How Will Earning a Degree Change My Life

College- Is it worth it? In society today a college education isn’t an option, but rather a necessity. When thinking about college people usually think more about what they have to do to get through it when they should be thinking about what they want out of it and what they will gain from it. People often say that college isn’t worth the time and money, but getting a degree and brining the skills you gained to the real world will be very beneficial to you.Some people go to college for the title for being a college student for others it’s a way to leave home and become independent without completely losing the financial help of their parents. Most go because they have to, not because they want to. High school students are constantly being pressured not only by family members but also by guidance counselors to go to college because it’s the â€Å"right thing to do. † We all have an idea of what we want in life, but we end up doing the opposite and do ing what our â€Å"mentors† think is best for us, resulting in being miserable. The investment of time, money and energy is it really worth it?For some fields, a college degree is absolutely necessary. That doesn’t mean you will get a job right after graduation. Even if you do get a job, it is not usually what you have your degree in. College is a gamble most students will be in debt after graduating working any job just to pay those off. Some college graduates even end up back at home living with their parents due to the debt they are in. The competition for decent jobs is increasing. You can’t get a high paying job without at least a bachelor’s degree. Before jobs hired workers with only High school Diplomas but, now they require some college education.Every day the decision is being made to either construct a career or dropout. There are people out there who have never set foot in a college and are doing better than people with master’s degrees. But, those are the exceptions which are one out of a million even millions. So before you make this decision ask yourself; where do I see myself 5 or 10 years from today? Do I need higher education to where I want to be? The skills you gain while in college are skills you will need in the â€Å"real world. † Bills have to be paid, deadlines have to be met and you have to learn to manage time efficiently.It’s completely different from High school because not only are you dealing with school you’re also juggling your personal life and your financial state as well. College has its pros and cons like everything else in life. Your experience will be what you make. If you aren’t willing to put in your all into it, college isn’t for you. You may not get lucky and start your career right after graduating but with persistence and hard work in the long run a degree will help you get to where you want to go in life. Don’t think of as a waste of time a nd money think of it as exciting challenge that will help set up your future.

Mass Effect Ending Controversy

In game shown Normandy fighting in the final battle to retake Earth from Reaper forces peephole not telling us why Joker retreated from the battle as the victory fleet continues to fight the Reapers. Leaving fans questioning if the only reason for it was to have the Normandy crash on a unknown world for a Adam and Eve illusion in one of the three endings in this case synthetic where Sheppard is given the choice to merge humanity with synthetic life to increase understanding and to prevent further wars.Also raises the question why the other crew members would abandon Sheppard so readily and everyone who was fighting to save the galaxy. 2. Beam me up Sheppard Members from your squad who were with you in the final run to the citadel suddenly appear out of the crashed Normandy with no explanation of how they got there. This is made worse as Gamers love interest for Sheppard suddenly emerges from the ship making gamers question further why they would abandon Sheppard after 2-3 games.No mo urning or empty grave for Sheppard. 3. Destruction of the Mass Relays In all the endings no matter what you pick or how high your Effective Military Strength Is the Mass Relays get destroyed. When in the Arrival DICE for Mass Effect it was established that destruction of a Mass Relay will completely obliterate a solar system. As shown on the galaxy map Sheppard would have killed billions of souls in the few seconds than the Reaper themselves would ever have. No matter the explosion it would have the same effect. 4.The Victory Fleet Stranded With the Mass Relays gone the entire fleet would be stranded at Earth which is made of thousands of ships and hundreds of different races. Which all of which would be orbiting a ruined and devastated Earth that might not be able to support its own people. While the Quarries and Turbans can't even eat human food. Supplies would run out would the fleet starve to death ? 5. Collected War Assets for What ? Fan's expected a suicide battle like Mass Ef fect g's ending only involving the entire galaxy.Also that the hours of gamely , Multilayer and Relationships that would have been repaired would have been shown in the final battle as none of the forces you collect are shown fighting during the take back of earth. Battle takes place same as space. With humans looking at a multi colored explosion surrounding Reaper forces. 6. No Closure At the end of Mass effect the game prompts you to buy more content and an insulting scene where a grandpa tells a story to a child and refers to our hero as â€Å"The Sheppard† .No closure on what happened to the people we cared about for five years except for the relationship which developed between Joker and DEED which started in Mass Effect 2. No scenes showing what happened to your character's friend or minor species also undoes some of these friendships as we don't see were telling stories of Sheppard which means hero. Or seeing tall on her homework rebuilding it all Were left teahouse is that there all stranding in the sol system. 7. Another Twist Ending?Players left no choice by developer instead going for a twist ending that is barely relevant to the story which offers no pay off . 8. The Final Revelation The God Child) After your hit by Harbingers beam things go off the rails. As you see both Anderson and The illusive man on the Citadel which player's would like an option to save Anderson and an option to convince the illusive man to stand down. It feels cheap to be introduced to the ultimate villain â€Å"the god child † as the true force your fighting against in the last few minutes of the trilogy.As he destroys the mysterious and lore with the reapers by saying Hess the one that created them and the reason for the creation was using circulatory logic saying the created will always rebel against the creator after you make peace teen the quarries and the get during a key part of the game disproving this. As this child says † without us synthetics w ould destroy all organics† when during the final scenes On Rancho the Get primes addresses Admiral Ran and says † your welcome to return to Rancho Admiral Ran with us. 9. Shepherd's Acceptance of the God Child's Bonkers logic Extended cut Good â€Å"Mass Effect 3 may have added a multilayer component, but many fans were interested in keeping their experience restricted to the single- player. That's why some were upset to learn that certain scenes (like Sheppard apparently surviving in the â€Å"destroy† ending) can only be seen by raising Galactic Readiness – something that can't be done through single-player missions. Teases been changed with the Extended Cut.According to Beware, your Effective Military Strength only needs to be about 3, 100 to see all of the scenes. As long as you're thorough in your solo efforts, you won't miss anything important at the end anymore. † Bad â€Å"One of the major complaints about the original endings is how all thr ee of them were basically the same, with just different colors for the beam shooting out of the Citadel. There's still mom of that going on here, even with the new endings.Many scenes are reused or only altered slightly from one ending to the next† ugly : The worst looking part of the new content is the series of AD art that appears in the red, green, and blue endings. They are supposed to depict friends and allies living their lives in the post-war world, but the static images feel odd and out-of- place considering the cinematic flair of every other major moment in the series. They aren't even in-game stills; they're more like concept art. I'm sure Beware has a reason for making the choice, but that doesn't change the fact hat a slideshows feels cheap and cheesy.

