A Philosophical Assessment

A Philosophical Assessment in Kauchak & Eggen: Chapter 7 (Examining Your Beliefs). Lance DeLong Of the four philosophies of education; Perennialism, Essentialism, Progressivism and Social reconstructionism, the one that seem to best fit my fundamental beliefs would be reflected in Essentialism philosophy. This is, because I believe that the role of the public school system is to teach students essential elements of knowledge that then in turn enables the student to development critical thinking skills associated with advanced critical thinking.These learned skills can only be applied after a student has gained the knowledge necessary to function effectively in society, and only after he understands that society can he make critical decisions relating to that society. The dilemmas identified in the situation posed by the text book exercise; â€Å"Decision Making: Developing Your Philosophy of Education†, can be analyzed through the perspective of this educational philosophy as such: The basic premise of what are the responsibilities of the education system and how we achieve critical thinking speaks to the issues presented in the first part of this exercise.The essence of understanding what one is thinking about and making decisions on, must first be established in in the students mind, would be my opinion. Essentialism, is the idea that centers around basic truths that must be learned in order for students to engage and participate in such activates. Essentialism is a belief that life is a series of building blocks and certain truths must be learned that allows the student to achieve advancement and an understanding of the society and the culture in which they are making decision on.This philosophy must also be looked at in the light of our Christian world view and the Bible. The Bible must be the basis and reflection of all philosophical truth. Paul warns us in Col. 2:8, â€Å"Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ†. Though not all worldly philosophies are deceiving and drawing us away from Christ, I believe that any that question the basic tenants of education set forth in the scripture to be contrary to said and easily disassociated.The basic principle acknowledged by essentialists is that there are essential truth and those truths are to be imparted in the educational system. While absolute truths are communicated through scripture and basic academic truths regarding history, English, mathematics, and literature are the basis for this philosophy; one must acknowledge this, to be the basic responsibility of an educational system, imparting absolutes, to be an essentialist. Other educational philosophies that foster the process of discovering truth rather than acknowledging truth must be recognized for what they are â€Å"vain deceit†.Another principle the essentialists would hold true to, is that learni ng requires discipline and usually is accomplished through hard work. This seems to be negatively reflected in the situation presented in the text book. The students in the example seem to have been the product of a system that does not teach personal discipline and hard work as evidenced in their attitude for a quick solution and desire to learn just what is required to get by.If these students had been exposed to a system associated with discipline and hard work and that was the standard, questions such as â€Å"why do we have to learn this stuff† would not have been posed and comments such as â€Å"C’mon just tell us what you want us to know† would not need to be made because students would have learned that hard work and discipline produces usually positive results. It seems that these students have been given and have not learned to work for their education.If these foundational principles had been instilled into these students through a disciplined learnin g environment they would not have been left to their own devises as it seems these students have, but would have developed a deliberate regimented method to learning one that would have been measured and proved though testing. Also, in the situation presented, there seemed to be an element of disrespect associated to the system and the teacher. The element of submission to authority has not been instilled in the students.Paul tells us in I Peter 5:5, â€Å"Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble†, the element of authority and the respect thereof has seemingly not been established in this learning environment. The essentialist recognizes the traditional teacher centered philosophy where the respect for authority is the basis for the importance of the information being communicated.The imparting of knowledge, information, and skill s from the older (presumably wiser) generation to the younger one is imperative in this philosophy. The teacher's responsibility is not only to impart those mentioned elements of basic education, but also to instill respect for authority, and moral norms as deemed acceptable in a society. The situation described in said scenario seems to be a reoccurring dilemma recognized in our public school systems today. This seems not to be a need to redefine the educational system, but a need to readdress roles and responsibilities.Going back to the principles of the founder of the essentialist educational theory, William C. Bagley seems to be the answer. His basis principles of â€Å"the recognized right of an immature student to the guidance of