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ASSIGNMENT 2 INDIVIDUAL PORTFOLIO

ASSIGNMENT 2: INDIVIDUAL PORTFOLIO

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One of the many reasons why we all attend school and classes is for us to get ready and prepared for our future careers. However, in many instances, even with all the information that we learn from school, future careers present individuals with numerous challenges, which students have to address for them to become successful. The purpose of this research paper is to find out what kind of challenges students, and especially those from UEL, expect to face once they clear school and join their future professional careers. Furthermore, the paper will also look at a number of ways the students plan to use to eliminate or solve these problems. To achieve this, the research paper will utilize a number of tools such as questionnaires that will be prepared and given to about 30 students. The analysis of the answers the participants present are what will make the bulk of the paper. Alongside the paper, I will also provide a PowerPoint presentation, in addition to pie charts and bar charts of the results of the questionnaires to show data found from the study.

Numerous students, and not only those from UEL, face numerous difficulties as they transition from school to their future careers, and many students also have fears concerning several challenges that are associated with future careers. Though future professional careers can present a new individual with many problems, there are ways that scholars have identified that students can use to reduce the impacts of the transmission from being a student to being a profession in a certain career. This paper, as we have seen, will find out some of the most prevalent fears that students have of their future careers, and will use the findings of the study to recommend a number of ways the students can overcome their fears through solving these future problems.

The study will make use of questionnaires and interview questions directed to the students. The study will make use of about thirty students. In addition to this, the paper will also make use of the available literature to study more on these challenges and some of the recommendations that I might offer to these students to ease their transition from being students to professionals. The paper will present the results in an excel table, that I will later translate in bar and pie charts for easy analysis.

After the analysis of the results of the study, a few problems or challenges that I identified as potential stress- areas for students in their future professional careers. One of the challenges that were eminent was that many students were anxious about not being able to secure a job in their preferred professions. Many students were of the idea that the job market today has completely changed, and that they would find it difficult to secure a job. When asked how they were planning to solve this problem, a number of them indicated that they were going to pursue more education so for more qualification and distinction. Others indicated that they would search for jobs in more than one area of expertise to expand their chances of getting a job. According to a number of studies looked at during the research, it seemed that encouraging students not to give up was one effective of easing away anxiety. These studies advised parents and educators to continually encourage the students to view their careers as things that evolve over lifetimes. As it follows, this will enable students to see each step like graduation and searching for jobs just as some stages of the many in their career path (Bernstein 1997).

Another challenge that became prominent in the research was that many students in UEL had some expectations that were unrealistic about the professional and career areas. It was clear from the answers of some of these students that they expected to get high paying jobs immediately after school. Some of them expected their employers to place them in high levels of management even without experience. It seemed that their ideas of what a perfect job opportunity is, was distorted. Most of them placed wages and salaries higher than opportunities to grow and develop career wise. All the students seemed to care about was remuneration and the amount of money they would take home at the end of the day. According to the literature review conducted, unrealistic expectations of students of their future careers were shown as some of the most common problems. The studies specified that educators and mentors of students could address this challenge by quoting to students the most essential parts of a job, which are career growth and development and opportunities to grow and develop as a professional as opposed to remuneration and wages (Carnevale, Gainer and Meltzer 1988).

Another issue that was apparent after the study was that jobs and recruiters are not sufficient in the market. Most students argued that the available job opportunities availed to them in the market were not sufficient for all of them. Most of them could not find jobs after school because the job opportunities were simply not there. Recruiters and employers were few, as well, and students who had graduated were struggling for the few left. Some of them indicated that they could address this problem by differentiating themselves from the others by attaining more education, and by attaining more skills. Others felt that they could solve the problem by working without remuneration for skills and experiences. Studies looked at by the researchers indicated that this problem can be solved by attracting new employers with an impressive resume, appealing to alumni for job opportunities, or attesting summer jobs for experience and skills (Pew Research Centre 2010).

The survey also found that many students do not take advantage of what educators, mentors and job opportunities have to offer. For instance, some students indicated that they attended attachments and internships just because the school required it. They do not realise that these opportunities can be crucial in earning them future employment. Studies in the area urge students to take more interest in what their employers, teachers, and mentors have to offer, because it is from these entities that students obtain their knowledge, experience and skills required in their professional careers (Advanced Education Statistics 2011).

Other problems that became apparent from the study were that students feared that it would be difficult for them to keep their knowledge and skills up to date after they left school. Some of them indicated that they feared that their knowledge would become obsolete if they joined organizations that did not offer their employees periodic training programs. They argued that they could solve this problem through updating themselves constantly on their careers through the internet, books, and seminars. Studies on the area argue that one of the main challenges affecting organizations today is retention of information. The studies argue that organizations must offer their employees constant training aimed at revitalizing and adding to the information they possess of their professions (Surmounting Unique Challenges Statistics 2011).

The study also found that there were problems with rescinded offers, late offers and delayed start days that. Students feared that if these happen, the employers could reduce their chances of obtaining a job. As a result, of this, their expectations and motivation decreases. The students claimed that if this were to happen to them then they would make sure that they conduct the employers to ascertain that they still have a job opportunity. Experts advice companies and employers to avoid this by conducting the concerned student early enough to help them adjust their expectations (Gysbers and Henderson 1994).

The results of the study also indicated that some students and career candidates were alienating future employees. The study mostly found this to be, as a result, of high and unrealistic expectations some students had. The survey also found that some students from UEL had alienated and ruined the reputation of their school and, as a result, most of the employers were hesitant to give students from UEL a chance to work in their organizations. Students indicated that they could solve this problem by showing characters that were different from other students and by being unique. Research shows that some employers do alienate potential job candidates because of the reputation their school has. The reputation could hurt the other students since employers are sensitive to certain behaviours (Krumboltz 1996).

