Response 2

 I agree that transgender youths receive unequal healthcare simply because healthcare providers do not recognize their unique needs.  They are discrimination in all aspects of life due to their sexual orientation.  Discrimination affects their life in that they suffer from depression and self-destructive behaviors (Russell & Fish, 2016).  To make the matter worse, they are vulnerable to sexual abuse, and they experience homelessness.  I support your views that this is an issue that needs to be dealt with by creative cohesive plan.  All stakeholders including parents, medical personnel, physicians, community, policymakers, and others should be at the forefront to solve the social inequalities (Russell & Fish, 2016).  Healthcare institutions should conduct a health assessment and provide effective interventions to improve the health of transgender youth.

  I also think that it is important to consider other protective factors to ensure that transgender youth develops as productive adults.  Note that suicidal thoughts, depression, and destructive behaviors are influenced by many factors including exclusion in community, at school and other settings (Russell & Fish, 2016).  Therefore, I think that apart from addressing this issue in a healthcare setting, it is important to build a protective school environment.  I propose that there should be anti-bullying laws in schools to reduce victimization. Secondly, I believe that students-run organizations such as the gay-straight alliance (GSA­) will allow transgender youth to participate in the school-based clubs and they will have self-expression and eventually, the clubs will act as a strategy to reduce prejudice (Russell & Fish, 2016).  In addition, GSA will give transgender youth a sense of belonging and they will engage themselves in constructive things and improve psychological health.  Third, I think that there should be an inclusive curriculum in school to allow transgender youth to engage in interpersonal relationships and develop a sense of safety.  Parents, friends, and the community should offer social support to transgender youth so that they can reduce minority stress, reduce suicide attempts, and develop high self-esteem (Russell & Fish, 2016).  The social support will also encourage the transgender youth to come out and disclose their status and this will lead to psychosocial adjustment

Reference

 Russell, S. T., & Fish, J. N. (2016). Mental health in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender

(LGBT) youth. Annual review of clinical psychology, 12, 465-487.

Is Schooling Conducive to Learning?

           Learning is the process of acquiring skills and knowledge through experience, which can occur in schools and other areas that facilitates it. However, the ability of the learners to score As in their assessment is thought to mean they are more knowledgeable about what they learned. Unfortunately, some students who score good grades are unable to recall the least of what they learn in class a month or even a week after the test. Although the passing of a test means being aware of what was taught, it might not be the case for everyone. Besides, it depends on how individuals express. This is because the skills and knowledge acquired from it are only valuable to them. This paper will shed light on whether schooling is conducive to student learning.

           In the United States, teaching and learning take place through a simple process. Information is passed from teachers to students within a timeframe of 15 to 45 minutes in schools. However, the process varies from one institution to another (Youell, 2018). Besides, a significant section of what students learn in class is forgotten after the test since it cannot be assessed again, and thus, they focus on new information. Therefore, it is clear that the education system does not only help in improving the awareness of individual but also it acts as an obstruction to gaining good knowledge.

           Furthermore, the mind of a normal human being tends to forget things slowly, especially when it is not applied. This is the case in the education system of the United States because it mainly prepares learners to pass exams as opposed to gaining knowledge that they can utilize. Besides, a lot of information is fed on the students, which then increases the possibility of forgetting and retaining very little from what is taught. Additionally, information is delivered to the students within a short period, which increases pressure and adds fear to the student's minds (Muhammad et al. 2018). In this case, slow learners tend to be left behind with high chances that they might not be able to catch up with the rest. It is worth to note that effective learning takes place in a conducive environment where there is enough time, resources, and interest of the students. The current measures in the education system, therefore, does not make schooling conducive for learning.

           Also, the learning approach used currently in schools does not enable students to comprehend everything they are taught. Due to that, students have shifted to seeking their approach to facilitating their understanding. Furthermore, schools blame the students when they fail or forget revising the strategy they use in teaching them. This is likely to reduce the motivation of the students, which is a crucial element in promoting the learning process. Consequently, the self-esteem of the students will be reduced, thus, they might not be able to realize their full potential in academics

           The grading system and the rate at which students are given homework in schools are not learning-friendly. They develop a need for satisfying teachers rather than promoting learning. Schools are supposed to create a pleasant learning environment for students, but too many assignments tend to shift the focus on understanding something new to working on the homework to please teachers. Also, the pressure to get As together with a lot of tests makes students lose interest in the school, which then harms the learning process (Granvik Saminathen et al.  2019). On the other hand, grading creates division among students, with others feeling more superior or inferior among their peers, which then demotivates.

           I believe that the utilization of grading as a reflection of student performance does not correctly give effective data on students' understanding of what they were taught. Besides, I disagree with the common assumption that learning institutions offer the students the skills and knowledge they can apply in real-life situations. Therefore, other strategies need to be employed to promote the delivery of information and the development of good knowledge and skills instead of going to schools. I think there are better methods that can be used to create interest, motivates students, and give a conducive environment than schooling. Besides, the school environment has changed learning from a choice to a routine, which is not supposed to be the case in the current modern society (Sharma-Brymer and Bland, 2016). For example, students need to be familiarized with essential of learning; however, the best approach for this cannot be through schooling.

           Conclusively, learning is an essential component in today's society that needs to be highly considered. However, the current schooling system in the United States has not been established well to promote learning as it is supposed to be. The schools which were founded to enhance learning and impact students with the necessary information have strayed from their ideal purpose. It is worth to note that education is our way of living and the future depends on it. Therefore, the schooling system needs to be seriously examined, and students taught about the value of education in their lives, which is greater than just getting good grades.

References

Granvik Saminathen, M., Brolin Låftman, S., Almquist, Y. B., & Modin, B. (2018). Effective schools, school segregation, and the link with school achievement. School effectiveness and school improvement, 29(3), 464-484.

Muhammad, H. A., Ya'u, S., Aliyu, U. I., & Hassan, M. (2018). Teaching and learning English language in Nigerian schools: importance and challenges. Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies, 3(1), 10-13.

Sharma-Brymer, V., & Bland, D. (2016). Bringing nature to schools to promote children’s physical activity. Sports Medicine, 46(7), 955-962.

Youell, B. (2018). The learning relationship: Psychoanalytic thinking in education. Routledge.

 Youths Should Co-Design School Based Civic Curriculum

Many self-governing nations around the world are in distress, what is being called the fear of politics or democracy deficit. This is a result of deterioration in traditional systems of political commitment, membership to the political parties and voter turnout that keeps falling. One theme that is central to these problems is the issue of the young people being disengaged politically. This cannot really be described to be a new issue; there have been arguments all over the globe about the need for more civic education for the young people. The main argument in regard to the need for more civic education is that people are no longer capable enough to be citizens or to even participate in politics (Chou & Gagnon, 2017). Schools, families and community based organizations that are key institutions have failed greatly in the refinement of basic civic dispositions and skills by not involving the youths in civic decision making process. The society fails to understand that young people are the leaders of tomorrow and they understand issues affecting the society much better because these are things that are affecting them. This exclusion is wrong, it is what brings about the issue of youth political disengagement and is an insufficient policy making practice.

Many young people today feel like they are poorly represented when it comes to matters of important decision making most especially on matters that directly affect their lives. Whether it is at the regional or the national levels, the young people convey a sense of exclusion from community debates and this is because young people are not respected and trusted to help create policies that are beneficial to them (Bovill et al., 2009). If democratic citizenship is to be revitalized and sustained, levels if civic education and information need to be increased and this can only be done by experts in the education sector. It is not easy for people to comprehend political happenings or to even integrate new data in to a prevailing frame work if they do not possess the elementary level of civic knowledge (Chou & Gagnon, 2017). Civic knowledge is significant, and it can help residents to understand their benefits in political procedures and the way that they can promote their interests more successfully.

In Australia for instance, most of the young people have no interest in political matters. A study conducted in the years 2018 showed that students between the ages of 6 to 10 years do not understand Australian politics and their main interests were on overseas political structures (Zyngier, 2019). In Australia, the traditional approach to civic education is isolated to only learning about the formal political structures (Briggs, 2011, Zyngier, 2019). This is a single unit that is studies in both the primary and secondary education, meaning that students do not have an opportunity to clearly understand politics and their importance to the society. The range, complexity and eminence of educational constituents that are available in educational institutions are lacking greatly (Briggs, 2011). This has led to a non-critical appreciation and valuation of what democracy is all about and how it should be for the students.