What is the optimal dosage of vitamin D supplementation necessary for Research Paper - 1

What is the optimal dosage of vitamin D supplementation necessary for pregnant women - Research Paper Example For instance, a woman that has a low vitamin D status will likely suffer from cardiovascular diseases, certain forms of cancer, diabetes, depression, and cognitive decline, among others. Vitamin D is naturally obtained in certain foods and added to others in order to make it a dietary supplement. Alternatively, vitamin D is optimally acquired when one exposes their skin to the ultraviolet sunlight rays that strike the skin and triggers the synthesis of the vitamin. To pregnant mothers, this vitamin is quite essential, not only for their distinct wellbeing, but also for the well-being of their unborn babies. This is because of the numerous benefits that are to be achieved from the consumption of the vitamin D such as the maintenance of the adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations in the body. This is to allow for the attainment of a normal mineralization of the bones, and prevention of conditions such as hypocalcaemia among the pregnant women (Perampalam, Ganda, Chow, Opie, Hickman, Shadbolt & Nolan, 2011). The deficiency of this Vitamin D in the body system of a pregnant woman can have serious implications to their health and that of the unborn baby. For instance, according to a study by the US National Institute of Health, the presence of sufficient vitamin D in the body of a pregnant woman would enhance the growth of her bones, and remodel her osteoclasts and osteoblasts. Without a sufficiency in the supply of the vitamin to the body, the bones of the pregnant woman may become brittle, thin and misshapen. To the fetus, the deficiency in the supply of vitamin D into their bodies may result in them acquiring disease conditions such as rickets upon being born, while the mother may suffer from conditions such as osteomalacia (bone pain). Vitamin D presence in the body of the pregnant woman also performs several other functions such as the modulation of the growth of body cells, treatment of weak bones (osteoporosis), and bone loss in