a well-educated, caring, and cultured teacher†, would seemed to have resolved the assumed attitude of the students in question of non-importance of education. That â€Å"the imparting of the ideals of community to each succeeding generation of children†, would have resolved the issue of respect for the teaching system and teacher and would have fostered the feeling of community and society. Having a specific program of studies that required thoroughness, accuracy, persistence, and good workmanship on the part of pupils†, would have set the precedence and provide the students specifically with what was required of them. I would agree with Professor Bagley’s’ statement of â€Å"(American) essentialism is grounded in a conservative philosophy that accepts the social, political, and economic structure of American society and schools should not try to radically reshape society†.I hold to the same thought that American schools should transmit the traditional moral values and intellectual knowledge and those students need to become model citizens. I hold to the basic tenant that when a student leaves school that they should possess basic skills and an extensive body of knowledge, discipline and a practical mind that then allows them to apply school house lessons in a real and practical world. Finally I believe the American school system is in decline as evidenced in the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).The results of these test showed that only about one third of American students exhibited proficiency in technology and science. â€Å"Living in the past† is the phrase I will use as some reflect on the fact that in the 1950s SAT scores reached an all-time high as reflected by the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), surveying Adults 16-65 relating not to math and science but literacy. As years go by statistics continue to drop. The current administration has promised even more spending on their â€Å"Race to the Top† initiative with seeming little or no positive results.Some will find excuses for the decline, but it seems to me that the progressive mind set relating to current educational philosophies is not necessarily working an d that a return to traditional values and proven theories of education would be prudent to return to. A philosophical model of education that reflects the principles of ultimate truths do not change and that sound conservative practices of essentialism seems be the basis for this return.

Reality TV Influence Youth Behavior

Reality Television and how it can influence the behavior of youth and teens There is no doubt that when it comes to American youth television is one of the biggest influences by far. Many parents would love to say that their child does not watch that much TV but in reality they are spending a lot of time watching television or using media in some way. â€Å"The study by the Kaiser Family foundation shows that children ages 2-8 spend an average of 5 ? hours a day â€Å"consuming media† kids 8 and older spend even more time in front of the tube nearly 6 ? hours a day† (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2005 ). Astonishingly, more time is being spent with media then doing homework, studying or even spending time with family. A child’s retention of what they watch depends on the child’s attention span, how they would process the information and of course their own e experience however limited this may be. Reality television can affect the attitudes and behaviors of children all over the U. S. through its stereotyping, violence and cultivating false perception of reality. This differs from family to family and depends on the values instilled in the child. While media manipulates the minds of youth and teens, the value portrayed on reality television by reinforcing negative stereotypes and idealizes body image to be accepted as the norm. Stereotypes are unavoidable in media especially in reality programming. In my opinion the stereotypes depicted in media can influence the way youth see people in real life. Basing their opinion on what they have viewed on television. Often time’s television tends to stereotype genders and racial groups in a negative way. For example by watching the shows â€Å"Jersey Shore† and â€Å"Jerseylicious† you would think that young Italian people are only interested in partying, excessive drinking, promiscuity, name brand fashions and working out. That’s not the best image to enact to young people. With all the media used by youth in America is there any wonder why children stereotype what they don’t know? Adolescent females are easily swayed when it comes to messages about body image. A show such as â€Å"America’s Next Top Model† demonstrates that in order to be a model a person must be slender. Recent research indicates that there is a marked link between TV and watching, and negative body and eating disorders† (British Journal of Psychiatry) Young people are always concerned with what their peers will say. I went around my neighborhood and asked a few teens some questions about body image and the media. I ran into a group of five girls and asked them do th ey feel that body image is important and if so how important is it. After a few moments one of the girls named Kayla who was 15years old said yes with a smirk. My follow up question was â€Å"Why is it so important? † she answered without a moment of pause â€Å"Because when you see someone who is overweight you