Technology
Everyday,
new technology is dispersed to millions of people all around the world. One
of
the biggest technological trends today is the daily use of smartphones. These devices can provide instant access to
everything a person can possibly require.
However, these little devices can be seen as causing huge problems with
their ability to view the internet, take photos, and quickly communicate with
others. As mass technology creates new
apps, websites, and social media networks at a psychopathic rate, technological
nay-sayers are trying to fight against the future. Personally, I feel that smartphones are
making society more productive, efficient, and capable to do tasks required of
a person throughout each day.
One of the most important parts of a
person’s day is communicating with others.
Smartphones, with the ability to view social networks, e-mail, and text
messages permit people to be able to converse more frequently and quickly. People in the workplace can use Facetime, a
form of video chat in which users can see and talk to on another as if they are
in the same room, giving businesses more efficiency. Programs similar to Facetime allow for
quicker meetings, and they allow people to work from home. Smartphones prove to be extremely handy for
this reason alone; but, they can do more.
Another useful quality of a smartphone is its connection to
education. Many smartphones have apps
made specifically for every grade level.
These apps allow teachers to connect with their students in and out of
the classroom. Smartphones provide
several advantages to students. The apps
can enable them to do assignments on e-paper rather than having to write
anything out. Also, this method allows
students the ability to save and view their work electronically. Providing instantaneous access to websites,
smartphones are excellent tools to use when doing research. The cameras on the
phones can also be used to take pictures of white boards and Smart Boards,
giving students quick ways to obtain homework or notes.
Smartphones are also helpful in daily life. These extraordinary devices can translate
languages and allow people to communicate more freely. Also, the camera’s zoom allows people with
vision problems to see farther distances.
The phones can assist the forgetful by scheduling a person’s entire
day. Theses devices have fantastic
navigation systems, ensuring that people always have directions or help when
needed.
More people must accept progress in order to
ease into today’s generation. It is
pointless to fight against the future.
Each day, people are coming up with thousands of new ideas to improve
life for everyone. When pondering all of the possibilities, the smartphone is a
growing innovation. For today’s
generation, the hyperbole “I would die without my phone” is no longer an
exaggeration. Once a person gets on the
technological treadmill, there is no getting off. It only goes faster. People need to jump on
and exercise their minds.
SOPHOMORE
STUDENT
Recycle
“Don’t
be trashy. Recycle,” states a poster hanging the school cafeteria. Yet, as a
school district, how much recycling is actually happening? Sure, there is a
small, blue recycling bin in almost every classroom; however, what purpose is
this little bin really serving? Tucked away in the corner of the room or hidden
under a desk, the recycling bin is solely for paper and is mostly ignored by
students and teachers. The school board should initiate more awareness as well
as a better recycling program.
The only type of recyclable that the Berwick
Area School District feels the need to recycle is paper. Recycling paper is
both beneficial to the environment and a very good start considering the
quantity of paper used by the schools in the district. However, a start is all
it is. We have the ability to do so much more.
The high school is made up of about 900 students and about 75 faculty
members. At lunch or during homeroom, a student may drink a bottle of water, tea,
soda, Gatorade, etc. A teacher might keep a bottle of water or another beverage
at his or her disposal during class or prep time. If the majority of students
and teachers drank one bottle a day, and most do, that would be over 600
recyclable items ending up in a landfill.
Also, the school district is blatantly
ignoring the huge ecological footprint that Crispin Field is leaving. With Team
Green literally right across the street, the lack of recycling bins at the
field is appalling. Hundreds upon hundreds of bottles are disposed of without a
second thought.
Another serious problem is the lack of
awareness within the schools. Most students and even some teachers are not
aware how much of a positive impact recycling has on the environment. A bigger
initiative should be taken to teach students why recycling is important and the
consequences of not recycling.
Some might argue that placing recycling bins
in the schools and on school property will cost the district money and is not
worth the cost. However, in the grand scheme of things, any amount of money is
a small price to pay to save the earth.
The small blue recycling bin is just not
cutting it. Steps need to be taken so that all recyclable items are properly
taken care of within the six schools of the Berwick Area School District. The
lack of awareness and recycling bins is simply abysmal.
MARIE
SPUCHES
Junior
Too
Much Homework
Children
of all ages in the U.S. are bogged down with too much homework each night. This
can cause serious mental disorders such as depression or anxiety due to the
amount of stress and lack of sleep. Schools should take into consideration the
amount of homework the teachers are giving students and encourage teachers to
reduce the amount of homework given per night.
Many people claim that homework is a good
thing and that we should be made responsible to do work on our own. What they
do not take into consideration is how much homework students are given in all
of their classes. Teachers give homework without realizing students have
homework for almost every class, not to mention having to study for upcoming
tests. This is too much work for the average student. The average amount of
homework given to students each night is about ten minutes per grade, meaning
10 minutes for kindergarten all the way up to 120 minutes per night for a
senior in high school, although many times it is even more time. After being in
school for 7 hours, 5 days a week, students may not put as much effort into
homework as necessary; therefore, it does not help the student very much. This
much work leads students to dislike school because they are being overworked to
the point where they do not care anymore.
Students have very busy lives on top of
going to school they are involved in sports, jobs, clubs and other things that
are going on in their lives; too much homework just adds stress. Too much of
this stress can cause students to have severe mental disorders such as anxiety,
depression, or eating disorders from being stressed out by school work.
According to depressionperception.com, up to 2.5% of children and up to 8.3% of
teenagers in the US are diagnosed with depression. This number may not be as
high if the stress levels due to homework were lowered. It is not healthy for
children and teenagers to be exposed to such high levels of stress at such a
young age. Students are staying up much later than they should in order to have
time to get their homework done, which is in turn making them more tired for
school the next day.
