But it has all just begun.

Thirteen years… Thirteen years of schooling narrowed down to one score. And I’m not sure what to say.

I am caught between a world of apprehension and indifference. I know I stopped trying at some point, but I never lost direction – never lost sight of where I wanted to be. And where I still want to be. With uni interviews over and finding out my ATAR just around the corner, let’s see what I’ve had piled on my plate thus far.

The subject fisasco

Last year, I wanted physics and got media. This year, I wanted history and got physics.

I can’t say that it was easy to make the decisions I did, and to follow through with them, but I feel an enriched person because of it… My advice is to do what you love. It is easier to balance a science and a folio than two folios, and you should never feel as though you need to forefeit what you love to scale your marks. If you do well, you don’t NEED scaling: you’re already at the top.

I am not recommending stepping out of your comfort zone in year 12 at all. If anything stick to what you know. I was thrown in the deep end, and I slowly taught myself how to doggy paddle through survival instincts. There are certainly other people who were in similar situations to me, and flourished much greater than I did due to intensive work. With that said, there were many others that had to set fire to the plans they’d made for whatever reason, and had a much more terrible time than I. When something like what I experienced happens, it’s a great discouragement, and although it can be worked through, you do feel cheated if things go sour. Don’t disadvantage yourself.

Working hard and not at all

Year 12 is not easy on the work load. Nobody expects it to be. How I managed? I admit I usually didn’t, by everyone else’s measure. I didn’t have teachers on my back. For the first time in my life, people weren’t demanding work from me. And I absolutely loved it. I only did what I felt adequate, no more useless homework assignments telling me things that I already knew and understood.

Nobody but you knows where you stand, the work I didn’t do probably would have helped, the work I DID do certainly helped, because I knew it would. I was more engaged in the work I did, because it was work I knew I needed to do, and usually wanted to do. Given the freedom to assess and plan according to efficiency was the greatest skill gained and used in VCE. Surpassing the days of rote learning enforced through strict regime was the best thing that happened to me. I didn’t burn out, and I didn’t slack off. I can’t wait until university (or tafe, or working full time, if that is what happens), and the future is bright.

I guess it depends on what school you go to and its atmosphere, and how much faith your teachers have in you, not to mention where your dreams lie. It’s a balance between teachers trusting you to do your work, and them knowing if you want to be pushed hard enough to get a 99.999999999999999999. I think my teachers realised I had a head on my shoulders but was tired of work. They didn’t give up on me, but they had learned as I had, that I was doing what worked best for me and not for them. They already had their degrees, and I knew what I had to do to go and get the ones I wanted. You need to figure out where you want to be.

So yeah. When I recycled the past two years’ work after all exams had passed, I knew that my pile was large, but not as large many other peoples’. And I knew exactly why, and I had no shame at this fact. I was adult and mature in how I handled VCE, and I will take my score, whatever it may be, with equal understanding. It is over, and I strategised and tried to enjoy it. And that is all that matters to me.

Counting down days

I never had a study timetable. Not even when exams rolled out. If I had something I need to do, I wrote it in my planner. If I had a sac coming up, I wrote it in my planner. If I had to study, I wrote it in my planner. And If I had a party coming up, I wrote it in my goddamn planner. Chamber Choir? Planner. Debating? Planner. Gaming? Planner. I have grown a reliance on school planners, because they tell you exactly what you felt you needed to remember… and my short term memory is ridiculously stupid. I colour coded subjects in ways that made sense to me, and used the leftover colours for stuff not relating to school. At a glance, without my glasses on, I could tell what needed attention. When I actually read what I had written, I knew exactly what those things were. I could never use study timetables. I don’t know how it’d be possible for me to pre-determine what work I’d need to do and how much. Sure, constant studying of all subjects works for some people, but not for me. It never has, and like I said, year 12 is about what you know works for you. Year 11 is when you try colour coding and reading while exercising and flow charts on your ceiling to read before you sleep. By year 12, you can’t waste your time on ridiculous experiments. You need to know yourself.

The fine line between leisure and pain

I never gave up what I loved doing to chunk in more study time. I needed balance. The best way to do this is to do subjects that you know you’ll enjoy. By incorporating the things that interest you in the subjects you do, often, your hobbies and interests will interact with those subjects. If you are studying something that interests you, it is more likely that you’ll be paying attention.

Reading

I didn’t read a single novel for ‘leisure’ this year which is unlike me – an admitted bibliophile. However, I was studying English and Literature this year, so I already had the ability to read both classics and contemporary works throughout. Sure, I had no choice because the texts were prescribed (I hate Austen so much), and sure, I had to answer piles of relating comprehension questions, but I never had to ‘give up’ reading, nor enriching myself through reading. I read in class, I read at home, and I enjoyed most of the texts that I studied. I also had, for this year, a Fortean Times and The Age subscription, paired with the occasional perusing through webcomics on breaks. It was these things that kept me informed, intrigued, entertained and contsantly learning more in areas that sadly aren’t exam related. If you like reading, look into comics that are updated regularly: they will get you through some tough times. And stay away from MSpaintadventures until you graduate, because it will eat your time and and your brain.

