The Characteristics Of Culture Theology Religion Essay

The Characteristics Of Culture Theology Religion Essay Biologically speaking, we humans are social beings. We need our parents to be born, and once that happens; even though we are considered single individuals with a brain and mind that let us think and learn, we do not isolate ourselves from the rest of the people. On the contrary, all we do is to follow our peers. We gather in groups, and these groups constitute subgroups again. This is the basic method we follow to successfully organise and build up our social structure to satisfy our several needs. The first of these groups is our family, and from here we span to neighbourhoods; communities of different kinds, that we joined based on a particular interest, such as: religious, sports, academic, musical, labour, political, ideological, etc. These groups grow in number to form states and then countries or nations. All these people together establish a society. Societies differ from one another and every single one of them is unique, particular and characterised for a distinctive feature that we call culture. Culture is that complex absoluteness that we learn day by day. It is everything with which we fill and give sense to our existence. The way we wear, think, believe, act, speak, perceive are all framed and shaped by the ideas, concepts, values that are part of a specific culture. Through culture we learn to adapt ourselves in this physical world, manipulating the available resources for our own welfare and we also shape our behaviour to avoid a social chaos. Concepts of Culture Culture is neither natural nor artificial. It stems from neither genetics nor rational thought, for it is made up of rules of conduct, which were not invented and whose function is generally not understood by the people who obey them. Some of these rules are residues of traditions acquired in the different types of social structure through which each human group has passed. Other rules have been consciously accepted or modified for the sake of specific goals. Yet there is no doubt that, between the instincts inherited from our genotype and the rules inspired by reason, the mass of unconscious rules remains more important and more effective; because reason itself is a product rather than a cause of cultural evolution. Claude LÃ ©vi-Strauss, 1983. Culture means the whole complex of traditional behavior which has been developed by the human race and is successively learnt by each generation. A culture is less precise. It can mean the forms of traditional behavior which are characteristic of a given society, or of a group of societies, or of a certain race, or of a certain area, or of a certain period of time. Margaret Mead, 1937. Culture is the integral whole consisting of implements and consumers goods, of constitutional charters for the various social groupings, of human ideas and crafts, beliefs and customs. Whether we consider a very simple or primitive culture or an extremely complex and developed one, we are confronted by a vast apparatus, partly material, partly human, and partly spiritual, by which man is able to cope with the concrete specific problems that face him. Bronislaw Malinowski, 1944. Culture embraces all the manifestations of social behavior of a community, the reactions of the individual as affected by the habits of the groups in which he lives, and the product of human activities as determined by these habits. Franz Boas, 1930. Characteristics of Culture Culture is learnt: as soon as we are in contact with other members of our culture, we start learning all about it; therefore, we can assume that culture is learnt rather than inherited biologically. A human being will learn the culture of the society where he is raised; thus, a person that is born in Australia would not practise the same culture if he had been born in Poland. In this context we are different from animals since they are biologically built in a way that they will know how to behave and act naturally even if they grew in isolation. Culture is shared: if culture is learnt, we can state that it is also shared. We share all knowledge among the members of the same society. This way we pass on the standards of our culture along years keeping it alive. As we are social beings, we have a high tendency of sharing and this feature let us improve as a whole. By sharing we provide the necessary tools that are used for a gentle adaptation in all stages and environments we go through in our lives. Culture is integrated: culture itself is not a single unit. It is a complex whole in which every feature that characterizes it has an important role that makes that culture distinctive and peculiar. All these features function integrated and not separately from one another. This way when a feature changes, it affects to the whole system making it also swift. Culture is dynamic: there are some reasons such as: population growth, technological innovation, environmental crisis, intrusion of outsiders, modification of behaviour, etc; that have made cultures change. That is why cultures must be flexible and dynamic in order to adapt constantly to the new changes and avoid repression of his members. Culture is based on symbols: culture has been transmitted among its members along the years through a set of different symbols. Symbols are then the instrument used to pass on culture and keep it alive from generation to generation, and language is the most important one. Functions of Culture According to Bronislaw Malinowski (1884 1942) the function of culture is to fulfill certain biological and psychological needs people share. Cultures are expected to fulfill certain functions in order to lead a society successfully and some of them might me: Guarantee the biological continuity of its members. Provide practical means to pass on knowledge among members. Meet the psychological and emotional needs of its members. Being flexible enough in order to survive the increasing shifting conditions. Offer strategies for the rational production and distribution of goods and services considered necessary for life. Provide an organised and diverse social structure so that all its members can fit in it and also understand the world in their own means. Facilitate social interactions among its members and offer reasonable ways to avoid or resolve conflicts that