automatically think they don’t care about themselves, they have bad BO and I don’t want people to think that about Me. † This conversation went on for almost an hour as she informed of her workout routine. Later, that day I saw some young males at the skate park and asked them the same questions as the girls the answers were the total opposite. A young man named Martin who was14 was the only one willing to answer my questions. He said he didn’t think it mattered about his body image or his friends. He later stated he thought it was dumb but when I asked him if he would ever date a girl that was overweight a little ashamed he replied that he wouldn’t. It is no secret that boys and girls are different but prior to this research I thought that all teenagers had basically the same outlook on how they view their bodies. Unfortunately the shows that children and young people are exposed to are not in a realistic light. Children see that the actors and actresses have perfect bodies, hair, and skin and clothing this is not realistic but the need to be perfect remains prominent in our society. With the desire to be perfect it often leads to eating disorders and death. â€Å"The mortality rate associated with Anorexia Nervosa is 12 times higher than the death rate associated with all causes of death in females15-24 years old. †(American Journal of Psychiatry 1995) Instead of children being taught that beauty comes in all shapes, sizes and colors children are being pumped with the stereotypes that they identify in themselves. This is prominent in the African American community; it is often taught at a young age that if you are of darker complexion or have a curlier hair texture you are not as pretty as the lighter complexioned girl that you might know. It is assumed that the media is to blame for this way of thinking. Youth and teens are self conscious enough without these negative â€Å"airbrushed† and unrealistic images put forth in the media. Media is also being tied to the increasing violence in US children. Children are increasing anti-social and aggressive behavior, become less sensitive to violence and those who suffer from violence, children may view the world as violent and mean fearful of being a victim of violence. Children may desire to see more violence in entertainment and real life, and children will view violence as an acceptable way to settle conflicts. †( Buchanan, A. M. , Gentile, D. A. , Nelson, D. A. ,Walsh, D. A. , Hensel, J. 2002) Astonishingly, more time is being spent on watching television then homework which differ from child to child. A child’s interpretation of what they watch depends on of their attention spans, the way in which they process the information, and their own limited life experiences. Entertainment media exposure can negatively affect attitudes and behaviors of the American child through violence, cultivating false perceptions of reality and stereotyping. Continued concerns researchers are finding exposure to the media violence causes increased levels of aggression and violence in children. Experts even suggest that the evidence linking media violence to aggressive behavior is as strong as the evidence linking smoking to lung cancer. â€Å"Among 10 to 24 year olds, homicide is the leading cause of death for African Americans; the second leading cause of death for Hispanic and third leading cause of death for Asian/ Pacific Islanders, American Indians and Alaska Natives. †(CDC2010a) While most adults realize that media violence is fabricated, children are more vulnerable. A Pre-K student will not know the difference between reality and fantasy. It is suggested that children who identify with an aggressive hero they see on TV are more likely to be aggressive. â€Å"They learn that violence is effective, courageous, and socially except able and rewarded, and they get caught in the aggressive cycle. † (American Academy of Pediatrics, 1995) In a book titled â€Å"Reality TV† in an article Teenagers Identify with the Issues Presented in Reality TV Shows by David Hiltbrand suggests there two reasons why teenagers are able to identify with reality shows are because the shows are â€Å"short† and â€Å"often deal with relationships and rejection. So, with this basic recipe of making reality programming teenagers are being drawn into this toxic TV. Youth can easily relate to the emotions and situations of the reality show stars, like trying to avoid rejection by making friends and/or alliances. Also in the article, David Hiltbrand states that the top shows watched by teens are reality programs. There is lots of evidence that shows the effect of reality television on teenagers and the fact that reality television is greatly consumed by teenagers today. So, there must be something about reality shows that make them able to pull in such a large group of teens, and that would be the fact that they are able to identify with reality show characters which makes the reality show more enjoyable. This goes hand and hand with the cultivation theory. This theory can have a negative effect on teens about the real world. The Cultivation theory put simply suggests that exposure to large amounts of television will over time cultivate viewers perception of reality. A large amount of television watching is seen as â€Å"cultivating† this theory suggests that you would become more engrossed in television programming than in everyday life. The idea is presented to a passive audience, such