Sarah+L.


 * Record of Assignments**
 * Name of Student:** Sarah Leighton

toc

** Adolescence **

** W : What you want to know (curiosities/inquiry questions) **
**1.** **I want to know how today's popular rap and hip hop music affect young adolescent children in their behavior, mood, language, and relationships. If the music they're listening to is violent and sexual do they have more of a tendency to be that way also?**

** Resource #1 **

 * Read:**


 * What I read was an interesting article discussing how mainstream music affects young adolescents. In the article it talks about what types of references are used in popular music such as drugs, alcohol and tobacco use. It states that: "t he average adolescent is exposed to approximately 84 references to explicit substance use per day and 591 references per week, or 30,732 references per year." Something else that was mentioned in the article was that out of all the music out there only about 4% of it is "anti" drug and alcohol messages. That is truly an outstanding number of explicit references being exposed to young children in this day in age.


 * Respond:**
 * I was shocked to hear some of the numbers that this article tossed out. I couldn't believe how many references of drug and alcohol use were in their music that they were being exposed to everyday. It's scary because even though you think that music can't effect how you feel and view things, it does. It has been proven that the music children listen to affect their mood, and influence their identity development. Music is very powerful and one of the most influential types of media out there! These types of references being exposed to children now a days scares me for my future children and how much exposer they will get in their music, school atmosphere, and everyday life.


 * APA Citation:**
 * Parker Pope, T., & (2013, February 5). // Under the influence of music // . Retrieved from []


 * Read:**
 * What I read was an article about how certain genres of music reference drug and alcohol abuse, along with sex and violence more than others tend to. From listening to inappropriate music c hildren act out and behave in certain ways due to the things they see and hear that in the songs are acceptable. Something stated in the article that caught my attention was "A teenager's preference for certain types of music could be correlated or associated with certain behaviors." Reading that sentence scared me greatly for the young children and their music choices. They are being influenced to act in a certain manner because it is "cool".


 * Respond:**
 * Reading this article made me more aware of the types of music that are popular now in society. If I had a child I would be very involved and making sure to pay close attention to what types of music they're listening to! Hearing about sex, violence, drug abuse, and curse words in songs most assuredly influences young children. Children are like little sponges that soak up all the information that they see and hear from the TV, the radio, and other children. A line in the article that really grabbed my attention was this one, "As with popular music, the perception and the effect of music-video messages are important, because research has reported that exposure to violence, sexual messages, sexual stereotypes, and use of substance of abuse in music videos might produce significant changes in behaviors and attitudes of young viewers." Can you imagine the influences young adolescents are getting today with the types of popular music that are currently out? We wonder why there is so much violence and teen pregnancies, of course they get it from the TV and their music references.


 * APA Citation:**
 * Fuld, G. (2009, October 19). // Impact of music, music lyrics, and music videos on children and youth // . Retrieved from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/124/5/1488.full


 * Bieneck, Barbara, S. K. (2012, February). //The effect of music-induced mood on aggressive affect, cognition, and behavior.//. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/ehost/detail?vid=14&sid=b9415e16-403c-4c27-a8e2-cb55e48c93c1@sessionmgr12&hid=23&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==

** Resource #3 **

 * Read:**
 * This article had a little bit of a spin on the idea of hip-hop and how it affects children. Instead of bashing the industry and rap culture the article was trying to use rap and hip-hop music to encourage young adults to participate in things that would promote hip-hop music. An organization such as Boys & Girls Club promotes hip-hop by teaching the children discipline, self-confidence, leadership, and other very important tools for success in the music industry. Giving them something fun to do and something to potentially look forward to in their life is more of a positive than talking about all the negatives that come with hip-hop & rap music.


 * Respond:**
 * I think this was an interesting article and I liked how they focused more on a positive note rather than a negative one. It was a neat idea to me that some organizations such as Boys & Girls Club and also the YMCA program apply music to help their children. Taking something not necessarily all bad but not all good either and making it more of a positive influence is a breath of fresh air! We all should learn form this and start learning how to make things more positive by looking at them in a different light. If we educate young adolescents of the foul language and how it needs to be toned down in rap/hip-hop music maybe they could make a change, or start to make a change in the future of hip-hop music. Every little big helps and especially organizations that get children out there on the radio such as the YMCA and Boys and Girls Club they could be great at persuading the industry to turn it around.