Development of the Different Thinking Research Paper

Development of the Different Thinking - Research Paper Example It will then analyze how thinking develops into an advanced concept of language, which exhibits a close relationship with the complex thought process. It is worth noting that thinking is a fundamental aspect of consciousness (Costello, 2004). However, there are times when individuals exhibit preconscious thought, when no consciousness is associated with the production of thought, and the individual accords no attention to the thinking process. On the other hand, conscious thought occurs when the individual accords attention to the thought production process. The third type of thought is the unconscious thought, which is beyond the individual’s access, but plays a significant role in behavior determination. Thought is a natural process, present during the entire life span of an individual. Thinking is one of the complex processes that prove to be beyond full comprehension regardless of the approach used in analyzing it. There is some evidence of attempts of understanding the th inking process more precisely in fields such as psychology, philosophy, and science. However, the complexity of the process has dissuaded many scholars from exploring the topic. It is worth highlighting that the uniqueness of the thinking process in every human being have made the topic overwhelming (Costello, 2004). Moreover, the fact that thought can exist without an individual’s consciousness only emphasizes on the complexity of the neural processes that define the thinking capacity. After birth, children begin an unending process of interacting with family, friends, and neighbors, people who are significant in forming the initial social relationships. The contribution of parents in the development of the thinking process in children cannot... In this essay, the focus will be on the factors that affect the thinking process in children. Moreover, the paper will highlight what motivates different people to act in specific ways. In the second section of the paper, it will focus on the views of different scholars on the correlation between thinking and language. This research paper will adopt the perspective of considering the thought process from its initial stages in childhood. It will then analyze how thinking develops into an advanced concept of language, which exhibits a close relationship with the complex thought process. It is worth noting that thinking is a fundamental aspect of consciousness. However, there are times when individuals exhibit preconscious thought, when no consciousness is associated with the production of thought, and the individual accords no attention to the thinking process. On the other hand, conscious thought occurs when the individual accords attention to the thought production process. The third type of thought is the unconscious thought, which is beyond the individual’s access, but plays a significant role in behavior determination. The family and the society contribute immensely to the development of thinking in early childhood. Members of the family act as the initial social agents to children, impar ting them with certain attitudes and habits that define the pattern or thinking that they adopt.

Criminal Justice System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Criminal Justice System - Essay Example Prison life is not an easy life, prisons are basically made to correct human behavior, but the current conditions of US prisons is very bad and instead of correcting human behavior, prison life further ruins prisoner’s behavior. In US prisons individuals experience loss of freedom of life, they are restricted in jails that are even smaller than the bathroom size of an individuals house. Prisoners are dictated terms according to which they have to live, these terms are not only dictated by the law enforcing agencies or the law enforcing agents, these terms are even dictated by the inmate. If prisoners fail to comply with the guidelines of the inmates who are more powerful, then prisoners have to face various consequences such as sexual harassment and assault. In equal distribution of resources is even a part and parcel of prison life, those prisoners who are not strong enough in muscle power or who do not have enough friends within the prison, they are restricted from getting a ccess to resources that are of high quality and are restricted to use resources that are of meager quality. Security is huge risks within US prison, certain times those people are sentenced who have never committed a crime or who have committed a crime that is quite not serious in nature; these individuals are those who are not connected to the criminal world. These people are treated very badly by the inmates and several times they face beating and bullying at the hands of stronger inmates. War on Drugs War on Drugs is a movement that the United States have pursued since 1914 till today in order to decrease the amount of illegal drug within and outside the nation, they are pursuing this campaign with the aid of the US military forces and other nations who have joined hands with the US for this cause. The main purpose of the initiative is to counter manufacture, supply and usage of illegal drugs that are psychoactive in nature, to achieve this purpose the US has created various poli cies. During President Nixon’s tenure this fight against drugs was recognized as War against Drug Abuse and during His trip to Texas he used the term War on Drug to refer to this initiative under taken by the US. During the period of 2009the director of the organization of

Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Movie Review Example For that reason, people need to come up with solutions for this crisis. In this essay, I shall try to review the solutions given in the documentary. First, we shall tackle water wastage. It is a miracle that people can take up to one hour in the shower. This is a clear wastage of water. People need to take shorter showers or better yet resort to baths, which would require the use of less water. The film also talks about the pollution of fresh water sources that prevent the use of water. An example of such pollution involves the use of the herbicide Atrazine. This herbicide is still used in the United States of America, despite being banned in countries such as Switzerland. The herbicide is so toxic that it decreases fertility in human males by reducing their sperm count and also causes prostrate and breast cancer. Therefore to solve this problem, the state needs to ban the use of all toxic chemicals that pollute our fresh water reservoirs. The next documentary that I shall review is called â€Å"The Intersection Between Justice and Sustainability: Voices and Views from South Phoenix†. This documentary mainly involves interviews carried out on the residents of South Phoenix. In this essay, I shall reflect on the actions taken by community leaders profiled in the film to address the 10 sustainability principles. In every city, social inequality, marginalization, and containment are some of common injustices experienced. One of these community leaders is Steve Brittle the founder of Don’t Waste Arizona. This is a non-profit environmental organization that was formed to protect, conserve, and preserve human and natural environment. One of the main problems that Phoenix faces comes from Innovative Waste Utilization. This company is located in a neighborhood mainly comprising of African American and Latino families and poses great hazard to these families. Furthermore, this waste facility planned to

