#reflection 1

Chapter 19 Page 150 out of 287

Tom and Hester are onboard a pirate suburb called Tunbridge Wheels and the Captain has taken a shine to Tom because Tom lied about being from tier 2 so the Captain wants Tom to teach them manners. The Captain wants him and the crew to learn manners so they can become a proper city after they catch more prey.

Tunbridge Wheels is currently crossing the Sea of Khazak and are heading to the biggest island in it, The Black Island. When Tom and Hester were running from Shrike the air settlement Airhaven, the settlement was damaged and was no longer able to remain in the air, they came down for repairs and landed on The Back Island near some static or nonmoving settlement.

Within the nuance of culture, language emerges as a distinctive element. Not merely a reflection of culture, language possesses the transformative power to shape and redefine it, shifting cultural paradigms from high to low and vice versa. In this critical reflection, I want to mention the language English as a feature of high culture in the context of Vietnamese history and subsequently, how the government popularizes it. 

English's evolution in Vietnam mirrors its global rise. Despite its early introduction during French colonialism, it was overshadowed by Chinese, French, and Russian. After the 1954 partition, English was taught in secondary and post-secondary education in the South but faced challenges in the North as there were only a handful of learning opportunities at the tertiary level (Doan et al., 2018). In the following post-reunification period, Russian's dominance was reinforced, limiting English's growth (Van, 2010). The Đổi mới (Renovation) reforms of 1986 marked a turning point. As Vietnam opened to the world, English became the primary foreign language. Today, it's seen as a gateway to opportunities, essential for global communication and harmony within the modern cultural scene - a trait that is heavily emphasized in Vietnamese traditional culture.

However, as it can be seen through the history of English education, English education has been a privilege largely confined to specific geographic regions and socioeconomic demographics. The language has traditionally served as a tool of the elite, accessible only to those who could afford it. Those who can access tertiary-level education have the best chance of learning the language. The devastating impact of the Vietnam War further exacerbated these disparities, as the government lacked adequate funding, leading to a decline in the quality and accessibility of education, particularly in rural areas, further limiting opportunities for English language learning. Foreign language, in this case English, is a feature of high culture. 

Recognizing the need to keep up with the world, governmental authorities have actively promoted the widespread accessibility of English, with the ultimate goal of establishing it as a second language and integrating it into popular culture. To further elaborate, I will apply the perspective of media agenda-setting theory by Maxwell McCombs & Donald Shaw on this matter. 

The government plays a significant role in shaping the public's perception of English education. Through first-level agenda-setting, the government has made English a compulsory subject, established proficiency targets for students and civil servants, and allocated resources for English education. This demonstrates a clear commitment to promoting English language learning. Second-level agenda-setting involves framing English as an essential tool for economic development, international integration, and a marker of educational quality. By emphasizing these benefits, the government aims to create a favourable public opinion towards English education and encourage greater investment in language learning.

Media outlets have consistently prioritized English over other foreign languages, framing it as the language of the contemporary world and a prerequisite for success. They emphasize English as the key to international integration, often citing statements from government officials to reinforce this message. Similar notions are reiterated until the public's view of English aligns with the media's perspective. Its effect is evident in the surge of parental interest in English language education, as evidenced by the proliferation of private English language centres and the increasing demand for English language proficiency tests.

In conclusion, while it is crucial to acknowledge that the media reality may not diverge significantly from actual reality, the media's influence on public perception is undeniable. Nonetheless, further exploration of this topic from a policy agenda-setting perspective would be beneficial, as this brief analysis has limitations in that regard.

Referencing: 

Doan, N., Pham, T., Pham, M., & Tran, K. (2018). English as an international language in Viet Nam: history and development. Asian Englishes, 20(2), 106–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2018.1439324

Van Van, H. (2010). The current situation and issues of the teaching of English in Vietnam. 立命館言語文化研究, 22(1), 7-18.

Van, H. V. (2020). THE ROLES AND STATUS OF ENGLISH IN PRESENT-DAY VIETNAM: A SOCIO-CULTURAL ANALYSIS. VNU Journal of Foreign Studies, 36(1). https://doi.org/10.25073/2525-2445/vnufs.4495

Project 1 — Reflection 1

For my first time using adobe, I felt very good about my work. I have experiencing making designs/edits for my own personal projects as well as with making digital art, but never with this software.

I enjoyed the exploration of designs on the ai website, and by changing/adding words such as “70s sci-fi” or “painted in black, orange, and yellow,” I was able to customize my images in a way I found cohesive, stylistic, and monochromatic.

The text-play I used felt natural and fitting to the images, such as the colors utilized, fonts, or bold/italics. Especially for image 1, in the context of a 70s sci-fi style, the oblique non-serif font is fitting, like that of a poster. The one on the right, image 2, is gentler; all lowercase, de-bolded and lighter in color farther into the sentence.

img credit ① ②

last updated 12.24.2025

note! Everything listed here in this post may not be entirely disclosed as this is just a public profile of this particular alter. Only certain people are privy to more specified knowledge.

img credit ① ②

last updated 12.31.2025

note! Everything listed here in this post may not be entirely disclosed as this is just a public profile of this particular alter. Only certain people are privy to more specified knowledge.

