Annotated bibliographies

1. Danziger, Dennis. "Governor Brown's Modest Proposal." Huffington Post. HuffPost Education            Group, 26 Sept. 2012. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dennis-    danziger/governor-browns-modest-proposal_b_1915042.html>.

            Dennis Danziger’s article details the effects of potential government cuts on California’s public schools. It lists details on a shortened school year. The article also compares the shortened to school year to other countries’ public school years. The article applies to the general public.

2.  Gordon Larry. “UC regents weigh ugly options; ‘No Ideas are off the Table’ as leaders            brainstorm ways to cope if tax hike fails.” Los Angeles Times 13 Sep. 2012: AA.1.        National Newspaper Core. Web. 22 Sep. 2012.

            Larry Gordon’s article describes the University of California’s potential outcomes from the failure of proposition 30. The author lists details of the UC system’s plan of coping with the failure of proposition 30. Gordon’s article appeals to the general public, especially those interested in proposition 30. Gordon lists many quotations from UC Regents that describe the UC’s financial struggles. He limits personal analysis and insight but provides many facts.  The article provides several facts that support the need for proposition 30.

 

3. Rivera, Carla. “Cal State to raise fees if tax hike fails; Trustees tentatively approve a 5%            tuition increase for next year if voters in November reject Prop. 30” Los Angeles Times 19 Sep. 2012: AA.1. National Newspaper Core. Web. 22 Sep. 2012.

In her article, Carla Rivera describes ways in which the UC and CSU system will cope with budget cuts. The article lists facts on tuition increases and reduced admissions, classes, and facukty. Rivera’s article applies to the general public, and it centralizes on those involved with California’s public education. The article remains a valuable source for informing people on the effects of the failure of Proposition 30.

4. Swift, Brenna. "School Initiatives Explained." Union Democrat. Western Communications,      Inc., 5 Oct. 2012. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. <http://www.uniondemocrat.com/News/Local-   News/School-initiatives-explained>.

            Brenna Swifts article of “School Initiatives Explained” lists many facts on the outcome of the failure of Proposition 30. The article explains how public schools in California will have to adjust to severe budget cuts. Swift explains how particular school districts, such as the Sonora Union High School District, have dealt with recent budget cuts. The article applies to the general public.

 

       

 

 

  

John Taylor Gatto’s article, “Against School,” explains the faults of the American schooling system. Gatto first introduced himself as a teacher who has worked in diverse school settings. On behalf of both teachers and students, Gatto expressed his experiences in the classroom as dull and boring. Gatto disagreed with the ordinary, boring classroom setting, and he made efforts to overcome the dull, classroom atmosphere. However, although Gatto’s actions may have stimulated his students’ learning, Gatto received harsh punishment for his teaching methods; Gatto lost both his job and his teaching license. Gatto then questioned the validity of the schooling system’s mission and necessity. Because successful people in the past had not received much schooling, Gatto stated that people truly did not need school. He then displayed others’ opinions to support that the schooling system did not intend to honestly better students, but to lead the youth into a controlled society. Gatto concluded his article by advising that the youth avoid the traps of the schooling system and to persist to have more meaning in life.

Gatto passionately expressed his view of overcoming boredom. By declaring that both students and teachers were often too bored, Gatto strongly disagreed with the ordinary school environment. Gatto expressed most of his views on school as childish and boring.  By taking action to suppress the boredom and childishness within school, he sought to truly inspire the youth’s minds. Gatto said, “I found it futile to challenge the official notion that boredom and childishness were the natural state of affairs in the classroom. Often I had to defy custom, and even bend the law, to help kids break out of this trap” (149). By performing beyond ordinary standards, Gatto passionately attempts to motivate his students.
 
      After Gatto expressed his view of the classroom, he then expanded his disconent view of the entire schooling system. Gatto invalidated the necessity to complete school, and he stated that successful people in the past strived through life without receiving a proper amount of schooling: “ …A considerable number of well-known Americans never went through the twelve-year wringer our kids currently go through, and they turned out all right. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln? Someone taught them, to be sure, but they were not products of a school system, and not one of them was ever “graduated” from a secondary school” (149-50). The success of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomsas Jefferson, and Abraham Linconln upholds Gatto's view of unnecessary schooling.

