The GEK 1036

This is DEFINITELY one of the most interesting and impressing class to me.

I choose this class because 3 of my friends decide to study this course, but end up only chuan-an and I bid it successfully.

I am nervous about will I pass this module all the semester, especially the project.
The Proposal was a disaster!!! ....The Lit Review.... quite okay.... but marks are still low....
The final project, most excited and complicated( maybe only for chuan-an and I),
we start with confused about what kind of information should we collect.
then we make phone-calls crazily, those people are quite nice to me and all very willing to helping me,
some even say that they could ask their friends for me.

The presentation, another struggle for me, at that time, I got total 18 hours orchestra per week, another project and presentation, one orchestra performance, 12 hours masterclass in 2 day, conducting class, solo masterclass, orchestra audition....... I was stressed out.... but still... sit in computer laboratory doing the presentation power point until 1115pm everyday....... but for me..... when we done it.... what I feel is full of a sense of accomplishment. But.. that wasn't the end... we rush back to pgp, to rehearse on 2 am midnight, and another rehearse 8 am on the presentation morning. I am quite satisfied with what we perform during the presentation, at least we caught our audience attention,though our point wasn't quite clearly and does not make sense well.

After presentation, i was still struggling with a mass of orchestra and performance, the final project delayed everyday, but we don't have any choice. The whole final project was done with rush, two of us just can't write the 2 page introduction and 2 page conclusion, and we also got some technology problem, with the edit and convert file. For me, after the previous 2 week, I can think anymore, it seemed to me like i was run out of my battery.
For the confirmation and correction of our point, I keep asking my Chinese friends about their education about politeness and some daily usual practice, and call my grandma to know what Japanese influence the Taiwanese.
Like I said earlier, the whole final project was in a rush, we run to central Library at 4 pm only for the stupid printing, I was angry and wondering why it is so inconvenient to print!! ( maybe it is too convenient in Taiwan)
Oh~~ Dr. Deng, did I upload my project on the wrong place of ivle( it is in Workbin/Student Submissions)? why there is only our project on there?

Lecture 6 Communication Systems

I remember we do an activity which talked about the behave between Thai and Australian Student who saw an old neighborer woman is going to crossing street.

When I was young, my teacher taught me that I should go and helping the women. But in reality, I never do what my teacher taught. And I am wondering if it happen, what will I do. Because I won't found my elderly neighbor crossing street by her own, and if it happen, I think there will be a guy doing what Thai student do.

But what's important is that I think to have closer community life and the kind of respect to elderly is, though younger generation think it is troublesome, but the life when you old you will gain more help like you help your elderly when you were young. And this is, as a international student, I see and think Singaporean should think more about.

Hopefully, Singaporean do not feel offended.

Lecture 9 Cross-Gender Interaction

this week we talk about the discrimination in written.

eg. chinese words usually add the female character(女) on words to signify negative meaning.

english, on the other hand, use man to represent both gender.

one thing impressed me is the using of miss and ms., most of english speaker realize the gender issue behind the use if these two word. but for me, i was confused about the differences when i discussed with my taiwanese friends.

i think the using and inventing of these kinds of gender words is not what the reader or inventor really discriminate on one side of gender, it may because of it is more convenient or straight for people to understand it.

we could try not to using the specific gender words, but what's most important is that we, from the deepest heart, do not discriminate our opposite gender.

Lecture 8 CMC

CMC stands for Computer Mediated Communication, nowadays, it is not only human communication via computer but via technology.

As for the new language using to communicate in most of cmc,.....it is not that common for me to use, especially most of the time i chat with my friends in chinese. but i remember few years ago in taiwan, there were arguments about the using cmc language result in the low ability of literacy, though scientists proved that the using cmc language dose not effect the using of the 'correct' language recently, it is now not a problem to me anymore, because it is not 'hot' to using the cmc language anymore in taiwan( or at least my friends and i won't do that when we are chatting).

i think the most hot one is cmc like skype or something that can communicate just by speaking.
by that kind of technology, i can talk with anyone who have phone or skype and doing what i want to do at the same time. for me, there is no need to type to communicate, why i have to waste my time in typing what i can say in only 2 seconds?

i think maybe few years later dr deng will teach the speaking of cmc communication!

Lecture 7 Face and Politeness

This week is E-learning week.

I'm not sure if I'm 100% understand the lecture note.

• Ask for Help

Tact Maxim( to others)

Generosity Maxim(to self)

• praise

Approbation Maxim( to others)

Modesty Maxim(to self)

• agree with others

Agreement Maxim

• sympathize with others

Sympathy Maxim

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I am thinking about the literature review.