 * APA Citation:**
 * Blanchard, B. (1999, July 26). // The social significance of rap & hip-hop culture // . Retrieved from http://www.stanford.edu/class/e297c/poverty_prejudice/mediarace/socialsignificance.htm


 * Karashima, Nishiguchi, M. H. (2012). // Effectiveness of listening to music before simple repetitive tasks // . Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/ehost/detail?vid=15&sid=b9415e16-403c-4c27-a8e2-cb55e48c93c1@sessionmgr12&hid=23&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==

** Resource #4 **

 * Read:**
 * This article was in a survey format. The survey was focused on individuals who attended music festivals and if they had been involved in drugs within the past month, or if they had done any drugs before the music festival. The survey involved 939 respondents from the ages of 16-29 years old, and with those 939 respondents 46% of them had used illicit drugs in the past month. Individuals who favored more of the dance/rap music genres were more likely to have used illicit drugs recently vs. those who favored pop/alternative music were less likely to have used drugs within the past month! The results of this survey were that those who attend music festivals are more commonly using drugs, and that advertising drug prevention at these types of venues would be very beneficial.


 * Respond:**
 * Reading this article made me more aware of the types of music that solicit to being involved and/or doing drugs. I was very surprised to learn that 46% of the respondents who were being surveyed about doing drugs had indeed participated in doing drugs in the past month. That is a high number and one that is very concerning with young adolescents who look up to famous people such as music artists. If adolescents are listening to this type of behavior and seeing it around them at music festivals they are going to be more willing and accepting of such behaviors. I think this is a great example showing how influential music can be, and especially to young individuals how easy it is to be sucked into not good situations.


 * APA Citation:**
 * Aitken, Hocking, Hellard, Lim, C. J. M. M. (2008, July). //A cross-sectional survey of young people attending a music festival: associations between drug use and musical preference.//. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.libraries.uc.edu/ehost/detail?vid=5&sid=123caf61-8161-4074-95ce-5c3c65768a1d@sessionmgr15&hid=23&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==

** 5. Sexuality Activity **
([])

From this site I read through the Safe Schools Improvement Act. This was a reading describing what the act was, why the act was in place, and who the act effected. The Safe Schools Improvement Act entails that all public schools K-12 perform an anti-bullying policy that protects children based on sexual orientation, gender identity, race, and religion. More than 8 out of 10 LGBT students are bullied each year because of their sexual orientation, that is a big percentile! There is some bit of good news though in this article, in 2005 a report shows that schools who have a policy for anti-bullying were far less likely to report any serious harassment and bullying occurring.
 * Describe your resource:**

I was extremely surprised to learn that 8 out of 10 LGBT students are bullied each school year! Something else that really grabbed my attention was that 65% of middle school and high school students said that they had been bullied within the past year. Reading that just breaks my heart to learn that over half of middle and high school students have been bullied in some way, shape or form within the past year. Something needs to be done! An act/law needs to be put in place where the percentile of bullying goes down!

http://www.glsen.org/ssia
 * Link to your specific resource:**

**Observation Site Information**
The observation site that I chose to attend was my old high school (Middletown).

** A. Site details: **

 * Name of site: **Middletown High School**
 * Link to site: http://www.middletowncityschools.com/
 * Contact person: Julie Barber (school counsellor)

__ ** B. Describe your setting ** __
I am observing the hallways during class change at Middletown High School located in Middletown, Ohio, a blue-collar steel community of approximately 46,000 residents. Middletown has been hit hard economically since the 1980s when the local steel company, Armco Steel which is now known as AK, moved its corporate headquarters to New Jersey. As a result the corporate tax base that had supported the schools is gone, and surrounding paper mills pulled out of the area to survive as well. Historically Middletown residents had been used to making large salaries in the steel and paper mills with little or no education, a commodity that is mistrusted and valued little in the largely Appalachian culture of workers who traveled up the I-75 corridor for better jobs in Middletown’s steel mill. Local current workers in the area have not changed with the times to become educated to work in today’s service industry based economy and cling hard to “the way things used to be.”