Lowered morale and motivation to find a job was also another challenge identified in the study. The study also found that many students did not feel motivated to find jobs because they were of the idea that there were no job opportunities in the market. The students indicated that their motivation could only improve if they found evidence indicating that there were available job opportunities for them. The studies show motivation as one of the most essential factors in determining enthusiasm and success of an individual (U.S. Department of Labour 1996).

Other issues that the study identified as challenges the UEL student were expecting to face in the future had to do with limited resources in terms of money and time. Most of them thought that time and money was essential in enabling them find work. Without these resources, they argued that they would not be able to find work. Some indicated that they would solve the problem by asking for financial support from parents or finding small jobs that would enable them to raise enough fees for their job search. Time and money are essential factors in determining whether individuals will find future work or not. The research also showed lack of support or limited support from close families and friends as a potential problem. Students were of the idea that once they cleared school, their parents would expect them to be on their own without the support of their parents or friends. As they argued, this could present them with numerous challenges that would make it difficult to find work (U.S. Department of Labour 1996).

References

Advanced Education Statistics 2011, Harris Interactive Career Study Millennial Data.

Bernstein, A 1997, ‘Commentary: Who says job anxiety is easing?’ Business Week.

Carnevale, AP, Gainer, LJ and Meltzer, AS 1988, Workplace basics: The skills employers want, American Society for Training and Development, Alexandria, VA.

Gysbers, NC and Henderson, P1994, Developing and managing your school guidance program, American Counselling Association, Alexandria, VA.

Krumboltz, JD 1996, ‘a learning theory of career counselling’, in M.L. Savickas & W.B. Walsh (Eds.), Handbook of career counselling theory and practice, Davies-Black, Palo Alto, CA.

Pew Research Centre 2010, The Millennials: Confident, Connected, Open to Change, accessed from http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1501/millennials-new-survey-generational-personlity-upbeatopen-new-ideas-technology-bound

Surmounting Unique Challenges Statistics 2011, Harris Interactive Career Study Hiring Manager Data.

U.S. Department of Labour 1996, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Author Washington, DC.

Appendices

Questionnaire

Do you think you will have enough support from your parents and friends when you start searching for a job?

Do you think you will have enough resources in terms of money and time to look for a job in the future?

Do you think your school is being affected by bad reputation?

Do you think employers alienate candidates from your school?

Do you think you will suffer from decreased motivation or morale while you search for a job?

Do you think you will experience rescinded offers, late offers for jobs, or delayed start dates when you find a job?

Do you think your job will provide you with enough opportunities to retain and gain more knowledge?

Do you think you do not take advantage of the opportunities available to you know as a student, that might affect your chances of getting a job in the future?

Do you think there are enough jobs or recruiters to give each graduate a job after school?

Do you think you will suffer from anxiety when you fail to find a job as fast as you had expected?

Do you think your expectations of your future professional career are unrealistic or too many?

What are your plans for the future in terms of future professional career and employment opportunities?

Have these plans changed from time to time or they have remained the same over the years?

Do you think you will be able to achieve these plans or goals as expected.?

Excel Table

Answers to questionnaire questions

Question yes no probably not sure

a 20 5 2 3

b 18 7 3 2

c 13 7 5 5

d 15 4 10 1

e 13 16 0 1

f 10 16 2 1

g 12 8 7 3

h 14 6 6 4

i 17 3 3 7

j 17 3 2 8

k 11 9 9 1

l 20 0 0 10

m 17 2 6 5

n 6 14 0 10

Results in a Table

Answers to questionnaire questions Question Yes No Probably Not sure

A 20 5 2 3

B 18 7 3 2

C 13 7 5 5

D 15 4 10 1

E 13 16 0 1

F 10 16 2 1

G 12 8 7 3

H 14 6 6 4

I 17 3 3 7

J 17 3 2 8

K 11 9 9 1

L 20 0 0 10

M 17 2 6 5

N 6 14 0 10

Pie chart

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Bar chart EMBED MSGraph.Chart.8 s

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EMBED MSGraph.Chart.8 s

Power point presentation

Slide 1 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12 Slide 2 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12 Slide 3 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12 Slide 4 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12 Slide 5 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12 Slide 6 EMBED PowerPoint.Slide.12

Assigned Film Analysis

Assigned Film Analysis: 30 points

While watching your film, please make sure to focus on the particular storytelling methods used by the filmmakers to convey both the film’s theme and the film’s portrayal of the mass media world.

You may use the following questions to frame the structure of your paper, but your paper should be in an essay format, MLA Style. Make sure you answer each question completely (i.e. answer each part of the question), and make sure to cite any sources you used to answer these questions. This assignment will count as an individual grade and is worth up to 30 points (not counting any bonus points). I expect at least two pages, but keep it less than three max.

What is the film’s story? What is the film all about? Was the story easy to follow?

What is the film’s theme? Remember that theme is the unifying idea that permeates the film via dialogue, plot, visuals, et al.

How did the director visualize the theme to the audience? How did you know what the theme was? What did the director do from a filmmaking standpoint?

What did you think of the film’s portrayal of the particular “mass media” involved? What were your expectations of that portrayal going into the film?

What did you learn about the “mass media” portrayed in the film that you didn’t already know?

What do you think of that “mass media” now after watching your assigned film?

Rubric Element Description Exceeds

Expectations Meets

Expectations Does Not Meet

Expectations

Length and formatting of essay Student essay is minimum of two pages double-spaced.

The essay is formatted correctly with paragraph l indentations, sufficient detail and examples provided and proper use of punctuation and grammar. 10

Student’s essay meets or exceeds the minimum of two pages double-spaced.

Entire essay is formatted correctly, Exemplary detail and many examples provided. Always uses proper grammar and punctuation. 8

Student’s essay meets the minimum two pages. Most of the essay is formatted correctly. Sufficient detail and some examples provided. Sometimes uses proper grammar and punctuation 0-5

Student’s essay does not meet the minimum two pages. Only parts of the essay are formatted correctly. Insufficient detail and few to no examples provided. Rarely uses proper grammar and punctuation.