Where I am now  

I am in week 4 of my semester, September 2022. I began working on this project in May, so part 2 of this post will give a recap in the form of a timeline.

Back to the present, so for this project, I have four stories, four main characters, and six side characters. There are two characters with Autism and two characters with ADHD, and each of them has a story. All the stories have been written up, and every character has a rough draft. The stories are inspired by experiences I've had and from the people I spoke to. This is my attempt to use storytelling to teach people about ADHD and Autism, pick their brains, and test the effectiveness of my storytelling.

Today and tomorrow, I will have some people I know look over my writing and polls, so there's some work to do there.

In the meantime, I'm trying to finish my characters. So far, the main character for my first story has been completed. I need to take some pictures of her in various moods now. I also have some t-shirt designs for the other characters whipped up on my phone that I'll need to bring to my computer to edit.  

As I explain where I'm headed, I will go into more detail about the programs I'm using now and will continue to use.

Where I'm headed

Moving forward, I need to finish editing the story and have the assets done by mid-semester, so that's week 8 of 16. Right now, I'm in week 4. So that would be a month from now, Oct 11th.  

That entails (4 weeks)

Finalizing designs 

Collecting all the background images, I will need

Getting feedback/editing the stories/polls (Grammar, length, etc.)

Bringing new and edited assets and dialogue to Headkanon 

Making sure everything looks good, and the timing is right

Recording content on Headkanon to post to Instagram

Honestly, I have no idea how long it will take me to finish everything that needs to be done. If one month isn't enough, I may have to cut content or start posting content a little bit later than mid-semester. 

Then part 2 is  Week 8-16

That entails

Bringing content to Instagram

Preparing posts

Distributing content

Recording responses

Reflecting on the responses

Overall, I have the next three months to finish this and have all the content posted for the entire project.

How do I intend to carry out this plan?

1. Create four stories 

Over the Summer break, May-July, I created scripts for the stories I would be sharing. It wasn't until July that I realized these stories would need to be split into parts for me to share them on Instagram. I believe each story is around 4 minutes which is too long for Instagram so dividing them up into 3-4 parts keeps them under 90 seconds. Now it's a matter of editing what I've already done and adjusting the duration. 

Besides using Google Drive, the show's biggest star has been Headkanon.

If you're familiar with Fire Emblem games, you'll know that one of their most beloved features is support conversations. This is a great way to get to know the characters better and see how their relationships grow with other characters. But what does that have to do with this project? A game designer/programmer named Dennis created a website called Headkanon, which lets you create support conversations. You could say this is like a visual novel format. Initially, I considered learning to use a visual novel software like Ren'py or trying something in Blender. In fact, I discovered a way to show dialogue during animated scenes in Blender; however, I am not a fast learner so figuring out how to use a blender add-on with so many features just felt like a way to set myself up for burnout which is precisely the kind of thing I've done in the past. I also know very little about code, and the way Headkanon uses code vs. the other options I looked at is way easier for me to understand. This wouldn't be the first time I used Headkanon for a class assignment, so I was already familiar with how things work. So with that sorted out, I had a place to put my script and assets. 

2.Create and use Character models

Model I made in Blender

Having done a two-year animation program and spent a few summer breaks using Blender, I am somewhat decent at 3d-modeling. I have made or at least tried to create characters in Blender. Technically I have a male and female base model and heads, but let's just say I'm having issues with scaling and proportions. I have yet to fix this issue; moreover, attempting to modify them over and over for each new character would be quite a lengthy process. 

So why Vroid Studio?

Since I was feeling frustrated and stuck trying to adjust my models in Blender, I decided to try another way of making characters. Enter Vroid Studio. Vroid Studio is a much more controlled way of creating characters, as I can modify things with a slider. I figure this would make things a lot easier for me.  

While my use of Vroid Studio was intended for a different project, I realized I could also use it for my senior project. What's remarkable is that you can easily alter the expressions of the character, which means I can display an image of a character with a variety of different expressions with ease. So not long after discovering it did, I started making characters.

Here is my first character 

Before texture and hair modification                       After

First, I started with presets; I picked a type of head, eyes, hairstyle. Then I used the sliders to modify these features making the model more personalized. After that, I move to texturing. I know how to make eyes and clothes, and there are a variety of ways to do so. Lastly I would need to take pictures of the character in various moods to bring into Headkanon.

3.Making designs 

Besides using the texture painter in Vroid Studio, you can also create textures outside the program and import them in. I decided I would use Ibis paint to design t-shirts.

Ibis paint has a lot of handy tools and effects, and it's an app I've used on my Galaxy Note phone for years. This felt like the best option to make shirt designs, especially since I used it to create textures in the past. Once I'm done with the design, I can export it as a PSD file (allowing it to retain its layers) and bring it into a program on my computer.

