Final Post

Before I took this class, I admit, I was prejudice and stereotypical. I mean who isn't? It's how we were raised and how could you not be when you attend Stevenson High School. After going through a semester, I realized that it is possible for me to change. I have learned that I need to be more mindful of others, because you never know what a person is going through or how harmless they could actually be. I am guilty of walking past a person of a different race and being scared. Most of us are. It is the way society has shaped us. But my point is, I have learned that there really is no such thing as race, so why be scared? I've also learned that homosexuals are humans too so why should we judge them just based on which sex they choose to like? This class has really opened my eyes to the important things in life and has been one of the most impacting classes I've taken. In the beginning of the semester when I was asked "Who am I?" my first response would be a 17 year old girl who likes hanging out with friends and watching hockey. Now if somebody asked me that question, I can answer a 17 year old girl who hopes to bring good to the world and impact other peoples lives. So now, that is my goal. I want to live my life in a way where I can help others and feel like I made an impact. My favorite quote from this semester was "Be the change you wish to see in the world" and that is exactly what I will do. 

Community Service

For my community service this semester, I did two completely different things.
The first thing I did was volunteer at a walk for 5 hours. The organization I volunteered for is called "A Safe Way" and it is for people who get abused by their spouses. I helped set up and take down everything and I also cheered people on as they ran. It was rewarding because I got to interact with people who had gone through a tough time and also hear their stories. I felt like I was needed just to put a simple smile on someones face or to give them that extra push that they needed to finish their run.

The second thing I did was participate at Feed My Starving Children for 5 hours. Out of all the community service I have done, this has by far been my favorite. We packed food for children in Haiti and my station packed 18 boxes of food. I was the sealer at my job. I just had to seal the bags shut with a certain machine which was pretty boring, but the end result is what impacted me the most. After we were finished, we were shown how our work has impacted kids and how their lives have changed all because we packed food. It was very rewarding and going to Feed My Starving Children is something I would like to do in my free time.

Race

This week in sociology, we learned about race. We learned that "race" is actually just made up and it isn't a real thing. If a person has one black parent and one white parent, in America they're still automatically considered black. For example, Barack Obama isn't 100% black, but since he has some black in him, he is considered the first black president. So this is weird to me, because if a black person has some white in them, they aren't considered white, they are still black.

Minimum Wage

This week in sociology we watched a movie about how a guy and his financè do a 30 day experiment where they lived off of minimum wage. It was very hard for them to adjust to that lifestyle instead of being in the upper class. It was sad to realize that someone like me works at minimum wage for some extra spending money while there are people out there working at minimum wage and making a life from that. For me it's just for some shopping money with my friends, but for others they work to feed their family and pay their bills and are working paycheck to paycheck to get through life.

Pennies

This week in sociology, we played a game that involved gambling. Each person in the class started with 3 pennies, and we would have to gamble with those. Once you lost all your pennies, you're out but the other person keeps what they have and moves on. Eventually you're paired with someone who has a different amount of pennies than you do. This game should technically be fair because everyone starts with the same amount of pennies and has the same 50% chance of getting heads or tails. This game is supposed to relate to life and how everyone has equal opportunity, but I don't agree with that. We talked about how in life, not everyone starts with the same amount of money. Some people inherit it, some people start with nothing and have to work for it, and others are part of the lower class. It was very interesting to me to understand the sociology behind this and how wealth really does make a difference. For example, Stevenson is technically a wealthy school. This means we can do things like give students iPads which opens more opportunities but at other less wealthy schools, they don't have the ability to do that. So overall, how wealthy a person is really does make a difference as much as people want to say it doesn't.

Deviance

This week in sociology, we learned about deviance. Deviance is doing something that other people wouldn't look at as a "norm." There is positive deviance and there is negative deviance. This week, I participated in positive deviance. My grandma came into town and instead of my dad having to go out of his way to pick her up from the airport, I offered to do it so it was easier on him. Normally I wouldn't do something like that, but it made me feel good to do something nice for my dad which also surprised him. It was also nice to spend time with my grandma. Overall, being deviant doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing and I suggest that most people try it once in a while.

Barbie

This week in sociology, we talked about the "Barbie" image. We were shown how the actual proportions of barbie would look if she was human. It was very interesting and surprising to see how abnormal the Barbie image would be. Growing up, I always admired barbie and would always say I want to look like barbie. Most girls would say the same thing. Why do we admire barbie so much though? Because it was drilled into our heads that being insanely skinny with a big chest is what was pretty. It is sad to see how many people are affected by that and how the media makes it worse.

Female body image

This week in sociology, we watched a video about how the media portrays women. It was crazy to see how far people will go to put together the perfect body image. The women we see in the media aren't even real because of how much editing is done to the actual image. This relates to sociology because it shows how a person can be so easily affected by media and how it can alter the way they think about society and themselves.

Agents of Socialization

After reading the article on all the agents of socialization, it made me realize that some things around me really do impact how I live my life without me even noticing. For example, Family is an agent of socialization. No matter how much I want to go against it, I will act more and more like my mom and it's inevitable. Family influences my behavior, attitude, and emotions, and that is why it is an agent of socialization. This relates to sociology because it shows how easily our everyday life is affected by things and we don't even realize it.

