Students and Sports: Should It Be Mandatory For Students in Elementary Through High School to Participate on A Sports Team?

Fig 1. A collection of some sports.Collection of Sports Silhouette Background. 2011. Depositphotos Inc. Web . 25 Apr. 2013

         
             Participating on an organized sports team has become a huge force on society today. Children and teens play at least one sport all around the world. If sports are so popular today it should just be mandatory for students in elementary through high school to participate on a sports team. Students who participate on a sports team learn how to be responsible, become more competitive, and greatly benefit from playing the sport(s).

            Sports are an indispensable part of education all over the world in all level of studies (Mohan). Whereas, education kindles the light of knowledge in the mind, the sports help maintain the physique (Mohan).  It is true that a healthy mind can only be the best in education, at the same time sports are also an important means of entertainment after long hours of studies and a source of renewed energy (Mohan). In this generation, almost every student, from as early as elementary school all the way to high school, plays at least one sport and finds it interesting.  Those who play a sport are more physically active than those who do not. Children should get at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Porter). Regular physical activity helps children maintain a healthy weight, lowers their cholesterol, reduces their blood pressure and builds string bones and muscles according to the CDC (Porter).  Active children are more likely to become active adults and an active childhood lifestyle can lead to a healthy adult lifestyle (Porter). Not only does playing a sport keep a child healthy and in shape but in the long run they will be healthy as an adult because since they child was physically active at an young age they will more likely be physically at an older age as well.  A healthy child grows into a healthy adult and playing sports keeps a child healthy. In addition, participating on a sports team helps build ones self-esteem, confidence, and social skills. When a student plays a sport they have great pride in themselves, they are a part of a team where they pitch in their talents along with their teammates to achieve great things. The more things that are achieved the more a student builds his/her self-esteem and they begin to feel more and more good about themselves. Students who play sports have more confidence in themselves than those who do not according to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (Porter). Boys and girls who play sports learn to have a positive attitude and to project self-confidence to others (Porter). Girls who typically play sports have a healthier body image than girls who do not play sports, according to the Women’s Sports Foundation (Porter). Students who play sports are very social-able and it is very easily for them to develop friendships. This can also transition into the classroom as well where the student-athletic is active in class and in some cases a class clown but overall they are social-able people.

            It is true that when students play on a sports team that they are more physically active, have confidence, self-esteem, social and many other things. However, in addition to all of those things, most of the students are academically motivated. The main reason for this is that they want to play in their games and in order for them to do so they have to have the grades. “No Books, No Ball” is the motto that most athletic follow because they understand the consequences if they do not. Nether less, being on a sports team helps a student to set goals and work hard in order to accomplish those goals. For example, every single sports team wants to win a championship because it shows that a team has worked hard all season in order to win a championship. It is not because a team had a lot of talent but because hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. When a sports team has won a championship, it is mainly because the coach set goals for his/her team to accomplish but it is in the hands of the team to work hard in order to get the goal accomplished. This transitions into a student’s life because they begin to realize that in order to get the things you want in life you have to work hard for because nothing comes easy. Nether less, a child and/or teen who participates on a sports team learns how to be disciplines and learns leadership skills as well. When a student participates on a sports team part of playing the sport is learning discipline (Sherwood). During a sport, your child must take direction, be dedicated, practice consistently and undergo rigorous training to build stamina (Sherwood). In addition to that, a student has to be responsible and let their coach know if they will be late to practice or missing practice. If they do not then their coach will assume that their player is skipping out on practice and that student would most likely not play in the next game. A disciplined student becomes a leader for his/her team. The most disciplined student on the sports team is likely to become team captain or may have opportunities to lead the team in practices or warm-ups before games (Sherwood). Just from a student being the captain or leader and having the ability to inspire the team this helps the student’s life as well because they will take their leadership skills with them into the real world. By having those important skills, it increases the child and/or teen chances of success throughout his/her goal-oriented life (Sherwood). The students who play sports and gain these types of skills, and perform well academically, are more likely to graduate from high school and pursue higher education.

            From my own experience with participating on sports team, I have learned a great deal of things from being responsible, more self-confident, competitive, disciplined, inspiring, and to top it off I am in good shape. Most importantly participating on a sports team has helped me to build my social skills a lot. Ever since I was a child, I did not really like to interact with people that was not my family and all of my friends where my cousins. Once I started running track and playing basketball all of that changed. I started socializing with people more and I became friends with everyone from my team. I would excel in the classroom because in order for me to play in games or run in meets I had to have the grades. I have greatly benefitted from participating on sports teams since I was in elementary school and it has helped me in the end because now look at me I am in college trying to get my Master’s degree in teaching.