The literature review is to show that not only me but many people interested in the relevant topic I am doing now.

But then, what makes my research special? it is basically the same others have done. why we need another same research? why should people read mine? how should I persuade people to read my one?

Lecture 5 Written Discourse

we did not focus too much on different types of paragraph development, basically,

english is the most straight forward one, it contains

Introduction(thesis statement)

Topic Sentences(supporting sentences)

Conclusion

(Because of this structure, i struggled with how to write research report, essay in exam and story. i don't see the structure!!)

i was impressed that one of Dr. Deng's Chinese student said that the reader will not want to read the whole essay if he/she writes what him/her wants to say in the beginning.

we also talked about the sentence sequence, in Chinese, the cause clause precedes the effect clause, but in english, the main clause precedes the subordinated clause. as a native Chinese speaker, i type what i what to express first and then reverse the sentences.

e.g.

i was impressed that one of Dr. Deng's Chinese student said that the reader will not want to read the whole essay if he/she writes what him/her wants to say in the beginning.

the original sentence i write is like

i was impressed that one of Dr. Deng's Chinese student said that if he/she writes what him/her wants to say in the beginning the reader will not want to read the whole essay.

do u understand what i'm trying to say? if not......as a chinese, i must say,

it's the reader's responsibility to understand the writter!!!!!!

Lecture 4 Spoken Discourse

i joined the friday session coz got rehearsal on wed.

nomally, before i pick up a phone, i will check who's calling.

if it is from my friends, i will directly say hello [name],

if it is from my taiwanese friends or close friends,

it would be, hello classmate(嗨!同學) or hello senior/junior(喂!學長/姐/弟/妹)

if it is from someone i don't know, the 4 opening sequence being uesd.

i think you are suprised that how come i call my close friend classmate?!

but tell you the truth, all my close friends call me classmate, they never call me my name!

and also, we don't call our senior and junior only by name,

if u want, u MUST add senior or junior, like name-relationship,

or it will be unrespect for them,

and what's wired,

if u call them by using name-relationship form,

it shows that u and the person are unfamilar to each other,

that will be a big gap in the rest of your conversation!

.....sounds unbelievable right?!....

Lecture 3 Speech event

I went for a rehearsal last friday, and met my section partner first time.

We introduce ourselves to each other, shake hands, and we chat whenever we don't need to play!(sorry! the rest of orchestra!)

Our chatting topic changed almost every time after another break, from where we from, how good the instrument is, what are you playing now, and the future career.... etc.

Genre: conversation

Topic: not specific?!

Purpose or Function: small talk

Setting: rehearsal room, every friday night

Key: free, relaxed

Participants: my partner and I, the orchestra(?)

Message form: spoken- english

writting- bowing( for our playing)

non-verbal- headnod, smill, use bow to index where we are

Act Squence: no certain sequence

Rule for Interaction: polite, not ask things too private, not too laud( orchestra still playing)

Norms of Interpretation: try to be objective to others' playing, try to unify in your section, be nice to your partner is more important than whether you are good player

.....................................................................................

As in lecture note, speech event can be, e.g. see a doctor, service counter and market tansactions.(Lecture 3 note, p 1)

But if you see those 3 events as 3 independant speech events, how about mine orchestra one? should I see it as a big speech event, like I analysed above, or, should I see them as many different short events?

台灣加油!

Lecture 2 Speech Act

As a madarin and taiwanese speaker, i usually respond compliments by thanking or sometimes just giving a smile. it's quite embarrassing for me when recieved compliment from an english speaker, and it's more difficult for me to say thank you in english, it would end up with an....awkward situation! ... i think the research is not that suit me. and also, my taiwanese friends and i seldom reject compliments especially in our mother language, but we did only smile when recieve compliment in english!

for me, it surprised me that there are not few ways to respond compliments, and i was shocked by the different kinds of responds answered by my group mates when doning group disscusion. (.....oh!! what was disscussed just now,... is true! i thought)

i remember in my high school years, one of my teacher said to us, that she appreciates the way german respond to compliments. she said that it was terrific to respond with thank you and agreeing it, unlike chinese to reject the compliments to show how humility we are. i think what she said really changed us, and when i read the article i think the way german respond is what we should learn, and not only the respond but also the compliment-giving. the compliments are not giving easily by german, but once it gives, it's by total truthfulness, which i think is what we should learn instead of giving and receiving compliments without honesty.