ENGLISH FOR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION (OUMH1203)

EDUCATION AND LANGUAGE FACCULTY

SEMESTER TWO/2014




OUMH1203


ENGLISH FOR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION











NAME : JOANNA TEH YEN LEE
MATRICULATION NO : 720919075004001
IDENTITY CARD NO. : 720919-07-5004
TELEPHONE NO. : 016-2628066
E-MAIL : joanjustin@oum.edu.my
LEARNING CENTRE : SEAMEO RECSAM LEARNING
CENTRE





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Question 1 Children learn best by observing the behaviour of adults and copying it. Do
you agree or disagree? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

It is a fact that children tend to learn everything fast, they learn in different ways at
different stages of their lives. This essay will discuss the fact that children learn best by
observing the behaviour of adults and copying it
In everyday life, children are surrounded by many influential people, such as parents,
elder siblings and relatives within the family, characters on childrens TV, friends within
their peer group and teachers at school. Thus it is important for adults to try to always
behave in a proper way around children so they can absorb that good behaviour. While
children will always have their own personality and emotions, they are constantly
influenced by their environment. Parents being the closest to their children had great
influence on them. From the moment they were born, children need to be nurtured, cared
for and to be protected by their parents. The behaviour of the parents plays a significant
role in shaping the children's inclination and character. Children will observe the
behaviour of the adults around them and accept it as normal. They pay attention to some
of these people and copy their behaviour. Later on, they will imitate (i.e. copy) the
behaviour that they have observed. The most obvious example of this is that a child will
speak the same language their parents speak, because thats what he grew up listening to
and accepting as normal. They also pick up several new words from their parents
conversations almost every day. Having mastered the copying process, they learn to
communicate and accommodate better to different situations. This learning environment
is important for the children.
As the children grow, the influence from adults and surroundings will affect them much
more, in terms of logical thinking, making decision, cooperation with others, etc. Adults
behaviour can be both good and bad influence on the children. Their behaviour is the
most effective education method to let the children observe the whole process of how to

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deal with everyday activities and problems. Imitating the behaviours of adults is a quick
way to learn and become natural for the children. These behaviours will inevitably
influence young children on their habits, personality and outlook and viewed as
welcoming actions by children in helping to shape them into useful talents. For example,
to instill a love of books, parents could read books for children everyday instead of using
TV as a pastime.
In addition, the people around the children will respond to the behaviour they imitate
with either reinforcement or punishment. If a child imitates an adults behaviour and the
consequences are rewarding, the child is likely to continue performing the behaviour.
For example, if a parent sees a little girl consoling her teddy bear and praise her, this is
rewarding for the child and more likely she will repeat the behaviour. Her behaviour has
been reinforced (i.e. strengthened) by the complement from her parent. On the other hand
parents should reprimand them if they exhibit negative behaviour such as punching their
peers. We must remember that children do not know what is right and what is wrong.
In summary, since time in memorial, human beings have a tendency to imitate and copy
whatever they see and hear because they love imitation, enjoy imitation and learn from
imitation. Knowing that human beings are passionately imitative, it will definitely help
children to learn and develop into responsible citizens.











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Question 2 What do schools need to do to prepare students for the 21
st
Century?
Discuss your opinions.


What was considered a good education 50 years ago, however, is no longer enough for
success in schools, career and personal development in the 21st century. Among many
challenges, schools must plan how best to prepare their students effectively for the
challenges of the 21st century. In order for todays students to compete in the global
society, they must also be proficient communicators, creators, critical thinkers and
collaborators. For the past decade, various studies and reports have been conducted to
identify the life, career, and learning skills needed for success in the 21st century world.

The common skills included in the reports are:-

1) Critical thinking and problem solving
In todays world, students need to have critical thinking and problem-solving skills not
just to solve the problems of at hand, but to meet the challenges of adapting to ever-
changing world. Learning critical thinking leads students to develop a higher level of
concentration, deeper analytical abilities to analyze the problem so that decision can be
made effectively to solve the problem. In a working environment, employees must
employ critical thinking to better serve customers, develop better products and services,
and continuously improve themselves within an ever-changing global economy.

2) Importance of Communication
Students must be able to effectively analyze and process the overwhelming amount of
communication in their lives today. They must be skilful in communicating effectively in
a wide variety of forms and contexts for a wide range of purposes and using multiple
media and technologies at their disposal. Additionally, they must be able to identify
which information sources are accurate and which ones are not and how can they use
them effectively.


