Portugal :: essays research papers

The republic of Portugal is located in the southwestern part of Europe, situated in the western portion of the Iberian Peninsula, bordered by Spain on the north and east and by the Atlantic Ocean on the south and west. The Azores and Madeira Islands in the Atlantic are independent regions of Portugal, considered integral parts of the republic. Portugal administers one overseas territory, Macau (Macao) in eastern Asia near Hong Kong. Macau is scheduled to return to Chinese administration in 1999. The total area of metropolitan Portugal, including the Azores (2247 sq. km./868 sq. mi.) and the Madeira Islands (794 sq. km./307 sq. mi.), is 92,345 sq. km. (35,655 sq.mi.). The capital and the largest city is Lisbon.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Climate varies in Portugal according to the altitude in which you are located. Low temperatures occur only in the comparatively low regions of the south. The mean annual temperature north of the Douro River is about 10 C (about 50 F). Between Tajo and Douro the temperature is about 16 C (about 60 F). The temperatures in the valley of the Guadiana are at about 18 C (about 65 F). Rainfall is very heavy, especially in the north.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Minerals are the most valuable natural resources in Portugal. Much of these resources were developed until after World War 2 (1939-1945). Some of the mineral resources are coal, copper, gold, iron ore, kaolin, tin, and wolframite, which is Acosta 2 source of tungsten. The most sufficient trees are the evergreen oak, cork, poplar, and olive. Portugal is also a home of many kinds of wild animals. some of these wild animals include the wolf, lynx, wildcat, fox, wild boar, wild goat, deer, and hare. Portugal also has big waterpower resources in its rivers and mountain streams.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Portuguese are a combination of several ethnic elements, principally Iberians, Romans, Visigoths, and later Moors. The people still live for the most part, in rural villages. The population of Portugal, including the Azores and Madeira Islands, is 9,931,045. The overall population density is 108 people per sq. km. (280 per sq. mi.). Mainland Portugal is divided into 18 districts for administrative causes: Aveiro, Beja, Braga, Bragnca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Évora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisbon, Porto, Portalegre, Santarà ©m, Setà ºbal, Viana do Castelo, Villa Real, and Viseu. The Azores and the Madeira Islands each constitute an autonomous region.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Roman Catholicism is the faith of more than 94 percent of the Portuguese people. The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, and some Protestant churches have been established. The official language of the country is Portuguese.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Portuguese culture is closely related to the Spanish culture and has been influenced by the three primary cultures from which

Immigrant Children and U.S Education Essay

Aware of the free education provided by the United States government to any school age children, immigrants both legal and illegal continue to be attracted to the United States, migrating in an attempt to provide better opportunities for their families and themselves. As the number of illegal immigrants living in the United states continues to rise and the percentage of illegal immigrant households which consist of children also continues to rise, it is important for the American government to examine the effect that these illegal children are having on the United States public education system. How educators and policymakers address the increasing diversification of the population will ultimately determine the stability of communities in the future.In order to produce a more effective public education system for students as a whole, it is important for the government examine the effects of the influx of immigrant students and learn to address the issues in a more productive way.Americans must ask themselves and answer the question, â€Å"How should the government better manage the influx of undocumented immigrant children in the public education system?† In 1982, the supreme court case Plyler v. Doe, ruled â€Å"that public schools were prohibited from denying immigrant students access to a public education. The Court stated that undocumented children have the same right to a free public education as U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Undocumented immigrant students are obligated, as are all other students, to attend school until they reach the age mandated by state law (Olivas).† As an american citizen, it is crucial for our society to realize the effects of allowing illegal immigrants the right to free public education because the effects affect us as individuals and future generations in the american society. It is important for us to see if the benefits of allowing immigrants free education outweighs the strain it puts on our public education system. Researching and answering the question â€Å"How should the government better manage the influx of undocumented immigrant children in the public education system?