FIRST DRAFT (2)

Does mainstream Education really make us better people? 

           Education has an important role for people in general; it has been considered the idea that education guides us so to help each one to define themselves. However, it is overestimated because people through the education try to fit among the society. Many people keep that idea that education makes people better, but it is just an idea and not a fact. That is not to say that education does not help because it have a huge purpose which is to make people producters of money. Nevertheless, the part of the humanity is not centered during the general learning process. 

         There are different perspectives in which anyone can see if education actually makes us better people, for instance since the profesional perspective; which totally education is more interested on. Another perspective is the humanistic, which there are many theories in which point out that a humanistic education is better. However, those theories are not taken into account and the educational system continue being the same as many years ago.

         On one hand, education does not take into account the humanistic. Education was used in order to classify people as educated people and no educated people. People took advantage of it so to create new stereotypes and to start judging people according to their studies instead of the essence. 

          Besides, It is thought that people learn how to be a person at home during the first years. Parents are in charged to stablish a model and to shape their principles so as to become a good person. Though, as people spend most of their time studing, there is the recommended place in which some principles could be reinforced. 

          On the other hand, education encourage people the importance to be professional. Since the industrial revolution emerged, mainstream education decided to transform the educational system such as the way to train people so as to make people to produce money. In other words, the educational system become as a factory.

           Moreover, mainstream Education was designed for a different age.Taking into account the 
years, the necessities are totally different per each decade. When the education emerged, there was 
not technology as there is nowadays. Besides there is totally wrong to keep following some steps that 
maybe do not fit with the actual context. 

          Additionally, education make as better in the perspective of intellectual. Since anyone was born, they have the capacity to adquire as much knowledge as possible. And people usually get that information when they pass through the learning process.

          As a conclusion, mainstream education encourage people to get the required knowledge in order to fit in an industrial context. However, there is not a special formation focused on the basic principles in order to be considered as a person.

OUTLINE (2)

Does mainstream Education really make us better people?

Mainstream Education does not make us better people.

Education has an important role for people, it has been considered the idea that education guides us so to help each one to define themselves. However, it is overestimated because people through education try to fit among the society.

Education does not take into account the humanistic.

Education was used in order to classify people as educated people and no educated people. People took advantage of it so to create new stereotypes and to start judging people according to their studies instead of the essence.

As time continues passing, people have been showing that they are forgetting what is to be a human. It is thought that people learn how to be a person at home during the first years.

Education encourages people the importance to be professional.

Since the industrial revolution emerged, mainstream education decided to transform the educational system such as the way to train people so as to make people produce money.

Mainstream Education was designed for a different age.

Taking into account the years, the necessities are totally different per each decade. When the education emerged, there was not technology as there is nowadays. Besides, there is totally wrong to keep following some steps that maybe do not fit with the actual context.

Conclusion

As a conclusion, mainstream education encourages people to get the required knowledge in order to fit in an industrial context. However, there is not a special formation focused on the basic principles in order to be considered as a person.

Ban Handheld Devices to Children Under 12

Children Without Handheld Devices 

:

          As children are growing up in a new generation, a generation surrounded by technology, it is considered that handheld devices should be banned from children under 12 years old. Many people concede that this new generation is going to be better than the other ones. For instance, when a child can manipulate a smart phone, adults give credits to children, believing that the child is the smart one. However, they do not analyze that this type of technology was made for everyone, and that the smart one is the phone, not the children. As a matter of fact, there are some issues that are indirectly related the technology with children. Firstly, those devices limit the development of children’s brain, affect indirectly the children’s behavior, and became children addicted. Although, not all is adverse for children, these types of devices encourage children to add fun during the learning process.
          On one hand, handheld devices limit the development of children’s brain. Nowadays, children do not try to make any effort to create something on their own due to the fact that they consider that everything is online and the only thing they need to do is to look for it. Also, children consider that everything is already discovered and solved. Thanks to the internet, everyone can have access to any information in their own handheld devices, the main issue is the quality of information. If the information is totally unreliable.  
          Moreover, handheld devices affect indirectly the children’s behavior. There have been different studies which aim to inquire the main causes that make children misbehave in these days. Nevertheless, one probable main cause could be related to the fact that only with touching a screen, children can access to any sort of content, even that content not allow to children. Those forbidden content are where is less expected, for instance, some apps for children which the main purpose is to provide entertainment, fun for children, such as Sugar Crush, Royal Kingdoms (Disney), may include different sort of advertisements for adults, with information that children do not understand. Those types of advertisements of war games that give the message that they only need to kill people to survive.
          Besides, children develop an addition to handheld devices. Most of the technological creators, such as Steve Jobs, avoid their children to use those devices owing to the fact that they take into account the serious addition that anyone who uses it could develop. At the begging it is normal to spend some type with these devices, however, when it makes children to avoid doing their responsibilities such as assignments from school. Some parents consider it is normal because they do it the same. Children just follow the parents’ example; they will do whatever their parents do. 
          On the other hand, handheld devices encourage children to add fun during the learning process. Technology brought with it different tools that are pretty useful for children during the learning process. It is thought that this era is surrounded by technology; classrooms nowadays offer different activities in which children can involve handheld devices at the same time they are learning. Also, there are many apps to download in those devices that the main purpose is to practice different topics using didactic ways to entertain children. Some of the TV shows for children develop an app in order for children to learn with their favorite characters that they see on television.   
          To conclude, handheld devices introduce some negative consequences to children. That is why it is totally important that parents support children at the same time when they are involved with handheld devices. Besides, parents should manage a schedule with the specific time that children can spend with those devices so as not to make them addicted. All of that in order to expect more from a generation that since before be born they are involved with it.