Drawing

I didn’t draw as much as I wanted to, but with that said, I churned out a combined 80 pages for my Studio Arts folio. It got me an A, but more than that, I built my skills in portraiture and general design. Considering I want to BE an industrial designer, this was probably a good choice. Not as good as say, Visual Communication and Design would be, but as I said, VCE is about what you are comfortable with, and I have the rest of my life ahead of me to build skills for my chosen profession. Doing Studio put life into my timetable, and gave me a reason to struggle through the more mentally exhaustive work of some other subjects. Any drawings (or art) I created this year up until term 2 ended, was put into that folio. And the subject matter of the folio was what I was interested in, so it never ended up a chore to continue adding to it. I grew with it, and it reflects me. And now it’s what will get me into the university of my choice. What more could I ask for?

Science

I remember watching TED talks here and there in the good old times, where I had enough time to research, but really, it was physics that drove home my understanding of the universe. Aside from watching some of Carl Sagan’s Cosmos on the ‘holidays’ (read: study without classes), physics classes helped me make sense of things. The amount of eureka moments I that I had were innumerable, and the amount of questions I asked was equally intimidating. I cannot stress enough how important it is not to blindly roll around in a wallow of pseudoscience. Please choose subjects that intrigue you. As an ‘artist’ (for lack of a better word), the sciences, especially physics, open my mind to understanding how what we see actually works. Light and matter interactions. The way the universe holds itself together. Relativity and special relativity. Never think art and science are mutually exclusive. The overlap is large, and inherently intriguing. Many of the greatest artists were more caught up in the science world than the art world, as the scientific world is a construct beyond all human creation.

Music and Public Speaking.

Don’t forget the extra curriculars your school offers. Most groups meet once a week, and debating was something like once every few weeks. Whether it be sport, music or drama, make sure to take hold of what your campus can offer. Time at school doesn’t always have to be classroom education. Doing choir and chamber choir ever year of highschool taught me music skills that I’d have not had the opportunity to learn otherwise. I got to be a part of a group that went beyond year levels and academics. What mattered in those practices were team work and commitment, much like debating. The Arts Nights my school would host were something that I will probably never experience again, and debating and public speaking was a way to improve confidence, speaking skills, meet new people, and learn the intricacies of current affairs. Debating was something that kept my teammates and I close. Something that created understanding. And something that I always considered a challenge more than a chore. This kind of highschool experience is something that I can take with me wherever I go.

Humanities

I lost out on the Russian and French revolution, but that’s okay. Learning is constant and unrelenting. I’d already studied the Russian Rev last year, as I had time for extra work, and I have the rest of my life to learn about France, if it ever interests me more than all of the other magnificent things to learn about history and culture. I have been a history enthusiast for much of my life, and greatly admired the teacher of the class, but at the same time, I wouldn’t let a single year of not having a class of it stop me. There is a revolution here and now, and at our fingertips. The world is changing and we need to be aware individuals. The humanities matter to everyone.

Gaming and Socialising.

Oh man. The part of my life that VCE didn’t involve itself in was probably the best. Gaming is obviously something to be enjoyed, and I made damn well sure to not give it up. Sure, I gamed less than I wanted, but I still gamed. And because most of my other areas of interest were covered, gaming is where it was at, when I made time for it. Once every few weeks, I got together with friends and nerded out, playing traditional boardgames, RPGs and the like. Occasionally, I’d have a LAN of Unreal Tournament with my brother and some friends. If I wasn’t seeing my friends for games, I would be to stay up one night of a long weekend watching terrible movies, going to someone’s 18th birthday celebration, going out for a nice dinner or just getting out for some fresh air. I regret nothing of these times, they have helped shape me as a person. I could have been studying when I engaged in all of those things, but I could have also been learning herb lore from a tribe of forest Druids. We choose the path we lead, and I didn’t want to forefeit growing as a person to the tremendous fear of failure that has admittedly otherwise made me a workoholic. Can’t get enough of that workohol.

So anyway, that’s VCE down. For good.
I’m no longer a part of this system.

SNL: Threw it on the Ground

Let y’all know when the results come out, and I’ll find something humorous to write about.

Anyway, I digress. Participants were given four topics to choose from, I can’t recall many of the ones I didn’t do, so whatever. I chose “Secure the Future”, and as I was and still am on my crusade to reshape the education system, it was mainly about that. Some of the content was recycled from the Year 12 English oral I did, because it was to a different audience. I don’t usually recycle material.

The speech is/was as follows:

We are constantly told the world will end – in new and exciting ways! However our logic and reasoning always prevails, and so, “oh-bla-di, oh-bla-da”, life goes on. We have become so concerned about the earth colliding into the sun, about the sky falling. About Rapture, Nostradamus, and the Illuminati watching our every move that we have become wrapped up in our apocalyptic obsessions. We’ve become a society obsessed with our own physical destruction. However, ladies and gentlemen, we will not be saved by a torrent of fireballs anytime soon.

And so we should face the fact that we’ve misjudged the apocalypse, ladies and gentlemen. We’ve misjudged humanity’s downfall. What we should fear most, ladies and gentlemen, is the educational dystopia that encroaches. We need to reshape our education system in order to secure the future.

WHY EDUCATION SECURES THE FUTURE

Think about it: everything we know has been taught to us. What our parents have tried to inscribe within us can be derived from what they themselves have been taught. Even inherent things like emotion and intuition we cannot fully comprehend unless we first study psychology, and sociology. ‘Ology’: A suffix meaning the study of something.

To learn things, we must study them, and as humans – as individuals – we learn, so it is fair to say what we are educated on and how we are educated has great influence on us: the youth of today and the adults of the future. Of Australia, and of the world.

