Renewable And Non Renewable Resources

Renewable And Non Renewable Resources Our societys emphasis on green living and the global focus on conservation provide the perfect backdrop for teaching students about fossil fuels. Children are naturally curious about whats going on in the world around them. Now is the perfect time for us, as educators, to capitalize on our students innate curiosity by leveraging current events in the world such as the rapidly increasing prices of gasoline for motor vehicles and the ongoing search for economical and efficient forms of renewable energy to engage students in study about how fossil fuels, natural resources and Provide appropriate vocabulary words. Give students the basic vocabulary words they will need in order to achieve your lesson objectives. Basic vocabulary words for teaching students about fossil fuels would include: fossil fuels, coal, oil, natural gas, renewable and nonrenewable. This module will help the students to learn about the fossils fuel , its importance ,need of its conservation and its harmful effects The teacher may use various skills to decide the complexity level of the content. However teacher may take up the topic as given below- (a)Complexity of content(concrete, Symbolic,Abstract) CONCRETE SYMBOLIC ABSTRACT Natural resources,Destructive distillation of coal, Combustion of fossils fuel Exhaustible and non exhaustible energy resources , Formation of fossils fuel, Harmful effects of caused by fossils fuels Fractional distillation (b) Learning Environment- 1. The chapter may be introduced in class rooms, school lab (bringing sample of different items to the lab) , computer lab (by a power point presentation),Outdoor trip etc. 2.Sequence of the lesson can be taken this way_ Introduction Using concrete or symbolic material for group discussion or the class can be divided into groups or individually students may be engaged in a warm up activity as given in students module. Students wi;ll be asked to make a table and fill that PLASTIC PAPER GLASS METAL WOOD OTHER The possible answers to the questions asked in students module will be- Which column had the longest list? (Answer: It will very likely be plastic.) Which category do you think you depend on most? Why? (Answers will vary.) Where do you think these items come from? (Answer: Everything at some point comes from our natural resources. Paper and wood come from trees, plastics are made from oil, glass is made from sand, and metal is made from ore, etc.) You may also do this as a whole class, instead of individually. You may draw a puzzle with blanks and may ask the students to fill in the blanks to complete the schemetic diagram related to natural resources as shown in students module or show the diagram and ask them to list natural resources 1.2 RENEWABLE AND NON RENEWABLE RESOURCE Teacher may begin the lesson with a small activity of hunting fossil fuel STUDENT ACTIVITY 1 or any other activity or can narrate a story to introduce two categories of natural resources Teacher may involve the students in activities highlighting the depelition of resources as in students module Students Activity 2 DEPLETION OF RESOURCES SIMULATION Through the activity, students will hypothesize that as the next generation comes along, there will be fewer resources available to them and eventually, there could be nothing at all. In addition the number of people using a resource and the amount each person uses are critical in determining the rate at which resources, both renewable and nonrenewable, get used up. Teacher may have a supply of extra popcorn (out of sight of the class) for those students who do not participate directly in the simulation Students will probably eat as much of the popcorn as they can without any thought as to who will come after them. By the time the 3rd generation students are finished, there should be little or no popcorn left. Some of the generation coming next people will therefore have little or none at all. Do not discuss what is happening to the popcorn until all the generations have gotten their popcorn. Some students will begin to realize what is happening. Some students in the 2nd generation may think of the 3rd generation and not take as much. The teacher should just watch and listen without making any comments. Review the definitions of renewable resource, and nonrenewable resource. Relate these definitions to the popcorn simulation. Did any of the students who were part of this simulation think about those who might be eating after them, or were they only trying to get as much popcorn as they could? Assessment, Student Product Each student will turn in their own report after they have gone over the discussion points. Each group of 4 will create a slogan that advocates personal responsibility for resource conservation Teacher may build up the lesson by asking the students to perform another activity in groups comparing renewable and non renewable resources as in students module or may use internet for the students research to compare different energy sources for which the class may be divided into groups and assign different energy resources to be researched and compared to coal energy. Students should include topics of safety, efficiency,environmental impacts and cost. Teacher may involve the students in STUDENTS ACTIVITY 3 to understand symbolically that Coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear fuels will last some day and so they are non renewable resource while renewable source will never finish Assessment: Have students explain the exercise and their findings to the class. Encourage them to discuss what other factors might dictate which energy sources are used by a community, such as environmental impact and the persuasion of special interest groups. What specific factors influence the choices of energy sources in your area? How have local energy costs changed over the past ten years? Use a debate format to discuss factors that might dictate community decisions as stated above. Extension: Encourage students to find out what energy sources are used in other countries. Direct them toward coal-dependent countries (such as the