Parents Want Vouchers and School Choice :: Persuasive Argumentative Essay Examples

Parents Want School Choice Choice-based reforms, such as vouchers and charter schools, depend on the idea that schools will have to satisfy parents to keep their customers. Thus the wisdom of choice-based reforms depends on what parents want. If parents place a high priority on academics, then schools with strong academic programs will do well under school choice. If parents want their children to learn disciplined work habits, then schools that teach such habits will thrive under school choice. If parents choose schools based on their sports programs, then schools emphasizing sports will succeed. In short, the question "What would parents look for in schools?" is central to the debate on school choice. One way to answer this question is to survey parents. When surveyed, parents overwhelmingly say that their first priority is learning, especially in core areas: reading, writing, mathematics, science, and history. Parents also say that they want schools to uphold standards of hard work, honesty, courtesy, and responsibility. Although parents do not ignore extracurricular activities such as sports, they give them little weight compared to academics and standards of behavior. Many people in the education establishment are skeptical of parent surveys, saying that parents who do not care about academics are embarrassed to say so. They point out that it is not enough for parents to say that they want high standards for academics and behavior. What matters, they say, is how parents respond when their children get bad grades or face the consequences of breaking school rules. Another way to find out what parents want is to see what sorts of charter schools they choose. Most of the 1,700 charter schools in the nation emphasize academics, although their approach varies from back to basics to high technology. Charter schools also strive to create students who are upstanding human beings. No known charter schools so far have academics taking a back seat to sports. The same people who are skeptical of parent surveys, however, are skeptical of evidence based on charter schools. The movement is still in its infancy, they say, and today's charter school parents are atypical. So the toughest test of what parents want may be in areas where it is easy for parents to choose a school because there are so many public school districts. In some medium-sized metropolitan areas, such as Boston, there are more than one hundred school districts.

Recklessness in the Odyssey Essay

Odysseus’ overdeveloped pride and arrogance led him to act recklessly in Book Nine of the Odyssey. This caused unfortunate scenarios for both Odysseus and his men. Odysseus had a lot of pride. This is shown when he states that he is â€Å"known to the world† and that his fame â€Å"has reached the skies† – book 9 line 21-22This is the pride that he has of his name, which leads to his questionable judgment. He regarded as a great hero and that makes him believe that his decisions cannot be wrong. It is very interesting that in the Greek culture where reputation is so significant, it is the very thing that leads to his damaging behavior. Odysseus shows recklessness throughout the novel. Instead of continuing his journey, Odysseus wanted to explore the mainland, the Land of the Cyclops. Once he arrived at the cave, Odysseus wants to gain hospitality of the owner. His questionable judgment lies here. He does not know if the ,inhabitants are civilized or caring, nonetheless, he makes an uniformed, risky decision. He even expresses this: â€Å"what are they – violent savage, lawless? or friendly to strangers, god-fearing men?† book 9 lines 195-196Later on, after Odysseus cleverly defeated the Cyclops, which evidently put him in an even higher state of pride. He taunted Polyphemus long after he had been utterly defeated. Then he went on to revealed his true identity to the CyclopsHe suffered the horrible consequences of his impulsive decisions and actions. Several of his men died horrendous deaths. Their limbs were torn and then they were eaten by a monster. When he instigates the blinded giant, he almost ends the lives of his entire crew because the Cyclops hurls a boulder at the boat. Even though it misses, the aftermath of its splash almost pushed them into Polyphemus’ reach. Once Polyphemus knew that it was the great Odysseus who had blinded him, he prayed to his powerful father Poseidon for revenge. This is how Homer points out to us that we should not act on impulse. Bibliography: The Odyssey by Homer

A Brief Note On The Environmental Protection Agencies

As the Environmental Protection Agencies (EPAs) regulations though the Clean Air Act (CAA) for monitoring and policing air emissions through best, newest and current technologies, for the betterment of public health and welfare there are many options to be compliant per industry and region. With options, come the pros and cons for each regarding the polluter (industry) and the monitor (EPA). Additionally the EPA through the CAA identifies in Title II, Parts A-C, the regulatory requirements for stationary and mobile sources of air pollution in sections; motor vehicle emissions and fuel standards, aircraft emission standards, and lastly, clean fuel vehicles. Lastly, this paper will discuss through identifying the major and minor†¦show more content†¦For example, the entire plant is treated as though it is encased and pollution is therefore measured by the total amount escaping from the bubble, figuratively speaking. Consequently, under the bubble concept the polluting company can shut down a non-productive furnace in an attempt to offset any increased pollution resulting from a modification to a different furnace during a period of specific time during active monitoring. If the resulting emissions reduction is large enough to offset the increase from the furnace the company intends to modify, the total pollution from the plant does not increase (Flieder 1985, p. 775) Therefore, the cap and trade conceptual approach to emissions reduction and trading brings incentives to reducing the manufactures outputs of air pollutants, all the while overtime reducing the overall amount of regulatory air pollutants per state, and eventually a country as a whole. The bubble concept on the other hand allows trade-offs between sources within a facility, while the offset policy allows trade-offs between entire facilities. (Flieder 1985, p. 773) The major difference between the two are the challenges between the two with regards to monitoring and enforcement, for example, w ith the bubble concept, this allows the owners and workers to avoid installing the best pollution control technology on an altered facility. Under this guise, that as long as the overall emissions from the plant do not increaseShow MoreRelatedA Brief Note On Pesticides And The Environmental Protection Agency s Ecotoxicity Classification System1091 Words   |  5 Pagesspecies, one example being insects. This results in reduced growth, insects have problems reproducing and insect populations have also been declining as a result of this. Researchers have classified the effects of the insecticides based on US Environmental Protection Agency’s ecotoxicity classification system. Three insecticides: imidacloprid, clothianidin and fipronil all showed adverse effects on insects. 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