What is it?
In their discussion questions that conclude watching the video discussing the Medellin experience with slum transformation, Warwick and Rogers (2018, p. 81) invite us to discuss follow-up questions, giving and arguing for our own opinions on related questions.______________________
What do you think 1?
What aspects of the regeneration of Medellin do you think are the most important? Why?
page 80
and- How can governments and local authorities decide which areas would benefit most from regeneration projects?
- planning = 2:00 minutes (It's usually a good idea to plan before you start to write.)
- writing = 9:00 minutes, and
- editing = 1:00 minutes.
A helpful strategy
Do not write things like "question 1."
Instead, imagine you are writing for someone who has not read the question you are responding to. Your aim is to clearly communicate your response to that reader, so it might help to paraphrase the question at the start of your response to it. But you need to rewrite (paraphrase) the idea in the question as a statement.
More generally, because our writing should make sense independently of the question it might be answering, it is usually useful to give background, which can often be done by paraphrasing the question into statements that begin your answer. This is also a useful strategy in exams such as IELTS and TOEFL.
What do you think 2?
- “It is the people who live in our community, not the facilities or whether it looks nice, that influence how we feel about where we live.” To what extent do you agree with this statement?
This time, you have 10:00 minutes to plan and write a response to this one question. I suggest you divide your time roughly as:
- planning = 2:00 minutes (Planning before writing really does help.)
- writing = 6:00 minutes, and
- editing = 1:00 minutes.
Write one or two paragraphs to share your ideas in response to the question. Again, you will be able to write more for homework after class.
Follow the same suggestions in the "Helpful strategy" notes above for your discussion responding to the first two questions.
______________________
Reference
- Warwick, L. & Rogers, L. (2018). Skillful 4: Reading & Writing, Student's Book Pack (2nd. ed.). London: Macmillan Education
According to the video, the aspect that government give the most attention is the community quality, and the core of community is the socialism, that will directly lead to the education, jobs and recreation. As we can see that there's a lot of garden, community hub for exchange knowledge, sport club for health and schools for educational quality that people can come and receive the benefits from it. And while renovation, people in those district will have a job to do. So this can build up the good social which can counterbalance the bad ones before it will become the lurking crime in the dark.
ReplyDeleteIn the video describing the efforts by government and local residents to regenerate their slum areas of the city, the most important aspect seems to me to be the provision of basic services that help people in the their daily lives. In the video, we learned that transport is being improved, and that could be seen in the staircases, escalators, and system of cable cars to help people go up and down the hills the slum has been built on. The geography looks to have very steep hills, so providing easier access to their homes and connecting them to the rest of the city is likely to bring substantial benefits to the residents of the slum. The provision of a library and art gallery seem less urgent to me, but they are also useful because they create alternatives to drugs, crime and hanging out in gangs. These cultural benefits are likely to build on the foundation provided by more concrete improvements to daily life.
ReplyDeleteAs I suggest above, I think that when deciding how to develop an area, the more basic aspects of life should be addressed first, and in deciding which areas to spend taxes improving, the priority should go to the poorest areas that are most in need of upgrading to make life acceptable for the fellow citizens forced to life in them through lack of opportunity that is probably not their own fault.
I agree with you that the poorest areas should be improved first as they are vulnerable. While watching the video, many development programs from Thai King Rama 9 came to my mind. In 1969, he first visited the Greater Mekong Region which was used to be one of the poorest areas of Thailand to improve standard of living of the hill tribes.
DeleteThe hill tribes were vulnerable to modernization. They had lived in that area and made a living by cultivating poppy before Thai government announced their land as the Greater Mekong Region and before The government issued law to make poppy to be illegal.
DeleteI don't want to blame on the government, but the point that I want to make here is that every public policy and development should consider the people who might receive negative effects from that.
DeleteI like Emma's example, specifically the law that criminalized what had for generations been a tradition. Poppy's are, of course, the source of opium, which is used to make both morphine for medical use, and heroin, which is a popular recreational drug, like alcohol.
DeleteI made a different connection with the situation that the video describes in Medillin. As the video says, criminal gangs are a major factor in Medillin, and it was even necessary to get those gangs to agree with the plan to regenerate the slum areas. The supply of illegal drugs is an important part of the business model of those criminal gangs, and since they could not have obtained and kept such power in society if the law had not enabled it by making the drugs illegal, it seems to me reasonable to blame that great social harm on bad drug laws. Perhaps Thailand, especially the slum areas where drug use, from alcohol through ya ba, is common, would be much better off if the many popular drugs people want to use were not illegal but instead regulated in the same way as alcohol, which expert opinion (Nutt et al., 2010, The Lancet, "Drug harms in the UK: a multicriteria decision analysis") consider to be by far the most socially harmful addictive drug in popular use.
