Dealing With Challenging Behaviour Education Essay

Dealing With Challenging Behaviour Education Essay The Case of Boy A Boys A, along with his friends fight inside and outside of school, and are involved in binge drinking and other nuisance behaviour within the community. He migrates between his two separated parents. He is not given adequate boundaries or supervision. The mother has stated to the school and local community support officers that she is unable to control him. His form teacher believes that other agencies should be involved. Other teachers are threatening not to teach him. He is described as a disruptive child with behavioural problems that affect the rest of the class. His grades are below average and his attendance poor. The police are aware of him, although no charges have been brought. Residents have campaigned to have his family evicted due to his anti-social behaviour. 1.2 Introduction The local council has commissioned this report and its aim is to explore a range of strategies to better deal with challenging behaviour of the type exhibited by Boy A. Initially the report shall seek a definition of the term challenging behaviour. Then shall endeavour to meet its aims through an analysis of a range of existing efforts employed by various agencies, whilst discussing how they might be relevant to our case study, and by extension to challenging behaviour in the wider context. 1.3 Challenging Behaviour: A Definition Emerson (2001:3) has defined the term thus: Culturally abnormal behaviour of suchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦that the physical safety of the person or others  is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy, or behaviour which  is likely to seriously limit use of, or result in the person  being denied access to, ordinary community facilities Whilst this would perhaps serve to define the behaviour of Boy A, it cannot help us explain its causes. This report shall explore the aspects of his life that may cause this behaviour, and the strategies that can challenge that behaviour. 2.1 Challenging Behaviour in a School Setting The 2005 Ofsted report, Managing Challenging Behaviour analysed anà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦account of behaviour in schools based on national evidence (Ofsted, 2005:3), the main type of which was the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦persistent, low level disruption of lessons thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ interrupts learning (Ofsted, 2005:4). Acts of verbal or physical abuse aimed at peers were found in the majority of schools, whilst abuse aimed at teachers was less common. Acts of extreme violence were very rare and mostly directed at fellow pupils. The average percentage of primary schools, where behaviour is rated as good or better stands at 85.3% for primary schools, but only 73.3% for secondary schools. A reason for this is given by Emerson, (2001:24) who states that the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦prevalence of challenging behaviour appears to increase during childhood, reaching a peak during the age range 15-34. Exclusions from all schools dropped from 11,181 in 93/94, to 9,290 by 2002/03, showing perhaps that schools are dealing with challenging behaviour in more proactive ways. However, studies have shown that some schools operate a policy of backdoor exclusions, whereby a disruptive childs parents are offered the chance to transfer that child to another school, hence keeping the schools exclusion rate artificially low (Wright Weekes, 2000). Arguably, this policy is growing in popularity, warping the figures. Boys are more likely to be disruptive than girls all through education. Often disruptive pupils joined the school late in a school year and struggle to form relationships with pupils and staff. Many are in care or from troubled families. Significant numbers have irregular attendance causing disruption to learning and the development of relationships. A third of pupils with behavioural difficulties in secondary schools have special educational needs. 2.2 Effective Strategies That Challenge Behaviour The Ofsted report highlights strategies taken by schools to tackle challenging behaviour. Behavioural policies that set out expectations consistently and fairly are more effective at challenging behaviour. McNamara Moreton (2001) further this by advocating the use of pupil devised classroom charters. These are seen by the authors to be especially beneficial to pupils with behavioural difficulties such as Boy A, arguably because they have the effect of encouraging good behaviour through peer pressure. The reinforcement of good behaviour. Behaviourists suggest that teachers should à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦identify positive behaviourà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦by the pupil and reward this behaviour (McNamara Moreton, 2001:31). This may be beneficial to pupils like Boy A, who can perhaps feel victimised by staff who constantly highlight their negative behaviour. Multi-agency approaches, involving educational welfare officers, social workers, psychologists and others if required (General Teaching Council for England, 2007) are essential. This can be achieved through Behaviour and Educational Support Teams (BESTs), where teams of professionals are given a mandate in a school to tackle challenging behaviour. A recent government report found that for schools participating with BESTs there was an increase in attendance and a decrease in fixed time exclusions (DfES, 2005). However according to the Ofsted (2005:21)report there appears to be a reluctance by schools and/or LEAs to use this multi-agency model, with only half of schools having a satisfactory relationship with key agencies such as social and health services. 3.1 Boy A: Effective Strategies Learning mentors work within schools to coordinate activities to support students with behaviourial problems (General Teaching Council For England 2007). This could arguably give Boy A the degree of supervision in his education missing from his disjointed home life, whilst improving his irregular attendance (absenteeism being within their remit). Family therapy sessions and parenting courses can equip parents with skills for improving the behaviour of their child (ibid, 2007). Boy As mother has stated that she is unable to control him, so help such as this could be an step towards challenging his behaviour through improved parenting. Taking pupils like Boy A out of the school environment and placing them into a centre where less emphasis is put on academic achievement could arguably help those such as Boy A. It could also be a way of avoiding excluding pupils, which may only serve to further label them as unmanageable. These centres, whilst still teaching the core of the curriculum, also have lessons on alcohol/drug awareness and citizenship, as well as a provision for training programmes (ibid, 2007). 4.1 The CJS Approach to Challenging or Offending Behaviour Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA 1998) Established the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and Youth Offending Teams (YOTs), and measures aimed at curbing youth offending such as anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs), parenting orders and curfew orders for the under 10s. Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 (YJCEA 1999) Established the referral order, whereby offenders aged 10-17 who plead guilty to a first time offence are referred to a YOT. Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 (CJPA 2001) Further extended the remit of curfew orders to apply to under 16s, or to a specific area rather than any individual. (Crawford Newburn, 2003) These acts of legislation form the basis of the new youth justice reforms of the then Labour government, whose aim were to shift resources away from processing young offenders, to preventing them from offending in the first place (Crawford Newburn, 2003). The advent of YOTs, which a youth can be referred to if they plead guilty to a first time offence, has come in for general praise from most quarters (NACRO, 2002). Their aim is to divert youths away from the formal CJS and into a setting more focussed on behavioural intervention than punishment. Offenders are expected to participate in a program of rehabilitation featuring a strong element of reparation, that also deals with the causal risk factors of further potential offending. Other behavioural strategies such as ASBOs have been widely criticised for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦contributing to a policy of social exclusion that disregards the rights ofà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦young people (Burnett Appleton, 2004:49). 4.2 Youth Offending Strategies within the CJS This section shall discuss the options that are theoretically open to the CJS in dealing with behaviour such as Boy As. Parenting orders can be given if a child truants, offends or is subject to an ASBO. Parents are required by law to attend guidance sessions, and fulfill any conditions attached to an order, such as attending meetings with teachers or ensuring that their child is properly supervised (Youth Justice Board, nd). This intervention could arguably help Boy A and others in his position given that he receives no meaningful supervision from his parents. Such guidance, although forced onto his parents, could potentially help them resolve the parenting problems that potentially affect their sons behaviour. These orders have been criticised by authors such as Arthur (2005), who believes that resources should be allocated earlier in lives such as Boy As to prevent them engaging in challenging/offending behaviour in the first place. Curfew orders give the authorities the power to impose a time at which under 16s should be home. Their aim is to defend communities from anti-social behaviour and to protect children (BBC online, 2001). Arguably this may help Boy A and others, if only by keeping them off the streets at inappropriate times. However it is possible that attempting to block the childs goal of going out, would only serve to frustrate him/her into further expressing challenging behaviour aimed at those around them. This would be in line with the psychologically derived drive theory (Dollard Miller et al, 1939). ASBOSs carry a civil burden of proof, and are designed to protect against à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦any aggressive, intimidating or destructive activity that damagesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ another persons quality of life (Home Office, 2010). If breached they can become a criminal matter worthy of up to five years imprisonment. They have been criticised as an unacceptable blurring of legal lines, which only serve to criminalise children for non-criminal behaviour (The Guardian website, 2009). 5.1 Theoretical Explanations of Youth Offending Behaviour It is known that Boy A migrates between his separated parents, depending on who he has fallen out with. Some theorists have concluded that conflicts such as this between parent and child contribute to the risk of offending by the affected child. Healy Bronner (1936), working under the psychoanalytical umbrella, applied the idea of sublimation (the channelling of unacceptable impulses) to offending behaviour. This is where a child suffers dissatisfaction from a failure to experience strong emotional ties with a parent, which then manifests itself in delinquency such as Boy As. Labelling theory would argue it is those who hold positions of social power (such as teachers and arguably neighbours), that determine who is labelled as nuisance/anti-social/criminal (Hollin, 1989). Gove (1975, cited in Hollin, 1989) contests a consequence of labelling is that of stigmatisation, where the public attitude of condemnation creating social exclusion of the individual. This may in turn create a modification of self-image, where a person starts to believe societys condemnation and modifies their self-image so as to match the label, thus creating further risk of offending. This may apply to those in the same position as Boy A, who when surrounded by condemnation by those in apparently superior social positions (teachers/neighbours), merely become the label. Conclusion It is this reports view that proactive behavioural strategies, that have the welfare of the child at heart offer the best chance to challenge the types of behaviour shown by those such as Boy A. Reactive policies such as ASBOs are not concerned with why a child is acting anti-socially, only that the behaviour should end. This may inevitably lead to a breach of an order and potential criminal sanctions (with all the problems such as future employability this has), as surely there is no hope for an end until the factors that lead to the ASB (Boy As tumultuous home life) are dealt with. S.2.1 shows that a childs behavioural difficulties increase the further they advance into their teenage years. It would therefore be easy to say that the majority of resources should be targeted at this age group. However it is this reports view that intervention strategies should be targeted at children as young as possible, as surely this increase in challenging behaviour exhibited by older children can be put down to a behavioural snowball effect, caused by it not being challenged early enough. This report believes that behavioural strategies that work on a broader school level (s.2.2), are desirable to the more individualistic strategies(3.1) discussed. This is because they attach no stigma to any individual child, and in some cases, such as with classroom charters can even be self-policed through the exertion of peer pressure. It is obvious that in a few cases a childs behaviour (arguably Boy As) is such, that it should be dealt with in isolation of the others. This should be done in as sensitive a manner as possible, so as to minimise both the feeling of the child being picked on by staff, or for his peers, the feeling that he is receiving extra attention. For Boy A and others, an escalation in behavioural problems would lead them into the realm of the Youth Justice System, dealt with in s.4.12. Overall, the new youth justice reforms of the previous government have had a positive impact on dealing with challenging/offending behaviour. Due to their welfarist approach to troubled youths, YOTs are particularly welcomed by this report, and may offer those like Boy A a final opportunity to reform before being passed to the more formal CJS.

