Category: x Archive Assignments

Rebuttal Argument – Thenaturlist201

When examining the life a multiracial people we may see that they are only discriminated against based on their skin color and only by the lighter colored race, but this is wrong. Multiracial people are discriminated against by everyone and a lot of the time they do not get treated equally to who they are talking to.

In 1989 an article was published titled, White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack, this article was written by Peggy McIntosh. This was the earliest article found introducing the idea of privilege. Considering this it is a fairly recent article. Mclntosh introducing the idea that people of color have an unfair advantage that white people do not have to deal with.

Throughout the article privileges listed are things such as having hair products found easily for your hair type, or bandages matching your skin color. These examples are used and are talked about in reference to race, not skin color. You cannot look at someone and assume their race. A light-skinned multiracial person does experience things that would be considered unprivileged and that can be proved through examples given by multiracial people such as Sierra Fang-Horvath. She is an Asian American who shared her experience with KQED Radio, in this interview she shares her experience when she took a survey to measure how much privilege they had. In this survey she came across the question asking if Bandaids matched her skin color, she responded by saying ” should they?”. In this one sentence alone she explains how people should think. After the survey, she felt like she would be looked at differently because in her eyes she never questioned her identity. Before the interview, a picture of Fang is shown and you would assume that she would not have a problem with privilege based on Mclntosh’s article but you really have no clue how a multiracial people think or feel.

When you read the article with Fang you are shown that you really were not aware how unprivileged you were until you are told to check it. This makes multiracial people feel more uncomfortable because then they will be seen by others as having something they do not. You are no longer yourself and are a label of your skin color.

Research- paTricKStar123

A silent cry for help! Undergraduates are dying.

 

College is a place we come to enhance our education, to learn more about ourselves, and to choose our career paths. While most students live on-campus housing to gain the experience of living on our own, dorm life can be an intimidating environment. Yes, it’s fun and exciting to leave family and friends and arrive at college knowing only a handful of people, but it’s also stressful. Stress is a normal life process, and all freshmen will experience it. Unlike negative stress that can be debilitating, eustress pushes students beyond our fears to reach our goals, encouraging us to bring new ideas to our ever-growing world, like how to get along with a roommate we don’t like.

On the other hand, for students, who are unprepared to meet these challenges that quickly arrive going to college; these challenges can be draining. Mental illness is rising exponentially and is acting an epidemic that is spreading worldwide. Two million of our brightest youth want to kill themselves, and three-quarters of them are being ignored. “More than one in three undergraduates reported ‘feeling so depressed it was difficult to function,’ and nearly one in 10 reported ‘seriously considering attempting suicide’ in the previous year” according to the 2008 National College Health Assessment sponsored by the American College Health Association. Tragically, according to the Journal of Academic Health, most people who struggle with a mental health illness will not be diagnosed until it becomes quite severe. Many will argue that the mental health and psychological services are not needed and are a costly resource that needs to be cut from the universities budget. For the thousands of students that go to a single intuition, this service is the difference between them having an opportunity to function in a school environment and get an education.

Colleges fail in helping because they rarely promote their services. When this illness makes students feel different than anyone else. Many don’t get diagnosed because of the lack of thought put into the programs. If universities want to help students, they need to truly make students feel welcomed by allowing anyone to partake in learning about resources for incentive maybe food or points toward prizes.  As stated by Medical Care Research and Review, “Perceived public stigma was considerably higher than personal stigma”. What this means is that people are more afraid of how others will perceive them. In the article called The College Mental Health Crisis: Focus on Suicide, Dr. Beresin writes in his research about how schools should increase their access to mental health counseling. He believes that we need to increase counseling services as many school still don’t have have or properly use them. Another of his ideas are creating a foster community counseling and support forum in the universities. By establishing these it lets kids feel less hesitant than trying to take to some an adult. These ideas are good because they allows students to be more open to expression and to try to reduce stigma that occurs with recieving help. Besides, University only advertises their services at the beginning of the school year. As a student who has attended both community college and traditional universities, I can say for a fact there are considerable differences in demographics and how they go about their educational services. In a recent study, the American College  Counseling  Association  Community  College  Task  Force  (2010)  found  that  95% of community colleges have no contracted on-site psychiatry services, compared to 58.8% of traditional universities (Gallagher, 2012).

Many People ask is there a criterion to determine who has a mental illness. There are some symptoms to identify, but when doing self-examinations, it may be difficult. The reason it is difficult to determine is because of the many similarities between having stress and some mental illnesses. For example, in the article by Mental Health America, explains that depression and stress have similar symptoms like having memory problems, trouble sleeping, trouble functioning, and change in eating habits. Among these symptoms with depression comes thoughts of self-harm/suicide, feeling drained, feeling overwhelmed, withdrawing from friends/loved ones, and finally having negative thoughts about yourself.  In terms of depression alone, A 2010 study conducted by the American College Health Association found that “28% of college students reported feeling so depressed at some point they had trouble functioning, and 8% sought treatment for depression” (Mental Health America, 2015). One group of students that are at risk to deal with mental health issues are those in the LBGTQ. The reason being is they face a variety of issues revolving their situation such as “’coming out” in public and be accepted by their identity. According to the article called Mental Health Matters: A Growing Challenge, minorities, and international students are also at a higher risk of mental health. “International students are vulnerable because, in addition to facing the same stressors as everyone else, they have to assimilate into a new culture and are far from their network of family and friends” (Brown, 2016). The reason minorities face a greater risk is because of the racial and cultural differences they may face in society as well as the financial problems. Minorities, in my opinion, have it worst because of the fact are less disposable to receive treatment.  “Individuals low in emotion management competence are less willing to seek help from family, friends and health professionals” (Storrie, Ahern, Tuckett, 2010).

What is alarming is that there are critics who argue that mental health services on campus aren’t useful and have a slight success in the lives of students. This is inaccurate. Students with mental health issues depend on these services; to them, they are a necessity of life on campus. Without having this support, hundreds of thousands of undergraduates will have their lives impacted. The young adults will face even more obstacles as their resources get stripped of them. University students depend on these services which can help them keep them on track with their personal, academic goals. The journal called The mental health needs of today’s college students: Challenges and recommendations states “Mental health problems may also have a negative impact on academic performance,  retention, and graduation rates.   Brackney and Karabenick   found that high levels of psychological  distress among college students were significantly related to academic performance”(Brackney 1995). How it affects is mental illness’ such as depression can cause students to lose motivation to do even the simplest task such as eating, getting up for classes, and even self-hygiene. Anxiety another mental health illness can make it difficult to interact with teachers and other students; as well as function through the campus every day. In turn, the board of education would be adding more weight to these students who have enough on their plate, to begin with. Service like these offers a sort of relief to know they have someone who cares about them and checks on them nearby. A huge portion of Our undergrads would not have been able to keep up with the demands of school as well as their condition. Thus, leading universities nationwide have a worse reputation because not only will an abundant of people have their GPAs be lowered due to not being able to concentrate in classes but also Dropout rates will increase. College is expensive already; to have to constantly repeat courses due to medical issues it’s a waste of money that most people don’t even have to begin with.