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3) Importance of Collaboration
Generally, collaboration has been accepted as a skill that is essential to achieve
meaningful and effective results. It encompasses working with others respectfully and
effectively to create, use and share knowledge, solutions and innovations. Of late, it has
become increasingly clear that collaboration is not only important but necessary for
students and employees, due to globalization and the importance of technology. When
students working collaboratively, they learn from and work with, individuals from
various cultures, religions and lifestyles towards mutual respect and open
communication. In this respect they can generate more knowledge, making collaboration
a key ingredient to student success in todays global society.

4) Importance of Creativity and Innovation
In todays world of global competition and task automation, the ability to innovate and
create is fast becoming important for personal and professional success. Successful
individuals are those who have creative skills to produce a vision on how they intend to
make the world a better place for everyone; using knowledge and understanding to create
new ways of doing things in order to find solutions to new problems and challenges and
to create new products and services for the needs of everyone.


Conclusion
If 21st century education is ever going to make a difference in the lives of students,
teachers must have the support they need to do this work in the classrooms every day.
The teaching of critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration, and
creativity and innovation are not something new. In fact, they are the basis of great
teaching, and most teachers aspire to teach in a manner that incorporates these strategies.
Teachers and schools have a huge role to play in ensuring that every student is adequately
prepared for the 21st century.



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Question 4 - Technology is making communication easier in todays world, but at the
expense of personal contact as many people choose to work at home in front of a
computer screen. What dangers are there for a society which depends on computer screen
rather than face-to-face contact for its main means of communication?

Communication and information technology have been and will continue to be a
major influence, positively or negatively, to the world at large affecting all sectors of
economic, business and even daily social interaction. The ease of communicating with
anyone with just a click of a button (or mouse) has made our lives easier and more
fulfilling. Besides face-to-face meetings and phone calls, we have email, instant
messaging (IM), text messaging, online forums webcasts and webinars, etc, that enable us
to keep in touch.
While there are benefits of communication technology, there are also diadvantages of
these new modes of communication. Sometimes we hit the send button, only to regret it
later. We misinterpreted someones email or post because we did not fully understand
their intentions or the background. There is also a tendency of disclosing too much
information and much more personal information in online interactions, than they would
in face to face interactions. People communicating online may also act out in ways they
would not do so in person. There are some who have been cheated financially and
emotionally or even harmed because of these kinds of decisions. Others have also lost
their jobs, or not been given a job, because of negative comments made by their co-
workers on social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter. Some have
incriminating photos or inappropriate comments posted on blogs or other sites. Much of
what we do, say, or post on the web is out there for everyone to see. Much of it is
recorded in a database somewhere and can be used by both scrupulous and unscrupulous
individuals.
Another danger is that people often forget how quickly and easily such communication
can be shared. Numerous people have been embarrassed or hurt because undesirable
photos of them were forwarded to hundreds of people unknown to the sender. Some have
had inappropriate emails forwarded to everyone in the company, while others have voice
messages sent out to every person in the phone system.

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There is also a danger with which people can stalk another. Basically with GPS
technology and map programs coupled with public records access and other information
online, it is relatively easy for an individual with criminal intention, to stalk anyone they
choose. This is especially true of public figures or celebrities, who are always in public
eyes and their movements are constantly monitored at all time.
Another danger is that people using text-only communication such as email, are unable to
gain immediate feedback as compared to face-to-face conversation. The participants are
unable to read body language, tone of voice or facial expression. This often led to
misunderstandings and misinterpretations. Even on video conferencing and video calls,
one participant or the other can easily step outside the range of the camera, look at other
source of communication such as emails or websites, or even make comments that cannot
be heard by the other correspondent.
In summary, there have been multiple reported instances of online victimization. It
cannot be denied that social networking sites are partially responsible for many different
scams, stalking, harassment and even murder. Without a doubt technology has become
part of our everyday lives, and is certainly advantageous to society; however, the dangers
of technology arise when networkers are not cautious and still continue to post personal
information online.








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Question 6 Why is community service important in todays world?

