Journal Entry Essays

Journal Entry Essays Journal Entry Essay Journal Entry Essay In the article â€Å"Urban and rural students swap places to learn about different lives†, which appeared on CNN.com on May 23, 2007, the issue of education and how students learn to overcome their differences through awareness. This particular news story deals with two groups of students from Alaska who are part of an exchange program to help bring awareness to students about the differences in the way each group lives. One group is from a tiny Eskimo village in Alaska, and the others from a suburb of Anchorage. Each group lives a completely different way of life despite the fact that they all live in the same state. The educators in this case felt that through the exchange program students could learn to appreciate the different ways of life that each lives and to learn more about the world around them and their neighbors. The rural teens were amazed at how many varieties of food there were in the supermarkets and how less expensive it was, and were amazed at the different s tores and even the indoor plumbing. The urban teens were shocked by the exact opposite in the rural village, yet they all learned to appreciate not only the way of life of the other teens, but to appreciate what is special about themselves and their life.I selected this article because it deals with education and how educators are trying to overcome some of the differences that exist in society and some of the social, political, and racial inequalities. Through the exchange program teens of different cultures get to learn about each other through their time with their host families and in the different area, and also get an education about people who are their neighbors, in a sense. The teachers responsible for this program are hoping to bring unity to Alaska and to connect it to classroom curriculum ranging from healthcare to economy. I was attracted to this story because it is a beautiful example of how education and understanding can lead to more acceptance amongst people of diff erent social groups, as in the case with the Eskimo children and the other Alaskan children. This is an important social issue because if more educators would adopt similar methods then we could foster more understanding amongst different groups within our own nation. This innovative approach shows a social solution that can help many other educators around the country if they were to implement this type of program to help children of different races, religions, income levels, and nationalities within our own country learn to appreciate and understand each other.Journal Entry # 2The article â€Å"Gold Star wives help a new generation of war widows† that appeared on CNN.com on May 26, 2007 is an interesting look at the way that our own suffering can be a basis for helping others in similar situations. The article deals with the social issue of war and how it affects not only the people in the midst of the war but the wives, husbands, and children that are left behind by the me n and women who die in the war in Iraq. I was attracted to it because of the closeness to Memorial Day and the fact that is encourages people to reach out to others going through problems.This article is about a woman named Marie Speer who lost her husband in WWII and how she founded this organization called Gold Star Wives, which was established to help war widows in many various ways, from friendship and compassion, to helping lobby for benefits for the wives and husbands of those lost in the war. The women of this organization have all lost husbands to war and know how it feels, but instead of doing nothing they reach out to others through the organization. This is an example of how we as Americans, no matter what our thoughts on politics and the war, can use our own compassion to help others, no matter our situation in life. It also shows how, no matter the generational difference, some things, like losing a spouse in the war, can link us to those who dealt with similar things b efore us. The war in Iraq is a major social issue right now, politically, but the social impact of this is felt greatly by the spouses of the men and women fighting in Iraq. This article gives us a look at how we can come up with solutions to some issues by reaching out to people who are in pain. While this organization is not a solution to the war, it is a help to people.Journal Entry # 3The article â€Å"The First Steps† by Alex Tresniowski, et al, appears in the May 7, 2007 issue of People Magazine and is a look at the healing process that is happening at the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, Virginia following the massacre that killed 33 students in Norris Hall on April 16th. This article is unlike many of the others because instead of dealing with the dark, brooding gunman or all of the mistakes and issues that led up to the shooting, it deals with how the students affected will take steps to heal and help create a better environment for all students on campus. This ar ticle was interesting to me because it was not just another doom and gloom article about the tragedy but point out what was being done right by the Virginia Tech students, faculty, and campus administrators to help the college heal. Violence has become such a huge social problem in our society and this issue was made even more glaring by this particular school shooting. The article’s look at the counseling being offered, the changes in the college, and most especially the way that the community, parents, and students are all reaching out to each other as a means of healing is incredible. It also shows how they are hoping to eliminate loners and outcasts like the shooter by reaching out to their fellow classmates in need. Instead of dwelling on the bad, they are looking for something positive to come out of the tragedy.I was attracted to this article because of the hopefulness that it leaves the reader with, especially concerning something as troubling as the Virginia Tech Mas sacre. This is such an important social issue because it is so prevalent in our nation and what makes people commit violence is still not really understood. It is hard to remember that out of the pain of such an event there can come something wonderful and positive, like a new spirit