United Kingdom and Germany), as well as countries that do not rely primarily upon coal for their energy (such as Sweden, France, and Japan). Challenge them to find out and compare the energy costs of other countries to that of the United States. Continue with researching 10 years of costs/supply and demand and graph the changes over the 10-year period. Have students compare and contrast the outcomes between the different energy sources. Teacher may share the following facts with students to arouse their interest such as- It took 10 feet of plant matter to make 1 foot of coal. The first oil well in the world was drilled in Pennsylvania, USA. World coal consumption is more than 5.3 billion tons annually of which three quarters are used for generating electricity. The earliest known use of coal was in China. Coal from the Fu-shun mine in northeastern China may have been used to smelt copper as early as 3,000 years ago. The Chinese thought coal was a stone that could burn To run a 100-watt light bulb 24 hours a day for a year we need to use about 714 pounds (325 kg) of coal in coal powered power plant (thermal efficiency of such power plant is typically abut 40%). One liter of regular gasoline is the time-rendered result of about 23.5 tonnes of ancient organic material deposited on the ocean floor. . On August 27, 1859, Edwin L. Drake (the man standing on the right in the black and white picture to the right), struck liquid oil at his well near Titusville, Pennsylvania. He found oil under ground and a way that could pump it to the surface. The well pumped the oil into barrels made out of wood. This method of drilling for oil is still being used today all over the world in areas where oil can be found below the surface. 1.3 COAL Coal is a hard, black colored rock-like substance. It is made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and varying amounts of sulphur. There are three main types of coal anthracite, bituminous and lignite. Anthracite coal is the hardest and has more carbon, which gives it a higher energy content. Lignite is the softest and is low in carbon but high in hydrogen and oxygen content. Bituminous is in between. Today, the precursor to coal-peat-is still found in many countries and is also used as an energy source. Teacher may introduce the concept by giving the students the basic knowledge about coal which they are already familiar of or may ask some general questions about the coal 1.3.1 COAL FORMATION The teacher may plot a story of historical background of coal or give the idea by demonstrating an activity as described in student module-COAL FORMATION ACTIVITY The teacher must arrange the material beforehand. The activity will help in reinforcing Critical thinking ,Cooperative learning The activity may take two class periods over four weeks I f you line your container with plastic wrap before you begin, you can lift the whole formation out when it is dry. T his is a smelly activity. If you have an area where you can put this out of the way and observe it occasionally, you will like it better! Teacher can further illustrate the mining of coal through the activity discussed in students modulestudents activity 4 Chocolate Chip Cookie Mining This activity teaches students about coal and mining. Discuss with the students how coal is excavated . Coal is mined out of the ground using various methods. Some coal mines are dug by sinking vertical or horizontal shafts deep underground, and coal miners travel by elevators or trains deep under ground to dig the coal. Other coal is mined in strip mines where huge steam shovels strip away the top layers above the coal. The layers are then restored after the coal is taken away. The coal is then shipped by train and boats and even in pipelines. In pipelines, the coal is ground up and mixed with water to make whats called a slurry. This is then pumped many miles through pipelines. At the other end, the coal is used to fuel power plants and other factories. 1.3.2 TYPES OF COAL: Types of coal may be introduced to the students by showing them samples of different types of coal and comparing their physical properties through STUDENTS ACTIVITY 5- coal identification activity. This will help students to understand the characteristics of different types of coal and enhance their Critical thinking,Cooperative learning and skill of Comparison and contrast. They will lso understand that the harder coal absorbs more heat. Teacher may discuss with students . Does burning show that peat is the lowest rank of coal? Does the manner of burning of bituminous coal show that it still has volatile material (gas) in it? 1.3.3 COMBUSTION OF COAL Combustion or burning is the sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidant accompanied by the production of heat and conversion of chemical species. The release of heat can result in the production of light in the form of either glowing or a flame. To understand that coal is combustible teacher may perform an activity as stated in students moduleSTUDENTS ACTIVITY- 6 Teacher must arrange for the material before hand . If lignite coal sample is not available, charcoal may be used Students should be motivated to illustrate and describe their observations. Teacher may discuss how coal may be useful because it is combustible and gives off heat. Teacher may take a small sample of the dried plant matter from and hold with forceps. Place sample in the flame of a candle and observe combustion. (This matter can be compared to peat.) Discuss observations. . 1.3.4 DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION OF COAL Destructive distillation is the chemical process involving the decomposition of feedstock by heating to a high temperature; the term generally applies to processing of organic material in the absence of air or in the presence of limited amounts of oxygen or other reagents, catalysts, or solvents, such as steam or phenols. The process breaks up or cracks large molecules. Products like coke, coal gas, gas carbon, coal tar and ammonia liquor are formed after the destructive distillation of coal. This helps in producing thousands of distinct chemical compounds. Teacher may demonstrate the pocess of destructive distillation of coal in lab or class as illustrated in students module,and keep the students interest entact . Teacher will discuss different observations about the mixtures collected in the end in test tube and beaker and also explain their uses eith the help of placards or flashcards. 