Questions Answered Each of the 6 questions is answered thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences. Essay includes identification of each of the 5 Ws and H. Essay includes examples, quotes and paraphrases with correct attribution of sources. 10

Student’s essay addressed each of the 6 questions thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences for each question. Essay includes identification of each of the each of the 5 Ws and H.

Essay includes exemplary examples, quotes and paraphrases. Always uses correct attribution. 8

Student’s essay addresses most questions thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences.

Essay includes use of most of the 5 Ws and H.

Essay includes sufficient examples, quotes and paraphrases with occasional correct attribution of sources. 0-5

Student’s essay addresses only some of the questions,

using a minimum of three sentences. Essay includes few to none of the 5 Ws and H. Insufficient use of examples, quotes and paraphrases. Rarely uses correct attribution of sources.

Analysis of film The student essay demonstrates detailed analysis, with examples from their assigned film, through the application of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 10

Student’s essay demonstrates exemplary detailed analysis, with many examples of their assigned film, through the application of each of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 8

Student’s essay demonstrates sufficiently detailed analysis, with some examples of their assigned film, through the application of most of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 0-5

Student’s essay demonstrates insufficiently detailed analysis, with

few to no examples of their assigned film, through the application of few to none of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions.

Jackie Robinson, and the American Dilemma

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Jackie Robinson, and the American Dilemma

Often, ordinary truths are revealed by extraordinary lives. John Wilson tells a story of Robinson’s fight against racial injustice in the book, “Jackie Robinson and the American Dilemma” and the aftermath of American sports in World War II. Wilson starts the story examining the childhood days of Robinson, advancing with different dynamics that Robinson came up with, of racist white Americans’ perspective at that particular time. Nearing the end of the story, John highlights several challenges Robinson faced due to his family, not to mention the vicious killings in the United States. John hints that merely within three months in 1998, Robison encountered five bad scenarios that hit him personally and politically, with a possibility to drown the spirit of a weaker person (Clayton, Pg. 2). Generally, the bibliography is full of achievements that encouraged African Americans during that particular time and other human races until the present.

Jackie was born in Georgia, at the summit of the segregated South. His parents were sharecropped farmers. Jackie’s father, Jerry Robinson, abandoned his family while Jackie was still a small baby. Jackie’s mother, Mallie, was determined to give her five children a better life, so she joined “the great migration” out the South, which involved African Americans. The vast majority of the African Americans moved to either Washington, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, or New York. However, Mallie traveled to California as her brother advised her. Around the 1920s, it was somewhat uncommon to find people of African American origin in California. Despite the place being inhabited by Mexican-born blacks in the early settlement, only 1% represented African American decency in the state’s population (Clayton, Pg. 4). People dwelling in that region had to deal with the discrimination pattern common to the American West. Only a few laws were subject to addressing matters relating to the black-white relationship, but the limit of tolerance was defined by widely established and accepted practices.

Only a few public and social amenities accepted African Americans. Some restrictive nondisclosure agreements barred African Americans from residing in most whites’ neighborhoods. Job discrimination haltered economic growth, and African Americans faced hostility at right, left, and center from strangers, neighbors, not to mention police officers. Jackie was not an exception as he was raised in quite a similar environment to that of other kids who moved during the great migration. Raised by a single parent, depending on their mother’s income, the family lived in poverty, kept together by the indomitable spirit of their mother, without mentioning a strong sense of religious, moral values (Tygiel, Pg. 1). As a minor, Jackie and his gang could not escape local police confrontation, which led to at least one arrest. South California could not be the best place to live as an African American, but, perhaps it offered opportunities that were not available in most other locales.

The most impactful person in his childhood days was certainly his mom, Mallie. Mallie was so entrenched into working hard and earning a living; more importantly, she was devoted to God. Mallie’s family lived in a white-dominated neighborhood as the only African Americans, but that did not stop her from raising her five children well and not to receive any sorts of complaints from the neighbors. Jackie and his brother did tremendously well in sports since their childhood. As early as middle school level, Jackie was dedicated to sports, and he and other best athletes in the neighborhood teamed up and started to compete with other “gangs.” However, there some mischievous gang members who often stole fruits from the orchards and, at times, threw dirt clods at vehicles, not to mention rocking at the street lights. Luckily, Jack was an exception as he had some role models who always gave him insights and sage and often warned him of any misdemeanor acts. Jackie’s role models encouraged him to be discipline for Mallie’s, and he turned onto educating himself as a primary concern to be a dependable family member.

The fact that there were tenements and single-family house domination made Mallie buy a house for her family. African American athletes did not face severe restrictions on sports participation, thus paving the way for an avenue of success to Mallie’s sons. Mack, one of Jackie’s siblings, starred at both the 1936 Olympic Games and at the University of Oregon. Later, Jack managed to win four sporting events at Pasadena City College and UCLA, and indeed Mallie capitalized on the achievements of her sons. Jackie’s time at UCLA laid a foundation for him to interact with as many people as possible racially.

Besides his excellence in sports, Jackie received recognizable honors, which led his colleagues to acknowledge Jackie as a gifted African American. Jackie overcame many challenges in his quest to convert the institutions and attitudes defining race relations in America. Rarely did history ever put much emphasis on an individual. Jackie’s trials and triumphs were crucial to American racial differences following World War II. It proved that Jack was a prominent figure fighting for the civil rights of the minorities and brought together the baseball faithful irrespective of the race. Many people loved Jackie, and a significant number also hated him. Any appearance he made during the match was vital regardless of facing boos or applause from the crowd. Jack was excellent in baseball; even the racist and unsupportive fans failed to recognize his race and had to acknowledge him.