amongst people or a greater awareness of the signs of mental illness. Also, just simply being out to reach out to others. It’s relation to the social issue of violence also attracted me because that is such a large problem in our society, and the solutions given are interesting and uplifting.Journal Entry #4The article â€Å"Global Fund Saves 1.8 Million Lives† appeared on the ONE.org website on May 24, 2007. The ONE is a new poverty campaign that aims at helping â€Å"to make poverty history†. Some new bills have been passed recently, including education-related issues, and it has become well-known in the press because of publicity gained from its appearance on American Idol and at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. in 2006. This particular article deals with the response from the American Congress and how much money they have given to the Global Fund in support of the various programs that are helping to end world hunger, poverty, and disease.In summary, this article is about the money grants given to ONE.org and the Global Fund, both of which are dedicated to ending poverty, hunger, and disease in third-world nations around the world. Because of the insistance of ONE.org and other organizations the United States has pledged hundreds of millions of dollars towards helping their cause and there has been some great progress, including many lives saved because of insecticides, medicine, food, and nets that help to protect people from the things that harm them in other countries.This story attracted me because I really feel strongly about ending world poverty and giving everyone in the world a chance at a good quality of life. I feel that we in th e United States are especially responsible for helping others who are less fortunate. The issue of poverty is an important social issue that is dealt with not only around the world, but in our own country as well; however, this article is especially interesting because it gives ideas on how we can help. The article talked about how just donating insecticide-treated nets to families with children can help to stop disease and that 3,000 people every day are saved just by this one program. One person can be saved simply by donating one net. It’s important to understand how we can get involved, even if we have limited means ourselves.Journal Entry # 5The article â€Å"U.N. Presses for Peace in Darfur† appeared on the Los Angeles Times website on May 27, 2007 and deals with the conflict in Sudan and how the U.N. is trying to create a change for the better in that country by encouraging peace within its borders. The article talks about the ongoing conflict in Sudan and the t ypes of terrible violence going on there, particularly amongst the militia and rebel groups. The article is about the U.N.’s push for Sudan to call a cease-fire and to start peace talks so that the violence can end. It also talks about the many peacekeepers who are proposed to go in and help create a more stable nation for the people who live there under violent conditions.The social issue that is happening right now in Darfur is critical. There has been genocide happening there fore years and many people live in refugee camps because their homes, land, and country have been filled with so much violence and war for so long. This article deals with the social issue of war, as well as poverty, and global inequality. The war going on there has created a global inequality unlike any other nation, and has caused so many people to descend into poverty and hunger. People are dying everyday because of the conflict and while the U.N. is taking notice they are not able to convince Darf ur to stop the violence and create a better nation for the men and women who live there.I was attracted to this article because it is about an issue that is really at the forefront of the minds of many right now because of the publicity it has gotten from celebrities and the media. This article also has some solutions in it that are interesting, pointing out what is being done by the U.N. to help bring peace to Darfur, including the unification conference between the African Union and the U.N. that has happened recently. While Darfur is still a social problem, the involvement of the U.N. in the peace process is encouraging.Journal Entry # 6The article â€Å"Trial set to begin in Mississippi civil rights-era case† by Jerry Mitchell appeared the USA Today on May 24, 2007 and deals with the case of a man who is facing charges for killing two African-American teenagers in 1964. In the past few years there has been a push in Mississippi to bring to justice former klansmen and othe r racists who killed civil rights workers and African-Americans during a time and in a place where discrimination was so abundant that no one would convict them. This case is one of these, and is an interesting look at how the justice system can be corrupt and yet, today, we can try to make things right.James Seale is 71 years old now, but in 1964 he was arrested and admitted to beating Henry Dee and Charles Moore, two black teenagers who were hitchhiking and picked up by a vehicle of klansmen, including Seale. They were beaten to death and then weighted down and thrown into the Mississippi River. Seale was arrested and interrogated and admitted to beating them and even admitted that God knew he killed them to an FBI agent, but told authorities they would have to prove it. In the deep south in 1964, he was never prosecuted and charges were dropped. Today, however, authorities in the South are looking to make right on the racial injustice that took place there by prosecuting the kill ers now in hopes of showing the world that the new South doesn’t let people go for killing another person just because of the color of their skin.This article attracted me because racial inequality has always been such a problem in the U.S. and the fact that so many people got away with murder in the South just because they killed black people has always haunted the nation. Now, as a social solution, prosecutors are setting out to change that by punishing these people now for the sins of the past in the hopes that the deaths of so many during the civil rights-era can be vindicated. The criminal justice system is looking past race in Mississippi and doing what is legally and morally right.