Helping. By Jim Cooper

In this essay Jim Cooper the methods utilized by students in Puerto Rico so they can pass their classes. Some call it helping, others call it cheating. Cooper basically explains how he learned that in Puerto Rico the students do not like to work alone. They believe that by letting their peers and classmates cheat during a test, for example, they are helping them. He also states that when he moved to Puerto Rico he quickly noticed how the students in the states are far more competitive than the students on the island. They don't believing in helping, they believe in winning. Throughout the essay we can experience many incidents where Cooper is being criticized because he believes that students should learn on their own. He later explains how Puerto Ricans are accustomed to helping and sharing. He believes that they are very hospitable people. When you visit you are welcomed as another member of the family. There are food and drinks in exaggeration. It shows the admiration and respect that people in Puerto Rico have. Using this as an example, Cooper is able to connect how the culture and customs influence greatly in the learning and teaching. 

Teachers from Puerto Rico feel offended when told that they are letting there students cheat. They believe that they are just helping each other and there is nothing wrong with that. 

Cooper on the other hand believes that he is not entitled to give any student a good grade just because they paid large amounts of money. He believes that every student should work for their grade, a trait that many teachers in Puerto Rico (during this period of time) did not posses or basically did not believe in. 

As a student I do realize that we do like to help each other on our school work. Many of my exams and papers are for homework. In some classes we make study groups and help each other out. It is certainly a characteristic that I have noticed in Puerto Rico, something that I didn't experience when I lived in New Jersey.  

Teaching English. By Jim Cooper

As we know Puerto Rico is an island with a lot of history and changes during times. We are a bilingual island with many difficulties in learning English. Jim Cooper compares and contrasts the continentals and Puerto Ricans in many ways, specifically in the ways they teach English. 
As Cooper well explains the policy on English language teaching in Puerto Rico is always involved with politics. Since the commonwealth constitution was proclaimed in Puerto Rico, many improvements and changes came, including languages. In 1993, the Popular Democratic Party stated that only twenty percent of the population could speak English.

Even though Puerto Rico basically has a double identity the way that English is taught is not exactly the way it is taught in the states. Jim Cooper explains many mistakes that the teachers in Puerto Rico use to teach their students how to speak English. For example, teachers are not supposed to use their native language to teach a new one. They also spelled out words differently so that the students could pronounce them, losing the real spelling of the word (ex. mill, "meal"). The public school system did not have the same access in learning English as the private school system did, basically limiting the "better" English teaching to the wealthier students. It is obvious that Cooper desires that all Puerto Ricans learn English the way it is taught in the states rather than how they try to learn it. 
I believe that there is very poor control in teaching English, at least in the public school system. I studied in public schools in the states and here in Puerto Rico. In my opinion the English classes here in Puerto Rico are compared to the Spanish classes in the states. These classes stay on a basic level for a very long time. In high school, my peers would take class and when the teacher tried to explain very basic things, they would not understand. It frustrated me in so many ways. I thought that it was not a correct way to teach English especially to students who aspire to go to college and may eventually have to learn a second or third language as their personal or career goals. I do think that English should be taught in a more dynamic and challenging level. 

"A Small Place" Reflection

Jamaica Kincaid introduces various topics in her first two essays of "A Small Place". Racism and prejudice are two topics that she mentions in many parts of the essays. She basically explains all the things that you would see as a tourist in Antigua. She explains everything in a sort of sarcastic matter letting us know that all the "marvelous" things that the tourists observe in Antigua aren't as amazing as it seems. Kincaid explains how the tourist don't really know what exactly goes on in Antigua and all the hardship that this island goes through. For example there is no proper sewage-disposal system in Antigua. She also describes the tourist as an "ugly human being" who gazes here and there, tasting this and that. Kincaid explains that the tourist are not actually liked at the place that they visit, they are looked at as weird. On the other hand, natives cannot travel like the tourist do, because, according to Kincaid, they are too poor, and they are too poor to escape the reality of their lives. 

Later on in the second essay Jamaica Kincaid starts describing in much detail the Antigua that she knows as a native. Back then Antigua was an English colony. Many places and streets are named after the English. Racism is still a matter in Antigua. The best details are for the "royals", "important people" and for those that work for the government. For example, they paved the roads when the Queen would visit. Also, the doctor that fled Czechoslovakia during the Holocaust did not attend people that would look dirty or smell. He also hated the Antigua natives for the color of their skin. There was much subordination in Antigua. They mistreat those who are not, as I mentioned before, "important" o "royal". 
Puerto Rico can also relate to the details that Jamaica Kincaid introduces in her essays. We are a beautiful island with many problems. We have the best sceneries and beaches yet we are piled up in debt. There is no stable government and no stable way of living. Today we have one thing, tomorrow we may not. Going out is a hazard, we have to watch our back as we witness daily on the news assassinations and violence. Yet again, our island is full of adventure and culture. We do view the tourist in the way Kincaid describes it. We do mock and make fun of them when we see them in Old San Juan or Isla Verde. It's harsh but it's the truth. My suggestion would be that instead of making fun of the tourist when they come to visit Puerto Rico we should show them how beautiful our island is apart from the day to day struggles that we may have. 

Who am I?

My Name is Liz M. Cruz Miranda. I was born in Dover, New Jersey on March 21,1992. I lived in the United States for 15 years. When I moved to Puerto Rico I began school in 10th grade. I love it here. I identify myself very much with this culture and the american culture as well. If there is one thing that unites me with both cultures is the love I have for Puerto Rican folklore music and the music from the states. I love art. I believe that it is a great way to express and identify yourself.  I am currently in my fourth and last year of my bachelor's degree with a major in Psychology. I am applying for grad school and hopefully going to start my master's degree in August with a major in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. 

10 places I've traveled to:
1. New York
2. Puerto Rico
3. Viejo San Juan
4. Costa Rica
5. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
6. Ponce
7. Cabo Rojo
8. Pennsylvannia
9. Orlando, Florida
10. Orocovis

I traveled to Costa Rica when I was in 10th grade. I won the trip in school with all expenses paid. I went with a large group of high school students from Puerto Rico. We went to different Volcanoes, restaurants and many exhibits. The most exciting part of the trip was when we went ziplinig and white water rafting. It was very scary at first but a once in a lifetime opportunity. I loved this trip. It was amazing traveling to see a new country that has many similarities with ours.