The Mob Mentality

The Mob Mentaility Saturday, October 10, 2015 ​ As I mentioned in the previous blog post, I conducted a survey over Facebook to get some opinions from my peers and mentors as to their thoughts on whether or not teachers should be carrying guns at school. I got plenty of feedback on their opinions as well as witnessed some crazy mob mentality that was social media based. For the first few comments, everyone was calm and shared their opinions- either yes or no for teachers carrying guns- and why they thought this. The problem came once a specific teacher got on and said that she wascarrying her gun at school. A different friend replied to the teacher's comment and said something along the lines of "as long as there are extreme tests taking place, I [the friend] think that teachers should definitely be allowed to carry guns at school". The teacher explained that she most definitely had taken an assortment and abundance of tests to get her concealed weapons permit as well as informed her principal that she was carrying a weapon and had done all the necessary work to get it approved with the principal and the school. Next came an extremely out-there back and forth between the student and the teacher, to which a separate friend- a cousin, if that means anything- told the two of them "Hey losers, she said no fighting. So give her an answer and shut up." Needless to say that this comment sparked a Facebook fire like none I have ever seen. The teacher respectfully apologized and repeated her answer, but the friend couldn't let the subject drop. He started calling names and calling her out on simple things as he inferred things from her comments. She was not any better, returning his rude comments with snide and sometimes passive aggressive comments of her own. A second fight broke out between two other students that, though not as extreme as the first fight, still compelled me to delete the post all together. Seconds after the post was deleted, I got a message from my cousin that said "Hey, I wasn't done with him!" This only made me feel better about my decision to delete the post. I managed to talk my cousin down and thank her for her input. A few minutes after that, an aunt texted me to ask where the post went. I explained it to her and she replied with, "Oh, yeah. It's probably good you deleted it, although it was pretty funny." While this is not exact research, this is just one example of how students are generally more hot-headed than adults, but adults do not always act like adults should anyways. Each generation is also subject to the mob mentality and the false protection of saying whatever they please with no consequences on social media. The fact of the matter is that the problem is much more prominent in high schools. Each and every day there are students being bullied in and outside of school. Much of this takes place over social media and the schools- at least the ones that I have looked at- have made it a point to do all in their power to decrease their bullying levels and make students aware of the repercussions bullying has.

Teachers With Guns: Yay? or Nay? Thursday, October 8, 2015 ​ With the recent shootings in Oregon, Colorado, and other states, including the catastrophic event at Sandy Hook Elementary, the topic of gun control has become a hot debate. One of the sub topics of this debate is whether or not school teachers should be carrying guns at all times as a protection for their classes. Rather than consulting Google for the answer to "Should school teachers carry guns?", I decided to open the question to my friends, peers, and mentors on Facebook. The results were twofold: one, I got several answers within seconds that varied from "heck yes and anyone who says otherwise should go to you-know-where" to "I would rather walk on hot coals for the rest of my life than attend/send my child to a school where teachers have guns". The second result was unintentional, and I'll save the whole story for the next post, but there was some crazy mob-mentality going on. The status I posted read, approximately, this: Okay everybody, I need your input. Please don't turn this into a big political debate or a fight but I would appreciate if you could answer the following questions. Should teachers be allowed to carry guns? Why or why not? Within a five minutes I had one 'no' and one 'yes'. Within thirty minutes I had four 'no's' and seven 'yesses'. Generally, the teachers were saying yes. I had one teacher comment who said that the Sandy Hook incident is the reason she even got her concealed weapons permit and carries her gun at all times. She made it very clear that the gun never leaves her person and is never put in a place that could endanger any of the students. Many of the people that said 'yes' expressed that they believed that everyone has the right to a weapon and should be allowed to carry that weapon at any time. However, every single one of them agreed that there should have to be a series of tests that these teachers must take in order to be deemed safe when in possession of the firearm and the teacher should, under no circumstances, make it public that they have a weapon. The teacher that carries her weapon currently said that she did have to take numerous tests both with the gun and without the gun, and continues to go in for tests every few months. The majority of people that said 'no' to the posed question were students. All the reasons they gave to support their opinion essentially came down to one point: teachers are there to teach. No more, no less. While these students and single teacher recognized that there could potentially be a threat, they stood by the opinion that teachers have no right to try and protect the students in such a way and that job should be left for the law enforcement placed at the schools. Each side is valid. If the two could work together, I think gun control wouldn't be an issue. It is interesting to see that teachers, for the most part, are pro and students, in the majority, are against the idea of teachers having guns.   ​

