Blog Stage 7

The requirements in Texas is that the students have to pass the TAKs test in order to graduate and receive their diploma. And if they don't they will be held responsible for their intelligence and won't get it until they pass. The first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word exam is how important and serious it may be. Students are expected to take these exit level exams in order to go to college. The purpose of standardized test is mainly to help guide the teachers to teach all of the basics they need to be prepared for after high school. It is an unfair way to determine on the students capability and if they should receive their diploma or not. There are many reasons why people should not base on exit level exams as a requirement in graduating high school. Does it really prove anything?There are many smart students who struggle with test anxiety. And with these exit levels exams; it is keeping away the intelligent students from graduating and holding them back from a bright future they could have had. Some may agree that taking this exit level test shows a lot in someone’s intelligence. There could be other options for the students. People make such a huge deal on these tests, making teachers focus mainly on teaching them only what’s on the test. This test takes time away from many other instructions that is really more important to help the students after they graduate. It also affects the teacher to reach to their students. In order for a teacher to really reach out to their students is when they have time to observe the weakest and the highest potential from each student in each of the subjects. Since teachers are too concerned on focusing about this test; all those times spent targeting onto the test, it could have been helping students prepare for something else. 

Blog 6

I recently saw one of my colleagues Texting While Driving and I agree completely. There are many dangers in texting and driving. This cause the death rates to go higher. Texting is a distraction that causes a driver’s attention from the road. When someone is paying attention to the road and the road only, they are careful and paying attention to everything around them, other cars, signs, traffic, etc. Usually when someone is getting distracted with their phone, they are too caught up on whats going on they don't even notice whats going on around them. Texting puts the lives of the drivers around them at risk. If someone is texting and accidentally swerve into the lane next to them, sometimes the driver in the other lane cannot move over and suddenly there is a crash and it could kill both people in those two cars. I don't think anyone should ever text and drive, ever.

Block Stage 4

         On March 17th, 2013, and article on Big Jolly Politics , Kevin Fulton’s intended audience for his article is the entire republican party. At first read it seems as though he is only speaking to the white republicans to offer them a glimpse into the mind of a black conservative but after examining it closer one finds that his article could be just as informative or enlightening to other minority conservatives. The article could serve as a template for the white conservatives highlighting the key factors that create a negative connotation of the word “Republican” inside the mind of a minority and how they could alter that image. It could also be as simple as the byproduct of a conversation that occurred in someone’s living room between two black conservatives on the topic of their political affiliation.           

The authors credibility is slightly difficult to gauge. The fact that he is himself black, gives him some credibility but it is also possible that his opinion could also be slightly biased because he is also a Republican discussing the Republican party.                        

Throughout the article he tries to portray himself as someone that genuinely cares about the wellbeing of the minority population which he does by identifying himself with African-Americans by using plural pronouns like “We” and “Our” and seeming to identify with the struggles of African-Americans but while reading his article the reader is constantly reminded of his true objective, to gain votes. In fact the entire article seems to be a manifesto on how Republicans can win minority votes in the guise of actual concern for his race which we are supposed to accept as legitimate because he’s black.

Blog Stage 2

On Friday, February 1, 2013 in Letters to Texas talks about how it would be a fun and educated project for the elementary kids to engage in a legislative process as a project. I find this article interesting because the kids seem to be involved in the project, and usually; it is rare for children at that age to be interested in any of that stuff. They were asked to talk about how they feel about texting and driving. They asked the kids if they agreed or disagreed on how bad and dangerous it can be when people text and drive. They also compared it to how there has been a lot of road head, which means people are driving behind the wheel that are about to fall asleep or pass out. Yet, they still haven’t enforced that law yet even though it’s just as dangerous as texting and driving. I’m interested in actually hearing the outcome after these kids call the Representative Craddick, just to see how his reaction will be.