Organ Donation and Forest Depletion Depicted in Fitzhugh’s The Organ Gr

Organ Donation and Forest Depletion Depicted in Fitzhugh’s The Organ Grinders On the back of my drivers license there is a box which will allow me to donate organs if I wish to do so. Upon first receiving my license I didn’t know whether to sign it or where I could find three witnesses to watch me sign. Modern science is allowing people to live longer than ever before, and transplanting failed organs is another method to preserve our frail lives. The problem with human organ transplantation is there is never enough supply to meet the high demand. With organ transplants being a problem in our society, the diminishing rain forest is another pressing issue. It has been estimated that our rain forests could disappear within 40 years at our current logging rate (Raintree, 2004). The reason we were always told to recycle and ‘save a tree’ is because the rain forests provide our breathing air. The rain forests provide a home for many animals and removing the animals from their home will cause extinction. In the novel The Organ Grinders, P aul Symon the main character, observes the apparent problem that exists in rain forest depletion and with organ transplantation. With a few significant changes, the damage done by these technologies can be minimized and life be treasured. As an adolescent Paul Symon proposed a plan to Jerry Landis who was the owner of Landaq, a biotechnology corporation. Once Landis got a photo with Paul to make him feel good and got him to leave, Landis and his photographer burst into laughter. â€Å"Then he saw Jerry Landis drop his proposal into the wastebasket. And with that simple act, Jerry Landis taught Paul a painful lesson†¦it wasn’t the worst thing Jerry Landis would ever do to him.†(Fitzhugh,... ...e Organ Grinders. New York: Avon, 1998 â€Å"John J. Fung† Transplanting Animal Organs Into Humans Is Feasible 1999 Nov http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1272/is_2654_128/ai_57564084 â€Å"Alan H. Berger† Xenotransplantation: The Ethics, the Science, the Risks 1996 March 15 http://articles.animalconcerns.org/ar-voices/archive/xeno_risks.html â€Å"Alexander Tabarrok† A Moral Solution to the Organ Shortage 2001 February http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?ID=283 â€Å"savetherainforest.org† Facts about the rainforest http://www.savetherainforest.org/savetherainforest_007.htm â€Å"wikipedia† Rainforest 2004http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainforest â€Å"rain-tee.com† Rain forest facts 2004 http://www.rain-tree.com/facts.htm â€Å"Robert E. Michler† Xenotransplantation: Risks, Clinical Potential, and Future Prospects 1996 March http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol2no1/michler.htm

EDU 330 Special Education Foundations and Framework Benchmark Assessment Essay

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has granted that placement options be available to better meet the needs of students. (Classroom Leadership, 2001) To better meet these requirements, educators have strived to make every effort to place students with and without disabilities in environments where they can learn, grow, and be successful. Each student is placed according to their individual needs, abilities, qualities, and level of services needed. Placing students in their correct environment is essential for obtaining a quality education. Today, there are many resourceful classrooms that are aimed at the specific abilities and disabilities of students. In these types of classrooms, students are better equipped to get the help they need. There are also related services within the school and the community that are aimed at offering support to families with disabilities. When students are placed in the correct environments, teachers can strategically help connect students and their families to these resources, and also integrate assistive technologies into the curriculum to support student learning abilities. When it comes to effectively placing student’s collaboration is key to assessing the type of environment that is presumed to be best for students. Educational environments affect teaching and learning, therefore the classroom environment must be designed to support the individual needs of students. A few types of classroom environments used in K-12 education include inclusion, self-contained, and resource rooms. The inclusion model allows students to participate in regular educational settings, and receive supported help by the inclusion teacher therein. The inclusion model is essential for increasing social  networking skills, developing behavior and academic skills through peer role-modeling, improving student achievement of IEP goals, and helping students acquire skills with the general education curriculum. The inclusion model is great for students who have mild learning disabilities, and those who are progressing consistently to a degree, where little or no help is needed. Based off of the student’s unique needs, the inclusion model is a great teaching environment, along with the self-contained education environment. In the self-contained classroom environment, students with disabilities are granted the  ability to receive much more one-on-one help given their unique disabilities. In this type of setting, educators receive additional