Standardized Testing

standardized testing is a hot topic among high school students and their parents. In the spring, when most schools begin their end of year testing, the complaint level definitely goes up from teachers, students, and parents.

                Often times the student will argue, "Well, I am in an honors class so why should I be taking this test?" or "Standardized tests do not prove anything, they just help the district get their numbers." And usually the teacher will respond with, "Take it anyway, it is only an hour." Why do these students ask questions when it is obvious that they have not done research on exactly what these tests are for? What are these tests for?

                It is quite possible that students in America are tested much more than countries like Finland, Japan, or England when it comes to standardized tests such as the SAT, ACT, or common core tests. However, professionals that study the testing systems in these countries agree that American students definitely have itway easier than these other students when it comes to stress levels or the difficulty of their standardized tests. American students are given tests at the end of every year of school as well as a test to get into most universities and colleges. In England, students are given a test in the middle of high school to decide whether they can complete high school or not. Talk about stress. Then in Finland there is not a test until the end of high school to see which university will accept the students who pass. If a student does not pass these tests- that can take up to 40 hours- there is basically a zero percent chance of them achieving any dreams they may have had that involved an education beyond high school. Finally, in Japan the students must take an exam to be accepted into high school, and if they make it that far then they must also pass an exam to get into a university. In Finland and Japan the universities are the ones that provide the entrance exams.

                Looking at just the US, there are many pros and cons to these standardized tests. Studies have shown that a vast majority of students actually show a "positive effect" for achievement using high-stake and standardized tests. These tests have also been deemed as fair for all students. They are computer graded so there is no teacher using biased to grade. There are also no questions that are made to fit a specific set of students and help them get better grades then the rest of the students taking the test. On the flip side, there are no questions that are made to fit a specific set of students, including students with special needs or language difficulties.

                Looking just at America, standardized testing does not seem appealing. It seems that we test our students too much and starting at too young an age. However, when comparing America to other countries' testing systems, America has a very relaxed testing set up. ​

School Uniforms Thursday, October 15, 2015 ​ School uniforms- two words almost every high school student does not want to hear in their lifetime. Sure, it would be nice to not have to worry about what you would wear every day, but that also takes the fun out of it. (I especially have a hard time wrapping my mind around school uniforms. I am a shopaholic and could not standit if I had to wear awful socks and itchy sweaters with ugly brown shoes every day of my high school career.) I have not actually attended a school where the policy switched from casual clothing to uniforms, so I had to do my own research online to see the effects that uniforms have on schools and students. In every article or "experiment", if you will, there seemed to be roughly four things tested with the implementation of uniforms: violence rates, attendance rates, academic excellence, and graduation rates. Depending on the school and location, all of these differed and results were very inconclusive. Many of the reports stated that violence had decreased significantly and graduation rates had increased significantly, although there was little to no change in attendance or academic performance. The reports I read that stated these conclusions seemed to agree that a plaid skirt and button up shirt have no effect on how well a student can read Shakespeare or solve an algebra problem, it is the fact that when a school demands a level of physical performance, the student will rise to meet that. Studies show that there is a correlation between uniforms and a decrease in discipline problems. Still other schools reported that there had been no change at all in the way their students performed. In fact, violence rates had risen during the first year of the uniform policy at one school. By the second year the rates had dropped again and the administrators speculated that this could have been due to the fact that the students were now used to the uniforms. There was an interesting survey that was taken at one of these schools. The school had interview several students and teachers to see how they felt the school had changed since it had switched to a set uniform. A good majority of the interviewees said that they felt the school had become better and safer, when in all reality there had been no change in rates of violence, academics, attendance, or graduation. It is interesting to read these articles and see how uniforms affect students and staff at high schools. I would say that uniforms definitely give off a more "important" air, and if it helps students feel better at school, it would be worth it, in my opinion, to change all high schools' policies to incorporate school uniforms. I know several students would be highly opposed to this proposition, and I myself have a hard time wrapping my mind around it, but if it would help even a few more students to graduate or decrease our violence and need for disciplinary action, I am all for it. ​

