PLN 13

Today I was reading a blog post by one of the teachers at my school. In her post Home with the kids.... she talks about how after setting up her 4 year old daughter with a bunch of favorites on their home computer, her daughter almost immediately picked up on how to use it all, and became a ".com kid". After reading her post, I commented on it. Here is what I said.

Bkitch,
I was so excited to hear about how quickly your daughter picked up using the computer. My niece is almost her age, and although she is still a tad too young to play on the computer, it was great to hear that a 4 year-old is almost as technologically literate as I am at 15 (though she seems to have picked it up a lot faster than I did).

Technology is very quickly integrating into schools, and your daughter is well on her way to passing up her teachers. I honestly don’t know why, (perhaps it’s because my English class uses computers, and I still get frustrated with them) but to hear that your daughter is getting a head start in life was really inspiring for me to try harder to become a “.com kid” (or teen) like your daughter.

PLN 12

The Internet is very quickly slipping into our daily lives. We use it to do school and home work, organize dates, talk to friends, update on news, and now, it has even given employers a way to search for negative and even positive information on potential employees. In Will Richardson's article Making Kids “Googlable” , he talks about how schools can and perhaps should do more to make their students "Googlable" to make them ready for their futures.

This article matters to the world because Google is becoming one of the easiest ways to do background checks on potential employees. Today, even myspaces are being used to do searches. Absolutely awful things are put on personal web pages. People verbally attack others, complain about jobs, and curse like there is nothing more pleasing in this world. When employers see things like this, they are less prone to consider that person for the job. Will Richardson has set out to convince schools to create on-line portfolios for students, so as to prevent mistakes and lost job opportunities.

This post matters to me because I too use the Internet, I too have a blog, and I, like so many others, can be "googled". I know that I have to be careful about what I say on this blog, and any other personal web page I create, simply because my next boss could be reading it. I have to be respectful to myself and others, because my job could depend on it. Luckily, none of this is a problem for me, but I see less than appropriate comments on my friends blogs. They don't realize it, but what they say about a girl in their 3rd hour class may well affect the outcome of their first job interview. While I am still a little "iffy" about creating on-line portfolios for students, I do fully support teachers and administrators in educating their students on how to be positive on their myspaces, blogs, and face books. Who knows who might be reading them.

PLN 11

Imagine reporting that your child was hurt, and not having anyone care. Picture watching your child be attacked by another person, and not have anyone come to their rescue. Visualize being a worried parent with a missing baby, and not having anyone notice and take action. Seem unlikely? In the Denver Post's Children lost in the system, the profiles of 13 children are recovered. Every single one of them was killed, and every single one of them was reported before the death. No one listened.

This article was long, and hard to read simply because of the sadness each story unfolded for me, and I think that my explanation would hardly do any good, so for more information on the article, follow the link above. However, in brief, Children lost in the system is about 13 children who's families reported a problem to social service departments and in every case, the report was ignored.

This article matters to the world because of the problems with the system. In all of the cases, earlier reports had been made about the children. Whether it had been suspected violence on the parents/guardians side, of whether the child simply had been acting out of character, social services had prior warnings, yet took no action. There was rarely a follow-up of the complaint, and most of the families were not regularly checked up on. If 13 children can die in one year, in one county because of failing social services, what is happening in the rest of the country? In the words of Deb in NoCo (a woman who posted a comment pertaining to the article), "We protect animals better than we do these children."

This article matters to me because all of this happened in my home state, to children my niece's age, and because (as sad as this is) many of my prior PLNs have been about child abuse. These children could have gotten help. There were people who were trained, who were suppose to help them, yet didn't. Reports weren't kept up to date, and parents/guardians weren't kept under close surveillance after reports of child abuse and neglect. I have discovered that child abuse is a recurring theme in my PLNs simply because just the thought of what children like these face makes tears spring to my eyes. Most of the children talked about in this article had been sent to hospitals with serious trauma, yet no legal action was taken. We talk about saving abused animals and people starving in Africa (which don't get me wrong, are both very good causes), but we don't pay attention to the abused and starving children in our own country. How can we be so focused on complete strangers on the other side of the world when we can't help the innocent babies crying out for help right down the street. I don't mean to say that it isn't important that we help Africa too, but all of these children could have been saved. Simply because no one figured "hmm, a three year-old is suffering from vaginal bleeding, and her step-dad is a sex offender, maybe we should check this out," or "gee, this lady has been reported for two years of parental neglect and abuse, and her son is suffering from bleeding in the brain; maybe somethings wrong," children 11 years and younger were forced to suffer. I don't see how we can talk of helping the poor and hungry children in Africa when we can't even wise up and help kids going through the same thing just a little closer to home.

