Tulsa World: The Secret Life of an American Social Studies Teacher

MAKE US YOUR HOMEPAGE | Saturday, November 21, 2009 | WIRELESS

Home > News > Article

RSS

Bookmark

The Secret Life of an American Social Studies Teacher

By Emma Copp/NIE Blogger
Published: 9/29/2008 9:58 AM
Last Modified: 9/29/2008 10:00 AM

The following is an interview with Pamela Smucker from Jenks Middle School.

This presidential election could be the start of a whole new America in the fact that either an African American will be president or a woman will be vice president. What do you think about this?

It’s exciting. I think that it shows that there’s a lot of diversity in our country and we will have diversity in our leadership.

Do you think the U.S. should remain divided into two parties or not? Why? What do you think we should do? Do you think that people should be required to register as either republican or democrat?

Yes, because it allows diversity of thought and whenever there is a monopoly in an organization and there is no choice there ends up being problems. I think people should have the option whether to register in a party or not.

Do you have total views of one political party or are your beliefs somewhat divided between the two groups?

I lean toward one party but there are some things that the other party focuses on that I also share.

What do you think are problems with today’s society and government? Do you have any resolutions other than those offered by the presidential candidates?

Society represents individuals and how they think and live, so problems need to be solved on an individual basis. When people lack a moral compass and don’t want to say that one way is right or wrong we open ourselves up to a lot of problems.

How

much is your vote based off of what a candidate says in their speeches versus their past actions?

Really it’ll be kind of a comparison of what they say and what they’ve done. It’ll be about 50/50.

Are you pleased to see how modern politics are becoming (Obama’s texting, etc.) or would you prefer the people behind our country to be more old-fashioned?

We have to make changes, but if they are just surface changes to make people think that they are new and advanced, I think people need to look deeper.

Do you think that my generation will be prepared to step up to the plate and raise our country up?

I think they can be ready, but I think there needs to be maturity realizing that it’s not all about them. If one generation only thinks about themselves, then nothing can be changed.

If you were torn on who to pick as your president, what would you do to ‘break the tie?’

I think personal character is very important, so if they were the same on the issues, I think that would be more substantial, though I look at that anyway. I would also look at whether I could trust them as a leader. By Emma Copp/NIE Blogger

RSS