Diversity and Difference in Early Childhood Essay Example for Free

Diversity and Difference in Early Childhood Essay Personal interest: My first awareness of racial identity and diversity occurred when I was in Year 3. Having being raised acknowledging acceptance of people of racial or cultural difference my thoughts of children of colour were positive and impartial. However, one day a boy in my class of Sri Lankan descent got into trouble with another student, but only the Sri Lankan boy was asked to go to the principal’s office. During our lunch break he came over to a group of us and told us that he thought he was the one that got into trouble ‘because he was ‘black’’. I remember thinking to myself, ‘why would he get into trouble just because he was black? ’ It was in fact that both boys went to the principal’s office, just on separate occasions. This was my first memory of someone thinking that they were being singled out or getting into trouble due to belief of skin colour dissimilarity and racial stereotypes. I’ve been aware of racial diversity ever since. Now that I have an opportunity to be a part of children’s learning and development I want to learn more about diversity and make a difference in children’s perspectives of themselves and others. Discussion: As educators in early childhood, it is crucial that we acknowledge and respect that children’s personal, family and cultural histories shape their learning and development. The increase in racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity in educational centres is reflected in many early childhood classrooms. Although the diverse composition of early childhood classrooms may bring challenges, it also introduces many opportunities for educators, parents, and children as we need to value and appreciate difference and variety as a positive attribute in all educational and social environments (Ashman and Elkins 2008). As adults, being ‘different’ is a decision to make a personal statement; such as deciding to change a hairstyle, get a tattoo or by wearing alternative clothing. It is one thing to be different by choice, and another for a child to discern themselves as being different based on their physical features, cultural of religious differences. One of the most stimulating aspects of early education is observing and supporting young children as they develop their individual identities. This development takes place within different social contexts where issues relating to human diversity and difference impact significantly on children’s understandings and ways of being in the world. Arguably, our education begins when we are first able to detect causes and consequences, and continue to form the basis of our identity, behaviours and knowledge of the world around us. Glover (1991) in the early 1990s found that as 2-3 year old children became aware of difference they simultaneously develop positive and negative feelings about the differences they observe. For example, racial awareness impacts on their perceptions of skin colour and on their preferences in the social relationships they initiate and foster with other children. An Australian study conducted by Palmer (1990) exemplifies how preschool children were able to make negative judgements based on racial characteristics of young Aboriginal children. Children were reportedly saying ‘You’re the colour of poo†¦ Did your mum drop you in the poo? ’ This observation suggests that children as young as 2 years old are becoming aware of diversity and differences of others, and these judgements children are making are often affecting their ability to make sound judgements of others as their perceptions of reality are distorted. Although Palmers study was conducted in 1990, there has been a significant increase in racial awareness since the 1980s of the importance of early childhood education policies, practices and curriculum aiming to positively reflect the diverse cultural identities of children and their families. Today, the embracing of children’s lives is a central focus of the different philosophies which foster early childhood education in Western society, such as the ‘anti-bias curriculum’ which emerged from the United States (Derman-Sparks and the A. B. C. Task Force, stated in Robinson 2006 p 2) and also in the perspectives of Reggio Emilia. In Australia there has been a broadening of cultural influences which has been referred to by Ashman (2008) as ‘the cultural mosaic’, which refers to those who have migrated maintain their homeland traditions while embracing the new norms, values and practices within the country. Furthermore data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2008) show that around 25% of Australians were born in other countries, nearly half the population has direct links with relatives born overseas, and over 2. 5 million people speak a language other than English at home, which should clearly illustrate to educators that learning developmental experiences need to be appropriate for multicultural children to be involved in. As stated by Robinson (2006), the early childhood years are fundamental years in the growth and development of a child’s cognition, language, social, emotional and physical competence. Early childhood educators are in an ideal position to make a positive difference in the lives of children and their families. My emerging philosophy would be to teach children to be critical thinkers specifically about prejudice and discrimination to encourage children to develop the skills to identify when something they have said or done is unfair of hurtful to another. Also to model the behaviours and attitudes I would want children to develop, particularly in situations that can either promote prejudice or inhibit a child’s openness to diversity. Furthermore, I would aim to expose children to role models from their own culture as well as to those from other cultures to encourage appreciation of their own cultural identity, as well as different cultures. As professionals who work with families, our willingness to talk openly about identity and to help foster a positive sense of self in children can make an enormous difference in affirming the rich diversity within our community and help children form bridges across cultures and traditions. The more that children have a solid grounding and understanding about who they are and where they came from, the more they learn to value differences of cultures different from their own, and the closer we get to building a world of respect of multicultural differences. Ashman, A F, Elkins J 2008, ‘Education for Inclusion and Diversity’, 3rd edn, Pearson Education, Frenchs Forest, NSW. Davis, B M 2009, ‘The Biracial and Multicultural Student Experience: a journey to racial literacy’, Corwin, Sage Ltd, USA. Glover, A 1991, ‘Young children and race: a report of a study of two and three year olds’, Australian Catholic University, Sydney. Pulido-Tobiassen, D, Gonzalez-Mena, J 2005, ‘Learning to Appreciate Differences’, Early Childhood Today, vol. 20, issue 3, viewed 2 April 2011, retrieved from Victoria University Database. Robinson, K 2006, ‘Diversity and Difference in Early Childhood Education’, Bell and Bain Ltd, Glasgow, viewed 1 April 2011, retrieved from Ebrary database.