WHAT I AM PROPOSING

What I am surfacing is the need to prepare our students with the ability to secure the future with the way they think and therefore act.  The ability to think laterally, to think innovatively, is currently what the world needs. It might be justifiable to say that something like the global food and water crisis are very large problems, but logically the only way for an issue to be addressed sufficiently is for it to be understood. The only way to address crises of the world and future unforseen crises is to address the foundations of people (i.e. what they are taught, and how).

Something this generation has learnt by now is that everything is malleable – life works in phases. Which music is top of the charts? As pro-ginger I ask you, who really is prime minister? What is the state of Melbourne weather within the next hour? When the rest of the world is so progressive, have we ever thought about progressive education? If GRAMMAR can be taken out of primary school English courses (for better or for worse) a fundamental shift must be possible overall, for better overall.

HOW THE SYSTEM CURRENTLY WORKS

So, after explaining how necessary education is in our ever changing world, it is only right that I justify the contention that there IS a need to change the way the education system works with explanation of the system itself and a few of the listless flaws.

Sadly enough, we are still using a model of education that was founded in a time of horse and cart – in times around the industrial revolution. Times where the schooling system needed to produce factory workers in the image of a factory line. Somehow we’ve managed to (barely) sort out a nationwide curriculum, yet still use an archaic method of factory producing students. And ironically enough, this absurdity is mirrored in Charlie Chaplin’s silent film ‘Modern Times’.

In fact, Sir Ken Robinson – a renowned professor of the arts and education says that “Schooling is modeled off the interests of industrialisation and in the image of it.”Take the VCE for example, a system I just love to hate.

A system where the mark we get depends not on how hard we work or how capable we are, but our supposed utility. How apparently ‘useful’ or ‘intense’ our subject is according to how well the majority does. We are even ranked by number, by statistic. We are also identified by number. I’m not even going to touch on VCAA guidelines, but when put this way, life starts to sound like 1984, and not in the way that the Ghostbusters soundtrack does.

ITS FLAWS: STANDARDISATION

Our current system standardises students in order to satiate a bell curve. If all students are doing great, there is no indication of it because everything is scaled. In this way our system depends on low scores. If there are no low scores, our system creates low scores. This is not a hypothesis. It happens every single year. The scores are scaled so that a broken system seems to be working smoothly.

This mostly happens to arts subjects due to strict adherence of the Scientific method to assess all subjects.  And in the words of George Orwell, “ All are equal, but some are more equal than others” because the scientific method is based on rationalism, objectivity and quantitative analysis – something you cannot measure a qualitative subject such as Studio Arts, or any other subject based around personal growth with. It is never considered that there might just be arts teachers with better methods of teaching than maths teachers. This isn’t the student’s faults. Why is science considered harder? Perhaps because it is not engaging enough in ways that students relate to.

I draw diagrams whenever I can in physics. I find myself swapping pen colours in math methods classes just to stay focused on calculus, because I’m a visual learner. And when I don’t get a correct answer, I rage and scribble the question out, because I suppose I vent best kinesthetically, and some small part of me is an abstract expressionist.

But currently there is no way our current system can manage to monitor individual growth, comprehension, coherency, participation or contextualization. Students who do learn kinesthetically cannot do interpretive dance for every exam that they need to pass, nor can visual learners submit diagrams instead of essays. Considering students only ever get their exams back on request, when all is said and done they don’t even get criticism or justification for their marks. We’ve depersonalized something that is inherently personal: the future of our students.

THE REALITY

The reality is that the indifference of students who don’t learn this way creates indifferent adults within society; Adults who will vote with disinterest and be reluctant to participate within their communities, because they haven’t been encouraged to find their place in the world during the greatest time for self development in their lives (aside from midlife crisis – which we for some reason, happily accommodate for more than the adults of the future).

The ability to solve new problems lies in the ability to observe from different perspectives and all areas of life. If we don’t teach these children and teenagers to learn in ways that work for them, it is the greatest hindrance, the greatest repression of all. It is misinformation within an information age.

The key to society’s progression lies in education. Society thrives off individuals and their specialisations in DIFFERENT AREAS. People who tell the public of events through media and artistic outlets are on par with those collecting the information.

The Anti-Vietnam war movement went hand in hand with the Woodstock festival. A few years ago P!nk’s “Dear Mr President” caught the attention of demographics uninvolved with American politics. Where would we be without the news? Without the weather announcers who most likely are NOT the meteorologists who have collected the information.

HOW THIS CAN CHANGE

So, to finish on a positive note on how to secure our education and hence our future, we must:
1. Encourage curriculum that adapts to different learning styles, I suggest the research of Howard Gardner on learning categories and multiple intelligences for this, and Jung personality types.
2. Encourage contextualisation of information: If our students MUST be graded via the scientific method for clerical uses at this point in time, at least make sure that those assessments are grading ability, not information retention.
3. Seeing every mark gained as a step taken not every lost mark as a failure.
4. Abolishing standardization.

To put it simply, the current education system is much like a bad joke. Bad joke in the way a racist joke is a bad joke, not in the way that calling a juice bar “Bin Latte” is a bad joke. We cannot treat our students and their future as jokes. We need to secure our future by securing theirs.

The thing is, ladies and gentlemen, nothing is static. Everything can and does change. The shifting of education paradigms mirrors the turning world… the ticking clock. We cannot leave the future of this nation deprived of a backbone. We must secure and strengthen with education.

Tell me, and I will forget.
Show me, and I may remember.
Involve me, and I will understand.

Thankyou.

