On-Line Assignment

The first article I chose was on birth control because it's something I've heard a lot about in the news and on the internet recently and I've read or heard other peoples' view points from both sides. Even in their wildest dreams, most parents (especially those who have a middle schooler) probably never thought birth control or condoms would ever be considered being brought inside schools in order to help protect young teenage boys and girls. Due to the lack of media and high family values twenty, thirty, fourty + years ago, it was very uncommon at the time period for sexual intercourse to take place prior to marriage. However look around today and see how much sex is used in the media. About a month ago I was watching t.v. and a commercial came on for horse racing. The commercial started out with a beautiful woman dressed in black lingerie 'talking dirty' to the viewer. The woman talked dirty and moved into sexual positions and tiuched herself and then suddenly the emblem for the horse race location (it think it River Downs) flashed for three seconds and the commercial was over. At that moment I began wondering what the world has come to when a seducive woman is used to get the viewers' attention for a horse racing commercial. AND THAT'S JUST A HORSE RACING COMMERCIAL!!!!!! Look around at billboards, clothing lines, or the music videos middle schoolers see on MTV and VH1....sex and sexual innuendos are used EVERYWHERE to gain our attention. On the other hand, we as a society wonder why the teenage rates on pregnancies, STD's, among other things have gone up. Right now schools represent a "sex-free" environment as they are expected to. However, let's face the facts...with the techniques the media uses to sell things and get our attention (sex) students are surrounded by sexual innuendos among other things the second they walk out of the schools' doors. I've read and heard of the most recent advertisement technique which is "SEX SELLS!!!". It's as if schools represents a fantasy world where sex and its consequences are hardly discussed but when students leave school for the day they are "back in reality". As long as middle schoolers, and everyone in general, is going to be surrounding by sexual interferences through the media among other things, then something has to be to help prevent the spread of STD's and teenage pregnancies.

Here's the problem in a nut shell: Twenty, thirty, fourty + years ago individuals were told repeatedly through family, friends, neighbors, and in some cases the media to wait to have sex until you are married. You were to SAVE yourself for "THE ONE" (your life-long partner). In today's world, individual students are encouraged to have sex before they graduate from high school, and in some cases even sooner.

With that being said, we as a society have two options. 1.) Lock your kids their rooms and not let them go out so they aren't exposed to possibly having sex or 2.) Better inform them of the potential consequences on having sex and provide with the most protection possible (birth control and condoms)

The 1st option is extremely unreasonable and obviously the 2nd option logically makes more sense. My cooperating teacher informed me Thursday that one of his male students just found out that he got an 8th grade girl pregnant. One of my professors at NKU told the class on Friday that she heard that there are three 6th grade girls pregnant at the same school that I'm at. I don't know if that's true or not but if it is then there's at least four pregnant girls at that school (3 in 6th grade and 1 in 8th grade). In the end, parents have two very good arguements. By providing birth control and condoms at school may protect students but at the same time it may also promote more sexual activity to take place. Maybe handing out birth control and condoms isn't the best solution to the problem right now. Instead, we may need to repeatedly inform students of the consequences of having sex and if that doesn't work then develop other means of informing them or protecting them.

This was an excellent article because it addresses a problem that most parents don't want to accept really exists. I found this article quite interesting and I understand that there are many perspectives from parents about allowing birth control and condoms or not. The fact of the matter is that there is a rising issue and concern and something has to done about it quickly but also done correctly. This rising issue impacts my views of education because it is quickly becoming a point that teachers are more than just teachers for some students. Some students may have a poor home life and I may be the person in their life who cares about their academic success and developing a student into an individual.

The second article I read was about the principles body being found. I selected this article because it grabbed my attention and statistics show that suicide among young adolescdents is on the rise and is something that can''t be ignored. It's sad and unfortunate that a man who's a husband, father, friend, and important individual in the educational system would take his life. This article is an excellent example of how things in life can sometimes go unnoticed. Sometimes students, or even adults as in the case of the article, don't portray other issues they may be having in their life. At times they 'clamp up' and don't want to let anybody know about problems at home, emotions one may be going through, nor do they allow for outside help. In my home community you do hear of students between the ages of 15-25 committing suicide. What I have found ironic is that people FINALLY get to know and understand what may have wrong in the perosns life after it's too late. It's as if they become popular by taking their own life. There is something wrong when we take an interest in someone's problems at home or other issues they may be facing once that person has taken matters into their own hands. This article has impacted my views of education because I have once again been reminded of the importance of recognizing and acting upon signs of a person who's potential suicidal. I'm no expert but when students are either in a deep state of depression or talk about suicide (whether it's jokingly or not) it must always be acted upon to take all means possible to prevent a tragedy. Sometimes the one thing that sends an individual 'over the edge' to becoming success with a suicide attempt is that the individual realizes that no one cares, that no one is willing to take ten minutes out of their day to get to know them or just chat with them. It important as teacher that you get to know your students and show that you care about them so that when you as the teacher see changes in behavior, attitude, ect (which may be warnign signs) then you can begin montioring the student's activity more closely and possibly take it one step further by bringing in the school psychologist. When suicidal individuals feel like no one cares about them they tend to develop the 'i don't have anything to lose' attitude. No student, or individual should ever feel that way, and it's our job as a society to show everyone that you care and they make a difference whetehr they believe it or not.