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WLLN Draft/WLLN Draft

WLLN Draft

Posted by Tenzin Tsephel (she/her) on

Tenzin Tsephel

12/4/22

ENG 110: Writing and Rhetoric

WLLN Draft

Growing up in India and making a sudden life changing move to New York at the age of 4 was something I never truly grasped.  As a child, I was not really a deep thinker, I was more surface level. I didn’t recognize the seriousness of this life-altering move. Some can argue that I was too little to understand, I think that I definitely could’ve shown more emotion- specifically sadness and maybe even anger, because I would be leaving my family and friends. I excitedly waved goodbye with a fat smile to my childhood best friends/neighbors and my grandparents, not knowing that it would be the last time that I would see the majority of them. My sister is 8 which is 4 years older than me and I saw her cry as we descended down to the LaGuardia airport, while I looked around in awe of the new world we’ve just entered. We moved around in New York 3 times and I went about it as if the course of my life wasn’t changing with each new “home”. Our first home was a tiny one bedroom, one bathroom apartment in sunnyside queens that housed my sister, my dad, my mom and I. 

In India, I was bilingual and spoke hindi and nepali. You would think it’s a good thing that a child as young as I was at the time, picked up not one but two languages (that were not primarily spoken in our house) and spoke it fluently. Instead I was made fun of by my peers and had snide comments thrown at me from other family members because I didn’t speak my own language, Tibetan. I’ve been a stubborn child since birth, so these insults didn’t have much effect on me. I would argue back when my friends commented about my lack of Tibetan culture and language. I never made the effort to change myself and learn because I took these comments as an insult instead of as constructed criticism. At times it felt almost as if I was ganged up on and bullied, which only strengthened my resistance to learning Tibetan because I didn’t want to give in and do what they wanted me to do. .

Fast forward to 5 year old Tenzin attending elementary school in NYC, I immediately adapted to American life and quickly forgot both of the languages I grew up speaking. I began learning and primarily speaking in English. Every morning, my mom would walk me to school for the next ⅚ years. My mom and I have always been closer than my dad and I. As those ⅚ years passed by, our conversation grew shorter and shorter due to our language barrier. Eventually it turned from conversation to a few sentences every now and then. When I started middle school, my mom’s English was getting better because she started to work as a housemaid in Manhattan to provide for our family.

In my teens, my ignorance only grew. At the ages of 10-15, I was very selfish. I was only concerned about normal pre-teen/teen girls things – boys and popularity. In school I was funny and loving to all of my many friends, and at home, I barely spoke to my family because I was constantly on my computer/phone. This emotional distance from my family can also be attributed to the language barrier that was previously instilled. During this time period, my family spoke only in Tibetan amongst each other, and when they would speak to me I would understand but only respond in English. I thought the only important language was English, and that I didn’t need to learn my native language.

During conversations with my mom on laundry day,or dinner at home, family outings etc. I would correct my mom and sometimes even laugh at her pronunciations of certain english words. I would speak over her when we’re in the grocery checkout line, or at restaurants because I was afraid of people not understanding her english. Looking back, I have not regretted anything more in life than the way I treated my mom during this time. I failed to understand that i learned English in school alongside kids my age and teachers. I was privileged in the aspect that I had so many resources and was taught at a young age so it’s even easier to learn. My mom on the other hand, had to learn English for her survival and for the betterment of our family. 

Once I hit 16, I went to a Tibetan refugee camp in India where I met Tibetans that were born and raised in India. I realized how uncultured I was and I was ashamed to even call myself Tibetan, when I didn’t even know the first thing about my culture. There, I read multiple writings by the Dalai Lama and watched documentaries about Tibet and our painful fight for freedom. I attended conferences, and even met the Dalai Lama in person for a Q&A with my camp. After the month ended, I returned to New York as a new person with a new mindset. When my parents would talk to me, I would respond back in Tibetan and I never made a comment again about my mothers pronunciation. Reading has truly made such a huge impact on my life by giving me knowledge and evolving my mindset. These books on Tibet provided me with a sense of culture and comfort and eventually created my love for reading books on activism and religion. Not only do I feel more educated, but I have genuinely been happier since then. I am now 20 and for the past 4 years I have been educating others on Tibet whenever they ask me about my ethnicity and why I was born in India (and not Tibet). The more people I can educate, my country and our history/culture/language will stay alive. 

Digital Receipt #3/Digital Receipt #3

Digital Receipt 3- Teresa Calcano

Posted by Teresa Calcano on

From reading Samea’s week 2 response, I learned I make natural decisions by using rhetorical analysis, such as choosing a professor from rating my professor. What are other ways you used rhetorical analysis outside of school?

From reading Harin’s week 2 response, I learned rhetorical analysis is decisions we choose by what’s most comfortable or convenient to us. For example, the classroom seats concept Harin stated, I can admit that I like to sit in the back seat of the classroom because that is what is most convenient when I want to be unbothered. Are there examples of rhetorical analysis you have outside of school?

