Global Climate Change Essay Essay Example for Free

Global Climate Change Essay Essay Global Climate change is a term used to describe a gradual increase or change within the average temperature of earth’s atmosphere and its oceans. Global climate change is a rising issue in today’s society. There are various factors as to why the climate is changing; the factors are both human and natural. The human activities that cause climate change are burning fossil fuels, driving cars, and deforestation. The human causes are widely discussed but nobody ever considers the natural causes. Natural causes that contribute to global climate change are animal and plant respiration, volcanic eruptions, and the melting of ice caps. Although human activity is a main cause we still need to consider the natural causes because they are a huge factor when it comes to Global climate change. One natural effect of Global climate change is through animal and plant respiration. When a plant or an animal dies their bodies will decay into the ground. Once their bodies decay all of the C02 that was in their body is released into the atmosphere and the ground. The plants and animals that are buried deep underground will become fossil fuels millions of years later. Which is another leading cause of global climate change when humans burn them. All the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from the death of an animal or plant causes climate change. Carbon dioxide is a green house gas, which is a gas that traps heat into the atmosphere. Green house gases are essential for human, animal, and plant life but the amount that we have on earth is negatively affecting our climate. The earth hasn’t held this much carbon for 420,000 years. Another natural effect of global climate change is through volcanic eruptions. When a volcano erupts it releases aerosols, which are a cooling agent for earth. But the volcanoes also release carbon dioxide a green house gas. This may seem like it’s not a problem because the cooling will keep the  heating in balance. But that’s not always the case, the cooling agent can leave our atmosphere and go into different layers of the earth. The further it goes into the layers determines how long it will take for the cooling to effect our atmosphere. For example, if the aerosols reach the stratosphere it can take years until it is released back onto the earth. While the release of co2 is an immediate effect because it’s trapped in the atmosphere. Below in image one, there is a graph that shows the affect a volcano has on the earth. As you can see in 1975 before the volcano erupted earth’s temperature was significantly lower. But in the 1980’s before it fully erupted earth’s temperature was rising, due to co2 being released. But once the volcano fully erupted in 1991 temperatures have not been below the +.01 mark, but they are still dropping and rising. This up and down effect of the temperature has caused cold temperatures, which lead to crop failures, which in return lead to extreme famine in the North American region. The last natural cause of global climate change that I will be discussing is the melting of ice caps. The melting of ice and snow seems like good thing because water is being absorbed back into our atmosphere, but in reality it isn’t a good thing at all. When the sun hits a bright surface, like snow it goes through a albedo process. The albedo of the snow causes 95% of the suns energy to be reflected. Below in image 2 it shows exactly how this process works. First the suns rays are reflected on to a surface to be reflected back into the space. But with all the snow melting the suns rays are being absorbed into the atmosphere causing the earth to heat up more. Before I fully researched global, I thought it was an event that was strictly caused by humans. But from the information that was provided you can see that that isn’t the case at all. Natural causes of global climate change affect the earth in a very significant way. Although the human causes of global climate change do outweigh the natural causes some scientist believe that this is just a natural cooling and warming event that goes through.