I don't normally add research results to my comments, but in the reply to Emma's ideas here, I thought it would be a good idea to provide some support for the claim I made about the drug alcohol.
DeleteOops - I've just noticed an embarrassing spelling mistake: "poppy's" in the first paragraph at 10:39 (June 17) above should be "poppies". I don't think it's serious, but I should have proofread before I clicked the "Publish" button. Mistakes like that are common, even in prestigious newspapers such as the New York Times, in whose articles I spot similar mistakes almost every day, and which often adds notes to its articles pointing out revisions that have been made after publication. In IELTS and TOEFL exams, you don't lose grammar points for making what appear to be simple typing mistakes.
DeleteThe most important aspect of the regeneration of Medellin is the relationship within the community. Government or local authorities should initiate projects that help strengthening this core value. If there is a good relationship within the community, people will start looking out for each other in the event of crime or dangerous issue and the rate of violence may be decreased.
ReplyDeleteGovernment and local authorities should look at the living condition of people and what people are lacking of to decide which areas the projects will be benefit most. The budget will not be well spent if the demand and supply does not meet.
I agree with you that fostering relationships is important for a project to success and sustain, and governments will play a key role to facilitate it. Social problems like crime can be solved if governments and communities work together closely.
DeleteAs I read Beer's comment, and then Emma's response, I was wondering exactly what projects "Government or local authorities should initiate ... that help strengthening this core value" (Beer, June 15, 19:59) of relationships within the community. The video mentions such specifics as building better pathways and other connections for people to move on, and also a library offering residents multiple services. What else should or could be done?
DeleteI also wonder who should be in charge of the planning and the spending: the local community, local government, or central government?
In addition to paraphrasing to summarize an idea you would like to respond to, you might also like to integrate a short quotation. If you quote, in addition to putting the copied and pasted words in "quotation marks", it's good academic style to cite the source. For blog comments, use the display name and it's usual to specify the date, hour and minute of publication of the source, in the case above, the source is Beer's comment published a couple of days ago.
DeleteThe most important aspect of the regeneration of this city should be essential basic infrastructures which are related to sanitation first because it affects significantly people's quality of life.
ReplyDeleteGovernments and local authorities should prioritize slum areas or the areas that are struggling. After that, focusing on co-space for everyone such as liberty should be determined. The reason is that it will enhance the community.
I agree with you that the essential basic infrastructures are important aspect. Some slum in Thailand does not even have public lights.
DeleteI think that the regeneration of Medellin will be benefit to most people in the city if they focus on improving fundamental public infrastructure which can improve well-being of life such as safety roads that can reduce accidents on the roads, quality housing that can support health conditions and so on.
ReplyDeleteSince a government will be an important role in funding budgets, issuing policy and monitoring the progress of the development, they can do so by hiring professionals such as a designer who can help them design inclusive city for all.
I totally agree with Emma that the government should monitor the progress of development. Moreover, they should evaluate the results by doing the survey to gather information from local on satisfaction of the projects implemented by the government. This evaluation will also help the government going to the right direction to meet people's needs and spend the budget well.
DeleteI think the most important aspect of Medellin's regeneration is the people in Medellin. This is because the populations are the one who use these places or facilities. Moreover, the purpose of the regeneration is to increase Medellin's individual qualities. In addition, the governments should regenerate something to meet the people’s needs.
ReplyDeleteLocal authorities and governments can choose the area that most benefits the population by searching the place that most people use it a lot. As a result, the place that has regenerated is accessible for the people. In addition, the place should have good locations so that there is no harm further. For example, if that place is near the forest, they will be the snack coming to the place one day.
Aom, if the most accessible area were a central part of the residential community, do you think it would be reasonable to move the residents out to make way for something better, such as an attractively landscaped park with public facilities?
DeleteYou also suggest an answer to a question I asked Beer and Emma above, do what extent do you think that local communities, local government, and the central government should contribute in projects to regenerate city areas, especially slum areas?
In my opinion, giving a good life to poor people is the most important aspect because every people should have right to study ,read books and live safely ,even they are poor or rich. Governments and local authorities may decide which areas should be regenerate by consideration from the worst area. For question number 2 I agree with that statement.
ReplyDeleteVery happy to see you mentioned about the right to study. This is linked to Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which has proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly. Everyone should have a right to go to school or have access to education. This should be be provided free of charge to anyone whether they are poor or rich.