1.4PETOLEUM . Petroleum or crude oil, and natural gas are important hydrocarbons that are found in nature within pores and fractures of rocks. Oil and gas form over millions of years as the result of the decay of marine organisms. These organisms die and collect on the ocean floor. Sediments such as clay and mud are deposited above these organisms. During burial and compaction, the organic matter becomes heated. Hydrocarbons are formed and are forced out of the source rock into permeable beds such as sandstone. As by now the students are familiar with the concept of fossils fuel with its examples and its formation in case of coal the teacher may build the lesson on the previous knowledge of the students with the help of role play Teacher may give students more information about the excretion of petroleum Because oil and gas are not very dense, they migrate upward through the water-saturated rock layers. In some cases, this movement is stopped by overlying impermeable layers of rock such as shale or rock salt and the hydrocarbons are trapped. Then, the oil and natural gas form a reservoir in the porous rock. This type of hydrocarbon accumulation requires a source rock, a reservoir rock, and a cap rock. Most of the worlds reservoirs are in sandstone, limestone, and dolomites. Structural traps are related to folds, faults, or salt domes. When an anticline fold that contains hydrocarbons is drilled, the first material encountered is usually natural gas. This gas often is underlain by oil due to density differences. Water is the densest fluid and is found at the bottom of a reservoir. Secondary recovery methods can be used to increase the amount of crude oil that can be pumped from wells. Presently only about 30 percent of the crude oil in a well can be recovered. However, as oil reserves dwindle, steam, carbon dioxide, and detergents can be used to force out the heavy oil that normally cannot be pumped. 1.4.1 REFINING OF PETROLEUM Petroleum in its crude state consists of various organic compounds that must be refined to form usable products. After giving a brief idea about refining of petroleum and fractional distillation the divide the students into research teams. Each team will research how fractional distillation works, as well as describe one of the major products of fractional distillation. Students may then be motivated to use distillation to separate 2 liquids . The teacher must approve the distillation set-up of the students Misconceptions: Students will assume that the mixture will keep getting hotter and hotter as the water boils. They will not expect the temperature to stay steady until almost all the water has been converted to steam. Students may also think that the melted ice cube is dripping through the foil into the beaker. Teacher needs to clarify their misconception Students should be encouraged to use diagrams and charts to present their information. A rubric is provided for assessing the group work at this stage. A copy of this rubric should be given to students before they start their research so that they are aware of the grading criteria. The objectives of the activity performed are . Students will learn that fractional distillation is the first stage in processing crude oil into usable products. (The other two stages are: Conversion: cracking and rearranging of molecules, and Treatment.) Students will understand how fractional distillation works and what products are produced. They will become aware of how these products are used in their world. Students will familiarize themselves with 8 major products of fractional distillation. Students will be able to perform a simple distillation of liquids modeling the distillation of crude oil. Students will share, display, and explain specific information gathered in their research. Research time will vary based on the availability of computers. Most of the research can be completed in 1 to 2 class periods on the computer. The actual distillation will take one period The activity will help improving the following skills of the students Cooperative learning Student centered learning Communication of information Relevant application to daily life Following Directions Making Connections Mathematics integration Drawing Conclusions Because so many petroleum-based products are found in the home,so teacher may motivate the students to perform a take home activity. To complete the activity, students work with their families to identify six petroleum-based products at home. They write those products on the list. Then they think of one way to help conserve petroleum, by reducing their use of a petroleum product, reusing a petroleum product many times over, or recycling a product so it can be made into something else. They add their conservation idea to the bottom of the list, and have their at-home helper sign the form. When students have completed this short at-home activity, they will bring their list back to school and share it with their classmate. If students are having difficulty completing the project at home, a few minutes could be devoted to the activity in school. 1.4.2 COMBUSTION OF PETROL Teacher may correlate the topic with combustion of petrol in vehicles and explain that incomplete combustion of petrol is dreadful as it produces CO which is suffocating. Students may be motivated to collect data in this regard and analyze and help them to differentiate between the combustion of coal and petrol. 