Community service has been around for a long time providing service voluntarily to
the people in a community in an effort to foster good neighborhood. It is a selfless act of
kindness that has been around for generations. Through times, there are now more and
more community services available for people to get themselves involved with. Those
who took on community service projects have greatly benefited from it, gaining valuable
eye-opening experiences and building unique character traits. Taking part in
volunteering work teaches compassion and understanding among each other. It makes
the work worthwhile knowing that through simple actions a great impact can be made on
others lives. Since community service work is performed by volunteers who are not paid
for their time and effort it gives the volunteers a sense of pride and happiness when they
give a helping hand to the community.
Volunteering offers a platform to people with the urge of wanting to give back to their
community and help those who are in need. Those in this situation have been able to
volunteer at hospitals, old folks homes and community projects. Having conversation
with the elderly, brightening up their day and making them smile are the satisfaction that
the volunteers get. On the other hand, the elderly are always more than thankful for
someone to talk to and being listened to. In the same scenario, volunteers are also able to
work with children, playing games with them, reading and painting with them. Again,
putting a smile on their face is the satisfaction the volunteers get that make them feel
happy and grateful for doing this type of service.
In general, students are always encouraged to perform volunteer work not only to gain
the experience but to help build up their character. They get to experience many things
that they would otherwise not get the opportunity to do so. It is recommended that
students volunteer in subjects and projects that they have an interest in, so as to promote
their efforts within the volunteering community. Students have the option to volunteer at
various venues such as, museums, elderly homes, and at school projects. What the
students put into their volunteering

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experiences will not only reflect immensely in their character but also achieve a sense of
accomplishment.
There are numerous benefits to gain from community service. It is a great way for new
comers to meet with the people in the community and learn more about the neighborhood
in which they are going to live in. Volunteers are given the opportunity to experience life
satisfaction, feeling good about themselves and at the end of the day, a sense of humility
for their own lives. Students in the community will benefit socially when they create
special bonds with the people they served as well as increased social responsibility.
Without a doubt, the most valuable benefits they will receive are enhancement in
knowledge, earning an eye-opening experience and developing new skills.
In conclusion, community service is important because it helps to build a rich and
supportive community of people who know and care for each other and lend each other a
hand when it is needed most. In other words, helping out in even the smallest of ways
and doing something for someone else gives the greatest joy and satisfaction that cannot
be expressed in monetary value.










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Question 7 Tourism is becoming increasingly important as a source of revenue for
many countries but its disadvantages should not be overlooked. What are some of the
disadvantages of tourism.

For many countries today, tourism is fast becoming popular as a major source of
income. This has resulted in economic advancement and growth in social welfare of the
countries. It may seem that tourism brings substantial benefits but on the other hand it
also has disadvantages affecting mainly the cultural and natural environment of the
countries. For instance, tourists come with different cultures and backgrounds which are
opposite to the thoughts and believe with those of the native population. In addition, the
development of the tourist spot by the local government to attract more tourists will only
make the place less natural because of the renovations done. If the government continues
to build more infrastructures for the tourism activity, there will be deforestation, hill
slope erosion, forest fires, loss of habitat and many animals will be seriously endangered.
Another area of concern is the destruction of the environment due to pollution. For
example, garbage disposal may become a problem due to the increase volume of wastes
and people who fail to dispose off their wastes properly. When government allows hotels
to be built near the riverbank, wastes will be discharged into the rivers thus polluting it.
There are also instances where many tourists carelessly throw rubbishes like plastic bags
into the sea, causing many marine creatures to die and the place is not as clean and
attractive as it used to be. Besides causing health hazards to the local, it may eventually
discourage tourists from further visiting the country. Also, noise pollutions in the form of
music amplified at local bars and night clubs into the wee hours of the night can be
hazardous to the local community.

There are also social disadvantages to consider. Tourists bring their own national identity
when they visit a country. Unfortunately they do not always respect the local traditions
and lifestyles. As such, the impact of tourism may affect the local way of life such as
giving up some of their old and precious traditions. Furthermore, the locals can lose their
identities as they can be easily influenced and easily adapt to new things which most of
the time are in contradiction to their


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cultures and lifestyles. Eventually, they will get involved with unwanted behaviors such
as speaking in foreign lingo, taking and selling drugs, turning to prostitution to earn extra
fast money and dress up against their social culture. The influence of drugs can be very
damaging too as it causes an increase in burglaries, rapes, gangsterism, murder,
vandalism, etc.
Migration of the locals to seek employment in the cities due to tourism has also caused
some social ills. The shift in the population in the cities has caused overcrowdings, rise
in cost of living, traffic congestions and air pollution due to fume exhausts. Furthermore,
in most countries, tourism is not a whole year event and therefore employments are on
seasonal basis. There could be high rates of unemployment some part of the year. In
addition, tourism can be low in pay and the benefits are normally low. Eventually the
locals will turn to other illegal activities as stated above, to supplement their lack of
income.
In conclusion, tourism could be very important for the development of many countries,
however, it needs a lot of careful attention so that its effect does not damage the
environment that was once a beautiful and profit-generating attraction.
















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