Unwelcomed Evaluations by Teachers Nationwide Essay

Throughout history, education reformers worldwide have attempted to strengthen the ranks of public schools and find, train, and measure good teachers in a variety of ways. Many states have adopted teacher evaluation systems based on student test scores largely to receive federal Race to the Top grants or waivers from No Child Left Behind. These evaluations are mostly unwelcomed by educators nationwide, due to the unfair and ineffective consequences that have resulted from the evaluation systems. Under the new system, each teacher and principal will receive an annual professional performance review (APPR)which will be rated as â€Å"highly effective,† â€Å"effective,† â€Å"developing,† or â€Å"ineffective.† (New York State Board of Regents). The†¦show more content†¦Additionally, a majority of the standardized tests that would be used in teacher evaluations today, which are statewide tests required by NCLB, focus on low-level skills such as the restatement of information and on only a few subjects, primarily reading, math, and science. They don’t measure more advanced skills such as expository writing or an ability to think creatively or analytically, and they bypass history, art, music, and other subjects. Therefore, the teachers that have a wider teaching repertoire and are able to engage students beyond the basics, are at a disadvantage when standardized test scores are used as part of the evaluation. Furthermore, there are many factors that have strong influences on student learning gains, including the influences of previous teachers, tutors, family resources, family mobility, the quality of curriculum materials and class size. (2013 Economic Policy Institute). In fact, factors other than the teacher account for roughly 85-90% of the variation in students’ test scores, while teachers account for only 10-15% of the variance in scores (Strauss 2012). Therefore, handing teachers high ratings merely if thei r students have high test scores would create many miscalculations of teachers’ true capabilities. An example of this can be shown from the

Aristotle And Machiavelli A Take On The Timeless...

Aristotle and Machiavelli: A Take on the Timeless Political Issue of Class Invoking his penchant for statistics and an eye for the common man, Senator Bernie Sanders spent his campaign highlighting disparity and inequality between one percenters and the average America. Time and time again, Sanders highlighted two facts: first, that the top one-tenth of the one percent holds as much wealth as the other 99.9% of Americans, and that during the recent economic downturn, most of the new income generated has gone back into the hands of Wall Street. The oncome polarity between these groups of Americans has never been this large, Sanders asserts. While one can agree or agree to disagree, the questions surrounding money, social strata, and the†¦show more content†¦It was under these circumstances that he not only witnessed, but also experienced that inspired his writing. The Prince contains many rules, themes, and historical anecdotes one must be aware of to be the Machiavellian prince one of the most important being the idea of relationship between the fe w vs. many, the oppressor vs. the oppressed, the Greats vs the People, and other relationships within a society. In chapter IX, Machiavelli argues that oppression as a means for gaining power is the many desire of the power-hungry individual. While no one wishes to be oppressed, man is simply incapable of doing unto others as one would want unto himself. In other words, men will always put down those who are weaker and oppress the less powerful. Machiavelli then attempts to deconstruct the conflict posing two key questions to be answered: Why are those who are already in a position of power, the Greats, so inclined to pick on the little guy? And furthermore, if this cannot be rectified, how does a society to the best of its ability protect the disenfranchised People from the Greats? Machiavelli suggests that the only remedy for the inevitable instability within societies is extreme order and consolidated power for efficiency. As previously discussed, this may mean that principles such as justice and fairness may need to take the backseat, but all for the greater good according to Machiavelli. The desire to oppress, he argues is natural

