Drafting an Obscenity and Profanity Policy for Schools

Drafting an Obscenity and Profanity Policy for Schools Obscenity and profanity have become significant issues that schools must get a handle on. Profanity especially has become a problem in part because students hear their parents using words that are unacceptable at school and model what they do. Furthermore, pop culture has made it a more acceptable practice.   The entertainment industry, especially music, movies, and television glamorizes the use of obscenities and profanity.   Sadly, students are using profane words at a younger and younger age. Schools must have a strong policy to deter students from being profane or obscene primarily because they are often vulgar in nature, the use of these types of words/materials often leads to distractions, and can occasionally lead to fights or altercations. Educating our students is critical in eliminating or reducing the problem as is the case for almost any social issue. Students must be taught that there are other alternatives to using obscenities and profanity during school.   They must be taught that school is the wrong time and wrong place to practice the use of expletive language.   Some parents may allow their children to use profanity in the home, but they need to know that it will not be allowed or tolerated in school. They need to know that using inappropriate language is a choice. They can control their choices at school, or they will be held accountable. Many students are offended when other students use inappropriate language.   They are not exposed to it in their home and do not make it a regular part of their vernacular. It is especially important for schools to teach older students to be respectful and mindful of younger students.   Schools must adopt a zero tolerance stance when older students are knowingly using inappropriate language around younger students. Schools should have an expectation for all students to be respectful of one another.   Cursing in any form can be offensive and disrespectful to many students. If nothing else, all students should refrain from this practice because of this.  Ã‚   Getting a handle on the issue of obscenity and profanity will be an uphill and continuous battle.   Schools wanting to improve this area must draft a tough policy, educate their students on the policy, and then follow through with the assigned consequences no matter the context.   Once students see that you are cracking down on the issue, most will alter their vocabulary and comply because they do not want to be in trouble.   Obscenity and Profanity Policy Obscene materials including, but not limited to illustrations (drawings, painting, photographs, etc.) and oral or written materials (books, letters, poems, tapes, CDs, videos, etc.) which are commercially or student produced are prohibited. Profanity including, but not limited to, gestures, symbols, verbal, written, etc. is prohibited during school and at all school sponsored activities. There is one word that is strictly prohibited. The â€Å"F† word will not be tolerated under any circumstance. Any student who uses the â€Å"F† word in any context will automatically be suspended out of school for three days. All other forms of inappropriate language are highly discouraged. Students must choose their words carefully and consciously.   Students caught using obscenities or profanities will be subject to the following disciplinary code. 1st Offense - Verbal reprimand. Notice issued to parents.2nd Offense - 3 detention times.3rd Offense - 3 days in-school placementSubsequent Offenses - 3 days out-of-school suspension.

Definition and Examples of Science Writing

Definition and Examples of Science Writing The term science writing refers to  writing about a scientific subject matter, often in a non-technical manner for an audience of non-scientists (a form of journalism or creative nonfiction). Also called popular science writing.  (Definition No. 1) Science writing may also refer to writing that reports scientific observations and results in a manner governed by specific conventions (a form of technical writing). More commonly known as scientific writing. (Definition No. 2) Examples and Observations Because science writing is intended to be entertaining  enough to capture the continued interest  of potential readers, its style is much less somber than the usual scientific writing [i.e., definition No. 2, above]. The use of slang, puns, and other word plays on the English language  are accepted and even encouraged. . . .Distinguishing between science writing and scientific writing is reasonable of Science Writing: Stripped for Parts:  Sustaining a dead body until its organs can be harvested is a tricky process requiring the latest in medical technology. But its also a distinct anachronism in an era when medicine is becoming less and less invasive. Fixing blocked coronary arteries, which not long ago required prying a patients chest open with a saw and spreader, can now be accomplished with a tiny stent delivered to the heart on a slender wire threaded up the leg. Exploratory surgery has given way to robot cameras and high-resolution imaging. Already, we are eyeing the tan talizing summit of gene therapy, where diseases are cured even before they do damage. Compared with such microscale cures, transplants- which consist of salvaging entire organs from a heart-beating cadaver and sewing them into a different body- seem crudely mechanical, even medieval. On Explaining Science The question is not should you explain a concept or process, but how can you do so in a way that is clear and so readable that it is simply part of the story? Use explanatory strategies such as ... - People who study what makes an explanation successful have found that while giving examples is helpful, giving nonexamples is even better.Nonexamples are examples of what something is not. Often, that kind of example will help clarify what the thing is. If you were trying to explain groundwater, for instance, you might say that, while the term seems to suggest an actual body of water, such as a lake or an underground river, that would be an inaccurate image. Groundwater is not a body of water in the traditional sense; rather, as Katherine Rowan, communications professor, points out, it is water moving slowly but relentlessly through cracks and crevices in the ground below us...Be acutely aware of your readers beliefs. You might write that chance is the best explanation of a disease cluster; but this could be counterproductive if your readers reject chance as an explanation for anything. If you are aware that readers beliefs may collide with an explanation you give, you may be able to write in a way that doesnt cause these readers to block their minds to the science you explain. The Lighter Side of Science Writing In this paragraph I will state the main claim that the research makes, making appropriate use of scare quotes to ensure that its clear that I have no opinion about this research whatsoever. In this paragraph, I will briefly (because no paragraph should be more than one line) state which existing scientific ideas this new research challenges. If the research is about a potential cure or a solution to a problem, this paragraph will describe how it will raise hopes for a group of sufferers or victims. This paragraph elaborates on the claim, adding weasel-words like the scientists say to shift responsibility for establishing the likely truth or accuracy of the research findings on to absolutely anybody else but me, the journalist. ... Sources (Janice R. Matthews and Robert W. Matthews,  Successful Scientific Writing: A Step-by-Step Guide for the Biological and  Medical Sciences, 4th ed.  Cambridge University Press, 2014) (Jennifer Kahn, Stripped for Parts. Wired.  Ã‚  March 2003. Reprinted in The Best American Science Writing 2004, edited by Dava Sobel. HarperCollins, 2004) (Sharon Dunwoody, On Explaining Science. A Field Guide for Science Writers, 2nd ed., ed. by Deborah Blum, Mary Knudson, and Robin Marantz Henig. Oxford University  Press, 2006) (Martin Robbins, This Is a News Website Article About a Scientific Paper. The Guardian, September 27, 2010)