Blog Feed

Create a Post

Cuts in the Budget

Posted by Teige Dougherty on
​ The school district of Philadelphia has set forth severally strict budget cuts. In total they are cutting 1.1 billion dollars. This effects me very strongly because both of my new advisors are being laid off because of the budget cuts. Another way that this affects me, is that all sports are being cut off at this school, and I was hoping to play soccer next year. Now I won't be able to do this.
There is money for the districts but instead of putting the money toward us they put it toward building more jails. This is because it costs the school district close to $4000 per child, and it costs only $3500 to keep a prisoner incarcerated.
Their reasoning for cutting the money is simple. They say that we have been over funded for the past couple of years and we are just being returned to our normal funding. 
I wonder if all school districts are going through the same thing or if it has been mismanaged. I will research other states budget cuts and see if they cut education as much as they did in Philadelphia

Cites: http://www.philly.com/philly/insights/in_education/121070948.html

http://articles.philly.com/2011-03-30/news/29362102_1_budget-cuts-students-rally-budget-proposal

http://articles.philly.com/2011-04-26/news/29474843_1_voucher-supporters-voucher-legislation-voucher-issue

Me and the World- The Energy Crisis

Posted by Jonathan Spencer in English 1 - Dunn on
The worlds is in the middle of an energy problem. We don't have enough of it! The world consumes to much energy to fast. The chart below shows current energy usage (dark blue) from 1990-Now and what it is expected to be (orange) up until 2035. 
figure_12-lg
figure_12-lg
In 1990 the world used 355 Quadrillion Btus. By 2035 it is expected that the world will be using 739 Quadrillion Btus. The world energy usage level has increased by an average of 1.4% each year since 1990. By the way, 1 Btu is equal to 0.29307107 watt-hours. Even though that may seem small a quadrillion is 16 zeros.
The problem is that the renewable energy sources out there is that they are costly to set up and people don't like change. Many people also don't have faith in how useful these energy sources are. That is why I am posting these blogs. I want to let people know how serious the energy crisis is and the ways that we can fix this.
People are to afraid of change to what can help save the world and also make electricity cheaper just because it would cause job losses. Renewable energy doesn't have a lot of jobs that it needs besides maintenance.
Sources
World Energy Consumption

EIA - 2010 International Energy Outlook - World Energy Demand and Economic Outlook

Is Your Future Worth Enough

Posted by Robert Jenkins in English 1 - Dunn on

Education is one of the most valuable things in a person life and it is only better if it is allowed to be taught to best potential. But lately this has been hindered in the Philadelphia area. This is all the cause of School Budget Cuts. This is an important topic in the Philadelphia community because it greatly affects what type of education that thousands of kids will get. As of now I know that some of possible budget cuts for next year are....

  • 22 million out of kindergarten funding. Which causes half days only for kindergarteners.
  • No extended days programs, which was used to help 11,000 students a year.
  • 430 central office jobs lost.
  • Gifted and Talented Education cut 50%.

This list goes on much longer but what I wonder is how this will affect extra curricular activities such as basketball, football, and others. Which do many as a gateway to college scholarships use. Next blog I will bring more information on how this budget breakdown affects sports.






Screen shot 2011-05-26 at 9.58.01 AM
Screen shot 2011-05-26 at 9.58.01 AM

Bad jokez

Posted by Harrison Talese-Rhodes in Storytelling - Chase on
I live for bad jokes. Seriously. What do you call an alligator in a vest?

An investigator.

Come on, now; admit it. That's comedy gold.

I love telling jokes that I know other people won't find funny, because it leaves me with the unique challenge of making them laugh with my own reaction. I've pretty much mastered as many funny laughs as I'm ever going to use. And I've a relatively good track record when it comes to over-explaining the joke and getting laughs that way. It's easy to be clever when you start at a jaw-droppingly unfunny baseline.

A Day in the Life...

Posted by Devon Thomas in Globalization - Laufenberg on
For this assignment, I did a day in the life of a 12 year old Kuwaiti boy. Life in Kuwait is similar to the United States in regards to Education, because you must go to school until you are 14 years of age. Religious views of Kuwaiti Natives are different, therefore in the evenings men have social gatherings, and women take care of the children's homework and dinner.