            On the other hand, some people, mainly parents would say that participating in sports has it disadvantages especially if they are in the elementary grade level. People may say that sports are dangerous, coaches favor certain players, and not all players have equal access to sporting opportunities. Injury is one well-documented disadvantage to youth sports (Matthew). According to data gathered by The National Centers for Sports Safety, more than 3.5 million children younger than 14 are injured playing sports each year (Matthew). 3.5 million is a huge number and if I was a parent I would be scared to let my child participate in sports because I would fear that my child could be added to that 3.5 million children injured each year. In addition, the seriousness of injury’s increase as a child increases in grade level because the sport becomes more rough and intense. Then there is the favoritism of players by the coach. This is when a coach would put in certain players, who are often the most talented, on a pedestal (Morse).  These players tend to play a significant amount of time while the other players play little or no time in the game (Morse). These coaches will cause players who are not one of their favorites to feel inferior with a lack of compliments or increased criticism (Morse). When coaches play favoritism, he/she leaves the rest of his team to believe that they are not needed because they do not get as much play time as the star players. The only time those players are likely to get in the game is when the star players need a quick break. Parents who attend games and do not see their child play gets upset especially when the team loses because the coach is not giving their child the opportunity to help the team out. The coach also makes the student feel insecure about their talent and some may even start to think that they suck because they do not get any playing time. The student might end up quitting and not ever play that sport again because they may fear that they might get another coach like their previous one. In addition, participating in competitive sports can result in a child becoming too competitive (Tounzen). Once this begins children may look at their individual worth based on how often they win (Touzen). As the child becomes into a teenager it is much worse because when a teenager is too competitive some are aggressive and when they are playing in a game they hurt people and tend to not really care that they hurt another player on the opposing team. Students in today’s era find a variety of competitive sports to choose from (White and Masterson). These sports organizations range are AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) that starts at the age of nine, League baseball and softball which can start at as early as five with tee-ball, and Pop-Warner, which is the Nation’s oldest football organization, starts at five. All year round young children and teens are playing sports, which could possibly take a toll on their bodies and on top of that, they do not really have time to have time to themselves and spend time with their families because they are always busy with practice and games.

            When students start participating in competitive sports at an early age, Paulo David, author of Human Rights in Youth Sport: A Critical Review of Children’s Rights in Competitive Sports, found that children don’t always understand the concept of competition until age six or seven (White and Masterson). Children under nine may be incapable of differentiating between the concept of effort and that of ability (James and Masterson). That means they believe winning is achieved by how hard they try and losing means they did not try hard enough (James and Masterson). When this happens to a child, they think less of themselves because when they lose they believe that it is all their fault when that is not the case. The do not yet have the ability to understand that they cannot win at everything and that it is okay to lose. This could transition when a child becomes a teenager because there are some adults who pushed their children so hard when playing sports and tells them that winning is everything when that is totally wrong. By the time, that child is a teenager they tend to push themselves too hard that all they care about is winning and not playing for the love of the game. In addition that particular teenager does not how to cope with a loss that well because they was not taught how to. More over too much competition can cause ‘burnout’ and ‘dropout’. This is when a student has played a sport for some time and they begin to lose enjoyment in that particular sport (Matthew). The problem starts when play becomes more like a job (White and Masterson). Coaches and parents believe that by playing it all the time will translate into to winning and possible visibility and then scholarships (White and Masterson). This is possibly not the best thing for a coach and parent to do. I mean I understand that coaches and parents wants the best for them and that having a full ride scholarships for that particular sport, but you cannot force the child into getting that. From my own experience, my father did exactly that. He made me start playing basketball. I always played it before with my brother and cousins for fun in the park. However, when my father made me participate on teams without asking me if I wanted to I did not like that. Long story short, he tried to persuade me into playing college ball because he wanted me to and I decided not to play because I no longer wanted to do what he wanted me to. If I decide to play college ball then it will be because I wanted to. It is not good to force a student or your child to play a sport because they will enjoy playing less and less as time goes by and soon they will just stop playing the sport overall.

