Self Evaluation of My Academic Year (2009): A fantastic year…

Through this essay I intend to tell about my academic situation of this year. I can say this year has been a fantastic year. It has been full of success and gratifications. I improved many topics in my life and I think they helped me to have a better academic situation. In other words, I can say that academic situation is not separable of others life topics. When you feel good with yourself, when you have good relationship with people, when you are healthy, I´m sure you have a good academic situation. If everything goes just like has been gone until now, I will have a very successful and fantastic year.

I can say it has been a really fantastic year, compared with the last year. 2008 was a very horrible year for me. At first, I was into a deep depression because many problems (family, job, university, money, health, personal relationships, etc.) In second place, because this situation, I don’t pass one course (Sociological Theory III). Moreover, I left three more subjects (Sociological Theory IV, Organizational Sociology and Social Psychology), which I had to take this year. I thought “I will never go out from this dark situation”. But, 2009 has been absolutely different. First semester finished totally successful: I pass every subject, including the subject last year had failed, and I get good ratings. The second semester is going to finish very soon, and I think it will be more successful than first.
But my good academic situation was affected for others topics, that probably improved my development in the subjects. I think it is necessary to talk about them. I have had a so fun life. I went to Argentina in September. I have gone out a lot with my friends. In march I fell in love, but in may 21st I gave the first kiss to my current boyfriend. With him I have been able to know new things, both academic and cultural activities.

In conclusion, I may say, surely, this year has been much better than last year. Many problems have disappeared now, and new situations have arrived to my life. Then, my academic situation has improved in considerable form. Not only my grades are better, also my interest in the career has increased. To day I can say, without doubts that I want to be a good sociologist in future. I want to be builder of a better society. I pretend this year finish well, and the rest years of my life will be always better. Well, I hope things will be in this way.

sociology challenges

Actually, the sociology confronts many problems. The most important problems / challenges that the sociology currently facing is connected with the technology, the social matters and the education.
Respect the technology, the sociology need as a discipline use more mathematical models and best computing techniques, thus, the sociological analysis could improve significantly. Use new techniques and new sociological models would mean a important achievement in the development of the discipline.
Respect the social matters, I think that the sociology need to look for others fields for research. The problems of the social class should complementing with others problems, as the religion, the women, the homosexuality, and others problems / challenges in the discipline.
Respect the education, I believe that, actually, the sociology don`t have interest in the education. But, I think that the education should be a field had very important in the discipline.

The Presidential election: UDP Research

Today in the TV news appeared a piece of news that trembled the politics world. The reason was results of a research of “Diego Portales” University that present that the official candidate to the President, Eduardo Frei, exceeded to the candidate to the “Coalición por el Cambio” Sebastián Piñera in a second attempt. The interest of this news was that the results indicate a change respect the tendency that was seen in months ago.

This news and research have many repercussions. In the command of Eduardo Frei look optimistic this results, because although, says, the election will be hard, “La Concertación” win, and will have a fifth government. In change, in the Opposition, the command of Sebastián Piñera, says, the spite of that the research don`t is favorable; they think that the results of election in December will be different to the research of today, and they win the Presidential election.

Evidently, this report affects my community, city and country, well, the command of Eduardo Frei and Sebastián Piñera begin a campaign ever more powerful, situation that will be see for the citizen.

Improving your faculty facilities

In my faculty, the current situation is heterogeneous, because this situation depends on a lot variable. In respect to the infrastructure, I think that is good, we have a great computers room, a library, and good study rooms. However, I believe in respect to the faculty politics to enter aren`t the most suitable, because in general the people who enter in this place come from rich sectors. Moreover, some subjects aren`t good, and the students are left without enough knowledge.
For this, I believe that the worst things that the faculty has are the politics to enter to the faculty and the deficient subjects, and that is why, that are the two things that should be change.
For this, the first step that should be the directors, is first change the politics to enter to the faculty, to increase the number of poor people that can enter in the university, in second place, change the teachers that don`t work good, that no teach to the students, to place put a good educationalist and experts in their field.
Like that, the benefits should be great; we have a heterogeneous composition in social class terms and with this, they could have good subjects with good teachers for all.

