After taking this class, I look forward to sharing my opinions with others and I even read (and follow) the news on social media to stay in touch with the world.  I have really opened up, and have changed as a person in some subtle ways.  I have embraced change in order to learn and move forward.  The incredible experience from this one class has made me change my habits, my views, and my way of expression that I hope to carry on with me for the rest of my life.

The following is an excerpt from an essay I wrote, called "A Vast Thriveland, a Vast Wasteland: The Power of the Internet". I argue about the positives and negatives that technology (specifically the internet) can have on society.  For me however, technology has opened doors, especially for learning and thriving in AP Language and Composition. 

 

A Vast Thriveland, a Vast Wasteland: The Power of the Internet

            Newton Minow addresses the power of television to the National Association of Broadcaster in May of 1961 to his audience.  Very seriously, he makes a reasonable claim that although television does has limitless capabilities, he does not agree that all of those capabilities are for the good.  However in the “Vast Wasteland” address, his assertion of having the responsibilities be carried out by the government is incorrect.  Much like the awesome power of television, the internet in today’s modern technology creates good and evil influence.  It provides people knowledge of occurrences in the world, but is not always beneficial to society, and definitely should not be controlled by government.

            The internet provides easy access to news in an instance, whether it be local, national, or even international news.  From this technology, our world view is broadened, we become informed citizens, and essentially have front-row seats to history whenever and wherever we are.  Above all, news keeps mankind safe in emergencies.  In New York City on September 11^th 2001, a group of Muslim terrorists destroyed the Twin Towers, resulting in about 3,000 deaths.  Once this had occurred, the internet was a valuable resource for keeping the nation and rest of the world updated on the terrorist attack.  As a result, people not only became informed, but also became aware and cautious of other people and their own surroundings for their own safety, all because of the good influence of the internet.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Mv_CnbCJW_btRM8BI-n9NErnrHjifsn2iWoEB1kYSLk/edit

My Eyes have been Opened

Coming out of Rhetorical Analysis and proceeding into Argument was a little sad for me, as I grew to really like writing about and finding underlying devices in magazines, books, and even on television.  However, argument provided something different for me: It opened my eyes to the world.  By writing argument essays, I was required to not only use personal experiences to convey my point, but to also use outside knowledge of what went/is going on in the world to answer controversial questions I had to take a stance on.  As a result of using such insight, I began to be more opinionated and aware of certain situations around the globe.  These situations ranged from past and modern-day terrorism, racism, and gun-control, to gender roles, athletics, and government.  What stood out to me (and is still an interest of mine to this day) is education.  Yes, I am a fan of education, but what is interesting about education, is how it perceived throughout the world.  In the United States, education is a privilege.  People actually leave their own countries to receive the quality education that this country has to offer.  However, many other countries in the world see education as a right.  For example, in the Middle East, it is common for males to have the right to an education and females to have none.  My interest for the view on education grew even more when we began to discuss Malala in AP English. As a young girl, Malala Yousafzai defied the Taliban in Pakistan and demanded that girls be allowed to receive an education. She was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman in 2012, but survived, and later became the youngest person to ever receive a Nobel Peace Prize for her fight for female education.  Ms. McMahon told us that we would be discussing controversial issues, but I never knew that I would be so passionate about them.  Taking a stance on a topic and writing about it, really made me enhance my debating abilities, made me more opinionated (in a good way), and reminded me that there are more serious and important things going on outside of Woburn (which seems to be my bubble).

The following is a short essay I wrote, titled "What is education to you?", which was assigned to us after our discussion about Malala and the different views on education.

Margarita Forbes

January 12, 2015

What is education to you?       

Malala Yousafzai, a teenage Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate, once said that she wanted to tell students in the UK that having the freedom to go to school is "very precious".  Education is such a thing that helps us to gain self-confidence and lead a successful life in future. It introduces us to the world of science and technology, what our world revolves around today. Moreover, education doesn't mean only to memorize, in fact it means to gain practical knowledge and understand the reality and world around us.   Education means broadening my horizons, better communication, and recognizing my place in the civilization I've been born into.

However, many students, especially in first world countries, do not realize how “precious” education truly is.  They won’t always pay attention, will sleep in class, skip class, and may even drop out of school altogether.  We need to appreciate education more in today's society, especially in first world counties like that of the U.S. or the UK. Education is the most powerful asset one can have, as it's the groundwork on which all great achievements are made and fosters positive change in the world, such as the creation of new inventions and new ideas. 

But, in countries like that of Pakistan where Malala Yousafzai lives, children envy the education system in other counties.  Sixteen-year-old Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the Taliban for being outspoken about her country’s education system. The Pakistani government spends seven times more on its military than on education and banned girls from attending school. Pakistan’s literacy rate is among the lowest in the world, with the number of school aged children who don’t attend school is second highest globally.  An estimated 25 million school age children are missing an education in Pakistan- at least 13 million of them are girls. Malala and many other students of the third country are deprived of the education they deserve to have a brighter future and more opportunities for accomplishments.  Being deprived of education simply makes students want to learn that much more.  Children continue being denied their basic human right- the right to learn.

The Taliban is just one obstacle that Pakistanis face, especially the girls.  Other obstacles include poverty, harassment and the government’s failure to prioritize education.  Both sexes suffer but girls have lower rates of literacy and school attendance.  What students in countries like the U.S. and the UK do not realize is that while we take education for granted, others would gladly like to be in our place.  We live in the type of country where there is a constant sense of security, a secure economy, and definitely a prioritization of education.

For me, a usual school day starts with waking up and then getting myself ready for school.  Then, I get driven there by my dad.  I have seven classes throughout my day, with a lunch break in the middle of the day in the building which is fairly new, being built a mere nine years ago.  At the end of the school day, I walk back home.  There are also so many activities you can get involved in at my school, such as sports or clubs.  However, for someone like Malala, life like mine is not so simple.  Her school day (if school is open that day), consists of being in the small and run down building while in constant fear of the Taliban finding her and the rest of the students. Activities after school do not exist, since many have to get home to take care of and help family School is not constant, as it is common for it to close as a result of the government or because of the Taliban coming.  Yet, it is incredible to believe that while we have education at our finger tips, we do not cherish it as much as others who are deprived of it.