Category: Coffeehouse #1 (Page 2 of 3)

After reading both Esmeralda Santiago’s “When I Was Puerto Rican” and Howard Garner’s “Five Minds of the Future” I came to find that Esmeralda Santiago‘s Short story was not only more captivating but also more enjoyable and relatable. “When I Was Puerto Rican” was a beautiful story that depicted how Esmeralda Santiago was able to overcome challenges that she faced due to her language barrier. Throughout the text, Esmeralda shows her eagerness to prove herself to her peers and teachers. We can see this straight away when she basically forces Mr. Grant to let her advance to the 8th grade rather than pushing her back to the 7th grade. She does this by making a deal with him not only forcing her to learn the English language in about half of the time that she would’ve had if she had just been sent back to the 7th grade but also putting her own education and self-esteem in jeopardy. Esmeralda later gets put into what is considered 8th grade for the “Dumb Kids” but , By the end of the short story, we come to see that Esmeralda wasn’t affected by this placement and instead proves herself by receiving high marks in English, History, and Social Studies proving to her teachers and peers that just because she was placed in that class doesn’t mean that she belonged there. Although some may prefer the Boring and textbook-like style of “Five Minds for the Future”, the Story-like and captivating approach that Esmeralda Santiago took when writing her story made her short story “When I was Puerto Rican” the clear favorite. 

After reading both “Five Minds for the Future” by Howard Gardner and “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago I found that I enjoyed Esmeraldas reading more. This nostalgic reading touched me. I was back in the summer of 2012 all over again. When my mother, a warrior in the face of adversity, enrolled me in elementary school. She could barely scrape together the words “THE” which she pronounced “DE” and “KID “which she pronounced “KI”. Her translator was my 12-year-old brother who learned a little less than basic English back in our country. Esmeralda’s reading was so enjoyable to read because I can identify with many of the experiences she spoke about, like noticing students’ lack of willingness to learn, or her teacher Miss Brown, who is equivalent to my first teacher when I moved to the United States, Miss Valerio. Who was from the same country as me. She took me in as if I was her son as she did with all the other students and taught us how to pronounce the ABCs in English. I can also relate to her emotions of worriedness when she started school and her character of being a fighter which some can misinterpret as a “mal educada”.

While “Five Minds For The Future” by Howard Gardener has an intriguing story, I believe “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmerelda Santiago is better. The story of “When I Was Puerto Rican” comes off more intriguing to me due to its discussion of a child who doesn’t want to be held back in school due to a language barrier. Esmerelda Santiago wanted to prove to her peers that she could do higher level work . She had pushed Mr Grant to let her have a chance to improve her English and he gave her until Christmas. This had intrigued me since it was considered a rebellious action to her and her mother which I would imagine would discourage most from speaking up but Esmerelda still pushed for what she wanted which was an interesting turn of events to me.  Also seeing as how although Esmerelda Santiago got stuck in a class that she did not belong she put in her best efforts to improve and was even later regarded by the school for her high marks. “Five Minds For The Future” by Howard Gardener did still have likeable elements to it I wasn’t really connected to it as it felt like I was reading a textbook in the way it was presented from its way of explaining things like the disciplined mind and how it “takes 10 years to master discipline” which felt uninteresting to me.

While Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future” was both a thought-provoking and entertaining read, the homework reading that I ended up preferring was Esmeralda Santiago’s “When I Was Puerto Rican.” I felt that Santiago’s essay was easier to read due to it being shorter, as well as being more anecdotal. In comparison, Gardner’s essay was complex and used extensive vocabulary, which required more attention and focus while following the text. Gardner’s essay was thoughtful and he proposed good arguments for why the mind types he mentioned would be vital to society in the future. It was well written and raised important questions, but I wasn’t as immersed in the reading as I was in Santiago’s piece. The personal aspect allows for greater ability to resonate with the reader. The theme of identity and the idea of being immersed in an unfamiliar environment are ones numerous people can relate to. Being put in a situation that requires perseverance and overcoming despite the difficulties as an immigrant is inspiring. Overall, both essays were great works and Gardner’s essay was not terrible by any means, but overall I found I enjoyed Esmeralda Santiago’s “When I Was Puerto Rican,” the most.

