My experience learning English at the university / A general reflection

When I entered at University I totally ignore that i will have to pass four english levels. So, this surprise me a bit, because it seems to me like school, where you have to pass subjects that you don`t choose at all. In spite of this, i don´t worry much because I have an acceptable level, compare to my school classmates and I passed the subject with good notes. But a little problem came when I gave the test level in 2007, I could´t answered all the questions because the time ran to fast at these time, sadly. In spite of this, I got in the third level.

When I was in my first year in Anthropology, I take the first of the two levels that i left. I rememberd my teacher was an young englishwoman that was very nice, but my classmates were a little bigheaded, and all of them from superior grades and others carrers. In fact, i was the only one that were from first grade, so, i don´t were with friends or people that i liked –except the teacher-.

All this, plus that I have never felt comfortable speaking in another language, because I really have problems to put in word what i`am thinking – and worst in another language- made that I don`t felt very relaxed. Honestly, when i entered into that class I just wanted to go away as farest as possible.

This year the situation went better, much better that previous year. One important thing, now almost all my classmates are my also my classemates in the other subject in university, and i`m with two of my best friends. This sounds like I was two years old, but to me is important, because, like I say, i don´t feel comfortable speaking in another lenguage. So, I felt more confident speaking with people that I know and I like.

Taking all into account, I think English is, fair or not, necessary actually. For example, many people needs it to their jobs. So, is good that University prepare us to this demanding exterior world, and more than that, to learn more than just our mother language has the power to open our mind, because opens the door to a new culture and a differnt world of meanings –of course, not all is so changeable-. But, in more general terms, i think that is unfair that just one language take the important place of communications between people of diffents countries, this should be more diverse.

CHALLENGES IN YOUR DISCIPLINE

I think that the anthropology has one big challenge actually; this is with the society. To understand this new deal is necesary to be clear that the conditions to do etnografic and anthropologic work aren´t the same since the discipline was created.

In the XIX century anthropology was useful to big european empires, who sent cientists to learned all about the native culture and so help to dominated it. This populations were strange, so the mainly questions about them where how they were organized?, how were them religion? how them act in the economic matters? and all the thing that serve to ilustrated a general view of them.

Actually this is different; there aren´t "savages" o groups of people totally unknown, besides there are an etic matter about to interfere and treat as an study "object" cultures and people.

Now i think the mainly challenge that the anthropology has is to diversify it study object; not just study the indians or the patrimony, the "others" (as we name them), but also our own society, our own social structure and power relations. This topic are mainly study by sociologists, but is also necesary and anthropologic view.

We, as students, have subject that are more oriented to this tradicional topic, but there are subject that are considering to work more in public politcs, for example.

This way, we could extend our space of work, and mainly we could focus in the big problematics that affect actually to our society, and not just a part of it.

Another challenge that is important is to legitimaze our discipline in the same society; most of the people doesn´t know what we do!, or where, or how. We can´t help to change some problems of people is they don´t consider our work. Probably, to achive this, is necesary to incorporate also a cuantitative perspective, to give more validity to our studies. The anthropologists studies are generally studies of cases, but to generalize and say that "this is a social issue" is necesary to take a cualtitative view and this way, make the study more representative.

Well, this is it, i think that our mainly challenge is with the society; finally, we are scientist, we want to know more, and how i think that know for knowing has not much sense, we has to know to find a solution to the problem that affect the majority of people.

Advantages and disadvantages of being wealthy

Oh my gosh, being wealthly is something that i have never known. So, all the followings ideas are nothing more than that, ideas.

However, dream is my favorite sport. Being wealthy allows a lot of things, although some people could say. First of all, a person who have this facility could stop to worry about to get money to paying accounts, the rent, the collage, the gassoline, the food etc because money is necessary for living, even the pope needs it. Despite this fact, i think the main adventage of being rich is to have one of the most scanty things in modern life: time.

In this sense, a person could be rich and poor at the same time, because someone could dedicate all his time to get money, but prefering to do something else. So, i believe that time allows us to do the activities we like more: being with our family, to play music, to write, to travel; allows us to develop our truth pasion in life, because gives us the time to it.

But money should´t be a goal by it self al least if nothing give us more happiness that to have a lot of green paper or to buy a lot of things, that is although very posible.

In conclusion, to mi to have money has just one sense: when allows me to do the things i love more (and you don´t need to be millionare for this). On the other hand, is nothing to worry about. I am not saying that is something that has no importance, but the goal of the majority of people is to be happy, and if money has nothing to say about this, so is something secondary.

The most embarassing moment i have ever

I was thinking and thinking what was the most embarrassing situation in my life and nothing came to my mind. When i thought that i am one of the few, lucky persons that doesn’t has to pass throw this, i remember something. This came slowly, very slowly to mi head. Probably was something that i wanted to erase, but now it’s completely clear.

This happened last year, when i was studding in bachillerato. The thing is we were in strike because the general education situation in Chile (horrible) and that black day - i can’t remember the exact date, thankfully- there was a meeting to decide if we were going to follow asking for our demands or if we were to return to classes.

