Online Task 4

Question:
1. Think of at least 3 benefits of using speeches by famous figures, in the classroom.

Mostly, the speeches are well prepared. They are free of grammatical errors and proofread many times. So these speech texts are suitable to be used in the classroom.

The type of speeches is persuasive speech. Students can learn the techniques of persuasive speech and apply this skill in their real life.

Critical thinking skills can be learnt from the speeches. If will sharpen the critical thinking skills of the students.

2. Go to www.youtube.com and find the audio-visual on the speech. In not less than 50 words, state would the audio-visual be of any use in helping understand the speech better? State your reasons.

Martin Luther King, Jr : I have A Dream

For my opinion, the audio-visual on the speech helps students a lot for their understanding than merely listening to the speech. They can see the way the speechmaker delivers his or her speech effectively through audio-visual. His or her gestures, body language as well as eye-contact play a crucial role for persuading others.

Besides, students are more interested in learning about the speech through audio-visual. Some of the students can’t focus for a long time on listening. With the help of audio-visual, which stimulate their sense organs, they can pay more attention on the speech.

3. Who is Martin Luther King?

Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African American civil rights movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi.King is often presented as a heroic leader in the history of modern American liberalism.
A Baptist minister, King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president. King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. There, he expanded American values to include the vision of a color blind society, and established his reputation as one of the greatest orators in American history.
In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other nonviolent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and stopping the Vietnam War.
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. federal holiday in 1986.

4. Based on the questions below, analyse the features of the given written speech:

a. What is the purpose of the speech?

The purpose of the speech is the called for racial equality and the end to discrimination. It also can be considered as a message of hope. Martin Luther King, Jr. hoped that blacks and whites could live amongst each other in peace.

b. What is the tone of the speech?

The tone of the speech is persuasive, eloquent, intellectual, honest, passionate, motivational, strong and hope.

c. What interesting major feature(s) can you see from the speech? (i.e.Repetition of phrases, emphasis on certain things said etc)

i.)                 Repetition of phrases such as “I have a dream”. This phrase was mentioned eight times throughout the speech. He repeated the phrase “I Have a Dream” to stress his hope for the future.

ii.)               Repetition of phrases such as “one hundred years later”. This phrase was mentioned four times throughout the speech. Martin Luther King, Jr. states that after a hundred years later, the blacks are still oppressed and marginalised by the whites by emphasizing on the phrase, “one hundred years later”.

iii.)             Repetition of phrases such as “now is the time”. This phrase was mentioned three times in the speech. By making that statement, he wants the blacks to be given equal treatment and equal opportunities as the whites.

iv.)            Repetition of phrases such as “be satisfied”. This phrase was mentioned five times in the speech. By making the statement above, he is saying that the blacks will never stop fighting for their rights until they are granted equal rights as the whites.

d. Any interesting facts that you can gather based on the background of the speech?
1) Martin Luther King, Jr ‘s date of birth was on January 15, 1929.

2) He was born in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

3) He died on April 4, 1968. Memphis, Tennessee, USA (assassination by gunshot)

4) In 1951, he entered Boston University.

5) In 1953, he married Coretta Scott and lived in Montgomery, Alabama.

6) In 1954, he was selected as pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama  

7) In 1955, he received his Ph.D. in systematic theology from Boston University  

8) 1955-1956 Led a successful effort to desegregate Montgomery, Alabama, buses  

9) in 1957, he helped found and served as the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)  

10) In 1958, he published Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story  

11) In 1963, he wrote 'Letter from Birmingham Jail,' arguing that it was his moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws  

12) In 1963, he delivered his 'I Have a Dream' speech to civil rights marchers at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.  

13) In 1964, he won the Nobel Peace Prize and became the first black American to be honored as Time magazine's Man of the Year.  

14) In 1965, he organized a mass march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, that created national support for federal voting-rights legislation  

15) In 1968, he was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee

5. Suggest a while-reading activity that can be derived from this particular speech.

          Skimming activity.

Everything's Arranged

  

Everything's Arranged by Siew-Yue Killingley

Siew-Yue Killingley (née Leong) was born in Kuala Lumpur on 17th December 1940. Siew-Yue grew up in a family nurtured in the Chinese classics. She began writing short stories in English while still at school.

‘Everything's Arranged’ is about arranged marriages practiced by the Indian communities. The belief and traditions affects their daily lives. The story is centered on Rukumani, a young maiden from the Ceylonese Tamil community whose family has settled in Malaya. Probably her father or grandfather was brought to this land by the British those days. Though Rukumani, is sent to study in the university (`MU' as stated in the story ), the thinking of her parents is just like how it was back in their motherland, Sri Lanka. The Ceylonese, however educated, still hold to their tradition, beliefs and family values so adamantly. Education failed to change their thinking. Social life is a taboo for their young sons what more for a daughter.

            In this story, it infused the traditional food of Malay like curry. This can be shown in the lines:  “…she did not really enjoy the cold rice and curry, but…”. Although the curry is the traditional food of Malay, the Indian also like it.

The writer mentioned about Rukumani’s friends, Amy Wong and Johnny Chew whom help her to pass the love letter showed that the social relationship among the multi racial in the community. It also showed the different cultures in different races which was shown in the lines: “…envying the more fortunate couples, especially the Chinese ones, who went about openly holding hands.”

            Siew Yue projected the text by including the local slang “lah”, “ah”. These can be cited from the story: “…He's a joker, so sure tell my father I send love letters. But still, try lah!”

Online Task 3

 

                                                                  Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela

Brave, helpful, brilliant and insistent

Leader of the South Africa

Who loves reading, gardening and drawing

Who hates violence, bias and inequality

Who wants to see peace, respect, justice, freedom and human right

Resident of democracy

Nelson Mandela, a peacemaker

Poem of Malaysian Unique Identity

Monsoon History by Shirley Lim

     

                          (http://www.google.com.my/imglanding?q=Monsoon+History+by+Shirley+Lim)

          

             Shirley Geok-lin Lim was born in 1944. Her first poem was published in the Malacca Times when she was ten. The poem “Monsoon History” is the one of the greatest masterpieces of Shirley Lim. The theme for this poem is the harmony of the Baba-Nyonya lifestyle. As a Malacca-born child, she has seen the uniqueness of Baba-Nyonya lifestyle in her own state. Baba and Nyonya can only be seen in Malaysia, most apparently in Malacca. Therefore, it is not uncommon for her to infuse the special Baba-Nyonya culture in her work.

          Let's look how Shirley infused her work with a uniquely Malaysian identity.  Monsoon is referred to the monsoon season that Malaysia has. The title gives the readers the sense of nature and environment. The sentences such as “the water vapour soaks into the mattresses causing them to be damp” help the readers clearly understand the dampness and humidity of Malaysia’s tropical weather.

The readers can experience the culture and custom of the Malaccan Peranakan; Baba and Nyonya through the accurate choice of words by Shirley Lim. For instance, the mother’s sarong comes with a silver belt, the long hair of the nyonya, which is usually worn in a bun, the silver paper money that is burnt in Taoist funeral and also the portraits of ancestors in the sitting room.

            Baba and Nyonya has now become a trademark of one of the Malaysia culture for the foreigners. There is a lot of uniqueness that the readers of “Monsoon History” can see and know Malaysia better.