Jackie’s senior year at UCLA was somewhat significant as that time he found his soulmate, Rachel Isum. At the time, Rachel was a freshman and relatively younger than Jackie, and dwelled in a secure African American neighborhood. Rachel formed part of a third-generation Californian, which was an uncommon status among black communities and had received a UCLA scholarship, maintaining the excellent performance of straight As. Jackie’s fiery impetuousness complimented by Rachel’s warm and calm manner. Together, their mutual love bond and support were to prepare them ahead of challenging years. Similarly to others at Rachel’s and Jackie’s time, their dating life was interfered with by World War II. Jackie’s services in the army proved the experience of African Americans in the military.

Jackie was drafted in 1942 and posted at Fort Riley, Kansas. He faced a never-ending gauntlet of racial discrimination. He was unable or instead barred to access Officers’ Candidate School, restricted from participating on the baseball team in the camp, and blocked to private facilities. Jackie’s aggressiveness and credibility played a vital role in helping him to demand better and equal treatment. Jackie managed to rise into lieutenant ranks and spearheaded a movement to improve living conditions for African American soldiers at Fort Riley. Following Jackie’s transfer to Ford Hood in Texas, he rejected the orders of sitting at the back of an army bus and ignored the disciplinary actions by one of the top-ranking soldiers (Tygiel, Pg. 5). Consequently, Jackie was taken to a court-martial charged with a dishonorable discharge. Jackie was acquitted of all the charges, but the encounter did not go unnoticed as they intensified his commitments towards racial discrimination and other social injustices.

Jackie’s release from the army and encountered a familiar dilemma for African Americans. Before his athletic talent reached its peak and the time he was good enough to shine in any sporting event in America, Jackie was no different from his brothers Kenny and Mack, as he had limited options in terms of professionalism. Baseball teams, basketball teams, and the National Football League could not accept African American players. The best viable option for Jackie to go with was baseball Negro league, and ended up signing for Kansas City Monarchs in the spring of 1945. Arguably, there was a high level of baseball displayed by the Negro Leagues, that featured some all-time greatest stars of the game. Perhaps, the experience at the Negro league was somewhat distasteful to Jackie. Jackie was used to highly structured training sessions, and fixtures that involved major college sports, and joining the Negro Leagues was an obvious step down as opposed to a leg up (Tygiel, Pg. 6). What discouraged Jack even more, was long traveling hours, the degrading acts at filling stations, not to mention the informal league approach by the players to most nonleague contests. Jackie was somewhat a misfit among the monarchs as he merely enjoyed the “social ramble” with his team.

Jackie could later join one of the best teams in the country courtesy of Rickey, where most of his colleagues were whites. Irrespective of the insults he might encounter from opponent players or the crowd at the beginning of the baseball career, Jackie was slow to react and managed the situation warmly. He understood the magnitudes of obstacles facing him and was naturally combative. In 1946, Jackie and Rachel wedded. Soon after, the couple to Florida for spring training, also launching “baseball’s great experiment.” Jackie joined a South practiced rigid discrimination, lynching, and all kinds of racial injustices, and it was now somewhat a distant dream to dismantle the Jim Crow laws practice. After two years, President Harry ordered the desegregation of military personnel. Barely after eight years, the supreme court unanimously ruled in favor of Mr. Brown in the infamous case of Brown V. Topeka Board of Education. Jackie became recognized as “a one-man civil rights movement” (Tygiel, Pg. 7).

Works Cited

Clayton, Obie. An American dilemma revisited: Race relations in a changing world. Russell Sage Foundation, 1996.

Tygiel, Jules. Extra Bases: Reflections on Jackie Robinson, Race, and Baseball History. U of Nebraska Press, 2002.

Trickster in the novel ‘Brighten the corner where you are’ by Fred Chappell

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Trickster in the novel ‘Brighten the corner where you are’ by Fred Chappell

In the Native American Literature, the trickster figure is common and many authors use it to represent humor and comedy in stories or to express the intellectual ability or political power balance. Fred Chappell in his novel, ‘Brighten up the corner where you are’ has utilized the trickster figure in narrating the story. The Trickster in most of the Native American Literature is characterized as a shape-shifter and can be portrayed as a truth-teller or a liar, a creator or destroyer.

Most of the Native American Literatures, ‘Tricksters’ are common and have a major characteristic in common, ambiguity. Tricksters are known to take many forms and in his novel, ‘Brighten the Corner Where You Are’ Fred Chappell has intensively used the trickster figure to represent his novel.

The idea of trickster appears at the point where Joe Robert and his son are headed towards their barn to feed and milk the cows and the author describes the moon as overbearing. The moon is so huge and bright forcing Joe to take it and keep it in one of the milking steel containers. This action is horrifying to Joe’s son who convinces him to return the moon to ‘where it belongs’. The author uses the idea of a trickster to explain the myths that existed in the Native American literatures in the form of myths. The idea of trickster allows the author to anchor his story in and is an essential theme in the novel. BY including the ideal of ‘Trickster’ the author is able to outline the main characteristic of the ‘Native American Literature’ that was impended in the native cultures.

Realism was shocking and scandalous according to, ‘18th and 19th century humanities book’.

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Realism was shocking and scandalous according to, ‘18th and 19th century humanities book’.

During the 19th century, photography was invented and it sought to replace the contemporary painting art that had been used to represent Realism has been acknowledged as the motivation beyond modern art. Many artists found photography more convenient as it allowed artist to capture the real life experiences that is authentic compared to the art that allowed the artist to capture their artist’ imagination of reality. Realism involves the capturing of the daily life events in the modern world whereby artists are able to advance what the society should be like. The 18th and 19th century art focused on the progressive objectives of modernism by focusing on dealing the inherent traditional traditions and values that are within the society. The art of these centuries focused on articulated the various social, cultural and economic aspects of the society.