Kinos Lust for Money in The Pearl by John Stienbeck :: essays research papers

Kino's Lust for Money in The Pearl by John Stienbeck In the novel The Pearl, written by John Steinbeck, Kino is a poor, hardworking man who dives for pearls as a living. Kino?s lover, Juana, fathered his baby boy, Coyotito. One day while fishing, Kino finds a giant pearl referred to in the story as ?The Pearl of the World?. He thinks it will bring him great wealth and status. Kino planned to marry Juana in a church and send Coyotito to school with the enormous profit he would gain from the pearl. While trying to sell the pearl, Kino?s greed and lust for money turned out to cause the destruction of his family. One of the ways we can see Kino?s lust for money was after he found the pearl and took it to get an appraisal. When the dealer offered a fraction of the pearl?s real value, Kino became angry thinking that they were trying to swindle him. Instead of taking the money offered by the dealer, which was a considerable amount to a man of Kino?s status, Kino rejected the offer. Each step to find a buyer brought more trouble and danger. When Kino was leaving to go to the capital to get his pearl appraised, he was attacked by thieves and was forced to kill them out of self-defense. He lost the pearl in the struggle, but his wife, Juana, found it again. Even though it was evident that the pearl was causing evil, instead of throwing the pearl back from where it came, his greed drove him to continue his journey to the capital to sell it. Now that Kino had killed a man, he believed he was being followed by a group of trackers sent to bring him back to La Paz. Kino?s greed scared him to believe that the trackers wanted the pearl for their own and he would be forced to murder them. As Kino, Juana, and Coyotito began their journey up the mountain, the trackers were getting closer and closer. Finally, Kino decided he must do something to get rid of the trackers. After leaving Juana and Coyotito in a cave, he crept to the trackers? campsite and waited. While waiting, he observed that only one of the trackers had a gun. He made a mental note to attack that man first so that he might obtain the gun.

Three Strike Laws Essay -- Law Laws Argumentative Persuasive papers

Three Strike Laws Mandatory minimums and three strike laws, are they really the answer to the crime problem America has faced for years? Many would say yes, including me, as long as it is for a violent crime such as murder, rape or arson; some feel that even theft, drug trafficking or possession, and burglary are all worthy of the 25-to-life sentence that can be carried under the mandatory minimums for three strike laws. A three-strike law is a law that states that you will be sentenced to 25years to life for three violations and convictions of a law. Where the three strike laws have mandatory sentences, mandatory sentences aren’t always tied in with three strike laws. A mandatory minimum is a law that requires someone serve a predetermined amount of time in prison for specific offenses and the only way to have it reduced is by assisting the authorities in further convictions of others. In California a man was sentenced under the three strike laws for theft because he had two prior convictions. This man had been convicted of robbery and attempted robbery; therefore the slice of pizza he stole got him 25 years to life in prison (Lungren Trumpets ‘Three Strikes’ Law). Yes now, in California, you can be sent to prison for life if you take a slice of pizza from someone. Let’s talk about how fair these laws are. Many say that these laws are used to profile African Americans and inner-city minorities primarily by the sentencing difference in rock and powder cocaine. There is a difference in the two forms and how they’re sold. Cocaine can be bought and sold as powder or rocks, also known as crack or crack cocaine. The effects of each are essentially the same. People will get the same effects with powder as w... ...ad, Peter. â€Å"Mandatory Sentences: Putting the Record Straight† Contemporary Review 270.1573 (1997): 57-61. Easton, Steve. â€Å"Incarceration Aids Drug Fight.† USA Today 30 Sept. 2002: News A11. Free, Jr. Marvin D. â€Å"The Impact of Federal Sentencing Reforms on African Americans.† Journal of Black Studies 28.2 (1997): 268-287. Goodwin, Catherine M. â€Å"Determining Mandatory Minimums In Drug Conspiracy Cases.† Federal Probation 59.1 (1995): 74-79. Heath, Erin. â€Å"One-Track Justice.† National Journal 33.34 (2001): 2614-2617. Locy, Toni and Joan Biskupic. â€Å"U.S. Panel to Urge Change in Crack Penalties.† USA Today 4 Aug. 2002: News A3. Stodghill, II, Ron. â€Å"Unequal Justice: Why Women Fare Worse.† Time 2 Jan. 1999: 50-52. Taylor Jr., Stewart. â€Å"Good Pardons, Bad Laws, and Bush’s Unique Opportunity.† National Journal 33.7 (2001): 466-468.