So, in this moment i had the bad, painful, horrible idea of raise the hand up. So, all the 300 people that were around me wanted to hear what i wanted to say. In this very moment, i suffer, like i say, a assault of panic. Horrible.

I couldn’t breathe, i couldn’t think, i did speak correctly -because i couldn’t breathe-, and the worst was that the i had perception problem, i can`t explain it well, but was like if i was high or something. Horrible. And i don’t know why!!!, i mean, i always have problems to speak in public, i always blush like a tomato, but this was different.

Well, the other people just look at me like wandering “why?” and “what?” and “how?”, etc. and then they just follow with the meeting…thankfully, because I don’t wanted comments.

And that’s all. This happened in a awful day, in the worst week the world remember, with 300 people of witness, and mainly this was a day the world should forget and never, ever to return to remember, for the good of humanity.

Post strike due next week.

At first sight, a news like this would not attract much the attention because seems another fight of a little group of workers that doesn’t represent anyone.

The news is about a national strike of the Communication Workers Union, who will begin the strike on October 22 if there aren’t an agreement about the request they are asking for. The conditions are a solution for the bad pays and the job losses that the modernisation of the system carried whit it

The diary seas that the dispute is far from find a agreement, so is probably that a national strike will occur in the next week.

In spite of this problems affect directly to just a little group of workers, disputes like this should be more consider for the government and for the people who studies societies in general.

One of the most famous and respected theories in anthropology and sociology is the functionalism, this theory puts the attention to the costumes, the actions and institution who maintain the stability of society, as it name seas the things that are "functional" to the system. This way for the time this theory was the most accepted to understand culture, the actions that were against this stability were omitted.

To day is recognized that this facts not just exist, but besides are the main factor to cultural changes, and more important than that, this actions reveals the disagreement that the same people shows to the own life conditions, and the problems that cause new ways of life when they found whith more old traditions. This has sense because if we consider people thought we are more close to find a solution to this problems.

this is the link of the nwes: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/13/post-strike-due-royal-mail-unions

IMPROVING YOUR FACULTY FACILITIES

I´m not really well informed about situation of my faculty, because i have not gone to the meeting that the student do. In spite of this, i have hear a lot of a current problem that is a discuss not only in here, but in all the education system; is the problem of access to university, and the difficult is to poor student to enter in the public collages, bearing in mind that they haven´t receive the same level of education than people who has a better oportunities.
To partially resolve this unequal access this faculty, specifically the Psicology and Anthropology careers have made a program that consist in give access quotas to students in the poorest conditions; this way, they would not pay nothing mensualy like the "normal" students do, and they would not have to do the PSU, the seleccion test to enter to the university.
But, although this is a great advance in the way to improve the access to public universities, this project was not accepted by the rector, so in this moment there is a debate between who aprobe the project and who rejected it.
The access in one of the biggest problems in the chilean education system , besides the quality, the difference between good and mediocre education and teacher etc. in this way i think this is a very positive idea considering the things that just one faculty can do.
This project can really prove that the intelligence cross all the social classes in Chile, unlike that the current situation shows; people of high classes are enter in university and the poorest don´t. Moreover this obvious conclusion the will allow that student that lives diferents realitys could actually met, because this is now nonexistent.
Finally, i think this must be just one of the project to improve the equality, in access and quality, in education, mainly becouse this is a way to ensure the future of a lot of people.

MY FAVORITE MOVIE

I haven`t seen a lot of movies, and less that aren`t American, but i really like a Spanish movie called "El Laberinto del Fauno". This is the most popular movie spoken en spanish and it was rolled in 2006.
This movie has the perfect combination of realism and fantasy. For one hand, it treats about a girl named Ofelia who lives in the postwar period in Spain, so the characters are set in the years following the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). At this time, she goes to live with her new stepfather, a military man who support Franco, at a zone near to mountains, where are anarquist and republican people are still fighting.
the Captain Vidal is a man who combines all the negatives things a man could have; is a military man, supports a dictatorship, is a killer, "machista", is a insensitive man etc etc etc. and he is in this place to dismantle the republican resistance.

On the other hand, the movie treats about a relationship that has Ofelia with a fantasy world, in this world she is a princess that by mistake is living with humans, so she has to return with her real (and royal) family. this way she met a Fauno, who tells her that she has to pass three proves, at the end of these she could return where she belongs.

Finally, in spite of the end of the movie seems "open" to me shows the defeats of the fantasy by the reality for one hand and the successful of the resistance for and other, something that seems unreal is we noted that Franco had the power in his hand for more than 30 years; Ofelia dies at the end, but the captain Vidal too, so in this zone the people could live with a little freeadon, at least for a while.

I think that this movie could have analysis from diverse disciplines; from the psychology, sociology, history, and literature, is a really great movie for a lot of points of view.

WHAT TO DO, WHERE TO GO IN SANTIAGO

From a point of view, Santiago seems a little homogeneous and boring comparing to another latin american cities as Buenos Aires or Rio de Janeiro, but i WW think that it´s a very diverse place.

