At the same time, I feel this topic is a bit difficult for me. I don’t have much experience with activism. In my country, some topics are sensitive, and people don’t talk about them openly. It was during the process of making my portfolio that I began to understand it. I learned about different global issues — like climate change, refugee rights, or gender equality.

In web, I saw Refugee Nation flag that is an orange and black flag made by artists.
It stands for life jackets and people escaping by sea. It was made for the Refugee Olympic Team. The goal is to make more people care about refugees who have no country.

These artworks really moved me — they are full of emotion, and sometimes even more powerful than words. Studying this topic makes me feel more connected to the world.

The Guerrilla Girls aim to expose and challenge gender and racial inequality in the art world.

They focus on the serious underrepresentation of women and minority artists in major museums, galleries, and exhibitions. For example, the members wear gorilla masks and use the names of historical female artists as aliases.

This symbolizes the "conscience" of the art world, shifts attention to the issue instead of personal identity, and also protects their privacy while keeping a sense of mystery as a group.

They use large posters placed in streets, exhibitions, and public spaces, combined with eye-catching text and statistics. Their work is humorous but sharp, revealing unfairness in institutions. It also encourages the public to think and talk about gender, race, and power. This helps art institutions and society reflect on themselves and make changes.

One example is the poster Do women have to be naked...?, which shows that there are many more naked women in the Met Museum than artworks by women artists.

They also compare the number of female nudes to the number of artworks by women to show gender bias in exhibitions.

_{Coley,G (2025) Guerrilla Girls: “Making Trouble” at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. At: https://bmoreart.com/2025/07/guerrilla-girls-making-trouble-at-the-national-museum-of-women-in-the-arts.html?utm_source (Accessed 22/07/2025).}

AI helped me focus my topic on the issue of expression rights faced by marginalized groups in terms of language and identity.

By combining Belonging & Identity, Resource Access Gap, and Refugee & Diaspora, I decided to explore the mental and social situation of students who are in a “marginal” position.

I started to think:

Language oppression = cultural identity oppression.
Language is not only a tool for communication, but also a key part of self-identity and cultural belonging. When someone’s language is ignored or rejected, it often means their culture is being pushed aside or marginalized.

Language marginalization among students:
For example, do international students, immigrant students, deaf/mute students, or students who speak local dialects have the same right to speak and be heard in school? Is their voice noticed?

So, I would like to use this topic for my activism project:
👉 Topic summary: Language marginalization and expression rights – focusing on cultural identity and the right to be heard among student groups.

She is a Deaf artist and art therapist. She is also a British Pakistani Muslim woman. Her identity is very unique — she calls herself “a minority within a minority.” She uses visual art to talk about Deaf culture, identity, and the experience of being ignored in a hearing world.

Rubbena believes that language is not just for speaking, but also for connecting with culture. Through her work, she helps people understand how important it is to respect different ways of communication. Her art gives a voice to those who are often not heard.

My project also focuses on “the voices of the silent” and the right to express. Her work inspires me to think about how to use images to speak for those who are not heard by the mainstream language system, and give space for marginalized people to express themselves.

_{Durr, P. (s.d.) Rubbena Aurangzeb-Tariq. At: https://deaf-art.org/profiles/rubbena-aurangzeb-tariq/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 22/07/2025).}

It was started to support and give voice to the transgender community, especially trans women. They paint large murals in public places to show their culture, identity, and stories. These colorful artworks help people understand the transgender community better and reduce social fear and hate. The project uses art as a powerful tool to make invisible people visible and heard in society.

Their work inspires me to think about how visual art can help share messages from marginalized groups in a strong and creative way.

_{Chawla, N. A. (2023) Indian trans women bridge social gaps with public art projects. At: https://translash.org/articles/indian-trans-women-bridge-social-gaps-with-public-art-projects/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 22/07/2025).}

Going to is more for things we already plan before.

eg.

I’m tired, I will sleep. / I‘ll help you.

It’s going to rain. / Are you going to the cinema tomorrow night?

Sometimes I say “I’m going to help you” , but it’s better to say “I will help you.” But sometimes I can't tell whether the subject has a strong sense of "planning" or not.

