The Educational System/Blog#5

Educating Children of Katrina-this article was a great read and I am glad to read that there was someone that the U.S. Government cared about during this horrific time. I'm glad that it was the children that were able to reap some benefit out of this horrible situation. I was truly impressed at how they were able to move the children to other states and educate them, even though there was some concern over how they would be educated. The initiative of compensation for the schools that took in the children was a little perplexing. Up to 135 students and the school could receive $1 million dollars. If there is $1 million dollars laying around, why was that money not invested in schools in inner cities that don't have the supplies they need to educate their children. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with the funding that they did for the children of Katrina but c'mon, $1 million is a little exorbetant.

Teacher's Cost of Living Matters-now this article was interesting for sure. I personally think that Teacher's salaries are horrible and that teachers should definitely make 6 figures.  I think this because they educate the future leaders of tomorrow and they are not compensated. They help to educate our future doctors, lawyers, business owners, actors and actresses, NBA players, CEO' s and they are paid like peasants. I found it interesting that in Los Angeles or New York that salaries are somewhat high for teachers but by the time the cost of living for that city is figured in, it's roughly about a $10, 000 decrease, give or take a dollar. I find it interesting that no one is really fighting for a huge pay increase for our nation's teachers. I feel if teachers were compensated adequately, the school systems would also get a major benefit.

Green Schools Don't Make the Grade-this article was different and the thought of a green school is a phenomenal idea. The problem is that green schools sounds like they would be very expensive because of the time, energy, and effort that goes into running a school like this. The renovations alone to make a school green is a high cost. I think that the idea of a green school is a novel idea but an expensive feat. I wonder what it would cost to send a child to a green school?

Hidden Problems of Child Farm Workers-this article was good but disturbing. I did not know that children were still being exploited for cheap labor, at least not in the U.S. The article and videos primarily showed that the children being exploited presently were children of migrant farmers. This article helped to tie into the book, Crossing Over that was read for this course. In the early 1900's and late 1800's, children were exploited for cheap labor but I think the thinking and way of life played a huge role in child workers being exploited during this time period. The U.S. was lucky o have had FDR as a president because he helped to bring about great change in this country and without his influence and enacting laws in reference to child workers, things would have not changed. Unfortunately, migrant workers today do not have a choice. The migrant workers come to this country for a potentially better life and end up having to have everyone in the family work to make ends meet, even the children. So, this effects the child's ability to go to school and get a solid K-12 education, which in turn makes them drop out. The MET program is great for migrant children who are unable to complete a regular K-12 education. I find this program excellent from doing some further research.

Sesame Workshop-interesting article and great read. Sesame street is a great educational tool for young children to start learning at an early age and Sesame Street is a great resource. I, probably like most of my classmates here, have grown up on Sesame Street and have great memories from it. The funding from the PNC is extraodinary.

I don't teach but during my time in K-12 education, I was unaware of a lot of these things because I was caught up in my own world not concerned about any of these things. Of course, there were no green schools, or to my mention any mention of green schools. Sesame Street was a program that I grew up watching because it was educational and it helped to start some type of educational school setting learning before actually going into the educational school system. I have great memories from my Sesame Street learning days and I hope and pray that when I have children, they will be able to have that same opportunity.

Immigration and Multiculturalism/Blog #4

Immigration has always been apart of the American landscape and it always will be. People from all over the world will always come to this country for what they think is a better life. A life without hardship, difficulty, and faults. The problem is, they learn the ugly truth once their here. Race, nationality, and creed are major components of immigration. Culture and diversity are major components of immigration. Immigration is what makes this country of ours great and without, the United States could potentially suffer. In the first article, there is much debate over immigration, immigration laws and who should be allowed to immigrate and who shouldn't. Immigration plays a major role in the educational system because it helps to shape and mold the educational system. Due to a huge surge of immigration from the Hispanice community, ELL has been formed to help those who do not speak English or speak English well enough to propoerly and fully understand it.

The second article was disturbing on so many levels. Maybe this is the reason why it was so short. I was truly appauled by the authors mention of not celebrating cultures and their heritage. Please refer back to Article 1. It's important to understand one's own history and culture before you can understand and embrace another's culture and history. It's important to have a Black History Month to recognize the accomplishments of Blacks. It's important to have a Women's Month or Breast Cance Awareness Month in order to recognize those that have done great things for women and women's health. In my opinion, it's not separate but taking the time to recognize and acknowledge those that have made great strides for those who are like them. I completely disagreed with the author of this article but he is entitled to his opinion and beliefs.

The third article was a better read and spoke of diversity and multiculturalism. There has to be diversity within every aspect of life and an understanding of other cultures and how things are done in their culture can be fun to learn and eye-opening. It gives a different perspective of individuals and also helps to understand the reason why that individual may be the way they are. One of my good friends from high school and college married a man from the country of Liberia which is in Africa. In this particular country, they have a dish that everyone eats called "Gili." From how it was told to me, this dish is comprised of vegetables, meat, fish, chicken, rice, and anything else that you want to put in. This dish came about during the slave trade because some of the captured Africans were able to escape and the way that they were abe to survive was by eating and putting whatever type of food was available into one big pot, cooking and eating. So, basically, there is your meat, vegetable and possibly dairy all rolled into one meal. I found this interesting because these are not the type of things that are taught in school about this culture, it has to be sought out. They also celebrate Independence Day in August, it's when the country became free in the late 1800's. Multiculuralism and Diversity are extremely important and should be embraced.