For this reason, I’ve researched to try to discover any methods of coping with mental illness. I found that student’s primary means of dealing as well as some new techniques of coping with stress. When attending a university while suffering from a mental illness such as depression or anxiety; it is critical to keep yourself emotionally healthy. This means try to formulate new bonds find good friends to have your back but also maintain your emotional ties with loved ones (whether friends or family) close. The reason for this is it makes it easier when dealing with obstacles if you even fall in a rut, while you may not notice your loved ones can guide to in the right direction to get help. Notably, A systematic review: Students with mental health problems—A growing problem, just that.  “Individuals with high levels of psychological distress might not recognize that their psychological state is unusual. They might not understand that there are effective ways of coping with the distress or know how to obtain help” (Storrie, Ahern, Tuckett, 2010). Overall treatments depend on the severity of the mental illness but for the most part it involves psychiatric counseling. These professions will assess your symptoms to diagnose a proper treatment, which may include medication for severe chronic illnesses such a being bipolar and schizophrenia. The key to treating mental illnesses is to diagnose and treat early on. This is why it is essential for students to take care of themselves when living on campus.

An alternative method used that has had the effective result is mindfulness. When individuals think about the practice of mindfulness otherwise know as mediation, they associate the world with the religious practice of Buddhism. The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology define mindfulness as a process in which that allows the user to reach a mental state where they are aware of the present yet can reflect on their sensations, thoughts, and bodily states. “The basic premise underlying mindfulness practices is that experiencing the present moment nonjudgmentally and openly can effectively counter the effects of stressors, it can help students remain focused and calm” (Hofmann et. al 2010). The way mindfulness can help is for students who used negative coping methods such as self harm, substance and alcohol abuse, or even have bad reoccurring thoughts , it can allow you to change your personality and curve your impulses. Now, these methods aren’t used for all mental disorders only mood and anxiety disorder such as depression. These methods should act as a reinforcement to what your health care professional diagnoses and shouldn’t be used without seeking the proper medical help first.

On the contrary, many students when dealing with mental illness’ take up negative forms of coping as mentioned alcohol/substance abuse and self-harm. “Approximately one in five college students meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder”( Pedrelli et al. 2015). Furthermore, about 44% of students binge drink regularly; with mental illness rising at an alarming rate these students are in a whirlwind of trouble. Alcohol is not the only thing to worry about on campus. The frequent use of drugs and other illegal substances are present. The standard drugs you will hear about and see are weed, cocaine, acid, pills (Adderall, Xanax) and even Promethazine w/Codeine (otherwise known as Lean). The blurred line between relief of stress and avoiding problems are prevalent in such an environment. “Neurobiological mechanisms in areas associated with craving, negative affect, and substance use relapse may be affected by mindfulness training” (Witkiewitz, Lustyk, & Bowen, 2012). Depending on the case and severity practicing mindfulness with the help of a medical professional, can allow you to revert bad habits.

Many have speculated that by having offered these services, it holds the university responsible and acts as a liability putting the university at risk. When quite the opposite, by providing mental and psychological health services it can help keep the university from lawsuits. For example, many students with depression may turn to negative ways of coping such as substance abuse and even self-harm. Nowadays, we hear about these tragedies happen too often in media. “Several institutions, including Brown, Harvard, and MIT, have been the target of lawsuits alleging inadequate or negligent treatment of mental health problems. One widely publicized case (Thernstrom, 1998) involves the family of Trang Ho. Ho was a Harvard University student who was murdered by her mentally ill roommate Sinedu Tadesse, who subsequently committed suicide.  Ho’s family filed suit against Harvard alleging negligence by failing to adequately monitor the troubled student” (Kitzrow, M. A. 2003). Stories of instances like these and suicides are becoming more and more prevalent in media. Dr. Eugene V. Beresin, M.D., who is Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School states more than 1,000 suicides take place on college campuses every year which turns out to be about two to three per day. With students suffering and losing their lives over things they cant control i dont understnad why no one wants to help. Statistics show that “80-90% of college students who die by suicide were not receiving help from college counseling centers” (Beresin, 2017). The excuses and claims made by critics are put to rest after this cold fact. It is as simple as taking initative. By stopping the services, universities can prevent lawsuits and even more keep the students safe while pursuing their goals. The risk of not having health services are more significant than having them because with tragedies happening it not only cost the university money but hurts its future reputation.

In conclusion, the fact of the matter is mental health is rising, and we need to take steps looking forward to reducing the amount present. Together the university needs to be more proactive in their approach to combatting and promoting the mental health services. Things need to change because if not we will continue to lose more and more lives everyday. Universities need to change there whole approach in those who have counseling services.  By allowing incentives, this allows students to get to know symptoms as well as how to methods of treatment without feeling judged or intimidated. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s is trying to develop a College Screening Project to allow them to determine which students need assistance. Although having a program like this add up to be another expense at the cost of the university this can help prevent future lawsuits as well as attract more family’s knowing their kids have a some to turn to. I believe that after the Screening test gets accurate it will be a great tool for helping to assist those students who may not have the courage to speak up or are even clueless about their symptoms. After all College is the place to learn, strive to reach our career goals and grow up as we start our new chapter into adulthood. Therefore it with the expensiveness of college tuition the least they can do is enable students to receive the resources they need to focus on their classes. Not to mention, This is essential for providing a safe environment for all and avoid future incidents. Without the help of universities, this disables the many who want a chance at a healthy life.

References

Bowen, S. (03/2014). Relationship between dispositional mindfulness and substance use: Findings from a clinical sampleElsevier.10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.10.026

Brown, J. (n.d.). A Growing Number of College Students are Seeking Help for Anxiety, Depression, Stress, and Psychological Disorders | BU Today | Boston University.

Emily A. Pierceall & Marybelle C. Keim (2007) Stress and Coping Strategies Among Community College Students, Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 31:9, 703-712, DOI

Downs, M. F., Golberstein, E., Zivin, K., & Eisenberg, D. (n.d.). Stigma and Help Seeking for Mental Health Among College Students.

Hofmann, S. G., Sawyer, A. T., Witt, A. A., & Oh, D. (2010). The effect of mindfulness-based therapy on anxiety and depression: A meta-analytic review. Journal Of Consulting And Clinical Psychology, 78(2), 169-183. doi:10.1037/a0018555

Katz, D. (2013). Community college student mental health: A comparative analysis (Order No. 3572817). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (1434835907).

Kitzrow, M. A. (2003). The Mental Health Needs of Todays College Students: Challenges and Recommendations. NASPA Journal, 41(1).

Moise, G. (2014). Good stress or bad stress? relationships between stress appraisals and strains in health care practitioners (Order No. 3630437). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (1563382680).

Pedrelli, P., Nyer, M., Yeung, A., Zulauf, C., & Wilens, T. (2015). College Students: Mental Health Problems and Treatment Considerations. Academic Psychiatry : The Journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, 39(5), 503–511. http://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0205-9

Storrie, K., Ahern, K. and Tuckett, A. (2010), A systematic review: Students with mental health problems—A growing problem. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 16: 1-6.

Stressed or Depressed? Know the Difference. (2015, October 08). Retrieved from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/stressed-or-depressed-know-difference

Research—MyrtleView

I propose that black culture is becoming too mainstream resulting African Americans in losing their culture. Fashion trends from black culture and hip-hop culture has become a common influence in what all celebrities wear today.

