Paper

Quote, Summary One
"Six of every 10 Illinois public schools failed to meet federal test targets this year and risk federal sanctions as a result, according to information released Thursday by the Illinois State Board of Education."

The aritcle also included basics about the "No Child Left Behind" and how Illinois isnt meeting those standards. Also the governer is going to pass laws and create more funding to solve this problem. The main point about this article is that schools in Illinois and probably many other states are not meeting the standards.

 

Quote, Summary Two

"In the Tampa Bay Area, home schooling is on the rise. At the beginning of the school year, 1,804 kids were home schooled. After the first month came to an end, 2,121 were now home schooled. With this many kids out the school loses a high of 13 million dollars."

 

Main point is that many parents in that area are resulting to home schooling which decreases funding to schools, etc.

 

Summary Three

The main purpose of this article was to get future parents and students to consider the advantages and disadvantages of public school.

 

 

thesis

People have many conflicting ideas on whether to send thier children to public school or homeschool.

im bad at these ! :)

Disadvantages of Public School

The main idea of this article was to tell the authors opinon of why public school is a negative. Being very biased, the author stated these specific reasons why:

A regular school going child cannot read literature. He cannot keep silent or think in depth about any one thing. The artificial ‘busy’ness imposed upon him by the school disallows quiet contemplation. Rowdy and destructive behavior, as seen among peers, is more noticeable in school-goers.

Though these are valid points I feel they need to be proven with more facts. With more in-depth reaserch, I could find more information about homeschool and public school.

http://schoolroom.us/blog/disadvantages-of-public-schools.htmhe

Disadvantages of Public School." schoolroom.us. N.p., 16 May 2008. Web. 27 Oct. 2011.

Alarming Stats.....

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-60-of-states-public-schools-fail-to-meet-us-test-targets-20111020,0,322965.story

Malone, Tara. "60 percent state schools failed to meet test targets." chicagotribune.com. N.p., 20 Oct. 2011. Web. 20 Oct. 2011.

Stats:

 Six of every 10 Illinois public schools failed to meet federal test targets this year and risk federal sanctions as a result, according to information released Thursday by the Illinois State Board of Education.

Statewide, 656 of the 666 public high schools fell short of the proficiency standard on math and reading tests that students take every spring. Only eight high schools where students take the exam in 11th grade met federal standards. Two more high schools made it based on participation and student performance on other state exams.

The aritcle also included basics about the "No Child Left Behind" and how Illinois isnt meeting those standards. Also the governer is going to pass laws and create more funding to solve this problem

The author remained unbiased and stated the facts. I think this is very important information for my research paper on public school vs homeschool.

Homeschool..

http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/pasco-sees-increase-in-homeschooled-students/1193493

Solchek, Jeffery. "Pasco sees increase in homeschooled students." tampabay.com. N.p., 25 Sept. 2011. Web. 12 Oct. 2011.

In the Tampa Bay Area, home schooling is on the rise. At the beginning of the school year, 1,804 kids were home schooled. After the first month came to an end, 2,121 were now home schooled.  With this many kids out the school loses a high of 13 million dollars.

Many wonder why this is happening. People responded to this question with religion as a main factor as well as more one on one attention, with more personal interest in mind. Also with the kids at home, it creates a closer family and received a well-rounded life.

This article will provide many statics, etc for my research paper in the future if I choose to do this topic.

Pros & Cons of Public School

http://www.educationalgateway.com/advantages-disadvantages-public-school/index.html

"Advantages/Disadvantages of Public School." educationalgateway.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2011.

The main purpose of this article was to get future parents and students to consider the advantages and disadvantages of public school.

An advantage of public school is that it is free. Along with this, students get exposed to more different socio-economic backgrounds and learn to get to know everyone. Based on federal guidelines, a parent will know what to expect in terms of curriculum and their children won’t be introduced to religion.

