Integrating College Prep Into an Art Curriculum

The arts have been proven to help children learn better and absorb information more easily. Use art education to help your students learn valuable concepts in the classroom.

Oftentimes, arts education falls to the wayside when it comes time for students to prepare for college. Art programs are usually the first to be trimmed from budgets, although statistics show that students that participate in the arts (e.g., music, theater, dance and visual art) are more likely to succeed in school. Susan Sclafani, a former U.S. Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, considers art education to be "Vital to young people's success in school and in life." The arts can be integrated with even an ambitious college preparatory course with relative ease.

Step 1

Go over your curriculum. Most college prep courses focus on subjects like math and science while placing less attention on subjects like Language Arts ("English") and history.

Step 2

Look for classes that students need to improve in or where an incentive might help. Don't just aim for the "important" ones. Real world skills like knowing foreign languages, design or management skills can all be integrated into an arts and college prep focused course.

Step 3

Approach the subject from as many angles as possible. History is not just reading dry facts; it is also music, plays and art from that period, and how people dressed, spoke and thought. Science is not just charts of data; it is also the beautiful and strange vision of viruses and microbes through a microscope, tools designed to help people around the world and far reaching global effects. Many people approach these subjects as if they were isolated islands of information, but they are interrelated.

Step 4

Decide on ways for students to show or interact with what they are learning artistically. For example, have students in a natural science class draw realistic trees using only charcoal pencils so they also learn about shade scales. Or you could have students create an interpretive dance, musical or play about an important recent event such as an oil spill to explore the environmental effects, history of similar situations and even politics and ethics.

Step 5

Draw together as many subjects as possible. If your students are learning design, introduce them to textiles from other countries. Use that opportunity to draw in world history, ecology and politics. Even math disciplines such as geometry can be used to explore African or Native American designs or statistics to learn about the long-term cultural effects of social problems like slavery.

Tips

Strange as it might seem, almost every subject can be compared and backed up by another which may actually help your students learn better. Be fearless when investigating your subjects and looking for ways to introduce the arts. When you get stuck, try looking online or visiting local arts centers, educating museums or just take a walk through an interesting part of town. You might find a strange, new Arabic restaurant with a distinct food influenced by a culture's history. Use these little things as inspiration.

How Do I Report Abuse in a Public Mental Health Center

Reporting abuse in the mental health care sector can be hard, particularly if the abuser is your coworker or friend. Here is information on how to report abuse so that something is actually done about it.

Reporting abuse in an institutional setting can be intimidating and difficult. The victim may be violent and unhelpful and you may face retaliation and hostility from your coworkers. However it is important to keep in mind that the patients have very few rights with which to defend themselves and run the risk of suffering from all kinds of abuse, including risking death in a violent restraint. Reporting abuse may save patients lives.

Step 1

Ascertain that it is abuse that is going on. This can be particularly hard in places like group homes or institutions because sometimes patients fight each other, causing wounds. In other cases a patient may have privileges removed for bad behavior. Laws vary by the state so denying food for misbehavior may be illegal and constitute abuse in New Mexico but be legal in another state. Other issues may include how patients are subdued and what kind of holds they are put into and whether the use of force is excessive. If a hold is the first response to any behavior including being simply obnoxious it is likely abuse, however a rough but properly done hold in a moment of struggle may look awful but it is not abuse. Also remember to keep in mind that there are people who self injure so you need to find out who is causing the injuries or abuse before going further.

Step 2

Find out if the abuse is regular or if it was a single incident. Abuse is rarely ever a one time thing unless you are fortunate enough to catch it as it starts. Do not ask patients who hit them or if such and such person hurt them because this can be seen as "leading" the victim and may cause a future court case to be lost. Always ask about a new bruise or scratch, reddened cheeks or file info on hurt private parts. Try saying something like "I see you have a new scratch there, what happened?" to the patient.

Step 3

Write a journal keeping track of all the incidences. Most facilities will have one for each patient but you should keep your own and compare to the official one daily. Make a note of any discrepancies such as bruises not mentioned or changes in behavior out of no where. Always write down the dates, who was on shift and where and any incidences with other patients since it may not be a caregiver being abusive in some cases.

