Peer Presentation: Poor African-Americans

Another group presentation that stood out to me was DC5’s. This group presented on the reasons behind and effects of poverty amongst African-Americans. They provided a number of interesting statistics including the fact that while African-Americans make up 12.5 percent of America’s population, they make up 15.5 percent of America’s poor population. This statistic was very interesting, because it so clearly demonstrated the difference between what the numbers are and what they should be. They also relayed the fact that 11 percent of African-Americans from the ages of 16-24 drop out of high school, and that 72 percent of African-Americans are born out of wedlock. While I doubt the latter statistic, these numbers are nevertheless discouraging. They described the education was key, but with the dropout rate combined with the fact that school districts with lower standardized test scores, receive less funding, it creates a vicious cycle. Typically the school districts with lower test scores are the poorer ones, and are prevalent in African-American communities. Therefore, the public schools that have lower funding can never have it increased, and the quality of education remains low. They also touched on the affect of the media, and claimed there weren’t enough positive African American role models present.

All in all this was a pretty good presentation. The statistics presented were eye opening, and their presentation put an emphasis on the fact that poverty amongst the African-American community is cyclical. Now it is up to us to break that vicious cycle, but the question is how?

Peer Presentation: Failure of The Family

One particular peer presentation that stood out to me was a PowerPoint on the Failure of the Family in the African-American community. This group discussed what constitutes a normal nuclear family and the disparities present when contrasted with a split family. They found that children in a split family are typically more aggressive than when contrasted to a family that stays together. They also pointed out that the divorce rate has gone down since the 1980’s, but so has the number of people getting married. They discussed that the number of grandparents raising children is also going up, and that the media plays a role in showing that a split family is acceptable. They backed this point up by saying that 99 percent of homes have at least one television in America. They detailed the effects of foster care and the role of child protection services, touching on the controversy of the cps’ ability to judge whether a family is fit to raise a child. They also claimed that typically a child taken away from their family generally tends to have low self esteem

This is a very poignant issue in the African-American community, because it seems so common. This presentation particularly stood out to me because I live in a home with a single mom, and was initially raised by her, and my grandparents. I feel as though family is very important, however, I do not feel as though it is necessarily failure if the family is not a stereotypically nuclear one. In my case my family has not failed at all, and has made me who I am today.

Self Reflection

I can honestly say Freshmen Seminar has been a new experience for. Coming into the class I thought it would relate more to helping me assimilate to the level of work that I would be doing. The class has taught me how to research properly and allowed me to meet many of my classmates. One thing I am confused about though is how the new system relates to us as new freshmen that need to know more about the history of Howard University. I will admit that sitting in the lectures was difficult. To listen to a straight forty-five minutes of talking and being able to take in the information and effectively take notes is a skill that I am not ashamed to say I have not fully mastered. This course however has set me on the road in order to obtain that skill. I have learned valuable lessons such as time management and the importance of teamwork while working on group projects. I especially enjoyed working with Dr. Williams. Some of the things she covered in her lesson I have applied in my other classes and it has proved to help immensely. Our very first lecture from Dr. Carr opened my eyes to just how blessed we truly are at this university. We are surrounded by some of the greatest minds in the nation as our teachers. There is no doubt in my mind that by being taught by some of the best, we will in turn achieve greatness. One thing I wish would be changed about the class however is that it would be more relevant to what we need as freshmen, not just a fascinating class where we learn pockets of information.

Suicide in African Americans

One of the group projects the stuck out to me was the presentation about suicide in African Americans. For years it has been a common misconception that African Americans do not commit suicide due to their pride. Recent studies however have shown that this belief is untrue. Over the last couple decades there have been higher and higher instances in which adolescents between the ages of thirteen and twenty are feeling the pressures of life. One of the main pressures happens in high school and college aged teens in the form of bullying. In some cases bullying has become so severe that these teens see no other way out of their situation then death. This is really interesting to me because the concept of suicide has been so controversial within my own mind let alone the public opinion. I thought it was brave of this group to take on this subject and apply to us as African Americans. The way they presented was spectacular in my opinion and they made it very clear what their research method was and their question. I’m not exactly sure how it applied to the class but it was still a great presentation.

Staff Interview

for our interview we interviewed Professor Jerome Kravitz, here are our following questions...

Q: How does sleep deprivation affect students academically?

A: Depends on the amount. Large amounts negatively effect health/resistance to sickness and being sick can mess up all of your courses. Sleep is also a part of learning, without it we can not form memories and there for take in what we learned.

Q: Do cat naps through out the day help students stay focused?

A: Yes they do.

Q: Are there things you can do to replace sleep?

A: No, there is no way to replace sleep

Q: What is the best type of sleep?

A: All parts of the sleep cycle are important, it is best to get at least 8 hours of sleep

Staff Interview

The staff interview was conducted by one of the other members in my group. She interviewed a psychology professor at Howard University. We used his expertise to enhance our knowledge of the affects of sleep deprivation. Setting up the interview was a tedious task because we couldn't accommodate a time and place that would permit all group members and the professor to attend. We as a group eventually decided to send only one representative from the group to conduct the interview. The questions that she asked him were very thorough and therefore the professors's answers were concise. His answers confirmed our hypothesis about the dangers of sleep deprivation. We learned that college students on average get about four to five hours of sleep each night; when in actuality they should be getting about eight hours of sleep each night. The lack of sleep will slow down your performance and hurt your academics. The professor also made it very clear that energy drinks and other alternatives often times used to replace sleep are not adequate enough to improve your performance. There is absolutely nothing that can replace a complete eight hours of sleep. However, it easy to see how students can get engulfed in their work and academics and neglect sleep. Just as a student trains themselves to make time for studying, socializing, and class-they should train themselves to make time for them to sleep. This interview was a great tool to get students accustomed to using various sources of information besides the internet. There is a plethora of knowledge all around our campus and it is our responsibility to utilize every resource.