Organizational Structure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organizational Structure - Essay Example Structures of formal organizations are outlined in an organizational chart, which acts as a â€Å"blueprint† showing its functions, activities and formal relations (Roussel 2013 pg 56). The principal reason for clarifying the organization structure is to clearly show the chain of command, official communication lines, span of control and connections for all department personnel. It is important to note that an organization is a society of people; therefore, delivery of health care services is a very vital element in an organizational setting. Health care services can be categorized by profit motive, type of ownership involved and whether the client is being admitted in the institution. Since time immemorial, hospitals and nursing institutions are the common health care service providers. The main role of nursing in organizations is care service administration. This is where activities are coordinated to enable provision of nursing services to the personnel in various departments of an organization. Nursing service administration is a guided process where activities are aimed at improving nursing care for clients within an organization. This includes establishment of overall goals and policies that can be accommodated in the organizations’ major goals. Through this, an organization is able to provide facilities and skilled staff such as nurses to accomplish these goals. The organization therefore is able to do this in the most economical and effective manner because of high level of professionalism used. It can only be achieved through, cooperation from all members of staff who will coordinate activities with other members of staff within various departments of the organization. Nursing in an organization creates an environment where marshalling of activities and resources to accomplish a goal is made possible. This can be an art and a scientific process where one can systematically analyze

EasyShop Business Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

EasyShop Business Plan - Assignment Example There are several supermarkets in Las Vegas and this will prove to be a difficult situation for EasyShop to establish its brand image and attract customers. These supermarkets include; Albertsons, Walmart Supercenter, Mariana’s Markets Deli, 99 Ranch Market, Trader Joe’s, Vons, Whole Foods Market, Food 4 Less, and Sunflower Markets. EasyShop will offer products and services related to food and household merchandise. These products and services will be provided in the supermarket’s departments (food, electronics, housewares, floral, chemist, and laundry department). Products to be offered in the food department include meat, grocery, dry food products, packaged food, and soft drinks. In the electronics department, both products and services will be offered. Products will entail mobile phones, televisions, refrigerators, laptops, personal computers, home theatres, and other household electronic items. Services to be offered in this section include repair and maintenance services. Other products to be offered include cooking utensils and dishwares by the housewares department, floral products by the floral department, medicines by the chemist department, fabric softeners and detergents by the laundry department. The Las Vegas market is highly competitive and it will face stiff competition from the following supermarkets Albertsons, Walmart Supercenter, Mariana’s Markets Deli, 99 Ranch Market, Trader Joe’s, Vons, Whole Foods Market, Food 4 Less, and Sunflower Markets. Albertsons, Walmart Supercenter, and Mariana’s Markets Deli will be used to show how competitive the market is in Las Vegas.

Greenhouse gas emissions and price elasticity of transport fuel demand Essay

Greenhouse gas emissions and price elasticity of transport fuel demand in Belgium - Essay Example The policy of increase in fuel tax by the Belgian government is taken into consideration in this article. The paper seeks to find the impact of an increase in fuel taxes on the consumption of fuels by estimating the price elasticity of fuel demand. Backdrop of the article The Kyoto protocol, named after the Japanese city, is an international agreement concluded in 1997, aimed at the reduction of the accumulated greenhouse gas emissions of the developed nations and lessening the intensity of global warming1. Since the start of negotiations on Kyoto Protocol, Belgian government adapted an ambitious position in the climate regime in the European as well as in the international level2.Belgium has also participated in the targets of reducing the greenhouse emission and has been successful overall in cutting down the intensity of emission by the importance of nuclear energy. But the intensity of emission is high in some sectors like heavy industry residential heating. But severe instances of emission are found to be generated in a rigorous basis from the road transport sector in Belgium which represents 20% of the all Green house gas emission3. Belgium is a small country in the respect that it is a price taker of the fuel prices in the international market as its demand has little or no effect on the international oil price. So the supply curve faced by Belgium can be thought to be infinitely elastic. Thus a change in the tax structure of the country is directly and fully gets reflected on the domestic prices and the quantity (fuel consumption) is directly related with the price elasticity of demand for fuels. Thus the prime parameter on which the quantity that is the fuel consumption depends in this case can be considered to be price elasticity of demand of fuels and thus we will analyze its impact with the help of theoretical understandings. Elasticity of demand Before moving into the realms of the topic in consideration it is necessary to clearly understand the co ncept of elasticity of demand. The elasticity of demand refers to the degree of responsiveness of quantity demanded of a commodity to a change in any of its determinants viz, price of the commodity, price of other commodities and income of the consumers. But in this paper we are only concerned with the price elasticity of demand4. Price elasticity of demand â€Å"The price elasticity of demand measures the sensitivity of the quantity demanded to changes in the price†5. In other words it is a measure of how much a quantity demanded of a commodity changes when its price changes. Mathematically the price elasticity of demand can be represented as the ratio of the percentage change in the quantity demanded of a commodity to a given change in price. Thus, Where, = Price elasticity of demand, = Change in quantity, =Change in quantity demanded6. Fig.1 In the above diagram the initial price was P0 and the quantity demanded was Q0. When price rose to P1 the quantity demanded falls to Q1 following the law of demand which states that for a normal commodity as price increases the quantity demanded falls as a result. In the diagram, the gap and the gap . Different types of price elasticity of demand The numerical value of price elasticity of demand varies from zero to infinity. In terms of its numerical value (i.e, degree of elasticity), there are generally five types kinds of price elasticity of demand. A. Perfectly Inelastic demand When the quantity demanded of a commodity does not respond to the change in its price, then the elasticity of demand is said to be perfectly inelastic demand. The numerical value of inelastic demand is zero7. Fig. 2 In the above diag

