CURRENT EVENTS – JOURNAL ENTRIES
Journal Entries (JE) must be a minimum of 3 lines of writing in complete sentences (unless otherwise specified), and are worth up to 3 points for each entry. Since you are given in-class time to work on these each day, they
will only be accepted for up to one week after their due dates.
Collected 1/11/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 1/18/08
1/7: <none
1/8: Do you think that people whose homes are destroyed by natural disasters (flood, tornado, wild fire, earthquake, etc.) twice within 5 years should still be eligible to purchase insurance? Why or why not?
1/9: Do you think that elderly drivers should have to pass driving tests? If so, why, at what age, and how often? If not, why?
1/10: Do you think there should be consequences or penalties for people who file “frivolous” or unrealistic law suits? Why or why not?
1/11: Where do you think the line should be drawn in interrogation techniques? What is ok or not ok? Why?
Collected 1/25/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 2/1/08
1/14: Why do you think some leaders or groups use terror as a tactic of achieving their goals?
1/15: <none
1/16: How do you feel about reporters who make negative comments about the people on whom they are reporting? Should they be allowed to do this? Why or why not?
1/17: Is immigration a problem in the U.S.? Why or why not?
1/18: Are your actions more likely to be guided by internal principles or external pressures? Why?
1/21: <no school
1/22: What did you think of the motivational speaker?
1/23: In what ways are newspapers a better source for news than TV news programs?
1/24: If the media can choose the content of it’s reports (TV, newspapers, etc.), could some news stories be considered propaganda? Why or why not?
1/25: Do you think that students should be paid for good attendance or good grades in school? Why or why not?
Collected 2/29/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 3/7/08
1/28: Do you think that many people will watch the President’s State of the Union Address? Why or why not?
1/29: If you could have a robot that could do one thing for you repetitively, what would it be?
1/30: <none
1/31: <none
2/1: <no school
2/4: <none
2/5: <none
2/6: Do you feel that you are more aware of current events since you’ve been receiving newspapers? Have you been reading the paper and using it as a source of information? Why or why not?
2/7: Why do you think political parties and analysts spend so much time trying to predict the outcome of elections? WHAT’S THE POINT?
2/8: none
2/11: <none
2/12 – 2/15: <no school
2/18: <no school
2/19: Do you think that single-sex classrooms would foster increased student achievement and higher overall grades? Why or why not?
2/20: <none
2/21 – 2/22: <no school
2/25: The U.S. has two major political parties – do you think that these two parties have too much power? Why or why not?
2/26: <none
2/27: <none
2/28: On Meet the Press, Ralph Nader said that Washington D.C. was “corporate occupied territory.” Do you agree? Why or why not?
2/29: Do you think people tend to learn from the mistakes of others, or do people need to make their own mistakes in order to learn?
Collected 4/7/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 4/18/08
3/3: Do you think that our society focuses more on protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens or the rights of criminals? Explain your answer.
3/4 – 3/5: <no school
3/6: How would you feel about a camera in your car recording what you do while driving & providing your parents and insurance company with statistics such as speed?
3/7: Free write – write an entry about a current event or issue you are interested in and why.
3/10: We know who will be the Republican presidential candidate, but the Democratic candidate will not be known for several weeks or months. Do you think this is an advantage or disadvantage for Republicans? Why?
3/11: Does the personal life or character of a political candidate or office holder concern you? Why or why not?
3/12: Should schools make rules to accommodate people’s religious beliefs? Why or why not?
3/13: Below are three key words. Each can be related to a current news story – what are the stories?
1) Endeavour
2) Spitzer
3) Rebate
3/14: Do you think that most people make an effort to understand people of different ethnic backgrounds? Why or why not?
3/17: “If Obama was a white man he would not be in this position, and happens to be very lucky to be who he is.” – Geraldine Ferraro. Do you agree with this quote? Why or why not? Do you believe this was a racist comment?
3/18: Our nation’s capital does not allow its residents to possess handguns. How do you feel about this and why?
3/19: <none
3/20 – 3/21: <spring break
3/24: <spring break
3/25: During the Star Spangled Banner, should people stand, put their hand over their hearts, sing along, or all or part of the above? Why or why not?
3/26: Currently, there are no regulations regarding content which may be placed on the Internet (World Wide Web). Should there be? Why or why not?
3/27: Do you think that cyber-bullying should be a crime? Why or why not?
3/28: <none
3/31: <none
4/1: Interpret the below cartoon – what is the message and do you agree with it?
4/2: Do you feel that ticket scalping should be legal or illegal? Why?
4/3: Do you think school is boring? Why or why not?
4/4: Do you think that participation in extra curricular activities helps you to be a better student, academically or otherwise? Why or why not?
4/7: Based on the news programs we saw in class (Channels 2, 4, 5 at 9/10 p.m.), which did you prefer and why?
4/8 – 4/11: <map testing
4/14 – 4/18: <none – map testing
Collected 4/25/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 5/2/08
4/21: Do you think it should be mandatory that all U.S. citizens have their DNA on file? Why or why not?
4/22: Would you rather be represented by a delegate or a trustee in Congress? Why?
4/23: If you had to choose one of the below words to describe Ste. Genevieve, which one would you choose and why?
Pride Envy Greed Lust
Wrath Sloth Gluttony
(Please do not include individual names or specific details.)
4/24: Should professional teachers’ organizations endorse political candidates? Why or why not?
4/25: Do you believe that there are some professions/jobs in which it should be illegal for workers to go on strike? If so, which ones? If not, why not?
Collected 5/2/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 5/9/08
4/28: Some cash-strapped states want to legalize gambling to increase revenues. What is your opinion of this?
4/29: If arsonists are responsible for any of the California wildfires, how do you think they should be punished?
4/30: <none
5/1: Do you feel that your high school education is adequately preparing you for life? Why or why not?
5/2: List as many political issues/crises (problems) as you can think of which currently affect our national government.
Collected 5/9/08 – Will NOT be accepted after 5/16/08
5/5: Do you think President Bush has too much power? Why or why not?
5/6: Do you think it is important to know something about geography in order to understand some current events? Why or why not?
5/7: If you have a credit card, or intend to get one some day, do you think you will use it responsibly? Explain.
5/8: <Free write
5/9: Missouri Governor Matt Blunt signed a bill last week that allows for college-educated professionals to get certifications to teach, without earning teaching degrees. How do you feel about this? Explain.
In progress – not yet collected
5/12: At this point in the primary campaign, with delegates apportioned the way they are, do you think that Hillary Clinton should quit? Why or why not?
5/13: Do you feel that your education has focused more on academics or social life? Which do you think is more important? Why?
5/14: In your opinion, what are the characteristics of a good citizen? Do you think that you will be a good citizen? Why or why not?
5/15: Who would you pick to be the running mates (V.P. candidates) of the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates? Why?