Dear ENC 1101 sections and 1102 sections:
One of the perks of teaching college is that I get to meet new minds and see fresh faces every 4 months. But one of the down sides of teaching college is that it goes by so very fast.
It has been a great semester getting to know all of you this semester (or seeing you all over again if you were in a previous semester with me). My hope is that I have equipped you all with the tools that you need to go on with your undergraduate studies to be strong critical thinkers who are intrigued and enticed to ask question after question after question, because with questions comes research and with research comes solutions and new ideas.
As you have become critical thinkers you have in turn become stronger writers, and we did a lot of writing. I would like to think that most of you have walked away with a better appreciation for the art of writing, but most imporatantly, the art of rhetoric. Now that you know the techniques involved in argument, whether it be to persuade, inform or entertain, you now understand the importance of knowing who your audience is, what your purpose is, how to appeal to your audience through the use of logos, ethos and pathos, what kinds of claims can be used, and how not to commit a fallacy.
I hope you have had as enjoyable of an experience as I have, but if not, that is perfectly understandable, just make sure you can provide evidence for why you didn't. Leave me a post on your blog as your adieu letting me know some of you favorite moments, least favorite, activities you liked the best, or would have liked to see more of, what didn't work for you, what did, and ultimately how you feel today, at the end of the semester, as a writer.
I'm sure I will catch you all around campus, don't be shy, say hello, don't write anything about me on Juicycampus.com since we all agree it's not a website worth our intellectual time (use pickaprof.com instead; has much more credibility to it), and don't ever stop questioning anything!
Make sure to post up and email your url to me by midnight Friday or become one of my ROADIES here on my blog so I have easy access to your blog. Good luck with your future endeavors!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Blog #9
ENC 1101:
Visit the discussion board in Blackboard, where you will post blog #9, and there you will find instructions.
ENC 1102:
Blog on the movie we watched in class "On Skid Row". Begin with a personal reaction to the video then move on into a discussion regarding the elements of the videos argument by first identifying the videos purpose, genre, and audience, the rhetorical strategies used including appeals to ethos, logos, pathos, the evidence they use to support their argument and in your opinion how effective the video is. In addition detail its strengths and/or weaknesses.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
The Most Expensive Social Issue in our History
On November 4th United States citizens not only voted for the next president of our country, but also on state representatives, judges as well as ammendments. One of those ammendments, in particular, has now become one of the most expensive social issues in our history as defenders on both sides of the issue rallied for support.
Florida Ammendment 2 stated: "This amendment protects marriage as the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife and provides that no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized."
Two existing Florida statutes already prohibited same-sex marriage:
Florida Statute 741.212(1) defines marriage as the legal union between one man and one woman and provides that the term "spouse" applies only to a member of such union (FL. Stat. 741.212(1),(3)).
Florida also adopted a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1997 which was codified as Florida Statute 741.212. The amendment as written includes a clause prohibiting judges from overturning the law. This is a response to what happened in Massachusetts, where a judge overturned that state's law banning same-sex marriage.
Amendment 2 was approved on election day with 62.1% of the vote. Voters in 26 states other states have also passed constitutional amendments prohibiting same-sex marriage. Three others states including Florida, Arizona (Proposition 102)and California (Proposition 8) proposed these amendments on the November ballot. And in Arkansas voters passed by 57% an ammendment making it illegal for any individual cohabiting outside of a valid marriage to adopt or provide foster care to children. (In other words if you are not married you can not adopt or provide foster care children.) This ammendment was passed in an effort to prohibit same sex couples from adopting or providing foster care but as a result also affects heterosexual couples as well as single adults who want to parent.
What makes the California ammendment interesting is that on September 2nd 2005 California Senate approved bill #19 21-15 approving same-sex marriage and on September 6, the California State Assembly followed suit with a vote of 41-35, making California's legislature the first in the nation to approve a same-sex marriage bill without court pressure.
California continues to allow domestic-partner registration, a right similar to civil unions found in other states which grants "same-sex couples all state-level rights and obligations of marriage — in areas such as inheritance, income tax, insurance and hospital visitation" but does not apply to "federal-level rights of marriage that cannot be granted by states".
In Florida supporters of Ammendment 2 argued that the amendment would protect children by ensuring that only the form of marriage between a man and a woman would ever be celebrated in Florida, that the Florida statute that already provides for a single form of marriage could be overturned by a court on constitutional grounds if this ammendement was not passed and that if the amendment fails, school children could be indoctrinated in the gay lifestyle.
Opponents argue that health care and pension benefit plans which cover unmarried couples, even heterosexual older couples, living together and which are now legally valid may be adversely affected. In addition they argue that Article I of the Florida Constitution, known as the Declaration of Rights, establishes rights, but this amendment would instead limit the right to marry. There are already other Florida Laws that expressly prohibit homosexual unions, so this amendments purpose is much larger than that and if passed will be used to restrict all relationships that are not a legal marriage under Florida's Statutes. Opponents also say that elderly people in the state who, after being widowed, have subsequently chosen a domestic partnership in order to retain certain benefits, will be adversely impacted by the measure.
In her blog, TheDailyBeast.com, Melissa Etheridge, who exchanged vows with her longtime partner in a 2003 ceremony, declared she wouldn't pay her taxes because she argues that her marriage with Tammy Lynn Michaels is no longer recognized as such under Prop 8, therefore, “she and I are not allowed the same right under the state constitution as any other citizen. Okay, so I am taking that to mean I do not have to pay my state taxes because I am not a full citizen...I mean that would just be wrong, to make someone pay taxes and not give them the same rights, sounds sort of like that taxation without representation thing from the history books,” Melissa adds that she and other gay citizens “will not rest until we have the full rights of any other citizen. It is that simple, no fearful vote will ever stop us, that is not the American way. Come to think of it, I should get a federal tax break too...”
Let me "wallow in complexity" for a little.
Is this a moral argument or a civil rights argument? Was our country not founded on the premise that all people are created equal therefore we are all entitled to equal rights and equal opportunities? Where does the definition of marriage come from? The church? And if so what about seperation of church and state? Would a word change suffice to grant all individual equal rights such as using "civil unions" or "domestic partnership" rather than "marriage"? The people of this country have fought long and hard over the years to enforce and protect our civil rights, so why is this issue any different from womens rights, the right to vote, desegregation? The Florida ammendment clearly states "no other union" will be recognized therefore that couple is not entitled to the same rights as those who get "married". What are the unintended consequences of these laws, particularly the Arkansas law that claims you are unfit to raise a child unless you are married? What evidence exists that "married" couples provide a safer, more secure, happier home for children? What happens when those couples get divorced? How different are divorce's raising children as single parents from a woman or man who adopts a child a single parent? I'm left with so many questions and a need for answers. What are your thoughts?
Florida Ammendment 2 stated: "This amendment protects marriage as the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife and provides that no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized."
Two existing Florida statutes already prohibited same-sex marriage:
Florida Statute 741.212(1) defines marriage as the legal union between one man and one woman and provides that the term "spouse" applies only to a member of such union (FL. Stat. 741.212(1),(3)).
Florida also adopted a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1997 which was codified as Florida Statute 741.212. The amendment as written includes a clause prohibiting judges from overturning the law. This is a response to what happened in Massachusetts, where a judge overturned that state's law banning same-sex marriage.
Amendment 2 was approved on election day with 62.1% of the vote. Voters in 26 states other states have also passed constitutional amendments prohibiting same-sex marriage. Three others states including Florida, Arizona (Proposition 102)and California (Proposition 8) proposed these amendments on the November ballot. And in Arkansas voters passed by 57% an ammendment making it illegal for any individual cohabiting outside of a valid marriage to adopt or provide foster care to children. (In other words if you are not married you can not adopt or provide foster care children.) This ammendment was passed in an effort to prohibit same sex couples from adopting or providing foster care but as a result also affects heterosexual couples as well as single adults who want to parent.
What makes the California ammendment interesting is that on September 2nd 2005 California Senate approved bill #19 21-15 approving same-sex marriage and on September 6, the California State Assembly followed suit with a vote of 41-35, making California's legislature the first in the nation to approve a same-sex marriage bill without court pressure.
California continues to allow domestic-partner registration, a right similar to civil unions found in other states which grants "same-sex couples all state-level rights and obligations of marriage — in areas such as inheritance, income tax, insurance and hospital visitation" but does not apply to "federal-level rights of marriage that cannot be granted by states".
In Florida supporters of Ammendment 2 argued that the amendment would protect children by ensuring that only the form of marriage between a man and a woman would ever be celebrated in Florida, that the Florida statute that already provides for a single form of marriage could be overturned by a court on constitutional grounds if this ammendement was not passed and that if the amendment fails, school children could be indoctrinated in the gay lifestyle.
Opponents argue that health care and pension benefit plans which cover unmarried couples, even heterosexual older couples, living together and which are now legally valid may be adversely affected. In addition they argue that Article I of the Florida Constitution, known as the Declaration of Rights, establishes rights, but this amendment would instead limit the right to marry. There are already other Florida Laws that expressly prohibit homosexual unions, so this amendments purpose is much larger than that and if passed will be used to restrict all relationships that are not a legal marriage under Florida's Statutes. Opponents also say that elderly people in the state who, after being widowed, have subsequently chosen a domestic partnership in order to retain certain benefits, will be adversely impacted by the measure.
In her blog, TheDailyBeast.com, Melissa Etheridge, who exchanged vows with her longtime partner in a 2003 ceremony, declared she wouldn't pay her taxes because she argues that her marriage with Tammy Lynn Michaels is no longer recognized as such under Prop 8, therefore, “she and I are not allowed the same right under the state constitution as any other citizen. Okay, so I am taking that to mean I do not have to pay my state taxes because I am not a full citizen...I mean that would just be wrong, to make someone pay taxes and not give them the same rights, sounds sort of like that taxation without representation thing from the history books,” Melissa adds that she and other gay citizens “will not rest until we have the full rights of any other citizen. It is that simple, no fearful vote will ever stop us, that is not the American way. Come to think of it, I should get a federal tax break too...”
Let me "wallow in complexity" for a little.
Is this a moral argument or a civil rights argument? Was our country not founded on the premise that all people are created equal therefore we are all entitled to equal rights and equal opportunities? Where does the definition of marriage come from? The church? And if so what about seperation of church and state? Would a word change suffice to grant all individual equal rights such as using "civil unions" or "domestic partnership" rather than "marriage"? The people of this country have fought long and hard over the years to enforce and protect our civil rights, so why is this issue any different from womens rights, the right to vote, desegregation? The Florida ammendment clearly states "no other union" will be recognized therefore that couple is not entitled to the same rights as those who get "married". What are the unintended consequences of these laws, particularly the Arkansas law that claims you are unfit to raise a child unless you are married? What evidence exists that "married" couples provide a safer, more secure, happier home for children? What happens when those couples get divorced? How different are divorce's raising children as single parents from a woman or man who adopts a child a single parent? I'm left with so many questions and a need for answers. What are your thoughts?
Saturday, November 1, 2008
NCLB; Something to be proud of!
Many of you discussed that Education was an important issue for you in these elections. Perhaps it is an issue that should be of importance to you all the time, and not just now seeing as we live in a society that values entertainment higher than education and as of lately, because of the economy of the country, people have shifted their attentions away from all issues to this one. But perhaps Education has a lot more to do with economy than we would like to believe. What's the price you're paying on education?
More importantly though, now that most of you are getting ready to vote for the first time in your life, it's important that you educate yourself on issues like these. Do you know where your presidential candidate favorite stands on Education and NCLB? Here's a balancing act video of where the two candidates stand on the issue of Education. Perhaps you are thinking it doesn't matter now that the elections are about to be over, but perhaps it is of importance to keep a focus on this issue, no matter who wins. After all, you are in college and maybe you have siblings in elementary or middle or high school.
Soon after Bush took Presidency he enacted the "No Child Left Behind" act and oh what a marvelous thing. Equal education for all. Right? Sure, if that's what you want to believe. We need to hold our schools and teachers accountable. Great! Right? Sure. We need to ensure our children are Literate. Yeah! Why didn't anyone think of this before?? Well, they did, this was just a new twist to it.
Is this perhaps a way to make it "fair" for all, to prevent children from struggling in school, to help children "believe" that they are succeeding when they really are not because the schools have the ability of lowering standards according to the demographics. Perhaps this is the best thing for our nations education, or perhaps it's the reason why we are the one of the worst in education?
