Thursday 10 November 2011

Three learning points for Day 3

Do a write-up on your individual learning points in the comments section. There should be 3 points and each of them must be in a PEEL format (Point, evidence, elaborate, link).

17 comments:

  1. Today, we have learnt even more about the culture here in Vietnam and how it affects teenagers like us, since we had talks with our LSTS buddies to know more about them, and thus knowing more about the Vietnamese culture in the process. This helps us since Vietnamese cultures play a big part in the business opportunities, and would probably be a main focus for businesses that focus on the consumers in that country.

    Also, we have learnt more about looking at a certain event or action in a different perspective. This would help since any actions taken by a company has to be considered thoroughly and in different perspectives, such as the consumers’ or the employees’ perspectives, this would make the company have a strong support amongst the general public and the employees.

    Another thing we learnt was that though something may be viewed as good, to others, it may be considered very horrible. This is evident in the War Remnants Museum, where we learnt that what the Americans considered a victory, and considered their country’s soldiers as heroes, that the Vietnamese thought of the Americans as destroyers who had no mercy on their country’s soldiers or even civilians. This is important since different events are thought of very differently amongst different people, and thus, it is important to know that actions have different impacts and effects on other people.

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  2. Today I learnt more about the american war in Vietnam. I feel that the americans are extremely cruel. They used napalm, incendiary and many other chemicals in the war. This has killed many soldiers in the war and also affected the generations after them. This is extremely cruel and inhumane.

    I also learnt about the cruelty in the way the americans treated the war prisoners. The prosoners were tortured, kept in tiny and stuffy cells, The prisoners. I pity the war prisoners and I am disgusted at how the americans treated these prisoners.

    I think the Vietnamese were very resilient and united. Despite the americans having superior weponry, they did not give up without a fight and the fought together until the end. I salute the Vietnamese for their unity and resilience in the war.THey could not have won without this

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  3. 1) I learnt how to play the traditional Vietnamese game. We actually went to Lawrence S Ting School. How the game works - we actually have to step through the bamboo poles that are controlled by other people, closing at intervals and it is quite difficult. Through this experience, we learn more about the Vietnamese culture.

    2) I learnt that people, when given the right environment and support, can do very well. The students at Lawrence S Ting School can speak English fluently. When they were presenting, it was very impressive. They were well prepared, confident. Through this, we can learn that anyone with potential can be led on a path to greatness when opportunities knock on your door. Thus, it is very important to us that we seize the opportunities given to us to challenge ourself and learn new things.

    3) I also learnt that things, when looked from different perspectives, can be different due to a person’s preferences. It is proven when we visited the War Remnants Museum, in which the Vietnamese thought that the Americans were cruel people who tortured and killed their people. On the other hand, the Americans, whom at first never looked at it from the Vietnamese people’s perspective, thought it was a victory for them to take over Vietnam, killing millions in process. The Americans, only to realize that they were in the wrong later, regretted their actions. This is evident as there was a post-up in the museum. Thus, it is important that we learn to view things from other people’s point of view by putting yourself in their shoes as we have to respect others too.

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  4. Today’s trip was quite enlightening.

    At first, we went to Lawrence S. Ting School. There, we found out that the area around the school was invested in heavily by Lawrence S. Ting, a Taiwanese who came to Vietnam. From this, we can tell that there are many foreign investors investing in Vietnam. If Vietnam is attractive to foreign investors, it will start growing and may overtake the current world powers.

    At the museum, I realized that the vietnamese could recover from their losses in the war extremely fast. They were very resilient people. We can learn from this, and also strive to be resilient when faced with challenges.

    I also learnt that there were many perspectives to seeing a historical event. The US troops in the american war were considered ruthless and terrible by the Vietnamese and many people now, but the US, at that time, would consider them as heroes. This shows that different perspectives on a historical event can be drastically different. Therefore, when we look at a historical event, it is hard to consider it from a neutral point of view, but that is what we should do.

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  5. Three main learning points:
    1. We must see an incident from different perspectives (American War)
    2. We must learn from one another even in different countries [collaboration] (LSTS)
    3. Friendly games can bond our friendship with others (LSTS)

    This morning, I was busy preparing my presentation for the morning at LSTS. I did amend some slides the night before hoping for a better presentation this morning.

    When we reach LSTS, we were welcomed by the sight of a student from LSTS holding up a “Welcome SST” banner. I was less terrified this time as there wasn’t any clapping when we entered the school. Soon, we were escorted to a parade ground where we had our gift’s exchanged. I was touched by their handmade gifts. [Learning point 2]

    Next, we proceeded to a room where we did our presentation. This time it was certainly better and I would like to thank Ms Teo for giving us the morale support from the back of the room. We then proceeded downstairs where we played a traditional Vietnamese game followed by a game of “Dog and Bone” and Basket Ball. These activities helped us bond together. [Learning point 2 & 3]

    We visited the war remnants museum where we could view the American War from the Vietnamese point of view. The exhibits there also showed us the war crimes and atrocities the Vietnamese suffered. We took a lot of pictures. [Learning point 1]

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  6. Today, I visited LSTS where I learned that their students prepare for things well as they have good posture and look confident when they are presenting to many people, and some are important like the principles of both schools. This tells me that they have properly prepared and rehearsed their presentation to be able to pull it off well. Thus, they properly prepare for things well.

