Harin D

Assignments/WLLN

Assignment #1: WLLN

Posted by Harin D on

Harin Dharmasena  

Professor Rice-Evans 

ENGL 11000 

18 September 2022  

WLLN Draft 

To me, my language brings back many interesting and significant memories. I only recognized its significance later on and how it made me different from my American peers in the classroom. A specific moment that comes to me would be one of the earliest moments I can recall, in my early years of schooling. While I was learning to interact in two completely different languages. Which were English and Sinhala, and constantly facing confusion while learning them. Although becoming bilingual now seems easy I see how difficult it truly was for my past self. While other kids growing up only had to figure out one language. Whereas I, just like many other first-generation ethnic kids, had to figure out but also become fluent in their second language. To be honest I at one point was jealous of that but now I see how the struggles of growing with two languages are such a blessing. When it comes to growing up bilingual, it is a blessing in disguise, with both positive and negative effects.  

A specific moment that comes to me vividly when thinking about languages would be when I was about four or five. Whereat home my mother would talk in a mix of English and Sinhala to teach me both languages. Then when it came to outside of the house such as school, I would hear and interact with English alone. Which as a little kid would create a lot of confusion. Later my parents told me that I would not speak at all no matter if it was at home or school. Then resulted in me was a speech and language therapist from five to seven years old. During this experience I remember feeling not only confusion but embarrassment. It made me embarrassed of culture and who I was. Languages for me made me ashamed of who I was, it created unneeded confusion and grit. This was a significant memory to me because later I recognized how different I was from my white American peers in the classroom. It further clarified to me how if I were like the kids, I envied I would not have these struggles at all. 

It might seem easy to grow up bilingual, but it is difficult as a kid. Something many first generation or immigrant kids understand far too well. I cannot speak for all but at least for me in my early years I had a lot of confusion. I recall frequently as a kid reading and while doing so, I would translate a sentence in my head slowing down the pace I was reading at. So, where it would take other kids five minutes to read a paragraph it would take me 10 minutes. Something I was constantly annoyed by and later fixed. This was another significant memory for me because I would wonder why the other kids were not reading like I was, then I realized going to schools with little to no diversity was why the other kids had less confusion. The confusion I think stems from growing up as American but then also connecting to another part of you as well. As a kid, I would say I was embarrassed of my own ethnic background, but now I see it as something to be proud of. What I mean by this is that for me language is not just a way to communicate but it can be a part of one’s identity. 

Language now can only be seen as an advantage for me. It connects people to their culture and heritage, which is something important to people of any minority growing up in this country. Language helps people of any minority connect with the food, smells, and traditions in their culture. Language helps eliminate the difference you feel about yourself in this country. Language not only gives you a deeper understanding of your culture and heritage but also one of yourself and your identity. Now I see how language is such a crucial aspect in anyone’s life, especially those of minority people. My development in languages would be because of my mother as a child she not only made it her responsibility to make sure I understand English, but also the Sinhalese language. She made sure to teach me to read, write, and speak English outside of school while also on the side teaching me all about pronunciation and writing of Sinhala. She was able to teach me all of this from an early age and did so because she knew it would be easier to become fluent in another language if you started early on. She understood that although I was American-born, I was still different from what people consider as an American.  It helped my present self be in touch with my ethnic background while also still being American. 

The ways I see my capabilities in language, reading, and writing impacting my life would all be positive. My two languages allow me to be in touch with both cultures I grew up with, American and Sri Lankan. I get to have the advantage of connecting with people through either language. My experience truly gives me the ability to connect with my race and family, I get to communicate with other people of my culture and learn more about my history.  Being fluent in two languages now I only can be seen as a positive impact and allows for a particularly important understanding of oneself. Language not only gives me a way to communicate but a way to identify with myself. 