College Admissions Essays: An Influential Person or Event :: College Admissions Essays

An influential Person/event It seemed like it would make her die, just speaking it. So I didn't tell anyone, not even my best friends. At school I would slip into a fantastical dreamland, nobody there knew that I should be troubled, pensive. I put on my best front and paraded around the school halls with some sort of smile plastered on my face. At lunchtime I'd stare at my food thinking that my friends should know. I thought of a million different ways to tell them. Each time that I came close to telling them, I would think about their potential reactions. There would be the normal lunchtime banter going on, complaints about the ranch dressing, and I would blurt out, "Hey guys, my mom has breast cancer." The whole cafeteria would turn silent and the plastic forks would drop from their hands, making a sad little clinking noise. Then I would stare at my food mentally kicking myself for having opened my mouth. I chose to say nothing. I remember very clearly the day that I went to go sit with her while she got her chemotherapy. I only did this once because it was too hard for me. I walked down an overly-lit sterile hallway trailing behind my dad. When we reached her room I wished that I could just keep walking, pretend I hadn't seen her. I went in and sat down. Her shirt was partially unbuttoned so that the IV could be inserted into the porto-cath surgically implanted under her collarbone. She was hooked up to three different kinds of poisons, and one normal IV. There were some knitting things spread across her lap and the ever present bag of lemon drops was faithfully at her side. Her head was laid back in the chair, she was tired. She and my dad tried to involve me in some nice chit-chat, I met and shook hands with the doctors and nurses, "It's nice to meet you Dr. McCoy." Yeah right. They complimented her on what a beautiful daughter she had. I blushed, smiled politely then excused myself to the bathroom. I wiped away my forming tears and gave myself a mental pep talk to be cheery. As long as I didn't look at her tired eyes I was OK. Half an hour later, she was done and we got to go home. College Admissions Essays: An Influential Person or Event :: College Admissions Essays An influential Person/event It seemed like it would make her die, just speaking it. So I didn't tell anyone, not even my best friends. At school I would slip into a fantastical dreamland, nobody there knew that I should be troubled, pensive. I put on my best front and paraded around the school halls with some sort of smile plastered on my face. At lunchtime I'd stare at my food thinking that my friends should know. I thought of a million different ways to tell them. Each time that I came close to telling them, I would think about their potential reactions. There would be the normal lunchtime banter going on, complaints about the ranch dressing, and I would blurt out, "Hey guys, my mom has breast cancer." The whole cafeteria would turn silent and the plastic forks would drop from their hands, making a sad little clinking noise. Then I would stare at my food mentally kicking myself for having opened my mouth. I chose to say nothing. I remember very clearly the day that I went to go sit with her while she got her chemotherapy. I only did this once because it was too hard for me. I walked down an overly-lit sterile hallway trailing behind my dad. When we reached her room I wished that I could just keep walking, pretend I hadn't seen her. I went in and sat down. Her shirt was partially unbuttoned so that the IV could be inserted into the porto-cath surgically implanted under her collarbone. She was hooked up to three different kinds of poisons, and one normal IV. There were some knitting things spread across her lap and the ever present bag of lemon drops was faithfully at her side. Her head was laid back in the chair, she was tired. She and my dad tried to involve me in some nice chit-chat, I met and shook hands with the doctors and nurses, "It's nice to meet you Dr. McCoy." Yeah right. They complimented her on what a beautiful daughter she had. I blushed, smiled politely then excused myself to the bathroom. I wiped away my forming tears and gave myself a mental pep talk to be cheery. As long as I didn't look at her tired eyes I was OK. Half an hour later, she was done and we got to go home.