Poet Lamont Carey voices his thoughts on the issue:
So, arguing whether or not this act was a good one really has to be dissected and analyzed. But one thing that I tend to always believe, is that if the government or a bunch of beuracratic politicians came up with the idea, chances are it's not going to work very well. But hey, you never know right, one of these days they might actually prove us wrong.
In the case of "No Child left Behind", it is in my humble opinion, that the best judges of this act would have to be the ones who deal with it every single day in the classroom trying to "abide" by it: TEACHERS.
Below you'll find a clip of a young teacher making an argument against "No Child Left Behind". She makes a fair and objective argument, as she does not pointing the finger at Bush or other politicians but rather keeps her focus on the plan itself. Rather than ranting and complaining she analyzes and interprets and concedes to certain points in the Act (which is really important when you are trying to pursuade your viewers to agree with you). It's starts off a bit wierd which could lead to a horrible introduction and turn viewers away or it could be a grasping introduction that makes viewers want to keep watching. You be the judge of that.
NCLB; A teachers argument
Friday, October 17, 2008
Blog #6: Obama vs McCain; Who is your superhero????
Who is your Superhero???
John Stossel takes a look at how American voters percieve presidential candidates:
So what promises is your presidential candidate making you? How much truth is in his statements? We have been talking a lot about argument and rhetorical strategies, including audience, ethos, logos, pathos, claims, evidence, style, format, and all the other goodies that form a strong argument! I have pushed your limits of critical thinking and emphasized the fact that there is always multiple perspectives, multiple interpretations, and that nothing is black and white, except for our two presidential candidates. :)
Most of you will be voting this coming election, and even if you are not, you are very aware of who you would choose if you could vote and of course there are a few of you are still on the fence. Most of you know what issues are the most important to you, whether they be the economy, education, foreign policy, health insurance or abortion, your stance on these issues has a lot to do with who you will or would vote for.
Write about what issue is the most important to you as a college student in this century and why you feel your presidential elect has the best platform on this issue. And I want to know that you know what you are talking about, not tid bits of information others have told you. I want to hear you speak with credibility and conviction and knowledge. How do you do that? Research, use of language, style, tone and fairness.
Because, quite frankly if you don't know anything about these candidates, then maybe you shouldn't have the right to vote. What do you think? Watch this last video and determine whether or not you should be voting.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Zeitgeist; Religion, 9/11 and the Federal Reserve
Just a note before you begin to read the prompt; a lot of you have commented in past entries that you really don't know the candidates platforms or what they plan on doing, etc, etc. I'm assuming and hoping that most of you watched the presidential debates and are a bit more informed, however, as we are learning, everything is not always as it seems and if you are relying on just the debates to get your information I want to point you in the direction of a website called Factcheck.org who "aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding." This is a great tool to use so you may be more aware and more educated on these two candidates and can make an educated choice when you go to vote, those of you who can.
Ok, moving on.........
Have any of you seen the signs posted around campus with the title "Zeitgeist" on it? Did you look into it and read the poster for more information? Are you curious about what this film is all about? By the way, yes it is a film and they will be showing it on campus on October 9th. Have you ever heard of that word? Are you curious of what it means? Well in case you were, or weren't, according to Wikipedia, which I acknowledge is not a credible source, it means the following:
"Zeitgeist (pronounced [ˈt͡saɪtgaɪst] (help·info)) is a German language expression literally translated: Zeit, time; Geist, spirit, meaning "the spirit of the age and its society". The word zeitgeist describes the intellectual, cultural, ethical and political climate of an era or also a trend. In German, the word has more layers of meaning than the English translation, including the fact that Zeitgeist can only be observed for past events."
"The spirit of the Age and it's Society." I just like the way that sounds. Particularly at the present time, during these very difficult struggles our country is going through. What is going on in our society and what is the spirit of this age? Are we excited, are we thriving, are we upset, discontent, disenfranchised? Do you care? Do you just go about your everydays going to school, going to work without thinking about your futures past graduation and getting a job? Do you ever ask yourself, or your peers, or your family, why things are the way they are right now?
As critical thinkers you should be asking questions.....lots of questions. As we have discussed in class, things are not always black and white, they are multidimensional and it is important as it is relevant to always try to see through various perspectives and sometimes that requires a little bit of research so we can find some answers to those questions.
I would like to then invite you to take a look into the perspective that Zeitgeist has to offer. The movie is divided into three parts. The first part deals with Religion, the second with the incidents of 9/11 and the third on the Federal Reserve. While I am not asking you to watch the entire movie for this prompt, I am going to post up the one clip from every part. You can find all the movie divided into sections on YouTube or you can go directly to the website and watch or download the movie on the website if you are interested in watching the movie in its entirety.
Whichever part of the movie you do choose to watch (Religion, 9/11, Fed Reserve), I highly recommend you go to YouTube and find the rest of that particular part of the movie so you can understand from beginning to end. Then post your reply on your blog to what you have just seen. I have faith that you will be extremely intrigued to watch the entire part of the movie you choose from, and even the entire movie for that matter.
Zeitgeist; Religion Part 1 of 3
Ok, moving on.........
Have any of you seen the signs posted around campus with the title "Zeitgeist" on it? Did you look into it and read the poster for more information? Are you curious about what this film is all about? By the way, yes it is a film and they will be showing it on campus on October 9th. Have you ever heard of that word? Are you curious of what it means? Well in case you were, or weren't, according to Wikipedia, which I acknowledge is not a credible source, it means the following:
"Zeitgeist (pronounced [ˈt͡saɪtgaɪst] (help·info)) is a German language expression literally translated: Zeit, time; Geist, spirit, meaning "the spirit of the age and its society". The word zeitgeist describes the intellectual, cultural, ethical and political climate of an era or also a trend. In German, the word has more layers of meaning than the English translation, including the fact that Zeitgeist can only be observed for past events."
"The spirit of the Age and it's Society." I just like the way that sounds. Particularly at the present time, during these very difficult struggles our country is going through. What is going on in our society and what is the spirit of this age? Are we excited, are we thriving, are we upset, discontent, disenfranchised? Do you care? Do you just go about your everydays going to school, going to work without thinking about your futures past graduation and getting a job? Do you ever ask yourself, or your peers, or your family, why things are the way they are right now?
As critical thinkers you should be asking questions.....lots of questions. As we have discussed in class, things are not always black and white, they are multidimensional and it is important as it is relevant to always try to see through various perspectives and sometimes that requires a little bit of research so we can find some answers to those questions.
I would like to then invite you to take a look into the perspective that Zeitgeist has to offer. The movie is divided into three parts. The first part deals with Religion, the second with the incidents of 9/11 and the third on the Federal Reserve. While I am not asking you to watch the entire movie for this prompt, I am going to post up the one clip from every part. You can find all the movie divided into sections on YouTube or you can go directly to the website and watch or download the movie on the website if you are interested in watching the movie in its entirety.
Whichever part of the movie you do choose to watch (Religion, 9/11, Fed Reserve), I highly recommend you go to YouTube and find the rest of that particular part of the movie so you can understand from beginning to end. Then post your reply on your blog to what you have just seen. I have faith that you will be extremely intrigued to watch the entire part of the movie you choose from, and even the entire movie for that matter.
Zeitgeist; Religion Part 1 of 3
Zeitgeist; 9/11 Part 1 of 4
Zeitgeist; Federal Reserve Part 1 of 5
Monday, September 29, 2008
ENC 1102 Sept 30th Class Prompt
This prompt is ONLY FOR 1102 STUDENTS!!!!
As I am sure many of you know, there is a new law taking surge across the country that enforces how we as citizens should dress. Imagine that, the law telling you how you can wear your clothes or what you should wear. Yup, I'm talking about the sagging pants law. The law is spreading like wildfire all over the nation, which means our representatives are approving it.
The “Baggy Pants Bill” states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in public wearing his pants below his waist and thereby exposing his skin or intimate clothing.”
Here in Florida the the Prek-12th Grade Education Committee unanimously approved Sen. Gary Siplin's "pull up your britches" bill (SB 302).
Youth who let their drawers droop to expose underwear, G-strings or worse at school will first get a verbal warning for their first offense but then face suspension if they keep doing.
Recently, Dr. Phil took up the debate featuring the Ying Yang twins and members of the Hip Hop Government. The argument around sagging pants, inevitably turns to point the finger at hip hop as the culprit for this phenomenom. (you can watch clips from the show by clicking on Dr. Phil's name above) The Hip Hop Government, whose mission is to "Mobilize people of the hip hop culture to use their vote for positive change for political, social and economic concerns" has teamed up with Dallas' City Hall and launched a "Pull up your Pants Campaign."
The year after I graduated from high school Florida began to aggresively implement the uniform code, stripping away the students' right to express their idividuality, and ensuring that boys were paying attention to the teacher at the front of the room who was teaching a lesson, and not on the girl next to him whose shirt was so low cut, he couldn't concentrate on learning. The argument for learning was obviously much stronger than the one for freedom of expression and identity because today I find myself buying white, blue or burgandy polos and khakis or jeans.
All the students look the same whereby making it a "safer learning environment" for all children, presumably of course. This is all of course because parents couldn't make sure that their daughters weren't dressing like hoochie-mamas and their boys weren't dressing like gangsters. The parents could not handle the responsibility themselves so they told the schools to implement rules that would handle the situation for them. They wanted their children to dress for success.....but they needed the system to be the enforcer.
Today, those same parents who insisted on a dress code in the Public School are complaining at my children's school because the principal is enforcing the dress code policy which includes not only wearing the colors they have assigned, but also that all children tuck in their shirts and wear belts. Now they are all in a hissy because for the last few years that rule was not enforced and their child is not going to tuck in their shirt, because they don't even like to, and if they have to they will get detention for it and I'm ok with it. Hmmm, I wonder where the rebellious attitudes to break laws come from. Breaking laws and challenging them however, are two different things.
So where do you stand on this issue of sagging pants? Fad or Fashion? Disrespect and Disgusting? Are you tired of seeing boxers, underwear, and thongs hanging out and no one doing anything about it? Is it time for the government to put their hand in making sure that people are "respecting" themselves by implementing a law that tells us how low we are allowed to wear our pants? Should the government stay out of our fashion codes? What's next? The government's going to start telling us what color underwear to wear? Or how about this thought: Could this potentially spark another form of racial profiling?
Watch this last video and respond as a comment, then respond to someone else's comment.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Blog #4: The Media (for both 1101 & 1102)
Ok, so before I get into this blog, I just wanted to share with you, the proud mommy that I am, that my son is in a band called Empty Presence, and this Sunday they had a gig at the Harley Davidson "Easy Rider Music Fest". So, of course, being the very proud mommy I am, I just wanted to share with you a video here on the blog. You can also click on their band name and it will take you to their youtube account where you can leave them some words of encouragement. They've been invited to perform at Drakes in Kendall so I'll make sure to keep you all posted! (BTW, my son is the one with Black hair, he's 12, his best friend is the bassist he is aslo 12 and the drummer is the bassist's brother who is only 10)
So what kind of effect do you think the media has on you? Do you think it has any influence on you? Have you ever thought about it or are you quick to say that the media has no influence on you, what you do, eat, dress and say? Why would it right? You are your own person, you make your own choices, your own decisions, you know what you like and what you don't like? Or do you? How much control do you really have?
When my oldest son was in Kindergarten, the first Spiderman movie was released. Of course he wanted to see it, as did we, and so we went off to see this great classic superhero movie. A few days later I was in his class, helping the teacher. We were chatting away and then she begins to tell me that my son had told her that he had seen Spiderman, but that he was a bit confused about something. He said he thought it was wierd that the Green Goblin was a white guy and not a black guy.
Did your mouth just drop to the floor? Well, you can imagine mine. Rest assured though, this is not something taught at home.
How about the correlation between "Girl Power" and The Powerpuff girls? Three very different girls, each one seemingly emboddying a "typical type" of female?
Mmmm, how about an oldopic revisited.....Sarah Palin in the media. Is it at all possible that many in our society are jaded about this "VPILF", as she has been referred to, because of the way the media has exploited her as a woman. It's quiet interesting how there is so much focus on her being a beautiful, hockey mom/woman of 5, in an effort to seduce the women in this country, rather than to be focused on her abilities and capabilities as a politician. The proof was in your journal entries for prompt #2, when many of you wrote "It's time for a woman", "If she can handle being a mom of 5 she can handle being VP", etc.etc. It left me wondering, of those of you who are excited about voting for Palin because she's a woman and because it's "time for a woman", how many of you have stopped to ask what her credentials are, besides being governor for several months, or how about what her education is? Do you know what her degree is in, or if she even has one for that matter?
