In a country that seems to be the ideal place for people from all around the world, where diversity is praised why is there still segregation in schools and people being ridiculed for not sticking to the “status quo” that everyone should be outgoing. The two articles read in class were “Still Separate, Still Unequal: America’s Educational Apartheid” by Jonathan Kozol and “Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic?” by Susan Cain both effectively stress that diversity is a necessity in the world we live in today whether it be between schools from different neighborhoods or people with different personalities. The article written by Jonathan Kozol focuses mostly on how a child’s education can vary due to their financial status. In “Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic?” Susan Cain shows that shy or introverted people should not be taken for granted because they play an important role in society.

            A child’s education should be something that has a lot of value because they are the future, but when that child comes from a poverty stricken neighborhood the value of the education should not deplete drastically. In his article Kozol provides statistics that show the education of a third grader from a poorer community will receive an education worth at least ten thousand dollars less than a third grader who attends a school in an upper class community. This wide gap in the cost of education will have a negative impact on a child’s self- confidence when it comes to higher education because they will not feel as educated as the other person if they are competing with that person for a spot at a certain school. If there was more diversity in schools all children will have equal education and they would not have to feel self- conscience when they are surrounded by people their age coming from rich neighborhoods.

            The value of education is not the only thing being questioned but also the incentive of the teachers. Money is a main factor in a person’s life, when a teacher is being paid almost thirty thousand dollars more than a teacher from the city; they have more reasons to teach students to the best of their abilities. Jonathan Kozol uses a quote said by Marina Warner to further support his points concerning the value of education, “there are expansive children and there are cheap children just as there are expensive women and cheap women,” this statement is a sad fact that is true and very prevalent in our society. The government will put more funding into schools that are in the upper-class neighborhoods because there is a chance that their child goes to that school, but there could be a school falling apart in a bad neighborhood and they will ignore it. Diversity is needed in these schools mostly for the benefit of the child, they are used to the same environment and people that have the same background as them; but when these children grow up they have a greater chance of being closed-minded individuals because they will be put into different environment and placed with people that they already have preconceived notions about. In this world now close- minded people will only hinder any growth that will occur any time in the future and set the effort of some people who worked hard for some of the privileges given to us in reverse.

The schools that the children attend are being segregated by race in which one ethnicity outnumbers the other ethnicities. These schools lack diversity which can be further shown when visiting a school in Kansas City, Missouri Kozol said,”… as I went from class to class, I did not encounter any children who were white or Asian- or Hispanic… I was later provided with precise demographics for the school I learned that 99.6 percent of the students were African American…” this school claimed to be diverse but all of the other ethnicities could be counted on one hand. This is an example of an inner city school where minorities are the majority over Caucasians; the same could be said for a suburban neighborhood but instead the minorities would be the few. The world thrives on the sharing of ideas, customs, and values; two people from different races meeting each other for the first time will have more things to share than two people coming from the same background. Diversity will benefit the children in the future, they will not believe common misconceptions of different nationalities and will be able to work with people who are different than them because they were already exposed to that in school.

Parents are not the only ones who realize the differences in education but also the students are taking notice as well. When a class of eight- year- olds wrote,” Dear Mr. Kozol we do not have the things you have…” this statement is the one that is constantly on my mind. A child still in elementary school notices these differences without fully knowing the madness behind it. As that child gets older they begin to think that there is no point in getting an education when the school they are attending only provides them with enough knowledge to pass test. They also don’t feel the need to go further in life when they have no support from their schools and teachers. These students tend to drop out and settle instead of trying to climb up the “ladder” and get a top, well paying job. The youth falls into the traps set up by society, they make young people of color think that they limited in choices for future careers which practically sets them up for failure. Diversity will allow our future to notice that they can be more than a statistic and have a greater impact on society by thinking out of the box and going after jobs that wouldn’t normally be given to people of a different race.

The color of a person’s skin places them in a category but another thing that can make a person stand out in a crowd is their personality. Everyone on the planet is different at face value but when a person thinks about it people are very outgoing and “happy go lucky” or very shy and keeps to themselves, of course there are people who go in between. In the beginning one would assume that Susan Cain’s article was asking the question, should shyness be treated as a disease. When you read further you will realize that she is stating all the positive things shy people contribute to society.

Shy people have a certain advantage that outgoing people don’t really have and can get them into a sticky situation. In the article when the scientist performed the sitter and rover fish experiment the objective was to see which fish would try to get the food as a result end up being captured. The article states, “the ‘rover’ fish couldn’t help but investigate—and were immediately caught. But the ‘sitter’ fish stayed back making it impossible for Professor Wilson to capture them.” This exemplifies that shy people, or in this case the “sitter” fish, are more observant and has a greater chance of survival because they are less impulsive than the outgoing people or “rover” fish. Also this experiment shows that without the diversity the fish would eventually die out because the sitter fish were very cautious and could die from starvation or the rover fish would be to careless and all of them would get captured. A group with diverse personalities will have a person who is the leader and impulsive but also someone who thinks and plans logically by taking everything into consideration before acting. Shy people will not only think of the consequences but also how it will affect a person and if it will help them or cause them pain before making a decision. These two groups need each other to survive because they both contribute to their society in positive ways.