Disadvantages run from big class sizes with not enough one on one time for students. Also, the dropout and violence rate are higher.

 When picking a public school, make sure to research the best school districts in your area.  Touring the school before choosing also makes the decision much easier.

I think this is vital info for my future paper if I choose to do this topic.

Reflection

After six post and six different topics, I feel I can narrow down what topics I would want to write about. Although I did enjoy reaserching and learning about new things. I believe that the ones that were more focused on school topics would be better for me due to the fact that I am in it right now. For example, getting paid for grades, home school vs public school, and the drama of it all fall in that category. Finding information would be easy and interesting. I think that I would really want to write about those and I just want to be passionate about my topic. The other topics were more TV related, so I think that finding statistics and info would be quick, though I am not sure if I could make my point in my paper. Overall, I believe I should right about something that is school related.

The Drama of High School...

http://kaaltv.com/article/stories/s2305508.shtml

McCardle,Ellery."John Marshall Supends 18 in Hazing Incident." kaaltv.com.28.Sept.2011.Web.29.Sept.2011.


Nearly two dozen Rochester high school students were suspended after a hazing incident that happened last Friday at John Marshall High School, states Ellery McCardle of KAAL news. During a spirit week event at homecoming many upper classman were throwing objects and other things at younger classman. One senior said, “I heard some other rumors about having them stand in trash and maybe throwing food at them." Another said, “This has been tradition for a while now." While the school is not taking the situation lightly many say that they need to enforce the codes better around school. Students involved were suspended for three days. Also, none of the victims were injured. McCardle did a great job including info and statements to local readers in our area.

I think hazing in schools would be a very interesting topic to do research one. I believe this is a very controversial topic because as a student everyone goes through this and it's just one of the factors of high school. Everyone at some point in their lifetime goes through it.

Commit a crime, do the time? Maybe not....

http://www.austindailyherald.com/2011/09/26/man-with-200-pounds-of-pot-gets-probation/

Stultz,Sarah."Man with 200 punds of pot gets probation."austindailyhearld.com.26.Sept.2011.Web.29.Sept.2011.

According to Sarah Stultz of the Austin Daily Herald ,a  34-year-old Kentucky man found with more than 200 pounds of marijuana on Interstate 35 last October was sentenced in Freeborn County District Court  to five years probation and a $3,000 fine. That late October night, Shannon O. Gonzalez was stopped by a tropper and the contents of his car was searched by a drug dog finding 222 pounds of marijuana. Normally with that much of an controlled substance, the accuser would do jail time. Unforuntally in this case, an earlier court hearing showed that the judge may not find the expansion of the scope of the search to be within constitutional limits.  This case got fifth-degree drug possession, which was down from an initial charge of first-degree possession. Since this was a newspaper article, the Stultz remianed un-biased giving the local area readers the facts of the case.
I think that this is an interesting case, although I don't know if more reaserch could be done. It just shows how messed up some court cases can be, and how one guy got off lucky.

TV gone bad....

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/21199503/ns/today-entertainment/t/has-reality-tv-gone-too-far/

Adubato,Steve."Has Reality TV Gone to Far?" TODAY.com. TodayShow, 8.Oct.2007.Web.22.Sept.2011.


Referring to a past article by New York Times writer Jeremy Peters, Steve Adubato addresses the debate of reality TV. Has it gone too far? In most reality TV series, producers will do anything and everything to bring in ratings and more importantly bring in the money. From Intervention to Big Brother, Adubato states how people on here and their scenarios they are put in are just unreal. He also includes much more evidence on situations that reality TV contestants go through. With the intended audience being everyone TV watcher, he gets people to really think if what they are watching is ok. He remains un-biased by stating that even he will catch himself watching reality TV. Also, he includes that all producers and channel stations are not evil and bad or wanting people to mess up on TV and do stupid things. Adubato remains objective in this piece while remaining optimistic to the fact that reality TV could change. I think this would be a good topic for me and others being that most of us watch TV. With more research, I believe this could be a really good argument.

