Jackeline Parra #2 Blog

 Our Second Project...

Hello everyone! My name is Jackeline Parra and, in this blog, I will write about the most recent project my classmates and I completed in our Introduction to Public speaking class. For this project we created presentations about Gender Equality, Education Policy, Immigration Policies, and the Electoral Process. The most distinctive part about this project from our last is the interviews. In this project we had to interview two people that had at least some knowledge about your topic. I really enjoyed this aspect of the presentations because it allows for conversation and questions. Having interviews also gives a different point of view about the topic, especially if the interviewee was very knowledgeable about the topic. 

 

The first group to present was group four. Group four choose the topic of “Gender equality.” They began by first introducing the history of gender equality. One presenter made a slide about gender equality in the ancient times. In this slide she has information from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. In this slide I learned that gender inequality first appeared in Greece and Rome after the rise of Christianity. During those times, there were no words in their language that translate to the modern day “homosexual” and “heterosexual.” It is very interesting to in-vision how life was back then because now-adays, it is very normalized. 

In another slide there is information about modern day gender equality. What I found most astonishing on this slide was how recent change has been made. It put into perspective how only sixty years ago birth control and the equal pay act were approved. After realizing how unfair women were treated back then, I became more grateful for all the opportunities I have now. I am grateful for all the hard work women back then put into protesting and speaking out for the freedom I have today. One example would be the right to vote. I voted for the first time today and it blows my mind how if I was born in some other point in time, I wouldn’t have been able to exercise my right to vote today. No one, no matter what gender, should be able to do something that the other cannot. 

 

The following group that presented was group three. Their choice of topic was “Education policies.” They started their presentation by giving the definition of education policy and why it is important. I like that they started with the definitions because it helps me understand what the rest of the PowerPoint will be about. Without this slide I would not have known that education policies are a set of laws and regulations that control how education systems are run and decisions that impact the area of education. I would have been completely lost throughout the entire presentation and would not have learned anything from it. This group had slides that had the stance of the current candidates that are running for presidency on education policy. Currently it is election season and people are deciding on who to vote for, Kamala Harris or Donald Trump. These slides are very informational and can help others decide who they want to vote for. The audience is college students who are first time voters, making this slide the most essential one to pay attention to. It helps others compare their opinions on the education policy with the candidates, allowing them to further decide which one they will vote to rule their country. Overall, I really enjoyed how informational this presentation was and believe they did a fantastic job. 

 

The third group to present was group two. Group two was my teams’ presentation. Our topic was “the electorate and the Election process.” Originally, we wanted the topic of “Gender equality” but group four had chosen and then everyone else chose their topic, and we were left with this one. I did not believe I would find it interesting but the more I researched, the more information I learned about our unique election process. I found it very interesting, and I am glad my group ended up with this topic. We began by talking about how the concept of voting originated. It began with how ancient societies started to elect their rulers through voting, not only by exercising power or having a higher status. 

My task was to conduct two different interviews with people that have knowledge about the topic of the election process and the electorate. At first, I wanted to do the research portion of the presentation but no one in my group wanted to do the interviews so, I just took on the responsibility. In the beginning, I started to stress because no one I emailed asking if I could interview them replied to me but, as it turns out, I wasn’t the only person not receiving a reply. Thankfully, my professor is very understanding and only wants her students to succeed. She noticed how difficult it was to conduct interviews during election season and allowed us to use videos of people getting interviews. This lifted the weight I had on my shoulders. All in all, this project was very educational especially, during election season.

 

The last group to present was group one. Their topic was “immigration policies.” This group started by mentioning how people that are forced to flee their countries are called refugees, while those applying for protection are asylum seekers. They had a slide comparing Donald J Trumps and Joe Bidens polices and views on deportation, Borders, family protection, and parole. In the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, then President Trump invoked the 42 statue. This statue allowed all US authorities to deport and expel all migrants who came to US borders, including asylum seekers. Then, once President Biden came into office, he chose to fight and keep Title 42 in place during his presidency. Much like group threes’ slide comparing Trump and Kamala, this slide helps voters decide which political party their views are more similar too. 

 

In Conclusion, this project was very informational and educational during the election season we are currently in. It educates us students on the background of voting and allows us to vote more intellectually.