The VCE system: I’ve outlined its flaws. I’ve complained. I’ve mentioned my subjects.
One of the subjects I am most passionate about is Studio Arts. For the practical work folio, we have to choose a theme, and work with it through the first semester, develop concepts for final pieces, and then construct those final pieces. A course requirement is the proposal, which is outlined below. Insight and criticism appreciated. Examples to follow soon.

MYTHOLOGY AND STORYTELLING:
A YEAR 12 JOURNEY

Stories and language are a way of communicating ideas and thoughts greater than ourselves; written and visual imagery is able to be a front for underlying lessons or concepts, as chosen by the storyteller. The words of stories are a vessel for sentiment and newfound sentience of what we have learnt from them. My theme of mythology and storytelling will take me through the historical and visual depths of society and culture, as well as through my personal complexities and philosophies. The theme resonates in the childhood lust for narrative that I feel I have retained throughout my years. I am to examine and record these stories from across time and across the globe, and then manifest them figuratively into the characters which most predominately speak to me (be it their actions or the values that they represent).

My lust for information, as well as my overwhelming interest in the history of civilisation and its stories has led me to choose this theme. I believe that once I immerse myself in these stories, the art will flow from me more naturally than if I was to choose any other theme. One of my personal philosophies is that you can learn something from everyone. These stories and the people that tell me their stories will not only strengthen my workbook folio, but enrich me as a person. Finishing Studio Arts this year will prove to myself that doing what I love can get me where I want to be through hard work and experience. I feel as though over time I have sacrificed being a ‘dreamer’ as a child for becoming a ‘thinker’ for practicality’s sake. I want this folio to show that there can be a beautiful balance that results in profound, unique and exquisite final pieces.

Stories are prevalent in all cultures worldwide, and ideas and principles of those societies are reflected in those stories. I plan on thoroughly researching before compiling a final piece as to correctly honour the cultural significance of the tales I draw inspiration from. I have found that this research delights and intrigues me, and that giving justice to my subject matter by learning about it gives greater significance to my workbook journey and the final pieces I intend on creating.

As mentioned earlier, I believe that everyone has a story to tell, and a hypothesis I have formed because of this is the injection of individuals into mythological stories. In the past, great emperors have been likened to Gods, and people also inject aspects of themselves and their experiences into the characters of their stories. I want to reflect both myself and society (whether it is of the past, modern day, or both) in my art, to visually pronounce the missing link that the literature of these stories alone cannot target. If my visuals are striking enough, people will be moved enough to look at these stories and what they symbolise themselves.

The specific branches of mythology that I intend on looking into are ones that have both struck me in the past and/or provide good scope of narrative content and characterisation. This includes (from Europe) the feared creatures and Gods of Ancient Greek times, the strength and valour depicted in the Norse Gods and the mystery of Celtic folklore and Slavic Fairytales (such as those by the Brothers Grimm). From Asia, the complexity of Hinduism, the delicacy of Japanese fables and the wisdom of Chinese proverbs all equally interest me also.

In modern times, there has been much development on these traditional stories, with re-interpretations as well as newly developed tales that contain miniscule shards of the past within them. I have found graphic novels, videogames and traditional RPGs (role playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons) to contain the highest content of this within them, and my general interest in these areas has aided my absorption and interpretation of classic tales into modern day mindset and art form. I intend on making another area of which I study the modern day stories that are a part of our lives, and to signify that with a self portrait of some description.

I have used my life and the life of others to draw inspiration from – it seems that everyone has a story that has struck them, which they will keep in the recesses of their mind until the time comes when they need to recall them. I have also looked at artists who have been influenced by similar themes within their art, and those which I just really appreciate the style of. I would like to model my workbook and folio in the shadow of these unique influences, as to create something born from the inspiration that those sources have inflicted on me.

Traditionally, fantasy and mythological themed art falls into the category of classical romanticist painting. The chiaroscuro lighting technique of these paintings captures my imagination and inspires me. Seeing some of these types of paintings in front of me – their size and breathtaking technique – in galleries has evoked a “je ne sais quoi” within me; although I have not worked with this style previously, the way that these images tell stories is definitely how I want my final piece to work – if not in aesthetic, then in principle and emotional movement. One of the artists from this era that captures my attention is Henry Fuseli. His famous works such as ‘The Nightmare’ and ‘Silence’ speak to the darker parts of my imagination and help me to envisage ways that I can apply my love of ‘grunge’ and ‘gothic’ styles of using ink, charcoal, and Progresso pencils into my workbook and possibly my folio pieces, if I see it fit.

Silence by Henry Fuseli

Although there are many contemporary romanticist-styled artists that work with a similar subject matter to that I have chosen (such as Howard David Johnstone), I wish to look more in to artists such as Beatriz Martin Vidal, who takes Slavic tales (amongst other things) and applies them to her dark, sketchy, ‘grungy’ style of art. Although her forms are not similar to mine, she uses a style and texture similar to that of Francisco De Goya and applies it to her work, sometimes highlighting focus points with lively colours to contrast amongst the dark landscapes and settings. I would like to experiment with a style reflecting this, with the use of watercolours and Copic markers, crossed with a variety of other mediums such as ink and traditional pencil sketch.

Babies by Beatriz Martin Vidal

I would consider my style of drawing and art greatly influenced by the Lowbrow art / Pop-surrealist contemporary movement, and I like the scope that it gives to both portraits and figurative work. An artist from this area of the modern art world is Audrey Kawasaki. I am a great fan of her style and techniques (she often paints on smoothed wooden surfaces) – she has an amazing way of capturing fluid, feminine shapes within her figures, and retaining a lifelike quality to her subjects while at the same time shaping them to her specific style of features. Her “Hajinari” set relates directly to Japanese fables, which makes it useful to both my topic and how I could possibly implement my own style.

