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James
Professor Resnick
English 111-I
Biography Report
October 10, 2002 Ethan
A. Nadelmann: A Qualified Author The War on Drugs is an issue that constantly arouses different opinions in our country. Numerous people believe that our current drug policies are in desperate need of reform. I think that we are placing our money and efforts in the wrong places. Ethan A. Nadelmann is one of many who share this belief. Nadelmann, “a highly regarded expert on the international aspects of crime and law enforcement,” has received his popularity through extended research, writings, and public broadcasts on television and radio about drug policies (biography, pars. 3-4). Nadelmann declares that we must change how we think about drugs and drug control. He is “one of the world’s most respected and high profile critics and commentators on U.S. and international drug control (biography, par. 1). Nadelmann feels that U.S. drug control strategies are not only failing, but creating more problems for our country (Nadelmann, War, 23). Ethan A. Nadelmann was born on March 13, 1957 in New York City, NY. Nadelmann attended McGill University from 1975-77 (Ethan, par. 1). He continued his education at Harvard University to attain his B.A. in Political Science in 1979 (Ethan, par. 1). Nadelmann attended the London School of Economics and Political Science for his M.Sc. in International Relations in 1980 (Biography, par. 1). He returned to Harvard to accomplish a J.D. in 1984 and a Ph.D. in 1987; these degrees were also in Political Science (Ethan, par. 1). Nadelmann has taught at respected universities such as the Stanley H. Kaplan Educational Center from 1980-81 and Princeton University from 1987-94 (Ethan., par. 2). In 1984-85, he was a consultant to the Bureau of International Narcotic Matters at the U.S. Department of State (Ethan, par. 2). He was an associate in the Center for Historical Analysis at Rutgers University from 1991-93 (Ethan, par. 2). Nadelmann spent some of his summers working as a legal associate for private law firms, including Oshan, Grundman & Frome, and Goulston & Storrs (Ethan, par. 2). Possibly his greatest accomplishment was the founding of the Lindensmith Center in 1994 (Biography, par. 2). This institute merged with the Drug Policy Foundation in 2001 to form the Drug Policy Alliance (Biography, par. 2). He is currently the Executive Director of this foundation which has the objective of building a national drug policy reform movement (About, par. 1). Nadelmann has been a member of the board of directors for the International Anti-Prohibitionist League and a member of Mayor Kurt Schmoke’s Working Group on Drug Policy Reform (Ethan, par. 2). He has received awards to commend his extraordinary efforts. These awards include; Fellow of Robert C. Linnel Foundation from 1989-90, the Ford Foundation fellow from 1989-91, and the Alfred R. Lindensmith Award from the Drug Policy Foundation in 1992 (Ethan, par. 3). Nadelmann received grants from the Smart Family Foundation from 1990-96 and the Open Society Fund from 1993-94 (Ethan, par. 3). Nadelmann’s writings on drug policies have appeared in numerous scholarly and mainstream journals such as Science, Rolling Stone, National Review, Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, The Public Interest, and many more (Biography, par. 3). He has written two books in his career. These books are Cops Across Borders: The Internationalization of U.S. Criminal Law Enforcement and Criminalization and Crime Control in International Society (Ethan, par. 4). Cops Across Borders has been reviewed by Mary Carroll and P. Horne. Carroll has published many articles on social science issues. P. Horne has written many articles relating to medical issues. Nadelmann was a co-editor for the book Psychoactive Drugs and Harm Reduction: From Faith to Science (Ethan, par. 4). He has also contributed to the books The Challenge of Integration: Europe and the Americas, The Internationalization of Police Cooperation in Western Europe, and Undercover: Police Surveillance in Comparative Perspective (Ethan, par. 5). Nadelmann is currently the contributing editor to the International Journal on Drug Policy and the assistant editor to the Journal of Drug Issues (Ethan, par. 5). Nadelmann has had numerous interviews that have been publicly broadcasted on television, radio, and the Internet (Biography, par. 4). Nadelmann was born to a Jewish Rabbi and was raised by the standards of Judaism (Ethan, par. 1). I believe that his religion has helped to mold him as a person and aid him in all of his great accomplishments. It is obvious that Nadelmann’s views oppose prohibition and the current drug control strategies in our country. Nadelmann states that “some international law enforcement efforts prove more successful than others... (Nadelmann, Cops Across, 14). U.S. government drug policies have created disease, death, and crime due to prohibition and the restriction of availability of sterile syringes (Nadelmann, War, 25). Nadelmann argues that we must liberate our views and allow for some measure of legal availability if we plan to succeed in the War on Drugs (Nadelmann, War, 23). Modest tactics demonstrated in Europe should motivate the U.S. to experiment without complete formal legalization (Nadelmann, War, 25). He believes that the U.S. is relying too much on law enforcement. “Our goal is to immobilize transnational criminals are influenced by many factors other than the quality and quantity of U.S. international criminal law enforcement” (Nadelmann, Cops Across, 11). Our society needs to accept drugs and learn how to appropriately contain them (Nadelmann, War, 25). Nadelmann has used his reputation and power of knowledge to uphold his views and beliefs. He has used his position as Executive Editor of the Drug Policy Alliance to motivate action into others who share similar ideas. Ethan A. Nadelmann is unquestionably qualified to write about his ideas concerning the War on Drugs. He has a credible reputation and he certainly uses it as an advantage to declare his opinion.