My Views On Education Philosophy Essay -- Education Teaching Philosoph

My Views On Education Philosophy When I first began college I wanted to be an accountant. I had taken accounting class in high school and really enjoyed it. Accounting is finite and rigid in terms of how it is structured. The rules did not change in regards to how you went about learning and applying it. Once you mastered the principles of accounting you would be able to do your assignments in class or your work in the real world proficiently. As I began taking the core accounting classes in my first years of college I noticed that the same reasons that once attracted me to accounting were now acting as a deterrent toward the profession. The finite, rigid nature of accounting was making it mundane, boring, and overall displeasing to study and do the class assignments. I wanted to study a subject that was not mundane, rigid, or boring. A subject that would challenge me to use my analytical mind in order to create my own informed opinions about the world around me. I changed my major to history and it has been one of the best decisions that I have ever made. I love learning about the past, understanding the causes of previous events, what the implications were behind the events, and how the events relate to and influence society of today. This love for learning about history is why I want to be a social studies teacher. Learning and teaching are related to and dependent upon one another. If a person has not learned an adequate amount of knowledge about a particular subject then that person will not be as effective at teaching the subject. People who do not like to study, learn, and keep up with new ideas and theories in their subject will be letting their students down and may not develop into effective ... ...e of Essentialism and Perennialism. Essentialism tries to teach the essential core course of a civilization with a back to the basics approach. This would encapsulate the direct teaching lecture part of my social studies class. The lecture must be teacher centered and learned by the students before they can get into the deep though, the why of history as previously explained. After the lecture has been given and the students understand in general terms what took place then the class will be shifted to the philosophical tendencies of Perennialism. Using the ideas behind Perennialism, I will have my students read the Great Books of the time which relate to the events and ideas that they are studying. For example, after I have lectured on the Enlightenment I would have them read Candide by Voltaire, which illustrates all the aspects of the Enlightenment movement.

Is Climate Change Man Made Environmental Sciences Essay

Bushnell ( 2010 ) states that Carbon dioxide degrees are now greater than at any clip in the past 650,000 old ages and mean planetary temperature is keeping its lifting tendency. Similarly, Human activities has released plenty C to raise the temperature of the Earth about 1 grade over the last century ( Alterman, 2006 ) . Our planet is sing a clime alteration headed by temperature additions. Climate alteration is going a serious job all over the universe. It is genuinely a planetary issue that impacts on all persons irrespective of nationality, gender or wealth. In recent old ages, human often take the effects for clime alteration with blood and cryings. DeWeerdt ( 2007 ) believes that the duty for 150,000 extra deceases annually due to utmost conditionss was climate alteration. Climate alteration, as a worldwide job, bit by bit poses a menace to life of human Begins. Glacial extirpation, sea degree rise, reduced harvests, extreme conditions, species extinctionaˆÂ ¦ It is human being that should be blamed non the nature because clime alteration is semisynthetic. This essay is to explicate that planetary clime is warming and this alteration is caused by human activities which are emanations from fossil fuel burning, inordinate land usage and population growing. Any alteration in the conditions forms of an country which is long-run and important particularly warming is climate alteration ( Dictionary.com, 2011 ) . The most of import ground of clime alteration is firing of fossil fuel. As all known that burning of coal and gasolene can bring forth C dioxide and other nursery gas. Excessive measure of nursery gas will barricade the heat exchange between the Earth and ambiance, which bit by bit consequences in planetary heating. Although people realized this a long clip ago, the demand of coal has ne'er decreased. â€Å" Today, coal-burning power mills generate the bulk of electricity in the United States ( 48 per centum ) , followed by natural gas ( 22 per centum ) , atomic ( 19 per centum ) and renewables ( 9 per centum ) † ( Kliesch, 2011 ) . For illustration, China, the biggest manufacturer of coal in the universe which generates more than 70 % of its electricity with coal has turned to foreigner providers because domestic supply can non fulfill immense demand ( Anonymous, 2011 ) . Besides, gasolene for autos is another subscriber to planetary heating. As electricity autos will go on m eet challenges, the huge bulk autos daily used by people consume gasolene. One typical auto emits 11,740 lbs of C dioxide per twelvemonth, nevertheless the bad intelligence is carbon dioxide can non be minimized through the emission-control system in autos ( Kliesch, 2011 ) . In decision, human productive activities rely on dodo fuel, limitless burning regardless of its consequence on planetary clime eventually result in a heating clime. Littorals ( 2009 ) suggests that manage of land usage is besides required to restrict emanation of C dioxide every bit good as burning of fossil fuel. Excessive land usage is the other ground of clime alteration. It is by and large known that oceans and workss take CO2 from atmosphere. As explained by Hoogeveen ( 2007 ) , oceans absorb CO2 since it is soluble in H2O ; workss and trees remove CO2 due to photosynthesis and carry it in signifier of energy- a procedure named as â€Å" C segregation † . To be more precise, 60 % of CO2 emitted by human activities is absorbed by oceans and workss. However world is interrupting the C rhythm, the delicate balanced system what C exchanged through land, H2O and air ( Alterman, 2006 ) . Emission of C dioxide is increasing while land area of woods is cut downing. There is increasing grounds that woods are under force per unit area ( Hoogeveen, 2007 ) . Thousands of square kilometers of woods disappears and so go paper merely to fulfill lim itless human wants. Rivers can non last as more land for skyscraper is needed. Hoogeveen ( 2007 ) states that as a consequence of deforestation and fire, devastation of woods adds one million millions of metric tons of C into atmosphere every twelvemonth. Thus, inordinate land usage has impacts on planetary clime alteration. Population growing is the 3rd ground of clime alteration. Rapid population growing leads to higher ingestion of natural resources and pollutant emanation. With increasing consciousness on planetary heating and its chief perpetrator, C dioxide emanations, population growing is deriving attending of climatologists. Petroleum, one of the beginnings used for generates electricity, gives off a batch of pollution. Watching Television, utilizing air-condition, play picture gamesaˆÂ ¦when people do these things more nursery gas is sent to the air. Froome ( 2010 ) believes that as seeking to run into both domestic and international emanation decrease, the electricity sector is the most critical beginning of nursery gas emanation in Australia. Since population additions quickly, more electricity is demanded. That is to state, there is more C dioxide emitted into the air to fulfill increasing electricity demand due to population growing. Besides, more refuse is sent to landfills because of increasing population. The procedure of firing refuse sends an tremendous sum of nursery gas and makes planetary warming worse. Wolpin ( 2006 ) states that the entire sum of waste generated have been lifting greatly as a consequence of increasing population. In drumhead, population growing should be considered as a of import cause. However, there are still some natural component may ensue in clime alteration such as home base tectonics, solar end product, orbital fluctuations, volcanism and ocean variableness. But this can non be alibis of world. It is human being should be responsible for planetary clime alteration. Global clime alteration which has caused a batch of catastrophes on the Earth is semisynthetic. Emissions from fossil fuel burning, inordinate land usage and population growing are the major factors can ensue in clime alteration. Finally the universe gathered in Copenhagen to discourse how much C dioxide people should be seting into the ambiance. Time is running out, human should move from right now. developing environmental direction engineerings, utilizing clean energy and puting up comparative Torahs are all executable ways to stabilise clime alteration.

Rotational Dynamics

Rotational Dynamics Abstract Rotational dynamics is the study of the many angular equivalents that exist for vector dynamics, and how they relate to one another. Rotational dynamics lets us view and consider a completely new set of physical applications including those that involve rotational motion. The purpose of this experiment is to investigate the rotational concepts of vector dynamics, and study the relationship between the two quantities by using an Atwood machine, that contains two different masses attached. We used the height (0. Mom) of the Atwood machine, and the average time (2. 5 s) the heavier eight took to hit the bottom, to calculate the acceleration (0. 36 m/SAA) of the Atwood machine. Once the acceleration was obtained, we used it to find the angular acceleration or alpha (2. 12 radar/SAA) and moment of force(torque) of the Atwood machine, in which then we were finally able to calculate the moment of inertia for the Atwood machine. In comparing rotational dynamics a nd linear dynamics to vector dynamics, it varied in the fact that linear dynamics happens only in one direction, while rotational dynamics happens in many different directions, while they are both examples of vector dynamics.Laboratory Partners Divine Kraal James Mulligan Robert Goalless Victoria Parr Introduction The experiment deals with the Rotational Dynamics of an object or the circular motion (rotation) of an object around its axis. Vector dynamics, includes both Rotational and Linear dynamics, which studies how the forces and torques of an object, affect the motion of it. Dynamics is related to Newton's second law of motion, which states that the acceleration of an object produced by a net force is directly proportional to the magnitude of the net force, in the same direction as the net force, and inversely proportional to the mass of the object.This is where the famous law of F=ma, force equals mass times acceleration, which directly deals with Newton's second law of motion. The important part of Newton's second law and how it relates to rotational dynamics and circular motion, is