I believed that we have to learn from the best to stay ahead in education race. We live in world full of challenges. No matter what a person does there will be keen competition. It is the keen competition that takes a person to the top, in all walks of life.
Let us explore the definition of education. It is the building and development of character and to train individuals to have the ability to earn a livelihood. Building and development of character is to cultivate good qualities like: honesty, intelligence, courage, humanistic values of life, love, patience and other important qualities. The second objective is the ability to survive or succeed in achieving one’s goal in life.
Learning from the best to stay ahead, is not needed in education if its purpose is to cultivate one’s character. However, if the goal is to enable individuals to enter one profession, and to be successful in the profession of their choice, learning from the best is needed. Hence, people may face competition. This will cause one to do one’s profession well for a long time. People of different jobs (doctors, engineers, businessman, etc) do better in their jobs when they face tough competitions. They get to learn from other people’s mistakes and thus able to work better and more efficiently.
“We want to make sure that we are up there with then, riding the crest of the waves rather than being swept along in the small streams.” Stated by education minister, Tharman Shanmugaratnam. In my opinion, he is indirectly saying that we cannot lag behind others but we have to compete with and learn from others in order to be the top. Thus, not only we have to learn from others but also need the ability to compete with others.
Competitions start from individuals during their schooling days. They are the make up of individual’s mind. In order for individuals to be successful in their careers, they also have to achieve excellent results and the fame he gets from what he does. I feel that in order to learn from the best well, and to apply them, it is best to cultivate individuals during their schooling days. After learning has taken place, so as to be better than others, we have to challenge ourselves and improve the ways of others. Instead of riding the crest of the waves, we fly above it. I believe that learning from the best is not enough as our standards would be equal to them. Instead, we have to improve and invent new ways to be ahead.
In our modern society, many types of competitions are available in schools. Such as service-learning (who done more for the society), cultural programmes, tests and examinations (to show their best abilities in academics studies) and lastly, sports and games. Hence, learning from others and coping with challenges need to be developed in their schooling days in order to last throughout their life.
Learning from others can be difficult for some people. Although learning from others is a need in education, care should be taken when doing so as it may lead to unhealthy results. It can lead to harmful results if individuals’ expectations are not practical and do not know their limitations. For example, a student who is talented in mathematics compete with another student who is not talented in the subject, other variables are the same, most likely is that the former would be able to compete successfully with the latter. There is a chance of the student, after many disappointments, becomes thwarted or losing his interest in the subject. This would affect his mental and physical health. Therefore, individuals have to access their limits and what they are capable of achieving. This happens as it is the nature of man to strive for the top.
In conclusion, while it is important to learn and compete with the best, we have to adhere to certain rules and principles to help us know our limits and potentials.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Environmental issue
Article reference:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6033407.stm
Issue: Environmental issue
My view and points:
Currently, the use of natural resources is estimated not sustainable when considered in terms of forecasts of consumption. More use of resources will be necessary, if population levels are to be increased and living standard rose. The improvement of technology allows people to find more natural resources. For examples, oil and minerals.
To have a sustainable use of material resources human beings can recycle and reuse materials. There are advantages of recycling and reusing materials. In the United States, 90% of batteries, cans and other metals are being recycled. These will minimize environmental pollution and the impact on landscape and the ecosystem.
Another method of saving our earth’s resource is substitution. In the automatic and aero plane industries substitutions of lead and copper piping benefit them. It not only lighten the car and the plane it also improves fuel performance. A report said that the weight replaced by plastic is twice less then metal in some cars. Another example of substitution is that copper cables for telecommunications are being replaced by glass fibre-optics.
Most of the world’s energy supply comes from oil. Oil prices are rising due to the increase of violence in the Middle East, drying of oil wells, etc. Although many new sources of energy are found, since energy cannot be recycled, there is a threat of resources drying up. Many countries turn to the use of nuclear energy, a non-renewable resource have to be used with care as the raw material, uranium, may be depleted. This method is also expensive and poses a threat to the environment. Hence, we have to achieve greater efficiency in fuel consumption but also tap the sun, wind and water for energy.