Black culture started out first and foremost as a political argument. From the top of the head to the bottom of the feet everything was an expression of resistance and black culture. However, this culture was barely noticed in mainstream until late 1973, otherwise known as, the birth of hip hop. The hip hop era took to the youth like a moth take to a flame. It shocked many around the world and is still a major source of influence today. With the new success and spotlight, black culture was at its prime. Fast forward 17 years later and Brandy, Tyra Banks, Tupac, and The Notorious B.I.G bless the 1990’s with unapologetic culture. This is the era that is currently referred to when looking for the “new” look.

The more black fashion appears in mainstream the less black, black people become. When black fashion is pictured we start to imagine black men and women in gold jewelry, wearing Air Jordan’s, and braids. These are just three things that make black people black and give representation to the black community. However somewhere along the line the public—mostly white celebrities—started to notice the stylish ideas that were being created. Although it is uncertain when this phenomenon started to occur, it was visible when white rappers felt comfortable wearing oversized clothing and when white women decided it was a good idea to wear braids and hoop earring. This was not a big problem until they wore it and it was branded as their own to sell and distribute with no acknowledgment of where it really originated.  This lead to widespread cultural appropriation and people believing that they could be more socially acceptable and grab the media’s attention if they dressed like a black person. For example, Huffington Post article “On Miley Cyrus, Hip-hop, And The Objectification Of Black Women” by DeAsia Paige suggests that Miley Cyrus’ new style and attitude that was influenced by hip hop culture was the sole reason why she is considered to be demeaning and appropriating of black women.

Black fashion has always been a political statement of freedom and fighting against oppression. According to Buzzfeed’s video, “100 Years of Black Fashion,” natural hair, Afros, and African cloth became symbols of African heritage and pride and were further popularized throughout the 1960s.” From the 1960’s and 1970’s black fashion depicted the struggles of the Civil Rights Movement. Members of the Black Panther movement popularized afros and dark sunglasses. In the 1973 the greatest contribution to music was created, otherwise known as the birth of hip hop. Hip hop music influenced many teens to sport bright athletic track suits and loose-fitting clothes. Black icons such as Michael Jackson, Salt and Pepa, and Whitney Houston brought their unapologetic style and grace to the 80’s with flaming red leather jackets and matching outfits for couples. Finally, we come to the most inspirational era of black culture the 90’s. During the 1990’s, black women were going back into their roots and wearing a multitude of fashionable braids. Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, and Erykah Badu influenced generations to come that it was okay to be natural and take care of black hair. In today’s era some aspects of black culture are flourishing while others are being taken advantage of completely. According to “Money flowing into the natural hair industry is a blessing and curse for those who built it up” an article on LA Times written by Makeda Easter in 2016, 2.5 billion dollars was spent on black hair care product by black consumers. While natural hair goes up hair relaxers are taking a 36 percent dive in prices from 2012 to 2017, stated by the article “USA: Relaxer sales fall but Black hair care market is booming, thanks to natural hair movement” from the website Brazil Beauty News. Unfortunately, the more black women wear their natural hair out the more attention it grabs as with all black fashion.

“An Illustrative Identity of Fashion and Style Throughout African-American History and Movements” an article written by Danielle James at Huffington Post believes fashion to be a true identity of the black community. Fashion and style has always been the shining beacon of pride in the black community. The black community started to really express themselves by going to church since it allowed them the time to be themselves in an environment which was not subjected to the racism and  hatred of society. Many would dress in elegant suits with matching hats and purses because black people often had to wear uniforms during the work days. In the 1960’s black people started to use African fabric to announce their heritage proudly. The merging of fashion with media was born during the Trayvon Martin case. A plain simple hoodie was then turned into a political outcry for help during this injustice against an unarmed and innocent black teenager. The way black people present themselves to the outside world is not a trend but an identity of who they are and the battles they deal with.

“The Double Standards of Cultural Appropriation” an article on The Bottom Line written by Morgan Bubman explains why cultural appropriation is unjust. Black people have to constantly deal with the “edgy” and “alternative” trends that the majority population find favorable for only them. When white people borrow from culture they only take the thing they believe are fashion forward or could be of monetary value. This is the concern that many black people face because when they wear these same styles, on them it is responded with only black slurs. Examples of this daily occurrence is Kylie Jenner being praised for her surgically induced lips when black women are vehemently badgered for having naturally plump lips. Not only does the public love Jenner’s lips, she made a hefty profit off of them by creating her own cosmetic line. But yet their was backlash on MAC’s Instagram page for having a black model sport purple lipstick.

Last September, the Daily Show criticized how fashion week had appropriated black culture. Dulce Sloan, a guest on the show, said that when white people appropriate culture they do not get any of the negative effects that has to come with the Fashion and styles they steal. She goes on to say that people like the Kardashians, Katy Perry, and Taylor Swift do not “Get pulled over for no reason. Get followed through a store.”

Author of Zeba Blay at Huffington Post believes white women should not be able to wear black hairstyles. Her article “Its a slap in the face when white women wear black hair styles” points out that even though the world knows what is and is not racist they have become unbearable insensitive. To support her claim she uses the fashion magazine Allure to prove her point. In the magazine there is a section that is entitled to create the perfect Afro even if your hair type is straight. Blay believes this was a specific article to white people since the picture tagged to the article is of a woman with curls. Blay then goes on to defend that when black women do straighten their hair or dye it blonde that this is a form of assimilation not appropriation. Black women assimilate to survive since so many are attacked for wearing their natural hair out because is it not seen as professional or classy.

Black fashion has always been a major factor in how black people and the world view themselves.  The black community has always suffered from the ignorance, oppression, and racism of others who saw them as less. With that being said, black people remember their history through appearances first. The issue of black fashion becoming more mainstream is that a community of people become muffled and silenced by the others wanting to be like them but not like them. To be truly black means to experience the hatred the world has for them and wait for everything that is considered yours to be stolen from underneath your feet. To be truly black is to feel numb every time the news reports of another innocent black victim dead at the hands of the police. Being black means being told countless times in a lifetime that the world was made to be against you. Being truly black means to be called “urban”, “hood”, “ghetto”, and “scary”. These attributes may also find their way into other minorities, but they can never truly understand the pain and the hardships. The styles the black communities wear is a message all on its own that says to the world, “I have a history and it will be recognized.”

In no way am I saying that cultures should stick to their own culture since that would be a terrible world. I am saying that if a person does take ideas or use aspects from a culture they should definitely refer back to their cultural influence.  Many celebrities have stolen from different cultures in the past and have gotten away with it countless times. Even though the black community show strong disapproval towards these celebrities’ actions with no apology. Then the media surrounding these famous celebrities increase the exposure of these “trends”. Cultural appropriation happens when a culture, different then the culture a person is in, is worn and is not acknowledge or is demeaning for others outside that community to wear.

The major contributors to the loss off black identity is famous white women and the media. The media is responsible in showing the public what celebrities wear. However, they also set the tone for how the public should respond using catchy words or phrases. Famous white women find inspiration in black fashion from the hairstyles and clothing we wear then incorporating it into their daily lives. Their mistake is not correcting the media on where they got their style sense. When white women say nothing, a culture is silenced because they are allowing this type of injustice to continue. In stead of black culture being credited the white women are accounted instead.

