Monday, December 10, 2012

Other blogs!

Here is a list of some blogs that belong to some of my journalism classmates!

  • http://sophomoresportstakes.blogspot.com/
  • http://ohnoitssnow.blogspot.com/
  • http://experiencesfromthe21stcentury.tumblr.com/

Stay Strong ~



Imagine if your last day on Earth was caused by being bullied to the point of suicide. How are your loved ones going to feel? Unquestionably, they are going to be heartbroken. Not only is it you suffering, but it also majorly effects everyone around you. Whether it is physical, verbal, or cyber bullying it still hurts. Not one person deserves to be bullied, ever. 
                A person shouldn’t think they are alone. Even celebrities have been bullied. Singer-songwriter Demi Lovato was once a victim. “Stay Strong” is her advice for people who are going through, or once gone through bullying. Lovato went to rehab after self-harming. After her treatment, she came out as strong and beautiful than before. She started off her career with Barney and Friends, and now she is a judge on The X Factor.
                Bullying is getting worse every day. It seems as if it occurs most on school grounds. According to http://2011bullyingprogram.weebly.com/bullying-statistics.html, 160,000 students stay home from school because of their fear of being bullied. It also states that 43% of students fear harassment in the school bathroom. In a recent poll, teens between the ages of 12-17 shared that they think violence increased at their schools. Shouldn’t school be a safe environment, not a place of distress?
                There will certainly be disputes between kids, but to bully someone on a daily basis is brutal. It affects them the rest of their lives, even if they were bullied as a child. If you see someone getting bullied, don’t be a bystander. Speak up and try to stop it. Let’s bring the bullying statistics down instead of having them rise.

What to wear to a job interview


Picture this… You applied for a job recently and you get a phone call from the employer asking you to come in for an interview tomorrow afternoon. What is the first thing most people would think? Well for me it is, "What in the world I should wear?"

You want to make a good first impression. Your goal is to not look so done-up. You want to look professional. You want to come off as the type of person that is ready to work, but you also have standards for yourself by dressing nicely. In today’s world it is important to have knowledge of what you want to do, but also your appearance is a must.

Some people may disagree. If you go to school and your teacher walks into the classroom wearing sweatpants and a baggy t-shirt you are possibly going to think it is a joke. Or better yet, if you already have a job and your boss comes to work in a mini-skirt and a shirt that barely covers their stomach you will probably not be taking them serious at all. Each job has different outfit attire that you should wear. But what to wear at the interview is a totally different story.

It does not matter if the place you are applying to is not formal, you should always look your best a job interview. Let’s say you and the other person at the job interview has the same knowledge that applies to the job, but you are wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and your component is wearing professional looking attire; chances are they are going to get the job instead of you. You do not want to dress like a slob. It does not matter if you are going to a job interview for a mechanic, since most mechanics have a set uniform; you ALWAYS want to look your best.

Style expert, Kim Johnson Gross, said "The first impression you make is the most vital, and it's made within seconds. So make those seconds count." If you really do not know what to wear she insists that you call the company and ask what the dress code is. "You can't go wrong wearing a classic suit in a neutral color, such as grey or a dark navy blue." Obviously if you are going to a job interview at a grocery store you are not going to wear a suit, she is clearly giving advice to someone who is going to a job interview at a professional place. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlGr3VQhBl8 

Everyone has atleast heard the term 'dress for success' atleast once in their life. Even if it seems like a little saying it really is a big saying for an interview. If you have never heard this before it means what it clearly says. You are dressing to be successful, not just because you want to look better than everyone else. In this article, http://kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/jobs/tips_interview.html, it gives great tips for teenagers on how to ace an interview! Dressing nice is the first one on the list.