Digital Receipts/Digital Receipt #6

Digital Receipt #6

Posted by Harin D on

After reading the articles the idea of writing deteriorating is not a true thing and technology and time might just be simplifying how we write in the future. My question: Should we completely place the blame for writing deteriorating on technology when it’s people that invent simplification of writing?

Digital Receipts/Digital Receipt #3/Posts

Digital Receipt # 3

Posted by Harin D on

Harin Dharmasena 

Digital Receipt #3

Reading, Listening, Viewing  

This week I spent approximately 1 hour going over the week number 2 assignment responses. From the documents, I chose two peers’ responses. I understood each one and was able to figure out how they used rhetorical analysis. I spent time making sure that I understood everything in the document. I went over their responses and how they used rhetorical analysis.

Writing  

This week our only writing assignment was to respond to two peers’ week 2 responses. We were to take comments on them by asking, what did you learn from this post? what questions do you have for the post’s author? This took me about 20 to 30 minutes in total to do, as I was slowly figuring out what my peers had written about. After I was able to comment on their responses and complete the assignment. During this assignment, I worked at a normal speed trying to learn what the assignment was asking for. I do not believe that I struggled at this yet did my best.  

Providing & Responding to Feedback   

As this is the third week of assignments for this course, I have not really received any feedback yet but am hoping to get some feedback on how to better improve my digital receipts and how to further understand what I need to improve upon.  

Reflecting  

I learned how to give feedback on my peer’s work and better use the comments feature. I think I completed the assignment as best as I could, although I hope to learn with future assignments. I am slowly learning how to take what I learned from my peers and implement it into my future assignments. I have a basic understanding of the WLLN Assignment prompt and am looking forward to receiving feedback on my assignment on how to better improve. 

Collaborating 

Thus, because it is the third week of class, and I have only had such a few times with my classmates, but I have collaborated and given my feedback to my peers. I have introduced myself through the course site and through our week #1 and week #2 assignments. Other than that, I haven’t had much communication besides the comments I have given, I am looking forward to collaborating and working with my peers in the coming weeks.  

Digital Receipts/Digital Receipt #4/Posts/WLLN Draft

WLLN Draft/ Digital Receipt # 4

Posted by Harin D on

Harin Dharmasena  

Professor Rice-Evans 

ENGL 11000 

18 September 2022  

WLLN Draft 

To me, my language brings back many interesting and significant memories. I only recognized its significance later on and how it made me different from my American peers in the classroom. A specific moment that comes to me would be one of the earliest moments I can recall, in my early years of schooling. While I was learning to interact in two completely different languages. Which were English and Sinhala, and constantly facing confusion while learning them. Although becoming bilingual now seems easy I see how difficult it truly was for my past self. While other kids growing up only had to figure out one language. Whereas I, just like many other first-generation ethnic kids, had to figure out but also become fluent in their second language. To be honest I at one point was jealous of that but now I see how the struggles of growing with two languages are such a blessing. When it comes to growing up bilingual, it is a blessing in disguise, with both positive and negative effects.  

A specific moment that comes to me vividly when thinking about languages would be when I was about four or five. Whereat home my mother would talk in a mix of English and Sinhala to teach me both languages. Then when it came to outside of the house such as school, I would hear and interact with English alone. Which as a little kid would create a lot of confusion. Later my parents told me that I would not speak at all no matter if it was at home or school. Then resulted in me was a speech and language therapist from five to seven years old. During this experience I remember feeling not only confusion but embarrassment. It made me embarrassed of culture and who I was. Languages for me made me ashamed of who I was, it created unneeded confusion and grit. This was a significant memory to me because later I recognized how different I was from my white American peers in the classroom. It further clarified to me how if I were like the kids, I envied I would not have these struggles at all. 