as children often accept the ideas and therefore influence large groups into conforming behind the ideas. This gives the media a significant influence over youth audiences. †(Cultivation Theory and Research) Children of a young age usually don’t get to experience the world and don’t have many life experiences to refer to, but by the time they do are using the ideas and thoughts that have been given to them through the media. Television can also fill with a wealth of good and educational programming. Having different news stations with different points of view, quality reality shows such as â€Å"Downsized† or a show like â€Å"Too fat for 15†. But are young people rushing home to watch these programs. The teens that I talked to admitted that they had not seen the shows. Although I know the opinion of a few really doesn’t make the majority. Many researchers are telling parents monitor their child’s television and media intake. By monitoring what they watch you can also monitor the amount. In my own experience this message rings true I often monitor the programming my children watch because I know they are young and impressionable. In conclusion watching TV or consuming other forms of media does seem to have replaced dressing up or reading books as the favorite pastime for our youth. Yes, media can alter the thoughts of young impressionable minds if consumed in large amounts but if monitored by parents and by parents steering their children in the right direction media can be a be a powerful tool to gain information about the world. People often refer to reality television as the armpit of entertainment. This may be so but it is just that entertainment and as far as the values portrayed in them I wouldn’t exactly call them that. Television stations have found a â€Å"formula† to make money; it’s not always a positive message behind it but there are a few with a positive message out there. Instilling the values in your children while they are young would be the best way to avoid them wanting to take the messages from TV and applying them to everyday life.

Narrow Identities and Violence

Personal identity of individual includes many feature of the individual such as race, religion, profession, personal interests, ethnicity, and language among other attributes. Yet all over the world we see individuals and groups defining themselves in narrow and exclusive terms. We take the view that, in day to day life, the different aspects of personality remain latent. Social and economic context present a background against which individuals choose to retain these different possibilities or to commit to one of these possibilities and to renounce the others. Religious Indentity and violence There are few topics that challenge the capabilities of historians more than religion and violence. When the two subjects are combined, the challenge is only increased. How do historians, discuss the often extreme, or alien manifestations of religious belief?And how should we explain religiously motivated violence—or violence that seems to be inspired by religious beliefs or authorities? Religious and violence opens up a very territories for our consideration. This is the assumption that religious violence is really not fundamentally about religion that other interests, claims, or identities of an economic, ethnic, political, or even psychological nature are at stake. With this assumption it seems to imply that religion can be reduced to something else.I certainly endorse the idea that in most situations in medieval and early modern ages, religious violence is â€Å"really† about religion. This may be less true of more recent times. I wonder, however, how consistently useful it is to think of religion as a social identity in medieval and early modern ages. Situations certainly existed in which people assigned religious labels to one another and/or thought of themselves as part of a religious group, most obviously in religious borderlands or in regions where multiple religious groups lived alongside one another. But the insight first provided by Wilfred Cantwell Smith and subsequently refined by a number of historians, namely that it was only over the course of the late Middle Ages, and especially in the wake of the Reformation, that the concept of â€Å"religion† took on something approaching its modern sense of an organized set of beliefs and practices about the divine rather than an attitude of piety toward the gods, is an important one to keep in mind. And while it is certainly true that many forms of religious violence in late medieval or early modern Europe were directed against neighbors assigned some fixed label such as â€Å"Jews,† â€Å"Dalits,† incidents of religious violence may have been especially likely to occur at moments when new beliefs were spreading into an area and the religious situation was far too fluid to be neatly defined. So when public scenes of disrespect to the consecrated host sparked violent Catholic retaliation in France around 1560, the violence was motivated by outrage against those so depraved as to attack God's body, but the clash cannot be usefully analyzed as one between two groups with fixed social identities. The violence was all about rival beliefs and their public manifestation and defense—a clear matter of â€Å"religion† as a symbolic system. To go from there to speaking of religion as an irreducible identity is a linguistic step it probably isn't useful to take.