Even though Kim Johnson Gross said 'you can never go wrong wearing a classic suit' does not mean you HAVE to wear a suit. In some circumstances the employer may get bored seeing people always coming in wearing the same looking suit. Wearing a nice black pair of dress pants with a sweatervest can be appropriate. Thad Peterson, Monster Staff Writer, wrote great advice for people going to job interviews for any type of job! If you want to read more about his article, click this link http://career-advice.monster.com/job-interview/interview-appearance/appropriate-interview-dress/article.aspx

Don't be a bystander ~


                According to http://2011bullyingprogram.weebly.com/bullying-statistics.html, 1 out of 4 teens have been a victim of bullying. Even worse, nearly 9 out of 10 LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) have reported being verbally harassed at school in the past year because of their sexuality. Each month the number of people being bullied rises. There are four types of bullying: physical, verbal, indirect, and cyber. This needs to come to an end; people have committed suicide as a result of being bullied. Even if someone was bullied as a child it will affect them the rest of their life.

                New Jersey is trying their best to end bullying; and they are making great progress. There is an anti-bullying law now; It states that school employees must report incidents of harassment to the principal the day they hear about it or witness it. A written report must be handed in one to two days after the incident; an investigation must be occur at least 10 days after the written report was received. Also if bullying or harassment happened off school property and a student brings it into school the law also covers it. If you want to read about how Chris Cerf, New Jersey Education Commissioner, kicked of Week of Respect click here http://www.northjersey.com/news/NJ_education_commissioner_kicks_off_anti-bullying_Week_of_Respect_in_Teaneck.html.

                The first week of October New Jersey had their second annual “Week of Respect” against bullying in public schools. Each teacher in the state had to acknowledge bullying in their own way at least one class period that week. By doing these lessons, the class really learned a lot about how one person in the class felt about each topic they spoke about. Everyone has their own opinions on bullying, so when these lessons were going on and everyone in the class was participating it was like you could almost feel the heat and emotion between the classmates. Karlee Patterson, Pitman High School senior, said during one of her lessons she almost began to cry because she is against bullying so for her to speak against it made her feel very emotional.

                Don't be a bystander and watch someone get bullied; stop them. What if you were in that situation? Wouldn't you want someone there for you? Next time you see a student getting bullied, in school or on the Internet, think of a way that you can get the bully to stop picking on him or her. Let's bring the bullying statistics down instead of having them rise.

They Deserve a Round of Applause


The high school I attend has less than 500 students who are enrolled. Last school year alone, three girls became a teen mom; two were seniors and one was a junior. Teen pregnancies have become so popular the past few years. MTV even decided to come up with a reality show called 16 and Pregnant which also led into Teen Mom.
            Why teen pregnancy has rose dramatically? According to Teen Help, the United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate of the Western industrialized world. Birth rate was much higher in teenagers prior to 1980, since it was accepted for a woman to get married at a young age and have children before the age of 20. But in today’s world it is frowned upon. Most of today's teen moms are not married. About 820,000 teens become pregnant each year. In Japan, the teen pregnancy rate is eight times lower than the United States.
Alisha, my cousin, became pregnant in her teenage years. She was the captain of her cheerleading squad. When asked why she thinks teen pregnancy has transcended she responded with, I think it’s just so common now. Girls think, ‘Well if she can do it so can I.’ I think now there are more households where two parents are working, so they are not spending as much time with their kids, and they are unsupervised. I also think a lot of parents are embarrassed to talk to their kids about sex and pregnancy prevention.” Alisha and Steve, her baby’s father, recently became married. “You don’t need a man in your life to be a good mother. Do what’s best for your child,” is Alisha’s word of advice for girls whose baby’s father left them.
Hannah, my neighbor, had her first child about a year ago. She was a senior in high school and went through more struggles than an average teen mom. Hannah comes from an extremely religious Catholic family, her brother went to school to become a priest, and there are six other family members living in her house. Living in a small town, it is obvious that a lot of people would talk poorly about Hannah AND her family! She stated that once her stomach became a lot bigger, her dad was too afraid to bring her to church. "God only gives you what he knows you can handle,” is one of the quotes that keeps Hannah motivated to be the best for her daughter. 
In this video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzgXBpDZxqU, it shows how a teenage girl 'faked' her pregnancy for months just to see how people would treat her. It is clear that people are visious towards teen moms. It isn't always the 'slut' who becomes pregnant. It can captain of the cheerleading team, or even the girl who grew up around Christ her whole life. One little mistake someone made shouldn't ruin the rest of their life. Teen moms are forced into growing up faster than everyone around them, so I think they deserve a round of applause.