that Newton's second law of rotation is applied directly towards the Atwood machine, which is Just a different form of Newton's second law. This equation for circular motion is: torque=FRR=l(alpha), which is important for helping us understand what forces are acting upon the Atwood machine. It is important to test the formulas because it either refutes or provesNewton's second law of rotation and more importantly helps us discover the moment of inertia and what it really means. Although both rotational and linear dynamics fall under the category of vector dynamics, there is a big difference between the two quantities. Linear dynamics pertains to an object moving in a straight line and contains quantities such as force, mass, displacement, velocity, acceleration and momentum. Rotational dynamics deals with objects that are rotating or moving in a curved path and involves the q uantities such as torque, moment of inertia, angular velocity, angular acceleration, and angular momentum.In this lab we will be incorporating both of these ideas, but mainly focusing on the rotational dynamics in the Atwood Machine. Every value that we discover in the experiment is important for finding the moment of inertia for the Atwood machine, which describes the mass property of an object that describes the torque needed for a specific angular acceleration about an axis of rotation. This value will be discovered by getting the two masses used on the Atwood machine and calculating the weight, then getting the average time it takes for the smaller weight to hit the ground, the height of theAtwood machine, the radius, the circumference, and the mass of the wheel. From these values, you can calculate the velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, angular velocity, and torque. Lastly, the law of conservation of energy equation is used to find the formulas used to finally obtain the moment of inertia. Once these values are obtained, it is important to understand the rotational dynamics and how it relates to vector dynamics. It is not only important to understand how and why they relate to each other, but to prove or disprove Newton's second law of motion and understand what it means.Purpose The purpose of this experiment is to study the rotational concepts of vector dynamics, and to understand the relationship between them. We will assume the relationships between the two quantities hold to be true, by using an Atwood machine with two different masses attached to discover the moment of inertia for the circular motion. Equipment The equipment used in this experiment is as follows: 1 Atwood machine 1 0. 20 kilogram weight 1 0. 25 kilogram weight 1 scale 1 piece of string 1 stopwatch with 0. 01 accuracy Procedure 1 . Gather all of the equipment for the experiment. 2.Measure the weight of the two masses by using the scale, making sure to measure as accurately as possible. 3. Measure the length of the radius of the wheel on the Atwood machine. Then after obtaining this number, double it to obtain the circumference. 4. After measuring what is need, proceed to set up the Atwood machine properly. Ask the TA for assistance if needed. 5. First start by tying the end of the string to both weights, double knotting to make sure that it is tight. 6. Set the string with the weights attached to the groove of the Atwood machine wheel, making sure that it is properly in place. 7.Then set the lighter mass on the appropriate end of the machine, and hold in place, so that the starting point is at O degrees. 8. Make sure that the stopwatch is ready to start recording time. 9. When both the timer and the weight dropper are ready to start, release the weight and start the time in sync with one another. 10. At the exact time the mass makes contact with the floor, stop the time as accurately and precise as possible. 1 1 . Repeat this process three times, so t hat an average can be obtained of the three run times, making the data a much more accurate representation of the time it takes he weight to hit the ground. 2. Now that the radius, masses, and time are recorded, it is time to perform the calculations of the data. 13. Calculate the velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, moment of force or torque, and finally moment of inertia. 14. Finally, compare the relationships of the rotational concepts inquired and draw conclusions. Notes and Observations The Atwood machine contained four outer cylinders that stuck out of the wheel, which cause air resistance in rotation, and contribute to the moment of inertia. The timer, was hard to stop at the exact right time when the weight made contact with he floor.Lastly, there was friction of the string on the wheel, when the weight was released and it rubbed on the wheel. Data Mass of the first weight: 250 g=O. Keg Mass of the second weight: egg=O. Keg Weight 1=MGM= 2. 45 N Weight 2=MGM= 1. 96 N Time 1: 2. 20 seconds Time 2: 2. 19 seconds Time 3: 2. 06 seconds Height: 82. 4 CM= 0. 824 m Radius: 17 CM= 0. 17 m Circumference (distance)= 0. 34 m Mass of the wheel= 221. G x 4= egg= 0. Keg 2 x (change in a= (change in 0. 36 urn,'92 a=r x (alpha) alpha= alarm = 2. 12 radar/92 Velocity'=d/t -?0. 58 m/s E(final) E(final) + Work of friction (l)g(change in height)= h + m(2)g(change in height) + h + h law v/r Moment of Inertia= 0. 026 keg x m/SAA summation of . 