A Day in the Life - Japan

Posted by Taniera Reid in Globalization - Laufenberg on
Reflection: The life of Japan, surprisingly, is similar to my own. Aside from the fact that Japanese children don't have to face as much peer pressure as I do, A teenager in Japan and myself are very similar. When I was 12, I did basically what a child in Japan did. The thing that was most surprising was the fact that I could actually have more things than I though in common with a person my age from Japan. A 40 year olds life in Japan should be extremely successful. Considering the fact that education is so heavily weighed upon, there should be no reason a 12 year old, 28 years later is not successful in whatever he/she does with his/her life. 

Citation:

N/a, . "A Day at School." Web-Japan. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 May 2011. <http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/explore/schools/q9.html>.

Screen shot 2011-05-02 at 12.26.49 PM
Screen shot 2011-05-02 at 12.26.49 PM

Tarea de Nathan

Posted by Nathan Kamal in Spanish 4 - Manuel on
el-llano
​1)​Me gustaría ir a los llanos. Todo los pastos y los montanas en el paisaje son muy tranquillos. Me gusta la humedad, y probablamente es mas limpio que los estados undios. Quiero ir a un lugar donde la vida es meños ocupado, y mas sencillo. Iría en los caminos de montañas, y dormiría mucho.

firm believer.

Posted by Catherine Young in Storytelling - Chase on
Is it me or this is like a twilight? This is.. weird.. strange.. Why are we celebrating the brutal killing of a man? The world is getting more and more demonic to me everyday. People don't realize that this is not good. This is the beginning of something terrible. Frankly, I just want to see me 21 birthday. There's a war in the city and there's a war in the Middle East. I'm scared. I don't understand and I just want to live a normal life not in fear.

A Day in the Life

Posted by Catherine Young in Globalization - Laufenberg on
Life in Malawi for a 12yo boy or girl is simple. They are to wake up at dawn, help with warming water, meal and any other things needed around the home. If the do go to school they are to walk to their school house which is usually more then 1 mile away. School hours are normally from 8 to 3. when they come home they are to repeat the same steps from the morning. They also are to do their homework, pump water from the well or go into town for grocery shopping, bringing back in all the livestock and creating a fire for warmth.


Screen shot 2011-05-02 at 10.26.09 AM
Screen shot 2011-05-02 at 10.26.09 AM

Osama is dead.

Posted by Evett Hawks in Storytelling - Chase on
​Twitter blew up cause of that  and to be honest i was as excited as everyone else. Call me what you want but the only thing i can give is a slow clap and unenthusiastic yay.Sorry is'nt really something i can be solely excited about i know what he did and everyone was upset i get it, but still it can't really pull a reaction out of me. all i can say is "good job america here's a sticker keep it up". 

Starting the Road to Safety and Self Confidence

Posted by Nicholas Doroba in English 1 - Dunn on
Teenage Suicide is one of the leading causes of death for teenagers - its the third leading cause. So, even though we do not hear a great deal about teen suicide, it is a very real problem, causing the deaths of thousands of teenagers across the country each year. I want to know how we can make the world a not only a safe place, but a comfortable place and starting out with teens seems like the right place to start because after all we are the next generation to inherit the world. Teen suicide attempts are calls for help. Many teenagers have thoughts of death. These can stem from a variety of causes, and can result in actual attempts on their own lives. It is important to take suicide attempts seriously. 

National Institute of Mental Health believes that as many as 25 suicides are attempted for each one that is completed. That means that for every teen suicide that you hear of, there are probably at least 25 suicide attempts made. And this does not even cover the teenage suicide attempts and completed suicides that are never heard about. Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than females. However, teen girls are more likely than teen boys to attempt suicide. So, even though teenage girls make more attempts on their own lives than teenage boys, the boys are more likely to actually complete a suicide attempt.


