5c The Grand Finale

The Grand Finale

1. What difference did you notice in your choice of topics in the first part of the class versus the topics found in the texts My California and Train Go Sorry?

I found that the topics I chose were different from the books “Train Go Sorry” and “My California.” My topics were on Dry Creek Valley in Healdsburg in Sonoma County and the museum The Exploratorium in San Francisco, and my inland cities were Petaluma Valley and Sacramento Valley. Mostly I chose places that were local in Sonoma County or in the Bay Area, except for Sacramento. I chose Sacramento because that is where California State capital. My topics were mostly of the places I was very familiar with, where as in My California these were places I never traveled to. Yet I could relate to some of the stories, about farming or remembering a time in my childhood. Yet the places in My California are places in our state and the topics I chose are places in our lovely state. I enjoyed learning about the world of the deaf in Train Go Sorry; it brought me out from world and into another world, the world of a deaf person. I have never experienced this place before and glad I did.

2. What difference did you notice when you read your classmates work regarding the same topics versus your own opinions? Did their works make you think of something different?

I enjoyed reading my classmates work; each of us presents things in a completely new light from one another. Each one of us brings out something different that the other person did not notice before. It is especially interesting when someone talks about a place that they had a personal experience with, growing up there or visiting.
The best part of this class is reading about each persons point of view towards a city, museum or and inland area. Each person is unique, and brings a bit of themselves and there partiality of the place. Each person builds from his or her experiences, nationality, religion, culture and where they grew up, that is what makes it special. Each time someone work made me see it from his or her point of view, I learned something different with each person. From some who loves to fish or hike, I saw them hiking or fishing. Each one of us is different, and each person has something special to give to this world and to one another. The best part is I learned from others on each different topic.

3. How would Freire and the idea of dialogue and scaffolding play into your answers?

Paulo Freire had a lot to give to the educational system he believes in liberating education for all students to understand, he brought literacy programs to the poor, he felt the more interaction with other people from different cultures would help each one of us to learn from one another and it would be better for the world. As we interact with one another, we learn to respect different cultures, ideas, and personalities.

4. What was your overall experience with these topics?

My overall experience with the different topics I learned in this class is the different ways a city is portrayed from someone who lived there or grew up, which is different from someone visiting the city for a day or so. We learn from one another, as we bring different cultures and ideas as we see the place from their eyes. I enjoyed the field trips I took in this class while still being in my home. It was fantastic to visit these places and actually feel like I was there from reading other student’s work. I really enjoyed learning from my classmates and what they had to offer me was their point of view, which helps me step out of my box and venture into another person’s world other then my own.