Abuse Of Power In High Schools

“In American schools, the culture exalts the athlete and good-looking cheerleader. Well-educated and intellectual students are commonly referred to in public schools and the media as "nerds," "dweebs," "dorks," and "geeks," and are relentlessly harassed and even assaulted by the more popular "jocks" for openly displaying any intellect” (Williams). In my experience

The President of Bard College, Leon Botstein, wrote the opinion piece Let Teenagers Try Adulthood (1999), argues that American high schools should be abolished. Botstein uses school cliques and brain development to develop the argument. The author's purpose was to argue that high school are dangerous to kids mental health and the school system should be modified in order to keep children safe from wrong ideas that are often present in high schools. The audience of the opinion article are school officials and people who have the power to change the educational system.

I think I speak for many people when I say high school is a critical point in one’s life. Coming into high school, things seemed to be tightly-knitted between my peers and I; those of us who had just

We’ve all know what it feels like: walking down the halls in middle school or high school while you feel like you’re being watched…analyzed…critiqued. It would almost seem like every person you passed would be silently judging you for what you’re wearing, how you applied your makeup, how you did in the last soccer game, or what they heard you did with Jonny. The passerby’s in the hallway would place you on the high-school-hierarchy-of-coolness scale based on superficial characteristics even before getting to know you. Adolescence is a time of learning and forming an identity but it’s also a time where you are constantly being watched and evaluated by your peers, sometimes even put down by physical or verbal means. Bullying has always been

When Mr. Clark originally taught at Eastside High School, the culture seemed very competitive and full of high standards. The students seemed very eager to learn and at a pretty high level for their age. Twenty years later, the culture flips dramatically. The school quickly goes from pristine to a graffiti-infested playground. The teachers are the prey and the students (mainly the ‘hoodlums’) pretty much do as they please. Education is a small goal for any of the students, and the students that do want to do well fear those “hoodlums.” Mr. Clark identifies this immediately when returning to Eastside High. During his first assembly, Mr. Clark let the entire school know that he was the HNIC. He gathered up all the trouble makers and sent them home, expelling them from school. Most were drug dealers, 5th year students, or drug abusers that were dulling the spark of the other students.

High school, the best times of our lives. But in every situation others don’t experience it as the time of their lives. In specific, the so called, “Loser, Nerds, Outcasts." Sometimes the perception that most high school movies convey for this certain group are the reality. In this article "High school confidential: Notes on teen movies" by David Denby, He describes the functions of an everyday American high school. David Denby uses very effective language and rhetoric to provide the minds of the opposing side. A sample of the rhetoric skills he uses is stereotypes, ethos, and pathos.

In modern-day society, there are numerous people who take pleasure in separating themselves from the typical standards of society; however, there are also people who feel uncomfortable expressing themselves in the own, distinctive ways. Because they feel this way, many adolescents believe that by camouflaging themselves into their peer’s behaviors and beliefs that they will fit in with social norm, accepted beliefs and behaviors in a social group or society, and the reason why they have this mentality, is because of the lack of confidence to express their ideas in their own unique ways. The belief that students and kids have to live up to social norms, are implemented on them by social influences, more specifically, their peers.

Botstein starts his argument by stating the various parts of the high school experience that are harmful and pointless to students. The first is the “untouchable” category which consists of coaches and high school athletes whose exclusive ranking is based off of the team’s success rather than their own educational achievements. Secondly, Botstein addresses teachers and curriculum that “hold so little sway” over the minds and attitudes of students, since the average student is constantly worried about growing up, popularity, and their friend groups. Next, Botstein claims that the “primary reason” high schools are flawed and broken is that the teens in the twentieth century era are maturing “substantially earlier” than in the past decades. Lastly, Botstein develops a new method for teenager’s education experience by eliminating the 10th through 12th grades, permanently making high school obsolete. If Botstein’s plan is achieved, teenagers will have many different options to choose after their secondary schooling. Students would be able

The trivialization of high school in the present educational organization for teens has been posited in the public; however, it is one vital issue that is being debated.

Students are not allowed to make their own decisions. In the article, “Constant Frustration and Occasional Violence: The Legacy of American High School”, Alfie Kohn asks, “How logical is it to expect that teenagers who have been coerced into following directions will develop into responsible decision-makers” (3)? The ability to make decisions is part of the process amid alternative possibilities to make a choice, in terms of action or belief. Students in the American educational system, cannot make their own decisions because they are not given choices. Their opinions are not asked, therefore they cannot express themselves about what they think, instead the only choice given is to follow instructions. Kohn adds, “What could be worse, for kids who

Botstein starts his argument by stating the various parts of the high school experience that are harmful and pointless to students. The first that Botstein addresses is the “untouchable” category which is made up of coaches and high school athletes whose exclusive ranking is based off of the team’s success rather than the educational achievements of the players. Secondly, Botstein addresses teachers and curriculum that “hold so little sway” over the minds and attitudes of students because the average student is constantly worried about growing up, popularity, and their friend groups. Next, Botstein claims that the “primary reason” high schools are flawed and broken is that the teens in the twentieth century era are maturing “substantially earlier” than in the past decades. Lastly, Botstein develops a new method for teenager’s education experience by eliminating the 10th through 12th grades, permanently making high school obsolete. If Botstein’s plan is achieved, teenagers will have many different options to choose

Whispers fly around the hallways, yelling can be heard from classrooms, the lunchroom is in no regards a sanctuary, but rather a social jungle of cliques and cliches. A high school is the perfect example of the decline in morals in America, but that’s a common misconception across many generations. Being a rowdy teen is a part of growing up and discovering who you are. Even though some teenagers can be difficult and exhausting to deal with, it’s a rite of passage and an important part of their childhood. Morals aren’t declining in America, instead teens are going through a series of mistakes that will shape their lives and will develop who they are as a person.

Institutional structures have the power to configure adolescent growth through repression and liberation. The capability that adolescents have to create their own destiny and choose their own social institution can be limited, but not impossible. In Trites article, “Do I dare disturb the universe?” the author argues that kids have personal power, whether they acknowledge it and use it to their own advantage or not. Michel Foucault declares that “Power is everywhere; not because it embraces everything, but because it comes from everywhere” (Trites). Power is inevitable, there will never be no such thing as power in this world; it will never diminish or fade. Trites also conveyed that, “power not only acts on a subject but, in a transitive

“The Breakfast Club” characterizes this phenomena by depicting the “jock, the brain, the basketcase, the princess, and the juvenile delinquent”. In the movie each character is representative of the social class to which they belong. The “jock” signifies the sports star that can do no wrong, but the movie character bullies another boy and when caught all he received was detention. Although on the other hand the delinquent who is a dope smoking, foul mouthed punk, received the same punishment for talking back to a teacher. Administrators and teachers are very quick to meet out severe punishment to those students that they have deemed worthless, while good kids get a slap on the wrist. The movie’s jock is placed in Saturday detention, instead of being suspended, so that he may wrestle in an upcoming tournament; a case in which Hollywood makes an accurate depiction. This is the “holding of power” that Wehlage and Rutter spoke about in their study, High School and Beyond. Students who receive better treatment seem to do better in school when subjected to “an orderly environment, a committed and caring faculty, and an emphasis on academic pursuits”(Nieto,100).

The purpose of this literature review paper is to navigate and explore different effects in society towards peer pressure, conformity and rebellion. This study attempts to answer the following research questions: How does peer pressure, conformity, and rebellion affects adolescents in society? The main goal of this review is to have knowledge of the effects of this three concepts such as: peer pressure, conformity and rebellion.