Ethnic Literature Essay Example for Free

Ethnic Literature Essay The term â€Å"ethnic† when in conjunction with the word â€Å"literature† in the academic discourse community of students, often brings out mixed feelings of excitement and dread. On the one hand, students understand that they will be getting away from the canonical American literature – which can equal boring in their eyes; on the other hand, students interpret the term â€Å"ethnic literature† to mean distinctive – which can equal confusing or ambiguous – and perhaps at times not relatable because it is outside their scope of experiences. Perhaps before jumping into why it matters, the term â€Å"ethnic literature† should be defined first and because I am still learning how to interpret this term myself, I searched for a suitable one I could agree with. I found one in an article entitled â€Å"Assessing Teachers’ Knowledge of Multi-Ethnic Literature†, and the article actually used another source themselves to come up with a workable, layman’s definition. Ethnic literature as defined by D.E. Norton (as the article’s source) is, â€Å"Literature about racial or ethnic minority groups that are culturally and socially different from the white Anglo-Saxon majority in the United States, whose largely middle-class values and customs are most represented in American literature† (qtd. in Hager Thompson 22). I think this definition works well to define what ethnic literature is on a surface level, but the more I dig in, I feel that this idea goes much deeper. I asked myself, who can write about ethnic literature? Can anyone just pick up a pen so to speak and tell a story about a young Japanese boy, or a Hispanic family? Can an African-American writer write about Hispanic or Chinese people and claim it is ethnic literature? And the answer to myself is no. Why? Because unless that African-American has been submersed in the Hispanic or Japanese culture from the time of childhood, how are they going to capture the very essence of being, thinking, and living day-to-day in that culture? And even if that African-American had, they would still most likely have a different perspective from the average Hispanic or Chinese person because of being different themselves (i.e black) and perhaps are treated different by the community at large which corrupts the â€Å"normal† cultural thinking. At this deeper level I am trying to get at, I find John M. Reilly’s article â€Å"Criticism of Ethnic Literature: Seeing the Whole Story† helpful in acquiring this. He states that, â€Å"the assertion of ethnicity in literature can be made only through a procedure by which the writer resolves formal problems what moves from recognition of identity to creation of a strategy for handling reality still is not literature until the individual author sustains her or his ethnic identity through a sequence of formal choices† (4). I am interpreting this to mean that as a reader of this literature, I should see and feel throughout the story (perhaps subtlety) that in some way, the characters mindset (and perhaps actions) in the story differ from my own specifically because of the culture they have grown up in in, which has shaped that character’s thinking. There are thoughts and feelings – ideas, I don’t understand without further explanation from the author, which is sometimes provided, and sometimes not. An example of this is in Brando Skyhorse’s novel The Madonnas of Echo Park, I find myself wondering what the significance of the jacaranda trees mentioned in different parts of the book. Looking up what they are, it becomes apparent to me as jacaranda trees are native to Central America – roots back to their homeland. The blossoms from the trees fall and are scattered everywhere. Felicia in chapter 2 states that â€Å"there’s no way getting away from them† (25). Basically meaning, you cannot escape who you are and where you come from. I would not have understood this had I not explored the history of that tree to uncover the significance in the book. Another example is in Seventeen Syllables in the story â€Å"Seventeen Syllables†. The story about a Japanese family is easy to read, but is hard to connect with as I don’t share the same philosophies about a woman’s place in the Japanese culture. A specific instance in the story was when Mrs. Hayashi, Rosie’s mother received her the first place prize for her stellar Haiku. When the man from the newspaper presented her with a package, Mrs. Hayashi, stating she knew it was unorthodox, asked if she might open it because she was very curious. (Yamamoto 17). At this point, I am thinking to myself, â€Å"I don’t get it – why wouldn’t she open it?† but upon reflection, I considered the patriarchal society that is dominant in this culture, and perhaps it is the wife’s obligation to consult or have the husband open the gift, even if it is not specifically for him. Yet another example is in Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz. To come specifically to the point, I do not understand this idea of why it is understood that Dominican men are supposed to be these â€Å"manly men† that women flock to and fall on their knees for. That the sexual appetite along with innate sense of charisma from Dominican men is expected, and when it’s lacking, it doesn’t go unnoticed. â€Å"Anywhere else his triple-zero batting average with the ladies might have passed without comment, but this is a Dominican kid we’re talking about, in a Dominican family: dude was supposed to have Atomic Level G, was supposed to be pulling in the bitches with both hands† (24). Why is this idea so indoctrinated in this culture according to the book? This is perhaps something I will never understand, except that it is a part of their culture. All of these examples are all good and well, but the important question is why is ethnic literature important? What can be gained from reading it? From a most basic viewpoint, it is a highly effective vehicle for helping people understand themselves and the world around them. Thompson and Hager in their article state that, â€Å"multi-ethnic literature mirrors and validates the experiences for minority groups and juxtaposes the familiar with the less familiar for mainstream children† (22). In other words, through reading ethnic literature, readers can find ways to connect with others around them that are different. The article also states that when readers are exposed to divergent thoughts, language patterns, value systems, and different ways of living, that it can open up awareness about others and create compassion and understanding towards them that might not have happened without the literary exposure (23). To sum it all up, I will never argue against the instruction of ethnic literature in the school setting. In fact, I think teaching it should begin right from the beginning in kindergarten, and perhaps one day we won’t need the designated term â€Å"ethnic literature† – perhaps one day it can just be â€Å"American Literature† and part of the regular American canon of literature. Works Cited Diaz, Junot. The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. New York: Penguin, 2007. Print. Reilly, John. M. â€Å"Criticism of Ethnic Literature: Seeing the Whole Story†. Critical Approaches to Ethnic Literature. 5.1 (1978): 2-13. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. Skyhorse, Brando. The Madonnas of Echo Park. New York: Free Press, 2010. Print. Thompson, Deborah L. and Jane Meeks Hager. â€Å"Assessing Teachers’ Knowledge of Multi-Ethnic Literature†. Yearbook of the American Reading Forum. 1990. 21-29. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. Yamamoto, Hisaye. Seventeen Syllables. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2001. Print.