PLN 10

Child molesting is one of man's greatest monstrosities in many opinions. Taking a child and distorting their image of a person they trust in such a vile way is disgusting. Many lawmakers even proposed giving sex offenders the death penalty. In the Denver Post's Junction police: Wife taped man assaulting girl talks about one woman who took the law into her own hands when she suspected her husband of molesting her 6 year-old daughter. Although the article was painfully short, it explained how one woman in Grand Junction caught her husband committing "suspicious activity" with his step-daughter.

This article matters to me for two reasons. For those of you who don't go to my school, or don't read the paper, our school newspaper recently released an article talking about one student who was sexually assaulted by her father when she was 8 years-old. Also, when a close friend of mine was very young, her step-father attacked her. I won't go into specific details about my friend, but it scarred her. In both the case of the student at my school, and my friend, they were and in my friends case still are haunted by what happened, even after so many years. After reading this article, I couldn't help but sit back in my chair and wonder "what goes through these creeps minds when they attack innocent children?" Pardon me if that sounds a little harsh, but I can't imagine taking advantage of a child, especially your child like that.

This article matters to the world because of the fact that the man was set free with $25,000bail. This man, who's name is not revealed for the sake of the victim has already been charged with 11 to 12 other accounts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust. Even though the woman caught everything on tape, and even though the man is a repeat offender, they still let him go. He has hurt other children, traumatized, and attacked them, and yet judges are content to let him wander free? I can't imagine letting such a monster back onto the streets. I don't see how they could let him go after such clear evidence, and I suppose I will never understand what was running through the judge's mind when he released the man. All I know is that men like him are still out there, and sadly, even though a woman recorded her husband in the act, yet another predator has been released back into the ranks.

PLN 9

Drug use has always been a problem in our society. Most have been made illegal, and yet they still find their way into the U.S. More frightening is the fact that high school and even middle school students have taken up the trend. Though these facts are all alarming, what I read in the Denver Post's Mom in baby-meth case to be in court in baby-meth case to be in court shocked me more than any of these. A woman by the name of Katriece Trujillo was charged with child abuse after giving her 3 month-old son methamphetamine in his bottle.

This article matters to they world because Trujillo has just, in a small way, introduced another drug user into society. Often, in cases like her son's, the baby grows up unhappy and difficult unless they receive what ever drug it is they were exposed to as babies. After ingesting the meth, Trujillo's son began experiencing seizures. It isn't said if he suffered from any other adverse affects, but doctors are sure the drugs racked his system.

This article matters to me because, as you all know, I have a niece who too is still a baby. I can't imagine any person wanting to hurt their child. What would possess a woman to give her baby boy such a dangerous drug is beyond my comprehension. What worries me the most is that later on in his life, this boy could suffer from all sorts of problems. Grumpiness, seizures, epilepsy, and violent mood swings are only some of the risks he might face now for the rest of his life. IT really breaks my heart to know that this boy will probably never have a normal life bcause of what his mother did. Perhaps I am just being pessimistic about this boys future. He may well live to be a functional adult. However, what was done to him was cruel, and the fact that his own mother did makes me sick.

PLN 8

Do you remember when you were little? Everyone was always telling us not to run with scissors, run down hills, jump on the bed, or sniff sharpies or expo markers. Most of us didn't understand why, but a lot of us did it anyways. (Heck, I will admit even I sniffed a sharpie or two simply because I wanted to know why I wasn't supposed to). When we were little kids, we often did things simply because we were told not to. The Denver Post published one article called Boy, 8, suspended after sniffing Sharpie marker about one 8 year-old boy named Eathan Harris who was suspended for sniffing a sharpie marker and a shirt which he had drawn a sharpie line on.

This article matters to the world simply because of the ridiculousness of it all. Yes children, I have noticed, are becoming more and more violent towards peers and teachers, and drug use in schools is a growing epidemic. However, assuming that an 8 year-old boy is huffing sharpie fumes to get high is absolutely bizarre. At Eathan's age, most boys don't even know what huffing is.

I think it is important to take initiative when a child acts out. And yes, children who hurt themselves need to be stopped, but suspending a boy because he was being, well, a boy is almost comical. It certainly makes schools look foolish. Schools need to watch their students, so I don't blame them for being concerned. Also, as an aunt, I can't honestly say that sharpies are what kids should be sticking into their noses (I almost prefer fingers.) But if schools are going to act out so severely merely because a boy was curious as to why he was being told no, then schools need to take a look at what really makes a druggie. If Eathan had been continuing this pattern, I can understand stepping in, but immediately assuming Eathan was doing this to hurt himself can make other children scared to even use sharpies, and gives kids a bad view of curiosity.

This article matters to me because I have a niece who is curious about everything. At her age, reverse-phsycology often turns into retrieving a ball from her mouth, or a sticker from her ear. Someday, she will be Eathan's age. I will have to make her cough up paper she swallowed, pens will be confiscated, jelly beans removed from all sorts of places, comb out hair after she ties it in an eternity knot, and sharpie fumes will be discovered snaking their way into her system. I will freak out when these things happen, but am I honestly going to spank her, or put her in time out because she wanted to know what was so bad about something? Probably not. I can remember doing the same exact thing Eathan did. I wasn't trying to get high, nor was I trying to potentially hurt myself. I simply wanted to know why everyone kept telling me not to sniff the markers.