(Typed on a separate sheet of paper.) Bibliography Drug Policy Alliance. About the Alliance. 7 October 2002 <http://www.drugpolicy.org. Ethan A. Nadelmann. 7 October 2002 <http://www.galenet.com. Ethan Nadelmann Biography. 7 October 2002 <http://www.reconsider.org. Nadelmann, Ethan A. Cops Across Borders: The Internationalization of U.S. Criminal Law Enforcement. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State UP, 1993. 11-14. Nadelmann, Ethan A. “The War on Drugs Is a Failure.” The War on Drugs: Opposing View Points. Ed. Stephen Thompson. San Diego: Greenhaven, 1998. 22-27 |
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Cheryl
Professor Resnick
English 111-I
Source Trace Report
October 21, 2002
Enhancing
Research Results by Digging Deeper To better familiarize myself with my topic, I have recently learned to trace my sources. The article I chose to trace is called “Demystifying School Violence: A Local, State, and National Perspective on the Phenomenon of School Violence” by Kari Repenning, et al. This article talks about school violence as a whole. All of the current types of safety measures were explained, considered, and critiqued. The authors do not view the implementation of dress codes as an effective way to stop violence in schools. According to the article, it is difficult to know whether dress codes alone have had any affect on school violence because it is an effort that is generally used in conjunction with other interventions. They say that no concrete proof has been found to prove that school violence was reduced after the implementation of school dress codes. The authors feel that dress codes infringes upon the student’s constitutional rights, and they also emphasize that changing a person’s clothing does not change the person. The first trace source I found was called “Anti-violence Efforts Show Few Results”. This article was written by Gordon Witkin, and was published in U.S. News and World Report. The article mentions a few types of safety measures that have been implemented in schools, and dismantles their credibility. For instance, Witkin explains why he feels metal detectors are ineffective. He says they create “a false sense of security in schools” (Witkin par. 2) because students are able to easily bypass metal detectors by going through different doors or even windows. A counseling program available for troubled teens was also discredited, although the article states that statistics showed the program was working in some schools. Witkin writes that the program was causing more delinquent behavior because it was putting these kids in more contact with each other. Also, apparently there is a lack of funding for research into what types of violence prevention programs are the most effective. Another program that is critiqued in Witkin’s article is the Department of Education’s Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program. Witkin says this group has spent $556 million dollar this year and “funds a relatively narrow range of intervention strategies, many of which have shown either not to work or to have only small effects” (Witkin, par. 4). The program’s director, Bill Modzeleski, is stipulating that each strategy must prove its effectiveness. The second trace source I found was the U.S. Department of Education’s Website, where I found information about the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program. This program works in schools and communities to combat against violence and drugs. The website explains in detail what steps this program takes. The school-based and community-based groups coordinate their efforts so that research and services are not duplicated. Technical assistance and training is also provided for all members of both groups. Advisory committees for this program come from many reputable places, such as: the U.S. Department of Education, the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the Center for Mental Health Services. These three sources are interrelated in that all are education-related and about school violence. “Demystifying School Violence: A Local, State, and National Perspective on the Phenomenon of School Violence” and “Anti-violence Efforts Show Few Results” are critical about the current anti-violence methods. The U.S. Department of Education’s Website is positive about its abilities to combat school violence. Through the course of doing this paper, I found that by tracing sources, it is possible to find even more about the credibility of the original source. I also learned that tracing sources is another way to get more information about your topic.