specialized training to be able to aid students in making learning a success for students with disabilities, who are not able to participate in regular educational classroom settings. Students who learn at a slower pace, as a result of a learning disability, or uses modifications to lessons to acquire learning, a self-contained classroom may be beneficial. Nonetheless, resource educational environments may aide this same situation. In many cases, If a student is not mobile (using a wheelchair), have  severe disabilities like severe cerebral palsy, it may be beneficial to the student to participate in a resource classroom environment. Resource classroom environments focus on the student’s direct disability based on their IEP. They are potentially designed to be smaller for students to be able to get the one-on-one help they need yet still experience the social interaction with peers. Given the types of educational settings that were previously discussed, in the case of Gabriel, a kindergartener who battles cerebral palsy and has limited mobility it is necessary to place Gabriel in a resource room, to receive exceptional academic  training. Because, Gabriel is tub fed and has to use a diaper it is easier for instructors of a resource room to provide him his necessary needs, as they focus directly on the direct disability of students. Furthermore, it is concluded that Gabriel may not succeed in a regular educational setting, or a self-contained classroom setting because of his verbal inability. Although, he is able to communicate through a few eye movements, it is not enough to gain the benefits of a self-contained classroom, a regular education classroom, even though inclusion models. It is the  opinion of the author that Gabriel will better succeed in a resource room, where he will receive additional resources as physical therapy, to help him gain muscle strength to grasp things and even a speech therapist to help him gain control over his vocals. When it comes to exceptional education, there are many different related resources for students inside, and out of the school system. As for Gabriel, cerebral palsy or CP can mean life-long treatment. Generally, CP patients require 24-hour care. Therefore, in Gabriel’s case, eating, breathing, and moving freely can be a  challenge especially when trying to live independently, or study independently in an inclusion classroom, or self-contained environment. For this reason, educators may want to consider other related services, or services to assist their students with severe disabilities. Although, student have disabilities educators are still required to utilize these related services in order to provide those students with the best education possible. Most services are available to children in the public school system. While others can be accessed in the local community. However, there are related services abroad for students in public,  private, early education and head start school systems. Related services, in the terms of the educational setting of choice, calls for the special education classroom to utilize resources as assistive technology devices like wheelchairs, much physical therapy, and speech and language pathology services. Individuals who work to develop speech abilities in students who have communication impairments can effectively provide treatment to students like Gabriel, by showing them how to communicate with others. Furthermore, it is also beneficial to provide students like Gabriel with a physical therapist, who can work  through movement to help gain muscle control and movement. Nonetheless, teachers strive to develop independency in students of this type of educational setting, by providing assistive technology to encourage independent learning. Assistive technology for advancing communication with nonverbal students is made possible through devices, such as the DynaVox. This device can also be used to assess students like Gabriel to ensure they are understanding simple communication skills. Given the student’s abilities, it is necessary for educators to plan lessons and activities using a student’s IEP goals as guidelines. Then, during instruction time use many visuals and demonstrations, and even prompt the students for feedback. Moreover, in situations like Gabriel’s it is essential to students to use the co-teaching model To conclude, each type of educational setting discussed have significant roles in providing exceptional educational outcomes for students with disabilities. Whether a student is receiving training through inclusive model learning, self-contained strategies, or resource models of learning students are capable of receiving exceptional learning abilities and skills to build off of. It is a given, that all  types of educational settings has its pros and cons. However, it is believed that each type of environment has is benefits to support students in individual development. References Classroom Leadership (2001) Resource vs. Inclusion Classrooms; which is best for Students? Retrieved 8/17/14 from http://www. examiner. com/article/resource-vs-inclusion-classrooms-which-is-be st-for-students Council for Exceptional Children, (2014). Special Education Professional Ethical Principles and Practice Standards. Retrieved from http://www. cec. sped. org/Standards/Ethical-Principles-and-Practice-Standards.

