November 15, 2007 was a cold but clear Thursday in my hometown of Sykesville MD. It started out like every other day but strong emotions hung in the air of Century High School, at least for the members of the Century Marching Knights. November 15th would be forever remembered as the day we would come home as National Champions under the United States Scholastic Band Association (USSBA). We were told to report to school by 7am and meet in the band room for an attendance check. It was still dark outside but the band was all there, wide awake, and huddled together in the band room waiting for morning announcements to begin so we could start the biggest day of our marching band careers. We finished out our days per usual and then headed out behind the school for last minute preparations before we set out for Raven’s Stadium in Baltimore.
The whole community lined up for our notorious final run through at the end of our rehearsal. We had our principal, fellow peers, newspaper reporters, family, and even some teachers stayed to watch us and wish us well at nationals. As we loaded the bus everyone was silent, going through the show in their heads, ready to lay it all down on the field that night at 11:27pm. When we arrived at M&T Bank Stadium it was 31 degrees outside and it was only 8:30pm. That left us with a 2 ½ hour warm up block in the freezing cold. We took our time and then made our way to the field. With nothing but the performance on our minds we took the field and threw it down. We nailed everything, and we knew it too. Every toss was caught, each performance element was met, and every bold musical statement was made.
After we finished the crowd went crazy; we’d won them over. As we left the field we couldn’t do anything but smile. It was the best show we had ever given and all our long and difficult practices paid off. With a total score of 96.75, out of 100, we won 1st place by 2 points. At this moment in my life I felt like I had finally found somewhere that I belonged. I fit in here. I couldn’t have been more proud of what I accomplished.
Things weren’t always this clear for me. Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. I mean what middle school adolescent does? All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. He gave us a simple assignment; find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used.
Now, it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and because I looked up to him so much, anything he did I always wanted to do too. With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design and formation. This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. I was hooked and there was no looking back. That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. So I took his advice.
I see now that getting involved in marching band truly shaped me into the person I am today. I got involved at such a crucial point in my life and if I hadn’t taken that chance when I did I know that I would be a completely different person then I am now. In my psychology class we are learning about the life-span of a human and individual development processes. We’re learning about the different stages of life and how different influences during these life stages can affect the final outcome of a person’s personality, style, and interests. We’ve learned that childhood is a time of learning. Kids are like sponges and whatever they are surrounded with they will soak up and will help shape them into what they would ultimately become.
Studies that were published in the Journal of Adolescent Research by Margaret Stone, a research associate from the University of Arizona, Tucson, stated that an individual’s surroundings for the middle and high school years did help foretell what type of lifestyle a young adult would have. Children don’t just wake up one morning and decide to become something totally different then what they have grown up knowing. Their experiences along the road of adolescents shape them and create their personality. Stone also goes on to describe that social identity or “the sense of one’s place in the social world” really dictates where that adolescent will end up in a few years (Stone 3). One’s social identity controls who you hang out with, the activities you participate in, and the experiences you are exposed to.
In middle school social identity seems like a huge deal, at least it did to me. In my mind I didn’t have the option of not getting involved in something. Even to this day my mom still encourages me to join a club, volunteer, or just step out of my comfort zone and get to know some new people. However, the more I thought about it, the more I remembered people in my middle and high school that didn’t get involved in anything. I remember looking at them and wondering why they never joined anything. There was one kid, Ryan, who was in my homeroom sophomore through senior year of high school. He would come into homeroom each morning and sit in the corner by himself. He never wanted to be bothered with questions or small talk. He just wanted to sit alone. It was something so foreign to me and I never really understood it. He didn’t make great grades, he didn’t want to go to college, and it seemed like he didn’t really want to grow up at all. He never got his driver’s license and he didn’t really participate in the end of senior year “festivities” despite winning free tickets to prom.
After looking at all of the confidence that joining a synergistic sport gave me, I don’t see why everyone wouldn’t want that feeling. Caroline Payne from the University of Florida said that getting involved with sports and activities is important because it teaches the adolescent to “associate with their peers, solve conflict, and communicate effectively with their peers” (Payne 1). Looking back I see that it’s a possibility that Ryan just didn’t know how to communicate effectively, and that’s why he didn’t like to talk to others often. Maybe he just didn’t have the social exposure that I did and he didn’t know how to handle himself in certain contexts.
On the opposite end of the spectrum I had a friend Jenny; she was also in my homeroom. She was brilliant, pretty, and a total over achiever. She was involved in so many student organizations and clubs, she was the goalie for the school’s championship field hockey team, and she was valedictorian of the class of 2009. She had so much going for her and I now see that it was thanks to her social involvement. She was mature way beyond her years and knew how to respond and act in every social situation. I will never forget the day we were sitting in homeroom talking about a teacher that I would soon learn we had different opinions of. I was saying how annoying this teacher was and that some of the things she said and did were awful, and instead of just agreeing and playing it off she said “I’m sorry you feel that way”. The way she handled herself in this situation said so much to me about her character, and I believe that her ability to handle herself as she did was thanks to her social involvement in synergistic organizations.
After looking at the drastic differences that sports and social interaction can make in a person’s personality I can’t think of a reason why only half of high school students in America are involved in sports, social or competitive (Grunbaun 96). I now know how important it was for me to find all that I did in marching band. The confidence, self expression, social learning, and friends are irreplaceable and I wouldn’t trade it all for the world. As I get older and possibly have kids one day I will encourage them as my mom did me. I will support them in their social decisions but I will also strongly recommend synergistic involvement. Being a part of something bigger than you says so much about your character and helps shape you for the better. I will never look back on my marching band experiences and regret anything. My advisor once said “Where so ever you go, go with all your heart”. I will always take this advice and I can’t wait to see where it will take me next.
Grunbaum, Jo Ann. Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance --- United States, 2003. CDC. 21 May, 2004. 21 April, 2010. Web.
Payne, Caroline. “Importance of Youth Involvement in Sports”. University of Florida, IFAS Extension. 2009. 24 April, 2010. Web.
Stone, Margart R. Barber, Bonnie L. Eccles, Jacquelynne S. “We Knew Them When: Sixth Grade Characteristics That Predict Adolescent High School Social Identities”. The Journal of Early Adolescents. 28. 304(2008). 26. Web.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Final Paper Comments
Overall I think the process for my final paper was a lot easier than I expected. It all started with the topic. I was really set on doing something about marching band, so what's usually the hardest part was super simple.
This is the first paper that I didn't go to the writing center, but I did have peer evaluations and I found them super helpful. During the writing process I usually go to the writing center to make sure that my idea come across clearly to my audience. Since I did have peer evaluations they let me know when something wasn't as clear as I thought it was, so I didn't really see the writing center doing too much more in that respect.
I really enjoyed this paper though and it was nice to be able to go back and watch some old videos of my band and just remember how great that experience was to me and I'm glad I got to share it with the class.
This is the first paper that I didn't go to the writing center, but I did have peer evaluations and I found them super helpful. During the writing process I usually go to the writing center to make sure that my idea come across clearly to my audience. Since I did have peer evaluations they let me know when something wasn't as clear as I thought it was, so I didn't really see the writing center doing too much more in that respect.
I really enjoyed this paper though and it was nice to be able to go back and watch some old videos of my band and just remember how great that experience was to me and I'm glad I got to share it with the class.
Course Reflection
At the beginning of this class I wasn't really sure how well I was going to do. I was worried that I would be in over my head and I would be writing huge papers that took weeks to write, but I would soon discover that it was all manageable. I really liked how the class was set up. I liked that we had 3 papers. We knew from the first day of class what they were, when we would be doing them, and what was expected of us. I felt like I actually had enough time to work on each paper and really get a strong understanding of what I was supposed to be covering and conveying in each topic paper. I liked that we were able to choose our own topics. This was probably the hardest part of each paper for me, but in the end I liked being able to write about something that I enjoyed and was passionate about. I feel like I learned a lot about writing. My first drafts now are more about getting everything out on paper before I start picking it apart. I learned a lot about punctuation and even a little bit about myself as a writer. This class has boosted my confidence as a writer and shown me that I am capable of "A" work. I don't think I have really gotten an A on any paper that I've written but I worked really hard in this class and I'm proud to say that it payed off. I think the writing center has helped me so much and I'm glad that I learned about it in this class. I will continue to use it throughout my JMU career because it really is a great resource.
Now that this class is coming to an end I think I might miss it in a strange way. I really liked being able to just rant in my first draft of a paper and then having people direct me in the right direction. I had a good time in this class and getting up at 8am was totally worth it. Professor Henderson was a great teacher and I feel like she understood that we are all students and have others classes then GWRTC. She understood how our schedules worked and she worked around us sometimes. She gave us enough time to get everything completed and I was totally impressed that she commented on everyone's second drafts so we could have her feedback before we submitted our final drafts. I really appreciate that she worked hard for us and I wish her the best of luck in the future beyond JMU.
I'm glad that I had the opportunity to take this class and it wasn't nearly as bad and painful as I thought it was going to be.
Now that this class is coming to an end I think I might miss it in a strange way. I really liked being able to just rant in my first draft of a paper and then having people direct me in the right direction. I had a good time in this class and getting up at 8am was totally worth it. Professor Henderson was a great teacher and I feel like she understood that we are all students and have others classes then GWRTC. She understood how our schedules worked and she worked around us sometimes. She gave us enough time to get everything completed and I was totally impressed that she commented on everyone's second drafts so we could have her feedback before we submitted our final drafts. I really appreciate that she worked hard for us and I wish her the best of luck in the future beyond JMU.
I'm glad that I had the opportunity to take this class and it wasn't nearly as bad and painful as I thought it was going to be.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Responce to "Take a Good, Hard Look"
I think this article brings up some good points. Yes, JMU does have a reputation for partying. The students know it, faculity, parents, and prospective students are all aware of this reputation. One thing I think that needs more attention though is all of the good JMU does for the community. I think in some cases it outweights the bad. Just this past weekend JMU raised over $144,000 for Relay for Life. That's one of the top Relay for Life events in the nation. We were the ones that went out and picked up after the riot and we are continuing to support those in Fox Hills through fundraisers to fix the damage that was caused by our and others rowdy behavior. Sometimes people just need to look past the fact that yes, there was a riot, but things could be worse. We could just turn our backs on the issue and neglect that it ever happened, but we're not. JMU is taking responsibility for it's actions and we're doing soemthing about it. At the end of the day we are a strong community. There is a lot of good thats going on here and I think that we deserve so much more then just a party school image.
3.2 Reflection
I think my narrative argument is coming along well. I still haven't made any huge changes to it because I'm really waiting on my peer review date. I'm looking forward to that so I can get a lot of feedback and really find out what my audience is looking for in my paper and what they want to get out of it. I am pleased with where it is now though. For this second draft I was able to fix some transitions and work with that a little bit since that was one of the main concerns I got from my group feedback.
Overall I didn't really see a lot that could be done with this paper. With this one, unlike my other papers, I took so much time on the first draft because it was something to special to me and something that I was really passionate about so I wanted it to be perfect. I think I took so much time with it and really tried to be critical the first time around, and now for the second draft a lot of stuff that I normally have to fix isn't there.
Hopefully I'll get some really good info on Monday about how to better my paper and I look forward to coming to class and hearing what everyone has to say! :)
Overall I didn't really see a lot that could be done with this paper. With this one, unlike my other papers, I took so much time on the first draft because it was something to special to me and something that I was really passionate about so I wanted it to be perfect. I think I took so much time with it and really tried to be critical the first time around, and now for the second draft a lot of stuff that I normally have to fix isn't there.
Hopefully I'll get some really good info on Monday about how to better my paper and I look forward to coming to class and hearing what everyone has to say! :)
Monday, April 19, 2010
3.1 Reflection
After recieving feedback I was a little confused on some things about my paper. I got mixed remarks about switching the first and second paragraphs so I wasn't really sure what to do about that. I think for now I'm going to leave them alone and then maybe take another look at them later on in the writing process and make a final decision then.
One thing that really helped me though were my groupmates telling me that my transitions needed a little work. I didn't really even notice so it was good to get that feedback and then better my paper.
I think overall this paper has been a lot easier to write then my last two. I think because it's a topic that I'm so passionate about and talking about it comes easily to me. I also knew I wanted to write at least one of my papers on this topic so the normally hardest part, picking the topic, was the easiest part this time.
I'm hoping with my next draft to get a little bit more feedback about what type of information my audience is looking for. My group said that they wanted me to use my sources a little bit more but I didn't really understand how so I'm hoping to get some more information about how I can better my paper in this aspect.