Reflection #1/Digital Receipt #7/Digital Receipt #7/Reflection #1

Cover Letter

Posted by Teresa Calcano on

Teresa Calcano

My audience was targeted students who are minorities who ever felt lost in their own community. I tailored my language and rhetorical choices to appeal to them by sharing the stress I endured during my trip. The meaningful insight I gained through writing this assignment is learning to write in the first-person point of view at a specific moment. The purpose of my writing impacted my learning and my writing because It reminds me to stay on track and find new ideas on the subject I’m writing about.

Assignments/Researched Essay

Research Paper

Posted by Teresa Calcano on

Teresa Calcano 

Jesse Rice-Evans 

ENGL 110 

Dec. 8, 2022 

Youth Violence: The Motives and Solutions   

Their smiles burst as they ran into the playground. Innocence is showing at its finest. Then a gunshot is heard in the air a split second later. They duck down, trembling in fear, wondering if this is their last day. The world is not perfect for kids. When they do not have a home or a role model to rely on, the children have no choice, instead to adapt to the dreadful environment. Youth Violence has been a problem everywhere and brings disappointment and fear to families. School shootings, bullying, abuse, and gangs are examples of how this has not changed. Some people believe solving violence is doomed, but slowly we can protect these kids from the consequences of violence by finding the root of the problem and telling solutions.  

The first cause of youth violence is the community in which kids live. Communities influence youth on their values and the decisions they make in life. Halliday and Graham state, “Adolescents who were exposed to higher levels of community violence also engaged in higher levels of violent activity, associated with more deviant peers, and adhered more strongly to an aggressive cognitive style” (396). A quote like this supports my thesis since it explains that children who live in violent areas can get involved in the wrong friendship groups and be more aggressive. Therefore, living in a poor neighborhood is one of the many causes of youth violence. 

Similarly, to the environment, home is as important as well, and parental guidance needs to be used right. Therefore, having a bad role model to look up to can direct violent behavior. “One certain pathway is through modeling: When children are exposed to violence in the home, they come to see violence as relatively more acceptable, and they are more likely to resort to violence to solve problems. This is often referred to as the “cycle of violence,” and there is good evidence that the acceptability of violence in interpersonal relationships is often carried from one generation to the next” (Steinberg 5). Exposure to violence can guide the children to associate violent behavior to be taken advantage of and create a generational cycle for the family.  

The second cause of youth violence is the influence and dangers of social media. Social media platforms are to be taken with caution; it can be dangerous for free access to children to the internet. “With this in mind, the fact that many young people’s accounts contained material that reflects negative views of the police is troubling. Photos and videos of police officers accompanied by expletives and derogatory text were common features of content on platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, and Periscope” (Irwin et al 18). In this case, social media, unlike the news spread negative content about police officers, and with the influence and gained sense of community people followed others to create riots and it turned into a mess. It is good to educate younger kids about the world, but the abundance of hatred and violence in the world can be too much for a child and it can change their perspective of the world and feel like the world is against them.  

The third cause of youth violence is bullying, specifically in schools. This controversial topic needs to be discussed, as many school shootings occurred, and many lives were lost. It is important to take a step back and look at the bigger picture and find what led to this. “Bullies may bully people who are doing better than them at something, be it grades or athletic accomplishments or promotions at work. The bullies look to undermine the other person’s skills with acts of aggression only to level the playing field. Bullies often lack psychological well-being, so there’s a lot of comparison being done in their heads, and that leads to frustration and envy” (The 6 main causes of bullying and what to do about it). As you can see, bullying can be a form of projection of their internal battles. Without love and understanding from parents at home, they project their frustration onto others. 

There is a solution to the effect of a negative environment and home life of youth violence. Considering to looking deeper into a different approach might be a better solution, “Accordingly, the interventions that are most likely to be effective may be those that go beyond the trauma-focused approach and address any comorbid problems as well as the broader contextual contributors to community violence exposure. With interventions occurring at individual, family, peer, school, and neighborhood levels, a treatment like multisystemic therapy may be helpful in this regard (Halliday-Boykins & Henggeler, in press)” (Halliday et al 399). As mentioned earlier, multisystemic therapy, an intensive treatment process that focuses on diagnosed behavioral disorders and environmental systems that affect a person’s involvement, can help create better solutions for the environment and homes. Therefore, eventually, help the children from violent exposure and abuse going on at home. 

There is a solution to the second cause of youth violence, social media. To get rid of the influence and consequences of social media, it is necessary for parents to learn the media and how to navigate the internet. “In addition to training for professionals, the Home Office should develop online resources for parents and carers which explain the basics of the main social media platforms and highlight the importance of oversight of young people’s and children’s activity on social media” (Irwin 32). By giving resources for parents to learn the basic knowledge of the media, they can have control over the exposure their child sees in the media and parents can inform their child about it.  