Outline - Argumentative Essay

OUTLINE

Question: Should handheld devices be banned from children under 12 years old? 

Thesis: Handheld devices should be banned from children under 12 years old.

On one hand,

S1: Handheld devices limit the development of children’s brain.
E.g. Actual children do not try to make any effort to create something on their own due to the fact that they consider that everything is are involved and the only thing they need to do is to look for it.
E.g. Children consider that everything is already discovered and solved.
E.g. Thanks to the internet, everyone can have access to any information in their own handheld devices, the main issue is the quality of information. If the information is totally

S2: Handheld devices affect indirectly the children’s behavior.
E.g. Only with touching a screen, children can access any sort of content, even that content not allow to children.
E.g. For instance, some apps for children which the main purpose is to entertain children, such as Sugar Crush, Royal Kingdom (Disney), may include different advertisements for adults, some strong images.

S3: Children develop an addition to handheld devices.
E.g. Most of the technological creators, such as Steve Jobs, avoid their children to use those devices owing to the fact that they take into account the serious addition that anyone who uses it could develop.

On the other hand,

S4: Handheld devices encourage children to add fun during the learning process.
E.g. Technology brought different tools that are useful for children during the learning process. It is thought that this era is surrounded by technology; classrooms nowadays offer different activities in which children can involve handheld devices at the same time they are learning. 

 Conclusion: Handheld devices introduce some negative consequences to children. That is why it is totally important that parents support children at the same time they are involved with handheld devices.

How do you think we could empower our Colombian students to critically spot fake news?

Colombian Student's

Nowadays, Colombian students are said to have a lack of critical thinking owing to the fact that when they start studying at the university they cannot improve that ability that actually, it has not been encouraged during the previous years. There are many people worried about that situation, especially teachers, owing to the fact that the future depends on this generation. However, no one has come up with an idea so as to empower our Colombian students the critical thinking. 

Firstly, if teachers are expecting to make students critical, there must be a wide change in the curriculum. According to McLaren, P. (p.74) " Curriculum... it represents the introduction to a particular form of life; it serves in part to prepare students for dominant or subordinate positions in the existing society." I agree with the fact that sometimes the different issues in the surroundings are not taken into account and it should not be on that way. Students should have the opportunity to analyze by themselves and to identify how reliable is the information provided about a situation studied. Sometimes they just believe what other people say or even what they see through social networks. Finally, the information is being manipulated as much as possible, and it is a big problem that some teachers have to deal with due to the fact that students tend to believe in the internet information.

As a conclusion, it is believed that the change in the Colombian education should start in the way that the different curriculums are being developed. It is important to involve the real context situations; additionally, students should develop their skill to identify fake news that they may confuse them so as to have a critical thinking and to get different standpoints about an issue. Actually, if the curriculum changes... it may not make a big change now, but later on it will.

HENRY GIROUX: Where is the OUTrage

Henry Giroux: Where is the Outrage? Critical Pedagogy in Dark Times

          The Educational System should be as it is expected. There is always some factors which do not allow to improve the way of teaching due to the fact that always Capitalism is going to be first. Taking into account some ideas that Mr. Henry shared in his lecture, there are some aspects that are totally interesting as well as truth. For instance, training students in the workforce, avoiding the pleasure of learning and making young generation guilty.