I'm looking forward to writing the next draft soon though!
One thing that really helped me though were my groupmates telling me that my transitions needed a little work. I didn't really even notice so it was good to get that feedback and then better my paper.
I think overall this paper has been a lot easier to write then my last two. I think because it's a topic that I'm so passionate about and talking about it comes easily to me. I also knew I wanted to write at least one of my papers on this topic so the normally hardest part, picking the topic, was the easiest part this time.
I'm hoping with my next draft to get a little bit more feedback about what type of information my audience is looking for. My group said that they wanted me to use my sources a little bit more but I didn't really understand how so I'm hoping to get some more information about how I can better my paper in this aspect.
I'm looking forward to writing the next draft soon though!
Essay 3.2 Finding a Place in this World
November 15, 2007 was a cold but clear Thursday in my hometown of Sykesville MD. It started out like every other day but strong emotions hung in the air of Century High School, at least for the members of the Century Marching Knights. November 15th would be forever remembered as the day we would become National Champions under the United States Scholastic Band Association (USSBA). We were told to report to school by 7am and meet in the band room for an attendance check. It was still dark outside but the band was all there, wide awake, and huddled together in the band room waiting for morning announcements to begin so we could start the biggest day of our marching band careers. We finished out our days per usual and then headed out behind the school for last minute preparations before we set out for Raven’s Stadium in Baltimore. The whole community lined up for our notorious final run through at the end of our rehearsal. We had our principal, fellow peers, newspaper reporters, family, and even some teachers stay to watch us and wish us well at nationals. As we loaded the bus everyone was silent, going through the show in their heads ready to lay it all down on the field that night at 11:27pm. When we arrived at M&T Bank Stadium it was 31o outside and it was only 8:30. That left us with a 2 ½ hour warm up block in the freezing cold. We took our time and then made our way to the field. With nothing but the performance on our minds we took the field and threw it down. We nailed everything, and we knew it too. After we finished the crowd went crazy, we’d won them over. As we left the field we couldn’t do anything but smile. It was the best show we had ever given and all our long difficult practices paid off. With a total score of 96.75, out of 100, we won 1st place by 2 points. At this moment in my life I felt like I had finally found somewhere that I belonged. I felt like I fit in here and I couldn’t have been more proud of what I accomplished. I can’t even imagine my life without the friends I’ve made along the way and the achievements I’ve accomplished.
Things weren’t always this clear for me. Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. I mean what middle school adolescent does? All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. He gave us a simple assignment; find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used. Now it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and anything he did I always wanted to do, because I looked up to him so much. With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design and formation. This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. I was hooked and there was no looking back. That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. So I did what he said.
I see now that getting involved in marching band truly shaped me into the person I am today. I got involved at such a crucial point in my life and if I hadn’t taken that chance when I did I know I would be a completely different person then I am now. In my psychology class we are learning about the life-span of a human, and individual development processes. We’re learning about the different stages of life and how different influences during these life stages can affect the final outcome of a person’s personality, style, and interests. We’ve learned that childhood is a time of learning. Kids are like sponges and whatever they are surrounded with they will soak up and will ultimately become what they are influenced by. Studies that were published in the Journal of Adolescent Research stated that individual surroundings for the middle and high school years did help foretell what type of lifestyle a young adult would have (Stone 3). Children don’t just wake up one morning and decide to become something totally different then what they have grown up around. Their experiences along the road of adolescents shape them and create their personality. Stone also goes on to describe that social identity or “the sense of one’s place in the social world” really dictates where that adolescent will end up in a few years. One’s social identity controls who you hang out with, the activities you participate in, and the experiences you are exposed to.
I was always involved in sports such as basketball and football, which helped spark my interest in sports as a young adult today, but marching band created something for me that I had never experienced before. It taught me so much and showed me that I can do something well. In middle school I was always told that I was good at basketball or I was a good public speaker, but I never really felt like those came easily to me, and that I could accomplish anything in those fields. However, when I joined marching band and I started colorguard practice I soon found out that I was truly good at guard. Marching band was somewhere I belonged. I was confident there and it came easily to me. I was always self conscious, and still am to this day, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could push the limits to what I could do, try new tricks, show off even. That was something I had never been able to do before and it made me have a new found confidence that helped me really turn into the person I am today. I don’t think I would have had the confidence I do now if I had never been exposed to colorguard; and just think I would have never gotten involved in marching band if it weren’t for my 7th grade math teacher.
Music and the arts gave me opportunities I could never even dream of. The art of performance and expression really helped me throughout my high school years. I am usually pretty shy until I really get to know someone, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could walk onto the field and be completely confident in what I was doing. That’s something I thought I would never have. According to Child Trends Databank online, which is a webpage dedicated to exploring adolescents trends, said that kids who participate in some aspect of the performing arts do better in school, avoid getting into serious trouble, and are more disciplined (Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts, n.pag). I can personally say that marching band has molded me into the individual I am today. My friends along the way have helped me so much and I don’t know where my life would have taken me had I not taken that leap of faith back in middle school. After joining band my grades did seem to improve a bit and I felt like I had more structure in my life. I learned that I needed to stay busy in order to be successful, and that’s still true to this day. Colorguard was such a huge commitment that I had to stay focused and disciplined or I would have lost control of my school work and personal life. However, I did work hard and I did keep up and I think it was those commitments and strict discipline that got me in JMU. My grades were ok, but my extracurricular activities really stood out to the admissions board to ultimately got me accepted into my top choice ‘reach school’.
Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts. Child Trends DataBank. 2010. Child Trends. Web. 12 April 2010.
Stone, Margart R. Barber, Bonnie L. Eccles, Jacquelynne S. “We Knew Them When: Sixth Grade Characteristics That Predict Adolescent High School Social Identities”. The Journal of Early Adolescents. 28. 304(2008): 26. Web.
Things weren’t always this clear for me. Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. I mean what middle school adolescent does? All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. He gave us a simple assignment; find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used. Now it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and anything he did I always wanted to do, because I looked up to him so much. With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design and formation. This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. I was hooked and there was no looking back. That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. So I did what he said.
I see now that getting involved in marching band truly shaped me into the person I am today. I got involved at such a crucial point in my life and if I hadn’t taken that chance when I did I know I would be a completely different person then I am now. In my psychology class we are learning about the life-span of a human, and individual development processes. We’re learning about the different stages of life and how different influences during these life stages can affect the final outcome of a person’s personality, style, and interests. We’ve learned that childhood is a time of learning. Kids are like sponges and whatever they are surrounded with they will soak up and will ultimately become what they are influenced by. Studies that were published in the Journal of Adolescent Research stated that individual surroundings for the middle and high school years did help foretell what type of lifestyle a young adult would have (Stone 3). Children don’t just wake up one morning and decide to become something totally different then what they have grown up around. Their experiences along the road of adolescents shape them and create their personality. Stone also goes on to describe that social identity or “the sense of one’s place in the social world” really dictates where that adolescent will end up in a few years. One’s social identity controls who you hang out with, the activities you participate in, and the experiences you are exposed to.
I was always involved in sports such as basketball and football, which helped spark my interest in sports as a young adult today, but marching band created something for me that I had never experienced before. It taught me so much and showed me that I can do something well. In middle school I was always told that I was good at basketball or I was a good public speaker, but I never really felt like those came easily to me, and that I could accomplish anything in those fields. However, when I joined marching band and I started colorguard practice I soon found out that I was truly good at guard. Marching band was somewhere I belonged. I was confident there and it came easily to me. I was always self conscious, and still am to this day, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could push the limits to what I could do, try new tricks, show off even. That was something I had never been able to do before and it made me have a new found confidence that helped me really turn into the person I am today. I don’t think I would have had the confidence I do now if I had never been exposed to colorguard; and just think I would have never gotten involved in marching band if it weren’t for my 7th grade math teacher.
Music and the arts gave me opportunities I could never even dream of. The art of performance and expression really helped me throughout my high school years. I am usually pretty shy until I really get to know someone, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could walk onto the field and be completely confident in what I was doing. That’s something I thought I would never have. According to Child Trends Databank online, which is a webpage dedicated to exploring adolescents trends, said that kids who participate in some aspect of the performing arts do better in school, avoid getting into serious trouble, and are more disciplined (Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts, n.pag). I can personally say that marching band has molded me into the individual I am today. My friends along the way have helped me so much and I don’t know where my life would have taken me had I not taken that leap of faith back in middle school. After joining band my grades did seem to improve a bit and I felt like I had more structure in my life. I learned that I needed to stay busy in order to be successful, and that’s still true to this day. Colorguard was such a huge commitment that I had to stay focused and disciplined or I would have lost control of my school work and personal life. However, I did work hard and I did keep up and I think it was those commitments and strict discipline that got me in JMU. My grades were ok, but my extracurricular activities really stood out to the admissions board to ultimately got me accepted into my top choice ‘reach school’.
Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts. Child Trends DataBank. 2010. Child Trends. Web. 12 April 2010.
Stone, Margart R. Barber, Bonnie L. Eccles, Jacquelynne S. “We Knew Them When: Sixth Grade Characteristics That Predict Adolescent High School Social Identities”. The Journal of Early Adolescents. 28. 304(2008): 26. Web.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Sent. Variety Exercise
Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. Simple (11-M) I mean what middle school adolescent does? Simple(7-S) All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. Simple (13-M) I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. Compound (26-L) It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. Complex (28-L) It was a simple assignment: find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used. Complex (32-L) Now it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and anything he did I always wanted to do, because I looked up to him so much. Complex (35-L) With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design. Simple (15-M) This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. Simple (9-S) I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. Complex (27-L) I was hooked and there was no looking back. Compound (9-S) That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. Complex (44-L) So I did what he said. Simple (6-S)
Thursday, April 15, 2010
3.1 Finding a Place in this World
November 15, 2007 was a cold but clear Thursday in Sykesville MD. It started out like every other day but strong emotions hung in the air of Century High School, at least for the members of the Century Marching Knights. November 15th would be forever remembered as the day we would become National Champions under the United States Scholastic Band Association (USSBA). We were told to report to school by 7am and meet in the band room for an attendance check. It was still dark outside but the band was all there, wide awake, and huddled together in the band room waiting for morning announcements to begin so we could start the biggest day of our marching band careers. We finished out our days per usual and then headed out behind the school for last minute preparations before we set out for Raven’s Stadium in Baltimore. The whole community lined up for our notorious final run through at the end of our rehearsal. We had our principal, fellow peers, newspaper reporters, family, and even some teachers stay to watch us and wish us well at nationals. As we loaded the bus everyone was silent, going through the show in their heads ready to lay it all down on the field that night at 11:27pm. When we arrived at M&T Bank Stadium it was 31o outside and it was only 8:30. That left us with a 2 ½ hour warm up block in the freezing cold. We took our time and then made our way to the field. With nothing but the performance on our minds we took the field and laid it all out there. We nailed everything and we knew it too. After we finished the crowd went crazy, we’d won them over. As we left the field we couldn’t do anything but smile. It was the best show we had ever given and all our long difficult practices paid off. With a total score of 96.75, out of 100, we won 1st place by 2 points. At this moment in my life I felt like I had finally found somewhere that I belonged. I felt like I fit in here and I couldn’t have been more proud of what I accomplished. I can’t even imagine my life without the friends I’ve made along the way and the achievements I’ve accomplished.
Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. I mean what middle school adolescent does? All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. It was a simple assignment; find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used. Now it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and anything he did I always wanted to do, because I looked up to him so much. With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design. This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. I was hooked and there was no looking back. That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. So I did what he said.
In my psychology class we are learning about the life-span of a human and development processes. We’re learning about the different stages of life and how different influences during these life stages can affect the final outcome of a person’s personality, style, and interests. We’ve learned that childhood is a time of learning. Kids are like sponges and whatever they are surrounded with they will soak up and will ultimately become what they are influenced by. Studies that were published in the Journal of Adolescent Research stated that individual surroundings for the middle and high school years did help foretell what type of lifestyle a young adult would have (Stone 3). Children don’t just wake up one morning and decide to become something totally different then what they have grown up around. Their experiences along the road of adolescents shape them into what they will become.
Marching Band created something for me that I had never experienced before. It taught me so much and showed me that I can do something well. In middle school I was always told that I was good at basketball or I was a good public speaker, but I never really felt like those came easily to me, and that I could accomplish anything in those fields. However, when I joined marching band and I started colorguard practice I soon found out that I was truly good at guard. Marching band was somewhere I belonged. I was confident there and it came easily to me. I could push the limits to what I could do, try new tricks, show off even. That was something I had never been able to do before and it made me have a new found confidence that helped me really turn into the person I am today. I don’t think I would have had the confidence I do now if I had never been exposed to colorguard; and just think I would have never gotten involved in marching band if it weren’t for my 7th grade math teacher.