might rise within the group as well as with outsiders. Allow human beings to adapt the environment to their own purposes. Social interactions do not refer to only relationships among human beings but also and deeply with nature. The survival of all cultures depends on the way they use and treat nature. A well-working culture is the one that satisfies the different groups within the society as equally as possible; thus, its individual members can all have access to the resources available in the community and achieve their personal and collective goals. This will avoid the members to feel unsafe and unattached; therefore, they will not easily fall into anti-social behaviours, such as: violence, crime, suicide, depression, abuse of drugs, etc. Enculturation and Acculturation Every single culture is learnt by their members and transmitted from person to person and from generation to generation to avoid its absolute disappearance. The most important instrument used to carry this out is language. The process of passing on knowledge among people is what we call enculturation. This process is vital to guarantee the survival of the culture, but it is also significant to do it in the most smoothly manner to avoid any disruption among members and also among the features of the culture being transmitted. Enculturation let us understand the past so that we can make a better sense of the present and therefore plan a more sustainable future for the welfare of our species. This process also gives us the opportunity to find out more about ourselves; our ancestors and origin; where the way we think and perceive the world, our values and beliefs come from. When enculturation is carried out in the proper manner, the members of all cultures grow up closer to their past, revitalizing the core values that make their cultures unique and distinct from all others. They also grow up in an environment characterized by the deep pride of belonging to one particular culture and behave with strong ideas of maintaining their culture alive; albeit the irrevocable changes they must go through. There is also another phenomenon that cultures might experience, consisting on the absorption of one culture over another one, called acculturation. This usually happens when industrialized or capital societies influence highly over traditional small societies to the point of modifying them completely. Once they are in contact, the former shapes and converts the latter one. The small society adopts the culture of the powerful one as the final outcome. This process is similar to that of colonization. It is especially more noticeable now that we live in a globalized world; where the small societies are usually the most affected ones. Ethnocentrism and cultural relativism There is generally a bad habit of criticising other peoples behaviour but most of all to judge the way other cultures function. When we find ourselves interacting with people from other cultures, or simply see it on the media; we get surprised by the different manners they behave, think and express in similar situations. There is nothing wrong with comparing cultures, in fact, this way we learn more about others and value ours, too. We must keep in mind that when comparing, we should adopt an unbiased position in order to understand the best way possible why other people do things in the way they do, and avoid unsupported preconceptions. The term that refers to what it is mentioned in the paragraph above is ethnocentrism: the belief that the way that ones own culture functions is the only proper and correct one, while all others are wrong. In order to avoid making fast judgements or simply incorrect conclusions; anthropologists, when studying cultures, always put into practice what they call cultural relativism which is the idea that we must suspend or postpone judgement of other peoples practices until we acquire a full understanding of the culture in which we are interested; so as to understand them in their own cultural terms. It is important to clarify that in this process what it is done is to put off ones judgement towards another culture, it is neither precipitated nor cancelled. Through cultural relativism it is possible to hold our judgements and perceptions about the culture being observed to the last stage; in order to take down accurate data and keep valid records; furthermore, avoid preconceptions influenced by ethnocentrism. Conclusion Along history not only humans have changed, but also the way we live. In our search for a better and more comfortable world for us to inhabit; we have made an irrational and abusive use of natural resources. We have damaged nature to such extreme points to threaten our own survival. Most of the societies around the world, influenced by the western fashion have turned into very consumerist ones; the ideas and values that used to grasp societies together are now stirring political discomfort and creating social inequality because the leaders and members of our societies are more tented to achieve personal and individual profits at any cost to work collectively so that every member can accomplish his personal and collective needs. The process of changing is unstoppable; everything needs to keep changing constantly to stay alive; therefore a culture that does not adjust its features simple disappears. The most important affected feature of a culture is its language. Language is that particular faculty that differentiates us from animals and makes us a unique and rational species. Through language we humans are able to express our feelings, thoughts, ideas and most importantly to transmit our culture from one generation into another one, assuring its survival along years. Many languages have already disappeared, mainly as a result of the process of acculturation; and with the languages, also ways of thinking, expressing, seeing, perceiving are gone. This way the world becomes small and intrinsic, losing authenticity and variety provided for the distinct and diverse manners of receiving, understanding, analyzing, shaping and living this world. For a culture to survive is not enough to shift. It should do it in a way that it can guarantee that its members will satisfy their biological and social needs; thus, the whole society will feel competent and safe; therefore, it will behave proudly and mutually to keep it alive.