There is a solution to the third cause of youth violence, bullying. Bullying is a problem inside many external and internal problems. One of the many solutions to bullying is helping bullies develop positive coping mechanisms for their anger, “This approach also provides information about violence, seeks to change the way youth think and feel about violence, and provides opportunities to practice and reinforce skills. The content and format of skill development programs vary depending on the model being utilized. These school-based approaches often include guidance to teachers and other school personnel on ways to build youth’s skills, monitor, and manage behavior, and build a positive school climate to reduce aggression and violence, such as bullying, and support academic success” (David-Ferdon, C., Vivolo-Kantor, A. M., Dahlberg, L. L., Marshall, K. J., Rainford, N. & Hall, J. E. (2016). A Comprehensive Technical Package for the Prevention of Youth Violence and Associated Risk Behaviors. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 21). To reduce bullying and help children succeed, universal school-based programs can guide them with compassion and non-judgment.  

As a result, youth violence exists all over the world, and the issue needs to be addressed thoroughly. I believe the evidence I used supports my thesis and the idea that youth violence has developed due to other factors. To reduce youth violence, it is important to decide the root causes and use these different approaches and start acting. How would you like to reduce youth violence? Which solution would be most effective?  

Research Draft/Research Draft

Research Draft

Posted by Teresa Calcano on

Teresa Calcano

ENGL 110

Professor Jesse Evans

The Motives of Youth Violence and Solutions

Their smiles burst as they run into the playground. Innocence is showing at its finest. Then a gunshot is heard in the air a split second later. They duck down, trembling in fear, wondering if this is their last day. The world is not perfect for kids. When they don’t have a home or a role model to rely on, the children have no choice, instead to adapt to the dreadful environment. Youth Violence has been a problem everywhere and brings disappointment and fear to families. School shootings, bullying, abuse, and gangs are examples of how this has not changed. Some people believe solving violence is doomed, but slowly we can protect these kids from the consequences of violence by finding the root of the problem and stating solutions. 

The first cause of youth violence is are with the community in which kids live. Communities influence youth on their values and the decisions they make in life. Halliday and Graham state, “Adolescents who were exposed to higher levels of community violence also engaged in higher levels of violent activity, associated with more deviant peers, and adhered more strongly to an aggressive cognitive style” (396). A quote like this supports my thesis since it explains that children who live in violent areas can get involved in the wrong friendship groups and be more aggressive. Therefore, living in a poor neighborhood is one of the many causes of youth violence.

3rd paragraph: causes- home 

  • Intro= Similarly to the environment, home is as important as well, and parental guidance is needed to be used right. Therefore, having a bad role model to look up to can direct violent behavior.
  • “One certain pathway is through modeling: When children are exposed to violence in the home, they come to see violence as relatively more acceptable, and they are more likely to resort to violence to solve problems. This is often referred to as the “cycle of violence,” and there is good evidence that the acceptability of violence in interpersonal relationships is often carried from one generation to the next.” (Steinberg 5)
  • Further explanation on why it supports your thesis

4th paragraph: causes- social media

  • Introducing statement 
  • “With this in mind, the fact that many young people’s accounts contained material that reflects negative views of the police is troubling. Photos and videos of police officers accompanied by expletives and derogatory text were common features of content on platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, and Periscope” (Irwin and Pinkey 18)
  • Explanation 

5th paragraph: bullying

  • Introducing statement 
  • Quote
  • Explanation 

6th paragraph= solutions to environment/ home life 

  • Introducing statement 
  • Quote
  • Explanation 

7th paragraph= solutions to social media

  • Introducing statement 
  • Quote 
  • Explanation 

 8th paragraph= solutions to mental health/bullying

  • Introducing statement 
  • Quote 
  • Explanation 

9th paragraph: Conclusion 

  • Concluding statement 
  • How the info related to my thesis 
  • Impact it will bring 
  • Encouraging statement/ thinking question
Digital Receipt #2/Digital Receipt #2

Digital Receipt #2

Posted by Tasnim Khan (She/Her) on

Rhetorical analysis is a way of interpreting and understanding how language is used to persuade or convince an audience. In her article, “Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis,” Laura Bolin Carroll discusses the use of visual and aural cues, such as the choice of bag, to make judgments about a person’s character and abilities.

I have practiced rhetorical analysis in my own life without realizing it, for example, when I was a student in high school. I remember one instance when I was choosing which bag to bring to school. I had a backpack that I normally used for carrying books and other school supplies, but I also had a briefcase that I had received as a gift. I decided to bring the briefcase to school that day because I thought it would make me look more professional and mature.

In this situation, I was using rhetorical analysis to make a decision based on the visual and aural cues of the two different bags. I knew that a briefcase is traditionally associated with professionalism and maturity, while a backpack is often associated with youth and informality. By choosing to bring the briefcase to school, I was trying to communicate to my teachers and classmates that I was a serious and capable student.

However, this decision was not based solely on my own perceptions of the bags. I was also influenced by the expectations and norms of my school and society, which value certain traits and behaviors over others. For example, I knew that my teachers would likely view me more favorably if I brought a briefcase to school and that my classmates might perceive me as more mature and responsible if I did so.

Overall, this experience showed me how rhetorical analysis can be used to make judgments and decisions based on the interpretation of visual, aural, and sensory cues. It also highlighted the role of societal expectations and norms in shaping our perceptions and behaviors.

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