Music and the arts gave me opportunities I could never even dream of. The art of performance and expression really helped me throughout my high school years. I am usually pretty shy until I really get to know someone, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could walk onto the field and be completely confident in what I was doing. That’s something I thought I would never have. According to Child Trends Databank online, which is a webpage dedicated to exploring adolescents trends, said that kids who participate in some aspect of the performing arts do better in school, avoid getting into serious trouble, and are more disciplined (Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts). I can personally say that marching band has molded me into the individual I am today. My friends along the way have helped me so much and I don’t know where my life would have taken me had I not taken that leap of faith back in middle school. After joining band my grades did seem to improve a bit and I felt like I had more structure in my life. I learned that I needed to stay busy in order to be successful, and that’s still true to this day. Colorguard was such a huge commitment that I had to stay focused and disciplined or I would have lost control of my school work and personal life. However, I did work hard and I did keep up and I think it was those commitments and strict discipline that got me in JMU. My grades were ok, but my extracurricular activities really stood out to the admissions board to ultimately got me accepted into my top choice ‘reach school’.
Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts. Child Trends DataBank. 2010. Child Trends. Web. 12 April 2010.
Stone, Margart R. Barber, Bonnie L. Eccles, Jacquelynne S. “We Knew Them When: Sixth Grade Characteristics That Predict Adolescent High School Social Identities”. The Journal of Early Adolescents. 28. 304(2008): 26. Web.
Back in middle school I didn’t know who I wanted to be. I mean what middle school adolescent does? All I knew was that I needed to find my clique in school. I had always been known as the sports star in my small middle school, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to play in high school. It wasn’t until I met my mathematics teacher in 7th grade, Mr. Oppenheimer, that I would find out just where my high school career and beyond would take me. It was a simple assignment; find something in your everyday life where mathematics can be applied to solve a problem and write a 1200 word essay explaining why and how math can/is used. Now it’s important to know that my brother had just joined a marching band at his high school, and anything he did I always wanted to do, because I looked up to him so much. With that being said I decided to apply mathematics to marching band and drill design. This small assignment sparked my passion for competitive colorguard. I wanted to know how it worked, what went into it, techniques, styles, individual limitations, how the different sections worked independently and then came together as a whole. I was hooked and there was no looking back. That 1200 word essay turned into a 6 page paper and my teacher told me that if I didn’t step out of my comfort zone, get involved with the band, and get the experience I was craving, then I would always regret it. So I did what he said.
In my psychology class we are learning about the life-span of a human and development processes. We’re learning about the different stages of life and how different influences during these life stages can affect the final outcome of a person’s personality, style, and interests. We’ve learned that childhood is a time of learning. Kids are like sponges and whatever they are surrounded with they will soak up and will ultimately become what they are influenced by. Studies that were published in the Journal of Adolescent Research stated that individual surroundings for the middle and high school years did help foretell what type of lifestyle a young adult would have (Stone 3). Children don’t just wake up one morning and decide to become something totally different then what they have grown up around. Their experiences along the road of adolescents shape them into what they will become.
Marching Band created something for me that I had never experienced before. It taught me so much and showed me that I can do something well. In middle school I was always told that I was good at basketball or I was a good public speaker, but I never really felt like those came easily to me, and that I could accomplish anything in those fields. However, when I joined marching band and I started colorguard practice I soon found out that I was truly good at guard. Marching band was somewhere I belonged. I was confident there and it came easily to me. I could push the limits to what I could do, try new tricks, show off even. That was something I had never been able to do before and it made me have a new found confidence that helped me really turn into the person I am today. I don’t think I would have had the confidence I do now if I had never been exposed to colorguard; and just think I would have never gotten involved in marching band if it weren’t for my 7th grade math teacher.
Music and the arts gave me opportunities I could never even dream of. The art of performance and expression really helped me throughout my high school years. I am usually pretty shy until I really get to know someone, but in colorguard I didn’t have to be. I could walk onto the field and be completely confident in what I was doing. That’s something I thought I would never have. According to Child Trends Databank online, which is a webpage dedicated to exploring adolescents trends, said that kids who participate in some aspect of the performing arts do better in school, avoid getting into serious trouble, and are more disciplined (Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts). I can personally say that marching band has molded me into the individual I am today. My friends along the way have helped me so much and I don’t know where my life would have taken me had I not taken that leap of faith back in middle school. After joining band my grades did seem to improve a bit and I felt like I had more structure in my life. I learned that I needed to stay busy in order to be successful, and that’s still true to this day. Colorguard was such a huge commitment that I had to stay focused and disciplined or I would have lost control of my school work and personal life. However, I did work hard and I did keep up and I think it was those commitments and strict discipline that got me in JMU. My grades were ok, but my extracurricular activities really stood out to the admissions board to ultimately got me accepted into my top choice ‘reach school’.
Participation in School Music or Other Performing Arts. Child Trends DataBank. 2010. Child Trends. Web. 12 April 2010.
Stone, Margart R. Barber, Bonnie L. Eccles, Jacquelynne S. “We Knew Them When: Sixth Grade Characteristics That Predict Adolescent High School Social Identities”. The Journal of Early Adolescents. 28. 304(2008): 26. Web.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Reflection 2.3
Overall i think this paper was a lot harder to write then the last one. I felt like it took a lot longer, there wasn't a lot of public information on the topic, and I had to do a lot more primary research during the writing process. I'm happy with the way the paper turned out. On my last paper I really felt like there was a strong sense of right or wrong and it was easy to find that, but in this paper we had to kind of put our biases behind us and move on in a more mature voice and see both sides. So I think that was a little bit harder for me. I liked my topic a lot and I had personally invested a lot of time and effort into finding out all I cuold about the Snooki event so I feel like this paper was very thought through and well planned. Finding the credible sources was probably the most challenging part of this paper. I mean Snooki isn't really credible so it was hard but I think I was able to tie it into the paper pretty well. I just hope it turned out as well and clear as I think it did!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Essay 2.3 Snooki's First College Visit
Pop culture strongly drives the teenage and adult population and has the ability to influence every aspect of our lifestyles. Many celebrities come and go depending when it’s their time to shine, but the problem they face everyday are the lovers and the haters constantly on their case. I dare you to find one celebrity that every person in the world likes and agrees that they are a positive attribute to society. Many young girls would agree that Miley Cyrus is their favorite singer and they love having her to look up to, but their parents may disagree saying that she’s trying to grow away from her Disney Channel character in all the wrong ways. There are a lot of people who think Brad Pitt is a wonderful actor and a great family figure, but others view him as a horrible man living in sin for having a huge family without getting married. Even Betty White has some lovers and haters on her case, but it’s not Miley, Brad or Betty that I’m talking about. Right now all eyes are on Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi as she grows more and more popular thanks to her reality show, Jersey Shore, which debuted on MTV this past fall. This show was a huge hit across the college student population. Many see Snooki as nothing more than a party addicted fame seeker who is taking advantage of all the perks that come with being a celebrity. However, others just find her, and her Jersey Shore cast mates, entertaining and they don’t take her too seriously.
This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites, par. 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. In a recent article published in the JMU newspaper, The Breeze, one JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster, par. 9). Students are not afraid to speak their mind regarding this issue but it leaves the question, why is this an issue on campus and why is it that college students love reality show stars?
A study conducted in 2009 by Kristin M. Barton, a communications teacher at Dalton State College, showed that reality shows are watched all across the nation and by every age group. However, the main concentration of reality show viewers range for 18-24 years of age whom are primarily college students. When 689 students from southwestern universities were polled it was proven that the reason college students love these shows so much are because they can picture themselves as a contestant. So, they are more driven to watch, in essence, their peers perform challenges, or live out a “glamorous” lifestyle. Another study, also conducted in 2009, by Alice Hall the director of communications at the University of Missouri attributes student’s fascination with reality TV to their desire to have that celebrity status. It was concluded that students watch these shows because they see people just like them hitting it big in the reality show business and they wish that could be them. They even go as far as comparing themselves to these celebrities and acting out their personal lives as if they were one of these celebrities.
Even though there are many people on campus that desire to be like these reality show stars, there are still those that believe it’s shows like the Jersey Shore that are ruining public television. Even with all the differences in individual liking styles I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t carry any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic worth. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time here [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter, par. 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh?
A misconception that students have been talking about is employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias towards JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local businesses, such as spas and fine dining restaurants in my hometown who often hire college students. I wanted to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because we brought Snooki on our campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy themselves.
Another popular fallacy is that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment acts brought to campus for security and liability reasons, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay off most, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do, and they responded “have different celebrities come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming celebrity before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range.
Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, instead of a “student funded” organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend anyone or ignite anymore harmful remarks. Some students created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this anti Snooki movement may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns.
Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still had enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. In an article published by WHSV, a local Harrisonburg news station, one resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager, par. 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to come together and hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did have some very useful suggestions. They suggested that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they wouldn’t have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I do not condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB’s mission statement is to “strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB Mission Statement, par. 1). This really shows that UPB makes every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Foster, Torie. Snooki Brings Fist Pumps, Poofs to JMU. The Breeze. 4 Mar. 2010. James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
Sager, Sarah. Snooki Visits JMU. WHSV3. 3 Mar. 2010. WHSV. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Sutter, John. UPB Has One Hand In the Snooki Jar. The Breeze. 18 Feb. 2010. James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
UPB Mission Statement. University Program Board. 15 Sept. 2009. UPB. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites. RadarOnline. 26 Feb. 2010. RadarOnline. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites, par. 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. In a recent article published in the JMU newspaper, The Breeze, one JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster, par. 9). Students are not afraid to speak their mind regarding this issue but it leaves the question, why is this an issue on campus and why is it that college students love reality show stars?
A study conducted in 2009 by Kristin M. Barton, a communications teacher at Dalton State College, showed that reality shows are watched all across the nation and by every age group. However, the main concentration of reality show viewers range for 18-24 years of age whom are primarily college students. When 689 students from southwestern universities were polled it was proven that the reason college students love these shows so much are because they can picture themselves as a contestant. So, they are more driven to watch, in essence, their peers perform challenges, or live out a “glamorous” lifestyle. Another study, also conducted in 2009, by Alice Hall the director of communications at the University of Missouri attributes student’s fascination with reality TV to their desire to have that celebrity status. It was concluded that students watch these shows because they see people just like them hitting it big in the reality show business and they wish that could be them. They even go as far as comparing themselves to these celebrities and acting out their personal lives as if they were one of these celebrities.
Even though there are many people on campus that desire to be like these reality show stars, there are still those that believe it’s shows like the Jersey Shore that are ruining public television. Even with all the differences in individual liking styles I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t carry any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic worth. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time here [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter, par. 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh?
A misconception that students have been talking about is employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias towards JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local businesses, such as spas and fine dining restaurants in my hometown who often hire college students. I wanted to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because we brought Snooki on our campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy themselves.
Another popular fallacy is that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment acts brought to campus for security and liability reasons, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay off most, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do, and they responded “have different celebrities come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming celebrity before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range.
Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, instead of a “student funded” organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend anyone or ignite anymore harmful remarks. Some students created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this anti Snooki movement may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns.
Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still had enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. In an article published by WHSV, a local Harrisonburg news station, one resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager, par. 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to come together and hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did have some very useful suggestions. They suggested that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they wouldn’t have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I do not condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB’s mission statement is to “strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB Mission Statement, par. 1). This really shows that UPB makes every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Foster, Torie. Snooki Brings Fist Pumps, Poofs to JMU. The Breeze. 4 Mar. 2010. James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
Sager, Sarah. Snooki Visits JMU. WHSV3. 3 Mar. 2010. WHSV. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Sutter, John. UPB Has One Hand In the Snooki Jar. The Breeze. 18 Feb. 2010. James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
UPB Mission Statement. University Program Board. 15 Sept. 2009. UPB. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites. RadarOnline. 26 Feb. 2010. RadarOnline. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Setting Exercise
Every December when it was time to sign up for softball season I would be the first one in line. I loved playing sports and was a total tomboy. I didn't wear pink, I loved blue and green and I never tried to look like a princess, but my room told a different story. If you walked into my house and looked into all of the rooms you would think my parents had 3 children and my bedroom was just in a different part of the house. But no, that bright pink and green spounge painted room was mine. It was completed with kitten wall paper and even have a pink crown molding that framed the top of the walls where they met the celing. My room was always cold because I loved to just suggle under the blankets on my bed which sat dead center in my room. Everything in that room was girly. The sheets on my bed were bright pink a super soft, there was always a hint of "sweet pea" lingering in the air, and to top it off there were posters of puppies and kittens covering the wall. Since then I have changed it drastically into a more age approprate room but I always love looking back a pictures and remembering that little girly room that was so special to me.