Hydroponics

Hydroponics As the world’s population grows exponentially, modern agricultural practices must focus on sustainability, to produce food while making efforts to maintain the environment. In order to produce more food for the growing population, producers have increased their use of viable agricultural lands resulting in 11% of earth being tilled for agriculture. While this number seems to be relatively low, it must be addressed that this 11% usage takes up almost all of the world’s land than can be used for crop production, due to various factors such as human development making the land unusable for growing crops (Owen, 2005).In order to combat this ever-increasing issue, alternative-farming methods must be introduced internationally. One alternative method to traditional field-growth of crops has been shown to be very effective for centuries; this method is now called hydroponic production (Jones, 1997). Ancient Babylonian hanging gardens and Aztecan floating gardens ar e two examples of hydroponics from agricultural history that show the advantages of using hydroponics in an agricultural system (Jones, 1997).Hydroponic production of crops is characterized by the propagation of crops in solutions of water and nutrients; these can be used with or without the addition of a growth media to provide mechanical support to the plant’s root system (Jensen, 2007). Growing plants hydroponically provides a wide array of ecological benefits, ranging from the ability to grow plants without the need for viable cropland, to high sustainability due to extremely low emissions. The basic advantages of growing plants in a hydroponic system are explained in Jones’ book, Hydroponics: A Practical Guide for the Soilless Grower (1997).Jones explains the three main advantages as: â€Å"crops can be grown where no suitable soil exists or where the soil is contaminated with disease,† â€Å"labor for tilling, cultivating, fumigating, watering, and other traditional practices is largely eliminated,† this advantage provides incentives for the use of a hydroponic system, but does not directly affect environmental sustainability, and â€Å"maximum yields are possible, making the system economically feasible in high-density and expensive land areas† (Jones, 1997). These three components are key to what makes hydroponic production of crops a viable choice for ecologically sustainable agriculture.The first core advantage of hydroponic production described by Jones is that when hydroponics are paired with greenhouses or other growing environments, production can take place where no suitable soil is present; this addresses a main issue for the future of the food system and agriculture (Jones, 1997). Because most of the possible agricultural land in the world is already being used for production, (in many cases it is being overused,) efforts must be made to use alternative growing methods without expanding cropland.In most curre nt hydroponic systems, plants are propagated in greenhouses that provide maximum efficiency in growth, also providing high accessibility for farmers and control over the growing environment (Leonhardt and McCall, 1982). Within the greenhouses many different systems of production can be utilized, these systems range from the â€Å"water culture system†, which is the most common and simple, to â€Å"aeroponic systems†, which require the highest technology (Shrestha, Dunn).The water culture system employs the basic function of the hydroponic system of production, using a floating platform that holds plants above the surface of the water. The roots are submerged within the water-solution that has an oxygen pump at the bottom of the tank; the tank supplies the roots with oxygen and other nutrients, this is categorized as an â€Å"active† production technique (Shrestha, Dunn). This method can be used at fairly large scales within a greenhouse and helps farmers to thor oughly manage nutrient availability for their plants, something that conventional farmers cannot control as dynamically.Hydroponic production is divided into two main aggregate systems, closed (or recirculating), and open (or run-to-waste), and these two categories are further subdivided by passive and active systems (Johnson, 2010). Closed systems are the most ecologically efficient option for growing hydroponic plants, this is due to the fact that within this type of system, nutrients and water are recirculated and recycled. This means that farmers can reuse water, and add nutrients to the water as needed as plants deplete the concentrations (Shrestha, Dunn).Plants in a closed system are often grown in gravel or â€Å"rockwool cultures,† which is considered the most widely used growth medium for hydroponic production (Shrestha, Dunn). Rockwool cultures are described as ground-up basalt rocks that is heated and spun into threads and used to form a wool-like material, these f orm small cubes that optimize growth for plants by retaining water and allowing for air space for root development (Shrestha, Dunn).By utilizing recycling of water and nutrients, the closed production system offers the greatest choice for sustainability and is the method of choice for many sustainably driven hydroponic farms. Open systems of hydroponic productions involve disposal using of a â€Å"run-to-waste† system of used nutrients and water (Johnson, 2010). The water-nutrient solutions are used by the plants in passive or active methods, and when they have used to their maximum capacity the water, along with the used nutrients are moved to a waste facility (Shrestha, Dunn).The open systems tend to utilize sand as a growth media, as well as the common rockwool culture (Shrestha, Dunn) Active, as a subcategory of open and closed production methods is described as the use of a wick and a growing media with very high capillary action, this provides the roots with the ability to take in the highest levels of water and nutrients. Active systems pass nutrient solutions directly over the plant roots to allow them to intake the nutrients, water and oxygen (Shrestha, Dunn).Each of these hydroponic production systems have their advantages and disadvantages, although closed systems are the most ecologically-friendly, any of the hydroponic systems will provide environmental and sustainable benefits. Other growing