1.5 HARMFUL EFFECTS OF EXCCESSIVE COMBUSTION OF COAL AND PETROLEUM Many non renewable energy resources have detrimental consequences upon the environment. Most people are aware of the greenhouse effect created by carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are released by gasoline-powered vehicles, but this is only one of many serious consequences. Coal plants alone generate hundreds of millions of tons of harmful byproducts, including flue gas, desulfurization sludge, fly ash, and bottom ash. These materials can poison waterways and leach harmful toxins such as arsenic, mercury, uranium, and thorium into the ground and water.. Combustion of these fossil fuels is considered to be the largest contributing factor to the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Teacher may use powerpoint presentations or vedieosto illustrate the concept 1.6 IMPORTANCE OF NONRNEWABLE SOURCES Fossil fuels are of great importance because they can be burned (oxidized to carbon dioxide and water), producing significant amounts of energy per unit weight. The use of coal as a fuel predates recorded history. Coal was used to run furnaces for the melting of metal ore. . Teacher may introduce the topic with some questions such as What function crude oil serves in our life. Is it something that is really necessary in life? What if it was not available, how would our lives differ? (Students answers will vary). Emind students that Petroleum is the Source of many objects ,e.g. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ bandage à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ glue à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ plastic bagà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ bubble gum à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ golf ball à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ plastic container or bottleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ comb à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ lipstick à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ toothbrush and toothpasteà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ crayon à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ nail polish à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ tube of hand creamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ elastic band à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ panty hose à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ wax paper T ell students that one of the most common petroleum products is gasoline that goes into a car to make it run. Remind students that petroleum-based products can last a very long time. Thats why we should reuse and recycle them whenever we can. For a greater challenge, students could be motivated to write their own Who Am I? questions for different petroleum-based products. When there are enough clues written, each student could read out a clue and ask the rest of the class to guess the product. In the end teacher may guide the students to conserve the fossils fuel -coal and petoleum

the prince Essay -- essays research papers

Niccolo Machiavelli The Prince In ‘The Prince’, Niccolo Machiavelli approaches, the topic of political morality and human nature in a very different way than thinkers preceding him. His argument on political morality and human nature is made very clear in the early part of his book. For him politics is war, no matter which way you look at it. â€Å"You must, therefore, know that there are two means of fighting: one according to the laws, the other with force; the first way is proper to man, the second to beasts; but because the first, in many cases is not sufficient , it becomes necessary to have recourse to the second.† (Machiavelli, p.351-352). He clearly points out towards man’s poor behavior in politics and accepts it as a fact, saying that law is a type of combat. He does not look up to god or any other divine authority for the political morality, like Augustine in his book ‘the city of god’ or try and look at things the way they should have been in the ideal state, but instead probes into the individual. He aims straight at the reality of politics. Machiavelli In his vision, to guide the actions of men in general, turns to the actions of the strong prince. Machiavelli’s higher political morality is to pursue the means to gain and hold power. He is of the view that the ruling prince should be of the sole authority and to gain this authority the prince has to command a certain fear from his citizens. Machiavelli believes that good laws follow naturally from a good military. His famous statement that â€Å"the presence of sound military forces indicates the presence of sound laws† describes the relationship between developing states and war in The Prince. Machiavelli reverses the conventional understanding of war as a necessary, but not definitive, element of the development of states, and instead asserts that successful war is the very foundation upon which all states are built. Much of The Prince is devoted to describing exactly what it means to conduct a good war: how to effectively fortify a city, how to treat subjects in newly acquired territories, and how to prevent domestic insurrection that would distract from a successful war. But Machiavelli’s description of war encompasses more than just the direct use of military force, it comprises international diplo... ...oodwill is never absolute. While Machiavelli backs up his political arguments with concrete historical evidence, his statements about society and human nature sometimes have the character of assumptions rather than observations. He concludes that with so many wretched men around virtue is hard to create in oneself. "The fact is that a man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessarily comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous." Overall, Machiavelli is very pessimistic about the abilities of the people. He feels that after examining people through history, his conclusions of wretched men is correct. The Prince is an extremely practical book because it does not tell the reader what the ideal prince is, but it explains to the reader what actions and qualities have enabled a prince to best rule. Machiavelli, however, was a realist. He was concerned with how things were in reality, not how things could be if the world was perfect. His reasoning was right for his time because his time was a time of frequent war. Today that advice would not work, for now we are a world most often ruled by laws not war.