Black fashion in the mainstream media causes cultural appropriation. The best thing about diversity is being surrounded by people and cultures that can be similar and very different from our own. The world is becoming more and more diverse and unfortunately things like cultural appropriation do occur. Cultural appropriation is when a race steals elements from a culture in an opposing race and uses it for financial gain or re-branded ownership. Usually the race being pillaged holds little to no power. During this time, black women and men are embracing their culture in a most positive way. Black fashion is one of the ways the black community speaks to the world without saying anything and will continue to inspire people. Although, this type of fashion is only acceptable when worn by someone not black. For example, in 2015 Zendaya, a famous celebrity teenager, graced the Oscars with her hair styled in faux dreads. Zendaya was then criticized for looking like she smelled of weed. Kylie Jenner also wore faux dreads for a Teen Vogue story and was labeled “edgy”, “beautiful”, and “raw.” These two examples show that even though one of these women are mixed she is still less than the white women. The more black fashion is exposed in the mainstream the more likely it is that the black community will lose black fashion and with it part of their identity.

Black fashion in the mainstream media causes black people to lose their identity. Since cultural appropriation effects how black people are first perceived it is hard for the black community to recognize what their identity is. A big majority of black culture is black fashion. Black fashion was and is still a major approach used by the black community to fight back against oppression and the conformity of society. The black community has to live with knowing that they exist only because of the 246 years slavery existed. They must also learn that after slavery the black community continued to feel pain because of segregation which lasted about 89 years. Through these years the black community has fought wars and forced laws all to make living a little easier for the next generations. Black fashion is what makes black people happy as well as surviving subjugation and racism. This explains why black people are so passionate and interested in incidents regarding cultural appropriation towards their culture. Knowing that black people would become just like everyone else is what pushes this group of people forward to stop this from happening. If the barrier between mainstream “trends” and black fashion was to be removed many black youths would grow up confused at how to define their style and where their sense of style actually originates.

Popular white celebrities and black fashion causes cultural appropriation. These trends in mainstream fashion do not come out of nowhere. Most of the trends in fashion are determined by popular celebrities who are seen by the media.  They are also more likely to set a “trend” if they are white. The Kardashian family is infamous for cultural appropriation since they draw inspiration from black culture and profit from it or rename a fashion in black history. A recent example would be Kim Kardashian’s “boxer braids” show in Teen Vogue’s article “This Hairstyle Is Not Called “Boxer Braids” and Kim Kardashian Didn’t Make It Popular.” The author Britni Danielle writes that “girls have worn cornrows before, or that most of the early 2000s were filled with celebs like Alicia Keys, Tyra Banks, Ludacris, Bow Wow, and even Justin Timberlake rocking the style” but the reason it received attention “is because white women have finally caught on.”

Popular white female celebrities wearing black fashion causes cultural appropriation which also causes black people to lose their identity in society. White women wearing black fashion does not cause them to be a victim in the negative side effects of being black. Since there is an imbalance in power white women are less likely to be ridiculed or treated unfairly if they wore box braids in the workplace or fashioned an athletic suit on Instagram. This same imbalance in power makes it harder for black women to wear their natural hair at work without “causing a scene” or having offensive demeaning labels attached to them. White women need to understand that society holds them on a higher pedestal than minorities. For this reason, they should be more aware of the message they are putting out into the world to work together to bring growth instead of tearing women apart.

As said previously, black people lose their ‘blackness’ when black fashion is worn by someone more socially acceptable. Contrary to this belief, black people cannot lose their blackness because there are many other factors that make them black. In addition, the cycle of black fashion trends is more beneficial to black people as well as the world. Darcel Rockett’s article “’How to Slay’: Black fashion has made its mark on world culture” in the Chicago Tribune interviewed fashion expert, Constance C.R. White, who had this to say “This moment is very individualistic — it’s very much about expressing your personality, it’s a mashup and melding of different times. It’s more acceptable than ever, and there’s a hundred trends happening at once. We haven’t seen that in fashion — ever.” What White is trying to say is that fashion is about expressing individuality by choosing from the many time periods of fashion while it is still socially acceptable.

When someone more socially acceptable wear trends that are from black fashion it is not cultural appropriation it is cultural appreciation. When people style their hair in dreadlocks or wear earrings with their name on them it is to show that people who are not black can show how much they like the culture. White people capitalize on black fashion because they understand that black people are not appealing towards society, so it becomes their responsibility. When different people come together and wear black fashion they are essentially expanding and spreading black culture.

It should also be addressed that this argument is based off of black privilege. In John Blake’s article “It’s time to talk about ‘black privilege’” on CNN it writes that “white commentators describe how blackness has become such a “tremendous asset” that some whites are now trying to “pass” as black.” This means that white people believe it a societal necessity to wear clothes influenced by black people and enhanced body parts to be accepted. This may be the reason why people like the Kardashians feel comfortable getting plastic surgery but uncomfortable telling the world the reason why.

Black fashion is worn by everyone so by default black culture becomes a natural trendsetter. As soon as society begins to wear the hairstyles and clothing of black people they immediately know it is time to find something else to standout. This pattern is the reason why most trends are born, why some trends go out of style, and why some become revamped. As a result of this phenomena, black people influence the world only by the way they look. If anything, this should be seen as a privilege to black people since not many cultures can say the same. Black fashion has not always been a source of happiness for the black community. In many ways black fashion can hold black people back since it reinforces that black people are “dirty and poor criminals with no intelligence” just by attire. However, this way of thinking is curbed when everyone starts to dress in mainstream black fashion trends. Know people are targeted equally since they are all dressed the same. This also allows for black people to be discreet since society dresses like them and it is harder to be noticed if everyone is following the same trends.

 

Definition Argument-AmongOthers13

Students all over the world are struggling to learn and grow due to the alarming deficit of student success in schools. The impact of the property tax unequal funding of schools is causing an achievement gap. An achievement gap refers to a persistent difference in academic performance or reaching educational goals between different groups of students (in this case, poor and rich). This achievement gap is influencing a decrease in student success all over the world, and even leads to difficulties obtaining a career in the future.

A journal from Stanford Cepa titled “The widening academic achievement gap between the rich and the poor: New evidence and possible explanations”, written by Sean F. Reardon, states that “The achievement gap between children from high- and low-income families is roughly 30 to 40 percent larger among children born in 2001 than among those born twenty-five years earlier.” This means that the achievement gap is growing each and every day, simply because nobody has made any action on the issue. The journal also states that the achievement gap based off of high-income and low-income students today is nearly twice the size of the black-white achievement gap. This is astonishing news, for about fifty years ago, the black-white achievement gap was two times larger than the high-income and low-income students gap. The tables have turned in a dangerous, menacing way. Why has this happened? There are many possible explanations as to why such a detrimental gap has been formed. “The gap appears to have grown at least partly because of an increase in the association between family income and children’s academic achievement for families above the median income level: a given difference in family incomes now corresponds to a 30 to 60 percent larger difference in achievement than it did for children born in the 1970s.” Nowadays, money and where we live determine everything for our futures, even our education. Also, the gap could be so large because of parental investments in cognitive development, as said by the journal. The gap size has nothing to do with the student’s parents and their education, but more so, how much money their parents have. This is a sickening phase of education that children are struggling to grow through.

