Friday, January 31, 2020
Literacy in America Essay Example for Free
Literacy in America Essay America, the most technologically advanced and affluent of all nations on the earth, seems to have an increasingly larger illiteracy rate every year. This has become and continues to be a critical problem throughout our society as we know it. According to the National Adult Literacy survey, 42 million adult Americans cant read; 50 million are limited to a 4th or 5th grade reading level; one in every four teenagers drops out of high school, and of the students who graduate, one in every four has around an 8th grade education. Why? You ask. This problem will never fix itself and will take quite a bit of time to overcome. We need to make sure that everyone is aware of the social problems, poverty and lack of family interaction that occurs everyday in many, if not all, communities throughout America. â€Å"Nearly a billion people, two-thirds of them women, will enter this world unable to read a book or write their names, warns UNICEF in a new report, The State of the Worlds Children 1999. UNICEF, the United Nations Childrens Fund, points out that the illiterate live in more desperate poverty and poorer health than those who can read and write. (Boaz). The most important factor that contributes to the outrageous statistics of illiteracy is that of poverty. Poverty is an issue that more and more of our nations children are coming face to face with and the price they must pay is unbelievably high. Poverty is considered a major at-risk factor (Leroy 2001). The term at-risk refers to children who are likely to fail whether it 2 be at school or life in general because of their lifes social circumstances. Some of the factors that may place these children at-risk are: dangerous neighborhoods; young, uneducated parents; unemployment; and inadequate educational experiences. Teachers need to be aware of the circumstances that their students face and be able and ready to help these children find a balance between the cultural values that they may have and values emphasized in school. By providing emotional support, modeling, and other forms of scaffolding, teachers can help students use their strengths, skills, and knowledge to develop and learn ( Marlowe and Page,9). The United States prides itself on being a free, democratic state. Jonathan Kozol’s essay â€Å"The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society†states that the United States is not the democracy it claims to be. For democracy to work at its best, a true representation of the common interests and how the majority feels about those interests must be in place. According to Kozol, about â€Å"60 million people in the United States are illiterate. †For the United States to be the self-functioning democratic state it proclaims to be, it has to be a literate society. The people of the United States are not part of a democracy without the full capacity to make informed choices, and furthermore cannot reap the benefits that a democratic society has to offer if the best interests of the majority are not represented. Direct quote #2 (Madison)with signal phrase. Hypo-thetical example James Madison wrote that a â€Å"people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both†(Surowiecki, page 4). Voting is by far the most important aspect of a democratic society, and the percentage of people who do vote is a topic of much discussion here in the United States. If the number of people not voting is such a significant concern then the reasons they are not voting is 3 as well. An uneducated vote is not any better than a vote not cast at all. Imagine going to a voting booth and voting for a person or a ballot measure based on the ads you see on the TV only. In this circumstance, decisions are often made based on the negative ideas offered by both major political parties. If 60 million people in the United States cannot read, then they cannot cast a vote truly representative of their opinions. As Kozol claims, the United States has in fact become a government â€Å"of those two thirds whose wealth, skin color, or parental privilege allows them opportunity to profit from the provocation and instruction of the written word†(Kozol). The percentage of the population that is illiterate cannot choose which candidates make it onto the ballots, they cannot sign petitions, and they cannot choose which measures will pass or those that will fail. Direct quote #3 (Kozal), with signal phrase e. Of equal importance to a democratic society are the benefits that literacy provides to the public. When one is illiterate they are not able to reap the benefits of a free society. The freedom to choose enhances one’s chances of experiencing the best of anything. Illiteracy makes for a life of settling. An illiterate person has to settle for another’s interpretations of the world. According to the article ‘Democracy 101,†the ability to read opens a world that many people do not consider. The choice of where to live, what to eat, and where to work may all seem commonplace to the average literate person. Kozol uses the warning on a can of Drano in the opening of this essay to educate. It may take a moment for it to sink in but the reader will soon realize how much power reading and writing holds. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are supposed to be guaranteed to all citizens of this country. Those that cannot read or write do not have the capability to choose who are the best people suited for ensuring those rights. Perhaps more importantly the 60 million illiterate people in this country cannot make the choices necessary to make use of those rights (Kozol). References Boaz, David. Illiteracy The Bad News and the Good. Cato Institute. 20 Jan. 1999. Kim, J. K. NRRF Illiteracy: An Incurable Disease or Education Malpractice? Kozol, Jonathan, Illiteracy: The Enduring Problem. . Leroy. The Effects of Poverty on Teaching and Learning. 2001 Surowiecki, James. The Dangers of Financial Illiteracy in America. The New Yorker.