Decline of Education and the Rise of Mediocrity

According to â€Å"A Nation at Risk†, the American education system has declined due to a â€Å"rising tide of mediocrity† in our schools. States such as New York have responded to the findings and recommendations of the report by implementing such strategies as the â€Å"Regents Action Plan† and the â€Å"New Compact for Learning†. In the early 1980†³s, President Regan ordered a national commission to study our education system. The findings of this commission were that, compared with other industrialized nations, our education system is grossly inadequate in meeting the standards of education that many other countries have developed. At one time, America was the world leader in technology, service, and industry, but overconfidence based on a historical belief in our superiority has caused our nation to fall behind the rapidly growing competitive market in the world with regard to education. The report in some respects is an unfair comparison of our education system, which does not have a national standard for goals, curriculum, or regulations, with other countries that do, but the findings nevertheless reflect the need for change. Our education system at this time is regulated by states which implement their own curriculum, set their own goals nd have their own requirements for teacher preparation. Combined with this is the fact that we have lowered our expectations in these areas, thus we are not providing an equal or quality education to all students across the country. The commission findings generated recommendations to improve the content of education and raise the standards of student achievement, particularly in testing, increase the time spent on education and provide incentives to encourage more individuals to enter the field of education as well as improving N. Y. State responded to these recommendations by first mplementing the Regents Action Plan; an eight year plan designed to raise the standards of education. This plan changed the requirements for graduation by raising the number of credits needed for graduation, raising the number of required core curriculum classes such as social studies, and introduced technology and computer science. The plan also introduced the Regents Minimum Competency Tests, which requires a student to pass tests in five major categories; math, science, reading, writing, and two areas of social studies. Although the plan achieved many of its goals in raising standards of education in N. Y. State, the general consensus is that we need to continue to improve our education system rather than being satisfied with the achievements Therefore, N. Y. adopted â€Å"The New Compact for Learning†. This plan is based on the principles that all children can learn. The focus of education should be on results and teachers should aim for mastery, not minimum competency. Education should be provided for all children and authority with accountability should be given to educators and success should be rewarded with necessary changes being made to reduce failures. This plan calls for curriculum to be devised n order to meet the needs of students so that they will be fully functional in society upon graduation, rather than just being able to graduate. Districts within the state have been given the authority to devise their own curriculum, but are held accountable by the state so that each district meets the states goals that have been established. Teachers are encouraged to challenge students to reach their full potential, rather than minimum competency. In this regard, tracking of students is being eliminated so that all students will be challenged, rather than just those who are gifted. Similarly, success hould be rewarded with recognition and incentives to further encourage progress for districts, teachers and students while others who are not as accomplished are provided remedial training or resources in order to help them achieve success. It is difficult to determine whether our country on the whole has responded to the concerns that â€Å"A Nation at Risk† presented. Clearly though, N. Y. State has taken measures over the last ten years to improve its own education system. In many respects the state has accomplished much of what it set out to do, but the need to continue to improve is still present. Certainly, if America is determined to regain its superiority in the world, education, the foundation of our future, needs to be priority number one. Teachers often develop academic expectations of students based on characteristics that are unrelated to academic progress. These expectations can affect the way educators present themselves toward the student, causing an alteration in the way our students learn, and thus causing an overall degeneration in the potential Expectations affect students in many ways, not just academically, but in the form of mental and social deprivation which causes a lack of self-esteem. When educators receive information about students, mostly even before the student walks into their classroom, from past test scores, IEP†s, and past teachers, it tends to alter the way we look at the students potential for growth. This foundation of expectation is then transformed on to our method of One basic fallout from these expectations is the amount of time educators spend in communicating with students. We tend to speak more directly to students who excel, talking in more matures tone of voice, treating them more like a grown-up than we do to the students who are already labeled underachievers. This can give the student an added incentive to either progress or regress due to the amount of As educators we tend to take the exceptional students â€Å"under our wing†. We tend to offer knowledge in situations to help push the good students, in comparison to moving on to the next task for the others. We also tend to critique the work of our god students more positively than the others, offering challenges to the answers they The most obvious characteristic that educators present to the students is in the area of body language and facial expression. We tend to present ourselves in a more professional manner to our good tudents, speaking more clearly and with a stronger tone of voice. We tend to stand more upright, in a more powerful stance, than to the slouching effect we give to the underachievers. The head shakes, glancing with our eyes, hand gestures, and posture all contribute to the way we look at certain students based on our first impressions which came before we even knew the student. One major way we can avoid these pitfalls and eliminate unfair expectations that help produce failure in our students is to restrict the past information on the students to a need to know basis. Instead f telling the teacher how the student did on past examinations, just present them with the curricula that the student must learn during the time they spend in that class. This enables the educator to formulate their own opinions of that student. Also, instead of doing the IEP meetings during the middle of the year, we should wait till the end of the semester to inform the educators of certain aspects of the student instead of giving them all the information earlier in the year. Finally, it is up to the educator himself to evaluate their own teaching methods to be able to recognize, and