Another aspect of realism in art that made it shocking and scandalous is the painting of women naked while men were painted as clothed. During the 18th and 19th century, the female nudity art became famous and continued to increase the controversy that surrounded realism in contemporary art. It was argued that the nudity of women was a way of representing the classical art in a modern way although many people considered it against the modern academic culture. The nudity painting was considered as going against the public morals and this made the realism of the contemporary art scandalous and shocking. Although the art sought to capture life in its natural setting, many people seemed to disagree with the way artists used it to advance what they considered ‘immorality’.

There was controversy that characterized modern art as many artists sought to challenges the already entrenched beliefs in art. Artists were able to challenge the old notion that promoted art as a way of mirroring the society and adopted various aspects that had not been in use previously. Many artists took to expressive colors as a way through which they would express their artistic capabilities and were reluctant to stick to the commonly used traditional material. The invention of photography revolutionized the way artists acted and conducted their work in the 18th and 19th century.

Realism came to challenge the existing form of art that was previously romantic style that did not capture the reality of life. The romantic style of art was used to romanticize life and would not capture the reality of our world. The emergence of photography changed all this, artists were now more to capture and preserve the life events on the light sensitive lights within a short period of time. Many people who were concerned by the future of painting as a way of representing life became concerned about photographs and some considered it scandalous and some argued that it could be used to enhance painting. Those who considered it scandalous argued that it had posed a major challenge to the advancement of fine art as it took the role of artists who were over the centuries played the role of imitating nature.

The 18th and 19th century art was scandalous as it sought to promote realism and allowed artist to express their notion of reality and many people found out to be shocking in nature. It continuously focused on nudity of women and this challenged the existing traditions in art and was considered immoral.

References

Burke, Peter. Popular culture in early modern Europe. Routledge, 2017.Dasgupta, Shamik, and Brad Weslake. “Current Controversies in Philosophy of Science.” (2017).

Lumsdaine, A. A., and C. I. Hovland. “. the effects of presenting “one side” versus “both sides” in changing opinions on a controversial subject.” (2017).

Viladesau, Richard. “The Cross: History, Art, and Controversy by Robin M. Jensen, x+ 270 pp.” (2018).

Is my media use impacting my writing andor my academic performance How do I know Is there any controversy surrounding this to

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Is my media use impacting my writing and/or my academic performance? How do I know? Is there any controversy surrounding this topic?

Introduction

Since the discovery of the internet, the way human beings communicate has changed rapidly. A lot of research has been conducted on the societal impact of social media on the society at large. There have been many researches on the effects of social media in education in terms of how it has affected students’ writing and performance over time. The intake of social media continues to expand as many countries continue to get connected with smart phones that can easily connect to the internet. The use of social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and Instagram continues to go up, the impacts of these platforms on the students’ writing skills and performance is likely to increase.

Technology experts and developers of these platforms continue to focus on how they could make the social media platforms become integral to students and allow them to improve their writing and performance. Many stakeholders in the education sector such as parents, education a researchers, government institutions and teachers continue to discuss on the advantages and disadvantages of social medial on students and its role in their writing kills and general performance. Depending on the source of information you use and the research you choose to focus on, you are likely to come across those who recommend social media platforms as a measure to improve students’ writing skills and general performance while others feel that the effects of social media has negative effects on students’ writing and performance.

The purpose of this research is to investigate how social media has affected the writing skills and the performance of students in schools and colleges. The research seeks to highlight the various ways through which social media affects a student’s academic performance and the level of their excellent over time. Some of the social media platforms that the research seeks to focus on include Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and WhatsApp.

Methods

I will conduct a research to find out the impact of social media on the academic performance of students across the United States. I will use online questionnaires that I will distribute using my various social media platforms such as emails, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for students within the age group of between 12 and 19.

I will use a sample that will consist of 100 students of which 50 are male and another 50 female. The students will comprise those from grade 7 to grade 12. The questionnaires will target students from different socioeconomic classes and focus on the wide school programs that are offered in the public and private schools. The research involved ensuring that students would answer the online questionnaires that comprises of questions related to use of social media.

Results

The results will focus on the findings of the research on the following questions.

How social media has enhances collaboration among students?

How do students acquire entrepreneurial skills from social media?

How do social media enhance integration among the student fraternity?

Does social media help define students’ educational goals especially future careers?

Do social media divert students’ concentration on their studies?

Discussion

The discussion will focus on the explanation of the results of the study. The discussion will expound on the advantages and disadvantages of social media.

The discussion will determine recommendations of my research and whether social media is good for students or otherwise.

Legalizing Marijuana

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Legalizing Marijuana

There are several issues that are being debated on in America currently. One of the major issues on debate is marijuana Legalization. There exists both medicinal and recreational marijuana. The federal and states governments have fully legalized medicinal marijuana, however, states and the federal government still debate on legalizing recreational marijuana. Some states have legalized it and some have not. Early Last year president Donald Trump supported the states acts which would end the outright on a federal ban of Cannabis. Each state would now be allowed to decide on their own about legalizing marijuana. So far we have ten states that have legalized marijuana for both medicinal and recreational purposes. Examples of such states include; Alaska, California, Massachusetts, Maine, District of Columbia, Nevada, Oregon, Colorado and others who are yet to enact their bills this year. States such as; Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah and West Virginia among others have it legal only for medicinal purposes.

Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts senator supported the bill on decriminalisation but then it hasn’t gone anywhere since Mitch Connell the Senate majority leader still oppose it. He views the drug as any other narcotic substance the likes of heroin and LSD CITATION Las18 p pg.3 l 2057 (Laslo pg.3). Also, in September Senator Cory Booker introduced an act that would legalize marijuana and penalize the communities that want nothing to do with marijuana.

Also there are senators who have been giving arguments on the crucial need for legalization. According to Warren and Rolling Stones discussion, the reason she gave for legalizing Marijuana was that she cares about his state people whore are at risk of being arrested for either selling or using marijuana. She also said that she cares about the state’s decision on the issue since they are the ones in control. The Cole Memorandum during Obama’s reign said that they weren’t trying to legalize marijuana but if legalized within the state nobody was going to push for prosecutions. Jeff Sessions revoked this and would push for prosecutions on the same thus people are at risk of being arrested CITATION Las18 p “pg. 3” l 2057 (Laslo pg. 3). According to Warren Marijuana may be a pain treatment alternative also it will help people addicted to Opioids move away from addiction. Jeff Sessions and McConnell seem to be the main people catalyzing against this legalization.