DeleteEducation, health and sanitation is the key of the better living according to the video. I can tell that I'm absolutely agree on that statement base on my childhood and the video, good village is not the village that looks good, but also with the atmosphere and neighborhood is nice too, that's why the people on the managerial position these days have to give this some attention to the community's heart such like the social and education, because it is the base of the human needs and happy living by not just an appearance.
ReplyDeleteI like that you mention your childhood experiences and it would be great if you extend it a bit more. I agree with you that helpful neighbours might enhance the village's atmosphere but education is more important for me.
DeleteI trust that if people have a good quality of life and happiness, they will more room for empathy and sharing.
I don't entirely agree with the statement that “It is the people who live in our community, not the facilities or whether it looks nice, that influence how we feel about where we live.”
ReplyDeleteI think that's a reasonable claim when the conditions in the community are above a certain level, but below that level, the lack of facilities especially will make a strong sense of community very difficult to achieve. If there is no clean water or toilets for sanitation, disease is likely to be rampant, and being surrounded by dirty, smelly, filth seems to me unlikely to encourage a strong sense of community.
I think it's good that the poeple of Medellin are working together to regenerate their area, but the far more attractive appearance is the achieved goal that the community can be proud of, and be motivated to work together to maintain.
But above the basic level of facilities, the people who live in a community are what make that community an enjoyable place to live in or not, even if we don't actually interact that much. For example, I don't know many of the people in my quite little soi between Silom and Surawong Roads, but I do know the local street stall vendors who have been providing me with fresh fruits, somtam and kai yang for many years. Their cheerful service and ready smiles contribute a lot to making it a place I want to live in. Because of the central location, the facilities are and always have been excellent to serve the businesses in the area, but I like my soi for the street stalls, the stalls in the marked next door (best duck in Bangkok!) and the friendly atmostphere of long term residents.
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DeleteI'm quite a bit convinced by you that nice place can influence the quality of human life and social, people even in the slums are also seeking the way to improve their structure and village for attracting other people in many way, most of them that they do in the first is the cleanliness and happiness and sometimes they can even change the norm of the people who live in the slum that they must have the responsibility of cleaning and keep their mouth up their cheeks for smiling. For me is Bangbon, the place of my childhood that can call clean slum, people sell things at market, or changing their townhouse into jeans factory, but the sanitation of that place is quite good according to the sanitation department that send the truck to wipe the garbage three times a week, children can even take off their shoes and run for the Freeze Tags game. Can't tell that how happy am I in that time.
DeleteI agree to the statement given that how people feel about the place they live effects the vibe of the community. If the government or local authorities implement projects out of the interest of the local, there will not be a sense of collaboration or involvement. People are also being happier when their basic needs and rights are met. For example, the community would be more benefit in clean water than high rise flat that will change their way of living.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the given quote, I strongly agree with the statement. There are two factors why I agree. First of all, if the facilities are not nice but safe, it is fine. Because we do not build it to be taken a picture but we build it to be used. Moreover, the people's needs may not look nice. But since it is the needs of people that governments are responsible for, the governments should build it. To sum up, people are the first thing that the government should think about rather than the beautifulness of the facilities.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the facilities offered should serve the purpose regardless the appearance. This does not mean that a good facility will always end up looking terribly. The government should have the Architecture Department to design the facilities that will function well and looks friendly to local community.
DeleteI strongly agree with the statement that gives an important on people rather than the appearance of the buildings as that greatly affect the feelings of the people who live in. Recently, many urban planning designers have paid close attention to 'inclusive' and 'equality' when designing building and facilities. I am a big fan of the design principles, as people are different in age, physical needs and mental needs. For example, can we build a school that support and care of childrens who are blind.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that inclusiveness and equality should be paid attention to while designing the buildings. As a result, the people can use the building effectively and equally.
DeleteFor the question number 2, I agree with that statement. You live in areas that are full of facilities, but neighbours still commit crimes. That facilities cannot help you to feel safe.
ReplyDeleteYou rise to a point that I had never thought about. Solely facilities might not enough to comfort or reassure residents. It reminds me of a quote,' Human being is a social animal'.
DeleteI partly agree with the statement.Residents are influenced by people in the community. It's true that strong community relationship enrich the atmosphere. However, I think that facilities and infrastructures also have a main role in community improvment. Both of them ehnace inhabitant's quality of life in many aspects such as healther,and more comfromtable. Last but not least safer. Women travel by her self all day and night.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think you made a good point on safety. The infrastructure and facilities provided by the government or local facilities should consider woman's safety too. In Thailand, the overnight train and bus offer "only lady passenger" compartment or bus which give woman at ease when they need to sleep overnight on the transportation.
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