👉 3 Predictions for Final Week:

1. I think everyone will feel a bit nervous, when they start presentation.

2. I think the room will be very quiet when people start presenting.

3. Everyone will learn something new from each other’s topics.

👉 3 Intentions for the Rest of the Project:

1. I’m going to write my project step 1 in this week.

2. I'm going to discuss with my teacher about the reference artists for my project.

3. I’m going to make my Padlet more beautiful with images and layout.

👉 3 Offers to Help My Classmates:

1. I will help if you want to do a practice run for your talk.

2. I will give you some advice for your Padlet, such as you can use simple and clear titles.

3. I will share some words and phrases that I think are useful.

His songs were emotional and had strong messages. The song talks about hope and change for Black people. It became a powerful song during the Civil Rights Movement.

In 1964, Sam Cooke was shot and killed in a hotel. His death was sudden and many people felt sad and shocked.（Cantwell, 2015）

What was the Civil Rights Movement in the USA?

It was a movement where Black Americans fought for equal rights and freedom from racism.

They wanted to stop segregation, get equal education, jobs, and the right to vote. The Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964. It was a new law that said people must be treated equally, no matter their race. (Wikipedia contributors, 2025)

Feeling

I really like this song. The melody is beautiful, and I can feel real emotions in his voice. It makes me feel the struggle, the passion, and also sadness of the time.

For me, the message is: don’t give up. He isn't going to take it lying down — he will fight until the end. That gives people hope and power.

This song was very important in the Civil Rights Movement because it helped people stay strong and feel united. Even today, the message is still important, because racism and unfair treatment still exist.

I also heard from Otonia about a protest song called “Tomo yo” that connected to the Japanese youth movement. It’s about factional struggle. Although they failed, their spirit still continues, just like Sam Cooke’s message.

_{Cantwell, D. (2015) 'The unlikely story of “A Change Is Gonna Come”' In: New Yorker (New York, N.Y.: 1925) 17/03/2015 At: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-unlikely-story-of-a-change-is-gonna-come (Accessed 24/07/2025).}

_{Wikipedia contributors (2025) History of civil rights in the United States. At: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_civil_rights_in_the_United_States&oldid=1297027879}

Theresa Hak Kyung Cha – Dictee

The book explores topics like language, silence, immigration, and female experience.

It is written in a mix of Korean, French, and English, and breaks the usual structure of a story. Cha uses pieces of history, her mother’s life to show how language and identity are broken and rebuilt.

It is very difficult and confusing to read, it shows how someone can still express their identity even when their language is “not enough” or not fully understood.

_{Rose Gelfand and Austin Kim. (2021) Outer Eyes, Inner Worlds: Race, Gender, Trauma & Surveillance. At: https://pressbooks.claremont.edu/soc189gspring21group1/chapter/4-analyzing-theresa-hak-kyung-chas-dictee/ (Accessed 27/07/2025d).}

Xu Bing – A Book from the Sky

Xu Bing’s Book from the Sky uses thousands of hand-carved characters that resemble Chinese but carry no meaning. These fake characters are printed on books, scrolls, and displayed across galleries, making the work look readable yet impossible to understand.

Xu’s work can inspire designs that express the silence or invisibility some students feel when their language isn’t understood.

_{Eira Rojas (s.d.) At: https://www.eirarojas.com/xu-bings-dialogue-with-chinas-cultural-history?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 27/07/2025).}

Zanele Muholi - Black LGBTQ Group

Zanele Muholi is a South African visual activist and photographer. Their work mainly focuses on Black identity, gender, and visibility.

Muholi uses photography and self-portraits to show the lives of Black LGBTQ people in South Africa.

Muholi supports “visual activism.” I understand this as using art to help people who were forgotten or erased in history to speak for themselves.

_{African Artist Spotlight Series: The Evocative Universe of zanele muholi (2023) At: https://momaa.org/african-artist-spotlight-series-the-evocative-universe-of-zanele-muholi/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 27/07/2025).}

👉

1. What is the main idea of the paragraph?
The main idea is that students in a language teacher program created multilingual signage as an act of activism to challenge English-only language policies in their university.

2. Which sentence is the topic sentence?
“This article opens an analytical window into the creation of multilingual guerrilla translations by participants in a preservice language teacher program at a public university in the United States.”