When students are not taught at high levels of quality, they have no other choice but to be given a difficult time when testing. An article from Brookings titled “Income and Education as Predictors of Children’s School Readiness”, written by Julia B. Isaacs and Katherine A. Magnuson, claims that children from low-income families “perform less well on standardized tests compared with more advantaged youth and are less likely to graduate high school and complete college.” Children that are struggling through this grow up to be financially unstable because they can not land a decent paying job, for employers often look at school records to track success.  The article states that “Children born into families at the bottom fifth of the income distribution are twice as likely as middle-class children to remain in that bottom bracket as adults.” Even if these children are capable of so much more, their education is holding them back from achieving tremendous things. The visible problem here is that education is now doing the opposite for students as what it is supposed to do- which is to ensure success while obtaining knowledge and everyday skills from attending school.

This lack of efficient schooling often leads children down troubled paths for the rest of their lives. An article from ChildFund International titled “Poverty and Education”states that “Poverty and education are inextricably linked, because people living in poverty may stop going to school so they can work, which leaves them without literacy and numeracy skills they need to further their careers.”  Without these skills necessary to work, children notice from a young age that school is just a waste of time. Students dropout of school because if they are not gaining anything from attending, they could be searching for jobs to start making money to support themselves. Students need to be properly educated, but that can only happen if their schools are properly, equally funded. Poverty does not wait for anyone to “catch up”. In other words, poverty is occuring in various places all around the world, and it will not wait for families to overcome it, even if their education, and then their success for the rest of their lives, is in jeopardy. The very least we should be able to offer these children and these families is a place where they can go to get a high-quality education. Property taxes, however, are restricting them from obtaining that well-deserved education.

An article from LSU Online titled “How Does Poverty Affect Education?” states that low-income areas interferes with a child’s physical readiness, cognitive readiness, and social-emotional readiness. When a student is raised in a low-income neighborhood, odds are, their parents are struggling to provide for them. No matter how hard they work, they do not have surplus money to buy extra amounts of food, clothing, or body care products. They may even be struggling to pay the gas and water bill. If a student’s parents are constantly working, the student probably eats fast, greasy, fattening meals for dinner. This, in turn, leads to poor health, which makes their bodies prone to illnesses that are left untreated, causing more school absences. When students live in these areas, violence and crime rates are extremely high, causing children to stay indoors in fear of getting put into risky situations at parks or playgrounds. Because of this lack of exercise, students gain even more weight, becoming more unhealthy every day. So, it is vital that a student’s school provides time at recess to play or provides extra-curricular activities like sports after school. However, in low-income areas, the schools do not have enough money for after school activities. But, the high-income neighborhoods have sports teams, clubs, dance teams, choir, and much more than the low-income schools because they have more money coming into their schools. These low-income students also may face situations at home that could interfere with how they think about life. If they watch their loved one being abused, is struggling due to stress, do not have enough money, and often do not sleep well at night, they are going to remember that feeling for a long time. When they go to school, they will still have those memories and feelings in the back of their minds. The school atmosphere does not make them forget because it is not at a high level of education. The school does not have enough tools, papers, technology, or exercises to keep the children’s minds off of what could be happening at home. Due to the lack of focus, the students also perform poorly in school. They will isolate themselves from teachers and other students and will be hesitant to make relationships. On top of this, if students are not being taught an adequate amount of vocabulary per day, or if their mind is somewhere else, their cognitive development decreases. The article states, “Many students who cannot understand the words in their texts will resist reading altogether. In addition, students will refuse to participate in discussions they do not understand simply because they do not want to ask for clarification.” Children now think that because they do not understand, that they are simply unintelligent. They are afraid to look silly in front of other classmates, so they do not ask for any further explanations about lessons, which leads to poor results when testing does come. Lower-income schools has many more effects than just learning, it affects the community, the household, the children, the students, the families, and the well being of others.These ideas listed above are directly related to the achievement gap and the reasons why it has grown so vast over the last couple of decades. The achievement gap has been the ultimate division between success and failure for children all around the world.

Rebuttal Rewrite- AmongOthers13

Although counterintuitive, with property tax funding for public schools emerges a large problem; people want schools to have inequality. It all comes down to this- rich homeowners want to pay for their schools in their neighborhoods, merely because it makes the value of their community increase and makes their area look better than the surrounding regions. The rich families know that they pay a higher property tax rate than the next town, but if this money is going towards a better reputation for them and for their surrounding schools, they are more than happy to give that money up. They know that their schools are better funded, that their students have a higher chance of success, and because of these statements, the homes in the area hold their value. People will want to move to areas where the community’s are elegant, with financially stable schools that acquire more than necessary to implement their children’s success. This is why homeowner’s support the property tax funding of schools. They disregard the condition of the schools in areas of poverty or low-income. These places don’t seem to matter to them at all. They want their schools to be superior, but what they do not realize is that this unequal expenses on schools create the achievement gap as aforementioned. Homeowners want to control the local government and its taxes because it directly benefits their homes, their neighborhoods,and their schools.

An article taken from JSTOR titled “Homevoters, Municipal Corporate Governance, and The Benefit View of The Property Tax,” states that “ The more general issue that homevoting addresses is why school quality has fallen in California and, apparently, in other states that have traveled down a similar path away from local control of school finances.” This shows that states are recognizing this immense gap between student success in contrasting areas, but no one has yet to make an action on this issue. People are hesitant to believe such a gap exists because the test scores are seemingly close in comparison, but what the people do not know is that this is because the highly-funded schools are actually being “dumbed-down” and taught less efficiently than they are supposed to be taught. This makes the people think that the difference between schools in poor and rich areas is simply just the location. But, these rich families are sending their childrens to schools that they think are top of the line, when really, their children are learning at lower, slower levels than they should. The article states, “This is consistent with the findings by several studies that show that greater state fiscal involvement results in less efficient schooling.” Due to these reasons, the quality of schooling is not just decreasing in poor areas, but also in the rich areas as well.

So, what do we do now? Do we add more teachers to the school? The article states that if we do this, the more qualified teachers will be chosen, increasing school quality and the homes around the school. But, what about the extra money the school now needs to pay these teachers? This, in turn, would raise property taxes, which decreases home value. In turn, local voters now have to decide to choose cost-effective schools. The state legislature, however, cannot do the same for the following reasons. States are too large to see the differences between the quality of schools compared to other states. Also, adults that do not have children in school do not want to spend as much as school funding for state level than local level. People that own homes that they can one day sell to another family that does have kids are still interested in the quality of schools and the condition of the surrounding community. The third and final reason centralization causes poor results in schooling is because teacher’s unions replaces homeowners as being the most important group at state level. Although unions raise average spending per student, they make those earnings less sufficient by putting it towards work rules that they cannot acquire at the local level.