"Giving Youth a Chance to Build Capacity and Agency to Realize Their Own Potential"

          First, training students to workforce proves that the educational system is taking away some important element from each student. For instance, some abilities are not being taken into account such as the art sense, creativity. Then, avoiding the pleasure of learning provides a huge gap in students owing to the fact that there is not a way of not getting any pleasure through the process of learning. That is something that should change, because some students, especially in primary schools, do not understand the reason why they should go to school. Sometimes they feel obligated, and it is sad because with learning anyone could explore their identity and believe in a new generation. And last but not least, making the young generation guilty. It is really common to hear, as Mr. Henry Giroux said, that this young generation is the "zero generation, zero future, zero jobs", that it is not providing anything to the reality; however, who is the real guilty? No one thinks about what happened behind this 'lost generation'.

          To sum up, there are different issues related to the education that is pretty hard to discuss. Mr. Henry Giroux gives excellent standpoints that makes everyone to reflect; although, we are not used to /well, some people/ to talk about those aspects because they are considered only for critical people. Those people who found the way to analyze different aspect and not to worry about their ideas. In other words, we all should "imagine the unimaginable".

STEREOTYPES

Stereotypes 

Those some general ideas that anyone has about a certain group of people are stereotypes. sometimes, those stereotypes are positive or negative. As everyone knows, in the world there are many people and each one of them is different from one another. The fact is, that some of those 'stereotypes' might feel people uncomfortable. 

According to those videos about truth or myth from different parts of the world, it was pretty interesting those stereotypes which I thought they were a myth and some of them were admitted to be true. it was something that really surprised me, and also the fact that there were some stereotypes that are considered here in Colombia. To sum up, I want to consider the idea that there is not an only way to identify a group of people; everyone is different and if it unfair that people judge other people according to the general idea that runs in the context. 

CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS

If you want to save the world veganism isn't the answer by Isabella Tree

Veganism / Knepp

COMMENTS:


Disagreeing "What Isabella and her husband have done at Knepp is beautiful. But we simply cannot use it as a general justification for eating meat. The Knepp estate supplies 0.0075% of the beef the UK eats, and there is nowhere else like it. So what if everywhere was like Kneep, producing 54kg of meat/hectare? The Uk's 17.2m ha of farmland would produce slightly less beef than the UK eats. And nothing else. Knepp is wonderful. But as a general model, it's a formula for starvation. As you know, I strongly support rewilding - of infertile and unproductive land. I do not support rewilding as a substitute for productive crop-growing. The amazing thing about a plant-based diet is that it uses far less land, releasing more for rewilding. According to the estimates by Simon Fairlie (himself a small livestock keeper), a vegan diet could feed all the UK people on just 3m hectares of land. Alternatively, all the productive farmland in the UK could be used to support 200m people.
 By contrast, if Kneep-style production was applied across all the UK's farmland, it would supply the UK's population with around 75 kcal per person per day - roughly 1/30th of what we need to survive." By George Monbiot 

Disagreeing "A good article, but it left me wondering if the type of farming the author is arguing for, could possibly produce enough meat to meet demand even if people did reduce their consumption of meat." By Cochrane65

 

VIDEO: Stephen Brookfield - Critical and Creative Thinking

Dr. Stephen Brookfield 

In the video Creative and Critical Thinking Dr. Stephen Brookfield tries to explain what involves in order to develop this type of thinking. First, he tries to describe each one of them. For instance, to be critical involves to identify assumptions behing thinking, to check assumptions for accuracy and validity, and to take informed action. Then, to be creative involves to generate interpretations, to be able to communicate back and forward, and to have multiple responses. 

Besides, he talked about 4 Keys intellencual Traditions. 

• Analytic Philosophy: Logical Fallacies, Argument analysis - inductive, deductive, analogical, inferential reasoning.
• Critical Theory: uncovering power dynamics and ideological manipulation.
• Natural Science: Hypothetical deductive method, principle of falsifiability
• Pragmatism: Experimental and creative pursuit of beautiful consequences (e.g.) democracy, inclusion, connection).

This question emerged: What most help students to think critical and/or creative? According to Brookfield, there are different activies that teachers could develop in class, for instance, he provides one called 'Circle of voives'. In this activity, it is necessary to make groups of 5 people.