The Issues Regarding Child Sexual Abuse

The Issues Regarding Child Sexual Abuse For my final year I have been assigned to produce a dissertation on a topic of my own interest. During my second year of this course I was at a placement in a Supported Housing organisation. Whilst working there I came across a lot of child abuse issues, in particular child sexual abuse and this is where my interest in seeking more knowledge about the subject came about. I have chosen to focus on the issues regarding the sexual abuse of children and how this affects their life as children and as adults. The topic itself is quite a complex one to define and understand. The issue of sexual abuse began to attract widespread attention as a social issue in the late 1970s. However, the extent of child sexual abuse has only been fully recognised over the last 20 years or so. But exact figures depend on how sexual abuse is being defined. The term child abuse refers in this dissertation to the physical or emotional mistreatment and neglect of children or their sexual exploitation, in circumst ances for which the parents can be held responsible through acts of commission or omission (cited in Doyle, 2006). The possibility of child sexual activities taking place arouses feelings of disgust and horror; it is condemned by society as a violation of what is normal sexual behaviour. I have chosen to structure this dissertation into 6 sections. In the first chapter I will start of by defining and explaining what child sexual abuse is. The second chapter will consist of describing who the perpetrators of child sexual abuse are. I will explore further into their reasons for committing such an offence and if it is linked with their past. Most people who have suffered sexual abuse when they were younger do not grow up to abuse. Jones (2002) states that, a significant minority of those who sexually abuse children have themselves suffered physical and sexual abuse in their own childhood. The most potent predictors of who is likely to commit the most serious and prolonged sexual abuse are childhood family violence, loss of a carer, and family breakdown. Sex offenders are noted for their invisibility. When people think of a sex offender they may visualize a stereotypical image of a man filthily dressed, hanging around street corners though in truth the sex offender appea rs in many forms and in all walks of life. When people hear of a sex offence, they generally associate total strangers to be the ones who carry out the crime, what they dont realise is that sex offending itself takes many forms. In some cases the abuser may be diagnosed as having serious mental health problems. For example, a woman drowns her twin 6 month old daughters. Another mother throws her daughter off a bridge into icy water. A father has sexual intercourse with his 6 month old daughter. These descriptions are often enough to convince most people that only someone who is mentally disturbed or truly psychotic would inflict such grievous harm onto a defenceless child (Gelles Cornell, 1990). The third chapter is based on the victims of child sexual abuse. Children who are sexually abused generally find it harder to talk directly and clearly about their experiences. Although some children disclose, many do not. Many children assume that, if their parents mistreat them, it is because every parent behaves in that way (Doyle, 2006). Children can become attached to abusing parents. They often want the abuse to stop but crave the abusers love. Every child has a right to receive a good standard of care and protection, and parents have a duty to provide this, however, this is not always the case. Sexual abuse victims may protect their self-image by convincing themselves that there is nothing wrong in sexual relationships between adults and children. Wyre (1986) noted that many men who had raped children had been sexually abused as children and had incorporated their experiences of abuse into their own sexuality. Findings from Trickett and Putnam (1998) show that about a third of sexually abused children who have been sexually abused are at specific risk of developing sexual problems and sexualised behaviour. For some children, being inappropriately sexual with other people is the only way they know to love and get close to people. As adolescents, some boys who have been sexually abused show an increased likelihood of exposing their genitals to women, or being sexually coercive. Some girls become sexually, and often indiscriminately very active. Sexual promiscuity can get both young boys and girls into social difficulties. In the case of early sexual activity amongst sexually abused girls there is the risk of teenage pregnancy (Trickett and Putnam 1998, cited in Howe 2005). The fourth chapter outlines the long term and short term effects child sexual abuse has on victims. I will describe the extent an abused childs developmental stage is impaired. The more forceful and violent the abuse, the more the individual