School based civic education can greatly aid to construct a classroom setting that inspires respectful debates of civic and political matters in ways that help to nurture civic awareness and commitment. A categorical focus on learning about polling and votes increases the possibility that a young person will take part in political actions like the elections once they reach the voting age (Bessant, et al., 2016). There are those that argue that schools are not significant players in development of civic engagement. The argument is that schools are structured in such a manner that they replicate social economic settings that shape political morals and outlooks (Healey et al., 2014). This argument is however wrong, an innovative tactic to designing of the curriculum can be assumed including co-designing a democratic curriculum that can help to improve policy maker experts

The practice of what they call ‘co-design’ as a section of what is known as citizen centred revolution in public administration is becoming increasingly popular among many government agencies (Chou & Gagnon, 2017). The main aim of this is to try and improve customer service and relations between the providers and the clients. The element that supports this policy shift is the perception that the people that are most affected by a policy are the ones that should be given the greatest say in its implementation.  Policies that are made in matters to do with education affects children and the young people, this then means that these are the people that should participate greatly in their implementation (Bessant, et al., 2016). By giving the young people a chance to participate in the policy making of educational policies; it helps to ensure that the programs and the services within the policies are organized around the needs and priorities of these people rather than the needs of the government. Co-design is an effective structure in that it is interactive in nature; it is based on a mutually dependent partnership between the citizens and the government (Healey et al., 2014). These two parties are expected to show respect, trust, openness and responsibility.

One feature that is still prevalent in the educational practices is the fact that curriculums are largely drafted by the adult specialists. In most of the countries, the curriculum is normally devised by the state run education organizations that are stereotypically controlled by multifaceted administrative and responsibility necessities (Bessant, et al., 2016). Such situations render the students to have very marginal review roles. The students are subordinated to the teachers and the curriculum experts who do not understand the students’ civic interests as young people (Bessant, et al., 2016)..  There are many obstacles that face any move that is made to try and change to co-design a civic curriculum.

Co-design is a significant policy revolution that has the prospective to profit both the young persons and the high-ranking programme, and syllabus expert who work in partnership with them on issues affecting the youths (Bessant, et al., 2016). Co-design is directly capable of influencing the societies and the lived experiences of the young people. This has a positive impact on the way these young people engage in civic education that they receive. It is mostly motivated by the fact that they contributed in its design and implementation. The young people appreciate a co-designed school based civic curriculum because they perceive it to be their own (Hartung, 2017). Young people about political contribution and concepts of equality much better when they are given an opportunity to put it into practice within their communities and also in their schools. Young people are only understand what a responsible citizen is all about when they are empowered to exercise control over their own lives by making decisions about concerns affecting them (Bovill et al., 2012).

A school can be defined to be a transformative institution in that it can either help or hinder the process of a young person becoming a responsible citizen. A school can emphasize on the principles from the practice of co-design in order to encourage students into school wide governance boards and committees, all which offer civic education (Bovill et al., 2009). Though schools cannot be democratic, they can create opportunities that permit the students to take part in decision making especially on matters regarding school budgets, the curriculum and other important policies.

It is important to note that a school is a setting that can help the young people to practice and develop abilities while experiencing the values that are necessary in sustaining a democratic society. Many higher education institutions have openly stated the graduate qualities that they wish their students to cultivate and devotion to this attributes is repeatedly paid (Bovill et al., 2012). The institutions try to provide the opportunities as well as the experiences that can help enable the students to develop global citizenship. However, many scholars all around the world continue to struggle, unable to identify opportunities that can help the students to learn about egalitarianism by practising egalitarian values (Hartung, 2017). The best way this can be achieved is by promoting the contribution of the students in processes of making decisions about their school affairs for instance promotion of student motivation and participation.

One problem that is noted in student participation and inclusion in co-designing of the curriculum is that it is restricted to a selected group of students. This is a limiting factor because only the students that are given an opportunity to participate recognize the benefits of participation. Participation chances in a school situation with all the students engaged is more efficient than that one that only considers the student councils, who are a group of selected individuals (Head, 2011). Students develop citizenship qualities when they reflect on knowledge and experiences that were previously acquired. The process of developing and negotiating learning questions with their teachers as well as their peers help them to develop democratic interests and it motivates them to get to understand much better and to also participate in political matters more often (Head, 2011).

The young people are defined to be the leaders of tomorrow, leaders that need to mentored and shaped right from when they are young so that they can understand every concept in democracy. Co-design of school based civic curriculum is the best model in that it gathers and constructs on the knowledge and abilities in techniques that help to uphold the eminence of the youths as ethical political proxies.  Co-design offers educators an opportunity to understand the political world of their scholars, and to collaboratively work with them in techniques that are in favour of the growth of more democratic civilizations and performances. Co-designing can similarly help to create a curriculum that will superiorly enlighten the policy developers about the genuine dogmatic profile and undertakings of the young people. This will greatly help to counter the assumptions that young people are apolitical, self-absorbed and lack interest in civil undertakings.

References

Bessant, J, Farthing, R, & Watts, R 2016, ‘Co-Designing a Civics Curriculum:

Young People, Democratic Deficit and Political Renewal in the EU’, Journal of

Curriculum Studies, vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 271-289.

Bovill, C, Cook-Sather, A & Felten, P 2011, ‘Students as Co-Creators of Teaching

Approaches, Course Design, and Curricula: Implications for Academic Developers’, International Journal for Academic Development, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 133-145.

Bovill, C, Morss, K & Bulley, CJ 2009, ‘Should Students Participate in Curriculum Design?’,

            Pedagogical Research in Maximising Education, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 11-26.

Briggs, L 2011, ‘Co-Design: Toward a New Service Vision for Australia?’,

            PublicAdministration Today, vol. 25, pp. 35-47.

Chou M & Gagnon, JP 2017, ‘Chapter 6: Co-Designed: A New Approach to Civics and

Citizenship’, in M Chou, J Gagnon, C Hartung & LJ Pruitt (eds),Young People, Citizenship and Political Participation. Combatting Civic Deficit?, London: Rowman & Littlefield International Ltd, pp. 123-142

 Hartung, C 2017, ‘Chapter 3: Civics and Citizenship Education: Defender or Divider or

Democracy?’, in M Chou, J Gagnon, C Hartung & LJ Pruitt (eds), Young People, Citizenship and Political Participation. Combatting Civic Deficit?, London: Rowman & Littlefield International Ltd, pp. 55-76.

Head, B 2011, ‘Why Not Ask Them? Mapping and Promoting Youth Participation’, Children

            and Youth Services Review, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 541-547.

Healey, M, Flint, A & Harrington, K 2014, ‘Engagement through Partnership: Students as

Partners in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education’, The Higher Education Academy, July. Avilable [Online] https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/engagement-through-partnershipstudentspartners-learning-and-teaching-higher-education.

Stevenson, N 2011, ‘Introduction’, in Education and Cultural Citizenship, London: Sage

            Publication, pp. 1-15.

Zyngier, D. (2019, October 15). The great curriculum debate: how should we teach civics?

Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/the-great-curriculum-debate-how-should-we-teach-civics-7452.

School Uniform Should Be Banned In Schools

The debate on whether schools should have school uniform is one that has been going on for years. There is that assumptions in most societies that students need uniforms in order to help deal with the issue of inequality in schools. The society believes that having a uniform helps to bring some form of balance where students from all social levels are brought to one level by the uniform. While a part of this may be true, most of it is wrong and societies are misled by these believes. Uniforms are not good for students; they only help present the school as a standard institution. Uniforms bring about many issues that affect the main objective of the schools which is education.

Uniforms limit freedom of expression for the students

One reason uniforms should not be allowed is because they limit the right of expression for the students. Dress code for teenagers serves many purposes one of them being a form of expression, many teenagers choice of clothes is their way of speaking their mind (Underwood, 2018). There are those that will choose to wear clothes with a specific message for instance a shirt with a ‘no violence against children’ message on it. This student is trying to speak against an important issue in the society; this is a message that could help change the mind-set of the society. Forcing this child to remove the shirt and wear a uniform is violating their right to free speech and it will impact on their self-esteem. The teenage is a phase where young people learn to be themselves, this is the phase that determines one’s strengths as well as weaknesses.

Uniforms do not reduce bullying in schools

There are arguments that having uniforms helps to reduce the issue of bullying. A percentage of bullying is normally because of dress code, but the highest percentage is based on other elements that do not involve dress code. Having a uniform may actually accelerate the issue of bullying given that not everyone will look good in these uniforms (Aghasaleh, 2018). A child that used to be bullied because they have bigger bodies will not stop being bullied after the uniform is introduced. These students may actually experience more bullying because the uniforms exaggerate their body types making them look even bigger. Such students can easily dress their body types and look good without limitations; they can use their choice of clothes to speak their mind. They can use their mode of dressing to speak against bullying in schools and to also encourage other students to appreciate their bodies. A uniform can greatly encourage bullying and limit student’s choices of speaking against bullying, making them feel trapped.

Uniforms limit preparation of students for life challenges

School uniforms limit the ability of students to adapt to shifting social standards and contexts, all this are important skills that will serve them as adults. The action of choosing their school wear every morning prepares the students for life as adults where they will be required to understand which outfit fits which occasion whether it is a job interview, a promotion or just a fun day out (Paige, & Lucas, 2018). Wearing uniforms do not really facilitate this; all they provide is a conformist solution that does not apply in the diverse standards of the social life out in the world. Choosing their own clothes allows them to confront a range of visible social groups, economic classes, ethnic and religious traditions that they are bound to face in the world (Paige, & Lucas, 2018). The conflicts that they face can lead to segregation but they also help in inspiring the child to appreciate diversity and engage in critical thinking.

