Saturday, June 28, 2008

First Week's Impressions

Hi, it's Jeannie!

Well, this week has been pretty hectic, and I'm convinced that the following 2 weeks will be just as hectic if not more. Luckily, our freedom and justice class didn't have any sort of quizzes/tests this week, however, we were assigned an essay on the first day and we were given another essay on Friday. Our first essay's topic was, "What does freedom mean to you?" We had to turn in a first draft, the Teacher Assistant edited it, and then we had to turn in a final draft. Luckily, it wasn't graded. Our next topic was, "What's Plato's view on democracy?" Our first draft is due on Monday.

Besides the essays, we've had to read a lot about St. Aquinas, St. Augustine, Plato, the New/Old Testament, and I should be reading Locke this weekend.

Yesterday, to relax after a whole week of school, my friends and I decided to go to the mall together. We eventually broke off into groups. I watched Wall-E(recommended!) and then we went shopping, took the bus back, hung out for an hour or two, dinner, movie on laptop, and then sleep. I was so tired when I went to the movies, I actually fell asleep watching it! Luckily, I only fell asleep for about 5 min. or so, so it wasn't too bad. Doesn't everyone enjoy a quick nap sometimes?

I'm getting more familiar with the North Campus now. On the first day of summer college, I was intimidated by the number of summer college students and the size of the university.

It's about time to go to brunch, so I'll sign out now.

1 comment:

Charles Ramsey said...

Hang in there Jeannie. You are learning first hand the rigor of an Ivy League Institution. As a new student to our program you are learning about the value that we have established for our kids with the program. This is an opportunity to grow. You will be a better person for accepting the challenge of going through the Cornell Summer Studies Program.

Now is not the time to be intimidated, but now is the time to embrace the moment and to galvanize your colleagues with a drive and determination to excel at the highest level. Chelsey, Theresa and Lucina are there for you and you all have the time to work together as a group. Risley Hall has a lot of study areas and all of you can gather and brainstorm about Locke, Plato, Burke and Mill. Remember the class is delineated into three themes, Justice, Freedom and Equality. Use examples from current events. Just the other day the Supreme Court made a ruling on Handguns. Review the Supreme Court ruling and see how the themes that Kramnick discusses are relevant. Also the issue of Gay Marriage here in California and how there is conflicts between the secular models and the Religious model as outlined by St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine.

So please keep us notified we want to assist you during this process. I still have not heard from Lucina, Chelsey and Theresa. Please let them know that hearing from them makes a difference in understanding the challenges that face each of you on a daily basis.

Thanks again and keep your spirits up. You are a deserving student who is doing a fantastic job of representing our district and Pinole Valley High School. I appreciate your comments.

Charles T. Ramsey
School Board Member
West Contra Costa
Unified School District