Catherine Young
American Government
Benchmark
Reflection
The way I went about deciding what were my items were going to be was based on what I do everyday. It wasn’t hard figuring our what impacts my life because I thought about what I do and what governmental links it has. After choosing my twelve topics, finding out information was not hard at all. This process what not hard at all. The only thing that seemed to be hard was finding out ways that the topics were negative when they are made to be positive. After reviewing all the topics and seeing how they directly affect my life I noticed that as I get older this will effect me more along with other laws as well. Because I am a minor today it will be less likely that more laws apply to me instead of for me. For example, I am my parents responsibility until I turn 18.
Legislative
- Unites States of America . Pennsylvannia: Department of Labor & Industry . Philadelphia : Commonwealth of Pennsylvannia , 1997. Web. 19 Jan 2011. <http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=553526&mode=2>.
The Pennsylvania Curfew Law prevents adolescents under the age of 18 for students to be outside or not in their place of residency past a certain time. It became a law in 1999. The purpose of the law was to reduce juvenile crime and thus promote the community welfare, to reduce perpetration of crime on juveniles that may be vulnerable during curfew hours, and promote and support the parent-child relationship and provide an additional layer of supervision when appropriate. In Philadelphia teens under the age of 18 are not allowed to stay outside on weekdays past 11pm, and on weekends past the time of 1am. This has a negative impact on my life because there are students who work and have jobs that last longer past 11pm. As a result of getting pulled over or caught past the time of being out past curfew teens will be taken to a holding cell and have to be picked up by a parent or guardian.
- Unites States of America . Pennsylvania Alcohol Laws. Philadelphia : Commonwealth of Pennsylvannia , 2007. Web. 19 Jan 2011. <http://www.alcohollaws.org/pennsylvaniaalcohollaws.html>.
The Pennsylvania law states that a person under the age of 21 shall not attempt to purchase, purchases, consume, possesses or knowingly and intentionally transports any liquor, malt or brewed beverages. A person under 18 who is caught drinking or trying to buy alcoholic beverage will be sentenced to a find not more than $500 or a subsequent violation penalty. For me this is a very good law although it should be enforced better. Teens can but liquor easily but I think having a law that in a way scared teens from drinking not only keeps us healthy but also enforced people no not drink and drive. It allows me to be smarter and take better care of my body. I think that without a drinking law more DUI deaths would be reported, more teens would have more prominent health problems, or dying of intoxication.
- United States of America . School District of Philadelphia . Philadelphia : Commonwealth of Pennsylvannia , 2007. Web. 17 Sep 2010. http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/ceo/nclb/
The No Child Left behind act is law that was passed by George W Bush on January 8, 2002. The purpose of this law was to control what was being educated to students in public/state schools. What this law does is create standardized testing in all public schools around the country that are mandatory and must be given to students. To me this law is very biased and unethical. The law prevents money to be given to schools that do not abide by the Federal Law because they are public. I think that it categorized students instead of seeing what their personal strengths points are and are not. It is a easier way to pull students through the school system and lacks creativity. Testing is not an appropriate way all the time to express what a student knows. And should not be a main factor in passing a student.
- Unites States of America . Pennsylvania Child Labor Law . Philadelphia : Commonwealth of Pennsylvannia , 2001. Web. 19 Jan 2011. http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/ceo/nclb/
The PA child labor law states that there will be restrictions for minors (under the age of 16). These laws include, prohibiting their employment or work in certain establishments and occupations, under certain ages, restricting their hours of labor, regulating certain conditions of their employment, and for minors under the age of 18 the law requires employment certificates (general or vacation). Minors under the age of 14 may not be employed or permitted to work in occupation (unless it is a domestic service in a family farm or home). Any child under the age of 12 is allowed to be cast in a motion picture with the right permits. This act became law in 1997 due to the rapid high-school drops outs that began to occur, and inappropriate work environments minors found themselves in. the child labor law is a positive law because it puts restrictions on work environments that are stable enough for minors to balance out the act of going to school and working. It also protects us from working in extreme environments, being taken advantage of by adults or employers, that we may not know we are or understand how to change it.
Executive
- "Federal Student Aid - About Us." Federal Student Aid. N.p., Jun. 28,2010. Web. 18 Jan 2011. <http://federalstudentaid.ed.gov/about/index.html>.
FAFSA is the nationwide acronym for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The U.S. Department of Education, ensures that all eligible individuals can benefit from federally funded financial assistance for education beyond high school, such as college. Federal Student Aid is essential when enrolling role in postsecondary education by providing money for college to eligible students and families. Governmental FAFSA partners with postsecondary schools, financial institutions to deliver services that provide federal monies for school only. This is very positive for me because I am eligible for financial aid. My top choice college is American University and it costs $56,000 a year. By filling out the Federal Student Aid, it allows me to obtain help from the government to pay for college, thus far impacting my life positively.
- Pennsylvania. , 2011. Web. 18 Jan 2011. <http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennsylvania_system_of_school_assessment_%28pssa%29/8757>.