Moving on to something else....SEX!!! Everyone loves this topic. We can talk about it and expose our kids to it everywhere we go and everywhere we are, but let's not do it in the classroom (according to Palin's view). Well, I want to talk about it in the classroom and no one can stop me. LOL!! Let's take a look at Sex in Spongebob. LOL! Spongebob? you say. Yup! Spongebob!! If parents aren't teaching their kids about sex at home, and they aren't learning it from friends at school, or being taught about sex in school from trained professionals who know what they are talking about, no worries, Spongebob is here!! Check this out....... :) Oh, and don't be thinking, "I'll never let my kids watch spongebob" because if you think it stops at Spongebob, you're kidding yourself. Think back to all those good old holsome DISNEY movies. Oh yeah, lots of sexual inuendo in them, never mind the direct implied notion of the power structures between a man and a woman. Anyways, I digress, check out this viedo.
Now what about music, tv shows and movies that you listen to and watch?? Why do you listen to the kind of music you listen to? Why do you watch the shows you watch? What kind of effect do you think they have on you? Do they influence the way you dress? The way you talk? The way you behave? No way, right? We are all individuals with our own minds and make our own choices because we have the freedom to so, right? Well, of course there are those who beg to differ. Here is an interesting video on..... well I don't want to spoil it. Enjoy!
So what kind of effect do you think the media has on you? Do you think it has any influence on you? Have you ever thought about it or are you quick to say that the media has no influence on you, what you do, eat, dress and say? Why would it right? You are your own person, you make your own choices, your own decisions, you know what you like and what you don't like? Or do you? How much control do you really have?
When my oldest son was in Kindergarten, the first Spiderman movie was released. Of course he wanted to see it, as did we, and so we went off to see this great classic superhero movie. A few days later I was in his class, helping the teacher. We were chatting away and then she begins to tell me that my son had told her that he had seen Spiderman, but that he was a bit confused about something. He said he thought it was wierd that the Green Goblin was a white guy and not a black guy.
Did your mouth just drop to the floor? Well, you can imagine mine. Rest assured though, this is not something taught at home.
How about the correlation between "Girl Power" and The Powerpuff girls? Three very different girls, each one seemingly emboddying a "typical type" of female?
Mmmm, how about an oldopic revisited.....Sarah Palin in the media. Is it at all possible that many in our society are jaded about this "VPILF", as she has been referred to, because of the way the media has exploited her as a woman. It's quiet interesting how there is so much focus on her being a beautiful, hockey mom/woman of 5, in an effort to seduce the women in this country, rather than to be focused on her abilities and capabilities as a politician. The proof was in your journal entries for prompt #2, when many of you wrote "It's time for a woman", "If she can handle being a mom of 5 she can handle being VP", etc.etc. It left me wondering, of those of you who are excited about voting for Palin because she's a woman and because it's "time for a woman", how many of you have stopped to ask what her credentials are, besides being governor for several months, or how about what her education is? Do you know what her degree is in, or if she even has one for that matter?
Moving on to something else....SEX!!! Everyone loves this topic. We can talk about it and expose our kids to it everywhere we go and everywhere we are, but let's not do it in the classroom (according to Palin's view). Well, I want to talk about it in the classroom and no one can stop me. LOL!! Let's take a look at Sex in Spongebob. LOL! Spongebob? you say. Yup! Spongebob!! If parents aren't teaching their kids about sex at home, and they aren't learning it from friends at school, or being taught about sex in school from trained professionals who know what they are talking about, no worries, Spongebob is here!! Check this out....... :) Oh, and don't be thinking, "I'll never let my kids watch spongebob" because if you think it stops at Spongebob, you're kidding yourself. Think back to all those good old holsome DISNEY movies. Oh yeah, lots of sexual inuendo in them, never mind the direct implied notion of the power structures between a man and a woman. Anyways, I digress, check out this viedo.
Now what about music, tv shows and movies that you listen to and watch?? Why do you listen to the kind of music you listen to? Why do you watch the shows you watch? What kind of effect do you think they have on you? Do they influence the way you dress? The way you talk? The way you behave? No way, right? We are all individuals with our own minds and make our own choices because we have the freedom to so, right? Well, of course there are those who beg to differ. Here is an interesting video on..... well I don't want to spoil it. Enjoy!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Prompt #3; And you think you have it bad
The Devastation in Haiti
to see more pics by this photographer go to http://www.miamiherald.com/photogalleries/gallery/672518.html?number=28
The devastation in Haiti today, due to the hurricanes is horrendous. Storm after storm after storm this little country has been hit over and over again, and only after recently recovering from another devastating hurricane a few years ago.
Did you know that Haiti was once the richest clony in the entire world, but today Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti was once called the "Jewel of the Antilles" and now is considered the Hell-Hole of the Carribbean. Have you ever wondered why this is so, why is Haiti so poor? I'm sure many of you have discussed the seeming unfairness in the political refugee policies regarding Haitians who, like Cubans, put their lives at risk in the seas to arrive to this country for a better life. Have you ever investigated why the policies are as they are? Or do you just sit there and disagree with the policy and say it's not fair? Do you argue an issue or a topic that you potentially know nothing about? (if you are interested in learning a little more about why Haiti is so poor there is a great essay at http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/misctopic/leftover/whypoor.htm)
People around Miami are already pulling together resources to send aid to Haiti and Cuba, but it also raises a lot of questions surrounding the U.S. embargo on Cuba and foreign policies regarding Haitian immigrants in the U.S. In an article written by JACQUELINE CHARLES, TRENTON DANIEL AND EVAN S. BENN titled "After Hurricane Ike, Haiti Needs `Flood of Helicopters’" I read the following passage:
”Despite our economic downturn in Florida, we must make a generous sacrifice,” Miami Archbishop John C. Favalora said.
Favalora assured that the money would be delivered directly to churches in Haiti, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, Jamaica and other affected countries.He then waded into the contentious political debate surrounding U.S. policy toward Cuba and Haiti, calling for an immediate granting of temporary protected status for Haitians. That status would stop deportations of Haitians, which Favalora said would be unspeakably cruel given the current conditions on the island.
Favalora also said the United States should lift the embargo on Cuba for humanitarian reasons. Lifting the embargo would allow the church to more easily send ”far more donations” to storm victims, he said.
South Florida congressional representatives also urged President Bush to halt the deportation of illegal Haitian immigrants until the island recovers from Ike’s devastation. And a coalition of Cuban-American groups asked the Bush administration to temporarily lift the sanctions on family aid and remittances, as did Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
”The best thing is for people to get help from friends and family,” said Mayra Sanchez of North Miami, whose mother and daughter live in Las Tunas, Cuba, where storms have damaged many homes. “But Cubans can’t do that because of the embargo.”
Do these images appeal to your emotions? Do they bring up feelings of sympathy, sadness, pity? Do they make you want to do something about this situation or do you feel there is nothing you can do? Why do you think these images appeal to your emotions? What is in these images that provoke you? How much of it has do with the photographer and how much of it has to do with what is happening?
Last year I had the opportunity to finally visit my husbands homeland of Nicaragua. It is considered the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Yet it is a beautiful country with so much to offer and you see it in every corner you turn, in the smiles of the people, the welcoming homes, the children playing in the dirt, in their bright colored arts and crafts, on their black sanded beaches......sure there may not be central air conditioning or hot water everywhere you go, but those are minor issues compared to some of the issues the people must deal with on an everyday basis.
I want to introduce you The Children of the Dumpster:
In the city of Ocotal, in the northern part of Nicaragua, there live approximately 30 children at or near the local dump. These children not only live in some of the most deplorable conditions imaginable, but they spend the entire day, from 7am to 6pm working, rummaging
through the garbage at the dump, under inhumane conditions, collecting aluminum and plastic so they may in turn sell them to recycling buyers. The little bit of money they make is enough to feed them for the day. Of these 30 children twenty are boys and ten are girls. They range in ages from 4 years old to 16 years old. Of the thirty, only 5 attend school. Most no longer can read or write because it has been so long since the last time they went to school. Most are homeless and orphaned, and some even live at the dumpster itself with only a plastic tarp as cover. There are no adults with these children except for one mother who
is accompanied by her young daughter every day. Although Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America, it is also one of the poorest. While it is rich in beauty and culture, it is an impoverished country, and ranks as the 2nd poorest country of the western hemisphere after Haiti.
What can be done about any of these two countries? Should we feel compelled to do anything? Have you ever travelled somewhere and had an experience that remained with you forever? Do you care? Does it matter? Do you believe you have the power to change things or is it pointless to even try because it will never change, or because they need to fix their own problems?
Note: Remember that you can go anywhere with these prompts. If you want to argue a position, you can argue, if you want to inform, you can inform, if you want toentertain, you can entertain, if you want to pursuade, you can pursuade. And if you are adventurous and want to do all 4, be my guest, just don't feel locked into doing onw thing.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Women, Women, Women.....and Men?
People say that there are two things you shouldn't discuss with family and friends: Politics and Religion
But if you can't discuss these issues with family and friends, then who do you discuss them with? Yourself? And why shouldn't we discuss these issues with family and friends? Because you might hurt someone's feelings with your own opinions? Because they may think less of you for having your own opinion? Should we not voice our own opinions?
2009 marks the calendar for a new presedential elect and as such there has been a lot of rhetoric surrounding the campaigns and the now last two standing presendential candidates. Recently we discovered who the two have chosen as their vice presidential running mates.
On one hand we have the "less experienced" black male presidential candidate running alongside the "older, wiser more experienced" white male vice president and on the other we have the "older, wiser more experienced" white male presidential candidate running alongside the "less experienced" white female vice president.
Things could not have gotten more juicier than this!!! This is a FIRST in our history!!
We've been discussing issues of marginalization in class and this could not be better timing.
This morning as I was getting ready to go to work I couldn't help but overhear the conversation of the ladies from The View regarding vice president nominee Gov. Palin's daughter pregnancy. I'm sure you have all heard, but in case you haven't because you're not up to speed with what is going on with the election, it turns out that Gov. Palin's 17 yr old daughter is 5 months pregnant. According to McCains camp, they knew of the news when they offered Palin the vice presidency nomination. It was also confirmed that Palin's 5th child and newborn has down syndrome. Besides these two issues, Palin is a, dare I say, WOMAN! And, not only is she a woman, but she is, according to the Alaska Report, "American's Hottest Governor"!! So all of this is of course stirring up a lot of conversation and debate, primarily regarding the role of the woman.....duhn duhn duhn...
Ah, the role of the woman. The woman wears so many hats in this society: mother, sister, daughter, professional, lover, friend, etc. etc. But wait doesn't the man also? Father, brother, husband, professional, lover, friend, etc. etc.
As I was listening to the debate between the women, they discussed Palin's ability to be a mom of 5 and help govern the country and how she would manage all of these responsibilities. They touched on Palin's stance on abstinence and her stance on sex education in the schools (which she opposes in case you didn't know). They touched on how different the sentiment would have been had it been a black daughter that got pregnant (in other words, non supportive). Basically, most of the rhetoric surrounded the topic of women being professional moms and young women (teens) getting pregnant and their choice to keep a child. But what really got my attention within the conversation was a little comment that was made regaring the young man who impregnated Bristol (Palin's daughter)and how no one was talking about him.
It got me thinking, as the mother of two boys, where do men stand in all of this? What options or choices do men have when a woman gets pregnant? Bristol wants to keep the baby, so the family says (they are pro life after all), but what about the young man? What does he want? Does it matter what he wants?
I have my opinions on all of these issues of course, but I'm more interested in your opinions. You are the next generation of young voters, of which I hope all of you who are of age for this election are registered or will register to vote, and you will have a voice as you get older in helping form and mold the way society evolves.
I began this prompt by saying that there are two things you shouldn't discuss with family and friends; religion and politics. I then questioned why this is so and ask if it has to do with the fact that we should not discuss these matters because they are opinions. But what's wrong with opinions? Do you have an opinion? Or is your opinion formed by others, i.e your family, your religion, etc.? On the other hand, is your opinion formed by facts, stats, numbers? Or through experience? Do you question or challenge your own opinion or stances on issues? Do you look at them multidimensionally? Are you able to play devil's advocate with yourself? Can you put yourself in someone else's shoes? Do you care to have a voice? Or do you not care at all?
But if you can't discuss these issues with family and friends, then who do you discuss them with? Yourself? And why shouldn't we discuss these issues with family and friends? Because you might hurt someone's feelings with your own opinions? Because they may think less of you for having your own opinion? Should we not voice our own opinions?