environments have recently been introduced for producing crops hydroponically with even further ecological benefits. Structures such as â€Å"vertical farms,† are being familiarized in the production of vegetables. These â€Å"vertical farms† do not require a lot of space and can utilize closed aggregate production systems.A vertical farm is a system of production that uses vertical tiers of growing pots or entire crop beds, because of their vertical alignment, nutrient solutions can be applied once to the highest level of plants and can, with the help of gravity, be passively applied to the plants growing below (Koerner, 2012). This cutting edge technology in the field of hydroponic production appears to be the direction many producers will take to transition hydroponic systems to a larger scale. An ideal use of vertical farming integrated with hydroponic crop production would be to create large, industrial-sized acilities that have many vertical tiers of growing beds for crops. These facilities could be placed within urban areas to provide fresh food to â€Å"food deserts,† and utilize space that would otherwise not be used. An important environmental benefit of these hydroponic systems is that that high yield production can be obtained with minimal emissions and other factors of agricultural production. Because vertical farming is in its beginning stages, there is no conclusive evidence as to how the technology can be translated for use in large-scale agriculture, but there are many highly environmentally conscious paths that can be taken.Food shortages exist all over the world and these shortages are usually due to the inability to produce food, due to the climate, where the shortages exist. For example, many African countries have food shortages and cannot supply their citizens with adequate levels of food availability. The environment in Africa is not conducive for growing crops for the food system; high temperatures and arid climates do not allow the growth of most major food crops. Incorporating hydroponic systems in these types of environments could allow for production of food, where it would be unfeasible otherwise.Hydroponic production allows farmers to manipulate growing conditions and maintain ideal conditions for the growth of crops resulting in the highest possible yields (Jones, 1997). These yields can be achieved in greenhouses, in arid climates, where many important crops for food staples cannot be grown. The third core advantage described by Jones is that maximum yie lds can be achieved in high density and high priced land areas (Jones, 1997). This advantage is key for producing fresh food within urban environments, while maintaining high yields.Efforts are being made in urban environments to produce fresh vegetables where all â€Å"fresh† produce is imported for consumption. The most prevalent example of this type of agricultural system is taking place in New York City in alternative farming methods called â€Å"rooftop farms. † In various New York boroughs, with Brooklyn being the most common, residents are beginning production of fruits and vegetables on top of their homes and apartments (Foderaro, 2012). These rooftop farms often utilize hydroponic production to maximize yields in these alternative-growing environments.New York is considered to be the leader of the movement for commercial agriculture produced in an urban environment and movements such as this one can help the world’s hunger problem (Foderaro, 2012). Beca use most of the world’s expanding population lives in urban environments, this type of agriculture could be a highly viable solution for agricultural production in the future, utilizing available space that would otherwise not be used, especially not for agriculture. In 2012 under mayor Bloomberg’s administration, rooftop farms gained popularity and were greatly backed by various zoning modifications (Foderaro, 2012).These rooftop farms have shown great environmental benefits; in a New York Times article, author Foderaro describes the benefits for growing fresh produce on the city’s rooftops. These benefits include recycling rainwater that would otherwise be diverted to the sewers, and greatly decreasing the amount of trucks bringing produce into the city, ultimately decreasing emissions of greenhouse gases and the consumption of fossil fuels (Foderaro, 2012). This type of system has promise as being a key part of the sustainable agriculture movement that must b e put into affect to increase production for the food system.The ecological benefits that are posed by the commercialization and adoption of hydroponic production practices have been shown for many years, in many different situations. In order to maximize productivity and yield, hydroponic technologies need to become a mainstream method of commercial farming, if general adoption of these techniques becomes more common, more research efforts will be put towards optimizing production methods. Through these studies, hydroponic production of crops can become a truly viable and ecologically sustainable source of food for the food system.Cited Jones, J. Benton. Hydroponics: A Practical Guide for the Soilless Grower. 1. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press, 1997. 1-11. eBook. Owen, James. † Farming Claims Almost Half Earth's Land, New Maps Show. †Ã‚  National Geographic. 28 10 2010: n. page. Web. 4 Apr. 2013. Jensen, Merle H. â€Å"Controlled Environment Agriculture Center. †Ã ‚  Arizona State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Arizona State University, 21 2 2007. Web. 4 Apr 2013. Shrestha, Arjina, and Bruce Dunn. â€Å"Hydroponics. â€Å"Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service. HLA-6442 n. page. Web. Apr. 2013. Leonhardt, Kenneth W. , and Wade W McCall. â€Å"Hydroponics. †Ã‚  Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service. General Home and Garden Series. 35 (1982): 1-4. Web. 4 Apr. 2013. Koerner, Claudia. â€Å"Vertical farm: Farmer takes crops to new heights. †Ã‚  Orange County Register  [Laguna Beach] 5 9 2012, n. page. Web. 4 Apr. 2013. Johnson, Larry. â€Å"Types of Hydroponic Systems. †Ã‚  ExGro Garden. N. p. , 25 9 2010. Web. 4 Apr 2013. Foderaro, Lisa. â€Å"To Find Fields to Farm in New York City, Just Look Up. †Ã‚  New York Times  11 7 2012, N. Y. /Region n. page. Web. 4 Apr. 2013.