Night :: essays research papers

Night 4 Books related to Night 4 Night by Elie Wiesel showed me the true horrors that took place during World War II. After reading this book, I really took time to think about and reflect upon the travesties that took place during that time. Throughout my paper, I will discuss Elie Wiesel’s life, his style, the cultural information and historical content of the book. I will also evaluate this book according to its quality interest it provided me. I hope you find this book review to be informative and entertaining. Elie Wiesel was born in 1928 in Romania. He grew up experiencing the first-hand horrors of the holocaust. At age 15, Elie was sent to Auschwitz camp by the Nazis. Auschwitz is known to be one of the worst camps during the Holocaust. This book is a biography, about his life in camp. This book is extremely detailed and it is meant for teenagers. I think that it is important for people to have the information as to what went on in the holocaust. It is a perfect resource for people my age, since it is a short book, and doesn’t go into too much detail. There is also a lot of action, which would catch most people’s attention. This book takes place during World War II. Elie Wiesel and his family are taken to Auschwitz, one of the worst -2- camps during the holocaust. His family and him are persecuted for really no reason, as were the rest of the Jews at this time. All of the information presented were the many things I have learnt in classes, about World War II. An example is when the Nazis would tell people that they were taking them to the shower room. The people would all be stripped of their clothes and thrown in. The next moment, a lethal gas would start coming out of the walls, and kill them. The term â€Å"genocide† was also used in this book. I learnt about genocide and the definition is the mass killing of a whole group or race. I think it is remarkable how a whole race could be destroyed, like the Jews were during this time. None of the information conflicts with what I have learnt in class. There is no way that anyone could possibly find it in their heart to defend or forgive the Nazis for what they did.

The Economic Impact Of The Olympic Games Essay -- Olympics Economy

The Economic Impact of the Olympic Games Missing Graphs With the Olympic games being held in Sydney this year, I wondered if perhaps the performance of the economy was being affected in part by the fiscal stimulus provided by Olympic construction in Sydney and other parts of the country. Australia’s economy has been performing well recently, suggesting that there might be some effect. Over the last five years, growth in Australia’s gross domestic product has averaged 4.35%, almost a full point above it’s thirty year annual average of 3.5%, and the unemployment rate is near a ten year low. According to one estimate, the Olympics will tack on an additional six and a half billion dollars, about 1.6% of the GDP, to Australia’s GDP over the 1994-2000 period. A natural question to ask is if this growth is due primarily to the Olympic preparation, or if, instead, it is a result of some other change in policy, or perhaps just plain old luck. One way to address this question is to see if other host countries have experienced increases in GDP around Olympic years. Below is a graph of one measure of the boost to GDP that countries receive from hosting the Olympics. Each point represents the average, over all of the host countries since 1952, rate of growth of GDP. What this graph suggests is that prior to the Olympics and during the Olympic year GDP growth is higher than average - maxing out at nearly 1.5% above average GDP in the 3rd year before the Olympics. This number seems consistent with the estimates for Sydney - at least prior to the Olympic year. However, the graph also suggests that growth rates are lower in the years after the Olympics, than in the years prior to the games. The economic benefits of the 2000 Olympics can be classified as direct and indirect. Direct benefits include the impact of the Olympics on exports, investment and employment. In terms of exports, the main impact will be inbound tourism, sponsorship fees, media broadcast rights, and ticket sales. The staging of the Olympics will encourage more international tourists to visit Australia. Sponsorship fees received from international sources were strong leading up to the Olympics and according to the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), broadcast rights, approximately one billion dollars in value, were recorded as exports in September quarter 2000. Ticket sale sold to overseas visitors,... ...tself. Importantly, the benefits will continue well into the new millennium as Australia gets more international exposure for its exports and gains from the transfer of technology and knowledge from the world’s best. Opportunity beckons for the athletes, for exporters, for artists, for scientists and for the whole Australian community. Bibliography Arthur Anderson / CREA (1999) â€Å"Economic Impact Study of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games†. January 1999. Arthur Anderson and the Centre for Regional Economic Analysis, University of Tasmania. Dabkowski, S and Ketchell, M (1999) â€Å"Olympic Dream May Not Deliver Riches.