is likely to suffer trauma. The most crucial period of a childs life is when assumptions about the world, others and the self are being formed. Unlike adults, childrens lives are affected and traumatised during this period. REFERENCE These posttraumatic reactions can easily collide with a childs social and psychological maturation, which leads to a potentially typical dysfunctional development. The amount of damage caused to the victims is unpredictable. Survivors of sexual abuse are often described as having a number of emotional, cognitive, and social difficulties. The child perceives the self as unworthy of being loved or protected. This leads to low self-esteem. Chapter 5 illustrates a case study in relation to my second year work placement at a supported housing organisation intended for individuals who are just released from prison. Whilst working there, my main interests were within the YOT team. During my first few days I read a particular clients file, who was part of the Program X scheme. I found his file very interesting as there were serious issues of child sexual abuse associated with his life, which later led to extreme depression and suicide attempts. Last but not least, the next stage is to determine how these issues can be addressed and if victims find a way to escape the nightmares associated with the abuse. Do they ever live a normal life again? This can prove difficult at times as many abuse survivors inappropriately assume responsibility for what was done to them as children and are often believed to have provoked it in some way, REFERENCE some deny that abuse ever occurred in the first place, and underestimate their personal rights to self-determination and safety. There are many agencies and organisations that provide help and support to individuals suffering from child sexual abuse. Getting help through therapy allows the survivor to find closure. Finally, I will end the dissertation with concluding comments regarding the issues discussed throughout the dissertation. Chapter 1 What is Child Sexual Abuse? Sexual violence and childhood sexual abuse are two of the most serious and damaging crimes in our society. for victims, these crimes represent a violation which can have a significant and ongoing consequences for health and wellbeing. REFERENCE Many patients who have been abused do not talk about sexual issues with their health care providers. REFERENCE They often feel disconnected from their bodies and health needs. REFERENCE Sexual abuse is defined in the Department of Health 1999 guidelines as: Involving, forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative (e.g. rape or buggery) and non-penetrative acts. They may include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, pornographic material or watching sexual activities or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways. (Department of Health 1999: 6, cited in Corby, 2006). The above definition states that the sexual abuse of a child does not necessarily need to involve physical contact. It provides examples of such non-contact abuse but does not mention intra-familial abuse or anything about the age of the perpetrator. Another definition used is: Any child below the age of consent may be deemed to have been sexually abused when a sexually mature person has, by design or by neglect of their usual societal or specific responsibilities in relation to the child, engaged or permitted the engagement of that child in any activity of a sexual nature which is intended to lead to the sexual gratification of the sexually mature person. This definition pertains whether or not it involves genital contact or physical contact, and whether or not there is discernible harmful outcome in the short-term. (Glaser and Frosh 1988: 5) The issue of defining sexual abuse in practice is both problematical and complex. In some cases, there are overlaps and connections between the different forms of abuse. For example, a child might be sexually and physically abused, neglected and physically abused and so on. Very young children as well as older ones are affected by sexual abuse and now it is a crime thought far more common than it was previously. Sexual abuse is harmful at all stages but Corby (2000) suggests it is considered to have greater effects, where the abuse is carried out by a father figure; if it is accompanied by threat, force or violence; where the sexual act involves penetration; where the abuse has continued for some time and finally where the family responds negatively regarding the abuse (Howe, 2005). History There is little evidence about sexual abuse of children in antiquity and medieval times. Growing up in Rome or Greece frequently involved being sexually abused by older men (de Mause 1976: 43). In Scotland 1757, incest was given the death penalty (Corby, 2006). By contrast, in England during the twentieth century, incest became a legal offence. . By the beginning of the Second World War, under the 1908 Incest Act the number of