3. Do all the other sentences support the topic sentence?
Yes. The rest of the paragraph explains why and how the students created the signage and main idea.

👉

1. What transition/linking words are used?

• “As an intervention…”

• “…as their signage offered…”

2. Do the ideas flow clearly from one to the next? Explain briefly.
Yes. The paragraph flows from the introduction of the project to its purpose and then to the outcome. Clear logical relationships help readers understand the purpose of students and teachers doing this.

👉

1. What is one thing this writer did well?
The writer clear logical relationships help readers understand the purpose of students and teachers doing this.

2. What is one thing you can try in your next piece of writing?
I can try using academic linking words like “as an intervention” or “in response to…” to make my ideas more logically connected.

_{Häusler, A. H. (2021) 'Language guerrillas: Signing multilingualism into action' In: Education sciences 11 (10) p.607. At: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/education}

_{Philippart | Inclusion in a multilingual higher education environment: a foreign student perspective | International Journal of Social Pedagogy}

Currency:
This article was wrote in March 2025. It is very new and talks about today’s university life.

Relevance:
It is about language problems in multilingual universities. It is useful for students, especially international or immigrant students.

Authority:
The writers are researchers from the University of Luxembourg. The article is published in a peer-reviewed journal (International Journal of Social Pedagogy).

Accuracy:
The article uses data from a real student survey.

Purpose:
The goal is to help universities understand students' feelings about language. It is not written to sell anything.

Students said that teachers are very important. They want teachers to support them with language and emotions. The article says universities should help all students feel safe and included.

02.

_{Cultural hegemony, language, and the politics of forgetting: Interrogating Restrictive Language Policies • Antonia Darder, Loyola Marymount University}

Currency
The article was published around 2014–2015. It is not very recent, but the ideas are still important today, especially in education and immigrant studies.

Relevance
The article is highly relevant. It discusses how schools or governments can make people forget their language and culture through language rules.

Authority
The author, Antonia Darder, is a respected professor at Loyola Marymount University.

Accuracy
The article gives examples from real schools and education systems. It uses theories and past research to support the ideas.

Purpose
The article wants people to think about justice, language, and identity in schools.

03.

_{Language has become a tool for social exclusion}

Currency
Published in 2019, the article is a few years old.

Relevance
The piece discusses how language can be used to exclude people—especially immigrants and non‑native speakers.

Authority
The authors are professors at recognized universities, and The Conversation is a respected platform where academics share expert insight.

Accuracy
The article uses real examples and academic viewpoints to show how language rules can exclude minorities.

Purpose
The aim is to raise awareness of language equity and inclusion in society.

Antonia Darder. (2024) Cultural hegemony, language, and the politics of forgetting: Interrogating Restrictive Language Policies. At: https://www.rizoma-freireano.org/articles-1616/cultural-hegemony-language-and-the-politics-of-forgetting-interrogating-restrictive-language-policies-antonia-darder-loyola-marymount-university?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 30/07/2025).

Angouri, J., Polezzi, L. and Wilson, R. (2019) 'Language has become a tool for social exclusion' In: The Conversation 21/02/2019 At: http://theconversation.com/language-has-become-a-tool-for-social-exclusion-112028 (Accessed 30/07/2025).

Chawla, N. A. (2023) Indian trans women bridge social gaps with public art projects. At: https://translash.org/articles/indian-trans-women-bridge-social-gaps-with-public-art-projects/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 22/07/2025).

Corine,P., Eve,L. (2025) Inclusion in a multilingual higher education environment: a foreign student perspective. At: https://journals.uclpress.co.uk/ijsp/article/pubid/IJSP-14-3/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 30/07/2025b).

Durr, P. (s.d.) Rubbena Aurangzeb-Tariq. At: https://deaf-art.org/profiles/rubbena-aurangzeb-tariq/?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 22/07/2025).

Eira Rojas (s.d.) At: https://www.eirarojas.com/xu-bings-dialogue-with-chinas-cultural-history?utm_source=chatgpt.com (Accessed 27/07/2025).

