My Typhoon Experience

       When I first felt the presence of typhoon Maring, I thought that it was just an ordinary weak storm. Unexpectedly, the rain poured harder. By the time I was about to sleep that Sunday night, I texted a friend of mine to ask for some updates. He answered my message as fast as lightning telling me that classes were suspended until further notice. Although there were no classes, things didn’t go that well. It’s like the typhoon grew stronger. And because of the heavy downpour, there wasn’t any single area in our City that was not covered with flood. Much to my dismay, the electricity kept on turning on and off for four consecutive days. The first day it is off, then the next day the power would be back and so on. Trapped, I did not have the chance to do anything at home except for taking care of my niece and nephew. Unfortunately, I was not able to review for the exams left. It was hard for us because transportation wasn’t available. By then, people had to walk to the market themselves to get food. We stayed like that for days until the flood had gone down. It was indeed a challenge for us but I know that there are more people out there who suffered more than we did. Hopefully, they can stand up on their feet again with the help of those people who are full of love and concern.

Types and Methods of Communication

               Before taking the midterm exams the last lesson that we discussed was about the types and methods of communication.

       

        Communication is defined as the sharing or exchanging of information from one person to another by the means of speaking, writing, or using signals. It is divided into three main parts. These are the Body language (55%), Style (38%), and Words (7%).

       There are different types and methods in terms of communicating. One of which is the verbal type that involves speaking and is considered the most common type of communication. Non-verbal is the type that does not involve speech. Written communication is done by writing down the statements and details by the use of a paper and something like a pen or pencil. The visual type of it is done by presenting figures, illustrations and photographs in order to carry out the meaning of what is being expressed. Last is the multimedia which involves a combination of all sorts of things like audio, visual, graphics and many more.

       Communication is an important factor in our daily lives because without it, we won’t be able to express our feelings and there would be no understanding that’s why we should learn how to improve and cherish it.

Making Inferences, Predictions and Assumptions

               At first we might think that inferences, predictions and assumptions are the same as one another. But after learning a couple of things about it, I discovered that it each has its own distinction.

        An inference is some kind of a conclusion or judgement that something occurred without being able to witness it but it made sense that it occurred. In making inferences we have to choose a presumable explanation from the facts at hand. It is done by using hints or clues to help us read between the lines.

      On the other hand, prediction is figuring out what will happen next. It is made by using previous knowledge based on experience, together with the clues from the story.

       In difference with the first two topics, an assumption believes that something is true even without proof. When one makes an assumption, he sees and hears only what he wants to see and hear. Things are not as apparent as they are because clarifications are not made. Assumptions are often defended and believed as correct though it has been proven false in most cases. 

Recognizing Facts and Opinions

       There are many ways to enhance our reading comprehension skills, one of which is by learning how to properly recognize a fact from an opinion. During last week’s discussion we were taught that facts are statements that can be proven by reliable authority whilst opinions are just judgments of a person based on his or her beliefs that can change through time.

     

       Through the discussion it was mentioned that history books, measurements, statistics, proven scientific law and observations are some examples of possible reliable resources of facts. It was then further discussed that an opinion is often considered valid if it can be supported by facts, it could be faulty if it turns out to be irrelevant to the topic discussed, and an informed one if it has basis or grounds. There are five types of opinion given. One is the hypothesis statement which is an assumption made in an attempt to explain an observation. Second is the theory statement that is defined as opinions that are widely believed and explained for a group of observations. Third is the assumptive statement which is an opinion that has improvable prediction. Fourth is the value statement that is defined as any claim based on someone’s beliefs. The last type opinion is the exaggeration statement which is one that embellishes the facts, often to sway the readers.

      

       We might think that it is still a bit hard to distinguish a fact from an opinion; well we just have to remember this one tip. There are certain words to look for in order to determine if a statement is an opinion. Some of these words are maybe, perhaps, best, worst, experts agree, successful, necessary, apparently, and probably.

     

       After having to know all of this information, I think that it will be easier for me now to distinguish a fact from an opinion.

Open and Closed Conversation

      Last week we were introduced to another topic of discussion titled “Open and Closed Conversations”. Within the discussion it was explained that closed questions are used in a closed conversation, these are the questions that are answerable by short words and phrases or a simple yes or no; on the other hand, an open conversation uses open questions that tend to ask or get more information than necessary. It was further mentioned that this type of question uses signals or some sort of response that tells us that a person is paying attention. These signals are often referred to as “rejoinders”.

      Aside from the earlier information, we were also given seven ways on how to keep a conversation going. One of which is by giving a little more information than is asked for. Second is by making some related comments. Third is repeating keywords. Fourth is reacting in creative ways. Fifth is giving additional comments. Second to the last is asking related comments. And lastly is by using question tags.

      After the discussion, we came to realize that open questions allow conversations to flow. It is much more preferable to use in terms of communicating, especially with people whom we just met because it lets us gather information for further understanding rather than closed questions which most likely kills a potential conversation.