Saturday, January 25, 2020

A Sociological Perspective Of Structural Functionalism

A Sociological Perspective Of Structural Functionalism The criminal behaviour of Robert Pickton can be examined through the sociological feminist perspective. There are numerous factors throughout Picktons life that could have served significantly towards his deviant behaviour. The feeling of male dominance could have led the man to express his anger and superiority on the opposite sex. As a result, this unacceptable behaviour raises confliction between the two genders; this exemplifies a feminist theory of female oppression. Throughout his youthful year, Pickton may have encountered neglect from a female figure, which could have played an influence on the behaviourism of this serial killer. For example, hostile affection from a mother may have caused Pickton to bottle up his anger to the point where he used criminal acts as a release in his elder years. These later acts could be a mirror reflection to the actions of his mother therefore causing him to avenge his past experiences by murdering as many other women as possible. Taking a look at the Marxist Feminism theory can also serve in sociologically analyzing the behaviour of Robert Pickton. This theory examines the lack of balance in terms of men and women in an economic outlook. Stereotypical roles and class hierarchies divide the two sexes; for example, women are to take on the housewives roles whereas men are more of the working money makers. Pickton may have based his attacks on a lower class level than he assumed himself to be in. He was a farmer who produced and well as distributed food to others, yet due to the fact that many of the women were prostitutes and drug addicts (CBC News), Pickton clearly picked on this class for a reason. Perhaps he felt that this specific target group was helpless, and had a negative effect on the world. The imbalanced regard to class groups may have numbed Picktons feelings of guilt or awareness to the fact that he was murdering countless women uncontrollably. Robert Picktons choice of targeting a specific group o f women, let alone women in general, goes to show the sociological perspective of feminism in this case. Psychological Perspective: Psychoanalysis Thorough psychological analysis of his thinking process, consisting of both his conscious and unconscious mind, can help with focusing on the psychoanalysis of Picktons behaviour. The Id, according to Freud, is driven solely by impulses. In the case of Pickton, the impulse was sexual, seeing as the women he murdered were all sex workers. It is only fair to assume that he resorted to these specific women for a specific reason, to satisfy his needs. His sexual impulses led to his Id satisfying them. There is also a chance that Pickton was experiencing internal conflict which led to the outcomes of his decided behaviour. The Id has no care for reality, or the needs of anyone else, merely its own satisfaction. To continue the analysis of Picktons behaviour, we must now take a look at his ego. Considering an ego develops through experience, it is possible that Picktons uncontrollable urge to kill women was a result from being neglected in his early years by a motherly figure. Being motivated by unconscious conflicts, Picktons ego weakened as his unresolved mental struggle in regards to hatred of an important motherly figure from his youth may have caused his murderous acts. He may have been battling for acceptance or love and lost, hence why afterwards he probably felt in need of retribution against his mothers rejection. The feeling of betrayal or rejection by a female likely outsourced Picktons jealous rage. Picktons super-ego, alike to his ego, can also be seen as weak. This murderers conscious had to have been aware that his acts were wrong and socially unacceptable; he chose to disregard the difference between right and wrong as still act out in a poor manner. Additionally, Picktons sense of childhood rejection may have caused him to lose trust and view the world as an undependably hopeless place. This mistrust has a direct correlation and affect to his social interaction and his personality. His criminal acts were a mean of expressing the unconscious conflicts that have not been resolved. His superegos failure to develop is largely due to his inability to identify with his parental figure as well as lack of internalization of parental and social norms, values and morals. Without a fully developed superego, Pickton was missing his conscience and had no empathy for others. The ids domination of his superego caused it to weaken and easily influence him toward urging violent criminal beh aviour. Freudians would characterize Picktons behaviour by having a weak ego, absent super-ego and a strong id. Anthropologic Perspective: Sociocultural Anthropology Inside on Robert Picktons social life can give us an anthropological insight in terms of his behaviour. Going back a few years, it seems as though Roberts relationships and social interaction were not fully developed. Being rejected in an attempt to build social interactions could definitely have caused Pickton to feel inferior. As this feeling of rejection continued, it developed into anger which he then chose to release through attacking the initial source of it all, women. Due to the womens clear inability to defend themselves, Pickton matured a sense of superiority which built motivation to continue his attacks. Growing up, Pickton may have been exposed to excessive amounts of media violence which may have played a toll on his later behaviour. Media has become one of the most powerful weapons in the world. Since society as a whole is our means of expression, Pickton probably became