Foreign Sexism

WOMEN BANNED FROM 77 MAJORS ACROSS 36 UNIVERSITIES

Yes, you read that correctly.  Women in Iran were banned from 77 majors including sciences.     Across the world, women's right are said to be expanding so this doesn't make any sense.  The video revealed previous studies in Iran showing that 52% of undergraduates were women and 68% of graduates were women in science.  Women's rights are said to be declining in the Middle East since the 1970's.  Women have gained rights socially, but legally they are getting worse.  The main reason that these bans on the majors occurred were because the Iranian government was concerned that rising educational standards among women may be contributing to a decline in birth and marriage.  One educational leader in Iran was quoted saying that "schools don't need the contributions of women." 

This issue is sexism to the max! The Qur'an states that the man is the protector and the women is to be subservient.  This is not fair to women! Statistics show the major success of women in sciences and high graduation rates, so why are they getting banned? They believe that the decrease in marriages and birth is caused by women getting an education.  I think that men and women deserve equal opportunity, especially when it comes to college.  In America, women are known to have more drive then men to further their education.  So if women in Iran have been discouraged all their life in all aspects of life, why can't they make a life for themselves by receiving a good education? 

                                       WATCH THIS OUTRAGEOUS VIDEO HERE  

Social Networking: Here to Stay

Twitter, Facebook, Youtube: websites that we can't go a day without checking. These sites can be very addicting and have major negative affects on our future children of America.  Every year, the age group of children joining social networking sites gets younger.  So if these children are getting involved with social media at such a young age, what significance does school have in their lives? The article that I read also touches upon the positive ways of social media, but negative affects each make a stronger argument.  One particular affect is that due to social website, kids try to multi-task.  They try to balance refreshing their Facebook and Twitter pages while studying.  There is a proven study that shows reduced academic performance in kids who study on these websites because come on, the test will not be based on your friend Ally's profile who you stalked instead of studying the American Revolution. Another negative affect is spell check.  Everyone relies on spell check! Another study has shown that students lack the ability to write without relying on spell check and other grammar checking features.  I can admit that I am guilty of this habit!

Social media is a scary yet very helpful aspect of today's society.  It teaches us skills we need to survive in the business world and helps us to prepare for the future, which is heading in the direction of more and more advanced technology.  The future of our children's education is in our hands.  We are shaping a society based on technology and not focused on education.  Most parents allow their children to be on these website, but not many monitor how much time their kids spend on the computer.  At IHA, being required to use laptops can cause even more issues regarding this topic.  If we have to do our homework on our computers, the social networking sites are literally calling our names and all they do is distract us.  Social media is definitely an agent of socialization because it has shaped and will continuing changing our society today.  The affects that it has on education is what is so scary about this topic though.  The picture below has a young baby on the computer, symbolizing the younger population being engrossed in social media at such a young age.  If these kid's are put in the corner of the room with an iPad to shut them up, they aren't going to value their future education.  They aren't going to possess the desire to be successful in life and receive a good education.  Instead of these kids posting pictures of their 5th birthday party, maybe they can open a book or do some extra math practice.

Chicago Teacher Strike

Girls, could imagine if all of the IHA teachers went out on strike? Think of all the possible consequences of a strike in our school. No IHA girl could ever miss a whole week of school! During the past week on the news a major headline has been the Chicago teacher strike.  On Sunday night, September 9th 2012, public school teachers called a strike because of the lack of negotiation over public school education reforms.  My eyes automatically lite up today while browsing on the New York Times website when I read the title of an article saying  "Fresh Hopes for End to Chicago Teacher Strike by Weekend." The article expresses hope that the strike will be over by this Monday, and the students will be able to return to classes.  This hopeful article continues on into an upsetting mood.  It discusses the extreme effects the strike has had on all people, not just the kids, that lives have been chaotic this past week.  

Many parents rely on schools as somewhere for children to go during the day and act as a sort of "day-care" for children of all ages. These working parents were conflicted with what to do with their children this week while the teachers were out on strike.  The article reveals a stunning fact that 87% of Chicago public school students come from low income families.  These parents could not afford to stay home with their children while the children were not able to go to school.  In the article, a single mother of three children explains that because of this week her bills have gone over the edge since she could not continue her week at her job of cleaning people's apartments. Another, more serious issue, is the fact that while keeping these children home their safety is at risk. Homicides are up 30% over last year and also a 10% increase in shootings since last year.  These mind blowing numbers are said to be attributed to young gangs in Chicago.  We must take a sociological perspective in examining the factors that have created such issues in the Chicago society. This education strike has "snowballed" into larger issues of the low class not being able to attend work, and the safety of the children to be possibly harmed. I really wish that the strike would end because the issue is far beyond education reforms right now.  These parents and children have suffered one week too long.  Don't you think so? How would you handle the situation if you were a low class parent living in Chicago right now? 

Check out the full article HERE 

My Inspiration

Receiving a great education is a desire instilled upon me by my parents and family. With two parents who didn’t attend college, I have set my goals high to go to the best college and have a successful life.  As an avid reader of Time magazine, I often come across articles about education.  I find myself reading these multiple times and discussing with my parents about the decline of education in America.  Our country is known as a place for hopes and dreams to come true, but if our education system is failing how can we promise these hopes and dreams to our youth? I’m eager to research about our countries education system and also another topic known to many IHA students-memorization.   Most students in our country are only concerned with the grade they receive on a test and often turn to memorization to help them achieve a perfect 100, but is this actually learning? I want to research about where memorized information is stored in the brain and finally settle whether or not it is a good study habit.