† The Melbourne Age. Gittins R (1999) â€Å"Swifter! Higher! Richer? Sadly Not With Our Games.† May 8 1999, Sydney Morning Herald. Mules,T â€Å"The Economic Impact of Special Events .† Griffith University, Gold Coast Queensland. Olympic Co-ordination Authortiy (OCA) (1999) â€Å"State of Play: A Report to the People of New South Wales† June 1999, OCA, Sydney. Reserve Bank of Australia (1999) â€Å"The Economic Effects of Staging the Olympic Games† Semi-Annual Statement of Monetary Policy, May 1999, Reserve Bank, Sydney.

Tragedy Archetype- the Stranger

The Tragedy Archetype: The Rebirth Within Prim Lerthirunvibul Y10D (Blue) The seven archetypes is a theory in which there are seven ways of story-telling namely Quest, Voyage and Return, Rebirth, Comedy, Overcoming the Monster, Rags to Riches and Tragedy. The Tragedy archetype is one of the seven archetypes used in story-telling mentioned by Christopher Booker in The Seven Basic Plots. This archetype is known to expect a specific reaction from the readers often using grief, destruction and death.As the archetype manifests itself through time, there are many ways authors have interpreted the archetype through their stories. An element in the archetype that can be carefully observed is the notion of Rebirth where the main character eventually comprehends their misinterpretation of the world and their blunders which had caused their destruction, typically hubris. This suggests that there is a part of the Rebirth archetype in the Tragedy archetype. The question is, is tragedy a type of t he rebirth archetype?The absurdist novel entitled The Stranger (The Outsider), also known as L’Etranger by Albert Camus clearly portrays the rebirth in the story but is still engulfed by the tragedy concepts seen in many literature examples. â€Å"Once you’re up against it, the precise manner of your death has obviously small importance† (Camus, 71). The Stranger, written by Albert Camus is a tragedy book based on the story plot of a man named Meursault who is a psychologically and socially detached individual. He is also known to be amoral, not caring or knowing what is right or wrong and sees feelings in a physical sense.In one scene of the book, his mother had passed away and instead of grieving, he impassively looks at his mother’s grave and refuses the re-opening of the casket, which surprises many. He is also not responsive to human emotions such as desires and love. When the prospect of marriage was mentioned by his recent lover, Marie Cardona, he responds with â€Å"If she was keen on it, we’d get married. † (28, Camus. ) The Stranger can go under the tragedy archetype where it is classified by Booker as ‘the hero as a monster’ since Meursault himself is the cause of his own death.This happened since he stopped a friend, Raymond Sintes from shooting an Arab who was his â€Å"mistress’s† brother. And for no apparent reason, he came back and killed the Arab with a gun. A factor that may have affected his actions was probably because of the condition of the beach that was â€Å"pulsing with heat† (38, Camus). Although hubris is a common cause in the tragedy archetype, Meursault did not think of himself highly or more superior than others, but rather as an observer where reality is harsh for those who have no poignancy.He does not express himself much but with the reader as an observer as well, this creates the feeling of sadness for the main character even though he doesn’t experience much of it. As the titles of the book says, he is merely a victim tortured by the difference in perspectives, this small difference makes him unique, or even a threat to others. Not only did Meursault set up his own death, but the society in which he lived in contributed as well. The core of the consequences can be traced by Hamartia ( ), a Greek term meaning the fatal flaw of the hero which causes their death in the tragedy archetype story.In The Stranger, Meursault’s flaw can be seen as his lack of emotions and his frankness. Even though being emotionless does not affect his daily life or well-being, the environment of the situation created was greatly affected. An example is of how the people in court see him and how they also judge his beliefs, not for what he is, but what he says. When Meursault met a magistrate who tried to convert him, he called Meursault â€Å"Mr. Antichrist† (45, Camus) for being open and truthful about his beliefs, this then advoc ated his execution.Meursault sees things that other