Topic change: What I assume to be true about the Maximum Security Prison here in MN.

This semester I want to learn more about MN maximum security prisons and those sentenced to life because I feel very uninformed on this topic and have many assumptions that could be far fetched.

I’ve learned that people sentenced in any Maximum security prison, like the one here in MN, are for people who have committed crimes of the highest rank of unreasonable violence such as a serial killers. I would assume all these types of prisoners would have committed these types of crimes and deserve life in prison from there crimes. I learned this from a television show and a criminal justice class.

I think the most difficult part in my research for this topic will be finding up to date information.

What I assume is true about students with disabilities in a low-income public school.

I want to learn more about children with learning disabilites enrolled in public schools that are financially disadvantaged. This topic interests me because I was attended a private school that offered extra attention to every student, esspecially with disabilities. I am curious how these schools keep success in the classroom. 

I’ve learned that public schools in low-income neighborhoods, do not get the necessary financial assistance needed to educate their students and which causes lower graduation rates.

My sister was an afterschool progam leader in a Madison, WI located in a low-income neighborhood and she explained a lot information to me. I think it will be esspecially difficult for me to find information specifically on students with disabilities in low funded school because I would think there would be enough faculty to afford barely enough to meet the needs of an average student majority, students with disabilities may go unnoticed.

Critical Thinking

In grade school, we wrote critical thinking essays every wednesday on a topic chosen by the teacher.  I remember dreading Wednesday’s even the words on the assignment bored,  “Critical thinking essay due” made me cringe! I never knew why we called the assignment that. I just hated spelling, writing in cursive and not getting a star or sticker on my paper and instead red pencil.

When I got older, the topic of critical thinking kept reoccurring and eventually gave me a new understanding. Critical thinking to me, means expoloring outside of what you know and accept through challenging yourself to understanding and create your interpitation of it.

According to the Foundation of Critical Thinking, “Critical thinking is that mode of thinking — about any subject, content, or problem — in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully analyzing, assessing, and reconstructing it.” The deffinition goes on, by directing the way a person is successful in this process, “critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking. It presupposes assent to rigorous standards of excellence and mindful command of their use. It entails effective communication and problem-solving abilities, as well as a commitment to overcome our native egocentrism and sociocentrism.” Foundation of Critical Thinking: http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/our-concept-of-critical-thinking/411

I think the connection between crital thinking and and IM204 reasearch stratagies class, is to make us question topics we “know” about and expand.