Uniforms limit the chances of students enjoying their teenage life

Uniforms are always assumed to help teach students how to dress appropriately once they are grown up and have jobs. This assumption is wrong, having strict dressing policies affects students negatively in that it does not help them adapt to dressing for different situations. Uniforms limit students, who as earlier stated in a stage where they need to explore and try out new things in life (Aghasaleh, 2018). When student wear uniforms they feel so over whelmed with always looking so formal and this may affect their choice of careers. There are those students who would want to be in professions that require formal dress codes, but they may think twice about going into that field because they do not want to continue dressing formally all their lives. Having uniforms does not guarantee that the students will adapt the culture of formal dressing when they get jobs. Some of these students may be reluctant to wear formal clothing as their job requires all because they want to experience the concept of dressing freely that was limited to them when they were young. Uniforms may have negative impacts on the choice of careers and also on the choice of clothes that the students prefer once they are adults.

Uniforms limit conversations between parents and the students at home

When children are at their teen age phase, the relationship between them and their parents tend to change. Very little conversations take place between them and arguments over clothes offers the opportunity for these conversations (Hobbs, 2019). Most of the arguments that young people have with their parents is over clothes, this gives them an opportunity to express their identity and values. These arguments facilitate maturity because they allow them to understand that they can express their needs as individuals. Children concentrating on fashion prevent them on engaging on other unethical activities like experimentation with drugs.

Uniforms limit freedom of religious expression for the students

Different religions have varied symbols of expressions that do not comply with the school dressing codes. There have been many cases of students not being allowed to wear various attires that symbolise their faith; a good illustration of this is the Wiccan religion that requires its followers to wear a pentagram (Paige, & Lucas, 2018). Another illustration is with Muslim religion where the girls are expected to put on a hijab, which do not conform to school dress codes. Federal policies clearly dictate freedom of religious expression for all and this includes even the students (Paige, & Lucas, 2018). Many symbols of religion violate do not really fit into a school uniform and this may limit the students’ right to express their religious faith. Having uniforms can cause lot of wrangles between school administration and various religions as they fight for their rights, which can end up disrupting education and impact negatively on the students.

Uniforms limit the monitoring of gangs among the students

The choice of clothes for students can greatly illustrate their behaviours, this means that gang affiliations can be very easy to monitor. Gang members often wear particular clothes and symbols and so the arguments for school uniforms are that they help to eliminate gangs (Hobbs, 2019). This is however wrong, a school uniform cannot eliminate gangs because the gang can come up with other form of symbols like tattoos to represent their gang. Allowing own choice of clothes for students can allow the school administrators and the parents to understand if their children are involved in a gang,  and come up with much better strategic ways to do away with the gangs in schools.

Uniforms cause budget burden on parents and schools

Uniforms are expensive, given that a student will require having more than one pair and they will have to be replaced every now and then when they get small or when get worn out. A parent having more than one student will incur a lot of expenses getting uniforms for all the students and this may not be easy for low income families (Hobbs, 2019). The parents will be strained in having to buy their children school uniforms and other clothes for wearing when they are at home, all which is unnecessary if they were allowed to wear own choice of clothes. Students from these families may be affected psychologically because they may feel like they are a burden to their families, which may result in a lot of them dropping out. Schools may also be affected financially, because the Department of Education indicates that schools should provide financial aid for low income families that cannot afford the uniforms (Hobbs, 2019). The schools will hence be forced to add on to their already burdened budget and this can mean draining money from their technological or academic needs. All this problems can be evaded by allowing students to wear their clothes of choice.

Uniforms increase social status division in schools

School uniforms can help emphasize social economic divisions that are they are supposed to eliminate. Most schools that implement mandatory uniforms are those that in poor neighbourhoods with the thinking that it will help eliminate the concept of inequality (Tarshis, 2011). The sad fact is that the quality of clothing cannot hide the differences between the students that come from affluent families and those that come from poor families. The students from affluent families tend to have many pairs of uniforms so their uniforms are always in good condition, while the students from poor families have one or two pairs meaning that they wear out fast and they are not replaced (Underwood, 2018). The students from poor families are therefore forced to live in embarrassment going to school in tattered uniform, which affects their self-esteem and their academic performance.

Uniforms are Sexist

Uniforms are sexist in nature, they only target the way that females dress and most of the uniforms that are advocated for are not easily available for women as they are for men. The argument for why most of the clothes worn by the girls are banned is because they are argued to cause distraction on the men (Aghasaleh, 2018).  Most uniforms are required to cover the cleavage and the thighs to avoid sexual distractions on the boys. Girls wear these type of clothing because they help them feel comfortable and beautiful, banning them takes away their comfort and it passes on the message that boys deserve to be more comfortable than girls. Uniforms are sexist in that they imply that the education of boys is more important that of the girls and that is why boys need to be made comfortable by banning any sort of clothing that can distract their learning (Aghasaleh, 2018). Schools should focus more on providing sex education to students; teach them the concept of self-control instead of punishing the girl student for the sake of the boy student.

Uniforms Motivate Body shaming among the students

Girls as compared to men have very varied body shapes; the teenage age is an essential time for growth most especially for the girls. This is the time when the female body transforms and takes its shape; a uniform is not structured to meet the needs of every body shape (Hobbs, 2019). There are those who will be lucky to have uniform fit them well and hence follow the school dressing regulations. There are however other students whom the uniform may be too tight causing them to show some cleavage. These students may end getting punished because of something that is not their fault, this can cause some confuse to the student causing them to have self-esteem issues (Tarshis, 2011). The fingertip rule that is applied in most school uniform policies may not always be effective. This policy illustrates that the skirt of the student should be longer than the fingertips when their hands are down at the sides (Aghasaleh, 2018). A student that has long legs and short arms may end up getting punished by getting forced to wear shorts and skirts that are longer than their liking and vice versa. All these distinctions in the uniforms can negatively affect the esteem of a child that is important during this growing phase.

Uniforms serve the interest of retailers than the students

Uniforms only serve the interests of the retailers rather than the students, most students prefer regular clothing to the uniforms. The students are the ones that have to wear the uniforms; they are the ones that understand the negatives and positives of having the uniforms. They should hence be the ones allowed to give their opinions rather than the adults that have been left as the decision makers in this matter. More than $1 billion is spent each year within U.S on school uniforms and apparel items to help meet mandatory dress codes (Underwood, 2018). Retailing brands such as JC Penny and Lands’ End have indicated that they spend a lot of money each year marketing their items to schools. The current Mandatory uniform policy was funded in whole by the brands that create student wear products so that they can continue to benefit at the expense of the students’ needs (Underwood, 2018).

Conclusion

The issue of school uniforms in schools is one that needs to be critically looked into. Teenagers are old enough to understand what they need in their life, making their own dressing choices is one of the first steps in helping children to start making their own decisions. Denying students the chance to make their own choices in regard to clothing bounds their readiness for the real world where they are required to make important life decisions. Uniforms limit the chances of teenagers being critical thinkers and also limit their rights of expression. It is time that policy makers consider the needs of the students before implementing any form of policies that affect them. The students are the ones that have to wear the uniforms and so it is only right that they are allowed to express their views on the issue.

References

Aghasaleh, R. (2018). Oppressive Curriculum: Sexist, Racist, Classist, and Homophobic

Practice of Dress Codes in Schooling. Journal of African American Studies, 22(1), 94–108. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-018-9397-5

Hobbs, T. D. (2019, July 15). Schools Relax Dress Codes in Bid to End Body Shaming. Wall

Street Journal - Online Edition, p. 1. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=137462336&site=ehost-live

Paige, & Lucas. (2018). Should Students Wear Uniforms? Two friends face off in the debate.

Scholastic Scope, 66(8), 24–25. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=129308331&site=ehost-live

Tarshis, L. (2011). School Uniforms: Awesome--or Awful? Scholastic Scope, 60(5), 22–23.

Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=67722756&site=ehost-live

Underwood, J. (2018). School uniforms, dress codes, and free expression: What’s the

balance? Phi Delta Kappan, 99(6), 74–75. https://doi.org/10.1177/0031721718762429

 The Value of Higher Education

Abstract

            Higher entrepreneurship education serves to equip learners with skills and functional knowledge that will enable them to build on their attitude, character, and vision. Through it, individuals have acquired different skills in communication, developing business strategy, leadership and team management, abilities to work with teams, time management, work ethics, data analysis, and problem-solving. These are necessary that are inevitable for business because it forms the central part of its success. They can also be applied in vast areas, including the financial department, Information technology, and other departments. The skills can also be used in career improvement through networking, setting goals, and seeking other individuals' help. Besides, higher education provides benefits to the citizens in the growth of income, reduction of poverty and unemployment rates among the vulnerable population, promoting better health, and bringing unity among the people. In my educational journey, I learned some things that I want others to emulate, for example, time management and to work with others. Furthermore, the maintenance of life-long learning will involve prioritization, reflection, action learning, learning through curiosity, reinforce the knowledge by teaching others, insight concentration, and exercise.