(Please type your bibliography on a separate sheet of paper.) Bibliography Repenning, Kari, et al. “Demystifying School Violence: A Local, State, and National Perspective on the Phenomenon of School Violence.” Journal of Security Administration. Vol. 24. Savannah: BLSS, 2001. Proquest. 23 Sep 2002. U.S. Department of Education Website. Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program. 15 Feb 2002. 18 Oct 2002 <http://www.ed.gov>. Witkin,
Gordon. “Anti-violence
Efforts Show Few Results.” U.S.
News & World Report. First Search. 6 Apr 1998. 14 Oct 2002 <http://firstsearch.oclc.org>.
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Cheryl Bryant
Professor Resnick
English 111-I
Website Resource Report
October 28, 2002
School
Dress Codes Websites
While researching my issue of whether or not school dress codes should be implemented, I came across websites for three different associations that had varying viewpoints. The first website I found was for the School/Law Enforcement Partnership for Safe Schools and Violence Prevention in Sacramento, California. This group is for implementing dress codes. The second website I found was for the Wilson County Parents Coalition, which is based in Wilson County, Tennessee. This group is very much against school dress codes, and they support the personal freedom side of the issue. The last website I found was for the Education Commission of the States. The ECS headquarters is in Denver, Colorado. This site was informative, but it has a neutral position on the issue. The School/Law Enforcement Partnership for Safe Schools and Violence Prevention website informs school administrators about how they can gauge whether or not they need to adopt safety measures. Once the school has decided that they have safety issues to address, the group encourages schools to get outside help from law enforcement officers and other specially trained professionals. California statewide training programs are available through the S/LEP. The S/LEP has also provided grants to fund the implementation of school safety improvement programs. The site summarizes its program in this manner: “The purpose (…) is to encourage schools and law enforcement agencies to develop and implement interagency partnerships, programs, strategies, and activities that improve school attendance, encourage good citizenship, and promote safe schools” (par. 2). The Wilson County Parents Coalition was formed in 1999 because their local school board made a decision to “force (the parents) to purchase, and (their) children to wear, certain clothing items in order to attend tax funded public schools” (par. 13). The Coalition says that parents “must unite to maintain parental choice, not only in matters of dress but concerning matters of education” (par. 16). They believe that if parents do not stand together on this issue, the school boards will have control over the children and their parental rights. However, the website does make a note that matters concerning dress codes can be successfully fought legally. The website also discusses a number of other concerns that the parents have in Wilson County, Tennessee. Another concern they have is that basic education (which are subjects such as Math, Science, History, and Language) is not being properly taught in our schools. The reason, they say, is because the federal government has begun to mandate the school curriculum. Altered forms of these subjects are being taught, especially History. According to the Wilson County Parents Coalition, some states have begun to mandate school uniforms and course curriculum, even against the wishes of the local school boards. One important statement made on this site is: “Our Constitution gives the federal government no place in education, but leaves this up to the individual states and citizens” (par. 21). The group is warning us that we should not give up our freedoms and allow the federal government to be in charge of our schools. The Education Commission of the States website gave very informative data regarding the policies on dress codes for thirty U.S. states. None of the thirty states that were listed legislatively mandate their dress codes. The other twenty-one states that were not listed do allow school districts to require policies, but so far, they do not have policies. Some interesting statistics caught my attention on this website. For instance, three states have their dress code policies governed by the State Board of Education. These states include: North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Some of the policies for a few states were non-descriptive about who governed their policies, such as: Colorado, Nevada, New York, and Ohio. These states’ policies contained terminologies such as “the Board” and the “Board of Education”. This makes me wonder whether it is the local board or the state board that comes up with the policy. Another fact I learned on this website was that some dress code policies contain an “opt-out” policy. This gives the parents the right to reject the policy, and it prevents their children from receiving any school punishment for breaking the rule. States with an “opt-out” policy are: California, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Texas. Many states also include parents in the decision-making process of whether to adopt dress codes. Such states that use this tactic are: Nevada, New Jersey, and Utah. Utah’s policy states that if the parents or guardians of 20% of the students object to the dress code policy, and if a petition is signed within thirty days of the code’s adoption, an election must be held to consider a reversal of the policy. The information I’ve accumulated from these three websites has opened my eyes a little more about this subject. One thing all three websites maintain is that if a school implements a dress code, it should be something in which many people should play an active part. Parents, community members, school officials, and students all need to be involved. If a dress code is implemented in a school, the students’ safety needs to be considered, as well as their constitutional rights.
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(Please type your bibliography on a separate page.)
Bibliography
Education Commission of the States Website. 2001. 21 Oct 2002 <http://www.ecs.org/
escmain.asp?page=/html/issues.asp>.