Hitorigoto" ひとり言 soliloquy by Audrey Kawasaki

Symbology is often prevalent in mythological art, and I would also like to incorporate some of this in my workbook and final folio pieces. Because of this, I have looked at patterns of material, home ware and jewellery designs where relevant to the mythological schools I will be focusing on, as well as geometry, as it has always fascinated me. Another form of symbology that will be relevant is typography. I would like to incorporate words into my images somehow, as although pictures can tell a thousand words, language and writing have played a large part in the forming and conservation of mythology and storytelling. I would like to however be subtle with my use of language, as not to take away from the skills I have accumulated in traditional drawing and sketching – possibly with the use of single phrases, proverbs, or even a fictional language such as Tolkein’s Elvish.

Overall, and in short, I would like to focus on the portrayal of mythology from different global and historical cultures via use of figurative work and/or portraiture. I want to use fluid feminine movement and shapes, as I am more comfortable with the female form. I would like to experiment with colour, especially in contrast with monochromatic greyscale in order to see if I can create a harmony between the two styles. This will predominately be done with work in graphite pencil, inks and Copic markers. Along with this, the use of either geometry or symbolism in the background or a part of these characters will be created using the above mentioned mediums, possibly with the inclusion of frottage. If I am successful with these experiments, I will aim to create a collection of portraits or figures that will reflect the stories and passion that has gone into creating this folio.

MI GORENG PIZZA!

That's right. It actually happened.

After weeks of consideration and pussyfooting, I created the monster. The beautiful delicious monster. You could now consider me a Pizza Goddess amongst Pizza Mortals. It all started with a request from a good friend, and because it was partly my fault that the idea emerged, it was only right that I materialised it.
It’s a lot nicer than it sounds – I will certainly be doing it again. It’s a great alternative to other options for vegetarian pizza, and an interesting Indonesian take on an Italian classic.
Upon request, I have provided the recipe.

Enjoy! <3

Ingredients:

The dough: As seen here, though I didn’t leave it over night, so it was much denser and only had a yield of two bases.

The toppings:

• 2 Tablespoons of Stirfry sauce of your choice
• 1 Tablespoon of Honey Soy marinade
• 3 1/2 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce (more to your taste)
• 1 small/medium carrot, grated finely or processed roughly
• 1 packet of Mi Goreng ( and included seasonings and sauces)
• Handful of peas
• A few broccoli florets, cut lengthwise
• Handful of grated cheese
• Sweet chilli dip
• Egg, if you wish (I didn’t have any, but it is traditionally used in Mi Goreng)

Method:

1. After preparing the dough, cook the noodles as indicated. While doing this, steam the peas and broccoli above it, or boil in a separate saucepan if you wish.
2. While that is cooking, mix the three sauces and the carrot – this will be the base sauce of the pizza as tomato and soy are just too weird to mix, in my humble opinion. Set this aside.
3. When the noodles are done, drain them and add the sauces and seasonings that came with the packet, and set this aside.
4. Remove the vegetables once they are cooked, and also set them aside.
5. Add the carrot and sauce mix to the pizza base, try to spread it evenly
6. Add the Mi Goreng, also spreading evenly
7. Arrange the broccoli in a circle, in the centre. You don’t have to do this, but I like nice presentation.
8. Sprinkle the peas around the outside, evenly.
9. Dollop some sweet chilli dip in the centre, this will melt in the oven and add a creamyness to the pizza, which is great.
10. Add the grated cheese around the outside, keep in mind that the noodles may burn if you don’t rotate the pizza every once in a while, as well as if they’re not evenly enough covered by cheese.
11. Add the egg if you want, and slam that fool into the oven until it is cooked as well as you desire. (about 15-20 minutes, give or take. I wasn’t really timing)

It should look like this before

And like this after

Enjoy the deliciousness, and street cred you will gain after producing something so delicious.

That's right, the focus shows the deliciousn

This is a copy of a speech I have to present for English on the 3rd of March *scared/proundface*. I don’t care about publishing it here because I am pretty sure nobody has the same speaking style or interest in education issues as I. Really, nobody seems to give a single shit.

Anyway, so my speech is on this topic because I like being graded on why the system is awful as a part of the system. Quiet rebellion to stroke my grades.

I will break the post up with images, to go easy on the eyes. It was almost 2000 words and I only had 10 minutes max, so I cut out about 500 words. This isn’t the original post, but it is shorter and more refined.

Topic: The Education System – VCE is easier said than done.

Issue: The VCE system needs to be reshaped in order for there to be greater functionality and fairness to students

Now, with the recent debate over the proposed National curriculum, attention has also been brought to the VCE system and its major flaws. VCE is a system in desperate need of change – a shifting of paradigms. The inconsistent, unfair, inadequate and irrelevant content and means of grading need to be reshaped. They call the VCE ‘post-compulsory’, but it is clear that the qualification is a must for many courses. They call the system of scaling ‘fair’, a ruse of the VCAA to promote something which just blatantly isn’t. As a student currently in year 12, the issue of reformation in the system has become a big part of my life – if not only for me, for the future of this nation.