876 Error Analysis There was error to account for in this lab, which first started with the four cylinders that stuck out of the Atwood machine in a circular pattern. This caused air resistance in which we could not account for. We only measured the weight of the four cylinders for the total weight of the Atwood machine, because the wheel itself was massages in comparison.Even though it accounted for very little error in our experiment, it effected the other numbers that we calculated in our data, making them a little less ac curate. When finding the amount of time it took the heavier weight to make contact with the rubber pad, there was human error in the reaction time of the timer in which we accounted for, making our data more accurate and precise. This is why we averaged all of the values in order to make the times more precise. Lastly, there was error for the friction of the string making contact with the wheel, which we did not account for, because there was no way of accounting for it.The reason why the force f the tension and the weight were not equal to each other was because of this friction force that existed, which we were not able to find. Conclusion Throughout this experiment we examined the circular dynamics of a pendulum when outside act upon it, making the pendulum move in a circular motion. We measured many values, including the period, in order to determine the theoretical and experimental forces acting on the pendulum. From this we were able to draw conclusions about how the experimen tal and theoretical forces relate to each other.We also were able to test Newton's second law of motion determining whether or not t holds to be true. The values that we obtained to get our experimental and theoretical forces started with setting up the cross bar set-up, and attaching the string with the pendulum to the force gauge and obtaining the tension in the string which was 3 Newton's, by reading the off of the gauge, while the pendulum was swinging in a circle. We then measured the mass of the pendulum with a balance scale to be 0. 267 kilograms, which were then able to find the weight to be 2. 63 Newton's.Next we were able to find the length of the string and force gauge attached to the pendulum. Instead of measuring Just the string attached to the pendulum, we also measured the force gauge, because without it our readings would be inaccurate. After placing the wall grid under the pendulum, we received the numeric value of 0. 5 meters of the radius by reading it off of the chart, by measuring from the origin, to the end of the where the pendulum hovered the graph. Then we found the period by using the stopwatch, which was 1. 71 seconds. We started the time at the beginning of the first crossbar and ended it at the same place.With these numbers that we measured we were able o calculate the angle of the string to the crossbars when it was in motion to be 35. 5 degrees. Then we found the constant velocity by using V = nor/t, in which we obtained the value of 1. 84 meters/second. From this we used the formula a = ‘ГËÅ"2/r to calculate the constant acceleration which was 6. 67 m/SAA, which we came to the understanding that the pendulum was moving very quickly, and that it took a while to slow down. From this we used Newton's famous second law, which was F=ma, to solve for the Force that was subjected on the pendulum.We knew that if this value was airily close to our experimental value that his theory would be proven correct. Me modified the equa tion to fit for the situation that was involved, in which we used F = m x ‘ГËÅ"2/r to receive the value of 1. 81 Newton's. Lastly, by using all of the data that we obtained from the experiment, we used the formula Force Experimental= Ft(sin B) to get an experimental force value of 1. 74 Newton's, which lead us to believe we solved for the correct formulas, and followed the procedure for the experiment correctly. Some of the discrepancy in our data comes from the instability of the crossbar set- up.This is because our crossbar holders were not in place correctly, which we couldn't correct, so we obtained our data as accurately as we could. Another error in our data came from the force gauge, in that it didn't stand still when we set the pendulum in motion. We couldn't read exactly what was on the force gauge and it also kept changing numbers, so we had to estimate based on what we saw. Lastly, the error in reaction time of the stopwatch changed our data. Without these erro rs existing, I believe our experimental values would be closer to our theoretical values. Even though this may be true, our values were only different by 0. Newton's, meaning we performed the experiment correctly for the most part. From the results that we obtained from the experiment, we now understand what we would have to do to improve our results in collecting data and obtaining the Experimental Force acting on the pendulum. Our error could have been improved by using a different table with more stability, improving our reaction time, and obtaining multiple values for the force gauge then averaging the results. We figured out that even though there was error in our experimentation, that our values were still pretty accurate Judging by the theoretical value.Theoretical values are based on what is discovered by physicists performing the experiment over and over again. So to use these values and get a number only fractions off, shows that the way we performed our experiment was not very far off. We proved Newton's second law to be true, because by doing the experiment and getting similar values shows that his concept holds to be true. The forces that we used to move the pendulum showed the dynamics of the pendulum, and how this can be used to understand concepts of the planets rotating around the sun in the universe, Just at a much smaller scale.