Common Core and Me

Common Core curriculum had become a huge controversial topic for today's high schools and middle schools. I often see, on Facebook and other social media sites, parents complaining about how common core is ruining their student's grades and their understanding of the class materials. Often times when I see these comments, I wonder what the adult is comparing their student's current grades to. Previous grades before common core? Other students' grades? Either way, these parents have obviously not been thorough in their gathering of information before accusing the common core program for the problems their student is having in school.

My graduating class is the first class to be put through common core. The year we moved from middle school to high school (8^th to 9^th grade) was the year that a lot of schools quite accelerated math classes. I had taken geometry in eighth grade and was set to go into Algebra II my Freshman year, but because the high school I was going to was adopting common core, none of the students in my class were able to progress to Algebra II and instead were placed in a secondary honors class where a lot of the mathematic material we had already studied was covered again.

Luckily I moved the summer before my freshman year and the high school I moved to put the common core cut off year to the year behind mine. In other words, anyone from my grade that had previously taken an accelerated course in middle school was able to continue on that accelerated course through high school, so long as they maintained high enough test scores.

This was not the case for my other classes, such as English and Science. I did not notice any huge changes in the way these classes were taught, though, once the common core program had been adopted at my school. There were still honors and AP classes offered for these different subjects, history as well, and actually the syllabi for these courses in honors and regular were not very different. Really the honors classes would only end up with one extra project and maybe one less quiz.

I have watched the grades below mine struggle with common core a little bit, as far as the mathematics portion goes, and students that move to Utah from a state farther east. My sister comes home from school confused about math almost every day. She is very bright and has pulled straight A's since elementary school, with math as her best subject. Often times she will ask me for help and I will not have a clue how to help her because the way the math material is taught is so different from when I went through the program.

I had a friend that moved here from Minnesota her sophomore year and immediately fell behind because her previous school did not have common core, and now she was supposed to learn an entirely new way of thinking.

In my opinion, it is absolutely fine to have common core in English, science, and history classes but it should definitely be left out of the math classes. I don't believe that learning "across" rather than building from the bottom up is any way to learn math. ​