2009 marks the calendar for a new presedential elect and as such there has been a lot of rhetoric surrounding the campaigns and the now last two standing presendential candidates. Recently we discovered who the two have chosen as their vice presidential running mates.
On one hand we have the "less experienced" black male presidential candidate running alongside the "older, wiser more experienced" white male vice president and on the other we have the "older, wiser more experienced" white male presidential candidate running alongside the "less experienced" white female vice president.
Things could not have gotten more juicier than this!!! This is a FIRST in our history!!
We've been discussing issues of marginalization in class and this could not be better timing.
This morning as I was getting ready to go to work I couldn't help but overhear the conversation of the ladies from The View regarding vice president nominee Gov. Palin's daughter pregnancy. I'm sure you have all heard, but in case you haven't because you're not up to speed with what is going on with the election, it turns out that Gov. Palin's 17 yr old daughter is 5 months pregnant. According to McCains camp, they knew of the news when they offered Palin the vice presidency nomination. It was also confirmed that Palin's 5th child and newborn has down syndrome. Besides these two issues, Palin is a, dare I say, WOMAN! And, not only is she a woman, but she is, according to the Alaska Report, "American's Hottest Governor"!! So all of this is of course stirring up a lot of conversation and debate, primarily regarding the role of the woman.....duhn duhn duhn...
Ah, the role of the woman. The woman wears so many hats in this society: mother, sister, daughter, professional, lover, friend, etc. etc. But wait doesn't the man also? Father, brother, husband, professional, lover, friend, etc. etc.
As I was listening to the debate between the women, they discussed Palin's ability to be a mom of 5 and help govern the country and how she would manage all of these responsibilities. They touched on Palin's stance on abstinence and her stance on sex education in the schools (which she opposes in case you didn't know). They touched on how different the sentiment would have been had it been a black daughter that got pregnant (in other words, non supportive). Basically, most of the rhetoric surrounded the topic of women being professional moms and young women (teens) getting pregnant and their choice to keep a child. But what really got my attention within the conversation was a little comment that was made regaring the young man who impregnated Bristol (Palin's daughter)and how no one was talking about him.
It got me thinking, as the mother of two boys, where do men stand in all of this? What options or choices do men have when a woman gets pregnant? Bristol wants to keep the baby, so the family says (they are pro life after all), but what about the young man? What does he want? Does it matter what he wants?
I have my opinions on all of these issues of course, but I'm more interested in your opinions. You are the next generation of young voters, of which I hope all of you who are of age for this election are registered or will register to vote, and you will have a voice as you get older in helping form and mold the way society evolves.
I began this prompt by saying that there are two things you shouldn't discuss with family and friends; religion and politics. I then questioned why this is so and ask if it has to do with the fact that we should not discuss these matters because they are opinions. But what's wrong with opinions? Do you have an opinion? Or is your opinion formed by others, i.e your family, your religion, etc.? On the other hand, is your opinion formed by facts, stats, numbers? Or through experience? Do you question or challenge your own opinion or stances on issues? Do you look at them multidimensionally? Are you able to play devil's advocate with yourself? Can you put yourself in someone else's shoes? Do you care to have a voice? Or do you not care at all?
Monday, August 25, 2008
Blog Prompt #1: Welcome to Blogging ENC 1101 & 1102
Note: If you have taken a course with me in the past you will notice that this prompt sounds very familiar. Skim through it and go to the bottom that refers to those who have had a blog in the past.
It's the beginning of a new semester and with that comes the stress of delegating classes, studying, tests, maybe work, family, friends, personal time and fun time and trying to be successful in all areas. Have you ever really thought about how you manage everything in your life? Really thought about it; broken it down sort of thing? Maybe you don't have time to really think about how you manage your everyday life, and maybe it isn't that important to you to think about it. But if you're not thinking about how you manage your life and just going with the flow, chances are you probably don't really think about other issues.
If you have had a blog in the past, your own, for my class or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability. Will you continue writing in the same style and tone and voice or are you going to change? Who will be your audience?
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
It's the beginning of a new semester and with that comes the stress of delegating classes, studying, tests, maybe work, family, friends, personal time and fun time and trying to be successful in all areas. Have you ever really thought about how you manage everything in your life? Really thought about it; broken it down sort of thing? Maybe you don't have time to really think about how you manage your everyday life, and maybe it isn't that important to you to think about it. But if you're not thinking about how you manage your life and just going with the flow, chances are you probably don't really think about other issues.
And it's more than just thinking about issues, it's challenging, questioning, analyzing and exploring issues. Breaking them down into pieces and examining them. Just like a business person or accountant would do with numbers, or how a biologist/chemist would do with cells/atoms and elements.
If this is your first time writing in a blog I challenge you to examine, question and analyze this idea of writing your thoughts, opinions on an internet blog as a journal. How does this make you feel? Consider the fact that you have security settings that you can manipulate and that you are being required to do this for a class rather than a decision you have made on your own. Consider its purpose and your audience. The style of writing you should adhere to.If you have had a blog in the past, your own, for my class or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability. Will you continue writing in the same style and tone and voice or are you going to change? Who will be your audience?
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Last Blog Prompt for the semester
Ladies & Gentlemen:
This is our last entry for the semester and fortunately for you it won't require much thinking.
It seems like it was just yesterday we began the semester, it has gone by so quickly. I still have a difficult time teaching in the summer as it never feels like it is fair to teach so much content in such a short amount of time. However, as always, I have enjoyed my time with you, and it has been my pleasure to have met you all and had the opportunity to teach you and load you with the tools that you will need for the rest of your college years.
To my 1102 students; remember to always have conviction, believe in what you say or atleast convince your audience that you believe in what you are saying. I'm proud of all of you for sticking around for the challenge and not getting scared off on the first day. It says a lot about your character, or there were no other classes you could take...lol. Whatever the reason was, I'm glad you stuck around.
To my 1930 students; you are just beginning on the road to learning how to argue and analyze and how to compose an analysis or argument. Some of you I will see again next semester and perhaps again in the spring, and I look forward to having the opportunity to preparing you all the way through myself. For those of you who decided to choose another instructor for 1101, well, you'll regret it.....it's ok though, no hard feelings......lol, just kidding. Know however, if you need help, you can still look for me.
For your last entry, please feel free to write on anything you want. Recap the semester, complain, kiss my butt in hopes for a better grade, lol, express your concerns about college, what you did or didn't learn, etc.
That's it folks. Perhaps I will see you around on campus, don't ignore me either or pretend you don't know me! Good luck to all of you!
This is our last entry for the semester and fortunately for you it won't require much thinking.
It seems like it was just yesterday we began the semester, it has gone by so quickly. I still have a difficult time teaching in the summer as it never feels like it is fair to teach so much content in such a short amount of time. However, as always, I have enjoyed my time with you, and it has been my pleasure to have met you all and had the opportunity to teach you and load you with the tools that you will need for the rest of your college years.
To my 1102 students; remember to always have conviction, believe in what you say or atleast convince your audience that you believe in what you are saying. I'm proud of all of you for sticking around for the challenge and not getting scared off on the first day. It says a lot about your character, or there were no other classes you could take...lol. Whatever the reason was, I'm glad you stuck around.
To my 1930 students; you are just beginning on the road to learning how to argue and analyze and how to compose an analysis or argument. Some of you I will see again next semester and perhaps again in the spring, and I look forward to having the opportunity to preparing you all the way through myself. For those of you who decided to choose another instructor for 1101, well, you'll regret it.....it's ok though, no hard feelings......lol, just kidding. Know however, if you need help, you can still look for me.
For your last entry, please feel free to write on anything you want. Recap the semester, complain, kiss my butt in hopes for a better grade, lol, express your concerns about college, what you did or didn't learn, etc.
That's it folks. Perhaps I will see you around on campus, don't ignore me either or pretend you don't know me! Good luck to all of you!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Blog Prompt #3: To sag or not to sag; That is the question
As I am sure many of you know, there is a new law taking surge across the country that enforces how we as citizens should dress. Imagine that, the law telling you how you can wear your clothes or what you should wear. Yup, I'm talking about the sagging pants law. The law is spreading like wildfire all over the nation, which means our representatives are approving it.
The “Baggy Pants Bill” states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in public wearing his pants below his waist and thereby exposing his skin or intimate clothing.”
Here in Florida the the Prek-12th Grade Education Committee unanimously approved Sen. Gary Siplin's "pull up your britches" bill (SB 302). It next will go to the Senate floor after the Legislature convenes its regular annual session in March.
Youth who let their drawers droop to expose underwear, G-strings or worse at school will first get a verbal warning for their first offense but then face suspension if they keep doing.
Recently, Dr. Phil took up the debate featuring the Ying Yang twins and members of the Hip Hop Government. The argument around sagging pants, inevitably turns to point the finger at hip hop as the culprit for this phenomenom. Hip Hop Government, whose mission is to "Mobilize people of the hip hop culture to use their vote for positive change for political, social and economic concerns" has teamed up with Dallas' City Hall and launched a "Pull up your Pants Campaign."
The year after I graduated from high school Florida began to aggresively implement the uniform code, stripping away the ability to express oneself's identity, and ensuring that boys were paying attention to the teacher at the front of the room who was teaching a lesson, and not on the girl next to him whose shirt was so low cut, he couldn't concentrate on learning. The argument for learning was obviously much stronger thatn the one for freedom of expression and identity because today I find myself buying white, blue or burgandy polos and khakis or jeans and all the students look the same whereby making it a safer learning environment for all children. And all because parents couldn't make sure their girls weren't dressing like hoochie-mamas and their boys weren't dressing like gang members. OR, they were encouraging their kids to dress that way and were buying it for them.
So where do you stand on this issue? Fad or Fashion? Disrespect and Disgusting? Are you tired of seeing boxers, underwear, and thongs hanging out and no one doing anything about it? Is it time for the government to put their hand in making sure that people are "respecting" themselves by implementing a law that tells us how low we are allowed to wear our pants?
The “Baggy Pants Bill” states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in public wearing his pants below his waist and thereby exposing his skin or intimate clothing.”
Here in Florida the the Prek-12th Grade Education Committee unanimously approved Sen. Gary Siplin's "pull up your britches" bill (SB 302). It next will go to the Senate floor after the Legislature convenes its regular annual session in March.
Youth who let their drawers droop to expose underwear, G-strings or worse at school will first get a verbal warning for their first offense but then face suspension if they keep doing.
Recently, Dr. Phil took up the debate featuring the Ying Yang twins and members of the Hip Hop Government. The argument around sagging pants, inevitably turns to point the finger at hip hop as the culprit for this phenomenom. Hip Hop Government, whose mission is to "Mobilize people of the hip hop culture to use their vote for positive change for political, social and economic concerns" has teamed up with Dallas' City Hall and launched a "Pull up your Pants Campaign."
The year after I graduated from high school Florida began to aggresively implement the uniform code, stripping away the ability to express oneself's identity, and ensuring that boys were paying attention to the teacher at the front of the room who was teaching a lesson, and not on the girl next to him whose shirt was so low cut, he couldn't concentrate on learning. The argument for learning was obviously much stronger thatn the one for freedom of expression and identity because today I find myself buying white, blue or burgandy polos and khakis or jeans and all the students look the same whereby making it a safer learning environment for all children. And all because parents couldn't make sure their girls weren't dressing like hoochie-mamas and their boys weren't dressing like gang members. OR, they were encouraging their kids to dress that way and were buying it for them.
So where do you stand on this issue? Fad or Fashion? Disrespect and Disgusting? Are you tired of seeing boxers, underwear, and thongs hanging out and no one doing anything about it? Is it time for the government to put their hand in making sure that people are "respecting" themselves by implementing a law that tells us how low we are allowed to wear our pants?
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Blog #2: Inspirations of Change
I was left with such inspiration after reading Ana's comment (which I think was her first blog entry that she mistakenly placed as a comment on my blog :) ) Ana, even if it wasn't your intention for everyone to read your prompt, those who did read it (as I know many of my younger freshman did as they made comments to me in class about it), were left inspired, as I was.
And so I want to continue with this idea of change. Change is a difficult task, it is a scary one, it means letting go of your comfort zone and all you know and hoping that change will be better. Change = Revolution to many. Change never begins with bad intentions, it always starts for the better, but what may seem like a bad change to some, is in fact a good change to others. It's all about perspective.
For instance, we look at the situation in Cuba. It began with the idea to change, the idea of revolution, it's intentions were initially good ones, and there are definitely people that still believe that it was a good change, it was for the best considering the state of the country prior to Fidel. It's all about perspective, where you stand in life, in status, in class, etc., etc. No one wants to go from more to less, or high to low. Sometimes, though we may not have a choice, right.