How to Take Good Biology Notes

How to Take Good Biology Notes One key to succeeding in biology is having good note-taking skills. It is not enough to just come to class and listen to the instructor. You must be able to take accurate, detailed notes in order to perform well on exams. In fact, most instructors use their lecture notes to come up with at least half, if not more, of their biology exam questions. Below are some good biology note-taking tips that are sure to help you learn how to take biology notes. Follow the Guidelines Some instructors provide course or lecture guidelines. Study these guidelines before class so you will be familiar with the material. Read any assigned materials before class as well. If you know what is going to be discussed beforehand, you will be better prepared to take notes. Get the Main Points An important key ​to success in biology note taking is the ability to focus on and write down the main points. Dont try to write down everything your instructor says, word for word. Its also a good idea to copy down anything the instructor writes on the chalkboard or overhead. This includes drawings, diagrams, or examples. Record the Lecture Many students find it difficult to take good biology notes because some instructors present information very quickly. In this case, ask the instructor for permission to record the lecture. Most instructors dont mind, but in case your instructor says no, you will have to practice taking notes quickly. Ask a friend to read an article quickly while you take notes. Review your notes to see if they are accurate and detailed. Leave Some Space When taking notes, be sure that you have enough space so that you can decipher what you have written. There is nothing more frustrating than having a page full of cramped, illegible notes. You will also want to be sure that you leave extra space in case you need to add more information later. Textbook Highlighting Many students find it useful to highlight information in textbooks. When highlighting, be sure to only highlight specific phrases or keywords. If you highlight every sentence, it will be difficult for you to identify the specific points that you need to focus on. Ensure Accuracy An effective way to ensure that the notes you have taken are accurate is to compare them with the information in your biology text. In addition, speak with the instructor directly and ask for feedback on your notes. Comparing notes with a classmate can also help you to capture the information you may have missed. Reorganize Your Notes Reorganizing your notes serves two purposes. It allows you to rewrite your notes in a format that helps you understand them more clearly, and it helps you to review the material you have written. Review Your Notes Once you have reorganized your biology notes, be sure to review them before the end of the day. Be certain that you know the main points and write a summary of the information. Reviewing your notes is also advantageous when preparing for a biology lab. Prepare For Biology Exams Your biology note-taking skills are essential for preparing for biology exams. You will find that if you follow the instructions above, most of the work in preparing for the exams will have already been done.

Aint No Makin It

In this paper I will explore some concepts that I saw that were prevalent in her undercover research. Weberian Sociology The first concept that I immediately grasped was Max Weber’s theory of stratification of equality. Weber’s view of stratification differed from the one-dimensional class theory of Karl Marx. Weber theorized that there are three different factors that help shape class formation, class status, and party. All but the latter of the three were evident in the book. The first notion of Weber’s notion on class stated that people with common occupations, earning approximately similar incomes, constitute a class. Marger p. 39) In each city that she worked in the living conditions and earnings were about the same, most of her coworkers had living arrangements that involved sharing housing with someone other than their spouse, if they had one. Another trait that was displayed from here coworkers in each city was the proximity of where they lived into relat ion to where they worked. Transportation plays a key role in life chances for people. If a person is mobile they may go for that higher paying job on the other side of town. Weber’s second theory of social stratification of inequality, status, was made evident while Barbara was working in Maine. While Barbara worked in Maine as a maid she noticed how convenience store clerks, who made $. 65 less than she made an hour, look at her and her coworkers as if they were beneath them. Another example of this was when she stated that everywhere she went people looked at the uniform and instantly regarded her and her coworkers as lower class citizens. People saw there green and yellow uniforms like the white and black stripes of a convict and that their style of life isn’t as good as people in their social class. One particular instance when she bought a beer from the grocery store she could feel the cold stares that implied that the reason she had that maid job was because all her money was going to support her alcohol habit; even though Barbara has a PH. D and probably made more money than many of them all they saw was a lower class citizen. Social Mobility Another sociological concept that prevalent of the working poor that was portrayed in the book was the theory of social mobility. It will be difficult for many of Barbara’s ex-coworkers to ever move into a different class because mobility rates in the U. S. have been on a decline over the past five decades. It is said in America that everyone can lace up their boots and pull themselves out of poverty but mobility is getting harder to accomplish. One factor of mobility is marriage; statistical data has said that women that never marry are 16% to 19% more likely to fall out of the middle class. Barbara worked with three females, Gail, Annette, and Marianne, who all fell into this statistic. Two of the three women lived with boyfriends but since they were not married it will be statically harder to make their way up the class ladder . Married women usually benefit from their husbands class and prestige; â€Å"shacking up† is not conducive to women making a climb up the ladder. Gender is another factor that hinders mobility; although the workplace has gotten better the fact still remains that women are still far behind men. In this system of inequality women have to work harder and are not usually respected as much as men. In lower paying jobs, like the ones Barbara worked, most of her coworkers were woman with a man being their immediate supervisor; the only exception was Linda which was her supervisor at the nursing home she worked at in Maine. This injustice to women played a major role in