Marijuana seem not to be beneficial as it is thought to be by the senators and authorities who want it legalized. Colorado has seen an increase in deaths, road accidents and poison calls related to marijuana. Cases of corruption among the marijuana vendors has increased instead of decreasing. Some states have legalized marijuana and there are less positive effects of the legalization. According to Dr Harry Bull (Hunt, J. pg.1) and I quote, “So far, the only thing that the legalization of marijuana has brought to our schools has been marijuana.” Jeff writes that it is sad for the nation to legalize a drug that will have generation consequences (Hunt, J. pg.1). Students who consume marijuana are seen to perform poorly in class and fail their exams. Legalizing marijuana is the worst decision by Senator booker since it has no positive impact on the community especially the coloured.

Across the world majority of the countries have marijuana illegalized since they find it to have negative effects. A research in Colorado found out legalizing marijuana led to utilization of health care facilities where medical conditions such as mental illness were reported. Generally smoking marijuana puts one at the risk of getting cancer, brain failure and poor performance in class (Makin, David A., et al. pg. 9). Legalizing marijuana will lead to more negative effects than positive. Even though there will be legalization with policies in place they will be violated. A good example is a synthetic marijuana which entered the market in 2008 and by 2013 more than 2500 calls were received by the poison centre about abuse of the same drug. This shows that despite the efforts by the government to have policies in place it is hard to reduce the rate of substance use.

Not all substance use policies have negative impacts, but some regulations have seen positive effects on society. The reform policy in states with marijuana being illegal, has it that people be jailed if found abusing drugs. The policy gives the criminals a second chance by providing treatment and rehabilitation which would see them better people after their jail term is over (Makin, David A., et al, pg. 12) This is a positive thing to the society since once freed they can educate the other substance users. Research shows that society is supporting such policies and recent study claimed that 67% of the Americans were in support of treatment policy on hard drug offenders.

Personal views on the drug, is that it is as any other narcotic substance the likes of heroin and LSD. There is care about states’ people whore are at risk of being arrested for either selling or using marijuana. This may be a pain treatment alternative also it will help people addicted to Opioids move away from addiction. Colorado has seen an increase in deaths, poison calls and road accidents related to marijuana (Makin, David A., et al., pg 9) Cases of corruption among the marijuana vendors has increased instead of decreasing. Some states have legalized marijuana and there are less positive effects of the legalization.

Addiction recovery, health treatment and creating public awareness is costly yet marijuana only contributed 1.8% to revenue collected despite expectations to increase the income. In conclusion, the state should rethink on the issue of legalizing marijuana, learn its positive and negative impacts and weigh between the two. The senators need to spend time with the parents, medical experts and learning institutions before rushing to legalize cannabis.

Works Cited

Auriol, Emmanuelle, Alice Mesnard, and Tiffanie Perrault. “Legalizing Cannabis to Fight Organized Crime.” (2018).

Hunt, J. “Marijuana Devastated Colorado, Don’t Legalize It Nationally.” USA Today (2017).

BIBLIOGRAPHY Laslo, Matt. “Elizabeth Warren: Jeff Sessions Acted as “Catalyst” for Weed Legalization by Matt Laslo.” 27 August 2018. RollingStone. article. 5 March 2019.

Makin, David A., et al. “Marijuana Legalization and crime clearance rates: testing proponent assertions in Colorado and Washington State.” Police quarterly (2018): 1098611118786255.

Vibia’s Diary in Prison and Reflection of Roman Empire

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Vibia’s Diary in Prison and Reflection of Roman Empire

Vibia Perpetua was a martyr in the Roman Empire who had strong Christian beliefs. Being a young mother at the age of 22 she decided to publicly show her Christian faith and actions together with other women for conviction of the beast of the arena. She was reported to have committed a crime of civil obedience and fighting which made her arrested and later prosecuted then sentenced to death. While in prison Vibia Perpetua wrote a diary explaining her experiences in the prison together with her fellow Christians. From the diary there is much to conclude about the roman empire and the leaders including the emperor who prosecuted Perpetua and her fellows to death (Perez, Melissa C. Pg 22). The diary helps us explore the relationship between Passio Sanctarum Martyrum Perpetua et Felicitatis and the roman empire.

The first thing to note from the diary was that the Roman empire was against Christianity. Despite the efforts by the martyrs and the roman setting provoking the rise of Christianity, if you were a Christian and declared it publicly then you had no place in the hearts of the Roman leaders. The fact that Perpetua was arrested for publicly declaring that she was a Christian is enough to tell us that in Rome you had to be silent to practice your faith. Emperor Severus was determined to silence Christianity since it was viewed to undermine roman culture and patriotism of the Romans (Perez, Melissa C. pg.23) We read on how her father begged her to accept that she was a Christian to avoid prosecution and gain freedom. Perpetua explains to us in her diary how her father begged her to give up and do as the Rome wanted but she did not. Quoting from her letter “‘My daughter, have pity on my white hairs! Show some compassion to your father if I deserve to be called father by you. If with these hands I have helped you to the flower of your youth, if I favored you beyond all your brothers – do not bring me into disgrace in all men’s eyes…” (Part I) All she did was to encourage him that things will go according to Gods will at the tribunal.