†, will help americans realize what laws and policies need to be edited, reformed, or added, to greater benefit our society. Answering this question will show us if we need more laws promoting and protecting immigrants rights which would bring in more immigrants or if we should create laws restricting the rights of immigrant children. As immigration continues to increase, and the children of immigrants fill more of the schools, educators will have to recognize and address the social, cultural, political, psychological, and economic complexity that is immigrant education in the twenty-first century. â€Å"Despite several decades of reform, public education in the United States is criticized by some as not teaching all children effectively† (Koehler). Due to poor test results and low graduation rates, many taxpayers criticize public schools and want to see better results. Among many of the issues creating discontent with the public educational system, inequality of opportunity ranks high among citizens. Despite the historical promise of quality education for all children regardless of race, ethnicity, or income, many americans feel that many children do not have equal opportunities to learn and are not likely to attend a quality school. â€Å"Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reports that 63 percent of fourth graders perform at only basic, or below basic, levels in reading. Sixty-nine percent perform at these levels in mathematics. African-American, Hispanic, and Native American fourth graders perform consistently lower than their white coun terparts†(Koehler). These statistics show that over half of the students in the American educational system fail to learn high thinking skills. â€Å"And once again, this â€Å"bottom half† comprises primarily the poor and ethnic minorities†(Koehler). Majority of immigrants live in poverty.†The poverty rate for immigrants and their U.S.-born children (under 18) is two-thirds higher than that of natives and their children, immigrants and their minor children now account for almost one in four persons living in poverty†(Camarota). The high percentage of immigrants that live in poverty causes majority of their children to attend an underachieving school adding to struggles they already face as an immigrant and effecting their educational success.â€Å"The percentage of immigrants without a high school diploma is 30 percent, more than 3.5 times the rate for natives.†(Camarota). with out proper management of immigrant children in the school system, these underachieving school s will take the blunt force of the student population increase and due to lack of resources and funding the schools have, the schools will continue to strip the students of their equality to opportunity. As the immigration population continues to increase â€Å"immigration has become the determinate factor in population growth. The arrival of 1.5 million immigrants each year, coupled with 750,000 births to immigrant women annually, means that immigration policy is adding over two million people to the U.S. population each year, accounting for at least two-thirds of U.S. population growth†(Camarota), it is important that the government learn how better manage the influx of undocumented immigrant children in the public education system to ensure equality of opportunity to american and immigrant students. As taxpayers, citizens should especially be concerned with the amount of their money that is used to educate immigrants. In January 2011, it was estimated that 11.5 million unauthorized immigrants are currently living in the United States. Of these it is estimated that 1.5 million children attend a public school costing the government an estimated six thousand dollars a year per student. In addition to the six thousands per student the government also pays about $1.5 billion annually to pay the bi-lingual teachers which are necessary to teach and attempt to provide an equal opportunity to immigrant children. All together, the total cost of educating the children of illegal immigrants is around $52,000,000,000. Educating the children of illegal immigrants is by far the single largest cost to American taxpayers. Even though americans are paying large sums of money to educate children of illegal immigrants, â€Å"foreign-born students ages 16-24 had a drop out rate of 29% while students ages 16-24 of foreign born parents had a high school drop out rate of 38.7%†(Illegal immigration statistics). This drop out percentage shows that despite the large amounts of money being spent, the government needs to find a way to better manage the influx of undocumented immigrant children in the public education system. Due to the large number and rising percentage of immigrants in our school system, the immigrants educational success will influence our nations future success. Works Cited Camarota, Steven. â€Å"Immigrants in the United States: A Snapshot of America’s Foreign-Born.† Center for Immigration Studies. Nov. 2002. Web. 03 Apr. 2012. . Website TagsEditDelete Hernandez, Donald J. Demographic Change and the Life of Immigrant Families. Publication. New York: Foundation for Child Development, 2004. Future of Children. Web. . Report TagsEditDelete â€Å"Illegal Immigration Statistics.† Illegal Immigration Statistics. Web. 03 Apr. 2012. . Website TagsEditDelete â€Å"Immigration Statistics.† DHS. Web. 03 Apr. 2012. . Website TagsEditDelete Koehler, Paul, and Joy W. Lewis. â€Å"Criticism of Public Education.† Encyclopedia of Education. 2nd ed. Vol. 5. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2002. 1948-952. Print. Encyclopedia Article TagsEditDelete Olivas, Michael A. No Undocumented Child Left Behind: Plyler v. Doe and the Education of Undocumented Schoolchildren. New York: New York UP, 2012. Print. Book TagsEditDelete Schoorman, Diyls. â€Å"Immigrant Education: Contemporary Issues.† Encyclopedia of the Social and Cultural Foundations of Education. Vol. 2. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2009. 433-35. Print.