Some of the people who had the biggest impacts on the world were shy. The article states,”… shy and introverted people have been part of our species for a very long time, often in leadership positions.” It goes on by simply naming a few such as Moses, Charles Darwin, Marcel Proust, Albert Einstein, Larry Page, and J.K. Rowling. All of these people have contributed to society and made change so the world could be better. The people that think shyness is a disease have yet to realize that without the different personalities everyone would be the same and the world would lack a lot of creativity. Some of the greatest inventions were made by people who kept to themselves and worked alone.

These two articles bring an important topic to light that most people will ignore because it might not help them in any way or agree but feel as if they are not being heard when they express their opinion. Regardless, diversity in which people share their cultures, customs, and values is something that needs to happen in order for the world to realize that everything is not as black and white as they think. Strangers meeting for the first time can have so much more in common than two people coming from the same background or have the same personality. Everyone needs to realize that diversity will benefit the children of the future, if they were already exposed to someone different they will know how to work with them as they get older. The world needs to move onto bigger and better things and only diversity will make that happen and until it does history will be at a standstill.

            Jose Antonio Vargas is a well educated and charismatic person who had many fears throughout his life; the main fear was the idea of being deported from the United States in which he has lived in his whole life. Vargas has decided that his fears should no longer rule his life and he chose to bring the spotlight on a problem that hits him close to home, undocumented immigration. He effectively uses his life story throughout the article to support the fact that an undocumented immigrant will have to take risk in some cases to have the right to be considered a citizen after living in this country for several years.

            America is viewed as a safe, ideal country to many people from all around the world, a place where no judgments are passed and open to anyone trying to achieve the “American dream.” Many people have this fantasy in their heads and Vargas’ mother happened to be one of those people when in the article it states, “my mother wanted to give me a better life so she sent me thousands of miles away to live with her parents in America.” Since Vargas moved to the country at such a young age his ability to change happened at a faster pace compared to a person who became accustomed to their life in another country. While growing up he would only think one way, the “American” way and see himself as an American because that was the only lifestyle he knew. Vargas is a perfect example of a person who will have unjustified fears because of a decision that was out of his control because one hoped to give him a better life than they had.

            A trip to the D.M.V was the event that changed Vargas and made him cautious and very attentive; he found out that he was an undocumented immigrant. “One day when I was 16, I rode my bike to the nearby D.M.V office to get my Driver’s permit… I figured it was time. But when I handed the clerk my green card as proof of U.S residency, she flipped it around, examining it. ’This is fake’ she whispered, ‘don’t come back here again’.”This moment could be thought of as one of his many strokes of luck that kept him for being deported and also opened his eyes to the fact that he was undocumented and could get into a lot of trouble for being in the country. Vargas happened to be one of the millions that were unaware of their “illegal” status in this country and fate had been on his side thus far and as a result of finding out this important piece of information he took notice of his environment more than other people would and tried to assimilate as much as possible to disguise his status.

            This usually goes against what most people think concerning the topic of immigration, in the article Vargas mentions the stereotype that is commonly associated with immigrant which is, “they don’t want to assimilate, they are a drain on society.” Many people will agree with a statement like this because they had no interaction with these “illegal” immigrants and automatically assume it is true. The whole point of this article and Jose Antonio Vargas facing his fears by sharing his personal story is to educate the ignorant people that the group they refer to as “illegal” pay taxes just like them in most cases, go to the same schools as their children, and play a major role in society which guarantee them the chance to be called a citizen. These people are not a drain on society, they work and help the economy yet they are paid unjust wages. They would do repetitive, boring jobs that many Americans would overlook and ignore when in reality they qualify for something better. Vargas also made another point that not all immigrants want to settle for something, a few might aspire to do a job that doesn’t fit into the stereotypical vocations that are given to immigrants. For example, Vargas reminds the reader that he wants to be a journalist and that isn’t the type of job that will drain society; it would actually do the complete opposite and help keep us all well informed.  

