Schwalbe's comment that sociological mindfulness can help create a better life for the people you care about is a good way to think about things, and definitely a way to convince people to be sociologically mindful. By looking and understand the way the world works, we the people can take a step back, evaluate our actions, and then change them in a way to benefit those we love and care for. These efforts might be small and seem meaningless, but as Mr. Sal said in class "There's no way to tell how far the ripple may go, and it might help create a wave that crashes on to land". After all, many people lead by example. If a person changes their actions, people will see what they are doing, and be more likely to change their actions as well.
When it comes to how sociological mindfulness, and the actions people take as a result of it, can effect the people that I care about, I can think of no better example then two of my close friends, who here will be referred to by the initials S and P. One of them is bisexual (S), and the other is a transman (P), and they are in a loving relationship with each other. As a result of a combination of ignorance and bigotry, they face much homophobia, especially P, who frequently is confronted by people who refuse to call him a man. Sadly, they are not alone when it comes to being victims of homophobia, and this saddens me deeply. As a result, I have been making a conscious effort to not stop potentially offensive comments that I might make, but to educate others on the gay community, and how homosexuality is not a choice, and is something that should be accepted as diversity, just as race, religion, and gender are. Hopefully, through education, I can create a ripple in the pond of society, with the eventual result of making members of the GLBT community equally respected members of society.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Service Project Hours 1-4: World's Fair
Name of Organization: Stevenson World's Fair
Location: 1 Stevenson Drive, Lincolnshire IL
Date: Friday January 21: 3:30-8:30 PM, Saturday January 22: 10:30 AM-3 PM, Sunday January 23: 10:00 AM-3:30 PM
Supervisor: Melissa Fainman; mfainman@d125.org
Experience:
Last weekend, I volunteered at World's Fair, Stevenson's annual cultural festival. As a new member of GSA, I, along with a couple other people, manned the booth for GSA there. As part of the booth, we each researched information on how GLBT people are treated in each of the foreign countries that World's Fair had booths for. The country I personally did research for was South Korea. It was interesting to see that quite a few countries are much more tolerant of GLBT people than America is, but was disheartening to read that some countries, such as Iran and Cameroon, have outright made homosexuality a crime. During the actual festival, we sold cookies, cupcakes, soda, and custom made bracelets in order to raise money for the Charity that this years Festival was to benefit. At the end, I was happy that I could be a part of two worth causes - charity and equality - and proud at how positive the reception of our booth had been. Gay rights is a cause I care deeply about, and Im glad I could advance that cause by helping to educate people.
Location: 1 Stevenson Drive, Lincolnshire IL
Date: Friday January 21: 3:30-8:30 PM, Saturday January 22: 10:30 AM-3 PM, Sunday January 23: 10:00 AM-3:30 PM
Supervisor: Melissa Fainman; mfainman@d125.org
Experience:
Last weekend, I volunteered at World's Fair, Stevenson's annual cultural festival. As a new member of GSA, I, along with a couple other people, manned the booth for GSA there. As part of the booth, we each researched information on how GLBT people are treated in each of the foreign countries that World's Fair had booths for. The country I personally did research for was South Korea. It was interesting to see that quite a few countries are much more tolerant of GLBT people than America is, but was disheartening to read that some countries, such as Iran and Cameroon, have outright made homosexuality a crime. During the actual festival, we sold cookies, cupcakes, soda, and custom made bracelets in order to raise money for the Charity that this years Festival was to benefit. At the end, I was happy that I could be a part of two worth causes - charity and equality - and proud at how positive the reception of our booth had been. Gay rights is a cause I care deeply about, and Im glad I could advance that cause by helping to educate people.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Growing Up Online
Technology has been instrumental in the shaping of our society. In today's world of 24 hour news channels, MySpace, Facebook, Texting, Skype, and more, technology is defining what we know and how we communicate. If technology is used correctly, to help people learn, and to assist people in staying connected with each other, it can be extremely beneficial. But that is exactly the problem, technology is best used to ASSIST people in communication and learning, not to REPLACE the already established channels of communication. When that happens, we as human beings might give ourselves the semblance of connection with our fellow man, but in actuality we are causing ourselves to become more isolated from each other, as physical communication is becoming more scarce.