I for one, have had to make many changes in the course of my life. By the time I graduated high school I had gone to 4 different elementary/middle schools and 3 different high schools. Adaptability is definitely a trait you learn along the way. In my life I have lived in 4 different states and lived in 15 different homes/apartments. Every single one of those changes was difficult, without a doubt, and along with those changes came sacrifices of certain things, but because of these changes, I have learned so much about the world around me, the diversity of different places, the looks of different people, the voices and slang of different tones and languages. They are changes that have become a part of my identity and one more piece of me.
And so I want to continue with this idea of change. Change is a difficult task, it is a scary one, it means letting go of your comfort zone and all you know and hoping that change will be better. Change = Revolution to many. Change never begins with bad intentions, it always starts for the better, but what may seem like a bad change to some, is in fact a good change to others. It's all about perspective.
For instance, we look at the situation in Cuba. It began with the idea to change, the idea of revolution, it's intentions were initially good ones, and there are definitely people that still believe that it was a good change, it was for the best considering the state of the country prior to Fidel. It's all about perspective, where you stand in life, in status, in class, etc., etc. No one wants to go from more to less, or high to low. Sometimes, though we may not have a choice, right.
I for one, have had to make many changes in the course of my life. By the time I graduated high school I had gone to 4 different elementary/middle schools and 3 different high schools. Adaptability is definitely a trait you learn along the way. In my life I have lived in 4 different states and lived in 15 different homes/apartments. Every single one of those changes was difficult, without a doubt, and along with those changes came sacrifices of certain things, but because of these changes, I have learned so much about the world around me, the diversity of different places, the looks of different people, the voices and slang of different tones and languages. They are changes that have become a part of my identity and one more piece of me.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Blog Prompt #1: Welcome to BLOGGING!!
It's the beginning of a new semester and with that comes the stress of delegating classes, studying, tests, maybe work, family, friends, personal time and fun time and trying to be successful in all areas. Have you ever really thought about how you manage everything in your life? Really thought about it; broken it down sort of thing? Maybe you don't have time to really think about how you manage your everyday life, and maybe it isn't that important to you to think about it. But if you're not thinking about how you manage your life and just going with the flow, chances are you probably don't really think about other issues.
If you have had a blog in the past, your own, or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability.
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
And it's more than just thinking about issues, it's challenging, questioning, analyzing and exploring issues. Breaking them down into pieces and examining them. Just like a business person or accountant would do with numbers, or how a biologist/chemist would do with cells/atoms and elements.
If this is your first time writing in a blog I challenge you to examine, question and analyze this idea of writing your thoughts, opinions on an internet blog as a journal. How does this make you feel? Consider the fact that you have security settings that you can manipulate and that you are being required to do this for a class rather than a decision you have made on your own. Consider its purpose and your audience. The style of writing you should adhere to.If you have had a blog in the past, your own, or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability.
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Blog #5: Reality TV
Reality TV has become the new phenomenon of interest over the past few years. It just seems like now anyone can come up with any stupid idea and get a fricken show and become famous overnight. Oh, and let's not forget about those wonderful MTV casters who appear on one show and then suddenly they are on all kinds of other "competitive" shows to win money. Do these people have jobs? A real life? Or am I just hating here?
Well, I'm not going to lie, I am a victim of this ridiculous trend myself, however, I am by no way shape or form obsessed with any of these shows to the point where I will not plan anything else because I might miss the show. What is that???? A few weeks ago I was at my moms getting together to celebrate my brother's girlfriends birthday and a few friends showed up (male and female) and next thing I know it's 9 or 10pm and ALL of them, the guys included were freaking out to turn on the TV because the new episode of the The Hills was on. Are you serious? THE HILLS??
What is it with people wanting to live vicariously through other people's lives? Why can't people live their own lives and make the best and the most out of their own life? Maybe we would see more change....more human progression. For instance, those that are Hollywood Celebrity obsessed. They can tell you everything that is going on in a celebrity's life, as IF they were all buddy buddy with that person and knew them personally and just got off the phone with them. Are you kidding me? You read it in a taboid magazine, ok ok maybe a legit magazine, but still what makes you believe that it's true?? Look what happened the other day...this is how wonderful the press is and the media that we so wholeheartedly rely on to get our current information.....this happened a few days prior to Clinton finally giving up, they announce all over the tv because the American Press gave the stamp of approval on this as legit information, that Clinton would be giving up that night. Next thing you know Clinton's advisors or whatever are calling every news station in the US telling them that this is false information. (she was going to wait a few more days before throwing in the towel, lol)
But after all is said and done, there is some great news about "reality" tv, but this is the real thing. How many of you have checked out CURRENT? It's an "Interactive cable channel where viewers send in video stories they've created to be aired on the network." Look it up online or check it out on TV; you would never believe who started it all either!! LOL!
Well, I'm not going to lie, I am a victim of this ridiculous trend myself, however, I am by no way shape or form obsessed with any of these shows to the point where I will not plan anything else because I might miss the show. What is that???? A few weeks ago I was at my moms getting together to celebrate my brother's girlfriends birthday and a few friends showed up (male and female) and next thing I know it's 9 or 10pm and ALL of them, the guys included were freaking out to turn on the TV because the new episode of the The Hills was on. Are you serious? THE HILLS??
What is it with people wanting to live vicariously through other people's lives? Why can't people live their own lives and make the best and the most out of their own life? Maybe we would see more change....more human progression. For instance, those that are Hollywood Celebrity obsessed. They can tell you everything that is going on in a celebrity's life, as IF they were all buddy buddy with that person and knew them personally and just got off the phone with them. Are you kidding me? You read it in a taboid magazine, ok ok maybe a legit magazine, but still what makes you believe that it's true?? Look what happened the other day...this is how wonderful the press is and the media that we so wholeheartedly rely on to get our current information.....this happened a few days prior to Clinton finally giving up, they announce all over the tv because the American Press gave the stamp of approval on this as legit information, that Clinton would be giving up that night. Next thing you know Clinton's advisors or whatever are calling every news station in the US telling them that this is false information. (she was going to wait a few more days before throwing in the towel, lol)
But after all is said and done, there is some great news about "reality" tv, but this is the real thing. How many of you have checked out CURRENT? It's an "Interactive cable channel where viewers send in video stories they've created to be aired on the network." Look it up online or check it out on TV; you would never believe who started it all either!! LOL!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Water Cooler Discussion
Ok, so its inevitable that this would be the next blog prompt and I will apologize in advance for those of you who don't care for this topic.
Today was a day that will go down in the history books. Yup, for the first time in our American history a black man has won the nomination for the candidacy of presidency. (did i say that right?) Either way, it would have been a historical day had it been Obama or Clinton but it appears this country is more prepared to handle a black president than a female president.
So what does that say about our country? Does that mean that we really have surpassed the lines of racism and sexism? We've discussed these two topics in class and many of you have suggested that we have come far from those days and either or of those two issues are practically non-existent. But then there are those of you who beg to differ, particularly those of you, as you will notice, that have traveled or lived outside of South Florida.
For this prompt, think about this topic, you don't need to know anything about politics to think critically about the prospect of having a black male president, the historical moment that this is, what it means for blacks across the country, and IF Clinton gets the vice-presidency or accepts the invititation, what that means for women across the country. Will it CHANGE things. Change is a word that both candidates threw around during their entire campaign and the implications of the words were far different from any of the other candidates who used the word.
And on a side note, for those of you who are interested in the show next week at the Miami Space Planeterium, here is the flyer. I'm picking up tickets tomorrow so if you tell me how many and what night before the end of the weekend I can secure your tickets at $10. If not, take your chance on the website or at the door.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Blog #3: How are you influenced?
Does media have an influence on you?? Have you ever thought about it or are you quick to say that the media has no influence on you, what you do, eat, dress and say?
Have you ever stopped and thought about the movies that are released during a year and wondered if there is a possible correlation between the movies you are watching and a particular mentality it may be influencing you to have according to the times? For instance, think about the movies that have been released post 9/11. We were in a time of "sensitivity" hence, fantasy and comedic movies were popular as were comic book style violence (SpiderMan and Die another Day) But as the years have gone by, the movies have changed, and it would almost appear as though recently movies have this superhero quality to them as if to inspire this superhero mentality in all of us and suggest that we (the U.S) are the superheroes of the world. And let's not even talk about the war movies that have released, inspiring a sense of Patriotism and Hoorah sensibility.
Why do you listen to the kind of music you listen to? Why do you watch the shows you watch? What kind of effect do they have on you? Do they influence the way you dress? The way you talk? The way you behave? You probably think not, right? We are all individuals with our own minds and make our own choices because we have the freedom to so, right? Well, of course there are those who beg to differ. Here is an interesting video on..... well I don't want to spoil it. Enjoy!
Have you ever stopped and thought about the movies that are released during a year and wondered if there is a possible correlation between the movies you are watching and a particular mentality it may be influencing you to have according to the times? For instance, think about the movies that have been released post 9/11. We were in a time of "sensitivity" hence, fantasy and comedic movies were popular as were comic book style violence (SpiderMan and Die another Day) But as the years have gone by, the movies have changed, and it would almost appear as though recently movies have this superhero quality to them as if to inspire this superhero mentality in all of us and suggest that we (the U.S) are the superheroes of the world. And let's not even talk about the war movies that have released, inspiring a sense of Patriotism and Hoorah sensibility.
Why do you listen to the kind of music you listen to? Why do you watch the shows you watch? What kind of effect do they have on you? Do they influence the way you dress? The way you talk? The way you behave? You probably think not, right? We are all individuals with our own minds and make our own choices because we have the freedom to so, right? Well, of course there are those who beg to differ. Here is an interesting video on..... well I don't want to spoil it. Enjoy!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Blog Prompt #2: Limitations?? What Limitations, I don't have any Limitations!
When is too much PDA too much? Or is that even a valid question? If you don't like it turn away, right? Or is there a line of disrespect that can be crossed? And if there is a line should there be a governing policy on that? Gay or Lesbian PDA may seem disrespecful to some. But who determines what is disrespectful or "immoral" and for that matter how can you legislate morality?
Seems like everywhere you turn now-a-days, someone is coming up with a new rule about something. Is there a fear that the new generations may become to "loose" or "free" like the generation of the 60's? Think about the 60's and you may simply think of drugs and sex, but there was a lot more going on. Freedoms. The freedom to think, choose, work, talk.....it was a breaking of the shackles that had been holding a society in a grip because society supposedly didn't know what was best for itself.
This weekend I had the chance to finally see the "Golden Compass", and at some point in the movie my husband turned to me and asked me, "What is this movie about?" I looked at him and laughed and said, "It's all about the man behind the curtain. "
I'm sure many of you have heard that saying. Some of you may picture the Wizard of Oz curtain that hides the puny little old man who is "in control" of everyone, the "all powerful", the "all knowledged." But have you ever really stopped to think about the "man" and who that "man" really is? Do you believe that there is a "man behind the curtain" telling you what you should or shouldn't think, how you should or shouldn't dress, how to act or not act? Or do you believe that you govern yourself, and your thoughts? Are you allowed to think freely? Or do you just think you do? And if there really is a "man" behind the curtain, who is that "man", or is it really a man?
I stumbled upon this video and found it, quiet interesting, needless to say.
It never seizes to amaze me the lengths we will go to.........well you determine for yourself.....just watch.
Seems like everywhere you turn now-a-days, someone is coming up with a new rule about something. Is there a fear that the new generations may become to "loose" or "free" like the generation of the 60's? Think about the 60's and you may simply think of drugs and sex, but there was a lot more going on. Freedoms. The freedom to think, choose, work, talk.....it was a breaking of the shackles that had been holding a society in a grip because society supposedly didn't know what was best for itself.
This weekend I had the chance to finally see the "Golden Compass", and at some point in the movie my husband turned to me and asked me, "What is this movie about?" I looked at him and laughed and said, "It's all about the man behind the curtain. "
I'm sure many of you have heard that saying. Some of you may picture the Wizard of Oz curtain that hides the puny little old man who is "in control" of everyone, the "all powerful", the "all knowledged." But have you ever really stopped to think about the "man" and who that "man" really is? Do you believe that there is a "man behind the curtain" telling you what you should or shouldn't think, how you should or shouldn't dress, how to act or not act? Or do you believe that you govern yourself, and your thoughts? Are you allowed to think freely? Or do you just think you do? And if there really is a "man" behind the curtain, who is that "man", or is it really a man?