Students’ attitudes toward learning and
school are sure to go up if they know they will not be forced to do hours of
additional work at home. The learning environment in the classroom could be
less hostile and more positive. Also, if students do not understand the
homework they are given, they can become very frustrated and discouraged,
whereas if the work were done in the classroom, they could ask the teacher for
help.
Although some homework should be allowed if
work was not completed in class, there should be regulations as to how much can
be given, and no extra work should be allowed. This will increase grades,
improve attitudes, and reduce childhood mental disorders.
CLAUDIA ANDERSON
Junior
Too
Much Testing
The goal of every educator should be to expand
the minds of the students he or she teaches. However, it seems as if teachers
are now concentrating on appeasing the state. This is not the fault of the
school’s teachers or administration; it is the fault of the government and
their need to experiment on the students currently in the classroom. It is
obvious that the government is trying to ensure that the students are receiving
a proper education, but they do not realize that they are hindering the
learning process instead of helping it. The students are not learning extensive
subject matter. They are only learning how to pass the many standardized tests.
Overall, students should not be required to take standardized tests because
they are harmful to the educational experience.
With so much progress in society, it would be
logical to assume that the learning process would become more advanced and
effective. However, the complete opposite is occurring because of the many
standardized tests that students must take. Instead of learning the basics and
expanding on them, students are only learning how to take these disruptive
tests. As a result, students do not learn the educational fundamentals needed
for future success. In many cases, teachers are only teaching “to the test.” For example, being a sophomore in high school,
teachers have continuously taught me how to analyze a test question or how to
write in response to Keystone Literature Exam questions. Going back to
elementary and middle school, I was constantly learning how to do simple
Algebra 1 problems. I can figure out every possible question that could appear
on the test. This same situation is happening in all of the core class in every
grade. Schools are so concerned about their data and meeting their Adequate
Yearly Progress (AYP) that they are overlooking what is truly important to
education, creating a strong educational foundation for life-long learners. As
a result, students are missing key components of grammar, math and science.
Standardized tests are dominating valuable time that could be used to improve
the educational experience for all students. I am failing to see how taking so
many of these tests is worthwhile.
There are eight periods in a regular school
day. This gives students the opportunity to participate in up to eight classes
every day. These classes have a complex mixture of content and difficulty
levels. Some students choose to take the basic level courses while others
choose to take “honors” level classes. For students like me who choose to take
the honors classes, it is extremely difficult to miss a day of school. The
classes that students miss contain information that could be important for completing
future assignments and taking tests. This results in hours of make-up work and
confusion. If a student falls behind in an honors course, or an AP (Advanced
Placement) course, he or she might not pass that particular marking period.
These same problems also affect those students who do not choose to take the
honors classes. Simply, it is difficult to miss school for anyone. This leads
to the next problem caused by state testing, the disruptiveness to the daily
schedule and learning process. When students must take the standardized tests,
they miss three to four periods each day for 2-3 days per test. This may seem
like a minor issue, but to a student, it produces a huge problem. While that a student is taking the required
test, his or her regular class is still in session. I know from taking the
Keystone Literature Exam earlier this year that it is hard to recover from
missing that many classes. My test lasted for two days, causing me to miss
three periods each day. In that time, I missed two chapter tests, an essay
assignment, and a ton of class work. Being an honors
student, my teachers expect me to complete my regular homework, study for the
tests I missed and the upcoming ones for that week, make up my work, and
somehow get everything completed by the end of the week. Personally, I have a
very rigorous schedule with classes that give me both homework and daunting
tests on a regular basis. This makes it difficult to fall behind. It adds
pressure to the student because they now have to learn the lesson by themselves
and complete work. This added stress level is unnecessary for any elementary,
middle, or high school student.
It is a requirement that a student must attend
12 years of school in order to graduate. However, the government is depriving students
of almost 3/4 of a year of school, only providing 11 and a quarter years of
education. This is another negative result of standardized testing. When
checking my performance tracker, it is easy to see how the test interferes with
regular class time. First, we took eight tests in elementary school lasting a
day each. Next, we took up to 30 hours of 4-Sight tests in middle school to
prepare for the PSSA exams. Then we had to take 14 days’ worth of PSSA tests.
To date in high school, my class has taken three Keystone Exams. Each test
takes about a whole school day in total time. Add in the countless hours spent
on Study Island, other test preparation web sites, and days spent “reviewing,”
and a student has easily lost three- quarters of a year of educational time.
From the standpoint of a student, that is time that could be put to use in a
more beneficial way. People could easily suggest expanding the school day, but
there truly is not time. It would be an act of cruelty to expand the school day
because students need all of the time they can get to complete their homework.
For those students taking challenging classes, the time spent doing homework
can average between two to six hours per night. This does not leave any time
for community service or extra-curricular activities. If the government were to
ban all standardized testing, it could improve the lives of the students. This
would allow students to have more time in the classroom and have less stress
throughout the school day
The students currently in the classroom are
preparing to be productive members of society. The standardized tests are
evidently harmful, time consuming, and disruptive. These tests need to be
banned from the educational system. This will give students more classroom time
and allow them a greater chance at success. If the government truly needs to
see how the students are performing, then they should look at the overall
academic standings in each school. They should try to make programs to help
students who need it and leave the others alone to successfully complete their
12 years of school. It is the best solution to the pressing and stressful
problems that these experimental tests cause. Most importantly, ridding the
students of these tests will allow them to have an easier time trying to finish
their assignments and homework. I am not the only student who feels this way,
and it is time for a change because there truly is too much testing.