Catherine the Great Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Catherine the Great - Research Paper Example khail, Peter I, known as Peter the Great, who nearly transformed the backward country into a major power by the early eighteenth century – he succeeded in reforming both the army and administration, created the Russian navy, encouraged trade and secular education, as well as introduced Western technology (Hatt 12). The Church had been deprived of its privileges and was largely subordinated to the state; while the power of the Russian nobles – boyars – was also curbed (Hatt 12; Williams 343-345). Following the victory over Sweden in the Great Northern War, Russia expanded into the northwest, conquering the Neva valley, along with the other Baltic provinces of Sweden, like Ingria, Estonia, Livonia, Vyborg, and part of Karelia; the fort, whose construction had begun in a desolate area of marshland nearby the mouth of the Neva River in 1703, some nine years later became the capital city of the Russian empire under the name St Petersburg (Williams 345; Hatt 12). Peter the Great died before he could name his successor – some six years after the death of his son Peter, by his second marriage – so the son of Tsarevich Alexis, and Peter the Great’s grandson, became the emperor of Russia as Peter II (Williams 346). During his short reign dominated by two powerful magnates’ factions – the Menshikov and Dolgoruky factions – Russia played a rather passive role abroad (Williams 346). Peter II died before he could marry Dolgoruky’s daughter , Catherine, and was succeeded by the niece of Peter the Great, Anna Ivanovna (Williams 346). Under Empress Anna, Russia was ruled by her favorite, Birone; at home, this period was characterized by a decreased Crown control over the nobility, while abroad Russia gained control over Poland in the war of the Polish succession, as well as over Azov in the Russian – Turkish war of 1735-9 (Williams 25). One year after her death, i.e. in 1741, a palace coup carried out by the guards of the Preobrazhenskii regiment overthrew

Life Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Life Learning - Essay Example Even so, there are some lessons and experiences that one must undergo before becoming a leader. Based on the Kolb-Fry model, one has to undergo an effective learning process that sees one go through the stages of a concrete experience, observation and reflection of the experience, analysis and conclusion, which eventually results in new experiences. Through such experiences, undergoes enough tests to gain leadership traits. While leadership may be inbuilt, at times it involves intensive training before one acquires desired leadership qualities. Through training, one understands the need to inspire and empower others. This lies under psychological leadership in which a person reads the psychology of followers and understands exactly how to direct them to realize organizational objectives. The number of natural born leaders is very few in the current society. I have experienced several leadership mishaps in the organizations I have worked in over the years. To enhance effectiveness in leadership, it is essential for one to train them in lieu to the setting they find themselves at that time. Great leadership is about one’s actions, and not about what they know about leadership. Naturally, I am an outgoing, generous, and carefree person. I am smart can learn anything fast, and have a great memory. I have always had a lot of friends at home, school and work. I have always been a leader and I understa nd how to take on a task and complete with quality. People look up to me at my workplace, and I have been the motivator in the departments I have worked at. Leadership training is at times ineffective. Naturally, leaders are not trained; they are developed. I learnt that it is nearly impossible for a person to tell another on how to lead. Developing a leader is easier and much more effective than training a leader. That is the reason as to why most leadership training programs are ineffective. Sometimes one is just not born

The Social Cost Prison has tours a family and communitty Research Proposal