Water a renewable energy resource may be problems to many countries using it. One of the problems is the unequal amount of water available. While in countries like Iceland have abundance of water, countries like Africa and Kuwait receive lesser and lesser due to global warming. The problem of water distribution is worsening by pollution cause by discharging of waste chemicals and liquids into water bodies (sea, river and lakes). In developed countries most of their wastes come from industries while those developing countries that undergo green revolution are likely to contaminate water bodies with agriculture chemicals and fertilizers.
I felt that the depletion of resources will cause the developing countries to suffer more than the developed countries. When there is a depletion of energy resources, the LEDCs(less economically developed countries) is unable to pay for the hike of these resources. Since, there is a hike in oil prices, manufacturing of products and foods will become more expansive and these will cause the poor people in LEDCs unable to afford or have to work harder in order to survive. While the MEDCs (more economically developed countries) is able to pay for these precious resources like steel (for building, crude oil, etc).
I believed that the government has a part to play in reducing amount of damage done to the environment and to conserve the nation stock resources. The government can pass down laws, regulations and campaigns to prevent contaminations of water bodies, recycling or reuse used material. Metal contents and other recyclable materials in consumer products, may be recycled for a price to encourage the public to recycle materials.
Issue: Environmental issue
My view and points:
Currently, the use of natural resources is estimated not sustainable when considered in terms of forecasts of consumption. More use of resources will be necessary, if population levels are to be increased and living standard rose. The improvement of technology allows people to find more natural resources. For examples, oil and minerals.
To have a sustainable use of material resources human beings can recycle and reuse materials. There are advantages of recycling and reusing materials. In the United States, 90% of batteries, cans and other metals are being recycled. These will minimize environmental pollution and the impact on landscape and the ecosystem.
Another method of saving our earth’s resource is substitution. In the automatic and aero plane industries substitutions of lead and copper piping benefit them. It not only lighten the car and the plane it also improves fuel performance. A report said that the weight replaced by plastic is twice less then metal in some cars. Another example of substitution is that copper cables for telecommunications are being replaced by glass fibre-optics.
Most of the world’s energy supply comes from oil. Oil prices are rising due to the increase of violence in the Middle East, drying of oil wells, etc. Although many new sources of energy are found, since energy cannot be recycled, there is a threat of resources drying up. Many countries turn to the use of nuclear energy, a non-renewable resource have to be used with care as the raw material, uranium, may be depleted. This method is also expensive and poses a threat to the environment. Hence, we have to achieve greater efficiency in fuel consumption but also tap the sun, wind and water for energy.
Water a renewable energy resource may be problems to many countries using it. One of the problems is the unequal amount of water available. While in countries like Iceland have abundance of water, countries like Africa and Kuwait receive lesser and lesser due to global warming. The problem of water distribution is worsening by pollution cause by discharging of waste chemicals and liquids into water bodies (sea, river and lakes). In developed countries most of their wastes come from industries while those developing countries that undergo green revolution are likely to contaminate water bodies with agriculture chemicals and fertilizers.
I felt that the depletion of resources will cause the developing countries to suffer more than the developed countries. When there is a depletion of energy resources, the LEDCs(less economically developed countries) is unable to pay for the hike of these resources. Since, there is a hike in oil prices, manufacturing of products and foods will become more expansive and these will cause the poor people in LEDCs unable to afford or have to work harder in order to survive. While the MEDCs (more economically developed countries) is able to pay for these precious resources like steel (for building, crude oil, etc).
I believed that the government has a part to play in reducing amount of damage done to the environment and to conserve the nation stock resources. The government can pass down laws, regulations and campaigns to prevent contaminations of water bodies, recycling or reuse used material. Metal contents and other recyclable materials in consumer products, may be recycled for a price to encourage the public to recycle materials.
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