Complicating the town’s situation has been poor leadership and greed from the 70s and 80s when the town council voted to accept the second largest number of Section 8 housing vouchers in the state. Not surprisingly, Middletown High School is now considered urban, with 82% of its approximately 2000 students in grades 9 – 12 eligible for free or reduced lunches. This year, in fact, the entire school system has gone to 100% free and reduced lunches with no student fees because it was costing more to try to track the 18% of the population who paid for meals and fees.

__** C. Describe what you did at the site (free-write/journal formatting) **__
In the hallways I am listening very carefully to conversations, trying to hear if students bring up anything about music and who is "cool" these days to listen to. If kids are listening to music out loud that I can hear, I am then observing their mannerisms - are they acting out, cursing (yes – a lot!), is a group walking with individuals playing the music (usually – the music seems to act like a magnet), what gender is the music player and does that impact the behavior of the listeners, and what mood do the students seem to be in in general. I’m still thinking about those last two questions and will explore them on another observation day.
 * __ 1st visit: __**

When I attended Middletown High School I would always hear music playing throughout the hallways from individuals who were walking by with their phones or mp3 players out. Today I saw many, many students with ear buds hanging around their necks, ready to pop in at a moment’s notice. The only kind of music I heard while walking through the halls this day was very current rap/hip-hop music, so I found this an excellent place to observe! I’m looking forward to more visits as a silent observer taking in all the sights, sounds, view, and groups. There’s a lot of life going on here.

Today was fun. It’s the Friday before Homecoming and the whole school seems to be in a jubilant mood. Every kind of music fills the halls – the Pep Band before a pep rally is playing the school fight song, kids walking by are listening to the usual hip hop I hear most, and even some 60s classics like “Hang on Sloopy” and “Louie Louie” are blaring from phones and mp3s. I couldn’t help but notice smiles on nearly everyone’s faces. While the hallways were full of noise and decorations (a senior decorated hallway, a junior one, and so on) the mood was happy and unified. I heard lots of shouts of “Go Middies!” and “We are the Middies!” There was a definite sense of pride amped up by the happy, party type music being played.
 * __2nd visit:__**

Everyone knows that music sets a tone and a mood. The kind of music I hear at church or a funeral, for example, is far different and more appropriate than what I might listen to as background music when I study. Today what struck me as I observed the students was the happy environment created by songs that obviously had meaning for a large part of the student body. Listening to “Hang on Sloopy” united all the kids in the halls and in their pep rally. There was a definite sense of camaraderie and feeling of belonging. Anyone who doesn’t think music can be powerful, for good or bad (propaganda), is kidding himself or herself.

Rainy day today in the halls with gray, almost surly student vibes at Middletown High School. Knots of students were gathered around recessed doorways blocking access to classrooms and offices. When individual students passed by, the groups of kids would silently just look at them, then return to shouting out at other students cruising the hallways. It felt territorial. Most of the groups consisted of several tall, loud guys surrounding a lone girl here and there who was obviously someone’s (or a few someone’s) girlfriend. She usually looked almost captive to me, encircled as she was. It gave me kind of a weird feeling.
 * __3rd visit:__**

The music I heard today had a lot to do with my feeling, too. It was full of degrading lyrics with lots of “bitches” and “hoes” being tossed around. And the girls (groupie-like) didn’t object but played along like they were just glad to receive attention from these guys. They were flirtatious and clingy and the guys were enjoying the attention and “fronting” or showing off. They were acting hormonal. Ugh. Today was a turnoff. I left feeling kind of surly myself and sick of rain, humidity, just tired in general, but for no good reason I realized.