The Social Cost Prison has tours a family and communitty - Research Proposal Example e population in 2007 was estimated at 1,321,851,88, which represents approximately one fifth of the world’s total population, and nearly 5 times the population of the United States, has a prison population of only 1.5 million people nearly half the size of the U.S. prison population. This represents roughly one in every one thousand Chinese (Ibid.). China is a communist totalitarian state. The United States prides itself on being the world’s greatest democracy. Go fiqure! Between 1980 and 1992 per capita spending on corrections in the U. S. rose by an amazing 306.2% (Davey 2). Similar to the present housing crisis, the prison building boom of the 1990’s, has ultimately resulted in the severe overcrowding which is currently bloating the budgets of nearly all 50 states. It has the added effect of totally devastating families and communities throughout this nation (Warren 3). Furthermore, although African Americans make up only 12-13% of the U.S. population, they ar e currently 49.2% of the nation’s prison population. This is shameful. However, on top this is the neatly contrived bogus media perceptions of African Americans. Although young Black men actually experience the highest rates of criminal victimization in the country, and White women experience the lowest, the manufactured corporate media image is for the most part, that of young Black men who exist in this society as the overwhelming perpetrators of crime; and White women who are the overwhelming victims (Dorfman 8). You can easily see that the reality does not jive with the illusion. Isn’t that something? The picture is that of a nation drunk with the rule of law; and tinged with an overtly racist cultural worldview. It is the image of a ‘Criminal’- Justice System that is to often seen by a substantial number of American citizens as a system that is nothing more than perfectly worded. In 2007 an average of nearly one billion dollars per state was spent on ‘corrections’, and the prison

Business Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business Logistics - Essay Example The launching of an extensive range of logistics inventiveness, intended to develop working efficiencies, increase service level and enhance profitability. The upcoming trends like the B2B integration, e-business, electronic procuring, and e-logistics are initiated in collaboration with trading partners, to increase efficiencies and eradicate the desecrate, out of supply chains. â€Å"The supply chain is corporate America’s last frontier. Conquering it is the key to reducing costs and maximizing profits. Damon Schechter and Gordon Sander have done a remarkable job in demonstrating the importance of supply chain management—to today’s business† (Delivering the Goods 2000). The Apple Inc, has implemented e-commerce to develop deep relationships on good rapport with their customers. Nearly 50% of Apple’s $32 billion in annual revenues are carried out over the network, and other manufacturer distributors and suppliers report quick rise in on-line sale. A part from the U.S, the country Japan, too is emerging in e-commerce and is expected to achieve a growth of 40% in comparison to previous years. Process Flows Operation of Apple: Apple Inc, previously Apple Computer Inc, is one of the multinational companies in America that plans and sells customer electronics, software of computer, and personal computers. Logistic process of Apple Inc involve a large set of activities devoted to the transformation and allocation of commodities , from raw material sourcing to marketplace distribution, in addition to the associated flow of information. The application of process logistics facilitates a greater effectiveness of movements, with a suitable choice of methods, terminals, ways and scheduling. The implied intention of logistics is to create available merchandise, raw materials and possessions; satisfying four major requirements connected to order, release, quality and cost accomplishment. Logistics is therefore a multidimensional value added action, consisting of production, place, time and control of ingredients of the supply chain. Business nowadays is in a global atmosphere. This atmosphere forces companies, irrespective of place or primary marketplace base, to consider the other parts of the earth too, in their competitive policy analysis. Firms cannot separate themselves from or disregard external factors; for instance, fiscal trends, competitive circumstances or technology modernization in other nations. Some of their participants could be in competition or are positioned in those nations. â€Å"The supply chain of the new Apple iPhone and, at some point, the supply chains of the Apple TV, hope that this might help to demonstrate the complexity involved in manufacturing the Apple iPhone — a feature-rich product, I wish I could have, if I could afford it† (Supply Chain Management of Apple Inc 2010). Objectives of Apple Inc: 1. To maximize revenue. 2. To be the global leader among the high-tech brands . 3. To invent merchandises that will be useful, practical and sleek, and that which can appeal to customers all over the world, growing special attention to developed nations like Europe, United State and Canada, and the populous Asian states like Japan, China, India and South Korea. 4. To turn out to be the world's