School/Law Enforcement Partnership for Safe Schools and Violence Prevention Website.
Oct 2002. 21 Oct 2002 <http://www.cde.ca.gov/spbranch/safety/slep/partnership.
asp>.
Wilson County Parents Coalition Website. 2002. 21 Oct 2002 <http://wilsoncounty
parents.org>.
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Cheryl Bryant Mr. Resnick English 111-I Interview Report November 4, 2002 Peoria Christian School Principal’s Views on Dress Codes Randy Brunk has been the Administrator at Peoria
Christian School for the last six years.
A dress code policy has been in place at his school for many years prior to when he started
there. In the past, he
also worked as an administrator at another Christian school in Virginia.
Here, among his other responsibilities as administrator,
Mr.Brunk was in charge of implementing the use of school uniforms.
Mr. Brunk’s overall view of dress codes is that
they benefit the school for many reasons.
He believes that dress codes and uniforms:
1) help to create a better learning atmosphere, 2) reduce student competition for
dress, 3) are more cost efficient, and 4) make an aspect of discipline
easier for the school administration. Brunk stated that at Peoria Christian School, one of the administration’s main goals concerning dress codes is to create a professional atmosphere. Brunk says, “We want to create a decorum of seriousness.” The idea is to get across to the kids that the school sets the rules – not the kids. The basic principles at PCS are neatness and modesty. For instance, no overly tight clothing is allowed for girls, and no overly loose clothing is allowed for boys. Mid-drift showing is unacceptable, as are body piercings and earrings for boys. Blue jeans and T-shirts are not allowed. Boys’ shirts must have a collar and be tucked in at all times. Any misappropriate items must be removed before the student enters the school building. The student handbook states that the student “…may be sent home to change or asked to not attend class until a change of clothing can be made.” Brunk says that at PCS, disciplining dress code offenders is based on his judgement of the individual’s apparel. He mentioned that the uniform offenders at his Virginia school were actually easier to discipline than dress code offenders at PCS because he didn’t have to make the judgement call. “Teachers already knew that what […students] were wearing was approved”, says Brunk. When school uniforms were first implemented at his school in Virginia, Brunk says no one liked the idea. After a time, he says, the acceptance of the uniforms was overwhelming. The students seemed happy with having a level playing field. In other words, school was no longer a fashion competition for them. It was also cheaper than buying the fashionable clothes. Mr. Brunk said that at the end of the year, a swap sale was held at the school. Families brought in the old uniforms their kids had grown out of the previous year and were allowed to swap them for the same clothing in a larger size. The school also had a scholarship program to help disadvantaged students purchase uniforms. Mr. Brunk asked the uniform manufacturer for a ten percent kickback of the uniform sales before he signed the deal with them. The Virginia school, with over 1,000 students, was then able to give their disadvantaged students roughly $70,000 in assist-ance. My interview with Mr. Brunk has given me an added insight into the research for my argument essay. Talking to someone in person who has dealt first hand with this issue will give my argument essay a more personal touch. Speaking with a local expert about the issue gives the writer an advantage, especially if the interviewed person is credible and well known. If my argument essay was printed in our local newspaper, I think it would be viewed as well written, because Mr. Brunk is the Administrator at Peoria Christian School (a private school) and it is a known fact that he is very knowledgeable about dress code policies. After interviewing Mr. Brunk, I am able to give examples of what has happened in Mr. Brunk’s schools, and delve into the advantages of dress codes in even more detail. In addition, some of the information I gained from Mr. Brunk was from a viewpoint I had not yet considered. For instance, I hadn’t thought about the disciplinary issues. I also had no concrete evidence against the opposing argument of “the expense of uniforms” until I learned about the swap sale and scholarship programs from Mr. Brunk. I found it interesting about the swap sales, and thought it was a very good idea. This kind of program probably has school-wide involvement, which helps people to not feel ashamed or embarrassed about needing help purchasing clothing. My personal background limits me in my knowledge of this topic. I went to Farmington High School, which was a small, public, rural school. I graduated in 1991. We had no gangs, and even if we did, the school was so small that we’d already know all the gang members. We had no uniforms we were required to wear. Our dress code was that we simply wore clothes to school. The only thing I can say is that my dad would never allow me to wear anything to school that wasn’t appropriate. By talking with Mr. Brunk, I have gained more personal knowledge on the subject of dress codes and uniforms. Cindy Smith Mr. Paul Resnick English 111-2425 August 26, 2003
School House Rock "As your body grows
bigger, your mind must flower, it's great to learn, 'cause knowledge
is power!" Any person in their twenties can tell you where this
phrase comes from, and that is because every Saturday morning in
between Saturday morning cartoons children would wait anxiously for a
five minute break of School House Rock. Little did we know that while
we were singing along to "Sufferin' Till Suffrage" we were
learning a history lesson. School House Rock is a
compilation of animated educational music videos. They were developed
by a man named David B. McCall back in the early seventies to teach
children between the ages of 6 to 12 the basics in grammar,
mathematics, history and science. There are over thirty of these music
videos and about five were shown every Saturday morning in between
breaks on the ABC Network. They ran for a period of eleven years, from
1973 to 1984, and were brought back by popular demand in 1989. Today
the children who used to watch them religiously are now having their
own children and this year all the videos were released out for sale
to the public. The reason these tapes
are just as popular as they were twenty years ago is that children are
more likely to learn if they are entertained at the same time. Now
that these tapes have been released for a new generation of children,
it is important that potential buyers see how good they are for kids.
