Troubled Schools: Video Analysis

Over the past few decades, the need for character education programs in United States’ schools has been widely debated and become increasingly popular particularly at the elementary level. However, the root of character education in the United States extends back to Horace Mann in the 1840’s who advocated that “character development was as important as academics in American schools” (USDE, 2011, para. 1). In response to the more recent realization of the importance of character education, the U.S. Congress authorized the Partnerships in Character Education Program in 1994; and character education was re-emphasized again in 2001 in the No Child Left Behind Act (USDE, 2011). As a result of the U.S. Department of Education’s goals to “promote strong character and citizenship among our nation’s youth” and increase student achievement, numerous federal resources as well as grants at the state and local levels have been established to assist in the design, implementation, and sustainment of “high-quality opportunities for students to learn and understand the importance of strong character in their lives” (USDE, 2011, para. 9). In addition, President Bush increased funding for character education program implementation in 2003 from $8 million to $25 million following a White House conference including “nationally recognized experts” who met to discuss “the need for and effectiveness of character education programs” (USDE, 2003, pg.1).

This film focused on a teacher who was willing to fight for the students and find ways to reach them with tactics other than just typical pedagogy or academic discipline. Where it is commonly believed that students growing up in poor families seem to be labeled as juvenile delinquents and not much is expected of them, Mr. Dadier tried to change this perception by showing his s...

...cle the credit necessary for inclusion in a college-level curriculum. The article's inclusion would promote conversation between the pieces of the section with an important extra level of depth that is relatable to current issues. The addition of this article into the curriculum gives the class another hard moral question that, instead of being in the past or in a different country, exists today and affects us here and now.

The video also shows how much inclusive education has changed throughout the years, and how things like collaboration have improved. At the end of Sean’s Story I still have the question of even though Sean’s friend was in a school and they were teaching the students to be functional in the real world, those students were not being exposed to normal students. This made we wonder if this would impact them in the long world because the will never have that chance to be in a controlled environment to make mistakes about being around others and have that learning

In one scenario that is shown, there is a teenage boy who doesn’t have an arm and he is attempting to play the drum and after many attempts he overcomes this impediment. By observing other’s lives it makes the viewer compare their lives and appreciate how many opportunities they have. During the entire video there is a narrator that is very inspirational, for example, he says, “Change is your destiny. Now go chase it.” at the end of the video. These words motivate the viewer to gather the courage to attain the change they want to see in themselves.

The state of Hawaii supports parents through parent/child intervention programs that help teach parents effective ways to handle problems that arise, with positive outcomes. The state is dedicated to early education intervention through pre-school and Kindergarten programs that feed and house children and give parents necessary tools to react positively to children, which promotes respect and responsibility to young children. Although this is good news, I quit teaching High School English because of pervasive cheating and two dangerous students who were selling drugs and handling fire arms. Students are learning character education at the elementary and Intermediate through DARE programs and curriculum, but once in High School, many forget what they have been taught. Many parents believe that they no longer need to monitor their students, thus, peer pressure and the need to be self-satisfied become more important (Lickona, 1991). At the High School level and beyond, students will benefit from organized service projects that will enlighten their responsibility to others instead of selfish intentions (Lickona,1991)....

In the film the person who was responsible for creating and maintaining a great public school was Michelle Rhee. She believed she could be in charge and change public school to be better. I believe the community is responsible for creating and maintaining a great public school. If everyone in the community including the teachers care about education we would have a lot better public schools. My experience in a public school was good my school was a pretty good public school. I think my public school experience affected me and my life choices in a good way because I feel my teachers cared about their students. My teachers were very helpful and supportive which made me feel happy being in school which led me to continue to be in school.

Actually, watching children in action was insightful for me, it reinforced the facts that not only are we shaped by familial interactions, but socially we are also shaped by our peers and friends, at home, school and on the playground.

Problems with Public Schools In order to fully understand the issue of school vouchers, we must examine first the current situation in public schools and identify the problems. Then, we must look at the effect vouchers will have on these problems. Finally, we must discuss the objections to vouchers leveled by their main political opponents. In order to examine the potential benefits of school choice, we must first look to the current situation in American education. Public schools today are in a state of crisis, while access to private schools is diminished because the private schools cannot adequately sell what some are giving away for free.

behavior is very important and students behavior often needs to be monitored. The principal of my school is considering whether or not eight grade students should be graded not only on academics but also on their behavioral performance. Of course grading students on behavior is a superb idea because it is a fantastic way for parents to determine how their children actitute is like while they are not present, students grades and behavior will also improve is they know that they are being graded on behavior. Overall it is a splendid and beneficial idea to grade students on behavior it should absolutely be done.