The more I visit here the more I see an apparent connection between kids’ behavior and their choice of rap and hip-hop music. Many of the girls listening to Nikki Menaj, for example, are dressed pretty provocatively with lots of cleavage on display, heels I wouldn’t wear to school because they’re just too uncomfortable for all day, and some crazy looking outfits. They’re loud, interested in attention, and usually roaming with two or three friends dressed more or less alike. They’re not being bad or anything – they just seem really young to me. Overall the students are probably tamer than when I was a student there and we had a really rigid principal. Then he was so involved in enforcement for little things, even having hall monitors that chased skippers around, that students resented him and most authority and went out of their way to buck the system.
 * __4th visit:__**

Don’t get me wrong. As I walk through the halls at this school most kids are pretty quietly going on their way, some with headphones and some with ear buds connected to their phones, many just walking from one class to another. There’s a calmer air about the place, no more hall monitors, and I heard the female principal on morning announcements talking about how all the students a part of the Middie family. I think that helps set the tone for the students’ day regardless of them listening to a bit of music here and there. The examples I’ve written about while observing seem to be more of the exception and probably that’s why they stick out. I’m looking for what’s different and I notice I see more examples of different during larger chunks of free time for students – before and after school, during lunch, around an assembly.

Last day listening the hubbub of sound at Middletown High School. Less to remark on today and not much music I could hear passing by students. Saw a couple of guys bouncing along obviously listening to some kind of music but can’t vouch for what it was. I also heard another student complaining about being asked to take his headphones off, and they were pretty big. Some kids listen to their own music and they seem to be pretty content on their own. The students forming groups listening to music generally played it out loud for others around them to hear. Overall they seemed to me to be the ones more willing to act out, yell out, and be kind of disrespectful to those around them, even their peers.
 * __5th visit:__**

Since I already believed music and its content could shape mood and tone for good or bad, it wasn’t hard to find lots of examples in my school observations to support my belief. I do not believe that listening to music with rough lyrics makes a person bad, but I do believe it can contribute to a person acting in ways he or she wouldn’t normally on their own. Group pressure and crazy lyrics can sure lower inhibitions. The other side of that coin is an uplifting song can inspire people to be better and do better and want to strive for something higher. That’s what I choose to focus on.

** Physical **
Many of the boys at Middletown High School appeared quite young and physically immature. While a few were on the other end of the spectrum and looked older than their age, most boys looked so young to me. The girls on the other hand looked older and seemed to try to be looking that way, too.
 * __What did you notice about the physical differences between boys and girls (pp. 283-288)?__**

I noticed that both the girls and the guys were pretty transparent with their feelings. What they were thinking was reflected and visible all over their faces. It wasn’t hard to see if students were happy, sad, playful, or mad.
 * __What did you notice about the adolescent’s mood (p. 289)?__**

I found that students interacted less with adults and much more with each other overall. Especially in the halls, gym, and cafeteria, adults were invisible to the students in a way. In the classrooms of course students interacted respectfully with teachers for the most part.
 * __What did you notice about the adolescent’s relationship with adults (p. 289)?__**

There was a huge connection between body image and how students acted. Heavier students, especially girls, were followers of their thinner friends. Boys who had bulked up or looked athletic were louder and seemed to control their groups also.
 * __What did you notice about the role of body image in adolescent behavior (p. 290)?__**

Peer relationship for boys revolved around a group, meaning several guys would hang out together. Girls paired off and focused more on one friend much more. The guys roamed in packs while the girls talked non stop to mostly another girl and tried to get the attention of the packs of boys.
 * __What did you notice about peer relationships ( pp. 290-291)?__**

Eating habits in the cafeteria weren’t surprising. The boys ate pretty much anything in front of them. Many girls, on the other hand, picked at their food. All of them seemed pretty messy to me and not as aware of themselves or their counterparts when eating. It was kind of gross.
 * __What did you notice about eating habits (pp. 291-292)?__**

There were a lot of pregnant girls at Middletown High School. I asked one of the teachers about it and she told me Middletown has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Butler County! I overheard lots of kids talking about who was having sex with someone else’s boyfriend or girlfriend.
 * __What did you notice about issues around sex (sex education, sexual references, sexual activity, teen pregnancy, etc.) (pp. 293-299)__**

Drugs were openly talked about in the halls. Kids who looked insecure and seemed to want to be thought of as cool to attract attention said things like, “you smokin’?” and “I gotta have something to get through the next class.” I didn’t actually see any substances, but I also heard kids talking a lot about being drunk the night before.
 * __What did you notice about substance use or substance related references (pp. 299-300)?__**

** Cognitive **
__ **What did you notice about the physical differences between boys and girls?** __ Cognitively the girls showed lots of verbal ability, talking loudly and a lot. The boys were quieter in general except for the ones I saw going into science lab rooms or maybe math room. That sounds like a generalization but it’s what my experience was.