    Also, when I visited the War Remnants Museum, I learned that the Vietnamese are very hardy and determined to defend their country as the exhibits show that a lot of Vietnamese died as a result of fighting for their country. However, they still fought hard and won the war in spite of the high technology the Americans have. This tells me that they are determined and hardy as they did not give up and instead won.

    Finally, when I visited the Ben Thanh Market, I learned that the Vietnamese are very serious in their work, as they keep trying to get business from people, and are very attentive to what we say, unlike shop owners in Singapore, which are very slack. This tells me that they are serious in their work.

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  7. Today i learnt that the competition that we are facing around the region is really tough. The school we visited had big and good facilities and a conducive learning environment. Their english was good and they were really friendly. This shows that the competition from the region is catching up with Singapore and that we cannot be complacent and must work harder to retain the competitive advantage.

    The Vietnam side of the Vietnam-US war has shown me how much suffering the Americans have inflicted on the Vietnamese. There are pictures which show clearly how badly the American treated the prisoners of war. They even used Agent Orange, a chemical weapon which violated war time laws. Its effects lasted a few generations in form of birth defects such as lip clefts.

    The Vietnamese have a very friendly and unique way of gathering business. They try to strike up a conversation with possible business targets. The prices are also quite far from cost prices which makes sure they do not make a loss even if you drive a hard bargain.

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  8. 1)The Americans were liars as they use the pretense that they only want to drive out communist but in the end, they just killed unreasonably tortured unreasonably. They probably just wants to throw their weight around. I hope such a thing would not happen again.

    2)I learnt about the different schools in vietnam. A private school has more facilities and has a better and cleaner looking environment with air conditioned classrooms while a less developed school like Hoa Lu would have much lesser resources due to the relationships a private school have.

    3)I learnt to see things from different perspective as what one side see, could be different from what the other side see. What one side perceives to be righteous, the other could perceive it as evil and wrong. In order to justify things for ourselves, we must see things from both perspective.

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  9. 1) Today, i learnt how to see things in a different perspective. When we visited the war museum, i saw pictures of people tortured badly during the war in Vietnam. From the Vietnam's perspective, the USAs are horrid. It is important to see things from different perspectives as this could tell us how it have impact on others.

    2) When we visited LSTS today, i found out that they are very different from other schools. They have proper facility and through them, i learnt that the people heartwarming in Vietnam. Unlike in Singapore, when we meet people we know, we just kept silent.

    3) NIL

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  11. 1. It is very important for cross-cultural exchange. During the school visit to LSTS, we got to understand about how vietnam's school function and their cultural. It was a different and interesting experience for me.

    2. Before we do anything, we should think about the consequences first. During the vietnam-america war, many people got serious after efforts from the agent orange. The people continued producing the agent orange even though that they know that it is very harmful the people in Vietnam. Because of this, the had many difficulties even 23 years after the war.

    3. We must be confident and have a strong will. Before being occupied by the Americans, Vietnam has also been occupied by many countries over a very long period of time, but this did not made them give up but continue fighting against the Americans. Because of their strong wills, they became the first country to win a war against America.

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  12. Today i have learnt about vietnamese cultures through many different ways at LSTS, for example we have learned about the history of vietnam through the questions they asked and the traditional games we played. We played two different games, the first one was a game that was similar to the game dog and bone, the second one was the bamboo games which was really fun.

    and when i visited the museum i have learned that the vietnamese have a very strong will power and that what led them to defeat the americans and gained their independence. after today, i have learned to see the war from the perspective of the vietnamese and i feel that the americans were very unforgiving, as they had killed so many people.

    And in the market the people working there were really friendly and hardworking, i feel this should be the kind of attitude we should all have.

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  13. Lawrence S. Ting School is really cool.
    The school was really big, with a lot of facilities and it takes up a larger compound area. Opposite LSTS is another school. The school has many classrooms, and also basements which can house a lot of rooms, even a gymnasium and an auditorium. There are many basketball courts and soccer fields and even a swimming pool. The school is modernized with technological things with many computers. The government of Vietnam sponsored LSTS with Windows laptops.
    Thus, LSTS is an awesome.

    We visited the Ben Thanh market later in the evening which we can bargain to lower the price of the items there.
    Ben Thanh market is really huge with a lot of stalls there. The market has a wide variety of items there. Since there are a lot of stalls there, we can check the price of the items to see which store offers the best deals. Also, the market has alot of items there so we can scout around to see if we\ are interested in anything there.
    Thus, the items in Bent Thanh market is really good.