Thursday, January 23, 2020
The Clever Use of Diction in Mary Shellys Frankenstein :: essays research papers
Frankenstein is the story of an eccentric scientist whose masterful creation, a monster composed of sown together appendages of dead bodies, escapes and is now loose in the country. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelly’s diction enhances fear-provoking imagery in order to induce apprehension and suspense on the reader. Throughout this horrifying account, the reader is almost ‘told’ how to feel – generally a feeling of uneasiness or fright. The author’s diction makes the images throughout the story more vivid and dramatic, so dramatic that it can almost make you shudder. A clear example of the use of diction to provoke fear is seen in Chapter IV. Mary Shelley uses words such as â€Å"wretch†, â€Å"yellow skin†, â€Å"horrid†, â€Å"white sockets†and â€Å"shriveled†to describe the monster, thus making our stomachs churn. Later on, she uses words such as â€Å"livid†, â€Å"grave-worms†, â€Å"crawling†, â€Å"dim†and â€Å"convulsed†to describe a terrifying nightmare Victor Frankenstein, the main character, had had the night his monster came to life. Mary Shelley carefully picked which words to use when describing a certain object, place, or situation. She obviously knew what words would arouse our trepidation and make us quiver at the thought of such a horrifying description. Whether it’s because of the way the word fits in the sentence or because of the sound of it, words like â€Å"disturbed†and â€Å"chattered†simply make us feel uneasy. When the author was describing the petrifying appearance of the creature, she made sure to use words that would make us sick to our stomachs in order to get a really good idea across about how simply disgusting this now-animate creature was. She does this by explaining to us how the creature’s â€Å"yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath†. The thought of seeing something so sickening even makes us make a wry face and try to get the image out of our heads – and that’s exactly the reaction the author is hoping to see from us. This also helps us know how Mr.
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Complaint and Present Canteen Management
To       :         Mr. Hasnan bin Jalal, The Principal,                        Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Permata From  :      Malik bin Abdul Date   :         24 March 2011 Report about the School Canteen I am writing this report is to draw your attention regarding the school canteen. Many of the students of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Permata are unhappy about the conditions at the school canteen. There were lots of complaints regarding this issue. In the first place, there are insufficient tables and benches.Our school has a student population of over 1 000. There is only one period of recess time for all forms. More than 80 per cent of the students go to the canteen during recess to buy food and drinks. Unfortunately, there are only about twenty-five tables and fifty benches which can accommodate less than half the number of students. As a result, many students have to stand while eating. The food sold at the canteen not only expensive but lacks of variety. The menu is the same every day.For the past five years, ever since the present canteen management took over, students go back to the same food. The hygiene and preparation of food leave a lot to be desired. The food and drinks are not covered. They way canteen attendants dress speak volume about hygiene. With their lackadaisical attitude, the food they sell would one way or the other become contaminated. My fourth complaint about the canteen pertains to the etiquette of the canteen workers. They are rude and arrogant. They often shout at students.The students are always on the receiving end of their bad moods. We hope that conditions at the canteen will improve. The canteen should provide better amenities. There should also be a different menu everyday so that students will not have to taste the same food day in and day out. Cleanliness should be given top priority. We hope that you will look into our complaints and take steps to remedy the situation. The students are prepared to boycott the canteen if their complaints go unheeded. Reported by: Malik Malik bin. Mohd Jalil 314 words
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
Harry Harlow An American Psychologist Who Studied...
Introduction Harry Harlow (1905-1981) was an American Psychologist who studied monkeys and their behavior. His research paved the way to a better understanding of human behavior. Dr. Harlow’s research also helped to better understand the psychology of children. This essay will discuss Dr. Harlow’s background, education, social influence, historical significance, and major contributions in the study of psychology. Background Early Childhood Harry Harlow’s original last name was Israel, and he was born on Halloween in 1905. He grew up in Fairfield, Iowa. His parent’s names were Mabel Rock and Alonzo Israel. He had four brothers, and grew up in a small farming community. He later changed his last name to Harlow in 1930 when he†¦show more content†¦Career After receiving his Doctorate, Dr. Harlow became employed at the University of Wisconsin. He was an outstanding professor who reveled in educating students in psychology. He aided several students in obtaining their PhD as well. His students thought very highly of him. Lack of funding restricted Harlow of a functioning laboratory. With the assistance of his graduate students, he found a vacant building that was renovated. This lab became his â€Å"Primate Laboratory†. This was the first of its kind at that time. Throughout his career, Harry was recognized with several honors, which included the Gold Medal from American Psychological Foundation (LeRoy, 2008). Personal Life Harry Harlow married his student, Clara in the early 1930’s. Clara and Harry had two sons together before they divorced in 1946. Soon after his divorce from Clara, he married a child psychologist named Margaret. They also had two children together. Margaret, sadly died from cancer in 1971, which led Harlow to become deeply depressed. He was treated with electro-convulsive therapy. In 1972, he remarried Clara, and they remained a couple until his death in 1981 in Tucson, Arizona. Contributions in Psychology Experiments Harry Harlow’s main focus in his research was to understand the human behavior of love and relationships and how it intertwined as a humanistic need. His experiments were performed in his â€Å"Primate
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