The purpose of Education
The purpose of institutionalised education is to prepare us for the long road ahead after high school, regardless of what we choose to do. We are supposed to learn life skills. It is not unlikely that when talking to any adult, they will barely remember the subjects they studied, let alone the content. The average career change is five to seven times during an adult’s life, according to “Youth, Education and Risk: Facing the future” – a study conducted by Professor Wynn of Melbourne University. Not just promotions, but whole CAREER changes. And it makes sense – how are students supposed to know at the age of 15 and 16, when they choose VCE subjects, what it is they want to do? VCE isn’t just getting a feel for something, it isn’t just a ‘dabble’. It is difficult work – unnecessarily hard work.

The System and The Arts
The system assesses all subjects on the basis of Objectivity, Rationalism and Quantitative Analysis, i.e. the Scientific Method. This way of teaching, learning and assessing has now seeped into every other school of learning too. What the system does not assess is personal growth and development, as engaged in the arts, humanities and even some science subjects. Society is strengthened by a variety of abilities, and hence we teach different subjects in schools, however because the grading system favours some over others, it should be altered.

Arts subjects are more qualitative (a sensory experience) than quantitative (which is how schooling is assessed). Sir Ken Robinson, a renowned Professor of Arts and Education said:

“School testing is modelled off the interests of industrialisation, and in the image of it.” – Sir Ken Robinson

As explained earlier, the scientific method is most useful when assessing scientific subjects. Arts subjects have to have the substance to be assessed on via the scientific method AS WELL AS a completed folio, thus doubling the work, in a way.

Sir Ken Robinson

Not only this, but arts subjects are scaled down almost indefinitely, because filler content within the course can only go so far when marking on substance. This means, that to do the arts, you have to somewhat marginalise what you feel is important to you by taking on other involving subjects, in order to compensate for a mark that is scaled down.

Similarly science subjects are scaled up because it is supposedly more difficult to get a good mark in them. This leads students to the false perception that just because they choose these high scaling subjects that their ATARs will be high, which obviously doesn’t happen because of scaling, which will be explained later. This leads students into false expectations, as the school system sugar coats the situation to make it seem as though it were the STUDENT’S choice.

The system automatically creates a “them and us” attitude – you’re either an Arts student, in it for the folio, or a science student, in it for an ATAR in a high percentile. There is a double standard placed on students who want to do the arts and science, or just get higher ATARs. Students like me, your students, even possibly your children. It is common knowledge that many arts students literally give up on all other subjects to solely focus on their only outlet for self development in the entire system.

Too Much Work, Too Little Time
Funnily enough, scientific subjects are amongst the only subjects that have midyear exams. This means that although SACS are assessed, there’s no way of ensuring you’ll remember content unless you continually study for all of your other subjects, due to immense amount of content. This brings me to my next argument: VCE is asking for too much of the wrong things from individuals.

Many students wake up in early hours, getting home around 4:30. Some having to cook or do other chores (depending on their situation), shower, eat, sleep – general human functions. It is often forgotten that students ARE people too – not just statistics once the year is over. If the recommended three hours of homework a night is done in a solid sitting, the average day amounts to 15 – 17 hours – every day. Even more for those who want to get high marks, because for every minute you are not working, someone else is.

Some say that this is comparative to being in a competitive work place; however, it is only applicable if your occupational choice is a Siberian work camp during Stalinist Russia. In VCE one person works hard, so the other works harder, so the first works even harder, the second works EVEN harder, until all competitors who still care by the end of year exams are walking literary zombies. And they DO care, they HAVE TO care, otherwise all of their hard work is for nothing. In a workplace you are usually qualified for the job BEFORE you are hired, and are not constantly thinking on your feet – soaking up the new content like a primordial sponge just waiting for its ‘time to shine’. This is how VCE differs to any other kind of work.

Scaling and Failing

In VCE, you are known by (in true Orwellian fashion) your identity number, and you are eventually ranked by the percentage of students you did “better” than. As said earlier, VCE is a COMPETITION – a competition that each student has spent thirteen years – TWO THIRDS of their life so far on. Scaling forces students into a bell curve in order to satiate the system, regardless of how they learn and how well they’ve done, an indicator that the system is not relevant to something as serious as secondary education.  The next few points are on the topic of scaling and its flaws.

The system does not group students by learning styles or overall ability, it groups them by age . Psychoanalysis and sociological studies (such as the Jung personality types) have proven that the brain does not work in the compartments that we separate subjects into; it’s all a beautiful, amazing conglomerate of different types of intelligence and hence different types of learning styles. The GAT – a THREE HOUR, COMPULSORY exam on general knowledge shows that the VCAA acknowledges this in the most useless and unfulfilling way possible.

Scaling also forces some marks up and some marks down. This is a ridiculous way of ordering marks. The system is DEPENDANT on scores being low, people doing well somewhat depends on other people doing poorly. If there are no low scores, there are no high scores either. If there are no low scores, the system CREATES low scores. If quality education increased in year 12, not only would there be a very poor to nil indicator of it, but we would be forcing all these high ‘averages’ down, regardless of what that individual student has worked for.

Scaling makes schools mirror a structure based on the social pyramids of the Middle Ages. I will explain this point with a historical comparison.

You’re either nobility, working class or a peasant. Not by choice or birthright, but by what King supposes is correct. This is not to say that VCAA isn’t a good King, but he is a misguided King who needs to stop listening to Scaling – The Rasputin of Victorian education.

In this way the system creates what can be termed as ‘Educational poverty’, which can then lead on to literal poverty. The only way to eradicate that poverty line is to shift the way the VCE system functions.