    The war museum has a lot of information about the American War.
    The war museum shows the information on the cruelty of the Americans, and the "prizes" the Americans left behind when they left Vietnam. They left in a hurry and took about 1-2 hours, which was a considerably short amount of time. They left with a short notice and could not afford to take the risk and bring back their airplanes, tanks and helicopters. Thus, the war remnants museum contains these vehicles that the Americans left behind. Also, there is a huge collection of weaponry that the Americans used, including the Thompson, M20, Flare Guns and others.
    I learnt a lot from this tour in the musuem.

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  14. I've learnt more about communication today, and how friends are so important. As friends could be working partners and job competitors later in life. Example, I made friends with those in LSTS today, they could become my working partners later on, when we start working, that is why i think it is very important...

    I've also learnt about looking at things in different perspectives, like today in the museum, we had to try and see things in different perspectives, the museum showed the war in the Vietnamese perspective, while the American's could have a different perspective.

    I've also learnt about bargaining for prices today, at the Ben Thanh Market today, i did not get anything there but I had a brief idea how to bargain with the prices, example some people cuts the prices to half, if they accept, then they would look for defects in the product and further lower it because of it... I hope I could further experience more about bargaining tomorrow when we go to ben thanh market again

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  15. 1.It is very important for cross cultural exchange. During the school interaction between SST and LSTS, we got to understand each other better, like how their school functions, their facilities, their students and their cultures. It was an interesting experience for me.

    2.I must think carefully before doing anything, as there might be dire consequences. During the Vietnam-America war, the producer of Agent Orange kept on producing it even knowing that it would be used freely on the Vietnamese. Because of that, it had caused many serious after effects on the Vietnamese. Even 23 years after the war, they still faced many difficulties and problems.

    3.I must have strong will and determination when facing a problem. Before being conquered by the Americans, they have been conquered by many countries like france and china. During the war period, many brutal punishments and treatments were given to them, but they did not waver and continue fighting hard for their country. Because of their strong will, they managed to become the first country to win a war against the americans.

    Gladys

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  16. 1) I have learnt how to play different Vietnamese traditional games. One of the games we played actually had a "flag" in the middle of the court. In an attempt to get the objective, I fell backwards and hit myself on the head. Another game was that we had to get from one point to another without touching bamboo sticks that were constantly moving around.

    2) I have learnt of the brutality the Americans treated the Vietnamese with during the war. They used napalm, chemical agents and according to figures, out of the 3 million Vietnamese casualties, 2 million were innocent civilians.

    3) I have learnt that the Vietnamese had the willpower to overcome anything. They battled with whatever they had and they were the only people that have ever won the Americans.

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  17. I learnt that in order to broaden our learning perspectives, we need to interact actively with students not only from our country or school, but also with other students whom may not have the same learning environments as us. For example, in this case, it is between students of SST and Lawrence S. Ting School, in which our buddies and us discussed our various learning experiences and programs that the school has provided for our learning, and we learn from each other about some activities that could be done in SST as well. From them, we can learn about how they study in their schools, and use these techniques to improve ourselves to study better, faster and more easily compared to the past. We can also learn about their culture, history, and many more, and learn about their country from them, so that in the future, if the need arises, we can put these information to good use. Thus, learning from students of other schools is important to learn more new and interesting stuff that have not been learnt before.

    I also learnt that we must be resilient, no matter what happens. For example, in the Vietnam/American war, the Vietnamese suffered a lot under the Americans, yet did not give up and are willing to give up their properties, lives, their everything in order to secure their freedom and independence. They were resilient in their mindset and behavior, they were able to go through all of the Americans’ war crimes. They also fought back, in order to get their country back for themselves. Having a resilient mindset would mean being able to recover quickly, and withstand even the most difficult conditions. This is suitable for use in our daily life, where we always encounter challenges and problems that may trouble us a lot. As long as we do not give up, and brave through these trials, we would be able to put an end to it soon enough. Thus, we must be resilient even if we faced any crisis in the future.

    Lastly, I have learnt that we must look at things from different perspectives, and not only from one fixed perspective. For example, in the Vietnam/American war, before the visit to the War Remnants Museum, I have only looked at this war from the American perspective, and treated them as heroes in this war. However, after the visit, I have learnt to look at this war from the Vietnamese perspective as well, in which the Americans become torturers, heartless people, and many more. Looking at things from different perspectives means putting yourself in others’ shoes and looking at the same thing from their point of view, not only your own, or a fixed point of view that you have been looking at things from for a long time. Looking at things from different perspectives would also allow you to understand/predict how people may feel, think, and act about anything. Thus, looking at things from different perspectives is important in understanding others and their thoughts and feelings.

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