change, the way they resent themselves to the entire class. To be able to know what we are doing, and how we are doing it, at different times in the day is crucial to the aura we present to the students. Schools are often blamed for the ills of society, yet society has a major impact on our education system. The problems that schools are facing today are certainly connected to the problems that are society faces, including drugs, violence, and the changing of our family structure. There are many methods that schools have begun to use in order to deal with the problems they are faced with and still offer the best possible education to our youth. The use of drugs in the general population has become a very serious problem in society and within the school system. There are two aspects to drug use that teachers are having to deal with now. The first is in trying to teach the new generation of crack babies that are now entering the schools. These students have extremely low attention spans and can be very disruptive in class. Early intervention programs designed to target these children and focus on behavior management within the school setting have been effective in preparing these students for school. Educators have also identified rug use among students as one of the most significant problems that our schools face today. According to the text, the rate of drug use among students has declined in last few years, but recently there has been an increase in alcohol abuse among teenagers. Intervention programs such as APPLE, (a school based rehabilitation facility) have been implemented in many schools with the cooperation of school counselors and community agencies to treat drug using teenagers. Other programs, such as D. A. R. E have been implemented in many elementary schools to provide education about drugs to young students. Violence, both in society and in the school system has also been identified as a serious problem. The influx of weapons in schools creates a dangerous situation for teachers, administrators and other students. One remedy for this problem has been introduced in many public city schools; the use of metal detectors. While this method is not foolproof it does send the message that violence will not be tolerated in schools and that severe measures will be implemented in order to curb it. Educators are also being trained to identify those students who may be violent and to provide non-violent risis intervention. It is an undeniable fact that our society has a serious problem concerning violence and that the violence on the streets is certainly connected to the violence in the schools. It seems questionable that even these measures will significantly reduce the problem in schools, but certainly the process of teaching can continue in a less stressful atmosphere by having these measures in Unfortunately, there are other problems such as the changing family structure that do not have such clear cut solutions. Some of the problems that teachers are faced with concerning the family nclude poverty, single parent homes, abuse and/or neglect and Statistics state that 41% of single, female headed households live below the poverty level and that students who live in single parent homes score lower on achievement tests, particularly boys whose mothers are the head of the household. Obviously, single parent families are a fact in our society today, given the rising rate of divorce and single women having children, and it is true that this change is having a severe effect on students today, but this should not effect the quality of education that is provided, but rather, ncourage educators to be more aware of the difficulties these students face in order to adapt their teaching style, as well as the Similarly, child abuse and/or neglect has become a major issue in society and schools. It is not clear whether there is a rise in the occurrences of abuse or whether better awareness has increased the statistics, but it cannot be argued that this a significant problem and one that effects those educators who have to help students who are either abused or neglected. Strict regulations concerning the accountability of teachers regarding the reporting of child abuse or eglect are in effect. Teachers are required to be trained on the ability to identify abuse. Community agencies, shelters and child welfare agencies have begun working in conjunction with schools in order to deal with the problem with as little disruption in the Homelessness is another major problem in our society. The rate of homeless people has grown significantly since the early 1980†³s deinstitutionalization movement and more recently due to the rising unemployment rate have led to more families and children being homeless than ever before. This social problem has become a significant problem for educators. Low achievement, which may be in part due to low attendance as a result of a transient lifestyle, physical problems associated with living on the streets and child abuse are all issues that educators are confronted with when working with students who are homeless. Unfortunately, because of the lack of government funds, this problem continues to grow in America. On the other hand, schools have begun to deal with this problem by hiring additional counselors, some who work specifically to coordinate service with shelters in order provide assistance to these families and more precisely to the children. This effort clearly demonstrates that educators are genuinely concerned about providing education to Clearly our schools and society face the same problems. It has become necessary for all people, not just educators, to be more aware of the problems. Although some intervention programs have been implemented and in some cases are very successful, it is becoming more apparent that these problems are going to continue and will have a direct consequence on our future in this country. Unfortunately, we as a society tend to look for the â€Å"quick fix† to our problems without realizing the consequences for the future. Decline of Education and the Rise of Mediocrity According to â€Å"A Nation at Risk†, the American education system has declined due to a â€Å"rising tide of mediocrity† in our schools. States such as New York have responded to the findings and recommendations of the report by implementing such strategies as the â€Å"Regents Action Plan† and the â€Å"New Compact for Learning†. In the early 1980†³s, President Regan ordered a national commission to study our education system. The findings of this commission were that, compared with other industrialized nations, our education system is grossly inadequate in meeting the standards of education that many other countries have developed. At one time, America was the world leader in technology, service, and industry, but overconfidence based on a historical belief in our superiority has caused our nation to fall behind the rapidly growing competitive market in the world with regard to education. The report in some respects is an unfair comparison of our education system, which does not have a national standard for goals, curriculum, or regulations, with other countries that do, but the findings nevertheless reflect the need for change. Our education system at this time is regulated by states which implement their own curriculum, set