ELP Class Reflection

Ten weeks flew by in the blink of an eye. I can't believe it's finally time to say good-bye to the only class that I looked forward to. Every Wednesday, 3:30 to 5:30 would be one of the highlights of my week. This class did what I expected it to do and more. I made great friends, had a great time, and learned so much about leadership theories, values, and how to practice it. I even got the opportunity to prepare a legitimate business proposal, and present it. ELP has showed me my strengths and weaknesses, and I am ready to fix them. Leadership is always going to be a part of my life and ELP was a great way to learn more and polish current skills. I want to take what I received from ELP and continue to incorporate it into my years at Santa Clara, and for the rest of my life. I want to grow up and become a leader on a larger scope, and have ELP to thank for that. My first step in this process is being the best Orientation Leader I can be. I do not have the words to describe how excited I am to be given this position. ELP has given me the tools necessary to become a successful student leader on campus. All in all, ELP is an amazing class, and I hope as many people as possible try to be a part of it every quarter because it could possibly change your life for the better. 

Clip 1: Coach Carter

I believe that this clip is Stage Three: Norming because when one of the members is placed in a difficult situation, all of the others have the compassion to stand up and assist him through it.

Clip 2: Aladdin

I'm going to say that this clip was Stage Five: Adjourning because the team has achieved their goals and one of them is leaving.

Clip 3: Remember the Titans

This clip is Stage Two: Storming because the two team members are arguing and one refuses to even consider himself as a part of the team.

Clip 4: Finding Nemo

This clip represents Stage Four: Performing because the team comes together and achieves their goal of getting Nemo out of the dentist's office.

The stage that remains is Stage One: Forming and for that I chose a clip from "The Breakfast Club".

I believe that this clip helps demonstrate how a group of people placed together get to know one another. It also shows how difficult it is to find a place in a group when you feel like an outcast. Also like in Tuckman's Stage One, the characters find out which behaviors are acceptable to the rest of the group and which are not.  

We're always communicating. Not always with others, sometimes just ourselves. There are many ways to communicate with someone. You could use words, gestures, sign language, just to name a few. Communication can be verbal, physical, visual, spiritual, and emotional. A leader's responsibility is to get to know how to communicate with those who need to be led. Some people need visual aids, and some others need to be verbal given information.

Top 5 Individual Communication

1. Verbal one-on-one communication in person is always my default.
2. E-mail is an incredibly efficient way to talk to someone over long distances.
3. Over-the-phone is also good, but may sometimes be misinterpreted due to reception problems.
4. Social networking websites are also effective forms of communication to the younger generation.
5. If you want to go for that incredibly personal, yet long-distance touch then write a letter!

Top 5 Group Communication

1. Using a powerpoint is a good way to teach a large gathering of people through visual aids.
2. Giving a speech may be effective only if the speaker is good at giving them.
3. A film can communicate with a large group of people and could easily be distributed.
4. Social networking websites connect large groups of people together.
5. If you're a talented writer you can maybe lead people through a book you wrote, teaching them with your words.
I would recommend a leader to analyze who they want to spread their information to and choose one of the above to get their points out there. It's possible that none may work for your target group of people, so you may have to develop your own. 

Pennies from Heaven

This essay tells the story of a family who is receiving assistance from the beyond. I feel like it helps lift up spirits and brighten bad days. I, personally, was quite ecstatic after finishing it. I connect with it because I feel like there are days when I need something good to happen. If people all over the world were to have days like this when they needed it, then depression might be a thing of the past.

The Power of a Helping Hand

When I was a sophomore in high school, I volunteered at the Boys & Girls Club, which is an after-school tutoring center for underprivileged children. When I first started, I thought that there was no point to me being here because the kids would not bother to listen to me. Eventually, I asked why they did not bother trying. They told me that because they needed tutoring meant that they were not cut out to be smart. I was shocked. I had no clue what to say. I told them to try at least once, and I see what happened. The next week I was welcomed to a sea of smiling faces. Their grades began to improve, and ultimately they became top students and made their parents and themselves proud. On my last day, they thanked me for what I had done for them. That's when I realized that sometimes all people need is a slight push in a positive direction and they will snowball to success. If we all tried to help each other out, the world would be a much better place. 

The Setup- Junior year in high school. 7th period Mr. Vu's math class. Week before finals.

The What- A group of kids behind me were talking about how they had pictures of the final because it was just lying there on the teacher's desk when no one was around. I did not really know what to do, so I just gave the teacher an ambiguous statement at the end of class. I told him that it would be in his best interests to change some of the questions on the final because some students may have found some of the answers, but I refused to give him the names because of social pressures of being called a snitch.

The So What- I was struggling with my morals in that I had three options: I could alert the teacher, I could ask them for the answers, or I could just act like I never heard them. This decision was one of the hardest I have ever had to make. If I told the teacher who they were, they might have gotten expelled and I could have ruined their lives. I couldn't handle that kind of pressure at such a young age.

The Now What- I learned that I am afraid of always doing the right thing because sometimes the right thing might hurt some people. I cannot handle the pressure of worrying about what society will think of me. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok6LbV6bqaE

As someone who is majoring in computer engineering, I believe that it would be great to spread knowledge of coding to young children. I know I would have really appreciated it. In the Ted Talk posted above, Mitch Resnick develops the idea of exposing children to code in the early stages. When children have mastered reading, it would beneficial for them in this day and age if they were exposed to coding. I relate to the video because I would really want to have these kind of experiences early on in my life, so by the time I get to college I could be much more proficient in the coding environment. I've seen a lot of people switch out of computer engineering, but if they were exposed to it earlier and had more time to practice they might have stuck with it in college. I believe that computers are the future and we should help our children become ready for the upcoming technological advancements.

"When we put people in boxes where they can only be one or another, we miss the opportunity to see people as diverse as they are"

I agree with the statement in that I believe it is impossible to place people in to one of two categories and have them believe they do not belong in the other. For me, I myself know that I do not have traits from the other categories, but some others might be confused because it is easily possible to be a part of both categories. I myself am an ESTJ, which is exactly what I thought I would get. If I got something else, I would probably question my traits in that category. I believe that society makes us believe that being an extrovert is better than an introvert because they do better in interviews and leadership positions. That way when one gets an Introvert on the MBTI they question their personality and if it would be better to change it. I believe the MBTI is a good way to discover a little bit about yourself but you should not try to change yourself based on a few multiple choice questions.