Step 4

Write out the appropriate state report. Most states will have an abuse hot-line which you may get the number for by contacting a local directory or information hot-line, searching online or even at the local library. Some states require the necessary information to be posted in a prominent area in any group home or care facility. Attach a photocopy of your notes to the form. Basically your notes constitute an eye witness sequence of events and if well written may let you report the abuse anonymously. However, a random report with no information to back it up is often times ignored or rationalized by the institution as "a disgruntled employee" or something similar.

Step 5

Decide whether you want to use the "official" route to report abuse or go strait to the appropriate authorities. Keep in mind that retaliation against you (particularly if you are employed by the center) and the victim is not only possible but likely in many places, however, it is illegal so document everything.

Tips

Reporting abuse is hard. Sometimes you may have to report your boss or even a good friend. It might be possible to discuss the abuse with the abuser and ask them to stop but this may have no effect. Remember that your patient has few legal rights and relies on outside help. Don't be complicit in committing a crime.

What are Pdd's and What Can We Do About Them?

Pervasive developmental disorder or PDD refers to a group of disorders that affect the neurological development of children. Some of these disorders will last a lifetime. This article is a glimpse into research that attempts to understand the neurological basis for PDD.


What is PDD?

PDD or pervasive developmental disorder is a category describing a group of dsorders that effect how the brain functions. These disorders are typically noticeable by the age of three and include Kanner's (or typical) autism, Asperger's (sometimes called high functioning autism), childhood disintegrative disorder and Rett's syndrome. Fragile X syndrome is sometimes also included within this group. There is also a form of autism known as PDD-NOS or Pervasive Developmental Disorder- Not Otherwise Specified, which means that the child has a sort of "atypical" autism that does not fit into the two main categories.

What Causes PDDs?

While the exact causes or neurological basis of PDDs are still unknown, recent research points to a variety of genetic factors including predisposition caused by immune disfunctions or genes reacting to exterior damage such as pollutants.

Autism tends to run in families and some doctors hypothesize that there are a number of autisms, some of which are hereditary and may present in distinctive or unique ways different from autisms caused by exterior damage. The basic theory is that some people have weak genetic information that becomes damaged after birth, like a broken switch that moves from off to on when bumped accidentally. This is why some parents feel that autism is caused by vaccines even though test results have shown that they do not. What might happen in a few cases is that a child might have an immune disfunction or gene problem that is unknown and gets "bumped" during a vaccine. For example the child might have an unknown allergy to a chemical or metal contained in the vaccine that triggers a reaction that effects the brain and presents as autism. However these are only theories and they may not be right.



Why Should We Learn More About Autism?

Many people do not realize that the drugs currently used to "treat" autism do not actually treat it, but rather "alleviate symptoms" by dulling actions, reactions or behaviors. The problem with this approach is that while convenient for caregivers it may hinder the autistic's ability to process information and growth as well as making it harder for them to learn to care for themselves. On the other hand drugs used to help self injuring autstics are currently made for problems like Schitzophrenia and work by drugging the patient into submission. CM-AT is a new drug in Phase III of clinical trials as of 2010. This drug was made to help children with autism absorb protein. Theoretically this will "allow children with autism greater access to the building blocks for the manufacture of new proteins such as neurotransmitters" according to Medical News Today, meaning that the drug may help autistics by giving them the tools (protein) needed to build new brain pathways so that they can better access information. Another drug being tested using newly discovered information on PDDs is Naltrexone. This drug is being developed to block "opiodes" or a chemical the body releases. In a person with autism an opiod can be released in a number of odd situations, including even drinking milk. The opiods have the effect of blocking or diminishing information reaching the brain, such as when a self injuring person repeatedly slams their head into a wall. The intended effect of Naltrexone is that the person with autism will no longer react as if in a drug induced haze and be able to feel what is happening. This drug is very promising for people with low functioning autism or those who self injure.

Currently there are no treatments and only a few drugs available to help people with autism which results in desperate loving caregivers looking for any possible way to help their children but who do not necessarily understand the possible effects of what they are doing. New drugs designed specifically to help people with autism may prevent unnecessary deaths of children from "treatments" like chelation therapy and other untested "cures".