Common Core From an Elementary Perspective Saturday, October 24, 2015 ​Last week I posted my thoughts on the common core curriculum and how I've seen it affect the students I'm surrounded by each day. This week I interviewed my aunt who is a teacher at an elementary school in northern Utah. I asked her these questions 1) Which grade level/type of children do you teach? 2) Have you noticed a difference in grades and accomplishments since beginning common core? 3) What complaints have you had from parents regarding common core? 4) Is there a difference between what you used to teach and the new curriculum? 5) Are test scores similar? 6) What challenges come with teaching common core? (New students, slower/accelerated students) 1. I teach first graders.   2.  The main change that I have noticed with my first graders since implementing the common core is that they have a much deeper understanding of mathematical processes than they did in the pass.  My students now are much better at explaining their reasoning and HOW or WHY they do something.  With this, I have noticed an increase in students being able to make their own connections and figure out their own ways of solving a problem.  They are MUCH better at solving word problems/story problems and in the real life application of math.  The common core standards require that we teach students many different math strategies.  This provides students with several tools that they can have at their disposal.  I like this because different strategies and tools resonate or make sense to different students, so teaching several of them makes it more likely that everyone will find a strategy or tool that works for them.   3.  I personally haven't had any specific complaints regarding common core.  The most I've heard is the occasional, "That seems like a hard assignment/concept for first grade.  Is this because of common core?"  (Invariably the issue at hand was completely unrelated to common core and was something that has been expected first grade curriculum for several years now.)  I've heard parents, friends, and acquaintances with children in other grades complain about common core, but never parents of first graders.  In fact, I haven't even heard any other first grade teachers complain about it.  In all honesty, I think that the standards of the common core are mostly good teaching practices that many teachers have been implementing for years.   I have heard parents of some upper grade elementary (4th-6th) complain that their student got docked points on a math test where they were required to use a specific strategy.  The parents felt that it was unfair to require the student to use a SPECIFIC strategy when they could solve the problem some other way.  (For example, the problem may be :Solve the following addition problem by regrouping--and a student can solve the problem in a different way.)   I have three basic opinions on this:        - It doesn't hurt students to learn more than one way to solve a problem.  Different strategies may come in handy at different times with different problems.  Learn them all!       -  The real issue at hand here is assessment and accountability.  If the test is purely to assess whether or not a child can ADD, then the child should definitely not be marked wrong for using ANY STRATEGY THEY WISH to add.  If, however, the teacher is giving the test to see whether or not the child can add by REGROUPING, then a child who does not show proof of regrouping should get that problem marked wrong.        -  My third and strongest opinion is that teachers need to use assessment for the right reason.  First and foremost, teachers should use assessment to drive instruction.  Tests should be given so that a teacher can see what a child already knows and what a child still needs to learn. Too much emphasis is given on a silly little grade letter.  If I tell a child's parents that they got a D in math, that does nothing for the child.  If, however, I explain that the child always leaves out the number 19 when counting and that the child adds numbers correctly most of the time, but never answers story problems correctly, that gives parents a better idea of what their child can & can't do & what they can help their child with at home.  I recognize that this changes the older a child gets.  Letter grades get more appropriate the older a student gets because a child has more responsibility for their own learning and they are a succinct way of providing information for college entry, etc.  In the lower grades, however, the focus should be more on WHAT we as parents and teachers can do to help the student because they cannot yet help themselves,  (They can't hunker down and study a textbook if they don't know how to read yet.)   4.  There is a little bit of a difference between what I used to teach and what I now teach. Mostly, it's the same content, but going a little deeper into it.   5.  In first grade, we don't have national or even statewide national tests.  We do district, school-wide, and class wide tests, though.  Since beginning to teach the common core, we have changed our tests to match what we are testing.  (For example, coin values are no longer taught in first grade, so we don't test our students on the knowledge of coin values.  Also, we have added many more difficult problems in both math & reading to match the more difficult concepts we are teaching.)  I would say tests scores are about the same, but the tests are harder and more in depth. 6.  I think one thing that has been a little difficult with the common core is that there is A LOT to cover.  The most challenging thing has been trying to fit it all in.  Sometimes I wish we could spend a little more time on one concept before we moved on so that some of my struggling students could have a chance to catch up, but that was a problem even before the common core came around.      Honestly, I'm not some crazy pro-common-core fan.  I think the Utah core was pretty good before in the grade levels I taught. (K &1st)  I do get a little bugged, though, when people complain about it & don't know what they're talking about.  I admit that I don't know much about the common core in high school or middle school, but I've heard a lot of elementary school parents blame things on the common core that actually had nothing to do with it and that's what bothers me.  Read the dang thing before you gripe about it.  Maybe what you're complaining about actually has nothing to do with the common core.  Maybe there's something your don't understand or maybe your kid just has a crappy teacher.  There are several points that my aunt view differently. This could be due to the age group, or the difference in perspective (teacher v. student).​