Keywords: Higher education, entrepreneurship skills, benefits higher education, career improvement, and life-long learning maintenance

Introduction

            Entrepreneurship has been growing over the years, with a significant number of people enrolling in the related education field. Besides, it has also become one of the most potent things in the creation of a job and raising the strength of both labor markets and the economy. The industrial revolution created the need for individuals to have the necessary skill and improve on creativity, agility, and innovation (Altbach, Reisberg & Rumbley, 2019). Due to that, institutions have shifted to the provision of entrepreneurial training programs keeping in mind that the skills can be taught.

Skills acquired from higher education

            Higher education can instill individuals with various skills that can be applied daily in business environments. It boosts understanding of the business strategies. This is a set of actions, plans, and goals that a business intends to carry out to promote its success (Din, Anuar & Usman, 2016). Although its development and implementation are sometimes challenging, higher education helps individuals in understanding ways of establishing a good strategy that involves careful planning, having necessary knowledge concerning the market, and a precise definition of the organizational goals.

            Besides, higher education provides individuals with the ability to develop problem-solving skills. In business, numerous issues may arise that require power because challenges are inevitable. Also, the problems can be easy to solve with others becoming huge to the extent that it may interfere with goal attainment or the meeting the business objectives (Din, Anuar & Usman, 2016). Thus, having these skills brings a better understanding of the situation, provides alternatives to solving the issue, and finally, ways in which the chosen solution will be implemented.

            Higher education also enables individuals to develop a teamwork ability. In today’s business working environment, collaborative roles are common as employees are encouraged to work together to attain the goals of the organization or the business. With this, there is a need to have practical teamwork skills to facilitate better adaptation to working with others (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). This will involve accepting responsibilities for one's work, being receptive to the suggestion and ideas of other workmates, building rapport with staff within the firm, and practicing effective communication to reduce chances for duplication of work.

            Furthermore, communication skills are one of the crucial ones that are highly required in the current business sector. It is among the essential employability skills, and it has two main categories, which include verbal communication and written communication. This skill is crucial due to frequent application in ordinary business operations. It can involve sharing information with a customer, a colleague, and other stakeholders that form part of the business, for example, the external environment (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). However, the information delivered in business might not always be clearly understood; thus, having excellent communication skills will improve the clarity, and facilitate the proper delivery of ideas, which then helps in reducing issues of confusion resulting from miscommunication.

            Also, higher education gives individuals time management skills. This enables the entrepreneurs or the workers to have a good plan of their time and what activities to perform at specific points. This skill can increase productivity. Besides, it purely entails planning for the day, reducing distractions and performance of regular reviews to ensure that progress is being made (Din, Anuar & Usman, 2016). However, the most significant factor that must be considered is the prioritization that is gained from experience.

            Additionally, work ethic is also a skill that is crucial in business. It is often considered to be part of personal values. From higher education, individuals are taught on ethical issues in business, which then can be applied by individuals. For example, taking initiatives and caring about other colleagues at work. Besides, learning new skills, being responsible for the decisions and actions, and individual takes regardless of the consequences and showing commitments to the employer shows a good work ethic (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). This skill can be applied anywhere within the business environment, and it is an essential factor for the success of a firm.

            Leadership and team management is also another skill that can be acquired from the institutions of higher learning. It involves the motivation of others and taking charge to attain specific goals of the organization, team, or at the individual level (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). With this skills, an individual will be able to delegate duties and effectively manage groups, plan and coordinate different activities in the business, solving of problems and conflict resolutions and implement decisions that promote the growth of the firm

            Also, data analysis skills are crucial in today’s economy, which has seen rapid advancement in technology. It involves the identification of patterns to having an understanding of the customer metrics. Although the complexity of analysis depends on the firm, the ability to evaluate information effectively is crucial, and it serves to contribute to the success of the business (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). Besides, the aptitude for interpreting information, the creation of reports, and the extraction of results is a valuable skill that an employee needs to be equipped with. This skill can be applied in IT, marketing, and sales as well as in finance.

Application of the skills to improve Career

            Improvement of careers is a vital thing for human beings because it promotes professional development. With the skills achieved from higher education, it will be essential to set a career goal. Currently, various career options are available to pick from in the market, but, it will be necessary first to have a better understanding of individual strengths and weaknesses (Humburg & Van der Velden, 2017). Setting career goals and working the best way to achieve them will require proper decision making, communication with other individuals in the sector, and working with other individuals to make them.

            Besides, continuous learning is also crucial in career development. With skills in technology, learning can be achieved through the numerous available resources on the internet. Taking up online courses can also be done because of the efficiency and flexibility it has as opposed to the traditional methods of learning (Kucel & Vilalta-Bufí, 2016). Skills on technology which also involve data collection and analysis will promote a better understanding of the right sources and the necessary data to learn from the massive information present on the internet currently.

            Communication skills are a basic necessity to create networking, which is crucial in career development. With these skills, it will be easy to have effective communication with other individuals, such as former colleagues or even alumni groups (Kucel & Vilalta-Bufí, 2016). This is essential because career development also depends on the ability to reach out to people and marketability. With the presence of platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook, it is today more comfortable to reach people more and also have an understanding of industry trends.

            Other factors including utilization of the skills such as communication skills and ethical skills to seek help from others or to look for a mentor to help in improving one's career (Jain, Chaudhary & Jain, 2016). Besides, proper grooming is also crucial, though it has no direct connection with the job, it influences the way other people think. This can be gained through appropriate interaction with others. Most employers hire based on their perception towards and employee, and in this case, appearance is critical.

Opportunities for Higher Education

            Higher education provides opportunities both for individuals and society. Some of the personal benefits include; earning higher income for both men and women of all ethnic and cultural sets. Besides, there has been a significant increase in the earning gap in college and university graduates (Ma, Pender & Welch, 2016). To society, higher education is more likely to reduce levels of poverty and the current employment rates experienced. From this, the government will be able to generate more revenues. Also, there is a low dependency on social safety programs among adults who get a higher education, thus, reducing enormous budget demands.

            Higher education has also been linked with good health and low rates of smoking. This occurs because people are more informed of the consequences. Therefore, it promotes the well-being of individuals and reduces the economic burden that might have resulted from the health complications resulting from lifestyle diseases (Ma, Pender & Welch, 2016). Additionally, there is a higher correlation between public and social participation, which also includes volunteer work and blood donation programs among individuals who have attained higher education.

            Besides, higher education has also been linked with better unity and trust in society. It leads to a feeling of togetherness and compatibility in society. This occurs because of the common goals and values that are often among the professional community as they also incorporate an understanding of the individual uniqueness and variance (Ma, Pender & Welch, 2016). Furthermore, involvement in democratic rights such as voting is common among educated individuals, and it brings experiences of solidarity and nationalism as a single element that aims to push the country forward.

My Educational Journey

            My educational journey started a long time ago, when I was still young. I was lucky that my parents supported my passion for doing new things each day, including building my shop inside the house. Although I did not like school that much, I got used to it because my parents could not allow me to stay at home. As time went by, learning becomes something interesting to me because of the support of my friends, parents, and especially my teachers at school. Besides, I transitioned well to middle school, and though I had some challenges, I was able to overcome them with advice from teachers and friends.

            My journey was not that good, but, there are things I learned during the period. One of them is that discipline promotes success, and to me, it means having understood that your achievement depends on you. The other thing is that you need to take charge of your learning for you to find something fruitful out of it. Others include time management, ability to persevere and to learn to seek help from others. In my journey, I learned that there is nothing called “I can do this alone,” learning is something continuous, and there must always be a way in which what you think can be improved and made better. I will encourage others to learn from what I learned on my journey because I believe that is somehow the way he/she will be able to attain better academic achievement.

Maintenance of Lifelong Learning Attitude

Maintenance of lifelong learning requires it to be made a priority. An individual will be required to create time to build upon his/her knowledge during the day because nothing comes in without effort. Reflection of what was learned is also important after the reading, and then review periods will follow. Since learning through action results in better acquisition of skills, this will be good to include in the maintenance strategy (Longworth, 2019). Curiosity can also be included because of its ability to facilitate learning much faster.

Also, life-long learning can include teaching other individuals due to its ability to reinforce knowledge. This can be done through a demonstration of things, mentoring, and coaching. Besides, engaging insight will result in a better understanding of things. For example, discovery not only involves observing things as other individuals but also trying to find something different from it (Longworth, 2019). Concentration also needs to be included together with exercise and nutrition and, finally, the use of different learning styles.

References

Altbach, P. G., Reisberg, L., & Rumbley, L. E. (2019). Trends in global higher education: Tracking an academic revolution. BRILL.