            Participating in sports has become very popular in today’s society and students enjoy they sport that they participate in. So why shouldn’t it be mandatory for students in elementary through high school to participate in a sport. Not only will students learn how to be responsible, competitive, and disciplined. They will also be healthier, improve and learn skills and become more academically motivated in school. Students who participate in sports are more likely to graduate from high school and pursue higher education and going to college one of the most important things for students of this generation today? So why not let it be mandatory for students in elementary through high school to participate in sports. 

Works Cited

Porter, Lisa. "Kids & Sports: Benefits Vs. Non-Benenfits." LIVESTRONG.COM. LiveStrong , 26 Apr. 2011. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.

Sherwood, Chris. "The Advantages of Children Participating in Sports ." LIVESTRONG.COM. LiveStrong , 14 July 2011. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.

Matthew, Aaron. "The Disadvantages of Youth Sports ." LIVESTRONG.COM. LiveStrong , 11 Aug. 2011. Web. 31 Mar. 2013

Mohan, Rajesh. "Students and Sports." ESL Teachers Board. Articles for Teachers Board , n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2013

Tounzen, Shelley. "The Disadvantages of Children in Sports." eHow mom. eHow, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013

White, James, and Masterson, Gerald. "Problems in Youth Sports ." FamilyResource.com. Family Resource, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013

Morse, Jody. "Signs of a Bad Coach ." eHow mom. eHow, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013

Video Games and Violence: Do Violent Video Games Contribute to Youth Violence?

War Crimes in Video Games. 2013. Stories by Williams. Web. 21 Mar. 2013.

          Call of Duty: Black Ops, Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat are just some of the most popular games played by the youth today. Video games are what the youth like to play by themselves or with friends rather than going outside to play it is just the new media trend that they are currently following. However, not everyone likes video games, specifically the video games that are violent. The issue of violent video games and youth violence is a controversial one. While I will support that violent video games are not the reason why there is youth violence, the opposing views believe that violent video games that children play, along with other factors, contribute to the violence occurring.

            Many people believe that violent video games contribute to youth violence and I would have to say on some terms I agree with this belief. After a child has played a violent video game, compared to a nonviolent video game, they are more aggressive and louder than usual (Ferguson). Therefore, a violent video game can possibly cause a child to act more violently because his aggression level has increased. For example, Mortal Kombat is a fighting game and one has to kill his opponent in order to win the game. Once a child has finished playing this game, he may want to imitate some of the fighting moves that his character from the game did to his opponent. In addition, this desire to do so could be very dangerous because he could not only hurt the other person he is trying this on, but hurt himself in the process as well. Video games and youth violence is not a new issue. The controversy over violent video games resurfaced following the massacre of 13 people at Columbine High School in Jefferson County Colorado on April 20, 1999. The two teenage shooters, were revealed to be avid players of weapon-based combat games Wolfenstein 3D and Doom (“Video Games”). The young men who opened fire on innocent people and in other massacres, all had one thing in common with one another: they were gamers who seemed to be acting out some dark digital fantasy (Carey). It was as if all that exposure to computerized violence gave them an idea to go on a rampage–or at least fueled their urges (Carey). Perhaps violent video games do cause such violence, and perhaps they can possibly cause someone to do something they would not normally do because playing games does something to their bodies, such as cause a stir hostile urges and mildly aggressive behavior in short term (Carey). Moreover, youngsters who develop a gaming habit can become slightly more aggressive —as measured with clashes with peers, for instance –at least over a period of two years (Carey). Therefore, I do believe on some terms that violent video games can contribute to youth violent because those games teach children how to act violently and, in addition, to learn things that they should not be learning at a particular age.  

            Many psychologists argue that violent video games “socialize” children over time, promoting them to imitate the behavior of the games character’s, the cartoonish machismo, the hair-triggered rage, and the dismissive brutality (Carey). Children imitate almost everything and everyone present in their lives, this question can be asked, when exactly does a habit that is so consuming that it’s influence trumps the socializing effects of other major figures in a child’s life? I believe that this habit happens when this habit is always available to the child and then that is when it influence trumps the socializing effects of other major figures in a child’s life. (Carey). This is quite true because children are easily influenced by their surroundings. For example, if a parent is constantly swearing around his or her child and lives in a violent home, that child will most likely be subject to speak profanity as well because of his or her parent, and he or she will have a violent behavior because that is what he/she was exposed to. Therefore, if a child is playing a violent video game, such as Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, he/she could possibly be likely to imitate the behavior of the character. On the other hand, Ferguson, in his studies, Dr. Anderson, a scientist who studied the relation between video games and its effect on children, had failed to cite any peer-reviewed studies that had shown a definitive casual link between violent video game play and aggression (“Violent Video Games”). He had also ignored researched that conflicting conclusions on this issue “Violent Video Games” (“Violent Video Games”). Dr. Goldstein and Dr. Williams, who were also scientist, noted that several of Dr. Anderson’s studies concluded that there was no relationship between the two variables (“Violent Video Games”). Dr. Goldstein and Dr. Williams also concluded that in certain instances, there was a negative relationship between violent video game play and aggressive thoughts and behavior (e.g., initial increases in aggression wore off if the individual was allowed to play violent video game for longer period) (Ferguson). 