The PSSA is a standards-based, criteria referenced assessment test used in Pennsylvania to measure a student's success in the academic standards while also determining the degree to which school programs enable students to attain proficiency of the standards. Pennsylvania requires any student in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11 to be assessed in reading, writing, math and some science sections. Every Pennsylvania student in grades 5, 8 and 11 is assessed in writing. The PSSA negatively impacts my life, because although the PSSA test is suppose to provide the rules and same regimen as the SAT, it judges students as well as myself on work that we may or may not know and puts us in a category. The PSSA does not allow students to ask questions or have assistance when working through it. The way people students interpret questions are very different, and the way we think is very different. A student may know the answer but may not interpret the question in the same way as the test or someone else. Also we are required to take the PSSA as well as the SAT, the difference between the two is that one counts towards your secondary learning choice (SAT) and one doesn't. The way you perform on a test is not just determined b what you know, but by environment, time, health etc.
- "Getting Your Learner's Permit." Pennsylvania Department Of Transportation. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan 2011. <http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/teenDriversCenter/obtainingLearnersPermit.shtml>.
The Pennsylvania Learner's Permit is issued to any individual, 16 or older, who has never been licensed to operate a vehicle, new residents who has never been licensed, or a new resident who has been licensed in another state. To obtain the permit before the license, you must follow certain steps, such as a completed divers license (if under the age 18), you must have proof of identity, two proofs of residency, a S.S card, and a check or money order payable to PennDOT for the appropriate fee. Although this process is suppose to be helpful in the PA system for driving but this causes a lot of chaos during the process. The institutions create too many unnecessary steps in during the process.
- "Workforce Development." DHS Support Centers. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan 2011.<http://dhs.phila.gov/intranet/scintrahome_pub.nsf/Content/Workforce+Development+-+Additional+Info+-+Permit+Info>.
In Pennsylvania children are required to receive working permits when they reach the age of 14 before they are permitted to be employed. Any minor under the age of 18 years must get one or two employment certificates. If a minor does not have a working permit should not and it is illegal to be permitted to be hired at any occupation. Minors who are still enrolled in school are required to obtain a vacation employment certificate, which allows them to work when school is not in session or after school, weekends and vacations. Without the proper paperwork and the criteria it takes to be allowed to work I would not be allowed too. Working papers, the setup, and boundaries that are set forth allow me to work in appropriate work conditions. Because I an allowed to work it gives me opportunity to provide things that I may want for myself and give me the work experience I will need for when I get older.
Judicial
- Unites States of America . Brown v. Board of Education. Washington D.C : , 1995. Web. 19 Jan 2011. http://www.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/ceo/nclb/
Brown vs. Board of Education is one of the most important court cases of our time. It was one of the first steps in the education equality, and civil rights of African Americans. This directly affects me in a positive way because I am not ‘allowed’ to be educated in any institution with other races. What the cases argued was how wrong is was that black children were denied admission to public schools attended by white children under laws requiring or permitting segregation according to races state by state. The courts decision was with Brown for his argument that segregation in schools causes African Americans to feel inferior and argued that “separate but equal is inherently unequal in the context of public education.” Overall without this court case the setup of schools around the U.S and the process it would have taken would still cause racial tension today if not had been given when it was.
- Unites States of America . Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District. Washington D.C : U.S.A, 2009. Web. 19 Jan 2011. http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/cas/comm/free_speech/tinker.html
Thinker vs. Des Moines was a court herring that took place in the 1969 around the time of the Vietnam War. Three students attending a school in Iowa protested against the war by wearing black wristbands to school. As a result the students were suspended due to the decision of the principals who believed that by wearing the armbands it would provoke disturbances in the school. The student’s ad their parents argued that this was a direct violation of the First Amendment for freedom f speech, press and assembly. This court case was important for not only the country as a whole but for students, and the idea that disagreeing doesn’t always mean wrong. As we see today in the governmental parties the disagreements between the Liberals, Democrats, and Republicans has caused a series of unfortunate events. It reminds us of the way America was set up to be and how everyone opinions should be valued and respected, even if you do not agree. For myself, I know that I have the right to freedom of speech, in school, as long as it doesn’t cause disruption in the school environment.
- "NEW JERSEY V. T.L.O., 469 U. S. 325 (1985)." Justia.com. U.S. Supreme Court Center, n.d. Web. 19 Jan 2011. <http://supreme.justia.com/us/469/325/case.html>.
In 1985, a New Jersey high school student was arrested as a result locker conducted by the vice-principal of the school who had reason to believe the student processed marijuana and other drug paraphernalia. The constitutionality of the search was questioned and ultimately the Supreme Court faced the task of establishing measures to have searches conducted and to what degree. The Fourth Amendment was brought up because it questioned did the search violate the fourth amendment rights. The courts decision sided with the school because they felt that when a student is at school the officials working their are in charge of keeping it as much as a professional environment as possible. In some cases this could be beneficial with certain situations if life threatening. But as far as not having an idea, and with having reason it is violation of the person’s rights.
- "Grutter v. Bollinger." Oyez.org. U.S. Supreme Court Media, n.d. Web. 19 Jan 2011. <http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2002/2002_02_241/>.
In 2003, a Law School denied admission to petitioner Grutter, a white female resident with a 3.8 GPA and 161 LSAT score. She later filed suit, alleging that the school had discriminated against her on the basis of race in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. The school uses race as a “predominant” factor when choosing residents, and as a result used that as it’s defense. When using race as a predominant factor it gives applicants belonging to certain minority groups a larger chance of admission than other students with similar credentials from disfavored racial groups. Though the courts ruled in favor of Grutter, because they believed the Law School’s use of race as an admissions factor is unlawful. I think this is negative although a white person was alleged against as a result. If this had happened to a person of African descent it would have been referred to and linked back to civil rights. All people should have the same rights no matter what race given the opportunity based upon academics and not race.