do not, which is one of the main causes of the resulting consequence. Humans often act on impulse, not by logic and the miscommunication between the other characters and Meursault creates conflict and sadly, the majority regularly wins in the tragedy archetype. The tragedy archetype is known to end with death, which is the norm for many stories, including The Stranger as well. Booker had also stated that the archetype sometimes involves the rebirth of the main character which usually comes before the tragic end of the main character.In comparison to Looking for Alaska, a modern novel written by John Green, The Stranger is more eye-opening since the concept of rebirth is directly experienced by the main character whilst the rebirth element in Looking for Alaska is not quite clear because the main character, Miles, continues on with his life as nearly the same person even though his friend, Alaska’s, death had a tremendous eff ect on other characters. With the longer lingering rebirth in The Stranger, Meursault finds comfort in the end where he becomes a ‘new person’ within himself, which proposes the idea of self-discovery.In his last moments, Meursault thoughts were â€Å"To feel it so like myself, indeed, so brotherly, made me realize that I’d been happy, and that I was happy still. † â€Å"For all to be accomplished, for me to feel less lonely, all that remained to hope was that on the day of my execution there should be a huge crowd of spectators and that they should greet me with howls of execration† (76, Booker). Even though the happiness was short, there was still a change in him as seen before the end of the book. In Booker’s analysis of the rebirth archetype, there are two types of rebirth which is physical and mental rebirth.An example of a physical rebirth could be found in the folktale of The Sleeping Beauty as she literally wakes up from her curse. A mental rebirth example could be found in Crash (2004), where a Farhad, a character realizes that his rage had clouded his judgment and he becomes calm and content, different from how he was from the start. The Stranger goes under the mental rebirth category since Meursault’s own conclusions resulted in the enrichment of his own mind as he begins to accept things in life.However, this does not necessarily mean that The Stranger can be directly ‘put under’ the Rebirth archetype. When referring to Booker’s analysis, it is stated that â€Å"we have only seen this return of light partially, ultimately insufficient to prevail against the forces of darkness which have been unleashed, and which eventually sweep the hero or heroine away† (Booker, 192). This means that in the tragedy archetype, ‘the light’ which is the rebirth of the character, can be seen only for a moment before it dissipates with the main character’s demise.This could b e compared to a candlelight where it flickers in the dark but does not last forever since it cannot maintain the flame and eventually, will be engulfed by darkness, which is, the sins or the consequences that slowly yet surely, catch up to the main character. All in all, even though The Stranger contains the Rebirth of a character who wakes up from an inner sleep or obliviousness, the tragedy archetype had proved itself to be more complicated and deeper with many fundamentals and forms that had manifested overtime.This then revealed the inner workings of the archetype including the profound meanings in the book. It is difficult to justify realistic and life-like story into separate categories as there are many factors, emotions and feelings brought in different events. But as they say, the end justifies the means in this particular book where Meursault dies a miserable and solitude death within the clutches of society. Again, regardless of the light’ in the story, The Strange r is a tragedy story weaved with the rebirth archetype’s features which implies that the tragedy archetype could also contain mixes but still maintain its structure throughout history whether it is in an old-world or modern literature. In short, the tragedy archetype is one of the most interesting and riveting of the seven archetypes that seem basic; but with careful observation and research can prove to be a very useful way of story-telling that can be remembered by readers despite of the era or time in which the archetype had laid itself upon.Bibliography (Citations) Innovateus. â€Å"What Is Hamartia in Greek Tragedy? †Ã‚  What Is Hamartia in Greek Tragedy? Innovateus, 2011. Web. 02 Mar. 2013. Booker, Christopher. â€Å"Chapter 9: Tragedy. †Ã‚  The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories. London: Continuum, 2004. N. pag. Print. Booker, Christopher. â€Å"Chapter 11: Rebirth. †Ã‚  The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories. London: Continuum, 2004. N. pa g. Print. â€Å"The Stranger. †Ã‚  SparkNotes. SparkNotes, 2013. Web. 02 Mar. 2013.