Fig 1. Youth Violence and Video Game Sales Data (“Violent Video Games”)

This picture of this data goes to show that scientists are having a hard time to find a link between violent video games and violence. Their studies are failing and they do not really know why such is the case. Perhaps violent video games decreases the aggressive thoughts and behavior in children just like Dr, Goldstein and Dr. Williams concluded when looking at Dr. Anderson’s research. I believe youth violence occurs if the child lives in a violent household, or it occurs because they have aggression problems and have tendencies to act out violently. However, for most children and teens gaming is a social activity and a major component of their overall social experience (“Video Games Are Good”). Most children and teens generally only play violent video games to interact with their friends or other people around the world (online gaming), or they just play to blow off steam and play a violent video just to play it. At times, parents will play the video games with their child because it is a way to interact with them as well as it provides have some bonding time with one another. In addition, studies show that a child playing a violent video game does not necessarily increase the likelihood that he or she will engage in real violence (Bezio). Americans need to stop blaming something other than our own behaviors and ideologies for societal behavior, especially gun violence (Bezio). It is possible that the reason why it is so hard for scientists to find a link between violent video games and youth violence is that there is no link at all. Americans just need something to blame for so much gun violence and violent video games, such as Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. These games are perfect for such blames to be put on them for causing such behavior. On the other hand, there could possibly be a link to violent video games and youth violence, but it is just that scientists may be overlooking something, which is causing flaws in their studies.

            Parents should monitor the games that their children play. If a game has “Teen”, “M for Mature” and “Adults Only”, and their child is under the age of 18, then it is best if they do not buy their child that game especially if they believe that their child may possibly imitate the violence that occurs in the game. Also, Americans should not just jump to conclusions that violent video games causes youth violence, but instead find out if the child lives in a violent home or if the child has any behavior problems that could possibly cause them to act out violently. In conclusion, children should not play violent video games but if they do it is at the own risk of his/her parents. 

 

Works Cited

Video Games." ProCon.org. ProCon.org, 19 Feb. 2013. Web. 5 Mar. 2013.

Carey, Benedict. "Shooting in the Dark." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2013. Web. 5 Mar. 2013.

Bezio, Kristin. "Stop Blaming Video Games for America's Gun Violence." The Christian Science Monitor . CSMonitor , 12 Feb. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.

Video Games Are Good For Kids, Experts Find; With titles like 'Guitar Hero,' a Pew Internet survey refutes some common confusion about games -- that most are violent and teens tend to play alone." InformationWeek 17 Sept. 2008. Academic OneFile. Web. 15 Mar. 2013.

Ferguson, Christopher J. "Violent Video Games and the Supreme Court : Lessons for the Scientific Community in the Wake of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association." Academic Search Premier. EBSCOhost, Feb. 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2013.

School Uniforms in Public Schools: Helpful or Hurtful?

School Uniforms. Art. Scholastic.com, United States.

               In this generation, fashion is everything. If someone or his or her peers is not using or involved in the latest trends, they are placed in the category of being non-popular. This is the case in most public schools. Students worry too much about what they are going to wear to school instead of wondering about what they are going to be learning that day. School uniforms have helped to decrease that problem. Uniforms help create a sense of equality among all students because everyone has on the same clothes, discipline becomes enforced, parents save money and it creates a safer environment. Therefore, students who are less fortunate than other students are not being peer pressured to buy the latest trends just to fit in with the popular crowd.