      Furthermore, Gatto stated that the primary purpose of school was to better individuals. However, Gatto found several contradictions to the school system’s mission of improving individuals. In his article, Gatto used a quote from H.L. Mencken’s article in The American Mercury to invalidate the school system’s mission. Mencken’s article stated that the aim of public education was not “to fill the young of the species with knowledge and awaken there intelligence….Nothing could be further from the truth. The aim… is simply to reduce as many individuals as possible to the same safe level, to breed and train a standardized citizenry, to put down dissent and originality. That is its aim in the United States… and that is its aim everywhere else” (151).Moreover, Gatto again repudiated the school system’s intentions. Gatto stated that the school system was framed around similar values of the military state of Prussia: “But what shocks is that we should so eagerly have adopted one of the very worst aspects of Prussian culture: an educational system deliberately designed to produce mediocre intellects, to hamstring the inner life, to deny students appreciable leadership skills, and to ensure docile and incomplete citizens—all in order to render the populace ‘manageable’” (152). Both Mencken and Gatto express that schools aim to frame students not into productive education but rather into a general, regulated society.

      Gatto’s views of the schooling system may unfortunately be true. As I personally reflect back to all of the schooling that I have completed, and all of the experiences that I’ve had in school, I can relate to several of Gatto’s arguments.  School does not only play a part in faulty education, but also into a faulty society. After I read “Against School,” I feel that there are much better ways to become successful other than the standard route of school. School seems to only provide limited focus on subjects; If I entirely dedicate myself to a subject outside of school, than I may recieve much more successful results than going thorugh the standard system.

Week 1

     Why is "Para Teresa" written in English and Spanish? Ines Hernandez Avila begins “Para Teresa” by addressing it to Teresa in Spanish, but most of her poem is written in English. The poem implies that both Teresa and Avila are of Latina decent. By writing sentences in Spanish, Avila gives a more direct connection to Teresa. The direct, Spanish tone also shows genuine care about the connection to Teresa. Rather than only have the poem written in English, the Spanish provides a more authentic tone. The Spanish reveals the narrator’s Latina ethnicity, which helps describe the narrator’s cultural setting. The narrator’s Latina roots suggest that Spanish is her primary language, so the poem’s Spanish writing gives a deeper element than if it was simply written in English. Also, because the poem is written in a combination of both English and Spanish, it applies to a much broader audience. The narrator implies that because she is Latina, she is inferior to the Americans.  She then states that she wants to prove that she is not inferior to Americans. Whereas the poem could have been written in either English or Spanish, the combination of English and Spanish helps to portray a better distinction between the two cultural views.

2.      According to the narrator this fight takes place when the narrator was a child and the poem is written when the narrator is an adult. What do you think triggers this reflection and why does the narrator now have a greater understanding of Teresa? Teresa questioned the narrator’s status on being a high, academic achiever, or a “teacher’s pet.” In response to Teresa’s confrontation, the narrator describes herself by stating that her “fear salted with confusion,” which displays that the narrator was troubled, maybe even embarrassed, by Teresa’s comment. However, because the narrator finally expresses her views to Teresa several years later, she implies that Teresa’s confrontation has stuck with her throughout her life. Personally, I’ve realized that when someone has heckled me, I make sure that it does not happen again. I’ll act in a way that prevents me form being vulnerable to embarrassment. Although it sounds weak, as I look back on my past experiences, I find that it’s true. I feel that until her age of 28, narrator has frequently questioned herself as to why she is the “teacher’s pet”. The poem goes on to describe the narrator’s justification of why she strived academically and how her Latina decent would not decrease her chances of being more successful than the opposing whites. The narrator then lists reasons and ways to prove that the undermined Latina can thrive over the white man, which expresses the narrator’s strong, core values. I believe that these core values of responsibility, ambition, honor, and intelligence have paved the way for the narrator’s life. Due to the fact that the narrator finally illustrates her view to Teresa when she is 28 years old, she must have had someone, like Teresa, question her successful status. The narrator may have had a high position in work, possibly a promotion, which prompted a coworker to challenge the narrator’s successful status.

The narrator first states that she did not understand Teresa. Because of the narrator’s young age in her tension with Teresa, she must have been very confused by Teresa’s comments. However, as several years have passed, the narrator must have frequently asked herself why she was the “teacher’s pet.” The narrator relates describes Teresa as rebellious, and the narrator also justifies herself as rebellious. By overcoming the prejudiced view that Latina’s were inferior to Whites, the narrator expresses her form of rebellion, which allows her to understand Teresa more.

op-ed article prop 30: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/aug/16/local/la-me-brown-taxes-201208161.

I Am

I am Billy Drury. I like to start my day early in the morning. Although sleeping in does feel good, waking up early allows me to get more out of the day. I enjoy spending my time in the outdoors, especially hiking. When I reach a hilltop, I feel accomplished. Even though some hikes may be arduous, the views are truly rewarding. As I get a real view of things, I ask myself how can people spend most of their lives in a boring office? I find that getting outside to hike, surf,snowboard, play basketball, or simply spending time outdoors makes me happy. I'd hate to live my life sitting on a couch and watching the same television show over and over. I'd like to go out and get a view of whats real. Above all, I find that I'm productive and ambitious.