Studies show that 4 out of 5 teen suicide attempts have been preceded by clear warning signs.
Teen suicide warning signs:

It is important to take the warning signs of teen suicide seriously and to seek help if you thing that you know a teenager who might be suicidal. Here are some of the things to look for: 

  • Disinterest in favorite extracurricular activities 
  • Problems at work and losing interest in a job 
  • Substance abuse, including alcohol and drug (illegal and legal drugs) use
  • Behavioral problems 
  • Withdrawing from family and friends 
  • Sleep changes 
  • Changes in eating habits 
  • Begins to neglect hygiene and other matters of personal appearance 
  • Emotional distress brings on physical complaints (aches, fatigues, migraines) 
  • Hard time concentrating and paying attention 
  • Declining grades in school
  • Loss of interest in schoolwork 
  • Risk taking behaviors 
  • Complains more frequently of boredom 
  • Does not respond as before to praise
Teen suicide statistics offer a look at the most likely causes of teen suicide. Some of the strongest teenage suicide risk factors include the following: 
  • Aggressive behavior 
  • Disruptive behavior
  • Substance abuse
  • Depression
In many cases, they don’t know how to deal with their feelings and problems and are looking for someone to help them find assistance. Acknowledging these warning signs and seeking help for the problem, and offering support to a teenager who is working through his or her issues is very important, and can help prevent suicide. Teen suicide is a very real danger, and heeding the warning signs can truly save a life.

I wonder how parents, families, and friends can prevent teenage suicide and how we can evolve a better world to comfort teenagers to help them over come suicidal thoughts. For my next blog I will research how we could prevent teenage suicide. In further research I am going to find out about suicides related to LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transexual, and Questioning) and why LGBTQ 'victims' lie or hide their true feelings and how depression relates to teen suicide. ]

Bibliography:
To read more information read here.

Sazon

Posted by Andre Serrano in Spanish 4 - Manuel on
​¿Cómo se llama el restaurante? ¿Qué significa?
El restaurante se llama Sazon.

¿Hay jugo de naranja?
No hay jugo de naranja.

¿Hay té de coca?
No hay te.

¿Hay mariscos? ¿Qué tipo?
Si, hay pargo guisado. 

¿Hay sopas y ensaladas?
Si, hay sopas y ensaladas.

¿Hay flan?
Si, hay flan.

¿Hay hamburguesas? ¿Son parecidas (the same as) a las hamburguesas de McDonald's?
Si, hay hamburguesas, pero no el mismo que McDonalds.

¿Te gustaría comer en este restaurante?
Claro que si! Senorita manuel paga?

¿Qué pedirías si pudieras comer allí?
Comería bistec encebollado.

¿Y de beber?
Bebería jugo de tamarindo

¿Qué no te apetecería comer? Pabellon vegetenario. 





Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead

Posted by Andre Serrano in Storytelling - Chase on
With what might be mistaken as an attempt to get viewers away from The Celebrity Apprentice, President Obama announced to the world at 11:30 pm that the US has killed Osama Bin Laden and has his body in custody. This ends a 10 year chase for the man who blew up the world trade center and was responsible for the death of thousands of American Lives. Although this won't end terrorism, this is a huge victory for America, bringing vengeance  to the people who died on 9/11 and dethroning the face of terrorism and a huge anti-American movement in the middle east.

USA USA USA

Tarea 29/4/11 - San Antonio de los Altos

Posted by Elisa Hyder in Spanish 4 - Manuel on
Cuando vivia en Venezuela como una niña, mi familia y yo vivimos en los montañas cerca de la ciudad de San Antonio de los Altos. Pues, si tuveria la oportunidad de viajar a Venezuela otra vez, gustaría ir ayí. Gustaría ir a los tiendas y hablar con los ciudadanos. También, iría a los montañas. 
vista-San-Antonio-de-los-Al
vista-San-Antonio-de-los-Al

E4 Clase 02/05/11

Posted by Melanie Manuel on
Hay un restaurante venezolano muy popular en Filadelfia. Está en la calle 9 y Spring Garden. Aquí está la carta.

Contesta las siguientes preguntas:
  1. ¿Cómo se llama el restaurante? ¿Qué significa?
  2. ¿Hay jugo de naranja?
  3. ¿Hay té de coca?
  4. ¿Hay mariscos? ¿Qué tipo?
  5. ¿Hay sopas y ensaladas?
  6. ¿Hay flan?
  7. ¿Hay hamburguesas? ¿Son parecidas (the same as) a las hamburguesas de McDonald's?
  8. ¿Te gustaría comer en este restaurante?
  9. ¿Qué pedirías si pudieras comer allí?
  10. ¿Y de beber?
  11. ¿Qué no te apetecería comer?