Confusion over Labour's plan to house young mothers in supervised homes

The prospect of supervised homes for teenage mothers was one of most relevant policy announcements Gordon Brown made in his speech. About the policy Brown said in the conference that: "I do think it's time to address a problem that for too long has gone unspoken, the number of children having children. For it cannot be right, for a girl of 16, to get pregnant, be given the keys to a council flat and be left on her own,"

You can the news in this link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/sep/29/young-mothers-housing-labour-conference

Education

My education in the high school was in general very bad. Respect the subjects, only philosophy and history were good subjects. Respect the teachers, in general i had a very good relationship with them, especially with my language teacher. Respect the technology, my high school had a very good infrastructure, but wasn’t used.

The high school education that i received haven’t really affected the decisions that I have made in my life. Maybe my decisions have been more affected for the people that I join and that with they talked.

For my experience, I think that the government and congress should promote in first place a new legislation that gives a access more equal to all the people for a quality education and in second term I would propose more money for education.

Definitely, the people don’t have responsibility for education that receives. Are structural conditions that determine which is the education that everyone receives. But, it’s also true that only when the student is ready to learn, the teacher can teach.

Criminal Laws

I think that the capital punishment in no case is a good solution to reduce criminality. To Think otherwise would mean having as a premise that all the population thinks in a rational way. As a matter of fact, the people act according to the reality that they are living. For example, if a person has lived in a home with violence it’s very probable that the same person does the same acts.

Definitily the capital punishment doesn’t have any pros. This punishment gives shape a society with hate, anger, violence and revenge. A society like described above don’t have any chance of moving towards a more just society.

Respect the criminal rates, i think that there are two reasons for believe that we lives in a city with criminality. In first place a ideology of fear and insecurity that has locked everyone and in second place a society with high levels of inequality. In addition Chile is one of the countrys of Latin America that have a law level of criminality. For this i think that the most important is reduce the levels of inequality; and the government should worry about that.

I've never been the victim of a criminal act, and very few people that I know have been victims. the only person that I know has been victim of a pick pocketing is my mother.

What to do / where to go in Santiago

Santiago is the political and administrative capital of the country, has the largest number of people across the country and has a large number of museums, cultural and recreational spaces especially at night. So Santiago is one of teh cities most attractive from the standpoint of cosmopolitan in Chile.

If a foreigner tourist ask me what places to visit in the city exist, should definitely say that the most important are The Museum of Fine Arts, Contemporary Art Museum (MAC), Forest Park, "Cerro Santa Lucia", "Cerro San Cristobal", The "Quinta Normal" park, Brazil neighborhood and the historic neighborhood of the city where is the palace of goverment.

Besides visiting all these places, a foreigner tourist can visit the bohemian neighborhoods and of entertainment in the city, among them are "Lastarria neighborhood", the "Barrio Bellavista", "Barrio Brasil", "San Enrique" Square and "Ñuñoa" square. In these areas people have a very good time, for example dancing, drinking, eating internacional food and food more typical of the country also.

The 5 most important places to visit are: first, the historic Neighborhood of the city because in this place you can find the palace of government, the Citizenship square and you can see how the city was few decades before, and second place the Museum of Fine Arts because it shows the development of art in the country. In third place The Cerro San Cristobal because we can find the botanical garden, Japanese garden and other beautiful places. Fourth place Brazil Neighborhood because it combines fun and story and fifth place lastarria neighborhood because you can have a very good time.

Suecia: a beautiful country

In general I would like to know Europe, specially Sweden. A very nearby person has said to me that it’s a beautiful country from the point of view of the architecture and of the landscapes and that in addition socially it is an igalitarian country.