their own goals nd have their own requirements for teacher preparation. Combined with this is the fact that we have lowered our expectations in these areas, thus we are not providing an equal or quality education to all students across the country. The commission findings generated recommendations to improve the content of education and raise the standards of student achievement, particularly in testing, increase the time spent on education and provide incentives to encourage more individuals to enter the field of education as well as improving N. Y. State responded to these recommendations by first mplementing the Regents Action Plan; an eight year plan designed to raise the standards of education. This plan changed the requirements for graduation by raising the number of credits needed for graduation, raising the number of required core curriculum classes such as social studies, and introduced technology and computer science. The plan also introduced the Regents Minimum Competency Tests, which requires a student to pass tests in five major categories; math, science, reading, writing, and two areas of social studies. Although the plan achieved many of its goals in raising standards of education in N. Y. State, the general consensus is that we need to continue to improve our education system rather than being satisfied with the achievements Therefore, N. Y. adopted â€Å"The New Compact for Learning†. This plan is based on the principles that all children can learn. The focus of education should be on results and teachers should aim for mastery, not minimum competency. Education should be provided for all children and authority with accountability should be given to educators and success should be rewarded with necessary changes being made to reduce failures. This plan calls for curriculum to be devised n order to meet the needs of students so that they will be fully functional in society upon graduation, rather than just being able to graduate. Districts within the state have been given the authority to devise their own curriculum, but are held accountable by the state so that each district meets the states goals that have been established. Teachers are encouraged to challenge students to reach their full potential, rather than minimum competency. In this regard, tracking of students is being eliminated so that all students will be challenged, rather than just those who are gifted. Similarly, success hould be rewarded with recognition and incentives to further encourage progress for districts, teachers and students while others who are not as accomplished are provided remedial training or resources in order to help them achieve success. It is difficult to determine whether our country on the whole has responded to the concerns that â€Å"A Nation at Risk† presented. Clearly though, N. Y. State has taken measures over the last ten years to improve its own education system. In many respects the state has accomplished much of what it set out to do, but the need to continue to improve is still present. Certainly, if America is determined to regain its superiority in the world, education, the foundation of our future, needs to be priority number one. Teachers often develop academic expectations of students based on characteristics that are unrelated to academic progress. These expectations can affect the way educators present themselves toward the student, causing an alteration in the way our students learn, and thus causing an overall degeneration in the potential Expectations affect students in many ways, not just academically, but in the form of mental and social deprivation which causes a lack of self-esteem. When educators receive information about students, mostly even before the student walks into their classroom, from past test scores, IEP†s, and past teachers, it tends to alter the way we look at the students potential for growth. This foundation of expectation is then transformed on to our method of One basic fallout from these expectations is the amount of time educators spend in communicating with students. We tend to speak more directly to students who excel, talking in more matures tone of voice, treating them more like a grown-up than we do to the students who are already labeled underachievers. This can give the student an added incentive to either progress or regress due to the amount of As educators we tend to take the exceptional students â€Å"under our wing†. We tend to offer knowledge in situations to help push the good students, in comparison to moving on to the next task for the others. We also tend to critique the work of our god students more positively than the others, offering challenges to the answers they The most obvious characteristic that educators present to the students is in the area of body language and facial expression. We tend to present ourselves in a more professional manner to our good tudents, speaking more clearly and with a stronger tone of voice. We tend to stand more upright, in a more powerful stance, than to the slouching effect we give to the underachievers. The head shakes, glancing with our eyes, hand gestures, and posture all contribute to the way we look at certain students based on our first impressions which came before we even knew the student. One major way we can avoid these pitfalls and eliminate unfair expectations that help produce failure in our students is to restrict the past information on the students to a need to know basis. Instead f telling the teacher how the student did on past examinations, just present them with the curricula that the student must learn during the time they spend in that class. This enables the educator to formulate their own opinions of that student. Also, instead of doing the IEP meetings during the middle of the year, we should wait till the end of the semester to inform the educators of certain aspects of the student instead of giving them all the information earlier in the year. Finally, it is up to the educator himself to evaluate their own teaching methods to be able to recognize, and change, the way they resent themselves to the entire class. To be able to know what we are doing, and how we are doing it, at different times in the day is crucial to the aura we present to the students. Schools are often blamed for the ills of society, yet society has a major impact on our education system. The problems that schools are facing today are certainly connected to the problems that are society faces, including drugs, violence, and the changing of our family structure. There are many methods that schools have begun to use in order to deal with the problems they are faced with and still offer the best possible education to our youth. The use of drugs in the general population has become a very serious problem in society and within the school system. There are two aspects to drug use that teachers are having to deal with now. The first is in trying to teach the new generation of crack babies that are now entering the schools. These students have extremely low attention spans and can be very disruptive in class. Early intervention programs designed to target these children and focus on behavior management within the school setting have been effective in preparing these students for school. Educators have also identified rug use among students as one of the most