In Conclusion

To summarise, we need to start viewing students as a vessel of the future and not just for information. We need to start seeing students as individuals, and not just statistics. I obviously have yet to get a degree in education systems, because I’ve yet to escape this one. This issue needs to be brought to attention (and addressed as soon as possible) because, we can’t put the future off forever.

Have some graphs, the fruits of my painful life.

The first diagram - Why Weetbix are Crap

The work I do in English is demonstrated in this

VCE - A graph

I have no idea why they came out pixellated from a high def camera.
Suck it up, princess.

Outies;  Cinnah.x

During an English class about how to construct reply articles to newspapers this article was examined. I’d really just like to get this out of the way.
Street art IS beautiful, some is not up to the standards of fine art, I admit, but it’s still raw. There’s emotion and drive and meaning there. From the beautiful murals to the filthy, clumsy, three second tags, I can appreciate the work put into the preparation and skill needed. There is so much that goes into a lot of this work behind the scenes, I only wish it could be recognized more freely, opposed to the sneering at tags of juveniles. I doubt the journalist of the article could cite the works of Shakespeare in their first few years of primary school.

When you look past the scrawls and simple tagging, there is art. There are actually artists out there. True artistic souls, who in some ways can be seen as practicing an art form, the same ways that earlier artists did – only with less recognition to their true identity as the form is, of course illegal. I see famous artists starving on the streets of Spain and France, begging to commission in their early days of little difference to this situation.
They develop a style, a technique. Their tag is their identity, their art is their life. To them, writing CTCV on top of their life’s work and development is… criminal. The thing is, a legal commission is a request. True graffiti in illegal spaces has a certain je ne sais quoi about it – the artist was willing to get fined or arrested for what they are doing. They value their art that much. (This is not so say that some commissioned art is any less beautiful, but for the sake of the argument it needed to be pointed out).

If this is worth gallery space
And this: Andy Warhol – Blowjob
Then this should be also .

It is a worldwide art form and should stay this way. Street art makes me think, and I love to document it whenever I can. The industrial world has so much to work with, and the disrespect put towards these masters of their form shouldn’t really be used.

Take Banksy for example (props to the man! He actually has a gallery exhibition in England, not sure if it’s still on). He’s reached the hearts and minds of millions just by working with his form. People listen to him and his works.

A lot of the actual more artistic and time-paced illegal graffiti actually shows more respect for the canvas of a vacant building than the people who own the place itself. Think about it – these people risk a criminal record, and spend minutes, hours, days, even YEARS developing that one piece; A piece that could be removed entirely. A piece that could have CTCV scrawled meaninglessly about it.
Hell, I’d love to have my house covered in an artwork,
to be remembered as a part of the great movement that is street art. Melbourne is known for its street art for the fact that it is actually worth looking at, a lot of the time. Has anyone noticed the popularity of Flinders lane? It is REVERED. 

And frankly, Madame, a lot more people appreciate it just as I do. A lot of people are also indifferent, which is what I consider as NOT MINDING THAT IT IS THERE. Even the ABC cares enough to be interested.

There is graffiti code, no art or tag should be altered. It breaks my heart to see CTCV scrawled over some of what Melbourne’s street artists (YES, THEY /ARE/ ARTISTS!) are capable of. And no disrespect meant, but the whole point of graffiti is to send out a message, messages sometimes unspoken by journalists willing to please old-school mindsets.

However, one needs to try guess the well known book before the trailer is over.
Within the wording and graphics of the trailer there are hints, see if you can guess it :p

This was made for my school’s Literacy week celebrations, in which I have been asked to contribute much to.
There WILL be a proper post soon, I’ve just been caught up with study and stuff.

Anyway, ENJOY! =D

Just a few bugs to note:
- not loading bar, I WILL fix that eventually
- the animation loops, how silly! I’ll fix that too.

Before I begin, I’d like to apologise to Mr Mangan.
{See post titled “Opening the Linguistic Envelope”}
There are MUCH more clueless people than you. Mainly, Americans.
Such stupiditiy can only be rewarded with bad soap operas, but it looks like someone got the job done before I could get around to it. I can’t seem to source the original page but it mentioned something about teens chatting eachother up via abbreviation, and how awful it was because for some reasons teenagers have never, in the history of the world, ever, been interested in getting into one another’s pants without their parents finding out.
Honestly. I’d also like to point out that a lot of these probably didn’t source from teenagers themselves but those of former generations looking for a way to ‘fit in comfortably’ with the youth if-ya-know-what-I-mean.

Melbourne's Inner-Northern Suburbs: Pre-flu

So, they said when pigs fly… and bird flu.
The general majority of Australians I’d encountered didn’t seem to bother giving a damn or even being informed about swine flu until it reached our youth, clawing out their immunes in the form of headaches, and you guessed it, general FLU symptoms. People didn’t know much about the progress of the illness (note: not disease)  so a huge panic started when it actually reached our shores. Congratulations to general consensus again, for not giving a flying pigs arse about anyone but yourself. Leave it up to the Mexicans, you said. Well, we did. They taught the flu how to illegaly cross borders. Now look where we at, foo’. Several schools have been closed for a selected week due to quarantine and fear of the hallways smelling of bacon. This can be easily dealt with. Get some of this chicken fragrance. Or if you’re a vegetarian/vegan/raw/Musilm/Jew/ugly person with a really annoyingly nasally voice, one of these should suffice.

I hear you can customise these babies like a swiss army knife, or even bury treasure in them. Aaaaaawww yeeeaaaa.