Din, B. H., Anuar, A. R., & Usman, M. (2016). The effectiveness of the entrepreneurship education program in upgrading entrepreneurial skills among public university students. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 224, 117-123.

Humburg, M., & Van der Velden, R. (2017). What Is Expected of Higher Education Graduates in the Twenty-First Century?. The Oxford Handbook of Skills and Training, 201.

Jain, R., Chaudhary, B., & Jain, N. (2016). Impact of mentoring on academic performance & career self-efficacy of business students. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 51(4), 684-694.

Kucel, A., & Vilalta-Bufí, M. (2016). Entrepreneurial skills and wage employment. International Journal of Manpower, 37(3), 556-588.

Longworth, N. (2019). Making lifelong learning work. Routledge.

Ma, J., Pender, M., & Welch, M. (2016). Education Pays 2016: The Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals and Society. Trends in Higher Education Series. College Board.

The three levels of thinking

Summary

 In ‘Thinking as a hobby' the author states that when he was young, he found that there are three grades of thinking. Golding was not a good student since he could not think (Golding, n.d). While in grammar school, the headmaster could introduce some statuettes to aid students in thinking, but the author found the statuette confusing. However, he learned about thought by interacting with his teachers and watching them. Note that Golding was not a good thinker and therefore he was bitterly determined to know more about thoughts. He watched Mr Houghton, Miss. Parsons, and Mr Hands. Through interacting with them, he learned that there are three types of thinkers.  First is grade-three thinkers- these are people whose thoughts have unconscious prejudice (Golding, n.d). Such people rely on feelings and emotion. Rather than using thoughts to stand for reality and see rational arguments, grade-three thinkers rely on their innermost feelings. The second type of thinker is grade-two thinkers- these are people who create contradictions and like criticizing but have nothing to give in return.  The third type of thinker is grade-one thinkers. These are people who are knowledgeable, creative, and imaginative. They do not follow dictators, but they seek for truth. They focus on creating a coherent, logical and moral argument (Golding, n.d).  According to the reading, it is important to understand the three types of thinkers to have the ability to approach different people and communicate with them effectively. Besides, it is important to understand the types of thinking to confirm and clarify thoughts. In general, understanding the types of thinking will help move from feelings that bring unconscious bias, develop contradictions, and finally develop creative thoughts.

Example of each type of thinkers

Grade 1

 An example of grade-one thinker is Rosalind Hursthouse.  In talking about abortion, she applies the virtue theory and says that abortion is a serious issue, and it is evil to cut human life (Crisp, 2013).  She adds that abortion is not always wrong and therefore, in deciding whether to abort or not, one should consider the real goods such as the value of human life and value of motherhood.  I believe this philosopher is a grade-one thinker in that she has a strong moral sense.  Note that she is defending her thought by using a moral argument until she reaches her conclusion that in deciding whether to choose abortion or not, one should consider the real goods (Crisp, 2013).  She gives legitimate contributes and shows moral seriousness to the issue.

 Grade 2 thinkers

 An example of grade-two thinkers is citizens. They question the political institution and become unsatisfied with democracy. At times, they may not understand how democracy works and create contradictions. They develop a negative attitude toward the government and question the institutional structures.  However, they lack confidence and anything positive to change the unsatisfying and messy democracy (Golding, n.d).  They make arguments that are not convincing or valid.  They blame the government for failures but have no power to change the structures.

  Grade 3

 An example of grade-three thinkers is ‘whites'.  In the U.S society, whites say that there should be a colour blind society that eliminates racial classification and discrimination and promotes racial equality. However, whites treat the people of colour unequally. This means that they use their feelings that it is important to stop discrimination, but they support racial practices (Golding, n.d). Therefore, whites can be described as hypocrites because their praises the colour blind society but they are highly prejudiced.

From the reading, the three types of thinkers shed lights on critical thinking.  For example, the author says that initially, he treated thinking as a hobby but after conducting his research and finding out the types of thinkers, he never used thinking as a hobby, but he became a critical thinker (Salmon, 2012).   The essay has helped understand that one should be aware of the three types of thinking and understand the importance of developing critical thinking which is associated with evaluating information (Salmon, 2012). Note that information come from many sources such as observing, communicating, reasoning, and more.  In making decisions, one should use his or her reasoning abilities to avoid biases and prejudices. The important thing to note that thinking can shape or destroy the quality of lives in that life depends on the quality of thoughts. This means that one should cultivate critical thinking; that is; analyze and evaluate the information (Salmon, 2012). In making arguments, it is important to think critically and apply deductive reasoning, which entails the use of valid reasoning.

            After learning the different types of thinkers, I can say that I am a grade-one thinker.  This is because, every time I detect a problem or a contradiction, I must propose a solution.  As a student, I criticize situations and offer an alternative even if the alternative is not the best.  While arguing with other students. I take my time to ensure that I support my argument using facts and finding evidence. I challenge the ideas and use my mental capabilities to correct false ideas and to offer my viewpoints. I usually question the beliefs and offer what I believe.

Reference

Golding, W. Thinking as a hobby.

Crisp, R. (2013). Virtue ethics.  Oxford University Press

 Salmon, H. Merrilee. (2012). Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking. Cengage Learning

College Loans (Pros vs Cons)

Outline

 Introduction

• Students borrow federal and private loans to finance a college education
• Federal loans has many benefits, such as fixed interest rates.
• A college education is expensive, and most students cannot obtain without borrowing.
• Student loan debt is the main problem facing former students

 Thesis:  college degree pays.  It is a good investment that benefits the individual and society at large, and therefore the educations outweigh the student loan debts that students face.

 Pros

• College loan allow students in different areas of specialization to pursue their dreams
• A college education is expensive, and students need financial aid to achieve their goal
• Students acknowledge that a  college education is greater than   the costs
• Generally, students  deserve education despite the student  loan debt

Con

• A college loan is a burden to student
• As the debt rises, students suffer physically and mentally
• In the long run, graduates do not achieve similar opportunities
• Students with loan debt fall behind due to wealth inequality
• Generally, student loan does not bring equal return as debt-free students

Conclusion 

• Not all students can afford a college education.
• They should borrow loans to pursue their dream
• However, they should have the best of intentions when acquiring a loan
• Student debt is a serious issue, but policies to alleviate debt should be implemented
• Guide students in making borrowing decision to avoid adverse outcome
• Students should be well-informed before borrowing money

Introduction

 In the 19th century, a college education was considered as a good for all including the nation’s economy, and students received a quality training for free. The society was willing to support students by providing scholarship and allocating resources so that they may achieve their career goals and benefit society. However, in the 20th century, college education changed from a public good to a private pursuit. Initially, the goal of college education focused on promoting social welfare, but the social and cultural changes transformed the perception, and students could join college to pursue personal goals. The shift in perception introduced the idea of charging students since college education was a personal affair. Students received loans to aid them in covering education expenses. Since education is all about money, students experience a financial issue in attaining a college education.  Despite the financial burden, students believe that a college degree brings economic benefits, and more students both from high-income and lower-income backgrounds attend college. They prefer to borrow loans to help them complete education, and more importantly, achieve a better-paying job, and gain longer college experience. However, despite these benefits, the ongoing debate concerning college loan is that students find challenges in repaying loans. The purpose of this paper is to compare the pros and cons of student loan and make a conclusion if the benefits outweigh the risk. Generally, college loan help students struggling to access a college education.  Even though loan repayment remains a challenge, the rising costs of a college education is also a real problem, and the college degree is worth the student loan debt.

Arguments for student loans

Marx & Turner (1) assert that since 2000, the number of undergraduates in both two-year institutes and four-year institutions has increased. Due to the increase, the number of student-loan debt reached $1.4 trillion in 2018.   Note that American colleges offer open access education, and millions of students are attending these colleges with the help of grant aid.  However, students encounter other significant expense, such as textbooks, activity fees, tuition, and personal expenses (Marx & Turner, 1).  To meet these needs, students borrow government-sponsored loans.  The loan is associated with some benefits since it has fixed interest rates, flexible repayment terms, loan forgiveness, and no prepayment penalties, among other benefits.  The authors aim is not to focus on positive elements of the federal students' loan, but their goal is to find out how the borrowing benefits students.  In a randomized experiment, participants who were students from the community college asserted that they benefited from zero-interest loans.  Note that some colleges avoid providing nonzero loan to restrict students from having too much loan debt, and also to protect the institution from the harm of poor loan-repayment rates.  Only 16% of students borrow loans in such college compared to schools that offer nonzero loans (Marx & Turner, 1).  In the experiment, there were two groups; financial aid-eligible students and control groups.  The results showed that 30% of eligible financial students borrowed loan compared to students in the control group.  An important point to understand is that students who borrowed loan increased education performance. Since they received a nonzero loan or a zero-interest loan, they had the opportunity to further their studies, and they did better in their courses.  In weighing costs and benefits, it is evident that students' loans enhance success for students (Marx & Turner, 1).  Besides, the loan allows community college students to enroll in colleges, succeed in school, and more importantly, loan protects the students’ future.