After reading both of the readings,  “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago and Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future”, I enjoyed “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago more. Because Santiago’s book is based on her own experiences and background, I found it more relatable and interesting. Since, I came to the United States at a young age not knowing the English language much, I can find this text much more relatable. I connected with her challenges and felt like I was with her throughout her journey since we have similar immigrant backgrounds. I find Santiago’s use of a narrative approach that connects her personal experiences more interesting since I prefer storytelling over academic discourse. On the other hand, Gardner’s book focuses more on explaining theories and ideas. Santiago’s storytelling can create a deeper emotional connection compared to the more analytical and intellectual nature of Gardner’s work. Therefore, I enjoyed “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago much more as it felt a relation and had fun reading it then reading “Five Minds for the Future” by Howard Gardner, which I found interesting by not entertaining.

After reading both of the texts I can say that I enjoyed Esmerelda Santiago’s “When I was Puerto Rican” more. The story of Esmerelda was much more interesting than “Five Minds for the Future.” I enjoyed how “When I Was Puerto Rican” provided a story about how Esmerelda overcame her challenges. The experiences she had provided a unique point of view on other children’s struggles in school. I thought the story was insightful as it taught me about the different challenges non-English speakers face. Although the text “Five Minds for the Future” was well written, I did not like how the text was almost like a research paper. The text seemed to be more informative and based on studies. This made me enjoy the text less because reading it felt more like an assignment that I was obligated to complete. Esmerelda Santiago’s story felt more like a story I would read for entertainment. I also believe that the story of Esmerelda had a great message and provided a great outlook on life. In conclusion, of the two texts, I think that Esmerelda Santiago’s “When I Was Puerto Rican” is a much more enjoyable and thought-provoking read than Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future.”

Out of the two readings, “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago and Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future” and, the story of Esmeralda Santiago was my favorite. This is because it is somehow connected to Bilal Rahmani’s “Chronicles of a Once Pessimistic College Freshman”; as we can see, the main characters, in this case Esmeralda and Rahmani, both had this “Change” as a person. which was influenced by their teacher (Professor), school, and classmates. Their willingness to learn. Each has a comparable Intellectual Home. Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future” was also quite fascinating. It explained how each of the five minds is dependent upon and connected to the others in some way. Esmeralda Santiago demonstrates the Disciplined mind as can be seen on the last paragraph.

Of the two readings I’ve read, I find that Howard Gardner writes a phenomenal article about “Five Minds for the Future”. As he demonstrates his ability to explain the Five Minds, he also writes about his personal life to connect to his speculation. He starts off by conducting a descriptive summary of how the minds work and how we don’t pay much attention to it. He then goes into detail about how we need these elements to survive in the future and the “era” that is about to come. I personally agree with this article since most people lack certain elements and within the eyes of a person who can read body language, it is easily noticeable. Howard specifies each element into depth and how each element connects to the next one. “When I was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago was a great story and it captivated me when he rebelled against being put back into the 7th grade. These two stories somehow connect to one another, but I prefer “Five Minds for the Future” because it summarizes a deep meaning for this generation and the next generation and the next. People will need to adapt to these elements or else what Howard said, “will be at the mercy forces that he or she can’t understand, let alone control.” While reading this, I felt a sense of awakening and I’m so glad I read this because without the importance’s of having these elements, I wouldn’t be able to adapt later in the future. Some people may lack an element I’m strong at, but I’ll lack at an element someone else is stronger at, so it’ll all depend on the persons strength and how much they can obtain. At the last paragraph, he states that in work forces, many employers select individuals that are high in the five elements and although academic and experience are the noticeable ones, they also search for discipline, synthesizing, creativity, respectfulness and ethical.

After reading both the stories I realized that I enjoyed Esmeralda Santiago ‘s “When I was Puerto Rican” a lot more because I could relate to it though Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future” was much more informative, it was long. I liked “When I was Puerto Rican” because I personally know how it feels to be judged because you cannot Oh. speak English well my whole family is from the Caribbean. And although we are U.S. citizens most of my family have thick accents. Very commonly not being able to speak English is compared to how intelligent you are When really, most of the people who do not speak English might be smarter than the ones who do they are just smarter in a different language. Howard Gardner’s “Five Minds for the Future” had a similar undertone but reading facts instead of A personal story might not be the best way to do that. Although Gardner did Make some points he talks more about the mind and how us not understanding each other can be seen as an indifference He explains the psychological Connection to why we feel indifferent towards these things. Both stories were informative, but I preferred Esmeralda’s because I could relate to it and reading it was much more interesting. 

Test 4 in block style.