Multicultural Social Studies Essay -- Education

Multicultural Social Studies More now than ever before in the educational history of our nation has multicultural education become important. Due to the ever increasing diversity in our nation, the global economy, and the mobility of our work force, diversity in the classroom is affecting our classrooms. With such a diverse student population teachers must understand that each student will bring his own background knowledge and experience into the learning environment. The task that is presented to teachers is to prepare the students to understand and interact with all the different cultures that are present or that the student may come into contact with, while at the same time teach them content which does not offend a student’s cultural identity. Why is multicultural education important? â€Å"Curriculum Standards for Social Studies (NCSS,1994b) endorses the belief that students should be helped to construct a pluralist perspective based on diversity. This perspective respects differences of opinion and preference, race, religion, gender, class, ethnicity, and culture in general.† (Hass & Sunal, 2011, p. 304) With the ever increasing diversity found within this country, and the interdependency between different cultures on a world-wide platform it is important for our students to not only accept these differences, but to also understand the differences. Dr. Geneva Gay states: Multicultural education can ease these tensions by teaching skills in cross- cultural communication, interpersonal relations, perspective taking, con- textual analysis, understanding alternative points of view and frames of reference, and analyzing how cultural conditions affect values, attitudes, beliefs, preferences, expectations, and behaviors. .. .../pdf/session3/3.Multiculturalism.pdf Banks, J. (2008). Teaching Strategies for ethnic studies. (8th Ed.). Boston: Pearson. Cushner, K., McClelland, A., & Safford, P. (1992). Human Diversity in Education. New York: McGraw-Hill. Fry, T. S. (2000). Muticultural Perspectives Help by Preservice Social Studies Teachers. The Journal of Critical Inquiry Into curriculum and Instruction . Gay, G. P. (1994). A Synthesis of Scholorship in Muticultural Education. Retrieved May 5, 2012, from North Central Regional Educational Laboratory: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/educatrs/leadrshp/le0gay.htm Hass, M. E., & Sunal, C. S. (2011). Social Studies for the Elementary and Middle Grades. Boston: Pearson. Kostelink, M., Whiren, A., Soderman, A. S., & Gregory, K. (2002). Guiding children's social development: Theory to practice. Albany, NY: Thomson Delmar.

Gifted Children: An Overview

Started in the 1970†³s, America†s Gifted & Talented programs are used to enhance the curriculum of students included in either category in order to challenge and strengthen their unique abilities. These students are usually provided a separate class with specialized lessons in all areas and a teacher with a special degree in gifted education. I feel that it is important that the teacher was a gifted student who would know what the students must face as â€Å"above average† members of their school. The job market for gifted education offers a wide range of opportunity and gifted teachers are needed all over the One of the earliest programs for gifted and talented students was set up in 1974, at The Old Donation Center, in Virginia Beach. Students scoring within the top 3% of students on an assessment test are referred here to be further challenged. These students are considered gifted and have special teachers and classes to promote development of their talents and minds. Programs like this began to pop up around the nation in the 70†³s; however, gifted students were looked down upon by teachers, parents, and peers. Many people considered them to be â€Å"freaks† because they were different. They didn†t understand the implications of the terms â€Å"gifted† and â€Å"talented†. Most people simply expected gifted students to act more mature or to be geniuses, even though gifted students are the same as other children in their needs as human beings. Some gifted students were forced to grow up too fast and some simply ignored the fact that they were smarter than others, thus, they were lost in the shuffle. The irony of it all is that gifted-ness seems to run in families and the children of these repressed gifted students are, themselves, But what exactly is a â€Å"gifted† student? Students (elementary & secondary) are given a repertoire of tests. These tests check IQ, psychomotor ability, specific academic aptitude/talent, creative and productive thinking, leadership ability, and skills in the visual and performing arts. The main requirement, the IQ, is tested by a standardized IQ test (remember, however, that IQ tests are not always perfectly accurate). Ratings are given to each bracket of IQ scores: If a student receives a rating of â€Å"gifted† or higher (130+), he/she is considered to be a gifted student and is introduced into the designated programs. These students are given the opportunity to choose classes that are meant to teach them how to use their minds for critical thinking, reasoning, and artistic pursuits. Students in these classes are also exposed to culture, literature, and other subject areas that are not usually covered in what they term â€Å"normal classes†. The gifted classes are mainly in an open format allowing the student to create the parameters of his/her work and allowing them to be creative in their learning experience. Each class is presided-over by a teacher that has specialized degrees in gifted education. Almost every school in the United States has a need for a gifted class, making job opportunities endless; there are never Gifted teachers must have both a degree in education (secondary or elementary) and a degree in special education (gifted). These teachers are individuals that must have stamina, people skills, and open minds. It is also important (to the students) that the teacher himself/herself was also classified as gifted. It sets a common bond, shows them that the teacher understands the problems they face as so-called â€Å"smart kids†. These students are often ridiculed by heir peers and looked-down upon by their teachers. They are often separated from others their age by a barrier that can only be described as their â€Å"intelligence†. This is why, often, gifted teachers have degrees in administration, counseling, or psychology. All teachers that I interviewed told me that a continually upgraded education is a must (as are additional degrees). In order to keep up with the students one must attend seminars, workshops, special classes, etc. There is no end to the amount of education that could help you to understand gifted students and the role of their teacher†. Also, if a teacher has extra educational qualifications, he/she could be asked to step up to the position of administrator or, more often, counselor. This means pay raises. Though the average salary for teachers is approximately $27,500 per year, it is â€Å"a worthwhile undertaking† according to Jane Mansueto, â€Å"It is incredible to work with gifted students. They are incredible! † She went on to remark that it is fascinating to imagine that they are of the same level of intelligence as the teacher and what they must be feeling inside. She feels that the students are not bothered by what their peers think, but actually tend to understand that other†s opinions mean little compared to their own. Mrs. Mansueto taught at Elm Grove Middle School for 5 years. She commented on her role as a gifted teacher to consist of â€Å"one part mentorship, one part hardship, and one part friendship†. When asked what kind of hours she keeps, she laughed and asked if she was supposed to have time off. According to Mrs. Mansueto, unlike a â€Å"normal† teacher, a gifted teacher has no books to go by or preset material to teach, or, or that matter, a preset subject to teach. They are given a blank page and, using input from students, must draw up lessons from every subject area and constantly challenge the inquisitive minds of the gifted. Jane Mansueto attended Trinity College where she majored in both elementary education and gifted education. Her favorite part of being a gifted teacher is being with the students, working hand in hand with them to plan and carry out projects and trips. Though the pay is average, and there is not much room to be promoted if you wish o remain in the classroom, gifted teaching has its personal rewards. Jeff Simpleton, a gifted teacher as well as a former gifted student, states, â€Å"I really think that by being gifted, I am in touch with what they have to go through. They know that I can understand. † Mr. Simpleton†s class consists of 6 high school students, who have many problems due to the intelligence barrier and a kind of isolation that has built up over the years between themselves and their classmates. They seem to feel that they have a reputation that they must live up to. The students try to please everyone†¦ hey push themselves with sheer motivation and determination and drive. Mr. Simpleton feels that this is â€Å"what makes them so great†. He feels that anyone with a sense of adventure and a need for something new day after day would find teaching a gifted class to be the perfect job for Gifted teachers are important to the development of their students minds. They are understanding individuals who must work hard to make the curriculum interesting and challenging. With the proper education it is possible to go far as a teacher of the gifted.