I stumbled upon this video and found it, quiet interesting, needless to say.
It never seizes to amaze me the lengths we will go to.........well you determine for yourself.....just watch.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Welcome ENC 1101 Summer A!!
It's the beginning of a new semester and with that comes the stress of delegating classes, studying, tests, maybe work, family, friends, personal time and fun time and trying to be successful in all areas. Have you ever really thought about how you manage everything in your life? Really thought about it; broken it down sort of thing? Maybe you don't have time to really think about how you manage your everyday life, and maybe it isn't that important to you to think about it. But if you're not thinking about how you manage your life and just going with the flow, chances are you probably don't really think about other issues.
If you have had a blog in the past, your own, or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability.
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
And it's more than just thinking about issues, it's challenging, questioning, analyzing and exploring issues. Breaking them down into pieces and examining them. Just like a business person or accountant would do with numbers, or how a biologist/chemist would do with cells/atoms and elements.
If this is your first time writing in a blog I challenge you to examine, question and analyze this idea of writing your thoughts, opinions on an internet blog as a journal. How does this make you feel? Consider the fact that you have security settings that you can manipulate and that you are being required to do this for a class rather than a decision you have made on your own. Consider its purpose and your audience. The style of writing you should adhere to.If you have had a blog in the past, your own, or for another class, then I challenge you to examine, question and analyze your experience with having a blog. Consider why you had one, how it made you feel, and how you manipulated the security settings for your own sense of security. Consider changes you may make. Consider how writing a blog may have helped or hindered your writing ability.
So this is your very first blog prompt/journal entry for the semester!! Are you excited? LOL! Probably not, but that's ok. Maybe, hopefully, eventually, you will begin to actually enjoy this process. Just remember: Always think outside the box!
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Blog #10: My final farewell to the Spring Classes of '08
Dear classes,
Well, it's that time of year again, and I like to just write you all a final farewell letter as a culmination of the semesters learnings.
First, I want to say that it has been an honor and a privelege to teach you all this semester. It seems as if it was just yesterday that we walked into the first day of class and I gave my intimidating speech to try and weed out the slackers, or atleast most of them. :)
Here's some of the memories that stand out to me at the moment:
Half of my 1101 students returning for 1102 and keeping to one half of the room.
Shrinking my last 1102 class of the day from 30 to 19 students.
Bryan M. leaving his horn in class.
Late night IM's with Arnold, Mike, Raul and William
Rene keeping me out of the classroom and then Yanko and Jonathan trying to keep Raul, William and Rene out of the room.
Paola's strength overcoming Yanko's after pulling the door opened from him!
Hector not being able to figure out "technology"
Brian and Chris realizing they had done the writing assignment completely wrong
Dantes....Dantes.....well, nuff said. Thanks for walking me to class, oh and everything else. LOL! Don't take it too seriously!
Going with Yeli, Danny, Michelle, Crystal, Nicole and Camilo to the beach and handing out bags to the homeless.
Danielle trusting her peers to tell them a testimonial about her life. (Inspiring)
Trying to convince Basmah to see a writing tutor.
Teaching William spanish; "Hasta" -William, "Luego" -Tasha
Yeli calling to ask me my thoughts on ZenZuu; at midnight....
Some of you finding me on Facebook or Myspace and requesting me; Adam D. being ammused by the fact that he knows what his teacher is up to because of her updates.
Lola and Dantes fighting with each other all the time.
Ruben's articulate oratory skills. (Impressive)
Gabriel's style of writing. Loved it.
Evio not understanding how he got a certain grade (better than he expected) and wanting an explanation.
Trying to figure out what was up between Jonathan and Angelica.
Learning Amna's real true feelings about raising children. LOL! I recommend you not have any! LOL!
Heated racial topic conversations in 12 noon class.
My quiet students; Men, Maria M, Renata, Daphnie, Rosanna, Vanessa C., Karen, Fernanda, Danny Castro, Sophia, and Bryttany S. - even though you rarely said anything unless I was forcing you to speak, I know that great thoughts were transpiring in those minds and I got a glimpse of that in your blogs.
Talking about my family
The culture club boys: G.C., Steven, Mike and Arnold
Telling Rae and Brian to stop with the texting
Cadet being impressed that a teacher would actually care. i'm still waiting for our chat though.
My bubbly, always happy Bianca! Even when I have to tell her to be quiet!
Jonathan always being wayyyyyy behind and sitting outside waiting for class to end so he wouldn't have to walk in late. Sure!
Denise fitting in with a bunch of kids.
Sasha getting the giggles during her presentation.
Jelly Belly, Yeli Belly. It's been awsome watching your growth in the last two semesters.
Evio learning Hawaiian!
Belkis too shy to talk, but not too shy to show off her brand new, beautiful Tat!
Remember Hector if you're going to get into politics you better start showing conviction. You could have the power to change, but you have to believe.
Kim and Shay full of questions!
Having to say goodbye to Jason 2 weeks before the end of the semester. (My thoughts are with him and his family)
Canadian Chris, never impressed with the Americans! :)
Danny Jacobo and his Purple face and hands! OMgosh!
Raul being 20 minutes late for his own Presentation!
Kenny asking me to be the advisor for a NORML style club on campus
Roberto getting the balls to take my class
Gretel not ever saying a word, two semesters in a row! How is that possible? And oh the thoughts she weaves in her pretty little head that I get to enter when she posts up her journal entries.
Chris Y., even though you may not even read this because you have only donlike one blog, but then again that's better than you're cousin Jonathan, opening up to your peers and sharing some personal insight.
Always confusing Jaclyn and Adriana while I was taking attendance (but I don't think they ever knew) and just being thankful that neither of them ever missed a class!
Finding out Yanko means John.
Alexandra naming the "Tra La La"!!
Nicole Not Singing for us this semester.
Being invited to NRHH dinner by Kim. (honored)
Liz frusterated with depressing topics. Sorry.... :)
Mike P. who stood me up. What guy in their right mind would stand me up?? LOL!
Noyra and Ruben going their seperate ways for the class project.
Ruben being in an female group talking about being a teenage mom!
Jonathan Alba, the only student from my 1101 section U32 that decided to give it another jab with me. That's loyalty!
Talking about my family
Carla the spokeswoman recruiting votes!
No, William, not gonna call you L.B. William is much more befitting.
I was determined to seperate the old FIG class, if it was the last thing I did. Didn't work out too well though.
Kenny, why didn't you ever play guitar for us before?
G.C. or J.C, which is it?? Tell me already!
Sonya playing waitress, and not doing a real good job at it!
Andre always being late to class.
Michael C. thinking it is way too bright in class to be without sunglasses.
Adam Cando, glad that I weeded out the slackers, enjoying the small tight knit class
Calling Cadet by his last name. Strange. :)
Impressed with Jessica, Jennifer and Rossanna's tried patience. (Proud of You! No one would have done it better)
Jacqulyn's determination to see it through to the end.
Denise, don't forget your promise to me!
Sometimes feeling like I am teaching elementary and literally having to split up the three musketeers to three different corners of the room - William, Raul and Rene!
Nikki always with something to say, ready for the fight! Love that spunk, don't ever lose it, don't ever change.
Listening to reactions over 'Fidel' the movie.
Adam D., you never did tell us what the pens were for?
Anthony always a different "look", from obnoxiously loud to business savvy dress attire, a great spokesperson, but you have to stop moving when you are standing in front of the audience; it's very distracting! LOL!
Gretel finally talking in front of a class (2 times in one year! BRAVO! I'm so proud of you!)
Denise Trampstamp, Mencos Mentos, and Little Bill
Men annoyed with Rene's immaturity
Enjoying Noyra's paintings
Talking about my family some more
Dantes constantly asking for a movie night at my place
Watching Yisel grow and develop over the last two semesters and bloom as a writer and as a speaker in class - I'm proud of you!
Dayana NOT wanting to set up a booth in GC. But Yisel is persistent! LOL! Aren't you glad you did it Dayana??
Can you teach a humanities course?? Children, I will look into it and if I can I will let you all know!
Being so proud of the work you all came up with together as groups (something most of you dreaded) with your document designs and presentations. So so proud! I will wear my shirts proudly and be aware that your videos set the bar even higher for next semesters students!
These are just some of the countless memories I have with all of you, but what I remember the most is laughing! And laughing is the best medicine.
So while I may have talked about my family too much, said things like "more better", given too much work that I couldn't even keep up with, sent last minute emails, and the latest: taken my job too seriously (check it out on ratemyprofessor.com), my hope is that you all walk away from this class having learned, not only the importance of ethos, logos, pathos, claims, rebuttals, thesis statements, citations, etc, but more importantly, how to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX, how to be critical thinkers, not to take things for face value, to always question, always doubt, always respond, always react, don't be apathetic, don't be complacent, things are not black and white, they are multi-layered, multi-faceted, multi-colored, multi-perspective, and with these skills you will continue through life applying them from situation to situation, class to class, reading to reading, person to person, issue to issue, making you far more equipped and capable than the person next to you. But don't keep these skills to yourself; teach them to those around you, and if it seems I care more than I should or expect you to act like my class is the most important, it is because I have the responsibility of making sure I send you off through the rest of undergrad school PREPARED and I take this responsibility seriously.
Anyways, enough philosophizing, right! :) I will miss you all very much, one of the downfalls I have to bear for caring so much. BUT, you can always find me on those infamous networking sites, by email (natashaolivera@bellsouth.net), or by phone (305-505-4632). Keep in touch so I can keep you posted on the info for the charity event, because I expect you all to come out and support me!!
Now, go back to your blog and leave me a letter with your last and final reflective thoughts concerning the semester.
Peace out Suckas!
-Tasha Baby
Well, it's that time of year again, and I like to just write you all a final farewell letter as a culmination of the semesters learnings.
First, I want to say that it has been an honor and a privelege to teach you all this semester. It seems as if it was just yesterday that we walked into the first day of class and I gave my intimidating speech to try and weed out the slackers, or atleast most of them. :)
Here's some of the memories that stand out to me at the moment:
Half of my 1101 students returning for 1102 and keeping to one half of the room.
Shrinking my last 1102 class of the day from 30 to 19 students.
Bryan M. leaving his horn in class.
Late night IM's with Arnold, Mike, Raul and William
Rene keeping me out of the classroom and then Yanko and Jonathan trying to keep Raul, William and Rene out of the room.
Paola's strength overcoming Yanko's after pulling the door opened from him!
Hector not being able to figure out "technology"
Brian and Chris realizing they had done the writing assignment completely wrong
Dantes....Dantes.....well, nuff said. Thanks for walking me to class, oh and everything else. LOL! Don't take it too seriously!
Going with Yeli, Danny, Michelle, Crystal, Nicole and Camilo to the beach and handing out bags to the homeless.
Danielle trusting her peers to tell them a testimonial about her life. (Inspiring)
Trying to convince Basmah to see a writing tutor.
Teaching William spanish; "Hasta" -William, "Luego" -Tasha
Yeli calling to ask me my thoughts on ZenZuu; at midnight....
Some of you finding me on Facebook or Myspace and requesting me; Adam D. being ammused by the fact that he knows what his teacher is up to because of her updates.
Lola and Dantes fighting with each other all the time.
Ruben's articulate oratory skills. (Impressive)
Gabriel's style of writing. Loved it.
Evio not understanding how he got a certain grade (better than he expected) and wanting an explanation.
Trying to figure out what was up between Jonathan and Angelica.
Learning Amna's real true feelings about raising children. LOL! I recommend you not have any! LOL!
Heated racial topic conversations in 12 noon class.
My quiet students; Men, Maria M, Renata, Daphnie, Rosanna, Vanessa C., Karen, Fernanda, Danny Castro, Sophia, and Bryttany S. - even though you rarely said anything unless I was forcing you to speak, I know that great thoughts were transpiring in those minds and I got a glimpse of that in your blogs.
Talking about my family
The culture club boys: G.C., Steven, Mike and Arnold
Telling Rae and Brian to stop with the texting
Cadet being impressed that a teacher would actually care. i'm still waiting for our chat though.
My bubbly, always happy Bianca! Even when I have to tell her to be quiet!
Jonathan always being wayyyyyy behind and sitting outside waiting for class to end so he wouldn't have to walk in late. Sure!
Denise fitting in with a bunch of kids.
Sasha getting the giggles during her presentation.
Jelly Belly, Yeli Belly. It's been awsome watching your growth in the last two semesters.
Evio learning Hawaiian!
