Tag Archives: #LO6

CAS, project week

Post project week reflection

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Project week is way beyond my expectation. At first, I thought it would be something that’s like a G8 trip or service trip but instead with your friends, but now reflecting on it, I was very wrong!  All the planning and communications paid off once we have started the week. The trip was also extremely meaningful because I am able to endure hardship and have fun with my friends while working towards a common goal.  I made new friends and deepened my bonds with the existing ones, and got to know how others’ lives are like.

Our primary goal is to produce a promotional GC video for the NGO New Hope Foundation that Smiles of China is working for. We collaborated using our different skills, and the video was proven to be a success that it will soon be utilised by the school. During the visit, I was really moved by how others give up their material life in order to help others in need, especially in a place foreign to them and there are always imminent threats to the organisation such as financial problems. I also learnt more about the situation of orphanages in China, and the problems the NGO face in general. Although it might sound cheesy, this visit changed my view on volunteer work and GCs. I would definitely come back again if there is the chance to do so.

I also enjoyed going to Nan Luo Gu Xiang with my friends to experience authentic Beijing Hutong culture and appreciate local foods. One of the most memorable events includes the Great Wall visit. We have walked up to Mutianyu, the section located high up in the mountains, to view the splendour of Chinese landscape and ancient architecture. After the trip, I felt more hopeful about the future (IB) with such good memories. The project week will definitely always be a treasured memory of my life.

Picture of me playing with a child:

Great wall:

CAS

HS East Historical Society CAS mid term reflection

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We have been doing some presentations for the East Historical Society, and we could choose any historical period and decide the issue to present. We may want to focus on essential individuals that are less recognised, and we may also show history about countries that we tend to focus less on, such as Myanmar. One group chose to do the historical accuracy of the film Wonder Woman.

What my group choose to do is the historical aspect of anime series, such as the grave of fireflies. The film took place after the second world war and showed the struggling of Japanese people after the war. What we tried to do is to link the historical context of the film to the actual history, as the film shows little about the political aspect of the war. We want to argue that the how war is responsible for the suffering of individuals in the society, and how the film is useful to depict that the war is impactful in a micro point of view. However, we also investigate the biases in the movie, as most Japanese films tend to depict themselves as innocent while in reality, Japanese played a very cruel part inside this war. Some other anime also masks the justification of chauvinism and jingoism under its surface, thus it is really crucial to explore these issues too.

This links to Learning Outcome 3 because this CAS experience is self-initiated, and we strived to make it a thought-provoking presentation. This also relates to Learning Outcome 6, as the topic of war is on a global significance, and everyone should be aware of the after-effects of war, so we would minimise conflict and solve things diplomatically.

Here is an example of our presentation.