Tarpan - Facts and Figures

Name: Tarpan; also known as Equus ferus ferus Habitat: Plains of Eurasia Historical Period: Pleistocene-Modern (2 million-100 years ago) Size and Weight: About five feet tall and 1,000 pounds Diet: Grass Distinguishing Characteristics: Moderate size; long, shaggy coat About the Tarpan The genus Equus--which comprises modern horses, zebras and donkeys--evolved from its prehistoric horse forebears a few million years ago, and flourished in both North and South America and (after some populations crossed the Bering land bridge) Eurasia. During the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago, the North and South American Equus species went extinct, leaving their Eurasian cousins to propagate the breed. Thats where the Tarpan, also known as Equus ferus ferus, comes in: it was this shaggy, ill-tempered horse that was domesticated by the early human settlers of Eurasia, leading directly to the modern horse. (See a slideshow of 10 Recently Extinct Horses.) Somewhat surprisingly, the Tarpan managed to survive well into historical times; even after millennia of interbreeding with modern horses, a few pure-bred individuals roamed the plains of Eurasia as late as the early 20th century, the last one dying in captivity (in Russia) in 1909. In the early 1930s--perhaps inspired by other, less ethical eugenics experiments--German scientists attempted to re-breed the Tarpan, producing what is now known as the Heck Horse. A few years earlier, authorities in Poland also tried to resurrect the Tarpan by breeding horses with noticeably Tarpan-like traits; that early effort in de-extinction ended in failure.