a victim of conformity. The battle of conformity may seem impossible to conquer; it is a battle that will murder an individuals qualities, and the only way to triumph it is through conscious awareness of its outcome. It is evident that this man is not intact with his conscious, meaning he is either prone to making bad decisions by disregarding their consequences or he was never given taught any better. Examining Picktons targets, female prostitutes, may correlate with his values, morals and also the economic inequalities of women in the society he grew up in. Seeing as his outlook of women was already poor, prostitution may have been another concern of his. Pickton worked on his farm, meaning he performed physical labour in order to earn his living. On the other hand, prostitution in the view of Pickton may have been a career that earned a living off of pleasure rather than pain; this might have been an unfair and morally unacceptable way to earn a living in the eyes of this murderer. From this, the man may have not felt any sympathy for these women, so he decided to indulge his guilt-free attitude in the killing of a specifically characterized group of targets. Hypothesis for Research of a Serial Killer To understand the reason for a serial killers motives, we must investigate the conscious and unconscious mind by taking a look at the id, ego, and superego. This will help to determine the driving principle of the criminal, the pleasure they were seeking, their ability to differentiate between right and wrong, and the power and development of the id, ego and superego. Feminists would examine the perspective of women and their rights within a society, particularly one dominated by men. Social systems, structures and issues in relevance to women will be put to the grand focus. Structural functionalists regard crime as a necessary and constant part of society. In a given society, the majority of people identify, acknowledge and adhere to a shared set of moral guidelines and rules through legal punishment and public offense. Crime is crucial to society because it sets the legal system and develops a shared set of moral guidelines. A drastic increase in criminal behaviour loses peoples trust and cohesion. Yet, unusual decreases in crime sets the impression that people have no individuality or freedom, as well as do not share moral guidelines to differentiate between right and wrong. Therefore, the stability of a crime rate has a direct relation to the health of a society. We must also take a look at the survival of society and how criminals become outcasts to the structural norms. Ones inability to recognize their place in society, creating an uncertain status, may cause them to deviate from what is acceptable socially. When conducting research on a serial killer, one must explore and gain insight on the psychoanalytic, feminist, and functionalist perspectives. The collaboration of these perspectives will allow for a thorough understanding in terms of a criminals urge for multiple killings.

Friday, January 17, 2020

Improving socials skills

Social/Cultural: The child recognizes his/her parents as safe people. Environmental: Improving socials skills, developing friendships, Improving self-confidence, and aiding the care ever. Developmental: A central task of adolescence is to develop a sense of oneself as an autonomous individual. The drive for such autonomy derives from the internal, biological processes marking the transition to a more adult role (puberty and increasing cognitive maturity) and from the shifts in social roles and expectations that accompany these underlying physiological and cognitive changes.Spiritual: It is difficult to identify the infant's spiritual needs because of their limited ability to communicate on a linguistic level. However, positive experiences of love and affection, and a stimulating environment may foster aspects of spirituality such as hope and security in an Infant. Young children encompass the first three stages of Spiritual Development. Intellectual: This stage Is essential for deter mine the learning pattern of the child. This stage the child also learns problem solving skills.Emotional: Growing In a safe and happy environment Is also crucial for your child's long-term development. The more exposure to these activities, the better developed Overall Reflection: A stage is a period of time, perhaps several years, during which a arson's activities (at least in one broad domain) have certain characteristics in common† (Frederick & Belittle, 2010). This model really says that people develop at different level and stages. Being a teacher I can agree with this theory.I can tell a change with 7th graders that I teach and see some maturity from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. In the incremental model development is seen as a change that is made gradually over time. This is a contrast to the stage model which views change as abrupt. (Frederick & Belittle, 2010) Both the incremental and the ultrasonically model believe that change takes place more gradually and continuously. (Frederick & Belittle, 2010) I think that the life wheel can help explain how as human throughout our lives we evolve over time throughout our lives.It also can show at different parts of our lives we focus on one or more aspects of the life wheel. Reference: Frederick, P. C. , & Belittle, P. (2010). The life span: Human development for helping professions (3rd deed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Week Two: The Early Years: Physical: When a child is born they begin developing strength from large muscles to mall muscles. When children are young they need to do many activities to strengthen their large and small muscles.Something