 Abel & Deitz (1) add that the great recession affected many areas of the economy, including the labor market and capital investment.  It also increased the rate of unemployment since finding good jobs is challenging.  Another problem is that college tuition has increased and students suffer from student loan debt since they borrow a loan to finance their education.  However, although there is a challenge in wages decline, and the cost of education is rising, a college education is vital, especially with the help of student aid (Abel & Deitz (2).  The important point is that college degree benefits students in that it enriches their lives and help students live a life full of happiness and stability.  Note that students who are less educated struggle with life than educated students, and this means college degree is a good investment (Abel & Deitz, 2). However, a college education is so expensive, and students find it hard to achieve their career goals.  Remarkably, the availability of student loan is enabling students from different areas of specialization such as engineering, health care, and other areas to pursue a college degree.  Note that college education demand direct costs such as tuition fee, and opportunity costs which include housing costs and books (Abel & Deitz, 3).  Students can meet these costs by borrowing loans, and as a result, the loans allow them to attain higher education, gain a successful career, and make all ends meet, among other immeasurable benefits.

Arguments against student loans

            The central problem of college loans is student- loan debt.  Perkins et al., (116) assert that in 2014, student debt amounted to $1.6 trillion, and it was considered as the highest consumer debt. In 2012, 70% of graduates had an average debt of %29, 4000.  Although students value a college education, and there are investing in their future by acquiring the best education possible, there is an increase in student loan debt which is hindering students from achieving their dreams.  In 2013, 9,523 borrowers of private loans had an average debt of $25,000 and $35,000.  40% of the borrowers earned $25, 000, and the rest earned less than $50,000 (Perkins et al., 116). Many respondents asserted that they made sacrifices to pay the loan. For example, some lived at parents' home, they limited the entertainment and vacations, and gave up important things. Apart from these physical burdens, student debt loan impacts students' mental health. Note that when students have excessive debt, they feel as if they are in a financial prison.  Students who have excessive debt experience relationships stress, marital dissatisfaction, among other life issues which leads to severe depression (Perkins et al., 118).   In most cases, graduated are underemployed, and they accept the underemployment to make ends meet.  Students also suffer from negative consequences as a result of a loan default.  The government takes legal actions such as reporting graduates to credit agencies, money is deducted from salary until the debt is fully paid, and borrowers in default are denied professional licenses. The debt burden will remain to be a significant problem since there is no measures to alleviate debt.  

 Popescu (115) adds that students borrow money to reimburse their tuition and make ends meet but what they get in return is significant student debt which affects their physical and mental health.  An important point to note that student debt loan does not only occur as a result of underemployment and lower wages, but they loan debt occur since students obtain unimportant amounts. In other words, they misuse loans in buying new clothes, vacations, and other noneducational purposes (Popescu, 115).  They make poor decisions in that rather than spending the money in tuition and fees, and living costs, they spend money in gaming systems, alcohol and drugs, eat at restaurants, among other shocking shopping habits.  As a result of spending college loan in material things, they enter in the labor market with significant levels of debt that restrict them from buying a house, saving for retirement, having children, and other major life events (Popescu, 116).  The reason as to why students borrow large amounts to engage in lucrative lifestyle is because they lack a loan training program. Students do not make decisions before borrowing a loan, and they end up obtaining large amounts for a personal expense and ultimately suffer from student loan debt.

Conclusion

 Opponents of college loan argue that students are struggling with student loan debt. The Federal and private grants are making students servants, and also the debt is causing the economic crisis.  Rather than creating productive pathways to students, and improve their lives, students are being restricted from marrying, starting a business, saving for retirement, achieving their dreams, and have worse credit scores.  My opinion is that students should borrow a loan and use it appropriately.  Before borrowing a loan, students need to understand the consequences, and this will enable them to make wise decisions.   Even if student debt is a significant problem, students cannot do without loan since they want to pursue a college education and it is very expensive.  In addition, college fees have increased, and students rely on borrowing to finance their education. It is also important to note that a big number of students come from lower-income families.  In rethinking about the value of college degree, students should be allowed to borrow a loan to make their dreams come true.  The only way to enable them to enjoy socioeconomic advantage is by supporting them with funds. Note that since college education is a significant investment, students require significant resources. We should acknowledge this reality and allow students to borrow money to pursue a college education.  Students can avoid debt by borrowing wisely, cut living expenses, and make extra payment while in school. In addition,  there should be students loan program and allow students to take a productive path, that is;  teach students the importance of choosing a career path while and not a hobby path. 

Work cited

Perkins, David, Tim Johnston, and Rick Lytle. "Addressing student debt in the

classroom." Journal of Education for Business 91.3 (2016): 117-124.

Abel, Jaison R., and Richard Deitz. "Do the benefits of college still outweigh the

costs?." Current Issues in Economics and Finance 20.3 (2014).

 Marx M. B., & Turner J. L.The benefits of Borrowing: Evidence on Student loan debt and

community college attainment. Education Next Institute, Inc 19.3 (2019).

Popescu, Gheorghe H. "Does student debt constitute a bubble that may bring about an

educational crisis?." (2018): 115-118.

 Detail the main Structural components and construction methodologies when building a residential house

            In the process of building a residential house, there are various structural components that are being used. The main structural components that are required for building a residential house include; roof frames, wall frames, and slaps and footings. As much as the use of these materials are concerned, it should be understood that the methodologies used in this case entail adding various materials so as to come up with the real projected structure. Ideally, the construction of a residential house will have to take into consideration the importance of incorporation of legal, financial, and design mechanisms. The vast majority of the construction methodologies have been realized to have the propensity of enabling the contractor to understand the all the residential structural materials that are required.  Moreover, it will be possible for him or her to ensure that he or she has understood all the design mechanisms of the residential house required to accomplish such a project.

            Before embarking on launching the construction of the residential building, it will be important to take into consideration its site conditions. That will have to take into account things like the classification of soil and the extent of its movement, orientations in terms of the suitability of that site, perceived risks, as well as the management of the available defense systems. From the structural perspectives, it is important to take into account the need of comparing the use of steel frames and timber frames, conventional roof frame with trusses, and so on. The same comparison will have to take into consideration the type of wind loads to use.

            Accordingly, the use of finishes for windows and doors will have to be understood in terms of its waterproofing as well as other associated potential issues. Moreover, it will be vital to take into account its environmental characteristics, for instance, reuse and disposal, aesthetics, and compliance with statutory residential building requirements.

2. Why would you apply principles when constructing residential buildings? Give at least 3 examples

            Generally, the application of the construction principles has the potential of enabling the whole project to be completed within the stipulated time and as budgeted. What this implies is the fact that the application of the construction knowledge will enable the project manager to understand or select the best materials that are required in finishing the project. Moreover, the application of the residential construction principles is important because it allows the project manager to be in the position of understanding the prevailing limitations of certain materials that might be selected taking into consideration the design of the residential building being assigned to. Taking into consideration the budgeted amount, the use of these principles are also paramount in determining the finishes as well as the materials to be used in achieving the design concept of the client. The same procedure will have to take into account the need of understanding the engineering drawings as well as the primary components of such a project.

3. Give examples of three construction materials and explain the application of these chosen materials, include the characteristics and the individual performance
4. concrete- this construction material is used for the purpose of enhancing thermal mass as well as durability. According to the Australian residential construction standards, the minimum strength standard of concrete should not fall below 20mpa. In the process of using concrete, slabs should have to be reinforced with a steel mesh. Bar chairs will have to be used to support that reinforcement so as to offer the required concrete coverage. At internal corners, concrete is also used to enhance re-entrant reinforcement.
5. bricks- in the same case with concrete, bricks are used for the purpose of enhancing the thermal mass and durability of the residential building. Ideally, during construction, the skin of the brick needs to be joined to the frame using brick ties. Due to the fact that bricks are ultimately porous, it is possible for them to have cavities between brickwork and the frame. As a result of that, it is possible for those cavities to have flashing and sarking hence the need of covering them with waterproofing materials.
6. Claddings – from the construction perspectives, claddings are always light in weight. Ideally, they are non-load bearing layer or skin that is usually attached to externally. They can either be in form of sheet or weatherboards made from cement sheet or foam board.
7. What are the key drawing types for residential construction documents that you need to include in working drawings for the design of residential buildings?
8. Site plans- From the engineering residential construction perspectives, site plans include the size of the building, proposed works, as well as the site location of the project. Ideally, site drawings can also be incorporated with things like overlooking diagrams and shadow diagrams that can aid in assessing siting compliances.
9. Other plans – the use of this plan will have to take into account things like framing plans, roof plans, slap plans, electrical plans, and floor plans.
10. Sections – As one of the drawings types, sections are provided in the building in both directions so as to enable the project manager to include some of the complex details regarding them.
11. Elevations- these drawing designs are used for the purpose of indicating both interior and exterior elevations.
12. Schedules- they are use for the purpose of detailing the materials to be used in finishing windows and doors.
13. During the design approval process, what legislative requirements should the client be aware of?