It might seem easy to grow up bilingual, but it is difficult as a kid. Something many first generation or immigrant kids understand far too well. I cannot speak for all but at least for me in my early years I had a lot of confusion. I recall frequently as a kid reading and while doing so, I would translate a sentence in my head slowing down the pace I was reading at. So, where it would take other kids five minutes to read a paragraph it would take me 10 minutes. Something I was constantly annoyed by and later fixed. This was another significant memory for me because I would wonder why the other kids were not reading like I was, then I realized going to schools with little to no diversity was why the other kids had less confusion. The confusion I think stems from growing up as American but then also connecting to another part of you as well. As a kid, I would say I was embarrassed of my own ethnic background, but now I see it as something to be proud of. What I mean by this is that for me language is not just a way to communicate but it can be a part of one’s identity. 

Language now can only be seen as an advantage for me. It connects people to their culture and heritage, which is something important to people of any minority growing up in this country. Language helps people of any minority connect with the food, smells, and traditions in their culture. Language helps eliminate the difference you feel about yourself in this country. Language not only gives you a deeper understanding of your culture and heritage but also one of yourself and your identity. Now I see how language is such a crucial aspect in anyone’s life, especially those of minority people. My development in languages would be because of my mother as a child she not only made it her responsibility to make sure I understand English, but also the Sinhalese language. She made sure to teach me to read, write, and speak English outside of school while also on the side teaching me all about pronunciation and writing of Sinhala. She was able to teach me all of this from an early age and did so because she knew it would be easier to become fluent in another language if you started early on. She understood that although I was American-born, I was still different from what people consider as an American.  It helped my present self be in touch with my ethnic background while also still being American. 

The ways I see my capabilities in language, reading, and writing impacting my life would all be positive. My two languages allow me to be in touch with both cultures I grew up with, American and Sri Lankan. I get to have the advantage of connecting with people through either language. My experience truly gives me the ability to connect with my race and family, I get to communicate with other people of my culture and learn more about my history.  Being fluent in two languages now I only can be seen as a positive impact and allows for a particularly important understanding of oneself. Language not only gives me a way to communicate but a way to identify with myself. 

Digital Receipts/Digital Receipt #2

Digital Receipt #2

Posted by Harin D on

Harin Dharmasena 

Digital Receipt #2 

Reading, Listening, Viewing  

This week I spent approximately 1 hour going over the Backpacks vs briefcases by Laura Bollin Carroll and exploring the week number 2 assignment. For the documents, I understood each one and was able to figure out how to use rhetorical analysis and what it is. I spent time making sure that I understood everything in the document. I got how rhetorical analysis works and how we use it in our daily lives without having any recollection of it. While going through this week’s documents I was able to focus easily and easily understand what is required of me. I would say that I worked at my normal speed and work ethic and was able to clearly grasp this week’s workload.   

Writing  

This week our only writing assignment was to write a 300-word response after reading the backpacks vs briefcases. We were to take an instance we recalled using rhetorical analysis in our daily lives and tell it to the best of our ability. This took me about 20 to 30 minutes in total to do, as I was slowly figuring out what I could describe as rhetorical analysis. After finding a scenario I was able to describe and depict my response and complete the assignment. During this assignment, I worked at a normal speed trying to learn what the assignment was asking for. I do not believe that I struggled at this yet did my best.  

Providing & Responding to Feedback   

As this is the second week of assignments for this course, I have not really received any feedback yet but am hoping to get some feedback on how to better improve my digital receipts and how to further understand what I need to improve upon.  

Reflecting  

I learned how to submit my first writing assignment and grasped how this week’s task could benefit my upcoming assignments. I think I completed the writing assignment as best as I could, although I hope to learn with future assignments. I am slowly learning how to implement what I learned into my future assignments like the WLLN. I have a basic understanding of rhetorical analysis and am looking forward to receiving feedback on my assignment on how to better improve. 

Collaborating 

Thus, because it is the second week of class, and I have only had such a few times with my classmates, I have not had the chance to collaborate at all. I have introduced myself through the course site and through our week #1 and week #2 assignment. Other than that, I haven’t had much communication, I am looking forward to collaborating and working with my peers in the coming weeks.  