The Roman Emperors were highly respected by everyone and during trials people had to make sacrifices. Making sacrifices is something Vibia Perpetua vowed not to do. Many people including Vibia’s father respected and obeyed the emperors. Perpetua and her fellow Christian inmates exempted themselves from these kind of respect and sacrifices given to the leaders. They believed in God and as staunch Christians they would make no sacrifice but show respect to their religion. Her father again is the victim of Perpetua’s strong stands and during the next trial he begged again ‘Perform the sacrifice! Have pity on your child!’(Part II). The emperor too told her to have pity on her father who was old age and perform the sacrifice. ‘Spare your father’s old age, spare your little boy’s infancy! Perform the ritual for the Emperor’s welfare.’ (PART II) Performing the sacrifice was highly regarded by the emperors that’s why governor Hilarianus also did beg her to do the rituals but she refused since she was a Christian.

From her diary we get to understand the place of women in the Roman empire where their voices were less heard and many regarded them as illiterate. Being a noble woman Perpetua did not allow her stands to be controlled by men especially her father who was a pagan and asked her to deny being a Christian. From previous letters by other women and books about roman empire we know that women were to be under the support and guided by men thus Perpetua was to be exempted from such trial but because of her stands she had to take the consequences. (Bremmer, Jan N, and Marco Formisano. Pg. 38). Women being known to be submissive and respectful it was a shock to her family to learn that she was being prosecuted.

From the way the Emperor treated Vibia’s father we can say the roman empire was characterized by merciless leaders. We get questions of what was the reason of strucking her father after she had refused to perform the ritual if the case she was the one responsible and not her father. As soon as she admitted to the governor she was a Christian according to her letter, “And as my father still hovered, trying to deflect me, Hilarianus ordered him to be thrown out, and he was struck with a rod. And I grieved for my father’s downfall as if I’d been struck myself: that’s how I mourned for his pitiful old age” (Part III). At least for his old age he would be spared to suffer for his daughters stand since hovering was enough. The governor was merciless to the poor man.

. Lastly on the role of women we can say that noble women who were regarded not to breastfeed in the Roman Empire was a myth and something usual. Perpetua introduces her letter by addressing it to her child which show mother love she then later explains to us of the struggles she went through to breastfeed her child. She would get sores if she did not do so, the fact that she was allowed to breastfeed concludes that it was not an uncommon thin in the Roman Empire.in the society we need to have women who are pure on their stands and that is what Christianity entails.

Works Cited

Bremmer, Jan N, and Marco Formisano. Perpetua’s Passions: Multidisciplinary Approaches to the Passio Perpetuae Et Felicitatis. 2012. 

Perez, Melissa C. Vibia Perpetua’s Diary: A Woman’s Writing in a Roman Text of Its Own. Orlando, Fla: University of Central Florida, 2009.

Rea, Jennifer A, and Liz Clarke. Perpetua’s Journey: Faith, Gender, & Power in the Roman Empire.

Vibia Perpetua’s Diary

They say I say analysis.

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They say I say analysis.

English learners always think that academic writing is all about grammar, spelling, and structure which is not the case. College writing requires a lot of skills and knowledge on what to do. The book, They Say, I Say The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein is a good example of a text that explains this. The book has a great impact on how to write in many schools in the United States. According to Gerald, students make writing appear to be a hard task than it is thus the goal of the text is to make academic writing better by removing the mystery out of it (Graff, G., and Cathy B. pg. 2). These two authors help us to structure our work, think critically and make it interesting.

Reading the text, they say I say makes me feel smarter while reading it because I now know what to do after reading the book. First, through the templates, Gerald and Cathy enlighten me on how to explain and formalize counter-arguments, for example, I still insist that, though I concede with, and I believe that. This is counter arguments for the ‘I say ‘ while they say can be explained by, In recent discussions of, according to the explanation of, and in recent writings. From this templets, I feel I can argue and give explanations of something in a better way of making me smart. Also, as a writer, I feel motivated to write better as I understand that when presenting something you start with ‘they say’ then followed by ‘ say.’ This gives sense and creativity to my piece of writing giving me the urgency to write more.

From reading the text at the end of it, I feel bold enough to Write a book summary including ‘They say / I say ‘ many writers shy away from doing book summaries because they lack information on how to report someone’s work. First I clearly understand to write a good summary you have to put what ‘ they say’ in view. Readers are not at a position to follow what you are unfolding unless you keep reminding them of the claims you are reviewing. ‘ They say acts as a motivating comment to keep the audience following what you are presenting. Cathy also gives the art of summarising where she prefers balancing the author’s point of view and my point of view(Graff, G., and Cathy B. pg. 61). Also, the art of summarising involves suspending your thoughts and putting yourself in another person. The text explains that a good summary contains a focus that allows my agenda to fit while maintaining the originality of the text I am summarising. From these, I can ascertain to, give a good summary.

The audience for this book is teachers, students, and professional writers. After reading they say/ I say, the audience at large will feel enlightened because there are some tips on writing and reporting which they didn’t know and have now read them. The audience skills of writing will be improved from reading the text where they will know the order in which to report things and how to give An explanation of his or her work. You first introduce the ‘ they say ‘ then followed by your response. The texts enlighten its audience by further going ahead to give examples of how to introduce the statements both their own and the other party’s. An example of the templates is, In their recent work, Y and Z have offered harsh critiques of and issues (Graff, G.and Cathy B. pg. 22). From this, the students can relate and write a better article or blog. In the united states, many students and teachers have taken the ideas of Cathy and Gerald and applied it in different directions.

Teachers and instructors as an audience will feel their teaching made easier by the text since both the teacher and learner get the knowledge from the text. Students will know how to write their essays, and hence the teachers will receive quality work. ‘ They say/ I say ‘ has made teaching easier because the book gives explanations on how to write your own and report other people’s work. This makes education feel appreciated and that people are willing to add value to literature. The text is used widely in different courses which is heartening to the authors since they intended it to for the first year students (http://compositionforum.com/issue/18/they-say-i-say-review.php.) This shows that teachers feel their teaching will be easier by having the students reading the book. We can summarise by saying the book generally adds value to English and knowledge at large making people more bright and creative. Also, the audience feels challenged since many think English is all about grammar, spelling, and structure but now Gerald and Cathy add something new to it. The professionals and students are challenged to come up with a new piece of writing that will add some value to English an,d writing as the text did by opening and broadening our minds.