Are High School Students Too Busy? Sunday, October 25, 2015 ​ Taking a break from the common core debate, let us entertain the question of "are high school students too busy?" High school students have a lot on their plates between academics; sports; clubs; extra music lessons; any recitals, meets, or games; tests and exams; family time; homework; and not to mention getting community hours to put on college applications, all while trying to get a good night's rest and not spend time stressed out. Yeah, right. I am a senior in high school and I never thought I would be this swamped. I take college classes every morning and half a full high school load on top of that. I founded and serve as president of the French club, am an NHS officer, co-captain of the school's color guard, an active member of choir, and additionally take many honors and AP classes as well as music lessons outside of school. After I get out of my 7 AM- 3PM school day, and my 3 PM- 5 PM clubs, then I get to start my homework that takes me anywhere from 7PM to 10 PM to complete each night. I am busy all. The. Time. And yet I would not have it any other way. I take pride in how busy I am and enjoy trying to balance everything. That being said, this type of lifestyle is not for every high school student. The Washington Post was able to interview an expert and see her perspective of things.             "Anisha Abraham, who works at Georgetown University Hospital as chief of adolescent medicine and in a school-based clinic at the District's Woodson High School, said she routinely encounters students who go from a full day of classes to a job in a fast-food restaurant that ends at 11 p.m. 'These kids have no time for themselves,' Abraham said. A growing number of the teenagers she sees complain of similar symptoms: exhaustion, headaches, stomach problems, depression and irritability, a consequence of so little free time. 'Our teenagers are becoming more over-scheduled and over-stressed.'" (washingtonpost.com) The report goes on to say that, most of the time, the stress comes from the parents pushing their children to be competitive and always busy and "They contend that some BlackBerry-tethered parents, who equate being constantly busy with being successful in their own lives, compete to see whose kids can cram in the most activities: pre-dawn swim practice, weekend travel soccer tournaments, elite ballet classes, Mandarin lessons, SAT tutoring sessions. Unstructured time, which experts say is essential to figuring out who one is and what one wants, tends to be regarded as laziness or being unproductive. 'Our definition of what makes a kid successful has become unbearably narrow,' said California psychologist Madeline Levine. . ." As consequences to being over worked, students get very little free time during the summer and some even end up skipping meals to fit in more classes. I have a hard time balancing things always, but it works out somehow. I think the reason it works out is because it isn't pushed on me by my parents, but everything I do is something I enjoy and want to excel at.  Quotes: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/07/14/ST2008071401579.html​

High School Dropouts

As the end of the term approaches quickly, she fumbles through her finals attempting to save her grades at the last moment. She can feel the pressure of tests and quizzes and carefully calculates every homework assignment so that it counts. College applications are due soon and this is her last chance to prove she is ready for that. She does not know if she is. It would be easier to stop now and just go find a job. She could help out around the house, pay some bills or tend to her seven little brothers. The pressure is overwhelming and at this point she has enough skills to get a stable job. Doesn't she?

Although many people believe that high school dropouts are just lazy students that don't contribute anything to society but negative feelings, crime, and bad choices, in reality, a good majority of these drop out students do not dropout to engage in criminal activity, but rather to help their families or themselves in the best way they know how.

"Dropout" is almost the wrong term to use because sometimes the problem is that the student takes longer than the standard four years to complete high school, or they end up getting a GED instead of a high school diploma. This skews statistics labeled "dropouts" because the students that do take longer than the average four year window or choose to receive their GED later in life are still considered dropouts. This also effects the statistics for schools when reporting how many students dropped out because who is really to blame for a student leaving? The school? Or the situation? And which school should take credit when the student chooses to take courses to complete a degree later in life? All of these should be looked at when comparing dropout statistics. However, for this essay, dropout will refer to someone who never completed their four year high school diploma.

While dropout rates have decreased by 3% since 1990, there is typically a 25% average of high school freshman that will not graduate from high school and a total of over 1.2 million students from the US alone will not graduate from high school (https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-high-school-dropout-rates). While the percentage of graduating Latino students is gradually increasing, there is still a much larger percentage of minority dropouts than there is Caucasian dropouts. Many of these high school students that drop out do so because of their family's economic standing.

High school dropout rates have steadily increased as our country grows older, putting America 22 of 27 countries for the highest dropout rates. According to an article by John Rosales, the majority of these dropouts would not have dropped out if they had been offered the choice. These students often come from families that are of the minority in America and, typically, live below the national poverty line. The student will drop school to help raise money for their family in a few different ways: 1, they will contribute all their earnings into the family's income to provide for the whole family. 2, they will use their personal income to supply for themselves and siblings as far as food and clothing are concerned. Or 3, they will completely move out, providing for all their own wants and needs.

