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Socioeconomic Status, Math Achievement, and Head Start Attendance
No full textResearch has shown that socioeconomic status impacts student achievement consistently over time and there have been several suggestions in mediating this effect. Most notably may be preschool attendance, and especially publicly funded programs like Head Start. The nationwide program aims to serve primarily low-income youth, but has been reported to experience major fadeout in the early years of elementary school. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study: Kindergarten Cohort 1998-9, this study exhibits the expected and persistent positive effects of SES on student math achievement, as well as the effectiveness of Head Start in mediating this effect and equalizing the opportunity for educational achievement in mathematics. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of Head Start implementation across the country, and the general need for universal preschool to minimize the effects of SES on long-term academic achievement.
The Gender Correctional Machine: Institutional Mechanisms that Reinforce a Patriarchal Gender Order in Correctional Facilities
No full textMass incarceration is a feminist struggle. Not only are women the fastest growing population in correctional facilities in the United States but they also face institutional regulations that aim at "correcting" their gender and sexual "deviance." Correction, within women\u27s correctional facilities, refers to the structural attempt to enforce a gendered, class-based, and racialized order. The mechanism that allows the gender correctional machine to be enacted functions through two branches: correctional industries and library content. This study examines the extent to which regulatory programs, such as limited labor options and libraries, are actually constructed through male-gaze-dominated norms. By looking at the connection between vocational programs and the prison-industrial complex, it is evident that labor-oriented programs not only exploit women but do so in a gendered way. Low-waged, traditionally feminine, and potentially racialized training within the facilities showcase the regulatory mechanism to keep women "were they belong." Furthermore, this study imports the theoretical lens of Laura Mulvey\u27s notion of the male gaze into the area of sociology of law, and seeks to understand how prison libraries enforce patriarchal norms. By looking at denied and permitted library publications in the Philadelphia Department of Prisons, this study shows that the male gaze functions as a normalizing and correcting force in the ways that gender and sexuality are visually portrayed in publications\u27 covers. Thus, the study unveils the regulatory mechanisms of the gender correctional machine, and proposes radical resistance as an alternative to it
Review of The Girl Next Door
No full textReview of Kara Dixon Vuic\u27s The Girl Next Door by Ariel Natalo-Lifton. 
Using Reverse Osmosis, Electrodialysis, and Nanofiltration to Increase Affordable Desalinated Groundwater Use in Texas
Get PDFDroughts and flooding that have impacted Texas have decreased surface water availability, while draining the limited number of non-saline groundwater sources. Therefore, desalination of saline groundwater would be able to supplement the increasing demand of water for industrial and domestic uses. The process would have to be affordable and capable of meeting WHO1 standards for drinking water. Of the current desalination options available, the methods analyzed are reverse osmosis, electrodialysis, and nanofiltration. Of the three options, it was determined that reverse osmosis was the best solution for the desalination of saline groundwater for both industrial and domestic uses. Reverse osmosis filters saline water to meet WHO standards for sodium and chloride ions. Although both RO and electrodialysis processes were effective enough for eliminating total dissolved solids in the sample saline waters, only RO yielded potable water. If this system is successfully implemented, it could supplement the nonsaline groundwater being used for human consumption, as well as yield RO discharge water for residential or industrial uses. As a result, the severe impacts of the reoccurring droughts in Texas can be reduced, while lessening the drainage of the non-saline groundwater reservoirs in Texas. Keywords: Desalinated Groundwater, Reverse Osmosis, Electrodialysis, Nanofiltration, cost- comparison, potable water, brackish water desalinatio
The Newtown Line: Analyzing a Geography of Abandonment in Suburban Philadelphia
Get PDFMy essay involves the investigation of a piece of abandoned rail infrastructure in the Philadelphia suburbs known as the Newtown Line or the Newtown Branch. My piece includes an analysis that delves into the history of this infrastructure as well as the socio-politico-economic and geographic changes in the surrounding region which led to its abandonment. In this research, I discovered that the Newtown Line was largely a smaller, less-significant branch line of the Reading Railroad. As the Reading Railroad operated commuter rail to and from dormitory suburban communities in the 1950s onward, the area which the Newtown Line served remained largely rural. When suburban living became muddled by the rise of post-Fordist tendencies in geography (like shifts in location of workplace) commuting patterns no longer necessitated transportation to and from the suburbs in a Fordist manner. When development came around to the area surrounding Newtown in the 1970s and 1980s, there was no longer a demand for an intracity rail route for commuters. These new suburban residents did not commute in the same way that residents of older suburban communities did, and as a result a substantial base was never created to patronize the Newtown Line. This shift helped secure the line\u27s demise. My conclusion from this research is that townships along the route should encourage the reuse of the rail line as something other than a commuter rail line, such as a bike trail, to reflect its obsolescence
On Divinity and Marginalization: Western Christianity and African Spirituality as Impetuses of Gender In/Equality
No full textThis paper seeks to determine whether the presence of powerful women in African religious tradition allowed for the existence of similarly powerful women in their society while the apparent absence or disregard for powerful women in Western Christianity resulted in the exclusion of women from the political and social realms. Since many pre-19th century African and European governments were heavily influenced by religion, it was a significant tool of socialization in both contexts. Therefore, the gender dynamics modeled in these belief systems were likely reflected by their respective societies. This paper compares and contrasts women’s positions in African civilization and women’s positions in Europe, drawing on historical accounts and formal research to determine the extent to which religion influenced the governance of the associated countries and how this, in turn, impacted their social structures. Prominent women in African religious tradition such as Aset will be juxtaposed with female rulers such as Hatshepsut and the “male daughters” of the Igbo as examples of the flexibility and respect inherent in African womanhood. To the contrary, the lack of prominent women in Western Christianity will be compared with the historical marginalization of European women and the resulting necessity for feminism. Ultimately this paper argues that the flexibility of gender roles within African spiritual systems resulted in a similar versatility in African politics and societies while the subordination of women in Western Christianity led to the subordination of women in European culture
Neocolonialism and the Ecological Crisis of the Suez Canal
Get PDFSince its construction in the mid-1800’s, Egypt’s Suez Canal has been a source of international conflict, economic growth, and ecological turmoil. Because it regularly transports a large number of oil tankers from the Suez Port to Port Said, the canal is one of the most valuable waterways in the world. However, in linking the Mediterranean and Red Sea, the canal has caused hundreds of invasive species to migrate to the Mediterranean -- most notably invasive sea jellies. This has led to damaging effects on industries surrounding the welfare of the sea; for example, fisheries and tourism. In late 2015, despite these ecological concerns, the canal was expanded to include a parallel channel, allowing for two-way travel. While supporters envisioned positive transformations to Egypt’s high poverty and unemployment rates, the expansion’s possible long-term effects on the ocean and industries based on the ocean were neglected in discussion. My goal is to examine these ongoing effects and their consequences on humans whose livelihoods depend on the Mediterranean Sea as a resource, with a focus on how the influx of migrating species, specifically gelatinous zooplankton, have already affected fisheries, agriculture, and tourism. I also look at the eutrophication of nearby waters through chemical disposal from local factories, one of the causes of jellyfish blooms. While the Suez Canal has led to much economic growth for Egypt, the waterway’s growing negative ecological effects may override its positive influences in the long run