               School uniforms are no new phenomenon. Uniforms were first instituted in the16^th Century in England at the charity schools for poor children (HBC-SU). It was not until the 19^th Century that the great English public schools began instituting, and even later, for them to be widely accepted at state schools–especially state elementary schools (HBS-SU). It was not until 300 years later that the students who attended the better English public schools began wearing uniforms (Carson, Chris). The debate over whether or not students should wear uniform in American public schools began in the 1980’s (Carson). There were comments such as preventing individuality, or freedom of expression at the top of the list of reasons against doing so (Carson). However, arguments for school uniforms have included that uniforms reduced peer pressure to and lessens the students in need to have the latest designer clothing. In addition, uniforms help save parents money on their children’s clothing by requiring the same uniform every year (Carson).

Truthfully, I believe it is a good idea for students who attend public schools to wear uniforms. Wearing a uniform Monday through Thursday is good idea and on Friday, students can have the privilege to dress down and wear clothes of their choice. When I was in middle school and high school, it was mandatory for all students to wear uniforms and on Friday’s we were able to wear clothes of our own choice. The clothes that we had chosen to wear had to be appropriate for school, meaning we could not wear clothes that promoted sex, money or anything that was offensive. If students did not wear a uniform on the days they were supposed to, they had to pay the consequences. In middle school it was detention, and in high school students could not go off campus for lunch and, instead, had to eat the school lunch with the dean of students. Nobody wanted to eat that nasty school lunch so the majority of the students wore their uniform because they wanted to go off campus for lunch. In addition, my graduating class scored 100 percent in passing the English Language MCAS and earned a 98 percent in the Mathematics MCAS, and, uniforms were in full effect during that time. In a sense, it seems as if uniforms help improve student’s academic performance.

However, why do school facilities and some parents think school uniforms in public schools are a good idea? According to Marlyn, school uniforms act as a way to decrease gang violence and teen violence, in schools, and in a sense, they create a safer environment (“Are Uniforms A Good Way”). Over the past few years, the media has covered many stories about this issue, where the attacks of faculty members and much more frequent and children of all age groups and grade levels are being killed over such matters as designer clothing and shoes (Phaneuf). Issues like these make people upset and wonder whether or not schools are as safe as people thought they were. Faculty members are being attacked for wearing nice things. This is outrageous and children of all ages are being killed for wearing nice things their parents bought for them or things they bought themselves depending on how old they are. With all the attention schools are getting about such heinous crimes it has been reported that school districts and their respective politicians need to act quickly on this procedure before the situation gets even more out of control (Phaneuf). The children in the United States are being hurt, assaulted and killed almost every day over a pair of designer jeans, or a nice blouse or shirt (Phaneuf). Children cannot go to school and learn when another student is jealous and wants the Jordan sneakers, Hollister shirt or TRU Religion jeans that another student is wearing. It makes me sick to hear and read things like this happening in American public schools.

In 1995, Long Beach, California was the first public school district in the United States to adopt the mandatory school uniform policy (Phaneuf). After a year had gone by, schools in Long Beach California had a dramatic decrease in the violence and discipline problems they formerly experienced. In addition, the district noticed that the students were having higher test scores (Phaneuf). This clearly shows that the uniform policy did a great deal of good for the students because it decreased the amount of violence happening and increased the students performance academically. In his 1996 State of the Union Address, President Clinton said, “If it means that teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear uniforms” (Phaneut). If a president has to address such a problem as this one then it is very serious. If President Clinton believed that uniforms were going to stop those teenagers from killing others for their designer clothes, then why not make the students wear mandatory uniforms? The same problem is going on in public schools today, except that the children do not die every day from it. They just get hurt very badly from it to the point they would make poor choices to get the designer clothes that they wish to have to fit in or they maybe even think about killing themselves from time to time because they are picked on for not wearing designer clothing.

On the other hand, school uniforms limit a student’s self-expression and individuality. Children and Teens use the way they dress as a way to express themselves, just like singers and/or rappers use music to express themselves. Students also use the way they dress to identify themselves with certain social groups (Kouzmine). For example, if a kid or teenager is wearing nice designer jeans, such as Hollister, a shirt from Hollister as well and Jordan sneakers on, another kid or teen is wearing something very similar to them, they would identify themselves as being in the same social group together, especially as compared with someone who wears like more casual attire. Many students who are against school uniforms argue that they lose their self-identity when they lose their right to express themselves through fashion (Kouzmine). In addition, having the students wear all the same clothes/attire not only takes away from their individuality but from their creativeness as well (Phaneut). Students believe their self-identity is very important because if they are being told what to wear they do not feel comfortable about it because that particular type of clothing is not their type of style, and being able to express themselves through fashion is very important to them as well. When they are able to express themselves through fashion, it makes it easier for them to find friends who are interested in the same type of style like them. Sociologists claim that if students are hindered from the need of self-expression, it could cause unsuitable ways of expression by students, such as offensive usage of makeup or jewelry (Chitranshi). Therefore, if children become hindered by the need to freely express themselves, they will find other ways in which they can do that, consequently they end up expressing themselves in a way that they should not be doing.