her life as an undercover journalist. Immigration to United States also dictates class mobility. Barbara worked with people from Haiti and the Czech Republic. The movement of immigrants moving up the class ladder is getting harder to accomplish. The lower paying jobs that they had were jobs that many Americans do not want to do but Americans blame the immigrants for taking â€Å"good† jobs away from naturalized citizens, which in all actuality the immigrates create as many jobs as they take. (Marger p. 34) The current trend is that Americans look at unskilled foreign citizens as a burden and hindrance to the economic growth to America. Americans forget that their great great grandfathers and great – great grandmothers came to this country looking for a better opportunity for their families and that they often had to jobs and work in conditions that most people did not want to work in. The lack of generational mobility was also displayed in the book. Social mobility can also be measured from one generation to another, how well the children of the previous generation do in their lives and workplace. I mentioned earlier that one of the women who Barbara worked with was unmarried, Annette, well she has another tribulation that will hinder her movement up the social ladder; she lives with her mom. Instead of creating upward mobility for herself and her family she has gone down, Annette’s mother worked as a postal clerk. The social mobility of Annette’s family took a vertical turn downward and it’s highly unlikely that her life chances will promote upward growth. Horatio Alger Jr. The mythical days of success stories portrayed in Horatio Alger Jr. s books are long gone. Horatio Alger Jr. wrote and published stories were young men were able to change their class system and life chances by working hard to gain economic and social success. (Marger p. 98) In his stories the young man always worked hard and had good moral values to make it out of poverty. This concept inspired workers back then but the farce of the books still apply in today’s society. One far ce of his books is that one can work harder only by working hard. A person can work hard all their lives and still not vertically move up the social ladder. One question that rises to me is what the definition of hard work is; is hard work physical, mental, and/or both. In the book Barbara worked so hard that she had to ingest a heap of ibuprofen pills just to make it through the day; the deterioration of her body showed that she worked hard but the fact remained that neither Barbara or her coworkers could not move up the corporate ladder in the companies that they worked at. Alger Jr. Books also portrayed young men as heroes, excluding women, minorities, and immigrants. Times have changed since his books were published; there are women, minorities, and immigrants in the modern workforce. These groups have entered the Caucasian male driven workforce to have the same opportunities of their white counterparts. Although in modern times the inequality of the groups has closed a meniscal amount each year those groups will never be the same across the board. Social Functions of Poverty The 2nd part of poverty, the political economy of capitalism, according to structural sociologist explains that poverty results from the way the economy and government operate. America is set to be a capitalistic society; in capitalistic society corporations profit first objective. Corporations decide where to do business and structure employment and employee hours to maximize profits. The inequality of these practices was blatant in every city that Barbara worked in. Barbara first victimized to this practice while working as a waitress at the Hearthside Diner. The diner did not have a break room for employees. The employees were not allowed to have idle time, there was always something to clean, resupply, or make more visually pleasing. The objective of this was to get the employees to work continuously through their shifts without breaks. The practice of this theory could also be seen while Barbara was working in Minnesota at Wal-Mart, the store had a policy that employees were not allowed to â€Å"time steal† ; all associates were told to always look for something to complete in the store. Wal-Mart also cross-trains it associates in different departments in order to be well-rounded; this is a capitalistic practice for validating not giving the employees a decent wage, if one employee has knowledge about many areas of the store then the company can maximize profits by just hiring one person to do the job instead of hiring more that are specialized in that particular section. A dentist is a doctor but I would not want the dentist to perform open heart surgery on me because the dentist is only specialized to work on teeth. The best way to explain our capitalistic society is to quote Gail, Barbara’s coworker and training partner in Florida, said it best â€Å"They don’t cut you no slack. You give and you give, and they take. †(Nickel and Dimed p. 22); because of these practices Gail vowed never to work for a corporation again. Economic Function of Poverty The 1st point of the economic function theory is that poor perform the dirty work of society because they have little choice to do other jobs. Barbara’s coworkers were unskilled laborers so their opportunities for better employment were limited to jobs that require service instead of a skilled job. Another example of this in book was the story of Isabelle. Isabelle was a coworker of Barbara in Minnesota that previously worked as a waitress; she worked at a high class restaurant but when the restaurant closed she had to work at Wal-Mart because the available high class restaurants would not hire her because of her age. The 2nd point of the economic function of poverty is that since poor people receive little wages that subsidize the rich and middle class. Over the past thirty years manufacturing jobs have been downsized or outsourced to other countries, most of the jobs in America now are service jobs. The jobs that Barbara worked at were all jobs that catered to servicing people’s needs and wants. The jobs that are offered to lower class citizens make the lives of the rich and middle class make life more â€Å"convenient†, the mind state of the rich and poor is I don’t want to do this so I can pay someone to do it for me. The rich and middle class in today’s society rely on the underprivileged to do the work. There is not a caste system in America with serfs, but the two share similar values. Slavery in Modern Form The modern system of slavery in America has transformed from owning people to controlling people through economic exploitation. One technique of corporations to control the lives of their employees to implement the practice of a pre-job drug screen; in today’s society companies want to know want their employees do in their personal