Toys as Role Models - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1094 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2017/09/18 Category Business Essay Type Argumentative essay Topics: Children Essay Did you like this example? Toys as Role Models Judy Attfield, who holds a PhD in history and design, has written numerous articles in relation to design history. Her articles, often written in a formal and informative style, concentrate on parenting and family issues. Citing the differences in the maneuverability designs of Barbie and Action Man, which embody the stereotypical cliche of feminine passivity and masculine activity respectively, â€Å"Barbie and Action Man: Adult toys for girls and boys, 1959-93† (P. Kirkham (Ed. ), The Gendered Object (80-89). Manchester: Manchester University Press) by Judy Attfield argues that children are not only able to subvert toy’s stereotypical meanings but also create fantasies of their own. Targeting the general public in her article, Attfield starts off by giving compelling insights into a societal trend termed â€Å"androgyny†. This trend that she mentions, combines both femininity and masculinity into one and is said to be raving in to day’s society. However, in the latter portion of the essay, Attfield failed to elaborate on this trend. Instead, readers are led into a discussion on gender-stereotype propagating Barbie and Action Man, which contradicts her thoughts on androgyny. Even though fashion dolls like Barbie are designed for dressing and posing, and action figures like Action Man, for physical manipulation, Attfield claims that toy design does not dictate how a child plays with it. Instead, play is subjected to a child’s creativity and does not necessarily affect his or her actions and thoughts on gender stereotypes. She backs her claim by citing the following example â€Å"a number of informants recalled, in their play it was Barbie who was most often given the role of ‘bad girl’. † (Attfield, 1996: 86). Simply put, Barbie, a toy originally meant to project innocence, can be given an immoral role through creativity. However, her view that toys do not instill gender stereotypes is unjustifiable. Toys largely influence a child’s understanding of gender stereotypes, as they adore them as role models to follow. I will focus on how Attfield fails to take into consideration the supporting role of parents and the media in creating these role models that shape gender stereotype in today’s society. Since its release in the global market during the 1960s, Barbie and Action Man have been at the forefront of toy popularity indices. Not only have they topped sales chart, they have also become symbolic toys for our generation. On the other hand, alternative toys like â€Å"Happy to be me Doll† and â€Å"Adventurer†, both variants of Barbie and Action Man, have not met the level of popularity achieved by their predecessors (Attfield, 1996). This is largely because children simply love the ready-made characteristics of Barbie and Action Man. This could mean, that playing â€Å"Happy to be me Doll† as Barbie, or  "Adventurer† as Action Man is either utterly unappealing or perhaps, unthought-of. The statistical fact on the popularity of Barbie and Action Man suggests that a child’s interest in toys is based on the perceivable characteristics given to them. Children are attracted to the characteristics that popular toys possess and wish to attain or at least experience them through role-play. The characteristics associated with the two toys under scrutiny are Barbie’s passivity and image as a petite young model, glamourized through fashion and beauty, and Action Man’s action-filled role as a soldier who is full of valor in the battlefield. Considering how Barbie and Action Man objectify gender as ‘adult’ dolls (Attfield, 1996), it can be inferred that Barbie and Action Man have become children’s role models for their respective gender, thereby instilling the stereotypes of feminine passivity and masculine activity into them. In addition, Att field failed to take into consideration the supporting role of parents in shaping gender notions among children through toys. Since children do not have the financial ability to purchase toys, the sales of Barbie and Action Man can be ascribed to their parents despite Attfield’s claim that parents disapprove of these toys (Attfield, 1996). Children may perceive this parental act of purchase as a sign of parental approval of the characteristics that the toys may contain. Children may then be influenced into thinking that Barbie and Action Man, with their projection of gender stereotypes, are desirable role models to follow. Another point that Attfield neglected is the role of the media in shaping a child’s understanding of gender differences. The media is a powerful medium of influence. It is an endless source of information that is easily accessible to people of all ages. Although no one can wholly determine that a child’s behaviour is derived from the media, it is clear that children learn by imitating people and the surroundings around them. Hence, we should not overlook the possibility that a child’s fantasy may stem from watching commercials and shows that are targeted at him. As a result of overlooking the influence of media, Attfield did little to explain the origins of a child’s fantasy, which may be a product of media rather than pure creativity. The broadcast of commercials targeted at children may promote the characteristics of the toys in question, consequently shaping a child’s understanding of gender stereotypes. These are backed by â€Å"Television advertising positioned in children’s programmes and purposely directed at girls rather than parents contributed to making Barbie a best-seller† (Attfield, 1996: 85) and â€Å"’as poseable as you are’ claimed the advertisements. † (Attfield, 1996: 84). Furthermore, the media plays a huge part in propagating gender ster eotypes. Being a messenger of cultural changes, the media reports societal trends through different mediums like the television or magazine. Some trends alter society’s gender perceptions and translate into toy designs that strive to be coherent with gender norms. Throughout the article, Attfield ignored the impact that the media has on toy design. Though she provided substantial information on the amount of maneuverability given to Barbie and Action Man, and its consequent portrayal of gender stereotypes, she failed to realise that these stereotypes are now gender norms in today’s society. Therefore, the combination of media influence, popularity and parental approval of these toys shows how gender stereotypical meanings of toys heavily influence a child’s understanding of gender roles as they are widely accepted as role models in today’s society. In summary, the toys a child role-plays with do affect his or her understanding of gender roles. It ma y be the gender-stereotype propagating Barbie and Action Man, or the violent but humorous teenage turtles (Attfield, 1996), as children constantly explore and adore new fantasies created by the media that are reflective in toys as role models to follow. Don’t waste time! 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