Month: October 2019

College graduation. I have been looking forward to this day since the first day of my freshman year. Now it is only a month away and there is a lot going through my mind. If there is any advice I could give to current college students, this is what it would be: 

Work during college

I have had a job throughout the entirety of my time at Dixie State University and although it has been difficult, it has taught me how to manage my time. I’ve also been able to develop a stronger work ethic, which is preparing me for a “real” job after graduation. Working full time throughout college has helped me be able to graduate debt-free. Students don’t have to work full time throughout their college education, but they should have a job. Also, the extra cash is a nice thing to have when struggling to feed yourself.

Go to class and do your homework

This may be the hardest thing for most college students to do (I know it has been hard for me). But I promise if you just go to class and do your homework, you will pass. All of the information you need about the topic you are studying will be explained in class. If you don’t miss class, you’ll be encouraged to do your homework so you don’t embarrass yourself by going to class without the assignment done. 

If waking up early is not your thing, think about taking classes that start later in the day so you can get the amount of sleep you need, but still have time to work a job or have a social life in the evening. I had to decide my school schedule based on my work hours, but the DSU academic advisers are available to help students balance their work and school schedules.

Take classes that interest you

Everyone is required to take those boring general education classes to graduate. I recommend taking those classes in your freshman and sophomore years and saving your electives for your junior and senior years. By doing this, it allows your junior and senior years to be easier and you can get experience doing things you want to do. Take electives you are interested in. DSU offers a variety of exciting classes that can show what you really want to do in the future. 

I was unsure of what I wanted to do as a career fall semester of my junior year. I took a writing class last minute because I did have an interest in writing. This class was a wake-up call and now I plan to be a journalist after graduation. You never know where life will take you from taking a random elective in college.

Take time to travel and take personal days

College is without a doubt a stressful time. I feel overwhelmed, stressed and full of anxiety more than I don’t. The only way I combat this is by taking time for myself and getting out of my regular routine. Whether that be going on a weekend trip to a national park, or spending an entire day locked in my room watching movies, a personal day (or days) is essential to college success. It allows your brain and body to recover and refresh from all of the stress you may be experiencing. As Donna and Tom from “Parks and Rec” would say, “Treat Yo’ Self!”

As Donna and Tom from “Parks and Rec” would say, “Treat Yo’ Self!”

Noelle Spencer, DSN Staff

Live in the moment

College flies by. Before you know it, you’ll be four weeks away from graduation, scared and unsure of what will come next. As I look back on my college experience, I do have regrets of not living in the moment more. I was always so focused on the future and what would happen after graduation.

If I can give any last pieces of advice, it would be to stop focusing so much on the future and experiencing what is happening in the now because college will be over before you know it.

City council election ballots have been sent out to voters, and it is not looking like much change will be coming to St. George politics.

The race started with 13 candidates but only six remain: Greg Aldred, Bette Arial, Ed Baca, Dannielle Larkin, Gregg Mcarthur and Jimmie Hughes. 

Arial, Baca, and Hughes are all incumbents for this election. Joe Bowcutt and Michele Randall, current city council members, are not up for election until 2021. Therefore, three seats are up for grabs.

Those elected will start their term in January 2020 and sit on the city council for four years, serving the people of Washington county and voting on local legislation.

Local elections are known to have a low voter turnout; however, St. George’s new mail ballot system did increase turnout within the last year.  

According to County Clerk Kim Hafen, voter turnout reached 78.6% in the 2018 election. In 2014, Hafen reported a 44.8% voter turnout.

With this influx of voter participation, there is a momentum for change. For too long St. George has been living in the past, playing it safe, and sticking to its conservative values. 

But times are changing. 

St. George should not be electing a councilman such as Aldred that continues to rally for President Donald Trump or who does not support increasing taxes for developing our roads, which are in dire need of help but rather thinks St. George should start focusing on developing air travel. 

St. George does not need a politician who has a history of publishing offensive comments on his blog, like Baca. 

St. George deserves candidates who are passionate and excited. Someone who can represent the younger, changing ideas that are developing in our small town. Candidates who can bring the average perspective to the St. George City Council. 

When you send in your ballots over these next couple of weeks, remember these things. 

Remember that it is time for a change in Southern Utah and you have the power to make a difference.

To find out more about your city council candidates, visit the St. George chambers website. 

You can register to vote online for this year’s city council election until Oct. 29; however, if you do not meet this deadline you can register at your polling location on Oct. 5 from 7 a.m. – 8 p.m, when elections will be held.

Cultural appropriation has shaped how we dress in recent years, especially during this spooky Halloween season.