lives. Although studies have shown that pre-employment testing does not lower turnover rates or absenteeism it is still a practice. I believe that employers should probe into the personal lives of their employees, what one does in their own time and not on the companies’ clock should not matter until it affects their performance on the job. Today’s society and companies assume that all lower class people do drugs that will hinder them from performing their jobs at an optimal level. The fact is that people from every class ingest drugs into their bodies; the drug cocaine is preferred by other classes because the drug does not remain in the body for an extended period of time. Barbara had to experience this form of slavery when she applied for a job at Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie in Minnesota. Barbara had to spend extra money on a detoxification drink that she did not really have, lower her sodium intake, and drink plenty of water to get marijuana out her system just to have employment at Wal-Mart. Another example of employers assuming that workers use drugs was in Florida; the manager of the Hearthside Diner, Stu, assumed that the George was stilling money for drug, but in fact it was him that stealing money from the cash registrar. Religion Karl Marx examined the relationship between religious values and its effects on the economy; he concluded that the two things are essentially the result of capitalism; one cannot exist without the other. Marx examined this and published a book The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism which detailed the relationship between the two. Early protestant religious figures believed that working to acquire material success and wealth was an indicator that God chose that person to enter heaven and this believe is still practiced today. I believe that relationship to be true but do not believe in the philosophy behind it. Barbara visited a church tent revival in Maine and was preached on how Jesus gave up his life for the sins of his followers. I used to attend church regularly and I always wondered why the church would always ask for money to support different things within the church, tithing was pushed the most. Tithing requires that one give the church at least 10% of their income, if people work and can barely make it on the low wages they earn it astonishes me how they give money to the church every week. I also agree with Barbara’s notion that Jesus was a sociologist, Jesus worked spreading the word of God and performing miracles but he was never paid for doing them. Barbara also mentioned in the book that the churches were always the place to go when one is down on their luck or experiencing tough times; she noted that one of the first things people said was to get help at a church. Once again the church, because of people’s cultural values, is the center point focused on the poor. I believe that church reality wanted to end the poverty cycle and help people in poverty that the church would use their political power to stop poverty instead of lobbying in Congress to pass laws that hinder the poor. In conclusion Barbara Ehenreich’s book, Nickel and Dimed, had many sociological concepts within her travels from Florida, Maine, and finally Minnesota. The jobs low wage jobs she took to see how lower class people survive gave validity to many of the sociological concepts I have learned in this class. There are many other concepts that were evident in the book but the concepts of Weberian Sociology, Social Mobility, Horatio Alger Jr. , Social Functions of Poverty, Slavery in Modern Form, and Religion were instantly apparent . The book gave deeper insight on how lower class people survive from low wages and demeaning jobs to make higher class people’s lives better.

Capital Punishment Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Capital Punishment - Term Paper Example The arguments of Pojman, which supports capital punishment, were based on three premises from anecdotal evidence. First, the deterrent effect of an object is increased with the increased degree of fear it can cause to a person. Second, people fear death more than any humane punishment, and third, death penalty is a humane punishment. From these premises, the author concludes that the death penalty is a more effective mechanism to deter people from committing homicide compared to long imprisonment (277). The argument presented was potentially sound since it was supported by coherent reasoning. However, while the first premise is logical, the last two premises have a potential conflict since not all criminals are fearful of death and generally, capital punishment is inhumane. Nevertheless, the author’s conclusion still follows his premises since there is a high chance that potential criminals will avoid committing first degree crime if they are aware that the sentence that await s them is death compared to long imprisonment. However, it is argued that capital punishment is not an appropriate sentence to major offenders. There is also a strong contention against the principle that the death penalty has a greater deterrence compared to long imprisonment. ... However, it is argued that life as it is, has an intrinsic value. This makes it unjust and immoral to permit the gambling of the lives of murderers. For the anecdotal argument, one of the premises of the proponent states that the death penalty is a humane punishment. This premise is a weak assumption since it is contended that the moral values of society do not perceive death penalty as acceptable. Thus, killing a person is inhumane. Due to the weak premises of the proponent, it cannot be concluded justly that capital punishment, in contrast to long term imprisonment, has a greater deterrence among potential criminals. A study of Donohue and Wolfers on the homicide rates in US revealed that there is no statistical evidence to prove that the death penalty has a substantial deterrent effect on homicide commission. The findings of the time series analysis showed that as the death penalty execution rose up from 1920s to 1930s, homicide rates also increased while both of the execution and homicide rates went down from 1940s to 1950s (796). Moreover, Donohue and Wolfers also conducted a comparative study between Canada and US to determine if execution rates can significantly reduce homicide rates. The findings showed that both US and Canada showed similar changes in homicide rates amidst country specific legislations that directly affected their execution rates. For instance, when Canada did not conduct executions in 1962, its homicide rates were still close to the US. In a similar way, when US suspended its death penalty policy in 1972, both the execution and homicide rates of US and Canada rose altogether (799). This study supports the argument that capital punishment does not significantly influence homicide rates,