I realized is that muscle skill development and maintaining healthy body are essential in life later for reading, writing and math. Social/Cultural: In this stage the child develop a sense of self and a sense of belonging to a family. They begin interacting with other children and they also play in stages (playi ng alone, playing near others but not really playing with them, not wanting to share, playing and sharing, and playing with a purpose). This tag is also were the child also learn to respect the rights and feelings of others.Environmental: A child's environment plays a big role in their development. Exposure to different forms of activities that exercise the analytical and creative sides of the brain are important. Developmental: (Week 1-3 only: Reflection may include characteristics of this stage) Spiritual: The pre-stage is infancy before & language and conceptual thought. Sometime between two and seven a child enters intuitive/ projective faith marked by the rise of imagination, but lacks logic for questioning perceptions or fantasies.Next, children progress into mythic/literal faith. Here the child develops a way of dealing with the world and making meaning that now criticizes and evaluates the previous stage of imagination and fantasy. Intellectual: When a child is the brain is ready to learn and receive information. In essence the brain is like a computer, it has great potential for development. Having a great childhood greatly influences the way the child develops. Emotional: Doing this period the child will realize that the world does not revolve around them.They learn to trust and mistrust others. As toddlers, they become proud of things they accomplish and egging stating their opinions and desires. They also begin to learn to be away from to solve issues that may arise with others using words. They often control their angry and they learn that it is okay to make mistakes. Overall Reflection: After reading about development through the early years, I think that emotional and environmental developments are the most vital during this period. When we are first conceived the environment is the number factor influencing us.Pigged believed that the mind creates its own knowledge. â€Å"This constructivist stance takes the child to be an active artificial in the learning process, constantly seeking out and trying to make sense of new information. † (Frederick & Belittle, 2010) If you look at it from this point of view this is where teachers play an important part in making things catch the attention of students and making it reach them. New research is becoming available often over infant memory and recognition (Frederick & Belittle, 2010).This is true in the way that the environment plays a major role in the development process; children are a product of their environment. The belief and behaviors of children are passed down room generation to generation. There are several things that I find myself doing that both my mother and father do. I have read research that says expectant mothers that read to their infants while in the womb have smarter children. Erik Erickson believed that the early years of a child's life were important to their emotional well-being (Frederick & Belittle, 2010).He had stated that the child should be nur tured, loved, and handled well to grow into an optimistic well rounded person (Frederick & Belittle, 2010) This is a very true being a teacher I see that the students that have parents hat are active and show that they care and support their child they care have the most well rounded students that I teach. While the students that have the parents that are focused on other things those students are not as much well rounded and willing to think outside of the box. Rebellions. (3rd deed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Week Three: Middle Childhood through Early Adolescence: Physical: During the middle years, the child's growth rate is somewhat slower than in previous years, and certainly less rapid than the growth anticipated during adolescence. These changes contribute to the child's growing sense of competence in relation to his physical abilities and enhance his potential for participating in sports, dance, gymnastics, and other physical pursuits.Social/Cultural: A central task of adolescence is to develop a sense of oneself as an autonomous individual. The drive for such autonomy derives from the internal, biological processes marking the transition to a more adult role (puberty and increasing cognitive maturity) and from the shifts in social roles and expectations that accompany these underlying physiological and cognitive changes. Compared to children under age 10, teenagers re given new opportunities to experience independence outside of the home.They spend much more unsupervised time with peers which (compared to adult-child relationships) are relatively equal in terms of interpersonal power and authority. At by adults in the family, in school, and in community-based programs or activities. Environmental: The environmental changes that students experience as they move into middle-grade schools are particularly harmful in that they emphasize competition, social comparison, and self-assessment at a time when the adolescent's focus on hims elf or herself is at its height.The Junior high school's emphasis on discipline and teacher control, and its limited opportunities for student decision making, come at a time in development when adolescents are beginning to think of themselves as young adults who are becoming more responsible and deserve greater adult respect. A poor â€Å"fit† between the early adolescent and the classroom environment increases the risk of disengagement and school problems, especially