Race in Down These Mean Streets Essay - 3202 Words

Qing Xu HCOM 345 Prof. Nava 5/2/12 Race in Down These Mean Streets â€Å"Éste es un mundo brillante, à ©stas son mis calles, mi barrio de noche, con sus miles de luces, cientos de millones de colores mezclados con los ruidos, un sonido vibrante de carros, maldiciones, murmullos de alegrà ­a y de llantos, formando un gran concierto musical (Thomas, Down These Mean Streets, 1998, p. 3)†, is how Piri Thomas describes his birthplace, East Harlem. The diversity of cultures, the vibrant street life, the passion and conflicts of everyday life and media portrayal in movies such as West Side Story make East Harlem an exciting and mysterious place. But hidden under the dirty faces of the children is the struggle in the search for acceptance and belong,†¦show more content†¦as a result of U.S. imperial invasion and colonization of the island. They became one of the most impoverished groups and were â€Å"systematically perceived and treated as a conquered people (Oquendo, 1998, p. 70)† Puerto Ricans could sometimes pass as whites, like Piri’s family did. However, Piri was treated badly by the school, public transportation, workplace and the government. In an interview conducted by Ilan Stavans, he recalled that in the classroom the â€Å"teacher came roaring upon me and said ‘listen, stop talking in that language [Spanish],’ and I said ‘well, I am speaking my mother’s language. My mother’s from Puerto Rico, I was born in this country,’ and she says ‘well you stop talking that, you have to learn English, you are in America now.’ (Thomas, Race and Mercy: A Conversation with Piri Thomas, 1996, p. 345)† He also recalled going to the South with his friend Billy on a bus. The driver ordered all colored people to go sit in the back. When Piri tried to tell the driver that he was Puerto Rican, the driver said, â€Å"I don’t care what kind of nigger you are† and reached his hand into his side pocket. To avo id the risk of being killed, he quietly went to the back of the bus (Thomas, Race and Mercy: A Conversation with Piri Thomas, 1996, p. 351). In a chapter of his book titled â€Å"How to Be a Negro without Really Trying,† Piri recalls another occasion where he and his fair skinned friend Louie went to a job interview for a sales position. The company hiredShow MoreRelatedBlack Men and Public Space841 Words   |  4 Pagesbecause of color, race, gender, culture or appearance. In addition, the author expresses to us that he notices the space between him and other people, such as women on the street. Some people may disagree that women set a certain amount of space when walking by a black man on the street. This statement is not true and public space is not about race, gender, color, culture, or appearance. 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The protagonist of Kelley’s work, Maynard, faces this inner conflict and eventuallyRead MoreAfrican Americans And Caucasian Americans1400 Words   |  6 Pagesindividuals if certain months of the year did not celebrate one race individually. Interracial marriage or dating is still considered a socially unacceptable sighting or experience. Individual feels as if they should only date their own ethnicity because it is the â€Å"right thing to do†, but in my eyes we are all the same. The perception of African Americans in America will stay the same. The perception of African Americans is that we always play the race card and we always act as the victim in any situation

Climate Change Is Real And Denial Is No More A Policy !

Climate change is real and denial is no more a policy! Abstract: For last 37 years as a world we have spent lot of time in studying climate change and fixing a blame. First World Climate Conference was held on 12-23 February 1979 in Geneva. (wikipedia) It was one of the first major international meetings on climate change. We are studying climate change, it’s impact, causes and how to fix mess created by us. But now it s high time for us to move forward and act on controlling Human contribution to Greenhouse Gases(GHG) which is major contributing factor to climate change.This way we are giving back to society and future generations. News: (See reference page for the link). Most of Greenland ice melted to bedrock in recent geologic†¦show more content†¦So we need to look for Electrical Vehicle (EV) and renewable energy. With current level of awareness for climate change people are changing their attitude toward mother earth and nature. They are increasingly looking toward less polluting vehicles and renewable energy (like solar / wind energy) for their day to day energy needs. Also different government across worlds are promoting development and use of EV automobiles and renewable energy. Government are giving incentives like congestion pricing, highway tolls, carpooling lanes, tax rebates on green vehicle (environmentally preferable vehicles). This change is society is forcing different organisation to develop green technology. Better Place and few other companies like Tesla, Renault-Nissan, Indian REVA, Fortwo is working toward this goal of new world where we human will be using green technology and not harming climate. This is change is leading toward all major automobiles working on electrical or alternative fuel cars like Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (HFCV). Recommendation: Along with current incentives government should promote infrastructure development for mass rapid transportation system. This will reduce per capita energy use. Different organisation is coming with their own innovation and lot of those innovation is happening in developed countries. These countries should promote transfer of technology to developing countries. This way majority of world populationShow MoreRelatedKoch, Money, Denialism And Climate Change1241 Words   |  5 PagesKoch, Money, Denialism and Climate Change. These last two election cycles have demonstrated the importance of climate change in relation to politics and the american people. What is unfortunate is that what seems to be a very crucial and real problem in our human survival, according to scientists, is being debated by people who do not have the scientific credentials to even discuss the science behind the reality of climate change. 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Many people are aware of this issue, however, there has been an increase in the amount of people who deny climate change. 23 percent of Americans (compared to last year’s 16 percent) believe that climate change is not a problem (Atkin). To conclude that people do not accept cli ­mate change because they do not under ­stand it