Bronfenbrenner’s Analysis

This paper analyzes and evaluates how Bronfenbrenner’s levels influenced my decision to attend graduate school and how they may impact career goals within my area of specialization. Bronfenbrenner develops a multi-level hierarchy of influences from the closest and most personal to the most abstract and societal. The purpose of my paper is to discuss, analyze, and evaluate Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological System Theory in relation to human development In the early 1970s’ Urie Bronfenbrenner developed an ecological theory of human development. Bronfenbrenner’s book, â€Å"The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design† (Bronfenbrenner, 1997) discusses in depth the ecological systems levels as the micro-meso-exo-macro- and the fifth system, the chrono-system layer. Bronfenbrenner summarized his theory utilizing concentric spheres in where the child begins his or her development in the center of the spheres. Comparing each sphere â€Å"†¦as a set of nested structures, each inside the next, like a set of Russian dolls† (Bronfenbrenner,1979. p. 3). Researchers found that a key factor in parent’s effectiveness was engaging in the child’s activities and environment. Darling (2007), asserts that â€Å"parental monitoring† of their children’s activities decreased the levels of behavioral problems and lead to â€Å"higher levels of adult approved activities† (Darling, 2007). Therefore, competence among children will â€Å"†¦depend on the quality of their environment† (Bronfenbrenner, 1999). Children from negative, deprived, disorganized backgrounds display more frequent and severe dysfunctional behavior in order to gain parental attention. On the other hand, parents providing attentive, stable and positive environments provide gratifying and positive reinforcement in aid of the children’s growth. Bronfenbrenner, 1999). Bronfenbrenner posited that â€Å"†¦the greatest effect on positive outcomes in environments with the greatest resources and for an individual who had the greatest ability to take advantage of those resources† (Darling, 2007). Microsystem Bronfenbrenner described his models as the m icro-system layer originating in the center of the sphere, involving the child’s interactions and activities within the context of family, school, daycare, and school, peer groups and how these interactions shape his or her development in a particular setting. A setting is where the child engages in â€Å"†¦particular activities in particular roles for particular times† (Bronfenbrenner,1979). For example, Bronfenbrenner observed parents emphasizing the importance of socially acceptable behaviors, exposed their child to positive activities, became involved in their child’s school, friends, thus producing children that were secure in new learning experiences. Mesosystem The mesosystem layer relates to the people in a child’s microsystem. It consists of the interactions between two or more settings which involve the developing child. For example, child’s parents and teachers may be interacting in discussions about the child’s progress. Bronfenbrenner found when parents take an active interest in the child’s early academic progress, that child has a greater chance of success upon entering high school (Oswalt, 2008). Exosystem The exosystem is comprised of the involvement and progression that takes place between the dyad setting, but it â€Å"†¦does not contain the developing child† (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). They are occurrences â€Å"that indirectly influence processes within the immediate setting in which the developing child lives† (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). For example, the child’s parents’ moving to a different state will directly affect the child’s interconnections with neighborhood friends and teachers. As an example, the child ‘knows’ he has lost his best friend, and may never find another. Thus, the child may meet this change with fear or dissatisfaction (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The exosystem level includes the positive