for those early adolescents who were having difficulty succeeding in school academically prior to this school transition.Developmental: A central task of adolescence is to evolve a sense of oneself as an autonomous individual. The drive for such autonomy derives from the internal, biological processes marking the transition to a more adult role (puberty and increasing cognitive maturity) and from the shifts in social roles and expectations that accompany these underlying physiological and cognitive changes. Com pared to children under age 10, teenagers are given new opportunities to experience independence outside of the home.They spend much more unsupervised time with peers which (compared to adult-child relationships) are relatively equal in terms of interpersonal power and authority. At the same time, forever, they continue to rely on the support and guidance offered by adults in the family, in school, and in community-based programs or activities. Spiritual: Part of the child's development as an individual includes an emerging understanding of the life cycle?of birth, growth, aging, and death.There is an increasing awareness that life fits into a larger scheme of relationships among individuals, groups of people, other living creatures, and the earth itself. School-age children become keenly interested in these topics, especially when confronted with personal experiences such as the birth of a sibling or the death of a grandparent. As children experience these events and learn to view their personal encounters as part of a larger whole, families and communities provide important structure.They define value systems that provide children with basic principles and encourage them to examine their personal actions in light of their impact on those around them. Intellectual: The most important cognitive changes during early adolescence relate to the increasing ability of children to think abstractly, consider the hypothetical as well as the real, consider multiple dimensions of a problem at the same time, and reflect on themselves and on complicated problems.There is also a steady increase in the sophistication of children's information-processing and learning skills, their knowledge of different subjects, their ability to apply their knowledge to new learning situations, and their awareness of their own strengths and weaknesses as learners. These higher-order cognitive abilities help adolescents regulate their learning and behavior better to accomplish more complicate d and elaborate tasks. Emotional: Children in this period need both the freedom of personal expression and the structure of expectations and guidelines that they can understand and accept.Opportunities to interact with other hillier during this period without excessive adult interference is important, same time, children need to have positive interactions with adults, reinforcing their sense of self-esteem, self-worth, and belief in their capability of personal success Overall Reflection: Adolescence and middle childhood, although a time for exploration and the excitement of freedom and gaining maturity, is also a time of struggle when teens work endlessly to identify themselves and come to terms with forthcoming adulthood and separation from family (Berger, 2008).Changes in the intensity of peer relationships help the adolescents in self-discovery and surmount he difficulties of their heightened sense of self. Peer pressure supports the adolescent, although the choice of friends ca n be either a help or a hindrance depending on the interests of the peers. Adolescence is a time of self-centeredness and self-consciousness when peer pressure can be immense.As teens face social pressures that include experimentation with drugs and other substances, sexuality, and a changing perspective on relationships, their strong social network and the guidance of familial alliances are powerful relationships that mitigate stress during this time. These stages of development include significant changes physically, mentally, and emotionally. The choices made by individuals during these stages have both positive and negative consequences for the individual, his or her peers, and his or her families.Adolescence begins when a flood of hormones triggers puberty, usually between the age of 10 and 14. The release of sex-specific hormones of androgen's and estrogen by the gonads produce physical and psychological changes. Maturation and increased efficiency of organs and muscles follow a major growth spurt (Berger, 2008). Berger, K. S. (2008). The developing person through the life span (7th deed. ). New York: Worth Week Four: Young to Middle Adulthood: Physical: In this stage young adults complete the process of physical maturation, usually attaining full adult height.Secondary sexual characteristics, such as size of penis and breasts, are completed. Your organs and systems are all operating at peak efficiency in young adulthood, roughly ages 21 to 39. Your body has grown, and your physical potential is set. You can take advantage of that by eating correctly and by working out to get stronger. This is the time in life when you can reach your peak physically. The growth spurt that came during puberty set the ground work for what you are capable of becoming as a young adult.Your body will respond to activities such as running, cardiac training, weight training and diet more predictably during young adulthood than it could when you were in puberty. Social/Cultural: Some of the social changes include divorce, changes in employment (either reaching the peak of career or being unemployable for being â€Å"overqualified†), caring for elderly relatives, and difference in parental responsibilities (either taking them on