For example, neighborhoods are totally diferent one another, depends WW of the area you are visiting; in the south there aren´t buildings, so its seems like a little town. The east is the opossite, its full of big constructions, and there is less community life than in another neighborhoods.

So, i think that a foreing tourist should visit each of this neighborhoods, and see which is of his taste. If he/she wants to go of party, so i propose to go to Santiago o Providencia, especifically, streets as Suecia, Bella Vista or Manuel Montt. But, if he wants to see how WO SVA lives the majority of people i recommend the southern area, or the west.

A specific place a recommend a place knowing as "La Chimba", a very old area. Here is the Vega Central, the Cementerio General and the Psiquiatric Hospital, so its a neighborhood with a rare combination that could surprise people SVA who is used to visit more common places. On tne other hand, i also suggest a more "official" or tradicional place, the first buildings that were constructed and still exist in the downtown, as the San Francisco Church or the Plaza de Armas, this are the most known places for turists.

A good thing to do its take a bike and ride in a ramdom way, this form you go whithout recomendation and is dificult you dont surprise at all

TRANSANTIAGO. BEFORE AND AFTER

Trasantiago was implemented in January 2006, at that time i was living in Temuco, so i didn´t travel in the old bus system. although this, i heard a lot of comments about the change of the public trasport.

First, i know that the previous system has old buses that were very noisy and obviously this affect people´s tranquility in the streets, and even causes stress. So, in this way Trasantiago is a huge advance, and i think this is the better improvement of this new system. Besides, drivers receive a regular payment and they don´t worry about how many people get on the bus or going fast in city to win the higher number of passengers as posible. In this sense this contribute to the security of people.

On the other hand, transantiago is a headache to a lot of people, mainly the ones who lives outskirts, because the routes are not well desings and engineers (the responsibles!) don´t consider either people needs not the rush hours or the number of passengers according the neighbourhood, so it was common that people take more than before to arrive to work, for example. although, this is improving, actually.

I think the money is the main factor to improve the service, money is necessary to buy more buses and do exclusive ways for buses (to travel faster), but also its necesary anthropologists that ask people the things they needs according their conditions (for example, the population, the hours they mainly need buses, etc) and apply this to the system.

PEOPLE AND TRADITION

A thing that is very interesting and mainly worry is the "resistence" of people to change their costums and adapt to the advances that the young people (mainly) do. for example, in Chile is still some of old people that think that once you are married you should be married with the same person for all your life in spite of all the problems you have with your couple, some of them just think that to mantain the tradition is most important, "is always has been that way" -they say (and sometimes that is tottaly false!).

This fear to new things is very incredible and its reflected in the laws. For example, the law that allows the divorse in Chile just has been pass in 2004. But is fair to say that the influence of catholic church is very extended, and this cause, with an other factors, that the laws don´t reflect the mentality of people. But is also truth that if they have this influence is for the support of chileans.

Talking in general, to change seems to be a very dificult thing to accept and this is just pure intolerance, i think. Probably, people not just think that is necesary to maintein the costums becouse is tradicion, but besides this costums are the better way to do the things, and this cause that they don´t accept changes.

Of course, i recognize that i am not the most tolerant person in the world, but i am trying!.

A COUNTRY I WOULD LIKE TO VISIT.

I would like to visit all the countries around the world, since i have memory i want to travel and get pay for it!. specifically, i think any country in Africa would be interesting, because we think we know a lot of that continent, like it is poor, there is a lot of hungry people, and AIDS, and there is black and Arabic people, but the problem is al long as we think we know something with out knowing in fact, more we can surprise whit the reality. probably, Africa is a lot of things more than poverty and hungry.
Besides, is a very diverse continent and complex too. I thing that will be surprising to see so different habits and sometimes opposite to the occidental way of living; there is some tribes that doesn’t use clothes and, on the other hand, women that are always covered whit a burka, people that its totally open sexually speaking and an other that is totally forbidden to have previous relationship whit the opposite sex in all senses, people who still believe in magic and witchcrafts, some who live in constant war, and some who have no contact whit the occidental mentality. I really like to say more things about this place but i don’t know much about it. but i hope some day to go there.

FIRST TERM: GOOD AND BAD POINTS

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The first term of this year it was very interesting and happened a lot of things i don’t expected.
In university i have very good and bad subjects. Anthropology III or materialistic anthropology was a very good subject but, on the other hand, i had boring subjects like Statistic and Latin American History which teacher was really disappointing and he doesn’t want to hear the thing we want to say.
In june i went to Bolivia, specifically to Coroico, for an anthropology student congress. There were student of all Latin America, but almost the half of them were Chileans and i want to know people of other countries, so i don’t talk much whit them. Coroico is a little town at the north of La Paz, the houses and streets seems to be of a colonial time, and the people speak an indian language.

In my personal life i have to say a lot of things, like i found a very interesting man who is my boyfriend. he is very sensitive, and he has a lot of opinions about the things in general. he also likes to do a lot of things like dance ballet, walk, play music, do some sports like yoga and tai-chi. But the problem is that he is a little stubborn (that seem to be very common in men).