Critical Thinking Questions

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1. Homework:

1. How much homework should students be assigned at the grade school level? Middle school level? High school level? Explain your answers. I think that the amount of homework assigned should be relatively similar no matter what the grade. Of course students might need more time for some things when your in High School because the work is significantly different compared to that of grade/middle school, but I don't high school work being more complicated merits giving hours of homework. There is too much expected of young kids and teens to be participating in, and spending a lot of time on homework doesn't allow kids to do what society expects them to. 
2. What kind of homework assignments, if any, do you think are most worthwhile? Explain. I think the homework assignments that are the most worthwhile are critical thinking homework. I think homework should be about reflecting on what happened in class so you can remember it, not redoing all the work to "memorize it". Right now homework is not serving the purpose its intended to, which basically makes its practice as a whole completely invalid. 
3. Should teachers consider other activities their students are involved in (sports, work, church) when assigning homework? Why or why not? It shouldn't even be a question whether teachers should consider this or not. I kind of talked about this in answer 1 where I said that society expects a lot from students. If we don't have the time to do all the activities we are expected to, how will we succeed by societal standards? Sports, work, and church are all things students shouldn't have to pass up for homework, doing all these activities contributes to success, stress relief, and mental/physical stability. 

2. Drunk Driving

1. Should states adopt stricter penalties for drivers who refuse to take a BAC test? Why or why not? They should, there is no reason drivers should be able to refuse the BAC test. Some people like to say that its their given right as a united states citizen to deny the test, but all they have to do is blow to see if they are under the legal drinking and driving limit. There are not giving anything up besides the chance that they wont hurt someone on the road. I think this is one of those things that citizens have to give up because under the law, you cant use your freedom to take freedom away from any other citizen.
2. Should laws be enacted that require ignition-interlock devices for all convicted drunk drivers, including first-time offenders? Why or why not? I think this idea should be implemented until a more effective method is in place. In reality, a first time offender isnt strong enough of a word when it comes to drunk driving. You can be a first time offender for stealing for being a public nuisance, but when you are a first time offender for drunk driving you may have already killed someone. Ignition interlock devices are a good idea but it needs to be more effortless in the future. This is described more in the next question. 
3. Describe other measures you think could be implemented to reduce drunk driving. My idea is that maybe in the future if technology is advanced enough, your alcohol levels can be analyzed by putting your hands on the wheel, where the car can turn on but nobody drunk can drive as the wheel would lock itself. 

3. Human Trafficking

1. Should victims of human trafficking be deported? I think they should be deported back home. but not in the sense that this question describes it. Victims of human trafficking dont try to escape out of fear, so essentially they want to be deported back anyway. But more importantly, if found, they need to be taken into custody for their safety. Give the victims the option if they would like to stay or not, some victims may have already been taken for years and started new lives. 
2. Would legalizing prostitution increase or decrease human trafficking victims involved in commercial sex work? Legalizing prostitution would decrease human trafficking victims involved in commercial sex work because the need for trafficked victims comes from the illegality of the commercial sex. If prostitution were legal, there would be businesses that could openly hire, and it would eliminate the need to kidnap. 
3. What are the main factors that feed the human trafficking industry? The main factors that feed the trafficking industry are illegal services. Trafficked victims are used to smuggle drugs, prostitution, and aid in illegal transfers. 

4. Prescription Drug Abuse

1. Should doctors be penalized when their patients abuse prescription drugs? I think doctors should keep an eye on refillable prescriptions, and track how many refills are being used. Not always, but some times you can tell prescription drugs are being used for something other than for what prescribed solely on an unusual amount of refills. However, it is not to forget that the Doctor should not be blamed for a patients actions. They are not responsible if someone abuses their power. Its the same way the government isn't blamed for drunk driving just because they allow people to have cars. 
2. Should commonly abused prescription drugs be pulled off the market? Why or why not? I think they should only be pulled of the market if there is a substitute drug that could still be prescribed for the patients who actually need the drugs for medical reasons. Pulling a drug off the market when there is no effective substitute for behaving patients could be very detrimental. 
3. What pharmacy regulations should be implemented to prevent prescription drug abuse? I think i wrote about this pretty much already in the other questions, but ill restate it. I think doctors should keep an eye on refillable prescriptions, and track how many refills are being used. Drugs should only be pulled of the market if there is a substitute drug that could still be prescribed for the patients who actually need the drugs for medical reasons. I think we also need a policy where patience who are at risk of abusing drugs are only allowed to refill prescriptions at one chosen pharmacy. 

5. Distracted Driving

1. What distracted driving activities have you observed? What makes these activities dangerous? I have not seen drunk driving activities in the moment, but i have seen large crashes on Hylan Blvd that have resulted from drunk driving. Ive seen cars being destroyed from accidents and families mourning over lost loved ones. Its really an eye opener on how dengerous these activities can be because you only need to be distracted for a few seconds for something detrimental to occur. 
2. Should texting while driving be a primary offense with severe penalties? Why or why not? Many people would disagree with me but I disagree with this. I think people who text while driving are uneducated on the things that can happen, some times people need to feel pain to know how to avoid it. What I mean by this is, law punishment isnt really going to educate drivers to put down their phone. The approach needs to be more personal, something that can make people feel in their gut how horrible it would be to lose someone they love from such a silly action. 
3. Should cell phone use while driving be banned? Why or why not? I think cell phone use while driving should be banned unless you are using a hands free device. Most accidents occur when people are looking directly at their phones for a few moments. People should be allowed to make calls if they have a bluetooth ear device or a car system for making calls. I prefer the car systems because they only allow you to make calls when the car isnt moving.