The high school kids I observed had no filters. There was no attempt I saw to smile their way through a tough day for example. In fact the opposite was a lot more common and most of the students liked to tell everyone else about their drama!
 * __ What did you notice about the adolescent’s mood? __**

__ **What did you notice about the adolescent’s relationship with adults?** __ Kids cognitively interacted with their teachers and other adults in the building in fairly typical ways. Some were really respectful; some seemed to avoid adults as authority figures. No one that I saw tried to be on the same “level” as the teachers even when they might want to intellectually challenge them.

The Middletown High School students I observed were really conscious about how they looked in relationship to their friends. It reminded me of the movie The Breakfast Club in the halls. I could pick out the jocks, the geeks, the Goths, the brainiacs, you name it, by how they dressed more than whether they were all thin or short, heavy or tall.
 * __What did you notice about the role of body image in adolescent behavior?__ **

__** What did you notice about peer relationships? **____ ** (pp.291) ** __ The students seemed to live and die by their friends and what their friends thought. An example of this was that the kids were completely oblivious to the adults around them most of the time and totally tuned into what their friends said or did. I remember how important friends were to me in high school, so this seemed really typical behavior for teenagers.

__** What did you notice about eating habits? **____ ** (pp.291-292) ** __ I don’t think the kids were too worried about eating unhealthy versus healthy food. They were just hungry students who wanted to eat lunch and socialize with their friends. I don’t think anyone other than an occasional athlete on game day was thinking about a connection between what they ate and how they felt!

The kids I observed had unrealistic views about sex, judging from comments I heard. The girls thought the guy their boyfriends were Mr. Forever. The guys weren’t thinking that way at all.
 * __ What did you notice about issues around sex (sex education, sexual references, sexual activity, teen pregnancy, etc?) __**** __ (pp.293-299) __ **

Again, it seemed to me that there was little connection between what substances and what they do to the body. The kids behaved, well, like kids – invincible, superman or superwoman. Mostly I think a lot of the talk was just that – talk in an effort to be accepted with someone who mattered to them.
 * __ What did you notice about substance use or substance related references? __**

** Emotional **
__** What did you notice about the physical differences between boys and girls? **__ The girls I observed had no problems showing their emotions. I saw a couple crying, lots of animated faces, an overall the whole range of emotions. The boys were more reserved. They didn’t show their feeling as easily on their faces as I passed them in the halls; they didn’t exactly wear their emotions on their sleeves

__** What did you notice about the adolescent’s mood? **__ More students were open about their moods than not. The few who seemed kind of closed off that I noticed were “outsiders.” They seemed to be alone and definitely not included with the popular crowd for whatever reason and I felt sorry for them.

__** What did you notice about the adolescent’s relationship with adults? **__ Sometimes the students interacted with adults like young adults themselves. A lot of the time, though, I heard the kids making excuses for why work wasn’t done or why they’d gossiped to one person about another. That’s when I thought they kept themselves in the kid category by not accepting responsibility for their actions.

The only students I saw who didn’t seem concerned about their body image also were the same students who were the loners. I wondered if some of them were embarrassed because they were poor (82% of the students at Middletown High School receive free or reduced lunch) and didn’t have many clothes to wear that were considered new or fashionable. I also though many of those loner students might be depressed or have other emotional problems that made students avoid them, so they didn’t care about their own appearance.
 * __What did you notice about the role of body image in adolescent behavior?__ **

__** What did you notice about peer relationships? **____ ** (pp.291) ** __ The cafeteria was a great place to observe peer relationships. I got to the point that I could watch kids in line to get their food and guess many times which group they would go sit with. Kids definitely didn’t want to sit alone.