for later life parents or starting over for some empty nest parents). Arming their own families and invest little in post-secondary education.Doing this period the young adult moves out of their parents home and begin to start their own home. Leaving the parental home to establish one's own residence, establishing financial independence, completing school, moving into full-time employment, getting married, and becoming a parent are considered key markers of adulthood (Booth, Grouter, and Shannon, 1999). Occupational (Week 4 and 5): During this stage young adults move into adult roles and responsibilities and may learn a trade, work, and/or pursue higher education.They identify career goals and prepare to achieve them. Spiritu al: Intellectual: In this stage of life adults fully understand abstract concepts and are aware of consequences and personal limitations. Often times they secure their autonomy and build and test their decision making skills. Often they develop new skills, hobbies, and adult interests. Emotional: Doing this stage of life children become adults, they move into adult relationships with their parents. They begin to see their friends as a less important and begin to think for themselves.They are more empathetic and have greater intimacy skills. Carry some feelings of invincibility. Establish lasting self image and begin to feel self-worth. Overall Reflection: Middle adulthood is a complex time period that requires a multidimensional outlook to understand all of the processes and changes that are taking place. The many changes during middle adulthood include physical, cognitive and social differences. During middle adulthood biological and physical changes become apparent.During this tim e visual perception, hearing and the reproductive system decline. Adults who have never worn glasses or contact lenses may start needing visual correction. During this time adults may also need more light to see than their younger friends. However, the actual time when one is considered an adult varies from theorists to theorists and can range anywhere from 18 to 25 years of age (Frederick & Belittle, 2010). There are also cognitive changes during middle adulthood. There is a mixed pattern of positive and negative changes in cognitive abilities.Processing speed starts to decrease during this time period however crystallized thought does not decline until older age Working memory begins to decline however semantic memory continues to increase as we learning throughout our older years. Theorists such as Chase, Erikson, Valiant, Elevations, Jung, Gould, and soon have all described stages or phases in life- task change (Frederick & Belittle, 2010). Theorist have shown that all adults se em to go through the same stages of changes in middle adulthood (Frederick & Belittle, 2010). Professionals. 3rd deed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ:Pearson Education, Inc. Physical: Often times the person become less active and the health begin declining. Sometimes at this age you will find older people that are very active and in better shape than some of the younger adults. Social/Cultural: The person has friends that hey spend most of their time with and are very comfortable with the person that they are. Environmental: Often times at this age you will find older parents living at home with their students or either in a personal care home.Occupational (Week 4 and 5): Doing this stage in life the person has either retired from the career or Job. Sometimes you will find older adults retired but working part time to remain active in not settle with the end of life. Spiritual: Most older adults often face many losses as they age, so doing the lifetime they often turn to religion and to spirituality as ways to Andre their losses. A lot of older adults can often quote spirituals from the bible. Intellectual: Doing this stage the mind gets weaker. They become unable to react quickly, or solve puzzles quickly than they could when they were younger.They don't think less, Just become slower Emotional: Sometimes in this age the older adult is faced with depression since they often have faced many losses be that from children, spouses, and/or friends. Overall Reflection: Erikson felt that much of life is preparing for the middle adulthood stage and the last stage is recovering from it. Perhaps that s because as older adults we can often look back on our lives with happiness and are content, feeling fulfilled with a deep sense that life has meaning and we've made a contribution to life, a feeling Erikson calls integrity.Our strength comes from a wisdom that the world is very large and we now have a detached concern for the whole of life, accepting death as the completion o f life. Aging starts during the middle adult stage then it will continue to intensify until the person reaches the end. As aging progress, the body also progress, we slowly die as our neurons in the brain die, and our skins sag. Aging is inevitable it happens to everybody, we suggest that we should be happy up to the last day we live and not live in the stage of Erikson, which is the despair.Maintaining good health becomes more challenging with age, as the immune system becomes progressively less effective†¦ And as the cardiovascular, respiratory, and organ systems function less adequately' (Frederick & Belittle, 2010). On the other hand, some adults may reach this stage and despair at their experiences and perceived failures. They may fear death as they struggle to find a purpose to their lives, wondering â€Å"Was the trip worth it? Alternatively, they may feel they have all the answers (not unlike going back to adolescence) and end with a strong dogmatism that only their vi ew has been correct.