Häusler, A. H. (2021) 'Language guerrillas: Signing multilingualism into action' In: Education sciences 11 (10) p.607. At: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/education

Rose,G., Austin,K. (2021) Outer Eyes, Inner Worlds: Race, Gender, Trauma & Surveillance. At: https://pressbooks.claremont.edu/soc189gspring21group1/chapter/4-analyzing-theresa-hak-kyung-chas-dictee/ (Accessed 27/07/2025d).

Slacktivism means when people only show support online—like liking or sharing posts—but do not take real actions in the physical world.

I think it’s powerful because it helped solve a real problem for many people, such as pushed the government to take action.

I believe digital activism can create real change. When used well, it can spread messages quickly, connect people across the world.

In my own activist project, I could also design an interactive space where people can leave messages in different languages, helping to give a voice to those who feel silenced.

Feelings
I listened and watched very carefully because I was afraid I might miss important information. However, I felt a bit anxious because my note-taking speed was slower than the video speed.

Evaluation & Analysis
I can well summarise the message and the purpose of the activism. However, when the speaker talked too fast or used unfamiliar words, it was hard for me to follow. The difficulty came from trying to understand language and content at the same time. My vocabulary is still limited, so I often had to guess word meanings from the context. But the images in the videos helped me understand better.

Conclusion & Action Plan

I learned that visual support can really help improve my listening comprehension. Next week, I will preview vocabulary related to the topic before listening. I will also try to practice writing faster notes in video content after class to improve both listening and writing speed.

Today I was working on my activism project, where I explored language barriers. I focused on how international students—including myself—sometimes struggle to express complex ideas clearly in English during language classes. I felt that this topic was very real and relevant to my own experience. It also made me think about how this issue affects others, such as immigrants, deaf students, and dialect speakers. Because the idea came from my life, it didn’t feel as difficult as my last project. But as I went deeper in my research, more complex questions started to appear, and that made me feel a bit stuck.

Evaluation & Analysis

I found it really fascinating because the topic connects to my own identity and daily life. I enjoyed researching case studies, especially discovering the work of Xu Bing and the artist named Theresa Hak Kyung Cha. They both explore language struggles from different angles—Xu Bing uses invented writing systems, and Cha deals with silence, fragmentation, and memory. I think I did quite well in this part. However, some of the later research became tricky because the topic of language rights in multilingual universities involves a lot of deep thinking. I had to slow down and think carefully, which was not easy. Still, I believe the outcome was quite successful, especially in helping me understand how art and activism can work together.

Outcome & Action Plan

What I discovered is that language is not only a tool but also a barrier that shapes who can speak and be heard. Looking back, I now realise that language rights are a form of human rights. In the future, I hope to interview friends with similar experiences to make the project more personal and relatable. I would also like to find student groups or school policies that address this issue. Next time, I will try to go deeper earlier and manage my research time more carefully. To make the outcome look more professional, I also need to improve how I present my visual ideas.

At first I found it a bit difficult, as the topic was more emotional than I expected. It wasn’t as easy as it looked, because I had to balance humour and respect in the poster. The outcome was quite good. I’m very pleased with the results because our group worked well together and our presentation was clear.

However, looking back, I think my poster had too many sentences. It didn’t look as professional as I wanted. Next time, I will try to replace some sentences with clear keywords to make it easier to read.

What I learned is that humour can be a powerful way to talk about difficult issues. Now I can see that I need to think more carefully about design and text balance in a poster. If I had given myself more time, I could have edited the poster more.

Two Possible Locations for My Activist Artwork:

1. Linear Gallery
   This space is open to all students and teachers. It is used for exhibitions and interactive displays. It fits artworks that need public attention and wide interaction. This location supports my message because more people can see it and join the conversation.

2. Graphic Design Studio
   This space is mainly used by graphic design students. It is good for design feedback and discussion. It fits works that need a professional environment. But fewer people will see the work, so it is not the best for spreading an activist message.

Best Location: Linear Gallery

I choose Linear Gallery as the best place to show my activist work. It has walls and platforms that are good for both display and writing. Many people pass by and can stop to join the work. I will collect real messages from people who felt silenced. Visitors can read these messages, use translation tools to understand them, and write in their own language. They can also add things they wanted to say but couldn’t. This space helps people see how meaning is built—or sometimes lost.