Fist Pumping Their Way To The Top Essay

â€Å"Gym, Tanning, Laundry†, these three words have become increasingly popular among teenagers because of MTV’s hit reality television show, Jersey Shore. Television shows and their stars can become very influential to many of their viewers. Many of these viewers strive to be like these stars and mimic their style and attitude, in hopes of living the same careless lifestyle that has made these stars known around the world. Unfortunately, these television shows don’t always portray certain aspects of life realistically, and therefore send a false message that can be very deceiving. Studies show that television shows tend to follow several popular trends that do indeed portray the wrong reality. Harry F. Water’s article, â€Å"Life According to TV†, analyzes the different trends that television shows and movies in popular culture tend to follow. Harry Water’s focuses on George Gerbner’s research on the scientific examination of television far beyond familiar children-and-violence arguments. He describes television’s reality warp dealing with sex, age, race, work, health and crime. Water’s states in his article, â€Å"People over 65, too, are grossly underrepresented on television. Correspondingly, heavy-viewing Annenberg respondents believe that the elderly are a vanishing breed and that they make up a smaller proportion of the population today than they did 20 years ago. In fact, they form the nation’s most rapidly expanding age group† (Waters, 1982). Jersey Shore is a reality television show similar to that of â€Å"The Real World† and markets binge drinking, partying, fake tanning, and sleeping all day. It seems that the drama-driven cast seems to be promoting a careless way of life, and in fact might be rubbing off on its viewers. Elderly people are rarely seen on the show, and the stars are constantly shown going out with other young people, and going to bars and clubs that consist of other people around their age group. Even though some of the stars on the show are in their 30’s, they still live a constant partying lifestyle and act as though they are still young and essentially do not have to grow up yet. Teenagers watching this show can see this lifestyle as normal and strive to live their life the same way. The stars in the show live in a nice house and are constantly spending money, even though they only work at a pizza, ice cream and t-shirt company. In reality, these types of jobs would not cover the type of expenses these lifestyles come with. This lifestyle is extremely glamorized and in reality, someone living the same lifestyle as these stars would not be living nearly as luxuriously as they do, due to the success rate they have gained from the show. Many of these stars are on the front of magazines and all over different television talk shows because their show has become so successful and is increasing in fans. Some worry that viewers might have more motivation to be like these casts members and partake in inappropriate activities in hopes that they too will get famous. David Showalter a columnist for New Jersey newsroom says that, â€Å"MTV’s ‘Jersey Shore’ success is a cultural phenomenon† (Showalter, 2011), and for the most part he is absolutely correct. Jersey Shore has been a huge success, but for what? Partying? Another aspect of life that television shows often times portray unrealistically is health. Water’s states in his article, â€Å"Although video characters exist almost entirely on junk food and quaff alcohol 15 times more often than water, they manage to remain slim, healthy and beautiful.† Jersey Shore is centered almost entirely on partying and living that partying lifestyle- partying all night and recovering for half of the next day in order to be ready to do it again. However, the majority of the cast appears to be extremely well fit. This can confuse viewers because constant partying and binge drinking daily can be extremely harmful to one’s health. Even though going to the gym is part of these cast members daily routine, it does not make up for their excessive partying and will eventually catch up to them, when the viewers are no longer watching. These stars go out almost every night and are constantly shown belligerent to the point where they can’t walk and are starting fights in clubs and other public places, and for some reason young teenagers are seeing this as something cool to participate in. In an interview by Steven Guarino, he states, â€Å"Alcoholism is promoted on the Jersey Shore so much that it could influence younger viewers to drink irresponsibly.† The motive and center of the show is clearly the stars ongoing party lifestyle and their crazy drunken endeavors. The Situation, one of the cast members, has even stated in the first season on the first episode, â€Å"You can hate on me all you want to, but what can you possibly say to somebody that looks like Rambo, pretty much, with his shirt off.† Therefore, although the stars are constantly drinking and eating poorly, they still remain slim and good-looking, when in reality most people would be looking the complete opposite. Walter’s article also states, â€Å"Frequent TV watchers, the Annenberg investigators found, eat more, drink more, exercise less and possess an almost mystical faith in the curative powers of medical science.