geology a science of lies Essay Example For Students

geology a science of lies Essay : Geologists have put together a column that is supposed to show all the life and the different eras and times in which they existed. Scientist claim that there are several examples of the geologic column found in nature. But there is not. There are several proofs out there that show that the geologic colunm does not exist. Because even Charles Darwin said in his book The Origin Of The Species -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- * Copyright DueNow. com Inc. * Category: Science Paper Title: geology a science of lies Essay Text: Geology: A Science of Lies Geologists have put together a column that is supposed to show all the life and the different eras and times in which they existed. Scientist claim that there are several examples of the geologic column found in nature. But there is not. There are several proofs out there that show that the geologic colunm does not exist. Because even Charles Darwin said in his book The Origin Of The Species Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely-graduated organic chain To come to an educated conclusion you must study what science believes. Scientist have come up with what they call a geologic column which is supposed to show all the different geologic periods. Geologic Column Cenozoic Era Quaternary 1 Men Tertiary 74 Mammals Mesozoic Era Cretaceous 60 Reptiles Jurassic 30 Triassic 40 Flowering Plants Paleozoic Era Permian 25 Amphibians, Ferns, Pennsylvanian 25 Mississipian 25 Conifers 45 First Land Plants And Fish Devonian Silurian 35 Ordovician 65 Invertebrates Cambrian 80 Pre-Cambrian Era 1 TO 2 BILLION YEARS AGO Evolutionists say that there are several examples in rock of all these different eras. But what they tend to ignore is that if fossils for the geologic record were assembled together in layers in one location, those layers would extend 130 miles into the earths crust. The earths crust is only 25-30 miles deep. What comes, as a shock to most students of geology, myself included, is that the geologic column does not exist anywhere? It is just a paper column. The Grand Canyon is supposed to be one of the very best examples of the exposed geologic column. Evolutionists claim that it represents more than a billion years of life history. But if you were to look at the strata of the Grand Canyon, you would notice that 8 periods are missing. Grand Canyon Strata ? ? ? ? ? Permian Pennsylvanian Mississippian ? ? ? Cambrian Precambrian That is 325 billion years of missing strata. Another problem that evolutionary geologists have faced is the problem of flip-flopped strata. By that I mean that there are several places where strata from an ancient period will be found on top of the strata of a more recent time. An example for this point is an area in Wyoming near Yellowstone Park. Here there is a sixty mile long stretch of Paleozoic strata laying on top of Tertiary strata which is 250 million years younger. According to the geologic column this would be impossible. Anouther blatant example of flip- flopped strata is found in the Swiss Alps on a mountain called Mythen Peak. This chart dramatically illustrates this point. Textbook Arrangement in Geologic Table the Mythen Peak Eocene Cretaceous Paleocene Cretaceous Jurassic Jurassic Triassic Triassic Eocene In Dr. Walter Lamments says in his article Growing Doubts: Is Evolution Theory Valid. The actual percentage of areas showing this progressive order from the simple to the complex is surprisingly small. Indeed formations with very complex forms of life are found resting directly on the basic granites. Furthermore, I have in my own files a list of over 500 cases that attest to a reverse order, that is simple forms of life resting on top of more advanced types. PUTA MADRE EssayIf the geologic time table idea of ancient earth history were true, people could expect to see these following circumstances in the geo-record. 1. The oldest strata would not contain as many life forms as the younger strata. 2. The earliest types of life will be very simple. 3. As the strata went from the lower and oldest strata to the younger upper strata you would see a clear cut picture of evolutionary development from primitive organisms to more advanced organisms. The truth is however is that there is no complete evidence of this. All the fossil record shows us is that all life started in the Cambrian period. If evolutionists were correct there would be a gradual progression into the life of the Cambrian period, which there is not. Even Walter Sullivan who is a supporter of evolution stated that The entire first part of evolutionary history is missing Scientist can not explain the absence of life forms in the Pre-Cambrian era. Another big problem .