Post 9

After reading the article about time and culture, it made me aware of how different the culture is out side America. A brazilian wouldn't consider someone late until after 33 minutes. In America, that is very late and ridiculous to us. This relates to sociology, because it relates to how we have talked about culture shock and the differences around the world. Some things may be okay to do or say in America that isn't okay somewhere else. I'm so used to the way American's do things that it would be very weird for me to travel to a different country. For example, I went to Mexico and it was very interesting to see how different they do things there compared to America.

Post 8

This week in sociology, we watched Tuesdays with Morrie. Not only was this an incredible movie, and one of the only movies I've ever cried in, but it also taught a great lesson about values. Even though Morrie had a terminal illness, he still lived every moment of his life to the fullest. He impacted every single person around him, and I hope I can do the same in my life. This movie taught me to set my priorities straight and to not worry about all of the little things and focus on the most important ones like friends and family.

Post 7

This week in class we watched a movie called, God Grew Tired of Us. It was very interesting and kind of odd to see how there are things so much different than this Stevenson bubble I live in. I look at the struggles of the lost boys, and it's hard for me to believe that it's even real. It makes me realize how fortunate I am, but at the same time how different the culture is all across the world. It impacted me to see the difference in the norms in Africa and in the United States.

Culture

This week in sociology, we were introduced to culture. After playing a card game in class, we were introduced to three new terms called culture shock, ethnocentrism, and culture relativity. Culture shock is when someone is kind of taken back by the fact that other cultures do things differently and it's hard for them to adjust. Ethnocentrism is when a person is very centered on their own culture. Culture relativity is when a person respects other cultures. It was interesting to read the article about the lady from Denmark who left her child outside while she ate at a restaurant in New York City. It was surprising to me that a person would do that, but to her it is just a normal everyday thing, so it was cool to see how other culture does things that I would consider completely weird.

A Bronx Tale

This week in sociology, we watched A Bronx Tale. What stood out to me the most, was the importance of in-groups and out-groups. The main character, C, was italian along with everyone else he associated with. To him and his peers, being an italian was an in-group. If a non-italian were to come to the neighborhood, they would be part of the out-group. An example of this would be when the biker gang came to the bar, and they were really out of place. Since the biker gang was technically an out-group, they were automatically stereotyped and treated differently, and eventually beat up.

Discrimination

This week in class, we watched a video on discrimination. This video was about separating 3rd graders by eye color. One group was more superior than the other group, so they treated the minorities poorly. This video was really important to me, because when I was in 3rd grade, I also did this experiment. I was a part of the minority group, so the memory of it really stuck with me. I was unable to do the same things as the other group and I was treated very poorly and discriminated against, which was something I wasn't used to. The fact that it has such a big impact on me even today as a senior in high school, I realize how important it is not to judge someone so quickly. Just because a person has a different skin color, or is from a different area than you, or does different things than you, or acts a different way than you, it doesn't mean that they are not a good person and that you should treat them poorly. As cliche as it sounds, I have learned to treat everyone, no matter what they look like, the way you want to be treated, unless they give you a reason not to.

Social Construction of Reality

This week in class, we focused on the meaning of the social construction of reality. We did an activity of looking at the difference between spit and saliva. When you have saliva in your mouth, it's a normal thing, but the second it exits your mouth, it's known to be a "gross" thing. Why do we say its gross? This is because the creation is what is affecting out minds, when in reality..it's all the same spit and nothing has changed about it. So it was cool to look at how we just automatically judge things based on how we've always looked at it.

Sociological imagination vs. sociological mindfulness

This week in class, we talked about the difference between sociological imagination and sociological mindfulness. Sociological imagination is when a person is influenced by where and when they live. Sociological mindfulness is seeing and appreciating the unique qualities and also being aware and paying attention to a person. I feel these are very important things to discuss because being a teenager living in the north shore, I look at things differently than people from other areas might. We tend to be more spoiled in our area, so I think it is important to look at the less fortunate areas and look at things from a different perspective. This ties into how community service is important, because it makes you look at how good you really have it and it's a good feeling to help the community.

Who am I?

I am 17 years old and am a senior at a big public high school in the suburbs. Most people would say that I am brutally honest, which could be a bad thing but I guess I just always say what's on my mind. I am very outgoing and can make an awkward situation not awkward in a matter of seconds. Before senior year, I was a cheerleader for 8 years of my life but ended up not trying out this year. I decided that my cheer days were over. Now all I do with my life is eat, watch tv, do my homework, and hang out with my friends probably a lot more than I should. I will most likely be attending the University of Colorado Boulder for college next year. After college I will be attending Law School. I have 3 brothers, 2 older 1 younger, and my mom lives in Florida. My biggest hobby is watching hockey. I love the Blackhawks, and they basically consume my life. I could watch hockey all day long. My biggest influence in my life is my older brother, Jake. He is in the Air Force and I look up to him more than anyone. Thanks for reading some things about me :)