So, as I perused the internet on Monday night at work, I came across a link that said that a man in Saudi Arabia ate 22 live scorpions. Another link shows a boy of 13 living in Britain whose girlfriend just gave birth to a baby. A father at age 13. Another link shows a video of a woman doing something called funny face yoga. What do all these links have in common? They are all the news that is taking over. This is what is being broadcast online for people to observe and to comprehend. Now, the real question: Why should I care? Why should anyone care? News in our culture and our society has been changing. This is evident in the different blogs that we are all posting. There is so much out there to learn about, that people tend to write about stuff we don’t care about and leave the actual information for us to discover on our own.
Is this what our society is leading us to? If we look at the 13-year-old father from London, would it really make any difference if we lived a few hundred years ago? Back then, 13-year-old boys were often turning into fathers, so why is it that today's age is so shocked at this development.
It is evident that we are changing: Look at the WHITE HOUSE for example. Barack Obama would never have gotten to the White House even 50 years ago. So why did he? Because, our culture is teaching us to follow our own minds instead of giving into what history has taught us. Obama is president because we made it so. The people who live in the United States. And he gained it because he wanted it.
That is something that our country has always believed in: Choice. If one chooses to become a doctor, they can. A lawyer, they can. A teacher, they can. There is nothing stopping any of us from reaching our goals as long as we are determined and willing to do the work that comes with it.
Isn’t that an act of culture? What exactly is culture? According to dictionary.com, culture is a particular form or stage of civilization, as that of a certain nation or period. That is one of the 12 definitions. So, is the United States a culture? Is North Dakota a culture? Is Valley City?
The thing that surprises me is the attitudes people have to one another. I was observing at Barnes County North on Monday, in the 6th grade classroom, and I have to say, I have never seen so many kids have so little respect for their teacher. Shut up was a common phrase used during the day when the kids did not like what the teacher had to say.
Honestly, only one word came to my head when I saw their lack of disciple: Their parents. Not that their parents had done a bad job, but these kids were not taught to value their elders .To listen to what their elders say and know what they were in the same position once upon a time. It is all a matter of perception. These kids do not perceive anything wrong out of their treatment.
It also comes down to the fact that parents are getting younger and younger. Students are having kids in school, and the children grow up in an unstable environment. Just think, now there are 13-year-old dads: What’s next? 15-year-old grandpas. Who knows?
Is this what our society is leading us to? If we look at the 13-year-old father from London, would it really make any difference if we lived a few hundred years ago? Back then, 13-year-old boys were often turning into fathers, so why is it that today's age is so shocked at this development.
It is evident that we are changing: Look at the WHITE HOUSE for example. Barack Obama would never have gotten to the White House even 50 years ago. So why did he? Because, our culture is teaching us to follow our own minds instead of giving into what history has taught us. Obama is president because we made it so. The people who live in the United States. And he gained it because he wanted it.
That is something that our country has always believed in: Choice. If one chooses to become a doctor, they can. A lawyer, they can. A teacher, they can. There is nothing stopping any of us from reaching our goals as long as we are determined and willing to do the work that comes with it.
Isn’t that an act of culture? What exactly is culture? According to dictionary.com, culture is a particular form or stage of civilization, as that of a certain nation or period. That is one of the 12 definitions. So, is the United States a culture? Is North Dakota a culture? Is Valley City?
The thing that surprises me is the attitudes people have to one another. I was observing at Barnes County North on Monday, in the 6th grade classroom, and I have to say, I have never seen so many kids have so little respect for their teacher. Shut up was a common phrase used during the day when the kids did not like what the teacher had to say.
Honestly, only one word came to my head when I saw their lack of disciple: Their parents. Not that their parents had done a bad job, but these kids were not taught to value their elders .To listen to what their elders say and know what they were in the same position once upon a time. It is all a matter of perception. These kids do not perceive anything wrong out of their treatment.
It also comes down to the fact that parents are getting younger and younger. Students are having kids in school, and the children grow up in an unstable environment. Just think, now there are 13-year-old dads: What’s next? 15-year-old grandpas. Who knows?
Interesting blog. You happen to mention about how you were observing six graders in a class using words like shut up. I just started working at a daycare. For confidentiality reasons I am not allowed to go into details about them. However, I just started and am seeing things like shut up from a 3-5 year old child. It is amazing! But, not in a good way. I have the goal at trying to achieve manners in them. For the most part, they are great. But some of them watch way too much TV and is it ever evident when I hear what comes out of their mouths. It is kind of sad to hear about a 13-year-old father. Did the girlfriend (if you would call her that at 13) know she was pregnant? That is just ridiculous if you ask me. I do not believe things like that should be happening. That is just my opinion though.
ReplyDeleteOh my god! I guess even though "back in the day" it was normal for a 13 year old to become a parent, we are not living in the pioneer days anymore, and people are living longer and are no longer considered elderly at age 27. I am shocked to hear this! I have been hearing some stories from my home town about 5th and 6th graders having sex. I was still playing with Barbies when I was in 5th grade! This story shocked me and it probably shocked a bunch of other people... I can see why this would make popular news.
ReplyDeleteKyle, you have a very intersting blog, with a lot of intriguing content. I was actually quite shocked when I read about that thirteen-year-old being a father; then I remembered how things used to be. It's just so unbelievable in this day-and-age.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I cannot believe 5-6 graders talk liek that in their classrooms. I also think of parents with stuff like that but also just the media. Parents cannot hide their children from the internet, which probably features language like that all over chat rooms or whatever kids do online these days. :)
I was shocked while reading your blog about the 13-year-old father. I could not not even have imagined being a parent at that age, nor could my parents have ever imagined me having a kid at that age. Our society and cultures are definitely changing. In my highschool there were always girl pregnant, but I went to a larger high school. It was not uncommon to see at least about 2 or 3 pregnant girls from each grade, each year.
ReplyDeleteKids definitely do not have the respect they used to for elders anymore, which is sad.
I have to say that the 13 year old father story doesn’t shock me. My daughter’s classmates were actually having sex in the 5th and 6th grade with one of her girlfriends became pregnant at age 14. We sat our child down immediate and spoke about the commitment part of sex and how she shouldn’t give in to peer pressure. The talk went on to talk about the consequences etc.
ReplyDeleteI must admit at times I was appalled by some of the actions of the other children in our children’s classes. Our kids knew that if they crossed the line of decency and good behavior there would be consequences not time outs. Yet we made sure that we practiced what we preached – it would do no good to tell a child then give them a mixed message by not adhering to our own advice.