In today’s society, cultural appropriation is a point for controversy. It can be difficult to understand if cultural appropriation is a real issue or a side effect of our society being more sensitive than the last.
Halloween is a prime time for this discussion, especially due to people wanting to dress up in attire, with or without variations, from different cultures around the world. Cultural appropriation is not something that we need to concern ourselves with because it is not something that can be appropriated.

According to the Oxford dictionary, cultural appropriation is the unacknowledged or inappropriate adoption of the customs, practices, ideas, etc. of one people or society by members of another and typically more dominant people or society.

To appropriate ones culture is to take the manifestation of a group of people. This can be confusing especially when it is something as complex as ideas. An example of what is typically seen as an appropriation of ones culture could be dressing up as a sexy version of a Incan woman.

Culture, as defined by 20th century theorist Richard Williams, can be broken down into three parts: Ideologies, a shared way of life and cultural production.

Cultural production is the object or physical creation of a representation of a culture such as art, music, clothes and so on. Because cultural production is usually a physical object that can be interacted with, this part of culture is able to be spread across the world farm faster comparative to ideologies or a shared way of life.

Appropriation, however, is the is the act of taking something for one’s own use or benefit typically without the owner’s permission according to the Oxford dictionary. This is akin to somebody breaking into your house just to take your favorite coffee mug. It’s not a pleasant experience for anyone. When considering appropriation in a context regarding cultural appropriation, it isn’t as easy to achieve.

While this is something that people can do, I disagree with the idea that culture can be appropriated in the first place. Instead it would be more accurate to say its just disrespectful because of the misrepresentation of the culture. This does not mean that you wont be challenged or met with critique if you misrepresent a culture. It is the unpleasant responsibility of people, in general, to make sure that their culture is not being misrepresented. This, unfortunately, means that people may misrepresent a unfamiliar culture even without consideration towards others.

The idea that culture can be appropriated is false; However, when representing another culture or group that you are not associated with, be sure to do your research. Misrepresenting a group of people can lead to ridicule and critique and I would advise that if you do, it is usually best to have someone from that group give you their blessing, opposed to recklessly donning attire that could be inconsiderate. This does not justify some peoples actions but instead is an explanation of responsibility.

More in Opinion:

Studying for hours only to receive a bad grade on a test goes to show that testing is not always the answer.

Tests are ineffective when it comes to showing students knowledge of a particular subject matter. After all, how exactly can you measure someone’s understanding by giving them the same test as everyone else who is taking the course? I for one have been in many situations where I know the subject and could apply it if needed, but when it comes to taking a test on what I have learned, there is no hope for me. 

According to an article by the American Institute for Learning and Human Development, students are fully aware of the impact that tests have on their future and potential opportunities, and because of this, it may lead to irrational decisions that were not properly executed. 

According to the article, “Because students know that test scores may affect their future lives, they do whatever they can to pass them, including cheating and taking performance drugs.”

By having students take a test and fall below the expected grade, there is an automatic assumption that that student holds little knowledge of the subject matter and they came unprepared for it; however, this common misconception is far from the truth. 

“[A test] evaluates student’s performance without considering external factors,” an article from Grade Power Learning stated. “Standardized tests don’t consider factors like test anxiety, home life, or the fact that some kids are extremely bright but just don’t test well.”

There are many components that play into a students testing ability, but to simply say that a student knows little about the course material based on their test score is unreasonable and poor lack of judgment. 

According to the Grade Power Learning article: “ It does not consider how much a student has grown over the course of the year. This can be a disservice to teachers who worked to help their students grow, and students who put in their best effort to improve but performed poorly on one test.”

While there are students who are naturally gifted with testing abilities, there are others who may have a more difficult time with being put under that kind of pressure; I would know, I happen to be one of the many unfortunate.

Listening to the lectures, attending class, and even spending time studying only to find that I had gotten a low score on yet another test, has been a struggle that I have dealt with for years. Like so many others, I try my best to give school my all, but my test scores may beg to differ at times.

Now I do understand that testing of some sorts is important in certain circumstances, especially when seeing what a student may be lacking in so teachers could spend some extra time in that specific subject area, but to use it as a tool that has the potential to ruin a students academic career, is not the best way of going about it.

There are far too many individualized thought processes, so how is allowing a select few determine what is best for students as a whole? We are taught to vocalize our differences, but standardized testing allows nothing of the sort and expects all students to have the same thought process in order to pass.

I think that it is only fitting that we find a stronger system that works not only for a select few but the student body as a whole. With having standardized testing still present in the majority of classrooms, we are not standing united and building each other up, but weeding out the ones who may have a hard time understanding the standardized thought process.

To resolve the issue at hand, teachers should provide other alternatives to test-taking. These alternatives include, but are not limited to, written demonstrations or presenting to the class what they have learned during the course.