Sweden is a Scandinavian country of Northern Europe that forms a part of the European Union. The people of Sweden have a high standard of living, and the country is known like modern and liberally. In the 20th century it has been located constant between the countries by better Index of Human Development (IDH). Sweden has a economy strongly regulated by the State, which has been known as “model Swedish” and presented as example of the socio-economic offer of the European social-democracy.

I would like to know the different places of this country, to visit the principal cities, to understand how the people relate, among other things. I think that to know the reality of a totally different country, would be one of the most fabulous experiences that might pass. In addition I would be charmed with being able to live at least some years there, for me to be able to study and work and in general have another form of life.

First Term: Good and Bad points

It is interesting to do an inventory of what I lived during the first termo of this year. Precisely provided that it is possible to do a balance of the good things and the bad things that happened.

In the university it me was OK, I approved all the subjects. Last year had not approved a subject called “Sociological Theory 3”, nevertheless this year I could approve it and was very important to me, have learned things that before had been an evil understood. There were some subjects that were more difficult, but in general I obtained an acceptable qualification in each of them.

With regard to the sports activities and of leisure the result was not so positive. In general i realized more cultural activities, which is positive; nevertheless, I did’t realize many sports significant activities. I hope that this semester the situation changes.

The challenges that in general I had to confront were relating to academic activities, which in general I overcame sufficiently.

With regard to my family I cannot say very much, the truth is that we live in different cities and I could’t share very much with them, but they know that I love them very much. One positive things is that I knew more deeply to other persons and today they are my friends.

The past semester had goods and bad points, but in general the balance is positive.

ENGLISH 4

Assignment 5. “About interesting carrer-related topics”

The sociology is a science that studies human society, understood as a set of individuals who live together in various types of associations, communities and institutions. This requires usually theoretical models, a “Theory” that can explain those phenomena. In our career, a great topic, are the “contemporary theories”, which have tried to explain the social facts and social relations.

In “Theory 3”, we have learned about various authors, among them the biggest in recent times, as Habermas, Luhmann and Bourdieu. Habermas said that the traditional processes of democracy don`t provide a space for collective decision-making; but the public sphere can be reformed to promote the participation of community bodies, avoiding the colonization of the World of life by the systems. On the other part, Luhmann changed completely the form to understand to society. Leave aside completely the idea of a society composed of men, proposing a society emerging as the level at which reproduces social communications. Finally, Bourdieu, trying to overcome the traditional duality between sociology and social structures objectivism, on the one side, as opposed to social action and subjectivism (hermeneutics), on the other side. This gives two new concepts, habitus and the countryside, and reinvents an already established, the capital.

I think that in general the course succeeds in taking the broader aspects of contemporary sociology, so for me it is difficult to define other related materials. Establish Perhaps more importantly relations with the empirical world that enlarge the spectrum is theoretical. I believe further, that this type of discussion in particular, have been those that have motivated me to become interested in it.

Links:

http://www.geocities.com/tomaustin_cl/soc/Habermas/portal.htm

http://users.fmg.uva.nl/lleydesdorff/montreal.htm

http://www.latarea.com.mx/articu/articu15/caama215.htm

Assignment 5. “About interesting carrer-related topics”

The sociology is a science that studies human society, understood as a set of individuals who live together in various types of associations, communities and institutions. This requires usually theoretical models, a “Theory” that can explain those phenomena. In our career, a great topic, are the “contemporary theories”, which have tried to explain the social facts and social relations.

In “Theory 3”, we have learned about various authors, among them the biggest in recent times, as Habermas, Luhmann and Bourdieu. Habermas said that the traditional processes of democracy don`t provide a space for collective decision-making; but the public sphere can be reformed to promote the participation of community bodies, avoiding the colonization of the World of life by the systems. On the other part, Luhmann changed completely the form to understand to society. Leave aside completely the idea of a society composed of men, proposing a society emerging as the level at which reproduces social communications. Finally, Bourdieu, trying to overcome the traditional duality between sociology and social structures objectivism, on the one side, as opposed to social action and subjectivism (hermeneutics), on the other side. This gives two new concepts, habitus and the countryside, and reinvents an already established, the capital.

