Previously, Dr Croc said something about word limit. I have got to agree with him now that I have suffered the same issue he was discussing then. I scored a 40/45 for the main content of my research paper, including an interview with a researcher, 5 interviews with citizens of Singapore and thorough literature research into the topic of population. Yes, that’s pretty high.
Unfortunately, I wrote a total of 4000 words instead of the 3000 words that I was supposed to write since the limit set at my level is 3000 words. This simple act of being hardworking and more thorough with my research, which is supposed to show how serious I was with my work resulted in a deduction of 5 marks off my research paper, resulting in a pretty miserable 35/45.
Well, I admit I wasn’t abiding by the word limit set earlier and should have at least made it a point to cheat on my word limit (by not counting the headings, the sub-headings, and making more footnotes). But I thought it should be perfectly fine if the words carry out their final purpose of informing the reader of the important details of the research and give more information on the topic itself.
The whole problem is that the grading or score should reflect on the quality of the paper and so by deducting marks off the paper for infringement of word limit, the marks are not truly reflecting the quality of the paper. In my opinion, for record purposes and also to benefit the student, the school should show the raw score (not yet deducted), then the final score, and place a remark: “Deducted 5 marks for exceeding word limit”. That would at least show the other parties looking at the marks that the student has the capability to score well, except that the school system’s restrictions have caused him some inconvenience obtaining the score he deserves.
If this is not done, he will be placed in the same category as those who have not put in effort in their research paper, causing him further inconvenience by reducing his confidence in the subject he is good at. Worst, this reduction in score and ‘discrimination’ may end with the student facing ridicule and finally breaking down, or failing in the subject due to lack of the necessary courage to undermine the rules imposed in answering the questions (maybe he could have scored better if he raised some politically-incorrect opinions, but because of the fear or the ‘rules’, he fail to do so and end up producing sub-standard work). This is bad.
And if we analyse the problem further, we realise that this student would also be discouraged to advance further in this subject of interest and the act of deduction of score would end up causing the society to lose a talent in the particular field – when our nation already has a lack of talent, so much so that they have to be ‘imported’. Ah! That’s it! We now understand why some nations lack talents, it is probably because of such ridiculous structures imposed – ‘Word Limit for Research Paper; failing to abide by it will result in loss of marks’. Then we will have some nice students writing an apology at the end of the research paper:
We are sad to inform you (my dear mentor/reader) that this paper do not reflect the complete research we have done and the few pages that you have read did not present 5 important population charts, 10 pages of analysis on the trends that our nation will be experiencing in the next 5 years, 2 pages of analysis of the role of policies in fostering new ideals on population that may ultimately result in change of societal norms, etc. – due to the word limit imposed on us by the department head. We are also sorry for not being able to present the complete list of the important stuff we did, but missed out in this research paper – also because of the word limit. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by the apparent missing details. To find out more, please log on to: http://myresearchpaper.com/missingdetails/.
Then the research paper submitted ends up as a brochure for your ‘full’ research paper that is online. Best of all, this nicely done ‘brochure’ includes a preview to your paper and allows the teacher to have a ‘sneak peek’ into the research topic.
Of course, other students facing the same problem won’t do this; they will start sites to flame the department head – well, that was before the purges; you won’t see the sites nowadays. I think some department head should really go back and reflect – maybe dust his education masters thesis and see if he exceeded the word limit. Or even better, write a research paper on ‘Relationship between imposing word limit for research papers and the number of students flaming department heads’.
I thought I was different in my attitude towards blogging, advocating the writing of personal opinion and voicing of social issues, rather than talk about one’s own life and stuff. It is true that I have managed to attain that level, but it appears that sub-consciously, blogging is still a lame activity that dumb people engage in, to do what the teachers’ call ‘funny things’. And this is why when Sin Hwee told me he began blogging, I was taken aback. Of course, I have nothing against him. I was propagating the social stereotype by being surprise at the ‘news’. That’s bad.
Worst is the new rules that are introduced to the arena of blogging. Blogging threatens any, regime, individual with authority or a respected person, because like any other form of mass media, it has the ability to propagate ideas, spread inciting ideas, which will in turn cause some sort of resentment towards these authoriative figures. Of course, the blogs being online would mean the whole world can see it – increasing its threat against anyone being a target of the blogger. Ironically, the stereotypic idea about blogging is pretty lame – just a site to talk about one’s own life. By far, we have not seen anyone starting a revolution using internet or any online mediums. So we should not let our imagination go too far. There is, perhaps, too strong a paranoia around those with authority.