Dropout students usually bounce between low-income jobs frequently and earn significantly less than people that continue on through high school and college. When asked if they would have stayed in high school and finished, the majority of interviewed students said they would have and they wish they could go back. 

There is a story of one 17 year old girl that dropped out just last spring before graduation. She did not drop out because she needed to pay the bills, rather she graduated because she felt like there was a greater purpose than just going to high school to get a piece of paper congratulating her on success for the last four years and left to pursue that thought. She recounts that there are very few times she has looked back and regretted her decision, as she is fairly successful as a movie writer after only a few months of leaving school. This, however, is just one account of a successful dropout, who could still go back to school and get a GED like a good percentage of students end up doing.

While many of these students drop school to help stabilize themselves financially, it often becomes the opposite as the average dropout will earn $200,000 less than the average high school graduate in their lifetime (https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-high-school-dropout-rates). Dropouts will also account for 75% of the crime in the United States, from misdemeanors to more drastic crimes (https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-high-school-dropout-rates). However, despite all these negative statistics, there has been little correlation between high school dropout rates and sexually transmitted infections- a ray of hope in what seems an uphill battle. A study conducted by D. Mark Anderson and Claus C. Portner discusses the correlation between male and female dropouts and the risk they are at for sexually transmitted infections. The study shows that there are many variables that play into how the student is affected: age, age when they dropped out, gender, how many sexual partners they had, and if their partner was abusive. There was actually very little difference- an average of one- in the number of sexual partners drop out females had and the number female students had, and zero difference- on average- in the number of partners male's had.

Dropping out of high school may seem like a good idea right now. It may seem easier. It may seem like the gateway to a more opportune future even. There may seem like few consequences but, in reality, there are more negative consequences than there could ever be positive consequences. Even though there is no increase in disease and there have been success stories from dropouts, all in all there are more economic struggles and a much higher chance of crime once a high school diploma is taken out of the picture.

High School Relationships

This topic seems cliché but it really is a very important part of all students' lives. There are romantic relationships, friendly relationships, teacher relationships, and many other relationships that take place in high school and every single one makes an impression on a student still growing and changing in society and how they fit in.

The first relationship a student will make, at least that I have seen in my experience, is going to be friendly relationships. Usually these will take place with people that have similar likes and interests and thus stem from sports or clubs. I met my new friends, when I moved my freshman year, in my honors classes. The majority of us had multiple accelerated courses together and so it was easy to invite them over to study and gradually those turned into just normal parties with good friends.

Next I would say, comes negative peer relationships. These will be with people that, to put it frankly, really bother you. I'm a slightly pessimistic person by nature and so there are a lot of people that I don't really like. I try to be kind to them anyways because I recognize that I'm going to be with them for four years of school and I don't want to be miserably fighting with them for those years, but I also don't make it a point to hang out with them.

After the peer relationships comes teacher relationships. These aren't as crucial to some students, depending on the course type and how dedicated the student is. I've been through some classes where I do the assignments and listen to the lectures but don't ever talk to the teacher for the entire semester. Other teachers I go see every day to either talk about school work or just discuss social life. These people are very influential, both academically and socially to a student.

Finally, the last major relationship is going to be romantic. There are many aspects that can be covered in the word "romantic": boy likes girl but girl doesn't like boy or vice versa, girl and boy like each other but kind of like others as well, boy and girl are exclusive, etc. Lots of students that I know (granted I live in Utah) are really against having romantic relationships. I strongly disagree with these people. I won't bore you with details, but I recently went through a breakup, after a year and a half of dating, and it was really hard. I cried for a long time and went through multiple phases of grief and depression. In the end, I don't regret anything. It was a growing experience and I wouldn't change a thing. I know many of my friends look at me and think I made a huge mistake and wasted half of my high school career on one guy but I don't think of it that way.

When thinking in terms of relationships, you really do get out what you put into it. If you only casually wave to that one kid in chess club, chances are they are only going to casually say "hi" every once in a while. If you swoon over your significant other, then expect the same in return. Relationships define us as people, so be the kind of person you would expect others to be.