Significant Symbols In Everyday Use - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 647 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2019/05/23 Category Literature Essay Level High school Tags: Everyday Use Essay Did you like this example? Symbols are marks used to represent an object or function. The symbols in the story are practical for Mama and Maggie and representative for Dee. Mama and Maggie both create and use everyday their familyrs heritage, but Dee only wants praise and credit for what her family has created. Alice Walker uses symbols to depict Maggie and Mama as practical souls and Dee as a romantic soul. In Everyday Use, the churn is a symbol of heritage for Dee, while it is still practical and used everyday by mama and Maggie. Dee feels the need to display her heritage rather than use it practically like Mama and Maggie. When Dee arrived and they sat down to eat dinner, she noticed the churn in the corner of the room. She excitedly jumped up and said that she knew there was something she wanted to ask for. This churn top is what I need, she said (56). She went on to tell them that she could use the churn top as a centerpiece for the alcove table(56). Dee wanting the churn top for decoration indicates that she is more interested in showing off what her family has done, rather than the fact that it is a tool used everyday by Mama and Maggie. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Significant Symbols In Everyday Use" essay for you Create order Another symbol Walker uses is the bench. The bench also symbolizes heritage for Dee. Mama says that although Hakim- a- barber did not eat the food because it was unclean, Dee was delighted by everything, even the fact that we still used the benches her daddy made (55). Dee cried, i never knew how lovely these benches are(55). When Dee sees the bench, she sees old and poor, because these were built when they could not afford chairs for the table. Although Dee appreciates the bench her dad built for its age, Mama and Maggie appreciate it because it is where they sit to eat dinner. It still has a practical purpose for them, Maggie just likes it because it is old and a part of her family history. The quilts mentioned in Everyday Use are important symbols in the story. These symbolize the way Dee looks at things made by her ancestors compared to the way Maggie and Mama see things. After Dinner, Dee looks in the trunk at the end of mamas bed. She comes out of the room with two quilts and asks mama, Can I have these old quilts? (57). Mama asks her to take different ones, because she has promised those to Maggie. Dee gets mad at mama because Maggie cant appreciate the quilts (58). Mama asks Dee what she would do with the quilts and she said Hang them, in a curious voice as if that was the only thing you do with quilts (58). Dee does not see that Mama and Maggie need the things that she thinks are decorations. Dee, again, wants to display her heritage as a work of art, while Mama and Maggie see them as things that should be used everyday. The symbols used in Everyday Use show that Dee is more into displaying her heritage to make herself feel better about her life rather than using them in a way that properly represents and expresses her ancestors ways. Mama and Maggie are shown as more practical people, while Dee is looking for approval from people of her own ethnicity. Dee is displaying the parts of her unhappy life that she thinks make her look authentic or good. She picks and choose the parts that she wants to acknowledge, which shows the romantic she truly is. She is skipping over the pain of creating and enjoying the peace of displaying, while Mama and Maggie have embraced the life they have built, all parts of it. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Works Cited Walker, Alice. Everyday Use. In Love Trouble: Stories of Black Women. New York: Harcourt, 1973. 49-59