Besides the book being educative it has its high and low points, places where the reader feels the authors performed their best and where we feel the text was not performing its best. According to me, the book is performing its best when it tries to explain to the reader on how to respond to every situation giving examples by the use of templates. The book adheres to its title. They say I say where it teaches the students how to be creative on developing ideas on someone’s piece of work. For example, according to X, I agree with Y on his idea. With the idea of templates, the authors were creative in trying to explain to the reader what he or she is supposed to do (https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/tips-for-writing-they-say-i-say/2598428.html.). Learners need a place to start, and with the temples, I get to clearly understand the structure and how to make quality moves in my writing.

At the instructor guide, we can say the fourth edition is at its best by providing the teacher with more ideas on educating academic writing. The book is performing well at the point where it gives examples to explain each aspect of writing. For example, the summary of who is responsible for obesity in children which highlighted Zinczenko research and the writer’s argument (Graff, G., and Cathy B. pg. 52). Also giving examples of signal verbs to fit the action makes it easier for the reader to relate. Despite the book being of much help if find the text performing low by teaching the students on simplification of an argument, the authors encourage deliberate ignorance of the complex conversations. Templets allow students to get into a debate with a realizable form, which reduces the complex issues leading to discussions that represent deductable voices of the past conversations.

The book they say I say is responding to the things that matter in academic writing that many didn’t know. It gives an introduction to present an argument and how to write conversations relating to other people’s. I feel the two authors accomplished their aims since they gave ways on how to present an argument which is an issue with most students. They did tackle this by giving examples on when to use ‘they say’ and ‘I say’ giving ways to present it. Also examples of article summaries and practice techniques on ways to use quotes. The situation responded to is the fact that we all think English is about grammar and spelling but also creativity, structure and how we present our arguments (http://compositionforum.com/issue/18/they-say-i-say-review.php.). The authors make sure we understand all this and even gives practice exercise to help us familiarise and see if we understood. The book argues in teaching the students the rules and creative skills required in the art of writing.

The author tries to be persuasive making his work quality and one that can be read by everyone. From a rhetorical perspective, we can say that the boog is logic since it gives examples and summaries of works already in place, for example, the Zinczenko research on obesity. It uses examples of philosophers such as feminist Susan Bodo who laments that media is giving pressure on women to a diet which is still the case currently (Graff, G., and Cathy B. pg. 64). The work is logical since it explains current issues such as people referring to British and American culture as western culture.

Pathos, on the other hand, is observed when he gives an example of a class that is we are all middle class, and we are a nation of opportunity. This makes the reader feel that class divisions are a determining factor of the society we live in this divisions are real. The reader feels sorry for the society that classifies itself according to the social classes. Finally, the credibility of this work can be seen at the start of the book where over 1000 institutions are using this book in teaching and teachers have appreciated it (Graff, G., and Cathy B. pg. iv). The book is said to be selling across the world, and the authors of this book are a professor and a lecturer, Gerald Graff is a professor of English at the University of Illinois while Cathy Birkesten, a lecturer in English. As writers and English students, we need to embrace the text. They say I say and use it for reference purposes in writing our articles. Work Cited

Birkenstein, Cathy, and Cyndee Maxwell. They Say, I Say. Gildan Audio, 2014.

Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. “they Say / I Say”: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. , 2018.

http://compositionforum.com/issue/18/they-say-i-say-review.php.

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/tips-for-writing-they-say-i-say/2598428.html.

Paley’s Argument on Existence of God

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Paley’s Argument on Existence of God

There have been several arguments about the existence of God. Some consider God to be there and others consider the reverse. Among those who have tried to give people arguments about the existence of God is Paley. In his Design Argument, Paley is transferring his inference about the organization and design of watches to the organization and design of nature. In simple terms, his analogical argument is a comparison between two systems. Paley gives an inference conclusion towards the existence of God. The paper is going to focus on Paley’s argument that God exists.

Paley starts with an anthropic principle is that there is a direct link between our observation of the universe and the ‘boundary conditions’ which brought it into existence. William Paley’s argument claim that you can clearly distinguish rocks from objects that are designed for this case God designed human being unique.

The first part of Paley’s argument is that he puts forward the argument for design in the form of an analogy. If we come across a watch, we conclude that all parts fit together for a purpose and had not come into existence by chance. If we look at the world, we can infer design because of how things fit together for a purpose. Paley thought that a similar conclusion might be drawn from intricate mechanisms of the human body. He used the example of an eye and how it is adapted for sight. He argued this was God.

Design qua Regularity is the second argument Paley gives. He used evidence from astronomy and Newton’s law of motion and gravity to prove that there is design in the universe. Pointed to the rotation of the planets in the solar system, and how they obey the same universal laws, and hold their orbits because of gravity. This could not have come about by chance, and this must be through God.

He also gives the watchmaker analogy whereby, In crossing a heath, suppose one pitched his foot against a watch and was asked how the watch came to be there, one would give a direct answer of he does not know. He tells us that every indication of contrivance, every manifestation of design, which existed in the watch, exists in the works of nature; with the difference, on the side of nature, of being greater or more, and that in a degree which exceeds all computation. All these things happen through God.

When we look at human artefacts, we see evidence of complexity which requires explanation. We assume the existence of a designer or creator. Working on a principle of ‘like causes produce like effects,’ Paley concludes that what is true of human design, can also be said of nature and God. This complexity, purpose or regularity cannot have been brought by chance. Therefore, the best explanation is the existence of a divine intelligence designer and creator which is God. The analogy by Paley is valid from the way he presents his arguments. Possible to be compatible with the theory of evolution, which provides a mechanistic explanation of a system, but doesn’t provide a final explanation of why the system is set up as it is.

Reference

William Paley’s Argument on The Existence of God