Evaluation & Analysis
I enjoyed explaining my project because it helped me organise my ideas. Raina suggested adding pictures so people could draw if they can’t write clearly. I found this fascinating, as it would make the space more inclusive. Overall, I think it went well because I received helpful feedback.

Outcome
I learned that using visuals can help people express themselves more easily. Now I see my project can be richer if I include different ways of communication. Next time, I will design tools for both writing and drawing. To achieve a better result, I need to prepare other art work examples to show this idea.

• Why is critical thinking important at university?

  At university, we need to create new ideas, not just learn from others. So it is important to check information carefully. This helps us do good work that is true and original.

• How can you apply these ideas to both your activism project and academic studies?

  For academic work ，I’ll ensure all references come from reputable, verifiable publications; critically compare different perspectives; and explicitly address how I evaluated sources in my writing.

I wanted a location that everyone walks past, but doesn’t stand out — it represents how some students are ignored in public spaces, only a few are truly seen. People can write their silenced experiences in their own languages. Others can try to understand, translate, or respond in their own languages — or even use drawings if words are hard.

This space invites reflection on language, identity, and who gets to speak or be heard.

• How does this link to our course and why do we reflect as artists/designers?

  It shows how art can be used to speak about social issues. We don’t just make things look good—we also need to think about meaning and impact.

Eliasson linked art and social business and used light as a creative medium in order to make people focus on sustainable energy and fairness around the world. He creatived "little sun" project with engineer together. This project design and product solar-energy light goods, and it can solve electrical grid problem in poor place. Solar-energy products make users feel resourceful and powerful. I think this is a good idea because it not only helps people live better, but also makes them feel part of a global community.

EL Seed’s art not only shows his love for Arabic culture, but also sends a strong message of peace. He creates powerful images that speak to people from different backgrounds that use Arabic calligraphy and street graffiti. His work encourages respect and open between cultures around the world. I think this is a good way to use art, because it helps people think and talk about important topics, at the same time also give my project new idea.

I feel inspired by how a creative idea can lead to social action. As a design student, I learned that art can be useful, emotional, and powerful at the same time. Also, it makes me want to think more about how my own work can help solve problems in the world.

Writing was not too hard for me. But some reading content was difficult, luckily I could understand part of it, so it was easier to write about it.

Listening was very hard, especially in part two. I only understood the main meaning, but some words I don't know how to write, for example “discrimination” and “government inaction”. The time was too short and I did not have enough time to plan my ideas.

I used some reflective sentences I practiced before. I also used the correct writing structure. I think my listening score will be low, but I feel confident about the reading part.

Reflection and Feedback：

My reading score was lower than I expected, but I understand. Many words in the choice questions were unfamiliar for me, so I couldn't choose with confidence. The feedback that helped me most was about the listening Part Two writing. My teacher suggested me to add more personal opinions or specific examples from the presentation to make my ideas stronger.

I will focus on reading vocabulary, especially words related to activism and social issues. In listening, I will change my note-taking style. Before, I wrote too many full sentences, which wasted time. I will try to note down only key words.

Goals:

Listening

• Practice listening materials , focusing on note-taking with keywords only.

Reading

• Rising vocabulary on activism, social justice, cultural identity, language rights, and environmental issues.

Writing

• Before writing, planning examples for each point.

• Use Gibbs model and reflection language model help writing.

Speaking

• Practice explaining difficult ideas or academic words use simple English.

Last week, I took a mock listening test. I have finished the listening multiple-choice questions and a writing based on the listening content. And achieved a good score.

Feeling：

I found it quite tricky at the beginning, as some words are too difficult for me. And I felt that the speaker was speaking very fast. However, it went well because I can catch some key words and understand the meaning based on the speaker's tone and key words.

Evaluation：

I was interested in finding out how take notes more quickly or do better in listening practice, because is helpful for my listening score. If I had done better, I would have got a higher score.

Analysis:

Looking back, I think the problem was that I often spend a lot of time taking notes and thus miss important content.

Conclusion:

What I learned is that notes are very important for the listening test, but you should not spend long time to take notes that led to affect your understanding of the video's meaning.

Action plan:

From now on, I will try to use simple Chinese characters, graphics and abbreviations to help me catch the key points of the video when I'm doing listening practice. And then I will learn more words related to activism and try to familiar with them.