Week #2 Response/Week #2 Response

Week #2: Backpacks vs. Briefs response

Posted by Harin D on

After reading Carrol’s article I grasped how rhetoric analysis is an aspect of our daily lives that we use not even knowing we do so. In other words, rhetorical analysis is simply a tool for deeper understanding, reading, and thinking. It is when you find yourself in a situation where you are observing what is happening around you, and in your own thoughts making conclusions by one’s interpretations. We constantly do this in our daily lives without even recognizing it. Such an instance that I recall myself using rhetorical analysis would be my observations in my classes. As I enter each of my classes I always inspect the desks, to see which ones are comfortable and which ones are not? With that, I analyze the location of the desks within the classroom where I would feel comfortable sitting for the next 1 hour. After I have decided I always find myself observing my peers walking into the classroom. Thinking about it now realize the thought process that goes through my mind. I question why someone chooses to sit where they sit? Why do they enter the classroom at a certain time when they do? How they dress themselves? I analyze using minute details like what emotion they express as they enter the room. Are they rushed by their need to make it to class on time? Do they look fatigued? Or are they neutral and calm? With these things unknowingly I conclude where they would sit and why they are dressed the way they are. If I interpret a person to be tired, I will conclude them to sit in the back and would further conclude this if they were wearing sweatpants and a baggy hoodie usually in dark colors. If someone looks somewhat put together while looking out of breath and does not acknowledge any open seating around the room and takes a quick seat, I will easily conclude that they are trying to make it in time. I make these assumptions unknowingly and purely based on what I analyze to be true to me. The conclusions I took about someone were based on the experiences and social influences I have witnessed in the real world. It is beyond intriguing how we as humans use our senses to make conclusions very quickly, and yet most of the time we have no recollection of what we analyzed later.  

Digital Receipts/Digital Receipt #1/Posts

Digital Receipt #1

Posted by Harin D on

Harin Dharmasena 

Digital Receipt #1 

Reading, Listening, Viewing  

This week I spent approximately 1 hour going over all the course documents and exploring the course site. For the documents, I understood each one and was able to figure out how the layout of the class worked. I read the two links on labor logs and grading and how we would be graded in this course. I spent time making sure that I understood everything in the documents, especially in the syllabus. I got how the digital receipts (labor logs) worked and how our assignments and work in this class would be critiqued. I also read the graphic novel pertaining to what we would be covering in class and understood the points of the use of rhetoric in writing. While going through the course documents I was able to focus easily and easily understand what is required of me. I would say that I worked at my normal speed and work ethic and was able to clearly grasp this week’s workload.  

Writing  

This week our only writing assignment was to learn how the comments section for week 1 worked. This took me about 5 to 10 minutes in total to do, as I was slowly figuring out the common’s website. After creating my account, I was able to comment on the post and complete the assignment. During this assignment, I worked at a normal speed trying to learn how the assignment was a post to be handed in. I do not believe that I struggled at this yet did my best.  

Providing & Responding to Feedback  

As this is the first week of assignments for this course, I have not really received any feedback yet but am hoping to get some feedback on how to better improve my digital receipts and how to further understand how the course site works.  

Reflecting  

I learned how to create a digital receipt (labor log) and grasped how this weekly task could show my growth in this class. I think I completed the writing assignment as best as I could, although I hope to learn with future assignments. I also learned how important it is that I present my work regularly to receive credit. I am slowly learning how the course site within commons works, and how to master the controls of the site. I have a basic understanding of how the course site operates and am looking forward to receiving feedback on how to better improve these digital receipts.   

Collaborating 

Thus, because it is the first week of class, and I have only had such a few times with my classmates have not had the chance to collaborate at all. I have introduced myself through the course site and through our week #1 assignment. Other than that, I haven’t had much communication, I am looking forward to collaborating and working with my peers in the coming weeks.  

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