My Central Idea
Narrative Argument
I want to start off by introducing my experiences in colorguard. I want to tell the story of when I was in Calvert Hall's marching band, which was competitive but not extreamly good. I want to take a look at that and how this experience was more of the cookie cutter image dipicted of marching band. Yes we were competitive and good, but we didn't practice as much as my high schools marching band.
I then want to move into my high school's marching band and how we were more competitive, better, and a stronger unit then I ever though was possible. We were a sterotypical marching band and we practiced more then a full time employee would go to work.
I'm thinking that between my personal stories and some field studies done with marching band I'll be able to argue the idea that a marching band is nothing more then a bunch of kids that get together, sit around and so aweful things.
Another idea I was playing with is how jobs are so difficult to get. My brother who I have always looked up to and seen as an amazing student and someone who can do anything is having a lot of trouble getting a job after college and I want to talk about how if he can't get a job then who can. Just an idea though...
I want to start off by introducing my experiences in colorguard. I want to tell the story of when I was in Calvert Hall's marching band, which was competitive but not extreamly good. I want to take a look at that and how this experience was more of the cookie cutter image dipicted of marching band. Yes we were competitive and good, but we didn't practice as much as my high schools marching band.
I then want to move into my high school's marching band and how we were more competitive, better, and a stronger unit then I ever though was possible. We were a sterotypical marching band and we practiced more then a full time employee would go to work.
I'm thinking that between my personal stories and some field studies done with marching band I'll be able to argue the idea that a marching band is nothing more then a bunch of kids that get together, sit around and so aweful things.
Another idea I was playing with is how jobs are so difficult to get. My brother who I have always looked up to and seen as an amazing student and someone who can do anything is having a lot of trouble getting a job after college and I want to talk about how if he can't get a job then who can. Just an idea though...
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
DCI
Drum Corps International or DCI is described as "mrchings major league". They are continuously reinventing theirselves to show to the world how amazing, dedicated, unique, and talented they are. Participants spend 3 months on a nation-wide tour. They visit a new city almost everyday and perform their show all across the nation. Sometimes they even perform in two different venues on the same day. They rarely ever spend the night in one place and are constantly on the move. To be this dedicated to an activity is truely amazing.
When people think marching band they think either that "American Pie: Band Camp" image or they remember their crappy marching band from back at their high school, but I'm here to say that those sterotypes arn't true with all marching bands and people need to realize that. Now I'm not asking for a major movement or for people do drop everything and join me in supporting marching band. I'm just asking for people to see my view. I want to show everyone that there is so much that goes on behind a competitive marching band and we work just as hard, if not harder then some sports teams. I hope that I can put things into perspecitive and that I can show people that what they see in the media isn't always true.
When people think marching band they think either that "American Pie: Band Camp" image or they remember their crappy marching band from back at their high school, but I'm here to say that those sterotypes arn't true with all marching bands and people need to realize that. Now I'm not asking for a major movement or for people do drop everything and join me in supporting marching band. I'm just asking for people to see my view. I want to show everyone that there is so much that goes on behind a competitive marching band and we work just as hard, if not harder then some sports teams. I hope that I can put things into perspecitive and that I can show people that what they see in the media isn't always true.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Narrative Argument Ideas
For a long time now I have had to work very hard at a sport that I love. I've been involved in this sport since 8th grade and never looked back. I took some natural talent and a lot of hard work to get to where I am today, but now I can stand and say that I am a part of a National Champion marching band. I want to write to inform people that now all marching bands fall into that "American Pie:Band Camp" cookie cutter image. Some of us work hard to achieve great things and I want others to recognize this and appreciate the art that I am so passionate about. I worked hard to get to where I am today. In 8th grade I didn't know anything about the sport of colorguard and now I can spin with the best. I started at my brothers all boy high school that brought in girl from all around the area to be in the colorguard. Slowly I learned about the basics and progressed into learning an entire 8 1/2 minute show but it wasn't until 3 years later that I would learn all that I know now.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Non Emotional Argument
Dear Professor,
Your class is hard, I've learned that first hand, but don't you feel like sometimes you make things more difficult than they have to be? Sometimes are you just out to "get us" in some way? Because it seems like that. You make assignments impossible and you just sit back and watch the class struggle. Is it some kind of game to you? Personally my grade isn't a game to me. I work hard but it's never enough. Each of your assignments is harder then the last and there is not enough time in the semester to do all of the crazy stuff you have assigned for us. As we near then end of the semester I believe a curve is appropriate for our class. We all think that you owe us that much.
Thank you,
Kara Widerman
Your class is hard, I've learned that first hand, but don't you feel like sometimes you make things more difficult than they have to be? Sometimes are you just out to "get us" in some way? Because it seems like that. You make assignments impossible and you just sit back and watch the class struggle. Is it some kind of game to you? Personally my grade isn't a game to me. I work hard but it's never enough. Each of your assignments is harder then the last and there is not enough time in the semester to do all of the crazy stuff you have assigned for us. As we near then end of the semester I believe a curve is appropriate for our class. We all think that you owe us that much.
Thank you,
Kara Widerman
Emotional Argument
Dear Professor,
Over the course of this semester I have learned a lot from your class. I have been trying my very best to get by but I feel like my grades still arn't where they should be. You always said "if you come to me when you're having trouble, we'll work it out" and I've been following your advice, but it seems like that it's good enough. I hope that you can see this from my point of view. I'm putting everything that I have into this class but still no results and that's so frustrating to me. I work so hard and do all of the right things, what more do you want me to do? I guess what I'm saying is please take into account all of my hard work and visits to your office hours outside of class and consider making my grade an A. I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you,
Kar Widerman
Over the course of this semester I have learned a lot from your class. I have been trying my very best to get by but I feel like my grades still arn't where they should be. You always said "if you come to me when you're having trouble, we'll work it out" and I've been following your advice, but it seems like that it's good enough. I hope that you can see this from my point of view. I'm putting everything that I have into this class but still no results and that's so frustrating to me. I work so hard and do all of the right things, what more do you want me to do? I guess what I'm saying is please take into account all of my hard work and visits to your office hours outside of class and consider making my grade an A. I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you,
Kar Widerman
Monday, March 29, 2010
Writing Lab
Last monday 3/22 I went to the writing lab to get some extra help and feedback on my second draft. I thought I had a lot of the ideas down already but I needed help making sure the structure and format was clear and the way I wanted it. The person that helped me was able to assist me in my paragraph placement. This is something that I've always been bad at so she helped me figure out where each paragraph should go and the transitions that lead into and out of each paragraph. After my session with her I felt like it helped a little but I was still worried that my points wern't clear enough or that something was just off so I made another appointment with someone new for today 3/29. For this one I really focused on making sure the revisions I made after my last appointment were good and contributed to my paper. When I sat down and read it out the writing center staff helped me see which paragraph transitions were working well and what could have been added upon and they helped me see that some of my paragraphs were too long and we worked together to figure out where to break them up.
After having the opportunity to sit down and talk about my paper I think it really helped the flow and voice of my paper. I think it's a lot better then my first draft and I can't wait to hear what others have to say about it!
After having the opportunity to sit down and talk about my paper I think it really helped the flow and voice of my paper. I think it's a lot better then my first draft and I can't wait to hear what others have to say about it!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Rogerian Reflection 2.2
For this second draft of the paper I really had to look at the big picture and see what my main points were because I needed to find some credible sources and in order to do that I needed to find some academic merrit in my paper. I had to think about how I could find some scholarly information about my topic even though I'm talking about Snooki. I was able to think about how we all see the situation differently and how our brains are all different and thats why we can never agree on one solution or outcome. I went and found some research that was conducted on the college student's brain and how it's changing in those 4-5 college years. It showed that the brain is very evolved but still changing, however by the age of 18-25 we are able to make independent choices and thats what I really stressed in my paper. I showed that we each make choices but they are all different and thats what brings us to where we are now.
It was a lot harder to write this second draft then the first paper but I"m going to the writing lab today and hopefully that will help clear things up a little too.
It was a lot harder to write this second draft then the first paper but I"m going to the writing lab today and hopefully that will help clear things up a little too.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Essay 2.2 Snooki
Snooki’s Appearance
Today pop culture strongly drives the teenage and adult population and has the ability to influence every aspect of our lifestyles. Many celebrities come and go depending when it’s their time to shine, but the problem they face everyday are the lovers and the haters constantly on their case. I dare you to find one celebrity that every person in the world likes and agrees that they are a positive attribute to society. Many young girls would agree that Miley Cyrus is their favorite singer and they love having her to look up to, but their parents may disagree saying that she’s trying to grow away from her Disney Channel character in all the wrong ways. There are a lot of people who think Brad Pitt is a wonderful actor and a great family figure, but others view him as a horrible man living in sin for having a huge family without getting married. Even Betty White has some lovers and haters on her case, but it’s not Miley, Brad or Betty that I’m talking about. Right now all eyes are on Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi as she grows more and more popular thanks to her reality show, Jersey Shore, which debuted on MTV this past fall. This show was a huge hit across the college student population. Many see Snooki as nothing more than a party addicted fame seeker who is taking advantage of all the perks that come with being a celebrity. However, others just find her and her Jersey Shore cast mates entertaining and they don’t take her too seriously.
This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites, par. 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. One JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster, par. 9).
I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t have any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic worth. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter, par. 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh?
Students have been saying that employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias of JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local business, such as spas and fine dining restaurants, in my hometown of Sykesville MD, who often hire college students, to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because they had Snooki on their campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy yourself.
Also, multiple scientists are currently conducting research on how the aging adolescence’s brain is functioning and they said that it’s still developing but decision making skills are very close to their optimum level (Santrock p.118). They are learning that adolescence’s decision making skills, which come primarily from the frontal cortex in the brain, are close to optimal functionality and people aged 18-25 have the ability to make independent decisions regarding a situation. This age group is primarily made up of college students, meaning that JMU students do have the brain power to choose who they want or don’t want to see. So, it was truly a matter of liking whether or not to attend Snooki, not a matter of ethics or emotions. In another study conducted by Dartmouth College studied the changes occurring in a college student’s brain and it showed that there are marginal changes in emotion and cognition development (Knapp, par. 7). The study showed that since our brains are rapidly changing in regards to emotion and perception we take our experiences and individual interpretation of things and apply that to everyday situations. Our brains right now are actually taking in every emotion we feel and everything we experience and channels that into future experiences. This may be why this issue is such a heated debate on campus, because each student's experiences are different, therefore we can’t agree on this issue or many others for that matter.
Another popular misconception was that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment brought to campus for security and liability reasons, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay off most, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend or ignite anymore harmful feedback. Some students even created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns. Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still has enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. One Harrisonburg resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager, par. 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to come together and hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
When I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do, and they responded “have a different celebrity come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming artist before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range. Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, instead of a student funded organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did suggest that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and I think it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they wouldn’t have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I do not condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB mission statement “we strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB Mission Statement, par. 1) really shows that they make every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Foster, Torie. Snooki Brings Fist Pumps, Poofs to JMU. The Breeze. 4 Mar. 2010.
James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
Knapp, Susan. Brain Changes Significantly After Age 18, Says Dartmouth Research.
Dartmouth College Office of Public Affairs. 6 Feb. 2006. Web. 12 Mar. 2010.
Sager, Sarah. Snooki Visits JMU. WHSV3. 3 Mar. 2010. WHSV. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Santrock, John W. A Topical Approach to Life-Span Development. New York: McGraw Hill, 2007. Print.
Sutter, John. UPB Has One Hand In the Snooki Jar. The Breeze. 18 Feb. 2010. James
Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
UPB Mission Statement. University Program Board. 15 Sept. 2009. UPB. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites. RadarOnline. 26 Feb. 2010.