An article from The Harvard Gazette written by Christina Pazzanese states that “Your ZIP code and the exact characteristics of your parents seem to matter more,” said Lawrence Katz in an interview discussing the damaging effects of the growing achievement gap. What he means by this is that nowadays it does matter where you are raised and by whom,one parent or two, in a rich community or poor, for these aspects determine your fate. This is an appalling way to look at the achievement gap, but it is sadly true. Katz calls the diversion “The rich and the rest”, implying that it seems to be that if you are not rich, you do not deserve a category, or a name. If you are not rich, you are the “rest”, the people who struggle to get by, who don’t have high quality schools or neighborhoods. Being rich doesn’t necessarily mean who can buy the most expensive things, for it now means being rich determines whether or not you are successful in your future career path or not. This has changed the way young children think, which is perhaps the saddest part of it all. We no longer consider ourselves successful if we are not rich, from high income places, and land a job making over a hundred thousand per year. Our actual intelligence doesn’t even determine our success because of property tax and the achievement gap.

Katz continues to say, “Smart poor kids are less likely to graduate from college now than dumb rich kids. That’s not because of the schools, that’s because of all the advantages that are available to rich kids.” Something has to change if we want to give the youth, the future of America an equal education. Their fates are decided before they can even speak, before they can crawl. The United States education system is truly at its lowest point, and it all derives directly from the way schools are funded.

 

References  

Fischel, W. A. (n.d.). Homevoters, Municipal Corporate Governance,and the Benefit of the Property Tax. doi:10.3897/bdj.4.e7720.figure2f

 

The costs of inequality: Increasingly, it’s the rich and the rest. (2017, December 20). Retrieved from https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2016/02/the-costs-of-inequality-increasingly-its-the-rich-and-the-rest/

Annotated Bibliography – summergirl1999

Annotated Bibliography

 

  1. Student Loan Debt Crisis. (2006). Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.consumerreports.org/student-loan-debt-crisis/

Background: This article discusses the depth of student loan debt in the United States. This article explains why student loans got put into place originally, and after generations that student loans have another meaning. This article discusses the amount of debt the United States is from student loans.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover how student debt came to be and student loans are a huge part of our economy’s debt. I used it to demonstrate student debt is a big issue within the United States, and it has an effect on Americans personal lives. The article highly discussed the $1.3 trillion dollars of student loan debt the United States is in. It helped give a better outlook on student debt.

 

  1. Peterson-Withorn, C. (2014, July 30). How Today’s Student Loan Debt Is Failing Future Generations. Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2014/07/30/how-todays-student-loan-debt-is-failing-future-generations/#4d9e5f124b3c

Background: This article discusses the finical aspect of student loans and college. The article gives information on the rise of tuition. This article gives information about student loan debt, and its place in the economy. This article argues that the debt is affecting many millennials.

How I Used It: This article helped me get information student debt affecting not only the graduates but millennials too. This article offered in depth information about loan companies which is a topic brought up in my research paper. This article helped me gain a better understanding of the big role student debt plays in America’s society.

 

  1. Freedman, J. (2014, February 11). Student Loans Are a Drag on The Economy and Society. Retrieved February 18, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshfreedman/2014/02/11/student-loans-are-a-big-drag-on-the-economy-and-society/#7bf123014bc1

Background: This article discusses the original reason student loans were put into place. Student loans were originally put into place to help more people attend college. This article speaks about student debt place in America’s economy. This article offers charts and data to prove their argument.

How I Used It: This article helped me gain information on the burden that college has on personal and financial lives. This article discussed the bigger scare more people are starting to have towards college. Student loans were put into place to help more students have an opportunity to get a college education. This article gives statements from the Department of Education to strengthen their point.

 

 

  1. SlideCasey, C. (2014). Cannot Find a Job After College. Retrieved April 17, 2018, from https://www.moneycrashers.com/cant-find-job-after-college/

Background: This website offers information about careers after having a degree. Even with a degree, careers are not guaranteed. This article gives information on what to do if someone has a degree and cannot find a job.

How I Used It: This article helped me gain information for both sides of my argument. This article is about graduates having degrees and not being able to find a career or job. It offers information about reducing cost of living and restricted budget. Students go to college for the education but also for the careers and salary. Students attend college to not struggle.

 

  1. Weiner, J. (2014, September 05). Why Sally can’t get a good job with her college degree. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/she-the-people/wp/2014/09/05/why-sally-cant-get-a-good-job-with-her-college-degree/?utm_term=.8b458336a8a4

Background: This article offers information about degrees, careers, and student loans. This article offers information on graduates who have degrees for majors that are not in demand. This article speaks about the value of different types of degrees.

How I Used it: This article helped me gain information about the career field. Graduates have degrees for careers that are not in high demand. This article gives statements from the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook and the Women’s Law Center. This article offers information about student debt in the United States economy.

 

  1. Nykiel, T. (2018, April 02). Student Loan Interest Rates: Federal, Private, Refinancing. Retrieved January 18, 2018, from https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/student-loans/student-loan-interest-rates/

Background: This article offers information about student loan interest rates. It provides information about different types of student loan interest rates such as federal student loan, unsubsidized, and subsidized. This article is organized in sections to help explain student loan interest rate, such as how student loan interest rates work, federal, and private student loans.

How I Used It: This article helped me gain information about student loan interest rates. Student loans are finically difficult themselves. But there is an extra cost for borrowing the money from loaners, which is making it an extra burden on millennials.

 

  1. Advisor, C. (2014). What’s the Price Tag for a College Education? Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.collegedata.com/cs/content/content_payarticle_tmpl.jhtml?articleId=10064

Background: This article offers information on the variables that go into college that make the tuition. They give information and estimated prices on tuition prices of public and private universities. They break down and give in depth reason for the cost of college tuition. They organize the article in sections for general price, tuition, fees, housing and meals, books and supplies, and personal expenses.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover all the variables that go into the price of college tuition. It helped me with my opposing argument because there are many variables that go into college which makes tuition prices high. This article also offers a section about not giving up and being afraid of college because of the tuition.

 

  1. Harvard at a Glance. (n.d.). Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.harvard.edu/about-harvard/harvard-glance

Background: This article offers information on the ivy league university, Harvard University. Harvard University is one of the top, most prestigious universities in America. It was established in 1636. Many United States presidents attended there. Harvard is difficult to attend because they need to keep up with their name. It is a very high recognition university.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover the general facts and background knowledge of one of the top universities in America. This article helped me with my student A and student B scenario.

 

  1. O’Shaughnessy, L. (2015, March 13). The biggest problems with America’s colleges. Retrieved February 20, 2018, from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-biggest-problems-with-americas-colleges/

Background: This article offers information about the issues with America’s colleges. It gives information on amounts of student aid that is given out during certain schoolyears. This article is organized in sections to help people understand the problems with America’s universities, poor graduate rates, family incentives, lopsided priorities, willful blindness, and general information.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover more information about the general problems with America’s colleges. It helped me argue my point in my research paper, by giving detailed information with reports and facts about America’s colleges.

 

  1. Weissmann, J. (2012, May 17). Does It Matter Where You Go to College? Retrieved February 21, 2018, from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/05/does-it-matter-where-you-go-to-college/257227/

Background: This article offers information about the meaning of the college students attend. This article offers in depth information about the recognition of colleges, and the meaning it has on getting a career. The article also mentions prestigious schools and expensive schools. The university that students choose is very important.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover the value of university names. The career field is very competitive and the recognition of the college the graduate attended can cost someone a career. This article offers data and studies from The Journal of Human Resources.

This article helped me expand my argument throughout my research paper.