-Kaylynn Webb

Personal Reflection

Freshmen Seminar was a challenging course because it required discipline and time management from the students. The class only met once a week therefore it was extremely important that students attended all sessions to receive the information. The lecturers varied week to week which allowed the students to experience a variety of different teaching styles. My favorite lecture was the first lecture by Dr. Carr. His presentation was engaging and the topic was new material that I had not previously learned about. Unfortunately, the class is very short; sometimes I felt as if the information was given in a rushed manner. It takes so long for the class to assemble that we waste valuable instruction time. All in all, I think the direction that the freshmen seminar class is moving is a positive one. I think that the class will continue to develop in years to come.

Working on the group project was not as difficult as I predicted it to be. I was fortunate enough to be put in a group with other students who actively participated in the process of creating the project. Early on, we as a group identified our strengths and divided the project accordingly. I was skilled in powerpoint and creating other multimedia projects. The project was completed after only two group meetings. The most difficult portion of the project was ensuring that we had the proper equipment to display our video and power point. This meant that we had to do extra preparation for our project. I believe that our presentation was interactive and very professional. I am proud of my freshmen seminar group and glad that I had the privilege to work with them.

-Kaylynn Webb

Peer Presentation Review:2

The second group that I reviewed was Stampede. Their discussion question was: Why is the suicide rate increasing amongst African-Americans between the ages of 15-24? A group member came up with this question after a recent incident where a Howard University student committed suicide. I think that it is important for researchers to research relevant topics like the one Stampede reviewed. I was very interested to hear their presentation because it was related to myself as an African-American and person between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four. Some of the causes of suicide in this age bracket are unemployment, alcohol abuse, relationship discord, physical abuse, stress, and death in the family. All of these reasons seem logical based upon personal knowledge of other suicide incidents. Some of the statistics Stampede provided stated that over 30,000 Americans have committed suicide in the past year. This equates to five African-Americans committing suicide a day. In America it is the eighth leading cause of death, which is over homicide/murder. Between 1980-1995 there was a record high suicide rate in the African American community. In order to help prevent the act of suicide the group presented alternative solutions and resources. Some of the resources included help hotlines, peer to peer mediating groups, and just talking with a friend. The most intriguing part of the presentation was the segment about anti-depressant pills. The information they gathered showed that many anti-depressant pills do not work and the chemical imbalance that is suggested by pharmacies is false. The only factor of the presentation that was not included was the citing sources. As a researcher it is extremely important to cite your sources so that the information will be reliable. Other than that factor the presentation was nice.

-Kaylynn Webb

Peer Presentation Review:1

The first group presentation that I reviewed was Group 4.0. Their discussion topic was historically black colleges and universities. From this topic they developed a central question which was "are HBCU's effective in creating higher success rate in African-American students?" Their methodology for acquiring their information was researching second hand resources such as websites like www.hbcunetwork.com. The question that they posed was intriguing because it relates to all the students in Freshmen Seminar; however, their presentation of the information was not engaging. Throughout the majority of the presentation one student read directly from the powerpoint. Also, the information on the slides was in paragraph/long bullet form. To improve their presentation I would suggest that they find the key points of the information and make SHORT bullets to display on the screen. It is hard for students to understand the important parts of the information if everything on the slide is read and is not simplified enough for note taking. The factual information that I gained from the project was that on average fifty percent of freshmen that attend HBCU'S graduate in four to six years. According to the professor they interviewed, HBCU's are commonly weighted heavier than a predominantly white school. This means that the course level of work is graded meticulously. I agree with the group when they concluded that African-American students perform better at HBCU'S because they are more comfortable in their environment. I personally chose to attend an HBCU because I felt that I would relate to my peers more so than I would at a predominantly white college. Overall the presentation was informative but not engaging.

-Kaylynn Webb

The African Burial Ground

This weekend, the Monday section of freshman seminar took a field trip to New York in order to see the African Burial Ground Museum. Once we arrived, we watched a short video depicting the history of the burial ground, and then were allowed to tour the small area of exhibit. The items in the exhibit were informative and interesting because they put a new twist on things as opposed to what was commonly expected. The personal touch of the story following a young girl was interesting and the life size figures of them were cool as well. Afterwards, we went outside and were given a tour of the monument which was constructed for all of those buried. This was my favorite aspect because of the symbols and general artistry of it.

After that we were taken to 125^th street (aka Harlem) where we were allotted free time. The trip to Harlem was fun because we were allowed to see the Apollo, which was a new experience for me. In future trips, maybe a destination other than Harlem could be visited, such as time square, where there is not only the option to go shopping, but also sightseeing. This is because after awhile, shopping became dry, especially if you didn’t have money to spend. All in all this was a great field trip, although none of us were sure if it was mandatory. It was a nice experience in off campus education, and also inspired me to take advantage of more of the things that Howard University offers.