Enter Krita, aka a free alternative to photoshop. 

You can export the UV maps of the Vroid characters and bring them into this program to color over. In most cases, for me, this is preferable to trying to make designs in Vroid Studio. I say this because Krita offers many editing tools like transform and select. These tools allow me to change the size of my texture and color in specific parts without worrying about coloring out of the lines.

4. Post on Instagram

In May, it was recommended I use Instagram and its polling feature. In July, I learned more about Instagram's reel feature. Instagram reels allow the use of videos and polls, so I can tell part of the story and ask people questions about it; perfect!

Personally I don't say “Thank You” as often as I should and I doubt I'm the only one. In fact, I'm starting to believe that “Thank You” is the most under-appreciated and under-used phrase on the planet. It is appropriate in nearly any situation and it is a better response than most of the things we say. 

Say “Thank You” when you're receiving a compliment.

We often ruin compliments by devaluing the statement or acting overly humble. Internally, you might think this prevents you from appearing arrogant or smug.

The problem is that by deflecting the praise of a genuine compliment, you don't acknowledge the person who was nice enough to say something. Simply saying “Thank You” fully acknowledges the person who made the compliment and allows you to enjoy the moment as well.

Say “Thank You” when you’re running late.

Being late is the worst. It's stressful for the person who is running late and it's disrespectful to the person who is waiting.

It might seem strange to thank someone for dealing with your hassle, but that's exactly the correct response. Most people stumble in the door and say, “Sorry I'm late.”

The problem is this response still makes the situation about you. Sorry, I'm late. Saying “Thank You” turns the tables and acknowledges the sacrifice the other person made by waiting. Thank you for waiting. 

Say “Thank You” when you're comforting someone.

When someone comes to you with bad news, it can be awkward. You want to be a good friend, but most people don't know what to say. I know I've felt that way before.

Often times, we think it's a good idea to add a silver lining to the problem. “Well, at least you have…”

What we fail to realize is that it doesn't matter if you don't know what to say. All you really need is to be present and thank them for trusting you.

Say “Thank You” when you're receiving helpful feedback.

Feedback can be very helpful, but we rarely see it that way. Whether it is an unflattering performance review from your boss or an email from an unhappy customer, the standard reaction is to get defensive. That's a shame because the correct response is to simply say, “Thank You” and use the information to improve.

Say “Thank You” when you're receiving unfair criticism.

Sometimes criticism isn't helpful at all. It's just vindictive and mean. I've written about how to deal with haters previously, but one of the best approaches is to just say thank you and move on.

When you thank someone for criticizing you, it immediately neutralizes the power of their statements. If it’s not a big deal to you, then it can’t grow into a larger argument.

Say “Thank You” when someone gives you unsolicited advice.

This shows up a lot in the gym. Everybody has an opinion about what your technique should look like. I think most people are just trying to be helpful, but hearing someone's opinion about you when you didn't ask for it can be annoying.

One time, someone pointed out some flaws in my squat technique in a video I posted online. I responded by sarcastically asking if he had a video of himself doing it correctly. Somewhere deep in my mind, I assumed that if I reminded him that his technique wasn't perfect, then I would feel better about the fact that mine wasn't perfect either. That's an unnecessary and defensive response.

The better approach? Just say “Thank You.”

Say “Thank You” when you're not sure if you should thank someone.

When in doubt, just say thank you. There is no downside. Are you honestly worried about showing too much gratitude to the people in your life?

Now almost the whole world  is battling against the  COVID-19 pandemic, the sure thing is the efforts of those on the front liner have not been forgotten. Widespread support and appreciation for key workers, particularly medical staff, has been on show around the world. for tens of countries have held coordinated demonstrations of their gratitude with cheering and clapping. and the day I was out for running errands finding a man posts a large 'thank you' to health workers in the nearby Clark Globe City, Pampanga, Philippines,  to praise for medical staff, to thank the public for being well disciplined and continually stay at home.  

For my leadership as a researcher, I was leading in the note-taking in the interview in shoot week. 

Here’s me in the corner; taking notes of Indy’s interview:

Ways that I have worked with other people during the project were, telling whoever that is next in note taking to make sure that they write all their notes on the interviewer in my note book and giving out the interview consent when they all arrived at the door before they are interviewed, (asking them to sign them and agree to the terms and conditions applied).

Later in the day, I was also interviewed by Seidou and I have come to understand the pressure the interviewee will be going through, which has helped me getting into the shoes of the person that I was interviewing. I have the pleasure today to also become the interviewer which I had great fun in, reading out the questions on the script and coming up with some of my own.

Here's a photo of some of the notes from the notebook:

I was communicating with them because I had to let them know them I am responsible for the noting taking and keeping of the interview so that they will know who to go to when in need of information on the interviewees.

I wanted to achieve and have achieved the leadership skill of successfully delivering the instructions to the group.