 

  1. 9 BENEFITS OF EARNING A COLLEGE DEGREE. (2016, December 09). Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.cbd.edu/9-benefits-college-degree/

Background: This article offers information about the benefits of a college degree. It gives information about the perks and benefits of college. The article offers information about money, employers, and careers.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover additional points on why college is beneficial. This article is organized with sections about nine reasons why college is worth the time and money. This article gave me more information to help my rebuttal argument.

 

  1. (2008, October 05). 25 Best High Paying Jobs Without a Degree. Retrieved April 17, 2018, from https://christianpf.com/paying-jobs-without-degree/

Background: This article offers information about jobs without a college degree. It offers information about technology, many successful businesses are online. College was almost necessary but with the technology there are many other ways to make money.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover some more ways that people can make good money without a college degree. Technology is helping many people make money. People are making online businesses that they are making very good money from. This article offers information about successful ways to make money without a college degree.

 

  1. Ha, L. (2017, September 15). For some freshly minted college graduates, a reckoning with a ‘quarter-life crisis’. Retrieved March 17, 2018, from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/08/millennials-face-life-after-college-finding-a-quarter-life-crisis-instead-of-dream-jobs.html

Background: This article offers information about millennials and the education system. This article offers stories from college graduates. Many graduates are having troubles finding a steady career after college. It is difficult for graduates to pay back student loans when they do not have a stable career. This article offers information about many college graduate millennials finding themselves in a quarter life crisis. This article offers a study about social media.

How I Used It: This article helped me discover that the career field is difficult. Careers are not guaranteed with a college degree. Many graduates cannot find steady careers and still have to pay off their student loans. This article gave information about real college graduates that are facing difficulties finding a career. This article helped me argue my argument in my research paper by giving information about graduates personal and finical situations.

 

  1. Long, K. (2016, August 08). Why Your Student Loan Debt May Not Be as Bad as It Seems. Retrieved February 17, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/financialfinesse/2016/08/07/why-your-student-loan-debt-may-not-be-as-bad-as-it-seems/#61095a8218b8

Background: This article offers information about student debt not being as bad as people make it seem. Student debt is the highest debt America encounters but it is the most beneficial because having a college degree has its benefits. This article offers information about 401k, employers, and careers.

How I Used It: This article helped me with my rebuttal argument for my research paper. This article gives the positives of having student debt. Many people obtain careers after college and the salary people can get from a career makes it easier to pay off the student loans.

 

 

  1. Dickler, J. (2017, August 29). Student loan balances jump nearly 150 percent in a decade. Retrieved January 18, 2018, from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/student-loan-balances-jump-nearly-150-percent-in-a-decade.html

Background: This article provides the average student of student debt graduates have. The high jump of student debt America encounters. This article provides, graphs and charts to support their evidence. The percentage of America that is in student debt.

How I Used It: This article proves that that tuition increase for college education is causing problems for not only graduates but also the economy. This article also proves the delay on personal purchases due to student debt.

 

  1. Matarazzo, M. (2017, March 29). How is the Student-Debt Crisis Affecting the Lives of College Graduates? Retrieved January 18, 2018, from http://www.genfkd.org/student-debt-crisis-affecting-lives-college-graduates

Background: This article provides information about the student debt crisis affecting the personal lives of college graduates.

How I Used It: This article proves student debt effects many college graduates. It provides information about the impact of rising tuition costs, and the debt America is in. The price of paying back student debt monthly. This article also proves the long-term impacts of student debt.

 

  1. Lanza, A. (2016, January 20). Study: Student Loan Borrowers Delaying Other Life Decisions. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from https://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/student-loan-ranger/articles/2016-01-20/study-student-loan-borrowers-delaying-other-life-decisions

Background: This article provides surveys on daily spending habits of young Americans. Provides information on public, private universities, and community colleges. The percentages of people who think college is and is not worth it.

How I Used It: This article proves student debt effects some graduates personal lives. Purchases from many graduates are being delayed. Student debt can cause people to take out of their savings or retirement. Student debt can cause graduates to have some troubles with paying for some necessities.

 

  1. Frizell, S. (2014, February 27). Student Loans Are Ruining Your Life. Now They’re Ruining the Economy, Too. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from http://time.com/10577/student-loans-are-ruining-your-life-now-theyre-ruining-the-economy-too/

Background: This article proves even though a person has a degree in a certain field it does not mean a career is guaranteed. The amount of student debt America is in. The average amount of money a graduate owes. The rise of tuition and loan interest. More students are attending college.

How I Used It: This article proves that America is in $253 billion dollars of student loan debt. In the recent years the debt increased 10 percent. Not all graduates can pay back their debt in time. This article proves charts. This article proves tuition for universities rising. This article proves interest rates are crazy.

 

 

Rebuttal Argument- Myrtle View

As said previously, black people lose their ‘blackness’ when black fashion is worn by someone more socially acceptable. Contrary to this belief, black people cannot lose their blackness because there are many other factors that make them black. In addition, the cycle of black fashion trends is more beneficial to black people as well as the world.               When someone more socially acceptable wear trends that are from black fashion it is not cultural appropriation it is cultural appreciation. When people style their hair in dreadlocks or wear earrings with their name on them it is to show that people who are not black can show how much they like the culture. White people capitalize on black fashion because they understand that black people are not appealing towards society, so it becomes their responsibility. When different people come together and wear black fashion they are essentially expanding and spreading black culture.   Black fashion is worn by everyone so by default black culture becomes a natural trendsetter. As soon as society begins to wear the hairstyles and clothing of black people they immediately know it is time to find something else to standout. This pattern is the reason why most trends are born, why some trends go out of style, and why some become revamped. As a result of this phenomena, black people influence the world only by the way they look. If anything, this should be seen as a privilege to black people since not many cultures can say the same. Black fashion has not always been a source of happiness for the black community. In many ways black fashion can hold black people back since it reinforces that black people are “dirty and poor criminals with no intelligence” just by attire. However, this way of thinking is curbed when everyone starts to dress in mainstream black fashion trends. Know people are targeted equally since they are all dressed the same. This also allows for black people to be discreet since society dresses like them and it is harder to be noticed if everyone is following the same trends.

Rebuttal Rewrite – picklerick

The well-intentioned strategy of allowing students to choose their own reading material most often fails. To pad their grades, unambitious students choose easy-readers below their achieved comprehension level, while go-getters overreach, sacrificing the comprehension they need. As Mark Pennington puts the case in his article on the Pennington Publishing Blog, “Students often choose books with reading levels far below or far above own their reading levels and so do not experience optimal reading growth.” One approach to this issue is for teachers who want students to enjoy reading to let them select their own material from a list of grade-appropriate choices. This gives the students moderate choice without risk of jeopardizing learning. To encourage them to read what they enjoy, teachers can permit students to nominate new material for the list.

A better way to help these kids develop their reading skills is to assign them books that the teachers have already read. This ensures the teacher’s ability to guide their students down the right path. Another way to aid students is to teach them how to close read. Close reading is a form of reading in which the reader carefully analyzes a text in order to gain maximum comprehension from it. It shows kids how to truly read a text, rather than just skimming through it. It is an essential skill for all people, and should be juiced in classrooms of all levels for its benefits.