School uniforms are a great idea for many of reasons. From the parents perspective, they do not have to worry about buying their child expensive clothes that they wish to have throughout the years and parents do not have to worry about what their children are wearing when they are not around (Phaneut). In a sense, it gives parents control over what their children wear and when their children are in uniform it gives them a feeling that their child is safe because they will not have to worry about another kid/teen trying to take their child’s designer clothes. Moreover, gang colors are a major threat in today’s public schools by incorporating school uniforms, schools will not have to worry about those certain colors being worn inside the school building because the design of the uniform will be well planned and not coincide with a gang’s color (Phaneut). Therefore, uniforms are a way to create a safe environment, especially if the area that the students live in has a very high crime rate. It is very important for students to feel safe while they are in school because if they do not feel safe they will not be able to concentrate on their school work. In regards to all the schools that have a mandatory uniform policy, it has been noted that crime rates have dropped drastically, and that the students grades have improved (Phaneut). In addition, by students wearing uniforms, it allows them to practice wearing the appropriate clothes at future interviews for a particular job or even a college doing so can mean the difference between success and failure.

Where should someone stand the whole school uniform policy debate? Should all schools adopt the uniform policy, or should students be able to freely express their individuality through fashion? Truthfully, I believe the school uniform policy is a good idea. Wearing a uniform is not as bad as students may say it is. It creates a safer environment for students to learn in without having to deal with violence because some student was hurt, assaulted or killed for his designer clothes. It also makes parent’s mornings easier for the young children they have and for teenagers as well because they will not be stressing on what to wear to school every day. I agree that school uniforms hinder a student’s individuality and creativeness to a certain extent. However, who said a student could not add a little spice to his or her own sense of fashion to their uniform that way they could feel a bit comfortable while wearing it. There is nothing wrong with that as long as students are wearing their school uniform everything should be good. Students have to remember that school is not a fashion show. They go to school to learn and because they want to be successful later on in life.

Works Cited

"Schools and Education." School Uniform. HBC-SU, 2 June 1998. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.

Carson, Chris. "The History of School Uniform." EHow.com. EHow.com, n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

Phaneut, Marlyn. "Are Uniforms a Good Way to Improve Student Discipline and Motivation?" HubPages. HubPages, 12 July 2012. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

Kouzmine, Michelle. "The Arguments Against School Uniforms." About.com Kids' Fashion. About.com Kids' Fashion, n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2013.

Chitranshi, Mansi. "School Uniforms Debate." ArticlesWave.com. ArticlesWave.com, 2 Mar. 2009. Web. 3 Feb. 2013.

What Am I Doing Here?

I am at Bridgewater State University because I wanted to take my education to the next level. I just didn't want a High School Diploma but a Degree instead. I want to become a teacher and teach children at the Kindergarten level because I love working with children. 

What Do I Plan On Gaining From This English Class?

In this English class I wish to gain the knowledge that will help me be successful after graduating from college. Knowledge that will make me a strong competitor in this competitive world. In addition, I want to learn to become a better writer. 

Possible Issues That I Wish To Write About

1. Social Networking 2. Video Games and Violence 3. School Uniform 4. Does Participation in Sports Keep Teens Out of Trouble? 5. Teen Pregnancy

What Do I Plan On Achieving In The Next Five Years?

In the next five years I plan on to have graduated from Bridgewater State University as an Undergraduate with a degree in teaching and maybe go on to Graduate school. In addition, having my own place and a job until my teaching career takes off. 

Me in my room (Personal Photo).

Background Information About The Author

Name: Tshani Williams-Core

Nicknames: Shanii, T Raww

Age: 19

Birthday: June 17th

Nationality: African American and Japanese

Likes: Playing basketball, listening to music, having a good time with family and friends, and watching cartoons (still a kid at heart).

One day I wish to be in the presence of five and six year old children calling me Mrs. Willams in my own Kindergarten class.