and negative structures found in the national government, cultural values, the economy, other macro influences. For example, Anglo-Saxon societies stress individual accomplishments, whereas Asian societies stress consensus and conformity. Cronosystem The chronosystem is the outermost shell that Bronfenbrenner displays. This is a temporal continuum that encompasses a person’s life experiences throughout their lives. A major example of the operation of this continuum is the impact of a parental death and the resulting behavioral change in the developing individual. The micro, meso, exo, and macro levels all impacted my individual development and career goals in obtaining a master’s degree in Human Services with a specialization in Social and Community Services. In the micro level, my earliest experiences were affected by the negative parental influences. As a child, I can remember my brothers and I were mainly spoken to when we did something wrong. In turn, these negative experiences affected my academic performance in school as well as my behavior. In the mesosystem, the only times my parents became involved in school were when they were called by the school principal to discuss my inappropriate behavior and my inattentiveness in learning. In the first grade, I was held back from entering the second grade because I could not speak English well or even Spanish. Again, this was a result of not having positive learning experience during childhood. It was not until the sixth grade that my principal decided I might succeed if I skipped the seventh grade to the eighth grade. That’s when my negative experiences turn to be positive and enlightening. I flourished that year and received a small scholarship to attend a school for girls. There I also flourished and began to have teachers and friends that were positive role-models. An example in the exosystem, I had a young brother with Down’s syndrome who at the age of 3 left our home to live in a state mental hospital. I was 13 years when my mother received a phone call from the hospital stating my brother had died from choking on some food. From that day on, my mother became distant and suffered from alcoholism. This experience saddened me greatly, but I was fortunate to have the support of my older sister, and wonderful teachers and friends that kept me succeeding in school. This success continued through college. However, when I was 16 years old, my mother was diagnosed with depression. Though I appeared happy with my school experience on the outside, inside, I felt depressed and longed for my mother’s love. All during this time, my father was physically present, but emotional absent due to the traumatic experiences at home. In the macro system, I grew up in a Hispanic culture, though my parents emigrated from Mexico to the US, my mother’s alien status became problematic as she could not speak English and inevitably could not take the test to become an American citizen. As a result, my mother felt she was a failure to herself and to my father who became a citizen at age 18. At the age of 47 years, I was able to complete my education at a women’s college. It was finally there I was fortunate to pursue my love of art. Upon graduation, I also found a new love of being of service to other’s less fortunate. I found that I obtained jobs not completely fulfilling, and when thinking upon this, I realized I could improve the possibility of reaching that fulfillment through graduate school to obtain an advanced degree in order to better serve the people I will work with. In conclusion, I don’t regret my experiences during my childhood. I learned a great deal about how one can attribute their success to resiliency. No matter how dismal matters were, there was always someone or something over the rainbow. I had a wonderful caring and nurturing older sister who loved me unconditionally. I had teachers who believed I was a worthwhile, intelligent and loving human being. With this nurturing, I was finally able to climb over the wall; only to look back at my stumbling blocks as experiences one takes to traverse their journey.