People in power having such problems are inconfident of presiding over a group of bloggers – they feel insecured that there may be a particular page online that will say something about their weakness or the injustice they did, since these bloggers are clearer with ‘the regime’. Well, it is no longer important whether these stuff are true, because when people do nothing bad, they shouldn’t be afraid that people’s claims (for this claims would not withstand the test of time – as learnt from ancient wisdom taught to us since we were young). Too bad, everyone makes mistakes – now I am probably making one.
Since I was free enough to slack around though I still have another few more exam coming up, I might as well brush up my PHP, or rather start picking up PHP, which I do have some idea about. The result of this thought is an experiment I did with numbers, examination scores, and PHP programme – Marks Calculation System. Okay, the name is obviously lame (or lamely obvious) and the function is terribly stupid but at least it helps some poor Math-blur kids from my school get out of their fix by calculating how much marks they need for examinations to allow them to obtain a final score of A1 or total all of their scores up.
All they have to do is fill up a pretty simple form and click a button. The programme generates a score they obtained, or have to obtain (depending on which calculator of the calculation system you are referring to), up to 2 decimal points. Well, that’s nothing to boast of, I was simply trying out what I just learnt. If you want a better calculation system, you probably go to Chen Shuang. But I believe this few files I have coded will suffice if you just need to total your score over the year. Students from my school probably like to try using it.
Oh yah, don’t worry about others knowing your marks. I haven’t learn how to store the data you key into the form into some sort of flat files or sql database – though soon I probably will.
I am probably making more of such calculation programmes for lame usage, working with more complex functions and such. Then, I will try building a ‘site-newscasting’ system for normal organisational usage.
I just realised that IE users are not able to view the nice header I made for the new blog layout because of some IE css file which I did not edit when modifying the theme to customise it for my blog. Now I solved the problem.
Interestingly, Dr Croc has decided to introduce himself as Christopher Yang for everyone to know him. Well, I might have to give some background then. As mentioned earlier, Dr Croc will be a co-author of ‘Propagator’, working on interesting insights of the society. If you consider Mib the Political type of person, you can say that Dr Croc is the Social type. Vib is a mix. Please do note that deviation from facts occurs all the time in my posts an names such as ‘Shuqun’ are entirely fictional and is not a personal attack at anyone (unless I explictly state it).
Exams’ off for a while and I probably be a little more active here.
Many a time I have been told that gaping generation gaps should not exist in a family like mine, so gaping that it hinders unparalled and unobstructed contact and communication between members of the same family. Well, given the current circumstance, my instincts capitulates freely towards that notion; but on zooming closer into the roots of this familial conundrum, praticalism begs indifference.
What I believe, is that such generation gaps arise from the lack of understanding, ignorance, indifference or whatever you call this lacklustre ability to comprehend the sub or mainstream culture of the next generation. Perhaps an unwillingness to accept or a in-built persistance to ram down the throats of the other, personal experiences and perceived benefit, abets this phenomenon. Well, I thought that it would be an uphill task apportioning blame for this conundrum, given that we are superficialites with nary an authority or power over what nature endows us with. You could be quick to derise and say: Blame the causers of this problems! The aged, the middle-aged, for their complacency and extreme esteem, for their unfounded belief that their, and only their experiences and ways of life would serve much in the individual’s personal journey through life. This argument appears sound on the surface, but the underpining insinuation speaks of wrongly and unjustly apportioning blame on the wrong entity. I proffer that mother nature shoulders the full blame, given humanity’s inability to manipulate whatever nature endows us with, or whatever characteristic nature flings at us — just like the instinct to force ideals upon the other.
You would agree that the above paints a very bleak picture, in the aspect of solutions for this familial conundrum. The answer is a stark affirmative, and I shall explain, from my perspective why this is so. The question burning on every sociologist’s mind addresses the probability of seeking a solution to this problem, the problem from which the contraction of vices and breakdown of society’s atom stem from. We are overwhelmed in a maelstrom of quick-fixes to this problem, this influx of superficial solutions being exacerbated by the trend of increasing communication breakdown, the engineering of more and more socio-cultural barriers which manifest in the form of fashion trends and the whatnots of youthful displays which collide head on with the wisely image of the older generation, between the child and the parent, between the parent and the grandparent or between the child and the grandparent. All this bodes ill towards the basal functioning of the society, which in essence, is a consolidation of men bound by the same creed or culture.