RadarOnline. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Today pop culture strongly drives the teenage and adult population and has the ability to influence every aspect of our lifestyles. Many celebrities come and go depending when it’s their time to shine, but the problem they face everyday are the lovers and the haters constantly on their case. I dare you to find one celebrity that every person in the world likes and agrees that they are a positive attribute to society. Many young girls would agree that Miley Cyrus is their favorite singer and they love having her to look up to, but their parents may disagree saying that she’s trying to grow away from her Disney Channel character in all the wrong ways. There are a lot of people who think Brad Pitt is a wonderful actor and a great family figure, but others view him as a horrible man living in sin for having a huge family without getting married. Even Betty White has some lovers and haters on her case, but it’s not Miley, Brad or Betty that I’m talking about. Right now all eyes are on Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi as she grows more and more popular thanks to her reality show, Jersey Shore, which debuted on MTV this past fall. This show was a huge hit across the college student population. Many see Snooki as nothing more than a party addicted fame seeker who is taking advantage of all the perks that come with being a celebrity. However, others just find her and her Jersey Shore cast mates entertaining and they don’t take her too seriously.
This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites, par. 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. One JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster, par. 9).
I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t have any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic worth. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter, par. 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh?
Students have been saying that employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias of JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local business, such as spas and fine dining restaurants, in my hometown of Sykesville MD, who often hire college students, to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because they had Snooki on their campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy yourself.
Also, multiple scientists are currently conducting research on how the aging adolescence’s brain is functioning and they said that it’s still developing but decision making skills are very close to their optimum level (Santrock p.118). They are learning that adolescence’s decision making skills, which come primarily from the frontal cortex in the brain, are close to optimal functionality and people aged 18-25 have the ability to make independent decisions regarding a situation. This age group is primarily made up of college students, meaning that JMU students do have the brain power to choose who they want or don’t want to see. So, it was truly a matter of liking whether or not to attend Snooki, not a matter of ethics or emotions. In another study conducted by Dartmouth College studied the changes occurring in a college student’s brain and it showed that there are marginal changes in emotion and cognition development (Knapp, par. 7). The study showed that since our brains are rapidly changing in regards to emotion and perception we take our experiences and individual interpretation of things and apply that to everyday situations. Our brains right now are actually taking in every emotion we feel and everything we experience and channels that into future experiences. This may be why this issue is such a heated debate on campus, because each student's experiences are different, therefore we can’t agree on this issue or many others for that matter.
Another popular misconception was that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment brought to campus for security and liability reasons, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay off most, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend or ignite anymore harmful feedback. Some students even created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns. Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still has enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. One Harrisonburg resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager, par. 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to come together and hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
When I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do, and they responded “have a different celebrity come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming artist before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range. Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, instead of a student funded organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did suggest that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and I think it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they wouldn’t have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I do not condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB mission statement “we strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB Mission Statement, par. 1) really shows that they make every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Foster, Torie. Snooki Brings Fist Pumps, Poofs to JMU. The Breeze. 4 Mar. 2010.
James Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
Knapp, Susan. Brain Changes Significantly After Age 18, Says Dartmouth Research.
Dartmouth College Office of Public Affairs. 6 Feb. 2006. Web. 12 Mar. 2010.
Sager, Sarah. Snooki Visits JMU. WHSV3. 3 Mar. 2010. WHSV. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Santrock, John W. A Topical Approach to Life-Span Development. New York: McGraw Hill, 2007. Print.
Sutter, John. UPB Has One Hand In the Snooki Jar. The Breeze. 18 Feb. 2010. James
Madison University. Web. 10 Mar. 2010.
UPB Mission Statement. University Program Board. 15 Sept. 2009. UPB. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Uproar Over Snooki's College Visit Reignites. RadarOnline. 26 Feb. 2010.
RadarOnline. Web. 9 Mar. 2010.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
2.1 Refletcion
When writing the rogerian argument I had to do a lot more thinking. It took me longer to get out all of my thoughts on the issue and I really had to think about my motives behind each point I was making because I didn't want to sound too objective or stuck to one side. It was a lot different from writing a rebuttal becuase in the last paper I could take one side and get all of the facts I needed to boost my personal argument. I feel like on the last paper I was really geared towards being "better" then the other side so I was able to focus all of my agression into that. However, with this paper I had to take my time and cut out some of my points to make room for the other side of the argument. So overall i think this paper was a but harder just because I wasn't able to just rant about my point of view. Instead I had to make time for the other side.
I think in my next draft I am going to finish my works cited and also have either one of my friends look over it or go to the writing lab and see what I really need to work on. I think for the last paper the writing lab really helped a lot so I'll be going back there again. I think mostly I will be looking at my main points and making sure they're clear to my audience. This is always something I can improve on because when something is clear to me it's not always clear to my audience.
I think in my next draft I am going to finish my works cited and also have either one of my friends look over it or go to the writing lab and see what I really need to work on. I think for the last paper the writing lab really helped a lot so I'll be going back there again. I think mostly I will be looking at my main points and making sure they're clear to my audience. This is always something I can improve on because when something is clear to me it's not always clear to my audience.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Essay 2.1 Snooki
Rogerian Argument
Today pop culture strongly drives the teenage and adult population and has the ability to influence every aspect of our lifestyles. Many celebrities come and go depending when it’s their time to shine, but the problem they face everyday are the lovers and the haters constantly on their case. I dare you to find one celebrity that every person in the world likes and agrees that they are a positive attribute to society. Many young girls would agree that Miley Cyrus is their favorite singer and they love having her to look up to, but their parents may disagree saying that she’s trying to grow away from her Disney Channel character in all the wrong ways. There are a lot of people who think Brad Pitt is a wonderful actor and a great family figure, but others view him as a horrible man living in sin for having a huge family without getting married. Even Betty White has some lovers and haters on her case, but it’s not Miley, Brad or Betty that I’m talking about. Right now all eyes are on Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi as she grows more and more popular thanks to her reality show, Jersey Shore, which debuted on MTV this past fall. This show was a huge hit across the college student population. Many see Snooki as nothing more than a party addicted fame seeker who is taking advantage of all the perks that come with being a celebrity. However, others just find her and her Jersey Shore cast mates entertaining and they don’t take her too seriously. This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Radaronline par 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. One JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster par, 9).
I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t have any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic value. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter par 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh? Also, it is clear that everyone in the JMU community cares about the college’s image, but they also recognize the importance of pop culture in college students’ world. Some are just starting to realize other pros of this situation. JMU was the first college to recognize that Snooki was a hot commodity and capitalize on the opportunity to have her on campus before she got too popular and no university could afford her. The Snooki event was something that a lot of people had to come together for to make it happen and that’s a very important aspect of the event. Another common ground on the issue is that there was probably a better use for the funds that went into the Snooki event, but there are many aspects that flow into that and at least students were able to have a good time and relax from the stress of school for one night.
Students have been saying that employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias of JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local business in my hometown of Sykesville MD, who often hire college aged students, to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because they had Snooki on their campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy yourself.
Another popular misconception was that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment brought to campus, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay most of, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend or spark anymore harmful feedback. Some students even created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns. Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still has enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. One Harrisonburg resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager par 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
When I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do and the responded “have a different celebrity come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming artist before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range. Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, not a partially student funded organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did suggest that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and I think it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they would have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I don’t condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB mission statement “we strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB 1) really shows that they make every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Today pop culture strongly drives the teenage and adult population and has the ability to influence every aspect of our lifestyles. Many celebrities come and go depending when it’s their time to shine, but the problem they face everyday are the lovers and the haters constantly on their case. I dare you to find one celebrity that every person in the world likes and agrees that they are a positive attribute to society. Many young girls would agree that Miley Cyrus is their favorite singer and they love having her to look up to, but their parents may disagree saying that she’s trying to grow away from her Disney Channel character in all the wrong ways. There are a lot of people who think Brad Pitt is a wonderful actor and a great family figure, but others view him as a horrible man living in sin for having a huge family without getting married. Even Betty White has some lovers and haters on her case, but it’s not Miley, Brad or Betty that I’m talking about. Right now all eyes are on Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi as she grows more and more popular thanks to her reality show, Jersey Shore, which debuted on MTV this past fall. This show was a huge hit across the college student population. Many see Snooki as nothing more than a party addicted fame seeker who is taking advantage of all the perks that come with being a celebrity. However, others just find her and her Jersey Shore cast mates entertaining and they don’t take her too seriously. This issue has recently divided our JMU community in regards to Snooki coming to campus. Some students and faculty think that her coming has no educational value, wastes students money, and only fuels her unwanted fame. One student, Joshua Kalaher, said "Snooki is a cast member of the Jersey Shore - a show that depicts a deplorable image for impressionable youth, and essentially provides no redeeming qualities whatsoever." (Radaronline par 4). In contrast, many supporters wanted her to come and applaud the University Program Board (UPB) for bringing her to campus to allow students to see their favorite reality show star in person, something others could only wish for. One JMU sophomore Stacey Sulko said “Snooki is a stamp on our culture, it’s entertaining to watch” (Foster par, 9).
I think that people on either side of this argument can agree that Snooki doesn’t have any intellectual value. She’s good at partying and could maybe teach you some cheerleading moves from when she was a cheerleader in high school, but she doesn’t carry any academic value. We all can also distinguish the main reason UPB brought her to campus which was purely for entertainment purposes. A press release given by UPB said “this is a purely entertaining event which reminds us all not to take our time [at JMU] too seriously and have some fun” (Sutter par 4). She was a good choice for “safe” entertainment and drew a huge excited crowd for the event. She’s almost like a guilty pleasure, you want to hear about and watch the crazy things she does but you don’t want anyone to know you’re watching. I mean who doesn’t love a good laugh? Also, it is clear that everyone in the JMU community cares about the college’s image, but they also recognize the importance of pop culture in college students’ world. Some are just starting to realize other pros of this situation. JMU was the first college to recognize that Snooki was a hot commodity and capitalize on the opportunity to have her on campus before she got too popular and no university could afford her. The Snooki event was something that a lot of people had to come together for to make it happen and that’s a very important aspect of the event. Another common ground on the issue is that there was probably a better use for the funds that went into the Snooki event, but there are many aspects that flow into that and at least students were able to have a good time and relax from the stress of school for one night.
Students have been saying that employers are not going to take JMU graduates seriously because we brought Snooki to campus, but I believe this won’t have an impact on their hiring strategies in regard to JMU grads. In the past employers have used Facebook and Myspace to check up on prospective recruits but the talk of a supposed bias of JMU students because of Snooki is outrageous. Recently I have gone to talk to some employers of local business in my hometown of Sykesville MD, who often hire college aged students, to see if they would discriminate against JMU students because they had Snooki on their campus and many of them thought I was joking. Many of their responses were along the lines of “there is a proper time in life for everything and if college students don’t go to these types of events and enjoy themselves when it’s appropriate to, then they run into a huge crisis later in their life”. This really helped me see that bringing to Snooki to campus was absolutely the right decision. College students are given these opportunities because you are only young once and you’re expected to go out, be safe, but also enjoy yourself.
Another popular misconception was that tuition money was used to bring Snooki to campus, when in fact this isn’t completely true. The University Program Board is funded half by the SGA and half by student fees. UPB doesn’t release the amount they paid for specific entertainment brought to campus, but the revenue made through ticket sales went well over $5,000 and was able to pay most of, if not all, of Snooki’s asking price. Now the money still owed came from either the SGA or student fees meaning that if any, a very small amount of money from student fees would go to Snooki.
When UPB announced that Snooki would be coming to the university they created a Facebook page to invite all students who were fans to attend. This page soon turned sour after students flooded the wall with racist remarks and negative comments forcing the Program Board to disable the wall. Students comments were still welcomed, they just had to be sent to a private UPB e-mail so they didn’t offend or spark anymore harmful feedback. Some students even created a Facebook page called “Stay off My Campus Snooki” and even got over 700 followers. Now this may seem easily refuted but I think it’s important to point out the perks of having a large campus like we do. JMU has the ability to be a very diverse but successful school because we are large enough to express and support our individual point of views, but small enough to hear everyone else’s concerns. Multiple JMU students have spoken out in many forms saying that they don’t approve of Snooki coming to our campus and yet the university still has enough students to fill a 1,045 seat auditorium. They were even able to gain 3000+ followers on Facebook saying they would attend the event had the venue allowed it. One Harrisonburg resident said “Obviously if the students didn’t want to see this [event] the show wouldn’t have sold out in 3 days!” (Sager par 9). It’s amazing and unique that a college is able to have this outpour of strong emotions yet still be able to hold an awesome event without hurting the opposing sides’ views.