Sociology Ethnicity Question

Using material from item A and elsewhere assess the claim that ethnic differences in educational achievement are primarily the result of school factors. It is not completely internal school factors that can affect different ethnicities level of achievement in education, external factors can have a large part to play in the achievement levels of ethnic minorities in education as well. In education studies have shown that Chinese students as well as Indian students are the highest achieving ethnic groups in education while black and Bangladeshi students are the lowest achieving students.In 2006, 73% of pupils Indian origin gained a 5 A* – C passes at GCSE, compared to 56% of White pupils and an even lower 47% of Black pupils, Item A agrees with this point. Labelling is a large part of the internal factors that affects different ethnic groups’ achievement in education as some teachers label different ethnic students as less able or be less able to understand the teacher be cause they are of different ethnicity when in fact they can understand as well as a white student.Ethnocentric Curriculum is also a large part of the internal factors that can have an affect on the success levels of the ethnic minorities in education as in schools they tend to teach subjects which are appealing to the white students over the black students. In history they tend to miss out teaching about black history in order to teach more appealing topics and in English, William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens are usually taught over black writers and this can cause the ethnic students to take less of a care to the subject, ending up in a lower success rate.The internal factor of ‘institutional racism’ is a major factor which can cause the different ethnic groups to be less successful in education. There is evidence of ‘institutional racism’ in schools by the way that the schools take racism less seriously and often fail to deal with issues of racism whic h make the ethnic groups feel disadvantaged and treated differently making them have a mood of fatalism about education this point is also made in item A. Feature Article –  Sociology Test  1As well as internal factors there are external factors that can affect the success levels of ethnic groups in education such as the inadequate language level spoken by low-income black families. Bereiter and Englemann found that there language skills were ungrammatical, disjointed and incapable for education and incapable for expressing ideas. Flaherty argued that the external factor of the ethnic groups being more likely to live in low quality, substandard council housing also plays a large part on the success levels of ethnic groups in education.This means that they will also be less likely to have good study space, money for health nutritious food and means they are less likely to have revision resources needed for success and item A agrees with this point. Racism in the wider society is also a large external factor which can have a large impact on the ethnic groups in the wider society as this racism can de-motivate people from doing well in education and striving to get the good jobs as they believe only the people who are white ethnicity will get the jobs.This racism is evident in Mike Noon’s study, when he sent off applications named ‘Patel’ he got less, more negative responses than what he got when he sent of the same applications named ‘Evans’. So in conclusion, both internal and external factors are extremely important as the internal factors can affect them directly when they are doing work in school but the external factors can affect how hard they work to try to give themselves a good start outside of school as well as how hard they try at home after school. This makes them both as important as eachother.

College Is Worthwhile Essay

Today in America going to college is more of a necessity than an option; however, college is expensive. Most people cannot afford the upfront cost of tuition and fees along with the additional costs of dorms, meals, textbooks, and other supplies to attend college. Because of this many students resort to taking out student loans that could potentially cost them more in the future. With the cost of attending college constantly rising many people are finding themselves asking the question of rather or not college is really worth the cost. Also, some people feel that going to college is a waste of time. Some feel this way because not all jobs require degrees, so they feel there is no purpose in spending long hours at an institution obtaining one. Others feel that they should not be required to meet the general education requirements of most colleges, but should instead be able to use the time taking classes relevant to their career field. Many people argue that because of these reasons college is not worthwhile. However, despite these facts, going to college has several benefits that make it very valuable. Firstly, college graduates make more money over the course of a lifetime and have more  job opportunities than people without degrees. College graduates on average make about one million dollars more in a lifetime than people with only a high school diploma. This is because college graduates have a better chance of getting and keeping a job, and these jobs pay more. The main reason for this is that there is less competition for jobs that require a degree so there is always a need for employees which means more job security. Secondly, in college people make lifetime connections and broaden their horizons. During college students meet a wide variety of people from different backgrounds than  themselves. The connections that students make with these individuals can prove very beneficial to them especially after they graduate. Many of these people that students meet in college could help them to advance their careers after they graduate. For example, their professors may recommend them for employment to others in their field. Also, they could be meeting future business partners, bosses, or employees. Thirdly, college helps young adults in becoming more responsible. When people go to college, for most, it is the first time most people are practically on their own. It is completely different from being in high school and being dependent on parents and teachers for everything from reminders and help with homework to finances. In college, students face circumstances that they would most likely encounter when completely on their own. College students have to pay bills, manage time efficiently, and be sure to meet deadlines. And if they don’t there may be minor and/or serious consequences that they have to deal with just like in the â€Å"real world. † Many people argue that going to college is not worthwhile because it is too expensive and  is a waste of time, but there are many advantages of going to college that prove how valuable the college experience can be. College students are able to gain stable careers with great pay after graduation, are able to network with the people they meet while in college in order to advance their future careers, and can gain a sense of responsibility to help them mature. So, even though college has its cons, it is challenging and exciting, and can be the best time of a person’s life. It is an experience that can and will set the precedent for the rest of a person’s life if they choose to go.