Generation gaps could well arise from one’s different piriorities in life. Many are quick to condemn the over-gregarious spending culture of teenage mall-goers, but forgot that they likewise, are victims of a massive social plot which plays upon the instinct of authoritative bodies to believe in their philosophy and dress surbodinates — in the case of generation gaps, are the occupants of the lower rungs of societal or familial hierarchy — in a palette of self-concocted values and principles. Hypothetically, if youths commanded the higher authority, the older generation’s culture of conservatism or even mindless money-spindling could be on the receiving end of blunt derison. Perhaps the notion of a mechanism that displays the same characteristics as westernisation or macdonaldisation operating in the local context comes to mind. Similar to the higher power’s ability to dominate and play an influential role the establishing of western culture in part-western societies or countries of oriental roots, the older generation, armed with a plethora of anecdotal experience, harbour the capacity and perceived moral authority to establish a foundation of principles that run on the experiences gained by the authoritative figure. And because one’s piriorities fluctuate throughout the course of life, these principles evolve, usually stablising once the one reaches the yardstick of middle-age. Now, no longer are pursueing fashion or the owning of state-of-the-art gadgets important; money making and providing for the family takes preceedence over the former. This results in an instant derison of the child’s spending habits or the child’s capitulation towards the pestilential influence of various social vices — for the case of communication breakdowns between the child and the parent. For the case between the parent and the grandparent, perhaps the grandparent advocates a disapproval over the parent’s obsession over money making, the decades of experiencing life’s wraths and sweet intangibles allowing them to grasp the worthlessness of monetary wealth in comparison to intangibles like familial bonds and love. Is this not apt illustration for the futility of advocating solutions which do not and cannot address the root conundrums?
Perhaps a passive role played by the authoritative figure can go far in quelling unrest or the suppression of malevolent rebellious behavior exhibited by the social surbodinate in counterance towards the uninvited dressing down of time-proven principles, as this passiveness is a manifestation of acceptance and comprehension of fads and the person’s moral or financial inclinations. No doubt, one could chalk up a heavy moral debt in steering clear of time-proven advice, but if this is adequate to alleviate generational gaps, the social profit would far negate any financial incurrance. Let us bear in mind the importance of the role the social atom — the family — plays in ensuring a cohesive society.
Hi. This is Christopher Yang. Well, this post is in acknowlegement of Vib for allowing me an archive for some commentaries I produce for leisure.
Before I commence my debut post, I would first like accentuate the importance of taking into cognizance the fact that these are commentaries based solely on pesonal perspective, and statistics, data etc provided will be researched throughly to prevent any deviation from the factual truth.
Thank you.
Walk down Peninsular Plaza months ago and you did notice a shoe store with their signboard covered by a ‘Closing Down Sale’ Banner. If you hadn’t been there before (over the past decade), you shouldn’t be surprise. After all, the store look just like any other store, except that it probably is closing down.
More than five years ago, when I was walking down that path, I thought the same. I never got to know the real name of the shop since the signboard is always covered by the banner. Then a year or two past and the shop remained, never closing down. For once, I thought the name of the shoe shop was ‘Closing Down Sale’ but I abandon that idea after figuring out that there’s a few letters protruding from the real signboard behind the banner.
A few more years past, and the shop remained standing, with the same old banner, selling different shoes, but nonetheless, still shoes and the shop looked exactly the same as the first time when I saw it – orange walls, filament bulb lighting. It is interesting to note that they seem to have more customers nowadays. Last month, I went there and told my Dad about the store. He replied that he noticed that store too; over the years, it seem that the ‘Closing Down Sale’ banner has become a permanent feature and they are using it as a business tactic to attract more people. I thought so, since I realised that the store never did close down.
I set foot on the path again today, everything was the same, the Old Chang Kee, the 7-eleven store. Then I realised something was missing from the picture – the familiar orange-colored store, the ‘Closing Down Sale’ banner is gone. The shop really closed down. It simply feels odd. We all never thought it did close down. After all, it’s been years.
We take too many things for granted, things that seem to exist permanently will not, but we tend to think otherwise. There are things you really hate, like school, some people, and I really did hate that particular store that put up the ‘Closing Down Sale’ banner for years. But the moment you realised it is gone, you find it odd. It is not as if the banner or the store played a part in my life before its absence, it is not as though I really think the schools needs some forgiving on my part, but when these things are gone, you know you can’t hate them anymore. Our stand, our assertion are all too distinct, too comfortable for us, so much so that when the opposition force cease to exist, we feel emptiness. We hate, for the sake of hating, too often, we lose our rationality in our hatred.
For a moment, we should cease to hate and think about the reasons behind all our hatred.