Belkis too shy to talk, but not too shy to show off her brand new, beautiful Tat!
Remember Hector if you're going to get into politics you better start showing conviction. You could have the power to change, but you have to believe.
Kim and Shay full of questions!
Having to say goodbye to Jason 2 weeks before the end of the semester. (My thoughts are with him and his family)
Canadian Chris, never impressed with the Americans! :)
Danny Jacobo and his Purple face and hands! OMgosh!
Raul being 20 minutes late for his own Presentation!
Kenny asking me to be the advisor for a NORML style club on campus
Roberto getting the balls to take my class
Gretel not ever saying a word, two semesters in a row! How is that possible? And oh the thoughts she weaves in her pretty little head that I get to enter when she posts up her journal entries.
Chris Y., even though you may not even read this because you have only donlike one blog, but then again that's better than you're cousin Jonathan, opening up to your peers and sharing some personal insight.
Always confusing Jaclyn and Adriana while I was taking attendance (but I don't think they ever knew) and just being thankful that neither of them ever missed a class!
Finding out Yanko means John.
Alexandra naming the "Tra La La"!!
Nicole Not Singing for us this semester.
Being invited to NRHH dinner by Kim. (honored)
Liz frusterated with depressing topics. Sorry.... :)
Mike P. who stood me up. What guy in their right mind would stand me up?? LOL!
Noyra and Ruben going their seperate ways for the class project.
Ruben being in an female group talking about being a teenage mom!
Jonathan Alba, the only student from my 1101 section U32 that decided to give it another jab with me. That's loyalty!
Talking about my family
Carla the spokeswoman recruiting votes!
No, William, not gonna call you L.B. William is much more befitting.
I was determined to seperate the old FIG class, if it was the last thing I did. Didn't work out too well though.
Kenny, why didn't you ever play guitar for us before?
G.C. or J.C, which is it?? Tell me already!
Sonya playing waitress, and not doing a real good job at it!
Andre always being late to class.
Michael C. thinking it is way too bright in class to be without sunglasses.
Adam Cando, glad that I weeded out the slackers, enjoying the small tight knit class
Calling Cadet by his last name. Strange. :)
Impressed with Jessica, Jennifer and Rossanna's tried patience. (Proud of You! No one would have done it better)
Jacqulyn's determination to see it through to the end.
Denise, don't forget your promise to me!
Sometimes feeling like I am teaching elementary and literally having to split up the three musketeers to three different corners of the room - William, Raul and Rene!
Nikki always with something to say, ready for the fight! Love that spunk, don't ever lose it, don't ever change.
Listening to reactions over 'Fidel' the movie.
Adam D., you never did tell us what the pens were for?
Anthony always a different "look", from obnoxiously loud to business savvy dress attire, a great spokesperson, but you have to stop moving when you are standing in front of the audience; it's very distracting! LOL!
Gretel finally talking in front of a class (2 times in one year! BRAVO! I'm so proud of you!)
Denise Trampstamp, Mencos Mentos, and Little Bill
Men annoyed with Rene's immaturity
Enjoying Noyra's paintings
Talking about my family some more
Dantes constantly asking for a movie night at my place
Watching Yisel grow and develop over the last two semesters and bloom as a writer and as a speaker in class - I'm proud of you!
Dayana NOT wanting to set up a booth in GC. But Yisel is persistent! LOL! Aren't you glad you did it Dayana??
Can you teach a humanities course?? Children, I will look into it and if I can I will let you all know!
Being so proud of the work you all came up with together as groups (something most of you dreaded) with your document designs and presentations. So so proud! I will wear my shirts proudly and be aware that your videos set the bar even higher for next semesters students!
These are just some of the countless memories I have with all of you, but what I remember the most is laughing! And laughing is the best medicine.
So while I may have talked about my family too much, said things like "more better", given too much work that I couldn't even keep up with, sent last minute emails, and the latest: taken my job too seriously (check it out on ratemyprofessor.com), my hope is that you all walk away from this class having learned, not only the importance of ethos, logos, pathos, claims, rebuttals, thesis statements, citations, etc, but more importantly, how to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX, how to be critical thinkers, not to take things for face value, to always question, always doubt, always respond, always react, don't be apathetic, don't be complacent, things are not black and white, they are multi-layered, multi-faceted, multi-colored, multi-perspective, and with these skills you will continue through life applying them from situation to situation, class to class, reading to reading, person to person, issue to issue, making you far more equipped and capable than the person next to you. But don't keep these skills to yourself; teach them to those around you, and if it seems I care more than I should or expect you to act like my class is the most important, it is because I have the responsibility of making sure I send you off through the rest of undergrad school PREPARED and I take this responsibility seriously.
Anyways, enough philosophizing, right! :) I will miss you all very much, one of the downfalls I have to bear for caring so much. BUT, you can always find me on those infamous networking sites, by email (natashaolivera@bellsouth.net), or by phone (305-505-4632). Keep in touch so I can keep you posted on the info for the charity event, because I expect you all to come out and support me!!
Now, go back to your blog and leave me a letter with your last and final reflective thoughts concerning the semester.
Peace out Suckas!
-Tasha Baby
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Extra Credit Blog Prompt #2
Ok, so every semester I get students who like to share videos with me on their blogs, either home videos (because they are amateur videographers) or videos they have found themselves. One student in particular, Dantes Gutierrez, loves to share videos of slam poets. Several months ago he introduced me to Saul Williams. The man is amazing, although for most of his stuff you have to listen to it several times before you "get it". In any case, I found this one called "When The Clock Strikes Me" and I wanted to share it with you and hear your thoughts on it. Break down his poem, what's he saying, what's he talking about, what's his purpose?
Enjoy....
Enjoy....
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Extra Credit Blog Prompt #1
So here is your first chance to make up a missed journal entry. Rather than posting on your own blog you will post here on mine as a comment responding back and forth to your peers answers. I will be prompting you with debatable issues so feel free to respectfully challenge one another and your opinions.
How many of you are dog lovers?? Or cat lovers?? For the most part, a lot of people love their pets. I have a Golden Retrieveer, she's been a part of my family for the last 5 years. We had a cat that died last year and we have two turtles. Now my cat, was an outdoor cat. Every now and then I would sneak him in but for the most part he was outside. Every morning he would come to the sliding door window and "meow" to be fed. He was my youngest sons love.
We found Bowser dead one morning by the mailbox. We think he may have been poisoned by a neighbor but we never took him to the vet to confirm. We were more concerned with having to break the news to my son.
Now my dog, is an indoor dog. She spends her days being a lazy fatty dog! But every night I let her out to roam around free; off the leash. When she's done chasing cats and has tired out she comes back.
SO, we all know there's a leash law that was implemented primarily to protect citizens from being bit or attacked by dogs. I know Precious (my dog) would never bite but she will sit on the front yard and growl her wimpy growl at passerby's (mostly delinquents LOL!) acting like she's fierce. I suppose however, I am in the wrong for not abiding the leash law and I could get in trouble for it, but I guess I will just keep taking my chances.
BUT WHAT IF my dog was hit by a stupid kid who likes to race down my neighborhood, that mind you is very narrow and twists and turns reducing your visibility of what is coming up behind the corner, and HITS MY DOG RESULTING IN DEATH! Thast should be crime right?? He should go to jail; that's still a life......right?
How many of you are dog lovers?? Or cat lovers?? For the most part, a lot of people love their pets. I have a Golden Retrieveer, she's been a part of my family for the last 5 years. We had a cat that died last year and we have two turtles. Now my cat, was an outdoor cat. Every now and then I would sneak him in but for the most part he was outside. Every morning he would come to the sliding door window and "meow" to be fed. He was my youngest sons love.
We found Bowser dead one morning by the mailbox. We think he may have been poisoned by a neighbor but we never took him to the vet to confirm. We were more concerned with having to break the news to my son.Now my dog, is an indoor dog. She spends her days being a lazy fatty dog! But every night I let her out to roam around free; off the leash. When she's done chasing cats and has tired out she comes back.
SO, we all know there's a leash law that was implemented primarily to protect citizens from being bit or attacked by dogs. I know Precious (my dog) would never bite but she will sit on the front yard and growl her wimpy growl at passerby's (mostly delinquents LOL!) acting like she's fierce. I suppose however, I am in the wrong for not abiding the leash law and I could get in trouble for it, but I guess I will just keep taking my chances.
BUT WHAT IF my dog was hit by a stupid kid who likes to race down my neighborhood, that mind you is very narrow and twists and turns reducing your visibility of what is coming up behind the corner, and HITS MY DOG RESULTING IN DEATH! Thast should be crime right?? He should go to jail; that's still a life......right?
Friday, April 4, 2008
Blog #9
This week one of my students (Yeli Mayor) asked me to look into this new internet networking software that is about to be launched in Aug. 2008 and wanted to know what I thought of it after applying my own analytical skills to it. So I went to the webiste, and watched a little demo video, skimmed around the home page and Privacy page and came to my own conclusion.
Online networking is the new craze in this technologically savvy society that we live in today. Speaking for myself I have had a myspace account for several years and just got into Facebook. I love it! I think it is one of the most powerful tools we have out there to keep in touch with people, to make people aware of events, groups, news, etc. that interest us and may possibly interest others. But what if someone told you, you could make money off of networking with people? Would you be interested?
It appears that is what ZenZuu is proposing. Check it out for yourself at http://www.zenzuu.com/, watch the intro video and use the skills that I have taught you about analyzing rhetorical strategies that are being used to propose and sell a product to you. Pay close attention to the details.
Rather than responding and writing on your own blog though, I want you to enter your reactions and analysis here on mine as a comment so that your peers can read what you think and you can react to one another as well.
DO NOT ANSWER SIMPLY BY SAYING: "I DON"T BUY IT" OR"IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE" - ANALYZE WHY OR WHY NOT YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE OR ARE OR ARE NOT CONVINCED!! YOU ARE STILL GRADED ON THESE!
Also, stay tuned for extra credit prompts in the coming days. As the semester comes to an end I like to give last minute opportunities to make up missed blogs by giving additional prompts.
Online networking is the new craze in this technologically savvy society that we live in today. Speaking for myself I have had a myspace account for several years and just got into Facebook. I love it! I think it is one of the most powerful tools we have out there to keep in touch with people, to make people aware of events, groups, news, etc. that interest us and may possibly interest others. But what if someone told you, you could make money off of networking with people? Would you be interested?
It appears that is what ZenZuu is proposing. Check it out for yourself at http://www.zenzuu.com/, watch the intro video and use the skills that I have taught you about analyzing rhetorical strategies that are being used to propose and sell a product to you. Pay close attention to the details.
Rather than responding and writing on your own blog though, I want you to enter your reactions and analysis here on mine as a comment so that your peers can read what you think and you can react to one another as well.
DO NOT ANSWER SIMPLY BY SAYING: "I DON"T BUY IT" OR"IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE" - ANALYZE WHY OR WHY NOT YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE OR ARE OR ARE NOT CONVINCED!! YOU ARE STILL GRADED ON THESE!
Also, stay tuned for extra credit prompts in the coming days. As the semester comes to an end I like to give last minute opportunities to make up missed blogs by giving additional prompts.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Blog Prompt #8
So we are now on the adventure of proposals and shortly you will be presenting a campaign for your proposal on the issue you have chosen. Many of you grapple with the questions: "What can I do?" or "Whatever I do won't make a difference; I'm just a college student." or "The problem will always be there; we'll never be rid of it."
I'm sure there were people who felt the same way about human slavery, right?
Myspace has created a new page called MySpace Impact. There you can find several different organizations, mostly started by young people like yourself. As mentioned in class, Awareness in and of itself is a part of the solution to any problem or issue. Take a look at what some people are doing and discuss these efforts in your blog. Notice the differences in bringing awareness to these issues and their proposed solutions. Also, feel free to discuss your thoughts on the idea of proposing solutions to any of the issues we are discussing in class or outside of class.
http://www.myspace.com/towriteloveonherarms (You can watch a documentary they are working on also)
http://www.myspace.com/rainn_dc
http://www.myspace.com/kivaloans
(These are just a few, but you can check them all out yourself on MySpace Impact)
I'm sure there were people who felt the same way about human slavery, right?
