Audrey Gyolai

My topic explained how an everyday person can make a difference in the world through civic participation. I used Leslie Knope as an example of an exemplary citizen and to demonstrate that even though making a change seems daunting, we can easily make a change if we work together. I discussed the importance of voting, the power of petitioning elected officials, and ways that we can make a change in our communities.

 

When I began this presentation, I understood that a disproportionate number of young people don’t vote. However, I had no idea that there were 37,434,000 young people (18-29) that were eligible to vote in 2014, yet chose not to vote. I had no clue how big the gap in voters is between young voters and older voters. The reality is that this lack of voter participation cripples the young population’s voice. If young people ever want to make a difference in the face of US politics, they must establish themselves as a reliable voting base. If an individual wants to make their voice heard, they must work harder than their older counterparts because of ageism.

 

If I had this project again, I would have spent more time working with a monitor. After I had rehearsed my project while looking up at my presentation, it was hard to not look at the screen, even though my monitor was right in front of me. As I gave my presentation, I couldn’t help but look up at the screen. I felt angry at myself because I knew that the rubric said not to look up at the screen, yet I instinctively looked up at my presentation.

 

I am most proud of my topic. I think it’s important that people know the power of civic involvement and I think I did a good job tying a little bit of pop culture and humor into my speech.

 

Chandler’s presentation stood out to me because he introduced a common problem and then changed the way I thought about it. He was passionate and well prepared. He taught me that my passion and my hobbies can and should drive my productivity, and I shouldn’t put my passions on hold to pursue productivity. He inspired me to look at the way I pick a career differently; to find the things that I already love doing and to turn them into a marketable and profitable career. He showed that doing something that I love can raise my self esteem and my outlook on life.

Abbie’s presentation stood out to me because it was enjoyable. Her presentation on how puppies can reduce anxiety was both entertaining and informative. It was funny and cute how she featured pictures of adorable puppies throughout her presentation, and I loved how she taught me the very real rewards of animals as a comfort to people with anxiety. Petting and cuddling animals can help balance the chemicals in the brain that cause anxiety and panic attacks by increasing the levels of dopamine in the brain. This can be invaluable for people that suffer from extreme anxiety and frequent panic attacks. It made me think differently about companion animals, especially since our society frowns on animals outside of the home.

 

Overall, I’m pretty comfortable meeting and interacting with people. Last semester, I took a speech class that put me out of my comfort zone because I had to practice interacting with people and taking feedback from people that were outside of my typical social circle. This was especially helpful in the small group presentations because I was familiar with the format and wasn’t nervous speaking around others. This project pushed me to become comfortable speaking around larger groups. My speech class last semester was very small, it only had about fifteen people in it. When I gave my speeches in my speech class, I was easily able to connect with the people I was giving my speech to and to adjust the inflection of my voice based on the audience’s reactions. I found that this was harder to do around a large group. I got distracted by trying to reach all of my audience and found that their reflections were harder to read.

During this project, I demonstrated goal setting because I had an idea of what I wanted my presentation to be-- informative, yet not dry or boring-- and I worked to deliver a presentation that capitalized on the humor surrounding a fictional government to draw parallels between the main character’s love of civic involvement and real world opportunities to make a difference. Each step of my presentation had a due date and each part of the project built on the work I had done previously. This helped me with time management because it forced me to stay on track. I could have spent more time outside of school perfecting my memorized speech, but I feel that perhaps my lack of polish created a more spontaneous speech. To complete this project, I had to be organized. Not only did I organize my script and my presentation so that it made logical sense; I was also responsible for compiling data and facts related to my speech topic. During our last work day, I struggled to prioritize speech memorization and polishing over the desire to add more to my speech. I wanted to include examples of times where one vote changed the outcome of an election, but Mr. Baden advised my class that it was too late to change our speeches. I also had to trust the commentary that my peers and my mentor group gave me and improve my project based on their suggestions.