            During the design approval process, the client ought to be informed about the compliance requirements in terms of amenity, safety, waterproofing, health, and integrity. Moreover, during the planning process, local and state legislation needs to be taken into consideration. For instance, the health and safety services conditions to be taken into consideration during the launching of the work will have to take into account compliance with ventilation, cooling, and heating, lighting for aesthetics, safety or efficiency, and plumbing conditions.

6. Why is it necessary to Integrate services in a residential building design? Can you give examples of what these services are?

            The reason for integrating other necessary services in a residential building design is to assist in ensuring or fostering safe conditions for the occupants. An example of that is fire separation mechanism and health, safety, and amenity.

7. Research and explain what the statutory requirements are for fire separation in residential building design

            As much as the construction of residential buildings are concerned, its design and layout in connection with the style of construction and the materials used, ultimately plays the main role on curbing the spread of smoke and fire. Moreover, it has the ability of providing safe evacuation from the building in case of fire. According to the statutory requirements, it is the responsibility of owners, building contractors, architects, developers, and designers to ensure that suitable building techniques, designs, and materials have been properly used. Ideally, the registered manager handling with the building of residential building should take the responsibility of ensuring that there is compliance with appropriate residential house building standards. This will also have to take into account the need of ensuring that there is the provision of guidelines in fire risk assessment or the in the event of fire. 

            In addition to that, the modern statutory requirements require that such fire separation methods should have to be properly implemented for the purpose of protecting the building from catching fire. The same procedure or requirements has the propensity of limiting the spread of fire into adjacent buildings or areas for a certain designated time periods. To comply with that, it is, therefore, important to ensure that there is the use of fire resisting floors, walls, ducts, doors, and so on. Basically, the designated time periods for the spread of fire are ultimately contained in the building regulations. Accordingly, it is important for the residential building project manager to ensure that they have divided the building into various distinct fire zones termed as fire compartments. Examples of these are the compartment floors and compartment walls. 

8. Describe what the specifications are for a residential building which provide the best safety, health, and amenity for users

            Within any residential building, there are various criteria or specifications that are used for the purpose of addressing safety, heath, and amenity for its users. First, according to the safety NCC PT 2.5, it is important to provide walking surface with safe handrails and gradients to aid users, safeguard residential swimming pool from dangers, and include non-slip surfaces and landings on them. It is paramount to ensure that these barriers are continuous allover the hazard areas of the swimming pool. Moreover, it is vital to ensure that barriers have been provided for the purpose of preventing fall from landings or as a result of change in floor level. The use of barriers needs to be also be taken into consideration around all openable windows.  In the case of gates, it also important to supply them with childproof latch.

            In addition with that, according to the health and amenity NCC Pt 2.4, in the act of constructing a residential building, it is important to take into consideration the means of providing proper ventilation, natural light to the house, and other associated room size facilities. The same procedure will also take into account the provision of proper waterproofing mechanism in wet areas. This is to imply that all wet areas need to be waterproofed for the purpose of preventing damage caused by water overflow or dampness. The significance of that is because it will aid in preventing dangerous or unhealthy conditions. The minimum room size should be at least 2400 so as to provide the occupants with enough space. Facilities to be provided will have to be used for laundry purpose, cooking and food separation, fostering personal hygiene, and proper disposal of grey water.

                                                             Questions

1) What strategies does the author use to reach a wide, non-expert/academic audience?

            From the perspectives of the author, one of the strategies that he employs entail making it very clear to the audience the public scholarship program is one of the parameters that is perceived to have the potential of fostering conversations regarding them. The reason for that is because it aid in providing various resources and academic support that in return has the propensity of raising diverse and exciting career objectives (Wharton et al., 2006).

2) In what ways is the author’s expertise evident in the public scholarship?

            As much as public scholarship is concerned, the expertise of the author indicates that the provision of such an opportunity has the potential of establishing and distributing academic information to the general public and communities. This procedure involve enhancing creative academic activities, sharing of public knowledge, revision of the existing curriculum, enriching research, strengthening civic and democratic responsibilities, and so on (Wharton et al., 2006).

3) Do you think this was a good choice of genre for the scholar’s ideas/research? Why or why not?

            This was a good idea because public scholarship has the potential of enhancing creative activities that have been realized to have the ability of joining serious intellectual endeavors with obligation to public consequences and practice. Such a scenario is paramount because it takes into account things like fostering intellectual work that has the potential of producing public goo, historical, critical, and artistic work that aid in contributing towards public debates, and so on (Wharton et al., 2006).

4) In spite of its public nature, what are the potential barriers for average citizens to access this piece of scholarship (paywall, literacies, etc.)?

            Public scholarship provides learners with various efforts that enable them to expand the career development programs and researches.  Despite that, the use of the paywall has the potential of limiting the average citizens to access it because of the need of authentication credentials. Moreover, the level of literacy of a person is the one that can guarantee the chances of obtaining public scholarship

5) Do you consider this piece of public scholarship to be advocacy/activism? Why or why not?

            Public scholarship is ultimately an advocacy to enriching the academic requirements of a person. The reason for that is because it is designed for the purpose of making a lifetime impact on the career perspectives of the learner. It is mainly implemented for the essence of enabling the learner to meet his or her academic goals without taking into account their financial backgrounds.

                                                            Reference

Wharton-Michael, P., Janke, E. M., Karim, R., Syvertsen, A. K., & Wray, L. D. (2006). An explication of public scholarship objectives. New Directions for Teaching & Learning, 2006(105), 63–72. https://doi.org/10.1002/tl.225

Reflect: Information literacy

  Throughout the course, I have applied information literacy in my academic work. For example, I have accessed information from different sources such as books, periodicals, and journals.  I have not only accessed information from quality sources, but I have also evaluated and used it effectively. Information literacy has helped me to become information-literate. Apart from benefiting from information literacy as a student, I have learned that information literacy is being applied in society, and it is contributing too many benefits. First, it is important to understand that traditionally, society believed that people who have information literacy are those who have the capability to read and write. However, modern societies have acknowledged that information literacy does not only involve reading and writing but it also involve other concepts such as computer literacy, technical literacy, media literacy, among more (Franklin, 2005).  In other words, information literacy is the ability to find information, evaluate, and apply it when it is needed.

 It is important to understand that modern societies are applying the concept of information literacy. Note that the information and communication technologies have changed the communication patterns and information environment (Franklin, 2005). The technological advancement has created an information society where the creation and distribution of information is vital. There are many areas that people are applying critical thinking skills, and this means that people have engaged in lifelong learning to understand how to gather information, analyze, synthesis, and apply.  Society has recognized that in order to build social development and solve complex social problems, people must access quality information and manage it (Franklin, 2005). From my own research, I have found that modern societies have two levels of literacy, that is; high literacy levels and low literacy levels (Hare & Evanson, 2018).  Those with high literacy levels have information privilege, or in other words, they have the opportunity to access research material and conduct research, they get research support, they have peer network, and the opportunity to engage in scholarly conversation (Hare & Evanson, 2018). People who have information privilege benefits society because they have a higher level of literacy. They bring economic growth and social development,   improves the society safety, the education system, and the standard of living, promote democracy, promote cultural diversity, prevent diseases and improves health, and increases their self-esteem as well as empowerment (Hare & Evanson, 2018). Note that these people emerge in information literacy programmers such as workshops, consultations, and interaction with instructors. They find information and understand the systemic issues, and they become agents of changes.

 However, individuals who have low literacy levels do not benefit society. These are the disadvantaged people who have lower educational achievement and live in poverty. First, it is important to understand such people experience inequality in all aspects of their life, including inequality in health access, and variation in resources access (Hare & Evanson, 2018).They also suffer from reduced cognitive development and poor memory. Due to their social condition, they lack digital literacy, critical literacy, and scientific literacy, among more. The society suffers from the population that is illiterate in that the low literature affects the growth of GDP growth rate or the growth of the economy (Hare & Evanson, 2018). Note that they do not participate in the global economy, and this affects the social economy. Individuals do not engage in civil participation including social and political matters. These people do not achieve the individual and society goals since they do not make an investment, nor do they make decisions that will build a democratic society (Hare & Evanson, 2018). In other words, they lack personal growth and creativity, and this hinders them from applying information and knowledge in their day-to-day activities.

 I feel that our society values the information literacy in that it has built a student-centered learning community. The learning community has incorporated a connectivity platform, and its mission is to support learning and improve learner's information skills by providing new materials. The society is working together with the education system to promote students' proficiency, support students, grant funding, and ensure that students gain computer literacy, digital literacy, and technical literacy (Franklin, 2005).I think we should care whether a society possesses information literacy skills. Note that student's initial education is vital, but we need to care if students are receiving new information and skills about the latest technology. The education system, as well as parents, should invest money to provide students with formal training so that they can have the ability to conduct both qualitative and quantitative research, and more importantly, think critically (Franklin, 2005). The community should also care if the society is offering formal training and it should empower the education system so that students can gain literacy skills and ultimately benefit the society through eliminating poverty, improving the life of people, reducing infant mortality, and promoting economy development. I also believe that everyone needs information literacy. In other words, elementary-age children, and college students need literacy since everyone needs to recognize the problem, and find solutions (Franklin, 2005).  Note that information literacy will not only help students in the academic work, but they will apply the knowledge and skills in personal matters and other several perspectives.  One recommendation is that teachers should consider individuals from a poor background, including people of color. They should help them gain literacy skill and develop career aspiration. Some of these people suffer from economic stress and financial constraints, and thus, it is important to be aware of these social challenges and help them achieve literacy by providing them with learning resources.