The best way to teach these students how to properly close read is to assign them short, nonfiction texts that challenge their ability to analyze, comprehend, and make inferences. Both the teacher and the student should analyze a reading passage and examine it for details, some of which include understanding how the text works, the author’s message, providing text evidence to support thoughts and predictions the reader is developing, and making connections between the reader and the text itself (Shanahan, 2012). As long as these methods are carried out properly, students will have the reading skills necessary to make them more successful and intelligent.

 

References

Strauss, V. (2014, September 08). Why kids should choose their own books to read in school. Retrieved March 17, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/09/08/why-kids-should-choose-their-own-books-to-read-in-school/?utm_term=.a1d60b23343c

Pennington Publishing Blog. (n.d.). Retrieved March 17, 2018, from http://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/why-sustained-silent-reading-ssr-doesnt-work/

Dakin, C. (2013). The Effects of Comprehension Through Close Reading (Unpublished masters thesis). St. John Fisher College.
https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1238&context=education_ETD_masters

Shanahan, T. (2012). What is close reading? Retrieved from
http://www.shanahanonliteracy.com/2012/06/what-is-close-reading.html

Causal Rewrite – picklerick

Reading more nonfiction literature is a fantastic way to sharpen your brain. This sounds obvious, but so many people have the wrong idea when it comes to fiction vs. nonfiction. When one reads informational text, it requires careful attention and effort to be fully comprehended. Whereas when fiction or science fiction is being read, it’s likely being read purely for pleasure.

There are, of course, exceptions to this. Plenty of people may read fiction with excellent focus and attention to detail. The thing is, these people are missing out on the immense amount of knowledge and understanding of the world that nonfiction junkies get to experience. Those who just read books for fun can stick to whatever they want to read, but those who are trying to get real, practical benefits from their reading should always lean toward nonfiction.

Public schooling often fails to teach the proper way to close read text. According to Ness (2011), students are struggling with close reading at an increasing rate. A few factors play into this. Kids in elementary school through high school are often given assignments where they’re asked to independently read and log a brief description of what they read in a reading journal. This sounds like a simple and reliable way to get kids into reading. In reality, though, this form of reading assignment gives adolescents major apprehension towards reading and is often the reason why they are so turned off to reading by the time they get to highschool. When kids feel forced to read, they won’t want to. This is why many schools need to rethink the way they’re teaching kids to read by focusing heavily the basics of close reading.

Caitlin Dakin states, in her thesis paper, “It is essential in today’s educational world that teachers begin to transform their classroom instruction of fiction literature into short informational complex texts to give the students the opportunity to meet the demands of the common core learning standards.” Read what you will, but be aware of how much benefit you are really getting from your reading.

 

References

Dakin, C. (2013). The Effects of Comprehension Through Close Reading (Unpublished masters thesis). St. John Fisher College.
https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1238&context=education_ETD_masters

Amanda Christy Brown and Katherine Schulten. (2012, December 13). Fiction or Nonfiction? Considering the Common Core’s Emphasis on Informational Text. Retrieved March 02, 2018, from https://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/13/fiction-or-nonfiction-considering-the-common-cores-emphasis-on-informational-text/

Bartlett, B. (2014, June 20). 4 Bad Side Effects of Reading Fiction According to the 19th Century. Retrieved March 02, 2018, from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/beth-bartlett/4-bad-side-effects-of-rea_b_5513451.html

Causal Argument Rewrite- Dancers

Looking at Bullies Differently

Bullying is one of the most common traumatizing phenomena among children and adolescents and is recently being recognized as a growing problem.

In grades 6 through 12 one in every five students reports being bullied according to the National Center for Educational Statistics taken in 2016. Out of the students who reported being bullied 33% said they were bullied at least once or twice a month during the year. Statistic of the students that have been subjected to bullying reported that 13% were made fun of, 12% were subjected to rumors, 5% were physically abused, and the last 5% were deliberately left out of activities. The percentage of students who admitted to being bullied is much higher than the percentage of students who report being bullied to someone within the school. Due to this huge gap in the percentages the bullying problem within schools is worse than we thought.

It is difficult to fully determine why children have bully like tendencies when interacting with others. But arguments can be made that children tend to pick up these tendencies at home. When parents treat their children poorly from a young age the child is going to grow up thinking that’s the way to treat others around them. If a child knows nothing about care and affection of course they will treat their peers poorly.

Bullies tend to have aggressive behaviors designed to obtain goals and these goals often begin first in their home environment. Children are most vulnerable to learning the appropriate behaviors at a very young age. Most of the behaviors that bullies tend to pick up on are due to the way their family acts. The home situation of most bullies is quite harsh, punishment is often within the home either verbal or physical. If the child makes a minor infraction it could lead the parent to over react in a verbal, emotional or physical way. Children being raised in an environment like this often don’t gain approval or praise at any time.

If the primary caretaker has a negative attitude toward the child at a young age with lack of warmth and involvement in this child, it increases the risk that this child will grow up with hostile or aggressive behaviors towards others. Not just people in their family but towards people in general. If the child does become aggressive and the parent becomes permissive of these behaviors, without setting clear limits to the behavior towards peers, siblings, and adults the child’s aggression will most likely increase. If the parent of a child uses physical punishment and violent emotional outburst when trying to get their point across, this child is more likely to become more aggressive than the average child.

It has been concluded that bullies often stem from families where the parents are authoritarian, hostile, and rejecting, have poor problem solving skills and advocate fighting back at least at the least provocation. Children being raised in a hostile home environment could often feel neglected and unwanted. This could lead to the child becoming aggressive and act out in order to try and gain attention from their parents.

The parents of these children probably don’t realize that their behaviors toward their child leads them to act the same way they do towards others. Some of these children who bully may not know any better because they were raised in a home with negativity and where they were constantly put down. So they may see it as normal behavior when they are treating others this way not realizing that they are actually bullying.

Out of a home environment of negativity emerges a personality steeped in the belief and justification that intimidation and brute forces are ways to interact with obstacles that are encountered in life. It has been said that violence begets violence. If a child is treated with violent behaviors they most often turn and treat others with violent behaviors.

The aggression and anger of these children often builds up because they are not able to speak out at home in which it grows. So when they arrive at school and have to deal with some sort of situation they may just explode and go off on others within this environment. It is hard for teachers and peers to deal with children who do not know how to act properly, fearing they will always act out when something bad happens.

Justifying bullies is not what is happening but these children that bullies often can’t take all the blame they are raised in a sense where negativity towards others is normal. Furthermore, if these children are bullying others their parents often stick up for their child’s behavior and sees it as them sticking up for them self.

References

Bullying Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.pacer.org/bullying/resources/stats.asp

Roberts, W. B., Jr., & Morotti, A. A. (n.d.). The Bully as Victim. Retrieved February 27, 2018, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/42732181.pdf?refreqid=excelsior:691cee82878e2580b4ba2f967406d63a

Olweus, D. (n.d.). Bully/Victim problems in school. Retrieved February 27, 2018, from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.rowan.edu/stable/pdf/23420286.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3A81a118046b9f273c73808da868e8d722

Ma, X. (n.d.). Bullying and Being Bullied. Retrieved February 27, 2018, from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.rowan.edu/stable/pdf/3202462.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3A60abb9588a61d9951c2434b757060c62