Perception at its Worse

The first half of class today was to talk about what occurred last night during Community Hours and who is which compass leader. Norths take on the active role. They are the ones that usually take the initiative first, quick to think, and they like to have things operated their way. They may be perceived as bossy, stubborn, and can lack creativity. Easts are the visionaries. They think outside the box but when viewing the big picture, can get easily distracted when they focus on one detail. Souths are the empathic leaders. They tend to put others before themselves and can be known as "people pleasers". They trust others easily and have a hard time saying "no". Last but not least are the Wests, which is also the one I determine myself to resemble the most. This type of leader weighs the pros and cons before acting and likes to strategically think of different ways to solve their problems. The downside is that they are stubborn and like to have things their way. They do take in other's opinions into consideration, but they prefer their own.

After discussion, everyone broke into groups to brainstorm what characteristics make up a leader. Most of the groups agreed upon the word, passionate. To be passionate about something means you truly love what you do and you don't care for the amount your paid. For an example, my group thought of teachers. Teachers are educators and they change the world by one student at a time. I think that the word passionate relates to teachers because most do love their jobs, and they care for their students and they do want them to succeed.

Kisa and Sophia (TA) Preparing for the Film

After lunch, a film called Miss Representation was shown. This talks about how society view females and how the media makes them want to live up to the "It Girl". 65% of girls develop eating disorders, 15% cut themselves, and $12,000-15,000 are spent on beauty products each year. This shocked and made me repulsive from the news. This "ideal" girl is planted in young teen's minds and they feel like they aren't good enough so they need to change. This image is introduced to girls as young as age two or three when they start playing with dolls like Barbie or Bratz. These figures have small bodies, wear massive amounts of make-up, and wear provocative clothing. At that age, children don't usually think of how a doll can impact their lives; they only want to interact with it. I believe there's a deeper meaning to it though. Those dolls can already "inspire" young toddlers to present their physical appearance in a certain way. This film really opened my eyes to the truth of what most girls view of themselves. They have low self-esteem and it's usually from the negative judgement of peers. Not only do girls face this, but boys are also assumed to be a head strong dominant figure that lacks emotions, or emotionally constipated. If a boy shares his feelings, he's usually labeled as gay or a wimp. From what the media shows, most people will judge you in a negative way based on whether you live or don't live up to those expectations.

Life is difficult, whether you're a male or female. We should think more highly of ourselves and to focus on the good, but instead we focus on the negative side and much of it has to do with either media or peers. Class has taught me so much and I'm inspired to change the views of society. Soon, our action plans are to be created, and today has given me great ideas to branch off of.