Spongebob bad for kids?

http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/12/study-some-cartoons-are-bad-for-childrens-brains/

Wade,Leslie."Study:Some cartoons are bad for childrens brains." CNN.com. CNNblogs, 21.Sept.2011.Web.22.Sept.2011.


Recent studies have shown the effect on television on children is causing lack in concentration and focus, according to Leslie Wade's blog on CNN.com. A study going on at the University of Virginia showed 60 4-year olds watching a fast paced, 9 minute cartoon faired much worse on a thinking test then children watching a slow-paced show. Turns out the cartoon they watched was SpongeBob SquarePants. Viacom International owned by Nickelodeon which produces this TV show stated that more research needs to be done while saying that this cartoon is focused on the age group of 6 to 11 year olds, not 4-year olds. Many believe that TV is not a problem with children and their development as others do believe so. Wade's intent was to make a point about this issue going on with statics and opinions to get parents and others to really consider if this is something they need to look into. With evidence and supports Wade remains neutral, although stating others peoples fallacies and biases. Overall, Wade uses great detail to bring forward a truly controversial topic. I feel that this is a good topic for others and I. This would be easy to do more research and find more views on this subject. The only downfall is I think this topic maybe better suited for the older generation and parents.

Getting Paid for an A?

Peterson, Chirstopher."Paying Students for Good Grades." psychologytoday.com. PsychologyToday, 14 Apr. 2011. Web. 15 Sept. 2011.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-good-life/201004/paying-students-good-grades


Referring to an article in Time magazine, Christopher Peterson focused on whether students should be paid for good grades, concluding that some worked, while others did not. Although not giving specific evidence he states that getting paid for grades can depend on the city, gender of child, the reward scheme, and what activities earned paychecks. His supports and evidence are coming from his personal opinion and issues referring to a previous article. Though stating that Peterson believed these programs were not good he then came to realize that students may just need an incentive to get going, with the intended audience to be towards parents, yet not stated. Later he expressed that when the incentive is gone students will more than likely return to their bad habits. Peterson remains somewhat biased throughout the whole article trying to reassure himself that psychologically paying students is not the way to go. Overall, Peterson gets the reader to consider the issue with some evidence and his personal opinion. I believe this may be a good topic idea for others and me because with a little more research we could find evidence on each side. I feel that this topic would possibly be better suited for parents on an older generation but since still being in school this I find this interesting.

Homeschool vs. Public School

Coleman,R."Homeschool Gets Better Report Card than Public Schools."christianpost.com.Christian Post, 15 Sept. 2011. Web. 15 Sept. 2011.

http://www.christianpost.com/news/homeschool-gets-better-report-card-than-public-schools-55722/


According to R. Coleman, researchers have found that students participating in homeschooling have fared much better than a in a public school setting. Student’s homeschooled can create a structured curriculum that they can personalize to meet their academic needs. With undivided attention, this has increased test scores in both math and reading. On the other hand, Coleman mentioned that students with an unstructured home school environment, using no teachers or textbooks resulted with some falling multiple grade levels behind. Reports say that when not in a public setting children often lack in self-esteem and social skills, although this have never been proven. With failing public school grades, homeschooling has increased more than 23 percent, according to the National Home Education Research Institute, which makes many believe it is becoming the right thing to do for kids. Coleman's intended audience was not stated though this article but many be suited for parents deciding whether or not to enrolled their children into public school. Supporting the argument Coleman states many statistics including test scores and increased grade levels. Coleman remains somewhat unbiased based on the examples on both sides of the issue although giving more examples on how homeschooling is better than public schools. By sharing both sides of the story, Coleman does a great job in keeping an open mind on the situation. After reviewing this article I feel that this topic may not be a good idea for me or others due to the fact that I could not find much in the news about this and because the issue would not necessarily interest us as high school seniors.