Learning Journal 1
I am really excited for this class and ultimately to go to Tonga! I’m going to be honest and say that I am not really sure what my project is going to be and exactly what I am going to be doing in Tonga while I am there. I do have a faint idea but I definitely need to do more research to develop my project more.
During class we talked about the article “What Students Don’t Learn Abroad”. Ashley raised an interesting question. She asked if we live in a questioning culture or society. I thought about her question and I think we don’t live in a questioning society. Many people live their own lives and don’t really care about what happens around them. They don’t question why something happens or even how other people might do things differently. They do things their own way.
I took this thought a step further and thought about my own life and if I question things around me. I realized that I do what everyone else has done and don’t question things. I am comfortable doing what other people tell me to do. I asked my friend what he thought about the question and he says he questions a lot of things because he finds he learns better that way. He discovers things for himself by questioning things around him and finds answers to his questions on his own. I guess the answer to Ashley’s question is that it depends on the person. My friend lives in a questioning world because he makes it that way. In my case I live in a very unquestioning world because I choose not to question the world around me.
Learning Journal 2
The time I spent today doing research was very productive. I couldn't really find anything related to my project but it was productive in the sense that it helped me to narrow down my project ideas. My project originally was going to be about the physical education programs in the schools. Upon further research I discovered that no emphasis is really put that heavily on physical activity in a formal education. I realized that I needed to maybe research the effects of not having physical education in the school system. Also I found out that obesity is a big problem in Tonga. I could also research that aspect of their culture and go into childhood obesity as well. Here is a rough plan of how my project might go:
Learning Journal 2
The time I spent today doing research was very productive. I couldn't really find anything related to my project but it was productive in the sense that it helped me to narrow down my project ideas. My project originally was going to be about the physical education programs in the schools. Upon further research I discovered that no emphasis is really put that heavily on physical activity in a formal education. I realized that I needed to maybe research the effects of not having physical education in the school system. Also I found out that obesity is a big problem in Tonga. I could also research that aspect of their culture and go into childhood obesity as well. Here is a rough plan of how my project might go:
Project ideas
-obesity
-cultural reasons for obesity
-causes
-food choices/availability
-cultural causes
-effects
-problems with obesity
-associated diseases
-prevention
-choices
-physical activity
-culture
-obesity in children
-cultural differences between male and females
-emphasis on physical education?