Curiosity can be dangerous for little kids. Yes, I will not deny it, Eathan could have caused himself harm had he not had his marker confiscated ( I am assuming they did confiscate it before sending Eathan home..) but we all did it. I can't think of a single person I know who hasn't tried something potentially dangerous. I suppose I can understand the concern the school administrator who had Eathan suspended felt when Eathan continued to sniff the marker, but simply taking away the marker and explaining why it was bad would suffice. Shockingly, kids Eathan's age do understand when you sit down and explain it to them.

Perhaps Eathan's school's decision to suspend him was correct, but I can't honestly see how, if Eathan had tried to hurt himself, sending him home (where there are doubtless more sharpies) could possibly help. What do you, my readers think?

PLN 7

Students who come into class late often miss out on important lessons. They get detention, marked down, or some other form of punishment. Coming into class late is indeed disrespectful to the teacher and to the class, but what happens when one teacher takes wild disciplinary action against one student to the point that other classmates attacked him? Rocky Mountain News’s Teacher OK'd beating of tardy student, police say talks about one Brian Havel, who after a student walked late into his class allowed about 10 or 15 others to begin beating the teen faces charges of child abuse.

This article matters to the world because although the teen boy of about 15 or 16 years old had no injuries after the incident, he was nonetheless attacked. Students should feel safe in their classrooms. They should be able to walk into class feeling comfortable. Yes, students should be punished when they come to class late, but what Havel allowed in his classroom was appalling. Though Havel is completely in the wrong for allowing such behavior, what is even more disgusting is that other students in the class asked if they were allowed to hit the student. Havel had a rule in his class that any student who was late to class had to do a certain amount of push-ups in a given amount of time. When the student (whose names is never given) either refused or was not able to complete the exercise, his fellow classmates where given permission to hit him.

This article matters to me because they boy who was attacked was about my age. He was hurt by fellow students; by people he went to class with, ate lunch with. I was horrified when I learned that they had asked to punch another student. I guess I just don’t understand how you could do something like that to another student, and then sit by them the next day in class. I am comfortable with the people in my classes. As far as I know, none of them dislike me enough to ever ask for permission to take my punishment into their own hands, but the fact that there are teens out there like that, and there are teachers who allow it startles me.

It isn’t said whether any of the students who assailed the teen are going to be pressed with charges, but just knowing that they would feel such violence towards another student is frightening. Knowing that young people could feel such hate towards another classmate shocks me, and I can’t help but wonder, what happens to teens like that later on in life, when real challenges oppose them?

PLN 6

Many teens suffer from thoughts of suicide. I myself have several friends who have thought, or even attempted to kill themselves. It is a cold, hard reality in the world today. Harry Potter author: I considered suicide by CNN talks about one woman who suffered from depression, and out of it came the most famous series of our generation.

J.K. Rowling won the hearts of millions of children, teens, and even adults with her Harry Potter series. Now one of the richest women on Earth, no one would expect her to be like so many other women out there. No one would expect her to have started out as a poor, working, and very depressed, single mom. After separating from her first husband, Rowling was living in a cramped apartment with her baby daughter. Her apartment had only been afforded through a friend who offered to help her financially. After so long, alone and depressed, Rowling realized what her depression was doing to her, and she sought help.

This article matters to me because I know so many people who are suicidal. J.K. Rowling was depressed, but she was willing to admit it. She was willing to get help. So many of my friends had to have help thrust upon them (at which point they don't see it as help, only an invasion of privacy). I know how hard it is to live with depression (two of my sisters were diagnosed with it), and I know it is hard to seek help, to admit that there is "something wrong" with you. However, perhaps if more people had something, or someone to keep them firmly planted on the ground, maybe more people like J.K. Rowling would come out and find the help they need.

This article matters to the world because so many teens do suffer from depression. Most don't seek help for it, because they don't see anything wrong with it. Indeed, at our fragile age, we often feel low and lonely, but so often, that feeling of sadness gets out of hand. What brought Rowling back to the real world was the fact that she had a daughter to care for, and baby who needed her. Rowling had something to fight back with, something to fight of the depression.

Even though Rowling was older than my friends, and indeed many teens who have suicidal thoughts, she still sends a message. So many times, we only see the bad. Rowling saw the blessing in her life; she saw her daughter, and it helped her through her depression. If only more young people could see the blessings in their lives, perhaps less would commit suicide, and more would seek help. Although, as far as we know, Rowling never actually tried to commit suicide, she still serves as a role model for depressed teens seeking the light in their own lives.