† When watching television shows, sometimes we get hooked and start to believe and agree with these stars way of life, not noticing the reality of it and allowing ourselves to get sucked into popular culture. Tanning is another major part of the popular Jersey Shore lifestyle. As we know, fake tanning can be very harmful to our skin, and cause skin cancer. However, the Jersey Shore characters act as if it is a way of life. Waters also states in his article, â€Å"Television may well be the single most pervasive source of health information. And it’s over idealized images of medical people, coupled with its complacency about unhealthy life-styles, leaves both patients and doctors vulnerable to disappointment, frustration and even litigation† (Waters, 1982). Despite what children have heard from their parents or other people, the un-healthy diets they see on television can appear healthy to them because they seem to be working for these reality TV stars and consequently can end up being more influential than what they’ve heard. Snooki, one of the show’s main characters, recently said on a Jay Leno show, that she’d like to change the world by installing cancer-causing tanning beds â€Å"in everybody’s homes.† Every member on the show tans in a tanning bed daily as a consistent part of their daily lives, and considers being tan as one of the main things one must do in order to be good looking. The cast members are very forward about this and seem to see nothing wrong with it. The Situation states in the second episode of the first season, â€Å"I wait till the last minute to shave, I wait till the last minute to put my shirt on ‘cause you feel fresh. These are rules to live by, shave last minute, haircut the day-of, maybe some tanning and the gym. You gotta do the guido handbook.† These quotes seem to be aiming towards the casts members’ hopes to influence viewers to live these similar lifestyles and to shoot to look like them, even if it’s not what’s best for the viewers’ health and unfortunately television shows continue to influence people in the wrong way. Although Jersey Shore seems to capture every negative aspect of reality television and continues to be unrealistic, it somehow remains the most viewed series on MTV. The third season finale delivered 4.8 million viewers; almost triple the audience who watched the season premiere on December 3 (Martin). It is clear that the Jersey Shore phenomenon is continuing to grow and become more widespread than ever before. This can be very troubling to parents and the messages being sent to young teenagers is influencing them in a very negative way, while showing them unrealistic â€Å"reality television†. With popular culture becoming more and more deceiving, viewers can forget to question who they are really taking after.

Must be 540 words

Why are you seeking a career in osteopathic medicine, and why do you believe CCOM would provide you with the type of osteopathic medical education you are seeking? Witnessing and experience are two good things that influenced me to create my very personal vision mission statement. My parents were both physicians and I have observed the kind of critical service they gave to their respective patients. The essence of selfless giving to help humanity created in me the desire to help others. This compassion for people suffering from different illnesses thus became my passion. I was exposed to osteopathic medicine when I was still a student in Loyola University of Chicago. Osteopathic manipulative medicine triggered the interest and self awareness in me. This is the lack in medicine intervention to emphases on prevention by achieving wellness focus on health education, injury prevention and disease prevention. I see the need to acquire skills and knowledge on developing a system on medical care that promotes the body’s immune system or innate ability to heal self. Discerning differences between allopathic and osteopathic medical practice through actual observations, I’ve found that the approach of osteopathic medicine and its manner of treatment is friendlier where many patients finds it comforting to seek medical advise. The consultation was most helpful and informative to challenge behavior change in unhealthy lifestyle. The combination of intervention and prevention is but perfect channels to improving health and patient’s lifestyles! I firmly believe Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine has the edge to offer the most comprehensive education and training in the world of Osteopathic medicine being referred outstandingly by friends and colleagues alike. Amazing how an Osteopath’s highly developed sense of touch allows the human body to palpate even those that fail to appear on x-ray which I see is a potential to reduce radiation contamination. There is some kind of shared responsibility and shared effort which looks like a buildup of teamwork that is most commendable between the patient and the administering physician. This fits well with my outgoing personality and interest in health problems resolution without drugs or surgery applications which I believe is one of the philosophies of OMM. I am a few steps near to my dream.   I want to utilize the knowledge and training obtained from this study program to help people locally and globally who are in dire search for the cure or maybe nearest to the cure on individual ailments. A good informative interactive website will do after I finished the course. I am into helping financially disabled patients get all the resources they can get to help them manage their illnesses and their bodies. A non-profit lung cancer institute will be the finale of that dream. This satiates passion and let me perform duties helping people live. Given this chance to prove my sincerity to serve people reduce stress and worries brought about by their illnesses and afflictions, I seek approval for admission to study Osteopathic Medicine in Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine. I may be a few steps towards fulfillment but it can never be what I want it to be at this moment when I’m still here soliciting for your agreement to help people and   waiting for your signatures to signify approval of this application. I humbly ask understanding that the next step of that dream to serve humanity starts with you. Thank you so much for your time.