Good evening all

Did you know the government can cause harm to students?

Now go back to when you were in school and think about all those big benchmark exams. Bubbling in those twenty four questions deciding if it's A or B while your hands are aching. As I stand here in front of you all today, thinking back to when I was bubbling in Tamir Harper. Which is the only information they would ever know about me because there is know section where I can bubble in that I am A Philadelphia Youth Commissioner.  Now come back and imagine instead of those big benchmark exams, they are projects where you are able to collaborate with your peers and ask for help when needed. Project base means exactly what it says.

So now lets discuss an important topic for students, parents and educators everywhere. Know I'm not here to discuss funding in schools or why school sucks but I am here to discuss something that is equal to that. Which is Standardized Testing. Yes, Standardized testing is just as big as funding our schools or stopping bullying. But this affects everyone.

I begin advocating for youth once I became a student at Science Leadership Academy, a Philadelphia magnet school which focuses on Project Based Learning.  

Standardized test affect everyone even students that have low funding in their schools or getting bullied or students like myself that go to project based schools.

You are forced to sit in front of a test that measures how smart you are. How your teacher have been teaching through the year and your capabilities. Why? That's a question that I have been asking for about 6 years now. Why do I have to sit here in front of this test? I now know the answer. Do you?

Its to measure out how smart you are. Why? I don't know. Do you? I have been wanting to know this answer because this is not the only way the government can figure out how smart you are. Instead of sitting in front of a test how about they test your creativity by making you create an amazing project or by asking you to go teach a first grade class. There's other ways. These test does not do anything except make you feel as dumb as a rock and make you feel as though you were cheated out of an education which is not the case.

As a student I have experienced all of those problems. As a middle school student I was one of the last students and the most frustrated student during the Standardized Test.

But know. The Government likes it there way. Did you know in the state of Pennsylvania you are required to pass Keystones in order to graduate high school? After the PA government decided to put this rule in effect The School District Of Philadelphia projects a forty three percent decrease in graduation in the school year of 2016-2017. Already the district graduation rate was only at sixty five percent. With that project it will decrease to twenty two percent.

Lets make a change. Lets not make our students go through this emotional journey. This is not fair this is not okay and change must be made to the laws of Standardized Testing.

A good friend of mine Seyni Ndaw once said. ¨I am more than a standardized test because... A test score does not determine my learning journey.¨ But once PA determined that High School students were not able to graduate without passing test. It defined her learning journey in a classroom.

Why are we making our students stress about a Standardized test? Why are we making students stop learning for five weeks just to do test prep? Why? We could be using those five weeks to prepare them for next year or maybe prepare them for life. But instead we cover classrooms up and make students feel like trash.

I want everyone here today to go and ask a youth how they feel about standardized testing. Go to your Mayor and Governor office to challenge them on different laws on Standardized Testing. Government officials I challenge each and everyone of you to sit in a classroom and take a standardized test.

- Testing does not define me, my goals or my creativity.

The Life Of Reconstruction Newsletter is a new once in a lifetime newspaper. You may only see this type of newspaper once and a lifetime. While you're reading this newspaper made by Tamir Harper set 1871 you will notice small and accurate details. After you're done reading my personal paper you will be able to understand many things. Such as the reason I decided to write this newspaper, why it matters, and I’m going to throw in some

Many people wonder why I decided to discuss the name change of Blacks. But I believe this is an important topic for all races to understand the change of name over time. In the newspaper I decided to pick a total of four years and decided to look at one speech from an important figure of that time. As I set there and read the many different speeches I was shocked by the names of the time. The speeches looked as though we were improving and then Joseph Rainey decided to use all three of the names in different contexts. So as you were reading you may have been shocked as well and learned that time comes with change but there can always be a relapse.

Why does this matter? I think this matter due to the fact that the change of names is extremely important. As we are going through this tough time in the world with equal rights and police brutality. I think that every Black person should know the names they were called once before there time.  