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Scaffolding Instruction Strategies

Scaffolding refers to the educational technique of delivering content gradually to support high-quality and organic learning. A teacher that scaffolds their instruction unfolds new material slowly and builds numerous supports into their teaching, moving on only when every student has reached comprehension. The Purpose of Scaffolded Instruction The goal of scaffolding is to meet students at their ability level and guide them to grow one step at a time. This learning follows logical patterns of progression and keeps supports in place until students are able to demonstrate proficiency without them. Scaffolding should not be reserved for students with disabilities and English language learners—this practice is fundamental to all effective and equitable teaching. By layering new knowledge onto existing knowledge, students have stronger and broader foundations of understanding. Scaffolding provides more opportunities for accommodating students individual needs along the way than more traditional teaching methods. Strategies for Scaffolding Scaffolding your teaching requires the use of many different strategies, all of which aim to make learning more meaningful and therefore more prosperous for students. Use these techniques to design supportive instruction. Activate Prior Knowledge Take advantage of what your students already know. Scaffold your instruction by reminding your students what they have learned and helping them fit new information into their brains by finding out what they already know about concepts you havent taught yet. Prior knowledge also includes a students personal experiences and areas of expertise. Rather than ignoring differences between your students in an effort to level the playing field, draw on each set of unique knowledge to teach the whole class. Encourage students to connect learning to their own lives and share these connections with others. Break It Down Break new material down into bite-sized pieces and check in with students often. Scaffolded instruction should resemble a staircase where every new concept has its own stair. Rather than delivering complicated content all at once and testing for understanding at the end, give challenging concepts their own room to breathe and assess student progress as it is happening. Ask questions to make sure all students understand before taking another step together. Teach Students to Learn (and Practice) One of the defining features of scaffolded instruction is student-directed learning. Scaffolding emphasizes the importance of equipping students with tools that allow them to guide their own learning and giving them plenty of space to practice using them. Scaffolding makes the journey just as important as the destination Give your students strategies rather than answers. Encourage them to practice asking their own questions, making predictions, and drawing conclusions and teach them that its okay when they are wrong. Scaffolding allows students to take charge so that they are prepared to approach any problem, not just the one right in front of them. Model Always show desired outcomes before students complete a task. Show, dont tell, is one of many mantras that teachers who practice scaffolding follow. Help your students to see exactly what success looks like, whether that is a line of questioning they should follow or an example of a finished product, so that they have something to reference when it is time for them to independently demonstrate proficiency. Practice modeling thought processes, activities, and skills every time you teach new information. Provide Context Motivate your students and make information easier to understanding by providing its context. Front-load new topics with all the details necessary for understanding them. Students are too often asked to learn new material in a vacuum and then expected to apply it correctly but the best learning happens when teachers help students make connections and give big pictures and themes instead of seemingly unrelated pieces. Some examples of helpful context include: Timelines for historical events—teaching when things happened as well as what happened. This makes it easier to understand how events fit together.Teaching key vocabulary terms before reading a text to boost comprehension.Explaining the reasons for applying a mathematical strategy before showing students how to use it so they can practice applying it as intended. Use Cues and Supports Scaffolding is not possible without supports—take advantage of several. Visual and verbal aids and cues make information easier to understand, remember, and apply. Use organizational tools such as graphic organizers, visuals such as charts and photographs, and verbal cues such as mnemonic devices and chants as training wheels as students learn until they fully understand and no longer need these scaffolds. Good teaching is about making information stick, not drilling it and hoping that it does on its own.