When I asked students who didn’t approve of Snooki coming what they propose UPB should do and the responded “have a different celebrity come to campus”. This is a completely reasonable response to the question and it shows that students do value entertainment on campus, just maybe not Snooki. There are many celebrities students wish UPB would bring but are too expensive such as Dane Cook, The Black Eyed Peas, Metro Station, etc. but with Snooki they were actually able to afford her. They were able to book an up-and-coming artist before her rates were totally out of UPB’s price range. Another proposal from the student body was to still have Snooki on campus but to have her privately funded. Anti-Snooki students said that if there were people on campus that wanted her to come so badly then those students should have funded her to come, not a partially student funded organization. The only problem with this is that many celebrities’ agents won’t even talk to you until you have an event coordinator or professional in charge. Therefore, it would have been nearly impossible and much more expensive for individual students to fund Snooki to come and then no one would have been able to enjoy the event that was made possible because of UPB.
With every conflict across campus there are always choices, but the question for this event was how to please everyone. Now obviously it’s impractical to please everyone in this situation, but when my GWRTC class was asked to use compromise to make everyone happy they did suggest that maybe the event could have still happened, but simply be moved off campus so that students could still go, but it wouldn’t be directly associated with JMU. I thought this was a great idea and I think it would have solved a lot of problems that students had with the event. Many were worried about the university’s image and reputation, but if it were off campus they would have to worry about this.
Even though a lot of students are able to agree on some aspects of this event there are still many problems with their arguments as I see it. In regards to this particular Snooki event I am a lover. I don’t condone her behavior when she is on the Jersey Shore but I do understand that the show was put on the MTV network for entertainment purposes and it’s been very successful with this endeavor. Bringing Snooki to campus was purely for entertainment purposes. UPB has submitted multiple press releases saying that this is not meant to offend or anger anyone but was geared towards the humorous entertainment genre. UPB mission statement “we strive to enhance the overall JMU experience by providing a variety of creative, educational and entertaining programs that appeal to diverse audiences” (UPB 1) really shows that they make every effort to bring a mixture of events to campus and Snooki just happened to fall into the entertainment category.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Prewriting Essay 2
Possible Sources.
http://www.examiner.com/x-40516-Jersey-Shore-Examiner~y2010m3d4-Snooki-gives-fist-pumps-lesson-to-sell-out-crowd-at-JMU
http://breezejmu.org/2010/03/04/snooki-brings-fist-pumps-poofs-to-jmu/
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/86300352.html
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/86162977.html
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/02/uproar-over-snookis-college-visit-reignites <-- 700+ people for stay off campus, 3,000+ for attending the event (groups of facebook)
http://breezejmu.org/2010/02/25/controversial-snooki-event-sells-out-in-three-days/
When writing this paper I'm going to have to do a little bit of backgroud info on Snooki. I don't watch the show so I might have to go back and review some of the episodes and see what everyone was talking about. I think there is definately a lot of information on her because she is a new star and there is going to be a lot of info and history coming out about her. Also, it was really helpful to hear some of my classmates views on her coming to campus. I will probably end up using some of this information in my paper, primary research. I can also use my personal experience from the event.
http://www.examiner.com/x-40516-Jersey-Shore-Examiner~y2010m3d4-Snooki-gives-fist-pumps-lesson-to-sell-out-crowd-at-JMU
http://breezejmu.org/2010/03/04/snooki-brings-fist-pumps-poofs-to-jmu/
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/86300352.html
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/86162977.html
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/02/uproar-over-snookis-college-visit-reignites <-- 700+ people for stay off campus, 3,000+ for attending the event (groups of facebook)
http://breezejmu.org/2010/02/25/controversial-snooki-event-sells-out-in-three-days/
When writing this paper I'm going to have to do a little bit of backgroud info on Snooki. I don't watch the show so I might have to go back and review some of the episodes and see what everyone was talking about. I think there is definately a lot of information on her because she is a new star and there is going to be a lot of info and history coming out about her. Also, it was really helpful to hear some of my classmates views on her coming to campus. I will probably end up using some of this information in my paper, primary research. I can also use my personal experience from the event.
Reflection 1.3
I personally enjoyed writing this paper. I wasn't expecting to really enjoy GWRTC because it's a gen ed and I'm not very into writing, but this paper really opened my eyes to writing and I enjoy it more then I thought I would. In previous writing classes that I've taken we wern't given a lot of time to write our papers and then we only had one due date, no revisions or time for outside help. So, I think thats one reason that I enjoyed this paper so much, because I was able to submit one draft and then work with it, get some feedback, and then have another draft. I felt like I could really work with my writing and think about it a lot more. Also, JMU makes a lot of resources available to the students. I was able to use the writing center to my advantage and also talk to other students about my writing process.
I'm really proud of this final draft of my paper. If you ask my roommate she'll tell you that as I was writing I was really excited about how I just "owned" the author and called him out on a lot of his points. She kept telling me to stop using the word "owned" because I sounded stupid and like I really hated this guy, but really I was just happy that my main points were all coming together and I was proud of my work.
I'm looking forward to the next paper and I can't wait to see where my writing will take me.
I'm really proud of this final draft of my paper. If you ask my roommate she'll tell you that as I was writing I was really excited about how I just "owned" the author and called him out on a lot of his points. She kept telling me to stop using the word "owned" because I sounded stupid and like I really hated this guy, but really I was just happy that my main points were all coming together and I was proud of my work.
I'm looking forward to the next paper and I can't wait to see where my writing will take me.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Essay 1.3
Saving Children’s Futures One Test at a Time
Dear Mr. Carlos Mariani,
High school systems expect a lot of their students, but without high expectations, what would be driving the majority of students to perform on a high academic level? High schools across the country are enforcing standardized tests in order to receive your diploma. This is leaving many students frustrated and stressed and their parents outraged. There are a multitude of debates published on this issue, but I will focus is on your editorial, “Opposing View: Keep Students’ Dreams Alive”, published in the USA Today on February 1st of this year. As a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives you should want what’s best from your public school students, but you have taken the stance that making high school students pass such tests is outrageous. You’re writing to appeal to the average American that was held to these standards and you’re trying to gain their support in your attempt to not “water down [the] standards,” but to make passing the tests more achievable. However, I believe that high school assessments should be used to evaluate students’ academic capabilities upon graduation to ensure that the student will be successful after commencement. Any attempt to lessen the standard to which students are held is offensive to the scholar.
From personal experience I believe these tests are highly passable. Each state has the liberty to use the test of their choice but many, 34 to be exact (Achieve 4), are in the process of adopting HSAs to evaluate their students’ academic capabilities before they graduate. If this many state-wide school systems can enforce this sort of test with an 87%-95% passing rate (WCBE 3), then why would any school system alter the test to make it “achievable” when the majority of students are already successful? Some students just need to understand that they’re in school for a reason, to get an education, and they need to step up their game whether they like it or not. Any student that is an engaged academic learner would have no problem passing these exams.
I agree with you that “A high school diploma is a requirement for success in adulthood” (Mariani par 7), but how can we trust those diplomas without first assessing the graduates on basic education skills needed for survival in the “real world”. We live in a world that is growing and will not stop because educators in America aren’t teaching their students what they need in order to pass straightforward high school assessments. In our grandparents’ school days they were lucky to finish high school, and that was acceptable because many had to go into the workforce to support their families. However, in today’s world if you don’t have at least a high school diploma there are limited jobs available to you. So it is more important now than ever that high school students be given a strong background in at least English and math so they can excel in college and the workforce. The U.S. Department of Education found “for [students] who go straight from high school into the workforce, some 60% of employers rate the graduates' English and math skills as fair or poor” (Bryant par 5). There is no reason for this high percentage of incompetent workers. There is a highly accessible public school system for a reason. It was developed to give every child the chance of having a good basic knowledge in subjects that they will continue to use for the rest of their life.
Therefore, the “No Child Left Behind act” (ED) was passed by the Bush administration in 2002 to help high school students across the nation be adequately prepared when they exit secondary school. This issue is obviously a concern in our world today and is so deserving of our attention that in a February 22 press release in the L.A. Times said that “Obama [is challenging] states to come up with standards and measurements that would better prepare public school children for college and careers” (Parsons par 6). Clearly this problem has stayed the same since 2002, if not escaladed, and is now prompting additional attention from the Obama administration. It’s apparent that without skills in English and math students are unable to communicate efficiently and perform basic calculations. These tests are only mediums of communication to prove to the school system that students are able to be successful after school. Educators need a way to be sure that their graduates are going to flourish post graduation, and assessments are the best way to prove that. States don’t want to send an undereducated student into the workforce only to have them fail because they were unable to have an intelligent conversation with a customer or employer.
Here at James Madison University academic assessment sites have rated JMU’s undergraduate program in business number 35 nationally (BusinessWeek), best value for your money in the nation (Forbes), and one of the best masters-level universities in the South (U.S. News and World Report). The way we get these reputations and honors is because the school is determined and successful in preparing the student body for professional jobs during school and after graduation. The school board puts students though general education courses and rigorous testing to ensure that their graduates will be successful.
High schools should take the same pride in their academic guidelines. You said that “Because we wanted to keep the education dreams of our students alive … we chose to delay the requirement of a high-stakes math test” (Mariani, par 3). What student’s “dreams” are going to be satisfying if they don’t properly pass through high school assessments and truly earn their high school diploma? Schools shouldn’t just pass students because it’s the “normal” thing to do. Recent high school graduation rates and research conducted by the U.S. Department of Education have shown that “even though the number of kids getting a high school diploma has climbed to 75%, close to half take remedial classes in math, writing, or reading when they get to college, [and] half drop out” (Bryant par 3). High schools that don’t enforce these tests don’t have any fair and standardized way of ensuring their students are ready for the real world. Students that are just being passed on from grade-to-grade have to pay large amounts of money to go to college and obtain the skills they should have learned in high school; and many of them never make it to their college graduation because they are so far behind from the start. State schools should take pride in the fact that they only pass students that are ready for more extensive education, not just advance students to get higher graduation rates.
For most of my academic career I was in private school. Sophomore year I made the switch to a public school education only to learn that I was already 2 years behind all of my peers in the field of High School Assessments. It was up to me to now pass a test in Algebra I and English I, commonly taken by students after their 8th grade year, Government, taken in 9th grade, and Biology, taken sophomore year. When tests were offered that spring I was able to take and pass all of my required assessments. These evaluations were extremely realistic and highly passable. Teachers really stressed information that was going to be on these exams and they made sure to adequately prepare students for these tests. I personally ended up taking my government class junior year and my teacher made us extremely aware of the specific aspects of the U.S. government that would be on the HSA and he structured his individual tests to resemble the government administered exam so we would be familiar with the HSA format. Teachers are advised on how to prepare students for these tests. They know every student has to take the assessments and they set you up for success. Educators want you to succeed in high school and beyond so, they are going to do all they can to prepare students for these tests and guarantee that they walk at their high school graduation.
However, if a student was unable to pass a test, they were registered, by the school, to take an HSA preparatory course that was built into their regular day school schedule. Then the student was given as many tries as needed to pass the HSA. However, in some cases there was a second option, the Bridge Plan, which can replace the tests for special needs circumstances. Most students take these tests in plenty of time to pass them and the Bridge Plan isn’t necessary. Ultimately the school systems set students up for success in high school and beyond in whatever path they choose.
There are endless advantages to testing students on their skills needed for advancement in the working world and higher education. The problem faced now is how to make these tests passable for students that actually possess these skills and challenging for those that don’t have adequate knowledge in the areas tested. You bring up the point that there are multiple students in your school system that were exceptional students but were unable to pass these tests and were therefore ineligible to graduate. The test which you are describing is one specific test used in Minnesota last year. You stated that these tests were causing much controversy and therefore they were retracted and pushed back until 2014 when the board of education could hopefully come up with a more practical test.
However, if each state that choose to give tests would just adopt the HSA standardized test then the majority of their problems would be resolved. In Maryland the Board of Education found that 9 out of 10 students that were required to pass the HSA in order to graduate did so successfully (Achieve 3). They found that when students are obligated to meet these demands by graduation they were successful. The Board of Education proposed that high success rates were attained because of the reinforcement, classes offered, and the opportunity to earn graduation status if you got a 1602 combined on all your tests vs. getting passing scores on each individual test. With these high passing rates and growing popularity there are few reasons to want to design a completely new test that has proven to be too challenging when the HSA is proven effective and already in use across the nation.
As an academically driven student I can personally say that tests are ordinarily a pain and frowned upon, but an exam like the HSA is extremely important. If the HSA can help locate and define one student unable to be successful in basic educational skills then I would say it’s worth it. That test may have just saved one high school adolescent’s career. By alerting the school system that that child wasn’t ready to move into higher education or the workforce the school was able to help the student in the areas that needed to be addressed. After receiving the help they needed and passing a simple test they’ve shown themselves and the school board that they are ready for the real world. They will be able to succeed in the path that they choose because they were able to get the help they needed. That one test that seemed like such a burden saved them time, money, resources, and embarrassment.
