There are two jobs which I like to do – one is teaching and the other is translating. I want to be a teacher for certain reasons. A teacher is the person who moulds the characters of the youth. If the teacher is good, he will be able to influence the children to do positive things and to become good citizens, bringing name for themselves, their families, their localities and the nation itself. I like teaching because I am good at languages and my favour language is English. I realize that the English used in our schools is of poor quality because many of the teachers are not well-trained. There is the danger of Manglish replacing English. I want to do my best to remedy the situation. I like children and I like to interact with them.

I like their fun-loving nature and harmless pranks. So my first choice is to become a teacher.

The second job I might like to do is that of translation. Translation is not an easy job. Aword-to-word translation might look foolish. There is the story of a student who translated the Malayalam idiom ‘alkarku Kayyum kanakkumilla’ as people had no hands and arithmetic. Another boy translated ‘Pazhamchollu’ as banana talk. A translator must be aware of the idioms and phrases in a language and look for equivalent idioms in the target language. Merely replacing a word by a similar meaning does not make proper translation. I am good at languages and I believe I can be ‘a good translator. I also want to translate some ne novels in Malayalam into English.

Making notes and taking notes are different things. In Class XI you learned how to make notes, while reading a piece of writing. Here we are going to see certain things about note-taking. You can take notes when you are listening to a lecturer or interviewing a person. Note-taking helps to improve your listening skills.

A very systematic and organized format for taking notes is called the Cornell Method. 

Here are the steps to follow:

• Draw a margin 2-3 inches 
• As you listen to the lecture, write all the important ideas on the right side. 
• Leave some space after each idea (This is for filling in details later.) 
• After the lecture complete the spaces with as many words and phrases you heard. 
• For every important bit of information, write a ‘cue’ in the left margin.

 Here is an example: 

In the first Unit you read the speech The 3Ls of Empowerment’ by Christine Lagarde. Imagine that she is speaking to you and you are taking down notes.

The 3Ls of Empowerment

Present scenario:

• 21^st century poses many challenges. 
• 1/2 of world’s population is women. 
• Women denied opportunities, so no economic growth. 
• 3 Ls

 1^st L:

• Learning helps women to break shackles 
• More in the developing world African adage

 2nd L:

• Labour helps women to flourish and achieve their potential. 
• Equal pay for equal work Eliminating gender gaps Changing existing laws regarding inheritance

 3rd L:

• Leadership to enable to full innate abilities and talents. 
• Dare the difference Stepping out of comfort zones.

Conclusion: A more prosperous world.