Quick Guide for Public Speaking free essay sample

Quick Gulled to Public Speaking Preparations * Audience: The goal of public speaking is to gain a response from your listeners-to get them to think, feel, or act In a certain way. To reach the listeners, find out as much as you can about them( Age, gender, racial, ethnic background, religion, education level, attitudes towards you and the subject, how much they know about the subject) Adapt your speech to meet their needs and Interests. * Topic: Choose a topic that is interesting and about which you know a lot (either now or after doing research) Narrow the topic so that you can comfortably and adequately cover it within the time allotted. Purposes and central Idea: Select a general purpose (to Inform, to persuade, etc. ), a specific purpose (a statement of exactly what you want to achieve with your audience) For example, suppose you want to inform your audience about fraud and abuse In the U. S. Governments student-aid program. You could create objectives such as these: General purpose: To Inform Specific purpose: To tell my listeners what happens when some unscrupulous schools abuse he federal student-aid program. Next ask yourself, What is my essential message?What big idea do I want to leave in the mind of my listeners? Your answer is your central idea. Here is one possibility: Central idea: By manipulating the student-aid program, some schools cheat both tax payers and students. This central idea is what you want your listeners to remember if they forget everything else. * Finding materials: Gather information by reading books, magazines, journals, Internet, Interviewing knowledgeable persons. Drawing from your own personal experiences. Look for interesting items such as examples, statistics, stories, and quotations.Consider using visual aids to help the audience understand and remember key points. * Organization: Organize the body of your speech by devising two or three main points that explain or prove the central ideas. Next step develop each main points with support materials such as examples, statistics, and quotations from experts. * Transitions: To carry your listeners smoothly from one part of the speech to another use transitions words or phrases. E. G. A) Lets begin by looking at the robber b) Now for my second reason c) Let me summarize what weve covered. F the speech. Attention getters include fascinating stories, intriguing questions, and interesting facts or statistics. Next prepare listeners for the body of the speech. Establish credibility by stating your own expertise or by citing reliable sources. * Conclusion: Summarize your key points, and then close with a clincher (such as a quotation or a story) to drive home the central idea of the speech. * Outline: Put together all parts of the speech (introduction, body, conclusion, and ruinations) in an outline.Make sure that everything in the outline serves to explain, illustrate, or prove the central idea. * Speaking notes: Prepare brief speaking notes based on your outline. These notes should be the cues you take with you to the lectern. * Practice: Rehearse your speech several times. Dont memories the speech, but strive to rehearse ideas (as cued by your brief speaking notes). Trim the speech if you are in danger of exceeding the time limit. Delivery * Self-confidence: Develop a positive attitude about yourself, your speech, and your audience.Dont let fear cripple you; nervousness is normal for most speakers. Rather than trying to banish your Jitters, use nervousness as a source of energy, it actually can help you to come across as a vital, enthusiastic speaker. * Approach and beginning: When you are called to speak, leave your seat without sighing or mumbling, walk confidently to the front of the room, spend a few moments standing in silence (this is a good time to arrange your notes and get your first sentences firmly in mind), and then look directly at the audience as you begin your beech. Eye contact: Look at all parts of the audience throughout the speech, glancing down at your notes only occasionally. Avoid staring at a wall, floor and looking out a window. * Speaking rate: Speak at a rate that makes it easy for the audience to absorb your idea -neither too slow nor too fast. * Expressiveness: Your voice should sound as animated as it does when you carry a conversation with a friend. * Clarity and volume: Pronounce your words distinctly and speak loud enough so that all listeners can clearly hear you. Avoid verbally fillers e. G. Uh, ah, um, err, okay, way. Make them naturally and gracefully, so that they add to, rather than distract from your message. You may move about during your speech, as long as your movements are purposeful and confident not random and nervous. Refrain from Jingling keys or coins, riffing note cards, or doing anything that distracts the audience. * Posture and poise: Stand up straight. Try to be comfortable, yet poised and alert. Avoid leaning on the lectern or slouching on a desk. * Use of notes: Glance at your notes occasionally to pick up the next point.Dont dead them or absentmindedly stare at them. * Enthusiasm: Dont simply go through the motions of giving a speech. Your whole manner eyes, facial expressions, posture, and voice should show enthusiasm for your subject, and you should seem genuinely interested in communicating your ideas. * Ending and departure: Say your conclusion, pause a few moments, and then ask in a tone that shows that you sincerely mean it Are there any questions? Dont give the appearance of being anxious to get back to your seat (by pocketing your notes or by taking a step towards your seat.