As you read and look over the newspaper you may not see every detail. One, thing that every person may not see or understand is the photo with the three words used to address Blacks. That photo was a collage of photos of the different words over different time periods. The details is also different. Instead of picking a person that everyone knew during that time zone I attempted to pull quotes and details that people don’t know much about. To allow people to learn and research.

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” -Barack Obama

Sources Page Link: https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1jsf_e9t-9m2wtSNt20OMVtEaJYQ_QesiqnFZ7c1t76k/edit?usp=sharing

I.R.C.P.R SLA

Hola, soy Desarae Gilbert(add your groups names)! Somos estudiantes de Science Leadership Academy. Está en el centro de Filadelfia y está cerca de Comcast Building, el Franklin Institute y el Kimmel Center. Es bastante divertido, interactivo y muy interesante. Hay 484 estudiantes y 19 profesores. Hay 4 pisos pero técnicamente hay 5. Amamos a nuestros Chromebooks. Ofrecemos muchos deportes y actividades como fútbol y beisbol. También ofrecemos clubes como CIC y poetry club. Participo en CIC porque quiero ayudar a mi comunidad. Los miércoles, unos estudiantes van a la Franklin Institute. Participamos en las clases que son de 1 hora y 5 minutos.

En Science Leadership Academy tenemos muchas clases como español, bioquímica, inglés, tecnología y muchos más. Nuestra clase favorita es almuerza. Nos encanta relajarnos y comer haciendo durante almuerzo. En todas clases necesitamos una computadora y una bata de laboratorio. Todas clases es mucho importante. Usted necesario trabajo muy duro a tener éxito. Clases es mucho de divertido. En Clases hacemos mucho actividades divertidos tal como disección y aprender espanol canciones y muchos más. La profesora es Señorita Manuel. Ella es cómica, divertida1, inteligente y muy talentosa. El director es el Señor Lehmann. El Señor Lehmann es un trabajador, comico, deportista y muy inteligente.

        La Srta. Manuel enseña español. Me gusta como ella enseña en clase. Es bastante cómica, habladora y boba. La Srta. Jonas enseña historia de los africanos-americanos. Enseña muy bien. Es delgada, sociable y simpática. El Sr. Kay es el profesor favorito de Tamir. Enseña inglés y teatro. Le gusta actuar, leer y practicar deportes.

Los estudiantes de SLA son diferentes, creativos, sociables, listos and trabajadores…¡y chéveres! Hablamos en la cafetería. Estudiamos y trabajamos bien juntos.

         Nos encanta SLA porque es desafiante y tenemos grandes sueños para el futuro. Lo que más nos gusta de SLA es las actividades y los clases. Tenemos muchos proyectos y nos gusta.

Para más información, www.scienceleadership.org

Why is net neutrality important for teens to know about?

How much do you know about net neutrality? If not much come sit in Mrs.Hull tech class to find out more! The information below is facts and opinions. Everyone may have a different views. The information below touch base on two things; one being that net neutrality is important for the safety of teens and adults and finally that it is important so everyone can have equal internet connection.

Net neutrality is very important for the safety of teens and adults. It allows us freedom of speech over the web. There are over 2 billion people that uses the web daily and should be able to type and say whatever they please. This is so important to the citizens of the internet because it allows you to express yourself through words/ comments over the web. Also, if you are not able to do so it can cause extreme anger and would be against the Declaration Of Independance.

Net neutrality is important also because it suppose to allows all teens to have equal internet connections. Without this I.S.P.S can allow someone to receive slower internet or close to no internet at all. The more you pay the faster your internet. Personally that would not be far to low income families because if they can not afford as much internet as a millionare they internet service will pretty much be off. Finally, it is important for everyone to have equal internet connection so that no one will have a fast lane or anything else. Everyone will be equal.

The information above is facts and it is also my opinion. People may disagree but this is right for everyone that uses internet. If the President Of The United States think this is important and he think we should keep it. The internet should be equal for everyone no matter what. Also, I.S.P.S should not attempt to take advantage of people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_neutrality

http://www.whitehouse.gov/net-neutrality

http://www.savetheinternet.com/net-neutrality