Reflection:

 It was really hard for me to find 12 laws, cases, or offices that impacted me directly. Whatever I found first I used as one of my 12 laws or cases. After much research I discovered that as I get older and as I begin to pay taxes, buy a house, own property, get my own health insurance, etc. more laws, acts, and cases will affect me. The government affects my life a fair amount right now with such acts, laws and cases like the No Child Left Behind Act, The Civil Rights Act of 1964, FAFSA, and Tinker vs. Des Moines. However, as I get older the government will GREATLY impact/influence my life, because the older I get the more I participate in society like having a job and paying taxes. All of these activities are monitored or set by the government meaning the government has more authority over my life. Overall, this project gave me a better understanding of the three branches of government, which are legislative, executive, and judicial. By having a stronger knowledge on these branches I now am more aware of my rights and restrictions, and the overall and basic knowledge of how the government functions.

            For this American Government Benchmark project, finding a way that incorporated the laws, offices, and cases, seemed difficult at first. I attempted to relate the various examples, to situations that were happening in my life at this very moment, in relation to the college process, sports, and everyday living. This process wasn’t as easy as it seemed, having an objective to find laws and regulations that affected our everyday lives.

            I would deem this project with having a very difficult and strenuous process, simply because there are certain rules which only correspond to certain people. I had some difficulty when it came to finding offices that implement the rules of a specific Executive Branch. I thought we had to find actual laws of the executive branch, but then that would coincide with the legislative branch.

            The anticipation of my life becoming more affected by the government was recognized, because once you get older and reach certain limits, then your life is then intertwined with a whole new set of rules. The older we get, the more responsibilities we take on as humans. We have to live our lives responsibly following our inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

            By completing this benchmark, I now understand most of the processes of government; whether it is how it is run in perspective to its specific branches, to how a law is passed. I understand the rules and regulations I have to follow, and will result in following as I get older.

• Three Branches - Legislative, Executive and Judicial

  • For EACH branch identify TWO positive and TWO negative examples of how the branch of government impacts your life. (can be STATE, LOCAL or FEDERAL)

• Identify at least one reputable source for each of the 12 different pieces of the project. DO NOT USE WIKIPEDIA AS A SOURCE
• Cite the source using the MLA format

• Write a one paragraph for each of the 12 pieces that summarizes the law, bureaucratic office or court case AND then EXPLAIN how that law/bureaucratic office/court case positively or negatively impacts your life. **If you would like to communicate the information in some other format than writing... clear it with me, I am open to creative suggestions. I REALLY welcome a more creative approach, don't be boring. please.

For instance... for me I would write for one of the legislative negatives:

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

"No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" Pub.L. 107-110 January, 2002. 23 Dec. 2009. <http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/index.html>.

No Child Left Behind is a piece of legislation that brought stronger federal control over individual state and locally run schools. Under this legislation, federal monies were only disbursed to those schools and districts abiding by the stipulations outlined within the law. Throughout the tenure of this legislation, schools have increased the number and intensity of multiple choice testing to adhere to the accountability requirements. After beginning my teaching career in 1997, I was given free reign to teach the content and in the manner that suited project based learning. After the passage of NCLB, project based learning became an unpopular approach to teaching because of its inability to easily assess the student's learning. This devaluing of project based learning has had an overall negative impact on the teaching and learning that I witness in the vast majority of schools. In effect, this law has turned my profession into a less thoughtful and reflective career, thus negatively impacting my life.

For the final step of my blog post I decided to trace my steps for this project to revisit and redesign my first blog post.   I realized that the reason the congressman I was trying to reach wouldn’t respond was most likely because I didn’t present my information in a fashion that was both interesting and compelling, so I have decided to “start again” and reconfigure this so I can make progress in a different way.

            My idea is to convince the Politian’s to keep the minimal drinking age 21 and not raise it as they had previously planned to.  Although it may seem like a mute cause, its something I feel is worth fighting for, and will once again establish my opinion on the matter.

            Previously, I had tried to get in touch with congress through emails.  It was less than successful.  I have decided that this time around I will take a more direct approach by gaining the attention of my peers in a similar age group and getting them to commit to the cause themselves.  Alone, one can accomplish something but together we can accomplish many more things.