I think that in general the course succeeds in taking the broader aspects of contemporary sociology, so for me it is difficult to define other related materials. Establish Perhaps more importantly relations with the empirical world that enlarge the spectrum is theoretical. I believe further, that this type of discussion in particular, have been those that have motivated me to become interested in it.

Links:

http://www.geocities.com/tomaustin_cl/soc/Habermas/portal.htm

http://users.fmg.uva.nl/lleydesdorff/montreal.htm

http://www.latarea.com.mx/articu/articu15/caama215.htm

Assignment 4: “Recommended web sites in my area”

The University of Michigan
Documents Center

At this web site, you can find links on various quantitative social research. It is a centre of documents containing statistical information about the most varied topics. Some of the most important topics covered in the website are: Adoption, Culture, Ethnicity, Immigration, Religion, Sexual behaviour and Social security.

http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/stsoc.html

Department of Sociology at Essex

This web site is of the Department of Sociology of Essex`s University. Here, you can find a web links bank, that will help you obtain general information about the most important Social Theorists, around the world and to the long of the history.

http://www.essex.ac.uk/sociology/course_materials/web_links/theorists.shtm#Niklas%20Luhman

ISA - Internacional Sociological Association

The third web site that i elected, is the international sociological association. At this web site you can find several links that will help you know about this scientific organization, and which is their position in relation to other scientific disciplines.

http://www.isa-sociology.org/memb_c/index.htm

My last weekend. by Felipe Cruz

My last weekend was absolutely phenomenal. The weekend began with a small celebration, the Thursday, at my house. There I celebrated with some friends of the university where I study. We had a great time.
On Friday, it was a little better, my brother came to Santiago to visit me. We talked for a very long time, about the different things that have happened. Moreover, we went to different places, we had a very fun time. The Sunday, he went to our house in Vallenar. Really, I’m very happy for his visit.
That same day, my father came to Santiago, for things of work, however, we talked, and we shared beautiful moments.
Finally, it was a great weekend.

My last weekend. by Felipe Cruz

Assignment 1

Hello, I'm Felipe Cruz, and I welcome you to my blog, where you can find some of the work of the subject of English.
However, I think it is also necessary that you know some things about me.
I was born in 1987 in Vallenar, Atacama Region, where I did my studies in elementary education and secondary. Actually I study sociology at the Chile`s University, in Santiago, the capital of the country. My family lives in Vallenar, so sometimes I travel to visit them.
However, the important thing is that, this blog has been created to facilitate learning about the language, adapting knowledge to technologies that increasingly are used for the people in the world. I believe that here is the importance of these new forms of learning.
Finally I hope that you like the blog and the visit when you need it.I see you later and thank you very much.

My favourite song: Creep by Radiohead

This song is really special for my and my high School friends. The truth, is that, this song is not important for its meaning, but is that thanks to her with my friends find similar interest, and we can share a different happiness moments.Moreover, in this song you can find the firsts melodies of the one alternative rock band of England. Radiohead is composed mainly for Tom York and Jonny Greenwood. In Rainbowns (2007) is the last album.

Lyrics

RADIOHEAD CREEP

When you were here before

Couldn’t look you in the eye

You’re just like an angel

Your skin makes me cry

You float like a feather

In a beautiful world

And I wish I was special

You’re so fucking’ specialBut

I’m a creep, I’m a weirdo.

What the hell am I doing here???

I don’t belong here.

I don’t care if it hurts

I want to have control

I want a perfect body

I want a perfect soulI want you to notice

When I’m not around

You’re so fucking’ specialI wish I was special

But I’m a creep, I’m a weirdo.

What the hell am I doing here?

I don’t belong here.

She’s running out again,

She’s running out

She’s run run run running out...

Whatever makes you happy

Whatever you want

You’re so fucking’ specialI wish I was special...

But I’m a creep, I’m a weirdo,

What the hell am I doing here?

I don’t belong here.I don’t belong here.