High school assessments are always going to be followed by controversy due to rare and individual cases, but they are the answer to general student body assessment problems. HSAs need to be implemented into all U.S. school systems to ensure that educators are producing successful, academically competitive students who are going to be able to communicate, plan, and act efficiently. Nothing is more valuable than a solid education, and to ensure this vision for all high school graduates I say assessments are unavoidable and necessary.
Achieve. Achieve. January 2010. Board of Education. Web. 5 February 2010.
Bryant, Web. “Our view on education: To boost graduation rates, states water down standards.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
ED.gov. ED. February 2010. United States Department of Education. 5 February 2010.
Mariani, Carlos. “Keep students’ dreams alive.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
Parsons, Christi. “Obama to Announce New Effort to Improve No Child Left Behind.” Los Angeles Times. 22 February 2010. Web. 24 February 2010.
Washington County Board of Education. “High School Assessments: Analysis of Implementation.” 20 March 2007. Web. 5 February 2010.
Dear Mr. Carlos Mariani,
High school systems expect a lot of their students, but without high expectations, what would be driving the majority of students to perform on a high academic level? High schools across the country are enforcing standardized tests in order to receive your diploma. This is leaving many students frustrated and stressed and their parents outraged. There are a multitude of debates published on this issue, but I will focus is on your editorial, “Opposing View: Keep Students’ Dreams Alive”, published in the USA Today on February 1st of this year. As a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives you should want what’s best from your public school students, but you have taken the stance that making high school students pass such tests is outrageous. You’re writing to appeal to the average American that was held to these standards and you’re trying to gain their support in your attempt to not “water down [the] standards,” but to make passing the tests more achievable. However, I believe that high school assessments should be used to evaluate students’ academic capabilities upon graduation to ensure that the student will be successful after commencement. Any attempt to lessen the standard to which students are held is offensive to the scholar.
From personal experience I believe these tests are highly passable. Each state has the liberty to use the test of their choice but many, 34 to be exact (Achieve 4), are in the process of adopting HSAs to evaluate their students’ academic capabilities before they graduate. If this many state-wide school systems can enforce this sort of test with an 87%-95% passing rate (WCBE 3), then why would any school system alter the test to make it “achievable” when the majority of students are already successful? Some students just need to understand that they’re in school for a reason, to get an education, and they need to step up their game whether they like it or not. Any student that is an engaged academic learner would have no problem passing these exams.
I agree with you that “A high school diploma is a requirement for success in adulthood” (Mariani par 7), but how can we trust those diplomas without first assessing the graduates on basic education skills needed for survival in the “real world”. We live in a world that is growing and will not stop because educators in America aren’t teaching their students what they need in order to pass straightforward high school assessments. In our grandparents’ school days they were lucky to finish high school, and that was acceptable because many had to go into the workforce to support their families. However, in today’s world if you don’t have at least a high school diploma there are limited jobs available to you. So it is more important now than ever that high school students be given a strong background in at least English and math so they can excel in college and the workforce. The U.S. Department of Education found “for [students] who go straight from high school into the workforce, some 60% of employers rate the graduates' English and math skills as fair or poor” (Bryant par 5). There is no reason for this high percentage of incompetent workers. There is a highly accessible public school system for a reason. It was developed to give every child the chance of having a good basic knowledge in subjects that they will continue to use for the rest of their life.
Therefore, the “No Child Left Behind act” (ED) was passed by the Bush administration in 2002 to help high school students across the nation be adequately prepared when they exit secondary school. This issue is obviously a concern in our world today and is so deserving of our attention that in a February 22 press release in the L.A. Times said that “Obama [is challenging] states to come up with standards and measurements that would better prepare public school children for college and careers” (Parsons par 6). Clearly this problem has stayed the same since 2002, if not escaladed, and is now prompting additional attention from the Obama administration. It’s apparent that without skills in English and math students are unable to communicate efficiently and perform basic calculations. These tests are only mediums of communication to prove to the school system that students are able to be successful after school. Educators need a way to be sure that their graduates are going to flourish post graduation, and assessments are the best way to prove that. States don’t want to send an undereducated student into the workforce only to have them fail because they were unable to have an intelligent conversation with a customer or employer.
Here at James Madison University academic assessment sites have rated JMU’s undergraduate program in business number 35 nationally (BusinessWeek), best value for your money in the nation (Forbes), and one of the best masters-level universities in the South (U.S. News and World Report). The way we get these reputations and honors is because the school is determined and successful in preparing the student body for professional jobs during school and after graduation. The school board puts students though general education courses and rigorous testing to ensure that their graduates will be successful.
High schools should take the same pride in their academic guidelines. You said that “Because we wanted to keep the education dreams of our students alive … we chose to delay the requirement of a high-stakes math test” (Mariani, par 3). What student’s “dreams” are going to be satisfying if they don’t properly pass through high school assessments and truly earn their high school diploma? Schools shouldn’t just pass students because it’s the “normal” thing to do. Recent high school graduation rates and research conducted by the U.S. Department of Education have shown that “even though the number of kids getting a high school diploma has climbed to 75%, close to half take remedial classes in math, writing, or reading when they get to college, [and] half drop out” (Bryant par 3). High schools that don’t enforce these tests don’t have any fair and standardized way of ensuring their students are ready for the real world. Students that are just being passed on from grade-to-grade have to pay large amounts of money to go to college and obtain the skills they should have learned in high school; and many of them never make it to their college graduation because they are so far behind from the start. State schools should take pride in the fact that they only pass students that are ready for more extensive education, not just advance students to get higher graduation rates.
For most of my academic career I was in private school. Sophomore year I made the switch to a public school education only to learn that I was already 2 years behind all of my peers in the field of High School Assessments. It was up to me to now pass a test in Algebra I and English I, commonly taken by students after their 8th grade year, Government, taken in 9th grade, and Biology, taken sophomore year. When tests were offered that spring I was able to take and pass all of my required assessments. These evaluations were extremely realistic and highly passable. Teachers really stressed information that was going to be on these exams and they made sure to adequately prepare students for these tests. I personally ended up taking my government class junior year and my teacher made us extremely aware of the specific aspects of the U.S. government that would be on the HSA and he structured his individual tests to resemble the government administered exam so we would be familiar with the HSA format. Teachers are advised on how to prepare students for these tests. They know every student has to take the assessments and they set you up for success. Educators want you to succeed in high school and beyond so, they are going to do all they can to prepare students for these tests and guarantee that they walk at their high school graduation.
However, if a student was unable to pass a test, they were registered, by the school, to take an HSA preparatory course that was built into their regular day school schedule. Then the student was given as many tries as needed to pass the HSA. However, in some cases there was a second option, the Bridge Plan, which can replace the tests for special needs circumstances. Most students take these tests in plenty of time to pass them and the Bridge Plan isn’t necessary. Ultimately the school systems set students up for success in high school and beyond in whatever path they choose.
There are endless advantages to testing students on their skills needed for advancement in the working world and higher education. The problem faced now is how to make these tests passable for students that actually possess these skills and challenging for those that don’t have adequate knowledge in the areas tested. You bring up the point that there are multiple students in your school system that were exceptional students but were unable to pass these tests and were therefore ineligible to graduate. The test which you are describing is one specific test used in Minnesota last year. You stated that these tests were causing much controversy and therefore they were retracted and pushed back until 2014 when the board of education could hopefully come up with a more practical test.
However, if each state that choose to give tests would just adopt the HSA standardized test then the majority of their problems would be resolved. In Maryland the Board of Education found that 9 out of 10 students that were required to pass the HSA in order to graduate did so successfully (Achieve 3). They found that when students are obligated to meet these demands by graduation they were successful. The Board of Education proposed that high success rates were attained because of the reinforcement, classes offered, and the opportunity to earn graduation status if you got a 1602 combined on all your tests vs. getting passing scores on each individual test. With these high passing rates and growing popularity there are few reasons to want to design a completely new test that has proven to be too challenging when the HSA is proven effective and already in use across the nation.
As an academically driven student I can personally say that tests are ordinarily a pain and frowned upon, but an exam like the HSA is extremely important. If the HSA can help locate and define one student unable to be successful in basic educational skills then I would say it’s worth it. That test may have just saved one high school adolescent’s career. By alerting the school system that that child wasn’t ready to move into higher education or the workforce the school was able to help the student in the areas that needed to be addressed. After receiving the help they needed and passing a simple test they’ve shown themselves and the school board that they are ready for the real world. They will be able to succeed in the path that they choose because they were able to get the help they needed. That one test that seemed like such a burden saved them time, money, resources, and embarrassment.
High school assessments are always going to be followed by controversy due to rare and individual cases, but they are the answer to general student body assessment problems. HSAs need to be implemented into all U.S. school systems to ensure that educators are producing successful, academically competitive students who are going to be able to communicate, plan, and act efficiently. Nothing is more valuable than a solid education, and to ensure this vision for all high school graduates I say assessments are unavoidable and necessary.
Achieve. Achieve. January 2010. Board of Education. Web. 5 February 2010.
Bryant, Web. “Our view on education: To boost graduation rates, states water down standards.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
ED.gov. ED. February 2010. United States Department of Education. 5 February 2010.
Mariani, Carlos. “Keep students’ dreams alive.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
Parsons, Christi. “Obama to Announce New Effort to Improve No Child Left Behind.” Los Angeles Times. 22 February 2010. Web. 24 February 2010.
Washington County Board of Education. “High School Assessments: Analysis of Implementation.” 20 March 2007. Web. 5 February 2010.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Writing Lab
On Monday 2/22/10 I went to the writing lab for the first time just to get some overall help with my argument and to make sure that the points I was making were also clear to my audience. I met with a student who helped me see a lot of good things about my paper, but also the things that could use a little work. She pointed out that my thesis was actually coming across as two totally seperate arguments and some of my body paragraphs didn't really fit with my arguments directly. She also helped me with addressing the author in the paper and how to properly do that. Then she helped me see that my opening paragraph didn't include all of the points I was trying to make and I had to do some revising there. So, I was able to take this constructive criticism and better my paper. I now have a much stronger thesis and more manageable paragraphs to make the paper more "reader friendly". I actually have started to enjoy writing this paper because its fun to take your origional writing and learn about the flaws and see where there's room for imporovment and I feel like with this paper I'm really given enough time to do that.
Overall I think my final draft is going to be much stronger, more thought out, and very clear in the message I"m trying to portray. I'm really glad I decided to go to the writing lab and I have already suggested it to some of my friends taking writing courses.
Overall I think my final draft is going to be much stronger, more thought out, and very clear in the message I"m trying to portray. I'm really glad I decided to go to the writing lab and I have already suggested it to some of my friends taking writing courses.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
In Class Writing
Dear Dr. Williams,
Comparing two seemingly unlike topics is a confusing and risky road to take if you're trying to persuade your audience to side with your beliefs. In your August 2002 article “Nazi Tactics” you’re off your mark in stating that the way the Nazis in Germany treated Jews is similar to the way American’s today treat smokers. Dr. Walter E. Williams, an established economics professor and multi-degree graduate from a wide variety of universities in the United States professed that around 40million American’s do smoke today(par. 4) which can be compared to the number of Germans that killed Jews in the holocaust. Saying that people who smoke are looked at the same as the Nazis in Germany is a completely outrageous claim. Smokers are by far seen in a friendlier light.
Comparing two seemingly unlike topics is a confusing and risky road to take if you're trying to persuade your audience to side with your beliefs. In your August 2002 article “Nazi Tactics” you’re off your mark in stating that the way the Nazis in Germany treated Jews is similar to the way American’s today treat smokers. Dr. Walter E. Williams, an established economics professor and multi-degree graduate from a wide variety of universities in the United States professed that around 40million American’s do smoke today(par. 4) which can be compared to the number of Germans that killed Jews in the holocaust. Saying that people who smoke are looked at the same as the Nazis in Germany is a completely outrageous claim. Smokers are by far seen in a friendlier light.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Works Cited
Sorry I forgot to attach this to he 1.2 essay.
Works Cited for Rebuttal Paper
Achieve. Achieve. January 2010. Board of Education. Web. 5 February 2010.
Bryant, Web. “Our view on education: To boost graduation rates, states water down standards.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
ED.gov. ED. February 2010. United States Department of Education. 5 February 2010.