Myspace has created a new page called MySpace Impact. There you can find several different organizations, mostly started by young people like yourself. As mentioned in class, Awareness in and of itself is a part of the solution to any problem or issue. Take a look at what some people are doing and discuss these efforts in your blog. Notice the differences in bringing awareness to these issues and their proposed solutions. Also, feel free to discuss your thoughts on the idea of proposing solutions to any of the issues we are discussing in class or outside of class.
http://www.myspace.com/towriteloveonherarms (You can watch a documentary they are working on also)
http://www.myspace.com/rainn_dc
http://www.myspace.com/kivaloans
(These are just a few, but you can check them all out yourself on MySpace Impact)
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Blog Prompt #7: Invisible Chains
Last week I introduced to you the issue happening on Skid Row, this week I want to introduce to you another issue referred to as Human Sex Trafficking. Watch this video and respond on your blog about this issue. If you know of videos regarding issues involving groups of individuals who are marginalized, please leave me a comment with the link.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Empty Presence Performance on 3/7/08
As I explained in class, Friday my sons band had a performance for their school's pep rally, and as you can imagine, I am extremely proud of him. I set up a youtube account for them so us parents could share with our friends and family, and I am inviting you to check them out if your interested. You can visit their page at http://www.youtube.com/emptypresence and check them out for yourself! :)
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Friday, March 7th Online Class Assignment
In place of class for this Friday, March 7th, you will do an online assignment consisting of watching the two movie clips below and then responding. Your response will be posted on Webct. Please visit "Assignments", click on "Movie Response", and type your response in the comment box or copy and paste from a word document (NO ATTACHMENTS PLEASE).
- Your response to this movie should be no less than 350 words.
- Your response should discuss your immediate reaction to the documentary and what stood out to you the most; did it disgust you, shock you, make you feel bad and why?
- Your response should discuss how the director of these movie clips was able to make you feel what you felt; what did they include, manipulate, or use to appeal to your feelings?
- This assignment is to be submitted by midnight Friday, March 7th.
If you have any problems viewing the movies from here then you can view the movies on myspace at: http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=28536735 (this link is for the first part of the movie, you can scroll down on the sidebar to see the second part.)
I am only asking that you watch the first two parts of this documentary, but I highly encourage you to watch the other two parts that have been posted.
Skid Row Part I
Skid Row Part II
Blog Prompt #6: A Wiki Wacky Contest
Here's a fun twist to our traditional entries! I have come across some GREAT looking Wiki Homepages! Some of you took the level of creativity a notch above most when it came to designing your "About Me" page and I want to give some special recognition to those who did. The only thing is that it is really hard for me to choose the best ones, so I am recruiting your help. Your job for this prompt is to visit the "About Me" or "Home Page" of all the students in another class (look below to see which class your assigned to) and vote for the top three best pages. Go back to your blog and tell me who you think should take 1st, 2nd and 3rd place and why. Remember, I am looking for creativity and appeals; who is doing the best job at "selling" themselves??
Oh, but don't think there is no prize!! Check these out:
Section U1F will vote on top three of Section U1S.
Section U1N will vote on top three of Section U1F.
Section U1S will vote on top three of Section U1N.
Oh, but don't think there is no prize!! Check these out:
- First place winners will recieve a 1/2 grade boost on their lowest essay grade (to be applied at end of semester). (ex.: B to a B+)
- Second Place winners will have their two lowest hw assignment grades raised by whole grade each. (ex.: B to A, B- to A-)
- Third Place winners will be exempt from one blog entry and recieve an automatic "A".
Monday, February 25, 2008
Blog #5: Analyzing a Song Analysis
For this blog, I am empowering you with the ability to grade another student. I am handing over the "grading pen" and placing it into your hands. Exciting, right? Or intimidating.
Your instructions are to:
1.Visit another students wiki (that's not from your class) and read their analysis on the song they chose. (first be sure that no other student has read that song analysis by looking to the bottom and checking for threads)
2.Leave them a thread message/post on their song analysis page letting them know that you have critiqued their analysis on your blog and give them the url to your blog (if your blog is private you may need to send them an invite) so that they may visit your blog and see your response. This will also let other students know that you have already chosen that students wiki and no one else can do it. (The idea is so that everyone in all three classes gets their song analysis critiqued, therefore, if you visit someones wiki and see that someone else already left a thread/post claiming that they have critiqued their analysis then you have to find another wiki song analysis to critique)
3. You are then to post a response to their analysis. First point out the strong points of their analysis. Then point out the weaknesses. Be especially critical here. Their analysis should have some discussion on claims, appeals that are used, voice, style, color & tone of language, audience, and context.
4. Leave them a grade for their song analysis. I will be taking this critiques and grades into consideration as I read them myself and grade the assignment.
So have fun, be critical and feel empowered!
Your instructions are to:
1.Visit another students wiki (that's not from your class) and read their analysis on the song they chose. (first be sure that no other student has read that song analysis by looking to the bottom and checking for threads)
2.Leave them a thread message/post on their song analysis page letting them know that you have critiqued their analysis on your blog and give them the url to your blog (if your blog is private you may need to send them an invite) so that they may visit your blog and see your response. This will also let other students know that you have already chosen that students wiki and no one else can do it. (The idea is so that everyone in all three classes gets their song analysis critiqued, therefore, if you visit someones wiki and see that someone else already left a thread/post claiming that they have critiqued their analysis then you have to find another wiki song analysis to critique)
3. You are then to post a response to their analysis. First point out the strong points of their analysis. Then point out the weaknesses. Be especially critical here. Their analysis should have some discussion on claims, appeals that are used, voice, style, color & tone of language, audience, and context.
4. Leave them a grade for their song analysis. I will be taking this critiques and grades into consideration as I read them myself and grade the assignment.
So have fun, be critical and feel empowered!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
To Sag or Not to Sag; That is the question
As I am sure many of you know, there is a new law taking surge across the country that enforces how we as citizens should dress. Imagine that, the law telling you how you can wear your clothes or what you should wear. Yup, I'm talking about the sagging pants law. The law is spreading like wildfire all over the nation, which means our representatives are approving it.
The “Baggy Pants Bill” states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in public wearing his pants below his waist and thereby exposing his skin or intimate clothing.”
Here in Florida the the Prek-12th Grade Education Committee unanimously approved Sen. Gary Siplin's "pull up your britches" bill (SB 302). It next will go to the Senate floor after the Legislature convenes its regular annual session in March.
Youth who let their drawers droop to expose underwear, G-strings or worse at school will first get a verbal warning for their first offense but then face suspension if they keep doing.
Recently, Dr. Phil took up the debate featuring the Ying Yang twins and members of the Hip Hop Government. The argument around sagging pants, inevitably turns to point the finger at hip hop as the culprit for this phenomenom. Hip Hop Government, whose mission is to "Mobilize people of the hip hop culture to use their vote for positive change for political, social and economic concerns" has teamed up with Dallas' City Hall and launched a "Pull up your Pants Campaign."
The year after I graduated from high school Florida began to aggresively implement the uniform code, stripping away the ability to express oneself's identity, and ensuring that boys were paying attention to the teacher at the front of the room who was teaching a lesson, and not on the girl next to him whose shirt was so low cut, he couldn't concentrate on learning. The argument for learning was obviously much stronger thatn the one for freedom of expression and identity because today I find myself buying white, blue or burgandy polos and khakis or jeans and all the students look the same whereby making it a safer learning environment for all children. And all because parents couldn't make sure their girls weren't dressing like hoochie-mamas and their boys weren't dressing like gang members. OR, they were encouraging their kids to dress that way and were buying it for them.
So where do you stand on this issue? Fad or Fashion? Disrespect and Disgusting? Are you tired of seeing boxers, underwear, and thongs hanging out and no one doing anything about it? Is it time for the government to put their hand in making sure that people are "respecting" themselves by implementing a law that tells us how low we are allowed to wear our pants?
The “Baggy Pants Bill” states: “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in public wearing his pants below his waist and thereby exposing his skin or intimate clothing.”
Here in Florida the the Prek-12th Grade Education Committee unanimously approved Sen. Gary Siplin's "pull up your britches" bill (SB 302). It next will go to the Senate floor after the Legislature convenes its regular annual session in March.
Youth who let their drawers droop to expose underwear, G-strings or worse at school will first get a verbal warning for their first offense but then face suspension if they keep doing.
Recently, Dr. Phil took up the debate featuring the Ying Yang twins and members of the Hip Hop Government. The argument around sagging pants, inevitably turns to point the finger at hip hop as the culprit for this phenomenom. Hip Hop Government, whose mission is to "Mobilize people of the hip hop culture to use their vote for positive change for political, social and economic concerns" has teamed up with Dallas' City Hall and launched a "Pull up your Pants Campaign."
The year after I graduated from high school Florida began to aggresively implement the uniform code, stripping away the ability to express oneself's identity, and ensuring that boys were paying attention to the teacher at the front of the room who was teaching a lesson, and not on the girl next to him whose shirt was so low cut, he couldn't concentrate on learning. The argument for learning was obviously much stronger thatn the one for freedom of expression and identity because today I find myself buying white, blue or burgandy polos and khakis or jeans and all the students look the same whereby making it a safer learning environment for all children. And all because parents couldn't make sure their girls weren't dressing like hoochie-mamas and their boys weren't dressing like gang members. OR, they were encouraging their kids to dress that way and were buying it for them.
So where do you stand on this issue? Fad or Fashion? Disrespect and Disgusting? Are you tired of seeing boxers, underwear, and thongs hanging out and no one doing anything about it? Is it time for the government to put their hand in making sure that people are "respecting" themselves by implementing a law that tells us how low we are allowed to wear our pants?
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
NCLB; Something to be proud of!
Many of you discussed that Education was an important issue for you in these elections. Perhaps it is an issue that should be of importance to you all the time, and not just now seeing as we live in a society that values entertainment higher than education.
Soon after Bush took Presidency he enacted the "No Child Left Behind" act and oh what a marvelous thing. Equal education for all. Right? Sure, if that's what you want to believe. We need to hold our schools and teachers accountable. Great! Right? Sure. We need to ensure our children are Literate. Yeah! Why didn't anyone think of this before?? Well, they did, this was just a new twist to it.
Either way the federal government feels the itch to enforce, or ensure, whichever way you wish to look at it, that parents and teachers are doing what they are supposed to do because leaving it at the local level is insufficient. Or perhaps it is a way to make it "fair" for all, to prevent children from struggling in school, to help children "believe" that they are succeeding when they really are not because the schools have the ability of lowering standards according to the demographics. Perhaps this is the best thing for our nations education, or perhaps it's the reason why we are the one of the worst in education?
Poet Lamont Carey voices his thoughts on the issue:
Soon after Bush took Presidency he enacted the "No Child Left Behind" act and oh what a marvelous thing. Equal education for all. Right? Sure, if that's what you want to believe. We need to hold our schools and teachers accountable. Great! Right? Sure. We need to ensure our children are Literate. Yeah! Why didn't anyone think of this before?? Well, they did, this was just a new twist to it.
Either way the federal government feels the itch to enforce, or ensure, whichever way you wish to look at it, that parents and teachers are doing what they are supposed to do because leaving it at the local level is insufficient. Or perhaps it is a way to make it "fair" for all, to prevent children from struggling in school, to help children "believe" that they are succeeding when they really are not because the schools have the ability of lowering standards according to the demographics. Perhaps this is the best thing for our nations education, or perhaps it's the reason why we are the one of the worst in education?
Poet Lamont Carey voices his thoughts on the issue:
So, arguing whether or not this act was a good one really has to be dissected and analyzed. But one thing that I tend to always believe, is that if the government or a bunch of beuracratic politicians came up with the idea, chances are it's not going to work very well. But hey, you never know right, one of these days they might actually prove us wrong.
In the case of "No Child left Behind", it is in my humble opinion, that the best judges of this act would have to be the ones who deal with it every single day in the classroom trying to "abide" by it: TEACHERS.
Below you'll find a clip of a young teacher making an argument against "No Child Left Behind". SHe makes a fair and objective argument, as she does not pointing the finger at Bush or other politicians but rather keeps her focus on the plan itself. Rather than ranting and complaining she analyzes and interprets and concedes to certain points in the Act (which is really important when you are trying to pursuade your viewers to agree with you).
It's starts off a bit wierd which could lead to a horrible introduction and turn viewers away or it could be a grasping introduction that makes viewers want to keep watching. You be the judge of that.
More importantly though, now that most of you are getting ready to vote for the first time in your life, it's important that you educate yourself on issues like these. Do you know where your presidential candidate favorite stands on NCLB? Youtube held a presidential debate back in July and this was one of the questions they asked the Democratic hopefuls. They were asked if it should be scrapped or revised. I found a video of Huckabee answering this question in an interview as well, so to be fair to the opposite point of view I am including a hyperlink to that video as well.
NCLB; A teachers argument
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