__** What did you notice about eating habits? **____ ** (pp.291-292) ** __ I’ve heard about eating more when you’re upset or when you’re watching the TV, and I know sometimes I do that myself. I thought it was interesting that there were two TVs going in the lunchroom and just a few kids were watching them like zombies, not even looking at their food or what they were eating. Most of the kids didn’t watch the TVs at all, so I couldn’t figure out why they would even have them or have them on in a cafeteria.

Being pregnant or talking about having sex didn’t seem to be any big deal to the kids I saw. In fact the comments I heard from girls and guys about sex seemed like the person saying them wanted to let everyone know they were special and had some kind of close relationship that set them apart. The pregnant girls weren’t crying and being pregnant and I also noticed none of them were walking around with boyfriends – interesting.
 * __ What did you notice about issues around sex (sex education, sexual references, sexual activity, teen pregnancy, etc?) (pp.293-299) __**

Using drugs or alcohol and talking about using them was cool. I don’t guess that’s much different than when I was in school to a degree. Kids especially wanted to brag about drinking, who they drank with, what they drank, and how much they drank.
 * __ What did you notice about substance use or substance related references? __**

** Social **
__** What did you notice about the physical differences between boys and girls? **__ Girls in general were more outgoing period, even bold. Guys were pretty much the opposite and seemed less sure of themselves. The boys acted more like kids still while the girls were trying, usually too hard, to be older.

In spite of the poverty that is pretty widespread at Middletown High School, the kids were friendly. While there were different groups like I talked about earlier – the geeks, the brains, the Goths – most everybody seemed to have a live and let live attitude. I liked the acceptance of others who were different.
 * __ What did you notice about the adolescent’s mood? __**

The students seemed to like the teachers overall. I say this because I didn’t see anyone yelling disrespectfully to a teacher, and I think Middletown wouldn’t be the easiest place for a teacher to teach if you don’t actually really like all different kinds of kids. I’m sure there are times where kids do get into it with the teachers and vice versa but
 * __What did you notice about the adolescent’s relationship with adults?__ **

Most of the kids I observed defined themselves largely by how they looked, or how they thought others perceived them as looking. I think this is particularly true of girls. There is so much pressure on young women in our society to be thin or dress a certain way which is really unfortunate because real girls and women come in all shapes and sizes, as they are supposed to. How boring if we all looked the same!
 * __ What did you notice about the role of body image in adolescent behavior? __**

__** What did you notice about peer relationships? (pp.291) **__ Emotionally the students placed high value on their peers’ opinions from what I could see. They usually made quite the effort to fit in and to be alike. At least they looked alike to me, which spoke a lot to peer pressure and the desire to please.

__** What did you notice about eating habits? (pp.291-292) **__ When I think of emotions and eating I think of eating disorders, compulsive eating, or depriving yourself of food. Sadly the only two people I saw who looked scary thin were teachers. On the kids’ part, they veered toward the vending machines for junk food before the lunch period meant the machines were turned off. I think some of the junk food addiction might be bad habits, self soothing, and some just enjoying the taste of junk food as a “treat” different from the school lunches.

__** What did you notice about issues around sex (sex education, sexual references, sexual activity, teen pregnancy, etc?) **__** __ (pp.293-299) __ ** I probably sound like one of my parents but I thought the students I observed weren’t emotionally prepared for all the things that go along with sexual activity. Most of the pregnant moms for example are just kids themselves. I wondered how they were going to feel in a couple years after high school was over and their baby’s dad was long gone and they had missed out on a career or college.

I thought that more of the kids appeared to be on a pretty good track about their comments around substance use than not. Sure I heard things about smoking and drinking, but I think you would hear that in any school. I’m guessing that Middletown High School students probably have a higher rate of substance abuse than many communities, but I found that students there were pretty much the same as students everywhere – they just want an opportunity to walk through doors leading to a better future life.
 * __ What did you notice about substance use or substance related references? __**

** Revisiting Your Curiosities **

 * W : What you want to know (inquiry questions) **


 * 1.** ** I want to know how today's popular rap and hip hop music affect young adolescent children in their behavior, mood, language, and relationships. If the music they're listening to is violent and sexual do they have more of a tendency to be that way also? **