References

Hare, S., & Evanson, C. (2018). Information privilege outreach for undergraduate

students. College & Research Libraries, 79(6), 726.

Franklin, K. Y. (2005, April). The importance of information literacy: Insights from the next

generation of scholars. In Association of College and Research Libraries National

Conference, Minneapolis.

 Educational Technology Tools

 Part One

Technology is something that has always been a part of the learning setting. This is among the assets that are utilized by instructors to help simplify student learning. In the current periods, technology has radically improved, giving teachers more chances to utilize technology to improve their teaching. Technological devices have become more influential with manufacture of more varieties that connect to the internet faster. The internet helps these devices to link students to one another in the classrooms and all-round the globe. These devices have changed teaching space; learning with the use of technology has become an important in the learning structure in the present day. Some of the technological tools that are important in enhancing student learning include; smart board, flipgrid and popplet.

Popplet        

Popplet is an application that is modest and very easy to use by students at all levels. The application aids students to progress their writing, remembrance and managerial skills. It can assist them to work together with others, understand multifaceted concepts and realize new links between numerous concepts.  Popplet operate using a sequence of cubes which are connected together by an arrow suitably named the ‘linker’ (Atherton, 2018). The operators of this app have altered choices when it comes to deciding how each of the cubes will be completed with content. They can either exploit a draw tool to highlight significant concepts or use a colour tool to help categorise the interrelated content (Atherton, 2018). Users can also use images and label them using the text implement. As the operators allocate concepts into the cubes, they advance their writing skills because they have to figure out the correct words to use in order to communicate their message using few words.

 Using popplet helps the students to learn the skill of organization because they have to figure out when to use a graph, a picture or a chart among other visuals for added explanations. The operators can use the draw or colour implements to highlight important words which will help them to learn new vocabularies (Atherton, 2018).  This app is particularly interesting and effective for students with special needs like students with autism because of its multipurpose element which has a user friendly interface. People with autism have problems with organization of their thoughts and executing functional skills. Through popplet, teachers can assist these learners to understand concepts much better by grouping them appropriately (Atherton, 2018). The use of pictures for additional clarifications helps the learners to remember learnt concepts much better.

An example of a popplet

http://blog.popplet.com/dr-popplet-health-happiness-and-well-being/

Flipgrid

This is a video chat platform that offers students and teachers an opportunity to record themselves on video as they debate on class work. Teachers are able to use flipgrid in many ways to comprehend the student familiarity level and the areas that they need assistance (Green & Green, 2018). The teachers in most cases just upload questions that require to be discussed and the students react to the questions by posting video answers. Flipgrid assist learners to self-reflect, learn from one another and equate their learning with that of their friends which essentially places them in a metacognition state (Green & Green, 2018). Flipgrid forms a room for all scholars to join in particularly those that are normally shy to participate in the classroom. With Flipgrid, these students can use filters instead of their own faces when they post their responses. These video responses help students to improve their thinking, listening and also communication skills which are all required during the response process.

An image of a sample flipgrid in Use

https://techiemusings.files.wordpress.com/2017/03/screen-shot-2017-03-01-at-4-25-25-pm.png?w=551

Smart board

This is a collaborative white board, which are an improvement of the out-dated blackboards. These collaborative boards have assisted in modifying the old-fashioned classroom into an entertaining learning setting. The boards are normally linked to a computer and function with a projector (Stanojević & Ranđelović, 2018). The boards are touch screens which let the teacher to transfer things all over the board using their fingers. The boards which are white can also be written on using different coloured pens which makes learning colourful and fun.

Smart Boards are collaborative in nature which allows diverse media elements including; photos, maps, games and video to be presented (Stanojević & Ranđelović, 2018). All these implements significantly help to magnify the nature of learning aspects, which makes learning livelier. Smart Boards also give every learner an opportunity to participate and contribute in class discussions through their devices and they are able to receive immediate feedback.

An image showing a Smart Board in use in a classroom

http://thebmef.net/images/stories/SmartBoards/smartboard2.jpg

Part Two

The first lesson will be on sounds, the first thing to understand when teaching sounds is to focus on the sounds and not the letters. The learners need to understand different sounds in a word rather than memorize the letters. Through the use of smart boards, the learners will be introduced to sound /h/ where a table with various words that have the sound /h/ will be presented to the learners. The teacher will help the students to pronounce the words, helping them find the sound /h/ in the words. The teacher will them ask students to come up with other words that have /h/ sounds which the teacher will write on the board. The students with the help of the teacher will highlight the /h/ sounds in the words using a red colour in the smart board icons, to help them remember and understand better. At the end of the lesson the teacher will post and share an assignment link with the students through the smart board which they will complete at their free time.

The second lesson will be about reading and critical thinking. The teacher will use the smart board to post a narrative story to the class; the teacher will request various students to read the story aloud as the other students listen. As the students read the story, they will correct any pronunciation mistakes made by the readers which will help improve on pronunciation skills. After reading the story, the teacher will post some interactive questions on the smart board that the students that will discuss in groups of four. They will then present their answers by sending them to a link provided by the teacher after which they will get immediate feedback.

The third lesson will be on parts of speech, specifically nouns. The teacher will begin by posting various words on the smart board where she will ask the students to describe them. The teacher will then define and explain nouns to the students and explain to them why the words posted are nouns. The teacher will post and explain different types of nouns, using the examples given on the board to show the various classifications of nouns. The teacher will then ask students to use the popplet app to write down different types of nouns and give new examples for each category of noun given in the popplet. The students will requested to ensure that they post a picture against the nouns that they come up with. This exercise will help them remember what nouns are and different types of nouns.

References

Atherton, P. J. (2018). 50 Ways to use technology enhanced learning in the classroom:

            practical strategies for teaching. Los Angeles: Learning Matters.

Green, T., & Green, J. (2018). Flipgrid: Adding Voice and Video to Online Discussions.

TechTrends: Linking Research & Practice to Improve Learning, 62(1), 128–130. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-017-0241-x

" Interactive SMART Board:  Integrating Technology (Virtual Tour)," located on YouTube.

URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUH2lnnI7SI

Stanojević, L., & Ranđelović, M. (2018). The Effect of Web-Based Classroom Response

System on Students Learning Outcomes: Results from Programming Course. Megatrend Review, 15(2), 213–232. https://doi.org/10.5937/MegRev1802213S

Video tape # 1

Video title:  Literacy lesson first grade

Date of observation;

Video duration;  20: 34

Program type: Private

Teaching staff total observed;  one male one female

Children total observed; seven kindergarteners

Educational approach

            There is a specific theory based philosophy from when it comes to approaching the curriculum from the video. The philosophy from the video is play based philosophy, this approach to the curriculum involves playing and learning at the same time. Children are taught to think creatively so that they can keep up with the ever changing world (Robertson, et al., 2008). The use of this philosophy has been evidenced by availability of various play, materials in the class room, the pupils have writing tools and material. This video has not evidenced family engagement since the scenes from this video are only of the teachers and the students in class.

Mission and Vision; not stated

Education philosophy; play based philosophy

Curriculum approach; DLM Early Childhood Express

Family engagement; None

Video tape #2

Video title:  Head start- Build a Family. Build a community

Date of observation; 12^th August 2019

Video duration; 15: 34

Program type: Public

Teaching staff total observed; over ten teachers both male and female

Children total observed; 5 toddlers, 12 infants.                      

Educational approach

 This video also has a philosophy that is used to teach the curriculum in the various classrooms that are shown in the video. The philosophy used to deliver the curriculum is play based, for the same reasons such as those of video # 1. Children are seen playing outside with toys and there are play toys in the classrooms.  There are art materials in the class room. Family engagement is very much visible in this video. Families that are engaged in the curriculum and they are up to date with what their children are learning so that they can help them continue learning at home. There are family programs that include the infants, teachers and the students.

Mission and Vision; give children without economic advantages a head start at success and we will create a stronger community. It is much more than child care.

Educational philosophy; play based philosophy 

Curriculum approach; DLM Early Childhood Express and creative curriculum for infants and toddlers.

Family engagement; present

References

Robertson, N., Morrissey, M. A., & Rouse, E.,  (2018). Play-based learning can set your child     up for success at school and beyond. Retrieved from; http://theconversation.com/play-     based-learning-can-set-your-child-up-for-success-at-school-and-beyond-91393