            When a person wants to be as successful as Vargas and have a future they will have to lie in order to hide the truth, even if it goes their better judgment. Vargas along with his grandfather whom he called, Lolo, ‘cheated the system’ in a way by putting a sliver of white tape over a crucial piece of information that could determine his future and made photocopies of the Social Security card so it could look like a regular one that you and I would have. These were the things he had to do so he could get the same benefits that an American his age would receive. Vargas was not proud of his actions especially when he states, “this deceit never got easier. The more I did it, the more I felt like an imposter, the more guilt I carried—and the more I worried that I would get caught. But I kept doing it. I need to live and survive on my own, and decided this was the way.” To Vargas this was the only way he could live the life he wanted and this also sends out the message that people have to take risk in order to live the life that they dream about.

            Vargas had a group of supporters whom he called the underground railroad supporters; these people Rich Fischer, the superintendent of his school district, Jill Denny, his choir director, Jim Strand, the venture capitalist that sponsored him, and Peter Perl, his mentor and fellow journalist, all helped him in one form or another. This is shown in the article when he wrote, “when I finally told Pat and Rich about my immigration ‘problem’… they helped me look for solutions. At first, they even wondered if one of them could adopt me and fix the situation that way…” Another example is when he finally confided in Peter he shocked him yes but also filled in the gaps and gave Peter a better understanding of himself. Peter told Vargas that he had just been hired and had to prove himself so they would wait a while before telling everyone else. He took a big risk by telling these people about his status and in return they gave him advice, used their connections to provide him with an education, and helped shape him into the journalist that is leading a revolution for all immigrants who want equality. These four people and all of the others that helped Vargas also represent hope, and they signify that there will always be someone out there who believes in you and are willing to put their careers in jeopardy so you can reach your full potential.

            Jose Antonio Vargas basically played monopoly with his life because there were many close calls that could have ended with his deportation, but he got his point across by showing that an undocumented immigrant can play the role of a citizen very well. He is the poster child of all immigrants who have achieved their success but are too scared to share and the others that are determined to not fit the stereotype like him. In the end of the article when he decides that he is done running and will tell his story he gives hope to millions of undocumented immigrants whom live in this country that there is hope and change will come.

Before I read this article I really had no opinion about the controversy surrounding topics concerning immigrants. The only time I would really pay attention was if a story about it happened to come on while I was watching the news. After I read the article I realized that I should have paid more attention to the topic, even though it is not affecting my directly I know several people that probably are “undocumented” but haven’t shared that piece of information with me because I showed no interest in the discussion. This article,” My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant” by Jose Antonio Vargas has opened my eyes to a problem that is being faced by many people around the world. I think if a person has lived in this country for a substantial amount of their life they should be able to become a citizen without fearing that they might be deported for speaking out and voicing their opinions. In school administration and staff teach us that everyone has a voice and when you feel passionate about an issue don’t hold back and get everything out so you can be heard. So why does that automatically start to change because you don’t have the proper papers to prove that you should be able to get that opinion out there so it can be heard. I think we also need to reform the definition of a citizen because if a person is doing more harm than good and helps the country then they should be given the right to be considered a citizen.

1. Vargas started his essay with a memory of when he was twelve years old and his “uncle” held his hand while they entered a plane to come to America. His introduction allows him to relate to the reader because we all have memories so there is something in common.
2.  Some of the stereotypes were “they don’t want to assimilate, they are a drain on society.” I think that most citizens believe these things about immigrants because when something goes wrong people don’t want to blame themselves, instead they choose to blame an outsider which in this case are the immigrants.
3. He tries to get the readers sympathy informing us that he wouldn’t accomplish much without his citizenship and since he doesn’t have the proper papers he lost out on a lot of great job opportunities. An example is when he says,” while my classmates awaited their college acceptance letters, I hoped to get a full-time job at The Mountain View Voice after graduation.” This shows that even though he wanted more the choices for his future were limited. Another example is when he wanted to get recruited for the internship he couldn’t because he didn’t have the proper papers. The techniques are effective because he writes in a way that people are able to relate to his story even if we haven’t experienced it ourselves.
4. I think that reforms need to happen because this is unacceptable; if someone has lived here practically their whole life and help pay taxes they have just as much rights to be a citizen as me. Of course there should be an easier process because in my eyes they are already a citizen the only thing they are missing is the proper information.
5. I think the lies he told are irrelevant for the simple fact that he tried to avoid talking about immigration as much as possible in his career; he is not unreliable because all journalist lie in one form or another and his profession should have nothing to do with his personal life.

             In a country that seems to be the ideal place for people from all around the world, where diversity is praised why is there still segregation in schools and people being ridiculed for not sticking to the “status quo” that everyone should be outgoing. The two articles read in class were “Still Separate, Still Unequal: America’s Educational Apartheid” by Jonathan Kozol and “Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic?” by Susan Cain both stress that diversity is a necessity in the world we live in today. The article written by Jonathan Kozol focuses mostly on how a child’s education can vary due to their financial status. In “Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic?” Susan Cain shows that shy or introverted people should not be taken for granted because they play an important role in society.