Research shows that today’s popular rap and hip-hop music have definite impacts on young adolescent children. From this music with its driving, catchy beat, children are drawn in and then exposed to messages glorifying violence, gangs, sex, and drug and alcohol abuse (Berk, 2010, p.299-300). While just listening to this type of music doesn’t make kids gang members of thugs, it stands to reason that at risk adolescents who have less support and structure in other areas of their lives, including from their parents, mentors, a stable home life, poverty, community or faith involvement (Berk, 2010, p.323), and positive peer relationships, might seek understanding by identifying with many of the negative messages rap and hip hop contain. And the more often negative messages are reinforced through frequent listening or exposure, the more desensitized a person becomes to the message or its seriousness and the underlying lack of respect those messages convey for other human beings. Lets me honest, no girl finds it charming or romantic to be called a bitch or a hoe by a boy. No guy wants to be beaten to show he’s masculine and worthy of being accepted by a group of “friends." By allowing guys to call girls "hoes and bitches" that just shows the type of self-esteem that we have for ourselves. (Berk, 2010, p.315).

My observations at Middletown High School support the research also. The instances where I saw kids listening to rap or hip hop music in the halls, music loud enough for me to hear were a huge distraction, also involved kids who tended to act out more towards classmates or adults. They were the kids who had more of a group mentality and were bolder in their actions as a “pack” than they would be individually. The old saying that what we practice (or listen to or live) we become seemed to have a lot of truth to it from what I experienced and saw. Something else I noticed was since these young adolescents tended to act out more, they also tended to get disciplinary action. Being suspended, expelled, or having to go to a detention or Saturday school were common punishments for acting out in various ways. (Berk, 2010, p.332).


 * 2. "I Smoke, I Drink, I Do My Thing: Affects Listening to Rap and Hip-Hop Music on Adolescent Drug Use"**

How can we inform students that what they hear can indeed affect how they think, how they view relationships, and how they view risky behaviors. (drugs, alcohol etc.) Would implementing something such as an assembly or a class specifically directed toward drugs and alcohol related to the types of music they listen to and hear in the media help reach the students on a level to where they take these concerns seriously?
 * 3. What new questions emerge for you as a future teacher?**

Late Adulthood


 * __ Describe your Older Adult Project: __**

I spent my time with my grandmother, Betty. It was her 86th birthday Sunday, November 24th. I celebrated it with her at my house by making Thanksgiving dressing and enjoying a nice sit down, home cooked meal. We talked about some of her favorite memories that she remembers growing up. One of her favorite memories was when she met the love of her life, John, my grandfather at college. She talked about how he would whistle while he was walking up the path to see her and how she could always hear him coming.

She also talked about her mother, and her grandmother whom she was very close to. She talked about how she loved spending all her summers with her grandmother in Arkansas and how her grandmother would feed her none stop. Spending numerous hours cooking in the kitchen frying chicken, making their own homemade pies, homemade, hand-stirred fudge, having nothing but fresh eggs in the morning from their chickens, and milking their pet cow Bessie. Food equaled love and there was a lot of both in the family to go around!

While I was speaking to my grandmother, I noticed that she tended to repeat herself every few minutes from asking me the same questions, to repeating the same thing that she had just stated before. I already knew prior to taking this course that she had developed Dementia in her old age, but it was interesting to know even more background information that I learned in class and to apply it to my understanding when speaking with her. (Berk 457-458). She mentioned after dinner that she wanted somebody to read her the birthday cards that she received in the mail, so my mom, her daughter, started to read them and then had to stop and speak up because she couldn’t hear her. (Berk 448). I noticed that my grandmother spoke highly of her PEO sisters and how supportive they have always been for her through losing her husband, and all throughout life. It is so important to have people in your life who encourage you and lift you up when you’re down because its the stressful times in life when you really need a friend to lean on. (Berk 480). At the end of the night around 8:00pm her caregiver Nina came over to our house to pick her up and take her back to her independent apartment in an assistant living community. (Berk 462-463). Made me realize how much I need to cherish my youth and be thankful for my grandmother everyday! I learned so much just by listening to her and her stories. She is a wonderful woman and one that I will always look up to for wisdom and advice