prosecutions for incest gradually increased reaching 100 a year (Corby, 2006). The definition of incest in the Sexual Offences Act of 1956 is as follows: It is an offence for a man to have sexual intercourse with a woman whom he knows to be his grand-daughter, daughter, sister or mother.it is an offence for a woman of the age of sixteen or over to permit a man whom she knows to be her grandfather, father, brother or son to have sexual intercourse with her by her consent (Smith Hogan, 1983: 419, cited in Howitt, 1992). In 1937 the state of Michigan enacted a sexual psychopath legislation. In the same period of the 1930s there is also evidence that the public became more concerned about sexual offences. REFERENCE By 1960 there were some 27 states and the District of Columbia with a version of a sexually dangerous person law. From the late 1930s onwards to the early 1960s there was emphasis on the treatment of offenders through involuntary civil commitment procedures rather than punishment after conviction. Reasons for jurisdictions over such offenders varied among 27 states. Beginning in the late 1950s and continuing for nearly two decades, there was a panic over sex crimes, sexual deviance and sexual behaviour generally. By the late 1980s almost half of the states with sexually dangerous persons legislation had revoked the statutes. In 1994 a provision entitled the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act was included in the omnibus 1994 crime bill. In 1997, the Wetterling Act  [1]  was amended to allow for community notification, which permitted law enforcement personnel to disclose registry information to neighbourhood residents about sex offenders who live in close proximity. REFERENCE The NSPCC began to tackle child sexual abuse within the family, which was previously ignored as an issue. The NSPCC did not bring sexual abuse to public attention, in the same way as it had publicised physical abuse and neglect, despite its awareness and recognition. This response reflected a general attitude to the issue, which was one of not wanting to know, a conspiracy of silence. Many parents keep their childs abuse a secret even if they know of it. By contrast, however, child prostitution received far more public attention. In the summer of 1987, newspapers reported a child sexual abuse scandal in Cleveland. It emerged that 121 children had been brought into care over a period of six months on place of safety orders on the recommendation of two paediatricians who had diagnosed them as having been anally abused. Up to this time, for child protection agencies in Britain, the issue of child sexual abuse had been a relatively minor concern. Child sexual abuse was beginning to find its way onto the official child protection agenda by 1987, although the response to such abuse throughout Britain was patchy and variable. The Cleveland report had an impact on the passage of the 1989 Children Act through Parliament. Findings from the Cleveland inquiry report confirmed that, child sexual abuse was a more widespread phenomenon than had previously been thought to be the case. Similarly, in 1991 in Clwyd, residential social workers in two childrens homes were prosecuted for serious sexual offences against children in their care. As a result, Clwyd County Council set up its own independent inquiry which commenced in 1996 and reported in 2000. Its findings were that there was evidence of widespread physical and sexual abuse of girls and boys in Clwyd during this period (Corby, 2006). Concerns about the use of child pornography have risen since the 1990s. Sadly, only a fraction of the sexual abuse of children is ever reported. Silverman and Wilson (2002) reported that in 1995 the Obscene Publications Unit of Greater Manchester Police seized about a dozen images of child pornography during the whole year, but in 1999 the unit recovered 41,000 images and by 2001 so many images were being recovered that they had to stop counting. REFERENCE Public concern over the sexual abuse of children is a relatively recent phenomenon. It is only recently that the general public in Britain has begun to realise that, far from being an extremely rare phenomenon, the sexual abuse of children is much more widespread. As in the USA, a number of tragic cases in the 1990s in England and Wales have attracted widespread publicity, provoked public outcry and provided a legislative and organisational change. In Britain, media interest in sexual offenders released from prison and allowed to live anonymously in the community created an outbreak in public anxiety following the abduction and murder, of seven year old Sara Payne in July 2000 in Sussex. Here newspaper accounts criticised the probation service for failing to prevent Sarah Paynes death. REFERENCE. Since then, Britains local newspapers have been concerned about the risks to children from sex offenders living in the community. It is seen from all this that sexual abuse of children occur s at all levels of society.