These tapes make any lesson easy. They base their way of teaching by
repetition and even if you watch them only once, you are bound to pick
up a thing or two. The tapes are divided
into four categories. Grammar Rock deals with parts of a sentence and
their functions. Each song centers on a different part of speech, like
nouns, adjectives, and conjunctions. Multiplication Rock only deals
with multiplication up to the number nine, but it gives you hints to
make it easier. History Rock teaches mostly early American history and
Science Rock gives you little lessons in biology, earth science,
physics, and astronomy. The animation in these
tapes is not very modern. They have the feeling of the seventies
cartoons, with psychedelic colors and the children and adults'
appearances are drawn to resemble that era. Bellbottoms, afros and
platform shoes are common in some of the videos. The animation is very
basic, sticking mostly with primary colors and the movement is done
very slowly or broken. On the first music video of in Grammar Rock
titled "Noun is a person, place or thing", you can see just
how basic they are. Most of the screen is white with just a few colors
and a little girl showing what a noun is. This might be a drawback to
some parents who want to purchase these tapes, but these could also be
the same things young children might find attractive. Just look at the
popularity The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers have received. Their
action sequences have to be some of the most basic, yet children just
love them. Back then these mini-lessons were intended for older
children but nowadays it is more likely that the early childhood
education children and children in lower elementary grades will find
them more appealing. The music again is also
very seventies, but it is also very diverse. It ranges from blues,
jazz, rock and roll, early disco, and rock. It is also very
repetitive, a good thing since that makes it easier for children to
memorize them. Most of them have a refrain that could be repeated as
many as eight times in one song. They give a lot of information and
are really funny. "Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, get your adverbs
here", is practically considered a classic by many adults. It
gives you so much information that even if you were just to listen to
the music, you would learn something. What works in these
tapes is the mode of teaching they use, repetition. It is even used
while the child is learning another subject. Like in the Grammar Rock
series, the first video deals only with nouns. Then in the videos for
verbs or pronouns, when they mention the word noun they also give the
definition. Since these were shown on television once a week, and
maybe you would see the same video only once a month, this was very
helpful for a child because it would serve as a refresher course. One of the other
advantages of the modes of teaching these series use is the positive
subliminal messages it throws at you. An example of this would be that
on the Science Rock video they use a class photo where the teacher is
an African-American woman and the class is made up or all kinds of
children. Nowadays that is very common but twenty years ago it was
still hard to find role models for children of minorities and these
cartoons were helping out. In another video of the same tape, when
they talk about the different types or energy they mention that it is
also the duty of children to conserve it. Twenty years ago, the United
States was going through a huge energy crisis so through these videos,
children were able to help out by listening to these songs. As you can see these
videos brought a very simple way of learning for children and it is
doing it again. These tapes might only be popular with the so-called
generation X who are having their own children, but others might want
to buy them for their kids. If you want you kids to have fun and learn
a little while they are at it, these tapes would be a great idea.
Thanks to them, I was able to remember the Preamble for my 8th grade
government test and I can still tell you which bones are the patella,
the femur and the tibia.
Bibliography McCall, David B, dir. School House Rock-Grammar
Rock. ABC Video, 1995. McCall, David B, dir. School House Rock-America
Rock. ABC Video, 1995. McCall, David B, dir. School House Rock-Science
Rock. ABC Video, 1995. McCall, David B, dir. School House
Rock-Multiplication Rock. ABC Video, 1995.
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