significant problems that our schools face today. According to the text, the rate of drug use among students has declined in last few years, but recently there has been an increase in alcohol abuse among teenagers. Intervention programs such as APPLE, (a school based rehabilitation facility) have been implemented in many schools with the cooperation of school counselors and community agencies to treat drug using teenagers. Other programs, such as D. A. R. E have been implemented in many elementary schools to provide education about drugs to young students. Violence, both in society and in the school system has also been identified as a serious problem. The influx of weapons in schools creates a dangerous situation for teachers, administrators and other students. One remedy for this problem has been introduced in many public city schools; the use of metal detectors. While this method is not foolproof it does send the message that violence will not be tolerated in schools and that severe measures will be implemented in order to curb it. Educators are also being trained to identify those students who may be violent and to provide non-violent risis intervention. It is an undeniable fact that our society has a serious problem concerning violence and that the violence on the streets is certainly connected to the violence in the schools. It seems questionable that even these measures will significantly reduce the problem in schools, but certainly the process of teaching can continue in a less stressful atmosphere by having these measures in Unfortunately, there are other problems such as the changing family structure that do not have such clear cut solutions. Some of the problems that teachers are faced with concerning the family nclude poverty, single parent homes, abuse and/or neglect and Statistics state that 41% of single, female headed households live below the poverty level and that students who live in single parent homes score lower on achievement tests, particularly boys whose mothers are the head of the household. Obviously, single parent families are a fact in our society today, given the rising rate of divorce and single women having children, and it is true that this change is having a severe effect on students today, but this should not effect the quality of education that is provided, but rather, ncourage educators to be more aware of the difficulties these students face in order to adapt their teaching style, as well as the Similarly, child abuse and/or neglect has become a major issue in society and schools. It is not clear whether there is a rise in the occurrences of abuse or whether better awareness has increased the statistics, but it cannot be argued that this a significant problem and one that effects those educators who have to help students who are either abused or neglected. Strict regulations concerning the accountability of teachers regarding the reporting of child abuse or eglect are in effect. Teachers are required to be trained on the ability to identify abuse. Community agencies, shelters and child welfare agencies have begun working in conjunction with schools in order to deal with the problem with as little disruption in the Homelessness is another major problem in our society. The rate of homeless people has grown significantly since the early 1980†³s deinstitutionalization movement and more recently due to the rising unemployment rate have led to more families and children being homeless than ever before. This social problem has become a significant problem for educators. Low achievement, which may be in part due to low attendance as a result of a transient lifestyle, physical problems associated with living on the streets and child abuse are all issues that educators are confronted with when working with students who are homeless. Unfortunately, because of the lack of government funds, this problem continues to grow in America. On the other hand, schools have begun to deal with this problem by hiring additional counselors, some who work specifically to coordinate service with shelters in order provide assistance to these families and more precisely to the children. This effort clearly demonstrates that educators are genuinely concerned about providing education to Clearly our schools and society face the same problems. It has become necessary for all people, not just educators, to be more aware of the problems. Although some intervention programs have been implemented and in some cases are very successful, it is becoming more apparent that these problems are going to continue and will have a direct consequence on our future in this country. Unfortunately, we as a society tend to look for the â€Å"quick fix† to our problems without realizing the consequences for the future.

Essay On Capitalism And Capitalism - 1443 Words

In every country, there is always an economic system created to meet the needs of its people. Capitalism, as described by Adam Smith and communism as described by Karl Marx, are two types of these economic systems. Capitalism tries to meet the needs of the people allowing all its citizens to work to improve their lives by giving them control over the economy while communism gives the government total control of its industry and the economy and all people have equal social and economic status. These two types of economic systems each have a different effect on the economy of the nations and its people. Capitalism is the system in which we live in, where businesses are privately owned and operated for profit and where people can buy and†¦show more content†¦To get higher profits companies will need to seek out new ways of making a good more cheaply or look for a new way to manufacture its this competition that leads to the production of better goods at lower prices this is called Mass production. Also by removing all limitations and regulations, every ones self-interests would fuel the economy’s growth. While in government plays a small role in capitalism it allows its citizens some Individual freedom like Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Choice, Freedom of Assembly and Freedom of the Press. Because of this Entrepreneurs have the ability can risk their own money in the market economy. Entrepreneurs are people take a risk by investing their money in a business venture. Communism has an opposite way of achieving the needs of its people like Adam Smiths Wealth of Nations Karl Marx a 9th-century philosopher and political economist addressed a wide range of political and social issues the Communist Manifesto. By having a Communist economy, the government can have total control of industry and keep production of goods from competing with one another and make everyone work for the good of the society. By doing this competition, unemployment, and poverty would be eliminated. All good and services would be distributed according to peoples needs as a result food and clothes would cost less. Through this system, Communist workers standard of living would be raised because many benefits can be providedShow MoreRelatedCapitalism Essay1175 Words   |  5 PagesCapitalism Throughout my duration in college, business has been my major area of concentration. Capitalism is the most central and consequential topic which has to do with business. 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