I'll be the first to admit, I use this same technology that I am warning about exceedingly often. I frequently find myself switching off between texting and facebook. This may seem a bit hypocritical, and to an extent it is. However, I have always used these technologies in order to get myself more connected to the outside world, never to isolate myself. When I first created my facebook in the summer of 2008, I was exceedingly socially awkward. From the beginning, I tried my hardest to use tis technology to bring me closer to people and the social scene. I used the technology to assist myself in talking to people, making it easier for me to build relationships with friends that then carried over to real life. I find myself with more friends at school and spending more time hanging out after school. I used this technology to get myself more connected to society, to help bring me out of my shell, not to isolate myself and eliminate face-to-face communication
Mr. Salituro, your role as a teacher should be to encourage the CORRECT use of technology. You should implore us to use technology to assist us in staying connected and learning more, while simultaneously imploring us of the dangers of heavy reliance on technology. This blog is a great way for students to effectively and efficiently use technology to increase our interconnectedness. We can use these blogs to share our thoughts and feelings in an intricate, in-depth way that we wouldn't have time to form and say in face-to-face conversation. Then, we can read each others thoughts and comment on them, engaging ourselves in thoughtful and complex dialogue to help further our understanding of opposing opinions and viewpoints. However, in order for this to happen, we must go into this with a positive mindset. We must view this blog not as an assignment that we must do, something to give us a grade and nothing more. Conversely, we must view this blog as an extension of the classroom, a continuation of our learning, a new-media forum of communication with the added bonus of giving us a grade. If we find ourselves able to do that, then we can make the most of this new technology that society offers us.
I'll be the first to admit, I use this same technology that I am warning about exceedingly often. I frequently find myself switching off between texting and facebook. This may seem a bit hypocritical, and to an extent it is. However, I have always used these technologies in order to get myself more connected to the outside world, never to isolate myself. When I first created my facebook in the summer of 2008, I was exceedingly socially awkward. From the beginning, I tried my hardest to use tis technology to bring me closer to people and the social scene. I used the technology to assist myself in talking to people, making it easier for me to build relationships with friends that then carried over to real life. I find myself with more friends at school and spending more time hanging out after school. I used this technology to get myself more connected to society, to help bring me out of my shell, not to isolate myself and eliminate face-to-face communication
Mr. Salituro, your role as a teacher should be to encourage the CORRECT use of technology. You should implore us to use technology to assist us in staying connected and learning more, while simultaneously imploring us of the dangers of heavy reliance on technology. This blog is a great way for students to effectively and efficiently use technology to increase our interconnectedness. We can use these blogs to share our thoughts and feelings in an intricate, in-depth way that we wouldn't have time to form and say in face-to-face conversation. Then, we can read each others thoughts and comment on them, engaging ourselves in thoughtful and complex dialogue to help further our understanding of opposing opinions and viewpoints. However, in order for this to happen, we must go into this with a positive mindset. We must view this blog not as an assignment that we must do, something to give us a grade and nothing more. Conversely, we must view this blog as an extension of the classroom, a continuation of our learning, a new-media forum of communication with the added bonus of giving us a grade. If we find ourselves able to do that, then we can make the most of this new technology that society offers us.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Beginnings
My name is Paul, I am seventeen and a senior at a suburban Chicagoland high school. I am writing this blog as a student in my Sociology class.
I find it hard for one to define who they are. It is exceedingly hard, nearly impossible to pinpoint exactly what you are, and what makes you as such. I am a compendium of my life experiences. Everything I have gone through, every success and every failure, every friend and every enemy, every day and every night, have all come together to create the Paul that sits here writing this today. Tomorrow, I will have new life experiences, and will be a different, more accomplished person than I am now. The day after that, even more so. Life is a cumulative experience; the more you live, the more you learn, and the stronger and wiser you become.
My biggest influences are my friends and family. As a child, even through the beginning years of high school, I was extremely socially awkward. I learned what is acceptable about society: how to act, how to get along with others, etc. from the people that I met. This goes back to my opinion that life is a collection of additive experiences. If it weren't for these people, and the experiences they gave me, I wouldn't be as wise as I am today, and as a result, I wouldn't be me.
My goal in life is to make a difference. If once I'm gone, one person remembers me, just one person is left better off for my existance, than my life will be worthwhile. Of course, my goal is to make the world a better place for as many people as possible. I would like to do that through our government. I am hoping to go to college in Washington D.C., and wherever I end up, I plan on studying Politics. I want to get involved in government in order to fix our flailing society, and make the world the best possible place for the most number of people.
I find it hard for one to define who they are. It is exceedingly hard, nearly impossible to pinpoint exactly what you are, and what makes you as such. I am a compendium of my life experiences. Everything I have gone through, every success and every failure, every friend and every enemy, every day and every night, have all come together to create the Paul that sits here writing this today. Tomorrow, I will have new life experiences, and will be a different, more accomplished person than I am now. The day after that, even more so. Life is a cumulative experience; the more you live, the more you learn, and the stronger and wiser you become.
My biggest influences are my friends and family. As a child, even through the beginning years of high school, I was extremely socially awkward. I learned what is acceptable about society: how to act, how to get along with others, etc. from the people that I met. This goes back to my opinion that life is a collection of additive experiences. If it weren't for these people, and the experiences they gave me, I wouldn't be as wise as I am today, and as a result, I wouldn't be me.
My goal in life is to make a difference. If once I'm gone, one person remembers me, just one person is left better off for my existance, than my life will be worthwhile. Of course, my goal is to make the world a better place for as many people as possible. I would like to do that through our government. I am hoping to go to college in Washington D.C., and wherever I end up, I plan on studying Politics. I want to get involved in government in order to fix our flailing society, and make the world the best possible place for the most number of people.
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