Anyway, enough about that, the point of that semi-mis-informed-crazy-rant  is that I now currently have a flu. Suprisingly, in FLU SEASON. Now, because of a illness that few were truly concerned about to begin with, I had to get my nose swabbed. JUST INCASE. I haven’t gotten my results back yet though

Yes, by this legit doctor guy. He used a gentle cotton bud attached to a sabre sword. Also does children’s parties.

Regardless of whether  my school is open or not for this week, I am stuck at home, destroying an equivalent amount of tissues to that of trees in the amazon. Greenpeace are going to have me on their hit-list. I have to stay home until my exams begin – a week from now. No revision time. No study sheets. More tissues. Ugh. I hate being sick. I had more to say, but that’s all for now.

Stay safe kids, remember, this could be you.

Oh, and happy 19th birthday for yesterday Dan – remember, you’re one year away from your mid-mid-life-crisis.

So , what’s the topic for today you ask? That is a mighty fine question indeed, grasshopper.

The thing is, I have been trying for so long to figure out what to blog about, there’s just too much to say. Too few people who will care. Too many who will take offence in it. There are so many thoughts going through my head at once that I can’t just pick a topic and go for it. Nothing has been inspiring me to write like mad. So I’ve decided, while the next post gets prepared, this one shall contain all it is I’ve thought of on my way to getting to this next post. (topic withheld)

I’ve asked around for suggestions since my last post.

Daniel (and over 9000 other people): Why don’t you write something about your life? About school? About you? People will be interested in that.
Me: Daniel, the only interesting things people tell me are the kinds of things that if I posted them on my blog and they found out, I’d have hell to pay.
Daniel: Hmm… fair enough. But you have opinions on things, don’t you?
Me: Yeah but being able to say them is another issue. I can’t express them and/or choose one to write about.
Daniel: You’ll figure something out.

This is me, thinking

So I begain to think.
I began to think about what I’d like to read about.
What my life was like.
What my dreams were.
The fact that cells muliply by dividing.
How the universe has no determined centre, so it could in theory be you, any place you tread, or absolutely anywhere else.
How Kurt Cobain is just a name, with an insanely  large following to it.
The way a thunderstorm can scare people to tears, and then how their fear is infact more rational than some.
The fact that every second of every day can never be re-claimed, and the time I used considering that statement.
How for every moment there is an angle to capture it in which it could be considered as art.
How I could make some really cool t-shirts if I put my mind to it.
How I could make some really cool anything if I put my mind to it.
The way that so many things annoy the hell out of me, and I know that I’ll never be able to fix all of them.
…and much much more.

The thing is I’ve thought about so much, but I could never hold an entire blog post on each point. I thought that maybe if I’d put all the ideas in one place they might as a whole (or as a single statement) inspire someone else. Crazy, right?

My thoughts exactly

I had consulted a few unsuspecting Omegle patrons about some of these ideas. I, stupidly didn’t log any of the chats. Sorry guys, next time. I can assure you, hilarity was present.
(For those who do not know what Omegle is or why it is awesome, I shall inform in a possible blog post in the future. I think it deserves a post, IMHO.)

So anyway, time passed, and sooner or later it was the last week of school and I was in the library, sitting at the table I usually sit at, in the seat that the regulars know I like best. That’s right, hoes. I have a reserved library seat. Yeah, you wish you were me. Once I’d arrived a conversation began with the people that were present at the table, a collective of two year eights (Mia and Claire) and a year 11 (Dani), and after a while of talking about things that don’t really fit in well to this blog post, something happened.

Dani: Hey, I read your blog. I think it’s awesome.
Me: You what? Oh yeah. Hey thanks. The bastard of a thing needs to be updated. I still have no clue what to write.
Dani: So far so good. I was reading it with my boyfriend at his place. He was like “Who is this?! It’s Awesome!”
Me: Whoa, hey. Tell him thanks. Yeah. It’s okay I guess. But like I said. No idea what to write. I really want to keep it going though.
Hey Mia, any ideas?
Mia: Uh?
Me: Give me something to write about.
Mia: OH! Can you write about my tongue?!
Me: Um sure, Mia
*Writes in journal; Mention Mia’s tongue*
Dani: Wicked.

Just thinking about it now, I kind of can’t think of anything to say about Mia’s tongue. I’m sorry to dissappoint you. Technically, it’s already written about in the above dialogue. Mia’s a pretty cool chick, I don’t have a photo for you, the faithful readers, though.

A M.I.A, but not the right one. At least I don’t think so.

I don’t know much about her tongue though.

So, more time passed after that, and before I knew it, it was the holidays, and Daniel didn’t have anything better to talk to me about, yet again.

Daniel: It’s the holidays, you should post to your blog
Me: I still have nothing  to post about! I think my muse got lost in a forest or something.
Daniel: Write about how you associate colours with tastes and the like. I find that interesting.
Me: Le Bleh.

Yes, I have an odd association of things.
I associate eating orange things with being happy. I choose not to eat red things.
I associate music with colours. Moods with colours.
I associate  people with other people, nouns, feelings and objects.
I associate memories with smells and moods.
I collect things for no apparent reason, and I choose where I sit in a room/public transport tactfully.
It’s just the way I am. I don’t really take interest into it.
I’m just quite quirky, I’ve always known this. It’s a subconsious thing. I don’t really think about it much.

So that’s my update, kids!
…And as for the linguistic envolope, it shall be left in un-claimed mail for now. Mr Mangan shall be contacted, once I’m done with it.