            A child’s education should be something that has a lot of value because they are the future but when that child comes from a poverty stricken neighborhood the value of the education depletes drastically according to Jonathan Kozol. Statistics show that the education of a third grader from a poorer community will receive an education worth at least ten thousand dollars less than a third grader who attends a school in an upper class community. The value of education is not the only thing being questioned but also the incentive of the teachers. Money is a main factor in a person’s life, when a teacher is being paid almost thirty thousand dollars more than a teacher from the city; they have more reasons to teach students to the best of their abilities. As said by Marina Warner, “there are expansive children and there are cheap children just as there are expensive women and cheap women,” this statement is a sad fact that is true and very prevalent in our society. The government will put more funding into schools that are in the upper-class neighborhoods because there is a chance that their child goes to that school, but there could be a school falling apart in a bad neighborhood and they will ignore it. Diversity is needed in these schools mostly for the benefit of the child, they are used to the same environment and people that have the same background as them; but when these children grow up they have a greater chance of being closed-minded individuals because they will be put into different environment and placed with people that they already have preconceived notions about. In this world now close- minded people will only hinder any growth that will occur any time in the future and set the effort of some people who worked hard for some of the privileges given to us in reverse.

The schools that the children attend are being segregated by race in which one ethnicity outnumbers the other ethnicities. These schools lack diversity which can be further shown when visiting a school in Kansas City, Missouri Kozol said,”… as I went from class to class, I did not encounter any children who were white or Asian- or Hispanic… I was later provided with precise demographics for the school I learned that 99.6 percent of the students were African American…” this school claimed to be diverse but all of the other ethnicities could be counted on one hand. This is an example of an inner city school where minorities are the majority over Caucasians; the same could be said for a suburban neighborhood but instead the minorities would be the few. The world thrives on the sharing of ideas, customs, and values; two people from different races meeting each other for the first time will have more things to share than two people coming from the same background. Diversity will benefit the children in the future, they will not believe common misconceptions of different nationalities and will be able to work with people who are different than them because they were already exposed to that in school.

Parents are not the only ones who realize the differences in education but also the students are taking notice as well. When a class of eight- year- olds wrote,” Dear Mr. Kozol we do not have the things you have…” this statement is the one that is constantly on my mind. A child still in elementary school notices these differences without fully knowing the madness behind it. As that child gets older they begin to think that there is no point in getting an education when the school they are attending only provides them with enough knowledge to pass test. They also don’t feel the need to go further in life when they have no support from their schools and teachers. These students tend to drop out and settle instead of trying to climb up the “ladder” and get a top, well paying job. The youth falls into the traps set up by society, they make young people of color think that they limited in choices for future careers which practically sets them up for failure. Diversity will allow our future to notice that they can be more than a statistic and have a greater impact on society by thinking out of the box and going after jobs that wouldn’t normally be given to people of a different race.

The color of a person’s skin places them in a category but another thing that can make a person stand out in a crowd is their personality. Everyone on the planet is different at face value but when a person thinks about it people are very outgoing and “happy go lucky” or very shy and keeps to themselves, of course there are people who go in between. In the beginning one would assume that Susan Cain’s article was asking the question, should shyness be treated as a disease. When you read further you will realize that she is stating all the positive things shy people contribute to society.

Shy people have a certain advantage that outgoing people don’t really have and can get them into a sticky situation. In the article when the sitter and rover fish experiment was done it states,” the ‘rover’ fish couldn’t help but investigate—and were immediately caught. But the ‘sitter’ fish stayed back making it impossible for Professor Wilson to capture them.” This exemplifies that shy people, or in this case the “sitter” fish, are more observant and has a greater chance of survival because they are less impulsive than the outgoing people or “rover” fish. A group with diverse personalities will have a person who is the leader and impulsive but also someone who thinks and plans logically by taking everything into consideration before acting. Shy people will not only think of the consequences but also how it will affect a person and if it will help them or cause them pain before making a decision.

Some of the people who had the biggest impacts on the world were shy. The article states,”… shy and introverted people have been part of our species for a very long time, often in leadership positions.” It goes on by simply naming a few such as Moses, Charles Darwin, Marcel Proust, Albert Einstein, Larry Page, and J.K. Rowling. All of these people have contributed to society and made change so the world could be better. The people that think shyness is a disease have yet to realize that without the different personalities everyone would be the same and the world would lack a lot of creativity. Some of the greatest inventions were made by people who kept to themselves and worked alone.

These two articles bring an important topic to light that most people will ignore because it might not help them in any way or agree but feel as if they are not being heard when they express their opinion. Regardless, diversity is something that need to happen in order for the world to move onto bigger and better things and until that happens we all will be at a standstill in history.

now i definitely know how to post my tumblr