Mariani, Carlos. “Keep students’ dreams alive.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
Vranek, Jennifer. “Transforming Statewide High School Assessment Systems: A Guide for State Policymakers.” Achieve. November 2008. Web. 5 February 2010.
Washington County Board of Education. “High School Assessments: Analysis of Implementation.” 20 March 2007. Web. 5 February 2010.
Works Cited for Rebuttal Paper
Achieve. Achieve. January 2010. Board of Education. Web. 5 February 2010.
Bryant, Web. “Our view on education: To boost graduation rates, states water down standards.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
ED.gov. ED. February 2010. United States Department of Education. 5 February 2010.
Mariani, Carlos. “Keep students’ dreams alive.” USA Today. 1 February 2010. Web. 5 February 2010.
Vranek, Jennifer. “Transforming Statewide High School Assessment Systems: A Guide for State Policymakers.” Achieve. November 2008. Web. 5 February 2010.
Washington County Board of Education. “High School Assessments: Analysis of Implementation.” 20 March 2007. Web. 5 February 2010.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Reflection 1.2
I wanted to be able to finish off the paper with a closing paragraph or statement, but I didn't like the way I wrote it or how it sounded. I left that out for now but I plan on going to the writing lab to ask their opinion on the paragraph and decide how to tweek it to make it better and have it flow with the paper, or just leave it out all together.
I really liked the feedback I got from my classmates, I only wish there could have been more. I find it a lot harder to edit my own paper virsus someone elses paper. I guess my writing just sounds different to me so it's harder to pick out mistakes. I'm also having various suitemates edit my paper for me. This is going to help a lot I think once I do get the edited paper back. I think it will be similar to getting feedback from my classmates.
Overall, I like the flow of my paper. I was pleased by the order of the information and I think there is a generous amount of textual evidence in my paper, plus personal experience. I tried to really make it relatable and I'm hoping that I've succeeded.
I really liked the feedback I got from my classmates, I only wish there could have been more. I find it a lot harder to edit my own paper virsus someone elses paper. I guess my writing just sounds different to me so it's harder to pick out mistakes. I'm also having various suitemates edit my paper for me. This is going to help a lot I think once I do get the edited paper back. I think it will be similar to getting feedback from my classmates.
Overall, I like the flow of my paper. I was pleased by the order of the information and I think there is a generous amount of textual evidence in my paper, plus personal experience. I tried to really make it relatable and I'm hoping that I've succeeded.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Rebuttal Essay 1.2
High school systems expect a lot of their students, but without high expectations what would be driving the majority of students to perform on a high academic level? High schools across the country are enforcing standardized tests in order to receive your diploma. This is leaving many students frustrated and stressed and their parents outraged. This topic is widely argued but I will focus is on the editorial, “Opposing View: Keep Students’ Dreams Alive”, published in the USA Today. The author, Carlos Mariani, a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, has taken the stance that making high school students pass tests designed by adults is outrageous. He is writing to appeal to the average American that was held to these standards and he is trying to gain their support in his attempt to not “water down our standards” (Mariani par. 3), but to make passing the tests more achievable. From personal experience I believe these tests are highly passable. I took the High School Assessments (HSAs) in my Maryland high school and didn’t have any trouble passing the assessments. Each state has the liberty to use the test of their choice but many, 34 to be exact (Achieve 4), are in the process of adopting HSAs to evaluate their students’ academic capabilities before they graduate. If this many state-wide school systems can enforce this sort of test, then there must not be a large percentage of students unable to graduate. Some students just need to understand that they’re in school for a reason, to get an education, and they need to step up their game whether they like it or not. I believe any student that is an engaged academic learner would have no problem passing the exams and even attempting to lessen the standard to which students today are held is offensive to the students.
A high school diploma is the new standard in the workforce. We live in a world that is growing and will not stop because educators in America aren’t teaching their students what they need in order to pass straightforward high school assessments. In our grandparents school days they were lucky to finish high school, and that was acceptable because many had to go into the workforce to support their families. However, in today’s world if you don’t have at least a high school diploma there are limited jobs available to you. So it is important now more than ever that high school students are given a strong background in English and math so they can excel in college and the workforce. “For those [students] who go straight from high school into the workforce, some 60% of employers rate the graduates' English and math skills as fair or poor” (Bryant par 5). There is no reason for this high percentage of incompetent workers. There is a highly accessible public school system for a reason. It was developed to give every child the chance of having a good basic knowledge in subjects that they will continue to use for the rest of their life, hence the “No Child Left Behind act” (ED). Without skills in English and math students are unable to communicate efficiently and perform basic calculations. These tests are only assessments to prove to the school system that students are able to be successful after school. School systems need a way to be sure that their graduates are going to flourish after high school and assessments are the best way to prove that. States don’t want to send an undereducated student into the workforce only to have them fail because they were unable to have an intelligent conversation with a customer or employer.
Here at James Madison University academic assessment sites have rated JMU’s undergraduate program in business number 35 nationally (BusinessWeek), best value for money in the nation (Forbes), and one of the best masters-level university in the South (U.S. News and World Report). The way we get these reputations and honors is because the school is determined and successful in preparing the student body for professional jobs during school and after graduation. The school board puts students though general education courses and rigorous testing to ensure that their graduates will be successful. High schools should take the same pride in their academic guidelines. They shouldn’t just pass students because it’s the “normal” thing to do. Recent high school graduation rates and researched conducted by the U.S. Department of Education have shown that “even though the number of kids getting a high school diploma has climbed to 75%, close to half take remedial classes in math, writing, or reading when they get to college, [and] half drop out” (Bryant par 3). High schools that don’t enforce these tests are just passing kids through high school because they feel it’s the right thing to do, but ultimately they are hurting their students by throwing them into a world they aren’t ready for. Students that are just passed on have to pay large amounts of money to go to college and obtain the skills they should have learned in high school and many of them never make it to the college graduation because they are so far behind from the start. State schools should take pride in the fact that they only pass students that are ready for more extensive education, not just advance students to get higher graduation rates.
For most of my academic career I was in private school. Sophomore year I made the switch to a public school education only to learn that I was already 2 years behind all other students in the field of High School Assessments. It was up to me to now pass a test in Algebra I and English I, commonly taken by students after their 8th grade year, Government, taken in 9th grade, and Biology, taken sophomore year. When tests were offered that spring I was able to take and pass all of my required tests. These tests were extremely realistic and highly passable. Teachers really stressed information that was going to be on these exams and they made sure to adequately prepare students for these tests. I personally ended up taking my government class junior year and my teacher made us extremely aware of the specific aspects of the U.S. government that would be on the HSA and he structured his individual tests to resemble the government administered exam so we would be familiar with what the HSA would actually look like. However, if a student was unable to pass a test they were registered, by the school, to take an HSA preparatory course that was built into your regular school schedule. Then the student was given as many tries as needed to pass the HSA. However, in some cases there was a second option, the Bridge Plan, which can replace the tests for special needs circumstances. Most students take these tests in plenty of time to pass them and the Bridge Plan isn’t necessary. Ultimately the school systems set students up for success in high school and beyond in whatever path they choose.
There are endless advantages to testing students on their skills needed for advancement in the working world. The problem faced is how to make these tests passable for students that actually possess these skills and challenging for those that don’t have adequate knowledge in the areas tested. Mariani brings up the point that many scholars in high school excel in all aspects of school except these tests and are then ineligible to graduate because they were unable to pass one test. The test which he is describing is one specific test used in Minnesota last year. He stated that these tests were causing much controversy and therefore they were retracted and pushed back until 2014 when the board of education could hopefully come up with a more practical test. However, if each state that choose to give tests would just adopt the HSA standardized test then a lot of their problems would be resolved. In Maryland the Board of Education found that 87% - 95% of students that are required to pass the HSA in order to graduate did so successfully (Achieve 3). They found that when students are obligated to meet these demands by graduation they were successful. The Board of Education proposed that high success rates were attained because of the reinforcement, classes offered, and the opportunity to earn graduation status if you got a 1602 combined on all your tests vs. getting passing scores on each individual test. With these high passing rates and growing popularity there are few reasons to want to design a completely new test that has proven to be too challenging when the HSA is proven effective and already in use across the nation.
A high school diploma is the new standard in the workforce. We live in a world that is growing and will not stop because educators in America aren’t teaching their students what they need in order to pass straightforward high school assessments. In our grandparents school days they were lucky to finish high school, and that was acceptable because many had to go into the workforce to support their families. However, in today’s world if you don’t have at least a high school diploma there are limited jobs available to you. So it is important now more than ever that high school students are given a strong background in English and math so they can excel in college and the workforce. “For those [students] who go straight from high school into the workforce, some 60% of employers rate the graduates' English and math skills as fair or poor” (Bryant par 5). There is no reason for this high percentage of incompetent workers. There is a highly accessible public school system for a reason. It was developed to give every child the chance of having a good basic knowledge in subjects that they will continue to use for the rest of their life, hence the “No Child Left Behind act” (ED). Without skills in English and math students are unable to communicate efficiently and perform basic calculations. These tests are only assessments to prove to the school system that students are able to be successful after school. School systems need a way to be sure that their graduates are going to flourish after high school and assessments are the best way to prove that. States don’t want to send an undereducated student into the workforce only to have them fail because they were unable to have an intelligent conversation with a customer or employer.
Here at James Madison University academic assessment sites have rated JMU’s undergraduate program in business number 35 nationally (BusinessWeek), best value for money in the nation (Forbes), and one of the best masters-level university in the South (U.S. News and World Report). The way we get these reputations and honors is because the school is determined and successful in preparing the student body for professional jobs during school and after graduation. The school board puts students though general education courses and rigorous testing to ensure that their graduates will be successful. High schools should take the same pride in their academic guidelines. They shouldn’t just pass students because it’s the “normal” thing to do. Recent high school graduation rates and researched conducted by the U.S. Department of Education have shown that “even though the number of kids getting a high school diploma has climbed to 75%, close to half take remedial classes in math, writing, or reading when they get to college, [and] half drop out” (Bryant par 3). High schools that don’t enforce these tests are just passing kids through high school because they feel it’s the right thing to do, but ultimately they are hurting their students by throwing them into a world they aren’t ready for. Students that are just passed on have to pay large amounts of money to go to college and obtain the skills they should have learned in high school and many of them never make it to the college graduation because they are so far behind from the start. State schools should take pride in the fact that they only pass students that are ready for more extensive education, not just advance students to get higher graduation rates.
For most of my academic career I was in private school. Sophomore year I made the switch to a public school education only to learn that I was already 2 years behind all other students in the field of High School Assessments. It was up to me to now pass a test in Algebra I and English I, commonly taken by students after their 8th grade year, Government, taken in 9th grade, and Biology, taken sophomore year. When tests were offered that spring I was able to take and pass all of my required tests. These tests were extremely realistic and highly passable. Teachers really stressed information that was going to be on these exams and they made sure to adequately prepare students for these tests. I personally ended up taking my government class junior year and my teacher made us extremely aware of the specific aspects of the U.S. government that would be on the HSA and he structured his individual tests to resemble the government administered exam so we would be familiar with what the HSA would actually look like. However, if a student was unable to pass a test they were registered, by the school, to take an HSA preparatory course that was built into your regular school schedule. Then the student was given as many tries as needed to pass the HSA. However, in some cases there was a second option, the Bridge Plan, which can replace the tests for special needs circumstances. Most students take these tests in plenty of time to pass them and the Bridge Plan isn’t necessary. Ultimately the school systems set students up for success in high school and beyond in whatever path they choose.
There are endless advantages to testing students on their skills needed for advancement in the working world. The problem faced is how to make these tests passable for students that actually possess these skills and challenging for those that don’t have adequate knowledge in the areas tested. Mariani brings up the point that many scholars in high school excel in all aspects of school except these tests and are then ineligible to graduate because they were unable to pass one test. The test which he is describing is one specific test used in Minnesota last year. He stated that these tests were causing much controversy and therefore they were retracted and pushed back until 2014 when the board of education could hopefully come up with a more practical test. However, if each state that choose to give tests would just adopt the HSA standardized test then a lot of their problems would be resolved. In Maryland the Board of Education found that 87% - 95% of students that are required to pass the HSA in order to graduate did so successfully (Achieve 3). They found that when students are obligated to meet these demands by graduation they were successful. The Board of Education proposed that high success rates were attained because of the reinforcement, classes offered, and the opportunity to earn graduation status if you got a 1602 combined on all your tests vs. getting passing scores on each individual test. With these high passing rates and growing popularity there are few reasons to want to design a completely new test that has proven to be too challenging when the HSA is proven effective and already in use across the nation.
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